,transcriber's note3 ,this text is derived from http3_/_/www4archive4org_/details_/catho licworld#jgpauluoft i ,the ,catholic ,world4 ,a ,monthly ,magazine of ,general ,literature and ,science4 ------------ ,vol4 ,,vii4 ,april ,to ,september1 #ahfh4 ------------ ,new ,york3 ,the ,catholic ,publication ,society1 #abf ,nassau ,street4 #ahfh4 ii ,john ,a4 ,gray ,green1 ,printers1 #af and #ah ,jacob ,st41 ,new ,york4 iii ,contents4 ,a ,heroine of ,conjugal ,love1 #gha4 ,a ,new ,face on an ,old ,question1 #egg4 ,anecdotical ,memoirs of ,emperor ,nicholas ,i41 #fhc4 ,a ,sister's ,story1 #gjg4 ,ancient ,irish ,church1 #gfd4 ,abyssinia and ,king ,theodore1 #bfe4 ,baltimore1 ,second ,plenary ,council of1 #fah4 ,breton ,legend of ,st4 ,christopher1 #gaj4 ,bretons1 ,faith and ,poetry of1 #efg4 ,bible and the ,catholic ,church1 #feg4 ,bishop ,doyle1 #dd4 ,bound with ,paul1 #chi4 ,catacombs1 ,children's ,graves in1 #dja4 ,campion1 ,edmund1 #bhi4 ,catholics in ,england1 ,condition and ,prospects of1 #dhg4 ,catholic ,church and the ,bible1 #feg4 ,catholic ,sunday-,school ,union1 #cjj4 ,children's ,graves in the ,catacombs1 #dja4 ,crisis1 ,the ,episcopalian1 #cg4 ,christopher1 ,st41 ,breton ,legend of1 #gaj4 ,constantinople1 ,harem ,life in1 #djg4 ,conscience1 ,plea for ,liberty of1 #dcc4 ,condition and ,prospects of ,catholics in ,england1 #dhg4 ,confessional1 ,episcopalian1 #cgb4 ,conscript1 ,story of a1 #bf4 ,colony of the ,insane1 ,gheel1 #hbd4 ,conjugal ,love1 ,heroine of1 #gha4 ,council of ,baltimore1 ,second ,plenary1 #fah4 ,cowper1 #cdg4 ,country ,church1 a ,plan for1 #ace4 ,cousin1 ,victor1 and the ,church ,review1 #ie4 ,cross1 ,the1 #ba4 ,count ,ladislas ,zamoyski1 #fej4 ,church1 ,ancient ,irish1 #gfd4 ,church1 ,catholic1 and the ,bible1 #feg4 ,church ,review1 and ,victor ,cousin1 #ie4 ,churches1 ,united1 of ,england and ,ireland1 #bjj4 ,church1 ,early ,irish1 #ccf4 ,draper1 ,professor1 ,books of1 #aee4 ,de ,garaison1 ,notre ,dame1 #fdd4 ,doyle1 ,bishop1 #dd4 ,duties1 ,household1 #gjj4 ,early ,irish ,church1 #cef4 ,england and ,ireland1 ,united ,churches of1 #bjj4 ,england1 ,catholics of1 ,condition and ,prospects1 #dhg4 ,episcopalian ,crisis1 #cg4 ,episcopalian ,confessional1 #cgb4 ,education1 ,popular1 #bbh4 ,edmund ,campion1 #bhi4 ,european ,prison ,discipline1 #ggb4 ,egypt1 ,harem ,life in1 #djg4 ,face1 ,new1 on an ,old ,question1 #egg4 ,faith and ,science1 #cch1 #dfd4 ,flaminia1 #gie4 ,faith and ,poetry of the ,bretons1 #efg4 ,flight of ,spiders1 #dad4 ,florence ,athern's ,trial1 #bac4 ,garaison1 ,notre ,dame de1 #fdd4 ,graves1 ,children's1 in the ,catacombs1 #dja4 ,gathering1 ,roman1 #aia4 ,glastonbury1 ,legend of1 #eag4 ,gheel1 ,colony of the ,insane1 #hbd4 ,girl1 ,italian1 of our ,day1 #cfd1 #cdc1 #fbf4 ,glimpses of ,tuscany-- ,the ,duomo1 #dgi2 ,the ,boboli ,gardens1 #fgi4 ,good ,works1 ,merit of1 #abe4 ,harem ,life in ,egypt and ,constantinople1 #djg4 ,heroine of ,conjugal ,love1 #gha4 ,history1 ,how told in the ,year #cjjj1 #acj4 ,holy ,shepherdess of ,pibrac1 #gec4 ,holy ,week in ,jerusalem1 #gg4 ,how our ,history will be told in the ,year #cjjj1 #acj4 ,insane1 ,colony of1 at ,gheel1 #hbd4 ,italian ,girl of our ,day1 #cfd1 #edc1 #fbf4 ,irish ,church1 ,early1 #cef4 ,irish ,church1 ,ancient1 #gfd4 ,is it ,honest8 #bci4 ,ireland1 ,protestant ,church of1 #bjj4 ,jerusalem1 ,holy ,week in1 #gg4 ,john ,sterling1 #haa4 ,john ,tauler1 #dbb4 ,king ,theodore of ,abyssinia1 #bfe4 ,keeble1 #cdg4 ,la ,fayette1 ,madame de1 #gha4 ,legend of ,glastonbury1 #cag4 ,liberty of ,conscience1 ,plea for1 #dcc4 ,life of ,st4 ,paula1 sketches of1 #chj1 #ejh1 #fgj4 ,life1 ,harem1 in ,egypt and ,constantinople1 #djg4 ,life's ,charity1 #hci4 ,last ,gasp of the ,anti-,catholic ,faction1 #hej4 ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 #gca4 ,magas2 or1 ,long ,ago1 #ci1 #bef4 ,miscellany1 #aci4 ,merit of ,good ,works1 #abe4 ,memoirs of ,count ,segur1 #fcc4 ,monks of the ,west1 i4 ,new ,face on an ,old ,question1 #egg4 ,newgate1 #ggb4 ,newman's ,poems1 #fji4 ,nellie ,netterville1 #hb1 #agc1 #cjg1 #dde1 #ehi1 #gcf4 ,new ,york ,city1 ,sanitary and ,moral ,condition of1 #eec1 #gab ,nicholas1 ,emperor1 ,memoirs of1 #fhc4 ,notre ,dame de ,garaison1 #fdd4 ,o',neil and ,o',donnell in ,exile1 #aa4 ,quietist ,poetry1 #cdg4 ,race1 ,the ,human1 ,unity of1 #fg4 ,rights of ,catholic ,women1 #hdf4 ,roman ,gathering1 #aia4 iv ,st4 ,paula1 ,sketches of her ,life1 #chj1 #ejh1 #fgj4 ,st4 ,christopher1 ,breton ,legend of1 #gaj4 ,sayings of the ,fathers of the ,desert1 #gf1 #bbg1 #egb4 ,sanitary and ,moral ,condition of ,new ,york ,city1 #eec1 #gab4 ,segur1 ,count1 ,memoirs of1 #fcc4 ,shepherdess of ,pibrac1 #gec4 ,sterling1 ,john1 #haa4 ,science and ,faith1 #cch1 #dfd4 ,sketches of the ,life of ,st4 ,paula1 #chj1 #ejh1 #fgj4 ,sister ,simplicia1 #aae4 ,sister's ,story1 #gjg4 ,spiders1 ,flight of1 #dad4 ,story of a ,conscript1 #bf4 ,story1 a ,sister's1 #gjg4 ,tauler1 ,john1 #dbb4 ,the ,cross1 #ba4 ,the ,church ,review and ,victor ,cousin1 #ie4 ,the ,episcopalian ,crisis1 #cg4 ,the ,rights of ,catholic ,women1 #hdf4 ,the ,second ,plenary ,council of ,baltimore1 #fah4 ,the ,story of a ,conscript1 #bf4 ,theodore1 ,king of ,abyssinia1 #bfe4 ,tennyson in his ,catholic ,aspects1 #ade4 ,unity of the ,human ,race1 #fg4 ,united ,churches of ,england and ,ireland1 #bjj4 ,veneration of ,saints and ,holy ,images1 #gba4 ,wordsworth1 #cdg4 ,women1 ,catholic1 ,rights of #hdf4 ,zamoyski1 ,count ,ladislas1 #fej4 ------ ,poetry4 ,all-,souls' ,day--#ahfg1 #bcf4 ,benediction1 #ddd4 ,elegy of ,st4 ,prudentius1 #gfa4 ,full of ,grace1 #abi4 ,iona to ,erin1 #eg4 ,love's ,burden1 #bab4 ,morning at ,spring ,park1 #agd4 ,my ,angel1 #cfc4 ,one ,fold1 #ccf4 ,poland1 #aed4 ,st4 ,columba1 #hbc4 ,sonnet on ,le ,rcit d'une ,soeur1 #cjf4 ,st4 ,mary ,magdalen1 #dgf4 ,sonnet1 #fag4 ,tears of ,jesus1 #aac4 ,to the ,count de ,montalembert1 #eaf4 ,wild ,flowers1 #eff4 ------ ,new ,publications4 ,assemble ,gnrale des ,catholiques en ,belge1 #dca4 ,appleton's ,annual ,cyclopaedia for #ahfg1 #egd4 ,appleton's ,short ,trip to ,france1 #gag4 ,book of ,moses1 #adb4 ,campbell's ,works1 #gbj4 ,catholic ,sunday-,school ,library1 #dca4 ,catholic ,crusoe1 #gai4 ,chandler's ,new ,fourth ,reader1 #ege4 ,chemical ,change in the ,eucharist1 #bhe4 ,count ,lucanor1 #adj1 ,de ,costa's ,lake ,george1 #gah4 ,discussions in ,theology1 ,skinner1 #egc4 ,elinor ,johnson1 #egf4 ,folks and ,fairies1 #add4 ,great ,day1 #bhh4 ,gillet's ,democracy1 #gai4 ,hints on the ,formation of ,religious ,opinions1 #egc4 ,histoire de ,france1 #gai4 ,house ,painting1 #gbj4 ,infant ,bridal1 by ,aubrey de ,vere1 #adc4 ,imitation of ,christ1 ,spiritual ,combat1 etc41 #ege4 ,irish ,homes and ,irish ,hearts1 #egf4 ,life of ,st4 ,catharine of ,sienna1 #adb4 ,life in the ,west1 #bhg4 ,memoirs and ,letters of ,jennie ,c4 ,white--,del ,bal1 #heh4 ,moses1 ,book of1 #adb4 ,mozart1 #bhh4 ,margaret1 a ,story of ,prairie ,life1 #egf4 ,newman's ,parochial ,sermons1 #gaf4 ,notes on the ,rubrics of the ,roman ,missal1 #egd4 ,northcote's ,celebrated ,sanctuaries of the ,madonna1 #egd4 ,ozanam's ,civilization1 #dcj4 ,o',kane's ,notes on the ,rubrics1 #egd1 ,o',shea's ,juvenile ,library1 #gai4 ,on the ,heights1 #bhd4 ,palmer's ,hints on the ,formation of ,religions ,opinions1 #egc4 ,prayer the ,key of ,salvation1 #adc4 ,peter ,claver1 #adb4 ,problems of the ,age1 #gae4 ,queen's ,daughter1 #gbj4 ,red ,cross1 #ege4 ,reforme en ,italic1 #adc4 ,rossignoli's ,choice of a ,state of ,life1 #egf4 ,rhymes of the ,poets1 #gah4 ,st4 ,catharine of ,sienna1 ,life of1 #adc4 ,st4 ,colomba1 ,apostle of ,caledonia1 #bha4 ,sanctuaries of the ,madonna1 #gbj4 ,tales from the ,diary of a ,sister1 #bhh4 ,the ,catholic ,crusoe1 #gai4 ,the ,queen's ,daughter1 #gbj4 ,the ,vickers and ,purcell ,controversy1 #hef4 ,the ,woman ,blessed by all ,generations1 #hfj4 -------- #a ,,the ,,catholic ,,world4 ,vol4 ,,vii41 ,no4 #cg4--;,april1 #ahfh4 -------- ,the ,monks ,of ,the ,west4,footnote #a ,by ,the ,count ,de ,montalembert4 ,footnote #a3 ,the ,monks of tie ,west1 from ,st4 ,benedict to ,st4 ,bernard4 ,by the ,count de ,montalembert1 ,member of the ,french ,academy4 #e vols4 #hvo4 ,for sale at the ,catholic ,publication ,house1 #abf ,nassau ,street1 ,new ,york4 ,in the galaxy of illustrious men whom ,god has given to ,france in this century1 there is one whom history will place in the first rank4 ,we mean the author of the ,monks of the ,west1 the ,count de ,montalembert4 ,there has not been since the seventeenth century till now such an assemblage of men of genius and lofty character gathered round the standard of the church1 combating for her and leaving behind them works that will never die4 ,attacked on all sides at once1 the church has found magnanimous soldiers to bear the brunt of the battle1 and meet her enemies in every quarter4 ,even though the victory has not yet been completely won1 with such defenders she cannot doubt of final success and future triumph4 ,how great are the names of ,montalembert1 ,lacordaire1 ,ravignan1 ,dupanloup1 ,ozanam1 ,augustin ,co-chin1 the ,prince de ,broglie1 de ,falloux1 ,cauchy1 and of so many others6 ,the natural sciences1 history1 political economy1 controversy1 parliamentary debates1 pulpit eloquence1 have been studied and honored by these men2 superior in all those sciences on account of the truth which they defend1 and equal in talent to their most renowned rivals4 ,the figure of the ,count de ,montalembert stands conspicuous in that group of giant intellects by the universality of his eminent gifts4 ,a historian full of erudition1 an incomparable orator1 and a writer combining the classic purity of the seventeenth century with the energy and fire of the nineteenth1 an indefatigable polemic1 a man of the world1 yet an orthodox churchman1 but above all a practical and fervent ,christian2 this great defender of ,catholic truth has merited immortal praise from his contemporaries and from posterity4 ,among all the works of this energetic champion of the faith4 ,the ,monks of the ,west holds indisputably the first place4 #b ,it is the work of ,montalembert's entire life4 ,he has put into it his ,benedictine erudition1 his passionate love for truth1 the charming and dramatic power of his style in the narration of events1 his inimitable talent for painting in words the portraits of those famous characters whom he wishes to present to the eye of the reader2 and their traits remain ineffaceably stamped on the mind4 ,especially does the soul of the true ,christian breathe on every page of the volumes4 ,for more than forty years their author bent piously over those austere forms of the ,benedictine monks of the early ages to ask them the secret of their lives1 of their virtues1 of their influence on their country and their age4 ,he has studied them with that infallible instinct of faith which had disclosed to him a hidden treasure in those old monastic ruins1 and in those dusty and unexplored monuments of their contemporary literature2 the treasure1 namely1 of the influence of the church acting on the barbarians through the monks4 ,this is the leading idea of the whole work4 ,it would be a mistake to expect1 under the title of ,monks of the ,west1 a history of mere asceticism1 or a species of continuation of the ,lives of the ,fathers of the ,desert4 ,writers no longer treat1 as that work does1 the lives of the saints4 ,readers are not satisfied with the simple account of the virtues practised or the number of miracles performed by the canonized children of the church4 ,modern men want to look into the depths of a saint's soul2 to know what kind of a human heart throbbed in his bosom1 and how far he participated in the thoughts and feelings of ordinary human nature4 ,the circumstances in which he lived and studied1 the opinions formed of him by his contemporaries1 are weighed1 and the traces left by his sanctity or genius on the manners and institutions of his country are closely considered4 ,the history of ,the ,monks of the ,west is nothing else than a history of civilization through monastic causes4 ,the third1 fourth1 and fifth volumes just published contain a complete1 profound1 exact1 and beautiful account of the conversion of ,great ,britain to ,catholicity4 ,no work could be more interesting1 not only to ,englishmen1 but to all who speak the ,english tongue4 ,hence1 but a few months after the ,french edition of these bulky volumes1 an ,english translation of them was given to the public1 and is now well known and becoming justly wide-spread in the ,united ,states4 ,irish and ,anglo-,saxons1 ,americans by birth or by adoption1 ,catholics and ,protestants1 there is not one of us who is not interested in a work which tells us from whom1 and how1 we have inherited our ,christian faith4 ,even ,germans will learn in the perusal of these volumes their religious origin2 for it was from the ,british isles that the apostles of ,germany went forth to their labors4 ,the ,english language is the most universally spoken to-day2 the sceptre of ,britain rules an empire greater than that of ,alexander or of any of the ,caesars4 ,the latest statistics tell us that there are one hundred and seventy-four millions of ,british subjects or vassals4 ,the two ,indies1 vast ,australia1 and the islands of the ,pacific ,ocean belong mostly to the ,anglo-,saxon race1 and feel its influence4 ,but what are all those great conquests compared to these once ,british colonies1 now called ,north ,america8 ,who can foresee the height to which may reach this vigorous graft1 cut from the old oak1 invigorated by the virgin soil of the new world1 and which already spreads its shade over immense latitudes1 and which promises to be the largest and most powerful country ever seen8 #c ,is it not therefore useful and interesting to study the religious origin of this extraordinary race8 ,is there an ,american in heart1 or by birth1 who is not bound to know the history of those to whom this privileged race owes its having received in so large a measure the three fundamental bases of all grandeur and stability in nations3 the spirit of liberty1 the family spirit1 and the spirit of religion8 ,the history of the conversion of ,england by the monks answers all these questions4 ,it comprises the apostleship of the ,irish1 and of the ,roman and ,anglo-,saxon elements during the sixth and seventh centuries4 ,the ,irish or ,celtic portion of the history centres in ,st4 ,columba1 whose majestic form towers above his age1 illustrated by his virtues and influenced by his genius4 ,the ,roman element is represented by the monk ,augustine1 the first apostle of the ,anglo-,saxons4 ,lastly1 this race itself enters on the missionary career1 and sends out as its first apostle a great man and a great saint1 the monk ,wilfrid1 whose moral beauty of character rivals that of ,st4 ,columba4 ,shortly after these1 as it were following in their shadow1 walks the admirable and gentle ,venerable ,bede1 the first ,english historian1 the learned encyclopedist1 alike the honor and glory of his countrymen1 and of the learned of all nations4 ,we cannot resist the pleasure of giving1 though it be but very incomplete and pale1 a sketch of the great monk of ,clonard1 the apostle of ,caledonia1 ,st4 ,columba4,footnote #b ,sprung from the noble race of ,o',niall1 which ruled ,ireland during six centuries1 educated at ,clonard1 in one of those immense monasteries which recalled the memory of the monastic cities of the ,thebaid1 he was the chief founder1 though hardly twenty-nine years old1 of a multitude of religious houses4 ,more than thirty-seven in ,ireland claim him as their founder4 ,he was a poet of great renown1 and a musician skilled in singing that national poetry of ,erin1 which so intimately harmonizes with ,catholic faith4 ,he lived in fraternal union with the other poets of his country1 with those famous bards1 whom he was afterward to protect and save from their enemies4 ,besides being a great traveller1 like the most of the ,irish saints and monks whose memory has been preserved by history1 he had another passion for manuscripts4 ,this passion had results which decided his destiny4 ,having shut himself up at night in a church1 where he discovered the psalter of the ,abbot ,finnian1 ,columba found means to make a clandestine copy of it4 ,finnian complained of it as a theft4 ,the case was brought to the chief monarch of ,ireland1 who decided against ,columba4 ,the copyist protested2 anathematized the king1 and raised against him in revolt the north and west of ,hibernia4 ,columba's party conquered1 and the recovered psalter1 called the ,psalter of ,battles1 became the national relic of the clan ,o',donnell4 ,this psalter still exists1 to the great joy of the erudite patriots of ,ireland4 ,footnote #b3 ,the ,catholic ,publication ,society will soon publish ,the ,life of ,st4 ,columba1 as given in the third volume of ,the ,monks of the ,west4 ,nevertheless1 as ,christian blood had flowed for a comparative trifle1 and through the fault of a monk1 a synod was convened and ,columba was excommunicated4 ,he succeeded in having the sentence cancelled2 but he was commanded to gain to ,god1 by his preaching1 as many souls as he had destroyed ,christians in the battle of ,cooldrewny4 ,to this injunction his confessor added the hardest of penances for a soul so passionately attached1 as was that of ,columba1 to his country and his friends4 #d ,the penitent was compelled to exile himself from ,ireland for ever4 ,columba submitted4 ,twelve of his disciples refused to leave him1 and embarking with them on one of those large osier1 hide-covered boats which the ,celtic peoples were accustomed to use in navigation1 he landed on an island called ,oronsay4 ,he ascended a hill near the shore1 and looking toward the south1 perceived that he could still see the ,irish coast4 ,he rembarked immediately1 and sailed in quest of a more distant isle1 from which his native land should be no longer visible4 ,he at last touched the small desert island of ,iona1 and chose for his abode this unknown rock1 which he has made a partaker of his own immortality4 ,we should read in ,m4 de ,montalembert's work the eloquent description of the ,hebrides1 and of that sandy and sterile shore of ,iona1 rendered glorious by so many virtues4 ',we were now treading1' wrote ,dr4 ,johnson1 the great moralist of the eighteenth century1 'that illustrious island which was once the luminary of the ,caledonian regions1 whence savage clans and roving barbarians derived the benefits of knowledge and the blessings of religion4 ,to abstract the mind from all local emotion would be impossible if it were endeavored1 and would be foolish if it were possible4',footnote #c ,and he recited with enthusiasm those verses from ,goldsmith's ,traveller3 ',stern o'er each bosom reason holds her state1 ,with daring aims irregularly great4 ,pride in their port1 defiance in their eye1 ,i see the lords of human kind pass by2 ,intent on high designs1 a thoughtful band4 ,by forms unfashioned1 fresh from nature's hand4 ,fierce in their native hardiness of soul4 ,true to imagined right1 above control1 ,while even the peasant boasts these rights to scan1 ,and learns to venerate himself as man4' ,footnote #d ,footnote #c3 ,journey to the ,western ,islands of ,scotland4 ,by ,dr4 ,johnson1 ,footnote #d3 ,the ,monks of the ,west1 vol4 iv4 book xi4 ch4 #c4 ,grace had accomplished its work4 ,arrived at ,iona1 ,columba1 one of the most high-spirited and passionate of the ,gaels of ,hibernia1 became a most humble penitent1 a pattern of mortification to the monks1 the most gentle of friends1 and a most tender father4 ,having no other cell than a log cabin for seventy-six years1 he slept in it on the bare ground1 with a stone for his pillow4 ,this hut was his oratory and library1 into which1 after working all day in the fields like the lowest of the brothers1 he entered to meditate on the ,holy ,scripture and multiply copies of the sacred text4 ,he is supposed to have transcribed with his own hand three hundred copies of the gospels4 ,devoted to his expiatory mission1 he commenced by evangelizing the ,dalriadian ,scots1 an ,irish colony formed between the ,picts of the north and the ,britons of the south4 ,this colony was on the western coast of ,caledonia and in the neighboring islands1 at the north of the mouth of the ,clyde1 in that tract of country afterward known by the name of ,argyle4 ,but these colonists were his countrymen4 ,soon he was called to lay hands on the head of their chief1 thus inaugurating not only a new royalty1 but also a new rite1 which afterward became the most august solemnity in the life of ,christian nations4 ,this consecration of the ,scot ,aidan as ,king1 by ,columba1 is the first authentic instance of the kind in the west4 ,later1 crossing the ,grampian hills1 at the foot of which the victorious legions of ,agricola stopped1 and venturing in a frail skiff on ,loch-,ness and the river which flows from it1 he confronted those terrible ,picts1 the most depraved and ferocious of the barbarians1 disputing1 through an interpreter1 with the ,druids1 thus attacked in their last retreat4 #e ,he returned often to these savages1 so that he finished1 before his death1 the conversion of the whole nation1 dotting with churches and sanctuaries their forests1 defiles1 inaccessible mountains1 their wild fens and their sparsely peopled isles4 ,the vestiges of fifty-three of those churches are still traceable in modern ,scotland1 and even the most enlightened ,protestant judges of the ,scottish bench attribute the very ancient division of parishes in ,scotland to the missionary monk of sacred ,iona4 ,he never forgot1 in the midst of his labors1 his beloved ,ireland4 ,he had for her all the tender passion of the exile2 a passion which let itself out in his songs1 full of a charming melancholy4 ,better to die in pure ,ireland1 than to live for ever here in ,albania4 ,footnote #e ,footnote #e3 ,vol4 iii4 book xi4 ch4 #b4 ,to this cry of despair succeed more plaintive notes breathing resignation4 ,in one of his elegies1 he regrets not being able to sail once more on the lakes and gulfs of his fatherland1 nor to listen to the song of the swans with his friend ,comgall4 ,he mourns especially his having to leave ,erin through his own fault1 on account of the blood shed in the battles which he had provoked4 ,he envies his friend ,cormac1 who can return to his dear monastery of ,durrow1 to hearken there to the murmur of the winds among the oaks1 and drink in the song of the blackbird and the cuckoo4 ,as for him1 ,columba1 everything in ,ireland is dear to him1 except the rulers that govern it6 ,in another poem still more characteristic1 he exclaims3 ,oh6 what delight to glide over the foam-crested waves of the sea1 and see the breakers roll on the sandy beaches of ,ireland6 ,oh6 how swiftly my bark would bound over the waters1 if its prow were turned toward my grove of oaks in ,ireland6 ,but the noble sea must only bear me for ever toward ,albania1 the gloomy land of the raven4 ,my feet repose in my skiff1 but my sad heart ever bleeds4 444 ,from the deck of my boat ,i cast my eyes over the billows1 and the big tears stand in my moistened gray eyes1 when ,i look toward ,erin2 toward ,erin1 where the birds sing so melodiously1 and where the priests sing like the birds2 where the young men are so gentle1 and the old so wise2 the nobles so illustrious and handsome1 and the women so fair to wed4 444 ,young navigator1 carry with thee my woes1 bear them to ,comgall the immortal4 ,bear with thee1 noble youth1 my prayer and my blessing3 one half for ,ireland2 that she may receive seven-fold blessings6 and the other half for ,albania4 ,carry my benediction across the sea2 carry it toward the west4 ,my heart is broken within my bosom2 if sudden death should befall me1 it would be through my great love for the ,gaels4 ,footnote #f ,footnote #f3 ,vol4 iii4 book xi4 ch4 #b4 ,an opportunity was afforded him of seeing once more this beloved land of which he sang with such ardent enthusiasm4 ,he had to accompany the king of the ,dalriadians1 whom he had just consecrated1 to meet the supreme monarch of ,ireland and other ,irish princes and chiefs assembled in parliament at ,drumkeath4 ,there was question of recognizing the independence of the new ,scottish royalty1 hitherto the vassal and tributary of ,erin4 ,but as the exile had made a vow never again in this life to behold the men and women of ,erin1 he appeared in the national assembly with his eyes blindfolded1 and his monk's cowl drawn over the bandage4 ,columba was listened to as an oracle in the parliament of ,drumkeath4 ,he not only obtained the complete emancipation of the ,dalriadian colony1 but he also saved the order of the bards1 whose proscription had been demanded by the king of ,ireland4 #f ,they were for ever won over to ,christianity by the holy monk1 and1 transformed into minstrels1 continued for the future to be the most efficacious propagators of the spirit of patriotism1 the indomitable prophets of national independence1 and the faithful champions of catholic faith4 ,arrived at the term of his career1 the servant of ,god spent himself in vigils1 fastings1 and formidable macerations of the flesh4 ,he knew in advance and predicted with certainty the day and the very hour when he should pass to a better life2 and he made all things ready for his departure4 ,he went to take leave of the monks who worked in the fields1 in the only fertile portion of the island of ,iona1 on the western coast4 ,he wished to visit and bless the granary of the community4 ,he blessed the old white horse which used to carry from the sheep-fold of the monastery the milk which was consumed daily by the brothers4 ,having done this1 he was barely able to ascend an eminence from which the whole island and monastery were visible1 and from this elevated position he extended his hands and pronounced on the sanctuary which he had founded a prophetic benediction4 ,this little spot1 so low and so narrow1 will be greatly honored1 not only by the kings and people of ,scotland1 but also by foreign chiefs and barbarous nations2 it will be even venerated by the saints of other churches4 ,he then descended to the monastery1 entered his cell1 and applied himself to his work for the last time4 ,he was at that time busied in transcribing the psalter4 ,at the thirty-third psalm1 and the verse1 ,inquirentes autem ,dominum non deficient omni bono1 ,footnote #g he ceased and said3 ,here ,i must finish2 ,baithan will write the rest4 ,after this he went to the church to assist at the vigils of ,sunday2 then returning to his cell1 he sat down on the cold stones which had been his bed and pillow for over seventy years4 ,there he entrusted his solitary companion with a last message for the community4 ,this done1 he never spoke more4 ,but no sooner had the midnight bell tolled for matins1 than he ran faster than the other monks to the church4 ,his companion found him lying before the altar1 and raising his head1 placed it on his knees4 ,the whole community soon arrived with lights4 ,at the sight of their father dying1 all wept4 ,the abbot opened his eyes once more1 looking around on all with a serene and joyous expression4 ,then1 assisted by his companion1 ,columba lifted as well as he could his right hand1 and silently blessed the whole choir of monks4 ,his hands fell powerless to his sides1 and he breathed his last4 ,footnote #g3 ,they that seek the ,lord shall not be deprived of any good4 ,ps4 xxxiii4 #aa4 ,what a scene6 ,such were the life and death of this great man and great saint4 ,after having loved ,ireland so much1 he could repose nowhere more appropriately than in her sacred soil4 ,his body was transported thither to the monastery of ,down1 and buried between the mortal remains of ,st4 ,patrick and ,st4 ,bridget4 ,thus those three names1 for the future inseparable1 became interwoven with the history and traditions1 and engraved in the worship and on the memory1 of the ,irish people4 ,such were the men to whom ,ireland owed not only her indestructible faith1 but also her intellectual and moral civilization4 #g ,it is not sufficiently known that ,ireland in the seventh century was regarded by all ,europe as the principal focus of science and piety4 ,there1 more than anywhere else1 every monastery was a school1 and every school a studio of calligraphy1 where the artists were not confined to copying the ,holy ,scriptures alone2 but where even the ,greek and ,latin authors were reproduced1 sometimes in ,celtic characters1 with gloss and commentary in ,irish1 like that copy of ,horace which contemporary erudition has discovered in the library of ,berne4 ,besides1 in all those monasteries1 exact annals of passing events were recorded2 and these annals still constitute the chief source of ,irish history4 ,we recognize in them a vast and continual development of serious literary and religious studies1 far superior to anything found in any other ,european nation4 ,certain arts even1 such as architecture1 carving1 metallurgy applied to the objects of public worship1 were cultivated with success2 not to speak of music1 a knowledge of which was a common accomplishment not exclusively possessed by the learned1 but also by the common people4 ,the classic languages1 not only the ,latin1 but even in an especial manner the ,greek1 were spoken1 written1 and studied with a sort of passion1 which shows the sway which intellectual preoccupations held over those ardent ,celtic minds4 ,but whatever may have been the influence of ,columba on the ,picts and ,scots1 neither he nor his successors could exercise any direct or efficacious action on the ,anglo-,saxons1 who became daily more redoubtable1 and whose ferocious incursions menaced not only the ,caledonian clans1 but also the ,britons4 ,other missionaries were therefore needed4 ,whence were they to come8 ,from that ever-burning centre of faith and charity from which the light of ,christianity had already been brought to the ,irish by ,patrick2 to the ,bretons and ,scots by ,palladius1 ,ninian1 and ,germain--from ,rome6 ,who then were the ,anglo-,saxons1 upon whom so many efforts were concentrated1 and whose conquest is ranked1 not without reason1 among the most fruitful and most happy that the church has ever accomplished8 ,of all the ,germanic tribes the most stubborn1 intrepid1 and independent1 this people seem to have transplanted with themselves into the great island which owes to them its name1 the genius of the ,germanic race1 in order that it might bear on this predestined soil its richest and most abundant fruits4 ,the ,saxons brought with them a language1 a character1 and institutions stamped with a strong and invincible originality4 ,language1 character1 institutions1 have triumphed1 in their essential features1 over the vicissitudes of time and fortune--have outlived all ulterior conquests1 as well as all foreign influences1 and1 plunging their vigorous roots into the primitive soil of ,celtic ,britain1 still exist at the indestructible foundation of the social edifice of ,england4 444 ,keeping intact and untamable their old ,germanic spirit1 their old morals1 their stern independence1 they gave from that moment to the free and proud genius of their race a vigorous upward impulse which nothing has been able to bear down4 ,footnote #h ,footnote #h3 ,vol4 iv4 book xii4 ch4 #a4 ,every one knows how and by whom those ,anglo-,saxons were evangelized and converted2 every one knows the scene of ,gregory1 afterward pope1 with the young slaves in the ,roman forum1 and the dialogue related by ,bede from the traditions of his ,northumbrian ancestors4 ,every one knows that1 at the sight of those young slaves1 struck by the beauty of their countenances1 the dazzling whiteness of their complexion1 the length of their flaxen locks1 a probable sign of their aristocratic extraction1 ,gregory inquired about their country and their religion4 #h ,the merchant1 answered him that they came from the island of ,britain1 where all had the same fresh color1 and that they were pagans4 ,then1 heaving a deep sigh1 what evil luck1 he exclaimed1 that the prince of darkness should possess beings with an aspect so radiant1 and that the grace of these countenances should reflect a soul void of inward grace6 ,but what nation are they of8 ,they are ,angles8 ,they are well named1 for these ,angles have the faces of angels2 and they must become the brethren of the angels in heaven4 ,from what province have they been brought8 ,from ,dera1 7one of the two kingdoms of ,northumbria47 ,still good1 answered he4 ,de ira eruti--they shall be snatched from the ire of ,god1 and called to the mercy of ,christ4 ,and how name they the king of their country8 ,alle or ,a,ella4 ,so be it2 he is right well named1 for they shall soon sing the ,alleluia in his kingdom4 ,footnote #i ,footnote #i3 ,vol4 iii book xii4 ch4 #a1 p4 #cdg4 ,we will not follow the apostolate of the monk ,augustine in his pacific conquests1 nor the touching solicitude of the ,pope ,st4 ,gregory for his dear favorites4 ,not because this history lacks interest--we know none more attractive1 or in which the glory of the ,roman ,church shines forth more brilliantly--but it is better known than that of the monk ,columba1 which has delayed us longer4 ,we may simply remark that1 unlike the churches of ,italy1 ,gaul1 and ,spain1 in all of which the baptism of blood had either preceded or accompanied the conversion of the inhabitants1 in ,england there were neither martyrs nor persecutors from the first day of ,augustine's preaching1 during the entire existence of the ,anglo-,saxon ,church4 ,placed in the presence of the pure1 resplendent light of ,christianity1 even before they understood or accepted it1 those fierce ,saxons1 so pitiless to their enemies1 displayed1 in the presence of truth1 a humanity and a docility which we seek in vain among the learned and civilized citizens of imperial ,rome4 ,not a drop of blood spilled in the name of religion stained the ,english ground4 ,and this prodigy is witnessed at a period when human gore flowed in torrents for any or every pretext1 no matter how trivial4 ,what a contrast between those times and later ages1 when1 in the very same island1 so many pyres were lighted1 so many gibbets raised on which to immolate the ,english who remained steadfast in the faith of ,gregory and ,augustine6 ,the second volume of ,the ,monks of the ,west comprises a thorough and varied account of the conversion of the ,anglo-,saxons1 not only by the missionaries sent from ,rome1 but also by those of ,england herself ,the great figure of ,st4 ,wilfrid looms up in this epoch4 ,as we cannot analyze his noble and holy life1 we will resume1 at least1 some of his traits1 as drawn by the pen of ,m4 de ,montalembert4 ,in ,wilfrid began that great line of prelates1 by turns apostolic and political1 eloquent and warlike1 brave champions of ,roman unity and ecclesiastical independence1 magnanimous representatives of the rights of conscience1 the liberties of the soul1 the spiritual powers of man1 and the laws of ,god--a line to which history presents no equal out of the ,catholic ,church of ,england2 a lineage of saints1 heroes1 confessors1 and martyrs1 which produced ,st4 ,dunstan1 ,st4 ,lanfranc1 ,st4 ,anselm1 ,st4 ,thomas a ,becket1 ,stephen ,langton1 ,st4 ,edmund1 the exile of ,pontigny1 and which ended in ,reginald ,pole4 ,footnote #aj 4 4 4 ,footnote #aj3 ,vol4 iv4 ch4 #d1 p4 #cfh4 #i ,in addition to all this1 ,wilfrid was the precursor of the great prelates1 the great monks1 the princely abbots of the middle ages1 the heads and oracles of national councils1 the ministers and lieutenants1 and often the equals and rivals of kings4 ,when duty called1 no suffering alarmed1 no privation deterred1 and no danger stopped his course4 ,four times in his life he made the journey to ,rome1 then ten times more laborious and a hundred times more dangerous than the voyage to ,australia is now4 ,but1 left to himself1 he loved pomp1 luxury1 magnificence1 and power4 ,he could be humble and mild when it was necessary2 but it was more congenial to him to confront kings1 princes1 nobles1 bishops1 councils1 and lay assemblies in harsh and inflexible defence of his patrimony1 his power1 his authority1 and his cause4 ,footnote #aa 444 ,footnote #aa3 ,ibidem1 p4 #cfi4 ,his influence is explained by the rare qualities1 which more than redeemed all his faults4 ,his was1 before all else1 a great soul1 manly and resolute1 ardent and enthusiastic1 full of unconquerable energy1 able to wait or to act1 but incapable of discouragement or fear1 born to live upon those heights which attract at once the thunderbolt and the eyes of the crowd4 ,his eloquence1 superior to anything yet known in ,england1 his keen and penetrating intelligence1 his eager zeal for literary studies and public education1 his knowledge and love of those wonders of architecture which dazzled the ,christian nation1 and to which his voice attracted such crowds1 his constancy in trial1 his ardent love of justice--all contributed to make of him one of those personages who sway and move the spirits of their contemporaries1 and who master the attention and imagination even of those whom they cannot convince4 ,something generous1 ardent1 and magnanimous in his nature commended him always to the sympathy of lofty hearts2 and when adverse fortune and triumphant violence and ingratitude came in1 to put upon his life the seal of adversity1 nobly and piously borne1 the rising tide of emotion and sympathy carried all before it1 sweeping away all traces of those errors of conduct which might have seemed to us less attractive or comprehensible4 ,footnote #ab ,footnote #ab3 ,ibidem1 pp4 #cga-b4 ,the fifth and last volume ends with an elaborate essay of great interest on the ,anglo-,saxon nunneries4 ,it is certain that women have taken an active part in the civilization of modern nations1 more particularly among the ,german tribes1 whose purity of morals astonished the old ,romans of the empire4 ,the ,germanic races considered woman as a person1 not as a thing4 ,no sooner was the light of the gospel received among them than their women began to distinguish themselves by the ardor of their faith and the generosity of their devotion4 ,if monasteries cover the land1 convents of women rival them in number1 regularity1 and religious fervor4 ,it was the kings and nobles of the ,heptarchy who first set the example of a cloistered life for men2 it was also the queens and princesses who founded the first convents and became their earliest abbesses4 ,nothing is more interesting in the whole book1 and nowhere is the author more successful1 than in his portrayal of those primitive natures1 still tinctured with barbarism1 passing through a complete transformation under the law of light and charity2 to see those nuns devote themselves to as earnest a study of ,greek and ,latin as to that of the ,holy ,scriptures2 quote ,virgil1 compose verses during the intervals of their religious duties and the singing of the office4 #aj ,another remarkable trait is their profound and obstinate attachment to one or other of the parties who disputed the possession of supreme power in those troubled times--an attachment which is explained by the high rank of the abbesses who governed those numerous communities4 ,a single one of those houses1 the ,abbey of ,winbourne1 contained five hundred nuns who sang the office day and night4 ,nothing is better calculated to give us a just appreciation of the manners of those times than the faithful description of the interior life of those great convents2 the narration of their customs1 of their lively faith1 their enthusiasm for science1 of their works1 their literary correspondence1 and of all the details of their existence4 ,whatever may be the charm which the author has infused into the rest of his book1 that part of it1 in our opinion1 which excites most the curiosity of the reader by the novelty of its incidents1 its charming legends1 and which will be read with most avidity1 is the last chapter on the ,anglo-,saxon nuns4 ,may this rapid sketch inspire our readers with the desire of becoming better acquainted with this great and magnificent work6 ,in all ages1 remarkable books have been scarce1 and1 by a sad infirmity of the human mind1 they have not always been properly appreciated during the lifetime of their authors4 ,almost all have been obliged to await the judgment of time and posterity to consecrate their glory4 ,let this not be the fate of ,the ,monks of the ,west4 ,let us read and study this book4 ,we shall find in it the history of the conversion of ,england in the sixth and seventh centuries2 one of the most powerful arguments in support of the great thesis--that the world has been civilized by the ,catholic ,church4 ,this point is the high aim1 the noble thought1 the idea and soul of ,montalembert's master-piece4 ,by it he has rendered an immense service to the ,catholic cause1 and on this account he deserves the undying gratitude of all ,christians4 -------- ,o',neill ,and ,o',donnell ,in ,exile4 ,footnote #ac ,footnote #ac3 ,the ,fate and ,fortunes of ,hugh ,o',neill1 ,earl of ,tyrone1 and ,rory ,o',donnell1 ,earl of ,tyrconnel3 ,their ,flight from ,ireland2 ,their ,vicissitudes ,abroad1 and their ,death in ,exile4 ,by the ,rev4 ,c4 ,meehan1 ,m4,r4,i4,a4 ,dublin3 ,james ,duffy4 ,new ,york3 ,catholic ,publication ,house4 ,pp4 #chc4 #ahfh4 ,the history of the ,irish race presents certain features quite exceptional1 and without parallel either in the ancient or in the modern world4 ,for example1 during these last two and a half centuries that strange history has been dual or double--half of it in ,ireland and the other half in foreign lands4 ,there were the ,irish in ,ireland undergoing the emaciating process of confiscations and plunder1 writhing under their penal laws for religion1 with occasional gallant efforts at resistance1 either in support of a dynasty 7the ,stuarts7 or by way of fierce insurrection1 as in #agih4 ,and there were the ,irish abroad in many lands1 refugees1 exiles1 emigrants1 who were always plotting and preparing a descent from ,france or from ,spain to redeem their countrymen from ,british oppression1 or else giving their service as military adventurers to any power at war with ,england1 hoping to deal their enemy somewhere1 anywhere1 a mortal blow4 #aa ,but their thought was ever ,ireland1 ,ireland4 ,what country on this earth has ever inspired its children with so deep1 so passionate1 so enduring love8 ,these side-scenes in the drama of ,irish life have duly repeated themselves from generation to generation1 down to the present day4 ,we see one of them in the ,united ,states this moment4 ,always1 alongside of the transactions in the island itself--the confiscations1 and ejectments1 and famines1 and packed juries--there is a parallel series of transactions outside among the exiles1 all bearing reference to the fate and fortunes of the ,irish at home2 all moved and inspired by that insatiable craving to liberate the land of their fathers1 and make good their own footing among the green hills where they were born4 ,of this collateral or episodical history1 ,fr4 ,meehan has selected one of the most striking and touching scenes1 has thoroughly investigated it in all its aspects1 and in this volume presented us with a very complete monograph of the outside life of ,o',neill and ,o',donnell1 with their followers1 from the moment when those chiefs suddenly dropped out of the large space they had so long filled in ,ireland proper1 and became a part of the external ,irish world4 ,for this task1 ,fr4 ,meehan had unusual qualifications and advantages4 ,he had long lived in ,rome1 where the last years of the illustrious chiefs were passed1 and where1 in the ,church of ,s4 ,pietro ,montorio1 their bones lie buried under a simple inscription4 ,more than thirty years ago1 the sight of this inscription 7,d4,o4,m4 ,hic quiescunt ,ugonis ,principis ,o',neill ossa--,here rest the bones of ,hugh the ,prince ,o',neill7 excited within his mind an ardent curiosity to explore the mystery which has so long surrounded that sad flight of the earls1 and their short1 feverish life afterward4 ,since that day the author never lost sight of his object4 ,though devoted to his sacred duties1 and occasionally occupied in illustrating some other page of the history of his country1 as in his excellent narrative of the ,confederation of ,kilkenny1 7see ,library of ,ireland17 yet he was always adding to his store of materials for the illumination of this one dark passage in the fortunes of those most illustrious of ,irish exiles4 ,at length we have the result2 and it leaves nothing to be desired4 ,yet we feel inclined at the outset to reproach the learned author for entitling his heroes ,earl of ,tyrone and ,earl of ,tyrconnel4 ,why has he done this when ,o',neill's own epitaph has no allusion to such a title1 which1 indeed1 was1 in his eyes1 a mark of disgrace and a badge of servitude8 ,he had1 it is true1 submitted to sink for a short time formally from a high chief into an earl when he was in ,england1 and had an object to gain by pleasing and flattering ,queen ,elizabeth2 but in his own ,ulster his name and title was ,the ,o',neill2 in comparison of which1 says ,camden1 the very title of ,caesar is contemptible in ,ireland4 ,footnote #ad ,footnote #ad3 ,camden3 ,queen ,elizabeth4 ,moreover1 it was not until his long and desperate resistance was at length subdued1 not till most of his warriors lay dead amidst the smoking ruins of ,ulster1 and he had made his submission to ,mountjoy at ,mellifont ,abbey1 that he consented to wear with shame the coronet of an earl before his own clansmen and kinsmen4 #ab ,it was a condition of the queen's pardon that he should so abase himself4 ,when he quitted ,ireland1 however1 he flung down his coronet and golden chain1 and never called himself ,earl of ,tyrone again4 ,fr4 ,meehan himself tells us 7p4 #afa7 while describing the honors paid to the chiefs upon the continent3 ,wherever there was an ,irish seminary or conventual establishment1 alumni and superiors vied with each other in congratulating the illustrious princes1 for such was the designation by which they were recognized in ,belgium1 ,italy1 and all over the continent4 ,but on this subject it may be remarked that the policy of the ,british government in thus forcing the coronets of feudal nobility upon the unwilling brows of ,celtic chieftains1 whether in ,scotland or in ,ireland1 has never yet been sufficiently understood4 ,it was an essential part of the invariable ,british system of forcing its own form of social polity upon every part of the three kingdoms1 as each part fell successively under ,english dominion4 ,it was necessary1 as ,sir ,john ,davies1 ,attorney-,general for ,ireland under ,james the ,first1 declares1 to abolish what he calls the scambling possession which ,irish chiefs and clansmen had in their lands1 and compel them to hold those lands by ,english tenure2 in other words1 that the chiefs should become landlords or proprietors of those districts which had formed the tribe-lands of their clans1 and that their clansmen should become tenants subject to rent1 which1 in the seventeenth century1 had grown to be a commutation for all feudal services4 ,in short1 the problem to be solved was to force in the already corrupt and oppressive feudal polity 7which had long lost its true uses and significance7 upon the free system of clanship1 the ancient and natural social arrangement of the ,irish and ,scottish ,gal4 ,neither did that plan1 of obliging chiefs to become noblemen--and therefore both vassals and landlords--originate with ,elizabeth and ,james1 nor with ,sir ,john ,davies4 ,king ,henry the ,eighth1 a century earlier1 offered to ,con ,o',neill1 the chief of that day1 the dignity of earl1 which ,con accepted as a delicate attention from a foreign monarch1 but took care to be a chief in ,tyrone--no vassals1 no tenants1 no ,english tenure there4 ,the ,o',brien of ,thomond1 however1 upon that earlier occasion1 did lay down at ,king ,henry's feet his dignity of ,chief ,dalcais1 and arose ,earl of ,thomond2 his son was made ,baron of ,inchiquin2 and the ,mac,gilla ,phadruig consented to become ,fitzpatrick and ,baron of ,upper ,ossory4 ,for their compliance1 they were rewarded with the spoils of the suppressed monasteries of their respective countries--places which their own fathers had founded and endowed for pious uses4 ,the process in ,scotland was nearly analogous1 after the accession of ,james to the throne of ,england4 ,the ,mac ,callum ,more 7,campbell7 was created ,duke of ,argyll1 and invited to consider himself proprietor of all ,argyllshire--by ,english tenure--and landlord of all the ,campbells4 ,mac ,kenzie was dubbed ,earl of ,cromarty on the same terms2 and so with the rest3 but at home those ,highland nobles were never regarded as anything but chiefs2 and it was only by very slow degrees1 and not perfectly until after #agde1 that the old clan spirit and usages disappeared4 ,thus1 in forcing conformity with ,english land-laws1 and gradually bringing the soil of the two islands into immediate dependence upon the ,english sovereign1 every step in advance is marked by some chief submitting to be made earl or baron1 and reducing his free kinsmen to serfdom4 #ac ,those peerages1 accordingly1 are monuments of subjugation and badges of dishonor4 ,hugh ,o',neill certainly did not value his title1 flung it from him with impatience1 quitted earldom and country to get rid of it1 and protested against it on his tombstone4 ,for these reasons1 many readers of ,fr4 ,meehan's book will wish that the author had given to his heroes the titles by which they themselves desired to be remembered4 ,having thus vented our only censure1 upon a matter rather technical and formal1 the more agreeable task remains1 of making our readers acquainted with all the merits and perfections of this charming book4 ,fr4 ,meehan does not undertake to narrate the earlier life and long and bloody wars against the best generals of ,england1 but takes up the story where the chief was desperately maintaining himself1 and still keeping his ,red ,hand aloft in the woody fastness of ,glanconkeine1 on the side of ,slieve ,gallen1 and by the banks of ,moyola water1 awaiting the return from ,spain of his brother-chief1 ,hugh ,roe ,o',donnell1 with the promised succors from ,king ,philip4 ,but in those very same days1 that famous ,hugh ,roe had lain down to die in ,spain1 and succor came none to the sorely pressed ,prince of ,ulster4 ,his great enemy1 ,elizabeth1 too1 was on her death-bed1 almost ready to breathe her last curse4 ,but in her agonies she by no means forgot ,o',neill4 ,father ,meehan says3 ,it is a curious and perhaps suggestive fact1 that ,queen ,elizabeth1 while gasping on her cushions at ,richmond1 and tortured by remembrances of her latest victim1 ,essex1 often directed her thoughts to that ,ulster fastness1 where her great rebel1 ,tyrone1 was still defying her1 and disputing her title to supremacy on ,irish soil4 ,but of this1 however1 there can be no doubt2 for in ,february1 while she was gazing on the haggard features of death1 and vainly striving to penetrate the opaque void of the future1 she commanded ,secretary ,cecil to charge ,mountjoy to entrap ,tyrone into a submission on diminished title1 such as ,baron of ,dungannon1 and with lessened territory1 or1 if possible1 to have his head before engaging the royal word4 ,it was to accomplish any of these objects that ,mountjoy marched to the frontier of the north2 but finding it impossible to procure the assassination of 'the sacred person of ,o',neill1 who had so many eyes of jealousy about him1' he wrote to ,cecil1 from ,drogheda1 that nothing prevented ,tyrone from making his submission but mistrust of his personal safety1 and guarantee for maintenance commensurate to his princely rank4 ,the granting of these conditions1 ,mountjoy concluded1 would bring about the pacification of ,ireland1 and ,tyrone1 being converted into a good subject1 would rid her majesty of the apprehension of another ,spanish landing on the ,irish shore4 ,it is possible that this proposed solution of the ,irish difficulty may have reached ,richmond at a moment when ,elizabeth was more intent on the talisman sent her by the old ,welsh woman1 or the arcane virtues of the card fastened to the seat of her chair1 than on matters of statecraft2 but be that as it may1 the lords of her privy council empowered ,mountjoy to treat with ,tyrone1 and bring about his submission with the least possible delay4 ,the author next carries us through the imposing scene of the chief's submission and surrender at ,mellifont ,abbey1 and gives a vivid account of that illustrious religious house1 and the lovely vale of the ,mattock in which it stands2 of his gloomy resignation to his hated earldom2 of the organization of ,ulster into shires or counties1 7never before heard of in those parts27 of the new earl's journey to ,london1 along with ,rory ,o',donnell1 the other earl1 and ,lord ,mountjoy1 with a guard of horse3 ,nor was this precaution unnecessary2 for whenever the latter was recognized1 in city or hamlet1 the populace1 notwithstanding their respect for ,mountjoy1 the hero of the hour1 could not be restrained from stoning ,tyrone1 and flinging bitter insults at him4 ,indeed1 throughout the whole journey1 the ,welsh and ,english women were unsparing of their invectives against the ,irish chief4 ,nor are we to wonder at this2 for there was not one among them but could name some friend or kinsman whose bones lay buried far away in some wild pass or glen of ,ulster1 where the object of their maledictions was more often victor than vanquished4 #ad ,the new king1 ,james the ,first1 was very desirous to see ,o',neill1 who had1 after his victory at the ,yellow ,ford1 sent an ambassador to ,james at ,holyrood1 offering1 if supplied with some money and munitions1 to march upon ,dublin1 and proclaim him ,king of ,ireland2 but the ,scottish king had been too timid to close with this offer4 ,one may imagine with what mingled feelings ,o',neill once more revisited that ,london1 and ,greenwich ,palace1 where in his younger days he had been a favored courtier1 had talked on affairs of state with ,burleigh1 and disported himself with ,sir ,christopher ,hatton1 the dancing chancellor4 ,the author describes his reception at court3 ,nothing1 indeed1 could have been more gracious than the reception which the king gave those distinguished ,irishmen2 and so marked was the royal courtesy to both1 that it stirred the bile of ,sir ,john ,harington1 who speaks of it thus3 ',i have lived to see that damnable rebel1 ,tyrone1 brought to ,england honored and well-liked4 ',oh6 what is there that does not prove the inconstancy of worldly matters8 ,how ,i did labor after that knave's destruction6 ,i adventured perils by sea and land1 was near starving1 eat horse-flesh in ,munster1 and all to quell that man1 who now smileth in peace at those who did hazard their lives to destroy him4 ,and now doth ,tyrone dare us1 old commanders1 with his presence and protection6' ,returning to ,ireland1 restored in blood1 ,o',neill lived as he best could1 in his new and strange character of an earl1 infested by spies upon all his movements4 ,notice is taken1 says ,attorney-,general ,davies1 of every person that is able to do either good or hurt4 ,it is known not only how they live and what they do1 but it is foreseen what they purpose or intend to do2 insomuch1 as ,tyrone has been heard to complain that he had so many eyes over him1 that he could not drink a full carouse of sack1 but the state was advertised thereof a few hours thereafter4 ,footnote #ae ,footnote #ae3 ,sir ,john ,davies's ,historical ,tracts4 ,the author has taken great pains to ascertain the real nature of those dark intrigues against ,o',neill and ,o',donnell1 which resulted four or five years after in the timely escape of those two earls from the toils of their enemies--the only measure that could save them from the fate of ,sir ,william ,wallace and of ,shane ,o',neill4 ,o',neill found himself embroiled in endless law-suits2 with ,montgomery1 ,bishop of ,derry2 with ,usher1 ,archbishop of ,armagh1 who each claimed a large slice of his estates2 with the traitor ,o',cahan1 his own former ,uriaght1 or sub-chief1 who entered into the conspiracy against him1 seduced by the promises of ,montgomery and the ,lord-,deputy ,chichester4 ,the truth was1 that the undertaking ,english of the north coveted his wide domains1 and could not comprehend how a rebellious ,o',neill could possibly be allowed to possess broad lands in fee1 which they wanted for themselves4 ,fr4 ,meehan has cast more light upon these wicked machinations than any previous writer had the means and authorities for2 and it now appears plain that the chief agent of these base plots was ,christopher ,st4 ,laurence1 the twenty-second baron of ,howth1 and one of the ancestors of the noble house of that title1 now gloriously flourishing amongst the ,irish nobility4 #ae ,fr4 ,meehan's researches have brought home to this noble caitiff the famous anonymous letter dropped in the ,castle-,yard of ,dublin1 and also a detailed deposition1 shamelessly setting forth his own long-continued espionage1 and on the faith of conversations with several persons1 charging ,tyrone1 ,lord ,mountgarrett1 ,sir ,theobald ,burke1 and others1 with a plot to bring in the ,spaniards1 and to take by surprise the ,castle of ,dublin4 ,o',neill knew nothing1 at the time1 of the conspiracy against him2 but had a very shrewd suspicion that the ,lord-,deputy ,chichester and the northern ,anglican bishops were resolved to have his blood1 in order to get his estate confiscated4 ,one of the ,mc,guires1 who was himself in danger from these machinations1 escaped to the continent4 ,the author says3 ,meanwhile1 ,cuconnaught ,maguire1 growing weary of his impoverished condition1 and longing to be rid of vexations he could no longer bear1 contrived1 about the middle of ,may1 #afjg1 to make his escape from one of the northern ports to ,ostend1 whence he lost no time in proceeding to ,brussels1 where ,lord ,henry ,o',neill was then quartered with his ,irish regiment4 ,the latter presented him at the court of the archdukes1 who received him kindly1 and evinced deep sympathy for their ,irish coreligionists1 and especially the northern earls1 with whose wrongs they were thoroughly conversant1 through ,florence ,conry1 fathers ,cusack and ,stanihurst4 ,father ,conry1 it would appear1 informed ,maguire that ,king ,james would certainly arrest ,tyrone1 if he went to ,london2 and ,maguire1 on hearing this1 despatched a trusty messenger to the earls to put them on their guard1 and then set about providing means for carrying them off the ,irish shores4 ,the influence of ,lord ,henry with the archdukes procured him a donation of #gjjj crowns1 ,footnote #af with which he purchased1 at ,rouen1 a vessel of fourscore tons1 mounting sixteen cast pieces of ordnance1 manned by marines in disguise1 and freighted with a cargo of salt4 ,from ,rouen the vessel proceeded to ,dunkirk1 under command of one ,john ,bath1 a merchant of ,drogheda1 and lay there1 waiting instructions from ,ireland4 ,footnote #af3 ,the archdukes were greatly indebted to ,o',neill1 who gave ample employment to the queen's troops in ,ireland during the war in the ,netherlands1 and thus prevented the ,english from aiding1 as they wished1 the revolted provinces4 ,this ,bath1 on his arrival in ,ireland1 at once sought both ,o',neill and ,o',donnell1 and informed them1 on sure information procured by ,lord ,henry ,o',neill1 ,hugh's son1 that they would both be certainly arrested1 and at the same time placed at their service ,mc,guire's ship1 which he commanded4 ,it needed great tact and coolness on the part of ,o',neill to conceal from the ,lord-,deputy his intention of departure4 ,but at last-- ,at midnight1 on that ever-memorable #adth of ,september1 #afjg1 they spread all sail1 and made for the open sea1 intending1 however1 to land on the island of ,aran1 off the coast of ,donegal1 to provide themselves with more water and fuel4 ,those who were now sailing away from their ancient patrimonies were1 ,hugh1 ,earl of ,tyrone1 with his countess1 ,catharina1 and their three sons1 ,hugh1 ,john1 and ,bernard4 ,with them also went ,art ,oge1 'young ,arthur1' son of ,cormac1 ,tyrone's brother2 ,fadorcha1 son of ,con1 the earl's nephew2 ,hugh ,oge1 son of ,brian1 brother of ,tyrone1 and many more of their faithful clansmen4 ,those accompanying ,earl ,rory were ,cathbar1 or ,caffar1 his brother2 ,nuala1 his sister1 wife of the traitor1 ,nial ,garve2 ,hugh1 the earl's son1 wanting three weeks of being one year old2 ,rosa1 daughter of ,sir ,john ,o',doherty1 sister of ,sir ,cahir1 and wife of ,cathbar1 with her son1 ,hugh1 aged two years and three months2 the son of his brother1 ,donel ,oge2 ,naghtan1 son of ,calvagh1 or ,charles ,o',donel1 with many others of their trusted friends and followers4 ',a distinguished crew1' observe the four masters1 'was this for one ship2 for it is certain that the sea never carried1 and that the winds never wafted1 from the ,irish shores1 individuals more illustrious or noble in genealogy1 or more renowned for deeds of valor1 prowess1 and high achievements4' ,ah6 with what tearful eyes and torn hearts did they gaze on the fast receding shores1 from which they were forced to fly for the sake of all they held dearest6 ',the entire number of souls on board this small vessel1' says ,o',keenan1 in his narrative1 'was ninety-nine1 having little sea-store1 and being otherwise miserably accommodated4' ,it was1 indeed1 the first great exodus of the ,irish nobles and gentry1 to be followed1 alas6 by many another1 caused1 in great measure1 by a similar system of cruel and exceptional legislation4 #af ,there is a most interesting account of their stormy voyage in that small vessel2 but after much hardship and danger1 they made the port of ,havre1 and went up the ,river ,seine to the ancient city of ,rouen4 ,the ,english ambassador at the court of ,henry the ,fourth of ,france1 had the assurance to demand of the ,french government to arrest the refugees1 but received a short answer3 ,writing to ,lord ,shrewsbury1 ,october #abth1 #afjg1 ,salisbury alludes to ,o',neill's voyage thus3 ',he was shrewdly tossed at sea1 and met contrary winds for ,spain4 ,the ,english ambassador wishing ,henry to stay them1 had for his answer1 ,france is free4' 7,p4 #abc47 ,from ,normandy the party proceeded to ,flanders1 where they were received by the archdukes with the highest distinction ever shown to sovereign princes and their suite4 ,at ,brussels ,o',neill met his son1 the ,lord ,henry1 then commanding a regiment of ,irish for the archdukes1 and also another young ,o',neill1 destined to do great things in his generation1 namely1 ,hugh's nephew1 ,owen ,roe4 ,our author thus introduces him3 ,even at the risk of interrupting ,o',keenan's narrative1 we may observe that none of these ,irish exiles could have foreseen that a little boy1 with auburn ringlets1 then in their company1 would one day win renown by defending that same city of ,arras against two of the ablest marshals of ,france4 ,nevertheless1 such was the case2 for1 thirty-three years afterward1 ,owen ,roe ,o',neill1 son of ,art1 and nephew to the ,earl of ,tyrone1 with his regiment of ,irish1 maintained the place against ,chatillon and ,meillarie1 till he had to make a most honorable capitulation4 ,footnote #ag ,footnote #ag3 ,august1 #afdj4 ,see ,hericourt's ,sieges d',arras4 ,and the same ,owen ,roe1 still later1 in the ,irish wars of ,king ,charles's day1 fought and won the bloody battle of ,benburb against the ,scottish ,presbyterian army1 and trampled their blue banner on the banks of that same ,blackwater which had seen the glorious victories of the ,red ,hand4 ,from ,brussels the fugitives had an intention of proceeding to ,spain1 but were diverted from that purpose by the archdukes1 and they finally set out for ,rome4 ,the narrative of their journey across the ,alps is exceedingly interesting2 and on their arrival at ,milan1 they were welcomed with high honors by the ,spanish governor1 the ,conde de ,fuentes1 and by the nobility of the province2 but it need hardly be said that1 in all their movements1 they were closely watched by ,british spies2 and every attention shown to them was the subject of violent remonstrance on the part of ,english ambassadors4 ,father ,meehan gives us the letter of ,lord ,cornwallis1 then ambassador at ,madrid1 to the lords of the privy council1 expressing his loyal disgust at the splendid hospitalities of the ,governor of ,milan3 ',to the lords of the privy council4 ',having lately gathered1 amongst the ,irish here1 that the fugitive earls have been in ,milan1 and there much feasted by the ,conde de ,fuentes1 ,i expostulated it with the secretary of state1 who answered that they had not yet had any understanding of their being there2 that the ,conde de ,fuentes was not a man disposed to such largess as to entertain strangers in any costly manner at his own charge2 and that sure he was he could not expect any allowance from hence where there was intended no receipt1 countenance1 or comfort to any of that condition4 ,i sent sithence by ,cottington1 my secretary1 concerning one ,mack ,ogg1 lately come hither1 as ,i have been advised1 to solicit for these people2 which was1 that as ,i hoped they would have no participation with the principals1 whose crimes had now been made so notorious in their own countries1 being both1 upon public trial1 condemned1 and he of ,tyrone1 as ,i heard1 of thirteen several murders2 so ,i likewise assured myself that1 in their own wisdoms1 they would not hold it fit his majesty here should give harbor or ear to any of their ministers1 and especially to that of ,mack ,ogg1 who could not be supposed but to have had a hand in their traitorous purposes2 having been the man and the means1 in person1 to withdraw them by sea out of their own countries1 in such undutiful and suspicious manner4 ,that myself was1 in a matter of that nature1 solicitous only in regard of my own earnest desire that nothing might escape this state whereby their intentions might be held different from their professions4 ,that for these fugitives1 being now out of their retreats1 weak in purse1 and people condemned and contemned by those of their own nation1 and such as could not but daily expect the heavy hand of ,god's justice for their so many unnatural and detestable crimes1 both of late and heretofore committed1 for my own particular ,i made no more account of them than of so many fleas2 neither did the king1 my master1 otherwise esteem them than as men reprobated both of ,god and the world1 for their fa88norous actions toward others1 and inexcusable ingratitude to himself4 ,transcriber's ,note3 ,the word fa88norous is illegible4 #ag ,the author gives a minute and graphic narrative of the journey of the earls through ,italy1 and their entrance into the ,eternal ,city1 where they were affectionately received by ,pope ,paul ,v41 who assigned them a palace for their dwelling3 ,the time at which the ,irish princes entered ,rome was one of more than usual festivity2 for1 on the ,thursday preceding ,trinity ,sunday1 the pope solemnly canonized ,sa ,francesca ,romana1 in the basilica of ,st4 ,peter in the ,vatican4 ,rome was then crowded by distinguished strangers from all parts of the known world1 each vieing with the other to secure fitting places to witness the grand ceremonial4 ,but of them all1 none were so honored as ,o',neill1 ,o',donel1 their ladies and followers2 for the pope gave orders that tribunes1 especially reserved for them1 should be erected right under the dome4 ,this1 indeed1 was a signal mark of his ,holiness's respect for his guests1 greater than which he could not exhibit4 ,among the spectators were many ,english2 and we can readily conceive how much they were piqued at seeing ,o',neill ,footnote #ah and the earl thus honored by the supreme head of the church4 ,footnote #ah3 ,throughout his narrative1 ,o',keenan styles ,o',neill according to his ,gaelic title1 and calls ,o',donel the earl4 ,o',keenan was not sufficiently anglicized in accent or otherwise to respect the law which forbade the assumption of the old ,irish designation peculiar to the ,prince of ,tyrone4 ,and now began the long series of negotiations with the ,king of ,spain and the other ,catholic powers1 which were to enable the earls to make a descent upon ,ireland1 reconquer their heritage1 and liberate their unfortunate people from the bondage and oppression they were now enduring at the hands of ,king ,james's undertaking planters4 ,o',neill had written a formal diplomatic letter to ,king ,james1 recounting the various plots and treasons which had been practised against him by ,his ,majesty's servants in ,ireland1 demanding back his ancient inheritance1 and announcing that1 in default of compliance1 he would hold himself at liberty to go back to ,ireland1 with a sufficient force to free his country4 ,this ultimatum took no effect4 ,the pope and the ,king of ,spain1 though they treated him with high respect1 and awarded him a handsome pension1 were slow to give the material aid that was needed2 and in the year #afjh1 his comrade ,rory 7,rudraigh73 ,o',donnell1 called ,earl of ,tyrconnell1 died4 ,says ,father ,meehan3 ,during his illness he was piously tended by ,rosa1 daughter of ,o',dogherty1 his brother's wife1 the ,princess ,o',neill1 and ,florence ,conry1 who had performed the same kind offices for ,hugh ,roe ,o',donel in ,simancas4 ,on the #bgth ,july1 #afjh1 he received the last sacraments1 and on the morning following surrendered his soul to ,god4 ',sorrowful it was1' say the ,donegal1 annalists1 'to contemplate his early eclipse1 for he was a generous and hospitable lord1 to whom the patrimony of his ancestors seemed nothing for his feasting and spending4' ,soon after died ,o',neill's son ,hugh1 whom the ,english called ,baron of ,dungannon4 ,o',donnell's brother ,caffar 7,cathbar7 died about the same time1 and the old chieftain was now left nearly alone to carry on his almost hopeless negotiations4 #ah ,the ,irish exiles in ,spain1 when they heard of the death of the two ,o',donnells and young ,o',neill1 wore mourning publicly1 to the utter disgust of ,lord ,cornwallis1 the ,english ambassador4 ,he remonstrated with the ,king of ,spain against suffering so indecent an exhibition1 but received no satisfaction in that quarter2 and he wrote thereon1 says ,father ,meehan3 ',the agent of the ,irish fugitives in this city has presumed to walk its streets1 followed by two pages1 and four others of his countrymen1 in black weeds--a sign that they are no unwelcome guests here4' ,this was bad enough2 but the news he supplied in another letter was still worse1 for he says3 ',the ,spanish court had become the staple of the fugitive ware1 since it allows ,tyrone a pension of six hundred crowns a month2 ,tyrconnel's brother's widow1 one of two hundred crowns a month2 and his brother's wife1 one of the same sum4' ,if the ,british government could only have got hold of those mourners in their black weeds1 within its own jurisdiction1 they would undoubtedly have been prosecuted and punished1 like the men who lately attended a funeral in ,dublin4 ,nothing can be more provoking to a government1 sometimes1 than public mourning for its victims4 ,indeed1 the ,russian authorities in ,warsaw have been several times so exasperated by the sight of the citizens all clothed in black1 mourning for a crowd of innocent people1 cut down and ridden over by the cavalry in the streets1 as to feel compelled to issue instructions to the police to drag every vestige of black apparel from every man1 and every woman1 and child in the public thoroughfares1 and to close up every shop or store which should dare to keep any black fabric for sale4 ,but in cases where this kind of provocation is perpetrated in some foreign country1 and under the protection of its laws1 then your insulted government must only bear the affront as it best can4 ,the author next proceeds1 with the aid of letters in the ,state ,paper ,office1 to narrate the various projects and speculations of ,o',neill and his friends1 with a view to the invasion of their native country2 with all which projects and speculations the ,british government was made fully acquainted by means of its spies and diplomatic agents4 ,england and ,spain were just then at peace1 and one main hope of the exiles was that a breach might take place between them4 ,our author says3 ,withal1 it would appear that ,england had not then a very firm reliance on the good faith of ,spain4 ,indeed1 ,turnbull's despatches show this to have been the case2 and as for ,o',neill1 there is every reason to suppose that he calculated on some such lucky rupture1 and that ,philip would then have an opportunity of retrieving the disaster of ,kinsale1 by sending a flotilla to the coast of ,ulster1 where the native population would rally to the standard of their attainted chieftain1 and drive the new settlers back to ,england or ,scotland--anywhere from off the face of his ancient patrimony4 ,yielding to these apprehensions1 ,james instructed his minister at the court of the archdukes to redouble his vigilance1 and make frequent reports of the movements of the ,irish troops in their ,highnesses' pay1 and1 above all1 to certify to him the names of the ,irish officers on whom the court of ,spain bestowed special marks of its consideration4 ,in fact1 from the middle of #afad till the close of the following year1 ,turnbull's correspondence is wholly devoted to these points1 so much so1 that the ,english cabinet had not only intelligence of ,tyrone's designs1 but ample information concerning all those who were suspected of countenancing them4 ,nothing could surpass the minister's susceptibility on this subject2 for if we were to believe himself1 no ,catholic functionary visited the court of ,brussels without impressing on their ,highnesses the expediency1 as well as duty1 of aiding the banished earl and his coreligionists in ,ireland4 #ai ,at last1 in ,january1 #afae1 ,o',neill resolved to undertake the enterprise himself1 some ,catholic noblemen in ,italy and ,belgium engaging to furnish him with funds4 ,he was to quit ,rome by a certain day2 but1 like all his other projects1 this was speedily communicated to ,trumbull1 who lost no time in making it known to the ,english cabinet4 ,he did not leave ,rome as he intended2 but two months later3 ,the ,belgian agent sent another dispatch to the king1 informing him 'that ,o',neill hath sent from ,rome two of his instruments into ,ireland1 called ,crone and ,conor1 with order to stir up factions and seditions in that kingdom1 where1 in ,waterford alone1 there are no less than thirty-six ,jesuits4' ,next we find the same vigilant ,english minister apprising his government that ,o',neill was about to have some of his countrymen employed at sea in ships of war1 as pirates1 with commission to take all vessels1 etc4 ,in truth1 it was for ,england a genuine ,fenian alarm1 this constantly menacing attitude of the veteran warrior of the ,blackwater2 a ,fenian alarm1 alas6 of two hundred and fifty years ago4 ,and how many there have been since6 ,there was also the same eager impatience for action1 the same maddening thought that the work must be done at once or ,ireland was lost for ever4 ,a certain physician1 who attended ,o',neill in this year1 #afae1 writes to a friend in ,london1 giving him1 as a sample of his patient's conversation and manner1 the following anecdote3 ,though a man would think that he is an old man by sight--no1 he is lusty and strong1 and well able to travel2 for a month ago1 at evening1 when his frere ,footnote #ai and his gentlemen were all with him1 they were talking of ,england and ,ireland1 and he drew out his sword4 ',his majesty1' said he1 'thinks that ,i am not strong4 ,i would he that hates me most in ,england were with me to see whether ,i am strong or no4' ,those that were by said1 ',we would we were with forty thousand pounds of money in ,ireland1 to see what we should do4' ,whereon ,tyrone remarked1 ',if ,i be not in ,ireland within these two years1 ,i will never desire more to look for it4' ,footnote #ai3 ,f4 ,chamberlaine1 ,o4,s4,f4 ,so thought ,sarsfield when he fled with the ,wild-geese almost a century later--if they could not return with a reenforcement of ,french within one year1 within two years1 there was an end of ,ireland4 ,so thought ,wolfe ,tone1 after still another century1 as he was gnawing his own heart in ,paris at the fatal delay1 and crying1 ,hell6 hell6 ,if that expedition did not sail at that moment1 ,ireland was subdued and lost for ever and ever4 ,it is natural that the eager spirits of each generation of ,irishmen should be in haste to see the great work done in their own day4 ,but divine ,providence is in no haste1 and will not be hurried4 ,beyond all doubt1 there is a destiny and a work in store for this ,irish race1 so wonderfully preserved through sore trials1 and in spite of repeated persistent efforts to extirpate it utterly4 ,it has a strong hold upon life1 and a potent individual character4 ,it will neither perish from the face of the earth nor forget a single tradition or aspiration1 nor part with its ancient religious faith4 ,it not only does not attorn to the dominant ,english sentiment and character1 but seems1 on the contrary1 to become more antagonistic1 and to cherish that antagonism4 ,and it is very notable that this desperate mutual repulsion between ,england and ,ireland does not date from the ,reformation1 nor does it altogether depend upon religious differences4 ,it is true that the acceptance of the new religion by ,england and its rejection by the ,irish furnished the former with a new pretext and a convenient machinery for oppression and plunder4 ,but two centuries before this1 ,hugh ,o',neill's time--and when the ,english were as ,catholic as the ,irish--we find his ancestor1 ,donal ,o',neill1 in his famous letter to ,pope ,john ,,xxii41 describing the relations of the two races in language which is still appropriate at this day3 ,all hope of peace between us is completely destroyed2 for such is their pride1 such is their excessive lust of dominion1 such our ardent desire to shake off this insupportable yoke1 and recover the inheritance which they have so unjustly usurped1 that as there never was1 so there never will be1 any sincere coalition between them and us2 nor is it possible there should in this life2 for we entertain a certain natural enmity against each other1 flowing from mutual malignity1 descending by inheritance from father to son1 and spreading from generation to generation4 #bj ,the aged ,prince of ,ulster never saw his native land again4 ,in the following year1 #afaf1 he became blind and1 some weeks after1 having received the last rites of the church1 he died at the ,salviati palace at ,rome4 ,his history from first to last is a striking and remarkable one4 ,in the religious wars of the period1 he was a conspicuous figure2 and ,henry the ,fourth of ,france called him the third soldier of his age--he1 ,henry1 being the first4 ,but ,english historians of the past and present century have made it a rule to say nothing of him and of his great battles4 ,they seem to desire that the name of the ,yellow ,ford should be blotted out of history4 ,but once upon a time ,o',neill occupied some attention in ,england4 ,spenser and ,bacon wrote anxious treatises to suggest the best method of crushing him4 ,shakespeare delighted his audience at the ,globe theatre by triumphant anticipations of the return of ,lord ,essex after destroying the abhorred ,o',neill-- ,were now the general of our gracious empress 7,as1 in good time1 he may7 from ,ireland coming1 ,bringing rebellion broached on his sword4 ,how many would the peaceful city quit4 ,to welcome him8 ,camden1 in his ,queen ,elizabeth1 has given to the ,irish war at least its due rank in the events of the time2 and ,fynes ,moryson tells us that the general voyce was of ,tyrone amongst the ,english after the defeat of ,blackwater1 as of ,hannibal among the ,romans after the defeat of ,cannae4 ,mr4 ,hume1 though he tells us nothing of ,o',neill's splendid victories over the ,english1 yet incidentally mentions that in the year #aeii the queen spent six hundred thousand pounds in six months in the service of ,ireland2 and ,sir ,robert ,cecil affirmed that in ten years ,ireland cost her three million four hundred thousand pounds1 which would be about sixty millions of pounds sterling in money of the present day4 ,so well1 however1 has the memory of all this been suppressed1 that even an educated ,englishman at this time1 if you mentioned to him the great battle of the ,yellow ,ford would not at all understand to what event you were alluding2 so that one is not at all astonished to find that ,mr4 ,motley1 in his voluminous book expressly devoted to the religious wars of ,europe in those days1 and especially the reign of ,elizabeth1 not only ignores that transaction altogether1 but does not so much as know ,o',neill's name4 ,when he does once undertake to name him1 he calls him not ,hugh ,o',neill1 but ,shanes ,mac,neil4 7,history of ,united ,netherlands1 vol4 iv4 p4 #id47 #ba ,the ,irish1 however1 still cherish his name and keep his memory green4 ,the peasantry yet tell that strange legend of a troop of the great chiefs lancers all lying in tranced sleep in a cave under the royal hill of ,aileagh1 each holding his horse's bridle in his hand1 and waiting for the spell to be removed that will set them free to strike a blow for their country2 and when a man once penetrated into the cave1 and saw the sleepers in their ancient mail1 one of them lifted his head and asked4 ,is the time come8 ,to the educated and reflective ,irish1 also1 that cardinal epoch of ,irish history1 in which ,o',neill was the chief figure1 has of late become a subject of more zealous study than it ever was before2 and these will heartily thank the accomplished author of the present work for the clear light he has thrown upon one strange and painful episode in his country's annals4 -------- ,the ,cross4 ,in all ages1 and among all nations1 important events have been commemorated and transmitted to future generations by significant symbols4 ,these mute symbols have served to represent the great leading ideas and characteristics of nations1 communities1 societies1 and schools of religion1 philosophy1 morals1 and politics4 ,entire histories have been treasured up for ages in these simple and inanimate emblems4 ,in thousands of instances they have served to call to mind the stirring events of a generation1 the glories of a great nation1 epochs in human progress1 or the rise and fall of false religions1 false philosophies1 and false systems of all descriptions4 ,each symbol comprises a language and a history of its own1 which can be comprehended at a glance by the most ignorant of those whom it addresses4 ,as the ideas which they represent pertain1 for the most part1 to affairs of the highest magnitude1 they have always been regarded with respect and veneration4 ,when the legions of the ,caesars were achieving the conquest of a world1 their emblem of nationality and glory1 and their inspiration in battle1 was the ,roman flag emblazoned with the ,roman eagles4 ,in the midst of the fiercest contests1 a simple glance at the national symbol would fire the heart of the soldier with patrotic ardor1 and often turn the tide of battle in his favor4 ,as he looked upon his flag1 the ,roman soldier beheld the greatness and glory of his country1 with himself as a constituent element of all this greatness1 and his heart and hand were nerved with ,herculean strength to meet the foe4 ,in the eagles which floated amid the din of battle1 he read the history of the empire1 with her conquests1 her riches1 her power1 her grandeur1 and her ,caesar2 and he cheerfully gave his life for the ideas thus evoked4 ,the ,saracen1 as he marched out to battle1 beheld the crescent of his prophet1 and was willing to die for his cause4 ,as the crescent waves before him1 his imagination pictures the prophet beckoning him on to battle1 to conquest1 to proselytism1 and to the sensual joys of paradise1 and his courage rises1 his blood boils1 and his cimeter leaps from its scabbard4 ,no danger1 no fatigue1 no privation daunts or deters him so long as he beholds the emblem of his religion and his race4 ,he loves and venerates the silent symbol for the associations it calls to mind4 #bb ,napoleon ,i41 with his battalions1 traversed the continent of ,europe1 dictating terms to kings and emperors2 and finally marshalled his victorious forces around the pyramids of ,egypt4 ,during this triumphal march1 his most potent auxiliaries were the eagles of ,france draped in their tri-colored plumage4 ,at the bridge of ,lodi1 when the ,french hosts shrank back appalled from the carnage caused by the terrific fire of the ,austrian1 ,napoleon raised aloft the emblem of ,france before the eyes of his panic-stricken veterans4 ,in an instant every heart was nerved1 and amidst storms of balls and the shrieks of the wounded and dying1 the bridge was carried and the day was won4 ,the eagles of the first ,caesars seemed to have alighted upon the tri-colored flags of the modern ,caesar4 ,whether in the midst of the deadly snows of ,russia1 or of the burning sands of ,egypt1 or of the towering summits of the ,alps1 the great talisman which led the way and gave inspiration to the soldier1 was the national symbol4 ,it spoke to them of home1 of kindred1 friends1 and of the glory of ,france2 and they were willing to risk all for the ideas thus inspired4 ,how often has the tide of battle been turned in favor of ,england1 both on land and sea1 by raising the symbol of ,england1 and the war-cry of ,st4 ,george and the ,dragon1 in the thickest of the fight6 ,how often1 in the midst of battle and slaughter1 has the drooping spirit of the ,celt been roused to fierce enthusiasm and determination by a sight of his loved national emblem1 the shamrock6 ,what true ,american can regard his own national symbol without emotion1 love1 and veneration6 ,whether he beholds it unfurled upon the battle-field1 upon the ocean1 or in a foreign land1 he reads in every star and every stripe a history of his native land--of her struggles1 her glories1 and her future destiny4 ,under its shadow the soldier is a braver man1 the statesman a better patriot1 the citizen a truer loyalist1 and the ,american traveller in foreign lands more proud of his nationality4 ,we might cite instances ad infinitum2 but we have adduced a sufficient number for illustration4 ,what is the signification and the utility of these symbols8 ,at the birth of nations1 it has always been the custom to devise some common symbol around which the people could rally as a type of nationality4 ,on all important occasions1 both in peace and in war1 this common emblem is always in the midst of the people1 to remind them of the past1 to inspire them in the present1 and to render them hopeful in the future4 ,it is associated with all their public events1 their victories1 their defeats1 their joys1 their sorrows1 their glories1 their progress1 their power and greatness4 ,is it1 then1 strange that it should be regarded with love1 respect1 and veneration8 ,is it strange that a sight of their mute talisman in the midst of battle should stir the soul of the soldier to its very depths1 or that the heart of the patriot should swell with emotion and stern resolve when the honor or welfare of his country is in danger1 or that the citizen should have a higher appreciation of the dignity and destiny of man1 or that the individual should always associate it with his love of country1 his pride of the past1 his aspirations of the present1 his hopes of the future1 in a word1 with his nationality8 #bc ,the man who has no love of father-land in his soul1 who does not love and respect the emblem of his country's glory1 is fit only for stratagems1 conspiracies1 and bloody tumults and disorders4 ,such a man can only be regarded as an enemy of his race2 and will be frowned upon by the wise1 the good1 and the humane4 ,the emblems we have thus far alluded to refer to the worldly affairs of men1 to matters of state1 of government1 and national prosperity4 ,we now propose to refer briefly to the highest of all symbols--the symbol of symbols--the emblem of emblems--to one which relates to the temporal and eternal welfare of the entire human race1 the holy cross4 ,what is its signification and utility8 ,what associations does it call to mind8 ,it tells us of the ,incarnate ,god sent to earth to give mankind a new law1 to set them an example of a perfect life1 to teach them those higher virtues and graces which fit them for happiness here and hereafter1 and then to suffer and to die an ignominious death to atone for the sins of man4 ,it calls up all the dread circumstances connected with the last days of our blessed ,saviour when on earth4 ,it brings to mind his betrayal by ,judas1 his arraignment before ,pontius ,pilate1 his condemnation1 his march to the place of execution with the cross upon his blessed shoulders1 amidst the insults1 the scoffs1 the scourgings1 the crowning with thorns1 and other indignities of a ,jewish and pagan rabble4 ,it presents before us his ascent to the scaffold1 his bloody transfixion between two thieves1 his dreadful agony1 his bloody sweat1 his wounds1 his slow and agonizing death4 ,for whom1 and for what1 has the omnipotent ,redeemer suffered these ignominies1 these agonies1 this cruel death8 ,for all mankind1 as an atonement of their sins4 ,with his almighty power he could have summoned around him legions of destroying angels1 who could have crushed to powder his persecutors2 or with his mighty breath he could have consigned them to instant annihilation4 ,but his love and tenderness for man was infinite2 and he mercifully refrained from employing the power which he possessed to their injury4 ,how vast this condescension1 this love1 this devotion to mortals under such provocations6 ,since the date of the crucifixion1 the cross1 with the image of our blessed ,lord attached thereto1 has been universally recognized as the chief symbol of ,christianity4 ,in the days of the apostles and their immediate successors it was their ever-present memento1 friend1 solace1 badge1 and emblem of faith4 ,recent discoveries in the catacombs of ,rome have brought to light the rude altars of the first ,christians1 always stamped with and designated by the sign of the cross4 ,when these early ,christians were hunted down like wild beasts1 and driven by the sanguinary pagans into the most secret recesses of the earth to escape martyrdom1 the holy cross ever accompanied them1 ever symbolized their faith1 ever served as a beacon of light1 and a rallying-point for the persecuted followers of ,jesus of ,nazareth4 ,whenever the missionaries of the church have abandoned country and friends1 taken their lives in their hands1 and penetrated into the remotest wilds of the savage1 in order to preach the ,gospel to every creature1 the holy cross1 with its divine associations1 has always led the way1 beckoning them on in their great life-work of love1 mercy1 and ,christianity4 #bd ,often have these devoted men met the martyr's fate2 but they have died in holy triumph1 with smiles and prayers on their lips1 with their eyes fixed on the sacred cross1 and their souls on heaven4 ,if a nation's flag has been able to stir the soul of the soldier to deeds of noble daring amid the excitement of battle1 the cross of ,christ has been able1 not less often1 to fire the soul of the lone missionary with holy love and zeal in the midst of the savage wilderness4 ,if1 with flag in hand1 the soldier has rushed to the cannon's mouth1 and laid down his life to win a battle1 no less frequently has the missionary1 holding aloft the sacred cross1 rushed to the desert places of the earth1 where barbarism1 pestilence1 famine1 cruelties1 sufferings1 and danger of martyrdom encompass him on every side4 ,the soldier fights his battles under the eyes of his countrymen1 cheered on by applauding comrades1 by martial music1 and by hopes of speedy preferment2 but the ,christian missionary fights alone1 surrounded by wild foes1 far from home and friends1 with no hope of temporal reward1 and where1 if he is killed or dies a natural death1 he may be devoured by wild beasts1 or remain uncoffined1 unburied1 and unrecognized4 ,statesmen1 philosophers1 warriors1 and citizens of all ranks love and respect their national symbols because they call to mind the events and circumstances connected with their nationalities4 ,these sentiments are commended by the whole world4 ,the true ,christian also loves and respects the symbol which calls up before him the facts and incidents connected with the passion and crucifixion of the ,saviour4 ,let no one delude himself with the absurd idea that it is the material of the flag1 or of the cross1 which calls forth these powerful emotions1 and these high resolutions4 ,let no one suppose that idolatry can spring from the contemplation and reverence of objects which place before the mind's eye in the form of symbols the important events of a nation1 or the sufferings and death of a ,god4 ,let no one question the motives or the propriety of his fellow man who bows down in tears1 in love1 in gratitude and devotion before the recognized emblems and mementos of great nations1 and of godlike achievements4 ,the cross of ,christ6 ,how vast and solemn the associations connected with it6 ,how significant its mute appeals to the hearts of mortals6 ,how eloquent its reference to a ,redeemer's love for sinful man6 ,how glorious its history1 and how prolific of heavenly aspirations6 ,the cross of ,christ6 ,how beautiful1 how sublime1 how soul-inspiring the ideas which encompass thee as with a halo of light and glory6 ,in ages past and gone1 in all the lands of earth1 as it has silently ministered to the souls and thoughts of men1 and carried them back to ,calvary1 what an infinity of blessings it has conferred6 ,as we gaze at the ,lamb of ,god1 nailed to the cross1 how sad and tender the memories which pass before the mind6 ,every wound of the precious body1 every expression of the godlike features1 calls up some act of divine love and mercy6 ,silently1 sadly1 solemnly1 the holy cross has borne its sacred burden to all nations1 through long ages of culture and light1 of darkness and ignorance1 of civilization and barbarism--a pioneer and potent agent in all good works--a talisman and solace for the poor and oppressed1 as well as for the rich and powerful1 a beacon of heavenly light1 and a rallying-point for all ,christendom6 #be ,in the dark ages1 when ,christianity and barbarism struggled for the mastery of ,europe1 the latter achieved a physical triumph2 but spiritually the cross of ,christ prevailed1 and the barbarian conquerors became ,christian converts4 ,when nations1 communities1 or individuals have been bowed down with calamities and sorrows1 rays of hope and comfort have always shone from the holy cross4 ,however poor1 unfortunate1 wicked1 degraded1 and despised an individual may be1 the cross of ,christ still beams upon him with compassion and mercy4 ,languages may be oral or printed1 or pictorial or symbolical4 ,by the two first1 ideas are conveyed seriatim and slowly2 by the last en masse1 and instantaneously4 ,through the first the mind gradually grasps historical events2 through the last they are presented like a living tableaux1 complete in all their details4 ,in the latter category stands the holy cross4 ,it speaks a language to the ,christian which appeals instantly to every faculty of his mind and soul4 ,it strikes those chords of memory which take him back to ,calvary1 to the jeering rabble of ,pilate1 to the mocking minions of ,caiphas1 to the spectacle of a scourged1 tortured1 and crucified ,redeemer4 ,who can look upon this blessed emblem unmoved8 ,who can regard this mute memento of the ,son of ,god in behalf of fallen man without sentiments of love1 respect1 and veneration8 ,may ,god in his mercy grant that every one may properly appreciate this great emblem of ,christianity--the symbol of symbols4 ,the likeness of a crucified ,redeemer sanctifies and hallows it4 ,not only at the name1 but at the semblance of ,jesus1 let every knee bend in adoration4 -------- #bf ,the ,story of a ,conscript4 ,translated ,from ,the ,french4 ,,xix4 ,in the midst of such thoughts1 day broke4 ,nothing was stirring yet1 and ,zbd said3 ,what a chance for us1 if the enemy should fear to attack us6 ,the officers spoke of an armistice2 but suddenly about nine o'clock1 our couriers came galloping in1 crying that the enemy was moving his whole line down upon us1 and directly after we heard cannon on our right1 along the ,elster4 ,we were already under arms1 and set out across the fields toward the ,partha to return to ,schoenfeld4 ,the battle had begun4 ,on the hills overlooking the river1 two or three divisions1 with batteries in the intervals1 and cannon at the flanks1 awaited the enemy's approach2 beyond1 over the points of their bayonets1 we could see the ,prussians1 the ,swedes1 and the ,russians1 advancing on all sides in deep1 never-ending masses4 ,shortly after1 we took our place in line1 between two hills1 and then we saw five or six thousand ,prussians crossing the river1 and all together shouting1 ,vaterland6 ,vaterland6 ,this caused a tremendous tumult1 like that of clouds of rooks flying north4 ,at the same instant the musketry opened from both sides of the river4 ,the valley through which the ,partha flows was filled with smoke2 the ,prussians were already upon us--we could see their furious eyes and wild looks2 they seemed like savage beasts rushing down on us4 ,then but one shout of ,vive l',empereur6 smote the sky and we dashed forward4 ,the shock was terrible2 thousands of bayonets crossed2 we drove them back1 were ourselves driven back2 muskets were clubbed2 the opposing ranks were confounded and mingled in one mass2 the fallen were trampled upon1 while the thunder of artillery1 the whistling of bullets1 and the thick white smoke enclosing all1 made the valley seem the pit of hell1 peopled by contending demons4 ,despair urged us1 and the wish to revenge our deaths before yielding up our lives4 ,the pride of boasting that they once defeated ,napoleon incited the ,prussians2 for they are the proudest of men1 and their victories at ,gross-,beeren and ,katzbach had made them fools4 ,but the river swept away them and their pride6 ,three times they crossed and rushed at us4 ,we were indeed forced back by the shock of their numbers1 and how they shouted then6 ,they seemed to wish to devour us4 ,their officers1 waving their swords in the air1 cried1 ,vorwrtz6 ,vorwrtz6 and all advanced like a wall with the greatest courage--that we cannot deny4 ,our cannon opened huge gaps in their lines1 still they pressed on2 but at the top of the hill we charged again1 and drove them to the river4 ,we would have massacred them to a man1 were it not for one of their batteries before ,mockern1 which enfiladed us and forced us to give up the pursuit4 #bg ,this lasted until two o'clock2 half our officers were killed or wounded2 the ,colonel1 ,lorain1 was among the first1 and the ,commandant1 ,gmeau1 the latter2 all along the river side were heaps of dead1 or wounded men crawling away from the struggle4 ,some1 furious1 would rise to their knees to fire a last shot or deliver a final bayonet-thrust4 ,the river was almost choked with dead1 but no one thought of the bodies as they swept by in the current4 ,the lines contending in the fight reached from ,schoenfeld to ,grossdorf4 ,at length the ,swedes and ,prussians ceased their attacks1 and started farther up the river to turn our position1 and masses of ,russians came to occupy the places they had left4 ,the ,russians formed in two columns1 and descended to the valley1 with shouldered arms1 in admirable order4 ,twice they assailed us with the greatest bravery1 but without uttering wild beasts' cries1 like the ,prussians4 ,their calvary attempted to carry the old bridge above ,schoenfeld1 and the cannonade increased4 ,on all sides1 as far as sight could reach1 we saw only the enemy massing their forces1 and when we had repulsed one of their columns1 another of fresh men took its place4 ,the fight had ever to be fought over again4 ,between two and three o'clock1 we learned that the ,swedes and the ,prussian cavalry had crossed the river above ,grossdorf1 and were about to take us in the rear1 a mode which pleased them much better than fighting face to face4 ,marshal ,ney immediately changed front1 throwing his right wing to the rear4 ,our division still remained supported on ,schoenfeld1 but all the others retired from the ,partha1 to stretch along the plain1 and the entire army formed but one line around ,leipsic4 ,the ,russians1 behind the road to ,mockern1 prepared for a third attack toward three o'clock2 our officers were making new dispositions to receive them2 when a sort of shudder ran from one end of our lines to the other1 and in a few moments all knew that the sixteen thousand ,saxons and the ,wurtemberg calvary1 in our very centre1 had passed over to the enemy1 and that on their way they had the infamy to turn the forty guns they carried with them1 on their old brothers-in-arms of ,durutte's division4 ,this treason1 instead of discouraging us1 so added to our fury1 that if we had been allowed1 we would have crossed the river to massacre them4 ,they say that they were defending their country4 ,it is false6 ,they had only to have left us on the ,duben road2 why did they not go then6 ,they might have done like the ,bavarians and quitted us before the battle2 they might have remained neutral--might have refused to serve2 but they deserted us only because fortune was against us4 ,if they knew we were going to win1 they would have continued our very good friends1 so that they might have their share of the spoil or glory--as after ,jena and ,friedland4 ,this is what every one thought1 and it is why those ,saxons are1 and will ever remain1 traitors2 not only did they abandon their friends in distress1 but they murdered them1 to make a welcome with the enemy4 ,god is just1 and so great was their new allies' scorn of them1 that they divided half ,saxony between themselves after the battle4 ,the ,french might well laugh at ,prussian1 ,austrian1 and ,russian gratitude4 ,from the time of this desertion until evening1 it was a war of vengeance that we carried on2 the allies might crush us by numbers1 but they should pay dearly for their victory6 #bh ,at nightfall1 while two thousand pieces of artillery were thundering together1 we were attacked for the seventh time in ,schoenfeld4 ,the ,russians on one side and the ,prussians on the other poured in upon us4 ,we defended every house4 ,in every lane the walls crumbled beneath the bullets1 and roofs fell in on every side4 ,there were now no shouts as at the beginning of the battle2 all were cool and pale with rage4 ,the officers had collected scattered muskets and cartridge-boxes1 and now loaded and fired like the men4 ,we defended the gardens1 too1 and the cemetery1 where we had bivouacked1 until there were more dead above than beneath the soil4 ,every inch of earth cost a life4 ,it was night when ,marshal ,ney brought up a reenforcement--whence ,i knew not4 ,it was what remained of ,ricard's division and ,sonham's second4 ,the dbris of our regiments united1 and hurled the ,russians to the other side of the old bridge1 which no longer had a rail1 that having been swept away by the shot4 ,six twelve-pounders were posted on the bridge1 and maintained a fire for one hour longer4 ,the remainder of the battalion1 and of some others in our rear1 supported the guns2 and ,i remember how their flashes lit up the forms of men and horses1 heaped beneath the dark arches4 ,the sight lasted only a moment1 but it was a horrible moment indeed4 ,at half-past seven1 masses of cavalry advanced on our left1 and we saw them whirling about two large squares1 which slowly retired4 ,then we received orders to retreat4 ,not more than two or three thousand men remained at ,schoenfeld with the six pieces of artillery4 ,we reached ,kohlgarten without being pursued1 and were to bivouac around ,rendnitz4 ,zbd was yet living1 and unwounded2 and1 as we marched on1 listening to the cannonade1 which continued1 despite the darkness1 along the ,elster1 he said suddenly3 ,how is it that we are here1 ,joseph1 when so many others that stood by our side are dead8 ,it seems as if we bore charmed lives1 and could not die4 ,i made no reply4 ,think you there was ever before such a battle8 he asked4 ,no1 it cannot be4 ,it is impossible4 ,it was indeed a battle of giants4 ,from six in the morning until seven in the evening we had held our own against three hundred and sixty thousand men1 without1 at night1 having lost an inch2 and1 nevertheless1 we were but a hundred and thirty thousand4 ,god keep me from speaking ill of the ,germans4 ,they were fighting for the independence of their country4 ,but they might do better than celebrate the anniversary of the battle of ,leipsic every year4 ,there is not much to boast of in fighting an enemy three to one4 ,approaching ,rendnitz1 we marched over heaps of dead4 ,at every step we encountered dismounted cannon1 broken caissons1 and trees cut down by shot4 ,there a division of the ,young ,guard and the grenadiers--cheval1 led by ,napoleon himself1 had repulsed the ,swedes who were advancing into the breach made by the treachery of the ,saxons4 ,two or three burning houses lit up the scene4 ,the grenadiers--cheval were yet at ,rendnitz1 but crowds of disbanded troops were passing up and down the street4 ,no rations had been distributed1 and all were seeking something to eat and drink4 ,as we defiled by a large house1 we saw behind the wall of a court two cantinires1 who were giving the soldiers drink from their wagons4 #bi ,there were there chasseurs1 cuirassiers1 lancers1 hussars1 infantry of the line and of the guard1 all mingled together1 with torn uniforms1 broken shakos1 and plumeless helmets1 and all seemingly famished4 ,two or three dragoons stood on the wall1 near a pot of burning pitch1 their arms crossed on their long white cloaks1 covered from head to foot with blood4 ,zbd1 without speaking1 pushed me with his elbow1 and we entered the court1 while the others pursued their way4 ,it took us full a quarter of an hour to reach one of the wagons4 ,i held up a crown of six livres1 and the cantinires1 kneeling behind her cask1 handed me a great glass of brandy and a piece of white bread1 at the same time taking my money4 ,i drank1 and passed the glass to ,zbd1 who emptied it4 ,we had as much difficulty in getting out of the crowd as in entering4 ,hard1 famished faces and cavernous eyes were on all sides of us4 ,no one moved willingly4 ,each thought only of himself1 and cared not for his neighbor4 ,they had escaped a thousand deaths to-day only to dare a thousand more to-morrow4 ,well might they mutter1 ,every one for himself1 and ,god or all4 ,as we went through the village street1 ,zbd said1 ,you have bread8 ,yes4 ,i broke it in two1 and gave him half4 ,we began to eat1 at the same time hastening on1 and had taken our places in the ranks before any one noticed our absence4 ,the firing yet continued at a distance4 ,at midnight we arrived at the long promenades which border the ,pleisse1 and halted under the old leafless lindens1 and stacked arms4 ,a long line of fires flickered in the fog as far as ,randstadt2 and1 when the flames burnt high1 they threw a glare on groups of ,polish lancers1 lines of horses1 cannon1 and wagons1 while1 at intervals beyond1 sentinels stood like statues in the mist4 ,a heavy1 hollow sound arose from the city1 and mingled with the rolling of our trains over the bridge at ,lindenau4 ,it was the beginning of the retreat4 ,,xx4 ,what occurred until daybreak ,i know not4 ,baggage1 wounded1 and prisoners doubtless continued to crowd across the bridge4 ,but then a terrific shock woke us all4 ,we started up1 thinking the enemy were on us1 when two officers of hussars came galloping in with the news that a powder-wagon had exploded by accident in the grand avenue of ,randstadt1 at the river-side4 ,the dark1 red smoke rolled to the sky1 and slowly disappeared1 while the old houses continued to shake as if an earthquake were rolling by4 ,quiet was soon restored4 ,some lay down again to sleep2 but it was growing lighter every minute2 and1 glancing toward the river1 ,i saw our troops extending until lost in distance along the five bridges of the ,elster and ,pleisse1 which follow one after the other1 and make1 so to speak1 but one4 ,thousands of men must defile over this bridge1 and1 of necessity1 take time in doing so4 ,and the idea struck every one that it would have been much better to have thrown several bridges across the two rivers2 for at any instant the enemy might attack us1 and then retreat would become difficult indeed4 ,but the emperor had forgotten to give the order1 and no one dared do anything without orders4 ,not a marshal of ,france would have dared to take it upon himself to say that two bridges were better than one4 ,to such a point had the terrible discipline of ,napoleon reduced those old captains6 #cj ,they obeyed like machines1 and disturbed themselves about nothing4 ,such was their fear of displeasing their master4 ,as ,i gazed at the thousands of artillerymen and baggage-guards swarming over the bridge1 and saw the tall bear-skin shakos of the ,old ,guard1 immovable on the hill of ,lindenau1 on the other side of the river--as ,i thought they were fairly on the way to ,france1 how ,i longed to be in their place6 ,but ,i felt bitterly1 indeed1 when1 about seven o'clock1 three wagons came to distribute provisions and ammunition among us1 and it became evident that we were to be the rear-guard4 ,in spite of my hunger1 ,i felt like throwing my bread into the river4 ,a few moments after1 two squadrons of ,polish lancers appeared coming up the bank1 and behind them five or six generals1 ,poniatowski among the number4 ,he was a man of about fifty1 tall1 slight1 and with a melancholy expression4 ,he passed without looking at us4 ,general ,fournier1 who now commanded our brigade1 spurred from among his staff1 and cried3 ,by file left6 ,i never so felt my heart sink4 ,i would have sold my life for two farthings2 but nevertheless1 we had to move on1 and turn our backs to the bridge4 ,we soon arrived at a place called ,hinterthor--an old gate on the road to ,caunewitz4 ,to the right and left stretched ancient ramparts1 and behind rows of houses4 ,we were posted in covered roads1 near this gate1 which the sappers had strongly barricaded4 ,a few worm-eaten palisades served us for intrenchments1 and1 on all the roads before us1 the enemy were advancing4 ,this time they wore white coats and flat caps1 with a raised piece in front1 on which we could see the two-headed eagle of the kreutzers4 ,old ,pinto1 who recognized them at once1 cried3 ,those fellows are the ,kaiserliks6 ,we have beaten them fifty times since #agic2 but if the father of ,marie ,louise had a heart1 they would be with us now instead of against us4 ,for some moments a cannonade had been going on at the other side of the city1 where ,blcher was attacking the faubourg of ,halle4 ,soon after1 the firing stretched along to the right2 it was ,bernadotte attacking the faubourg of ,kohlgartenthor1 and at the same time the first shells of the ,austrians fell among us4 ,they formed their columns of attack on the ,caunewitz road1 and poured down on us from all sides4 ,nevertheless1 we held our own until about ten o'clock1 and then were forced back to the old ramparts1 through the breaches of which the ,kaiserliks pursued us under the cross-fire of the fourteenth and twenty-ninth of the line4 ,the poor ,austrians were not inspired with the fury of the ,prussians1 but nevertheless1 showed a true courage2 for1 in half an hour1 they had won the ramparts1 and although1 from all the neighboring windows1 we kept up a deadly fire1 we could not force them back4 ,six months before1 it would have horrified me to think of men being thus slaughtered1 but now ,i was as insensible as any old soldier1 and the death of one man or of a hundred would not cost me a thought4 ,until this time all had gone well1 but how were we to get out of the houses8 ,the enemy held every avenue1 and it seemed that we would be caught like foxes in their holes1 and ,i thought it not unlikely that the ,austrians1 in revenge for the loss we had inflicted upon them1 might put us to the point of the bayonet4 #ca ,meditating thus1 ,i ran back to a room1 where a dozen of us yet remained1 and there ,i saw ,sergeant ,pinto leaning against the wall1 his arms hanging by his sides1 and his face white as paper4 ,he had just received a bullet in the breast2 but the old man's warrior soul was still strong within him1 as he cried3 ,defend yourselves1 conscripts6 ,defend yourselves6 ,show the ,kaiserliks that a ,french soldier is yet worth four of them6 ,ah6 the villains6 ,we heard the sound of blows on the door below thundering like cannon-shots4 ,we still kept up our fire1 but hopelessly1 when we heard the clatter of hoofs without4 ,the firing ceased1 and we saw through the smoke four squadrons of lancers dashing like a troop of lions through the midst of the ,austrians4 ,all yielded before them4 ,the ,kaiserliks fled1 but the long1 blue lancers1 with their red pennons1 were swifter than they1 and many a white coat was pierced from behind4 ,the lancers were ,poles--the most terrible warriors ,i have ever seen1 and1 to speak truth1 our friends and our brothers4 ,they never turned from us in our hour of need2 they gave us the last drop of their blood4 ,and what have we done for their unhappy country8 ,when ,i think of our ingratitude1 my heart bleeds4 ,the ,poles rescued us4 ,seeing them so proud and brave1 we rushed out1 attacking the ,austrians with the bayonet1 and driving them into the trenches4 ,we were for the time victorious1 but it was time to beat a retreat1 for the enemy were already filling ,leipsic2 the gates of ,halle and ,grimma were forced1 and that of ,peters-,thau delivered up by our friends the ,badeners and our other friends the ,saxons4 ,soldiers1 citizens1 and students kept up a fire from the windows on our retiring troops4 ,we had only time to re-form and take the road along the ,pleisse2 the lancers awaited us there2 we defiled behind them1 and1 as the ,austrians again pressed around us1 they charged once more to drive them back4 ,what brave fellows and magnificent horsemen were those ,poles6 ,the division1 reduced from fifteen to eight thousand men1 retired step by step before fifty thousand foes1 and not without often turning and replying to the ,austrian fire4 ,we neared the bridge--with what joy1 ,i need not say4 ,but it was no easy task to reach it1 for infantry and horse crowded the whole width of the avenue1 and arrived from all the neighboring roads1 until the crowd formed an impenetrable mass1 which advanced slowly1 with groans and smothered cries1 which might be heard at a distance of half a mile1 despite the rattling of musketry4 ,woe to those upon the other side of the bridge6 they were forced into the water and no one stretched a hand to save them4 ,in the middle1 men and even horses were carried along with the crowd2 they had no need of making any exertion of their own4 ,but how were we to get there8 ,the enemy were advancing nearer and nearer every moment4 ,it is true we had stationed a few cannon so as to sweep the principal approaches1 and some troops yet remained in line to repulse their attacks2 but they had guns to sweep the bridge1 and those who remained behind must receive their whole fire4 ,this accounted for the press on the bridge4 ,at two or three hundred paces from the crowd1 the idea of rushing forward and throwing myself into the midst entered my mind2 but ,captain ,vidal1 ,lieutenant ,bretonville1 and other old officers said3 ,shoot down the first man that leaves the ranks6 #cb ,it was horrible to be so near safety1 and yet unable to escape4 ,this was between eleven and twelve o'clock4 ,the fusilade grew nearer on the right and left1 and a few bullets began to whistle over our heads4 ,from the side of ,halle we saw the ,prussians rush out pell-mell with our own soldiers4 ,terrible cries now arose from the bridge4 ,cavalry1 to make way for themselves1 sabred the infantry1 who replied with the bayonet4 ,it was a general sauve qui peut4 ,at every step of the crowd1 some one fell from the bridge1 and1 trying to regain his place1 dragged five or six with him into the water4 ,in the midst of this horrible confusion1 this pandemonium of shouts1 cries1 groans1 musket-shots1 and sabre-strokes1 a crash like a peal of thunder was heard1 and the first arch of the bridge rose upward into the air with all upon it4 ,hundreds of wretches were torn to pieces1 and hundreds of others crushed beneath the falling ruins4 ,a sapper had blown up the arch6 ,at this sight1 the cry of treason rang from mouth to mouth4 ,we are lost--betrayed6 was now the cry on all sides4 ,the tumult was fearful4 ,some1 in the rage of despair1 turned upon the enemy like wild beasts at bay1 thinking only of vengeance2 others broke their arms1 cursing heaven and earth for their misfortunes4 ,mounted officers and generals dashed into the river to cross it by swimming1 and many soldiers followed them without taking time to throw off their knapsacks4 ,the thought that the last hope of safety was gone1 and nothing now remained but to be massacred1 made men mad4 ,i had seen the ,partha choked with dead bodies the day before1 but this scene was a thousand times more horrible2 drowning wretches dragging down those who happened to be near them2 shrieks and yells of rage1 or for help2 a broad river concealed by a mass of heads and struggling arms4 ,captain ,vidal1 who1 by his coolness and steady eye1 had hitherto kept us to our duty1 even ,captain ,vidal now appeared discouraged4 ,he thrust his sabre into the scabbard1 and cried1 with a strange laugh3 ,the game is up6 ,let us be gone6 ,i touched his arm2 he looked sadly and kindly at me4 ,what do you wish1 my child8 he asked4 ,captain1 said ,i1 ,i was four months in the hospital at ,leipsic2 ,i have bathed in the ,elster1 and ,i know a ford4 ,where8 ,ten minutes' march above the bridge4 ,he drew his sabre at once from its sheath1 and shouted3 ,follow me1 mes enfants6 and you1 ,bertha1 lead4 ,the entire battalion1 which did not now number more than two hundred men1 followed2 a hundred others1 who saw us start confidently forward1 joined us4 ,i recognized the road which ,zunnier and ,i had traversed so often in ,july1 when the ground was covered with flowers4 ,the enemy fired on us1 but we did not reply4 ,i entered the water first2 ,captain ,vidal next1 then the others1 two abreast4 ,it reached our shoulders1 for the river was swollen by the autumn rains2 but we crossed1 notwithstanding1 without the loss of a man4 ,we pressed onward across the fields1 and soon reached the little wooden bridge at ,schleissig1 and thence turned to ,lindenau4 ,we marched silently1 turning from time to time to gaze on the other side of the ,elster1 where the battle still raged in the streets of ,leipsic4 #cc ,the furious shouts1 and the deep boom of cannon still reached our ears2 and it was only when1 about two o'clock1 we overtook the long column which stretched1 till lost in distance1 on the road to ,erfurt1 that the sounds of conflict were lost in the roll of wagons and artillery trains4 ,,xxi4 ,hitherto ,i have described the grandeur of war--battles glorious to ,france1 notwithstanding our mistakes and misfortunes4 ,when we were fighting all ,europe alone1 always one against two1 and often one to three2 when we finally succumbed1 not through the courage of our foes1 but borne down by treason and the weight of numbers1 we had no reason to blush for our defeat1 and the victors have little reason to exult in it4 ,it is not numbers that makes the glory of a people or an army--it is virtue and bravery4 ,but now ,i must relate the horrors of retreat4 ,it is said that confidence gives strength1 and this is especially true of the ,french4 ,while they advanced in full hope of victory1 they were united2 the will of their chiefs was their only law2 they knew that they could succeed only by strict observance of discipline4 ,but when driven back1 no one had confidence save in himself1 and commands were forgotten4 ,then these men--once so brave and so proud1 who marched so gayly to the fight--scattered to right and left2 sometimes fleeing alone1 sometimes in groups4 ,then those who1 a little while before trembled at their approach1 grew bold2 they came on1 first timidly1 but1 meeting no resistance1 became insolent4 ,then they would swoop down and carry off three or four laggards at a time1 as ,i have seen crows swoop upon a fallen horse1 which they did not dare approach while he could yet remain on his feet4 ,i have seen miserable ,cossacks--very beggars1 with nothing but old rags hanging around them2 an old cap of tattered skin over their ears2 unshorn beards1 covered with vermin2 mounted on old worn-out horses1 without saddles1 and with only a piece of rope by way of stirrups1 an old rusty pistol all their fire-arms1 and a nail at the end of a pole for a lance2 ,i have seen these wretches1 who resembled sallow and decrepit ,jews more than soldiers1 stop ten1 fifteen1 twenty of our men1 and lead them off like sheep4 ,and the tall1 lank peasants1 who1 a few months before1 trembled if we only looked at them--,i have seen them arrogantly repulse old soldiers--cuirassiers1 artillerymen1 dragoons who had fought through the ,spanish war1 men who could have crushed them with a blow of their fist2 ,i have seen these peasants insist that they had no bread to sell1 while the odor of the oven arose on all sides of us2 that they had no wine1 no beer1 when we heard glasses clinking to right and left4 ,and no one dared punish them2 no one dared take what he wanted from the wretches who laughed to see us in such straits1 for each one was retreating on his own account2 we had no leaders1 no discipline1 and they could easily out-number us4 ,and to hunger1 misery1 weariness1 and fever1 the horrors of an approaching winter were added4 ,the rain never ceased falling from the gray sky1 and the winds pierced us to the bones4 ,how could poor beardless conscripts1 mere shadows1 fleshless and worn out1 endure all this8 ,they perished by thousands2 their bodies covered the roads4 ,the terrible typhus pursued us4 #cd ,some said it was a plague1 engendered by the dead not being buried deep enough2 others1 that it was the consequence of sufferings that required more than human strength to bear4 ,i know not how this may be1 but the villages of ,alsace and ,lorraine1 to which we brought it1 will long remember their sufferings2 of a hundred attacked by it1 not more than ten or twelve1 at the most1 recovered4 ,at length1 on the evening of the nineteenth1 we bivouacked at ,lutzen1 where our regiments re-formed as best they might4 ,the next day we skirmished with the ,westphalians1 and at ,erfurt we received new shoes and uniforms4 ,five or six disbanded companies joined our battalion--nearly all conscripts4 ,our new coats and shoes were miles too large for us2 but they were warm4 ,the ,cossacks reconnoitred us from a distance4 ,our hussars would drive them off2 but they returned the moment pursuit was relaxed4 ,many of our men went pillaging in the night1 and were absent at roll-call1 and the sentries received orders to shoot all who attempted to leave their bivouacs4 ,i had had the fever ever since we left ,leipsic2 it increased day by day1 and ,i became so weak that ,i could scarcely rise in the mornings to follow the march4 ,zbd looked sadly at me1 and sometimes said3 ,courage1 ,joseph6 ,we will soon be at home6 ,these words reanimated me2 ,i felt my face flush4 ,yes1 yes6 ,i said2 we will soon be home2 ,i must see home once more6 ,the tears forced themselves to my eyes4 ,zbd carried my knapsack when ,i was tired1 and continued3 ,lean on my arm4 ,we are getting nearer every day1 now1 ,joseph4 ,a few dozen leagues are nothing4 ,my heart beat more bravely1 but my strength was gone4 ,i could no longer carry my musket2 it was heavy as lead4 ,i could not eat2 my knees trembled beneath me2 still ,i did not despair1 but kept murmuring to myself3 ,this is nothing4 ,when you see the spire of ,phalsbourg1 your fever will leave you4 ,you will have good air1 and ,catharine will nurse you4 ,all will yet be well6 ,others1 no worse than ,i1 fell by the roadside1 but still ,i toiled on2 when1 near ,folde1 we learned that fifty thousand ,bavarians were posted in the forests through which we were to pass1 for the purpose of cutting off our retreat4 ,this was my finishing stroke1 for ,i knew ,i could no longer load1 fire1 or defend myself with the bayonet4 ,i felt that all my sufferings to get so far toward home were useless4 ,nevertheless1 ,i made an effort when we were ordered to march1 and tried to rise4 ,come1 come1 ,joseph6 said ,zbd2 courage6 ,but ,i could not move1 and lay sobbing like a child4 ,come6 stand up6 he said4 ,i cannot4 ,o ,god6 ,i cannot6 ,i clutched his arm4 ,tears streamed down his face4 ,he tried to lift me1 but he was too weak4 ,i held fast to him1 crying3 ,zbd1 do not abandon me6 ,captain ,vidal approached1 and gazed sadly on me3 ,cheer up1 my lad1 said he2 the ambulances will be along in half an hour4 ,but ,i knew what that meant1 and ,i drew ,zbd closer to me4 ,he embraced me1 and ,i whispered in his ear3 ,kiss ,catharine for me--for my last farewell4 ,tell her that ,i died thinking of ,god's holy mother and of her4 ,yes1 yes6 he sobbed4 ,my poor ,joseph6 #ce ,i could cling to him no longer4 ,he placed me on the ground1 and ran away without turning his head4 ,the column departed1 and ,i gazed at it as one who sees his last hope fading from his eyes4 ,the last of the battalion disappeared over the ridge of a hill4 ,i closed my eyes4 ,an hour passed1 or perhaps a longer time1 when the boom of cannon startled me1 and ,i saw a division of the guard pass at a quick step with artillery and wagons4 ,seeing some sick in the wagons1 ,i cried wistfully3 ,take me6 ,take me6 ,but no one listened2 still they kept on1 while the thunder of artillery grew louder and louder4 ,more than ten thousand men1 calvary and infantry1 passed me1 but ,i had no longer strength to call out to them4 ,at last the long line ended2 ,i saw knapsacks and shakos disappear behind the hill1 and ,i lay down to sleep for ever1 when once more ,i was aroused by the rolling of five or six pieces of artillery along the road4 ,the cannoneers sat sabre in hand1 and behind came the caissons4 ,i hoped no more from these than from the others1 when suddenly ,i perceived a tall1 lean1 red-bearded veteran mounted beside one of the pieces1 and bearing the cross upon his breast4 ,it was my old friend ,zunnier1 my old comrade of ,leipsic4 ,he was passing without seeing me1 when ,i cried1 with all the strength that remained to me3 ,christian6 ,christian6 ,he heard me in spite of the noise of the guns2 stopped1 and turned round4 ,christian6 ,i cried1 take pity on me6 ,he saw me lying at the foot of a tree1 and came to me with a pale face and staring eyes3 ,what6 ,is it you1 my poor ,joseph8 cried he1 springing from his horse4 ,he lifted me in his arms as if ,i were an infant1 and shouted to the men who were driving the last wagon3 ,halt6 ,then embracing me1 he placed me in it1 my head upon a knapsack4 ,i saw too that he wrapped great cavalry cloak around my feet1 as he cried3 ,forward6 ,forward6 ,it is growing warm yonder6 ,i remember no more1 but ,i have a faint impression of hearing again the sound of heavy guns and rattle of musketry1 mingled with shouts and commands4 ,branches of tall pines seemed to pass between me and the sky through the night2 but all this might have been a dream4 ,but that day1 behind ,solmunster1 in the woods of ,hanau1 we had a battle with the ,bavarians1 and routed them4 ,,xxii4 ,on the fifteenth of ,january1 #ahad1 two months and a half after the battle of ,hanau1 ,i awoke in a good bed1 and at the end of a little1 well-warmed room2 and gazing at the rafters over my head1 then at the little windows1 where the frost had spread its silver sheen1 ,i exclaimed1 ,it is winter6 ,at the same time ,i heard the crash of artillery and the crackling of a fire1 and turning over on my bed in a few moments1 ,i saw seated at its side a pale young woman1 with her arms folded1 and ,i recognized--,catharine6 ,i recognized1 too1 the room where ,i had spent so many ,sundays before going to the wars4 ,but the thunder of the cannon made me think ,i was dreaming4 ,i gazed for a long while at ,catharine1 who seemed more beautiful than ever1 and the question rose1 ,where is ,aunt ,grdel8 am ,i at home once more8 ,god grant that this be not a dream6 ,at last ,i took courage and called softly3 #cf ,catharine6 ,and she1 turning her head1 cried3 ,joseph6 ,do you know me8 ,yes1 ,i replied1 holding out my hand4 ,she approached1 trembling and sobbing1 when again and again the cannon thundered4 ,what are those shots ,i hear8 ,i cried4 ,the guns of ,phalsbourg1 she answered4 ,the city is besieged4 ,phalsbourg besieged6 ,the enemy in ,france6 ,i could speak no more4 ,thus had so much suffering1 so many tears1 so many thousands of lives gone for nothing--ay1 worse than nothing1 for the foe was at our homes4 ,for an hour ,i could think of nothing else2 and even now1 old and gray-haired as ,i am1 the thought fills me with bitterness2 ,yes1 we old men have seen the ,german1 the ,russian1 the ,swede1 the ,spaniard1 the ,englishman1 masters of ,france1 garrisoning our cities1 taking whatever suited them from our fortresses1 insulting our soldiers1 changing our flag1 and dividing among themselves1 not only our conquests since #ahjd1 but even those of the republic4 ,these were the fruits of ten years of glory6 ,but let us not speak of these things4 ,they will tell us that after ,lutzen and ,bautzen1 the enemy offered to leave us ,belgium1 part of ,holland1 all the left bank of the ,rhine as far as ,ble1 with ,savoy and the kingdom of ,italy2 and that the emperor refused to accept these conditions1 brilliant as they were1 because he placed the satisfaction of his own pride before the happiness of ,france6 ,but to return to my story4 ,for two weeks after the battle of ,hanau1 thousands of wagons1 filled with wounded1 crowded the road from ,strasbourg to ,nancy1 and passed through ,phalsbourg4 ,not one in the sad cortge escaped the eyes of ,aunt ,grdel and ,catharine1 and thousands of fathers and mothers sought among them for their children4 ,the third day ,catharine found me among a heap of other wretches1 with sunken cheeks and glaring eyes--dying of hunger4 ,she knew me at once1 but ,aunt ,grdel gazed long before she cried1 ,yes6 it is he6 ,it is ,joseph6 ,they took me home4 ,why should ,i describe my long illness1 my shrieks for water1 my almost miraculous escape from what seemed certain death8 ,let it suffice the kind reader to know that1 six months after1 ,catharine and ,i were married2 that ,monsieur ,goulden gave me half his business1 and that we lived together as happy as birds4 ,the wars were ended1 but the ,bourbons had been taught nothing by their misfortunes1 and the emperor only awaited the moment of vengeance4 ,but here let us rest4 ,if people of sense tell me that ,i have done well in relating my campaign of #ahac--that my story may show youth the vanity of military glory1 and prove that no man can gain happiness save by peace1 liberty1 and labor--then ,i will take up my pen once more1 and give you the story of ,waterloo6 ------- #cg ,the ,episcopalian ,crisis4 ,in medical science1 a crisis is the change in a disease which indicates its event1 the recovery or death of the patient1 and is1 therefore1 the critical moment4 ,webster also defines crisis to be the decisive state of things1 or the point of time when an affair is arrived at its height1 and must soon terminate1 or suffer a material change4 ,no attentive observer of the religious movements which are going on around us can fail to see that the ,episcopalians are1 at this moment1 in an interesting condition4 ,on the one hand1 the ritualists are pushing ceremonial and doctrine much further than even the elasticity of ,protestantism will permit1 while1 on the other1 the low-churchmen1 alarmed at the demonstrations of their opponents1 are renewing the battle-cries of the ,reformation1 lest the labors of ,luther and ,henry ,,viii1 should be frustrated in their communion4 ,there will soon be the clashing of arms and the interchange of active hostilities4 ,as ,catholics1 we cannot but take a deep interest in the result1 and we hope that all the combatants will1 before going into battle1 understand the cause for which they are fighting1 and then faithfully fight to victory or death4 ,an honest man should always stand by his colors1 or at least openly renounce them4 ,the object of this article is1 to give a diagnosis of the present state of ,episcopalianism1 and1 as far as our abilities and kind intentions go1 to prescribe a remedy for the patient4 ,in the first place1 we find that there is a feverish excitement about the trial of the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,tyng1 who1 in violation of a canon1 has had the hardihood to preach in a church of another denomination than his own4 ,the canon under which he is arraigned seems to present a case against the reverend gentleman1 and from the complexion of the court appointed to try him he has little chance of escaping conviction4 ,but we imagine that even his condemnation will be nominal1 and appear more as the assertion of a power than the exercise of it4 ,the low-churchmen are quite excited by the discussion of the points involved in the trial4 ,a writer in ,the ,episcopalian considers the affair as the most important in the annals of ,american ecclesiastical history4 ,whatever the verdict of the court may be1 it is of little account compared to the angry feelings and bitter divisions among brethren which will flow from it1 and become more or less permanent4 ,certainly1 there is more bitterness among the different sections of ,episcopalians1 than there is between them and other ,protestants4 ,low-churchmen love their ,protestant brethren1 with the one exception of high-churchmen1 whom they regard with a natural antipathy4 ,high-churchmen love none but themselves1 not the sects whom they eschew1 nor the ,catholic ,church1 which eschews them4 ,the trial of ,rev4 ,mr4 ,tyng is not the cause of the angry feelings which are now manifested1 but merely the occasion for bringing them out4 ,they exist before any occasion1 and are found in the very heart of the ,episcopal ,church4 ,if the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,dix had preached in a ,methodist place of worship1 it is quite possible that no one would have made objection2 but ,mr4 ,tyng1 being on the other side of the house1 cannot have the same liberty4 #ch ,the truth is1 that all rules have a wide interpretation1 and are to be explained by custom1 and here the defendant in the exciting trial has the advantage4 ,even if he should be condemned1 he will be likely to have nearly all the popular sympathy1 and so will become the greater man1 as a kind of martyr for his principles4 ,the occasion1 however1 has brought out a bold manifesto from the high-churchmen1 which is to be understood as their platform1 around which they seek to rally their friends4 ,sixty-four clergymen have joined together to form what they call ,the ,american ,church ,union1 to which they invite all ,episcopalians who sympathize with them4 ,they declare that the evils of the time are fearful1 the young are growing up without education1 the community is familiarized with scenes of lewdness1 the marriage contract is made contemptible1 the ordinances of the ,gospel of ,christ are disused1 and the public worship of ,god is neglected4 ,while thus the torrent of iniquity rages around them1 they find that an evil has arisen within the ,episcopal fold1 which threatens the subversion of their whole system4 ,it is nothing less than the denial of the necessity of ordination of ministers by bishops4 ,the right is claimed of preaching anywhere1 at pleasure2 ministers of non-,episcopal communities are invited to preach in our churches2 and the intention is announced of breaking down every barrier between our church and the religious bodies around her4 ,to counteract this destructive movement1 they associate themselves together1 in a union offensive and defensive4 ,they promise to uphold the laws1 the canons1 and to follow the godly admonitions of the bishops1 while they seek to maintain unimpaired principles which they have received from their fathers1 ,seabury1 ,white1 ,griswold1 ,hobart1 ,doane1 and ,wainwright4 ,while we confess that our sympathies are with the signers of this pastoral1 we frankly avow that it is somewhat vague and1 to our minds1 inconsistent4 ,no doctrine whatever is clearly stated1 except that of the necessity of episcopal ordination4 ,the creeds are referred to1 and the 7undisputed87 general councils2 but no explanation of their teaching is given4 ,and then1 he will be a wise man who can follow1 at the same time1 in the steps of the fathers whom they name4 ,seabury1 ,hobart1 and ,doane were high-churchmen in various degrees of altitude2 but ,white and ,griswold were quite on the other side of the fence2 while ,dr4 ,wainwright was generally thought to have been on both sides at the same time4 ,to us1 therefore1 he seems the best and most gentlemanly model for the rising generation of churchmen who would be all things to all men4 ,then1 again1 he who would follow the godly admonitions of the bishops must be able to go to the four points of the compass at the same time4 ,fancy an adventurer who would obey the admonitions of ,bishops ,mc,ilvaine and ,potter1 or1 at the same time1 follow the counsels of ,doctors ,coxe and ,clark4 ,the convulsions of ,mazeppa would be nothing to the agonies of his mind4 ,no physician could prescribe a remedy for such a patient4 ,no man can serve two masters2 either he will hate the one and love the other1 or cleave to the one and despise the other4 ,why1 therefore1 in this enlightened day1 write contradictions and talk nonsense8 #ci ,some time ago1 twenty-eight bishops made a solemn declaration against ritualism2 and1 says the ,protestant ,churchman1 one of the gentlemen who has signed this address of the ,american ,union not only soundly lectured1 but held up to scorn and derision these prelates1 and especially the ,boanerges of ,western ,new ,york1 who1 smelling ,romanism from afar1 vaults like a beaked bird upon his prey4 ,o shame6 says the writer we have quoted1 where is thy blush8 ,while thus the armies of the high-churchmen have begun to array themselves for battle1 the bugle sounds loudly from the opposing camp1 and the evangelicals are gathering together in earnest4 ,a church union is being formed among them1 and a writer in the ,episcopalian thus speaks the designs of his party3 ,let this evangelical church union be extended to every diocese and parish in the land where its principles are approved4 ,the sacramental system is not the ,gospel system1 but its direct antipodes1 in which the sacraments are degraded from their true position of sacred emblems1 and made to serve as pack-horses to carry lazy sinners to heaven4 ,i hear hundreds of ministers and thousands of laymen exclaim1 ',oh6 that we had the power to rescue the church from the hands of those who are corrupting it6' ,these will be rejoiced to learn that nothing is more simple and feasible4 ,how8 ,i reply by saying1 what even high-churchmen will hardly dare to deny1 that the church of the ,reformation was eminently an evangelical church1 and that the evangelical portion of the present ,episcopal ,church constitutes absolutely all of the real successors of the ,english ,reformed ,church in this country4 ,ritualists and sacramentarians have no more right in this communion than avowed ,romanists4 ,the low-churchmen