,history of                             
,european ,morals                       
,from ,augustus to ,charlemagne         
,by                       ,william      
,edward ,hartpole ,lecky1 ,m4,a4        
,ninth ,edition                         
,in ,two ,volumes                       
,vol4 #b4                               
,london                                 
,longmans1 ,green1 ,and ,co4            
#ahij            ,,contents             
,chapter ,,iv4 ,from ,constantine ,to   
,charlemagne4  ,chapter ,v4 ,the        
,position ,of ,women4  ,index4          
,footnotes              ,,chapter ,,iv4 
,,from ,,constantine ,,to ,,charlemagne4
      ,having in the last chapter given 
a brief1 but ,i trust not altogether    
indistinct1 account of the causes that  
ensured the triumph of ,christianity  in
 ,rome1 and of the character of the     
opposition it overcame1 ,i proceed to   
examine the nature of the moral ideal   
the new religion introduced1 and  also  
the methods by which it attempted to    

realise it4 ,and at the very  outset of 
this enquiry it is necessary to guard   
against a serious error4  ,it is common 
with many persons to establish a        
comparison between  ,christianity and   
,paganism1 by placing the teaching of   
the ,christians in  juxtaposition with  
corresponding passages from the writings
 of ,marcus  ,aurelius or ,seneca1 and  
to regard the superiority of the        
,christian over  the philosophical      
teaching as a complete measure of the   
moral advance that  was effected by     
,christianity4 ,but a moment's          
reflection is sufficient to  display the
 injustice of such a conclusion4 ,the   
ethics of ,paganism were  part of a     
philosophy4 ,the ethics of ,christianity
 were part of a religion4  ,the first   
were the speculations of a few highly   
cultivated individuals and  neither had 
nor could have had any direct influence 
upon the masses of  mankind4 ,the second
 were indissolubly connected with the   
worship1 hopes1  and fears of a vast    

religious system1 that acts at least as 
powerfully on  the most ignorant as on  
the most educated4 ,the chief objects of
 ,pagan  religions were to foretell the 
future1 to explain the universe1 to     
avert  calamity1 to obtain the          
assistance of the gods4 ,they contained 
no  instruments of moral teaching       
analogous to our institution of         
preaching1  or to the moral preparation 
for the reception of the sacrament1 or  
to  confession1 or to the reading of the
 ,bible1 or to religious education1 or  
to united prayer for spiritual benefits4
 ,to make men virtuous was no more  the 
function of the priest than of the      
physician4 ,on the other hand1 the      
philosophic expositions of duty were    
wholly unconnected with the religious   
ceremonies of the temple4 ,to amalgamate
 these two spheres1 to incorporate      
moral culture with religion1 and thus to
 enlist in behalf of the former  that   
desire to enter1 by means of ceremonial 
observances1 into direct  communication 

with ,heaven1 which experience has shown
 to be one of the  most universal and   
powerful passions of mankind1 was among 
the most  important achievements of     
,christianity4 ,something had1 no doubt1
 been  already attempted in this        
direction4 ,philosophy1 in the hands of 
the  rhetoricians1 had become more      
popular4 ,the ,pythagoreans enjoined    
religious  ceremonies for the purpose of
 purifying the mind1 and expiatory rites
 were  common1 especially in the        
,oriental religions4 ,but it was the    
distinguishing characteristic of        
,christianity that its moral influence  
was  not indirect1 casual1 remote1 or   
spasmodic4 ,unlike all ,pagan religions1
 it  made moral teaching a main function
 of its clergy1 moral discipline the    
leading object of its services1 moral   
dispositions the necessary condition  of
 the due performance of its rites4 ,by  
the pulpit1 by its ceremonies1 by  all  
the agencies of power it possessed1 it  
laboured systematically and             

perseveringly for the regeneration of   
mankind4 ,under its influence1          
doctrines concerning the nature of ,god1
 the immortality of the soul1 and  the  
duties of man1 which the noblest        
intellects of antiquity could barely    
grasp1 have become the truisms of the   
village school1 the proverbs of the     
cottage and of the alley4    ,but       
neither the beauty of its sacred        
writings1 nor the perfection of its     
religious services1 could have achieved 
this great result without the           
introduction of new motives to virtue4  
,these may be either interested or      
disinterested1 and in both spheres the  
influence of ,christianity was very     
great4 ,in the first1 it effected a     
complete revolution by its teaching     
concerning the future world and         
concerning the nature of sin4 ,the      
doctrine  of a future life was far too  
vague among the ,pagans to exercise any 
powerful general influence1 and among   
the philosophers who clung to it  most  

ardently it was regarded solely in the  
light of a consolation4  ,christianity  
made it a deterrent influence of the    
strongest kind4 ,in  addition to the    
doctrines of eternal suffering1 and the 
lost condition of  the human race1 the  
notion of a minute personal retribution 
must be  regarded as profoundly         
original4 ,that the commission of great 
crimes1 or  the omission of great       
duties1 may be expiated hereafter1 was  
indeed an  idea familiar to the ,pagans1
 though it exercised little influence   
over  their lives1 and seldom or never  
produced1 even in the case of the worst 
criminals1 those scenes of deathbed     
repentance which are so conspicuous in  
,christian biographies4 ,but the        
,christian notion of the enormity of    
little  sins1 the belief that all the   
details of life will be scrutinised     
hereafter1 that weaknesses of character 
and petty infractions of duty1 of  which
 the historian and the biographer take  
no note1 which have no  perceptible     

influence upon society1 and which       
scarcely elicit a comment  among        
mankind1 may be made the grounds of     
eternal condemnation beyond the  grave1 
was altogether unknown to the ancients1 
and1 at a time when it  possessed all   
the freshness of novelty1 it was well   
fitted to transform  the character4 ,the
 eye of the ,pagan philosopher was ever 
fixed upon  virtue1 the eye of the      
,christian teacher upon sin4 ,they first
 sought to  amend men by extolling the  
beauty of holiness2 the second by       
awakening the  sentiment of remorse4    
,each method had its excellences and its
 defects4  ,philosophy was admirably    
fitted to dignify and ennoble1 but      
altogether  impotent to regenerate1     
mankind4 ,it did much to encourage      
virtue1 but  little or nothing to       
restrain vice4 ,a relish or taste for   
virtue was  formed and cultivated1 which
 attracted many to its practice2 but in 
this1  as in the case of all our other  
higher tastes1 a nature that was once   

thoroughly vitiated became altogether   
incapable of appreciating it1 and  the  
transformation of such a nature1 which  
was continually effected by             
,christianity1 was confessedly beyond   
the power of philosophy47#a7            
,experience has abundantly shown that   
men who are wholly insensible to the    
beauty and dignity of virtue1 can be    
convulsed by the fear of judgment1  can 
be even awakened to such a genuine      
remorse for sin as to reverse the       
current of their dispositions1 detach   
them from the most inveterate  habits1  
and renew the whole tenor of their      
lives4    ,but the habit of dilating    
chiefly on the darker side of human     
nature1  while it has contributed much  
to the regenerating efficacy of         
,christian  teaching1 has not been      
without its disadvantages4 ,habitually  
measuring  character by its aberrations1
 theologians1 in their estimates of     
those  strong and passionate natures in 
which great virtues are balanced by     

great  failings1 have usually fallen    
into a signal injustice1 which is the   
more  inexcusable1 because in their own 
writings the ,psalms of ,david are a    
conspicuous proof of what a noble1      
tender1 and passionate nature could     
survive1 even in an adulterer and a     
murderer4 ,partly1 too1 through this    
habit of operating through the sense of 
sin1 and partly from a desire to  show  
that man is in an abnormal and          
dislocated condition1 they have         
continually propounded distorted and    
degrading views of human nature1 have   
represented it as altogether under the  
empire of evil1 and have sometimes      
risen to such a height of extravagance  
as to pronounce the very virtues of  the
 heathen to be of the nature of sin4    
,but nothing can be more certain  than  
that that which is exceptional and      
distinctive in human nature is not  its 
vice1 but its excellence4 ,it is not the
 sensuality1 cruelty1  selfishness1     
passion1 or envy1 which are all         

displayed in equal or greater  degrees  
in different departments of the animal  
world2 it is that moral  nature which   
enables man apparently1 alone of all    
created beings1 to  classify his        
emotions1 to oppose the current of his  
desires1 and to aspire  after moral     
perfection4 ,nor is it less certain that
 in civilised1 and  therefore developed 
man1 the good greatly preponderates over
 the evil4  ,benevolence is more common 
than cruelty2 the sight of suffering    
more  readily produces pity than joy2   
gratitude1 not ingratitude1 is the      
normal  result of a conferred benefit4  
,the sympathies of man naturally follow 
heroism and goodness1 and vice itself is
 usually but an exaggeration or         
distortion of tendencies that are in    
their own nature perfectly innocent4    
,but these exaggerations of human       
depravity1 which have attained their    
extreme limits in some ,protestant      
sects1 do not appear in the ,church of  
the first three centuries4 ,the sense of

 sin was not yet accompanied by a       
denial of the goodness that exists in   
man4 ,christianity was regarded  rather 
as a redemption from error than from    
sin17#b7 and it is a  significant fact  
that the epithet 8well deserving10 which
 the ,pagans  usually put upon their    
tombs1 was also the favourite           
inscription in the  ,christian          
catacombs4 ,the ,pelagian controversy1  
the teaching of ,st4  ,augustine1 and   
the progress of asceticism1 gradually   
introduced the  doctrine of the utter   
depravity of man1 which has proved in   
later times  the fertile source of      
degrading superstition4    ,in          
sustaining and defining the notion of   
sin1 the early ,church employed  the    
machinery of an elaborate legislation4  
,constant communion with the  ,church   
was regarded as of the very highest     
importance4 ,participation in  the      
,sacrament was believed to be essential 
to eternal life4 ,at a very  early      
period it was given to infants1 and     

already in the time of ,st4  ,cyprian we
 find the practice universal in the     
,church1 and pronounced by at  least    
some of the ,fathers to be ordinarily   
necessary to their  salvation47#c7      
,among the adults it was customary to   
receive the ,sacrament  daily1 in some  
churches four times a week47#d7 ,even in
 the days of  persecution the only part 
of their service the ,christians        
consented to  omit was the half-secular 
agape47#e7 ,the clergy had power to     
accord or  withhold access to the       
ceremonies1 and the reverence with which
 they were  regarded was so great that  
they were able to dictate their own     
conditions  of communion4    ,from these
 circumstances there very naturally     
arose a vast system of moral            
discipline4 ,it was always acknowledged 
that men could only rightly  approach   
the sacred table in certain moral       
dispositions1 and it was very  soon     
added that the commission of crimes     
should be expiated by a period of       

penance1 before access to the communion 
was granted4 ,a multitude of  offences1 
of very various degrees of magnitude1   
such as prolonged  abstinence from      
religious services1 prenuptial          
unchastity1 prostitution1  adultery1 the
 adoption of the profession of gladiator
 or actor1 idolatry1  the betrayal of   
,christians to persecutors1 and         
paiderastia or unnatural  love1 were    
specified1 to each of which a definite  
spiritual penalty was  annexed4 ,the    
lowest penalty consisted of deprivation 
of the ,eucharist for  a few weeks4     
,more serious offenders were deprived of
 it for a year1 or for  ten years1 or   
until the hour of death1 while in some  
cases the sentence  amounted to the     
greater excommunication1 or the         
deprivation of the  ,eucharist for ever4
 ,during the period of penance the      
penitent was  compelled to abstain from 
the marriage-bed1 and from all other    
pleasures1  and to spend his time       
chiefly in religious exercises4 ,before 

he was  readmitted to communion1 he was 
accustomed publicly1 before the         
assembled  ,christians1 to appear clad  
in sackcloth1 with ashes strewn upon his
 head1  with his hair shaven off1 and   
thus to throw himself at the feet of the
  minister1 to confess aloud his sins1  
and to implore the favour of            
absolution4 ,the excommunicated man was 
not only cut off for ever from the      
,christian rites2 he was severed also   
from all intercourse with his former    
friends4 ,no ,christian1 on pain of     
being himself excommunicated1 might eat 
with him or speak with him4 ,he must    
live hated and alone in this world1  and
 be prepared for damnation in the       
next47#f7    ,this system of            
legislation1 resting upon religious     
terrorism1 forms one of  the most       
important parts of early ecclesiastical 
history1 and a leading  object of the   
,councils was to develop or modify it4  
,although confession  was not yet an    
habitual and universally obligatory     

rite1 although it was  only exacted in  
cases of notorious sins1 it is manifest 
that we have in  this system1 not       
potentially or in germ1 but in full     
developed activity1  an ecclesiastical  
despotism of the most crushing order4   
,but although this  recognition of the  
right of the clergy to withhold from men
 what was  believed to be essential to  
their salvation1 laid the foundation of 
the  worst superstitions of ,rome1 it   
had1 on the other hand1 a very valuable 
moral effect4 ,every system of law is a 
system of education1 for it fixes  in   
the minds of men certain conceptions of 
right and wrong1 and of the             
proportionate enormity of different     
crimes2 and no legislation was  enforced
 with more solemnity1 or appealed more  
directly to the religious  feelings1    
than the penitential discipline of the  
,church4 ,more than1  perhaps1 any other
 single agency1 it confirmed that       
conviction of the  enormity of sin1 and 
of the retribution that follows it1     

which was one of  the two great levers  
by which ,christianity acted upon       
mankind4    ,but if ,christianity was   
remarkable for its appeals to the       
selfish or  interested side of our      
nature1 it was far more remarkable for  
the empire  it attained over            
disinterested enthusiasm4 ,the          
,platonist exhorted men to  imitate     
,god2 the ,stoic1 to follow reason2 the 
,christian1 to the love of  ,christ4    
,the later ,stoics had often united     
their notions of excellence in  an ideal
 sage1 and ,epictetus had even urged his
 disciples to set before  them some man 
of surpassing excellence1 and to imagine
 him continually  near them2 but the    
utmost the ,stoic ideal could become was
 a model for  imitation1 and the        
admiration it inspired could never      
deepen into  affection4 ,it was reserved
 for ,christianity to present to the    
world an  ideal character1 which through
 all the changes of eighteen centuries  
has  inspired the hearts of men with an 

impassioned love2 has shown itself      
capable of acting on all ages1 nations1 
temperaments1 and conditions2 has  been 
not only the highest pattern of virtue  
but the strongest incentive to  its     
practice2 and has exercised so deep an  
influence that it may be truly  said    
that the simple record of three short   
years of active life has done  more to  
regenerate and to soften mankind than   
all the disquisitions of  philosophers1 
and all the exhortations of moralists4  
,this has indeed been  the well-spring  
of whatever is best and purest in the   
,christian life4 ,amid  all the sins and
 failings1 amid all the priestcraft and 
persecution and  fanaticism that have   
defaced the ,church1 it has preserved1  
in the  character and example of its    
,founder1 an enduring principle of      
regeneration4 ,perfect love knows no    
rights4 ,it creates a boundless1        
uncalculating self-abnegation that      
transforms the character1 and is the    
parent of every virtue4 ,side by side   

with the terrorism and the              
superstitions of dogmatism1 there have  
ever existed in ,christianity those  who
 would echo the wish of ,st4 ,theresa1  
that she could blot out both  heaven and
 hell1 to serve ,god for ,himself alone2
 and the power of the love  of ,christ  
has been displayed alike in the most    
heroic pages of ,christian  martyrdom1  
in the most pathetic pages of ,christian
 resignation1 in the  tenderest pages of
 ,christian charity4 ,it was shown by   
the martyrs who sank  beneath the fangs 
of wild beasts1 extending to the last   
moment their arms  in the form of the   
cross they loved27#g7 who ordered their 
chains to be  buried with them as the   
insignia of their warfare27#h7 who      
looked with joy  upon their ghastly     
wounds1 because they had been received  
for ,christ27#i7  who welcomed death as 
the bridegroom welcomes the bride1      
because it would  bring them near to    
,him4 ,st4 ,felicitas was seized with   
the pangs of  childbirth as she lay in  

prison awaiting the hour of martyrdom1  
and as her  sufferings extorted from her
 a cry1 one who stood by said1 8,if you 
now  suffer so much1 what will it be    
when you are thrown to wild beasts80    
8,what  ,i now suffer10 she answered1   
8concerns myself alone2 but then another
 will  suffer for me1 for ,i will then  
suffer for ,him407#aj7 ,when ,st4       
,melania had  lost both her husband and 
her two sons1 kneeling by the bed where 
the  remains of those she loved were    
laid1 the childless widow exclaimed1    
8,lord1 ,i shall serve ,thee more humbly
 and readily for being eased of the     
weight ,thou hast taken from me407#aa7  
,christian virtue was described by ,st4 
,augustine as 8the order of  love407#ab7
 ,those who know how imperfectly the    
simple sense of duty can  with most men 
resist the energy of the passions2 who  
have observed how  barren ,mohammedanism
 has been in all the higher and more    
tender virtues1  because its noble      
morality and its pure theism have been  

united with no  living example2 who1    
above all1 have traced through the      
history of the  ,christian ,church the  
influence of the love of ,christ1 will  
be at no loss  to estimate the value of 
this purest and most distinctive source 
of  ,christian enthusiasm4 ,in one      
respect we can scarcely realise its     
effects  upon the early ,church4 ,the   
sense of the fixity of natural laws is  
now so  deeply implanted in the minds of
 men1 that no truly educated person1    
whatever may be his religious opinions1 
seriously believes that all the  more   
startling phenomena around him--storms1 
earthquakes1 invasions1 or  famines--are
 results of isolated acts of            
supernatural power1 and are  intended to
 affect some human interest4 ,but by the
 early ,christians all  these things    
were directly traced to the ,master they
 so dearly loved4 ,the  result of this  
conviction was a state of feeling we can
 now barely  understand4 ,a great poet1 
in lines which are among the noblest in 

,english  literature1 has spoken of one 
who had died as united to the           
all-pervading  soul of nature1 the      
grandeur and the tenderness1 the beauty 
and the  passion of his being blending  
with the kindred elements of the        
universe1  his voice heard in all its   
melodies1 his spirit a presence to be   
felt and  known1 a part of the one      
plastic energy that permeates and       
animates the  globe4 ,something of this 
kind1 but of a far more vivid and real  
character1  was the belief of the early 
,christian world4 ,the universe1 to     
them1 was  transfigured by love4 ,all   
its phenomena1 all its catastrophes1    
were read  in a new light1 were endued  
with a new significance1 acquired a     
religious  sanctity4 ,christianity      
offered a deeper consolation than any   
prospect of  endless life1 or of        
millennial glories4 ,it taught the      
weary1 the  sorrowing1 and the lonely1  
to look up to heaven and to say1 8,thou1
 ,god1  carest for me40    ,it is not   

surprising that a religious system which
 made it a main object  to inculcate    
moral excellence1 and which by its      
doctrine of future  retribution1 by its 
organisation1 and by its capacity of    
producing a  disinterested enthusiasm1  
acquired an unexampled supremacy over   
the human  mind1 should have raised its 
disciples to a very high condition of   
sanctity4 ,there can1 indeed1 be little 
doubt that1 for nearly two hundred      
years after its establishment in        
,europe1 the ,christian community       
exhibited  a moral purity which1 if it  
has been equalled1 has never for any    
long  period been surpassed4 ,completely
 separated from the ,roman world that   
was  around them1 abstaining alike from 
political life1 from appeals to the     
tribunals1 and from military            
occupations2 looking forward continually
 to  the immediate advent of their      
,master1 and the destruction of the     
,empire in  which they dwelt1 and       
animated by all the fervour of a young  

religion1 the  ,christians found within 
themselves a whole order of ideas and   
feelings  sufficiently powerful to guard
 them from the contamination of their   
age4  ,in their general bearing towards 
society1 and in the nature and          
minuteness  of their scruples1 they     
probably bore a greater resemblance to  
the ,quakers  than to any other existing
 sect47#ac7 ,some serious signs of moral
 decadence  might1 indeed1 be detected  
even before the ,decian persecution2 and
 it was  obvious that the triumph of the
 ,church1 by introducing numerous       
nominal  ,christians into its pale1 by  
exposing it to the temptations of wealth
 and  prosperity1 and by forcing it into
 connection with secular politics1 must 
have damped its zeal and impaired its   
purity2 yet few persons1 ,i think1  who 
had contemplated ,christianity as it    
existed in the first three  centuries   
would have imagined it possible that it 
should completely  supersede the ,pagan 
worship around it2 that its teachers    

should bend the  mightiest monarchs to  
their will1 and stamp their influence on
 every page  of legislation1 and direct 
the whole course of civilisation for a  
thousand  years2 and yet that the period
 in which they were so supreme should   
have  been one of the most contemptible 
in history4    ,the leading features of 
that period may be shortly told4 ,from  
the death of  ,marcus ,aurelius1 about  
which time ,christianity assumed an     
important  influence in the ,roman      
world1 the decadence of the ,empire was 
rapid and  almost uninterrupted4 ,the   
first ,christian emperor transferred his
 capital  to a new city1 uncontaminated 
by the traditions and the glories of    
,paganism2 and he there founded an      
,empire which derived all its ethics    
from  ,christian sources1 and which     
continued in existence for about eleven 
hundred years4 ,of that ,byzantine      
,empire the universal verdict of history
  is that it constitutes1 with scarcely 
an exception1 the most thoroughly  base 

and despicable form that civilisation   
has yet assumed4 ,though very  cruel and
 very sensual1 there have been times    
when cruelty assumed more  ruthless1 and
 sensuality more extravagant1 aspects2  
but there has been no  other enduring   
civilisation so absolutely destitute of 
all the forms and  elements of          
greatness1 and none to which the epithet
 mean may be so  emphatically applied4  
,the ,byzantine ,empire was             
pre-eminently the age of  treachery4    
,its vices were the vices of men who had
 ceased to be brave  without learning to
 be virtuous4 ,without patriotism1      
without the fruition  or desire of      
liberty1 after the first paroxysms of   
religious agitation1  without genius or 
intellectual activity2 slaves1 and      
willing slaves1 in  both their actions  
and their thoughts1 immersed in         
sensuality and in the  most frivolous   
pleasures1 the people only emerged from 
their listlessness  when some           
theological subtilty1 or some rivalry in

 the chariot races1  stimulated them    
into frantic riots4 ,they exhibited all 
the externals of  advanced civilisation4
 ,they possessed knowledge2 they had    
continually  before them the noble      
literature of ancient ,greece1 instinct 
with the  loftiest heroism2 but that    
literature1 which afterwards did so much
 to  revivify ,europe1 could fire the   
degenerate ,greeks with no spark or     
semblance of nobility4 ,the history of  
the ,empire is a monotonous story of    
the intrigues of priests1 eunuchs1 and  
women1 of poisonings1 of  conspiracies1 
of uniform ingratitude1 of perpetual    
fratricides4 ,after the  conversion of  
,constantine there was no prince in any 
section of the ,roman  ,empire          
altogether so depraved1 or at least so  
shameless1 as ,nero or  ,heliogabalus2  
but the ,byzantine ,empire can show none
 bearing the faintest  resemblance to   
,antonine or ,marcus ,aurelius1 while   
the nearest  approximation to that      
character at ,rome was furnished by the 

,emperor  ,julian1 who contemptuously   
abandoned the ,christian faith4 ,at last
 the  ,mohammedan invasion terminated   
the long decrepitude of the ,eastern    
,empire4  ,constantinople sank beneath  
the ,crescent1 its inhabitants wrangling
 about  theological differences to the  
very moment of their fall4    ,the      
,asiatic ,churches had already perished4
 ,the ,christian faith1 planted in  the 
dissolute cities of ,asia ,minor1 had   
produced many fanatical ascetics  and a 
few illustrious theologians1 but it had 
no renovating effect upon  the people at
 large4 ,it introduced among them a     
principle of interminable  and          
implacable dissension1 but it scarcely  
tempered in any appreciable  degree     
their luxury or their sensuality4 ,the  
frenzy of pleasure continued  unabated1 
and in a great part of the ,empire it   
seemed1 indeed1 only to  have attained  
its climax after the triumph of         
,christianity4    ,the condition of the 
,western ,empire was somewhat different4

 ,not quite a  century after the        
conversion of ,constantine1 the         
,imperial city was  captured by ,alaric1
 and a long series of barbarian         
invasions at last  dissolved the whole  
framework of ,roman society1 while the  
barbarians  themselves1 having adopted  
the ,christian faith and submitted      
absolutely to  the ,christian priests1  
the ,church1 which remained the guardian
 of all the  treasures of antiquity1 was
 left with a virgin soil to realise her 
ideal  of human excellence4 ,nor did she
 fall short of what might have been     
expected4 ,she exercised for many       
centuries an almost absolute empire over
  the thoughts and actions of mankind1  
and created a civilisation which was    
permeated in every part with            
ecclesiastical influence4 ,and the dark 
ages1  as the period of ,catholic       
ascendancy is justly called1 do         
undoubtedly  display many features of   
great and genuine excellence4 ,in active
  benevolence1 in the spirit of         

reverence1 in loyalty1 in co-operative  
habits1 they far transcend the noblest  
ages of ,pagan antiquity1 while in  that
 humanity which shrinks from the        
infliction of suffering1 they were      
superior to ,roman1 and in their respect
 for chastity1 to ,greek  civilisation4 
,on the other hand1 they rank           
immeasurably below the best  ,pagan     
civilisations in civic and patriotic    
virtues1 in the love of  liberty1 in the
 number and splendour of the great      
characters they  produced1 in the       
dignity and beauty of the type of       
character they formed4  ,they had their 
full share of tumult1 anarchy1          
injustice1 and war1 and they  should    
probably be placed1 in all intellectual 
virtues1 lower than any  other period in
 the history of mankind4 ,a boundless   
intolerance of all  divergence of       
opinion was united with an equally      
boundless toleration of  all falsehood  
and deliberate fraud that could favour  
received opinions4  ,credulity being    

taught as a virtue1 and all conclusions 
dictated by  authority1 a deadly torpor 
sank upon the human mind1 which for many
  centuries almost suspended its action1
 and was only effectually broken by  the
 scrutinising1 innovating1 and          
free-thinking habits that accompanied   
the rise of the industrial republics in 
,italy4 ,few men who are not either     
priests or monks would not have         
preferred to live in the best days of   
the  ,athenian or of the ,roman         
republics1 in the age of ,augustus or in
 the age  of the ,antonines1 rather than
 in any period that elapsed between the 
triumph of ,christianity and the        
fourteenth century4    ,it is1 indeed1  
difficult to conceive any clearer proof 
than was furnished  by the history of   
the twelve hundred years after the      
conversion of  ,constantine1 that while 
theology has undoubtedly introduced into
 the world  certain elements and        
principles of good1 scarcely if at all  
known to  antiquity1 while its value as 

a tincture or modifying influence in    
society  can hardly be overrated1 it is 
by no means for the advantage of mankind
  that1 in the form which the ,greek and
 ,catholic ,churches present1 it should 
become a controlling arbiter of         
civilisation4 ,it is often said that the
  ,roman world before ,constantine was  
in a period of rapid decay2 that the    
traditions and vitality of              
half-suppressed ,paganism account for   
many of  the aberrations of later times2
 that the influence of the ,church was  
often  rather nominal and superficial   
than supreme2 and that1 in judging the  
ignorance of the dark ages1 we must make
 large allowance for the  dislocations  
of society by the barbarians4 ,in all   
this there is much  truth2 but when we  
remember that in the ,byzantine ,empire 
the renovating  power of theology was   
tried in a new capital free from ,pagan 
traditions1  and for more than one      
thousand years unsubdued by barbarians1 
and that in  the ,west the ,church1 for 

at least seven hundred years after the  
shocks of  the invasions had subsided1  
exercised a control more absolute than  
any  other moral or intellectual agency 
has ever attained1 it will appear1 ,i   
think1 that the experiment was very     
sufficiently tried4 ,it is easy to make 
a catalogue of the glaring vices of     
antiquity1 and to contrast them with    
the pure morality of ,christian         
writings2 but1 if we desire to form a   
just  estimate of the realised          
improvement1 we must compare the        
classical and  ecclesiastical           
civilisations as wholes1 and must       
observe in each case not  only the vices
 that were repressed1 but also the      
degree and variety of  positive         
excellence attained4 ,in the first two  
centuries of the ,christian  ,church the
 moral elevation was extremely high1 and
 was continually  appealed to as a proof
 of the divinity of the creed4 ,in the  
century before  the conversion of       
,constantine1 a marked depression was   

already manifest4  ,the two centuries   
after ,constantine are uniformly        
represented by the  ,fathers as a period
 of general and scandalous vice4 ,the   
ecclesiastical  civilisation that       
followed1 though not without its        
distinctive merits1  assuredly supplies 
no justification of the common boast    
about the  regeneration of society by   
the ,church4 ,that the civilisation of  
the last  three centuries has risen in  
most respects to a higher level than any
 that  had preceded it1 ,i at least     
firmly believe2 but theological ethics1 
though  very important1 form but one of 
the many and complex elements of its    
excellence4 ,mechanical inventions1 the 
habits of industrial life1 the          
discoveries of physical science1 the    
improvements of government1 the         
expansion of literature1 the traditions 
of ,pagan antiquity1 have all a         
distinguished place1 while1 the more    
fully its history is investigated1  the 
more clearly two capital truths are     

disclosed4 ,the first is that the       
influence of theology having for        
centuries numbed and paralysed the whole
  intellect of ,christian ,europe1 the  
revival1 which forms the starting-point 
of our modern civilisation1 was mainly  
due to the fact that two spheres of     
intellect still remained uncontrolled by
 the sceptre of ,catholicism4 ,the      
,pagan literature of antiquity1 and the 
,mohammedan schools of science1 were    
the chief agencies in resuscitating the 
dormant energies of ,christendom4  ,the 
second fact1 which ,i have elsewhere    
endeavoured to establish in  detail1 is 
that during more than three centuries   
the decadence of  theological influence 
has been one of the most invariable     
signs and  measures of our progress4 ,in
 medicine1 physical science1 commercial 
interests1 politics1 and even ethics1   
the reformer has been confronted  with  
theological affirmations which barred   
his way1 which were all  defended as of 
vital importance1 and were all in turn  

compelled to yield  before the          
secularising influence of civilisation4 
,we have here1 then1 a problem of deep  
interest and importance1 which ,i       
propose to investigate in the present   
chapter4 ,we have to enquire why it  was
 that a religion which was not more     
remarkable for the beauty of its  moral 
teaching than for the power with which  
it acted upon mankind1 and  which during
 the last few centuries has been the    
source of countless  blessings to the   
world1 should have proved itself for so 
long a period1  and under such a variety
 of conditions1 altogether unable to    
regenerate  ,europe4 ,the question is   
not one of languid or imperfect action1 
but of  conflicting agencies4 ,in the   
vast and complex organism of            
,catholicity  there were some parts     
which acted with admirable force in     
improving and  elevating mankind4 ,there
 were others which had a directly       
opposite effect4    ,the first aspect in
 which ,christianity presented itself to

 the world was  as a declaration of the 
fraternity of men in ,christ4           
,considered as  immortal beings1        
destined for the extremes of happiness  
or of misery1 and  united to one another
 by a special community of redemption1  
the first and  most manifest duty of a  
,christian man was to look upon his     
fellow-men as  sacred beings1 and from  
this notion grew up the eminently       
,christian idea  of the sanctity of all 
human life4 ,i have already endeavoured 
to show--and  the fact is of such       
capital importance in meeting the common
 objections to  the reality of natural  
moral perceptions1 that ,i venture1 at  
the risk of  tediousness1 to recur to   
it--that nature does not tell man that  
it is wrong  to slay without provocation
 his fellow-men4 ,not to dwell upon     
those early  stages of barbarism in     
which the higher faculties of human     
nature are  still undeveloped1 and      
almost in the condition of embryo1 it is
 an  historical fact beyond all dispute1

 that refined1 and even moral societies 
have existed1 in which the slaughter of 
men of some particular class or  nation 
has been regarded with no more          
compunction than the slaughter of       
animals in the chase4 ,the early        
,greeks1 in their dealings with the     
barbarians2 the ,romans1 in their       
dealings with gladiators1 and in some   
periods of their history1 with slaves2  
the ,spaniards1 in their dealings  with 
,indians2 nearly all colonists removed  
from ,european supervision1 in  their   
dealings with an inferior race2 an      
immense proportion of the nations  of   
antiquity1 in their dealings with       
new-born infants1 display this  complete
 and absolute callousness1 and we may   
discover traces of it even  in our own  
islands and within the last three       
hundred years47#ad7 ,and  difficult as  
it may be to realise it in our day1 when
 the atrocity of all  wanton slaughter  
of men has become an essential part of  
our moral  feelings1 it is nevertheless 

an incontestable fact that this         
callousness  has been continually shown 
by good men1 by men who in all other    
respects  would be regarded in any age  
as conspicuous for their humanity4 ,in  
the  days of the ,tudors1 the best      
,englishmen delighted in what we should 
now  deem the most barbarous sports1 and
 it is absolutely certain that in       
antiquity men of genuine                
humanity--tender relations1 loving      
friends1  charitable neighbours--men in 
whose eyes the murder of a              
fellow-citizen  would have appeared as  
atrocious as in our own1 attended1      
instituted1 and  applauded gladiatorial 
games1 or counselled without a scruple  
the  exposition of infants4 ,but it is1 
as ,i conceive1 a complete confusion of 
thought to imagine1 as is so commonly   
done1 that any accumulation of facts  of
 this nature throws the smallest doubt  
upon the reality of innate moral        
perceptions4 ,all that the intuitive    
moralist asserts is that we know by     

nature that there is a distinction      
between humanity and cruelty2 that the  
first belongs to the higher or better   
part of our nature1 and that it is  our 
duty to cultivate it4 ,the standard of  
the age1 which is itself  determined by 
the general condition of society1       
constitutes the natural  line of duty2  
for he who falls below it contributes to
 depress it4 ,now1  there is no fact    
more absolutely certain than that       
nations and ages which  have differed   
most widely as to the standard have been
 perfectly unanimous  as to the         
excellence of humanity4 ,plato1 who     
recommended infanticide2  ,cato1 who    
sold his aged slaves2 ,pliny1 who       
applauded the games of the  arena2 the  
old generals1 who made their prisoners  
slaves or gladiators1 as  well as the   
modern generals1 who refuse to impose   
upon them any degrading  labour2 the old
 legislators1 who filled their codes    
with sentences of  torture1 mutilation1 
and hideous forms of death1 as well as  

the modern  legislators1 who are        
continually seeking to abridge the      
punishment of the  most guilty2 the old 
disciplinarian1 who governed by force1  
as well as the  modern instructor1 who  
governs by sympathy2 the ,spanish girl1 
whose dark  eye glows with rapture as   
she watches the frantic bull1 while the 
fire  streams from the explosive dart   
that quivers in its neck2 as well as the
  reformers we sometimes meet1 who are  
scandalised by all field sports1 or  by 
the sacrifice of animal life for food2  
or who will eat only the larger         
animals1 in order to reduce the         
sacrifice of life to a minimum2 or who  
are  continually inventing new methods  
of quickening animal death--all these   
persons1 widely as they differ in their 
acts and in their judgments of  what    
things should be called 8brutal10 and of
 what things should be called           
8fantastic10 agree in believing humanity
 to be better than cruelty1 and in      
attaching a definite condemnation to    

acts that fall below the standard of    
their country and their time4 ,now1 it  
was one of the most important  services 
of ,christianity1 that besides          
quickening greatly our benevolent       
affections it definitely and            
dogmatically asserted the sinfulness of 
all  destruction of human life as a     
matter of amusement1 or of simple       
convenience1 and thereby formed a new   
standard higher than any which then     
existed in the world4    ,the influence 
of ,christianity in this respect began  
with the very earliest  stage of human  
life4 ,the practice of abortion was one 
to which few persons  in antiquity      
attached any deep feeling of            
condemnation4 ,i have noticed in  a     
former chapter that the physiological   
theory that the ftus did not  become a  
living creature till the hour of birth1 
had some influence on the  judgments    
passed upon this practice2 and even     
where this theory was not  generally    
held1 it is easy to account for the     

prevalence of the act4 ,the  death of an
 unborn child does not appeal very      
powerfully to the feeling of            
compassion1 and men who had not yet     
attained any strong sense of the        
sanctity of human life1 who believed    
that they might regulate their  conduct 
on these matters by utilitarian views1  
according to the general  interest of   
the community1 might very readily       
conclude that the prevention  of birth  
was in many cases an act of mercy4 ,in  
,greece1 ,aristotle not only            
countenanced the practice1 but even     
desired that it should be enforced by   
law1 when population had exceeded       
certain assigned limits47#ae7 ,no law in
  ,greece1 or in the ,roman ,republic1  
or during the greater part of the       
,empire1 condemned it27#af7 and if1 as  
has been thought1 some measure was      
adopted condemnatory of it before the   
close of the ,pagan ,empire1 that       
measure was altogether inoperative4 ,a  
long chain of writers1 both ,pagan  and 

,christian1 represent the practice as   
avowed and almost universal4 ,they      
describe it as resulting1 not simply    
from licentiousness or from poverty1    
but even from so slight a motive as     
vanity1 which made mothers shrink from  
the disfigurement of childbirth4 ,they  
speak of a mother who had never         
destroyed her unborn offspring as       
deserving of signal praise1 and they    
assure us that the frequency of the     
crime was such that it gave rise to a   
regular profession4 ,at the same time1  
while ,ovid1 ,seneca1 ,favorinus the    
,stoic of ,arles1 ,plutarch1 and        
,juvenal1 all speak of abortion as      
general  and notorious1 they all speak  
of it as unquestionably criminal47#ag7  
,it was  probably regarded by the       
average ,romans of the later days of    
,paganism much  as ,englishmen in the   
last century regarded convivial         
excesses1 as  certainly wrong1 but so   
venial as scarcely to deserve censure4  
,the language of the ,christians from   

the very beginning was widely           
different4 ,with unwavering consistency 
and with the strongest emphasis1  they  
denounced the practice1 not simply as   
inhuman1 but as definitely  murder4 ,in 
the penitential discipline of the       
,church1 abortion was placed  in the    
same category as infanticide1 and the   
stern sentence to which the  guilty     
person was subject imprinted on the     
minds of ,christians1 more  deeply than 
any mere exhortations1 a sense of the   
enormity of the crime4  ,by the ,council
 of ,ancyra the guilty mother was       
excluded from the ,sacrament  till the  
very hour of death2 and though this     
penalty was soon reduced1  first to ten 
and afterwards to seven years'          
penitence17#ah7 the offence  still      
ranked amongst the gravest in the       
legislation of the ,church4 ,in one     
very remarkable way the reforms of      
,christianity in this sphere were       
powerfully sustained by a doctrine which
 is perhaps the most revolting in  the  

whole theology of the ,fathers4 ,to the 
,pagans1 even when condemning  abortion 
and infanticide1 these crimes appeared  
comparatively trivial1  because the     
victims seemed very insignificant and   
their sufferings very  slight4 ,the     
death of an adult man who is struck down
 in the midst of his  enterprise and his
 hopes1 who is united by ties of love or
 friendship to  multitudes around him1  
and whose departure causes a            
perturbation and a  pang to the society 
in which he has moved1 excites feelings 
very different  from any produced by the
 painless extinction of a new-born      
infant1 which1  having scarcely touched 
the earth1 has known none of its cares  
and very  little of its love4 ,but to   
the theologian this infant life         
possessed a  fearful significance4 ,the 
moment1 they taught1 the ftus in the    
womb  acquired animation1 it became an  
immortal being1 destined1 even if it    
died  unborn1 to be raised again on the 
last day1 responsible for the sin of    

,adam1 and doomed1 if it perished       
without baptism1 to be excluded for ever
  from heaven and to be cast1 as the    
,greeks taught1 into a painless and     
joyless limbo1 or1 as the ,latins       
taught1 into the abyss of hell4 ,it is  
probably1 in a considerable degree1 to  
this doctrine that we owe in the  first 
instance the healthy sense of the value 
and sanctity of infant life  which so   
broadly distinguishes ,christian from   
,pagan societies1 and which  is now so  
thoroughly incorporated with our moral  
feelings as to be  independent of all   
doctrinal changes4 ,that which appealed 
so powerfully to  the compassion of the 
early and medival ,christians1 in the   
fate of the  murdered infants1 was not  
that they died1 but that they commonly  
died  unbaptised2 and the criminality of
 abortion was immeasurably aggravated   
when it was believed to involve1 not    
only the extinction of a transient      
life1 but also the damnation of an      
immortal soul47#ai7 ,in the 8,lives of  

the  ,saints0 there is a curious legend 
of a man who1 being desirous of         
ascertaining the condition of a child   
before birth1 slew a pregnant woman1    
committing thereby a double murder1 that
 of the mother and of the child in  her 
womb4 ,stung by remorse1 the murderer   
fled to the desert1 and passed  the     
remainder of his life in constant       
penance and prayer4 ,at last1 after     
many years1 the voice of ,god told him  
that he had been forgiven the murder  of
 the woman4 ,but yet his end was a      
clouded one4 ,he never could obtain an  
assurance that he had been forgiven the 
death of the child47#bj7    ,if we pass 
to the next stage of human life1 that of
 the new-born infant1  we find ourselves
 in presence of that practice of        
infanticide which was  one of the       
deepest stains of the ancient           
civilisation4 ,the natural history  of  
this crime is somewhat peculiar47#ba7   
,among savages1 whose feelings of       
compassion are very faint1 and whose    

warlike and nomadic habits are          
eminently unfavourable to infant life1  
it is1 as might be expected1 the  usual 
custom for the parent to decide whether 
he desires to preserve the  child he has
 called into existence1 and if he does  
not1 to expose or slay  it4 ,in nations 
that have passed out of the stage of    
barbarism1 but are  still rude and      
simple in their habits1 the practice of 
infanticide is  usually rare2 but1      
unlike other crimes of violence1 it is  
not naturally  diminished by the        
progress of civilisation1 for1 after the
 period of  savage life is passed1 its  
prevalence is influenced much more by   
the  sensuality than by the barbarity of
 a people47#bb7 ,we may trace too1 in   
many countries and ages1 the notion that
 children1 as the fruit1                
representatives1 and dearest possessions
 of their parents1 are acceptable       
sacrifices to the gods47#bc7            
,infanticide1 as is well known1 was     
almost  universally admitted among the  

,greeks1 being sanctioned1 and in some  
cases  enjoined1 upon what we should now
 call 8the greatest happiness           
principle10  by the ideal legislations  
of ,plato and ,aristotle1 and by the    
actual  legislations of ,lycurgus and   
,solon4 ,regarding the community as a   
whole1  they clearly saw that it is in  
the highest degree for the interest of  
society that the increase of population 
should be very jealously  restricted1   
and that the ,state should be as far as 
possible free from  helpless and        
unproductive members2 and they therefore
 concluded that the  painless           
destruction of infant life1 and         
especially of those infants who  were so
 deformed or diseased that their lives1 
if prolonged1 would  probably have been 
a burden to themselves1 was on the whole
 a benefit4 ,the  very sensual tone of  
,greek life rendered the modern notion  
of prolonged  continence wholly alien to
 their thoughts2 and the extremely low  
social  and intellectual condition of   

,greek mothers1 who exercised no        
appreciable  influence over the habits  
of thought of the nation should also1 ,i
 think1  be taken into account1 for it  
has always been observed that mothers   
are  much more distinguished than       
fathers for their affection for infants 
that  have not yet manifested the first 
dawning of reason4 ,even in ,greece1    
however1 infanticide and exposition were
 not universally permitted4 ,in  ,thebes
 these offences are said to have been   
punished by death47#bd7    ,the power of
 life and death1 which in ,rome was     
originally conceded to the  father over 
his children1 would appear to involve an
 unlimited permission  of infanticide2  
but a very old law1 popularly ascribed  
to ,romulus1 in this  respect restricted
 the parental rights1 enjoining the     
father to bring up  all his male        
children1 and at least his eldest female
 child1 forbidding  him to destroy any  
well-formed child till it had completed 
its third year1  when the affections of 

the parent might be supposed to be      
developed1 but  permitting the          
exposition of deformed or maimed        
children with the consent  of their five
 nearest relations47#be7 ,the ,roman    
policy was always to  encourage1 while  
the ,greek policy was rather to         
restrain1 population1 and  infanticide  
never appears to have been common in    
,rome till the corrupt and  sensual days
 of the ,empire4 ,the legislators then  
absolutely condemned it1  and it was    
indirectly discouraged by laws which    
accorded special  privileges to the     
fathers of many children1 exempted poor 
parents from  most of the burden of     
taxation1 and in some degree provided   
for the  security of exposed infants4   
,public opinion probably differed little
 from  that of our own day as to the    
fact1 though it differed from it much as
 to  the degree1 of its criminality4 ,it
 was1 as will be remembered1 one of the 
charges most frequently brought against 
the ,christians1 and it was one  that   

never failed to arouse popular          
indignation4 ,pagan and ,christian      
authorities are1 however1 united in     
speaking of infanticide as a crying     
vice of the ,empire1 and ,tertullian    
observed that no laws were more easily  
or more constantly evaded than those    
which condemned it47#bf7 ,a broad       
distinction was popularly drawn between 
infanticide and exposition4 ,the        
latter1 though probably condemned1 was  
certainly not punished by law27#bg7  it 
was practised on a gigantic scale and   
with absolute impunity1 noticed  by     
writers with the most frigid            
indifference1 and1 at least in the case 
of  destitute parents1 considered a very
 venial offence47#bh7 ,often1 no doubt1 
the exposed children perished1 but more 
frequently the very extent of the       
practice saved the lives of the victims4
 ,they were brought systematically  to a
 column near the ,velabrum1 and there   
taken by speculators1 who  educated them
 as slaves1 or very frequently as       

prostitutes47#bi7    ,on the whole1 what
 was demanded on this subject was not   
any clearer moral  teaching1 but rather 
a stronger enforcement of the           
condemnation long since  passed upon    
infanticide1 and an increased protection
 for exposed infants4  ,by the          
penitential sentences1 by the dogmatic  
considerations ,i have  enumerated1 and 
by the earnest exhortations both of her 
preachers and  writers1 the ,church     
laboured to deepen the sense of the     
enormity of the  act1 and especially to 
convince men that the guilt of          
abandoning their  children to the       
precarious and doubtful mercy of the    
stranger was scarcely  less than that of
 simple infanticide47#cj7 ,in the civil 
law her influence  was also displayed1  
though not1 ,i think1 very              
advantageously4 ,by the  counsel1 it is 
said1 of ,lactantius1 ,constantine1 in  
the very year of his  conversion1 in    
order to diminish infanticide by        
destitute parents1 issued  a decree1    

applicable in the first instance to     
,italy1 but extended in ,a4,d4  #cbb to 
,africa1 in which he commanded that     
those children whom their  parents were 
unable to support should be clothed and 
fed at the expense of  the ,state17#ca7 
a policy which had already been pursued 
on a large scale  under the ,antonines4 
,in ,a4,d4 #cca1 a law intended to      
multiply the chances  of the exposed    
child being taken charge of by some     
charitable or  interested person1       
provided that the foundling should      
remain the absolute  property of its    
saviour1 whether he adopted it as a son 
or employed it as  a slave1 and that the
 parent should not have power at any    
future time to  reclaim it47#cb7 ,by    
another law1 which had been issued in   
,a4,d4 #cbi1 it had  been provided that 
children who had been1 not exposed1 but 
sold1 might be  reclaimed upon payment  
by the father47#cc7    ,the last two    
laws cannot be regarded with unmingled  
satisfaction4 ,the law  regulating the  

condition of exposed children1 though   
undoubtedly enacted  with the most      
benevolent intentions1 was in some      
degree a retrograde step1  the ,pagan   
laws having provided that the father    
might always withdraw the  child he had 
exposed1 from servitude1 by payment of  
the expenses incurred  in supporting    
it17#cd7 while ,trajan had even decided 
that the exposed child  could not become
 under any circumstance a slave47#ce7   
,the law of  ,constantine1 on the other 
hand1 doomed it to an irrevocable       
servitude2 and  this law continued in   
force till ,a4,d4 #ebi1 when ,justinian1
 reverting to  the principle of ,trajan1
 decreed that not only the father lost  
all  legitimate authority over his child
 by exposing it1 but also that the      
person who had saved it could not by    
that act deprive it of its natural      
liberty4 ,but this law applied only to  
the ,eastern ,empire2 and in part at    
least of the ,west7#cf7 the servitude of
 exposed infants continued for          

centuries1 and appears only to have     
terminated with the general extinction  
of slavery in ,europe4 ,the law of      
,constantine concerning the sale of     
children was also a step1 though perhaps
 a necessary step1 of  retrogression4 ,a
 series of emperors1 among whom         
,caracalla was conspicuous1  had        
denounced and endeavoured to abolish1 as
 8shameful10 the traffic in  free       
children1 and ,diocletian had expressly 
and absolutely condemned  it47#cg7 ,the 
extreme misery1 however1 resulting from 
the civil wars under  ,constantine1 had 
rendered it necessary to authorise the  
old practice of  selling children in the
 case of absolute destitution1 which1   
though it had  been condemned1 had      
probably never altogether ceased4       
,theodosius the ,great  attempted to    
take a step in advance1 by decreeing    
that the children thus  sold might      
regain their freedom without the        
repayment of the  purchase-money1 a     
temporary service being a sufficient    

compensation for  the purchase27#ch7 but
 this measure was repealed by           
,valentinian ,,iii4 ,the  sale of       
children in case of great necessity1    
though denounced by the  ,fathers17#ci7 
continued long after the time of        
,theodosius1 nor does any  ,christian   
emperor appear to have enforced the     
humane enactment of  ,diocletian4       
,together with these measures for the   
protection of exposed children1 there   
were laws directly condemnatory of      
infanticide4 ,this branch of the subject
  is obscured by much ambiguity and     
controversy2 but it appears most        
probable that the ,pagan legislation    
reckoned infanticide as a form of       
homicide1 though1 being deemed less     
atrocious than other forms of  homicide1
 it was punished1 not by death1 but by  
banishment47#dj7 ,a law of              
,constantine1 intended principally1 and 
perhaps exclusively1 for ,africa1  where
 the sacrifices of children to ,saturn  
were very common1 assimilated  to       

parricide the murder of a child by its  
father27#da7 and finally1  ,valentinian1
 in ,a4,d4 #cgd1 made all infanticide a 
capital offence17#db7 and  especially   
enjoined the punishment of              
exposition47#dc7 ,a law of the ,spanish 
,visigoths1 in the seventh century1     
punished infanticide and abortion with  
death or blindness47#dd7 ,in the        
,capitularies of ,charlemagne the former
  crime was punished as homicide47#de7  
,it is not possible to ascertain1 with  
any degree of accuracy1 what  diminution
 of infanticide resulted from these     
measures4 ,it may1 however1  be safely  
asserted that the publicity of the trade
 in exposed children  became impossible 
under the influence of ,christianity1   
and that the sense  of the serious      
nature of the crime was very            
considerably increased4 ,the  extreme   
destitution1 which was one of its most  
fertile causes1 was met by  ,christian  
charity4 ,many exposed children appear  
to have been educated by  individual    

,christians47#df7 ,brephotrophia and    
,orphanotrophia are among the  earliest 
recorded charitable institutions of the 
,church2 but it is not  certain that    
exposed children were admitted into     
them1 and we find no  trace for several 
centuries of ,christian foundling       
hospitals4 ,this form of  charity grew  
up gradually in the early part of the   
middle ages4 ,it is said  that one      
existed at ,trves in the sixth1 and at  
,angers in the seventh  century1 and it 
is certain that one existed at ,milan in
 the eighth  century47#dg7 ,the ,council
 of ,rouen1 in the ninth century1       
invited women who  had secretly borne   
children to place them at the door of   
the church1 and  undertook to provide   
for them if they were not reclaimed4 ,it
 is probable  that they were brought up 
among the numerous slaves or serfs      
attached to  the ecclesiastical         
properties2 for a decree of the ,council
 of ,arles1 in  the fifth century1 and  
afterwards a law of ,charlemagne1 had   

echoed the  enactment of ,constantine1  
declaring that exposed children should  
be the  slaves of their protectors4 ,as 
slavery declined1 the memorials of many 
sins1 like many other of the discordant 
elements of medival society1 were       
doubtless absorbed and consecrated in   
the monastic societies4 ,the strong     
sense always evinced in the ,church of  
the enormity of unchastity probably     
rendered the ecclesiastics more cautious
 in this than in other forms of         
charity1 for institutions especially    
intended for deserted children  advanced
 but slowly4 ,even ,rome1 the mother of 
many charities1 could boast  of none    
till the beginning of the thirteenth    
century47#dh7 ,about the middle  of the 
twelfth century we find societies at    
,milan charged1 among other  functions1 
with seeking for exposed children4      
,towards the close of the  same century1
 a monk of ,montpellier1 whose very name
 is doubtful1 but who  is commonly      
spoken of as ,brother ,guy1 founded a   

confraternity called by  the name of the
 ,holy ,ghost1 and devoted to the       
protection and education of  children2  
and this society in the two following   
centuries ramified over a  great part of
 ,europe47#di7 ,though principally and  
at first1 perhaps1  exclusively intended
 for the care of the orphans of         
legitimate marriages1  though in the    
fifteenth century the ,hospital of the  
,holy ,ghost at ,paris  even refused to 
admit deserted children1 yet the care of
 foundlings soon  passed in a great     
measure into its hands4 ,at last1 after 
many complaints  of the frequency of    
infanticide1 ,st4 ,vincent de ,paul     
arose1 and gave so  great an impulse to 
that branch of charity that he may be   
regarded as its  second author1 and his 
influence was felt not only in private  
charities1  but in legislative          
enactments4 ,into the effects of these  
measures--the  encouragement of the vice
 of incontinence by institutions that   
were  designed to suppress the crime of 

infanticide1 and the serious moral      
controversies suggested by this apparent
 conflict between the interests of      
humanity and of chastity--it is not     
necessary for me to enter4 ,we are at   
present concerned with the principles   
that actuated ,christian charity1 not   
with the wisdom of its organisations4   
,whatever mistakes may have been  made1 
the entire movement ,i have traced      
displays an anxiety not only for  the   
life1 but also for the moral well-being1
 of the castaways of society1  such as  
the most humane nations of antiquity had
 never reached4 ,this  minute and       
scrupulous care for human life and human
 virtue in the humblest  forms1 in the  
slave1 the gladiator1 the savage1 or the
 infant1 was indeed  wholly foreign to  
the genius of ,paganism4 ,it was        
produced by the ,christian  doctrine of 
the inestimable value of each immortal  
soul4 ,it is the  distinguishing and    
transcendent characteristic of every    
society into which  the spirit of       

,christianity has passed4    ,the       
influence of ,christianity in the       
protection of infant life1 though  very 
real1 may be1 and ,i think often has    
been1 exaggerated4 ,it would be         
difficult to overrate its influence in  
the sphere we have next to examine4     
,there is scarcely any other single     
reform so important in the moral        
history of mankind as the suppression of
 the gladiatorial shows1 and this  feat 
must be almost exclusively ascribed to  
the ,christian ,church4 ,when we        
remember how extremely few of the best  
and greatest men of the ,roman world    
had absolutely condemned the games of   
the amphitheatre1 it is impossible  to  
regard1 without the deepest admiration1 
the unwavering and  uncompromising      
consistency of the patristic            
denunciations4 ,and even  comparing the 
,fathers with the most enlightened      
,pagan moralists in their  treatment of 
this matter1 we shall usually find one  
most significant  difference4 ,the      

,pagan1 in the spirit of philosophy1    
denounced these games  as inhuman1 or   
demoralising1 or degrading1 or brutal4  
,the ,christian1 in  the spirit of the  
,church1 represented them as a definite 
sin1 the sin of  murder1 for which the  
spectators as well as the actors were   
directly  responsible before ,heaven4   
,in the very latest days of the ,pagan  
,empire1  magnificent amphitheatres were
 still arising17#ej7 and ,constantine   
himself  had condemned numerous         
barbarian captives to combat with wild  
beasts47#ea7  ,it was in ,a4,d4 #cbe1   
immediately after the convocation of the
 ,council of  ,nice1 that the first     
,christian emperor issued the first     
edict in the ,roman  ,empire            
condemnatory of the gladiatorial        
games47#eb7 ,it was issued in  ,berytus 
in ,syria1 and is believed by some to   
have been only applicable to  the       
province of ,phnicia27#ec7 but even in  
this province it was suffered to  be    
inoperative1 for1 only four years later1

 ,libanius speaks of the shows  as      
habitually celebrated at ,antioch47#ed7 
,in the ,western ,empire their          
continuance was fully recognised1 though
 a few infinitesimal restrictions  were 
imposed upon them4 ,constantine1 in     
,a4,d4 #ceg1 prohibited the lanist1  or 
purveyors of gladiators1 from bribing   
servants of the palace to enrol         
themselves as combatants47#ee7          
,valentinian1 in ,a4,d4 #cfe1 forbade   
any  ,christian criminal17#ef7 and in   
,a4,d4 #cfg1 any one connected with the 
,palatine17#eg7 being condemned to      
fight4 ,honorius prohibited any slave   
who  had been a gladiator passing into  
the service of a senator2 but the real  
object of this last measure was1 ,i     
imagine1 not so much to stigmatise the  
gladiator1 as to guard against the      
danger of an armed nobility47#eh7 ,a    
much  more important fact is that the   
spectacles were never introduced into   
the  new capital of ,constantine4 ,at   
,rome1 though they became less numerous1

  they do not appear to have been       
suspended until their final suppression4
  ,the passion for gladiators was the   
worst1 while religious liberty was      
probably the best1 feature of the old   
,pagan society2 and it is a  melancholy 
fact that of these two it was the nobler
 part that in the  ,christian ,empire   
was first destroyed4 ,theodosius the    
,great1 who suppressed  all diversity of
 worship throughout the ,empire1 and who
 showed himself on  many occasions the  
docile slave of the clergy1 won the     
applause of the  ,pagan ,symmachus by   
compelling his barbarian prisoners to   
fight as  gladiators47#ei7 ,besides this
 occasion1 we have special knowledge of 
gladiatorial games that were celebrated 
in ,a4,d4 #che1 in ,a4,d4 #cia1 and     
afterwards in the reign of ,honorius1   
and the practice of condemning          
criminals to the arena still            
continued47#fj7    ,but although the    
suppression of the gladiatorial shows   
was not effected in  the metropolis of  

the ,empire till nearly ninety years    
after ,christianity  had been the ,state
 religion1 the distinction between the  
teaching of the  ,christians and ,pagans
 on the subject remained unimpaired4 ,to
 the last1 the  most estimable of the   
,pagans appear to have regarded them    
with favour or  indifference4 ,julian1  
it is true1 with a rare magnanimity1    
refused  persistently1 in his conflict  
with ,christianity1 to avail himself1 as
 he  might most easily have done1 of the
 popular passion for games which the    
,church condemned2 but ,libanius has    
noticed them with some approbation17#fa7
  and ,symmachus1 as we have already    
seen1 both instituted and applauded     
them4 ,but the ,christians steadily     
refused to admit any professional       
gladiator to baptism till he had pledged
 himself to abandon his calling1  and   
every ,christian who attended the games 
was excluded from communion4  ,the      
preachers and writers of the ,church    
denounced them with the most            

unqualified vehemence1 and the poet     
,prudentius made a direct and earnest   
appeal to the emperor to suppress them4 
,in the ,east1 where they had never     
taken very firm root1 they appear to    
have ceased about the time of           
,theodosius1 and a passion for chariot  
races1 which rose to the most           
extravagant height at ,constantinople   
and in many other cities1 took their    
place4 ,in the ,west1 the last          
gladiatorial show was celebrated at     
,rome1  under ,honorius1 in ,a4,d4 #djd1
 in honour of the triumph of ,stilicho1 
when an  ,asiatic monk1 named           
,telemachus1 animated by the noblest    
heroism of  philanthropy1 rushed into   
the amphitheatre1 and attempted to part 
the  combatants4 ,he perished beneath a 
shower of stones flung by the angry     
spectators2 but his death led to the    
final abolition of the games47#fb7      
,combats of men with wild beasts        
continued1 however1 much later1 and were
  especially popular in the ,east4 ,the 

difficulty of procuring wild animals1   
amid the general poverty1 contributed1  
with other causes1 to their  decline4   
,they sank1 at last1 into games of      
cruelty to animals1 but of  little      
danger to men1 and were finally         
condemned1 at the end of the  seventh   
century1 by the ,council of             
,trullo47#fc7 ,in ,italy1 the custom of 
sham fights1 which continued through the
 whole of the middle ages1 and  which   
,petrarch declares were in his days     
sometimes attended with  considerable   
bloodshed1 may perhaps be traced in some
 degree to the  traditions of the       
amphitheatre47#fd7    ,the extinction of
 the gladiatorial spectacles is1 of all 
the results of  early ,christian        
influence1 that upon which the historian
 can look with the  deepest and most    
unmingled satisfaction4 ,horrible as was
 the bloodshed  they directly caused1   
these games were perhaps still more     
pernicious on  account of the           
callousness of feeling they diffused    

through all classes1  the fatal obstacle
 they presented to any general elevation
 of the standard  of humanity4 ,yet the 
attitude of the ,pagans decisively      
proves that no  progress of philosophy  
or social civilisation was likely1 for a
 very long  period1 to have extirpated  
them2 and it can hardly be doubted that1
 had  they been flourishing unchallenged
 as in the days of ,trajan1 when the    
rude  warriors of the ,north obtained   
the empire of ,italy1 they would have   
been  eagerly adopted by the conquerors1
 would have taken deep root in medival  
life1 and have indefinitely retarded the
 progress of humanity4  ,christianity   
alone was powerful enough to tear this  
evil plant from the  ,roman soil4 ,the  
,christian custom of legacies for the   
relief of the  indigent and suffering   
replaced the ,pagan custom of           
bequeathing sums of  money for games in 
honour of the dead2 and the month of    
,december1 which  was looked forward to 
with eagerness through all the ,roman   

world1 as the  special season of the    
gladiatorial spectacles1 was consecrated
 in the  ,church by another festival    
commemorative of the advent of ,christ4 
,the notion of the sanctity of human    
life1 which led the early ,christians   
to combat and at last to overthrow the  
gladiatorial games1 was carried by  some
 of them to an extent altogether        
irreconcilable with national            
independence1 and with the prevailing   
penal system4 ,many of them taught  that
 no ,christian might lawfully take away 
life1 either as a soldier1 or  by       
bringing a capital charge1 or by acting 
as an executioner4 ,the first of  these 
questions it will be convenient to      
reserve for a later period of  this     
chapter1 when ,i propose to examine the 
relations of ,christianity to  the      
military spirit1 and a very few words   
will be sufficient to dispose of  the   
others4 ,the notion that there is       
something impure and defiling1 even  in 
a just execution1 is one which may be   

traced through many ages2 and           
executioners1 as the ministers of the   
law1 have been from very ancient  times 
regarded as unholy4 ,in both ,greece and
 ,rome the law compelled them  to live  
outside the walls1 and at ,rhodes they  
were never permitted even to  enter the 
city47#fe7 ,notions of this kind were   
very strongly held in the  early        
,church2 and a decree of the penitential
 discipline which was  enforced1 even   
against emperors and generals1 forbade  
any one whose hands  had been imbrued in
 blood1 even when that blood was shed in
 a righteous  war1 approaching the altar
 without a preparatory period of        
penance4 ,the  opinions of the          
,christians of the first three centuries
 were usually  formed without any regard
 to the necessities of civil or         
political life2  but when the ,church   
obtained an ascendancy1 it was found    
necessary  speedily to modify them2 and 
although ,lactantius1 in the fourth     
century1  maintained the unlawfulness of

 all bloodshed17#ff7 as strongly as     
,origen in  the third1 and ,tertullian  
in the second1 the common doctrine was  
simply  that no priest or bishop must   
take any part in a capital charge4 ,from
 this  exceptional position of the      
clergy they speedily acquired the       
position of  official intercessors for  
criminals1 ambassadors of mercy1 when1  
from some  act of sedition or other     
cause1 their city or neighbourhood was  
menaced  with a bloody invasion4 ,the   
right of sanctuary1 which was before    
possessed  by the ,imperial statues and 
by the ,pagan temples1 was accorded to  
the  churches4 ,during the holy seasons 
of ,lent and ,easter1 no criminal trials
  could be held1 and no criminal could  
be tortured or executed47#fg7           
,miracles1 it was said1 were sometimes  
wrought to attest the innocence of      
accused or condemned men1 but were never
 wrought to consign criminals to        
execution by the civil power47#fh7      
,all this had an importance much beyond 

its immediate effect in tempering  the  
administration of the law4 ,it          
contributed largely to associate in the 
popular imagination the ideas of        
sanctity and of mercy1 and to increase  
the reverence for human life4 ,it had   
also another remarkable effect1 to      
which ,i have adverted in another work4 
,the belief that it was wrong for a     
priest to bring any charge that could   
give rise to a capital sentence  caused 
the leading clergy to shrink from       
persecuting heresy to death1 at a  time 
when in all other respects the theory of
 persecution had been fully  matured4   
,when it was readily admitted that      
heresy was in the highest  degree       
criminal1 and ought to be made penal1   
when laws banishing1 fining1  or        
imprisoning heretics filled the         
statute-book1 and when every vestige of 
religious liberty was suppressed at the 
instigation of the clergy1 these  still 
shrank from the last and inevitable     
step1 not because it was an  atrocious  

violation of the rights of conscience1  
but because it was  contrary to the     
ecclesiastical discipline for a bishop1 
under any  circumstances1 to countenance
 bloodshed4 ,it was on this ground that 
,st4  ,augustine1 while eagerly         
advocating the persecution of the       
,donatists1 more  than once expressed a 
wish that they should not be punished   
with death1  and that ,st4 ,ambrose1 and
 ,st4 ,martin of ,tours1 who were both  
energetic  persecutors1 expressed their 
abhorrence of the ,spanish bishops1 who 
had  caused some ,priscillianists to be 
executed4 ,i have elsewhere noticed the 
odious hypocrisy of the later           
inquisitors1 who relegated the execution
 of  the sentence to the civil power1   
with a prayer that the heretics should  
be  punished 8as mildly as possible and 
without the effusion of blood107#fi7    
which came at last to be interpreted1 by
 the death of fire2 but ,i may here     
add1 that this hideous mockery is not   
unique in the history of religion4      

,plutarch suggests that one of the      
reasons for burying unchaste vestals    
alive was that they were so sacred that 
it was unlawful to lay violent  hands   
upon them17#gj7 and among the ,donatists
 the ,circumcelliones were for  a time  
accustomed to abstain1 in obedience to  
the evangelical command1  from the use  
of the sword1 while they beat to death  
those who differed  from their          
theological opinions with massive clubs1
 to which they gave the  very           
significant name of ,israelites47#ga7   
,the time came when the ,christian      
priests shed blood enough4 ,the extreme 
scrupulosity1 however1 which they at    
first displayed1 is not only            
exceedingly curious when contrasted with
 their later history2 it was also1  by  
the association of ideas which it       
promoted1 very favourable to  humanity4 
,it is remarkable1 however1 that while  
some of the early ,fathers  were the    
undoubted precursors of ,beccaria1 their
 teaching1 unlike that of  the          

philosophers in the eighteenth century1 
had little or no appreciable  influence 
in mitigating the severity of the penal 
code4 ,indeed1 the more  carefully the  
,christian legislation of the ,empire is
 examined1 and the  more fully it is    
compared with what had been done under  
the influence of  ,stoicism by the      
,pagan legislators1 the more evident1 ,i
 think1 it will  appear that the golden 
age of ,roman law was not ,christian1   
but ,pagan4  ,great works of            
codification were accomplished under the
 younger  ,theodosius1 and under        
,justinian2 but it was in the reign of  
,pagan  emperors1 and especially of     
,hadrian and ,alexander ,severus1 that  
nearly all  the most important measures 
were taken1 redressing injustices1      
elevating  oppressed classes1 and making
 the doctrine of the natural equality   
and  fraternity of mankind the basis of 
legal enactments4 ,receiving the        
heritage of these laws1 the ,christians1
 no doubt1 added something2 but a       

careful examination will show that it   
was surprisingly little4 ,in no  respect
 is the greatness of the ,stoic         
philosophers more conspicuous than  in  
the contrast between the gigantic steps 
of legal reform made in a few  years    
under their influence1 and the almost   
insignificant steps taken when          
,christianity had obtained an ascendancy
 in the ,empire1 not to speak of the    
long period of decrepitude that         
followed4 ,in the way of mitigating the 
severity of punishments1 ,constantine   
made1 it is true1 three important  laws 
prohibiting the custom of branding      
criminals upon the face1 the            
condemnation of criminals as gladiators1
 and the continuance of the once        
degrading but now sacred punishment of  
crucifixion1 which had been very        
commonly employed2 but these measures   
were more than counterbalanced by  the  
extreme severity with which the         
,christian emperors punished            
infanticide1 adultery1 seduction1 rape1 

and several other crimes1 and the       
number of capital offences became       
considerably greater than before47#gb7  
,the most prominent evidence1 indeed1 of
 ecclesiastical influence in the        
,theodosian code is that which must be  
most lamented4 ,it is the immense  mass 
of legislation1 intended on the one hand
 to elevate the clergy into a  separate 
and sacred caste1 and on the other to   
persecute in every form1  and with every
 degree of violence1 all who deviated   
from the fine line of  ,catholic        
orthodoxy47#gc7    ,the last consequence
 of the ,christian estimate of human    
life was a very  emphatic condemnation  
of suicide4 ,we have already seen that  
the arguments  of the ,pagan moralists1 
who were opposed to this act1 were of   
four kinds4  ,the religious argument of 
,pythagoras and ,plato was1 that we are 
all  soldiers of ,god1 placed in an     
appointed post of duty1 which it is a   
rebellion against our ,maker to desert4 
,the civic argument of ,aristotle and   

the ,greek legislators was that we owe  
our services to the ,state1 and that    
therefore voluntarily to abandon life is
 to abandon our duty to our  country4   
,the argument which ,plutarch and other 
writers derived from human  dignity was 
that true courage is shown in the manful
 endurance of  suffering1 while suicide1
 being an act of flight1 is an act of   
cowardice1  and therefore unworthy of   
man4 ,the mystical or ,quietist argument
 of the  ,neoplatonists was that all    
perturbation is a pollution of the soul2
 that  the act of suicide is accompanied
 by1 and springs from1 perturbation1 and
  that therefore the perpetrator ends   
his days by a crime4 ,of these four     
arguments1 the last cannot1 ,i think1 be
 said to have had any place among  the  
,christian dissuasives from suicide1 and
 the influence of the second  was almost
 imperceptible4 ,the notion of          
patriotism being a moral duty was       
habitually discouraged in the early     
,church2 and it was impossible to urge  

the civic argument against suicide      
without at the same time condemning the 
hermit life1 which in the third century 
became the ideal of the ,church4  ,the  
duty a man owes to his family1 which a  
modern moralist would deem the  most    
obvious and1 perhaps1 the most          
conclusive proof of the general         
criminality of suicide1 and which may be
 said to have replaced the civic        
argument1 was scarcely noticed either by
 the ,pagans or the early  ,christians4 
,the first were accustomed to lay so    
much stress upon the  authority1 that   
they scarcely recognised the duties1 of 
the father2 and  the latter were too    
anxious to attach all their ethics to   
the interests of  another world1 to do  
much to supply the omission4 ,the       
,christian estimate  of the duty of     
humility1 and of the degradation of man1
 rendered appeals  to human dignity     
somewhat uncongenial to the patristic   
writers2 yet these  writers frequently  
dilated upon the true courage of        

patience1 in language  to which their   
own heroism under persecution gave a    
noble emphasis4 ,to the  example of     
,cato they opposed those of ,regulus and
 ,job1 the courage that  endures        
suffering to the courage that confronts 
death4 ,the ,platonic  doctrine1 that we
 are servants of the ,deity1 placed upon
 earth to perform  our allotted task in 
,his sight1 with ,his assistance1 and by
 ,his will1 they  continually enforced  
and most deeply realised2 and this      
doctrine was in  itself1 in most cases1 
a sufficient preventive2 for1 as a great
 writer has  said3 8,though there are   
many crimes of a deeper dye than        
suicide1 there is  no other by which men
 appear so formally to renounce the     
protection of  ,god407#gd7    ,but1 in  
addition to this general teaching1 the  
,christian theologians  introduced into 
the sphere we are considering new       
elements both of  terrorism and of      
persuasion1 which have had a decisive   
influence upon the  judgments of        

mankind4 ,they carried their doctrine of
 the sanctity of human  life to such a  
point that they maintained dogmatically 
that a man who  destroys his own life   
has committed a crime similar both in   
kind and  magnitude to that of an       
ordinary murderer17#ge7 and they at the 
same time  gave a new character to death
 by their doctrines concerning its penal
  nature and concerning the future      
destinies of the soul4 ,on the other    
hand1  the high position assigned to    
resignation in the moral scale1 the hope
 of  future happiness1 which casts a ray
 of light upon the darkest calamities   
of life1 the deeper and more subtle     
consolations arising from the feeling   
of trust and from the outpouring of     
prayer1 and1 above all1 the ,christian  
doctrine of the remedial and            
providential character of suffering1    
have  proved sufficient protection      
against despair4 ,the ,christian        
doctrine1 that  pain is a good1 had in  
this respect an influence that was never

 attained  by the ,pagan doctrine1 that 
pain is not an evil4    ,there were1    
however1 two forms of suicide which were
 regarded in the early  ,church with    
some tolerance or hesitation4 ,during   
the frenzy excited by  persecution1 and 
under the influence of the belief that  
martyrdom effaced  in a moment the sins 
of a life1 and introduced the sufferer  
at once into  celestial joys1 it was not
 uncommon for men1 in a transport of    
enthusiasm1  to rush before the ,pagan  
judges1 imploring or provoking          
martyrdom2 and  some of the             
ecclesiastical writers have spoken of   
these men with  considerable            
admiration17#gf7 though the general tone
 of the patristic  writings and the     
councils of the ,church condemned them4 
,a more serious  difficulty arose about 
,christian women who committed suicide  
to guard  their chastity when menaced by
 the infamous sentences of their        
persecutors1 or more frequently by the  
lust of emperors1 or by barbarian       

invaders4 ,st4 ,pelagia1 a girl of only 
fifteen1 who has been canonised by  the 
,church1 and who was warmly eulogised by
 ,st4 ,ambrose and ,st4  ,chrysostom1   
having been captured by the soldiery1   
obtained permission to  retire to her   
room for the purpose of robing herself1 
mounted to the roof  of the house1 and1 
flinging herself down1 perished by the  
fall47#gg7 ,a  ,christian lady of       
,antioch1 named ,domnina1 had two       
daughters renowned alike  for their     
beauty and their piety4 ,being captured 
during the ,diocletian  persecution1 and
 fearing the loss of their chastity1    
they agreed by one  bold act to free    
themselves from the danger1 and1 casting
 themselves into  a river by the way1   
mother and daughters sank unsullied in  
the wave47#gh7  ,the tyrant ,maxentius  
was fascinated by the beauty of a       
,christian lady1 the  wife of the       
,prefect of ,rome4 ,having sought in    
vain to elude his addresses1  having    
been dragged from her house by the      

minions of the tyrant1 the  faithful    
wife obtained permission1 before        
yielding to her master's  embraces1 to  
retire for a moment into her chamber1   
and she there1 with  true ,roman        
courage1 stabbed herself to the         
heart47#gi7 ,some ,protestant           
controversialists have been             
scandalised17#hj7 and some ,catholic    
controversialists perplexed1 by the     
undisguised admiration with which the   
early ecclesiastical writers narrate    
these histories4 ,to those who have  not
 suffered theological opinions to       
destroy all their natural sense of      
nobility it will need no defence4       
,this was the only form of avowed       
suicide which was in any degree         
permitted  in the early ,church4 ,st4   
,ambrose rather timidly1 and ,st4       
,jerome more  strongly1 commended it2   
but at the time when the capture of     
,rome by the  soldiers of ,alaric made  
the question one of pressing interest1  
,st4  ,augustine devoted an elaborate   

examination to the subject1 and while   
expressing his pitying admiration for   
the virgin suicides1 decidedly          
condemned their act47#ha7 ,his opinion  
of the absolute sinfulness of suicide   
has since been generally adopted by the 
,catholic theologians1 who pretend  that
 ,pelagia and ,domnina acted under the  
impulse of a special  revelation47#hb7  
,at the same time1 by a glaring though  
very natural  inconsistency1 no         
characters were more enthusiastically   
extolled than  those anchorites who     
habitually deprived their bodies of the 
sustenance  that was absolutely         
necessary to health1 and thus manifestly
 abridged  their lives4 ,st4 ,jerome has
 preserved a curious illustration of the
  feeling with which these slow suicides
 were regarded by the outer world1  in  
his account of the life and death of a  
young nun named ,blesilla4 ,this  lady  
had been guilty of what1 according to   
the religious notions of the  fourth    
century1 was1 at least1 the frivolity of

 marrying1 but was left a  widow seven  
months afterwards1 having thus 8lost at 
once the crown of  virginity and the    
pleasure of marriage407#hc7 ,an attack  
of illness inspired  her with strong    
religious feelings4 ,at the age of      
twenty she retired to a  convent4 ,she  
attained such a height of devotion that1
 according to the  very characteristic  
eulogy of her biographer1 8she was more 
sorry for the  loss of her virginity    
than for the decease of her             
husband207#hd7 and a long  succession of
 atrocious penances preceded1 if they   
did not produce1 her  death47#he7 ,the  
conviction that she had been killed by  
fasting1 and the  spectacle of the      
uncontrollable grief of her mother1     
filled the populace  with indignation1  
and the funeral was disturbed by        
tumultuous cries that  the 8accursed    
race of monks should be banished from   
the city1 stoned1 or  drowned407#hf7 ,in
 the ,church itself1 however1 we find   
very few traces of  any condemnation of 

the custom of undermining the           
constitution by  austerities17#hg7 and  
if we may believe but a small part of   
what is related  of the habits of the   
early and medival monks1 great numbers  
of them must  have thus shortened their 
days4 ,there is a touching story told by
 ,st4  ,bonaventura1 of ,st4 ,francis   
,assisi1 who was one of these victims to
  asceticism4 ,as the dying saint sank  
back exhausted with spitting blood1 he  
avowed1 as he looked upon his emaciated 
body1 that 8he had sinned against  his  
brother1 the ass20 and then1 the feeling
 of his mind taking1 as was  usual with 
him1 the form of an hallucination1 he   
imagined that1 when at  prayer during   
the night1 he heard a voice saying3     
8,francis1 there is no  sinner in the   
world whom1 if he be converted1 ,god    
will not pardon2 but he  who kills      
himself by hard penances will find no   
mercy in eternity40 ,he  attributed the 
voice to the devil47#hh7    ,direct and 
deliberate suicide1 which occupies so   

prominent a place in the  moral history 
of antiquity1 almost absolutely         
disappeared within the  ,church2 but    
beyond its pale the ,circumcelliones1 in
 the fourth century1  constituted       
themselves the apostles of death1 and   
not only carried to the  highest point  
the custom of provoking martyrdom1 by   
challenging and  insulting the          
assemblies of the ,pagans1 but even     
killed themselves in  great numbers1    
imagining1 it would seem1 that this was 
a form of  martyrdom1 and would secure  
for them eternal salvation4 ,assembling 
in  hundreds1 ,st4 ,augustine says even 
in thousands1 they leaped with paroxysms
  of frantic joy from the brows of      
overhanging cliffs1 till the rocks below
  were reddened with their blood47#hi7  
,at a much later period1 we find among  
the ,albigenses a practice1 known by the
 name of ,endura1 of accelerating       
death1 in the case of dangerous illness1
 by fasting1 and sometimes by           
bleeding47#ij7 ,the wretched ,jews1     

stung to madness by the persecution of  
the ,catholics1 furnish the most        
numerous examples of suicide during the 
middle ages4 ,a multitude perished by   
their own hands1 to avoid torture1 in   
,france1 in #ajie2 five hundred1 it is  
said1 on a single occasion at ,york2    
five hundred in #acbj1 when besieged by 
the ,shepherds4 ,the old ,pagan         
legislation on this subject remained    
unaltered in the ,theodosian and        
,justinian codes2 but a ,council of     
,arles1 in the fifth century1 having    
pronounced suicide to be the effect of  
diabolical inspiration1 a ,council  of  
,bragues1 in the following century1     
ordained that no religious rites  should
 be celebrated at the tomb of the       
culprit1 and that no masses should  be  
said for his soul2 and these provisions1
 which were repeated by later           
,councils1 were gradually introduced    
into the laws of the barbarians and of  
,charlemagne4 ,st4 ,lewis originated the
 custom of confiscating the property  of

 the dead man1 and the corpse was soon  
subjected to gross and various          
outrages4 ,in some countries it could   
only be removed from the house  through 
a perforation specially made for the    
occasion in the wall2 it was  dragged   
upon a hurdle through the streets1 hung 
up with the head  downwards1 and at last
 thrown into the public sewer1 or burnt1
 or buried  in the sand below high-water
 mark1 or transfixed by a stake on the  
public  highway47#ia7    ,these         
singularly hideous and at the same time 
grotesque customs1 and also  the extreme
 injustice of reducing to beggary the   
unhappy relations of the  dead1 had the 
very natural effect of exciting1 in the 
eighteenth century1  a strong spirit of 
reaction4 ,suicide is indeed one of     
those acts which may  be condemned by   
moralists as a sin1 but which1 in modern
 times at least1  cannot be regarded as 
within the legitimate sphere of law2 for
 a society  which accords to its members
 perfect liberty of emigration1 cannot  

reasonably pronounce the simple         
renunciation of life to be an offence   
against itself4 ,when1 however1         
,beccaria and his followers went        
further1  and maintained that the       
medival laws on the subject were as     
impotent as  they were revolting1 they  
fell1 ,i think1 into serious error4 ,the
 outrages  lavished upon the corpse of  
the suicide1 though in the first        
instance an  expression of the popular  
horror of his act1 contributed1 by the  
associations they formed1 to strengthen 
the feeling that produced them1  and    
they were also peculiarly fitted to     
scare the diseased1 excited1 and        
oversensitive imaginations that are most
 prone to suicide4 ,in the rare         
occasions when the act was deliberately 
contemplated1 the knowledge that        
religious1 legislative1 and social      
influences would combine to aggravate   
to the utmost the agony of the surviving
 relatives1 must have had great  weight4
 ,the activity of the ,legislature shows

 the continuance of the act2  but we    
have every reason to believe that within
 the pale of ,catholicism it  was for   
many centuries extremely rare4 ,it is   
said to have been somewhat  prevalent in
 ,spain in the last and most corrupt    
period of the ,gothic  kingdom17#ib7 and
 many instances occurred during a great 
pestilence which  raged in ,england in  
the seventh century17#ic7 and also      
during the ,black  ,death of the        
fourteenth century47#id7 ,when the wives
 of priests were  separated in vast     
numbers from their husbands by          
,hildebrand1 and driven  into the world 
blasted1 heart-broken1 and hopeless1 not
 a few of them  shortened their agony by
 suicide47#ie7 ,among women it was in   
general  especially rare2 and a learned 
historian of suicide has even asserted  
that  a ,spanish lady1 who1 being       
separated from her husband1 and finding 
herself  unable to resist the energy of 
her passions1 killed herself rather than
  yield to temptation1 is the only      

instance of female suicide during       
several  centuries47#if7 ,in the        
romances of chivalry1 however1 this mode
 of death is  frequently pourtrayed     
without horror17#ig7 and its criminality
 was  discussed at considerable length  
by ,abelard and ,st4 ,thomas ,aquinas1  
while  ,dante has devoted some fine     
lines to painting the condition of      
suicides in  hell1 where they are also  
frequently represented in the           
bas-reliefs of  cathedrals4 ,a          
melancholy leading to desperation1 and  
known to theologians  under the name of 
8acedia10 was not uncommon in           
monasteries1 and most of  the recorded  
instances of medival suicides in        
,catholicism were by monks4  ,the       
frequent suicides of monks1 sometimes to
 escape the world1 sometimes  through   
despair at their inability to quell the 
propensities of the body1  sometimes    
through insanity produced by their mode 
of life1 and by their  dread of         
surrounding demons1 were noticed in the 

early ,church17#ih7 and a  few examples 
have been gleaned1 from the medival     
chronicles17#ii7 of  suicides produced  
by the bitterness of hopeless love1 or  
by the  derangement that follows extreme
 austerity4 ,these are1 however1 but    
few2  and it is probable that the       
monasteries1 by providing a refuge for  
the  disappointed and the               
broken-hearted1 have prevented more     
suicides than  they have caused1 and    
that1 during the whole period of        
,catholic  ascendancy1 the act was more 
rare than before or after4 ,the         
influence of  ,catholicism was seconded 
by ,mohammedanism1 which1 on this as on 
many other  points1 borrowed its        
teaching from the ,christian ,church1   
and even  intensified it2 for suicide1  
which is never expressly condemned in   
the  ,bible1 is more than once forbidden
 in the ,koran1 and the ,christian duty 
of  resignation was exaggerated by the  
,moslem into a complete fatalism4 ,under
  the empire of ,catholicism and        

,mohammedanism1 suicide1 during many    
centuries1 almost absolutely ceased in  
all the civilised1 active1 and          
progressive part of mankind4 ,when we   
recollect how warmly it was  applauded1 
or how faintly it was condemned1 in the 
civilisation of ,greece  and ,rome2 when
 we remember1 too1 that there was       
scarcely a barbarous  tribe1 from       
,denmark to ,spain1 who did not         
habitually practise it17#ajj7 we  may   
realise the complete revolution which   
was effected in this sphere by  the     
influence of ,christianity4    ,a few   
words may be added on the later phases  
of this mournful history4 ,the          
,reformation does not seem to have had  
any immediate effect in multiplying     
suicide1 for ,protestants and ,catholics
 held with equal intensity the          
religious sentiments which are most     
fitted to prevent it1 and in none of    
the persecutions was impatience of life 
largely displayed4 ,the history at  this
 period passes chiefly into the new     

world1 where the unhappy ,indians1      
reduced to slavery1 and treated with    
atrocious cruelty by their  conquerors1 
killed themselves in great numbers2 till
 the ,spaniards1 it is  said1 discovered
 an ingenious method of deterring them1 
by declaring that  the master also would
 commit suicide1 and would pursue his   
victims into  the world of              
spirits47#aja7 ,in ,europe the act was  
very common among the  witches1 who     
underwent all the sufferings with none  
of the consolations of  martyrdom4      
,without enthusiasm1 without hope1      
without even the  consciousness of      
innocence1 decrepit in body1 and        
distracted in mind1  compelled in this  
world to endure tortures1 before which  
the most  impassioned heroism might     
quail1 and doomed1 as they often        
believed1 to  eternal damnation in the  
next1 they not unfrequently killed      
themselves in  the agony of their       
despair4 ,a ,french judge named ,remy   
tells us that he  knew no less than     

fifteen witches commit suicide in a     
single year47#ajb7 ,in  these cases1    
fear and madness combined in urging the 
victims to the deed4  ,epidemics of     
purely insane suicide have also not     
unfrequently occurred4  ,both the women 
of ,marseilles and the women of ,lyons  
were afflicted with an  epidemic not    
unlike that which1 in antiquity1 had    
been noticed among the  girls of        
,miletus47#ajc7 ,in that strange mania  
which raged in the ,neapolitan          
districts from the end of the fifteenth 
to the end of the seventeenth  century1 
and which was attributed to the bite of 
the tarantula1 the  patients thronged in
 multitudes towards the sea1 and often1 
as the blue  waters opened to their     
view1 they chanted a wild hymn of       
welcome1 and  rushed with passion into  
the waves47#ajd7 ,but together with     
these cases1  which belong rather to the
 history of medicine than to that of    
morals1 we  find many facts exhibiting a
 startling increase of deliberate       

suicide1 and  a no less startling       
modification of the sentiments with     
which it was  regarded4 ,the revival of 
classical learning1 and the growing     
custom of  regarding ,greek and ,roman  
heroes as ideals1 necessarily brought   
the  subject into prominence4 ,the      
,catholic casuists1 and at a later      
period  philosophers of the school of   
,grotius and ,puffendorf1 began to      
distinguish  certain cases of legitimate
 suicide1 such as that committed to     
avoid  dishonour or probable sin1 or    
that of the soldier who fires a mine1   
knowing he must inevitably perish by the
 explosion1 or that of a condemned      
person who saves himself from torture by
 anticipating an inevitable fate1  or   
that of a man who offers himself to     
death for his friend47#aje7 ,the  effect
 of the ,pagan examples may frequently  
be detected in the last words  or       
writings of the suicides4 ,philip       
,strozzi1 when accused of the           
assassination of ,alexander ,i4 of      

,tuscany1 killed himself through fear   
that  torture might extort from him     
revelations injurious to his friends1   
and he  left behind him a paper in      
which1 among other things1 he commended 
his  soul to ,god1 with the prayer that1
 if no higher boon could be granted1 he 
might at least be permitted to have his 
place with ,cato of ,utica and the      
other great suicides of antiquity47#ajf7
 ,in ,england1 the act appears in the   
seventeenth century and in the first    
half of the eighteenth to have been     
more common than upon the               
,continent17#ajg7 and several partial or
 even  unqualified apologies for it were
 written4 ,sir ,thomas ,more1 in his    
8,utopia10 represented the priests and  
magistrates of his ideal republic       
permitting or even enjoining those who  
were afflicted with incurable  disease  
to kill themselves1 but depriving of    
burial those who had done so  without   
authorisation47#ajh7 ,dr4 ,donne1 the   
learned and pious ,dean of ,st4         

,paul's1 had in his youth written an    
extremely curious1 subtle1 and  learned1
 but at the same time feeble and        
involved1 work in defence of  suicide1  
which on his deathbed he commanded his  
son neither to publish nor  destroy1 and
 which his son published in #afdd4 ,two 
or three ,english  suicides left behind 
them elaborate defences1 as did also a  
,swede named  ,robeck1 who drowned      
himself in #agce1 and whose treatise1   
published in the  following year1       
acquired considerable celebrity47#aji7  
,but the most  influential writings     
about suicide were those of the ,french 
philosophers  and revolutionists4       
,montaigne1 without discussing its      
abstract lawfulness1  recounts1 with    
much admiration1 many of the instances  
in antiquity47#aaj7  ,montesquieu1 in a 
youthful work1 defended it with ardent  
enthusiasm47#aaa7  ,rousseau devoted to 
the subject two letters of a burning and
 passionate  eloquence17#aab7 in the    
first of which he presented with        

matchless power  the arguments in its   
favour1 while in the second he denounced
 those  arguments as sophistical1       
dilated upon the impiety of abandoning  
the post  of duty1 and upon the         
cowardice of despair1 and with a deep   
knowledge of  the human heart revealed  
the selfishness that lies at the root of
 most  suicide1 exhorting all who felt  
impelled to it to set about some work   
for  the good of others1 in which they  
would assuredly find relief4 ,voltaire1 
in the best-known couplet he ever wrote1
 defends the act on occasions of        
extreme necessity47#aac7 ,among the     
atheistical party it was warmly         
eulogised1 and ,holbach and ,deslandes  
were prominent as its defenders4 ,the   
rapid decomposition of religious        
opinions weakened the popular sense of  
its enormity1 and at the same time the  
humanity of the age1 and also a  clearer
 sense of the true limits of            
legislation1 produced a reaction        
against the horrible laws on the        

subject4 ,grotius had defended them4    
,montesquieu at first denounced them    
with unqualified energy1 but in his     
later years in some degree modified his 
opinions4 ,beccaria1 who was1 more  than
 any other writer1 the representative of
 the opinions of the ,french  school on 
such matters1 condemned them partly as  
unjust to the innocent  survivors1      
partly as incapable of deterring any man
 who was resolved upon  the act4 ,even  
in #agdi1 in the full blaze of the      
philosophic movement1 we  find a suicide
 named ,portier dragged through the     
streets of ,paris with his  face to the 
ground1 hung from a gallows by his feet1
 and then thrown into  the sewers27#aad7
 and the laws were not abrogated till   
the ,revolution1  which1 having founded 
so many other forms of freedom1 accorded
 the liberty  of death4 ,amid the       
dramatic vicissitudes1 and the fierce   
enthusiasm of  that period of           
convulsions1 suicides immediately       
multiplied4 8,the world10  it was said1 

had been 8empty since the               
,romans407#aae7 ,for a brief period1    
and in this one country1 the action of  
,christianity appeared suspended4  ,men 
seemed to be transported again into the 
age of ,paganism1 and the  suicides1    
though more theatrical1 were perpetrated
 with no less  deliberation1 and        
eulogised with no less enthusiasm1 than 
among the  ,stoics4 ,but the tide of    
revolution passed away1 and with some   
qualifications the old opinions resumed 
their authority4 ,the laws against      
suicide were1 indeed1 for the most part 
abolished4 ,in ,france and several      
other lands there exists no legislation 
on the subject4 ,in other countries  the
 law simply enjoins burial without      
religious ceremonies4 ,in ,england1  the
 burial in a highway and the mutilation 
by a stake were abolished under  ,george
 ,,iv42 but the monstrous injustice of  
confiscating to the ,crown the  entire  
property of the deliberate suicide still
 disgraces the  statute-book1 though the

 force of public opinion and the        
charitable  perjury of juries render it 
inoperative4    ,the common sentiment of
 ,christendom has1 however1 ratified the
 judgment  which the ,christian teachers
 pronounced upon the act1 though it has 
somewhat modified the severity of the   
old censure1 and has abandoned some  of 
the old arguments4 ,it was reserved for 
,madame de ,stal1 who1 in a  youthful   
work upon the ,passions1 had commended  
suicide1 to reconstruct  this department
 of ethics1 which had been somewhat     
disturbed by the  ,revolution1 and she  
did so in a little treatise which is a  
model of calm1  candid1 and philosophic 
piety4 ,frankly abandoning the old      
theological  notions that the deed is of
 the nature of murder1 that it is the   
worst of  crimes1 and that it is always1
 or even generally1 the offspring of    
cowardice2 abandoning1 too1 all attempts
 to scare men by religious  terrorism1  
she proceeded1 not so much to meet in   
detail the isolated  arguments of its   

defenders1 as to sketch the ideal of a  
truly virtuous  man1 and to show how    
such a character would secure men       
against all  temptation to suicide4 ,in 
pages of the most tender beauty1 she    
traced the  influence of suffering in   
softening1 purifying1 and deepening the 
character1 and showed how a frame of    
habitual and submissive resignation  was
 not only the highest duty1 but also the
 source of the purest  consolation1 and 
at the same time the appointed condition
 of moral  amelioration4 ,having        
examined in detail the ,biblical aspect 
of the  question1 she proceeded to show 
how the true measure of the dignity of  
man  is his unselfishness4 ,she         
contrasted the martyr with the          
suicide--the death  which springs from  
devotion to duty with the death that    
springs from  rebellion against         
circumstances4 ,the suicide of ,cato1   
which had been  absurdly denounced by a 
crowd of ecclesiastics as an act of     
cowardice1 and  as absurdly alleged by  

many suicides as a justification for    
flying from  pain or poverty1 she       
represented as an act of martyrdom--a   
death like that  of ,curtius1 accepted  
nobly for the benefit of ,rome4 ,the eye
 of the good  man should be for ever    
fixed upon the interest of others4 ,for 
them he  should be prepared to          
relinquish life with all its blessings4 
,for them he  should be prepared to     
tolerate life1 even when it seemed to   
him a curse4    ,sentiments of this kind
 have1 through the influence of         
,christianity1  thoroughly pervaded     
,european society1 and suicide1 in      
modern times1 is  almost always found to
 have sprung either from absolute       
insanity2 from  diseases which1 though  
not amounting to insanity1 are yet      
sufficient to  discolour our judgments2 
or from that last excess of sorrow1 when
  resignation and hope are both extinct4
 ,considering it in this light1 ,i  know
 few things more fitted to qualify the  
optimism we so often hear than  the fact

 that statistics show it to be rapidly  
increasing1 and to be  peculiarly       
characteristic of those nations which   
rank most high in  intellectual         
development and in general              
civilisation47#aaf7 ,in one or two      
countries1 strong religious feeling has 
counteracted the tendency2 but the      
comparison of town and country1 of      
different countries1 of different       
provinces of the same country1 and of   
different periods in history1 proves    
conclusively its reality4 ,many reasons 
may be alleged to explain it4  ,mental  
occupations are peculiarly fitted to    
produce insanity17#aag7 and the  blaze  
of publicity1 which in modern time      
encircles an act of suicide1 to  draw   
weak minds to its imitation4 ,if we put 
the condition of absolutely  savage     
life1 out of our calculation1 it is     
probable that a highly  developed       
civilisation1 while it raises the       
average of well-being1 is  accompanied  
by more extreme misery and acute        

sufferings than the simpler  stages that
 had preceded it4 ,nomadic habits1 the  
vast agglomeration of men  in cities1   
the pressure of a fierce competition1   
and the sudden  fluctuations to which   
manufactures are peculiarly liable1 are 
the  conditions of great prosperity1 but
 also the causes of the most profound   
misery4 ,civilisation makes many of what
 once were superfluities1  necessaries  
of life1 so that their loss inflicts a  
pang long after their  possession had   
ceased to be a pleasure4 ,it also1 by   
softening the  character1 renders it    
peculiarly sensitive to pain1 and it    
brings with it  a long train of         
antipathies1 passions1 and diseased     
imaginations1 which  rarely or never    
cross the thoughts or torture the nerves
 of the simple  peasant4 ,the advance of
 religious scepticism1 and the          
relaxation of  religious discipline1    
have weakened and sometimes destroyed   
the horror of  suicide2 and the habits  
of self-assertion1 the eager and        

restless  ambitions which political     
liberty1 intellectual activity1 and     
manufacturing enterprise1 all in their  
different ways conspire to foster1      
while they are the very principles and  
conditions of the progress of our  age1 
render the virtue of content in all its 
forms extremely rare1 and are           
peculiarly unpropitious to the formation
 of that spirit of humble and           
submissive resignation which alone can  
mitigate the agony of hopeless          
suffering4                              
,from examining the effect of           
,christianity in promoting a sense of   
the  sanctity of human life1 we may now 
pass to an adjoining field1 and examine 
its influence in promoting a fraternal  
and philanthropic sentiment among       
mankind4 ,and first of all we may notice
 its effects upon slavery4    ,the      
reader will remember the general        
position this institution occupied in   
the eyes of the ,stoic moralists1 and   
under the legislation which they had  in

 a great measure inspired4 ,the         
legitimacy of slavery was fully         
recognised2 but ,seneca and other       
moralists had asserted1 in the very     
strongest terms1 the natural equality of
 mankind1 the superficial  character of 
the differences between the slave and   
his master1 and the  duty of the most   
scrupulous humanity to the former4      
,instances of a very  warm sympathy     
between master and slave were of        
frequent occurrence2 but  they may      
unfortunately be paralleled by not a few
 examples of the most  atrocious        
cruelty4 ,to guard against such cruelty1
 a long series of  enactments1 based    
avowedly upon the ,stoical principle of 
the essential  equality of mankind1 had 
been made under ,hadrian1 the           
,antonines1 and  ,alexander ,severus4   
,not to recapitulate at length what has 
been mentioned  in a former chapter1 it 
is sufficient to remind the reader that 
the right  of life and death had been   
definitely withdrawn from the master1   

and that  the murder of a slave was     
stigmatised and punished by the law4 ,it
 had1  however1 been laid down1 by the  
great lawyer ,paul1 that homicide       
implies  an intention to kill1 and that 
therefore the master was not guilty of  
that  crime if his slave died under     
chastisement which was not administered 
with  this intention4 ,but the licence  
of punishment which this decision might 
give was checked by laws which forbade  
excessive cruelty to slaves1  provided  
that1 when it was proved1 they should be
 sold to another master1  suppressed the
 private prisons in which they had been 
immured1 and  appointed special officers
 to receive their complaints4    ,in the
 field of legislation1 for about two    
hundred years after the  conversion of  
,constantine1 the progress was extremely
 slight4 ,the  ,christian emperors1 in  
,a4,d4 #cai and #cbf1 adverted in two   
elaborate laws to  the subject of the   
murder of slaves17#aah7 but1 beyond     
reiterating in very  emphatic terms the 

previous enactments1 it is not easy to  
see in what way  they improved the      
condition of the class47#aai7 ,they     
provided that any  master who applied to
 his slave certain atrocious tortures1  
that are  enumerated1 with the object of
 killing him1 should be deemed a        
homicide1  but if the slave died under  
moderate punishment1 or under any       
punishment  not intended to kill him1   
the master should be blameless2 no      
charge  whatever1 it was emphatically   
said1 should be brought against him4 ,it
 has  been supposed1 though ,i think    
without evidence1 by commentators7#abj7 
that  this law accorded immunity to the 
master only when the slave perished     
under the application of 8appropriate0  
or servile punishments--that is to  say1
 scourging1 irons1 or imprisonment2 but 
the use of torture not  intended to kill
 was in no degree restricted1 nor is    
there anything in the  law to make it   
appear either that the master was liable
 to punishment1 if  contrary to his     

intention his slave succumbed beneath   
torture1 or that  ,constantine proposed 
any penalty for excessive cruelty which 
did not  result in death4 ,it is1       
perhaps1 not out of place to observe1   
that this  law was in remarkable harmony
 with the well-known article of the     
,jewish  code1 which provided that if a 
slave1 wounded to death by his master1  
linger for a day or two1 the master     
should not be punished1 for the slave   
was his money47#aba7    ,the two        
features that were most revolting in the
 slave system1 as it  passed from the   
,pagan to the ,christian emperors1 were 
the absolute want of  legal recognition 
of slave marriage1 and the licence of   
torturing still  conceded to the master4
 ,the ,christian emperors before        
,justinian took no  serious steps to    
remedy either of these evils1 and the   
measures that were  taken against       
adultery still continued inapplicable to
 slave unions1  because 8the vileness of
 their condition makes them unworthy of 

the  observation of the law407#abb7 ,the
 abolition of the punishment of         
crucifixion had1 however1 a special     
value to the slave class1 and a very    
merciful law of ,constantine forbade the
 separation of the families of the      
slaves47#abc7 ,another law1 which in its
 effects was perhaps still more         
important1 imparted a sacred character  
to manumission1 ordaining that the      
ceremony should be celebrated in the    
,church17#abd7 and permitting it on     
,sundays4 ,some measures were also      
taken1 providing for the freedom of the 
,christian slaves of ,jewish masters1   
and1 in two or three cases1 freedom  was
 offered as a bribe to slaves1 to induce
 them to inform against  criminals4     
,intermarriage between the free and     
slave classes was still  strictly       
forbidden1 and if a free woman had      
improper intercourse with her  slave1   
,constantine ordered that the woman     
should be executed and the slave  burnt 
alive47#abe7 ,by the ,pagan law1 the    

woman had been simply reduced to        
slavery4 ,the laws against fugitive     
slaves were also rendered more          
severe47#abf7    ,this legislation may  
on the whole be looked upon as a        
progress1 but it  certainly does not    
deserve the enthusiasm which            
ecclesiastical writers  have sometimes  
bestowed upon it4 ,for about two hundred
 years1 there was an  almost absolute   
pause in the legislation on this        
subject4 ,some slight  restrictions     
were1 however1 imposed upon the use of  
torture in trials2  some slight         
additional facilities of manumission    
were given1 and some very  atrocious    
enactments made to prevent slaves       
accusing their masters4  ,according to  
that of ,gratian1 any slave who accused 
his master of any  offence1 except high 
treason1 should immediately be burnt    
alive1 without  any investigation of the
 justice of the charge47#abg7    ,under 
,justinian1 however1 new and very       
important measures were taken4 ,in  no  

other sphere were the laws of this      
emperor so indisputably an advance  upon
 those of his predecessors4 ,his        
measures may be comprised under three   
heads4 ,in the first place1 all the     
restrictions upon enfranchisement which 
had accumulated under the ,pagan        
legislation were abolished2 the         
legislator  proclaimed in emphatic      
language1 and by the provisions of many 
laws1 his  desire to encourage          
manumission1 and free scope was thus    
given to the  action of the ,church4 ,in
 the second place1 the freedmen1        
considered as an  intermediate class    
between the slave and the citizen1 were 
virtually  abolished1 all or nearly all 
the privileges accorded to the citizen  
being  granted to the emancipated slave4
 ,this was the most important           
contribution  of the ,christian emperors
 to that great amalgamation of nations  
and  classes which had been advancing   
since the days of ,augustus2 and one of 
its effects was1 that any person1 even  

of senatorial rank1 might marry a  slave
 when he had first emancipated her4 ,in 
the third place1 a slave was  permitted 
to marry a free woman with the          
authorisation of his master1 and        
children born in slavery became the     
legal heirs of their emancipated        
father4 ,the rape of a slave woman was  
also in this reign punished1 like  that 
of a free woman1 by death47#abh7        
,but1 important as were these measures1 
it is not in the field of  legislation  
that we must chiefly look for the       
influence of ,christianity  upon        
slavery4 ,this influence was indeed very
 great1 but it is necessary  carefully  
to define its nature4 ,the prohibition  
of all slavery1 which was  one of the   
peculiarities of the ,jewish ,essenes1  
and the illegitimacy of  hereditary     
slavery1 which was one of the           
speculations of the ,stoic ,dion        
,chrysostom1 had no place in the        
ecclesiastical teaching4 ,slavery was   
distinctly and formally recognised by   

,christianity17#abi7 and no religion    
ever laboured more to encourage a habit 
of docility and passive obedience4      
,much was indeed said by the ,fathers   
about the natural equality of mankind1  
about the duty of regarding slaves as   
brothers or companions1 and about  the  
heinousness of cruelty to them2 but all 
this had been said with at  least equal 
force1 though it had not been           
disseminated over an equally  wide area1
 by ,seneca and ,epictetus1 and the     
principle of the original  freedom of   
all men was repeatedly averred by the   
,pagan lawyers4 ,the  services of       
,christianity in this sphere were of    
three kinds4 ,it supplied a  new order  
of relations1 in which the distinction  
of classes was unknown4  ,it imparted a 
moral dignity to the servile classes1   
and it gave an  unexampled impetus to   
the movement of enfranchisement4    ,the
 first of these services was effected by
 the ,church ceremonies and the         
penitential discipline4 ,in these       

spheres1 from which the ,christian mind 
derived its earliest1 its deepest1 and  
its most enduring impressions1 the      
difference between the master and his   
slave was unknown4 ,they received the   
sacred elements together1 they sat side 
by side at the agape1 they mingled  in  
the public prayers4 ,in the penal system
 of the ,church1 the distinction        
between wrongs done to a freeman1 and   
wrongs done to a slave1 which lay at    
the very root of the whole civil        
legislation1 was repudiated4 ,at a time 
when1 by the civil law1 a master1 whose 
slave died as a consequence of          
excessive scourging1 was absolutely     
unpunished1 the ,council of ,illiberis  
excluded that master for ever from the  
communion47#acj7 ,the chastity of       
female slaves1 for the protection of    
which the civil law made but little     
provision1 was sedulously guarded by the
 legislation of the ,church4 ,slave     
birth1 moreover1 was no disqualification
 for entering into the priesthood2  and 

an emancipated slave1 regarded as the   
dispenser of spiritual life and  death1 
often saw the greatest and the most     
wealthy kneeling humbly at his  feet    
imploring his absolution or his         
benediction47#aca7    ,in the next      
place1 ,christianity imparted a moral   
dignity to the servile  class4 ,it did  
this not only by associating poverty and
 labour with that  monastic life which  
was so profoundly revered1 but also by  
introducing new  modifications into the 
ideal type of morals4 ,there is no fact 
more  prominent in the ,roman writers   
than the profound contempt with which   
they  regarded slaves1 not so much on   
account of their position1 as on account
  of the character which that position  
had formed4 ,a servile character was a  
synonym for a vicious one4 ,cicero had  
declared that nothing great or noble    
could exist in a slave1 and the plays of
 ,plautus exhibit the same estimate  in 
every scene4 ,there were1 it is true1   
some exceptions4 ,epictetus had not     

only been1 but had been recognised as   
one of the noblest characters of  ,rome4
 ,the fidelity of slaves to their       
masters had been frequently  extolled1  
and ,seneca in this1 as in other        
respects1 had been the defender  of the 
oppressed4 ,still there can be no doubt 
that this contempt was  general1 and    
also that in the ,pagan world it was to 
a great extent just4  ,every age has its
 own moral ideal1 to which all virtuous 
men aspire4 ,every  sphere of life has  
also a tendency to produce a distinctive
 type being  specially favourable to    
some particular class of virtues1 and   
specially  unfavourable to others4 ,the 
popular estimate1 and even the real     
moral  condition1 of each class depends 
chiefly upon the degree in which the    
type  of character its position         
naturally develops1 coincides with the  
ideal  type of the age4 ,now1 if we     
remember that magnanimity1              
self-reliance1  dignity1 independence1  
and1 in a word1 elevation of character1 

constituted  the ,roman ideal of        
perfection1 it will appear evident that 
this was  preeminently the type of      
freemen1 and that the condition of      
slavery was in  the very highest degree 
unfavourable to its development4        
,christianity for  the first time gave  
the servile virtues the foremost place  
in the moral  type4 ,humility1          
obedience1 gentleness1 patience1        
resignation1 are all  cardinal or       
rudimentary virtues in the ,christian   
character2 they were all  neglected or  
underrated by the ,pagans2 they can all 
expand and flourish in  a servile       
position4    ,the influence of          
,christianity upon slavery1 by inclining
 the moral type to  the servile classes1
 though less obvious and less discussed 
than some  others1 is1 ,i believe1 in   
the very highest degree important4      
,there is1  probably1 scarcely any other
 single circumstance that exercises so  
profound an influence upon the social   
and political relations of a  religion1 

as the class type with which it can most
 readily assimilate2 or1  in other      
words1 the group or variety of virtues  
to which it gives the  foremost place4  
,the virtues that are most suited to the
 servile position  were in general so   
little honoured by antiquity that they  
were not even  cultivated in their      
appropriate sphere4 ,the aspirations of 
good men were  in a different direction4
 ,the virtue of the ,stoic1 which rose  
triumphantly  under adversity1 nearly   
always withered under degradation4 ,for 
the first  time1 under the influence of 
,christianity1 a great moral movement   
passed  through the servile class4 ,the 
multitude of slaves who embraced the new
  faith was one of the reproaches of the
 ,pagans2 and the names of ,blandina1   
,potamina1 ,eutyches1 ,victorinus1 and  
,nereus1 show how fully they shared in  
the sufferings and in the glory of      
martyrdom 7#acb74 ,the first and        
grandest  edifice of ,byzantine         
architecture in ,italy--the noble church

 of ,st4 ,vital1  at ,ravenna--was      
dedicated by ,justinian to the memory of
 a martyred slave4    ,while            
,christianity thus broke down the       
contempt with which the master had      
regarded his slaves1 and planted among  
the latter a principle of moral         
regeneration which expanded in no other 
sphere with an equal perfection1  its   
action in procuring the freedom of the  
slave was unceasing4 ,the law of        
,constantine1 which placed the ceremony 
under the superintendence of the        
clergy1 and the many laws that gave     
special facilities of manumission to    
those who desired to enter the          
monasteries or the priesthood1          
symbolised  the religious character the 
act had assumed4 ,it was celebrated on  
,church  festivals1 especially at       
,easter2 and1 although it was not       
proclaimed a  matter of duty or         
necessity1 it was always regarded as one
 of the most  acceptable modes of       
expiating past sins4 ,st4 ,melania was  

said to have  emancipated #h1jjj slaves2
 ,st4 ,ovidius1 a rich martyr of ,gaul1 
#e1jjj2  ,chromatius1 a ,roman prefect  
under ,diocletian1 #a1djj2 ,hermes1 a   
prefect in  the reign of ,trajan1       
#a1bej47acc7 ,pope ,st4 ,gregory1 many  
of the clergy at  ,hippo under the rule 
of ,st4 ,augustine1 as well as great    
numbers of private  individuals1 freed  
their slaves as an act of piety47#acd7  
,it became  customary to do so on       
occasions of national or personal       
thanksgiving1 on  recovery from         
sickness1 on the birth of a child1 at   
the hour of death1  and1 above all1 in  
testamentary bequests47#ace7 ,numerous  
charters and  epitaphs still record the 
gift of liberty to slaves throughout the
 middle  ages1 8for the benefit of the  
soul0 of the donor or testator4 ,in the 
thirteenth century1 when there were no  
slaves to emancipate in ,france1 it  was
 usual in many churches to release caged
 pigeons on the ecclesiastical          
festivals1 in memory of the ancient     

charity1 and that prisoners might  still
 be freed in the name of ,christ47#acf7 
,slavery1 however1 lasted in ,europe for
 about #hjj years after ,constantine1   
and during the period with which alone  
this volume is concerned1 although  its 
character was changed and mitigated1 the
 number of men who were  subject to it  
was probably greater than in the ,pagan 
,empire4 ,in the ,west  the barbarian   
conquests modified the conditions of    
labour in two  directions4 ,the         
cessation of the stream of barbarian    
captives1 the  impoverishment of great  
families1 who had been surrounded by    
vast retinues  of slaves1 the general   
diminution of town life1 and the        
barbarian habits  of personal           
independence1 checked the old form of   
slavery1 while the  misery and the      
precarious condition of the free        
peasants induced them in  great numbers 
to barter their liberty for protection  
by the neighbouring  lord47#acg7 ,in the
 ,east1 the destruction of great        

fortunes through  excessive taxation    
diminished the number of superfluous    
slaves2 and the  fiscal system of the   
,byzantine ,empire1 by which            
agricultural slaves were  taxed         
according to their employments17#ach7 as
 well as the desire of  emperors to     
encourage agriculture1 led the          
legislators to attach the  slaves       
permanently to the soil4 ,in the course 
of time1 almost the entire  free        
peasantry1 and the greater number of the
 old slaves1 had sunk or  risen into the
 qualified slavery called serfdom1 which
 formed the basis of  the great edifice 
of feudalism4 ,towards the end of the   
eighth century1 the  sale of slaves     
beyond their native provinces was in    
most countries  prohibited47#aci7 ,the  
creation of the free cities of ,italy1  
the custom of  emancipating slaves who  
were enrolled in the army1 and          
economical changes  which made free     
labour more profitable than slave       
labour1 conspired with  religious       

motives in effecting the ultimate       
freedom of labour4 ,the  practice of    
manumitting1 as an act of devotion1     
continued to the end2 but  the          
ecclesiastics1 probably through the     
feeling that they had no right to       
alienate corporate property1 in which   
they had only a life interest1 were     
among the last to follow the counsels   
they so liberally bestowed upon the     
laity47#adj7 ,in the twelfth century1   
however1 slaves in ,europe were very    
rare4 ,in the fourteenth century1       
slavery was almost unknown47#ada7       
,closely connected with the influence of
 the ,church in destroying  hereditary  
slavery1 was its influence in redeeming 
captives from  servitude4 ,in no other  
form of charity was its beneficial      
character more  continually and more    
splendidly displayed4 ,during the long  
and dreary  trials of the barbarian     
invasions1 when the whole structure of  
society was  dislocated1 when vast      
districts and mighty cities were in a   

few months  almost depopulated1 and when
 the flower of the youth of ,italy were 
mown  down by the sword1 or carried away
 into captivity1 the bishops never      
desisted from their efforts to alleviate
 the sufferings of the prisoners4  ,st4 
,ambrose1 disregarding the outcries of  
the ,arians1 who denounced his  act as  
atrocious sacrilege1 sold the rich      
church ornaments of ,milan to  rescue   
some captives who had fallen into the   
hands of the ,goths1 and this           
practice--which was afterwards formally 
sanctioned by ,st4 ,gregory the         
,great--became speedily general4 ,when  
the ,roman army had captured1 but       
refused to support1 seven thousand      
,persian prisoners1 ,acacius1 ,bishop of
  ,amida1 undeterred by the bitter      
hostility of the ,persians to           
,christianity1  and declaring that 8,god
 had no need of plates or dishes10 sold 
all the  rich church ornaments of his   
diocese1 rescued the unbelieving        
prisoners1  and sent them back unharmed 

to their king4 ,during the horrors of   
the  ,vandal invasion1 ,deogratias1     
,bishop of ,carthage1 took a similar    
step to  ransom the ,roman prisoners4   
,st4 ,augustine1 ,st4 ,gregory the      
,great1 ,st4  ,csarius of ,arles1 ,st4  
,exuperius of ,toulouse1 ,st4 ,hilary1  
,st4 ,remi1 all  melted down or sold    
their church vases to free prisoners4   
,st4 ,cyprian sent  a large sum for the 
same purpose to the ,bishop of          
,nicomedia4 ,st4  ,epiphanius and ,st4  
,avitus1 in conjunction with a rich     
,gaulish lady named  ,syagria1 are said 
to have rescued thousands4 ,st4 ,eligius
 devoted to this  object his entire     
fortune4 ,st4 ,paulinus of ,nola        
displayed a similar  generosity1 and the
 legends even assert1 though untruly1   
that he1 like ,st4  ,peter ,teleonarius 
and ,st4 ,serapion1 having exhausted all
 other forms of  charity1 as a last gift
 sold himself to slavery4 ,when1 long   
afterwards1  the ,mohammedan conquests  
in a measure reproduced the calamities  

of the  barbarian invasions1 the same   
unwearied charity was displayed4 ,the   
,trinitarian monks1 founded by ,john of 
,matha in the twelfth century1 were     
devoted to the release of ,christian    
captives1 and another society was       
founded with the same object by ,peter  
,nolasco1 in the following              
century47#adb7    ,the different        
branches of the subject ,i am examining 
are so closely  intertwined that it is  
difficult to investigate one without in 
a measure  anticipating the others4     
,while discussing the influence of the  
,church in  protecting infancy1 in      
raising the estimate of human life1 and 
in  alleviating slavery1 ,i have        
trenched largely upon the last          
application of  the doctrine of         
,christian fraternity ,i must           
examine--,i mean the foundation  of     
charity4 ,the difference between ,pagan 
and ,christian societies in this  matter
 is very profound2 but a great part of  
it must be ascribed to causes  other    

than religious opinions4 ,charity finds 
an extended scope for action  only1     
where there exists a large class of men 
at once independent and  impoverished4  
,in the ancient societies1 slavery in a 
great measure  replaced pauperism1 and1 
by securing the subsistence of a very   
large  proportion of the poor1          
contracted the sphere of charity4 ,and  
what slavery  did at ,rome for the very 
poor1 the system of clientage did for   
those of a  somewhat higher rank4 ,the  
existence of these two institutions is  
sufficient to show the injustice of     
judging the two societies by a mere     
comparison of their charitable          
institutions1 and we must also remember 
that among the ancients the relief of   
the indigent was one of the most        
important functions of the ,state4 ,not 
to dwell upon the many measures  taken  
with this object in ancient ,greece1 in 
considering the condition of  the ,roman
 poor we are at once met by the simple  
fact that for several  centuries the    

immense majority of these were          
habitually supported by  gratuitous     
distributions of corn4 ,in a very early 
period of ,roman history  we find       
occasional instances of distribution2   
but it was not till ,a4,u4,c4  #fcj that
 ,caius ,gracchus caused a law to be    
made1 supplying the poorer  classes with
 corn at a price that was little more   
than nominal2 and  although1 two years  
after1 the nobles succeeded in revoking 
this law1 it  was after several         
fluctuations finally re-enacted in      
,a4,u4,c4 #fgi4 ,the  ,cassia-,terentia 
law1 as it was called from the consuls  
under whom it was  at last established1 
was largely extended in its operation1  
or1 as some  think1 revived from neglect
 in ,a4,u4,c4 #fia1 by ,cato of ,utica1 
who desired  by this means to divert    
popularity from the cause of ,csar1     
under whom  multitudes of the poor were 
enrolling themselves4 ,four years later1
  ,clodius ,pulcher1 abolishing the     
small payment which had been demanded1  

made the distribution entirely          
gratuitous4 ,it took place once a month1
 and  consisted of five modii7#adc7 a   
head4 ,in the time of ,julius ,csar no  
less  than #cbj1jjj persons were        
inscribed as recipients2 but ,csar      
reduced the  number by one half4 ,under 
,augustus it had risen to #bjj1jjj4     
,this emperor  desired to restrict the  
distribution of corn to three or four   
times a  year1 but1 yielding to the     
popular wish1 he at last consented that 
it  should continue monthly4 ,it soon   
became the leading fact of ,roman life4 
,numerous officers were appointed to    
provide it4 ,a severe legislation       
controlled their acts1 and to secure a  
regular and abundant supply of corn  for
 the capital became the principal object
 of the provincial governors4  ,under   
the ,antonines the number of the        
recipients had considerably  increased1 
having sometimes1 it is said1 exceeded  
#ejj1jjj4 ,septimus  ,severus added to  
the corn a ration of oil4 ,aurelian     

replaced the monthly  distribution of   
unground corn by a daily distribution of
 bread1 and added1  moreover1 a portion 
of pork4 ,gratuitous distributions were 
afterwards  extended to ,constantinople1
 ,alexandria1 and ,antioch1 and were    
probably not  altogether unknown in     
smaller towns47#add7    ,we have already
 seen that this gratuitous distribution 
of corn ranked1  with the institution of
 slavery and the gladiatorial           
exhibitions1 as one  of the chief       
demoralising influences of the ,empire4 
,the most injudicious  charity1 however 
pernicious to the classes it is intended
 to relieve1 has  commonly a beneficial 
and softening influence upon the donor1 
and through  him upon society at large4 
,but the ,roman distribution of corn1   
being  merely a political device1 had no
 humanising influence upon the people1  
while1 being regulated only by the      
indigence1 and not at all by the        
infirmities or character1 of the        
recipient1 it was a direct and          

overwhelming encouragement to idleness4 
,with a provision of the  necessaries of
 life1 and with an abundant supply of   
amusements1 the poor  ,romans readily   
gave up honourable labour1 all trades in
 the city  languished1 every            
interruption in the distribution of corn
 was followed by  fearful sufferings1   
free gifts of land were often           
insufficient to attract  the citizens to
 honest labour1 and the multiplication  
of children1 which  rendered the public 
relief inadequate1 was checked by       
abortion1  exposition1 or infanticide4  
,when we remember that the population of
 ,rome probably never exceeded a        
million and a half1 that a large        
proportion of the indigent were provided
  for as slaves1 and that more than     
#bjj1jjj freemen were habitually        
supplied  with the first necessary of   
life1 we cannot1 ,i think1 charge the   
,pagan  society of the metropolis1 at   
least1 with an excessive parsimony in   
relieving poverty4 ,but besides the     

distribution of corn1 several other     
measures were taken4 ,salt1 which was   
very largely used by the ,roman poor1   
had during the ,republic been made a    
monopoly of the ,state1 and was sold by 
it at a price that was little more than 
nominal47#ade7 ,the distribution of     
land1 which was the subject of the      
agrarian laws1 was1 under a new form1   
practised by ,julius ,csar17#adf7       
,nerva17#adg7 and ,septimus             
,severus17#adh7 who  bought land to     
divide it among the poor citizens4      
,large legacies were left  to the people
 by ,julius ,csar1 ,augustus1 and       
others1 and considerable1  though       
irregular1 donations made on occasions  
of great rejoicings4  ,numerous public  
baths were established1 to which1 when  
they were not  absolutely gratuitous1   
the smallest coin in use gave admission1
 and which  were in consequence         
habitually employed by the poor4        
,vespasian instituted1  and the         
,antonines extended1 a system of popular

 education1 and the  movement ,i have   
already noticed1 for the support of the 
children of poor  parents1 acquired very
 considerable proportions4 ,the first   
trace of it at  ,rome may be found under
 ,augustus1 who gave money and corn for 
the support  of young children1 who had 
previously not been included in the     
public  distributions47#adi7 ,this      
appears1 however1 to have been but an   
act of  isolated benevolence1 and the   
honour of first instituting a systematic
  effort in this direction belongs to   
,nerva1 who enjoined the support of     
poor children1 not only in ,rome1 but in
 all the cities of ,italy47#aej7        
,trajan greatly extended the system4 ,in
 his reign #e1jjj poor children were    
supported by the ,government in ,rome   
alone17#aea7 and similar measures1      
though we know not on what scale1 were  
taken in the other ,italian and even    
,african cities4 ,at the little town of 
,velleia1 we find a charity  instituted 
by ,trajan1 for the partial support of  

