pression.
There are besides no water reservoirs inside the wall of the arx. This
supply of water, however, failed, and it must have failed rather early
in the city's history, perhaps at about the time the lower part of the
city was walled in, for the great reservoir on the Corso terrace seems
to be contemporary with this second wall.

But at all times Praeneste was dependent upon reservoirs for a sure and
lasting supply of water. The mountain and the town were famous because
of the number of water reservoirs there.[81] A great many of these
reservoirs were dependent upon catchings from the rain,[82] but before
a war, or when the rainfall was scant, they were filled undoubtedly from
springs outside the city. In later times they were connected with the
aqueducts which came to the city from beyond Capranica.

It is easy to account now for the number of gates on the east side of
the city. True, this side of the wall lay away from the Campagna, and
egress from gates on this side could not be seen by an enemy unless he
moved clear across the front of the city.[83] But the real reason for
the presence of so many gates is that the best and most copious springs
were on this side of the city, as well as the course of the little
headstream of the Trerus. The best concealed egress was from the Porta
Cesareo, from which a road led round back of the mountain to a fine
spring, which was high enough above the valley to be quite safe.

There are no references in literature to aqueducts which brought water
to Praeneste. Were we left to this evidence alone, we should conclude
that Praeneste had depended upon reservoirs for water. But in
inscriptions we have mention of baths,[84] the existence of which
implies aqueducts, and there is the specus of an aqueduct to be seen
outside the Porta S. Francesco.[85] This ran across to the Colle S.
Martino to supply a large brick reservoir of imperial date.[86] There
were aqueducts still in 1437, for Cardinal Vitelleschi captured
Palestrina by cutting off its water supply.[87] This shows that the
water came from outside the city, and through aqueducts which probably
dated back to Roman times,[88] and also that the reservoirs were at this
time no longer used. In 1581 the city undertook to restore the old
aqueduct which brought water from back of Capranica, but no description
was left of its exact course or ancient construction.[89] While these
repairs were in progress, Francesco Cecconi leased to the