have the decided majority1 and thus give letters dimissory to their offending brethren4 ,god speed the ,church ,union6 says a contributor to the ,protestant ,churchman2 but let ,mr4 ,hopkins and his friends beware lest they themselves should be the very first upon whom this discipline shall fall4 ,dr4 ,guillotine experienced the beautiful operation of that ingenious instrument of death invented by himself4 ,this is a precedent from which these gentlemen might learn a lesson4 ,the low-churchmen make a point that1 while they prefer the episcopal form as more scriptural and more conformed to the primitive system1 they do not unchurch other ,christian denominations1 and that1 in this respect1 they follow the teachings of the founders of the reformed ,english communion4 ,they also contend that the right of the church to amend or change its laws and services is inalienable1 and that the time has arrived when some important changes should be made4 ,bishop ,griswold1 whose godly admonitions the ,church ,union desires to follow1 thus expressed himself3 ,in the baptismal office are1 unfortunately1 some few words which are well known to be more injurious to the peace and growth of our church than any one thing that can be named4 ,allow me1 says the ,bishop of ,chester1 to omit or alter fifteen words1 and ,i will reconcile fifteen thousand dissenters to the church4 ,it appears1 also1 that an opinion was expressed by a late presiding bishop of the ,protestant ,episcopal ,church that the great body of ,episcopalians desire some change in the phraseology of their services1 and that the peace and prosperity of the church require it4 ,here1 then1 the impartial observer can see how the ground lies4 ,the high-churchmen insist upon ,episcopal ordination1 and are determined to resist all changes1 while they are1 many of them1 disposed to give a ,catholic interpretation to the articles and liturgy4 #dj ,the low-churchmen oppose them on all these points1 and insist that a ,protestant communion ought not to call itself ,catholic1 or use words of doubtful meaning2 and that the literal sense of the articles which form their real confession of faith should be imposed upon all ,episcopalians4 ,we have ventured to call this a crisis because1 if there be vitality in either party1 there must come a conflict from which one side must retire defeated1 leaving the field and the spoils of war to the victors4 ,but as this is not the first crisis which has occurred in the history of ,anglicanism1 we opine that the battle will be fought with blank cartridges1 and that1 after considerable smoke1 it will be found that nobody is hurt4 ,then from the unbloody field the combatants will retire to war with words1 and to be greater enemies than ever4 ,individual soldiers will lay down their arms to sally in the direction of ,geneva or ,rome2 but the great ,episcopal body will quietly await another crisis4 ,yet this condition of a church which claims 7according to some of its members--the ,pan-,anglican ,synod1 for example7 to be a part of the ,catholic ,church1 is not healthy4 ,in contradictories there cannot be accord1 and one is right and the other is certainly wrong4 ,a careful diagnosis of the malady of our patient leads us to the following conclusions3 ,no one is bound to impossibilities1 and therefore1 before their own church1 the low-churchmen are right on all points of the controversy1 while1 before the ,christian world1 their opponents are singularly isolated and unfortunate4 ,the ,episcopal ,church contains two opposing elements which must ever war against each other1 and1 while there are inconsistencies in both liturgy and articles1 the low-churchmen stand upon the only reasonable ground1 and say with truth to their adversaries1 that they who would be sacramentarians ought to go where their system properly belongs1 and where all other things are in harmony with it4 ,such1 we are sure1 will be the judgment of the impartial observer4 #a4 ,the ,episcopalians have a right to reform their services whenever they choose1 and are at perfect liberty to agitate the question4 ,by the constitution of their own church1 they have the power to alter1 change1 or modify both their liturgy and their creeds4 ,did not the ,church of ,england do this on several occasions8 ,has not the ,american ,episcopal ,church done it also8 ,did she not materially alter the prayer-book1 leaving out1 for example1 both the form of absolution1 and also the ,athanasian ,creed8 ,that which has been done can surely be done again1 especially in a body which disclaims infallibility1 and is1 therefore1 sure of nothing1 and is ever on all points open to progress4 ,here it seems to us that the high-churchmen have no ground on which to stand4 ,they cannot assert that anything their church teaches is the voice of ,god1 because she expressly tells them that she has no authority4 ,they cannot hold any reasonable theory of ecclesiastical pretensions1 because1 by doing so1 they would unchurch themselves4 ,a church ought to know its own powers1 if it have any4 ,they may have their own opinions1 and press them as such2 but they have no right to lord it over the consciences of their brethren who disagree with them1 as if they 7the actual minority7 were the church rather than their more numerous opponents4 ,their fathers whose godly admonitions they seek to follow1 surely never meant to cast their incomparable liturgy in an iron mould4 #da ,besides1 in sober common sense1 all the extravagancies of the low-churchmen are nothing compared to the doings of the extreme ritualists1 who have so metamorphosed the service that no uninitiated ,episcopalian could ever recognize it4 ,think of changing every rubric1 and engrafting upon the common prayer the actual ceremonies and even the words of the ,roman missal4 ,we understand that few of the signers of the union manifesto are opposed to these advances of ritualism1 and that many of them are ready to hear confessions or celebrate ,mass when a good occasion is offered4 ,with what face1 then1 can they find fault with their brethren who exercise their liberty in another direction8 ,and inasmuch as there is a manifest inconsistency between various parts of the prayer-book1 it would be well for them and for truth to have their code revised1 that the world may know precisely what they do mean4 #b4 ,on the vexed question of ,episcopal ordination1 we are convinced that the high-churchmen are wrong1 before their own communion and before the world4 ,the reformers under whose inspirations the ,english ,church was formed1 never intended to unchurch the religious bodies of the continent with whom they were in sympathy4 ,the words of the ordinal refer only to the rule to be adopted in the ,anglican body1 and do not decide at all the question of the validity of non-,episcopal orders4 ,the twenty-third of the thirty-nine articles is so expounded by ,burnet4 ,he says that by common consent a company of ,christians may appoint one of their own members to minister to them in holy things2 for we are sure that not only those who penned the articles1 but the body of this church for above half an age after1 did1 notwithstanding irregularities1 acknowledge the foreign churches1 so constituted1 to be true churches as to all the essentials of a church4 ,the article leaves the matter open for such accidents as had happened1 and such as might still happen4 ,although their own church had been less forced to go out of the beaten path than any other1 yet they knew that all things among themselves had not gone according to those rules that ought to be sacred in regular times4 ,necessity has no law1 and is a law of itself4 ,the opinions of ,cranmer1 and of ,barlow1 the reported consecrator of ,archbishop ,parker1 were distinctly ,erastian4 ,at a conference held at ,windsor1 #aedg1 ,cranmer answers to the question1 ,can a bishop make a priest8 as follows3 ,a bishop may make a priest1 and so may princes and governors also1 by the authority of ,god committed to them4 ,barlow replies1 ,bishops have no authority to make priests without they be authorized by the ,christian princes1 and that laymen have other whiles made priests4 ,to the question1 ,whether in the ,new ,testament be required any consecration of a bishop or priest1 or only appointing to the office be sufficient8 ,cranmer answers1 ,he that is appointed to be a bishop or priest needeth no consecration by the ,scriptures1 for election or appointing thereto is sufficient4 ,barlow also expresses the same sentiment4 7,see ,stillingfleet's ,irenicum1 and ,collier1 vol4 ii4 appendix47 ,the judicious ,hooker undoubtedly maintains the true ,episcopalian belief1 that ordination by bishops is preferable1 but not of absolute necessity to a church4 ,a very able article in this ,magazine1 published ,september1 #ahff1 7,vol4 ,,iii4 ,no4 #ah17 shows the truth of our view4 #db ,passages are deduced from a work called ,vox ,ecclesiae1 which contain the high-church position1 and admit that in case of necessity 7which is left to the individual to determine7 orthodox presbyters may ordain4 ,as ,archbishop ,parker said1 ,extreme necessity in itself implieth dispensation from all laws4 ,the author of this article1 to which we beg leave to refer our readers1 shows plainly that such a doctrine overthrows the very idea of apostolical succession1 elevates human necessity above divine law1 and legitimates every form of error and schism4 ,before their own communion1 therefore1 the low-churchmen have every advantage1 as they are consistent with the principles of the ,reformation which brought their church into being4 ,when ,protestants desert their own platform1 on what ground can they logically stand8 ,secondly1 before the ,christian world the high-churchmen occupy a very unfortunate position4 ,they make assertions which unchurch themselves1 while they separate from their brethren1 and aspire to an ecclesiastical status which they have not1 which the whole world denies to them1 and which they can never defend4 ,if the apostolical succession is necessary to the existence of a church1 then by the verdict of all who hold such a doctrine1 they are no church2 for with all their pretensions1 they have it not4 ,it has been shown over and over again1 by arguments incontestable1 that the ordination of ,archbishop ,parker1 if indeed it ever took place1 was wholly and entirely invalid4 ,there is not satisfactory evidence that any ceremony of consecration was observed2 there is no proof whatever that ,barlow1 the officiating prelate1 was ever ordained2 and lastly1 the form used 7according to the theory of the high-churchmen7 was utterly inadequate to convey valid orders4 ,what need1 then1 to argue further with those who will not see8 ,if any ,catholic bishop at this day should venture to consecrate with the form which they tell us was used in ,parker's case1 he would be subject to severe censure1 and his act would be considered totally null and valueless4 ,one would naturally suppose that the judgment of the ,catholic ,church on this question would be held in respect4 ,she has preserved the ancient rite1 and holds the absolute necessity of episcopal ordination2 and while she considers it a sacrilege to reiterate the sacrament of orders1 she reordains1 without question and without condition1 every ,english minister who1 coming into her fold1 aspires to the sacred priesthood4 ,the same course has been adopted by what the ,pan-,angelican ,synod calls the ,eastern ,orthodox ,church1 which no more regards the ,episcopalians as a church than she does the ,methodists or ,presbyterians4 ,is any more evidence required by any honest mind8 ,if the opinion of the eastern churches is of any weight1 it has been more than once given4 ,dr4 ,j4 ,j4 ,overbeck1 a ,russian priest1 in a recent work on ,catholic ,orthodoxy1 treats at some length of the ,english orders1 which he pronounces to be null4 ,these are among his words3 #a4 ,the ,anglo-,catholic fathers1 on the point of apostolical succession and its needfulness1 held latitudinarian views1 subversive of the whole fabric of the church4 #b4 ,the boasted unity or concord of ,anglicans even in essentials is a specious illusion4 #c4 ,anglo-,catholicism is genuine ,protestantism decked and disfigured by ,catholic spoils4 ,as ,parker's consecration was invalid1 the apostolic line was broken off1 irremediably broken off4 #dc ,if ,rome considered all ordinations by ,parker and his successors1 namely1 the whole present ,english episcopate and clergy1 to be invalid1 null1 and void1 and consistently reordained all those converts who wished and were fit for orders2 the ,eastern ,church can but imitate her proceedings1 as both1 in this point1 follow the very same principles4 444 ,the fact of the reordination is the final and conclusive verdict on the invalidity of ,anglican ordinations4 ,by this fact all further controversy is broken off and indisputably settled4 ,we fancy1 then1 the amusement which the pastoral of the late ,anglican ,synod will produce in the ,eastern churches1 for whose benefit it has been translated into the ,greek language4 ,we would recommend to the great ,patriarchs to send a commission of doctors to the ,west1 that they may see that oneness of mind of which the bishops so fervently speak4 ,then when they see it1 we would like to have them point it out to us1 that we may see it also1 and rejoice with them4 ,it may perhaps appear to some of our readers that our sympathies are with the low-churchmen and ultra-,protestants of the ,episcopal communion4 ,this is1 however1 far from being the case4 ,we admire consistency and cannot accept logical contradictions4 ,the ,protestant ground is something that our reason can comprehend1 though we believe it does away with all revelation and leads directly to infidelity4 ,but ,god has furnished us with no mental powers by which to fathom a system which is neither one thing nor the other1 which wears a ,catholic exterior over a ,protestant heart4 ,such will be the verdict of the world4 ,how long ,anglicanism can last we know not4 ,it has been a kind of half-way house to the church1 and it may occupy this position for a long time4 ,it seems to us that every honest high-churchman should become a ,catholic at once1 when he will find what he wants1 not simply on paper but in life1 not in imagination but in reality4 ,the movement called ritualism is an indication that the grace of ,god is stirring up the dry bones2 for ,anglicanism in itself is the most lifeless and unspiritual religion we know of4 ,god grant that the movement may bring forth its proper fruits4 ,we only fear that when it comes to leaving all for ,christ1 to giving up houses and lands1 wives and children1 position and preferment1 many will go back1 7as we have seen with sorrow17 and be like the young man in the gospel1 who was1 at one time1 not far from the kingdom of heaven4 ,ritualism is only a yearning after the real presence of the ,incarnate ,god1 for which the redeemed soul longs even with anguish4 ,tears were my meat1 day and night1 while they said to me4 ,where is thy ,god8 ,the true heart will find its ,lord only in that one body which is his fulness4 ,pray1 then1 fellow-,catholics1 pray for the sincere and true1 that they may have grace to forsake the land of shadows1 and come where are the bright beams of the morning2 that ere the night of death overtake them1 they may1 like the pure-minded ,simeon1 see the salvation of ,god1 and joyfully chant their ,nunc dimittis1 ,lord1 now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace2 for mine eyes have seen thy salvation4 -------- #dd ,bishop ,doyle4 ,footnote #bj ,footnote #bj3 ,the ,life1 ,times1 and ,correspondence of the ,rt4 ,rev4 ,dr4 ,doyle1 ,bishop of ,kildare and ,leighlin4 ,by ,w4 ,j4 ,fitzpatrick1 ,j4 ,p4 #c vols4 #hvo4 ,boston3 ,p4 ,donohoe4 ,what can you teach8 ,any thing from ,a1 ,b1 ,c1 to the third book of ,canon ,law4 ,pray1 young man1 can you teach and practise humility8 ,i trust ,i have1 at least1 the humility to feel that the more ,i read the more ,i see how ignorant ,i have been1 and how little can1 at best1 be known4 ,such were the pithy replies to the equally condensed questions put by the venerable ,dean ,staunton1 of ,carlow ,college1 to a young ,augustinian friar who had been proposed as candidate for a professorship in that rising institution4 ,the friar was ,father ,james ,doyle1 then in his twenty-seventh year4 ,erect in stature1 austere in features1 the candid earnestness of his mind beaming through his expressive countenance1 which bore the evident traces of studious habits1 and the freedom of his unpretentious manners--all these qualities1 combined in his looks and declared by his language1 immediately enlisted the sympathetic esteem of the dean4 ,nor was his youth an obstacle to his acceptance4 ,his appointment to the position followed1 and the six years spent by him in the college served as a fit preparation for the public career of this eminent man1 the narrative of whose life forms an essential part of the history of his country for at least fifteen years4 ,from the valuable work to which reference is made in the note to this article1 we find much to admire in the noble character who forms the subject of ,mr4 ,fitzpatrick's literary effort4 ,there must have been placed at his disposal a rich and abundant store of material from which the biography was compiled4 ,the work itself1 in a literary point of view1 is creditable to the diligence of the author2 but at present we shall content ourselves with an attempt to gather from its comprehensive pages1 and place before our readers1 some of the most remarkable events that distinguished the life and were influenced by the action of the eminent prelate4 ,of respectable and honorably rebellious ancestors1 he was born in ,new ,ross1 ,county of ,wexford1 in #aghf4 ,in an appendix to the work before us there is a chronological article showing the descent of the ,doyle family from some ancient1 royal sept--a portion of ,irish history by no means uncommon--to which we would refer those who should doubt his original nobility of blood4 ,for us it will suffice to know that some of his immediate relatives had fallen for their country and its faith1 and that even as far back as #afia1 there were few more distinguished than the bold ,rapparee chieftain1 ,brigadier ,doyle1 who was sent from ,limerick1 by ,sarsfield1 to collect men and horses for the ,jacobite army4 #de ,anne ,warren1 the mother of the future bishop1 was a ,catholic1 but of ,quaker extraction1 and the father had died before the child's birth1 so that young ,doyle was brought into the world under circumstances1 though not of indigence1 still not of superfluity in worldly goods4 ,but nature richly endowed him2 and what treasures can be sought more desirable than the intrinsic power of soul which no external change can diminish1 and which retains its richness1 independent of the uncertainties of variable fortune6 ,nor was his childhood other than obscure1 if we may apply the term to that state which1 though humble1 was illustrated by the tender care and enlightened piety of a ,christian mother4 ,his boyhood was not remarkable for those extraordinary manifestations of genius said to be discovered in the younger days of great men4 ,no phenomena indicative of unusual fortune or success in life attended his boyish acts1 although there is a tale of some careless fortune-teller having prognosticated the high position and distinguished labors which afterward rendered his name so memorable4 ,at the age of eleven he ran the risk of being shot for his curiosity in observing1 at a distance1 a battle fought between the patriots of the rebellion and the ,english forces4 ,his school-days commenced at ,rathnavogue1 where a ,mr4 ,grace was conducting a seminary of learning to whose seats both ,catholics and ,protestants had equal access4 ,hitherto his mother had been his instructor1 and there are no impressions so important or so lasting as those imparted to the infant mind by the solicitous teaching of a parent4 ,under her guidance1 the youthful aspirations which inclined his developing reason to the ecclesiastical state of life1 were fostered and encouraged1 as she early perceived that the tendency of his mental faculties directed in the path of a holy vocation4 ,in the year #ahjj1 she placed him under the care of an ,augustinian friar named ,crane1 who soon discovered the talents of the boy through his eagerness for knowledge1 and his intensely studious habits4 ,she died in #ahjb1 leaving him an orphan1 but with the prospect of his soon becoming a member of the ,augustinian order1 which he entered three years afterward4 ,notwithstanding that he entertained a strong repugnance to the eleemosynary practices of religious communities of begging from door to door--and this aversion he ever retained--he still selected a conventual life in preference to the more public and active labors of a missionary priest4 ,his respect for the dignity of the priestly office was a characteristic trait in his life as bishop1 and his ideas on the subject seem to have originated from that natural good taste with which he had been gifted from his infancy4 ,the ordeal of the novitiate passed through with fidelity1 he made his vows as member of the order in #ahjf1 in the small thatched chapel at ,grantstown4 ,the marked abilities displayed at this period induced his superiors to select him to be sent with some others to the college of their order at ,coimbra1 in ,portugal1 a well-conducted institution1 and connected with the celebrated university of that place4 ,as he was afforded all the ample opportunities held out to those attending the university lectures--a privilege accorded only to a few--his mind was immensely enriched1 and what is of still greater importance1 his ideas were enabled to attain a sturdiness of growth and liberality of expansion which ever afterward distinguished his writings and speeches4 ,in his subsequent examination before a committee of both houses of parliament1 he testified to the numerous advantages which were then1 as now1 derived from a continental education for the priesthood4 ,in his days1 indeed1 it was no longer1 as it had been in #aghj1 felony in a foreign priest1 and high-treason in a native1 to teach or practise the doctrines of the ,catholic religion in ,ireland4 ,still1 the penal laws1 although relaxed1 had left their evil traces long after their name had ceased to excite terror1 even if it occasioned a thrill of hatred in the breasts of those who had so long been subjected to the clanking of their fetters4 #df ,it seems somewhat of an anomaly for ,protestantism1 which was inaugurated under the plea of freeing and enlightening the human mind1 to sanction the enactment and enforce the execution of laws directly calculated to crush religious freedom1 and make it criminal to educate the children of the conquered ,catholics4 ,it is1 however1 but one of the innumerable inconsistencies with which the histories of nations and of creeds regale us at intervals4 ,whilst young ,doyle was deeply engaged in drinking in from the purest and deepest springs theologic lore1 and treasuring up in his capacious mind the classic and philosophic eloquence of ancient times1 the sound of war disturbed his retirement4 ,a ,french invasion overturned the independence of the country1 and so rapid was the advance of ,junot that the vessel which bore away in safety to ,brazil the royal family was hastened in its departure by some shots from the conquering army4 ,the peninsular war ensued1 in which the ,portuguese1 aided by the ,english under ,wellington1 drove out the irreligious soldiers of the empire4 ,the enthusiasm which inflamed the minds of the natives was taken up by the young students1 and among them ,doyle shouldered his musket1 believing that the best way to prove one's fidelity to truth and justice is to act when action alone is effective4 ,mr4 ,fitzpatrick does not explain the short stay made by the student in the college of ,coimbra1 as we find him in ,ireland1 in #ahjh1 preparing for the reception of holy orders4 ,he had concluded a good course of study1 and his natural abilities must have rendered him fully competent to be admitted to the order of priesthood1 which he received in #ahji1 in the humble1 thatched chapel of his youthful days4 ,but as there were then1 to a greater extent than at present1 existing prejudices against religious orders in ,ireland1 he was not only refused faculties1 but even the preparatory examination1 by ,dr4 ,ryan1 ,coadjutor ,bishop of ,ferns4 ,the young priest quietly remained in his convent until called1 upon the recommendation of some friends who admired his talents1 to the position of professor in ,carlow ,college4 ,here he rendered most important services4 ,within its walls he spent six years most studiously occupied1 both for his own advancement and for the benefit of his pupils4 ,the advantage of procuring positions in seminaries or colleges for young priests of talent and taste for prolonged study1 is easily perceived when we consider the necessity--more especially at the present day--of fitting some for the higher duties of their order--the defence and exposition of ,catholic doctrines in a literary manner4 ,had the talents of ,dr4 ,doyle received no cultivation more than that afforded by a superficial knowledge of theology in a rudimentary course of three years1 his life would have passed in obscurity1 and his eminent public services could never have been successfully accomplished4 ,the light of genius is1 indeed1 a gift of nature1 but the intensity of its brilliancy depends upon art and culture4 ,besides this1 his taste for literature excited the enthusiasm1 whilst it encouraged the efforts of the students4 ,his lectures on eloquence1 which had1 up to that time1 been considerably neglected among the ,irish clergy1 served as an incentive to their ardor in pursuit of that noble science1 at the same time that it furnished his own mind with the inexhaustible resources which he afterward wielded with such mighty effect4 #dg ,we know of similar results having been attained by the late eminent ,cardinal ,wiseman whilst rector of the ,english ,college at ,rome4 ,the necessity of a learned clergy was scarcely ever felt as much as at the present day1 when men of abilities and cultivation may be daily encountered1 eager and earnest for the truth1 but not ready to admit it upon insufficient or superficial grounds4 ,this view1 entertained by ,dr4 ,doyle whilst in ,carlow ,college1 led him to inculcate the same principles to those around him4 ,but the scene of his labors changes1 and we now approach the period of his life in which his publications procure for him that general recognition of power and virtue1 hitherto accorded him in a humbler sphere of duty4 ,by an unprecedented unanimity he was elected1 in #ahai1 to succeed ,dr4 ,corcoran in the diocese of ,kildare and ,leighlin4 ,the selection was more remarkable1 as in those days there were feelings of strong dislike entertained against members of religious communities1 and the subject caused no slight trouble at ,rome4 ,the wise regulations of the church for the election of bishops were observed in ,ireland then1 as they are now4 ,assembled together1 the clergy received the ,holy ,eucharist1 prayed for light to direct their action1 retired in silence1 strengthened and enlightened1 to give their voice for the most fitting subject2 and the result showed in this case1 that1 as they had the generosity to pass over the bounds of prejudice1 the ,holy ,ghost guided them in their deliberations4 ,it was not a little surprising that the choice had fallen upon an ,augustinian friar2 but that the dignity should be conferred upon one so young--he was only thirty-two years of age--and with such universal satisfaction1 went far to prove the high esteem in which he must have been held4 ,the custom of electing elderly persons to the episcopal office is generally admitted to have traditional usage in its favor1 although we do not read of our ,lord having regarded age as a qualification in his apostles1 and ,st4 ,john is believed to have been a mere youth4 ,innocent ,,iii41 one of the most illustrious popes that ever reigned1 was only thirty-seven years of age when he ascended the chair of ,st4 ,peter4 ,and although the youthful appearance of the new bishop was made the occasion of adverse criticism in some quarters1 he entered upon his office no less deeply impressed with the truth of what ,st4 ,augustine said of the episcopate1 ,nomen sit oneris1 non honoris1 than if he were bowed down by age4 ,mr4 ,fitzpatrick's work exposes to us many evils that had been allowed to grow up in the diocese under the inactive government of some of ,bishop ,doyle's predecessors4 ,incompetent persons are found in every state of life1 and many of the miseries by which society is afflicted arise from faithlessness or incapacity in incumbents of high positions4 ,energy and diligence were not characteristic of those who had gone before him1 and abuses that had been tolerated by negligence1 grew into evils which were magnified by their proximity to the sanctuary4 ,but ,bishop ,doyle was one of those faithful ministers who felt the responsibilities enjoined upon his office1 quasi pro animabus reddituri rationem4 ,some customs common among the clergy were not much in accordance with ecclesiastical propriety1 and it is not easy to eradicate what has been allowed to attain a long growth4 #dh ,it is true that the penal times had but just ceased1 and the decadence in ecclesiastical discipline brought about by the dreary night of persecution1 was of such magnitude as not to be quickly remedied4 ,still1 the new bishop had brought with him into the office a thorough knowledge of the laws of the church1 and a sense of the obligation of carrying these laws into execution whenever possible4 ,these were the two principal reasons to which must be ascribed the successful issue of all his measures at reform4 ,he called the attention of his clergy to the decrees of the twenty-fourth session of the ,council of ,trent1 with regard to the reformation of the church1 and dwelt upon the penalties to which he himself should be liable were he to neglect the enforcement of those wise regulations4 ,for the decency of public worship1 the ornaments and linens of the altar1 and everything connected with the sacred ceremonies of religion1 he had the most scrupulous regard4 ,he instituted regular visitations in his diocese1 as he felt that he could not be exempted from a sinful negligence in omitting to comply with the decrees of ,trent in this respect4 ,in these visitations he discovered the sad state to which ecclesiastical discipline had fallen before his days4 ,in one instance the vestments were found to be in such an unbecoming state that he tore them asunder4 ,returning next year to the same parish1 he found the identical old vestments sewn together and kept in a turf-basket4 ,to prevent a repetition1 he consigned them to the flames1 and as the parish priest was by no means a poor man1 the wretched taste displayed by him was wholly unpardonable4 ,hunting was not an unusual occupation with the clergy of those days4 ,practices by no means tending to increase the respect of the people for their pastors1 had been allowed to accompany the marriage and funeral services of country districts1 and all these claimed the diligent reformatory care of the active bishop4 ,the office of reformer--as the very sound has to some an odious signification--is not the most envious one in the world1 and it acquires a peculiarly distasteful character from those whose self-interested conduct may fall under its action4 ,hence the young bishop was sometimes accused of rashness in his undertaking to correct abuses of so long a standing1 and the plea was set up that good and wise men had tolerated them in the past4 ,nor was he free from the receipt of letters of complaint1 principally1 though not always1 from old pastors who found great difficulty in abandoning habits which their sense of right would not permit them to justify4 ,they remonstrated with him for carrying out laws for the execution of which he was responsible4 ,but he kindly reasoned with them on the necessity which pressed him to be faithful to his trust2 and as he never urged his own feelings or his own bias as the motive of his action1 but always appealed to the law of the church1 he gradually effected the most beneficent results4 ,he never used harshness1 even where it might appear1 if not necessary1 at least justifiable1 and never was he accused of disregarding the reasonable explanations of the humblest of his clergy4 ,law1 not self2 justice1 not caprice1 were the motives that incited him2 and1 guided by such principles1 he confided the success of his efforts to ,god1 and thus labored under the inspiration of the church4 ,the sacrament of confirmation had been but rarely administered before his time1 and he frequently was affected to tears when1 instead of children to receive it1 there were crowds of gray-haired men and women4 #di ,the education of the young had been much neglected by many parish priests1 whose taste for agricultural pursuits led them to devote more time to the cultivation of farms than to the instruction of their people4 ,one rural gentleman insisted that he could well attend to his flocks of sheep without neglecting his spiritual flock2 but the bishop required that his time should be exclusively devoted to his ministry4 ,many justified their engagement with worldly occupations1 or their inattention to their duties1 by pointing to the curate1 and1 loudly affirming his energetic zeal1 declared him fully competent to direct the parish1 whilst the old man should repose from his labors and enjoy in ease the fruits of his past services in the vineyard of the ,lord4 ,the persistent labors of the bishop at length produced that good result ever to be expected from a faithful discharge of duty4 ,visitations were regularly conducted throughout his diocese1 and the long-neglected canons of the church were reestablished1 to the great satisfaction of all good priests1 as well as with salutary consequences to the people4 ,not less important in their results were the spiritual retreats which he inaugurated amongst his clergy4 ,the efficient means of preserving and strengthening the spiritual life of the priesthood had been long impossible in the times of persecution2 but when this obstacle was removed1 his predecessors took no steps to remedy the ill effects of their omission4 ,one thousand priests and almost every prelate in ,ireland assembled at ,carlow1 in #ahbj1 to avail themselves of the advantages of silence and prayer under the direction of the young bishop1 who conducted the religious exercises4 ,he had been always known as an austere man to himself1 and most conscientiously attentive to even the minor duties of his ecclesiastical state1 and the brilliant manner in which he guided his attentive hearers through this retreat deeply impressed them4 ,these sermons1 7he preached three times a day17 writes ,rev4 ,mr4 ,delany1 were of an extraordinarily impressive character4 ,we never heard anything to equal them before or since4 ,the duties of the ecclesiastical state were never so eloquently or efficiently expounded4 ,his frequent application and exposition of the most intricate texts of ,scripture amazed and delighted us2 ,we thought he was inspired4 ,i saw the venerable ,archbishop ,troy weep like a child1 and raise his hands in thanksgiving4 ,at the conclusion of the retreat he wept again1 and kissed his coadjutor with more than a brother's affection4 ,dr4 ,o',connell narrates that for the ten days during which the retreat lasted4 ,dr4 ,doyle knew no rest4 ,his soul was on fire in the sacred cause4 ,he was determined to reform widely4 ,his falcon eye sparkled with zeal4 ,the powers of his intellect were applied to the good work with telling effect4 ,at the close of one of his most impassioned exhortations1 he knelt down on a prie-dieu immediately before me4 ,the vigorous workings of his mind1 and the intense earnestness of purpose within1 affected even the outward man4 ,big drops of perspiration stood upon his neck1 and his rochet was almost saturated4 ,the fruits of these labors were proportionate to their intensity1 for the soil was good1 and needed but that cultivation1 for want of which it had long lain fallow4 ,to reform the morals of the people1 he knew that the source of their moral teaching--the priesthood--must be enlightened and elevated4 #ej ,it seems that there can be nothing better calculated to effect a cordial coperation of ecclesiastical duties and responsibilities than that a bishop should thus be willing and capable of teaching his clergy in learning as well as in devotion2 and of impressing1 by propriety of language and dignity of position1 those sublime truths that should be frequently proposed to their consideration4 ,another great work undertaken by him was the revival of diocesan conferences1 which had long fallen into desuetude4 ,he ordained that they should be held regularly1 and his own learning was a safe guarantee of their practical utility4 ,the many intricate questions of moral theology1 as well as local issues with which the clergy of a well-conducted diocese should be conversant1 were usefully discussed in those assemblies with freedom and decorum4 ,the general non-observance of statutes and laws1 arising principally from the difficulties of the penal times1 called for more strenuous efforts than would have been otherwise needed4 ,the severity of penal laws against the practices of religion1 or the administration of the sacraments1 diminished the number of priests1 who were obliged to hide themselves in the mountains1 and minister by stealth and under fear of death in solitary places to the spiritual necessities of their flocks4 ,this accounts for the statute which was passed in a synod of ,kildare in #afad1 allowing lay persons to administer the ,blessed ,eucharist to each other in cases of necessity4 ,but those times had passed1 and ,dr4 ,doyle believed that what was then justifiably permitted could be so no longer without sin on his part4 ,conscientious fulfilment of duty alone directed him in these many salutary reforms introduced by him for the welfare of his people2 and we dwell upon them with greater pleasure1 as they evince the true character of a bishop4 ,these1 and many other beneficent changes introduced by ,bishop ,doyle1 were but in accordance with the improved condition in which the ,catholics of his day found themselves4 ,after long and painful but finally triumphant struggles to regain some of their lost freedom1 they still felt for a length of time the effects of that odious tyranny1 by whose means the proud1 religious ascendency of a hostile sect had long aimed at the complete subjection of the body and soul of the ,catholic population4 ,it is pleasing to find that the first relaxation of rigorous1 repressive laws against the ,catholic ,irish was owing to the influence exercised by the ,american revolution upon ,english affairs4 ,in #aggh1 ,catholics were allowed to hold property as well as their ,protestant fellow-citizens2 and1 although this was but a slight concession forced from the justice of their rulers1 the ,irish people derived from it an encouragement to persevere in asserting their further claims1 so often deceitfully promised and unjustly withheld4 ,these claims of his countrymen now assumed greater weight in the minds of legislators1 as they became more importunately urged upon their notice by the powerful efforts of ,o',connell4 ,bishop ,doyle did not hesitate to enter the arena1 and throw the weight of his mighty intellect and the no less important influence of his official position1 into the contest4 ,a remarkably vigorous exposition of the state of the question1 and of the necessity of yielding to the demands of justice1 published in a letter signed ,j4 ,k4 ,l41 inspired new hope into his friends1 and drew upon him the hostile attention of numerous opponents4 ,polemics have1 in our day1 assumed a character quite different from that which distinguished them in former times4 #ea ,much of the rancorous spirit1 falsely called religious1 which disturbed society1 and caused even domestic life sometimes to bear an unchristian aspect1 has passed away1 and acerbity of feeling which irritates1 whilst it never convinces1 is now less frequently encountered than the milder tone of persuasive argumentation4 ,it may be that men were then more thoroughly in earnest about religion than they are at present2 but it would not be easy to maintain that earnestness must be expressed in language calculated to offend1 and shown in acts intended to do violence to brotherly love4 ,it is more probable that1 with the progress of the age1 men are learning more of the true spirit of religion1 and are leaving off much of that virulence which poor human passion is likely to bring with it1 even into the sanctuary of divine faith4 ,one thing is certain1 that a change for the better has come over the spirit which elicits religious discussion at present2 and the questions that excite our interest and enlist our most serious consideration are agitated in a milder manner than in the days of ,bishop ,doyle1 when it was rare that a religious dispute closed without abuse or vituperation1 and spiritual views were not unfrequently enforced by blows4 ,a discussion arose between the ,bishop of ,kildare and ,magee1 the ,protestant ,archbishop of ,dublin1 and as both were able combatants upon a field which afforded ample space for assault and defence1 the contest waged was long and fierce1 drawing forth the wit and sarcasm1 the learning and eloquence undoubtedly possessed by both disputants4 ,instead of cooling by time1 it warmed as it advanced1 and increased in interest as it drew into its current many minor warriors eager to join in the religious fray4 ,a spirit of domination which naturally arose from the relations between ,catholics and ,protestants1 determined ,magee to assume a loftier tone1 with more pretentious1 and1 on that account1 less tenable grounds4 ,these circumstances rendered the humiliation of his defeat more irksome to his high position4 ,the ,marquis of ,wellesley must have been an impartial judge1 and at the conclusion of the politico-religious combat1 he declared that ,magee had evidently got the worst of it4 ,several other opponents who successively assaulted ,j4 ,k4 ,l41 were easily disposed of by his mighty pen4 ,influenced by his genius and eloquent writings1 the movement led by the great ,agitator progressed toward its desired result4 ,a change was imperceptibly coming over the spirit of the times4 ,to retain a nation in bondage to a political or religious ascendency not founded on the good-will of the subject1 must1 in the long run1 become impossible4 ,as long as a people preserve unsubdued their spirit of religious or national freedom1 there is no power on earth capable of frustrating their ultimate triumph4 ,a great writer observes that the war in which violence attempts to oppress truth must be a strange and an arduous one4 ,no matter how doubtful may be the result for a time1 no matter how obscure the horizon of events1 truth must in the end conquer1 for it is imperishable--it is eternal as ,god himself4 ,thus was it in the struggle for emancipation in ,ireland4 ,the truth became at length generally admitted1 that no civil legislation1 no state authority1 has a right to interfere with the sanctity of human conscience2 and that the power which attempts to violate the natural gift of religious freedom transcends its limits1 and is guilty of a grievous crime against the established order of ,providence4 #eb ,before ,dr4 ,doyle's entrance upon the public duties of his episcopal office1 the efforts made for their emancipation by the ,catholics had produced but little effect4 ,petitions crowded to the parliament1 but they were hastily and sometimes scornfully rejected4 ,religious equality had been promised as a reward for the parliamentary union of both countries in #ahjj2 but the insidious policy of ,pitt proved the promise fallacious1 and when the nation found itself cheated out of its legislative power1 without even this slight recompense of religious freedom1 deep was the indignation felt4 ,in the movements preceding ,dr4 ,doyle's efforts for the recovery of their rights1 the ,catholics were unaided by the higher order of their countrymen1 who sensitively shrank from participating in any appeal for redress4 7,vol4 ,i4 p4 #aef47 ,the people were thus abandoned by those whom they regarded as their natural leaders1 and1 with some exceptions1 the ,catholic clergy not only held aloof1 but deprecated any attempt to disturb the general apathy4 7,ibid47 ,but ,dr4 ,doyle brought new energy to the combat1 and1 although the victory which crowned the labors of the great ,liberator in #ahbi was principally due to his own herculean powers and indomitable spirit1 still the assistance rendered by the ,bishop of ,kildare was highly appreciated by ,o',connell himself4 ,here it may be remarked that the ,duke of ,wellington is sometimes lauded for yielding to the claims of the ,catholics4 ,it is just to accord praise wherever merited2 but1 as the hostility of ,wellington to the demands of his countrymen had been for years the greatest obstacle to their being satisfied1 and as he yielded at last evidently through fear of revolution in case of refusal1 it would appear that a reluctant concession1 rendered when it could not be safely withheld1 is but a slight groundwork upon which to erect a monument to his generosity4 ,it would be a long though not an ungrateful task1 to trace the toilsome progress of the bishop through his many labors for the temporal and eternal welfare of his people4 ,throughout every page of the work before us we may perceive the deep solicitude with which he continually watched over their moral and social improvement4 ,wide-spread disaffection at long misgovernment had evinced itself in various species of secret societies--,ribbonmen1 ,white-boys1 ,peep-o'-day men1 etc4--formed either for purposes hostile to the actual state of society1 or1 more frequently1 perhaps1 for self-defence against the powerful and extensive organization of ,orange-men4 ,the ,ribbonmen promised to be true to1 and assist each other in all things lawful2 but if even justifiable in their origin and object1 they not unfrequently were guilty of acts which soon aroused the opposition of the clergy4 ,bishop ,doyle found his diocese extensively overrun by numerous parties of these societies2 but1 as the people loved him1 his disapprobation was very effectual in checking their progress4 ,as most of the discontent arose from the collection of tithes from ,catholics for the support of ,protestant ministers1 he reprobated the laws that were thus the cause of evils which it was their office to remove4 ,he himself counselled his people to observe a negative opposition to the collection of these tithes1 by refusing to pay them1 but never to resist with violence a forcible execution of the law4 ,to force obedience to this law was frequently a dangerous experiment4 ,the legal claims of the parson were sometimes satisfied at the expense of the lives of his unwilling supporters4 #ec ,however incompatible with his character it might appear1 yet it was no uncommon occurrence to witness the meek parson at the head of a military force1 leading an assault on some undefended cabin or directing their manoeuvres in order to possess himself of a cow1 an only pig1 or even a wretched bed and bedding of a destitute family4 ,goaded to fury1 the people would sometimes resist the soldiers1 and the sacrifice of human life was often the only fruit of a tithe-collecting expedition4 ,it may be interesting to read the following verbatim copy of a bill announcing the sale by auction of the valuable spoil secured in a successful foray by an evangelical gentleman in the neighborhood of ,ballymore3 ,to be soaled by ,public ,cout in the town of ,ballymore on the #ae ,inst one ,cowe the property of ,james ,scully one new bed and one gowne the property of ,john quinn seven hanks of yearn the property of the widow ,scott one petty coate and one apron the property of the widow ,gallagher seized under and by virtue of leasing warrant for tythe due the ,rved4 ,john ,ugher4 ,dated this #abth day of ,may #ahbd4 ,in his celebrated examination before a committee of parliament in #ahbe1 ,dr4 ,doyle rendered ample testimony to the practical evils of this system4 ,notwithstanding the merciless exposure to which he subjected the entire tithe business1 there was nothing done to alleviate the misery or remedy the sufferings with which it is so pregnant1 and ,ireland still labors under this1 one of her most harassing calamities--the cause of her discontent and the source of her degradation4 ,not a little remarkable is the historical fact1 that before the time of the reformation the ,irish nation never consented to the system of tithes established in all other countries by the law of the church4 ,before the invasion there was no such thing known4 ,after that lamentable period the ,english conquerors attempted to establish it as in ,england1 but ,giraldus ,cambrensis1 says ,doctor ,doyle1 imputes it to the ,irish as a crime that they would not pay tithe1 notwithstanding the laws which enjoined such payment2 and1 now at the end of six hundred years1 they are found to persevere1 with increased obstinacy1 in their struggles to cast off this most obnoxious impost4 ,a long letter addressed to his liberal friend4 ,sir ,h4 ,parnell1 in #ahca1 is occupied in expounding his views on poor laws and church property4 ,his advocacy of laws to relieve the poor drew forth his eloquent pleading in their behalf1 whilst his extensive knowledge of canon law made him familiar with the ancient legislations of the church with respect to tithes4 ,a short but characteristic passage from this letter we cannot omit3 #ed ,i am a churchman2 but ,i am unacquainted with avarice1 and ,i feel no worldly ambition4 ,i am1 perhaps1 attached to my profession2 but ,i love ,christianity more than its worldly appendages4 ,i am a ,catholic from the fullest conviction2 but few will accuse me of bigotry4 ,i am an ,irishman hating injustice1 and abhorring1 with my whole soul1 the oppression of my country2 but ,i desire to heal her sores1 not to aggravate her sufferings4 ,in decrying1 as ,i do1 the tithe-system1 and the whole church establishment in ,ireland1 ,i am actuated by no dislike to the respectable body of men who1 in the midst of fear and hatred1 gather its spoils2 on the contrary1 ,i esteem those men1 notwithstanding their past and perhaps still existing hostility to the religious and civil rights of their fellow-subjects and countrymen2 ,i even lament the painful position in which they are placed4 ,what ,i aspire to is the freedom of the people2 what ,i most ardently desire is their union--which can never be effected till injustice1 or the oppression of the many by the few1 is taken away4 ,and as to religion1 what ,i wish is to see her freed from the slavery of the state and the bondage of mammon--to see her restored to that liberty with which ,christ hath made her free--her ministers laboring and receiving their hire from those for whom they labor--that thus religion may be restored to her empire1 which is not of this world1 and men once more worship ,god in spirit and in truth4 ,in this one paragraph we have a compendious exposition of his views and aims with regard to the civil and religious freedom of his country4 ,when the disfranchisement of the forty-shilling free-holders--a disastrous piece of legislation--was effected in #ahca1 ,dr4 ,doyle undisguisedly expressed his liberal views of individual right and liberty4 ,one position maintained by him is somewhat remarkable1 and we record it1 as it accords with the opinion of our fellow-citizens4 ,it is the natural right of man1 he writes--a right interwoven with the essence of our constitution1 and producing as its necessary effect the ,house of ,commons--that a man who has life1 liberty1 and property1 should have some share or influence in the disposal of them by law4 ,take the elective franchise from the ,irish peasant1 and you not only strip him of the present reality or appearance of this right1 but you disable him and his posterity ever to acquire it4 ,he is now poor and oppressed--you then make him vile and contemptible2 he is now the image of a freeman--he will then be the very essence of a slave4 444 ,like the ,helot of ,athens1 he may go to the forum and gaze at the election1 and then return to hew his wood and fetch his water to the freeman--an inhabitant1 but not a citizen1 of the country which gave him birth4 ,whilst thus battling with the injustice of the times1 and wielding with effect his powerful pen and eloquent voice--expounding his views of human right1 reproving insidious politicians1 reprobating the ungenerous legislation of the government1 and refuting the calumnies by which his religion was assailed--he never lost sight of the humbler duties of his pastoral office4 ,from the turmoil and uncertain issues of public discussion1 he would revert with a sense of relief to the special care of his own immediate flock4 ,great was the solicitude which he so frequently expressed and always felt for the salvation of his people4 ,ah6 he would exclaim1 how awful to be made responsible for even one soul6 ',what then1' as ,st4 ,chrysostom says1 'to be held answerable1 not for one1 but for the whole population of an entire diocese6' ',quid de illis sacerdotibus dicendum1 a quibus sunt omnium animae requirendae8' ,it will tell1 more than volumes1 to know his character as bishop1 the exalted views he took of the value of a ,christian soul4 ,and if such1 he proceeds to say1 be the value of one immortal soul redeemed by the precious blood of an incarnate ,god1 what must be the value of thousands8 ,and oh6 what the responsibility of him who has to answer not for one1 but for multitudes--perhaps1 ultimately1 for millions6 ,how can he reasonably hope to enter heaven1 unless with his dying breath he can repeat with truth1 ',father1 of those whom thou hast confided to my care1 not one has perished through my fault4' ,in this spirit his efforts for the education and moral improvement of his people were carried on to a successful issue4 #ee ,his wise restitution of the laws of the church to their proper control over everything connected with his diocese1 completely removed the confusion which had long reigned4 ,the statutes decreed for the government of his clergy were rigorously enforced4 ,he placed upon a more intelligible basis the hitherto unsettled relations of religious orders to regular diocesan authority1 and although a religious himself1 he was never accused of partiality toward such communities4 ,in fact1 he found it necessary as it was difficult to induce them to undertake reforms which he deemed very much needed in some points of discipline1 in order to render their services more efficient4 ,he writes1 7vol4 ii4 p4 #ahg17 ,i have1 from time to time1 suggested to men of various religious orders the necessity of some further improvement1 but in vain4 ,they seem to me the bodies of men who are profiting least by the lights of the age4 ,i regret this exceedingly1 etc4 ,in #ahbb1 he wrote that to suppress or secularize half or most of the religious convents of men in ,portugal would be a good work4 ,thus his zeal for the cause of truth and the benefit of the church led him1 not only in this1 but in other instances1 to express opinions which not many would venture to publish4 ,it is curious to notice his estimate of a writer to whom but few would accord the same justice4 ,in a letter written to ,mariana in #ahcj1 he says1 ,you would like to know something of ,fleury4 ,well1 he is the ablest historian the church has produced2 but he told truth sometimes without disguise1 and censured the views and conduct of many persons1 who in return gave him a bad name4 ,as he loved1 instead of fearing freedom of thought1 so1 too1 he boldly expressed his opinions2 and with all the power at his command endeavored to carry out his views4 ,he was no mere theorist1 although he theorized extensively upon two important subjects4 ,one was upon the practicability of effecting a union between the ,anglican and ,catholic churches1 and the other had reference to the formation of a patriarchate for ,ireland4 ,for his action upon both of these questions1 arising as they did from the circumstances of his time1 he has been made the object of adverse1 as well as favorable criticism4 ,of his theological knowledge1 and of the light which his own native genius threw upon every topic he touched1 there can be but one opinion1 nor will there be found any rash enough to doubt the honesty of his intentions4 ,this is sufficient to exonerate him from all unbecoming charges in the minds of enlightened men1 and it is only the vicious and ignorant that stoop to the imputation of evil motives4 ,his view with regard to the union of the churches appears to have been a doctrinal submission to the ,catholic ,church1 and a compromise in matters of discipline4 ,the advantages to be derived from having a patriarch in ,ireland1 were presented by ,dr4 ,doyle with his usual argumentative ability2 and although accused of having desired the office for himself1 the charge is an undoubted fabrication4 ,both of these projects fell through for want of cooperation2 but they show the extent to which his love of truth1 and love of peace1 and love of increasing the power of ,christianity led him4 ,before concluding this notice of only a small portion of his labors and of the events which attended his career1 we will transcribe the opinion formed of him by the ,count de ,montalembert1 who1 in a tour through ,ireland in #ahcb1 visited ,dr4 ,doyle and ,dr4 ,murray4 #ef ,they have inspired me1 he writes1 with the greatest veneration1 not only for their piety and other apostolic virtues1 but for their eloquence and elegance of manners4 ,dr4 ,doyle is well known to the ,catholic world as one of the most solid pillars of the true faith1 and the three kingdoms will long remember his appearance at the bar of the ,house of ,lords1 where1 by his eloquent exposition of ,catholic doctrines1 he confounded the peers of ,england--the descendants of those men who signed the great charter1 but whose faith they have denied4 ,wasted by his continual labors and incessant care for the welfare of his people1 he felt the gradual approach of the last great combat to which all must ultimately yield4 ,he might well exclaim with ,saint ,paul1 ,i have fought the good fight4 ,i have finished my course4 ,i have kept the faith1 and now there is laid up for me a crown of glory1 which the ,lord shall render to me1 the just ,judge4 ,when exhausted nature apprised him that the last sad struggle was approaching1 he called for the viaticum4 ,but recollecting that his ,master had expired on the hard bed of the cross1 and anxious to resemble him even in his end1 he ordered his mourning priests to lift him almost naked from his bed1 and stretch him upon the cold and rigid floor1 and there1 in humiliation and penance and prayer1 ,james of ,kildare and ,leighlin accepted the last earthly embrace of his ,god4 ,this was in #ahcd1 in the forty-eighth year of his age1 and in the fifteenth of his episcopate4 ,mr4 ,fitzpatrick has rendered a valuable service to his country and religion by writing the life of this eminent man4 ,the next thing to being a great man is to propose to our people the example of great and good men1 whom they should honor1 and whose memory should inspire those who come after them4 ,ireland has many such men whose histories have not yet been written1 and whose lives would serve to raise in the souls of her sons a generous emulation of their actions4 ,an incident in the life of ,dr4 ,doyle will show that this was a principle with which he himself was deeply impressed1 and which he very emphatically expressed4 ,a foreign monk1 dressed rather picturesquely1 once approached him with a very meek aspect1 and said that he was a member of a community from the continent just come to ,ireland bearing the relics of a man said to have been beatified4 ,at the same time he offered to the bishop a considerable portion of the relics4 ,the bishop was somewhat ruffled in temper1 and replied sternly3 ,sir1 we need not the ashes of beatified foreigners while we see the bones of our martyred forefathers whitening the soil around us4 -------- #eg ,iona to ,erin6 ,what ,saint ,columba ,said ,to ,the ,bird ,blown ,over ,from ,ireland ,to ,iona4 ,footnote #ba ,footnote #ba3 ,this is a very ancient legend of the great founder of ,iona1 and very characteristic of his exalted patriotism and loving tenderness for all creatures1 in which he was an antitype of the seraphic ,st4 ,francis4 ,i4 ,cling to my breast1 my ,irish bird1 ,poor storm-tost stranger1 sore afraid6 ,how sadly is thy beauty blurred-- ,the wing whose hue was as the curd1 ,rough as the seagull's pinion made6 ,,ii4 ,lay close thy head1 my ,irish bird4 ,upon this bosom1 human still6 ,nor fear the heart that still has stirred ,to every tale of pity heard ,from every shape of earthly ill4 ,,iii4 ,for you and ,i are exiles both2 ,rest you1 wanderer1 rest you here6 ,soon fair winds shall waft you forth ,back to our own beloved north-- ,would ,god1 ,i could go with you1 dear6 ,,iv4 ,were ,i as you1 then would they say1 ,hermits and all in choir who join1 ',behold two doves upon their way2 ,the pilgrims of the air are they1 ,birds from the ,liffey or the ,boyne6' ,v4 ,but you will see what ,i am banned ,no more1 for my youth's sins1 to see-- ,my ,derry's oaks in council stand4 ,by ,roseapenna's silver strand-- ,or by ,raphoe your flight may be4 #eh ,,vi4 ,the shrines of ,meath are fair and far1 ,white-winged one6 not too far for thee-- ,emania1 shining like a star1 7,bright brooch on ,erin's breast you are67 ,footnote #bb ,that ,i am never more to see4 ,footnote #bb3 ,it is said that ,macha1 the queen1 traced out the site of the royal rath of ,emania1 near ,armagh1 with the pin of her golden brooch4 ,see ,mrs4 ,ferguson's ,ireland before the ,conquest1 for this and other interesting ,celtic legends4 ,,vii4 ,you'll see the homes of holy men ,far west upon the shoreless main-- ,in sheltered vale1 on cloudy ,ben1 ,where saints still pray1 and scribes still pen ,the sacred page1 despising gain6 ,,viii4 ,above the crofts of virgin saints4 ,there pause1 my dove1 and rest thy wing4 ,but tell them not our sad complaints6 ,for if they dreamt our spirit faints ,there would be fruitless sorrowing4 ,,ix4 ,perch as you pass amid their trees1 ,at noon or eve1 my travelled dove4 ,and blend with voices of their bees ,in croft1 or school1 or on their knees-- ,they'll bind you with their hymns of love6 ,x4 ,be thou to them1 ,o dove6 where'er ,the men or women saints are found4 ,my hyssop flying through the air2 ,my seven-fold benedictions bear-- ,to them1 and all on ,irish ground4 ,,xi4 ,thou wilt return1 my ,irish bird-- ,i1 ,colum1 do foretell it thee4 ,would thou couldst speak as thou hast heard ,to all ,i love--,o happy bird6 ,at home in ,eri soon to be6 -------- #ei ,magas2 or1 ,long ,ago4 ,a ,tale ,of ,the ,early ,times4 ,chapter ,,vii4 ,are there any souls who can read the gospels as they would a common history of an heroic being8 ,whose frames do not thrill at the sublime words the anointed ,saviour uttered8 ,whose hearts do not glow with an unearthly warmth at the touching incidents which mark the divine footsteps8 ,who see in the miracles only a temporary relief from natural ailments8 ,who feel in the tremendous agony of the passion only the ordinary tide of human emotion in contemplating suffering8 ,such as these will not sympathize with ,lotis1 as she rose from the cleansing waters with one sole aspiration in her heart2 one firm1 unchangeable purpose in her will2 one object of interest for her intellect2 one single love to fill every affection she was conscious of4 ,long ago she had sought the truth1 the light1 the life1 the way4 ,she possessed them now2 it remained for her to form herself upon the model1 to think his thoughts1 to act his deeds1 to live in his sight1 and be crucified in him2 and all because she felt that here on earth it was the only life worth having1 the only love worth loving4 ,the perversion of the world had become to her the necessary result of its having forsaken ,god2 and because it has forsaken ,god1 and cannot recognize truth1 it will ever persecute good2 and they that live godly in ,jesus ,christ must necessarily suffer persecution--the persecution to which a blessing is promised4 ,day and night did ,lotis meditate on the words of ,god2 nor was it long ere she desired to bring them into action4 ,after the example of the ,christians of ,jerusalem1 she had placed her resources at the feet of the ,bishop of ,athens1 and now she placed her services under his direction4 ,but there was one thought that haunted her1 and often she uttered one word in his presence2 that word was ,chione4 ,and what do you think can be done for ,chione1 my child8 asked the good bishop one day4 ,i do not know1 father1 7so let me call you1 ,i beg27 ,i do not know2 but ,i understand her struggle now1 which ,i did not when ,i sat with her on the ruins2 ,i see what she meant when she could not give up ,magas1 or the applause of the world4 ,she dreaded slavery because she was not free in soul4 ,would ,i could win the interior freedom for her by wearing the exterior chain4 ,father1 let me beg ,chione's freedom1 bodily freedom2 hers is not a spirit to be coerced into discipline4 ,surveillance only exasperates her4 ,i believe it1 my child1 when it is not of her own choosing4 ,remember1 however1 she obeys ,magas4 ,because he flatters her1 fosters her pride1 and maintains her in her station2 besides1 she loves him1 and a woman easily obeys where she loves4 ,she has bound herself to follow ,christ4 ,but she does not feel free to do it4 ,perhaps1 were exterior freedom granted to her1 she might follow what she knows to be truth4 ,i shall never forget her appearance in the ruins of ,tiryns when first ,i accosted her4 ,chione has not lost her faith4 #fj ,faith without works is dead1 ,footnote #bc said the bishop2 for works are the expression of our love1 of that divine charity without which we are nothing4 ,footnote #bd ,though we speak with the tongues of men and of angels1 and have not charity1 we become as sounding brass or tinkling cymbals4 ,footnote #bc3 ,james ii4 #bj4 ,footnote #bd3 ,i ,cor4 xiii4 ,i1 #b4 ,chione knows this1 said ,lotis2 she feels it intensely2 it is this feeling which occasions the struggle which she says is destroying her4 ,well1 she shall have her freedom1 my daughter1 though ,i doubt its effecting a good result4 ,it is scarcely in the redemptive order4 ,our ,lord cured those only whose souls were turned to him4 ,footnote #be ,footnote #be3 ,and he did not many mighty works there1 because of their unbelief4 ,matt4 xiii4 #eh4 ,men try to penetrate the secrets of matter1 and call their guesses science4 ,the action of mind they observe not1 or they would see that it obeys laws as unfalteringly as the insensate stone4 ,a soul perfectly united to ,god is endowed with power that seems supernatural to those who know not that 'soul' is of divine origin1 and even in its primal attributes towers above matter4 ,the action of such a soul on one open to its influences is miraculous1 as all action of grace is2 but it was once ,adam's privilege by conferred gift at creation2 it is now the ,christian's right1 purchased for him by ,christ4 ,the apostles1 as you know1 heal those whom their shadow falls upon1 not of their own power1 but by virtue of the ,holy ,spirit that dwells in them2 but the power of ,god thus manifests itself only when the recipient has at least some degree of recipient power1 obtained by grace also4 ,christ is silent before his unbelieving judges1 works no miracle for ,herod2 yet he cannot exist without grace flowing from him2 but grace falling on souls who will not receive it1 but hardens them the more4 ,footnote #bf ,this is why an apostate is ever harder to reconvert than one who has never received the faith2 this is why we are forbidden to cast our pearls before swine2 this is why ,i tremble for ,chione4 ,remorse was busy at her heart when you left her4 ,if she listens to the voice of ,god thus speaking within her1 she may yet be a saint2 if she rejects the proffered voice1 ,i fear1 ,i fear the effect of grace rejected in such a mind as hers2 it will demonstrate itself with no ordinary power4 ,footnote #bf3 ,and ,god hardened the heart of ,pharao4 ,exodus x4 #bg4 ,at the words she heard at ,ephesus she fainted away1 said ,lotis4 ,better1 answered the bishop1 better had she thrown herself at the feet of the apostle1 and said simply1 ',i repent me of my sin4' ,of what service to her was her remorse8 ,it stopped her eloquence1 paralyzed her tongue4 ,she could no longer mystify her hearers by vain terms of an unintelligible philosophy of which she held the key in her hand1 though she would not use it4 ,from what you have told me1 it was remorse1 and not repentance1 she felt4 ,oh6 that she might be saved1 though it were as by fire1 fervently ejaculated ,lotis4 ,the bishop looked at her face beaming with heavenly charity1 and the spirit of prophecy awoke within him4 ,lotis1 said he1 all ,christians are more or less sureties for one another1 and must bear each other's burdens1 even as our ,master became surety for each one of us1 and bore our sins upon the cross4 ,it is a fearful burden ,chione has to endure1 more especially for one of her disposition4 ',twill be1 indeed1 a saving as if by fire1 when salvation comes to her4 #fa ,say1 would you be willing to help her bear her burden8 ,if the flames are kindled1 and she shrinks from them1 will you pass through them in her place8 ,to save her8 ,yes6 ,indeed ,i would6 ,father1 ,i love ,chione4 ,then offer yourself to ,god for her1 my daughter1 and strengthen yourself by prayer for the suffering you must look forward to4 ,chione will be granted to expiatory love4 444444 ,chapter ,,viii4 ,now1 my ,chione1 we will go to ,athens4 ,no1 not to ,athens1 ,magas2 anywhere rather than to ,athens2 ,i beg of you not to take me to ,athens4 ,why1 what caprice is this8 ,where in all the world will you find yourself likely to be appreciated so well as at ,athens8 ,what audience more intelligent1 more refined1 more susceptible of sublime emotions8 ,i love ,athens2 you know ,i do1 and you may judge of the depth of my love for you1 that1 to ensure your freedom1 ,i have kept from it so long2 but now1 no one has a claim upon you save myself2 so we will go to ,athens4 ,i thought you had set your heart on going to ,rome4 ,that was only when ,i deemed ,athens was out of the question4 ,but my--my ,chione1 you are free2 we may go anywhere4 ,my estates are suffering from want of my presence2 besides1 ,i will settle some of the revenues on you4 ,you must come to ,athens with me4 ,it was very unwillingly that ,chione acceded2 but what could she do8 ,was she less a slave now than before8 ,sometimes she thought she was more so2 for had she gone to the ,lady ,damaris1 resumed the practice of her religion1 which clung to her inner being1 although outwardly she gave no sign of faith1 she knew she would have been not only freed1 but placed in a position to render her independent of ,magas4 ,and why did she not do this now--why8 ,her fame had preceded her to the city1 and she resolved to prove worthy of the reputation she had acquired4 ,poetry1 art1 mythic types1 and ,christian dogmas1 blended in euphonic union in the discourses she delivered1 while her impassioned verse thrilled every heart2 everywhere she was greeted as the modern ,sappho1 everywhere honored as the tenth muse2 and at last the acclamations of her fellow-citizens called her to the very temple of the muses in which we were first introduced to her1 there to receive the crown of music1 eloquence1 and poesy4 ,how could she refuse8 ,how could she renounce the world8 444 ,the throng was immense2 not only the lite of ,athens were there1 but strangers came in crowds to hear the celebrated ,leontium4 ,the small temple had been somewhat injudiciously chosen1 since not one half of the crowding throng could enter4 ,the festival had been proposed as a private tribute of friendship from the most exalted citizens of ,athens to their adorable muse2 but ,leontium 7as her public name ran7 was no longer a private person2 it was found impossible to distance the crowds2 and hastily a platform was erected outside the building in the sacred grove1 that the public might be accommodated and have a chance of hearing their favorite sing the glories of ,athens4 ,we will not attempt to describe the preparatory exercises2 the beautiful intertwinings and graceful wreathings of the various myths represented on that day1 when all the energies of the city seemed exhausted to impart glory to the classical allegories that were about to disappear from among mankind for ever4 #fb ,there was an elegance1 a chastity about the performance never witnessed before1 and an influence was felt impending that belonged not to the types before them4 ,to the superior taste of ,magas and ,chione some of this atmosphere of exaltation was doubtless due2 yet the audience felt as if something more than this was around them2 as if the divinities themselves were present1 and insisting on receiving the homage that for so many ages had been presented as their right4 ,but now it was nearly over4 ,the walls of ,thebes had risen to the lyre of ,amphion1 while the slow but untiring ,hours had followed to its soft music the glorious chariot of ,apollo2 and so artfully was all contrived that the spectators could not discover by what magic the stones were moved1 or the figures representing the hours supported as they moved on the mists away4 ,hermes1 instructing ,cadmus in the art of letters2 ,minerva1 introducing the distaff into the household2 and ,ceres1 teaching man to sow the corn2 all these had followed with appropriate poetry and music1 with many others of a similar description4 ,and then1 as if to heighten the effect by contrast1 came a hush1 a calm1 a silence2 the stage was covered with clouds2 the incense rendered every object indistinct2 low1 melancholy tones uttered at intervals1 kept expectation on the stretch2 then suddenly a blast of trumpets seemed to clear away the mists2 and the clouds receding1 disclosed ,aurora opening the gates of the morning to the music of the spheres1 who then passed slowly out of sight as a far more lovely vision broke upon the spectators--,venus ,urania1 borne by the graces into the company of the muses1 descending from the skies to greet the votaries who1 garlanded and wreathed1 were waiting to receive her in a burst of celestial song4 ,the illusion was complete2 the daughter of ,coelus and of ,light was on her first appearance greeted with a tumult of applause2 and as in wavy1 measured movements1 encircled by the graces1 she floated down to earth1 scattering her bright inspirations in sparks of fire upon the muses who were kindling into enthusiasm at her approach1 the whole assembly caught the melody as it rose from the inspired sisterhood3 ,beautiful daughter of ,coelus and ,light1 ,coming in glory to gladden our sight4 ,vision of loveliness6 star of the day6 ,grateful and glad is the homage we pay4 ,all girt by the graces1 thou comest to earth2 ,with joy and with music we welcome thy birth4 ,oh6 stay1 thou sweet goddess1 to brighten our life1 ,to banish our sorrows1 to still every strife4 ,o ,venus ,urania6 we call upon thee1 ,inspirer of gladness1 of ecstasy6 ,the singers were the multitude2 the sound of the voices of the muses1 or those who personified them1 was lost in the thrilling greeting which that multitude gave to their favorite--,chione4 ,dressed in a dazzling robe spangled with gold1 crowned with rays so artificially disposed that they seemed to emit light as she was descending1 ,chione came forward as the ,venus ,urania of the ,temple4 ,the throng hushed as she raised her arm to speak2 among the thousands there1 scarce a sound was heard2 the very breathing was suppressed1 for fear one tone of that eloquent voice should be unheard4 ,my friends1 she began4 ,suddenly a low1 piercing wail broke upon the throng1 like the moan of a distressed spirit1 so unearthly was the sound4 ,again it rang through the echoes1 under ground1 over head4 ,chione started1 and the throng was awed4 #fc ,then1 in the fearful silence1 these words were heard4 ,distinctly they came forth1 though uttered in a wild1 unearthly cadence1 as if they were spoken by one of another world3 ,once for silver1 now for gold1 ,is the ,lord of glory sold6 ,woe1 deep woe6 ,judas went to his own place2 ,nor shall time the sin efface4 ,he must every joy forego6 ,for ever1 woe6 ,footnote #bg ,footnote #bg3 ,it is on record that1 at the first preaching of the ,gospel1 numerous signs1 sounds1 and words were uttered in the pagan temples1 at the times of worship1 to the confusion of the multitudes therein assembled4 ,i leave the fact as ,i found it1 to the construction of my readers1 each one for himself6 ,every heart was chilled2 ,chione paled and trembled4 ,magas sprang to her relief4 ,it is but a trick of your own devising2 you are paid back in your own coin4 ,compose yourself1 it is nothing4 ,the crowd was too dense to allow a search to be made4 ,there was a long pause1 but at length ,chione was called upon to proceed4 ,her theme was1 ,the ,glory of ,athens--of ,athens1 the ,civilizer of the ,nations4 ,the tremor which was still slightly apparent in the frame of the ,venus ,urania when led forward by ,magas1 7now habited as ,apollo1 that he might consistently bear a part in the scene1 and watch over any demonstration that should again affect the goddess he worshipped with so intense a devotion17 gave an increased interest to her appearance2 the look of appeal she seemed to cast over that mighty throng1 as if to claim protection from some invisible enemy of her peace1 imparted an additional tenderness to the sympathies of the audience4 ,chione regained her courage1 as she inhaled the moral atmosphere that surrounded her2 she forced back the unwelcome shades of thought that had been called from their tombs1 where she intended them to lie buried for ever4 ,she gazed around4 ,the scene at the back of the stage had been changed4 ,the citadel of ,athens had been introduced1 and hovering above it was ,minerva1 the tutelary divinity of the place4 ,chione was evidently surprised2 perhaps again she suspected an interruption2 but ,magas whispered1 ,by my command1 and she at length made a gesture1 as if to begin4 ,there was1 however1 a marked change in her inspiration2 she was no longer the commanding genius of the temple4 ,it was evident to all that she was under some irrepressible1 some irresistible influence4 ,magas looked anxious2 his whole soul was bound up in ,chione's success4 ,she was his pride1 his glory1 his ,aspasia1 his ,sappho4 ,never yet had he known her to fail2 and he watched her words as if his very life depended upon them4 ,she commenced3 ,athenians1 you have asked me to speak to you of the glory of our city4 ,behold it6 ,wisdom is watching over its citadel4 ,the glorious ,minerva1 issuing from the head of the immortal father of gods and men1 presides over the welfare of ,athens--has ever presided over it6 ,this is our crown1 this our glory4 ,the history of this our ,athens1 is unlike the history of any other city in the world2 for it forms a chain of glory1 a long-continued tissue of renown4 ,her history is1 a web of varied dyes1 introducing characters of every degree of virtue1 talent1 heroism1 or nobility4 ,time was1 ,athenians1 that this beautiful land1 now covered with fertile fields and richly ornamented villas2 now the splendid resort of intelligence1 philosophy1 and science--time was1 that ,athens1 the enlightened1 the refined1 the artistic2 ,athens1 whose works of beauty will supply all time with models2 ,athens1 whose pathways throughout the whole region round1 even to the ,piraeus1 are adorned with statues of her illustrious sons--the poets1 painters1 warriors1 and statesmen she has produced2 ,athens1 within whose citadel arises the ,parthenon1 which would itself be the wonder of the world1 were not that wonder exhausted on beholding the gigantic statue of our tutelary-goddess which it contains2 time was1 that ,athens was a drear and sandy waste1 the resort of savages who knew not the use of fire--who were clothed in skins1 and lived on roots and acorns4 ,footnote #bh #fd ,but ,minerva looked with complacency on the spot she had selected for the dwelling-place of her chosen people4 ,she sent ,theseus to ,attica1 to clear the land from the pirates that infested it2 to enact laws1 and teach the uncultured men to submit to righteous rule4 ,it was first the law of force1 though not unmixed2 for men unused to government must be coerced until their powers of mind expand2 until they feel what lawful government can effect2 until they know that lawlessness is not true liberty4 ,but not long was ,athens ruled by one4 ,athenae1 ,queen1 who loves this citadel1 had other views4 ,her chosen city was to bear the glorious palm of an enlightened freedom4 ,a deed unparalleled in the annals of nations occurred4 ,codrus1 her king1 inspired by that sublime divinity who hath care of ,athens1 devoted himself to destruction1 that the favored city of ,minerva might be saved4 ,codrus died6 more sublime in his death than the loftiest monarch ever was in life4 ,who does not bow before the shade of ,codrus8 ,who does not feel that1 by his patriotism1 his disinterestedness1 his heroism1 he laid the foundation of his country's greatness8 ,his death--our life6 ,bear with me2 ,i must pause a moment here4 ,music filled up that pause2 but music so solemn1 so grand1 that the audience felt as if the spirit of the mighty dead were hovering over them4 ,chione resumed3 ,to so great a hero1 it was impossible to find a worthy successor6 ',man is not fit for irresponsible power4 ,too commonly he uses it but to give the reign to his own passions1 while he represses in his subjects the development of those lofty qualities of soul which distinguish man from the brutes that scour our plains4 ,no other king ever wielded the sceptre in ,athens2 for ,minerva intended that a people should be formed1 and not a single individual4 ,she wished a body of men to rise to greatness1 not a crowned monarch to acquire renown by the extirpation of millions4 ,athenae loved her children1 and she gave them a law-giver whose first act relieved the poor of their burdens2 released them from the oppression of the rich4 ,solon knew that the poor are the sinews of a nation2 he knew too1 that there is a point in which the crushing power of debt destroys the qualities that form the man1 the free-man so dear to wisdom2 and ,athens shook off this oppression beneath his righteous sway4 ,the laws of ,solon shall be honored as long as rectitude itself is honored1 because they recognize that principle of individual development which alone can form a great people4 ,particular modes of bringing out this principle may change1 may pass into other modes2 but the principle itself is eternal1 it is worthy of ,solon1 worthy of the descendant of the immortal ,codrus2 it was a direct inspiration of that wisdom which has so unweariedly watched over the formation of the ,athenian people4 #fe ,such a principle was it to which we owe the sages and the heroes that adorn our annals4 ,what heart does not thrill on hearing the name of ,miltiades1 of ,themistocles1 of ,cimon1 or ,aristides8 ,who does not glow with rapture at beholding the works of ,phidias1 of ,praxiteles1 ,apelles8 ,who can study with ,anaxagoras1 converse with ,socrates1 or speculate with ,plato and ,aristotle1 nor feel the divine inspiration communicated to themselves8 ,who can read the annals of ,xenophon and ,thucydides1 without feeling proud that he himself is a citizen of ,athens2 and which of us has not wept tears of ecstatic emotion at beholding a tragedy of ,euripides or of ,sophocles8 ,what country in the world could ever boast of such a galaxy of celebrated names8 ,tell me not that these men were not all of ,athenian origin4 ,what if some few of them first saw the light in some other city than that of ,athens4 ,not the less to ,athens do they owe their genius and their fame2 none the less from her did they receive their inspiration1 their culture1 and development4 ,the influence of ,athens is not limited to her own domain4 ,her great men live for ever to kindle thoughts of greatness throughout the world4 ,many far distant1 both in time and space1 will1 to endless ages1 love to muse with ,pericles on the banks of the ,ilissus1 while he is planning those exquisite creations which have linked his name with all that is sublime and beautiful in human art4 ,many will rejoice with him as gently he sinks to rest1 sustained by the sublime consciousness that1 during the whole of his long career1 he had never caused an ,athenian to shed a tear4 ,his career was for humanity1 and in this he resembled ,athens2 for unlike the vulgar glory that crowns the conqueror's arms1 the boast of ,athens is that1 although so many deeds of prowess attest the heroic valor of her children1 yet never1 never did she enter on an aggressive war for the mere sake of conquest1 for the vain-glorious motive of adding by injustice another territory to her own4 ,no1 ,athens has shed her benefits abroad2 has made known to the nations all the virtues of the earth4 ,she has proved herself capable of great acts1 alike in war as in peace4 ,her genius is godlike1 it is diffusive4 ,the very site ,minerva chose for her citadel betokens this destiny4 ,athens is compelled by circumstance to seek by peaceful commerce the corn necessary for her subsistence4 ,the goddess gave her the honey of ,hymettus1 the ,pentelic marble1 and the silver mines of ,laurion1 that her eloquence might be sweet1 her courage firm1 and her commerce gainful2 but she denied her corn1 that corn which is the nutriment of the body1 that1 by fetching it from foreign lands1 she might1 in doing so1 communicate to the world those sublime ideas which form the nobler nutriment of the soul4 ,thus is it that wisdom is the glory of ,athens2 it explains the history of the past2 it affords a key to our present position4 ,the mighty genius of force now bestrides the nations2 it keeps down the surging emotions of half-savage men2 itself1 with its stoical insensibility to beauty1 with its gladiatorial slaughters1 betokening that it is hardly yet emerged from barbarism4 ,is this constrained calm to effect no purpose in the decrees of wisdom8 ,examine1 and you will find that the glory of ,athens is still increasing1 even under a supposed subjection4 ,footnote #bi ,footnote #bi3 ,the ,romans1 out of reverence to letters1 left to ,athens a nominal freedom a long time after they had virtually subjugated her4 ,it was not till the reign of ,severus that her civilization was crushed4 ,chione is supposed to speak one hundred and fifty years before that period4 #ff ,the nominal dependent refines and civilizes her conqueror4 ,the wisdom of ,athens1 which1 confined within its own narrow domain1 could but have enlightened the inhabitants of a few cities1 is now spreading over the entire earth2 the words of its sages are instructing our haughty rulers2 the myths of our poets are civilizing ,rome4 ,this1 then1 is the glory of ,athens2 and such glory must needs be eternal4 ,lands may change owners1 and physical force give a momentary1 a seeming nobility to a barbarian2 but mind is immortal6 the empire of ideas lasts for ever4 ,thus is ,athens the civilizer of the nations4 ,sons of ,athens6 heirs of the philosophic ages6 children of the poets6 to you ,i need not explain how the beautiful devices which surround us are types of a higher knowledge--how many a glorious idea lies hidden under the name ,minerva4 ,the veiled ,isis of ,egypt1 upon whose statue was inscribed1 ',i am all that has been1 all that shall be1 and none among mortals has ever yet lifted my veil1' was1 as you know1 but another form of our loved ,deity4 ,wisdom must preside at every institution designed to last4 ,the precepts of ,anaxagoras1 the reveries of the divine ,plato1 alike instruct us in the eternity of ideas4 ,truth goes by different names upon this earth2 it is represented by the nations under different myths1 according to the conception men form of it4 ,it requires a high intellect to contemplate truth in the abstract2 to most minds it is simplified1 endowed with power by being personified2 hence our worship4 ,isis in ,egypt1 in ,athens becomes ,minerva2 the veil1 if not lifted1 is at least rendered more transparent2 and it may be that the time of its lifting is at hand4 ,portents of wondrous power are working in men's hearts2 the principle of development evolved in ,athens is becoming spread over the earth4 ,let us take courage4 ,athens is still at the head of civilization2 it remains with her children that she so continue4 ,three words are awakened within my breast1 ,footnote #cj ,while dwelling on ,athena's story2 ,three words are a key unlocking the rest1 ,illustrating ,attica's glory4 ,these words proceed from no outward cause1 ,within us they write their immortal laws4 ,man was created all free1 all free1 ,chains seen at his birth were never2 ,believe it1 in spite of the enmity ,and folly of men put together4 ,i fear not the slave who has broken his chain1 ',tis the ,godlike resuming his own again4 ,and ,virtue is more than an empty call4 ,it may guidance and practice be4 ,though man may stumble1 and totter1 and fall1 ,he may strive for divinity4 ,and what unto reason doth seem unreal4 ,full oft1 to the child-like1 doth ,wisdom reveal4 ,for a ,god doth exist2 and a ,holy ,will ,is there still1 though the human will palters2 ,over time1 over space1 the high thought floateth still4 ,all glowing with life that ne'er falters2 ,while all things move round in unceasing change1 ,that spirit breathes peace through the heavenly range4 ,oh6 guard well these words within every breast1 ,for on them rests ,attica's glory2 ,proclaim and observe them1 with increasing zest1 ,they're the keys of ,athena's story4 ,no man can e'er forfeit his inward worth4 ,while wisdom within to these words giveth birth4 ,footnote #cj3 ,the ,german student will here recognize that this song is an imitation1 or rather a translation adapted to the subject of ,schiller's ,drei ,worte neun' ich ,euch1 inhaltschwer4 ,the infidelity of ,chione1 like that of modern times1 does not hesitate to avail itself of truths learned from ,christianity1 when such truths can adorn their unsound philosophy2 in fact1 the truth that is in it1 saves their theory2 error cannot stand of itself4 ,chione ceased4 ,she had not shone as she was wont to do2 she felt conscious that in palliating paganism to please the audience1 she was paltering with her own conscience4 ,when she proposed first to speak her address1 she had intended to give a synopsis of the philosophy and poetry of ,greece1 and to avoid mythology2 but the words she had heard had embittered her spirit1 rendered it defiant2 and half-angrily1 half-sarcastically1 had she uttered the sentiments we have recorded4 ,there was not1 however1 the mesmeric sympathy between her and the assembled crowd that was wont to produce electric bursts of enthusiasm1 albeit they agreed with the sentiments expressed4 ,her own enthusiasm had been quelled before commencing2 she could not then communicate what she did not possess4 ,but it had been previously arranged that she was to be crowned2 she had been invited there for that purpose2 therefore the figure representing ,minerva ceased to hover in the air1 came forward1 and1 to very sweet music1 placed the crown on ,chione's head4 #fg ,beauty1 crowned by ,wisdom's hand1 ,reigns triumphant in the land4 ,her scented dower ,is music linked to poesy1 ,in tones of heavenly harmony1 ,attuned to earth's necessity by ,eloquence1 bright power6 ,the pause that succeeded was filled up with throwing of bouquets and shouts of congratulation4 ,when a lull came1 and ,chione was about to give a parting salute to the spectators1 these words came distinctly to her ear1 though in so low a tone that they were inaudible to any but herself and those close to her3 ,earth's crown of glory is a crown of thorns2 ,such the ,saviour's head adorns1 ,who died for thee4 ,crowned with thorns1 for thee he bled4 ,on the cross his life-blood shed4 ,all for thee6 ,chione became very pale2 she attempted to come forward1 but fell back in the arms of her attendants2 she had fainted4 -------- ,translated ,from ,the ,french4 ,the ,unity ,of ,the ,human ,race4 ,this is one of a series of popular discourses given at the ,imperial ,asylum of ,vincennes1 ,france1 by ,a4 de ,quatrefages1 member of the ,institute1 and ,professor of ,natural ,science4 ,after some preliminary remarks to his audience1 he proceeds to the question1 ,what is man8 ,it is not difficult to perceive that man is neither a mineral nor a vegetable1 neither a plant nor a stone4 ,but is he an animal8 ,not likely1 when we reflect upon all his attributes4 ,none of you would like to be compared to those animals who feed on grass1 to the hog who wallows in the mire1 nor to the dog1 in whom man has found the qualities of both friend and companion2 nor further1 to the horse1 though he were as celebrated as the famous ,gladiator4 ,man is not an animal4 ,he is distinguished above the brute creation by numerous and important attributes4 ,we have only to consider his intellectual capacity1 the power of articulation1 which gives to every people a special language1 the capacity to write1 which reproduces language2 the aid of the fine arts1 to explain and materialize the conceptions of his imagination4 ,he is also distinguished above animals by two fundamental characters which belong solely to him4 ,man is the only organized and living being who has the abstract sentiment of both good and evil1 the only being in whom there exists a moral sense1 the only one who believes in a future state1 and who recognizes the existence of beings superior to himself1 having influence upon him for good or evil4 ,it is this two-fold conviction which grasps and holds the great truths which are called religion4 #fh ,at a later period ,i will return to these two questions of morality and religion1 not as a theologian1 but as a naturalist4 ,at present ,i limit myself to this fact1 that man1 however savage he may be1 shows signs of morality and religion that are not found in any animal4 ,consequently1 man is a being apart1 separated from animals by two great distinctions which are his own1 and also by his incontestable superiority4 ,there the difference ceases4 ,with regard to his body1 man is nothing more or less than an animal4 ,apart from some differences of form and disposition1 he is no more than equal to the superior animals that surround us4 ,if we take for comparison those that assimilate to our general form1 anatomy shows us that our organs are the same as theirs2 we find in them muscle for muscle1 nerve for nerve1 that is found in man himself4 ,physiology1 in turn1 has demonstrated that1 in the body of man1 the organs1 the muscles1 the nerves1 have the same animal functions4 ,this fact is indisputable1 taken from a purely scientific and practical view4 ,we cannot experiment upon man1 but it is possible to do so upon animals4 ,human physiology employs the means to enlighten us upon our organic functions4 ,physicians have carried to the sick-bed the result of their investigations upon animal life4 ,anthropology also1 we shall see1 has derived useful lessons from beings who are essentially our inferiors4 ,anthropology should descend still lower than animals to enlighten us thoroughly4 ,vegetables are not animals any more than animals are men2 but man1 animals1 and vegetables are linked together in the same living organization4 ,by this only1 they are distinguished from the minerals1 which are neither the one nor the other1 and by certain general facts known to all4 ,all organized beings have a limited duration1 all are created small and weak1 all grow and become strong2 during a part of their existence1 all decrease in energy and vitality1 sometimes also in size1 then die4 ,during life1 all organized beings have need of nourishment4 ,before dying1 all produce1 either by a seed or by an egg1 7,i speak of species1 not individuals17 which is true of the species that seem to come directly from a shoot1 a layer1 or a graft2 all proceed from a grain1 or an egg4 ,thus1 all these great phenomena1 common to all living organized beings1 including man as well as plants1 suppose a general law for their government4 ,science confirms this conclusion every day1 which is not an invention of reasoning alone1 but is regarded as an experienced fact4 ,further explanations are not necessary to show the magnificent result4 ,how admirable1 that man and the smallest insect1 that the lord of the soil and the smallest plant1 are attached one to the other1 by the same links1 and that the entire living creation forms together a perfect harmony6 ,in this communion1 and in certain phenomena of this accordance with certain laws1 equally common1 there results one consequence upon which ,i would not too strongly insist4 ,whatever may be the questions relating to man1 that we have to examine whenever these touch upon any one of the phenomena that are common to all living organized beings1 we must not only investigate animal life1 but also vegetable life1 if we would wish to find the truth4 #fi ,when one of these questions is proposed1 what can we truthfully urge in reply8 ,we must examine man under the general laws that govern other living organized beings4 ,if the investigation tends to make man an exception to these general laws1 we shall know it is false4 ,if you resolve the problem so as to include man in the general laws1 you may be sure that you are scientific and correct4 ,with these proofs1 and these only1 ,i proceed to the second question of anthropologists4 ,are there several species of men1 or does there exist but one1 comprising several races8 ,some explanations are necessary4 ,examine the designs before you1 and you will discover the principal varieties exhibited in the human type4 ,you have there individuals from all parts of the world2 you see that they differ considerably in color1 some in their hair1 others in their size1 or in their peculiar features4 ,it behooves us to ascertain if the differences that present themselves in these human groups are those of species1 or if they merely indicate the existence of races belonging to the same species4 ,in order to reply to this question1 you must ascertain the true significance of the words species and race4 ,the result of the discussion depends upon these two words4 ,unhappily1 they are often confounded and badly defined1 and we become enveloped in mystery when we wish to consider them more closely4 ,let us then form a precise idea before entering into otherwise profitless details4 ,none of you certainly confound the horse with the ass2 though the horse may be no larger than the dogs of ,newfoundland1 or though the ass should attain the size of an ordinary horse--for example1 the large asses of ,poitou4 ,you will immediately say they are different species4 ,you will say the same if you place a dog and a wolf side by side4 ,we call by the one name of dogs the different types1 such as the spaniel1 the greyhound1 the lap-dog1 the ,newfoundland1 the ,king ,charles2 and we are right4 ,however1 if we were to judge by the eyes only1 and even after more minute observations1 there is between the dogs ,i have named greater differences of color1 proportion1 and size1 than between the horse and the ass4 ,the latter have certainly more similarity between them than the types of dogs ,i have named4 ,if ,i should place a black and a white water-spaniel side by side1 you would call them both spaniels1 though of a different color4 ,when we examine vegetables1 it is the same thing2 a red and a white rose are equally roses2 pears that are sold two for a penny1 are the same species as those sold at twenty cents each4 ,without any doubt you have arrived at the exact conclusion of the naturalists2 like them1 you have resolved the questions of species and race1 which at first sight seemed1 for the reasons ,i have given1 more or less confused4 ,these examples fully prove that popular observation and common sense are in many things fully as reliable as the investigations of science4 ,were such deductions generalized into scientific language1 ,i feel sure there would be found few if any mistakes4 ,these investigations prove that animals and vegetables vary within certain limits4 ,the dog remains but a dog1 whatever may be his general form1 color1 or his shape4 ,the pear is but a pear1 whatever may be its flavor or the color of its skin4 ,it is from these facts that ,i am led to believe that variations can be transmitted through generations4 ,the union of two spaniels produces spaniels1 the union of two mastiffs produces mastiffs4 #gj ,thus1 in a general manner1 the result is1 that beings of the same species can cease to resemble each other absolutely2 moreover1 take exteriorly different characters1 without isolating or forming different species2 as ,i have said1 the dog remains a dog1 whatever may be the modifications he presents4 ,these are precisely the groups formed by individuals which we have spoken of as the remote primitive types of species that have formed distinct secondary groups1 which naturalists call races4 ,you will understand1 then1 what is meant in speaking of the races of beeves1 horses1 etc4 ,we have domesticated but one kind of beeves1 which have generated the ,breton race1 the great beeves of ,uri1 of such savage aspect1 and also the gentle ,durhams4 ,we have but one kind of domestic horse1 and this has given us the pony1 as well as the enormous horses that are seen in the streets of ,london1 commonly used by the brewers2 finally1 the several races of sheep1 goats1 etc41 belong to one and the same species4 ,i place this assemblage of proof vividly before you to avoid vagueness in your investigations1 which would be attended with serious mistakes4 ,i will now cite examples from the vegetable kingdom1 which will be as familiar to you as the foregoing4 ,let us take the coffee-tree4 ,its history is quite interesting4 ,the coffee-tree was originally from ,africa4 ,it has from time immemorial been cultivated in ,abyssinia1 on the borders of the ,red ,sea4 ,it was not until toward the fifteenth century that the seed migrated from this sea and penetrated into ,arabia1 where it has been cultivated since that epoch4 ,it is from there in particular that we get the famous ,mocha4 ,the use of coffee became common immediately4 ,from the east it was introduced into ,europe at a later period1 and it was at ,marseilles that it was used for the first time in ,france4 ,the first cup of coffee that was drank in ,paris1 was in the year #affg4 ,a few grains were brought over by a ,french sailor called ,thevenot4 ,two years after1 ,soliman ,aga1 ambassador of the ,porte1 under ,louis ,,xiv41 gave an entertainment to some friends of the king1 where it was introduced1 and the beverage pronounced delightful4 ,the use of coffee1 however1 did not become general in ,france until the eighteenth century4 ,you see1 then1 that coffee has not been very long in use4 ,it was almost a century and a half before it became general among ,europeans4 ,during this time ,europe became tributary to ,arabia for this luxury4 ,all the coffee that was used in ,europe came from ,arabia1 and particularly from ,mocha4 ,toward the beginning of the eighteenth century the ,dutch tried to import it to ,batavia1 one of their ,indian colonies4 ,they succeeded4 ,from ,batavia1 some plants were sent to ,holland1 and planted in heated earth4 ,this also proved a success4 ,one of these plants was carried to ,paris in #agaj1 and was placed in one of the beds of the ,jardin des ,plantes4 ,it flourished1 and supplied numberless plants4 ,toward #agbj or #agbe1 a ,french marine officer named ,captain ,destiaux1 thought that1 as ,holland had cultivated coffee in ,batavia1 it could also be acclimated in the ,french colonies in the ,gulf of ,mexico4 ,at the moment of embarking for ,martinique he took three plants from the ,jardin des ,plantes1 and carried them with him4 ,the voyage was long and impeded by head-winds4 ,water becoming scarce1 it became necessary to put the crew upon short rations4 #ga ,captain ,destiaux1 like the others1 had but a small allowance for each day1 and this he shared with his coffee-plants4 ,notwithstanding all his care1 two of them died in their transit4 ,one only arrived safe and sound at ,martinique4 ,planted immediately1 it prospered wonderfully1 and from it have descended all the coffee-trees in the ,antilles1 and in ,south-,america4 ,thirty years after1 our western colonies exported millions of pounds each year4 ,you see that the plant1 starting from ,africa1 reached the east1 the extremity of ,asia1 then ,america and the west4 ,it has consequently made almost the tour of the world4 ,in this long passage it has changed4 ,laying aside the plant that we are not familiar with1 let us take merely the grain4 ,it is not necessary to be a planter to distinguish its different qualities and their provinces4 ,no one will confound the ,mocha with the ,bourbon1 the ,rio ,janeiro with the ,martinique4 ,each grain carries in its form1 in its proportions and aroma1 its extraction1 so to speak4 ,from whence came these changes8 ,we cannot certainly explain the why or the wherefore1 and follow rigorously the relation of cause and effect2 but in taking these phenomena together1 it is evident that these modifications result from the differences of temperature1 climate1 and cultivation4 ,this example1 taken from the vegetable kingdom1 shows us that by transporting the same vegetable to different places1 and subjecting it to different culture1 diverse races are obtained4 ,tea that was transported to ,south ,america several years since presents the same results4 ,now take an example from among the animals4 ,you know that the turkey is a native of ,america4 ,its introduction into ,europe is quite recent4 ,in ,america the turkey is wild2 and there1 in the condition of its natural existence1 it presents several characteristics which distinguish it from the domestic bird4 ,the wild turkey is beautiful4 ,of a rich brown color1 its plumage presents the reflections of blue1 copper1 and gold1 making it truly a beautiful ornament4 ,it was on account of its plumage that it was first brought to ,france4 ,no one dreamed of eating it1 and the first one that was served upon a table in ,france1 was in the year #aegj1 and upon the occasion of the nuptials of ,king ,charles ,,ix4 ,when found to be such a luxury1 it was considered too good to be merely looked at1 and it passed from the court to the farm-yard1 from farm to farm1 from east to west1 from north to south4 ,at this present time it is an article of commerce all over ,france4 ,in going from farm to farm1 and from country to country1 this bird has sustained different conditions of existence1 nourishment1 and temperature1 but never a continuation of its primitive condition that was natural to it in ,america4 ,the result is1 that it has changed1 and at this present time the turkey in ,france bears no resemblance to its savage source4 ,in general1 it is smaller1 and its rich plumage has undergone a marked change4 ,some are yellow1 others white1 some mixed with black1 gray1 and yellow4 ,almost all the localities devoted to raising the fowl have caused several new varieties1 which have transformed them into races4 ,to have thus changed their habits so as to lose resemblance to their first parents1 are our ,french fowls any the less descendants of the wild turkeys of ,america8 ,are they less the brothers1 or cousins1 if you like the term better8 ,have they ceased to be of the same species8 ,certainly not6 #gb ,that which is characteristic of the turkey is also true of the rabbit4 ,the wild rabbit lives around and about us1 on our downs1 and in our woods4 ,it resembles our domestic rabbits but little4 ,among the latter you will see the large and the small1 the smooth-haired and the silky2 the black and the white1 the yellow and the gray1 and the mixed4 ,in a word1 this species comprises a great number of different races1 all constituting one and the same kind with the wild races we see around us4 ,from these facts1 which ,i could multiply1 we can deduce an important consequence to which ,i call your attention4 ,a pair of rabbits left unmolested in a field1 would1 in a few years1 people entire ,france with their descendants4 ,we have seen how the single coffee-plant1 carried by ,captain ,destiaux1 has propagated all the plants now found in ,america4 ,the wild turkeys and their domestic descendants1 the wild rabbits and theirs1 reduced to captivity1 could then be considered by naturalists as all proving equally their descent from one primitive pair4 ,this is the secret of species4 ,having always before our eyes numbers of single groups of animals or vegetables1 for one reason or other we hardly consider them as descendants of one only primitive pair2 we call what we see a species2 if there are differences observable among these groups1 they are the races of this species4 ,observe that1 in my explanations1 ,i have not given for a certainty the existence of one primitive source for rabbits and turkeys4 ,i do not affirm the fact1 as neither observation nor experience--the two guides we must follow in science--teaches anything in this regard4 ,i simply say1 all are as though descended from one only primitive pair4 ,in summing up the question of species and race1 it is not difficult to understand nor to believe1 when we know the savage type1 and have historical authority which permits us to attach to this type the groups1 more or less different1 according to their domestication4 ,but when we are ignorant of the savage type1 and in want of historical authority1 the question becomes extremely difficult at first1 because the differences we find in one and the other1 and above all1 in the different groups1 could hardly be considered other than such as characterize different species4 ,happily1 physiology comes then to our relief4 ,we find in this science one of those grand and beautiful general laws1 which holds and maintains the established order1 and which we admire the more we study it4 ,it is the law of crossing1 which governs animals as well as vegetables1 and is1 consequently1 applicable to man himself4 ,we understand by the term crossing1 all unions effected between animals belonging to different species or to two different races4 ,the result of the unions obeying these laws is1 that if the animals of different species unite1 in the majority of cases the union is barren4 ,thus1 for example1 it has been tried a million of times all over the world1 to effect a union between rabbits and hares4 ,it is said to have succeeded twice4 ,much doubt is cast upon this operation by the testimony of a man of undoubted talent1 habituated to experiments1 who believed these unions to be possible4 ,though availing himself of all possible means of proof1 he was not more fortunate than his predecessors1 ,buffon and the brothers ,geoffrey ,st4 ,hilaire4 ,thus1 the rabbit and the hare1 though presenting a great conformity in appearance1 cannot reproduce4 ,such is the general result of crossing two different species4 #gc ,in a few cases1 the union between two different species may be fruitful1 but the offspring cannot reproduce4 ,for example1 the union between a horse and an ass4 ,the product of this union is the mule4 ,all the mules in the world are the descendants of the ass and the mare4 ,these animals are so numerous in ,spain and ,south ,america that they are preferred to horses1 on account of their great strength and powers of endurance4 ,the genet1 which is less desirable because it is not so robust1 is the fruit of the inverse crossing of the horse and the female ass4 ,the genet1 no more than the mule1 can reproduce4 ,if one or the other is desired1 of necessity recourse is had to the two species4 ,in extremely rare cases1 fecundity remains among some of their descendants1 but it diminishes gradually from the second generation down to the third1 fourth1 and fifth4 ,the same result is shown in the union of the canary bird4 ,i could here accumulate a crowd of analogous details4 ,above all1 two great general facts appear that comprehend all1 and are the expression of the law2 they are that1 notwithstanding the accumulated observations of years1 made from experiments on certain species1 not a single example is known of an intermediate species being obtained by the crossing of animals belonging to two different species4 ,this general fact explains how order is maintained in the actual living creation4 ,were it otherwise1 the animal and vegetable world would have been filled with intermediate groups1 passing from one to the other insensibly1 and in the confusion1 it would be impossible for naturalists to recognize them4 ,the general conclusion to draw from these precedents is1 that infecundity is the law of union between animals of different species4 ,unions are always more fruitful when between two animals of the same race4 ,their descendants are as fruitful as the parents and the grandparents1 where pains are taken to preserve the race pure1 and to prevent strange blood from debasing it4 ,when1 on the contrary1 a union is effected between two different races belonging to the same species1 producing a mongrel race1 the contrary takes place4 ,there is no difficulty in obtaining a mongrel race--the result of a crossing of races2 but the difficulty is when there is a pure race1 and it is desirable to have it maintained1 that great care is needed to prevent strange blood from changing it4 ,races crossed by mongrels--that is to say1 by animals of the same species1 but belonging to different races1 multiply around us4 ,there are the dogs in the streets1 the cats of the alleys1 the coach-horses2 all beasts among whom the race is undecided in consequence of crossing indiscriminately1 their characteristics becoming confounded4 ,far from endeavoring to obtain cross races1 men who are occupied in raising stock1 also bird-fanciers1 know with what care they endeavor to preserve the purity of the races they keep4 ,this is the general fact1 and the result is1 that infecundity is the law of unions between animals belonging to different races4 ,this is the fundamental distinction between species and race4 ,this distinction ought to be the more known and considered1 as it is borrowed from experience4 ,when there are two animals1 or two vegetables1 of whom we are uncertain as to whether they are two distinct species1 we have but to observe if their union is fruitful2 and if this quality attaches to their descendants1 we can then affirm that1 despite the differences that separate them1 they are the races of the same species4 #gd ,if1 on the contrary1 their offspring diminishes in a remarkable manner at the end of several generations1 we can then1 without hesitation1 declare them to belong to distinct species4 ,in citing these examples1 ,i have not overlooked the subject of my discourse1 or the question at its commencement4 ,in referring to the designs before our eyes1 they show us that between the human groups the differences are marked enough1 though to all appearance less considerable than they appeared at first4 ,we do not know the types1 or the primitive types1 of the several groups4 ,when we meet with one or several men presenting the characteristics of these types1 and we cannot recognize them in spite of historical explanations1 we are led to judge by our eyes4 ,without taking man himself into account1 we cannot decide if these several differences that present themselves in the human family are those of race or of species2 if man can be considered as having had but one primitive source only1 or if he should have been derived from several primitive sources4 ,i have said before1 and repeat again1 man is an organized and living being4 ,under this head he obeys all the general laws to which are attached all organized and living beings2 he obeys1 consequently1 the law of crossing4 ,he must then apply this law to ascertain if there is one or several species of men4 ,take1 for example1 the two types farthest removed--those which seem more separated than the others by the greatest differences--namely1 the white and the black4 ,if these types really constitute distinct species1 the union between these species should follow the proof that we have seen characterize the unions between animals1 and vegetables1 of different species4 ,they should be unfruitful in the majority of cases1 or nearly so4 ,fecundity should disappear at the end of a short period1 and they could not form intermediate families between the negroes and the whites4 ,if these are only the races of one and the same species1 then unions1 on the contrary1 should be quite fruitful1 and fecundity should be found among their descendants1 and they should form intermediate races4 ,these facts are decisive1 and admit of no doubt4 ,for three centuries the whites1 par excellence1 the ,europeans1 have achieved1 so to say1 the conquest of the world4 ,they have gone everywhere4 ,everywhere they have found local races who have borne them no resemblance4 ,whenever they have crossed with them1 these unions have been fruitful2 more so than with those indigenous to themselves4 ,man1 from the result of the institution of slavery--which happily has never stained the soil of ,france--has transported the negro everywhere2 everywhere he has crossed with his slaves1 and everywhere they have formed a population of mulattoes4 ,wherever the negro has crossed with local groups or families1 there has arisen an intermediate race1 who in character manifest their two-fold origin4 ,the whites have finally crossed with the mongrels of all origins1 and the result is1 that in certain quarters of the globe--particularly in ,south ,america--there is an inextricable mixture of people1 comparable1 under the class1 to the dogs in our streets and the cats of our alleys4 ,the rapidity with which these mongrel races cross and multiply is really remarkable4 ,it is scarcely three centuries--hardly twelve generations--since ,europeans penetrated into different parts of the world4 #ge ,it is estimated that already the number of mongrels resulting from the crossing of whites with natives1 is a seventieth of the whole population of the globe4 ,experience is indisputable1 if we even deny modern science1 or at least1 wish to make man an exception to all living and organized beings4 ,we must admit that all men form but one species1 composed of a certain number of different races2 consequently1 all men can only be considered as having descended from one primitive pair4 ,we arrive at this conclusion in despite of all kinds of dogmatical1 theological1 philosophical1 and metaphysical considerations4 ,observation and experience alone1 applied to the animal and vegetable kingdoms1 in a word1 science1 conducts us to the conclusion1 there exists but one species of man4 ,this result1 ,i do not fear to say1 is of great and serious importance2 for it creates in our minds an idea of the universal fraternity of science and reason1 the only schools that many persons recognize at this present time4 ,i hope that my demonstrations will have convinced you2 meanwhile1 ,i am not ignorant1 and you all know1 that anthropologists differ4 ,there are among my contemporaries a number of men1 even of great merit1 who believe in the plurality of the human species4 ,you may possibly come into contact with them4 ,listen attentively1 then1 to the reasons they will urge to make you see with their eyes4 ,you will find that their reasonings all tend to prove that there is too great a difference between the negro and the white for them to be of the same species4 ,in reply1 state that between the black and the white spaniel1 the lap-dog and the mastiff1 there exist greater differences than exist between the ,european and the ,african4 ,yet these animals are all dogs4 ,they may argue1 perhaps1 that man1 whatever may have been his characteristics1 could not have generated both blacks and whites4 ,then ask why the wild turkey1 whose origin1 and that of its ancestors1 we are acquainted with1 and the wild rabbit1 which we find everywhere1 could have generated all our domestic races8 ,we cannot1 ,i repeat1 explain perfectly the how and the wherefore2 but what we know is1 that the fact exists1 and we shall find a general explanation in all states of existence--in all conditions of people4 ,it is not1 then1 surprising that man presents1 in the different groups1 the differences herein depicted2 man who trod the earth long before the turkey and the rabbit2 man1 who for centuries has existed upon the surface of the globe1 submitting to the most diverse and opposite conditions of existence1 multiplying again the causes of those modifications by his manners and habits1 by his ways of living1 by more or less care in his own preservation2 man1 finding himself in more marked and varied conditions than those sustained by the animals we have quoted4 ,if anything surprises us1 it is that the distinctions are not more considerable4 ,in turn1 ask the polygenists--as those savans are called who believe in the multiplicity of the human species--how it is that when the white man locates in any country1 from the antipodes1 if you will1 or from ,america or ,polynesia--that if he unites with the natives1 who differ the most completely from him1 these unions are fruitful1 and that1 above all1 there remains traces of this alliance in producing a mongrel race8 #gf ,if you press the question more closely1 you will find them denying the truth of species2 by so doing1 placing themselves in contradiction with all naturalists1 botanists1 or zoologists1 without exception2 consequently1 with all the eminent minds who have followed in the wake of ,buffon1 ,tournefort1 ,jussieu1 ,cuvier1 and ,geoffrey ,st4 ,hilaire1 who made the animal and vegetable kingdoms their study1 without discussion1 or dreaming of its connection with man4 ,in agitating these doctrines1 polygenists place themselves in opposition to the most firmly established science4 ,you will hear them declare that man1 above all1 is an exception2 that he is guided by laws peculiar to himself2 and that arguments deduced from the study of animals and plants1 are not applicable to him4 ,then reply that1 in the name of all the natural sciences1 they are certainly in error1 and that it is an impossibility that a living and organized being can escape the laws of organization and of life1 having a body fortified against the laws that govern inorganic matter2 that man1 to be living and organized1 obeys1 under this title1 all general laws1 and those of intersection like all the others4 ,the conclusion that we have attained is1 then1 legitimate1 and the nature of the arguments employed to combat them1 is a proof the more in its favor4 ---------- ,sayings ,of ,the ,fathers ,of ,the ,desert4 ,a certain brother was praised in ,abbot ,antony's presence4 ,he went to visit him1 and tried to see whether he would bear mortification2 and finding that he could not1 he said to him3 ,thou art like a house which is fair to the eye on the outside1 but within hath been despoiled by robbers4 ,st4 ,synclitica said3 ,as a treasure which is exposed is quickly spent1 so1 also1 is every virtue which is made public soon reduced to nothing4 ,for as wax melteth before the face of the fire1 even so doth the soul waste away with praises1 and lose the firmness of virtue4 ,again1 she said3 ,as it is impossible that the seed and shoot should exist at the same time1 even so those who enjoy the glory of this world are unable to bear heavenly fruit4 ,a certain brother said to ,abbot ,pastor3 ,what shall ,i do1 for when ,i sit in quiet ,i lose my spirits8 ,the old man replied1 ,neither despise nor condemn any one1 nor cast obloquy upon him1 and ,god will give thee rest4 ,abbot ,antony said3 ,there are persons who wear away their bodies by fasting2 but because they have not discretion1 they are far distant from ,god4 ,a certain old man said3 ,if thou art ailing in body1 do not lose thy spirit2 for if the ,lord ,god desireth thee to become sick1 who art thou that thou shouldst be impatient under it8 ,doth he not provide for thee in all things8 ,canst thou live without him8 ,be patient1 therefore1 and beseech him to give what is expedient for thee1 that is1 to do whatsoever may be his will1 and to sit in patience1 eating thy bread in charity4 ----------- #gg ,holy ,week ,in ,jerusalem4 ,the sacred offices of the ,catholic ,church1 wherever celebrated1 are admirably calculated to increase devotion1 and render intelligible the different events of the ecclesiastical year4 ,in every land the ceremonies of the great week which ends the season of ,lent have deep interest to all the faithful1 since they portray the chief events of redemption4 ,these annual commemorations of the passion of ,christ have1 however1 an added solemnity and power in the two great cities of religion1 ,rome and ,jerusalem4 ,in the first1 the vicar of our ,lord takes part in the holy rites2 and1 in the second1 the whole service is more impressive than elsewhere2 for the great events here occurred1 and the remembrance of them is made1 year by year1 in closest proximity to the spot where they took place4 ,it is hazarding little to say1 that nowhere on earth does the office for holy week have the deep solemnity which marks it in ,jerusalem1 for the reason just given4 ,while the rubrics of the ,missal and ,breviary are followed with great exactness1 several things peculiar to the place have an interest which may render a description of them worthy of attention4 ,on the morning of ,palm ,sunday1 #ahff1 the writer of this sketch went to the ,church of the ,holy ,sepulchre1 to be present at the benediction of the palms by his excellency the ,patriarch of ,jerusalem4 ,the palms1 noble branches1 seven feet in length1 fresh and green1 are brought every year from ,gaza1 a little city about eighteen miles distant4 ,tied in bundles of suitable size1 they were placed within the most holy sepulchre1 the patriarch being outside the sacred place until the time for sprinkling them with holy water and incensing1 when he entered for that purpose4 ,the benediction completed1 the distribution of the palms took place1 and the long procession began4 ,chanting the antiphons1 the clergy and laity went twice around the sepulchre1 and once around the stone of unction1 and then passed into the ,latin chapel4 ,the solemn ,mass1 to be celebrated by the patriarch1 was to begin immediately4 ,the holy sepulchre1 being about six feet square1 is1 of course1 much too small for that purpose1 and therefore a temporary altar of large size was promptly set up in front of the sacred tomb4 ,while the attendants were preparing and decorating this1 in compliance with an intimation given early in the morning1 ,i went into the most holy sepulchre1 and offered the ,divine ,sacrifice--it being the third time ,i had been privileged to say ,mass in that holiest of places4 ,to me it is one of the most memorable things in life1 that this happiness should1 at such a time1 have been mine--that a simple priest could say ,mass in the new tomb of ,joseph1 which he had hewn out of the rock1 while the patriarch was officiating outside the sacred place4 ,on ,wednesday1 the office of ,tenebrae was said in the church4 ,the patriarch was present and a large number of priests1 friars1 seminarians1 and choir-boys1 and many of the laity4 ,the service was very solemn1 and the music good4 ,the priests were seated in front of the holy sepulchre1 and the triangular candlestick was placed at the right hand of the door leading to the tomb4 #gh ,the chanting of the ,lamentations was most impressive2 and when the words1 ,jerusalem1 ,jerusalem1 convertere ad ,dominum ,deum tuum6 were uttered1 it seemed that this plaintive entreaty even now could be addressed with fitness to the city that once was full of people1 but is solitary1 and made tributary to her enemies4 ,there was a wild pathos and deep earnestness in the chant when the summons to turn to the ,lord ,god was made1 as if the singer knew that to-day there is need for the city to listen and obey4 ,jerusalem is in the power of the followers of the false prophet of ,mecca2 schismatic ,christians outnumber the ,catholics2 the ,jews know not the ,lord their ,god2 and the ways of ,sion mourn4 ,would that the expostulation could be heard by all1 that they might be perfectly united as a company of brethren1 having the same faith and the same worship6 ,in the afternoon1 the column of the flagellation of ,christ was exposed for an hour1 or two1 by removing the iron grating from the front of it4 ,as is well known1 a portion of the column is in ,rome1 in the church of ,saint ,praxede4 ,the fragment here is only about one foot high1 and of the same diameter4 ,it is kept in the ,latin chapel1 in a recess over an altar named after it1 and cannot be seen during the year1 as there is little light in the chapel1 and that comes through a window high above and nearly over the altar4 ,a popular devotion is to pray in front of the column1 and then touch it with a rod1 about twenty inches long1 having a brass ferule or cap on the end2 this ferule is kissed on the place which had touched the stone4 ,it being impossible to reach the pillar by the hand through the grating1 this method has been contrived to satisfy the devotion of those who are anxious to salute with reverence all the objects and places connected with the passion of our ,lord4 ,on ,thursday1 at five o'clock1 we went down to the ,church of the ,holy ,sepulchre1 as the office was to begin early4 ,we waited nearly an hour1 in a dismal morning1 until it pleased the ,turkish door-keeper to come and unlock the portals4 ,while standing here1 among other subjects for consideration1 was the evident fact that ,christians desiring to celebrate the divine office1 in the holiest week of the year1 and in the most sacred place on earth1 were compelled to delay the fulfilment of their wishes until permission had been given by a ,mohammedan4 ,when we were admitted1 the services were long1 occupying five and a half hours4 ,the holy oils were consecrated4 ,at the end a procession was formed1 and the blessed sacrament was carried twice around the sepulchre1 and once around the stone of unction1 and then was placed in a repository which stood in the tomb where our ,lord had lain centuries ago4 ,at one o'clock1 the ,mandatum1 or ceremony of washing the feet of the pilgrims1 was performed by his excellency the patriarch in front of the most holy sepulchre4 ,he gave to each of the pilgrims a wooden cross1 about seven inches long1 roughly made1 and having spaces under bits of pearl for relics from the stations of the ,via ,dolorosa4 ,of the many objects of interest brought home from the ,holy ,land1 there is scarcely any one valued more than this1 because of the time1 place1 and occasion when it was received4 ,the office of the ,tenebrae began at three o'clock1 as on the day before4 ,nothing can surpass in solemnity and deep impressiveness the chantings of the ,lamentations in this place4 #gi ,the profound desolation of the soul of the prophet as he uttered the sad words is fully expressed and realized2 and the remembrance of the calamities which have so frequently befallen ,jerusalem1 and even now are her portion1 gives bitterness to the insulting demand1 ,is this the city of perfect beauty1 the joy of all the earth8 ,on ,good ,friday the patriarch officiated again in the ,church of the ,holy ,sepulchre4 ,the passion was sung on ,calvary by three chanters1 one reciting the narrative by ,saint ,john1 another the words of our ,lord1 while the third sung the remainder4 ,the voice of the priest who chanted the words of ,jesus was gentle and sad1 and so like what we may imagine to have been that of our ,lord1 as to become painful and oppressive4 ,when the ejaculation1 consummatum est1 had been made1 the first chanter went to the place where the cross had been set up on which ,jesus died1 and kneeling there1 in a low voice uttered the words1 et inclinato capite1 tradidit spiritum4 ,the prayers were chanted in front of the altar of the crucifixion1 which belongs to the ,catholics1 and is at the place properly called of the crucifixion1 as being that where our ,lord was nailed to the cross2 it is to the right1 and about twelve feet from the spot where the cross was set up4 ,the unveiling of the cross1 at the chant1 ,ecce lignum crucis1 was done here also2 and1 when the crucifix was laid on the pavement in front of the altar1 it covered the stone which marks the locality where our ,lord was fastened to the tree4 ,the veneration of the cross at such a time and place was deeply impressive4 ,after the patriarch1 the priests1 monks1 and laity1 having put off their shoes1 came in their order1 and kissed the feet of the image of the ,redeemer4 ,wishing to spend as much of ,good ,friday on ,calvary as was possible1 ,i returned to the church in the afternoon1 and sat for a long time on the floor1 leaning against the large square pillar1 within ten feet of the spot where the great oblation was made4 ,while there1 ,i meditated and prayed as well as was possible under the circumstances4 ,for many years the ,catholics have had exclusive possession of the church during the last three days of holy week2 and accordingly1 when the faithful had been admitted1 the doors were locked1 and the sacred offices performed in peace1 free from the annoyance of the crowd which generally fills the edifice4 ,today1 however1 on returning1 ,i found the doors open1 and every one allowed free access4 ,many who were not ,catholics were now present1 and among them were five or six ,english travellers who were out sight-seeing4 ,accompanied by their dragoman or interpreter1 they came on ,calvary1 and looked around with idle curiosity4 ,one of them1 had he been alone1 would probably have knelt down and prayed2 but1 being with his friends1 he only bent one knee1 and bowed his head a moment at the place where the cross had been set up4 ,the others of the party1 evidently1 did not believe this to be the spot of the crucifixion4 ,they were more attracted by the gold1 silver1 and diamonds on the image of the ,blessed ,virgin1 on the little altar of the ,dolors1 than by anything else1 and for some time admired the brilliancy of these as a candle was held near1 and talked of them as the most interesting objects4 ,one glance at the place where the ,lord died was enough for them2 and when they went away1 it was a relief to find the chapel again occupied by those who came to worship4 ,people who have no faith should not visit the ,holy ,land4 #hj ,if they do1 they derive little benefit themselves1 and give great disedification to ,christians of every name4 ,it was now toward the close of the day4 ,some persons1 chiefly ,greeks1 were praying on ,calvary1 when a ,turkish officer came up1 and made signs for them to depart4 ,unwilling to do so1 they remained for some time1 when he summoned several soldiers who1 with muskets1 came up to enforce obedience to his commands4 ,they walked slowly around the chapel1 close to the wall2 and then the people1 seeing that they must go1 quietly arose and descended4 ,i have little doubt that the church was cleared in order to prepare for the solemn procession in the evening4 ,although the soldiers behaved with as much decorum as possible1 it was a sad sight for ,christians to find themselves driven from ,calvary on ,good ,friday by ,turks1 and it was the bitterest thing experienced in ,jerusalem4 ,there is always a company of soldiers on duty when any service of unusual interest takes place in the church4 ,they are there by request of the ,french ,consul1 who is the representative of the ,european protector of the ,holy ,land1 and are designed to preserve order and add to the display4 ,although the church covers a large area of ground1 there are no spaces of great extent2 and thus the presence of men to keep order is necessary4 ,it is recorded with pleasure that1 during a residence of two months in the holy city1 ,i saw no act of incivility1 nor even a rude look1 on the part of the soldiers4 ,the ,greeks and ,armenians1 not to be excelled by ,catholics1 ask for the soldiers on occasion of their solemnities2 and thus1 the court of the church1 and the edifice itself1 are not unfrequently occupied by the military4 ,in the evening1 the patriarch and clergy1 with a crowd of laity1 assemble in the church for the great procession which is made but on this day4 ,the sacred building was filled to its utmost capacity2 but1 owing to the perfect arrangements made1 the long service was gone through without the least irregularity or embarrassment4 ,there were seven sermons on the passion1 in as many different languages1 by priests from the nations whose vernacular they spoke4 ,the office began in the ,latin chapel1 and the first sermon1 delivered with much fervor and pathos1 was in ,italian4 ,when this had been concluded1 the procession was formed4 ,as it moved from one station to the next1 verses of the ,miserere were sung4 ,one of the ,franciscan brothers1 carrying a large crucifix1 led the procession1 an acolyte being on either side of him4 ,at the place of the division of the garments of ,christ1 the sermon was in ,greek--at that of the mocking1 in another ,eastern language4 ,when we had climbed the stairs of ,calvary1 and were at the place of crucifixion1 the cross was laid on the ground1 while the sermon in ,german was preached4 ,then the crucifix was taken from this place1 where our ,lord was once nailed to the wood1 and carried to that where ,christ died4 ,the sermon at this place was in ,french1 and was preached by the leader of the ,french caravan of pilgrims1 a venerable ecclesiastic4 ,when the discourse was finished1 several priests came to take the body down from the cross4 ,the crown of thorns was first removed1 very slowly1 and with great reverence4 ,the nails were then tenderly drawn from the hands2 and1 as each was removed1 the arm of the figure1 having joints at the shoulders1 was brought down to the side of the body4 ,the feet were1 in like manner1 disengaged from the nail2 a sheet passed under the arms1 and the body lowered to the altar1 and laid on fine linen4 #ha ,holding the corners of this cloth1 four priests slowly carried the figure down the stairs to the stone of unction1 where the patriarch strewed myrrh over it1 and sprinkled rose-water4 ,the sermon was now preached in ,arabic by the ,franciscan curate of the ,church of the ,nativity1 at ,bethlehem1 and was delivered in a most energetic manner4 ,of the seven sermons preached1 it was probably the one understood by the largest number of those present4 ,finally1 the body was carried to the most holy sepulchre1 and laid in the same place where once reposed the ,lamb of ,god1 who taketh away the sins of the world4 ,here the sermon was in ,spanish1 in compliment to that nation of ,catholic renown2 and1 when it had been finished1 the procession went to the ,latin chapel1 whence it had started1 and the service of the day was over4 ,it will be readily understood that the ceremony of taking down from the cross1 and carrying the image of our ,lord to the tomb1 was intended to be a representation of the manner in which the deposition took place on the day of the earth's redemption4 ,it was a most powerful sermon1 reaching the heart through the sight4 ,by it we were carried back eighteen hundred years4 ,standing on ,calvary1 we were looking on him whose arms were stretched out on the cross1 as if1 in his infinite love1 he would embrace all mankind4 ,we saw him dying that we might live1 and dead that we might be ransomed from the grave4 ,no word was spoken1 as good ,father ,jucundino came with pincers to remove the crown of thorns1 which he did in such a devout manner1 as to make us feel that we were witnessing the great transaction itself4 ,the