A Study in the Economic Condition of Ancient India c3.2

c3.2

Side by side with these questions, other subjects of inquiry call for full and impartial investigation. What was the form of the political and administrative organization in ancient India? Was India, or any part thereof, under a democratic or republican system of government, or did the conditions resemble more the feudal organization of mediaeval Europe? What were the relations between the rulers and the landowners, and between the landowners and their tenants? What was the social status of the ruling classes, and of the labouring orders? What, again, was the economic condition of the lower grades of society? Was the standard of living of the labouring classes high or low? And to form any definite opinion on this question it is essential first of all to ascertain the rates of wages paid and the prices of the common foodstuffs.