#bgj children47#aeb7  ,private          
benevolence followed in the same        
direction1 and several  inscriptions    
which still remain1 though they do not  
enable us to write its  history1        
sufficiently attest its activity4 ,the  
younger ,pliny1 besides  warmly         
encouraging schools1 devoted a small    
property to the support of  poor        
children in his native city of          
,como47#aec7 ,the name of ,clia ,macrina
  is preserved as the foundress of a    
charity for #ajj children at            
,terracina47#aed7 ,hadrian increased the
 supplies of corn allotted to these     
charities1 and he was also distinguished
 for his bounty to poor  women47#aee7   
,antoninus was accustomed to lend money 
to the poor at four per  cent41 which   
was much below the normal rate of       
interest17#aef7 and both he  and ,marcus
 ,aurelius dedicated to the memory of   
their wives institutions  for the       
support of girls47#aeg7 ,alexander      
,severus in like manner dedicated  an   

institution for the support of children 
to the memory of his  mother47#aeh7     
,public hospitals were probably unknown 
in ,europe before  ,christianity2 but   
there are traces of the distribution of 
medicine to the  sick poor27#aei7 there 
were private infirmaries for slaves1 and
 also1 it is  believed1 military        
hospitals47#afj7 ,provincial towns were 
occasionally  assisted by the           
,government in seasons of great         
distress1 and there are  some recorded  
instances of private legacies for their 
benefit47#afa7    ,these various        
measures are by no means inconsiderable1
 and it is not  unreasonable to suppose 
that many similar steps were taken1 of  
which all  record has been lost4 ,the   
history of charity presents so few      
salient  features1 so little that can   
strike the imagination or arrest the    
attention1 that it is usually almost    
wholly neglected by historians2 and  it 
is easy to conceive what inadequate     
notions of our existing charities  could

 be gleaned from the casual allusions in
 plays or poems1 in political  histories
 or court memoirs4 ,there can1 however1 
be no question that  neither in practice
 nor in theory1 neither in the          
institutions that were  founded nor in  
the place that was assigned to it in the
 scale of duties1  did charity in       
antiquity occupy a position at all      
comparable to that which  it has        
obtained by ,christianity4 ,nearly all  
relief was a ,state measure1  dictated  
much more by policy than by benevolence2
 and the habit of selling  young        
children1 the innumerable expositions1  
the readiness of the poor to  enrol     
themselves as gladiators1 and the       
frequent famines1 show how large  was   
the measure of unrelieved distress4 ,a  
very few ,pagan examples of  charity    
have1 indeed1 descended to us4 ,among   
the ,greeks we find  ,epaminondas       
ransoming captives1 and collecting      
dowers for poor girls27#afb7  ,cimon1   
feeding the hungry and clothing the     

naked27#afc7 ,bias1 purchasing1         
emancipating1 and furnishing with dowers
 some captive girls of  ,messina47#afd7 
,tacitus has described with enthusiasm  
how1 after a  catastrophe near ,rome1   
the rich threw open their houses and    
taxed all  their resources to relieve   
the sufferers47#afe7 ,there existed1    
too1 among  the poor1 both of ,greece   
and ,rome1 mutual insurance societies1  
which  undertook to provide for their   
sick and infirm members47#aff7 ,the very
  frequent reference to mendicancy in   
the ,latin writers shows that beggars1  
and therefore those who relieved        
beggars1 were numerous4 ,the duty of    
hospitality was also strongly enjoined1 
and was placed under the special        
protection of the supreme ,deity4 ,but  
the active1 habitual1 and detailed      
charity of private persons1 which is so 
conspicuous a feature in all  ,christian
 societies1 was scarcely known in       
antiquity1 and there are not  more than 
two or three moralists who have even    

noticed it4 ,of these1 the  chief rank  
belongs to ,cicero1 who devoted two very
 judicious but somewhat  cold chapters  
to the subject4 ,nothing1 he said1 is   
more suitable to the  nature of man than
 beneficence or liberality1 but there   
are many cautions  to be urged in       
practising it4 ,we must take care that  
our bounty is a real  blessing to the   
person we relieve2 that it does not     
exceed our own means2  that it is not1  
as was the case with ,sylla and ,csar1  
derived from the  spoliation of others2 
that it springs from the heart and not  
from  ostentation2 that the claims of   
gratitude are preferred to the mere     
impulses of compassion1 and that due    
regard is paid both to the character    
and to the wants of the recipient47#afg7
    ,christianity for the first time    
made charity a rudimentary virtue1      
giving  it a leading place in the moral 
type1 and in the exhortations of its    
teachers4 ,besides its general influence
 in stimulating the affections1 it      

effected a complete revolution in this  
sphere1 by regarding the poor as  the   
special representatives of the          
,christian ,founder1 and thus making the
  love of ,christ1 rather than the love 
of man1 the principle of charity4  ,even
 in the days of persecution1 collections
 for the relief of the poor  were made  
at the ,sunday meetings4 ,the agap or   
feasts of love were  intended mainly for
 the poor1 and food that was saved by   
the fasts was  devoted to their benefit4
 ,a vast organisation of charity1       
presided over by  the bishops1 and      
actively directed by the deacons1 soon  
ramified over  ,christendom1 till the   
bond of charity became the bond of      
unity1 and the  most distant sections of
 the ,christian ,church corresponded by 
the  interchange of mercy4 ,long before 
the era of ,constantine1 it was observed
  that the charities of the ,christians 
were so extensive--it may1 perhaps1 be  
said so excessive--that they drew very  
many impostors to the ,church27#afh7    

and when the victory of ,christianity   
was achieved1 the enthusiasm for        
charity displayed itself in the erection
 of numerous institutions that  were    
altogether unknown to the ,pagan world4 
,a ,roman lady1 named ,fabiola1  in the 
fourth century1 founded at ,rome1 as an 
act of penance1 the first  public       
hospital1 and the charity planted by    
that woman's hand overspread  the world1
 and will alleviate1 to the end of time1
 the darkest anguish of  humanity4      
,another hospital was soon after founded
 by ,st4 ,pammachus2  another of great  
celebrity by ,st4 ,basil1 at ,csarea4   
,st4 ,basil also  erected at ,csarea    
what was probably the first asylum for  
lepers4  ,xenodochia1 or refuges for    
strangers1 speedily rose1 especially    
along the  paths of the pilgrims4 ,st4  
,pammachus founded one at ,ostia2 ,paula
 and  ,melania founded others at        
,jerusalem4 ,the ,council of ,nice      
ordered that one  should be erected in  
every city4 ,in the time of ,st4        

,chrysostom the church  of ,antioch     
supported #c1jjj widows and virgins1    
besides strangers and sick4  ,legacies  
for the poor became common2 and it was  
not unfrequent for men and  women who   
desired to live a life of peculiar      
sanctity1 and especially for  priests   
who attained the episcopacy to bestow   
their entire properties in  charity4    
,even the early ,oriental monks1 who for
 the most part were  extremely removed  
from the active and social virtues1     
supplied many noble  examples of        
charity4 ,st4 ,ephrem1 in a time of     
pestilence1 emerged from his  solitude  
to found and superintend a hospital at  
,edessa4 ,a monk named  ,thalasius      
collected blind beggars in an asylum on 
the banks of the  ,euphrates4 ,a        
merchant named ,apollonius founded on   
,mount ,nitria a  gratuitous dispensary 
for the monks4 ,the monks often assisted
 by their  labours provinces that were  
suffering from pestilence or famine4 ,we
 may  trace the remains of the pure     

socialism that marked the first phase of
 the  ,christian community1 in the      
emphatic language with which some of the
  ,fathers proclaimed charity to be a   
matter not of mercy but of justice1     
maintaining that all property is based  
on usurpation1 that the earth by  right 
is common to all men1 and that no man   
can claim a superabundant  supply of its
 goods except as an administrator for   
others4 ,a ,christian1 it  was          
maintained1 should devote at least      
one-tenth of his profits to the         
poor47#afi7    ,the enthusiasm of       
charity1 thus manifested in the ,church1
 speedily  attracted the attention of   
the ,pagans4 ,the ridicule of ,lucian1  
and the  vain efforts of ,julian to     
produce a rival system of charity within
 the  limits of ,paganism17#agj7        
emphatically attested both its          
pre-eminence and  its catholicity4      
,during the pestilences that desolated  
,carthage in ,a4,d4  #cbf1 and          
,alexandria in the reigns of ,gallienus 

and of ,maximian1 while the  ,pagans    
fled panic-stricken from the contagion1 
the ,christians extorted the  admiration
 of their fellow-countrymen by the      
courage with which they  rallied around 
their bishops1 consoled the last hours  
of the sufferers1  and buried the       
abandoned dead47#aga7 ,in the rapid     
increase of pauperism  arising from the 
emancipation of numerous slaves1 their  
charity found free  scope for action1   
and its resources were soon taxed to the
 utmost by the  horrors of the barbarian
 invasions4 ,the conquest of ,africa by 
,genseric  deprived ,italy of the supply
 of corn upon which it almost wholly    
depended1  arrested the gratuitous      
distribution by which the ,roman poor   
were mainly  supported1 and produced all
 over the land the most appalling       
calamities47#agb7 ,the history of ,italy
 became one monotonous tale of famine   
and pestilence1 of starving populations 
and ruined cities4 ,but everywhere  amid
 this chaos of dissolution we may detect

 the majestic form of the  ,christian   
priest mediating between the hostile    
forces1 straining every  nerve to       
lighten the calamities around him4 ,when
 the ,imperial city was  captured and   
plundered by the hosts of ,alaric1 a    
,christian church remained  a secure    
sanctuary1 which neither the passions   
nor the avarice of the  ,goths          
transgressed4 ,when a fiercer than      
,alaric had marked out ,rome for his    
prey1 the ,pope ,st4 ,leo1 arrayed in   
his sacerdotal robes1 confronted the    
victorious ,hun1 as the ambassador of   
his fellow-countrymen1 and ,attila1     
overpowered by religious awe1 turned    
aside in his course4 ,when1 two years   
later1 ,rome lay at the mercy of        
,genseric1 the same ,pope interposed    
with  the ,vandal conqueror1 and        
obtained from him a partial cessation of
 the  massacre4 ,the ,archdeacon        
,pelagius interceded with similar       
humanity and  similar success1 when     
,rome had been captured by ,totila4 ,in 

,gaul1 ,troyes is  said to have been    
saved from destruction by the influence 
of ,st4 ,lupus1  and ,orleans by the    
influence of ,st4 ,agnan4 ,in ,britain  
an invasion of the  ,picts was averted  
by ,st4 ,germain of ,auxerre4 ,the      
relations of rulers to  their subjects1 
and of tribunals to the poor1 were      
modified by the same  intervention4     
,when ,antioch was threatened with      
destruction on account of  its rebellion
 against ,theodosius1 the anchorites    
poured forth from the  neighbouring     
deserts to intercede with the ministers 
of the emperor1 while  the ,archbishop  
,flavian went himself as a suppliant to 
,constantinople4 ,st4  ,ambrose imposed 
public penance on ,theodosius1 on       
account of the massacre  of             
,thessalonica4 ,synesius excommunicated 
for his oppressions a governor  named   
,andronicus2 and two ,french ,councils1 
in the sixth century1 imposed  the same 
penalty on all great men who arbitrarily
 ejected the poor4  ,special laws were  

found necessary to restrain the         
turbulent charity of  some priests and  
monks1 who impeded the course of        
justice1 and even  snatched criminals   
from the hands of the law47#agc7 ,st4   
,abraham1 ,st4  ,epiphanius1 and ,st4   
,basil are all said to have obtained the
 remission or  reduction of oppressive  
imposts4 ,to provide for the interests  
of widows  and orphans was part of the  
official ecclesiastical duty1 and a     
,council of  ,macon anathematised any   
ruler who brought them to trial without 
first  apprising the bishop of the      
diocese4 ,a ,council of ,toledo1 in the 
fifth  century1 threatened with         
excommunication all who robbed priests1 
monks1 or  poor men1 or refused to      
listen to their expostulations4 ,one of 
the chief  causes of the inordinate     
power acquired by the clergy was their  
mediatorial office1 and their gigantic  
wealth was in a great degree due to  the
 legacies of those who regarded them as 
the trustees of the poor4 ,as  time     

rolled on1 charity assumed many forms1  
and every monastery became a  centre    
from which it radiated4 ,by the monks   
the nobles were overawed1 the  poor     
protected1 the sick tended1 travellers  
sheltered1 prisoners ransomed1  the     
remotest spheres of suffering explored4 
,during the darkest period of  the      
middle ages1 monks founded a refuge for 
pilgrims amid the horrors of  the       
,alpine snows4 ,a solitary hermit often 
planted himself1 with his little  boat1 
by a bridgeless stream1 and the charity 
of his life was to ferry  over the      
traveller47#agd7 ,when the hideous      
disease of leprosy extended its  ravages
 over ,europe1 when the minds of men    
were filled with terror1 not  only by   
its loathsomeness and its contagion1 but
 also by the notion that  it was in a   
peculiar sense supernatural17#age7 new  
hospitals and refuges  overspread       
,europe1 and monks flocked in multitudes
 to serve in them47#agf7  ,sometimes1   
the legends say1 the leper's form was in

 a moment transfigured1  and he who came
 to tend the most loathsome of mankind  
received his reward1  for he found      
himself in the presence of his ,lord4   
,there is no fact of which an historian 
becomes more speedily or more  painfully
 conscious than the great difference    
between the importance and  the dramatic
 interest of the subjects he treats4    
,wars or massacres1 the  horrors of     
martyrdom or the splendours of          
individual prowess1 are  susceptible of 
such brilliant colouring1 that with but 
little literary  skill they can be so   
pourtrayed that their importance is     
adequately  realised1 and they appeal   
powerfully to the emotions of the       
reader4 ,but  this vast and             
unostentatious movement of charity1     
operating in the village  hamlet and in 
the lonely hospital1 staunching the     
widow's tears1 and  following all the   
windings of the poor man's griefs1      
presents few features  the imagination  
can grasp1 and leaves no deep impression

 upon the mind4  ,the greatest things   
are often those which are most          
imperfectly realised2  and surely no    
achievements of the ,christian ,church  
are more truly great  than those which  
it has effected in the sphere of        
charity4 ,for the first  time in the    
history of mankind1 it has inspired many
 thousands of men and  women1 at the    
sacrifice of all worldly interests1 and 
often under  circumstances of extreme   
discomfort or danger1 to devote their   
entire  lives to the single object of   
assuaging the sufferings of humanity4   
,it has  covered the globe with         
countless institutions of mercy1        
absolutely unknown  to the whole ,pagan 
world4 ,it has indissolubly united1 in  
the minds of men1  the idea of supreme  
goodness with that of active and        
constant benevolence4  ,it has placed in
 every parish a religious minister1 who1
 whatever may be  his other functions1  
has at least been officially charged    
with the  superintendence of an         

organisation of charity1 and who finds  
in this  office one of the most         
important as well as one of the most    
legitimate  sources of his power4       
,there are1 however1 two important      
qualifications to the admiration with   
which we regard the history of          
,christian charity--one relating to a   
particular form of suffering1 and the   
other of a more general kind4 ,a        
strong1 ill-defined notion of the       
supernatural character of insanity had  
existed from the earliest times2 but    
there were special circumstances  which 
rendered the action of the ,church      
peculiarly unfavourable to those  who   
were either predisposed to or afflicted 
with this calamity4 ,the  reality both  
of witchcraft and diabolical possession 
had been distinctly  recognised in the  
,jewish writings4 ,the received opinions
 about eternal  torture1 and            
ever-present dmons1 and the continued   
strain upon the  imagination1 in        
dwelling upon an unseen world1 were     

pre-eminently fitted  to produce madness
 in those who were at all predisposed to
 it1 and1 where  insanity had actually  
appeared1 to determine the form and     
complexion of  the hallucinations of the
 maniac47#agg7 ,theology supplying all  
the images  that acted most powerfully  
upon the imagination1 most madness1 for 
many  centuries1 took a theological     
cast4 ,one important department of it   
appears  chiefly in the lives of the    
saints4 ,men of lively imaginations and 
absolute ignorance1 living apart from   
all their fellows1 amid the horrors  of 
a savage wilderness1 practising         
austerities by which their physical     
system was thoroughly deranged1 and     
firmly persuaded that innumerable       
devils were continually hovering about  
their cells and interfering with  their 
devotions1 speedily and very naturally  
became subject to constant              
hallucinations1 which probably form the 
nucleus of truth in the legends of      
their lives4 ,but it was impossible that

 insanity should confine itself to  the 
orthodox forms of celestial visions1 or 
of the apparitions and the  defeats of  
devils4 ,very frequently it led the     
unhappy maniac to some  delusion1 which 
called down upon him the speedy sentence
 of the ,church4  ,thus1 in the year    
#acjj1 the corpse of a ,bohemian or1    
according to another  version1 an       
,english girl who imagined herself to be
 the ,holy ,ghost  incarnate for the    
redemption of women1 was dug up and     
burnt1 and two women  who believed in   
her perished at the stake47#agh7 ,in the
 year #acei1 a  ,spaniard declared      
himself to be the brother of the        
archangel ,michael1 and  to be destined 
for the place in heaven which ,satan had
 lost2 and he added  that he was        
accustomed every day both to mount into 
heaven and descend  into hell1 that the 
end of the world was at hand1 and that  
it was reserved  for him to enter into  
single combat with ,antichrist4 ,the    
poor lunatic fell  into the hands of the

 ,archbishop of ,toledo1 and was burnt  
alive47#agi7 ,in  some cases the        
hallucination took the form of an       
irregular inspiration4 ,on  this charge1
 ,joan of ,arc1 and another girl who had
 been fired by her  example1 and had    
endeavoured1 apparently under a genuine 
hallucination1 to  follow her           
career17#ahj7 were burnt alive4 ,a      
famous ,spanish physician and  scholar1 
named ,torralba1 who lived in the       
sixteenth century1 and who  imagined    
that he had an attendant angel          
continually about him1 escaped  with    
public penance and confession27#aha7 but
 a professor of theology in  ,lima1 who 
laboured under the same delusion1 and   
added to it some wild  notions about his
 spiritual dignities1 was less          
fortunate4 ,he was burnt by  the        
,inquisition of ,peru47#ahb7 ,most      
commonly1 however1 the theological      
notions about witchcraft either produced
 madness or determined its form1  and1  
through the influence of the clergy of  

the different sections of the           
,christian ,church1 many thousands of   
unhappy women1 who1 from their age1     
their loneliness1 and their infirmity1  
were most deserving of pity1 were       
devoted to the hatred of mankind1 and1  
having been tortured with horrible  and 
ingenious cruelty1 were at last burnt   
alive4    ,the existence1 however1 of   
some forms of natural madness was       
generally  admitted2 but the measures   
for the relief of the unhappy victims   
were very  few1 and very ill judged4    
,among the ancients1 they were brought  
to the  temples1 and subjected to       
imposing ceremonies1 which were believed
  supernaturally to relieve them1 and   
which probably had a favourable         
influence through their action upon the 
imagination4 ,the great ,greek          
physicians had devoted considerable     
attention to this malady1 and some of   
their precepts anticipated modern       
discoveries2 but no lunatic asylum      
appears to have existed in              

antiquity47#ahc7 ,in the first period of
 the  hermit life1 when many anchorites 
became insane through their penances1 a 
refuge is said to have been opened for  
them at ,jerusalem47#ahd7 ,this         
appears1 however1 to be a solitary      
instance1 arising from the exigencies   
of a single class1 and no lunatic asylum
 existed in ,christian ,europe till  the
 fifteenth century4 ,the ,mohammedans1  
in this form of charity1 seem to  have  
preceded the ,christians4 ,benjamin of  
,tudela1 who visited ,bagdad in  the    
twelfth century1 describes a palace in  
that city1 called 8the ,house of        
,mercy10 in which all mad persons found 
in the country were confined and  bound 
with iron chains4 ,they were carefully  
examined every month and  released as   
soon as they recovered47#ahe7 ,the      
asylum of ,cairo is said to  have been  
founded in ,a4,d4 #acjd47ahf7 ,leo      
,africanus notices the existence  of a  
similar institution at ,fez1 in the     
beginning of the sixteenth  century1 and

 mentions that the patients were        
restrained by chains17#ahg7  and it is  
probable that the care of the insane was
 a general form of  charity in          
,mohammedan countries4 ,among the       
,christians it first appeared in        
quarters contiguous to the ,mohammedans2
 but there is1 ,i think1 no real        
evidence that it was derived from       
,mohammedan example4 ,the ,knights of   
,malta  were famous as the one order who
 admitted lunatics into their hospitals2
  but no ,christian asylum expressly for
 their benefit existed till #adji4 ,the 
honour of instituting this form of      
charity in ,christendom belongs to      
,spain4 ,a monk named ,juan ,gilaberto  
,joffre1 filled with compassion at the  
sight of the maniacs who were hooted by 
crowds through the streets of           
,valencia1 founded an asylum in that    
city1 and his example was speedily      
followed in other provinces4 ,the new   
charity was introduced into ,saragossa  
in ,a4,d4 #adbe1 into ,seville and      

,valladolid in ,a4,d4 #adcf1 into       
,toledo in  ,a4,d4 #adhc4 ,all these    
institutions existed before a single    
lunatic asylum  had been founded in any 
other part of ,christendom47#ahh7 ,two  
other very  honourable facts may be     
mentioned1 establishing the preeminence 
of ,spanish  charity in this field4 ,the
 first is1 that the oldest lunatic      
asylum in the  metropolis of            
,catholicism was that erected by        
,spaniards1 in ,a4,d4  #aedh47ahi7 ,the 
second is1 that when1 at the close of   
the last century1  ,pinel began his     
great labours in this sphere1 he        
pronounced ,spain to be  the country in 
which lunatics were treated with most   
wisdom and most  humanity47#aij7    ,in 
most countries their condition was      
indeed truly deplorable4 ,while many    
thousands were burnt as witches1 those  
who were recognised as insane were      
compelled to endure all the horrors of  
the harshest imprisonment4 ,blows1      
bleeding1 and chains were their usual   

treatment1 and horrible accounts  were  
given of madmen who had spent decades   
bound in dark cells47#aia7 ,such        
treatment naturally aggravated their    
malady1 and that malady in many cases   
rendered impossible the resignation and 
ultimate torpor which alleviate  the    
sufferings of ordinary prisoners4 ,not  
until the eighteenth century was  the   
condition of this unhappy class         
seriously improved4 ,the combined       
progress of theological scepticism and  
scientific knowledge relegated          
witchcraft to the world of phantoms1 and
 the exertions of ,morgagni in  ,italy1 
of ,cullen in ,scotland1 and of ,pinel  
in ,france1 renovated the whole         
treatment of acknowledged lunatics4     
,the second qualification to the        
admiration with which we regard the     
history of ,christian charity arises    
from the undoubted fact that a large    
proportion of charitable institutions   
have directly increased the poverty     
they were intended to relieve4 ,the     

question of the utility and nature of   
charity is one which1 since the modern  
discoveries of political economy1  has  
elicited much discussion1 and in many   
cases1 ,i think1 much  exaggeration4    
,what political economy has effected on 
the subject may be  comprised under two 
heads4 ,it has elucidated more clearly1 
and in greater  detail than had before  
been done1 the effect of provident      
self-interest in  determining the       
welfare of societies1 and it has        
established a broad  distinction between
 productive and unproductive            
expenditure4 ,it has shown  that1 where 
idleness is supported1 idleness will    
become common2 that1  where systematic  
public provision is made for old age1   
the parsimony of  foresight will be     
neglected2 and that therefore these     
forms of charity1 by  encouraging habits
 of idleness and improvidence1          
ultimately increase the  wretchedness   
they were intended to alleviate4 ,it has
 also shown that1  while unproductive   

expenditure1 such as that which is      
devoted to  amusements or luxury1 is    
undoubtedly beneficial to those who     
provide it1  the fruit perishes in the  
usage2 while productive expenditure1    
such as the  manufacture of machines1 or
 the improvement of the soil1 or the    
extension  of commercial enterprise1    
gives a new impulse to the creation of  
wealth4  ,it has proved that the first  
condition of the rapid accumulation of  
capital is the diversion of money from  
unproductive to productive  channels1   
and that the amount of accumulated      
capital is one of the two  regulating   
influences of the wages of the labourer4
 ,from these positions  some persons    
have inferred that charity should be    
condemned as a form of  unproductive    
expenditure4 ,but1 in the first place1  
all charities that  foster habits of    
forethought and develop new capacities  
in the poorer  classes1 such as popular 
education1 or the formation of savings  
banks1 or  insurance companies1 or1 in  

many cases1 small and discriminating    
loans1 or  measures directed to the     
suppression of dissipation1 are in the  
strictest  sense productive2 and the    
same may be said of many forms of       
employment1  given in exceptional crises
 through charitable motives2 and1 in the
 next  place1 it is only necessary to   
remember that the happiness of mankind1 
to  which the accumulation of wealth    
should only be regarded as a means1 is  
the real object of charity1 and it will 
appear that many forms which are  not   
strictly productive1 in the commercial  
sense1 are in the highest  degree       
conducive to this end1 and have no      
serious counteracting evil4 ,in  the    
alleviation of those sufferings that do 
not spring either from  improvidence or 
from vice1 the warmest as well as the   
most enlightened  charity will find an  
ample sphere for its exertions47#aib7   
,blindness1 and  other exceptional      
calamities1 against the effects of which
 prudence does  not and cannot provide1 

the miseries resulting from epidemics1  
from war1  from famine1 from the first  
sudden collapse of industry1 produced by
 new  inventions or changes in the      
channels of commerce2 hospitals1 which1 
besides other advantages1 are the       
greatest schools of medical science1 and
  withdraw from the crowded alley       
multitudes who would otherwise form     
centres of contagion--these1 and such as
 these1 will long tax to the utmost  the
 generosity of the wealthy2 while1 even 
in the spheres upon which the  political
 economist looks with the most          
unfavourable eye1 exceptional  cases    
will justify exceptional assistance4    
,the charity which is pernicious  is    
commonly not the highest but the lowest 
kind4 ,the rich man1 prodigal of  money1
 which is to him of little value1 but   
altogether incapable of  devoting any   
personal attention to the object of his 
alms1 often injures  society by his     
donations2 but this is rarely the case  
with that far nobler  charity which     

makes men familiar with the haunts of   
wretchedness1 and  follows the object of
 its care through all the phases of his 
life4 ,the  question of the utility of  
charity is merely a question of ultimate
  consequences4 ,political economy has1 
no doubt1 laid down some general  rules 
of great value on the subject2 but yet  
the pages which ,cicero  devoted to it  
nearly two thousand years ago might have
 been written by the  most enlightened  
modern economist2 and it will be        
continually found that  the ,protestant 
lady1 working in her parish1 by the     
simple force of common  sense and by a  
scrupulous and minute attention to the  
condition and  character of those whom  
she relieves1 is unconsciously          
illustrating with  perfect accuracy the 
enlightened charity of ,malthus4    ,but
 in order that charity should be useful1
 it is essential that the  benefit of   
the sufferer should be a real object to 
the donor2 and a very  large proportion 
of the evils that have arisen from      

,catholic charity may  be traced to the 
absence of this condition4 ,the first   
substitution of  devotion for           
philanthropy1 as the motive of          
benevolence1 gave so powerful  a        
stimulus to the affections1 that it may 
on the whole be regarded as a  benefit1 
though1 by making compassion operate    
solely through a theological  medium1 it
 often produced among theologians a more
 than common  indifference to the       
sufferings of all who were external to  
their religious  community4 ,but the new
 principle speedily degenerated into a  
belief in the  expiatory nature of the  
gifts4 ,a form of what may be termed    
selfish  charity arose1 which acquired  
at last gigantic proportions1 and       
exercised  a most pernicious influence  
upon ,christendom4 ,men gave money to   
the poor1  simply and exclusively for   
their own spiritual benefit1 and the    
welfare of  the sufferer was altogether 
foreign to their thoughts47#aic7    ,the
 evil which thus arose from some forms  

of ,catholic charity may be  traced from
 a very early period1 but it only       
acquired its full magnitude  after some 
centuries4 ,the ,roman system of        
gratuitous distribution was1 in  the    
eyes of the political economist1 about  
the worst that could be  conceived1 and 
the charity of the ,church being1 in at 
least a measure1  discriminating1 was at
 first a very great1 though even then   
not an  unmingled1 good4 ,labour was    
also not unfrequently enjoined as a duty
 by  the ,fathers1 and at a later period
 the services of the ,benedictine monks1
  in destroying by their example the    
stigma which slavery had attached to    
it1 were very great4 ,still1 one of the 
first consequences of the exuberant     
charity of the ,church was to multiply  
impostors and mendicants1 and the       
idleness of the monks was one of the    
earliest complaints4 ,valentinian made  
a severe law1 condemning robust beggars 
to perpetual slavery4 ,as the  monastic 
system was increased1 and especially    

after the mendicant orders  had         
consecrated mendicancy1 the evil assumed
 gigantic dimensions4 ,many  thousands  
of strong men1 absolutely without       
private means1 were in every  country   
withdrawn from productive labour1 and   
supported by charity4 ,the  notion of   
the meritorious nature of simple        
almsgiving immeasurably  multiplied     
beggars4 ,the stigma1 which it is the   
highest interest of  society to attach  
to mendicancy1 it became a main object  
of theologians to  remove4 ,saints      
wandered through the world begging      
money1 that they might  give to beggars1
 or depriving themselves of their       
garments1 that they  might clothe the   
naked1 and the result of their teaching 
was speedily  apparent4 ,in all         
,catholic countries where ecclesiastical
 influences have  been permitted to     
develop unmolested1 the monastic        
organisations have  proved a deadly     
canker1 corroding the prosperity of the 
nation4  ,withdrawing multitudes from   

all production1 encouraging a blind and 
pernicious almsgiving1 diffusing habits 
of improvidence through the poorer      
classes1 fostering an ignorant          
admiration for saintly poverty1 and an  
equally ignorant antipathy to the habits
 and aims of an industrial              
civilisation1 they have paralysed all   
energy1 and proved an insuperable       
barrier to material progress4 ,the      
poverty they have relieved has been     
insignificant compared with the poverty 
they have caused4 ,in no case was  the  
abolition of monasteries effected in a  
more indefensible manner than  in       
,england2 but the transfer of property1 
that was once employed in a  great      
measure in charity1 to the courtiers of 
,king ,henry1 was ultimately a  benefit 
to the ,english poor2 for no            
misapplication of this property by      
private persons could produce as much   
evil as an unrestrained monasticism4    
,the value of ,catholic services in     
alleviating pain and sickness1 and the  

more exceptional forms of suffering1 can
 never be overrated4 ,the noble  heroism
 of her servants1 who have devoted      
themselves to charity1 has never  been  
surpassed1 and the perfection of their  
organisation has1 ,i think1  never been 
equalled2 but in the sphere of simple   
poverty it can hardly be  doubted that  
the ,catholic ,church has created more  
misery than it has  cured4    ,still1   
even in this field1 we must not forget  
the benefits resulting1 if  not to the  
sufferer1 at least to the donor4        
,charitable habits1 even when  formed in
 the first instance from selfish        
motives1 even when so  misdirected as to
 be positively injurious to the         
recipient1 rarely fail to  exercise a   
softening and purifying influence on the
 character4 ,all through  the darkest   
period of the middle ages1 amid ferocity
 and fanaticism and  brutality1 we may  
trace the subduing influence of         
,catholic charity1  blending strangely  
with every excess of violence and every 

outburst of  persecution4 ,it would be  
difficult to conceive a more frightful  
picture of  society than is presented by
 the history of ,gregory of ,tours2 but 
that  long series of atrocious crimes1  
narrated with an almost appalling       
tranquillity1 is continually            
interspersed with accounts of kings1    
queens1  or prelates1 who1 in the midst 
of the disorganised society1 made the   
relief of the poor the main object of   
their lives4 ,no period of history      
exhibits a larger amount of cruelty1    
licentiousness1 and fanaticism than  the
 ,crusades2 but side by side with the   
military enthusiasm1 and with the       
almost universal corruption1 there      
expanded a vast movement of charity1    
which covered ,christendom with         
hospitals for the relief of leprosy1 and
  which grappled nobly1 though          
ineffectually1 with the many forms of   
suffering that were generated4 ,st4     
,peter ,nolasco1 whose great labours in 
ransoming captive ,christians ,i have   

already noticed1 was an active          
participator in the atrocious massacre  
of the ,albigenses47#aid7 ,of ,shane    
,o',neale1 one of the ablest1 but also  
one of the most ferocious1 ,irish       
chieftains who ever defied the ,english 
power1 it is related1 amid a crowd  of  
crimes1 that1 8sitting at meat1 before  
he put one morsel into his mouth  he    
used to slice a portion above the daily 
alms1 and send it to some  beggar at his
 gate1 saying it was meet to serve      
,christ first407#aie7    ,the great     
evils produced by the encouragement of  
mendicancy which has  always accompanied
 the uncontrolled development of        
,catholicity1 have  naturally given rise
 to much discussion and legislation4    
,the fierce  denunciations of the       
mendicant orders by ,william of ,st4    
,amour in the  thirteenth century were  
not on account of their encouragement of
  mischievous charity27#aif7 but one of 
the disciples of ,wycliffe1 named       
,nicholas of ,hereford1 was conspicuous 

for his opposition to indiscriminate    
gifts to beggars27#aig7 and a few       
measures of an extended order appear to 
have been taken even before the         
,reformation47#aih7 ,in ,england laws of
 the  most savage cruelty were then     
passed1 in hopes of eradicating         
mendicancy4  ,a parliament of ,henry    
,,viii41 before the suppression of the  
monasteries1  issued a law providing a  
system of organised charity1 and        
imposing on any  one who gave anything  
to a beggar a fine of ten times the     
value of his  gift4 ,a sturdy beggar was
 to be punished with whipping for the   
first  offence1 with whipping and the   
loss of the tip of his ear for the      
second  and with death for the          
third47#aii7 ,under ,edward ,,vi41 an   
atrocious law1  which1 however1 was     
repealed in the same reign1 enacted that
 every sturdy  beggar who refused to    
work should be branded1 and adjudged for
 two years  as a slave to the person who
 gave information against him2 and if he

 took  flight during his period of      
servitude1 he was condemned for the     
first  offence to perpetual slavery1 and
 for the second to death4 ,the master   
was  authorised to put a ring of iron   
round the neck of his slave1 to chain   
him1 and to scourge him4 ,any one might 
take the children of a sturdy  beggar   
for apprentices1 till the boys were     
twenty-four and the girls  twenty47#bjj7
 ,another law1 made under ,elizabeth1   
punished with death any  strong man     
under the age of eighteen who was       
convicted for the third time  of        
begging2 but the penalty in this reign  
was afterwards reduced to a  life-long  
service in the galleys1 or to           
banishment1 with a penalty of  death to 
the returned convict47#bja7 ,under the  
same queen the poor-law  system was     
elaborated1 and ,malthus long afterwards
 showed that its effects  in            
discouraging parsimony rendered it      
scarcely less pernicious than the       
monastic system that had preceded it4   

,in many ,catholic countries1 severe1   
though less atrocious1 measures were    
taken to grapple with the evil of       
mendicancy4 ,that shrewd and sagacious  
pontiff1 ,sixtus ,v41 who1 though not   
the greatest man1 was by far the        
greatest statesman who has ever sat on  
the papal throne1 made praiseworthy     
efforts to check it at ,rome1 where     
ecclesiastical influence had always made
 it peculiarly prevalent47#bjb7         
,charles ,v41 in #aeca1 issued a severe 
enactment against beggars in the        
,netherlands1 but excepted from its     
operation mendicant friars and          
pilgrims47#bjc7 ,under ,lewis ,,xiv41   
equally severe measures were taken in   
,france4 ,but though the practical evil 
was fully felt1 there was little        
philosophical investigation of its      
causes before the eighteenth century4   
,locke in ,england17#bjd7 and ,berkeley 
in ,ireland17#bje7 briefly glanced at   
the subject2 and in #agjd ,defoe        
published a very remarkable tract1      

called1  8,giving ,alms no ,charity10 in
 which he noticed the extent to which   
mendicancy existed in ,england1 though  
wages were higher than in any           
,continental country47#bjf7 ,a still    
more remarkable book1 written by an     
author named ,ricci1 appeared at ,modena
 in #aghg1 and excited considerable     
attention4 ,the author pointed out with 
much force the gigantic development  of 
mendicancy in ,italy1 traced it to the  
excessive charity of the people1  and   
appears to have regarded as an evil all 
charity which sprang from  religious    
motives and was greater than would      
spring from the unaided  instincts of   
men47#bjg7 ,the freethinker ,mandeville 
had long before assailed  charity       
schools1 and the whole system of        
endeavouring to elevate the  poor17#bjh7
 and ,magdalen asylums and foundling    
hospitals have had fierce1  though ,i   
believe much mistaken1                  
adversaries47#bji7 ,the reforms of the  
poor-laws1 and the writings of ,malthus1

 gave a new impulse to discussion  on   
the subject2 but1 with the              
qualifications ,i have stated1 no new   
discoveries have1 ,i conceive1 thrown   
any just cloud upon the essential       
principle of ,christian charity4    ,the
 last method by which ,christianity has 
laboured to soften the  characters of   
men has been by accustoming the         
imagination to expatiate  continually   
upon images of tenderness and of pathos4
 ,our imaginations1  though less        
influential than our occupations1       
probably affect our moral  characters   
more deeply than our judgments1 and1 in 
the case of the poorer  classes         
especially1 the cultivation of this part
 of our nature is of  inestimable       
importance4 ,rooted1 for the most part1 
during their entire  lives1 to a single 
spot1 excluded by their ignorance and   
their  circumstances from most of the   
varieties of interest that animate the  
minds of other men1 condemned to        
constant and plodding labour1 and       

engrossed for ever with the minute cares
 of an immediate and an anxious         
present1 their whole natures would have 
been hopelessly contracted1 were  there 
no sphere in which their imaginations   
could expand4 ,religion is the  one     
romance of the poor4 ,it alone extends  
the narrow horizon of their  thoughts1  
supplies the images of their dreams1    
allures them to the  supersensual and   
the ideal4 ,the graceful beings with    
which the creative  fancy of ,paganism  
peopled the universe shed a poetic glow 
on the peasant's  toil4 ,every stage of 
agriculture was presided over by a      
divinity1 and the  world grew bright by 
the companionship of the gods4 ,but it  
is the  peculiarity of the ,christian   
types1 that1 while they have fascinated 
the  imagination1 they have also        
purified the heart4 ,the tender1        
winning1 and  almost feminine beauty of 
the ,christian ,founder1 the ,virgin    
mother1 the  agonies of ,gethsemane or  
of ,calvary1 the many scenes of         

compassion and  suffering that fill the 
sacred writings1 are the pictures which1
 for  eighteen hundred years1 have      
governed the imaginations of the rudest 
and  most ignorant of mankind4          
,associated with the fondest            
recollections of  childhood1 with the   
music of the church bells1 with the     
clustered lights  and the tinsel        
splendour1 that seem to the peasant the 
very ideal of  majesty2 painted over the
 altar where he received the companion  
of his  life1 around the cemetery where 
so many whom he had loved were laid1 on 
the stations of the mountain1 on the    
portal of the vineyard1 on the chapel   
where the storm-tossed mariner fulfils  
his grateful vow2 keeping guard  over   
his cottage door1 and looking down upon 
his humble bed1 forms of  tender beauty 
and gentle pathos for ever haunt the    
poor man's fancy1 and  silently win     
their way into the very depths of his   
being4 ,more than any  spoken eloquence1
 more than any dogmatic teaching1 they  

transform and  subdue his character1    
till he learns to realise the sanctity  
of weakness  and suffering1 the supreme 
majesty of compassion and gentleness4   
,imperfect and inadequate as is the     
sketch ,i have drawn1 it will be        
sufficient to show how great and        
multiform have been the influences of   
,christian philanthropy4 ,the shadows   
that rest upon the picture1 ,i have not 
concealed2 but1 when all due allowance  
has been made for them1 enough will     
remain to claim our deepest admiration4 
,the high conception that has been      
formed of the sanctity of human life1   
the protection of infancy1 the          
elevation and final emancipation of the 
slave classes1 the suppression of       
barbarous games1 the creation of a vast 
and multifarious organisation of        
charity1 and the education of the       
imagination by the ,christian type1     
constitute together a movement of       
philanthropy which has never been       
paralleled or approached in the ,pagan  

world4 ,the effects of this movement  in
 promoting happiness have been very     
great4 ,its effect in determining       
character has probably been still       
greater4 ,in that proportion or         
disposition of qualities which          
constitutes the ideal character1 the    
gentler and more benevolent virtues have
 obtained1 through ,christianity1  the  
foremost place4 ,in the first and purest
 period they were especially  supreme2  
but in the third century a great ascetic
 movement arose1 which  gradually       
brought a new type of character into the
 ascendant1 and diverted  the enthusiasm
 of the ,church into new channels4      
,tertullian1 writing in the second      
century1 contrasts1 in a well-known     
passage1 the ,christians of his day with
 the gymnosophists or hermits of        
,india1 declaring that1 unlike these1   
the ,christians did not fly from the    
world1 but mixed with ,pagans in the    
forum1 in the market-places1 in the     
public baths1 in the ordinary business  

of life47#baj7 ,but although the life   
of the hermit or the monk was unknown in
 the ,church for more than two  hundred 
years after its foundation1 we may      
detect1 almost from the  earliest time1 
a tone of feeling which produces it4    
,the central  conceptions of the        
monastic system are the meritoriousness 
of complete  abstinence from all sexual 
intercourse1 and of complete            
renunciation of  the world4 ,the first  
of these notions appeared in the very   
earliest  period1 in the respect        
attached to the condition of virginity1 
which was  always regarded as sacred1   
and especially esteemed in the clergy1  
though  for a long time it was not      
imposed as an obligation4 ,the second   
was shown  in the numerous efforts that 
were made to separate the ,christian    
community  as far as possible from the  
society in which it existed4 ,nothing   
could be  more natural than that1 when  
the increase and triumph of the ,church 
had  thrown the bulk of the ,christians 

into active political or military       
labour1 some should1 as an exercise of  
piety1 have endeavoured to imitate  the 
separation from the world which was once
 the common condition of all4  ,besides 
this1 a movement of asceticism had long 
been raging like a mental  epidemic     
through the world4 ,among the           
,jews--whose law1 from the great  stress
 it laid upon marriage1 the excellence  
of the rapid multiplication  of         
population1 and the hope of being the   
ancestor of the ,messiah1 was           
peculiarly repugnant to monastic        
conceptions--the ,essenes had           
constituted a  complete monastic        
society1 abstaining from marriage and   
separating  themselves wholly from the  
world4 ,in ,rome1 whose practical genius
 was1 if  possible1 even more opposed   
than that of the ,jews to an inactive   
monasticism1 and even among those       
philosophers who most represented its   
active and practical spirit1 the same   
tendency was shown4 ,the ,cynics of  the

 later ,empire recommended a complete   
renunciation of domestic ties1 and  a   
life spent mainly in the contemplation  
of wisdom4 ,the ,egyptian  philosophy1  
that soon after acquired an ascendancy  
in ,europe1 anticipated  still more     
closely the monastic ideal4 ,on the     
outskirts of the ,church1 the  many     
sects of ,gnostics and ,manicheans all  
held under different forms the          
essential evil of matter4 ,the ,docet1  
following the same notion1 denied  the  
reality of the body of ,christ4 ,the    
,montanists and the ,novatians          
surpassed and stimulated the private    
penances of the orthodox47#baa7 ,the    
soil was thus thoroughly prepared for a 
great outburst of asceticism1  whenever 
the first seed was sown4 ,this was done 
during the ,decian  persecution4 ,paul1 
the hermit1 who fled to the desert      
during that  persecution1 is said to    
have been the first of the tribe47#bab7 
,antony1 who  speedily followed1 greatly
 extended the movement1 and in a few    

years the  hermits had become a mighty  
nation4 ,persecution1 which in the first
  instance drove great numbers as       
fugitives to the deserts1 soon aroused a
  passionate religious enthusiasm that  
showed itself in an ardent desire for   
those sufferings which were believed to 
lead directly to heaven2 and this       
enthusiasm1 after the peace of          
,constantine1 found its natural vent and
  sphere in the macerations of the      
desert life4 ,the imaginations of men   
were  fascinated by the poetic          
circumstances of that life which ,st4   
,jerome most  eloquently embellished4   
,women were pre-eminent in recruiting   
for it4 ,the  same spirit that had      
formerly led the wife of the ,pagan     
official to  entertain secret relations 
with the ,christian priests1 now led the
 wife of  the ,christian to become the  
active agent of the monks4 ,while the   
father  designed his son for the army1  
or for some civil post1 the mother was  
often straining every nerve to induce   

him to become a hermit4 ,the monks      
secretly corresponded with her1 they    
skilfully assumed the functions of      
education1 in order that they might     
influence the young2 and sometimes1 to  
evade the precautions or the anger of   
the father1 they concealed their        
profession1 and assumed the garb of lay 
pedagogues47#bac7 ,the pulpit1 which    
had almost superseded1 and immeasurably 
transcended in influence1 the  chairs of
 the rhetoricians1 and which was filled 
by such men as ,ambrose1  ,augustine1   
,chrysostom1 ,basil1 and the ,gregories1
 was continually exerted  in the same   
cause1 and the extreme luxury of the    
great cities produced a  violent1 but   
not unnatural1 reaction of asceticism4  
,the dignity of the  monastic position1 
which sometimes brought men who had been
 simple  peasants into connection with  
the emperors1 the security it furnished 
to  fugitive slaves and criminals1 the  
desire of escaping from those fiscal    
burdens which1 in the corrupt and       

oppressive administration of the        
,empire1  had acquired an intolerable   
weight1 and especially the barbarian    
invasions1 which produced every variety 
of panic and wretchedness1  conspired   
with the new religious teaching in      
peopling the desert4 ,a  theology of    
asceticism was speedily formed4 ,the    
examples of ,elijah and  ,elisha1 to the
 first of whom1 by a bold flight of     
imagination1 some later  ,carmelites    
ascribed the origin of their order1 and 
the more recent  instance of the        
,baptist1 were at once adduced4 ,to an  
ordinary layman the  life of an         
anchorite might appear in the highest   
degree opposed to that of  the ,teacher 
who began ,his mission at a marriage    
feast2 who was continually  reproached  
by ,his enemies for the readiness with  
which ,he mixed with the  world1 and who
 selected from the female sex some of   
,his purest and most  devoted followers2
 but the monkish theologians1 avoiding1 
for the most  part1 these topics1       

dilated chiefly on ,his immaculate      
birth1 ,his virgin  mother1 ,his life of
 celibacy1 ,his exhortation to the rich 
young man4 ,the  fact that ,st4 ,peter1 
to whom a general primacy was already   
ascribed1 was  unquestionably married   
was a difficulty which was in a measure 
met by a  tradition that both he1 and   
the other married apostles1 abstained   
from  intercourse with their wives after
 their conversion47#bad7 ,st4 ,paul1    
however1 was probably unmarried1 and his
 writings showed a decided  preference  
for the unmarried state1 which the      
ingenuity of theologians  also          
discovered in some quarters where it    
might be least expected4 ,thus1  ,st4   
,jerome assures us that when the clean  
animals entered the ark by  sevens1 and 
the unclean ones by pairs1 the odd      
number typified the  celibate1 and the  
even the married condition4 ,even of the
 unclean animals  but one pair of each  
kind was admitted1 lest they should     
perpetrate the  enormity of second      

marriage47#bae7 ,ecclesiastical         
tradition sustained the  tendency1 and  
,saint ,james1 as he has been portrayed 
by ,hegesippus1 became  a kind of ideal 
saint1 a faithful picture of what1      
according to the  notions of            
theologians1 was the true type of human 
nobility4 ,he 8was  consecrated10 it was
 said1 8from his mother's womb4 ,he     
drank neither wine  nor fermented       
liquors1 and abstained from animal food4
 ,a razor never came  upon his head4 ,he
 never anointed himself with oil1 or    
used a bath4 ,he  alone was allowed to  
enter the sanctuary4 ,he never wore     
woollen1 but  linen1 garments4 ,he was  
in the habit of entering the temple     
alone1 and was  often found upon his    
bended knees1 and interceding for the   
forgiveness of  the people1 so that his 
knees became as hard as a               
camel's407#baf7    ,the progress of the 
monastic movement1 as has been truly    
said1 8was not  less rapid or universal 
than that of ,christianity              

itself407#bag7 ,of the  actual number of
 the anchorites1 those who are          
acquainted with the extreme  unveracity 
of the first historians of the movement 
will hesitate to speak  with confidence4
 ,it is said that ,st4 ,pachomius1 who1 
early in the fourth  century1 founded   
the cnobitic mode of life1 enlisted     
under his  jurisdiction #g1jjj          
monks27#bah7 that in the days of ,st4   
,jerome nearly  #ej1jjj monks were      
sometimes assembled at the ,easter      
festivals27#bai7 that  in the desert of 
,nitria alone there were1 in the fourth 
century1 #e1jjj  monks under a single   
abbot27#bbj7 that an ,egyptian city     
named ,oxyrynchus  devoted itself almost
 exclusively to the ascetic life1 and   
included #bj1jjj  virgins and #aj1jjj   
monks27#bba7 that ,st4 ,serapion        
presided over #aj1jjj  monks27#bbb7 and 
that1 towards the close of the fourth   
century1 the  monastic population in a  
great part of ,egypt was nearly equal to
 the  population of the cities47#bbc7   

,egypt was the parent of monachism1 and 
it  was there that it attained both its 
extreme development and its most        
austere severity2 but there was very    
soon scarcely any ,christian country  in
 which a similar movement was not       
ardently propagated4 ,st4 ,athanasius   
and ,st4 ,zeno are said to have         
introduced it into ,italy17#bbd7 where  
it soon  afterwards received a great    
stimulus from ,st4 ,jerome4 ,st4        
,hilarion  instituted the first monks in
 ,palestine1 and he lived to see many   
thousands subject to his rule1 and      
towards the close of his life to plant  
monachism in ,cyprus4 ,eustathius1      
,bishop of ,sebastia1 spread it through 
,armenia1 ,paphlagonia1 and ,pontus4    
,st4 ,basil laboured along the wild     
shores  of the ,euxine4 ,st4 ,martin of 
,tours founded the first monastery in   
,gaul1  and #b1jjj monks attended his   
funeral4 ,unrecorded missionaries       
planted the  new institution in the     
heart of thiopia1 amid the little       

islands that  stud the ,mediterranean1  
in the secluded valleys of ,wales and   
,ireland47#bbe7  ,but even more         
wonderful than the many thousands who   
thus abandoned the  world is the        
reverence with which they were regarded 
by those who1 by  their attainments or  
their character1 would seem most opposed
 to the  monastic ideal4 ,no one had    
more reason than ,augustine to know the 
danger  of enforced celibacy1 but ,st4  
,augustine exerted all his energies to  
spread  monasticism through his diocese4
 ,st4 ,ambrose1 who was by nature an    
acute  statesman2 ,st4 ,jerome and ,st4 
,basil1 who were ambitious scholars2    
,st4  ,chrysostom1 who was pre-eminently
 formed to sway the refined throngs of a
  metropolis--all exerted their powers  
in favour of the life of solitude1 and  
the last three practised it themselves4 
,st4 ,arsenius1 who was surpassed by  no
 one in the extravagance of his         
penances1 had held a high office at the 
court of the ,emperor ,arcadius4        

,pilgrims wandered among the deserts1   
collecting accounts of the miracles and 
the austerities of the saints1  which   
filled ,christendom with admiration2 and
 the strange biographies  which were    
thus formed1 wild and grotesque as they 
are1 enable us to  realise very vividly 
the general features of the anchorite   
life which  became the new ideal of the 
,christian world47#bbf7    ,there is1   
perhaps1 no phase in the moral history  
of mankind of a deeper or  more painful 
interest than this ascetic epidemic4 ,a 
hideous1 sordid1 and  emaciated maniac1 
without knowledge1 without patriotism1  
without natural  affection1 passing his 
life in a long routine of useless and   
atrocious  self-torture1 and quailing   
before the ghastly phantoms of his      
delirious  brain1 had become the ideal  
of the nations which had known the      
writings of  ,plato and ,cicero and the 
lives of ,socrates and ,cato4 ,for about
 two  centuries1 the hideous maceration 
of the body was regarded as the highest 

proof of excellence4 ,st4 ,jerome       
declares1 with a thrill of admiration1  
how  he had seen a monk1 who for thirty 
years had lived exclusively on a small  
portion of barley bread and of muddy    
water2 another1 who lived in a hole  and
 never ate more than five figs for his  
daily repast27#bbg7 a third1 who  cut   
his hair only on ,easter ,sunday1 who   
never washed his clothes1 who  never    
changed his tunic till it fell to       
pieces1 who starved himself till  his   
eyes grew dim1 and his skin 8like a     
pumice stone10 and whose merits1  shown 
by these austerities1 ,homer himself    
would be unable to recount47#bbh7  ,for 
six months1 it is said1 ,st4 ,macarius  
of ,alexandria slept in a marsh1  and   
exposed his body naked to the stings of 
venomous flies4 ,he was  accustomed to  
carry about with him eighty pounds of   
iron4 ,his disciple1  ,st4 ,eusebius1   
carried one hundred and fifty pounds of 
iron1 and lived for  three years in a   
dried-up well4 ,st4 ,sabinus would only 

eat corn that had  become rotten by     
remaining for a month in water4 ,st4    
,besarion spent forty  days and nights  
in the middle of thorn-bushes1 and for  
forty years never  lay down when he     
slept17#bbi7 which last penance was also
 during fifteen  years practised by ,st4
 ,pachomius47#bcj7 ,some saints1 like   
,st4 ,marcian1  restricted themselves to
 one meal a day1 so small that they     
continually  suffered the pangs of      
hunger47#bca7 ,of one of them it is     
related that his  daily food was six    
ounces of bread and a few herbs2 that he
 was never seen  to recline on a mat or 
bed1 or even to place his limbs easily  
for sleep2  but that sometimes1 from    
excess of weariness1 his eyes would     
close at his  meals1 and the food would 
drop from his mouth47#bcb7 ,other       
saints1 however1  ate only every second 
day27#bcc7 while many1 if we could      
believe the  monkish historian1         
abstained for whole weeks from all      
nourishment47#bcd7  ,st4 ,macarius of   

,alexandria is said during an entire    
week to have never  lain down1 or eaten 
anything but a few uncooked herbs on    
,sunday47#bce7 ,of  another famous      
saint1 named ,john1 it is asserted that 
for three whole  years he stood in      
prayer1 leaning upon a rock2 that during
 all that time  he never sat or lay     
down1 and that his only nourishment was 
the ,sacrament1  which was brought him  
on ,sundays47#bcf7 ,some of the hermits 
lived in  deserted dens of wild beasts1 
others in dried-up wells1 while others  
found  a congenial resting-place among  
the tombs47#bcg7 ,some disdained all    
clothes1 and crawled abroad like the    
wild beasts1 covered only by their      
matted hair4 ,in ,mesopotamia1 and part 
of ,syria1 there existed a sect known   
by the name of 8,grazers10 who never    
lived under a roof1 who ate neither     
flesh nor bread1 but who spent their    
time for ever on the mountain side1  and
 ate grass like cattle47#bch7 ,the      
cleanliness of the body was regarded  as

 a pollution of the soul1 and the saints
 who were most admired had  become one  
hideous mass of clotted filth4 ,st4     
,athanasius relates with  enthusiasm how
 ,st4 ,antony1 the patriarch of         
monachism1 had never1 to  extreme old   
age1 been guilty of washing his         
feet47#bci7 ,the less constant  ,st4    
,pmen fell into this habit for the first
 time when a very old man1  and1 with a 
glimmering of common sense1 defended    
himself against the  astonished monks by
 saying that he had 8learnt to kill not 
his body1 but  his passions407#bdj7 ,st4
 ,abraham the hermit1 however1 who lived
 for fifty  years after his conversion1 
rigidly refused from that date to wash  
either  his face or his feet47#bda7 ,he 
was1 it is said1 a person of singular   
beauty1 and his biographer somewhat     
strangely remarks that 8his face        
reflected the purity of his soul407#bdb7
 ,st4 ,ammon had never seen himself     
naked47#bdc7 ,a famous virgin named     
,silvia1 though she was sixty years old 

and though bodily sickness was a        
consequence of her habits1 resolutely   
refused1 on religious principles1 to    
wash any part of her body except her    
fingers47#bdd7 ,st4 ,euphraxia joined a 
convent of one hundred and thirty  nuns1
 who never washed their feet1 and who   
shuddered at the mention of a           
bath47#bde7 ,an anchorite once imagined 
that he was mocked by an illusion of    
the devil1 as he saw gliding before him 
through the desert a naked  creature    
black with filth and years of exposure1 
and with white hair  floating to the    
wind4 ,it was a once beautiful woman1   
,st4 ,mary of ,egypt1  who had thus1    
during forty-seven years1 been expiating
 her sins47#bdf7 ,the  occasional       
decadence of the monks into habits of   
decency was a subject of  much reproach4
 8,our fathers10 said the abbot         
,alexander1 looking mournfully  back to 
the past1 8never washed their faces1 but
 we frequent the public  baths407#bdg7  
,it was related of one monastery in the 

desert1 that the monks  suffered greatly
 from want of water to drink2 but at the
 prayer of the  abbot ,theodosius a     
copious stream was produced4 ,but soon  
some monks1  tempted by the abundant    
supply1 diverged from their old         
austerity1 and  persuaded the abbot to  
avail himself of the stream for the     
construction of  a bath4 ,the bath was  
made4 ,once1 and once only1 did the     
monks enjoy their  ablutions1 when the  
stream ceased to flow4 ,prayers1 tears1 
and fastings  were in vain4 ,a whole    
year passed4 ,at last the abbot         
destroyed the bath1  which was the      
object of the ,divine displeasure1 and  
the waters flowed  afresh47#bdh7 ,but of
 all the evidences of the loathsome     
excesses to which  this spirit was      
carried1 the life of ,st4 ,simeon       
,stylites is probably the  most         
remarkable4 ,it would be difficult to   
conceive a more horrible or  disgusting 
picture than is given of the penances by
 which that saint  commenced his ascetic

 career4 ,he had bound a rope around him
 so that it  became imbedded in his     
flesh1 which putrefied around it4 8,a   
horrible  stench1 intolerable to the    
bystanders1 exhaled from his body and   
worms  dropped from him whenever he     
moved1 and they filled his bed40        
,sometimes he  left the monastery and   
slept in a dry well1 inhabited1 it is   
said1 by  dmons4 ,he built successively 
three pillars1 the last being sixty feet
  high and scarcely two cubits in       
circumference1 and on this pillar1      
during  thirty years1 he remained       
exposed to every change of climate1     
ceaselessly  and rapidly bending his    
body in prayer almost to the level of   
his feet4 ,a  spectator attempted to    
number these rapid motions1 but desisted
 from  weariness when he had counted    
#a1bdd4 ,for a whole year1 we are told1 
,st4  ,simeon stood upon one leg1 the   
other being covered with hideous ulcers1
  while his biographer was commissioned 
to stand by his side1 to pick up the    

worms that fell from his body1 and to   
replace them in the sores1 the saint    
saying to the worm1 8,eat what ,god has 
given you40 ,from every quarter         
pilgrims of every degree thronged to do 
him homage4 ,a crowd of prelates        
followed him to the grave4 ,a brilliant 
star is said to have shone  miraculously
 over his pillar2 the general voice of  
mankind pronounced him  to be the       
highest model of a ,christian saint2 and
 several other anchorites  imitated or  
emulated his penances47#bdi7    ,there  
is1 if ,i mistake not1 no department of 
literature the importance of  which is  
more inadequately realised than the     
lives of the saints4 ,even  where they  
have no direct historical value1 they   
have a moral value of the  very highest 
order4 ,they may not tell us with       
accuracy what men did at  particular    
epochs2 but they display with the utmost
 vividness what they  thought and felt1 
their measure of probability1 and their 
ideal of  excellence4 ,decrees of       

councils1 elaborate treatises of        
theologians1  creeds1 liturgies1 and    
canons1 are all but the husks of        
religious history4  ,they reveal what   
was professed and argued before the     
world1 but not that  which was realised 
in the imagination or enshrined in the  
heart4 ,the  history of art1 which in   
its ruder day reflected with delicate   
fidelity  the fleeting images of an     
anthropomorphic age1 is in this respect 
invaluable2 but still more important is 
that vast ,christian mythology1  which  
grew up spontaneously from the          
intellectual condition of the time1     
included all its dearest hopes1 wishes1 
ideals1 and imaginings1 and             
constituted1 during many centuries1 the 
popular literature of ,christendom4  ,in
 the case of the saints of the deserts1 
there can be no question that  the      
picture--which is drawn chiefly by      
eye-witnesses--however grotesque may  be
 some of its details1 is in its leading 
features historically true4 ,it  is true

 that self-torture was for some         
centuries regarded as the chief  measure
 of human excellence1 that tens of      
thousands of the most devoted  men fled 
to the desert to reduce themselves by   
maceration nearly to the  condition of  
the brute1 and that this odious         
superstition had acquired an  almost    
absolute ascendancy in the ethics of the
 age4 ,the examples of  asceticism ,i   
have cited are but a few out of many    
hundreds1 and volumes  might be written1
 and have been written1 detailing them4 
,till the reform  of ,st4 ,benedict1 the
 ideal was on the whole unchanged4 ,the 
,western monks1  from the conditions of 
their climate1 were constitutionally    
incapable of  rivalling the abstinence  
of the ,egyptian anchorites2 but their  
conception  of supreme excellence was   
much the same1 and they laboured to     
compensate  for their inferiority in    
penances by claiming some superiority in
  miracles4 ,from the time of ,st4      
,pachomius1 the cnobitic life was       

adopted  by most monks2 but the ,eastern
 monasteries1 with the important        
exception  of a vow of obedience1       
differed little from a collection of    
hermitages4  ,they were in the deserts2 
the monks commonly lived in separate    
cells2 they  kept silence at their      
repasts2 they rivalled one another in   
the  extravagance of their penances4 ,a 
few feeble efforts were indeed made by  
,st4 ,jerome and others to moderate     
austerities1 which frequently led to    
insanity and suicide1 to check the      
turbulence of certain wandering monks1  
who were accustomed to defy the         
ecclesiastical authorities1 and         
especially  to suppress monastic        
mendicancy1 which had appeared          
prominently among some  heretical sects4
 ,the orthodox monks commonly employed  
themselves in  weaving mats of          
palm-leaves2 but1 living in the deserts1
 with no wants1  they speedily sank into
 a listless apathy2 and the most admired
 were those  who1 like ,simeon          

,stylites1 and the hermit ,john1 of whom
 ,i have already  spoken1 were most     
exclusively devoted to their            
superstition4 ,diversities  of          
individual character were1 however1     
vividly displayed4 ,many anchorites1    
without knowledge1 passions1 or         
imagination1 having fled from servile   
toil  to the calm of the wilderness1    
passed the long hours in sleep or in a  
mechanical routine of prayer1 and their 
inert and languid existences1  prolonged
 to the extreme of old age1 closed at   
last by a tranquil and  almost animal   
death4 ,others made their cells by the  
clear fountains and  clustering         
palm-trees of some oasis in the desert1 
and a blooming garden  arose beneath    
their toil4 ,the numerous monks who     
followed ,st4 ,serapion  devoted        
themselves largely to agriculture1 and  
sent shiploads of corn for  the benefit 
of the poor47#bej7 ,of one old hermit it
 is related that1 such  was the         
cheerfulness of his mind1 that every    

sorrow was dispelled by his  presence1  
and the weary and the heartbroken were  
consoled by a few words  from his       
lips47#bea7 ,more commonly1 however1 the
 hermit's cell was the  scene of        
perpetual mourning4 ,tears and sobs1 and
 frantic strugglings with  imaginary    
dmons1 and paroxysms of religious       
despair1 were the texture of  his life1 
and the dread of spiritual enemies1 and 
of that death which his  superstition   
had rendered so terrible1 embittered    
every hour of his  existence47#beb7 ,the
 solace of intellectual occupations was 
rarely resorted  to4 8,the duty10 said  
,st4 ,jerome1 8of a monk is not to      
teach1 but to  weep407#bec7 ,a          
cultivated and disciplined mind was the 
least subject to  those hallucinations1 
which were regarded as the highest      
evidence of  ,divine favour27#bed7 and  
although in an age when the passion for 
asceticism  was general1 many scholars  
became ascetics1 the great majority of  
the  early monks appear to have been men

 who were not only absolutely ignorant  
themselves1 but who also looked upon    
learning with positive disfavour4 ,st4  
,antony1 the true founder of monachism1 
refused when a boy to learn  letters1   
because it would bring him into too     
great intercourse with other            
boys47#bee7 ,at a time when ,st4 ,jerome
 had suffered himself to feel a deep    
admiration for the genius of ,cicero1 he
 was1 as he himself tells us1 borne  in 
the night before the tribunal of        
,christ1 accused of being rather a      
,ciceronian than a ,christian1 and      
severely flagellated by the             
angels47#bef7  ,this saint1 however1    
afterwards modified his opinions about  
the ,pagan  writings1 and he was        
compelled to defend himself at length   
against his  more jealous brethren1 who 
accused him of defiling his writings    
with  quotations from ,pagan authors1 of
 employing some monks in copying        
,cicero1  and of explaining ,virgil to  
some children at ,bethlehem47#beg7 ,of  

one monk  it is related that1 being     
especially famous as a linguist1 he made
 it his  penance to remain perfectly    
silent for thirty years27#beh7 of       
another1 that  having discovered a few  
books in the cell of a brother hermit1  
he  reproached the student with having  
thus defrauded of their property the    
widow and the orphan27#bei7 of others1  
that their only books were copies of    
the ,new ,testament1 which they sold to 
relieve the poor47#bfj7    ,with such   
men1 living such a life1 visions and    
miracles were necessarily  habitual4    
,all the elements of hallucination were 
there4 ,ignorant and  superstitious1    
believing as a matter of religious      
conviction that  countless dmons filled 
the air1 attributing every fluctuation  
of his  temperament1 and every          
exceptional phenomenon in surrounding   
nature1 to  spiritual agency2 delirious1
 too1 from solitude and long continued  
austerities1 the hermit soon mistook for
 palpable realities the phantoms  of his

 brain4 ,in the ghastly gloom of the    
sepulchre1 where1 amid  mouldering      
corpses1 he took up his abode2 in the   
long hours of the night  of penance1    
when the desert wind sobbed around his  
lonely cell1 and the  cries of wild     
beasts were borne upon his ear1 visible 
forms of lust or  terror appeared to    
haunt him1 and strange dramas were      
enacted by those who  were contending   
for his soul4 ,an imagination strained  
to the utmost limit1  acting upon a     
frame attenuated and diseased by        
macerations1 produced  bewildering      
psychological phenomena1 paroxysms of   
conflicting passions1  sudden           
alternations of joy and anguish1 which  
he regarded as manifestly  supernatural4
 ,sometimes1 in the very ecstasy of his 
devotion1 the memory  of old scenes     
would crowd upon his mind4 ,the shady   
groves and soft  voluptuous gardens of  
his native city would arise1 and1       
kneeling alone  upon the burning sand1  
he seemed to see around him the fair    

groups of  dancing-girls1 on whose warm1
 undulating limbs and wanton smiles his 
youthful eyes had too fondly dwelt4     
,sometimes his temptation sprang from   
remembered sounds4 ,the sweet1          
licentious songs of other days came     
floating  on his ear1 and his heart was 
thrilled with the passions of the past4 
,and  then the scene would change4 ,as  
his lips were murmuring the psalter1 his
  imagination1 fired perhaps by the     
music of some martial psalm1 depicted   
the crowded amphitheatre4 ,the throng   
and passion and mingled cries of  eager 
thousands were present to his mind1 and 
the fierce joy of the  gladiators passed
 through the tumult of his dream47#bfa7 
,the simplest  incident came at last to 
suggest diabolical influence4 ,an old   
hermit1  weary and fainting upon his    
journey1 once thought how refreshing    
would be  a draught of the honey of wild
 bees of the desert4 ,at that moment his
 eye  fell upon a rock on which they had
 built a hive4 ,he passed on with a     

shudder and an exorcism1 for he believed
 it to be a temptation of the           
devil47#bfb7 ,but most terrible of all  
were the struggles of young and  ardent 
men1 through whose veins the hot blood  
of passion continually  flowed1         
physically incapable of a life of       
celibacy1 and with all that  proneness  
to hallucination which a southern sun   
engenders1 who were borne  on the wave  
of enthusiasm to the desert life4 ,in   
the arms of ,syrian or  ,african brides1
 whose soft eyes answered love with     
love1 they might have  sunk to rest1 but
 in the lonely wilderness no peace could
 ever visit their  souls4 ,the ,lives of
 the ,saints paint with an appalling    
vividness the  agonies of their         
struggle4 ,multiplying with frantic     
energy the macerations  of the body1    
beating their breasts with anguish1 the 
tears for ever  streaming from their    
eyes1 imagining themselves continually  
haunted by  ever-changing forms of      
deadly beauty1 which acquired a greater 

vividness  from the very passion with   
which they resisted them1 their         
struggles not  unfrequently ended in    
insanity and in suicide4 ,it is related 
that when ,st4  ,pachomius and ,st4     
,palmon were conversing together in the 
desert1 a young  monk1 with his         
countenance distracted with madness1    
rushed into their  presence1 and1 in a  
voice broken with convulsive sobs1      
poured out his tale  of sorrows4 ,a     
woman1 he said1 had entered his cell1   
had seduced him by her  artifices1 and  
then vanished miraculously in the air1  
leaving him half  dead upon the         
ground2--and then with a wild shriek the
 monk broke away from  the saintly      
listeners4 ,impelled1 as they imagined1 
by an evil spirit1 he  rushed across the
 desert1 till he arrived at the next    
village1 and there1  leaping into the   
open furnace of the public baths1 he    
perished in the  flames47#bfc7 ,strange 
stories were told among the monks of    
revulsions of  passion even in the most 

advanced4 ,of one monk especially1 who  
had long  been regarded as a pattern of 
asceticism1 but who had suffered himself
 to  fall into that self-complacency    
which was very common among the         
anchorites1 it was told that one evening
 a fainting woman appeared at the  door 
of his cell1 and implored him to give   
her shelter1 and not permit her  to be  
devoured by the wild beasts4 ,in an evil
 hour he yielded to her  prayer4 ,with  
all the aspect of profound reverence she
 won his regards1 and  at last ventured 
to lay her hand upon him4 ,but that     
touch convulsed his  frame4 ,passions   
long slumbering and forgotten rushed    
with impetuous fury  through his veins4 
,in a paroxysm of fierce love1 he sought
 to clasp the  woman to his heart1 but  
she vanished from his sight1 and a      
chorus of  dmons1 with peals of         
laughter1 exulted over his fall4 ,the   
sequel of the  story1 as it is told by  
the monkish writer1 is1 ,i think1 of a  
very high  order of artistic merit4 ,the

 fallen hermit did not seek1 as might   
have  been expected1 by penance and     
prayers to renew his purity4 ,that      
moment of  passion and of shame had     
revealed in him a new nature1 and       
severed him  irrevocably from the hopes 
and feelings of the ascetic life4 ,the  
fair form  that had arisen upon his     
dream1 though he knew it to be a        
deception luring  him to destruction1   
still governed his heart4 ,he fled from 
the desert1  plunged anew into the      
world1 avoided all intercourse with the 
monks1 and  followed the light of that  
ideal beauty even into the jaws of      
hell47#bfd7    ,anecdotes of this kind1 
circulated among the monks1 contributed 
to  heighten the feelings of terror with
 which they regarded all communication  
with the other sex4 ,but to avoid such  
communication was sometimes very        
difficult4 ,few things are more         
striking1 in the early historians of the
  movement we are considering1 than the 
manner in which narratives of the       

deepest tragical interest alternate with
 extremely whimsical accounts of  the   
profound admiration with which the      
female devotees regarded the most       
austere anchorites1 and the unwearied   
perseverance with which they            
endeavoured to force themselves upon    
their notice4 ,some women seem in this  
respect to have been peculiarly         
fortunate4 ,st4 ,melania1 who devoted a 
great portion of her fortune to the     
monks1 accompanied by the historian     
,rufinus1 made1 near the end of the     
fourth century1 a long pilgrimage       
through the ,syrian and ,egyptian       
hermitages47#bfe7 ,but with many of the 
hermits it was a rule never to look upon
 the face of any woman1 and the  number 
of years they had escaped this          
contamination was commonly stated as  a 
conspicuous proof of their excellence4  
,st4 ,basil would only speak to a  woman
 under extreme necessity47#bff7 ,st4    
,john of ,lycopolis had not seen a      
woman for forty-eight years47#bfg7 ,a   

tribune was sent by his wife on a       
pilgrimage to ,st4 ,john the hermit to  
implore him to allow her to visit  him1 
her desire being so intense that she    
would probably1 in the opinion  of her  
husband1 die if it were ungratified4 ,at
 last the hermit told his  suppliant    
that he would that night visit his wife 
when she was in bed in  her house4 ,the 
tribune brought this strange message to 
his wife1 who that  night saw the hermit
 in a dream47#bfh7 ,a young ,roman girl 
made a pilgrimage  from ,italy to       
,alexandria1 to look upon the face and  
obtain the prayers of  ,st4 ,arsenius1  
into whose presence she forced herself4 
,quailing beneath his  rebuffs1 she     
flung herself at his feet1 imploring him
 with tears to grant  her only          
request--to remember her1 and to pray   
for her4 8,remember you60  cried the    
indignant saint2 8it shall be the prayer
 of my life that ,i may  forget you40   
,the poor girl sought consolation from  
the ,archbishop of  ,alexandria1 who    

comforted her by assuring her that1     
though she belonged to  the sex by which
 dmons commonly tempt saints1 he doubted
 not the hermit  would pray for her     
soul1 though he would try to forget her 
face47#bfi7  ,sometimes this female     
enthusiasm took another and a more      
subtle form1 and  on more than one      
occasion women were known to attire     
themselves as men1  and to pass their   
lives undisturbed as anchorites4 ,among 
others1 ,st4  ,pelagia1 who had been the
 most beautiful1 and one of the most    
dangerously  seductive actresses of     
,antioch1 having been somewhat strangely
 converted1  was appointed by the       
bishops to live in penance with an      
elderly virgin of  irreproachable piety2
 but1 impelled1 we are told1 by her     
desire for a more  austere life1 she    
fled from her companion1 assumed a male 
attire1 took  refuge among the monks on 
the ,mount of ,olives1 and1 with        
something of the  skill of her old      
profession1 supported her feigned       

character so  consistently that she     
acquired great renown1 and it was only  
7it is said7  after her death that the  
saints discovered who had been living   
among  them47#bgj7    ,the foregoing    
anecdotes and observations will1 ,i     
hope1 have given a  sufficiently clear  
idea of the general nature of the       
monastic life in its  earliest phase1   
and also of the writings it produced4   
,we may now proceed  to examine the ways
 in which this mode of life affected    
both the ideal  type and the realised   
condition of ,christian morals4 ,and in 
the first  place1 it is manifest that   
the proportion of virtues was altered4  
,if an  impartial person were to glance 
over the ethics of the ,new ,testament1 
and  were asked what was the central and
 distinctive virtue to which the sacred 
writers most continually referred1 he   
would doubtless answer that it was  that
 which is described as love1 charity1 or
 philanthropy4 ,if he were to  apply a  
similar scrutiny to the writings of the 

fourth and fifth  centuries1 he would   
answer that the cardinal virtue of the  
religious type  was not love1 but       
chastity4 ,and this chastity1 which was 
regarded as the  ideal state1 was not   
the purity of an undefiled marriage4 ,it
 was the  absolute suppression of the   
whole sensual side of our nature4 ,the  
chief  form of virtue1 the central      
conception of the saintly life1 was a   
perpetual struggle against all carnal   
impulses1 by men who altogether  refused
 the compromise of marriage4 ,from this 
fact1 if ,i mistake not1 some           
interesting and important consequences  
may be deduced4    ,in the first place1 
religion gradually assumed a very sombre
 hue4 ,the  business of the saint was to
 eradicate a natural appetite1 to attain
 a  condition which was emphatically    
abnormal4 ,the depravity of human       
nature1  especially the essential evil  
of the body1 was felt with a degree of  
intensity that could never have been    
attained by moralists who were  occupied

 mainly with transient or exceptional   
vices1 such as envy1 anger1  or cruelty4
 ,and in addition to the extreme        
inveteracy of the appetite  which it was
 desired to eradicate1 it should be     
remembered that a somewhat  luxurious   
and indulgent life1 even when that      
indulgence is not itself  distinctly    
evil1 even when it has a tendency to    
mollify the character1 has  naturally   
the effect of strengthening the animal  
passions1 and is  therefore directly    
opposed to the ascetic ideal4 ,the      
consequence of this  was first of all a 
very deep sense of the habitual and     
innate depravity of  human nature2 and1 
in the next place1 a very strong        
association of the  idea of pleasure    
with that of vice4 ,all this necessarily
 flowed from the  supreme value placed  
upon virginity4 ,the tone of calm and   
joyousness that  characterises ,greek   
philosophy1 the almost complete absence 
of all sense  of struggle and innate sin
 that it displays1 is probably in a very

 large  degree to be ascribed to the    
fact that1 in the department of morals  
we are  considering1 ,greek moralists   
made no serious efforts to improve our  
nature1 and ,greek public opinion       
acquiesced1 without scandal1 in an      
almost  boundless indulgence of illicit 
pleasures4    ,but while the great      
prominence at this time given to the    
conflicts of the  ascetic life threw a  
dark shade upon the popular estimate of 
human nature1  it contributed1 ,i think1
 very largely to sustain and deepen that
 strong  conviction of the freedom of   
the human will which the ,catholic      
,church has  always so strenuously      
upheld2 for there is1 probably1 no other
 form of  moral conflict in which men   
are so habitually and so keenly sensible
 of  that distinction between our will  
and our desires1 upon the reality of    
which all moral freedom ultimately      
depends4 ,it had also1 ,i imagine1      
another result1 which it is difficult to
 describe with the same precision4      

,what may be called a strong animal     
nature--a nature1 that is1 in which the 
passions are in vigorous1 and at the    
same time healthy1 action--is that in   
which we should most naturally expect to
 find several moral qualities4  ,good   
humour1 frankness1 generosity1 active   
courage1 sanguine energy1  buoyancy of  
temper1 are the usual and appropriate   
accompaniments of a  vigorous animal    
temperament1 and they are much more     
rarely found either in  natures that are
 essentially feeble and effeminate1 or  
in natures which  have been artificially
 emasculated by penances1 distorted from
 their  original tendency1 and          
habitually held under severe control4   
,the ideal  type of ,catholicism being1 
on account of the supreme value placed  
upon  virginity1 of the latter kind1 the
 qualities ,i have mentioned have always
  ranked very low in the ,catholic      
conceptions of excellence1 and the      
steady  tendency of ,protestant and     
industrial civilisation has been to     

elevate  them4    ,i do not know whether
 the reader will regard these           
speculations--which ,i  advance with    
some diffidence--as far-fetched and     
fanciful4 ,our knowledge of  the        
physical antecedents of different moral 
qualities is so scanty that it  is      
difficult to speak on these matters with
 much confidence2 but few  persons1 ,i  
think1 can have failed to observe that  
the physical  temperaments ,i have      
described differ not simply in the one  
great fact of  the intensity of the     
animal passions1 but also in the        
aptitude of each to  produce a distinct 
moral type1 or1 in other words1 in the  
harmony of each  with several qualities1
 both good and evil4 ,a doctrine1       
therefore1 which  connects one of these 
two temperaments indissolubly with the  
moral ideal1  affects the appreciation  
of a large number of moral qualities4   
,but  whatever may be thought of the    
moral results springing from the        
physical  temperament which asceticism  

produced1 there can be little           
controversy as  to the effects springing
 from the condition of life which it    
enjoined4  ,severance from the interests
 and affections of all around him was   
the  chief object of the anchorite1 and 
the first consequence of the prominence 
of asceticism was a profound discredit  
thrown upon the domestic virtues4       
,the extent to which this discredit was 
carried1 the intense hardness of  heart 
and ingratitude manifested by the saints
 towards those who were  bound to them  
by the closest of earthly ties1 is known
 to few who have not  studied the       
original literature on the subject4     
,these things are commonly  thrown into 
the shade by those modern               
sentimentalists who delight in          
idealising the devotees of the past4 ,to
 break by his ingratitude the heart  of 
the mother who had borne him1 to        
persuade the wife who adored him that   
it was her duty to separate from him for
 ever1 to abandon his children1  uncared

 for and beggars1 to the mercies of the 
world1 was regarded by the  true hermit 
as the most acceptable offering he could
 make to his ,god4 ,his  business was to
 save his own soul4 ,the serenity of his
 devotion would be  impaired by the     
discharge of the simplest duties to his 
family4 ,evagrius1  when a hermit in the
 desert1 received1 after a long         
interval1 letters from  his father and  
mother4 ,he could not bear that the     
equable tenor of his  thoughts should be
 disturbed by the recollection of those 
who loved him1  so he cast the letters  
unread into the fire47#bga7 ,a man named
 ,mutius1  accompanied by his only      
child1 a little boy of eight years old1 
abandoned  his possessions and demanded 
admission into a monastery4 ,the monks  
received him1 but they proceeded to     
discipline his heart4 8,he had already  
forgotten that he was rich2 he must next
 be taught to forget that he was a      
father407#bgb7 ,his little child was    
separated from him1 clothed in dirty    

rags1 subjected to every form of gross  
and wanton hardship1 beaten1  spurned1  
and ill treated4 ,day after day the     
father was compelled to look  upon his  
boy wasting away with sorrow1 his once  
happy countenance for ever  stained with
 tears1 distorted by sobs of anguish4   
,but yet1 says the  admiring biographer1
 8though he saw this day by day1 such   
was his love for  ,christ1 and for the  
virtue of obedience1 that the father's  
heart was rigid  and unmoved4 ,he       
thought little of the tears of his      
child4 ,he was anxious  only for his own
 humility and perfection in             
virtue407#bgc7 ,at last the  abbot told 
him to take his child and throw it into 
the river4 ,he  proceeded1 without a    
murmur or apparent pang1 to obey1 and it
 was only at  the last moment that the  
monks interposed1 and on the very brink 
of the  river saved the child4 ,mutius  
afterwards rose to a high position among
 the  ascetics1 and was justly regarded 
as having displayed in great perfection 

the temper of a saint47#bgd7 ,an        
inhabitant of ,thebes once came to the  
abbot  ,sisoes1 and asked to be made a  
monk4 ,the abbot asked if he had any one
  belonging to him4 ,he answered1 8,a   
son40 8,take your son10 rejoined the old
  man1 8and throw him into the river1   
and then you may become a monk40 ,the   
father hastened to fulfil the command1  
and the deed was almost consummated     
when a messenger sent by ,sisoes revoked
 the order47#bge7    ,sometimes the same
 lesson was taught under the form of a  
miracle4 ,a man  had once deserted his  
three children to become a monk4 ,three 
years after1  he determined to bring    
them into the monastery1 but1 on        
returning to his  home1 found that the  
two eldest had died during his absence4 
,he came to  his abbot1 bearing in his  
arms his youngest child1 who was still  
little  more than an infant4 ,the abbot 
turned to him and said1 8,do you love   
this  child80 ,the father answered1     
8,yes40 ,again the abbot said1 8,do you 

love it  dearly80 ,the father answered  
as before4 8,then take the child10 said 
the  abbot1 8and throw it into the fire 
upon yonder hearth40 ,the father did as 
he was commanded1 and the child remained
 unharmed amid the flames47#bgf7  ,but  
it was especially in their dealings with
 their female relations that  this      
aspect of the monastic character was    
vividly displayed4 ,in this case  the   
motive was not simply to mortify family 
affections--it was also to  guard       
against the possible danger resulting   
from the presence of a woman4  ,the fine
 flower of that saintly purity might    
have been disturbed by the  sight of a  
mother's or a sister's face4 ,the ideal 
of one age appears  sometimes too       
grotesque for the caricature of another2
 and it is curious  to observe how pale 
and weak is the picture which ,molire   
drew of the  affected prudery of        
,tartuffe17#bgg7 when compared with the 
narratives that  are gravely propounded 
in the ,lives of the ,saints4 ,when the 

abbot ,sisoes  had become a very old1   
feeble1 and decrepit man1 his disciples 
exhorted  him to leave the desert for an
 inhabited country4 ,sisoes seemed to   
yield2  but he stipulated1 as a         
necessary condition1 that in his new    
abode he  should never be compelled to  
encounter the peril and perturbation of 
looking on a woman's face4 ,to such a   
nature1 of course1 the desert alone  was
 suitable1 and the old man was suffered 
to die in peace47#bgh7 ,a monk  was once
 travelling with his mother--in itself a
 most unusual  circumstance--and1 having
 arrived at a bridgeless stream1 it     
became  necessary for him to carry her  
across4 ,to her surprise1 he began      
carefully  wrapping up his hands in     
cloths2 and upon her asking the reason1 
he  explained that he was alarmed lest  
he should be unfortunate enough to      
touch her1 and thereby disturb the      
equilibrium of his nature47#bgi7 ,the   
sister of ,st4 ,john of ,calama loved   
him dearly1 and earnestly implored him  

that she might look upon his face once  
more before she died4 ,on his           
persistent refusal1 she declared that   
she would make a pilgrimage to him  in  
the desert4 ,the alarmed and perplexed  
saint at last wrote to her1  promising  
to visit her if she would engage to     
relinquish her design4 ,he  went to her 
in disguise1 received a cup of water    
from her hands1 and came  away without  
being discovered4 ,she wrote to him1    
reproaching him with not  having        
fulfilled his promise4 ,he answered her 
that he had indeed visited  her1 that   
8by the mercy of ,jesus ,christ he had  
not been recognised10 and  that she must
 never see him again47#bhj7 ,the mother 
of ,st4 ,theodorus came  armed with     
letters from the bishops to see her son1
 but he implored his  abbot1 ,st4       
,pachomius1 to permit him to decline the
 interview2 and1 finding  all her       
efforts in vain1 the poor woman retired 
into a convent1 together  with her      
daughter1 who had made a similar        

expedition with similar  results47#bha7 
,the mother of ,st4 ,marcus persuaded   
his abbot to command the  saint to go   
out to her4 ,placed in a dilemma between
 the sin of  disobedience and the perils
 of seeing his mother1 ,st4 ,marcus     
extricated  himself by an ingenious     
device4 ,he went to his mother with his 
face  disguised and his eyes shut4 ,the 
mother did not recognise her son4 ,the  
son  did not see his mother47#bhb7 ,the 
sister of ,st4 ,pior in like manner     
induced  the abbot of that saint to     
command him to admit her to his         
presence4 ,the  command was obeyed1 but 
,st4 ,pior resolutely kept his eyes shut
 during the  interview47#bhc7 ,st4 ,pmen
 and his six brothers had all deserted  
their  mother to cultivate the          
perfections of an ascetic life4 ,but    
ingratitude  can seldom quench the love 
of a mother's heart1 and the old woman1 
now  bent by infirmities1 went alone    
into the ,egyptian desert to see once   
more  the children she so dearly loved4 

,she caught sight of them as they were  
about to leave their cell for the       
church1 but they immediately ran back   
into the cell1 and1 before her tottering
 steps could reach it1 one of her  sons 
rushed forward and closed the door in   
her face4 ,she remained outside  weeping
 bitterly4 ,st4 ,pmen then1 coming to   
the door1 but without opening  it1 said1
 8,why do you1 who are already stricken 
with age1 pour forth such  cries and    
lamentations80 ,but she1 recognising the
 voice of her son1  answered1 8,it is   
because ,i long to see you1 my sons4    
,what harm could it do  you that ,i     
should see you8 ,am ,i not your mother8 
did ,i not give you suck8  ,i am now an 
old and wrinkled woman1 and my heart is 
troubled at the sound  of your          
voices407#bhd7 ,the saintly brothers1   
however1 refused to open their  door4   
,they told their mother that she would  
see them after death2 and the           
biographer says she at last went away   
contented with the prospect4 ,st4       

,simeon ,stylites1 in this as in other  
respects1 stands in the first line4  ,he
 had been passionately loved by his     
parents1 and1 if we may believe his     
eulogist and biographer1 he began his   
saintly career by breaking the heart  of
 his father1 who died of grief at his   
flight4 ,his mother1 however1  lingered 
on4 ,twenty-seven years after his       
disappearance1 at a period when  his    
austerities had made him famous1 she    
heard for the first time where he  was1 
and hastened to visit him4 ,but all her 
labour was in vain4 ,no woman  was      
admitted within the precincts of his    
dwelling1 and he refused to  permit her 
even to look upon his face4 ,her        
entreaties and tears were  mingled with 
words of bitter and eloquent            
reproach47#bhe7 8,my son10 she is       
represented as having said1 8why have   
you done this8 ,i bore you in my  womb1 
and you have wrung my soul with grief4  
,i gave you milk from my  breast1 you   
have filled my eyes with tears4 ,for the

 kisses ,i gave you1 you  have given me 
the anguish of a broken heart2 for all  
that ,i have done and  suffered for you1
 you have repaid me by the most cruel   
wrongs40 ,at last  the saint sent a     
message to tell her that she would soon 
see him4 ,three  days and three nights  
she had wept and entreated in vain1 and 
now1  exhausted with grief and age and  
privation1 she sank feebly to the ground
  and breathed her last sigh before that
 inhospitable door4 ,then for the  first
 time the saint1 accompanied by his     
followers1 came out4 ,he shed some      
pious tears over the corpse of his      
murdered mother1 and offered up a       
prayer consigning her soul to heaven4   
,perhaps it was but fancy1 perhaps  life
 was not yet wholly extinct1 perhaps the
 story is but the invention of  the     
biographer2 but a faint motion--which   
appears to have been regarded as        
miraculous--is said to have passed over 
her prostrate form4 ,simeon once  more  
commended her soul to heaven1 and then1 

amid the admiring murmurs of  his       
disciples1 the saintly matricide        
returned to his devotions4    ,the      
glaring mendacity that characterises the
 ,lives of the ,catholic ,saints1       
probably to a greater extent than any   
other important branch of existing      
literature1 makes it not unreasonable to
 hope that many of the foregoing        
anecdotes represent much less events    
that actually took place than ideal     
pictures generated by the enthusiasm of 
the chroniclers4 ,they are not1         
however1 on that account the less       
significant of the moral conceptions    
which the ascetic period had created4   
,the ablest men in the ,christian       
community vied with one another in      
inculcating as the highest form of duty 
the abandonment of social ties and the  
mortification of domestic  affections4  
,a few faint restrictions were indeed   
occasionally made4  ,much--on which ,i  
shall hereafter touch--was written on   
the liberty of  husbands and wives      

deserting one another2 and something was
 written on the  cases of children      
forsaking or abandoning their parents4  
,at first1 those  who1 when children1   
were devoted to the monasteries by their
 parents1  without their own consent1   
were permitted1 when of mature age1 to  
return  to the world2 and this liberty  
was taken from them for the first time  
by  the fourth ,council of ,toledo1 in  
,a4,d4 #fcc47bhf7 ,the ,council of      
,gangra  condemned the heretic          
,eustathius for teaching that children  
might1 through  religious motives1      
forsake their parents1 and ,st4 ,basil  
wrote in the same  strain27#bhg7 but    
cases of this kind of rebellion against 
parental  authority were continually    
recounted with admiration in the ,lives 
of the  ,saints1 applauded by some of   
the leading ,fathers1 and virtually     
sanctioned  by a law of ,justinian1     
which deprived parents of the power of  
either  restraining their children from 
entering monasteries1 or disinheriting  

them if they had done so without their  
consent47#bhh7 ,st4 ,chrysostom  relates
 with enthusiasm the case of a young man
 who had been designed by  his father   
for the army1 and who was lured away to 
a monastery47#bhi7 ,the  eloquence of   
,st4 ,ambrose is said to have been so   
seductive1 that mothers  were accustomed
 to shut up their daughters to guard    
them against his  fascinations47#bij7   
,the position of affectionate parents   
was at this time  extremely painful4    
,the touching language is still         
preserved1 in which the  mother of      
,chrysostom--who had a distinguished    
part in the conversion of her           
son--implored him1 if he thought it his 
duty to fly to the desert life1 at      
least to postpone the act till she had  
died47#bia7 ,st4 ,ambrose devoted a     
chapter to proving that1 while those are
 worthy of commendation who enter  the  
monasteries with the approbation1 those 
are still more worthy of  praise who do 
so against the wishes1 of their parents2

 and he proceeded to  show how small    
were the penalties the latter could     
inflict when compared  with the         
blessings asceticism could bestow47#bib7
 ,even before the law of  ,justinian1   
the invectives of the clergy were       
directed against those who  endeavoured 
to prevent their children flying to the 
desert4 ,st4 ,chrysostom  explained to  
them that they would certainly be       
damned47#bic7 ,st4 ,ambrose  showed     
that1 even in this world1 they might not
 be unpunished4 ,a girl1 he  tells us1  
had resolved to enter into a convent1   
and as her relations were  expostulating
 with her on her intention1 one of those
 present tried to  move her by the      
memory of her dead father1 asking       
whether1 if he were  still alive1 he    
would have suffered her to remain       
unmarried4 8,perhaps10  she calmly      
answered1 8it was for this very purpose 
he died1 that he should  not throw any  
obstacle in my way40 ,her words were    
more than an answer2  they were an      

oracle4 ,the indiscreet questioner      
almost immediately died1  and the       
relations1 shocked by the manifest      
providence1 desisted from their         
opposition1 and even implored the young 
saint to accomplish her  design47#bid7  
,st4 ,jerome tells with rapturous       
enthusiasm of a little girl1  named     
,asella1 who1 when only twelve years    
old1 devoted herself to the  religious  
life and refused to look on the face of 
any man1 and whose  knees1 by constant  
prayer1 became at last like those of a  
camel47#bie7 ,a  famous widow1 named    
,paula1 upon the death of her husband1  
deserted her  family1 listened with 8dry
 eyes0 to her children1 who were        
imploring her  to stay1 fled to the     
society of the monks at ,jerusalem1 made
 it her desire  that 8she might die a   
beggar1 and leave not one piece of money
 to her  son10 and1 having dissipated   
the whole of her fortune in charities1  
bequeathed to her children only the     
embarrassment of her debts47#bif7 ,it   

was carefully inculcated that all money 
given or bequeathed to the poor1  or to 
the monks1 produced spiritual benefit to
 the donors or testators1  but that no  
spiritual benefit sprang from money     
bestowed upon relations2  and the more  
pious minds recoiled from disposing of  
their property in a  manner that would  
not redound to the advantage of their   
souls4 ,sometimes  parents made it a    
dying request to their children that    
they would preserve  none of their      
property1 but would bestow it all among 
the poor47#big7 ,it  was one of the most
 honourable incidents of the life of    
,st4 ,augustine1  that he1 like         
,aurelius1 ,bishop of ,carthage1 refused
 to receive legacies or  donations which
 unjustly spoliated the relatives of the
 benefactor47#bih7  ,usually1 however1  
to outrage the affections of the nearest
 and dearest  relations was not only    
regarded as innocent1 but proposed as   
the highest  virtue4 8,a young man10 it 
was acutely said1 8who has learnt to    

despise a  mother's grief1 will easily  
bear any other labour that is imposed   
upon  him407#bii7 ,st4 ,jerome1 when    
exhorting ,heliodorus to desert his     
family and  become a hermit1 expatiated 
with a fond minuteness on every form of 
natural affection he desired him to     
violate4 8,though your little nephew    
twine his arms around your neck2 though 
your mother1 with dishevelled hair  and 
tearing her robe asunder1 point to the  
breast with which she suckled  you2     
though your father fall down on the     
threshold before you1 pass on  over your
 father's body4 ,fly with tearless eyes 
to the banner of the  cross4 ,in this   
matter cruelty is the only piety4444    
,your widowed sister  may throw her     
gentle arms around you4444 ,your father 
may implore you to  wait but a short    
time to bury those near to you1 who will
 soon be no more2  your weeping mother  
may recall your childish days1 and may  
point to her  shrunken breast and to her
 wrinkled brow4 ,those around you may   

tell you  that all the household rests  
upon you4 ,such chains as these1 the    
love of  ,god and the fear of hell can  
easily break4 ,you say that ,scripture  
orders  you to obey your parents1 but he
 who loves them more than ,christ loses 
his  soul4 ,the enemy brandishes a sword
 to slay me4 ,shall ,i think of a       
mother's  tears807#cjj7    ,the         
sentiment manifested in these cases     
continued to be displayed in later      
ages4 ,thus1 ,st4 ,gregory the ,great   
assures us that a certain young boy1    
though he had enrolled himself as a     
monk1 was unable to repress his love    
for his parents1 and one night stole out
 secretly to visit them4 ,but the       
judgment of ,god soon marked the        
enormity of the offence4 ,on coming back
 to  the monastery1 he died that very   
day1 and when he was buried1 the earth  
refused to receive so heinous a         
criminal4 ,his body was repeatedly      
thrown  up from the grave1 and it was   
only suffered to rest in peace when ,st4

  ,benedict had laid the ,sacrament upon
 its breast47#cja7 ,one nun revealed1 it
  is said1 after death1 that she had    
been condemned for three days to the    
fires of purgatory1 because she had     
loved her mother too much47#cjb7 ,of    
another saint it is recorded that his   
benevolence was such that he was  never 
known to be hard or inhuman to any one  
except his relations47#cjc7  ,st4       
,romuald1 the founder of the            
,camaldolites1 counted his father among 
his  spiritual children1 and on one     
occasion punished him by                
flagellation47#cjd7  ,the first nun whom
 ,st4 ,francis of ,assisi enrolled was a
 beautiful girl of  ,assisi named ,clara
 ,scifi1 with whom he had for some time 
carried on a  clandestine               
correspondence1 and whose flight from   
her father's home he  both counselled   
and planned47#cje7 ,as the first        
enthusiasm of asceticism  died away1    
what was lost in influence by the father
 was gained by the  priest4 ,the        

confessional made this personage the    
confidant in the most  delicate secrets 
of domestic life4 ,the supremacy of     
authority1 of  sympathy1 and sometimes  
even of affection1 passed away beyond   
the domestic  circle1 and1 by           
establishing an absolute authority over 
the most secret  thoughts and feelings  
of nervous and credulous women1 the     
priests laid the  foundation of the     
empire of the world4    ,the picture ,i 
have drawn of the inroads made in the   
first period of  asceticism upon the    
domestic affections1 tells1 ,i think1   
its own story1  and ,i shall only add a 
very few words of comment4 ,that it is  
necessary for  many men who are pursuing
 a truly heroic course to break loose   
from the  trammels which those about    
them would cast over their actions or   
their  opinions1 and that this severance
 often constitutes at once one of the   
noblest and one of the most painful     
incidents in their career1 are          
unquestionable truths2 but the examples 

of such occasional and exceptional      
sacrifices1 endured for some great      
unselfish end1 cannot be compared with  
the conduct of those who regarded the   
mortification of domestic love as in    
itself a form of virtue1 and whose ends 
were mainly or exclusively  selfish4    
,the sufferings endured by the ascetic  
who fled from his relations  were often1
 no doubt1 very great4 ,many anecdotes  
remain to show that warm  and           
affectionate hearts sometimes beat under
 the cold exterior of the  monk27#cjf7  
and ,st4 ,jerome1 in one of his letters1
 remarked1 with much  complacency and   
congratulation1 that the very bitterest 
pang of captivity  is simply this       
irrevocable separation which the        
superstition he preached  induced       
multitudes to inflict upon themselves4  
,but if1 putting aside the  intrinsic   
excellence of an act1 we attempt to     
estimate the nobility of the  agent1 we 
must consider not only the cost of what 
he did1 but also the  motive which      

induced him to do it4 ,it is this last  
consideration which  renders it         
impossible for us to place the heroism  
of the ascetic on the  same level with  
that of the great patriots of ,greece or
 ,rome4 ,a man may be  as truly selfish 
about the next world as about this4     
,where an overpowering  dread of future 
torments1 or an intense realisation of  
future happiness1  is the leading motive
 of action1 the theological virtue of   
faith may be  present1 but the ennobling
 quality of disinterestedness is        
assuredly  absent4 ,in our day1 when    
pictures of rewards and punishments     
beyond the  grave act but feebly upon   
the imagination1 a religious motive is  
commonly  an unselfish motive2 but it   
has not always been so1 and it was      
undoubtedly  not so in the first period 
of asceticism4 ,the terrors of a future 
judgment  drove the monk into the       
desert1 and the whole tenor of the      
ascetic life1  while isolating him from 
human sympathies1 fostered an intense1  

though it  may be termed a religious1   
selfishness4    ,the effect of the      
mortification of the domestic affections
 upon the  general character was        
probably very pernicious4 ,the family   
circle is the  appointed sphere1 not    
only for the performance of manifest    
duties1 but  also for the cultivation of
 the affections2 and the extreme        
ferocity which  so often characterised  
the ascetic was the natural consequence 
of the  discipline he imposed upon      
himself4 ,severed from all other ties1  
the monks  clung with a desperate       
tenacity to their opinions and to their 
,church1 and  hated those who dissented 
from them with all the intensity of men 
whose  whole lives were concentrated on 
a single subject1 whose ignorance and   
bigotry prevented them from conceiving  
the possibility of any good thing  in   
opposition to themselves1 and who had   
made it a main object of their          
discipline to eradicate all natural     
sympathies and affections4 ,we may      

reasonably attribute to the fierce      
biographer the words of burning hatred  
of all heretics which ,st4 ,athanasius  
puts in the mouth of the dying          
patriarch of the hermits27#cjg7 but     
ecclesiastical history1 and especially  
the writings of the later ,pagans1      
abundantly prove that the sentiment was 
a general one4 ,to the ,christian       
bishops it is mainly due that the wide  
and  general1 though not perfect1       
recognition of religious liberty in the 
,roman  legislation was replaced by laws
 of the most minute and stringent       
intolerance4 ,to the monks1 acting as   
the executive of an omnipresent1        
intolerant1 and aggressive clergy1 is   
due an administrative change1  perhaps  
even more important than the legislative
 change that had preceded  it4 ,the     
system of conniving at1 neglecting1 or  
despising forms of worship  that were   
formally prohibited1 which had been so  
largely practised by the  sceptical     
,pagans1 and under the lax police system

 of the ,empire1 and which  is so       
important a fact in the history of the  
rise of ,christianity1 was  absolutely  
destroyed4 ,wandering in bands through  
the country1 the monks  were accustomed 
to burn the temples1 to break the idols1
 to overthrow the  altars1 to engage in 
fierce conflicts with the peasants1 who 
often  defended with desperate courage  
the shrines of their gods4 ,it would be 
impossible to conceive men more fitted  
for the task4 ,their fierce  fanaticism1
 their persuasion that every idol was   
tenanted by a literal  dmon1 and their  
belief that death incurred in this      
iconoclastic crusade  was a form of     
martyrdom1 made them careless of all    
consequences to  themselves1 while the  
reverence that attached to their        
profession rendered  it scarcely        
possible for the civil power to arrest  
them4 ,men who had  learnt to look with 
indifference on the tears of a          
broken-hearted mother1  and whose ideal 
was indissolubly connected with the     

degradation of the  body1 were but      
little likely to be moved either by the 
pathos of old  associations1 and of     
reverent1 though mistaken1 worship1 or  
by the  grandeur of the ,serapeum1 or of
 the noble statues of ,phidias and      
,praxiteles4 ,sometimes the civil power 
ordered the reconstruction of ,jewish   
synagogues or heretical churches which  
had been illegally destroyed2 but  the  
doctrine was early maintained that such 
a reconstruction was a deadly  sin4     
,under ,julian some ,christians suffered
 martyrdom sooner than be  parties to   
it2 and ,st4 ,ambrose from the pulpit of
 ,milan1 and ,simeon  ,stylites from his
 desert pillar1 united in denouncing    
,theodosius1 who had  been guilty of    
issuing this command4    ,another very  
important moral result to which         
asceticism largely  contributed was the 
depression and sometimes almost the     
extinction of the  civic virtues4 ,a    
candid examination will show that the   
,christian  civilisations have been as  

inferior to the ,pagan ones in civic and
  intellectual virtues as they have been
 superior to them in the virtues of     
humanity and of chastity4 ,we have      
already seen that one remarkable feature
  of the intellectual movement that     
preceded ,christianity was the gradual  
decadence of patriotism4 ,in the early  
days both of ,greece and ,rome1 the     
first duty enforced was that of a man to
 his country4 ,this was the  rudimentary
 or cardinal virtue of the moral type4  
,it gave the tone to the  whole system  
of ethics1 and different moral qualities
 were valued chiefly  in proportion to  
their tendency to form illustrious      
citizens4 ,the  destruction of this     
spirit in the ,roman ,empire was due1 as
 we have seen1  to two causes--one of   
them being political and the other      
intellectual4 ,the  political cause was 
the amalgamation of the different       
nations in one great  despotism1 which  
gave indeed an ample field for personal 
and intellectual  freedom1 but          

extinguished the sentiment of           
nationality and closed almost  every    
sphere of political activity4 ,the      
intellectual cause1 which was by  no    
means unconnected with the political    
one1 was the growing ascendancy of      
,oriental philosophies1 which dethroned 
the active ,stoicism of the early       
,empire1 and placed its ideal of        
excellence in contemplative virtues and 
in  elaborate purifications4 ,by this   
decline of the patriotic sentiment the  
progress of the new faith was greatly   
aided4 ,in all matters of religion  the 
opinions of men are governed much more  
by their sympathies than by  their      
judgments2 and it rarely or never       
happens that a religion which is        
opposed to a strong national sentiment1 
as ,christianity was in ,judea1 as      
,catholicism and ,episcopalian          
,protestantism have been in ,scotland1  
and as  ,anglicanism is even now in     
,ireland1 can win the acceptance of the 
people4    ,the relations of            

,christianity to the sentiment of       
patriotism were from the  first very    
unfortunate4 ,while the ,christians     
were1 for obvious reasons1  completely  
separated from the national spirit of   
,judea1 they found  themselves equally  
at variance with the lingering remnants 
of ,roman  patriotism4 ,rome was to them
 the power of ,antichrist1 and its      
overthrow  the necessary prelude to the 
millennial reign4 ,they formed an       
illegal  organisation1 directly opposed 
to the genius of the ,empire1           
anticipating  its speedy destruction1   
looking back with something more than   
despondency  to the fate of the heroes  
who adorned its past1 and refusing      
resolutely to  participate in those     
national spectacles which were the      
symbols and the  expressions of         
patriotic feeling4 ,though scrupulously 
averse to all  rebellion1 they rarely   
concealed their sentiments1 and the     
whole tendency  of their teaching was to
 withdraw men as far as possible both   

from the  functions and the enthusiasm  
of public life4 ,it was at once their   
confession and their boast1 that no     
interests were more indifferent to  them
 than those of their country47#cjh7     
,they regarded the lawfulness of  taking
 arms as very questionable1 and all     
those proud and aspiring  qualities that
 constitute the distinctive beauty of   
the soldier's  character as emphatically
 unchristian4 ,their home and their     
interests were  in another world1 and1  
provided only they were unmolested in   
their  worship1 they avowed with        
frankness1 long after the ,empire had   
become  ,christian1 that it was a matter
 of indifference to them under what rule
  they lived47#cji7 ,asceticism1 drawing
 all the enthusiasm of ,christendom to  
the desert life1 and elevating as an    
ideal the extreme and absolute          
abnegation of all patriotism17#caj7     
formed the culmination of the movement1 
and was undoubtedly one cause of the    
downfall of the ,roman ,empire4         

,there are1 probably1 few subjects on   
which popular judgments are commonly    
more erroneous than upon the relations  
between positive religions and  moral   
enthusiasm4 ,religions have1 no doubt1 a
 most real power of evoking a  latent   
energy which1 without their existence1  
would never have been called  into      
action2 but their influence is on the   
whole probably more attractive  than    
creative4 ,they supply the channel in   
which moral enthusiasm flows1  the      
banner under which it is enlisted1 the  
mould in which it is cast1 the  ideal to
 which it tends4 ,the first idea which  
the phrase 8a very good man0  would have
 suggested to an early ,roman would     
probably have been that of  great and   
distinguished patriotism1 and the       
passion and interest of such a  man in  
his country's cause were in direct      
proportion to his moral  elevation4     
,ascetic ,christianity decisively       
diverted moral enthusiasm into  another 
channel1 and the civic virtues1 in      

consequence1 necessarily  declined4 ,the
 extinction of all public spirit1 the   
base treachery and  corruption pervading
 every department of the ,government1   
the cowardice of  the army1 the         
despicable frivolity of character that  
led the people of  ,treves1 when fresh  
from their burning city1 to call for    
theatres and  circuses1 and the people  
of ,roman ,carthage to plunge wildly    
into the  excitement of the chariot     
races1 on the very day when their city  
succumbed  beneath the ,vandal27#caa7   
all these things coexisted with         
extraordinary  displays of ascetic and  
of missionary devotion4 ,the genius and 
the virtue  that might have defended the
 ,empire were engaged in fierce disputes
 about  the ,pelagian controversy1 at   
the very time when ,alaric was          
encircling ,rome  with his armies17#cab7
 and there was no subtlety of           
theological metaphysics  which did not  
kindle a deeper interest in the         
,christian leaders than the  throes of  

their expiring country4 ,the moral      
enthusiasm that in other days  would    
have fired the armies of ,rome with an  
invincible valour1 impelled  thousands  
to abandon their country and their      
homes1 and consume the weary  hours in a
 long routine of useless and horrible   
macerations4 ,when the  ,goths had      
captured ,rome1 ,st4 ,augustine1 as we  
have seen1 pointed with a  just pride to
 the ,christian ,church1 which remained 
an unviolated sanctuary  during the     
horrors of the sack1 as a proof that a  
new spirit of sanctity  and of reverence
 had descended upon the world4 ,the     
,pagan1 in his turn1  pointed to what he
 deemed a not less significant fact--the
 golden statues  of ,valour and of      
,fortune were melted down to pay the    
ransom to the  conquerors47#cac7 ,many  
of the ,christians contemplated with an 
indifference  that almost amounted to   
complacency what they regarded as the   
predicted  ruin of the city of the      
fallen gods47#cad7 ,when the ,vandals   

swept over  ,africa1 the ,donatists1    
maddened by the persecution of the      
orthodox1  received them with open arms1
 and contributed their share to that    
deadly  blow47#cae7 ,the immortal pass  
of ,thermopyl was surrendered without a 
struggle to the ,goths4 ,a ,pagan writer
 accused the monks of having betrayed   
it47#caf7 ,it is more probable that they
 had absorbed or diverted the  heroism  
that in other days would have defended  
it4 ,the conquest1 at a  later date1 of 
,egypt1 by the ,mohammedans1 was in a   
great measure due to an  invitation from
 the persecuted ,monophysites47#cag7    
,subsequent religious  wars have again  
and again exhibited the same phenomenon4
 ,the treachery of  a religionist to his
 country no longer argued an absence of 
all moral  feeling4 ,it had become      
compatible with the deepest religious   
enthusiasm1  and with all the courage of
 a martyr4    ,it is somewhat difficult 
to form a just estimate of how far the  
attitude  assumed by the ,church towards

 the barbarian invaders has on the whole
  proved beneficial to mankind4 ,the    
,empire1 as we have seen1 had long been1
  both morally and politically1 in a    
condition of manifest decline2 its      
fall1 though it might have been         
retarded1 could scarcely have been      
averted1 and the new religion1 even in  
its most superstitious form1 while  it  
did much to displace1 did also much to  
elicit moral enthusiasm4 ,it is         
impossible to deny that the ,christian  
priesthood contributed very  materially1
 both by their charity and by their     
arbitration1 to mitigate  the calamities
 that accompanied the dissolution of the
 ,empire27#cah7 and it  is equally      
impossible to doubt that their political
 attitude greatly  increased their power
 for good4 ,standing between the        
conflicting forces1  almost indifferent 
to the issue1 and notoriously exempt    
from the passions  of the combat1 they  
obtained with the conqueror1 and used   
for the benefit  of the conquered1 a    

degree of influence they would never    
have possessed1  had they been regarded 
as ,roman patriots4 ,their attitude1    
however1 marked  a complete1 and1 as it 
has proved1 a permanent1 change in the  
position  assigned to patriotism in the 
moral scale4 ,it has occasionally       
happened in  later times1 that churches 
have found it for their interest to     
appeal to  this sentiment in their      
conflict with opposing creeds1 or that  
patriots  have found the objects of     
churchmen in harmony with their own2 and
 in  these cases a fusion of theological
 and patriotic feeling has taken place1 
in which each has intensified the other4
 ,such has been the effect of the       
conflict between the ,spaniards and the 
,moors1 between the ,poles and the      
,russians1 between the ,scotch ,puritans
 and the ,english ,episcopalians1       
between the ,irish ,catholics and the   
,english ,protestants4 ,but patriotism  
itself1 as a duty1 has never found any  
place in ,christian ethics1 and  strong 

theological feeling has usually been    
directly hostile to its  growth4        
,ecclesiastics have1 no doubt1 taken a  
very large share in  political affairs1 
but this has been in most cases solely  
with the object  of wresting them into  
conformity with ecclesiastical designs2 
and no other  body of men have so       
uniformly sacrificed the interests of   
their country to  the interests of their
 class4 ,for the repugnance between the 
theological  and the patriotic spirit1  
three reasons may1 ,i think1 be         
assigned4 ,the  first is that tendency  
of strong religious feeling to divert   
the mind from  all terrestrial cares and
 passions1 of which the ascetic life was
 the  extreme expression1 but which has 
always1 under different forms1 been     
manifested in the ,church4 ,the second  
arises from the fact that each form  of 
theological opinion embodies itself in a
 visible and organised church1  with a  
government1 interest1 and policy of its 
own1 and a frontier often  intersecting 

rather than following national          
boundaries2 and these churches  attract 
to themselves the attachment and        
devotion that would naturally be        
bestowed upon the country and its       
rulers4 ,the third reason is1 that the  
saintly and the heroic characters1 which
 represent the ideals of religion  and  
of patriotism1 are generically          
different2 for although they have no    
doubt many common elements of virtue1   
the distinctive excellence of each  is  
derived from a proportion or disposition
 of qualities altogether  different from
 that of the other47#cai7    ,before    
dismissing this very important          
revolution in moral history1 ,i may  add
 two remarks4 ,in the first place1 we   
may observe that the relation of  the   
two great schools of morals to active   
and political life has been  completely 
changed4 ,among the ancients1 the       
,stoics1 who regarded virtue  and vice  
as generically different from all other 
things1 participated  actively in public

 life1 and made this participation one  
of the first of  duties2 while the      
,epicureans1 who resolved virtue into   
utility1 and  esteemed happiness its    
supreme motive1 abstained from public   
life1 and  taught their disciples to    
neglect it4 ,asceticism followed the    
,stoical  school in teaching that virtue
 and happiness are generically different
  things2 but it was at the same time   
eminently unfavourable to civic  virtue4
 ,on the other hand1 that great         
industrial movement which has arisen    
since the abolition of slavery1 and     
which has always been essentially       
utilitarian in its spirit1 has been one 
of the most active and influential      
elements of political progress4 ,this   
change1 though1 as far as ,i know1      
entirely unnoticed by historians1       
constitutes1 ,i believe1 one of the     
great  landmarks of moral history4      
,the second observation ,i would make   
relates to the estimate we form of the  
value of patriotic actions4 ,however    

much historians may desire to extend    
their researches to the private and     
domestic virtues of a people1 civic     
virtues are always those which must     
appear most prominently in their  pages4
 ,history is concerned only with large  
bodies of men4 ,the systems of          
philosophy or religion which produce    
splendid results on the great theatre   
of public life are fully and easily     
appreciated1 and readers and writers    
are both liable to give them very undue 
advantages over those systems  which do 
not favour civic virtues1 but exercise  
their beneficial influence  in the more 
obscure fields of individual            
self-culture1 domestic morals1 or       
private charity4 ,if valued by the      
self-sacrifice they imply1 or by their  
effects upon human happiness1 these last
 rank very high1 but they scarcely      
appear in history1 and they therefore   
seldom obtain their due weight in       
historical comparisons4 ,christianity   
has1 ,i think1 suffered peculiarly  from

 this cause4 ,its moral action has      
always been much more powerful upon     
individuals than upon societies1 and the
 spheres in which its superiority  over 
other religions is most incontestable1  
are precisely those which  history is   
least capable of realising4    ,in      
attempting to estimate the moral        
condition of the ,roman and ,byzantine  
,empires during the ,christian period1  
and before the old civilisation had     
been dissolved by the barbarian or      
,mohammedan invasions1 we must          
continually bear this last consideration
 in mind4 ,we must remember1 too1  that 
,christianity had acquired an ascendancy
 among nations which were  already      
deeply tainted by the inveterate vices  
of a corrupt and decaying  civilisation1
 and also that many of the censors from 
whose pages we are  obliged to form our 
estimate of the age were men who judged 
human  frailties with all the           
fastidiousness of ascetics1 and who     
expressed their  judgments with all the 

declamatory exaggeration of the pulpit4 
,modern  critics will probably not lay  
much stress upon the relapse of the     
,christians into the ordinary dress and 
usages of the luxurious society  about  
them1 upon the ridicule thrown by       
,christians on those who still  adhered 
to the primitive austerity of the sect1 
or upon the fact that  multitudes who   
were once mere nominal ,pagans had      
become mere nominal  ,christians4 ,we   
find1 too1 a frequent disposition on the
 part of moralists  to single out some  
new form of luxury1 or some trivial     
custom which they  regarded as          
indecorous1 for the most extravagant    
denunciation1 and to  magnify its       
importance in a manner which in a later 
age it is difficult  even to understand4
 ,examples of this kind may be found    
both in ,pagan and  in ,christian       
writings1 and they form an extremely    
curious page in the  history of morals4 
,thus ,juvenal exhausts his vocabulary  
of invective in  denouncing the         

atrocious criminality of a certain      
noble1 who in the very  year of his     
consulship did not hesitate--not1 it is 
true1 by day1 but at  least in the sight
 of the moon and of the stars--with his 
own hand to drive  his own chariot along
 the public road47#cbj7 ,seneca was     
scarcely less  scandalised by the       
atrocious and1 as he thought1 unnatural 
luxury of those  who had adopted the    
custom of cooling different beverages by
 mixing them  with snow47#cba7 ,pliny   
assures us that the most monstrous of   
all criminals  was the man who first    
devised the luxurious custom of wearing 
golden  rings47#cbb7 ,apuleius was      
compelled to defend himself for having  
eulogised  tooth-powder1 and he did so1 
among other ways1 by arguing that nature
 has  justified this form of propriety1 
for crocodiles were known periodically  
to leave the waters of the ,nile1 and to
 lie with open jaws upon the banks1     
while a certain bird proceeds with its  
beak to clean their teeth47#cbc7 ,if  we

 were to measure the criminality of     
different customs by the vehemence  of  
the patristic denunciations1 we might   
almost conclude that the most  atrocious
 offence of their day was the custom of 
wearing false hair1 or  dyeing natural  
hair4 ,clement of ,alexandria questioned
 whether the validity  of certain       
ecclesiastical ceremonies might not be  
affected by wigs2 for1  he asked1 when  
the priest is placing his hand on the   
head of the person  who kneels before   
him1 if that hand is resting upon false 
hair1 who is it  he is really blessing8 
,tertullian shuddered at the thought    
that ,christians  might have the hair of
 those who were in hell upon their      
heads1 and he  found in the tiers of    
false hair that were in use a distinct  
rebellion  against the assertion that no
 one can add to his stature1 and1 in the
  custom of dyeing the hair1 a          
contravention of the declaration that   
man  cannot make one hair white or      
black4 ,centuries rolled away4 ,the     