power and impressiveness of the whole ceremony were such as to render the bystanders awestruck and faint4 ,a scene like this it is impossible to forget1 and neither pencil nor words could produce a similar result4 ,on ,holy ,saturday ,i prayed a long time in the sepulchre1 where our ,lord had lain1 as on this day4 ,to be on ,calvary on ,good ,friday1 and in the ,tomb on ,easter eve1 had been the desire of my heart4 ,with the realization of such a wish1 any one should be content2 for he has a privilege granted to but few whose homes are distant from the ,holy ,land4 ,in the afternoon1 the daily procession was made with solemnity1 the patriarch and many priests and laymen being present4 ,the pilgrims from ,europe were also in the train4 ,easter-day was the last of my sojourn in the holy city4 ,many priests wished to say ,mass in the holy sepulchre1 some of whom had not yet had that privilege4 ,i said ,mass on ,calvary1 for the last time1 that day4 ,during the day the shrines were visited1 and the tomb was now indeed the place of the resurrection4 ,surrexit1 non est hic4 ,yes6 the grave is empty1 and death hath no more power over him who was once here but is risen and gone4 ,we see the place where the ,lord lay4 ,his day of victory has come1 and the triumph over death and hell is complete4 ,the tears of the ,christian are dried1 and the joy of the ,paschal time begins4 -------- #hb ,nellie ,netterville2 ,or1 ,one ,of ,the ,transplanted4 ,chapter ,i4 ,the stream which divides the county of ,dublin from that of ,meath runs part of its course through a pretty1 rock-strewn1 furze-blossoming valley1 crowned at its western end by the ruins of a castle1 which1 in the days of ,cromwell1 belonged to one of the great families of the ,pale--the ,english-,irish1 as they were usually called1 in order to distinguish them from the ,celtic race1 in whose land they had cast their fortunes4 ,a narrow1 winding path leads from the castle to the stream below1 and down this there came1 one cold ,january morning1 in the year of the great ,irish transplantation1 a young girl1 wrapt in a hooded mantle of dark cloth1 which1 strong as it was1 seemed barely sufficient to defend her from the heavy night fogs still rolling through the valley1 hanging rock and bush and castle-turret in a fantastic drapery of clouds1 and then falling back upon the earth in a mist as persistent1 and quite as drenching1 as an actual down-pour of rain could possibly have proved4 ,following the course of the zigzag stream1 as1 half-hidden in furze and bramble1 it made its way eastward to the sea1 a short ten minutes' walk brought her to a low hut1 7it could hardly be called a house17 built against a jutting rock1 which formed1 in all probability1 the back wall of the tenement4 ,here she paused1 and after tapping lightly on the door1 as a signal to its inmates1 she turned1 and throwing back the hood which had hitherto concealed her features1 gazed sadly up and down the valley4 ,in spite of the fog-mists and the cold1 the spot was indeed lovely enough in itself to deserve an admiring glance1 even from one already familiar with its beauty2 but in those dark eyes1 heavy1 as it seemed1 with unshed tears1 there was far less of admiration than of the longing1 wistful gaze of one who felt she was looking her last upon a scene she loved1 and was trying1 therefore1 to imprint upon her memory even the minutest of its features4 ,for a moment she suffered her eyes to wander thus1 from the clear1 bright stream flowing rapidly at her feet to the double line of fantastic1 irregularly cut rocks which1 crowned with patches of gorse and fern1 shut out the valley from the world beyond as completely as if it had been meant to form a separate1 kingdom in itself2 and then at last1 slowly1 and as if by a strong and painful effort of the will1 she glanced toward the spot where the castle stood1 with its tall1 square towers cut in sharp and strong relief against the gloomy background of the sky4 ,a firm and fearless-looking keep it was1 as the habitation of one who1 come of an invading race1 had to hold his own against all in-comers1 had need to be2 but while it rose boldly from a shoulder of out-jutting rock1 like the guardian fortress of the glen1 the little village which lay nestled at its foot1 the mill which turned merrily to the music of its bright stream1 the smooth terraces and dark woods immediately around it1 the rich grazing lands1 with their herds of cattle1 which stretched far away as the eye could reach beyond1 all seemed to indicate that its owner had been so long settled on the spot as to have learned at last to look upon it rather as his rightful inheritance than as a gift of conquest4 #hc ,castled keep and merry mill1 trees and cattle and cultivated fields1 the girl seemed to take all in1 in that long1 mournful gaze which she cast upon them2 but the thoughts and regrets which they forced upon her1 growing in bitterness as she dwelt upon them1 became at last too strong for calm endurance1 and throwing herself down upon her knees upon the cold1 damp earth1 she covered her face with both her hands1 and burst into a passionate fit of weeping4 ,her sobs must have roused up the inmates of the hut2 for almost immediately afterward the door was cautiously unclosed1 and an ancient dame1 with a large colored handkerchief covering her gray hairs1 and tied under her chin1 even as her descendants wear it to this hour1 peeped out1 with an evident resolve to see as much and be as little seen as possible in return1 by the person who had1 at that undue hour1 disturbed her quiet slumbers4 ,the moment1 however1 she discovered who it was that was weeping there1 all thoughts of selfish fear seemed to vanish from her mind1 and with a wild cry1 in which love and grief and sympathy were mingled1 as only an ,irish cry can mix them1 she flung her strong1 bony arms around the girl1 and exclaimed in ,irish1 a language with which--we may as well1 once for all remark--the proud lords of the ,pale were quite conversant1 using it not only as a medium of communication with their ,irish dependents1 but by preference to ,english1 in their familiar intercourse with each other4 ,for this reason1 while we endeavor to give the old lady's conversation verbatim1 as far as idiom and ideas are concerned1 we have ventured to omit all the mispronunciations and bad grammarisms which1 whether on the stage or in a novel1 are rightly or wrongly considered to be the one thing needed toward the true delineation of the ,irish character1 whatever the rank or education of the individual thus put on the scene may happen to be4 ,o my darling1 my darling6 cried the old woman1 almost lifting the girl by main force from the ground2 my heart's blood1 a-cushla machree6 what are you doing down there upon the damp grass1 7sure it will be the death of you1 it will17 with the morning fog wrapping round you like a curtain8 ,is there anything wrong up there at the castle8 or what is it all1 at all1 that brings you down here before the sun has had time to say ',good-morrow' to the tree-tops8 ,o ,grannie1 ,grannie6 sobbed the girl1 have you not heard8 do you not know already8 ,it was to say good-by--,i could not go without it4 ,grannie6 ,i never shall see you again--perhaps never4 ,pity1 and love1 and sympathy1 all beaming a moment before upon the face of the old hag1 changed as instantaneously as if by magic1 into an expression of wild hatred1 worthy the features of a conquered savage4 ,it is true1 then6 she cried2 it is true what ,i heard last night6 what ,i heard--but wouldn't believe1 ,miss ,nellie--if you were not here to the fore to say it to me yourself6 ,it is true that they are for robbing the old master of his own2 and that them murdering ,cromwellians--my black curse on every mother's son of them-- ,but before she could bring her denunciation to its due conclusion1 the girl had put her hand across her mouth1 and1 with terror written on every feature of her face1 exclaimed3 #hd ,hush1 ,grannie1 hush8 ,for ,christ and his sweet ,mother's sake1 keep quiet6 ,remember such words have cost many an honest man his life ere now1 and ,god alone can tell who may or may not be within hearing at this moment4 ,she caught the old woman by the arm as she spoke1 dragging rather than leading her into the interior of the cottage4 ,once there1 however1 and with the door carefully closed behind her1 she made no scruple of yielding to the anguish which old ,grannie's lamentations had rather sharpened than allayed1 and sitting down upon a low settle1 suffered her tears to flow in silence4 ,grannie squatted herself down on the ground at her feet1 and swaying her body backward and forward after the fashion of her people1 broke out once more into vociferous lamentations over the fallen fortunes of her darling4 ,ochone6 ochone6 that the young ,may morning of my darling's life 7which ought to be as bright as ,god's dear skies above us7 should be clouded over this way like a black ,november's6 ,woe is me6 woe is me6 that ,i should have lived to see the day when the old stock is to be rooted out as if it was a worthless weed for the sake of a set of beggarly rapscallions1 who have only come to ,ireland1 may be1 because their own land 7my heavy curse on it1 for the heavy hand it has ever and always laid on us67 wasn't big enough to hold their wickedness4 ,it was in perfect unconsciousness and good faith that old ,grannie thus spoke of ,nellie and her family as of the old stock of the country--a favorite expression to this day among people of her class in ,ireland4 ,the ,english descendants of ,ireland's first invaders had1 in fact1 as years rolled by1 and even while proudly asserting their own claims as ,englishmen1 so thoroughly identified themselves both by intermarriages and the adoption of language1 dress1 and manners with the ,celtic natives of the soil that the latter1 ever ready1 too ready for their own interest perhaps1 to be won by kindness1 had ended by transferring to them the clannish feeling once given to their own rulers1 and fought in the days we speak of under the standard of a ,de ,burgh or a ,fitzgerald as heartily and bitterly against ,cromwell's soldiers as if an ,o',neil or a ,mac,murrough had led them to the combat4 ,to ,nellie ,netterville1 therefore1 the sympathy and indignation of old ,grannie seemed quite as much a matter of course as if the blue blood coursing through her veins had been derived from a ,celtic chieftain instead of from an old ,norman baron of the days of ,king ,henry4 ,nellie was1 moreover1 connected with the old woman by a tie which in those days was as strong1 and even stronger1 than that of race2 for the ,english of the ,pale had adopted in its most comprehensive sense the ,irish system of fosterage1 and ,grannie having acted as foster-mother to ,nellie's father1 was1 to all intents and purposes1 as devoted to the person of his daughter as if she had been in very deed a grandchild of her own4 ,but natural as such sympathy might have seemed1 and soothing as no doubt it was to her wounded feelings1 it was yet clothed in such dangerous language that it had an effect upon ,nellie the very opposite of that which1 under any other circumstances1 it might have been expected to produce4 ,it recalled her to the necessity of self-possession1 and conscious that she must command her own feelings if she hoped to control those of her warm-hearted dependent1 she deliberately wiped the tears from her eyes1 and rose from the settle on which she had flung herself only a few minutes before1 in an uncontrolled agony of grief4 #he ,when she felt that she had thoroughly mastered her own emotion1 she drew old ,grannie toward her1 made her sit down on the stool she herself had just vacated1 and kneeling down beside her1 said in a tone of command which contrasted1 oddly yet prettily enough1 with the child-like attitude assumed for the purpose of giving it3 ,you must not say such things4 ,grannie4 ,i forbid it6 ,now and for ever ,i forbid it6 ,you must not say such things4 ,they can neither help us nor save us sorrow1 and they might cost your life1 old woman1 if any evil-designing person heard them4 ,my life6 my life6 cried old ,grannie passionately4 ,and tell me1 acushla1 what is the value of my life to me1 if all that made it pleasant to my heart is to be taken from me8 ,haven't ,i seen your father1 whom ,i nursed at this breast until 7,god pardon me67 ,i loved him as well or better than them that were sent to me for my own portion8 haven't ,i seen him brought back here for a bloody burial in the very flower of his days8 and didn't ,i lead the keening over him at the self-same moment that ,i knew my own poor boy was laying stiff and stark on the battle-field1 where he had fallen 7as well became him7 in the defence of his own master8 ,and now you come and tell me that you--you who are all that is left me in the wide world2 you who have been the very pulse of my heart ever since you were in the cradle--that you and the old lord are to be driven out of your own kingdom1 and sent1 ,god only knows where1 into banishment--7him an old man of seventy1 and you a slip of a girl that was only yesterday1 so to speak1 in your nurse's arms7--and you would have me keep quiet1 would you8 ,you'd have me belie the thought of my heart with a smiling face8 and all for the sake of a little longer life1 forsooth6 ,troth1 a-lannah1 ,i have had a good taste of that same life already1 and it's not so sweet ,i found it1 that ,i would go as far as the river to fetch another sup of it4 ,not so sweet--not so sweet1 moaned the old woman1 rocking herself backward and forward in time to the inflection of her voice1 not so sweet for the lone widow woman1 with barely a roof above her head1 and not a chick or child 7when you are out of it7 for comfort or for coaxing6 ,grannie had poured forth this harangue with all the eloquent volubility of her ,irish heart and tongue1 and though ,nellie had made more than one effort for the purpose1 she had hitherto found it quite impossible to check her4 ,want of breath1 however1 silenced her at last1 and then her foster-child took advantage of the lull in the storm to say3 ,dear old ,grannie1 do not talk so sadly4 ,i will love and think of you every day1 even in that far-off west to which we are exiled4 ,and ,i forgot to say1 moreover1 that my dear mother is to remain here for some months longer1 and will be ready 7as she ever is7 to give help and comfort to all that need it1 and to you1 of course1 dear ,grannie1 more than to all the rest--you whom she looks1 upon almost as the mother of her dead husband4 ,ready to give help8 ,ay1 that in troth she is1 quoth ,grannie1 ,god bless her for a sweet and gentle soul1 that never did aught but what was good and kind to any one ever since she came among us1 and that will be eighteen years come ,christmas twelvemonth4 ,ochone6 but them were merry times1 a-lannah6 long before you were born or thought of4 #hf ,god pity you that you have burst into blossom in such weary days as these are6 ,merry times8 ,i suppose they were1 said ,nellie good-naturedly1 trying to lead poor ,grannie's thoughts back to the good old times when she was young and happy4 ,tell me about it now1 dear ,grannie1 7my mother's coming home1 ,i mean17 that ,i may amuse myself by thinking it all over again1 when ,i am far away in the lone west1 and no good old ,grannie to go and have a gossip with when ,i am tired of my own company4 ,why1 you see1 ,miss ,nellie1 and you mustn't be offended if ,i say it1 said ,grannie1 eagerly seizing on this new turn given to her ideas2 we weren't too well pleased at first to hear that the young master was to be wedded in foreign parts1 and some of us were even bold enough to ask if there weren't girls fair enough1 ay1 and good enough too1 for that matter1 for him in ,ireland1 that he must needs bring a ,saxon to reign over us6 ,however1 when the old lord up yonder at the castle1 came down and told us how she had sent him word1 that for all she had the misfortune to be ,english born1 she meant1 once she was married in ,ireland1 to be more ,irish than the ,irish themselves1 then1 ,i promise you1 every vein in our hearts warmed toward her2 and on the day of her coming home1 there wasn't1 if you'll believe me1 a man1 woman1 or child1 within ten miles of ,netterville1 who didn't go out to meet her1 until1 what with the shouting and the hustling1 she began to think1 7the creature17 as she has often told me since1 that it was going to massacre her1 may be1 that we were2 for sure1 until the day she first saw the young master1 it was nothing but tales upon tales she had heard of how the wild ,irish were worse than the savages themselves1 and how murder and robbery were as common and as little thought of with us as daisies in the springtime4 ,any way1 if she thought that for a moment1 she didn't think it long2 for when she faced round upon us at the castle-gates1 standing between her husband and her father-in-law1 7the old lord himself17 we gave her a cheer that might have been heard from this to ,tredagh1 if the wind had set that way2 and though she didn't then understand the ',cead-mille-failthe to your ladyship6' that we were shouting in our ,irish1 she was cute enough1 at all events1 to guess by our eyes and faces what our tongues were saying4 ,and that wasn't all1 continued ,grannie1 growing more and more garrulous as she warmed to her theme2 that wasn't all neither2 for when the people were so tired they could shout no more1 and quiet was restored1 she whispered something to the young master2 and what do you think he did1 my dear1 but led her right down to the place where me and my son 7his own foster-brother1 that's gone1 ,god rest him67 were standing in the crowd1 and she put out her pretty white hand and said1 7it was the first and last time that ever ,i liked the sound of the ,english17 ',it is you1 then1 that was my husband's foster-mother1 isn't it8' ,and says ,i1 in her own tongue1 for ,i had picked up ,english enough at the castle for that1 ',please your ladyship1 ,i am1 and this is the boy1' says ,i1 pulling my own boy forward--for he was shy like1 and had stepped a little backward when she came near--'this is the boy that slept with ,master ,gerald' 7that was the master1 you know1 honey7 'on my breast4' #hg ',well1 then1' said she1 giving one hand to me and the other to my boy1 'remember it is with my foster-brother ,i mean to lead out the dancing to-night2' and troth1 my pet1 she was as good as her word1 and not a soul would she dance with1 for all the fine lords and gentlemen who had come to the wedding1 until she had footed it for a good half-hour at least with my ,andie1 ,ah6 them were times indeed1 my jewel1 the old crone querulously wound up her chronicle by saying4 ,and to think that ,i should have lived to see the day when the young master's father and the master's child are to be hunted out of their own by a ,cromwellian upstart with his 'buddagh ,sassenachs1' 7,saxon clowns17 like so many bloodhounds at his heels1 to ride over us roughshod4 ,so far the young girl had seriously inclined her ear to listen1 partly to soothe old ,grannie's grief by suffering it to flow over1 and partly1 perhaps1 because her own mind1 exhausted by present sufferings1 found some unconscious relief in letting itself be carried back to those bright days when the sun of worldly prosperity still lighted up her home4 ,the instant1 however1 that the old woman began1 with all the ferocity of a half-tamed nature1 to pour out denunciations on the foes who had wrought her ruin1 she checked the dangerous indulgence of her feelings by saying3 ,hush1 dear ,grannie1 and listen to me4 ,my mother is to stay here until ,may1 7so much grace they have seen fit to do us17 in order that she may collect our stock and gather such of our people together as may choose to follow us into exile4 ,then1 may be1 she'll take me1 cried old ,grannie suddenly1 her withered face lightening up into an expression of hope and joy that was touching to behold4 ,may be she'll take me1 a-lannah6 ,nellie ,netterville eyed ,grannie wistfully4 ,nothing1 in fact1 would she have better liked than to have taken that old relic of happier days with her to her exile2 but old1 decrepid1 bowed down by grief as well as years1 as ,grannie was1 it would have been folly1 even more than cruelty1 to have suffered her to offer herself for ,connaught transplantation4 ,it would have been1 however1 but a thankless office to have explained this in as many words2 so ,nellie only said3 ,when the time comes1 dear old woman1 when the time comes1 it will be soon enough to talk about it then--that is to say1 if you are still able and willing for the venture4 ,willing enough at all events1 ,god knows1 said ,grannie earnestly4 ,but why not go at once with you1 my darling8 ,the mistress is the mistress surely2 but blood is thicker than water1 and aren't you the child of the man that ,i suckled on this bosom8 ,why not go at once with you8 ,i think it is too late in the year for you--too cold--too wretched2 and besides1 we are only to take one servant with us1 and of course it must be a man1 said ,nellie1 not even feeling a temptation to smile at the blind zeal which prompted ,grannie to offer herself1 with her sixty years and her rheumatic limbs1 to the unprofitable post of bower-maiden in the wilderness4 ,it would not do to alter our arrangements now1 she continued gently2 but when spring comes1 we will see what can be done2 and in the mean time1 you must go as often as you can to the castle1 to cheer my dear mother with a little chat4 ,promise me that you will1 dear ,grannie1 for she will be sad enough and lonely enough1 ,i promise you1 this poor mother1 and nothing will help her so much in her desolation as to talk with you of those dear absent ones1 who well she knows are almost as precious to you as they can be to herself4 ,and now ,i must begone--,i must indeed6 #hh ,i could not go in peace without seeing you once more1 and so ,i stole out while all the rest of the world were sleeping2 but now the sun is high in the heavens1 and they will be looking for me at the castle4 ,good-by1 dear ,grannie1 good-by6 ,sobbing as if her heart would break1 ,nellie flung her arms round the old woman's neck2 but ,grannie1 with a wild cry of mingled grief and love1 slipt through her embraces and flung herself at her feet4 ,nellie raised her gently1 placed her once more upon the settle1 and not daring to trust herself to another word1 walked straight out of the cottage1 and closed the door behind her4 ,chapter ,,ii4 ,the sun had by this time nearly penetrated through the heavy fog1 which had hung since early dawn like a vail over the valley2 and just as ,nellie reached the foot of the path leading straight up to the castle1 it fairly broke through every obstacle1 and cast a gleam of wintry sunshine on her face4 ,that face1 once seen1 was not one easily to be forgotten4 ,the features were almost1 and yet not quite1 classic in their beauty1 gaining in expression what they lost in regularity2 and the frequent mingling1 by intermarriages1 of ,celtic blood with that of her old ,norman race1 had given ,nellie that most especial characteristic of ,irish beauty--hair black and glossy as the raven's wing1 with eyes blue as the dark1 double violet1 and looking even bluer and darker than they were by nature through the abundance of the long1 silken lashes1 the same color as her hair1 which fringed them4 ,she carried her small1 beautifully-formed head with the grace and spirit of a young antelope1 and there was something of firmness even in the elastic lightness of her movements1 which gave an idea of energy and decision not naturally to be looked for in one so young and girlish1 both as to form and feature4 ,her tight-fitting robe of dark and strong material1 though evidently merely adopted for the convenience of travelling1 rather set off than detracted from the beauty of her form2 and over it hung that long1 loose mantle of blue cloth which seems1 time out of mind1 to have been a favorite garment with the ,irish4 ,it was fastened at the throat by a brooch of gold1 curious and valuable even then for its evident antiquity2 and with its broad1 graceful folds falling to her feet1 and its hood drawn forward over her head1 and throwing her sweet1 sad face somewhat into shadow1 gave her at that moment1 as the sun shone down upon her1 the very look and expression of a ,mater ,dolorosa4 ,ten minutes' rapid walking up a path1 which looked more like an irregular staircase cut through rock and turf-mould than a way worn gradually by the pressure of men's feet1 brought her to the platform upon which the castle stood4 ,moated and circumvallated toward the south and west1 which were easy of access from the flat lands beyond1 ,netterville was comparatively defenceless on the side from whence ,nellie now approached it2 its builders and inhabitants having evidently considered the deep stream and valley which lay beneath as a sufficient protection against their enemies4 ,the great gate stood looking eastward1 and ,nellie could see from the spot where she halted that all the preparations for her approaching journey were already almost completed4 ,a couple of sorry-looking nags1 7garrans1 the ,irish would have called them17 one with a pillion firmly fixed behind the saddle1 were being led slowly up and down in readiness for their riders4 #hi ,little sorrowful groups of the ,irish dependents of the family stood here and there upon the terraces1 waiting 7faithful to the last as they ever were in those days7 to give one parting glance and one sorrowful1 long farewell to their deposed chieftain and his heiress2 and a little further off1 like hawks hovering around their prey1 might be seen a band of those iron-handed1 iron-hearted men in whose favor the transplantation of the present owners of the soil had been decreed1 and who had been set there1 half to watch and half to enforce departure1 should anything like evasion or resistance be attempted4 ,something very like an angry frown clouded ,nellie's brow as she caught sight of these men for whose benefit she was being robbed of her inheritance2 but1 unwilling to indulge such evil feelings1 she suffered her gaze to pass quietly beyond them until it rested once more on the streamlet and valley as they stretched eastward toward the sea4 ,just then some one tapped her on the shoulder1 and1 turning sharply round1 ,nellie found herself confronted by a woman not many years older1 probably1 than herself1 but with a face upon which1 beautiful as it was1 the early indulgence of wild passions had stamped a look of premature decay4 ,what would you with me8 said ,nellie1 surprised at the familiarity of the salutation1 and not in the least recognizing the person who had been guilty of it4 ,i know you not4 ,what do you want with me8 ,oh6 little or nothing1 said the other1 in a harsh and taunting voice2 little or nothing1 my fair young mistress--heiress1 that has been1 of the house of ,netterville--only ,i thought that1 may be1 you could say if the old mistress will be after going with you into exile4 ,they told me she was1 she added1 with a gesture toward the soldiers2 and yet1 as far as ,i can see1 only one of the garrans has a pillion to its back4 ,but1 may be1 she'll be for going later-- ,i have already said1 ,nellie coldly answered1 for she neither liked the matter nor the manner of the woman's speech--,i have already said that ,i know you not1 and1 in all likelihood1 neither does my mother4 ,why1 therefore1 do you ask the question8 ,because ,i hope it6 said the woman1 with such a look of hatred on her face that ,nellie involuntarily recoiled a step--because ,i hope it2 and then perhaps1 when she is houseless and hungry herself1 she will remember that cold ,december night when she drove me from her door1 to sleep1 for all that she cared1 under the shelter of the whin-bushes in the valley4 ,if my mother1 good and gentle as she is to all1 ever acted as you say she did1 undoubtedly she had wise and sufficient reasons for it1 ,nellie coldly answered4 ,undoubtedly--good and sufficient reasons had she1 and so1 for that matter1 had ,i too1 when ,i put my heavy curse upon her and all her breed1 retorted the girl1 with a coarse and taunting laugh4 ,and see how it has come to work1 she added wildly--see how it has come to work6 ,ay1 ay--she'll mind it when it is too late1 ,i doubt not2 and will think twice before she lets loose her ,saxon pride to flout a poor body for only asking a night's shelter under her roof4 ,roof6 she'll soon have no roof for herself1 ,i guess2 but if ever she has one again1 she'll think better of it1 ,i doubt not4 #ij ,she will think next time just what she thought last time--that1 so long as you lead the life you lead at present1 you would not1 though you were a princess1 be fitting company for the lowest scullion in her kitchen4 ,thus spoke a grave1 sweet voice 7not ,nellie's7 close at the woman's elbow4 ,she started1 as if a wasp had stung her1 and turned toward the speaker4 ,a tall lady1 dressed in widow's weeds1 with a pale face and eyes weary1 it almost seemed1 with sorrow1 had approached quietly from behind1 and overhearing the girl's defiant speech1 saved ,nellie the trouble of an answer by that firm yet most womanly response4 ,then passing to the front1 she put her arm round ,nellie's waist1 as if to protect her from the very presence of the other1 and drew her away1 saying3 ,come along1 my daughter2 the morning wears apace1 and these long delays do but embitter partings4 ,your grandfather is already waiting4 ,remember1 ,nellie1 she added in a faltering voice1 that he1 with his seventy years1 will be almost as dependent upon your strength and energy as you can be on his4 ,he is my dead husband's father1 and therefore1 after a long and bitter struggle with my own heart1 ,i have devoted you1 my own and only treasure1 to be his best support and help and comfort in the long and unseasonable journey to which the cruelty of our conquerors has compelled him4 ,i trust--,i trust in ,god and his sweet ,mother that ,i shall see no cause later to repent me of this decision6 ,nellie drew a little closer to her mother1 and a strange firmness of expression passed over her young face as she answered quietly3 ,my own unselfish mother1 doubt not that ,i will be all--son and daughter both in one--to him2 and fear not1 ,i do beseech you1 for our safety4 ,what though he has seen his seventy winters1 and ,i but barely seventeen6 ,we are strong and healthy1 both of us2 and with clean consciences 7which is more than our foes can boast of7 and good wits1 ,i doubt not we shall reach our destination safely4 ,destination6 she repeated bitterly--ay1 destination2 for home1 in any sense of the word1 it never can be to us4 ,say not so1 my ,nellie--say not so1 said her mother gently4 ,home1 after all1 is only the place where we garner up our treasures2 and1 therefore1 in the spot where ,i may rejoin you1 however wild and desolate it otherwise shall be1 my heart1 at all events1 will acknowledge it has found its home6 ,as they thus conferred together1 mother and daughter had been moving slowly toward the castle1 in absolute forgetfulness of the woman who had originally made a third in the group1 and who was still following at a little distance4 ,she stopped1 however1 on discovering that they had no intention of making her a sharer in their conversation1 and1 gazing after them with a fearful mingling of hatred and wounded pride on her coarse1 handsome features1 exclaimed aloud3 ,the second time you have flouted me1 good madam6 ,well1 well1 the third is the charm1 and then it will be my turn4 ,see if ,i do not make you rue it6 ,shaking her fist1 as she spoke1 savagely in the air1 she turned her back upon ,netterville towers1 and rushed down a path leading directly to the river4 ,as ,mrs4 ,netterville and her daughter approached the castle-gates1 a young man came out to meet them1 and1 with a look and bearing half-way between that of an intelligent and trusted servant and a petted follower1 said hurriedly3 #ia ,my lord grows impatient1 madam4 ,he says he is ready to depart at once1 and that the sooner it is done the better4 ,and1 in troth1 ,i am much of the same way of thinking my own self1 he added1 with that sort of grim severity which some men seem almost naturally to assume the moment they feel themselves in danger of giving way to grief1 in the womanly fashion of tears4 ,hamish was of the same age as ,nellie1 though he looked and felt at least eight years older4 ,he was her foster-brother1 as we have already said1 and had been her companion in the nursery2 but as war and poverty thinned the ranks of followers attached to the house of ,netterville1 he had been gradually advanced from one post of confidence to another1 until1 young as he was1 he united the various duties of bailiff or steward1 as it would be called in ,ireland--major-domo or butler1 valet1 and footman1 all in his own proper person4 ,true1 said ,mrs4 ,netterville1 in answer to his communication--too true4 ,every moment that he lingers now will be but a fresh barbing of the arrow4 ,come1 my ,nellie1 let us hasten to your grandfather4 ,would that ,i could persuade him to take ,hamish with him instead of ,mat1 who has little strength and less wit to help you in such a journey4 ,i should be far more at ease1 both on his account and yours1 my daughter4 ,faix1 madam1 and it was just that same that ,i was thinking to myself awhile ago1 cried ,hamish eagerly4 ,sure1 who has a better right to go with ,mistress ,nellie than her own foster-brother8 ,and am not ,i strong enough1 and more than willing enough to fight for her--ay1 and to die for her too1 if any of them black-browed hypocrites should dare for to cast their evil eyes upon her or the old master8 ,strong enough and brave enough undoubtedly you are1 said ,nellie1 speaking before her mother could reply1 and true-hearted more than enough1 my dear foster-brother1 are you2 but1 if only for that very reason1 you must stay here to help and comfort my dear mother4 ,bethink you1 ,hamish1 hers is1 in truth1 the hardest lot of any4 ,we shall have but to endure the weariness of long travel2 she will have to contend with the insolence of men in high places--yes1 and perhaps even to dispute with them1 day by day1 and hour by hour1 for that which is her rightful due and ours4 ,this is man's work1 not woman's2 and a man1 moreover1 quick-witted and fearing no one4 ,will you not be that man1 ,hamish1 to stand by her against the tyrant and oppressor1 and to act for her whenever and wherever it may be impossible for her to act for herself8 ,hamish would have answered with a fervor equal to her own1 but ,mistress ,netterville prevented him by saying1 with a mingling of grief and impatience in her manner3 ,it is in vain to talk to you1 ,nellie6 ,you have all your grandfather's stiff-necked notions on this subject4 ,nevertheless it would have been far more to my real contentment if he and you had yielded to my wishes1 seeing that there is many a one still left among our dependents to whom1 on a pinch1 ,i could entrust the care both of cattle and of household gear1 and but one 7and that is ,hamish7 to whom willingly ,i would confide my child4 ,now1 may ,heaven bless you for that very word1 madam1 cried ,hamish eagerly and gratefully2 and then turning to ,nellie1 he went on3 ,see now1 ,mistress ,nellie1 see now1 when her ladyship herself has said it--surely you would never think of going contrary to her wishes6 #ib ,listen to me1 ,hamish1 said ,nellie1 putting her hand on his shoulder and standing still1 so that her mother unconsciously moved on without her4 ,ever since that weary day when the sheriff came here to inform us of our fate1 ,i have had a strange1 uncomfortable foreboding that my mother will soon find herself in even a worse plight than ours4 ,a woman1 as she will be1 alone and friendless--foemen all around her--foemen domiciled even in her household--foemen1 the worst and cruelest of any1 with prayer on their lips and hypocrisy in their hearts1 and a strong sword at their hips1 ready to smite and slay1 as they themselves express it1 all who oppose that wicked lusting for wealth and power which they so blindly mistake for the promptings of a good spirit6 ,with us1 once we have obtained our certificate from the commissioners at ,loughrea1 it will be far otherwise4 ,each step we take in our wild journey westward will1 if1 alas6 it leads us further from our friends1 set1 likewise1 a safer distance between us and our oppressors4 ,promise me1 therefore1 to ask no more to follow us who go to peace and safety1 but to abide quietly here1 where alone a real danger threatens4 ,promise me even more than this1 my foster-brother--promise to stay with her so long as ever she may need you2 and should aught of evil happen to her1 which may ,god avert6 promise to let me know at once1 that ,i may instantly return and take a daughter's proper place beside her4 ,promise me this1 ,hamish--nay1 said ,i promise6--,hamish1 you must swear it6 ,i swear it6 by the ,mother of ,heaven and her blessed ,child1 ,i swear it6 said ,hamish fervently2 for he saw at once that there was much probability in ,nellie's view of the subject1 though1 in his overweening anxiety for the daughter1 he had hitherto overlooked the chances of danger to the mother4 ,but1 ,christ save us6 he added suddenly1 as some wild notes of preparation reached his experienced ear2 ,christ save us1 if the old women are not going to keen for your departure as if it were a burial6 ,oh6 do not let them--do not let them2 bid them stop if they would not break our hearts6 cried ,nellie1 rushing on to overtake her mother1 while ,hamish1 in obedience to her wishes1 struck right across the terrace toward a distant group of women1 among whom1 judging by their excited looks and gestures1 he knew that he should find the keeners4 ,long1 however1 ere he could reach them1 a wild cry of lamentation1 taken up and prolonged until every man1 woman1 and child within ear-shot had lent their voices to swell the chorus1 made him feel that he was too late2 and turning to ascertain the cause of this sudden outburst1 he saw that ,lord ,netterville had come forth from the castle1 and was standing at the open gates4 ,a fine1 soldierly-looking man he was1 counting over seventy years1 yet in appearance not much more than sixty1 and as he stood there1 pale and bare-headed1 in the presence of his people1 a shout of such mingled love and sympathy1 grief and execration rent the air1 that some of the ,cromwellian soldiers made an involuntary step forward1 and handled their muskets in expectation of an attack4 ,tell them to stop6 cried the old man1 throwing up his arms like one who could bear his agony no longer4 ,for ,god's sake1 tell them to stop6 ,let them wait1 at least1 he added1 half bitterly1 half sorrowfully1 until1 like the dead1 ,i am out of hearing4 #ic ,there was no need for ,hamish to become the interpreter of his wishes4 ,that sudden cry of a man's irrepressible anguish had reached the hearts of all who heard it1 and a silence fell upon the crowd--a silence more expressive of real sympathy than their wildest lamentations could have been4 ,the old lord bowed1 and tried to speak his thanks1 but the words died upon his lips1 and he turned abruptly to take leave of his daughter-in-law4 ,she knelt to receive his blessing4 ,he laid his hand upon her head1 and then1 making an effort to command his voice1 said tenderly3 ,fare thee well1 my best and dearest6 ,it is the way of these canting times to be for ever quoting ,scripture1 and for once ,i will follow fashion4 ,may ,heaven bless and keep thee1 daughter2 for a very ,ruth hast thou been to me in my old age2 yea1 and better than seven sons in this the day of my poverty and sorrow6 ,he stooped to kiss her brow and to help her to rise1 and as he did so1 he added in a whisper1 meant only for the lady's ear3 ,forgive me4 ,mary1 if ,i once more allude to that subject we have so much discussed already4 ,are you still in the mind to send ,nellie with me8 ,think better of it1 ,i entreat you4 ,the daughter's place should ever1 to my poor thinking1 be beside her mother6 ,i have thought1 she answered1 and ,i have decided4 ,if ,nellie is my child1 she is your grandchild as well2 and the duty which her father is no longer here to tender1 it must be her pride and joy to offer you in his stead4 ,moreover1 my good lord1 she added1 in a still lower tone1 the matter hath another aspect4 ,nellie will be safer with you6 ,this place and all it contains is even now at the mercy of a lawless soldiery1 and therefore it is no place for her4 ,too well ,i feel that even ,i1 her mother1 am powerless to protect her4 ,lord ,netterville cast a wistful glance on the fair face of his young granddaughter1 and said reluctantly3 ,it may be that you are right1 sweet ,moll1 as you ever are4 ,come1 then1 if so it must be1 give us our good-speed1 and let us hasten on our way4 ,he once more pressed her affectionately in his arms1 then walked straight up to his horse1 and leaped almost without assistance to the saddle4 ,but his face flushed scarlet1 and then grew deadly pale1 and as he shook his reins and settled himself in his seat1 it was evident to ,hamish1 who was holding his stirrup for him1 that he was struggling with all his might and main to bear himself with a haughty semblance of indifference before the ,english soldiery4 ,after he was seated to his satisfaction1 he ventured a half glance around his people1 and lifted his beaver to salute them4 ,but the effort was almost too much2 the big tears gathered in his eyes1 and his hand shook so violently that he could not replace his hat1 which1 escaping from his feeble grasp1 rolled under his horse's feet4 ,half a dozen children darted forward to recover it1 but ,hamish had already picked it up and given it to his master1 who instantly put it on his head1 saying1 in a tone of affected indifference3 ,pest on these trembling fingers which so libel the stout heart within4 ,this comes of wine and wassail1 ,hamish4 ,drink thou water all thy life1 good youth1 if thou wouldst match a sturdy heart with a steady hand1 when thy seventy years and odd are on you4 #id ,faix1 my lord1 will ,i or nill ,i1 said ,hamish1 trying to fall in with the old man's humor by speaking lightly2 will ,i or nill ,i1 it seems only too likely that water will be the best part of my wine for some time to come2 leastways1 he added in a lower voice1 leastways till your honor comes back to your own again1 and broaches us a good cask of wine to celebrate the day4 ,back again6 back again6 repeated ,lord ,netterville1 shaking his head with a mixture of grief and impatience impossible to describe4 ,i tell thee1 ,hamish1 that men never come back again when they carry seventy years with them to exile4 ,but where is my granddaughter8 ,bid her come forth at once1 for it's ill lingering here with this weeping crowd around us1 and yonder pestilent group of fanatics marking out every mother's son among them1 doubtless1 for future vengeance4 ,mrs4 ,netterville heard this impatient cry for her only child1 and flung her arms for one last passionate embrace round ,nellie's neck4 ,then1 firm and unfaltering to the end1 she led her to ,hamish1 who lifted her as reverently as if she had been an empress 7as indeed she was in his thoughts7 to the pillion behind her grandfather4 ,lord ,netterville barely waited until she was comfortably settled1 ere he stooped to kiss once more his daughter-in-law's uplifted brow1 after which1 waving his hands toward the weeping people1 he dug his spurs deep into his horse's sides1 and rode swiftly forward4 ,then1 as if moved by one common impulse1 every man1 woman1 and child in presence there1 fell down upon their knees1 mingling prayers and blessings1 and howls and imprecations1 as only an ,irish or an ,italian crowd can do2 and yet obedient to the last to the wishes of their departing chief1 it was not until he was well-nigh out of sight that they broke out into that wild1 wailing keen1 with which they were known to accompany their loved ones to the grave4 ,but the wind was less considerate1 and as it unluckily set that way1 it bore one or two of the long1 sad notes to him in whose honor they were chanted4 ,as they fell upon the old exile's ears1 the stoical calmness which he had hitherto maintained forsook him utterly2 the reins fell from his hands1 he bowed his head till his white locks mingled with his horse's mane1 and1 lifting up his voice1 he wept as sadly and unrestrainedly as a woman4 ,to ,be ,continued4 -------- #ie ,the ,church ,review and ,victor ,cousin4 ,footnote #ca ,footnote #ca3 ,the ,american ,quarterly ,church ,review4 ,new ,york3 ,n4 ,s4 ,richardson4 ,january1 #ahfh4 ,art4 ii41 ,o4 ,a4 ,brownson as a ,philosopher4 ,victor ,cousin and his ,philosophy4 ,catholic ,world4 ,the article in the ,church ,review promises an estimate of the character of ,dr4 ,o4 ,a4 ,brownson as a philosopher2 but what it says has really no relation to that gentleman1 and is simply an attempt1 not very successful1 nor very brilliant indeed1 to vindicate ,m4 ,cousin's philosophy from the unfavorable judgment we pronounced on it1 in the magazine of last ,june4 ,dr4 ,brownson is not the editor1 nor one of the editors1 of ,the ,catholic ,world2 the article in question was signed by no name1 was impersonal1 and the ,review has no authority for charging its authorship to any one but ourselves1 or for holding any but ourselves responsible for its merits or demerits4 ,when the name of a writer is signed to an article1 he should be held answerable for its contents2 but when it is not1 the magazine in which it appears is alone responsible4 ,according to this rule1 we hold the ,church ,review answerable for its rasping article against ours4 ,the main purpose of the reviewer seems to be to prove that we wrote in nearly entire ignorance of ,m4 ,cousin's philosophy1 and to vindicate it from the very grave charges we urged against it4 ,as to our ignorance1 as well as his knowledge1 that must speak for itself2 but we can say sincerely that we should be most happy to be proved to have been in the wrong1 and to see ,cousin's philosophy cleared from the charge of being unscientific1 rationalistic1 pantheistic1 or repugnant to ,christianity and the church4 ,one great name would be erased from the list of our adversaries1 and their number would be so much lessened4 ,we should count it a great service to the cause which is so dear to us1 if the ,church ,review could succeed in proving that the errors we laid to his charge are founded only in our ignorance or philosophical ineptness1 and that his system is entirely free from them4 ,but though it talks largely against us1 assumes a high tone1 and makes strong assertions and bold denials1 we cannot discover that it has effected anything1 except the exhibition of itself in an unenviable light4 ,it has told us nothing of ,cousin or his philosophy not to be found in our article1 and has not in a single instance convicted us of ignorance1 malice1 misstatement1 misrepresentation1 or even inexactness4 ,this we shall proceed now to show1 briefly as we can1 but at greater length1 perhaps1 than its crude statements are worth4 ,the principal charges against us are3 #a4 ,we said ,m4 ,cousin called his philosophy eclecticism2 #b4 ,we wrongly denied scepticism to be a system of philosophy2 #c4 ,showed our ignorance of ,cousin's doctrine in saying it remained in psychology1 never attained to the objective1 or rose to ontology2 #d4 ,misstated his doctrine of substance and cause2 #e4 ,falsely denied that he admits a nexus between the creative substance and the created existence2 #f4 ,falsely asserted that he holds creation to be necessary2 #g4 ,wrongly and ignorantly accused him of ,pantheism2 #h4 ,asserted that he had but little knowledge of ,catholic theology2 #i4 ,accused him of denying the necessity of language to thought4 #if ,in preferring these charges against ,m4 ,cousin's philosophy1 we have shown our ignorance of his real doctrine1 our contempt for his express declarations1 and our philosophical incapacity1 and the reviewer thinks one may search in vain through any number of magazine articles of equal length1 for one more full of errors and fallacies than ours4 ,this is bad1 and1 if true1 not at all to our credit4 ,we shall not say as much of his article1 for that would not be courteous1 and instead of saying it1 prefer to let him prove it4 ,we objected that ,m4 ,cousin assuming that to the operation of reason no objective reality is necessary1 can never1 on his system1 establish such reality2 the reviewer1 p4 #eda1 gravely asserts that we ourselves hold1 that to the operations of reason no objective reality is necessary1 and can never be established6 ,this is charming4 ,but are these charges true8 ,we propose to take them up seriatim1 and examine the reviewer's proofs4 #a4 ,we said ,m4 ,cousin called his philosophical system eclecticism4 ,to this the reviewer replies3 ',eclecticism can never be a philosophy2' making1 among other arguments1 the pertinent inquiry3 ',how1 if you know not the truth in its unity and integrity beforehand1 are you1 in studying those several systems1 to determine which is the part of truth and which of error8' ,we beg his pardon1 but ,m4 ,cousin never called his philosophical system ,eclecticism4 ,in the introduction to the ,vrai1 ,beau1 et ,bien1 he writes3 ',one word as to an opinion too much accredited4 ,some persons persist in representing eclecticism as the doctrine to which they would attach my name4 ,i declare1 then1 that eclecticism is1 undoubtedly1 very dear to me1 for it is in my eyes the light of the history of philosophy2 but the fire which supplies this light is elsewhere4 ,eclecticism is one of the most important and useful applications of the philosophy ,i profess1 but it is not its principle4 ,my true doctrine1 my true flag1 is spiritualism2 that philosophy1 as stable as it is generous1 which began with ,socrates and ,plato1 which the gospel spread abroad in the world1 and which ,descartes placed under the severe forms of modern thought' ,and the principles of this philosophy supply the touchstone with which to try 'those several systems1 and to determine which is the part of truth and which of error4' ,eclecticism1 in ,cousin's view of it1 as one might have discovered who had 'studied his works with some care1' is something more than a blind syncretism1 destitute of principles1 or a fumbling among conflicting systems to pick out such theories as please us4 ,if ,m4 ,cousin never called his philosophical system eclecticism1 why did he defend it from the objections brought on against it1 that1 i4 ,eclecticism is a syncretism--all systems mingled together2 #b4 ,eclecticism approves of everything1 the true and the false1 the good and the bad2 #c4 ,eclecticism is fatalism2 #d4 ,eclecticism is the absence of all system8 ,why did he not say at once that he did not profess eclecticism1 instead of saying and endeavoring to prove that the eclectic method is at once philosophical and historical8 ,footnote #cb ,footnote #cb3 ,see ,fragments ,philosophiques1 t i4 pp4 #ci-db4 ,everybody knows that he professed eclecticism and defended it4 ,as a method1 do you say8 ,be it so4 ,does he not maintain1 from first to last1 that a philosopher's whole system is in his method8 ,does he not say1 ,given a philosopher's method1 we can foretell his whole system8 ,and is not his whole course of the history of philosophy based on this assumption8 ,we wrote our article for those who knew ,cousin's writings1 not for those who knew them not4 ,there is nothing in the passage quoted from the reviewer1 quoted from ,cousin1 that contradicts what we said4 ,we did not say that he always called philosophy eclecticism1 or pretend that it was the principle of his system4 ,we said3 #ig ,there is no doubt that all schools1 as all sects1 have their part of truth1 as well as their part of error2 for the human mind cannot embrace pure1 unmixed error any more than the will can pure1 unmixed evil2 but the eclectic method is not the method of constructing true philosophy any more than it is the method of constructing true ,christian theology4 ,the ,catholic acknowledges willingly the truth which the several sects hold2 but he does not derive it from them1 nor arrive at it by studying their systems4 ,he holds it independently of them2 and having it already in its unity and integrity1 he is able1 in studying them1 to distinguish what they have that is true from the errors they mix up with it4 ,it must be the same with the philosopher4 ,m4 ,cousin was not unaware of this1 and he finally asserted eclecticism rather as a method of historical verification1 than as the real and original method of constructing philosophy4 ,the name was therefore unhappily chosen1 and is now seldom heard4 7,catholic ,world1 p4 #cce47 ,had the reviewer read this passage1 he would have seen that we were aware of the fact that latterly ,cousin ceased to profess eclecticism save as a method of verification2 and if he had read our article through1 he would have seen that we were aware that he held spiritualism to be the principle of his system1 and that we criticised it as such4 #b4 ,cousin counts scepticism as a system of philosophy4 ,we object1 and ask very pertinently1 since he holds every system has a truth1 and truth is always something affirmative1 positive1 ,what1 then1 is the truth of scepticism1 which is a system of pure negation1 and not only affirms nothing1 but denies that any thing can be affirmed8 ,will the reviewer answer the question8 ,the reviewer1 of course1 finds us in the wrong4 ,here is his reply3 ,in the history of the progress of the human mind1 the phase of scepticism is not to be overlooked4 ,at different periods it has occurred1 to wield a strong1 sometimes a controlling1 often a salutary1 influence over the thought of an age4 ,its work1 it is true1 is destructive1 and not constructive2 but not the less as a check and restraint upon fanciful speculation1 and the establishment of unsound hypotheses1 it has its raison d'tre1 and contributes1 in its way1 to the advancement of truth4 ,nor can the works of ,sextus1 ,pyrrho1 ,glanvil1 ,montaigne1 ,gassendi1 or ,hume be considered less 'systematic' than those of any dogmatist1 merely from their being 'systems of pure negation4' 7,p4 #ecc47 ,that it is sometimes reasonable and salutary to doubt1 as if the reviewer should doubt his extraordinary genius as a philosopher1 we readily admit2 but what salutary influence has ever been exerted on science or morals by any so-called system of scepticism1 which denies the possibility of science1 and renders the binding nature of virtue uncertain1 we have never yet been able to ascertain4 ,moreover1 a system of pure negation is simply no system at all1 for it has no principle and affirms nothing4 ,a sceptical turn of mind is as undesirable as a credulous mind4 ,that the persons named1 of whom only one1 ,pyrrho1 professed universal scepticism1 and perhaps even he carried his scepticism no farther than to doubt the reality of matter1 may have rendered some service to the cause of truth1 as the drunken helotae promoted temperance among the ,spartan youth1 is possible2 but they have done it by the truth they asserted1 not by the doubt they disseminated4 ,there is1 moreover1 a great difference between doubting1 or suspending our judgment where we are ignorant or where our knowledge is incomplete1 and erecting doubt into the principle of a system which assumes all knowledge to be impossible1 and that certainty is nowhere attained or attainable4 ,it seems1 we confess1 a little odd to find a ,church ,review taking up the defence of scepticism4 #ih #c4 ,we assert in our article that ,m4 ,cousin1 though he professes to come out of the sphere of psychology1 and to rise legitimately to ontology1 remains always there2 and1 in point of fact1 the ontology he asserts is only an abstraction or generalization of psychological facts4 ,the reviewer is almost shocked at this1 and is tempted to think that the time we claim to have spent in studying the works of ,cousin with some care might have been better employed in the acquisition of some useful knowledge more within the reach of our 'understanding4' ,it is possible4 ,but what has he to allege against what we asserted1 and think we proved8 ,nothing that we can find except that ,cousin professes to attain1 and perhaps believes he does attain1 to real objective existence1 and1 scientifically1 to real ontology4 ,but1 my good friend1 that is nothing to the purpose4 ,the question is not as to what ,cousin professes to have done1 or what he has really attempted to do1 but what he has actually done4 ,when we allege that the being1 the ,god asserted by ,cousin1 is1 on his system1 his principles1 and method1 only an abstraction or a generalization2 you do not prove us wrong by reiterating his assertion that it is real being1 that it is the living ,god1 for it is1 though you seem not to be aware of it1 that very assertion that is denied4 ,we readily concede that ,cousin does not profess to rise to ontology by induction from his psychology1 but we maintain that the only ontology he attains to is simply an induction from his psychology1 and therefore is1 and can be1 only an abstraction or a generalization4 ,we must here reproduce a passage from our own article4 ,what is certain1 and this is all the ontologist need assert1 or1 in fact1 can assert1 is1 that ontology is neither an induction nor a deduction from psychological data4 ,god is not1 and cannot be1 the generalization of our own souls4 ,but it does not follow from this that we do not think that which is ,god1 and that it is from thought we do and must take it4 ,we take it from thought and by thinking4 ,what is objected to in the psychologists is the assumption that thought is a purely psychological or subjective fact1 and that from this psychological or subjective fact we can1 by way of induction1 attain to ontological truth4 ,but as we understand ,m4 ,cousin1 and we studied his works with some care thirty or thirty-five years ago1 and had the honor of his private correspondence1 this he never pretends to do4 ,what he claims is1 that in the analysis of consciousness we detect a class of facts or ideas which are not psychological or subjective1 but really ontological1 and do actually carry us out of the region of psychology into that of ontology4 ,that his account of these facts or ideas is to be accepted as correct or adequate we do not pretend1 but that he professes to recognize them and distinguish them from purely psychological facts is undeniable4 ,the defect or error of ,m4 ,cousin on this point was in failing1 as we have already observed1 to identify the absolute or necessary ideas he detects and asserts with ,god1 the only ens necessarium et reale1 and in failing to assert them in their objectivity to the whole subject1 and in presenting them only as objective to the human personality4 ,he never succeeded in cutting himself wholly loose from the ,german nonsense of a subjective-object or objective-subject1 and when he had clearly proved an idea to be objective to the reflective reason and the human personality1 he did not dare assert it to be objective in relation to the whole subject4 ,it was impersonal1 but might be in a certain sense subjective1 as ,kant maintained with regard to the categories4 7,catholic ,world1 ,,pp4 #cce1 #ccf47 ,the reviewer1 after snubbing us for our ignorance and ineptness1 which are very great1 as we are well aware and humbly confess1 replies to us in this manner3 ,and yet nothing in ,cousin is clearer or more positive than that this 'pure and sublime degree of the reason1 when will1 reflection1 and personality are as yet absent'--this 'intuition and spontaneous revelation1 which is the primitive mode of reason'--is objective to the whole subject in every possible sense1 and is1 consequently1 conformed to the objective1 and a revelation of it4 ,can the critic have read ,cousin's ,lectures on ,kant1 'thirty or thirty-five years ago'8 ,if so1 we advise him to refresh his memory by a re-perusal1 and perhaps he may withdraw the strange assertion that ,cousin held an 'absolute idea to be impersonal1 but that it might be in a certain sense subjective1 as ,kant maintained with regard to the categories4' ',the scepticism of ,kant1' says ,cousin1 ,footnote #cc 'rests on his finding the laws of the reason to be subjective1 personal to man2 but here is a mode of the reason where these same laws are1 as it were1 deprived of all subjectivity--where the reason shows itself almost entirely impersonal4 #ii ,how the critic would wish this impersonal activity to be objective to the 'whole subject1' and not to the 'personal only1' as if there was any greater degree of objectivity in one case than in the other1 it is not easy to see4 ,it looks like a distinction without a difference4 ,the abstract and logical distinction is apparent1 but though distinct1 the 'whole subject1' and the 'human personality1' cannot be separated1 so that what is objective to one1 shall not be so to the other also4 ,the 'whole subject' is1 simply1 the thinking1 feeling1 willing being1 which we are1 as distinguished from the world external to us4 ,if an idea1 then1 is revealed to us by what is completely foreign to us--if an act of the reason is spontaneous and unreflective1 hat is1 impersonal--what is there that can be more objective to the subject8 ,we have said1 that such an act is objective to the subject in every possible sense4 ,for we are not to forget the conditions of the case4 ',does one wish1' says ,cousin1 'in order to believe in the objectivity and validity of the reason1 that it should cease to make its appearance in a particular subject--in man1 for instance8 ,but then1 if reason is outside of the subject1 that is1 of myself1 it is nothing to me4 ,for me to have consciousness of it1 it must descend into me1 it must make itself mine1 and become in this sense subjective4 ,a reason which is not mine1 which1 in itself being entirely universal1 does not incarnate itself in some manner in my consciousness1 is for me as though it did not exist4 ,footnote #cd ,consequently1 to wish that the reason1 in order to be trustworthy1 should cease entirely to be subjective1 is to demand an impossibility4' 7,pp4 #ecd1 #ece47 ,footnote #cc3 ,lecture viii4 ,footnote #cd3 ,lectures on ,kant1 viii4 ,we have introduced this long extract in order to give our readers a fair specimen of the reviewer's style and capacity as a reasoner4 ,it will be seen that the reviewer alleges1 as proof against us1 what is in question--the very thing that he is to prove4 ,we have read ,cousin's ,lectures on ,kant1 and we know well1 and have never thought of denying1 that he criticises ,kant sharply1 says many admirable things against him1 and professes to reject his subjectivism2 we know1 also1 that he holds what he calls the impersonal reason to be objective1 operating independently of us2 all this we know and so stated1 we thought1 clearly enough1 in our article2 but we1 nevertheless1 maintain that he does not make this impersonal reason really objective1 but simply independent in its operations of our personality4 ,he holds that reason has two modes of activity--the one personal1 the other impersonal2 but he recognizes only a distinction of modes1 sometimes only a difference of degrees1 making1 as we have seen1 as quoted by the reviewer1 the impersonal reason a sublimer degree of reason than the personal4 ,he calls the impersonal reason the spontaneous reason1 sometimes simply spontaneity4 ,all this is evident enough to any one at all familiar with ,cousin's philosophical writings4 ,but what is this reason which operates in these two modes1 impersonal and spontaneous in the one1 personal and reflective in the other8 ,as the distinction between the personal and impersonal is1 by ,cousin's own avowal1 a difference simply of modes or degrees1 there can be no entitative or substantial difference between them4 ,they are not two different or distinct reasons1 but one and the same reason1 operating in two different modes or degrees4 ,now1 we demand1 what is this one substantive reason operating in these two different degrees or modes8 ,it certainly is not an abstraction1 for abstractions are nullities and cannot operate or act at all4 ,what1 then1 is it8 ,is it ,god1 or is it man8 ,if you say it is ,god1 then you deny reason to man1 make him a brute1 unless you identify man with ,god4 #ajj ,if you say it is man1 that it is a faculty of the human soul1 as ,cousin certainly does say--for he makes it our faculty and only faculty of intelligence--then you make it subjective1 since nothing is more subjective than one's own faculties4 ,they are the subject itself4 ,consequently the impersonal reason belongs as truly to man1 the subject1 as the personal reason1 and therefore is not objective1 as we said1 to the whole subject1 but at best only to the will and the personality--what ,cousin calls le moi4 ,the most distinguished of the disciples of ,cousin was ,theodore ,jouffroy1 who1 in his confessions1 nearly curses ,cousin for having seduced him from his ,christian faith1 whose loss he so bitterly regretted on his dying-bed1 and who was1 in ,cousin's judgment1 as expressed in a letter to the writer of this article1 a true philosopher4 ,this true philosopher and favorite disciple of ,cousin illustrates the difference between the impersonal reason and the personal by the difference between seeing and looking1 hearing and listening1 which corresponds precisely to the difference noted by ,leibnitz between what he calls simple perception and apperception4 ,in both cases it is the man who sees1 hears1 or perceives2 but in the latter case1 the will intervenes and we not only see1 but look1 not only perceive1 but apperceive4 ,now1 it is very clear1 such being the case1 that ,cousin does not get out of the sphere of the subject any more than does ,kant1 and all the arguments he adduces against ,kant1 apply equally against himself2 for he recognizes no actor in thought1 or what he calls the fact of consciousness1 but the subject4 ,the fact which he alleges1 that the impersonal reason necessitates the mind1 irresistibly controls it1 is no more than ,kant says of his categories1 which he resolutely maintains are forms of the subject4 ,hence1 as ,cousin charges ,kant very justly with subjectivism and scepticism1 we are equally justified in preferring the same charges against himself4 ,this is what we showed in the article the reviewer is criticising1 and to this he should have replied1 but1 unhappily1 has not4 ,he only quotes ,cousin to the effect that1 to wish the reason1 in order to be trustworthy1 should cease entirely to be subjective1 is to demand an impossibility1 which only confirms what we have said4 ,we pursue in our article the argument still further1 and add3 ,reduced to its proper character as asserted by ,m4 ,cousin1 intuition is empirical1 and stands opposed not to reflection1 but to discursion1 and is simply the immediate and direct perception of the object without the intervention of any process1 more or less elaborate1 of reasoning4 ,this is1 indeed1 not an unusual sense of the word1 perhaps its more common sense1 but it is a sense that renders the distinction between intuition and reflection of no importance to ,m4 ,cousin1 for it does not carry him out of the sphere of the subject1 or afford him any basis for his ontological inductions4 ,he has still the question as to the objectivity and reality of the ideal to solve1 and no recognized means of solving it4 ,his ontological conclusions1 therefore1 as a writer in the ,christian ,examiner told him as long ago as #ahcf1 rest simply on the credibility of reason or faith in its trustworthiness1 which can never be established1 because it is assumed that1 to the operation of reason1 no objective reality is necessary1 since the object1 if impersonal1 may1 for aught that appears1 be included in the subject4 7,catholic ,world1 p4 #cch47 ,we quote the reply of the reviewer to this at full length1 for no mortal man can abridge or condense it without losing its essence4 #aja ,if a man speaks thus1 after a careful study of ,cousin1 it is almost useless to argue with him4 ,he either has not understood the philosopher1 or his scepticism is hopelessly obstinate4 ,intuition1 as asserted by ,cousin1 is not reduced to its proper character1 but simply misrepresented1 when it is called empirical2 for it is the primitive mode of reason1 and prior to all experience4 ,it is a revelation of the objective to the subject1 and to be a revelation must1 of course1 come into the consciousness of the subject4 ,cousin has carefully and repeatedly established the true character of intuition as a disclosure to the understanding in the reason1 and free from any touch of subjectivity4 ,of course1 his ontological conclusions rest on a belief in the credibility of reason1 and1 of course1 this credibility can never be established in a logical way1 although1 metaphysically1 it is abundantly established4 ,one may 'assume1' to the end of time1 that 'to the operation of reason no objective reality is necessary1 since the object may1 for aught that appears1 be included in the subject1' but the universal and invincible opinion of the human race has been1 and will be1 to the contrary of such an assumption4 ,as firmly as ,reid and ,hamilton have established the doctrine of sensible perception1 and the objective existence of the material world1 has ,cousin that of the objective existence of the absolute1 and1 on the very same ground1 the veracity of consciousness4 ,and the mass of mankind have lived in happy ignorance of any necessity for such arguments4 ,when they sowed and reaped1 and bought and sold1 they never questioned the real existence of the objects they dealt with2 nor did they1 when the idea of duty or obligation made itself felt in their souls1 dream that1 'for such an operation of reason1 no objective reality was necessary4' ,men have an unquestioning but unconquerable belief1 that the very idea of obligation implies something outside of them1 that obliges4 ,something other than itself it must be1 that commands the soul4 ,right is a reality1 and duty a fact4 ,the philosophy1 that does not come round to an enlightened and intelligent holding of the unreflecting belief of mankind1 but separates itself from it1 is worse than useless4 ,in such wisdom it is indeed 'folly to be wise4' ,and this philosophic folly comes from insisting on a logical demonstration of what is logically undemonstrable--of what is superior1 because anterior to reasoning4 ,we cannot prove to the understanding truths which are the very basis and groundwork of that understanding itself4 7,pp4 #ecf1 #ecg47 ,this speaks for itself1 and concedes1 virtually1 all we alleged against ,cousin's system2 at least it convicts us of no misapprehension or misrepresentation of that system2 and the reviewer's sneer at our ignorance and incapacity1 however much they may enliven his style and strengthen his argument1 do not seem to have been specially called for4 ,yet we think both he and ,m4 ,cousin are mistaken when they assume that to demand any other basis for science than the credibility or faith in the trustworthiness of reason1 is to demand an impossibility1 for a science founded on faith is simply no science at all4 ,there is science only where the mind grasps1 and appropriates1 not its own faculties only1 but the object itself4 ,the reason1 personal or impersonal1 is the faculty by which we grasp it1 or the light by which we behold it2 not the object in which the mental action terminates1 but the medium by which we attain to the object4 ,if it were otherwise1 there might be faith1 but not science1 and though reason might search for the object1 yet it would always be pertinent to ask1 ,who or what vouches for reason8 ,descartes answered1 ,the veracity of ,god1 which1 in one sense1 is true1 but not in the sense alleged2 for on the ,cartesian theory we might ask1 what vouches for the veracity of ,god8 ,the only possible answer would be1 it is reason1 and we should simply traverse a circle without making the slightest advance4 ,the difficulty arises from adopting the psychological method of philosophizing1 or assuming1 as ,descartes does in his famous cogito1 ergo sum1 ,i think1 therefore1 ,i exist1 that man can think in and of himself1 or without the presence and active concurrence of that which is not himself1 and which we call the object4 ,intuition1 on ,cousin's theory1 is the spontaneous operation of reason as opposed to discursion1 which is its reflex or reflective operation1 but supposes that reason suffices for its own operation4 #ajb ,in his course of philosophy professed at the ,faculty of ,letters in #ahah1 he says1 in the consciousness1 that is1 in thought1 there are two elements1 the subject and object2 or1 in his barbarous dialect1 le moi et le non-moi2 but he is careful to assert the subject as active and the object as passive4 ,now1 a passive object is as if it were not1 and can concur in nothing with the activity of the subject4 ,then1 as all the activity is on the side of the subject1 the subject must be able to think in and of itself alone4 ,the fact that ,i think an existence other than myself1 on this theory1 is no proof that there is really any other existence than myself till my thought is validated1 and ,i have nothing but thought with which to validate thought4 ,the cogito1 ergo sum is1 of course1 worthless as an argument1 as has often been shown2 but there is in it an assumption not generally noted2 namely1 that man suffices for his own thought1 and1 therefore1 that man is ,god4 ,god alone suffices1 or can suffice1 for his own thought1 and needs nothing but himself for his thought or his science4 ,he knows himself in himself1 and is in himself the infinite ,intelligibile1 and the infinite ,intelligens4 ,he knows in himself all his works1 from beginning to end1 for he has made them1 and all events1 for he has decreed them4 ,there is for him no medium of science distinguishable from himself2 for he is1 as the theologians say1 the adequate object of his own intelligence4 ,but man being a creature1 and therefore dependent for his existence1 his life1 and all his operations1 interior and exterior1 on the support and active concurrence of that which is not himself1 does not and cannot suffice for his thought1 and he does not and cannot think in and of himself alone1 in any manner1 mode1 form1 or degree1 or without the active presence and concurrence of the object1 as ,pierre ,leroux has well shown in his otherwise very objectionable ,rfutation de l',eclecticisme4 ,the object being independent of the subject1 and not supplied by the subject1 must exist a parte rei1 since1 if it did not1 it could not actually concur with the subject in the production of thought4 ,there can arise1 therefore1 to the true philosopher1 no question as to the credibility or trustworthiness of reason1 the validity or invalidity of thought4 ,the only question for him is1 ,do we think8 ,what do we think8 ,he who thinks1 knows that he thinks1 and what he thinks1 for thought is science1 and who knows1 knows that he knows1 and what he knows4 ,the difficulty which ,cousin and the reviewer encounter arises from thus placing the question of method before the question of principles1 as we showed in our former article4 ,no such difficulty can arise in the path of him who has settled the question of principles--which are given1 not found1 or obtained by the action of the subject without them--and follows the method they prescribe4 ,the error1 we repeat1 arises from the psychological method1 which supposes all the activity in thought is in the subject1 and supposes reason to be operative in and of itself1 or without any objective reality1 which reality1 on ,cousin's system1 or by the psychological method1 can never be established4 ,the reviewer concedes that objective reality cannot be established in a logical way1 but maintains that there is no need of so establishing it2 for men have an unquestioning1 an unconquerable belief that the very idea of obligation implies something outside of them4 ,nobody denies the belief1 but its validity is precisely the matter in question4 #ajc ,how do you prove the validity of the idea of obligation8 ,but the reviewer forgets that ,cousin makes it the precise end of philosophy to legitimate this belief1 and all the universal beliefs of mankind1 and convert them from beliefs into science4 ,how can philosophy do this1 if obliged to support itself on these very beliefs8 ,the reviewer follows the last passage with a bit of philosophy of his own2 but1 as it has no relevancy to the matter in hand1 and is1 withal1 a little too transcendental for our taste1 he must excuse us for declining to discuss it4 ,we cannot accept it1 for we cannot accept what we do not understand1 and it professes to be above all understanding4 ,in fact1 the reviewer seems to have a very low opinion of understanding1 and no little contempt for logic4 ,he reminds us of a friend we once had1 who said to us1 one day1 that if he trusted his understanding and followed his logic he should go to ,rome2 but1 as neither logic nor understanding is trustworthy or of any account1 he should join the ,anglican ,church1 which he incontinently did1 and since1 we doubt not1 found himself at home4 ,can it be that he is the writer of the article criticising us8 ,the reviewer1 in favoring us with this bit of philosophy of his own1 tells us1 in support of it1 that ,sir ,william ,hamilton says1 ,all thinking is negation4 ,so much the worse1 then1 for ,sir ,william ,hamilton4 ,all thinking is affirmative1 and pure negation can neither think nor be thought4 ,every thought is a judgment1 and affirms both the subject thinking and the object thought1 and their relation to each other4 ,this1 at least sometimes1 is the doctrine of ,cousin1 as any one may ascertain by reading his essays1 ,du ,fait de ,conscience and ,du ,premier et du dernier ,fait de ,conscience4 ,footnote #ce ,though even in these essays the doctrine is mixed up with much that is objectionable1 and which leads one1 after all1 to doubt if the philosopher ever clearly perceived the fact1 or the bearing of the fact1 he asserted4 ,cousin often sails along near the coast of truth1 sometimes almost rubs his bark against it1 without perceiving it4 ,but we hasten on4 ,footnote #ce3 ,fragments ,philosophiques1 t4 i4 pp4 #bdh1 #bef4 #d4 ,we are accused of misstating ,cousin's doctrine of substance and cause4 ,here is our statement and the reviewer's charge3 ',m4 ,cousin1' continues ,the ,catholic ,world1 'professes to have reduced the categories of ,kant and ,aristotle to two--substance and cause2 but as he in fact identifies cause with substance1 declaring substance to be substance only in so much the italics are ours as it is cause1 and cause to be cause only in so much as it is substance1 he really reduces them to the single category of substance1 which you may call1 indifferently1 substance or cause4 ,but1 though every substance is intrinsically and essentially a cause1 yet1 as it may be something more than a cause1 it is not necessary to insist on this1 and it may be admitted that he recognized two categories4' ,what is exactly meant by these two contradictory statements it is not easy to guess2 but let ,cousin speak for himself3 ,footnote #cf ,footnote #cf3 ,,vi4 ,lecture1 ,course of #ahah1 on the ,absolute4 ',previous to ,leibnitz1 these two ideas seemed separated in modern philosophy by an impassable barrier4 ,he1 the first to sound the nature of the idea of substance1 brought it back to the notion of force4 ,this was the foundation of all his philosophy1 and of what afterward became the ,monadology4 444 ,but has ,leibnitz1 in identifying the notion of substance with that of cause1 presented it with justness8 ,certainly1 substance is revealed to us by cause2 for1 suppress all exercise of the cause and force which is in ourselves1 and we do not exist to ourselves4 ,it is1 then1 the idea of cause which introduces into the mind the idea of substance4 ,but is substance nothing more than cause which manifests it8 4444 ,the causative power is the essential attribute of substance2 it is not substance itself4 ,in a word1 it has seemed to us surer to hold to these two primitive notions2 distinct1 though inseparably united2 one1 which is the sign and manifestation of the other1 this1 which is the root and foundation of that4' #ajd ,one would think this sufficiently explicit for all who are not afflicted with the blindness that will not see4 7,p4 #eci47 ,we see no self-contradiction in our statement1 and no contradiction of ,m4 ,cousin4 ,we maintain that ,m4 ,cousin really1 though probably not intentionally or consciously1 reduces the categories of ,kant and ,aristotle to the single category of substance1 and prove it by the words italicized by the reviewer1 which are our translation of ,cousin's own words4 ,cousin says1 in his own language1 in a well-known passage in the first preface of his ,fragments ,philosophiques1 ,le ,dieu de la conscience n'est pas un ,dieu abstrait1 un roi solitaire1 rlegu pardel la cration sur le trne desert d'une ternit silencieuse1 et d'une existence absolue qui ressemble au nant mme de l'existence3 c'est un ,dieu la fois vrai et rel1 la fois substance et cause1 toujours substance et toujours cause1 n'tant substance qu'en tant que cause1 et cause qu'en tant que substance1 c'est--dire1 tant cause absolue1 un et plusieurs1 ternit et temps1 espace et nombre1 essence et vie1 indivisibilit et totalit1 principe1 fin1 et milieu1 au sommet de l'tre et son plus humble degr1 infini et fini1 tout ensemble1 triple enfin1 c'est--dire1 la fois ,dieu1 nature1 et humanit4 ,en effet1 si ,dieu n'est pas tout il n'est rien4 ,footnote #cg ,this passage justifies our first statement1 because ,cousin calls ,god substance1 the one1 absolute substance1 besides which there is no substance4 ,but as our purpose1 at the moment1 was not so much to show that ,cousin made substance and cause identical1 as it was to show that he made substance a necessary cause1 we allowed1 for reasons which he himself gives in the passage cited by the reviewer from his course of #ahah on the ,absolute1 that he might be said to distinguish them1 and to have reduced the categories to two1 instead of one only1 as he professes to have done4 ,but the reviewer hardly needs to be told that1 when it is assumed that substance is cause only on condition of causing1 that is1 causing from the necessity of its own being1 the effect is not substantially distinguishable from the substance causing1 and is only a mode or affection of the causative substance itself1 or1 at best1 a phenomenon4 ,footnote #cg3 ,fragments ,philosophiques1 t4 i4 p4 #gf4 #e4 ,accepting substance and cause as two categories1 we contend that ,cousin requires a third2 namely1 the creative act of the causative substance1 and contingent existences1 as asserted in the ideal formula4 ,ens creat existentias4 ,to this the reviewer cites1 from ,cousin1 the following passage in reply3 ,in the fifth lecture of the course of #ahbh1 ,m4 ,cousin says3 ',the two terms of this so comprehensive formula do not constitute a dualism1 in which the first term is on one side and the second on the other1 without any other connection between them than that of being perceived at the same time by the intelligence2 so far from this1 the tie which binds them is essential4 ,it is a connection of generation which draws the second from the first1 and constantly carries it back to it1 and which1 with the two terms1 constitutes the three integrant elements of intelligence4 444 ,withdraw this relation which binds variety to unity1 and you destroy the necessary bond of the two terms of every proposition4 ,these three terms1 distinct1 but inseparable1 constitute at once a triplicity and an indivisible unity4 444 ,carried into ,theodicy1 the theory ,i have explained to you is nothing less than the very foundation of ,christianity4 ,the ,christians' ,god is at once triple and one1 and the animadversions which rise against the doctrine ,i teach ought to ascend to the ,christian ,trinity4' 7,p4 #edj47 #aje ,we said in our article1 ,under the head of substances he 7,cousin7 ranges all that is substantial or that pertains to real and necessary being1 and under the head of cause the phenomenal or the effects of the causative action of substance4 ,he says he understands1 by substance1 the universal and absolute substance1 the real and necessary being of the theologians2 and by phenomena1 not mere modes or appearances of substance1 but finite and relative substances1 and calls them phenomena only in opposition to the one absolute substance4 ,they are created or produced by the causative action of substance4 ,footnote #ch ,if this has any real meaning1 he should recognize three categories as in the ideal formula1 ,ens creat existentias1 that is1 ,being1 existences1 or creatures1 and the creative act of being1 the real nexus between substance or being and contingent existences1 for it is that which places them and binds them to the ,creator4 ,footnote #ch3 ,fragments ,philosophiques1 t i4 pp4 xix4 xx4 ,the passage cited by the reviewer from ,cousin is brought forward1 we suppose1 to show that it does recognize this third category2 but if so1 what becomes of the formal statement that he has reduced the categories to two1 substance and cause1 or1 as he sometimes says1 substance or being and phenomenon8 ,besides1 the passage cited does not recognize the third term or category of the formula4 ,it asserts not the creative act of being as the nexus between substance and phenomenon1 the infinite and the finite1 the absolute and the relative1 etc42 but generation1 which is a very different thing1 for the generated is consubstantial with the generator4 #f4 ,we were arguing against ,cousin's doctrine1 that ,god1 being intrinsically active1 or1 as ,aristotle and the schoolmen say1 actus purissimus1 most pure act1 must therefore necessarily create or produce exteriorly4 ,in prosecuting the argument1 we anticipated an objection which1 perhaps1 some might be disposed to bring from ,leibnitz's definition of substance1 as a vis activa1 and endeavored to show that1 even accepting that definition1 it would make nothing in favor of the doctrine we were refuting1 and which ,cousin undeniably maintains4 ,we say1 ,the doctrine that substance is essentially cause1 and must1 from intrinsic necessity1 cause in the sense of creating1 is not tenable4 ,we are aware that ,leibnitz1 a great name in philosophy1 defines substance to be an active force1 a vis activa1 but we do not recollect that he anywhere pretends that its activity necessarily extends beyond itself4 ,god is vis activa1 if you will1 in a supereminent degree2 he is essentially active1 and would be neither being nor substance if he were not2 he is1 as ,aristotle and the schoolmen say1 most pure act2 444 but nothing in this implies that he must necessarily act ad extra1 or create4 ,he acts eternally from the necessity of his own divine nature1 but not necessarily out of the circle of his infinite being1 for he is complete in himself1 is in himself the plenitude of being1 and always and everywhere suffices for himself1 and therefore for his own activity4 ,creation1 or the production of effects exterior to himself1 is not necessary to the perfection of his activity1 adds nothing to him1 as it can take nothing from him4 ,hence1 though we cannot conceive of him without conceiving him as infinitely1 eternally1 and essentially active1 we can conceive of him as absolute substance or being1 without conceiving him to be necessarily acting or creating ad extra4 #ajf ,the reviewer says1 sneeringly1 ,this is the most remarkable passage in this remarkable article4 ,he comments on it in this manner3 ,thus appearing to accept the now exploded ,leibnitzian theory1 which ,cousin has combated both in its original form1 and as maintained by ,de ,biran1 our critic tries to escape from it by this subtle distinction between the southern and south-eastern sides of the hair4 ,he enlarges upon it4 ,god1 according to him1 is indeed vis activa in the most eminent degree1 but this does not imply that he must act ad extra1 or create4 ,he acts eternally from the necessity of his nature1 but not necessarily out of the circle of his own infinite being4 ,hence1 though we cannot conceive of him but as infinitely and essentially active1 we can conceive of him as absolute substance without conceiving him to be necessarily creating1 or acting ad extra4 ,m4 ,cousin1 he says1 evidently confounds the interior acts of the divine being with his exterior or creative acts4 ,we have no wish to deny that he does make such a confusion4 ,to one who holds that 'to the operation of reason no objective reality is necessary1 and that such reality can never be established1' this kind of subjective activity of the will1 which seems so nearly to resemble passivity--these pure acts1 or volitions1 which never pass out of the sphere of the will into causation--may be satisfactory2 but to one who believes that ,god is not a scholastic abstraction--to one who worships the 'living ,god' of the ,scriptures--it will sound like a pitiful jugglery with words thinly veiling a lamentable confusion of ideas4 ,god is a person1 and he acts as a person4 ,the divine will is no otherwise conceivable by us than as of the same nature as man's will2 it differs from it only in the mode of its operation--for with him this is always immediate1 and no deliberation or choice is possible--and it is as absurd to speak of the activity of his will1 the eminently active force1 never extending 'out of the circle of his own infinite being1' as it would be to call a man eminently an active person whose activity was all merely purpose or volition1 never passing into the creative act ad extra1 or out of the circle of his own finite being4 ,if ,st4 ,anselm is right1 that1 to be in re is greater than to be in intellectu1 then has the creature man1 according to the critic1 a higher faculty than his ,creator essentially and necessarily has4 ,for his will is by nature causative1 creative1 productive ad extra1 and it is nothing unless its activity be called forth into act external to his personality1 while the pure acts of the divine will may remain for ever enclosed in the circle of the divine consciousness without realizing themselves ad extra6 7,pp4 #edj1 #eda47 ,we do not like to tell a man to his face1 especially when he assumes the lofty airs and makes the large pretensions of our reviewer1 that he does not know what he is talking about1 or understand the ordinary terms and distinctions of the science he professes to have mastered1 for that1 in our judgment1 would be uncivil2 but what better is to be said of the philosopher who sees nothing more in the distinction between the divine act ad intra1 whence the eternal generation of the ,son and the eternal procession of the ,holy ,ghost1 and the divine act ad extra1 whence man and nature1 the universe1 and all things visible and invisible1 distinguishable from the one necessary1 universal1 immutable1 and eternal being1 than in the distinction between the southern and south-eastern sides of the hair8 ,the ,episcopalian journals were right in calling the ,church ,review's criticism on us racy1 rasping1 scathing2 it is certainly astounding1 such as no mortal man could foresee1 or be prepared to answer to the satisfaction of its author4 ,in the passage reproduced from ourselves we neither accept nor reject the definition of substance given by ,leibnitz1 nor do we say that ,cousin accepts it1 although he certainly favors it in his introduction to the ,posthumous ,works of ,maine de ,biran1 and adduces the fact of his having adopted it in his defence against the charge of pantheism1 ,footnote #ci but simply argue that1 if any one should adopt it and urge it as an argument for ,cousin1 it would be of no avail1 because ,leibnitz does not pretend that substance is or must be active outside of itself1 or out of its own interior1 that is1 must be creative of exterior effects4 ,this is our argument1 and it must go for what it is worth4 ,footnote #ci3 ,fragments ,philosophiques1 t i4 p4 xxi4 #ajg ,we admit that in some sense ,god may be a vis activa1 but we show almost immediately that it is in the sense that he is most pure act1 that is1 in the sense opposed to the potentia nuda of the schoolmen1 and means that ,god is in actu most perfect being1 and that nothing in his being is potential1 in need of being filled up or actualized4 ,when we speak of his activity1 within the circle of his own being1 we refer to the fact that he is living ,god1 therefore1 ,triune1 ,father1 ,son1 and ,holy ,ghost4 ,as all life is active1 not passive1 we mean to imply that his life is in himself1 and that he can and does eternally and necessarily live1 and in the very fulness of life in himself2 and therefore nothing is wanting to his infinite and perfect activity and beatitude in himself1 or without anything but himself4 ,this is so because he is ,trinity1 three equal persons in one essence1 and therefore he has no need of anything but himself2 nothing in his being or nature necessitates him to act ad extra1 that is1 create existences distinct from himself4 ,does the reviewer understand us now8 ,he is an ,episcopalian1 and believes1 or professes to believe1 in the ,trinity1 and1 therefore1 in the eternal generation of the ,son1 and the eternal procession of the ,holy ,ghost4 ,do not this generation and this procession imply action8 ,action assuredly and necessarily1 and eternal action too1 because they are necessary in the very essence or being of ,god1 and he could not be otherwise than three persons in one ,god1 if1 per impossibile1 he would4 ,the unity of essence and trinity of persons do not depend on the divine will1 but on the divine nature4 ,well1 is this eternal action of generation and procession ad intra1 or ad extra8 ,is the distinction of three persons a distinction from ,god1 or a distinction in ,god8 ,are we here making a distinction as frivolous as that between the southern and south-eastern sides of a hair8 ,do you not know the importance of the distinction8 ,think a moment1 my good friend4 ,if you say the distinction is a distinction from ,god1 you deny the divine unity--assert three ,gods2 if you say it is a distinction in ,god1 you simply assert one ,god in three persons1 or three persons in one ,god1 or one divine essence4 ,if you deny both1 your ,god is a dead unity in himself1 not a living ,god4 ,the action of ,god ad intra is necessary1 proceeds from the fulness of the divine nature1 and the result is the generation of the ,son and the procession of the ,holy ,ghost4 ,now1 can you understand what would be the consequence1 if we made the action of ,god ad extra1 or creation1 proceed from the necessity of the divine nature8 ,the first consequence would be that creation is ,god1 for what proceeds from ,god by the necessity of his own nature is ,god1 as the ,arian controversy long ago taught the world4 ,the second consequence would be that ,god is incomplete in himself1 and has need to operate without1 in order to complete himself1 which really denies ,god1 and therefore creation1 everything1 which is really the doctrine of ,cousin1 namely1 ,god completes himself in his works4 ,can you understand now1 dear reviewer1 why we so strenuously deny that ,god creates or produces existences distinguishable from himself1 through necessity8 ,cousin says that ,god creates from the intrinsic necessity of his own nature1 that creation is necessary4 ,you say he has retracted the expression4 ,be it so4 #ajh ,but1 with all deference1 we assert that he has not retracted or explained away his doctrine1 for it runs through his whole system2 and as he nowhere makes the distinction between action ad intra and action ad extra1 his very assertion that ,god is substance only in that he is cause1 and cause only in that he is substance1 implies the doctrine that ,god1 if substance at all1 cannot but create1 or manifest himself without1 or develop externally4 ,what say we8 ,even the reviewer sneers at the distinction we have made1 and at the efforts of theologians to save the freedom of ,god in creating4 ,thus1 in the paragraph immediately succeeding our last extract1 he says1 ,but all this quibbling comes from an ignorant terror1 lest ,god's free-will should be attacked4 ,the reviewer1 on the page following1 admits all we asserted1 and falls himself1 blindfold1 as it were1 into the very error he contends we falsely charge to the account of ,cousin4 ,the necessity he 7,cousin7 speaks of is a metaphysical necessity1 which no more destroys the free-will of ,god1 than the metaphysical necessity of doing right1 that is1 obligation1 destroys man's free-will4 ,footnote #dj 7,p4 #edb47 ,footnote #dj3 ,the reviewer1 misled by the evasive answer of ,cousin1 supposes the objection urged against his doctrine1 that creation is necessary1 is1 that it destroys the free-will of ,god2 but that1 though a grave objection1 is not the one we insisted on2 the real objection is1 that if ,god is assumed to create from the necessity of his own nature1 he is assumed not to create at all1 for what is called his creation can be only an evolution or development of himself1 and consequently producing nothing distinguishable in substance from himself1 which is pure pantheism4 ,of course1 all pantheism implies fatalism1 for if we deny free-will in the cause1 we must deny it in the effect2 but it is not to escape fatalism1 but pantheism that ,cousin's doctrine of necessary ,creation is denied1 as we pointed out in our former article4 ,metaphysical necessity1 according to the reviewer1 p4 #ecg1 means real necessity1 since he says1 ,metaphysics is the science of the real1 and therefore ,god is under a real necessity of creating4 ,yet it is to misrepresent ,cousin to say that1 according to him1 creation is necessary6 ,but assume that1 by metaphysical1 the reviewer means moral2 then ,god is under a moral necessity1 that is1 morally bound to create1 and consequently would sin if he did not4 ,but we have more yet1 in the same paragraph3 ,a power essentially creative cannot but create4 ,agreed4 ,but to assert that ,god is essentially creative1 is to assert that he is necessary creator1 and that creation is necessary1 for ,god cannot change his essence or belie it in his act4 ,but this assertion of ,god as essentially creative1 is precisely what we objected to in ,cousin1 and therefore1 while asserting that ,god is infinitely and essentially active in his own being1 we denied that he is essentially creative4 ,he is free in his own nature to create or not1 as he pleases4 ,the reviewer does not seem to make much progress in defending ,cousin against our criticisms4 #g4 ,that ,cousin was knowingly and intentionally a pantheist1 we have never pretended1 but have given it as our belief that he was not4 ,we do not think that he ever comprehended the essential principle of pantheism1 or foresaw all the logical consequences of the principles he himself adopted and defended4 ,but his doctrine1 notwithstanding all his protests to the contrary1 is undeniably pantheism1 if any doctrine ever deserved to be called by that name4 ,it is found not here and there in an incidental phrase1 but is integral2 enters into the very substance and marrow of his thought1 and pervades all his writings4 ,we felt it when we attempted to follow him as our master1 and had the greatest difficulty in the world to give him a non-pantheistic sense1 and never succeeded to our own satisfaction in doing it4 #aji ,cousin's pantheism follows necessarily from two doctrines that he1 from first to last1 maintains4 ,first1 there is only one substance4 ,second1 ,creation is necessary4 ,he says in the ,avertissement to the third edition of his ,philosophical ,fragments that he only in rare passages speaks of substance as one1 and one only1 and when he does so1 he uses the word1 not in its ordinary sense1 but in the sense of ,plato1 of the most illustrious doctors of the church1 and of the ,holy ,scripture in that sublime word1 ,i ,,am that ,i ,,am2 that is1 in the sense of eternal1 necessary1 and self-existent ,being4 ,but this is not the case4 ,the passages in which he asserts there is and can be only one substance1 are not rare1 but frequent1 and to understand it in any of these passages in any but its ordinary sense1 would make him write nonsense4 ,he repeats a hundred times that there is1 and can be1 only one substance1 and says1 expressly1 that substance is one or there is no substance1 and that relative substances contradict and destroy the very idea of substance4 ,he is talking1 he says in his defence1 of absolute substance4 ,be it so2 interpret him accordingly4 ,besides the one only absolute substance1 there is and can be no substance1 that is1 no other one only absolute substance4 ,think you ,m4 ,cousin writes in that fashion8 ,but we fully discussed this matter in our former article1 and as the reviewer discreetly refrains from even attempting to show that we unjustly accused him of maintaining that there is and can be but one substance1 we need not attempt any additional proof4 ,the second doctrine1 that creation is necessary1 the reviewer concedes and asserts1 ,in ,cousin1 as we have attempted to explain1 creation is not only possible1 but ,,necessary1 repeating ,cousin's own words4 ,as to ,cousin's pantheism1 if any one is disposed to believe that the systems of ,spinoza and of ,cousin have anything in common1 we can only recommend to him a diligent study of both writers1 freedom from prejudice1 and a distrust of his own hastily formed opinions4 ,it is too large a question to enter upon here1 but we would like to ask the critic how he reconciles the two philosophers on the great question he last considered--the creation4 ,in ,spinoza1 there is no creation4 ,the universe is only the various modes and attributes of substance1 subsisting with it from eternity in a necessary relation4 ,in ,cousin1 creation1 as we have attempted to explain1 is 'not only possible but necessary4' ,the relation between the universe and the supreme ,substance is not a necessary relation of substance and attribute1 but a contingent relation of cause and effect1 produced by a creative fiat4 7,p4 #ede47 ,a necessitated creation is no proper creation at all4 ,and ,cousin denies that ,god does or can create from nothing2 says ,god creates out of his own fulness1 that the stuff of creation is his own substance1 and time and again resolves what he calls creation into evolution or development1 and makes the relation between the infinite and the finite1 as we have seen1 not that of creation1 but that of generation1 which is only development or explication4 ,he also denies that individuals are substances1 and says they have their substance in the one absolute substance4 ,let the reviewer read the preface to the first edition of the ,fragments1 reproduced without change in subsequent editions1 and he will find enough more passages to the same effect1 two at least in which he asserts that finite substances1 not being able to exist in themselves without something beyond themselves1 are very much like phenomena2 and his very pretension is1 that he has reduced the categories of ,kant and ,aristotle to two1 substance or being1 and phenomenon4 ,now1 the essential principle of pantheism is the assertion of one only substance and the denial of all finite substances4 #aaj ,it is not necessary1 in order to be a pantheist1 to maintain that the apparent universe is an eternal mode or attribute of the one only substance1 as ,spinoza does2 for pantheism may even assert the creation of modes and phenomena1 which are perishable2 its essence is in the assertion of one only substance1 which is the ground or reality of all things1 as ,cousin maintains1 and in denying the creation of finite substances1 that can act or operate as second causes4 ,cousin1 in his doctrine1 does not escape pantheism1 and we repeat1 that he is as decided a pantheist as was ,spinoza1 though not precisely of the same school4 ,the reviewer says1 p4 #edd1 ,we proceed to another specimen of the critic's accuracy2 ',m4 ,cousin says pantheism is the divinization of nature1 taken in its totality as ,god1 ,but this is sheer atheism4' ,are we wrong8 ,here is what ,cousin says in his own language3 ,le panthism est proprement la divinisation du tout1 le grand tout donn comme ,dieu1 l'universe ,dieu de la plupart de mes adversaires1 de ,saint-,simon1 par example4 ,c'est au fond un veritable athisme4 ,footnote #da ,if he elsewhere gives a different definition1 that is the reviewer's affair1 not ours4 ,we never pretended that ,cousin never contradicts himself1 or undertook to reconcile him with himself2 but the reviewer should not be over-hasty in charging inaccuracy1 misrepresentation1 or ignorance where none is evident4 ,he may be caught himself4 ,the reviewer stares at us for saying ,cousin's exposition of the ,alexandrian philosophy is a marvel of misapprehension4 ,can the reviewer say it is not8 ,has he studied that philosophy8 ,we repeat1 it is a marvel of misapprehension1 both of ,christian theology and of that philosophy itself4 ,the ,neoplatonists were pantheists and emanationists1 and ,cousin says the creation they asserted was a creation proper4 ,let that suffice to save us from the scathing lash of the reviewer4 ,footnote #da3 ,fragments ,philosophiques1 t i4 pp4 #ah1 #ai4 #h4 ,we said1 in our article1 ,it was a great misfortune for ,m4 ,cousin that what little he knew of ,catholic theology1 caught up1 apparently1 at second hand1 served only to mislead him4 ,the great controversies on ,catholic dogmas have enlightened the darkest passages of psychology and ontology1 and placed the ,catholic theologian on a vantage-ground of which they who know it not are incapable of conceiving4 ,before him your ,descartes1 ,spinozas1 ,kants1 ,fichtes1 ,hegels1 and ,cousins dwindle into pigmies4 ,the reviewer replies to this3 ,this is something new indeed1 and we think the great ,gallican churchmen of the seventeenth century1 whom ,cousin understood so intimately1 and for whom he had so sincere an admiration1 would be the last to claim an exclusive vantage-ground from their knowledge of the controversies on ,catholic dogma4 ,for these men1 alike of the ,oratory and of ,port ,royal1 were ,cartesians1 and their faith was interwoven with their philosophy2 it was not in opposition to it4 ,and they knew that that philosophy was based upon a thorough understanding of the great 'controversies on ,catholic dogma1' which had been carried on in the schools by laymen as well as by ecclesiastics4 ,but who is the ,romish theologian the critic refers to1 and how is it he makes so little use of his 'vantage-ground'8 ,since ,descartes brought modern philosophy into being by its final secularization1 we do not recollect any theologian so eminent that all the great men he has named dwindle into pigmies before him4 ,unless1 indeed1 this should take place from their being so far out of the worthy man's sight and comprehension1 as to be 'dwarfed by the distance1' as ,coleridge says4 7,pp4 #edf1 #edg47 #aaa ,we referred to no ,romish theologian in particular2 but if the reviewer wants names1 we give him the names of ,st4 ,augustine1 ,st4 ,gregory the ,great1 ,st4 ,anselm1 ,st4 ,bonaventura1 ,st4 ,thomas of ,aquino1 ,fonseca1 ,suarez1 ,malebranche1 even ,cardinal ,gerdll1 and ,gioberti1 the last1 in fact1 a contemporary of ,cousin1 whose ,considerazioni sopra le dottrine del ,cousin prove his immense superiority over him1 and of the others named with him4 ,cousin may have admired the great ,gallican churchmen of the seventeenth century1 but intimately understand them as theologians1 he did not1 if we may judge from his writings2 moreover1 all the great churchmen of that century were not ,frenchmen4 ,as great1 if not greater1 were found among ,italians1 ,spaniards1 ,poles1 and ,germans1 though less known to the ,protestant world4 ,has the reviewer forgotten1 or has he never known1 the great men that in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries flourished in the great religious orders1 the ,dominicans1 ,franciscans1 the ,augustinians1 and especially the ,jesuits--men whose learning1 genius1 and ability were surpassed only by their humility and sanctity8 ,but we spoke not of ,cousin's little knowledge of churchmen1 but of his little knowledge of ,catholic theology4 ,the reviewer here1 probably1 is not a competent judge1 not being himself a ,catholic theologian1 and being comparatively a stranger to ,catholic theology2 but we will accept even his judgment in the case4 ,cousin denies that there is anything in his philosophy not in consonance with ,christianity and the church2 he denies that his philosophy impugns the dogma of the ,word or the ,trinity1 and challenges proof to the contrary4 ,yet what does the reviewer think of ,cousin's resolution of the ,trinity1 as cited some pages back1 in his own language1 into ,god1 nature1 and humanity8 ,he says ,god is triple4 ,cest--dire1 la fois ,dieu1 nature1 et humanit4 ,is that in consonance with ,catholic theology8 ,then1 of the ,word1 after having proved in his way that the ideas of the true1 the beautiful1 and the good are necessary and absolute ideas1 and identified them with the impersonal reason1 and the impersonal reason with the ,logos1 he asks what then8 ,are they ,god8 ,no1 gentlemen1 they are not ,god1 he answers1 but the ,word of ,god1 thus plainly denying the ,word of ,god to be ,god4 ,does that prove he knew intimately ,catholic theology8 ,what says the reviewer of ,cousin's doctrine of inspiration and revelation8 ,that doctrine is1 that inspiration and revelation are the spontaneous operations of the impersonal reason as distinguished from the reflective operations of the personal reason1 which is pure rationalism4 ,is that ,catholic theology1 or does it indicate much knowledge of ,catholic theology1 to say it is in consonance with that theology8 ,in his criticism on the ,alexandrians or ,neoplatonists1 he blames them for representing the multiple1 the finite1 what they call creation1 as a fall1 and for not placing them on the same line with unity1 the infinite1 or ,god considered in himself4 ,is that in accordance with ,catholicity1 or is it a proof of his knowledge of ,catholic theology to assert that it is1 and to challenge the world to prove the contrary8 ,but enough4 ,no ,catholic theologian1 not dazzled by ,cousin's style1 or carried away by his glowing eloquence and brilliant generalizations1 can read his philosophical works without feeling that he was no ,christian believer1 and that he neither knew nor respected ,catholic faith or theology4 ,in his own mind he reduced ,catholic faith to the primitive beliefs of the race1 inspired by the impersonal reason1 and as he never contradicted these as he understood them1 he persuaded himself that his philosophy did not impugn ,christianity and the church4 #aab #i4 ,the reviewer says3 ,one more extract1 by way of capping the climax4 ,seemingly ignorant of ,cousin's criticism upon ,de ,bonald's now exploded theory of language1 and his exposition of ,de ,biran's1 the critic thinks1 ',he would have done well to have studied more carefully the remarkable work of ,de ,bonald2 had he done so1 he might have seen that the reflective reason cannot operate without language4' ,has this man not read what ,cousin has written1 on the origin1 purpose1 uses1 and effects of language1 that he represents him as believing that the reflective reason can operate without language1 without signs6 7,p4 #edg47 ,if ,m4 ,cousin maintains that the reflective reason cannot operate without language1 as in some sense he does1 it is in a sense different from that in which we implied he had need to learn that fact4 ,we were objecting to the spiritualism--we should say intellectism1 or noeticism--which he professed1 that it assumed that we can have pure intellections4 ,cousin's doctrine is that1 though we apprehend the intelligible only on the occasion of some sensible affection1 yet we do apprehend it without a sensible medium4 ,this doctrine we denied1 and maintained1 in opposition1 that1 being the union of soul and body1 man has1 and can have in this life1 no pure intellections1 and that we apprehend the intelligible1 as distinguished from the sensible1 only through the medium of the sensible or of a sensible representation1 as taught by ,aristotle and ,st4 ,thomas4 ,the sensists teach that we can apprehend only the sensible1 and that our science is limited to our sensations and inductions therefrom2 the pure transcendentalists1 or pure spiritualists1 assert that we can and do apprehend immediately the noetic1 or1 as they say1 the spiritual2 the peripatetics hold that we apprehend it1 but only through the medium of sensible representation2 ,cousin1 in his eclecticism1 makes the sensation the occasion of the apprehension of the intelligible1 but not its medium4 ,on his theory the sensible is no more a medium of noetic apprehension than on that of the transcendentalists2 for the occasion of doing a thing is very different from the medium of doing it4 ,now1 language is for us the sign or sensible representation of the intelligible1 and1 as every thought includes the apprehension of the intelligible1 therefore to every thought language1 of some sort1 is essential4 ,the reviewer stumbles1 and supposes that we are accusing ,cousin of being ignorant of what he is not ignorant1 because he supposes that we mean by reflective reason the discursive as distinguished from the intuitive faculty of the soul1 which1 if he had comprehended at all our philosophy1 he would have seen is not the case4 ,intuition with us is ideal1 not empirical4 ,it is not our act1 whether spontaneous or reflective1 but a divine judgment affirmed by the ,creator to us1 and constituting us capable of intelligence1 of reason1 and reasoning4 ,reflective reason is our reason1 and the reflex of the divine judgment1 or the divine reason1 directly and immediately affirmed to us by the ,creator in the very act of creating us4 ,not only discursion1 then1 but what both ,cousin and the reviewer call intuition1 or immediate apprehension1 is an operation of the reflective reason4 ,hence1 to the operation of reason in the simple1 direct apprehension of the intelligible1 as well as in discursion or reasoning1 language of some sort1 as a sensible medium1 is necessary and indispensable4 ,when the reviewer will prove to us that ,cousin held1 or in any sense admitted this1 he will tell us something of ,cousin that we did not know before1 and we will then give him leave to abuse us to his heart's content4 #aac ,but we have already dwelt too long on this attempt at criticism on us in the ,church ,review--a ,review from which1 considering the general character of ,episcopalians1 we expected1 if not much profound philosophy or any very rigid logic1 at least the courtesy and fairness of the well-bred gentleman1 such as we might expect from a cultivated and polished pagan4 ,we regret to say that we have been disappointed4 ,it sets out with a promise to discuss the character of ,dr4 ,brownson as a philosopher1 and confines itself to a criticism on an article in our magazine without the slightest allusion to a single one of that gentleman's avowed writings4 ,even supposing1 which the ,review has no authority for supposing1 that ,dr4 ,brownson wrote the article on ,cousin1 that article was entitled to be treated gravely and respectfully2 for no man in this country can speak with more authority on ,cousin's philosophy1 for no one in this country has had more intimate relations with the author1 or was accounted by him a more trust worthy expositor of his system4 ,as to the reviewer's own philosophical speculations1 which he now and then obtrudes1 we have1 for the most part1 passed them over in silence1 for they have not seemed to us to have the stuff to bear refuting4 ,the writer evidently has no occasion to pride himself on his aptitude for philosophical studies1 and is very far from understanding either the merits or defects of such a man as ,victor ,cousin1 in every respect so immeasurably above him4 ,we regret that he should have undertaken the defence of the great ,french philosopher1 for he had little qualification for the task4 ,he has provoked us to render more glaring the objectionable features of ,cousin's philosophy than we wished4 ,if he sends us a rejoinder1 we shall be obliged to render them still more glaring1 and to sustain our statements by citation of passages from his works1 book and page marked1 so express1 so explicit1 and so numerous1 as to render it impossible for the most sceptical to doubt the justice of our criticism4 ----------- ,the ,tears ,of ,jesus4 ,and ,martha said3 ,lord1 if thou hadst been here1 my brother had not died4 444 ,jesus saith to her3 ,thy brother shall rise again4 444 ,and ,mary saith to him3 ,lord1 if thou hadst been here1 my brother had not died4 444 ,and ,jesus wept4 ,,disciple4 ,kind ,lord1 ,dost ,martha's love prefer8 ,cheer ,mary's heavy heart likewise1 ,and say to her1 ,thy brother once again shall rise4 #aad ,why fall those voiceless tears ,in sad reply ,to her1 as if thine ears ,heard not her cry8 ,what opens sorrow's deep abyss ,at ,mary's word8 ,when ,martha spoke1 no grief like this ,thy spirit stirred4 ,,master4 ,my child1 ,remember what ,i said to her-- ,the elder of the twain1 ,when she1 the busy minister1 ,of ,mary did complain4 ,know1 they who choose the better part ,and love but me alone4 ,ask only that my loving heart ,shall make their griefs mine own4 ,to ,martha is the promise given ,that ,lazarus shall rise from sleep2 ,but ,mary is the bride of heaven-- ,with her shall not the bridegroom weep8 ,,disciple4 ,kind ,lord1 ,when breaks my heart in agony1 ,dost ever shed a tear with me8 ,,master4 ,my ,child1 ,wilt all things else for me resign8 ,wilt others' love for mine forego ,wilt find thy joy alone in me8 ,then will ,i count thy griefs as mine4 ,and with thy tears my tears shall flow ,in loving sympathy4 --------- #aae ,sister ,simplicia4 ,what a wet1 disagreeable day it is6 ,if papa hadn't bought the tickets last evening1 ,i don't believe ,i should have come out to-day1 even for the sake of hearing ,ristori in ,marie ,antoinette4 ,she can't do better than she does in ,mary ,stuart1 and ,i already wish ourselves back in your cosy little library again2 besides1 ,i haven't half finished looking at those curious old illuminated books of your father's1 and1 as we go home to-morrow1 ,i fear ,i shan't have time1 for papa has an invitation for us all this evening4 ,so spoke ,anita ,hartridge as she and ,mary ,kenton took their places in the ,broadway stage on their way to a matinee at the ,french ,theatre4 ,anita's father was a ,baltimore merchant4 ,he was often in the city buying goods1 but this was the first time he had brought his daughter with him4 ,the two girls were warm friends4 ,they had been educated together1 and it was not yet a year since they had bidden adieu to the convent walls1 the one to thread1 motherless1 the gay mazes of ,baltimore society2 the other to come home as a household angel to the father and mother1 who were already beginning to grow old4 ,it has been a happy week1 a week all too soon coming to an end2 and ,mary ,kenton sits thinking sadly1 so wrapped in her reveries that she does not even raise her eyes when the stage stops to take in more passengers4 ,she is thinking of ,anita1 of her beauty and brilliancy1 her quick1 flashing1 ,southern gayety1 and yet deep1 true1 sympathetic heart2 and she wonders what will become of her friend1 with no mother to restrain her impulsiveness and a father who thinks only of gratifying her lightest wish4 ,how gladly she would share with her her own mother's tender care2 and if she could but be taken from this whirl of amusement for a short time2 but no2 they return to-morrow4 ,well1 here they are at ,union ,square1 and ,anita is speaking softly4 ,mary1 did you ever see so beautiful a face8 ,no1 not opposite2 over there in the corner next the door--that younger ,sister of ,mercy4 ,she looks like ,elizabeth of ,hungary4 ,i have been watching her all this time1 and she has never looked up once4 ,she seems inspired4 ,do you believe any one can be so happy as she looks1 ,i mean any one who leads so self-denying a life8 ,but there is no time to reply4 ,they leave the omnibus and are soon entranced under the magic power of the great tragedian4 ,i wish ,i were ,ristori1 said ,anita1 as they left the theatre4 ,to have her power and to be admired as she is admired2 oh6 that were grand4 ,that were a life worth living4 ,what is it to live as we do--to-day as yesterday1 and to-morrow as to-day again--no grand purpose2 and when we die1 have the world go on just the same as before8 ,such lives are not worth living4 ,i wish ,i could be great as ,madame de ,stal1 or beautiful as ,madame ,recamier4 ',o world6 so few the years we live1 ,would that the life that thou dost give ,were life indeed6' repeated ,mary slowly2 and yet1 there are other lives that ,i had rather take for my model than any of these4 #aaf ,yes1 ,i know1 ,mary4 ,you would take rather the life of some saint1 ,st4 ,elizabeth herself1 perhaps2 you are always so good and gentle2 and ,sister ,agnes used to say that she knew you would come back to her some time as a sister yourself4 ,but ,i am not at all so2 ,i love the world1 and society1 and amusement1 and am only dissatisfied because ,i am neither so brilliant nor beautiful as ,i should like to be4 ,i feel that your ideal is the better one1 but ,i have not strength of character enough to live anything but a gay1 butterfly life4 ,you know my favorite song is1 ',i'd be a butterfly1' and indeed ,i do wish for beauty more than anything else in the world4 ,and yet1 after all1 that face that ,i saw under the plain black bonnet was of a heavenly beauty that ,i cannot forget4 ,page's copy of the ,madonna della ,seggiola that we admired so much yesterday is scarcely more beautiful4 ,and her life has been as beautiful as her face1 they say4 ,but there is our stage4 ,let us hurry a little2 mother will be waiting dinner for us already4 ,a low rap at ,mrs4 ,kenton's door4 ,it is the hour after dinner1 and ,dr4 ,kenton and ,mr4 ,hartridge are in the library1 alternately discussing business and their meerschaums4 ,there are two hours yet before the ladies need dress for the evening4 ,mrs4 ,kenton is sitting in her large chair before the grate1 and the girls come in quietly and draw up two low ottomans at her feet4 ,the gas is not yet lighted1 and the twilight throws long1 deep shadows from the curtains and the quaint1 old-fashioned high bedposts4 ,mother1 we have seen ,sister ,simplicia to-day4 ,anita very much wishes to hear her history1 and you have never told it to me yet4 ,it is just the night to tell a story1 just such a night as we read of1 'without1 the snow falling thick and fast1 but within a bright fire throwing its cheerful light around the room and lighting up the countenance of the narrator1' said ,mary1 smiling4 ,i imagine the fire you are quoting about was of hickory logs in a great1 wide fireplace2 and this is only a city grate1 said her mother in the same tone2 and then more seriously1 but ,i will tell you the story1 since you wish it1 and all the more readily as ,i was thinking of her at the moment you entered4 ,eight years ago ,rose ,harding was the belle of our circle4 ,i loved her as ,i would have loved a little sister of my own1 had ,i been blessed with one4 ,she was the younger sister of my dearest friend2 and when ,rachel died1 she left ,rose half in my care1 for their mother was dead and the father only too indulgent4 ,but ,rose was not easily spoiled1 and looking back now at this distance1 ,i think that ,i have never known another that was her equal4 ,mr4 ,harding was wealthy1 and she had all that heart could wish4 ,of course she was much sought after and much loved2 but few were made unhappy through her1 for she was far too generous and too conscientious to be a coquette2 and when one evening she came to me1 blushing and trembling1 and told me that ,willis ,courtney loved her-- ,willis ,courtney1 the son of papa's old partner8 asked ,anita4 ,you have seen him8 ,yes2 he was my ideal when ,i was still a very little girl4 ,but then ,i was sent away to be educated1 and never saw him afterward4 ,he was worthy of ,rose1 though very different4 ,how proud he was of her6 ,i loved to watch them together4 ,he was so gentle and thoughtful of every little attention1 and she trusted and honored him so fully4 ,it seemed there never could be a brighter future in store for any than for these two1 and surely there never could be any more deserving of the choicest blessings of earth4 #aag ,mr4 ,harding was happy in his child's happiness1 and ,willis only waited a visit from his father to give him the glad surprise4 ,mr4 ,courtney was at that time the senior partner in your father's firm1 ,anita6 ,willis was in the second year of his law studies1 and in less than a year he could look forward to establishing a home2 for his father was growing old1 and had told him often that he only wished to see him happily settled in life before he died4 ,and so the weeks passed in happiness1 and tomorrow ,mr4 ,courtney should come4 ,i shall never forget how anxiously ,rose awaited this coming--expectant1 hopeful1 timid4 ',willis says his father is a stern man4 ,i shall be so afraid of him4 ,perhaps he will not approve of me'--with a half-frightened laugh2 ',i do so want him to like me4 ,willis honors him so1 and yet says he always stood in awe of him4 ,do you think he will like me8 ,i wish to-morrow were past1 ,i dread it so2 and yet ,willis says he is sure to love me1 and that he will be so glad to have a daughter4' ,and ,willis was at the depot1 impatient to see his father again1 and still more impatient to have the crowning seal of approval set upon his choice4 ,at length the shrill whistle of the distant train1 a few anxious glances through the darkness1 and the bright red light of the engine glides past slowly4 ,why is it that this red glare1 shining as it passes1 seems to throw a sort of supernatural glare over the platform and the waiting figures8 ,a strange1 weird feeling comes over him4 ,is it himself standing there1 or is he1 too1 only some phantom of his own imagination8 ,in a moment he lives over his whole past life in one comprehensive flash1 as people who are drowning are said to do4 ,but the train has stopped1 and there is his father's bald head among the crowd of rushing passengers4 ,willis passes his hand quickly over his forehead1 as if to brush away the illusion1 and advances to meet him4 ,it is a glad meeting4 ,mr4 ,courtney looks at his son1 and1 as he looks1 the benignant smile on his face broadens and deepens4 ,it is something to have delved in the counting-house all these years1 and bent his shoulders over the dull ledgers1 that these shoulders may have no need to bend1 and that this intellect shall have the means of making the best of itself2 and1 as he walks beside him to the waiting carriage1 he says in his heart1 ',there is none equal to my son4' ,and now they sit in their parlor at the '---- ,house1' and the bottle of old port is almost emptied1 for ,mr4 ,courtney is fond of good wine4 ,the waiter has arranged the fire1 and brought in a fresh bottle1 and father and son are alone4 ',and now1 ,willis1 who is she1 this divinest of her sex2 and when am ,i to see her8' ',to-morrow1 or this evening if you prefer4 ,mr4 ,harding is almost an invalid1 and so spends his evenings at home1 and ,rose seldom leaves him4' ',harding6 ,what ,harding is this8 ,you always spoke of her as ,rose1 and ,i never thought to ask her family name1' said ,mr4 ,courtney1 in ill-suppressed anxiety4 ',thomas ,harding1 formerly of ,new-,orleans4 ,why1 father1 what is it2 are you ill8 ,what can ,i do for you8' said ,willis1 rising from his chair quickly1 as ,mr4 ,courtney arose and staggered toward the mantle piece4 ,he stood there1 resting his folded arms on it1 with his head so buried in them that the son could see nothing of his face4 #aah ,john ,courtney was not a man to be approached easily4 ,whatever the joys or sorrows of his life might have been1 his son was as ignorant of them as the stranger who met him just an hour ago4 ,so ,willis stood now at a little distance1 not feeling sufficient freedom to approach1 and anxiously awaiting some word or movement that should give him permission to speak4 ,but none such came1 and1 after a few moments1 ,mr4 ,courtney raised his head1 saying1 ',a glass of wine1 ,willis4 ,i felt a little faint a moment ago4 ,travelling is tiresome work for an old man4' ,and ,willis filled the glass silently2 for there was a look in the white face that chilled1 while it awed him--a look of determination1 and yet of indecision at the same time4 ,it seemed as if a cold1 misty atmosphere had suddenly entered the room2 and the two men spent the remainder of the evening in a vain effort to sustain a conversation upon all manner of general subjects1 which the son seemed always to succeed in shaping till it just approached the subject in which alone he was then interested1 and the father always to turn it off just in time to prevent its touching4 ,at length ,willis arose1 saying3 ',but your journey has tired you very much1 father4 ,i will go now1 that you may have a long night's rest4' ',yes1 yes4 ,i am no longer so young as ,i was once4' ,but after his son had gone1 he forgot his weariness1 and spent the night in walking up and down the length of the parlor1 and drinking wine1 as the waiter said in the morning1 'like a high-bred gentleman2' and when the morning came1 the look of indecision had passed away1 and the determination alone remained4 ,and ,willis passed the long hours of darkness in a nightmare of undefined dread1 half asleep1 but yet entirely conscious of all around2 a state that confused imagination and reality1 till the most frightful dreams became impressed with all the power of real events--so real that only the morning1 with the unchanged1 familiar face of the servant could make him feel certain that they were all waking dreams1 and that he had not lived a horrible year4 ,but the cold water1 and the cheerful breakfast-table1 and all the invigorating morning influences served to restore him2 and he laughed at the absurd fancies1 and went around to his father's hotel1 wondering that he should have felt so discouraged and uncomfortable in his presence last evening1 and mentally resolving to let no such chill come over their intercourse this morning4 ,as he stepped into the hall1 he noticed the well-known baggage1 with the initials1 ',j4 ,c41' and said to the waiter3 ',what carelessness is this8 ,you have never carried up my father's baggage4' ',as soon as you had gone last evening1' said the waiter1 ',i went up to his door1 sir1 and asked if ,i should send it up then2 but he said1 ,no1 as he should leave early in the morning1 sir4' ,willis hurried up and found the old man at breakfast1 or rather sitting there beside it1 for he had evidently eaten nothing1 although he said he had finished4 ',why1 father6 your baggage--' ',yes1 yes1 a telegram4 ,must return immediately2 and now sit down a moment4 ,there is half an hour yet before going to the train4 ,when do you finish your studies8' ',in two months4' #aai ',so ,i thought--so ,i thought4 ,there is no hurry about your beginning to practise1 and ,i need your assistance in my business just at present4 ,there are some speculations in the ,west that must be attended to4 ,there is money in them1 but ,i can't trust ,stephens to go alone1 and ,i want to send you with him4 ,i shall make all arrangements for you to start at the end of two months4' ',but1 father--,rose8' ',time enough4 ,there's nothing will test your affections like a little absence4 ,besides1 you aren't either of you old enough to know what you want yet4 ,if in two years you both feel as you do now1 why1 then we'll see about matters2 and you know your means don't depend on your practice2 besides1 you'll get along better in that for seeing something of the world before you commence4 ,i'm getting to be an old man1 ,willis1 and need my son's help a little now4 ,surely he won't make any objections to doing what ,i desire8' ,filial respect and affection was a strong trait in ,willis ,courtney's character4 ,disobedience to the father whom he had always feared1 and to whom he was really so much indebted1 was a thing of which he had never thought before1 and thought of now only to put away the idea as one unworthy of him2 and ,rose1 who loved her own father devotedly1 respected him the more for his duty to his2 and so it came about that when the two months had passed1 he went to ,california with ,stephens1 the head clerk of the firm1 and ,rose had only the long1 tender letters2 and ,mr4 ,harding1 who had never been dissatisfied while ,willis was here1 grew suddenly restless1 and longed to travel4 ',as long as ,rose was so happy1 ,i was contented here1' he said1 'but now she is often sad1 and ,i think a little change will be good for both of us4 ,i have travelled too much in my life to be satisfied to settle down in one spot and remain there4 ,i must see ,italy once again before ,i die4' ,and so their passage was taken1 and one morning we stood on the deck of an ,english steamer to bid them ',god speed2' and after we had come on shore again1 stood long watching the ship till it was far down the bay4 ,at first ,rose wrote long1 cheerful1 descriptive letters4 ,a summer at a ,german watering-place had almost entirely restored ,mr4 ,harding's health1 and in the early autumn they began their tour1 intending to visit ,vienna1 and1 passing directly from there to ,venice1 make a short stay in two or three cities of ,northern ,italy1 and then go on to ,rome to spend the winter4 ,letters came seldom now--it was at the beginning of our civil war--and when they came1 there was no longer any mention of ,willis1 nor of glad anticipations of return2 and later1 in a letter dated at ,brescia1 she wrote3 ',i am in the city of ,angela da ,brescia4 ,how was it possible for her to be what she was8 ,i cannot understand it4 ,to rise up out of the shadow of a great grief1 and to go forth cheerfully into the world and work to do good and make others happy4 ,it needs more than human will4 ,god alone can give the strength to do this1 and yet if he does it sometimes1 as he did for her1 why not always8' ,and still there was no mention of any personal grief2 but the whole tone of her letter was sad1 and ,i felt that something more than a mere transient annoyance had occurred to thus destroy her accustomed cheerfulness4 #abj ,at first1 the genial climate and the revival of old associations--for he had spent several winters there in his youth--had seemed to give ,mr4 ,harding a new life1 and almost a second youth1 while they visited the familiar places1 and he pointed out to his daughter the glorious relics of past architecture and the grand works of the old masters2 but it was only for a time1 and when we heard again1 his strength was failing rapidly4 ,at ,rome they had met an old friend who was staying there with his wife1 so they joined company1 and planned their return together for the ensuing summer4 ,and all this time we had only heard of ,willis ,courtney that he had1 without returning home1 joined the ,union army as a private1 and that his father1 whose sympathies were entirely ,southern1 was very much displeased2 and1 in addition1 that he had sold out his interest in the business1 some said in order to retire and enjoy his wealth1 others1 to avoid a financial crisis which he imagined to be impending4 ,in ,may came another letter from ,rose4 ,the time of their return was uncertain2 her father was feeble1 and wished neither to leave the mild climate1 nor to risk the danger of a voyage1 till he should be stronger4 ,and in reply to some question of mine--',i have heard no word from ,willis ,courtney this winter1 and even last autumn his letters had changed and were no longer like him4 ,but ,i cannot write of this4 ,i do not understand it all4 444 ,i have spent almost the entire day in ,st4 ,peter's4 ,i do this often4 ,it is ,god's grandest monument on earth1 and ,i never feel so near him as here4 ,i never truly felt the love of holiness before2 but here1 under the influence of the inimitable grandeur of his church1 and in the presence of his earthly representative1 ,i can almost shut out the vanities of the world1 and bow before ,god alone1 worshipping him in supreme love and reverence4 ,i love the beautiful rites of the church4 ,ah6 how gladly ,i would lie down beneath the shadow of her walls1 and sleep the last sleep--or if that may not be1 take the vows which should make me the bride of heaven alone1 and shut out for ever the coldness and deceptions of the world4 ,but my poor father needs me so much1 and is so entirely dependent upon me1 that ,i cannot leave him while he lives4 ,he is fearfully changed1 and has grown so much older within the last two months that you would scarcely recognize him now4 ,i hope he may soon be better1 and am sure he must be1 for he is always so cheerful4' ,but this was not to be1 and after lingering a few weeks longer1 he died amid the scenes he had loved so well1 having first exacted a promise from ,rose that she would return to ,new ,york with ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,rowland4 ,they had a pleasant voyage1 good weather and a smooth sea1 and the vessel glided along1 making every day her full number of knots1 and making glad the hearts of the passengers1 who were returning to home and friends4 ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,rowland spent much of the time on deck1 and ,rose sat near them1 always with a book lying open on her lap2 to the careless observer she appeared to be reading1 but those who1 after a few days1 began to notice the sad face1 noticed1 too1 that the leaves of the book were never turned and that her glance rested always on the sea4 ,these were days of rest4 ,the slow rolling of the waves lent her an artificial calmness4 ,the events of the last few months had stunned her1 and this was the transition state before reaction4 ,a sort of veil seemed to have been cast between her vision and the past1 and the future seemed a blank1 a desert that she had no wish to explore1 and before which she shut her eyes4 #aba ,she seemed to be falling into that dreamy melancholy which so often precedes insanity1 and ,mrs4 ,rowland watched her anxiously1 and ,mr4 ,rowland made every exertion to distract her attention1 making every little excuse to get her to walk on deck1 and to notice some peculiar cloud or singular fish4 ,and so the days passed till they were within two days of ,new ,york2 then the pilot came on board1 and they began to realize1 for the first time1 that they were almost home4 ,he brought the last papers1 three days old now1 and the hitherto quiet passengers were all excitement1 gathered here and there in little groups eagerly discussing the news he had brought1 for those were times full of interest1 and this news was the defeat at ,bull ,run4 ,mr4 ,rowland had put a paper into ,rose's hands1 and as she read1 she became first interested2 then the quick blood mounted to her face1 and ,mr4 ,rowland remarked3 ',you have not yet forgotten that you are an ,american1 ,miss ,harding4' ,she replied quickly and continued reading4 ,presently the paper dropped from her hands2 her face became deadly pale1 and she leaned heavily against the rail for support4 ,mr4 ,rowland took up the paper and searched the page she had been reading2 but in vain2 he saw nothing that should have startled her1 and so turned away1 thinking he had been mistaken1 thus leaving her alone to accustom herself to the reality of what she had read4 ,what she had read8 ,it was only a name1 and that the name of a common soldier4 ,in looking over the list of the names of those found dead on the battle-field of ,bull ,run1 she had found that of ,willis ,courtney4 ,the next day they reached ,sandy ,hook4 ,but it was already evening1 and they were obliged to anchor over night1 and defer running up to the city till the next morning4 ,there were many impatient at this detention1 but none more so than ,rose ,harding4 ,what has come over her8 her kind friends asked each other in vain2 but she was no longer indifferent1 and her face