The social vices of Asia found place in Rome and while heretofore only the foreign women were of evil character, at the time of the empire the citizen-women entered into the life, and in 19 A. D. even a woman of prætorian birth registered herself at the ædile's as a prostitute. This created quite a feeling at Rome and a decree was made by the Senate that any woman whose grandfather, father, or husband had been a knight should not be enrolled as a public woman. The public life of the times, too, tended toward the lowering of the standard of women. The circus, the theater, and the amphitheater were open to them and they attended in great numbers and witnessed the indecent and obscene acts and the debasing fights and slaughters. It became the fashion for women even of the highest rank to interest themselves in the actors, athletes, circus-drivers, gladiators, stage-singers, vocalists, and musicians, and often going into excesses. Pantomime dancers were the favorites with the women as they "were very beautiful young men, whose art lent them fresh grace. About 22 or 23 A. D. they were banished from Italy, on account of the factions they caused, and their relations with women, who must have been of high rank, otherwise no such ordinance would have been passed."[184] Also there were the banquets, which gave further opportunities for the meeting of the women with the men. With their obscene songs and dances and stories added to enflaming food and drinks, they helped to debase women and to arouse their passions. =Marriage.= In the earlier days of Rome, when religion was purer than in later times, and children were desired to perpetuate the household religion, celibacy was looked upon as an undesired state and deserving censure; but in later times, when high moral and religious tendencies went down, childlessness was preferred to parenthood and celibacy to marriage. Marriage was a very important affair as it meant the bringing of a stranger into the household to enter into the family worship, to take part in the sacrifices to the household gods, the deities which presided over the welfare of that particular family. Thus it was a solemn obligation and one which deserved careful consideration. Up to the time of Augustus, there were no laws in regard to marriage, except as to the disposition of the dowries, as previous to that time it was deemed essentially a private transaction.