,roman  ,empire tottered to its fall1   
and floods of vice and sorrow overspread
 the  world2 but still the denunciations
 of the ,fathers were unabated4 ,st4    
,ambrose1 ,st4 ,jerome1 and ,st4        
,gregory ,nazianzen continued with      
uncompromising vehemence the war against
 false hair1 which ,tertullian and      
,clement of ,alexandria had begun47#cbd7
    ,but although the vehemence of the  
,fathers on such trivial matters might  
appear at first sight to imply the      
existence of a society in which grave   
corruption was rare1 such a conclusion  
would be totally untrue4 ,after  every  
legitimate allowance has been made1 the 
pictures of ,roman society by  ,ammianus
 ,marcellinus1 of the society of        
,marseilles1 by ,salvian1 of the        
society of ,asia ,minor1 and of         
,constantinople1 by ,chrysostom1 as well
 as  the whole tenor of the history1 and
 innumerable incidental notices in the  
writers1 of the time1 exhibit a         
condition of depravity1 and especially  

of  degradation1 which has seldom been  
surpassed47#cbe7 ,the corruption had    
reached classes and institutions that   
appeared the most holy4 ,the ,agap1  or 
love feasts1 which formed one of the    
most touching symbols of ,christian     
unity1 had become scenes of drunkenness 
and of riot4 ,denounced by the          
,fathers1 condemned by the ,council of  
,laodicea in the fourth century1 and    
afterwards by the ,council of ,carthage1
 they lingered as a scandal and an      
offence till they were finally          
suppressed by the ,council of ,trullo1  
at the  end of the seventh              
century47#cbf7 ,the commemoration of the
 martyrs soon  degenerated into         
scandalous dissipation4 ,fairs were held
 on the occasion1  gross breaches of    
chastity were frequent1 and the annual  
festival was  suppressed on account of  
the immorality it produced47#cbg7 ,the  
ambiguous  position of the clergy with  
reference to marriage already led to    
grave  disorder4 ,in the time of ,st4   

,cyprian1 before the outbreak of the    
,decian  persecution1 it had been common
 to find clergy professing celibacy1 but
  keeping1 under various pretexts1 their
 mistresses in their houses27#cbh7  and1
 after ,constantine1 the complaints on  
this subject became loud and            
general47#cbi7 ,virgins and monks often 
lived together in the same house1       
professing sometimes to share in        
chastity the same bed47#ccj7 ,rich      
widows  were surrounded by swarms of    
clerical sycophants1 who addressed them 
in  tender diminutives1 studied and     
consulted their every foible1 and1 under
  the guise of piety1 lay in wait for   
their gifts or bequests47#cca7 ,the evil
  attained such a point that a law was  
made under ,valentinian depriving the   
,christian priests and monks of that    
power of receiving legacies which was   
possessed by every other class of the   
community2 and ,st4 ,jerome has         
mournfully acknowledged that the        
prohibition was necessary47#ccb7 ,great 

multitudes entered the ,church to avoid 
municipal offices27#ccc7 the deserts    
were crowded with men whose sole object 
was to escape from honest labour1  and  
even soldiers used to desert their      
colours for the monasteries47#ccd7      
,noble ladies1 pretending a desire to   
lead a higher life1 abandoned their     
husbands to live with low-born          
lovers47#cce7 ,palestine1 which was soon
  crowded with pilgrims1 had become1 in 
the time of ,st4 ,gregory of ,nyssa1 a  
hotbed of debauchery47#ccf7 ,the evil   
reputation of pilgrimages long          
continued2 and in the eighth century we 
find ,st4 ,boniface writing to the      
,archbishop of ,canterbury1 imploring   
the bishops to take some measures to    
restrain or regulate the pilgrimages of 
their fellow-countrywomen2 for  there   
were few towns in central ,europe1 on   
the way to ,rome1 where ,english        
ladies1 who started as pilgrims1 were   
not living in open  prostitution47#ccg7 
,the luxury and ambition of the higher  

prelates1 and the  passion for          
amusements of the inferior              
priests17#cch7 were bitterly            
acknowledged4 ,st4 ,jerome complained   
that the banquets of many bishops       
eclipsed in splendour those of the      
provincial governors1 and the intrigues 
by which they obtained offices1 and the 
fierce partisanship of their            
supporters1 appear in every page of     
ecclesiastical history4    ,in the lay  
world1 perhaps the chief characteristic 
was extreme  childishness4 ,the moral   
enthusiasm was greater than it had been 
in most  periods of ,paganism1 but1     
being drawn away to the desert1 it had  
little  influence upon society4 ,the    
simple fact that the quarrels between   
the  factions of the chariot races for a
 long period eclipsed all political1    
intellectual1 and even religious        
differences1 filled the streets again   
and  again with bloodshed1 and more than
 once determined great revolutions in   
the ,state1 is sufficient to show the   

extent of the decadence4 ,patriotism    
and courage had almost disappeared1 and1
 notwithstanding the rise of a          
,belisarius or a ,narses1 the level of  
public men was extremely depressed4     
,the luxury of the court1 the servility 
of the courtiers1 and the  prevailing   
splendour of dress and of ornament1 had 
attained an extravagant  height4 ,the   
world grew accustomed to a dangerous    
alternation of extreme  asceticism and  
gross vice1 and sometimes1 as in the    
case of ,antioch17#cci7  the most       
vicious and luxurious cities produced   
the most numerous  anchorites4 ,there   
existed a combination of vice and       
superstition which is  eminently        
prejudicial to the nobility1 though not 
equally detrimental to  the happiness1  
of man4 ,public opinion was so low1 that
 very many forms of  vice attracted     
little condemnation and punishment1     
while undoubted belief  in the absolving
 efficacy of superstitious rites calmed 
the imagination  and allayed the terrors

 of conscience4 ,there was more         
falsehood and  treachery than under the 
,csars1 but there was much less cruelty1
  violence1 and shamelessness4 ,there   
was also less public spirit1 less       
independence of character1 less         
intellectual freedom4    ,in some       
respects1 however1 ,christianity had    
already effected a great  improvement4  
,the gladiatorial games had disappeared 
from the ,west1 and had  not been       
introduced into ,constantinople4 ,the   
vast schools of prostitution  which had 
grown up under the name of temples of   
,venus were suppressed4  ,religion1     
however deformed and debased1 was at    
least no longer a seedplot  of          
depravity1 and under the influence of   
,christianity the effrontery of  vice   
had in a great measure disappeared4 ,the
 gross and extravagant  indecency of    
representation1 of which we have still  
examples in the  paintings on the walls1
 and the signs on many of the portals of
 ,pompeii2  the banquets of rich        

patricians1 served by naked girls2 the  
hideous  excesses of unnatural lust1 in 
which some of the ,pagan emperors had   
indulged with so much publicity1 were no
 longer tolerated4 ,although  sensuality
 was very general1 it was less          
obtrusive1 and unnatural and  eccentric 
forms had become rare4 ,the presence of 
a great ,church1 which1  amid much      
superstition and fanaticism1 still      
taught a pure morality1 and  enforced it
 by the strongest motives1 was          
everywhere felt--controlling1           
strengthening1 or overawing4 ,the       
ecclesiastics were a great body in the  
,state4 ,the cause of virtue was        
strongly organised2 it drew to itself   
the  best men1 determined the course of 
vacillating but amiable natures1 and    
placed some restraint upon the vicious4 
,a bad man might be insensible to  the  
moral beauties of religion1 but he was  
still haunted by the  recollection of   
its threatenings4 ,if he emancipated    
himself from its  influence in health   

and prosperity1 its power returned in   
periods of  sickness or danger1 or on   
the eve of the commission of some great 
crime4  ,if he had nerved himself       
against all its terrors1 he was at least
 checked  and governed at every turn by 
the public opinion which it had created4
  ,that total absence of all restraint1 
all decency1 and all fear and  remorse1 
which had been evinced by some of the   
monsters of crime who  occupied the     
,pagan throne1 and which proves most    
strikingly the decay of  the ,pagan     
religion1 was no longer possible4 ,the  
virtue of the best ,pagans  was perhaps 
of as high an order as that of the best 
,christians1 though it  was of a        
somewhat different type1 but the vice of
 the worst ,pagans  certainly far       
exceeded that of the worst ,christians4 
,the pulpit had become  a powerful      
centre of attraction1 and charities of  
many kinds were actively  developed4    
,the moral effects of the first great   
outburst of asceticism1 so far as we    

have yet traced them1 appear almost     
unmingled evils4 ,in addition to the    
essentially distorted ideal of          
perfection it produced1 the simple      
withdrawal from active life of that     
moral enthusiasm1 which is the leaven   
of society1 was extremely pernicious1   
and there can be little doubt that  to  
this cause we must in a great degree    
attribute the conspicuous failure  of   
the ,church1 for some centuries1 to     
effect any more considerable            
amelioration in the moral condition of  
,europe4 ,there were1 however1 some     
distinctive excellences springing even  
from the first phase of asceticism1     
which1 although they do not1 as ,i      
conceive1 suffice to counterbalance     
these evils1 may justly qualify our     
censure4    ,the first condition of all 
really great moral excellence is a      
spirit of  genuine self-sacrifice and   
self-renunciation4 ,the habits of       
compromise1  moderation1 reciprocal     
self-restraint1 gentleness1 courtesy1   

and  refinement1 which are appropriate  
to luxurious or utilitarian             
civilisations1 are very favourable to   
the development of many secondary       
virtues2 but there is in human nature a 
capacity for a higher and more  heroic  
reach of excellence1 which demands very 
different spheres for its  display1     
accustoms men to far nobler aims1 and   
exercises a far greater  attractive     
influence upon mankind4 ,imperfect and  
distorted as was the  ideal of the      
anchorite2 deeply1 too1 as it was       
perverted by the admixture  of a        
spiritual selfishness1 still the example
 of many thousands1 who1 in  obedience  
to what they believed to be right1      
voluntarily gave up  everything that men
 hold dear1 cast to the winds every     
compromise with  enjoyment1 and made    
extreme self-abnegation the very        
principle of their  lives1 was not      
wholly lost upon the world4 ,at a time  
when increasing  riches had profoundly  
tainted the ,church1 they taught men 8to

 love labour  more than rest1 and       
ignominy more than glory1 and to give   
more than to  receive407#cdj7 ,at a time
 when the passion for ecclesiastical    
dignities had  become the scandal of the
 ,empire1 they systematically abstained 
from them1  teaching1 in their quaint   
but energetic language1 that 8there are 
two  classes a monk should especially   
avoid--bishops and women407#cda7 ,the   
very  eccentricities of their lives1    
their uncouth forms1 their horrible     
penances1 won the admiration of rude    
men1 and the superstitious reverence    
thus excited gradually passed to the    
charity and the self-denial which       
formed the higher elements of the       
monastic character4 ,multitudes of      
barbarians were converted to            
,christianity at the sight of ,st4      
,simeon  ,stylites4 ,the hermit1 too1   
was speedily idealised by the popular   
imagination4 ,the more repulsive        
features of his life and appearance were
  forgotten4 ,he was thought of only as 

an old man with long white beard and    
gentle aspect1 weaving his mats beneath 
the palm-trees1 while dmons  vainly     
tried to distract him by their          
stratagems1 and the wild beasts grew    
tame in his presence1 and every disease 
and every sorrow vanished at his  word4 
,the imagination of ,christendom1       
fascinated by this ideal1 made it  the  
centre of countless legends1 usually    
very childish1 and occasionally1  as we 
have seen1 worse than childish1 yet full
 of beautiful touches of  human nature1 
and often conveying admirable moral     
lessons47#cdb7 ,nursery  tales1 which   
first determine the course of the infant
 imagination1 play no  inconsiderable   
part in the history of humanity4 ,in the
 fable of  ,psyche--that bright tale of 
passionate love with which the ,greek   
mother  lulled her child to rest--,pagan
 antiquity has bequeathed us a single   
specimen of transcendent beauty1 and the
 lives of the saints of the desert      
often exhibit an imagination different  

indeed in kind1 but scarcely less       
brilliant in its display4 ,st4 ,antony1 
we are told1 was thinking one night     
that he was the best man in the desert1 
when it was revealed to him that  there 
was another hermit far holier than      
himself4 ,in the morning he  started    
across the desert to visit this unknown 
saint4 ,he met first of all  a centaur1 
and afterwards a little man with horns  
and goat's feet1 who  said that he was a
 faun2 and these1 having pointed out the
 way1 he arrived  at last at his        
destination4 ,st4 ,paul the hermit1 at  
whose cell he stopped1  was one hundred 
and thirteen years old1 and1 having been
 living for a very  long period in      
absolute solitude1 he at first refused  
to admit the  visitor1 but at last      
consented1 embraced him1 and began1 with
 a very  pardonable curiosity1 to       
question him minutely about the world he
 had  left2 8whether there was much new 
building in the towns1 what empire ruled
  the world1 whether there were any     

idolaters remaining80 ,the colloquy was 
interrupted by a crow1 which came with a
 loaf of bread1 and ,st4 ,paul1         
observing that during the last sixty    
years his daily allowance had been  only
 half a loaf1 declared that this was a  
proof that he had done right in         
admitting ,antony4 ,the hermits returned
 thanks1 and sat down together by  the  
margin of a glassy stream4 ,but now a   
difficulty arose4 ,neither could  bring 
himself to break the loaf before the    
other4 ,st4 ,paul alleged that  ,st4    
,antony1 being his guest1 should take   
the precedence2 but ,st4 ,antony1  who  
was only ninety years old1 dwelt upon   
the greater age of ,st4 ,paul4 ,so      
scrupulously polite were these old men1 
that they passed the entire  afternoon  
disputing on this weighty question1 till
 at last1 when the  evening was drawing 
in1 a happy thought struck them1 and1   
each holding one  end of the loaf1 they 
pulled together4 ,to abridge the story1 
,st4 ,paul soon  died1 and his          

companion1 being a weak old man1 was    
unable to bury him1  when two lions came
 from the desert and dug the grave with 
their paws1  deposited the body in it1  
raised a loud howl of lamentation1 and  
then  knelt down submissively before    
,st4 ,antony1 to beg a blessing4 ,the   
authority for this history is no less a 
person than ,st4 ,jerome1 who  relates  
it as literally true1 and intersperses  
his narrative with severe  reflections  
on all who might question his accuracy4 
,the historian ,palladius assures us    
that he heard from the lips of ,st4     
,macarius of ,alexandria an account of a
 pilgrimage which that saint had  made1 
under the impulse of curiosity1 to visit
 the enchanted garden of  ,jannes and   
,jambres1 tenanted by dmons4 ,for nine  
days ,macarius traversed  the desert1   
directing his course by the stars1 and1 
from time to time1  fixing reeds in the 
ground1 as landmarks for his return2 but
 this  precaution proved useless1 for   
the devils tore up the reeds1 and placed

  them during the night by the head of  
the sleeping saint4 ,as he drew near    
the garden1 seventy dmons of various    
forms came forth to meet him1 and       
reproached him for disturbing them in   
their home4 ,st4 ,macarius promised     
simply to walk round and inspect the    
wonders of the garden1 and then  depart 
without doing it any injury4 ,he        
fulfilled his promise1 and a  journey of
 twenty days brought him again to his   
cell47#cdc7 ,other legends  are1        
however1 of a less fantastic nature2 and
 many of them display1 though  sometimes
 in very whimsical forms1 a spirit of   
courtesy which seems to  foreshadow the 
later chivalry1 and some of them contain
 striking protests  against the very    
superstitions that were most prevalent4 
,when ,st4 ,macarius  was sick1 a bunch 
of grapes was once given to him2 but his
 charity  impelled him to give them to  
another hermit1 who in his turn refused 
to  keep them1 and at last1 having made 
the circuit of the entire desert1 they  

were returned to the saint47#cdd7 ,the  
same saint1 whose usual beverage was    
putrid water1 never failed to drink wine
 when set before him by the  hermits he 
visited1 atoning privately for this     
relaxation1 which he  thought the laws  
of courtesy required1 by abstaining from
 water for as  many days as he had drunk
 glasses of wine47#cde7 ,one of his     
disciples once  meeting an idolatrous   
priest running in great haste across the
 desert1  with a great stick in his     
hand1 cried out in a loud voice1 8,where
 are you  going1 dmon80 ,the priest1    
naturally indignant1 beat the ,christian
  severely1 and was proceeding on his   
way1 when he met ,st4 ,macarius1 who    
accosted him so courteously and so      
tenderly that the ,pagan's heart was    
touched1 he became a convert1 and his   
first act of charity was to tend the    
,christian whom he had beaten47#cdf7    
,st4 ,avitus being on a visit to ,st4   
,marcian1 this latter saint placed      
before him some bread1 which ,avitus    

refused to eat1 saying that it was his  
custom never to touch food till  after  
sunset4 ,st4 ,marcian1 professing his   
own inability to defer his  repast1     
implored his guest for once to break    
this custom1 and being  refused1        
exclaimed1 8,alas6 ,i am filled with    
anguish that you have come  here to see 
a wise man and a saint1 and you see only
 a glutton40 ,st4  ,avitus was grieved1 
and said1 8he would rather even eat     
flesh than hear  such words10 and he sat
 down as desired4 ,st4 ,marcian then    
confessed that  his own custom was the  
same as that of his brother saint2      
8but10 he added1  8we know that charity 
is better than fasting2 for charity is  
enjoined by  the ,divine law1 but       
fasting is left in our own power and    
will407#cdg7 ,st4  ,epiphanius having   
invited ,st4 ,hilarius to his cell1     
placed before him a  dish of fowl4      
8,pardon me1 father10 said ,st4         
,hilarius1 8but since ,i have  become a 
monk ,i have never eaten flesh40 8,and  

,i10 said ,st4 ,epiphanius1  8since ,i  
have become a monk have never suffered  
the sun to go down upon my  wrath40     
8,your rule10 rejoined the other1 8is   
more excellent than  mine407#cdh7 ,while
 a rich lady was courteously fulfilling 
the duties of  hospitality to a monk1   
her child1 whom she had for this purpose
 left1 fell  into a well4 ,it lay       
unharmed upon the surface of the water1 
and afterwards  told its mother that it 
had seen the arms of the saint          
sustaining it  below47#cdi7 ,at a time  
when it was the custom to look upon the 
marriage  state with profound contempt1 
it was revealed to ,st4 ,macarius of    
,egypt  that two married women in a     
neighbouring city were more holy than he
 was4  ,the saint immediately visited   
them1 and asked their mode of life1 but 
they  utterly repudiated the notion of  
their sanctity4 8,holy father10 they    
said1  8suffer us to tell you frankly   
the truth4 ,even this very night we did 
not  shrink from sleeping with our      

husbands1 and what good works1 then1 can
 you  expect from us80 ,the saint1      
however1 persisted in his inquiries1 and
 they  then told him their stories4 8,we
 are10 they said1 8in no way related1   
but  we married two brothers4 ,we have  
lived together for fifteen years1       
without  one licentious or angry word4  
,we have entreated our husbands to let  
us  leave them1 to join the societies of
 holy virgins1 but they refused to      
permit us1 and we then promised before  
,heaven that no worldly word should     
sully our lips40 8,of a truth10 cried   
,st4 ,macarius1 8,i see that ,god       
regards  not whether one is virgin or   
married1 whether one is in a monastery  
or in  the world4 ,he considers only the
 disposition of the heart1 and gives the
  ,spirit to all who desire to serve    
,him1 whatever their condition may      
be407#cej7    ,i have multiplied these  
illustrations to an extent that must1 ,i
 fear1 have  already somewhat taxed the 
patience of my readers2 but the fact    

that1  during a long period of history1 
these saintly legends formed the ideals 
guiding the imagination and reflecting  
the moral sentiment of the  ,christian  
world1 gives them an importance far     
beyond their intrinsic  value4 ,before  
dismissing the saints of the desert1    
there is one other  class of legends to 
which ,i desire to advert4 ,i mean those
 which describe  the connection between 
saints and the animal world4 ,these     
legends are1 ,i  think1 worthy of       
special notice in moral history1 as     
representing the  first1 and at the same
 time one of the most striking efforts  
ever made in  ,christendom to inculcate 
a feeling of kindness and pity towards  
the brute  creation4 ,in ,pagan         
antiquity1 considerable steps had been  
made to raise  this form of humanity to 
a recognised branch of ethics4 ,the way 
had been  prepared by numerous anecdotes
 growing for the most part out of simple
  ignorance of natural history1 which   
all tended to diminish the chasm        

between men and animals1 by representing
 the latter as possessing to a  very    
high degree both moral and rational     
qualities4 ,elephants1 it was  believed1
 were endowed not only with reason and  
benevolence1 but also with  reverential 
feelings4 ,they worshipped the sun and  
moon1 and in the forests  of ,mauritania
 they were accustomed to assemble every 
new moon1 at a  certain river1 to       
perform religious rites47#cea7 ,the     
hippopotamus taught  men the medicinal  
value of bleeding1 being accustomed1    
when affected by  plethory1 to bleed    
itself with a thorn1 and afterwards     
close the wound  with slime47#ceb7      
,pelicans committed suicide to feed     
their young2 and bees1  when they had   
broken the laws of their                
sovereign47#cec7 ,a temple was  erected 
at ,sestos to commemorate the affection 
of an eagle which loved a  young girl1  
and upon her death cast itself in       
despair into the flames by  which her   
body was consumed47#ced7 ,numerous      

anecdotes are related of  faithful dogs 
which refused to survive their masters1 
and one of these  had1 it was said1 been
 transformed into the dog-star47#cee7   
,the dolphin1  especially1 became the   
subject of many beautiful legends1 and  
its  affection for its young1 for music1
 and above all for little children1     
excited the admiration not only of the  
populace1 but of the most  distinguished
 naturalists47#cef7 ,many philosophers  
ascribed to animals a  rational soul1   
like that of man4 ,according to the     
,pythagoreans1 human  souls transmigrate
 after death into animals4 ,according to
 the ,stoics and  others1 the souls of  
men and animals were alike parts of the 
all-pervading  ,divine ,spirit that     
animates the world47#ceg7    ,we may    
even find traces from an early period of
 a certain measure of  legislative      
protection for animals4 ,by a very      
natural process1 the ox1 as  a principal
 agent in agriculture1 and therefore a  
kind of symbol of  civilisation1 was in 

many different countries regarded with a
 peculiar  reverence4 ,the sanctity     
attached to it in ,egypt is well known4 
,that  tenderness to animals1 which is  
one of the most beautiful features in   
the  ,old ,testament writings1 shows    
itself1 among other ways1 in the command
 not  to muzzle the ox that treadeth out
 the corn1 or to yoke together the ox   
and the ass47#ceh7 ,among the early     
,romans the same feeling was carried so 
far1 that for a long time it was        
actually a capital offence to slaughter 
an ox1 that animal being pronounced1 in 
a special sense1 the  fellow-labourer of
 man47#cei7 ,a similar law is said to   
have in early times  existed in         
,greece47#cfj7 ,the beautiful passage in
 which the ,psalmist  describes how the 
sparrow could find a shelter and a home 
in the altar of  the temple1 was as     
applicable to ,greece as to ,jerusalem4 
,the sentiment of  ,xenocrates who1 when
 a bird pursued by a hawk took refuge in
 his breast1  caressed and finally      

released it1 saying to his disciples1   
that a good man  should never give up a 
suppliant17#cfa7 was believed to be     
shared by the  gods1 and it was regarded
 as an act of impiety to disturb the    
birds who  had built their nests beneath
 the porticoes of the temple47#cfb7 ,a  
case is  related of a child who was even
 put to death on account of an act of   
aggravated cruelty to birds47#cfc7      
,the general tendency of nations1 as    
they advance from a rude and warlike  to
 a refined and peaceful condition1 from 
the stage in which the realising  powers
 are faint and dull1 to that in which   
they are sensitive and vivid1  is       
undoubtedly to become more gentle and   
humane in their actions2 but  this1 like
 all other general tendencies in        
history1 may be counteracted or         
modified by many special circumstances4 
,the law ,i have mentioned about  oxen  
was obviously one of those that belong  
to a very early stage of  progress1 when
 legislators are labouring to form      

agricultural habits among  a warlike and
 nomadic people47#cfd7 ,the games in    
which the slaughter of  animals bore so 
large a part1 having been introduced but
 a little before  the extinction of the 
republic1 did very much to arrest or    
retard the  natural progress of humane  
sentiments4 ,in ancient ,greece1 besides
 the  bull-fights of ,thessaly1 the     
combats of quails and cocks7#cfe7 were  
favourite amusements1 and were much     
encouraged by the legislators1 as       
furnishing examples of valour to the    
soldiers4 ,the colossal dimensions of   
the ,roman games1 the circumstances that
 favoured them1 and the  overwhelming   
interest they speedily excited1 ,i have 
described in a former  chapter4 ,we have
 seen1 however1 that1 notwithstanding   
the gladiatorial  shows1 the standard of
 humanity towards men was considerably  
raised during  the ,empire4 ,it is also 
well worthy of notice that1             
notwithstanding the  passion for the    
combats of wild beasts1 ,roman          

literature and the later  literature of 
the nations subject to ,rome abound in  
delicate touches  displaying in a very  
high degree a sensitiveness to the      
feelings of the  animal world4 ,this    
tender interest in animal life is one of
 the most  distinctive features of the  
poetry of ,virgil4 ,lucretius1 who      
rarely struck  the chords of pathos1 had
 at a still earlier period drawn a very 
beautiful  picture of the sorrows of the
 bereaved cow1 whose calf had been      
sacrificed  upon the altar47#cff7       
,plutarch mentions1 incidentally1 that  
he could never  bring himself to sell1  
in its old age1 the ox which had served 
him  faithfully in the time of its      
strength47#cfg7 ,ovid expressed a       
similar  sentiment with an almost equal 
emphasis47#cfh7 ,juvenal speaks of a    
,roman  lady with her eyes filled with  
tears on account of the death of a      
sparrow47#cfi7 ,apollonius of ,tyana1 on
 the ground of humanity1 refused1  even 
when invited by a king1 to participate  

in the chase47#cgj7 ,arrian1 the  friend
 of ,epictetus1 in his book upon        
coursing1 anticipated the beautiful     
picture which ,addison has drawn of the 
huntsman refusing to sacrifice the  life
 of the captured hare which had given   
him so much pleasure in its             
flight47#cga7    ,these touches of      
feeling1 slight as they may appear1     
indicate1 ,i think1 a  vein of sentiment
 such as we should scarcely have        
expected to find  coexisting with the   
gigantic slaughter of the amphitheatre4 
,the progress1  however1 was not only   
one of sentiment--it was also shown in  
distinct and  definite teaching4        
,pythagoras and ,empedocles were quoted 
as the founders  of this branch of      
ethics4 ,the moral duty of kindness to  
animals was in the  first instance based
 upon a dogmatic assertion of the       
transmigration of  souls1 and1 the      
doctrine that animals are within the    
circle of human duty  being thus laid   
down1 subsidiary considerations of      

humanity were alleged4  ,the rapid      
growth of the ,pythagorean school1 in   
the latter days of the  ,empire1 made   
these considerations familiar to the    
people47#cgb7 ,porphyry  elaborately    
advocated1 and even ,seneca for a time  
practised1 abstinence  from flesh4 ,but 
the most remarkable figure in this      
movement is  unquestionably ,plutarch4  
,casting aside the dogma of             
transmigration1 or at  least speaking of
 it only as a doubtful conjecture1 he   
places the duty of  kindness to animals 
on the broad ground of the affections1  
and he urges  that duty with an emphasis
 and a detail to which no adequate      
parallel can1  ,i believe1 be found in  
the ,christian writings for at least    
seventeen  hundred years4 ,he condemns  
absolutely the games of the             
amphitheatre1  dwells with great force  
upon the effect of such spectacles in   
hardening  the character1 enumerates in 
detail1 and denounces with unqualified  
energy1 the refined cruelties which     

gastronomic fancies had produced1 and   
asserts in the strongest language that  
every man has duties to the animal      
world as truly as to his                
fellow-men47#cgc7    ,if we now pass to 
the ,christian ,church1 we shall find   
that little or no  progress was at first
 made in this sphere4 ,among the        
,manicheans1 it is  true1 the mixture of
 ,oriental notions was shown in an      
absolute prohibition  of animal food1   
and abstinence from this food was also  
frequently  practised upon totally      
different grounds by the orthodox4 ,one 
or two of  the ,fathers have also       
mentioned with approbation the humane   
counsels of  the ,pythagoreans47#cgd7   
,but1 on the other hand1 the doctrine of
  transmigration was emphatically       
repudiated by the ,catholics2 the human 
race was isolated1 by the scheme of     
redemption1 more than ever from all     
other races2 and in the range and circle
 of duties inculcated by the early      
,fathers those to animals had no place4 

,this is indeed the one form of         
humanity which appears more prominently 
in the ,old ,testament than in the      
,new4 ,the many beautiful traces of it  
in the former1 which indicate a         
sentiment17#cge7 even where they do not 
very strictly define a duty1 gave  way  
before an ardent philanthropy which     
regarded human interests as the  one    
end1 and the relations of man to his    
,creator as the one question1 of  life1 
and dismissed somewhat contemptuously1  
as an idle sentimentalism1  notions of  
duty to animals47#cgf7 ,a refined and   
subtle sympathy with animal  feeling is 
indeed rarely found among those who are 
engaged very actively  in the affairs of
 life1 and it was not without a meaning 
or a reason that  ,shakespeare placed   
that exquisitely pathetic analysis of   
the sufferings of  the wounded stag1    
which is perhaps its most perfect       
poetical expression1  in the midst of   
the morbid dreamings of the diseased and
 melancholy  ,jacques4    ,but while    

what are called the rights of animals   
had no place in the ethics  of the      
,church1 a feeling of sympathy with the 
irrational creation was in  some degree 
inculcated indirectly by the incidents  
of the hagiology4 ,it  was very natural 
that the hermit1 living in the lonely   
deserts of the  ,east1 or in the vast   
forests of ,europe1 should come into an 
intimate  connection with the animal    
world1 and it was no less natural that  
the  popular imagination1 when depicting
 the hermit life1 should make this      
connection the centre of many           
picturesque and sometimes touching      
legends4  ,the birds1 it was said1      
stooped in their flight at the old man's
 call2 the  lion and the hyena crouched 
submissively at his feet2 his heart1    
which was  closed to all human          
interests1 expanded freely at the sight 
of some  suffering animal2 and something
 of his own sanctity descended to the   
companions of his solitude and the      
objects of his miracles4 ,the wild      

beasts attended ,st4 ,theon when he     
walked abroad1 and the saint rewarded   
them by giving them drink out of his    
well4 ,an ,egyptian hermit had made a   
beautiful garden in the desert1 and used
 to sit beneath the palm-trees  while a 
lion ate fruit from his hand4 ,when ,st4
 ,pmen was shivering in a  winter night1
 a lion crouched beside him1 and became 
his covering4 ,lions  buried ,st4 ,paul 
the hermit and ,st4 ,mary of ,egypt4    
,they appear in the  legends of ,st4    
,jerome1 ,st4 ,gerasimus1 ,st4 ,john the
 ,silent1 ,st4 ,simeon1 and  many       
others4 ,when an old and feeble monk1   
named ,zosimas1 was on his  journey to  
,csarea1 with an ass which bore his     
possessions1 a lion seized  and devoured
 the ass1 but1 at the command of the    
saint1 the lion itself  carried the     
burden to the city gates4 ,st4 ,helenus 
called a wild ass from  its herd to bear
 his burden through the wilderness4 ,the
 same saint1 as  well as ,st4           
,pachomius1 crossed the ,nile on the    

back of a crocodile1 as ,st4  ,scuthinus
 did the ,irish ,channel on a sea       
monster4 ,stags continually  accompanied
 saints upon their journeys1 bore their 
burdens1 ploughed their  fields1        
revealed their relics4 ,the hunted stag 
was especially the theme of  many       
picturesque legends4 ,a ,pagan1 named   
,branchion1 was once pursuing an        
exhausted stag1 when it took refuge in a
 cavern1 whose threshold no  inducement 
could persuade the hounds to cross4 ,the
 astonished hunter  entered1 and found  
himself in presence of an old hermit1   
who at once  protected the fugitive and 
converted the pursuer4 ,in the legends  
of ,st4  ,eustachius and ,st4 ,hubert1  
,christ is represented as having assumed
 the  form of a hunted stag1 which      
turned upon its pursuer1 with a crucifix
  glittering on its brow1 and1          
addressing him with a human voice1      
converted  him to ,christianity4 ,in the
 full frenzy of a chase1 hounds and stag
  stopped and knelt down together to    

venerate the relics of ,st4 ,fingar4 ,on
  the festival of ,st4 ,regulus1 the    
wild stags assembled at the tomb of the 
saint1 as the ravens used to do at that 
of ,st4 ,apollinar of ,ravenna4 ,st4    
,erasmus was the special protector of   
oxen1 and they knelt down voluntarily   
before his shrine4 ,st4 ,antony was the 
protector of hogs1 who were usually     
introduced into his pictures4 ,st4      
,bridget kept pigs1 and a wild boar came
  from the forest to subject itself to  
her rule4 ,a horse foreshadowed by its  
lamentations the death of ,st4 ,columba4
 ,the three companions of ,st4 ,colman  
were a cock1 a mouse1 and a fly4 ,the   
cock announced the hour of devotion1    
the mouse bit the ear of the drowsy     
saint till he got up1 and if in the     
course of his studies he was afflicted  
by any wandering thoughts1 or  called   
away to other business1 the fly alighted
 on the line where he had  left off1 and
 kept the place4 ,legends1 not without a
 certain whimsical  beauty1 described   

the moral qualities existing in animals4
 ,a hermit was  accustomed to share his 
supper with a wolf1 which1 one evening  
entering  the cell before the return of 
the master1 stole a loaf of bread4      
,struck  with remorse1 it was a week    
before it ventured again to visit the   
cell1  and when it did so1 its head hung
 down1 and its whole demeanour          
manifested  the most profound           
contrition4 ,the hermit 8stroked with a 
gentle hand its  bowed down head10 and  
gave it a double portion as a token of  
forgiveness4  ,a lioness knelt down with
 lamentations before another saint1 and 
then led  him to its cub1 which was     
blind1 but which received its sight at  
the  prayer of the saint4 ,next day the 
lioness returned1 bearing the skin of a 
wild beast as a mark of its gratitude4  
,nearly the same thing happened to  ,st4
 ,macarius of ,alexandria2 a hyena      
knocked at his door1 brought its  young1
 which was blind1 and which the saint   
restored to sight1 and repaid  the      

obligation soon afterwards by bringing a
 fleece of wool4 8,o hyena60  said the  
saint1 8how did you obtain this fleece8 
you must have stolen and  eaten a       
sheep40 ,full of shame1 the hyena hung  
its head down1 but persisted  in        
offering its gift1 which1 however1 the  
holy man refused to receive till  the   
hyena 8had sworn0 to cease for the      
future to rob4 ,the hyena bowed its     
head in token of its acceptance of the  
oath1 and ,st4 ,macarius afterwards     
gave the fleece to ,st4 ,melania4 ,other
 legends simply speak of the sympathy   
between saints and the irrational world4
 ,the birds came at the call of ,st4    
,cuthbert1 and a dead bird was          
resuscitated by his prayer4 ,when ,st4  
,aengussius1 in felling wood1 had cut   
his hand1 the birds gathered round1  and
 with loud cries lamented his           
misfortune4 ,a little bird1 struck down 
and mortally wounded by a hawk1 fell at 
the feet of ,st4 ,kieranus1 who shed    
tears as he looked upon its torn breast1

 and offered up a prayer1 upon  which   
the bird was instantly healed47#cgg7    
,many hundreds1 ,i should perhaps hardly
 exaggerate were ,i to say many         
thousands1 of legends of this kind exist
 in the lives of the saints4  ,suggested
 in the first instance by that desert   
life which was at once the  earliest    
phase of monachism and one of the       
earliest sources of ,christian          
mythology1 strengthened by the symbolism
 which represented different  virtues   
and vices under the forms of animals1   
and by the reminiscences of  the rites  
and the superstitions of ,paganism1 the 
connection between men  and animals     
became the keynote of an infinite       
variety of fantastic tales4  ,in our    
eyes they may appear extravagantly      
puerile1 yet it will scarcely1 ,i  hope1
 be necessary to apologise for          
introducing them into what purports to  
be a grave work1 when it is remembered  
that for many centuries they were       
universally accepted by mankind1 and    

were so interwoven with all local       
traditions1 and with all the            
associations of education1 that they at 
once  determined and reflected the      
inmost feelings of the heart4 ,their    
tendency  to create a certain feeling of
 sympathy towards animals is manifest1  
and  this is probably the utmost the    
,catholic ,church has done in that      
direction47#cgh7 ,a very few authentic  
instances may1 indeed1 be cited of      
saints whose natural gentleness of      
disposition was displayed in kindness   
to the animal world4 ,of ,st4 ,james of 
,venice--an obscure saint of the        
thirteenth century--it is told that he  
was accustomed to buy and release  the  
birds with which ,italian boys used to  
play by attaching them to  strings1     
saying that 8he pitied the little birds 
of the ,lord10 and that  his 8tender    
charity recoiled from all cruelty1 even 
to the most diminutive  of              
animals407#cgi7 ,st4 ,francis of ,assisi
 was a more conspicuous example of  the 

same spirit4 8,if ,i could only be      
presented to the emperor10 he used to   
say1 8,i would pray him1 for the love of
 ,god1 and of me1 to issue an edict     
prohibiting any one from catching or    
imprisoning my sisters the larks1 and   
ordering that all who have oxen or asses
 should at ,christmas feed them         
particularly well40 ,a crowd of legends 
turning upon this theme were  related of
 him4 ,a wolf1 near ,gubbio1 being      
adjured by him1 promised to  abstain    
from eating sheep1 placed its paw in the
 hand of the saint to  ratify the       
promise1 and was afterwards fed from    
house to house by the  inhabitants of   
the city4 ,a crowd of birds1 on another 
occasion1 came to  hear the saint       
preach1 as fish did to hear ,st4 ,antony
 of ,padua4 ,a falcon  awoke him at his 
hour of prayer4 ,a grasshopper          
encouraged him by her  melody to sing   
praises to ,god4 ,the noisy swallows    
kept silence when he  began to          
teach47#chj7    ,on the whole1 however1 

,catholicism has done very little to    
inculcate  humanity to animals4 ,the    
fatal vice of theologians1 who have     
always looked  upon others solely       
through the medium of their own special 
dogmatic views1  has been an obstacle to
 all advance in this direction4 ,the    
animal world1  being altogether external
 to the scheme of redemption1 was       
regarded as  beyond the range of duty1  
and the belief that we have any kind of 
obligation to its members has never been
 inculcated--has never1 ,i believe1     
been even admitted--by ,catholic        
theologians4 ,in the popular legends1   
and in  the recorded traits of          
individual amiability1 it is curious to 
observe how  constantly those who have  
sought to inculcate kindness to animals 
have  done so by endeavouring to        
associate them with something           
distinctively  ,christian4 ,the legends 
,i have noticed glorified them as the   
companions of  the saints4 ,the stag was
 honoured as especially commissioned to 

reveal the  relics of saints1 and as the
 deadly enemy of the serpent4 ,in the   
feast of  asses1 that animal was led    
with veneration into the churches1 and a
 rude  hymn proclaimed its dignity1     
because it had borne ,christ in ,his    
flight to  ,egypt1 and in ,his entry    
into ,jerusalem4 ,st4 ,francis always   
treated lambs  with a peculiar          
tenderness1 as being symbols of his     
,master4 ,luther grew  sad and          
thoughtful at a hare hunt1 for it seemed
 to him to represent the  pursuit of    
souls by the devil4 ,many popular       
legends exist1 associating  some bird or
 animal with some incident in the       
evangelical narrative1 and  securing for
 them in consequence an unmolested life4
 ,but such influences  have never       
extended far4 ,there are two distinct   
objects which may be  considered by     
moralists in this sphere4 ,they may     
regard the character of  the men1 or    
they may regard the sufferings of the   
animals4 ,the amount of  callousness or 

of conscious cruelty displayed or       
elicited by amusements or  practices    
that inflict suffering on animals1 bears
 no kind of proportion  to the intensity
 of that suffering4 ,could we follow    
with adequate  realisation the pangs of 
the wounded birds that are struck down  
in our  sports1 or of the timid hare in 
the long course of its flight1 we should
  probably conclude that they were not  
really less than those caused by the    
,spanish bull-fight1 or by the ,english 
pastimes of the last century4 ,but  the 
excitement of the chase refracts the    
imagination1 and owing to the           
diminutive size of the victim1 and the  
undemonstrative character of its        
suffering1 these sports do not exercise 
that prejudicial influence upon         
character which they would exercise if  
the sufferings of the animals were      
vividly realised1 and were at the same  
time accepted as an element of the      
enjoyment4 ,the class of amusements of  
which the ancient combats of wild       

beasts form the type1 have no doubt     
nearly disappeared from ,christendom1   
and it is possible that the softening   
power of ,christian teaching may have   
had some indirect influence in          
abolishing them2 but a candid judgment  
will  confess that it has been very     
little4 ,during the periods1 and in the 
countries1 in which theological         
influence was supreme1 they were        
unchallenged47#cha7 ,they               
disappeared7#chb7 at last1 because a    
luxurious and  industrial civilisation  
involved a refinement of manners2       
because a  fastidious taste recoiled    
with a sensation of disgust from        
pleasures that  an uncultivated taste   
would keenly relish2 because the drama1 
at once  reflecting and accelerating the
 change1 gave a new form to popular     
amusements1 and because1 in consequence 
of this revolution1 the old  pastimes1  
being left to the dregs of society1     
became the occasions of  scandalous     
disorders47#chc7 ,in ,protestant        

countries the clergy have1 on the       
whole1 sustained this movement4 ,in     
,catholic countries it has been much    
more faithfully represented by the      
school of ,voltaire and ,beccaria4 ,a   
judicious moralist may1 however1        
reasonably question whether amusements  
which derive their zest from a display  
of the natural ferocious instincts  of  
animals1 and which substitute death     
endured in the frenzy of combat for     
death in the remote slaughter-house or  
by the slow process of decay1 have      
added in any appreciable degree to the  
sum of animal misery1 and in these      
cases he will dwell less upon the       
suffering inflicted than upon the       
injurious influence the spectacle may   
sometimes exercise on the character  of 
the spectator4 ,but there are forms of  
cruelty which must be regarded in  a    
different light4 ,the horrors of        
vivisection1 often so wantonly1 so      
needlessly practised17#chd7 the         
prolonged and atrocious tortures1       

sometimes  inflicted in order to procure
 some gastronomic delicacy1 are so far  
removed from the public gaze that they  
exercise little influence on the        
character of men4 ,yet no humane man can
 reflect upon them without a  shudder4  
,to bring these things within the range 
of ethics1 to create the  notion of     
duties towards the animal world1 has1 so
 far as ,christian  countries are       
concerned1 been one of the peculiar     
merits of the last  century1 and1 for   
the most part1 of ,protestant nations4  
,however fully we  may recognise the    
humane spirit transmitted to the world  
in the form of  legends from the saints 
of the desert1 it must not be forgotten 
that the  inculcation of humanity to    
animals on a wide scale is mainly the   
work of a  recent and a secular age2    
that the ,mohammedans and the ,brahmins 
have in  this sphere considerably       
surpassed the ,christians1 and that     
,spain and  ,southern ,italy1 in which  
,catholicism has most deeply planted its

 roots1  are even now1 probably beyond  
all other countries in ,europe1 those in
  which inhumanity to animals is most   
wanton and most unrebuked4    ,the      
influence the first form of monachism   
has exercised upon the world1 so  far as
 it has been beneficial1 has been       
chiefly through the imagination1  which 
has been fascinated by its legends4 ,in 
the great periods of  theological       
controversy1 the ,eastern monks had     
furnished some leading  theologians2 but
 in general1 in ,oriental lands1 the    
hermit life  predominated1 and extreme  
maceration was the chief merit of the   
saint4 ,but  in the ,west1 monachism    
assumed very different forms1 and       
exercised far  higher functions4 ,at    
first the ,oriental saints were the     
ideals of ,western  monks4 ,the ,eastern
 ,st4 ,athanasius had been the founder  
of ,italian  monachism4 ,st4 ,martin of 
,tours excluded labour from the         
discipline of his  monks1 and he and    
they1 like the ,eastern saints1 were    

accustomed to wander  abroad1 destroying
 the idols of the temples47#che7 ,but   
three great causes  conspired to direct 
the monastic spirit in the ,west into   
practical  channels4 ,conditions of race
 and climate have ever impelled the     
inhabitants of these lands to active    
life1 and have at the same time         
rendered them constitutionally incapable
 of enduring the austerities or         
enjoying the hallucinations of the      
sedentary ,oriental4 ,there arose1 too1 
in the sixth century1 a great           
legislator1 whose form may be dimly     
traced  through a cloud of fantastic    
legends1 and the order of ,st4          
,benedict1 with  that of ,st4 ,columba  
and some others1 founded on             
substantially the same  principle1 soon 
ramified through the greater part of    
,europe1 tempered the  wild excesses of 
useless penances1 and1 making labour an 
essential part of  the monastic system1 
directed the movement to the purposes of
 general  civilisation4 ,in the last    

place1 the barbarian invasions1 and the 
dissolution of the ,western ,empire1    
dislocating the whole system of         
government and almost resolving society 
into its primitive elements1  naturally 
threw upon the monastic corporations    
social1 political1 and  intellectual    
functions of the deepest importance4    
,it has been observed that the capture  
of ,rome by ,alaric1 involving as it    
did the destruction of the grandest     
religious monuments of ,paganism1 in    
fact established in that city the       
supreme authority of                    
,christianity47#chf7  ,a similar remark 
may be extended to the general downfall 
of the ,western  civilisation4 ,in that 
civilisation ,christianity had indeed   
been legally  enthroned2 but the        
philosophies and traditions of          
,paganism1 and the  ingrained habits of 
an ancient1 and at the same time an     
effete society1  continually paralysed  
its energies4 ,what ,europe would have  
been without  the barbarian invasions1  

we may partly divine from the history of
 the  ,lower ,empire1 which represented1
 in fact1 the old ,roman civilisation   
prolonged and ,christianised4 ,the      
barbarian conquests1 breaking up the old
  organisation1 provided the ,church    
with a virgin soil1 and made it1 for a  
long period1 the supreme and indeed sole
 centre of civilisation4    ,it would be
 difficult to exaggerate the skill and  
courage displayed by the  ecclesiastics 
in this most trying period4 ,we have    
already seen the noble  daring with     
which they interfered between the       
conqueror and the  vanquished1 and the  
unwearied charity with which they sought
 to alleviate  the unparalleled         
sufferings of ,italy1 when the colonial 
supplies of corn  were cut off1 and when
 the fairest plains were desolated by   
the  barbarians4 ,still more wonderful  
is the rapid conversion of the barbarian
  tribes4 ,unfortunately this1 which is 
one of the most important1 is also  one 
of the most obscure pages in the history

 of the ,church4 ,of whole  tribes or   
nations it may be truly said that we are
 absolutely ignorant of  the cause of   
their change4 ,the ,goths had already   
been converted by  ,ulphilas1 before the
 downfall of the ,empire1 and the       
conversion of the  ,germans and of      
several northern nations was long       
posterior to it2 but the  great work of 
,christianising the barbarian world was 
accomplished almost  in the hour when   
that world became supreme4 ,rude tribes1
 accustomed in  their own lands to pay  
absolute obedience to their priests1    
found  themselves in a foreign country1 
confronted by a priesthood far more     
civilised and imposing than that which  
they had left1 by gorgeous  ceremonies1 
well fitted to entice1 and by threats of
 coming judgment1 well  fitted to scare 
their imaginations4 ,disconnected from  
all their old  associations1 they bowed 
before the majesty of civilisation1 and 
the ,latin  religion1 like the ,latin   
language1 though with many              

adulterations1 reigned  over the new    
society4 ,the doctrine of exclusive     
salvation1 and the  doctrine of dmons1  
had an admirable missionary power4 ,the 
first produced  an ardour of            
proselytising which the polytheist could
 never rival2 while  the ,pagan1 who was
 easily led to recognise the ,christian 
,god1 was menaced  with eternal fire if 
he did not take the further step of     
breaking off from  his old divinities4  
,the second dispensed the convert from  
the perhaps  impossible task of         
disbelieving his former religion1 for it
 was only  necessary for him to degrade 
it1 attributing its prodigies to        
infernal  beings4 ,the priests1 in      
addition to their noble devotion1       
carried into  their missionary efforts  
the most masterly judgment4 ,the        
barbarian tribes  usually followed      
without enquiry the religion of their   
sovereign2 and it  was to the conversion
 of the king1 and still more to the     
conversion of the  queen1 that the      

,christians devoted all their energies4 
,clotilda1 the wife  of ,clovis1        
,bertha1 the wife of ,ethelbert1 and    
,theodolinda1 the wife of  ,lothaire1   
were the chief instruments in converting
 their husbands and  their nations4     
,nothing that could affect the          
imagination was neglected4 ,it  is      
related of ,clotilda1 that she was      
careful to attract her husband by the   
rich draperies of the ecclesiastical    
ceremonies47#chg7 ,in another case1 the 
first work of proselytising was confided
 to an artist1 who painted before  the  
terrified ,pagans the last judgment and 
the torments of hell47#chh7 ,but        
especially the belief1 which was        
sincerely held1 and sedulously          
inculcated1 that temporal success       
followed in the train of ,christianity1 
and that every pestilence1 famine1 or   
military disaster was the penalty of    
idolatry1 heresy1 sacrilege1 or vice1   
assisted the movement4 ,the theory  was 
so wide1 that it met every variety of   

fortune1 and being taught with          
consummate skill1 to barbarians who were
 totally destitute of all critical      
power1 and strongly predisposed to      
accept it1 it proved extremely          
efficacious2 and hope1 fear1 gratitude1 
and remorse drew multitudes into  the   
,church4 ,the transition was softened by
 the substitution of ,christian         
ceremonies and saints for the festivals 
and the divinities of the               
,pagans47#chi7 ,besides the professed   
missionaries1 the ,christian captives   
zealously diffused their faith among    
their ,pagan masters4 ,when the         
chieftain had been converted1 and the   
army had followed his profession1 an    
elaborate monastic and ecclesiastical   
organisation grew up to consolidate  the
 conquest1 and repressive laws soon     
crushed all opposition to the  faith4   
,in these ways the victory of           
,christianity over the barbarian world  
was  achieved4 ,but that victory1 though
 very great1 was less decisive than     

might appear4 ,a religion which         
professed to be ,christianity1 and which
  contained many of the ingredients of  
pure ,christianity1 had risen into the  
ascendant1 but it had undergone a       
profound modification through the       
struggle4 ,religions1 as well as        
worshippers1 had been baptised4 ,the    
festivals1 images1 and names of saints  
had been substituted for those of  the  
idols1 and the habits of thought and    
feeling of the ancient faith  reappeared
 in new forms and a new language4 ,the  
tendency to a material1  idolatrous1 and
 polytheistic faith1 which had long been
 encouraged by the  monks1 and which the
 heretics ,jovinian1 ,vigilantius1 and  
,aerius had vainly  resisted1 was       
fatally strengthened by the infusion of 
a barbarian element  into the ,church1  
by the general depression of intellect  
in ,europe1 and by  the many            
accommodations that were made to        
facilitate conversion4 ,though          
apparently defeated and crushed1 the old

 gods still retained1 under a new       
faith1 no small part of their influence 
over the world4    ,to this tendency the
 leaders of the ,church made in general 
no resistance1  though in another form  
they were deeply persuaded of the       
vitality of the  old gods4 ,many curious
 and picturesque legends attest the     
popular belief  that the old ,roman and 
the old barbarian divinities1 in their  
capacity of  dmons1 were still waging an
 unrelenting war against the triumphant 
faith4  ,a great ,pope of the sixth     
century relates how a ,jew1 being once  
benighted  on his journey1 and finding  
no other shelter for the night1 lay down
 to  rest in an abandoned temple of     
,apollo4 ,shuddering at the loneliness  
of the  building1 and fearing the dmons 
who were said to haunt it1 he           
determined1  though not a ,christian1 to
 protect himself by the sign of the     
cross1 which  he had often heard        
possessed a mighty power against        
spirits4 ,to that sign  he owed his     

safety4 ,for at midnight the temple was 
filled with dark and  threatening forms4
 ,the god ,apollo was holding his court 
at his deserted  shrine1 and his        
attendant dmons were recounting the     
temptations they had  devised against   
the ,christians47#cij7 ,a newly married 
,roman1 when one day  playing ball1 took
 off his wedding-ring1 which he found an
 impediment in  the game1 and he gaily  
put it on the finger of a statue of     
,venus1 that was  standing near4 ,when  
he returned1 the marble finger had bent 
so that it was  impossible to withdraw  
the ring1 and that night the goddess    
appeared to  him in a dream1 and told   
him that she was now his wedded wife1   
and that  she would abide with him for  
ever47#cia7 ,when the ,irish missionary 
,st4 ,gall  was fishing one night upon a
 ,swiss lake1 near which he had planted 
a  monastery1 he heard strange voices   
sweeping over the lonely deep4 ,the     
,spirit of the ,water and the ,spirit of
 the ,mountains were consulting         

together how they could expel the       
intruder who had disturbed their ancient
  reign47#cib7    ,the details of the   
rapid propagation of ,western monachism 
have been amply  treated by many        
historians1 and the causes of its       
success are sufficiently  manifest4     
,some of the reasons ,i have assigned   
for the first spread of  asceticism     
continued to operate1 while others of a 
still more powerful  kind had arisen4   
,the rapid decomposition of the entire  
,roman ,empire by  continuous invasions 
of barbarians rendered the existence of 
an inviolable  asylum and centre of     
peaceful labour a matter of transcendent
 importance1  and the monastery as      
organised by ,st4 ,benedict soon        
combined the most  heterogeneous        
elements of attraction4 ,it was at once 
eminently  aristocratic and intensely   
democratic4 ,the power and princely     
position of  the abbot were coveted1 and
 usually obtained1 by members of the    
most  illustrious families2 while       

emancipated serfs1 or peasants who had  
lost  their all in the invasions1 or    
were harassed by savage nobles1 or had  
fled  from military service1 or desired 
to lead a more secure and easy life1    
found in the monastery an unfailing     
refuge4 ,the institution exercised all  
the influence of great wealth1 expended 
for the most part with great  charity1  
while the monk himself was invested with
 the aureole of a sacred  poverty4 ,to  
ardent and philanthropic natures1 the   
profession opened  boundless vistas of  
missionary1 charitable1 and civilising  
activity4 ,to  the superstitious it was 
the plain road to heaven4 ,to the       
ambitious it was  the portal to         
bishoprics1 and1 after the monk ,st4    
,gregory1 not  unfrequently to the      
,popedom4 ,to the studious it offered   
the only  opportunity then existing in  
the world of seeing many books and      
passing a  life of study4 ,to the timid 
and retiring it afforded the most       
secure1 and  probably the least         

laborious life a poor peasant could hope
 to find4 ,vast  as were the multitudes 
that thronged the monasteries1 the means
 for their  support were never wanting4 
,the belief that gifts or legacies to a 
monastery opened the doors of heaven was
 in a superstitious age sufficient  to  
secure for the community an almost      
boundless wealth1 which was still       
further increased by the skill and      
perseverance with which the monks       
tilled the waste lands1 by the exemption
 of their domains from all  taxation1   
and by the tranquillity which in the    
most turbulent ages they  usually       
enjoyed4 ,in ,france1 the ,low          
,countries1 and ,germany they were      
pre-eminently agriculturists4 ,gigantic 
forests were felled1 inhospitable       
marshes reclaimed1 barren plains        
cultivated by their hands4 ,the         
monastery  often became the nucleus of a
 city4 ,it was the centre of            
civilisation and  industry1 the symbol  
of moral power in an age of turbulence  

and war4    ,it must be observed1       
however1 that the beneficial influence  
of the  monastic system was necessarily 
transitional1 and the subsequent        
corruption the normal and inevitable    
result of its constitution4 ,vast       
societies living in enforced celibacy1  
exercising an unbounded influence1  and 
possessing enormous wealth1 must        
necessarily have become hotbeds of      
corruption when the enthusiasm that had 
created them expired4 ,the services     
they rendered as the centres of         
agriculture1 the refuge of travellers1  
the  sanctuaries in war1 the            
counterpoise of the baronial castle1    
were no  longer required when the       
convulsions of invasion had ceased and  
when civil  society was definitely      
organised4 ,and a similar observation   
may be  extended even to their moral    
type4 ,thus1 while it is undoubtedly    
true that  the ,benedictine monks1 by   
making labour an essential element of   
their  discipline1 did very much to     

efface the stigma which slavery had     
affixed  upon it1 it is also true that1 
when industry had passed out of its     
initial  stage1 the monastic theories of
 the sanctity of poverty1 and the evil  
of  wealth1 were its most deadly        
opponents4 ,the dogmatic condemnation by
  theologians of loans at interest1     
which are the basis of industrial       
enterprise1 was the expression of a far 
deeper antagonism of tendencies  and    
ideals4    ,in one important respect1   
the transition from the eremite to the  
monastic  life involved not only a      
change of circumstances1 but also a     
change of  character4 ,the habit of     
obedience1 and the virtue of humility1  
assumed a  position which they had never
 previously occupied4 ,the conditions of
 the  hermit life contributed to develop
 to a very high degree a spirit of      
independence and spiritual pride1 which 
was still further increased by a        
curious habit that existed in the       
,church of regarding each eminent hermit

  as the special model or professor of  
some particular virtue1 and making      
pilgrimages to him1 in order to study   
this aspect of his character47#cic7     
,these pilgrimages1 combined with the   
usually solitary and self-sufficing     
life of the hermit1 and also with the   
habit of measuring progress almost      
entirely by the suppression of a        
physical appetite1 which it is quite    
possible wholly to destroy1 very        
naturally produced an extreme           
arrogance47#cid7 ,but in the highly     
organised and disciplined monasteries of
  the ,west1 passive obedience and      
humility were the very first things that
  were inculcated4 ,the monastery1      
beyond all other institutions1 was the  
school for their exercise2 and as the   
monk represented the highest moral      
ideal of the age1 obedience and humility
 acquired a new value in the minds  of  
men4 ,nearly all the feudal and other   
organisations that arose out of  the    
chaos that followed the destruction of  

the ,roman ,empire were  intimately     
related to the ,church1 not simply      
because the ,church was the  strongest  
power in ,christendom1 and supplied in  
itself an admirable model  of an        
organised body1 but also because it had 
done much to educate men in  habits of  
obedience4 ,the special value of this   
education depended upon the  peculiar   
circumstances of the time4 ,the ancient 
civilisations1 and  especially that of  
,rome1 had been by no means deficient in
 those habits2  but it was in the midst 
of the dissolution of an old society1   
and of the  ascendancy of barbarians1   
who exaggerated to the highest degree   
their  personal independence1 that the  
,church proposed to the reverence of    
mankind a life of passive obedience as  
the highest ideal of virtue4    ,the    
habit of obedience was no new thing in  
the world1 but the disposition  of      
humility was pre-eminently and almost   
exclusively a ,christian virtue2  and   
there has probably never been any sphere

 in which it has been so  largely and so
 successfully inculcated as in the      
monastery4 ,the whole  penitential      
discipline1 the entire mode or tenor of 
the monastic life1 was  designed to tame
 every sentiment of pride1 and to give  
humility a foremost  place in the       
hierarchy of virtues4 ,we have here one 
great source of the  mollifying         
influence of ,catholicism4 ,the gentler 
virtues--benevolence and                
amiability--may1 and in an advanced     
civilisation often do1 subsist in       
natures that are completely devoid of   
genuine humility2 but1 on the other     
hand1 it is scarcely possible for a     
nature to be pervaded by a deep         
sentiment of humility without this      
sentiment exercising a softening        
influence over the whole character4 ,to 
transform a fierce warlike nature  into 
a character of a gentler type1 the first
 essential is to awaken this  feeling4  
,in the monasteries1 the extinction of  
social and domestic  feelings1 the      

narrow corporate spirit1 and1 still     
more1 the atrocious  opinions that were 
prevalent concerning the guilt of       
heresy1 produced in  many minds an      
extreme and most active ferocity2 but   
the practice of  charity1 and the ideal 
of humility1 never failed to exercise   
some  softening influence upon          
,christendom4    ,but1 however          
advantageous the temporary pre-eminence 
of this moral type  may have been1 it   
was obviously unsuited for a later stage
 of  civilisation4 ,political liberty is
 almost impossible where the monastic   
system is supreme1 not merely because   
the monasteries divert the energies  of 
the nation from civic to ecclesiastical 
channels1 but also because the  monastic
 ideal is the very apotheosis of        
servitude4 ,catholicism has been        
admirably fitted at once to mitigate and
 to perpetuate despotism4 ,when men     
have learnt to reverence a life of      
passive1 unreasoning obedience as the   
highest type of perfection1 the         

enthusiasm and passion of freedom       
necessarily decline4 ,in this respect   
there is an analogy between the         
monastic and the military spirit1 both  
of which promote and glorify  passive   
obedience1 and therefore prepare the    
minds of men for despotic  rule2 but1 on
 the whole1 the monastic spirit is      
probably more hostile to  freedom than  
the military spirit1 for the obedience  
of the monk is based  upon humility1    
while the obedience of the soldier      
coexists with pride4  ,now1 a           
considerable measure of pride1 or       
self-assertion1 is an invariable        
characteristic of free communities4     
,the ascendancy which the monastic      
system gave to the virtue of humility   
has not continued4 ,this virtue is      
indeed the crowning grace and beauty of 
the most perfect characters of the      
saintly type2 but experience has shown  
that among common men humility is more  
apt to degenerate into servility  than  
pride into arrogance2 and modern        

moralists have appealed more            
successfully to the sense of dignity    
than to the opposite feeling4 ,two of   
the most important steps of later moral 
history have consisted of the  creation 
of a sentiment of pride as the parent   
and the guardian of many  virtues4 ,the 
first of these encroachments on the     
monastic spirit was  chivalry1 which    
called into being a proud and jealous   
military honour that  has never since   
been extinguished4 ,the second was the  
creation of that  feeling of            
self-respect which is one of the most   
remarkable  characteristics that        
distinguish ,protestant from the most   
,catholic  populations1 and which has   
proved among the former an invaluable   
moral  agent1 forming frank and         
independent natures1 and checking every 
servile  habit and all mean and         
degrading vice47#cie7 ,the peculiar     
vigour with which  it has been developed
 in ,protestant countries may be        
attributed to the  suppression of       

monastic institutions and habits2 to the
 stigma  ,protestantism has attached to 
mendicancy1 which ,catholicism has      
usually  glorified and encouraged2 to   
the high place ,protestantism has       
accorded to  private judgment and       
personal responsibility2 and lastly1 to 
the action of  free political           
institutions1 which have taken deepest  
root where the  principles of the       
,reformation have been accepted4        
,the relation of the monasteries to the 
intellectual virtues1 which we have     
next to examine1 opens out a wide field 
of discussion2 and1 in order to         
appreciate it1 it will be necessary to  
revert briefly to a somewhat  earlier   
stage of ecclesiastical history4 ,and in
 the first place1 it may be  observed1  
that the phrase intellectual virtue1    
which is often used in a  metaphorical  
sense1 is susceptible of a strictly     
literal interpretation4  ,if a sincere  
and active desire for truth be a moral  
duty1 the discipline  and the           

dispositions that are plainly involved  
in every honest search fall  rigidly    
within the range of ethics4 ,to love    
truth sincerely means to  pursue it with
 an earnest1 conscientious1 unflagging  
zeal4 ,it means to be  prepared to      
follow the light of evidence even to the
 most unwelcome  conclusions2 to labour 
earnestly to emancipate the mind from   
early  prejudices2 to resist the current
 of the desires1 and the refracting     
influence of the passions2 to proportion
 on all occasions conviction to         
evidence1 and to be ready1 if need be1  
to exchange the calm of assurance  for  
all the suffering of a perplexed and    
disturbed mind4 ,to do this is  very    
difficult and very painful2 but it is   
clearly involved in the notion  of      
earnest love of truth4 ,if1 then1 any   
system stigmatises as criminal the      
state of doubt1 denounces the           
examination of some one class of        
arguments  or facts1 seeks to introduce 
the bias of the affections into the     

enquiries  of the reason1 or regards the
 honest conclusion of an upright        
investigator  as involving moral guilt1 
that system is subversive of            
intellectual  honesty4    ,among the    
ancients1 although the methods of       
enquiry were often very  faulty1 and    
generalisations very hasty1 a respect   
for the honest search  after truth was  
widely diffused47#cif7 ,there were1 as  
we have already seen1  instances in     
which certain religious practices which 
were regarded as  attestations of       
loyalty1 or as necessary to propitiate  
the gods in favour  of the ,state1 were 
enforced by law2 there were even a few  
instances of  philosophies1 which were  
believed to lead directly to immoral    
results or  social convulsions1 being   
suppressed2 but1 as a general rule1     
speculation  was untrammelled1 the      
notion of there being any necessary     
guilt in  erroneous opinion was unknown1
 and the boldest enquirers were regarded
  with honour and admiration4 ,the      

religious theory of ,paganism had in    
this  respect some influence4           
,polytheism1 with many faults1 had three
 great  merits4 ,it was eminently       
poetical1 eminently patriotic1 and      
eminently  tolerant4 ,the conception of 
a vast hierarchy of beings more glorious
 than1  but not wholly unlike1 men1     
presiding over all the developments of  
nature1  and filling the universe with  
their deeds1 supplied the chief         
nutriment of  the ,greek imagination4   
,the national religions1 interweaving   
religious  ceremonies and associations  
with all civic life1 concentrated and   
intensified the sentiment of patriotism1
 and the notion of many distinct  groups
 of gods led men to tolerate many forms 
of worship and great variety  of creeds4
 ,in that colossal amalgam of nations of
 which ,rome became the  metropolis1    
intellectual liberty still further      
advanced2 the vast variety  of          
philosophies and beliefs expatiated     
unmolested2 the search for truth  was   

regarded as an important element of     
virtue1 and the relentless and  most    
sceptical criticism which ,socrates had 
applied in turn to all the  fundamental 
propositions of popular belief remained 
as an example to his  successors4    ,we
 have already seen that one leading     
cause of the rapid progress of the      
,church was that its teachers enforced  
their distinctive tenets as  absolutely 
essential to salvation1 and thus        
assailed at a great advantage  the      
supporters of all other creeds which did
 not claim this exclusive  authority4   
,we have seen1 too1 that in an age of   
great and growing  credulity they had   
been conspicuous for their assertion of 
the duty of  absolute1 unqualified1 and 
unquestioning belief4 ,the notion of the
 guilt  both of error and of doubt grew 
rapidly1 and1 being soon regarded as a  
fundamental tenet1 it determined the    
whole course and policy of the  ,church4
    ,and here1 ,i think1 it will not be 
unadvisable to pause for a moment1 and  

endeavour to ascertain what misconceived
 truth lay at the root of this  fatal   
tenet4 ,considered abstractedly and by  
the light of nature1 it is as  unmeaning
 to speak of the immorality of an       
intellectual mistake as it  would be to 
talk of the colour of a sound4 ,if a man
 has sincerely  persuaded himself that  
it is possible for parallel lines to    
meet1 or for  two straight lines to     
enclose a space1 we pronounce his       
judgment to be  absurd2 but it is free  
from all tincture of immorality4 ,and   
if1 instead of  failing to appreciate a 
demonstrable truth1 his error consisted 
in a false  estimate of the conflicting 
arguments of an historical problem1 this
  mistake--assuming always that the     
enquiry was an upright one--is still    
simply external to the sphere of morals4
 ,it is possible that his  conclusion1  
by weakening some barrier against vice1 
may produce vicious  consequences1 like 
those which might ensue from some       
ill-advised  modification of the police 

force2 but it in no degree follows from 
this  that the judgment is in itself    
criminal4 ,if a student applies himself 
with  the same dispositions to ,roman   
and ,jewish histories1 the mistakes he  
may  make in the latter are no more     
immoral than those which he may make in 
the  former4    ,there are1 however1 two
 cases in which an intellectual error   
may be justly  said to involve1 or at   
least to represent1 guilt4 ,in the first
 place1  error very frequently springs  
from the partial or complete absence of 
that  mental disposition which is       
implied in a real love of truth4        
,hypocrites1  or men who through        
interested motives profess opinions     
which they do not  really believe1 are  
probably rarer than is usually supposed2
 but it would  be difficult to          
over-estimate the number of those whose 
genuine  convictions are due to the     
unresisted bias of their interests4 ,by 
the term  interests1 ,i mean not only   
material well-being1 but also all those 

mental  luxuries1 all those grooves or  
channels for thought1 which it is easy  
and  pleasing to follow1 and painful and
 difficult to abandon4 ,such are the    
love of ease1 the love of certainty1 the
 love of system1 the bias of the        
passions1 the associations of the       
imagination1 as well as the coarser     
influences of social position1 domestic 
happiness1 professional interest1  party
 feeling1 or ambition4 ,in most men1 the
 love of truth is so languid1  and the  
reluctance to encounter mental suffering
 is so great1 that they  yield their    
judgments without an effort to the      
current1 withdraw their  minds from all 
opinions or arguments opposed to their  
own1 and thus  speedily convince        
themselves of the truth of what they    
wish to believe4 ,he  who really loves  
truth is bound at least to endeavour to 
resist these  distorting influences1 and
 in as far as his opinions are the      
result of his  not having done so1 in so
 far they represent a moral failing4    

,in the next place1 it must be observed 
that every moral disposition brings     
with it an intellectual bias which      
exercises a great and often a           
controlling and decisive influence even 
upon the most earnest enquirer4 ,if  we 
know the character or disposition of a  
man1 we can usually predict with        
tolerable accuracy many of his opinions4
 ,we can tell to what side of  politics1
 to what canons of taste1 to what theory
 of morals he will  naturally incline4  
,stern1 heroic1 and haughty natures tend
 to systems in  which these qualities   
occupy the foremost position in the     
moral type1  while gentle natures will  
as naturally lean towards systems in    
which the  amiable virtues are supreme4 
,impelled by a species of moral         
gravitation1  the enquirer will glide   
insensibly to the system which is       
congruous to his  disposition1 and      
intellectual difficulties will seldom   
arrest him4 ,he can  have observed human
 nature with but little fruit who has   

not remarked how  constant is this      
connection1 and how very rarely men     
change fundamentally  the principles    
they had deliberately adopted on        
religious1 moral1 or even  political    
questions1 without the change being     
preceded1 accompanied1 or  very speedily
 followed1 by a serious modification of 
character4 ,so1 too1 a  vicious and     
depraved nature1 or a nature which is   
hard1 narrow1 and  unsympathetic1 will  
tend1 much less by calculation or       
indolence than by  natural affinity1 to 
low and degrading views of human nature4
 ,those who  have never felt the higher 
emotions will scarcely appreciate them4 
,the  materials with which the intellect
 builds are often derived from the      
heart1 and a moral disease is therefore 
not unfrequently at the root of an      
erroneous judgment4    ,of these two    
truths the first cannot1 ,i think1 be   
said to have had any  influence in the  
formation of the theological notion of  
the guilt of  error4 ,an elaborate      

process of mental discipline1 with a    
view to  strengthening the critical     
powers of the mind1 is utterly remote   
from the  spirit of theology2 and this  
is one of the great reasons why the     
growth of  an inductive and scientific  
spirit is invariably hostile to         
theological  interests4 ,to raise the   
requisite standard of proof1 to         
inculcate hardness  and slowness of     
belief1 is the first task of the        
inductive reasoner4 ,he  looks with     
great favour upon the condition of a    
suspended judgment2 he  encourages men  
rather to prolong than to abridge it2 he
 regards the  tendency of the human mind
 to rapid and premature generalisations 
as one  of its most fatal vices2 he     
desires especially that that which is   
believed  should not be so cherished    
that the mind should be indisposed to   
admit  doubt1 or1 on the appearance of  
new arguments1 to revise with           
impartiality  its conclusions4 ,nearly  
all the greatest intellectual           

achievements of the  last three         
centuries have been preceded and        
prepared by the growth of  scepticism4  
,the historic scepticism which ,vico1   
,beaufort1 ,pouilly1 and  ,voltaire in  
the last century1 and ,niebuhr and      
,lewis in the present  century1 applied 
to ancient history1 lies at the root of 
all the great  modern efforts to        
reconstruct the history of mankind4 ,the
 splendid  discoveries of physical      
science would have been impossible but  
for the  scientific scepticism of the   
school of ,bacon1 which dissipated the  
old  theories of the universe1 and led  
men to demand a severity of proof       
altogether unknown to the ancients4 ,the
 philosophic scepticism with which  the 
system of ,hume ended and the system of 
,kant began1 has given the  greatest    
modern impulse to metaphysics and       
ethics4 ,exactly in proportion1         
therefore1 as men are educated in the   
inductive school1 they are alienated    
from those theological systems which    

represent a condition of doubt as       
sinful1 seek to govern the reason by the
 interests and the affections1 and  make
 it a main object to destroy the        
impartiality of the judgment4    ,but   
although it is difficult to look upon   
,catholicism in any other light  than as
 the most deadly enemy of the scientific
 spirit1 it has always  cordially       
recognised the most important truth1    
that character in a very  great measure 
determines opinions4 ,to cultivate the  
moral type that is  most congenial to   
the opinions it desires to recommend has
 always been its  effort1 and the       
conviction that a deviation from that   
type has often been  the predisposing   
cause of intellectual heresy1 had       
doubtless a large share  in the first   
persuasion of the guilt of error4 ,but  
priestly and other  influences soon     
conspired to enlarge this doctrine4 ,a  
crowd of  speculative1 historical1 and  
administrative propositions were        
asserted as  essential to salvation1 and

 all who rejected them were wholly      
external to  the bond of ,christian     
sympathy4    ,if1 indeed1 we put aside  
the pure teaching of the ,christian     
founders1 and  consider the actual      
history of the ,church since            
,constantine1 we shall find  no         
justification for the popular theory    
that beneath its influence the  narrow  
spirit of patriotism faded into a wide  
and cosmopolitan  philanthropy4 ,a real 
though somewhat languid feeling of      
universal  brotherhood had already been 
created in the world by the universality
 of  the ,roman ,empire4 ,in the new    
faith the range of genuine sympathy was 
strictly limited by the creed4          
,according to the popular belief1 all   
who  differed from the teaching of the  
orthodox lived under the hatred of the  
,almighty1 and were destined after death
 for an eternity of anguish4 ,very      
naturally1 therefore1 they were wholly  
alienated from the true believers1  and 
no moral or intellectual excellence     

could atone for their crime in          
propagating error4 ,the eighty or ninety
 sects17#cig7 into which  ,christianity 
speedily divided1 hated one another with
 an intensity that  extorted the wonder 
of ,julian and the ridicule of the      
,pagans of  ,alexandria1 and the fierce 
riots and persecutions that hatred      
produced  appear in every page of       
ecclesiastical history4 ,there is1      
indeed1  something at once grotesque and
 ghastly in the spectacle4 ,the         
,donatists1  having separated from the  
orthodox simply on the question of the  
validity  of the consecration of a      
certain bishop1 declared that all who   
adopted the  orthodox view must be      
damned1 refused to perform their rites  
in the  orthodox churches which they had
 seized1 till they had burnt the altar  
and  scraped the wood1 beat multitudes  
to death with clubs1 blinded others by  
anointing their eyes with lime1 filled  
,africa1 during nearly two  centuries1  
with war and desolation1 and contributed

 largely to its final  ruin47#cih7 ,the 
childish and almost unintelligible      
quarrels between the  ,homoiousians and 
the ,homoousians1 between those who     
maintained that the  nature of ,christ  
was like that of the ,father and those  
who maintained that  it was the same1   
filled the world with riot and hatred4  
,the ,catholics tell  how an ,arian     
,emperor caused eighty orthodox priests 
to be drowned on a  single              
occasion27#cii7 how three thousand      
persons perished in the riots  that     
convulsed ,constantinople when the      
,arian ,bishop ,macedonius superseded   
the ,athanasian ,paul27#djj7 how ,george
 of ,cappadocia1 the ,arian ,bishop of  
,alexandria1 caused the widows of the   
,athanasian party to be scourged on  the
 soles of their feet1 the holy virgins  
to be stripped naked1 to be  flogged    
with the prickly branches of palm-trees1
 or to be slowly scorched  over fires   
till they abjured their creed47#dja7    
,the triumph of the  ,catholics in      

,egypt was accompanied 7if we may       
believe the solemn  assertions of eighty
 ,arian ,bishops7 by every variety of   
plunder1 murder1  sacrilege1 and        
outrage17#djb7 and ,arius himself was   
probably poisoned by  ,catholic         
hands47#djc7 ,the followers of ,st4     
,cyril of ,alexandria1 who were  chiefly
 monks1 filled their city with riot and 
bloodshed1 wounded the  prefect         
,orestes1 dragged the pure and gifted   
,hypatia into one of their  churches1   
murdered her1 tore the flesh from her   
bones with sharp shells1  and1 having   
stripped her body naked1 flung her      
mangled remains into the  flames47#djd7 
,in ,ephesus1 during the contest between
 ,st4 ,cyril and the  ,nestorians1 the  
cathedral itself was the theatre of a   
fierce and bloody  conflict47#dje7      
,constantinople1 on the occasion of the 
deposition of ,st4  ,chrysostom1 was for
 several days in a condition of absolute
 anarchy47#djf7  ,after the ,council of 
,chalcedon1 ,jerusalem and ,alexandria  

were again  convulsed1 and the bishop of
 the latter city was murdered in his    
baptistery47#djg7 ,about fifty years    
later1 when the ,monophysite controversy
  was at its height1 the palace of the  
emperor at ,constantinople was          
blockaded1 the churches were besieged1  
and the streets commanded by  furious   
bands of contending monks47#djh7        
,repressed for a time1 the riots  broke 
out two years after with an increased   
ferocity1 and almost every  leading city
 of the ,east was filled by the monks   
with bloodshed and with  outrage47#dji7 
,st4 ,augustine himself is accused of   
having excited every  kind of popular   
persecution against the                 
,semi-,pelagians47#daj7 ,the ,councils1 
animated by an almost frantic hatred1   
urged on by their anathemas the  rival  
sects47#daa7 ,in the 8,robber ,council0 
of ,ephesus1 ,flavianus1 the  ,bishop of
 ,constantinople1 was kicked and beaten 
by the ,bishop of  ,alexandria1 or at   
least by his followers1 and a few days  

later died from  the effect of the      
blows47#dab7 ,in the contested election 
that resulted in  the election of ,st4  
,damasus as ,pope of ,rome1 though no   
theological  question appears to have   
been at issue1 the riots were so fierce 
that one  hundred and thirty-seven      
corpses were found in one of the        
churches47#dac7  ,the precedent of the  
,jewish persecutions of idolatry having 
been adduced  by ,st4 ,cyprian1 in the  
third century1 in favour of             
excommunication17#dad7  was urged by    
,optatus1 in the reign of ,constantine1 
in favour of  persecuting the           
,donatists27#dae7 in the next reign we  
find a large body of  ,christians       
presenting to the emperor a petition1   
based upon this  precedent1 imploring   
him to destroy by force the ,pagan      
worship47#daf7 ,about  fifteen years    
later1 the whole ,christian ,church was 
prepared1 on the same  grounds1 to      
support the persecuting policy of ,st4  
,ambrose17#dag7 the  contending sects   

having found1 in the duty of crushing   
religious liberty1  the solitary tenet  
on which they were agreed4 ,the most    
unaggressive and  unobtrusive forms of  
,paganism were persecuted with the same 
ferocity47#dah7  ,to offer a sacrifice  
was to commit a capital offence2 to hang
 up a simple  chaplet was to incur the  
forfeiture of an estate4 ,the noblest   
works of  ,asiatic architecture and of  
,greek sculpture perished by the same   
iconoclasm that shattered the humble    
temple at which the peasant loved to    
pray1 or the household gods which       
consecrated his home4 ,there were no    
varieties of belief too minute for the  
new intolerance to embitter4 ,the       
question of the proper time of          
celebrating ,easter was believed to     
involve  the issue of salvation or      
damnation27#dai7 and when1 long after1  
in the  fourteenth century1 the question
 of the nature of the light at the      
transfiguration was discussed at        
,constantinople1 those who refused to   

admit that that light was uncreated1    
were deprived of the honours of         
,christian burial47#dbj7    ,together   
with these legislative and              
ecclesiastical measures1 a literature   
arose surpassing in its mendacious      
ferocity any other the world had known4 
,the polemical writers habitually       
painted as dmons those who diverged from
  the orthodox belief1 gloated with a   
vindictive piety over the sufferings  of
 the heretic upon earth1 as upon a      
,divine punishment1 and sometimes1  with
 an almost superhuman malice1 passing in
 imagination beyond the  threshold of   
the grave1 exulted in no ambiguous terms
 on the tortures  which they believed to
 be reserved for him for ever4 ,a few   
men1 such as  ,synesius1 ,basil1 or     
,salvian1 might still find some         
excellence in ,pagans or  heretics1 but 
their candour was altogether            
exceptional2 and he who will  compare   
the beautiful pictures the ,greek poets 
gave of their ,trojan  adversaries1 or  

the ,roman historians of the enemies of 
their country1 with  those which        
ecclesiastical writers1 for many        
centuries1 almost invariably  gave of   
all who were opposed to their ,church1  
may easily estimate the  extent to which
 cosmopolitan sympathy had retrograded4 
,at the period1 however1 when the       
,western monasteries began to discharge 
their intellectual functions1 the       
supremacy of ,catholicism was nearly    
established1 and polemical ardour had   
begun to wane4 ,the literary zeal of    
the ,church took other forms1 but all   
were deeply tinged by the monastic      
spirit4 ,it is difficult or impossible  
to conceive what would have been the    
intellectual future of the world had    
,catholicism never arisen--what         
principles or impulses would have guided
 the course of the human mind1 or  what 
new institutions would have been created
 for its culture4 ,under the  influence 
of ,catholicism1 the monastery became   
the one sphere of  intellectual labour1 

and it continued during many centuries  
to occupy that  position4 ,without      
entering into anything resembling a     
literary history1  which would be       
foreign to the objects of the present   
work1 ,i shall  endeavour briefly to    
estimate the manner in which it         
discharged its  functions4    ,the first
 idea that is naturally suggested by the
 mention of the  intellectual services  
of monasteries is the preservation of   
the writings  of the ,pagans4 ,i have   
already observed that among the early   
,christians  there was a marked         
difference on the subject of their      
writings4 ,the school  which was        
represented by ,tertullian regarded them
 with abhorrence2 while  the            
,platonists1 who were represented by    
,justin ,martyr1 ,clement of            
,alexandria1 and ,origen1 not merely    
recognised with great cordiality their  
beauties1 but even imagined that they   
could detect in them both the traces  of
 an original ,divine inspiration1 and   

plagiarisms from the ,jewish  writings4 
,while avoiding1 for the most part1     
these extremes1 ,st4  ,augustine1 the   
great organiser of ,western             
,christianity1 treats the ,pagan        
writings with appreciative respect4 ,he 
had himself ascribed his first          
conversion from a course of vice to the 
',hortensius' of ,cicero1 and his  works
 are full of discriminating1 and often  
very beautiful1 applications  of the old
 ,roman literature4 ,the attempt of     
,julian to prevent the  ,christians from
 teaching the classics1 and the extreme 
resentment which  that attempt elicited1
 show how highly the ,christian leaders 
of that  period valued this form of     
education2 and it was naturally the more
  cherished on account of the contest4  
,the influence of ,neoplatonism1 the    
baptism of multitudes of nominal        
,christians after ,constantine1 and the 
decline of zeal which necessarily       
accompanied prosperity1 had all in      
different ways the same tendency4 ,in   

,synesius we have the curious           
phenomenon of a bishop who1 not content 
with proclaiming himself the  admiring  
friend of the ,pagan ,hypatia1 openly   
declared his complete  disbelief in the 
resurrection of the body1 and his firm  
adhesion to the  ,platonic doctrine of  
the pre-existence of souls47#dba7 ,had  
the  ecclesiastical theory prevailed    
which gave such latitude even to the    
leaders of the ,church1 the course of   
,christianity would have been very      
different4 ,a reactionary spirit1       
however1 arose at ,rome4 ,the doctrine  
of  exclusive salvation supplied its    
intellectual basis2 the political and   
organising genius of the ,roman         
ecclesiastics impelled them to reduce   
belief into a rigid form2 the genius of 
,st4 ,gregory guided the                
movement17#dbb7 and a series of         
historical events1 of which the         
ecclesiastical and political separation 
of the ,western empire from the         
speculative ,greeks1 and the invasion   

and conversion of the barbarians1  were 
the most important1 definitely          
established the ascendancy of the       
,catholic type4 ,in the convulsions that
 followed the barbarian invasions1      
intellectual energy of a secular kind   
almost absolutely ceased4 ,a parting    
gleam issued1 indeed1 in the sixth      
century1 from the ,court of ,theodoric1 
at ,ravenna1 which was adorned by the   
genius of ,bothius1 and the talent of   
,cassiodorus and ,symmachus1 but after  
this time1 for a long period1           
literature consisted almost exclusively 
of sermons and lives of saints1  which  
were composed in the monasteries47#dbc7 
,gregory of ,tours was  succeeded as an 
annalist by the still feebler           
,fredegarius1 and there was  then a long
 and absolute blank4 ,a few outlying    
countries showed some faint  animation4 
,st4 ,leander and ,st4 ,isidore planted 
at ,seville a school1 which  flourished 
in the seventh century1 and the distant 
monasteries of ,ireland  continued      

somewhat later to be the receptacles of 
learning2 but the rest  of ,europe sank 
into an almost absolute torpor1 till the
 rationalism of  ,abelard1 and the      
events that followed the crusades1 began
 the revival of  learning4 ,the         
principal service which ,catholicism    
rendered during this  period to ,pagan  
literature was probably the perpetuation
 of ,latin as a  sacred language4 ,the  
complete absence of all curiosity about 
that  literature is shown by the fact   
that ,greek was suffered to become      
almost  absolutely extinct1 though there
 was no time when the ,western nations  
had  not some relations with the ,greek 
empire1 or when pilgrimages to the ,holy
  ,land altogether ceased4 ,the study of
 the ,latin classics was for the most   
part positively discouraged4 ,the       
writers1 it was believed1 were burning  
in  hell2 the monks were too inflated   
with their imaginary knowledge to regard
  with any respect a ,pagan writer1 and 
periodical panics about the  approaching

 termination of the world continually   
checked any desire for  secular         
learning47#dbd7 ,it was the custom among
 some monks1 when they were  under the  
discipline of silence1 and desired to   
ask for ,virgil1 ,horace1 or  any other 
,gentile work1 to indicate their wish by
 scratching their ears  like a dog1 to  
which animal it was thought the ,pagans 
might be reasonably  compared47#dbe7    
,the monasteries contained1 it is said1 
during some time1  the only libraries in
 ,europe1 and were therefore the sole   
receptacles of  the ,pagan manuscripts2 
but we cannot infer from this that1 if  
the  monasteries had not existed1       
similar libraries would not have been   
called  into being in their place4 ,to  
the occasional industry of the monks1 in
  copying the works of antiquity1 we    
must oppose the industry they           
displayed1 though chiefly at a somewhat 
later period1 in scraping the  ancient  
parchments1 in order that1 having       
obliterated the writing of the  ,pagans1

 they might cover them with their own   
legends47#dbf7    ,there are some       
aspects1 however1 in which the monastic 
period of  literature appears eminently 
beautiful4 ,the fretfulness and         
impatience and  extreme tension of      
modern literary life1 the many anxieties
 that paralyse1  and the feverish       
craving for applause that perverts1 so  
many noble  intellects1 were then       
unknown4 ,severed from all the cares of 
active life1  in the deep calm of the   
monastery1 where the turmoil of the     
outer world  could never come1 the      
monkish scholar pursued his studies in a
 spirit  which has now almost faded from
 the world4 ,no doubt had ever disturbed
 his  mind4 ,to him the problem of the  
universe seemed solved4 ,expatiating for
  ever with unfaltering faith upon the  
unseen world1 he had learnt to live  for
 it alone4 ,his hopes were not fixed    
upon human greatness or fame1 but  upon 
the pardon of his sins1 and the rewards 
of a happier world4 ,a crowd  of quaint 

and often beautiful legends illustrate  
the deep union that  subsisted between  
literature and religion4 ,it is related 
of ,cdmon1 the  first great poet of the 
,anglo-,saxons1 that he found in the    
secular life no  vent for his hidden    
genius4 ,when the warriors assembled at 
their banquets1  sang in turn the       
praises of war or beauty1 as the        
instrument passed to  him1 he rose and  
went out with a sad heart1 for he alone 
was unable to  weave his thoughts in    
verse4 ,wearied and desponding he lay   
down to rest1  when a figure appeared to
 him in his dream and commanded him to  
sing the  ,creation of the ,world4 ,a   
transport of religious fervour thrilled 
his  brain1 his imprisoned intellect was
 unlocked1 and he soon became the       
foremost poet of his land47#dbg7 ,a     
,spanish boy1 having long tried in vain 
to master his task1 and driven to       
despair by the severity of his teacher1 
ran away from his father's home4 ,tired 
with wandering1 and full of anxious     

thoughts1 he sat down to rest by the    
margin of a well1 when his eye was      
caught by the deep furrow in the stone4 
,he asked a girl who was drawing  water 
to explain it1 and she told him that it 
had been worn by the  constant attrition
 of the rope4 ,the poor boy1 who was    
already full of  remorse for what he had
 done1 recognised in the reply a ,divine
 intimation4  8,if10 he thought1 8by    
daily use the soft rope could thus      
penetrate the  hard stone1 surely a long
 perseverance could overcome the dulness
 of my  brain40 ,he returned to his     
father's house2 he laboured with        
redoubled  earnestness1 and he lived to 
be the great ,st4 ,isidore of           
,spain47#dbh7 ,a  monk who had led a    
vicious life was saved1 it is said1 from
 hell1 because  it was found that his   
sins1 though very numerous1 were just   
outnumbered by  the letters of a        
ponderous and devout book he had        
written47#dbi7 ,the ,holy  ,spirit1 in  
the shape of a dove1 had been seen to   

inspire ,st4 ,gregory2 and  the writings
 of ,st4 ,thomas ,aquinas1 and of       
several other theologians1 had  been    
expressly applauded by ,christ or by his
 saints4 ,when1 twenty years  after     
death1 the tomb of a certain monkish    
writer was opened1 it was found  that1  
although the remainder of the body had  
crumbled into dust1 the hand  that had  
held the pen remained flexible and      
undecayed47#dcj7 ,a young and  nameless 
scholar was once buried near a convent  
at ,bonn4 ,the night after  his funeral1
 a nun whose cell overlooked the        
cemetery was awakened by a  brilliant   
light that filled the room4 ,she started
 up1 imagining that the  day had dawned1
 but on looking out she found that it   
was still night1  though a dazzling     
splendour was around4 ,a female form of 
matchless  loveliness was bending over  
the scholar's grave4 ,the effluence of  
her  beauty filled the air with light1  
and she clasped to her heart a          
snow-white dove that rose to meet her   

from the tomb4 ,it was the ,mother of   
,god come to receive the soul of the    
martyred scholar2 8for scholars too10   
adds the old chronicler1 8are martyrs if
 they live in purity and labour  with   
courage407#dca7    ,but legends of this 
kind1 though not without a very real    
beauty1 must not  blind us to the fact  
that the period of ,catholic ascendancy 
was on the  whole one of the most       
deplorable in the history of the human  
mind4 ,the  energies of ,christendom    
were diverted from all useful and       
progressive  studies1 and were wholly   
expended on theological disquisitions4  
,a crowd of  superstitions1 attributed  
to infallible wisdom1 barred the path of
  knowledge1 and the charge of magic1 or
 the charge of heresy1 crushed every    
bold enquiry in the sphere of physical  
nature or of opinions4 ,above all1  the 
conditions of true enquiry had been     
cursed by the ,church4 ,a blind         
unquestioning credulity was inculcated  
as the first of duties1 and the  habit  

of doubt1 the impartiality of a         
suspended judgment1 the desire to  hear 
both sides of a disputed question1 and  
to emancipate the judgment  from        
unreasoning prejudice1 were all in      
consequence condemned4 ,the belief  in  
the guilt of error and doubt became     
universal1 and that belief may be       
confidently pronounced to be the most   
pernicious superstition that has  ever  
been accredited among mankind4 ,mistaken
 facts are rectified by  enquiry4       
,mistaken methods of research1 though   
far more inveterate1 are  gradually     
altered2 but the spirit that shrinks    
from enquiry as sinful1 and  deems a    
state of doubt a state of guilt1 is the 
most enduring disease that  can afflict 
the mind of man4 ,not till the education
 of ,europe passed from  the monasteries
 to the universities1 not till          
,mohammedan science1 and  classical     
free-thought1 and industrial            
independence broke the sceptre of  the  
,church1 did the intellectual revival of

 ,europe begin4    ,i am aware that so  
strong a statement of the intellectual  
darkness of the  middle ages is likely  
to encounter opposition from many       
quarters4 ,the  blindness which the     
philosophers of the eighteenth century  
manifested to  their better side has    
produced a reaction which has led many  
to an  opposite1 and1 ,i believe1 far   
more erroneous extreme4 ,some have      
become  eulogists of the period1 through
 love of its distinctive theological    
doctrines1 and others through           
archological enthusiasm1 while a very   
pretentious and dogmatic1 but1 ,i think1
 sometimes superficial1 school of       
writers1 who loudly boast themselves the
 regenerators of history1 and  treat    
with supreme contempt all the varieties 
of theological opinion1 are  accustomed1
 partly through a very shallow          
historical optimism which  scarcely     
admits the possibility of retrogression1
 and partly through  sympathy with the  
despotic character of ,catholicism1 to  

extol the medival  society in the most  
extravagant terms4 ,without entering    
into a lengthy  examination of this     
subject1 ,i may be permitted to indicate
 shortly two or  three fallacies which  
are continually displayed in their      
appreciations4    ,it is an undoubted   
truth that1 for a considerable period1  
almost all the  knowledge of ,europe was
 included in the monasteries1 and from  
this it is  continually inferred that1  
had these institutions not existed1     
knowledge  would have been absolutely   
extinguished4 ,but such a conclusion ,i 
conceive  to be altogether untrue4      
,during the period of the ,pagan empire1
  intellectual life had been diffused   
over a vast portion of the globe4       
,egypt and ,asia ,minor had become great
 centres of civilisation4 ,greece was   
still a land of learning4 ,spain1 ,gaul1
 and even ,britain17#dcb7 were full of  
libraries and teachers4 ,the schools of 
,narbonne1 ,arles1 ,bordeaux1           
,toulouse1 ,lyons1 ,marseilles1         

,poitiers1 and ,trves were already      
famous4 ,the  ,christian emperor        
,gratian1 in ,a4,d4 #cgf1 carried out in
 ,gaul a system  similar to that which  
had already1 under the ,antonines1 been 
pursued in  ,italy1 ordaining that      
teachers should be supported by the     
,state in every  leading city47#dcc7 ,to
 suppose that ,latin literature1 having 
been so widely  diffused1 could have    
totally perished1 or that all interest  
in it could  have permanently ceased1   
even under the extremely unfavourable   
circumstances that followed the downfall
 of the ,roman ,empire and the          
,mohammedan invasions1 is1 ,i conceive1 
absurd4 ,if ,catholicism had never      
existed1 the human mind would have      
sought other spheres for its            
development1 and at least a part of the 
treasures of antiquity would have  been 
preserved in other ways4 ,the           
monasteries1 as corporations of peaceful
  men protected from the incursions of  
the barbarians1 became very naturally   

the reservoirs to which the streams of  
literature flowed2 but much of what     
they are represented as creating1 they  
had in reality only attracted4 ,the     
inviolable sanctity which they secured  
rendered them invaluable  receptacles of
 ancient learning in a period of anarchy
 and perpetual war1  and the industry of
 the monks in transcribing1 probably    
more than  counterbalanced their        
industry in effacing1 the classical     
writings4 ,the  ecclesiastical unity of 
,christendom was also of extreme        
importance in  rendering possible a     
general interchange of ideas4 ,whether  
these services  outweighed the          
intellectual evils resulting from the   
complete diversion of  the human mind   
from all secular learning1 and from the 
persistent  inculcation1 as a matter of 
duty1 of that habit of abject credulity 
which  it is the first task of the      
intellectual reformer to eradicate1 may 
be  reasonably doubted4    ,it is not   
unfrequent1 again1 to hear the preceding

 fallacy stated in a  somewhat different
 form4 ,we are reminded that almost all 
the men of genius  during several       
centuries were great theologians1 and we
 are asked to  conceive the more than   
,egyptian darkness that would have      
prevailed had the  ,catholic theology   
which produced them not existed4 ,this  
judgment resembles  that of the prisoner
 in a famous passage of ,cicero1 who1   
having spent his  entire life in a dark 
dungeon1 and knowing the light of day   
only from a  single ray which passed    
through a fissure in the wall1 inferred 
that if  the wall were removed1 as the  
fissure would no longer exist1 all light
  would be excluded4 ,medival           
,catholicism discouraged and suppressed 
in  every way secular studies1 while it 
conferred a monopoly of wealth and      
honour and power upon the distinguished 
theologian4 ,very naturally1  therefore1
 it attracted into the path of theology 
the genius that would  have existed     
without it1 but would under other       

circumstances have been  displayed in   
other forms4    ,it is not to be        
inferred1 however1 from this1 that      
medival ,catholicism  had not1 in the   
sphere of intellect1 any real creative  
power4 ,a great  moral or religious     
enthusiasm always evokes a certain      
amount of genius  that would not        
otherwise have existed1 or at least been
 displayed1 and the  monasteries were   
peculiarly fitted to develop certain    
casts of mind1 which  in no other sphere
 could have so perfectly expanded4 ,the 
great writings of  ,st4 ,thomas         
,aquinas7#dcd7 and his followers1 and1  
in more modern times1 the  massive and  
conscientious erudition of the          
,benedictines1 will always make  certain
 periods of the monastic history        
venerable to the scholar4 ,but1  when we
 remember that during many centuries    
nearly every one possessing  any        
literary taste or talents became a monk1
 when we recollect that these  monks    
were familiar with the language1 and    

might easily have been familiar  with   
the noble literature1 of ancient ,rome1 
and when we also consider the  mode of  
their life1 which would seem1 from its  
freedom from care1 and from  the very   
monotony of its routine1 peculiarly     
calculated to impel them to  study1 we  
can hardly fail to wonder how very      
little of any real value they  added1   
for so long a period1 to the knowledge  
of mankind4 ,it is indeed a  remarkable 
fact that1 even in the ages when the    
,catholic ascendancy was  most perfect1 
some of the greatest achievements were  
either opposed or  simply external to   
ecclesiastical influence4 ,roger ,bacon1
 having been a  monk1 is frequently     
spoken of as a creature of ,catholic    
teaching4 ,but  there never was a more  
striking instance of the force of a     
great genius in  resisting the          
tendencies of his age4 ,at a time when  
physical science was  continually       
neglected1 discouraged1 or condemned1 at
 a time when all the  great prizes of   

the world were open to men who pursued a
 very different  course1 ,bacon applied 
himself with transcendent genius to the 
study of  nature4 ,fourteen years of his
 life were spent in prison1 and when he 
died  his name was blasted as a         
magician4 ,the medival laboratories were
 chiefly  due to the pursuit of alchemy1
 or to ,mohammedan encouragement4 ,the  
inventions of the mariner's compass1 of 
gunpowder1 and of rag paper were  all1  
indeed1 of extreme importance2 but no   
part of the credit of them  belongs to  
the monks4 ,their origin is involved in 
much obscurity1 but it  is almost       
certain that the last two1 at all       
events1 were first employed in  ,europe 
by the ,mohammedans of ,spain4 ,cotton  
paper was in use among these as  early  
as #ajji4 ,among the ,christian nations 
it appears to have been unknown  till   
late in the thirteenth century4 ,the    
first instance of the employment  of    
artillery among ,christian nations was  
at the battle of ,crecy1 but the        

knowledge of gunpowder among them has   
been traced back as far as #acch4       
,there is abundant evidence1 however1 of
 its employment in ,spain by            
,mohammedans in several sieges in the   
thirteenth century1 and even in a       
battle between the ,moors of ,seville   
and those of ,tunis at the end of the   
eleventh century47#dce7 ,in invention1  
indeed1 as well as in original          
research1 the medival monasteries were  
singularly barren4 ,they cultivated     
formal logic to great perfection4 ,they 
produced many patient and  laborious1   
though1 for the most part1 wholly       
uncritical scholars1 and many           
philosophers who1 having assumed their  
premises with unfaltering faith1        
reasoned from them with admirable       
subtlety2 but they taught men to regard 
the sacrifice of secular learning as a  
noble thing2 they impressed upon  them a
 theory of the habitual government of   
the universe1 which is  absolutely      
untrue2 and they diffused1 wherever     

their influence extended1  habits of    
credulity and intolerance that are the  
most deadly poisons to  the human mind4 
,it is1 again1 very frequently observed 
among the more philosophic  eulogists of
 the medival period1 that although the  
,catholic ,church is a  trammel and an  
obstacle to the progress of civilised   
nations1 although it  would be scarcely 
possible to exaggerate the misery her   
persecuting spirit  caused1 when the    
human mind had outstripped her teaching2
 yet there was a  time when she was     
greatly in advance of the age1 and the  
complete and  absolute ascendancy she   
then exercised was intellectually       
eminently  beneficial4 ,that there is   
much truth in this view1 ,i have myself 
repeatedly maintained4 ,but when men    
proceed to isolate the former period1   
and to make it the theme of unqualified 
eulogy1 they fall1 ,i think1 into a     
grave error4 ,the evils that sprang from
 the later period of ,catholic          
ascendancy were not an accident or a    

perversion1 but a normal and  necessary 
consequence of the previous despotism4  
,the principles which were  imposed on  
the medival world1 and which were the   
conditions of so much of  its           
distinctive excellence1 were of such a  
nature that they claimed to be  final1  
and could not possibly be discarded     
without a struggle and a  convulsion4   
,we must estimate the influence of these
 principles considered  as a whole1 and 
during the entire period of their       
operation4 ,there are  some poisons     
which1 before they kill men1 allay pain 
and diffuse a  soothing sensation       
through the frame4 ,we may recognise the
 hour of  enjoyment they procure1 but we
 must not separate it from the price at 
which it is purchased4    ,the extremely
 unfavourable influence the ,catholic   
,church long exercised  upon            
intellectual development had important  
moral consequences4 ,although  moral    
progress does not necessarily depend    
upon intellectual progress it  is       

materially affected by it1 intellectual 
activity being the most  important      
element in the growth of that great and 
complex organism which  we call         
civilisation4 ,the medival credulity had
 also a more direct moral  influence in 
producing that indifference to truth1   
which is the most  repulsive feature of 
so many ,catholic writings4 ,the very   
large part that  must be assigned to    
deliberate forgeries in the early       
apologetic  literature of the ,church we
 have already seen2 and no impartial    
reader  can1 ,i think1 investigate the  
innumerable grotesque and lying legends 
that1 during the whole course of the    
,middle ,ages1 were deliberately palmed 
upon mankind as undoubted facts1 can    
follow the histories of the false       
decretals1 and the discussions that were
 connected with them1 or can  observe   
the complete and absolute incapacity    
most ,catholic historians have          
displayed1 of conceiving any good thing 
in the ranks of their opponents1  or of 

stating with common fairness any        
consideration that can tell against     
their cause1 without acknowledging how  
serious and how inveterate has been  the
 evil4 ,there have1 no doubt1 been many 
noble individual exceptions4 ,yet  it   
is1 ,i believe1 difficult to exaggerate 
the extent to which this moral  defect  
exists in most of the ancient and very  
much of the modern  literature of       
,catholicism4 ,it is this which makes it
 so unspeakably  repulsive to all       
independent and impartial thinkers1 and 
has led a great  ,german historian7#dcf7
 to declare1 with much bitterness1 that 
the phrase  ,christian veracity deserves
 to rank with the phrase ,punic faith4  
,but this  absolute indifference to     
truth whenever falsehood could subserve 
the  interests of the ,church is        
perfectly explicable1 and was found in  
multitudes who1 in other respects1      
exhibited the noblest virtue4 ,an age   
which has ceased to value impartiality  
of judgment will soon cease to  value   

accuracy of statement2 and when         
credulity is inculcated as a virtue1    
falsehood will not long be stigmatised  
as a vice4 ,when1 too1 men are  firmly  
convinced that salvation can only be    
found within their ,church1 and  that   
their ,church can absolve from all      
guilt1 they will speedily conclude  that
 nothing can possibly be wrong which is 
beneficial to it4 ,they  exchange the   
love of truth for what they call the    
love of the truth4  ,they regard morals 
as derived from and subordinate to      
theology1 and they  regulate all their  
statements1 not by the standard of      
veracity1 but by the  interests of their
 creed4    ,another important moral     
consequence of the monastic system was  
the great  prominence given to pecuniary
 compensations for crime4 ,it had been  
at  first one of the broad distinctions 
between ,paganism and ,christianity1    
that1 while the rites of the former were
 for the most part unconnected  with    
moral dispositions1 ,christianity made  

purity of heart an essential  element of
 all its worship4 ,among the ,pagans a  
few faint efforts had1 it  is true1 been
 made in this direction4 ,an old precept
 or law1 which is  referred to by       
,cicero1 and which was strongly         
reiterated by ,apollonius of  ,tyana1   
and the ,pythagoreans1 declared that 8no
 impious man should dare to  appease the
 anger of the divinities by             
gifts207#dcg7 and oracles are said  to  
have more than once proclaimed that the 
hecatombs of noble oxen with  gilded    
horns that were offered up              
ostentatiously by the rich1 were less   
pleasing to the gods than the wreaths of
 flowers and the modest and  reverential
 worship of the poor47#dch7 ,in general1
 however1 in the ,pagan  world1 the     
service of the temple had little or no  
connection with morals1  and the change 
which ,christianity effected in this    
respect was one of its  most important  
benefits to mankind4 ,it was natural1   
however1 and perhaps  inevitable1 that  

in the course of time1 and under the    
action of very  various causes1 the old 
,pagan sentiment should revive1 and even
 with an  increased intensity4 ,in no   
respect had the ,christians been more   
nobly  distinguished than by their      
charity4 ,it was not surprising that the
  ,fathers1 while exerting all their    
eloquence to stimulate this             
virtue--especially during the calamities
 that accompanied the dissolution  of   
the ,empire--should have dilated in     
extremely strong terms upon the         
spiritual benefits the donor would      
receive for his gift4 ,it is also not   
surprising that this selfish calculation
 should gradually1 and among hard  and  
ignorant men1 have absorbed all other   
motives4 ,a curious legend1 which  is   
related by a writer of the seventh      
century1 illustrates the kind of        
feeling that had arisen4 ,the ,christian
 bishop ,synesius succeeded in          
converting a ,pagan named ,evagrius1 who
 for a long time1 however1 felt  doubts 

about the passage1 8,he who giveth to   
the poor lendeth to the ,lord40  ,on his
 conversion1 and in obedience to this   
verse1 he gave ,synesius three  hundred 
pieces of gold to be distributed among  
the poor2 but he exacted  from the      
bishop1 as the representative of        
,christ1 a promissory note1  engaging   
that he should be repaid in the future  
world4 ,many years later1  ,evagrius1   
being on his death-bed1 commanded his   
sons1 when they buried  him1 to place   
the note in his hand1 and to do so      
without informing  ,synesius4 ,his dying
 injunction was observed1 and three days
 afterwards he  appeared to ,synesius in
 a dream1 told him that the debt had    
been paid1 and  ordered him to go to the
 tomb1 where he would find a written    
receipt4  ,synesius did as he was       
commanded1 and1 the grave being opened1 
the  promissory note was found in the   
hand of the dead man1 with an           
endorsement  declaring that the debt had
 been paid by ,christ4 ,the note1 it was

 said1  was long after preserved as a   
relic in the church of ,cyrene4    ,the 
kind of feeling which this legend       
displays was soon turned with  tenfold  
force into the channel of monastic life4
 ,a law of ,constantine  accorded1 and  
several later laws enlarged1 the power  
of bequests to  ecclesiastics4          
,ecclesiastical property was at the same
 time exonerated  from the public       
burdens1 and this measure not only      
directly assisted its  increase1 but had
 also an important indirect influence2  
for1 when taxation  was heavy1 many     
laymen ceded the ownership of their     
estates to the  monasteries1 with a     
secret condition that they should1 as   
vassals1 receive  the revenues          
unburdened by taxation1 and subject only
 to a slight payment  to the monks as to
 their feudal lords47#dci7 ,the monks   
were regarded as the  trustees of the   
poor1 and also as themselves typical    
poor1 and all the  promises that applied
 to those who gave to the poor applied1 

it was said1  to the benefactors of the 
monasteries4 ,the monastic chapel also  
contained  the relics of saints or      
sacred images of miraculous power1 and  
throngs of  worshippers were attracted  
by the miracles1 and desired to place   
themselves under the protection1 of the 
saint4 ,it is no exaggeration to  say   
that to give money to the priests was   
for several centuries the first  article
 of the moral code4 ,political minds may
 have felt the importance of            
aggrandising a pacific and industrious  
class in the centre of a  disorganised  
society1 and family affection may have  
predisposed many in  favour of          
institutions which contained at least   
one member of most  families2 but in the
 overwhelming majority of cases the     
motive was simple  superstition4 ,in    
seasons of sickness1 of danger1 of      
sorrow1 or of remorse1  whenever the    
fear or the conscience of the worshipper
 was awakened1 he  hastened to purchase 
with money the favour of a saint4 ,above

 all1 in the  hour of death1 when the   
terrors of the future world loomed      
darkly upon his  mind1 he saw in a gift 
or legacy to the monks a sure means of  
effacing the  most monstrous crimes1 and
 securing his ultimate happiness4 ,a    
rich man was  soon scarcely deemed a    
,christian if he did not leave a portion
 of his  property to the ,church1 and   
the charters of innumerable monasteries 
in  every part of ,europe attest the    
vast tracts of land that were ceded by  
will to the monks1 8for the benefit of  
the soul0 of the testator47#ddj7    ,it 
has been observed by a great historian  
that we may trace three distinct  phases
 in the early history of the ,church4   
,in the first period religion  was a    
question of morals2 in the second       
period1 which culminated in the  fifth  
century1 it had become a question of    
orthodoxy2 in the third period1  which  
dates from the seventh century1 it was a
 question of munificence to             
monasteries47#dda7 ,the despotism of    

,catholicism1 and the ignorance that    
followed the barbarian invasions1 had   
repressed the struggles of heresy1  and 
in the period of almost absolute        
darkness that continued from the  sixth 
to the twelfth century1 the theological 
ideal of unquestioning faith  and of    
perfect unanimity was all but realised  
in the ,west4 ,all the energy  that in  
previous ages had been expended in      
combating heresy was now  expended in   
acquiring wealth4 ,the people compounded
 for the most atrocious  crimes by gifts
 to shrines of those saints whose       
intercession was supposed  to be        
unfailing4 ,the monks1 partly by the    
natural cessation of their old          
enthusiasm1 partly by the absence of any
 hostile criticism of their acts1  and  
partly too by the very wealth they had  
acquired1 sank into gross and  general  
immorality4 ,the great majority of them 
had probably at no time  been either    
saints actuated by a strong religious   
motive1 nor yet diseased  and desponding

 minds seeking a refuge from the world2 
they had been simply  peasants1 of no   
extraordinary devotion or sensitiveness1
 who preferred an  ensured subsistence1 
with no care1 little labour1 a much     
higher social  position than they could 
otherwise acquire1 and the certainty1 as
 they  believed1 of going to heaven1 to 
the laborious and precarious existence  
of  the serf1 relieved1 indeed1 by the  
privilege of marriage1 but exposed to   
military service1 to extreme hardships1 
and to constant oppression4 ,very       
naturally1 when they could do so with   
impunity1 they broke their vows of      
chastity4 ,very naturally1 too1 they    
availed themselves to the full of the   
condition of affairs1 to draw as much   
wealth as possible into their           
community47#ddb7 ,the belief in the     
approaching end of the world1 especially
  at the close of the tenth century1 the
 crusades1 which gave rise to a         
profitable traffic in the form of a     
pecuniary commutation of vows1 and the  

black death1 which produced a paroxysm  
of religious fanaticism1 stimulated  the
 movement4 ,in the monkish chronicles1  
the merits of sovereigns are  almost    
exclusively judged by their bounty to   
the ,church1 and in some cases  this is 
the sole part of their policy which has 
been preserved47#ddc7    ,there were1 no
 doubt1 a few redeeming points in this  
dark period4 ,the  ,irish monks are said
 to have been honourably distinguished  
for their  reluctance to accept the     
lavish donations of their               
admirers17#ddd7 and some  missionary    
monasteries of a high order of          
excellence were scattered  through      
,europe4 ,a few legends1 too1 may be    
cited censuring the facility  with which
 money acquired by crime was accepted as
 an atonement for  crime47#dde7 ,but    
these cases were very rare1 and the     
religious history of  several centuries 
is little more than a history of the    
rapacity of priests  and of the         
credulity of laymen4 ,in ,england1 the  

perpetual demands of the  ,pope excited 
a fierce resentment2 and we may trace   
with remarkable  clearness1 in every    
page of ,matthew ,paris1 the alienation 
of sympathy  arising from this cause1   
which prepared and foreshadowed the     
final rupture  of ,england from the     
,church4 ,ireland1 on the other hand1   
had been given  over by two ,popes to   
the ,english invader1 on the condition  
of the payment  of ,peter's pence4 ,the 
outrageous and notorious immorality of  
the  monasteries1 during the century    
before the ,reformation1 was chiefly due
 to  their great wealth2 and that       
immorality1 as the writings of ,erasmus 
and  ,ulric von ,hutten show1 gave a    
powerful impulse to the new movement1   
while  the abuses of the indulgences    
were the immediate cause of the revolt  
of  ,luther4 ,but these things arrived  
only after many centuries of successful 
fraud4 ,the religious terrorism that was
 unscrupulously employed had done  its  
work1 and the chief riches of           