expressed a cheerful determination4 ,it was a conviction of duty1 and a resolution to fulfil it4 ,all the night after the news1 she had lain awake and pictured to herself the horrors of lying wounded on the battle-field1 and of dying alone in the cold and darkness4 ,she had loved ,willis ,courtney with the full depths of a first matured affection1 and she loved him now1 despite the indifference and coldness with which he had rewarded that love4 ,and now he was dead1 and whatever had come between them on earth had passed away2 and1 strange as it seemed to her1 she felt that he had come back to her1 and that they were nearer together than they had ever been4 ,but he was dead1 and he had died in a noble cause1 and she felt ashamed of her own selfish grief1 that had shut out the world and its cares and sorrows4 ,the old words came ringing in her ears3 ',the noblest place for man to die1 ,is where he dies for man4' ,had he not died nobly8 ,and then she contrasted her own life with his4 ,what had she done to make any of ,god's creatures better or happier6 ',nothing6 nothing6' ,then came bitter regrets1 and accusations against her destiny4 ,why had she not been permitted to be near him in the last struggle8 ,had not her own pride been perhaps somewhat to blame8 ,he had suffered alone4 ,then suddenly he seemed to stand beside her1 and pointing upward1 to repeat to her those words of ,christ3 ',inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these1 my brethren1 ye have done it unto me4' #abb ,it was a revelation4 ,what ,god had done for ,angela da ,brescia1 he had done for her4 ,darkness had passed away1 and in its place was light1 and the warmth of renewed life4 ',unto the least of these4' ,willis was gone4 ,on earth she could do nothing more for him2 but there were others1 others who were laying down their lives as nobly and in the same cause2 for these she could work2 and whatever she could do 'unto the least1' she should be doing for him and for ,christ4 ,it was no mere momentary enthusiasm4 ,she came home to join the devoted band of the ,sisters of ,mercy1 and among these she was one of the bravest and truest4 ,no duties were too arduous and no dangers too great1 for this child of luxury to encounter4 ,herself1 and the great wealth which she had inherited from her father1 she consecrated to the service of ,god4 ,like the noble ,paula of old1 who went forth from pagan ,rome to assemble around her a community of sisters in ,palestine1 'she was piteous to them that were sick1 and comforted them1 and served them right humbly1' and 'laid the pillows aright' with a tender hand2 and many a poor soldier thanked her for his life1 and many more blessed with dying lips the name of her who had robbed the grim messenger of his terrors1 and shown the light of ,god's love gilding the horizon of the valley of the shadow of death4 ,and when the war was ended1 she came back to ,new ,york1 to continue1 in another field1 her labors of love4 ,here she visited hospitals and prisons1 carrying the promises of the ,father's forgiveness to the repentant1 and words of comfort and consolation to those who were sick and weary of life4 ,one morning1 about a year ago1 as she was visiting prisoners in company with an older sister1 she noticed in the ,tombs a new prisoner1 who attracted her attention by his dignified bearing1 and evident reluctance to speak to any of his companions2 and as he turned1 and she caught a view of his profile1 she was startled with a feeling that it was familiar to her2 and yet she had surely never seen the man4 ,but he seemed glad to talk of religion2 and when she left1 she gave him a pocket ,bible to read until she should next visit the prison4 ,but all that day the face seemed to haunt her4 ,it came between her and her prayers2 it visited her dreams in the night1 and hung over her like an incubus that would not away at her entreaties2 and she found herself looking forward to her next visit with a mixed feeling of anxiety and curiosity4 ,when at last she went again1 the old man recognized her1 and asked suddenly1 in a trembling voice3 ',are you ,rose ,harding8' ',i am ,sister ,simplicia4 ,i was ,rose ,harding1' she replied1 shocked at the suddenness and eagerness of the question4 ,he looked at her wonderingly1 and then said3 ',are you happy8 ,but what use to ask4 ,your face and voice show it4 ,see here1' he added1 and handed her back the open ,bible4 ,it was one that ,willis had given her years ago1 and on the fly-leaf to which the man now opened was written-- ',rose ,harding4 ,from ,willis ,courtney4' #abc ,this was the one relic she had kept of her past life4 ,she had fastened those leaves together with thin white wafers1 so that the names should be invisible1 and had felt still that his book must be especially blessed1 and so had given it often to prisoners to read4 ,she had intended to destroy everything that should remind her of ,rose ,harding2 but these names1 written in his hand1 she could not destroy1 but had thought to hide them even from herself4 ,and this man had torn them open4 ,it was as if he had committed a sacrilege2 as if he had opened the grave of the dead2 for were these not buried long ago8 ,but he was speaking hurriedly3 ',i am ,john ,courtney4 ,i have something to tell you2 something that has hunted me down for years1 and driven me here at last4' ,and she listened4 ,he had been her father's confidential clerk years ago in ,new ,orleans4 ,in an evil moment1 he had allowed himself to take a small sum from the drawer2 for his salary1 large though it was1 was not sufficient to meet the expenses of a young man who loved gay company1 drank much and gambled more4 ,it was not discovered1 and so he had helped himself again1 and ,mr4 ,harding1 who was scarcely older than himself1 and had absolute confidence in him1 had still made no discovery2 but when it became time to balance the yearly accounts1 he knew it could be concealed no longer1 and so one night he took enough more to pay travelling expenses1 and to help him in starting into some business for himself1 and left on a night-boat for the ,north4 ,he remained secreted in ,st4 ,louis till he had discovered through the papers that ,mr4 ,harding had no intention of prosecuting him2 then1 after having adopted the precaution of changing his appearance as much as possible1 and his name from ,james ,rellerton to ,john ,courtney1 had come to ,baltimore and gone into business1 in which he had prospered1 and had married into one of the first families in the place4 ,his wife had died while ,willis was yet a child1 and he had centered his pride and affection upon this only boy4 ,for his sake he had worked untiringly1 and had showered his wealth upon him1 that he might never know the temptation that had overcome his father4 ,but from making any acknowledgment to ,mr4 ,harding his pride shrunk4 ,he had1 indeed1 sent back the money he had taken1 but to see ,mr4 ,harding he had felt to be impossible4 ,james ,rellerton was dead1 and ,john ,courtney must stand without reproach before the world1 and no man living must know that there was any connection between the two4 ,but when ,willis had spoken the name of ,thomas ,harding as that of the father of his affianced bride1 it seemed that retribution1 from being so long delayed1 had come upon him with double harshness1 as the interest of a debt that has run long is sometimes greater than the principal itself4 ,should he destroy the happiness of the son for whom he would have given his life1 or run the risk of being recognized by ,mr4 ,harding8 ,he could do neither2 and besides1 would ,mr4 ,harding allow his daughter to marry the son of ,james ,rellerton8 ,then he had resolved to separate them1 and let time and events decide the future means to be employed4 ,it had been a double game4 ,if ,willis had been instructed to watch ,stephens1 ,stephens had been no less definitely instructed to watch ,willis2 and when1 after six months1 he had reported that the correspondence between him and ,rose was undiminished1 he had received instructions that he must 'see to it that it should cease gradually2' and so the letters had been intercepted1 a few times changed1 and then no longer sent in any form4 ,the father had said3 #abd ',my son will blame her1 and his pride will prevent his suffering4' ,but when did pride prevent suffering8 ,it may prevent the showing of any sign1 and it did here2 but ,willis had been one of the first volunteers1 and then he had fallen2 and the old man had been left desolate with a double crime upon his conscience4 ,he had no object in attending to business and making money now1 so had sold his interest1 and tried to find in travel that alleviation from thought which could alone make life endurable4 ,but he could not leave himself--the one thing he desired to leave--and an attraction beyond his control had brought him back to ,new ,orleans4 ,here the necessity for excitement had again led him into the old temptation of gambling4 ,but he was not always successful2 and when the ,mississippi was again open1 he had travelled on the boats1 at first with better success1 but at last had become too well known1 and in looking for a new field1 had fallen in with a band of counterfeiters1 and so had come to ,new ,york in their employ4 ,and this was the end of it all4 ,at first ,rose had listened with an intense loathing for the man4 ,had he not wronged her father1 and blighted her own youth1 and even chased his own son to his death2 and was he not a counterfeiter and a gambler2 an outcast before ,god and man8 ,then1 as she turned her glance1 it fell upon her cross1 and it brought back the scene on ,calvary and the face of ,him who had prayed ',father1 forgive them4' ,then she looked again at the old man1 and1 trembling with emotion1 he cast himself on the floor at her feet1 crying3 ',merciful sister1 pray for me6' ,and the peace of ,god came back to her1 as she clasped her hands1 and raising to heaven her eyes filled with the tears of a gentle pity1 prayed aloud3 ',o ,jesus6 be merciful2 and deal with me even as ,i deal with this repentant man4' ,the ,bible of his son first1 and the labors of the appointed ministers of ,god afterward1 brought him again under the benediction of the church4 ,but she it was who stood beside him in the last struggle1 and closed the eyes with more tenderness than a daughter2 for hers was that holy love1 born of heaven and earth1 which dwells only in the consecrated heart4 444444 ,mrs4 ,kenton had finished4 ,the long shadows had grown longer and mingled together1 till it had become only darkness2 and then the moon had arisen and was shining with a pale light through the masses of heavy clouds4 ,they arose silently and went each to her own room4 ,but for ,anita ,hartridge this night was the turning-point in life4 ,the butterfly was such no longer1 and in its place grew up the noble woman4 ,did ,sister ,simplicia1 as she knelt at her prayers that night1 know the work she had done for her ,master that day8 --------- #abe ,the ,merit ,of ,good ,works ,in a recent article we endeavored to explain the catholic doctrine1 that good works as well as faith are an essential condition of justification4 ,this implies1 of course1 that good works are meritorious1 and that eternal life is due to them as a recompense4 ,we wish to elucidate this point a little more fully1 and to show what is the nature of that merit which is ascribed to good works proceeding from the principle of faith informed by charity4 ,in the widest sense of the word1 merit signifies any kind of excellence or worthiness4 ,in this sense1 a picture is said to have merit2 and purely physical or intellectual perfections1 which are merely natural gifts1 are said to merit admiration and praise4 ,in the strict sense of the word1 merit signifies the quality by which certain free1 voluntary acts entitle the person who performs them to an adequate recompense4 ,it is in this sense that merit is ascribed to the good works of a just man4 ,these works are said by ,catholic theologians to deserve eternal life by a merit of condignity and a title of justice4 ,what is meant by merit of condignity8 ,it means that there is an equality of dignity or intrinsic worth and value between the work performed and the recompense bestowed4 ,this is easily understood in regard to merely human affairs4 ,it is not easy to understand1 however1 how a creature can deserve the reward of eternal life from the ,creator4 ,good works1 however excellent they may be in the finite order1 and as measured by a human standard1 appear to be totally incommensurate with the infinite1 and therefore wanting in all condignity with an infinite recompense4 ,so far as the mere physical entity of the works is concerned1 this is really so4 ,the gift of a cup of cold water to a person suffering from thirst1 the recital of a few prayers1 a trivial act of self-denial1 evidently bear no proportion to eternal beatitude4 ,neither does a life like that of ,st4 ,paul1 filled with labors1 or a long course of penance and prayer like that of ,st4 ,romuald1 or a martyrdom like that of ,st4 ,polycarp4 ,the mere extent or duration of the labor or suffering1 considered as something endured for the sake of ,god1 is nothing in comparison with the crown of immortal life4 ,the condignity of good works is not derived from an equality or proportion between their physical extent and duration and the physical extent and duration of the recompense4 ,it is derived from an equality in kind between the interior principle from which good works proceed1 and the interior principle of beatitude4 ,the interior principle of good works is charity2 not a merely natural charity1 but a supernatural1 a divine charity1 produced by the ,holy ,spirit4 ,good works proceed from a supernatural principle1 and are performed by a concurrence of the human will with the divine ,spirit4 ,they have1 therefore1 a superhuman1 divine quality1 and are elevated to the supernatural order1 the same order to which eternal beatitude belongs4 ,they are1 therefore1 equal to it in dignity in this sense1 that they are equally supernatural4 #abf ,the principle of divine charity in the soul is1 moreover1 the germ of the eternal life itself1 which is promised as the reward of the acts which proceed from charity4 ,the life of grace is the life of glory begun1 and the life of glory is the life of grace consummated4 ,the germ is equal in grade and quality with the tree which it produces1 though not equal in extent and perfection4 ,in the same manner1 a little act1 like that of giving a cup of water to another for the love of ,god1 although trivial in itself1 contains a principle which is capable of uniting the soul to ,god for all eternity4 ,it is the principle of divine love1 making the soul like to ,god1 imitating on a small scale those acts of the love of ,god toward men which are the most stupendous1 and therefore1 making the soul worthy to be loved by ,god with a love of complacency similar in kind to that love which he has toward himself4 ,again1 the value and merit of services rendered by one person to another are estimated1 not alone by the substance of the services rendered1 but by the quality of the person who renders them4 ,an article of small utility or cost is sometimes more valued as a token of affection from a dear friend1 or as a sign of esteem and honor from a person of high rank1 than a large sum of money would be which had been accumulated by the industry of a servant4 ,the good works of a just man fall under this category4 ,they are estimated according to the quality and rank of the person who performs them4 ,the just man is the friend of ,god1 and the services he renders to ,god are valued accordingly1 not as so much work done1 but as tokens of love and fidelity4 ,as a friend of ,god1 the just man is a person of high rank in the scale of being4 ,he is a partaker of the divine nature1 as ,st4 ,peter distinctly affirms4 ,his human nature is exalted and sublimated to a certain similitude with the nature of ,god2 and the acts which proceed from it have a corresponding dignity and elevation1 proportioned to their end1 which is eternal life1 or the consummation of the union between human nature and the divine nature in eternal beatitude4 ,the just man is the adopted son of ,god the ,father1 through his union with ,god the ,son incarnate4 ,this adoption into a participation with ,jesus ,christ in his sonship reflects the dignity and excellence of the person of ,christ upon his person and upon all his works4 ,as a member of ,christ and a son of ,god1 his person and his works are superior to the whole natural order1 and1 therefore1 there is nothing which has the relation of condignity toward them except the supernatural order itself4 ,it is evident1 therefore1 that regenerate nature has condignity with the state of glory1 and that the good works which proceed from it have condignity with degrees of splendor in this state of glory4 ,regenerate nature bears the image of ,god1 aspires after union with ,god1 is fitted to find its beatitude in the vision of ,god1 is made apt and worthy to be admitted into the kingdom of heaven4 ,it demands1 therefore1 as its last complement1 the lumen gloriae which enables it to see ,god face to face4 ,the personal love of the soul to ,god as its friend and ,father1 and the personal love of ,god to the soul as his friend and son1 require that they should have mutual vision of each other and live together4 ,this living with ,god is eternal life1 which is1 therefore1 the only fitting recompense for the love of ,god exercised by the just man upon earth4 #abg ,theologians do not1 however1 regard the title in strict justice to a supernatural reward1 or the ratio of condign merit1 as consisting solely in the condignity of the meritorious works themselves4 ,they place it partially in the promise of ,god1 or the decree of his providence which he has promulgated1 in which special rewards are assigned as the recompense of good works performed in the state of grace4 ,therefore1 they say1 the reward of eternal life is due in strict justice1 not by an obligation arising per se from the act of the creature1 but by an obligation of the ,creator to himself to fulfil his own word4 ,they say that ,god may require1 by virtue of his sovereign dominion1 any amount of service from the creature as his simple due1 without giving him any reward for it2 that he may even annihilate him if he pleases1 and1 moreover1 that the holy acts of the blessed in heaven1 although they have a perfect condignity with supernatural rewards1 do not receive any4 ,therefore1 they say1 a creature cannot merit a reward from ,god according to rigorous justice1 but only according to a rule of justice derived from the free determination and promise of ,god4 ,scotus and some others even hold that the condignity of meritorious works with the promised reward is altogether extrinsic1 and denotes merely that they are conformed to the standard or rule which is laid down by the divine law4 ,it is1 therefore1 only required in strictness by the definition of the church1 that one should confess that the good works of the just man entitle him to a supernatural reward by virtue of a promise which ,god has given4 ,those who are so extremely frightened at the sound of the phrase1 merit of condignity1 as applied to men1 can adopt the opinion of ,scotus if they please4 ,for our own part1 we prefer the other and more common doctrine of condignity which we have already explained4 ,we do not apprehend any danger to the glory of the ,almighty from the exaltation of his own works1 or any diminution of the merits of ,christ from the glorification of his saints4 ,on the contrary1 the power and glory of ,god are magnified the more1 the more like to himself the creature is shown to be which he has created4 ,god is admirable in his saints2 and1 the more excellent their works are1 the greater is the praise and homage which accrues to him from these works which are offered up to him as acts of worship4 ,the only error to be feared is the attributing of something to the creature which he derives from himself1 as having self-existent1 independent being4 ,to attribute to angel or man as much good as is in a withered leaf1 is equivalent to a total denial of ,god1 if this good is not referred to ,god as first cause4 ,but to attribute to created nature all possible good1 even to the degree of hypostatic union with the divine nature1 does not detract in the slightest degree from the truth that ,god alone is good in himself1 if the good of the creature is referred to him as its source and author4 ,no doubt all right to existence1 to immortality1 to felicity of any kind1 is derived from ,god1 and is originally a free gift to the creature from him4 ,but the right is a real right1 of which the creature has just possession when ,god has given it to him1 one which may be an inalienable right in certain circumstances1 that is1 a right which ,god cannot1 in consistency with his own attributes1 withdraw4 ,when ,god creates a rational nature1 in which he has implanted the desire and expectation of immortal existence and felicity1 he implicitly promises immortality and felicity4 ,we do not like to hear it said that he can annihilate such a creature or withhold from it the felicity after which it naturally aspires1 unless it be as a just punishment for sin4 #abh ,so1 when ,god creates man anew in the supernatural order1 by giving him the grace of regeneration1 he gives him an implicit promise of eternal beatitude4 ,it is very true that he can exact from him any amount of service he pleases1 as a debt that is due to his sovereign majesty2 yet he cannot justly withhold from him final beatitude1 unless he forfeits it by his own fault4 ,the special reward annexed to every good work is undoubtedly due only by virtue of the explicit promise which ,god has made1 to reward every such good work by an increase of grace and glory4 ,it is also true that ,god does confer some degrees of glory on the just out of pure liberality and beyond the degree of merit4 ,moreover1 the period of merit is limited by the decree of ,god to this life1 because it is fitting that the creature should increase and progress1 during his probation1 toward the full measure of his perfection1 and should afterward remain in that perfection when he has arrived at his term4 ,we think1 therefore1 that we have made it plain enough that good works have a merit of condignity in relation to eternal life1 and nevertheless derive this merit from the promise and appointment of ,god1 subject to such conditions as he has seen fit1 in his sovereign wisdom and liberality1 to establish4 ,the doctrine we have laid down detracts in no way from the merits of ,christ4 ,christ alone has the principle of merit in his own person as an original source4 ,he alone has merited of condignity grace to be bestowed on others4 ,his merits alone are the cause of the remission of sins1 and the bestowal of regenerating1 sanctifying1 saving grace4 ,his merits merits of the saints as the head is superior to the inferior members of the body4 ,his incarnation1 life1 and death are1 in a word1 the radical meritorious cause of human salvation from the beginning to the end2 and1 in their own proper sphere or order of causation1 are entirely alone4 ,christ is the only mediator of redemption and salvation between ,god and man1 in whom the ,father is reconciling the world to himself4 ,his acts alone are referable to no principle higher or more ultimate than his own personality4 ,all merely human grace1 sanctity1 or merit is1 therefore1 to be referred to him as its chief author1 and to merely human subjects only as recipients or secondary and concurrent causes4 ,it is easy to understand1 therefore1 what is meant by presenting the merits of the ,blessed ,virgin ,mary and the saints before ,god as a motive for bestowing grace4 ,the saints have not merited anything over and above that which ,christ has merited1 nor have they merited1 by a merit of condignity1 even the application of the merits of ,christ to others4 ,through their personal merits1 they have obtained a kind of right of friendship to ask in a specially efficacious manner for graces and favors to be conferred on those for whom they intercede4 ,their mediation and merits are1 therefore1 only efficacious by way of impetration and prayer1 and not by virtue of a right which they have obtained by a title of justice4 ,this is what is meant by merit of congruity1 which denotes a certain fitness in a person to obtain from ,god the favors for which he asks4 ,this merit of congruity is all that is ascribed to the ,blessed ,virgin or the saints1 as a groundwork of their intervening power1 by any ,catholic theologian4 ,it is the same in kind with that which the just on earth possess1 by virtue of which they obtain1 through their prayers1 blessings and graces for other persons4 ,it is easy to see1 therefore1 how completely the ,catholic doctrine is misunderstood by those who imagine that it either places man in the room of ,christ1 as his own ,saviour1 or substitutes the mediation of the ,blessed ,virgin and the saints for the mediation of ,christ4 -------- #abi ,full ,of ,grace4 ,flowers in the fields1 and odors on the air1 ,the spring-time everywhere2 ,music of singing birds and rippling rills1 ,soft breezes from the hills2 ,so broke the sweetest season1 long ago1 ,far from this death-cold snow4 ,in that blest land which smiles to every eye1 ,most favored from on high2 ,and in one town whose sheltering mountains stand ,broad breast-plates of the land2 ,so fair a spring-time sure was never seen1 ,since ,eden's walks were green4 ,a sudden glory flashed upon the air1 ,a face unearthly fair2 ,a beauty given but to those alone ,the nearest to the throne2 ,the great archangels who upon their hair ,the seven planets wear4 ,lightly as diamonds--such the form that now1 ,with brilliant eyes and brow4 ,paused by the humble dwellings of the poor4 ,entered the humblest door1 ,veiling his awful beauty1 far too bright1 ,with wide wings1 strong and white4 ,within the dwelling where his flight was stayed ,a kneeling woman prayed4 ,the angel bowed before that holy face1 ,and hailed her ,full of ,grace4 ,no other title1 not the kingly name ,which ,david's line can claim2 ,not highest rank1 though unto her was given ,queenship of earth and heaven2 ,not as that one who gave life to the dead1 ,bruising the serpent's head2 ,not even as mother of the ,sacrificed1 ,the world-redeeming ,christ4 ,this thought might be a sermon1 while yet we1 ,heirs of eternity1 ,walk this brief1 sin-surrounded tract of life4 ,wage this short1 sharpest strife1 ,which must be passed and won before the rest4 ,the triumph of the blessed4 ,and when the hour supreme of fate shall come1 ,and at our promised home ,we wait in breathless and expectant dread ,between the quick and dead1 ,then may the angel warders of the place ,welcome us1 ,full of ,grace4 -------- #acj ,translated ,from ,l',economiste ,belge4 ,how ,our ,history ,will ,be ,told ,in ,the ,year #cjjj4 ,in those days--our latest posterity loquitur--the people were not entirely freed from the savage instincts of their ancestors1 the anthropophagi1 those ferocious contemporaries of the deluge and such great inundations of the world4 ,true1 they did not still eat their enemies1 nor break their skulls with clubs2 they did not pierce their bodies with arrows of bone and flint2 but they did the work more delicately1 entirely according to the rules of art1 with the precision of a surgeon who cuts off a limb1 or the coolness of a butcher who bleeds a sheep4 ,by dint of inventions1 calculations1 and trials of every kind1 they fabricated1 at last1 most ingenious tools1 very convenient and very simple1 and which they handled with equal dexterity4 ,they were not instruments of natural philosophy1 chemistry1 astronomy1 or mathematics2 our fathers possessed1 it is true1 objects of this kind1 but they did not think it proper to put them in the hands of the people4 ,their thermometers1 microscopes1 telescopes1 and electrical machines remained in the shade of libraries or the cabinets of the learned4 ,the people were ignorant of their names and uses1 while they well understood the management of the tools of which ,i speak4 ,so you will suppose these were very useful articles1 as they were so generally employed in every clime and nation1 and their object to moralize and instruct mankind1 as governments consented to their gratuitous distribution among their subjects--went farther1 even1 and imposed their use4 ,but alas6 no2 they were only tools of death and carnage1 worthy to figure among the arms and instruments of torture of preceding ages2 for while some shot off bullets1 others threw to enormous distances balls of brass and steel1 that made holes in human walls1 burnt up towns1 and sunk ships4 #aca ,the men of this time were called civilized6 ,strange to say1 they had abolished torture1 and wished to do away with the pain of death4 ,the scaffold horrified them1 and the sight of the gallows gave them a vertigo6 ,they had journals and books filled with beautiful phrases in honor of peace and civilization4 ,but they did not comprehend the sense of aphorisms which they repeated incessantly and inscribed everywhere1 on the fronts of their temples1 and the first page of their constitutions4 ,their age to them was the age of light1 and they seemed ready to burst with pride when they considered their enormous riches1 the fame of their arts1 and the extent of their sciences4 ,and1 in appearance1 one might have believed them wise1 and as good as the beings who inhabit the more favored planets of our solar system4 ,they had noble aspirations and a generous ardor4 ,in the penumbra in which they were plunged1 a confused mass of whirling and exasperated workers was alone distinguishable1 hungry1 indefatigable1 running up and down1 like busy ants seeking their subsistence4 ,the ear heard only a deafening and monotonous noise1 like the buzzing of a hive4 ,but in spite of shocks and hurts1 inevitable from such a clamorous multitude1 order and harmony seemed about being established1 when suddenly the same beings who until then had appeared so laborious and active1 were seized with a sort of rage1 and set violently upon each other4 ,the red light of incendiarism and the thundering brightness of battle thus demonstrated to the astonished gaze of philanthropists and thinkers1 that vices1 sanguinary passions1 and brutal instincts1 always alive and always indomitable1 were only hidden in shade1 and awaiting the favorable moment to break their bonds and annihilate civilization4 ,by the artificial and slightly tarnished light of their sciences1 philosophers had gathered round them men of policy and amiability1 civilized and peaceable1 distinguished by good manners1 and saying pretty things about fraternity and progress2 but the light that broke upon them1 the evidence that disenchanted them in this shock of nations1 showed them only coarse and ignorant crowds1 capable of committing1 in their folly and cruelty1 every crime and every infamy4 ,they had believed that the type of their epoch was the man of business1 industrial or negotiating1 the sharp worker1 armed for competition1 and prepared for the incessant struggles of production2 and behold6 suddenly this personage quits the scene1 transforming himself into a fantastical being1 clothed in brilliant colors1 his head ornamented with cock's feathers1 his step stiffened1 his manners brusque1 and his voice short and sonorous4 ,at the first boom of the cannon1 the rolling of the drum1 or the sound of a warlike march1 millions of men1 clothed in red1 like the common hangman1 marched out of the shade1 furnished with instruments suitable for bleeding1 scorching1 disembowelling1 crushing1 burning1 and stopping the breath of their neighbors4 ,and perhaps you think these men were the refuse of society2 that they came from low haunts and prisons2 had neither heart nor intelligence2 that they were given up to public execration4 ,you never were more mistaken4 ,each one of these auxiliaries of death was considered healthy in mind and body1 vigorous and intelligent1 honest and disciplined4 #acb ,to exercise his trade suitably1 he was obliged to possess a crowd of precious qualities1 know perfectly how to behave himself1 be honorable1 and of unimpeachable integrity6 ,as to the great generals1 they were wise men1 and men of the world4 ,they were expected to study mathematics1 as it specially teaches order and harmony2 history1 which proves that violence and force have never established anything2 and many other sciences1 which one would have imagined capable of directing their thoughts from their impious career1 and rendering them pacific and humane4 ,toward #ahff a great invention agitated the world4 ,you are ready to believe it was some means of aerial locomotion1 or some process for utilizing central heat1 or placing our planet in communication with the neighboring ones of ,mars and ,venus4 ,alas6 no4 ,such discoveries were not yet ripe2 and besides1 men of this age had other preoccupations4 ,a small province of the north of ,germany1 with an erudite and philosophical people1 had the honor of giving to the world the celebrated needle-gun4 ,tired of thinking1 they relinquished their ideal1 to move heavily and noisily under the sun of reality1 and set about acting2 but instead of inventing a philosophy1 they considered a new engine of destruction more creditable1 and having tried it with the most magnificent results1 they offered to the public the instrument which was entirely to change the map of ,europe1 break the equilibrium of power1 and annihilate all international right4 ,after having laid low several millions of men on the field of battle1 this comparatively insignificant people on the borders of the ,spree1 who until then had won more academical laurels than cannons1 and more truths than promises1 began to comprehend that they could play a splendid rle1 and exercise a preponderating influence in ,europe4 ,formerly they had invented an absolute philosophy2 now they invented and practised an absolute policy4 ,and this was the union of the ,german people1 the triumph of ,prussian institutions1 the decay of the ,latin and rise of the ,germanic races1 and many other changes which only absolute power can effect4 ,these little people on the borders of the ,spree awoke to a new life1 and determined to take all and absorb all2 they threatened ,holland2 coveted ,alsace2 were disposed to swallow up ,bavaria1 the grand-duchy of ,baden1 and ,wrtemberg4 ,other nations were troubled1 and justly2 for the power of the ,germans seemed to them very much like absolutism4 ,so each of them1 in great haste1 began to perfect their own instruments of death with the faint hope1 too1 that they might very soon make use of them4 ,old ,france1 tired of conquests and interior struggles1 wished only to rest4 ,having disturbed the tranquillity of ,europe so often1 she had come to that age when repose is the chief good2 so she feigned ignorance of the insolent aspect and gestures of defiance of her young rival2 but unhappily a few judicious men1 and many more of an intriguing nature1 fools and ambitious ones1 were at the head of affairs4 ,these loved war as a golden egg1 and birds of prey1 we know1 derive their sustenance from a field of battle4 ,some already dreamed of wading through blood to conquer an epaulette1 others that they gained millions in supplies1 and became great dignitaries in the empire4 #acc ,so they went about repeating that their country was degraded1 reduced to a second rank2 that ,germanic insolence must be chastised1 and the glorious tricolor planted on the left shore of the ,rhine4 ,the journals commented on their words1 and the rustic in his hut1 the laborer at his forge1 and the financier in his counting-house dreamed with terror of the dawning evil4 ,certain politicians1 meditating on the situation and the march of events1 declared war inevitable1 necessary1 providential1 and alone able to restablish the influence of the country and the prestige of the government4 ,so they burst out in eloquent discourses in favor of military armaments1 while on their side strategists1 inventors1 and administrators set to work1 believing they were the foundation of the future prosperity of their country4 ,their theory was very simple4 ,the power of a nation1 they said1 depended on the number of men capable of bearing arms1 and on the quantity and quality of the engines of destruction that they possessed4 ,that is1 our country must be powerful in order to be rich1 prosperous1 and free4 ,ergo1 let us increase to every extent the effectiveness of our troops and fabricate without parsimony such arms as are unparalleled in ,europe4 ,weak patriots and economists1 the ,sancho ,panzas of these ,don ,quizotte politics1 murmured a little1 but they found themselves obliged to be silent and bow their heads under the taunts and reproaches with which they were loaded4 ,utopists1 cried the inventors1 you say our machines are not useful2 but look down there in the direction of ,sadowa and ,custozza1 and tell us afterward if we have not rapidly and economically fabricated smoke and glory4 ,ask the surgeons1 and they will describe to you the gaping wounds1 the deep rents they can produce2 ,footnote #db ask statesmen1 and they will tell you the services they render to the ambitious1 and the good livings they secure thereby4 ,miserable citizens6 men without energy and honor1 cry they to others1 you lazily prefer well-being to glory1 and the success of your personal enterprises to that of the national glory2 but let the hour of danger come1 and we will make you walk at the point of the bayonet1 notwithstanding your cries and menaces4 444 ,and people who cared nothing for truth1 and judged by appearances1 echoed the cry1 and called them utopists1 hollow dreamers1 theorists1 and1 after all1 cowardly and egotistical4 ,footnote #db3 ,at ,strasbourg the effects of the ,chassepot gun have just been certified by experiments on a corpse hung at a distance of fifteen yards4 ,the experiments were made by ,m4 ,sarazin1 and corroborated by the medical faculty4 ,we will hear the good doctor in his own words3 ,i am far from exaggerating1 said he modestly1 the practical value of my experiences1 and ,i well know the desiderata1 easier to distinguish than resolve1 that they present from the point of view in which the effect of the ,chassepot gun is produced according to distance and on the living being4 ,however1 everywhere ,i have drawn the following conclusions3 ,at a short distance1 and on a corpse the projectiles have not deviated in their course4 #a4 ,the diameter of the orifice1 as it enters1 is the same as that of the projectile4 #b4 ,the diameter of the orifice1 as it goes out1 is enormous1 seven to thirteen times larger than that of the ball4 #c4 ,the arteries and veins are cut transversely1 drawn back and gaping4 ,the muscles are torn and reduced to the consistency of pulp4 #d4 ,the bones are shattered to a considerable extent1 and out of all proportion to the shock of the projectile4 ,to sum up1 the effects present a remarkable intensity1 and it is well to note that1 after having traversed the corpse1 the projectile pierced two planks1 each an inch thick1 and buried itself deeply in the wall4 ,so soon as such a river of ink flowed from the desks of the journalists1 dragging in its course these insults and injuries1 the workmen commenced their labors4 ,they made rifled cannon of steel2 hammered coats of mail for their men-of-war2 pointed their sword-blades with steel and iron2 made bullets1 balls1 bombs1 and howitzers1 heaped up in their arsenals great quantities of powder4 #acd ,and one bright day the government announced with pride to the country that it owned #iagc brass cannons1 #bggd howitzer cannons1 of the same material1 #cbaj bronze mortars1 #cibd small bronze howitzers1 #afae cast-iron cannons1 #abbj howitzers1 #bj1jjj carriages for ordnance1 #aj1jjj covered wagons1 #d1icc1fhh filled cannon-balls1 #c1fcj1gch howitzer-balls1 #ah1ggh1edi iron bullets1 #cea1ajg1egd ball-cartouches1 #a1gab1fic percussion guns1 #hag1dac guns of flint1 #aj1bfc1ihf pounds of powder--in short1 enough to exterminate the entire globe4 ,admirable litany1 which the good citizens were to recite mentally every time they thought of the future of their country6 ,yet profound politicians said it was not enough1 and the great statesmen were not at all satisfied4 ,we must have1 said they1 some terrible invention that will strike our enemies with terror4 ,we would like a machine that would mow them down like the scythe of the reaper in the harvest1 with movement so regular and continued that it would be impossible for one to escape4 ,they did speak of a new apparatus1 ornamented by its inventor with the pretty name of the grape-gun1 and which could send off1 twice a minute1 a shower of fifty balls4 ,but public opinion demanded something better1 and the mortified death-seekers recommenced their labors4 ,in those days philanthropists and politicians tried to think of the best means of establishing peace an ,europe4 ,so they met in a town of ,switzerland1 on the borders of a beautiful lake1 and in presence of grand and lovely scenery--a place which ought to have inspired them with high and holy resolutions4 ,but1 unfortunately1 they brought with them the bellicose thoughts of their own countries2 and so they concluded the only way to promote peace was to destroy all bad and weak governments1 abolish abuses1 upset society1 and so unite all peoples4 ,one might have suggested that a state of peace could alone have produced such harmony2 but they did not so closely consider the question4 ,they were so-called democrats1 and they sincerely believed the aurora of justice would shine in the future on the field of battle1 and brighten the smoking ruins of its former society4 444 ,but let us pardon our ancestors3 they were more ignorant than wicked4 ,peace to their ashes6 which1 mingling now with the elements1 circulate in the universe4 ,since their time1 the globe has many times recommenced its eternal evolutions2 the sun has gone out of its orbit1 and carried with it the planets into the depths of space2 science has become the principal work of human existence1 and order is established everywhere2 and we1 the latest comers on the earth1 live happily1 because we are free--free1 because we are united--united1 because we are members of the same family1 and children of the same ,god4 -------- #ace ,plan ,for ,a ,country ,church4 ,at the request of several bishops and clergymen1 we intend to publish from time to time in this magazine1 architectural plans suitable for churches of moderate size and costliness4 ,there are many churches of this kind1 especially in small country places1 required by the wants of the people1 where an architect cannot be found1 and where the materials1 furniture1 and other necessary parts or appendages of the sacred edifice must be of the cheapest possible kind4 ,generally speaking1 churches of this sort are built and furnished without any regard to beauty or rubrical propriety4 ,it is1 however1 just as cheap and easy to make them attractive1 neat1 and strictly ecclesiastical in their style and proportions as the contrary1 if only proper plans and directions can be obtained4 ,these we purpose to furnish after various styles of architecture1 and suitable to the different exigencies and tastes of different places and persons4 ,in so doing1 we hope to supply a want that has long been felt1 and to assist a great number of priests who are laboriously engaged in the meritorious but difficult task of building churches with but limited means for carrying out their plans4 ,description4 ,the design which we have engraved in this number will give accommodation to two hundred and fifty persons seated1 the area of the floor of the church being #da x #be feet in the clear1 with a sanctuary of #ab x #af feet1 a sacristy #ab x #ae feet1 and a porch to the front of the church sheltering the door against exposure4 ,the confessional is placed in such a position that the comfort of the priest as well as the convenience of the people may be secured4 ,the church should be framed with good1 stout sills #hx#ab inch section1 resting on a substantial wall of rubble masonry1 where stone can be obtained1 or of brick where this material becomes necessary1 which wall should be carried deep enough to be unaffected by the frosts of winter1 and raised one foot at least above the earth1 a wall of rubble or brick being built along the centre to bear the joists of the floor4 ,the joists should be 7#c x #aj7 framed into the sills so that the top of the floor1 when finished1 may be twenty-eight inches1 above the earth1 giving four steps to the church1 the floor of the sanctuary and sacristy being one step higher1 and both on a level4 ,the corner-posts should be #h ,x #h pine timber1 and four intermediate posts of #d x #h4 under each principal of the roof4 ,the plate on the top should be #d x #h1 and carried round the whole building except where the chancel intervenes1 and care should be taken that all the scarfs of this piece of timber should be carefully made4 ,the posts should all be braced with #dx#f pieces1 and the walls studded with #dx#d1 so that1 should it be deemed necessary1 in particular localities1 to render the building less susceptible to the changes of temperature1 the inner space may be filled4 ,the roof should be framed as high as shown on the elevation1 with a slope of #fj with the horizon1 in order to obtain greater height to the interior and greater strength to the truss1 with a collar about midway of the height1 but not lower1 and curved braces1 resting on hammer beams projecting from the side-walls at the height of the plate1 and a curved brace underneath this beam1 bringing the strain of the truss as low as possible on the side-walls1 but not incommoding the congregation4 #acf ,image3 ,front ,exterior image of church building4 ,elevation #acg ,image3 ,floor plan of church building4 #ach ,this simple roof should be framed of the best seasoned timber1 #dx#f inches scantling1 and should be dressed neatly1 and1 wherever desired1 may be moulded and have chamfered edges1 and the spandrels filled with two-inch tracery4 ,in the sanctuary should this more especially be done to mark the distinction of this part of the church4 ,the principals of the roof should be #aj ft4 #c in4 apart from the centres1 with rafters of #b x #h laid across the same #b ft4 #f in4 apart1 and the plank covering to be laid neatly with narrow tongued and grooved boards where it may not be desired to plaster the under side of the rafters2 in case it may be thought advisable to plaster the ceiling1 the plaster should be colored a light blue4 ,the chancel arch should be struck with a curve from the same centre as the roof-braces1 with the edges of the jambs and soffit chamfered and moulded4 ,the walls plastered up to the plate and floated with two coats and finished a light1 pleasing1 and warm color4 ,if means sufficient warranted1 a good cornice neatly moulded should finish the side-walls and break against the principals of the roof1 and may be of wood or run in plaster4 ,a label moulding should be run around each door and window1 and in the sanctuary should be enriched whenever possible4 ,the window over the altar should be two lights wide or more1 filled with good geometrical tracery1 like that in the front of the pattern shown1 the side-windows having pointed heads to the frames and sashes enclosed in segmental heads on the inside4 ,all the windows should be glazed with plain diamond quarry glass of a warm color1 and where it may be possible1 the chancel window should have enriched borders and the tracery filled with appropriate symbols4 ,the front of the chapel has been shown covered with shingles1 the timbers showing the framing prominently1 and should be dressed and the angles chamfered in the manner indicated2 the corner-post that carries the bell-cot should be made in one length1 and the bell-cot sheltered by a roof of considerable projection and surmounted by a cross1 which feature may not inappropriately be transferred to the gable of the chapel at the option of the priest4 ,in structures like the one presented1 it is a simpler and at the same time better arrangement to allow the eaves of the roof to project and to dispense with the gutter1 the earth below being protected by flagging1 or a properly graded gravelled slope4 ,the chimney shown on the plan should be placed in the position marked1 to render the draught more equable2 in general1 all other details of the church1 such as pews1 and a gallery if needed1 and the doors1 must be made to accord with the style of the building1 and the painting should be the natural color of the wood1 stained1 unless it be sought to grain the roof or color in bright colors4 ,in presenting these directions for the builder1 many details and features are omitted which can only be supplied by specifications4 ,this building can be executed for the sum of #caej1 the work being plain but substantial1 in accordance with the description4 ---------- #aci ,miscellany4 ,we learn with much regret that on the #abth of ,february the printing establishment of the ,abb ,migne1 at ,mont ,rouge1 in the southern suburb of ,paris1 was totally destroyed by fire4 ,no particulars of the occurrence have yet been given4 ,the enterprise1 conducted with extraordinary vigor and ability by the abb1 was unique in the history of publishing4 ,it was founded for the purpose of supplying books for the ,catholic clergy of ,france and the whole world4 ,nearly two thousand volumes1 in large imperial octavo1 comprising the whole of the ,greek and ,latin fathers of the church1 and writers on theology and ecclesiastical history1 were edited1 published1 and kept constantly in print1 employing a staff of several hundred persons1 including literary men1 printers1 binders1 etc4--,london ,publishers' ,circular4 ---- ,amaurosis from ,tobacco-,smoking4--,mr4 ,hutchinson has reported thirty-seven cases of amaurosis1 of which he says thirty-one were among tobacco-smokers4 ,mr4 ,hutchinson concludes3 #a4 ,amongst men1 this peculiar form of amaurosis 7primary white atrophy of the optic nerve7 is rarely met1 except among smokers4 #b4 ,most of its subjects have been heavy smokers--half an ounce to an ounce a day4 #c4 ,it is not associated with any other affection of the nervous system4 #d4 ,amongst the measures of treatment1 the prohibition of tobacco ranks first in importance4 #e4 ,the circumstantial evidence tending to connect the affection with the habit of tobacco-smoking is sufficient to warrant further inquiry into the matter on the part of the profession4--,popular ,science ,review4 ---- ,the ,new ,laboratory at the ,sorbonne4--,this magnificent establishment1 which is to be devoted to the pursuit of chemical investigation1 seems to provide for the student's wants on even a more liberal scale than its celebrated rival at ,berlin4 ,besides the various rooms for researches in chemistry1 pur et simple1 there are numberless apartments exclusively intended for investigation in optics1 electricity1 mechanics1 and so forth4 ,motive-power is provided for by a steam-engine of great force1 which is connected by means of bands with wheels in the several laboratories4 ,again1 besides the ordinary pipes carrying coal-gas1 there will be a series of pipes supplying oxygen from retorts kept constantly at work4 ,indeed1 altogether the new laboratory will be a species of ,elysium for the chemical investigator4 ---- ,the ,bessemer ,steel ,spectrum4--,father ,secchi1 who lately presented to the ,french ,academy his fine memoir on the ,stellar ,spectra1 compared the spectra of certain yellow stars with the spectrum produced in the ,bessemer converter at a certain stage of the process of manufacture4 ,the employment of the spectroscope in the preparation of this steel was begun a couple of years since2 but the comparison of the ,bessemer spectrum with the spectrum of the fixed stars has not1 so far as we can remember1 been made before4 ,the ,bessemer spectrum is best seen when the iron is completely decarbonized2 it contains a great number of very fine lines1 and approaches closely to the spectrum of a ,ononis and a ,herculis4 ,the resemblance1 no doubt1 is due to the fact that the ,bessemer flame proceeds from a great number of burning metals4 ,the greatest importance attaches to the analogy pointed out by ,father ,secchi4 ,father ,secchi suggests that beginners could not do better than practise on the ,bessemer flame before turning the spectroscope on the stars4 ,difficult an instrument to conduct investigations with as the spectroscope undoubtedly is1 the difficulty almost becomes perplexity when the student tries to examine stellar spectra4 ---- #adj ,new ,publications4 ,count ,lucanor2 or1 ,the ,fifty ,pleasant ,stories of ,patronio4 ,written by the ,prince ,don ,juan1 ,a4,d4 #acce-acdg4 ,first done into ,english1 from the ,spanish1 by ,james ,york1 ,doctor of ,medicine1 #ahfh3 ,basil ,montague ,pickering1 ,piccadilly1 in the ,city of ,westminster4 ,for sale at the ,catholic ,publication ,house1 #abf ,nassau ,street1 ,new-,york4 ,mr4 ,pickering seems to revel in literary oddities4 ,his book on the ,pilgrim's ,progress was quaint enough1 and this volume is scarcely behind it in any of its queer qualities4 ,a more totally foreign book we do not remember ever seeing4 ,in style1 idiom1 turn of thought1 everything1 it is remote1 toto caelo1 from all the ideas and criteria of ,english and modern criticism4 ,its publication strikes us as being a remarkably bold stroke2 we cannot imagine for what class of readers it could have been intended4 ,the only market we could conceive of for such a work in this country1 would be a class of ,mr4 ,george ,ticknor's1 if he were to have one1 in ,spanish archaeology4 ,in ,spanish1 and as ,spanish1 we should think it would prove most interesting2 even though the translation is intensely ,iberian1 both in structure and thought4 ,the ,fifty ,pleasant ,stories are very simple as to the machinery1 so to speak1 of the telling of them4 ,count ,lucanor throughout the book asks advice of his friend ,patronio1 stating his case1 and being responded to with a story4 ,who ,count ,lucanor may have been is a mystery for ever4 ,the book shows him to posterity only as a ,spanish gentleman of apparent consequence1 whose forte1 as poor ,artemus ,ward would say1 seems to have been to fall into difficulties and ask advice of ,patronio4 ,this gentleman appears as a sort of ,don ,abraham ,lincoln1 or ,seor ,tom ,corwin1 rather4 ,every question instantly and irresistibly reminds him of a little story1 you know1 etc41 etc4 ,this is all of their history4 ,what the end of a man must have been who answered every question with an anecdote1 we can only shudderingly decline to conjecture4 ,whether the gallant ,count ,lucanor sportively ran him through the body after one story too many some roystering day2 whether he went mad when the stories gave out1 or whether death interrupted him in a sage narrative1 with his sapient hand button-holing the count's doublet1 it is not said4 ,there is a world of dry1 old-world1 dusty1 aged pithiness about the stories4 ,they are generally very fairly to the point1 and often full of the peculiar patness so characteristic of ,sancho ,panza4 ,the most remarkable thing about the book1 though1 is the really large number of apparent originals it contains4 ,in it are gems of all manner of precepts and principles that others have amplified into poetry1 and tragedy1 and novels1 and almost everything4 ,still1 we cannot call this more than a seeming originality1 because directly alongside of a tale we are surprised to trace in ,shakespeare1 or ,la ,fontaine1 7a principal debtor to ,count ,lucanor17 or some other admired author1 we are as likely to find some story so aged1 so thread-bare1 so worn and torn and sapless with the use of centuries1 that one is tempted to refer it back to the year #a4 ,several of the tales are taken from the ,arabian ,nights1 and ,don ,juan ,manuel generally modernized them 787 to suit the enlightened ,castilian and anti-,moorish tastes of ,a4,d4 #acce1 ,the old1 old story of ,alnaschar1 for instance1 is dished up as ,what happened to a ,woman called ,pruhana1 and the note to the story quietly goes on to the original original1 7skipping old ,alnaschar with a word as a mere junior copy17 namely1 the fifth part of the ,pantcha ,pantra1 which1 all will be charmed to learn1 is entitled ,aparickchita ,kariteva1 which latter an ,irish friend translates1 ,much good may it do ye1 and our annotator ,inconsiderate ,conduct4 #ada ,we will not quote the intensely thrilling narrative of this ,hindoo classic1 but content ourselves with assuring our readers1 on our honor as a ,brahmin1 that the point is identically the same4 ,one of the best examples of the characteristic aptness of the book is ,chapter vii4--,the ,invisible ,cloth4 ,count ,lucanor's quandary is all of a man who offered the count great advantages if he would trust absolutely in him and in no one else4 ,three impostors 7we condense the good ,patronio mercilessly7 come to a king as weavers of a peculiar cloth that no man but a legitimate son of his father could see2 to any one with even a secret taint upon his authenticity it was utterly invisible4 ,the king1 delighted with this test of so interesting and gossipable a matter1 shuts them up in his palace to make the cloth1 furnishing them rich raw material of all sorts4 ,after some days the king is invited alone to see the wonderful woof4 ,king-like1 the king sends his chamberlain first4 ,the chamberlain1 trembling for his pedigree1 opens his mind's eye1 sees the cloth distinctly1 and returns full of its praises4 ,the king goes next1 can't see it either1 is terrified for his title to his throne1 and decides to see it also2 does see it1 and admires it extravagantly4 ,finding it still rather puzzling1 he sends his ,superintendent ,kennedy 7alguacil7 to work up the case4 ,this functionary1 likewise failing to see it1 and fearing supersedure by the senior inspector of police1 makes up his mind that the king's eyes are good enough for him1 and1 through them1 sees it too4 ,next a councillor goes to report1 and1 like a true councilman as he is1 honors his father and mother by seeing it in the same light as the powers that be4 ,finally1 for some one of the three hundred and sixty-five extraordinary feast-days of ,spain1 the king orders a suit of the invisible cloth1 doesn't dare not to see it1 and rides forth among his leal subjects in a costume strikingly like that famous fatigue uniform of the ,georgia cavalry1 that we used to hear so much of during the war4 ,his people generally1 out of respect to their parents1 submit to the optical illusion1 till1 finally1 a ,spanish citizen of ,african descent1 having 7says ,patronio--not we7 nothing to lose1 came to him and said3 ',sire1 to me it matters not whose son ,i am2 therefore1 ,i tell you that you are riding without any clothes4' ,the result is a general opening of eyes1 a sudden change of tailors1 it is hoped1 by the king1 and the disappearance of the weavers with the rich raw material4 ,moral 7slightly condensed from one page of ,patronio7--,don't ,trust4 ,james ,york1 ,doctor of ,medicine1 has wasted valuable medical time in translating this1 with a good deal of fidelity to the spirit of the ,spanish4 ,his style really does render much of its quaintness2 as much1 perhaps1 as today's ,english will hold in solution4 ,he is also very fairly fortunate with certain small mottoes1 or couplets1 which close each story1 prefaced thus1 with slight variations3 ,and ,don ,juan1 7another utterly mystical character1 who does nothing but what follows17 also seeing that it was a good example1 wrote it in this book1 and made these lines1 which say as follows3 ',who counsels thee to secrecy with friends1 ,seeks to entrap thee for his own base ends4' 7,chapter vii41 above given47' ,the notes appended to each story are as odd1 many of them1 as the stories4 ,generally1 they are little more than notes of admiration1 but often brief excursuses1 showing quite a varied range of reading1 and full of all manner of reconditeness4 ,these would seem to be mainly ,mr4 ,york's1 and they do him credit in spite of their ludicrously high praise now and then4 ,in the mechanical execution of the volume1 ,mr4 ,pickering1 we observe1 cleaves to his chosen model1 the ,aldine press1 and so gives us in great perfection that accurate and studious-looking print which we all feel we ought to like1 and which none of us do like4 ,for our own part1 we frankly own our preference for the short s1 and all the modern improvements4 #adb ,still1 one must bear in mind a thing very obvious in all this line of publications1 that it is expressly to meet and foster a kind of taste almost unknown in this country1 and that the publisher is evidently carrying out with consistency and energy a peculiar policy of his own1 whose success must at last be the test of its own merit4 ,the general ,american reader will find this a thoroughly curious book2 the lover of cheap learning1 a perfect treasure-house of rather uncommon commonplaces2 and the ,spanish scholar1 a genuine1 if rugged1 piece of ore from that rich mine of early ,spanish literature which yet lies hidden and unwrought4 ---- ,peter ,claver3 ,a ,sketch of his ,life and ,labors in behalf of the ,african ,slave4 ,boston3 ,lee ,shepard4 #ahfh4 ,for sale at the ,catholic ,publication ,house1 #abf ,nassau street1 ,new ,york4 ,this little book is a brief compendium of the life of a great saint1 who was the apostle of the negro slaves in ,south ,america4 ,its publication is very timely1 as it shows to the philanthropists of ,new-,england and of the country at large1 who interest themselves so much in behalf of the ,african race1 what ,catholic charity has done and can do in their behalf4 ,we recommend it to their attention4 ,the ,catholic religion1 and it alone1 can really and completely meet the wants of this much-to-be-compassionated portion of mankind4 ,the striking vignette of this little volume1 representing ,st4 ,peter ,claver supporting the head of a dying negro1 who holds a crucifix clasped to his dusky bosom1 is an expressive emblem of this truth4 ,it would be an excellent thing if our philanthropists1 in ,congress and out of ,congress1 would get a copy of this very suggestive photograph framed and hung up in some place where they are accustomed to say their prayers4 ---- ,the ,book of ,moses2 or1 ,the ,pentateuch in its ,authorship1 ,credibility1 ,,and ,civilization4 ,by the ,rev4 ,w4 ,smith1 ,ph4,d4 ,volume ,i4 ,london3 ,longman1 ,green ,co4 #ahfh4 ,for sale at the ,catholic ,publication ,house1 ,new ,york4 ,dr4 ,smith has given us in this volume the first instalment of an extensive work on the ,pentateuch4 ,the authorship alone is treated of in this portion of the work4 ,dr4 ,smith happily combines orthodoxy of doctrine with a scientific spirit4 ,he has evidently studied ,egyptology1 geology1 comparative philology1 and other sciences bearing on sacred science4 ,he has also made himself familiar with ,jewish and ,protestant1 as well as ,catholic commentators4 ,from a cursory examination1 we are inclined to judge that his great and useful task has been thus far very well and thoroughly performed1 and to expect that it will be completed in a satisfactory manner4 ,the volume is brought out in the best style of ,english typographical art1 with fac-similes of ancient pictures and inscriptions1 which add much to its value4 ,we recommend it to all students of the ,holy ,scriptures as one of the most valuable aids to their researches which has yet been published in the ,english language4 ---- ,life of ,st4 ,catharine of ,sienna4 ,by ,doctor ,caterinus ,senensis4 ,translated by the ,rev4 ,john ,fen1 in #afji1 and ,redited1 with a ,preface1 by ,very ,rev4 ,father ,aylward4 ,new ,york3 ,catholic ,publication ,society4 #ahfh4 ,this biography is a charming one1 translated in the inimitable ,english idiom of the #agth century4 ,father ,aylward has very successfully imitated the antiquated style in his valuable preface4 ,the biography leaves nothing to be desired as a history of the private1 interior life of the saint1 though her wonderful public career is but slightly touched upon4 ,the sketch of it in ,father ,aylward's preface induces us to wish that he would add to the history of ,saint ,catharine's private life by ,caterinus1 an equally complete history of her public life1 with translations of her letters1 from his own graceful and devout pen1 which would furnish the ,english public with one of the best and most valuable biographies of a truly great and heroic woman to be found in any language4 ---- #adc ,prayer the ,key of ,salvation4 ,by ,michael ,mller1 ,c4,s4,s4,r4 ,baltimore3 ,kelly ,piet4 #ahfh4 ,this book is an expansion of the excellent work of ,st4 ,alphonsus ,liguori on ,prayer4 ,the object of it seems to be1 to explain the saint's doctrine and illustrate it by examples1 so as to bring it more within the comprehension of the mass of the people4 ,but we are sorry to be obliged to say that the execution of the work does not come up to the idea4 ,without commenting on the matter1 which is1 in general1 very good1 we are compelled to say that the style is faulty in the extreme2 the sentences are mostly un-,english in their construction1 and sometimes so long and involved that they are hard to understand4 ,it also abounds in grammatical errors4 ,in short1 it is a pity it was not first thoroughly overlooked and revised by a competent hand before being allowed to go to press4 ,however much we may desire to commend this book1 we cannot in conscience do so1 so long as it continues in its present dress4 ---- ,la ,reforme en ,italie1 les ,precurseurs3 ,discours ,historiques de ,csar ,cantu4 ,traduits de l',italien par ,aniset ,digard et ,edmond ,martin4 ,paris3 ,adrien le ,clere1 #bi ,rue ,cassette4 #ahfg4 ,caesar ,cantu is the author of the best universal history extant1 and of other historical works of the first class4 ,he has undertaken the task of crushing the destructive pseudo-reformers of ,italy under the weight of his massive historical erudition4 ,the first volume of the present work1 which is the only one yet published1 brings down the subject to the #afth century1 and will be followed by three others4 ,the author is a sound and orthodox ,catholic1 yet1 as a layman and as a historian1 his work has not the distinctively professional style and spirit which are usually found in the works of ecclesiastical authors4 ,he is fearless and free in speaking the historical truth1 even when it is discreditable to ecclesiastical rulers and requires the exposure of scandals and abuses in the church4 ,his spirit is calm and impartial1 and the theological and ascetical elements are carefully eliminated4 ,he has gone back to the very origin of ,christianity1 in order to trace the course of events from their beginning1 and has traced the outlines of the constitution of historical ,christianity4 ,church principles and dogmas are1 however1 exhibited in a purely historical method1 and as essential portions of the history of facts and events4 ,such a writer is terrible to parties whose opinions and schemes cannot bear the light of history4 ,the whole class of pseudo-reformers1 whether semi-,christian or openly infidel1 are of this sort4 ,cantu sweeps them off the track of history by the force and weight of his erudition1 as a locomotive tosses the stray cows on the track of a railway1 with broken legs1 to linger and die in the meadows at each side of it4 ,it is only ,catholic truth1 either in the supernatural or the natural order1 which can bear investigation1 or survive the crucial test of history4 ,the so-called ,reformation retains its hold on the respect of the world only through ignorance4 ,when history is better and more generally known1 it will be universally admitted that it was not only a great crime1 but a great blunder1 a faux pas in human progress4 ---- ,the ,infant ,bridal1 and other ,poems4 ,by ,aubrey ,de ,vere4 ,london3 ,mac,millan ,co4 ,we are glad to see this book1 rather for the memories than the novelties it brings us4 ,almost all its contents have been published in the author's other volumes1 and there is nothing in this to alter the opinions1 either good or ill1 that we took occasion to express in a former review of them at large4 ,the most remarkable about the book is the selection of the republished pieces4 #add ,it only verifies anew the observation that authors1 no more than we of the world1 have the giftie to see themselves as others see them4 ,some of the best poems are there1 and some of the worst4 ,the ,infant ,bridal and ,the ,search for ,proserpine are perhaps the very two poorest of all the author's longer productions4 ,still1 perhaps the many faults we fancy we see in the tact of the compilation1 only come to this--that we ourselves would have compiled differently1 and possibly worse4 ,but we meet1 all over these elegant tinted pages1 lines and beauties that we fondly remember loving of old--fine blank verse1 wonderful descriptions1 delicious idyls4 ,these latter1 by the way1 are equally remarkable and unremarked4 ,they are from the same fount with ,theocritus1 ,bion1 and ,moschus4 ,we cannot resist giving one extract1 from ,glance1 p4 #fd3 ,come forth1 dear maid1 the day is calm and cool1 ,and bright though sunless4 ,like a long green scarf1 ,the tall pines1 crowning yon gray promontory1 ,in distant ether hang1 and cut the sea4 ,but lovers better love the dell1 for there ,each is the other's world4 ,how indolently ,the tops of those pale poplars1 bending1 sway ,over the violet-braided river brim6 ,whence comes this motion8 for no wind is heard1 ,and the long grasses move not1 nor the reeds4 ,here we will sit1 and watch the rushes lean ,like locks1 along the leaden-colored stream ,far off2 and thou1 ,o child1 shall talk to me ,of ,naiads and their loves4 ,one more sample of the contents of this volume1 and we have said all there is to say4 ,it is an unusual vein for ,de ,vere1 but one in which1 like ,tennyson1 he engages never lightly and always with telling success4 ,it is the close of ,a ,farewell to ,naples1 p4 #bee3 ,from her whom genius never yet inspired4 ,or virtue raised1 or pulse heroic fired2 ,from her who1 in the grand historic page4 ,maintains one barren blank from age to age2 ,from her1 with insect life and insect buzz4 ,who1 evermore unresting1 nothing does2 ,from her who1 with the future and the past1 ,no commerce holds--no structure rears to last4 ,from streets where spies and jesters1 side by side4 ,range the rank markets and their gains divide2 ,where faith in art1 and art in sense is lost4 ,and toys and gewgaws form a nation's boast2 ,where passion1 from affection's bond cut loose1 ,revels in orgies of its own abuse2 ,and appetite1 from passion's portals thrust4 ,creeps on its belly to its grave in dust2 ,where vice her mask disdains1 where fraud is loud4 ,and naught but wisdom dumb1 and justice cowed2 ,lastly1 from her who planted here unawed1 ',mid heaven-topped hills and waters bright and broad1 ,from these but nerves more swift to err has gained ,and the dread stamp of sanctities profaned2 ,and1 girt not less with ruin1 lives to show ,that worse than wasted weal is wasted woe-- ,we part2 forth issuing through her closing gate4 ,with unreverting faces1 not ingrate4 ,cannot this book speak better for itself than our good word8 ---- ,folks and ,fairies4 ,stories for little children4 ,by ,lucy ,randall ,comfort4 ,with engravings4 ,new ,york3 ,harper ,brothers4 #ahfh4 ,judging1 not1 however1 from perusal1 but from hearsay1 we think the pleasure of ,mrs4 ,comfort's juvenile readers would be increased if she had given them more ,folks and less ,fairies4 ,on the same high authority we also protest against some of the engravings1 for example1 ,otho returning home1 as illustrations of the text4 ---- ,books ,received4 ,from ,leypoldt ,holt1 ,new ,york3 ,mozart4 ,a ,biographical ,romance4 ,from the ,german of ,heribert ,ran4 ,by ,e4 ,r4 ,sill1 #a vol4 #abmo1 pp4 #cbc4 ,easy ,french ,reading3 ,being selections of historical tales and anecdotes1 arranged with copious foot-notes1 containing translations of the principal words1 a progressive development of the form of the verb1 designations of the use of prepositions and particles1 and the idioms of the language4 ,by ,professor ,edward ,t4 ,fisher4 ,to which is appended a brief ,french grammar4 ,by ,c4 ,j4 ,delille4 #a vol4 #abmo1 pp4 #bcb4 ,from ,kelly ,piet1 ,baltimore3 ,a ,catechism of the ,vows4 ,for the use of persons consecrated to ,god in the religious state4 ,by the ,rev4 ,father ,peter ,cotel1 ,s4,j4 ,from ,samuel ,r4 ,wells1 ,new ,york3 ,oratory1 ,sacred and ,secular3 or1 ,the ,extemporaneous ,speaker4 ,with sketches of the most eminent speakers of all ages4 ,by ,william ,pittenger1 author of ,daring and ,suffering4 ,introduction by ,hon4 ,john ,a4 ,bingham1 and appendix containing a ,chairman's ,guide for conducting public meetings according to the best parliamentary models1 #a vol4 #abmo1 pp4 #bbj4 ,life in the ,west2 or1 ,stories of the ,mississippi ,valley4 ,by ,n4 ,c4 ,meeker1 ,agricultural ,editor of the ,new ,york ,tribune1 #a vol4 #abmo1 pp4 #cfj4 ,from ,lee ,shepard1 ,boston3 ,red ,cross2 or1 ,young ,america in ,england and ,wales4 ,a story of ,travel and ,adventure4 ,by ,oliver ,optic1 #a vol4 #abmo1 pp4 #ccf4 -------------- #ade ,the ,catholic ,world4 ,vol4 ,,vii41 ,no4 #ch4--,may1 #ahfh4 ,tennyson ,in ,his ,catholic ,aspects4 ,for a poet eminently modern and ,english in his modes of thought1 ,tennyson is singularly free from the spirit of controversy4 ,his native land is distracted by religious feuds1 yet he who has been called the recognized exponent of all the deeper thinkings of his age1 takes no active part in them1 and seldom drops a line that bespeaks the school of theology to which he belongs4 ,at long intervals1 indeed1 devout breathings escape him4 ,once now and then he extracts a block of dogma from the deep quarry within1 and fixes it in an abiding place4 ,he never scatters doubts wantonly2 he is always on the side of faith1 though not perfect and ,catholic faith4 ,he alludes to ,christian doctrines as postulates4 ,for his purpose they need no proof4 ,it would be idle to prove anything if they were not true4 ,they are the life of the soul1 and the vitality of verse4 ,fly1 happy1 happy sails1 and bear the press1 he cries2 but he adds this apostrophe likewise3 ,fly happy with the mission of the cross4 ,the ,golden ,year4 ,he looks for the resurrection of the body1 and bids the dry dust of his friend 7,spedding7 lie still1 secure of change4 7,lines to ,j4 ,s47 ,when the spirit quits its earthly frame1 he follows it straight into the unseen world and the presence of its ,creator and ,god4 ,he points to the grand old gardener and his wife in yon blue heavens1 smiling at the claims of long descent1 7,lady ,clara ,vere de ,vere27 and he speeds the soul of the expiring ,may ,queen toward the blessed home of just souls and true1 there to wait a little while for her mother and ,effie3 ,to lie within the light of ,god1 as ,i lie upon your breast-- ,where the wicked cease from troubling1 and the weary are at rest4 ,the ,may ,queen4 ,intensely as he loves nature1 ,tennyson is no ,pantheist4 ,though like the wild ,indian1 he sees ,god in clouds and hears him in the wind1 he does not therefore confound matter with its ,maker1 nor lose sight of the personality of the ,being whom he adores4 ,he is no disciple of fate or chance1 but recognizes in all human affairs the working of a divine and retributive providence1 whose final judgment of good and evil is foreshadowed and begun during our mortal life4 #adf ,to ,his presence and promptitude in reply to prayer1 he refers more than once in pathetic and pointed language4 ,he tells us how ,enoch ,arden1 when cast away on a desert island1 heard in his dream the pealing of his parish bells1 and ,though he knew not wherefore1 started up ,shuddering1 and when the beauteous1 hateful isle ,returned upon him1 had not his poor heart ,spoken with that1 which1 being everywhere4 ,lets none who speak with ,him seem all alone1 ,surely the man had died of solitude4 ,enoch ,arden4 ,it would not be difficult for those who are acquainted with ,tennyson's earlier history1 to discover the church of which he is a member1 and the section of it whose views he adopts4 ,in ,memoriam takes us into the interior of his father's parsonage1 to the ,christmas hearth decorated with laurel1 and the old pastimes in the hall2 to the witch-elms and towering sycamore1 whose shadows his ,arthur had often found so fair2 to the lawn where they read the ,tuscan poets together2 and the banquet in the neighboring summer woods4 ,we almost hear the songs that then pealed from knoll to knoll1 while the happy tenants of the presbytery lingered on the dry grass till bats went round in fragrant skies1 and the white kine glimmered1 couching at ease1 and the trees laid their dark arms about the field4 ,the merry1 merry bells of ,yule1 with their silver chime1 are referred to more than once in ,tennyson's poems4 ,they seem to be ever ringing in his ears4 ,they controlled him1 he says1 in his boyhood1 and they bring him sorrow touched with joy4 ,it is in singing of ,arthur ,hallam that the poet's faith in the immortality of the soul is brought out with beautiful clearness4 ,the bitterness of his grief draws him to the comfort clasped in truth revealed1 and he looks forward with hope to the day when he shall arrive at last at the blessed goal1 and ,he who died in ,holy ,land shall reach out the shining hand to him and his lost friend1 and take them as a single soul4 7,in ,memoriam1 lxxxiii47 ,from the verses addressed to the ,rev4 ,f4 ,d4 ,maurice1 7,january1 #ahed47 we learn that one of ,tennyson's children claims that gentleman as his godfather1 and we gather from it and other poems1 what all the ,laureate's friends know1 that his sympathies are with the ,broad ,church1 of which ,mr4 ,maurice1 ,kingsley1 ,temple1 the ,bishop of ,london1 and ,dr4 ,stanley are distinguished leaders4 ,it is one of the peculiarities of this school to moderate the torments of the lost and to deny that they are eternal1 to hope that good will in some way be the final goal of ill1 and that every winter will at last change to spring4 ,it cannot be disputed that this teaching is at variance with ,catholic doctrine2 but it is one which ,tennyson puts forward with singular modesty1 describing himself as ,an infant crying in the night2 ,an infant crying for the light2 ,and with no language but a cry4 ,in ,memoriam1 liii4 ,the ,broad ,church1 as its name implies1 professes large and liberal views4 ,not wishing to be tried by too strict a standard itself1 it repudiates all harsh judgments on others4 ,accordingly1 we find in ,tennyson few allusions to errors1 real or supposed1 in the creed of others4 ,he regards as sacred whatever links the soul to a divine truth4 ,he has many friends who are ,catholics1 and we have heard that he has expressed sincere anxiety to publish nothing relative to the ,catholic religion calculated to give offence to its followers4 #adg ,there are few lines in his volumes which grate on the most pious ear1 and no devout breathings in which we do not cordially join4 ,it is in one of his earlier poems1 and only in sport1 that he makes the ,talking ,oak tell of-- ,old summers1 when the monk was fat1 ,and1 issuing shorn and sleek1 ,would twist his girdle tight1 and pat ,the girls upon the cheek1 ,ere yet1 in scorn of ,peter's pence1 ,and numbered bead1 and shrift4 ,bluff ,harry broke into the spence1 ,and turned the cowls adrift4 ,in conning his verse1 therefore1 the ,catholic mind is at ease2 it lights on no charges to be repelled1 and 7so far as we know1 after long and close study of every line he has published7 no mistakes regarding our faith which require to be rectified4 ,there are those who imagine that in ,st4 ,simeon ,stylites1 he has wilfully misrepresented the character of a ,catholic saint2 but we venture to entertain a more lenient opinion1 and shall endeavor presently to justify it4 ,it is in a tone of irony1 such as we must admire1 that he describes the heated pulpiteer in chapel1 not preaching simple ,christ to simple men1 but fulminating against the scarlet woman and her creed1 and swinging his arms violently1 as if he held the apocalyptic millstone1 while he predicts the speedy casting of great ,babylon into the sea4 7,sea ,dreams47 ,nor are there wanting points of contact between ,tennyson's ideas on religious matters and some of those dwelt on by ,catholic divines4 ,thus he1 like ,dr4 ,newman1 finds the arguments for the existence of ,god drawn from the power and wisdom discoverable in the works of nature1 cold and inconclusive in comparison with that one which arises from the voice of conscience and the feelings of the heart4 ,the cxxiiid section of ,in ,memoriam runs singularly parallel with this beautiful passage in the ,apologia1 7p4 #cgg37 ,were it not for this voice1 speaking so clearly in my conscience and my heart1 ,i should be an atheist1 or a pantheist or a polytheist1 when ,i looked into the world4 444 ,i am far from denying the real force of the arguments in proof of a ,god1 drawn from the general facts of human society2 but these do not warm me or enlighten me2 they do not take away the winter of my desolation1 or make the buds unfold and the leaves grow within me1 and my moral being rejoice4 ,the arguments adduced by infidels1 in support of their unbelief1 have never been rebutted in verse more cleverly than by ,tennyson4 ,his blade flashes like lightning1 and severs with as fine a stroke as ,saladin's scimitar4 ,the ,two ,voices may be cited in proof1 and also the following passages in the matchless elegy on ,arthur ,hallam3 ,the ,fates not blind1 7,in ,memoriam7 iii4 ,life shall live for evermore4 7,in ,memoriam7 xxxiv4 ,if ,death were death1 love would not be true love1 7,in ,memoriam7 xxxv4 ,individuality defies the tomb1 7,in ,memoriam7 xlvi4 ,immortality1 7,in ,memoriam7 liv4 lv4 ,doubt issuing in belief4 7,in ,memoriam7 xcv4 ,knowledge without wisdom4 7,in ,memoriam7 cxiii4 ,progress1 7,in ,memoriam7 cxvii4 ,we are not all matter4 7,in ,memoriam7 cxix4 ,the course of human things1 7,in ,memoriam7 cxxvii ,these verses are no doubt the record of a mental conflict carried on during some years of the author's earlier life--a battle between materialism and spiritualism1 between faith and unbelief1 reason and sense4 ,the ,two ,voices is philosophy singing1 as ,in ,memoriam is philosophy in tears4 ,the ,english ,cyclopaedia well calls the last poem wonderful1 and adds3 ,in no language1 probably1 is there another series of elegies so deep1 so metaphysical1 so imaginative1 so musical1 and showing such impassioned1 abnormal1 and solemnizing affection for the dead4 ,but it is now time to point to those passages in which ,tennyson may be said to have1 more particularly1 ,catholic aspects4 ,be they few or many1 they are worth noticing1 even though they prove nothing but that a ,protestant poet of the highest order has such aspects1 intense1 striking1 and lovely in no ordinary degree4 #adh ,every true poet is in a certain sense a divine creation1 and nothing but a celestial spark could ignite a ,wordsworth1 a ,longfellow1 or an ,emerson4 ,it has ever been the delight of the ancient church and her writers to discover portions of her truth among those who are separated from her visible pale4 ,far from grudging them these precious fragments1 she only wishes they were less scanty1 and would willingly add to them till they reached the full measure of the deposit of the faith4 ,it would be easy to make out a complete cycle of her doctrine in faith and morals from the poems of ,protestant and ,mohammedan authors1 but it would be only by combining extracts from many who1 in matters of belief1 differ widely from each other4 ,in looking through the ,laureate's volumes for traces of the church's teaching1 we are in a special manner struck by his treatment of the invocation of the departed4 ,with what deep feeling does he invite the friend1 who is the subject of his immortal elegy1 to be near him when his light is low1 when pain is at its height1 when life is fading away4 7,in ,memoriam1 xlix47 ,it reminds us of good ,dr4 ,johnson's prayer for the attention and ministration of his lost wife1 as ,boswell has given it us4 ,can any ,catholic express more fully than the ,laureate the frame of mind becoming those who desire that the departed should still be near them at their side8 7,in ,memoriam1 #a47 ,how pure at heart and sound in head1 ,with what divine affections bold4 ,should be the man whose thoughts would hold ,an hour's communion with the dead4 ,in vain shall thou1 or any1 call ,the spirits from their golden day1 ,except1 like them1 thou too canst say1 ,my spirit is at peace with all4 ,they haunt the silence of the breast1 ,imaginations calm and fair1 ,the memory like a cloudless air1 ,the conscience as a sea at rest4 ,but when the heart is full of din1 ,and doubt beside the portal waits4 ,they can but listen at the gates4 ,and hear the household jar within4 ,in ,memoriam1 xciii4 ,if ,i can1 says the dying ,may ,queen in ,new ,year's ,eve-- ,if ,i can1 ,i'll come again1 mother1 from out my resting-place2 ,though you'll not see me1 mother1 ,i shall look upon your face2 ,though ,i cannot speak a word1 ,i shall hearken what you say1 ,and be often1 often with you1 when you think ,i'm far away4 ,it is not1 therefore1 in a vague and dreamy way1 but with the full force of the understanding1 that ,tennyson invokes the spirits in their place of rest4 ,it is not merely as a poet1 but as a ,christian1 that he exclaims3 ,oh6 therefore1 from thy sightless range1 ,with gods in unconjectured bliss4 ,oh from the distance of the abyss ,of tenfold1 complicated change1 ,descend1 and touch1 and enter3 hear ,the wish too strong for words to name2 ,that in the blindness of the frame ,my ghost may feel that thine is near4 ,in ,memoriam1 xcii4 ,we say as a ,christian2 for we warmly repudiate the harsh interpretation which is often put on his words addressed to the ,son of ,god3 ,thou seemest human and divine1 ,the highest1 holiest manhood thou4 ,see1 it is said1 this is the most you can get from your favorite about ,christ--that he seems divine4 ,it is an appearance1 a semblance only4 ,now1 this reasoning is most unfair4 ,the remainder of the verse implies his godhead-- ,our wills are ours1 we know not how2 ,our wills are ours1 to make them thine4 ,the verses which follow are a prayer to ,christ1 imploring from him light and aid1 wisdom and forgiveness4 7,prefatory lines to ,in ,memoriam7 #adi ,in fact1 it is evident from other parts of ,tennyson's elegy1 that he does not use the word seem in the sense of appearing to be what a thing is not1 but in the sense of its appearing to be what it is4 ,thus1 in the fifth stanza1 below the lines just quoted1 we have-- ,forgive what seemed my sin in me2 ,what seemed my worth since ,i began2 ,for merit lives from man to man1 ,and not from man1 ,o ,lord6 to thee4 ,so again1 ,in ,memoriam1 xxxiii41 ,o thou that after toil and storm1 ,may'st seem to have reached a purer air2 where seem to have reached is equivalent to thou who hast reached1 with that delicate shade of difference only which belongs to ,greek rather than to ,english diction4 ,thus the verb ,greek text is repeatedly used in the ,new ,testament as an expletive1 not meaningless to the ear1 though adding no distinct idea which can be expressed in a single word1 ,greek text1 7,st4 ,matt4 iii4 #i17 means to all intents1 simply1 ,say not in yourselves1 and ,greek text 7,gal4 ii4 #i7 means1 who were really the pillars they seemed to be4 ,such passages1 it is true1 prove nothing as to ,tennyson's use of the word seem1 but they do illustrate it4 ,the perfect godhead of ,christ is brought out fully in the sermon preached by ,averill in ,aylmer's ,field4 ,the ,lord from heaven1 born of a village girl1 carpenter's son1 is there styled in the prophet's words1 ,wonderful1 ,prince of ,peace1 the ,mighty ,god4 ,when the ,laureate prays that his very worth may be forgiven1 he employs the language of deep humility which meets us so constantly in the writings of ,catholic saints4 ,it reminds us of their prayers to the ,father of ,lights that the best they have ever done may be pardoned1 that their tears may be washed1 their myrrh incensed1 their spikenard's scent perfumed1 and their breathings after ,god fumigated4 ,it is no shallow view that he takes of repentance when he makes ,queen ,guinevere ask3 ,what is true repentance but in thought-- ,not e'en in inmost thought to think again ,the sins that made the past so pleasant to us8 ,idylls of the ,king4 ,he has been accused of making ,st4 ,simeon ,stylites a self-righteous saint4 ,that he makes him ambitious of saintdom is true1 but this hope which he will not cease to grasp1 is fostered by no sense of his own merits1 but1 on the contrary1 springs from the deepest possible conviction of his unworthiness4 ,he describes himself as ,the basest of mankind1 ,from scalp to sole one slough and crust of sin1 ,unfit for earth1 unfit for heaven1 scarce meet ,for troops of devils mad with blasphemy4 ,he proclaims from his pillar1 his high nest of penance1 ,that ,pontius and ,iscariot by his side ,showed like fair seraphs4 ,he details1 indeed1 in language strikingly intense1 his sufferings1 prayers1 and penances2 but he disclaims all praise on account of them1 and ascribes all his patience to the divine bounty4 ,he does not breathe or whisper any murmur of complaint1 while he tells how his teeth ,would chatter with the cold1 and all his beard ,was tagged with icy fringes in the moon2 how his thighs were rotted with the dew2 and how ,for many weeks about his loins he wore ,the rope that haled the buckets from the well4 ,twisted as tight as ,i could knot the noose2 yet the climax of it all is1 ,have mercy1 mercy3 take away my sin4 ,the ,catholic aspects in ,st4 ,agnes' ,eve and ,sir ,galahad1 are no less marked than those of ,st4 ,simeon ,stylites4 #aej ,as a devout breathing of a dying nun1 the first of these poems is touching and exquisite4 ,the snows lie deep on the convent-roof1 and the shadows of its towers slant down the snowy sward1 while she prays and says3 ,as these white robes are soiled and dark4 ,to yonder shining ground2 ,as this pale taper's earthly spark1 ,to yonder argent round2 ,so shows my soul before the ,lamb1 ,my spirit before ,thee2 ,so in mine earthly house ,i am1 ,to that ,i hope to be4 ,all heaven bursts its starry floors1 the gates roll back1 the heavenly ,bridegroom waits to welcome and purify the sister's departing soul4 ,the vision dilates4 ,it is mysteriously vague--mysteriously distinct3 ,the sabbaths of eternity4 ,one sabbath deep and wide-- ,a light upon the shining sea-- ,the ,bridegroom with his bride6 ,there is in such verse an indescribably ,catholic tone4 ,it is like the heavenly music of faith1 which pervades the ,paradise of ,dante1 and which 7in spite of the lax lives of the authors7 runs through the ,sacred ,songs of ,moore1 and the ,epistle of ,eloisa1 and ,the ,dying ,christian's ,address to his ,soul1 by ,pope4 ,but if ,tennyson has proved equal to portraying a ,catholic saint1 he has also depicted most graphically a ,catholic knight of romance4 ,sir ,galahad1 one of the ornaments of ,king ,arthur's court1 7,idylls of the ,king41 p4 #bac17 whose strength is as the strength of ten1 ,because his heart is pure1 goes in quest of the ,sangreal--the sacred wine4 ,he hears the noise of hymns amid the dark stems of the forest1 sees in vision the snowy altar-cloth with swinging censers and silver vessels sparkling clean4 ,he sails1 in magic barks1 on lonely mountain meres1 and catches glimpses of angels with folded feet in stoles of white1 bearing the holy grail4 ,ah6 blessed vision6 blood of ,god6 ,my spirit beats her mortal bars4 ,as down dark tides the glory slides1 ,and star-light mingles with the stars4 444 ,so pass ,i hostel1 hall1 and grange4 ,by bridge and ford1 by park and pale4 ,all armed ,i ride1 whate'er betide4 ,until ,i find the holy grail4 ,poems1 p4 #ccf4 ,a ,catholic aspect may sometimes be observed in a single word4 ,and so thou lean on our fair father ,christ1 7,idylls1 ,guinevere1 p4 #bed17 may perhaps sound strange to some ears1 and is familiar to ,catholics only4 ,he alone is our inward life1 says ,dr4 ,newman1 speaking of ,christ2 ,he not only regenerates us1 but 7to allude to a higher mystery7 semper gignit2 he is ever renewing our new birth and our heavenly sonship4 ,in this sense he may be called1 as in nature so in grace1 our real ,father4 7,letter to ,dr4 ,pusey1 p4 #hi47 ,hence1 in the ,litany of the ,holy ,name we say1 ,jesu1 ,pater futuri seculi1 and ,jesu1 ,pater pauperum4 ,the ,catholic who well understands his own faith will always be very scrupulous about disturbing that of others4 ,if there is anything abhorrent to him1 it is the scattering doubt and unsettling consciences without necessity4 7,newman's ,apologia1 p4 #cdd47 ,there is a well-known poem in ,in ,memoriam1 7xxxiii417 which admirably illustrates this feeling4 ,we quote but one verse1 as the reader's memory will no doubt supply the rest4 ,leave thou thy sister1 when she prays1 ,her early heaven1 her happy views2 ,nor thou with shadowed hint confuse ,a life that leads melodious ways4 ,the theory and practice of the wisest ,catholics conform to the spirit and letter of this injunction4 ,their devotional life1 too1 is perfectly reflected in ,tennyson whenever he writes of prayer4 #aea ,there is a depth of feeling in his expressions on this subject which reaches to the fact that prayer is the truest religion--that it is the link which unites man more closely to his ,creator than any outward acts1 any meditations1 any professed creed1 and is the spring and current of religious life4 ,evermore ,prayer from a living source within the will1 ,and beating up through all the bitter world1 ,like fountains of sweet water in the sea1 ,kept him a living soul ,enoch ,arden1 p4 #dd4 ,thrice blest whose lives are faithful prayers4 ,whose loves in higher love endure3 ,what souls possess themselves so pure8 ,or is there blessedness like theirs8 ,in ,memoriam1 xxxii4 ,thus again1 in the ,morte d',arthur1 which was a forecast of ,the ,idylls of the ,king1 we are reminded of the efficacy of prayer in language worthy of being put into a ,catholic's lips3 ,pray for my soul4 ,more things are wrought by prayer ,than this world dreams of4 ,wherefore1 let thy voice ,rise like a fountain for me night and day4 ,for what are men better than sheep or goats4 ,that nourish a blind life within the brain1 ,if1 knowing ,god1 they lift not hands of prayer ,both for themselves and those who call them friend8 ,for so the whole round earth is every way ,bound by gold chains about the feet of ,god4 ,in the following lines1 on the rarity of repentance1 there is a reference to the coperation of human will with divine grace1 which equals the precision of a ,catholic theologian3 ,full seldom does a man repent1 or use ,both grace and will to pick the vicious quitch ,of blood and custom wholly out of him4 ,and make all clean1 and plant himself afresh4 ,idylls of the ,king1 p4 #ic4 ,in the same poem we find lines of a distinctly ,catholic tone on the repentant queen's entering a convent1 and on a knight who had long been the tenant of a hermitage4 ,guinevere speaks as follows3 ,so let me1 if you do not shudder at me1 ,nor shun to call me sister1 dwell with you2 ,wear black and white1 and be a nun like you2 ,fast with your fasts1 not feasting with your feasts2 ,grieve with your griefs1 not grieving at your joys4 ,bid not rejoicing2 mingle with your rites2 ,pray and be prayed for2 lie before your shrines2 ,do each low office of your holy house2 ,walk your dim cloister1 and distribute dole ,to poor sick people1 richer in his eyes ,who ransomed us1 and haler1 too1 than ,i2 ,and treat their loathsome hurts1 and heal mine own2 ,and so wear out in almsdeed and in prayer ,the sombre close of that voluptuous day ,which wrought the ruin of my lord the king4 ,idylls of the ,king1 p4 #bfj4 ,the hermitage is thus described3 ,there lived a knight ,not far from ,camelot1 now for forty years ,a hermit1 who had prayed1 labored1 and prayed4 ,and ever laboring had scooped himself ,in the white rock a chapel and a hall ,on massive columns1 like a shorecliff cave4 ,and cells and chambers3 all were fair and dry4 ,idylls of the ,king1 p4 #afh4 ,among ,tennyson's earlier poems1 the picture of ,isabel1 the perfect wife1 with her hate of gossip parlance1 and of sway1 her locks not wide dispread4 ,madonna-wise on either side her head2 ,sweet lips whereon perpetually did reign ,the summer calm of golden charity2 and ,eyes not down-dropt nor over-bright1 but fed ,with the clear-pointed flame of chastity1 ,poems1 pp4 #g1 #h1 is worthy of a ,catholic matron4 ,the description of ,st4 ,stephen1 in ,the ,two ,voices1 has all the depth and pathos of the poet's happiest mood2 and1 though neither it1 nor some other passages which have been quoted1 contain anything distinctively ,catholic as opposed to other forms of ,christianity1 it is strongly marked with those orthodox instincts to which we are drawing attention3 ,i cannot hide that some have striven1 ,achieving calm1 to whom was given ,the joy that mixes man with heaven2 ,who1 rowing hard against the stream1 ,saw distant gates of ,eden gleam4 ,and did not dream it was a dream2 ,but heard1 by secret transport led1 ,e'en in the charnels of the dead1 ,the murmur of the fountain-head-- ,which did accomplish their desire1 ,bore and forbore1 and did not tire2 ,like ,stephen1 an unquenched fire1 ,he heeded not reviling tones4 ,nor sold his heart to idle moans4 ,though cursed1 and scorned1 and bruised with stones2 ,but looking upward1 full of grace4 ,he prayed1 and from a happy place ,god's glory smote him on the face4 ,poems1 p4 #bii4 #aeb ,we are anxious not to appear to lay undue stress on these extracts4 ,let them go for as much as they are worth1 and no more4 ,we do not stretch them on any ,procrustean bed to the measure of orthodox4 ,others might be adduced1 of a latitudinarian tendency1 but they are few in number1 and do not neutralize the force of these4 ,in view of many passages in ,shakespeare of a ,catholic bearing1 and of several facts favorable to the belief that he was a ,catholic1 ,m4 ,rio has come to the probably sound conclusion that he really was what he himself wishes to prove him4 ,we put no such forced interpretation on our extracts from ,tennyson as ,m4 ,rio has certainly put on many which he has brought forward from the ,elizabethan poet2 but we think that they are sufficiently cast in a ,catholic mould to warrant us in applying to ,tennyson the words which ,carlyle has used in reference to his predecessor3 ,catholicism1 with and against feudalism1 but not against nature and her bounty1 gave us ,english a ,shakespeare and era of ,shakespeare1 and so produced a blossom of ,catholicism4 7,french ,revolution1 vol4 i4 #aj47 ,but religion1 as we have said1 does not occupy a prominent place in ,tennyson's pages4 ,he is1 in the main1 like the great dramatist--a poet of this world4 ,love and women are his favorite themes1 but love within the bounds of law1 and woman strongly idealized4 ,license finds in him no apologist1 while he throws around purity and fidelity all the charms of song4 ,the most rigid moralist can find nothing to censure in his treatment of the guilty love of ,lancelot and ,guinevere1 the wedded love of ,enid and ,geraint1 the meretricious love of ,vivien1 and the unrequited love of ,elaine4 ,if ,milton had1 as he intended1 ,footnote #dc chosen ,king ,arthur as the subject of his epic1 he could not have taken a higher moral tone than ,tennyson has in the ,idylls of the ,king1 and1 considering how lax were his notions about marriage1 it is probable he would have taken a lower one4 ,footnote #dc3 ,see his ,mansas1 and ,life1 by ,toland1 p4 #ag4 ,king ,arthur's praise of honorable courtship and conjugal faith is too long to be quoted here1 but it may be referred to as equally eloquent and edifying4 7,idylls of the ,king47 ,the ,laureate has learned at least one secret of making a great name--not to write too much4 ,i hate many books1 wrote ,pre ,lacordaire4 ,the capital point is1 to have an aim in life1 and deeply to respect posterity by sending it but a small number of well-meditated works4 ,this has been ,tennyson's rule4 ,with six slender volumes he has built himself an everlasting name4 ,he has1 till within the last few months1 seldom contributed to periodicals1 and when he has done so1 the price paid for his stanzas seems fabulous4 ,the estimation in which he is held by critics of a high order amounts1 in many cases1 to a passion and a worship4 ,the specimen he has given of a translation of the ,iliad promises for it1 if completed1 all that ,longfellow has wrought for the ,divina ,commedia4 ,the attempts he has made at ,alcaics1 ,hendecasyllabics1 and ,galliambics in ,english have been thoroughly successful1 and stamp him as an accomplished scholar4 7,bodicea1 etc41 in ,enoch ,arden and other ,poems47 ,as he does not write much1 so neither does he write fast4 ,the impetuous oratory of ,shakespeare's and ,byron's verse is unknown to him4 ,he never affects it4 ,he reminds us rather of the operations of nature1 who slowly and calmly1 but without difficulty1 produces her marvellous results4 #aec ,drop by drop his immortal poems are distilled1 like the chalybeate droppings which leave at length on the cavern floor a perfect red and crystal stalagmite4 ,day by day1 says the ,national ,review1 when speaking on this subject--day by day1 as the hours pass1 the delicate sand falls into beautiful forms1 in stillness1 in peace1 in brooding4 ,the particular power by which ,mr4 ,tennyson surpasses all recent ,english poets1 writes the ,edinburgh ,review1 is that of sustained perfection4 444 ,we look in vain among his modern rivals for any who can compete with him in the power of saying beautifully the thing he has to say4 ,o degli altri poeti onore e lume1 ,vagliami 'l lungo studio e 'l grande amore ,che m' han fatto cercar lo tuo volume4 ,footnote #dd ,footnote #dd3 ,l ,inferno1 i4 #hb4 ,during a long period1 the originality of ,tennyson's verse was an obstacle to its fame1 and indeed continues to be so in the minds of some readers4 ,his use of obsolete words appears to many persons affected1 while others applaud him for his vigorous ,saxon1 believing1 with ,dean ,swift1 that the ,saxon element in our compound tongue should be religiously preserved1 and that the writers and speakers who please us most are those whose style is most ,saxon in its character4 ,if ,tennyson has modelled his verse after any author1 it is undoubtedly ,shakespeare1 and the traces of this study may perhaps be found in his vocabulary4 ,yet no man is less of a plagiarist2 not only his forms of thought but of language also are original1 and though he owes much to the early dramatists1 to ,wordsworth and to ,shelley1 he fuses all metals in the alembic of his own mind1 and turns them to gold4 ,his love of nature is intense1 and his observation of her works is microscopic4 ,yet he is never so occupied with details as to lose sight of broad outlines4 ,in #ahde1 ,wordsworth spoke of him as decidedly the first of our living poets2 but since that time his fame has been steadily on the increase4 ,many of his lines have passed into proverbs1 and a crowd of feebly fluttering imitators have vainly striven to rival him on the wing4 ,what the people once called a weed has grown into a tall flower1 wearing a crown of light1 and flourishing far and wide4 7,the ,flower4 ,enoch ,arden1 etc41 p4 #aeb47 ,a concordance to ,in ,memoriam has been published1 and the several editions of the ,laureate's volumes have been collated as carefully as if they were works of antiquity4 ,every ardent lover of ,english poetry is familiar with ,mariana1 in the lonely moated grange2 the good ,haroun ,alraschid among his obelisks and cedars2 ,oriana wailing amid the ,norland whirlwinds2 the ,lady ,shalott in her four gray walls and four gray towers2 the proud ,lady ,clara ,vere de ,vere2 the drowsy ,lotos-,eaters2 the chaste and benevolent ,godiva2 ,maud in her garden of woodbine spices2 the true love of the ,lord of ,burleigh1 and the reward of honest ,lady ,clare4 ,the highest praise of these ballads is that they have sunk into the nation's heart4 ,they combine the chief excellences of other bards1 and remind us of some delicious fruit which unites in itself a variety of the most exquisite flavors4 ,this richness and sweetness may be ascribed in part to that remarkable condensation of thought which enriches one page of ,tennyson with as many ideas and images as would1 in most other poets1 be found scattered over two or three pages4 ,we must not expect1 wrote ,shenstone in one of his essays1 to trace the flow of ,waller1 the landskip of ,thomson1 the fire of ,dryden1 the imagery of ,shakespeare1 the simplicity of ,spenser1 the courtliness of ,prior1 the humor of ,swift1 the wit of ,cowley1 the delicacy of ,addison1 the tenderness of ,otway1 and the invention1 the spirit1 and sublimity of ,milton1 joined in any single writer4 ,perhaps not4 #aed ,but ,shenstone had never read ,tennyson1 and there is no knowing what he might have thought if he had conned the calm majesty of ,ulysses2 the classical beauty of ,tithonus and the ,princess2 the luxuriant eloquence of ,locksley ,hall2 the deep lyrical flow of ,the ,letters and ,the ,voyage2 the 'cute drollery of the ,northern ,farmer2 the idyllic sweetness of ,o,enone2 the grandeur of ,morte d',arthur2 the touching simplicity of ,enoch ,arden2 the power and pathos of ,aylmer's ,field2 the perfect minstrelsy of the ,rivulet1 and the songs1 ,o ,swallow1 ,swallow1 and ,tears1 ,idle ,tears2 and the sharps and trebles of the ,brook1 more musical than ,mendelssohn4 ,far be it from us to carp at any poetry because it proceeds from one who is not a ,catholic4 ,we believe1 indeed1 firmly that1 if ,tennyson had been imbued with the ancient faith1 it would have cleared some vagueness both from his mind and his verse4 ,but in these days1 when ,socinianism1 positivism1 and free-thinking in various shapes are taking such strong hold of educated men1 we rejoice unfeignedly to find popular writings marked1 even in an imperfect degree1 with ,christian doctrine and feeling4 ,the influence exerted by the ,laureate in the world of letters is great1 and we have1 therefore1 endeavored at some length to show how far it is favorable1 and how far unfavorable1 to the cause of truth4 ,though unhappily not a ,catholic1 we recognize with delight the fact that he is not an infidel1 and we feel persuaded that some at least of our readers will be pleased at our having placed in a prominent point of view the redeeming features in the religious character of his poetry4 ------------- ,poland ,when1 fixed in righteous wrath1 a nation's eye ,torments some crowned tormentor with just hate4 ,nor threat nor flattery can that gaze abate2 ,unshriven the unatoning years go by2 ,for as that starry archer in the sky ,unbends not his bright bow1 though early and late ,the syren sings1 and folly weds with fate1 ,even so that constellated destiny ,which keeps fire-vigil in a night-black heaven1 ,upon the countenance of the doomed looks forth ,consentient with a nation's gaze on earth3 ,to the twinned powers a single gaze is given2 ,the earthly fate reveals the fate on high-- ,a brazen serpent raised1 that says1 not live1 but die4 ,aubrey de ,vere4 ------------- #aee ,professor ,draper's ,books4 ,footnote #de ,footnote #de3 #a4 ,human ,physiology1 ,statical and ,dynamical2 or1 ,conditions and ,course of the ,life of ,man4 ,by ,j4 ,w4 ,draper1 ,m4,d41 ,,ll4,d41 ,professor of ,chemistry and ,physiology in the ,university of ,new ,york4 ,new ,york3 ,harper ,brothers4 #ahef4 #hvo1 pp4 #fdi4 #b4 ,history of the ,intellectual ,development of ,europe4 ,by the same4 ,fifth edition4 #ahfg4 #hvo1 pp4 #fbh #c4 ,thoughts on the ,civil ,policy of ,america4 ,by the same4 ,third edition4 #ahfg4 #hvo1 pp4 #cbc4 #d4 ,history of the ,american ,civil ,war4 ,by the same4 ,in three volumes4 ,vol4 ,i4 #ahfg4 #hvo1 pp4 #efg4 ,professor ,draper's works have had1 and are having1 a very rapid sale1 and are evidently very highly esteemed by that class of readers who take an interest1 without being very profoundly versed1 in the grave subjects which he treats4 ,he is1 we believe1 a good chemist and a respectable physiologist4 ,his work on ,human ,physiology1 we have been assured by those whose judgment in such matters we prefer to our own1 is a work of real merit1 and was1 when first published1 up to the level of the science to which it is devoted4 ,we read it with care on its first appearance1 and the impression it left on our mind was1 that the author yields too much to the theory of chemical action in physiology1 and does not remember that man is the union of soul and body1 and that the soul modifies1 even in the body1 the action of the natural laws2 or rather1 that the physiological laws of brute matter1 or even of animals1 cannot be applied to man without many important reserves4 ,the ,professor1 indeed1 recognizes1 or says he recognizes1 in man a rational soul1 or an immaterial principle2 but the recognition seems to be only a verbal concession1 made to the prejudices of those who have some lingering belief in ,christianity1 for we find no use for it in his physiology4 ,all the physiological phenomena he dwells on he explains without it1 that is1 as far as he explains them at all4 ,whatever his personal belief may be1 his doctrine is as purely materialistic as is ,mr4 ,herbert ,spencer's1 which explains all the phenomena of life by the mechanical1 chemical1 and electrical changes and combinations of matter4 ,it is due to ,professor ,draper to say1 that in this respect he only sins in common with the great body of modern physiologists4 ,physiology--indeed1 all the inductive sciences--have been for a long time cast in a materialistic mould1 and men of firm faith1 and sincere and ardent piety1 are materialists1 and1 therefore1 atheists1 the moment they enter the field of physical science1 and deny in their science what they resolutely affirm and would die for in their faith4 ,hence the quarrel between the theologians and the savans4 ,the savans have not reconciled their so-called science with the great theological truths1 whether of reason or revelation1 which only the fool doubts1 or in his heart denies4 ,this proves that our physicists have made far less progress in the sciences than they are in the habit of boasting4 ,that cannot be true in physiology which is false in theology2 and a physiology that denies all reality but matter1 or finds no place in it for ,god and the human soul1 is no true physiological science4 ,the physiologist has far less evidence of the existence of matter than ,i have of the existence of spirit2 and it is only by spirit that the material is apprehensible1 or can be shown to exist4 ,matter only mimics or imitates spirit4 #aef ,the continual changes that take place from time to time in physiology show--we say it with all deference to physiologists--that it has not risen as yet to the dignity of a science4 ,it is of no use to speak of progress1 for changes which transform the whole body of a pretended science are not progress4 ,we may not have mastered all the facts of a science2 we may be discovering new facts every day2 but if we have1 for instance1 the true physiological science1 the discovery of new facts may throw new light on the science--may enable us to see clearer its reach1 and understand better its application1 but cannot change or modify its principles4 ,as long as your pretended science is liable to be changed in its principles1 it is a theory1 an hypothesis1 not a science4 ,physiologists have accumulated a large stock of physiological facts1 to which they are daily adding new facts4 ,we willingly admit these facts are not useless1 and the time spent in collecting them is not wasted2 on the contrary1 we hold them to be valuable1 and appreciate very highly the labor1 the patient research1 and the nice observation that has collected1 classified1 and described them2 but we dare assert1 notwithstanding1 that the science of physiology is yet to be created2 and created it will not be till physiologists have learned and are able to set forth the dialectic relations of spirit and matter1 soul and body1 ,god and nature1 free-will and necessity4 ,till then there may be known facts1 but there will be no physiological science4 ,as far as what is called the science of human life1 or human physiology1 goes1 ,professor ,draper's work is an able and commendable work2 but he must permit us to say that the real science of physiology he has not touched1 has not dreamed of2 nor have any of his brethren who see in the human soul only a useless appendage to the body4 ,the soul is the forma corporis1 its informing1 its vital principle1 and pervades1 so to speak1 and determines1 or modifies1 the whole life and action of the human body1 from the first instant of conception to the very moment of death4 ,the human body does not exist1 even in its embryonic state1 first as a vegetable1 then as an animal1 and afterward as united to an immaterial soul4 ,it is body united to soul from the first instant of conception1 and man lives1 in any stage of his existence1 but one and the same human life4 ,there is no moment after conception when the wilful destruction of the foetus is not the murder of a human life4 ,as we said on a former occasion1 or at least implied1 man1 though the ancients called him a microcosm1 the universe in little1 and contains in himself all the elements of nature1 is neither a mineral nor a vegetable1 nor simply an animal1 and the analogies which the physiologist detects between him and the kingdoms below him1 form no scientific basis of human physiology1 for like is not same4 ,there may be no difference that the microscope or the crucible can detect between the blood of an ox and the blood of a man2 for the microscope and chemical tests are in both cases applied to the dead subject1 not the living1 and the human blood tested is withdrawn from the living action of the soul1 an action that escapes the most powerful microscope1 and the most subtile chemical agent4 ,comparative physiology may gratify the curiosity1 and1 when not pressed beyond its legitimate bounds1 it may even be useful1 and help us to a better understanding of our own bodies2 but it can never be the basis of a scientific induction1 because between man and all animals there is the difference of species4 #aeg ,comparative physiology is1 therefore1 unlike comparative philology2 for1 however diverse may be the dialects compared1 there is no difference of species among them1 and nothing hinders philological inductions from possessing1 in the secondary order1 a true scientific character4 ,physiological inductions1 resting on the comparative study of different individuals1 or different races or families of men1 may also be truly scientific2 for all these individuals1 and all these races or families belong to one and the same species4 ,but the comparative physiology that compares men and animals1 gives only analogies1 not science4 ,we do not undervalue science2 on the contrary1 what we complain of is1 that our physiologists do not give us science2 they give us facts1 theories1 or hypotheses4 ,facts are not science till referred to the principles that explain them1 and these principles themselves are not science till integrated in the principles of that high and universal science called theology1 and which is really the science of the sciences4 ,the men who pass for savans1 and are the hierophants and lawgivers of the age1 sin not by their science1 but by their want of science4 ,their ideal of science is too low and grovelling4 ,science is vastly more than they conceive it2 is higher1 deeper1 broader than they look2 and the best of them are1 as ,newton said of himself1 mere boys picking up shells on the shores of the great ocean of truth4 ,they1 at best1 remain in the vestibule of the temple of science2 they have not entered the penetralia and knelt before the altar4 ,we find no fault with ,professor ,draper's science1 where science he has2 we only complain of him for attempting to palm off upon us his ignorance for science1 and accepting1 and laboring to make us accept as science what is really no science4 ,yet he is not worse than others of his class4 ,the second work named in our list is the professor's attempt to extend the principles of his human physiology to the human race at large1 and to apply them specially to the intellectual development of ,europe2 the third is an attempt to apply them to the civil policy of ,america1 and the fourth is an attempt to get a counter-proof of his theories in the history of our late civil war4 ,through the four works we detect one and the same purpose1 one and the same doctrine1 of which the principal data are presented in his work on human physiology1 which is cast in a purely materialistic mould4 ,they are all written to show that all philosophy1 all religion1 all morality1 and all history are to be physiologically explained1 that is1 by fixed1 inflexible1 and irreversible natural laws4 ,he admits1 in words1 that man has free-will1 but denies that it influences events or anything in the life and conduct of men4 ,he also admits1 and claims credit for admitting1 a ,supreme ,being1 as if there could be subordinate beings1 or any being but one who declares himself ,i ,,am ,,that ,,am2 but a living and ever-present ,god1 ,creator1 and upholder of the universe1 finds no recognition in his physiological system4 ,his ,god1 like the gods of the old ,epicureans1 has nothing to do1 but1 as ,dr4 ,evarist de ,gypendole1 in his ,ointment for the ,bite of the ,black ,serpent1 happily expresses it1 to sleep all night and to doze all day4 ,he is a superfluity in science1 like the immaterial soul in the author's ,human ,physiology4 ,all things1 in ,professor ,draper's system1 originate1 proceed from1 and terminate in1 natural development1 with a most superb contempt for the ratio sufficiens of ,leibnitz1 and the first and final cause of the theologians and philosophers4 #aeh ,the only ,god his system recognizes is natural law1 the law of the generation and death of phenomena1 and distinguishable from nature only as the natura naturans is distinguishable from the natura naturata of ,spinoza4 ,his system is1 therefore1 notwithstanding his concessions to the ,christian prejudices which still linger with the unscientific1 a system of pure naturalism1 and differs in no important respect from the ,religion ,positive of ,m4 ,augusta ,comte4 ,the ,duke of ,argyle1 in his ,reign of ,law1 which we reviewed last ,february1 a man well versed in the modern sciences1 sought1 while asserting the universal reign of law1 to escape this system of pure naturalism1 by defining law to be will enforcing itself with power1 or making what are called the laws of nature the direct action of the divine ,will4 ,but this asserted activity only for the divine ,being1 therefore denied second causes1 and bound not only nature1 but the human will fast in fate1 or rather1 absorbed man and nature in ,god2 for man and nature do and can exist only in so far as active1 or in some sense causative4 ,the passive does not exist1 and to place all activity in ,god alone is to deny the creation of active existences or second causes1 which is the very essence of pantheism4 ,professor ,draper and the positivists1 whom he follows1 reverse the shield1 and absorb not man and nature in ,god1 but both ,god and man in nature4 ,john and ,james are not ,peter1 but ,peter is ,james and ,john4 ,there is no real difference between pantheism and atheism2 both are absurd1 but the absurdity of atheism is more easily detected by the common mind than the absurdity of pantheism4 ,the one loses ,god by losing unity4 and the other by losing diversity1 or everything distinguishable from ,god4 ,the ,god of the atheist is not1 and the ,god of the pantheist is as if he were not1 and it makes no practical difference whether you say ,god is all or all is ,god4 ,to undertake a critical review of these several works would exceed both our space and our patience1 and1 moreover1 were a task that does not seem to be called for4 ,professor ,draper1 we believe1 ranks high among his scientific brethren4 ,he writes in a clear1 easy1 graceful1 and pleasing style1 but we have found nothing new or profound in his works4 ,his theories are almost as old as the hills1 and even older1 if the hills are no older than he pretends4 ,his work on the ,intellectual ,development of ,europe1 is in substance1 taken from the positivists1 and the positivist philosophy is only a reproduction1 with no scientific advance on that of the old physiologers or hylozoists1 as ,cudworth calls them4 ,he agrees perfectly with the positivists in the recognition of three ages or epochs1 we should rather say stages1 in human development2 the theological1 the metaphysical1 and the scientific or positivist4 ,in the theological age1 man is in his intellectual infancy1 is filled with sentiments of fear and wonder2 ignorant of natural causes and effects1 of the natural laws themselves1 he sees the supernatural in every event that surpasses his understanding or experience1 and bows before a ,god in every natural force superior to his own4 ,it is the age of ignorance1 wonder1 credulity1 and superstition4 ,in the second the intellect has been1 to a certain extent1 developed1 and the gross fetichism of the first age disappears1 and men no longer worship the visible apis1 but the invisible apis1 the spiritual or metaphysical apis2 not the bull1 but1 as the ,north ,american ,indian says1 the manitou of bulls2 and instead of worshipping the visible objects of the universe1 as the sun1 moon1 and stars1 the ocean and rivers1 groves and fountains1 storms and tempests1 as did polytheism in the outset1 they worship certain metaphysical abstractions into which they have refined them1 and which they finally generalize into one grand abstraction1 which they call ,zeus1 ,jupiter1 ,jehovah1 ,theus1 ,deus1 or ,god1 and thus assert the ,hebrew and ,christian monotheism4 #aei ,in the third and last age there is no longer fetichism1 polytheism1 or monotheism2 men no longer divinize nature1 or their own abstractions1 no longer believe in the supernatural or the metaphysical or anything supposed to be supramundane1 but reject whatever is not sensible1 material1 positive as the object of positive science4 ,the professor develops this system with less science than its inventor or reviver1 ,m4 ,auguste ,comte and his ,european disciples2 but as well as he could be expected to do it1 in respectable ,english4 ,he takes it as the basis of his ,history of the ,intellectual ,development of ,europe1 and attempts to reconcile with it all the known and unknown facts of that development4 ,we make no quotations to prove that we state the professor's doctrine correctly1 for no one who has read him1 with any attention1 will question our statement2 and1 indeed1 we might find it difficult to quote passages which clearly and expressly confirm it1 for it is a grave complaint against him1 as against nearly all writers of his school1 that they do not deal in clear and express statements of doctrine4 ,had ,professor ,draper put forth what is evidently his doctrine in clear1 simple1 and distinct propositions1 so that his doctrine could at once be seen and understood1 his works1 instead of going through several editions1 and being commended in reviews and journals1 as scientific1 learned1 and profound1 would have fallen dead from the press1 or been received with a universal burst of public indignation2 for they attack everything dear to the heart of the ,christian1 the philosopher1 and the citizen4 ,nothing worse is to be found in the old ,french ,encyclopedists1 in the ,systme de la ,nature of ,d',holbach1 or in l',homme-,plant1 and l',homme-,machine of ,lamettrie4 ,his doctrine is nothing in the world but pure materialism and atheism1 and we do not believe the ,american people are as yet prepared to deny either ,god1 or creation and ,providence4 ,the success of these authors is in their vagueness1 in their refusal to reduce their doctrine to distinct propositions1 in hinting1 rather than stating it1 and in pretending to speak always in the name of science1 thus3 ,science shows this1 or ,science shows that2 when1 if they knew anything of the matter1 they would know that science does no such thing4 ,then1 how can you accuse ,professor ,draper of atheism or materialism2 for does he not expressly declare his belief1 as a man of science1 in the existence of the ,supreme ,being1 and in an immaterial and immortal soul8 ,what ,dr4 ,draper believes or disbelieves1 is his affair1 not ours2 we only assert that the doctrine he defends in his professedly scientific books1 from beginning to end1 is purely physiological1 and has no ,god or soul in it4 ,as a man4 ,dr4 ,draper may believe much2 as an author1 he is a materialist and an atheist1 beyond all dispute3 if he knows it1 little can be said for his honesty2 if he does not know it1 little can be said for his science1 or his competency to write on the intellectual development of ,europe1 or of any other quarter of the globe4 #afj ,but to return to the theory the professor borrows from the positivists4 ,as the professor excludes from his physiology the idea of creation1 we cannot easily understand how he determines what is the infancy of the human race1 or when the human race was in its infancy4 ,if the race had no beginning1 if1 like ,topsy1 it didn't come1 but grow'd1 it had no infancy2 if it had a beginning1 and you assume its earliest stage was that of infancy1 then it is necessary to know which stage is the earliest1 and what man really was in that stage4 ,hence1 chronology becomes all-important1 and1 as the author's science rejects all received chronology1 and speaks of changes and events which took place millions and millions of ages ago1 and of which there remains no record but that chronicled in the rocks2 but1 as in that record exact dates are not given1 chronology1 with him1 whether of the earth or of man1 must be very uncertain1 and it seems to us that it must be very difficult for science to determine1 with much precision1 when the race was1 or what it was1 in its infancy4 ,thus he says3 ,in the intellectual infancy of the savage state1 man transfers to nature his conceptions of himself1 and1 considering that everything he does is determined by his own pleasure1 regards all passing events as depending on the arbitrary volition of a superior but invisible power4 ,he gives to the world a constitution like his own4 ,the tendency is necessarily to superstition4 ,whatever is strange1 or powerful1 or vast1 impresses his imagination with dread4 ,such objects are only the outward manifestations of an indwelling spirit1 and1 therefore1 worthy of his veneration4 7,intellect4 ,devel4 p4 #b47 ,we beg the professor's pardon1 but he has only imperfectly learned his lesson4 ,in this which he regards as the age of fetich worship1 and the first stage of human development1 he includes ideas and conceptions which belong to the second1 or metaphysical age of his masters4 ,but let this pass for the present4 ,the author evidently assumes that the savage state is the intellectual infancy of the race4 ,but how knows he that it is not the intellectual old age and decrepitude of the race8 ,the author1 while he holds1 or appears to hold1 like the positivists1 to the continuous progress of the race1 does not hold to the continuous progress of any given nation4 ,a national type1 he says1 7ch4 xi417 pursues its way physically and intellectually through changes and developments answering to those of the individual represented by infancy1 youth1 manhood1 old age1 and death respectively4 ,how1 then1 say scientifically that your fetich age1 or the age of superstition1 the theological age of the positivists1 instead being the infancy of the nation1 is not its last stage next preceding death8 ,how determine physiologically or scientifically that the savage is the infant man and not the worn-out man8 ,then how determine that the superstition of which you have so much to say1 and which1 with you1 means religion1 revelation1 the church1 everything that claims to be1 or that asserts1 anything supernatural1 is not characteristic of the last stage of human development1 and not of the first8 ,our modern physiologists and anti-,christian speculators seem all to take it for granted that the savage gives us the type of the primitive man4 ,we refuted this absurd notion in our essay on ,faith and the ,sciences4 ,there are no known historical facts to support it4 ,consult the record chronicled in the rocks1 as read by geologists4 ,what does it prove8 #afa ,why1 in the lowest and most ancient strata in which human remains are found1 along with those of extinct species of animals1 you find that the men of that epoch used stone implements1 and were ignorant of metals or unable to work them1 and1 therefore1 must have been savages4 ,that is1 the men who lived then1 and in that locality4 ,be it so4 ,but does this prove that there did not1 contemporary with them1 in other localities or in other quarters of the globe1 live and flourish nations in the full vigor of the manhood of the race1 having all the arts and implements of civilized life8 ,did the savages of ,new ,england1 when first discovered1 understand working in iron1 and used they not stone axes1 and stone knives1 many of which we have ourselves picked up8 ,and was it the same with ,europeans8 ,from the rudeness and uncivilized condition of a people in one locality1 you can conclude nothing as to the primitive condition of the race4 ,the infancy of the race1 if there is any justice in the analogy assumed1 is the age of growth1 of progress2 but nothing is less progressive1 or more strictly stationary1 in a moral and intellectual sense1 than the savage state4 ,since history began1 there is not only no instance on record of a savage tribe rising by indigenous effort to civilization1 but none of a purely savage tribe having ever1 even by foreign assistance1 become a civilized nation4 ,the ,greeks in the earliest historical or semi-historical times1 were not savages1 and we have no evidence that they ever were4 ,the ,homeric poems were never the product of a savage people1 or of a people just emerging from the savage state into civilization1 and they are a proof that the ,greeks1 as a people1 had juster ideas of religion1 and were less superstitious in the age of ,homer than in the age of ,st4 ,paul4 ,the ,germans are a civilized people1 and if they were first revealed to us as what the ,greeks and ,romans called barbarians1 they were never1 as far as known1 savages4 ,we all know how exceedingly difficult it is to civilize our ,north ,american ,indians4 ,individuals now and then take up the elements of our civilization1 but rarely1 if they are of pure ,indian blood4 ,they recoil before the advance of civilization4 ,the native ,mexicans and ,peruvians have1 indeed1 received some elements of ,christian civilization along with the ,christian faith and worship2 but they were not1 on the discovery of this continent1 pure savages1 but had many of the elements of a civilized people1 and that they were of the same race with the savages that roamed our northern forests1 is not yet proved4 ,the historical probabilities are not on the side of the hypothesis of the modern progressivists1 but are on the side of the contrary doctrine1 that the savage state belongs to the old age of the race--is not that from which man rises1 but that into which he falls4 ,nor is there any historical evidence that superstition is older than religion1 that men begin in the counterfeit and proceed to the genuine1--in the false1 and proceed by way of development to the true4 ,they do not abuse a thing before having it4 ,superstition presupposes religion1 as falsehood presupposes truth2 for falsehood being unable to stand by itself1 it is only by the aid of truth that it can be asserted4 ,fear made the gods1 sings ,lucretius2 but it can make none where belief in the gods1 does not already exist4 ,men may transfer their own sentiments and passions to the divinity2 but they must believe that the divinity exists before they can do it4 #afb ,they must believe that ,god is1 before they can hear him in the wind1 see him in the sun and stars1 or dread him in the storm and the earthquake4 ,it is not from dread of the strange1 the powerful1 or the vast1 that men develop the idea of ,god1 the spiritual1 the supernatural2 the dread presupposes the presence and activity of the idea4 ,men1 again1 who1 like the professor's man in the infancy of the savage state1 are able to conceive of spirit and to distinguish between the outward manifestation and the indwelling spirit1 are not fetich worshippers1 and for them the fetich is no longer a god1 but if retained at all1 it is as a sign or symbol of the invisible1 ,fetichism is the grossest form of superstition1 and obtains only among tribes fallen into the grossest ignorance1 that lie at the lowest round of the scale of human beings2 not among tribes in whom intelligence is commencing1 but in whom it is well-nigh extinguished4 ,monotheism is older than polytheism1 for polytheism1 as the author himself seems to hold1 grows out of pantheism1 and pantheism evidently grows out of theism1 out of the loss or perversion of the idea of creation1 or of the relation between the creator and the creature1 or cause and effect1 and is and can be found only among a people who have once believed in one ,god1 creator of heaven and earth and all things visible and invisible4 ,moreover1 the earliest forms of the heathen superstitions are1 so far as historical evidence goes1 the least gross1 the least corrupt4 ,the religion of the early ,romans was pure in comparison with what it subsequently became1 especially after the ,etruscan domination or influence4 ,the ,homeric poems show a religion less corrupt than that defended by ,aristophanes4 ,the earliest of the ,vedas1 or sacred books of the ,hindoos1 are free from the grosser superstitions of the latest1 and were written1 the author very justly thinks1 before those grosser forms were introduced4 ,this is very remarkable1 if we are to assume that the grossest forms of superstition are the earliest6 ,but we have with ,greeks1 ,egyptians1 ,indians1 no books that are of earlier date than the books of ,moses1 at least none that can be proved to have been written earlier2 and in the books of ,moses1 in whatever light or character we take them1 there is shown a religion older than any of the heathen mythologies1 and absolutely free from every form of superstition1 what is called the patriarchal religion1 and which is substantially the ,jewish and ,christian religion4 ,the earliest notices we have of idolatries and superstitions are taken from these books1 the oldest extant1 at least none older are known4 ,if these books are regarded as historical documents1 then what we ,christians hold to be the true religion has obtained with a portion of the race from the creation of man1 and1 for a long series of years1 from the creation to ,nimrod1 the mighty hunter or conqueror1 was the only religion known2 and your fetichisms1 polytheisms1 pantheisms1 idolatries1 and superstitions1 which you note among the heathen1 instead of being the religion of the infancy of the race1 are1 comparatively speaking1 only recent innovations4 ,if their authenticity as historical documents be denied1 they still1 since their antiquity is undeniable1 prove the patriarchal religion obtained at an earlier date than it can be proved that any of the heathen mythologies existed4 ,it is certain1 then1 that the patriarchal1 we may say1 the ,christian religion1 is the earliest known religion of the race1 and therefore that fetichism1 as contended by the positivists and the professor after them1 cannot be asserted to have been the religion of the human race in the earliest stage of its existence1 nor the germ from which all the various religions or superstitions of the world have been developed4 #afc ,but we may go still farther4 ,the attempt to explain the origin and course of religion by the study of the various heathen mythologies1 and idolatries1 and superstitions1 is as absurd as to attempt to determine the origin and course of the ,christian religion by the study of the thousand and one sects that have broken off from the church1 and set up to be churches themselves4 ,they can teach us nothing except the gradual deterioration of religious thought1 and the development and growth of superstition or irreligion among those separated from the central religious life of the race4 ,in the ancient ,indian1 ,egyptian1 and ,greek mythologies1 on which the author dwells with so much emphasis1 we trace no gradual purification of the religious idea1 but its continual corruption and debasement4 ,as the sects all presuppose the ,christian church1 and could neither exist nor be intelligible without her1 so those various heathen mythologies presuppose the patriarchal religion1 are unintelligible without it1 and could not have originated or exist without it4 ,the professor having studied these mythologies in the darkness of no-religion1 understands nothing of them1 and finds no sense in them--as little sense as a man ignorant of ,catholicity would find in the creeds1 confessions1 and religious observances of the several ,protestant sects2 but if he had studied them in the light of the patriarchal religion1 which they mutilate1 corrupt1 or travesty1 he might have understood them1 and have traced with a steady hand their origin and course1 and their relation to the intellectual development of the race4 ,we have no space to enter at length into the question here suggested4 ,in all the civilized heathen nations1 the gods are divided into two classes1 the ,dii ,majores and the ,dii ,minores4 ,the ,dii ,majores are only the result of a false effort to explain the mysterious dogma of the ,trinity1 and the perversion of the ,christian doctrine of the ,eternal ,generation of the ,son1 and the ,eternal ,procession of the ,holy ,ghost4 ,the type from which these mythologies depart1 not which they realize1 is undeniably the mystery of the ,trinity asserted1 more or less explicitly1 by the patriarchal religion2 and hence1 we find them all1 from the burning ,south to the frozen ,north1 from the ,east to the ,west1 from the ,old ,world to the ,new1 asserting1 in some form1 in the ,divinity the sacred and mysterious ,triad4 ,the ,dii ,minores are a corruption or perversion of the ,catholic doctrine of saints and angels1 or that doctrine is the type which has been perverted or corrupted1 by substituting heroes for saints1 and the angels that fell for the angels that stood1 and taking these for gods instead of creatures4 ,the enemies of ,christianity have sufficiently proved that the common type of both is given in the patriarchal religion1 hoping thereby to get a conclusive argument against ,christianity2 but they have forgotten to state that1 while the one conforms to the type1 the other departs from it1 perverts or corrupts it1 and that the one that conforms is prior in date to the one that corrupts1 perverts or departs from it4 ,no man can study the patriarchal religion without seeing at a glance that it is the various forms of heathenism that are the corrupt forms1 as no man can study both ,catholicity and ,protestantism without seeing that ,protestantism is the corruption1 or perversion--sometimes even the travesty of ,catholicity4 #afd ,the same conclusion is warranted alike by ,indian and ,egyptian gloom and ,greek gayety4 ,the gloom speaks for itself4 ,the gayety is that of despair--the gayety that says3 ,come1 let us eat1 drink1 and be merry1 for to-morrow we die4 ,through all heathendom you hear the wail1 sometimes loud and stormy1 sometimes low and melodious1 over some great and irreparable loss1 over a broken and unrealized ideal1 just as you do in the modern sectarian and unbelieving world4 ,but why is it that the