SUMPTUARY LAWS, laws intended to repress extravagance, especially in eating and drinking, and in dress. They were common in ancient times, and also appear in the old statute books of most modern nations. They were more fre quently enacted in ancient Rome than in Greece. After the Twelve Tables, the first Roman sumptuary law was the Lex Oppia (215 B. C.), directed exclusively against female extravagance in dress, jewelry, etc. The other Roman laws of this kind were nearly all designed to suppress extravagance in entertainment. The Lex Julia (Julian Law), the last sumptuary law, was passed in the reign of Augustus. Sumptuary laws were re vived by Charlemagne, and in France va rious laws and decrees of a similar na ture were passed down to the reign of Louis XV. In England these laws were passed from the reign of Edward III. down to the time of the Reformation. Most of them were repealed by an act of James I., but they were not all expunged from the statute book till 1856. Sumptu
ary laws were also passed by the ancient Scotch legislature, but they were all re pealed, evaded, or neglected. As late as 1883 in Montenegro strong laws were passed against gloves, umbrellas, and non national costumes. Neither in England, Scotland, nor France do sumptuary laws appear to have been practically observed to any great extent. During the World War nearly all the countries engaged en acted sumptuary laws of some descrip tion. The most drastic of these were aimed at the liquor traffic. Russia put absolute prohibition into effect, and other countries greatly restricted the manu facture aud consumption of liquors. The most remarkable sumptuary legislation put into effect was the 18th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States, forbidding the manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors. See PROHIBITION.