,christendom had passed into the coffers
  of the ,church4    ,it is1 indeed1    
probable that religious terrorism played
 a more important  part in the monastic 
phase of ,christianity than it had done 
even in the  great work of the          
conversion of the ,pagans4 ,although two
 or three amiable  theologians had made 
faint and altogether abortive attempts  
to question  the eternity of punishment2
 although there had been some slight    
difference  of opinion concerning the   
future of some ,pagan philosophers who  
had lived  before the introduction of   
,christianity1 and also upon the        
question  whether infants who died      
unbaptised were only deprived of all    
joy1 or were  actually subjected to     
never-ending agony1 there was no        
question as to the  main features of the
 ,catholic doctrine4 ,according to the  
patristic  theologians1 it was part of  
the gospel revelation that the misery   
and  suffering the human race endures   
upon earth is but a feeble image of that

  which awaits it in the future world2  
that all its members beyond the         
,church1 as well as a very large        
proportion of those who are within its  
pale1 are doomed to an eternity of agony
 in a literal and undying fire4  ,the   
monastic legends took up this doctrine1 
which in itself is  sufficiently        
revolting1 and they developed it with an
 appalling vividness  and minuteness4   
,st4 ,macarius1 it is said1 when walking
 one day through the  desert1 saw a     
skull upon the ground4 ,he struck it    
with his staff and it  began to speak4  
,it told him that it was the skull of a 
,pagan priest who  had lived before the 
introduction of ,christianity into the  
world1 and who  had accordingly been    
doomed to hell4 ,as high as the heaven  
is above the  earth1 so high does the   
fire of hell mount in waves above the   
souls that  are plunged into it4 ,the   
damned souls were pressed together back 
to back1  and the lost priest made it   
his single entreaty to the saint that he

 would  pray that they might be turned  
face to face1 for he believed that the  
sight of a brother's face might afford  
him some faint consolation in the       
eternity of agony that was before       
him47#ddf7 ,the story is well known of  
how  ,st4 ,gregory1 seeing on a         
bas-relief a representation of the      
goodness of  ,trajan to a poor widow1   
pitied the ,pagan emperor1 whom he knew 
to be in  hell1 and prayed that he might
 be released4 ,he was told that his     
prayer  was altogether unprecedented2   
but at last1 on his promising that he   
would  never offer such a prayer again1 
it was partially granted4 ,trajan was   
not  withdrawn from hell1 but he was    
freed from the torments which the       
remainder of the ,pagan world           
endured47#ddg7    ,an entire literature 
of visions depicting the torments of    
hell was soon  produced by the industry 
of the monks4 ,the apocryphal ,gospel of
 ,nicodemus1  which purported to        
describe the descent of ,christ into the

 lower world1  contributed to foster it2
 and ,st4 ,gregory the ,great has       
related many  visions in a more famous  
work1 which professed to be compiled    
with  scrupulous veracity from the most 
authentic sources17#ddh7 and of which it
  may be confidently averred that it    
scarcely contains a single page which   
is not tainted with grotesque and       
deliberate falsehood4 ,men1 it was said1
  passed into a trance or temporary     
death1 and were then carried for a time 
to hell4 ,among others1 a certain man   
named ,stephen1 from whose lips the     
saint declares that he had heard the    
tale1 had died by mistake4 ,when his    
soul was borne to the gates of hell1 the
 ,judge declared that it was  another   
,stephen who was wanted2 the disembodied
 spirit1 after inspecting  hell1 was    
restored to its former body1 and the    
next day it was known that  another     
,stephen had died47#ddi7 ,volcanoes were
 the portals of hell1 and a  hermit had 
seen the soul of the ,arian emperor     

,theodoric1 as ,st4 ,eucherius          
afterwards did the soul of ,charles     
,martel1 carried down that in the       
,island  of ,lipari47#dej7 ,the craters 
in ,sicily1 it was remarked1 were       
continually  agitated1 and continually  
increasing1 and this1 as ,st4 ,gregory  
observes1  was probably due to the      
impending ruin of the world1 when the   
great press  of lost souls would render 
it necessary to enlarge the approaches  
to their  prisons47#dea7    ,but the    
glimpses of hell that are furnished in  
the 8,dialogues0 of ,st4  ,gregory      
appear meagre and unimaginative1        
compared with those of some later       
monks4 ,a long series of monastic       
visions1 of which that of ,st4 ,fursey1 
in  the seventh century1 was one of the 
first1 and which followed in rapid      
succession1 till that of ,tundale1 in   
the twelfth century1 professed to       
describe with the most detailed accuracy
 the condition of the lost47#deb7  ,it  
is impossible to conceive more ghastly1 

grotesque1 and material  conceptions of 
the future world than they evince1 or   
more hideous  calumnies against that    
,being who was supposed to inflict upon 
,his  creatures such unspeakable misery4
 ,the devil was represented bound by    
red-hot chains1 on a burning gridiron in
 the centre of hell4 ,the screams  of   
his never-ending agony made its rafters 
to resound2 but his hands were  free1   
and with these he seized the lost souls1
 crushed them like grapes  against his  
teeth1 and then drew them by his breath 
down the fiery cavern  of his throat4   
,dmons with hooks of red-hot iron       
plunged souls alternately  into fire and
 ice4 ,some of the lost were hung up by 
their tongues1 others  were sawn        
asunder1 others gnawed by serpents1     
others beaten together on an  anvil and 
welded into a single mass1 others boiled
 and then strained  through a cloth1    
others twined in the embraces of dmons  
whose limbs were  of flame4 ,the fire of
 earth1 it was said1 was but a picture  

of that of  hell4 ,the latter was so    
immeasurably more intense that it alone 
could be  called real4 ,sulphur was     
mixed with it1 partly to increase its   
heat1 and  partly1 too1 in order that an
 insufferable stench might be added to  
the  misery of the lost1 while1 unlike  
other flames1 it emitted1 according to  
some visions1 no light1 that the horror 
of darkness might be added to the       
horror of pain4 ,a narrow bridge spanned
 the abyss1 and from it the souls  of   
sinners were plunged into the darkness  
that was below47#dec7    ,such          
catalogues of horrors1 though they now  
awake in an educated man a  sentiment of
 mingled disgust1 weariness1 and        
contempt1 were able for many  centuries 
to create a degree of panic and of      
misery we can scarcely  realise4 ,with  
the exception of the heretic ,pelagius1 
whose noble genius1  anticipating the   
discoveries of modern science1 had      
repudiated the  theological notion of   
death having been introduced into the   

world on  account of the act of ,adam1  
it was universally held among           
,christians that  all the forms of      
suffering and dissolution that are      
manifested on earth  were penal         
inflictions4 ,the destruction of the    
world was generally  believed to be at  
hand4 ,the minds of men were filled with
 images of the  approaching catastrophe1
 and innumerable legends of visible     
dmons were  industriously circulated4   
,it was the custom then1 as it is the   
custom now1  for ,catholic priests to   
stain the imaginations of young children
 by  ghastly pictures of future misery1 
to imprint upon the virgin mind         
atrocious images which they hoped1 not  
unreasonably1 might prove               
indelible47#ded7 ,in hours of weakness  
and of sickness their overwrought  fancy
 seemed to see hideous beings hovering  
around1 and hell itself  yawning to     
receive its victim4 ,st4 ,gregory       
describes how a monk1 who1  though      
apparently a man of exemplary and even  

saintly piety1 had been  accustomed     
secretly to eat meat1 saw on his        
deathbed a fearful dragon  twining its  
tail round his body1 and1 with open     
jaws1 sucking his  breath27#dee7 and how
 a little boy of five years old1 who had
 learnt from  his father to repeat      
blasphemous words1 saw1 as he lay dying1
 exulting  dmons who were waiting to    
carry him to hell47#def7 ,to the        
jaundiced eye of  the theologian1 all   
nature seemed stricken and forlorn1 and 
its brightness  and beauty suggested no 
ideas but those of deception and of sin4
 ,the  redbreast1 according to one      
popular legend1 was commissioned by the 
,deity  to carry a drop of water to the 
souls of unbaptised infants in hell1 and
  its breast was singed in piercing the 
flames47#deg7 ,in the calm1 still hour  
of evening1 when the peasant boy asked  
why the sinking sun1 as it dipped       
beneath the horizon1 flushed with such a
 glorious red1 he was answered1 in  the 
words of an old ,saxon catechism1       

because it is then looking into         
hell47#deh7    ,it is related in the    
vision of ,tundale1 that as he gazed    
upon the burning  plains of hell1 and   
listened to the screams of ceaseless and
 hopeless  agony that were wrung from   
the sufferers1 the cry broke from his   
lips1  8,alas1 ,lord6 what truth is     
there in what ,i have so often          
heard--the earth  is filled with the    
mercy of ,god807#dei7 ,it is1 indeed1   
one of the most  curious things in moral
 history1 to observe how men who were   
sincerely  indignant with ,pagan writers
 for attributing to their divinities the
  frailties of an occasional jealousy or
 an occasional sensuality--for          
representing them1 in a word1 like men  
of mingled characters and               
passions--have nevertheless             
unscrupulously attributed to their own  
,divinity  a degree of cruelty which may
 be confidently said to transcend the   
utmost  barbarity of which human nature 
is capable4 ,neither ,nero nor ,phalaris

  could have looked complacently for    
ever on millions enduring the torture   
of fire--most of them because of a crime
 which was committed1 not by            
themselves1 but by their ancestors1 or  
because they had adopted some  mistaken 
conclusion on intricate questions of    
history or metaphysics47#dfj7  ,to those
 who do not regard such teaching as     
true1 it must appear without  exception 
the most odious in the religious history
 of the world1  subversive of the very  
foundations of morals1 and well fitted  
to transform  the man who at once       
realised it1 and accepted it with       
pleasure1 into a  monster of barbarity4 
,of the writers of the medival period1  
certainly one  of the two or three most 
eminent was ,peter ,lombard1 whose      
8,sentences10  though now1 ,i believe1  
but little read1 were for a long time   
the basis of  all theological literature
 in ,europe4 ,more than four thousand   
theologians  are said to have written   
commentaries upon them7#dfa7--;among    

others1 ,albert  the ,great1 ,st4       
,bonaventura1 and ,st4 ,thomas ,aquinas4
 ,nor is the work  unworthy of its      
former reputation4 ,calm1 clear1        
logical1 subtle1 and  concise1 the      
author professes to expound the whole   
system of ,catholic  theology and       
ethics1 and to reveal the               
interdependence of their various  parts4
 ,having explained the position and the 
duties1 he proceeds to  examine the     
prospects1 of man4 ,he maintains that   
until the day of judgment  the          
inhabitants of heaven and hell will     
continually see one another2 but  that1 
in the succeeding eternity1 the         
inhabitants of heaven alone will see    
those of the opposite world2 and he     
concludes his great work by this most   
impressive passage3 8,in the last place1
 we must enquire whether the sight  of  
the punishment of the condemned will    
impair the glory of the blest1 or       
whether it will augment their beatitude4
 ,concerning this1 ,gregory says the    

sight of the punishment of the lost will
 not obscure the beatitude of the  just2
 for when it is accompanied by no       
compassion it can be no diminution  of  
happiness4 ,and although their own joys 
might suffice to the just1 yet  to their
 greater glory they will see the pains  
of the evil1 which by grace  they have  
escaped4444 ,the elect will go forth1   
not indeed locally1 but by              
intelligence1 and by a clear vision1 to 
behold the torture of the impious1  and 
as they see them they will not grieve4  
,their minds will be sated with  joy as 
they gaze on the unspeakable anguish of 
the impious1 returning  thanks for their
 own freedom4 ,thus ,esaias1 describing 
the torments of the  impious1 and the   
joy of the righteous in witnessing it1  
says3 #8,the elect  in truth will go out
 and will see the corpses of men who    
have prevaricated  against ,him2 their  
worm will not die1 and they will be to  
the satiety of  vision to all flesh1    
that is to the elect4 ,the just man will

 rejoice when  he shall see the         
vengeance4' 07#dfb7    ,this passion for
 visions of heaven and hell was1 in     
fact1 a natural  continuation of the    
passion for dogmatic definition1 which  
had raged  during the fifth century4 ,it
 was natural that men1 whose curiosity  
had  left no conceivable question of    
theology undefined1 should have         
endeavoured to describe with            
corresponding precision the condition of
 the  dead4 ,much1 however1 was due to  
the hallucinations of solitary and      
ascetic  life1 and much more to         
deliberate imposture4 ,it is impossible 
for men to  continue long in a condition
 of extreme panic1 and superstition     
speedily  discovered remedies to allay  
the fears it had created4 ,if a         
malicious  dmon was hovering around the 
believer1 and if the jaws of hell were  
opening to receive him1 he was defended1
 on the other hand1 by countless        
angels2 a lavish gift to a church or    
monastery could always enlist a saint   

in his behalf1 and priestly power could 
protect him against the dangers  which  
priestly sagacity had revealed4 ,when   
the angels were weighing the  good and  
evil deeds of a dead man1 the latter    
were found by far to  preponderate2 but 
a priest of ,st4 ,lawrence came in1 and 
turned the scale  by throwing down among
 the former a heavy gold chalice1 which 
the deceased  had given to the          
altar47#dfc7 ,dagobert was snatched from
 the very arms of  dmons by ,st4 ,denis1
 ,st4 ,maurice1 and ,st4 ,martin47#dfd7 
,charlemagne was  saved1 because the    
monasteries he had built outweighed his 
evil  deeds47#dfe7 ,others1 who died in 
mortal sin1 were raised from the dead at
  the desire of their patron saint1 to  
expiate their guilt4 ,to amass relics1  
to acquire the patronage of saints1 to  
endow monasteries1 to build  churches1  
became the chief part of religion1 and  
the more the terrors of  the unseen     
world were unfolded1 the more men sought
 tranquillity by the  consolations of   

superstition47#dff7    ,the extent to   
which the custom of materialising       
religion was carried1 can  only be      
adequately realised by those who have   
examined the medival  literature itself4
 ,that which strikes a student in       
perusing this  literature1 is not so    
much the existence of these             
superstitions1 as their  extraordinary  
multiplication1 the many thousands of   
grotesque miracles  wrought by saints1  
monasteries1 or relics1 that were       
deliberately asserted  and universally  
believed4 ,christianity had assumed a   
form that was quite  as polytheistic and
 quite as idolatrous as the ancient     
,paganism4 ,the low  level of           
intellectual cultivation1 the religious 
feelings of  half-converted barbarians1 
the interests of the clergy1 the great  
social  importance of the monasteries1  
and perhaps also the custom of          
compounding  for nearly all crimes by   
pecuniary fines1 which was so general in
 the  penal system of the barbarian     

tribes1 combined in their different     
ways1  with the panic created by the    
fear of hell1 in driving men in the same
  direction1 and the wealth and power of
 the clergy rose to a point that        
enabled them to overshadow all other    
classes4 ,they had found1 as has been   
well said1 in another world1 the        
standing-point of ,archimedes from which
  they could move this4 ,no other system
 had ever appeared so admirably  fitted 
to endure for ever4 ,the ,church had    
crushed or silenced every  opponent in  
,christendom4 ,it had an absolute       
control over education in all  its      
branches and in all its stages4 ,it had 
absorbed all the speculative  knowledge 
and art of ,europe4 ,it possessed or    
commanded wealth1 rank1 and  military   
power4 ,it had so directed its teaching1
 that everything which  terrified or    
distressed mankind drove men speedily   
into its arms1 and it  had covered      
,europe with a vast network of          
institutions1 admirably adapted  to     

extend and perpetuate its power4 ,in    
addition to all this1 it had  guarded   
with consummate skill all the approaches
 to its citadel4 ,every  doubt was      
branded as a sin1 and a long course of  
doubt must necessarily  have preceded   
the rejection of its tenets4 ,all the   
avenues of enquiry were  painted with   
images of appalling suffering1 and of   
malicious dmons4 ,no  sooner did the    
worshipper begin to question any article
 of faith1 or to  lose his confidence in
 the virtue of the ceremonies of his    
,church1 than he  was threatened with a 
doom that no human heroism could brave1 
that no  imagination could contemplate  
undismayed4    ,of all the suffering    
that was undergone by those brave men   
who in ages of  ignorance and           
superstition dared to break loose from  
the trammels of their  ,church1 and who 
laid the foundation of the liberty we   
now enjoy1 it is  this which was        
probably the most poignant1 and which is
 the least  realised4 ,our imaginations 

can reproduce with much vividness       
gigantic  massacres like those of the   
,albigenses or of ,st4 ,bartholomew4 ,we
 can  conceive1 too1 the tortures of the
 rack and of the boots1 the dungeon1 the
  scaffold1 and the slow fire4 ,we can  
estimate1 though less perfectly1 the    
anguish which the bold enquirer must    
have undergone from the desertion of    
those he most dearly loved1 from the    
hatred of mankind1 from the malignant   
calumnies that were heaped upon his     
name4 ,but in the chamber of his own    
soul1 in the hours of his solitary      
meditation1 he must have found elements 
of a suffering that was still more      
acute4 ,taught from his earliest        
childhood to regard the abandonment of  
his hereditary opinions as the most     
deadly of crimes1 and to ascribe it to  
the instigation of deceiving  dmons1    
persuaded that if he died in a condition
 of doubt he must pass  into a state of 
everlasting torture1 his imagination    
saturated with images  of the most      

hideous and appalling anguish1 he found 
himself alone in the  world1 struggling 
with his difficulties and his doubts4   
,there existed no  rival sect in which  
he could take refuge1 and where1 in the 
professed  agreement of many minds1 he  
could forget the anathemas of the       
,church4  ,physical science1 that has   
disproved the theological theories which
  attribute death to human sin1 and     
suffering to ,divine vengeance1 and all 
natural phenomena to isolated acts of   
,divine intervention--historical        
criticism1 which has dispelled so many  
imposing fabrics of belief1 traced  so  
many elaborate superstitions to the     
normal action of the undisciplined      
imagination1 and explained and defined  
the successive phases of religious      
progress1 were both unknown4 ,every     
comet that blazed in the sky1 every     
pestilence that swept over the land1    
appeared a confirmation of the dark     
threats of the theologian4 ,a spirit of 
blind and abject credulity1  inculcated 

as the first of duties1 and exhibited on
 all subjects and in  all forms1        
pervaded the atmosphere he breathed4    
,who can estimate aright  the obstacles 
against which a sincere enquirer in such
 an age must have  struggled8 ,who can  
conceive the secret anguish he must have
 endured in the  long months or years   
during which rival arguments gained an  
alternate sway  over his judgment1 while
 all doubt was still regarded as        
damnable8 ,and  even when his mind was  
convinced1 his imagination would still  
often revert  to his old belief4 ,our   
thoughts in after years flow            
spontaneously1 and  even unconsciously1 
in the channels that are formed in      
youth4 ,in moments  when the controlling
 judgment has relaxed its grasp1 old    
intellectual  habits reassume their     
sway1 and images painted on the         
imagination will  live1 when the        
intellectual propositions on which they 
rested have been  wholly abandoned4 ,in 
hours of weakness1 of sickness1 and of  

drowsiness1 in  the feverish and anxious
 moments that are known to all1 when the
 mind  floats passively upon the stream1
 the phantoms which reason had exorcised
  must have often reappeared1 and the   
bitterness of an ancient tyranny must   
have entered into his soul4    ,it is   
one of the greatest of the many services
 that were rendered to  mankind by the  
,troubadours1 that they cast such a     
flood of ridicule upon  the visions of  
hell1 by which the monks had been       
accustomed to terrify  mankind1 that    
they completely discredited and almost  
suppressed them47#dfg7  ,whether1       
however1 the ,catholic mind1 if         
unassisted by the literature of         
,paganism and by the independent        
thinkers who grew up under the shelter  
of  ,mohammedanism1 could have ever     
unwound the chains that had bound it1   
may  well be questioned4 ,the growth of 
towns1 which multiplied secular         
interests and feelings1 the revival of  
learning1 the depression of the         

ecclesiastical classes that followed the
 crusades1 and1 at last1 the            
dislocation of ,christendom by the      
,reformation1 gradually impaired the    
ecclesiastical doctrine1 which ceased to
 be realised before it ceased to  be    
believed4 ,there was1 however1 another  
doctrine which exercised a still        
greater influence in augmenting the     
riches of the clergy1 and in making     
donations to the ,church the chief part 
of religion4 ,i allude1 of course1  to  
the doctrine of purgatory4    ,a        
distinguished modern apologist for the  
middle ages has made this  doctrine the 
object of his special and very          
characteristic eulogy1  because1 as he  
says1 by providing a finite punishment  
graduated to every  variety of guilt1   
and adapted for those who1 without being
 sufficiently  virtuous to pass at once 
into heaven1 did not appear sufficiently
 vicious  to pass into hell1 it formed  
an indispensable corrective to the      
extreme  terrorism of the doctrine of   

eternal punishment47#dfh7 ,this is one  
of those  theories which1 though        
exceedingly popular with a class of     
writers who are  not without influence  
in our day1 must appear1 ,i think1      
almost grotesque  to those who have     
examined the actual operation of the    
doctrine during the  middle ages4       
,according to the practical teaching of 
the ,church1 the  expiatory powers at   
the disposal of its clergy were so      
great1 that those  who died believing   
its doctrines1 and fortified in their   
last hours by its  rites1 had no cause  
whatever to dread the terrors of hell4  
,on the other  hand1 those who died     
external to the ,church had no prospect 
of entering  into purgatory4 ,this      
latter was designed altogether for true 
believers2 it  was chiefly preached at a
 time when no one was in the least      
disposed to  question the powers of the 
,church to absolve any crime1 however   
heinous1  or to free the worst men from 
hell1 and it was assuredly never        

regarded in  the light of a consolation4
 ,indeed1 the popular pictures of       
purgatory were  so terrific that it may 
be doubted whether the imagination could
 ever  fully realise1 though the reason 
could easily recognise1 the difference  
between this state and that of the lost4
 ,the fire of purgatory1 according  to  
the most eminent theologians1 was like  
the fire of hell--a literal fire1       
prolonged1 it was sometimes said1 for   
ages4 ,the declamations of the pulpit   
described the sufferings of the saved   
souls in purgatory as incalculably      
greater than any that were endured by   
the most wretched mortals upon          
earth47#dfi7 ,the rude artists of       
medivalism exhausted their efforts in   
depicting the writhings of the dead in  
the flames that encircled them4         
,innumerable visions detailed with a    
ghastly minuteness the various kinds  of
 torture they underwent17#dgj7 and the  
monk1 who described what he  professed  
to have seen1 usually ended by the      

characteristic moral1 that  could men   
only realise those sufferings1 they     
would shrink from no  sacrifice to      
rescue their friends from such a state4 
,a special place1 it  was said1 was     
reserved in purgatory for those who had 
been slow in paying  their tithes47#dga7
 ,st4 ,gregory tells a curious story of 
a man who was1 in  other respects1 of   
admirable virtue2 but who1 in a         
contested election for  the popedom1    
supported the wrong candidate1 and      
without1 as it would  appear1 in any    
degree refusing to obey the successful  
candidate when  elected1 continued      
secretly of opinion that the choice was 
an unwise one4  ,he was accordingly     
placed for some time after death in     
boiling water47#dgb7  ,whatever may be  
thought of its other aspects1 it is     
impossible to avoid  recognising in this
 teaching a masterly skill in the       
adaptation of means  to ends1 which     
almost rises to artistic beauty4 ,a     
system which deputed its  minister to go

 to the unhappy widow in the first dark 
hour of her anguish  and her desolation1
 to tell her that he who was dearer to  
her than all the  world besides was now 
burning in a fire1 and that he could    
only be  relieved by a gift of money to 
the priests1 was assuredly of its own   
kind  not without an extraordinary      
merit4    ,if we attempt to realise the 
moral condition of the society of       
,western  ,europe in the period that    
elapsed between the downfall of the     
,roman ,empire  and ,charlemagne1 during
 which the religious transformations ,i 
have noticed  chiefly arose1 we shall be
 met by some formidable difficulties4   
,in the  first place1 our materials are 
very scanty4 ,from the year ,a4,d4 #fdb1
 when  the meagre chronicle of          
,fredigarius closes1 to the biography of
  ,charlemagne by ,eginhard1 a century  
later1 there is an almost complete      
blank in trustworthy history1 and we are
 reduced to a few scanty and very       
doubtful notices in the chronicles of   

monasteries1 the lives of saints1  and  
the decrees of ,councils4 ,all secular  
literature had almost  disappeared1 and 
the thought of posterity seems to have  
vanished from the  world47#dgc7 ,of the 
first half of the seventh century1      
however1 and of the  two centuries that 
preceded it1 we have much information   
from ,gregory of  ,tours1 and           
,fredigarius1 whose tedious and         
repulsive pages illustrate with         
considerable clearness the conflict of  
races and the dislocation of            
governments that for centuries existed4 
,in ,italy1 the traditions and  habits  
of the old ,empire had in some degree   
reasserted their sway2 but in  ,gaul the
 ,church subsisted in the midst of      
barbarians1 whose native vigour  had    
never been emasculated by civilisation  
and refined by knowledge4 ,the  picture 
which ,gregory of ,tours gives us is    
that of a society which was  almost     
absolutely anarchical4 ,the mind is     
fatigued by the monotonous  account of  

acts of violence and of fraud springing 
from no fixed policy1  tending to no    
end1 leaving no lasting impress upon the
 world47#dgd7 ,the two  queens ,frdgonde
 and ,brunehaut rise conspicuous above  
other figures for  their fierce and     
undaunted ambition1 for the fascination 
they exercised  over the minds of       
multitudes1 and for the number and      
atrocity of their  crimes4 ,all classes 
seem to have been almost equally tainted
 with vice4 ,we  read of a bishop named 
,cautinus1 who had to be carried1 when  
intoxicated1  by four men from the      
table27#dge7 who1 upon the refusal of   
one of his  priests to surrender some   
private property1 deliberately ordered  
that  priest to be buried alive1 and    
who1 when the victim1 escaping by a     
happy  chance from the sepulchre in     
which he had been immured1 revealed the 
crime1 received no greater punishment   
than a censure47#dgf7 ,the worst        
sovereigns found flatterers or agents in
 ecclesiastics4 ,frdgonde deputed  two  

clerks to murder ,childebert17#dgg7 and 
another clerk to murder                 
,brunehaut27#dgh7 she caused a bishop of
 ,rouen to be assassinated at the       
altar--a bishop and an archdeacon being 
her accomplices27#dgi7 and she found  in
 another bishop1 named gidius1 one of   
her most devoted instruments and        
friends47#dhj7 ,the pope1 ,st4 ,gregory 
the ,great1 was an ardent flatterer of  
,brunehaut47#dha7 ,gundebald1 having    
murdered his three brothers1 was        
consoled by ,st4 ,avitus1 the bishop of 
,vienne1 who1 without intimating the    
slightest disapprobation of the act1    
assured him that by removing his  rivals
 he had been a providential agent in    
preserving the happiness of his         
people47#dhb7 ,the bishoprics were      
filled by men of notorious debauchery1  
or  by grasping misers47#dhc7 ,the      
priests sometimes celebrated the sacred 
mysteries 8gorged with food and dull    
with wine407#dhd7 ,they had already     
begun to carry arms1 and ,gregory tells 

of two bishops of the sixth century  who
 had killed many enemies with their own 
hands47#dhe7 ,there was scarcely  a     
reign that was not marked by some       
atrocious domestic tragedy4 ,there were 
few sovereigns who were not guilty of at
 least one deliberate murder4  ,never1  
perhaps1 was the infliction of          
mutilation1 and prolonged and  agonising
 forms of death1 more common4 ,we read1 
among other atrocities1 of  a bishop    
being driven to a distant place of exile
 upon a bed of  thorns27#dhf7 of a king 
burning together his rebellious son1 his
  daughter-in-law1 and their            
daughters27#dhg7 of a queen condemning a
  daughter she had had by a former      
marriage to be drowned1 lest her beauty 
should excite the passions of her       
husband27#dhh7 of another queen         
endeavouring to strangle her daughter   
with her own hands27#dhi7 of an  abbot1 
compelling a poor man to abandon his    
house1 that he might commit  adultery   
with his wife1 and being murdered1      

together with his partner1 in  the      
act27#dij7 of a prince who made it an   
habitual amusement to torture his       
slaves with fire1 and who buried two of 
them alive1 because they had  married   
without his permission27#dia7 of a      
bishop's wife1 who1 besides  other      
crimes1 was accustomed to mutilate men  
and to torture women1 by  applying      
red-hot irons to the most sensitive     
parts of their bodies27#dib7  of great  
numbers who were deprived of their ears 
and noses1 tortured  through several    
days1 and at last burnt alive or broken 
slowly on the  wheel4 ,brunehaut1 at the
 close of her long and in some respects 
great  though guilty career1 fell into  
the hands of ,clotaire1 and the old     
queen1  having been subjected for three 
days to various kinds of torture1 was   
led  out on a camel for the derision of 
the army1 and at last bound to the tail 
of a furious horse1 and dashed to pieces
 in its course47#dic7    ,and yet this  
age was1 in a certain sense1 eminently  

religious4 ,all  literature had become  
sacred4 ,heresy of every kind was       
rapidly expiring4  ,the priests and     
monks had acquired enormous power1 and  
their wealth was  inordinately          
increasing47#did7 ,several sovereigns   
voluntarily abandoned  their thrones for
 the monastic life47#die7 ,the seventh  
century1 which1  together with the      
eighth1 forms the darkest period of the 
dark ages1 is  famous in the hagiology  
as having produced more saints than any 
other  century1 except that of the      
martyrs47#dif7    ,the manner in which  
events were regarded by historians was  
also  exceedingly characteristic4 ,our  
principal authority1 ,gregory of ,tours1
 was  a bishop of great eminence1 and a 
man of the most genuine piety1 and of   
very strong affections47#dig7 ,he       
describes his work as a record 8of the  
virtues of saints1 and the disasters of 
nations207#dih7 and the student who     
turns to his pages from those of the    
,pagan historians1 is not more struck   

by the extreme prominence he gives to   
ecclesiastical events1 than by the      
uniform manner in which he views all    
secular events in their religious       
aspect1 as governed and directed by a   
special ,providence4 ,yet1 in  questions
 where the difference between orthodoxy 
and heterodoxy is  concerned1 his ethics
 sometimes exhibit the most singular    
distortion4 ,of  this1 probably the most
 impressive example is the manner in    
which he has  described the career of   
,clovis1 the great representative of    
orthodoxy47#dii7 ,having recounted the  
circumstances of his conversion1        
,gregory proceeds to tell us1 with      
undisguised admiration1 how that        
chieftain1 as the first-fruits of his   
doctrine1 professed to be grieved at    
seeing that part of ,gaul was held by an
 ,arian sovereign2 how he  accordingly  
resolved to invade and appropriate that 
territory2 how1 with  admirable piety1  
he commanded his soldiers to abstain    
from all  devastations when traversing  

the territory of ,st4 ,martin1 and how  
several  miracles attested the ,divine  
approbation of the expedition4 ,the     
war--which  is the first of the long    
series of professedly religious wars    
that have  been undertaken by           
,christians--was fully successful1 and  
,clovis proceeded  to direct his        
ambition to new fields4 ,in his         
expedition against the  ,arians1 he had 
found a faithful ally in his relative   
,sighebert1 the old  and infirm king of 
the ,ripuarian ,franks4 ,clovis now     
proceeded artfully to  suggest to the   
son of ,sighebert the advantages that   
son might obtain by  his father's death4
 ,the hint was taken4 ,sighebert was    
murdered1 and ,clovis  sent ambassadors 
to the parricide1 professing a warm     
friendship1 but with  secret orders on  
the first opportunity to kill him4 ,this
 being done1 and  the kingdom being left
 entirely without a head1 ,clovis       
proceeded to  ,cologne1 the capital of  
,sighebert2 he assembled the people1    

professed with  much solemnity his      
horror of the tragedies that had taken  
place1 and his  complete innocence of   
all connection with them27#ejj7 but     
suggested that1  as they were now       
without a ruler1 they should place      
themselves under his  protection4 ,the  
proposition was received with           
acclamation4 ,the warriors  elected him 
as their king1 and thus1 says the       
episcopal historian1 8,clovis  received 
the treasures and dominions of          
,sighebert1 and added them to his  own4 
,every day ,god caused his enemies to   
fall beneath his hand1 and  enlarged his
 kingdom1 because he walked with a right
 heart before the  ,lord1 and did the   
things that were pleasing in ,his       
sight407#eja7 ,his  ambition was1       
however1 still unsated4 ,he proceeded1  
in a succession of  expeditions1 to     
unite the whole of ,gaul under his      
sceptre1 invading1  defeating1          
capturing1 and slaying the lawful       
sovereigns1 who were for the  most part 

his own relations4 ,having secured      
himself against dangers from  without1  
by killing all his relations1 with the  
exception of his wife and  children1 he 
is reported to have lamented before his 
courtiers his  isolation1 declaring that
 he had no relations remaining in the   
world to  assist him in his adversity2  
but this speech1 ,gregory assures us1   
was a  stratagem2 for the king desired  
to discover whether any possible        
pretender  to the throne had escaped his
 knowledge and his sword4 ,soon after1  
he  died1 full of years and honours1 and
 was buried in a cathedral which he  had
 built4    ,having recounted all these  
things with unmoved composure1 ,gregory 
of ,tours  requests his reader to permit
 him to pause1 to draw the moral of the 
history4 ,it is the admirable manner in 
which ,providence guides all things  for
 the benefit of those whose opinions    
concerning the ,trinity are  strictly   
orthodox4 ,having briefly referred to   
,abraham1 ,jacob1 ,moses1  ,aaron1 and  

,david1 all of whom are said to have    
intimated the correct  doctrine on this 
subject1 and all of whom were           
exceedingly prosperous1 he  passes to   
more modern times4 8,arius1 the impious 
founder of the impious  sect1 his       
entrails having fallen out1 passed into 
the flames of hell2 but  ,hilary1 the   
blessed defender of the undivided       
,trinity1 though exiled on  that        
account1 found his country in ,paradise4
 ,the ,king ,clovis1 who  confessed the 
,trinity1 and by its assistance crushed 
the heretics1  extended his dominions   
through all ,gaul4 ,alaric1 who denied  
the ,trinity1  was deprived of his      
kingdom and his subjects1 and1 what was 
far worse1 was  punished in the future  
world407#ejb7    ,it would be easy to   
cite other1 though perhaps not quite    
such striking1  instances of the degree 
in which the moral judgments of this    
unhappy age  were distorted by          
superstition47#ejc7 ,questions of       
orthodoxy1 or questions  of fasting1    

appeared to the popular mind            
immeasurably more important than  what  
we should now call the fundamental      
principles of right and wrong4 ,a  law  
of ,charlemagne1 and also a law of the  
,saxons1 condemned to death any  one who
 ate meat in ,lent17#ejd7 unless the    
priest was satisfied that it was  a     
matter of absolute necessity4 ,the moral
 enthusiasm of the age chiefly  drove   
men to abandon their civic or domestic  
duties1 to immure themselves  in        
monasteries1 and to waste their strength
 by prolonged and extravagant           
maceration47#eje7 ,yet1 in the midst of 
all this superstition1 there can be  no 
question that in some respects the      
religious agencies were operating  for  
good4 ,the monastic bodies that         
everywhere arose1 formed secure asylums 
for the multitudes who had been         
persecuted by their enemies1 constituted
  an invaluable counterpoise to the rude
 military forces of the time1           
familiarised the imagination of men with

 religious types that could hardly  fail
 in some degree to soften the character1
 and led the way in most forms  of      
peaceful labour4 ,when men1 filled with 
admiration at the reports of the        
sanctity and the miracles of some       
illustrious saint1 made pilgrimages to  
behold him1 and found him attired in the
 rude garb of a peasant1 with  thick    
shoes1 and with a scythe on his         
shoulder1 superintending the labours  of
 the farmers17#ejf7 or sitting in a     
small attic mending lamps17#ejg7        
whatever other benefit they might derive
 from the interview1 they could         
scarcely fail to return with an         
increased sense of the dignity of       
labour4  ,it was probably at this time  
as much for the benefit of the world as 
of  the ,church1 that the ecclesiastical
 sanctuaries and estates should remain  
inviolate1 and the numerous legends of  
,divine punishment having overtaken     
those who transgressed them17#ejh7      
attest the zeal with which the clergy   

sought to establish that inviolability4 
,the great sanctity that was  attached  
to holidays was also an important boon  
to the servile classes4  ,the           
celebration of the first day of the     
week1 in commemoration of the           
resurrection1 and as a period of        
religious exercises1 dates from the     
earliest age of the ,church4 ,the       
,christian festival was carefully       
distinguished from the ,jewish ,sabbath1
 with which it never appears to have    
been confounded till the close of the   
sixteenth century2 but some ,jewish     
converts1 who considered the ,jewish law
 to be still in force1 observed  both   
days4 ,in general1 however1 the         
,christian festival alone was observed1 
and the ,jewish ,sabbatical obligation1 
as ,st4 ,paul most explicitly affirms1  
no longer rested upon the ,christians4  
,the grounds of the observance of       
,sunday were the manifest propriety and 
expediency of devoting a certain        
portion of time to devout exercises1 the

 tradition which traced the             
sanctification of ,sunday to apostolic  
times1 and the right of the ,church  to 
appoint certain seasons to be kept holy 
by its members4 ,when  ,christianity    
acquired an ascendancy in the ,empire1  
its policy on this  subject was         
manifested in one of the laws of        
,constantine1 which1 without  making any
 direct reference to religious motives1 
ordered that1 8on the  day of the sun10 
no servile work should be performed     
except agriculture1  which1 being       
dependent on the weather1 could not1 it 
was thought1 be  reasonably postponed4  
,theodosius took a step further1 and    
suppressed the  public spectacles on    
that day4 ,during the centuries that    
immediately  followed the dissolution of
 the ,roman ,empire1 the clergy devoted 
themselves with great and praiseworthy  
zeal to the suppression of labour  both 
on ,sundays and on the other leading    
,church holidays4 ,more than one  law   
was made1 forbidding all ,sunday labour1

 and this prohibition was  reiterated by
 ,charlemagne in his                    
,capitularies47#eji7 ,several ,councils 
made  decrees on the subject17#eaj7 and 
several legends were circulated1 of men 
who had been afflicted miraculously with
 disease or with death1 for having  been
 guilty of this sin47#eaa7 ,although the
 moral side of religion was  greatly    
degraded or forgotten1 there was1 as ,i 
have already intimated1 one  important  
exception4 ,charity was so interwoven   
with the superstitious  parts of        
ecclesiastical teaching1 that it        
continued to grow and nourish in  the   
darkest period4 ,of the acts of ,queen  
,bathilda1 it is said we know  nothing  
except her donations to the monasteries1
 and the charity with  which she        
purchased slaves and captives1 and      
released them or converted  them into   
monks47#eab7 ,while many of the bishops 
were men of gross and  scandalous vice1 
there were always some who laboured     
assiduously in the  old episcopal       

vocation of protecting the oppressed1   
interceding for the  captives1 and      
opening their sanctuaries to the        
fugitives4 ,st4 ,germanus1 a  bishop of 
,paris1 near the close of the sixth     
century1 was especially  famous for his 
zeal in ransoming captives47#eac7 ,the  
fame he acquired was  so great1 that    
prisoners are said to have called upon  
him to assist them1  in the interval    
between his death and his burial2 and   
the body of the  saint becoming         
miraculously heavy1 it was found        
impossible to carry it to  the grave    
till the captives had been              
released47#ead7 ,in the midst of the    
complete eclipse of all secular         
learning1 in the midst of a reign of    
ignorance1 imposture1 and credulity     
which cannot be paralleled in history1  
there grew up a vast legendary          
literature1 clustering around the form  
of  the ascetic2 and the lives of the   
saints1 among very much that is         
grotesque1 childish1 and even immoral1  

contain some fragments of the  purest   
and most touching religious             
poetry47#eae7    ,but the chief title of
 the period we are considering1 to the  
indulgence of  posterity1 lies in its   
missionary labours4 ,the stream of      
missionaries  which had at first flowed 
from ,palestine and ,italy began to flow
 from the  ,west4 ,the ,irish           
monasteries furnished the earliest1 and 
probably the most  numerous1 labourers  
in the field4 ,a great portion of the   
north of ,england  was converted by the 
,irish monks of ,lindisfarne4 ,the fame 
of ,st4  ,columbanus in ,gaul1 in       
,germany1 and in ,italy1 for a time even
 balanced  that of ,st4 ,benedict       
himself1 and the school which he founded
 at ,luxeuil  became the great seminary 
for medival missionaries1 while the     
monastery  he planted at ,bobbio        
continued to the present century4 ,the  
,irish  missionary1 ,st4 ,gall1 gave his
 name to a portion of ,switzerland he   
had  converted1 and a crowd of other    

,irish missionaries penetrated to the   
remotest forests of ,germany4 ,the      
movement which began with ,st4 ,columba 
in  the middle of the sixth century1 was
 communicated to ,england and ,gaul     
about a century later4 ,early in the    
eighth century it found a great leader  
in the ,anglo-,saxon ,st4 ,boniface1 who
 spread ,christianity far and wide      
through ,germany1 and at once excited   
and disciplined an ardent enthusiasm1   
which appears to have attracted all that
 was morally best in the ,church4       
,during about three centuries1 and while
 ,europe had sunk into the most  extreme
 moral1 intellectual1 and political     
degradation1 a constant stream  of      
missionaries poured forth from the      
monasteries1 who spread the  knowledge  
of the ,cross and the seeds of a future 
civilisation through  every land1 from  
,lombardy to ,sweden47#eaf7    ,on the  
whole1 however1 it would be difficult to
 exaggerate the  superstition and the   
vice of the period between the          

dissolution of the  ,empire and the     
reign of ,charlemagne4 ,but in the midst
 of the chaos the  elements of a new    
society may be detected1 and we may     
already observe in  embryo the movement 
which ultimately issued in the crusades1
 the feudal  system1 and chivalry4 ,it  
is exclusively with the moral aspect of 
this  movement that the present work is 
concerned1 and ,i shall endeavour1 in   
the  remainder of this chapter1 to      
describe and explain its incipient      
stages4  ,it consisted of two parts--a  
fusion of ,christianity with the        
military  spirit1 and an increasing     
reverence for secular rank4    ,it had  
been an ancient maxim of the ,greeks1   
that no more acceptable gifts  can be   
offered in the temples of the gods1 than
 the trophies won from an  enemy in     
battle47#eag7 ,of this military religion
 ,christianity had been at  first the   
extreme negation4 ,i have already had   
occasion to observe that it  had been   
one of its earliest rules that no arms  

should be introduced  within the church1
 and that soldiers returning even from  
the most  righteous war should not be   
admitted to communion until after a     
period of  penance and purification4 ,a 
powerful party1 which counted among its 
leaders ,clement of ,alexandria1        
,tertullian1 ,origen1 ,lactantius1 and  
,basil1  maintained that all warfare was
 unlawful for those who had been        
converted2  and this opinion had its    
martyr in the celebrated ,maximilianus1 
who  suffered death under ,diocletian   
solely because1 having been enrolled as 
a  soldier1 he declared that he was a   
,christian1 and that therefore he could 
not fight4 ,the extent to which this    
doctrine was disseminated has been      
suggested with much plausibility as one 
of the causes of the ,diocletian        
persecution47#eah7 ,it was the subject  
of one of the reproaches of ,celsus2    
and ,origen1 in reply1 frankly accepted 
the accusation that ,christianity  was  
incompatible with military service1     

though he maintained that the  prayers  
of the ,christians were more efficacious
 than the swords of the  legions47#eai7 
,at the same time1 there can be no      
question that many  ,christians1 from a 
very early date1 did enlist in the army1
 and that they  were not cut off from   
the ,church4 ,the legend of the         
thundering legion1  under ,marcus       
,aurelius1 whatever we may think of the 
pretended miracle1  attested the fact1  
and it is expressly asserted by         
,tertullian47#ebj7 ,the  first fury of  
the ,diocletian persecution fell upon   
,christian soldiers1 and  by the time of
 ,constantine the army appears to have  
become1 in a great  degree1 ,christian4 
,a ,council of ,arles1 under            
,constantine1 condemned  soldiers who1  
through religious motives1 deserted     
their colours2 and ,st4  ,augustine     
threw his great influence into the same 
scale4 ,but even where  the calling was 
not regarded as sinful1 it was strongly 
discouraged4 ,the  ideal or type of     

supreme excellence conceived by the     
imagination of the  ,pagan world and to 
which all their purest moral enthusiasm 
naturally  aspired1 was the patriot and 
soldier4 ,the ideal of the ,catholic    
legends  was the ascetic1 whose first   
duty was to abandon all secular feelings
 and  ties4 ,in most family circles the 
conflict between the two principles     
appeared1 and in the moral atmosphere of
 the fourth and fifth centuries it  was 
almost certain that every young man who 
was animated by any pure or  genuine    
enthusiasm would turn from the army to  
the monks4 ,st4 ,martin1 ,st4  ,ferreol1
 ,st4 ,tarrachus1 and ,st4 ,victricius1 
were among those who through  religious 
motives abandoned the army47#eba7 ,when 
,ulphilas translated the  ,bible into   
,gothic1 he is said to have excepted the
 four books of ,kings1  through fear    
that they might encourage the martial   
disposition of the  barbarians47#ebb7   
,the first influence that contributed to
 bring the military profession into     

friendly connection with religion was   
the received doctrine concerning the    
,providential government of affairs4 ,it
 was generally taught that all  national
 catastrophes were penal inflictions1   
resulting1 for the most  part1 from the 
vices or the religious errors of the    
leading men1 and that  temporal         
prosperity was the reward of orthodoxy  
and virtue4 ,a great  battle1 on the    
issue of which the fortunes of a people 
or of a monarch  depended1 was therefore
 supposed to be the special occasion of 
,providential interposition1 and the    
hope of obtaining military success      
became one of the most frequent motives 
of conversion4 ,the conversion of       
,constantine was professedly1 and the   
conversion of ,clovis was perhaps       
really1 due to the persuasion that the  
,divine interposition had in a  critical
 moment given them the victory2 and ,i  
have already noticed how  large a part  
must be assigned to this order of ideas 
in facilitating the  progress of        

,christianity among the barbarians4     
,when a cross was said to  have appeared
 miraculously to ,constantine1 with an  
inscription announcing  the victory of  
the ,milvian bridge2 when the same holy 
sign1 adorned with  the sacred monogram1
 was carried in the forefront of the    
,roman armies2  when the nails of the   
cross1 which ,helena had brought from   
,jerusalem1 were  converted by the      
emperor into a helmet1 and into bits for
 his war-horse1  it was evident that a  
great change was passing over the once  
pacific  spirit of the ,church47#ebc7   
,many circumstances conspired to        
accelerate it4 ,northern tribes1 who had
  been taught that the gates of the     
,walhalla were ever open to the warrior 
who presented himself stained with the  
blood of his vanquished enemies1  were  
converted to ,christianity2 but they    
carried their old feelings into  their  
new creed4 ,the conflict of many races1 
and the paralysis of all  government    
that followed the fall of the ,empire1  

made force everywhere  dominant1 and    
petty wars incessant4 ,the military     
obligations attached to  the 8benefices0
 which the sovereigns gave to their     
leading chiefs1  connected the idea of  
military service with that of rank still
 more  closely than it had been         
connected before1 and rendered it doubly
  honourable in the eyes of men4 ,many  
bishops and abbots1 partly from the     
turbulence of their times and           
characters1 and partly1 at a later      
period1  from their position as great   
feudal lords1 were accustomed to lead   
their  followers in battle2 and this    
custom1 though prohibited by            
,charlemagne1  may be traced to so late 
a period as the battle of               
,agincourt47#ebd7    ,the stigma which  
,christianity had attached to war was   
thus gradually  effaced4 ,at the same   
time1 the ,church remained1 on the      
whole1 a pacific  influence4 ,war was   
rather condoned than consecrated1 and1  
whatever might  be the case with a few  

isolated prelates1 the ,church did      
nothing to  increase or encourage it4   
,the transition from the almost ,quaker 
tenets of  the primitive ,church to the 
essentially military ,christianity of   
the  ,crusades was chiefly due to       
another cause--to the terrors and to the
  example of ,mohammedanism4    ,this   
great religion1 which so long rivalled  
the influence of ,christianity1  had    
indeed spread the deepest and most      
justifiable panic through  ,christendom4
 ,without any of those aids to the      
imagination which pictures  and images  
can furnish1 without any elaborate      
sacerdotal organisation1  preaching the 
purest ,monotheism among ignorant and   
barbarous men1 and  inculcating1 on the 
whole1 an extremely high and noble      
system of morals1  it spread with a     
rapidity and it acquired a hold over the
 minds of its  votaries1 which it is    
probable that no other religion has     
altogether  equalled4 ,it borrowed from 
,christianity that doctrine of salvation

 by  belief1 which is perhaps the most  
powerful impulse that can be applied to 
the characters of masses of men1 and it 
elaborated so minutely the charms  of   
its sensual heaven1 and the terrors of  
its material hell1 as to cause  the     
alternative to appeal with unrivalled   
force to the gross imaginations  of the 
people4 ,it possessed a book which1     
however inferior to that of the         
opposing religion1 has nevertheless been
 the consolation and the support  of    
millions in many ages4 ,it taught a     
fatalism which in its first age  nerved 
its adherents with a matchless military 
courage1 and which1 though  in later    
days it has often paralysed their active
 energies1 has also  rarely failed to   
support them under the pressure of      
inevitable calamity4  ,but1 above all1  
it discovered the great1 the fatal      
secret of uniting  indissolubly the     
passion of the soldier with the passion 
of the devotee4  ,making the conquest of
 the infidel the first of duties1 and   

proposing  heaven as the certain reward 
of the valiant soldier1 it created a    
blended  enthusiasm that soon           
overpowered the divided counsels and the
 voluptuous  governments of the ,east1  
and1 within a century of the death of   
,mohammed1  his followers had almost    
extirpated ,christianity from its       
original home1  founded great monarchies
 in ,asia and ,africa1 planted a noble1 
though  transient and exotic1           
civilisation in ,spain1 menaced the     
capital of the  ,eastern empire1 and1   
but for the issue of a single battle1   
they would  probably have extended their
 sceptre over the energetic and         
progressive  races of ,central ,europe4 
,the wave was broken by ,charles        
,martel1 at the  battle of ,poitiers1   
and it is now useless to speculate what 
might have  been the consequences had   
,mohammedanism unfurled its triumphant  
banner  among those ,teutonic tribes who
 have so often changed their creed1 and 
on  whom the course of civilisation has 

so largely depended4 ,but one great     
change was in fact achieved4 ,the spirit
 of ,mohammedanism slowly passed  into  
,christianity1 and transformed it into  
its image4 ,the spectacle of an         
essentially military religion fascinated
 men who were at once very warlike  and 
very superstitious4 ,the panic that had 
palsied ,europe was after a long        
interval succeeded by a fierce reaction 
of resentment4 ,pride and religion      
conspired to urge the ,christian        
warriors against those who had so often 
defeated the armies and wasted the      
territory of ,christendom1 who had shorn
  the empire of the ,cross of many of   
its fairest provinces1 and profaned     
that holy city which was venerated not  
only for its past associations1 but     
also for the spiritual blessings it     
could still bestow upon the pilgrim4    
,the papal indulgences proved not less  
efficacious in stimulating the  military
 spirit than the promises of ,mohammed1 
and for about two centuries  every      

pulpit in ,christendom proclaimed the   
duty of war with the  unbeliever1 and   
represented the battle-field as the sure
 path to heaven4  ,the religious orders 
which arose united the character of the 
priest with  that of the warrior1 and   
when1 at the hour of sunset1 the soldier
 knelt  down to pray before his cross1  
that cross was the handle of his sword4 
,it would be impossible to conceive a   
more complete transformation than       
,christianity had thus undergone1 and it
 is melancholy to contrast with its     
aspect during the crusades the          
impression it had once most justly made 
upon the world1 as the spirit of        
gentleness and of peace encountering the
  spirit of violence and war4 ,among the
 many curious habits of the ,pagan      
,irish1 one of the most significant was 
that of perpendicular burial4 ,with  a  
feeling something like that which       
induced ,vespasian to declare that a    
,roman emperor should die standing1 the 
,pagan warriors shrank from the  notion 

of being prostrate even in death1 and   
they appear to have regarded  this      
martial burial as a special symbol of   
,paganism4 ,an old ,irish  manuscript   
tells how1 when ,christianity had been  
introduced into ,ireland1  a king of    
,ulster on his deathbed charged his son 
never to become a  ,christian1 but to be
 buried standing upright like a man in  
battle1 with  his face for ever turned  
to the south1 defying the men of        
,leinster47#ebe7  ,as late as the       
sixteenth century1 it is said that in   
some parts of ,ireland  children were   
baptised by immersion2 but the right    
arms of the males were  carefully held  
above the water1 in order that1 not     
having been dipped in  the sacred       
stream1 they might strike the more      
deadly blow47#ebf7    ,it had been      
boldly predicted by some of the early   
,christians that the  conversion of the 
world would lead to the establishment of
 perpetual  peace4 ,in looking back1    
with our present experience1 we are     

driven to the  melancholy conclusion    
that1 instead of diminishing the number 
of wars1  ecclesiastical influence has  
actually and very seriously increased   
it4 ,we  may look in vain for any period
 since ,constantine1 in which the       
clergy1 as  a body1 exerted themselves  
to repress the military spirit1 or to   
prevent  or abridge a particular war1   
with an energy at all comparable to that
  which they displayed in stimulating   
the fanaticism of the crusaders1 in     
producing the atrocious massacre of the 
,albigenses1 in embittering the         
religious contests that followed the    
,reformation4 ,private wars were1 no    
doubt1 in some degree repressed by their
 influence2 for the institution of  the 
8,truce of ,god0 was for a time of much 
value1 and when1 towards the  close of  
the middle ages1 the custom of duels    
arose1 it was strenuously  condemned by 
the clergy2 but we can hardly place any 
great value on their  exertions in this 
field1 when we remember that duels were 

almost or  altogether unknown to the    
,pagan world2 that1 having arisen in a  
period of  great superstition1 the      
anathemas of the ,church were almost    
impotent to  discourage them2 and that  
in our own century they are rapidly     
disappearing  before the simple censure 
of an industrial society4 ,it is        
possible--though  it would1 ,i imagine1 
be difficult to prove it--that the      
mediatorial office1  so often exercised 
by bishops1 may sometimes have prevented
 wars2 and it  is certain that during   
the period of the religious wars1 so    
much military  spirit existed in ,europe
 that it must necessarily have found a  
vent1 and  under no circumstances could 
the period have been one of perfect     
peace4  ,but when all these             
qualifications have been fully admitted1
 the broad fact  will remain1 that1 with
 the exception of ,mohammedanism1 no    
other religion  has done so much to     
produce war as was done by the religious
 teachers of  ,christendom during       

several centuries4 ,the military        
fanaticism evoked by  the indulgences of
 the popes1 by the exhortations of the  
pulpit1 by the  religious importance    
attached to the relics at ,jerusalem1   
and by the  prevailing hatred of        
misbelievers1 has scarcely ever been    
equalled in its  intensity1 and it has  
caused the effusion of oceans of blood1 
and has been  productive of incalculable
 misery to the world4 ,religious        
fanaticism was a  main cause of the     
earlier wars1 and an important          
ingredient in the later  ones4 ,the     
peace principles1 that were so common   
before ,constantine1 have  found        
scarcely any echo except from ,erasmus1 
the ,anabaptists1 and the               
,quakers27#ebg7 and although some very  
important pacific agencies have  arisen 
out of the industrial progress of modern
 times1 these have been1  for the most  
part1 wholly unconnected with1 and have 
in some cases been  directly opposed to1
 theological interests4    ,but although

 theological influences cannot          
reasonably be said to have  diminished  
the number of wars1 they have had a very
 real and beneficial  effect in         
diminishing their atrocity4 ,on few     
subjects have the moral  opinions of    
different ages exhibited so marked a    
variation as in their  judgments of what
 punishment may justly be imposed on a  
conquered enemy1  and these variations  
have often been cited as an argument    
against those  who believe in the       
existence of natural moral perceptions4 
,to those1  however1 who accept that    
doctrine1 with the limitations that have
 been  stated in the first chapter1 they
 can cause no perplexity4 ,in the first 
dawning of the human intelligence 7as ,i
 have said7 the notion of duty1 as      
distinguished from that of interest1    
appears1 and the mind1 in reviewing  the
 various emotions by which it is        
influenced1 recognises the unselfish    
and benevolent motives as essentially   
and generically superior to the  selfish

 and the cruel4 ,but it is the general  
condition of society alone  that        
determines the standard of              
benevolence--the classes towards which  
every good man will exercise it4 ,at    
first1 the range of duty is the  family1
 the tribe1 the state1 the              
confederation4 ,within these limits     
every  man feels himself under moral    
obligations to those about him2 but he  
regards the outer world as we regard    
wild animals1 as beings upon whom he    
may justifiably prey4 ,hence1 we may    
explain the curious fact that the  terms
 brigand or corsair conveyed in the     
early stages of society no notion  of   
moral guilt47#ebh7 ,such men were looked
 upon simply as we look upon  huntsmen1 
and if they displayed courage and skill 
in their pursuit1 they  were deemed fit 
subjects for admiration4 ,even in the   
writings of the most  enlightened       
philosophers of ,greece1 war with       
barbarians is represented as  a form of 
chase1 and the simple desire of         

obtaining the barbarians as  slaves was 
considered a sufficient reason for      
invading them4 ,the right of  the       
conqueror to kill his captives was      
generally recognised1 nor was it at     
first restricted by any considerations  
of age or sex4 ,several instances  are  
recorded of ,greek and other cities     
being deliberately destroyed by  ,greeks
 or by ,romans1 and the entire          
populations ruthlessly massacred47#ebi7 
,the whole career of the early republic 
of ,rome1 though much idealised and     
transfigured by later historians1 was   
probably governed by these              
principles47#ecj7 ,the normal fate of   
the captive1 which1 among barbarians1   
had been death1 was1 in civilised       
antiquity1 slavery2 but many thousands  
were condemned to the gladiatorial      
shows1 and the vanquished general was   
commonly slain in the ,mamertine prison1
 while his conqueror ascended in        
triumph to the ,capitol4    ,a few      
traces of a more humane spirit may1 it  

is true1 be discovered4 ,plato  had     
advocated the liberation of all ,greek  
prisoners upon payment of a  fixed      
ransom17#eca7 and the ,spartan general  
,callicratidas had nobly acted  upon    
this principle27#ecb7 but his example   
never appears to have been  generally   
followed4 ,in ,rome1 the notion of      
international obligation was  very      
strongly felt4 ,no war was considered   
just which had not been  officially     
declared2 and even in the case of wars  
with barbarians1 the  ,roman historians 
often discuss the sufficiency or        
insufficiency of the  motives1 with a   
conscientious severity a modern         
historian could hardly  surpass47#ecc7  
,the later ,greek and ,latin writings   
occasionally contain  maxims which      
exhibit a considerable progress in this 
sphere4 ,the sole  legitimate object of 
war1 both ,cicero and ,sallust declared 
to be an  assured peace4 ,that war1     
according to ,tacitus1 ends well which  
ends with a  pardon4 ,pliny refused to  

apply the epithet great to ,csar1 on    
account of  the torrents of human blood 
he had shed4 ,two ,roman                
conquerors7#ecd7 are  credited with the 
saying that it is better to save the    
life of one citizen  than to destroy a  
thousand enemies4 ,marcus ,aurelius     
mournfully assimilated  the career of a 
conqueror to that of a simple robber4   
,nations or armies  which voluntarily   
submitted to ,rome were habitually      
treated with great  leniency1 and       
numerous acts of individual magnanimity 
are recorded4 ,the  violation of the    
chastity of conquered women by soldiers 
in a siege was  denounced as a rare and 
atrocious crime47#ece7 ,the extreme     
atrocities of  ancient war appear at    
last to have been practically1 though   
not legally1  restricted to two         
classes47#ecf7 ,cities where ,roman     
ambassadors had been  insulted1 or where
 some special act of ill faith or       
cruelty had taken  place1 were razed to 
the ground1 and their populations       

massacred or  delivered into slavery4   
,barbarian prisoners were regarded      
almost as wild  beasts1 and sent in     
thousands to fill the slave market or to
 combat in the  arena4    ,the changes  
,christianity effected in the rights of 
war were very  important1 and they may1 
,i think1 be comprised under three      
heads4 ,in the  first place1 it         
suppressed the gladiatorial shows1 and  
thereby saved  thousands of captives    
from a bloody death4 ,in the next place1
 it steadily  discouraged the practice  
of enslaving prisoners1 ransomed immense
  multitudes with charitable            
contributions1 and by slow and          
insensible  gradations proceeded on its 
path of mercy till it became a          
recognised  principle of international  
law1 that no ,christian prisoners should
 be  reduced to slavery47#ecg7 ,in the  
third place1 it had a more indirect but 
very powerful influence by the creation 
of a new warlike ideal4 ,the ideal      
knight of the ,crusades and of chivalry1

 uniting all the force and fire of  the 
ancient warrior1 with something of the  
tenderness and humility of the          
,christian saint1 sprang from the       
conjunction of the two streams of       
religious and of military feeling2 and  
although this ideal1 like all  others1  
was a creation of the imagination not   
often perfectly realised in  life1 yet  
it remained the type and model of       
warlike excellence1 to which  many      
generations aspired2 and its softening  
influence may even now be  largely      
traced in the character of the modern   
gentleman4                              
,together with the gradual fusion of the
 military spirit with ,christianity1  we
 may dimly descry1 in the period before 
,charlemagne1 the first stages of  that 
consecration of secular rank which at a 
later period1 in the forms of  chivalry1
 the divine right of kings1 and the     
reverence for aristocracies1  played so 
large a part both in moral and in       
political history4    ,we have already  

seen that the course of events in the   
,roman ,empire had  been towards the    
continual aggrandisement of the imperial
 power4 ,the  representative despotism  
of ,augustus was at last succeeded by   
the oriental  despotism of ,diocletian4 
,the senate sank into a powerless       
assembly of  imperial nominees1 and the 
spirit of ,roman freedom wholly perished
 with  the extinction of ,stoicism4     
,it would probably be a needless        
refinement to seek any deeper causes for
  this change than may be found in the  
ordinary principles of human nature4    
,despotism is the normal and legitimate 
government of an early society in  which
 knowledge has not yet developed the    
powers of the people2 but when  it is   
introduced into a civilised community1  
it is of the nature of a  disease1 and a
 disease which1 unless it be checked1   
has a continual  tendency to spread4    
,when free nations abdicate their       
political functions1  they gradually    
lose both the capacity and the desire   

for freedom4  ,political talent and     
ambition1 having no sphere for action1  
steadily  decay1 and servile1           
enervating1 and vicious habits          
proportionately  increase4 ,nations are 
organic beings in a constant process of 
expansion or  decay1 and where they do  
not exhibit a progress of liberty they  
usually  exhibit a progress of          
servitude4    ,it can hardly be asserted
 that ,christianity had much influence  
upon this  change4 ,by accelerating in  
some degree that withdrawal of the      
virtuous  energies of the people from   
the sphere of government which had long 
been  in process1 it prevented the great
 improvement of morals1 which it        
undoubtedly effected1 from appearing    
perceptibly in public affairs4 ,it      
taught a doctrine of passive obedience1 
which its disciples nobly observed  in  
the worst periods of persecution4 ,on   
the other hand1 the ,christians         
emphatically repudiated the ascription  
of ,divine honours to the sovereign1    

and they asserted with heroic constancy 
their independent worship1 in  defiance 
of the law4 ,after the time of          
,constantine1 however1 their zeal       
became far less pure1 and sectarian     
interests wholly governed their         
principles4 ,much misapplied learning   
has been employed in endeavouring to    
extract from the ,fathers a consistent  
doctrine concerning the relations of    
subjects to their sovereigns2 but every 
impartial observer may discover  that   
the principle upon which they acted was 
exceedingly simple4 ,when a  sovereign  
was sufficiently orthodox in his        
opinions1 and sufficiently  zealous in  
patronising the ,church and in          
persecuting the heretics1 he was        
extolled as an angel4 ,when his policy  
was opposed to the ,church1 he was      
represented as a dmon4 ,the estimate    
which ,gregory of ,tours has given of   
the character of ,clovis1 though far    
more frank1 is not a more striking      
instance of moral perversion than the   

fulsome and indeed blasphemous          
adulation which ,eusebius poured upon   
,constantine--a sovereign whose         
character was at all times of the most  
mingled description1 and who1  shortly  
after his conversion1 put to a violent  
death his son1 his nephew1  and his     
wife4 ,if we were to estimate the       
attitude of ecclesiastics to  sovereigns
 by the language of ,eusebius1 we should
 suppose that they  ascribed to them a  
direct ,divine inspiration1 and exalted 
the ,imperial  dignity to an extent that
 was before unknown47#ech7 ,but when    
,julian mounted  the throne1 the whole  
aspect of the ,church was changed4 ,this
 great and  virtuous1 though misguided  
sovereign1 whose private life was a     
model of  purity1 who carried to the    
throne the manners1 tastes1 and         
friendships of  a philosophic life1 and 
who proclaimed and1 with very slight    
exceptions1  acted with the largest and 
most generous toleration1 was an enemy  
of the  ,church1 and all the vocabulary 

of invective was in consequence         
habitually  lavished upon him4          
,ecclesiastics and laymen combined in   
insulting him1 and  when1 after a brief 
but glorious reign of less than two     
years1 he met an  honourable death on   
the battle-field1 neither the disaster  
that had  befallen the ,roman arms1 nor 
the present dangers of the army1 nor the
  heroic courage which the fallen       
emperor had displayed1 nor the majestic 
tranquillity of his end1 nor the tears  
of his faithful friends1 could  shame   
the ,christian community into the       
decency of silence4 ,a peal of  brutal  
merriment filled the land4 ,in ,antioch 
the ,christians assembled in  the       
theatres and in the churches1 to        
celebrate with rejoicing the death      
which their emperor had met in fighting 
against the enemies of his              
country47#eci7 ,a crowd of vindictive   
legends expressed the exultation of  the
 ,church17#edj7 and ,st4 ,gregory       
,nazianzen devoted his eloquence to     

immortalising it4 ,his brother had at   
one time been a high official in the    
,empire1 and had fearlessly owned his   
,christianity under ,julian2 but that   
emperor not only did not remove him from
 his post1 but even honoured him  with  
his warm friendship47#eda7 ,the body of 
,julian had been laid but a  short time 
in the grave1 when ,st4 ,gregory        
delivered two fierce invectives  against
 his memory1 collected the grotesque    
calumnies that had been heaped  upon his
 character1 expressed a regret that his 
remains had not been flung  after death 
into the common sewer1 and regaled the  
hearers by an emphatic  assertion of the
 tortures that were awaiting him in     
hell4 ,among the ,pagans  a charge of   
the gravest kind was brought against the
 ,christians4 ,it was  said that ,julian
 died by the spear1 not of an enemy1 but
 of one of his own  ,christian soldiers4
 ,when we remember that he was at once  
an emperor and a  general1 that he fell 
when bravely and confidently leading his

 army in the  field1 and in the critical
 moment of a battle on which the        
fortunes of the  ,empire largely        
depended1 this charge1 which ,libanius  
has made1 appears to  involve as large  
an amount of base treachery as any that 
can be conceived4  ,it was probably a   
perfectly groundless calumny2 but the   
manner in which it  was regarded among  
the ,christians is singularly           
characteristic4  8,libanius10 says one  
of the ecclesiastical historians1       
8clearly states  that the emperor fell  
by the hand of a ,christian2 and this1  
probably1 was  the truth4 ,it is not    
unlikely that some of the soldiers who  
then served in  the ,roman army might   
have conceived the idea of acting like  
the ancient  slayers of tyrants who     
exposed themselves to death in the cause
 of  liberty1 and fought in defence of  
their country1 their families1 and their
  friends1 and whose names are held in  
universal admiration4 ,still less is  he
 deserving of blame who1 for the sake of

 ,god and of religion1 performed  so    
bold a deed407#edb7    ,it may be       
asserted1 ,i think1 without             
exaggeration1 that the complete         
subordination of all other principles to
 their theological interests1  which    
characterised the ecclesiastics under   
,julian1 continued for many  centuries4 
,no language of invective was too       
extreme to be applied to a  sovereign   
who opposed their interests4 ,no        
language of adulation was too           
extravagant for a sovereign who         
sustained them4 ,of all the emperors who
  disgraced the throne of               
,constantinople1 the most odious and    
ferocious was  probably ,phocas4 ,an    
obscure centurion1 he rose by a military
 revolt to the  supreme power1 and the  
,emperor ,maurice1 with his family1 fell
 into his  hands4 ,he resolved to put   
the captive emperor to death2 but1 first
 of all1  he ordered his five children  
to be brought out and to be successively
  murdered before the eyes of their     

father1 who bore the awful sight with a 
fine mixture of antique heroism and of  
,christian piety1 murmuring1 as each    
child fell beneath the knife of the     
assassin1 8,thou art just1 ,o ,lord1 and
  righteous are ,thy judgments10 and    
even interposing1 at the last moment1 to
  reveal the heroic fraud of the nurse  
who desired to save his youngest  child 
by substituting for it her own4 ,but    
,maurice--who had been a weak and       
avaricious rather than a vicious        
sovereign--had shown himself jealous of 
the influence of the ,pope1 had         
forbidden the soldiers1 during the      
extreme  danger of their country1       
deserting their colours to enrol        
themselves as  monks1 and had even      
encouraged the pretensions of the       
,archbishop of  ,constantinople to the  
title of ,universal ,bishop2 and1 in the
 eyes of the  ,roman priests1 the       
recollection of these crimes was        
sufficient to excuse  the most brutal of
 murders4 ,in two letters1 full of      

passages from  ,scripture1 and replete  
with fulsome and blasphemous flattery1  
the ,pope1  ,st4 ,gregory the ,great1   
wrote to congratulate ,phocas and his   
wife upon  their triumph2 he called     
heaven and earth to rejoice over them2  
he placed  their images to be venerated 
in the ,lateran1 and he adroitly        
insinuated  that it was impossible that1
 with their well-known piety1 they could
 fail  to be very favourable to the ,see
 of ,peter47#edc7    ,the course of     
events in relation to the monarchical   
power was for some  time different in   
the ,east and the ,west4 ,constantine   
had himself assumed  more of the pomp   
and manner of an oriental sovereign than
 any preceding  emperor1 and the court  
of ,constantinople was soon             
characterised by an  extravagance of    
magnificence on the part of the monarch1
 and of adulation  on the part of the   
subjects1 which has probably never been 
exceeded47#edd7  ,the imperial power in 
the ,east overshadowed the              

ecclesiastical1 and the  priests1       
notwithstanding their fierce outbreak   
during the iconoclastic  controversy1   
and a few minor paroxysms of revolt1    
gradually sank into that  contented     
subservience which has usually          
characterised the ,eastern ,church4  ,in
 the ,west1 however1 the ,roman bishops 
were in a great degree independent  of  
the sovereigns1 and in some degree      
opposed to their interests4 ,the        
transfer of the imperial power to       
,constantinople1 by leaving the ,roman  
bishops the chief personages in a city  
which long association as well as       
actual power rendered the foremost in   
the world1 was one of the great  causes 
of the aggrandisement of the ,papacy and
 the ,arianism of many  sovereigns1 the 
jealousy which others exhibited of      
ecclesiastical  encroachments1 and the  
lukewarmness of a few in persecuting    
heretics1 were  all causes of           
dissension4 ,on the severance of the    
,empire1 the ,western  ,church came in  

contact with rulers of another type4    
,the barbarian kings  were little more  
than military chiefs1 elected for the   
most part by the  people1 surrounded by 
little or no special sanctity1 and      
maintaining their  precarious and very  
restricted authority by their courage or
 their skill4  ,a few feebly imitated   
the pomp of the ,roman emperors1 but    
their claims had  no great weight with  
the world4 ,the aureole which the genius
 of ,theodoric  cast around his throne  
passed away upon his death1 and the     
,arianism of  that great sovereign      
sufficiently debarred him from the      
sympathies of the  ,church4 ,in ,gaul1  
under a few bold and unscrupulous men1  
the ,merovingian  dynasty emerged from a
 host of petty kings1 and consolidated  
the whole  country into one kingdom2 but
 after a short period it degenerated1   
the  kings became mere puppets in the   
hands of the mayors of the palace1 and  
these latter1 whose office had become   
hereditary1 who were the chiefs of  the 

great landed proprietors1 and who had   
acquired by their position a  personal  
ascendancy over the sovereigns1 became  
the virtual rulers of the  nation4      
,it was out of these somewhat           
unpromising conditions that the medival 
doctrine of the ,divine right of kings1 
and the general reverence for rank1     
that formed the essence of chivalry1    
were slowly evolved4 ,political and     
moral causes conspired in producing     
them4 ,the chief political causes--which
  are well known--may be summed up in a 
few words4    ,when ,leo the ,isaurian  
attempted1 in the eighth century1 to    
repress the  worship of images1 the     
resistance which he met at              
,constantinople1 though  violent1 was   
speedily allayed2 but the ,pope1        
assuming a far higher  position than any
 ,byzantine ecclesiastic could attain1  
boldly  excommunicated the emperor1 and 
led a revolt against his authority1     
which  resulted in the virtual          
independence of ,italy4 ,his position   

was at this  time singularly grand4 ,he 
represented a religious cause to which  
the great  mass of the ,christian world 
were passionately attached4 ,he was     
venerated  as the emancipator of ,italy4
 ,he exhibited in the hour of his       
triumph a  moderation which conciliated 
many enemies1 and prevented the anarchy 
that  might naturally have been         
expected4 ,he presided1 at the same     
time1 over a  vast monastic             
organisation1 which ramified over all   
,christendom1  propagated his authority 
among many barbarous nations1 and1 by   
its special  attachment to the ,papacy1 
as distinguished from the ,episcopacy1  
contributed very much to transform      
,christianity into a spiritual          
despotism4 ,one great danger1 however1  
still menaced his power4 ,the  barbarous
 ,lombards were continually invading his
 territory1 and  threatening the        
independence of ,rome4 ,the ,lombard    
monarch1 ,luitprand had  quailed in the 
very hour of his triumph before the     

menace of eternal  torture but his      
successor1 ,astolphus1 was proof against
 every fear1 and it  seemed as though   
the ,papal city must have inevitably    
succumbed before his  arms4    ,in their
 complete military impotence1 the ,popes
 looked abroad for some  foreign        
succour1 and they naturally turned to   
the ,franks1 whose martial  tastes and  
triumphs were universally renowned4     
,charles ,martel1 though  simply a mayor
 of the palace1 had saved ,europe from  
the ,mohammedans1 and  the ,pope        
expected that he would unsheath his     
sword for the defence of the  ,vatican4 
,charles1 however1 was deaf to all      
entreaties2 and1 although he  had done  
more than any ruler since ,constantine  
for the ,church1 his  attention seems to
 have been engrossed by the interests of
 his own  country1 and he was much      
alienated from the sympathies of the    
clergy4 ,an  ancient legend tells how a 
saint saw his soul carried by dmons into
 hell1  because he had secularised      

,church property1 and a more modern     
historian7#ede7 has ascribed his death  
to his having hesitated to defend  the  
,pope4 ,his son1 ,pepin1 however1       
actuated probably in different degrees  
by personal ambition1 a desire for      
military adventure1 and religious zeal1 
listened readily to the prayer of the   
,pope1 and a compact was entered into   
between the parties1 which proved one of
 the most important events in  history4 
,pepin agreed to secure the ,pope from  
the danger by which he was  threatened4 
,the ,pope agreed to give his religious 
sanction to the ambition  of ,pepin1 who
 designed to depose the ,merovingian    
dynasty1 and to become in  name1 as he  
was already in fact1 the sovereign of   
,gaul4    ,it is not necessary for me to
 recount at length the details of these 
negotiations1 which are described by    
many historians4 ,it is sufficient to   
say1 that the compact was religiously   
observed4 ,pepin made two expeditions   
to ,italy1 and completely shattered the 

power of the ,lombards1 wresting  from  
them the rich exarchate of ,ravenna1    
which he ceded to the ,pope1 who  still 
retained his nominal allegiance to the  
,byzantine emperor1 but who  became1 by 
this donation1 for the first time       
avowedly an independent  temporal       
prince4 ,on the other hand1 the         
deposition of ,childeric was  peaceably 
effected2 the last of the ,merovingians 
was immured in a  monastery1 and the    
,carlovingian dynasty ascended the      
throne under the  special benediction of
 the ,pope1 who performed on the        
occasion the  ceremony of consecration1 
which had not previously been in general
  use17#edf7 placed the crown with his  
own hands on the head of ,pepin1 and    
delivered a solemn anathema against all 
who should rebel against the new  king  
or against his successors4    ,the      
extreme importance of these events was  
probably not fully realised by  any of  
the parties concerned in them4 ,it was  
evident1 indeed1 that the  ,pope had    

been freed from a pressing danger1 and  
had acquired a great  accession of      
temporal power1 and also that a new     
dynasty had arisen in  ,gaul under      
circumstances that were singularly      
favourable and imposing4  ,but1 much    
more important than these facts was the 
permanent consecration  of the royal    
authority that had been effected4 ,the  
,pope had successfully  asserted his    
power of deposing and elevating kings1  
and had thus acquired  a position which 
influenced the whole subsequent course  
of ,european  history4 ,the monarch1 if 
he had become in some degree subservient
 to the  priest1 had become in a great  
degree independent of his people2 the   
,divine  origin of his power was        
regarded as a dogma of religion1 and a  
sanctity  surrounded him which          
immeasurably aggrandised his power4 ,the
 ascription1  by the ,pagans1 of        
divinity to kings had had no appreciable
 effect in  increasing their authority  
or restraining the limits of criticism  

or of  rebellion4 ,the ascription of a  
,divine right to kings1 independent of  
the  wishes of the people1 has been one 
of the most enduring and most potent of 
superstitions1 and it has even now not  
wholly vanished from the  world47#edg7  
,mere isolated political events have1   
however1 rarely or never this  profound 
influence1 unless they have been        
preceded and prepared by other          
agencies4 ,the first predisposing cause 
of the ready reception of the  doctrine 
of the ,divine character of authority1  
may probably be found in  the prominence
 of the monastic system4 ,i have already
 observed that this  system represents  
in its extreme form that exaltation of  
the virtues of  humility and of         
obedience which so broadly distinguishes
 the ,christian  from the ,pagan type of
 excellence4 ,i have also noticed that1 
owing to the  concurrence of many       
causes1 it had acquired such dimensions 
and influence  as to supply the guiding 
ideal of the ,christian world4          

,controlling or  monopolising all       
education and literature1 furnishing    
most of the  legislators and many of the
 statesmen of the age1 attracting to    
themselves  all moral enthusiasm and    
most intellectual ability1 the monks    
soon left  their impress on the         
character of nations4 ,habits of        
obedience and  dispositions of humility 
were diffused1 revered1 and idealised1  
and a  ,church which rested mainly on   
tradition fostered a deep sense of the  
sanctity of antiquity1 and a natural    
disposition to observe traditional      
customs4 ,in this manner a tone of      
feeling was gradually formed that       
assimilated with the monarchical and    
aristocratical institutions of          
feudalism1 which flourished chiefly     
because they corresponded with the      
moral feelings of the time4    ,in the  
next place1 a series of social and      
political causes diminished the         
personal independence for which the     
barbarians had been noted4 ,the king    

had at first been1 not the sovereign of 
a country1 but the chief of a           
tribe47#edh7 ,gradually1 however1 with  
more settled habits1 the sovereignty    
assumed a territorial character1 and we 
may soon discover the rudiments of  a   
territorial aristocracy4 ,the kings gave
 their leading chiefs portions of       
conquered land or of the royal domains1 
under the name of benefices4 ,the       
obligation of military service was      
attached to these benefices1 and by     
slow and perhaps insensible stages1 each
 of which has been the subject of       
fierce controversy1 they were made      
irrevocable1 and ultimately hereditary4 
,while society was still disorganised1  
small landlords purchased the           
protection of the ,church1 or of some   
important chief1 by surrendering  their 
estates1 which they received back as    
tenants1 subject to the  condition of   
the payment of rent1 or of military     
service4 ,others1 without  making such  
surrender1 placed themselves under the  

care of a neighbouring  lord1 and       
offered1 in return1 homage or military  
aid4 ,at the same time1  through causes 
to which ,i have already adverted1 the  
free peasants for the  most part sank   
into serfs1 subject to and protected by 
the landowners4 ,in  this manner a      
hierarchy of ranks was gradually formed1
 of which the  sovereign was the apex   
and the serf the basis4 ,the complete   
legal  organisation of this hierarchy   
belongs to the period of feudalism1     
which  is not within the scope of the   
present volume2 but the chief elements  
of  feudalism existed before            
,charlemagne1 and the moral results     
flowing from  them may be already       
discerned4 ,each rank1 except the very  
highest1 was  continually brought into  
contact with a superior1 and a feeling  
of  constant dependence and             
subordination was accordingly fostered4 
,to the  serf1 who depended for all     
things upon the neighbouring noble1 to  
the  noble1 who held all his dignities  

on the condition of frequent military   
service under his sovereign1 the idea of
 secular rank became indissolubly       
connected with that of supreme          
greatness4    ,it will appear evident1  
from the foregoing observations1 that in
 the  period before ,charlemagne the    
moral and political causes were already 
in  action1 which at a much later period
 produced the organisation of           
chivalry--an organisation which was     
founded on the combination and the      
glorification of secular rank and       
military prowess4 ,but1 in order that   
the  tendencies ,i have described should
 acquire their full force1 it was       
necessary that they should be           
represented or illustrated in some great
  personage1 who1 by the splendour and  
the beauty of his career1 could         
fascinate the imaginations of men4 ,it  
is much easier to govern great  masses  
of men through their imagination than   
through their reason4 ,moral  principles
 rarely act powerfully upon the world1  

except by way of example  or ideals4    
,when the course of events has been to  
glorify the ascetic or  monarchical or  
military spirit1 a great saint1 or      
sovereign1 or soldier  will arise1 who  
will concentrate in one dazzling focus  
the blind  tendencies of his time1      
kindle the enthusiasm and fascinate the 
imagination of the people4 ,but for the 
prevailing tendency1 the great man      
would not have arisen1 or would not have
 exercised his great influence4  ,but   
for the great man1 whose career appealed
 vividly to the imagination1  the       
prevailing tendency would never have    
acquired its full intensity4    ,this   
typical figure appeared in ,charlemagne1
 whose colossal form towers  with a     
majestic grandeur both in history and in
 romance4 ,of all the great  rulers of  
men1 there has probably been no other   
who was so truly  many-sided1 whose     
influence pervaded so completely all the
 religious1  intellectual1 and political
 modes of thought existing in his time4 

,rising  in one of the darkest periods  
of ,european history1 this great emperor
  resuscitated1 with a brief but        
dazzling splendour1 the faded glories of
  the ,empire of the ,west1 conducted1  
for the most part in person1 numerous   
expeditions against the barbarous       
nations around him1 promulgated a vast  
system of legislation1 reformed the     
discipline of every order of the        
,church1 and reduced all classes of the 
clergy to subservience to his will1     
while1 by legalising tithes1 he greatly 
increased their material  prosperity4   
,he at the same time contributed1 in a  
measure1 to check the  intellectual     
decadence by founding schools and       
libraries1 and drawing  around him all  
the scattered learning of ,europe4 ,he  
reformed the coinage1  extended         
commerce1 influenced religious          
controversies1 and convoked great       
legislative assemblies1 which ultimately
 contributed largely to the             
organisation of feudalism4 ,in all these

 spheres the traces of his vast1        
organising1 and far-seeing genius may be
 detected1 and the influence which  he  
exercised over the imaginations of men  
is shown by the numerous legends  of    
which he is the hero4 ,in the preceding 
ages the supreme ideal had been  the    
ascetic4 ,when the popular imagination  
embodied in legends its  conception of  
humanity in its noblest and most        
attractive form1 it  instinctively      
painted some hermit-saint of many       
penances and many  miracles4 ,in the    
,romances of ,charlemagne and of ,arthur
 we may trace the  dawning of a new type
 of greatness4 ,the hero of the         
imagination of ,europe  was no longer a 
hermit1 but a king1 a warrior1 a knight4
 ,the long train of  influences ,i have 
reviewed1 culminating in ,charlemagne1  
had done their  work4 ,the age of the   
ascetics began to fade4 ,the age of the 
crusades and  of chivalry succeeded it4 
,it is curious to observe the manner in 
which1 under the influence of the       

prevailing tendency1 the career of      
,charlemagne was transfigured by the    
popular imagination4 ,his military      
enterprises had been chiefly directed   
against the ,saxons1 against whom he had
 made not less than thirty-two          
expeditions4 ,with the ,mohammedans he  
had but little contact4 ,it was         
,charles ,martel1 not his grandson1 who1
 by the great battle of ,poitiers1  had 
checked their career4 ,charlemagne made1
 in person1 but a single  expedition    
against them in ,spain1 and that        
expedition was on a small  scale1 and   
was disastrous in its issue4 ,but in the
 ,carlovingian romances1  which arose at
 a time when the enthusiasm of the      
,crusades was permeating  ,christendom1 
events were represented in a wholly     
different light4 ,charles  ,martel has  
no place among the ideal combatants of  
the ,church4 ,he had  appeared too      
early1 his figure was not sufficiently  
great to fascinate the  popular         
imagination1 and by confiscating        

ecclesiastical property1 and  refusing  
to assist the ,pope against the         
,lombards1 he had fallen under the  ban 
of the clergy4 ,charlemagne1 on the     
other hand1 was represented as the      
first and greatest of the crusaders4    
,his wars with the ,saxons were         
scarcely noticed4 ,his whole life was   
said to have been spent in heroic and   
triumphant combats with the followers of
 ,mohammed47#edi7 ,among the            
achievements attributed to him was an   
expedition to rescue ,nismes and        
,carcassonne from their grasp1 which    
was1 in fact1 a dim tradition of the    
victories of ,charles ,martel47#eej7 ,he
 is even said to have carried his       
victorious arms into the heart of       
,palestine1 and he is the hero of what  
are probably the three earliest extant  
romances of the ,crusades47#eea7 ,in    
fiction1 as in history1 his reign forms 
the great landmark separating the  early
 period of the middle ages from the age 
of military ,christianity4    ,on the   

verge of this great change ,i draw this 
history to a close4 ,in  pursuing our   
long and chequered course1 from         
,augustus to ,charlemagne1 we  have seen
 the rise and fall of many types of     
character1 and of many forms  of        
enthusiasm4 ,we have seen the influence 
of universal empire expanding1  and the 
influence of ,greek civilisation        
intensifying1 the sympathies of         
,europe4 ,we have surveyed the          
successive progress of ,stoicism1       
,platonism1  and ,egyptian philosophies1
 at once reflecting and guiding the     
moral  tendencies of society4 ,we have  
traced the course of progress or        
retrogression in many fields of social1 
political1 and legislative life1  have  
watched the cradle of ,european         
,christianity1 examined the causes of   
its triumph1 the difficulties it        
encountered1 and the priceless blessings
  its philanthropic spirit bestowed upon
 mankind4 ,we have also pursued step  by
 step the mournful history of its       

corruption1 its asceticism1 and its     
intolerance1 the various transformations
 it produced or underwent when the      
turbid waters of the barbarian invasions
 had inundated the civilisations  of    
,europe4 ,it remains for me1 before     
concluding this work1 to investigate    
one class of subjects to which ,i have1 
as yet1 but briefly adverted--to        
examine the effects of the changes ,i   
have described upon the character and   
position of woman1 and upon the grave   
moral questions concerning the          
relations of the sexes4                 
,,chapter ,v4 ,,the ,,position ,,of     
,,women4      ,in the long series of    
moral revolutions that have been        
described in the  foregoing chapters1 ,i
 have more than once had occasion to    
refer to the  position that was assigned
 to woman in the community1 and to the  
virtues  and vices that spring directly 
from the relations of the sexes4 ,i have
  not1 however1 as yet discussed these  
questions with a fulness at all         

corresponding to their historical       
importance1 and ,i propose1 in          
consequence1 before concluding this     
volume1 to devote a few pages to their  
examination4 ,of all the many questions 
that are treated in this work1  there is
 none which ,i approach with so much    
hesitation1 for there is  probably none 
which it is so difficult to treat with  
clearness and  impartiality1 and at the 
same time without exciting any scandal  
or  offence4 ,the complexity of the     
problem1 arising from the very large    
place  which exceptional institutions or
 circumstances1 and especially the      
influence of climate and race1 have had 
on the chastity of nations1 ,i have     
already noticed1 and the extreme        
delicacy of the matters with which this 
branch of ethics is connected must be   
palpable to all4 ,the first duty of  an 
historian1 however1 is to truth2 and it 
is absolutely impossible to  present a  
true picture of the moral condition of  
different ages1 and to  form a true     

estimate of the moral effects of        
different religions1 without  adverting 
to the department of morals1 which has  
exhibited most change1  and has probably
 exercised most influence4    ,it is    
natural that1 in the period when men are
 still perfect barbarians1  when their  
habits of life are still nomadic1 and   
when1 war and the chase1  being their   
sole pursuits1 the qualities that are   
required in these form  their chief     
measure of excellence1 the inferiority  
of women to men should  be regarded as  
undoubted1 and their position should be 
extremely degraded4  ,in all those      
qualities which are then most prized1   
women are indisputably  inferior4 ,the  
social qualities in which they are      
especially fitted to  excel have no     
sphere for their display4 ,the          
ascendancy of beauty is very  faint1    
and1 even if it were otherwise1 few     
traces of female beauty could  survive  
the hardships of the savage life4 ,woman
 is looked upon merely as  the slave of 

man1 and as the minister to his         
passions4 ,in the first  capacity1 her  
life is one of continual1 abject1 and   
unrequited toil4 ,in  the second        
capacity1 she is exposed to all the     
violent revulsions of  feeling that     
follow1 among rude men1 the             
gratification of the animal  passions4  
,even in this early stage1 however1 we  
may trace some rudiments of those  moral
 sentiments which are destined at a     
later period to expand4 ,the            
institution of marriage exists4 ,the    
value of chastity is commonly in some   
degree felt1 and appears in the         
indignation which is displayed against  
the  adulterer4 ,the duty of restraining
 the passions is largely recognised in  
the female1 though the males are only   
restricted by the prohibition of        
adultery4    ,the first two steps which 
are taken towards the elevation of woman
 are  probably the abandonment of the   
custom of purchasing wives1 and the     
construction of the family on the basis 

of monogamy4 ,in the earliest  periods  
of civilisation1 the marriage contract  
was arranged between the  bridegroom and
 the father of the bride1 on the        
condition of a sum of money  being paid 
by the former to the latter4 ,this sum1 
which is known in the  laws of the      
barbarians as the 8mundium107#eeb7 was  
in fact a payment to the  father for the
 cession of his daughter1 who thus      
became the bought slave  of her husband4
 ,it is one of the most remarkable      
features of the ancient  laws of ,india1
 that they forbade this gift1 on the    
ground that the parent  should not sell 
his child27#eec7 but there can be little
 doubt that this  sale was at one time  
the ordinary type of marriage4 ,in the  
,jewish writings  we find ,jacob        
purchasing ,leah and ,rachel by certain 
services to their  father2 and this     
custom1 which seems to have been at one 
time general in  ,judea17#eed7 appears  
in the age of ,homer to have been       
general in ,greece4 ,at  an early       

period1 however1 of ,greek history1 the 
purchase-money was  replaced by the     
dowry1 or sum of money paid by the      
father of the bride for  the use of his 
daughter27#eee7 and this1 although it   
passed into the hands  of the husband1  
contributed to elevate the wife1 in the 
first place1 by  the dignity it gave    
her1 and1 in the next place1 by special 
laws1 which  both in ,greece and ,rome  
secured it to her in most cases of      
separation47#eef7 ,the wife thus        
possessed a guarantee against ill-usage 
by  her husband4 ,she ceased to be his  
slave1 and became in some degree a      
contracting party4 ,among the early     
,germans1 a different and very          
remarkable custom existed4 ,the bride   
did not bring any dowry to her  husband1
 nor did the bridegroom give anything to
 the father of the bride2  but he gave  
his gift to the bride herself1 on the   
morning after the first  night of       
marriage1 and this1 which was called the
 8,morgengab10 or morning  gift1 was the

 origin of the jointure47#eeg7    ,still
 more important than the foregoing was  
the institution of monogamy1  by which1 
from its earliest days1 the ,greek      
civilisation proclaimed its  superiority
 to the ,asiatic civilisations that had 
preceded it4 ,we may  regard monogamy   
either in the light of our intuitive    
moral sentiment on  the subject of      
purity1 or in the light of the interests
 of society4 ,in its  ,oriental or      
polygamous stage1 marriage is regarded  
almost exclusively1 in  its lowest      
aspect1 as a gratification of the       
passions2 while in ,european  marriages 
the mutual attachment and respect of the
 contracting parties1  the formation of 
a household1 and the long train of      
domestic feelings and  duties that      
accompany it1 have all their            
distinguished place among the  motives  
of the contract1 and the lower element  
has comparatively little  prominence4   
,in this way it may be intelligibly     
said1 without any reference  to         

utilitarian considerations1 that        
monogamy is a higher state than         
polygamy4 ,the utilitarian arguments in 
its defence are also extremely          
powerful1 and may be summed up in three 
sentences4 ,nature1 by making the       
number of males and females nearly      
equal1 indicates it as natural4 ,in no  
other form of marriage can the          
government of the family1 which is one  
of  the chief ends of marriage1 be so   
happily sustained1 and in no other does 
woman assume the position of the equal  
of man4    ,monogamy was the general    
system in ,greece1 though there are said
 to have  been slight and temporary     
deviations into the earlier system1     
after some  great disasters1 when an    
increase of population was ardently     
desired47#eeh7  ,a broad line must1     
however1 be drawn between the legendary 
or poetical  period1 as reflected in    
,homer and perpetuated in the           
tragedians1 and the  later historical   
period4 ,it is one of the most          

remarkable1 and to some  writers one of 
the most perplexing1 facts in the moral 
history of ,greece1  that in the former 
and ruder period women had undoubtedly  
the highest  place1 and their type      
exhibited the highest perfection4 ,moral
 ideas1 in a  thousand forms1 have been 
sublimated1 enlarged1 and changed1 by   
advancing  civilisation2 but it may be  
fearlessly asserted that the types of   
female  excellence which are contained  
in the ,greek poems1 while they are     
among  the earliest1 are also among the 
most perfect in the literature of       
mankind4 ,the conjugal tenderness of    
,hector and ,andromache2 the unwearied  
fidelity of ,penelope1 awaiting through 
the long revolving years the return  of 
her storm-tossed husband1 who looked    
forward to her as to the crown of  all  
his labours2 the heroic love of         
,alcestis1 voluntarily dying that her   
husband might live2 the filial piety of 
,antigone2 the majestic grandeur of  the
 death of ,polyxena2 the more subdued   

and saintly resignation of  ,iphigenia1 
excusing with her last breath the father
 who had condemned her2  the joyous1    
modest1 and loving ,nausicaa1 whose     
figure shines like a  perfect idyll     
among the tragedies of the ,odyssey--all
 these are pictures of  perennial       
beauty1 which ,rome and ,christendom1   
chivalry and modern  civilisation1 have 
neither eclipsed nor transcended4       
,virgin modesty and  conjugal fidelity1 
the graces as well as the virtues of the
 most perfect  womanhood1 have never    
been more exquisitely pourtrayed4 ,the  
female figures  stand out in the canvas 
almost as prominently as the male ones1 
and are  surrounded by an almost equal  
reverence4 ,the whole history of the    
,siege of  ,troy is a history of the    
catastrophes that followed a violation  
of the  nuptial tie4 ,yet1 at the same  
time1 the position of women was in some 
respects a degraded one4 ,the custom of 
purchase-money given to the father  of  
the bride was general4 ,the husbands    

appear to have indulged largely1  and   
with little or no censure1 in           
concubines47#eei7 ,female captives of   
the  highest rank were treated with     
great harshness4 ,the inferiority of    
women  to men was strongly asserted1 and
 it was illustrated and defended by a   
very curious physiological notion1 that 
the generative power belonged           
exclusively to men1 women having only a 
very subordinate part in the  production
 of their children47#efj7 ,the woman    
,pandora was said to have been  the     
author of all human ills4    ,in the    
historical age of ,greece1 the legal    
position of women had in some  respects 
slightly improved1 but their moral      
condition had undergone a  marked       
deterioration4 ,virtuous women lived a  
life of perfect seclusion4  ,the        
foremost and most dazzling type of      
,ionic womanhood was the courtesan1     
while1 among the men1 the latitude      
accorded by public opinion was almost   
unrestricted4    ,the facts in moral    

history1 which it is at once most       
important and most  difficult to        
appreciate1 are what may be called the  
facts of feeling4 ,it  is much easier to
 show what men did or taught than to    
realise the state of  mind that rendered
 possible such actions or teaching2 and 
in the case  before us we have to deal  
with a condition of feeling so extremely
 remote  from that of our own day1 that 
the difficulty is preeminently great4   
,very  sensual1 and at the same time    
very brilliant societies1 have indeed   
repeatedly existed1 and the histories of
 both ,france and ,italy afford many    
examples of an artistic and intellectual
 enthusiasm encircling those who  were  
morally most frail2 but the peculiarity 
of ,greek sensuality is1 that  it grew  
up1 for the most part1 uncensured1 and  
indeed even encouraged1  under the eyes 
of some of the most illustrious of      
moralists4 ,if we can  imagine ,ninon de
 l',enclos at a time when the rank and  
splendour of  ,parisian society thronged

 her drawing-rooms1 reckoning a ,bossuet
 or a  ,fnelon among her followers--if  
we can imagine these prelates publicly  
advising her about the duties of her    
profession1 and the means of  attaching 
the affections of her lovers--we shall  
have conceived a relation  scarcely more
 strange than that which existed between
 ,socrates and the  courtesan ,theodota4
    ,in order to reconstruct1 as far as 
possible1 the modes of feeling of the   
,greek moralists1 it will be necessary  
in the first place to say a few  words  
concerning one of the most delicate1 but
 at the same time most  important1      
problems with which the legislator and  
the moralist have to  deal4    ,it was a
 favourite doctrine of the ,christian   
,fathers1 that concupiscence1  or the   
sensual passion1 was 8the original sin0 
of human nature2 and it  must be owned  
that the progress of knowledge1 which is
 usually extremely  opposed to the      
ascetic theory of life1 concurs with the
 theological view1  in showing the      

natural force of this appetite to be far
 greater than the  well-being of man    
requires4 ,the writings of ,malthus have
 proved1 what the  ,greek moralists     
appear in a considerable degree to have 
seen1 that its  normal and temperate    
exercise in the form of marriage1 would 
produce1 if  universal1 the utmost      
calamities to the world1 and that1 while
 nature  seems in the most unequivocal  
manner to urge the human race to early  
marriages1 the first condition of an    
advancing civilisation in populous      
countries is to restrain or diminish    
them4 ,in no highly civilised society   
is marriage general on the first        
development of the passions1 and the    
continual tendency of increasing        
knowledge is to render such marriages   
more rare4 ,it is also an undoubted     
truth that1 however much moralists may  
enforce the obligation of               
extra-matrimonial purity1 this          
obligation has  never been even         
approximately regarded2 and in all      

nations1 ages1 and  religions a vast    
mass of irregular indulgence has        
appeared1 which has  probably           
contributed more than any other single  
cause to the misery and  the degradation
 of man4    ,there are two ends which a 
moralist1 in dealing with this question1
 will  especially regard--the natural   
duty of every man doing something for   
the  support of the child he has called 
into existence1 and the preservation of 
the domestic circle unassailed and      
unpolluted4 ,the family is the centre   
and the archetype of the ,state1 and the
 happiness and goodness of society  are 
always in a very great degree dependent 
upon the purity of domestic  life4 ,the 
essentially exclusive nature of marital 
affection1 and the  natural desire of   
every man to be certain of the paternity
 of the child he  supports1 render the  
incursions of irregular passions within 
the domestic  circle a cause of extreme 
suffering4 ,yet it would appear as if   
the  excessive force of these passions  

would render such incursions both       
frequent and inevitable4    ,under these
 circumstances1 there has arisen in     
society a figure which is  certainly the
 most mournful1 and in some respects the
 most awful1 upon  which the eye of the 
moralist can dwell4 ,that unhappy being 
whose very  name is a shame to speak2   
who counterfeits with a cold heart the  
transports of affection1 and submits    
herself as the passive instrument of    
lust2 who is scorned and insulted as the
 vilest of her sex1 and doomed1  for the
 most part1 to disease and abject       
wretchedness and an early death1        
appears in every age as the perpetual   
symbol of the degradation and the       
sinfulness of man4 ,herself the supreme 
type of vice1 she is ultimately the     
most efficient guardian of virtue4 ,but 
for her1 the unchallenged purity of     
countless happy homes would be polluted1
 and not a few who1 in the pride  of    
their untempted chastity1 think of her  
with an indignant shudder1 would  have  

known the agony of remorse and of       
despair4 ,on that one degraded and      
ignoble form are concentrated the       
passions that might have filled the     
world with shame4 ,she remains1 while   
creeds and civilisations rise and  fall1
 the eternal priestess of humanity1     
blasted for the sins of the  people4    
,in dealing with this unhappy being1 and
 with all of her sex who have  violated 
the law of chastity1 the public opinion 
of most ,christian  countries pronounces
 a sentence of extreme severity4 ,in the
 ,anglo-,saxon  nations especially1 a   
single fault of this kind is sufficient1
 at least in  the upper and middle      
classes1 to affix an indelible brand    
which no time1  no virtues1 no penitence
 can wholly efface4 ,this sentence is   
probably1 in  the first instance1 simply
 the expression of the religious feeling
 on the  subject1 but it is also        
sometimes defended by powerful arguments
 drawn  from the interests of society4  
,it is said that the preservation of    

domestic purity is a matter of such     
transcendent importance that it is      
right that the most crushing penalties  
should be attached to an act which  the 
imagination can easily transfigure1     
which legal enactments can never        
efficiently control1 and to which the   
most violent passions may prompt4 ,it   
is said1 too1 that an anathema which    
drives into obscurity all evidences  of 
sensual passions is peculiarly fitted to
 restrict their operation2 for1  more   
than any other passions1 they are       
dependent on the imagination1 which  is 
readily fired by the sight of evil4 ,it 
is added1 that the emphasis with  which 
the vice is stigmatised produces a      
corresponding admiration for the        
opposite virtue1 and that a feeling of  
the most delicate and scrupulous  honour
 is thus formed among the female        
population1 which not only  preserves   
from gross sin1 but also dignifies and  
ennobles the whole  character4    ,in   
opposition to these views1 several      

considerations of much weight have  been
 urged4 ,it is argued that1 however     
persistently society may ignore  this   
form of vice1 it exists nevertheless1   
and on the most gigantic scale1  and    
that evil rarely assumes such inveterate
 and perverting forms as when  it is    
shrouded in obscurity and veiled by an  
hypocritical appearance of              
unconsciousness4 ,the existence in      
,england of certainly not less than     
fifty  thousand unhappy women17#efa7    
sunk in the very lowest depths of vice  
and  misery1 shows sufficiently what an 
appalling amount of moral evil is       
festering uncontrolled1 undiscussed1 and
 unalleviated1 under the fair  surface  
of a decorous society4 ,in the eyes of  
every physician1 and indeed  in the eyes
 of most continental writers who have   
adverted to the subject1  no other      
feature of ,english life appears so     
infamous as the fact that an  epidemic1 
which is one of the most dreadful now   
existing among mankind1  which          

communicates itself from the guilty     
husband to the innocent wife1  and even 
transmits its taint to her offspring1   
and which the experience of  other      
nations conclusively proves may be      
vastly diminished1 should be  suffered  
to rage unchecked because the           
,legislature refuses to take  official  
cognisance of its existence1 or proper  
sanitary measures for its               
repression47#efb7 ,if the terrible      
censure which ,english public opinion   
passes upon every instance of female    
frailty in some degree diminishes the   
number1 it does not prevent such        
instances from being extremely numerous1
  and it immeasurably aggravates the    
suffering they produce4 ,acts which in  
other ,european countries would excite  
only a slight and transient emotion1    
spread in ,england1 over a wide circle1 
all the bitterness of unmitigated       
anguish4 ,acts which naturally neither  
imply nor produce a total subversion  of
 the moral feelings1 and which1 in other

 countries1 are often followed  by      
happy1 virtuous1 and affectionate lives1
 in ,england almost invariably  lead to 
absolute ruin4 ,infanticide is greatly  
multiplied1 and a vast  proportion of   
those whose reputations and lives have  
been blasted by one  momentary sin1 are 
hurled into the abyss of habitual       
prostitution--a  condition which1 owing 
to the sentence of public opinion and   
the neglect  of legislators1 is in no   
other ,european country so hopelessly   
vicious or  so irrevocable47#efc7    ,it
 is added1 too1 that the immense        
multitude who are thus doomed to the    
extremity of life-long wretchedness are 
not always1 perhaps not generally1  of  
those whose dispositions seem naturally 
incapable of virtue4 ,the  victims of   
seduction are often led aside quite as  
much by the ardour of  their affections1
 and by the vivacity of their           
intelligence1 as by any  vicious        
propensities47#efd7 ,even in the lowest 
grades1 the most  dispassionate         

observers have detected remains of      
higher feelings1 which1  in a different 
moral atmosphere1 and under different   
moral husbandry1  would have undoubtedly
 been developed47#efe7 ,the statistics  
of prostitution  show that a great      
proportion of those who have fallen into
 it have been  impelled by the most     
extreme poverty1 in many instances      
verging upon  starvation47#eff7         
,these opposing considerations1 which ,i
 have very briefly indicated1 and  which
 ,i do not propose to discuss or to     
estimate1 will be sufficient to  exhibit
 the magnitude of the problem4 ,in the  
,greek civilisation1  legislators and   
moralists endeavoured to meet it by the 
cordial  recognition of two distinct    
orders of womanhood7#efg7--the wife1    
whose first  duty was fidelity to her   
husband2 the hetra1 or mistress1 who    
subsisted  by her fugitive attachments4 
,the wives of the ,greeks lived in      
almost  absolute seclusion4 ,they were  
usually married when very young4 ,their 

occupations were to weave1 to spin1 to  
embroider1 to superintend the           
household1 to care for their sick       
slaves4 ,they lived in a special and    
retired part of the house4 ,the more    
wealthy seldom went abroad1 and never   
except when accompanied by a female     
slave2 never attended the public        
spectacles2 received no male visitors   
except in the presence of their         
husbands1 and had not even a seat at    
their own tables when male guests  were 
there4 ,their pre-eminent virtue was    
fidelity1 and it is probable that  this 
was very strictly and very generally    
observed4 ,their remarkable  freedom    
from temptations1 the public opinion    
which strongly discouraged  any attempt 
to seduce them1 and the ample sphere for
 illicit pleasures  that was accorded to
 the other sex1 all contributed to      
protect it4 ,on the  other hand1 living1
 as they did1 almost exclusively among  
their female  slaves1 being deprived of 
all the educating influence of male     

society1 and  having no place at those  
public spectacles which were the chief  
means of  ,athenian culture1 their minds
 must necessarily have been exceedingly 
contracted4 ,thucydides doubtless       
expressed the prevailing sentiment of   
his  countrymen when he said that the   
highest merit of woman is not to be     
spoken of either for good or for evil2  
and ,phidias illustrated the same       
feeling when he represented the heavenly
 ,aphrodite standing on a tortoise1     
typifying thereby the secluded life of a
 virtuous woman47#efh7    ,in their own 
restricted sphere their lives were      
probably not unhappy4  ,education and   
custom rendered the purely domestic life
 that was assigned  to them a second    
nature1 and it must in most instances   
have reconciled  them to the            
extra-matrimonial connections in which  
their husbands too  frequently indulged4
 ,the prevailing manners were very      
gentle4 ,domestic  oppression is        
scarcely ever spoken of2 the husband    

lived chiefly in the  public place2     
causes of jealousy and of dissension    
could seldom occur2 and  a feeling of   
warm affection1 though not a feeling of 
equality1 must  doubtless have in most  
cases spontaneously arisen4 ,in the     
writings of  ,xenophon we have a        
charming picture of a husband who had   
received into his  arms his young wife  
of fifteen1 absolutely ignorant of the  
world and of  its ways4 ,he speaks to   
her with extreme kindness1 but in the   
language that  would be used to a little
 child4 ,her task1 he tells her1 is to  
be like a  queen bee1 dwelling          
continually at home and superintending  
the work of her  slaves4 ,she must      
distribute to each their tasks1 must    
economise the family  income1 and must  
take especial care that the house is    
strictly orderly--the  shoes1 the pots1 
and the clothes always in their places4 
,it is also1 he  tells her1 a part of   
her duty to tend her sick slaves2 but   
here his wife  interrupted him1         

exclaiming1 8,nay1 but that will indeed 
be the most  agreeable of my offices1 if
 such as ,i treat with kindness are     
likely to be  grateful1 and to love me  
more than before40 ,with a very tender  
and  delicate care to avoid everything  
resembling a reproach1 the husband      
persuades his wife to give up the habits
 of wearing high-heeled boots1 in  order
 to appear tall1 and of colouring her   
face with vermilion and white  lead4 ,he
 promises her that if she faithfully    
performs her duties he will  himself be 
the first and most devoted of her       
slaves4 ,he assured ,socrates  that when
 any domestic dispute arose he could    
extricate himself admirably1  if he was 
in the right2 but that1 whenever he was 
in the wrong1 he found  it impossible to
 convince his wife that it was          
otherwise47#efi7    ,we have another    
picture of ,greek married life in the   
writings of ,plutarch1  but it          
represents the condition of the ,greek  
mind at a later period than  that of    

,xenophon4 ,in ,plutarch the wife is    
represented not as the mere             
housekeeper1 or as the chief slave of   
her husband1 but as his equal and  his  
companion4 ,he enforces1 in the         
strongest terms1 reciprocity of         
obligations1 and desires that the minds 
of women should be cultivated to  the   
highest point47#egj7 ,his precepts of   
marriage1 indeed1 fall little if  at all
 below any that have appeared in modern 
days4 ,his letter of  consolation to his
 wife1 on the death of their child1     
breathes a spirit of  the tenderest     
affection4 ,it is recorded of him that1 
having had some  dispute with the       
relations of his wife1 she feared that  
it might impair  their domestic         
happiness1 and she accordingly persuaded
 her husband to  accompany her on a     
pilgrimage to ,mount ,helicon1 where    
they offered up  together a sacrifice to
 ,love1 and prayed that their affection 
for one  another might never be         
diminished4    ,in general1 however1 the

 position of the virtuous ,greek woman  
was a very  low one4 ,she was under a   
perpetual tutelage3 first of all to her 
parents1  who disposed of her hand1 then
 to her husband1 and in her days of     
widowhood to her sons4 ,in cases of     
inheritance her male relations were     
preferred to her4 ,the privilege of     
divorce1 which1 in ,athens1 at least1   
she possessed as well as her husband1   
appears to have been practically  almost
 nugatory1 on account of the shock which
 public declarations in the  law court  
gave to the habits which education and  
public opinion had  formed4 ,she brought
 with her1 however1 a dowry1 and the    
recognised  necessity of endowing       
daughters was one of the causes of those
 frequent  expositions which were       
perpetrated with so little blame4 ,the  
,athenian law  was also peculiarly      
careful and tender in dealing with the  
interests of  female orphans47#ega7     
,plato had argued that women were equal 
to men2 but  the habits of the people   

were totally opposed to this theory4    
,marriage was  regarded chiefly in a    
civic light1 as the means of producing  
citizens1 and  in ,sparta it was ordered
 that old or infirm husbands should cede
 their  young wives to stronger men1 who
 could produce vigorous soldiers for the
  ,state4 ,the ,lacedmonian treatment of
 women1 which differed in many  respects
 from that which prevailed in the other 
,greek ,states1 while it was  utterly   
destructive of all delicacy of feeling  
or action1 had undoubtedly  the effect  
of producing a fierce and masculine     
patriotism2 and many fine  examples are 
recorded of ,spartan mothers devoting   
their sons on the altar  of their       
country1 rejoicing over their deaths    
when nobly won1 and infusing  their own 
heroic spirit into the armies of the    
people4 ,for the most part1  however1   
the names of virtuous women seldom      
appear in ,greek history4 ,the  simple  
modesty which was evinced by ,phocion's 
wife1 in the period when her  husband   

occupied the foremost position in       
,athens17#egb7 and a few instances  of  
conjugal and filial affection1 have been
 recorded2 but in general the  only     
women who attracted the notice of the   
people were the hetr1 or                
courtesans47#egc7    ,in order to       
understand the position which these last
 assumed in ,greek  life1 we must       
transport ourselves in thought into a   
moral latitude totally  different from  
our own4 ,the ,greek conception of      
excellence was the full  and perfect    
development of humanity in all its      
organs and functions1 and  without any  
tinge of asceticism4 ,some parts of     
human nature were  recognised as higher 
than others2 and to suffer any of the   
lower appetites  to obscure the mind1   
restrain the will and engross the       
energies of life1  was acknowledged to  
be disgraceful2 but the systematic      
repression of a  natural appetite was   
totally foreign to ,greek modes of      
thought4  ,legislators1 moralists1 and  

the general voice of the people1 appear 
to  have applied these principles almost
 unreservedly to intercourse between    
the sexes1 and the most virtuous men    
habitually and openly entered into      
relations which would now be almost     
universally censured4    ,the           
experience1 however1 of many societies  
has shown that a public opinion  may    
accord1 in this respect1 almost         
unlimited licence to one sex1 without   
showing any corresponding indulgence to 
the other4 ,but1 in ,greece1 a          
concurrence of causes had conspired to  
bring a certain section of  courtesans  
into a position they have in no other   
society attained4 ,the  voluptuous      
worship of ,aphrodite gave a kind of    
religious sanction to their  profession4
 ,courtesans were the priestesses in her
 temples1 and those of  ,corinth were   
believed by their prayers to have       
averted calamities from  their city4    
,prostitution is said to have entered   
into the religious rites  of ,babylon1  