professor and others1 when seeking to give the origin and course of religion1 as related to the intellectual development of the race1 pass by the patriarchal1 ,jewish1 or ,christian religion1 and fasten on the religions or superstitions of the ,gentiles8 ,it is their art1 which consists in adroitly avoiding all direct attacks on the faith of ,christendom1 and confining themselves in their dissertations on the natural history of the pagan superstitions1 to establishing principles which alike undermine both them and ,christianity4 ,it is evident to every intelligent reader of ,professor ,draper's ,intellectual ,development of ,europe1 that he means the principles he asserts shall be applied to ,christianity as well as to ,indian1 ,egyptian1 ,greek1 and ,roman mythology1 and he gives many broad hints to that effect4 ,what then8 ,is he not giving the history of the intellectual development of ,europe8 ,can one give the history of that development without taking notice of religion8 ,if1 in giving the natural history of religion1 showing whence and how it originates1 what have been its developments1 its course1 its modifications1 changes1 decay1 and death1 by the influence of natural causes1 science establishes principles which overthrow all religions1 and render preposterous all claims of man to have received a supernatural revelation1 to be in communion with the ,invisible1 or to be under any other providence than that of the fixed1 invariable1 and irresistible laws of nature1 or purely physiological laws1 whose fault is it8 ,would you condemn science1 or subordinate it to the needs of a crafty and unscrupulous priesthood1 fearful of losing their influence1 and having the human mind emancipated from their despotism8 ,that is1 you lay down certain false principles1 repudiated by reason and common sense1 and which all real science rejects with contempt1 call these false principles science1 and when we protest1 you cry out with all your lungs1 aided by all the simpletons of the age1 that we are hostile to science1 would prevent free scientific investigation1 restrain free manly thought1 and would keep the people from getting a glimpse of the truth that would emancipate them1 and place them on the same line with the baboon or the gorilla6 ,a wonderful thing1 is this modern science2 and always places1 whatever it asserts or denies1 its adepts in the right1 as against the theologians and the anointed priests of ,god6 ,the mystery is not difficult to explain4 ,the physiologists1 of course1 are good ,sadducees1 and really1 unless going through a churchyard after dark1 or caught in a storm at sea1 and in danger of shipwreck1 believe in neither angel nor spirit4 ,they wish to reduce all events1 all phenomena1 intellectual1 moral1 and religious1 to fixed1 invariable1 inflexible1 irreversible1 and necessary laws of nature4 ,they exclude in doctrine1 if not in words1 the supernatural1 creation1 providence1 and all contingency4 ,every thing in man and in the universe is generated or developed by physiological or natural laws1 and follows them in all their variations and changes4 #afe ,religion1 then1 must be a natural production1 generated by man1 in conjunction with nature1 and modified1 changed1 or destroyed1 according to the physical causes to which he is subjected in time and place4 ,this is partially true1 or1 at least1 not manifestly false in all respects of the various pagan superstitions1 and many facts may be cited that seem to prove it2 but it is manifestly not true of the patriarchal1 ,jewish1 and ,christian religion1 and the only way to make it appear true1 is to not distinguish that religion from the others1 to include all religions in one and the same category1 and conclude that what they prove to be partially true of a part1 is and must be true of the whole4 ,that this is fair or logical1 is not a matter that the physiologists1 who1 where they detect an analogy1 conclude identity1 trouble themselves at all about2 besides1 nothing in their view is illogical or unfair that tends to discredit priests and theologians4 ,very likely1 also1 such is their disdain or contempt of religion1 that they really do not know that there is any radical difference between ,christianity and ,gentooism4 ,we have never encountered a physiologist1 in the sense we use the term here1 that is1 one who maintains that all in the history of man and the universe proceeds from nature alone1 who had much knowledge of ,christian theology1 or knowledge enough to be aware that in substance it is not identical with the pagan superstitions4 ,their ignorance of our religion is sublime4 ,we have thus far proceeded on the supposition that the professor means by the infancy of the savage state the infancy of the race2 we are not sure1 after all1 that this is precisely his thought1 or that he means anything more than the infancy of a particular nation or family of nations is the savage state4 ,he1 however1 sums up his doctrine in his table of contents1 chapter i41 of his ,intellectual ,development1 in the proposition3 ,individual man is an emblem of communities1 nations1 and universal humanity4 ,they exhibit epochs of life like his1 and like him are under the control of physical conditions1 and therefore of law2 that is1 physical or physiological law1 for human physiology is only a special department of universal physiology1 as we have already indicated4 ,it would seem from this that the author makes the savage state1 as we have supposed1 correspond1 in the race1 in universal humanity1 as well as in communities1 to the epoch of infancy in the individual4 ,but does he mean to teach that the race itself has its epoch of infancy1 youth1 manhood1 old age1 and death8 ,he can1 perhaps1 in a loose sense1 predicate these several epochs of nations and of political or civil communities2 but how can he predicate them all of the race8 ,individuals die1 humanity survives1 says ,seneca2 and are we to understand that the professor means to assert that the race is born like the individual1 passes through childhood1 youth1 manhood1 to old age1 and then dies8 ,who knows what he means8 ,but suppose that he has not settled in his own mind his meaning on this point1 as is most likely the case2 that he has not asked himself whether man on the earth has a beginning or an end1 and that he regards the race as a natural evolution1 revolving always in the same circle1 and takes1 therefore1 the infancy he speaks of as the infancy of a nation or a given community4 ,then his doctrine is1 that the earliest stage of every civilized nation or community is the savage state1 that the ancestors of the civilized in every age are savages1 and that all civilization has been developed under the control of physical conditions from the savage state4 #aff ,the germ of all civilization then must be in the savage1 and civilization then must be evolved from the savage as the chicken from the egg1 or the egg from the sperm4 ,but of this there is no evidence2 for1 as we have seen1 there is no nation known that has sprung from exclusively savage ancestors1 no known instance of a savage people developing1 if we may so speak1 into a civilized people4 ,the theory rests on no historical or scientific basis1 and is perfectly gratuitous4 ,in the savage state we detect reminiscences of a past civilization1 not the germs of a future civilization1 or if germs--germs that are dead1 and that never do or can germinate4 ,there are degrees of civilization2 people may be more or less civilized2 but we have no evidence1 historical or scientific1 of a time when there was no civilized people extant4 ,there are civilized nations now1 and contemporary with them are various savage tribes1 and the same may be said of every epoch since history began4 ,the civilized nations whose origin we know have all sprung from races more or less civilized1 never from purely savage tribes4 ,the physiologists overlook history1 and mistake the evening twilight for the dawn4 ,but pass over this4 ,let us come to the doctrine for which the professor writes his book1 namely1 individuals1 communities1 nations1 universal humanity1 are under the control of physical conditions1 therefore of physical law1 or law in the sense of the physiologists or the physicists4 ,if this means anything1 it means that the religion1 the morality1 the intellectual development1 the growth and decay1 the littleness and the grandeur of men and nations depend solely on physical causes1 not at all on moral causes--a doctrine not true throughout even in human physiology1 and supported by no facts1 except in a very restricted degree1 when applied to nations and communities4 ,in the corporeal phenomena of the individual the soul counts for much1 and in morbid physiology the moral often counts for more than the physical2 perhaps it always does1 for we know from revelation that the morbidity of nature is the penalty or effect of man's transgression4 ,it is proved to be false as applied to nations and communities by the fact that the ,christian religion1 which is substantially that of the ancient patriarchs1 is1 at least as far as science can go1 older than any of the false religions1 has maintained itself the same in all essential respects1 unvaried and invariable1 in every variety of physical change1 and in every diversity of physical condition1 and absolutely unaffected by any natural causes whatever4 ,the chief physical conditions on which the professor relies are climate and geographical position4 ,yet what we hold to be the true religion1 the primitive religion of mankind1 has prevailed in all climates1 and been found the same in all geographical positions4 ,nay1 even the false pagan religions have varied only in their accidents with climatic and geographical positions4 ,we find them in substance the same in ,india1 ,central ,asia1 on the banks of the ,danube1 in the heart of ,europe1 in the ancient ,scania1 the ,northern ,isles1 in ,mexico and ,peru4 ,the substance of ,greek and ,roman or ,etrurian mythology is the same with that of ,india and ,egypt4 ,m4 ,rnan tells us that the monotheism so firmly held by the ,arabic branch of the ,semitic family1 is due to the vast deserts over which the ,arab tribes wander1 which suggest the ideas of unity and universality2 and yet for centuries before ,mohammed1 these same ,arabs1 wandering over the same deserts1 were polytheists and idolaters2 and not from contemplating those deserts1 but by recalling the primitive traditions of mankind1 preserved by ,jews and ,christians1 did the founder of ,islamism attain to the monotheism of the ,koran4 ,the professor is misled by taking1 in the heathen mythology he has studied1 the poetic imagery and embellishments1 which indeed vary according to the natural aspects1 objects1 and productions of the locality1 for their substance1 thought1 or doctrine4 #afg ,the poetic illustrations1 imagery1 and embellishments of ,judaism are all oriental2 but the ,jew in all climates and in all geographical positions holds one and the same religious faith even to this day2 and his only real difference from us is1 that he is still looking for a ,christ to come1 while we believe the ,christ he is looking for has come1 and is the same ,jesus of ,nazareth who was crucified at ,jerusalem1 under ,pontius ,pilate4 ,we know the author contends that there has been from the beginning a radical difference between the ,christianity of the ,east and that of the ,west2 but we know that such is not and never has been the fact4 ,the great ,eastern fathers and theologians are held in as high honor in ,western ,christendom as they ever were in ,eastern ,christendom4 ,nearly all the great councils that defined the dogmas held by the ,catholic ,church throughout the whole world were held in the ,east4 ,the ,greeks were more speculative and more addicted to philosophical subtleties and refinements than the ,latins1 and therefore more liable to originate heresies2 but nowhere was heresy more vigorously combated1 or the one faith of the universal church more ably1 more intelligently1 or more fervently defended than in the ,east1 before the ,emperors and the ,bishop of ,constantinople drew the ,eastern ,church1 or the larger part of it1 into schism4 ,but the united ,greek ,church1 the real ,eastern ,church1 the church of ,st4 ,athanasius1 of the ,basils1 and the ,gregories1 is one in spirit1 one in faith1 one in communion with the ,church of the ,west4 ,the author gravely tells us that ,christianity had three primitive forms1 the ,judaical1 which has ended2 the ,gnostic1 which has also ended2 the ,african1 which still continues4 ,but he has no authority for what he says4 ,some ,jewish observances were retained for a time by ,christians of ,jewish origin1 till the synagogue could be buried with honor2 but there never was a ,jewish form of ,christianity1 except among heretics1 different from the ,christianity still held by the church4 ,there are some phrases in the ,gospel of ,st4 ,john1 and in the ,epistles of ,st4 ,paul that have been thought to be directed against the gnostics2 and ,clemens of ,alexandria writes a work in which he uses the terms gnosis1 knowledge1 and gnostic1 a man possessing knowledge or spiritual science1 in a good sense2 but1 we suspect1 with a design of rescuing these from the bad sense in which they were beginning to be used1 as some of our ,european friends are trying to do with the terms liberal and liberalist4 ,nevertheless1 what ,clemens defends under these terms is held by ,catholics to-day in the same sense in which he defends it4 ,there never was an ,african form of ,christianity distinct from the ,christianity either of ,europe or ,asia4 ,the two great theologians of ,africa are ,st4 ,cyprian and ,st4 ,augustine1 both probably of ,roman1 or1 at least1 of ,italian extraction4 #afh ,the doctrine which ,st4 ,cyprian is said to have maintained on baptism administered by heretics1 the only matter on which he differed from ,rome1 has never been1 and is not now1 the doctrine of the church4 ,st4 ,augustine was converted in ,milan1 and had ,st4 ,ambrose1 a ,roman1 for his master1 and differed from the theologians either of the ,east or the ,west only in the unmatched ability and science with which he defended the faith common to all4 ,he may have had some peculiar notions on some points1 but if so1 these have never been received as ,catholic doctrine4 ,the professor might as well assert the distinction1 asserted in ,germany a few years since1 which attracted some attention at the time1 but now forgotten1 between the ,petrine gospel1 the ,pauline gospel1 and the ,joannine gospel1 as the distinction of the three primitive forms of ,christianity which he asserts4 ,we were told by some learned ,german1 we forget his name1 that ,peter1 ,paul1 and ,john represent three different phases or successive forms of ,christianity4 ,the ,petrine gospel represents religion1 based on authority2 the ,pauline1 religion as based on intelligence2 and the ,joannine1 religion as based on love4 ,the first was the so-called ,catholic or ,roman ,church4 ,the reformation made an end of that1 and ushered in the ,pauline form1 or ,protestantism1 the religion of the intellect4 ,philosophy1 science4 ,biblical criticism1 and exegesis1 the growth of liberal ideas1 and the development of the sentiments and affections of the heart1 have made an end of ,protestantism1 and are ushering in the ,joannine gospel1 the religion of love1 which is never to be superseded or to pass away4 ,the advocate of this theory had got beyond authority and intelligence1 whether he had attained to the religion of love or not2 yet the theory was only the revival of the well-known heresy of the ,eternal ,evangel of the thirteenth century4 ,so hard is it to invent a new heresy4 ,it were a waste of words to attempt to show that this theory has not the slightest foundation in fact4 ,paul and ,john assert authority as strenuously as ,peter2 ,peter and ,john give as free scope to the intellect as ,paul2 and ,peter and ,paul agree with ,john in regard to love or charity4 ,there is nothing in the ,gospel or ,epistles of ,john to surpass the burning love revealed1 we might almost say concealed1 so unostentatious is it1 by the inflamed ,epistles of ,paul4 ,as for ,protestantism1 silence best becomes it1 when there is speech of intelligence1 so remarkable is it for its illogical and unintellectual character4 ,protestants have their share of native intellect1 and the ordinary degree of intelligence on many subjects2 but in the science of theology1 the basis of all the sciences1 and without which there is1 and can be1 no real science1 they have never yet excelled4 ,nor did the reformation put an end to the so-called ,petrine gospel1 the religion of authority1 the church founded on ,peter1 prince of the apostles4 ,it may be that ,protestantism is losing what little intellectual character it once had1 and developing in a vague philanthropy1 a watery sentimentality1 or a blind fanaticism1 sometimes called ,methodism1 sometimes ,evangelicalism2 but ,peter still teaches and governs in his successor4 ,the ,catholic ,church has survived the attacks of the reformation and the later revolution1 as she survived the attacks of the persecuting ,jews and pagans1 and the power and craft of civil tyrants who sought to destroy or to enslave her1 and is to-day the only religion that advances by personal conviction and conversion4 #afi ,mohammedanism can no longer propagate itself even by the sword2 the various pagan superstitions have reached their limits1 and are recoiling on themselves2 and ,protestantism has gained no accession of territory or numbers since the death of ,luther1 except by colonization and the natural increase of the population then ,protestant4 ,the ,catholic ,church is not only a living religion1 but the only living religion1 the only religion that does1 or can1 command the homage of science1 reason1 free thought1 and the uncorrupted affections of the heart4 ,the ,catholic religion is at once light1 freedom1 and love--the religion of authority1 of the intellect1 and of the heart1 embracing in its indissoluble unity ,peter1 ,paul1 and ,john4 ,the professor's work on the intellectual development of ,europe proves that religion in some form has constituted a chief element in that development4 ,it always has been1 and still is1 the chief element in the life of communities and nations1 the spring and centre of intellectual activity and progress4 ,even the works before us revolve around it1 or owe their existence to their relation to it1 and would have no intelligible purpose without it4 ,the author has written them to divest religion of its supernatural character1 to reduce it to a physiological law1 and to prove that it originates in the ignorance of men and nations1 and depends solely on physical conditions1 chiefly on climate and geographical position4 ,but in this patriarchal1 ,jewish1 ,christian religion there is something1 and that of no slight influence on the life of individuals and nations1 on universal humanity1 that flatly contradicts him1 that is essentially one and the same from first to last1 superior to climate and geographical position1 unaffected by natural causes1 independent of physical conditions1 and in no sense subject to physiological laws4 ,this suffices to refute his theory1 and that of the positivists1 of whom he is a distinguished disciple2 for it proves the uniform presence and activity in the life and development of men and nations1 ever since history began1 of a power1 a being1 or cause above nature and independent of nature1 and therefore supernatural4 ,the theory that the rise1 growth1 decay1 and death of nations depend on physical conditions alone1 chiefly on climate and geographical position1 seems to us attended with some grave difficulties4 ,have the climate and geographical positions of ,india1 ,persia1 ,assyria1 ,egypt1 ,greece1 and ,rome1 essentially changed from what they were at the epoch of their greatness8 ,did not all the great and renowned nations of antiquity rise1 grow1 prosper1 decline1 and die1 in substantially the same physical conditions1 under the same climate1 and in the same geographical position8 ,like causes produce like effects4 ,how could the same physical causes cause alike the rise and growth1 and the decay and death of one and the same people1 in one and the same climate1 and in one and the same geographical position8 ,do you say1 climate and even physical geography change with the lapse of time8 ,be it so4 ,be it as the author maintains1 that formerly there was no variation of climate on this continent1 from the equator to either pole2 but was there for ,rome any appreciable change in the climate and geography from the time of the third ,punic war to that of ,honorius1 or even of ,augustulus1 the last of the ,emperors8 ,or what change in the physical conditions of the nation was there when it was falling from what there was when it was rising8 #agj ,nations1 like individuals1 have1 according to the professor1 their infancy1 youth1 manhood1 old age1 and death4 ,but why do nations grow old and die8 ,the individual grows old and dies1 because his interior physical machinery wears out1 and because he must die in order to attain the end for which he lives4 ,but why should this be the case with nations8 ,they have no future life to which death is the passage4 ,the nation does not rise or fall with the individuals that found it4 ,one generation of individuals passes away1 and another comes1 but the nation survives2 and why1 if not destroyed by external violence1 should it not continue to survive and thrive to the end of time8 ,there are no physical causes1 no known physiological laws1 that prevent it4 ,why was not ,rome as able to withstand the barbarians1 or to drive them back from her frontiers1 in the fourth century1 as she was in the first8 ,why was ,england so much weaker under the ,stuarts than she had been under the ,tudors1 or was again under the ,protector8 ,or why have we seen her so grand under ,pitt and ,wellington1 and so little and feeble under ,palmerston and ,lord ,russell8 ,can you explain this by a change of climate and geographical position1 or any change in the physical conditions of the nation1 that is1 any physical changes not due to moral causes8 ,we see in several of the ,states of the ,union a decrease1 a relative1 if not a positive decrease1 of the native population1 and the physical man actually degenerating1 and to an extent that should alarm the statesman and the patriot4 ,do you explain this fact by the change in the climate and the geographical position8 ,the geographical position remains unchanged1 and if the climate has changed at all1 it has been by way of amelioration4 ,do you attribute it to a change in the physical condition of the country8 ,not at all4 ,there is no mystery as to the matter1 and though the effects may be physical or physiological1 the causes are well known to be moral1 and chief among them is the immoral influence of the doctrine the professor and his brother physiologists are doing their best to diffuse among the people4 ,the cause is in the loss of religious faith1 in the lack of moral and religious instruction1 in the spread of naturalism1 and the rejection of supernatural grace--without which the natural cannot be sustained in its integrity--in the growth of luxury1 and the assertion of material goods or sensible pleasures1 as the end and aim of life4 ,there is always something morally wrong where prizes need to be offered to induce the young to marry1 and to induce the married to suffer their children to be born and reared4 ,so1 also1 do we know the secret of the rise1 prosperity1 decline1 and death of the renowned nations of antiquity4 ,the ,romans owed the empire of the world to their temperance1 prudence1 fortitude1 and respect for religious principle1 all of them moral causes2 and they owed their decline and fall to the loss of these virtues1 to their moral corruption4 ,the same may be said of all the ancient nations4 ,their religion1 pure1 or comparatively pure1 in the origin1 becomes gradually corrupt1 degenerates into a corrupt and corrupting superstition1 which hangs as a frightful nightmare on the breasts of the people1 destroying their moral life and vigor4 #aga ,to this follows1 with a class1 scepticism1 the denial of ,god or the gods1 an ,epicurean morality1 and the worship of the senses2 the loss of all public spirit--public as well as private virtue1 and the nation falls of its own internal moral imbecility and rottenness1 as our own nation1 not yet a century old1 is in a fair way of doing1 and most assuredly will do1 if the atheistic philosophy and morality of the physiologists or positivists become much more widely diffused than they are4 ,the church will be as unable1 with all her supernatural truth1 grace1 life1 and strength1 to save it1 as she was to save the ancient ,graeco-,roman ,empire1 for to save it would require a resurrection of the dead4 ,the common sense of mankind1 in all ages of the world1 has uniformly attributed the downfall of nations1 states1 and empires1 to moral causes1 not to physiological laws1 climatic influences1 or geographical position4 ,the wicked shall be turned into hell1 and all the nations that forget ,god4 ,righteousness exalteth a nation1 and sin is a reproach to any people4 ,this is alike the voice of inspiration and of universal experience4 ,the traveller who visits the sites of nations renowned in story1 now buried in ruins1 of cities once thronged with a teeming population1 the marts of the world1 in which were heard1 from morning till night--till far into night--the din of industry1 and marks the solitude that now reigns there2 the barren waste that has succeeded to once fruitful fields and vineyards1 and observes the poor shepherd that feeds a petty flock on the scanty pasturage1 or the armed robber that watches for a victim to plunder1 receives a far less vivid impression of the dependence of nations on physical causes and conditions1 than of the influence of the moral world on the natural1 and reads in legible characters the meaning of that fearful penalty which ,god pronounced1 when he said to the man3 ,and the earth for thy sake shall be cursed4 ,the physical changes that have come over ,assyria1 ,syria1 ,lybia1 ,egypt1 and ,palestine1 are the effects of the moral deterioration of man1 not the cause of that deterioration4 ,the professor1 after dilating almost eloquently1 and as a sage1 on the changeability1 the transitoriness1 the evanescent nature of all the visible forms of things1 says3 ,if from visible forms we turn to directing law1 how vast the difference6 ,we pass from the finite1 the momentary1 the incidental1 the conditional1 to the illimitable1 the eternal1 the necessary1 the unshackled4 ,it is of law ,i am to speak in this book4 ,in a world composed of vanishing forms1 ,i am to vindicate the imperishability1 the majesty of law1 and to show how man proceeds in his social march in obedience to it1 7,ibid4 p1 #af47 ,this sounds well2 but1 unhappily1 he has told us that communities and nations1 like individuals1 are under the control of physical conditions1 and therefore of law4 ,if therefore of law1 then under the law of physical conditions1 and consequently of a physical or physiological law4 ,he dwells on the grandeur of this conception1 and challenges for it our deepest admiration4 ,but we see not much to admire in a purely physical law manifesting itself in ceaseless instability1 metamorphosis1 and death4 ,will the author forgive us1 if we hint that he possibly does not very well understand himself1 or know precisely what it is that he says8 ,hear him4 ,i am to lead my reader1 perhaps in a reluctant path1 from the outward phantasmagorial illusions which surround us and so ostentatiously obtrude themselves on our attention1 to something that lies in silence and strength behind4 #agb ,i am to draw his thoughts from the tangible to the invisible1 from the limited to the universal1 from the changeable to the invariable1 from the transitory to the eternal2 from the expedients and volitions so largely amusing in the life of man1 to the predestined and resistless issuing of law from the fiat of ,god4 7,ibid4 p4 #af1 #ag47 ,very respectable rhetoric1 but what does it mean8 ,if it means anything1 it means that the visible universe is unreal1 an illusion1 a phantasmagoria2 that nothing is real1 stable1 permanent1 but law1 which lies in silence and strength behind the phantasmagoria1 and that this law producing the illusion1 dazzling us with mere sense-shows1 is identically ,god1 from whose fiat the phantasmagorial world issues4 ,is not this grand8 is it not sublime8 ,the scientific professor forgets that he may find readers1 who can perceive through his rhetoric that he makes law or ,god the reality of things1 instead of their creator or maker1 simply their causa essentialis1 the causa immanens of ,spinoza1 and therefore asserts nothing but a very vulgar form of pantheism1 material pantheism1 indistinguishable from naked atheism2 for his doctrine recognizes only the material1 the sensible1 and by law he can mean only a physiological law like that by which the liver secretes bile1 the blood circulates through the heart1 seeds germinate1 or plants bear fruit--a law which has and can have no indivisible unity4 ,if the professor means simply that in the universe all proceeds according to the law of cause and effect1 he should bear in mind that there are moral causes and effects as well as physical1 and supernatural as well as natural2 but then he might find himself in accord with theologians1 some of whom1 perhaps1 in his own favorite sciences are able to be his masters4 ,it is not always safe to measure the ignorance of others by our own4 ,no theologian denies1 but every one asserts the law of cause and effect1 precisely what no atheist1 pantheist1 or naturalist does do1 for none of them ever rise above what the schools call causa essentialis1 the thing itself1 that which1 as we say1 makes the thing1 makes it itself and not another1 or constitutes its identity4 ,every theologian believes that ,god is logical1 logic in itself1 and that all his works are dialectical and realize a divine plan1 which as a whole and in all its parts is strictly and rigidly logical4 ,if the professor means simply to assert not only that all creatures and all events are under the control of the law of cause and effect1 but also under the law of dialectics1 there need be no quarrel between him and us2 but in such case1 if he had known a little theology1 he might have spared himself and us a great deal of trouble1 for we believe as firmly in the universal reign of law as he or his ,grace of ,argyle4 ,but he would have gained little credit for original genius1 depth of thought1 profound science1 or rare learning1 and most likely would not have lived to see any one of his volumes reach a fifth edition4 ,but we must not be understood to deny in the development of nations or individuals all dependence on physical conditions1 or even of climate and geographical position4 ,man is neither pure spirit1 nor pure matter2 he is the union of soul and body1 and can no more live without communion with nature1 than he can without communion with his like and with ,god4 ,hence he requires the three great institutions of religion1 society1 and property1 which1 in some form1 are found in all tribes1 nations1 or civil communities1 and without which no people ever does or can subsist4 #agc ,climate and geographical influences1 no doubt1 count for something1 for how much1 science has not yet determined4 ,there is a difference in character between the inhabitants of mountains and the inhabitants of plains1 the dwellers on the sea-coast and the dwellers inland1 and the people of the north and the people of the south2 yet the ,bas ,bretons and the ,irish have not lost perceptibly anything1 in three thousand years1 of their original character as a southern people1 though dwelling for that space of time1 we know not how many centuries longer1 far to the north4 ,among the ,irish you may find types of northern races1 some of whom have overrun the ,island as conquerors2 but amid all their political and social vicissitudes1 the ,irish have retained1 and still retain1 their southern character4 ,the ,english have received many accessions from ,ireland and from the south1 but they remain1 the great body of them1 as they originally were1 essentially a northern people1 and hence the marked difference between the ,irish character and the ,english1 though inhabiting very nearly the same parallels of latitude1 and subject to much the same climatic and geographical influences4 ,the character of both the ,english and the ,irish is modified on this continent1 but more by amalgamation1 and by political and social influences1 than by climate or geography4 ,the ,irish type is the most tenacious1 and is not unlikely in time to eliminate the ,anglo-,saxon4 ,it has a great power of absorption1 and the ,american people may ultimately lose their northern type1 and assume the characteristics of a southern race1 in spite of the constant influx of the ,teutonic element4 ,what we object to is not giving something to physical causes and conditions1 but making them exclusive1 and thus rejecting moral causes1 and reducing man and nature to an inexorable fatalism4 ,in the several volumes of the professor1 except the first named1 we are able to detect neither the philosophical historian nor the man of real science4 ,the respectable author has neither logic nor exact1 or even extensive1 learning1 and the only thing to be admired in him1 except his style1 is the sublime confidence in himself with which he undertakes to discuss and settle questions1 of which1 for the most part1 he knows nothing1 and perhaps the sublimer confidence with which he follows masters that know as little as himself4 ,we own we have treated ,professor ,draper's work with very little respect1 for we have felt very little4 ,his ,intellectual ,development of ,europe is full of crudities from beginning to end1 and for the most part below criticism1 or would be were it not that it is levelled at all the principles of individual and social life and progress4 ,the book belongs to the age of ,leucippus and ,democritus1 and ignores1 if we may use an expressive term1 though hardly ,english1 ,christian civilization and all the progress men and nations have effected since the opening of the ,christian era4 ,it is a monument not of science1 but of gross ignorance4 ,yet in our remarks we have criticised the class to which the author belongs1 rather than the author himself4 ,men of real science are modest1 reverential1 and we honor them1 whatever the department of nature to which they devote their studies4 ,we delight to sit at their feet and drink in instruction from their lips2 but when men1 because they are passable chemists1 know something of human physiology1 or the natural history of fishes1 undertake to propagate theories on ,god1 man1 and nature1 that violate the most sacred traditions of the race1 deny the ,gospel1 reduce the universe to matter1 and place man on a level with the brute1 theories1 too1 which are utterly baseless1 we cannot reverence them1 or listen to them with patience1 however graceful their elocution or charming their rhetoric4 ---------- #agd ,morning ,at ,spring ,park4 ,along the upland swell and wooded lawn ,the aged farmer's voice is heard at dawn3 ,that well-known call across the dewy vale ,calls ,spark and ,daisy to the milking-pail4 ,the robin chirps2 from farm to farm ,i hear ,the bugle-note of wakeful chanticleer2 ,and far1 far off1 through grove and bosky dell1 ,the dreamy tinkle of sleek ,snowflake's bell4 ,the huddling sheep1 just loose from kindly fold1 ,their nibbling way along the hill-side hold2 ,and timid squirrels and shy quails are seen ,flitting1 unscared1 across the shaded green4 ,the low horizon's dusky1 violet blue ,is tinged with coming daylight's rosy hue1 ,till o'er the golden fields of tasselled corn ,breaks all the rapture of the summer morn4 ,through forest rifts the level sunbeams dart1 ,and gloomy nooks to sudden beauty start2 ,those long1 still lines which through rank foliage steal1 ,undreamed-of charms among the woods reveal4 ,the yellow wheat-stooks catch the early light2 ,far-nested homesteads gleam at once to sight2 ,while1 from yon glimmering height1 one spire serene ,points duly heavenward this terrestrial scene4 ,long may the aged farmer's call be heard4 ,at dewy dawn1 with song of matin bird4 ,among his loving flocks and herds of kine1 ,a guileless master1 watchful and benign4 ,and1 when no more his agile footstep roves ,these flowery pastures and these pleasant groves1 ,good ,shepherd1 may thy call to fields more fair ,wean every thought from earth1 make heaven his care6 ---------- #age ,nellie ,netterville2 ,or1 ,one ,of ,the ,transplanted4 ,,chapter ,,iii4 ,set is the sun of the ,netterville's glory6 ,down in the dust its bright banners are trailing6 ,hoarse in our anguish we whisper the story1 ,and men1 as they listen1 like women are wailing4 ,woe6 woe to us--woe6 we shall see him no more2 ,our tears like the rains of ,november are flowing2 ,woe6 woe to us--woe6 for the chief we deplore ,alone to his exile of sorrow is going4 ,alone8--not alone6 for our dastardly foemen-- ,as cruel as base in the day of their power-- ,have lifted their hands against maidens and women2 ,uprooted the tree1 and then trampled the flower4 ,and so they have sent her to weep by strange waters-- ,the joy of our hearts and the light of our eyes-- ,the latest and fairest of ,netterville's daughters1 ,in whom the last link of their destiny lies4 ,sad will be1 mother1 thy waking to-morrow6 ,waking to weep o'er thy dove-rifled nest2 ,widowed and childless--two-fold is thy sorrow4 ,and two-edged the sword that is lodged in thy breast4 ,well may we mourn her--when we too deplore her-- ,the vassals and serfs of thy conquering race2 ,if blood could but do it1 our blood should restore her-- ,restore her to thee and thy loving embrace4 ,yet not for her only1 or thee1 are we weeping2 ,we weep for our country1 fast bound in that chain ,which in blood from her wrung heart the foeman is steeping1 ,till it looks as if reddened and rusted by rain4 ,oh6 when shall a leader to true hearts be given4 ,to fall on the stranger and force him to flee8 ,and when shall the shackles that bind her be riven8 ,and ,erin stand up in her strength1 and be free6 ,so sung ,hamish1 the son of the last of the long line of minstrels who1 with harp and voice1 had recorded the triumphs of the house of ,netterville1 or mourned over the death or sorrow of its chieftains4 ,for1 in spite of the law by which it was strictly forbidden1 the ,english of the ,pale had persisted in the national custom of keeping a bard or minstrel--whose office was always1 or almost always1 hereditary--attached to their households2 and in its palmy days of power the family of ,netterville was far too jealous of its own importance not to have been always provided with a similar appendage4 ,its last recognized minstrel had fallen1 however1 in the same battle which had deprived ,nellie of her father1 and1 ,hamish being then too young to take up his father's office1 the harp had ever since1 literally as well as figuratively1 hung mute and unstrung in the halls of ,netterville4 ,but grief and indignation over its utter ruin had unlocked at last the tide of poetry and song1 ever ready to flow over in the ,celtic breast1 and ,hamish felt himself changed into a bard upon the spot4 ,forgetting the presence of the ,english soldiers1 or1 more probably1 exulting in the knowledge that they did not understand the language in which he gave expression to his feelings1 he stepped out into the midst of the people1 pouring forth his lamentations1 stanza after stanza1 with all the readiness and fire of a born improvisatore2 and when at last he paused1 more for want of breath than want of matter1 the keeners took up the tale1 and told1 in their wild1 wailing chant1 of the goodness and greatness1 the glory and honour of their departed chieftain and his heiress1 precisely as they would have done had the twain over whom they were lamenting been that very day deposited in their graves4 ,up to this moment ,mrs4 ,netterville had preserved in a marvellous degree that statue-like calmness of outward bearing which hid1 and even at times belied1 the workings of a heart full of generous emotions2 but the wild wailing of the keeners broke down the artificial restraint she had put upon her conduct1 and1 unable to listen quietly to what seemed to her ears a positive prophecy of death to her beloved ones1 she hastily rentered the house and retreated to her own apartment4 #agf ,this was a small1 dark chamber1 which in happier times had been set apart as a quiet retreat for prayer and household purposes1 but which now was the only one the mistress of the mansion could call her own--the soldiers having that very morning taken possession of all the others1 devoting some of them to their own particular accommodation and locking up the others4 ,it was1 in fact1 as a very singular and especial favour1 and as some return for the kindness she had shown in nursing one of their number who had been taken suddenly ill on the night of their arrival1 that the use even of this small chamber had been allowed her2 for it was not the custom of ,cromwell's army to deal too gently by the vanquished1 and many of the transplanted1 as high-born and well-educated as she was1 had been compelled1 in similar circumstances1 to retire to the outer offices of their own abode1 while the rough soldiery who displaced them installed themselves in the luxurious apartments of the interior4 ,hidden from all curious eyes in this dark retreat1 ,mrs4 ,netterville yielded at last to the cry of her weak human heart1 and1 flinging herself face downward on the floor1 gave way to a passion of grief which was all the more terrible that it was absolutely tearless4 ,one or two of the few remaining women of the household1 knowing how fearfully her soul1 in spite of all outward show of calmness1 must be wrung1 tapped occasionally at the door2 but either she did not hear or did not choose to answer1 and they dared not enter without permission4 ,at last one of them went to ,hamish1 feeling instinctively that1 if any one could venture to intrude unbidden1 it would be the foster-brother of ,nellie1 and said3 ,the mistress1 ,god help her6 is just drowned with the sorrow1 and won't even answer when we call4 ,hamish1 a-bouchal1 couldn't you manage to go in1 just by accident like1 and say something or other to give a turn to her thoughts8 ,give a turn to her thoughts8 said ,hamish crustily2 give a turn to her thoughts1 do you say8 ,my certie1 but you take it easy6 ,hasn't the woman lost husband and child1 to say nothing of the old lord1 who was all as one to her as her own father8 and isn't she going1 moreover1 to be turned out of house and home1 and sent adrift upon the wide world8 and you talk of giving a turn to her thoughts1 as if it was the toothache she was troubled with or a wasp that had stung her8 ,as you please1 ,mr4 ,hoity-toity1 said the girl angrily2 ,i only thought that1 as you were a bit of a pet like1 on account of our young mistress1 you might have ventured on the liberty4 ,not having set up in that line myself1 ,i cannot1 of course1 attempt to meddle in the matter4 ,but though ,hamish had spoken roughly1 his heart was very sore1 for all that1 over the sorrows of his lonely mistress4 ,he waited until ,cathleen had vanished in a huff1 and then1 going quietly to the study-door1 knocked softly for admission4 ,but ,mrs4 ,netterville gave no sign1 and1 after knocking two or three times in vain1 he opened the door gently and looked in4 ,the room was naturally a gloomy one1 being panelled in black oak2 but ,hamish felt as if it never could have looked before so gloomy as it did that moment4 #agg ,half study1 half oratory as it was1 ,mrs4 ,netterville had spent here many a long hour of lonely and impassioned prayer1 what time her husband and her father-in-law were fighting the battles of their royal and most ungrateful master4 ,a tall crucifix1 carved1 like the rest of the furniture1 in black oak1 stood1 therefore1 on a sort of prie-dieu at the farther end of the room1 and near it was a table arranged in desk-fashion1 at which she had been in the habit of transacting the business of her household4 ,room and prie-dieu1 crucifix and table1 ,hamish had them all by heart already4 ,here in his baby days he had been used to come1 when he and his little foster-sister were wearied with their own play1 to sit at the feet of ,mrs4 ,netterville and listen to the tales which she invented for their amusement4 ,here1 as time went on1 separating ,nellie outwardly from his society1 yet leaving her as near to him in heart as ever1 he had been wont to bring his morning offerings of fish from the running stream1 or bunches of purple heather from the rocks4 ,here he had come for news of the war1 and of the master1 on that very day which brought tidings of his death2 and here1 too1 even while he tried to comfort ,nellie1 who had flung herself down in her childish misery just on the spot where her mother lay prostrate now1 he had wondered1 and1 young as he was1 had in part1 at least1 comprehended the marvellous self-forgetfulness of ,mrs4 ,netterville1 who1 in the midst of her own bereavement1 had yet found heart and voice to comfort her aged father-in-law and her child1 as if the blow which had struck them down had not fallen with three-fold force on her own head4 ,in the darkness of the room and the confusion of his own thoughts1 he did not1 however1 at first perceive ,mrs4 ,netterville in her lowly posture1 and glanced instinctively toward the prie-dieu1 where he had so often before seen her take refuge in the hour of trial4 ,but she was not there1 and a thrill of terror ran through his frame when he at last discovered her1 face downward1 on the floor1 her widow's coif flung far away1 and her long locks1 streaked--by the hand of grief1 not time--abundantly with gray1 streaming round her in a disorder which struck ,hamish all the more forcibly1 that it was in such direct contrast to the natural habits of order and propriety she had brought with her from her ,english home4 ,there she lay1 not weeping--such misery as hers knows nothing of the relief of tears--not weeping1 but crushed and powerless1 as if her very body had proved unequal to the weight of sorrow put upon it1 and had fallen beneath the burthen4 ,she seemed1 indeed1 not in a swoon1 but stunned and stupefied1 and quite unconscious that she was not alone4 ,hamish trembled for her intellect2 but young as he was1 he was used to sorrow1 and understood both the danger and the remedy4 ,his lady must be roused at any cost1 even at that the very thought of which made him tremble1 the recalling her to a full knowledge of her misery4 ,he advanced farther into the room1 moving softly1 in his great reverence for her desolation1 as we move1 almost unconsciously to ourselves1 in the presence of the dead1 and occupied himself for a few minutes in arranging the loose papers on her desk1 and the flowers which ,nellie had placed upon the prie dieu only a day or two before4 ,they were faded now--faded as the poor child's fortunes--but instead of throwing them away1 he poured fresh water into the vase which held them1 as if that could have restored their beauty4 #agh ,yet he sighed heavily as he did so for the thought would flash across his mind that1 whether he sought to give1 back life to a withered flower1 or joy to the heart of a bereaved mother1 in either case his task was hopeless4 ,mrs4 ,netterville took no notice of his proceedings1 though1 as he began to get used to the situation1 he purposely made rather more bustle than was needed1 in hopes of arousing her4 ,at last1 in despair of succeeding by milder methods1 he let fall a heavy inkstand1 smashing it into a thousand pieces1 and scattering the ink in all directions1 an event that in happier times would certainly not have passed unreproved4 ,but now she lay within a few inches of the inky stream1 as heedless as though she were dead in earnest2 and1 hopeless of recalling her to consciousness by anything short of a personal appeal1 he knelt down beside her and tapped her sharply on the shoulder1 half wondering at his own temerity as he did so4 ,she shuddered as if1 light as the touch had been1 it yet had hurt her1 and muttered impatiently1 and like one half asleep3 ,not now1 ,hamish6 not now6--leave me for the present1 ,i entreat you6 ,and why not now8 ,hamish answered almost roughly4 ,do you think you only have a cause for grieving8 ,tell me1 my mistress1 if we1 humble as we are1 and not to be thought of in comparison with your ladyship's honor1 if we have not lost--are losing nothing8 ,ah6 if you could but hear the weeping and wailing that is going on among the creatures down-stairs1 you would never do us such a wrong as to suppose that your heart is the only one sore and bleeding to-day6 ,sore and bleeding6 ,yes6 yes6 ,i doubt it not1 moaned the lady sadly4 ,sore and bleeding2 but not widowed--not childless2 they have still husbands and children--they have not lost as ,i have lost6 ,they have lost--not1 may be1 quite so much1 but yet enough1 and more than enough1 to set them wailing1 answered ,hamish firmly-- they have lost a master1 who was more like a father than a master1 and a young mistress1 who was all as one as a daughter to every one of them2 and moreover1 he added mournfully--and moreover1 instead of the kind hand and generous heart that has reigned over them till now1 they are going to be handed over1 7as if they were so many stocks or stones encumbering the land17 whether they like it or whether they don't1 to the tender mercies of those very men who thought it neither sin nor shame to make the child a shield against the soldier's sword1 when they fought knee-deep in blood at the siege of ,tredagh6 ,why do you say these things1 ,hamish8 she almost shrieked in her anguish4 ,is it my fault8 ,could ,i help it8 or why do you reproach me with it8 ,your fault6 ,no1 indeed1 it is not4 ,more's the pity2 for if you could have helped it1 to a dead certainty it never would have happened1 said ,hamish1 glad that he had roused her1 even if only to a fit of anger4 ,but though you cannot prevent these things1 my mistress1 you can at all events comfort the creatures that have to bear them1 by showing that you have feelings for their sorrows as well as for your own4 ,i give comfort6 ,god help me1 ,i give comfort6 she answered1 with a sort of passionate irony in her manner2 adding1 however1 immediately afterward1 in a softer tone1 ,how can ,i give comfort1 ,hamish--,i who need it so entirely myself8 #agi ,that is the very thing1 cried ,hamish eagerly4 ,god love you1 madam6 ,do you not see that the only real comfort you could give them would be the allowing them to try at least and comfort you8 ,bid them pray1 then1 for the safe journey of my loved ones1 she answered hoarsely--that is the only real comfort they can give me4 ,and why1 then1 couldn't we pray all together8 cried ,hamish1 struck suddenly by a bright idea4 ,why wouldn't you let them come up here1 madam8 ,i warrant you they would pray as the best of them never prayed before1 if they only seen your ladyship's honor kneeling and praying in the midst of them4 ,i--,i cannot pray--,i cannot even think1 she answered1 laying her head once more on her folded arms1 like a weary or a chidden child4 ,go you1 good ,hamish1 and pray yourself with them down-stairs4 ,in the kitchen1 is it8 said ,hamish1 with a considerable portion of irony in his voice4 ,faix1 my lady1 and it's queer thoughts we'd have1 and queer prayers we would be saying there1 with the pot forenent us1 boiling on the fire1 and ,cromwell's black rogues of troopers coming and going1 and flinging curses and scraps of ,scriptures 7according to their usual custom7 in equal measure at our heads4 ,no6 no6 my lady1 he continued vehemently1 if you would have us pray at all1 it must be here--here where the cross will mind us of a ,mother who once stood at its foot1 and who was even more desolate than you are2 a ,mother silent and heart-broken--not because her ,child had gone before her into exile1 from whence ,he might any day return1 but because she saw ,him dying--dying in the midst of tortures--and forsaken so entirely that it might well have seemed to her 7only she knew that never could be7 as if ,god as well as man had utterly abandoned ,him4 ,you are right1 ,hamish2 you are right1 cried ,mrs4 ,netterville suddenly1 touched to the quick by his voice and eloquence4 ,go you down at once1 good ,hamish1 and bid them come here directly4 ,i shall be ready by the time they are assembled4 ,as ,mrs4 ,netterville spoke thus1 she rose from the floor1 and then1 all at once perceiving the strange disorder of her attire1 she began hastily to gather up her tresses1 previous to placing her widow's coif upon them4 ,hamish waited to hear no more1 but instantly left the room to do her bidding4 ,as he walked rapidly toward the lower part of the mansion1 he drew a long sigh of relief1 like one who has just got rid of a heavy burden1 as in truth he had2 for he felt that he had gained his point1 and that whatever his mistress might have yet to suffer1 she was safe1 at all events1 from the effects of that first great shock of sorrow which had threatened to overturn her intellect4 ,when he returned to announce that the household was assembled and waiting for her further orders he found her kneeling at the prie-dieu1 in all the grave composure of her usual manner4 ,she did not trust herself1 however1 to look round1 but merely signed to him that they should come in2 and the instant the noise and bustle of their first entrance had subsided1 she commenced reading from her open missal4 ,but the very sound of her own voice in supplicatory accents seemed to break the spell which had hitherto been laid upon her faculties4 ,she fairly broke down and burst into a flood of tears4 ,this was more than enough for the excitable hearts around her1 and the room was filled in a moment with the wailing of her people4 #ahj ,hamish was in despair2 and yet1 perhaps1 no other mode of proceeding could have done so much toward calming her as did this sudden outburst2 for ,mrs4 ,netterville had a true ,englishwoman's aversion to scenes1 however real and natural to the circumstances of the case they might be4 ,she instantly checked her tears1 and waiting quietly until the storm of grief had in some degree died out1 she collected all her energies1 and read in a low1 steady voice the prayer or collect for those travelling by land or sea1 as she found it in her missal4 ,a few other short but earnest prayers succeeded1 and then she paused once more4 ,her audience took the hint and quietly retired4 ,hamish was about to follow1 but she rose from the prie-dieu1 and signed to him to remain4 ,hamish1 she said1 gently but decidedly1 ,i have done your bidding1 and now ,i expect that you will do mine4 ,i wish to be alone for the rest of the day--do you understand8 alone with ,god and my great sorrow6 ,to-morrow ,i will begin the work for which ,i have been left here1 but to-day must be my own4 ,come not here yourself1 and look to it that no one else disturbs me4 ,keep a heedful watch upon the soldiers1 and see that no mischance occurs between them and any of our people1 ,i trust to you for this and all things4 ,now leave me4 ,if ,i have need of anything1 ,i will let you know4 ,there was that in ,mrs4 ,netterville's tone and manner which made ,hamish feel he had gone quite far enough already2 so1 without another word of remonstrance or expostulation1 he made his reverence and retired4 ,chapter ,,iv4 ,mrs4 ,netterville waited until the echo of his retreating footsteps had died away in the corridor1 and then fastening the door so as to secure herself from any further interruption from the outside1 she once more fell on her knees before the crucifix1 and buried her face in both her hands4 ,how long she remained thus she never knew exactly2 but the shades of a short ,january evening were already gathering in the room1 when1 with a start and a look as if her conscience smote her1 she rose suddenly from her knees4 ,christ pardon me6 she muttered half aloud1 that1 in my own selfish sorrows1 ,i have forgotten others6 ,poor wretch6 ,by this time he must be well-nigh famished1 if1 indeed1 7though ,i trust it will not17 the delay has not worked him deeper mischief4 ,as these thoughts passed rapidly through her mind1 she opened a cupboard close at hand1 and drew from thence a bottle of wine1 with some other articles of delicate food1 packed carefully in a wicker-basket1 and evidently left there for some especial purpose4 ,she then sought through the gloom for a cloak1 which she threw upon her shoulders1 and1 drawing the hood down over her face1 and taking the basket on her arm1 she hastily left the room4 ,not1 however1 by the door through which ,hamish and the servants had retreated1 but by another at the opposite end1 and which was almost invisible1 in consequence of its forming one of the panels in the black oak wainscoting of the chamber4 ,it led her directly by a short stone passage to another door or low wicket1 on opening which she found herself in the private grounds of the castle4 ,before her at no great distance1 stood an old ivy-covered church1 half hidden in a group of tall ,irish trees1 which sheltered its little cemetery4 #aha ,this was not the parish church1 but a private chapel1 built by the ,netterville family for their own particular use2 and here their infants had been baptized1 their daughters married1 and their old men and women laid reverently to their last slumbers1 ever since they had established their existence in the land4 ,mrs4 ,netterville could not resist a sigh as she glanced toward its venerable walls4 ,it seemed as if it were only yesterday that she had gone there to lay down her husband in his lowly grave1 hoping and praying1 out of the depths of her own great grief1 that she might soon be permitted to sleep quietly beside him4 ,and now1 even this sad hope was to be hers no longer2 this poor possession of six feet of earth was to be wrested from her2 strangers would lay her in a distant grave1 and even in death she would be separated from her husband4 ,the thought was too painful to bear much lingering upon it1 and turning her back upon the church1 ,mrs4 ,netterville followed a path which lay close under the castle walls1 and led to a court-yard at a considerable distance4 ,round this court-yard were grouped stables and other offices1 which1 having been built at different periods and without any consecutive idea as a whole1 presented rather the appearance of a collection of stunted farm-houses1 than of the regular out-buildings of an important mansion4 ,each of these houses had a private entrance of its own2 and opening the door of one of them1 ,mrs4 ,netterville looked in quietly and entered4 ,the interior was a room1 poorly but yet decently furnished1 and on a low settle-bed at the farther end lay a young man1 who1 with his sunken eyes and hollow cheeks1 had all the look of a person just rescued from the jaws of death4 ,a knapsack on the floor1 a pike and musket in one corner of the room1 and a steel cap and buff coat in another1 seemed to announce him as one of the band of successful soldiers who were even then in possession of the castle4 ,poor fellow6 he lay1 with closed eyes1 wan and weary1 on his bed1 looking1 at that moment1 like anything rather than like a successful soldier2 but he lifted his head as he caught the noise of the door creaking on its hinges1 and his face brightened into an expression of joy and gratitude pleasant to behold when he discovered ,mrs4 ,netterville standing on the threshold4 ,can you ever forgive me8 she said1 going up to him at once4 ,i cannot easily forgive myself for having left you so long alone4 ,in the grief and anguish in which ,i have been plunged all day1 ,i had well-nigh forgotten your existence1 and you must be faint1 ,i fear me1 for want of nourishment4 ,nay1 madam1 he answered1 gently1 indeed1 but yet with a good deal of that comfortable self-assurance in spiritual matters which seems to have been an especial inheritance of ,cromwell's saints4 ,if you have forgotten1 the ,lord at least hath been mindful of his servant1 and hath cast so deep a slumber on my senses1 that ,i have been altogether unconscious of the lapse of time1 or of the absence of those carnal comforts which1 however the spirit may rebel against them1 are nevertheless not altogether to be despised1 as being the means by which we receive strength to do the bidding of our ,master4 ,mrs4 ,netterville could not help thinking that the posset-cup and soothing draught1 which she had administered the night before1 might have had as much as any especial interposition of ,providence to say to his seasonable slumbers2 but the times were too much out of joint to permit of her making1 however reverently1 such an observation1 so she merely touched his brow and hand1 and said3 #ahb ,i am right glad1 at all events1 that you seem in nowise to have suffered from my neglect4 ,eat now and drink1 ,i pray you2 for ,i perceive by this refreshing moisture on your skin that all danger has passed away1 and that you need at present no worse physic than good food and wine to restore you to your former strength4 ,nay1 madam1 said the soldier1 with great and hardly repressed feeling in his voice and manner4 ,eat or drink ,i cannot1 or in any way refresh myself1 until ,i have poured forth my song of gratitude1 first to the ,lord of hosts1 who hath delivered me from this great danger1 and then to you1 who have tended me 7even as the widow of ,sarepta might have waited on ,elias7 through the perils of a sickness from which my very comrades and fellow-laborers in the vineyard fled1 trembling and afraid4 ,you must pardon them1 good ,jackson1 said ,mrs4 ,netterville1 and all the more readily1 because this disease1 from which you have so marvellously recovered1 is1 men say1 in its rapid progress and almost sure mortality1 akin1 if not indeed wholly similar1 to that terrible malady the plague1 which is the scourge of the ,eastern nations1 and leaves crowded cities1 once it has entered in1 as silent and deserted as the sepulchres of the dead4 ,you cannot therefore wonder1 and you need not feel aggrieved1 if men who would have risked their lives for you on the battle-field1 yet shrunk from its unseen1 and therefore1 to poor human nature1 its more awful dangers4 ,nay1 madam1 ,i blame them not2 perhaps even in their place ,i should have done the same4 ,nevertheless--and though ,i have no ill feeling toward them--,i cannot forget that you1 a ,popish woman and an enemy1 have done that for me which the very children of my own household have shrunk from doing1 and ,i would fain show my gratitude if ,i could4 ,you can show it1 and that right easily1 if you will1 she answered kindly1 by eating and drinking heartily of the provisions ,i have brought1 and so regaining strength to wait all the sooner on yourself4 ,for ,i shall soon1 as you doubtless know already1 have work in hand which will compel me to make my visits fewer2 and yet ,i shall not like to risk other lives by sending any of the household to wait on you in my stead4 ,alas6 madam1 ,i fear ,i have been but a troublesome and unprofitable1 though not altogether1 ,i do assure you1 a thankless guest1 the man answered1 in a somewhat sad and deprecatory manner4 ,nay2 but now you mistake me altogether1 she answered earnestly4 ,you have been a most patient sufferer1 and that trouble--which is altogether unavoidable in any sickness--has been1 you may believe me1 a pleasure rather than an uneasiness to me4 ,i only meant to say that1 though ,i shall still continue to visit you morning and evening1 ,i shall not be able to come so often in the daytime as ,i have been used to do2 for all matters in this sad affair of the transplantation having fallen into my hands1 you may well imagine it is as much or more than one poor woman can well accomplish by her own unaided efforts4 ,would that ,i could aid you1 he answered fervently--would that ,i could comfort you6 ,but1 alas6 in this matter of the transplantation1 ,i can do naught1 seeing that it is the ,lord himself who hath girded on our swords1 bidding us to smite and spare not4 #ahc ,nevertheless1 lady1 ,i am not ungrateful1 and in the long1 sleepless nights of my weary malady ,i have wrestled for you in prayer1 striving exceedingly and being much exercised on your account2 nor gave ,i over until ,i had received the comfortable assurance that1 as the ,lord sent angels to ,lot to deliver him out of ,sodom1 so he would some day make of me a shield and a defence1 whereby you might be snatched from the woes that he is about to rain down on this land1 because 'the cry of its idolatry is waxen great before his face1' and he hath sworn to destroy it4 ,well1 well6 she answered a little impatiently1 ,i thank you for your good-will1 at all events2 but for the present we will discourse no further on this matter4 ,god will one day judge between us1 and by his fiat ,i am content to stand or fall1 in all those matters of religion on which1 unhappily1 we differ4 ,see1 ,i have trimmed the lamp so that it will burn brightly until morning1 and there is food and wine on this little table4 ,i will put it close to the bed1 so that when you need nourishment1 you will have but to put forth your hand to take it4 ,and now ,i must say good-night--to-morrow ,i will be with you by the early dawn4 ,having thus done all that either charity or hospitality could ask at her hands1 ,mrs4 ,netterville retired from the room1 sooner1 probably1 than she would have done if the soldier's last words had not grated on her ear1 and roused more angry passions than she wished to yield to in her breast4 ,he has a good heart1 poor wretch1 she thought1 as she took her way back to the castle2 but strange and fearful is it to see how pride1 in him1 as in all his comrades1 usurps the place of true humility and religion4 ,the sudden sound of a pistol going off disturbed her in the midst of her cogitations2 and with a pang of indescribable fear and presentiment of evil at her heart1 she stood still4 ,it seemed to come from the grove of yew-trees round the church1 and was not repeated4 ,having ascertained this fact1 she walked rapidly forward in the direction of the sound1 her mind in a perfect whirl of fear1 and only able to shape itself into the one thought1 pregnant of future evil1 that1 either by some of her own people1 or by one of the ,english soldiers1 a murder had been committed4 ,just as she entered the grove of yew-trees1 she perceived something like the loose garb of a woman fluttering down the path before her1 and then suddenly disappearing behind the tower of the little church4 ,she did not dare to call out2 but feeling certain that this person must either have fired the shot herself1 or have seen it fired by some one else1 she quickened her pace in order to overtake her4 ,twilight was already deepening among the yew-trees2 the path1 moreover1 was overgrown with weeds and brambles1 and as she ran with her eyes fixed on the spot where the figure had disappeared1 she felt herself suddenly tripped up by some object lying right before her1 and fell heavily against it4 ,at the first touch of that unseen something1 a sense of terror1 such as animals are said to be conscious of in the presence of their own dead1 seized upon her senses1 and all the blood was curdling in her veins as slowly and with difficulty she removed herself from its contact4 ,gradually1 as she recovered from the stunning effects of her fall1 and her eyes grew accustomed to the gloom around her1 the thing on the ground shaped itself into the form of a human being--but of a human being so still and motionless1 that it seemed probable it was a corpse already4 #ahd ,very reluctantly she put forth her hand to try if life were really extinct2 but suddenly discovering that she was dabbling it in a pool of yet warm blood1 she withdrew it with a shudder4 ,my ,god6 my ,god6 she moaned1 what enemy hath done this8 ,surely it is one of the soldiers from the castle1 and they will accuse our people of the murder6 ,grant ,heaven1 indeed1 that they are innocent6 ,would that ,hamish were here to help me4 ,yet no6 they would certainly in that case try to fix the guilt on him4 ,i will go hence and let them discover it as they can4 ,yet what if ,i should meet them8 ,i am all dabbled in his gore6 ,with a new and sharp terror in her heart1 as this thought took possession of it1 she began hastily to rub her hands in the moss and dry leaves around her1 in order to free them from the blood which clung to them2 and she was still engaged in this rather equivocal occupation when a sudden stream of light was cast on her from behind1 and1 rising suddenly1 she found herself face to face with the officer who had been left in command of the garrison of the castle4 ,half-a-dozen of his men were at his back1 and by the light of the lantern1 which he carried1 she read in their faces their conviction of her guilt4 ,at a sign from their chief they surrounded her in awful silence1 and he himself laid his hand heavily on her shoulder3 ,murderess6 he said1 thou art taken in thy sin6 ,i did it not1 cried ,mrs4 ,netterville1 so utterly confounded by this terrible accusation that she hardly knew what she said4 ,so help me ,heaven6 ,i am innocent of this deed6 ,innocent6 sayest thou8 the officer answered firmly4 ,innocent6 thou with his blood red upon thy hands6 ,yea1 and thy very garments clotted in his gore6 ,if then thou art innocent1 as thou wouldst have us to believe1 say what wert thou doing in this lonely spot at an hour when none but the murderer or the wanton would care to be abroad8 ,i was returning from a visit to the soldier ,jackson--a visit which1 as thou knowest1 ,master ,rippel1 ,i pay him every evening at the hour of dusk2 and ,i had well-nigh reached the castle1 when hearing a shot in this direction1 and fearing mischief either for my own people or for thine1 ,i came hither if possible to prevent it4 ,a likely story1 truly6 replied the officer1 who1 unluckily for her1 was one of the fiercest1 if not the saintliest1 of the band of warriors then domiciled at the castle4 ,nay1 woman1 and for thine own sake hold thy peace1 or out of thine own mouth thou shalt stand presently condemned4 ,for tell me1 my masters1 he added1 addressing the other men1 where will you find a woman1 who1 hearing a shot1 and dreading mischief1 would not have fled from the danger1 instead of incontinently rushing1 as she would have us to believe she did1 into its very jaws8 ,yet have ,i rushed into the jaws of danger more than once already within this fortnight1 and that not for the sake of my own people but of thine2 as none ought to know better than thou1 ,master ,rippel1 and thy comrades1 ,mrs4 ,netterville1 now fairly put upon her mettle1 retorted bravely4 ,nay1 and that is naught but the very truth1 though the father of lies 7which is ,beelzebub7 himself had said it1 one of the men here ventured to remark4 ,for surely1 ,captain ,rippel1 you cannot have forgotten that we should have had a soldier the less in the camp of ,israel1 if she had not nursed the good youth ,jackson through this black business of the plague1 when we1 even we1 men anointed and girded to the fight1 did hesitate to go near him4 #ahe ,ha6 ,dost thou also venture to defend her8 cried the officer angrily4 ,nay1 then1 let that woman which is called ,deborah be brought forward and confronted with the prisoner4 ,her testimony must decide between us4 ,one or two of the soldiers who had been lingering at a little distance in the dusky twilight now advanced1 half pushing before them1 half leading1 the very woman who had addressed ,nellie so impudently in the morning4 ,she came forward with a strange mixture of eagerness and reluctance in her manner2 willing enough1 it might be1 to bear false testimony against her neighbor1 but very unwilling to be confronted with its object4 ,they placed her face to face with ,mrs4 ,netterville1 and the captain turned his lantern so that the light fell full on the features of the latter4 ,they were cold and calm1 and almost disdainful in their expression1 now that she knew who was her accuser2 and ,deborah1 spite of all her efforts to brazen out the interview1 cowered beneath her glance of scorn4 ,nay1 but look well upon her1 ,deborah1 said the captain1 seeing that her eyes fell beneath those of the woman she had accused4 ,look well upon her1 and say if this be not that ,moabitish woman whom thou sawest1 as thou wert lingering 7for no good purpose1 ,i do fear me greatly7 in the shadow of the trees--whom thou sawest1 say ,i1 steal hither between light and darkness1 and treacherously do to death our brother ,tomkins1 who1 being--as methinks you revealed to me just now--wearied overmuch with prayer and holding forth1 7he was1 as ,i myself can testify1 a man of most precious doctrine1 and greatly favored in the gift of preaching17 had come hither to repose himself4 ,nay1 said the woman1 speaking in very tolerable ,english1 an accomplishment she had picked up when in service in ,dublin2 of that great weariness caused by too much prayer and preaching4 ,master ,rippel1 ,i said naught--my own impression being1 she added1 unable even before such an audience to repress the gibe1 that the slumberous inclinations of worthy ,master ,tomkins had been caused by a somewhat too ardent devotion lately tendered to the wine-cask4 ,peace1 scoffer6 peace6 cried the captain4 ,and if thou wouldst have thy blasphemy against the ,lord and against his saints forgiven1 in this world or the next1 look once more on the face of the prisoner1 and be not shamefaced or afraid1 but say out boldly whether you can swear to her in a court of justice as being the person whom you espied just now in the act--yea1 the very act of murder4 ,i can1 said the woman shortly1 and avoiding the eye of ,mrs4 ,netterville as she spoke4 ,thou canst8 the latter said in a tone of indignant astonishment4 ,and pray1 if thou wert watching me so narrowly1 why didst thou not endeavor to prevent me8--why not strike up my weapon8--why not cry out1 at least1 so as to rouse up the sleeping soldier8 ,i did what ,i could1 the woman sullenly responded4 ,i sought out his comrades4 ,it was their look-out1 not mine1 and to them accordingly ,i left it4 #ahf ,she speaks the truth1 as we who so lately heard her tale can testify1 the captain answered quickly4 ,you see1 my men1 he added1 addressing the other soldiers1 ,beelzebub is divided against himself1 and the very children of his kingdom bear witness against each other4 ,surely the woman ,netterville is guilty4 ,take her1 therefore1 some of you1 a prisoner to the castle1 while the rest prepare a decent burial for our murdered brother4 ,i myself must speak apart with the witness ,deborah1 in order to put her testimony into a fitting shape to be laid before the court of my lords1 the high commissioners of justice4 ,chapter ,v4 ,the sun had climbed well-nigh midway in the heavens1 lighting up ,clew ,bay and its hundred isles until they glinted like emeralds in the blue setting of the sea1 as an old1 white-haired man and a young girl--the latter carrying a small bundle in one hand1 while with the other she supported the failing strength of her companion1 made their way1 slowly and painfully1 along the valley through which runs the bright ,eriff river on its way to the ocean4 ,following the up course of the stream1 they had passed1 almost without knowing it1 through some of the finest of the mountain scenery of the west1 up hill and down hill1 by pretty cascades1 in which the river seemed to be playing with the obstacles which opposed it2 round huge bare shoulders of rifted and out-jutting rock2 through dark1 deep purple gorges1 which looked as if the mountains had been wrenched violently asunder in order to produce them2 and now1 at last1 they found themselves in a quiet1 dreary-looking glen1 where cushions of soft moss and yielding heather seemed to woo them to repose4 ,nevertheless1 footsore and worn out as they evidently were1 they continued to press bravely forward until they had nearly arrived at the farther end of the valley2 but by that time the old man's head had begun to droop wearily on his breast1 and his steps had become so languid and uncertain that it was evident it would be perilous to proceed farther without giving him the rest he so absolutely required4 ,choosing1 therefore1 a little nook1 where the turf grew soft and dry1 and where clusters of tall fern and heather1 rising nearly six feet from the root1 seemed to promise at least partial shelter from the midday sun1 the girl quietly disposed of her bundle as a pillow for his head1 and invited him with a smile to a siesta4 ,he obeyed as readily as if he had been a child1 and she then sat down beside him1 crooning an old nursery lullaby to hush him into slumber4 ,but she sought no such salutary oblivion for herself2 and no sooner had his eyes begun to close in sleep than she rose1 and1 as if anxiety had rendered her incapable of remaining quiet1 wandered restlessly on until she reached the top of a hill which shut in the valley from the land beyond4 ,there she paused1 fear and foreboding1 weariness and sorrow1 all forgotten or swallowed up in the breathless admiration which took instant possession of her soul4 ,around her1 crumbled and tumbled in all directions1 were hills bare indeed of trees1 but green to the very summit1 and strangely picturesque in the fantastic variety of their forms4 ,there were quiet glens and solemn1 rock-strewn passes1 with streamlets swelled into cataracts by the rains of spring1 yet looking in the distance like mere threads of liquid silver spirting from their rugged sides4 ,there were long brown tracts of peat land1 brightened and relieved by patches of golden1 flowering gorse1 or of that thin herbage which1 in its perfectly emerald green1 is only to be seen in such like boggy places2 and over and above all this1 there were the shadowy outlines of more than one far-off range of mountains melting into the delicate blue background of the sky1 and changing color1 as rapidly as the young cheek of beauty1 beneath the ever-shifting lights and shadows of that cloud scenery which is nowhere more beautiful or varied than in ,ireland4 #ahg ,to the left1 and looking1 in the clear atmosphere1 so close that she almost felt she could have touched it with her outstretched hand1 rose ,croagh ,patrick1 sacred to the memory of ,ireland's great apostle2 and ,clew ,bay lay1 or seemed to lie1 bright and shining at her feet--,clew ,bay1 with its gracefully winding shore1 and its archipelago of islets2 some bold1 beetling rocks1 ready and able to do battle with the storm1 others mere baskets of verdure floating on the tide2 while the largest and most picturesque of them all1 the sea1 girt kingdom of ,grana-,uaile1 ,clare ,island1 stood bravely up1 cliff over cliff1 at the very mouth of the harbor1 guarding it against the winter encroachments of the ,atlantic1 which1 green as liquid jasper1 and calm1 in that summer weather1 as a giant sleeping in the sunshine1 unrolled itself beyond4 ,long and wistfully ,nellie fixed her gaze upon that fair prospect2 and it was with a strange reluctance and foreboding of future sorrow1 that she at last withdrew in order to examine attentively that portion of the country which lay more immediately around her1 and with which she believed herself about to be more intimately connected4 ,as she did so1 a building1 perched half-way up a hill1 rather more inland than that upon which she herself was standing1 attracted her eye1 and she gasped1 with a sudden mingling of hope and fear1 like a person choking2 for she felt a sudden conviction that in the wild1 uncultivated lands beneath her she beheld the portion assigned to her grandfather by the commissioners at ,loughrea1 and in that edifice1 which seemed to have been built for the express purpose of commanding and overawing the entire district1 the house in which they had told her she was to establish her new home4 ,house1 indeed1 it could scarcely be called in anything like the modern acceptation of the term1 though it was probably perfectly well suited to the wants and wishes of the wild chieftains by whom it had been erected4 ,the original building had consisted of a single tower1 of which the rough1 rude walls1 formed of huge stones1 put unhammered and uncemented together1 betrayed its origin in times so far remote as to have no history even in the oldest annals of the land4 ,added on to this gray relic of the past1 however1 a new building was now evidently in process of erection4 ,it was far from finished yet1 as ,nellie knew by the poles and scaffoldings around it2 but even in its embryo state it bore a terribly suspicious resemblance to that square1 simple fortalice type of building which seems to have been the one architectural idea of ,cromwell's ,irish drafted soldiers1 and which still remains in many places1 the silent but uncontrovertible witness--the seal which they themselves have set upon their forcible and unjust possession of the land4 ,the very look of that half-finished building seemed an answer to ,nellie's late foreboding1 and with a sinking heart she turned her back upon it and retraced her steps to the place where she had left ,lord ,netterville4 ,the old man had already shaken off his fitful slumbers1 and was toiling feebly up the hill4 #ahh ,nellie ran back to fetch her bundle1 which he had been unable to bring with him2 but overtaking him in an instant1 she gave him her arm1 led him to the spot from whence she had just been taking her bird's-eye view of the country1 and1 pointing to the fortalice in process of erection1 watched anxiously to discover what sort of impression it would make on his mind4 ,but either he did not observe it1 or did not take in the peculiar significance of its presence in those wilds2 and finding that he remained silent and apparently unmoved1 she collected all her remaining energy to say cheerfully3 ,look at that old gray tower to the right4 ,if the man whom we met this morning among the hills spoke truth1 we have reached the end of our weary journey1 and yonder is our future home4 ,it is not like our own dear ,netterville1 indeed1 and yet it seems a goodly enough mansion4 ,so goodly1 she added1 stealing a glance beneath her long lashes to see how he took the insinuation1 that ,i almost wonder they should have dealt thus kindly by us2 for ,i know that many of the first of the 'transplanted' have had their lots assigned them in places where there was not even the hut of a peasant to shelter them from the weather4 ,tush1 child6 talk not to me of houses1 the old man answered querulously1 too much occupied with the actual disadvantages of his position to catch the hidden drift of ,nellie's observation4 ,what boots a goodly mansion1 if starvation be at its portal8 ,and what1 ,i pray you1 but starvation are they condemned to1 who have been sent to make themselves a home among these barren mountains8 ,nellie suffered her eyes to roam once more over the bright waters of the bay1 and then1 with a quick sense of beauty kindling up in her soul1 she turned them hopefully upon ,lord ,netterville4 ,nay1 dear grandfather1 it is1 after all1 a country fair and pleasant to the eye1 and once my dear mother rejoins us with the cows and 'garrans1' there can be no lack of plenty1 even in these wilds4 ,cows and garrans6 ,and where are we to feed them1 girl8 ,do you expect to find the pleasant grazing-lands of ,meath on the tops of these barren hills8 or are we to fatten our flocks on the sea-drift1 which1 ,i have heard say1 the natives of these wilds are in the habit of gathering on the shore and boiling down into food1 not for their cattle1 7they have none1 poor wretches67 but themselves8 ,some of these hills certainly look black and bare enough1 but still ,i doubt not that among their glens and hollow places we shall find many a good acre of green grass for the grazing of our cattle1 the girl answered patiently1 and with an evident determination to look1 for the present at least1 only on the bright side of the question4 ,and now1 dear sir1 she added gently1 had we not best move onward8 for if yonder tower is really to be our home1 the sooner we are there the better4 ,she glanced toward the castle as she spoke1 and the old man saw that she started violently as she did so4 ,she said not another word1 however2 but he fancied that her cheek grew a shade paler--if that were possible--than it had been before1 as she continued to gaze silently in that direction4 ,what is it1 ,nellie8 he cried at last1 frightened by her strange looks and silence4 ,what do you see1 child1 that you look so white and scared8 ,see6 she answered slowly and reluctantly1 there seems to be a party of many people gathering in the court-yard2 the house1 therefore1 must be inhabited already6 #ahi ,people in the court-yard6 cried the old man1 now fairly aroused to that same fear which had been haunting ,nellie for the last half-hour4 ,what people1 ,nellie8 ,tell me1 child1 if you can distinguish whether they seem to be natives or strangers to the place4 ,our fate1 alas6 may be dependent on that fact4 ,the girl walked forward1 and shading her eyes with her hand from the blinding sunshine1 looked again1 and yet again1 in the direction of the tower4 ,yes1 she said at last2 ,i was not mistaken4 ,there is a party in the court-yard1 and some of them are even standing in the gate-way1 as if they had but this instant stept forth from the mansion4 ,surely1 grandfather1 we cannot have misunderstood or mistaken our instructions8 ,there is no other building to be seen--even in the distance--and this one answers in all respects to the description4 ,the man1 too1 from whom we inquired our way this morning1 assured us that it was called ',the ,rath'--the very name set down in our certificate4 ,we cannot have been mistaken1 and yet--and yet--if there be persons already in possession1 their claim must needs be superior to our own4 ,she spoke hesitatingly1 and in broken sentences1 as if she were following out a train of thought in her own mind1 rather than addressing her companion4 ,he listened anxiously1 and a cloud gathered on his brow as he gradually took in her meaning4 ,it may be only some of the natives1 he said at last1 in a low voice4 ,the original owners1 perhaps1 of the tower1 who have waited our arrival before giving up possession4 ,owners6 said ,nellie quickly4 ,they told us at ,loughrea that the owner had perished in the war1 and that therefore we should find it empty4 ,they may have been mistaken1 ,nellie4 ,they know little enough1 ,i think1 those high and mighty commissioners at ,loughrea1 of the land of which they are so liberally disposing2 and still less1 ,i doubt me1 of its original possessors4 ,and if they are mistaken1 we shall take the place of the rightful owners1 and so deal out to others the very measure which our enemies have dealt to us4 ,grandfather1 if we are guilty of this thing1 we shall have a twofold sin upon our souls--their iniquity and our own4 ,what would you have1 child8 he answered pettishly2 for1 truth to say1 he had yet quite enough of the ,englishman about him1 not to be over-particular as to the rights of the native ,irish4 ,what would you have8 ,did you not know already that1 in the acceptation of these lands1 we were taking that which it was neither in the ,cromwellians' right to give or in ours to receive8 ,and what if an old tumble-down tower be thrown into the bargain8 ,trust me1 ,nellie1 the business is so black already that1 like the face of his ,satanic majesty1 who is the author of it1 a little more or less of smutch will hardly make it blacker or uglier than it is4 ,i never thought of this before1 said ,nellie sadly2 ,i thought only--fool that ,i was1 so selfishly intent on my own misfortunes--,i thought only of tracts of land left barren for want of inhabitants to till them1 and of houses emptied by the fate of war4 ,i never dreamed of men and women and little children turned out of their pleasant homes to make room for us--us who have as little right to their possessions as the ,english soldiers have to ours6 #aij ,nevertheless it has been done in almost every other case of transplantation which ,i have heard of1 the old man answered restlessly4 ,and the iniquity--for it is an iniquity--is theirs who have driven us to such spoliation1 not ours who have been compelled in our own despite to do it4 ,but ,nellie was far too noble1 and too clear-sighted in her nobleness1 to shelter her actions behind such a subterfuge1 and she answered vehemently3 ,but it must not be in ours1 sir--it must not be in ours6 ,we will go down at once1 and if the persons whom we see yonder be the rightful owners of that tower1 we will merely crave rest and hospitality at their hands1 until such a time as we have found a place1 however humble1 in which1 without injury to honor or conscience1 we can make ourselves a home4 ,as you will1 ,nellie--as you will1 he answered1 too weary1 perhaps1 to be able longer to dispute the point4 ,but after all1 we may be mistaken as to the ownership of these people4 ,look again1 and tell me1 if you can1 whether they are clad like ,englishmen1 or in the native weeds8 ,not in the native weeds1 ,i think1 my father4 ,rather ,i should say1 if it were not impossible1 that the men whom ,i see down yonder belonged to the army of the oppressor4 ,ha6 ,now a lady is coming forth1 and now they are mounting her1 and a tall1 stately personage in--yes--certainly in military attire1 is mounting also1 and takes his place at her side4 ,now half a dozen servants1 ,i suppose1 or friends1 are on their horses likewise1 and now they are moving forward4 ,father1 they must come this way1 there is none other that ,i can see by which horses can pass with safety4 ,let us wait for them behind the bank1 and then1 when they are near enough1 we will accost them1 and if they be of the conquering army1 show them our certificate4 ,they will1 of course1 bow to its authority1 and help us to take possession of that house which the document assigns us4 ,i am glad a woman is among them2 it will make it easier1 ,i think1 to speak4 ,as ,nellie ran on thus1 she drew her grandfather with her behind a bank which dipt down suddenly upon the path1 narrowing it until it was all but impassable to riders4 ,there1 with pale face and tightened breath1 she nervously awaited the advent of the party upon whose favorable or unfavorable disposition toward them she felt her own fate and ,lord ,netterville's to be so painfully dependent4 ,to ,be ,continued4 -------- #aia ,the ,roman ,gathering4 ,footnote #df ,by ,w4 ,g4 ,dix4 ,footnote #df3 ,we give place to the above article in our columns1 though from a non-,catholic pen1 thinking that it will be read with interest by our readers1 while it indicates1 at the same time1 the religious tendencies which are becoming more and more prevalent among not a small class of minds in our country4--,editor ,c4 ,w4 ,a man of many years1 without vast temporal resources1 despoiled of a part of his possessions1 having many and vigorous enemies about him1 and regarded by many even of those who profess the ,christian faith as about to fall from his high place in ,christendom1 such a man invites his brethren of the apostolical ministry throughout the world to honor by their personal presence at ,rome the anniversary of the martyrdom1 eighteen hundred years ago1 of ,saint ,peter and ,saint ,paul1 and to join with him in the exaltation of martyrs who1 like them1 though in far distant lands1 were faithful unto death4 ,they respond with eager joy and haste to the call1 and those who cannot go send on the wings of the wind their words of loving veneration4 ,to say not a word of the spiritual claims of the man who sent forth the invitation1 so eagerly and widely accepted1 there is in the fact just stated a glowing evidence that1 even in these days of triumphant and insolent materialism1 moral power has not entirely lost ascendency4 ,though millions of knees are bent in honor of the ,dagon of materialism1 in some one or other of its myriad forms of degrading idolatry1 yet millions of hearts also recognize the gift of ,god as present evermore in his holy church4 ,never before has the ,catholic ,church beheld so great a multitude1 from so distant places1 assembled at her call at the central city of the faith4 ,the enemies of catholicity have again and again referred to the great inventions of modern times as sure destroyers of the claims of the ,catholic ,church and of her hold upon her millions of members2 but lo6 these very inventions are brought into the service of the church4 ,the printing-press1 which was going to annihilate the ,catholic ,church1 has proved one of her most effectual bulwarks2 millions of printed pages inspire the devotion of her children1 and make known her claims to reading men1 until many who were even her enemies and revilers1 from ignorance and prejudice1 acknowledge their error1 and make haste to go to their father's house4 ,steam1 in the view of many1 was about so to change the structure of society that the old and decrepid ,church of ,rome1 the great obstacle on the railroad of materialism1 was about to be run over and cast to the roadside1 a weak and useless wreck2 but lo6 the power of steam enables hundreds and thousands more to go up to the sacred city1 as the tribes of ,israel were wont to visit ,jerusalem1 than could otherwise attend the festivals of the faith in ,st4 ,peter's ,church4 ,of the manifold uses of steam1 a large proportion is in the service of catholic truth4 ,and then the telegraph2 that1 surely1 was to show an advanced state of civilization which could not tolerate the slow and ancient ways of catholicity2 but lo6 here1 again1 the event has contradicted the prophecy2 for1 by means of the telegraph1 the assemblage of the vast host at ,rome was known throughout the world on the very day of its occurrence2 and almost literally1 in all parts of ,christendom1 thousands of devout worshippers could turn their faces reverently toward the altar of ,god in ,rome at the very instant when those in its immediate presence were bending before it1 and could join in the same prayers and anthems1 as though the world itself were one vast ,st4 ,peter's ,church1 and the strains of penitence and hymns of joy could reverberate across oceans and mountains1 among distant nations and islands of the sea1 as among the corridors and arches of one great temple sacred to the triune ,god4 #aib ,as in these instances1 so in many others1 the church has extended her sway and deepened her power by the very forces which many supposed would work her ruin4 ,the history of the church has shown in the domain of natural science1 so often applied in the service of infidelity and disorder1 as in the field of human passion1 that ,god will make the wrath of man to praise him1 and turn weapons designed to attack his holy ,church into her consecrated armor of defence4 ,the grace of ,god so overrules the inventions of man and the powers of nature1 that even the terrible lightning becomes the vivid messenger to convey to the ends of the earth the benediction of the ,vicar of ,christ4 ,what is the chief lesson of the recent gathering at ,rome8 ,it is this1 that the church of ,god1 so often1 in the view of her enemies1 destroyed1 will not stay destroyed2 that after every destruction she renews her invincible youth1 and rises to pursue her career of conquest over sin1 prejudice1 and wrong2 that1 though she may bend awhile to the storm that beats upon her sacred head1 she has never been wholly overcome2 that1 notwithstanding all that mortal enmity1 defection1 outrage1 have done or can do1 she yet lifts her forehead to the sky to be anew baptized with light from the sun of truth above2 and1 strong in the faith and promise of the ,eternal ,god1 she falters not in her endeavors1 patient and persistent1 to subdue the world to ,christ4 ,the history of the ,catholic ,church abounds with instances like the ,roman gathering in ,june1 which prove that her hours of affliction are those very ones when her faithful children gather to her side1 to assure her of their prayers and support1 and to discern upon her saintly face those smiles through tears1 which1 in times of trial1 are the warmest and most touching acknowledgments of filial veneration4 ,the commemorative assemblage at the capital of ,christendom1 signifies that the church of ,god is indestructible by any forces that earth or hell1 singly or united1 can bring against her4 ,she may be at times like the bird in the snare of the fowler2 but she is sure of being released at length1 and then she plumes her wings afresh1 and soars heavenward1 filling the air with the divine1 exultant music of her voice4 ,the powerful of the earth have sometimes loaded the church with fetters2 but by the strength of ,christ that dwells evermore in her1 she has broken the bonds asunder1 or1 by his transforming grace1 they have become the wreaths and garlands of new victory1 even as the cross of humiliation has become1 by the sacrifice of our ,lord1 the emblem of unfading glory4 ,the church of ,christ1 bearing on her brow his holy seal1 and in her hands his gifts of power1 knelt in sorrow at his grave2 but she hailed his resurrection with joy1 and was endowed anew with treasures of immortal life4 #aic ,afterward1 the might of heathendom arose against her1 and she descended from the wrath of man into the catacombs2 but she reascended1 to wear upon her brow the diadem of a spiritual empire that shall never fall until the elements shall melt with fervent heat2 and even then1 true to all her history in deriving new glory from every apparent defeat1 she will rise again from the great grave of nature to enjoy for ever the vision of ,god4 ,kings of the earth have denied her right to invest the pastors of her children with their due prerogatives1 and have even dared her to mortal combat2 but though distressed and thwarted1 she has never relinquished her inherent rights1 and she never will4 ,as many times as the head of the church on earth has been driven from ,rome by armed1 ungrateful violence1 so many times exactly has he been welcomed back with tears of penitence and shouts of rapture4 ,despoiled of treasures committed to her care by faithful stewards of ,god's bounty1 she has labored with her own hands to feed her needy children4 ,at one time1 persecuted in the wilderness1 she has found a refuge and a welcome in the courts of princes2 at another1 driven from the courts of princes1 because she would not deny her ,lord or her divine commission1 she has found a humble sanctuary in the wilderness1 and knelt upon the bare earth to adore the ,lord of life and light1 once the child in the manger1 and to invoke all the saints in glory to plead her cause in the ear of infinite justice and goodness4 ,she has spurned the anointed king from the temple of ,god1 until he repented of his crime2 and on the head of the lowly monk who was spending his days in labor and prayer1 she has placed the triple crown4 ,with one hand she has bathed with baptismal dew the brow of the day-laborer's child1 while the other she has raised in defiance of imperial might1 which dared to assail her holy altar4 ,one of the most violent objections to the ,catholic ,church has been urged for the very reason that she has so faithfully held the balance between the contending forces of society4 ,she has been accused of favoring the claims of absolutism or popular demands1 as the triumph of either at the time would favor her own ends1 irrespective of right4 ,the charge is unjust1 is urged by many who know better1 yet it springs from an honest misapprehension in many minds4 ,it would have been utterly impossible for an institution1 designed to enlighten and guide mankind in its higher relations1 not to touch human interests of every kind1 and human institutions generally in many ways2 yet the challenge may safely be given to any thoughtful student of history1 to acknowledge with candor1 whatever may be his ecclesiastical position1 that the ,catholic ,church1 having often been chosen to be1 and having an inherent right to be1 the umpire between the rights of authority and the rights of individuals1 has faithfully labored to sustain lawful authority when assailed by the wild fury of misguided multitudes1 and that she has interposed her powerful shield1 often with the most triumphant success1 to protect men whose rights as men were assailed by authority changed by ambition into arrogant and exacting tyranny4 ,what inconsistency and insincerity have been charged against the ,catholic ,church for this remarkable and noble fact in her history6 ,in this respect the ,catholic ,church has followed strictly in the steps of her ,divine ,author1 who1 when on earth1 invariably upheld the rights of authority1 while vehemently denouncing those who unjustly exercised it2 and while going about doing good1 the friend of the friendless and the helper of the helpless1 pleading with divine eloquence1 and laboring with divine power for the outcast and the poor1 never and nowhere sanctioned the spirit of insurrection1 but enjoined obedience as one of the main duties of life4 #aid ,hence1 it has come about1 by one of those sublime mysteries1 which prove the divine origin of ,christianity1 that the greatest revolution which has ever taken place in religious belief and in civil society in all their bearings1 has been effected by the teachings1 by the life and death of one who by no word or deed ever assailed authority itself or incited resistance to it4 ,beauty and order being the same thing1 and religious truth being the beauty of holiness1 ,christ1 who was truth in person1 must have made his church the friend and upholder of all beauty and order2 and so it has proved for eighteen hundred years4 ,the church has been the celestial crucible in which whatever of human art or invention had within it the essential attributes of higher and spiritual goodness has been purified and adapted to the service of religion4 ,has poetry sought to please the imaginations of men8 the church of ,christ unfolded before her the annals of ,christianity1 with her grand central sacrifice of infinite love1 and all her demonstrations of heroic suffering and courageous faith2 and poetry drew holier inspiration from the view1 and incited men by higher motives to a higher life4 ,have painting and sculpture sought to represent objects of refining grace and sublimity8 the church of ,christ persuaded them to look into the records of the ,christian past1 and there they found treasures of beauty and splendor1 devotion and martyrdom1 whose wealth of illustration as examples2 incentives1 and memorials1 art has not exhausted for centuries1 and will never exhaust4 ,christian history is the inexhaustible quarry of whatever is most noble and heroic in man1 purified by the grace of ,god4 ,has architecture sought to invest stone with the attributes of spiritual and intellectual grace8 the church of ,god has so portrayed before her the sublimities of the ,christian faith1 that she knelt at her feet in veneration1 and thenceforth consecrated herself to build enduring structures1 which1 the more they show of human power and skill1 the more they persuade men to the worship of ,god4 ,has eloquence sought to nerve men for the grand conflicts of life8 the church of ,christ has touched the lips of eloquence with living fire from her altar1 until have sprung forth words that flamed with love to man and love to ,god4 ,has music sought to weave her entrancing spells around the ear and heart and soul8 the church of ,christ has breathed into music her own divine being1 until the music of the church seems like beatific worship1 and worship on earth like beatific music4 ,as in these respects1 so in others1 the church has made a holy conquest of whatever is noblest among the endowments of men4 ,in speaking of ,catholic history1 even from the secular point of view1 it may be justly said1 that nowhere else has there been such wonderful discernment of the various capacities of the human mind1 and of their various adaptations4 ,tenacious of the truth and of all its prerogatives1 the ,catholic ,church has1 nevertheless1 allowed a wide liberty of thought4 ,that the ,catholic ,church has narrowed the understandings of men1 is a singular charge to make in the face of the schools of ,catholic philosophy1 in which men of varying mental structure1 training1 or habits of thought1 have had full1 free play of their faculties4 #aie ,and where else have there been so many free and varying activities as in the ,catholic ,church8 ,the false charge that the church fetters the minds and movements of men1 may be traced to the fact that all ,catholic diversities of thought have converged1 like different rays of light1 in the elucidation of truth1 and that varying modes of ,catholic action have had one object--the advancement of truth4 ,here is the intended force of all these illustrations1 for they have had a logical purpose4 ,the world will never outgrow the church4 ,all the boasted improvements in science1 in art1 in civilization1 so far from impeding the church of ,christ1 and making her existence no longer needed1 will1 at the same time1 advance her power1 and make her more needed than ever4 ,if in the middle ages1 when society was in the process of transition from the old to the new1 the church was pre-eminently needed to keep what was just and right and true in the older forms of civilization1 and gradually to adapt to them what was just and right and true in the newer developments of society1 most truly is the church needed now1 when there exists a perfect chaos of opinions1 and when a part of the civilized world is in another transition1 from the aimless1 rudderless vagaries of ,protestantism to the solid rock of ,catholicity4 ,if ever the voice of authority was needed1 like the voice of the angel of ,god1 heard amid and above the howlings of the storm1 it is needed now4 ,much false reasoning has been uttered about the unchangeable church1 as though1 because unchangeable1 it was not adapted to a changing and striving world1 when1 in truth1 for the very reason that the church of ,christ is unchangeably true1 she is required and adapted for all the changes and emergencies of time4 ,who ever heard a sailor complain of the mariner's compass1 because1 on account of its unchangeable obstinacy1 it would not conform to his private judgments and caprices about the right course8 ,no one4 ,it is for the very reason that the mariner's compass is unchangeably true to the eternal law of magnetic attraction1 under all circumstances and in all places1 that it is the unerring guide among the whirlwinds and heavings of the great deep4 ,catholicity is the mariner's compass upon a greater deep--even that of the wild and rolling1 beating ocean of humanity1 pointing1 amid sunny calms1 or gentle winds1 or raging gales1 unerringly to the cross of ,jesus ,christ1 as the needle of the mariner's compass points to the north--guiding1 age after age1 the precious freights of immortal souls to the harbor of infinite and unending joy4 ,the force of this illustration is all the stronger that the mariner's compass is a human adaptation of an immutable law of nature to navigation1 while the church of the living ,god is divine alike in origin and application1 and has existed from the beginning1 unchangeable1 like ,god himself1 yet adapting herself to the wants of every age4 ,the church of ,god is like his own infinite providence1 in which unchangeable truth meets in the harmony of mercy the innumerable changes of human need4 ,much has been written and more said about the church of the future1 as though it were to be some millennial manifestation altogether different from the historic church2 but the church of the future1 which is not also the church of the past and of the present1 can be no church2 for a true church must reach to the ages back as well as to those before4 #aif ,if the continuity is broken1 truth is broken1 and cannot be restored4 ,as for eighteen centuries there have been no forms of civil society1 no calms or tempests in the moral1 political1 social1 or religious world1 in which the ,catholic ,church has not been true to the organic principles of her divine life1 even the enemy of catholicity should admit--that fact being granted--that the presumption is on her side that she will be equally true to those principles during the centuries that are to come4 ,he may deny that the church has been true1 and1 consequently1 that she will be true1 but he will not admit one proposition and deny the other2 he will admit both or deny both4 ,in other words1 he will admit1 equally with the friend of catholicity1 the identity of the church1 past1 present1 and to come4 ,now1 it will be impossible for a friend or enemy of the ,catholic ,church1 from her beginning to this very day1 to point to an hour when she was not a living church2 it is1 then1 probable1 that she will continue to be a living church4 ,but where1 since the promulgation of ,christianity to this time1 has existed a body of ,christian believers1 which1 for the quality of continual existence1 has so good a right to be called the church of ,christ as the ,catholic ,church8 ,considering her numbers1 extent1 and duration1 that church has been preeminently the church of the past2 considering numbers1 extent1 and duration1 that church is pre-eminently the church of the present2 considering all analogies and probabilities1 then the ,catholic ,church will be preeminently the church of the future4 ,in truth1 the vindictive anger of the enemies of the ,catholic ,church1 in whatever form of opposition it may be shown1 proceeds from the fact1 not that she is the dead church of the past1 as she is sometimes called1 for there would be no reason to war with the dead1 but because she is1 as she has been and will be1 the living church4 ,the ,catholic ,church is hated not for being too dead1 but for being too living4 ,she has seen the birth and death of countless improvements of her principles1 and she has received with gladness into her fold many an eager and conscientious inquirer for the new church1 who has at length reached an end of his wanderings and a solution of his doubts in finding1 with tears of rapturous submission1 that the new church1 for which he was seeking1 is the same church which has stood for ages1 ever old1 yet ever new1 because representing ,him who is alike the ,living ,god and the ,ancient of ,days4 ,the ,catholic ,church1 so frequently and unjustly denounced as ever behind the age1 or even as facing the past1 has been foremost in all parts of the world4 ,she has sent her faithful soldiers of the cross where the spirit of commerce dared not go2 she was the first in the east and the first in the ,west2 it was her lamp of divine light which dispelled the gloomy terrors of the barbarous north of ,europe2 it was her sceptre of celestial beauty1 which1 under the guidance of ,heaven1 transformed the political and social wreck of southern ,europe into order4 ,in what part of the world which man could reach has she not planted the cross8 ,where on the face of the earth is the mountain whose craggy sides have not1 at one time or another1 sent back into the sounding air the echoes of ,catholic worship8 #aig ,daniel ,webster gave a vivid picture of the extent of the power of ,england1 in what ,i think to be the grandest sentence which ,america has contributed to the common treasure of ,english literature4 ,he said3 ,the morning drum-beat1 following the sun1 and keeping company with the hours1 circles the earth daily with one unbroken strain of the martial airs of ,england4 ,that grand figure of speech may be applied to the extent of the ,catholic ,church4 ,yet it is not by martial airs1 but by hymns of praise and penitential orisons and the continuous sacrifice that the ,catholic ,church daily celebrates1 from the rising of the sun unto the going down of the same1 the triumphant march of the ,prince of ,peace4 ,how like the sound of many waters rolls hourly heavenward the anthems of catholic worship throughout the world6 ,not only is every moment of every day consecrated by catholic hymns sung somewhere on earth2 but how majestically roll down through eighteen hundred years the unbroken anthems of catholic devotion6 ,minute after minute1 hour after hour1 day after day1 night after night1 month after month1 year after year1 century after century1 the holy strains go on unending4 ,to the mind's ear seem blended in one almost overpowering flood of holy harmony the unnumbered voices which have sounded from the very hour when the shepherds of ,bethlehem heard the angelic song to this very moment1 when1 somewhere1 catholic voices are chanting praise to the ,lord and ,saviour of men4 ,and1 in this view1 how literally has been fulfilled that consoling prophecy1 ,henceforth all generations shall call me blessed4 ,wherever the ,divine ,son has been duly honored1 there also she1 who was remembered with filial love even amid his dying agonies for a world's salvation1 has been remembered and called blessed2 called blessed from that lowly home and from that mount of sorrow in the distant east1 in millions of lowly homes1 and under the shadow of mountains to the farthest west2 called blessed by millions of loving and imploring voices through all the ages since2 called blessed in all the languages that have been spoken since that time in all the world2 called blessed in the rudest forms of human speech and in the most ecstatic music of voice and skill2 called blessed by the lips of the little child that can hardly speak the name of mother1 and by the lips that tremble with age and sorrow2 called blessed by the sailor on the deep1 by the ploughman on the land1 by the scholar at his books1 by the soldier drawing his sword for right upon the battle-field2 called blessed by the voices of peasant-girls singing in sunny vineyards1 and by the voices of those from whose brows have flashed the gems of royal diadems2 called blessed in cottages and palaces1 at wayside shrines1 and under the golden roofs of grand cathedrals2 called blessed in the hour of joy and in the hour of anguish--in the strength and beauty of life1 and at the gates of death4 ,how long1 how ardently1 how faithfully has all this loving honor been paid for so many generations1 and will continue to be paid for all generations to come1 to that sorrowing yet benignant one1 who bore him who bore our woe6 ,the recent gathering at ,rome indicates that there is no demand which civilization can rightfully make of the ,christian ,church which she will not eagerly1 fully1 and faithfully meet4 ,the largest assemblage of professed ministers of ,christ which this age has known--leaving here out of view the claims of the ,catholic ,church to an apostolical priesthood--has been held in ,rome by the church1 so extensively proclaimed and derided as being behind the age4 ,if there is life1 deep1 full1 pervading life anywhere on earth1 it is in the ,catholic ,church and in all her movements4 #aih ,she will continue to draw to herself all the qualities and capacities of life which are in harmony with her spirit2 and this accumulated spiritual force will constantly weaken the barriers that divide her from the sympathies of a large part of ,christendom1 until at length she will be acknowledged by all as the only living and true church of ,christ4 ,the restoration of the unity of the church has been the subject of many thoughts1 of many words1 of earnest and devout prayer1 of much and noble effort1 and1 when understood as referring to the reconciliation of those who have left the ,catholic ,church1 or who are now out of it because their fathers left it1 the phrase may pass without objection2 but the phrase is greatly objectionable1 even to the extent of expressing an untruth1 when it is used to convey the idea that the unity of the church has ever been broken4 ,this has not been1 and could not be4 ,the church1 intended to be one1 and to endure until the end of time1 could not1 in its organic structure1 be really broken at any period of its history1 without destroying its title as the one church of ,christ4 ,individuals1 communities1 even nations1 as such1 have been broken off from it2 but the essential church herself has remained one and unbroken through all vicissitudes4 ,the theory that the ,church of ,rome1 the ,greek ,church1 and the ,church of ,england are equal and co-ordinate branches of the one church of ,christ has no foundation as an historical fact1 and is as destructive of all true ideas of the unity of the church as the wildest vagaries of ,protestantism4 ,is there on earth an institution which schism1 heresy1 and political ambition have tried to destroy and have tried in vain8 ,there is2 it is the ,catholic ,church4 ,is there an institution on earth which1 leaving out of regard all its claims1 has had the quality of historical continuity for eighteen centuries8 ,there is2 it is the ,catholic ,church4 ,the charge1 if not of bigotry1 yet of most unreasonable arrogance1 has been more or less directly made against the ,catholic ,church1 because she has not received overtures of reconciliation from enthusiastic and earnest individuals claiming to represent national churches1 as cordially as was expected4 ,but how can she accept1 or even consider1 any such overtures1 proceeding as they do from the assumption of equal position and authority1 without disowning herself1 without denying even those claims and prerogatives1 the existence of which alone makes union with her desirable8 ,if there is no institution on earth which has a valid title to be the continuous church of ,christ1 all efforts will be vain to supply the gap of centuries by an establishment now4 ,a union of churches will not satisfy the design or promise of our ,lord1 when he founded the unity of his church4 ,if the ,christian church has really been broken into pieces1 it will be in vain to gather up the fragments2 for1 on that supposition1 the divine principle has long since departed1 and the gates of hell have prevailed4 ,those men of strong ,catholic predilections1 who1 nevertheless1 have clung to the theory that the church of ,christ has been really broken1 and must be repaired by management1 will yet thank ,god from their inmost souls for the immovable firmness with which that theory has been denied at ,rome4 ,the ,catholic ,church has never condemned a heresy more false or destructive than the proposition that she is herself but one of the divisions of the ,christian church1 having no authority to speak or to rule in the name of her ,lord4 #aii ,to deny that the one church of ,christ is now existing1 and that she has existed for ages1 is to deny not merely a fact in history1 but it is to deny the word of our ,lord2 and to do that1 is to deny alike his holiness and his divinity4 ,how can the ,catholic ,church treat with those who wish to make terms before submitting to her authority1 on the basis of a positive untruth8 ,catholicity is not an inheritance1 to be decided among many claimants1 no one of whom has any right to be or to be regarded as the sole heir of the homestead2 but it is an estate left by the divine ,lord of the manor1 in charge of the ,prince of the ,apostles and his successors1 on the express injunction that it is to be kept one and undivided1 in trust for the benefit of the faithful for all time4 ,the estate has been kept one and undivided1 according to the title-deed2 the injunction has never been broken2 notwithstanding all defections from the household1 the homestead of the ,christian world remains in the hands of the same faithful succession to which it was committed by our ,lord himself4 ,may ,god grant that all the younger sons who have gone astray1 may return with penitential alacrity to their ,father's house6 ,the ,catholic ,church will not stop in her progress1 until she has converted the world to ,christ2 but she has not denied1 and will not deny1 her sacred trust and prerogative of catholicity for the sake even of adding whole nations to her fold4 ,whoever enters her fold must admit by that act her claim to be the one1 undivided1 indivisible ,church of ,christ4 ,there can be no branches of the ,catholic ,church which are not directly joined to the root and trunk of catholicity4 ,a severed branch is no branch4 ,it is not the fault of the ,catholic ,church that multitudes who profess and call themselves ,christians are not members of her communion4 ,she affords the very largest liberty for individual or associated action that can be yielded without denying her faith or her commission4 ,the highest poetry and the severest logic may kneel in brotherly harmony at her altar4 ,gifts and talents the most diverse have been consecrated to her service4 ,the ,catholic ,church advancing1 century after century1 under the banner of the cross and dove1 to the spiritual conquest of the world6 how far more sublime a spectacle it is than that of some parts of ,christendom1 which are broken into little independent bands of sectarian skirmishers1 keeping up a kind of guerrilla warfare against the world1 the flesh1 and the devil1 and each other4 ,there are inspiring tokens which show the depth and breadth of the conviction1 that the great schism of three centuries ago has proved a terrible mistake4 ,multitudes outside of the ,catholic ,church are inquiring with earnest solicitude about the meaning of catholic unity4 ,the main course of intellectual inquiry is1 in both hemispheres1 respecting the claims of the ,catholic ,church4 ,there are evident signs that the chaos of ,protestantism is about to be broken up1 and the wild1 and dreary waste to bloom and glow with ,catholic beauty and order4 ,god grant that it may be so1 and that not only thousands of individuals may know how precious a prize it is to kneel devoutly and sincerely before1 the altar of ,god2 but that even1 mighty nations may be convinced1 what priceless gifts they have forfeited by three centuries of separation from the source of all they have that has been or is worth keeping4 #bjj ,in view of the fact that the revival of catholic feeling enkindles also the enmity of those who scan it1 the gathering at ,rome is not only an assurance before the world that the ,catholic ,church will continue to be the guide of life and the empire of civilization1 but it is also a sublime challenge against all the agencies of every kind that have been1 or may be tried1 to eliminate ,catholicity from the age4 ,the ,catholic ,church has a work to do1 and she will do it4 ,she can no more forego it1 than she can die by her own will4 ,she has never flinched yet2 she never will4 ,it is the very necessity as well as the reason of her being that she shall fulfil her charge without wavering or diminution2 and this she will do4 ,if the gates of hell cannot prevail against the church of ,god1 she may safely defy all mortal might4 ,the sun might more easily have refused to come forth at the bidding of the ,creator1 than the church can refuse to do his will in conquering the world for ,christ4 ,god speed the day when the divisions of ,christendom shall end2 when all who profess to be the disciples of ,jesus ,christ shall seek and find consolation in his one1 true1 enduring fold2 and when the sceptre of ,god1 manifest in the church1 shall be extended in benignant power over an obedient and rejoicing world4 -------- ,the ,united ,churches ,of ,england ,and ,ireland1 ,in ,ireland4 ,footnote #dg ,footnote #dg3 ,ireland and her ,churches4 ,by ,james ,godkin4 ,london1 ,chapman ,hall4 #ahfg4 #a vol4 pp4 #fbc4 ,it is well to be accurate in the bestowal of titles1 and we give1 therefore1 the institution whose latest history lies before us the exact definition by which1 these sixty years past1 it rejoices to be known4 ,under this designation of its own choice this institution is open to the reflection of being one of the most modern of all the churches pretending to be national2 the junior of even our own ,american ,episcopal ,church1 which is not itself very far stricken in years2 the junior1 indeed1 of all the other churches we can at this moment recall to memory1 unless we were to include the ,church of the ,latter-,day ,saints1 whose ,mecca stands upon ,salt ,lake4 ,on the first day of ,january1 in the first year of this century1 the ecclesiastical system1 establishment1 or organization which designates itself as the ,united ,church of ,england and ,ireland1 in ,ireland1 came1 with sound of many trumpets1 into the world4 ,on that auspicious day1 the legislative union of ,ireland and ,great ,britain was proclaimed2 a new national flag1 the ,union ,jack1 was run up from the royal towers of ,london1 ,dublin1 and ,edinburgh2 a new royal title was assumed for the coinage of the new realm1 and in all great public transactions2 a new great seal was struck for the sovereign of the newly modelled state2 new peers and new commoners were added to the two houses of ,parliament1 and1 to complete the revolution1 by the #eth clause of the same act1 the matters previously mentioned having been first disposed of1 this new church was1 on that same day and hour1 by the same authority1 called into existence4 ,his majesty's proclamation1 announced at ,paul's ,cross in ,london1 at the ,cross in ,edinburgh1 and where the ,cross of le ,dame street ought to have been1 in ,dublin1 that the doctrine1 worship1 discipline1 and government of the said ,united ,church shall be and shall remain in full force for ever1 as the same are now by law established for the ,church of ,england4 #bja ,the two national churches1 thus by act of parliament and royal proclamation1 united into1 so to speak1 one imperial church1 with an identical doctrine1 worship1 and discipline1 had a good many antecedents in common1 and a good many others that were peculiar to each side of the channel4 ,irish ,protestantism had never been a servile or even a close copy of its ,english senior4 ,whether1 as ,swift sarcastically maintained1 the sermons of ,dublin pulpits were flavored by the soil1 or whether the cause of difference lay in the atmosphere1 the ,irish variety of the churches of the ,reformation1 was as full of self-complacency and self-assertion1 as any of the sisterhood4 ,it imbibed at the start1 chiefly from ,usher1 a larger draught of ,genevan theology than was quite reconcilable with the ,thirty-nine ,articles2 it has been almost invariably toryish in its relations to the state2 while the ,english establishment1 at least since #affh1 has been pretty equally divided between the two great political parties4 ,but the most singular peculiarity of this very modern church of ,ireland was the persuasion it arrived at1 and endeavored to impress upon the world1 that it was the veritable primitive ,christianity of the ,green ,isle2 that instead of tracing its origin to quite recent acts of parliament1 its pedigree ran up nearly to the ,acts of the ,apostles2 that ,saint ,patrick and ,saint ,columba were its true founders1 and not such saints of yesterday as ,george ,browne and ,james ,usher4 ,whenever it was necessary to enforce the collection of tithes1 or to protect the monopoly of university education1 the statutes at large were resorted to as the true charter of its institution2 but whenever it became requisite to defend its anomalous position1 by writing or speaking1 the ,protestantism of ,saint ,patrick--his independence of ,rome more especially--was the favorite argument of its defenders4 ,no reformed community has ever made such desperate and persistent efforts1 with such flimsy or wholly imaginary materials1 to bridge over the long space of the middle ages1 in order to make some show of historical connection with the first founders of ,christianity4 ,but the recent revival of genuine ecclesiastical learning has utterly dissipated the last fond efforts of these spiritual genealogists2 and the very first acts of its existence as a separated body1 are now as well understood as the #dast of ,george ,,iii41 by which it became a copartner in the ,united ,church of ,england and ,ireland1 no longer ago than the first day of the year of our ,lord1 #ahja4 ,the history of the ,irish member of this curious ecclesiastical firm may best be traced through the statutes at large4 ,as its parentage was parliamentary1 so its life has been legislative4 ,there is one advantage in having this description of authority to refer to1 that it cannot be disputed4 ,the ,journals of ,parliament in ,england and ,ireland1 from the reformation to the civil emancipation of the ,catholics in #ahbi1 are good ,protestant authority4 ,the peers and commoners of the old religion were excluded from the ,english houses1 from the #ajth of ,elizabeth 7#aefg7 to the #ith of ,george ,,iv41 7#ahbi17 a period of #bfb years2 and in ,ireland1 the last parliament in which ,catholics sat was that of #dth ,james ,,ii41 7#afhi17 followed by a period of exclusion1 before the union1 of #aaa years4 #bjb ,it was not found possible1 so early as the time of the two first ,stuarts and ,elizabeth1 to wholly exclude ,catholics1 or1 as they were then called1 recusants1 from membership in either house in ,ireland2 and accordingly we find them a formidable minority in those rarely occurring assemblies1 such as the ,irish parliaments held in the #aath and #beth of ,elizabeth1 the #aath ,james ,i41 the #adth ,charles ,i41 and the #abth of ,charles ,,ii1 ,in the second ,james's short-lived parliament of one session1 hastily adjourned to allow his lords and gentlemen to follow their master to the banks of the ill-fated river1 they were a majority2 but with that evanescent exception1 the statutes of ,ireland are quite as exclusively ,protestant authority on all church matters as those of ,england previous to the union of the legislatures and the churches1 and subsequently down to #ahbi4 ,the history of ,protestantism in ,ireland1 from first to last1 is a political history4 ,its best record is to be found in the parliamentary journals as well in the reign of ,henry ,,viii4 as of ,george ,,iii4 ,and though we do not propose to dwell1 in the present paper1 in anything like detail on the annals of that establishment previous to the present century1 we must condense into a short space the main facts of its first appearance on the scene1 and its early parliamentary nurture and education1 to account for the facility with which it ceased to be1 even in pretence1 a national church at the time of the legislative union4 ,political in its origin1 its organization1 and its government1 from the first hour of its existence1 it had neither will1 nor wish1 nor ability1 if it had either1 to resist the designs of the state1 which included its incorporation into the imperial system4 ,as the lay representation of ,ireland was recast1 as the seal and the standard were changed1 so the institution started by statute and royal orders in council in the sixteenth century came naturally to have its individuality extinguished by other statutes and orders in council in the nineteenth4 ,if this so-called ,church of ,ireland had really believed itself to be what its champions had so often asserted1 the true and ancient national church of the kingdom1 it would at all events have made some show of patriotic resistance before making its surrender4 ,not only1 however1 was it not really national in its origin1 but it was then1 and always1 an eminently anti-popular institution4 ,there was not1 as in other countries during the reformation1 even the pretext of what is called a popular movement against ,rome4 ,no ,luther had arisen among the ,celtic or the ,anglo-,irish ,catholics in that age of perturbation4 ,the ancient faith was received as implicitly by the burgesses of ,dublin as by the clansmen of ,connaught1 and the spiritual supremacy of the pope seemed a doctrine as impossible of contradiction to the descendants of ,strongbow as to the children of ,milesius4 ,no internal revolt against ,roman discipline or ,roman doctrine had shown itself within the western island4 ,there was no spiritual insurrection attempted from within to justify the resort to external intervention4 ,the annalists of ,donegal1 who are commonly called ,the ,four ,masters1 and who were old enough to remember the first mention of ,protestantism in their own province1 thus unconsciously express the amazement of the educated ,irish mind of those days at the new doctors and doctrines3 #bjc ,a4,d4 #aecg4 ,a heresy and a new error broke out in ,england1 the effects of pride1 vainglory1 avarice1 sensual desire1 and the prevalence of a variety of scientific and philosophical speculations1 so that the people of ,england went into opposition to the pope and to ,rome4 ,at the same time they followed a variety of opinions1 and the old law of ,moses1 after the manner of the ,jewish people1 and they gave the title of ,head of the ,church of ,god to the king4 ,there were enacted by the king and council new laws and statutes after their own will4 ,but the laws and statutes enacted by the king and council in ,england1 for changing the national religion1 were not immediately either extended to1 or proposed for imitation in1 ,ireland4 ,the zeal of the crowned apostle was tempered by the exigencies of the politician4 ,before this king's time1 the ,english power in ,ireland had been essentially a colonial power2 a pale or enclosure1 or garrison4 ,whoever will not mark the point1 will miss the very pivot of all the operations of the new religion in ,ireland4 ,henry ,,viii4 had inherited from his father1 the first king of united ,england for a century1 the ambition of making himself equally master of the neighboring nation4 ,during the twenty years of the sway of his great cardinal-chancellor1 this object never was for a moment lost sight of4 ,when ,wolsey went down to the grave in disgrace without seeing it fulfilled1 his royal pupil continued to prosecute the plan to its entire accomplishment4 ,this result1 however1 he only reached in the thirty-second year of his reign1 7#aeda17 some six years before his miserable end4 ,ten years previously1 7#aeca17 he may be said to have established the new religion in ,england by compelling the majority of the clergy to subscribe to his supremacy in spirituals2 within two years followed his marriage with ,anne ,boleyn2 and in #aece1 his order appeared commanding the omission of the name of the ,bishop of ,rome from every liturgical book1 which may be said to have completed the severance of ,england from ,rome4 ,not only did not ,henry1 in obedience to his political design of adding another crown to his dominions1 not press his reformed doctrines immediately upon the ,irish of either race1 but he expressly reprehended his deputies at ,dublin for having prematurely attempted the national conversion4 ,in the same year in which he struck the pope's name from every liturgical book1 he sharply rebuked ,george ,browne1 an ,english ex-,augustinian whom he had appointed ,archbishop of ,dublin1 for destroying certain relics of saints in the churches of that city4 ,again in the same year4 ,secretary ,cromwell writes officially to contradict a common rumor1 that he intended to pluck down the statue of our ,lady of ,trim1 which was as famous on the west1 as our ,lady of ,walsingham on the east of the channel4 ,four years later1 we find the ,lord ,deputy ,grey1 after a victory over ,o',neill at ,bellahoe1 halting with the whole court and army at this celebrated place of pilgrimage1 and visiting this same shrine of our ,lady--very devoutly kneeling before her1 he heard three or four masses4 ,at that moment1 in the thirtieth year of ,henry ,,viii41 and the sixth of his open rupture with ,rome1 any ,celtic-,irish or ,anglo-,irish ,catholic1 in the ranks of ,lord ,grey1 not particularly well informed as to the affairs of the neighboring kingdom1 might have rested honestly in the belief that he was serving a ,catholic prince in full communion with the rest of ,christendom4 #bjd ,but as soon as the election to the kingship1 which it is not in our way here to dwell upon1 was successfully over1 and the new royal title proclaimed1 confirmed1 and acknowledged abroad1 especially in ,scotland and ,france1 and by the emperor1 then there came a change4 ,the politician being satisfied1 the apostle awoke4 ,a commission of reformation1 at the head of which sat ,archbishop ,browne1 undertook the purgation of the ,dublin and neighboring churches1 producing as their warrant the royal authority1 dated years before4 ,a sufficient guard of horse and foot accompanied these commissioners1 and were much needed to protect them from the populace4 ,the statues and relics in the cathedrals of ,leighlin1 ,ferns1 and ,kildare2 the ,lady statue at ,trim1 and a famous crucifixion in ,ballyhogan ,abbey1 were forthwith destroyed4 ,so far and so soon as they could venture into the interior1 this work1 of reformation1 under the royal warrant1 was pushed on vigorously1 in order1 as ,henry's commission expressed it1 that no fooleries of this kind might henceforth for ever be in use in said land4 ,this royal order 7#aeci7 sounded the key-note of spoliation1 and little more than this was attempted during the remainder of this reign4 ,the first serious effort at national conversion was made under the orders in council of the #dth of ,edward ,,vi41 7#aeea17 when on ,easter day the ,english liturgy was for the first time publicly recited in ,christ ,church ,cathedral1 the ex-,augustinian archbishop preaching from the text1 ,open mine eyes1 that ,i may see the wonders of the laws1 7,ps4 #aai47 ,the liturgy was printed the same year at ,dublin1 in ,english1 and the lord deputy was instructed to take measures to have it translated into ,irish in those places that need it4 ,the following year the work of spoliation was resumed with new vigor at the famous seven churches of ,clonmacnoise1 and other points upon the ,shannon4 ,within twelve months thereafter1 young ,edward died1 and the five years' reign of ,queen ,mary gave a respite to the ,irish church4 ,it was a period too short for restoration1 but long remembered with regretful affection for the temporary exemption from persecution it had afforded4 ,anti-national and anti-popular in its conception1 the reformation presented itself in ,ireland as the enemy at once of the useful and all the fine arts2 of all that amused and ennobled and entertained the people4 ,among both races1 war was a business1 and the layman's hand was always within reach of his weapon4 ,the arts of peace--agriculture1 architecture1 botany1 medicine1 music1 were all inmates of the convent and the monastery4 ,the civil glories and treasures of the country were hoarded up where alone they could be secured1 in the chancel and the cloister4 ,it was1 however1 the first duty of the new reformers to strike down and demolish these venerated remains of the piety of former generations4 ,pictures brought from abroad1 or the work of native artists1 were defaced2 stained windows were brutally broken2 shrines smashed2 beautiful missals thrown into the fire2 croziers broken to bits2 chalices and ciboriums melted into bullion2 bells blessed to the offices of peace and forgiveness melted down to be cast into ordnance2 and all the endearing1 civilizing1 and solemn associations interwoven from childhood with these consecrated objects of art1 were rudely torn out of the bleeding hearts of the people4 ,in the six remaining years of ,henry1 and the six of ,edward ,,vi41 nearly six hundred religious houses were thus stripped1 desecrated1 and dismantled4 #bje ,they sold their roofs and bells1 say the ,four ,masters1 in the annal already quoted1 so there was not a monastery left from the ,arran of the ,saints to the ,iccian ,sea1 which was not broken and shattered1 except a few only in the remoter corners of the kingdom4 ,of the regular religious orders then established in that small kingdom1 the rule of ,st4 ,augustine was followed by #bef houses1 male and female2 that of ,st4 ,bernard by #dd2 of ,st4 ,francis by #aad2 of ,st4 ,dominick by #da2 of ,st4 ,benedict by #ad2 of ,mount ,carmel by #bi4 ,besides these1 it is a pathetic and instructive circumstance to remember1 that there were then1 even in that far western island1 not less than #bb houses of ,knights of ,saint ,john of ,jerusalem1 vowed to the redemption of the ,holy ,sepulchre1 and #ad