Before our white brothers came to civilize us we had no jails. therefore we had no criminals. you can’t have criminals without a jail. we had no locks or keys, and so we had no thieves. if a man was so poor that he had no horse, tipi or blanket, someone gave him these things. we were to uncivilized to set much value on personal belongings. we wanted to have things only in order to give them away. we had no money, and therefore a man’s worth couldn’t be measured by it. we had no written law, no attorneys or politicians, therefore we couldn’t cheat. we really were in a bad way before the white men came, and i don’t know how we managed to get along without these basic things which, we are told, are absolutely necessary to make a civilized society."

“[the city’s engineers excelled in areas] neglected by the greeks, such as the construction of roads and aqueducts, and of sewers that could wash the filth of the city into the tiber. they have built paved roads throughout the country, leveling ridges and filling up hollows, so as to make possible the movements of heavily loaded wagons. . and such is the quantity of water brought in by the aqueducts, that veritable rivers flow through the city and its sewers: almost every house has cisterns, waterpipes, and copious fountains.” —strabo, as quoted in empires ascendant: time frame 400 b. c.–a. d. 200 cisterns are tanks that hold water until it is needed; if a house has a cistern, it is likely to also have a. aqueducts. c. a swimming pool. b. a fish pond. d. sinks and faucets.