,biblis1 ,cyprus1 and ,corinth1 and     
these as well as ,miletus1  ,tenedos1   
,lesbos1 and ,abydos became famous for  
their schools of vice1 which  grew up   
under the shadow of the temples47#egd7  
,in the next place1 the intense sthetic 
enthusiasm that prevailed was  eminently
 fitted to raise the most beautiful to  
honour4 ,in a land and  beneath a sky   
where natural beauty developed to the   
highest point1 there  arose a school of 
matchless artists both in painting and  
in sculpture1 and  public games and     
contests were celebrated1 in which      
supreme physical  perfection was crowned
 by an assembled people4 ,in no other   
period of the  world's history was the  
admiration of beauty in all its forms so
  passionate or so universal4 ,it       
coloured the whole moral teaching of the
  time1 and led the chief moralists to  
regard virtue simply as the highest     
kind of supersensual beauty4 ,it        
appeared in all literature1 where the   
beauty of form and style was the first  

of studies4 ,it supplied at once the    
inspiration and the rule of all ,greek  
art4 ,it led the ,greek wife to pray1   
before all other prayers1 for the beauty
 of her children4 ,it surrounded  the   
most beautiful with an aureole of       
admiring reverence4 ,the courtesan  was 
often the queen of beauty4 ,she was the 
model of the statues of  ,aphrodite1    
that commanded the admiration of        
,greece4 ,praxiteles was  accustomed to 
reproduce the form of ,phryne1 and her  
statue1 carved in  gold1 stood in the   
temple of ,apollo at ,delphi2 and when  
she was accused of  corrupting the youth
 of ,athens1 her advocate1 ,hyperides1  
procured her  acquittal by suddenly     
unveiling her charms before the dazzled 
eyes of the  assembled judges4 ,apelles 
was at once the painter and the lover of
 ,las1  and ,alexander gave him1 as the 
choicest gift1 his own favourite        
concubine1  of whom the painter had     
become enamoured while pourtraying her4 
,the chief  flower-painter of antiquity 

acquired his skill through his love of  
the  flower-girl ,glycera1 whom he was  
accustomed to paint among her garlands4 
,pindar and ,simonides sang the praises 
of courtesans1 and grave  philosophers  
made pilgrimages to visit them1 and     
their names were known in  every        
city47#ege7    ,it is not surprising    
that1 in such a state of thought and    
feeling1 many of  the more ambitious and
 accomplished women should have betaken 
themselves  to this career1 nor yet that
 they should have attained the social   
position  which the secluded existence  
and the enforced ignorance of the ,greek
 wives  had left vacant4 ,the courtesan 
was the one free woman of ,athens1 and  
she  often availed herself of her       
freedom to acquire a degree of knowledge
  which enabled her to add to her other 
charms an intense intellectual          
fascination4 ,gathering around her the  
most brilliant artists1 poets1          
historians1 and philosophers1 she flung 
herself unreservedly into the           

intellectual and sthetic enthusiasms of 
her time1 and soon became the  centre of
 a literary society of matchless        
splendour4 ,aspasia1 who was as  famous 
for her genius as for her beauty1 won   
the passionate love of  ,pericles4 ,she 
is said to have instructed him in       
eloquence1 and to have  composed some of
 his most famous orations2 she was      
continually consulted  on affairs of    
state2 and ,socrates1 like other        
philosophers1 attended her  assemblies4 
,socrates himself has owned his deep    
obligations to the  instructions of a   
courtesan named ,diotima4 ,the courtesan
 ,leontium was  among the most ardent   
disciples of ,epicurus47#egf7           
,another cause probably contributed     
indirectly to the elevation of this     
class1 to which it is extremely         
difficult to allude in an ,english book1
  but which it is impossible altogether 
to omit1 even in the most cursory       
survey of ,greek morals4 ,irregular     
female connections were looked upon as  

ordinary and not disgraceful incidents  
in the life of a good man1 for they     
were compared with that lower abyss of  
unnatural love1 which was the  deepest  
and strangest taint of ,greek           
civilisation4 ,this vice1 which never   
appears in the writings of ,homer and   
,hesiod1 doubtless arose under the      
influence of the public games1 which1   
accustoming men to the contemplation  of
 absolutely nude figures17#egg7 awoke an
 unnatural passion17#egh7 totally       
remote from all modern feelings1 but    
which in ,greece it was regarded as     
heroic to resist47#egi7 ,the popular    
religion in this1 as in other cases1    
was made to bend to the new vice4 ,hebe1
 the cup-bearer of the gods1 was        
replaced by ,ganymede1 and the worst    
vices of earth were transported to      
,olympus47#ehj7 ,artists sought to      
reflect the passion in their statues of 
the ,hermaphrodite1 of ,bacchus1 and the
 more effeminate ,apollo2 moralists     
were known to praise it as the bond of  

friendship1 and it was spoken of as  the
 inspiring enthusiasm of the heroic     
,theban legion of ,epaminondas47#eha7   
,in general1 however1 it was stigmatised
 as unquestionably a vice1 but it  was  
treated with a levity we can now hardly 
conceive4 ,we can scarcely have  a      
better illustration of the extent to    
which moral ideas and feelings have     
changed1 than the fact that the first   
two ,greeks who were considered  worthy 
of statues by their fellow-countrymen   
are said to have been  ,harmodius and   
,aristogeiton1 who were united by an    
impure love1 and who  were glorified for
 a political assassination47#ehb7    ,it
 is probable that this cause conspired  
with the others to dissociate the  class
 of courtesans from the idea of supreme 
depravity with which they  have usually 
been connected4 ,the great majority1    
however1 were sunk in  this1 as in all  
other ages1 in abject degradation27#ehc7
 comparatively few  attained the        
condition of hetr1 and even of these it 

is probable that  the greater number    
exhibited the characteristics which in  
all ages have  attached to their class4 
,faithlessness1 extreme rapacity1 and   
extravagant  luxury1 were common among  
them2 but yet it is unquestionable that 
there  were many exceptions4 ,the       
excommunication of society did not press
 upon or  degrade them2 and though they 
were never regarded with the same honour
 as  married women1 it seems generally  
to have been believed that the wife and 
the courtesan had each her place and her
 function in the world1 and her  own    
peculiar type of excellence4 ,the       
courtesan ,lena1 who was a friend of    
,harmodius1 died in torture rather than 
reveal the conspiracy of her  friend1   
and the ,athenians1 in allusion to her  
name1 caused the statue of a  tongueless
 lioness to be erected to commemorate   
her constancy47#ehd7 ,the  gentle       
manners and disinterested affection of a
 courtesan named ,bacchis  were         
especially recorded1 and a very touching

 letter paints her character1  and      
describes the regret that followed her  
to the tomb47#ehe7 ,in one of the  most 
remarkable of his pictures of ,greek    
life1 ,xenophon describes how           
,socrates1 having heard of the beauty of
 the courtesan ,theodota1 went with  his
 disciples to ascertain for himself     
whether the report was true2 how  with a
 quiet humour he questioned her about   
the sources of the luxury of  her       
dwelling1 and how he proceeded to sketch
 for her the qualities she  should      
cultivate in order to attach her lovers4
 ,she ought1 he tells her1  to shut the 
door against the insolent1 to watch her 
lovers in sickness1 to  rejoice greatly 
when they succeed in anything           
honourable1 to love tenderly  those who 
love her4 ,having carried on a cheerful 
and perfectly  unembarrassed            
conversation with her1 with no kind of  
reproach on his part1  either expressed 
or implied1 and with no trace either of 
the timidity or  effrontery of conscious

 guilt upon hers1 the best and wisest of
 the ,greeks  left his hostess with a   
graceful compliment to her beauty47#ehf7
    ,my task in describing this aspect  
of ,greek life has been an eminently    
unpleasing one1 and ,i should certainly 
not have entered upon even the  baldest 
and most guarded disquisition on a      
subject so difficult1 painful1  and     
delicate1 had it not been absolutely    
indispensable to a history of  morals to
 give at least an outline of the        
progress that has been effected  in this
 sphere4 ,what ,i have written will     
sufficiently explain why ,greece1  which
 was fertile1 beyond all other lands1 in
 great men1 was so remarkably  barren of
 great women4 ,it will show1 too1 that  
while the ,greek moralists  recognised1 
like ourselves1 the distinction between 
the higher and the  lower sides of our  
nature1 they differed very widely from  
modern public  opinion in the standard  
of morals they enforced4 ,the ,christian
 doctrine1  that it is criminal to      

gratify a powerful and a transient      
physical  appetite1 except under the    
condition of a lifelong contract1 was   
altogether unknown4 ,strict duties were 
imposed upon ,greek wives4 ,duties  were
 imposed at a later period1 though less 
strictly1 upon the husband4  ,unnatural 
love was stigmatised1 but with a levity 
of censure which to a  modern mind      
appears inexpressibly revolting4 ,some  
slight legal  disqualifications rested  
upon the whole class of hetr1 and1      
though more  admired1 they were less    
respected than women who had adopted a  
domestic  life2 but a combination of    
circumstances had raised them1 in actual
 worth  and in popular estimation1 to an
 unexampled elevation1 and an aversion  
to  marriage became very general1 and   
extra-matrimonial connections were      
formed with the most perfect frankness  
and publicity4    ,if we now turn to the
 ,roman civilisation1 we shall find that
 some  important advances had been made 
in the condition of women4 ,the virtue  

of  chastity has1 as ,i have shown1 been
 regarded in two different ways4 ,the   
utilitarian view1 which commonly        
prevails in countries where a political 
spirit is more powerful than a religious
 spirit1 regards marriage as the  ideal 
state1 and to promote the happiness1    
sanctity1 and security of this  state is
 the main object of all its precepts4   
,the mystical view which  rests upon the
 natural feeling of shame1 and which1 as
 history proves1 has  prevailed         
especially where political sentiment is 
very low1 and religious  sentiment very 
strong1 regards virginity as its supreme
 type1 and marriage  as simply the most 
pardonable declension from ideal purity4
 ,it is1 ,i  think1 a very remarkable   
fact1 that at the head of the religious 
system of  ,rome we find two sacerdotal 
bodies which appear respectively to     
typify  these ideas4 ,the ,flamens of   
,jupiter and the ,vestal ,virgins were  
the two  most sacred orders in ,rome4   
,the ministrations of each were believed

 to be  vitally important to the ,state4
 ,each could officiate only within the  
walls  of ,rome4 ,each was appointed    
with the most imposing ceremonies4 ,each
 was  honoured with the most profound   
reverence4 ,but in one important respect
  they differed4 ,the ,vestal was the   
type of virginity1 and her purity was   
guarded by the most terrific penalties4 
,the ,flamen1 on the other hand1 was    
the representative of ,roman marriage in
 its strictest and holiest form4 ,he    
was necessarily married4 ,his marriage  
was celebrated with the most solemn     
rites4 ,it could only be dissolved by   
death4 ,if his wife died1 he was        
degraded from his office47#ehg7    ,of  
these two orders1 there can be no       
question that the ,flamen was the most  
faithful expression of the ,roman       
sentiments4 ,the ,roman religion was    
essentially domestic1 and it was a main 
object of the legislator to  surround   
marriage with every circumstance of     
dignity and solemnity4  ,monogamy was1  

from the earliest times1 strictly       
enjoined2 and it was one  of the great  
benefits that have resulted from the    
expansion of ,roman  power1 that it made
 this type dominant in ,europe4 ,in the 
legends of early  ,rome we have ample   
evidence both of the high moral estimate
 of women1 and  of their prominence in  
,roman life4 ,the tragedies of ,lucretia
 and of  ,virginia display a delicacy of
 honour1 a sense of the supreme         
excellence  of unsullied purity1 which  
no ,christian nation could surpass4 ,the
 legends  of the ,sabine women          
interceding between their parents and   
their husbands1  and thus saving the    
infant republic1 and of the mother of   
,coriolanus  averting by her prayers the
 ruin impending over her country1       
entitled  women to claim their share in 
the patriotic glories of ,rome4 ,a      
temple of  ,venus ,calva was associated 
with the legend of ,roman ladies1 who1  
in an  hour of danger1 cut off their    
long tresses to make bowstrings for the 

soldiers47#ehh7 ,another temple         
preserved to all posterity the memory of
 the  filial piety of that ,roman woman 
who1 when her mother was condemned to be
  starved to death1 obtained permission 
to visit her in her prison1 and was     
discovered feeding her from her         
breast47#ehi7    ,the legal position1   
however1 of the ,roman wife was for a   
long period  extremely low4 ,the ,roman 
family was constituted on the principle 
of the  uncontrolled authority of its   
head1 both over his wife and over his   
children1 and he could repudiate the    
former at will4 ,neither the custom of  
gifts to the father of the bride1 nor   
the custom of dowries1 appears to  have 
existed in the earliest period of ,roman
 history2 but the father  disposed      
absolutely of the hand of his daughter1 
and sometimes even  possessed the power 
of breaking off marriages that had been 
actually  contracted47#eij7 ,in the     
forms of marriage1 however1 which were  
usual in  the earlier periods of ,rome1 

the absolute power passed into the hands
 of  the husband1 and he had the right1 
in some cases1 of putting her to        
death47#eia7 ,law and public opinion    
combined in making matrimonial purity   
most strict4 ,for five hundred and      
twenty years1 it was said1 there was no 
such thing as a divorce in ,rome47#eib7 
,manners were so severe1 that a  senator
 was censured for indecency because he  
had kissed his wife in the  presence of 
their daughter47#eic7 ,it was considered
 in a high degree  disgraceful for a    
,roman mother to delegate to a nurse the
 duty of suckling  her child47#eid7     
,sumptuary laws regulated with the most 
minute severity all  the details of     
domestic economy47#eie7 ,the courtesan  
class1 though probably  numerous and    
certainly uncontrolled1 were regarded   
with much contempt4 ,the  disgrace of   
publicly professing themselves members  
of it was believed to  be a sufficient  
punishment27#eif7 and an old law1 which 
was probably  intended to teach in      

symbol the duties of married life1      
enjoined that no  such person should    
touch the altar of ,juno47#eig7 ,it was 
related of a  certain dile1 that he     
failed to obtain redress for an assault 
which had  been made upon him1 because  
it had occurred in a house of ill-fame1 
in  which it was disgraceful for a      
,roman magistrate to be found47#eih7    
,the  sanctity of female purity was     
believed to be attested by all nature4  
,the  most savage animals became tame   
before a virgin47#eii7 ,when a woman    
walked  naked round a field1            
caterpillars and all loathsome insects  
fell dead  before her47#fjj7 ,it was    
said that drowned men floated on their  
backs1 and  drowned women on their      
faces2 and this1 in the opinion of      
,roman  naturalists1 was due to the     
superior purity of the latter47#fja7    
,it was a remark of ,aristotle1 that the
 superiority of the ,greeks to the      
barbarians was shown1 among other       
things1 in the fact that the ,greeks did

  not1 like other nations1 regard their 
wives as slaves1 but treated them as    
helpmates and companions4 ,a ,roman     
writer has appealed1 on the whole with  
greater justice1 to the treatment of    
wives by his fellow countrymen1 as a    
proof of the superiority of ,roman to   
,greek civilisation4 ,he has observed   
that while the ,greeks kept their wives 
in a special quarter in the  interior of
 their houses1 and never permitted them 
to sit at banquets  except with their   
relatives1 or to see any male except in 
the presence of  a relative1 no ,roman  
ever hesitated to lead his wife with him
 to the  feast1 or to place the mother  
of the family at the head of his        
table47#fjb7  ,whether1 in the period   
when wives were completely subject to   
the rule of  their husbands1 much       
domestic oppression occurred1 it is now 
impossible to  say4 ,a temple dedicated 
to a goddess named ,viriplaca1 whose    
mission was to  appease husbands1 was   
worshipped by ,roman women on the       

,palatine27#fjc7 and  a strange and     
improbable1 if not incredible story1 is 
related by ,livy1 of  the discovery     
during the ,republic1 of a vast         
conspiracy by ,roman wives to  poison   
their husbands47#fjd7 ,on the whole1    
however1 it is probable that the  ,roman
 matron was from the earliest period a  
name of honour27#fje7 that the          
beautiful sentence of a jurisconsult of 
the ,empire1 who defined marriage  as a 
lifelong fellowship of all divine and   
human rights17#fjf7 expressed  most     
faithfully the feelings of the people1  
and that female virtue had in  every age
 a considerable place in ,roman         
biographies47#fjg7    ,i have already   
enumerated the chief causes of that     
complete dissolution of  ,roman morals  
which began shortly after the ,punic    
wars1 which contributed  very largely to
 the destruction of the ,republic1 and  
which attained its  climax under the    
,csars4 ,there are few examples in      
history of a revolution  pervading so   

completely every sphere of religious1   
domestic1 social1 and  political life4  
,philosophical scepticism corroded the  
ancient religions4  ,an inundation of   
,eastern luxury and ,eastern morals     
submerged all the old  habits of austere
 simplicity4 ,the civil wars and the    
,empire degraded the  character of the  
people1 and the exaggerated prudery of  
republican manners  only served to make 
the rebound into vice the more          
irresistible4 ,in the  fierce outburst  
of ungovernable and almost frantic      
depravity that marked  this evil period1
 the violations of female virtue were   
infamously  prominent4 ,the vast        
multiplication of slaves1 which is in   
every age  peculiarly fatal to moral    
purity2 the fact that a great proportion
 of  those slaves were chosen from the  
most voluptuous provinces of the        
,empire2  the games of ,flora1 in which 
races of naked courtesans were          
exhibited2 the  pantomimes1 which       
derived their charms chiefly from the   

audacious  indecencies of the actors2   
the influx of the ,greek and ,asiatic   
hetr who  were attracted by the wealth  
of the metropolis2 the licentious       
paintings  which began to adorn every   
house2 the rise of ,bai1 which rivalled 
the  luxury and surpassed the beauty of 
the chief centres of ,asiatic vice1     
combining with the intoxication of great
 wealth suddenly acquired1 with  the    
disruption1 through many causes1 of all 
the ancient habits and  beliefs1 and    
with the tendency to pleasure which the 
closing of the paths  of honourable     
political ambition by the imperial      
despotism1 naturally  produced1 had all 
their part in preparing those orgies of 
vice which the  writers of the ,empire  
reveal4 ,most scholars will1 ,i suppose1
 retain a  vivid recollection of the new
 insight into the extent and wildness of
  human guilt which they obtained when  
they first opened the pages of          
,suetonius or ,lampridius2 and the sixth
 ,satire of ,juvenal paints with a      

fierce energy1 though probably with the 
natural exaggeration of a  satirist1 the
 extent to which corruption had spread  
among the women4 ,it  was found         
necessary1 under ,tiberius1 to make a   
special law prohibiting  members of     
noble houses from enrolling themselves  
as prostitutes47#fjh7 ,the  extreme     
coarseness of the ,roman disposition    
prevented sensuality from  assuming that
 sthetic character which had made it in 
,greece the parent of  ,art1 and had    
very profoundly modified its influence1 
while the passion for  gladiatorial     
shows often allied it somewhat          
unnaturally with cruelty4  ,there have  
certainly been many periods in history  
when virtue was more  rare than under   
the ,csars2 but there has probably never
 been a period  when vice was more      
extravagant or uncontrolled4 ,young     
emperors especially1  who were          
surrounded by swarms of sycophants and  
panders1 and who often  lived in        
continual dread of assassination1       

plunged with the most reckless  and     
feverish excitement into every variety  
of abnormal lust4 ,the reticence  which 
has always more or less characterised   
modern society and modern  writers was  
unknown1 and the unblushing1 undisguised
 obscenity of the  ,epigrams of         
,martial1 of the ,romances of ,apuleius 
and ,petronius1 and of  some of the     
,dialogues of ,lucian1 reflected but too
 faithfully the spirit  of their time4  
,there had arisen1 too1 partly through  
vicious causes1 and partly1 ,i  suppose1
 through the unfavourable influence     
which the attraction of the  public     
institutions exercised on domestic life1
 a great and general  indisposition     
towards marriage1 which ,augustus       
attempted in vain to arrest  by his laws
 against celibacy1 and by conferring    
many privileges on the  fathers of three
 children47#fji7 ,a singularly curious  
speech is preserved1  which is said to  
have been delivered on this subject1    
shortly before the  close of the        

,republic1 by ,metellus ,numidicus1 in  
order1 if possible1 to  overcome this   
indisposition4 8,if1 ,romans10 he said1 
8we could live without  wives1 we should
 all keep free from that source of      
trouble2 but since  nature has ordained 
that men can neither live sufficiently  
agreeably with  wives1 nor at all       
without them1 let us consider the       
perpetual endurance of  our race rather 
than our own brief enjoyment407#faj7    
,in the midst of this torrent of        
corruption a great change was passing   
over  the legal position of ,roman      
women4 ,they had at first been in a     
condition  of absolute subjection or    
subordination to their relations4 ,they 
arrived1  during the ,empire1 at a point
 of freedom and dignity which they      
subsequently lost1 and have never       
altogether regained4 ,the ,romans       
recognised two distinct classes of      
marriages3 the stricter1 and1 in the    
eyes of the law1 more honourable1 forms1
 which placed the woman 8in the  hand0  

of her husband and gave him an almost   
absolute authority over her  person and 
her property2 and a less strict form1   
which left her legal  position          
unchanged4 ,the former1 which were      
general during the ,republic1  were of  
three kinds--the 8confarreatio10 which  
was celebrated and could  only be       
dissolved by the most solemn religious  
ceremonies1 and was  jealously          
restricted to patricians2 the           
8coemptio10 which was purely  civil1 and
 derived its name from a symbolical     
sale2 and the 8usus10 which  was        
effected by the mere cohabitation of a  
woman with a man without  interruption  
for the space of a year4 ,under the     
,empire1 however1 these  kinds of       
marriage became almost wholly obsolete2 
a laxer form1 resting  upon a simple    
mutual agreement1 without any religious 
or civil ceremony1  was general1 and it 
had this very important consequence1    
that the woman so  married remained1 in 
the eyes of the law1 in the family of   

her father1 and  was under his          
guardianship1 not under the guardianship
 of her husband4 ,but  the old patria   
potestas had become completely obsolete1
 and the  practical effect of the       
general adoption of this form of        
marriage was the  absolute legal        
independence of the wife4 ,with the     
exception of her dowry1  which passed   
into the hands of her husband1 she held 
her property in her  own right2 she     
inherited her share of the wealth of her
 father1 and she  retained it altogether
 independently of her husband4 ,a very  
considerable  portion of ,roman wealth  
thus passed into the uncontrolled       
possession of  women4 ,the private man  
of business of the wife was a favourite 
character  with the comedians1 and the  
tyranny exercised by rich wives over    
their  husbands--to whom it is said they
 sometimes lent money at high           
interest--a  continual theme of         
satirists47#faa7    ,a complete         
revolution had thus passed over the     

constitution of the family4  ,instead of
 being constructed on the principle of  
autocracy1 it was  constructed on the   
principle of coequal partnership4 ,the  
legal position of  the wife had become  
one of complete independence1 while her 
social  position was one of great       
dignity4 ,the more conservative spirits 
were  naturally alarmed at the change1  
and two measures were taken to arrest   
it4  ,the ,oppian law was designed to   
restrain the luxury of women2 but1 in   
spite  of the strenuous exertions of    
,cato1 this law was speedily            
repealed47#fab7 ,a  more important      
measure was the ,voconian law1 which    
restricted within very  narrow limits   
the property which women might inherit2 
but public opinion  never fully         
acquiesced in it1 and by several legal  
subterfuges its  operation was partially
 evaded47#fac7    ,another and a still  
more important consequence resulted from
 the changed  form of marriage4 ,being  
looked upon merely as a civil contract1 

entered  into for the happiness of the  
contracting parties1 its continuance    
depended upon mutual consent4 ,either   
party might dissolve it at will1 and    
the dissolution gave both parties a     
right to remarry4 ,there can be no      
question that under this system the     
obligations of marriage were treated    
with extreme levity4 ,we find ,cicero   
repudiating his wife ,terentia1 because 
he desired a new dowry27#fad7 ,augustus 
compelling the husband of ,livia to     
repudiate her when she was already      
pregnant1 that he might marry her       
himself27#fae7 ,cato ceding his wife1   
with the consent of her father1 to his  
friend ,hortensius1 and resuming her    
after his death27#faf7 ,mcenas          
continually changing his wife27#fag7    
,sempronius ,sophus repudiating his     
wife1 because she had once been to the  
public games without his                
knowledge27#fah7 ,paulus milius taking  
the same step without assigning any     
reason1 and defending himself by saying1

 8,my shoes are new and well made1  but 
no one knows where they pinch me407#fai7
 ,nor did women show less  alacrity in  
repudiating their husbands4 ,seneca     
denounced this evil with  especial      
vehemence1 declaring that divorce in    
,rome no longer brought with  it any    
shame1 and that there were women who    
reckoned their years rather by  their   
husbands than by the consuls47#fbj7     
,christians and ,pagans echoed the  same
 complaint4 ,according to ,tertullian1  
8divorce is the fruit of                
marriage407#fba7 ,martial speaks of a   
woman who had already arrived at her    
tenth husband27#fbb7 ,juvenal1 of a     
woman having eight husbands in five     
years47#fbc7 ,but the most extraordinary
 recorded instance of this kind is      
related by ,st4 ,jerome1 who assures us 
that there existed at ,rome a wife  who 
was married to her twenty-third husband1
 she herself being his  twenty-first    
wife47#fbd7    ,these are1 no doubt1    
extreme cases2 but it is unquestionable 

that the  stability of married life was 
very seriously impaired4 ,it would be   
easy1  however1 to exaggerate the       
influence of legal changes in affecting 
it4 ,in  a purer state of public opinion
 a very wide latitude of divorce might  
probably have been allowed to both      
parties1 without any serious            
consequence4 ,the right of repudiation1 
which the husband had always  possessed1
 was1 as we have seen1 in the ,republic 
never or very rarely  exercised4 ,of    
those who scandalised good men by the   
rapid recurrence of  their marriages1   
probably most1 if marriage had been     
indissoluble1 would  have refrained from
 entering into it1 and would have       
contented themselves  with many informal
 connections1 or1 if they had married1  
would have  gratified their love of     
change by simple adultery4 ,a vast wave 
of  corruption had flowed in upon ,rome1
 and under any system of law it would   
have penetrated into domestic life4     
,laws prohibiting all divorce have      

never secured the purity of married life
 in ages of great corruption1 nor  did  
the latitude which was accorded in      
imperial ,rome prevent the existence  of
 a very large amount of female virtue4  
,i have observed1 in a former chapter1  
that the moral contrasts shown in       
ancient life surpass those of modern    
societies1 in which we very rarely  find
 clusters of heroic or illustrious men  
arising in nations that are in  general 
very ignorant or very corrupt4 ,i have  
endeavoured to account for  this fact by
 showing that the moral agencies of     
antiquity were in general  much more    
fitted to develop virtue than to repress
 vice1 and that they  raised noble      
natures to almost the highest           
conceivable point of  excellence1 while 
they entirely failed to coerce or to    
attenuate the  corruption of the        
depraved4 ,in the female life of        
,imperial ,rome we find  these contrasts
 vividly displayed4 ,there can be no    
question that the moral  tone of the sex

 was extremely low--lower1 probably1    
than in ,france under  the ,regency1 or 
in ,england under the ,restoration--and 
it is also certain  that frightful      
excesses of unnatural passion1 of which 
the most corrupt of  modern courts      
present no parallel1 were perpetrated   
with but little  concealment on the     
,palatine4 ,yet there is probably no    
period in which  examples of conjugal   
heroism and fidelity appear more        
frequently than in  this very age1 in   
which marriage was most free and in     
which corruption was  so general4 ,much 
simplicity of manners continued to      
co-exist with the  excesses of an almost
 unbridled luxury4 ,augustus1 we are    
told1 used to  make his daughters and   
granddaughters weave and spin1 and his  
wife and  sister made most of the       
clothes he wore47#fbe7 ,the skill of    
wives in  domestic economy1 and         
especially in spinning1 was frequently  
noticed in  their epitaphs47#fbf7       
,intellectual culture was much diffused 

among  them17#fbg7 and we meet with     
several noble specimens1 in the sex1 of 
large  and accomplished minds united    
with all the gracefulness of intense    
womanhood1 and all the fidelity of the  
truest love4 ,such were ,cornelia1  the 
brilliant and devoted wife of           
,pompey17#fbh7 ,marcia1 the friend1 and 
,helvia1 the mother of ,seneca4 ,the    
,northern ,italian cities had in a great
  degree escaped the contamination of   
the times1 and ,padua and ,brescia were 
especially noted for the virtue of their
 women47#fbi7 ,in an age of  extravagant
 sensuality a noble lady1 named         
,mallonia1 plunged her dagger in  her   
heart rather than yield to the embraces 
of ,tiberius47#fcj7 ,to the  period when
 the legal bond of marriage was most    
relaxed must be assigned  most of those 
noble examples of the constancy of      
,roman wives1 which have  been for so   
many generations household tales among  
mankind4 ,who has not  read with emotion
 of the tenderness and heroism of       

,porcia1 claiming her  right to share in
 the trouble which clouded her husband's
 brow2 how1  doubting her own courage1  
she did not venture to ask ,brutus to   
reveal to  her his enterprise till she  
had secretly tried her power of         
endurance by  piercing her thigh with a 
knife2 how once1 and but once in his    
presence1  her noble spirit failed1     
when1 as she was about to separate from 
him for  the last time1 her eye chanced 
to fall upon a picture of the parting   
interview of ,hector and                
,andromache87#fca7 ,paulina1 the wife of
 ,seneca1  opened her own veins in order
 to accompany her husband to the grave2 
when  much blood had already flowed1 her
 slaves and freedmen bound her wounds1  
and thus compelled her to live2 but the 
,romans ever after observed with        
reverence the sacred pallor of her      
countenance--the memorial of her        
act47#fcb7 ,when ,ptus was condemned to 
die by his own hand1 those who knew  the
 love which his wife ,arria bore him1   

and the heroic fervour of her           
character1 predicted that she would not 
long survive him4 ,thrasea1 who had     
married her daughter1 endeavoured to    
dissuade her from suicide by saying1    
8,if ,i am ever called upon to perish1  
would you wish your daughter to die     
with me80 ,she answered1 8,yes1 if she  
will have then lived with you as long   
and as happily as ,i with ,ptus40 ,her  
friends attempted1 by carefully         
watching her1 to secure her safety1 but 
she dashed her head against the  wall   
with such force that she fell upon the  
ground1 and then1 rising up1  she said1 
8,i told you ,i would find a hard way to
 death if you refuse me an  easy way40  
,all attempts to restrain her were then 
abandoned1 and her death  was perhaps   
the most majestic in antiquity4 ,ptus   
for a moment hesitated  to strike the   
fatal blow2 but his wife1 taking the    
dagger1 plunged it  deeply into her own 
breast1 and then1 drawing it out1 gave  
it1 all reeking  as it was1 to her      

husband1 exclaiming1 with her dying     
breath1 8,my ,ptus1  it does not        
pain407#fcc7    ,the form of the elder  
,arria towers grandly above her fellows1
 but many  other ,roman wives in the    
days of the early ,csars and of         
,domitian  exhibited a very similar     
fidelity4 ,over the dark waters of the  
,euxine1  into those unknown and        
inhospitable regions from which the     
,roman  imagination recoiled with a     
peculiar horror1 many noble ladies      
freely  followed their husbands1 and    
there were some wives who refused to    
survive  them47#fcd7 ,the younger ,arria
 was the faithful companion of ,thrasea 
during  his heroic life1 and when he    
died she was only persuaded to live that
 she  might bring up their              
daughters47#fce7 ,she spent the closing 
days of her  life with ,domitian in     
exile27#fcf7 while her daughter1 who was
 as  remarkable for the gentleness as   
for the dignity of her character17#fcg7 
went twice into exile with her husband  

,helvidius1 and was once banished1      
after his death1 for defending his      
memory47#fch7 ,incidental notices in    
historians1 and a few inscriptions which
 have happened to remain1 show us  that 
such instances were not uncommon1 and in
 ,roman epitaphs no feature is  more    
remarkable than the deep and passionate 
expressions of conjugal love  that      
continually occur47#fci7 ,it would be   
difficult to find a more touching  image
 of that love1 than the medallion which 
is so common on the ,roman  sarcophagi1 
in which husband and wife are           
represented together1 each with  an arm 
thrown fondly over the shoulder of the  
other1 united in death as  they had been
 in life1 and meeting it with an aspect 
of perfect calm1  because they were     
companions in the tomb4    ,in the      
latter days of the ,pagan ,empire some  
measures were taken to repress  the     
profligacy that was so prevalent4       
,domitian enforced the old ,scantinian  
law against unnatural love47#fdj7       

,vespasian moderated the luxury of the  
court2 ,macrinus caused those who had   
committed adultery to be bound  together
 and burnt alive47#fda7 ,a practice of  
men and women bathing  together was     
condemned by ,hadrian1 and afterwards by
 ,alexander ,severus1  but was only     
finally suppressed by ,constantine4     
,alexander ,severus and  ,philip waged  
an energetic war against panders47#fdb7 
,the extreme excesses  of this1 as of   
most forms of vice1 were probably much  
diminished after the  accession of the  
,antonines2 but ,rome continued to be a 
centre of very  great corruption till   
the influence of ,christianity1 the     
removal of the  court to                
,constantinople1 and the impoverishment 
that followed the  barbarian conquests1 
in a measure corrected the evil4        
,among the moralists1 however1 some     
important steps were taken4 ,one of the 
most important was a very clear         
assertion of the reciprocity of that    
obligation to fidelity in marriage which

 in the early stages of society  had    
been imposed almost exclusively upon    
wives47#fdc7 ,the legends of            
,clytemnestra and of ,medea reveal the  
feelings of fierce resentment which     
were sometimes produced among ,greek    
wives by the almost unlimited           
indulgence that was accorded to their   
husbands27#fdd7 and it is told of       
,andromache1 as the supreme instance of 
her love of ,hector1 that she cared  for
 his illegitimate children as much as   
for her own47#fde7 ,in early ,rome1  the
 obligations of husbands were never1 ,i 
imagine1 altogether unfelt2 but  they   
were rarely or never enforced1 nor were 
they ever regarded as bearing  any kind 
of equality to those imposed upon the   
wife4 ,the term adultery1  and all the  
legal penalties connected with it1 were 
restricted to the  infractions by a wife
 of the nuptial tie4 ,among the many    
instances of  magnanimity recorded of   
,roman wives1 few are more touching than
 that of  ,tertia milia1 the faithful   

wife of ,scipio4 ,she discovered that   
her  husband had become enamoured of one
 of her slaves2 but she bore her pain   
in silence1 and when he died she gave   
liberty to her captive1 for she  could  
not bear that she should remain in      
servitude whom her dear lord had        
loved47#fdf7    ,aristotle had clearly  
asserted the duty of husbands to observe
 in marriage  the same fidelity as they 
expected from their wives17#fdg7 and at 
a later  period both ,plutarch and      
,seneca enforced this duty in the       
strongest and  most unequivocal         
manner47#fdh7 ,the degree to which1 in  
theory at least1 it  won its way in     
,roman life is shown by its recognition 
as a legal maxim by  ,ulpian17#fdi7 and 
by its appearance in a formal judgment  
of ,antoninus ,pius1  who1 while        
issuing1 at the request of a husband1 a 
condemnation for  adultery against a    
guilty wife1 appended to it this        
remarkable condition3  8,provided always
 it is established that by your life you

 gave her an  example of fidelity4 ,it  
would be unjust that a husband should   
exact a  fidelity he does not himself   
keep407#fej7    ,another change1 which  
may be dimly descried in the later      
,pagan society1  was a tendency to      
regard purity rather in a mystical point
 of view1 as  essentially good1 than in 
the utilitarian point of view4 ,this    
change  resulted chiefly from the rise  
of the ,neoplatonic and ,pythagorean    
philosophies1 which concurred in        
regarding the body1 with its passions1  
as  essentially evil1 and in            
representing all virtue as a            
purification from  its taint4 ,its most 
important consequence was a somewhat    
stricter view of  pre-nuptial           
unchastity1 which in the case of men1   
and when it was not  excessive1 and did 
not take the form of adultery1 had      
previously been  uncensured1 or was     
looked upon with a disapprobation so    
slight as scarcely  to amount to        
censure4 ,the elder ,cato had expressly 

justified it27#fea7 and  ,cicero has    
left us an extremely curious judgment on
 the subject1 which  shows at a glance  
the feelings of the people1 and the vast
 revolution  that1 under the influence  
of ,christianity1 has been effected in1 
at least1  the professions of mankind4  
8,if there be any one10 he says1 8who   
thinks  that young men should be        
altogether restrained from the love of  
courtesans1 he is indeed very severe4 ,i
 am not prepared to deny his  position2 
but he differs not only from the licence
 of our age1 but also  from the customs 
and allowances of our ancestors4 ,when1 
indeed1 was this  not done8 ,when was it
 blamed8 ,when was it not allowed8 ,when
 was that which  is now lawful not      
lawful807#feb7 ,epictetus1 who on most  
subjects was among  the most austere of 
the ,stoics1 recommends his disciples to
 abstain1 8as  far as possible10 from   
pre-nuptial connections1 and at least   
from those  which were adulterous and   
unlawful1 but not to blame those who    

were less  strict47#fec7 ,the feeling of
 the ,romans is curiously exemplified in
 the  life of ,alexander ,severus1 who1 
of all the emperors1 was probably the   
most  energetic in legislating against  
vice4 ,when appointing a provincial     
governor1 he was accustomed to provide  
him with horses and servants1 and1  if  
he was unmarried1 with a concubine1     
8because10 as the historian very        
gravely observes1 8it was impossible    
that he could exist without  one407#fed7
    ,what was written among the ,pagans 
in opposition to these views was not    
much1 but it is worthy of notice1 as    
illustrating the tendency that had      
arisen4 ,musonius ,rufus distinctly and 
emphatically asserted that no union  of 
the sexes other than marriage was       
permissible47#fee7 ,dion ,chrysostom    
desired prostitution to be suppressed by
 law4 ,the ascetic notion of the        
impurity even of marriage may be faintly
 traced4 ,apollonius of ,tyana  lived1  
on this ground1 a life of               

celibacy47#fef7 ,zenobia refused to     
cohabit  with her husband1 except so far
 as was necessary for the production of 
an  heir47#feg7 ,hypatia is said1 like  
many ,christian saints1 to have         
maintained  the position of a virgin    
wife47#feh7 ,the belief in the impurity 
of all  corporeal things1 and in the    
duty of rising above them1 was in the   
third  century strenuously              
enforced47#fei7 ,marcus ,aurelius and   
,julian were both  admirable            
representatives of the best ,pagan      
spirit of their time4 ,each of  them    
lost his wife early1 each was eulogised 
by his biographer for the  virtue he    
manifested after her death2 but there is
 a curious and  characteristic          
difference in the forms which that      
virtue assumed4 ,marcus  ,aurelius1 we  
are told1 did not wish to bring into his
 house a stepmother  to rule over his   
children1 and accordingly took a        
concubine47#ffj7 ,julian  ever after    
lived in perfect continence47#ffa7      

,the foregoing facts1 which ,i have     
given in the most condensed form1 and   
almost unaccompanied by criticism or by 
comment1 will be sufficient1 ,i  hope1  
to exhibit the state of feeling of the  
,romans on this subject1 and  also the  
direction in which that feeling was     
being modified4 ,those who are  familiar
 with this order of studies will readily
 understand that it is  impossible to   
mark out with precision the chronology  
of a moral sentiment2  but there can be 
no question that in the latter days of  
the ,roman ,empire  the perceptions of  
men on this subject became more subtle  
and more refined  than they had         
previously been1 and it is equally      
certain that the ,oriental  philosophies
 which had superseded ,stoicism largely 
influenced the change4  ,christianity   
soon constituted itself the             
representative of the new  tendency4 ,it
 regarded purity as the most important  
of all virtues1 and it  strained to the 
utmost all the vast agencies it         

possessed1 to enforce it4  ,in the      
legislation of the first ,christian     
emperors we find many traces of  a fiery
 zeal4 ,panders were condemned to have  
molten lead poured down their  throats4 
,in the case of rape1 not only the      
ravisher1 but even the injured  person1 
if she consented to the act1 was put to 
death47#ffb7 ,a great  service was done 
to the cause both of purity and of      
philanthropy1 by a law  which permitted 
actresses1 on receiving baptism1 to     
abandon their  profession1 which had    
been made a form of slavery1 and was    
virtually a  slavery to vice47#ffc7     
,certain musical girls1 who were        
accustomed to sing  or play at the      
banquets of the rich1 and who were      
regarded with extreme  horror by the    
,fathers1 were suppressed1 and a very   
stringent law forbade  the revival of   
the class47#ffd7    ,side by side with  
the civil legislation1 the penitential  
legislation of  the ,church was exerted 
in the same direction4 ,sins of         

unchastity probably  occupy a larger    
place than any others in its enactments4
 ,the cases of  unnatural love1 and of  
mothers who had made their daughters    
courtesans1  were punished by perpetual 
exclusion from communion1 and a crowd of
 minor  offences were severely visited4 
,the ascetic passion increased the      
prominence of this branch of ethics1 and
 the imaginations of men were soon      
fascinated by the pure and noble figures
 of the virgin martyrs of the  ,church1 
who on more than one occasion fully     
equalled the courage of men1  while they
 sometimes mingled with their heroism   
traits of the most  exquisite feminine  
gentleness4 ,for the patient endurance  
of excruciating  physical suffering1    
,christianity produced no more sublime  
figure than  ,blandina1 the poor        
servant-girl who was martyred at ,lyons2
 and it would be  difficult to find in  
all history a more touching picture of  
natural purity  than is contained in one
 simple incident of the martyrdom of    

,st4 ,perpetua4  ,it is related of that 
saint that she was condemned to be      
slaughtered by a  wild bull1 and1 as she
 fell half dead from its horns upon the 
sand of the  arena1 it was observed that
 even in that awful moment her virgin   
modesty  was supreme1 and her first     
instinctive movement was to draw        
together her  dress1 which had been torn
 in the assault47#ffe7    ,a crowd of   
very curious popular legends also arose1
 which1 though they are  for the most   
part without much intrinsic excellence1 
have their importance  in history1 as   
showing the force with which the        
imaginations of men were  turned in this
 direction1 and the manner in which     
,christianity was  regarded as the great
 enemy of the passions of the flesh4    
,thus1 ,st4 ,jerome  relates an         
incredible story of a young ,christian1 
being1 in the ,diocletian  persecution1 
bound with ribands of silk in the midst 
of a lovely garden1  surrounded by      
everything that could charm the ear and 

the eye1 while a  beautiful courtesan   
assailed him with her blandishments1    
against which he  protected himself by  
biting out his tongue and spitting it in
 her  face47#fff7 ,legends are recounted
 of young ,christian men assuming the   
garb  and manners of libertines1 that   
they might obtain access to maidens who 
had been condemned to vice1 exchanging  
dresses with them1 and thus  enabling   
them to escape47#ffg7 ,st4 ,agnes was   
said to have been stripped  naked before
 the people1 who all turned away their  
eyes except one young  man1 who         
instantly became blind47#ffh7 ,the      
sister of ,st4 ,gregory of ,nyssa  was  
afflicted with a cancer in her breast1  
but could not bear that a  surgeon      
should see it1 and was rewarded for her 
modesty by a miraculous  cure47#ffi7 ,to
 the fabled zone of beauty the          
,christian saints opposed their  zones  
of chastity1 which extinguished the     
passion of the wearer1 or would  only   
meet around the pure47#fgj7 ,dmons were 

said not unfrequently to have  entered  
into the profligate4 ,the garment of a  
girl who was possessed was  brought to  
,st4 ,pachomius1 and he discovered from 
it that she had a  lover47#fga7 ,a      
courtesan accused ,st4 ,gregory         
,thaumaturgus of having been  her lover1
 and having refused to pay her what he  
had promised4 ,he paid the  required    
sum1 but she was immediately possessed  
by a daemon47#fgb7 ,the  efforts of the 
saints to reclaim courtesans from the   
path of vice created  a large class of  
legends4 ,st4 ,mary ,magdalene1 ,st4    
,mary of ,egypt1 ,st4 ,afra1  ,st4      
,pelagia1 ,st4 ,thais1 and ,st4         
,theodota1 in the early ,church1 as well
 as  ,st4 ,marguerite of ,cortona1 and  
,clara of ,rimini1 in the middle ages1  
had  been courtesans47#fgc7 ,st4        
,vitalius1 it is said1 was accustomed   
every night  to visit the dens of vice  
in his neighbourhood1 to give the       
inmates money  to remain without sin for
 that night1 and to offer up prayers for

 their  conversion47#fgd7 ,it is related
 of ,st4 ,serapion1 that1 as he was     
passing  through a village in ,egypt1 a 
courtesan beckoned to him4 ,he promised 
at a  certain hour to visit her4 ,he    
kept his appointment1 but declared that 
there was a duty which his order imposed
 on him4 ,he fell down on his knees  and
 began repeating the ,psalter1          
concluding every psalm with a prayer for
  his hostess4 ,the strangeness of the  
scene1 and the solemnity of his tone    
and manner1 overawed and fascinated her4
 ,gradually her tears began to  flow4   
,she knelt beside him and began to join 
in his prayers4 ,he heeded her  not1 but
 hour after hour continued in the same  
stern and solemn voice1  without rest   
and without interruption1 to repeat his 
alternate prayers and  psalms1 till her 
repentance rose to a paroxysm of terror1
 and1 as the grey  morning streaks began
 to illumine the horizon1 she fell half 
dead at his  feet1 imploring him with   
broken sobs to lead her anywhere where  

she might  expiate the sins of her      
past47#fge7    ,but the services        
rendered by the ascetics in imprinting  
on the minds of  men a profound and     
enduring conviction of the importance of
 chastity1  though extremely great1 were
 seriously counterbalanced by their     
noxious  influence upon marriage4 ,two  
or three beautiful descriptions of this 
institution have been culled out of the 
immense mass of the patristic           
writings27#fgf7 but1 in general1 it     
would be difficult to conceive anything 
more coarse or more repulsive than the  
manner in which they regarded  it47#fgg7
 ,the relation which nature has designed
 for the noble purpose of  repairing the
 ravages of death1 and which1 as ,linnus
 has shown1 extends  even through the   
world of flowers1 was invariably treated
 as a consequence  of the fall of ,adam1
 and marriage was regarded almost       
exclusively in its  lowest aspect4 ,the 
tender love which it elicits1 the holy  
and beautiful  domestic qualities that  

follow in its train1 were almost        
absolutely  omitted from                
consideration47#fgh7 ,the object of the 
ascetic was to attract  men to a life of
 virginity1 and1 as a necessary         
consequence1 marriage was  treated as an
 inferior state4 ,it was regarded as    
being necessary1 indeed1  and therefore 
justifiable1 for the propagation of the 
species1 and to free  men from greater  
evils2 but still as a condition of      
degradation from which  all who aspired 
to real sanctity should fly4 ,to 8cut   
down by the axe of  ,virginity the wood 
of ,marriage10 was1 in the energetic    
language of ,st4  ,jerome1 the end of   
the saint27#fgi7 and if he consented to 
praise marriage1  it was merely because 
it produced virgins47#fhj7 ,even when   
the bond had  been formed1 the ascetic  
passion retained its sting4 ,we have    
already seen  how it embittered other   
relations of domestic life4 ,into this1 
the holiest  of all1 it infused a       
tenfold bitterness4 ,whenever any strong

 religious  fervour fell upon a husband 
or a wife1 its first effect was to make 
a  happy union impossible4 ,the more    
religious partner immediately desired to
  live a life of solitary asceticism1 or
 at least1 if no ostensible  separation 
took place1 an unnatural life of        
separation in marriage4 ,the  immense   
place this order of ideas occupies in   
the hortatory writings of  the ,fathers1
 and in the legends of the saints1 must 
be familiar to all who  have any        
knowledge of this department of         
literature4 ,thus--to give but a  very  
few examples--,st4 ,nilus1 when he had  
already two children1 was seized  with a
 longing for the prevailing asceticism1 
and his wife was persuaded1  after many 
tears1 to consent to their              
separation47#fha7 ,st4 ,ammon1 on the   
night of his marriage1 proceeded to     
greet his bride with an harangue upon   
the evils of the married state1 and they
 agreed1 in consequence1 at once  to    
separate47#fhb7 ,st4 ,melania laboured  

long and earnestly to induce her        
husband to allow her to desert his bed1 
before he would consent47#fhc7 ,st4     
,abraham ran away from his wife on the  
night of his marriage47#fhd7 ,st4       
,alexis1 according to a somewhat later  
legend1 took the same step1 but many    
years after returned from ,jerusalem to 
his father's house1 in which his  wife  
was still lamenting her desertion1      
begged and received a lodging as  an act
 of charity1 and lived there            
unrecognised and unknown till his       
death47#fhe7 ,st4 ,gregory of           
,nyssa--who was so unfortunate as to be 
married--wrote a glowing eulogy of      
virginity1 in the course of which he    
mournfully observed that this privileged
 state could never be his4 ,he          
resembled1 he assures us1 an ox that was
 ploughing a field1 the fruit of  which 
he must never enjoy2 or a thirsty man1  
who was gazing on a stream of  which he 
never can drink2 or a poor man1 whose   
poverty seems the more  bitter as he    

contemplates the wealth of his          
neighbours2 and he proceeded  to descant
 in feeling terms upon the troubles of  
matrimony47#fhf7 ,nominal  marriages1 in
 which the partners agreed to shun the  
marriage bed1 became  not uncommon4 ,the
 emperor ,henry ,,ii41 ,edward the      
,confessor1 of ,england1 and  ,alphonso 
,,ii41 of ,spain1 gave examples of it4  
,a very famous and rather  picturesque  
history of this kind is related by      
,gregory of ,tours4 ,a rich  young      
,gaul1 named ,injuriosus1 led to his    
home a young bride to whom he was       
passionately attached4 ,that night1 she 
confessed to him1 with tears1 that  she 
had vowed to keep her virginity1 and    
that she regretted bitterly the         
marriage into which her love for him had
 betrayed her4 ,he told her that  they  
should remain united1 but that she      
should still observe her vow2 and  he   
fulfilled his promise4 ,when1 after     
several years1 she died1 her  husband1  
in laying her in the tomb1 declared1    

with great solemnity1 that  he restored 
her to ,god as immaculate as he had     
received her2 and then a  smile lit up  
the face of the dead woman1 and she     
said1 8,why do you tell  that which no  
one asked you80 ,the husband soon       
afterwards died1 and his  corpse1 which 
had been laid in a distinct compartment 
from that of his  wife in the tomb1 was 
placed side by side with it by the      
angels47#fhg7    ,the extreme disorders 
which such teaching produced in domestic
 life1 and  also the extravagances which
 grew up among some heretics1 naturally 
alarmed the more judicious leaders of   
the ,church1 and it was ordained that   
married persons should not enter into an
 ascetic life1 except by mutual         
consent47#fhh7 ,the ascetic ideal1      
however1 remained unchanged4 ,to abstain
  from marriage1 or in marriage to      
abstain from a perfect union1 was       
regarded as a proof of sanctity1 and    
marriage was viewed in its coarsest  and
 most degraded form4 ,the notion of its 

impurity took many forms1 and  exercised
 for some centuries an extremely wide   
influence over the ,church4  ,thus1 it  
was the custom during the middle ages to
 abstain from the  marriage bed during  
the night after the ceremony1 in honour 
of the  sacrament47#fhi7 ,it was        
expressly enjoined that no married      
persons should  participate in any of   
the great ,church festivals if the night
 before they  had lain together1 and    
,st4 ,gregory the ,great tells of a     
young wife who was  possessed by a dmon1
 because she had taken part in a        
procession of ,st4  ,sebastian1 without 
fulfilling this condition47#fij7 ,the   
extent to which the  feeling on the     
subject was carried is shown by the     
famous vision of  ,alberic in the       
twelfth century1 in which a special     
place of torture1  consisting of a lake 
of mingled lead1 pitch1 and resin is    
represented as  existing in hell for the
 punishment of married people who had   
lain  together on ,church festivals or  

fast days47#fia7    ,two other          
consequences of this way of regarding   
marriage were a very  strong disapproval
 of second marriages1 and a very strong 
desire to secure  celibacy in the       
clergy4 ,the first of these notions had 
existed1 though in  a very different    
form1 and connected with very different 
motives1 among  the early ,romans1 who  
were accustomed1 we are told1 to honour 
with the  crown of modesty those who    
were content with one marriage1 and to  
regard  many marriages as a sign of     
illegitimate intemperance47#fib7 ,this  
opinion  appears to have chiefly grown  
out of a very delicate and touching     
feeling  which had taken deep root in   
the ,roman mind1 that the affection a   
wife  owes her husband is so profound   
and so pure that it must not cease even 
with his death2 that it should guide and
 consecrate all her subsequent  life1   
and that it never can be transferred to 
another object4 ,virgil1 in  very       
beautiful lines1 puts this sentiment    

into the mouth of ,dido27#fic7 and      
several examples are recorded of ,roman 
wives1 sometimes in the prime of  youth 
and beauty1 upon the death of their     
husbands1 devoting the remainder  of    
their lives to retirement and to the    
memory of the dead47#fid7 ,tacitus  held
 up the ,germans as in this respect a   
model to his countrymen17#fie7 and  the 
epithet 8univir0 inscribed on many      
,roman tombs shows how this  devotion   
was practised and valued47#fif7 ,the    
family of ,camillus was  especially     
honoured for the absence of second      
marriages among its  members47#fig7 8,to
 love a wife when living10 said one of  
the latest ,roman  poets1 8is a         
pleasure2 to love her when dead is an   
act of religion407#fih7  ,in the case of
 men1 the propriety of abstaining from  
second marriages was  probably not felt 
so strongly as in the case of women1 and
 what feeling on  the subject existed   
was chiefly due to another              
motive--affection for the  children1    

whose interests1 it was thought1 might  
be injured by a  stepmother47#fii7      
,the sentiment which thus recoiled from 
second marriages passed with a  vastly  
increased strength into ascetic         
,christianity1 but it was based upon    
altogether different grounds4 ,we find1 
in the first place1 that an             
affectionate remembrance of the husband 
had altogether vanished from the        
motives of the abstinence4 ,in the next 
place1 we may remark that the           
ecclesiastical writers1 in perfect      
conformity with the extreme coarseness  
of their views about the sexes1 almost  
invariably assumed that the motive  to  
second or third marriages must be simply
 the force of the animal  passions4 ,the
 ,montanists and the ,novatians         
absolutely condemned second             
marriages47#gjj7 ,the orthodox          
pronounced them lawful1 on account of   
the  weakness of human nature1 but they 
viewed them with the most emphatic      
disapproval17#gja7 partly because they  

considered them manifest signs of       
incontinence1 and partly because they   
regarded them as inconsistent with      
their doctrine that marriage is an      
emblem of the union of ,christ with the 
,church4 ,the language of the ,fathers  
on this subject appears to a modern     
mind most extraordinary1 and1 but for   
their distinct and reiterated  assertion
 that they considered these marriages   
permissible17#gjb7 would  appear to     
amount to a peremptory condemnation4    
,thus--to give but a few                
samples--digamy1 or second marriage1 is 
described by ,athenagoras as 8a  decent 
adultery407#gjc7 8,fornication10        
according to ,clement of ,alexandria1   
8is a lapse from one marriage into      
many407#gjd7 8,the first ,adam10 said   
,st4  ,jerome1 8had one wife2 the second
 ,adam had no wife4 ,they who approve of
  digamy hold forth a third ,adam1 who  
was twice married1 whom they            
follow407#gje7 8,consider10 he again    
says1 8that she who has been twice      

married1 though she be an old1 and      
decrepit1 and poor woman1 is not deemed 
worthy to receive the charity of the    
,church4 ,but if the bread of charity   
is taken from her1 how much more that   
bread which descends from               
heaven607#gjf7 8,digamists10 according  
to ,origen1 8are saved in the name of   
,christ1 but are by no means crowned by 
him407#gjg7 8,by this text10 said ,st4  
,gregory ,nazianzen1 speaking of ,st4   
,paul's comparison of marriage to the   
union of ,christ with the ,church1      
8second marriages seem to me to be      
reproved4 ,if there are two ,christs    
there may be two husbands or two wives4 
,if there is but one ,christ1 one ,head 
of the ,church1 there is but one        
flesh--a second is repelled4 ,but if he 
forbids a second1 what is to be said  of
 third marriages8 ,the first is law1 the
 second is pardon and indulgence1  the  
third is iniquity2 but he who exceeds   
this number is manifestly               
bestial407#gjh7 ,digamists were excluded

 from the priesthood and from the       
distributions of ,church charity2 a     
period of penance was imposed on them   
before they were admitted to            
communion17#gji7 and two ,english       
statutes of  the ,middle ,ages withheld 
the benefit of clergy from any prisoner 
who had  8married two wives or one      
widow407#gaj7 ,the ,council of          
,illiberis1 in the  beginning of the    
fourth century1 while in general        
condemning baptism by  laymen1 permitted
 it in case of extreme necessity2 but   
provided that even  in that case the    
officiating layman must not have been   
twice married47#gaa7  ,among the ,greeks
 fourth marriages were at one time      
deemed absolutely  unlawful1 and much   
controversy was excited by the ,emperor 
,leo the ,wise1  who1 having had three  
wives1 had taken a mistress1 but        
afterwards1 in  defiance of the         
religious feelings of his people1       
determined to raise her  to the position
 of a wife47#gab7    ,the subject of the

 celibacy of the clergy1 in which the   
ecclesiastical  feelings about marriage 
were also shown1 is an extremely large  
one1 and ,i  shall not attempt to deal  
with it1 except in a most cursory       
manner47#gac7  ,there are two facts     
connected with it which every candid    
student must  admit4 ,the first is1 that
 in the earliest period of the ,church1 
the  privilege of marriage was accorded 
to the clergy4 ,the second is1 that a   
notion of the impurity of marriage      
existed1 and that it was felt that the  
clergy1 as pre-eminently the holy class1
 should have less licence than  laymen4 
,the first form this feeling took       
appears in the strong conviction  that a
 second marriage of a priest1 or the    
marriage of a priest with a  widow1 was 
unlawful and criminal47#gad7 ,this      
belief seems to have existed  from the  
earliest period of the ,church1 and was 
retained with great  tenacity and       
unanimity through many centuries4 ,in   
the next place1 we find  from an        

extremely early date an opinion1 that it
 was an act of virtue1 at  a later      
period that it was an act of duty1 for  
priests after ordination to  abstain    
from cohabiting with their wives4 ,the  
,council of ,nice refrained1  by the    
advice of ,paphnutius1 who was himself a
 scrupulous celibate1 from  imposing    
this last rule as a matter of           
necessity27#gae7 but in the course  of  
the fourth century it was a recognised  
principle that clerical  marriages were 
criminal4 ,they were celebrated1        
however1 habitually1 and  usually with  
the greatest openness4 ,the various     
attitudes assumed by the  ecclesiastical
 authorities in dealing with this       
subject form an extremely  curious page 
of the history of morals1 and supply the
 most crushing  evidence of the evils   
which have been produced by the system  
of celibacy4  ,i can at present1        
however1 only refer to the vast mass of 
evidence which  has been collected on   
the subject1 derived from the writings  

of ,catholic  divines and from the      
decrees of ,catholic ,councils during   
the space of many  centuries4 ,it is a  
popular illusion1 which is especially   
common among  writers who have little   
direct knowledge of the middle ages1    
that the  atrocious immorality of       
monasteries1 in the century before the  
,reformation1 was a new fact1 and that  
the ages when the faith of men was      
undisturbed1 were ages of great moral   
purity4 ,in fact1 it appears1 from  the 
uniform testimony of the ecclesiastical 
writers1 that ecclesiastical  immorality
 in the eighth and three following      
centuries was little if at  all less    
outrageous than in any other period1    
while the ,papacy1 during  almost the   
whole of the tenth century1 was held by 
men of infamous lives4  ,simony was     
nearly universal47#gaf7 ,barbarian      
chieftains married at an early  age1 and
 totally incapable of restraint1        
occupied the leading positions in  the  
,church1 and gross irregularities       

speedily became general4 ,an ,italian   
bishop of the tenth century             
epigrammatically described the morals of
 his  time1 when he declared1 that if he
 were to enforce the canons against     
unchaste people administering           
ecclesiastical rites1 no one would be   
left  in the ,church except the boys2   
and if he were to observe the canons    
against bastards1 these also must be    
excluded47#gag7 ,the evil acquired such 
magnitude that a great feudal clergy1   
bequeathing the ecclesiastical          
benefices from father to son1 appeared  
more than once likely to  arise47#gah7  
,a tax called 8,culagium10 which was in 
fact a licence to  clergymen to keep    
concubines1 was during several centuries
 systematically  levied by              
princes47#gai7 ,sometimes the evil1 by  
its very extension1  corrected itself4  
,priestly marriages were looked upon as 
normal events not  implying any guilt1  
and in the eleventh century several     
instances are  recorded in which they   

were not regarded as any impediment to  
the power of  working miracles47#gbj7   
,but this was a rare exception4 ,from   
the earliest  period a long succession  
of ,councils as well as such men as ,st4
 ,boniface1  ,st4 ,gregory the ,great1  
,st4 ,peter ,damiani1 ,st4 ,dunstan1    
,st4 ,anselm1  ,hildebrand and his      
successors in the ,popedom1 denounced   
priestly marriage  or concubinage as an 
atrocious crime1 and the habitual life  
of the priests  was1 in theory at least1
 generally recognised as a life of sin4 
,it is not surprising that1 having once 
broken their vows and begun to live     
what they deemed a life of habitual sin1
 the clergy should soon have sunk  far  
below the level of the laity4 ,we may   
not lay much stress on such  isolated   
instances of depravity as that of ,pope 
,john ,,xxiii41 who was  condemned among
 many other crimes for incest1 and for  
adultery27#gba7 or  the abbot-elect of  
,st4 ,augustine1 at ,canterbury1 who in 
#aaga was found1 on  investigation1 to  

have seventeen illegitimate children in 
a single  village27#gbb7 or an abbot of 
,st4 ,pelayo1 in ,spain1 who in #aacj   
was proved  to have kept no less than   
seventy concubines27#gbc7 or ,henry     
,,iii41 ,bishop  of ,lige1 who was      
deposed in #abgd for having sixty-five  
illegitimate  children27#gbd7 but it is 
impossible to resist the evidence of a  
long chain  of ,councils and            
ecclesiastical writers1 who conspire in 
depicting far  greater evils than simple
 concubinage4 ,it was observed that when
 the  priests actually took wives the   
knowledge that these connections were   
illegal was peculiarly fatal to their   
fidelity1 and bigamy and extreme        
mobility of attachments were especially 
common among them4 ,the writers of  the 
middle ages are full of accounts of     
nunneries that were like brothels1  of  
the vast multitude of infanticides      
within their walls1 and of that         
inveterate prevalence of incest among   
the clergy1 which rendered it  necessary

 again and again to issue the most      
stringent enactments that  priests      
should not be permitted to live with    
their mothers or sisters4  ,unnatural   
love1 which it had been one of the great
 services of  ,christianity almost to   
eradicate from the world1 is more than  
once spoken  of as lingering in the     
monasteries2 and1 shortly before the    
,reformation1  complaints became loud   
and frequent of the employment of the   
confessional  for the purposes of       
debauchery47#gbe7 ,the measures taken on
 the subject  were very numerous and    
severe4 ,at first1 the evil chiefly     
complained of  was the clandestine      
marriage of priests1 and especially     
their intercourse  with wives whom they 
had married previous to their           
ordination4 ,several  ,councils issued  
their anathemas against priests 8who had
 improper  relations with their wives20 
and rules were made that priests should 
always sleep in the presence of a       
subordinate clerk2 and that they should 

only meet their wives in the open air   
and before at least two witnesses4  ,men
 were1 however1 by no means unanimous in
 their way of regarding this  matter4   
,synesius1 when elected to a bishopric1 
at first declined1 boldly  alleging as  
one of his reasons1 that he had a wife  
whom he loved dearly1  and who1 he      
hoped1 would bear him many sons1 and    
that he did not mean to  separate from  
her or visit her secretly as an         
adulterer47#gbf7 ,a ,bishop of  ,laon1  
at a later date1 who was married to a   
niece of ,st4 ,rmy1 and who  remained   
with his wife till after he had a son   
and a daughter1 quaintly  expressed his 
penitence by naming them respectively   
,latro and  ,vulpecula47#gbg7 ,st4      
,gregory the ,great describes the virtue
 of a priest1  who1 through motives of  
piety1 had discarded his wife4 ,as he   
lay dying1  she hastened to him to watch
 the bed which for forty years she had  
not  been allowed to share1 and1 bending
 over what seemed the inanimate form of 

her husband1 she tried to ascertain     
whether any breath still remained1  when
 the dying saint1 collecting his last   
energies1 exclaimed1 8,woman1  begone2  
take away the straw2 there is fire      
yet407#gbh7 ,the destruction of         
priestly marriage is chiefly due to     
,hildebrand1 who pursued this object    
with the most untiring resolution4      
,finding that his appeals to the        
ecclesiastical authorities and to the   
civil rulers were insufficient1 he      
boldly turned to the people1 exhorted   
them1 in defiance of all ,church        
traditions1 to withdraw their obedience 
from married priests1 and kindled  among
 them a fierce fanaticism of asceticism1
 which speedily produced a  fierce      
persecution of the offending pastors4   
,their wives1 in immense  numbers1 were 
driven forth with hatred and with scorn2
 and many crimes1  and much intolerable 
suffering1 followed the disruption4 ,the
 priests  sometimes strenuously         
resisted4 ,at ,cambrai1 in ,a4,d4 #ajgg1

 they burnt alive  as a heretic a zealot
 who was maintaining the doctrines of   
,hildebrand4 ,in  ,england1 half a      
century later1 they succeeded in        
surprising a ,papal legate  in the arms 
of a courtesan1 a few hours after he had
 delivered a fierce  denunciation of    
clerical unchastity47#gbi7 ,but ,papal  
resolution supported  by popular        
fanaticism won the victory4 ,pope ,urban
 ,,ii4 gave licence to the  nobles to   
reduce to slavery the wives whom priests
 had obstinately refused  to abandon1   
and after a few more acts of severity   
priestly marriage became  obsolete4 ,the
 extent1 however1 of the disorders that 
still existed1 is  shown by the mournful
 confessions of ecclesiastical writers1 
by the  uniform and indignant testimony 
of the poets and prose satirists who    
preceded the ,reformation1 by the       
atrocious immoralities disclosed in the 
monasteries at the time of their        
suppression1 and by the significant     
prudence of many lay ,catholics1 who    

were accustomed to insist that their    
priest should take a concubine for the  
protection of the families of his       
parishioners47#gcj7    ,it is scarcely  
possible to conceive a more demoralising
 influence than a  priesthood living    
such a life as ,i have described4 ,in   
,protestant  countries1 where the       
marriage of the clergy is fully         
recognised1 it has1  indeed1 been       
productive of the greatest and the most 
unequivocal benefits4  ,nowhere1 it may 
be confidently asserted1 does           
,christianity assume a more  beneficial 
or a more winning form than in those    
gentle clerical households  which stud  
our land1 constituting1 as ,coleridge   
said1 8the one idyll of  modern life10  
the most perfect type of domestic peace1
 the centre of  civilisation in the     
remotest village4 ,notwithstanding some 
class  narrowness and professional      
bigotry1 notwithstanding some unworthy1 
but  half unconscious mannerism1 which  
is often most unjustly stigmatised as   

hypocrisy1 it would be difficult to find
 in any other quarter so much  happiness
 at once diffused and enjoyed1 or so    
much virtue attained with so  little    
tension or struggle4 ,combining with his
 sacred calling a warm  sympathy with   
the intellectual1 social1 and political 
movements of his  time1 possessing the  
enlarged practical knowledge of a father
 of a family1  and entering with a keen 
zest into the occupations and the       
amusements of  his parishioners1 a good 
clergyman will rarely obtrude his       
religious  convictions into secular     
spheres1 but yet will make them apparent
 in all4  ,they will be revealed by a   
higher and deeper moral tone1 by a more 
scrupulous purity in word and action1 by
 an all-pervasive gentleness1  which    
refines1 and softens1 and mellows1 and  
adds as much to the charm as  to the    
excellence of the character in which it 
is displayed4 ,in visiting  the sick1   
relieving the poor1 instructing the     
young1 and discharging a  thousand      

delicate offices for which a woman's    
tact is especially needed1  his wife    
finds a sphere of labour which is at    
once intensely active and  intensely    
feminine1 and her example is not less   
beneficial than her  ministrations4     
,among the ,catholic priesthood1 on the 
other hand1 where the vow of  celibacy  
is faithfully observed1 a character of a
 different type is  formed1 which with  
very grave and deadly faults combines   
some of the  noblest excellences to     
which humanity can attain4 ,separated   
from most of  the ties and affections of
 earth1 viewing life chiefly through the
  distorted medium of the casuist or the
 confessional1 and deprived of those    
relationships which more than any others
 soften and expand the character1  the  
,catholic priests have been but too     
often conspicuous for their fierce  and 
sanguinary fanaticism1 and for their    
indifference to all interests  except   
those of their ,church2 while the narrow
 range of their sympathies1  and the    

intellectual servitude they have        
accepted1 render them peculiarly        
unfitted for the office of educating the
 young1 which they so persistently      
claim1 and which1 to the great          
misfortune of the world1 they were long 
permitted to monopolise4 ,but1 on the   
other hand1 no other body of men have   
ever exhibited a more single-minded and 
unworldly zeal1 refracted by no         
personal interests1 sacrificing to duty 
the dearest of earthly objects1  and    
confronting with undaunted heroism every
 form of hardship1 of  suffering1 and of
 death4    ,that the middle ages1 even  
in their darkest periods1 produced many 
good  and great men of the latter type  
it would be unjust and absurd to deny4  
,it  can hardly1 however1 be questioned 
that the extreme frequency of illicit   
connections among the clergy tended     
during many centuries most actively to  
lower the moral tone of the laity1 and  
to counteract the great services in  the
 cause of purity which ,christian       

teaching had undoubtedly effected4 ,the 
priestly connections were rarely so     
fully recognised as to enable the       
mistress to fill a position like that   
which is now occupied by the wife of  a 
clergyman1 and the spectacle of the     
chief teachers and exemplars of  morals 
living habitually in an intercourse     
which was acknowledged to be  ambiguous 
or wrong1 must have acted most          
injuriously upon every class of  the    
community4 ,asceticism1 proclaiming war 
upon human nature1 produced a  revulsion
 towards its extreme opposite1 and even 
when it was observed it  was frequently 
detrimental to purity of mind4 ,the     
habit of continually  looking upon      
marriage in its coarsest light1 and of  
regarding the  propagation of the       
species as its one legitimate end1      
exercised a  peculiarly perverting      
influence upon the imagination4 ,the    
exuberant piety  of wives who desired to
 live apart from their husbands often   
drove the  latter into serious          

irregularities47#gca7 ,the notion of sin
 was introduced  into the dearest of    
relationships17#gcb7 and the whole      
subject was  distorted and degraded4 ,it
 is one of the great benefits of        
,protestantism  that it did much to     
banish these modes of thought and       
feeling from the  world1 and to restore 
marriage to its simplicity and its      
dignity4 ,we have  a gratifying         
illustration of the extent to which an  
old superstition has  declined1 in the  
fact that when ,goldsmith1 in his great 
romance1 desired  to depict the harmless
 eccentricities of his simple-minded and
 unworldly  vicar1 he represented him as
 maintaining that opinion concerning the
  sinfulness of the second marriage of a
 clergyman which was for many  centuries
 universal in the ,church4    ,another  
injurious consequence1 resulting1 in a  
great measure1 from  asceticism1 was a  
tendency to depreciate extremely the    
character and the  position of women4   
,in this tendency we may detect in part 

the influence of  the earlier ,jewish   
writings1 in which an impartial observer
 may find  evident traces of the common 
,oriental depreciation of women4 ,the   
custom of  purchase-money to the father 
of the bride was admitted4 ,polygamy was
  authorised17#gcc7 and practised by the
 wisest man on an enormous scale4 ,a    
woman was regarded as the origin of     
human ills4 ,a period of purification   
was appointed after the birth of every  
child2 but1 by a very significant       
provision1 it was twice as long in the  
case of a female as of a male           
child47#gcd7 8,the badness of men10 a   
,jewish writer emphatically declared1   
8is better than the goodness of         
women407#gce7 ,the types of female      
excellence exhibited in the early period
 of ,jewish history are in general  of a
 low order1 and certainly far inferior  
to those of ,roman history or  ,greek   
poetry2 and the warmest eulogy of a     
woman in the ,old ,testament is         
probably that which was bestowed upon   

her who1 with circumstances of the  most
 aggravated treachery1 had murdered the 
sleeping fugitive who had  taken refuge 
under her roof4    ,the combined        
influence of the ,jewish writings1 and  
of that ascetic feeling  which treated  
women as the chief source of temptation 
to man1 was shown in  those fierce      
invectives1 which form so conspicuous   
and so grotesque a  portion of the      
writings of the ,fathers1 and which     
contrast so curiously  with the         
adulation bestowed upon particular      
members of the sex4 ,woman was          
represented as the door of hell1 as the 
mother of all human ills4 ,she  should  
be ashamed at the very thought that she 
is a woman4 ,she should live  in        
continual penance1 on account of the    
curses she has brought upon the  world4 
,she should be ashamed of her dress1 for
 it is the memorial of her  fall4 ,she  
should be especially ashamed of her     
beauty1 for it is the most  potent      
instrument of the dmon4 ,physical beauty

 was indeed perpetually the  theme of   
ecclesiastical denunciations1 though one
 singular exception seems  to have been 
made2 for it has been observed that in  
the middle ages the  personal beauty of 
bishops was continually noticed upon    
their tombs47#gcf7  ,women were even    
forbidden by a provincial ,council1 in  
the sixth century1  on account of their 
impurity1 to receive the ,eucharist into
 their naked  hands47#gcg7 ,their       
essentially subordinate position was    
continually  maintained4    ,it is      
probable that this teaching had its part
 in determining the  principles of      
legislation concerning the sex4 ,the    
,pagan laws during the  ,empire had been
 continually repealing the old          
disabilities of women1 and  the         
legislative movement in their favour    
continued with unabated force  from     
,constantine to ,justinian1 and appeared
 also in some of the early laws  of the 
barbarians47#gch7 ,but in the whole     
feudal legislation women were  placed in

 a much lower legal position than in the
 ,pagan ,empire47#gci7 ,in  addition to 
the personal restrictions which grew    
necessarily out of the  ,catholic       
doctrines concerning divorce1 and       
concerning the subordination of  the    
weaker sex1 we find numerous and        
stringent enactments1 which rendered  it
 impossible for women to succeed to any 
considerable amount of property1  and   
which almost reduced them to the        
alternative of marriage or a            
nunnery47#gdj7 ,the complete inferiority
 of the sex was continually  maintained 
by the law2 and that generous public    
opinion which in ,rome had  frequently  
revolted against the injustice done to  
girls1 in depriving them  of the greater
 part of the inheritance of their       
fathers1 totally  disappeared4 ,wherever
 the canon law has been the basis of    
legislation1 we  find laws of succession
 sacrificing the interests of daughters 
and of  wives17#gda7 and a state of     
public opinion which has been formed and

  regulated by these laws2 nor was any  
serious attempt made to abolish them    
till the close of the last century4 ,the
 ,french revolutionists1 though         
rejecting the proposal of ,siys and     
,condorcet to accord political          
emancipation to women1 established at   
least an equal succession of sons  and  
daughters1 and thus initiated a great   
reformation of both law and  opinion1   
which sooner or later must traverse the 
world4    ,in their efforts to raise the
 standard of purity1 the ,christian     
teachers  derived much assistance from  
the incursions and the conquests of the 
barbarians4 ,the dissolution of vast    
retinues of slaves1 the suspension of   
most public games1 and the general      
impoverishment that followed the        
invasions1 were all favourable to female
 virtue2 and in this respect the        
various tribes of barbarians1 however   
violent and lawless1 were far  superior 
to the more civilised community4        
,tacitus1 in a very famous work1  had   

long before pourtrayed in the most      
flattering colours the purity of  the   
,germans4 ,adultery1 he said1 was very  
rare among them4 ,the adulteress  was   
driven from the house with shaven hair1 
and beaten ignominiously  through the   
village4 ,neither youth1 nor beauty1 nor
 wealth could enable a  woman who was   
known to have sinned to secure a        
husband4 ,polygamy was  restricted to   
the princes1 who looked upon a plurality
 of wives rather as  a badge of dignity 
than as a gratification of the passions4
 ,mothers  invariably gave suck to their
 own children4 ,infanticide was         
forbidden4  ,widows were not allowed to 
re-marry4 ,the men feared captivity1    
much more  for their wives than for     
themselves2 they believed that a sacred 
and  prophetic gift resided in women2   
they consulted them as oracles1 and     
followed their counsels47#gdb7    ,it is
 generally believed1 and it is not      
improbable1 that ,tacitus in this  work 
intended to reprove the dissolute habits

 of his fellow-countrymen1  and         
considerably over-coloured the virtue of
 the barbarians4 ,of the  substantial   
justice1 however1 of his picture we have
 much evidence4  ,salvian1 who1 about   
three centuries later1 witnessed and    
described the  manners of the barbarians
 who had triumphed over the ,empire1    
attested in  the strongest language the 
contrast which their chastity presented 
to the  vice of those whom they had     
subdued47#gdc7 ,the ,scandinavian       
mythology  abounds in legends exhibiting
 the clear sentiment of the heathen     
tribes on  the subject of purity1 and   
the awful penalties threatened in the   
next  world against the seducers47#gdd7 
,the barbarian women were accustomed to 
practise medicine and to interpret      
dreams1 and they also very frequently   
accompanied their husbands to battle1   
rallied their broken forces1 and  even  
themselves took part in the fight47#gde7
 ,augustus had discovered that  it was  
useless to keep barbarian chiefs as     

hostages1 and that the one way  of      
securing the fidelity of traitors was by
 taking their wives1 for these1  at     
least1 were never sacrificed4 ,instances
 of female heroism are said to  have    
occurred in the conquered nations1 which
 might rival the most  splendid in the  
,roman annals4 ,when ,marius had        
vanquished an army of the  ,teutons1    
their wives besought the conqueror to   
permit them to become the  servants of  
the ,vestal ,virgins1 in order that     
their honour1 at least1  might be secure
 in slavery4 ,their request was refused1
 and that night they  all perished by   
their own hands47#gdf7 ,a powerful noble
 once solicited the  hand of a ,galatian
 lady named ,camma1 who1 faithful to her
 husband1  resisted all his entreaties4 
,resolved at any hazard to succeed1 he  
caused  her husband to be assassinated1 
and when she took refuge in the temple  
of  ,diana1 and enrolled herself among  
the priestesses1 he sent noble after    
noble to induce her to relent4 ,after a 

time1 he ventured himself into her      
presence4 ,she feigned a willingness to 
yield1 but told him it was first        
necessary to make a libation to the     
goddess4 ,she appeared as a priestess   
before the altar1 bearing in her hand a 
cup of wine1 which she had  poisoned4   
,she drank half of it herself1 handed   
the remainder to her guilty  lover1 and 
when he had drained the cup to the      
dregs1 burst into a fierce              
thanksgiving1 that she had been         
permitted to avenge1 and was soon to    
rejoin1 her murdered husband47#gdg7     
,another and still more remarkable      
instance of conjugal fidelity was       
furnished by a ,gaulish woman named     
,epponina4 ,her husband1 ,julius        
,sabinus1 had rebelled against          
,vespasian2 he  was conquered1 and might
 easily have escaped to ,germany1 but   
could not  bear to abandon his young    
wife4 ,he retired to a villa of his own1
  concealed himself in subterranean     
cellars that were below it1 and         

instructed a freedman to spread the     
report that he had committed suicide1   
while1 to account for the disappearance 
of his body1 he set fire to the  villa4 
,epponina1 hearing of the suicide1 for  
three days lay prostrate on  the ground 
without eating4 ,at length the freedman 
came to her1 and told  her that the     
suicide was feigned4 ,she continued her 
lamentations by day1  but visited her   
husband by night4 ,she became with      
child1 but owing1 it is  said1 to an    
ointment1 she succeeded in concealing   
her state from her  friends4 ,when the  
hour of parturition was at hand1 she    
went alone into the  cellar1 and without
 any assistance or attendance was       
delivered of twins1  whom she brought up
 underground4 ,for nine years she       
fulfilled her task1  when ,sabinus was  
discovered1 and1 to the lasting disgrace
 of ,vespasian1  was executed1 in spite 
of the supplications of his wife1 who   
made it her  last request that she might
 be permitted to die with him47#gdh7    

,the moral purity of the barbarians was 
of a kind altogether different from     
that which the ascetic movement         
inculcated4 ,it was concentrated        
exclusively upon marriage4 ,it showed   
itself in a noble conjugal fidelity2    
but it was little fitted for a life of  
celibacy1 and did not1 as we have  seen1
 prevent excessive disorders among the  
priesthood4 ,the practice of  polygamy  
among the barbarian kings was also for  
some centuries unchecked1  or at least  
unsuppressed1 by ,christianity4 ,the    
kings ,caribert and  ,chilperic had both
 many wives at the same time47#gdi7     
,clotaire married the  sister of his    
first wife during the lifetime of the   
latter1 who1 on the  intention of the   
king being announced1 is reported to    
have said1 8,let my  lord do what       
seemeth good in his sight1 only let thy 
servant live in thy  favour407#gej7     
,theodebert1 whose general goodness of  
character is warmly  extolled by the    
episcopal historian1 abandoned his first

 wife on account  of an atrocious crime 
which she had committed2 took1 during   
her lifetime1  another1 to whom he had  
previously been betrothed2 and upon the 
death of  this second wife1 and while   
the first was still living1 took a      
third1  whom1 however1 at a later period
 he murdered47#gea7 ,st4 ,columbanus was
  expelled from ,gaul chiefly on account
 of his denunciations of the polygamy   
of ,king ,thierry47#geb7 ,dagobert had  
three wives1 as well as a multitude of  
concubines47#gec7 ,charlemagne himself  
had at the same time two wives1 and  he 
indulged largely in concubines47#ged7   
,after this period examples of this     
nature became rare4 ,the ,popes and the 
bishops exercised a strict  supervision 
over domestic morals1 and strenuously1  
and in most cases  successfully1 opposed
 the attempts of kings and nobles to    
repudiate their  wives4    ,but1        
notwithstanding these startling facts1  
there can be no doubt that the  general 
purity of the barbarians was from the   

first superior to that of  the later    
,romans1 and it appears in many of their
 laws4 ,it has been very  happily       
observed17#gee7 that the high value     
placed on this virtue is well           
illustrated by the fact that in the     
,salic code1 while a charge of          
cowardice falsely brought against a man 
was only punished by a fine of  three   
solidi1 a charge of unchastity falsely  
brought against a woman was  punished by
 a fine of forty-five4 ,the ,teutonic   
sentiment was shown in a  very stern    
legislation against adultery and        
rape17#gef7 and curiously  minute       
precautions were sometimes taken to     
guard against them4 ,a law of  the      
,spanish ,visigoths prohibited surgeons 
from bleeding any free woman  except in 
the presence of her husband1 of her     
nearest relative1 or at  least of some  
properly appointed witness1 and a ,salic
 law imposed a fine  of fifteen pieces  
of gold upon any one who improperly     
pressed her  hand47#geg7    ,under the  

influence of ,christianity1 assisted by 
the barbarians1 a vast  change passed   
gradually over the world4 ,the vice we  
are considering was  probably more rare2
 it certainly assumed less extravagant  
forms1 and it  was screened from        
observation with a new modesty4 ,the    
theory of morals had  become clearer1   
and the practice was somewhat improved4 
,the extreme  grossness of literature   
had disappeared1 and the more glaring   
violations  of marriage were always     
censured and often repressed4 ,the      
penitential  discipline1 and the        
exhortations of the pulpit1 diffused    
abroad an  immeasurably higher sense of 
the importance of purity than ,pagan    
antiquity  had known4 ,st4 ,gregory the 
,great1 following in the steps of some  
,pagan  philosophers17#geh7 strenuously 
urged upon mothers the duty of          
themselves  suckling their children2 and
 many minute and stringent precepts were
 made  against extravagances of dress   
and manners4 ,the religious institutions

 of  ,greece and ,asia ,minor1 which had
 almost consecrated prostitution1 were  
for  ever abolished1 and the courtesan  
sank into a lower stage of degradation4 
,besides these changes1 the duty of     
reciprocal fidelity in marriage was     
enforced with a new earnestness4 ,the   
contrast between the levity with  which 
the frailty of men has in most ages been
 regarded1 and the extreme  severity    
with which women who have been guilty of
 the same offence have  generally been  
treated1 forms one of the most singular 
anomalies in moral  history1 and appears
 the more remarkable when we remember   
that the  temptation usually springs    
from the sex which is so readily        
pardoned2 that  the sex which is visited
 with such crushing penalties is        
proverbially the  most weak2 and that1  
in the case of women1 but not in the    
case of men1 the  vice is very commonly 
the result of the most abject misery and
 poverty4  ,for this disparity of       
censure several reasons have been       

assigned4 ,the  offence can be more     
surely and easily detected1 and         
therefore more  certainly punished1 in  
the case of women than of men2 and1 as  
the duty of  providing for his children 
falls upon the father1 the introduction 
into  the family of children who are not
 his own is a special injury to him1    
while illegitimate children who do not  
spring from adultery will probably1  on 
account of their father having entered  
into no compact to support them1        
ultimately become criminals or paupers1 
and therefore a burden to               
society47#gei7 ,it may be added1 ,i     
think1 that several causes render the   
observance of this virtue more difficult
 for one sex than for the other2  that  
its violation1 when every allowance has 
been made for the moral  degradation    
which is a result of the existing       
condition of public opinion1  is        
naturally more profoundly prejudicial to
 the character of women than of  men2   
and also that much of our feeling on    

these subjects is due to laws  and moral
 systems which were formed by men1 and  
were in the first instance  intended for
 their own protection4    ,the passages 
in the ,fathers1 asserting the equality 
of the obligation  imposed upon both    
sexes1 are exceedingly                  
unequivocal27#gfj7 and although  the    
doctrine itself had been anticipated by 
,seneca and ,plutarch1 it had  probably 
never before1 and it has never since1   
been so fully realised as  in the early 
,church4 ,it cannot1 however1 be said   
that the conquest has  been retained4   
,at the present day1 although the       
standard of morals is far  higher than  
in ,pagan ,rome1 it may be questioned   
whether the inequality of  the censure  
which is bestowed upon the two sexes is 
not as great as in the  days of         
,paganism1 and that inequality is       
continually the cause of the most       
shameful and the most pitiable          
injustice4 ,in one respect1 indeed1 a   
great  retrogression resulted from      

chivalry1 and long survived its decay4  
,the  character of the seducer1 and     
especially of the passionless seducer   
who  pursues his career simply as a kind
 of sport1 and under the influence of   
no stronger motive than vanity or a     
spirit of adventure1 has been  glorified
 and idealised in the popular literature
 of ,christendom in a  manner to which  
we can find no parallel in antiquity4   
,when we reflect that  the object of    
such a man is by the coldest and most   
deliberate treachery  to blast the lives
 of innocent women2 when we compare the 
levity of his  motive with the          
irreparable injury he inflicts2 and when
 we remember that  he can only deceive  
his victim by persuading her to love    
him1 and can only  ruin her by          
persuading her to trust him1 it must be 
owned that it would be  difficult to    
conceive a cruelty more wanton and more 
heartless1 or a  character combining    
more numerous elements of infamy and of 
dishonour4  ,that such a character      

should for many centuries have been the 
popular  ideal of a considerable section
 of literature1 and the boast of numbers
  who most plume themselves upon their  
honour1 is assuredly one of the most    
mournful facts in history1 and it       
represents a moral deflection certainly 
not less than was revealed in ancient   
,greece by the position that was        
assigned to the courtesan4    ,the      
fundamental truth1 that the same act can
 never be at once venial for a  man to  
demand1 and infamous for a woman to     
accord1 though nobly enforced  by the   
early ,christians1 has not passed into  
the popular sentiment of  ,christendom4 
,the mystical character1 however1 which 
the ,church imparted to  marriage has   
been extremely influential4 ,partly by  
raising it into a  sacrament1 and partly
 by representing it as1 in some         
mysterious and not  very definable      
sense1 an image of the union of ,christ 
with ,his ,church1 a  feeling was       
fostered that a lifelong union of one   

man and one woman is1  under all        
circumstances1 the single form of       
intercourse between the sexes  which is 
not illegitimate2 and this conviction   
has acquired the force of a  primal     
moral intuition4    ,there can1 ,i      
think1 be little doubt that1 in the     
stringency with which it  is usually    
laid down1 it rests not upon the law of 
nature1 but upon  positive law1 although
 unassisted nature is sufficient to lead
 men many  steps in its direction4      
,considering the subject simply in the  
light of  unaided reason1 two rules     
comprise the whole duty of man4 ,he must
 abstain  from whatever injures         
happiness or degrades character4 ,under 
the first  head1 he must include the    
more remote as well as the immediate    
consequences of his act4 ,he must       
consider how his partner will be        
affected  by the union1 the light in    
which society will view the connection1 
the  probable position of the children  
to be born1 the effect of these births1 

and also the effect of his example upon 
the well-being of society at  large4    
,some of the elements of this           
calculation vary in different stages  of
 society4 ,thus1 public opinion in one  
age will reprobate1 and therefore       
punish1 connections which1 in another   
age1 are fully sanctioned2 and the      
probable position of the children1 as   
well as the effect of the births  upon  
society1 will depend greatly upon       
particular and national  circumstances4 
,under the second head is comprised the 
influence of this intercourse in        
clouding or developing the moral        
feelings1 lowering or elevating the tone
  of character1 exciting or allaying the
 aberrations of the imagination1        
incapacitating men for pure affections  
or extending their range1 making  the   
animal part of our nature more or less  
predominant4 ,we know1 by the  intuition
 of our moral nature1 that this         
predominance is always a  degraded1     
though it is not always an unhappy1     

condition4 ,we also know that  it is a  
law of our being1 that powerful and     
beautiful affections1 which  had before 
been latent1 are evoked in some         
particular forms of union1  while other 
forms of union are peculiarly fitted to 
deaden the affections  and to pervert   
the character4    ,in these             
considerations we have ample grounds for
 maintaining that the  lifelong union of
 one man and of one woman should be the 
normal or  dominant type of intercourse 
between the sexes4 ,we can prove that it
 is on  the whole most conducive to the 
happiness1 and also to the moral        
elevation1 of all parties4 ,but beyond  
this point it would1 ,i conceive1 be    
impossible to advance1 except by the    
assistance of a special revelation4  ,it
 by no means follows that because this  
should be the dominant type it  should  
be the only one1 or that the interests  
of society demand that all  connections 
should be forced into the same die4     
,connections1 which were  confessedly   

only for a few years1 have always       
subsisted side by side with  permanent  
marriages2 and in periods when public   
opinion1 acquiescing in  their          
propriety1 inflicts no excommunication  
on one or both of the  partners1 when   
these partners are not living the       
demoralising and  degrading life which  
accompanies the consciousness of guilt1 
and when  proper provision is made for  
the children who are born1 it would be1 
,i  believe1 impossible to prove1 by the
 light of simple and unassisted  reason1
 that such connections should be        
invariably condemned4 ,it is  extremely 
important1 both for the happiness and   
for the moral well-being  of men1 that  
lifelong unions should not be effected  
simply under the  imperious prompting of
 a blind appetite4 ,there are always    
multitudes who1  in the period of their 
lives when their passions are most      
strong1 are  incapable of supporting    
children in their own social rank1 and  
who would  therefore injure society by  

marrying in it1 but are nevertheless    
perfectly  capable of securing an       
honourable career for their illegitimate
 children  in the lower social sphere to
 which these would naturally belong4    
,under  the conditions ,i have          
mentioned1 these connections are not    
injurious1 but  beneficial1 to the      
weaker partner2 they soften the         
differences of rank1  they stimulate    
social habits1 and they do not produce  
upon character the  degrading effect of 
promiscuous intercourse1 or upon society
 the injurious  effects of imprudent    
marriages1 one or other of which will   
multiply in  their absence4 ,in the     
immense variety of circumstances and    
characters1  cases will always appear in
 which1 on utilitarian grounds1 they    
might seem  advisable4    ,it is        
necessary to dwell upon such            
considerations as these1 if we would    
understand the legislation of the ,pagan
 ,empire or the changes that were       
effected by ,christianity4 ,the         

legislators of the ,empire distinctly   
recognised these connections1 and made  
it a main object to authorise1  dignify1
 and regulate them4 ,the unlimited      
licence of divorce practically  included
 them under the name of marriage1 while 
that name sheltered them  from stigma1  
and prevented many of the gravest evils 
of unauthorised  unions4 ,the word      
concubine also1 which in the ,republic  
had the same  signification as among    
ourselves1 represented in the ,empire a 
strictly  legal union--an innovation    
which was chiefly due to ,augustus1 and 
was  doubtless intended as part of the  
legislation against celibacy1 and also1 
it may be1 as a corrective of the       
licentious habits that were general4    
,this union was in essentials merely a  
form of marriage1 for he who1 having  a 
concubine1 took to himself either a wife
 or another concubine1 was  legally     
guilty of adultery4 ,like the commonest 
form of marriage1 it was  consummated   
without any ceremony1 and was dissoluble

 at will4 ,its  peculiarities were that 
it was contracted between men of        
patrician rank  and freedwomen1 who were
 forbidden by law to intermarry2 that   
the  concubine1 though her position was 
perfectly recognised and honourable1    
did not share the rank of her partner1  
that she brought no dowry1 and that  her
 children followed her rank1 and were   
excluded from the rank and the          
inheritance of their father47#gfa7      
,against these notions ,christianity    
declared a direct and implacable        
warfare1 which was imperfectly reflected
 in the civil legislation1 but  appeared
 unequivocally in the writings of the   
,fathers1 and in most of the  decrees of
 the ,councils47#gfb7 ,it taught1 as a  
religious dogma1 invariable1            
inflexible1 and independent of all      
utilitarian calculations1 that all      
forms of intercourse of the sexes1 other
 than lifelong unions1 were  criminal4  
,by teaching men to regard this doctrine
 as axiomatic1 and  therefore inflicting

 severe social penalties and deep       
degradation on  transient connections1  
it has profoundly modified even their   
utilitarian  aspect1 and has rendered   
them in most countries furtive and      
disguised4  ,there is probably no other 
branch of ethics which has been so      
largely  determined by special dogmatic 
theology1 and there is none which would 
be  so deeply affected by its decay4    
,as a part of the same movement1 the    
purely civil marriage of the later      
,pagan ,empire was gradually replaced by
 religious marriages4 ,there is a       
manifest propriety in invoking a divine 
benediction upon an act which  forms so 
important an epoch in life1 and the     
mingling of a religious  ceremony       
impresses a deeper sense of the         
solemnity of the contract4 ,the         
essentially religious and even mystical 
character imparted by ,christianity  to 
marriage rendered the consecration      
peculiarly natural1 but it was only     
very gradually that it came to be looked

 upon as absolutely necessary4 ,as  ,i  
have already noticed1 it was long       
dispensed with in the marriage of       
slaves2 and even in the case of freemen1
 though generally performed1 it  was not
 made compulsory till the tenth         
century47#gfc7 ,in addition to its      
primary object of sanctifying marriage1 
it became in time a powerful  instrument
 in securing the authority of the       
priesthood1 who were able to  compel men
 to submit to the conditions they       
imposed in the formation of  the most   
important contract of life2 and the     
modern authorisation of civil           
marriages1 by diminishing greatly the   
power of the ,catholic priesthood  over 
domestic life1 has been one of the most 
severe blows ecclesiastical  influence  
has undergone4    ,the absolute         
sinfulness of divorce was at the same   
time strenuously  maintained by the     
,councils1 which in this1 as in many    
other points1  differed widely from the 
civil law4 ,constantine restricted it to

 three  cases of crime on the part of   
the husband1 and three on the part of   
the  wife2 but the habits of the people 
were too strong for his enactments1     
and1 after one or two changes in the    
law1 the full latitude of divorce       
reappeared in the ,justinian ,code4 ,the
 ,fathers1 on the other hand1 though    
they hesitated a little about the case  
of a divorce which followed an act  of  
adultery on the part of the wife17#gfd7 
had no hesitation whatever in           
pronouncing all other divorces to be    
criminal1 and periods of penitential    
discipline were imposed upon ,christians
 who availed themselves of the          
privileges of the civil law47#gfe7 ,for 
many centuries this duality of          
legislation continued4 ,the barbarian   
laws restricted divorce by imposing     
severe fines on those who repudiated    
their wives4 ,charlemagne pronounced    
divorce to be criminal1 but did not     
venture to make it penal1 and he        
practised it himself4 ,on the other     

hand1 the ,church threatened with       
excommunication1 and in some cases      
actually launched its thunders against1 
those who were guilty of it4 ,it was    
only in the twelfth century that the    
victory was definitely achieved1 and the
 civil law1 adopting the principle  of  
the canon law1 prohibited all           
divorce47#gff7    ,i do not propose in  
the present work to examine how far this
 total  prohibition has been for the    
happiness or the moral well-being of    
men4 ,i  will simply observe that1      
though it is now often defended1 it was 
not  originally imposed in ,christian   
nations1 upon utilitarian grounds1 but  
was  based upon the sacramental         
character of marriage1 upon the belief  
that  marriage is the special symbol of 
the perpetual union of ,christ with ,his
  ,church1 and upon a well-known passage
 in the ,gospels4 ,the stringency of    
the ,catholic doctrine1 which forbids   
the dissolution of marriage even in  the
 case of adultery1 has been considerably

 relaxed by modern legislation1  and    
there can1 ,i think1 be little doubt    
that further steps will yet be  taken in
 the same direction2 but the vast change
 that was effected in both  practice and
 theory since the unlimited licence of  
the ,pagan ,empire must  be manifest to 
all4    ,it was essential1 or at least  
very important1 that a union which was  
so  solemn and so irrevocable should be 
freely contracted4 ,the sentiment of    
the ,roman patriots towards the close of
 the ,republic was that marriage  should
 be regarded as a means of providing    
children for the ,state1 and  should be 
entered into as a matter of duty with   
that view1 and the laws of  ,augustus   
had imposed many disqualifications on   
those who abstained from  it4 ,both of  
these inducements to marriage passed    
away under the influence  of            
,christianity4 ,the popular sentiment   
disappeared with the decline of  civic  
virtues4 ,the laws were rescinded under 
the influence of the ascetic  enthusiasm

 which made men regard the state of     
celibacy as pre-eminently  holy4        
,there was still one other important    
condition to be attained by  theologians
 in order to realise their ideal type of
 marriage4 ,it was to  prevent the      
members of the ,church from             
intermarrying with those whose          
religious opinions differed from their  
own4 ,mixed marriages1 it has been      
truly said1 may do more than almost any 
other influence to assuage the  rancour 
and the asperity of sects1 but it must  
be added that a  considerable measure of
 tolerance must have been already       
attained before  they become possible4  
,in a union in which each partner       
believes and  realises that the other is
 doomed to an eternity of misery there  
can be no  real happiness1 no sympathy1 
no trust2 and a domestic agreement that 
some  of the children should be educated
 in one religion and some in the other  
would be impossible when each parent    
believed it to be an agreement that     

some children should be doomed to hell4 
,the domestic unhappiness arising from  
differences of belief was probably      
almost or altogether unknown in the     
world before the introduction of        
,christianity2 for1 although differences
 of opinion may have before  existed1   
the same momentous consequences were not
 attached to them4 ,it has  been the    
especial bane of periods of great       
religious change1 such as the           
conversion of the ,roman ,empire1 or the
 ,reformation1 or our own day when  far 
more serious questions than those which 
agitated the sixteenth century  are     
occupying the attention of a large      
proportion of thinkers and  scholars1   
and when the deep and widening chasm    
between the religious  opinions of most 
highly educated men1 and of the immense 
majority of  women1 is painfully        
apparent4 ,while a multitude of         
scientific discoveries1  critical and   
historical researches1 and educational  
reforms have brought  thinking men face 

to face with religious problems of      
extreme importance1  women have been    
almost absolutely excluded from their   
influence4 ,their  minds are usually by 
nature less capable than those of men of
 impartiality  and suspense1 and the    
almost complete omission from female    
education of  those studies which most  
discipline and strengthen the intellect 
increases  the difference1 while at the 
same time it has been usually made a    
main  object to imbue them with a       
passionate faith in traditional         
opinions1 and  to preserve them from all
 contact with opposing views4 ,but      
contracted  knowledge and imperfect     
sympathy are not the sole fruits of this
  education4 ,it has always been the    
peculiarity of a certain kind of        
theological teaching that it inverts all
 the normal principles of  judgment1 and
 absolutely destroys intellectual       
diffidence4 ,on other  subjects we find1
 if not a respect for honest conviction1
 at least some  sense of the amount of  

knowledge that is requisite to entitle  
men to  express an opinion on grave     
controversies4 ,a complete ignorance of 
the  subject-matter of a dispute        
restrains the confidence of dogmatism2  
and an  ignorant person1 who is aware   
that1 by much reading and thinking in   
spheres of which he has himself no      
knowledge1 his educated neighbour has   
modified or rejected opinions which that
 ignorant person had been taught1  will1
 at least if he is a man of sense or    
modesty1 abstain from  compassionating  
the benighted condition of his more     
instructed friend4 ,but  on theological 
questions this has never been so4       
,unfaltering belief being  taught as the
 first of duties1 and all doubt being   
usually stigmatised as  criminal or     
damnable1 a state of mind is formed to  
which we find no  parallel in other     
fields4 ,many men and most women1 though
 completely  ignorant of the very       
rudiments of biblical criticism1        
historical research1  or scientific     

discoveries1 though they have never read
 a single page1 or  understood a single 
proposition of the writings of those    
whom they  condemn1 and have absolutely 
no rational knowledge either of the     
arguments  by which their faith is      
defended1 or of those by which it has   
been  impugned1 will nevertheless       
adjudicate with the utmost confidence   
upon  every polemical question2         
denounce1 hate1 pity1 or pray for the   
conversion  of all who dissent from what
 they have been taught2 assume1 as a    
matter  beyond the faintest possibility 
of doubt1 that the opinions they have   
received without enquiry must be true1  
and that the opinions which others  have
 arrived at by enquiry must be false1   
and make it a main object of  their     
lives to assail what they call heresy in
 every way in their power1  except by   
examining the grounds on which it rests4
 ,it is probable that the  great        
majority of voices that swell the       
clamour against every book which  is    

regarded as heretical are the voices of 
those who would deem it  criminal even  
to open that book1 or to enter into any 
real1 searching1 and  impartial         
investigation of the subject to which it
 relates4 ,innumerable  pulpits support 
this tone of thought1 and represent1    
with a fervid  rhetoric well fitted to  
excite the nerves and imaginations of   
women1 the  deplorable condition of all 
who deviate from a certain type of      
opinions or  of emotions2 a blind       
propagandism or a secret wretchedness   
penetrates into  countless households1  
poisoning the peace of families1        
chilling the mutual  confidence of      
husband and wife1 adding immeasurably to
 the difficulties  which every searcher 
into truth has to encounter1 and        
diffusing far and  wide intellectual    
timidity1 disingenuousness1 and         
hypocrisy4    ,these domestic divisions 
became very apparent in the period of   
the  conversion of the ,roman ,empire2  
and a natural desire to guard intact the

  orthodoxy and zeal of the converts1   
and to prevent a continual  discordance1
 stimulated the ,fathers in their very  
vehement denunciations  of all mixed    
marriages4 ,we may also trace in these  
denunciations the  outline of a very    
singular doctrine1 which was afterwards 
suffered to fall  into obscurity1 but   
was revived in the last century in      
,england in a  curious and learned work 
of the nonjuror ,dodwell47#gfg7 ,the    
union of ,christ  and ,his ,church had  
been represented as a marriage2 and this
 image was not  regarded as a mere      
metaphor or comparison1 but as          
intimating a mysterious  unity1 which1  
though not susceptible of any very clear
 definition1 was not  on that account   
the less real4 ,christians were the     
8limbs of ,christ10 and  for them to    
join themselves in marriage with those  
who were not of the  ,christian fold was
 literally1 it was said1 a species of   
adultery or  fornication4 ,the          
intermarriage of the ,israelites1 the   

chosen seed of the  ancient world1 with 
the ,gentiles1 had been described in the
 ,old ,testament  as an act of          
impurity27#gfh7 and in the opinion of   
some1 at least1 of the  ,fathers1 the   
,christian community occupied towards   
the unbelievers a  position analogous to
 that which the ,jews had occupied      
towards the  ,gentiles4 ,st4 ,cyprian   
denounced the crime of those 8who       
prostitute the  limbs of ,christ in     
marriage with the ,gentiles407#gfi7     
,tertullian described  the intermarriage
 as fornication27#ggj7 and after the    
triumph of the  ,church1 the            
intermarriage of ,jews and ,christians  
was made a capital  offence1 and was    
stigmatised by the law as               
adultery47#gga7 ,the civil law  did not 
prohibit the orthodox from intermarrying
 with heretics1 but many  councils in   
strong terms denounced such marriages as
 criminal4    ,the extreme sanctity     
attributed to virginity1 the absolute   
condemnation of  all forms of sexual    

connection other than marriage1 and the 
formation and  gradual realisation of   
the ,christian conception of marriage as
 a permanent  union of a man and woman  
of the same religious opinions1         
consecrated by  solemn religious        
services1 carrying with it a deep       
religious  signification1 and dissoluble
 only by death1 were the most obvious   
signs  of ,christian influence in the   
sphere of ethics we are examining4      
,another  very important result of the  
new religion was to raise to a far      
greater  honour than they had previously
 possessed1 the qualities in which women
  peculiarly excel4    ,there are few   
more curious subjects of enquiry than   
the distinctive  differences between the
 sexes1 and the manner in which those   
differences  have affected the ideal    
types of different ages1 nations1       
philosophies1  and religions4           
,physically1 men have the indisputable  
superiority in  strength1 and women in  
beauty4 ,intellectually1 a certain      

inferiority of  the female sex can      
hardly be denied when we remember how   
almost  exclusively the foremost places 
in every department of science1         
literature1 and art have been occupied  
by men1 how infinitesimally small  is   
the number of women who have shown in   
any form the very highest order  of     
genius1 how many of the greatest men    
have achieved their greatness in        
defiance of the most adverse            
circumstances1 and how completely women 
have  failed in obtaining the first     
position1 even in music or painting1 for
 the  cultivation of which their        
circumstances would appear most         
propitious4 ,it  is as impossible to    
find a female ,raphael1 or a female     
,handel1 as a female  ,shakspeare or    
,newton4 ,women are intellectually more 
desultory and volatile  than men2 they  
are more occupied with particular       
instances than with  general principles2
 they judge rather by intuitive         
perceptions than by  deliberate         

reasoning or past experience4 ,they are1
 however1 usually  superior to men in   
nimbleness and rapidity of thought1 and 
in the gift of  tact or the power of    
seizing speedily and faithfully the     
finer inflexions  of feeling1 and they  
have therefore often attained very great
 eminence in  conversation1 as          
letter-writers1 as actresses1 and as    
novelists4    ,morally1 the general     
superiority of women over men1 is1 ,i   
think1  unquestionable4 ,if we take the 
somewhat coarse and inadequate criterion
 of  police statistics1 we find that1   
while the male and female populations   
are  nearly the same in number1 the     
crimes committed by men are usually     
rather  more than five times as numerous
 as those committed by women27#ggb7 and 
although it may be justly observed that 
men1 as the stronger sex1 and the  sex  
upon whom the burden of supporting the  
family is thrown1 have more  temptations
 than women1 it must be remembered1 on  
the other hand1 that  extreme poverty   

which verges upon starvation is most    
common among women1  whose means of     
livelihood are most restricted1 and     
whose earnings are  smallest and most   
precarious4 ,self-sacrifice is the most 
conspicuous  element of a virtuous and  
religious character1 and it is certainly
 far  less common among men than among  
women1 whose whole lives are usually    
spent in yielding to the will and       
consulting the pleasures of another4    
,there are two great departments of     
virtue3 the impulsive1 or that which    
springs spontaneously from the emotions2
 and the deliberative1 or that  which is
 performed in obedience to the sense of 
duty2 and in both of these  ,i imagine  
women are superior to men4 ,their       
sensibility is greater1 they  are more  
chaste both in thought and act1 more    
tender to the erring1 more              
compassionate to the suffering1 more    
affectionate to all about them4 ,on  the
 other hand1 those who have traced the  
course of the wives of the poor1  and of

 many who1 though in narrow             
circumstances1 can hardly be called     
poor1 will probably admit that in no    
other class do we so often find  entire 
lives spent in daily persistent         
self-denial1 in the patient  endurance  
of countless trials1 in the ceaseless   
and deliberate sacrifice  of their own  
enjoyments to the well-being or the     
prospects of others4  ,women1 however1  
though less prone than men to           
intemperance and brutality1  are in     
general more addicted to the petty forms
 of vanity1 jealousy1  spitefulness1 and
 ambition1 and they are also inferior to
 men in active  courage4 ,in the courage
 of endurance they are commonly         
superior2 but their  passive courage is 
not so much fortitude which bears and   
defies1 as  resignation which bears and 
bends4 ,in the ethics of intellect they 
are  decidedly inferior4 ,to repeat an  
expression ,i have already employed1    
women  very rarely love truth1 though   
they love passionately what they call   

8the  truth10 or opinions they have     
received from others1 and hate          
vehemently  those who differ from them4 
,they are little capable of impartiality
 or of  doubt2 their thinking is chiefly
 a mode of feeling2 though very generous
  in their acts1 they are rarely        
generous in their opinions or in their  
judgments4 ,they persuade rather than   
convince1 and value belief rather as  a 
source of consolation than as a faithful
 expression of the reality of  things4  
,they are less capable than men of      
perceiving qualifying  circumstances1 of
 admitting the existence of elements of 
good in systems  to which they are      
opposed1 of distinguishing the personal 
character of an  opponent from the      
opinions he maintains4 ,men lean most to
 justice and  women to mercy4 ,men excel
 in energy1 self-reliance1 perseverance1
 and  magnanimity2 women in humility1   
gentleness1 modesty1 and endurance4 ,the
  realising imagination which causes us 
to pity and to love is more  sensitive  

in women than in men1 and it is         
especially more capable of  dwelling on 
the unseen4 ,their religious or         
devotional realisations are             
incontestably more vivid2 and it is     
probable that1 while a father is most   
moved by the death of a child in his    
presence1 a mother generally feels  most
 the death of a child in some distant   
land4 ,but1 though more intense1  the   
sympathies of women are commonly less   
wide than those of men4 ,their          
imaginations individualise more2 their  
affections are1 in consequence1         
concentrated rather on leaders than on  
causes2 and if they care for a  great   
cause1 it is generally because it is    
represented by a great man1 or          
connected with some one whom they love4 
,in politics1 their enthusiasm is  more 
naturally loyalty than patriotism4 ,in  
history1 they are even more  inclined   
than men to dwell exclusively upon      
biographical incidents or               
characteristics as distinguished from   

the march of general causes4 ,in        
benevolence1 they excel in charity1     
which alleviates individual suffering1  
rather than in philanthropy1 which deals
 with large masses and is more          
frequently employed in preventing than  
in allaying calamity4    ,it was a      
remark of ,winckelmann that 8the supreme
 beauty of ,greek art is  rather male   
than female20 and the justice of this   
remark has been amply  corroborated by  
the greater knowledge we have of late   
years attained of  the works of the     
,phidian period1 in which art achieved  
its highest  perfection1 and in which1  
at the same time1 force and freedom1 and
  masculine grandeur1 were its          
pre-eminent characteristics4 ,a similar 
observation may be made of the moral    
ideal of which ancient art was simply   
the expression4 ,in antiquity the       
virtues that were most admired were     
almost exclusively those which are      
distinctively masculine4 ,courage1      
self-assertion1 magnanimity1 and1 above 

all1 patriotism1 were the leading       
features of the ideal type2 and         
chastity1 modesty1 and charity1 the     
gentler and the domestic virtues1 which 
are especially feminine1 were  greatly  
undervalued4 ,with the single exception 
of conjugal fidelity1 none  of the      
virtues that were very highly prized    
were virtues distinctively or           
pre-eminently feminine4 ,with this      
exception1 nearly all the most          
illustrious women of antiquity were     
illustrious chiefly because they        
overcame the natural conditions of their
 sex4 ,it is a characteristic fact  that
 the favourite female ideal of the      
artists appears to have been the        
,amazon47#ggc7 ,we may admire the       
,spartan mother1 and the mother of the  
,gracchi1 repressing every sign of grief
 when their children were  sacrificed   
upon the altar of their country1 we may 
wonder at the majestic  courage of a    
,porcia and an ,arria2 but we extol them
 chiefly because1 being  women1 they    

emancipated themselves from the frailty 
of their sex1 and  displayed an heroic  
fortitude worthy of the strongest and   
the bravest of  men4 ,we may bestow an  
equal admiration upon the noble devotion
 and charity  of a ,st4 ,elizabeth of   
,hungary1 or of a ,mrs4 ,fry1 but we do 
not admire them  because they displayed 
these virtues1 although they were women1
 for we  feel that their virtues were of
 the kind which the female nature is    
most  fitted to produce4 ,the change    
from the heroic to the saintly ideal1   
from  the ideal of ,paganism to the     
ideal of ,christianity1 was a change    
from a  type which was essentially male 
to one which was essentially feminine4  
,of  all the great schools of philosophy
 no other reflected so faithfully the   
,roman conception of moral excellence as
 ,stoicism1 and the greatest ,roman     
exponent of ,stoicism summed up its     
character in a single sentence when he  
pronounced it to be beyond all other    
sects the most emphatically             

masculine47#ggd7 ,on the other hand1 an 
ideal type in which meekness1           
gentleness1 patience1 humility1 faith1  
and love are the most prominent         
features1 is not naturally male but     
female4 ,a reason probably deeper than  
the historical ones which are commonly  
alleged1 why sculpture has always  been 
peculiarly ,pagan and painting          
peculiarly ,christian1 may be found in  
the fact1 that sculpture is especially  
suited to represent male beauty1 or  the
 beauty of strength1 and painting female
 beauty1 or the beauty of  softness2 and
 that ,pagan sentiment was chiefly a    
glorification of the  masculine         
qualities of strength1 and courage1 and 
conscious virtue1 while  ,christian     
sentiment is chiefly a glorification of 
the feminine qualities  of gentleness1  
humility1 and love4 ,the painters whom  
the religious feeling  of ,christendom  
has recognised as the most faithful     
exponents of ,christian  sentiment have 
always been those who infused a large   

measure of feminine  beauty even into   
their male characters2 and we never1 or 
scarcely ever1  find that the same      
artist has been conspicuously successful
 in delineating  both ,christian and    
,pagan types4 ,michael ,angelo1 whose   
genius loved to  expatiate on the       
sublimity of strength and defiance1     
failed signally in  his representations 
of the ,christian ideal2 and ,perugino  
was equally  unsuccessful when he sought
 to pourtray the features of the heroes 
of  antiquity47#gge7 ,the position that 
was gradually assigned to the ,virgin as
  the female ideal in the belief and the
 devotion of ,christendom1 was a        
consecration or an expression of the new
 value that was attached to the         
feminine virtues4    ,the general       
superiority of women to men in the      
strength of their religious  emotions1  
and their natural attraction to a       
religion which made personal  attachment
 to its ,founder its central duty1 and  
which imparted an  unprecedented dignity

 and afforded an unprecedented scope to 
their  characteristic virtues1 account  
for the very conspicuous position that  
female influence assumed in the great   
work of the conversion of the ,roman    
,empire4 ,in no other important movement
 of thought was it so powerful or so    
acknowledged4 ,in the ages of           
persecution female figures occupy many  
of the  foremost places in the ranks of 
martyrdom1 and ,pagan and ,christian    
writers  alike attest the alacrity with 
which women flocked to the ,church1 and 
the  influence they exercised in its    
favour over the male members of their   
families4 ,the mothers of ,st4          
,augustine1 ,st4 ,chrysostom1 ,st4      
,basil1 ,st4  ,gregory ,nazianzen1 and  
,theodoret1 had all a leading part in   
the conversion  of their sons4 ,st4     
,helena1 the mother of ,constantine1    
,flacilla1 the wife  of ,theodosius the 
,great1 ,st4 ,pulcheria1 the sister of  
,theodosius the  ,younger1 and          
,placidia1 the mother of ,valentinian   

,,iii41 were among the most  conspicuous
 defenders of the faith4 ,in the        
heretical sects the same zeal  was      
manifested1 and ,arius1 ,priscillian1   
and ,montanus were all supported by     
troops of zealous female devotees4 ,in  
the career of asceticism women took  a  
part little if at all inferior to men1  
while in the organisation of the  great 
work of charity they were pre-eminent4  
,for no other field of active  labour   
are women so admirably suited as for    
this2 and although we may  trace from   
the earliest period1 in many creeds and 
ages1 individual  instances of their    
influence in allaying the sufferings of 
the  distressed17#ggf7 it may be truly  
said that their instinct and genius of  
charity had never before the dawn of    
,christianity obtained full scope for   
action4 ,fabiola1 ,paula1 ,melania1 and 
a host of other noble ladies devoted    
their time and fortunes mainly to       
founding and extending vast institutions
  of charity1 some of them of a kind    

before unknown in the world4 ,the       
,empress ,flacilla was accustomed to    
tend with her own hands the sick in the 
hospitals17#ggg7 and a readiness to     
discharge such offices was deemed the   
first duty of a ,christian wife47#ggh7  
,from age to age the impulse thus       
communicated has been felt4 ,there has  
been no period1 however corrupt1  there 
has been no ,church1 however            
superstitious1 that has not been adorned
  by many ,christian women devoting     
their entire lives to assuaging the     
sufferings of men2 and the mission of   
charity thus instituted has not been    
more efficacious in diminishing the sum 
of human wretchedness1 than in          
promoting the moral dignity of those by 
whom it was conducted4    ,among the    
,collyridian heretics1 women were       
admitted to the priesthood4  ,among the 
orthodox1 although this honour was not  
bestowed upon them1 they  received a    
religious consecration1 and discharged  
some minor  ecclesiastical functions    

under the name of deaconesses47#ggi7    
,this order  may be traced to the       
,apostolic period47#ghj7 ,it consisted  
of elderly  virgins1 who were set apart 
by a formal ordination1 and were        
employed in  assisting as catechists and
 attendants at the baptism of women1 in 
visiting the sick1 ministering to       
martyrs in prison1 preserving order in  
the congregations1 and accompanying and 
presenting women who desired an         
interview with the bishop4 ,it would    
appear1 from the evidence of some       
councils1 that abuses gradually crept   
into this institution1 and the          
deaconesses at last faded into simple   
nuns1 but they were still in  existence 
in the ,east in the twelfth century4    
,besides these1 widows1 when  they had  
been but once married1 were treated with
 peculiar honour1 and  were made the    
special recipients of the charity of the
 ,church4 ,women  advanced in years1    
who1 either from their single life or   
from bereavement1  have been left       

without any male protector in the world1
 have always been  peculiarly deserving 
of commiseration4 ,with less strength1  
and commonly  with less means1 and less 
knowledge of the world than men1 they   
are liable  to contract certain         
peculiarities of mind and manner to     
which an excessive  amount of ridicule  
has been attached1 and age in most cases
 furnishes them  with very little to    
compensate for the charms of which it   
has deprived  them4 ,the weight and     
dignity of matured wisdom1 which make   
the old age of  one sex so venerable1   
are more rarely found in that of the    
other1 and even  physical beauty is more
 frequently the characteristic of an old
 man than  of an old woman4 ,the ,church
 laboured steadily to cast a halo of    
reverence  around this period of woman's
 life1 and its religious exercises have 
done  very much to console and to occupy
 it4    ,in accordance with these ideas1
 the ,christian legislators contributed 
largely to improve the legal position of

 widows in respect to  property17#gha7  
and ,justinian gave mothers the         
guardianship of their  children1        
destroying the ,pagan rule that         
guardianship could only be  legally     
exercised by men47#ghb7 ,the usual      
subservience of the sex to              
ecclesiastical influence1 the numerous  
instances of rich widows devoting  their
 fortunes1 and mothers their sons1 to   
the ,church1 had no doubt some          
influence in securing the advocacy of   
the clergy2 but these measures had a    
manifest importance in elevating the    
position of women who have had1 in      
,christian lands1 a great1 though not1  
,i think1 altogether a beneficial       
influence1 in the early education of    
their sons4    ,independently of all    
legal enactments1 the simple change of  
the ideal type  by bringing specially   
feminine virtues into the forefront was 
sufficient  to elevate and ennoble the  
sex4 ,the commanding position of the    
medival  abbesses1 the great number of  

female saints1 and especially the       
reverence  bestowed upon the ,virgin1   
had a similar effect4 ,it is remarkable 
that the  ,jews1 who1 of the three great
 nations of antiquity1 certainly        
produced in  history and poetry the     
smallest number of illustrious women1   
should have  furnished the world with   
its supreme female ideal1 and it is also
 a  striking illustration of the        
qualities which prove most attractive in
  woman that one of whom we know nothing
 except her gentleness and her  sorrow  
should have exercised a magnetic power  
upon the world incomparably  greater    
than was exercised by the most majestic 
female patriots of  ,paganism4 ,whatever
 may be thought of its theological      
propriety1 there can  be little doubt   
that the ,catholic reverence for the    
,virgin has done much  to elevate and   
purify the ideal of woman1 and to soften
 the manners of  men4 ,it has had an    
influence which the worship of the      
,pagan goddesses  could never possess1  

for these had been almost destitute of  
moral beauty1  and especially of that   
kind of moral beauty which is peculiarly
 feminine4  ,it supplied in a great     
measure the redeeming and ennobling     
element in that  strange amalgam of     
religious1 licentious1 and military     
feeling which was  formed around women  
in the age of chivalry1 and which no    
succeeding change  of habit or belief   
has wholly destroyed4    ,it can hardly1
 ,i think1 be questioned that in the    
great religious  convulsions of the     
sixteenth century the feminine type     
followed  ,catholicism1 while           
,protestantism inclined more to the     
masculine type4  ,catholicism alone     
retained the ,virgin worship1 which at  
once reflected and  sustained the first4
 ,the skill with which it acts upon the 
emotions by  music1 and painting1 and   
solemn architecture1 and imposing       
pageantry1 its  tendency to appeal to   
the imagination rather than to the      
reason1 and to  foster modes of feeling 

rather than modes of thought1 its       
assertion of  absolute and infallible   
certainty1 above all1 the manner in     
which it  teaches its votary to throw   
himself perpetually on authority1 all   
tended  in the same direction4 ,it is   
the part of a woman to lean1 it is the  
part  of a man to stand4 ,a religion    
which prescribes to the distracted mind 
unreasoning faith in an infallible      
,church1 and to the troubled conscience 
an implicit trust in an absolving       
priesthood1 has ever had an especial    
attraction to a feminine mind4 ,a       
religion which recognises no authority  
between man and his ,creator1 which     
asserts at once the dignity and the     
duty of private judgment1 and which1    
while deepening immeasurably the  sense 
of individual responsibility1 denudes   
religion of meretricious  ornaments1 and
 of most sthetic aids1 is pre-eminently 
a religion of men4  ,puritanism is the  
most masculine form that ,christianity  
has yet assumed4  ,its most illustrious 

teachers differed from the ,catholic    
saints as much in  the moral type they  
displayed as in the system of doctrines 
they held4  ,catholicism commonly       
softens1 while ,protestantism           
strengthens1 the  character2 but the    
softness of the first often degenerates 
into weakness1  and the strength of the 
second into hardness4 ,sincerely        
,catholic nations  are distinguished for
 their reverence1 for their habitual and
 vivid  perceptions of religious things1
 for the warmth of their emotions1 for a
  certain amiability of disposition1 and
 a certain natural courtesy and         
refinement of manner that are           
inexpressibly winning4 ,sincerely       
,protestant  nations are distinguished  
for their love of truth1 for their firm 
sense of  duty1 for the strength and the
 dignity of their character4 ,loyalty   
and  humility1 which are especially     
feminine1 flourish chiefly in the first2
  liberty and self-assertion in the     
second4 ,the first are most prone to    

superstition1 and the second to         
fanaticism4 ,protestantism1 by purifying
  and dignifying marriage1 conferred a  
great benefit upon women2 but it must   
be owned that neither in its ideal type1
 nor in the general tenor of its        
doctrines or devotions1 is it as        
congenial to their nature as the        
religion  it superseded4    ,its        
complete suppression of the conventual  
system was also1 ,i think1 very  far    
from a benefit to women or to the world4
 ,it would be impossible to  conceive   
any institution more needed than one    
which would furnish a  shelter for the  
many women who1 from poverty1 or        
domestic unhappiness1 or  other causes1 
find themselves cast alone and          
unprotected into the battle  of life1   
which would secure them from the        
temptations to gross vice1 and  from the
 extremities of suffering1 and would    
convert them into agents of  active1    
organised1 and intelligent charity4     
,such an institution would be  almost   

free from the objections that may justly
 be urged against  monasteries1 which   
withdraw strong men from manual labour1 
and it would  largely mitigate the      
difficulty of providing labour and means
 of  livelihood for single women1 which 
is one of the most pressing1 in our own 
day one of the most appalling1 of social
 problems4 ,most unhappily for  mankind1
 this noble conception was from the     
first perverted4 ,institutions  that    
might have had an incalculable          
philanthropic value were based upon  the
 principle of asceticism1 which makes   
the sacrifice1 not the promotion1  of   
earthly happiness its aim1 and binding  
vows produced much misery and  not a    
little vice4 ,the convent became the    
perpetual prison of the daughter  whom a
 father was disinclined to endow1 or of 
young girls who1 under the  impulse of a
 transient enthusiasm1 or of a transient
 sorrow1 took a step  which they never  
could retrace1 and useless penances and 
contemptible  superstitions wasted the  

energies that might have been most      
beneficially  employed4 ,still it is    
very doubtful whether1 even in the most 
degraded  period1 the convents did not  
prevent more misery than they inflicted1
 and  in the ,sisters of ,charity the   
religious orders of ,catholicism have   
produced one of the most perfect of all 
the types of womanhood4 ,there is1  as  
,i conceive1 no fact in modern history  
more deeply to be deplored than  that   
the ,reformers1 who in matters of       
doctrinal innovations were often so     
timid1 should have levelled to the dust1
 instead of attempting to  regenerate1  
the whole conventual system of          
,catholicism4    ,the course of these   
observations has led me to transgress   
the limits  assigned to this history4   
,it has been1 however1 my object through
 this  entire work to exhibit not only  
the nature but also the significance of 
the moral facts ,i have recorded1 by    
showing how they have affected the      
subsequent changes of society4 ,i will  

conclude this chapter1 and this  work1  
by observing that of all the departments
 of ethics the questions  concerning the
 relations of the sexes and the proper  
position of women are  those upon the   
future of which there rests the greatest
 uncertainty4  ,history tells us that1  
as civilisation advances1 the charity of
 men  becomes at once warmer and more   
expansive1 their habitual conduct both  
more gentle and more temperate1 and     
their love of truth more sincere2 but   
it also warns us that in periods of     
great intellectual enlightenment1 and   
of great social refinement1 the         
relations of the sexes have often been  
most anarchical4 ,it is impossible to   
deny that the form which these          
relations at present assume has been    
very largely affected by special        
religious teaching1 which1 for good or  
for ill1 is rapidly waning in the       
sphere of government1 and also1 that    
certain recent revolutions in           
economical opinion and industrial       

enterprise have a most profound bearing 
upon the subject4 ,the belief that a    
rapid increase of population is always  
eminently beneficial1 which was long    
accepted as an axiom by both  statesmen 
and moralists1 and was made the basis of
 a large part of the  legislation of the
 first and of the decisions of the      
second1 has now been  replaced by the   
directly opposite doctrine1 that the    
very highest interest  of society is not
 to stimulate but to restrain           
multiplication1 diminishing  the number 
of marriages and of children4 ,in       
consequence of this belief1  and of the 
many factitious wants that accompany a  
luxurious civilisation1  a very large   
and increasing proportion of women are  
left to make their way  in life without 
any male protector1 and the difficulties
 they have to  encounter through        
physical weakness have been most        
unnaturally and most  fearfully         
aggravated by laws and customs which1   
resting on the old  assumption that     

every woman should be a wife1 habitually
 deprive them of  the pecuniary and     
educational advantages of men1 exclude  
them absolutely  from very many of the  
employments in which they might earn a  
subsistence1  encumber their course in  
others by a heartless ridicule or by a  
steady  disapprobation1 and consign1 in 
consequence1 many thousands to the most 
extreme and agonising poverty1 and      
perhaps a still larger number to the    
paths of vice4 ,at the same time a      
momentous revolution1 the effects of    
which can as yet be but imperfectly     
descried1 has taken place in the chief  
spheres of female industry that remain4 
,the progress of machinery has          
destroyed its domestic character4 ,the  
distaff has fallen from the hand4  ,the 
needle is being rapidly superseded1 and 
the work which1 from the days  of ,homer
 to the present century1 was            
accomplished in the centre of the       
family1 has been transferred to the     
crowded manufactory47#ghc7    ,the      

probable consequences of these things   
are among the most important  questions 
that can occupy the moralist or the     
philanthropist1 but they do  not fall   
within the province of the historian4   
,that the pursuits and  education of    
women will be considerably altered1 that
 these alterations  will bring with them
 some modifications of the type of      
character1 and that  the prevailing     
moral notions concerning the relations  
of the sexes will be  subjected in many 
quarters to a severe and hostile        
criticism1 may safely  be predicted4    
,many wild theories will doubtless be   
propounded4 ,some real  ethical changes 
may perhaps be effected1 but these1 if  
,i mistake not1 can  only be within     
definite and narrow limits4 ,he who will
 seriously reflect  upon our clear      
perceptions of the difference between   
purity and impurity1  upon the laws that
 govern our affections1 and upon the    
interests of the  children who are born1
 may easily convince himself that in    

this1 as in all  other spheres1 there   
are certain eternal moral landmarks     
which never can  be removed4            
,,index4      ,abortion1 diversities of 
moral judgment respecting1 i4 #ib4      
,history of the practice of1 ii4 #bj1   
#bd    ,abraham the ,hermit1 ,st41 ii4  
#aaj    ,acacius1 his ransom of ,persian
 slaves1 ii4 #gb    ,adultery1 laws     
concerning1 ii4 #cac    schylus1 his    
views of human nature1 i4 #aif4    ,his 
violation of dramatic probabilities1    
#bbi    ,affections1 the1 all forms of  
self-love1 according to some            
,utilitarians1              i4 #i4      
,subjugation of the1 to the reason1     
taught by the ,stoics1 c41 #agg1 #ahg4  
,considered by the ,stoics as a disease1
 #ahh4    ,evil consequences of their   
suppression1 #aia    ,africa1 sacrifices
 of children to ,saturn in1 ii4 #ca4    
,effect of the conquest of ,genseric of1
 #hb    ,agap1 or love feasts1 of the   
,christians1 how regarded by the pagans1
 i4              #dae2 ii4 #gi4         