of the ,trinitarian ,order for the redemption of ,christian captives from ,african slavery4 ,all these1 with their interior furniture and external possessions1 were with ruthless hand transferred to the new clergy1 or converted to worldly purposes1 in order to prepare the way of the new religion as set forth by the king's order4 ,it is but fair to point out1 that the preachers of this religious revolution were only in part1 though in a very considerable part1 the receivers of the spoils4 ,a new aristocracy arose on the ruins of the monasteries and churches4 ,some ,irish houses may claim to have ancestors who came in with ,strongbow2 but many more founders of families came in penniless adventurers at the reformation4 ,the ,bagnals and ,chichesters1 in the north2 the ,st4 ,legers1 ,boyles1 and ,kings in the south2 and the ,burkes and ,croftons in the west1 were formerly1 and some of their descendants still are1 the largest inheritors of ecclesiastical plunder4 ,the chartered minorities of townsmen1 whose consciences consented to take the oath of supremacy1 were not without their recompense even in this world4 ,the neighboring church and convent property was frequently assigned to these corporators1 no matter how few in number1 for the use indeed of the corporation2 but as they generally contrived to become in their individual capacity tenants under themselves as a corporation1 there was at least one description of occupants in the country1 who held their lands on easy conditions4 ,these corporate bodies1 which continued exclusively ,protestant down to the passage of the ,irish ,municipal ,reform ,bill in #ahcd1 were often reduced to a ludicrously small number2 but even in such ,catholic cities as ,limerick1 ,cashel1 ,clonmel1 and ,waterford and ,drogheda1 they continued to possess and dispose of1 and often to alienate1 the former endowments of pious chiefs and barons to the suppressed convents and colleges of the vicinity4 ,the new proprietory and clerical interests thus created at the expense of the confiscated church1 were placed in a position to require the constant protection and superintendence of the creative power4 ,and this again required1 most unhappily both for church and state in that country1 the continuous proscription and suppression of those who represented the important interests so dispossessed and disinherited4 ,from thence arose the deadly feud between law and nature1 which has disfigured and degraded humanity in ,ireland2 which has so effectually separated the very ideas of law and justice in the modern ,irishman's mind that his first presumption in all conflicting cases is 7to his own loss frequently7 against the law1 rather than in its favor4 ,the body of legislation of which we speak had long ago swelled to the dimensions of a code1 and since the early years of ,george ,,iii4 has been known exclusively by the name of ,the ,penal ,code4 #bjf ,the principal collections of this code are by ,sir ,henry ,parnell1 7afterward ,lord ,congleton17 ,mr4 ,bedford1 an ,english barrister1 ,mr4 ,mathew ,o',conor1 of the ,irish bar1 and the late indefatigable ,dr4 ,r4 ,r4 ,madden4 ,the commentators on the code1 from ,edmund ,burke to ,bishop ,doyle1 or rather the advocates for its amelioration in the first place1 and afterward for its total repeal1 included almost every name distinguished for liberality in the ,british annals of the last hundred years4 ,the first of these proscriptive enactments dates from the #b;d year of ,elizabeth1 when a parliament representing ten counties was held at ,dublin4 ,by this assembly the acts enforcing uniformity of worship1 and the queen's supremacy in spirituals as well as temporals1 are said to have been passed2 though others say this parliament adjourned without regularly adopting those measures4 ,in the #c;d year of the same reign a further act is found on the ,irish ,statute-,book1 obliging1 under forfeiture of office and civil disfranchisement for life1 ecclesiastical persons and officers1 judges1 justices1 mayors1 temporal officers1 and every other person who hath the queen's wages1 to take the oath of supremacy4 ,commissioners of ecclesiastical causes were created by an act of the same session1 to adjudge heresy according to the canonical scriptures1 the first four general councils1 and the laws of parliament4 ,by this commission1 five years later1 7#aefd17 the ,english ,book of ,articles was declared of full force in ,ireland4 ,these articles were twelve in number4 #a4 ,the ,trinity in ,unity2 #b4 ,the ,sufficiency of the ,scriptures to ,salvation2 #c4 ,the ,orthodoxy of ,particular ,churches2 #d4 ,the ,necessity of ,holy ,orders2 #e4 ,the ,queen's ,supremacy2 #f4 ,denial of the ,pope's authority 'to be more than other ,bishops have2' #g4 ,the ,conformity of the ,book of ,common ,prayer to the ,scriptures2 #h4 ,the ,ministration of ,baptism does not depend on the ,ceremonial2 #i4 ,condemns ',private ,masses1' and denies that the ,mass can be a propitiatory ,sacrifice for the ,dead2 #aj4 ,asserts the ,propriety of ,communion in ,both ,kinds2 #aa4 ,utterly disallows ,images1 ,relics1 and ,pilgrimages2 #ab4 ,requires a ,general ,subscription to the foregoing ,articles4 ,the subsequent legislation of ,elizabeth in ,ireland was chiefly political1 if we except 7in the #aath and #abth of her reign7 the act respecting vacant benefices1 and the act establishing ,protestant free schools4 ,parliaments in those days assembled at long and uncertain intervals4 ,the only one held during the first ,james's reign in ,ireland--twenty-seven years after ,elizabeth's last1 and twenty-one before ,charles ,i4 convened another--was purely political4 ,this parliament was opened and managed by the ,lord ,deputy1 ,wentworth1 ,earl of ,strafford1 whose avowed and almost only object in using such an agency was to make his royal master as absolute as any king in ,christendom4 ,four years later1 7#afci7 was held the second and last ,irish parliament of this reign1 and simultaneously1 7at the instance1 and under the advice of ,laud71 the able1 iron-nerved1 and most unscrupulous deputy summoned a convocation of the bishops and clergy of the established religion1 which forms a very curious picture of the state of that establishment at the end of the first century of the reformation4 ,strafford himself shall be our authority at this point1 and as abbreviated in ,mr4 ,godkin's book1 pp4 #fd and #fe4 #bjg ,he had ordered a convocation of the clergy to meet simultaneously with the parliament for the purpose of adopting the ,thirty-nine ,articles of the ,church of ,england1 so that the ,irish articles might become a dead letter4 ,the convocation went to work conscientiously1 digesting the canons1 etc41 to the best of their judgment2 but ,wentworth found that they were not doing what he wanted1 and resolved to bring them to their senses4 ,in a letter to ,laud he chuckled over his victory1 apparently quite unconscious that he had been playing the tyrant1 circa sacra1 in a style worthy of ,henry ,,viii4 ,having learned what the committee of convocation had done1 he instantly sent for ,dean ,andrews1 its chairman1 requiring him to bring the ,book of ,canons noted in the margin1 together with the draught he was to present that afternoon to the house4 ,this order he obeyed2 'but1' says the lord deputy1 'when ,i came to open the book1 and run over the deliberandums in the margin1 ,i confess ,i was not so much moved since ,i came into ,ireland4 ,i told him1 certainly not a ,dean of ,limerick1 but an ,ananias1 had sat in the chair of that committee2 however1 sure ,i was an ,ananias had been there in spirit1 if not in body1 with all the fraternities and conventicles of ,amsterdam1 that ,i was ashamed and scandalized with it above measure4' ,he gave the dean imperative orders not to report anything until he heard from him again4 ,he also issued orders to the primate1 the ,bishops of ,meath1 ,kilmore1 ,raphoe1 and ,derry1 together with ,dean ,leslie1 the prolucutor1 and the whole committee1 to wait upon him next morning4 ,he then publicly rebuked them for acting so unlike churchmen2 told them that a few petty clerks had presumed to make articles of faith1 without the privity or consent of state or bishop1 as if they purposed at once 'to take away all government and order forth of the church4 ,but those heady and arrogant courses he would not endure1 nor would he suffer them either to be mad in the convocation nor in their pulpits4' ,he next gave them strict injunctions as to what the convocation should do4 ,they were to say content1 or not content1 to the ,articles of ,england1 for he would not endure that they should be disputed4 ,he ordered the primate to frame a canon on the subject2 but it did not meet his approval1 and so the lord deputy framed one himself1 whereupon his grace came to him instantly and said he feared the canon would never pass in such a form as his lordship had made1 but he was hopeful it might pass as he had drawn it himself4 ,he therefore besought the lord deputy to think a little better of it4 ,the sequel is best told in ,strafford's own vigorous language--',but ,i confess1 having taken a little jealousy that his proceedings were not open and free to those ends ,i had my eye upon1 it was too late now either to persuade or to affright me4 ,i told his lordship ,i was resolved to put it to them in those very words1 and was most confident there were not six in the house that would refuse them1 telling him1 by the sequel1 we should see whether his lordship or myself better understood their minds in that point1 and by that ,i would be content to be judged1 only for order's sake ,i desired his lordship would vote this canon first in the upper house of convocation1 and so voted1 then to pass the question beneath also4' ,he adds that he enclosed the canon ,footnote #dh to ,dean ,leslie1 'which1 accordingly1 that afternoon was unanimously voted1 first with the bishops1 and then by the rest of the clergy1 excepting one man1 who simply did deliberate upon the receiving of the ,articles of ,england4' ,footnote #dh3 ,the first ,irish canon4 ,we pause and draw a hard breath1 after this dictatorial description of how to rule a church and have a church1 to observe that the ,irish ,protestant prelates of those days were no mean men2 ,bramhall was ,bishop of ,derry1 and ,bedell of ,kilmore1 and the primate so hectored and overawed by this ,cavalier-,cromwell was no less a personage than ,james ,usher4 ,but being as they were1 as they well knew they were1 the creatures of the state1 what could they do when brought into conflict with the author and finisher of their law8 ,omitting the period of the civil wars and the ,cromwellian ,protectorate as a period phenomenal and exceptional1 deserving study apart1 we pass to the first parliament of ,charles ,,ii41 7#affb17 in which one of the first contributions to the statutes which we find1 is the renewal of the ,elizabethan act of uniformity4 ,in the same session was passed the acts of settlement and explanation1 which have been called the ,magna ,charta of ,irish ,protestantism4 ,these acts confirmed to their ,puritan possessors the properties of the ,catholic gentry confiscated by ,cromwell for their attachment to both ,charleses1 and extending into almost every county4 ,of #fjjj proprietors1 so confiscated1 but #fj--one per cent--were restored1 in part or whole1 to their hereditary estates4 #bjh ,thirty years later1 after ,william's victory over ,james ,,ii41 #djjj remaining ,catholic proprietors were subjected to a similar proscription--so that in that half-century #aj1jjj owners of estates forfeited them for their fidelity to their ancient1 and their hostility to what ,mr4 ,froude correctly calls the intrusive religion4 ,no parliament sat again in ,ireland1 till that short one of a single session before mentioned1 7the #dth ,james ,,ii417 summoned in #afhi4 ,this parliament repealed the acts of settlement and explanation1 ,poyning's law1 and other coercive and intolerant statutes2 but the issue of battle went against ,king ,james1 and the two succeeding reigns became fruitful beyond precedent of penal legislation4 ,although the #ith of the ,articles of ,limerick--at the close of the war--had simply imposed one unobjectionable sentence as an oath of allegiance on the defeated party1 the act 7#b;d and #c;d ,william and ,mary7 prescribed an elaborate form of abjuration of the doctrines of transubstantiation and of the invocation of saints1 and declaring the holy sacrifice of the ,mass superstitious and idolatrous4' ,the oath of abjuration concluded by the denial to any foreign prince or prelate 7namely1 the pope7 of any jurisdiction1 power1 superiority1 preeminence1 or authority1 ecclesiastical or spiritual1 within the realm4 ,there never was a more shameful breach of public faith than this statute4 ,the treaty of ,limerick had simply prescribed this form of oath for the restoration to their former status of all who chose to take it3 ,i1 ,a4 ,b41 do solemnly promise and swear that ,i will be faithful and bear true allegiance to their majesties ,king ,william and ,queen ,mary2 so help me ,god4 ,and the #ajth article of the same treaty had provided3 ,the oath to be administered to such ,roman ,catholics as submit to their majesties' government1 shall be the oath aforesaid and no other4 ,yet within the same twelvemonths in which ,william's generals and lord-justices signed this latter compact1 the new penal law was passed1 and the new oath of abjuration was imposed4 ,in #afia1 the tolerant treaty was signed2 in #afib1 when the few ,catholic peers and commoners who ventured to present themselves appeared to be sworn in of the new ,irish parliament1 they were met by this infamous oath of abjuration1 driven out and disqualified4 ,above a million of their broad acres were forfeited1 as a further penalty on those who refused the oath1 and we need not be surprised to find1 at ,king ,william's death1 7#agjb17 that but one sixth part of the property of the kingdom remained in ,catholic hands4 ,the #gth and #hth ,william and ,mary re-enacted1 with additions1 the ,elizabethan penal laws4 ,of these additions the principal were3 #a4 ,authorizing the ,protestant chancellor to name guardians for ,catholic minors4 #b4 ,act to prevent recusants 7,catholics7 from becoming tutors in private families1 unless by license of the ,protestant ordinaries of their several dioceses4 #c4 ,an act to prevent ,roman ,catholics acting as guardians to minor children4 #d4 ,an act to disarm ,roman ,catholics4 #e4 ,an act for the banishment of popish priests and prelates4 ,during the reign of ,queen ,anne1 however1 the code received its last finishing contributions4 ,in the #ast and #b;d of this queen was passed the act for discouraging the further growth of popery1 of which the following were the principal provisions3 #bji ,the third clause provides that if the son of an estated ,papist shall conform to the established religion1 the father shall be incapacitated from selling or mortgaging his estate1 or disposing of any portion of it by will4 ,the fourth clause prohibits a ,papist from being the guardian of his own child2 and orders that1 if at any time the child1 though ever so young1 pretends to be a ,protestant1 it shall be taken from its own father1 and placed under the guardianship of the nearest ,protestant relation4 ,the sixth clause renders ,papists incapable of purchasing any manors1 tenements1 hereditaments1 or any rents or profits arising out of the same1 or of holding any lease of lives1 or other lease whatever1 for any term exceeding thirty-one years4 ,and with respect even to such limited leases1 it further enacts that1 if a ,papist should hold a farm producing a profit greater than one third of the amount of the rent1 his right to such should immediately cease1 and pass over entirely to the first ,protestant who should discover the rate of profit4 ,the seventh clause prohibits ,papists from succeeding to the properties or estates of their ,protestant relations4 ,by the tenth clause1 the estate of a ,papist1 not having a ,protestant heir1 is ordered to be gavelled1 or divided in equal shares between all his children4 ,the sixteenth and twenty-fourth clauses impose the oath of abjuration1 and the sacramental test1 as a qualification for office1 and for voting at elections4 ,the twenty-third clause deprives the ,catholics of ,limerick and ,galway of the protection secured to them by the articles of the treaty of ,limerick4 ,the twenty-fifth clause vests in her majesty all advowsons possessed by ,papists4 ,a further act was passed1 in #agji1 imposing additional penalties4 ,the first clause declares that no ,papist shall be capable of holding an annuity for life4 ,the third provides that the child of a ,papist1 on conforming1 shall at once receive an annuity from his father2 and that the chancellor shall compel the father to discover1 upon oath1 the full value of his estate1 real and personal1 and thereupon make an order for the support of such conforming child or children1 and for securing such a share of the property1 after the father's death1 as the court shall think fit4 ,the fourteenth and fifteenth clauses secure jointures to ,popish wives who shall conform4 ,the sixteenth prohibits a ,papist from teaching1 even as assistant to a ,protestant master4 ,the eighteenth gives a salary of #cj per annum to ,popish priests who shall conform4 ,the twentieth provides rewards for the discovery of ,popish prelates1 priests1 and teachers1 according to the following whimsical scale3 ,for discovering an archbishop1 bishop1 vicar-general1 or other person1 exercising any foreign ecclesiastical jurisdiction1 #ej2 for discovering each regular clergyman1 and each secular clergyman not registered1 #bj1 and for discovering each ,popish schoolmaster or usher1 #aj4 ,the twenty-first clause empowers two justices to summon before them any ,papist over eighteen years of age1 and interrogate him when and where he last heard ,mass said1 and the names of the persons present1 and likewise touching the residence of any ,popish priest or schoolmaster2 and if he refuses to give testimony1 subjects him to a fine of #bj1 or imprisonment for twelve months4 ,several other penal laws were enacted by the same parliament1 of which we can only notice one2 it excludes ,catholics from the office of sheriff1 and from grand juries1 and enacts that1 in trials upon any statute for strengthening the ,protestant interest1 the plaintiff might challenge a juror for being a ,papist1 which challenge the judge was to allow4--,mc,gee's ,ireland1 vol4 ii4 pp4 #fje1 #fjh4 ,we may here turn from this repulsive record of tyrannous legislation to inquire into the consequences of it all at the end of the second1 and once again at the end of the third century1 from the reformation4 ,george ,,ii4 came to the throne in #agbg1 and bequeathed it to his successor in #agfj4 ,this generation saw1 therefore1 the close of the second century of the great ,protestant experiment2 and if a centennial celebration had been proposed to them in #agea1 the report of progress made must have included the following principal facts4 ,we have dispossessed the ,catholic proprietors of five sixths of their property during this last century2 we have excluded them from the bench1 the bar1 and parliament2 we have prohibited them being guardians or teachers of youth2 we have disfranchised and disarmed their whole body1 even their nobles and gentry2 yet as far as the people are concerned1 we labor in vain4 ,there has been lately 7#agdg7 a census of the kingdom1 and out of #d1cjj1jjj inhabitants1 #c1ejj1jjj are returned as papists4 ,even in ,ulster they are not supplanted2 in ,leinster they are three to one2 in ,munster1 seven to one2 in ,connaught1 twelve to one4 ,without property1 with few priests1 and scarce any bishops1 still doth this perverse generation increase and multiply4 ,what can we do with them more than we have done to convince and convert them8 ,to this searching question some observer more profound than the others seems to have replied1 ,try education6 #baj ,the third centennial celebration of the introduction of the ,english liturgy into ,ireland--the #east year of the union of the two national churches--would have afforded an excellent opportunity of taking stock1 humanly speaking1 of the progress made in a hundred years4 ,but no one thought of suggesting an appropriate celebration of the great event1 and so1 unhappily1 the precious opportunity has been lost4 ,we shall endeavor1 however1 to supply the want of such a comprehensive retrospect2 and here1 for the first time1 we find the facts and figures of ,mr4 ,godkin's book of considerable service to the subject4 ,from the ,house of ,commons debates of the year #ahcd1 ,mr4 ,godkin gives the following sketch of the arguments and illustrations used in support of the ,church ,temporalities ,act3 ,lord ,john ,russell1 ,lord ,howick1 and ,mr4 ,sheil1 while fully admitting that an establishment tends to promote religion and to preserve good order1 contended that it ought not to be maintained where it fails to secure these objects1 and that it must always fail when1 as in ,ireland1 the members of the ,established ,church are only a minority of the nation1 while the majority1 constituting most of the poorer classes1 are thrown upon the voluntary system for the support of their clergy4 ,concurring with ,paley in his view of a ,church ,establishment--that it should be founded upon utility1 that it should communicate religious knowledge to the masses of the people1 that it should not be debased into a state engine or an instrument of political power--they demanded whether the ,church of ,ireland fulfilled these essential conditions of an establishment4 ,they asked whether its immense revenues had been employed in preserving and extending the ,protestant faith in ,ireland8 ,in the course of something more than a century it was stated that its revenues had increased sevenfold1 and now amounted to #hjj1jjj a year4 ,had its efficiency increased in the same proportion8 ,had it even succeeded in keeping its own small flock within the fold8 ,on the contrary1 they adduced statistics to show a lamentable falling off in their numbers4 ,for example4 ,lord ,john ,russell said1 ',by ,tighe's ,history of ,kilkenny1 it appears that the number of ,protestant families in #agca was #ajee1 but in #ahjj they had been reduced to #ida4 ,the total number of ,protestants at the former period was #ebch1 while the population of the county1 which in #ahjj was #ajh1jjj1 in #agca was only #db1ajh souls4 ,from ,stuart's ,history of ,armagh1 we find that sixty years ago the ,protestants in that country were as two to one2 now they are as one to three4 ,in #agcc1 the ,roman ,catholics in ,kerry were twelve to one ,protestant1 and now the former are much more numerous than even that proportion4 ,in ,tullamore1 in #agca1 there were #fd ,protestants to #fac ,roman ,catholics2 but according to ,mason's parochial survey1 in #ahah the ,protestants had diminished to only five1 while the ,roman ,catholics had augmented to #bdee4 ,on the whole1 from the best computation he had seen--and he believed it was not exaggerated one way or the other--the entire number of ,protestants belonging to the ,established ,church in ,ireland can hardly be stated higher than #gej1jjj2 and of those #djj1jjj are resident in the ecclesiastical province of ,armagh4'--pp4 #aec4 ,now1 for the maintenance of this church of #gjj1jjj out of a population of #g1jjj1jjj--this church of a tenth of the people--there were then and now are held in mortmain of the best lands of the kingdom1 above #fjj1jjj acres4 ,we are told by the poet3 ,a time there was ere ,england's woes began ,when every rood of ground sustained its man4 ,the ,irish soil is not so nutritious2 still1 even there1 every acre stands for a soul saved or to be saved1 according to the doctrine and discipline of the united church4 #baa ,in addition to the lands and their revenues1 there are also certain supplementary parliamentary grants not to be despised even by light and worldly-minded persons4 ,mr4 ,godkin enumerates1 in his introduction1 several of these3 ,it may be desirable to add some more precise information on that subject4 ,there was a return made to ,parliament1 dated #bdth ,july1 #ahjc1 and signed by the then ,chief ,secretary1 ,mr4 ,wickham1 who certified that it was made up from the best materials in the chief secretary's office1 and believed to be nearly accurate4 ,from this return it appears that the number of parishes in ,ireland then was #bdcf2 of benefices1 #aabj2 of churches1 #ajja2 and of glebe-houses1 #cee4 ,this represents the state of the establishment in the year #agia4 ,from #agia to #ahjc the ,board of ,first ,fruits granted the sum of #ejj1 in #hh cases1 for the building of churches1 making a total of #dd1jjj4 ,during the same period the ,board granted #ajj each for #aaf glebe-houses1 making a total of #aa1fjj4 ,from a parliamentary return1 ordered in #ahbf1 it appears that within the present century the following amounts have been voted by parliament up to that date3 ,gifts for building churches1 #bbd1idf2 loans for building churches1 #bhf1egb2 total1 #eaa1ech1 for building churches in twenty-five years4 ,during the same period gifts were made for glebes1 #fa1dhd2 gifts for building glebe-houses1 #add1gcd4 ,loans were granted for the same purpose amounting to #bbb1bia1 making a total for glebes and glebe-houses of #dbh1eji4 ,thus1 between the year #agia and #ahbf the ,establishment obtained for churches and glebes the sum of #idj1jdg4 ,the number of glebe-houses in #ahbf was increased to #gga1 and of benefices to #acif4 ,the number of cures with non-residence was #bhf4 ,footnote #di ,footnote #di3 ,the following additional figures 7from the ,union to the year #ahdd7 are given on page #if3 ,for building churches1-- #fbe1cga ,for building glebe houses1-- #ccf1hhi ,for ,protestant charity schools1-- #a1aje1ehh ,for the ,society for ,discountenancing ,vice1 etc4-- #aja1iia ,and1 on the other hand1 the celebrants of the third centenary1 if they had thought of holding one1 would have learned from ,mr4 ,godkin 7himself a resolute ,protestant of the ,unitarian school1 and an ex-reverend7 of the alarming increase of popery of late days even in the very capital of ,english authority4 ,indeed1 the progress of the ,roman ,catholic ,church in this city is astonishing1 and has no parallel perhaps in any country in ,europe4 ,in #ahbj1 there were in ,dublin only ten parochial chapels1 most of them of an humble character and occupying obscure positions4 ,there were at the same time seven convents or 'friaries1' as they were then called1 and ten nunneries1 which ,mr4 ,wright described as 'religious asylums where the females of the ,roman ,catholic religion find shelter when deprived of the protection of their relatives by the hand of ,providence4' ,footnote #ej ,now the loveliest daughters of some of the most respectable and the best connected ,roman ,catholic families leave their happy homes and take the veil1 sometimes bringing with them ample fortunes--devoting themselves to the work of education and the relief of the poor as ',sisters of ,mercy1' ',sisters of ,charity1' etc4 ,footnote #ej3 ,wright's ,dublin1 p4 #agd4 ,there are now thirty-two churches and chapels in ,dublin and its vicinity4 ,in the diocese the total number of secular clergy is #bhg1 and of regulars #abe2 total priests1 #dab4 ,the number of nuns is #aaej4 ,besides the ,catholic ,university1 with its ample staff of professors1 there are in the diocese six colleges1 seven superior schools for boys1 fourteen superior schools for ladies1 twelve monastic primary schools1 forty convent schools1 and #bjj lay schools1 without including those which are under the ,national ,board of ,education4 ,the ,christian ,brothers have #gjjj pupils under their instruction1 while the schools connected with the convents in the diocese contain #ae1jjj4 ,besides ,maynooth1 which is amply endowed by the state1 and contains #ejj or #fjj students1 all designed for the priesthood1 there is the ,college of ,all ,hallows1 at ,drumcondra1 in which #bej young men are being trained for the foreign mission4 ,the ,roman ,catholic charities of the city are varied and numerous4 ,there are magnificent hospitals1 one of which especially--the ,mater ,misericordiae--has been not inappropriately called 'the ,palace of the ,sick ,poor'--numerous orphanages1 several widows' houses1 and other refuges for virtuous women2 ragged and industrial schools1 night asylums1 penitentiaries1 reformatories1 institutions for the blind and deaf and dumb2 institutions for relieving the poor at their own houses1 and ,christian doctrine fraternities almost innumerable4 ,all these wonderful organizations of religion and charity are supported wholly on the voluntary principle1 and they have nearly all sprung into existence within half a century4--p4 #id4 #bab ,such is the latest presentation of facts in relation to ,ireland and her churches4 ,of ,mr4 ,godkin's book 7we don't know whether or not he is still called ,reverend7 we can only say that it is very fairly intended1 and shows great industry in the accumulation of materials4 ,from some statements in the historical introduction we most decidedly demur2 but the valuable collection of facts in the second part1 under the head ,inspection of ,bishoprics1 and the manifest desire to do1 and to inculcate the doing of1 justice to men of all churches1 throughout the whole book1 must bring in every true friend of ,ireland the author's debtor4 ----- ,love's ,burden4 ,my burden is light ,the ,disciple4 ,dear ,lord1 how canst thou say ',tis light1 ,when ,i behold thee on the way ,to ,calvary's height1 ,fainting and falling 'neath its heavy weight8 ,ah6 no4 ,for me thy burden is too great4 ,the ,master4 ,good child1 thou dost mistake ,the burden ,i would have thee take4 ,the cruel load ,that crushed me down on ,calvary's road ,was thine1 ,not mine4 ,what lighter burden can there be ,than that which ,love would lay on thee8 ,the ,disciple4 ,kind ,lord1 how foolish is my speech6 ,i mark the truth which thou wouldst teach ,to my cold heart4 ,love all the burden bears of others' woes1 ,beyond its might2 ,but of its own on them it would impose ,only a part1 ,and makes that light4 -------- #bac ,florence ,athern's ,trial4 ,the farm-house occupied by the ,lees1 ,henry and ,margaret1 was an old-fashioned1 plain brick building4 ,it stood at right angles to a country road which formed a short cut from the turnpike 7leading from the city of ,c---- to ,hamilton1 the county-town of ,butler county1 ,ohio7 to the mills down on the ,miami1 passing through ,mr4 ,lee's property and by his garden-gate4 ,the house was some fifteen or twenty feet back from the road1 and built one room deep three sides1 with an old-fashioned garret across the whole of the main building4 ,a wide brick pavement ran from the gate opening into the road past the front of the house to another gate opening into a private lane1 leading from the barn and stables1 a hundred yards or so back of the house1 to a creek some distance in front1 which had been dammed up to afford a convenient watering-place for the farm cattle2 another brick pavement1 not quite so wide1 encircled the rear and sides of the house4 ,a broad gravel walk led from the back hall-door to a gate1 which1 with a hedge1 separated the grassy yard from the vegetable-garden1 up through that to the barn2 another path led from the front-door down between broad grass-plats of grass1 studded with evergreens and fruit-trees1 over a rustic bridge that spanned a deep ravine1 to some stone steps leading down to a spring1 which1 with the space around and the hill behind1 was paved with stone1 beneath which the water ran a few feet1 then spread out into a creek fringed with willows4 ,on the right of the path from the bridge to some distance behind the spring was a cherry orchard2 on the left an open knoll bordered with flower-beds and shrubbery1 and occupied in the centre by a rustic summer-house4 ,in front of the farm-house on the edge of the grass-plats was a row of locust-trees4 ,the parlor was at the end of the house toward the road and to the right of the hall2 to the left of that was the dining-room2 and on the left of that again the kitchen1 not fronting evenly with the rest1 but leaving space for a porch running to the end of the house1 into the end of which a door opened from the dining-room4 ,it was ,christmas eve1 #ah--4 ,a lovely1 clear moonlight night1 rendered brighter by six or eight inches of snow that had fallen the day before1 and now lay glistening like diamond-dust in the rays of the full moon4 ,no sound disturbed the silence save the occasional crackling of a branch or twig among the trees1 and one or two passers-by on horse-back or in wagon1 trudging merrily homeward2 for though the railroad had long since made a much shorter route from the city to the mills and ,hamilton1 ,mr4 ,lee had not retracted the permit to pass through his farm1 and the road still remained open4 ,the parlor windows gave out a brilliant light from the candles burning on the mantle-piece and the ,christmas tree1 that blazed between them and the wood fire on the old-fashioned hearth4 ,a group was seated round it4 #bad ,harry ,lee1 with just a shade of care on his joyous face and a few threads of silver through his thick brown hair1 sat opposite the front windows at one side of the hearth2 at his side1 with her arm resting on his knee1 seated on a low ottoman1 was a young girl1 his niece1 ,florence ,athern2 from the lamp on the table a little behind her the soft light fell on the masses of golden hair that covered her well-shaped head1 and on the pages of a richly illustrated book1 the leaves of which were held open by a hand perfect in its size1 shape1 and texture2 and her face1 as she raised it from time to time1 in answer to a caressing nod or motion of her uncle1 was very lovely1 with a tinge of sadness in the light of the soft blue eyes and the curve of the sensitive lips4 ,opposite these two sat ,margaret ,lee4 ,younger than her brother1 but old before her time1 her sad face was still interesting1 though it could not be called handsome4 ,at her side was a younger sister1 whose whole attention was given to the three children seated on the floor in the space before the fire1 eagerly examining the gifts just taken from the ,christmas-trees4 ,her husband sat on the other side of the table1 on which was the lamp1 looking over a book of engravings1 and trying1 from time to time1 to restrain the uproar made by the juvenile group4 ,watching the children while her hands were full of gifts that had fallen to her share1 stood an old colored woman1 short and fat1 and dressed in a neat black dress1 while on her head she wore a false front of crinkled black hair and a black lace cap4 ,her kind old face beamed with enjoyment at the children's pleasure4 ,the room was furnished handsomely and with taste4 ,one or two portraits and paintings of merit hung on the walls1 and over the mantle-piece was a picture of the ,nativity1 wreathed with holly1 and before which two wax candles were burning4 ,no one heard the step that approached the house2 no one saw the wan but handsome face that was thrust close to the panes for a few moments4 ,a tall1 well-dressed man stood there looking in1 then turned away with a sound like a sob and a sigh and covered his face with his hands4 ,it is she1 my child1 my darling2 but ,i am not worthy1 ,o ,god6 ,i am not worthy6 ,he did not look in again1 but turned and walked down the path leading to the spring1 murmuring1 ,fifteen years1 and so little change in outward things4 ,the same trees1 the porch1 the door-steps1 only that snow-ball and these ailanthuses grown into large bushes1 and here and there a flower-bed where there had been grass2 but she--ah6 how has my darling passed these years that have been so dreary to me8 ,just then the kitchen-door opened1 flooding the porch floor1 the steps1 and portion of the walk with light4 ,one of the workmen came out1 and the stranger drew himself closely behind a pear-shaped evergreen4 ,i hope1 he thought1 the fellow will not bring a dog with him4 ,he has a bucket in his hand1 and may be going to the spring2 in that case1 ,i have no escape1 for the snow will betray me if ,i move6 ,but the man said good-night in a ,german accent1 and1 whistling to the ,newfoundland which had come out with him1 and now stood snuffing the air toward where the stranger was hiding1 turned and walked the length of the porch1 down the steps at the end1 past the pump and smoke-house1 out through the gate into the back lane1 and so up to the barn4 ,so1 said the stranger1 he has gone to feed the horses for the night1 and ,i am safe4 #bae ,he walked slowly down across the bridge1 and stood for a few moments on the topmost step leading to the spring2 then went down there1 and kneeling on the stones at the edge1 scooped up some water in his hand and drank2 then rising and brushing the snow off his clothes1 he retraced his steps and once more gazed in at the parlor window4 ,it happened that the old colored woman had just picked up the youngest child in her arms1 and1 followed by the others1 was moving toward the door1 her face turned full to the window1 when she made an exclamation and nearly dropped the child she held4 ,why1 ,tamar1 exclaimed ,miss ,lee1 what's the matter8 ,oh6 nothin'1 replied the woman1 spec this colored pusson gettin' nervus1 dat's all4 ,come long1 chicks1 to roost4 ,and she left the room without affording a chance to the group round the fire to see her face1 which bore a frightened look4 ,but the children1 busy with their happy prattle1 did not notice it1 neither did the nurse who was waiting for them4 ,as soon as she had seen them snug in their beds1 with stockings duly hung1 and night prayers said1 she started to return to the kitchen4 ,her mistress heard her1 and came into the hall to speak to her1 preceding her through the dining-room and across the space on the porch between the dining-room and kitchen doors1 much to her satisfaction1 to the latter department1 to make some necessary arrangements for breakfast4 ,on ,miss ,lee's return to the parlor1 a game of whist was proposed1 in which the four elders joined1 leaving ,florence to the quiet enjoyment of her book4 ,after a rubber of three games1 a motion to retire was made by the sisters2 and ,henry ,lee1 turning to ,florence1 said1 ,well1 ,puss1 is it not time to give up your book8 ,half-past eleven1 my pet1 7looking at his watch17 and we must be up early1 you know1 to be ready for church1 and dinner at ,uncle ,joe's to-morrow4 ,at last the brother and sister were left alone1 and stood looking at one another for a few moments2 then ,mr4 ,lee spoke3 ,it must be done to-morrow4 ,who shall do it--you or ,i8 ,i think ,i had better1 ,harry dear4 ,women can deal better with women in such a time1 although ,i know your tender1 loving heart1 and do not doubt it4 ,i am glad1 ,mag1 you will take it on yourself1 for ,i feel a very coward in the matter4 ,oh6 yes1 it is better that ,i should2 but ,i will not tell her till night--,i will not mar the happiness of her ,christmas till ,i cannot help it4 ,as you will2 and now good-night1 ,i must go and see that matters are all right for the night4 ,you say ,anthony has gone up8 ,oh6 yes1 some time ago4 ,well1 good-night6 ,he left the parlor1 and getting a lantern from the closet under the stairs1 lit it1 and started to the barn4 ,it had been the custom in this family1 since ,anna ,lee married1 that she and her husband should spend ,christmas eve at the old homestead1 and return to their own house in ,hamilton1 with her brother1 sister1 and niece1 on ,christmas morning4 ,the early ,mass was too early for them to hear it1 so the clergyman was willing to give them the holy communion as soon as they had spent a sufficient time in preparation on their arrival4 ,after making their thanksgiving1 they adjourned to ,mrs4 ,mohun's house for breakfast4 ,then1 after ,high ,mass and a ,christmas dinner at ,mrs4 ,mohun's1 the two ,lees and ,florence returned to ,the ,solitude4 ,this programme was carried out as usual on this ,christmas day1 and the evening found the three sitting quietly in the parlor round the fire-place1 with no noise of children's prattle to distract their attention4 #baf ,on pretence of letters to write1 ,mr4 ,lee left the women alone with a glance at his sister4 ,no face was flattened against the windows tonight1 though old ,tamar refrained from looking toward them4 ,florence occupied a low seat between her aunt and uncle2 and when the latter left the room1 ,margaret laid her head gently on the young girl's shoulder1 and drew her toward her1 saying3 ,florence1 dearest1 your uncle had a letter yesterday from ,arthur ,hinsdale4 ,one to you came by the same mail2 but on reading that directed to him1 your uncle decided not to give you yours till he or ,i had told you something which you must know before you can answer it4 ,here are both the letters1 dear2 you can read them in your own room when ,i have finished4 ,you have often asked1 she continued1 as ,florence took the letters in silence1 to be told something about your mother and father4 ,to-night ,i will tell you4 ,a hardness came into her voice as she spoke that made the girl look up in surprise4 ,we lived1 till your mother married1 in the northern part of the ,state of ,new ,york1 among the mountains1 where people from the city came every summer to spend the hot months4 ,my father was wealthy1 but cared for no life but that of the country1 so we saw nothing of the fashionable world1 beyond the glimpse caught in the summer4 ,my mother was an invalid1 and cared for little beyond her own health2 and ,anna1 who was then a child ten or twelve years old1 your mother1 and ,i did pretty much as we pleased4 ,harry was away at college at ,fordham1 and1 when at home in the vacations1 was our constant companion in our rides and walks4 ,one summer a party of gentlemen from ,philadelphia came up to the ,adirondacks to fish4 ,our farm and house was not far from the spot where they encamped1 and we met them several times in riding4 ,your father was among them4 ,here she paused1 as if choking back some strong feeling1 and ,florence1 slipping on her knees1 wound her arms around her1 resting her head against her4 ,your mother was very beautiful1 continued ,margaret1 threading her fingers through the young girl's golden hair lingeringly1 as though she saw a resemblance that she loved to trace1 and it is not to be wondered at that she should have attracted attention4 ,after several accidental meetings1 he1 your father1 took advantage of some trivial accident1 the dropping of ,florence's whip1 or something of the kind1 to speak when1 one day1 we came upon them suddenly4 ,from this it was easy to make an excuse to visit the farm-house with some of his friends4 ,my father was a man of cultivation and education1 though he chose to bury himself from the world1 and liked the young men4 ,after one or two visits1 he invited them to the house freely1 ,i need not tell you the old1 old story1 dear4 ,before the time came for the visitors to break up their camp1 ,paul ,athern was engaged to my sister4 ,florence was but sixteen2 ,paul said he was nearly twenty-one2 and my father insisted that they should wait two years1 and there was to be no regular engagement for one year4 ,this was at length agreed to with great reluctance by1 by--your father4 ,he also1 being a ,protestant1 made all the necessary promises that your mother should be allowed the full enjoyment of her religion4 ,well1 the winter passed quietly as usual1 and toward spring a cousin of my mother's wrote1 inviting us to pay her a visit in ,new ,york4 ,we had once before visited her when ,i was fourteen and ,florence twelve2 so remembering the former pleasure1 we were quite eager to go1 ,florence particularly seemed anxious4 #bag ,tamar's mother was our cook1 and had been my grandfather's slave before slavery was done away with in ,new ,york4 ,tamar1 a girl of my own age1 was our waiting-maid and humble companion and confidante1 and was to go with us4 ,after a good deal of hesitation--for he seemed to feel a presentiment of evil--my father consented1 and we went to ,new ,york4 ,our visit was nearly over1 when1 one day1 on coming home from a walk with my cousin1 ,i found ,florence in the drawing-room with ,paul ,athern4 ,she looked guilty1 and blushed when she saw my look of surprise2 but ,paul greeted me with great apparent pleasure1 and an easy grace that covered whatever confusion he may have felt4 ,that night1 when alone in our room1 ,florence said1 ',mag1 was ,i very1 very wrong to let ,paul know ,i was here8 ,i did want to see him so much1 dear4 ,oh6 you don't know how ,i have craved a sight of his dear face6' ,i could not resist her gentle pleading1 so did not blame her very much2 but told her ,i must write to father1 it was the right thing to do and ,i must do it4 ,the answer to my letter was a peremptory order for our instant return home4 ,we1 or ,i1 had no idea of disobedience1 and so prepared to return at once4 ,the day before we were to have left1 ,florence was particularly affectionate1 and seemed not to wish to be left alone4 ,i had some last errands to attend to1 and leaving ,tamar and ,florence busy with their packing1 went out for two or three hours4 ,i returned to find the trunks packed1 but neither ,florence nor ,tamar was in the house4 ,my cousin said ,florence kissed her when she went out1 saying laughingly1 ',may be you won't see me again4' ,tamar went with her1 carrying her satchel4 ,as evening drew on and they did not return1 a great fear came over me1 and ,cousin ,mary had difficulty in keeping me from rushing into the street to seek for them4 ,at last1 a ring at the door was followed by ,tamar's rushing into the drawing-room4 ,she threw herself at my feet1 buried her face in my lap1 and cried as if her heart would break4 ,at last1 when she could speak1 ,cousin ,mary had great trouble to understand her broken sentences4 ,as for me1 ,i sat stupefied1 filled with the one idea that ,tamar had come back without ,florence4 ,,ii4 ,at last the frightened girl's story was made out4 ,florence had taken her1 on pretence of carrying her bag2 but at ,union ,square1 ,paul ,athern met them with a carriage1 into which they got1 and were taken to a hotel down ,broadway1 7the ,astor ,house1 we afterward found it was47 ,here they were shown into a private parlor where there was a strange gentleman1 who looked1 ,tamar said1 like the minister at home who preached in the little country church near us4 ,he bowed to ,paul and ,florence when they entered1 and then walked over to the farthest window and stood looking out4 ,mr4 ,athern had to talk a long time to ,miss ,florence before she was willing to do something that he wanted her to do4 ,at last he said something that seemed to frighten her1 and then he made a sign to the strange gentleman who went to the door of another room opening into this1 and opened it4 ,mr4 ,tremaine1 one of the fishing-party of the previous summer1 came in1 and before ,tamar knew what they were doing1 she heard the strange gentleman say1 ',i pronounce you man and wife6' ,then ,florence fainted1 and they had great trouble to bring her to4 #bah ,then they all signed a paper1 and the gentlemen shook hands with ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,athern1 and left them4 ,paul1 after a few words to ,florence1 followed them4 ,as soon as they were alone1 ,florence threw herself on her knees and cried1 ',oh6 what have ,i done8 what have ,i done8 ,tamar1 do you think my darling father will ever forgive me8' ,she sobbed and cried1 but by the time ,paul returned had become quiet4 ,when he came1 she asked for paper and pen1 as she wished to write to her father4 ,the letter was given to ,tamar1 with a note to me1 exonerating the girl from all blame4 ,then ,mr4 ,athern said it was time to start to the depot4 ,florence turned very pale1 but didn't say a word1 only got up and began to put on her things4 ,mr4 ,athern turned to ,tamar and told her she was to go home and tell me and ,cousin ,mary that we would never see ,miss ,florence again1 but that ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,athern would be happy to see them on their return from their wedding tour4 ,then they went to the depot in a carriage1 taking ,tamar with them1 trusting to her getting safe home after they had left1 which1 thanks to a kind ,providence1 she did4 ,this news threw me into a brain-fever2 and when ,i came to myself1 eight weeks after1 ,i was told how my mother had died of a heart disease at the shock of ,florence's flight2 how a letter had come from ,germantown1 saying how happy she was if only she knew her dear father had forgiven her2 then another1 full of grief at the death of her mother and my illness2 how my father had sold the old house1 and was waiting for my recovery to bury himself and his griefs in the far west4 ,so the next fall saw us fixed out here2 and ,florence was told of the change1 and that her father would never cross the mountains again4 ,my father had not cast her off1 as parents do in novels1 but his displeasure and disappointment were very great1 and he let her know it2 his letters1 few and seldom1 were cold and formal1 never again the fond1 loving missives they had been during the short separation from him in her childhood4 ,more than all1 he grieved over the ,protestant marriage2 for it was a ,presbyterian minister who had performed the ceremony1 and ,florence had never mentioned having had it performed by a priest4 ,one day1 the next summer1 as ,i was sitting at the open door1 ,i saw a carriage drive up to the gate1 and a lady get out2 in a moment ,i knew it was ,florence1 and calling ,tamar1 ran out to meet her1 only to receive her fainting in my arms4 ,tamar helped to carry her in and lay her on the sofa4 ,father had gone to ,hamilton2 and before he returned1 we had got her up-stairs1 and all traces of her arrival done away with4 ,i waited anxiously for him to come1 and wondered how ,i should tell him2 but my anxiety was useless1 for he came in with a small glove in his hand1 and his first question was1 ',where's ,florence8' ,i had hardly time to tell him1 when the door opened1 and ,florence herself was at his feet4 ,i left them alone together1 and when ,i returned1 he had placed her on the sofa1 and was sitting close to her1 holding her hand4 ,it was not till the next day that we asked about her journey1 and then she told her story4 ,paul had never told his father of his marriage1 knowing what different plans the old gentleman had formed1 and weakly putting off the evil hour1 dreading the scene that would follow4 ,he often told ,florence of the urgings his father used to induce him to marry a young lady of the fashionable world1 and laughed as he compared his 'meadow daisy1' as he called ,florence1 to the 'hot-house plant1' that was his father's choice4 #bai ,they managed to get along on the handsome allowance his father made him1 and ,florence's share of my mother's fortune4 ,one day the little cottage at ,germantown was overshadowed by a stately carriage1 and out of the carriage came an aristocratic-looking gentleman1 who inquired for ,mrs4 ,paul ,athern4 ,when ,florence presented herself1 her gentle beauty had no effect in melting his stony heart1 for he did his work well4 ,it was ,paul's father4 ,he told her of his plans for ,paul1 and how he had discovered their secret at last2 and1 with a cruelty ,i cannot understand even now1 informed her quietly that that marriage was null and void2 they both being minors1 by the statutes of ,new ,york could not contract legal marriage without consent of parents or guardians4 ,florence heard him out1 and then rose and said she would wait till her husband came home to know the truth4 ',your husband1 madam1 has taken my advice and gone to ,new ,york for a few days1 and you will not have the opportunity of telling him what he knows already1 and knew when1 to satisfy you1 he went through the mockery of a marriage4' ,the listener tightened her hold on ,margaret and hid her face2 her aunt put both arms around her1 and continued3 ,here ,florence lost all consciousness1 and when she came to herself1 she was alone4 ,the afternoon was nearly gone2 but she called her servant1 made her help to pack her trunk1 then sent her for a carriage1 leaving a note for ,paul with the girl in charge of the house4 ,she drove to ,philadelphia1 waited quietly at a hotel till the next morning1 then started for the west4 ,my father's anger was fearful1 all the more so that he was powerless4 ,florence was ill for several weeks after her return1 and even after she recovered she never looked like herself4 ,she came to us in ,june2 in ,july came a letter to my father in ,paul's handwriting1 which he threw into the fire unopened4 ,in ,october you were born1 and in six weeks more your poor mother--died4 ,here she paused again1 and bent her head close to the golden-tressed one pressed to her breast4 ,my father lived till the next fall1 but never the same man4 ,harry came home from ,fordham that summer1 and took entire charge of the farm1 my father caring for nothing but to carry you about and watch you4 ,for two years we heard nothing of your father2 and then the eastern papers were full of a great forgery that had been committed1 and the forger was a son of one of the first families in the city4 ,florence1 darling1 need ,i tell his name8 ,the trial proved his guilt1 but he managed to escape1 and one day we were surprised by his sudden appearance here4 ,he came without any announcement1 and walked right into the parlor where ,i was sitting sewing and ,uncle ,harry reading1 while you were asleep in your cradle4 ,before we could recognize him almost1 he asked in a hoarse voice1 ',where is ,florence--where1 for ,god's sake1 is my wife8' ,then a glance at my black dress and ,harry's stern face as he rose to repel his intrusion1 seemed to reveal all1 and he sank on the floor in a deep swoon4 ,we kept his presence in the house a secret from the men on the farm1 and only ,tamar knew it2 fortunately1 the house-girl had gone to ,hamilton for a few days4 ,he was quite wild for a day or so2 and when he came to himself1 ,harry demanded an explanation1 and he gave it4 ,he had not known of his father's visit to ,germantown till he returned from ,new ,york1 where he had gone that day at his father's request1 having written a letter to that effect to ,florence1 which must have reached the house very soon after she left it4 #bbj ,he was kept in ,new ,york on some pretext or another for three or four weeks4 ,his letters to ,florence1 of course1 never reached her1 and on his return home he was told by his father that he 'had seen his pretty plaything1 and told her some home truths4' ,a fearful scene followed1 when he left his father's house1 swearing never to set foot in it again1 and that he would be revenged4 ,he did not know that the marriage was illegal1 as he was under the impression that he was twenty-one1 till his father showed him the record1 and then he found his mistake2 and1 as of course he knew that no ,catholic clergyman would perform the ceremony1 the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,bell was the only one who could be found to do it4 ,he had searched for ,florence1 and written to her father2 but1 as ,i knew too well1 had received no answer4 ,his allowance being stopped1 he suddenly found himself without a penny1 and no business or business habits2 so he could not come out here to us1 and gradually sought forgetfulness in dissipation4 ,at last1 by the treachery of a friend1 himself the guilty one1 he was proved a forger so skilfully that there was no getting over it4 ,he swore solemnly that he was innocent1 and felt sure his innocence would one day be proved4 ,he did not stay long1 being anxious to get out of the country and the clutches of the law4 ,you were a great comfort to him1 dear1 during his short stay1 but he had to leave you4 ,in fifteen years1 ,florence1 we have heard or seen nothing of him1 and his guilt is still believed by those who have not forgotten the circumstances4 ,now1 my darling1 you know why ,i told you this ere your uncle gave you ,arthur ,hinsdale's letter4 ,the young girl made no answer save a shiver that ran through her frame as she clung closer to her aunt4 ,for a full hour they sat thus in silence2 then ,harry ,lee came into the room4 ,florence rose to her feet and would have fallen1 had her uncle not caught her in his arms1 and tenderly1 as if she had been a baby1 he lifted her1 and carried her up to her bed-room4 ,margaret followed1 and tenderly prepared the broken-hearted girl for bed4 ,the letters lay unheeded on the parlor floor4 ,,iii4 ,all through the night ,margaret ,lee sat by her niece's bed-side1 praying for strength for her darling1 and watching the fitful slumbers and soothing the sad awakenings4 ,and in the silent watches of the night arose the long-buried ghost of her own life's happiness1 and kept guard beside her4 ,there was an episode in the sad story she told her niece that was never mentioned--that she had not allowed herself to think of for many a long year2 but to-night memory will not be silenced1 and she brings up1 once more1 the pleasant days when young ,tremaine whispered into her ear the same story which ,paul told ,florence1 and the fearful crushing of all her hopes of happiness1 when her father forbade her ever to see or speak to him again1 his anger was so great against him for having assisted ,paul4 ,margaret submitted quietly1 as such natures do2 but she never cared for anything afterward beyond doing her strict duty--cheerfully and heartily2 but never joyously4 ,perhaps the old man repented when it was too late2 for in two years after1 they heard ,tremaine was married1 and he was very tender to her then4 #bba ,on his death-bed he drew her to him1 and1 asking her forgiveness if he had made her suffer1 blessed her for the fondest love and gentlest tending that ever parent had from child4 ,in that hour ,margaret felt repaid for all that had gone before4 ,so1 through the long watches of the night1 came up the memories of the long ago1 and ,margaret lived over again the dead joys and sorrows4 ,toward morning ,florence slept quietly1 and her watcher threw herself on the bed beside her1 and soon fell into a deep sleep4 ,when she awoke1 the sun had risen1 and on glancing at ,florence1 she found her lying quietly awake4 ,aunt ,margaret1 said the young girl1 that--that--letter4 ,i know what he wrote1 and it is not necessary to tell him1 is it8 ,only under certain circumstances1 my darling2 your own heart will tell you what4 ,oh6 yes1 auntie2 but that can never be4 ,i can tell him that1 and nothing more4 ,my poor1 dear child1 have you not faith enough8 do you not think his love for you is strong enough to live through this trial8 ,yes1 oh6 yes6 ,but would it be right to inflict the trial on him8 ,i think not2 ,i think the burden is mine alone1 and ,i alone must bear it6 ,god grant you strength to do so1 my precious one6 ,if ,i could have spared you the suffering1 how gladly would ,i have done it6 ,i know that1 auntie1 dear4 ,do you think ,i do not feel and appreciate the years of care and tender love ,i have had from you and ,uncle ,harry8 ,i was as happy as any one could be before--before--and ,i can and will be happy with you still4 ,god bless you1 dearest6 was ,margaret's answer1 as she pressed a kiss on her forehead and left the room4 ,as soon as she was alone1 ,florence turned the key in her door2 then1 throwing a dressing-gown around her1 fell on her knees before a beautiful engraving of the ,mater ,dolorosa1 which hung over a prie-dieu at the side of her bed4 ,long she knelt there1 her golden hair falling in dishevelled masses over her shoulders1 and nearly touching the floor as she knelt4 ,at first there was no sound1 but presently her slight frame was convulsed with suppressed weeping that soon found voice in sobs4 ,at last she rose1 and began to dress1 ever and anon pressing her hands to her head or heart to still their aching4 ,when she was ready to go downstairs1 she again knelt before the picture1 and prayed for strength to bear her cross1 so that not even the shadow of it should fall on those whose tenderness and love had been her shield in the years that had gone4 ,and then she went down and greeted her uncle with a brave attempt at her usual manner2 she neglected nothing that she had been accustomed to do1 none of the little services she had been in the habit of rendering2 and1 but for the sadness that no strength of will could drive from her face1 and the silence of the bird-like voice that before made music through the house the whole day long1 a casual observer would not have guessed at the sufferings of the previous night4 ,on going into the parlor1 she saw the letters where she had dropped them the night before1 and the sight of them sent a cold thrill of pain to her heart2 but she picked them up and put them in her pocket4 ,after going through the house as usual1 she locked herself up in her room once more1 to read the letters4 ,arthur ,hinsdale's to herself was1 as she anticipated1 a declaration of affection2 that to her uncle1 written the day after1 expressed a hope that he would support his cause if it needed it4 #bbb ,and how were they to be answered8 ,florence paused long in painful thought on the subject1 but felt too utterly miserable to come to any conclusion4 ,so the day passed sadly1 and so the night and the next day4 ,on the third day ,florence felt that some answer must be given and written before another night went by1 and set herself to her painful task4 ,having completed it1 she brought the letter down with her into the parlor1 and sat down to some pretence of employment that kept her hands busy1 though her mind was far off4 ,presently she heard the galloping of a horse in the lane1 and in a few moments a knock at the front-door4 ,the blinds were down over the front windows1 so she had not seen any one pass1 and1 rising1 she tried to make her escape before the visitor was admitted4 ,but she was too late4 ,as she opened the parlor door1 the front-door was opened from without by her uncle1 and she stood face to face with ,arthur ,hinsdale4 ,the hearty greeting he had met with from ,mr4 ,lee had reassured the young man1 and he was not prepared for the frightened look and deadly pallor that overspread ,florence's face when she saw him4 ,she stepped back into the parlor1 and held out her hand with a desperate attempt to smile4 ,arthur took the hand and pressed it to his lips4 ,mr4 ,lee had closed the parlor door1 and she was alone with him4 ,with a desperate effort she commanded her voice enough to make some commonplace remark about his journey1 signing him to a chair1 while she seated herself4 ,i ventured to come1 although ,i had received no answer to my letter4 ,did you receive it8 ,florence inclined her head4 ,then you knew the reason of my coming8 ,again ,florence bowed1 but could not speak4 ,miss ,athern1 was not my letter plain enough--do you not believe me8 ,i do not understand your silence4 ,your--your letter was fully understood1 ,mr4 ,hinsdale1 and ,i thank-- ,you thank me1 ,florence6 ,then in earnest language he told her how he loved her1 and how his fear that his letter had not reached her had brought him there1 preferring the pain of a double refusal to the doubt in which he must have awaited her reply by post4 ,to all this ,florence listened with head bent down and hands clasped2 and when he paused for a reply1 she pointed to the letter lying on the table4 ,he took it up and walked to the window2 a painful silence followed1 broken only by the rustling of the paper in his hands4 ,when he had finished reading1 he came to her side1 and leaning over her said3 ,am ,i to receive this as your answer8 ,yes6 said ,florence in a whisper4 ,a final and decisive answer8 ,yes6 ,then pardon me4 ,miss ,athern1 that ,i allowed my heart to read your conduct as ,i hoped it was meant1 not as you really meant it4 ,i gave you credit for a nobler heart than you possess4 ,let me tell you the truth1 though what ,i say seems a reproach1 that offer would never have been made had ,i not felt assured1 by your treatment of me1 that it would be accepted4 ,florence started1 and the eloquent blood rushed to her very temples4 ,mr4 ,hinsdale1 you have no right to speak thus to me6 ,she attempted to draw her hands from his grasp1 but could not4 ,no right6--well1 perhaps ,i have not4 ,forgive me1 ,florence1 and only remember that ,i love you4 #bbc ,he still held her hands and tried to look into her face1 but she bent her head away from him4 ,i love you1 ,florence1 and ,i feel that ,i am entitled to a little more consideration than that letter shows1 ,florence1 will you be my wife8 ,a low but distinct ,no1 was the answer4 ,do you mean you do not love me8 ,she made no answer1 and he dropped or rather flung her hands from him and started to his feet4 ,strange1 unfeeling6 ,o fool1 fool that ,i was6 to build my happiness on such a crumbling base2 to be caught in the net of a false woman's beauty1 the smiles of a vain coquette6 ,arthur1 ,arthur6 you will break my heart6 ,she had risen and was standing with one hand resting on the back of a chair1 the other pressed to her head4 ,he made a motion to approach her1 but she put out her hand with a sign to stop him4 ,now listen to me4 ,i am no false woman1 no vain coquette4 ,until the night ,i received your letter1 ,i knew no reason why ,i should not--not-- ,she hesitated a moment4 ,i knew no reason why ,i should not have answered it according to the dictates of my heart2 but that night a story of a life was told me that--that changed my whole existence4 ,it is a heavy burden to bear4 ,but not1 dearest1 if ,i can help you bear it4 ,he would have taken her hand1 but she drew back from him1 ,you cannot1 no one can--,o ,god6 help me1 my heart is broken6 ,she threw her arms up over her head1 and would have fallen had he not caught her4 ,she had not fainted1 though for a moment she thought death had come to her relief2 and almost in a moment released herself from his arms1 and said sadly3 ,i hoped to have spared us both this misery2 but it was ,god's will that we should not escape it4 ,for myself1 a little more does not matter2 but for you--,o ,arthur6 forgive me the pain ,i have made you suffer1 and remember my own cross is as heavy as ,i can bear4 ,good-by6 ,she held out her hand--good-by6 ,you cannot return home to-day1 it is too late2 but you must excuse me1 ,i will send uncle4 ,florence6 ,i am not going to remain if this is your answer4 ,do you think ,i could break bread or sleep under your roof after what has passed8 ,heavens6 do you think ,i'm a stick or a stone8 ,as you will6 she said wearily1 ,i cannot help it6 ,then ,i will take my leave4 ,he was going2 but as he laid his hand on the door-knob1 he glanced at her1 and the expression of heart-broken misery in the sweet face overcame his injured feelings1 and he turned and took her hand4 ,forgive me1 ,florence2 ,i have been rude and unfeeling--selfish in my great disappointment4 ,forgive me1 darling2 remember my love is strong enough to bear the heaviest burden you could lay upon it1 if your own strength fails1 ,good-by and ,god bless you4 ,he raised her hand to his lips1 and in another moment was gone4 ,every day ,florence strove manfully with her trouble1 and every night her prayers were said before the ,mater ,dolorosa1 for strength to bear with silent patience the sorrow her loving friends could not cure4 ,but her face grew pale and wan1 her form more slight and delicate1 till her aunt1 in alarm1 proposed a change of scene4 ,it was in the early spring1 and ,margaret ,lee proposed a tour through the eastern cities2 but ,florence begged so hard not to be taken to ,new ,york or ,philadelphia that the idea was given up4 #bbd ,at last they determined to go direct to ,boston1 and sail thence for ,liverpool4 ,this plan was carried out in ,june1 leaving the farm in charge of the overseer1 and the house to ,tamar4 ,to a mind like ,florence's1 imbued with a loving reverence for all connected with the church1 filled with a love for the beautiful and grand1 and a heart ready to receive their impressions2 with an intellect of no common order1 and a quick appreciation of the good and noble1 a tour through ,europe1 particularly ,spain1 ,france1 and ,italy1 had many charms1 and could not but awake an interest that surprised herself4 ,when they settled at ,rome for the winter1 they had the satisfaction of a decided change for the better in ,florence's appearance4 ,but she had not forgotten2 she was only glad that returning strength of body enabled her to hide more effectually the anguish and heart-sick yearning that sometimes seemed unbearable4 ,several letters came from ,arthur ,hinsdale during the first year2 but ,florence returned the same answer to all2 and at last the young man desisted4 ,three years were passed in idling from one point of interest to another1 when the tocsin of civil war in the ,united ,states waked up the nations1 and called the country's loyal children from far and wide to her assistance4 ,once more the scene is laid at ,the ,solitude2 but this time the earth is not clothed in winter's snowy mantle4 ,hid in the wealth of foliage the trees are wearing1 the birds are singing their vesper hymns1 the sun is just sinking behind the woods1 and throws his last rays over a group seated on the grass near the slope into the ravine4 ,henry ,lee is there1 and ,margaret and ,annie and her children2 but ,mr4 ,mohun is down in ,tennessee with ,rosecrans1 and the wife's brow wears an expression of anxiety1 as she watches her children1 that was a stranger to it when we last saw her4 ,florence1 too1 is there1 looking very well1 people say2 but there is an indefinable change that those nearest her feel1 though they cannot say where or in what it lies4 ,one or two young ladies are added to the group1 and a young gentleman1 whose shoulder-straps show his rank as second lieutenant1 while the foot still bound up and the crutches lying near1 show cause for his presence on the scene4 ,he is ,william ,mohun1 a younger brother of ,annie's husband1 and was wounded in the siege of ,vicksburg4 ,what he is saying now must be listened to4 ,i wish you knew our colonel1 ,mr4 ,lee2 for a braver1 nobler1 kinder-hearted man never lived4 ,he led a charge at ,vicksburg1 and exposed himself unsparingly2 indeed1 he seemed to court death2 yet when he could help a wounded man1 he was as gentle as a woman4 ,o ,miss ,florence6 a friend of yours is the regimental surgeon--,arthur ,hinsdale1 don't you remember him8 ,oh6 yes1 replied ,florence1 with wonderful self-command4 ,he1 too1 continued the young man1 deserves the thanks of the nation2 for ,i never saw such devotion to the wounded and dying4 ,poor ,warrington6 hope he is not seriously wounded1 for he will be a great loss to us2 and ,i hope ,hinsdale is with him1 for then ,i know he will be well cared for4 ,see1 is there any mention of ,joe's regiment4 ,will8 asked his sister-in-law2 and the young man referred to the paper in whose columns he had seen the wounding of his colonel--,warrington4 ,florence rose quietly and went into the house2 the old ,newfoundland1 who had been lying beside her1 got up and walked at her side in stately satisfaction1 ever and anon thrusting his cold nose into her hand in token of sympathy4 #bbe ,when ,florence returned1 there were traces of tears in her eyes2 but her face wore an expression of loving gratification her aunt understood well4 ,a month and more has passed1 and ,october began to touch1 with her changing pencil1 the trees and shrubs4 ,the air was hazy and balmy1 and the sun still warm2 so the family at ,the ,solitude spent many of their evenings in the open air4 ,william ,mohun was gone back to duty1 and the young lady friends were again at home4 ,florence and her two aunts were busy over comforts for the soldiers1 to help them through the weary winter with the thought that loving hearts at home had not forgotten them4 ,one evening ,florence had been down to the spring1 and1 lured by the lovely evening1 seated herself in the summer-house on the knoll above it1 with a book4 ,she did not hear a carriage which approached the house from the direction of ,hamilton1 nor did she see the two gentlemen who alighted from it4 ,mr4 ,lee received ,arthur ,hinsdale and his companion with cordial welcome1 though surprised at the sudden arrival1 and wondering at ,arthur's eager1 excited manner4 ,he greeted ,henry and ,margaret warmly1 but asked instantly for ,florence4 ,they told him where she was1 and the young man1 instead of crossing the bridge1 which would have apprised her of his coming1 passed with a swift foot down the lane1 and1 springing over the fence among the cherry-trees1 down the slope1 across the path1 was in the summer-house almost before ,florence saw him4 ,florence1 my darling1 our trial is at an end4 ,my precious one1 ,i know your secret now4 ,cruel6 that you doubted me4 ,could you not feel that nothing could change my love8 ,he had taken her hands in his1 and held them1 looking down into her sweet face while he spoke1 ,florence looked at him in bewilderment2 then1 with a sobbing1 convulsive movement of her lips1 almost fainted4 ,meanwhile the gentleman1 whom ,arthur had introduced as ,colonel ,warrington1 followed ,henry and ,margaret into the parlor by the door that opened at the end of the house toward the gate4 ,when they entered and ,margaret turned to offer him a chair1 she saw he was deadly pale1 and was glancing round the room as if it recalled something painful4 ,at the same moment a veil dropped from ,margaret's eyes4 ,she walked up to him1 and1 laying her hand on his arm1 said1 ,paul ,athern1 in heaven's name speak4 ,paul ,athern8 said ,henry ,lee1 with a start of surprise4 ,yes1 replied the colonel sadly1 ,i am ,paul ,athern4 ,god bless you for the care you have taken of my darling4 ,i can see her now without fear4 ,henry ,lee1 ,i can offer you my hand1 and you1 an honest man1 can take it without hesitation4 ,henry ,lee grasped the hand extended to him warmly1 saying1 ,i never thought anything else1 ,athern1 after the interview we had2 but ,i rejoice that you are relieved from your painful situation and are living to enjoy the change4 ,we began to fear you had died4 ,tell us all about it2 for ,florence and ,arthur will not join us yet4 ,then ,paul ,athern told how he had gone from ,the ,solitude to ,new ,orleans with a firm purpose to win fortune and a fame that would enable him to present himself before ,florence in his true relationship4 ,he worked hard and steadily1 and gained the confidence of his employers to such an extent that they took him into partnership1 and then he came to ,ohio to see his child4 #bbf ,but the stain was not removed from his name1 and he shrank from the meeting at the last1 as much as at first he had longed for it4 ,he rode out to ,the ,solitude on ,christmas eve1 and took a peep at the family group through the window1 and had gone again without the consolation of hearing ,florence speak4 ,he told them how1 in looking in at the window the second time1 he feared ,tamar had seen him1 and he had hurried out to his horse and ridden away quickly4 ,so he went back with only the crumb of comfort that stolen look afforded to his starving heart4 ,when the war broke out1 he withdrew from business with a comfortable fortune1 and returned to ,c----1 raised a company for the ---- regiment1 and rose to the rank of colonel4 ,during his stay in ,c----1 the family were still in ,europe2 but he came out to ,the ,solitude1 and had a long talk with ,tamar4 ,then came the wound that had prostrated him and put him into ,arthur ,hinsdale's hands2 during the ravings of the fever he had mentioned names and revealed enough to arouse ,arthur's interest and curiosity4 ,as soon as he was well enough1 the young man asked for an explanation1 first telling why he asked it4 ,paul told him all1 and his story only bound the young surgeon more closely to him4 ,the colonel then paid a glowing tribute to the kindness and care he had received from ,arthur1 and to his general interest in and treatment of the wounded men4 ,he watched till ,paul was well enough to travel1 and then obtaining a leave of absence for both from the commanding general1 started home4 ,at first ,paul refused to accompany ,arthur2 but one day a wounded officer was brought in and laid on the bed next to the one occupied by him4 ,arthur made a sign to ,paul to help him to remove the man's clothes2 he stooped over him to unbutton his coat1 when the man opened his eyes1 and1 after looking round with a startled gaze1 fixed them on ,paul with a frightened stare4 ,paul looked and recognized the man who had blighted his whole existence4 ,a fierce struggle arose in his breast1 and his fingers ceased their work1 while he turned away with a look of disgust and dislike4 ,arthur looked up at him with surprise1 and just then the man made a desperate effort and put out his hand1 saying faintly3 ,athern1 forgive--here--,i have it--all here4 ,and his hand fluttered toward his heart1 then fell1 and his eyes sought ,paul's with agonized entreaty4 ,it was a hard struggle2 but the better angel conquered1 and ,paul took the hand and said3 ,i do forgive you1 ,brooks1 as ,i hope to be forgiven4 ,a smile passed over the man's face2 he moved his head slightly and was dead4 ,in his breast-pocket were two packages1 one addressed to ,paul's father1 the other to an influential gentleman in ,philadelphia4 ,the latter was mailed duly1 and the former1 ,paul1 his father being dead1 opened4 ,it contained a full acknowledgment of having committed the forgery for which ,paul suffered1 and an explanation of how it was managed4 ,this determined him at once to return to his wife's family4 ,meantime the same story had been told in different words in the summer-house down by the spring1 and it took so long in the telling that it was almost dark when ,margaret1 going to call her niece1 saw them rise and approach the house1 ,florence1 with a bright look of happiness her face had not worn for years1 leaning on ,arthur's arm4 ,she hastened with trembling footsteps to the parlor1 at the door of which ,arthur left her1 and in another moment she was clasped in her father's arms4 #bbg ,a gay wedding-party is assembled1 when the spring once more puts on her robes of ferial green1 in the parlor of ,the ,solitude4 ,all brides look lovely1 they say2 but certainly ,may never smiled on a lovelier one than ,florence ,athern4 ,arthur ,hinsdale certainly seemed to think so1 for he looked at her with reverence mingled with his deep love1 as though she were a spirit dropped from the skies4 ,the venerable and dearly loved and honored archbishop is there1 and has blessed the new ties2 and the bride was given away by that tall1 handsome man in brigadier-general's uniform1 with one arm in a sling yet1 at whose side is the noble form of ,henry ,lee1 while ,margaret moves about through the company with her usual quiet grace1 and ,tamar's face is filled with satisfaction at her young mistress' joy1 as she looks in at the door4 --------- ,sayings ,of ,the ,fathers ,of ,the ,desert4 ,a brother asked ,abbot ,antony to pray for him4 ,the old man responded3 ,neither ,i can pity thee nor can ,god1 unless thou shalt have been anxious about thyself1 and prayed to ,god4 ,abbot ,antony again said3 ,god doth not allow wars to arise in this generation1 because he knoweth they are weak and unable to bear them4 ,abbot ,agathi said3 ,if a man of wrathful spirit should raise the dead to life1 he would not be pleasing to ,god because of his wrath4 ,abbot ,pastor said3 ,teach thy heart1 to observe what thy tongue teacheth others4 ,again1 he said3 ,men wish to appear adepts in speaking2 but in carrying out those things of which they speak1 they are found wanting4 ,abbot ,macarius said3 ,if we remember the evils done to us by men1 we shall deprive our soul of the power to remember ,god2 but if we call to mind those evils which the demons raise against us1 we shall be invulnerable4 ,abbot ,pastor said of ,abbot ,john the ,small that1 having prayed to ,god1 all his passions had been taken away1 and1 thus made proof1 he came to a certain old man and said3 ,behold a man freed from passion1 and compelled to battle with no temptations4 ,and the old man replied3 ,go1 pray the ,lord that he command thee to be tempted1 for the soul grows perfect by temptation4 ,and when temptations came back upon him1 he no longer prayed to be freed from them1 but said1 ,lord1 give me patience to bear with these temptations4 ,abbot ,daniel used to say3 ,the stronger the body the weaker the soul2 and the weaker the body the stronger the soul4 ---------- #bbh ,popular ,education4 ,footnote #ea ,footnote #ea3 ,report of the ,rev4 ,james ,fraser4 ,blackwood's ,magazine1 ,jan4 #ahfh4 ,at no period of the world's history have nations and their governments seemed to be in such a feverish state of uncertainty and apprehension4 ,from all quarters of ,christendom we hear the cry of change4 ,the last vestiges of the ancient order are disappearing4 ,the rule of caste is everywhere confronted by self-asserting populations1 who are no longer willing to bear the patient yoke of servitude1 even though consecrated by the traditions of centuries4 ,russia has abolished her serfdom1 so long and so deeply rooted in her soil2 and the more advanced nations of ,europe1 whilst yet retaining their accustomed forms of government1 are heaving with the volcanic fires of revolution4 ,we speak not of violent revolution1 mainly2 but of that other more radical and enduring change1 which is the inevitable result of the wonderful mechanical inventions of this age4 ,it is simply impossible in the dread presence of steam and the electric cable1 for nations to continue to be what the ,greek republics and the ,roman empire were1 or what mediaeval ,europe was1 centuries ago4 ,the ,christian world is now1 for all great practical purposes1 one nation4 ,even that despotism tempered by assassination is not now the thing that ,talleyrand described in his witty aphorism2 for the ,czar himself bows to the censure of the world4 ,napoleon prosecutes the ,parisian editors1 and sends them to prison2 but it avails nothing toward the suppression of the power of opinion4 ,he1 to-day1 has greater fear of the sentiment of ,france1 than ever his terrible uncle felt for the combined armies of ,europe4 ,in ,england1 the ,house of ,peers has become a gloomy pageant1 and the ,commons1 under the new ,reform ,bill1 will henceforth represent1 not the gentry1 nor even the moneyed lords of the loom1 but the toiling millions of ,great ,britain4 ,in a word1 power is passing from the few to the many1 from the hereditary rulers to the multitude4 ,we have nothing to do1 in this article1 with the merits of this vast revolution1 as to the manner of change1 its good or evil1 its probable success or failure4 ,we accept it as a fact1 and propose to deal with it as such4 ,it is very possible that all this would have occurred if ,america had never been discovered2 but it is absolutely certain that the achievements of ,christopher ,columbus and ,george ,washington have been the chief1 immediate causes of its rapid consummation4 ,when a ,bourbon king1 to gratify the traditional policy and animosities of his house1 sent his fleets and armies to help the glorious work of building up the independence of this people1 little did either he or his enraged and maniac foe1 ,king ,george1 imagine what the end of it all would be6 ,little did they dream that this land would1 in ninety years1 contain thirty millions of men of ,european blood1 and that the whole ,european population would learn new principles1 catch new inspirations1 and be filled with new longings1 new hopes1 and stern resolves by intercourse with this young republic4 ,those pampered kings could not foresee the advent of steam-ships and the telegraph6 #bbi ,they could not foretell the power of emigration--how it would people a continent1 build up its commerce1 fortify it with the materials for armies and navies1 ready to be called into existence more magically than the palace of ,aladdin1 and1 above and beyond all1 how its sweeping currents of democratic ideas would rush back upon the father-lands everywhere1 washing away the old dikes of royalty and caste1 and floating the populations over the battlements of feudal castles1 musket in hand1 and with loud cries for change2 that is1 for the all-essential change which shall see that governments be henceforth established and conducted for the benefit for the governed1 and not that the governed shall be held1 as they have been for many thousand years heretofore1 as the property of the ruler1 existing solely for his glory and profit4 ,europe sends her millions hither1 and they in turn send back by every ship to those they left behind1 the wonderful record of what they see here2 and these inspiring testimonies are read at the firesides of ten thousand hamlets by kindred men whose awakening intelligence and energies are stirring the foundations of ,european society and shaking all thrones to inevitable ruin1 unless they speedily plant themselves on more solid ground than the divine right of kings4 ,it is now very certain that no government anywhere can be said to rest on a sure basis1 unless it stand upon the love and confidence of the people4 ,any other basis is the lawful prey of time and fortune1 and will go with the opportunity that may arise for its destruction4 ,now1 if these be facts with which we have to deal1 then a very grave question meets us right here1 and it is this3 ,can any such solid foundation for government be found in a self-governing community8 ,in other words1 can the people govern themselves for their own weal1 and maintain institutions solely by the force of their own will1 which shall accomplish the purposes of good government1 and for ever secure the approval of all wise and virtuous citizens8 ,if nay1 then1 royalty and aristocracy being repudiated1 whither shall we fly for refuge and hope8 ,if yea1 then how is this most precious end to be attained8 ,we ,americans1 by birth and blood1 and still more so by passionate love of country1 say most emphatically that we have never doubted that the way to such a consummation is plain1 if only the nation will pursue it4 ,it is nothing new2 simply the old and trite aphorism1 that a free1 self-governing nation can only be so upon the conditions precedent of a clear intelligence and a well-established virtue2 the latter 7if we may separate the two7 must always take precedence1 and be regarded as the indispensable prerequisite4 ,it follows1 therefore1 that education without morality would be at least futile4 ,it is very certain that it would be absolutely fatal2 because the intelligent man of vice is armed with keen weapons1 which are greatly blunted by ignorance1 and are consequently then less dangerous to society4 ,catiline1 the polished patrician1 was a greater object of alarm to ,cicero and the ,roman senate than the rude assassins whom he had hired to do his treason4 ,before and during the first ,french revolution1 ,france was ablaze with genius2 but1 like the high intelligence of the ,archangel ruined1 it brought death in its fiery track4 ,education without morality is more terrible than the sword in the hands of men or a nation4 ,it is not the part of patriotism to deny that we have seen some instances of this in our own favored country1 and that the tendency to that perilous condition is very apparent even now4 #bcj ,this has resulted from the too prevalent idea1 taught by the infidel or indifferent press1 and accepted by the unreflecting or equally indifferent citizen1 that morality can be maintained without formal or doctrinal religion2 that one morality is as good as another2 that ,plato would answer as well as ,christ2 that what even the pagans taught--to deal honestly by your neighbor and perform the domestic and public duties of life with reasonable decency--is quite sufficient2 and that all else is nothing more than priestly dogmatism and controversial jargon4 ,so that1 indeed1 the prevailing opinion of the country would almost seem to be 7if we judge it by the secular press and multitudes of very honest and intelligent citizens7 that ,america1 as a ,christian democratic nation1 may be satisfied to be as moral1 and consequently as grand and powerful1 as was pagan ,rome in the days of her republican simplicity of manners4 ,they forget or ignore the history of the ,decline and ,fall1 and fail to see in that tremendous catastrophe of the most extraordinary people of the ancient world1 the logical development of the certain causes of destruction which were inherent in the nation from the day that ,romulus slew his brother upon the wall of the rising city4 ,it cannot be that ,christ came for a delusion and a snare1 or even as a simple fatuity4 ,if his coming was necessary1 then it was to teach a new religion and a new morality2 the one inseparable from the other4 ,if this be indisputable1 then all education which is not based expressly and clearly upon religion is heathenish1 and will prove destructive in the end4 ,it will destroy the very people whom it was expected to save4 ,it will consume them as a fire4 ,pride and lust of power will burn out the public conscience4 ,the nation will drip with the blood of unjustifiable conquest1 as did pagan ,rome1 or be given up to the ferocious struggle for individual aggrandizement1 as seen in later revolutionary times4 ,the father of our country fully recognized these principles1 and in the foregoing we have but echoed his words of warning in his ,farewell ,address to the ,american ,people3 ,of all dispositions and habits1 he says1 which lead to political prosperity1 religion and morality are indispensable supports4 ,a volume could not trace all their connection with private and public felicity4 ,let it simply be asked1 ,where is the security for property1 for regulation1 for life1 if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths which are the instruments in courts of justice8 ,and let us with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained without religion4 ,to this it will be replied1 by some well-meaning persons1 ,how can we place education in the ,united ,states upon the basis of doctrinal religion1 when we have innumerable sects1 none of which absolutely agree8 ,and now we approach the marrow of the subject4 ,first1 let us clear away one difficulty4 ,let it be very distinctly comprehended that nowhere can the state find its commission as exclusive educator of the people4 ,that is a duty and a privilege belonging1 of original right1 to the family2 it is domestical and not political1 though it may be always1 and is most frequently1 wise and politic that the state should lend efficient aid to assist1 but not arbitrarily to control the training of the free citizen's child4 ,the parent is placed over the child by the ,creator1 and is the natural guardian1 primarily responsible for the training which is to lead through this valley of probation to the eternal home4 #bca ,religious freedom1 freedom of conscience1 is not a right granted by constitutions1 but is the result of the relation of man as a free1 moral agent to the ,creator who thought fit to make him the master of his own destiny here and hereafter4 ,to coerce the conscience of the child by an educational system1 actively or passively1 7for there may be effective coercion by negative means17 is to violate the sacred rights of the parent1 vested in him by the divine appointment4 ,there is not a religious man1 following any form of worship1 professing to be a ,christian and an ,american1 who can seriously deny this proposition1 or who would accept any other in a question involving his rights and duties in regard to his own off-spring4 ,no such man1 we are sure1 would tolerate any assumption of the authority on the part of the state to step between him and his child in the matter of religious belief and instruction4 ,no other form of tyranny would arouse so quickly the indignant resistance of an ,american citizen and father2 and every upright man feels in his heart that what would be so grievous to him should not be imposed upon any other of his fellow-citizens1 directly or indirectly4 ,actuated by such views in the main1 the state provides a system of public schools from which1 theoretical 7and it may be practically in most cases17 all forms of doctrinal religion are excluded1 and education is based upon a vague1 undefined1 generalized moral teaching which very many eminent men of different religious denominations have pronounced to be godless1 because the doctrines of ,christ 7the foundation of his moral law7 are not taught in such schools according to any interpretation whatever1 for the plain reason that it could not be done without such manifest injustice and wrong as we have already protested against4 ,to read the ,bible1 without note or comment1 to young children is1 in reality1 to lead them to the fountain of living waters and forbid them to drink2 whereas1 to expound the word is1 at once1 to violate the absolute neutrality which the state is bound to maintain in the presence of conflicting interpretations and dissenting consciences4 ,such is the precise difficulty4 ,hence it is1 that the ,catholic ,church has set its face against the peril with which such a system of education threatens its youth2 and the ,catholic pastors and their flocks1 though struggling with poverty1 and harassed by ten thousand pressing claims upon their charity1 have strained every nerve to establish parochial and other denominational schools where secular education could be imparted without sacrificing religious instruction4 ,there is no doubt but that there are many strong and marked doctrinal differences between the various ,protestant denominations which have led some of their most eminent men to argue against the possibility of a perfect or desirable system of public schools upon the mixed or non-intervention basis4 ,nevertheless1 it is also true that in the fundamental point1 essentially characteristic of ,protestantism1 and in which it especially differs from the ,catholic ,church 7private interpretation and the rejection of tradition7 all ,protestant churches agree2 and herein we find the reason why they can conform to the necessities of such a public-school system as we have described1 with some degree of amalgamation2 whereas their ,catholic fellow-citizens cannot avail themselves of the secular advantages of such schools without a total sacrifice of religious training4 #bcb ,we are told by the ,rev4 ,james ,fraser1 despatched on an official mission for the purpose of reporting on the whole subject to the commissioners appointed by her ,majesty ,queen ,victoria1 and who visited the ,united ,states in #ahfe1 that one of the influences adverse to the success of our ,american common-school system is1 the growing feeling that more distinctly religious teaching is required1 and that even the interests of morality are imperfectly attended to2 and another influence is the very lukewarm support that it receives from the clergy of any denomination1 and the languid way in which its claims on support and sympathy are rested on the higher motives of ,christian duty2 from which1 and other causes1 the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,fraser reluctantly augurs misfortune to the system itself in the future4 ,there can be no doubt but that such lukewarmness does exist1 and that it is produced solely by the growing feeling that more distinctly religious teaching is required4 ,no accord of the ,protestant sects upon what they call essentials1 can permanently reconcile them to either a doctrinal teaching at the public schools1 in which it would be impossible for them all to agree1 or to the alternative necessity of excluding from the schools all manner of distinct religious teaching1 without which even the interests of morality are imperfectly attended to4 ,hence springs not only the lukewarmness1 but the affirmative opposition of distinguished ,protestant clergymen to the godless system4 ,it is altogether erroneous1 however1 to suppose1 and unjust to charge1 that ,catholics are hostile to the continuance of the present schools4 ,,far ,,from ,,it4 ,they rejoice to see their ,protestant fellow-citizens availing themselves freely of those great opportunities to instruct the future self-governing citizens of the young republic4 ,they appreciate1 nay1 they insist upon the absolute necessity of raising the standard of popular intelligence1 so as to insure the wisest possible administration of public affairs through the agency of the elective franchise4 ,that their church is profoundly solicitous for the secular education of her people is too manifest for dispute1 since she has1 by the instrumentality of her various religious orders1 established universities1 colleges1 academies1 and innumerable preparatory schools in every great city1 and throughout the rural districts of the country1 wherever it was possible to do so4 ,a glance at the ,catholic ,register or ,directory1 for #ahfh1 will satisfy the most sceptical upon that point4 ,the ,roman ,catholic ,church has covered ,europe with such institutions1 grand in design1 and magnificent in endowment2 and it is not her purpose to permit her children in ,america to fall behind the age for the want of similar advantages1 if she can supply their necessities4 ,she is ever appealing to their public spirit1 their patriotism1 their religious sentiment1 to obtain the means to build and conduct her educational establishments2 and most nobly have they ever responded2 for it was by the steady contributions of the poor mainly1 that nearly all of those great works were begun and perfected4 ,but we may well adopt the assertion of a writer in the last ,january number of ,blackwood's ,magazine1 that the fact is palpable and every statesman1 philosopher1 and candid student of the educational question confesses1 that voluntary agencies are wholly unable to undertake a task so gigantic1 as that of reaching the great mass of helpless ignorance existing even in the most favored communities4 #bcc ,it is exactly here that government may legitimately step in with its organized resources1 but without wearing the pedagogue's cap4 ,the wisest governments of ,europe1 ,catholic and ,protestant1 have done this4 ,they have abandoned the ,lacedemonian usurpation of domestic rights1 reproduced by the first ,napoleon1 as he expressed the policy in his curt style1 ,my principal end in the establishment of a teaching corps is to possess the means of directing political and moral opinions4 ,a candid confession for an autocrat4 ,the nephew1 who now reigns over ,france1 has learned by the experience of misfortune to be wiser and more faithful to natural rights4 ,in ,catholic ,france education is entirely free and without favoritism4 ,the public educational fund is equitably distributed to ,catholic and ,protestant1 and each is permitted to rear1 under the supervision of their respective clergy1 as they may elect1 the children of their own religious household4 ,conscience is respected2 and yet the youth of the country are not deprived of instruction in the ,christian faith at the public schools4 ,protestant ,prussia is as liberal and as wise as ,france1 and her system of public instruction is based upon the necessity of religious teaching1 and the right of the parent to direct the child1 and the just relation of the pastor to the parent1 and therefore the equity of a proper distribution of the public-school fund4 ,we have not the time1 nor is it necessary to go into the details2 but it is sufficient to say that the ,prussian system concedes more to the ,prussian ,catholic than the ,american ,catholic has yet asked from an enlightened and democratic ,american government2 and yet1 strange to say1 the ,american ,catholic has been violently and persistently charged with hostility to public education1 and a conspiracy to destroy republican institutions6 ,even ,england1 iron-clad in her prejudices1 has adopted the principles of ,prussia1 niggardly as her policy toward the public schools has always been4 ,and what shall we say of benighted ,austria1 the land of popish concordats6 ,let ,mr4 ,kay1 a recognized authority upon matters of education1 and a ,protestant1 answer this question4 ,the most interesting and satisfactory feature of the ,austrian system is the great liberality with which the government1 though so staunch an adherent and supporter of the ,romanist priesthood1 has treated the religious parties who differ from themselves in their religious dogma4 ,it has been entirely owing to this liberality that neither the great number of the sects in ,austria1 nor the great differences of their religious tenets1 has hindered the work of the education of the poor throughout the empire4 ,here1 as elsewhere1 it has been demonstrated that such difficulties may be easily overcome1 when a government understands how to raise a nation in civilization1 and wishes earnestly to do so4 ,in those parishes of the ,austrian empire where there are any dissenters from the ,roman ,church1 the education of their children is not directed by the priests1 but is committed to the care of the dissenting ministers4 ,these latter are empowered and required by government to provide for1 to watch over1 and to educate the children of their own sects in the same manner as the priests are required to do for the education of their children4 ,he also says3 ,and yet in these countries--,austria1 ,bavaria1 and the ,rhine provinces1 and the ,catholic ,swiss cantons--the difficulties arising from religious differences have been overcome1 and all their children have been brought under the influence of religious education without any religious party having been offended4 7,kay1 vol4 ii4 p4 #c47 ,and bearing testimony to the earnest desire of the ,catholic ,church to advance the education of her children everywhere1 he says3 #bcd ,in ,catholic ,germany1 in ,france1 and even in ,italy1 the education of the common people in reading1 writing1 arithmetic1 music1 manners1 and morals is1 at least1 as generally diffused and as faithfully promoted by the clerical body as in ,scotland4 ,it is by their own advance1 and not by keeping back the advance of the people1 that the popish priesthood of the present day seeks to keep ahead of the intellectual progress of the community in ,catholic lands2 and they might1 perhaps1 retort upon our ,presbyterian clergy1 and ask if they1 too1 are in their countries1 at the head of the intellectual movement of the age8 ,education is1 in reality1 not only not suppressed1 but is encouraged by the popish church and is a mighty instrument in its hands and ably used4 ,in every street in ,rome1 for instance1 there are at short distances public primary schools for the education of the children of the lower and middle classes of the neighborhood4 ,rome1 with a population of #aeh1jjj souls1 has #cgb public primary schools1 with #dhb teachers1 and #ad1jjj children attending them4 ,has ,edinburgh so many schools for the instruction of these classes8 ,i doubt it4 ,berlin1 with a population about double that of ,rome1 has only #bfd schools4 ,rome has also her university1 with an average number of #fjj students1 and the papal states1 with a population of #b1ejj1jjj1 contains seven universities2 ,prussia1 with a population of #ad1jjj1jjj1 has but seven4 ,if the church has been found in hostility to educational systems1 it has been when1 as in ,ireland1 the schools have been made proselytizing agencies and instruments of oppression2 and if she has disfavored without opposing other systems1 as here1 it was solely to preserve her own people from the damaging effects of a purely secular education1 and to secure for them the higher advantages of a religious training4 ,if others find that the schools answer all their wants1 she is well pleased to see them derive every benefit therefrom which the best administration of such a system can produce4 ,but the ,catholic people say3 ,if we who are counted by millions1 and who are daily adding to the wealth of the nation by our labor and enterprise1 are required to pay taxes for the support of the public schools which we cannot use for the education of our children1 ought we not1 at least1 to receive an equitable proportion of the public fund1 to assist us in securing what every good citizen wishes to see accomplished1 the education of our youth8 ,we are now millions1 and millions more are coming1 by ship and steamer1 every day1 almost every hour4 ,we are a part of the nation1 children and citizens of the great republic4 ,shall we add to the virtue and intelligence of the community1 or to its ignorance and vice8 ,we are struggling with all our might1 and devoting all our means to reach the lowest stratum of our society1 and lift it up into the light and air of secular knowledge and spiritual grace4 ,why should not the ,state of ,new ,york help in the good work8 ,the regulations of ,france1 ,prussia1 ,austria1 ,england1 and other countries of ,europe would assuredly afford to our legislators the practical details of a good working system1 which it is not our province to suggest in form1 uninvited4 ,let it be conceded1 however1 that millions of men throughout this country should not be taxed for establishments of which they cannot conscientiously avail themselves1 unless1 at the same time1 they are permitted to participate1 in a reasonable way1 in the enormous funds derived from those tax-rates4 ,let the schools1 though denominational when endowed by the state1 be subject to state inspection so far as to insure the full compliance with the requirements of the general law as to the standard of education to be bestowed1 but with no further control over management or discipline4 #bce ,in the ,european countries referred to1 7it may be said here generally17 each religious denomination when sufficiently numerous in a district to justify it1 is permitted to establish a denominational school2 receiving its share of the public fund1 and being subject to governmental inspection as to the proper application of the money1 and the faithful discharge of the engagement to impart secular knowledge according to the fixed educational standard4 ,the selection of the school-books and the religious training of the children are in such cases placed in the charge of the clergy1 or made subject to their revision4 ,where the religious denomination has not sufficient numerical strength to enable it to establish a separate school1 its children attend the other public school or schools1 but are carefully guarded against all attempts at proselytizing1 and their religious instruction is confided to their own ministers4 ,in no instance is the proper proportion of the school fund ever refused to any denomination which has the number requisite under the law for the establishment of a separate school4 ,by these means1 perfect freedom of conscience is preserved1 and public harmony and good-will promoted2 whilst at the same time1 the children of all churches are brought up in the wisdom of the world without losing the fear of ,god4 ,in this way1 too1 religious freedom becomes a practical thing1 and not a constitutional platitude or an empty national boast4 ,in this serious matter1 this great national concern1 those ,european monarchies have expelled sham altogether4 ,have we8 ,do we in the ,united ,states1 vaunting our hatred of church and state1 our devotion to entire freedom of conscience1 our preeminent love of fair play1 our respect for the inviolable rights of minorities1 do we imitate the liberal example of monarchical ,europe1 ,catholic and ,protestant1 when we tax our six millions of ,catholics for public schools1 and then refuse them a participation in the fund8 ,what just man will say that such a rule is right8 ,what wise man will say that it is politic8 ,at least1 let it not be said that in our great cities1 where there are tens of thousands of poor ,catholic children1 and in those rural districts where the numbers are notoriously sufficient to justify the establishment of one or more schools1 they shall be driven to seek an education under a system which their parents cannot conscientiously sanction1 or be left to the chances of procuring the rudiments of learning from the over-taxed and doubly-taxed resources of their co-religionists4 ,help the schools now actually existing1 and which are filled to overflowing with eager scholars2 and assist those who are willing to build up others2 the cost is no greater2 the educational policy of the state is equally satisfied1 whilst the morals of the rising generation1 purified by religious faith and strengthened by religious practices1 will give the republic assurance of a glorious future4 ,we are satisfied that such a system would give us an enlightened ,christian people1 and not merely a nation of intelligent men of the world1 as cold as they are polished1 and as indifferent to divine things as they are eager for the pleasures of sense and the pride of life4 ,this would be a truly solid basis upon which to build and perpetuate the empire of a self-governing nation4 ,without this1 our constitution is a rope of sand1 our republicanism a delusion1 and our freedom a miserable snare to the down-trodden nationalities all over the earth4 -------- #bcf ,all ,souls' ,day--#ahfg4 ,dying8 along the trembling mountain flies ,the fearful whisper fast from cot to cot2 ,strong fathers stand aghast and mothers' eyes ,melt as their white lips stammer1 ,not1 oh6 not ,him of all others8 ,nay1 ,not him who from our hearths so oft drove death away8 ,well may those pale groups gather at each door4 ,well may those tears that dread the worst be shed4 ,the hand that healed their ills will bless no more1 ,the life that served to lengthen theirs has fled2 ,and while they pray and weep1 ,unto his rest he passeth like a child asleep4 ,ah6 this is sudden6 why1 this very morn ,he rode amongst us3 sick men woke to hear ,the step of his black pacer3 the new-born ,smiled at him from their cradles2 many a tear ,on faces wan and dim4 ,he dried to-day3 to-night those cheeks are wet for him4 ,for there he lies1 together gently laid ,the hands we were so proud of1 his white hair ,making the silver halo that it made ,in life around his brow2 as if in prayer ,the gentle face composed4 ,with nameless peace o'ershadowing the eyelids closed4 ,and as beside him through the night we hold ,our solitary watch1 ,i had not started ,to hear my name break from him1 as of old1 ,or see the tranquil lips a moment parted4 ,to speak the word unsaid1 ,the last supreme adieu that instant death forbade4 ,i dread the day-dawn1 for his silent rest ,befits the night3 ,i half believe him mine1 ,while in the tapers' shadowy light1 his breast ,seems heaving1 and1 amid the pale moonshine ,that wanders o'er the lawn4 ,crouch the still hounds unknowing that their master's gone4 #bcg ,but when the morning at his window stands ,in glory beckoning1 and he answers not2 ,not for the wringing of the widowed hands1 ,or orphans wrestling with their bitter lot1 ,i feel1 old friend1 too well1 ,that naught can wake thee but the final miracle4 ,was it but yesterday1 that at my gate1 ,beneath the over-arching oaks we met2 ,throned in his saddle1 statue-like he sate1 ,a horseman every inch3 ,i see him yet1 ,his morning mission done4 ,his deep-mouthed pack behind him trailing1 one by one4 ,mute are the mountains now6 ,no more that cry ,of the full chase by all the breezes borne ,down the defiles1 while echo's swift reply ,speeds the loud chorus6 ,nevermore the horn ,of our lost chief will shake ,those tempest-riven crags1 or pierce the startled brake6 ,those summits were his refuge when the touch ,of gloom was on him1 and the gathered care ,of long life1 that braved and suffered much1 ,drove him from beaten walks1 to breathe the air ,that1 haunts gray ,carrick's crest1 ,and spur from dawn to dusk till effort purchased rest4 ,but yet1 in all these thirty years1 how few ,the days we saw not the familiar form ,amid the valleys passing1 till it grew ,part of the landscape3 through the sun or storm ,with equal front he rode1 ,punctual as planets moving in the paths of ,god4 ,i've seen him1 when the frozen tempest beat1 ,breast it as gayly as the birds that played ,upon the drifts3 and through the deadly heat ,that drove the fainting reapers to the shade4 ,smiling he passed along4 ,erect the good gray head1 and on his lips a song4 ,i've known him too1 by anguish chained abed1 ,forsake his midnight pillow with a moan1 ,and meekly ride wherever pity led1 ,to heal a sorrow slighter than his own2 ,or rich or poor the same-- ,it mattered not3 let any sorrow call1 he came4 #bch ,thy life was sacrifice1 my own old friend1 ,yet sacrifice that earned a sacred joy1 ,for in thy breast kept beating to the end1 ,the trust and honest gladness of a boy2 ,the seventy years that span ,thy course1 leave thee as pure as when their date began4 ,who could have dreamed the sharp1 sad overthrow ,of such a life1 so tender1 strong1 and brave8 ,my pulse seems answering thy finger now-- ',twas one step from the stirrup to the grave6 ,oh6 lift your load with care1 ,and gently to its rest the precious burden bear4 ,all ,souls' ,day6 as they place him in the aisle4 ,the bells his youth obeyed for ,mass are ringing2 ,and1 as beneath the churchyard gate we file1 ,to latest rite his honored relics bringing4 ,you'd think the dead had all ,arrayed their little homes for some high festival4 ,as if for him the flowering chaplets1 strewn ,throughout ,god's acre1 breathe a second spring2 ,to him the ivy on the sculptured stone ,a welcome from the tomb seems whispering3 ,the buried wear their best4 ,as1 in their midst1 their old companion takes his rest4 ,yes1 he is yours1 not ours3 set down the bier3 ,to you we leave him with a ready trust3 ,beneath this sod there's scarce a spirit here ,that was not once his friend3 ,oh6 guard his dust6 ,and if your ashes may ,thrill to old love1 your graves are gladder than our hearths to-day4 ---------- #bci ,is it ,honest8 ,footnote #eb ,footnote #eb3 ,sermons in answer to the ,tract1 ,is it ,honest8 ,by ,rev4 ,l4 ,w4 ,bacon4 ,the ,brooklyn ,times1 ,march #ith1 #agth1 #bdth1 #ahfh4 ,a brief tract1 issued a short time since by ,the ,catholic ,publication ,society1 seems to have produced an unusual commotion among our non-,catholic brethren1 and has called forth reply after reply from the sectarian press and pulpit4 ,the tract is very brief1 and consists only of a few pointed questions2 but it has kindled a great fire1 and compelled ,protestants to come forward and attempt to defend their honesty1 in uttering their false charges and gross calumnies against ,catholics and the church4 ,it has put them on their defence1 made them feel that they1 not the church1 are now on trial before the public4 ,this is no little gain1 and they do not have so easy a time of it1 in defending their libels1 as they had in forging and uttering them1 when ,catholics had no organ through which they could speak1 and were so borne down by public clamor that their voice could not have been heard in denial1 even if they had raised it4 ,times have changed since those sad days when it was only necessary to vent a false charge against the church1 to have it accredited and insisted on by a fanatical multitude as undeniable truth1 however ridiculous or absurd it might be4 ,since our sectarian opponents have been put upon their defence1 we trust ,catholics will keep them to it4 ,we have acted on the defensive long enough1 and turn about is only fair play4 ,they must now prove their libels1 or suffer judgment to go against them4 ,they feel that it is so1 and they open their defence resolutely1 with apparent confidence and pluck4 ,they have no lack of words and show no misgiving4 ,this is well2 it is as we would have it1 for we wish them to have a fair trial1 and to make the strongest1 boldest1 and best defence the nature of the case admits4 ,in our remarks we shall confine ourselves principally to the justification attempted by ,mr4 ,bacon1 in his sermons1 as we find them in the ,brooklyn ,times2 and we must remind him in the outset that the assumption with which he commences--that the tract1 in appealing to the good sense of the public1 whether it is honest to insist on certain charges against the church as true1 when the slightest inquiry would show them to be false--makes an important concession1 or any concession at all to the ,protestant rule1 is altogether unwarranted4 ,he says3 ,this submitting of the questions in dispute to the public1 man by man1 after the ,protestant1 the ,american fashion--concedes at the outset one great and most vital principle1 to wit1 that the ultimate appeal in questions of personal belief1 is to each man's reason and conscience in the sight of ,god4 ,quite a mistake4 ,there is no question of personal belief in the case4 ,the question submitted to the public by the tract is not whether what the church teaches and ,catholics believe is true or false1 but whether it is honest to continue to accuse the church and ,catholics of holding and doing what it is well known1 or may easily be known1 they do not do1 and declare they do not hold8 #bdj ,this is the question1 and the only question1 submitted4 ,is it honest to continue repeating day after day1 and year after year1 foul calumnies against your neighbor1 when the proofs that they are calumnies lie under your hand1 and spread out before your eyes so plainly that he who runs may read8 ,we think even the smallest measure of common sense is sufficient to answer that question1 which is1 on one side1 simply a question of fact1 and on the other1 a question of very ordinary morals4 ,the competency of reason to decide far more difficult questions than that1 no ,catholic ever disputes4 ,we think even the reason of a pagan can go as far as that4 ,why even of yourselves judge ye not what is right8 ,but this tract1 the preacher continues1 is a plain assertion that no man ought blindly to accept the religious opinions to which he is born1 nor the instructions of his religious teachers2 but that he is bound1 in honesty and justice1 to hear the other side1 and decide between them by his own private judgment4 ,if by opinions is meant faith1 it does no such thing2 if by opinions are meant only opinions1 it may pass1 though the tract neither argues nor touches the question4 ,the ,catholic always supposes man is endowed with reason and understanding1 and that both are active in the act of faith as in an act of science4 ,there is and can be no such thing as blind faith1 though blind prejudices are not uncommon4 ,men seek or inquire for what they have not1 not for what they have4 ,they who have the faith do not seek it1 and can examine what is opposed to it only for the purpose of avoiding or refuting it4 ,catholics have the faith2 they are in possession of the truth1 and have no need to make for themselves the examination supposed4 ,non-,catholics have not the faith2 they have only opinions1 often very erroneous1 very absurd1 and very hurtful opinions1 and they are therefore bound1 not by the opinions they have received from their religious teachers1 or to which they were born1 but to seek diligently1 with open minds and open hearts1 for the truth till they find it4 ,when they find it1 they will not be bound to seek it1 but to adhere to it1 and obey it4 ,there is no ,protestant teaching in this1 and it is nothing different from what the ,church of ,rome always teaches her followers4 ,the tract says3 ,americans love fair play4 ,the preacher says3 ,i believe it is no more than the truth4 ,if there is one thing rather than another that ,americans do love1 it is this very thing--absolute freedom and fairness of religious discussion4 ,curious1 isn't it8 ,how came ,americans to 'love fair play'8 ,englishmen seem to have a similar taste4 ,catholic or ,protestant in ,england can speak or write his thoughts1 on either side1 without hinderance or constraint4 ,the same thing may be remarked1 in a measure1 in ,northern ,germany4 ,how can you account for it8 ,what is the reason1 do you suppose1 why they don't 'love fair play' in ,spain8 or in ,austria8 or in ,mexico8 or in ,rome8 ,this injured innocent stands in ,new ,york1 at the corners of the streets1 bemoaning himself that he is treated 'dishonestly1 and unjustly1' because the public will not buy and read his books2 and all the time1 in the ,holy ,city itself--under the direct fatherly government of the pope--a subject is not allowed to be 7as this tract says7 'honest and just' toward ,protestant ,christians by examining both sides1 except at the peril of being punished as for an infamous crime6 ',americans love fair play4' ,why do all ,roman ,catholic nations suppress it8 ,why does the pope forbid it in his own dominions8 ,and what reason have we to believe that1 if these who are clamoring for 'fair play' should ever hold the power in this country1 they would put it to any different use here1 from that which prevails in ,catholic countries generally8 #bda ,we are not aware that there is any less love of fair play in ,spain1 ,mexico1 or ,rome1 than in the ,united ,states1 ,england1 or ,north-,germany1 in ,catholic than in non-,catholic countries1 only there is more faith and less need to seek it1 or to examine both sides in order to find it4 ,as a matter of fact1 though we cannot regard it as any great merit1 ,catholics are generally far more ready to hear both sides1 and to read ,protestant books1 than ,protestants are to read ,catholic books4 ,we have never met with intelligent ,catholics as ignorant of ,protestantism as we have generally found intelligent ,protestants of ,catholicity4 ,there is nothing among ,catholics to correspond to the blind prejudice1 deplorable ignorance1 and narrow-minded bigotry of sectarians2 but we are happy to believe that even these are mellowing with time1 losing many of their old prejudices1 and becoming more enlightened and less bigoted and intolerant2 there is still room for improvement4 ,let us understand in the outset1 says the preacher1 that the charges against ,catholics and the ,catholic ,church that are complained of in this tract1 are conceded by the writer to be of grave importance4 ,the prohibiting of the ,bible to the people--the belief that priestly absolution has efficacy of itself1 and is not merely conditional on the sincerity of the sinner's repentance--the paying to images of such worship as the heathen do--all these are declared by this writer to be 'detestable and horrible4' ,so that if it should appear that any one of them is proved against ,catholics or the ,catholic ,church1 the case is closed against them4 ,he is not at liberty to go back and apologize for the doctrine or palliate it4 ,he has declared it to be 'false doctrine'--'detestable and horrible4' ,what the tract regards as important or unimportant1 is nothing to the purpose2 what the preacher must prove is1 that it is honest to continue to repeat charges against ,catholics and the ,catholic ,church which have been amply refuted1 and the refutation of which is within the reach of every one who would know the truth2 or at least he must show that the refutation is insufficient1 and that the charges are not false1 but true4 ,he will not find us shrinking from the truth1 apologizing for it1 or seeking to get behind it or around it4 ,we1 however1 beg him to understand that he is the party accused1 and on trial1 not we1 and that we are probably better judges on doubtful points1 of what is or is not ,catholic doctrine and practice1 than he or any of his brethren4 ,he will do well1 also1 to bear in mind that the question raised by the tract is not whether the doctrine of the church is true or false1 but whether it is honest to persist in saying that it is what the church and all ,catholics affirm that it is not4 ,what he must prove1 in order to be acquitted1 is that the church and ,catholics do hold what the tract denies1 and denies on authority1 or that there are good and sufficient reasons for believing that they do so hold4 #a4 ,the tract asks1 ,is it honest to say that the ,catholic ,church prohibits the use of the ,bible1 when anybody who chooses can buy as many as he likes at any ,catholic bookstore1 and can see on the page of any one of them the approbation of the bishops of the ,catholic ,church1 with the pope at their head1 encouraging ,catholics to read the ,bible1 in these words1 ',the faithful should be excited to the reading of the ,holy ,scriptures1' and that not only for the ,catholics of the ,united ,states1 but also for those of the whole world4 ,mr4 ,bacon does not meet directly the facts alleged by the tract1 nor plead truth in justification of the libel2 but undertakes to show that even if false1 yet ,protestants may be personally honest in uttering it2 and he adduces various circumstances which he thinks may very innocently induce ,protestants to suppose that the church does prohibit the use of the ,bible4 #bdb ,we have not the patience to take up in detail all the circumstances alleged1 and refute the inferences drawn from them2 most of them are mere inventions1 perversions of the truth1 misapprehensions of the facts in the case1 and none1 nor all of them together1 justify the inference1 in face of what the tract alleges1 that the church prohibits the use of the ,bible2 and it is easy for any one who honestly seeks the truth to know that they do not4 ,the facts alleged by the tract are accessible to all who wish to know them4 ,he who makes a false charge through ignorance1 when he can with ordinary prudence know that it is false1 is not excusable2 and it is not surely in those who claim to be the enlightened portion of mankind to attempt to defend their honesty at the expense of their intelligence4 ,they are the last people in the world1 if we take them at their estimate of themselves1 to be permitted to plead invincible ignorance4 ,the ,newark ,evening ,journal is bolder and more direct than ,mr4 ,bacon4 ,it asserts that the ,church actually forbids the reading of the ,scriptures1 and boldly challenges the fact alleged by the tract4 ,it says3 ,on the very page from which are taken the words1 ',the faithful should be excited to read the ,holy ,scriptures1' are quoted1 it is also said1 ',to guard against error it was judged necessary to forbid the reading of the ,scriptures in the vulgar languages1 without the advice and permission of the pastors and spiritual guides whom ,god has appointed to govern his ,church4' ,how then can it be false to say that the ,church prohibits the use of the ,holy ,scriptures8 ,simply because to forbid the abuse of a thing is not to prohibit its use4 ,the faithful1 for the promotion of faith and piety1 are excited to read the ,scriptures2 but to guard against error or the abuse of the sacred writings1 those who would wrest them to their own destruction are forbidden to read them in the vulgar languages1 except under the direction of their spiritual guides4 ,a prudent and loving father forbids his child1 who has a morbid appetite or a sickly constitution1 to eat of a certain kind of food except under the direction of the family physician1 lest the child should be injured by it2 can you therefore say that he prohibits the use of that kind of food8 ,certainly not4 ,all you can say is1 that while he concedes the use1 he takes precautions against the abuse1 which is in no sense inconsistent with anything asserted by the tract4 ,mr4 ,bacon1 referring to reported cases of the confiscation of ,bibles1 circulated by the ,bible ,society1 found in the hands of the laity1 says the ,french ,bible confiscated was the ,catholic version of ,de ,sacy2 that the ,polish ,bible circulated by the ,bible ,society was1 word for word1 the copy of the version published two centuries before1 and approved by two popes2 the ,italian ,bible1 for reading which the godly family ,madiai were persecuted and imprisoned1 was the ,catholic version not so of ,martini1 ,archbishop of ,florence1 published with the approbation and sanction of ,pope ,pius ,,vi4 ,suppose this correct1 it does not prove that the ,church prohibits the use of the ,holy ,scriptures1 but is very good proof to the contrary4 ,these versions were made and published for the people1 and would have been neither made nor published if the use of the ,scriptures was forbidden4 ,and how can you say that popes prohibit what you show they approved and sanctioned8 ,there was a ,german ,bible before ,luther1 and our ,douay ,bible was published before the version of ,king ,james4 #bdc ,but ,i am not willing1 continues the preacher1 that this effrontery what effrontery8 of this question should be let go even with this answer4 ,we can easily believe it4 ,i am ready to call witnesses4 ,well1 dear doctor1 your witnesses2 we are ready to hear their testimony4 ,whoever heard of a ,catholic ,bible ,society multiplying copies of the ,bible8 ,nobody that we know of4 ,but how long is it since ,protestants had a ,bible ,society8 ,prior to that1 did they prohibit the use of the ,holy ,scriptures8 ,popes have fulminated their bulls against ,bible ,societies1 denouncing them as an invention of the devil4 ,not unlikely2 but it is one thing to denounce ,bible ,societies1 and another to prohibit the use or the reading of the ,bible4 ,your witnesses4 ,rev4 sir1 do not testify to the point4 ,besides1 all the facts1 or pretended facts1 you bring forward are too recent for your purpose4 ,the accusation that the ,church prohibits the use of the ,scriptures was made by ,protestants long before any of them are even said to have occurred1 and therefore could not have originated in them4 ,ex-post facto causes are not admitted in catholic philosophy4 ,the charge brought against the ,church betrays no little folly and ingratitude4 ,if the ,church had prohibited the use of the ,scriptures1 how could the ,reformers have got a copy of them8 ,they certainly purloined them from her1 and could have got them from no other source4 ,the preacher concludes his first sermon by saying3 ,i am glad the time has come when it is understood on both sides that1 if the ,roman ,church is to commend itself to the ,american people1 it must begin by repudiating1 as horrible and detestable1 the teaching and practice for three hundred years of the church4 ,what has for three hundred years been falsely alleged by her enemies to be her teaching and practice1 agreed2 but what has really been her teaching and practice1 denied4 ,let it but make good this new claim1 and we thank ,god for the new reformation1 and welcome it to the platform of ,protestantism4 ,there is no new claim in the case2 what the tract asserts has always been the doctrine and practice of the church2 she has always encouraged the use and opposed the abuse of the ,holy ,scriptures4 ,that the preacher should desire a new reformation can be easily understood1 for the old has well-nigh run out2 that he will ever be able to welcome the church to the platform of ,protestantism is1 however1 not likely2 for she is not fond of standing on platforms1 and prefers to remain seated on the rock4 ,the reverend gentleman may be shocked to hear it2 but it is1 nevertheless1 a fact1 that the ,bible and reason are not special ,protestant possessions2 they were ours ages before ,protestantism was born1 and will be ours ages after ,protestantism is dead and forgotten4 #b4 ,in his second sermon--in a note to which he corrects his assertion that it was the ,catholic version of ,martini1 and states that it was the ,protestant version of ,diodati1 that was used by the godly family of the ,madiai--the preacher confines his efforts to questions raised by the tract with regard to the worship of images and pictures1 and of the ,blessed ,virgin and the saints4 ,the tract asks3 ,is it honest to accuse ,catholics of paying divine worship to images or pictures as the heathen do--when any ,catholic indignantly repudiates any idea of the kind1 and when the ,council of ,trent distinctly declares the doctrine of the ,catholic ,church in regard to them to be1 'that there is no divinity or virtue in them which should appear to claim the tribute of one's veneration2' but that all the honor which is paid to them shall be referred to the originals whom they are designed to represent8' 7,sess4 #be47 #bdd ,the answer to this question1 the preacher says1 is to be found by asking two others3 #a4 ,what sort of honors do the heathen pay to images8 #b4 ,what sort of honors do ,roman ,catholics pay to them8 ,when we have got answers to these two1 we can compare them1 and shall be able to say whether they are the same4 ,we respectfully submit that neither of these questions need be asked2 for so far as pertinent1 both are answered in the tract itself4 ,the accusation against ,catholics which the tract implies cannot be honestly made1 is that we pay divine worship to images and pictures1 as the heathen do2 what the tract then denies is that ,catholics pay divine worship to images and pictures2 and what it asserts is1 that the heathen do pay them divine worship2 but this assertion is simply illustrative1 and should it be found inexact1 it would not affect the formal denial that the worship ,catholics pay them is divine4 ,as to what sort of worship ,catholics do render to images and pictures1 the answer in the tract is explicit1 that it is a certain tribute of veneration paid them in honor of their original4 ,the worship is not divine worship1 and the honor paid is not paid to them for any virtue in them1 but is referred solely to their originals4 ,the catechism puts this clearly enough4 ,q4 ,and is it allowable to honor relics1 crucifixes1 and holy pictures8 ,a4 ,yes2 with an inferior and relative honor1 as they relate to ,christ and his saints1 and are the memorials of them4 ,q4 ,may we then pray to relics and images8 ,a4 ,no2 by no means1 for they have no life or sense to hear or help us4 ,the preacher labors to show that this inferior and relative honor is precisely what the heathen pay to the images of their gods2 but this1 if true1 would not prove that we do1 but that the heathen do not1 pay divine honors to images4 ,he cites various authorities1 ,christian and heathen1 to prove that it is not the brass and gold and silver1 when fashioned into a statue1 that the heathen worship1 but that through the statue or image they worship the invisible gods2 that is1 they worship the image as the visible representation of the invisible divinity4 ,this is1 no doubt1 in some respects1 the actual fact2 nobody pretends that they worship precisely the material statue1 but the numen or god1 the prayers1 invocations1 incantations1 and the other ceremonies of the consecration of the statue by the priests compelled to enter the statue and take up his abode in it4 ,but to this image1 which for them contains the god1 the heathen offer sacrifices and other acts of worship which are due to ,god alone1 which makes all the difference in the world1 though we have no doubt that the type copied1 perverted1 corrupted1 and travestied in heathen worship is the ,catholic type2 as all heathenism is a corruption1 perversion1 or travesty of the true religion1 or as ,protestantism is a corruption1 perversion1 or travesty of the ,catholic ,church4 ,the heathen images and pictures represent no absent reality1 and are not memorials of an absent truth1 like our sacred images and pictures2 and the heathen1 then1 can honor only the material substance or the supposed indwelling numen or daemon4 ,the gods they are supposed to bring nigh1 represent1 or render visible1 are either purely imaginary1 or evil spirits2 hence the ,scripture tells us that all the gods of the heathen are devils4 ,and finally1 to these idols1 which are nothing but wood and stone1 brass and silver1 or gold1 which represent1 if anything1 demons or devils1 the heathen pay divine honors2 while we simply honor and respect images and pictures of our ,lord and his saints for the sake of the originals1 or the worth to which they are related4 #bde ,here is a difference which we should suppose even our ,protestant doctor capable of perceiving and recognizing4 ,the preacher forgets that what is denied by the tract is1 that we pay divine honors to sacred images and pictures1 and cites ample authority to prove that we do not pay divine honors to them or through them4 ,we offer them no sacrifices1 and we offer them no prayers or praises1 even as symbols or as memorials of a worth they represent4 ,they are never the media through which we honor that worth2 but we honor them for the sake of the worth to which they are related1 as the pious son honors the picture of his mother1 the patriot the picture of the father of his country1 or the lover the portrait of his mistress4 ,the respect we pay them springs from one of the deepest and purest principles of human nature1 and can be condemned only by those who hold that there is nothing good in nature1 and condemn as evil and only evil whatever is natural4 ,the minister thinks that1 even should enlightened and intelligent ,catholics understand the question as explained by the catechism and defined by the ,council of ,trent1 yet ignorant ,catholics may not2 and with them the honors paid to images and pictures actually degenerate into idolatry4 ,he asks3 ,but how in this respect do the people of modern ,italy differ from those of ancient and heathen ,italy8 ,do the practices of the people there correspond to the doctrines of the theologians1 or have they1 as of old time1 'bettered the instruction8' ,do they pay no special veneration1 as if there were some special virtue in the image itself1 to those images that are reputed to bleed or sweat1 or to the pictures that wink8 ,if it was only as a guide of the thoughts toward the person represented that the image or picture served1 then one image would serve as well as another1 except that those in which the skill and genius of the artist had most excelled to represent in touching and vivid portraiture the object of the worship1 might be preferred above ruder and coarser works4 ,but as ,i have passed from church to church in those lands in which the ,roman system has had unlimited opportunity to work itself out into practice1 and have 'beheld the devotions' of the people1 ,i have seen certain statues frequented by a multitude of worshippers1 and visited by pilgrims from afar1 who had come to bow down before them1 and hung with myriads of votive offerings--waxen effigies of arms and legs and other members that had been healed in consequence of prayers to that particular image4 ,and one fact1 which ,i did not then appreciate the bearing of1 was constantly observed by myself and my companion--that these objects of special worship and veneration were never works of superior art1 but commonly rude1 and sometimes even grotesque4 ,the inexpressibly beautiful and touching statue by ,bernini1 of the ,virgin holding upon her knees the body of the dead ,jesus1 is in the crypt of ,st4 ,peter's1 and admiring critics go down to study it by torchlight4 ,but the image which is adored is a grimy bronze idol above it in the nave of ,st4 ,peter's1 which is so venerated as the statue of that apostle that the toes of the extended foot have been actually kissed away by the adorations of the faithful4 ,it is very evident that the preacher1 whatever opportunities he may have had1 knows very little of the ,catholic people in general1 or of the ,italian people in particular1 and his guesses would deserve more respect if made in relation to his own people4 ,protestants have no distinctive worship which can be offered to ,god alone1 and are therefore very poor judges of what they may see going on before their eyes among a ,catholic people4 ,the ,church is responsible only for the faith she teaches and the practices she enjoins1 approves1 or permits4 ,if the people depart from this faith and abuse these practices in their practical devotion1 the fault1 since she takes away no one's freedom1 is theirs1 not hers4 #bdf ,the worship that ,catholics render to ,god1 the honor they pay to the saints1 and the respect they entertain for sacred images1 differs not1 as all worship with ,protestants must1 simply as more or less1 but in kind1 and not even a ,protestant community can be found so ignorant as not to be able to distinguish between an image or a picture and the saint or person intended to be