,excesses of the1 and their suppression1
 #aej    ,agnes1 ,st41 legend of1 ii4   
#cai    ,agricultural pursuits1 history 
of the decline of1 in ,italy1 i4 #bff4  
,efforts to relieve the agriculturists1 
#bfg    ,albigenses1 their slow         
suicides1 ii4 #di    ,alexander the     
,great3 effect of his career on ,greek  
cosmopolitanism1 i4 #bbi    ,alexandria1
 foundation of1 i4 #bcj4    ,effect of  
the increasing importance of1 on ,roman 
thought1 #cai4    ,the ,decian          
persecution at1 #dea4    ,excesses of   
the ,christian sects of1 ii4 #aif1 #aig1
 note    ,alexis1 ,st41 his legend1 ii4 
#cbb    ,alimentus1 ,cincius1 his work  
written in ,greek1 i4 #bcj              
,almsgiving1 effects of indiscriminate1 
ii4 #ij1 #ia    ,amafanius1 wrote the   
first ,latin work on philosophy1 i4     
#age1 note4    ,ambrose1 ,st41 his      
miraculous dream1 i4 #cgi4    ,his      
dissection of the pagan theory of the   
decline of the ,roman empire1           
#dji4    ,his ransom of ,italians from  

the ,goths1 ii4 #gb4    ,his            
commendation of disobedience to parents1
 #acb    ,american ,indians1 suicide of 
the1 ii4 #ed    ,ammon1 ,st41 his       
refusal to wash himself1 ii4 #aaj4      
,deserts his wife1 #cbb    ,amour1      
,william de ,st41 his denunciation of   
the mendicant orders1 ii4 #if           
,amphitheatres1 history and remains of  
,roman1 i4 #bgc    ,anaxagoras1 on the  
death of his son1 i4 #aia4    ,on his   
true country1 #bja    ,anchorites4 ,see 
,ascetics2 ,monasticism    ,angelo1     
,michael1 in what he failed1 ii4 #cfc   
,anglo-,saxon nations1 their virtues and
 vices1 i4 #aec    ,animals1 lower1     
,egyptian worship of1 i4 #aff1 note4    
,humanity to animals probably first     
advocated by ,plutarch1 #bdd4           
,animals employed in the arena at ,rome1
 #bhj4    ,instances of kindness to1    
#bhh1 #cjg4    ,legends of the          
connection of the saints and the animal 
world1 ii4 #afa4    ,pagan legends of   
the intelligence of animals1 #afa1 #afb4

    ,legislative protection of them1    
#afb4    ,views as to the souls of      
animals1 #afb4    ,moral duty of        
kindness to animals taught by pagans1   
#aff4    ,legends in the lives of the   
saints in connection with animals1 #afh4
    ,progress in modern times of        
humanity to animals1 #agb    ,antigonus 
of ,socho1 his doctrine of virtue1 i4   
#ahc1 note    ,antioch1 charities of1   
ii4 #hj4    ,its extreme vice and       
asceticism1 #aec    ,antisthenes1 his   
scepticism1 i4 #afb    ,antoninus1 the  
philosopher1 his prediction1 i4 #dbg    
,antoninus the ,pious1 his death1 i4    
#bjg4    ,his leniency towards the      
,christians1 #dch1 #dci4    ,forged     
letter of1 #dci1 note4    ,his charity1 
ii4 #gg    ,antony1 ,st41 his flight    
into the desert1 ii4 #ajc4    ,his mode 
of life1 #aaj4    ,his dislike to       
knowledge1 #aae4    ,legend of his visit
 to ,paul the hermit1 #aeg1 #aeh        
,aphrodite1 the celestial and earthly1  
i4 #ajf    ,apollonius of ,tyana1 his   

conversation with an ,egyptian priest   
respecting              the ,greek and  
,egyptian modes of worshipping the      
deity1 i4 #aff1              note4      
,miracles attributed to him1 #cgb4      
,his humanity to animals1 ii4 #afe      
,apollonius1 the merchant1 his          
dispensary for monks1 ii4 #ha           
,apuleius1 his condemnation of suicide1 
i4 #bac4    ,his disquisition on the    
doctrine of dmons1 #cbc4    ,practical  
form of his philosophy1 #cbi4           
,miracles attributed to him1 #cgb4      
,his defence of tooth-powder1 ii4 #adh  
,archytas of ,tarentum1 his speech on   
the evils of sensuality1 i4 #bjj1       
note    ,argos1 story of the sons of the
 priestess of ,juno at1 i4 #bjf         
,arians1 their charges against the      
,catholics1 i4 #dah1 note    ,aristides1
 his gentleness1 i4 #bbh    ,aristotle1 
his admission of the practice of        
abortion1 i4 #ib4    ,emphasis with     
which he dwelt upon the utility of      
virtue1 #abd4    ,his patriotism1 #bjj4 

,his condemnation of suicide1 #bab4     
,his opinions as to the duties of       
,greeks to barbarians1 #bbi    ,arius1  
death of1 ii4 #aif    ,arnobius1 on the 
miracles of ,christ1 i4 #cge    ,arrian1
 his humanity to animals1 ii4 #afd      
,arsenius1 ,st41 his penances1 ii4 #ajg1
 #aad1 note4    ,his anxiety to avoid   
distractions1 #abe1 note    ,ascetics1  
their estimate of the dreadful nature of
 sin1 i4 #aac4    ,decline of asceticism
 and evanescence of the moral notions of
 which it                was the        
expression1 #aac4    ,condition of      
society to which it belongs1 #acj4      
,decline of the ascetic and saintly     
qualities with civilisation1 #acj4      
,causes of the ascetic movement1 ii4    
#ajb4    ,its rapid extension1 #ajc-aje4
    ,penances attributed to the saints  
of the desert1 #ajg-aji4    ,miseries   
and joys of the hermit life1 #aac et    
seq4    ,dislike of the monks to        
knowledge1 #aae4    ,their              
hallucinations1 #aaf4    ,relations of  

female devotees with the anchorites1    
#abj4    ,ways in which the ascetic life
 affected both the ideal type and       
realised                condition of    
morals1 #abb1 et seq4    ,extreme       
animosity of the ascetics to everything 
pagan1 #acf1 #acg4    ,decline of the   
civic virtues caused by asceticism1     
#aci4    ,moral effects of asceticism on
 self-sacrifice1 #aed1 #aee4    ,moral  
beauty of some of the legends of the    
ascetics1 #aef4    ,legends of the      
connection between the saints and the   
animal world1 #afa4    ,practical form  
of asceticism in the ,west1 #agg4       
,influence of asceticism on chastity1   
#cai1 #cbj4    ,on marriage1 #cbj4      
,on the estimate of women1 #ccg         
,asella1 story of her asceticism1 ii4   
#acc    ,asia ,minor1 destruction of the
 churches of1 ii4 #ad    ,aspasia1 the  
,athenian courtesan1 ii4 #bic    ,asses1
 feast of1 ii4 #agc    ,association1    
,hartley's doctrine of1 i4 #bb4         
,partly anticipated by ,hutcheson and   

,gay1 #bc4    ,illustrations of the     
system of association1 #bf-cj4    ,the  
theory1 how far selfish1 #cj4    ,the   
essential and characteristic feature of 
conscience wholly                       
unaccounted for by the association of   
ideas1 #ff    ,astrology1 belief in1    
rapidly gaining ground in the time of   
the elder              ,pliny1 i4 #aga1 
and note    ,atticus1 his suicide1 i4   
#bae1 and note    ,augustine1 ,st41 on  
original sin1 i4 #bji4    ,his belief in
 contemporary miracles1 #cgh4    ,on the
 decline of the ,roman empire1 #daj4    
,his condemnation of virgin suicides1   
ii4 #dg    ,augustus1 his solemn        
degradation of the statue of ,neptune1  
i4 #afi4    ,his mode of discouraging   
celibacy1 #bcb4    ,miraculous stories  
related of him1 #beh4    ,his           
superstition1 #cgf4    ,advice of       
,mcenas to him1 #cii4    ,his           
consideration for the religious customs 
of the ,jews1 #djf    ,aulus ,gellius1  
his account of the rhetoricians1 i4     

#cac4    ,compared with ,helvtius1 #cac 
,aurelius1 ,marcus1 on a future state1  
i4 #ahd4    ,on posthumous fame1 #ahf4  
,denied that all vices are the same1    
#aib1 note4    ,on the sacred spirit    
dwelling in man1 #aih4    ,his          
submissive gratitude1 #aii4    ,his     
practical application of the precepts of
 the ,stoics1 #bjb4    ,his wavering    
views as to suicide1 #bac4    ,his      
charity to the human race1 #bda4        
,mild and more religious spirit of his  
stoicism1 #bde4    ,his constant        
practice of self-examination1 #bdi4     
,his life and character1 #bdi-bee4      
,compared and contrasted with ,plutarch1
 #bec4    ,his discouragement of the    
games of the arena1 #bhf4    ,his       
humanity1 #cjh4    ,his disbelief of    
exorcism1 #chd4    ,his law against     
religious terrorism1 #dbb4    ,his      
persecution of the ,christians1 #dci1   
#ddj4    ,his benevolence1 ii4 #gg4     
,his view of war1 #beh    ,austin1 ,mr41
 his view of the foundation of the moral

 law1 i4 #ag1 note4    ,his advocacy of 
the unselfish view of the love we ought 
to bear to ,god1                #ah1    
note4    ,character of his 8,lectures on
 ,jurisprudence10 #bb1 note    ,avarice1
 association of ideas to the passion of1
 i4 #be    ,avitus1 ,st41 legend of1 ii4
 #aei    ,babylas1 ,st41 miracles       
performed by his bones1 i4 #chb1 and    
note4    ,his death1 ii4 #i    ,bacchus1
 suppression of the rites of1 at ,rome1 
i4 #dja    ,bacon1 ,lord1 great movement
 of modern thought caused by1 i4 #abe4  
,his objection to the ,stoics' view of  
death1 #bjb    ,bacon1 ,roger1 his life 
and works1 ii4 #baj    ,bain1 ,mr41 on  
pleasure1 i4 #ab1 note4    ,his         
definition of conscience1 #bi1 note4    
,balbus1 ,cornelius1 his elevation to   
the consulate1 i4 #bcb    ,baltus on the
 exorcists1 i4 #cha1 note4    ,baptism1 
,augustinian doctrine of1 i4 #if        
,barbarians1 causes of the conversion of
 the1 i4 #daj    ,basil1 ,st41 his      
hospital1 ii4 #hj4    ,his labours for  

monachism1 #ajf    ,bassus1 ,ventidius1 
his elevation to the consulate1 i4 #bcb 
,bathilda1 ,queen1 her charity1 ii4 #bde
    ,bear-gardens in ,england1 ii4 #age1
 note4    ,beauty1 analogies between    
virtue and1 i4 #gg4    ,their           
difference1 #gi4    ,diversities        
existing in our judgments of virtue and 
beauty1 #gi4    ,causes of these        
diversities1 #gi4    ,virtues to which  
we can1 and to which we cannot1 apply   
the term                beautiful1 #hb1 
#hc4    ,pleasure derived from beauty   
compared with that from the grotesque1  
or                eccentric1 #he4       
,the prevailing cast of female beauty in
 the north1 contrasted with the         
southern type1 #add1 #ade1 #aeb4        
,admiration of the ,greeks for beauty1  
ii4 #bib    ,bees1 regarded by the      
ancients as emblems or models of        
chastity1 i4 #ajh1              note4   
,beggars1 causes of vast numbers of1 ii4
 #id4    ,old ,english laws for the     
suppression of mendicancy1 #if4         

,enactments against them in various     
parts of ,europe1 #ih    ,benedict1     
,st41 his system1 #ahc    ,benefices1   
military use of1 ii4 #bgj               
,benevolence2 ,hutcheson's theory that  
all virtue is resolved into             
benevolence1 i4 #d4    ,discussions in  
,england1 in the sixteenth and          
seventeenth centuries1 as               
to the existence of1 #bj4    ,various   
views of the source from which it       
springs1 #bb4    ,association of ideas  
producing the feeling of1 #bf4          
,hartley on benevolence quoted1 #bg1    
note4    ,impossibility of benevolence  
becoming a pleasure if practised only   
with                a view to that end1 
#cg4    ,application to benevolence of  
the theory1 that the moral unity of     
different ages is a unity not of        
standard but of tendency1               
#ajj4    ,influenced by our             
imaginations1 #acb1 #acc4               
,imperfectly recognised by the ,stoics1 
#ahh1 #aib    ,bentham1 ,jeremy1 on the 

motives of human actions1 i4 #h1 note4  
,on the pleasures and pains of piety    
quoted1 #i1 note4    ,on charity1 #aj1  
note4    ,on vice1 #ac1 note4    ,on the
 sanctions of morality1 #ai1 and note1  
#ba4    ,throws benevolence as much as  
possible into the background1 #ba4      
,makes no use of the doctrine of        
association1 #be1 note4    ,his         
definition of conscience1 #bi1 note4    
,on interest and disinterestedness1 #cb1
 note4    ,on the value and purity of a 
pleasure1 #ij1 note4    ,besarion1 ,st41
 his penances1 ii4 #ajh    ,biography1  
relative importance of1 among           
,christians and ,pagans1 i4 #agd        
,blandina1 martyrdom of1 i4 #ddb        
,blesilla1 story of her slow suicide1   
ii4 #dh    ,blondel1 his denunciation of
 the forgeries of the ,sibylline books1 
i4 #cgg    ,boadicea1 her suicide1 ii4  
#ec1 note    ,bolingbroke's             
8,reflections on ,exile10 i4 #bja1 note 
,bona ,dea1 story and worship of1 i4    
#id1 note4    ,popularity of her worship

 among the ,romans1 #ajf1 #chf          
,boniface1 ,st41 his missionary labours1
 ii4 #bdg    ,bonnet1 his philosophy1 i4
 #ga    ,bossuet1 on the nature of the  
love we should bear to ,god1 i4 #ah1    
note    ,brephotrophia1 in the early    
church1 ii4 #cb    ,brotherhood1 effect 
of ,christianity in promoting1 ii4 #fa  
,brown1 on the motive for the practice  
of virtue1 i4 #h1 note4    ,on          
theological ,utilitarianism1 #af1 note  
,brunehaut1 ,queen1 her crimes1 approved
 of by the ,pope1 ii4 #bcf1 #bcg4       
,her end1 #bcg    ,brutus1 his          
extortionate usury1 i4 #aic1 #aid       
,buckle1 ,thomas1 his remarks on morals1
 i4 #gd1 note4    ,on the difference    
between mental and physical pleasures1  
#ij1 note4    ,his views of the         
comparative influence of intellectual   
and moral                agencies in    
civilisation1 #ajc1 note                
,bull-baiting in ,england1 ii4 #age1    
note    ,bulgarians1 their conversion to
 ,christianity1 ii4 #ahj    ,butler1    

,bishop1 maintains the reality of the   
existence of benevolence in             
our nature1 i4 #bj1 #ba1 note4    ,on   
the pleasure derived from virtue1 #cb1  
note4    ,his analysis of moral         
judgments1 #gf4    ,his definition of   
conscience1 #hc    ,byzantine ,empire1  
general sketch of the moral condition of
 the1 ii4 #ac1              #ad4        
,moral condition of the empire during   
the ,christian period1 #adg    ,cdmon1  
story of the origin of his 8,creation of
 the ,world10 ii4 #bjd    ,csar1        
,julius1 denies the immortality of the  
soul1 i4 #ahb4    ,his condemnation of  
suicide1 #bac4    ,his colonial policy1 
#bcc4    ,his multiplication of         
gladiatorial shows1 #bgc    ,caligula1  
his intoxication with his imperial      
dignity1 i4 #bei4    ,his superstitious 
fears1 #cfg    ,calvinists3 tendency of 
the ,supralapsarian to deny the         
existence of a              moral sense1
 i4 #ag1 note    ,camma1 conjugal       
fidelity of1 ii4 #cda    ,capital       

punishment1 aversion to1 ii4 #ci        
,carlyle1 ,thomas1 on self-sacrifice1 i4
 #eg1 note4    ,the influence of        
conscience on the happiness of men1 #fb 
,carneades1 his expulsion from ,rome    
proposed by ,cato1 i4 #cii              
,carpocrates1 licentiousness of the     
followers of1 i4 #dag    ,carthage1     
effect of the destruction of1 on the    
decadence of ,rome1 i4 #afi4    ,the    
,decian persecution at1 #deb            
,carthaginians1 the1 amongst the most   
prominent of ,latin writers1 i4 #bce    
,cassius1 the tyrannicide1 his suicide1 
i4 #bae    ,castellio1 his exposure of  
the forgeries of the ,sibylline books1  
i4 #cgg    ,catacombs1 the1 i4 #dec1    
#dee    ,catholicism1 ,roman1 the system
 of education adopted by1 contrasted    
with              that of the ,english  
public schools1 i4 #aad4    ,conflict of
 the priests with political economists  
on the subject of                early  
marriages1 #aad1 #aae4    ,the teaching 
of1 on many points the extreme          

antithesis of that of the               
pagan philosophers1 #bjh4    ,its view  
of death1 #bjh1 #baj4    ,little done by
 it for humanity to animals1 ii4 #agc1  
#agg1 #ahh4    ,influence on despotism1 
#ahf4    ,its total destruction of      
religious liberty1 #aid-aii4    ,causes 
of the indifference to truth manifested 
in its literature1 #bda4                
,protestantism contrasted with it1 #cfh 
,cato1 his refusal to consult the       
oracles1 i4 #afe1 note4    ,his         
stoicism1 #ahe4    ,his inhumanity to   
his slaves1 #aic4    ,his study of the  
8,phdon0 the night he committed suicide1
 #bab4    ,his opposition to ,greek     
philosophy1 #bca4    ,his view of       
pre-nuptial chastity1 ii4 #cad          
,cattle plague1 theological notions     
respecting the1 i4 #cef    ,catullus1 on
 the death of a sparrow1 ii4 #afe1 note 
,cautinus1 ,bishop1 his drunkenness1 ii4
 #bcf    ,celibacy among the ancients1  
i4 #ajf4    ,the ,catholic monastic     
system1 #ajg4    ,how discouraged by    

,augustus1 #bcb4    ,celibacy the primal
 virtue of the ,christians of the fourth
 and fifth                centuries1 ii4
 #abb4    ,effect of this upon moral    
teaching1 #abb1 #abc4    ,history of the
 celibacy of the clergy1 #cbh1 #ccf     
,celsus calls the ,christians           
,sibyllists1 i4 #cgf4    ,and jugglers1 
#chd    ,celts1 ,spanish1 their worship 
of death1 i4 #bjf1 #bjg4    ,causes of  
their passion for suicide1 #bjg1 note4  
,their lamentations on the birth of men1
 #bjg1 note    ,censors1 ,roman1 minute 
supervision of the1 i4 #afh             
,character1 influence of1 on opinion1 i4
 #agb4    ,governed in a great measure  
by national circumstances1 #agb         
,chariot races1 passion for1 at         
,constantinople1 ii4 #cg    ,charity1 a 
form of self-love1 according to the     
,utilitarians1 i4 #i1 and               
note4    ,impossibility of charity      
becoming a pleasure if practised only   
with a                view to that end1 
#cf4    ,charity of the ,stoics1 #aia4  

,cicero's emphatic assertion of the     
duty1 #bdj4    ,exertions of the        
,christians in the cause of charity1 ii4
 #ge1 #gi4    ,inadequate place given to
 this movement in history1 #hd1 #he4    
,christian charity1 in what it consists1
 #gc4    ,laws of the ,romans1 #gc4     
,pagan examples of charity1 #gh4        
,noble enthusiasm of the ,christians in 
the cause of charity1 #gh1 #gi4         
,charity enjoined as a matter of        
justice1 #ha4    ,theological notions of
 charity1 #he1 #ij1 #ia4    ,evils of   
,catholic charity1 #ic-id4    ,legends  
respecting the virtue1 #bde1 and note   
,charlemagne1 his law respecting        
,sunday1 ii4 #bde4    ,fascination      
exercised by him over the popular       
imagination1 #bga1 #bgb4    ,his        
polygamy1 #cdc    ,charles ,v41 the     
,emperor1 his law against beggars1 ii4  
#ig    ,charles ,martel1 his defeat of  
the ,mohammedans1 at ,poictiers1 ii4    
#bgc    ,charondas1 law of1 on second   
marriages1 ii4 #cbe1 note    ,chastity1 

in ,utilitarian systems1 i4 #ab1 #di4   
,sketch of the history of1 #ajc-ajg4    
,the ,catholic monastic system1 #ajg4   
,modern judgments of1 ii4 #bhb1 #bhc4   
,cato's views1 #cad4    ,mystical views1
 #cae4    ,services of the ascetics in  
enforcing the duty of chastity1 #cah-cbj
    ,children1 charge of murdering      
infants1 among the early ,christians1 i4
 #dag4    ,abortion1 ii4 #bj-bd4        
,infanticide1 #bd1 #bf4    ,exposed     
children1 #cb4    ,institutions of the  
,romans for the benefit of children1 #gg
    ,chilon1 his closing hours1 i4 #bjg 
,cholera1 theological notions respecting
 the1 i4 #cef    ,christian and pagan   
virtues compared1 i4 #aij               
,christianity2 distinctions between the 
pagan and ,christian conceptions of     
death1 i4 #bjh4    ,the importance of   
,christianity not recognised by pagan   
writers1 #ccf4    ,causes of this1 #cch4
    ,examination of the theory which    
ascribes part of the teaching of the    
later pagan moralists to ,christian     

influence1 #cdj4    ,theory which       
attributes the conversion of ,rome to   
evidences of miracles1                  
#cdf4    ,opinion of the pagans about   
the credulity of the ,christians1 #cdg4 
,incapacity of the ,christians of the   
third century for judging historic      
miracles1 #cge4    ,and for judging     
prophecies1 #cgf4    ,contemporary      
miracles represented as existing among  
them1 #cgg4    ,christian miracles had  
probably little weight with the pagans1 
#che4    ,progress of ,christianity to  
what due1 #chf1 #chg4    ,singular      
adaptation of it to the wants of the    
time1 #chg4    ,heroism it inspired1    
#cij4    ,explanation of the conversion 
of the ,roman ,empire1 #cic4    ,account
 of the persecutions of the ,christians1
 #cie4    ,reasons why the ,christians  
were more persecuted than the ,jews1    
#djc1 #djf1                #djg4    ,the
 first cause of the persecution of the  
,christians1 #djf4    ,charges of       
immorality brought against them1 #dad4  

,due in a great measure to ,jews and    
heretics1 #daf1 #dag4    ,the           
disturbance of domestic life caused by  
female conversions1 #dah4    ,antipathy 
of the ,romans to every system which    
employed religious                      
terrorism1 #dba4    ,christian          
intolerance of pagan worship1 #dbc4     
,and of diversity of belief1 #dbd-dbg4  
,history of the persecutions1 #dbi4     
,nero's1 #dbi4    ,domitian's1 #dca4    
,condition of the ,christians under the 
,antonines1 #dcd4    ,become profoundly 
obnoxious to the people1 #dcf4          
,marcus ,aurelius1 #dci1 #ddj4          
,introduction of ,christianity into     
,france1 #ddb1 and note4    ,attitude of
 the rulers towards it from ,m4         
,aurelius to ,decius1 #dea1 et          
seq4    ,condition of the ,church on the
 eve of the ,decian persecution1 #ddh4  
,gallus1 #ded4    ,valerian1 #ded4      
,gallienus1 #dee4    ,erection of       
churches in the ,empire1 #deg4          
,persecutions of ,diocletian and        

,galerius1 #deh4    ,end of the         
persecutions1 #dfc4    ,massacre of     
,christians in ,phrygia1 #dfd4    ,moral
 efficacy of the ,christian sense of    
sin1 ii4 #c4    ,dark views of human    
nature not common in the early ,church1 
#e4    ,the penitential system1 #f4     
,empire ,christianity attained in       
eliciting disinterested enthusiasm1 #h4 
,great purity of the early ,christians1 
#aj1 #aa4    ,the promise of the ,church
 for many centuries falsified1 #ab4     
,the first consequence of ,christianity 
a new sense of the sanctity of          
human life1 #ag4    ,influence in the   
protection of infant life1 #bj-cb4      
,in the suppression of gladiatorial     
shows1 #cd4    ,its effect upon         
persecutions1 #dj1 et seq4    ,the penal
 code not lightened by it1 #db4         
,condemnation of suicide1 #dc4          
,second consequence of ,christianity    
,teaches universal brotherhood1 #fa4    
,slavery1 #fa-ff4    ,ransom of         
captives1 #gb4    ,charity1 #gc4        

,exertions of the ,christians in the    
cause of charity1 #ge1 #gi4    ,their   
exertions when the ,empire was          
subverted1 #ha1 #hb1 #hh4               
,theological notions concerning         
insanity1 #he-ij4    ,almsgiving1       
#ij-ib4    ,beneficial effect of        
,christianity in supplying pure images  
to the                imagination1 #ii4 
,summary of the philanthropic           
achievements of ,christianity1 #ajj4    
,ways in which the ascetic mode of life 
affected both the ideal type and        
realised condition of morals1 #abb1 et  
seq4    ,history of the relations of    
,christianity to the civic virtues1     
#adj4    ,improvements effected by      
,christianity in the morals of the      
people1 #aec4    ,attitude of           
,christianity to the barbarians1 #agh4  
,how it achieved their conversion1      
#agi-aha4    ,tendency of the barbarians
 to adulterate it1 #aha4    ,legends of 
the conflict between the old gods and   
the new faith1 #aha4    ,fierce hatred  

of rival sects1 and total destruction of
 religious                liberty1 #aid1
 #bjj4    ,polytheistic and idolatrous  
form of ,christianity in medival times1 
#bbi4    ,the doctrine of purgatory1    
#bcb4    ,benefits conferred by the     
monasteries1 #bdc-bde4    ,the          
observance of ,sunday1 #bde4            
,influence of ,christianity upon war1   
#bed1 #bei4    ,upon the consecration of
 secular rank1 #bfj1 et seq4    ,upon   
the condition of women1 #caf1 et seq4   
,strong assertion of the equality of    
obligation in marriage1 #cde1 #cdf4     
,relation of ,christianity to the female
 virtues1 #ceh1 et seq4    ,chrysippus  
on the immortality of the soul1 i4 #ahc 
,chrysostom1 ,st41 his labours for      
monachism1 ii4 #ajg4    ,his treatment  
of his mother1 #acb    ,cicero on the   
evidence of a ,divine element within us1
 i4 #ef1 note4    ,his definition of    
conscience1 #hc4    ,his conception of  
the ,deity1 #afd4    ,his opinion of the
 popular beliefs1 #afe4    ,instance of 

his love of truth1 #agf1 note4    ,his  
desire for posthumous reputation1 #ahe1 
note4    ,his declaration as to virtue  
concealing itself from the world1 #ahe4 
,his belief in the immortality of the   
soul1 #bjd4    ,his view of death1 #bje1
 #bjf4    ,his complacency on the       
approach of death1 #bjg4    ,his        
conception of suicide1 #bac4    ,his    
maintenance of the doctrine of universal
 brotherhood1 #bdj4    ,how he regarded 
the games of the arena1 #bhe4    ,his   
friendship with his freedman ,tiro1     
#cbc4    ,his remarks on charity1 ii4   
#gi4    ,his rules respecting           
almsgiving1 #ib    ,circumcelliones1    
atrocities of the1 ii4 #da4    ,their   
custom of provoking martyrdom1 #di      
,civic virtues1 predominance accorded   
to1 in ancient ethics1 i4 #bjj          
,civilisation1 refining influence of1 on
 taste1 i4 #gi4    ,pleasures of a      
civilised and semi-civilised society    
compared1 #hf4    ,views of ,mill and   
,buckle on the comparative influence of 

intellectual                and moral   
agencies in1 #ajb1 note4    ,effect of  
education in diminishing cruelty1 and   
producing charity1 #acd4    ,moral      
enthusiasm appropriate to different     
stages of civilisation1 #acf4           
,increase of veracity with civilisation1
 #acg4    ,each stage of civilisation   
specially appropriate to some virtue1   
#adg    ,clarke1 on moral judgments1 i4 
#gg    ,classical literature1           
preservation of1 ii4 #aii4    ,manner in
 which it was regarded by the ,church1  
#bjj-bjd    ,claudius1 his delight in   
gladiatorial shows1 i4 #bhj4    ,his    
decree as to slaves1 #cjg    ,claver1   
,father1 his remark on some persons who 
had delivered a criminal                
into the hands of justice1 i4 #da1 note 
,cleanthes1 his suicide1 i4 #bab        
,clemency1 ,seneca's distinction between
 it and pity1 i4 #ahi    ,clement of    
,alexandria1 on the two sources of all  
the wisdom of antiquity1              i4
 #cdd4    ,on the ,sibylline books1     

#cgf4    ,on wigs1 ii4 #adi    ,clemens1
 ,flavius1 put to death1 i4 #dcc        
,cleombrotus1 his suicide1 i4 #bab1 note
    ,clergy1 corruption of the1 from the
 fourth century1 ii4 #aej1 #bcg4        
,submission of the ,eastern1 but        
independence of the ,western1 clergy to 
the civil power1 #bfd-bfh4    ,history  
of their celibacy1 #cbh    ,climate1    
effects of1 in stimulating or allaying  
the passions1 i4 #add    ,clotaire1 his 
treatment of ,queen ,brunehaut1 ii4 #bcg
    ,clotilda1 her conversion of her    
husband1 i4 #daj2 ii4 #ahj    ,clovis1  
his conversion1 i4 #daj2 ii4 #ahj4      
,gregory of ,tours' account of his acts1
 #bdj1 #bda    ,cock-fighting among the 
ancients and moderns1 ii4 #afd1 and     
note1 #age1              note           
,cock-throwing1 ii4 #afd1 note1 #age1   
note    ,coemgenus1 ,st41 legend of1 ii4
 #aaa1 note    ,coleridge1 ,s4 ,t41 his 
remarks on the practice of virtue as a  
pleasure1 i4              #bh1 note4    
,his admiration for ,hartley1 #bh1 note4

    ,on the binding ground of the belief
 of ,god and a hereafter1 i4 #ee1       
note    ,colman1 ,st41 his animal       
companions1 ii4 #agj4    ,his girdle1   
#cai1 note    ,colonies1 ,roman1 the    
cosmopolitan spirit forwarded by the    
aggrandisement              of the1 i4  
#bcc    ,colosseum1 the1 i4 #bge4       
,games at the dedication of the1 #bhj   
,columbanus1 ,st41 his missionary       
labours1 ii4 #bdf    ,comedy1 ,roman1   
short period during which it flourished1
 i4 #bgg    ,comet1 a temple erected by 
the ,romans in honour of a1 i4 #cfg     
,commodus1 his treatment of the         
,christians1 i4 #ddc    ,compassion1    
theory that it is the cause of our acts 
of barbarity1 i4 #ga1              #gb  
,concubines1 ,roman1 ii4 #cej           
,concupiscence1 doctrine of the ,fathers
 respecting1 ii4 #bha    ,condillac1    
cause of the attractiveness of          
utilitarianism to1 i4 #ga4              
,connection with ,locke1 i4 #abb1 note  
,confessors1 power of the1 in the early 

,church1 i4 #cij1 and note    ,congo1   
,helvtius1 on a custom of the people of1
 i4 #ajb1 note    ,conquerors1 causes of
 the admiration of1 i4 #id1 #ie         
,conscience1 association of ideas       
generating1 i4 #bh4    ,recognised by   
the disciples of ,hartley1 #bi4         
,definitions of ,hobbes1 ,locke1        
,bentham1 and ,bain1 #bi1 note4    ,the 
rewards and punishments of conscience1  
#fj-fb4    ,unique position of1 in our  
nature1 #hc4    ,as defined by ,cicero1 
the ,stoics1 ,st4 ,paul1 and ,butler1   
#hc    ,consequences1 remote1 weakness  
of the utilitarian doctrine of1 i4      
#db-dd    8,consolations10 literature   
of1 leading topics of1 i4 #bjd          
,constantine1 the ,emperor1 his         
foundation of the empire of the ,east1  
ii4              #ab4    ,his humane    
policy towards children1 #bi1 #cj4      
,his sanction of the gladiatorial shows1
 #ce4    ,his laws mitigating the       
severity of punishments1 #db4    ,his   
treatment of slaves1 #fd4    ,his law   

respecting ,sunday1 #bdd4               
,magnificence of his court at           
,constantinople1 #bfe    ,conventual    
system1 effect of the suppression of    
the1 on women1 ii4 #cfi    ,cordeilla1  
or ,cordelia1 her suicide1 ii4 #ec1 note
    ,corinth1 effect of the conquest of1
 on the decadence of ,rome1 i4 #afi     
,cornelia1 a vestal virgin1 incident of 
her execution1 ii4 #cah1 note           
,cornelius1 the bishop1 martyrdom of1 i4
 #ded    ,cornutus1 his disbelief in a  
future state1 i4 #ahc    ,corporations1 
moral qualities of1 i4 #aeb    ,councils
 of the ,church1 character of the1 ii4  
#aig1 note    ,courtesans1 ,greek1 ii4  
#bhg4    ,causes of their elevation1    
#bia-bid4    ,how regarded by the       
,romans1 #cjj    ,cousin1 ,victor1 his  
criticism of the ,scotch moralists1 i4  
#gd1 note4    ,his objection against    
,locke1 #ge1 note    ,crantor1          
originates the literature of            
8,consolations10 i4 #bjd    ,cremutius  
,cordus1 trial of1 i4 #ddh1 note        

,crime1 value attached by the monks to  
pecuniary compensations for1 ii4        
#bac4    ,catalogue of crimes of the    
seventh century1 #bcg-bci    ,criminals1
 causes of our indulgent judgment of1 i4
 #ace    ,critical spirit1 the1         
destroyed by ,neoplatonism1 i4 #ccj     
,cromaziano1 his history of suicide1 i4 
#baf1 note    ,cruelty1 origin and      
varieties of1 i4 #acb1 #acd4    ,cruelty
 to animals1 utilitarian doctrine       
concerning1 #df1 #dg    ,crusius1 his   
adherence to the opinion of ,ockham as  
to the foundation of              the   
moral law1 i4 #ag1 note    ,cudworth1   
his analysis of moral judgments1 i4 #gf 
,culagium1 a tax levied on the clergy1  
ii4 #ccj    ,cumberland1 ,bishop1 his   
unselfish view of virtue1 i4 #ai1 note  
,cynics1 account of the later1 i4 #cji  
,cyprian1 ,st41 his evasion of          
persecution by flight1 i4 #deb4    ,his 
exile and martyrdom1 #dee    ,cyzicus   
deprived of its freedom1 i4 #bei        
,dmons1 ,apuleius' disquisition on the  

doctrine of1 i4 #cbc4    ,the doctrine  
supersedes the ,stoical naturalism1 i4  
#cca4    ,the dmons of the ,greeks and  
,romans1 #chj4    ,and of the           
,christians1 #chb    ,dale1 ,van1 his   
denial of the supernatural character of 
the oracles1 i4 #cgd    ,dead1 ,roman   
worship of the1 i4 #afh    ,death1      
calmness with which some men of dull and
 animal natures can meet1               
i4 #hi4    ,frame of mind in which a man
 should approach death1 according to    
,epictetus1 #aie4    ,preparation for   
death one of the chief ends of the      
philosophy of the                       
ancients1 #bjb4    ,bacon's objection to
 the ,stoics' view of1 #bjb4    ,the    
,irish legend of the islands of life and
 death1 #bjc4    ,the literature of     
8,consolations10 #bjd4    ,death not    
regarded by the philosophers as penal1  
#bje4    ,popular terrors of death1     
#bje1 #bjf4    ,instances of tranquil   
pagan deaths1 #bjg4    ,distinctions    
between the pagan and ,christian        

conceptions of death1 #bjh    ,decius1  
persecution of the ,christians under1 i4
 #ddi1 #dej    ,defoe1 ,daniel1 his     
tract against beggars1 ii4 #ih1 and note
    ,delphi1 oracle of1 its description 
of the best religion1 i4 #afg           
,deogratias1 his ransom of prisoners1   
ii4 #gb    ,despotism1 ,helvtius'       
remarks on the moral effects of1 i4     
#abi1 note    ,diagoras1 his denial of  
the existence of the gods1 i4 #afb      
,diodorus1 the philosopher1 his suicide1
 i4 #bae    ,dion ,chrysostom1 his      
denunciation of images of the ,deity1 i4
 #aff1 #afg1              note4    ,his 
life and works1 #cab    ,dionysius of   
,halicarnassus1 on the creed of the     
,romans1 i4 #afg    ,disinterestedness1 
,bentham's remarks on1 quoted1 i4 #cb1  
note    ,disposition1 what constitutes1 
according to the theory of association1 
i4              #cj    ,divination1 a   
favourite subject of ,roman ridicule1 i4
 #aff4    ,belief of the ancients in1   
#cfc    ,divorce1 unbounded liberty of1 

among the ,romans1 ii4 #cjf-cjh4        
,condemned by the ,church1 #cej1 #cea   
,docet1 their tenets1 ii4 #ajb          
,dog-star1 legend of the1 ii4 #afb      
,dolphin1 legends of the1 ii4 #afb1 and 
note    ,domestic laws1 ,roman1 changes 
in1 i4 #big1 #bih    ,domestic virtues1 
destruction of the1 by the ascetics1 ii4
 #abe    ,domitian1 his law respecting  
suicide1 i4 #bai4    ,anecdote of his   
cruelty1 #bhi4    ,his law as to slaves1
 #cjg4    ,his persecution of the       
,stoics and ,christians1 #dca1 #dcb     
,domitilla1 banishment of1 i4 #dcc      
,domnina1 her suicide with her          
daughters1 ii4 #df    ,donatists1 their 
intolerance1 ii4 #aie    ,dowry of      
women1 rise of the1 ii4 #bgg and note   
,dreams1 opinions of the ,romans        
concerning1 i4 #cff1 #cfg1 note         
,dumont1 ,m41 on vengeance quoted1 i4   
#da1 note    ,duty1 theory of morals    
must explain what is1 and the notion of 
there being              such a thing   
as1 i4 #e4    ,paley on the difference  

between it and prudence1 #ae1 #af1 note4
    ,distinction between natural duties 
and those resting on positive law1      
#ic4    ,duty a distinct motive1 #ahj   
,dwarfs1 combats of1 in the arena1 i4   
#bha    ,earthquakes1 how regarded by   
the ancients1 i4 #cfi4    ,cause of     
persecutions of the ,christians1 #djh   
,easter controversy1 bitterness of the1 
ii4 #aih    ,eclectic school of         
philosophy1 rise of the1 i4 #bdb4       
,its influence on the ,stoics1 #bde     
,eclipses1 opinions of the ancients     
concerning1 i4 #cff    ,education1      
importance ascribed to1 by the theory of
 the association of              ideas1 
i4 #cj4    ,contrast between that       
adopted by the ,catholic priesthood and 
that of the                ,english     
public schools1 #aad4    ,its influence 
on the benevolent feelings1 #acc1 #acd4 
,two distinct theories of1 #ahg         
,egypt1 the cradle of monachism1 ii4    
#aje4    ,the ,mohammedan conquest of1  
#adc4    ,triumphs of the ,catholics in1

 #aif    ,egyptians1 their reverence for
 the vulture1 i4 #ajh1 note4    ,their  
kindness to animals1 #bhi4    ,contrast 
of the spirit of their religion with    
that of the ,greeks1 #cbd4              
,difference between the ,stoical and    
,egyptian pantheism1 #cbe    ,elephants1
 legends of1 ii4 #afa    ,emperors1     
,roman1 apotheosis of1 i4 #agj1 #beg    
,endura1 the ,albigensian practice of1  
ii4 #di    ,england1 national virtues   
and vices of1 i4 #aec4    ,ancient      
amusements of1 ii4 #agd1 #age1 note     
,ephrem1 ,st41 his charity1 ii4 #ha     
,epictetus1 his disbelief in a future   
state1 i4 #ahc4    ,his life and works1 
#ahd1 and note4    ,on the frame of mind
 in which a man should approach death1  
#aie4    ,his views of the natural      
virtue of man1 #aih4    ,on suicide1    
#bad1 note1 #bbj4    ,on universal      
brotherhood1 #bed4    ,his stoicism     
tempered by a milder and more religious 
spirit1 #bde1 #bdf4    ,his remarks on  
national religious beliefs1 #dje        

,epicureans1 their faith preserved      
unchanged at ,athens1 i4 #abh1 and note4
    ,their scepticism1 #afb4    ,roman  
,epicureans1 #afb1 #afc4                
,epicureanism the expression of a type  
of character different from             
,stoicism1 #aga1 #agb4    ,but never    
became a school of virtue in ,rome1     
#age4    ,destructive nature of its     
functions1 #agf4    ,esteemed pleasure  
as the ultimate end of our actions1     
#ahf4    ,encouraged physical science1  
#aic4    ,their doctrine as to suicide1 
#bad1 #bae1 note    ,epicurus1 the four 
canons of1 i4 #ad4    ,vast place       
occupied by his system in the moral     
history of man1 #aga4    ,his character1
 #age1 #agf1 note4    ,lucretius' praise
 of him1 #aig4    ,his view of death1   
#bje4    ,discovery of one of his       
treatises at ,herculaneum1 #bje1 note   
,epidemics1 theological notions         
respecting1 i4 #cef    ,epiphanius1     
,st41 his miraculous stories1 i4 #cgh4  
,his charges against the ,gnostics1     

#dag4    ,legend of him and ,st4        
,hilarius1 ii4 #aei    ,epponina1 story 
of her conjugal fidelity1 ii4 #cdb      
,error1 the notion of the guilt of1 ii4 
#aij-aic    ,essenes1 virginity their   
ideal of sanctity1 i4 #aji1 ii4 #ajb    
,euhemerus1 his explanation of the      
legends1 i4 #afc    ,euphrates the      
,stoic1 his answer to ,pliny the        
,younger1 i4 #bjb4    ,has permission   
from ,hadrian to commit suicide1 #bah1  
note    ,euphraxia1 ,st41 ii4 #aaj      
,euripides1 beauty of the gentler       
virtues inculcated in the plays of1 i4  
#bbh    ,eusebius1 on the allegorical   
and mythical interpretations of         
paganism1 i4              #afc1 note4   
,his account of the ,christian          
persecutions1 i4 #dfc    ,eusebius1     
,st41 his penances1 ii4 #ajh            
,eustathius1 condemnation of1 by the    
council of ,gangra1 ii4 #aca            
,evagrius1 his inhumanity to his        
parents1 ii4 #abe    ,evil1 views of    
,hobbes and the ,utilitarians of the    

essence and origin of1              i4  
#h-aj    ,excellence1 supreme1 how far  
it is conducive to happiness1 i4 #ef    
,excommunication1 penalties of1 ii4 #g  
,executioners1 always regarded as       
unholy1 i4 #da    ,exorcism1 among the  
early ,christians1 i4 #cgh1 #chj4       
,origin of the notions of possession and
 exorcism1 #chj4    ,jews the principal 
exorcists1 #chj4    ,belief of the early
 ,christians in1 #chb4    ,contempt of  
the pagans for it1 #chd4    ,ulpian's   
law against exorcists1 #chd4            
,probable explanation of possession and 
exorcism1 #che4    ,speedy decline of   
exorcism1 #che4    ,the practice        
probably had no appreciable influence in
 provoking                persecution of
 the ,christians1 #dbj    ,experience1  
general statement of the doctrine which 
bases morals upon1 i4              #e   
,fabianus1 martyrdom of1 i4 #ddf        
,fabiola1 founded the first public      
hospital1 ii4 #hj    ,fabius1 his       
self-sacrifice1 i4 #ahe    ,fabius      

,pictor1 his works written in ,greek1 i4
 #bcj    ,faculty1 moral1 the term1 i4  
#ge    ,fairies1 belief in1 i4 #cdh1    
#cdi    ,fatalism1 schylus the poet of1 
i4 #aif    ,felicitas1 ,st41 her        
martyrdom1 i4 #ddd4    ,in prison1 ii4  
#i    ,fnelon1 on the unselfish love we 
should bear to ,god1 i4 #ah1 note       
,fetishism1 latent1 the root of a great 
part of our opinions1 i4 #cej    ,fiden1
 accident at the amphitheatre at1 i4    
#bge    ,fights1 sham1 in ,italy in the 
middle ages1 ii4 #cg1 #ch    ,fire1     
regarded by the ancients as an emblem of
 virginity1 i4 #ajh1 note    ,fish1     
symbol of the early ,christians1 i4 #cgf
    ,flamens of ,jupiter1 ii4 #bih      
,flora1 games of1 i4 #bgf               
,forethought1 brought into a new        
position by industrial habits1 i4 #adj  
,foundlings1 hospitals for1 ii4 #bc1    
note1 #cb4    ,in ancient times1 #bh1   
#bi4    ,adversaries of1 #ih1 and note  
,france1 condition of1 under the        
,merovingian kings1 ii4 #bcf1 note      

,francis of ,assisi1 ,st41 story of his 
death from asceticism1 ii4 #di4    ,his 
kindness to animals1 #agb    ,franks1   
cause of their conversion1 i4 #daj      
,frdgonde1 ,queen1 her crimes1 ii4 #bcf1
 #bcg    ,freedmen1 influence of1 at    
,rome1 i4 #bcc4    ,condition of the    
freedmen of the ,romans1 #bcf           
,frenchmen1 the chief national virtues  
and causes of their influence in        
,europe1 i4 #aeb4    ,compared with     
,anglo-,saxon nations1 #aec             
,friendship1 ,utilitarian view of1 i4   
#aj    ,galerius1 his persecution of the
 ,christians1 i4 #deh1 #dfa4    ,his    
illness1 #dfb4    ,relents towards the  
,christians1 #dfb    ,galilans1 their   
indifference to death1 i4 #cib1 note    
,gall1 ,st41 legend of1 ii4 #ahb4       
,his missionary labours1 #bdg           
,gallienus1 proclaims toleration to the 
,christians1 i4 #dee1 #deg    ,gallus1  
the ,emperor1 persecutions of the       
,christians under1 i4 #ded              
,gambling-table1 moral influence of the1

 i4 #adh    ,gaul1 introduction of      
,christianity into1 i4 #ddb4            
,foundation of the monastic system in1  
ii4 #ajf4    ,long continuance of       
polygamy among the kings of1 #cdc       
,gay1 his view of the origin of human   
actions1 quoted1 i4 #h1 note4    ,his   
suggestion of the theory of association1
 #bc1 #bd    ,genseric1 effect of his   
conquest of ,africa upon ,italy1 ii4    
#hb4    ,his capture of ,rome1 #hc      
,george of ,cappadocia1 his barbarity1  
ii4 #aie    ,germanicus1 the ,emperor1  
fury of the populace with the gods1 in  
consequence of the death of1 i4 #afi    
,germanus1 ,st41 his charity1 ii4 #bde  
,germany1 conversion of1 to             
,christianity1 ii4 #bdf4    ,marriage   
customs of the early ,germans1 #bgh4    
,their chastity1 #cdj1 #cda             
,gervasius1 ,st41 recovery of his       
remains1 i4 #cgi4    ,girdles of        
chastity1 ii4 #cai1 note                
,gladiatorial shows1 influence of       
,christianity on the suppression of1 i4 

#cd4    ,reasons why the ,romans saw    
nothing criminal in them1 #aja4         
,history and effect on the ,romans of1  
#bga-bhc4    ,how regarded by moralists 
and historians1 #bhd4    ,the passion   
for them not inconsistent with humanity 
in other spheres1                #bhh4  
,gnostics1 accusations against the1 by  
the early ,fathers1 i4 #dag4    ,their  
tenets1 ii4 #ajb    ,god1 the           
,utilitarian view of the goodness of1 i4
 #i1 and note4    ,question of the      
disinterestedness of the love we should 
bear to1 #ah4    ,our knowledge of ,him 
derived from our own moral nature1 #ee4 
,early traces of an all-pervading soul  
of nature in ,greece1 #afa1 #afb1       
#agj4    ,philosophic definitions of the
 ,deity1 #afb1 note4    ,pantheistic    
conception of1 by the ,stoics and       
,platonists1 #afc4    ,recognition of   
,providence by the ,roman moralists1    
#aif4    ,two aspects under which the   
,stoics worshipped the                  
,divinity--providence                and

 moral goodness1 #aih    ,gods1 the1 of 
the ancients1 i4 #afa1 et seq4          
,euhemerus' theory of the explanation of
 the prevailing legends of the          
gods1 #afc4    ,views of ,cicero of the 
popular beliefs1 #afe4    ,opinions of  
the ,stoics1 of ,ovid1 and of ,horace1  
#aff4    ,nature of the gods of the     
,romans1 #afg4    ,decline of ,roman    
reverence for the gods1 #afh1 #afi      
,good1 pleasure equivalent to1 according
 to the ,utilitarians1 i4 #h1 note1     
#i    ,gracchi1 colonial policy of the1 
i4 #bcc    ,grazers1 sect of1 ii4 #aji  
,greeks1 ancient1 their callous murder  
of children1 i4 #de1 #df4    ,low state 
of female morality among them4    ,their
 enforcement of monogamy1 #ajd4         
,celibacy of some of their priests and  
priestesses1 #aje4    ,early traces of a
 religion of nature1 #afa4    ,universal
 providence attributed to ,zeus1 #afa4  
,scepticism of the philosophers1 #afa1  
#afb4    ,importance of biography in the
 moral teaching of the1 i4 #gd4         

,difference between the teaching of the 
,roman moralists and the ,greek         
poets1 #aie4    ,on death1 and future   
punishment1 #bje1 #bjf4    ,greek       
suicides1 #bab4    ,gentleness and      
humanity of the ,greek character1 #bbg4 
,influence on ,roman character1 #bbg1   
#bbh4    ,the ,greek spirit at first as 
far removed from cosmopolitanism as that
 of                ,rome1 #bbh4         
,causes of ,greek cosmopolitanism1 #bbi4
    ,extent of ,greek influence at      
,rome1 #bcj4    ,gladiatorial shows     
among them1 #bgf4    ,spirit of their   
religion contrasted with that of the    
,egyptians1 #cbd4    ,their intolerance 
of foreign religions1 #djf4             
,condition and fall of their empire of  
the ,east1 ii4 #ab-ad4    ,their        
practice of infanticide1 #be-bg4        
,their treatment of animals1 #afd4      
,their treatment of prisoners taken in  
war1 #beg1 #beh4    ,their marriage     
customs1 #bgg4    ,women in the poetic  
age1 #bgh4    ,peculiarity of ,greek    

feelings on the position of women1 #bhj1
 #bha4    ,unnatural forms assumed by   
vice amongst them1 #bid    ,gregory the 
,great1 his contempt for ,pagan         
literature1 ii4 #bja1 note4    ,his     
attitude towards ,phocas1 #bfd          
,gregory of ,nyssa1 ,st41 his eulogy of 
virginity1 ii4 #cbb    ,gregory of      
,tours1 manner in which he regarded     
events1 ii4 #bdj-bdb1 #bfa1             
#bgg    ,grotesque1 or eccentric1       
pleasure derived from the1 compared with
 that              from beauty1 i4 #he  
,gundebald1 his murders approved of by  
his bishop1 ii4 #bcg    ,gunpowder1     
importance of the invention of1 i4 #abf 
,guy1 ,brother1 his society for         
protection and education of children1   
ii4              #cc1 and note          
,hadrian1 the ,emperor1 his view of     
suicide1 i4 #bai4    ,gives ,euphrates  
permission to destroy himself1 #bah1    
note4    ,his laws respecting slaves1   
#cjg4    ,his leniency towards          
,christianity1 #dch4    ,his            

benevolence1 ii4 #gg    ,hair1 false1   
opinions of the ,fathers on1 ii4 #adi   
,hall1 ,robert1 on theological          
,utilitarianism1 i4 #ae note            
8,happiness1 the greatest1 for the      
greatest number10 theory of the1 i4 #c4 
,the sole end of human actions1         
according to the ,utilitarians1 #h1     
note4    ,the best man seldom the       
happiest1 #fi4    ,mental compared with 
physical happiness1 #hg4    ,influence  
of health and temperament on happiness1 
#hh1 and note    ,hartley1 his doctrine 
of association1 i4 #bb4    ,coleridge's 
admiration for him1 #bh1 note4    ,on   
animal food1 #dh1 note4    ,his attempt 
to evade the conclusion to which his    
view leads1 quoted1 #fg1                
note4    ,his definition of conscience1 
#hb    ,hegesias1 the orator of death1  
i4 #bae    ,heliogabalus1 his           
blasphemous orgies1 i4 #bfj    ,hell1   
monkish visions of1 ii4 #bba and note4  
,glimpses of the infernal regions       
furnished by the 8,dialogues0 of ,st4   

,gregory1 #bba4    ,modern publications 
on this subject1 #bbc1 note             
,helvtius1 on the origin of human       
actions1 i4 #h1 note4    ,on customs of 
the people of ,congo and ,siam1 #ajb1   
note4    ,compared with ,aulus ,gellius1
 #cac    ,herbert1 of ,cherbury1 ,lord1 
his profession of the doctrine of innate
              ideas1 i4 #abc            
,hercules1 meaning of1 according to the 
,stoics1 i4 #afc    ,hereford1 ,nicholas
 of1 his opposition to indiscriminate   
alms1 ii4 #if    ,heresy1 punishment of 
death for1 i4 #ih2 ii4 #dj    ,hermits4 
,see ,asceticism2 ,monasticism          
,heroism1 the ,utilitarian theory       
unfavourable to1 i4 #ff4    ,war1 the   
school of heroism1 #agc    ,hilarius1   
,st41 legend of him and ,st4            
,epiphanius1 ii4 #aei    ,hildebrand1   
his destruction of priestly marriage1   
ii4 #cbb    ,hippopotamus1 legend of    
the1 ii4 #afa    ,historical literature1
 scantiness of1 after the fall of the   
,roman empire1              ii4 #bce    

,hobbes1 ,thomas1 his opinions          
concerning the essence and origin of    
virtue1              i4 #g1 #h1 note4   
,his view of the origin of human        
actions1 quoted1 #h1 note4    ,his      
remarks on the goodness which we        
apprehend in ,god1 quoted1 #i1          
note4    ,and on reverence1 #i1 note4   
,on charity1 #i1 #aj1 note4    ,on pity1
 #aj1 note4    ,review of the system of 
morals of his school1 #aa4    ,gives the
 first great impulse to moral philosophy
 in ,england1 #ai1                note4 
,his denial of the reality of pure      
benevolence1 #bj1 #ba4    ,his          
definition of conscience1 #bi1 note4    
,his theory of compassion1 #gb1 note    
,holidays1 importance of1 to the servile
 classes1 ii4 #bdd    ,homer1 his views 
of human nature and man's will1 i4 #aif 
,horace1 his ridicule of idols1 i4 #aff4
    ,his description of the just man1   
#aig    ,hospitality enjoined by the    
,romans1 ii4 #gi    ,hospitals1         
foundation of the first1 ii4 #hj1 #ha   

,human life1 its sanctity recognised by 
,christianity1 ii4 #ah4    ,gradual     
acquirement of this sense1 #ah    ,human
 nature1 false estimate of1 by the      
,stoics1 i4 #aib    ,hume1 ,david1 his  
theory of virtue1 i4 #d4                
,misrepresented by many writers1 #d4    
,his recognition of the reality of      
benevolence in our nature1 #bj1 and     
note4    ,his comment on ,french        
licentiousness in the eighteenth        
century1 #ej1                note4      
,his analysis of the moral judgments1   
#gf4    ,lays the foundation for a union
 of the schools of ,clarke and          
,shaftesbury1 #gg    ,humility1 new     
value placed upon it by monachism1 ii4  
#ahe1 #ahg    ,hutcheson1 ,francis1 his 
doctrine of a 8moral sense10 i4 #d4     
,establishes the reality of the         
existence of benevolence in our nature1 
#bj4    ,his analysis of moral          
judgments1 #gf    ,hypatia1 murder of1  
ii4 #aif    ,iamblichus1 his philosophy1
 i4 #ccj    ,ideas1 confused association

 of4 ,question whether our1 are derived 
exclusively from sensation or whether   
they spring in part from                
the mind itself1 #abb4    ,the latter   
theory represented by the ,platonic     
doctrine of pre-existence1              
#abb4    ,doctrine of innate ideas1 #abb
    ,idols and idolatry1 views of the   
,roman philosophers of1 i4 #aff4        
,discussion between ,apollonius of      
,tyana and an ,egyptian priest          
respecting1 #aff1 note4    ,idols       
forbidden by ,numa1 #aff1 note4         
,plutarch on the vanity of1 #aff1 note  
,ignatius1 ,st41 his martyrdom1 i4 #dch 
,ignis fatuus1 legend of the1 ii4 #bbd1 
note    ,imagination1 sins of1 i4 #dd4  
,relation of the benevolent feelings to 
it1 #acb1 #acc4    ,deficiency of       
imagination the cause of the great      
majority of                uncharitable 
judgments1 #acd-acf4    ,feebleness of  
the imagination a source of legends and 
myths1 #cdg4    ,beneficial effects of  
,christianity in supplying pure images  

to the                imagination1 #bii 
,imperial system of the ,romans1 its    
effect on their morals1 i4 #beg4        
,apotheosis of the emperors1 #beg       
,india1 ancient1 admiration for the     
schools of1 i4 #bbi    ,inductive1      
ambiguity of the term1 as applied to    
morals1 i4 #gc    ,industrial truth1    
characteristics of1 i4 #acg4            
,influence of the promotion of          
industrial life upon morals1 #aci-adj   
,infanticide1 history of the practice   
of1 ii4 #bd4    ,efforts of the ,church 
to suppress it1 #bi4    ,roman laws     
relating to1 #ca4    ,causes of1 in     
,england1 #bhe    ,infants1 ,augustinian
 doctrine of the damnation of           
unbaptised1 i4 #if4    ,the ,sacrament  
given to1 in the early ,church1 ii4 #f  
,insanity1 alleged increase of1 ii4 #fj4
    ,theological notions concerning1    
#hf4    ,the first lunatic asylums1 #hh 
,insurance societies among the poor of  
,greece and ,rome1 ii4 #gh              
,intellectual progress1 its relations to

 moral progress1 i4 #adi-aea            
,interest1 self-1 human actions governed
 exclusively by1 according to the       
,utilitarians1 i4 #g1 #h1 note4         
,summary of the relations of virtue and 
public and private1 #aag    ,intuition1 
rival claims of1 and utility to be      
regarded as the supreme                 
regulator of moral distinctions1 i4 #a1 
#b4    ,various names by which the      
theory of intuition is known1 #b1 #c4   
,views of the moralists of the school   
of1 #c4    ,summary of their objections 
to the ,utilitarian theory1 i4 #fi4     
,the intuitive school1 #gd1 #ge4        
,doctrines of ,butler1 ,adam ,smith1 and
 others1 #gf-gg4    ,analogies of beauty
 and virtue1 #gg4    ,distinction       
between the higher and lower parts of   
our nature1 #hc4    ,moral judgments1   
and their alleged diversities1 #ia4     
,general moral principles alone revealed
 by intuition1 #ii4    ,intuitive morals
 not unprogressive1 #ajb1 #ajc4         
,difficulty of both the intuitive and   

utilitarian schools in finding a        
fixed frontier line between the lawful  
and the illicit1 #aaf1                  
#aag4    ,the intuitive and utilitarian 
schools each related to the general     
condition of society1 #abb4    ,their   
relations to metaphysical schools1 #abc1
 #abd4    ,and to the ,baconian         
philosophy1 #abe4    ,contrasts between 
ancient and modern civilisations1 #abf1 
#abg4    ,practical consequences of the 
opposition between the two schools1 #abg
    ,inventions1 the causes which       
accelerate the progress of society in   
modern              times1 i4 #abf      
,ireland1 why handed over by the ,pope  
to ,england1 ii4 #bag    ,irenus1 his   
belief that all ,christians had the     
power of working miracles1              
i4 #cgh    ,irish1 characteristics of   
the1 i4 #ach4    ,their early marriages 
and national improvidences1 #adf4       
,absence of moral scandals among the    
priesthood1 #adf4    ,their legend of   
the islands of life and death1 #bjc4    

,their missionary labours1 ii4 #bdf4    
,their perpendicular burials1 #bec      
,isidore1 ,st41 legend of1 ii4 #bje     
,isis1 worship of1 at ,rome1 i4 #chg4   
,suppression of the worship1 #djb       
,italians1 characteristics of the1 i4   
#ach1 #add    ,italy1 gigantic          
development of mendicancy in1 ii4 #ih4  
,introduction of monachism into1 #ajf   
,james1 the ,apostle1 ,eusebius' account
 of him1 ii4 #aje    ,james1 ,st41 of   
,venice1 his kindness to animals1 ii4   
#agb    ,jenyns1 ,soame1 his adherence  
to the opinion of ,ockham1 i4 #ag1 note 
,jerome1 ,st41 on exorcism1 i4 #chb4    
,on the clean and unclean animals in the
 ark1 ii4 #ajd4    ,legend of1 #aae4    
,encouraged inhumanity of ascetics to   
their relations1 #acd4    ,his legend of
 ,,ss4 ,paul and ,antony1 #aeh    ,jews1
 their law regulating marriage and      
permitting polygamy1 i4 #ajc4    ,their 
treatment of suicides1 #bah1 note4      
,influence of their manners and creed at
 ,rome1 #bce1 #ccg4    ,became the      

principal exorcists1 #chj1 #cha1 note4  
,spread of their creed in ,rome1 #chf4  
,reasons why they were persecuted less  
than the ,christians1 #djb1 #djg4       
,how regarded by the pagans1 and how the
 ,christians were regarded by the       
,jews1 #dae4    ,charges of immorality  
brought against the ,christians by the  
,jews1 #dag4    ,domitian's taxation of 
them1 #dcb4    ,their views of the      
position of women1 ii4 #ccg    ,joffre1 
,juan ,gilaberto1 his foundation of a   
lunatic asylum in ,valencia1            
ii4 #hi    ,john1 ,st41 at ,patmos1 i4  
#dcc    ,john1 ,st41 of ,calama1 story  
of1 ii4 #abh    ,john ,,xxiii41 ,pope1  
his crimes1 ii4 #cca    ,johnson1 ,dr41 
his adherence to the opinion of ,ockham1
 i4 #ag1 note    ,julian1 the ,emperor1 
his tranquil death1 i4 #bjg1 and note4  
,refuses the language of adulation1     
#bei4    ,his attempt to resuscitate    
paganism1 #cca4    ,attitude of the     
,church towards him1 ii4 #bfa4    ,joy  
at his death1 #bfb    ,julien           

l',hospitalier1 ,st41 legend of1 ii4    
#hd1 note    ,jupiter ,ammon1 fountain  
of1 deemed miraculous1 i4 #cff1 and note
    ,justinian1 his laws respecting     
slavery1 ii4 #fe    ,justin ,martyr1 his
 recognition of the excellence of many  
parts of the              pagan         
writings1 i4 #cdd4    ,on the 8seminal  
logos10 #cdd4    ,on the ,sibylline     
books1 #cgf4    ,cause of his conversion
 to ,christianity1 #dae4    ,his        
martyrdom1 #dda    ,juvenal1 on the     
natural virtue of man1 i4 #aig          
,kames1 ,lord1 on our moral judgments1  
i4 #gg4    ,notices the analogies       
between our moral and sthetical         
judgments1 #gg    ,king's evil1 ceremony
 of touching for the1 i4 #cfc1 note     
,labienus1 his works destroyed1 i4 #ddh1
 note    ,lactantius1 character of his  
treatise1 i4 #dfc    ,ltorius1 story of1
 i4 #bei    ,laughing condemned by the  
monks of the desert1 ii4 #aae1 note     
,law1 ,roman1 its relation to ,stoicism1
 i4 #bid1 #bie4    ,its golden age not  

,christian1 but pagan1 ii4 #db          
,lawyers1 their position in literature1 
i4 #aca1 note    ,legacies forbidden to 
the clergy1 ii4 #aea4    ,power of      
making bequests to the clergy enlarged  
by ,constantine1 #bae    ,leibnitz1 on  
the natural or innate powers of man1 i4 
#aba1 note    ,leo the ,isaurian1 ,pope1
 his compact with ,pepin1 ii4 #bff      
,leonardo da ,vinci1 his kindness to    
animals1 ii4 #agb1 note                 
,licentiousness1 ,french1 ,hume's       
comments on1 i4 #ej1 note4    ,locke1   
,john1 his view of moral good and moral 
evil1 i4 #h1 note4    ,his theological  
utilitarianism1 #af1 note4    ,his view 
of the sanctions of morality1 #ai4      
,his invention of the phrase            
8association of ideas10 #bc4    ,his    
definition of conscience1 #bi1 note4    
,cousin's objections against him1 #ge1  
note4    ,his refutation of the doctrine
 of a natural moral sense1 #abc1 #abd4  
,rise of the sensual school out of his  
philosophy1 #abc1 note4    ,famous      

formulary of his school1 #abd           
,lombard1 ,peter1 character of his      
8,sentences10 ii4 #bbf4    ,his visions 
of heaven and hell1 #bbh    ,longinus1  
his suicide1 i4 #bai    ,love terms     
,greek1 in vogue with the ,romans1 i4   
#bca1 note    ,lucan1 failure of his    
courage under torture1 i4 #aid4    ,his 
sycophancy1 #aid4    ,his               
cosmopolitanism1 #bdj    ,lucius1 the   
bishop1 martyrdom of1 i4 #ded           
,lucretius1 his scepticism1 i4 #afb4    
,his disbelief in the immortality of the
 soul1 i4 #ahb1 note4    ,his praise of 
,epicurus1 #aig4    ,his suicide1 #bae4 
,on a bereaved cow1 ii4 #afe    ,lunatic
 asylums1 the first1 ii4 #hi            
,luther's wife1 her remark on the       
sensuous creed she had left1 i4 #eb     
,lyons1 persecution of the ,christians  
at1 i4 #dda    ,macarius1 ,st41 miracle 
attributed to1 ii4 #dj1 note4    ,his   
penances1 #ajh1 #aji4    ,legend of his 
visit to an enchanted garden1 #aeh4     
,other legends of him1 #aeh1 #aei1 #agj1

 #bbj    ,macedonia1 effect of the      
conquest of1 on the decadence of ,rome1 
i4 #afi    ,mackintosh1 ,sir ,james1    
theory of morals advocated by1 i4 #d4   
,fascination of ,hartley's doctrine of  
association over his mind1 #bi          
,macrianus1 persuades the ,emperor      
,valerian to persecute the ,christians1 
i4              #dee    ,macrina ,clia1 
her benevolence to children1 ii4 #gg    
,magdalen asylums1 adversaries of1 ii4  
#ih1 and note    ,mallonia1 virtue of1  
ii4 #cji    ,malthus1 on charity1 ii4   
#ib1 note    ,mandeville1 his 8,enquiry 
into the ,origin of ,moral ,virtue40    
,his thesis that              8private  
vices are public benefits10 i4 #g4      
,his opposition to charity schools1 ii4 
#ih    ,manicheans1 their tenets1 ii4   
#ajb4    ,their prohibition of animal   
food1 #afg    ,manilius1 his conception 
of the ,deity1 i4 #afc    ,manufactures1
 influence upon morals1 i4 #aci         
,marcellinus1 ,tullius1 his             
self-destruction1 i4 #bbb    ,marcia1   

mistress of ,commodus1 her influence in 
behalf of toleration to the             
,christians1 i4 #ddc    ,marcian1 ,st41 
legend of the visit of ,st4 ,avitus to  
him1 ii4 #aei    ,marcus1 ,st41 story   
of1 and his mother1 ii4 #abh            
,marriage1 how regarded by the ,jews1   
,greeks1 ,romans1 and ,catholics1 i4    
#ajc1              #ajd4    ,statius'   
picture of the first night of marriage1 
#ajg1 note4    ,reason why the ancient  
,jews attached a certain stigma to      
virginity1 #aji4    ,conflict of views  
of the ,catholic priest and the         
political economist on                  
the subject of early marriages1 #aad4   
,results in some countries of the       
difficulties with which legislators     
surround marriage1 #add4    ,early      
marriages the most conspicuous proofs of
 ,irish improvidence1 #add4             
,influence of asceticism on1 ii4 #cbj4  
,notions of its impurity1 #cbd4         
,second marriages1 #cbd    ,marseilles1 
law of1 respecting suicide1 i4 #bah1    

note4    ,epidemic of suicide among the 
women of1 ii4 #ee    ,martial1          
sycophancy of his epigrams1 i4 #aid     
,martin of ,tours1 ,st41 establishes    
monachism in ,gaul1 ii4 #ajf            
,martyrdom1 glories of1 i4 #cij4        
,festivals of the ,martyrs1 #cij1 note4 
,passion for1 #cia4    ,dissipation of  
the people at the festivals1 ii4 #aej   
,mary1 ,st41 of ,egypt1 ii4 #aaj        
,mary1 the ,virgin1 veneration of1 ii4  
#cfg1 #cfh1 #cij    ,massilians1 wine   
forbidden to women by the1 i4 #if1 note 
,maternal affection1 strength of1 ii4   
#be1 note    ,maurice1 on the social    
penalties of conscience1 i4 #fj1 note   
,mauricus1 ,junius1 his refusal to allow
 gladiatorial shows at ,vienna1 i4      
#bhf    ,maxentius1 instance of his     
tyranny1 ii4 #df    ,maximilianus1 his  
martyrdom1 ii4 #bdh    ,maximinus1      
,emperor1 his persecution of the        
,christians1 i4 #ddf    ,maximus of     
,tyre1 account of him and his           
discourses1 i4 #cab4    ,his defence of 

the ancient creeds1 #cbc4    ,practical 
form of his philosophy1 #cbi            
,medicine1 possible progress of1 i4     
#aeh1 #aei    ,melania1 ,st41 her       
bereavement1 ii4 #aj4    ,her pilgrimage
 through the ,syrian and ,egyptian      
hermitages1 #abj    ,milesians1 wine    
forbidden by the1 to women1 i4 #id1 note
    ,military honour pre-eminent among  
the ,romans1 i4 #agb1 #agc4    ,history 
of the decadence of ,roman military     
virtue1 #bfh    ,mill1 ,j41 on          
association1 #be1 note1 et seq4         
,mill1 ,j4 ,s41 quoted1 i4 #bi1 #dg1    
#ij1 #ajb    ,minerva1 meaning of1      
according to the ,stoics1 i4 #afc       
,miracles1 general incredulity on the   
subject of1 at the present time1 i4     
#cdf1 #cdh4    ,miracles not impossible1
 #cdg4    ,established by much evidence1
 #cdg4    ,the histories of them always 
decline with education1 #cdh4           
,illustration of this in the belief in  
fairies1 #cdh4    ,conceptions of       
savages1 #cdi4    ,legends1 formation   

and decay of1 #cej-ceb4    ,common      
errors in reasoning about miracles1     
#cef4    ,predisposition to the         
miraculous in some states of society1   
#cfb4    ,belief of the ,romans in      
miracles1 #cfc-cfg4    ,incapacity of   
the ,christians of the third century for
 judging historic                       
miracles1 #cge4    ,contemporary        
miracles believed in by the early       
,christians1 #cgh4    ,exorcism1 #cgh4  
,neither past nor contemporary          
,christian miracles had much weight upon
                the pagans1 #cgh        
,missionary labours1 ii4 #bdf           
,mithra1 worship of1 in ,rome1 i4 #chf  
,mohammedans1 their condemnation of     
suicide1 ii4 #ec4    ,their lunatic     
asylums1 #hi4    ,their religion1 #bea4 
,effects of their military triumphs on  
,christianity1 #beb    ,molinos1 his    
opinion on the love we should bear to   
,god1 condemned1 i4 #ah1                
note    ,monastic system1 results of the
 ,catholic monastic system1 i4 #ajg4    

,suicide of monks1 ii4 #eb4             
,exertions of the monks in the cause of 
charity1 #hd4    ,causes of the monastic
 movement1 #ajb4    ,history of the     
rapid propagation of it in the ,west1   
#ahc4    ,new value placed by it on     
obedience and humility1 #ahe1 #bfi4     
,relation of it to the intellectual     
virtues1 #ahh4    ,the monasteries      
regarded as the receptacles of learning1
 #aii4    ,fallacy of attributing to the
 monasteries the genius that was        
displayed                in theology1   
#bjh4    ,other fallacies concerning the
 services of the monks1 #bjh-bab4       
,value attached by monks to pecuniary   
compensations for crime1 #bac4          
,causes of their corruption1 #bag4      
,benefits conferred by the monasteries1 
#bdc    ,monica1 ,st41 i4 #id1 note     
,monogamy1 establishment of1 ii4 #cgb   
,monophysites1 the cause1 to some       
extent1 of the ,mohammedan conquest of  
,egypt1 ii4 #adc    ,montanists1 their  
tenets1 ii4 #ajb    ,moral distinctions1

 rival claims of intuition and utility  
to be regarded              as the      
supreme regulators of1 i4 #a    ,moral  
judgments1 alleged diversities of1 i4   
#ia4    ,are frequently due to          
intellectual causes1 #ib4    ,instances 
of this in usury and abortion1 #ib4     
,distinction between natural duties and 
others resting on positive law1         
#ic4    ,ancient customs canonised by   
time1 #ic4    ,anomalies explained by a 
confused association of ideas1 #id1 #ie4
    ,moral perceptions overridden by    
positive religions1 #ie4    ,instances  
of this in transubstantiation and the   
,augustinian and                        
,calvinistic doctrines of damnation1    
#if1 #ig4    ,general moral principles  
alone revealed by intuition1 #ii4       
,the moral unity of different ages a    
unity not of standard but of            
tendency1 #ajj4    ,application of this 
theory to the history of benevolence1   
#ajj4    ,reasons why acts regarded in  
one age as criminal are innocent in     

another1 #aja4    ,views of ,mill and   
,buckle on the comparative influence of 
intellectual                and moral   
agencies in civilisation1 #ajb1 #ajc1   
note4    ,intuitive morals not          
unprogressive1 #ajb1 #ajc4    ,answers  
to miscellaneous objections against the 
theory of natural moral                 
perceptions1 #aji4    ,effect of the    
condition of society on the standard1   
but not the essence1                of  
virtue1 #aaj4    ,occasional duty of    
sacrificing higher duties to lower ones1
 #aaj1 et                seq4           
,summary of the relations of virtue and 
public and private interest1 #aag4      
,two senses of the word natural1 #aai   
,moral law1 foundation of the1 according
 to ,ockham and his adherents1 i4       
#ag1 note4    ,various views of the     
sanctions of morality1 #ai4             
,utilitarian theological sanctions1 #ec4
    ,the reality of the moral nature the
 one great question of natural          
theology1 #ef4    ,utilitarian secular  

sanctions1 #eg4    ,the ,utilitarian    
theory subversive of morality1 #ff4     
,plausibility and danger of theories of 
unification in morals1 #gb4    ,our     
knowledge of the laws of moral progress 
nothing more than                       
approximate or general1 #acf    8,moral 
sense10 ,hutcheson's doctrine of a1 i4  
#d    ,moral system1 what it should be1 
to govern society1 i4 #aid    ,morals1  
each of the two schools of1 related to  
the general condition of                
society1 i4 #abb4    ,their relations to
 metaphysical schools1 #abc1 #abd4      
,and to the ,baconian philosophy1 #abe4 
,contrast between ancient and modern    
civilisations1 #abe-abg4    ,causes that
 lead societies to elevate their moral  
standard1 and                determine  
their preference of some particular kind
 of                virtues1 #acj4       
,the order in which moral feelings are  
developed1 #acj4    ,danger in proposing
 too absolutely a single character as a 
model to                which all men   

must conform1 #aee4    ,remarks on moral
 types1 #aef4    ,results to be expected
 from the study of the relations between
 our                physical and moral  
nature1 #aeh4    ,little influence of   
,pagan religions on morals1 #afa        
,more1 ,henry1 on the motive of virtue1 
i4 #gf    ,musonius1 his suicide1 i4    
#bbj    ,mutius1 history of him and his 
son1 ii4 #abe    ,mysticism of the      
,romans1 causes producing1 i4 #cah      
,myths1 formation of1 i4 #cea           
,naples1 mania for suicide at1 ii4 #ee  
,napoleon1 the ,emperor1 his order of   
the day respecting suicide1 i4 #bai1    
note    ,nations1 causes of the         
difficulties of effecting cordial       
international              friendships1 
i4 #aef    ,natural moral perceptions1  
objections to the theory of1 i4 #aaf4   
,two senses of the word natural1 #aah4  
,reid1 ,sedgwick1 and ,leibnitz on the  
natural or innate powers of man1        
#aba1 note4    ,locke's refutation of   
the doctrine of a natural moral sense1  

#abd    ,neoplatonism1 account of1 i4   
#cbe4    ,its destruction of the active 
duties and critical spirit1 #cbi        
,neptune1 views of the ,stoics of the   
meaning of the legends of1 i4 #afc4     
,his statue solemnly degraded by        
,augustus1 #afi    ,nero1 his singing   
and acting1 i4 #bei4    ,his law about  
slaves1 #cjg4    ,his persecution of the
 ,christians1 #dbi    ,newman1 ,dr41 on 
venial sin1 i4 #aaa1 and note on pride1 
ii4 #ahh    ,nicodemus1 apocryphal      
gospel of1 ii4 #bba    ,nilus1 ,st41    
deserts his family1 ii4 #cbb    ,nitria1
 number of anchorites in the desert of1 
ii4 #aje    ,nolasco1 ,peter1 his works 
of mercy1 ii4 #gc4    ,his participation
 in the ,albigensian massacres1 #ie     
,novatians1 their tenets1 ii4 #ajb      
,numa1 legend of his prohibition of     
idols1 i4 #aff1 note    ,oath1 sanctity 
of an1 among the ,romans1 i4 #afh       
,obedience1 new value placed on it by   
monachism1 ii4 #ahe1 #ahf1 #bfi         
,obligation1 nature of1 i4 #fd1 #fe     

,ockham1 his opinion of the foundation  
of the moral law1 i4 #ag1 and note      
,odin1 his suicide1 ii4 #ec             
,o',neale1 ,shane1 his charity1 ii4 #if 
,opinion1 influence of character on1 i4 
#aga1 #agb    ,oracles1 refuted and     
ridiculed by ,cicero1 i4 #afe4          
,plutarch's defence of their bad poetry1
 #afe1 note4    ,refusal of ,cato and   
the ,stoics to consult them1 #afe4      
,ridiculed by the ,roman wits1 #aff4    
,answer of the oracle of ,delphi as to  
the best religion1 #afg4    ,theory of  
the oracles in the ',de ,divinatione' of
 ,cicero1 #cfh1 and                note4
    ,van ,dale's denial of their        
supernatural character1 #cgd4    ,books 
of oracles burnt under the republic and 
empire1 #ddg1 and note    ,origen1 his  
desire for martyrdom1 i4 #cia           
,orphanotrophia1 in the early ,church1  
ii4 #cb    ,otho1 the ,emperor1 his     
suicide1 i4 #bai4    ,opinion of his    
contemporaries of his act1 #bai1 note   
,ovid1 object of his 8,metamorphoses10  

i4 #aff4    ,his condemnation of        
suicide1 #bac1 and note4    ,his        
humanity to animals1 ii4 #afe    ,oxen1 
laws for the protection of1 ii4 #afb    
,oxyrinchus1 ascetic life in the city   
of1 ii4 #aje    ,pachomius1 ,st41 number
 of his monks1 ii4 #aje    ,ptus and    
,arria1 history of1 ii4 #caj    ,pagan  
religions1 their feeble influence on    
morals1 i4 #afa    ,pagan virtues1 the1 
compared with ,christian1 i4 #aij       
,paiderastia1 the1 of the ,greeks1 ii4  
#bid    ,pain1 equivalent to evil1      
according to the ,utilitarians1 i4 #h1  
note    ,palestine1 foundation of       
monachism in1 ii4 #ajf4    ,becomes a   
hot-bed of debauchery1 #aeb    ,paley1  
on the obligation of virtue1 i4 #ad1    
note4    ,on the difference between an  
act of prudence and an act of duty1 #af1
                note4    ,on the love we
 ought to bear to ,god1 #ah1 note4      
,on the religious sanctions of morality1
 #ai4    ,on the doctrine of            
association1 #be1 note4    ,on flesh    

diet1 #di1 note4    ,on the influence of
 health on happiness1 #hh1 note4    ,on 
the difference in pleasures1 #ij1 note  
,pambos1 ,st41 story of1 ii4 #aaf1 note 
,pammachus1 ,st41 his hospital1 ii4 #hj 
,pantius1 the founder of the ,roman     
,stoics1 his disbelief in the           
immortality of the soul1 i4 #ahc        
,pandars1 punishment of1 ii4 #caf       
,parents1 reason why some savages did   
not regard their murder as criminal1    
i4 #aja    ,parthenon1 the1 at ,athens1 
i4 #aje    ,pascal1 his advocacy of     
piety as a matter of prudence1 i4 #ag1  
note4    ,his adherence to the opinion  
of ,ockham as to the foundation of the  
moral                law1 #ag1 note4    
,his thought on the humiliation created 
by deriving pleasure from certain       
amusements1 i4 #hf1 note    ,patriotism1
 period when it flourished1 i4 #acf4    
,peculiar characteristic of the virtue1 
#agg1 #agh4    ,causes of the           
predominance occasionally accorded to   
civic virtues1 #bjj4    ,neglect or     

discredit into which they have fallen   
among modern teachers1                  
#bja4    ,cicero's remarks on the duty  
of every good man1 #bja4    ,unfortunate
 relations of ,christianity to          
patriotism1 ii4 #adj4    ,repugnance of 
the theological to the patriotic spirit1
 #ade    ,paul1 ,st41 his definition of 
conscience1 i4 #hc    ,paul1 the hermit1
 his flight to the desert1 ii4 #ajb4    
,legend of the visit of ,st4 ,antony to 
him1 #aeh    ,paul1 ,st4 ,vincent de1   
his foundling hospitals1 ii4 #cd        
,paula1 story of her asceticism and     
inhumanity1 ii4 #acc1 #acd    ,paulina1 
her devotion to her husband1 ii4 #caj   
,pelagia1 ,st41 her suicide1 ii4 #df4   
,her flight to the desert1 #aba1 and    
note    ,pelagius1 ii4 #bbc    ,pelican1
 legend of the1 ii4 #afa    ,penances of
 the saints of the desert1 ii4 #ajg1 et 
seq4    ,penitential system1 the1 of the
 early church1 ii4 #f1 #g    ,pepin1 his
 compact with ,pope ,leo1 ii4 #bfg      
,peregrinus the ,cynic1 his suicide1 i4 

#bbj    ,pericles1 his humanity1 i4 #bbh
    ,perpetua1 ,st41 her martyrdom1 i4  
#cia1 #ddd2 ii4 #cag    ,persecutions1  
,catholic doctrines justifying1 i4 #ih4 
,why ,christianity was not crushed by   
them1 #cie4    ,many causes of          
persecution1 #cie-cig4    ,reasons why  
the ,christians were more persecuted    
than the ,jews1 #djc1 #djf1             
#djg4    ,causes of the persecutions1   
#djf1 et seq4    ,history of the        
persecutions1 #dbi4    ,nero1 #dbi4     
,domitian1 #dca4    ,trajan1 #dcg4      
,marcus ,aurelius1 #dci1 #ddj4    ,from 
,m4 ,aurelius to ,decius1 #ddb1 et seq4 
,gallus1 #ded4    ,valerian1 #ded4      
,diocletian and ,galerius1 #deh-dfc4    
,end of the persecutions1 #dfc4         
,general considerations on their        
history1 #dfc-dfh    ,petronian law1 in 
favour of slaves1 i4 #cjg    ,petronius1
 his scepticism1 i4 #afb4    ,his       
suicide1 #bae4    ,his condemnation of  
the show of the arena1 #bhf    ,philip  
the ,arab1 his favour to ,christianity1 

i4 #dde    ,philosophers1 efforts of    
some1 to restore the moral influence of 
religion              among the ,romans1
 i4 #afi4    ,the true moral teachers1  
#aga    ,philosophical truth1           
characteristics of1 i4 #aci1 #adj4      
,its growth retarded by the opposition  
of theologians1 #adj    ,philosophy1    
causes of the practical character of    
most ancient1 i4 #bjb4    ,its fusion   
with religion1 #ceb4    ,opinions of the
 early ,church concerning the pagan     
writings1 #ccb4    ,difference between  
the moral teaching of a philosophy and  
that of a                religion1 ii4  
#a4    ,its impotency to restrain vice1 
#d    ,phocas1 attitude of the ,church  
towards him1 ii4 #bfc    ,phocion1 his  
gentleness1 i4 #bbh    ,physical science
 affects the belief in miracles1 i4     
#ced1 #cee    ,piety1 utilitarian view  
of the causes of the pleasures and pains
 of1 i4 #i1              and note4    ,a
 matter of prudence1 according to       
theological ,utilitarianism1 #af        

,pilate1 ,pontius1 story of his desire  
to enrol ,christ among the ,roman gods1 
i4 #dbi    ,pilgrimages1 evils of1 ii4  
#aeb    ,pior1 ,st41 story of1 ii4 #abi 
,pirates1 destruction of1 by ,pompey1 i4
 #bcd    ,pity1 a form of self-love1    
according to some ,utilitarians1 i4 #i1 
#aj1              note4    ,adam        
,smith's theory1 #aj1 note4    ,seneca's
 distinction between it and clemency1   
#ahi4    ,altar to ,pity at ,athens1    
#bbh4    ,history of ,marcus ,aurelius' 
altar to ,beneficentia at ,rome1 #bbh1  
note    ,plato1 his admission of the    
practice of abortion1 i4 #ib4    ,basis 
of his moral system1 #aje4    ,cause of 
the banishment of the poets from his    
republic1 #afa1 #afb4    ,his theory    
that vice is to virtue what disease is  
to health1 #agi1 and                    
note4    ,reason for his advocacy of    
community of wives1 #bjj4    ,his       
condemnation of suicide1 #bab1 and note4
    ,his remarks on universal           
brotherhood1 #bda4    ,his inculcation  

of the practice of self-examination1    
#bdh    ,platonic school1 its ideal1 i4 
#cbb    ,platonists1 their more or less 
pantheistic conception of the ,deity1 i4
              #afc4    ,practical nature
 of their philosophy1 #cbi4    ,the     
,platonic ethics ascendant in ,rome1    
#cca    ,pleasure the only good1        
according to the ,utilitarians1 i4 #g4  
,illustrations of the distinction       
between the higher and lower parts of   
our nature in our pleasures1 #hc-he4    
,pleasures of a civilised compared with 
those of a semi-civilised               
society1 #hf4    ,comparison of mental  
and physical pleasures1 #hg1 #hh4       
,distinction in kind of pleasure1 and   
its importance in morals1 #hi-ia4       
,neglected or denied by ,utilitarian    
writers1 #hi1 note    ,pliny1 the elder1
 on the probable happiness of the lower 
animals1 i4 #hg1              note4     
,on the ,deity1 #afd4    ,on astrology1 
#aga1 and note1 #afd1 note4    ,his     
disbelief in the immortality of the     

soul1 #ahb4    ,his advocacy of suicide1
 #bae4    ,never mentions ,christianity1
 #ccf4    ,his opinion of earthquakes1  
#cfi4    ,and of comets1 #cfi4    ,his  
facility of belief1 #cgj4    ,his       
denunciation of finger rings1 ii4 #adh  
,pliny1 the younger1 his desire for     
posthumous reputation1 i4 #ahe1 note4   
,his picture of the ideal of ,stoicism1 
#ahf4    ,his letter to ,trajan         
respecting the ,christians1 #dcg4       
,his benevolence1 #bdb2 ii4 #gg         
,plotinus1 his condemnation of suicide1 
i4 #bad4    ,his philosophy1 #ccj       
,plutarch1 his defence of the bad poetry
 of the oracles1 #afe1 note4    ,his    
mode of moral teaching1 #age4    ,basis 
of his belief in the immortality of the 
soul1 #bjd4    ,on superstitious fear of
 death1 #bjf4    ,his letter on the     
death of his little daughter1 #bdb4     
,may justly be regarded as the leader of
 the eclectic school1 #bdc4    ,his     
philosophy and works compared with those
 of ,seneca1 #bdc4    ,his treatise on  

8,the ,signs of ,moral ,progress10 #bdi4
    ,compared and contrasted with       
,marcus ,aurelius1 #bec4    ,how he     
regarded the games of the arena1 #bhf4  
,his defence of the ancient creeds1     
#cbb4    ,practical nature of his       
philosophy1 #cbi4    ,never mentions    
,christianity1 #ccf4    ,his remarks on 
the domestic system of the ancients1    
#dai4    ,on kindness to animals1 ii4   
#afe1 #aff4    ,his picture of ,greek   
married life1 #bhi    ,pluto1 meaning   
of1 according to the ,stoics1 i4 #afc   
,po1 miracle of the subsidence of the   
waters of the1 i4 #chb1 note    ,pmen1  
,st41 story of1 and of his mother1 ii4  
#abi4    ,legend of him and the lion1   
#afi    ,political economy1 what it has 
accomplished respecting almsgiving1 ii4 
#ij    ,political judgments1 moral      
standard of most men in1 lower than in  
private              judgments1 i4 #aea 
,political truth1 or habit of 8fair     
play10 the characteristic of free       
communities1 i4 #aci4    ,highly        

civilised form of society to which it   
belongs1 #aci4    ,its growth retarded  
by the opposition of theologians1 #adj  
,polybius1 his praise of the devotion   
and purity of creed of the ,romans1 i4  
#afg    ,polycarp1 ,st41 martyrdom of1  
i4 #dda    ,polygamy1 long continuance  
of1 among the kings of ,gaul1 ii4 #cdc  
,pompeii1 gladiatorial shows at1 i4     
#bgf1 note    ,pompey1 his destruction  
of the pirates1 i4 #bcd4    ,his        
multiplication of gladiatorial shows1   
#bgc    ,poor-law system1 elaboration of
 the1 ii4 #if4    ,its pernicious       
results1 #ig1 #ii1 #aje    ,poppa1      
,empress1 a ,jewish proselyte1 i4 #chf  
,porcia1 heroism of1 ii4 #cji           
,porphyry1 his condemnation of suicides1
 i4 #bad4    ,his description of        
philosophy1 i4 #cbf4    ,his adoption of
 ,neoplatonism1 i4 #ccj    ,possevin1   
his exposure of the ,sibylline books1 i4
 #cgg    ,pothinus1 martyrdom of1 i4    
#ddb    ,power1 origin of the desire of1
 i4 #bc1 #bf    ,praise1 association of 

ideas leading to the desire for even    
posthumous1 i4              #bf         
,prayer1 reflex influence upon the minds
 of the worshippers1 i4 #cf             
,preachers1 ,stoic1 among the ,romans1  
i4 #cjh1 #cji    ,pride1 contrasted with
 vanity1 i4 #aie4    ,the leading moral 
agent of ,stoicism1 i4 #aie             
,prometheus1 cause of the admiration    
bestowed upon1 i4 #ce    ,prophecies1   
incapacity of the ,christians of the    
third century for judging               
prophecies1 i4 #cgf    ,prophecy1 gift  
of1 attributed to the vestal virgins of 
,rome1 i4 #ajg4    ,and in ,india to    
virgins1 #ajg1 note    ,prosperity1 some
 crimes conducive to national1 i4 #eh   
,prostitution1 ii4 #bhb-bhf4    ,how    
regarded by the ,romans1 #cad           
,protagoras1 his scepticism1 i4 #afb    
,protasius1 ,st41 miraculous discovery  
of his remains1 i4 #cgi    ,prudentius1 
on the vestal virgins at the            
gladiatorial shows1 i4 #bia             
,purgatory1 doctrine of1 ii4 #bcb-bce   

,pythagoras1 sayings of1 i4 #ec4        
,chastity the leading virtue of his     
school1 #ajf4    ,on the fables of      
,hesiod and ,homer1 #afa4    ,his belief
 in an all-pervading soul of nature1    
#afb4    ,his condemnation of suicide1  
#bab4    ,tradition of his journey to   
,india1 #bbi1 note4    ,his inculcation 
of the practice of self-examination1    
#bdh4    ,his opinion of earthquakes1   
#cfi4    ,his doctrine of kindness to   
animals1 ii4 #afe    ,quakers1 compared 
with the early ,christians1 ii4 #ab1 and
 note    ,quintilian1 his conception of 
the ,deity1 i4 #afd    ,rank1 secular1  
consecration of1 ii4 #bfj1 et seq       
,rape1 punishment for1 ii4 #caf         
,redbreast1 legend of the1 ii4 #bbd1    
note    ,regulus1 the story of1 i4 #bab 
,reid1 basis of his ethics1 i4 #gf4     
,his distinction between innate         
faculties evolved by experience and     
innate ideas independent of experience1 
#aba1 note    ,religion1 theological    
utilitarianism subverts natural1 i4     

#ed-ef4    ,answer of the oracle of     
,delphi as to the best1 #afg4           
,difference between the moral teaching  
of a philosophy and that of a           
religion1 ii4 #a4    ,relations between 
positive religion and moral enthusiasm1 
#ada    ,religions1 pagan1 their small  
influence on morals1 i4 #afa4           
,oriental1 passion for1 among the       
,romans1 #cah    ,religious liberty     
totally destroyed by the ,catholics1 ii4
 #aid-aii    ,repentance for past sin1  
no place for1 in the writings of the    
ancients1 i4              #aie          
,reputation1 how valued among the       
,romans1 i4 #ahe1 #ahf    ,resurrection 
of souls1 belief of the ,stoics in the1 
i4 #afd    ,revenge1 ,utilitarian       
notions as to the feeling of1 i4 #da1   
and note4    ,circumstances under which 
private vengeance is not regarded as    
criminal1                i4 #aja        
,reverence1 ,utilitarian views of1 i4   
#i1 and note4    ,causes of the         
diminution of the spirit of1 among      

mankind1 #ada1 #adb    ,rhetoricians1   
,stoical1 account of the1 of ,rome1 i4  
#caj    ,ricci1 his work on ,mendicancy1
 ii4 #ih    ,rochefoucauld ,la1 on pity1
 quoted1 i4 #aj1 note4    ,and on       
friendship1 #aj1 #aa1 note              
,rogantianus1 his passive life1 i4 #ccj 
,roman law1 its golden age not          
,christian1 but pagan1 ii4 #db          
,romans1 abortion how regarded by the1  
i4 #ib4    ,their law forbidding women  
to taste wine1 #ic1 #id1 note4          
,reasons why they did not regard the    
gladiatorial shows as criminal1 #aja4   
,their law of marriage and ideal of     
female morality1 #ajd4    ,their        
religious reverence for domesticity1    
#ajf4    ,sanctity of1 and gifts        
attributed to1 their vestal virgins1    
#ajf4    ,character of their cruelty1   
#acd4    ,compared with the modern      
,italian character in this respect1     
#acd4    ,scepticism of their           
philosophers1 #afb-afg4    ,the religion
 of the ,romans never a source of moral 

enthusiasm1 #afg4    ,its               
characteristics1 #afh4    ,causes of the
 disappearance of the religious         
reverence of the people1                
#afi4    ,efforts of some philosophers  
and emperors to restore the moral       
influence                of religion1   
#afi4    ,consummation of ,roman        
degradation1 #agj4    ,belief in        
astrological fatalism1 #agj1 #aga4      
,the stoical type of military and       
patriotic enthusiasm pre-eminently      
,roman1 #agb-agd1 #agh4    ,importance  
of biography in their moral teaching1   
#agh4    ,epicureanism never became a   
school of virtue among them1 #age4      
,unselfish love of country of the       
,romans1 #agh4    ,character of         
,stoicism in the worst period of the    
,roman ,empire1 #aha4    ,main features 
of their philosophy1 #ahe1 et seq4      
,difference between the ,roman moralists
 and the ,greek poets1 #aie4    ,the    
doctrine of suicide the culminating     
point of ,roman ,stoicism1 #bbb4    ,the

 type of excellence of the ,roman       
people1 #bbd1 #bbe4    ,contrast between
 the activity of ,stoicism and the      
luxury of ,roman                society1
 #bbe1 #bbf4    ,growth of a gentler and
 more cosmopolitan spirit in ,rome1     
#bbg4    ,causes of this change1 #bbh1  
et seq4    ,extent of ,greek influence  
at ,rome1 #bbh4    ,the cosmopolitan    
spirit strengthened by the destruction  
of the power of                the      
aristocracy1 #bca1 #bcb4    ,history of 
the influence of freedmen in the state1 
#bcc4    ,effect of the aggrandisement  
of the colonies1 the attraction of many 
foreigners to ,rome1 and the increased  
facilities for                          
travelling1 on the cosmopolitan spirit1 
#bcc1 et seq4    ,foreigners among the  
most prominent of ,latin writers1 #bce4 
,results of the multitudes of           
emancipated slaves1 #bce1 #bcf4         
,endeavours of ,roman statesmen to      
consolidate the empire by admitting the 
conquered to the privileges of the      

conquerors1 #bch4    ,the ,stoical      
philosophy quite capable of representing
 the cosmopolitan                spirit1
 #bci4    ,influence of eclectic        
philosophy on the ,roman ,stoics1 #bdd4 
,life and character of ,marcus          
,aurelius1 #bdi-bee4    ,corruption of  
the ,roman people1 #bee4    ,causes of  
their depravity1 #bef4    ,decadence of 
all the conditions of republican virtue1
 #bef4    ,effects of the ,imperial     
system on morals1 #beg-bfa4             
,apotheosis of the emperors1 #beg4      
,moral consequences of slavery1 #bfb4   
,increase of idleness and demoralising  
employments1 #bfb4    ,increase also of 
sensuality1 #bfc4    ,destruction of all
 public spirit1 #bfd4    ,the           
interaction of many states which in new 
nations sustains national               
life prevented by universal empire1     
#bfd4    ,the decline of agricultural   
pursuits1 #bfe4    ,and of the military 
virtues1 #bfh4    ,history and effects  
of the gladiatorial shows1 #bga4        

,other ,roman amusements1 #bgf4         
,effects of the arena upon the theatre1 
#bgg4    ,nobles in the arena1 #bhc4    
,effects of ,stoicism on the corruption 
of society1 #bia4    ,roman law greatly 
extended by it1 #bid4    ,change in the 
relation of ,romans to provincials1     
#big4    ,changes in domestic           
legislation1 #big4    ,roman slavery1   
#cjj-cjh4    ,the ,stoics as consolers1 
advisers1 and preachers1 #cjh4    ,the  
,cynics and rhetoricians1 #cji1 #caj4   
,decadence of ,stoicism in the empire1  
#cag4    ,causes of the passion for     
,oriental religions1 #cah-cbj4          
,neoplatonism1 #cbe4    ,review of the  
history of ,roman philosophy1 #ccb-cce4 
,history of the conversion of ,rome to  
,christianity1 #ccf4    ,state of ,roman
 opinion on the subject of miracles1    
#cfe4    ,progress of the ,jewish and   
,oriental religions in ,rome1 #chf1     
#chg4    ,the conversion of the ,roman  
empire easily explicable1 #cic4         
,review of the religious policy of      

,rome1 #cig4    ,its division of        
religion into three parts1 according to 
,eusebius1 #djc4    ,persecutions of the
 ,christians1 #djf1 et seq4             
,antipathy of the ,romans to every      
religious system which employed         
religious terrorism1 #dbj4    ,history  
of the persecutions1 #dbi4    ,general  
sketch of the moral condition of the    
,western ,empire1 ii4 #ad4    ,rise and 
progress of the government of the       
,church of ,rome1 #ad1 #ae4    ,roman   
practice of infanticide1 #bg4    ,relief
 of the indigent1 #gc4    ,distribution 
of corn1 #gd4    ,exertions of the      
,christians on the subversion of the    
empire1 #hb4    ,inadequate place given 
to this movement1 #he4    ,horrors      
caused by the barbarian invasions       
prevented to some extent by             
,christian charity1 #ha-hd4             
,influence of ,christianity in hastening
 the fall of the empire1 #adj1 #ada4    
,roman treatment of prisoners of war1   
#bef-beh4    ,despotism of the pagan    

empire1 #bfj4    ,condition of women    
under the ,romans1 #big4    ,their      
concubines1 #cej    ,rome1 an           
illustration of crimes conducive to     
national prosperity1 i4 #eh1            
note4    ,conversion of1 #ccf4    ,three
 popular errors concerning its          
conversion1 #cci4    ,capture of the    
city by the barbarians1 ii4 #hb         
,romuald1 ,st41 his treatment of his    
father1 ii4 #ace    ,rope-dancing of the
 ,romans1 i4 #bia    ,sabinus1 ,saint1  
his penances1 ii4 #ajh    ,sacrament1   
administration of the1 in the early     
,church1 ii4 #f    ,salamis1 ,brutus'   
treatment of the citizens of1 i4 #aid   
,sallust1 his stoicism and rapacity1 i4 
#aid    ,sanctuary1 right of1 accorded  
to ,christian churches1 ii4 #dj         
,savage1 errors into which the deceptive
 appearances of nature doom him1 i4     
#ed4    ,first conceptions formed of the
 universe1 #cdi4    ,the ethics of      
savages1 #abj1 #aba    ,scepticism of   
the ,greek and ,roman philosophers1 i4  

#afb-aff4    ,influence of1 on          
intellectual progress1 ii4 #aic         
,scholastica1 ,st41 the legend of1 ii4  
#acf1 note    ,scifi1 ,clara1 the first 
,franciscan nun1 ii4 #ace    ,sectarian 
animosity1 chief cause of1 i4 #acd      
,sedgwick1 ,professor1 on the expansion 
of the natural or innate powers of      
men1 i4 #aba1 note    ,sejanus1         
treatment of his daughter by the senate1
 i4 #ajg1 note    ,self-denial1 the     
,utilitarian theory unfavourable to1 i4 
#ff    ,self-examination1 history of the
 practice of1 i4 #bdg-bdi               
,self-sacrifice1 asceticism the great   
school of1 ii4 #aee    ,seneca1 his     
conception of the ,deity1 i4 #afc1 note1
 #afd4    ,his distinction between the  
affections and diseases1 #ahi1 note4    
,and between clemency and pity1 #ahi4   
,his virtues and vices1 i4 #aid4    ,on 
the natural virtue of man and power of  
his will1 #aig4    ,on the ,sacred      
,spirit dwelling in man1 #aih4    ,on   
death1 #bje4    ,his tranquil end1 #bjg4

    ,advocates suicide1 #bac1 #bbj4     
,his description of the self-destruction
 of a friend1 #bbb4    ,his remarks on  
universal brotherhood1 #bda4    ,his    
stoical hardness tempered by new        
doctrines1 #bdd4    ,his practice of    
self-examination1 #bdh4    ,his         
philosophy and works compared with those
 of ,plutarch1 #bdc1 #bdd4    ,how he   
regarded the games of the arena1 #bhf4  
,his exhortations on the treatment of   
slaves1 #cjf4    ,never mentions        
,christianity1 #ccf4    ,regarded in the
 middle ages as a ,christian1 #cdj4     
,on religious beliefs1 #dje             
,sensuality1 why the ,mohammedans people
 ,paradise with images of1 i4 #ajh4     
,why some pagans deified it1 #ajh4      
,fallacy of judging the sensuality of a 
nation by the statistics of its         
illegitimate births1 #add4    ,influence
 of climate upon public morals1 #add4   
,of large towns1 #ade4    ,and of early 
marriages1 #adf4    ,absence of moral   
scandals among the ,irish priesthood1   

#adf1 #adg4    ,speech of ,archytas of  
,tarentum on the evils of1 #bjj1 note4  
,increase of sensuality in ,rome1 #bfc4 
,abated by ,christianity1 ii4 #aec4     
,the doctrine of the ,fathers respecting
 concupiscence1 #bha4    ,serapion1 the 
anthropomorphite1 i4 #eb4    ,number of 
his monks1 ii4 #aje4    ,his interview  
with the courtesan1 #cbj    ,sertorius1 
his forgery of auspicious omens1 i4     
#aff4    ,severus1 ,alexander1 refuses  
the language of adulation1 i4 #bei4     
,his efforts to restore agricultural    
pursuits1 #bfg4    ,murder of1 #ddd4    
,his leniency towards ,christianity1    
#ddd4    ,his benevolence1 ii4 #gg      
,severus1 ,cassius1 exile of1 i4 #ddh1  
note    ,severus1 ,septimus1 his        
treatment of the ,christians1 i4 #ddc   
,sextius1 his practice of               
self-examination1 i4 #bdh               
,shaftesbury1 maintains the reality of  
the existence of benevolence in our     
nature1 i4 #bj4    ,on virtue1 #gf1 #gg 
,sibylline books1 forged by the early   

,christians1 i4 #cgf1 #cgg    ,silius   
,italicus1 his lines commemorating the  
passion of the ,spanish ,celts          
for suicide1 i4 #bjg1 note4    ,his     
self-destruction1 #bba    ,silvia1 her  
filthiness1 ii4 #aaj    ,simeon1 ,bishop
 of ,jerusalem1 his martyrdom1 i4 #dch  
,simeon ,stylites1 ,st41 his penance1   
ii4 #aaa4    ,his inhumanity to his     
parents1 ii4 #acj    ,sin1 the          
theological doctrine on the subject1 i4 
#aaa1 #aab4    ,conception of sin by the
 ancients1 #aie4    ,original1 taught by
 the ,catholic ,church1 #bji1 #baj4     
,examination of the ,utilitarian        
doctrine of the remote consequences of  
secret sins1 #dc1 #dd    ,sisoes1 the   
abbot1 stories of1 ii4 #abf1 #abg       
,sixtus1 ,bishop of ,rome1 his          
martyrdom1 i4 #dee    ,sixtus ,v41      
,pope1 his efforts to suppress          
mendicancy1 ii4 #ig    ,slavery1        
circumstances under which it has been   
justified1 i4 #aja4    ,origin of the   
word servus1 #ajb1 note4    ,crusade of 

,england against1 #aec4    ,character of
 that of the ,romans1 #bce4    ,moral   
consequence of slavery1 #bfb4    ,three 
stages of slavery at ,rome1 #cjj4       
,review of the condition of slaves1     
#cjj-cjf4    ,opinion of philosophers as
 to slavery1 #cjf4    ,laws enacted in  
favour of slaves1 #cjf4    ,effects of  
,christianity upon the institution of   
slavery1 ii4 #fa4    ,consecration of   
the servile virtue1 #fh4    ,impulse    
given to manumission1 #gj4    ,serfdom  
in ,europe1 #gj1 #ga1 note4             
,extinction of slavery in ,europe1 #ga4 
,ransom of captives1 #gb    ,smith1     
,adam1 his theory of pity1 quoted1 i4   
#aj1 note4    ,his recognition of the   
reality of benevolence in our nature1   
#bj4    ,his analysis of moral judgment1
 #gf    ,smyrna1 persecution of the     
,christians at1 i4 #dda    ,socrates1   
his view of death1 i4 #bje4    ,his     
closing hours1 #bjg4    ,his advice to a
 courtesan1 ii4 #bif    ,soul1 the      
immortality of the1 resolutely excluded 

from the teaching of the                
,stoics1 i4 #aha4    ,character of their
 first notions on the subject1 #ahb4    
,the belief in the reabsorption of the  
soul in the parent ,spirit1 #ahc4       
,belief of ,cicero and ,plutarch in the 
immortality of the1 #bjd4    ,but never 
adopted as a motive by the ,stoics1     
#bjd4    ,increasing belief in the1     
#cca4    ,vague belief of the ,romans in
 the1 #afh    ,sospitra1 story of1 i4   
#cgc    ,spain1 persecution of the      
,christians in1 i4 #dfa4    ,almost     
complete absence of infanticide in1 ii4 
#be1 note4    ,the first lunatic asylums
 in ,europe established in1 #hi1 #ij    
,spaniards1 among the most prominent of 
,latin writers1 i4 #bce4    ,their      
suicides1 ii4 #ed    ,spartans1 their   
intense patriotism1 i4 #agh4    ,their  
legislature continually extolled as a   
model1 #bja4    ,condition of their     
women1 ii4 #bij    ,spinoza1 his remark 
on death1 i4 #bjc    ,anecdote of him1  
#bhi    ,stal1 ,madame de1 on suicide1  

ii4 #ei    ,statius1 on the first night 
of marriage1 i4 #ajg1 note    ,stewart1 
,dugald1 on the pleasures of virtue1 i4 
#cb1 note    ,stilpo1 his scepticism and
 banishment1 i4 #afb4    ,his remark on 
his ruin1 #aia4    ,stoics1 their       
definition of conscience1 i4 #hc4       
,their view of the animation of the     
human ftus1 #ib4    ,their system of    
ethics favourable to the heroic         
qualities1 #abh4    ,historical fact in 
favour of the system1 #abh4    ,their   
belief in an all-pervading soul of      
nature1 #afb4    ,their pantheistic     
conception of the ,deity1 #afc4         
,their conception and explanation of the
 prevailing legends of the gods1        
#afc4    ,their opinion as to the final 
destruction of the universe by fire1 and
                the resuscitation of    
souls1 #afd4    ,their refusal to       
consult the oracles1 #afe4    ,stoicism 
the expression of a type of character   
different from                          
,epicureanism1 #agb4    ,rome           

pre-eminently the home of ,stoicism1    
#agb4    ,account of the philosophy of  
the ,stoics1 #agg4    ,its two          
essentials--the unselfish ideal and the 
subjugation of the                      
affections to the reason1 #agg4    ,the 
best example of the perfect severance of
 virtue and interest1 #aha4    ,their   
views concerning the immortality of the 
soul1 #ahb-ahd4    ,taught men to       
sacrifice reputation1 and do good in    
secret1 #ahf4    ,and distinguished the 
obligation from the attraction of       
virtue1 #ahf4    ,taught also that the  
affections must be subordinate to the   
reason1                #ahg-aia4        
,their false estimate of human nature1  
#aib4    ,their love of paradox1 #aib4  
,imperfect lives of many eminent        
,stoics1 #aic4    ,their retrospective  
tendencies1 #aic4    ,their system      
unfitted for the majority of mankind1   
#aid4    ,compared with the religious   
principle1 #aie4    ,the central        
composition of this philosophy1 the     

dignity of man1 #aie4    ,high sense of 
the ,stoics of the natural virtue of    
man1 and of the power                of 
his will1 #aie1 #aif4    ,their         
recognition of ,providence1 #aif4       
,the two aspects under which they       
worshipped ,god1 #aih4    ,the ,stoics  
secured from quietism by their habits of
 public life1                #aii-bja4  
,their view of humanity1 #bjb4    ,their
 preparations for1 and view of1 death1  
#bjb4    ,their teaching as to suicide1 
#bab1 #bac1 et seq4    ,contrast between
 ,stoicism and ,roman luxury1 #bbe1     
#bbf4    ,the ,stoical philosophy quite 
capable of representing the cosmopolitan
                spirit1 #bci1 #bdj4     
,stoicism not capable of representing   
the softening movement of               
civilisation1 #bda4    ,influence of the
 eclectic spirit on it1 #bdd4           
,stoicism becomes more essentially      
religious1 #bde4    ,increasingly       
introspective character of later        
,stoicism1 #bdg4    ,marcus ,aurelius   

the best example of later ,stoicism1    
#bdi-bee4    ,effects of ,stoicism on   
the corruption of ,roman ,society1 #bia1
 #bib4    ,it raised up many good       
,emperors1 #bib4    ,it produced a noble
 opposition under the worst ,emperors1  
#bic4    ,it greatly extended ,roman    
law1 #bid4    ,the ,stoics considered as
 the consolers of the suffering1        
advisers of the                young1   
and as popular preachers1 #cjh4         
,rapid decadence of ,stoicism1 #cag1    
#cah4    ,difference between the        
,stoical and ,egyptian pantheism1 #cbd4 
,stoical naturalism superseded by the   
theory of dmons1 #cca4    ,theory that  
the writings of the ,stoics were        
influenced by ,christianity             
examined1 #ccb4    ,domitian's          
persecution of them1 #dcb    ,strozzi1  
,philip1 his suicide1 ii4 #ef           
,suffering1 a courageous endurance of1  
probably the first form of virtue in    
savage life1 i4 #acj    ,suicide1       
attitude adopted by ,pagan philosophy   

and ,catholicism towards1 i4            
#baa1 et seq4    ,eminent suicides1     
#bae4    ,epidemic of suicides at       
,alexandria1 #baf4    ,and of girls at  
,miletus1 #baf1 note4    ,grandeur of   
the ,stoical ideal of suicide1 #baf4    
,influences conspiring towards suicide1 
#bag4    ,seneca on self-destruction1   
#bag1 #bah1 #bbj4    ,laws respecting   
it1 #bah1 note4    ,eminent instances of
 self-destruction1 #bai1 #bba4    ,the  
conception of1 as an euthanasia1 #bba4  
,neoplatonist doctrine concerning1 #cca4
    ,effect of the ,christian           
condemnation of the practice of1 ii4    
#dc-fa4    ,theological doctrine on1    
#de1 note4    ,the only form of1        
permitted in the early ,church1 #dg4    
,slow suicides1 #dh4    ,the            
,circumcelliones1 #di4    ,the          
,albigenses1 #di4    ,suicides of the   
,jews1 #ej4    ,treatment of corpses of 
suicides1 #ej4    ,authorities for the  
history of suicides1 #ej1 note4         
,reaction against the medival laws on   

the subject1 #ea4    ,later phases of   
its history1 #ed4    ,self-destruction  
of witches1 #ed4    ,epidemics of insane
 suicide1 #ee4    ,cases of legitimate  
suicide1 #ee4    ,suicide in ,england   
and ,france1 #eh    ,sunday1 importance 
of the sanctity of the1 ii4 #bdd4       
,laws respecting it1 #bde               
,superstition1 possibility of adding to 
the happiness of man by the             
diffusion of1 i4 #ej-ec4    ,natural    
causes which impel savages to           
superstition1 i4 #ee4    ,signification 
of the ,greek word for1 #bje    ,swan1  
the1 consecrated to ,apollo1 i4 #bjf    
,sweden1 cause of the great number of   
illegitimate births in1 i4 #add         
,swinburne1 ,mr41 on annihilation1 i4   
#ahb1 note    ,symmachus1 his ,saxon    
prisoners1 i4 #bhg    ,synesius1 legend 
of him and ,evagrius1 ii4 #bad4         
,refuses to give up his wife1 #ccb      
,syracuse1 gladiatorial shows at1 i4    
#bge    ,tacitus1 his doubts about the  
existence of ,providence1 i4 #aga1 note 

,telemachus1 the monk1 his death in the 
arena1 ii4 #cg    ,telesphorus1         
martyrdom of1 i4 #ddf1 note    ,tertia  
milia1 story of1 ii4 #cac               
,tertullian1 his belief in dmons1 i4    
#chb4    ,and challenge to the ,pagans1 
#chc    ,testament1 ,old1 supposed to   
have been the source of pagan writings1 
i4 #cdd    ,thalasius1 his hospital for 
blind beggars1 ii4 #ha    ,theatre1     
scepticism of the ,romans extended by   
the1 i4 #agj4    ,effects of the        
gladiatorial shows upon the1 #bgg       
,theft1 reasons why some savages do not 
regard it as criminal1 i4 #ajb4         
,spartan law legalising it1 #ajb        
,theodebert1 his polygamy1 ii4 #cdc     
,theodoric1 his court at ,ravenna1 ii4  
#bja1 #bjb1 note    ,theodorus1 his     
denial of the existence of the gods1 i4 
#afb    ,theodorus1 ,st41 his inhumanity
 to his mother1 ii4 #abh    ,theodosius 
the ,emperor1 his edict forbidding      
gladiatorial shows1 ii4 #cf4            
,denounced by the ,ascetics1 #aci4      

,his law respecting ,sunday1 #bde       
,theological utilitarianism1 theories   
of1 i4 #ad-ag    ,theology1 sphere of   
inductive reasoning in1 #ceg    ,theon1 
,st41 legend of1 and the wild beasts1   
ii4 #afh    ,theurgy rejected by        
,plotinus1 i4 #ccj4    ,all moral       
discipline resolved into1 by            
,iamblichus1 #ccj    ,thrace1 celibacy  
of societies of men in1 i4 #ajf         
,thrasea1 mildness of his ,stoicism1 i4 
#bde    ,thrasea and ,aria1 history of1 
ii4 #caa    ,thriftiness created by the 
industrial spirit1 i4 #adj    ,tiberius 
the ,emperor1 his images invested with a
 sacred character1 i4 #bfj4    ,his     
superstitions1 #cfg1 and note           
,timagenes1 exiled from the palace by   
,tiberius1 i4 #ddh1 note    ,titus1 the 
,emperor1 his tranquil end1 i4 #bjg4    
,instance of his amiability1 #bhg       
,tooth-powder1 ,apuleius' defence of1   
ii4 #adh    ,torments1 future1 the      
doctrine of1 made by the monks a means  
of extorting              money1 ii4    

#baf4    ,monastic legends of1 #bbj     
,tragedy1 effects of the gladiatorial   
shows upon1 among the ,romans1 i4 #bgg  
,trajan1 the ,emperor1 his gladiatorial 
shows1 i4 #bhg4    ,letter of ,pliny to1
 respecting the ,christians1 #dcg4      
,trajan's answer1 #dcg4    ,his         
benevolence to children1 ii4 #gg4       
,legend of ,st4 ,gregory and the        
,emperor1 #bbc    ,transmigration of    
souls1 doctrine of1 of the ancients1 ii4
 #aff    ,travelling1 increased         
facilities for1 of the ,romans1 i4 #bcd 
,trinitarian monks1 their works of      
mercy1 ii4 #gc    ,troubadours1 one of  
their services to mankind1 ii4 #bcb     
',truce of ,god1' importance of the1 ii4
 #bed    ,truth1 possibility of adding  
to the happiness of men by diffusing    
abroad1              or sustaining1     
pleasing falsehoods1 i4 #eb4    ,saying 
of ,pythagoras1 #ec4    ,growth of1 with
 civilisation1 #acg4    ,industrial1    
political1 and philosophical1 #acg-adj4 
,relation of monachism to the abstract  

love of truth1 ii4 #ahi4    ,causes of  
the medival decline of the love of      
truth1 #bab    ,tucker1 his adoption of 
the doctrine of the association of      
ideas1 i4 #be1              note        
,turks1 their kindness to animals1 i4   
#bhi    ,types1 moral1 i4 #aef4    ,all 
characters cannot be moulded in one     
type1 #aeh    ,ulpian on suicide1 i4    
#bah1 note    ,unselfishness of the     
,stoics1 i4 #agg    ,usury1 diversities 
of moral judgment respecting1 i4 #ib    
,utilitarian school4 ,see ,morals2      
,virtue2 ,vice    ,utility1 rival claims
 of1 and intuition to be regarded as the
 supreme              regulators of     
moral distinctions1 i4 #a1 #b4          
,various names by which the theory of   
utility is known1 #c4    ,views of the  
moralists of the school of1 #c1 et seq4 
,valerian1 his persecutions of the      
,christians1 i4 #ded    ,valerius       
,maximus1 his mode of moral teaching1 i4
 #agd    ,vandals1 their conquest of    
,africa1 ii4 #aej    ,varro1 his        

conception of the ,deity1 i4 #afc4      
,on popular religious beliefs1 #afg     
,venus1 effect of the ,greek worship of1
 on the condition of women1 ii4 #bia1   
note    ,vespasian1 his dying jest1 i4  
#bei4    ,effect of his frugality on the
 habits of the ,romans1 #bib4           
,miracle attributed to him1 #cdg4       
,his treatment of philosophers1 #ddh1   
note    ,vice1 ,mandeville's theory of  
the origin of1 i4 #g4    ,and that      
8private vices were public benefits10   
#g4    ,views of the ,utilitarians as   
to1 #ab4    ,the degrees of virtue and  
vice do not correspond to the degrees of
                utility1 or the reverse1
 #dj-db4    ,the suffering caused by    
vice not proportioned to its            
criminality1 #eg-ei4    ,plato's ethical
 theory of virtue and vice1 #agi4       
,grote's summary of this theory1 #agi1  
note4    ,conception of the ancients of 
sin1 #aie4    ,moral efficacy of the    
,christian sense of sin1 ii4 #c1 #d     
,virgil1 his conception of the ,deity1  

i4 #afc4    ,his epicurean sentiment1   
#aic1 note4    ,on suicide1 #bac4       
,his interest in animal life1 ii4 #afe  
,virginity1 how regarded by the ,greeks1
 i4 #aje4    schylus' prayer to ,athene1
 #aje4    ,bees and fire emblems of     
virginity1 #ajh1 note4    ,reason why   
the ancient ,jews attached a certain    
stigma to virginity1 #aji4    ,views of 
,essenes1 #aji    ,virgins1 ,vestal1    
sanctity and gifts attributed to the1 i4
 #ajf1 #ajg1 and              note4     
,executions of1 #djg1 and note4         
,reasons for burying them alive1 ii4    
#da4    ,how regarded by the ,romans1   
#big    ,virtue1 ,hume's theory of the  
criterion1 essential element1 and object
 of1              i4 #d4    ,motive to  
virtue according to the doctrine which  
bases morals upon                       
experience1 #f4    ,mandeville's the    
lowest and most repulsive form of this  
theory1 #f1 #g4    ,views of the essence
 and origin of virtue adopted by the    
school of                ,utilitarians1 

#g-i4    ,views of the ,utilitarians of1
 #ab4    ,association of ideas in which 
virtue becomes the supreme object of our
                affections1 #bg4        
,impossibility of virtue bringing       
pleasure if practised only with that    
end1 #ce1 #cf4    ,the utility of virtue
 not denied by intuitive moralists1 #ci4
    ,the degrees of virtue and vice do  
not correspond to the degrees of        
utility1 or the reverse1 #ec4    ,the   
rewards and punishments of conscience1  
#ei1 #fj4    ,the self-complacency of   
virtuous men1 #fd1 #fe1 and note4       
,the motive to virtue1 according to     
,shaftesbury and ,henry ,more1 #gf4     
,analogies of beauty and virtue1 #gg4   
,their difference1 #gh4    ,diversities 
existing in our judgments of virtue and 
beauty1 #gi1 #hj4    ,virtues to which  
we can and cannot apply the term        
beautiful1 #hb4    ,the standard1 though
 not the essence1 of virtue1 determined 
by the                condition of      
society1 #aji4    ,summary of the       

relations of virtue to public and       
private interest1 #aag4    ,emphasis    
with which the utility of virtue was    
dwelt upon by ,aristotle1               
#abd4    ,growth of the gentler virtues1
 #acb4    ,forms of the virtue of truth1
 industrial1 political1 and             
philosophical1                #acg4     
,each stage of civilisation is specially
 appropriate to some virtue1 #adg4      
,national virtues1 #aea4    ,virtues1   
naturally grouped together according to 
principles of affinity                or
 congruity1 #aec4    ,distinctive beauty
 of a moral type1 #aed4    ,rudimentary 
virtues differing in different ages1    
nations1 and classes1                   
#aed1 #aee4    ,four distinct motives   
leading men to virtue1 #agh-ahj4        
,plato's fundamental proposition that   
vice is to virtue what disease is       
to health1 #agi4    ,stoicism the best  
example of the perfect severance of     
virtue and                self-interest1
 #aha4    ,teachings of the ,stoics that

 virtue should conceal itself from the  
world1 #ahf4    ,and that the obligation
 should be distinguished from the       
attraction of                virtue1    
#ahf4    ,the eminent characteristics of
 pagan goodness1 #aij4    ,all virtues  
are the same1 according to the ,stoics1 
#aib4    ,horace's description of a just
 man1 #aig4    ,interested and          
disinterested motives of ,christianity  
to virtue1 ii4 #c4    ,decline of the   
civic virtues caused by asceticism1     
#aci4    ,influence of this change on   
moral philosophy1 #adf4    ,the         
importance of the civic virtues         
exaggerated by historians1 #adg4        
,intellectual virtues1 #ahh4            
,relation of monachism to these virtues1
 #ahi1 et seq4    ,vitalius1 ,st41      
legend of1 and the courtesan1 ii4 #cbj  
,vivisection1 ii4 #agf4    ,approved by 
,bacon1 #agf1 note    ,volcanoes1 how   
regarded by the early monks1 ii4 #bba   
,vultures1 why made an emblem of nature 
by the ,egyptians1 i4 #ajh1 note        

,war1 its moral grandeur1 i4 #ie4       
,the school of the heroic virtues1 #agc4
    ,difference between foreign and     
civil wars1 #bcb4    ,antipathy of the  
early ,christians to a military life1   
ii4 #bdh4    ,belief in battle being the
 special sphere of ,providential        
interposition1                #bdi4     
,effects of the military triumphs of the
 ,mohammedans1 #bea4    ,influences of  
,christianity upon war considered1 #bed4
    ,improved condition of captives     
taken in war1 #bef    ,warburton1 on    
morals1 i4 #ae1 note1 #ag1 note         
,waterland1 on the motives to virtue and
 cause of our love of ,god1 quoted1     
i4 #i1 note1 #ae1 note    ,wealth1      
origin of the desire to possess1 i4 #bc4
    ,associations leading to the desire 
for1 for its own sake1 #be    ,western  
,empire1 general sketch of the moral    
condition of the1 ii4 #ad    ,widows1   
care of the early ,church for1 ii4 #cff 
,will1 freedom of the human1 sustained  
and deepened by the ascetic life1       

ii4 #abc    ,wine1 forbidden to women1  
i4 #ic1 #id1 note    ,witchcraft1 belief
 in the reality of1 i4 #cfc4    ,suicide
 common among witches1 ii4 #ed          
,wollaston1 his analysis of moral       
judgments1 i4 #gf    ,women1 law of the 
,romans forbidding women to taste wine1 
i4 #ic1 #id1              note4         
,standards of female morality of the    
,jews1 ,greeks1 and ,romans1 #ajc1 #ajd4
    ,virtues and vices growing out of   
the relations of the sexes1 #adc4       
,female virtue1 #adc4    ,effects of    
climate on this virtue1 #add4    ,of    
large towns1 #adf4    ,and of early     
marriages1 #ade4    ,reason for ,plato's
 advocacy of community of wives1 #bjj4  
,plutarch's high sense of female        
excellence1 #bdd4    ,female gladiators 
at ,rome1 #bha1 and note4    ,relations 
of female devotees with the anchorites1 
ii4 #abj1 #abh1 #aej4    ,their         
condition in savage life1 #bgf4         
,cessation of the sale of wives1 #bgf4  
,rise of the dowry1 #bgg4               

,establishment of monogamy1 #bgh4       
,doctrine of the ,fathers as to         
concupiscence1 #bha4    ,nature of the  
problem of the relations of the sexes1  
#bhb4    ,prostitution1 #bhb-bhd4       
,recognition in ,greece of two distinct 
orders of womanhood--the wife and       
the hetra1 #bhg4    ,condition of ,roman
 women1 #big1 et seq4    ,legal         
emancipation of women in ,rome1 #cjd4   
,unbounded liberty of divorce1 #cjf4    
,amount of female virtue in ,imperial   
,rome1 #cjh-cab4    ,legislative        
measures to repress sensuality1 #cab4   
,to enforce the reciprocity of          
obligation in marriage1 #cab4    ,and to
 censure prostitution1 #cae4            
,influence of ,christianity on the      
position of women1 #caf1 et seq4        
,marriages1 #cbj4    ,second marriages1 
#cbd4    ,low opinion of women1 produced
 by asceticism1 #cch4    ,the canon law 
unfavourable to their proprietary       
rights1 #cch1 #cci4    ,barbarian       
heroines and laws1 #cda-cdd4            

,doctrine of equality of obligation in  
marriage1 #cdf4    ,the duty of man     
towards woman1 #cdg4    ,condemnation of
 transitory connections1 #cej4    ,roman
 concubines1 #cea4    ,the sinfulness of
 divorce maintained by the ,church1     
#cej-cec4    ,abolition of compulsory   
marriages1 #cec4    ,condemnation of    
mixed marriages1 #cec1 #ced4            
,education of women1 #cee4    ,relation 
of ,christianity to the female virtues1 
#ceh4    ,comparison of male and female 
characteristics1 #ceh4    ,the ,pagan   
and ,christian ideal of woman           
contrasted1 #cfa-cfc4    ,conspicuous   
part of woman in the early ,church1     
#cfc-cfe4    ,care of widows1 #cfg4     
,worship of the ,virgin1 #cfh1 #cfi4    
,effect of the suppression of the       
conventual system on women1 #cfi4       
,revolution going on in the employments 
of women1 #cgc    ,xenocrates1 his      
tenderness1 ii4 #afc    ,xenophanes1 his
 scepticism1 i4 #afb    ,xenophon1 his  
picture of ,greek married life1 ii4 #bhh

    ,zadok1 the founder of the          
,sadducees1 i4 #ahc1 note    ,zeno1 vast
 place occupied by his system in the    
moral history of man1 i4                
#aga4    ,his suicide1 #bab4    ,his    
inculcation of the practice of          
self-examination1 #bdh    ,zeus1        
universal providence attributed by the  
,greeks to1 i4 #afa                     
,,footnotes          #a ,there is a     
remarkable passage of ,celsus1 on the   
impossibility of        restoring a     
nature once thoroughly depraved1 quoted 
by ,origen in his        answer to him4 
#b ,this is well shown by ,pressens in  
his ,hist4 des ,trois premiers          
,sicles4        #c ,see a great deal of 
information on this subject in          
,bingham's        ,antiquities of the   
,christian ,church 7,oxford1 #ahec71    
vol4 v4 pp4        #cgj-cgh4 ,it is     
curious that those very noisy           
contemporary divines        who profess 
to resuscitate the manners of the       
primitive ,church1 and        who lay so

 much stress on the minutest ceremonial 
observances1 have        left           
unpractised what was undoubtedly one of 
the most universal1 and        was      
believed to be one of the most          
important1 of the institutions of       
early ,christianity4 ,bingham shows that
 the administration of the              
,eucharist to infants continued in      
,france till the twelfth century4       
#d ,see ,cave's ,primitive              
,christianity1 part i4 ch4 xi4 ,at first
 the        ,sacrament was usually      
received every day2 but this custom soon
        declined in the ,eastern        
,church1 and at last passed away in the 
,west4        #e ,plin4 ,ep4 x4 #ig4    
#f ,the whole subject of the penitential
 discipline is treated minutely         
in ,marshall's ,penitential ,discipline 
of the ,primitive ,church        7first 
published in #agad1 and reprinted in the
 library of        ,anglo-,catholic     
,theology71 and also in ,bingham1 vol4  
vii4 ,tertullian        gives a graphic 

description of the public penances1 ,de 
,pudicit4 v4        #ac4        #g      
,eusebius1 ,h4 ,e4 viii1 #g4        #h  
,st4 ,chrysostom tells this of ,st4     
,babylas4 ,see ,tillemont1 ,mm4 pour    
servir  l',hist4 eccl4 tome iii4 p4     
#djc4        #i ,in the preface to a    
very ancient ,milanese missal it is said
 of ,st4        ,agatha that as she lay 
in the prison cell1 torn by the         
instruments        of torture1 ,st4     
,peter came to her in the form of a     
,christian        physician1 and offered
 to dress her wounds2 but she refused1  
saying        that she wished for no    
physician but ,christ4 ,st4 ,peter1 in  
the name        of that ,celestial      
,physician1 commanded her wounds to     
close1 and her        body became whole 
as before4 7,tillemont1 tome iii4 p4    
#dab47       #aj ,see her acts in       
,ruinart4       #aa ,st4 ,jerome1 ,ep4  
xxxix4       #ab 8,definitio brevis et  
vera virtutis3 ordo est amoris40--,de   
,civ4 ,dei1        xv4 #bb4       #ac   

,besides the obvious points of          
resemblance in the common1 though not   
universal1 belief that ,christians      
should abstain from all weapons         
and from all oaths1 the whole teaching  
of the early ,christians about          
the duty of simplicity1 and the         
wickedness of ornaments in dress        
7see especially the writings of         
,tertullian1 ,clemens ,alexandrinus1    
and ,chrysostom1 on this subject71 is   
exceedingly like that of the            
,quakers4 ,the scruple of ,tertullian   
7,de ,coron7 about ,christians          
wearing laurel wreaths in the festivals1
 because laurel was called        after 
,daphne1 the lover of ,apollo1 was much 
of the same kind as that        which   
led the ,quakers to refuse to speak of  
,tuesday or ,wednesday1        lest they
 should recognise the gods ,tuesco or   
,woden4 ,on the other        hand1 the  
ecclesiastical aspects and the          
sacramental doctrines of        the     
,church were the extreme opposites of   

,quakerism4       #ad ,see the masterly 
description of the relations of the     
,english to the        ,irish in the    
reign of ,queen ,elizabeth1 in ,froude's
 ,history of        ,england1 ch4 xxiv42
 and also ,lord ,macaulay's description 
of the        feelings of the ,master of
 ,stair towards the ,highlanders4       
7,history        of ,england1 ch4       
xviii47       #ae ,see on the views of  
,aristotle1 ,labourt1 ,recherches       
historiques sur        les ,enfanstrouvs
 7,paris1 #ahdh71 p4 #i4       #af ,see 
,gravina1 ,de ,ortu et ,progressu ,juris
 ,civilis1 lib4 i4 #dd4       #ag 8,nunc
 uterum vitiat qu vult formosa videci1  
,raraque in hoc vo est1 qu velit esse   
parens40          ,ovid1 ,de ,nuce1     
#bb-bc4          ,the same writer has   
devoted one of his elegies 7ii4 #ad7 to 
reproaching his mistress ,corinna with  
having been guilty of this        act4  
,it was not without danger1 and ,ovid   
says1          8,spe suos utero qu necit
 ipsa perit40          ,a niece of      

,domitian is said to have died in       
consequence of having1        at the    
command of the emperor1 practised it    
7,sueton4 ,domit4        xxii474        
,plutarch notices the custom 7,de       
,sanitate tuenda71 and        ,seneca   
eulogises ,helvia 7,ad ,helv4 xvi47 for 
being exempt from        vanity and     
having never destroyed her unborn       
offspring4 ,favorinus1        in a      
remarkable passage 7,aulus ,gellius1    
,noct4 ,att4 xii4 #a71 speaks        of 
the act as 8publica detestatione        
communique odio dignum10 and            
proceeds to argue that it is only a     
degree less criminal for mothers        
to put out their children to nurse4     
,juvenal has some well-known and        
emphatic lines on the subject3--        
8,sed jacet aurato vix ulla puerpera    
lecto2        ,tantum artes hujus1      
tantum medicamina possunt1        ,qu   
steriles facit1 atque homines in ventre 
necandos        ,conducit40             
,sat4 vi4 #eib-eie4          ,there are 

also many allusions to it in the        
,christian writers4 ,thus               
,minucius ,felix 7,octavius1 xxx473     
8,vos enim video procreatos filios      
nunc feris et avibus exponere1 nunc     
adstrangulatos misero mortis            
genere elidere4 ,sunt qu in ipsis       
visceribus1 medicaminibus epotis1       
originem futuri hominis extinguant1 et  
parricidium faciant antequam            
pariant40       #ah ,see ,labourt1      
,recherches sur les ,enfans trouvs1 p4  
#be4       #ai ,among the barbarian laws
 there is a very curious one about a    
daily        compensation for children  
who had been killed in the womb on      
account        of the daily suffering of
 those children in hell4 8,propterea    
diuturnam judicaverunt antecessores     
nostri compositionem et judices         
postquam religio ,christianitatis       
inolevit in mundo4 ,quia diuturnam      
postquam incarnationem suscepit anima1  
quamvis ad nativitatis lucem            
minima pervenisset1 patitur pnam1 quia  

sine sacramento        regenerationis   
abortivo modo tradita est ad            
inferos40--,leges        ,bajuvariorum1 
tit4 vii4 cap4 xx4 in ,canciani1 ,leges 
,barbar4 vol4        ii4 p4 #cgd4 ,the  
first foundling hospital of which we    
have undoubted        record is that    
founded at ,milan1 by a man named       
,datheus1 in ,a4,d4        #ghi4        
,muratori has preserved 7,antich4 ,ital4
 ,diss4 xxxvii47 the        charter     
embodying the motives of the founder1 in
 which the following        sentences   
occur3 8,quia frequenter per luxuriam   
hominum genus        decipitur1 et      
exinde malum homicidii generatur1 dum   
concipientes ex        adulterio1 ne    
prodantur in publico1 fetos teneros     
necant1 et absque        baptismatis    
lavacro parvulos ad ,tartara mittunt1   
quia nullum        reperiunt locum1 quo 
servare vivos valeant10 c4 ,henry ,,ii4 
of        ,france1 #aeef1 made a long   
law against women who1 8advenant le     
temps        de leur part et dlivrance  

de leur enfant1 occultement s'en        
dlivrent1 puis le suffoquent et         
autrement suppriment sans leur          
avoir fait empartir le ,saint ,sacrement
 du ,baptme40--,labourt1                
,recherches sur les ,enfans trouvs1 p4  
#dg4 ,there is a story told of        a 
,queen of ,portugal 7sister to ,henry   
,v4 of ,england1 and mother of          
,st4 ,ferdinand7 that1 being in         
childbirth1 her life was despaired of   
unless she took a medicine which would  
accelerate the birth but        probably
 sacrifice the life of the child4 ,she  
answered that 8she        would not     
purchase her temporal life by           
sacrificing the eternal        salvation
 of her son40--,bollandists1 ,act4      
,sanctor41 ,june #eth4       #bj        
,tillemont1 ,mmoires pour servir        
l',histoire ecclsiastique               
7,paris1 #agja71 tome x4 p4 #da4 ,st4   
,clem4 ,alexand4 says that infants      
in the womb and exposed infants have    
guardian angels to watch over           

them4 7,strom4 v47       #ba ,there is  
an extremely large literature devoted to
 the subject of        infanticide1     
exposition1 foundlings1 c4 ,the books ,i
 have chiefly        followed are ,terme
 et ,monfalcon1 ,histoire des ,enfans   
trouvs        7,paris1 #ahdj72 ,remacle1
 ,des ,hospices d',enfans trouvs        
7#ahch72        ,labourt1 ,recherches   
historiques sur les ,enfans trouvs      
7,paris1        #ahdh72 ,knigswarter1   
,essai sur la ,lgislation des ,peuples  
anciens        et modernes relative aux 
,enfans ns hors ,mariage 7,paris1       
#ahdb74        ,there are also many     
details on the subject in ,godefroy's   
,commentary        to the laws about    
children in the ,theodosian ,code1 in   
,malthus1 ,on        ,population1 in    
,edward's tract ,on the ,state of       
,slavery in the ,early        and       
,middle ,ages of ,christianity1 and in  
most ecclesiastical        histories4   
#bb ,it must not2 however1 be inferred  
from this that infanticide              

increases in direct proportion to the   
unchastity of a nation4        ,probably
 the condition of civilised society in  
which it is most        common1 is where
 a large amount of actual unchastity    
coexists with        very strong social 
condemnation of the sinner1 and where1  
in        consequence1 there is an      
intense anxiety to conceal the fall4 ,a 
recent writer on ,spain has noticed the 
almost complete absence of              
infanticide in that country1 and has    
ascribed it to the great        leniency
 of public opinion towards female       
frailty4 ,foundling        hospitals1   
also1 greatly influence the history of  
infanticide2 but        the mortality in
 them was long so great that it may be  
questioned        whether they have     
diminished the number of the deaths1    
though they        have1 as ,i believe1 
greatly diminished the number of the    
murders of        children4 ,lord       
,kames1 writing in the last half of the 
eighteenth        century1 says3 8,in   

,wales1 even at present1 and in the     
,highlands of        ,scotland1 it is   
scarce a disgrace for a young woman to  
have a        bastard4 ,in the country  
last mentioned1 the first instance known
 of        a bastard child being        
destroyed by its mother through shame is
 a        late one4 ,the virtue of      
chastity appears to be thus gaining     
ground1        as the only temptation a 
woman can have to destroy her child is  
to        conceal her                   
frailty40--,sketches of the ,history of 
,man--,on the        ,progress of the   
,female ,sex4 ,the last clause is       
clearly inaccurate1        but there    
seems reason for believing that maternal
 affection is        generally stronger 
than want1 but weaker than shame4       
#bc ,see ,warburton's ,divine ,legation1
 vii4 #b4       #bd lian1 ,varia ,hist4 
ii4 #g4 ,passages from the ,greek       
imaginative        writers1 representing
 exposition as the avowed and habitual  
practice        of poor parents1 are    

collected by ,terme et ,monfalcon1      
,hist4 des        ,enfans trouvs1 pp4   
#ci-de4 ,tacitus notices with praise    
7,germania1        xix47 that the       
,germans did not allow infanticide4 ,he 
also notices        7,hist4 v4 #e7 the  
prohibition of infanticide among the    
,jews1 and        ascribes it to their  
desire to increase the population4      
#be ,dion4 ,halic4 ii4       #bf ,ad    
,nat4 i4 #ae4       #bg ,the well-known 
jurisconsult ,paulus had laid down the  
proposition1        8,necare videtur non
 tantum is qui partum perfocat sed et is
 qui        abjicit et qui alimonia     
denegat et qui publicis locis           
misericordi        causa exponit quam   
ipse non habet40 7,dig4 lib4 xxv4 tit4  
iii4 #a4        #d47 ,these words have  
given rise to a famous controversy      
between two        ,dutch professors1   
named ,noodt and ,bynkershoek1 conducted
 on both        sides with great        
learning1 and on the side of ,noodt with
 great        passion4 ,noodt maintained

 that these words are simply the        
expression        of a moral truth1 not 
a judicial decision1 and that exposition
 was        never illegal in ,rome till 
some time after the establishment of    
,christianity4 ,his opponent argued that
 exposition was legally        identical
 with infanticide1 and became1          
therefore1 illegal when the        power
 of life and death was withdrawn from   
the father4 7,see the        works of   
,noodt 7,cologne1 #agfc7 and of         
,bynkershoek 7,cologne1 #agfa774        
,it was at least certain that exposition
 was notorious and avowed1        and   
the law against it1 if it existed1      
inoperative4 ,gibbon 7,decline          
and ,fall1 ch4 xliv47 thinks the law    
censured but did not punish             
exposition4 ,see1 too1 ,troplong1       
,influence du ,christianisme sur le     
,droit1 p4 #bga4       #bh ,quintilian  
speaks in a tone of apology1 if not     
justification1 of the        exposition 
of the children of destitute parents    

7,decl4 cccvi471        and even        
,plutarch speaks of it without censure4 
7,de ,amor4 ,prolis47        ,there are 
several curious illustrations in ,latin 
literature of the        different      
feelings of fathers and mothers on this 
matter4 ,terence        7,heauton4 ,act4
 iii4 ,scene #e7 represents ,chremes as 
having1 as a        matter of course1   
charged his pregnant wife to have her   
child killed        provided it was a   
girl4 ,the mother1 overcome by pity1    
shrank from        doing so1 and        
secretly gave it to an old woman to     
expose it1 in        hopes that it might
 be preserved4 ,chremes1 on hearing what
 had been        done1 reproached his   
wife for her womanly pity1 and told her 
she had        been not only disobedient
 but irrational1 for she was only       
consigning her daughter to the life of a
 prostitute4 ,in ,apuleius              
7,metam4 lib4 x47 we have a similar     
picture of a father starting        for 
a journey1 leaving his wife in          

childbirth1 and giving her his          
parting command to kill her child if it 
should be a girl1 which she        could
 not bring herself to do4 ,the girl was 
brought up secretly4 ,in        the case
 of weak or deformed infants infanticide
 seems to have been        habitual4    
8,portentosos ftus extinguimus1 liberos 
quoque1 si debiles        monstrosique  
editi sunt1 mergimus4 ,non ira1 sed     
ratio est1 a sanis        inutilia      
secernere40--,seneca1 ,de ,ira1 i4 #ae4 
,terence has introduced        a picture
 of the exposition of an infant into his
 ,andria1 ,act4 iv4        ,scene #e4   
,see1 too1 ,suet4 ,august4 lxv4         
,according to ,suetonius        7,calig4
 v471 on the death of ,germanicus1 women
 exposed their        new-born children 
in sign of grief4 ,ovid had dwelt with  
much feeling        on the barbarity of 
these practices4 ,it is a very curious  
fact1        which has been noticed by  
,warburton1 that ,chremes1 whose        
sentiments        about infants we have 

just seen1 is the very personage into   
whose        mouth ,terence has put the 
famous sentiment1 8,homo sum1 humani    
nihil        a me alienum puto40        
#bi ,that these were the usual fates of 
exposed infants is noticed by           
several writers4 ,some1 too1 both ,pagan
 and ,christian 7,quintilian1           
,decl4 cccvi42 ,lactantius1 ,div4 ,inst4
 vi4 #bj1 c471 speak of the             
liability to incestuous marriages       
resulting from frequent                 
exposition4 ,in the ,greek poets there  
are several allusions to rich           
childless men adopting foundlings1 and  
,juvenal says it was common        for  
,roman wives to palm off foundlings on  
their husbands for their        sons4   
7,sat4 vi4 #fjc47 ,there is an extremely
 horrible declamation        in ,seneca 
the ,rhetorician 7,controvers4 lib4 v4  
#cc7 about exposed        children who  
were said to have been maimed and       
mutilated1 either to        prevent     
their recognition by their parents1 or  

that they might gain        money as    
beggars for their masters4       #cj    
,see passages on this point cited by    
,godefroy in his ,commentary to         
the ,law 8,de ,expositis10 ,codex       
,theod4 lib4 v4 tit4 #g4       #ca      
,codex ,theod4 lib4 xi4 tit4 #bg4       
#cb ,codex ,theod4 lib4 v4 tit4 #g1 lex4
 #a4       #cc ,ibid4 lib4 v4 tit4 #h1  
lex #a4       #cd ,see ,godefroy's      
,commentary to the ,law4       #ce ,in a
 letter to the younger ,pliny4 7,ep4 x4 
#gb47       #cf ,see on this point      
,muratori1 ,antich4 ,ital4 ,diss4       
xxxvii4       #cg ,see on these laws1   
,wallon1 ,hist4 de l',esclavage1 tome   
iii4 pp4 #eb1        #ec4       #ch ,see
 ,cod4 ,theod4 lib4 iii4 tit4 #c1 lex   
#a1 and the ,commentary4       #ci ,on  
the very persistent denunciation of this
 practice by the ,fathers1        see   
many examples in ,terme et ,monfalcon4  
#dj ,this is a mere question of         
definition1 upon which lawyers have     
expended much learning and discussion4  

,cujas thought the ,romans              
considered infanticide a crime1 but a   
crime generically different        from 
homicide4 ,godefroy maintains that it   
was classified as        homicide1 but  
that1 being esteemed less heinous than  
the other forms        of homicide1 it  
was only punished by exile4 ,see the    
,commentary to        ,cod4 ,theod4 lib4
 ix4 tit4 #ad1 l4 #a4       #da ,cod4   
,theod4 lib4 ix4 tit4 #ae4       #db    
,ibid4 lib4 ix4 tit4 #ad1 lex #a4       
#dc ,corp4 ,juris1 lib4 viii4 tit4 #eb1 
lex #b4       #dd ,leges ,wisigothorum  
7lib4 vi4 tit4 #c1 lex #g7 and other    
laws 7lib4        iv4 tit4 #d7 condemned
 exposition4       #de 8,si quis        
infantem necaverit ut homicida          
teneatur40--,capit4 vii4        #afh4   
#df ,it appears1 from a passage of ,st4 
,augustine1 that ,christian virgins     
were accustomed to collect exposed      
children and to have them brought       
into the church4 ,see ,terme et         
,monfalcon1 ,hist4 des ,enfans trouvs1  

p4 #gd4       #dg ,compare ,labourt1    
,rech4 sur les ,enfans trouvs1 pp4 #cb1 
#cc2        ,muratori1 ,antichit        
,italiane1 ,dissert4 xxxvii4 ,muratori  
has also        briefly noticed the     
history of these charities in his ,carit
        ,christiana1 cap4 xxvii4        
#dh ,the first seems to have been the   
hospital of ,sta4 ,maria in ,sassia1    
which had existed with various changes  
from the eighth century1 but        was 
made a foundling hospital and confided  
to the care of ,guy of                  
,montpellier in ,a4,d4 #abjd4 ,according
 to one tradition1 ,pope ,innocent      
,,iii4 had been shocked at hearing of   
infants drawn in the nets of            
fishermen from the ,tiber4 ,according to
 another1 he was inspired by        an  
angel4 ,compare ,remacle1 ,hospices     
d',enfans trouvs1 pp4 #cf-cg1        and
 ,amydemus1 ,pietas ,romana 7a book     
written ,a4,d4 #afbd1 and               
translated in part into ,english in     
,a4,d4 #afhg71 ,eng4 trans1 pp4 #b1 #c4 

#di ,for the little that is known about 
this missionary of charity1             
compare ,remacle1 ,hospices d',enfans   
trouvs1 pp4 #cd-dd2 and        ,labourt1
 ,recherches historiques sur les ,enfans
 trouvs1 pp4 #ch-da4       #ej ,e4g4 the
 amphitheatre of ,verona was only built 
under ,diocletian4       #ea 8,quid hoc 
triumpho pulchrius8444 ,tantam          
captivorum multitudinem        bestiis  
objicit ut ingrati et perfidi non minus 
doloris ex ludibrio        sui quam ex  
ipsa morte patiantur40--,incerti1       
,panegyricus ,constant4        8,puberes
 qui in manus venerunt1 quorum nec      
perfidia erat apta        militi nec    
ferocia servituti ad pnas spectaculo    
dati svientes        bestias multitudine
 sua fatigarunt40--,eumenius1 ,paneg4   
,constant4        xi4       #eb ,cod4   
,theod4 lib4 xv4 tit4 #ab1 lex #a4      
,sozomen1 i4 #h4       #ec ,this1 at    
least1 is the opinion of ,godefroy1 who 
has discussed the        subject very   
fully4 7,cod4 ,theod4 lib4 xv4 tit4     

#ab47       #ed ,libanius1 ,de ,vita    
,sua1 #c4       #ee ,cod4 ,theod4 lib4  
xv4 tit4 #ab1 l4 #b4       #ef ,ibid4   
lib4 ix4 tit4 #dj1 l4 #h4       #eg     
,ibid4 lib4 ix4 tit4 #dj1 l4 #aa4       
#eh ,ibid4 lib4 xv4 tit4 #ab1 l4 #c4    
#ei ,symmach4 ,ex4 x4 #fa4       #fj ,m4
 ,wallon has traced these last shows    
with much learning4 7,hist4 de          
l',esclavage1 tome iii4 pp4 #dba-dbi47  
#fa ,he wavered1 however1 on the        
subject1 and on one occasion condemned  
them4 ,see ,wallon1 tome iii4 p4 #dbc4  
#fb ,theodoret1 v4 #bf4       #fc       
,muller1 ,de ,genio vi ,theodosiani     
7#agig71 vol4 ii4 p4 #hh2 ,milman1      
,hist4 of ,early ,christianity1 vol4    
iii4 pp4 #cdc-cdg4       #fd ,see on    
these fights ,ozanam's ,civilisation in 
the ,fifth ,century        7,eng4       
trans471 vol4 i4 p4 #acj4       #fe     
,nieupoort1 ,de ,ritibus ,romanorum1 p4 
#afi4       #ff ,see a very unequivocal 
passage1 ,inst4 ,div4 vi4 #bj4 ,several 
earlier        testimonies on the       

subject are given by ,barbeyrac1 ,morale
 des        ,pres1 and in many other    
books4       #fg ,see two laws enacted  
in ,a4,d4 #chj 7,cod4 ,theod4 ix4 tit4  
#ce1 l4 #d7        and ,a4,d4 #chi      
7,cod4 ,theod4 ix4 tit4 #ce1 l4 #e74    
,theodosius the        ,younger made a  
law 7ix4 tit4 #ce1 l4 #g7 excepting the 
,isaurian        robbers from the       
privileges of these laws4       #fh     
,there are1 of course1 innumerable      
miracles punishing guilty men1 but      
,i know none assisting the civil power  
in doing so4 ,as an example of          
the miracles in defence of the innocent1
 ,i may cite one by ,st4                
,macarius4 ,an innocent man1 accused of 
a murder1 fled to him4 ,he              
brought both the accused and accusers to
 the tomb of the murdered        man1   
and asked him whether the prisoner was  
the murderer4 ,the corpse               
answered in the negative2 the bystanders
 implored ,st4 ,macarius to        ask  
it to reveal the real culprit2 but ,st4 

,macarius refused to do        so4 7,vit
 ,patrum1 lib4 ii4 cap4 xxviii47        
#fi 8,ut quam clementissime et ultra    
sanguinis effusionem puniretur40        
#gj ,qust4 ,roman1 xcvi4       #ga      
,tillemont1 ,mm4 d',hist4 eccls4 tome   
vi4 pp4 #hh-ih4 ,the ,donatists         
after a time1 however1 are said to have 
overcome their scruples1 and        used
 swords4       #gb ,under the ,christian
 kings1 the barbarians multiplied the   
number of        capital offences1 but  
this has usually been regarded as an    
improvement4 ,the ,abb ,mably says3     
8,quoiqu'il nous reste peu              
d'ordonnances faites sous les premiers  
,mrovingiens1 nous voyons               
qu'avant la fin du sixime sicle1 les    
,franois avoient dj adopt        la     
doctrine salutaire des ,romains au sujet
 de la prescription2 et        que      
renonant  cette humanit cruelle qui les 
enhardissoit au mal1        ils         
infligrent peine de mort contre         
l'inceste1 le vol et le meurtre         

qui jusques-l n'avoient t punis que par 
l'exil1 ou dont on se        rachetoit  
par une composition4 ,les ,franois1 en  
rformant        quelques-unes de leurs  
lois civiles1 portrent la svrit aussi   
loin que leurs pres avoient pouss       
l'indulgence40--,mably1 ,observ4        
sur l',hist4 des ,franois1 liv4 i4 ch4  
iii4 ,see1 too1 ,gibbon's               
,decline and ,fall1 ch4 xxxviii4        
#gc ,the whole of the sixth volume of   
,godefroy's edition 7folio7 of the      
,theodosian code is taken up with laws  
of these kinds4       #gd ,mme4 de      
,stal1 ,rflexions sur le ,suicide4      
#ge ,the following became the           
theological doctrine on the subject3    
8,est        vere homicida et reus      
homicidii qui se interficiendo          
innocentum        hominem               
interfecerit40--,lisle1 ,du ,suicide1 p4
 #djj4 ,st4 ,augustine        has much  
in this strain4 ,lucretia1 he says1     
either consented to the        act of   
,sextius1 or she did not4 ,in the first 

case she was an        adulteress1 and  
should therefore not be admired4 ,in the
 second case        she was a murderess1
 because in killing herself she killed  
an        innocent and virtuous woman4  
7,de ,civ4 ,dei1 i4 #ai47       #gf     
,justin ,martyr1 ,tertullian1 and       
,cyprian are especially ardent in this  
respect2 but their language is1 ,i      
think1 in their circumstances1          
extremely excusable4 ,compare           
,barbeyrac1 ,morale des ,pres1 ch4 ii4  
#h2 ch4 viii4  #cd-ci4 ,donne's         
,biathanatos 7ed4 #afdd71 pp4           
#eh-fg4 ,cromaziano1 ,istoria critica e 
filosofica del ,suicidio                
ragionato 7,venezia1 #aghh71 pp4        
#ace-adj4       #gg ,ambrose1 ,de       
,virginibus1 iii4 #g4       #gh         
,eusebius1 ,eccles4 ,hist4 viii4 #ab4   
#gi ,eusebius1 ,eccles4 ,hist4 viii4    
#ad4 ,bayle1 in his article upon        
,sophronia1 appears to be greatly       
scandalised at this act1 and it         
seems that among the ,catholics it is   

not considered right to admire          
this poor lady as much as her sister    
suicides4 ,tillemont remarks3           
8,comme on ne voit pas que l'glise      
romaine l'ait jamais honore1        nous
 n'avons pas le mesme droit de justifier
 son action40--,hist4        eccls4 tome
 v4 pp4 #djd1 #dje4       #hj           
,especially ,barbeyrac in his ,morale   
des ,pres4 ,he was answered by          
,ceillier1 ,cromaziano1 and others4     
,matthew of ,westminster relates of     
,ebba1 the abbess of a ,yorkshire       
convent which was besieged by the       
,danes1 that she and all the other nuns1
 to save their chastity1        deformed
 themselves by cutting off their noses  
and upper lips4 7,a4,d4        #hgj47   
#ha ,de ,civ4 ,dei1 i4 #bb-g4       #hb 
,this had been suggested by ,st4        
,augustine4 ,in the case of ,pelagia1   
,tillemont finds a strong argument in   
support of this view in the             
astounding1 if not miraculous1 fact     
that1 having thrown herself from        

the top of the house1 she was actually  
killed by the fall6 8,estant            
monte tout au haut de sa maison1        
fortifie par le mouvement que           
,j4-,c4 formoit dans son cur et par le  
courage qu'il luy inspiroit1        elle
 se prcipita de l du haut en bas1 et    
chapa ainsi  tous les        piges de   
ses ennemis4 ,son corps en tombant      
terre frapa1 dit ,s4                    
,chrysostome1 les yeux du dmon plus     
vivement qu'un clair4444 ,ce qui        
marque encore que ,dieu agissoit en tout
 ceci c'est qu'au lieu que        ces   
chutes ne sont pas toujours mortelles1  
ou que souvent ne brisant        que    
quelques membres1 elles n'ostent la vie 
que longtemps aprs1 ni        l'un ni   
l'autre n'arriva en cette rencontre2    
mais ,dieu retira        aussitost l'me 
de la sainte1 en sorte que sa mort parut
 autant        l'effet de la volont     
divine que de sa chute40--,hist4 eccls4 
tome        v4 pp4 #dja-djb4       #hc  
8,et virginitatis coronam et nuptiarum  

perdidit voluptatem40--,ep4        xxii4
       #hd 8,quis enim siccis oculis    
recordetur viginti annorum              
adolescentulam        tam ardenti fide  
crucis levasse vexillum ut magis amissam
        virginitatem quam mariti doleret
 interitum80--,ep4 xxxix4       #he ,for
 a description of these penances1 see   
,ep4 xxxviii4       #hf ,ep4 xxxix4     
#hg ,st4 ,jerome gave some sensible     
advice on this point to one of his      
admirers4 7,ep4 cxxv47       #hh ,hase1 
,st4 ,franois d',assise1 pp4 #acg-ach4  
,st4 ,palmon is said to        have died
 of his austerities4 7,vit4 ,s4         
,pachomii47       #hi ,st4 ,augustine   
and ,st4 ,optatus have given accounts of
 these suicides        in their works   
against the ,donatists4       #ij ,see  
,todd's ,life of ,st4 ,patrick1 p4 #dfb4
       #ia ,the whole history of suicide
 in the dark ages has been most minutely
        and carefully examined by ,m4   
,bourquelot1 in a very interesting      
series of memoirs in the third and      

fourth volumes of the                   
,bibliothque de l'cole des ,chartes4 ,i 
am much indebted to these        memoirs
 in the following pages4 ,see1 too1     
,lisle1 ,du ,suicide1                   
,statistique1 ,mdecine1 ,histoire1 et   
,lgislation4 7,paris1 #ahef47 ,the      
ferocious laws here recounted contrast  
remarkably with a law in the            
,capitularies 7lib4 vi4 lex #gj71 which 
provides that though mass may        not
 be celebrated for a suicide1 any       
private person may1 through             
charity1 cause prayers to be offered up 
for his soul4 8,quia                    
incomprehensibilia sunt judicia ,dei1 et
 profunditatem consilii ejus        nemo
 potest investigare40       #ib ,see the
 very interesting work of the ,abb      
,bourret1 l'cole        chrtienne de    
,sville sous la monarchie des ,visigoths
 7,paris1        #ahee71 p4 #aif4       
#ic ,roger of ,wendover1 ,a4,d4 #ffe4   
#id ,esquirol1 ,maladies mentales1 tome 
i4 p4 #eia4       #ie ,lea's ,history of

 ,sacerdotal ,celibacy 7,philadelphia1  
#ahfg71 p4 #bdh4       #if 8,per lo     
corso di molti secoli abbiamo questo    
solo suicidio donnesco1        e buona  
cosa  non averne pi d'uno2 perch io non 
credo che la        impudicizia istessa 
sia peggiore di questa disperata        
castit40--,cromaziano1 ,ist4 del4       
,suicidio1 p4 #abf4 ,mariana1 who1      
under the frock of a ,jesuit1 bore the  
heart of an ancient ,roman1             
treats the case in a very different     
manner4 8,ejus uxor ,maria              
,coronelia cum mariti absentiam non     
ferret1 ne pravis cupiditatibus         
cederet1 vitam posuit1 ardentem forte   
libidinem igne extinguens        adacto 
per muliebria titione2 dignam meliori   
seculo fminam1 insigne        studium   
castitatis40--,de ,rebus ,hispan4 xvi4  
#ag4       #ig ,a number of passages are
 cited by ,bourquelot4       #ih ,this  
is noticed by ,st4 ,gregory ,nazianzen  
in a little poem which is        given  
in ,migne's edition of ,the ,greek      

,fathers1 tome xxxvii4 p4        #adei4 
,st4 ,nilus and the biographer of ,st4  
,pachomius speak of these               
suicides1 and ,st4 ,chrysostom wrote a  
letter of consolation to a        young 
monk1 named ,stagirius1 which is still  
extant1 encouraging him        to resist
 the temptation4 ,see ,neander1         
,ecclesiastical ,hist4 vol4        iii4 
pp4 #cai1 #cbj4       #ii ,bourquelot4  
,pinel notices 7,trait                  
mdico-philosophique sur                 
l',alination mentale 7#bnd ed471 pp4    
#dd-df7 the numerous cases of           
insanity still produced by strong       
religious feeling2 and the history      
of the movements called 8revivals10 in  
the present century1 supplies           
much evidence to the same effect4 ,pinel
 says1 religious insanity        tends  
peculiarly to suicide 7p4 #bfe74        
#ajj ,orosius notices 7,hist4 v4 #ad7   
that of all the ,gauls conquered by     
,q4 ,marcius1 there were none who did   
not prefer death to slavery4 ,the       

,spaniards were famous for their        
suicides1 to avoid old age as well      
as slavery4 ,odin1 who1 under different 
names1 was the supreme        divinity  
of most of the ,northern tribes1 is said
 to have ended his        earthly life  
by suicide4 ,boadicea1 the grandest     
figure of early        ,british history1
 and ,cordeilla1 or ,cordelia1 the most 
pathetic        figure of early ,british
 romance1 were both suicides4 7,see on  
the        first1 ,tacitus1 ,ann4 xiv4  
#ce-cg1 and on the second ,geoffrey of  
,monmouth1 ii4 #ae--;a version from     
which ,shakspeare has considerably      
diverged1 but which is faithfully       
followed by ,spenser4 7,fary            
,queen1 book ii4 canto #aj477      #aja 
8,in our age1 when the ,spaniards       
extended that law which was made        
only against the cannibals1 that they   
who would not accept the                
,christian religion should incur        
bondage1 the ,indians in infinite       
numbers escaped this by killing         

themselves1 and never ceased till       
the ,spaniards1 by some counterfeitings1
 made them think that they        also  
would kill themselves1 and follow them  
with the same severity        into the  
next life40--,donne's ,biathanatos1 p4  
#ef 7ed4 #afdd74 ,on the        evidence
 of the early travellers on this point1 
see the essay on        8,england's     
,forgotten ,worthies10 in ,mr4 ,froude's
 ,short ,studies4      #ajb ,lisle1 pp4 
#dbg-dcd4 ,sprenger has noticed the same
 tendency among the        witches he   
tried4 ,see ,calmeil1 ,de la ,folie     
7,paris1 #ahde71 tome i4        pp4     
#afa1 #cjc-cje4      #ajc ,on modern    
suicides the reader may consult         
,winslow's ,anatomy of        ,suicide2 
as well as the work of ,m4 ,lisle1 and  
also ,esquirol1        ,maladies        
mentales 7,paris1 #ahch71 tome i4 pp4   
#ebf-fgf4      #ajd ,hecker's ,epidemics
 of the ,middle ,ages 7,london1 #ahdd71 
p4 #aba4        ,hecker in his very     
curious essay on this mania1 has        

preserved a        verse of their       
song3--          8,allu mari mi portati 
,se voleti che mi sanati1        ,allu  
mari1 alla via1        ,cos m'ama la    
donna mia1        ,allu mari1 allu mari1
        ,mentre campo1 t'aggio amari40  
#aje ,cromaziano1 ,ist4 del ,suicidio   
caps4 viii1 ix4      #ajf ,cromaziano1  
pp4 #ib-ic4      #ajg ,montesquieu1 and 
many ,continental writers1 have noticed 
this1 and        most ,english writers  
of the eighteenth century seem to admit 
the        charge4 ,there do not appear1
 however1 to have been any accurate     
statistics1 and the general statements  
are very untrustworthy4        ,suicides
 were supposed to be especially numerous
 under the        depressing influence  
of ,english winter fogs4 ,the statistics
 made in        the present century     
prove beyond question that they are most
        numerous in summer4      #ajh   
,utopia1 book ii4 ch4 vi4      #aji ,a  
sketch of his life1 which was rather    
curious1 is given by        ,cromaziano1

 pp4 #adh-aea4 ,there is a long note on 
the early        literature in defence  
of suicide1 in ,dumas1 ,trait du        
,suicide        7,amsterdam1 #agbc71 pp4
 #adh-adi4 ,dumas was a ,protestant     
minister who        wrote against       
suicide4 ,among the ,english apologists 
for suicide        7which he himself    
committed7 was ,blount1 the translator  
of the ,life        of ,apollonius of   
,tyana1 and ,creech1 an editor of       
,lucretius4        ,concerning the      
former there is a note in ,bayle's      
,dict4 art4        8,apollonius40 ,the  
latter is noticed by ,voltaire in his   
,lettres        ,philos4 ,he wrote as a 
memorandum on the margin of his         
8,lucretius10        8,n4,b4 ,when ,i   
have finished my ,commentary ,i must    
kill myself20 which        he           
accordingly did--,voltaire says to      
imitate his favourite author4           
7,voltaire1 ,dict4 phil4 art4 8,caton407
      #aaj ,essais1 liv4 ii4 ch4 xiii4  
#aaa ,lettres persanes1 lxxvi4      #aab

 ,nouvelle ,hlose1 partie iii4 let4     
#ba-bb4 ,esquirol gives a curious       
illustration of the way the influence of
 ,rousseau penetrated through        all
 classes4 ,a little child of thirteen   
committed suicide1 leaving a            
writing beginning3 8,je lgue mon me a   
,rousseau1 mon corps  la                
terre40--,maladies mentales1 tome i4 p4 
#ehh4      #aac ,in general1 however1   
,voltaire was extremely opposed to the  
philosophy of despair1 but he certainly 
approved of some forms of               
suicide4 ,see the articles 8,caton0 and 
8,suicide10 in his ,dict4        philos4
      #aad ,lisle1 ,du ,suicide1 pp4    
#daa1 #dab4      #aae 8,le monde est    
vide depuis les ,romains40--,st4-,just1 
,procs de        ,danton4      #aaf     
,this fact has been often noticed4 ,the 
reader may find many        statistics  
on the subject in ,lisle1 ,du ,suicide1 
and ,winslow's        ,anatomy of       
,suicide4      #aag 8,there seems good  
reason to believe1 that with the        

progress of        mental development   
through the ages1 there is1 as in the   
case with        other forms of organic 
development1 a correlative degeneration 
going        on1 and that an increase of
 insanity is a penalty which an increase
        of our present civilisation     
necessarily pays40--,maudsley's         
,physiology of ,mind1 p4 #bja4      #aah
 ,cod4 ,theod4 lib4 ix4 tit4 #ab4       
#aai ,some commentators imagine 7see    
,muratori1 ,antich4 ,ital4 ,diss4 xiv47 
that among the ,pagans the murder of a  
man's own slave was only                
assimilated to the crime of murdering   
the slave of another man1        while  
in the ,christian law it was defined as 
homicide1 equivalent to        the      
murder of a freeman4 ,i confess1        
however1 this point does not            
appear to me at all clear4      #abj    
,see ,godefroy's ,commentary on these   
laws4      #aba ,exodus xxi4 #ba        
#abb 8,quas vilitates vit dignas legum  
observatione non credidit40--,cod4      

,theod4 lib4 ix4 tit4 #g4 ,see on this  
law1 ,wallon1 tome iii4 pp4 #dag1       
#dah4          ,dean ,milman observes1  
8,in the old ,roman society in the      
,eastern        ,empire this distinction
 between the marriage of the freeman and
 the        concubinage of the slave was
 long recognised by ,christianity       
itself4        ,these unions were not   
blessed1 as the marriages of their      
superiors        had soon begun to be1  
by the ,church4 ,basil the ,macedonian  
7,a4,d4        #hfg-hhf7 first enacted  
that the priestly benediction should    
hallow        the marriage of the slave2
 but the authority of the emperor was   
counteracted by the deep-rooted         
prejudices of centuries40--,hist4 of    
,latin ,christianity1 vol4 ii4 p4 #ae4  
#abc ,cod4 ,theod4 lib4 ii4 tit4 #be4   
#abd ,ibid4 lib4 iv4 tit4 #g4      #abe 
,ibid4 lib4 ix4 tit4 #i4      #abf      
,corpus ,juris1 vi4 #a4      #abg ,cod4 
,theod4 lib4 vi4 tit4 #b4      #abh ,see
 on all this legislation1 ,wallon1 tome 

iii42 ,champagny1 ,charit               
chrtienne1 pp4 #bad-bbd4      #abi ,it  
is worthy of notice1 too1 that the      
justice of slavery was        frequently
 based by the ,fathers1 as by modern    
defenders of slavery1        on the     
curse of ,ham4 ,see a number of passages
 noticed by ,moehler1        ,le        
,christianisme et l',esclavage 7trad4   
fran471 pp4 #aea-aeb4      #acj ,the    
penalty1 however1 appears to have been  
reduced to two years'        exclusion  
from communion4 ,muratori says3 8,in pi 
consili si truova        decretato1     
#8excommunicatione vel pnitenti biennii 
esse        subjiciendum qui servum     
proprium sine conscientia judicis       
occiderit4' 0--,antich4 ,ital4 ,diss4   
xiv4          ,besides the works which  
treat generally of the penitential      
discipline1 the reader may consult with 
fruit ,wright's letter ,on        the   
,political ,condition of the ,english   
,peasantry1 and ,moehler1 p4            
#ahf4      #aca ,on the great multitude 

of emancipated slaves who entered1 and  
at one        time almost monopolised1  
the ecclesiastical offices1 compare     
,moehler1 ,le ,christianisme et         
l',esclavage1 pp4 #agg-agh4 ,leo the    
,great tried to prevent slaves being    
raised to the priestly office1          
because it would degrade the latter4    
#acb ,see a most admirable dissertation 
on this subject in ,le ,blant1          
,inscriptions chrtiennes de la ,gaule1  
tome ii4 pp4 #bhd-bii2        ,gibbon's 
,decline and ,fall1 ch4 xxxviii4        
#acc ,champagny1 ,charit chrtienne1 p4  
#baj4 ,these numbers are1 no            
doubt1 exaggerated2 see ,wallon1 ,hist4 
de l',esclavage1 tome iii4 p4           
#ch4      #acd ,see ,schmidt1 ,la ,socit
 civile dans le ,monde romain1 pp4      
#bdf-bdh4      #ace ,muratori has       
devoted two valuable dissertations      
7,antich4 ,ital4        xiv4 xv47 to    
medival slavery4      #acf ,ozanam's    
,hist4 of ,civilisation in the ,fifth   
,century 7,eng4 trans471        vol4 ii4

 p4 #dc4 ,st4 ,adelbert1 ,archbishop of 
,prague at the end of the        tenth  
century1 was especially famous for his  
opposition to the slave        trade4   
,in ,sweden1 the abolition of slavery in
 the thirteenth century        was      
avowedly accomplished in obedience to   
,christian principles4        7,moehler1
 ,le ,christianisme et l',esclavage1 pp4
 #aid-aif2 ,ryan's        ,history of   
the ,effects of ,religion upon ,mankind1
 pp4 #adb1 #adc47      #acg ,salvian1 in
 a famous passage 7,de ,gubernatione    
,dei1 lib4 v471        notices the      
multitudes of poor who voluntarily      
became 8coloni0 for        the sake of  
protection and a livelihood4 ,the       
coloni1 who were        attached to the 
soil1 were much the same as the medival 
serfs4 ,we        have already noticed  
them coming into being1 apparently when 
the        ,roman emperors settled      
barbarian prisoners to cultivate the    
desert        lands of ,italy2 and      
before the barbarian invasions their    

numbers        seem to have much        
increased4 ,m4 ,guizot has devoted two  
chapters to        this subject4 7,hist4
 de la ,civilisation en ,france1 vii4   
viii47      #ach ,see ,finlay's ,hist4  
of ,greece1 vol4 i4 p4 #bda4      #aci  
,moehler1 p4 #aha4      #adj 8,non v'era
 anticamente signor secolare1 vescovo1  
abbate1 capitolo di        canonici e   
monistero che non avesse al suo servigio
 molti servi4        ,molto             
frequentemente solevano i secolari      
manometterli4 ,non cosi le              
chiese1 e i monisteri1 non per altra    
cagione1 a mio credere1 se non          
perch la manumissione  una spezie di    
alienazione1 ed era dai        canoni   
proibito l'alienare i beni delle        
chiese40--,muratori1        ,dissert4   
xv4 ,some ,councils1 however1 recognised
 the right of        bishops to         
emancipate ,church slaves4 ,moehler1 ,le
 ,christianisme et        l',esclavage1 
p4 #ahg4 ,many peasants placed          
themselves under the        dominion of 

the monks1 as being the best masters1   
and also to obtain        the benefit of
 their prayers4      #ada ,muratori2    
,hallam's ,middle ,ages1 ch4 ii4 part   
ii4      #adb ,see on this subject1     
,ryan1 pp4 #aea-aeb2 ,cibrario1         
,economica        politica del ,medio   
,evo1 lib4 iii4 cap4 ii41 and especially
 ,le        ,blant1 ,inscriptions       
chrtiennes de la ,gaule1 tome ii4 pp4   
#bhd-bii4      #adc ,about #e_/fths of a
 bushel4 ,see ,hume's ,essay on the     
,populousness of        ,ancient        
,nations4      #add ,the history of     
these distributions is traced with      
admirable learning        by ,m4 ,naudet
 in his ,mmoire sur les ,secours publics
 dans        l',antiquit 7,mm4 de       
l',acadmie des ,inscrip4 et             
,belles-lettres1        tome xiii471 an 
essay to which ,i am much indebted4     
,see1 too1        ,monnier1 ,hist4 de   
l',assistance publique2 ,b4 ,dumas1 ,des
 ,secours        publics chez les       
,anciens2 and ,schmidt1 ,essai sur la   

,socit civile        dans le ,monde     
romain et sur sa ,transformation par le 
,christianisme4      #ade ,livy1 ii4 #i2
 ,pliny1 ,hist4 ,nat4 xxxi4 #da4        
#adf ,dion ,cassius1 xxxviii4 #a-g4     
#adg ,xiphilin1 lxviii4 #b2 ,pliny1 ,ep4
 vii4 #ca4      #adh ,spartian4 ,sept4  
,severus4      #adi ,suet4 ,august4 #da2
 ,dion ,cassius1 li1 #a4      #aej      
8,afflictos civitatis relevavit2 puellas
 puerosque natos parentibus             
egestosis sumptu publico per ,itali     
oppida ali jussit40--,sext4             
,aurelius ,victor1 ,epitome1 8,nerva40  
,this measure of ,nerva1 though         
not mentioned by any other writer1 is   
confirmed by the evidence of            
medals4 7,naudet1 p4 #ge47      #aea    
,plin4 ,panegyr4 xxvi4 xxviii4      #aeb
 ,we know of this charity from an extant
 bronze tablet4 ,see ,schmidt1          
,essai historique sur la ,socit romaine1
 p4 #dbh4      #aec ,plin4 ,ep4 i4 #h2  
iv4 #ac4      #aed ,schmidt1 p4 #dbh4   
#aee ,spartianus1 ,hadrian4      #aef   

,capitolinus1 ,antoninus4      #aeg     
,capitolinus1 ,anton41 ,marc4 ,aurel4   
#aeh ,lampridius1 ,a4 ,severus4         
#aei ,see ,friedlnder1 ,hist4 des ,murs 
romaines1 iii4 p4 #aeg4      #afj       
,seneca 7,de ,ira1 lib4 i4 cap4 #af7    
speaks of institutions called           
valetudinaria1 which most writers think 
were private infirmaries in        rich 
men's houses4 ,the opinion that the     
,romans had public hospitals        is  
maintained in a very learned and        
valuable1 but little-known work1        
called ,collections relative to the     
,systematic ,relief of the ,poor4       
7,london1 #ahae47      #afa ,see ,tacit4
 ,annal4 xii4 #eh2 ,pliny1 v4 #g2 x4    
#gi4      #afb ,cornelius ,nepos1       
,epaminondas1 cap4 iii4      #afc       
,plutarch1 ,cimon4      #afd ,diog4     
,lart4 ,bias4      #afe ,tac4 ,annal4   
iv4 #fc4      #aff ,see ,pliny1 ,ep4 x4 
#id1 and the remarks of ,naudet1 pp4    
#ch1 #ci4      #afg ,de ,offic4 i4 #ad1 
#ae4      #afh ,lucian describes this in

 his famous picture of ,peregrinus2 and 
,julian1 much later1 accused the        
,christians of drawing men into the     
,church by their charities4 ,socrates   
7,hist4 ,eccl4 vii4 #ag7 tells a        
story of a ,jew who1 pretending to be a 
convert to ,christianity1 had           
been often baptised in different sects1 
and had amassed a        considerable   
fortune by the gifts he received on     
those occasions4 ,he        was at last 
miraculously detected by the ,novatian  
bishop ,paul4 ,there        are several 
instances in the ,lives of the ,saints  
of judgments        falling on those who
 duped benevolent ,christians4      #afi
 ,see on this subject ,chastel1 tudes   
historiques sur la ,charit              
7,paris1 #ahec72 ,martin ,doisy1 ,hist4 
de la ,charit pendant les quatre        
premiers ,sicles 7,paris1 #ahdh72       
,champagny1 ,charit chrtienne2          
,tollemer1 ,origines de la ,charit      
catholique 7,paris1 #ahfc72 ,ryan1      
,history of the ,effects of ,religion   

upon ,mankind 7,dublin1 #ahbj72         
and the works of ,bingham and of ,cave4 
,i am also indebted1 in this        part
 of my subject1 to ,dean ,milman's      
histories1 ,neander's                   
,ecclesiastical ,history1 and ,private  
,life of the ,early        ,christians1 
and to ,migne's ,encyclopdie4      #agj 
,see the famous epistle of ,julian to   
,arsacius1 where he declares that       
it is shameful that 8the ,galileans0    
should support not only their           
own1 but also the heathen poor2 and also
 the comments of ,sozomen1        ,hist4
 eccl4 v4 #af4      #aga ,the conduct of
 the ,christians1 on the first of these 
occasions1 is        described by       
,pontius1 ,vit4 ,cypriani1 ix4 #ai4 ,st4
 ,cyprian organised        their        
efforts4 ,on the ,alexandrian famines   
and pestilences1 see        ,eusebius1  
,h4 ,e4 vii4 #bb2 ix4 #h4      #agb ,the
 effects of this conquest have been well
 described by ,sismondi1        ,hist4  
de la ,chute de l',empire ,romain1 tome 

i4 pp4 #beh-bfj4        ,theodoric      
afterwards made some efforts to         
re-establish the        distribution1   
but it never regained its former        
proportions4 ,the        pictures of the
 starvation and depopulation of ,italy  
at this time        are appalling4 ,some
 fearful facts on the subject are       
collected by        ,gibbon1 ,decline   
and ,fall1 ch4 xxxvi42 ,chateaubriand1  
vime ,disc4        #b;de partie4        
#agc ,cod4 ,theod4 ix4 xl4 #ae-af4 ,the 
first of these laws was made by         
,theodosius1 ,a4,d4 #cib2 the second by 
,honorius1 ,a4,d4 #cih4      #agd       
,cibrario1 ,economica politica del      
,medio ,evo1 lib4 ii4 cap4 iii4 ,the    
most remarkable of these saints was ,st4
 ,julien l',hospitalier1 who            
having under a mistake killed his father
 and mother1 as a penance        became 
a ferryman of a great river1 and having 
embarked on a very        stormy and    
dangerous night at the voice of a       
traveller in distress1        received  

,christ into his boat4 ,his story is    
painted on a window of        the       
thirteenth century1 in ,rouen           
,cathedral4 ,see ,langlois1 ,essai      
historique sur la ,peinture sur verre1  
pp4 #cb-cg4      #age ,the fact of      
leprosy being taken as the image of sin 
gave rise to        some curious notions
 of its supernatural character1 and to  
many        legends of saints curing    
leprosy by baptism4 ,see ,maury1        
,lgendes        pieuses du ,moyen-,age1 
pp4 #fd-fe4      #agf ,see on these     
hospitals ,cibrario1 ,econ4 ,politica   
del ,medio ,evo1        lib4 iii4 cap4  
ii4      #agg ,calmeil observes3 8,on a 
souvent constat depuis un demi-sicle que
        la folie est sujette  prendre la
 teinte des croyances religieuses1      
des ides philosophiques ou              
superstitieuses1 des prjugs sociaux     
qui ont cours1 qui sont actuellement en 
vogue parmi les peuples ou        les   
nations2 que cette teinte varie dans un 
mme pays suivant le        caractre des 

vnements relatifs  la politique         
extrieure1 le        caractre des       
vnements civils1 la nature des          
productions        littraires1 des      
reprsentations thtrales1 suivant la     
tournure1 la        direction1 le genre 
d'lan qu'y prennent l'industrie1 les    
arts et        les sciences40--,de la   
,folie1 tome i4 pp4 #abb-abc4      #agh 
,milman's ,history of ,latin            
,christianity1 vol4 vii4 pp4 #cec1 #ced4
          8,venit de ,anglia virgo      
decora valde1 pariterque facunda1       
dicens1        ,spiritum ,sanctum       
incarnatum in redemptionem mulierum1 et 
baptizavit        mulieres in nomine    
,patris1 ,filii et sui4 ,qu mortua ducta
 fuit in        ,mediolanum1 ibi et     
cremata40--,annales ,dominicanorum      
,colmariensium        7in the 8,rerum   
,germanic4 ,scriptores074      #agi     
8,martin ,gonalez1 du diocse de ,cuenca1
 disoit qu'il etoit frre de             
l'archange ,s4 ,michel1 la premire vrit 
et l'chelle du ciel2 que        c'toit  

pour lui que ,dieu rservoit la place que
 ,lucifer avoit        perdue2 que tous 
les jours il s'levoit au plus haut de   
l',empire et        descendoit ensuite  
au plus profond des enfers2 qu'a la fin 
du monde1        qui toit proche1 il    
iroit au devant de l',antichrist et     
qu'il le        terrasseroit1 ayant  sa 
main la croix de ,jsus-,christ et sa    
couronne d'pines4 ,l'archevque de       
,tolde1 n'ayant pu convertir ce         
fanatique obstin1 ni l'empcher de       
dogmatiser1 l'avoit enfin livr        au
 bras sculier40--,touron1 ,hist4 des    
,hommes illustres de l'ordre de         
,st4 ,dominique1 ,paris1 #agde 7,vie    
d',eymricus71 tome ii4 p4 #fce4         
#ahj ,calmeil1 ,de la ,folie1 tome i4 p4
 #acd4      #aha ,ibid4 tome i4 pp4     
#bdb-bdg4      #ahb ,calmeil1 tome i4 p4
 #bdg4      #ahc ,see ,esquirol1        
,maladies mentales4      #ahd ,gibbon1  
,decline and ,fall1 ch4 xxxvii4         
#ahe ,purchas's ,pilgrims1 ii4 #adeb4   
#ahf ,desmaisons' ,asiles d',alins en   

,espagne1 p4 #ec4      #ahg ,leo        
,africanus1 ,description of ,africa1    
book iii4      #ahh ,i have taken these 
facts from a very interesting little    
work1        ,desmaisons1 ,des ,asiles  
d',alins en ,espagne2 ,recherches       
historiques        et mdicales 7,paris1 
#ahei74 ,dr4 ,desmaisons conjectures    
that the        ,spaniards took their   
asylums from the ,mohammedans2 but1 as  
it seems        to me1 he altogether    
fails to prove his point4 ,his work1    
however1        contains some curious   
information on the history of lunatic   
asylums4      #ahi ,amydemus1 ,pietas   
,romana 7,oxford1 #afhg71 p4 #ba2       
,desmaisons1 p4 #ajh4      #aij ,pinel1 
,trait mdico-philosophique1 pp4 #bda1   
#bdb4      #aia ,see the dreadful       
description in ,pinel1 pp4 #bjj-bjb4    
#aib ,malthus1 who is sometimes1 though 
most unjustly1 described as an          
enemy to all charity1 has devoted an    
admirable chapter 7,on                  
,population1 book iv4 ch4 ix47 to the   

8direction of our charity20        but  
the fullest examination of this subject 
with which ,i am        acquainted is   
the very interesting work of ,duchtel1  
,sur la        ,charit4      #aic ,this 
is very tersely expressed by a great    
,protestant writer3 8,i give        no  
alms to satisfy the hunger of my        
brother1 but to fulfil and              
accomplish the will and command of my   
,god40--,sir ,t4 ,brown1 ,religio       
,medici1 part ii4  #b4 ,a saying almost 
exactly similar is1 if ,i               
remember right1 ascribed to ,st4        
,elizabeth of ,hungary4      #aid ,see  
,butler's ,lives of the ,saints4        
#aie ,campion's ,historie of ,ireland1  
book ii4 chap4 x4      #aif ,he wrote   
his ,perils of the ,last ,times in the  
interest of the        ,university of   
,paris1 of which he was a ,professor1   
and which was at        war with the    
mendicant orders4 ,see ,milman's ,latin 
,christianity1        vol4 vi4 pp4      
#cdh-cef2 ,fleury1 ,eccl4 ,hist4 lxxxiv4

 #eg4      #aig ,henry de ,knyghton1 ,de
 ,eventibus ,angli4      #aih ,there was
 some severe legislation in ,england on 
the subject after        the ,black     
,death4 ,eden's ,history of the ,working
 ,classes1 vol4 i4 p4        #cd4 ,in   
,france1 too1 a royal ordinance of #acej
 ordered men who had        been        
convicted of begging three times to be  
branded with a hot iron4                
,monteil1 ,hist4 des ,franais1 tome i4  
p4 #dcd4      #aii ,eden1 vol4 i4 pp4   
#hc-hg4      #bjj ,ibid4 pp4 #aja-ajc4  
#bja ,ibid4 pp4 #abg-acj4      #bjb     
,morighini1 ,institutions pieuses de    
,rome4      #bjc ,eden1 ,history of the 
,labouring ,classes1 i4 #hc4      #bjd  
,locke discussed the great increase of  
poverty1 and a bill was        brought  
in suggesting some remedies1 but did not
 pass4 7,eden1 vol4        i4 pp4       
#bdc-bdh47      #bje ,in a very forcible
 letter addressed to the ,irish         
,catholic clergy4      #bjf ,this tract1
 which is extremely valuable for the    

light it throws upon        the social  
condition of ,england at the time1 was  
written in        opposition to a bill  
providing that the poor in the          
poor-houses        should do wool1 hemp1
 iron1 and other works4 ,defoe says that
 wages        in ,england were higher   
than anywhere on the ,continent1 though 
the        amount of mendicancy was     
enormous4 8,the reason why so many      
pretend        to want work is1 that    
they can live so well with the pretence 
of        wanting work4444 ,i affirm of 
my own knowledge1 when ,i have wanted a 
man for labouring work1 and offered nine
 shillings per week to        strolling 
fellows at my door1 they have frequently
 told me to my        face they could   
get more a-begging40      #bjg ,reforma 
degl' ,instituti pii di ,modena         
7published first anonymously        at  
,modena74 ,it has been reprinted in the 
library of the ,italian                 
economists4      #bjh ,essay on ,charity
 ,schools4      #bji ,magdalen asylums  

have been very vehemently assailed by   
,m4 ,charles        ,comte1 in his      
,trait de ,lgislation4 ,on the subject  
of ,foundling        ,hospitals there is
 a whole literature4 ,they were         
violently attacked        by1 ,i        
believe1 ,lord ,brougham1 in the        
,edinburgh ,review1 in the        early 
part of this century4 ,writers of this  
stamp1 and indeed most        political 
economists1 greatly exaggerate the      
forethought of men and        women1    
especially in matters where the passions
 are concerned4 ,it        may be       
questioned whether one woman in a       
hundred1 who plunges into a             
career of vice1 is in the smallest      
degree influenced by a                  
consideration of whether or not         
charitable institutions are provided    
for the support of aged penitents4      
#baj ,apol4 ch4 xlii4      #baa ,on     
these penances1 see ,bingham1 ,antiq4   
book vii4 ,bingham1 ,i think1           
justly divides the history of asceticism

 into three periods4 ,during        the 
first1 which extends from the foundation
 of the ,church to ,a4,d4        #bej1  
there were men and women who1 with a    
view to spiritual        perfection1    
abstained from marriage1 relinquished   
amusements1        accustomed themselves
 to severe fasts1 and gave up their     
property to        works of charity2 but
 did this in the middle of society and  
without        leading the life of      
either a hermit or a monk4 ,during the  
second        period1 which extended    
from the ,decian persecution1 anchorites
 were        numerous1 but the custom of
 a common or cnobitic life was unknown4 
,it was originated in the time of       
,constantine by ,pachomius4      #bab   
,this is expressly stated by ,st4       
,jerome 7,vit4 ,pauli74      #bac ,see  
on this subject some curious evidence in
 ,neander's ,life of        ,chrysostom4
 ,st4 ,chrysostom wrote a long work to  
console fathers        whose sons were  
thus seduced to the desert4      #bad   

,on this tradition see ,champagny1 ,les 
,antonins1 tome i4 p4 #aic4      #bae   
,ep4 cxxiii4      #baf ,euseb4 ,eccl4   
,hist4 ii4 #bc4      #bag ,gibbon1      
,decline and ,fall1 ch4 xxxvii42 a brief
 but masterly sketch        of the      
progress of the movement4      #bah     
,palladius1 ,hist4 ,laus4 xxxviii4      
#bai ,jerome1 ,preface to the ,rule of  
,st4 ,pachomius1  #g4      #bbj         
,cassian1 ,de ,cnob4 ,inst4 iv4 #a4     
#bba ,rufinus1 ,hist4 ,monach4 ch4 v4   
,rufinus visited it himself4      #bbb  
,palladius1 ,hist4 ,laus4 lxxvi4        
#bbc ,rufinus1 ,hist4 ,mon4 vii4        
#bbd ,there is a good deal of doubt and 
controversy about this4 ,see a note     
in ,mosheim's ,eccl4 ,hist4 7,soame's   
edition71 vol4 i4 p4 #ced4      #bbe    
,most of the passages remaining on the  
subject of the foundation of            
monachism are given by ,thomassin1      
,discipline de l'glise1 part i4         
livre iii4 ch4 xii4 ,this work contains 
also much general information           

about monachism4 ,a curious collection  
of statistics of the numbers        of  
the monks in different localities1      
additional to those ,i have        given
 and gleaned from the ,lives of the     
,saints1 may be found in        ,pitra  
7,vie de ,st4 ,lger1 ,introd4 p4 lix472 
#b1ajj1 or1 according to        another 
account1 #c1jjj monks1 lived in the     
monastery of ,banchor4      #bbf ,the   
three principal are the ,historia       
,monachorum of ,rufinus1 who            
visited ,egypt ,a4,d4 #cgc1 about       
seventeen years after the death of ,st4 
,antony2 the ,institutiones of ,cassian1
 who1 having visited the        ,eastern
 monks about ,a4,d4 #cid1 founded vast  
monasteries containing1        it is    
said1 #e1jjj monks1 at ,marseilles1 and 
died at a great age        about ,a4,d4 
#ddh2 and the ,historia ,lausiaca 7so   
called from ,lausus1        ,governor of
 ,cappadocia7 of ,palladius1 who was    
himself a hermit on        ,mount       
,nitria1 in ,a4,d4 #chh4 ,the first and 

last1 as well as many minor        works
 of the same period1 are given in       
,rosweyde's invaluable        collection
 of the lives of the ,fathers1 one of   
the most fascinating        volumes in  
the whole range of literature4          
,the hospitality of the monks was not   
without drawbacks4 ,in a church         
on ,mount ,nitria three whips were hung 
on a palm-tree--one for                 
chastising monks1 another for chastising
 thieves1 and a third for               
chastising guests4 7,palladius1 ,hist4  
,laus4 vii47      #bbg ,vita ,pauli4    
,st4 ,jerome adds1 that some will not   
believe this1        because they have  
no faith1 but that all things are       
possible for        those that believe4 
#bbh ,vita ,st4 ,hilarion4      #bbi    
,see a long list of these penances in   
,tillemont1 ,mm4 pour servir            
l',hist4 eccls4 tome viii4      #bcj    
,vit ,patrum 7,pachomius74 ,he used to  
lean against a wall when        overcome
 by drowsiness4      #bca ,vit ,patrum1 

ix4 #c4      #bcb ,sozomen1 vi4 #bi4    
#bcc ,e4g4 ,st4 ,antony1 according to   
his biographer ,st4 ,athanasius4        
#bcd 8,il y eut dans le dsert de ,sct   
des solitaires d'une minente            
perfection4444 ,on prtend que pour      
l'ordinaire ils passoient des           
semaines entires sans manger1 mais      
apparemment cela ne se faisoit          
que dans des occasions                  
particulires40--,tillemont1 ,mm4 pour   
servir         l',hist4 eccl4 tome viii4
 p4 #ehj4 ,even this1 however1 was      
admirable6      #bce ,palladius1 ,hist4 
,laus4 cap4 xx4      #bcf 8,primum cum  
accessisset ad eremum tribus continuis  
annis sub        cujusdam saxi rupe     
stans1 semper oravit1 ita ut nunquam    
omnino        resederit neque ,jacuerit4
 ,somni autem tantum caperet1 quantum   
stans        capere potuit2 cibum vero  
nunquam sumpserat nisi die ,dominica4   
,presbyter enim tunc veniebat ad eum et 
offerebat pro eo sacrificium            
idque ei solum sacramentum erat et      

victus40--,rufinus1 ,hist4 ,monach4     
cap4 xv4      #bcg ,thus ,st4 ,antony   
used to live in a tomb1 where he was    
beaten by the        devil4 7,st4       
,athanasius1 ,life of ,antony47         
#bch 4 ,see on these monks ,sozomen1 vi4
 #cc2 ,evagrius1 i4 #ba4 ,it is         
mentioned of a certain ,st4 ,marc of    
,athens1 that1 having lived for         
thirty years naked in the desert1 his   
body was covered with hair        like  
that of a wild beast4 7,bollandists1    
,march #bi47 ,st4 ,mary of              
,egypt1 during part of her period of    
penance1 lived upon grass4        7,vit 
,patrum47      #bci ,life of ,antony4   
#bdj 8,,ii ne faisoit pas aussi         
difficult dans sa vieillesse de se laver
        quelquefois les piez4 ,et comme 
on tmoignoit s'en tonner et trouver     
que cela ne rpondoit pas  la vie austre 
des anciens1 il se        justifioit par
 ces paroles3 ,nous avons appris  tuer1 
non pas notre        corps mais nos     
passions40--,tillemont1 ,mm4 ,hist4     

eccl4 tome xv4 p4        #adh4 ,this    
saint was so very virtuous1 that he     
sometimes remained        without eating
 for whole weeks4      #bda 8,non       
appropinquavit oleum corpusculo ejus4   
,facies vel etiam pedes a        die    
conversionis su nunquam diluti          
sunt40--,vit ,patrum1 c4 xvii4      #bdb
 8,in facie ejus puritas animi          
noscebatur40--,ibid4 c4 xviii4      #bdc
 ,socrates1 iv4 #bc4      #bdd          
,heraclidis ,paradisus 7,rosweyde71 c4  
xlii4      #bde 8,nulla earum pedes suos
 abluebat2 aliquant vero audientes de   
balneo        loqui1 irridentes1        
confusionem et magnam abominationem se  
audire        judicabant1 qu neque audi 
tum suum hoc audire patiebantur40--,vit4
        ,s4 ,euphrax4 c4 vi4            
7,rosweyde47      #bdf ,see her acts1   
,bollandists1 ,april #b1 and in the ,vit
 ,patrum4      #bdg 8,patres nostri     
nunquam facies suas lavabant1 nos autem 
lavacra        publica balneaque        
frequentamus40--,moschus1 ,pratum       

,spirituale1        clxviii4      #bdh  
,pratum ,spirituale1 lxxx4          ,an 
,irish saint1 named ,coemgenus1 is said 
to have shown his devotion        in a  
way which was directly opposite to that 
of the other saints ,i        have      
mentioned--by his special use of cold   
water--but the principle in        each 
case was the same--to mortify nature4   
,st4 ,coemgenus was        accustomed to
 pray for an hour every night in a pool 
of cold water1        while the devil   
sent a horrible beast to swim round him4
 ,an angel1        however1 was sent to 
him for three purposes4 8,tribus de     
causis         ,domino missus est       
angelus ibi ad ,s4 ,coemgenum4 ,prima ut
 a diversis        suis gravibus        
laboribus levius viveret paulisper2     
secunda ut        horridam bestiam      
sancto infestam repelleret2 tertia ut   
frigiditatem        aqu                 
calefaceret40--,bollandists1 ,june #c4  
,the editors say these acts        are  
of doubtful authenticity4      #bdi ,see

 his ,life by his disciple ,antony1 in  
the ,vit ,patrum1 ,evagrius1        i4  
#ac1 #ad4 ,theodoret1 ,philotheos1 cap4 
xxvi4      #bej ,palladius1 ,hist4      
,laus4 lxxvi4      #bea ,rufinus1 ,hist4
 ,monach4 xxxiii4      #beb ,we have a  
striking illustration of this in ,st4   
,arsenius4 ,his        eyelashes are    
said to have fallen off through         
continual weeping1 and        he had    
always1 when at work1 to put a cloth on 
his breast to receive        his tears4 
,as he felt his death approaching1 his  
terror rose to the        point of      
agony4 ,the monks who were about him    
said1 8 #8,quid fles1        pater8     
numquid et tu times8' ,ille respondit1  
#8,in veritate timeo et        iste     
timor qui nunc mecum est1 semper in me  
fuit1 ex quo factus sum                 
monachus4' 0--,verba ,seniorum1 ,prol4  
#afc4 ,it was said of ,st4              
,abraham that no day passed after his   
conversion without his shedding         
tears4 7,vit4 ,patrum47 ,st4 ,john the  

dwarf once saw a monk laughing          
immoderately at dinner1 and was so      
horrified that he at once began         
to cry4 7,tillemont1 ,mm4 de l',hist4   
eccls4 tome x4 p4 #dcj47 ,st4           
,basil 7,regul1 interrog4 xvii47 gives a
 remarkable disquisition on        the  
wickedness of laughing1 and he observes 
that this was the one        bodily     
affection which ,christ does not seem to
 have known4 ,mr4        ,buckle has    
collected a series of passages to       
precisely the same        effect from   
the writings of the ,scotch divines4    
7,hist4 of        ,civilisation1 vol4   
ii4 pp4 #che-chf47      #bec 8,monachus 
autem non doctoris habet sed plangentis 
officium40--,contr4        ,vigilant4   
xv4      #bed ,as ,tillemont puts it3   
8,il se trouva trs-peu de saints en qui 
,dieu        ait joint les talens       
extrieurs de l'loquence et de la science
 avec        la grce de la prophtie et  
des miracles4 ,ce sont des dons que sa  
,providence a presque toujours          

spars40--,mm4 ,hist4 eccls4 tome        
iv4 p4 #cae4      #bee ,st4 ,athanasius1
 ,vit4 ,anton4      #bef ,ep4 xxii4 ,he 
says his shoulders were bruised when he 
awoke4      #beg ,ep4 lxx42 ,adv4       
,rufinum1 lib4 i4 ch4 xxx4 ,he there    
speaks of his        vision as a mere   
dream1 not binding4 ,he elsewhere 7,ep4 
cxxv47        speaks very sensibly of   
the advantage of hermits occupying      
themselves1 and says he learnt ,hebrew  
to keep away unholy thoughts4      #beh 
,sozomen1 vi4 #bh2 ,rufinus1 ,hist4     
,monach4 ch4 vi4 ,socrates tells        
rather a touching story of one of these 
illiterate saints1 named        ,pambos4
 ,being unable to read1 he came to some 
one to be taught a        psalm4 ,having
 learnt the single verse1 8,i said ,i   
will take heed to        my ways1 that  
,i offend not with my tongue10 he went  
away1 saying        that was enough if  
it were practically acquired4 ,when     
asked1 six        months1 and again many
 years1 after1 why he did not come to   

learn        another verse1 he answered 
that he had never been able truly to    
master this4 7,h4 ,e4 iv4 #bc47         
#bei ,tillemont1 x4 p4 #fa4      #bfj   
,ibid4 viii4 #dij2 ,socrates1 ,h4 ,e4   
iv4 #bc4      #bfa ,i have combined in  
this passage incidents from three       
distinct lives4        ,st4 ,jerome1 in 
a very famous and very beautiful passage
 of his        letter to ,eustochium    
7,ep4 xxii47 describes the manner in    
which the        forms of dancing-girls 
appeared to surround him as he knelt    
upon the        desert sands4 ,st4 ,mary
 of ,egypt 7,vit ,patrum1 ch4 xix47 was 
especially tortured by the recollection 
of the songs she had sung        when   
young1 which continually haunted her    
mind4 ,st4 ,hilarion 7see        his    
,life by ,st4 ,jerome7 thought he saw a 
gladiatorial show while        he was   
repeating the psalms4 ,the manner in    
which the different        visions faded
 into one another like dissolving views 
is repeatedly        described in the   

biographies4      #bfb ,rufinus1 ,hist4 
,monach41 ch4 xi4 ,this saint was ,st4  
,helenus4      #bfc ,life of ,st4       
,pachomius 7,vit4 ,patrum71 cap4 ix4    
#bfd ,rufinus1 ,hist4 ,monach4 cap4 i4  
,this story was told to ,rufinus by     
,st4 ,john the hermit4 ,the same saint  
described his own visions very          
graphically4 8,denique etiam me         
frequenter dmones noctibus              
seduxerunt1 et neque orare neque        
requiescere permiserunt1 phantasias     
quasdam per noctem totam sensibus meis  
et cogitationes suggerentes4            
,mane vero velut cum quadam illusione   
prosternebant se ante me                
dicentes1 ,indulge nobis1 abbas1 quia   
laborem tibi incussimus tota            
nocte40--,ibid4 ,st4 ,benedict in the   
desert is said to have been             
tortured by the recollection of a       
beautiful girl he had once seen1        
and only regained his composure by      
rolling in thorns4 7,st4 ,greg4         
,dial4 ii4 #b47      #bfe ,she lived    

also for some time in a convent at      
,jerusalem1 which she        had        
founded4 ,melania 7who was one of ,st4  
,jerome's friends7 was a        lady of 
rank and fortune1 who devoted her       
property to the monks4 ,see        her  
journey in ,rosweyde1 lib4 ii4      #bff
 ,see his ,life in ,tillemont4      #bfg
 ,ibid4 x4 p4 #ad4 ,a certain ,didymus  
lived entirely alone till his           
death1 which took place when he was     
ninety4 7,socrates1 ,h4 ,e4 iv4         
#bc47      #bfh ,rufinus1 ,hist4        
,monachorum1 cap4 i4      #bfi ,verba   
,seniorum1  #fe4      #bgj ,pelagia was 
very pretty1 and1 according to her own  
account1 8her        sins were heavier  
than the sand40 ,the people of ,antioch1
 who were        very fond of her1      
called her ,margarita1 or the pearl4    
8,il arriva un        jour que divers   
vesques1 appelez par celui d',antioche  
pour quelques        affaires1 estant   
ensemble  la porte de l'eglise de       
,s4-,julien1        ,plagie passa devant

 eux dans tout l'clat des pompes du     
diable1        n'ayant pas seulement une
 coeffe sur sa teste ni un mouchoir sur 
ses        paules1 ce qu'on remarqua    
comme le comble de son impudence4 ,tous 
les vesques baissrent les yeux en       
gmissant pour ne pas voir ce            
dangereux objet de pch1 hors ,nonne1    
trs-saint vesque d',hliople1        qui 
la regarda avec une attention qui fit   
peine aux autres40        ,however1 this
 bishop immediately began crying a great
 deal1 and        reassured his         
brethren1 and a sermon which he preached
 led to the        conversion of the    
actress4 7,tillemont1 ,mm4 d',hist4     
eccls4 tome        xii4 pp4 #cgh-chj4   
,see1 too1 on women1 8under pretence of 
religion1        attiring themselves as 
men10 ,sozomen1 iii4 #ad47      #bga    
,tillemont1 tome x4 pp4 #cgf1 #cgg4     
,apart from family affections1 there    
are some curious instances recorded of  
the anxiety of the saints to            
avoid distractions4 ,one monk used to   

cover his face when he went        into 
his garden1 lest the sight of the trees 
should disturb his        mind4 7,verb4 
,seniorum47 ,st4 ,arsenius could not    
bear the rustling        of the reeds   
7ibid472 and a saint named ,boniface    
struck dead a man        who went about 
with an ape and a cymbal1 because he had
 7apparently        quite               
unintentionally7 disturbed him at his   
prayers4 7,st4 ,greg4        ,dial4 i4  
#i47      #bgb 8,quemadmodum se jam     
divitem non esse sciebat1 ita etiam     
patrem se        esse                   
nesciret40--,cassian1 ,de ,cnobiorum    
,institutis1 iv4 #bg4      #bgc 8,cumque
 taliter infans sub oculis ejus per dies
 singulos ageretur1        pro amore    
nihilominus ,christi et obedienti       
virtute1 rigida semper        atque     
immobilia patris viscera permanserunt   
444 parum cogitans de        lacrymis   
ejus1 sed de propria humilitate ac      
perfectione        sollicitus40--,ibid4 
#bgd ,ibid4      #bge ,bollandists1     

,july #f2 ,verba ,seniorum1 xiv4        
#bgf ,verba ,seniorum1 xiv4      #bgg   
,,tartuffe 7tirant un mouchoir          
de sa poche74          8,ah1 mon ,dieu1 
je vous prie1        ,avant que de      
parler1 prenez-moi ce mouchoir4         
,,dorine4          ,comment6            
,,tartuffe4          ,couvrez ce sein   
que je ne saurois voir2        ,par de  
pareils objets des mes sont blesses1    
,et cela fait venir de coupables        
penses40          ,tartuffe1 ,acte iii4 
scne #b4      #bgh ,bollandists1 ,july  
#f4      #bgi ,verba ,seniorum1 iv4 ,the
 poor woman1 being startled and         
perplexed        at the proceedings of  
her son1 said1 8,quid sic operuisti     
manus tuas1        fili8 ,ille autem    
dixit3 ,quia corpus mulieris ignis est1 
et ex eo        ipso quo te contingebam 
veniebat mihi commemoratio aliarum      
feminarum        in animo40      #bhj   
,tillemont1 ,mm4 de l',hist4 eccls4 tome
 x4 pp4 #ddd1 #dde4      #bha ,vit4 ,s4 
,pachomius1 ch4 xxxi42 ,verba ,seniorum4

      #bhb ,verba ,senorium1 xiv4       
#bhc ,palladius1 ,hist4 ,laus4 cap4     
lxxxvii4      #bhd ,bollandists1 ,june  
#f4 ,i avail myself again of the version
 of        ,tillemont4 8,lorsque ,s4    
,pemen demeuroit en ,egypte avec ses    
frres1        leur mre1 qui avoit un    
extrme dsir de les voir1 venoit souvent 
au        lieu o ils estoient1 sans     
pouvoir jamais avoir cette satisfaction4
        ,une fois enfin elle prit si    
bien son temps qu'elle les rencontra qui
        alloient  l'glise1 mais ds      
qu'ils la virent ils s'en retournrent   
en haste dans leur cellule et fermrent  
la porte sur eux4 ,elle les             
suivit1 et trouvant la porte1 elle les  
appeloit avec des larmes et        des  
cris capables de les toucher de         
compassion4444 ,pemen s'y leva et       
s'y en alla1 et l'entendant pleurer il  
luy dit1 tenant toujours la        porte
 ferme1 #8,pourquoi vous lassez-vous    
inutilement  pleurer et        crier8   
,n'tes-vous pas dj assez abattue par la 

vieillesse8' ,elle        reconnut la   
voix de ,pemen1 et s'efforant encore    
davantage1 elle        s'cria1 #8,h1 mes
 enfans1 c'est que je voudrais bien vous
 voir3 et        quel mal y a-t-il que  
je vous voie8 ,ne suis-je pas votre mre1
 et ne        vous ai-je pas nourri du  
lait de mes mammelles8 ,je suis dj toute
        pleine de rides1 et lorsque je  
vous ay entendu1 l'extrme envie que     
j'ay de vous voir m'a tellement mue que 
je suis presque tombe en                
dfaillance4' 0--,mmoires de l',hist4    
eccls4 tome xv4 pp4 #aeg1 #aeh4         
#bhe ,the original is much more eloquent
 than my translation4 8,fili1 quare     
hoc fecisti8 ,pro utero quo te portavi1 
satiasti me luctu1 pro        lactatione
 qua te lactavi dedisti mihi lacrymas1  
pro osculo quo te        osculata sum1  
dedisti mihi amaras cordis angustias2   
pro dolore et        labore quem passa  
sum1 imposuisti mihi svissimas          
plagas40--,vita        ,simeonis 7in    
,rosweyde74      #bhf ,bingham1         

,antiquities1 book vii4 ch4 iii4        
#bhg ,ibid4      #bhh ,bingham1         
,antiquities1 book vii4 chap4 #c4       
#bhi ,milman's ,early ,christianity 7ed4
 #ahfg71 vol4 iii4 p4 #abb4      #bij   
,ibid4 vol4 iii4 p4 #aec4      #bia     
,ibid4 vol4 iii4 p4 #abj4      #bib ,de 
,virginibus1 i4 #aa4      #bic ,see     
,milman's ,early ,christianity1 vol4    
iii4 p4 #aba4      #bid ,de ,virginibus1
 i4 #aa4      #bie ,epist4 xxiv4        
#bif ,st4 ,jerome describes the scene at
 her departure with admiring            
eloquence4 8,descendit ad portum fratre1
 cognatis1 affinibus et quod            
majus est liberis prosequentibus1 et    
elementissimam matrem pietate           
vincere cupientibus4 ,jam carbasa       
tendebantur1 et remorum ductu navis     
in altum protrahebatur4 ,parvus         
,toxotius supplices manus tendebat in   
littore1 ,ruffina jam nubilis ut suas   
expectaret nuptias tacens               
fletibus obsecrabat4 ,et tamen illa     
siccos tendebat ad clum oculos1         

pietatem in filios pietate in ,deum     
superans4 ,nesciebat se matrem ut       
,christi probaret ancillam40--,ep4      
cviii4 ,in another place he says of     
her3 8,testis est ,jesus1 ne unum quidem
 nummum ab ea fili derelictum           
sed1 ut ante jam dixi1 derelictum magnum
 s alienum40--,ibid4 ,and        again3 
8,vis1 lector1 ejus breviter scire      
virtutes8 ,omnes suos        pauperes1  
pauperior ipsa dimisit40--,ibid4        
#big ,see ,chastel1 ,etudes historiques 
sur la ,charit1 p4 #bca4 ,the           
parents of ,st4 ,gregory ,nazianzen had 
made this request1 which was            
faithfully observed4      #bih ,chastel1
 p4 #bcb4      #bii ,see a              
characteristic passage from the ,life of
 ,st4 ,fulgentius1        quoted by     
,dean ,milman4 8,facile potest juvenis  
tolerare quemcunque        imposuerit   
laborem qui poterit maternum jam        
despicere        dolorem40--,hist4 of   
,latin ,christianity1 vol4 ii4 p4 #hb4  
#cjj ,ep4 xiv4 7,ad ,heliodorum74       

#cja ,st4 ,greg4 ,dial4 ii4 #bd4        
#cjb ,bollandists1 ,may #c 7vol4 vii4 p4
 #efa74      #cjc 8,hospitibus omni loco
 ac tempore liberalissimus fuit4444     
,solis        consanguineis durus erat  
et inhumanus1 tamquam ignotos illos     
respiciens40--,bollandists1 ,may #bi4   
#cjd ,see ,helyot1 ,dict4 des ,ordres   
religieux1 art4 8,camaldules40      #cje
 ,see the charming sketch in the ,life  
of ,st4 ,francis1 by ,hase4      #cjf   
,the legend of ,st4 ,scholastica1 the   
sister of ,st4 ,benedict1 has been      
often quoted4 ,he had visited her1 and  
was about to leave in the               
evening1 when she implored him to stay4 
,he refused1 and she then        prayed 
to ,god1 who sent so violent a tempest  
that the saint was        unable to     
depart4 7,st4 ,greg4 ,dial4 ii4 #cc47   
,cassian speaks of a        monk who    
thought it his duty never to see his    
mother1 but who        laboured for a   
whole year to pay off a debt she had    
incurred4        7,cnob4 ,inst4 v4 #ch47

 ,st4 ,jerome mentions the strong       
natural        affection of ,paula1     
though she considered it a virtue to    
mortify it4        7,ep4 cviii47        
#cjg ,life of ,antony4 ,see1 too1 the   
sentiments of ,st4 ,pachomius1 ,vit4    
cap4 xxvii4      #cjh 8,nec ulla res    
aliena magis quam                       
publica40--,tertullian1 ,apol4 ch4      
xxxviii4      #cji 8,quid interest sub  
cujus imperio vivat homo moriturus1 si  
illi qui        imperant1 ad impia et   
iniqua non cogant40--,st4 ,aug4 ,de     
,civ4 ,dei1 v4        #ag4      #caj    
,st4 ,jerome declares that 8,monachum in
 patria sua perfectum esse non          
posse1 perfectum autem esse nolle       
delinquere est40--,ep4 xiv4 ,dean       
,milman well says of a later period3    
8,according to the monastic view        
of ,christianity1 the total abandonment 
of the world1 with all its        ties  
and duties1 as well as its treasures1   
its enjoyments1 and        objects of   
ambition1 advanced rather than          

diminished the hopes of                 
salvation4 ,why should they fight for a 
perishing world1 from which        it   
was better to be estranged8444 ,it is   
singular1 indeed1 that while        we  
have seen the ,eastern monks turned into
 fierce undisciplined        soldiers1  
perilling their own lives and shedding  
the blood of others        without      
remorse1 in assertion of some shadowy   
shade of orthodox        expression1    
hardly anywhere do we find them         
asserting their        liberties or     
their religion with intrepid resistance4
 ,hatred of        heresy was a more    
stirring motive than the dread or the   
danger of        ,islamism4 ,after the  
first defeats the ,christian mind was   
still        further prostrated by the  
common notion that the invasion was a   
just        and heaven-commissioned     
visitation2 444 resistance a vain1      
almost an        impious struggle to    
avert inevitable punishment40--,milman's
 ,latin        ,christianity1 vol4 ii4  

p4 #bjf4 ,compare ,massillon's famous   
,discours        au ,rgiment de         
,catinat3--8,ce qu'il y a ici de plus   
dplorable1 c'est        que dans une vie
 rude et pnible1 dans des emplois dont  
les devoirs        passent quelquefois  
la rigueur des clotres les plus austres1
 vous        souffrez toujours en vain  
pour l'autre vie4444 ,dix ans de        
services        ont plus us votre corps 
qu'une vie entire de pnitence 444 un    
seul        jour de ces souffrances1    
consacr au ,seigneur1 vous aurait       
peut-tre        valu un bonheur ternel40
      #caa ,see a very striking passage 
in ,salvian1 ,de ,gubern4 ,div4 lib4 vi4
      #cab ,chateaubriand very truly    
says1 8qu',orose et saint ,augustin     
toient        plus occups du schisme de 
,plage que de la dsolation de l',afrique
        et des ,gaules40--tudes histor4 
vime discours1 #b;de partie4 ,the       
remark might certainly be extended much 
further4      #cac ,zosimus1 ,hist4 v4  
#da4 ,this was on the first occasion    

when ,rome was        menaced by        
,alaric4      #cad ,see ,merivale's     
,conversion of the ,northern ,nations1  
pp4 #bjg-baj4      #cae ,see ,sismondi1 
,hist4 de la ,chute de l',empire romain1
 tome i4 p4        #bcj4      #caf      
,eunapius4 ,there is no other authority 
for the story of the        treachery1  
which is not believed by ,gibbon4       
#cag ,sismondi1 ,hist4 de la ,chute de  
l',empire romain1 tome ii4 pp4          
#eb-ed2 ,milman1 ,hist4 of ,latin       
,christianity1 vol4 ii4 p4 #bac4 ,the   
,monophysites were greatly afflicted    
because1 after the conquest1 the        
,mohammedans tolerated the orthodox     
believers as well as themselves1        
and were unable to appreciate the       
distinction between them4 ,in ,gaul1    
the orthodox clergy favoured the        
invasions of the ,franks1 who1 alone    
of the barbarian conquerors of ,gaul1   
were ,catholics1 and ,st4               
,aprunculus was obliged to fly1 the     
,burgundians desiring to kill him       

on account of his suspected connivance  
with the invaders4 7,greg4        ,tur4 
ii4 #bc47      #cah ,dean ,milman says  
of the ,church1 8if treacherous to the  
interests of        the ,roman ,empire1 
it was true to those of                 
mankind40--,hist4 of                    
,christianity1 vol4 iii4 p4 #dh4 ,so    
,gibbon3 8,if the decline of the        
,roman ,empire was hastened by the      
conversion of ,constantine1 the         
victorious religion broke the violence  
of the fall and mollified the           
ferocious temper of the                 
conquerors40--,ch4 xxxviii4      #cai   
,observe with what a fine perception    
,st4 ,augustine notices the             
essentially unchristian character of the
 moral dispositions to which        the 
greatness of ,rome was due4 ,he quotes  
the sentence of ,sallust3               
8,civitas1 incredibile memoratu est1    
adept libertate quantum brevi           
creverit1 tanta cupido glori            
incesserat20 and adds3 8,ista ergo      

laudis aviditas et cupido glori multa   
illa miranda fecit1        laudabilia   
scilicet atque gloriosa secundum hominum
 existimationem        444 causa        
honoris1 laudis et glori consuluerunt   
patri1 in qua        ipsam gloriam      
requirebant1 salutemque ejus saluti su  
prponere non        dubitaverunt1 pro   
isto uno vitio1 id est1 amore laudis1   
pecuni        cupiditatem et multa alia 
vitia comprimentes4444 ,quid aliud      
amarent        quam gloriam1 qua        
volebant etiam post mortem tanquam      
vivere in ore        laudantium80--,de  
,civ4 ,dei1 v4 #ab-ac4      #cbj 8,prter
 majorum cineres atque ossa1 volucri    
,carpento rapitur pinguis ,damasippus et
 ipse1        ,ipse rotam stringit multo
 sufflamine consul2        ,nocte       
quidem2 sed luna videt1 sed sidera      
testes        ,intendunt oculos4        
,finitum tempus honoris        ,quum    
fuerit1 clara ,damasippus luce flagellum
 ,sumet40--,juvenal1 ,sat4        viii4 
#adf4      #cba ,nat4 ,qust4 iv4 #ac4   

,ep4 #gh4      #cbb 8,pessimum vit      
scelus fecit1 qui id aurum primus induit
 digitis        444 quisquis primus     
instituit cunctanter id fecit1 lvisque  
manibus1        latentibusque           
induit40--,plin4 ,hist4 ,nat4 xxxiii4   
#d4      #cbc ,see a curious passage in 
his ,apologia4 ,it should be said that  
we        have only his own account of  
the charges brought against him4        
#cbd ,the history of false hair has been
 written with much learning by ,m4      
,guerle in his loge des ,perruques4     
#cbe ,the fullest view of this age is   
given in a very learned little work     
by ,peter ,erasmus ,mller 7#agig71 ,de  
,genio vi ,theodosiani4                 
,montfaucon has also devoted two essays 
to the moral condition of the           
,eastern world1 one of which is given in
 ,jortin's ,remarks on                  
,ecclesiastical ,history4      #cbf ,see
 on these abuses ,mosheim1 ,eccl4 ,hist4
 7,soame's ed471 vol4 i4 p4        #dfc2
 ,cave's ,primitive ,christianity1 part 

i4 ch4 xi4      #cbg ,cave's ,primitive 
,christianity1 part i4 ch4 vii4         
#cbh ,ep4 lxi4      #cbi ,evagrius      
describes with much admiration how      
certain monks of        ,palestine1 by  
8a life wholly excellent and divine10   
had so overcome        their passions   
that they were accustomed to bathe with 
women2 for        8neither sight nor    
touch1 nor a woman's embrace1 could make
 them        relapse into their natural 
condition4 ,among men they desired to be
        men1 and among women1 women40   
7,h4 ,e4 i4 #ba47      #ccj ,these      
8mulieres subintroduct10 as they were   
called1 are continually        noticed  
by ,cyprian1 ,jerome1 and ,chrysostom4  
,see ,mller1 ,de ,genio        vi       
,theodosiani1 and also the ,codex       
,theod4 xvi4 tit4 ii4 lex #dd1          
with the ,comments4 ,dr4 ,todd1 in his  
learned ,life of ,st4 ,patrick          
7p4 #ia71 quotes 7,i shall not venture  
to do so7 from the ,lives of        the 
,irish ,saints an extremely curious     

legend of a kind of contest        of   
sanctity between ,st4 ,scuthinus and    
,st4 ,brendan1 in which it was          
clearly proved that the former had      
mastered his passions more              
completely than the latter4 ,an         
enthusiast named ,robert                
d',arbrisselles is said in the twelfth  
century to have revived the             
custom4 7,jortin's ,remarks1 ,a4,d4     
#aajf47      #cca ,st4 ,jerome gives    
7,ep4 lii47 an extremely curious picture
 of these        clerical flatterers1   
and several examples of the terms of    
endearment        they were accustomed  
to employ4 ,the tone of flattery which  
,st4        ,jerome himself1 though     
doubtless with the purest motives1      
employs in        his copious           
correspondence with his female admirers1
 is to a modern        layman peculiarly
 repulsive1 and sometimes verges upon   
blasphemy4 ,in        his letter to     
,eustochium1 whose daughter as a nun had
 become the        8bride of ,christ10  

he calls the mother 8,socrus ,dei10 the 
mother-in-law of ,god4 ,see1 too1 the   
extravagant flatteries of               
,chrysostom in his correspondence with  
,olympias4      #ccb 8,pudet dicere     
sacerdotes idolorum1 mimi et aurig et   
scorta        hreditates capiunt2 solis 
clericis et monachis hoc lege           
prohibetur1        et prohibetur non a  
persecutoribus1 sed a principibus       
,christianis4        ,nec de lege       
conqueror sed doleo cur meruerimus hanc 
legem40 ,ep4        lii4      #ccc ,see 
,milman's ,hist4 of ,early              
,christianity1 vol4 ii4 p4 #cad4        
#ccd ,this was one cause of the disputes
 between ,st4 ,gregory the ,great and   
the ,emperor ,eustace4 ,st4 ,chrysostom 
frequently notices the        opposition
 of the military and the monastic       
spirits4      #cce ,hieron4 ,ep4        
cxxviii4      #ccf ,st4 ,greg4 ,nyss4   
,ad eund4 ,hieros4 ,some ,catholic      
writers have        attempted to throw  
doubt upon the genuineness of this      

epistle1 but1        ,dean ,milman      
thinks1 with no sufficient reason4 ,its 
account of        ,jerusalem is to some 
extent corroborated by ,st4 ,jerome4    
7,ad        ,paulinum1 ,ep4 xxix47      
#ccg 8,prterea non taceo charitati      
vestr1 quia omnibus servis ,dei qui     
hic vel in ,scriptura vel in timore ,dei
 probatissimi esse videntur1            
displicet quod bonum et honestas et     
pudicitia vestr ecclesi                 
illuditur2 et aliquod levamentum        
turpitudinis esset1 si prohiberet       
synodus et principes vestri mulieribus  
et velatis feminis illud iter        et 
frequentiam1 quam ad ,romanam civitatem 
veniendo et redeundo        faciunt1    
quia magna ex parte pereunt1 paucis     
remeantibus integris4        ,perpauc   
enim sunt civitates in ,longobardia vel 
in ,francia aut in        ,gallia in qua
 non sit adultera vel meretrix generis  
,anglorum1 quod        scandalum est et 
turpitudo totius ecclesi                
vestr40--7,a4,d4 #gde7 ,ep4             

lxiii4      #cch ,see ,milman's ,latin  
,christianity1 vol4 ii4 p4 #h4      #cci
 ,tillemont1 ,hist4 eccl4 tome xi4 p4   
#edg4      #cdj ,this was enjoined in   
the rule of ,st4 ,paphnutius4 ,see      
,tillemont1 tome        x4 p4 #de4      
#cda 8,omnimodis monachum fugere debere 
mulieres et episcopos40--,cassian1      
,de ,cnob4 ,inst4 xi4 #ag4      #cdb ,we
 also find now and then1 though ,i think
 very rarely1 intellectual              
flashes of some brilliancy4 ,two of them
 strike me as especially                
noteworthy4 ,st4 ,arsenius refused to   
separate young criminals from           
communion though he had no hesitation   
about old men2 for he had               
observed that young men speedily get    
accustomed and indifferent to        the
 state of excommunication1 while old men
 feel continually1 and        acutely1  
the separation4 7,socrates1 iv4 #bc47   
,st4 ,apollonius        explained the   
,egyptian idolatry with the most        
intelligent        rationalism4 ,the ox1

 he thought1 was in the first instance  
worshipped for its domestic uses2 the   
,nile1 because it was the chief         
cause of the fertility of the soil c4   
7,rufinus1 ,hist4 ,mon4 cap4            
vii47      #cdc ,palladius1 ,hist4      
,laus4 cap4 xix4      #cdd ,rufinus1    
,hist4 ,monach4 cap4 xxix4      #cde    
,tillemont1 ,hist4 eccl4 tome viii4 pp4 
#ehc1 #ehd4      #cdf ,ibid4 p4 #ehi4   
#cdg ,theodoret1 ,philoth4 cap4 iii4    
#cdh ,verba ,seniorum4      #cdi        
,theodoret1 ,philoth4 cap4 ii4      #cej
 ,tillemont1 tome viii4 pp4 #eid-eie4   
#cea ,pliny1 ,hist4 ,nat4 viii4 #a4     
,many anecdotes of elephants are        
collected viii4 #a-ab4 ,see1 too1 ,dion 
,cassius1 xxxix4 #ch4      #ceb ,pliny1 
viii4 #dj4      #cec ,donne's           
,biathanatos4 p4 #bb4 ,this habit of    
bees is mentioned by ,st4               
,ambrose4 ,the pelican1 as is well      
known1 afterwards became an emblem      
of ,christ4      #ced ,plin4 ,hist4     
,nat4 x4 #f4      #cee ,a long list of  

legends about dogs is given by          
,legendre1 in the very        curious   
chapter on animals1 in his ,trait de    
l',opinion1 tome i4        pp4 #cjh-cbg4
      #cef ,pliny tells some extremely  
pretty stories of this kind4 7,hist4    
,nat4 ix4 #h-i47 ,see1 too1 ,aulus      
,gellius1 xvi4 #ai4 ,the dolphin1 on    
account of its love for its young1      
became a common symbol of ,christ       
among the early ,christians4      #ceg  
,a very full account of the opinions1   
both of ancient and modern              
philosophers1 concerning the souls of   
animals1 is given by ,bayle1            
,dict4 arts4 8,pereira ,e10 8,rorarius  
,k40      #ceh ,the ,jewish law did not 
confine its care to oxen4 ,the reader   
will        remember the touching       
provision1 8,thou shalt not seethe a kid
 in his        mother's milk0 7,deut4   
xiv4 #ba72 and the law forbidding men to
 take a        parent bird that was     
sitting on its young or on its eggs4    
7,deut4        xxii4 #f1 #g47      #cei 

8,cujus tanta fuit apud antiquos        
veneratio1 ut tam capital esset         
bovem necuisse quam civem40--,columella1
 lib4 vi4 in prom4 8,hic        socius  
hominum in rustico opere et ,cereris    
minister4 ,ab hoc antiqui        manus  
ita abstinere voluerunt ut capite       
sanxerint si quis                       
occidisset40--,varro1 ,de ,re ,rustic4  
lib4 ii4 cap4 v4      #cfj ,see         
,legendre1 tome ii4 p4 #cch4 ,the sword 
with which the priest        sacrificed 
the ox was afterwards pronounced        
accursed4 7lian1 ,hist4        ,var4    
lib4 viii4 cap4 iii47      #cfa ,diog4  
,lart4 ,xenocrates4      #cfb ,there is 
a story told by ,herodotus 7i4 #aeg-aei7
 of an ambassador who        was sent by
 his fellow-countrymen to consult an    
oracle at ,miletus        about a       
suppliant who had taken refuge with the 
,cymans and was        demanded with    
menace by his enemies4 ,the oracle1     
being bribed1        enjoined the       
surrender4 ,the ambassador on leaving1  

with seeming        carelessness        
disturbed the sparrows under the portico
 of the temple1        when the voice   
from behind the altar denounced his     
impiety for        disturbing the guests
 of the gods4 ,the ambassador replied   
with an        obvious and withering    
retort4 lian says 7,hist4 ,var47 that   
the        ,athenians condemned to death
 a boy for killing a sparrow that had   
taken refuge in the temple of sculapius4
      #cfc ,quintilian1 ,inst4 v4 #i4   
#cfd ,in the same way we find several   
chapters in the ,zendavesta about       
the criminality of injuring dogs2 which 
is explained by the great               
importance of shepherd's dogs to a      
pastoral people4      #cfe ,on the      
origin of ,greek cock-fighting1 see     
lian1 ,hist4 ,var4 ii4        #bh4 ,many
 particulars about it are given by      
,athenus4 ,chrysippus        maintained 
that cock-fighting was the final cause  
of cocks1 these        birds being made 
by ,providence in order to inspire us by

 the example        of their courage4   
7,plutarch1 ,de ,repug4 ,stoic47 ,the   
,greeks do not1        however1 appear  
to have known 8cock-throwing10 the      
favourite ,english        game of       
throwing a stick called a 8cock-stick0  
at cocks4 ,it was a        very ancient 
and very popular amusement1 and was     
practised        especially on ,shrove  
,tuesday1 and by school-boys4 ,sir      
,thomas ,more        had been famous for
 his skill in it4 7,strutt's ,sports and
        ,pastimes1 p4 #bhc47 ,three     
origins of it have been given3--#ast1   
that        in the ,danish wars the     
,saxons failed to surprise a certain    
city in        consequence of the       
crowing of cocks1 and had in consequence
 a great        hatred of that bird2    
#bnd1 that the cocks 7galli7 were       
special        representatives of       
,frenchmen1 with whom the ,english were 
constantly        at war2 and #crd1 that
 they were connected with the denial of 
,st4        ,peter4 ,as ,sir ,charles   

,sedley said3--          8,mayst thou be
 punished for ,st4 ,peter's crime1      
,and on ,shrove ,tuesday perish in thy  
prime40          ,knight's ,old         
,england1 vol4 ii4 p4 #abf4      #cff   
,de ,natura ,rerum1 lib4 ii4      #cfg  
,life of ,marc4 ,cato4      #cfh 8,quid 
meruere boves1 animal sine fraude       
dolisque1        ,innocuum1 simplex1    
natum tolerare labores8        ,immemor 
est demum nec frugum munere dignus4     
,qui potuit curvi dempto modo pondere   
aratri        ,ruricolam mactare        
suum40--          ,metamorph4 xv4       
#abj-abd4      #cfi 8,cujus             
,turbavit nitidos extinctus passer      
ocellos40          ,juvenal1 ,sat4 vi4  
#g-h4          ,there is a little poem  
in ,catullus 7iii47 to console his      
mistress        upon the death of her   
favourite sparrow2 and ,martial more    
than once        alludes to the pets of 
the ,roman ladies4          ,compare the
 charming description of the ,prioress1 
in ,chaucer3--          8,she was so    

charitable and so pitous1        ,she   
wolde wepe if that she saw a        mous
 ,caught in a trappe1 if it were ded or 
bledde4        ,of smale houndes had she
 that she fedde        ,with rosted     
flesh and milke and wastel brede1       
,but sore wept she if one of them were  
dede1        ,or if men smote it with a 
yerde smert3        ,and all was        
conscience and tendre herte40           
,prologue to the 8,canterbury ,tales40  
#cgj ,philost4 ,apol4 i4 #ch4      #cga 
,see the curious chapter in his 1 xvi4  
and compare it with        ,no4 #aaf in 
the ,spectator4      #cgb ,in his ,de   
,abstinentia ,carnis4 ,the controversy  
between ,origen and        ,celsus      
furnishes us with a very curious        
illustration of the        extravagances
 into which some ,pagans of the third   
century fell about        animals4      
,celsus objected to the ,christian      
doctrine about the        position of   
men in the universe1 that many of the   
animals were at        least the equals 

of men both in reason1 religious        
feeling1 and        knowledge4 7,orig4  
,cont4 ,cels4 lib4 iv47      #cgc ,these
 views are chiefly defended in his two  
tracts on eating flesh4        ,plutarch
 has also recurred to the subject1      
incidentally1 in several        other   
works1 especially in a very beautiful   
passage in his ,life of        ,marcus  
,cato4      #cgd ,see1 for example1 a   
striking passage in ,clem4 ,alex4       
,strom4 lib4        ii4 ,st4 ,clement   
imagines ,pythagoras had borrowed his   
sentiments on        this subject from  
,moses4      #cge ,there is1 ,i believe1
 no record of any wild beast combats    
existing        among the ,jews1 and the
 rabbinical writers have been remarkable
 for        the great emphasis with     
which they inculcated the duty of       
kindness        to animals4 ,see some   
passages from them1 cited in ,wollaston1
        ,religion of ,nature1 sec4 ii41 
note4 ,maimonides believed in a         
future life for animals1 to recompense  

them for their sufferings        here4  
7,bayle1 ,dict4 art1 8,rorarius ,d407   
,there is a curious        collection of
 the opinions of different writers on   
this last point        in a little book 
called the ,rights of ,animals1 by      
,william ,drummond        7,london1     
#ahch71 pp4 #aig-bje4      #cgf ,thus   
,st4 ,paul 7#a ,cor4 ix4 #i7 turned     
aside the precept1 8,thou shalt         
not muzzle the mouth of the ox that     
treadeth out the corn10 from its        
natural meaning1 with the contemptuous  
question1 8,doth ,god take care         
for oxen80      #cgg ,i have taken these
 illustrations from the collection of   
hermit        literature in ,rosweyde1  
from different volumes of the           
,bollandists1        from the ,dialogues
 of ,sulpicius ,severus1 and from what  
is perhaps        the most interesting  
of all collections of saintly legends1  
,colgan's        ,acta ,sanctorum       
,hiberni4 ,m4 ,alfred ,maury1 in his    
most valuable        work1 ,lgendes     

pieuses du ,moyen ,age1 has examined    
minutely the        part played by      
animals in symbolising virtues and      
vices1 and has        shown the way in  
which the same incidents were repeated1 
with slight        variations1 in       
different legends4 ,m4 de ,montalembert 
has devoted        what is probably the 
most beautiful chapter of his ,moines   
d',occident 78,les ,moines et la        
,nature07 to the relations of monks to  
the animal world2 but the numerous      
legends he cites are all1 with          
one or two exceptions1 different from   
those ,i have given4      #cgh          
,chateaubriand speaks1 however 7tudes   
historiques1 tude vime1 #are            
partie71 of an old ,gallic law1         
forbidding to throw a stone at an ox    
attached to the plough1 or to make its  
yoke too tight4      #cgi ,bollandists1 
,may #ca4 ,leonardo da ,vinci is said to
 have had the same        fondness for  
buying and releasing caged birds1 and   
7to go back a        long way7          

,pythagoras to have purchased one day1  
near ,metapontus1        from some      
fishermen all the fish in their net1    
that he might have        the pleasure  
of releasing them4 7,apuleius1          
,apologia47      #chj ,see these legends
 collected by ,hase 7,st ,francis4      
,assisi74 ,it is        said of         
,cardinal ,bellarmine that he used to   
allow vermin to bite        him1 saying1
 8,we shall have heaven to reward us for
 our sufferings1        but these poor  
creatures have nothing but the enjoyment
 of this        present life40 7,bayle1 
,dict4 philos4 art4 8,bellarmine407     
#cha ,i have noticed1 in my ,history of 
,rationalism1 that1 although some       
,popes did undoubtedly try to suppress  
,spanish bull-fights1 this was          
solely on account of the destruction of 
human life they caused4 ,full           
details on this subject will be found in
 ,concina1 ,de ,spectaculis             
7,rom1 #ageb74 ,bayle says1 8,il n'y a  
point de casuiste qui croie        qu'on

 pche en faisant combattre des taureaux 
contre des dogues10        c4 7,dict4   
philos4 8,rorarius1 ,c407      #chb ,on 
the ancient amusements of ,england the  
reader may consult        ,seymour's    
,survey of ,london 7#agcd71 vol4 i4 pp4 
#bbg-bce2 ,strutt's        ,sports and  
,pastimes of the ,english ,people4      
,cock-fighting was a        favourite   
children's amusement in ,england as     
early as the twelfth        century4    
7,hampson's ,medii vi ,kalendarii1 vol4 
i4 p4 #afj47 ,it was1        with       
foot-ball and several other amusements1 
for a time suppressed        by ,edward 
,,iii41 on the ground that they were    
diverting the people        from        
archery1 which was necessary to the     
military greatness of        ,england4  
#chc ,the decline of these amusements in
 ,england began with the great          
development of the theatre under        
,elizabeth4 ,an order of the ,privy     
,council in ,july1 #aeia1 prohibits the 
exhibition of plays on        ,thursday1

 because on ,thursdays bear-baiting and 
suchlike pastimes        had been       
usually practised1 and an injunction to 
the same effect was        sent to the  
,lord ,mayor1 wherein it was stated     
that1 8in divers        places the      
players do use to recite their plays1 to
 the great hurt        and destruction  
of the game of bear-baiting and like    
pastimes1 which        are maintained   
for ,her ,majesty's                     
pleasure40--,nichols1 ,progresses of    
,queen ,elizabeth 7ed4 #ahbc71 vol4 i4  
p4 #dch4 ,the reader will               
remember the picture in ,kenilworth of  
the ,earl of ,sussex        petitioning 
,elizabeth against ,shakespeare1 on the 
ground of his        plays distracting  
men from bear-baiting4 ,elizabeth 7see  
,nichols7 was        extremely fond of  
bear-baiting4 ,james ,i4 especially     
delighted in        cock-fighting1 and  
in #afaj was present at a great fight   
between a        lion and a bear4       
7,hone1 ,every ,day ,book1 vol4 i4 pp4  

#bee-bii47 ,the        theatres1        
however1 rapidly multiplied1 and a      
writer who lived about        #afbi     
said1 8that no less than seventeen      
playhouses had been built in        or  
about ,london within threescore years40 
7,seymour's ,survey1 vol4        i4 p4  
#bbi47 ,the ,rebellion suppressed all   
public amusements1 and when        they 
were re-established after the           
,restoration1 it was found that         
the tastes of the better classes no     
longer sympathised with the             
bear-garden4 ,pepys 7,diary1 ,august    
#ad1 #afff7 speaks of bull-baiting      
as 8a very rude and nasty pleasure10 and
 says he had not been in the            
bear-garden for many years4 ,evelyn     
7,diary1 ,june #af1 #afgj71 having      
been present at these shows1 describes  
them as 8butcherly sports1 or           
rather barbarous cruelties10 and says he
 had not visited them before        for 
twenty years4 ,a paper in the ,spectator
 7,no4 #ada1 written in        #agaa7   

talks of those who 8seek their diversion
 at the bear-garden1        444 where   
reason and good manners have no right to
 disturb them40 ,in        #agea1       
however1 ,lord ,kames was able to say1  
8,the bear garden1 which        is one  
of the chief entertainments of the      
,english1 is held in        abhorrence  
by the ,french and other polite         
nations40--,essay on        ,morals     
7#ast ed471 p4 #g2 and he warmly defends
 7p4 #cj7 the ,english        taste4    
,during the latter half of the last     
century there was constant              
controversy on the subject 7which may be
 traced in the pages of the             
,annual ,register71 and several         
forgotten clergymen published           
sermons upon it1 and the frequent riots 
resulting from the fact that        the 
bear-gardens had become the resort of   
the worst classes assisted        the   
movement4 ,the ,london magistrates took 
measures to suppress                    
cock-throwing in #agfi 7,hampson's ,med4

 v4 ,kalend4 p4 #afj72 but              
bull-baiting continued far into the     
present century4 ,windham and           
,canning strongly defended it2 ,dr4     
,parr is said to have been fond of      
it 7,southey's ,commonplace ,book1 vol4 
iv4 p4 #ehe72 and as late as            
#ahbd1 ,sir ,robert 7then ,mr7 ,peel    
argued strongly against its             
prohibition4 7,parliamentary ,debates1  
vol4 x4 pp4 #acb-acc1        #dia-die47 
#chd ,bacon1 in an account of the       
deficiencies of medicine1 recommends    
vivisection in terms that seem to imply 
that it was not practised in        his 
time4 8,as for the passages and pores1  
it is true1 which was        anciently  
noted1 that the more subtle of them     
appear not in        anatomies1 because 
they are shut and latent in dead bodies1
 though        they be open and manifest
 in live2 which being supposed1 though  
the        inhumanity of anatomia       
vivorum was by ,celsus justly reproved1 
yet1        in regard of the great use  

of this observation1 the enquiry needed 
not by him so slightly to have been     
relinquished altogether1 or             
referred to the casual practices of     
surgery2 but might have been        well
 diverted upon the dissection of beasts 
alive1 which1        notwithstanding the
 dissimilitude of their parts1 may      
sufficiently        satisfy this        
enquiry40--,advancement of ,learning1 x4
 #d4 ,harvey        speaks of           
vivisections as having contributed to   
lead him to the        discovery of the 
circulation of the blood4 7,acland's    
,harveian        ,oration 7#ahfe71 p4   
#ee47 ,bayle1 describing the treatment  
of animals        by men1 says1 8,nous  
fouillons dans leurs entrailles pendant 
leur vie        afin de satisfaire notre
 curiosit40--,dict4 philos4 art4        
8,rorarius1        ,c40 ,public opinion 
in ,england was very strongly directed  
to the        subject in the present    
century1 by the atrocious cruelties     
perpetrated by ,majendie at his         

lectures4 ,see a most frightful         
account of them in a speech by ,mr4     
,martin 7an eccentric ,irish            
member1 who was generally ridiculed     
during his life1 and has been           
almost forgotten since his death1 but to
 whose untiring exertions        the    
legislative protection of animals in    
,england is        due74--,parliament4  
,hist4 vol4 xii4 p4 #feb4 ,mandeville1  
in his day1        was a very strong    
advocate of kindness to                 
animals4--,commentary on        the     
,fable of the ,bees4      #che ,see his 
,life by ,sulpicius ,severus4      #chf 
,milman4      #chg ,greg4 ,turon4 ii4   
#bi4      #chh ,this was the first step 
towards the conversion of the           
,bulgarians4--,milman's ,latin          
,christianity1 vol4 iii4 p4 #bdi4       
#chi ,a remarkable collection of        
instances of this kind is given by      
,ozanam1 ,civilisation in the ,fifth    
,century 7,eng4 trans471 vol4 i4        
pp4 #abd-abg4      #cij ,st4 ,gregory1  

,dial4 iii4 #g4 ,the particular         
temptation the ,jew heard               
discussed was that of the bishop of the 
diocese1 who1 under the                 
instigation of one of the dmons1 was    
rapidly falling in love with a          
nun1 and had proceeded so far as        
jocosely to stroke her on the back4     
,the ,jew1 having related the vision to 
the bishop1 the latter        reformed  
his manners1 the ,jew became a          
,christian1 and the temple was          
turned into a church4      #cia ,william
 of ,malmesbury1 ii4 #ac4      #cib ,see
 ,milman's ,hist4 of ,latin             
,christianity1 vol4 ii4 p4 #bic4        
#cic ,cassian4 ,cnob4 ,instit4 v4 #d4   
,see1 too1 some striking instances of   
this in the life of ,st4 ,antony4       
#cid ,this spiritual pride is well      
noticed by ,neander1 ,ecclesiastical    
,history 7,bohn's ed471 vol4 iii4 pp4   
#cba-cbc4 ,it appears in many           
traits scattered through the lives of   
these saints4 ,i have already           

cited the visions telling ,st4 ,antony  
and ,st4 ,macarius that they were       
not the best of living people2 and also 
the case of the hermit1 who        was  
deceived by a devil in the form of a    
woman1 because he had been              
exalted by pride4 ,another hermit1 being
 very holy1 received pure        white  
bread every day from heaven1 but1 being 
extravagantly elated1        the bread  
got worse and worse till it became      
perfectly black4        7,tillemont1    
tome x4 pp4 #bg-bh47 ,a certain ,isidore
 affirmed that he        had not been   
conscious of sin1 even in thought1 for  
forty years4        7,socrates1 iv4     
#bc47 ,it was a saying of ,st4 ,antony1 
that a solitary        man in the desert
 is free from three wars--of sight1     
speech1 and        hearing3 he has to   
combat only fornication4 7,apothegmata  
,patrum47      #cie 8,pride1 under such 
training that of modern rationalistic   
philosophy1 instead of running to waste1
 is turned to account4 ,it        gets a

 new name2 it is called self-respect4444
 ,it is directed into        the channel
 of industry1 frugality1 honesty1 and   
obedience1 and it        becomes the    
very staple of the religion and morality
 held in honour        in a day like our
 own4 ,it becomes the safeguard of      
chastity1 the        guarantee of       
veracity1 in high and low2 it is the    
very household god        of the        
,protestant1 inspiring neatness and     
decency in the        servant-girl1     
propriety of carriage and refined       
manners in her        mistress1         
uprightness1 manliness1 and generosity  
in the head of the        family4444 ,it
 is the stimulating principle of        
providence on the one        hand1 and  
of free expenditure on the other2 of an 
honourable        ambition and of       
elegant enjoyment40--,newman1 ,on       
,university        ,education1          
,discourse ix4 ,in the same lecture     
7which is1 perhaps1        the most     
beautiful of the many beautiful         

productions of its        illustrious   
author71 ,dr4 ,newman describes1 with   
admirable eloquence1        the manner  
in which modesty has supplanted humility
 in the modern        type of           
excellence4 ,it is scarcely necessary to
 say that the        lecturer strongly  
disapproves of the movement he          
describes4      #cif ,thus 8indagatio   
veri0 was reckoned among the leading    
virtues1 and        the high place given
 to  and 8prudentia0 in ethical writings
        preserved the notion of the     
moral duties connected with the         
discipline of the intellect4      #cig  
,st4 ,augustine reckoned eighty-eight   
sects as existing in his time4      #cih
 ,see a full account of these           
persecutions in ,tillemont1 ,mm4        
d',histoire eccls4 tome vi4      #cii   
,socrates1 ,h4 ,e41 iv4 #af4 ,this      
anecdote is much doubted by modern      
historians4      #djj ,milman's ,hist4  
of ,christianity 7ed4 #ahfg71 vol4 ii4  
p4 #dbb4      #dja ,st4 ,athanasius1    

,historical ,treatises 7,library of the 
,fathers71 pp4        #aib1 #bhd4       
#djb ,milman1 ,hist4 of ,christianity1  
ii4 pp4 #dcf-dcg4      #djc ,the death  
of ,arius1 as is well known1 took place 
suddenly 7his        bowels1 it is said1
 coming out7 when he was just about to  
make his        triumphal entry into the
 ,cathedral of ,constantinople4 ,the    
death        7though possibly natural7  
never seems to have been regarded as    
such1        but it was a matter of     
controversy whether it was a miracle or 
a        murder4      #djd ,socrates1   
,h4 ,e41 vii4 #ac-ae4      #dje ,milman1
 ,hist4 of ,latin ,christianity1 vol4 i4
 pp4 #bad-bae4      #djf ,milman1 ,hist4
 of ,christianity1 vol4 iii4 p4 #ade4   
#djg ,milman1 ,hist4 of ,latin          
,christianity1 vol4 i4 pp4 #bij-bia4    
#djh ,ibid4 vol4 i4 pp4 #caj-caa4       
#dji ,milman1 ,hist4 of ,latin          
,christianity1 vol4 i4 pp4 #cad-cah4    
,dean        ,milman thus sums up the   
history3 8,monks in ,alexandria1 monks  

in        ,antioch1 monks in ,jerusalem1
 monks in ,constantinople1 decide       
peremptorily on orthodoxy and           
heterodoxy4 ,the bishops themselves     
cower before them4 ,macedonius in       
,constantinople1 ,flavianus in          
,antioch1 ,elias in ,jerusalem1 condemn 
themselves and abdicate1 or are         
driven from their sees4 ,persecution is 
universal--persecution by        every  
means of violence and cruelty2 the only 
question is1 in whose        hands is   
the power to persecute4444 ,bloodshed1  
murder1 treachery1        assassination1
 even during the public worship of      
,god--these are the        frightful    
means by which each party strives to    
maintain its opinions        and to     
defeat its adversary40      #daj ,see a 
striking passage from ,julianus of      
,eclana1 cited by ,milman1        ,hist4
 of ,latin ,christianity1 vol4 i4 p4    
#afd4      #daa 8,nowhere is            
,christianity less attractive than in   
the ,councils of the        ,church4444 

,intrigue1 injustice1 violence1         
decisions on authority        alone1 and
 that the authority of a turbulent      
majority1 444 detract        from the   
reverence and impugn the judgments of at
 least the later        ,councils4 ,the 
close is almost invariably a terrible   
anathema1 in        which it is         
impossible not to discern the tones of  
human hatred1 of        arrogant        
triumph1 of rejoicing at the damnation  
imprecated against        the humiliated
 adversary40--,ibid4 vol4 i4 p4 #bjb4   
#dab ,see the account of this scene in  
,gibbon1 ,decline and ,fall1 ch4        
xlvii42 ,milman1 ,hist4 of ,latin       
,christianity1 vol4 i4 p4 #bfc4 ,there  
is a conflict of authorities as to      
whether the ,bishop of ,alexandria      
himself kicked his adversary1 or1 to    
speak more correctly1 the act           
which is charged against him by some    
contemporary writers is not             
charged against him by others4 ,the     
violence was certainly done by          

his followers and in his presence4      
#dac ,ammianus ,marcellinus1 xxvii4 #c4 
#dad ,cyprian1 ,ep4 lxi4      #dae      
,milman1 ,hist4 of ,christianity1 vol4  
ii4 p4 #cjf4      #daf ,ibid4 iii4 #aj4 
#dag 8,by this time the ,old ,testament 
language and sentiment with regard      
to idolatry were completely incorporated
 with the ,christian feeling2        and
 when ,ambrose enforced on a ,christian 
,emperor the sacred duty of             
intolerance against opinions and        
practices which scarcely a century      
before had been the established religion
 of the ,empire1 his zeal was           
supported by almost the unanimous       
applause of the ,christian              
world40--,milman's ,hist4 of            
,christianity1 vol4 iii4 p4 #aei4       
#dah ,see the ,theodosian laws of       
,paganism4      #dai ,this appears from 
the whole history of the controversy2   
but the        prevailing feeling is1 ,i
 think1 expressed with peculiar         
vividness in        the following       

passage3--8,eadmer says 7following the  
words of ,bede7 in        ,colman's     
times there was a sharp controversy     
about the observing of        ,easter1  
and other rules of life for churchmen2  
therefore1 this        question         
deservedly excited the minds and feeling
 of many people1        fearing lest1   
perhaps1 after having received the name 
of ,christians1        they should run1 
or had run in vain40--,king's ,hist4 of 
the ,church of        ,ireland1 book ii4
 ch4 vi4      #dbj ,gibbon1 chap4 lxiii4
      #dba ,an interesting sketch of    
this very interesting prelate has lately
        been written by ,m4 ,druon1 tude
 sur la ,vie et les uvres de            
,synsius 7,paris1 #ahei74      #dbb     
,tradition has pronounced ,gregory the  
,great to have been the        destroyer
 of the ,palatine library1 and to have  
been especially        zealous in       
burning the writings of ,livy1 because  
they described the        achievements  
of the ,pagan gods4 ,for these charges1 

however 7which ,i        am sorry to    
find repeated by so eminent a writer as 
,dr4 ,draper71        there is no real  
evidence1 for they are not found in any 
writer        earlier than the twelfth  
century4 7,see ,bayle1 ,dict4 art4      
8,greg407        ,the extreme contempt  
of ,gregory for ,pagan literature is1   
however1        sufficiently manifested 
in his famous and very curious letter to
        ,desiderius1 ,bishop of ,vienne1
 rebuking him for having taught certain 
persons ,pagan literature1 and thus     
mingled 8the praises of ,jupiter        
with the praises of ,christ20 doing what
 would be impious even for a            
religious layman1 8polluting the mind   
with the blasphemous praises        of  
the wicked40 ,some curious evidence of  
the feelings of the        ,christians  
of the fourth1 fifth1 and sixth         
centuries1 about ,pagan                 
literature1 is given in ,guinguen1      
,hist4 littraire de l',italie1          
tome i4 p4 #bi-ca1 and some legends of a

 later period are candidly              
related by one of the most enthusiastic 
,english advocates of the        ,middle
 ,ages4 7,maitland1 ,dark ,ages47       
#dbc ,probably the best account of the  
intellectual history of these times     
is still to be found in the admirable   
introductory chapters with        which 
the ,benedictines prefaced each century 
of their ,hist4        littraire de la  
,france4 ,the ,benedictines think 7with 
,hallam7 that        the eighth century 
was1 on the whole1 the darkest on the   
continent1        though ,england       
attained its lowest point somewhat      
later4 ,of the        great protectors  
of learning ,theodoric was unable to    
write 7see        ,guinguen1 tome i4 p4 
#ca71 and ,charlemagne 7,eginhard7 only 
began to        learn when advanced in  
life1 and was never quite able to master
 the        accomplishment4 ,alfred1    
however1 was distinguished in           
literature4      #dbd ,the belief that  
the world was just about to end was1 as 

is well        known1 very general among
 the early ,christians1 and greatly     
affected        their lives4 ,it appears
 in the ,new ,testament1 and very       
clearly in        the epistle ascribed  
to ,barnabas in the first century4 ,the 
persecutions of the second and third    
centuries revived it1 and both          
,tertullian and ,cyprian 7in            
,demetrianum7 strongly assert it4 ,with 
the triumph of ,christianity the        
apprehension for a time subsided2       
but it reappeared with great force when 
the dissolution of the        ,empire   
was manifestly impending1 when it was   
accomplished1 and in        the         
prolonged anarchy and suffering that    
ensued4 ,gregory of ,tours1             
writing in the latter part of the sixth 
century1 speaks of it as        very    
prevalent 7,prologue to the ,first      
,book72 and ,st4 ,gregory the           
,great1 about the same time1 constantly 
expresses it4 ,the panic that           
filled ,europe at the end of the tenth  

century has been often        described4
      #dbe ,maitland's ,dark ,ages1 p4  
#djc4      #dbf ,this passion for       
scraping ,,mss4 became common1 according
 to        ,montfaucon1 after the       
twelfth century4 7,maitland1 p4 #dj47   
,according        to ,hallam1 however   
7,middle ,ages1 ch4 ix4 part i471 it    
must have        begun earlier1 being   
chiefly caused by the cessation or great
        diminution of the supply of     
,egyptian papyrus1 in consequence of the
        capture of ,alexandria by the   
,saracens1 early in the seventh century4
      #dbg ,bede1 ,h4 ,e4 iv4 #bd4      
#dbh ,mariana1 ,de ,rebus ,hispani1 vi4 
#g4 ,mariana says the stone was in      
his time preserved as a relic4      #dbi
 ,odericus ,vitalis1 quoted by ,maitland
 7,dark ,ages1 pp4 #bfh-bfi74 ,the      
monk was restored to life that he might 
have an opportunity of                  
reformation4 ,the escape was a narrow   
one1 for there was only one             
letter against which no sin could be    

adduced--a remarkable instance        of
 the advantages of a diffuse style4     
#dcj ,digby1 ,mores ,catholici1 book x4 
p4 #bdf4 ,matthew of ,westminster       
tells of a certain king who was very    
charitable1 and whose right        hand 
7which had assuaged many sorrows7       
remained undecayed after        death   
7,a4,d4 #fdd74      #dca ,see ,haurau1  
,hist4 de la ,philosophie scolastique1  
tome i4 pp4        #bd-be4      #dcb ,on
 the progress of ,roman civilisation in 
,britain1 see ,tacitus1                 
,agricola1 xxi4      #dcc ,see the      
,benedictine ,hist4 littr4 de la        
,france1 tome i4 part ii4        p4 #i4 
#dcd ,a biographer of ,st4 ,thomas      
,aquinas modestly observes3--8,l'opinion
        gnralement rpandue parmi les    
thologiens c'est que la ,somme de       
,thologie de ,st4 ,thomas est           
non-seulement son chef-d'uvre mais      
aussi celui de l'esprit humain40        
7667--,carle1 ,hist4 de ,st4-,thomas    
d',aquin1 p4 #adj4      #dce ,see       

,viardot1 ,hist4 des ,arabes en         
,espagne1 ii4 #adb-aff4 ,prescott's     
,ferdinand and ,isabella1 ch4 viii4     
,viardot contends that the              
compass--which appears to have been long
 known in ,china--was first             
introduced into ,europe by the          
,mohammedans2 but the evidence of this  
appears inconclusive4      #dcf ,herder4
      #dcg 8,impius ne audeto placare   
donis iram ,deorum40--,cicero1 ,de ,leg4
 ii4        #i4 ,see1 too1 ,philost4    
,apoll4 ,tyan4 i4 #aa4      #dch ,there 
are three or four instances of this     
related by ,porphyry1 ,de               
,abstin4 ,carnis1 lib4 ii4      #dci    
,muratori1 ,antich4 ,italiane1 diss4    
lxvii4      #ddj ,see1 on the causes of 
the wealth of the monasteries1 two      
admirable        dissertations by       
,muratori1 ,antich4 ,italiane1 lxvii41  
lxviii42        ,hallam's ,middle ,ages1
 ch4 vii4 part i4      #dda 8,lors de   
l'tablissement du christianisme la      
religion avoit        essentiellement   

consist dans l'enseignement moral2 elle 
avoit        exerc les curs et les mes  
par la recherche de ce qui toit         
vraiment beau1 vraiment honnte4 ,au     
cinquime sicle on l'avoit        surtout
 attache  l'orthodoxie1 au septime on   
l'avoit rduite  la        bienfaisance  
envers les couvens40--,sismondi1 ,hist4 
des ,franais1        tome ii4 p4 #ej4   
#ddb ,mr4 ,hallam1 speaking of the      
legends of the miracles of saints1 says3
        8,it must not be supposed that  
these absurdities were produced as      
well as nourished by ignorance4 ,in most
 cases they were the work of            
deliberate imposture4 ,every cathedral  
or monastery had its tutelar            
saint1 and every saint his legend1      
fabricated in order to enrich the       
churches under his protection1 by       
exaggerating his virtues1 his           
miracles1 and consequently his power of 
serving those who paid        liberally 
for his patronage40--,middle ,ages1 ch4 
ix4 part i4 ,i do        not think this 

passage makes sufficient allowance for  
the        unconscious formation of many
 saintly myths1 but no impartial person 
can doubt its substantial truth4        
#ddc ,sismondi1 ,hist4 des ,franais1    
tome ii4 pp4 #ed1 #fb-fc4      #ddd     
,milman's ,hist4 of ,latin              
,christianity1 vol4 ii4 p4 #beg4        
#dde ,durandus1 a ,french bishop of the 
thirteenth century1 tells how1          
8when a certain bishop was consecrating 
a church built out of the        fruits 
of usury and pillage1 he saw behind the 
altar the devil in a        pontifical  
vestment1 standing at the bishop's      
throne1 who said unto        the bishop1
 #8,cease from consecrating the church2 
for it pertaineth        to my          
jurisdiction1 since it is built from the
 fruits of usuries and                  
robberies4' ,then the bishop and the    
clergy having fled thence in            
fear1 immediately the devil destroyed   
that church with a great                
noise40--,rationale ,divinorum1 i4 #f   

7translated for the ,camden             
,society74          ,a certain ,st4     
,launomar is said to have refused a gift
 for his        monastery from a        
rapacious noble1 because he was sure it 
was derived        from pillage4        
7,montalembert's ,moines d',occident1   
tome ii4 pp4        #cej-cea47 ,when    
prostitutes were converted in the early 
,church1 it        was the rule that the
 money of which they had become         
possessed        should never be applied
 to ecclesiastical purposes1 but should 
be        distributed among the poor4   
#ddf ,verba ,seniorum1 ,prol4  #agb4    
#ddg ,this vision is not related by ,st4
 ,gregory himself1 and some             
,catholics are perplexed about it1 on   
account of the vision of        another 
saint1 who afterwards asked whether     
,trajan was saved1 and        received  
for answer1 8,i wish men to rest in     
ignorance of this        subject1 that  
the ,catholics may become stronger4 ,for
 this emperor1        though he had     

great virtues1 was an unbaptised        
infidel40 ,the whole        subject of  
the vision of ,st4 ,gregory is discussed
 by ,champagny1 ,les        ,antonins1  
tome i4 pp4 #cgb-cgc4 ,this devout      
writer says1 8,cette        lgende fut  
accepte par tout le moyen-ge1 indulgent 
pour les        paens illustres et tout 
dispos  les supposer chrtiens et        
sauvs40      #ddh ,see the solemn       
asseveration of the care which he took  
in going only        to the most        
credible and authorised sources for his 
materials1 in        the ,preface to the
 ,first ,book of ,dialogues4      #ddi  
,dial4 iv4 #cf4      #dej ,ibid4 iv4    
#cj4      #dea ,ibid4 iv4 #ce4      #deb
 ,the fullest collection of these       
visions with which ,i am acquainted     
is that made for the ,philobiblion      
,society 7vol4 ix471 by ,m4             
,delepierre1 called ,l',enfer dcrit par 
ceux qui l'ont vu1 of which        ,i   
have largely availed myself4 ,see1 too1 
,rusca ,de ,inferno1        ,wright's   

,purgatory of ,st4 ,patrick1 and an     
interesting collection        of visions
 given by ,mr4 ,longfellow1 in his      
translation of ,dante4 ,the             
,irish saints were1 ,i am sorry to say1 
prominent in producing this             
branch of literature4 ,st4 ,fursey1     
whose vision is one of the              
earliest1 and ,tondale1 or ,tundale1    
whose vision is one of the most         
detailed1 were both ,irish4 ,the        
,english historians contain several of  
these visions4 ,bede relates two or     
three--,william of ,malmesbury that     
of ,charles the ,fat2 ,matthew ,paris   
three visions of purgatory4      #dec   
,the narrow bridge over hell 7in some   
visions covered with spikes71           
which is a conspicuous feature in the   
,mohammedan pictures of the             
future world1 appears very often in     
,catholic visions4 ,see ,greg4 ,tur4    
iv4 #cc2 ,st4 ,greg4 ,dial4 iv4 #cf2 and
 the vision of ,tundale1 in             
,delepierre4      #ded ,few ,englishmen1

 ,i imagine1 are aware of the infamous  
publications        written with this   
object1 that are circulated by the      
,catholic        priests among the poor4
 ,i have before me a tract 8for children
 and        young persons10 called ,the 
,sight of ,hell1 by the ,rev4 ,j4       
,furniss1        ,c4,s4,s4,r41 published
 8permissu superiorum10 by ,duffy       
7,dublin and        ,london74 ,it is a  
detailed description of the dungeons of 
hell1 and a        few sentences may    
serve as a sample4 8,see6 on the middle 
of that        red-hot floor stands a   
girl2 she looks about sixteen years old4
 ,her        feet are bare4 ,she has    
neither shoes nor stockings4444 ,listen6
 she        speaks4 ,she says1 ,i have  
been standing on this red-hot floor for 
years4 ,day and night my only           
standing-place has been this red-hot    
floor4444 ,look at my burnt and bleeding
 feet4 ,let me go off this              
burning floor for one moment1 only for  
one single short moment4444        ,the 

fourth dungeon is the boiling kettle 444
 in the middle of it        there is a  
boy4444 ,his eyes are burning like two  
burning coals4 ,two        long flames  
come out of his ears4444 ,sometimes he  
opens his mouth1        and blazing fire
 rolls out4 ,but listen6 there is a     
sound like a        kettle boiling4444  
,the blood is boiling in the scalded    
veins of that        boy4 ,the brain is 
boiling and bubbling in his head4 ,the  
marrow is        boiling in his         
bones4444 ,the fifth dungeon is the     
red-hot oven4444        ,the little     
child is in this red-hot oven4 ,hear how
 it screams to        come out4 ,see how
 it turns and twists itself about in the
 fire4 ,it        beats its head against
 the roof of the oven4 ,it stamps its   
little        feet on the floor4444 ,god
 was very good to this child4 ,very     
likely        ,god saw it would get     
worse and worse1 and would never repent1
 and so        it would have to be      
punished much more in hell4 ,so ,god in 

,his mercy        called it out of the  
world in its early childhood40 ,if the  
reader        desires to follow this    
subject further1 he may glance over a   
companion tract by the same reverend    
gentleman1 called ,a ,terrible          
,judgment on a ,little ,child2 and also 
a book on ,hell1 translated        from 
the ,italian of ,pinamonti1 and with    
illustrations depicting the             
various tortures4      #dee ,st4 ,greg4 
,dial4 iv4 #ch4      #def ,ibid4 iv4    
#ah4      #deg ,alger's ,history of the 
,doctrine of a ,future ,life 7,new      
,york1 #ahff71        p4 #dad4 ,the     
ignis fatuus was sometimes supposed to  
be the soul of an        unbaptised     
child4 ,there is1 ,i believe1 another   
,catholic legend about        the       
redbreast1 of a very different          
kind--that its breast was stained       
with blood when it was trying to pull   
out the thorns from the crown        of 
,christ4      #deh ,wright's ,purgatory 
of ,st4 ,patrick1 p4 #bf4 ,m4           

,delepierre quotes a        curious     
theory of ,father ,hardouin 7who is     
chiefly known for his        suggestion 
that the classics were composed by the  
medival monks7        that the rotation 
of the earth is caused by the lost souls
 trying to        escape from the fire  
that is at the centre of the globe1     
climbing1        in consequence1 on the 
inner crust of the earth1 which is the  
wall        of hell1 and thus making the
 whole revolve1 as the squirrel by      
climbing turns its cage6 7,l',enfer     
dcrit par ceux qui l'ont vu1 p4         
#aea47      #dei ,delepierre1 p4 #gj4   
#dfj ,thus1 in a book which was         
attributed 7it is said erroneously7 to  
,jeremy ,taylor1 we find two singularly 
unrhetorical and unimpassioned          
chapters1 deliberately enumerating the  
most atrocious acts of        cruelty in
 human history1 and maintaining that    
they are surpassed by        the        
tortures inflicted by the ,deity4 ,a few
 instances will suffice4        ,certain

 persons 8put rings of iron1 stuck full 
of sharp points of        needles1 about
 their arms and feet1 in such a manner  
as the        prisoners could not move  
without wounding themselves2 then they  
compassed them about with fire1 to the  
end that1 standing still1        they   
might be burnt alive1 and if they       
stirred the sharp points        pierced 
their flesh4444 ,what1 then1 shall be   
the torment of the        damned where  
they shall burn eternally without dying1
 and without        possibility of      
removing8444 ,alexander1 the son of     
,hyrcanus1 caused        eight hundred  
to be crucified1 and whilst they were   
yet alive caused        their wives and 
children to be murdered before their    
eyes1 that so        they might not die 
once1 but many deaths4 ,this rigour     
shall not be        wanting in hell4444 
,mezentius tied a living body to a dead 
until the        putrefied exhalations  
of the dead had killed the living4444   
,what is        this in respect of hell1

 when each body of the damned is more   
loathsome and unsavoury than a million  
of dead dogs8444 ,bonaventure           
says1 if one of the damned were brought 
into this world it were                 
sufficient to infect the whole earth4444
 ,we are amazed to think of        the  
inhumanity of ,phalaris1 who roasted men
 alive in his brazen        bull4 ,that 
was a joy in respect of that fire of    
hell4444 ,this        torment 444       
comprises as many torments as the body  
of man has        joints1 sinews1       
arteries1 c41 being caused by that      
penetrating and        real fire1 of    
which this temporal fire is but a       
painted fire4444        ,what comparison
 will there be between burning for a    
hundred years'        space1 and to be  
burning without interruption as long as 
,god is        ,god80--,contemplations  
on the ,state of ,man1 book ii4 ch4     
#f-g1 in        ,heber's ,edition of the
 works of ,taylor4      #dfa ,perrone1  
,histori ,theologi cum ,philosophia     

comparata ,synopsis1 p4        #bi4     
,peter ,lombard's work was published in 
,a4,d4 #aafj4      #dfb 8,postremo      
quritur1 ,an pna reproborum visa        
decoloret gloriam        beatorum8 an   
eorum beatitudini proficiat8 ,de hoc ita
 ,gregorius ait1        ,apud animum    
justorum non obfuscat beatitudinem      
aspecta pna        reproborum2 quia ubi 
jam compassio miseri non erit1 minuere  
beatorum ltitiam non valebit4 ,et licet 
justis sua gaudia        sufficiant1 ad 
majorem gloriam vident pnas malorum quas
 per gratiam        evaserunt4444       
,egredientur ergo electi1 non loco1 sed 
intelligentia        vel visione        
manifesta ad videndum impiorum          
cruciatus2 quos videntes        non     
dolore afficientur sed ltitia           
satiabuntur1 agentes gratias de         
sua liberatione visa impiorum ineffabili
 calamitate4 ,unde ,esaias              
impiorum tormenta describens et ex eorum
 visione ltitiam bonorum                
exprimens1 ait1 ,egredientur electi     

scilicet et videbunt cadavera           
virorum qui prvaricati sunt in me4      
,vermis eorum non morietur et           
ignis non extinguetur1 et erunt usque ad
 satietatem visionis omni        carni1 
id est electis4 ,ltabitur justus cum    
viderit        vindictam40--,peter      
,lombard1 ,senten4 lib4 iv4 finis4      
,these amiable        views have often  
been expressed both by ,catholic and by 
,puritan        divines4 ,see ,alger's  
,doctrine of a ,future ,life1 p4 #eda4  
#dfc ,legenda ,aurea4 ,there is a       
curious fresco representing this        
transaction1 on the portal of the church
 of ,st4 ,lorenzo1 near ,rome4      #dfd
 ,aimoni1 ,de ,gestis ,francorum ,hist4 
iv4 #cd4      #dfe ,turpin's ,chronicle1
 ch4 #cb4 ,in the vision of ,watlin1    
however 7,a4,d4        #hbd71           
,charlemagne was seen tortured in       
purgatory on account of his             
excessive love of women4 7,delepierre1  
,l',enfer dcrit par ceux qui            
l'ont vu1 pp4 #bg-bh47      #dff ,as the

 ,abb ,mably observes3 8,on croyoit en  
quelque sorte dans ces        sicles    
grossiers que l'avarice toit le premier 
attribut de ,dieu1        et que les    
saints faisoient un commerce de leur    
crdit et de leur        protection4     
,de-l les richesses immenses donnes aux 
glises par des        hommes dont les   
murs dshonoroient la                    
religion40--,observations sur           
l',hist4 de ,france1 i4 #d4      #dfg   
,many curious examples of the way in    
which the ,troubadours burlesqued       
the monkish visions of hell are given by
 ,delepierre1 p4        #add4--,wright's
 ,purgatory of ,st4 ,patrick1 pp4       
#dg-eb4      #dfh ,comte1 ,philosophie  
positive1 tome v4 p4 #bfi4      #dfi    
8,saint-,bernard1 dans son sermon ,de   
obitu ,humberti1 affirme que        tous
 les tourments de cette vie sont joies  
si on les compare  une        seconde   
des peines du purgatoire4               
#8,imaginez-vous donc1 dlicates         
dames1' dit le pre ,valladier 7#afac7   

dans son sermon du #cme dimanche        
de l',avent1 #8d'estre au travers de vos
 chenets1 sur vostre petit feu          
pour une centaine d'ans3 ce n'est rien  
au respect d'un moment de               
purgatoire4 ,mais si vous vistes jamais 
tirer quelqu'un  quatre        chevaux1 
quelqu'un brusler  petit feu1 enrager de
 faim ou de soif1        une heure de   
purgatoire est pire que tout cela4'     
0--,meray1 ,les        ,libres ,prcheurs
 7,paris1 #ahfj71 pp4 #acj-aca 7an      
extremely curious        and suggestive 
book74 ,i now take up the first         
contemporary book of        popular     
,catholic devotion on this subject which
 is at hand1 and        read3 8,compared
 with the pains of purgatory1 then1 all 
those wounds        and dark prisons1   
all those wild beasts1 hooks of iron1   
red-hot        plates1 c41 which the    
holy martyrs suffered1 are nothing40    
8,they        7souls in purgatory7 are  
in a real1 though miraculous manner1    
tortured by fire1 which is of the same  

kind 7says ,bellarmine7 as our          
element fire40 8,the ,angelic ,doctor   
affirms #8that the fire which           
torments the damned is like the fire    
which purges the elect4' 0        8,what
 agony will not those holy souls suffer 
when tied and bound        with the most
 tormenting chains of a living fire like
 to that of        hell6 and we1 while  
able to make them free and happy1 shall 
we stand        like uninterested       
spectators80 8,st4 ,austin is of opinion
 that the        pains of a soul in     
purgatory during the time required to   
open and        shut one's eye is more  
severe than what ,st4 ,lawrence suffered
 on the        gridiron20 and much more 
to the same effect4 7,purgatory opened  
to        the ,piety of the ,faithful4  
,richardson1 ,london47      #dgj ,see   
,delepierre1 ,wright1 and ,alger4       
#dga ,this appears from the vision of   
,thurcill4 7,wright's ,purgatory of     
,st4 ,patrick1 p4 #db47 ,brompton       
7,chronicon7 tells of an ,english       

landlord who had refused to pay tithes4 
,st4 ,augustine1 having vainly          
reasoned with him1 at last convinced him
 by a miracle4 ,before                  
celebrating mass he ordered all         
excommunicated persons to leave the     
church1 whereupon a corpse got out of a 
grave and walked away4 ,the             
corpse1 on being questioned1 said it was
 the body of an ancient        ,briton  
who refused to pay tithes1 and had in   
consequence been        excommunicated  
and damned4      #dgb ,greg4 ,dial4 iv4 
#dj4      #dgc ,as ,sismondi says3      
8,pendant quatre-vingts ans1 tout au    
moins1 il n'y        eut pas un ,franc  
qui songet  transmettre  la postrit la  
mmoire        des vnements              
contemporains1 et pendant le mme espace 
de temps il        n'y eut pas un       
personnage puissant qui ne btit des     
temples pour la        postrit la plus  
recule40--,hist4 des ,franais1 tome ii4 
p4 #df4      #dgd ,gibbon says of the   
period during which the ,merovingian    

dynasty        reigned1 that 8it would  
be difficult to find anywhere more vice 
or        less virtue40 ,hallam         
reproduces this observation1 and adds3  
8,the        facts of these times are of
 little other importance than as they   
impress on the mind a thorough notion of
 the extreme wickedness of        almost
 every person concerned in them1 and    
consequently of the state        to     
which society was reduced40--,hist4 of  
the ,middle ,ages1 ch4 i4        ,dean  
,milman is equally unfavourable and     
emphatic in his judgment4        8,it is
 difficult to conceive a more dark and  
odious state of society        than that
 of ,france under her ,merovingian      
kings1 the descendants of               
,clovis1 as described by ,gregory of    
,tours4 ,in the conflict of             
barbarism with ,roman ,christianity1    
barbarism has introduced into           
,christianity all its ferocity with none
 of its generosity and                  
magnanimity2 its energy shows itself in 

atrocity of cruelty1 and        even of 
sensuality4 ,christianity has given to  
barbarism hardly more        than its   
superstition and its hatred of heretics 
and unbelievers4        ,throughout1    
assassinations1 parricides1 and         
fratricides intermingle        with     
adulteries and rapes40--,history of     
,latin ,christianity1 vol4 i4        p4 
#cfe4      #dge ,greg4 ,tur4 iv4 #ab4   
,gregory mentions 7v4 #da7 another      
bishop who used        to become so     
intoxicated as to be unable to stand2   
and ,st4 ,boniface1        after        
describing the extreme sensuality of the
 clergy of his time1        adds that   
there are some bishops 8qui licet dicant
 se fornicarios        vel adulteros non
 esse1 sed sunt ebriosi et injuriosi10  
c4--,ep4        xlix4      #dgf ,greg4  
,tur4 iv4 #ab4      #dgg ,ibid4 viii4   
#bi4 ,she gave them knives with hollow  
grooves1 filled        with poison1 in  
the blades4      #dgh ,ibid4 vii4 #bj4  
#dgi ,ibid4 viii4 #ca-da4      #dhj     

,ibid4 v4 #ai4      #dha ,see his very  
curious correspondence with her4--,ep4  
vi4 #e1 #ej1 #ei2        ix4 #aa1 #aag2 
xi4 #fb-fc4      #dhb ,avitus1 ,ep4 v4  
,he adds3 8,minuebat regni felicitas    
numerum regalium        personarum40    
#dhc ,see the emphatic testimony of ,st4
 ,boniface in the eighth century4       
8,modo autem maxima ex parte per        
civitates episcopales sedes tradit      
sunt laicis cupidis ad possidendum1 vel 
adulteratis clericis1                   
scortatoribus et publicanis sculariter  
ad perfruendum40--,epist4        xlix4  
8ad ,zachariam40 ,the whole epistle     
contains an appalling        picture of 
the clerical vices of the times4        
#dhd ,more than one ,council made       
decrees about this4 ,see the ,vie de    
,st4        ,lger1 by ,dom ,pitra1 pp4  
#agb-agg4      #dhe ,greg4 ,tur4 iv4    
#dc4 ,st4 ,boniface1 at a much later    
period 7,a4,d4 #gdb71        talks of   
bishops 8,qui pugnant in exercitu armati
 et effundunt        propria manu       

sanguinem hominum40--,ep4 xlix4         
#dhf ,greg4 ,tur4 iv4 #bf4      #dhg    
,ibid4 iv4 #bj4      #dhh ,ibid4 iii4   
#bf4      #dhi ,ibid4 ix4 #cd4      #dij
 ,ibid4 viii4 #ai4 ,gregory says this   
story should warn clergymen not to      
meddle with the wives of other people1  
but 8content themselves with            
those that they may possess without     
crime40 ,the abbot had previously       
tried to seduce the husband within the  
precincts of the monastery1        that 
he might murder him4      #dia ,ibid4 v4
 #c4      #dib ,ibid4 viii4 #ci4 ,she   
was guilty of many other crimes1 which  
the        historian says 8it is better 
to pass in silence40 ,the bishop himself
        had been guilty of outrageous   
and violent tyranny4 ,the marriage of   
ecclesiastics appears at this time to   
have been common in ,gaul1        though
 the best men commonly deserted their   
wives when they were        ordained4   
,another bishop's wife 7iv4 #cf7 was    
notorious for her        tyranny4       

#dic ,fredigarius1 xlii4 ,the historian 
describes ,clotaire as a perfect        
paragon of ,christian graces4      #did 
8,au sixime sicle on compte #bad        
tablissements religieux des             
,pyrnes  la ,loire et des bouches du    
,rhne aux ,vosges40--,ozanam1           
tudes germaniques1 tome ii4 p4 #ic4 ,in 
the two following centuries        the  
ecclesiastical wealth was enormously    
increased4      #die ,matthew of        
,westminster 7,a4,d4 #geg7 speaks of no 
less than eight ,saxon        kings     
having done this4      #dif 8,le septime
 sicle est celui peut-tre qui a donn le 
plus de        saints au                
calendrier40--,sismondi1 ,hist4 de      
,france1 tome ii4 p4 #ej4        8,le   
plus beau titre du septime sicle  une   
rhabilitation c'est le        nombre    
considrable de saints qu'il a           
produits4444 ,aucun sicle n'a        t  
ainsi glorifi sauf l'ge des martyrs dont
 ,dieu s'est rserv de        compter le 
nombre4 ,chaque anne fournit sa moisson1

 chaque jour a sa        gerbe4444 ,si  
donc il plat  ,dieu et au ,christ de    
rpandre  pleines        mains sur un    
sicle les splendeurs des saints1        
qu'importe que        l'histoire et la  
gloire humaine en tiennent peu          
compte80--,pitra1 ,vie        de ,st4   
,lger1 ,introd4 p4 x4-xi4 ,this learned 
and very credulous        writer 7who is
 now a cardinal7 afterwards says that we
 have the        record of more than    
eight hundred saints of the seventh     
century4        7,introd4 p4 lxxx47     
#dig ,see1 e4g41 the very touching      
passage about the death of his          
children1 v4 #ce4      #dih ,lib4 ii4   
,prologue4      #dii ,greg4 ,tur4 ii4   
#bg-dc4      #ejj ,he observes how      
impossible it was that he could be      
guilty of        shedding the blood of a
 relation3 8,sed in his ego nequaquam   
conscius        sum4 ,nec enim possum   
sanguinem parentum meorum               
effundere40--,greg4        ,tur4 ii4    
#dj4      #eja 8,prosternebat enim      

quotidie ,deus hostes ejus sub manu     
ipsius1 et        augebat regnum ejus eo
 quod ambularet recto corde coram eo1 et
        faceret qu placita erant in     
oculis ejus40--,greg4 ,tur4 ii4 #dj4    
#ejb ,lib4 iii4 ,prologue4 ,st4 ,avitus 
enumerates in glowing terms the         
,christian virtues of ,clovis 7,ep4     
xli471 but1 as this was in a            
letter addressed to the king himself1   
the eulogy may easily be                
explained4      #ejc ,thus ,hallam says3
 8,there are continual proofs of        
immorality in the        monkish        
historians4 ,in the history of ,rumsey  
,abbey1 one of our best        documents
 for ,anglo-,saxon times1 we have an    
anecdote of a bishop who        made a  
,danish nobleman drunk1 that he might   
cheat him out of an        estate1 which
 is told with much approbation4 ,walter 
de ,hemingford        records1 with     
excessive delight1 the well-known story 
of the ,jews        who were persuaded  
by the captain of their vessel to walk  

on the        sands at low water till   
the rising tide drowned                 
them40--,hallam's        ,middle ,ages  
7#abth ed471 iii4 p4 #cjf4      #ejd    
,canciani1 ,leges ,barbarorum1 vol4 iii4
 p4 #fd4 ,canciani notices1        that 
among the ,poles the teeth of the       
offending persons were pulled           
out4 ,the following passage1 from       
,bodin1 is1 ,i think1 very              
remarkable3 8,les loix et canons veulent
 qu'on pardonne aux        hrtiques     
repentis 7combien que les magistrats en 
quelques lieux        par cy-devant1 y  
ont eu tel esgard1 que celui qui avoit  
mang de la        chair au ,vendredy    
estoit brusl tout vif1 comme il fut     
faict en la        ville d',angers l'an 
mil cinq cens trente-neuf1 s'il ne s'en 
repentoit3 et jaoit qu'il se repentist  
si estoit-il pendu par                  
compassion740--,dmonomanie des          
,sorciers1 p4 #baf4      #eje ,a long   
list of examples of extreme maceration1 
from lives of the        saints of the  

seventh and eighth centuries is given by
 ,pitra1 ,vie        de ,st4 ,lger1     
,introd4 pp4 cv4-cvii4      #ejf ,this  
was related of ,st4 ,equitius4--,greg4  
,dialog4 i4 #d4      #ejg ,ibid4 i4 #e4 
,this saint was named ,constantius4     
#ejh ,a vast number of miracles of this 
kind are recorded4 ,see1 e4g41          
,greg4 ,tur4 ,de ,miraculis1 i4 #fa-ff2 
,hist4 iv4 #di4 ,perhaps the        most
 singular instance of the violation of  
the sanctity of the        church was   
that by the nuns of a convent founded by
 ,st4 ,radegunda4        ,they1 having  
broken into rebellion1 four bishops1    
with their        attendant clergy1 went
 to compose the dispute1 and having     
failed1        excommunicated the       
rebels1 whereupon the nuns almost beat  
them to        death in the             
church4--,greg4 ,tur4 ix4 #da4      #eji
 ,see ,canciani1 ,leges ,barbarorum1    
vol4 iii4 pp4 #ai1 #aea4      #eaj ,much
 information about these measures is    
given by ,dr4 ,hessey1 in his           

,bampton ,lectures on ,sunday4 ,see     
especially1 lect4 #c4 ,see1 too1        
,moehler1 ,le ,christianisme et         
l',esclavage1 pp4 #ahf-ahg4      #eaa   
,gregory of ,tours enumerates some      
instances of this in his                
extravagant book ,de ,miraculis1 ii4    
#aa2 iv4 #eg2 v4 #g4 ,one of these      
cases1 however1 was for having worked on
 the day of ,st4 ,john the              
,baptist4 ,some other miracles of the   
same nature1 taken1 ,i believe1         
from ,english sources1 are given in     
,hessey's ,sunday 7#crd edition71       
p4 #cba4      #eab ,compare ,pitra1 ,vie
 de ,st4-,lger1 p4 #acg4 ,sismondi1     
,hist4 des        ,franais1 tome ii4 pp4
 #fb-fc4      #eac ,see a remarkable    
passage from his life1 cited by ,guizot1
 ,hist4 de        la ,civilisation en   
,france1 xviime leon4 ,the ,english     
historians        contain several       
instances of the activity of charity in 
the darkest        period4 ,alfred and  
,edward the ,confessor were conspicuous 

for it4        ,ethelwolf is said to    
have provided1 8for the good of his     
soul10        that1 till the day of     
judgment1 one poor man in ten should be 
provided with meat1 drink1 and clothing4
 7,asser's ,life of ,alfred47           
,there was a popular legend that a poor 
man having in vain asked alms        of 
some sailors1 all the bread in their    
vessel was turned into        stone4    
7,roger of ,wendover1 ,a4,d4 #fjf47     
,see1 too1 another legend of            
charity in ,matthew of ,westminster1    
,a4,d4 #faa4      #ead ,greg4 ,tur4     
,hist4 v4 #h4      #eae ,m4 ,guizot has 
given several specimens of this 7,hist4 
de la        ,civilis4 xviime leon74    
#eaf ,this portion of medival history   
has lately been well traced by ,mr4     
,maclear1 in his ,history of ,christian 
,missions in the ,middle ,ages          
7#ahfc74 ,see1 too1 ,montalembert's     
,moines d',occident2 ,ozanam's          
tudes germaniques4 ,the original        
materials are to be found in            

,bede1 and in the ,lives of the         
,saints--especially that of ,st4        
,columba1 by ,adamnan4 ,on the ,french  
missionaries1 see the ,benedictine      
,hist4 lit4 de la ,france1 tome iv4 p4  
#e2 and on the ,english                 
missionaries1 ,sharon ,turner's ,hist4  
of ,england1 book x4 ch4 ii4      #eag  
,dion ,chrysostom1 ,or4 ii4 7,de        
,regno74      #eah ,gibbon1 ch4 xvi4    
#eai ,origen1 ,cels4 lib4 viii4         
#ebj 8,navigamus et nos vobiscum et     
militamus40--,tert4 ,apol4 xlii4 ,see1  
too1 ,grotius ,de ,jure1 i4 cap4 ii4    
#eba ,see an admirable dissertation on  
the opinions of the early               
,christians about military service1 in  
,le ,blant1 ,inscriptions               
chrtiennes de la ,gaule1 tome i4 pp4    
#ha-hg4 ,the subject is                 
frequently referred to by ,barbeyrac1   
,morale des ,pres1 and        ,grotius1 
,de ,jure1 lib4 i4 cap4 ii4      #ebb   
,philostorgius1 ii4 #e4      #ebc ,see  
some excellent remarks on this change1  

in ,milman's ,history of                
,christianity1 vol4 ii4 pp4 #bhg-bhh4   
#ebd ,mably1 ,observations sur          
l',histoire de ,france1 i4 #f2 ,hallam's
        ,middle ,ages1 ch4 ii4 part ii4 
#ebe ,wakeman's ,archologia ,hibernica1 
p4 #ba4 ,however1 ,giraldus             
,cambrensis observes that the ,irish    
saints were peculiarly                  
vindictive1 and ,st4 ,columba and ,st4  
,comgall are said to have been          
leaders in a sanguinary conflict about a
 church near ,coleraine4 ,see           
,reeve's edition of ,adamnan's ,life of 
,st4 ,columba1 pp4 lxxvii4 #bec4        
#ebf ,campion's ,historie of ,ireland   
7#aega71 book i4 ch4 vi4      #ebg ,it  
seems curious to find in so calm and    
unfanatical a writer as        ,justus  
,lipsius the following passage3 8,jam et
 invasio qudam        legitima videtur  
etiam sine injuria1 ut in barbaros et   
moribus aut        religione prorsum a  
nobis abhorrentes40--,politicorum sive  
,civilis        ,doctrin libri 7,paris1 

#aeid71 lib4 iv4 ch4 ii4 cap4 iv4       
#ebh 8,con l'occasione di queste cose   
,plutarco nel ,teseo dice che gli       
eroi si recavano a grande onore e si    
reputavano in pregio d'armi con         
l'esser chiamati ladroni2 siccome a'    
tempi barbari ritornati quello        di
 ,corsale era titolo riputato di        
signoria2 d'intorno a' quali tempi      
venuto ,solone1 si dice aver permesso   
nelle sue leggi le societ per           
cagion di prede2 tanto ,solone ben      
intese questa nostra compiuta           
,umanit1 nella quale costoro non godono 
del diritto natural delle        genti6 
,ma quel che fa pi maraviglia  che      
,platone ed ,aristotile        posero il
 ladroneccio fralle spezie della caccia 
e con tali e tanti        filosofi d'una
 gente umanissima convengono con la loro
 barbarie i        ,germani antichi2    
appo i quali al referire di ,cesare     
ladronecci non        solo non eran     
infami1 ma si tenevano tra gli esercizi 
della virt        siccome tra quelli che

 per costume non applicando ad arte     
alcuna        cos fuggivano             
l'ozio40--,vico1 ,scienza ,nuova1 ii4   
#f4 ,see1 too1        ,whewell's        
,elements of ,morality1 book vi4 ch4 ii4
      #ebi ,the ancient right of war is 
fully discussed by ,grotius1 ,de ,jure1 
lib4 iii4 ,see1 especially1 the horrible
 catalogue of tragedies in        cap4  
#d4 ,the military feeling that regards  
capture as disgraceful1        had      
probably some1 though only a very       
subordinate1 influence in               
producing cruelty to the prisoners4     
#ecj 8,le jour o ,athnes dcrta que tous 
les ,mitylniens1 sans        distinction
 de sexe ni d'ge1 seraient extermins1   
elle ne croyait        pas dpasser son  
droit2 quand le lendemain elle revint   
sur son        dcret et se contenta de  
mettre  mort mille citoyens et de       
confisquer toutes les terres1 elle se   
crut humaine et indulgente4        ,aprs
 la prise de ,plate les hommes furent   
gorgs1 les femmes        vendues1 et    

personne n'accusa les vainqueurs d'avoir
 viol le        droit4444 ,c'est en     
vertu de ce droit de la guerre que ,rome
 a tendu        la solitude autour      
d'elle2 du territoire o les ,volsques   
avaient        vingt-trois cits elle a  
fait les marais pontins2 les            
cinquante-trois villes du ,latium ont   
disparu2 dans le ,samnium on put        
longtemps reconnatre les lieux o les    
armes romaines avaient        pass1     
moins aux vestiges de leurs camps qu' la
 solitude qui        rgnait aux         
environs40--,fustel de ,coulanges1 ,la  
,cit antique1 pp4        #bfc-bfd4      
#eca ,plato1 ,republic1 lib4 v42 ,bodin1
 ,rpublique1 liv4 i4 cap4 #e4      #ecb 
,grote1 ,hist4 of ,greece1 vol4 viii4 p4
 #bbd4 ,agesilaus was also very         
humane to captives4--,ibid4 pp4 #cfe-f4 
#ecc ,this appears continually in ,livy1
 but most of all1 ,i think1 in the      
,gaulish historian1 ,florus4      #ecd  
,scipio and ,trajan4      #ece ,see some
 very remarkable passages in ,grotius1  

,de ,jure ,bell4 lib4        iii4 cap4  
#d1  #ai4      #ecf ,these mitigations  
are fully enumerated by ,ayala1 ,de     
,jure et        ,officiis ,bellicis     
7,antwerp1 #aeig71 ,grotius1 ,de ,jure4 
,it is        remarkable that both      
,ayala and ,grotius base their attempts 
to        mitigate the severity of war  
chiefly upon the writings and examples  
of the ,pagans4 ,the limits of the right
 of conquerors and the just             
causes of war are discussed by ,cicero1 
,de ,offic4 lib4 i4      #ecg ,in       
,england the change seems to have       
immediately followed conversion4        
8,the evangelical precepts of peace and 
love10 says a very learned              
historian1 8did not put an end to war1  
they did not put an end to              
aggressive conquests1 but they          
distinctly humanised the way in which   
war was carried on4 ,from this time     
forth the never-ending wars with        
the ,welsh cease to be wars of          
extermination4 ,the heathen ,english had

        been satisfied with nothing     
short of the destruction and expulsion  
of their enemies2 the ,christian        
,english thought it enough to reduce    
them to political subjection4444 ,the   
,christian ,welsh could now sit         
down as subjects of the ,christian      
,saxon4 ,the ,welshman was              
acknowledged as a man and a citizen1 and
 was put under the        protection of 
the law40--,freeman's ,hist4 of the     
,norman ,conquest1        vol4 i4 pp4   
#cc-cd4 ,christians who assisted        
infidels in wars were        ipso facto 
excommunicated1 and might therefore be  
enslaved1 but        all others were    
free from slavery4 8,et quidem inter    
,christianos        laudabili et antiqua
 consuetudine introductum est1 ut capti 
hinc        inde1 utcunque justo bello1 
non fierent servi1 sed liberi           
servarentur donec solvant precium       
redemptionis40--,ayala1 lib4 i4 cap4    
#e4 8,this rule1 at least10 says        
,grotius1 87though but a small matter7  

the reverence for the ,christian law has
 enforced1 which ,socrates        vainly
 sought to have established among the   
,greeks40 ,the ,mohammedans        also 
made it a rule not to enslave their     
co-religionists4--,grotius1        ,de  
,jure1 iii4 #g1  #i4 ,pagan and         
barbarian prisoners were1 however1      
sold as slaves 7especially by the       
,spaniards7 till very recently4         
#ech ,the character of ,constantine1 and
 the estimate of it in ,eusebius1       
are well treated by ,dean ,stanley1     
,lectures on the ,eastern ,church       
7,lect4 vi474      #eci ,theodoret1 iii4
 #bh4      #edj ,they are collected by  
,chateaubriand1 tudes hist4 #bme disc4  
#bme        partie4      #eda ,see ,st4 
,gregory's oration on ,cesarius4        
#edb ,sozomen1 vi4 #b4      #edc ,ep4   
xiii4 #ca-ci4 ,in the second of these   
letters 7which is        addressed to   
,leontia71 he says3 8,rogare forsitan   
debui ut ecclesiam        beati ,petri  
apostoli qu nunc usque gravibus insidiis

 laboravit1        haberet ,vestra      
,tranquillitas specialiter commendatam4 
,sed qui scio        quia omnipotentem  
,deum diligitis1 non debeo petere quod  
sponte ex        benignitate vestr      
pietatis exhibetis40      #edd ,see the 
graphic description in ,gibbon1 ch4     
liii4      #ede ,baronius4      #edf    
,mably1 ii4 #a2 ,gibbon1 ch4 xlix4      
#edg ,there are some good remarks upon  
the way in which1 among the free        
,franks1 the bishops taught the duty of 
passive obedience1 in ,mably1           
,obs4 sur l',histoire de ,france1 livre 
i4 ch4 iii4 ,gregory of ,tours1         
in his address to ,chilperic1 had said3 
8,if any of us1 ,o king1                
transgress the boundaries of justice1   
thou art at hand to correct        us2  
but if thou shouldest exceed them1 who  
is to condemn thee8 ,we        address  
thee1 and if it please thee thou        
listenest to us2 but if it        please
 thee not1 who is to condemn thee save  
,he who has proclaimed        ,himself  

,justice40--,greg4 ,tur4 v4 #ai4 ,on the
 other hand1 ,hincmar1                  
,archbishop of ,rheims1 strongly        
asserted the obligation of kings to     
observe the law1 and denounced as       
diabolical the doctrine that they       
are subject to none but ,god4 7,allen1  
,on the ,royal ,prerogative             
7#ahdi71 pp4 #aga-agb47      #edh ,the  
exact degree of the authority of the    
barbarian kings1 and the                
different stages by which their power   
was increased1 are matters of           
great controversy4 ,the reader may      
consult ,thierry's ,lettres sur         
l',hist4 de ,france 7let4 #i72 ,guizot's
 ,hist4 de la ,civilisation2            
,mably1 ,observ4 sur l',hist4 de        
,france2 ,freeman's ,hist4 of the       
,norman ,conquest1 vol4 i4      #edi    
,fauriel1 ,hist4 de la ,posie provenale1
 tome ii4 p4 #beb4      #eej ,ibid1 p4  
#beh4      #eea ,le ,grand ,d',aussy1   
,fabliaux1 prf4 p4 xxiv4 ,these romances
 were        accounts of his expeditions

 to ,spain1 to ,languedoc1 and to       
,palestine4      #eeb ,the  of the      
,greeks4      #eec ,legouv1 ,histoire   
morale des ,femmes1 pp4 #ie-if4         
#eed ,gen4 xxix41 xxxiv4 #ab2 ,deut4    
xxii4 #bi2 #a ,sam4 xviii4 #be4         
#eee ,the history of dowries is briefly 
noticed by ,grote1 ,hist4 of            
,greece1 vol4 ii4 pp4 #aab-aac2 and more
 fully by ,lord ,kames1 in the          
admirable chapter 8,on the ,progress of 
the ,female ,sex10 in his               
,sketches of the ,history of ,man1 a    
book less read than it deserves         
to be4 ,m4 ,legouv has also devoted a   
chapter to it in his ,hist4             
morale des ,femmes4 ,see1 too1          
,legendre1 ,trait de l',opinion1 tome   
ii4 pp4 #cbi-ccj4 ,we find traces of the
 dowry1 as well as of the        1 in   
,homer4 ,penelope had received a dowry  
from ,icarus1 her        father4 ,m4    
,michelet1 in one of those fanciful     
books which he has        recently      
published1 maintains a view of the      

object of the  which        ,i do not   
remember to have seen elsewhere1 and    
which ,i do not        believe4 ,he     
says3 8,ce prix n'est point un achat de 
la femme1 mais        une indemnit qui  
ddommage la famille du pre pour les     
enfants        futurs1 qui ne           
profiteront pas  cette famille mais     
celle o la        femme va entrer40--,la
 ,femme1 p4 #aff4      #eef ,in ,rome1  
when the separation was due to the      
misconduct of the wife1        the dowry
 belonged to her husband4      #eeg     
8,dotem non uxor marito sed uxori       
maritus offert40--,tac4 ,germ4          
xviii4 ,on the ,morgengab1 see          
,canciani1 ,leges ,barbarorum           
7,venetiis1        #agha71 vol4 i4 pp4  
#ajb-ajd2 ii4 pp4 #bcj-bca4 ,muratori1  
,antich4        ,ital4 diss4 xx4        
,luitprand enacted that no ,longobard   
should give        more than one-fourth 
of his substance as a ,morgengab4 ,in   
,gregory of        ,tours 7ix4 #bj7 we  
have an example of the gift of some     

cities as a        ,morgengab4      #eeh
 ,see1 on this point1 ,aul4 ,gellius1   
,noct4 ,att4 xv4 #bj4 ,euripides is     
said to have had two wives4      #eei   
,aristotle said that ,homer never gives 
a concubine to ,menelaus1 in            
order to intimate his respect for       
,helen--though false4 7,athenus1        
xiii4 #c47      #efj schylus has put    
this curious notion into the mouth of   
,apollo1 in a        speech in the      
,eumenides4 ,it has1 however1 been very 
widely        diffused1 and may be found
 in ,indian1 ,greek1 ,roman1 and even   
,christian writers4 ,m4 ,legouv1 who has
 devoted a very curious        chapter  
to the subject1 quotes a passage from   
,st4 ,thomas ,aquinas1        accepting 
it1 and arguing from it1 that a father  
should be more        loved than a      
mother4 ,m4 ,legouv says that when the  
male of one        animal and the female
 of another are crossed1 the type of the
 female        usually predominates in  
the offspring4 ,see ,legouv1 ,hist4     

morale        des ,femmes1 pp4 #baf-bbh2
 ,fustel de ,coulanges1 ,la ,cit        
antique1        pp4 #ci-dj2 and also a  
curious note by ,boswell1 in ,croker's  
edition        of ,boswell's ,life of   
,johnson 7#ahdg71 p4 #dgb4      #efa    
,dr4 ,vintras1 in a remarkable pamphlet 
7,london1 #ahfg7 ,on the                
,repression of ,prostitution1 shows from
 the police statistics that        the  
number of prostitutes known to the      
police in ,england and        ,wales1 in
 #ahfd1 was #di1cgj2 and this is        
certainly much below the        entire  
number4 ,these1 it will be observed1    
comprise only the        habitual1      
professional prostitutes4      #efb     
,some measures have recently been taken 
in a few garrison towns4 ,the           
moral sentiment of the community1 it    
appears1 would be shocked if            
,liverpool were treated on the same     
principles as ,portsmouth4 ,this        
very painful and revolting1 but most    
important1 subject has been             

treated with great knowledge1           
impartiality1 and ability1 by           
,parent-,duchtelet1 in his famous work1 
,la ,prostitution dans la        ville  
de ,paris4 ,the third edition contains  
very copious        supplementary       
accounts1 furnished by different doctors
 in different        countries4         
#efc ,parent-,duchtelet has given many  
statistics1 showing the very large      
extent to which the ,french system of   
supervision deters those who        were
 about to enter into prostitution1 and  
reclaims those who had        entered   
into it4 ,he and ,dr4 ,vintras concur in
 representing ,english                  
prostitution as about the most degraded1
 and at the same time the        most   
irrevocable4      #efd ,miss ,mulock1 in
 her amiable but rather feeble book1    
called ,a        ,woman's ,thoughts     
about ,women1 has some good remarks on  
this point        7pp4 #bia-bic71 which 
are all the more valuable1 as the       
authoress has        not the faintest   

sympathy with any opinions concerning   
the character        and position of    
women which are not strictly            
conventional4 ,she        notices the   
experience of ,sunday school mistresses1
 that1 of their        pupils who are   
seduced1 an extremely large proportion  
are 8of the        very best1 refined1  
intelligent1 truthful1 and              
affectionate40      #efe ,see the very  
singular and painful chapter in         
,parent-,duchtelet1        called 8,murs
 et ,habitudes des ,prostitues40 ,he    
observes that they        are remarkable
 for their kindness to one another in   
sickness or in        distress2 that    
they are not unfrequently charitable to 
poor people        who do not belong to 
their class2 that when one of them has a
 child1        it becomes the object of 
very general interest and affection2    
that        most of them have lovers1 to
 whom they are sincerely attached2 that 
they rarely fail to show in the         
hospitals a very real sense of          

shame2 and that many of them entered    
into their mode of life for the         
purpose of supporting aged parents4 ,one
 anecdote is worth giving in        the 
words of the author3 8,un mdecin        
n'entrant jamais dans leurs             
salles sans ter lgrement son chapeau1   
par cette seule politesse        il sut 
tellement conqurir leur confiance qu'il 
leur faisait faire        tout ce qu'il 
voulait40 ,this writer1 ,i may observe1 
is not a romance        writer or a     
theorist of any description4 ,he is     
simply a physician        who describes 
the results of a very large official    
experience4      #eff                   
8,parent-,duchtelet atteste que sur     
trois mille cratures perdues            
trente cinq seulement avaient un tat qui
 pouvait les nourrir1 et        que     
quatorze cents avaient t prcipites dans 
cette horrible vie        par la misre4 
,une d'elles1 quand elle s'y rsolut1    
n'avait pas        mang depuis trois    
jours40--,legouv1 ,hist4 morale des     

,femmes1 pp4        #cbb-cbc4      #efg 
,concerning the position and character  
of ,greek women1 the reader may         
obtain ample information by consulting  
,becker's ,charicles        7translated 
by ,metcalfe1 #ahde72 ,rainneville1 ,la 
,femme dans        l',antiquit 7,paris1 
#ahfe72 and an article 8,on ,female     
,society in        ,greece10 in the     
twenty-second volume of the ,quarterly  
,review4      #efh ,plutarch1 ,conj4    
,prc4      #efi ,xenophon1 ,econ4 ii4   
#egj ,plut4 ,conj4 ,prc4 ,there is also 
an extremely beautiful picture of       
the character of a good wife in         
,aristotle4 7,economics1 book i4        
cap4 vii47      #ega ,see ,alexander's  
,history of ,women 7,london1 #aghc71    
vol4 i4 p4 #bja4      #egb ,plutarch1   
,phocion4      #egc ,our information    
concerning the ,greek courtesans is     
chiefly derived        from the         
thirteenth book of the ,deipnosophists  
of ,athenus1 from        the ,letters of
 ,alciphron1 from the ,dialogues of     

,lucian on        courtesans1 and from  
the oration of ,demosthenes against     
,nera4 ,see1        too1 ,xenophon1     
,memorabilia1 iii4 #aa2 and among modern
 books1        ,becker's ,charicles4    
,athenus was an ,egyptian1 whose exact  
date is        unknown but who appears  
to have survived ,ulpian1 who died in   
,a4,d4        #bbh4 ,he had access to1  
and gave extracts from1 many works on   
this        subject1 which have now     
perished4 ,alciphron is believed to have
        lived near the time of ,lucian4 
#egd ,according to some writers the word
 8venerari0 comes from 8,venerem        
exercere10 on account of the devotions  
in the temple of ,venus4 ,see           
,vossius1 ,etymologicon ,lingu ,latin1  
8veneror20 also ,la ,mothe le           
,vayer1 ,lettre xc4      #ege ,on the   
connection of the courtesans with the   
artistic enthusiasm1        see ,raoul  
,rochette1 ,cours d',archologie1 pp4    
#bgh-bgi4 ,see1 too1        ,athenus1   
xiii4 #ei2 ,pliny1 ,hist4 ,nat4 xxxv4   

#dj4      #egf ,see the very curious    
little work of ,mnage1 ,historia        
,mulierum        ,philosopharum         
7,lugduni1 ,,mdxc472 also ,rainneville1 
,la ,femme dans        l',antiquite1 p4 
#bdd4 ,at a much later date ,lucian     
described the        beauty1            
accomplishments1 generosity1 and even   
modesty1 of ,panthea of        ,smyrna1 
the favourite mistress of ,lucius       
,verus4      #egg ,the 1 which was at   
first in use1 was discarded by the      
,lacedmonians1 and afterwards by the    
other ,greeks4 ,there are three         
curious memoirs tracing the history of  
the change1 by ,m4 ,burette1 in         
the ,hist4 de l',acadmie royale des     
,inscriptions1 tome i4      #egh ,on the
 causes of paiderastia in ,greece1 see  
the remarks of ,mr4 ,grote        in the
 review of the ,symposium1 in his great 
work on ,plato4 ,the        whole       
subject is very ably treated by ,m4     
,maury1 ,hist4 des ,religions        de 
la ,grce antique1 tome iii4 pp4 #ce-ci4 

,many facts connected with        it are
 collected by ,dllinger1 in his ,jew and
 ,gentile1 and by        ,chateaubriand1
 in his tudes historiques4 ,the chief   
original        authority is the        
thirteenth book of ,athenus1 a book of  
very painful        interest in the     
history of morals4      #egi ,plutarch1 
in his ,life of ,agesilaus1 dwells on   
the intense        self-control         
manifested by that great man1 in        
refraining from        gratifying a     
passion he had conceived for a boy named
 ,megabetes1 and        ,maximus ,tyrius
 says it deserved greater praise than   
the heroism of        ,leonidas4 7,diss4
 xxv47 ,diogenes ,lartius1 in his ,life 
of ,zeno1        the founder of         
,stoicism1 the most austere of all      
ancient sects1        praises that      
philosopher for being but little        
addicted to this vice4        ,sophocles
 is said to have been much addicted to  
it4      #ehj ,some examples of the     
ascription of this vice to the          

divinities are        given by ,clem4   
,alex4 ,admonitio ad ,gentes4 ,socrates 
is said to have        maintained that  
,jupiter loved ,ganymede for his wisdom1
 as his name        is derived from  and
 1 to be delighted with prudence4       
7,xenophon1 ,banquet47 ,the disaster of 
,cann was ascribed to the               
jealousy of ,juno because a beautiful   
boy was introduced into the             
temple of ,jupiter4 7,lactantius1 ,inst4
 ,div4 ii4 #ag47      #eha ,athenus1    
xiii4 #gh4 ,see1 too1 the very revolting
 book on different        kinds of love1
 ascribed 7it is said falsely7 to       
,lucian4      #ehb ,pliny1 ,hist4 ,nat4 
xxxiv4 #i4      #ehc ,there is ample    
evidence of this in ,athenus1 and in the
 ,dialogues of        ,lucian on the    
courtesans4 ,see1 too1 ,terence1 ,the   
,eunuch1 act v4        scene #d1 which  
is copied from the ,greek4 ,the majority
 of the class        were not called    
hetr1 but 4      #ehd ,plutarch1 ,de    
,garrulitate2 ,plin4 ,hist4 ,nat4 xxxiv4

 #ai4 ,the feat        of biting out    
their tongues rather than reveal        
secrets1 or yield to        passion1 is 
ascribed to a suspiciously large number 
of persons4        ,mnage cites five    
besides ,lena4 7,hist4 ,mulier4 ,philos4
 pp4        #ajd-ajh47      #ehe ,see1  
upon ,bacchis1 several of the letters of
 ,alciphron1 especially        the very 
touching letter 7x47 on her death1      
describing her kindness        and      
disinterestedness4 ,athenus 7xiii4 #ff7 
relates a curious        anecdote       
illustrating these aspects of her       
character4      #ehf ,xenophon1         
,memorab4 iii4 #aa4      #ehg ,on the   
,flamens1 see ,aulus ,gell4 ,noct4 x4   
#ae4      #ehh ,capitolinus1 ,maximinus 
,junior4      #ehi ,pliny1 ,hist4 ,nat4 
vii4 #cf4 ,there is 7as is well known7 a
 similar        legend of a daughter    
thus feeding her father4 ,val4 ,max4    
,lib4 v4 cap4        #d4      #eij ,this
 appears from the first act of the      
,stichus of ,plautus4 ,the        power 

appears to have become quite obsolete   
during the ,empire but        the first 
legal act 7which was rather of the      
nature of an        exhortation than of 
a command7 against it was issued by     
,antoninus        ,pius1 and it was only
 definitely abolished under ,diocletian4
        7,laboulaye1 ,recherches sur la 
condition civile et politique des       
femmes1 pp4 #af-ag47      #eia ,aul4    
,gell4 ,noct4 x4 #bc4      #eib ,val4   
,maximus1 ii4 #a1  #d2 ,aul4 ,gellius1  
,noct4 iv4 #c4      #eic ,ammianus      
,marcellinus1 xxviii4 #d4      #eid     
,tacitus1 ,de ,oratoribus1 xxviii4      
#eie ,see ,aulus ,gellius1 ,noct4 ii4   
#bd4      #eif 8,more inter veteres     
recepto1 qui satis pnarum adversum      
impudicas in        ipsa professione    
flagitii credebant40--,tacitus1 ,annal4 
ii4 #he4      #eig ,aul4 ,gell4 iv4 #c4 
,juno was the goddess of marriage4      
#eih ,ibid4 iv4 #ad4      #eii ,the     
well-known superstition about the lion1 
c41 becoming docile        before a     

virgin is1 ,i believe1 as old as ,roman 
times4 ,st4 ,isidore        mentions    
that rhinoceroses were said to be       
captured by young girls        being put
 in their way to fascinate them4        
7,legendre1 ,trait de        l',opinion1
 tome ii4 p4 #ce47      #fjj ,pliny1    
,hist4 ,nat4 xxviii4 #bc4      #fja     
,ibid4 vii4 #ah4      #fjb 8,quem enim  
,romanorum pudet uxorem ducere in       
convivium8 aut cujus                    
materfamilias non primum locum tenet    
dium1 atque in celebritate              
versatur8 quod multo fit aliter in      
,grcia4 ,nam neque in convivium         
adhibetur1 nisi propinquorum1 neque     
sedet nisi in interiore parte           
dium qu gyncontis appellatur1 quo nemo  
accedit1 nisi propinqua                 
cognatione conjunctus40--,corn4 ,nepos4 
prfat4      #fjc ,val4 ,max4 ii4 #a1    
#f4      #fjd ,liv4 viii4 #ah4      #fje
 ,see ,val4 ,max4 ii4 #a4      #fjf     
8,nupti sunt conjunctio maris et femin1 
et consortium omnis vit1        divini  

et humani juris                         
communicatio40--,modestinus4      #fjg  
,livy1 xxxiv4 #e4 ,there is a fine      
collection of legends or histories      
of heroic women 7but chiefly ,greek7 in 
,clem4 ,alexand4 ,strom4 iv4        #ai4
      #fjh ,tacitus1 ,annal4 ii4 #he4   
,this decree was on account of a        
patrician        lady named ,vistilia   
having so enrolled herself4      #fji   
,dion ,cassius1 liv4 #af1 lvi4 #aj4     
#faj 8,si sine uxore possemus1          
,quirites1 esse1 omnes ea molestia      
careremus2 sed quoniam ita natura       
tradidit1 ut nec cum illis satis        
commode nec sine illis ullo modo vivi   
possit1 saluti perpetu potius           
quam brevi voluptati                    
consulendum40--,aulus ,gellius1 ,noct4  
i4 #f4 ,some        of the audience1 we 
are told1 thought that1 in exhorting to 
matrimony1 the speaker should have      
concealed its undoubted evils4 ,it      
was decided1 however1 that it was more  
honourable to tell the whole            

truth4 ,stobus 7,sententi7 has preserved
 a number of harsh and        often     
heartless sayings about wives1 that were
 popular among the        ,greeks4 ,it  
was a saying of a ,greek poet1 that     
8marriage brings only        two happy  
days--the day when the husband first    
clasps his wife to his        breast1   
and the day when he lays her in the     
tomb20 and in ,rome it        became a  
proverbial saying1 that a wife was only 
good 8in thalamo        vel in tumulo40 
#faa ,friedlnder1 ,hist4 des ,murs      
romaines1 tome i4 pp4 #cfj-cfd4 ,on the 
great influence exercised by ,roman     
ladies on political affairs some        
remarkable passages are collected in    
,denis1 ,hist4 des ,ides                
,morales1 tome ii4 pp4 #ih-ii4 ,this    
author is particularly valuable         
in all that relates to the history of   
domestic morals4 ,the        ,asinaria  
of ,plautus1 and some of the epigrams of
 ,martial1 throw        much light upon 
this subject4      #fab ,see the very   

remarkable discussion about this repeal 
in ,livy1 lib4        xxxiv4 cap4 #a-h4 
#fac ,legouv1 ,hist4 ,morale des        
,femmes1 pp4 #bc-bf4 ,st4 ,augustine    
denounced this law as the most unjust   
that could be mentioned or        even  
conceived4 8,qua lege quid iniquius dici
 aut cogitari possit1                   
ignoro40--,st4 ,aug4 ,de ,civ4 ,dei1    
iii4 #ba--;a curious illustration of    
the difference between the habits of    
thought of his time and those        of 
the middle ages1 when daughters were    
habitually sacrificed1        without a 
protest1 by the feudal laws4      #fad  
,plutarch1 ,cicero4      #fae ,tacit4   
,ann4 i4 #aj4      #faf ,plutarch1      
,cato2 ,lucan1 ,pharsal4 ii4      #fag  
,senec4 ,ep4 cxiv4      #fah ,val4 ,max4
 vi4 #c4      #fai ,plutarch1 ,paul4    
mil4 ,it is not quite clear whether this
 remark        was made by ,paulus      
himself4      #fbj ,sen4 ,de ,benef4    
iii4 #af4 ,see1 too1 ,ep4 xcv4 ,ad      
,helv4 xvi4      #fba ,apol4 #f4        

#fbb ,epig4 vi4 #g4      #fbc ,juv4     
,sat4 vi4 #bcj4      #fbd ,ep4 #b4      
#fbe ,sueton4 ,aug4 ,charlemagne1 in    
like manner1 made his daughters work    
in wool4 7,eginhardus1 ,vit4 ,car4 ,mag4
 xix47      #fbf ,friedlnder1 ,murs     
romaines du rgne d',auguste  la fin des 
,antonins 7trad4 fran471 tome i4 p4     
#dad4      #fbg ,much evidence of this  
is collected by ,friedlnder1 tome i4 pp4
        #chg-cie4      #fbh ,plutarch1  
,pompeius4      #fbi ,martial1 xi4 #af4 
,pliny1 ,ep4 i4 #ad4      #fcj ,suet4   
,tiberius1 xlv4      #fca ,plutarch1    
,brutus4      #fcb ,tacit4 ,annal4 xv4  
#fc1 #fd4      #fcc 8,pte1 non          
dolet40--,plin4 ,ep4 iii4 #af2 ,martial1
 ,ep4 i4 #ad4      #fcd ,tacit4 ,annal4 
xvi4 #aj-aa2 ,hist4 i4 #c4 ,see1 too1   
,friedlnder1        tome i4 p4 #djf4    
#fce ,tacit4 ,ann4 xvi4 #cd4      #fcf  
,pliny mentions her return after the    
death of the tyrant 7,ep4 iii4          
#aa74      #fcg 8,quod paucis datum est1
 non minus amabilis quam                

veneranda40--,plin4        ,ep4 vii4    
#ai4      #fch ,see ,plin4 ,ep4 vii4    
#ai4 ,dion ,cassius and ,tacitus relate 
the exiles        of ,helvidius1 who    
appears to have been rather intemperate 
and        unreasonable4      #fci      
,friedlnder gives many and most touching
 examples1 tome i4 pp4        #daj-dad4 
#fdj ,suet4 ,dom4 viii4      #fda       
,capitolinus1 ,macrinus4      #fdb      
,lampridius1 ,a4 ,severus4      #fdc ,in
 the oration against ,nera1 which is    
ascribed to ,demosthenes1 but        is 
of doubtful genuineness1 the licence    
accorded to husbands is        spoken of
 as a matter of course3 8,we keep       
mistresses for our        pleasures1    
concubines for constant attendance1 and 
wives to bear us        legitimate      
children1 and to be our faithful        
housekeepers40      #fdd ,there is a    
remarkable passage on the feelings of   
wives1 in different        nations1 upon
 this point1 in ,athenus1 xiii4 #c4     
,see1 too1 ,plutarch1        ,conj4     

,prc4      #fde ,euripid4 ,andromache4  
#fdf ,valer4 ,max4 vi4 #g1  #a4 ,some   
very scandalous instances of cynicism   
on the part of ,roman husbands are      
recorded4 ,thus1 ,augustus had many     
mistresses1 8,qu virgines sibi undique  
etiam ab uxore                          
conquirerentur40--,sueton4 ,aug4 lxxi4  
,when the wife of ,verus1 the           
colleague of ,marcus ,aurelius1         
complained of the tastes of her         
husband1 he answered1 8,uxor enim       
dignitatis nomen est1 non               
voluptatis40--,spartian4 ,verus4        
#fdg ,aristotle1 ,econom4 i4 #d-h-i4    
#fdh ,plutarch enforces the duty at     
length1 in his very beautiful work on   
marriage4 ,in case husbands are guilty  
of infidelity1 he recommends            
their wives to preserve a prudent       
blindness1 reflecting that it is        
out of respect for them that they choose
 another woman as the        companion  
of their intemperance4 ,seneca touches  
briefly1 but        unequivocally1 on   

the subject3 8,scis improbum esse qui ab
 uxore        pudicitiam exigit1 ipse   
alienarum corruptor uxorum4 ,scis ut    
illi nil        cum adultero1 sic nihil 
tibi esse debere cum pellice40--,ep4    
xciv4        8,sciet in uxorem          
gravissimum esse genus injuri1 habere   
pellicem40--,ep4 xcv4      #fdi         
8,periniquum enim videtur esse1 ut      
pudicitiam vir ab uxore exigat1         
quam ipse non exhibeat40--,cod4 ,just4  
,dig4 xlviii4 #e-ac4      #fej ,quoted  
by ,st4 ,augustine1 ,de ,conj4 ,adult4  
ii4 #ai4 ,plautus1 long        before1  
had made one of his characters complain 
of the injustice of        the laws     
which punished unchaste wives but not   
unchaste husbands1        and ask why1  
since every honest woman is contented   
with one husband1        every honest   
man should not be contented with one    
wife8 7,mercator1        ,act iv4 scene 
#e47      #fea ,horace1 ,sat4 i4 #b4    
#feb 8,verum si quis est qui etiam      
meretriciis amoribus interdictum        

juventuti putet1 est ille quidem valde  
severus2 negare non possum2        sed  
abhorret non modo ab hujus sculi        
licentia1 verum etiam a        majorum  
consuetudine atque concessis4 ,quando   
enim hoc factum non        est8 ,quando 
reprehensum8 ,quando non permissum8     
,quando denique fuit        ut quod     
licet non liceret80--,cicero1 ,pro      
,clio1 cap4 xx4 ,the whole        speech
 is well worthy of the attention of     
those who would understand        ,roman
 feelings on these matters2 but it      
should be remembered that it        is  
the speech of a lawyer defending a      
dissolute client4      #fec  1     4  1 
1 1       1         1   1    1          
4--,enchir4 xxxiii4      #fed 8,et si   
uxores non haberent1 singulas           
concubinas1 quod sine his esse          
non possent40--,lampridius1 ,a4         
,severus4 ,we have an amusing picture   
of the common tone of people of the     
world on this matter1 in the            
speech ,apuleius puts into the mouth of 

the gods1 remonstrating with            
,venus for being angry because her son  
formed a connection with        ,psyche4
 7,metam4 lib4 v47      #fee ,preserved 
by ,stobus4 ,see ,denis1 ,hist4 des     
,ides morales dans        l',antiquit1  
tome ii4 pp4 #acd-acf1 #adi-aej4        
#fef ,philos4 ,apol4 i4 #ac4 ,when a    
saying of ,pythagoras1 8that a man      
should only have commerce with his own  
wife10 was quoted1 he said        that  
this concerned others4      #feg        
,trebellius ,pollio1 ,zenobia4      #feh
 ,this is asserted by an anonymous      
writer quoted by ,suidas4 ,see          
,mnage1 ,hist4 ,mulierum ,philosopharum1
 p4 #eh4      #fei ,see1 e4g41          
,plotinus1 #ast ,eun4 vi4 #f4      #ffj 
,capitolinus1 ,m4 ,aurelius4      #ffa  
,amm4 ,marcell4 xxv4 #d4      #ffb ,cod4
 ,theod4 lib4 ix4 tit4 #bd4      #ffc   
,cod4 ,theod4 lib4 xv4 tit4 #g4         
#ffd 8,fidicinam nulli liceat vel emere 
vel docere vel vendere1 vel             
conviviis aut spectaculis adhibere4 ,nec

 cuiquam aut delectationis              
desiderio erudita feminea aut music     
artis studio liceat habere              
mancipia40--,cod4 ,theod4 xv4 #g1 #aj4  
,this curious law was issued in         
,a4,d4 #che4 ,st4 ,jerome said these    
musicians were the chorus of the        
devil1 and quite as dangerous as the    
sirens4 ,see the comments on the        
law4      #ffe ,ruinart1 ,act4 ,s4      
,perpetu4 ,these acts1 are1 ,i believe1 
generally        regarded as authentic4 
,there is nothing more instructive in   
history        than to trace the same   
moral feelings through different ages   
and        religions2 and ,i am able in 
this case to present the reader with an 
illustration of their permanence1 which 
,i think somewhat remarkable4           
,the younger ,pliny gives in one of his 
letters a pathetic account of        the
 execution of ,cornelia1 a vestal       
virgin1 by the order of                 
,domitian4 ,she was buried alive for    
incest2 but her innocence appears       

to have been generally believed2 and she
 had been condemned unheard1        and 
in her absence4 ,as she was being       
lowered into the subterranean           
cell her dress was caught and deranged  
in the descent4 ,she turned        round
 and drew it to her1 and when the       
executioner stretched out his           
hand to assist her1 she started back    
lest he should touch her1 for           
this1 according to the received opinion1
 was a pollution2 and even        in the
 supreme moment of her agony her vestal 
purity shrank from the        unholy    
contact4 7,plin4 ,ep4 iv4 #aa47 ,if we  
now pass back several        centuries1 
we find ,euripides attributing to       
,polyxena a trait        precisely      
similar to that which was attributed to 
,perpetua4 ,as she        fell beneath  
the sword of the executioner1 it was    
observed that her        last care was  
that she might fall with decency4       
1             4          ,euripides1    
,hec4 #eff-fh4      #fff ,vita ,pauli4  

#ffg ,st4 ,ambrose relates an instance  
of this1 which he says occurred at      
,antioch 7,de ,virginibus1 lib4 ii4 cap4
 iv474 ,when the ,christian        youth
 was being led to execution1 the girl   
whom he had saved        reappeared and 
died with him4 ,eusebius tells a very   
similar story1        but places the    
scene at ,alexandria4      #ffh ,see    
,ceillier1 ,hist4 des ,auteurs eccls4   
tome iii4 p4 #ebc4      #ffi ,ibid4 tome
 viii4 pp4 #bjd-bjg4      #fgj ,among   
the ,irish saints ,st4 ,colman is said  
to have had a girdle which        would 
only meet around the chaste1 and which  
was long preserved in        ,ireland as
 a relic 7,colgan1 ,acta ,sanctorum     
,hiberni1 ,louvain1        #afde1 vol4  
i4 p4 #bdf72 and ,st4 ,fursus a girdle  
that extinguished        lust4 7,ibid4  
p4 #bib47 ,the girdle of ,st4 ,thomas   
,aquinas seems to have        had some  
miraculous properties of this kind4     
7,see his ,life in the                  
,bollandists1 ,sept4 #bi47 ,among both  

the ,greeks and ,romans it was          
customary for the bride to be girt with 
a girdle which the        bridegroom    
unloosed in the nuptial bed1 and hence  
8zonam solvere0        became a         
proverbial expression for 8pudicitiam   
mulieris imminuere40        7,nieupoort1
 ,de ,ritibus ,romanorum1 p4 #dgi2      
,alexander's ,history of        ,women1 
vol4 ii4 p4 #cjj47      #fga ,vit4 ,st4 
,pachom4 7,rosweyde74      #fgb ,see his
 ,life1 by ,gregory of ,nyssa4      #fgc
 ,a little book has been written on     
these legends by ,m4 ,charles de        
,bussy1 called ,les ,courtisanes        
saintes4 ,there is said to be some      
doubt about ,st4 ,afra1 for1 while her  
acts represent her as a        reformed 
courtesan1 ,st4 ,fortunatus1 in two     
lines he has devoted to        her1     
calls her a virgin4 7,ozanam1 tudes     
german4 tome ii4 p4 #h47      #fgd ,see 
the ,vit4 ,sancti ,joannis              
,eleemosynarii 7,rosweyde74      #fge   
,tillemont1 tome x4 pp4 #fa-fb4 ,there  

is also a very picturesque        legend
 of the manner in which ,st4 ,paphnutius
 converted the courtesan        ,thais4 
#fgf ,see especially1 ,tertullian1 ,ad  
,uxorem4 ,it was beautifully said1 at   
a later period1 that woman was not taken
 from the head of man1 for        she   
was not intended to be his ruler1 nor   
from his feet1 for she was        not   
intended to be his slave1 but from his  
side1 for she was to be        his      
companion and his comfort4 7,peter      
,lombard1 ,senten4 lib4 ii4        dis4 
#ah47      #fgg ,the reader may find    
many passages on this subject in        
,barbeyrac1        ,morale des ,pres1   
ii4  #g2 iii4  #h2 iv4  #ca-ce2 vi4     
#ca2 xiii4         #b-h4      #fgh 8,it 
is remarkable how rarely1 if ever 7,i   
cannot call to mind an        instance71
 in the discussions of the comparative  
merits of marriage        and celibacy1 
the social advantages appear to have    
occurred to the        mind4444 ,it is  
always argued with relation to the      

interests and the        perfection of  
the individual soul2 and1 even with     
regard to that1        the writers seem 
almost unconscious of the softening and 
humanising        effect of the natural 
affections1 the beauty of parental      
tenderness        and filial            
love40--,milman's ,hist4 of             
,christianity1 vol4 iii4 p4        #aif4
      #fgi 8,tempus breve est1 et jam   
securis ad radices arborum posita est1  
qu        silvam legis et nuptiarum     
evangelica castitate succidat40--,ep4   
cxxiii4      #fhj 8,laudo nuptias1 laudo
 conjugium1 sed quia mihi virgines      
generant40--,ep4 xxii4      #fha ,see   
,ceillier1 ,auteurs eccls4 xiii4 p4     
#adg4      #fhb ,socrates1 iv4 #bc4     
#fhc ,palladius1 ,hist4 ,laus4 cxix4    
#fhd ,vit4 ,s4 ,abr4 7,rosweyde71 cap4  
i4      #fhe ,i do not know when this   
legend first appeared4 ,m4 ,littr       
mentions        having found it in a    
,french ,,ms4 of the eleventh century   
7,littr1        ,les ,barbares1 pp4     

#abc-abd72 and it also forms the subject
 of a        very curious fresco1 ,i    
imagine of a somewhat earlier date1     
which was        discovered1 within the 
last few years1 in the subterranean     
church of        ,st4 ,clement at ,rome4
 ,an account of it is given by ,father  
,mullooly1        in his interesting    
little book about that ,church4         
#fhf ,de ,virgin4 cap4 iii4      #fhg   
,greg4 ,tur4 i4 #db4      #fhh ,the     
regulations on this point are given at  
length in ,bingham4      #fhi ,muratori1
 ,antich4 ,ital4 diss4 xx4      #fij    
,st4 ,greg4 ,dial4 i4 #aj4      #fia    
,delepierre1 ,l',enfer dcrit par ceux   
qui l'ont vu1 pp4 #dd-ef4      #fib     
,val4 ,max4 ii4 #a4  #c4      #fic      
8,ille meos1 primus qui me sibi junxit1 
amores        ,abstulit2 ille habeat    
secum1 servetque sepulchro40          n4
 iv4 #bh4      #fid ,e4g41 the wives of 
,lucan1 ,drusus1 and ,pompey4      #fie 
,tacit4 ,german4 xix4      #fif         
,friedlnder1 tome i4 p4 #daa4      #fig 

,hieron4 ,ep4 liv4      #fih 8,uxorem   
vivam amare voluptas2        ,defunctam 
religio40          ,statius4 ,sylv4 v4  
in promio4      #fii ,by one of the laws
 of ,charondas it was ordained that     
those who cared        so little for the
 happiness of their children as to place
 a        stepmother over them1 should  
be excluded from the councils of the    
,state4 7,diod4 ,sic4 xii4 #ab47        
#gjj ,tertullian expounded the          
,montanist view in his treatise1 ,de    
,monogamia4      #gja ,a full collection
 of the statements of the ,fathers on   
this subject        is given by         
,perrone1 ,de ,matrimonio1 lib4 iii4    
,sect4 ,i42 and by        ,natalis      
,alexander1 ,hist4 ,eccles4 ,sc4 ,,ii4  
dissert4 #ah4      #gjb ,thus1 to give  
but a single instance1 ,st4 ,jerome1 who
 was one of        their strongest      
opponents1 says3 8,quid igitur8 damnamus
 secunda        matrimonia8 ,minime1 sed
 prima laudamus4 ,abjicimus de ecclesia 
digamos8 absit2 sed monogamos ad        

continentiam provocamus4 ,in arca       
,noe non solum munda sed et immunda     
fuerunt animalia40--,ep4 cxxiii4        
#gjc ,in ,legat4      #gjd ,strom4 lib4 
iii4      #gje ,contra ,jovin4 i4       
#gjf ,ibid4 ,see1 too1 ,ep4 cxxiii4     
#gjg ,hom4 xvii4 in ,luc4      #gjh     
,orat4 xxxi4      #gji ,perrone1 ,de    
,matr4 iii4  #a1 art4 #a2 ,natalis      
,alexander1 ,hist4        ,eccles4 ,,ii4
 dissert4 #ah4 ,the penances are said   
not to imply that        the second     
marriage was a sin1 but that the moral  
condition that        made it necessary 
was a bad one4      #gaj ,see ,stephen's
 ,hist4 of ,english ,criminal ,law1 i4  
p4 #dfa4      #gaa ,conc4 ,illib4 can4  
xxxviii4 ,bingham thinks the feeling of 
the ,council        to have been1 that  
if baptism was not administered by a    
priest1 it        should at all events  
be administered by one who might have   
been a        priest4      #gab         
,perrone1 ,de ,matrimonio1 tome iii4 p4 
#ajb4      #gac ,this subject has       

recently been treated with very great   
learning and        with admirable      
impartiality by an ,american author1    
,mr4 ,henry ,c4 ,lea1        in his     
,history of ,sacerdotal ,celibacy       
7,philadelphia1 #ahfg71 which        is 
certainly one of the most valuable works
 that ,america has        produced4     
,since the great history of ,dean       
,milman1 ,i know no work in             
,english which has thrown more light on 
the moral condition of the        middle
 ages1 and none which is more fitted to 
dispel the gross        illusions       
concerning that period which ,high      
,church writers1 and        writers of  
the positive school1 have conspired to  
sustain4      #gad ,see ,lea1 p4 #cf4   
,the command of ,st4 ,paul1 that a      
bishop or deacon        should be the   
husband of one wife 7#a ,tim4 iii4      
#b-ab7 was believed        by all       
ancient and by many modern commentators 
to be prohibitory of        second      
marriages2 and this view is somewhat    

confirmed by the widows        who were 
to be honoured and supported by the     
,church1 being only        those who had
 been but once married 7#a ,tim4 v4 #i74
 ,see ,pressens1        ,hist4 des trois
 premiers ,sicles 7#are srie71 tome ii4 
p4 #bcc4        ,among the ,jews it was 
ordained that the high priest should not
 marry        a widow4 7,levit4 xxi4    
#ac-ad47      #gae ,socrates1 ,h4 ,e4 i4
 #aa4 ,the ,council of ,illiberis 7can4 
xxxiii47 had        ordained this1 but  
both the precepts and the practice of   
divines        varied greatly4 ,a       
brilliant summary of the chief facts is 
given in        ,milman's ,history of   
,early ,christianity1 vol4 iii4 pp4     
#bgg-bhb4      #gaf ,see1 on the state  
of things in the tenth and eleventh     
centuries1        ,lea1 pp4 #afb-aib4   
#gag ,ratherius1 quoted by ,lea1 p4     
#aea4      #gah ,see some curious       
evidence of the extent to which the     
practice of the        hereditary       
transmission of ecclesiastical offices  

was carried1 in        ,lea1 pp4 #adi1  
#aej1 #bff1 #bii1 #cci4      #gai ,lea1 
pp4 #bga1 #bib1 #dbb4      #gbj ,ibid4  
pp4 #ahf-ahg4      #gba ,lea1 p4 #ceh4  
#gbb ,ibid4 p4 #bif4      #gbc ,ibid4 p4
 #cbb4      #gbd ,ibid4 p4 #cdi4        
#gbe ,the reader may find the most ample
 evidence of these positions in         
,lea4 ,see especially pp4 #ach1 #ada1   
#aec1 #aee1 #bfj1 #cdd4      #gbf       
,synesius1 ,ep4 cv4      #gbg ,lea1 p4  
#abb4 ,st4 ,augustine had named his     
illegitimate son        ,adeodatus1 or  
the ,gift of ,god1 and had made him a   
principal        interlocutor in one of 
his religious dialogues4      #gbh      
,dialog4 iv4 #aa4      #gbi ,this is    
mentioned by ,henry of ,huntingdon1 who 
was a contemporary4        7,lea1 p4    
#bic47      #gcj ,the first notice of   
this very remarkable precaution is in a 
canon of        the ,council of         
,palencia 7in ,spain7 held in #acbb1    
which anathematises        laymen who   
compel their pastors to take concubines4

 7,lea1 p4 #cbd47        ,sleidan       
mentions that it was customary in some  
of the ,swiss cantons        for the    
parishioners to oblige the priest to    
select a concubine as a        necessary
 precaution for the protection of his   
female parishioners4        7,ibid4 p4  
#cee47 ,sarpi1 in his ,hist4 of the     
,council of ,trent1        mentions 7on 
the authority of ,zuinglius7 this ,swiss
 custom4 ,nicolas        of ,clemangis1 
a leading member of the ,council of     
,constance1 declared        that this   
custom had become very common1 that the 
laity were firmly        persuaded that 
priests never lived a life of real      
celibacy1 and        that1 where no     
proofs of concubinage were found1 they  
always assumed        the existence of  
more serious vice4 ,the passage 7which  
is quoted by        ,bayle7 is too      
remarkable to be omitted4 8,taceo de    
fornicationibus et        adulteriis a  
quibus qui alieni sunt probro cteris ac 
ludibrio esse        solent1 spadonesque

 aut sodomit appellantur2 denique laici 
usque        adeo persuasum habent      
nullos clibes esse1 ut in plerisque     
parochiis        non aliter velint      
presbyterum tolerare nisi concubinam    
habeat1 quo        vel sic suis sit     
consultum uxoribus1 qu nec sic quidem   
usquequaque        sunt extra           
periculum40 ,nic4 de ,clem4 ,de ,prsul4 
,simoniac4 7,lea1 p4        #chf47      
#gca ,this was energetically noticed by 
,luther1 in his famous sermon 8,de      
,matrimonio10 and some of the ,catholic 
preachers of an earlier period          
had made the same complaint4 ,see a     
curious passage from a                  
contemporary of ,boccaccio1 quoted by   
,meray1 ,les ,libres prcheurs1        p4
 #aee4 8,vast numbers of laymen         
separated from their wives under the    
influence of the ascetic enthusiasm     
which ,hildebrand created40--,lea1      
p4 #bed4      #gcb 8,quando enim servata
 fide thori causa prolis conjuges       
conveniunt sic        excusatur coitus  

ut culpam non habeat4 ,quando vero      
deficiente bono        prolis fide tamen
 servata conveniunt causa incontinenti  
non sic        excusatur ut non habeat  
culpam1 sed venialem4444 ,item hoc quod 
conjugati victi concupiscentia utuntur  
invicem1 ultra necessitatem             
liberos procreandi1 ponam in his pro    
quibus quotidie dicimus ,dimitte        
nobis debita nostra4444 ,unde in        
sententiolis ,sexti ,pythagorici        
legitur #8omnis ardentior amator propri 
uxoris adulter est4' 0--,peter          
,lombard1 ,sentent4 lib4 iv4 dist4 #ca4 
#gcc ,many wives1 however1 were         
forbidden4 7,deut4 xvii4 #ag47 ,polygamy
 is        said to have ceased among the
 ,jews after the return from the        
,babylonish captivity4--,whewell's      
,elements of ,morality1 book iv4 ch4    
v4      #gcd ,levit4 xii4 #a-e4         
#gce ,ecclesiasticus1 xiii4 #ad4 ,i     
believe1 however1 the passage has been  
translated 8,better the badness of a man
 than the blandishments of a            

woman40      #gcf ,this curious fact is 
noticed by ,le ,blant1 ,inscriptions    
chrtiennes        de la ,gaule1 pp4     
xcvii4-xcviii4      #gcg ,see the decree
 of a ,council of ,auxerre 7,a4,d4      
#egh71 can4 #cf4      #gch ,see the last
 two chapters of ,troplong1 ,influences 
du ,christianisme        sur le ,droit  
7a work1 however1 which is written much 
more in the        spirit of an         
apologist than in that of an historian71
 and ,legouv1        pp4 #bg-bi4        
#gci ,even in matters not relating to   
property1 the position of women in      
feudalism was a low one4 8,tout mari10  
says ,beaumanoir1 8peut battre        sa
 femme quand elle ne veut pas obir  son 
commandement1 ou quand        elle le   
maudit1 ou quand elle le dment1 pourvu  
que ce soit        modrment et sans que 
mort s'ensuive10 quoted by ,legouv1 p4  
#adh4        ,contrast with this the    
saying of the elder ,cato3 8,a man who  
beats        his wife or his children   
lays impious hands on that which is most

        holy and most sacred in the     
world40--,plutarch1 ,marcus ,cato4      
#gdj ,see ,legouv1 pp4 #bi-ch2 ,maine's 
,ancient ,law1 pp4 #aed-aei4      #gda  
8,no society which preserves any        
tincture of ,christian institutions     
is likely to restore to married women   
the personal liberty conferred        on
 them by the middle ,roman law3 but the 
proprietary disabilities of             
married females stand on quite a        
different basis from their personal     
incapacities1 and it is by keeping alive
 and consolidating the        former    
that the expositors of the canon law    
have deeply injured        civilisation4
 ,there are many vestiges of a struggle 
between the        secular and          
ecclesiastical principles2 but the canon
 law nearly        everywhere           
prevailed40--,maine's ,ancient ,law1 p4 
#aeh4 ,i may observe        that the    
,russian law was early very favourable  
to the proprietary        rights of     
married women4 ,see a remarkable letter 

in the ,memoirs of        the ,princess 
,daschkaw 7edited by ,mrs4 ,bradford3   
,london1 #ahdj71 vol4        ii4 p4     
#djd4      #gdb ,germania1 cap4 ix4     
xviii4-xx4      #gdc ,de ,gubernatione  
,dei4      #gdd ,see1 for these legends1
 ,mallet's ,northern ,antiquities4      
#gde ,tacitus1 ,germ4 #i2 ,hist4 iv4    
#ah2 ,xiphilin4 lxxi4 #c2 ,amm4         
,marcellinus1 xv4 #ab2 ,vopiscus1       
,aurelianus2 ,floras1 iii4 #c4      #gdf
 ,valer4 ,max4 vi4 #a2 ,hieron4 ,ep4    
cxxiii4      #gdg ,plutarch1 ,de        
,mulier4 ,virt4      #gdh ,plutarch1    
,amatorius2 ,xiphilin4 lxvi4 #af2       
,tacit4 ,hist4 iv4 #fg4        ,the name
 of this heroic wife is given in three  
different forms4      #gdi ,on the      
polygamy of the first1 see ,greg4 ,tur4 
iv4 #bf2 on the polygamy        of      
,chilperic1 ,greg4 ,tur4 iv4 #bh2 v4    
#ad4      #gej ,greg4 ,tur4 iv4 #c4     
#gea ,ibid4 iii4 #be-bg1 #cf4      #geb 
,fredegarius1 xxxvi4      #gec ,ibid4   
lx4      #ged ,eginhardus1 ,vit4 ,kar4  

,mag4 xviii4 ,charlemagne had1 according
 to        ,eginhard1 four wives1 but1  
as far as ,i can understand1 only two at
        the same time4      #gee        
,smyth's ,lectures on ,modern ,history1 
vol4 i4 pp4 #fa-fb4      #gef ,milman's 
,hist4 of ,latin ,christianity1 vol4 i4 
p4 #cfc2 ,legouv1        ,hist4 ,morale 
des ,femmes1 p4 #eg4      #geg ,see1 on 
these laws1 ,lord ,kames ,on ,women2    
,legouv1 p4 #eg4      #geh ,favorinus   
had strongly urged it4 7,aul4 ,gell4    
,noct4 xii4 #a47      #gei ,these are   
the reasons given by ,malthus1 ,on      
,population1 book iii4        ch4 ii4   
#gfj ,st4 ,augustine 7,de ,conj4 ,adult4
 ii4 #ai7 maintains that adultery is    
even more criminal in the man than in   
the woman4 ,st4 ,jerome has an          
impressive passage on the subject3 8,ali
 sunt leges ,csarum1 ali                
,christi2 aliud ,papianus1 aliud ,paulus
 nostri prcepit4 ,apud illos            
viris impudiciti frna laxantur et solo  
stupro atque adulterio        condemnato

 passim per lupanaria et ancillulas     
libido permittitur1        quasi culpam 
dignitas faciat non voluntas4 ,apud nos 
quod non licet        feminis que non   
licet viris2 et eadem servitus pari     
conditione        censetur40--,ep4      
lxxvii4 ,st4 ,chrysostom writes in a    
similar strain4      #gfa ,see          
,troplong1 ,influence du ,christianisme 
sur le ,droit1 pp4        #bci-bea4     
#gfb ,we find1 however1 traces of a     
toleration of the ,roman type of        
concubine in ,christianity for some     
time4 ,thus1 a ,council of ,toledo      
decreed3 8,si quis habens uxorem fidelis
 concubinam habeat non                  
communicet4 ,cterum is qui non habet    
uxorem et pro uxore concubinam          
habet a communione non repellatur1      
tantum ut unius mulieris1 aut           
uxoris aut concubin ut ei placuerit1 sit
 conjunctione contentus40--#a           
,can4 #ag4 ,st4 ,isidore said3          
8,christiano non dicam plurimas sed nec 
duas simul habere licitum est1 nisi unam

 tantum aut uxorem1 aut        certo    
loco uxoris1 si conjux deest1           
concubinam40--,apud ,gratianum1         
diss4 #d4 ,quoted by ,natalis           
,alexander1 ,hist4 ,eccles4 ,sc4 ,i4    
diss4        #bi4 ,mr4 ,lea 7,hist4 of  
,sacerdotal ,celibacy1 pp4 #bjc-bje7 has
        devoted an extremely interesting
 note to tracing the history of the     
word concubine through the middle ages4 
,he shows that even up to the           
thirteenth century a concubine was not  
necessarily an abandoned        woman4  
,the term was applied to marriages that 
were real1 but not        officially    
recognised4 ,coleridge notices a        
remarkable instance of        the       
revival of this custom in ,german       
history4--,notes on ,english            
,divines 7ed4 #ahec71 vol4 i4 p4 #bba4  
#gfc ,legouv1 p4 #aii4      #gfd ,see   
some curious passages in ,troplong1 pp4 
#bbb-bbc4 ,the ,fathers seem        to  
have thought dissolution of marriage was
 not lawful on account of        the    

adultery of the husband1 but that it was
 not absolutely        unlawful1 though 
not commendable1 for a husband whose    
wife had        committed adultery to   
re-marry4      #gfe ,some of the great  
charities of ,fabiola were performed as 
penances1        on account of her crime
 in availing herself of the legislative 
permission of divorce4      #gff        
,laboulaye1 ,recherches sur la          
,condition civile et politique des      
,femmes1 pp4 #aeb-aeh4      #gfg 8,a    
discourse concerning the obligation to  
marry within the true        communion1 
following from their style 7sic7 of     
being called a holy        seed40 ,this 
rare discourse is appended to a sermon  
against mixed        marriages by       
,leslie4 7,london1 #agjb47 ,the reader  
may find something        about ,dodwell
 in ,macaulay's ,hist4 of ,england1 ch4 
xiv42 but        ,macaulay1 who does not
 appear to have known ,dodwell's        
masterpiece--his dissertation ,de       
,paucitate ,marturum1 which is one      

of the finest specimens of criticism of 
his time--and who only knew        the  
discourse on marriages by extracts1 has1
 ,i think1 done him        considerable 
injustice4      #gfh ,dodwell relies    
mainly upon this fact1 and especially   
upon ,ezra's        having treated these
 marriages as essentially null4         
#gfi 8,jungere cum infidelibus vinculum 
matrimonii1 prostituere gentilibus      
membra ,christi40--,cyprian1 ,de        
,lapsis4      #ggj 8,hc cum ita sint1   
fideles ,gentilium matrimonia subeuntes 
stupri        reos esse constat1 et     
arcendos ab omni communicatione         
fraternitatis40--,tert4 ,ad ,uxor4 ii4  
#c4      #gga ,see on this law1 and on  
the many councils which condemned the   
marriage of orthodox with heretics1     
,bingham1 ,antiq4 xxii4 #b1             
#a-b4      #ggb ,many curious statistics
 illustrating this fact are given by ,m4
        ,bonneville de ,marsangy--a     
,portuguese writer who was counsellor of
 the        ,imperial ,court at         

,paris--in his tude sur la ,moralit     
compare de la        ,femme et de       
l',homme4 7,paris1 #ahfb47 ,the writer  
would have done        better if he had 
not maintained1 in lawyer fashion1 that 
the        statistics of crime are      
absolutely decisive on the question of  
the        comparative morality of the  
sexes1 and also1 if he had not thought  
it due to his official position to talk 
in a rather grotesque strain            
about the regeneration and glorification
 of the sex in the person of        the 
,empress ,eugnie4      #ggc ,see ,pliny1
 ,hist4 ,nat4 xxxiv4 #ai4      #ggd     
8,tantum inter ,stoicos1 ,serene1 et    
ceteros sapientiam professos            
interesse1 quantum inter fminas et mares
 non immerito dixerim40--,de            
,const4 ,sapientis1 cap4 i4      #gge   
,this is well illustrated1 on the one   
side1 by the most repulsive             
representations of ,christ1 by ,michael 
,angelo1 in the great fresco in         
the ,sistine ,chapel 7so inferior to the

 ,christ of ,orgagna1 at ,pisa1         
from which it was partly imitated71 and 
in marble in the ,minerva        ,church
 at ,rome2 and1 on the other side1 by   
the frescoes of ,perugino1        at    
,perugia1 representing the great sages  
of ,paganism4 ,the figure of            
,cato1 in the latter1 almost approaches1
 as well as ,i remember1 the        type
 of ,st4 ,john4      #ggf ,in that fine 
description of a virtuous woman which is
 ascribed to        the mother of ,king 
,lemuel1 we read3 8,she stretcheth out  
her hand to        the poor2 yea1 she   
reacheth forth her hands to the needy40 
7,proverbs        xxxi4 #bj47 ,i have   
already quoted from ,xenophon the       
beautiful        description of the     
,greek wife tending her sick slaves4    
,so1 too1        ,euripides represents  
the slaves of ,alcestis gathering with  
tears        around the bed of their    
dying mistress1 who1 even then1 found   
some        kind word for each1 and1    
when she died1 lamenting her as their   

second mother4 7,eurip4 ,alcest47 ,in   
the servile war which desolated         
,sicily at the time of the ,punic wars1 
we find a touching trait of        the  
same kind4 ,the revolt was provoked by  
the cruelties of a rich        man1     
named ,damophilus1 and his wife1 who    
were massacred with        circumstances
 of great atrocity2 but the slaves      
preserved their        daughter entirely
 unharmed1 for she had always made it   
her business        to console them in  
their sorrow1 and she had won the love  
of all4        7,diodor4 ,sic4 ,frag4   
xxxiv47 ,so1 too1 ,marcia1 the wife of  
,cato1        used to suckle her young  
slaves from her breast4 7,plut4 ,marc4  
,cato47 ,i may add the well-known       
sentiment which ,virgil puts in the     
mouth of ,dido3 8,haud ignara mali      
miseris succurrere disco40 ,there       
are1 doubtless1 many other touches of   
the same kind in ancient                
literature1 some of which may occur to  
my readers4      #ggg ,theodoret1 v4    

#ai4      #ggh ,see the beautiful       
description of the functions of a       
,christian woman        in the second   
book of ,tertullian1 ,ad ,uxorem4       
#ggi ,see1 upon the deaconesses1        
,bingham's ,christian ,antiquities1 book
        ii4 ch4 #bb1 and ,ludlow's      
,woman's ,work in the ,church4 ,the     
latter        author argues elaborately 
that the 8widows0 were not the same as  
the        deaconesses4      #ghj ,phbe 
7,rom4 xvi4 #a7 is described as a 4     
#gha ,a very able writer1 who takes on  
the whole an unfavourable view of       
the influence of ,christianity on       
legislation1 says3 8,the provision      
for the widow was attributable to the   
exertions of the ,church1 which         
never relaxed its solicitude for the    
interests of wives surviving            
their husbands1 winning1 perhaps1 one of
 the most arduous of its        triumphs
 when1 after exacting for two or three  
centuries an express        promise from
 the husband at marriage to endow his   

wife1 it at last        succeeded in    
engrafting the principle of dower on the
 customary law        of all ,western   
,europe40--,maine's ,ancient ,law1 p4   
#bbd4      #ghb ,see ,troplong1         
,influence du ,christianisme sur le     
,droit1 pp4        #cjh-caj4      #ghc  
,the results of this change have been   
treated by ,miss ,parkes in her         
truly admirable little book called      
,essays on ,woman's ,work1 better       
than by any other writer with whom ,i am
 acquainted4