represented by it4 ,for the many years we lived as a ,protestant we never met any one of our brethren who mistook his mother's portrait for his mother herself1 or the statue of a distinguished statesman for the statesman himself4 ,who ever mistakes the equestrian statue of ,george ,washington in ,union ,square for ,george ,washington on horseback1 or confounds ,andrew ,jackson himself with ,mill's ugly equestrian statue of him in one of the squares of ,washington8 ,who could mistake the bronze horse on which the image of the old ,general is placed1 and which you fear every moment is going to tilt over backward1 for a real horse8 ,well1 my dear doctor1 however ignorant these ,italian people may be whom you see kneeling before an image or a picture of the ,madonna1 they know more of the doctrines of the ,gospel1 more of ,god1 and of man's duties and relations to him1 more of his proper worship1 than the most enlightened non-,catholic community that exists or ever existed on the earth4 ,they may not know as much of error against faith and piety1 of false theories and crude speculations as non-,catholics2 but they know more of ,christianity1 more of what ,christianity really is1 what it teaches1 and what it exacts of the faithful1 than the wisest and most learned of your sectarian ministers1 not even excepting yourself4 ,with regard to bleeding1 sweating1 or winking pictures1 if you find people believing in them1 you will never find among ,catholics any who believe that they bleed1 sweat1 or wink by any virtue that is in the picture itself2 but that the phenomenon is a miracle1 which ,god works by the saint pictured4 ,you may doubt the miracle1 but not reasonably1 unless on the ground that the evidence in the case is insufficient4 ,whoever believes in ,god believes in the possibility of miracles1 and there is nothing more miraculous in a picture of the ,madonna winking1 sweating1 or bleeding1 than there was in ,balaam's ass speaking and rebuking his master4 ,it is simply a question of fact4 ,if the proofs are conclusive1 the fact is to be believed2 if insufficient1 no one is bound to believe it4 ,if you find the people flocking to a particular image or picture and bringing to it their votive offerings1 it certainly is not1 as the preacher takes notice1 on account of its merit as a work of art2 for the ,italian people1 with all their love and exquisite taste for art1 do not1 like so many non-,catholics1 confound artistic culture with religious culture2 nor is it because they hold that there is any hidden virtue in that particular image or picture itself1 but because the saint whose it is1 has or is believed to have specially favored those who have invoked him before it4 ,they may or may not be mistaken as to the fact1 but the principle1 on which the special devotion to our ,lady or a saint before a particular shrine is a correct one2 and there is in the practice no special honor to the image or picture for its own sake1 and consequently nothing necessarily superstitious or idolatrous4 ,even if1 as there is no reason to believe1 the statue of ,st4 ,peter in ,st4 ,peter's at ,rome1 and which the preacher calls a grimy bronze idol1 was originally1 as he tells us some say it was1 a statue of ,jupiter1 the honor paid to it by the faithful would not be paid to ,jupiter1 while intended to be paid to ,st4 ,peter4 #bdg ,but the toes of the image have been worn away by the kisses of the worshippers2 and do not these kisses prove that ,catholics adore the image8 ,the heathen adore their gods by kissing the feet of their statues2 and when ,catholics kiss the feet of the images of their saints1 how can it be said that they do not worship or adore images as the heathen do8 ,the heathen use incense in the worship of idols2 ,moses prescribes incense1 and the ,jews use it in their worship of the true ,god2 therefore the ,jews are idolaters6 ,the preacher forgets that what the tract declares to be dishonest is the accusation that ,catholics pay divine worship1 that is1 the worship due to ,god alone1 to images and pictures1 as the heathen do4 ,to kiss the feet of the statue of ,st4 ,peter1 from love and devotion to the saint himself1 the prince of the apostles1 on whom our ,lord founded his church1 is not to pay divine worship to the image1 nor even to ,peter himself4 ,were we so happy as to find ourselves at ,st4 ,peter's in ,rome1 we are quite sure that we should kneel before the statue of ,st4 ,peter1 and kiss its feet1 running the risk of its having been once a statue of ,jupiter1 and we should do it as a proper method of expressing our love and veneration for the great apostle1 and as simply and innocently as the mother kisses the carefully preserved portrait of her beloved son slain in battle for his faith or his country4 ,as to using the forms used by the heathen to express affection or devotion1 if proper in themselves1 we have as little scruple as we have in using the language which our ancestors used in the worship of ,woden or ,thor1 in our prayers and praises to the ,one ,ever-living and ,true ,god4 #c4 ,the sermon next takes up the false accusation that ,catholics pay divine worship to the ,blessed ,virgin and the saints4 ,the tract asks3 ,is ,,it ,,honest to accuse ,catholics of putting the ,blessed ,virgin or the ,saints in the place of ,god or the ,lord ,jesus ,christ--when the ,council of ,trent declares that it is simply useful to ask their intercession in order to obtain favor from ,god1 through his ,son1 ,jesus ,christ our ,lord1 who alone is our ,saviour and ,redeemer-- ,when 'asking their prayers and influence with ,god1' is exactly of the same nature as when ,christians ask the pious prayers of one another8 ,the preacher says1 ,at the outset let me remark1 that the question what ,roman ,catholics do is not conclusively answered by quoting what the ,council of ,trent declares4 ,this supposes that the same rule must be applied to ,catholics1 who have an authoritative church1 that is applicable to non-,catholics1 who have none1 or to people among whom every one believes according to his own private judgment1 and does what is right in his own eyes4 ,but this is not permissible4 ,our faith is taught and defined by authority1 and to know what we as ,catholics believe or do1 you must be certain what the church authoritatively teaches or prescribes4 ,we cannot go contrary to that and be ,catholics4 ,no doubt ,catholics may depart from the faith of the church1 and disobey her precepts2 but when they obstinately persist in doing so1 they cease to be ,catholics in faith and practice1 and their belief or their practice is of no account in judging what is or is not ,catholic doctrine or practice4 ,they who believe or do anything contrary to what is declared by the ,council of ,trent1 are pro tanto non-,catholics4 ,to know what is ,catholic faith and ,catholic practice1 you have only to consult the standards1 of the ,catholic ,church--not every individual ,catholic1 as you must every individual ,protestant when you wish to ascertain what is ,protestant opinion and practice4 #bdh ,our standards speak for themselves2 and in determining what ,catholicity enjoins or allows1 you must consult them1 and them only4 ,mr4 ,bacon and his brethren have as free access to our standards as we ourselves have1 and they must remain under the charge of dishonestly misrepresenting us1 or prove by our standards that the church offers or authorizes or does not forbid her children from offering divine worship to the ,blessed ,virgin4 ,their surmises1 their conjectures1 their inferences from what they see among ,catholics1 but do not understand1 must be thrown out as inadmissible testimony4 ,there are the standards3 if they sustain you1 well and good2 if not1 you are convicted1 and judgment must go against you4 ,this is the case presented by the tract1 and which ,mr4 ,bacon and his friends are to meet fairly and squarely4 ,now1 the tract shows from the standards1 from the ,council of ,trent1 which is plenary authority in the case1 that the accusation against ,catholics of putting the ,blessed ,virgin or the saints in the place of ,god or the ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 is an accusation so manifestly untrue that no one can honestly make it4 ,here also is the catechism1 which the church teaches all her children4 ,q4 ,does this commandment the first forbid all honor and veneration of saints and angels8 ,no2 we are to honor them as ,god's special friends and servants1 but not with the honor which belongs to ,god4 ,the ,council of ,trent declares that it is good and useful to ask the saints who reign together with ,christ in heaven1 to pray for us1 or to ask favors for us from our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 who alone is our ,redeemer and ,saviour4 ,we ask the saints in heaven1 as we ask our friends on earth1 to pray for us4 ,here is the whole principle of the case4 ,the ,council of ,trent1 ,sess4 #bb1 c4 #c1 defines that1 though the church is accustomed to celebrate masses in honor of the saints1 yet she teaches they are never to be offered to them1 but to ,god alone4 ,non tamen illis sacrificium offerri docet1 sed ,deo soli1 qui illos coronavit4 ,now1 with ,catholics the distinctively divine worship1 the supreme worship due to ,god alone1 and which it would be idolatry to offer to any other1 is sacrifice1 the highest possible sacrifice1 the sacrifice of the ,mass1 which our priests offer every day on the altar2 the one unbloody sacrifice which was offered in a bloody manner on ,calvary4 ,this is offered to ,god alone2 all else that is offered to ,god in worship1 prayer1 praise1 love1 veneration1 may1 in kind at least1 be offered to men4 ,we honor the chief magistrate1 whether called king or emperor1 president or governor2 we honor the prelates whom the ,holy ,ghost has placed over us in the church2 we pray to or petition rulers and men in authority2 we chant the praises of the great and the heroic2 we love our country1 our family1 and friends2 we venerate the wise and the good1 who1 in services to the cause of truth1 morals1 and religion1 prove themselves godlike4 ,that ,protestants1 who have no sacrifice1 no priest1 no altar1 no victim1 should mistake the nature of our cultus sanctorum1 is not surprising1 for they have nothing in kind to offer ,god that we do not offer to the saints1 especially to the queen of saints1 the ,blessed ,mother of ,god4 ,but this is their fault1 not ours2 for it is easy for them to know--for our standards tell them so--that we as ,catholics place the supreme act of worship in the sacrifice of the ,mass--holding that only ,god is an adequate offering to ,god1 and that the sacrifice of the ,mass is never offered to the saints or to any but ,god alone4 #bdi ,there is a marked difference between our cultus sanctorum and that with which men like ,mr4 ,bacon1 of ,brooklyn1 seek to identify it4 ,the heathen offered sacrifices1 the highest form of worship they had1 to their idols1 their demigods and heroes2 we offer the highest worship which we have--and we have it only through ,god's goodness--to the one1 living1 true ,god only4 ,this proves that the accusation against ,catholics of putting the ,blessed ,virgin and the saints1 as objects of worship1 in the place of ,god1 is a false accusation1 so well known or so easily known to be false1 that no one of ordinary intelligence can honestly make it4 ,but the preacher supposes that ,catholics1 in other respects1 put them in the place of ,god4 ,this is impossible4 ,catholics hold that the saints1 with the ,blessed ,virgin at their head1 are men and women--creatures whom ,god has made1 has redeemed with his own blood1 and has elevated1 sanctified1 and glorified by his grace1 and therefore they cannot identify them with him or substitute them for him4 ,we hold that ,mary is the ,mother of ,christ1 and that he is her ,lord as well as ours1 and that it is through his merits alone1 applied beforehand1 that she was conceived without original stain2 and can anybody1 so believing1 mistake her for her ,son1 in any respect put her in his place1 or assign to her his mediatorial work8 ,the very fears expressed by our ,protestant friends that we do or are liable to do so1 prove that even they are able to discriminate between her and her ,son2 why not then we8 ,the reverend gentleman continues3 ,we are invited to several inquiries4 ,first3 ,is it true that the prayers that are offered by ,roman ,catholics to departed saints1 and especially to that holy woman whom we with them in all generations unite to call the blessed1 are only of such a nature as we might offer to a fellow-,christian here upon the earth in soliciting his prayers in our behalf8 ,secondly3 ,are these supplications only for favor and influence1 or are they for the direct gift of blessing and salvation8 ,do they put ,mary into the place of ,christ1 the one ,mediator between ,god and man2 making of the ,all-,merciful ,saviour who inviteth all to come unto him1 an inaccessible object of dread and terror1 whom we dare not approach except through the mediation of ,mary8 ,do they ascribe to her the glory due to ,christ1 the only name given under heaven among men whereby we may be saved8 ,do they profess faith in her alone for salvation8 ,do they put the saints in the place of the ,holy ,ghost1 by supplicating from them directly the divine gift of holiness and the renewal of the sinful heart8 ,we have answered these questions by anticipation4 ,it is probable that ,catholics believe somewhat more distinctly and more firmly in the one mediator of ,god and men1 the man ,christ ,jesus1 than do the sects1 and are less likely to forget it1 seeing that all their practical devotions1 public and private1 the great honors given to ,mary and the saints are founded on it and tend directly to keep us from forgetting it4 ,catholics do not pray to ,mary because they regard the ,all-merciful ,saviour as inaccessible1 or as an object of dread and terror2 nor because she comes in between them and him1 represents him1 or enables them to approach him through her1 as is evident from the fact that we not unfrequently directly beseech him to grant that she and other saints may pray for us4 ,we honor her as the mother of ,god in his human nature4 ,we pray to her to pray to him for us1 not only because she is our mother as well as his1 but because she is dear to her ,son our ,lord1 and he delights to honor her by granting her requests4 #bej ,for a like reason we invoke the saints1 that is1 ask them to pray for us4 ,we must then be more ignorant and stupid than even our sectarian ministers believe us1 if1 in praying to them because as his friends they are dear to him1 we substitute them for him from whom what we seek can alone come4 ,if we believe they themselves give it1 why do we ask them to pray him to grant it8 ,cannot our acute and ingenious doctor see that the invocation of saints renders the error he supposes ,catholics fall into utterly impossible in the case of the most ignorant ,catholic1 and that it tends to fix the mind and the heart directly on the fact that every good and every perfect gift is from above and cometh down from the ,father of lights8 ,can he not see that the intercession we invoke is a clear confession of the truth he thinks it obscures or obliterates8 ,if we think the good comes from them1 why do we ask them to intercede with ,christ to bestow it8 ,why not ask it of them8 ,but is it true1 as the tract affirms1 that we ask nothing of ,mary and the saints in heaven that it would be improper to ask of our fellow-,christian8 ,this is not precisely what the tract asserts4 ,it asserts that asking their prayers and influence is exactly of the same nature1 that is1 the same in principle1 with what ,christians do when they ask the pious prayers of one another4 ,to this the preacher replies3 ,i hold here a volume of #hjj pages1 almost every one of which contains an answer to these questions1 so far as ,i honestly read it1 in the affirmative4 ,it is ,the ,glories of ,mary1 by ,st4 ,alphonsus ,liguori1 approved by ,john1 ,archbishop of ,new-,york4 ,i scarcely know where to begin quoting1 or to cease4 ',o ,mary1 sweet refuge of miserable sinners1 assist me with thy mercy4 ,keep far from me my infernal enemies1 and come thyself to take my soul and present it to my eternal ,judge4' ',all the mercies ever bestowed upon men have come through ,mary4' ',mary is called the gate of heaven1 because no one can enter heaven if he does not pass through ,mary1 who is the door of it4' ',as we have access to the eternal ,father only through ,jesus ,christ1 so we have access to ,jesus ,christ only through ,mary4' ',mary is the peacemaker between sinners and ,god4' ',my ,mother ,mary1 to thy hands ,i commit the cause of my eternal salvation4 ,to thee ,i consign my soul2 it was lost1 but thou must save it4' ',thou art the advocate1 the mediatrix of reconciliation1 the only hope1 and the most secure refuge of sinners4' ',i place in thee all my hopes of salvation4' ',she is the advocate of the world and the true mediatrix between ,god and man4' ',blessed is he who clings with love and confidence to those two anchors of salvation1 ,jesus and ,mary4' ',deliver me from the burden of my sins2 dispel the darkness of my mind2 banish earthly affections from my heart4' ',o ,lady1 change us from sinners to saints4' ,tastes differ1 and not every ,catholic would employ every expression used by ,st4 ,alphonsus in his ,glories of ,mary2 but none of these expressions convey to the ,catholic mind what they do to the ,protestant mind2 for ,catholics have a key to their meaning in their faith in the incarnation4 ,the strongest of them is justified by the relation of ,mary to that great mystery in which centres and from which radiates the whole of ,christianity4 ,from her was taken that flesh1 that human nature1 in which ,god redeems and saves us2 and being taken from her1 she has a relation to ,god1 our ,saviour1 and consequently to our redemption and salvation1 which no other woman1 no other creature1 has or can have4 ,this relation explains the passages in the ,litany of our ,lady of ,loretto1 and those passages of ,st4 ,alphonsus and other ,catholic writers which assert that all mercies and graces come from ,god through her4 ,they all come from ,god in his human nature2 and as that nature was taken from her1 they must in some sense come through her4 #bea ,they come through her1 because they come from ,god as born of her4 ,they also come through her1 because ,god1 her divine ,son1 who gives them1 loves her as his mother1 and delights to honor with the highest honor a creature can receive2 he therefore confers the favors mortals pray for only through her intercession4 ,but as all the special honor done to her is done only in consequence of her relation as his mother1 the higher we carry that honor the more clear1 distinct1 and energetic our conviction of the fact of the incarnation1 and the more impossible it must be for us to put her in the place of the ,incarnate ,word1 or to substitute her for her ,son1 who is the one mediator of ,god and men1 the man ,christ ,jesus4 ,to do so would be not only to rob him of his glory1 but to deny her title to that very honor given to her as the mother of ,god4 ,catholics are not capable of anything so illogical and absurd4 ,the key to the other expressions objected in ,st4 ,alphonsus is in this same relation to the incarnation and the confidence of the ,saint in the power and efficacy of ,mary's prayers or intercession for us with her divine ,son4 ,he confides to ,mary1 leaves in her hands the cause of his eternal salvation1 as the client confides his cause to his advocate or counsel4 ,my soul1 he says1 was lost1 but thou must save it--by thy intercession with thy ,son1 who will deny thee nothing thou dost ask1 because thou canst never ask but what he inspires thee to ask1 and what is agreeable to his will1 and he delights to honor thee before heaven and earth by granting thy requests4 ,in the same way understand the expressions1 the advocate1 the mediatrix of reconciliation1 and all the rest4 ,the term mediatrix is not the best possible1 because it is liable to mislead not a ,catholic1 but a non-,catholic1 who believes little in the incarnation1 and refuses to interpret the language of ,catholics by the official teaching of their church4 ,the ,catholic always knows in what sense it is said1 and for him the explanations are never necessary2 still less are they necessary for ,him who sees and knows the thoughts and intents of the heart before they are even formed4 ,it is the duty of non-,catholics to consult the standards of the church and to explain what seems to them difficult or inexact in the warm and energetic expressions of ,catholic love and devotion by them2 and it is not honest to found a charge against ,catholics on such expressions without having done so4 ,the preacher continues3 ',is ,,it ,,honest to accuse ,catholics of putting the ,blessed ,virgin or the saints in the place of ,god or of the ,lord ,jesus ,christ8 ,you have the answer4 ,you know the place which ,god claims for himself the 'honor which ,he will not give to another4' ,you have heard from the very words of the ,roman ,catholics themselves the place to which they exalt the spirits of departed men and women4 ,yes1 you have the answer such as your minister gives2 and we have shown that his answer misinterprets facts which he does not understand2 that it refuses to interpret them by the key furnished in the official teaching of the church2 that it contradicts itself1 and proves1 if anything1 the falsity of the very charge it undertakes to establish1 and therefore clears neither him nor you1 if you accept it1 from the charge of dishonestly bringing false accusations against the church of ,god4 #beb ,is ,,it ,,honest to assert that the ,catholic ,church grants any indulgence or permission to commit sin--when an 'indulgence1' according to her universally received doctrine1 was never dreamed of by ,catholics to imply1 in any case whatever1 any permission to commit the least sin2 and when an indulgence has no application whatever to sin until after sin has been repented of and pardoned8 ,the preacher has the air of conceding that this charge is unfounded1 and says1 ,if it is made1 it does not appear to be sustained yet he maintains that indulgences really remit the punishment due to sins committed after the indulgence has been bought and paid for2 for they are alleged to preserve the recipient in grace till death1 in spite of subsequent sins4 ,and he cites the case of ,tetzel1 in the sixteenth century1 in proof ,he adduces what purports to be a form of absolution published by ,tetzel1 and offered for sale in the market-places of ,germany4 ,the form of absolution alleged is manifestly a forgery1 and a very stupid forgery2 and besides1 absolution and indulgences are very different things1 and the indulgence affects only a certain temporary punishment that remains to be expiated after the absolution is given or the eternal guilt is pardoned1 and is rather a commutation than a remission of even that temporary punishment1 which1 if not commuted or borne here1 must be expiated hereafter in purgatory4 ,there is no form of indulgence2 there are conditions of gaining an indulgence2 but there is no certificate given to the effect that we have obtained it4 ,if we have sincerely complied with the conditions prescribed by the pope1 we gain it2 but whether we have gained it neither we nor the church can know in this life without a special revelation4 ,every ,catholic knows that to offer money for it would argue a disposition on his part that would render it impossible1 while he retained that disposition1 to gain an indulgence4 ,no one can gain an indulgence while in a state of sin1 and hence indulgences are not at any price profitable things to purchase4 ,that ,tetzel exaggerated the virtue of indulgences was asserted by ,luther and his friends2 but that he offered them for sale in the market-places1 was never1 we believe1 even pretended until after his death--was and never has been proved4 ,luther and his friends complained that he was causing a scandal1 and procured his arrest and imprisonment in a convent of his order1 where he died two years after1 without the matter1 owing to the troubles of the times1 even undergoing a judicial investigation4 ,as for ,luther's own testimony1 in a case touching his hatred against ,rome1 it is of no account4 ,the only sense1 continues the preacher1 in which the ,roman ,church has ever sold licenses for crime1 has been in this1 of announcing 7not in ,america1 in this century7 a tariff of cash-prices at which 7with contrition7 all evil consequences of certain sins1 whether in this world or the world to come1 would be cancelled4 ,the price-current in ,germany in the sixteenth century1 ranged as follows3 for polygamy1 six ducats2 for sacrilege and perjury1 nine ducats2 for murder1 eight ducats4 ,in ,switzerland1 at the same period1 the price was for infanticide1 four francs2 for parricide or fratricide1 one ducat4 ,this seems to us quite enough4 ,the ,catholic will perceive that our learned friend is not very well posted on ,catholic matters4 ,he evidently confounds sacramental absolution with indulgences1 and indulgences with the dispensations which the church grants in particular cases1 not from the law of ,god1 nor the law of nature1 but from her own ecclesiastical law2 and supposes that the fees paid to the chancery for the necessary legal documents in the various causes that come before it1 are the fees paid by the faithful for indulgences and the pardon of their sins4 ,footnote #ec #bec ,a man who speaks of matters of which he knows nothing is liable to say some very absurd things4 ,nevertheless1 the preacher says expressly1 and we doubt not means to concede the point made by the tract1 that indulgences are not licenses to commit sin1 but he has labored to make his concession as little offensive to his ,protestant brethren as possible4 ,still he concedes it4 ,i think1 therefore1 he says1 that the author of this tract is right in claiming that it is not just to assert that the ,catholic ,church grants any indulgence or permission to commit sin4 ,no1 she does no such thing1 she only intimates beforehand her willingness1 if such and such crimes are committed1 to make it all right with the malefactor both in this world and the world to come1 for penitence--and ,,cash4 ,he who should offer cash to pay for absolution would receive for answer1 ,thy money perish with thee6 ,footnote #ec3 ,for a full proof of the forgery of the above passage in the book called ,tax-,book of the ,roman ,chancery1 see ,bishop ,england's ,letters to ,dr4 ,fuller1 ,works of ,bishop ,england1 vol4 iii4 p4 #ac4 ,is ,,it ,,honest to repeat over and over again that ,catholics pay the priests to pardon their sins--such a thing is unheard of anywhere in the ,catholic ,church--when any transaction of the kind is stigmatized as a grievous sin1 and ranked along with murder1 adultery1 blasphemy1 etc41 in every catechism and work on ,catholic theology8 ,the preacher thinks it is very honest1 because1 if the church prohibits and punishes it as simony1 it is very evident that it sometimes happens4 ,if the offence had never been committed1 the church would never have had occasion to legislate on the matter4 ,it was argued that for a long time the crime of parricide was unknown at ,rome1 because there was no law prohibiting and punishing it4 ,this is his answer1 and a proof1 we suppose1 of his candor of which he boasts1 of his readiness to die rather than knowingly repeat a false charge against the church6 ,the real accusation against the church1 which the tract denies can be honestly made1 is that ,catholics are required to pay1 or that the priest can lawfully exact pay1 for the pardon or absolution he pronounces in the sacrament of penance4 ,it does not necessarily deny that the thing may sometimes be done1 but1 if so1 it is unlawfully1 is a sin1 and ranked along with murder1 adultery1 etc4 ,the sin of simony1 in one form or another1 has in the history of the church often been committed1 and those who committed it are1 in general1 favorites with ,protestant historians1 who seldom fail to brand as haughty tyrants and spiritual despots the noble and virtuous popes who struggled energetically against it1 and did their best to correct or guard against the evil4 ,but honest men will not hold the church responsible for the misdeeds of unprincipled men1 which she prohibits and exerts all the power of her discipline to prevent and punish4 ,the case is too plain to need argument4 ,penance1 the church teaches1 is a sacrament1 of which absolution is a part1 and to sell any sacrament or part thereof is simony1 a grievous sin2 and though there is no sin that may not have been committed1 yet the fact of a priest1 however depraved1 demanding pay for sacramental pardon or absolution is not known to have ever occurred4 ,the church prohibits it1 indeed1 but only in prohibiting simony1 and we are not aware that she has ever passed any special law against this particular species of simony1 and therefore the argument of the preacher falls to the ground1 and for aught he shows1 it is true to the letter that the thing is unheard of4 #bed ,is ,,it ,,honest to persist in saying that ,catholics believe that their sins are forgiven merely by the confession of them to the priest1 without a true sorrow for them1 or a true purpose to quit them--when every child finds the contrary distinctly and clearly stated in the catechism1 which he is obliged to learn before he can be admitted to the sacraments8 ,any honest man can verify this statement by examining any ,catholic catechism4 ,nothing1 says the preacher1 could be more conclusive than this logic1 if we could constantly presume that the belief and practice of the people always coincide exactly with the teaching of the catechism4 ,if the coincidence were perfect1 there would be no sins to confess1 no need of the sacrament of penance1 and no question as to the condition of ghostly absolution or pardon could ever be raised4 ,but as the preacher finds nothing to object to under this head in the teaching or official practice of the church1 we must presume that he finds the logic of the tract1 whatever may be the deceptions1 if any1 practised upon the priest1 is quite conclusive1 and he certainly concedes quite enough to show that the accusation against the church which the tract repels1 cannot be honestly repeated4 ,we would remind the preacher that no one is forced against his will to go to confession1 and the very fact of one's going is presumptive proof of sincere sorrow for his sins1 and a resolution1 weaker or stronger1 ,god helping him1 to forsake them4 ,why should he seek to deceive the priest1 when he knows that if he seeks to do so1 he would not only receive no benefit from the absolution1 but would commit the grievous sin of sacrilege by profaning the sacrament8 ,is ,,it ,,honest to say that ,catholics believe that man1 by his own power1 can forgive sin--when the priest is regarded by the ,catholic ,church only as the agent of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 acting by the power delegated to him1 according to these words1 ',whose sins you shall forgive1 they are forgiven them1 and whose sins you shall retain1 they are retained8' ,st ,john xx4 #bc4 ,the preacher has offered no reply1 or1 if he has1 we have overlooked it1 to this grave accusation2 perhaps he has none to make4 ,the journals1 however1 attempt a reply1 the purport of which is1 that1 though the tract states truly the official teaching of the church1 yet ,catholics practically believe1 as every one knows who has had intercourse with them1 that it is the priest1 not ,god1 who they believe pardons sin4 ,this1 too1 is in substance the reply of ,mr4 ,bacon throughout4 ,the tract states the doctrine of the church correctly on all the points made1 but then that1 it is pretended1 is not the doctrine of the ,catholic people1 the practical doctrine of ,catholics1 and gives no clue to the practical workings of the ,roman system--a clear confession that they really have nothing to object to ,catholic doctrine and practice1 though they have much to object to in what is no doctrine or teaching or practice of the church4 ,the reason of this1 we suppose1 is1 that they have no conception of the church4 ,now1 we think it is very likely that there are many ,catholics who cannot define very scholastically the distinction between efficient cause and instrumental or medial cause2 but put the question to the most ignorant ,catholic you can find4 ,do you believe the priest as a man in confession pardons your sins8 as soon as he gets hold of what you are driving at1 he will answer3 ,no2 he pardons or absolves them as a priest4 ,this answer means that the priest does not absolve by a virtue in him as a man1 but by virtue of his priestly office1 to which he is appointed by the ,holy ,ghost2 that is1 as the minister1 or as the tract says1 the agent of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ4 ,all ,catholics unhappily do not conform their life to their faith2 but you will find that the faith of the people is that of the church1 that which the church officially teaches2 and there is no room for the distinction which non-,catholic ministers and journals1 try1 as their best resort in self-vindication1 to make between ,catholicity in the formularies of the church and the ,catholicity that works practically in the faith and lives of the ,catholic people1 whether learned or unlearned4 #bee ,all this talk about the practical workings of the system is moonshine1 at least outside of the record1 to which no ,catholic is bound to reply4 ,we are required to believe and defend only what the church teaches and requires of her children3 #h4 ,the tract concludes with the question1 ,is ,,it ,,honest to make these and many other similar charges against ,catholics--when they detest and abhor such false doctrines more than those do who make them1 and make them too1 without ever having read a ,catholic book1 or taken any honest means of ascertaining the doctrines which the ,catholic ,church really teaches8 ,,americans ,,love ,,fair ,,play4 ,in spite of all that sectarian preachers and journals can say1 the unprejudiced and fair-minded ,american will answer1 to each question the tract puts1 ,no6 it is not honest1 but gravely dishonest2 for every one is bound to judge ,catholics by the standards of the church1 open to all the world4 ,and these manifestly disprove the accusations4 ,we have attempted no defence in this article of our holy religion itself4 ,we have only attempted to show our ,protestant accusers that their efforts to prove themselves honest1 in their false charges against the church and her faithful children1 are unsuccessful4 ,they have not successfully impeached the tract in a single instance1 nor vindicated themselves from a single one of its charges2 nor can they do it4 ,many things may be said against the immaculate spouse of ,christ2 the daughters of the uncircumcised may call her black1 may rail against her1 and call her all manner of hard names2 but she stands ever in her loveliness1 all pure1 and dear to her ,lord1 who loves her1 and gave his life for her1 and dear to the heart of every one of her loving children1 and all the dearer from the foul aspersions cast upon her by the ignorant1 the foolish1 and the malicious4 ,we have not taken much notice of the professions of candor and independence of the preacher2 for we have never much esteemed professions which are contradicted by deeds2 nor are we easily won by fine things said of individual ,catholics by one who in the same breath calumniates the holy ,catholic ,church4 ,few sermons have we read that show a more decided hostility to our religion than these of the ,rev4 ,leonard ,w4 ,bacon1 of ,brooklyn1 which are unredeemed from their low sectarian character by any depth of learning1 extent of historical research1 force of logic1 richness of imagination1 flow of eloquence1 or sparkle of wit4 ,we have found them very commonplace and dull2 we have found it a dull affair to read and reply to them2 and we fear that our readers will find our reply itself very dull1 for dulness is contagious4 -------- #bef ,magas2 or1 ,long ,ago4 ,a ,tale ,of ,the ,early ,times4 ,chapter ,,ix4 ,she is bewitched1 my lord1 said her attendants to ,magas1 as he stood the next day by the bedside of ,chione1 and she knew him not4 ,she is bewitched4 ,chloe and two or three others heard the spell muttered just before she fell4 ,magas looked incredulously1 yet half-believing what they said4 ,why1 who can have bewitched her8 ,the ,christians1 my lord2 there were many present1 and they came on purpose4 ,they failed the first time1 but they did it the next4 ,magas gazed at ,chione1 as she lay1 for the most part insensible1 yet at intervals uttering incoherent words which alarmed them all4 ,he said softly1 ,chione8 ,she started up and gazed fiercely at him4 ,begone6 she said1 you have lost me my soul for ever2 begone6 ,and she struck him a violent blow4 ,it is ever thus1 my lord1 said an attendant consolingly1 when people are thus attacked by the furies2 they hate those most that they loved the best4 ,what makes you think the ,christians have bewitched her8 ,they are practising magic all over1 and playing all kinds of tricks throughout the country4 ,but why should they attack your mistress8 ,why1 my lord-- ,and the woman hesitated4 ,well1 what8 ,well1 my lord1 they do say she was once one of them2 and when any one leaves them1 they never forgive them--they torment them for ever4 ,pshaw6 what nonsense is this8 ,i did not make the story1 my lord2 more than one says so4 ,let those in this house beware of ever saying it again then1 unless they are fond of being scourged4 ,and ,magas turned away4 ,he was but half satisfied1 however4 ,he remembered the meeting with the bishop1 as he had afterward discovered him to be4 ,he knew1 too1 that ,lady ,damaris was accounted a ,christian1 and that ,chione always shrank from naming her4 ,the ,christians had a great name for magic3 but ,dionysius and the ,lady ,damaris were of the highest families4 ,magas paced for many hours the sacred grove to which he had wandered1 then suddenly betook him to the bishop's residence4 ,he was admitted1 courteously received2 but it was some time before he returned the bishop's greeting4 ,dionysius waited his pleasure with the courtesy for which he was remarkable4 ,at length ,magas said3 ,i cannot think you have done it4 ,done what1 my son8 ,bewitched ,chione2 made her mad4 ,is ,chione ill8 ,she is very ill1 she is raving and insensible by turns4 ,your words seemed just now to imply ,i was concerned in her illness4 ,her attendants think--think--tell me1 noble ,dionysius1 is it true that ,chione was ever a ,christian8 ,why do you ask8 #beg ,because it is important that the ,christians should know that1 if they have bewitched her in revenge for her leaving them1 they must undo the spell at once1 or brave my vengeance4 ,this much1 at least1 ,i may tell you--the ,christians have not bewitched her4 ,yet she fainted at some words uttered close to her1 and that was the second interruption of the evening4 ,my son1 you must not make me responsible for the interruptions2 ,i was not present at your meeting4 ,no1 but some ,christians were2 that has been ascertained4 ,even so2 each one must answer for himself4 ,you did not send them there8 ,i did not6 ,now1 will you tell me1 was ,chione ever a ,christian8 ,i would rather that she answer for herself4 ,she is not in a state to answer for herself1 and your answer may prevent some suffering2 if she was never a ,christian1 those slaves shall be scourged who affirm she was4 ,magas had hit on the right method1 as he intended2 the bishop answered at once3 ,spare the poor slaves1 my son4 ,i baptized ,chione myself4 ,baptized8 ,yes1 admitted her within the pale of the church by washing away all sin2 by that she became a ,christian4 ,how long ago8 ,about fifteen months before she was missing from ,corinth4 ,when did she leave your society8 ,i suppose when she left ,corinth2 ,i have not spoken with her since4 ,is her present illness connected with her ,christianity8 ,how can ,i possibly tell1 my son8 ,i have not seen her2 mental agitation may have caused it1 and her leaving her religion may have caused that2 how can ,i tell8 ,but has magic been used upon her8 ,not by ,christians1 decidedly2 and ,i should think1 not at all4 ,her brain is probably over-worked1 and she has been suffering from over-excitement3 these will frequently cause derangement4 ,and you think religion has nothing to do with it8 ,i did not say that1 my son2 to profess one thing and believe another must occasion uneasiness1 until the conscience is dead4 ,i should say1 from your account1 that ,chione is suffering from mental disturbance1 brought on by her unfaithfulness to her own convictions4 ,once a ,christian1 she must still feel its influence2 and unwilling to yield to its teachings1 she writhes under its power4 ,that is it1 that is what her nurses say2 she is under the power of the ,christians--bewitched by them4 ,now1 that spell must be undone4 ,if it is in her own mind1 caused by her own act1 no one can undo it1 as long as her will remains perverse4 ,what does this mean8 said ,magas4 ,it means this1 my friend3 ,christianity links the soul to the living ,god from which it sprang4 ,to become a ,christian is not a myth1 not a mere intellectual conviction1 not an adoption of philosophical tenets3 it is an act1 a solemn act of surrender2 it is an acknowledgment that the world has been disturbed by influences foreign to the true ,god2 it is a renunciation of those influences1 a solemn reunion of the soul with the ,eternal ,soul1 the ,creator1 the ,upholder1 the ,redeemer2 it is positive4 #beh ,a soul so linked by her own free consent1 placed under influences unknown to those outside1 must1 so long as conscience speaks at all1 suffer from the conflict she is undergoing1 in breaking loose from a personal intercourse with her ,maker1 as also from a revelation of truth1 beauty1 and goodness1 to plunge anew into the darkness of human guesses4 ,you speak in enigmas1 my lord6 ,i presume one must be initiated to understand you4 ,meantime1 tell me1 can you do anything for ,chione8 ,i am somewhat of a physician1 although no professor of magic4 ,i will see your patient1 if it will give you comfort4 ,magas bethought him3 the visit of a ,christian bishop to his house would be too remarkable4 ,what was he to do8 ,suddenly he said3 ,what could possess ,chione to make herself a ,christian8 ,i believe it was the love of truth and beauty4 ,she sought a key to the mysteries of life1 and ,christianity offered her one4 ,and yet she left it6 ,it is by no means clear that she has left it1 otherwise than by act4 ,she is an unfaithful member1 but she still believes1 or it would have no power over her4 ,i wonder is it religion that is making her so ill8 ,my ,lord ,dionysius1 among her former companions1 do you know one whose discretion you could trust to take care of her for a day or two1 who would be competent to discover whether ,christianity is disturbing her8 ,i know an amanuensis who might perhaps be willing to oblige you2 we will see4 ,they left the house by a side-door4 ,the bishop led the way through a narrow path for some distance1 till they came to a villa4 ,here he made a signal at the gate2 it was opened by an old servitor1 who bowed profoundly as he admitted him and his companion4 ,dionysius whispered a word in his ear1 and the old man tottered on before to a side entrance1 which he left open4 ,they entered1 and very shortly another door opened into a small library4 ,a lady was writing there2 they saluted her1 and ,magas recognized ,lotis4 ,the bishop quickly made known the purport of his visit1 and ,lotis willingly offered her services4 ,magas1 however1 demurred4 ,is it possible1 said he2 are you really a ,christian8 ,i have that happiness1 replied ,lotis4 ,why1 how can it be8 how is it that lofty minds like yours and ,chione's can ally yourselves with such a drivelling set8 ,lotis smiled as she observed1 ,i think1 ,lord ,magas1 that the illustrious ,dionysius1 who stands beside you1 will scarcely feel complimented4 ,magas blushed and apologized4 ,forgive me1 he said2 ,i am so fairly confounded to-day1 ,i do not know what ,i am saying4 ,dionysius said smilingly1 ,you do not know what ,christianity is1 and therefore stand excused beforehand4 ,do you wish ,lotis to accompany you to ,chione8 ,the more1 as ,i think she will scarcely be suspected of-- ,magas hesitated4 ,the bishop filled up the gap for him--of belonging to such a drivelling set4 ,no2 and ,chione even does not know it2 so your secret will be doubly safe4 ,you may confide in ,lotis entirely4 ,chapter ,x4 ,lotis took her place by the bedside of her friend1 but she found her situation almost a sinecure4 ,though ,chione did not recognize her1 she was very uneasy in her presence4 ,take those large black eyes away from me1 she would say4 #bei ,finally ,lotis found herself reduced to watching in the next room1 as ,magas still desired her to stay and direct proceedings2 and to beguile the hours1 she occupied herself in what had become almost a business with her1 in transcribing the gospels and apostolic papers for the use of the different churches4 ,magas often visited her1 and would have shared her watch1 had she permitted it2 but this she would not hear of2 so he was obliged to be content with frequent visits to inquire after the progress of ,chione1 and by degrees to study the parchments on which ,lotis was engaged4 ,ashamed to manifest the interest he felt1 he took them to his own apartment1 and studied first1 then secretly copied the writings with his own hand4 ,weeks went on2 ,chione's health improved1 but her insanity did not pass away4 ,lotis proposed she should be removed to a dwelling in the neighborhood of ,lady ,damaris' abode1 and be there tended4 ,two influences are about her here1 she said1 counteracting each other4 ,there all will be in unison4 ,magas assented4 ,i am no longer afraid of ,christians1 he said2 but how any one once believing what is here written1 continued he1 producing the gospel he had written out with his own hand-- how any one1 once believing1 can fall away1 is a mystery4 ,i would give all my possessions to have the faith1 the confidence in ,god1 herein described4 ,faith seems to mean the creature's power in ,god1 derived from ,god4 ,could ,i once feel that ,god is my ,father in the sense the gospel has it1 ,i would bid adieu to philosophy for ever1 and be at rest4 ,then you are not angry that ,chione is a ,christian8 said ,lotis4 ,i am angry that she has acted a lie1 and imposed upon me1 he said4 ,it was love of you that constrained her4 ,forgive her1 ,magas4 ,love of me6 ,did she not know ,i love truth8 ,i can never believe her again4 ,lotis left the apartment and proceeded to superintend the removal of ,chione4 ,magas went to the bishop1 to make arrangements for ,chione's maintenance2 he wished to settle revenues on her ere he departed4 ,depart6 are you about to leave ,athens1 my son8 ,yes1 father2 it has become hateful to me1 since ,i no longer love ,chione4 ,you do not intend to desert her8 ,i leave her in good hands2 what can ,i do more8 ,her whole being is bound up in you2 through you she sinned4 ,that is the worst of it2 ,i cannot look at her without feeling that2 but yet1 ,i knew not she was a ,christian1 nor did ,i know how sublime the ,christian faith is4 ,i cannot forgive her for abandoning her faith4 ,but you are not a ,christian1 ,magas8 ,no6 ,i am waiting for the manifestation of ,god4 ,i am going to the apostle who has heard and seen1 who works miracles in the name of ,jesus2 ,i am going to ask of this ,jesus the power of faith4 ,what do you mean by the power of faith1 ,magas8 ,the power of becoming a son of ,god1 of being free1 with the freedom of old ,merion1 who is more free amid his chains than the young worldlings with their power and wealth4 ,free from my own passions1 which master me and blind me2 free from false knowledge1 which misleads me2 free from the power of habit1 which enslaves me4 #bfj ,i want power to endure that crucifixion which dying to these objects will occasion me4 ,i feel my own nature rebelling against my aspiration1 and ,i want power to conquer it4 ,the apostle says the gospel is power unto salvation1 and that power is needed where life must be one combat1 as mine must be for the time to come4 ,dionysius1 too modest to arrogate to himself the gifts which daily experience proved him to possess1 of working miracles to attest the power of ,god1 simply said1 ,the holy apostle ,paul is even now at ,corinth2 you cannot do better than seek him there2 ,i myself will shortly do the same4 ,chapter ,,xi4 ,two years have passed2 such years6 ,magas has left ,athens1 has become a ,christian--nay1 a ,christian preacher4 ,his property has been more for others than himself2 for he has renounced wealth1 pomp1 earthly power1 to follow the footsteps of that wondrous convert who was brought to ,christ by being struck down to earth by excess of light--blinded by glory--by seeing the heavenly vision with the unprepared eyes of earth4 ,by ,st4 ,paul confirmed in the faith1 ,magas was1 through the same apostle1 set apart for the ministry through the laying on of hands4 ,magas has so completely changed his nature1 his very features seem altered4 ,the young ,athenian noble1 proud of a long line of ancestry1 but seeks to devote his days to the one ,master who shares his undivided heart4 ,yet he returned to ,athens1 and his voice was heard by ,chione4 ,all night she listened2 in her short slumbers she dreamed of him2 ,in the morning her wandering senses had returned4 ,lotis entered her room with her breakfast2 and the wild light in ,chione's eyes had subsided4 ,she looked around2 she inquired1 ,where am ,i8 ,lotis1 why are you here8 ,i am here to tend you1 dear ,chione2 you have been ill4 ,ill6 said ,chione1 passing her hand over her brow2 ,ill6 ,i've1 had a long1 strange dream6 ,where's ,magas8 ,i do not know1 said ,lotis4 ,he was here last night1 said ,chione4 ,i heard his voice2 all night ,i watched for him2 why did he keep away8 ,i cannot tell you1 answered ,lotis4 ,cannot tell6 ,is not this his house8 is he not at home8 ,no6 this is not his house1 said ,lotis2 he has been away from ,athens1 and he left you here to be taken care of4 ,now you must ask no more questions1 but take your breakfast4 ,i will send to ,magas to tell him you are better4 ,lotis left the room and summoned another attendant1 charging her to be careful of her speech1 lest the newly returned reason should again fail1 she herself sought the bishop to let him know of the change4 ,it required some care to break to ,chione the tidings that she was in the house of the ,lady ,damaris2 that for two years she had been a prey to a most cruel malady of the brain1 during which time ,lotis had taken every possible care of her2 and that ,magas had been1 during that time1 away4 ,reawakened reason almost tottered again on its throne4 ,chione's pride was evidently hurt4 ,two years6 two years6 was that the end of my triumph8 ,magas6 a mad woman6 ,what has ,magas been doing8 ,he will tell you that best himself2 he will be here shortly4 ,two years6 two long years6 ,o ,magas6 444444 #bfa ,they met6 ,but is this ,magas8 is this ,chione8 ,the long1 lank hair1 eyes almost starting from their sockets2 and that form1 so shrunken1 so bereft of its former beauty1 can this be the ,venus ,urania8 ,and ,apollo6 will you recognize him in that weather-beaten form1 coarsely clad1 and mien so humble1 though an intellectual manliness still sat upon the brow8 ,is this ,magas8 the same1 and yet so changed8 ,magas1 speak to me4 ,you are then recovering at last1 ,chione8 ,at last6 yes6 ,i knew not of my illness till ,i recovered4 ,strange thing1 this mind is1 ,magas6 ,i lived on you3 you were absent--,i died2 your voice brought me back to life4 ,nay1 you were ill before ,i left you1 ,chione4 ,it was a higher voice speaking to you1 to which you turned a deaf ear1 that caused your illness4 ,what mean you8 ,that the remorse you felt for your abandoned faith upset your mental energies4 ,venus ,urania should not have been enacted by a ,christian4 ,you have discovered my secret then2 but ,i am a ,christian no longer4 ,oh6 do not say that1 ,chione2 say1 rather1 you will repent1 do penance4 ,chione1 you cannot at will cast away faith4 ,the effect those words produced on you show that you still believe4 ,the devils believe and tremble1 muttered the unfortunate woman2 yet it is not faith they have4 ,but you are not yet a reprobate--are not yet beyond recall4 ,chione1 ,i1 ,magas1 entreat you1 do not lie to your ,god4 ,you cannot deceive him1 and for his power1 does not your past illness make you tremble for the future8 ,what means this altered tone1 ,magas8 said ,chione bitterly4 ,are you turned against me8 ,ah6 ,i see how it is6 ,two years of absence1 two years of illness1 have done their work4 ,man's constancy is of a summer day2 the winter comes1 he freezes with the cold2 for the love within no longer glows1 no longer sends the blood rushing through the veins with a warmth that defies exterior cold4 ,some other form fresher than this frame impaired by sickness hath replaced ,chione in your heart4 ,you come to bid me farewell4 ,farewell1 ,magas4 ,deceived by her feigned calmness1 ,magas rose4 ,again1 ,chione1 ,i entreat you to return to the religion you have abandoned4 ,and do penance at the church door in sackcloth and ashes8 ,is that your meaning8 ,will you be there to see me beg the prayers of the faithful as they pass in to the mysteries from which ,i am excluded8 ,this was said with an inconceivable mixture of sarcasm and bitterness4 ,love could sweeten even such an act as that1 said ,magas2 surely1 even that is better than apostasy4 ,and who are you that dare to twit me with apostasy8 ,false one1 wearied of thy old love1 seeking another1 7here she seized the arm of ,magas17 tell me1 she said fiercely1 what is the name of the fair one for whom you abandon me8 ,why would you know8 asked ,magas4 ,that ,i might tear her limb from limb6 said the frenzied woman4 ,that is beyond your power1 ,chione4 ,him ,i love sits enthroned in the heavens4 ,i have no earthly love4 ,chione1 farewell4 ,remember1 ,magas blesses you--blesses you as he leaves you4 ,you will not see him soon again1 for ,magas is a ,christian priest4 #bfb ,he left her4 ,no1 the energies did not depart as she started to her feet on hearing the last words--a ,christian priest6 ,magas6 ,oh6 had ,i known1 could ,i have guessed6 ,the love of ,magas without losing my religion6 ,can ,i regain it8 ,yes2 by penance1 ,chione1 doing penance6 ,faugh6 ,chione standing in the cold1 clothed in sackcloth1 exposed to the derision of the faithful4 ',twould be easy to love1 he said4 ,did he say so8 ,love must be boiling hot indeed to sweeten such an act as that2 and my love1 ah6 ah6 love for religion1 such a religion as that1 ah6 ah6 ah6 ,the poor woman raved1 but alas6 there was too much method in her madness4 ,wilfully she shut out faith2 wilfully she turned to hate all that heretofore she had held dear2 but she acted for a while with an earthly prudence that deceived those around her4 ,she staid with the ,lady ,damaris until she had recovered health and strength1 until she had made herself sure of the independence ,magas had settled on her4 ,then she left1 and opened a school of philosophy1 which was soon filled4 ,her former reputation did her much service in that respect1 and that she had escaped from the enchantments of the ,christians1 who had tried to destroy her1 added to the interest she inspired4 ,she soon recovered her former beauty1 and she studied now1 studied deeply1 how to thwart the ,christians1 how to demonstrate that whatever was beautiful in their religion they had stolen from the muses2 that whatever was mystical came to them from ,hindostan1 the seat of mysticism2 that whatever was reasonable and ethical they had learned from philosophy4 ,it was a splendid success in ,athens1 that philosophical school of ,chione2 for it flattered the passions while it shed the grace of eloquence and refinement over them4 ,all beauty1 taste1 and melody were made to yield their utmost sweetness there4 ,her disciples were of the rich1 the great1 the noble4 ,they could practise the elegant course of study alternating with ease that she prescribed3 ,to enjoy is the aim of existence1 refinement1 cultivation1 a correct system of ethics makes perfect enjoyment4 ,science gives interest1 lifts one above the vulgar4 ,art ennobles and civilizes1 and ,athens is still the central point of art1 science1 and philosophy4 ,so said ,chione4 ,chapter ,,xii4 ,indeed1 ,lotis1 you must give me more hope than that2 you must not bid me despair4 ,the words were spoken somewhat louder than was intended4 ,they were heard by one who was passing by4 ,the speaker was ,magas2 the passer-by was ,chione4 ,magas was lamenting over the account he had heard of ,chione's continued resistance to grace4 ,chione applied to the words another meaning2 she ascribed them to a passion felt for ,lotis1 and her heart burned with rage and jealousy4 ,magas was then returned to ,athens4 ,what was he doing8 ,she set spies on his steps4 ,he was often at the bishop's house1 often in the ,christian assembly2 but also often had interviews with ,lotis4 ,this fact1 which might have been easily explained by the occupation of ,lotis1 who supplied copies of books1 and kept various accounts for the church1 was otherwise interpreted by the misled woman1 and she resolved on the destruction of ,lotis4 #bfc ,if she could not regain the love of ,magas1 at least she would not have a rival4 ,she had influence in the city4 ,nero's persecution1 though but little felt in the colonies1 could be brought to bear4 ,lotis should not live to triumph over her by a ,christian marriage4 ,the idea was insupportable4 ,up to this point1 ,chione had kept herself unfettered from human ties since ,magas had departed4 ,she had loved ,magas1 and though many had made her offers of marriage1 she could not resolve to accept them4 ,magas was alike elegant and profound4 ,who was worthy to succeed him8 ,athenian after ,athenian paid court to her2 gay1 witty1 and attractive to all1 ,chione accepted none4 ,this was a matter of great wonder in so licentious a city as ,athens4 ,but a greater wonder still was to ensue4 ,a new ,roman praetor arrived4 ,a rude barbarian he seemed to the fashionables of ,athens3 certainly he was not distinguished for refinement1 for learning1 or for elegance2 but it was soon observed that ,chione held him enthralled1 and1 what was more remarkable1 that she seemed to favor him4 ,how it happened1 people could hardly tell1 but a different spirit seemed animating ,athens4 ,the ,christians1 from being despised were becoming feared1 and at length hated4 ,when ,nero's edict had been first made known1 it made little impression2 but gradually a voice was found1 to proclaim that there were ,christians in ,athens practising magic to the detriment of all good citizens4 ,a few poor slaves were seized and brought before the praetor2 they were ruthlessly condemned on acknowledging themselves ,christians4 ,people were startled1 but poor slaves have few friends1 and the matter blew over4 ,suddenly the praetor grows more religious1 decrees foreign to the usual spirit of ,athenian government are enacted2 a test is instituted1 and several free citizens of ,athens have to abide the scrutiny2 executions follow1 and ,chione's reputation suffers1 for it is currently reported that it is she who instigates the inquiry and persecutes the new sect4 ,the ,roman praetor evidently takes counsel of her4 ,but there comes one concerning whom even he hesitates2 a young lady1 daughter of a philosopher1 one beloved for her private virtues1 is brought before the judge4 ,sacrifice to the genius of the emperor4 ,i cannot4 ,why not8 ,i am a ,christian4 ,how often have the words been repeated2 they are so simple1 yet so fraught with consequence2 how many perished under that simple interrogatory6 ,lotis undergoes it2 she is remanded2 the praetor seeks to release her2 he is sick of his office when it hits upon the young1 the innocent1 the lovely2 the outside interests him1 he cannot see the soul4 ,faith1 ever young1 has sustained many an aged slave1 wrinkled with age2 has adorned many a worker embrowned and toil-worn1 bearing marks on his frame that his life has not been spent in uselessness2 but these excited only a passing interest1 if any--they were common people 7would that the toiling saints were more common67 they went to their doom1 by fire or by the headsman1 unmarked by men and unpitied1 though ,heaven assumed their souls with hymns of joy1 dressed them in white garments1 crowned them with brilliants1 endowed them with perpetual youth and with beauty that never will fade4 ,but here comes a lady4 ,the praetor understands that she has slaves to wait upon her1 every luxury attends her2 she may lead a life of indolence1 if she pleases4 ,these are the exterior signs1 the signs that awaken commiseration4 ,the praetor hesitates4 #bfd ,chione does not hesitate4 ,the prisoner is not only a ,christian1 she is a member of a conspiracy just laid open to ,chione's apprehension4 ,she has lived in the city longer than the praetor1 she knows its dangers4 ,this ,lotis is a dangerous person1 she is a personal enemy to ,chione2 she must die2 nay1 ,chione names the manner of her death2 she is to die by fire4 ,the praetor1 infatuated by his passion for the guilty woman who prescribes to him the sentence he is to pronounce1 submits1 gently hinting that he looks for his reward4 ,reward6 says ,chione to herself1 is not a smile from me reward enough for a barbarian like him8 ,and in her egotism1 she really believes she is speaking the simple truth4 ,the sentence is pronounced2 horror seizes the city2 to-morrow the flames are to consume the conspirators1 who are many in number2 and ,lotis is among them2 there is no escape4 ,the ancient bishop contrives1 however1 to visit his condemned flock1 bearing consolation1 courage1 and1 above all1 the blessed sacrament1 with him4 ,to each and all he addressed himself according to their needs2 if he1 too1 staid a little longer with ,lotis than with the others1 it arose out of a previous conversation1 and because he wished to promote a holy work4 ,my daughter1 do you know who has stirred up this accusation against you8 ,i rather guess than know it1 father4 ,what have ,i done to draw down ,chione's hatred8 ,she is jealous of ,magas in your regard4 ,she cannot appreciate the depth of ,christian devotedness2 she can understand selfish aims alone4 ,poor ,chione6 ,do you1 from your heart1 forgive her8 ,i have not thought about forgiveness2 ,i pity her too much4 ,do you remember the conversation we had years ago8 ,about laying down my life for her8 ,father1 ,i do4 ,are you willing to do so now8 ,if ,i thought it would save her soul1 ,i am more than willing4 ,pray for her1 then1 my daughter4 444444 ',twas a wild shriek that rang through the streets that morning1 as ,magas arrived just in time to see the procession set forth1 to recognize ,lotis1 to hear ,chione's name as the one who had procured her condemnation4 ,stop1 stop6 he had cried to the ,roman soldiery2 stop6 ,it is all a mistake2 stop6 ,in a few minutes it will be rectified4 ,stop for a short time1 in the name of all that is holy6 ,had ,magas donned his patrician's dress and scattered largess1 as in times of yore1 his words would have been heeded2 a few minutes would have been granted4 ,even now1 his air1 his manner1 his authoritative gestures occasioned a slight pause2 but his weather-stained appearance caused him to be considered as a plebeian1 and the pause was not long4 ,he flew rather than ran to ,chione's abode4 ,come1 said he1 it seems you are omnipotent in ,athens2 come and prevent a murder4 ,he dragged her with him to the praetor's house1 but the great man was absent4 ,a bright flame lit up the sky6 ,my ,god1 if we are too late6 he cried4 ,almost carrying ,chione in his arms1 ,magas hurried through the streets1 till they came to a place set apart for the execution4 ,it was already commenced2 singing hymns of glory to ,god1 one soul after another departed homeward4 ,magas paused opposite to ,lotis2 she made a sign of recognition4 ,magas turned to ,chione4 ,are you a devil1 he shrieked1 that you have dared to do this8 ,forgive her1 ,magas1 as ,i forgive her1 said the dying ,lotis4 ,farewell1 ,chione6 ,friends we were in youth1 and we shall yet meet in heaven4 ,lotis was gone4 #bfe ,meet in heaven6 meet in heaven6 meet in heaven6 ,i and ,lotis meet in heaven6 meet in heaven6 ,magas1 tell me1 ,magas1 can it be8 ,the brain of ,magas was on fire with excitement1 and he held a murderess in his arms2 but he was a ,christian priest1 and he answered solemnly3 ,god is merciful2 ,christ died for sinners4 ,do penance2 it may be yet4 ,conclusion4 ,very many years have passed away1 and if the dignity of person is considered1 a more solemn martyrdom than the last we have commemorated is to take place4 ,the venerable bishop and his companions1 some priests1 some laymen1 are to lay their heads upon the block--among them ,magas4 ,a woman veiled1 bearing but few remains of beauty or of youth1 was also there2 but not a prisoner2 she was there to kneel at the bishop's feet1 to pray for his blessing4 ,that morning1 for the first time for long1 long years1 had that woman knelt within a ,christian church--had received the adorable sacrament of the body and blood of our ,lord1 after years of penance heroically1 lovingly performed at the entrance to the building4 ,that morning she had been absolved1 that morning communicated4 ,ere he went to his home in heaven1 the venerable bishop1 who had sustained the fainting and often faltering soul through so many years of expiation1 had thought fit to pronounce her purified1 to command that she should again take her place among the faithful4 ,she came to thank him2 to accompany him--him and ,magas6 ,consoled1 the procession moved along4 ,chione--such was the name of the penitent--knelt as the victims knelt4 ,the bishop1 ere he surrendered himself1 gave his blessing to all the assembly4 ,magas preceded him to the block4 ,when the axe fell1 the woman fell also4 ,magas and ,chione stood together before the judgment-seat of ,god4 ------- ,translated ,from ,le ,correspondant4 ,abyssinia ,and ,king ,theodore4 ,by ,antoine ,d',abbadie4 ,a ,spanish bull having accidentally strayed on a railroad1 which spoiled the beauty of his beloved country1 met a locomotive4 ,the king of the pasture-lands1 fired with anger at the violation of his right1 and listening only to the voice of his courage1 lowered his head and butted with his horns so accustomed to victory against the mail-clad invader of his verdant fields4 ,this battle is an image of that which is going to take place between ,england and ,theodore1 ,king of the ,kings of ,ethiopia4 ,it is plain that it is not ,theodore who represents the locomotive4 #bff ,before explaining the true motives of the costly ,english expedition to ,abyssinia1 it may be well to look at the physical and moral condition of the country which is to be the scene of conflict1 and where ,i passed more than ten years of my youth4 ,the whole extent of territory from ,suez and ,aquabah to the ,strait of ,mandeb1 or affliction1 along the shores of the ,red ,sea1 is barren and desolate4 ,the small1 scattered towns in this region owe their existence to commercial travelling2 and even in the most favored portions of the land it takes a two or three days' journey from the salt water into the interior1 before meeting cultivated fields4 ,the only deep bay in the south of the ,red ,sea is that of ,adulis1 which the natives designate by the ,gulf of ,velvet1 perhaps on account of the smoothness of its waters1 sheltered by the palisades which guard it on the eastern side4 ,the ,english1 who are fond of baptizing territories before conquering them1 have called this part of the sea1 ,the bay of ,annesley4 ,this name is said to be that of the family of ,lord ,valentia1 who1 little versed in geography1 imagined that he had discovered in #ahji those celebrated districts anciently frequented by ,egyptian merchants in the time of the ,ptolemies4 ,the island of ,desa1 formed by a row of schistous hills1 shelters the entrance to the bay of ,adulis1 which we call by this name in memory of that flourishing city of ,adulis1 which stood by its waves up to the sixth century of our era4 ,the natives still show the site of that ,grecian city1 and inform the traveller that it was swallowed up by an earthquake4 ,of its past greatness1 there remain but a small number of carved capitals in the lava of the environs1 and some sculptured marbles which seem to display the ,byzantine style4 ,near these ruins is the large village of ,zullah1 which contained1 in #ahdj1 two hundred and fourteen cabins1 and a population of about one thousand souls4 ,it is from ,zullah that the shortest route lies to the plains and highlands of ,ethiopia1 or1 as the ,english call it1 ,abyssinia4 ,except during ,january and ,february1 when the weather is still warm1 ,zullah suffers from the frightful heat which pervades the whole of that stretch of low land called ,samhar1 which lies along the sea4 ,wishing to take a bath during the summer1 ,i could not1 by reason of the seeming excessive coldness of the water4 ,but placing a thermometer in it1 ,i found the temperature #cf degrees1 while in the shade the air was at #dh degrees4 ,i found it at #fe degrees in the between-decks of a ,french steamer2 and when evening brings a refreshing breeze to cool this burning atmosphere1 one is tempted to say with a ,frenchman after having escaped during the bloody reign of terror3 ,i have done a great deal1 for ,i have managed to live4 ,travellers at this season start at midnight1 and traverse1 on their way into ,ethiopia1 a plain as barren as desolation itself4 ,sometimes they encounter the ,karif1 an atmospheric column of a red brick color1 which appears on the horizon like a living phantom4 ,this column seems to increase in volume as it approaches1 the air that drives it along roaring like a whirlwind4 ,man and beast are obliged to turn their backs to it1 and it covers them with a dry1 black cloud1 as with a mantle of horror4 ,in a few minutes the ,karif passes away2 and men are glad to be out of its hideous gloom1 even though it be but to wander again through that intense but quiet heat which broods over the ,samhar4 ,sometimes1 also1 the ,harur1 which the ,arabs call the ,simoom or paison1 surprises the traveller4 #bfg ,this wind comes without any previous sign of warning1 belching out burning death like a furnace4 ,the patient camel then puts his head on the ground1 rejoiced to find relief even in the relative freshness of the scorching earth2 the strongest of the natives succumb2 and such is the sudden and complete prostration of human strength during the simoom1 that in the open country ,i have been unable to hold up a small thermometer1 to learn at least the temperature of this strange wind1 which science has as yet failed to explain4 ,this ,harur lasted five minutes4 ,they say that men and beasts die if it lasts a quarter of an hour4 ,after crossing those desert plains1 the traveller finds the country gradually assume an undulating character4 ,a stream is met4 ,mountains rise up before him1 and deep1 verdant valleys extend among them4 ,i often visited those valleys with1 the vain hope of seeing a phenomenon very rare in ,europe4 ,during the summer season caravans repose or march in perfect safety under a serene sky1 when suddenly the practised ear of a native hears a strange noise in the distance1 rapidly increasing in loudness4 ,he cries out1 ,the torrent6 and climbs breathlessly up the nearest height4 ,in less than half a minute after1 the whole valley disappears under a broad and deep stream1 which carries with it trees1 pieces of rock1 and even wild beasts4 ,rising in an instant1 those torrents vanish in a day1 and leave no trace of their passage1 save ruins of all sorts1 and pools of stagnant water in the indentations of the soil4 ,the general nakedness of the mountains explains these strange phenomena4 ,from the bottom of the funnel in which the traveller stands when he is in one of those valleys1 he cannot see the small clouds which let fall their liquid burdens with an abundance unknown out of the tropical climates4 ,there is very little loam1 and still less of roots of trees to absorb this sudden rain2 so that it rolls from rock to rock1 as on a roof1 rushes through every little valley1 and mingles in one common river1 as frightful as it is transitory4 ,one day1 as ,i arrived just too late to behold it in all its grandeur1 ,i found a solitary individual1 who1 with a stupefied look1 regarded the still humid earth4 ,god save you1 said ,i1 what news have you8 ,where are your arms8 ,can a man like you remain without lance or buckler8 ,may you live long and well6 he replied4 ,the torrent has carried away my lance1 my buckler1 my ass1 my camel1 and my whole substance1 my wife and my children4 ,woe is me6 ,woe is me6 ,i then turned to my guide and asked him3 ,does thy brother speak truly8 ,doubtless1 answered he1 and if the torrent came at this moment1 unless we were warned of its approach by the small noise of which ,i have spoken1 it is not the most swift-footed1 but the most lucky1 who would be saved4 ,then turning toward the son of his tribe--,may ,god console thee1 my brother6 ,we all repeated this pious wish1 and continued our route1 without being able to give anything to this wretched man1 for we had neither victuals nor money2 and from the summit of the neighboring hills we could hear him repeating for a long time1 ,woe is me6 ,woe is me6 ,for more than two centuries the civilization and native wealth of ,ethiopia have been concentrated around ,lake ,tana4 ,just on its shores stands ,quarata1 the largest city of oriental ,africa--proud of its sanctuary and its twelve thousand inhabitants4 ,a little further on is ,aringo1 the ,versailles of the dusky kings4 #bfh ,near it is ,dabra ,tabor1 the capital1 or rather the camp of the last chiefs1 as well as of the actual sovereign2 and finally1 on a spur of mountain which projects to the south1 appears ,gondar--the famous ,gondar1 which ,i have seen1 still powerful1 although reduced to eight thousand inhabitants1 only a fourth of its former population4 ,of all the faults of ,king ,theodore1 that which the ,ethiopians will be least ready to forgive is his having systematically burned the city of ,gondar4 ,of seventeen churches1 only two have escaped this cool and useless cruelty of the despot4 ,the ,ethiopians are a people of very mixed origin4 ,languages1 institutions1 usages1 and prejudices1 even the shades of color and the formations of the human body1 are placed in strange juxtaposition with one another4 ,except the ,somal1 who afford instances of tall stature1 the ,ethiopians are of medium height1 have thick lips1 white and well-formed teeth1 and are of slender frame4 ,their hair is curly2 but straight hair1 though rare1 is sometimes seen4 ,the ,semites have often the aquiline nose of the ,europeans4 ,as to the color of the skin1 all degrees1 from the copper color of the ,neapolitan to the jet black of the negro1 are found4 ,this latter color is often allied to ,european features4 ,there is an unconscious and natural grace in all the movements and actions of the ,ethiopians4 ,our sculptors might study their gestures and drapery with profit4 ,on the coast1 to the north of ,zullah1 live the ,tigre1 whose language1 traditions1 and customs entitle them to be considered among the descendants of ,sem1 like the ,hebrews and ,arabs4 ,the same must be said of the ,tigray1 who inhabit the neighboring plateau1 and speak a kindred idiom to that of the ,tigre4 ,the ,amaras1 more lively1 more intelligent1 and more civilized1 live in the interior1 and use a language of ,semitic origin1 yet modified by associations with the sons of ,cham4 ,this is the language used by most ,european travellers1 for it is commonly employed by the merchant1 by the learned1 and in diplomacy4 ,the ,giiz1 or ,ethiopian1 closely connected with the ,tigre1 is the dead language1 the ,latin of those distant countries4 ,it is used in quotations1 in philosophical and religious discussions1 and sometimes to conceal the sense of a conversation from the vulgar4 ,from ,tujurrah to the environs of ,zullah1 a common language1 entirely different from those which we have mentioned1 unites all the fractions of the ,afar nation1 often called ,dankalis1 but improperly1 for the ,dankalas1 the ,adali1 etc41 are only tribes of the ,afar4 ,the ,sahos1 who are the most numerous among the inhabitants of ,zullah1 and extend along all the slopes of the neighboring plain1 consider themselves as strangers to the ,afar1 and speak a distinct but affiliated dialect4 ,another idiom much more important by the number of the nations who use it1 has also the same origin as the ,afar tongue4 ,we mean the ,ylmorma used by the ,oromos1 whose name in war is ,gallei or ,galla1 and who1 by reason of their conquests1 have extended their sway from the ,afar country as far as to the still unknown regions of interior ,africa4 ,called ,gallas by all the ,christians of ,ethiopia1 the ,oromos threaten1 by their proximity1 the stronghold of ,magdala1 where the ,english prisoners have been awaiting for four years the arrival of their avenging countrymen4 ,a serious calculation of the population of any ,african nation has never been made4 ,as to the centres of population1 a fatigued and disgusted traveller1 looking at them from a distance and but for a moment1 might state the census of such or such a city to be ten thousand souls4 #bfi ,an optimist1 on the contrary1 might gravely affirm that at least thirty thousand should be admitted as the correct number4 ,it is1 in fact1 almost impossible to form a proper estimate of the population of ,ethiopia4 ,considering its extent of territory1 ,i should say there are three or four millions in it1 though if some other traveller were to maintain that it contains six or eight millions ,i could not refute his opinion1 owing to the fact that ,i do not know the proportion between the inhabited and the desert portions of the country4 ,,ii4 ,the ,jews were formerly numerous in ,abyssinia4 ,there are not eighty thousand of them left now1 and they are gradually disappearing under the influence of the powerful civilization of the ,amara4 ,the origin of the ,ethiopian ,jews probably dates from the time of the prophet ,jeremias1 when commerce was carried on between ,alexandria and ,aksum4 ,at a later period1 similar facilities brought to ,ethiopia the first ,christian missionaries4 ,this happened in the beginning of the fourth century1 when the inhabitants of ,gaul1 or ,france1 were still plunged in the darkness of paganism4 ,the truth1 however1 progressed slowly in ,abyssinia2 for the local ,judaism1 though notably separated from that of the ,hebrews1 preserved its political power during five or six hundred years1 notwithstanding the wonderful efforts of native missionaries1 whose feasts and martyrdoms are still celebrated in the country4 ,even up to the #adth century there were pagans in it2 and there are1 very probably1 some there still4 ,after the ,mussulman invasion of the fifteenth century1 ,islamism filtered through ,egyptian society4 ,the ,christianity of the country became corrupt1 and we can liken it to nothing better now than to those lepers who abound in this part of ,africa1 whose bodies are at first attacked in their extremities1 and fall away piecemeal4 ,in the same way1 her ,christianity perished on the frontiers of ,ethiopia4 ,twenty years before our arrival among the ,tigre1 they were ,christians1 or rather they lived in the recollection of their faith2 but without baptism or sacrifice1 and guided in their prayers by the descendants of their last priests4 ,they became ,mussulmans under our eyes1 with the exception of their principal chief1 who said1 with a touching and proud respect for ancient usages1 that a king ought to die in the faith of his fathers4 ,one becomes irritated on reflecting that two or three fervent missionaries could have1 at the beginning of this century1 rolled back the tide of advancing ,mohammedanism1 by evangelizing or rather reviving that ancient ,christianity whose history goes back as far as ,st4 ,athanasius1 and which we have seen expire after ages of agony4 ,if we study ,christianity in the centre of ,ethiopia1 we find a somewhat confused schism1 but of all schisms the one least removed from ,catholic orthodoxy4 ,the only dogmatic points which we regret in this schism are the one procession of the ,holy ,ghost1 which has been condemned among us only at a late period1 and the belief in only one nature in ,jesus ,christ1 which is publicly professed by the ,african schools4 ,but the term in the ,abyssinian vernacular which we translate by nature1 has such a vague and obscure signification that1 if the word could be destroyed1 the schism would no longer exist4 #bgj ,it must be remembered that the ,ethiopians do not understand the art of defining2 and when ,i restricted this ambiguous term according to our method1 they understood the dogma exactly as we1 and congratulated themselves on being1 without knowing it1 attached to the same faith as ,rome1 that seat of ,st4 ,peter which always commands their respect4 ,what particularly distinguish their ,christianity from ours1 are vicious or irregular practices4 ,like many of the ,eastern ,christians1 they allow the marriage of the clergy2 but in the abbeys1 where there are professors1 they allow no priest to say ,mass who is not a celibatarian by vow4 ,among you1 said an ,ethiopian who had visited ,europe1 the important practice is to go to church4 ,and among you1 ,i answered1 the one thing necessary is to prolong your fastings4 ,one is tempted to say that the active people of the ,west1 and the slow and repose-loving nations of the ,east1 have made the principal merit of a ,christian to consist in those pious exercises which cost the least trouble4 ,it is impossible to leave this subject without saying a word about the ,dabtara1 or secular clerics4 ,they were organized by a king who found himself1 like many of his royal brethren in ,europe1 very much embarrassed by those mixed questions1 in which the spiritual power seems to invade the domain of the temporal4 ,to keep the balance1 between them1 he created an intermediary body1 called the ,dabtara4 ,this order is filled from all classes of society2 and it possesses the usufruct of all the churches4 ,it alone takes charge of the temporal affairs of the church1 and frequently its members act as parish priests1 which is a purely temporal office in ,abyssinia4 ,the ,dabtara hire by the month1 rebuke or dismiss the priest who says ,mass4 ,their essential function consists in singing in choir4 ,this duty requires a certain education4 ,in ,europe the music of our church hymns may be changed1 the words remaining unaltered4 ,the contrary is the case among the ,ethiopians4 ,their music is traditional and sacramental1 and in every well-ordered church1 the rhymed words of every hymn are specially composed for every festival4 ,the twelve ,dabtara of every church display their piety1 wisdom1 and especially their wit in these productions4 ,they use hymns learnedly ambiguous1 to criticise the bishop1 to give a lesson to the head of the monks1 and even political hints to the sovereign4 ,by recalling an act of some personage of the ,old ,testament1 they find occasion to criticise the government of the city1 to praise some ,maecenas who is expected to be present at the service1 or even1 if necessary1 to satisfy a personal grudge4 ,when a ,dabtara advances into the choir to whisper into the ear of the principal chanter the hymn which has just been written by the ,dabtara1 and which the singer must know by heart1 the other ,dabtaras surround the composer1 examine the sense of the rhyme1 and no matter what may be the result of their investigation1 they always congratulate the happy author4 ,sometimes it is discovered that the hymn has not been made by a member of the order1 but by some young candidate in distress1 who1 for a measure of meal1 often sells to the wealthy the fresh inspirations of his genius4 ,after the teacher of plain-chant1 the most important professor is he who teaches grammar1 the roots of the sacred language1 its dictionary1 and particularly the art of composing hymns4 #bga ,after the lesson1 the pupils spread over the lawn before the church1 repeat the precepts just heard from their professor1 and essay to make rhymes or compose hymns1 which they afterward recite to him in order to obtain the benefit of his criticism4 ,as in our middle ages1 these scholars ask alms and live in misery2 often they are the only servants of their preceptors4 ,lively and frolicsome1 like our collegians1 they play many tricks on their fellow-students1 but never on their teacher1 whom they love and almost worship4 ,having once chanced at ,gondar to describe how my college-fellows in ,france had eaten the dinner of their professor1 and left a sermon on fasting and patience on his plate1 ,i was met with such a torrent of invective1 that ,i never ventured on a repetition of the scandal4 ,in ,abyssinia1 education is essentially public and gratuitous4 ,as all explanations must be made in the vernacular1 which ,i spoke but poorly in the beginning1 ,i was obliged to have recourse to a private tutor1 and when ,i wished to recompense him for his trouble1 ,i was answered that science should not be sold like any other vile merchandise1 and that the honor of the teaching body required knowledge to be transmitted gratuitously1 just as it had been acquired4 ,the ,ethiopian students are generally very diligent4 ,if they play truant1 their parents bring them into the church where the school is being held1 and tie their feet together with an iron chain4 ,sometimes this disciplinary measure is ordered by the professor1 and pupils are often seen who1 distrusting themselves1 ask for those chains1 which are not considered symbols of dishonor4 ,they are rarely worn by the higher scholars4 ,the university course of the ,ethiopians is composed of four branches1 which might be compared to the four faculties of our own4 ,a fifth branch1 devoted to astronomy and replete with traditional ideas1 has not been cultivated for some time past4 ,i knew the last professor of this science1 who had only one pupil4 ,the other classes are occupied with the study of the ,new ,testament1 the fathers of the church1 civil and canon law1 and the ,old ,testament4 ,this last requires an effort of memory of which few ,europeans are capable2 for ,i have never heard but of one man in the ,west who knew the whole ,bible by heart4 ,no one can be a teacher in ,ethiopia without knowing by heart the text of the book he is to explain1 the variations of four or five manuscripts1 and especially the ingenious commentary1 sometimes even learned1 but always traditional and purely oral1 on the text4 ,the degree of bachelor is unknown in that country2 that of doctor is given to the student who is chosen by his professor as capable of explaining in the evening to his comrades the lessons given in class in the morning4 ,in the case of a doubt of his capacity1 the teacher is consulted1 and his affirmation is considered a sufficient diploma4 ,great attention and much perseverance are required to make this system of unmethodical education profitable4 ,an aged professor informed me that he had learned to read in three years4 ,he spent two years afterward in learning the liturgical chant1 and five years in studying grammar and in composing hymns4 ,he learned how to comment on the ,new ,testament in seven years2 and spent fifteen years on the ,old ,testament1 for the strain on his memory was very great4 ,i have dwelt somewhat on the ,ethiopian colleges because ,m4 ,blanc1 one of the ,english prisoners of ,magdala1 says expressly in his narration3 ,the ,abyssinians have no literature2 their ,christianity is only a name2 their conversational power is very limited4 #bgb ,to this testimony1 altogether negative1 ,i oppose the statement first made1 and which ,i could prove and extend farther4 ,i will merely add that in ,gojjam1 as well as at ,gondar and elsewhere1 ,i have held disputes with native4 ,christians1 on religious1 philosophical1 and other scientific subjects1 and found them as well informed as if they had been brought up in ,paris or at ,london4 ,with rare exceptions1 the regular clergy alone has preserved its virtues and its prestige4 ,the secular priests have lost a great part of their importance by the singular institution of the ,dabtara4 ,yet the ,ethiopians1 jealous of their political independence1 and capable of preserving it by the natural influence of their traditional customs1 wish to keep religious authority powerful and undivided4 ,to avoid schisms1 and as several bishops can consecrate others1 they recognize only one1 who must be of white race and a stranger to the country4 ,he has always been consecrated by the schismatical patriarch of ,alexandria2 but1 since the last consecration1 ,i was assured that the ,abyssinians would make application elsewhere for the future4 ,the title of their bishop is abun4 ,the last abun or aboona was ,salama1 who having only a semi-canonical appointment1 and besides being addicted to all kinds of vice1 had very little influence over the inferior clergy or the people4 ,suspected by the professors and hated by the ,dabtara1 he planted more thorns than blessings in the hearts of his subjects4 ,a ,copt by birth1 he at first frequented the ,english ,protestant school at ,cairo1 and carried afterward to the convent where he made his vows such doctrines of disobedience and incredulous opinions1 that the ,patriarch of ,alexandria thought it would be wise to exile him to ,ethiopia as abun1 though he was under the canonical age4 ,in fact1 the abun was more anxious for money than for the faith4 ,he received the #cf1jjj francs1 which are usually given as a present at the investiture of the ,abyssinian bishop2 and the patriarch thus delivered up distant ,ethiopia1 too much despised by the ,copts1 to the vices and vague doctrines of ,salama4 ,this ornament of the episcopacy had no sooner arrived in his diocese1 than he devoted himself to commerce1 especially to the traffic in slaves1 which is most profitable4 ,his vices were such that our pen cannot describe them4 ,he told me himself that by mistake he had ordained priest a boy only ten years old1 and laughed heartily at the trick played on him in his case4 ,having learned from ,monseigneur de ,jacobis the cases which annul an ordination1 ,i told them to the professors of canon law4 ,they kept silence in public2 and when ,i pushed them with questions1 they all gave me this answer3 ,your objections are true2 only1 in the name of ,god1 do not scatter them among the ,dabtara4 ,except the ,masses said by old priests ordained by the preceding abun1 there are none valid1 and there is no holy sacrifice in ,ethiopia2 but the ignorance and strong faith of the faithful will suffice before ,god for their salvation4 ,abun ,salama1 busied with intrigues1 in which he thought himself very skilful1 was nevertheless1 only the tool of the princes1 who attached him to them in order to help their political combinations4 ,it was he who consecrated ,king ,theodore1 who1 after frequently insulting his consecrator1 finally cast him into prison1 where he lately died4 #bgc ,,iii4 ,no matter what the ,english prisoners may say to the contrary1 the ,ethiopian soldiers are very brave1 and fight fiercely if they are well commanded4 ,as in ,europe during the middle ages1 the flower of their army is composed of cavalry4 ,the battle is begun by the fusiliers1 who shoot well2 but their importance had not yet been comprehended by the native chiefs in my time4 ,soon the charge is sounded1 the cavalry rushes to the conflict1 the victory is quickly won1 and the infantry1 badly furnished with blunt sabres1 lances1 and bucklers1 hardly does anything but make prisoners4 ,every soldier keeps all the spoils of those he may vanquish1 except the guns and blood-horses1 which by right belong to the general4 ,during this latter phase of the victory1 the commander-in-chief1 deserted by his eager soldiers1 is left almost unattended4 ,in speaking with ,ethiopian officers1 ,i often mentioned to them1 but always in vain1 how important it is to have a body-guard for the commander4 ,the first victory of ,kasa1 now ,king ,theodore1 attracted attention to this necessity afterward4 ,let us say a word here about the mother of this chief1 since she is involuntarily one of the remote causes of the ,english expedition4 ,this good old woman once did me a great service1 and in #ahdh1 notwithstanding the recent elevation of her son to royalty1 she was still so polite as to rise at my approach4 ,she was then courted as a power behind the throne4 ,but a short time previously1 she was the despised mother of ,kasa1 an obscure rebel1 living in misery1 and reprobated by all4 ,his poor mother1 in her old age1 joined a religious order1 and put on the little white bonnet which is its distinctive sign4 ,but she was penniless4 ,the convents had been robbed1 and every one shunned the mother of a rebel4 ,she was finally compelled to turn vendor of koso1 a drug which the ,ethiopians take six times a year1 to kill the tape-worm1 with which most of the inhabitants are afflicted4 ,kasa1 the rebel of ,quara1 grew more powerful day by day1 and the proud ,manan grew angry4 ,manan was the mother of ,ali1 the most powerful prince of ,central ,ethiopia1 and the real mayoress of the palace of that fainkant king who ruled at ,gondar1 only within the precincts of his dwelling4 ,manan1 desiring to be called ytege1 or queen1 an exclusive title in that country1 caused the nominal king to be dethroned by her son1 and placed her husband1 ,yohannis1 or ,john1 in his stead4 ,this prince was an estimable man1 and honored me with his friendship4 ,in #ahdg1 war was waged against the rebel ,kasa4 ,the soldiers of ,manan insulted their adversary4 ,one gasconading cavalier exclaimed1 at a review3 ,manan1 my great queen1 depend on my valor1 for ,i shall lead before you in chains this fellow2 this son of a vendor of koso6 ,but ,kasa won the battle1 and chained the boaster in a hut1 where1 after a fast of twenty-four hours1 he received the following message from ,kasa1 delivered verbally by a waggish page3 ,how hast thou passed the night1 my brother8 ,how hast thou passed the day8 ,may ,god deliver thee from thy chains6 ,may the ,lord grant thee a little patience6 ,be sad with me1 for yesterday mamma remained at market all day1 and could not sell a single dose of koso4 ,i have therefore no money to buy bread for thee or for me4 ,may ,god grant thee patience1 my brother6 ,may ,god break thy chains6 ,it is ,kasa who sends thee this message4 ,the next day the officer received the same message4 ,on the third day the irony of the conqueror was slightly changed4 #bgd ,after the usual salutations1 the page joyfully informed the captive that ,mamma had succeeded in selling a dose of koso1 and bought a loaf1 which ,kasa sends him4 ,a few days after1 ,i heard these details at ,gondar4 ,the news-mongers praised the mockery2 but they only half-smiled1 for the flower of society had fallen into misfortune4 ,then they regretted the good king ,yohannis1 and suspected the still undeveloped wickedness of the character of ,kasa1 the adventurous rebel of ,quara4 ,i saw ,kasa1 or ,theodore1 frequently at ,gondar in #ahdh4 ,he was dressed as a simple soldier1 and had nothing1 either in his features or language1 which presaged his high destiny4 ,he loved to speak of fire-arms4 ,he was about twenty-eight years old2 his face rather black than red2 his figure slim2 and his agility seemed to arise less from his muscular power than from that of his will4 ,his forehead is high and almost convex2 his nose slightly aquiline1 a frequent characteristic of the pure-blooded ,amaras4 ,his beard1 like theirs1 is sparse1 and his thin lips betray rather an ,arabian than an ,ethiopian origin4 ,kasa conquered all his competitors1 became ,king of ,ethiopia1 and was consecrated by the abun1 taking the name of ,theodore1 to verify an old prophecy current among the ,jews and ,christians1 that a king of this name should rule over the ancient empire of ,aksum4 ,but the ,ethiopians1 like all people of mountainous regions1 tenacious of their independence1 and accustomed to liberty1 did not yield at once to an upstart usurper1 who owed his success less to ability and valor than to good luck4 ,in the beginning of his reign he acted with much clemency1 owing1 it is said1 to the happy influence exercised over him by his first wife4 ,when she died1 he caused her body to be embalmed1 according to the custom of the ,ethiopian princes of the race of ,solomon4 ,her coffin was carried after ,theodore everywhere he marched4 ,a special tent was erected in the camp for her remains1 and the conqueror of ,ethiopia was often seen entering it to meditate on his past happiness1 and ask of ,god1 as it was said1 prudence and wisdom for the future4 ,it is at this time that he had real thoughts1 though always eccentric1 of a good government4 ,civil divorce1 and the consequent confusion of marriage1 are the plague-spot of ,abyssinian society4 ,they uproot the foundations of the family1 and are opposed to all ideas of order and stability4 ,without understanding that a radical change in society cannot be effected by a mere proclamation1 ,theodore decreed the obligation of regular marriages1 and the abolition of divorce4 ,an able statesman would have sought to destroy gradually1 abuses of such long standing4 ,another of his decrees did him equal honor1 and might have succeeded better1 for he revived the old law of the ,ethiopians against the slave-trade4 ,but the heart of man is fickle4 ,prince ,wibe1 falling into the hands of the conqueror1 recommended his daughter to the ,dabtara and monks of ,darasge1 his favorite abbey1 where he had his family burial vault4 ,one day the faithful guardians of the spot saw a band of soldiers rushing toward them4 ,they thought it was ,tissu1 a recent rebel4 ,they immediately concealed the sacred vessels1 and for safety shut up the daughter of ,wibe in the vault4 ,their surprise was great when they found it was ,theodore himself1 who was1 according to custom1 marching over his kingdom in quest of insurgents4 #bge ,he wanted to see everything2 and when they refused to open the cavern for him1 maintaining that a tomb prepared for ,wibe1 who was still a chained captive1 could have no interest for his conqueror1 ,theodore suspected some plot1 and caused the stone of the sepulchre to be removed4 ,his surprise was great when1 instead of a coffin1 he beheld a beautiful girl1 bathed in tears1 and in the attitude of prayer4 ,theodore forgot his first love4 ,he set ,wibe at liberty1 and married his daughter4 ,this union was not happy4 ,the ytege1 or queen1 having interceded to save the life of a rebel whom she had known at the court of her father1 ,theodore refused at first her request1 and becoming angry1 finally struck her4 ,in order to humiliate her the more1 he made a common camp follower his concubine4 ,from this moment his decree on ,christian marriage became a dead letter1 and the slave-trade was renewed4 ,men must have stronger virtue than that of ,king ,theodore1 that their good thoughts may bear full fruit4 ,,iv4 ,let us here give some account of the ,english missions in ,ethiopia2 for they have helped to bring about and inflame the war now pending4 ,m4 ,gobat1 a ,swiss ,protestant1 went as far as ,gondar about forty years ago1 and acquired a knowledge of the language of the country4 ,after his return to ,europe1 he published a book of such seeming good faith1 that it deceived me at first1 as it must have deceived the ,english projectors of the missions4 ,charity obliges me to write that ,m4 ,gobat1 in giving an account of his sermons to the people1 has rather described what he desired to say and the answers he would like to hear1 than what he actually said or heard4 ,without citing other witnesses of this fact1 that of an educated ,dabtara will suffice1 who was ignorant of the existence of the ,protestant missions4 ,samuel ,gobat1 said he1 was a prepossessing person1 who deceived one at first4 ,i1 who followed him1 can affirm that he was really an unbeliever1 or that he pretended to be so4 ,he proposed frightful doubts and objections in matters affecting the ,christian religion1 but under the form of hypotheses4 ,he always began his strange assertions by an if4 ,could he express them boldly8 ,if he had1 you know that in ,gondar1 at least1 he would not have been allowed to continue1 and he would have been denied a residence in our city4 ,the missionary societies in ,england did not know this condition of the ,ethiopian mind1 and influenced by the specious arguments of ,m4 ,gobat1 they sent him a re-enforcement of three ministers1 whom he left to return to ,europe4 ,they preached much more honestly and openly than he in ,adwa and ,tigray1 where they were established4 ,they were expelled in #ahch1 fifteen days before my arrival in the country4 ,two of them then went to ,suria1 from which they were also driven4 ,with a perseverance worthy of a better cause1 they returned again to ,tigray1 and again to ,suria4 ,always exiled1 they had at last the prudence1 in #ahee1 to make no further attempt at evangelizing the country4 ,seventeen years before this last date ,i met at ,cairo a young ,lazarist priest1 whom ,i persuaded to accompany me into ,ethiopia1 to found a ,catholic mission4 ,he preceded me1 went to ,adwa about eight days before the first expulsion of the ,protestant missionaries2 and as my project seemed to him sensible1 requiring only time and patience to realize it1 ,i brought letters from him to ,europe in #ahch4 #bgf ,his holiness1 ,gregory ,,xvi41 favored our attempt1 and sent two missionaries to ,ethiopia under the charge of ,monseigneur de ,jacobis1 who soon became known all through that region by the name of ,abuna ,ya'igob4 ,in spite of some imprudence1 inevitable1 perhaps1 in a country where there are such strange contrasts1 he succeeded beyond my most sanguine hopes1 and when ,i left the country in #ahdi1 there were twelve thousand ,catholics in it1 and many of the priests were natives4 ,last year an ,english account gives the number as sixty thousand2 for the influence of true doctrines could not fail to be extended among a people so intelligent as are the ,abyssinians4 ,monseigneur de ,jacobis helped much to obtain this result1 by his unchangeable mildness1 and by that personal influence which is always exercised by a priest devoted to incessant prayer4 ,the fate of the ,protestant missions was different4 ,the ministers1 instead of attributing their want of success to themselves1 have blamed the ,catholics as the movers of their expulsion from ,ethiopia4 ,even the ,english ,consul ,plowden in his official report says that ,theodore1 after perusing the history of the ,jesuits in ,abyssinia1 decided to allow no ,catholic priest to teach in his states4 ,the ,english are fond of decrying the memory of the ,jesuits who taught in ,ethiopia up to #afcj4 ,it is1 however1 very singular that ,i never heard of this history1 and that the most learned anti-,catholic professors at ,gondar never mentioned it to me in our controversies4 ,on the contrary1 they spoke of ,peter ,paez and his co-laborers with admiration mingled with regret1 and quoted touching legends concerning them4 ,a little further on in his account1 ,plowden1 who seems ignorant of the fact that sermons are unknown in ,ethiopia1 adds that ,theodore prohibited all preaching contrary to the ,copt ,church4 ,we cannot expect that an ,english soldier1 more or less ,protestant1 should comprehend fully religious questions2 but although he was a mere soldier1 he ought to have known that ,theodore was attached to one of the three national sects1 and had forbidden all other creeds1 and condemned ,catholics as well as ,protestants4 ,it was in consequence of this decree that ,monseigneur de ,jacobis was compelled to leave ,gondar in #ahee4 ,this pious bishop went to ,musawwa1 and there continued to govern his mission1 which has been left almost undisturbed by the natives for almost thirty years4 ,the chief proselytes of ,gondar retired also to the shores of the ,red ,sea1 and the ,protestant ministers1 always on the watch1 imagined they had at length found a good opportunity to teach in the capital4 ,they went thither under the guidance of ,m4 ,krapf1 who1 in default of other qualities1 has at least uncommon activity and persistence1 but which have been so far sterile of results4 ,at their first expulsion in #ahch1 the four ,protestant missionaries left but one proselyte in the whole of ,ethiopia4 ,this was a quondam pilgrim4 ,he was going to ,jerusalem with an ,ethiopian priest1 who1 falling short of money1 sold his companion into bondage4 ,m4 ,gobat having ransomed him1 had no difficulty in inspiring him with hatred of the priests1 and of all their doctrines4 ,we can only regard this single convert as an apostate induced to desert his faith by resentment and a spirit of revenge4 ,another young and intelligent ,ethiopian1 after studying for years in the ,protestant schools of ,europe1 when asked1 answered me frankly that the numerous dissensions in religion witnessed by him among ,protestants1 had destroyed all religious belief in his mind4 #bgg ,religious ,england always believing1 though erroneously1 ought to be startled by the consideration that her missionaries1 real mercenaries as they are1 only succeed in propagating doubt and incredulity instead of spreading the gospel4 ,m4 ,gobat1 who was somewhat of a diplomatist1 in writing to ,king ,theodore1 did not state his object to be the foundation of a ,protestant mission4 ,he merely announced that skilful mechanics1 desiring to improve the physical condition of the country1 wished to settle in it4 ,king ,theodore1 who was desirous of obtaining blacksmiths1 gunners1 and engineers1 to make cannon and mortars1 and build bridges and roads1 gave his consent4 ,m4 ,gobat hinted that the workmen wanted the free exercise of their religion4 ,theodore referred the matter to the abun1 who1 knowing the tricks of his old teachers1 bluntly told ,mr4 ,sterne1 one of the missionaries1 who spoke of his intention to convert the ,talasa1 or native ,jews1 as the sole object of his coming to ,gondar1 ,this mission to the ,jews is only a pretext to plot against the faith of the ,christians4 ,pretending not to take the hint1 ,mr4 ,sterne repeated his assertion1 and the king consented to receive the ,english mechanics1 who were to be the instruments in the hands of the pious missionaries in evangelizing the barbarous ,ethiopians4 ,but on the testimony of ,mr4 ,sterne himself1 and that of other ,protestants1 the scheme was a complete failure4 ,many of the mechanics1 or pious laymen1 became as immoral as any of the natives4 ,besides1 in violation of their solemn promise made to the abun1 the missionaries distributed1 as ,plowden informs us1 hundreds of ,bibles1 and taught the great truths of salvation to many pagans and ,christians4 ,we extract these facts from the work of the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,badger1 considered a most trustworthy witness in official circles in ,england4 ,footnote #ed ,after a short stay at ,gondar1 ,mr4 ,sterne went to ,london1 was made bishop1 and published a wordy volume containing but one fact worth noticing1 namely1 the intrinsic proof that the author was ignorant of the most ordinary customs of ,ethiopia4 ,by an imprudence which has cost him dear1 ,mr4 ,sterne related the story of the vender of koso in his book4 ,a former student of the ,english missionaries informed ,theodore of the fact1 and the ,protestants had reason to feel bitterly that a man's friends often prove to be his greatest enemies4 ,footnote #ed3 ,the ,story of the ,british ,captives in ,abyssinia1 #ahfc1 #ahfd4 ,by the ,rev4 ,george ,percy ,badger4 ,v4 ,the ,english government was indignant that its agent ,plowden1 as it is known1 should have been massacred on the highway near ,gondar4 ,theodore avenged his death1 however1 by the barbarous slaughter of its authors and their associates4 ,but the party of the saints in ,england was not satisfied with this reparation4 ,theodore was weak1 and no match for ,england4 ,it was safe1 therefore1 to insult him4 ,had he been as powerful as the ,united ,states1 ,england would have been as loath to touch him as she is afraid to refuse satisfaction to ,america for the ravages of the ,alabama on the high seas4 ,she1 however1 suppressed the consulship of ,gondar1 and sent ,captain ,cameron as her consul to ,massowah1 under the protection of the ,turkish flag4 ,captain ,cameron was a brave officer who had served in the ,crimea1 but he was no diplomatist4 #bgh ,we all know that1 as much from lack of this quality as from the semi-barbarous habits of ,king ,theodore1 who thinks himself all-powerful because he has been so successful in conquering rebels in his own kingdom1 ,cameron and five other ,english subjects1 among them ,m4 ,rassam--another unskilful ,english agent--and two ,germans1 were imprisoned at ,magdala on the #hth of ,july1 #ahff4 ,magdala1 where the prisoners still remain1 is a stronghold in the ,abyssinian highlands1 #c1jjj feet above the level of the sea1 and the climate there is less warm than in most parts of the torrid zone4 ,there are a church1 a treasury1 a prison1 and huts in the place1 and a population of about three or four thousand persons1 of whom four hundred are prisoners of every description2 a garrison of six hundred sharpshooters and as many common soldiers armed with lance and shield4 ,although this fortress is considered strong by the natives1 one of the prisoners writes that a single shell would suffice to blow up a place which the ,ethiopians have looked upon as impregnable for three centuries4 ,besides the ,european prisoners at ,magdala1 ,theodore keeps fourteen others1 mostly ,german mechanics1 near his own quarters4 ,these artisans1 exported at the expense of a ,protestant missionary society as pious laymen began their evangelical labors as messengers of peace in a very extraordinary fashion1 by fabricating mortars and other engines of war4 ,as for the spiritual welfare of the ,christians of ,ethiopia1 they looked well to it by distilling bad brandy2 and as for the temporal1 they drove the profitable trade of slave-mongers4 ,this is what ,m4 ,rassam1 an ,arabian1 who turned ,protestant to get employment from the ,english government1 tells us4 ,he was nine years at ,aden as lieutenant-governor1 and is considered one of the ablest ,english agents in the ,east1 if we are to believe the parliamentary eulogium passed on him in a recent debate in the ,house of ,commons4 ,the last account heard from this unfortunate ambassador does not warrant the belief in his ability4 ,the abun1 ,salama1 having died1 ,m4 ,rassam advises the ,english to choose another abun in ,egypt1 and put him at the head of the invading army as a kind of palladium6 ,this advice1 if put into execution1 would be as absurd as if1 on the death of ,pius ,,ix41 ,premier ,disraeli1 imitating the policy of ,pitt1 and wishing to restore the ,marches to the ,holy ,see1 should send an army against the ,sardinians1 with a pope at its head elected at ,canterbury or elsewhere1 ,jansenist or ,catholic1 no matter which1 and should expect all the ,italians to respect him as sovereign pontiff4 ,,vi4 ,england has undertaken the ,abyssinian expedition to preserve her prestige in the ,east1 and she is determined to gain her point4 ,the dusky ,king ,theodore1 pretended descendant of ,solomon1 cannot complain that he has not received diplomatic notice4 ,when the ,german who brought him the ,british ultimatum1 told him that if he did not deliver up the prisoners he would have both the armies of ,england and ,france against him--,let them come1 said ,theodore1 and call me a woman if ,i do not give them battle4 ,we know not if there be more of folly or of intrepid valor in this proud answer4 ,in fact1 notwithstanding the narrations of some travellers1 naturally suspected of exaggeration1 the ,ethiopians have no idea of the military power of the ,western nations1 and their king may believe that he is a match for them4 #bgi ,the ,bay of ,adulis1 usually so silent1 is now swarming with ships4 ,there were in it1 a short time ago1 seventy vessels1 without counting those of the ,arabians and ,east-,indians4 ,the ,english have built two quays to assist the debarkation of troops4 ,the ,english have the ,snider gun1 which they pretend to be superior to the ,chassepot rifle4 ,they have even forty elephants to frighten ,theodore4 ,one of them1 an elephant of good sense if ever there was one1 behaved himself so badly at the debarkation of the troops1 that he was sent back to ,hindostan4 ,england is determined to succeed4 ,instead of borrowing1 she has levied a tax of ten millions of dollars4 ,she will need at least six times that amount before the end of the war4 ,every ,english prisoner to be freed will cost at least ten millions4 ,but her object is not merely the freeing of the prisoners1 though she asserts that it is4 ,she has to provide water for sixty-five thousand men and many beasts on the plains of ,zullah1 where1 in default of natural fresh water1 the troops drink a distillation of sea water4 ,they need every day one hundred and eighty thousand quarts to drink2 and this quantity has been provided at the enormous cost of twenty thousand dollars for every twenty-four hours4 ,to transport the munitions of war1 mules were bought and brought to ,zullah from ,egypt1 ,turkey1 ,spain1 and ,france4 ,the ,english soldiers1 not knowing at first how to manage them1 tied them with hay ropes4 ,many of the mules ate the ropes1 escaped into the desert1 and were lost4 ,a railroad has been built1 running from the sea to ,sanafe1 the first border station of ,ethiopia1 a distance of almost one hundred miles4 ,the line of march has been well chosen4 ,the ,english could have crossed the plains of ,tigray1 which are level and oppose no obstacle2 and then crossed through ,wasaya without meeting any noteworthy difficulty except the river ,takkaze1 and ,mount ,lamalmo4 ,farther on1 at ,dabra ,tabor1 where ,theodore usually resides1 they might have chosen either the plains of the ,lanige1 or the cool and verdant hills of the ,waynadaga territory as the sites of their encampment4 ,but this route is not the shortest4 ,besides1 the ,wasaya begins to be unhealthy in the month of ,may1 and there is no forage as far as ,wagara4 ,the shorter route1 which the ,english have taken1 is by ,agame and ,wag4 ,on those elevated plateaux they may keep all their energy1 and they will find a territory less ravaged by civil war1 and good pastures4 ,the distance from ,zullah to ,magdala is about the same as from ,paris to ,lyons4 ,but artillery is with difficulty transported over many of the gullies on the route2 and perhaps for the elephants it will be found impracticable4 ,but the leader of the expedition1 ,sir ,robert ,napier1 will not balk at these details4 ,he will push rapidly on to ,delanta before the rainy season1 which begins about the #ajth of ,july4 ,according to the prisoners1 if he should invest ,magdala at the beginning of ,may1 the want of water would soon force the garrison to surrender4 ,if the first rains have fallen before his arrival1 the ,english will occupy ,tanta among the ,wara ,haymano1 and from that point open fire on ,magdala4 ,soldiers living in huts1 without casemates or caverns1 could not stand a day against the ,english guns4 ,in1 any case1 ,magdala1 the great ,ethiopian fortress1 will be taken1 and it will remain to be seen whether the troops will march to ,dabra ,tabor to burn the camp of ,king ,theodore1 and kill him1 or make him prisoner4 #bhj ,nevertheless1 the use of diplomacy will not be despised4 ,when ,theodore put ,m4 ,rassam in prison1 with great protestations of friendship1 he promised him his liberty on the arrival of certain machines and expert workers4 ,england sent both to ,massowah1 but required first the liberation of the prisoners without having used any of those forms which render a contract binding in the eyes of the ,abyssinians4 ,on his side1 ,theodore did not understand the value of a simple signature4 ,besides1 he had been deceived by ,plowden1 who denied his character of consul1 and cheated by the denials of the ,protestant missionaries as to their attempts to proselytize the native ,christians4 ,he did not1 therefore1 believe the protestations of the ,english4 ,the want of a sensible agent caused the failure of this negotiation1 which might have succeeded if more skilfully conducted4 ,moreover1 the ,english army1 on entering the ,tigray1 issued a proclamation1 of which the ,times published a literal copy1 as ridiculous in ,amaria dialect as in ,english4 ,besides1 the language used is almost unknown in ,agama1 where this document has been published4 ,the ,english officers do not seem to have known that a proclamation is never published in ,ethiopia in a written form4 ,but what will ,king ,theodore1 the pretended descendant of ,solomon1 do8 ,it is difficult to answer this question4 ,the natives report that ,theodore is often out of his senses when he drinks brandy1 which the pious laymen of the ,protestant mission zealously manufacture for his spiritual comfort4 ,from the very beginning of his reign1 ,plowden informs us that he manifested symptoms of insanity4 ,the ,english prisoners tell us more explicitly that ,theodore himself informed them that his father was insane1 and that he believed himself attacked with the same disorder4 ,several traits in his conduct toward the prisoners1 and the massacre of one hundred of his own soldiers in his camp1 on mere suspicion1 give gravity to the assertions4 ,if this be true1 ,england has declared war against an adversary unworthy of her dignity4 ,in case of defeat1 the only refuge for ,theodore is to retreat to his native province of ,quara1 on the border of a terrible desert1 breathing pestilence on all the region around4 ,woe to the ,english soldiers if they attempt to follow him thither6 ,of all the ancient empire of ,yasu the ,great1 that ,ethiopian ,louis ,,xiv41 ,theodore has only ,quara1 that he can call his own4 ,his governors of the ,tigra have been expelled by rebels1 or have made themselves independent of his authority4 ,gojjan has proclaimed its independence2 ,wag also has risen in arms2 ,suria is free1 and gives asylum to all refugees4 ,yet these are regions but recently subjected to the conquering arms of ,theodore4 ,tissu ,gobaze rules the lower ,tigray1 ,wasaya1 ,walguayt1 ,simen1 ,wazara1 and as far as ,dambya1 where ,gondar stood before ,theodore destroyed it4 ,what then is left to this unfortunate tyrant1 resisted at home by numberless insurgents1 and threatened by foreign force with destruction8 ,the ,awamas1 whose rights he has respected because they know how to defend themselves1 but who will seize the first opportunity to rebel2 ,tagusa1 ,acafar1 ,alafa1 and ,meca stretching along the ,tana1 but which he has made solitudes by his systematic pillage2 and finally ,bagemdir1 that beautiful portion of the country1 which obeys him with regret4 #bha ,a disease1 a slight cheek1 or a courageous peasant1 would be sufficient to destroy ,theodore1 that royal meteor1 which1 after shining for a few years1 will soon be extinguished in the night of oblivion4 ,considering the greatness of the ,english preparations1 we are led to suspect that she has the intention of holding ,northern ,ethiopia after conquering it4 ,appearances seems to favor this conjecture1 and no matter what the ,english journals may say1 the idea is not of ,french origin4 ,plowden urged its realization in his official letters thirteen years ago2 ,cameron is in favor of it2 and ,general ,coghlan timidly hints its practicability in his military monograph on ,ethiopian affairs4 ,the ,english have been masters of ,aden for the last thirty years1 and they wish to make the ,red ,sea an ,english lake4 ,they desire ,ethiopia2 for from it they could invade ,egypt1 where ,king ,cotton would rule in all his glory4 ,they allege the case of ,algiers annexed to ,france in justification of their project4 ,but let it be observed that ,charles ,x41 who ransomed at his own expense1 the ,greek slaves sold in the markets of ,constantinople and in ,egypt1 could not allow the ,dey of ,algiers alone to keep ,french1 ,spanish1 and ,english ,christians in bonds2 while the ,english have never done anything to prevent the slave-trade in ,abyssinia4 ,many ,christian slaves are annually bought within gunshot of the ,british ships on the ,red ,sea1 to be brutalized in ,mussulman harems4 ,england has never made an effort to stop the traffic there4 ,can we blame ,king ,theodore then1 who1 according to his degree of intelligence and power1 wished to put an end to this inhuman commerce1 for saying with at least as much modesty as her majesty's government has at command1 ,which of us two is the greater barbarian8 ---------- ,new ,publications4 ,st4 ,columba1 ,apostle of ,caledonia4 ,by the ,count de ,montalembert1 of the ,french ,academy1 ,new ,york3 ,catholic ,publication ,house1 #abf ,nassau street4 #ahfh4 ,irish ecclesiastical history is something unique in the world1 and presents to us the spirit of ,christianity run into an entirely new and original mould4 ,the ,celtic race1 whose most perfect and completely actualized type exists in the people of ,ireland1 is a singular specimen of humanity1 as it used to be in the primitive ages just after1 and perhaps long before the flood1 preserved1 continued1 and apparently incapable of being destroyed or changed1 in the midst of other races of totally opposite character4 ,the sudden and entire conversion of this people to ,christianity1 and the invincible tenacity with which it has clung to its first faith1 together with the marked individuality of the expression which it has given to the ,christian idea1 form a phenomenon in history which cannot be too much studied or admired4 ,it was a happy moment for ,ireland when that ,chevalier ,bayard of ,catholic literature1 the ,count de ,montalembert1 felt his chivalrous soul moved by the story of her ancient princely monks and dauntless1 adventurous apostles1 and set himself to the task of writing a work which unites all the romantic1 poetic charm of the lyric strains of her bards1 with the accuracy and minuteness of her monastic chronicles4 #bhb ,his narrative1 partly owing to the nature of his subject1 and partly to his own genius1 is like the ,scottish ,chiefs and the ,waverley ,novels4 ,the most striking1 original1 and grand of all the characters depicted by him in that part of the ,monks of the ,west which is devoted to ,ireland1 is ,st4 ,columba or ,columbkill4 ,this great man1 who was by birth heir to the dignity of ,ard-righ1 or chief king of ,ireland1 the founder of ,iona1 and the apostle of ,scotland1 is the favorite saint of the ,irish people after ,st4 ,patrick4 ,he is a more thoroughly ,irish saint than the great apostle of ,ireland1 who was the father and founder of the ,irish people as a ,christian nation1 but was himself1 probably1 by birth and extraction a ,gallo-,roman4 ,a warrior1 a poet1 a chieftain1 a monk1 a statesman1 an apostle1 and1 it is supposed1 a prophet2 the most intensely devoted and patriotic lover of his native island1 perhaps1 that ever lived2 and yet sentenced by his stern old hermit confessor to perpetual banishment from it2 the life of ,columba overflows with all the materials of the most romantic and heroic interest4 ,the ,life of ,columba1 whose title is placed at the head of this notice1 is1 as we have implied already1 a monograph extracted from the great work on the ,monks of the ,west1 by ,montalembert4 ,it is a small book of only #agj duo-decimo pages1 and therefore readable by almost everybody who ever reads anything better than newspapers and dime novels4 ,it is1 above all others1 a book for every one1 young or old1 who has ,celtic-,catholic blood in his veins4 ,it is time now to use that ,english language which was forced by the haughty conqueror upon the ,irish people1 from a cruel motive which ,god has overruled for their glory and his own1 as the means of diffusing the treasures hidden hitherto1 so to speak1 under a cromlech4 ,those who put this unwilling people into a compulsory course of ,english1 little thought what a keen-edged weapon they were placing in their hands1 and training them to use4 ,they could not foresee what use would be made of it by ,curran1 ,o',connell1 ,thomas ,moore1 ,bishop ,doyle1 and ,father ,meehan4 ,the possession of the ,english language places the ,irish people in communication with the whole civilized world1 without depriving them of their rich patrimony of traditional lore1 legend1 and song4 ,it is incumbent on all who love the faith1 and sympathize with the wrongs and hardships1 of the ,irish people1 to strain every nerve to increase the number and diffuse the circulation of books1 in which this religious and patriotic tradition may be perpetuated4 ,wherever the ,irish people are1 in ,ireland1 ,england1 ,america1 ,australia1 they are deriving their intellectual nutriment more and more from ,english books2 and thus1 in proportion as they become readers1 are coming under the influence of writers who write in the ,english language4 ,it is most important1 therefore1 for those who are charged with the responsibility of watching over their religious1 moral1 and intellectual culture1 to see to it that their minds are not flooded with an excess of purely secular literature1 which has in it no mixture of the ,catholic tradition4 ,the greatest danger and misfortune of our rising generation of ,catholics in ,america is the lack of this tradition in historical1 poetic1 and romantic literature4 ,even those who are the descendants of parents and progenitors of the old ,catholic stock1 must necessarily lose by degrees all vivid sentiment of any other nationality than the ,american1 and be more influenced by the genius loci than by any other genius1 whether ,celtic or ,teutonic4 ,the danger to be guarded against is a peril of becoming so much ,americanized as to be reduced to a caput mortuum in the process4 ,an ,american citizen1 without faith and religion1 even though he may be born and live in ,boston1 is involved in the consequences of original sin as well as others4 ,it is no gain to transform a poor1 simple1 believing1 fervent ,catholic immigrant1 in the second or third generation1 into an intelligent1 well fed1 healthy animal1 with a comfortable farm and the elective franchise1 but with no more soul than the man with the muck-rake in the ,pilgrim's ,progress1 or those dirty heathen in the suburbs of the holy city of ,new ,york1 who spend their ,sundays in weeding cabbages4 #bhc ,this deleterious change must be prevented1 not only1 by purely spiritual means1 but also by preserving and fostering as much as possible the natural bonds which connect our youth of ,catholic origin with the traditions of their ancestry4 ,hence1 we are in favor of multiplying and circulating as much as possible those books which relate the history of the ,catholic ,church of ,ireland1 of her saints and prelates1 her gallant chieftains and noble martyrs1 her sufferings and persecutions4 ,the ,english ,catholic tradition1 and the ,scottish1 are unfortunately broken4 ,a dreary gap of three centuries intervenes between the present and the ,catholic past2 but in ,ireland the continuity is perfect from the fifth century to the present moment4 ,this is the great artery of life to the ,catholic ,church of the ,british empire and its colonies1 and it must not be severed4 ,there is an intense sympathy between the people of the ,united ,states and the people of ,ireland4 ,this is chiefly a sympathy with their oppressed condition as a people1 and with their just demands for expiation and redress for the wrongs they have suffered from the hands of the ,british government4 ,it would be prudent for the gentlemen of the ,english parliament to take note of this1 and to be wise in time1 by conceding all those rights and privileges at once with a good grace1 which ,ireland is sure to obtain sooner or later1 whether parliament is willing or unwilling4 ,this merely political sympathy will1 we trust1 prepare the way for a higher and holier sympathy with the faith1 the constancy1 the invincible fortitude of the ,irish people as a ,catholic nation1 the ,spartans of a sacred ,thermopylae1 who have immolated themselves to save the faith4 ,it is time that the ,american public should learn what is the ,irish ,version of the ,history of the ,reformation4 ,this presupposes a previous knowledge of the first planting and cultivation of ,christianity4 ,when it is seen that the ,irish fought and died for the very same religion which was planted among them by their first apostles1 it will be easy to judge of the claims which the religion of ,elizabeth and ,cromwell had upon their submission4 ,the labors of ,montalembert are therefore invaluable1 as bringing to light the hidden treasures of ,irish ecclesiastical history1 and in all his great work there is no chapter to be found more charming than the biography of the great patriarch of ,iona4 ,we conclude with the eulogium which ,fintan1 a contemporary monk1 pronounced upon ,st4 ,columba in an assembly of wise and learned men1 and which is justified by the history of his life4 ,columba is not to be compared with philosophers and learned men1 but with patriarchs1 prophets1 and apostles4 ,the ,holy ,spirit reigns in him2 he has been chosen by ,god for the good of all2 he is a sage among all sages1 a king among kings1 an anchorite with anchorites1 a monk of monks2 and in order to bring himself to the level even of laymen1 he knows how to be poor of heart among the poor2 thanks to the apostolic charity which inspires him1 he can rejoice with the joyful1 and weep with the unfortunate4 ,and amid all the gifts which ,god's generosity has lavished on him1 the true humility of ,christ is so royally rooted in his soul that it seems to have been born with him4 ---- ,ecce ,homo4 ,by the ,right ,hon4 ,w4 ,e4 ,gladstone4 ,strahan ,co41 ,london4 ,g4 ,routledge ,sons1 #daf ,broome street1 ,new ,york4 #ahfh4 ,on the day of writing this notice1 ,mr4 ,gladstone is introducing his motion for overthrowing that monstrous iniquity1 the ,irish ,establishment4 ,we feel1 consequently1 especially well-disposed toward him4 ,nevertheless1 with all our respect for his talents and character1 we cannot help being reminded of his illustrious countryman1 that great ornament of the sea-faring profession4 ,captain ,bunsby4 ,our ,english brethren1 when they take up solid topics1 appear to think laborious dulness and tedious obscurity the evidence of deep learning and sound judgment4 ,their essays are like those of collegians1 who affect to write on political or philosophical subjects in an extremely old-mannish1 old-cabinet-minister-like style4 #bhd ,this is remarkably the case with the venerable university dons who advocate rationalistic opinions4 ,the style of arguing adopted by these worthy and dignified gentlemen bears a striking resemblance to the movements of one who is carefully wending his way among eggs4 ,as an instance1 we may cite the ,essays and ,reviews1 perhaps the dullest book ever written1 unless the ,treatises on ,sacred ,arithmetic and ,mensuration1 by ,dr4 ,colenso1 may be thought worthy to compete for the prize4 ,the ,ecce ,homo is not to be placed in precisely the same category4 ,it is1 nevertheless1 in our humble opinion1 a very vague1 wearisome1 and unsatisfactory book4 ,we cannot account for its popularity in any other way than by ascribing it to the restless1 sceptical1 misty state of the ,english mind on religious subjects2 the uneasy desire to find out something more than it knows about ,christianity and its author4 ,after eighteen centuries have rolled by1 the question4 ,who is ,jesus ,christ8 still remains a puzzle to all those who will not submit to learn from the teacher commissioned by himself4 ,the author of ,ecce ,homo has endeavored to throw himself back to the time and into the period of the disciples of ,christ1 to examine with their eyes his words and actions1 and from these to abstract a mental conception of his true character4 ,what that conception is1 remains as much a puzzle as the gospels themselves are to a rationalist1 or the ,exodus to ,dr4 ,colenso4 ,the language of ,ecce ,homo is certainly irreconcilable with the definitions of the ,catholic ,church respecting the divine personality of ,christ4 ,some of its statements respecting the nature of the work accomplished by him on the earth1 and the evidence thereby furnished of his divine mission1 are forcible and valuable1 and perhaps to rationalists1 ,unitarians1 and doubters1 the work may be useful4 ,no one1 however1 who understands ,catholic theology1 and believes in the true doctrine of the ,incarnation1 can read it without a strong sentiment of repugnance and dissatisfaction4 ,mr4 ,gladstone1 nevertheless1 although professing to accept the ,catholic doctrine of the ,incarnation1 undertakes the defence of the book1 and even apologises for its most offensive passages4 ,by doing this he shows that he himself does not grasp the full meaning of the formulas to which he gives his assent2 and although he is not a rationalist1 yet1 from perpetual contact with them1 and the influence of that halting1 inconsequent state of mind produced by ,anglicanism1 he has acquired something of that dark-lantern style of which we have spoken above4 ,there are gleams of light and passages of beauty here and there1 especially on those pages where the author treats of the ,greek ,mythology as an imperfect effort to realize the idea of ,deity incarnate in human form4 ,as a whole1 the essay1 which is a mere review of another book1 was well enough for a magazine article1 but not of sufficient importance to warrant its publication in book form4 ,every person who acknowledges the true divinity of ,jesus ,christ while rejecting the authority of the ,catholic ,church1 stands in a position logically absurd1 and is therefore incapable of adequately advocating the cause of ,christ and ,christianity against the infidelity of the age4 ,no one but a ,catholic1 endowed with genius1 and fully imbued with the spirit of ,catholic theology1 can ever write in a satisfactory manner upon the ,life of ,christ1 so as to meet that demand which causes the abortive efforts of unbelievers and half-,christians to find such an extensive circulation4 ---- ,on the ,heights4 ,a ,novel4 ,by ,berthold ,auerbach4 ,boston3 ,roberts ,brothers4 #ahfh4 ,this volume1 professing to be a translation from the ,german1 is most thoroughly permeated with ,german mysticism2 one can hardly give it the dignified name of theology4 ,it carries one back in its bewildering metaphysics to the days of ,the ,dial1 when every girl of eighteen belonging to a certain clique1 was devouring ,bettina's correspondence with ,goethe1 and listening with rapt soul to lectures on ,human ,life1 from the oracular lips of a favorite seer2 discourses utterly beyond the comprehension of the maiden's papa1 but which she understood perfectly4 #bhe ,we are led to wonder1 in our republican ignorance1 if people in court life converse and act in the stilted1 theatrical manner in which they are here represented2 every person being what in these days would be called highly organized4 ,in this particular1 and in the tedium and repetition of court detail1 we were forcibly reminded of the voluminous works of ,miss ,mhlbach1 with this difference1 that ,on the ,heights makes no historical claim4 ,there are1 however1 very many sweet touches of nature in the book1 gems of thought2 and now and then a rare pearl of good counsel1 near which1 in reading1 one involuntarily draws a pencil-line1 that they may be found again4 ,maternal love is beautifully portrayed1 both in high and low life1 in the queen1 and in the foster-mother of the prince4 ,the author evidently1 knows but little of the ,catholic faith1 and less of its results1 since the life of the religieuse is continually referred to 7with a slight sneer7 as a life in which nothing happens4 ,we close this volume with a sensation of weary sadness2 there seems to run through its pages the cry of that deep-rooted pain1 under which1 thoughtful men are languishing1 like the distant tones of an ,a,eolian harp wafted on the night breezes4 ,there is a reaching forth in these mystic yearnings for the good1 the true1 and the enduring1 which the priceless gift of faith alone brings to the weary and heavy-laden1 in submission to ,god's appointed teacher1 the church4 ,the mechanical execution of the work is excellent1 the type clear1 and the double-columed pages furnish a vast amount of reading in a small compass4 ------ ,chemical ,change in the ,eucharist4 ,from the ,french of ,jacques ,abbadie4 ,by ,john ,w4 ,hamersley1 ,a4,m4 ,jacques ,abbadie was born in ,switzerland1 in #afed2 studied at ,saumur1 writes ,mr4 ,hamersley in his preface1 was doctorated at ,sedan1 and installed pastor of the ,french 7,huguenot7 ,church of ,berlin1 at the instance of ,count d',espence4 ,he left his pastorate1 became chaplain to ,marshal ,schomberg1 and came to ,england with ,william of ,orange in #afhh4 ,after ,schomberg's death1 in the battle of the ,boyne1 ,abbadie was presented to the deanery of ,killaloo1 in ,ireland1 where he died in #agbg4 ,his book against transubstantiation in the ,eucharist1 is such as might be expected from the literary leisure1 taste1 learning1 and piety of one of ,schomberg's exemplary camp-followers4 ,we read the book with the hope of finding some objection in it worth a refutation2 but we have found nothing but the stale1 oft-refuted arguments of ,protestants against the real presence4 ,led by the title of the work1 ,chemical ,change in the ,eucharist1 we expected to meet some profound chemical discoveries that should at least seem to contradict ,catholic belief4 ,but there is not one4 ,there is not even an allusion which would show the author to be conversant with chemistry or any of the natural sciences4 ,abbadie argues against the ,catholic exegesis of the sixth chapter of ,st4 ,john1 and against the words of consecration1 ,this is my body1 in the usual ,protestant way4 ,he insists that ,christ's words are to be taken figuratively2 while ,catholics claim that they are to be taken literally4 ,one general answer will do for all heterodox interpretations of ,scripture on this and on other points4 ,if ,protestants urge that private reason is the supreme judge of ,scripture1 how can they deny to ,catholics the right to use it8 ,and if the private judgment of ,catholics finds that ,christ spoke of a real presence in the ,holy ,eucharist1 and that his words are to be taken in their plain1 literal signification1 why should ,protestants object8 ,in point of fact1 ,catholics do admit private judgment1 properly understood1 in the interpretation of ,scripture4 ,they affirm that the interpretation of the church or of the fathers is identical with the rational exegesis4 #bhf ,the interpretation of ,protestants is not a rational interpretation1 and does not give the true sense of ,scripture4 ,they misinterpret the ,scriptures by an abuse of private judgment4 ,they gratuitously assume that ,catholic interpretation is contrary to the rational sense of the ,bible2 while ,catholics hold that their interpretation alone is rational4 ,as a prudent1 sensible man1 when he meets with a difficult passage in ,homer or ,sophocles1 consults the best commentators to aid him in discovering the true sense2 so1 for a much greater reason1 should a ,christian seek an authoritative explanation of those hard passages of ,holy ,writ which the unstable and unlearned wrest to their own destruction4 ,one who denies that there are difficult texts in ,scripture can never have read it4 ,from the first text of ,genesis to the last in the ,apocalypse1 the ,scripture is replete with difficulties1 which even the most learned commentators do not always succeed in explaining4 ,all ,abbadie's scriptural arguments against the real presence may be1 therefore1 met with one remark4 ,he explains certain texts in a figurative sense4 ,catholics1 however1 interpret them to mean what they plainly and literally express4 ,catholics do not need in this case to appeal to the authority of the church or to the fathers4 ,christ says1 ,this is my body2 ,catholics believe him4 ,christ says1 ,my flesh is meat indeed2 ,catholics believe his words4 ,abbadie and his sect admit that ,christ says1 ,this is my body2 that he affirms his flesh to be meat indeed2 yet they will not believe him4 ,who authorizes them to contradict the express words of ,christ8 ,we ask impartial reason to judge between ,catholic and ,protestant in this controversy4 ,but where ,abbadie shows his complete ignorance of the first elements of the higher sciences is in ,letter ,fourth of his book1 p4 #ih4 ,we quote from ,mr4 ,hamersley's translation4 ,all our ideas of faith rely solely on sense2 and their value to us is measured by its certainty2 and to faith1 which is a conviction of divine truth1 there are four essentials3 ,god exists2 he is truthful2 he has revealed himself2 each mystery of our faith appears in such revelation4 ,sir--it is noteworthy--that the senses are the sole channels of all those truths1 and their ,,sole vouchers4 ,again1 ,thus the senses are the media of all evidence4 7,p4 #ii47 ,the materialism of d',holbach1 ,cabanis1 ,helvetius1 and ,condillac is identical with this doctrine of the doughty dean of ,killaloo4 ,if the senses are the sole channels of truth1 instead of being the mere occasions of reflection1 then the whole order of intelligible ideas1 the ideas of ,god1 spirit1 and cause1 are illusions4 ,the senses can only tell us the sensible or phenomenal4 ,now1 as the ideas of ,god1 cause1 spirit1 truth1 justice1 goodness1 substance1 etc41 are all supersensible1 they cannot come from the senses4 ,if the senses are the media of all evidence1 the only things we can know are modes or phenomena1 colors1 forms1 sounds1 etc4 ,the senses tell us nothing more4 ,we must1 therefore1 deny the existence of ,god1 of truth1 of goodness1 cause1 substance1 etc42 and turn atheists1 pantheists1 sceptics1 or materialists1 as all who logically follow out ,abbadie's or ,locke's metaphysics really become4 ,the philosophy of the warlike chaplain of ,schomberg's army is thus shown to be essentially immoral4 ,did ,mr4 ,hamersley know this when he translated the book8 ,we think not1 for he is evidently too innocent of logic and too ignorant of truth to be able to understand fully even the arguments of the superficial dean of ,killaloo4 ,we shall make good our assertion by quoting a few of ,mr4 ,hamersley's own references3 ,in #ahde1 the pope made the ,immaculate ,conception a part of the ,roman creed and a condition of salvation4 7,p4 #aac47 ,the gentleman probably was thinking of the pope's decree of #aheb4 ,a4,d4 #eig1 ,gregory ,i4 instructs ,st4 ,augustine to accommodate the ceremonies of the church to heathen rites4 7,p4 #abe474 ,the ,maronites1 originally ,monothelites1 protected by the ,emperor ,heraclius1 are now incorporated in the church of ,rome4 7,p4 #abf47 #bhg ,a4,d4 #abie1 ,boniface ,,viii4 confines ex-pope ,celestine ,v4 in a cell about the size of his body1 lest he may elect to resume the pontificate he has resigned--guards him night and day with #f knights and #cj soldiers4 ,celestine dies of cruelty4 7,p4 #abi47 ,gregory ,,vii4 threatens to anathematize all ,france1 unless ,king ,philip abandons simony4 7,p4 #ace47 ,this was one of ,gregory's crimes in the judgment of ,mr4 ,hamersley4 ,alexander ,,vi4 7,borgia7 is elected pope--his ,holiness is forthwith adored by the cardinals3 7,p4 #adc47 ,what idolatry6 ,penance--a sacrament by which venial sins1 committed after baptism1 are forgiven4 7,p4 #adf47 ,the ,nestorians were excommunicated ,a4,d4 #dca1 for holding1 among other views1 two natures of ,christ4 ,the ,council of ,chalcedon1 ,a4,d4 #dea1 confirmed the doctrine of the two natures of ,christ1 which the church had repudiated4 7,p4 #adh47 ,as instances of schisms in the church1 the learned translator cites the following3 ,dominicans and ,franciscans--on immaculate conception4 ,thomists and ,scotists--efficacy of grace and immaculate conception4 ,jesuits and ,jansenists--on the doctrine of grace4 7,p4 #aej47 ,dec4 #ag1 #ahff1 the leading ,romanists of the ,council of ,baltimore invite the pope by letter to visit the ,united ,states4 7,p4 #aeg47 ,jesuit pestilence4 7,p4 #aei47 ,plague-spots--,roman ,catholic churches and institutions4 7,p4 #afj47 ,this is a good instance of ,mr4 ,hamersley's rhetoric4 ,the ,papal ,church in the ,united ,states has recently adopted the title of ,roman ,catholic4 ,evidence3 ,it appears in large iron gilt letters over the gate of the asylum in ,fifth avenue1 ,new ,york--,roman ,catholic ,male ,orphan ,asylum4 7,p4 #afj47 ,this is one of the plague-spots6 ,these are but a few of the literary beauties to be found in ,mr4 ,hamersley's additions to ,abbadie4 ,a ,catholic could afford to smile at both the original and his translator1 if1 unfortunately1 there were not found many persons so credulous as to believe their falsehoods4 ,the original work of ,abbadie is tolerable4 ,he attempts to argue2 and we have no doubt his military logic was satisfactory enough to the square-headed soldiers of ,schomberg's army4 ,besides1 when ,abbadie wrote1 civilization had not arrived at such a degree of progress as it has now attained4 ,but ,mr4 ,hamersley writes his falsehoods now4 ,his ignorance and fanaticism1 of which we have culled but a few of the many instances in his book1 are of our own day4 ,we cannot understand why he should repeat them1 since there is hardly any moderately educated ,protestant who does not know that most of his allegations are false4 ,if there be any so dull or fanatical as to believe them1 we feel for them more of pity than contempt4 ,in conclusion1 we regret that the translator does not show as much good sense or taste in choosing the subject as the publishers manifest in the binding and printing of the work4 ,we are sorry to see such fine print wasted on a bad1 worthless book4 ,mr4 ,hamersley could have found nobler themes in foreign literature1 even though they might be the productions of ,protestants1 to exercise those talents as a translator which he has failed to show as a lover of truth1 a logician1 or a man of good sense4 ------ ,life in the ,west2 or1 ,stories of the ,mississippi ,valley4 ,by ,n4 ,c4 ,meeker1 ,agricultural ,editor of the ,new ,york ,tribune4 ,new ,york3 ,samuel ,r4 ,wells4 ,a long residence in the ,mississippi ,valley1 frequent journeys through its whole extent1 and years of service as the ,illinois correspondent of the ,new ,york ,tribune1 have furnished the materials for the following stories4 ,hence1 it is almost unnecessary to state that their claim to our careful consideration rests upon something more substantial than the fact of their being pleasingly told1 varied in incident1 and unobjectionable in tone4 ,their real worth1 and it is not slight1 arises from this1 that they are made the agreeable medium of conveying much valuable information concerning life in the ,west2 no less the hardships unavoidably to be endured by the emigrant1 the difficulties to be overcome1 and the dangers to be encountered1 than his almost assured ultimate triumph4 #bhh ,of general interest1 but designed especially for those intending to emigrate1 is the appendix1 containing a brief description of the soil1 climate1 products1 area1 and population of each ,state and territory lying in the great ,valley of the ,mississippi2 and also the locations of the several land-offices where application must be made and all needful information can be obtained4 ---- ,mozart3 ,a ,biographical ,romance4 ,from the ,german of ,heribert ,rau4 ,by ,e4 ,r4 ,sill4 ,new ,york3 ,leypoldt ,holt4 #ahfh4 ,a poor translation of a frothy production4 ,on the first page1 the child1 ,mozart1 is called a three-years-old son4 ,mr4 ,sill evidently does not know that a three-year-old is ,english for colts and heifers4 ,mozart's sister is also denominated a seven-years-old4 ,the writer1 if ,mr4 ,sill has translated him correctly1 is exceedingly ignorant1 or worse4 ,on page #ed we read3 ,they sought the pope's chair1 7that is1 the worshippers crowding to ,st4 ,peter's for the services on ,maundy-,thursday17 partly because it was the fashion1 partly because they wanted to be on hand to see everybody else do it1 and partly because1 to an ,italian1 a hundred days' absolution in advance is always a pleasant and convenient thing to have4 ,the recitation of the ,tenebrae1 in the evening1 is called1 on page #eh1 the performance of ,mass4 ,would it not be well for our enterprising publishers in this enlightened country1 to employ a proof-reader who has received a passable education8 ------ ,the ,great ,day2 or1 ,motives and ,means of ,perseverance after ,first ,communion4 ,translated from the ,french by ,mrs4 ,j4 ,sadlier4 ,new ,york1 #ahfh4 ,a pretty and good little volume1 intended for a gift to children1 as a memento of the happy day of their first communion4 ,we have only one criticism to make1 which is1 that its tone of thought is too foreign4 ,we wish that the accomplished translator had made use of the original ,french only1 as matter from which to compile a delightful little book under this title1 7a task which she could so admirably perform17 suitable1 in the freshness of its thought1 to the minds of ,american children4 ,in lieu1 however1 of the wished-for better book of ,mrs4 ,sadlier's1 we heartily recommend this present volume to the attention of all pastors1 parents1 and superintendents of ,sunday-schools1 who will find in it1 we are sure1 just what very many of them have long desired to procure as a worthy memento for ,the ,great ,day4 ------ ,tales from the ,diary of a ,sister of ,mercy4 ,by ,c4 ,m4 ,brame4 ,new ,york3 ,catholic ,publication ,society4 #ahfh4 ,we all remember ,passages from the ,diary of a ,late ,physician1 by ,dr4 ,warren1 and the intense interest everybody felt in these sketches of the tragic scenes with which the persons whose profession leads them among the sick1 the suffering1 and the dying are familiar4 ,this book is on a similar plan1 and is composed of graphic descriptions of what a ,sister of ,mercy may be supposed to see and observe in her charitable ministrations4 ,the light of the ,catholic religion thrown in among these painful1 tragic scenes1 relieves their shadows1 and leaves a more healthful impression on the mind2 in short1 becoming their pathetic effect4 ,those who love sensation stories will find their taste gratified in this volume1 and1 at the same time1 may be able to derive from it some good moral and religious lessons4 ------ ,we regret that a notice of ,the ,first ,report of the ,catholic ,sunday-,school ,union was crowded out of the columns of this number4 ,it will appear in our next4--,ed4 ,c4 ,w4 ----------------------- #bhi ,the ,catholic ,world4 ,vol4 ,,vii41 ,no4 #ci4--;,june1 #ahfh4 -------- ,edmund ,campion4 ,in the spring of #aehj1 ,elizabeth being then queen of ,great ,britain1 and ,england being in the midst of the turmoil which accompanied the final establishment of ,protestantism as the religion of the realm1 two expeditions set out from ,rome1 to restore the faith in the ,british isles4 ,one consisted of two thousand armed soldiers1 enlisted as a sort of crusaders1 and animated by the papal blessing and the promise of indulgences1 not to speak of the visions of worldly glory and profit which even soldiers who fight under consecrated banners are apt to find alluring4 ,the other was composed of less than a score of missionaries1 ,jesuits1 secular priests1 and others1 whose most enticing prospect was one of martyrdom4 ,the soldiers were to land in ,ireland and help the rebellion of the ,geraldines4 ,the missionaries were to penetrate in disguise into ,england1 and exercise the ministry of the proscribed and persecuted faith in the secrecy of private houses and hidden chambers4 ,looking at the history of those times in the light of subsequent experience1 it seems hard to account for the policy which could imperil not only the lives of the missionaries1 but the cause of the church1 by complicating the peaceful embassy of the priests with the mission of war and insurrection4 ,for it was no secret that the troops came from ,rome1 and that large subsidies from the ,roman treasury were sent with them4 ,associated with them1 too1 went an eminent ecclesiastic4 ,dr4 ,saunders1 with the functions of a legate4 ,we must remember1 however1 that the accession of ,elizabeth had never been popularly acquiesced in4 ,her legitimacy had never been generally acknowledged4 ,her reign thus far had been a series of rebellions4 ,the party which opposed her had a fair title to the character of belligerents1 and the continental powers which espoused their cause were only doing what1 by the customs of the age1 they had a perfect right to do4 ,the pope had issued a bull1 excommunicating the queen1 absolving her subjects from their oath of allegiance1 and even forbidding them to obey her2 and although he had afterward so far modified the bull as to permit the ,english people to recognize her authority1 rebus sic stantibus1 while things remained as they were1 he had never ceased1 in conjunction with other ,european powers1 to promote attempts in ,ireland and elsewhere to overthrow her and place the ,queen of ,scots upon the throne4 #bij ,at this distance of time1 with a line of successors to ratify ,elizabeth's title to the crown1 and the fact of their failure arguing against the insurgents1 it is easy to condemn the papal policy2 but we must remember that affairs bore a different aspect then2 that ,elizabeth's right to the throne was open to question2 and that the ,catholic faith which she was striving to suppress was still the faith of a large majority of the ,english people4 ,we have little to do1 however1 with this ,irish expedition4 ,it was a miserable failure1 and its only effect was1 to aggravate the sufferings of the ,catholics and expose the missionaries to increased danger4 ,our purpose in this article is rather to trace the history of the more peaceful and strictly religious embassy1 so far as it bore upon the life of the illustrious martyr from whom it derives its chief renown4 ,edmund ,campion1 ,footnote #ee the son of a ,london bookseller1 was born on the #beth of ,january1 #aeci1 7,o4 ,s417 the year which witnessed the commencement of the ,english persecution1 of which he was destined to be a victim1 and the solemn approval of the ,society of ,jesus1 of which he was to be the first ,english martyr4 ,at ,st4 ,john's ,college1 ,oxford1 where he was educated and obtained a fellowship1 he was so much admired for his gift of speech and grace of eloquence1 that young men imitated not only his phrases but his gait1 and revered him as a second ,cicero4 ,it was the year after he obtained his fellowship that ,queen ,mary died and ,elizabeth succeeded to the throne4 ,the new sovereign allowed but a few weeks to pass before she manifested her preference for the ,protestant doctrines2 yet there was no attempt at first to force the heresy upon the university of ,oxford1 her ,majesty wisely trusting to the insidious influences of time1 persuasion1 and high example to bring the students and professors over to her views4 ,it is no great wonder1 perhaps1 that ,campion1 intoxicated by the incense of adulation and enervated by the worldly comfort of his position1 shut his eyes to the dreadful gulf of heresy into which the ,english ,church was drifting1 and seemed hardly to realize the necessity which was being forced upon him of choosing between ,god and the queen4 ,he was not required for some years to take any oath at variance with his fidelity to the church4 ,so he gave up the study of theology1 to which he had hitherto devoted himself1 and applied his mind to secular learning4 ,he was a layman1 and controversy might be left to the priests4 ,when he took his degree in #aefd1 he was induced to subscribe to the oath against the pope's supremacy1 and by the statutes of his college he was also compelled to resume the study of divinity2 yet he still managed to stave off important questions and to confine his reading to the old settled dogmas which had no direct bearing upon the questions of the day4 ,footnote #ee3 ,edmund ,campion3 ,a ,biography4 ,by ,richard ,simpson4 #hvo1 pp4 #chg4 ,london3 ,williams ,norgate4 ,new ,york3 ,the ,catholic ,publication ,society4 #bia ,the time came1 at last1 when the theological neutral ground had been thoroughly explored1 and ,campion turned to the ,fathers4 ,in their venerable company he seemed to grow more thoughtful and conscientious4 ,the problem of his life now was not how he could postpone serious considerations1 and shake off religious responsibility1 but how he could reconcile true principles with false practice2 how he could remain in the ,established ,church of ,england1 and yet hold to all the old ,catholic doctrines which the ,establishment denied4 ,his position1 in fact1 was almost identical with that of the modern ,tractarians1 and his college at ,oxford was the home of a party which entertained nearly the same opinions4 ,there was one of the ,elizabethan bishops1 ,cheney of ,gloucester1 who1 having retained a good deal of the orthodox faith1 sympathized heartily with ,campion's aspirations and perplexities4 ,he was the actual founder of the school represented in later times by ,newman and ,pusey1 and he had fixed upon ,campion to continue and perfect the work after he himself had passed away4 ,the bishop persuaded our young scholar to take deacons' orders1 so that he might preach and obtain preferment4 ,but the effect of this step upon ,campion was such as ,cheney little anticipated4 ,almost immediately troubles beset his mind4 ,he found his new dignity odious and abominable4 ,the idea of preferment became hateful to him4 ,he wished rather to live as a simple layman1 and in #aefi he resigned his appointments at the university and went to ,dublin1 where it seemed that a more agreeable career awaited him4 ,a project was then afoot for restoring the old ,dublin university founded by ,pope ,john ,,xxi41 but for some years extinct4 ,the principal mover in the matter was the ,recorder of ,dublin and ,speaker of the ,house of ,commons1 ,james ,stanihurst1 a zealous ,catholic1 and the father of one of ,campion's pupils4 ,in his house ,campion received a generous welcome1 and there he remained for a while1 leading a kind of monastic life1 and waiting for the opening of the new seminary1 in which he hoped to find congenial employment4 ,the scheme fell through1 however1 and the chief cause of its failure was the secret hostility of the government to ,stanihurst1 and the ,lord-,deputy1 ,sir ,henry ,sidney1 who were most actively concerned in it1 and to ,campion1 who was to have the principal share in its direction4 ,campion was not yet reconciled to the church1 but he was already distrusted as a papist1 and only saved from arrest by the protection of ,sidney4 ,such protection1 however1 could not avail him long4 ,the rebellion of some of the ,english ,catholic nobles1 the publication of the pope's bull against ,elizabeth which ,felton had posted on the ,bishop of ,london's gates1 and the designs of the king of ,spain upon ,ireland1 had roused a persecution1 and ,campion was one of those especially designated to be arrested4 ,the ,lord-,deputy found means to warn him a few hours before the officers arrived1 and he saved himself by flight4 ,for two or three months he dodged the pursuivants about ,ireland1 lurking in the houses of his friends1 and working1 in the intervals of the pursuit1 at a ,history of ,ireland1 which he had begun while lodging with ,stanihurst4 ,at last1 seeing that he must soon be captured if he remained on the island1 and fearing to compromise the friends who gave him shelter1 he resolved to return to ,england1 and accordingly1 in the disguise of a lackey1 took ship at the little port of ,tredagh1 near ,dublin4 ,the officers came on board to search for him1 and questioned everybody on the vessel except the fugitive himself4 ,they seized the manuscripts of his history1 and then went away1 cursing the seditious villain ,campion4 ,he reached ,england in time to witness the trial of ,dr4 ,storey1 who was executed for the faith in ,june1 #aega4 #bib ,we are told nothing of the progress of his conversion after he left ,oxford1 but by this time it was complete1 and he had resolved to repair to the ,english college at ,douai1 there to fit himself for more effective labors in the ,catholic cause4 ,in mid-channel the ship in which he had taken passage was overhauled by an ,english frigate1 and ,campion1 having no passport1 and being1 moreover1 suspected and denounced by his fellow-passengers as a papist1 was taken off and carried back to ,dover4 ,the captain appropriated all his prisoner's money1 and then set out to conduct him to ,london4 ,it was soon evident1 however1 that the officer cared more for the purse than the captive2 and without a word being said on either side1 ,campion understood that he might run away provided he said nothing about the money4 ,this was enough4 ,he escaped in one direction while his guard pretended to pursue him in another2 and having obtained a fresh supply of money from some of his friends1 succeeded at last in making his escape over to ,france4 ,he staid long enough at ,douai to complete his course of scholastic theology and to be ordained sub-deacon4 ,after the lapse of a little more than a year1 he resolved to go to ,rome with the purpose of becoming a ,jesuit4 ,his biographers generally attribute this determination to the remorse which he still felt on account of his ,anglican deaconship2 but ,mr4 ,simpson is inclined to lay rather more stress upon a disagreement between ,campion and ,dr4 ,allen1 the president of ,douai ,college1 upon political questions4 ,the friendly and even affectionate relations of these two eminent men were never interrupted2 but ,dr4 ,allen had many opinions which his disciple could not share4 ,campion1 devoted as he was to the church and the ,holy ,see1 was always loyally obedient to the civil powers of his native country1 save when the laws were in conflict with his conscience4 ,allen1 who had been many years in exile1 was a devoted servant of ,philip of ,spain1 and was thick in the plots for the overthrow of ,elizabeth and the various schemes for foreign invasion4 ,it is not impossible that a divergence of sentiment on some such point as this may have influenced ,campion's decision1 if not wholly1 at least in part4 ,however it was1 the two friends bade each other an affectionate farewell1 and the future martyr1 in the guise of a poor pilgrim1 set out afoot for ,rome4 ,in shabby garments1 dusty and footsore1 he entered the holy city in the autumn of #aegb1 only a few days before the death of ,st4 ,francis ,borgia1 third general of the ,society of ,jesus4 ,a successor to the saint was not chosen until ,april1 #aegc1 and meanwhile ,campion had to wait4 ,he was the first postulant admitted by the new general4 ,father ,mercurianus1 and soon afterward he was sent to ,brnn in ,moravia to pass his novitiate4 ,in a letter which he wrote to his brethren there1 after he had taken his vows1 we find a pleasing picture of the humble and happy life which he spent in that retreat4 ,o dear walls6 he exclaims1 that once shut me up in your company6 ,pleasant recreation-room1 where we talked so holily6 ,glorious kitchen1 where the best friends--,john and ,charles1 the two ,stephens1 ,sallitzi1 ,finnit and ,george1 ,tobias and ,gaspar--fight for the saucepans in holy humility and charity unfeigned6 ,how often do ,i picture to myself one returning with his load from the farm1 another from the market2 one sweating stalwartly and merrily under a sack of rubbish1 another under some other toil6 444 #bic ,i have been about a year in religion1 in the world thirty-five2 what a happy change if ,i could say ,i had been a year in the world1 in religion thirty-five6 ,there is something very touching and instructive in the record of his first years in the ,society of ,jesus2 and the chroniclers of his order1 who reckon it among the chief glories of the brotherhood in ,bohemia that the ,english martyr received his religious training among them1 and taught them at the same time by his illustrious example1 have set down that record with careful and affectionate minuteness4 ,how the man whom ,oxford had revered as a guide was content in a moment to become the humblest of pupils2 how he by whom the young nobility of ,england had set the fashion of their thought1 their reading1 their elocution1 their very walk and manner1 was happy in the privilege of being allowed to put on a dirty apron1 roll up his sleeves1 and scour saucepans in the scullery--these are the chief points in the story of his life at ,brnn1 and afterward at ,prague1 whither he was sent to teach rhetoric4 ,it is a strange life to read about1 yet it probably differed little from the ordinary life of his brethren in religion1 and hundreds of ,jesuit houses to-day exhibit no doubt the same model of industry1 devotedness1 and humility4 ,for a certain number of hours daily he was in the class-room2 when his pupils went to play1 he went to wash dishes in the kitchen4 ,he was called upon for poems1 orations1 and sacred dramas1 to celebrate the college festivals2 for funeral discourses on the death of great persons4 ,he taught catechism to the children2 he visited the hospitals and prisons2 he preached2 he heard confessions2 he spent incredible pains in preparing the young ,jesuits for the work of disputing successfully with heretics when they should be sent out to their various fields of duty4 ,his brethren were amazed that any one man should have strength to carry so many burdens4 ,he seems1 however1 to have borne up well under them4 ,about myself1 he writes to ,father ,parsons1 ,i would only have you know that from the day ,i arrived here ,i have been extremely well--in a perpetual bloom of health1 and that ,i was never at any age less upset by literary work than now1 when ,i work hardest4 ,we know the reason4 ,but1 indeed1 ,i have no time to be sick1 if any illness wanted to take me4 ,it was while ,campion was thus occupied at ,prague1 that ,sir ,philip ,sidney1 who had known him at ,oxford1 came over from ,england as ambassador4 ,the young nobleman had many an interview with his old friend1 and seems to have awakened in ,campion a strong hope of his conversion--a prospect to which his friends and political associates were by no means blind2 for they watched him so closely that the interviews between the ambassador and the ,jesuit were not managed without a great deal of difficulty4 ,campion writes to one ,john ,bavand1 commending this young man1 so wonderfully beloved and admired by his countrymen1 to the earnest prayers of all good ,catholics4 ,he saw what an effect upon the faith in ,england the conversion of a nobleman of ,sidney's brilliant parts and distinguished position must have1 and the re-establishment of the faith in his native island was something which he had especially at heart4 ,his letters are full of anxiety on this score4 ,he speaks of catching and subduing his recreant countrymen by the prayers and tears at which they laugh2 but we find no political allusions1 and it is plain enough that1 in the various schemes for ,catholic insurrections and for foreign invasions1 he had neither share nor heart4 #bid ,he had been between five and six years at ,prague when he was summoned to ,rome to take part in the mission about to be sent forth for the conversion of ,england4 ,the little band of heroes comprised ,dr4 ,goldwell1 ,bishop of ,st4 ,asaph1 who had long been residing on the continent1 several ,english secular priests1 old men who had been in exile1 and young men fresh from their studies1 a few zealous laymen1 and three ,jesuits1 ,campion1 ,parsons1 and a lay brother named ,ralph ,emerson4 ,to assist them in their labors1 collect alms for them1 and find safe hiding-places1 a ,catholic ,association had just been organized in ,england by ,george ,gilbert1 a young man of property1 whom ,father ,parsons had converted in ,rome the preceding year4 ,the ,jesuits were furnished with a paper of instructions for their guidance4 ,father ,parsons was a younger man than ,campion1 and had been a shorter time than he in the ,society2 yet there were good reasons why he should be appointed the superior in the mission4 ,he was not only zealous and devout1 but he had a good knowledge of men and affairs1 he was well versed in the ways of cities2 he was adroit1 versatile1 and prudent2 and he was somewhat familiar with the schemes of the pope and other ,catholic powers against the government of ,elizabeth4 ,a knowledge of these secret designs would have been but a sorry safeguard had he fallen into the hands of the authorities of the crown1 and the consciousness must have heightened his sense of the danger incurred in the expedition2 but ,parsons had all the courage of a martyr1 though he did not win a martyr's crown4 ,the party left ,rome on the #ahth of ,april1 #aehj1 and were not more than fairly started on their journey when the ,english ,secretary1 ,walsingham received from his spies a full description of them and a list of their names4 ,passing through ,geneva1 they resolved to have an interview with ,theodore ,beza2 and the account of it gives a curious picture of the state of society in those times1 and of the manner in which theological controversy mingled with the ordinary affairs of life4 ,the travellers made no secret of their religion1 though they disguised their persons and calling4 ,campion dressed himself as an ,irish servant1 waiting on ,mr4 ,john ,pascal1 a lay gentleman of their party1 and the only one who failed in the final day of trial4 ,sherwin1 one of the secular priests1 used to relate with uncontrollable merriment how naturally ,campion played his part4 ,beza1 under one pretext or another1 got rid of them as politely as possible1 and promised to send to their inn an ,english scholar of his1 the son of ,sir ,george ,hastings4 ,instead of young ,hastings1 there came his governor1 ,mr4 ,brown1 and a young ,englishman named ,powell1 and we have a strange account of the priests disputing hotly in the streets of ,geneva with the two ,protestants until almost midnight1 and challenging ,beza to a public controversy1 with the proviso that he who was justly convicted in the opinion of indifferent judges should be burned alive in the market-place6 ,powell had known ,campion at ,oxford1 so the soi-disant servant kept out of his sight1 and when the former gentleman offered to accompany the missionaries a little way on their road next morning1 ,campion was sent forward in advance4 ,but meeting on the road a minister studying his sermon1 the temptation was too strong for the enthusiastic ,jesuit1 and he buckled with him at once4 #bie ,the rest of the party came up while they were still at it1 hammer and tongs1 and ,powell recognized ,campion1 and saluted him with great affection4 ,after that1 the missionaries made a pilgrimage of eight or nine miles over difficult paths to ,st4 ,clodovens in ,france1 by way of penance for their curiosity4 ,we have said that ,parsons was privy to some of the political expeditions against ,england2 but he had no knowledge of the one which set out about the same time that he did1 and the news1 which he learned on his arrival at ,rheims1 filled him with dismay4 ,the queen had issued a proclamation which plainly indicated a purpose to proceed against the ,catholics with increased severity1 and the peril of the undertaking had become greater than ever4 ,it does not appear1 however1 that one of the company faltered4 ,dr4 ,goldwell had been obliged to turn back and defer his voyage--which1 indeed1 he never made at all2 but others joined the mission1 and among them was a fourth ,jesuit1 ,father ,thomas ,cottam4 ,at ,rheims1 the party broke up to find their way across to ,england by different routes4 ,campion1 ,parsons1 and ,brother ,ralph ,emerson were to go by way of ,st4 ,omer1 ,calais1 and ,dover4 ,parsons crossed first1 disguised as a soldier returning from the ,low ,countries1 and in his captain's uniform passed inspection so easily and was so well treated by the searcher at ,dover that he bespoke that officer's courtesy for his friend1 ,mr4 ,edmunds1 a diamond-merchant1 who was shortly to follow him4 ,he reached ,london without trouble2 but his dress was outlandish1 and people were unusually fearful and suspicious1 so he was turned away from the inns4 ,he knew of a ,catholic gentleman1 however1 who was held in the ,marshalsea prison for his faith1 and he applied to see him4 ,through him he was brought into communication with ,george ,gilbert and the ,catholic ,association1 who had apartments in the house of the chief pursuivant1 where up to this time1 thanks in part to the connivance of influential friends1 they had managed to have a daily celebration of ,mass4 ,father ,parsons had induced the friendly searcher at ,dover to send over a letter for him to ,mr4 ,edmunds1 at ,st4 ,omer1 bidding him make haste to ,london with his diamonds1 and ,campion1 as soon as he received it1 set out with ,brother ,ralph4 ,but1 in the mean time1 the ,english officers had grown more strict2 the searcher had been reprimanded for letting certain persons pass who were supposed to be priests2 and there was a report1 moreover1 that a brother of ,dr4 ,allen was coming over1 and his description agreed pretty well with ,campion's appearance4 ,the two ,jesuits were accordingly arrested and taken before the mayor2 but they were dismissed after a short detention1 and the next day were welcomed by the association in ,london4 ,this pious club was such an admirable illustration of the truth that the salvation of souls is not the exclusive duty or privilege of the priesthood that we may spare a moment from our survey of ,campion's life to glance at its history and character4 ,the missionary career is open to all4 ,members of religious orders1 secular priests1 men of the world1 soldiers1 lawyers1 shop-keepers1 doctors1 laborers1 farmers1 the beggars on the street1 the fashionable lady in her carriage--we can all do something for the advancement of the great cause2 and if we only knew how to systematize our efforts1 how to economize our zeal1 the ,catholic ,association of ,campion's day is an evidence of the enormous service we might render to the church4 #bif ,the founder of the association1 ,george ,gilbert1 had been anxious1 immediately after his conversion1 to expend his first fervor in a pilgrimage to ,jerusalem2 but ,father ,parsons persuaded him rather to return to ,england and spend his money there in advancing the ,catholic cause4 ,he drew together a number of young men of his own rank in life and with somewhat of his own spirit4 ,they hired rooms together2 they bribed officers whose vigilance they could not elude2 they gave shelter to priests2 they furnished places for the celebration of ,mass2 they kept the ,catholics in communication with each other2 they supplied the missionaries with money2 and they organized the tours which the priests made through the country4 ,the ,catholics were beset with spies1 and the government held out strong inducements to weak brethren to betray their pastors4 ,it was necessary1 therefore1 that the priests should be extremely cautious to whom they trusted themselves2 and since they could not carry credentials1 it was necessary1 too1 that the gentlemen who harbored them should be quite sure whom they were receiving4 ,this perfect intelligence could only be obtained by a thorough organization of the ,catholic gentry2 and it was not the least part of the duty of the association to see that1 whenever a priest travelled1 some one should be with him as at once an endorser and a guide4 ,it was their part1 likewise1 to undertake the preliminary work of converting heretics4 ,in those fearful times a doubting ,protestant could not be admitted to see a priest until he had given some evidence of the sincerity of his search after truth4 ,the members of the club took him in hand first1 and brought him to the priest when they felt it to be safe4 ,when ,campion reached the asylum of their rooms in ,london1 ,parsons had already gone on a tour in the country1 leaving word for his companion to await his return4 ,there was a great desire among the ,catholics who had learned of the arrival of the missionaries to hear the famous preacher with whose eloquence years ago ,oxford had resounded1 but it was no easy matter to find a place where he might speak in safety4 ,at last1 arrangements were made for a sermon in the servants' hall of a private house1 and there1 while trusty gentlemen watched all the avenues of approach1 ,campion delivered a discourse with which all the ,catholic circles of ,london were soon ringing4 ,the faithful and the wavering rushed to him in crowds4 ,the government got wind of what was going on1 and redoubled their exertions to entrap him4 ,several priests were captured1 and many ,catholics were thrown into prison4 ,the danger of remaining in ,london soon became too pressing to be disregarded4 ,so1 after a council had been held1 several questions of discipline settled1 and each man's special work assigned1 the priests all went away to different parts of the kingdom4 ,the pursuit was much hotter after ,campion than after any of his brethren1 and it was intensified by the imprudence of a ,catholic layman who had allowed a document entrusted to his care by the missionary1 to be made public4 ,this was a paper drawn up by ,campion on the eve of the separation of their little company1 setting forth the reasons of their coming to ,england1 and inviting the ,protestants to a public conference4 ,it was intended to be used only in case he should be arrested2 but ,thomas ,pounde1 to whom1 for greater surety1 he had given a copy1 thought it too good to be kept entirely secret1 and thus it soon came to the hands of the government4 #big ,this1 of course1 increased their anxiety to capture a man whom1 by his personal influence1 his eloquence1 and his still brilliant reputation at ,oxford1 they felt to be especially dangerous4 ,proclamation followed proclamation2 the pursuivants were unceasing in activity2 spies were sent into every quarter of the kingdom2 some of the ,catholics themselves were corrupted2 watchers were set about the houses of the principal ,catholic gentlemen4 ,many a time was the ,mass or the sermon interrupted by the coming of the officers and the priest compelled to take refuge in the woods4 ,once1 when the pursuivants came upon him suddenly at the house of a private gentleman1 a maid-servant1 to make them think he was merely one of the retainers1 affected to be angry with him and pushed him into a pond4 ,the disguise was effectual1 and the good father escaped4 ,all this while he was engaged in writing his famous book against the ,protestants1 known as the ,decem ,rationes4 ,it was finished about ,easter1 #aeha1 and sent to ,london for the approval of ,parsons1 who had a private printing-press in a hidden place1 whereat he had already published certain writings of his own4 ,by great efforts a number of copies were got ready for the commencement at ,oxford in ,june2 and when the audience assembled at the exercises1 they found the benches strewed with the books1 to the reading of which they gave far more attention than to the performances of the students4 ,the title-page bore the imprint of ,douai1 but the government was not long in ascertaining by the examination of experts that the work had been done in ,england4 ,campion had gone to ,london while his book was passing through the press1 to superintend the correction of the sheets2 but the danger was now so imminent that ,parsons ordered him away into ,norfolk1 in company with ,brother ,ralph ,emerson4 ,the two fathers rode out of the city together at daylight on the #abth of ,july1 and1 after an affectionate farewell1 parted company1 the one going to the north1 the other back into the town4 ,the ,judas who was to betray him1 however1 was on the alert4 ,this was one ,george ,eliot1 formerly steward to ,mr4 ,roper in ,kent1 and latterly a servant of the widow of ,sir ,william ,petre4 ,he was a ,catholic1 but a man of bad character1 and had been for some time a paid informer to the ,earl of ,leicester4 ,how he knew of ,campion's visit to ,lyford is not certain2 but he had been looking for him at several ,catholic houses in the neighborhood1 and on the #afth1 armed with a warrant and attended by a pursuivant in disguise1 he presented himself at the gate just as ,mass was about to begin1 and applied for admission4 ,one of the servants knew him for a ,catholic1 but little suspected his real character2 so with much ado he got leave to pass in1 having first sent off the pursuivant to a magistrate for a posse comitatus4 ,he heard the ,mass1 he heard ,campion's sermon2 but he was afraid to make the arrest until the magistrate arrived4 ,as soon as the service was over1 he hurried off4 ,the company--comprising some sixty persons besides the members of the household--were at dinner when word was brought that the place was surrounded by armed men4 ,after a long search1 ,campion and three other priests were found concealed in a closet1 and taken prisoners4 #bih ,the prisoners were carried up to ,london and committed to the ,tower1 making their entrance into the city through the midst of a hooting mob1 ,campion leading the procession with his elbows tied behind him1 his hands tied in front1 his feet fastened under his horse's belly1 and a placard on his hat1 inscribed ,campion1 the seditious ,jesuit4 ,the governor1 ,sir ,owen ,hopton1 at first placed ,campion in the narrow dungeon known as ,little-ease1 in which one could neither stand nor lie at length4 ,he remained there until the fourth day1 when1 with great secrecy1 he was conducted to ,leicester's house1 and courteously received by the earl and several other persons of mark1 and shortly found himself in the presence of the queen4 ,he gave a truthful account of his motives in coming to ,england2 he satisfied ,elizabeth1 as it would appear1 of his loyalty2 and could he have accepted the conditions proposed to him1 he might have been dismissed with honors and riches4 ,as it was1 ,hopton received orders to treat him more leniently4 ,it was now the purpose of the government to coax him into compliance4 ,failing to shake his constancy1 the next thing was to destroy his reputation4 ,it was given out that he was on the point of recanting2 that he had betrayed his friends2 that he had divulged the names of the gentlemen who harbored him4 ,to give color to these charges1 a great many ,catholics were arrested1 in consequence1 it was said1 of ,campion's confession4 ,for a while these infamous charges1 fortified with plausible confirmation1 were generally believed2 but it was soon ascertained that the betrayal had been wrung from some of ,campion's companions on the rack4 ,to render the missionary contemptible1 it was thought necessary to answer his challenge for a public disputation in some way or another1 and a large number of the most eminent ,anglican divines were appointed to meet him in a public hall and discuss the chief points of controversy4 ,they had all the time they wanted to prepare1 free access to libraries1 and every possible favor4 ,campion was not informed of the arrangement until two hours before the assembly opened4 ,then1 with his limbs still smarting from the torment of the rack1 he was placed in the middle of the room1 without books1 without even a table to lean upon1 with no assistance whatever1 except the assistance of heaven4 ,the dispute continued several days4 ,it was distinguished1 as might have been supposed1 by gross unfairness and bad language on the part of the ,protestants1 while ,campion conciliated all honest-minded listeners1 not only by the acuteness of his answers1 but by his mild and affectionate spirit4 ,though he had been educated to a familiarity with dialectics1 and lived in a day when controversy was an almost universal passion1 he was far from being a disputatious man1 and the odium theologicum had no place in his warm and tender heart4 ,with all the advantage given to the ,protestant side1 it was evident that the ,catholics were profiting by the conferences1 and the government abruptly closed them4 ,but it was too late4 ,campion's fame was restored2 the slanders against him had been refuted2 and the popular enthusiasm broke forth in ballads1 of which ,mr4 ,simpson gives a sample4 ,nothing remained now but to try him for treason4 ,it was first proposed to indict him for having on a certain day in ,oxfordshire traitorously pretended to have power to absolve her majesty's subjects from their allegiance1 and endeavored to attach them to the obedience of the pope and the faith of the ,roman church2 but this was too plainly a religious prosecution4 #bii ,a plot was therefore forged1 which it was pretended that ,campion1 ,allen1 ,morton1 ,parsons1 and fourteen priests and others then in custody1 had concerted at ,rome and ,rheims to dethrone the queen and raise a civil war4 ,on this charge ,campion1 ,sherwin1 ,cottam1 and five others1 were arraigned at ,westminster ,hall on the #adth of ,november4 ,when ,campion was called upon1 according to custom1 to hold up his hands in pleading1 his arms were so cruelly wounded by the rack that he could not lift them without assistance4 ,the trial took place on the #bjth4 ,the principal witnesses for the crown were ,george ,eliot and three hired wretches named ,munday1 ,sledd1 and ,caddy1 who pretended to have observed the meetings of the conspirators at ,rome2 but their testimony was so weak1 and the answers of ,campion so admirable1 that when the jury retired it was generally believed in court that the verdict must be one of acquittal4 ,court and jury1 however1 had been bought beforehand4 ,the prisoners were all found guilty1 and sentenced to be hanged1 drawn and quartered4 ,then ,campion broke forth in a loud hymn of praise1 ,te ,deum laudamus and ,sherwin and others took up the song1 until the multitude were visibly affected4 ,after he had been remanded to the ,tower1 the traitor ,eliot came to his cell1 and ,campion received him so sweetly1 forgiving his offence1 and offering to provide for him an asylum with a ,catholic noble in ,germany1 whither he might escape from the odium and danger which haunted him at home1 that the keeper1 who witnessed the interview was induced by it to become a ,catholic4 ,the few days which intervened between conviction and death were passed by the holy man in fasting and other mortifications4 ,the execution was appointed for the #bith of ,november4 ,campion1 ,sherwin1 and ,briant were to suffer together4 ,at the execution ,campion was interrupted by a long dialogue respecting his alleged treason1 and subjected to a great deal of questioning4 ,somebody asked him to pray for the queen4 ,while he was doing so1 the cart was drawn away1 amid the tears and groans of the multitude1 and his body left dangling in the air4 ,so ended the good fight4 ,sherwin and ,briant met their fate with like joy and constancy1 and many another good priest and devoted layman trod afterward in the same awful but glorious path4 ,and as it has been since the days of ,st4 ,stephen1 the blood of the martyrs proved the seed of the church4 ,henry ,walpole estimated that no fewer than ten thousand persons were converted by the spectacle of ,champion's death4 ,that is probably an exaggeration2 but it is certain that the execution had a marked effect upon the progress of the faith in ,england1 and covered the ,anglican clergy with an odium from which they were long in recovering4 ,of the life by ,mr4 ,simpson1 upon which we have so freely drawn for the materials of this hasty sketch1 we must not close without a word of praise4 ,written originally for a monthly periodical1 and long interrupted by the failure of that publication1 it lacks the neat finish and compactness which the author would probably have given it1 had it been composed under more favorable circumstances4 ,but it has evidently been prepared with great industry2 it is written in a good style2 and with a little judicious pruning and rearrangement1 it will make one of the most interesting of modern religious biographies4 ---------- #cjj ,the ,catholic ,sunday-,school ,union4 ,footnote #ef ,footnote #ef3 ,first ,report of the ,catholic ,sunday-,school ,union1 of the city of ,new ,york4 ,january #a1 #ahfh4 ,few of the evidences of the zealous spirit which is stirred up in these latter days1 have given us more unfeigned pleasure than the information which this report conveys4 ,the ,sunday-,school ,union began as all ,catholic works begin1 has prospered thus far as they prosper1 and will share in their triumph4 ,a few earnest souls1 observing how much more good could be accomplished in the catechism-classes if the exercises and methods of teaching were made more systematic and co-operative1 met together1 on the evening of ,july #ith1 #ahff1 debated the subject1 formed resolutions1 went to work1 and now the catechetical education of the #bj1bcg children reported from eighteen ,sunday-schools of this city1 7about one half of the whole number17 is practically under the control of this admirable association4 ,the good fruits of their labors are already noticeable in the more regular attendance of the children1 the conferences of teachers for mutual instruction and encouragement1 the better regulated programme of exercises1 and the increased interest manifested in the schools by all who are in any way connected with them4 ,the competent knowledge which our people1 as a mass1 have of their religion1 of the dogmas of faith--knowledge which they are bound to have under pain of sin--and that other knowledge unto salvation which is shown in the faithful performance of their ,christian duties1 depends1 as all know1 upon the catechetical instruction they receive in youth4 ,priests may preach sermon after sermon1 and each and every such discourse may be well calculated to enlighten the mind and move the heart2 but as a rule1 all sermons nowadays suppose the hearers to be already in possession of ,christian principles1 and disciplined to the practices of a ,christian life4 ,sound and thorough catechetical instruction is1 then1 one of the primary duties of a pastor of souls4 ,that each pastor should assume the whole of this labor to himself is simply impossible4 ,those of the laity who by their character and education are fitted to be his coadjutors in this pastoral duty1 must therefore be called upon to aid him in it4 ,the time when it is feasible to assemble children together for religious instruction is on ,sunday4 ,hence the ,sunday-school and its corps of lay teachers2 both of necessity1 as experience has shown1 for every parish1 if the people are to have1 as they ought to have1 a befitting knowledge of their religion--if they are to be indoctrinated with its spirit1 and receive its ministrations by a devout1 conscientious attendance upon its worship1 and a due appreciation of1 and worthy preparation for1 the holy sacraments4 ,the first thought which naturally presents itself in reference to these lay coadjutors of the clergy1 is that of their competence and fitness to teach4 ,we do not care to send our children to be educated by any and every schoolmaster4 ,we not only ask1 ,is he capable8 but we ask1 ,who is he1 and what is he8 ,if these questions may be very properly put concerning a teacher of geography and arithmetic1 we may be pardoned for asking them concerning one who professes to teach ,christian doctrine and morality4 #cja ,is he well versed in the truths of faith himself1 and1 if you please1 what is his own moral character8 ,the ,sunday-school is an excellent institution1 a necessary institution in our times2 but if it is to be of any value1 teachers1 who are in the first place competent for the task1 and who in the second place are practical ,christians1 must be secured4 ,in small parishes1 the pastor may possibly find a sufficient number who possess all the requisite qualifications1 7although1 so far1 our experience has been to the contrary17 but in large and populous parishes1 such as are found in all our cities1 it is plain that a sufficient number are not easily obtained for the purpose1 nor will those who are in all respects fitted for the work and are ready to answer the call of the pastor1 be able to control and reduce the heterogeneous elements of a city ,sunday-school to any order or regular observance of rules laid down by the pastor1 or devised by themselves1 without mutual co-operation1 counsel1 and a systematic organization4 ,besides1 into a corps of such teachers1 who are not themselves subjected to some organized form of association1 persons wholly incompetent or deficient in moral standing will intrude1 and prove either a hinderance to others1 or do positive harm4 ,when chance-comers offer their services as teachers in his ,sunday-school1 it is difficult if not impossible for the pastor to examine them in order to test their knowledge before accepting them1 and it may be equally difficult for him to find out what may be their moral worth4 ,their daily lives are1 as a rule1 better known to the members of his congregation than they are to him4 ,in the ill-regulated voluntary system which has hitherto been so common amongst us1 many evils have resulted from this which were unavoidable4 ,teachers of religion ought to be themselves good exemplars of it4 ,children learn at the ,sunday-school a good deal more than the verbal answer to as many questions as are printed in the catechism4 ,those who occupy the office of teacher exert a moral influence over the children4 ,example is the master-teacher1 and bad example will teach 7we are sorry to say7 quite as well as good example4 ,you cannot gather grapes from thorns1 or figs from thistles4 ,during the time that a man or woman is engaged in conversation with children1 much of his or her own character is infused into the minds of their youthful companions by words1 gestures1 looks1 and manner4 ,shall ,i permit my children to be thus placed one whole hour every week1 under the influence of an ignorant man1 a non-practical ,catholic1 and possibly a person of vicious habits and of vulgar demeanor--a person whom ,i could not allow my children to converse with at all1 in the street or elsewhere1 outside of the ,sunday-school room8 ,certainly not4 ,i must have some guarantee that my children shall have such associations as ,i can approve of1 as well in the ,sunday-school as in any other place where they may happen to be4 ,one who might make such reflections as the foregoing need occupy no higher position in society than that of being a good ,christian1 watchful over the souls of his little ones1 and anxious to guard them from contamination with persons ignorant of the faith in which he wishes them to be educated1 or such as by their personal want of piety are certain to damage the growth of it in the souls of the children he presumes to instruct4 #cjb ,if we mistake not1 these considerations were in part those which animated the zealous and worthy founders of the ,sunday-,school ,union1 whose first report lies before us4 ,this appears to us in the pages of the report1 especially under the head of objects4 ,we quote3 ,the objects of the ,sunday-school ,union are of a religious1 educational1 and social character4 ,the fundamental object is1 of course1 the benefit and improvement of the ,sunday-schools2 the secondary end is the association of the ,catholic young men of the city1 in a manner sanctioned by religion1 for purposes of mutual acquaintance and improvement1 and the creation of a common tie of sympathy and interest1 such as should exist between them as members of the same1 ,one1 ,holy1 and ,universal ,church4 ,by the comparisons of systems1 and experience1 and through the increased opportunities of receiving advice and counsel from the clergy1 improvements have been introduced in many of the schools1 and the teachers have been led to take greater interest in their duties4 ,we need only quote to ourselves the trite old proverb1 that ,birds of a feather1 etc41 to feel assured that the ,union will remove in great part the dangers arising from incompetence and unfitness on the part of teachers1 to which we have alluded4 ,the leading spirits of an association of this kind will impress their own character upon the whole body1 and we have the utmost confidence that such persons will be of the right stamp1 young men of solid piety1 of sufficient knowledge1 and animated by the highest and purest motives4 ,they will draw to them other young men of like character and dispositions with themselves4 ,association will stimulate exertion1 promote harmony1 and be productive of the best and happiest results2 not only for the children1 but1 what is of no little moment to us1 for the young men themselves4 ,under their intelligent direction the ,sunday-school will assume a higher standard of religious education4 ,it has too long been deemed sufficient to teach the children the catechism as one teaches parrots1 getting them to repeat a certain answer to a given question1 without stopping to consider if the scholars have any intelligent apprehension of the meaning of either question or answer4 ,we remember being present in a ,sunday-school when the following instruction was overheard by us3 ,sunday-,school ,teacher4 ,are we bound to obey the commandments of the church8 ,boy4 ,a--a1 because--a-- 7gives it up47 ,teacher1 7speaking as rapidly as a clerk of the ,senate1 and looking everywhere but at the pupil47 ,yes1 because ,christ has said to the pastors of his church1 he that hears you hears me1 and he that despises you despises me4 7,then with a savage look at the child17 ,now1 sir6 ,boy17whining47 ,yes1 sir--because--here's you and here's me4 ,he despises you and he despises me4 ,boy's ears cuffed with the catechism4 ,yet it must be confessed that the recitation of the answer by the teacher was pretty faithfully imitated by the child1 who aimed at catching a certain number of sounds and repeating them1 without thinking of their meaning4 ,it is very well that the children should learn to recite portions of the catechism which they have learned by rote2 but this will not suffice to give them an intelligent comprehension of the truths of religion4 ,there is hardly a question and response in the catechism which does not need some additional explanation and illustration suited to their capacities4 #cjc ,this is no easy task1 and one that might well engage the highest cultivated minds4 ,teachers must therefore themselves be taught4 ,no one can impart that which he does not possess4 ,we are glad1 therefore1 to see that one of the objects of our ,sunday-,school ,union is of an educational character4 ,the object which is denominated religious is also of primary importance4 ,the ,sunday-school teacher is a teacher of religion in more senses than in imparting a mere verbal knowledge of the doctrines of religion4 ,it comes properly within his sphere to edify his pupils by holy words1 good counsel1 and good example4 ,if he does not so edify them1 he will infallibly do the contrary4 ,our experience leads us to assert that there is no middle term here between edification and disedification4 ,he who has no words of holiness and sweet ,christian counsel in his mouth1 is pretty sure of having words and counsel which smack of the world and its ungodly principles4 ,let no one imagine that he can assume for the time and occasion the tone1 speech1 and manner of a good1 pious ,christian1 if he be not one in reality4 ,children have the keenest scent for hypocrisy4 ,they instinctively mark and loathe a ,pecksniff or a ,chadband4 ,the lessons of piety1 the words of kindly warning or encouragement1 the appeals to their ,christian sentiment1 falling from the lips of men who have no solid piety1 and whose ordinary daily life is little better than that of a respectable heathen1 if as good1 will have no other effect than to excite the sceptical sneers of youths who are not to be deceived by sham appearances4 ,our ,sunday-schools1 therefore1 urgently demand the aid of religious teachers2 we mean teachers who are practical ,christians themselves1 and carry out in their lives the lessons they are desirous of teaching others4 ,they need teachers who are more than ,catholics by profession4 ,in a ,sunday-school which is fortunate enough to possess teachers of religion who are men of living faith1 devout1 prayerful1 scrupulous1 and exact in the performances of their religious duties1 exhibiting in their manner a deep reverence for holy things1 modesty1 patience1 benignity1 earnestness1 and zeal for the glory of ,god1 there will the children also be found exact types of their spiritual instructors4 ,the ,sunday-,school ,union will form a corps of just such men4 ,it will find itself composed of members who are moved by the ,holy ,spirit of ,god to take some part in this important work1 and who will engage in it as a labor of love1 in the spirit of sacrifice and apostolic zeal4 ,they will1 for the most part1 bring hearts well prepared for it2 but the ,union will itself do much toward sustaining and advancing the spiritual good of its members4 ,the most noble spectacle to be presented in this world of temptation and sin1 is a band of young men1 strong in the faith and loyal to the holy traditions of religion emulating each other in the practice of virtue and works of ,christian charity4 ,such is the spectacle which this association is striving to present to our eyes1 and our prayers should not be wanting that ,god may strengthen them and enlarge the sphere of their holy labors4 ,the third object spoken of is the social character which the ,union proposes4 ,we think we understand this1 and have already hinted at it4 ,they aim at making the tone of their association high and select4 ,and this is a point worthy of our reflection4 ,children naturally imitate the manners of their elders1 particularly of those with whom they are associated in the capacity of pupils4 #cjd ,let the teacher be rough1 boorish1 and uncouth in his deportment1 negligent in his personal appearance1 unceremonious and irreverent in the church1 unguarded in his language1 of an ungoverned temper1 tardy in his attendance1 and distracted in his instructions1 you will find that the class of which he has unfortunately the charge will very soon be an exact copy of himself4 ,we commiserate the ,sunday-school where even one such teacher is to be found4 ,he and his ill-regulated and worse-behaved class are a positive hinderance to the good order of the whole school1 and the sooner he is got rid of the better4 ,the ,union1 by its power of associating like to like1 will eliminate this worthless class of individuals1 and substitute in their stead punctual1 earnest1 courteous1 self-denying1 and reverent-minded teachers1 whose very presence in the ,sunday-school will be an example of deportment becoming the ,christian and the gentleman1 commanding respect1 obedience1 and attention on the part of all the scholars1 and the esteem of his fellow-teachers4 ,what affection1 too1 the children instinctively bestow upon such6 ,the love for these young souls1 of which their heart is full1 is abundantly reciprocated1 and the influence for good which such teachers have is beyond measure4 ,they are regarded by these little ones of ,christ in their true light1 as coadjutors of the pastor1 and their admonitions are received with humble and loving obedience4 ,o ma6 says a little child to its parent on returning from ,sunday-school1 we have the nicest teacher in the world1 so good1 and he knows so much1 and he is such a gentleman6 ,yes2 children are quick of observation--none quicker2 and when they have found one who presents all the qualities which should distinguish a worthy teacher1 they from that moment begin to count the hours which will intervene until they shall have the happiness of meeting him again4 ,if we aim at having first-class ,sunday-schools1 which will not only teach the children their catechism1 and encourage them in the practice of virtue1 but also elevate and refine their manners1 and educate them in that1 for which1 after all1 ,catholic children are remarkable1 namely1 ,christian politeness1 we must secure teachers who1 like the teacher of the little child mentioned above1 are so good1 know so much1 and are such gentlemen6 ,we have every confidence that the ,sunday-,school ,union1 by its social character1 will bring this about4 ,we are making no invidious reflections1 and would feel pained to think we should be thus adjudged4 ,we presume to speak from experience4 ,we know something of ,sunday-schools1 and of their working in small and large parishes1 in the city and in the country4 ,we have had to feel the many difficulties which a pastor has to surmount in this matter4 ,we aim at encouraging and bidding ,god speed to an enterprise which we know is needed1 and which we are certain cannot fail of producing incalculable good4 ,among other works which the ,union proposes1 is that of establishing ,sunday-schools for colored children4 ,that zealous and apostolic priest1 the ,rev4 ,father ,duranquet1 of the ,society of ,jesus1 did not shrink from adding this to his many other labors when it presented itself to him in the course of his ministry4 ,but just such a power was needed as the ,sunday-,school ,union affords to reach these much-neglected children1 and bring them under the influence of the ,catholic religion1 to care for those of that class who are of her household1 to insure a lively1 personal1 loving interest being taken in them1 and thus to show that our holy church is the church of all the people1 of white and black1 of bond and free4 #cje ,we bless ,god for this effort of theirs4 ,it is very near and dear to our own heart4 ,the world sneers and scoffs at them1 but there is no caste in the ,catholic ,church1 and they are1 as well as we1 souls for whom ,christ died4 ,the ,catholic priest and the ,catholic ,sunday-school teacher can do more for them1 we know1 than all the so-called philanthropists from ,dan to ,beersheba4 ,god forbid that we should turn aside from this labor and leave these precious souls to perish6 ,the ,sunday-,school ,union is formed exclusively of men4 ,the female teachers1 says the report1 are invited to all the public lectures and discourses1 and to participate in as many of the undertakings of the ,union as possible4 ,this is all very proper4 ,we know1 however1 that the ladies have hitherto taken rather the1 shall we say1 lion's share in the hardest of the undertakings to which the young men of the ,sunday-,school ,union can possibly devote their energies1 which is1 the work of teaching4 ,in most parishes they have far outnumbered the male teachers4 ,we refrain from making any comparison of their efficiency4 ,for ourselves1 we say we do not know how we could possibly have got along without them1 nor do we see how their aid can be dispensed with in the future4 ,we are not aware that the ,sunday-,school ,union has any such intention4 ,the ladies do a good by their presence which we of the stronger1 rougher sex may not hope to accomplish1 besides being the fittest persons to teach the female classes4 ,we are sure that they will cheerfully abide by any rules and regulations laid down by the ,union1 and do their utmost to carry out any suggestions made to them for the better conducting of their classes4 ,we are not afraid of their resisting the powers that be4 ,but why may they not also meet together for mutual encouragement1 instruction1 and edification8 ,we shall look for some movement of this kind before long4 ,as for the ,union itself1 we look upon it not as a simple local expedient to meet a local want4 ,it has a national interest1 and sooner or later must find imitation in all our large cities and towns4 ,we hope soon to hear that such has been the case in many other places1 and then the influence of such associations will be increased in the ratio of the union of their separate and distinct bodies1 at least1 such an union as we trust and pray will soon be exhibited in all great ,catholic works in this country--the assembly of their members for mutual acquaintance1 cooperation1 and debate1 in a ,national ,catholic ,congress4 ,the good that is done1 the power that is elicited from assemblies of this kind1 is well known to all our readers who have perused our articles on the ,catholic ,congress of ,malines1 in former numbers of ,the ,catholic ,world4 ,the ,sunday-,school ,union would do well to consider this matter in the light of their own interest4 ,in their union they have found strength4 ,let them seek to extend their efforts by encouraging1 in so far as they are able1 any such associations as may be started1 or are in operation1 in other places1 inviting a correspondence and offering all their aid1 looking forward1 at the same time1 to a union with them on a larger and general basis1 and to the discussion of their mutual interests in a grand congressional assembly4 #cjf ,we trust that our remarks will be received in the spirit in which they are meant4 ,they have been prompted by the deep1 heart-felt interest which we feel in the subject1 and the entire sympathy which we have for the noble1 holy1 ,christian work to which our friends have devoted their energies4 ,they have not begun too soon4 ,every year thousands of our children1 in this city of ,new ,york alone1 leave school to engage in various occupations1 where they are thrown into the society of youths of all religions and of no religion4 ,protestantism has practically no influence over children1 and generally leaves them to shift for themselves1 and pick up what scraps of religion they may4 ,unfortunately1 the mass of them1 being totally ignorant of the blessings and comfort of the ,catholic faith1 and not having had any very cheerful experience of religion as it has been presented to them by the bald1 repulsive1 unchild-like nature of ,protestantism1 break away from its restraints1 and run wildly into the deserts of rationalism or infidelity4 ,poor children6 our hearts bleed for them4 ,but1 while we pity them1 let us not forget that they are to be the daily associates of our own lambs of the flock4 ,how necessary1 then1 that we should strive by every effort to prepare ours for the dangers to which they will be exposed by giving them1 while we may1 a thorough knowledge of their holy faith1 and send them forth guarded by a panoply of virtue1 accustomed to a regular attendance upon the divine offices of the church1 and to a frequent reception of the ,holy ,sacraments4 ,let it be our aim to dismiss each and every child from our ,sunday-schools a loyal1 devout1 intelligent ,catholic1 whose faith is firm as a rock1 and whose soul is bright and pure with the indwelling grace of ,god4 ,our blessed ,lord1 the lover of little children1 will not fail to remember our care of those of whom ,he said3 ,of such is the kingdom of heaven4 -------------- ,sonnet ,on ,le ,recit ,d'une ,soeur1 ,by ,mrs4 ,augustus ,craven4 ,whence is the music8 ,minstrel see we none2 ,yet1 soft as waves that1 surge succeeding surge1 ,roll forward--now subside--anon emerge-- ,upheaved in glory o'er a setting sun1 ,those beatific harmonies sweep on3 ,o'er earth they sweep from utmost verge to verge1 ,triumphant ,hymeneal1 ,hymn1 and ,dirge1 ,blending in everlasting unison4 ,whence is the music8 ,stranger6 ,these were they ,that1 great in love1 by love unvanquished proved3 ,these were true lovers1 for in ,god they loved3 ,with ,god these spirits rest in endless day4 ,yet still1 for love's behoof1 on wings outspread ,float on o'er earth betwixt the angels and the dead4 ,aubrey de ,vere4 ----------- #cjg ,nellie ,netterville2 or1 ,one ,of ,the ,transplanted4 ,chapter ,,vi4 ,the party from the tower came on meantime at a rapid rate2 and1 peeping cautiously from behind her hiding-place1 ,nellie saw that they had already reached the foot of the hill where she and her grandfather stood awaiting their approach4 ,the lady--even at that distance ,nellie fancied she could see that she was young and pretty1 and1 though clad in the saddest and strictest of ,puritanic attire1 anything but a ,puritan in her looks and bearing--rode in front1 with the military-looking personage1 described already1 upon one side1 and a younger cavalier1 with the air likewise of a soldier1 on the other1 while a couple of followers brought up the rear4 ,at first the three foremost of the party rode abreast1 but1 as the up-hill path began to narrow1 the lady pushed her horse ahead so as to lead the way1 and ,nellie could hear one of her companions shouting to her to ride cautiously until she had turned the sharp corner of rock behind which ,nellie herself was at that moment standing4 ,the warning came1 as warnings often do come1 too late by a single second4 ,it could have scarcely reached the lady's ears ere she had dashed round the corner1 and her horse1 wild and unmanageable enough already1 plunged violently at the unexpected apparition of ,nellie and her grandfather on the other side4 ,if the path had not widened considerably at that spot1 the struggle must have ended fatally1 and even as it was1 ,nellie expected every moment to see both horse and rider roll over the edge of the precipice to which the heels of the former were in such fearful proximity4 ,the lady1 however1 sat him to perfection1 and after a short1 sharp struggle for the mastery1 she succeeded in forcing him to rush at a wild gallop straight down the path leading to the valley1 the only safe course of action she could possibly have adopted4 ,her companions had by this time reached the spot where ,nellie had watched the contest1 and the younger of the two was about to spur his horse on to the rescue1 when his older and wiser companion shouted to him to forbear4 ,let her be1 ,ormiston6 ,let her be6 he cried4 ,she knows well enough what she is about1 my ,ruth4 ,and you will but infuriate her horse by following at his heels4 ,thus adjured1 the young man1 addressed as ,ormiston1 had no choice but to remain quiet4 ,he drew in bridle1 therefore1 beside his chief1 and watched as patiently as he could the down-hill gallop of the lady4 ,the result fortunately justified the confidence of the elder horseman4 ,no sooner had she reached the wide bottom of the glen below1 than she checked her horse suddenly1 and turning him almost before he had time to suspect her intentions1 galloped him up the hill again with such right good-will that he was glad enough to stop and breathe of his own accord by the time she had rejoined her companions4 ,relieved from all anxiety on her account1 the old ,cromwellian officer1 for such his scarf and embroidered shoulder-belt announced him1 turned the vials of his wrath1 as even the best men will upon such occasions1 upon those who1 however unwittingly1 had been the cause of the disaster4 #cjh ,in the present case ,nellie and her grandfather were only too evidently the offenders1 and the storm was accordingly sent full upon their heads4 ,they were still standing in the recess formed by the shoulder of the retreating bank1 and as ,nellie1 by an unconscious movement of girlish timidity1 had retired behind ,lord ,netterville1 he formed for a moment the chief figure in the group4 ,thoroughly roused and wakened up at thus finding himself unexpectedly face to face with his arch enemies1 the old man stood out upon the foreground like a picture1 his eyes sparkling1 his white hair falling on his shoulders1 and a grave and noble pride in his very attitude which belied alike the meanness of his apparent station and the disfigurement of his stained and travel-worn attire4 ,the latter indeed consisting entirely of the so-called ,irish weeds1 the ,cromwellian officer naturally enough concluded him to be a native1 and addressed him1 accordingly1 in such terms of contemptuous abuse as it was too often the ,saxon fashion of those unhappy times to bestow upon the ,celt4 ,how now1 thou ',irish dogg'8 ,how hast thou dared1 thou and thy wench1 to cross our path1 and so put the life of the ,lord's elect in danger8 ,give place at once and let us pass1 if thou wouldst not that ,i should do unto thee as ,i did at ,tredagh1 where my sword1 from the rising even to the setting of the sun1 wrought the vengeance of the ,lord on an idolatrous and misguided people4 ,lord ,netterville1 during this agreeable harangue1 had stepped right into the centre of the path1 so that the other could hardly have passed him without a struggle1 and he barely awaited its conclusion ere1 with eyes flashing fire1 he violently retorted3 ',irish dogg6' sayest thou8 ,learn1 thou unmannerly ,saxon churl1 that my blood is as ,english perhaps more so than thine own2 and certainly from a nobler fountain6 ,i am of the ,english pale1 he continued1 drawing himself up to his full height1 and gaining in dignity what he lost in passion1 and one of no mean standing in it either--a ,netterville of the old ,norman race1 since the days of the first ,plantagenet4 ,lord ,netterville--father6 said the young ,amazon in a low voice1 pushing her horse forward and touching the officer's shoulder with her riding-whip in order to attract his attention4 ,it must be the ,lord ,netterville of whom there was some question1 ,i remember1 when you were in negotiation for these lands4 ,ha1 wench6 thou also to blaspheme6 he cried1 turning furiously upon her4 ,knowest thou not that there is but one ,lord1 and that the pride of them that assume his titles stinks in his nostrils like the burning pitch of ,tophet8 ,and thou1 he added1 addressing himself to ,lord ,netterville1 in vain dost thou boast of thy race or lineage2 for whatever they once were1 they have1 ,i doubt not1 been so often renewed in the blood of the ,irish as to have little or naught left of ,english honesty or honor to bestow upon their owner4 ,little or much6 cried the old lord furiously1 if thou1 black dog of ,cromwell as thou art1 will but dismount and bid one of thy lackeys put a sword into my hands1 ,i will show thee that1 in spite of my seventy years and odd1 ,i have still enough of ,english manhood left to chastise impertinence1 wherever or in whomsoever ,i may chance to find it4 ,sir1 cried ,nellie1 terrified at the turn affairs were taking1 and placing herself between the disputants1 there is no need for all these taunting words and bandying of harsh challenges4 #cji ,in peace have we come hither1 and we do but seek to possess our own in peace--their honors1 the commissioners at ,loughrea1 having assigned to us our residence amidst these mountains4 ,residence6 cried the officer1 roused at once into a far more bitter and personal feeling than the sort of proud contempt1 which was all that he had hitherto deigned to bestow upon the strangers4 ,residence among these mountains1 dost thou say8 ,nay1 then1 young maiden1 thou hast mistaken thy mark1 and that most widely1 since all these lands1 as far as the eye can see--even this land of ,murrisk1 which we ,english call the ',owles1' with its upper and its lower barony as well--have been made over to me already1 as mine own inheritance1 the land which the ,lord hath given 7for the laborer is worthy of his hire7 as the fruit of long service in the battle-field4 ,this is my grandfather4 ,lord ,netterville1 and we are1 as he has rightly told you1 of the old ,english of the pale1 said ,nellie1 making one step nearer in order to present her certificate4 ,at first1 in common with the other inhabitants of ,meath1 we were to have been sent into the more eastern baronies of ,connaught2 but the numbers set down for transplantation to those parts having been found greater than could be accommodated on the land1 we were assigned at last our portion in the same barony of ,murrisk4 ,the officer looked at first as if greatly inclined to refuse the paper which she held up for his acceptance2 but suddenly changing his intention1 he snatched it rudely from her hand1 and ran his eye over the contents4 ,humph6 ha6 he continued to mutter as he read2 and then turning to ,nellie1 he said in a voice in which1 toned down as it was to an affectation of cold indifference1 her quick ear detected1 nevertheless1 a lurking tone of triumph4 ,this certificate bears a date1 as ,i see1 of some three months earlier in the year4 ,how1 then1 is it1 maiden1 that it was not presented sooner8 ,it is five months to-day since we left our home--our pleasant home in ,meath1 said ,nellie sadly2 and much of that time was spent perforce at ,loughrea4 ,at first we were kept there in sore suspense as to the settlement of our just claim for land1 and after that we were detained by sickness4 ,our servant fell ill and died of the plague2 my grandfather suffered also much from the same malady1 and he has in some measure recovered from it2 it has1 alas6 reduced him from a hale and hearty old age1 to the wreck--mind and body--that you see before you4 ,in this way our scanty stock of money was soon exhausted1 and when at last he was fit to travel1 we had to sell our horses and the best part of our wearing apparel1 in order to satisfy the debts incurred during his illness2 after which there was nothing for it but to finish the journey as best we could on foot4 ,how marvellous are the mercies of the ,lord--the mercies which he has laid up for them that fear him1 cried the officer1 turning triumphantly toward his companions1 and yet shrinking1 in spite of himself1 beneath the angry glances shot at him from the blue eyes of his daughter4 ,surely his hand and his wisdom are visible in this matter1 he added1 in a less openly exultant manner2 for look ye1 maiden1 had you and the man you call ,lord ,netterville come hither at the time when1 according to the date of your certificate1 you should have done1 you might1 peradventure1 have found no one to dispute possession with ye4 #caj ,but behold6 instead of that1 the ,lord hath vexed and troubled ye2 he hath forced ye to tarry1 even as he forced his rebellious people to tarry in the wilderness2 he hath afflicted ye with sickness2 he hath even visited ye with death1 in order that ,i1 his servant and soldier on the battle-field1 might go up and take peaceable possession of that land which ye vainly fancied to be all your own4 ,but are not these the very lands--a portion of the barony of ,murrisk--which are set down in our certificate8 said ,nellie1 not even yet comprehending thoroughly the greatness of the impending blow4 ,how1 then1 noble sir1 do you speak of them as yours8 ,yea1 and indeed1 replied the officer1 these are of a certainty those very lands4 ,nevertheless1 maiden1 thou hast yet to learn that1 if thou hast a certificate1 ,i also am provided with a debenture1 signed and delivered to me two months ago4 ,consequently1 my order on the estate being of a later date1 doth override and make void thine own1 which1 moreover1 on looking closer1 ,i do perceive to be merely a de bene esse1 a poor make-shift for the time being1 until something more permanent could be assigned thee4 ,god help us1 then6 cried ,nellie2 utterly overwhelmed by this last announcement4 ,god help us1 then1 and pardon those who have trifled so cruelly with our fortunes6 ,strangers we are1 and without a place whereon to lay our heads2 what then is to become of us in these deserted mountains8 ,thou shouldst have looked to all that ere coming hither1 he answered harshly2 as matters are at present1 ,i would counsel thee to return to ,loughrea at thy quickest speed1 and to seek some other grant of land from their honors the commissioners1 ere all that which is left in their hands has been absolutely disposed of4 ,we cannot1 said ,nellie in a tone of hopeless sorrow1 which1 save that of the old fanatic himself1 touched the hearts of all who heard her4 ,look6 she added1 turning1 and with a sudden wave of the arm indicating ,lord ,netterville1 who1 utterly exhausted by his late excitement1 was leaning against the bank in a half state of stupor4 ,look at that old man1 and tell me how is he to retrace his footsteps8 ,hope1 indeed1 aided him on his journey hither1 but what hope is left to give him courage to go back8 ,as ,i have already said1 thou shouldst have looked to all that ere undertaking such a journey1 he answered shortly1 and preparing to ride forward2 for he saw that in his daughter's face which made him feel sure that she would not remain much longer silent4 ,and now get you both hence at once1 ,i counsel ye2 for my choler is apt to rise in the presence of the enemies of the ,lord1 and ,i may not much longer be able to restrain my hand from striking-- ,strike1 if you will1 but hear me6 cried ,nellie1 springing forward so suddenly that she had caught hold of his bridle-rein ere he was even aware of her intention4 ,if yonder tower is indeed your home1 give him a night's shelter in it--only one night--a single night--that he may rest from his weary travels4 ,nay1 by the sword of ,gideon1 not even for an hour6 he cried furiously4 ,let go1 maiden1 let go6 or ,i will strike thee as if thou wert a mad dog in my path4 ,but ,nellie was by this time driven to desperation1 and she would not let go4 ,she clung to the bridle-rein1 crying out1 ,only one night--one little night4 #caa ,god is my witness that if there was but so much as a peasant's hut within reach1 ,i would die sooner than ask such a favor at your hands4 ,nearly as frantic with passion as she was with despair1 he forced his horse to rear again and again1 in order to compel her to let go2 but finding1 at last1 that he could not shake her off1 he raised his riding-whip1 and it would have fallen heavily on her shoulders if1 by a similar and almost simultaneous movement1 ,ormiston and his daughter had not hastily interfered4 ,major ,hewitson6 cried the former in a warning voice--and1 ,father1 you shall not6 you dare not6 cried the girl1 spurring her horse eagerly forward1 and utterly regardless of the fact that its heels were actually grazing the edge of the precipice as she tried to wrest his whip from her father's grasp4 ,all the tenderness of the man's heart was wrapt up in his daughter1 and even in the midst of that moment of mad passion he saw her danger1 and cried out3 ,have a care1 child1 have a care6 or you and your horse will be over the precipice ere you know what you are doing4 ,throw away your whip then1 or ,i will back him over it with my own hands1 she cried passionately2 for ,i would sooner perish at once than see my own father strike a helpless girl like myself4 ,send the ,irish beggar hence at once then1 will you8 he answered furiously1 flinging away his whip as he spoke1 and1 tearing his rein by main force from ,nellie's grasp1 he galloped rapidly down the hill4 ,instead of following him1 the girl backed her horse further into the recess in order to make room1 and then waved her hand with the gesture of an empress to the others to pass on4 ,with the exception of ,ormiston they all obeyed1 and no sooner had they got to a little distance than she flung herself off her horse1 and1 tossing the reins to her companion1 threw herself into the arms of the astonished ,nellie1 exclaiming3 ,o my ,god1 my ,god6 and these are the deeds that we do in thy name6 ,when wilt thou arise and come to judgment8 ,nay1 grieve not thus1 dear lady1 said ,nellie1 generously forgetting her own great wrongs at the sight of such voluntary humiliation4 ,you at any rate have no cause to grieve1 for willingly you have done no wrong4 ,call me not lady2 ,i am but a girl1 a woman like yourself2 only--she added with a touch of pride so like humility that it was almost as beautiful--only1 probably1 of meaner nature1 and certainly of less lofty lineage4 ,what can ,i do for you8 ,alas6 alas6 why do ,i ask1 for what can ,i do8 ,shelter1 except in my father's house1 ,i have none to offer2 and in that1 after what he has said just now1 ,i could not even ensure your lives4 ,here the young officer1 who had by this time dismounted and approached the girl1 endeavored to insinuate his purse into her hands2 but she shook her head impatiently1 and said1 ,money6 money6 of what use can money be in such wilds as these8 ,nevertheless1 on second thoughts1 she took the purse1 and would1 perhaps1 in a hesitating1 shame-faced sort of way1 have offered it to ,nellie1 if the latter had not said decidedly3 ,as you say1 dear lady1 it would be worse than useless4 ,neither are we beggars4 ,we did but seek what we thought to be our own4 ,and now1 she added sadly1 we ask still less--even that which the very beggars are thought to have a right to claim--but a shelter for a single night4 #cab ,and even that ,i cannot give you1 said the girl disconsolately2 but at least1 she added suddenly1 in a brighter tone1 ,i think ,i can tell you where to find that4 ,she pointed with her whip to a narrow path branching off a little lower down the hill1 and leading apparently in the direction of the sea4 ,follow that path--it is neither long nor difficult--and it will lead you to the waters of the creek below4 ,at the very foot of the hill1 where the path ends1 you will find a hut2 if empty1 it will at least give you shelter2 if otherwise1 its owner will1 ,i doubt not1 make you welcome4 ,he ought at least1 she added quickly1 for he also has lost something4 ,trust me1 you are not the only ones whom we have robbed for the achievement of our own greatness4 ,farewell6 and if ever you pray for your enemies1 put us among the worst and foremost4 ,she turned to her horse as she finished speaking4 ,her companion would fain have aided her to mount2 but putting him pettishly on one side1 she leaped into the saddle without assistance1 and galloped back by the road which she had come4 ,the officer1 thus repulsed1 bowed respectfully to ,nellie1 and then1 remounting his own horse1 followed in the same direction4 ,she cantered on1 however1 as if unconscious of his existence1 merely urging her horse to a quicker speed1 in order to escape him--a manoeuvre which he took care1 by imitating1 to render useless4 ,finding1 at last1 that he would not be shaken off1 she pulled up suddenly1 and said angrily1 and without even deigning to look round3 ,why do you follow me8 ,why do you dog my footsteps8 ,ride back to my father1 will you8 ,he is of your own creed and calling1 and will better appreciate your society that ,i can4 ,nay1 ,ruth1 he was beginning1 but she interrupted him almost fiercely-- ,call me by my own name if you wish that ,i should answer you4 ,to you at least1 and to the world1 ,i will still be ,henrietta1 though at my father's hands ,i am compelled to submit to this mummery of a change of name4 ,well1 then1 ,henrietta1 he answered quietly1 but very gravely1 believe me1 ,i did not mean to anger you4 ,i said ',ruth1' because that name is so often on your father's lips that it has begun to come almost naturally to mine4 ,i would not willingly anger you at any time1 and least of all1 just now1 when1 in spite of what ,i must call your unkind waywardness toward myself1 ,i love and worship you1 as ,i never did before1 for that nobleness of nature which recoils1 at any cost1 from all that savors of injustice4 ,carry your love and worship elsewhere1 then1 for ,i will have none of it1 she said1 evidently in nowise mollified by his apology4 ,what should ,i care for your good opinion8 ,do you not feel in your heart of hearts1 or must ,i tell you1 that we are divided1 as far as the north pole from the south1 in our most intimate convictions1 and that what you and my father call religion ,i consider as fanaticism--or that something which is worse than fanaticism1 or almost than crime--hypocrisy4 ,you cannot believe what you are saying1 he answered1 now indignant in his turn2 you know how well and truly ,i have loved you1 and you cannot believe that ,i am a hypocrite2 you cannot--you could not--you would not so dishonor me in your thoughts--you who have promised to be my wife6 #cac ,i retract that promise1 then1 she answered passionately1 wholly and entirely ,i retract it4 ,never1 so help me ,god1 will ,i become the mother of a race of fanatics1 who will find1 for such deeds as we have seen done today1 their pretext in religion4 ,henrietta6 he cried1 the blood rushing to his temples1 you cannot be in earnest6 ,see if ,i am not6 she answered coldly4 ,ride back to my father now1 and let me go my ways alone to the tower4 ,i will go to him1 ,henrietta2 but it will only be to tell him that ,i am about to return to my appointment in ,dublin--unless1 indeed1 he added1 with a lingering hope of reconciliation--unless1 ,henrietta1 you retract4 ,i never retract1 she answered shortly4 ,then1 farewell6 he said1 with a half movement1 as if he would have taken her hand4 ,farewell6 she answered1 affecting not to see his offered hand1 and shaking the reins loose on her horse's neck4 ,ormiston turned his horse's head in the opposite direction1 and went forward a few paces2 then he stopped and looked after his late companion4 ,she was moving on1 but slowly1 and like one lost in thought4 ,stirred by a sudden honest impulse of regret1 he turned and followed her4 ,henrietta heard him1 and instantly checked her horse1 as if determined not to suffer him to ride any longer at her side4 ,henrietta6 he said4 ,what would you8 she asked sullenly4 ,only unsay that one word1 'hypocrisy1' and let things be as they were before4 ,i never unsay what ,i have said1 she answered coldly4 ,neither do ,i1 he retorted1 now angry in earnest2 and ,i swear to you that ,i will see you no more until under your own hand and seal you retract1 of your own accord1 what you have said to-day1 and tell me to return4 ,farewell1 then1 for ever1 she replied1 with rather a bad assumption of indifference--for ever1 if so it must be4 ,farewell1 he answered1 without1 however1 as even in that moment ,henrietta noticed1 adding the ominous for ever4 ,farewell1 and ,god forgive you for so trifling with the honest heart that loves you1 and has loved you from your childhood4 ,some day--too late1 perhaps--you will do me justice4 ,and so they parted4 ,chapter ,,vii4 ,left to herself1 ,nellie ,netterville sat down to collect her scattered senses4 ,the situation in which she found herself needed1 in truth1 a calm sense and courage1 not often the heritage of petted girlhood1 in order to bear up successfully against its difficulties4 ,happily for herself1 the brave ,irish girl was possessed of both in no common degree1 and the trials and troubles of the last few months had ripened these faculties into almost unnatural maturity4 ,the tale she had just told to ,major ,hewitson was free of the smallest attempt at exaggeration1 being1 in fact1 rather under than over the measure of the truth4 ,lord ,netterville1 in common with many another unfortunate gentleman of the ,english ,pale1 had been kept dancing attendance on the commissioners at ,loughrea until both hope and money failed him4 #cad ,the absence of home comforts told heavily upon a frame already weakened by age and sorrow2 and just at the moment when he could least bear up against it1 he was attacked by the plague1 or some disease analogous to the plague1 which at that very time was making most impartial havoc among the native ,irish and their foes4 ,thanks to an iron constitution1 he recovered1 but he rose from his sickbed1 if not absolutely a child in mind1 yet as utterly incapable of aiding ,nellie by advice1 or of steering his own way unassisted through the troubled waters on which his ill fate had cast him1 as if he had been in very deed an infant4 ,his servant was already dead1 therefore the whole responsibility of their future movements devolved upon his granddaughter4 ,she proved herself1 fortunately1 not altogether unequal to the occasion1 never losing sight for a moment of the purpose which had brought her to ,loughrea1 and tormenting the commissioners until1 less moved by her youth and helplessness than by a desire to rid themselves of her troublesome importunities1 they gave her the certificate which she had shown to ,major ,hewitson1 and which1 as he had instantly perceived1 was rendered worse than useless to its possessor by the fact of its being merely a temporary arrangement4 ,ignorant alike of ,latin and law language1 ,nellie had1 naturally enough1 supposed it to be a permanent appointment2 and1 selling their horses and every article of value in her possession1 in order to pay the debts contracted at ,loughrea1 she had made the rest of the journey on foot1 leading1 soothing1 and encouraging the old man as if he had been a child1 and buoying up his courage and her own by fanciful descriptions of that home in the far west1 where she trusted his last days might be passed in peace4 ,she had tried to deceive him2 she never attempted to deceive herself as to the nature of their future prospects2 yet unpleasant as her anticipations had been1 they were so much more agreeable than the terrible realities upon which she had just stumbled1 that she felt for a few moments1 as she sat there alone among the hills1 as if the very gates of an earthly ,paradise had been closed against her4 ,but it was no moment for the indulgence of such natural regrets4 ,she looked at her grandfather1 and felt that his life was in her hands4 ,she remembered1 too1 her promise to her mother to be son as well as daughter to his age2 and sternly and tearlessly1 for tears were too weak an expression for such desolation as she was feeling then1 she set herself to consider what her next move ought to be4 ,food and shelter for the old man--7and it needed not another glance at his pale face to tell her how much both were needed7 food and shelter--these must be her first object4 ,it would be time enough after they had been secured to decide as to the feasibility of a return journey to ,loughrea4 ,she rose1 and drawing her hood1 which1 in her struggle with ,major ,hewitson1 had fallen back upon her shoulders1 once more over her head1 she took her grandfather by the hand1 and led him quietly and silently down the path pointed out to her by ,henrietta4 ,it had originally been a sheep-path1 and proved far less difficult than she had expected1 winding gradually round the hills until it reached a sort of creek or estuary formed by the inrushing1 for a couple of miles1 of the waters from the bay beyond4 ,it was a lonely1 but a lovely spot1 and ,nellie's heart beat more calmly as she paused to listen to the soft rocking of the waters in their inland bed1 and to feel the fresh breeze which they brought from the ocean playing on her heated brow4 #cae ,there were no visible signs near her of that human habitation of which ,major ,hewitson's daughter had so confidently spoken2 but at last1 after having searched the landscape steadily in all directions1 she thought she saw something like a blue curl of smoke rising out of a sort of mound1 which1 at first sight1 seemed neither more nor less than a cairn of unusually large dimensions1 nearly hidden by clumps of gorse and heather at least six feet high1 and bushy and luxuriant in proportion4 ,on nearer inspection1 however1 it proved to be a hut1 such a hut as even to this day may be sometimes seen in the wildest parts of the wild west1 rounded at the gables1 built of rough stones1 rudely yet solidly put together1 and with a roof laid on of fern and shingle1 carefully secured from the violence of the western winds by bands of twisted straw4 ,a hole in this roof stood proxy both for window and for chimney1 and the doorway was literally doorless4 ,a sort of grass mat hung across it from the inside1 being evidently considered by the inhabitants as ample protection against cold and wet1 the only foes which extreme poverty has got to boast of4 ,for five seconds1 at the very least1 ,nellie stood gazing on this frail barrier with a feeling as if it would require more than human courage to announce her presence to the human beings 7she knew not whether they were friends or enemies7 who might be stowed away behind it4 ,at last1 with a shaking hand1 she drew back a small corner of the matting1 and1 without daring to look in1 saluted the possible inmates1 as the natives of the country salute each other to this day in ,irish1 ,god save all here6 ,there was no answer1 and1 lifting the curtain a little higher1 she looked in4 ,the hut was empty1 though a few embers burning on the floor gave sufficient evidence of its having been recently inhabited4 ,of furniture1 save a single wooden settle1 ,nellie could discover none2 but a gun was standing upright against the opposite wall1 and near it hung a very ,spanish-seeming mantle1 looking as much out of place in that miserable abode as its owner would probably have done if he had been there to claim it4 ,the solitude1 and the sight of that gun and mantle1 made her feel far more nervous than she would have felt if a dozen of the natives of the soil had been congregated within4 ,it seemed to imply some mystery1 and1 to the helpless1 mystery always has a touch of fear about it4 ,moreover1 it made her suddenly conscious that she was an intruder1 an idea which would never have come into her head if her possible hosts had been of that frank-hearted race to whom the virtue of hospitality comes so easily that it does not even occur to them to call it virtue4 ,on the other hand1 her grandfather's pale face and sunken features seemed to plead with her against all unseasonable timidity4 ,hastily1 therefore1 and as though she were about to commit a theft1 she put aside the matting1 drew the old man inside1 and then replaced the screen as carefully as if she hoped in this manner to hide her audacious proceedings from the owner of the hut--or rather1 if the truth must be told1 from the owner of the mysterious mantle4 ,this first step fairly taken1 ,nellie suddenly grew brave1 and resolving to make the most of their impromptu habitation1 she drew the settle nearer to the fire1 and made ,lord ,netterville sit down upon it4 #caf ,the sight of the embers seemed to revive the latter1 less perhaps from any need he felt of its warmth on that bright sunny day than from the home-like associations which it awakened in his mind4 ,he smiled a wintry smile1 with more of old age than of gladness in it1 and stretched forth his withered hands to warm them in the blaze4 ,then1 as if suddenly waking up for the first time to a perception of his being foodless1 he asked ,nellie if supper would soon be ready1 for that in truth he was well-nigh starving4 ,starving he must have been1 that poor ,nellie knew well enough already2 for they had exhausted their scanty stock of food that very day1 and he had tasted nothing since the early dawn4 ,she soothed him1 however1 and besought him to have yet a little patience1 and then1 with a desperate resolution to appropriate to his use whatever of food the hut might happen to contain1 she commenced a careful examination of its hidden nooks4 ,there were1 of course1 neither shelves nor cupboards1 or anything1 indeed1 which even suggested the idea of provisions having been ever kept there2 but at last1 when she had almost begun to give up the search in despair1 she espied something like the handle of a basket peeping out from beneath a bundle of firewood which lay heaped in one corner of the hut upon the floor4 ,pouncing upon this at once1 she discovered that it contained a couple of sea-trout1 upon which the owner of the mansion had probably intended making an early dinner1 for they were already prepared for broiling4 ,with renewed energy ,nellie took a handful of dried brushwood1 and threw it upon the half-extinguished fire1 after which she proceeded1 in her new character of cook1 to lay1 in a very leisurely and scientific manner1 the fish upon the embers4 ,so engrossed was she in this occupation1 that she never perceived that the mat curtain over the doorway had been once more lifted up1 and that some one was watching her proceedings from the outside4 ,this some one was a man1 apparently about twenty-five or thirty years of age1 with a figure rather above than below the middle height1 and a face which1 full of energy and expression as it was1 was by no means regularly handsome1 though the large1 ,murillo-looking eyes by which it was lighted up deceived casual beholders into a conviction that it was4 ,he was clad in a garb which might have belonged to the native fishermen of the coast1 yet no one could have mistaken him for other than a gentleman and soldier1 as he stood there1 holding back the screen of matting1 and gazing1 with a look curiously compounded of amusement and annoyance1 at the scene presented by the interior of the cottage4 ,the latter feeling1 however1 was evidently in the ascendant--so much so1 indeed1 that he had actually made a half-movement1 as if to retreat and leave the hut to its uninvited occupants1 when something--was it a glimpse of ,nellie's delicate profile1 as she stooped over the glowing embers8--induced him to change his mind1 and stepping quietly over the threshold1 he dropped the screen behind him with an energy and good-will which seemed to indicate that1 instead of his premeditated flight1 he had made up his mind to accept with a good grace1 and perhaps even to enjoy1 this unexpected addition to his society4 ,the sound of the falling mat warned ,nellie of the advent of a stranger1 and1 crimson with shame and fear1 she stood up to receive him4 ,he gazed upon her steadily1 the half-feeling of annoyance1 still visible on his clouded brow1 yielding gradually to a look of intense but reverent admiration1 and removing his fisherman's cap from his head1 he bowed courteously1 and said in ,english3 #cag ,god save all here1 and a hundred thousand welcomes also1 if1 as ,i apprehend1 you are fugitives like myself from tyranny and injustice4 ,there was an indescribable tact and courtesy in the way in which he combined this announcement of his being the master of the hut with a frank and ready welcome to his unknown visitants1 which made ,nellie feel at once that she had to do1 not only with a man of gentle birth but of high and polished breeding also4 ,yet this fact seemed for the moment rather to add to her difficulty than to decrease it1 and secretly wishing that the fish could be made1 by some magical process1 to disappear from the embers upon which it was comfortably broiling1 she placed herself as much as she could between it and the stranger as she stammered out her apology for intrusion4 ,did he see the fish8 and did he guess at the petty larceny she had just committed8 ,nellie fancied she saw something like an amused look in his eye1 which made her feel hot and cold by turns with the consciousness of discovered guilt1 but the rest of his features wore no smile1 nothing but an expression of kind and courteous sympathy as he eagerly interrupted her excuses-- ,say no more1 dear lady1 say no more1 trust me ,i have not now to learn for the first time to what dire straits the sad necessity of these days of woe may bring us4 ,and1 therefore1 to all who come to this poor hut1 but more especially to those who1 for honor and for conscience sake1 have laid down wealth and power elsewhere1 ,i have but one word--one greeting1 and that is the old ,irish one1 of a hundred thousand welcomes4 ,a hundred thousand welcomes6 repeated a feeble1 quivering voice close to the stranger's elbow4 ,he turned and looked for the first time steadily at ,lord ,netterville1 of whose presence up to that moment he had been barely conscious4 ,the old man had risen from his seat1 and stood smiling and bowing courteously1 evidently thinking he was doing the honors of a home1 of which--however humble--he was yet the undoubted master4 ,our house is poor1 sir1 he went on1 once1 indeed1 we boasted of a better2 but let that pass4 ,such as it is--such as our enemies have made it--you may reckon assuredly upon meeting an ,irish welcome in it4 ,sir1 whispered ,nellie through her tears1 fearing lest the stranger might break in too rudely on the old man's delusion4 ,he is old--he has been ill--he fancies he has reached his home2 you must excuse him4 ,the unknown turned his eyes upon the girl with a look so full of reverent sympathy1 that it went straight to her heart1 never afterward to be effaced from thence4 ,she felt that her grandfather would be safe in such kindly hands1 and was turning quietly away when ,lord ,netterville1 still enacting his fancied character of host1 threw a handful of dry wood upon the fire1 and the blaze that instantly ensued fell full upon his features1 which had hitherto been barely visible in the gloom4 ,the stranger started violently4 ,good ,god6 he cried1 in a tone of irrepressible astonishment4 ,is it possible that ,i see ,lord ,netterville1 and in such a plight8 ,you know my grandfather1 then8 cried ,nellie joyously1 feeling as if the stranger must have been sent by ,providence especially to help her in the hour of her utmost need4 ,you know my grandfather8 #cah ,i ought1 at any rate1 he answered1 with a sad smile1 as he took ,lord ,netterville's proffered hand4 ,for we fought together and were beaten at ,kilrush2 my first battle1 and1 as ,i suppose1 his last4 ,ha6 cried the old man1 ,kilrush6 ,kilrush6 who speaks to me of ,kilrush8 ,were you there1 sir8 ,time must have played sad tricks upon my memory then1 for1 truth to say1 ,i do not recognize you4 ,nay1 my good lord1 said the stranger soothingly1 it would be stranger still if you had done so1 for ,i was but a beardless boy in those days4 ,nevertheless1 ,i remember you1 ,lord ,netterville1 and surely you cannot have altogether forgotten the cheer we gave when you1 a tried and veteran soldier1 rode up to serve with us as a volunteer in the regiment of your gallant son4 ,i remember6 ,i remember6 cried the old man eagerly4 ,it was a bright and glorious morning1 and we charged them gallantly--a bright and glorious morning1 but with a sad and bloody ending4 ,alas6 alas6 he added1 his voice falling suddenly from its trumpet-like tone of exultation to an old man's wail of sorrow4 ,alas6 alas6 how many of the best and bravest that we had among us lay dead and trampled in the dust1 as we withdrew from that fatal field4 ,he bowed his head upon his breast1 and remained for a little while absorbed in thought1 and ,nellie took advantage of the pause to say3 ,you knew my father1 sir8 ,you must have known him if you were near ,lord ,netterville at ,kilrush2 for father and son charged side by side1 and were seldom1 as ,i have since been told1 ten minutes out of each other's sight during the whole of that bloody battle4 ,knew your father8 ,yes1 dear lady--if your father was1 as ,i suppose1 ,colonel ,netterville--,i knew him well4 ,he was the bosom friend of my uncle and namesake1 ,roger ,moore of ,leix1 who placed me in his regiment when ,i joined the ,irish army4 ,roger ,moore of ,leix1 cried ,nellie1 a flash of enthusiasm lighting up her face2 ,roger ,moore--the brave--the gifted--the first leader in a noble cause1 whose very name was a battle-cry1 and whose followers rushed into fight1 shouting for ',god--our ,lady--and ,roger ,moore6' ,yes1 yes2 he was my father's friend4 ,i remember even when ,i was a child how he used to talk about him4 ,and you1 she added1 with a sudden change of voice and manner1 and placing both her hands in his1 you1 then1 are that ,roger ,moore1 the younger1 in whose arms my poor father died4 ,at the battle of ,benburb1 said ,moore1 in a low voice2 a glorious battle--well fought1 and well won1 and yet for ever to be regretted1 for the loss of one of ,ireland's bravest and most faithful soldiers4 ,grandfather1 cried ,nellie1 suddenly withdrawing her hands from ,roger1 and blushing scarlet at the inadvertence of her own action which had placed them in his1 this is ,captain ,moore1 who bore my wounded father out of the press of battle1 and to whom we are indebted for that last and loving farewell which he sent to us in dying4 ,but instead of replying with an eagerness corresponding to her own1 ,lord ,netterville gazed vacantly upon the stranger1 evidently without the slightest recollection of his name or person1 and repeated1 in a low mechanical voice1 his previously-muttered welcome4 ,he does not remember6 said ,roger4 ,alas6 alas6 for that bright intellect1 once cloudless as a summer's noon6 #cai ,hush1 hush6 whispered ,nellie4 ,recollection is beginning to return4 ,and ,lord ,netterville did1 in fact1 seem to be making a languid effort at gathering up his scattered thoughts1 for he looked at ,roger1 and said feebly3 ,you knew my son1 sir8--you knew my son8--then1 indeed1 you are very welcome4 ,he was a brave boy1 and fought for his king and country--fought and fell--on the field of--the field of--the name--which ,i thought never to forget--has almost escaped me4 ,benburb1 ,roger ventured to interpose4 ,benburb6 ,ay1 that was the very name--,benburb6--my memory does not fail me1 sir2 but ,i have been much tried of late--or we rode too far this morning--for ,i feel very faint4 ,he tried to draw back from the fire as he spoke1 but he tottered1 and would have fallen if ,roger had not caught him by the arm1 and made him sit down upon the settle4 ,he is faint for want of food1 said ,nellie hastily2 we have been wandering all day among the hills1 and he has not broken his fast since morning4 ,roger did not answer1 but signing to her to support ,lord ,netterville1 he went straight to some invisible cranny in the walls of the hut1 and drew thence a bottle of strong cordial4 ,pouring a little of this into a broken mug1 he made the old man swallow it1 and then stood beside him1 anxiously watching the result4 ,happily it was favorable--in a few minutes ,lord ,netterville revived1 the color returned to his wan cheek1 and turning to ,nellie1 he asked her1 in a half-whisper1 if supper would soon be ready8 ,shyly1 and blushing scarlet1 ,nellie nodded an affirmative1 and forgetting all her previous shame in anxiety for her grandfather1 she was about to resume her office as cook1 when1 with a half-smile on his face1 ,roger ,moore put her quietly aside4 ,nay1 ,mistress ,netterville1 remember that ,i am master here1 and that ,i forbid you to lay hands upon that fish8 ,i have always been cook in my own proper person to the establishment1 and ,i cannot allow you to supersede me in the office4 ,forgive me6 said ,nellie1 tears starting to her eyes1 and half fancying in her confusion that he was angry in earnest4 ,i could not help it1 for he was starving4 ,do not misunderstand me1 ,i entreat you1 said ,roger1 in a voice of deep and real feeling2 ,i should be a brute if ,i objected to anything you have or could have done2 ,i only meant that ,i objected to your continuing in that office2 for so long as the daughter of my old colonel is under my roof1 7even though it be but a poor mud sheeling17 she shall do no work1 with my good-will1 unfit for the hands of a princess4 ,he busied himself while speaking in drawing forth1 from that same recess in which he had found the cordial1 some thin oaten cakes1 a few wooden platters1 and one or two knives and spoons of such massive silver1 that ,nellie could not help thinking they were as much out of keeping with the rest of the furniture as ,roger himself appeared to be with the hut1 of which he was doing the honors in such simple and yet such courtly fashion4 ,he would not even let her hold the platter upon which he placed the fish as he took it from the embers1 and he himself then brought it to ,lord ,netterville1 and pressed him1 as tenderly as if he had been a child1 to partake of this impromptu supper4 #cbj ,the old man yielded1 nothing loath1 and so1 indeed1 did his grandchild2 for1 though very fair to look at1 no goddess was poor ,nellie1 but a young and growing girl with the healthy appetite of sixteen4 ,she accepted1 therefore1 ,roger's invitation without the smallest affectation of reluctance1 and sitting down on the floor beside her grandfather1 shared the contents of his platter with innocent and undisguised enjoyment4 ,with all her sense and courage1 she was as yet in many things a perfect child1 yielding as easily as a child might do to the first ray of sunshine that brightened on her path1 and accepting the happiness of the present moment as unrestrainedly as if never even suspecting the shadows that were lurking in her future4 ,now1 therefore1 that she felt her grandfather was in safe and helpful keeping1 she threw off the sense of responsibility which had weighed her down for months1 and became almost gay4 ,color rose to her wasted cheek1 light sparkled in her eyes1 and she responded to ,roger's efforts to make her feel comfortable and at home1 with such innocent and unbounded faith in his wish and power to befriend them1 that he vowed an inward vow never to forsake her1 but to guard her1 as if she had been in very deed his sister1 through the trials and dangers of her unprotected exile4 ,when their meal was over1 and while her grandfather slumbered in the quiet warmth of the peat-fire1 she told ,roger ,moore her story1 simply and briefly as she might have told it to a brother1 beginning at her departure from her ancestral home1 and ending with her encounter with the ,english strangers among the mountains4 ,it is ,major ,hewitson1 said ,roger1 in whose favor ,i have been despoiled of my old home4 ,major ,hewitson and his pretty daughter ',ruth1' as he chooses to call her1 in order to blot out the fact that her name is ,henrietta1 and that she had a popish queen for her godmother4 ,she forgets it not herself1 however1 he added1 with a smile2 for her mother was of noble race1 and they say that she is a true cavalier at heart1 and pines like a caged bird in the network of demure fanaticism which her father has twined around her4 ,she has a lovely face and a kind and honest heart1 for certain1 said ,nellie4 ,she knows you also1 now ,i think of it2 for she it was who directed me to this hut1 with a hint that ,i should here find a friend4 ,did she8 said ,roger1 with genuine fervour4 ,nay1 then1 for that one good deed ,i needs must pardon her1 that she1 or her father for her1 have robbed me of my inheritance4 ,and now ,i think of it1 he added1 with a touch of sly malice in his smile1 you also1 if you came hither to seek land1 must have been bound on the same errand2 for both these baronies1 ',umhall uaghtragh' and ',umhall ioghtragh1' is the country of the ,o',mailly's1 and1 in right of my grandmother1 my own4 ,nellie blushed scarlet4 ,alas6 she said1 ,i knew not whither or to whom they sent us2 but sure am ,i1 at all events1 that we never would have accepted of any home at the expense of its rightful owners4 ,nay1 said ,roger1 ,i did but jest4 ,would indeed that it was to you ,i had been compelled to yield it6 ,in spite of that fact you should have had1 ,i promise you1 a right royal welcome4 ,and now ,i must needs explain4 ,this sheeling1 you must know1 is not really my home4 ,it is but a temporary refuge1 of which ,i have two or three along the coast2 for ,i have fought battles enough against ,england's new-fangled government to have deserved the honors of outlawry at her hands4 #cba ,my life consequently has been none too safe at any time these six months past1 and now that yonder gray-haired fanatic1 who would ask nothing better than to seal his title in my blood1 has got possession of these lands1 it is of course less secure than ever4 ,my most permanent home1 however1 is on an island1 facing the bay on this side1 and washed by the waters of the ,atlantic on the other4 ,it is poor enough1 ,god knows1 yet capable of giving better accommodation than such a hut as this is4 ,will you and your grandfather be content to share it with me8 ,tears rushed into the dark eyes of ,nellie4 ,providence is good1 she answered simply--,providence is very good1 and gives us friends when we least expect them4 ,well1 then1 it is a bargain1 cried ,roger gayly2 and now4 ,mistress ,netterville1 come and see the craft in which you will have to make the voyage4 ,he pulled down the mysterious mantle as he spoke1 and ,nellie saw that1 instead of covering the bare wall as she had imagined1 it merely concealed an opening into an inner and smaller portion of the hut1 built right over the creek1 and made to answer the purpose of a boat-house4 ,into this the water rushed1 so as to form a basin deep enough for the floating of a boat1 and one accordingly lay safe within it1 concealed by the overhanging roof from observation on the outside4 ,it was not flat-bottomed like the native craft1 but had been evidently built both for strength and speed by one who understood his business1 and its chief cargo at this particular moment seemed to be a quantity of luxuriant heather4 ,to this ,roger pointed with a smile4 ,if ,i were a ,highlander1 he said1 you might suspect me of second-sight2 for ,i have gathered1 without thinking of it1 double the usual quantity of heather1 that which we outlaws perforce use for bedding4 ,i hope you will not mind roughing it a little4 ,i have roughed it a good deal within the last few months1 said ,nellie1 and ,i do not think you will find me difficult to please4 ,is the boat quite safe8 ,i have never been out on the real sea before4 ,safe6 said the young man1 with a little pardonable pride in his dark eyes4 ,i built her myself1 and she has weathered more than one bad storm since the first day that ,i sailed her4 ,i call her the ',grana ,uaille1' after the stout old chieftainess whose island kingdom ,i inhabit1 and which1 with the other lands of which ,major ,hewitson has robbed me1 ,i inherit from my grandmother4 ,but the sun is getting low4 ,do you not think we had better start at once1 and get the voyage over before night-fall8 ,to this ,nellie gladly assented1 and between them they conducted ,lord ,netterville to the boat4 ,roger arranged the heather so as to form a sort of couch1 and1 with the mantle thrown over him to protect him from the damp1 the old man found himself so comfortable that he settled himself quietly for slumber4 ,then ,roger put up his sail1 and with a fresh and favorable wind they glided down the creek4 ,nellie would not lie down1 but she sat back in the boat with a lazy kind of gladness in her heart1 which1 rightly interpreted1 would probably have been found to mean perfect rest of body and mind4 ,such rest as she had not felt for months6 ,the waters widened as they approached the bay1 and ,nellie marked each new feature in the scene with an interest all the keener and more enjoyable1 that everything she saw was so unlike anything she had ever seen before4 #cbb ,accustomed as she had been to the tamer cultivation of her native country1 the savage grandeur of that wild west1 with its poverty in human life1 its wealth in that which was merely animal1 took her completely by surprise1 and she gazed with unwearied interest1 now on the undulating ranges of blue mountains which crossed and recrossed each other like network against the sky1 then on the broad1 black tracts of peat and bog land which covered the country at their feet like a pall2 listened now to the bittern and plover as they answered each other from the marshes1 then to the shrill screams of the curlews as they rose before the boat1 darkening the air with their uncounted numbers2 or she watched a heron sweeping slowly homeward from its distant fishing-ground--or a grand old eagle soaring solemnly upward1 as if bent on a visit to the departing sun2 and her delight and astonishment at last reached their climax in the apparition of a seal1 which1 just as they cleared the creek1 popped its head up above the waves1 leaving her1 in spite of ,roger's laughing assurances to the contrary1 well-nigh persuaded that she had seen a mermaid4 ,the wind continuing steady1 ,roger shook out his last remaining reef1 and1 responding gayly to the fresh impulse1 the boat sprang forward at a racing pace4 ,they were in ,clew ,bay at last1 and ,nellie uttered a cry of joy--never had she seen anything so beautiful before4 ,masses of clouds1 with tints just caught from the presence of the sun1 soft greens and lilacs1 and pale primrose and delicate pearly white1 so clear and filmy that the evening star could be seen glancing through them1 hung right overhead1 shedding a thousand hues1 each more beautiful than the other1 upon the bay beneath1 until it flowed like a liquid opal round its multitude of tribute isles4 ,opposite1 right in the very mouth of the harbor1 stood ,clare ,island1 all alight and glowing1 as if it were in very deed the pavilion of the setting sun1 which1 as it sank into the waves beyond it1 wrapped tower1 and church1 and slanting cliff1 and winding shoreline1 in such a glory of gold and purple as made the old kingdom of ,grana ,uaille look for the moment like a palace of the fairies4 ,nellie was still straining her eyes for a glimpse of the ,atlantic on the other side1 when the deep baying of a hound came like sad1 sweet music over the waters1 and ,roger slightly touched her shoulder4 ,they were close to the island2 in another moment he had run his boat cleverly into the little harbor and laid her alongside the pier4 ,a huge wolf-dog1 of the old ,irish breed1 instantly bounded in1 nearly oversetting ,nellie in his eagerness to greet his master4 ,roger laid one restraining hand on the dog's massive head1 and removing his cap with the other1 said1 smiling courteously3 ,you must not be afraid of ,maida1 ,mistress ,netterville1 she is as gentle as she is strong1 and has only come to add her voice to her master's1 and to bid you welcome to the outlaw's home4 ,chapter ,,viii4 ,nellie slept that night the peaceful slumbers of a child2 but the habits of long weeks of care were not to be so easily shaken off1 and the first ray of sunshine that found its way through the narrow window of her chamber roused her from her well-earned repose4 #cbc ,her first impulse was1 as it had ever been of late1 to spring from her couch with a painful sense of hard duty to be accomplished that very day2 her next was to thank ,god with all the fervor of a young and innocent heart for the haven of safety into which he had guided her at last4 ,then she lay back upon her pillow1 and1 yielding to the delightful consciousness that there was now no immediate call upon her for exertion either of body or mind1 glanced languidly round the dimly-lighted room1 and endeavored to make a mental inventory of its contents4 ,it was a square chamber1 forming the second story of the old tower in which ,roger had taken up his abode1 and which was all that was yet remaining of the old stronghold of ,grana ,uaille4 ,the apartment had evidently no furniture of its own to boast of1 but1 having been used as a sort of lumber-room1 was abundantly supplied with articles brought hither from more favored mansions4 ,nellie soon perceived that much of this so-called lumber was of the costliest description1 and represented probably the sum total of all that had been saved from the wreck of ,roger's fortune4 ,there were cabinets of curious workmanship1 a table carved in oak as black as ebony1 a few high-backed chairs of the same material1 ornaments in gold and silver1 some of ancient ,celtic manufacture1 others in their more delicate workmanship bearing marks of artistic handling1 which1 even to ,nellie's unaccustomed eye1 betrayed their foreign origin4 ,there were pictures1 too1 most of them with the dark shadow of a ,spanish hand upon them1 and swords1 bucklers1 weapons1 and armor of all kinds1 old and new1 defensive and offensive1 piled up here and there in picturesque confusion in the corners of the turret4 ,nellie had been amusing herself for some minutes scanning all these treasures over and over1 and guessing at their various uses1 when her attention became suddenly riveted upon a huge coffer with bands and mouldings of curiously-wrought brass1 which stood against the wall exactly opposite to the foot of her bed4 ,she was still quite girl enough to be willing to amuse herself by imagining all sorts of impossibilities respecting the contents of this mysterious looking piece of furniture1 and she was watching it as anxiously as if she half expected it to open of itself1 when the door of the chamber was cautiously unclosed1 and the old woman1 who represented the office of cook1 valet1 and everything else in ,roger's establishment1 crept up to her bedside as quietly as if she fancied her to be sleeping still4 ,god's blessing and the light of heaven be on your sweet smiling face1 she ejaculated1 as ,nellie turned her bright1 wide-open eyes with a grateful smile upon the old hag4 ,lie still a bit1 a-lannah1 lie still1 and take a sup of this fresh goat's whey that ,i have been making for you4 ,it will bring the color1 may be1 into your pretty cheeks again2 for troth1 a-lannah1 they are as pale this morning as mountain roses1 and not at all what they should be in regard to a young and well-grown slip of a lassie like yourself4 ,nellie took the tempting beverage1 which ,nora presented to her in an old-fashioned silver goblet1 readily enough2 but checking herself just as she was about to put it to her lips1 she said1 gayly3 ,thanks1 a thousand times1 my dear old woman1 but ,i do not feel that ,i need it much1 and this whey would be the very thing for my poor old grandfather4 ,he was always accustomed to something of the sort in the days when we were able to indulge ourselves in such luxuries4 #cbd ,lord bless the child6 said the delighted ,nora4 ,if she isn't as gay as a bird in its mother's nest this morning1 for all the weary worry of her last night's travels4 ,but there's no need to be sparing of the whey1 my honey1 for sure ,i've a good sup of it left on purpose for the old lord as soon as ever he awakens4 ,so drink up every drop of this1 if you wouldn't have the master scold me2 for he sent it up himself1 he did1 and it's downright mad he'd be if it came back to him and it not empty4 ,something in this speech1 or in old ,nora's way of making it1 caused the blood1 the absence of which she had been just deploring1 to rush once more into ,nellie's cheek2 and perhaps it was partly to hide this weakness that she took the goblet without another word1 and drained it to the dregs1 playfully turning its wrong side up as she gave it back to ,nora1 in order to show her how thoroughly her directions had been complied with4 ,made happy on this important point1 the old woman trotted gayly out of the room1 and then ,nellie rose1 half-reluctantly1 it must be confessed1 and commenced the duties of the toilet4 ,they were simple enough in her case1 yet difficult1 also1 from their very simplicity4 ,her hair1 long and smooth and shining1 was easily enough disposed in braids1 which1 folded tightly round her head1 gave a grace and elegance to her appearance none of the fantastic head-gear then in vogue could possibly have imparted2 but when she came to inspect the habiliments she had worn the day before1 and which perforce she must wear again that day1 she became painfully1 and1 perhaps for the first time1 fully conscious of the dilapidations which time and travel had wrought upon them4 ,in vain she rubbed out mud and grass stains1 in vain she plied her needle4 ,the garments absolutely defied her skill1 and1 painfully conscious of the fact1 she was about perforce to don them as they were1 when ,nora burst into the room with a look of gladness on her face1 which vanished1 however1 to do her justice1 as completely as if it had never been1 at the sight of poor ,nellie1 shame-faced and sad1 vainly trying to smooth her rags into something like decent poverty around her4 ,god help you1 a-cushla6 she cried in a tone of unfeigned compassion1 laying at the same time her withered hand upon the tattered kerchief which ,nellie was trying to fold round her stately shoulders4 ,god help ye6 and is this all that them black scum of ,saxon robbers left ye when they turned ye out upon the wide world to seek your fortune8 ,it cannot be helped1 said ,nellie with a little choking in her voice1 though she tried hard to veil it beneath an assumption of indifference4 ,and after all1 these rags do but make me seem what in fact ,i am--a beggar4 ,only ,i hope1 she added1 with a little nervous laugh1 ,i hope that ,colonel ,o',more 7she had learned his military rank and his real name1 ,moore being only its ,saxon rendering1 the night before from ,nora7 will not be utterly disgusted this morning when he finds out to what a pauper he extended his hospitality last night4 ,the colonel8 ,is it the master that you mean8 ,the master be disgusted6 ,ah6 now1 listen to me1 asthore1 and don't be filling your head with them ugly fancies2 for you may just take my word for it1 and don't ,i know every turn of his mind as well as if ,i was inside of it8 ,you may just take old ,nora's word for it1 that he worships the very ground you tread on1 and would1 too1 all the same1 if you had never a brogue to the foot or a kirtle to the back4 #cbe ,beggar1 indeed6 ,why1 could not he see for himself last night that you had been just robbed and murdered like out of your own by them thieving ,saxons1 and wasn't it for that very reason that1 before he went off to his fishing this blessed morning1 he gave me the key of that big black box1 and says--says he1 ',nora1 my old woman1 ,i have been thinking that the young lady up-stairs has been so long on the road that may be she'll be in want of a new dress like2 so1 as there is nothing like decent woman-tailoring to be found in the island1 maybe she'll condescend to see if there's anything in my poor mother's box that would suit her for the present4' ,and troth1 my darling1 old ,nora went on1 it's you that are going to have the pick and choice of fine things2 for she was a grand ,spanish lady1 she was1 and always went about among us dressed like a princess4 ,nora had opened the box at the beginning of this speech1 and with every fresh word she uttered1 she flung out such treasures of finery on the floor as fully justified her panegyric on the deceased lady's wardrobe4 ,nellie soon found herself the centre of a heap of thick silks and shiny satins1 and three-piled velvets and brocaded stuffs1 standing upright by virtue of their own rich material1 and of laces so delicate and fine1 that they looked as if she had only to breathe upon them in order to make them float away upon the air like cobwebs4 ,she was quite too much of a girl as yet to be able to resist a close and curious examination of such treasures2 nevertheless1 her instinct of the fitness of things was stronger than her vanity1 and there was an incongruity between these courtly habiliments and her broken fortunes1 which made her feel that it would be an absolute impossibility to wear them4 ,selecting1 therefore1 a few articles of linen clothing1 she told old ,nora that everything else was far too fine for daily wear1 and began1 of her own accord1 to restore them to their coffer4 ,not so1 however1 the good old ,nora4 ,that any thing could be too fine for the adornment of any one whom the master delighted to honor1 was a simple absurdity in her mind2 and she became so clamorous in her remonstrances1 that ,nellie was fain to shift her ground1 and to explain that she was bent at that moment upon taking a long ramble by the sea-shore1 for which anything like a dress of silk or satin 7,nora's own good sense must tell her7 would be1 to say the least of it1 exceedingly inappropriate4 ,at these words a new light seemed to dawn upon the old woman's mind1 and1 plunging almost bodily down into the deep coffer in her eagerness to gratify her protg1 she exclaimed1 ,so it's for a walk you'd be going this morning1 is it8 and after all your bother last night6 ,well1 well1 you are young still1 and would rather1 ,i daresay1 be skipping about like a young kid among the rocks than sitting up in silks and satins as grave and stately as if you were a princess in earnest4 ,something plain and strong8 ,that's what you'll be wanting1 isn't it1 a-lannah8 ,wait a bit1 will you8 for ,i mind me now of a dress the old mistress had made when she was young1 for a frolic1 like1 that she might go with me unnoticed to a 'pattern4' ,and may ,i never sin if ,i haven't got it1 she cried1 diving down once more into the coffer1 and bringing up from its shining chaos a dress which1 consisting as it did simply of a madder-colored petticoat and short over-skirt of russet brown1 was not by any means very dissimilar to the habitual costume of a peasant girl of the west at the present hour4 #cbf ,nora was right4 ,it was1 as ladies have it1 the very thing6 ,stout enough and plain enough to meet all ,nellie's ideas of propriety1 and yet presenting a sharp contrast of coloring which 7forgive her1 my reader1 she was only sixteen7 she was by no means sorry to reflect would be exceedingly becoming to her clear1 pale complexion1 and the blue-black tresses of her hair4 ,it was with a little blush of pleasure1 therefore1 that she took it from the old woman's hand1 exclaiming1 ,oh6 thank you1 dear ,nora4 ,it is exactly what ,i was wishing for--so strong and pretty4 ,it will make me feel just as ,i want to feel1 like a good strong peasant girl1 able and willing to work for her living2 and1 to say the truth1 moreover1 she added1 somewhat confidentially1 ,i should not at all have liked making my appearance in those fine ,spanish garments4 ,i should have been so much afraid of the ,o',more taking me for his mother4 ,the annunciation of this grave anxiety set off old ,nora in a fit of laughing1 under cover of which ,nellie contrived to complete her toilette4 ,madder-dyed petticoat1 and1 russet skirt1 and long dark mantle1 she donned them all2 but the effect1 though exceedingly pretty1 was by no means exactly what she had expected2 for ,nora1 turning her round and round for closer inspection1 declared1 with many an ,irish expletive1 which we willingly spare our readers1 ,that dress herself how she might1 no one could ever mistake her for anything but what she really was1 namely1 a born lady1 and perhaps even1 moreover1 a princess in disguise4 ,with a smile and a courtesy ,nellie accepted of the compliment1 and then tripped down the winding staircase of her turret1 took one peep at ,lord ,netterville as he lay in the room below1 in the calliogh or nook by the hearth1 which1 screened off by a bent matting1 had been allotted to him as the warmest and most comfortable accommodation the tower afforded1 and having satisfied herself that he was still fast asleep1 stepped out gayly into the open air4 ,she was met at the door by ,maida1 who nearly knocked her down in her boisterous delight at beholding her again1 and she was playfully defending herself from the too rapturous advances of her four-footed friend when ,roger ran his fishing-boat alongside the pier1 and1 evidently mistaking ,nellie for some bare-footed visitor of ,nora's1 called out in ,irish3 ,hilloa1 ma colleen dhas6 run back to the tower1 will you1 and tell ,nora to fetch me down a basket1 and you shall have a good handful of fish for your pains1 for ,i have caught enough to garrison the island for a week4 ,guessing his mistake and enchanted at the success of her masquerade1 ,nellie instantly darted into the kitchen1 seized a fishing-creel which was lying near the hearth1 and rushed down to the pier4 ,roger was still so busy disentangling the fish from the net in which he had caught them1 that he never even looked at ,nellie until he turned round to place them in her basket4 ,then for the first time he saw who it was whom he had been so unceremoniously ordering about upon his commission4 ,had ,nellie been rich and prosperous1 he would probably have laughed and made exceedingly light of the matter2 but poor1 and almost dependent on his bounty as she was1 he flushed scarlet to the forehead1 and apologized with an eager deference1 which was not only very touching in itself1 but very characteristic of the sensitive and generous-hearted race from which he sprung4 #cbg ,but1 after all1 he added1 in conclusion1 smiling and laying his finger lightly on the folds of ,nellie's mantle1 after all1 how could ,i dream that1 her weeks of weary wandering only just concluded1 ,mistress ,netterville would have been up again with the sun1 looking as fresh and bright as the morning dew1 and masquerading like a peasant girl8 ,but ,i am not masquerading at all1 said ,nellie1 laughing1 and yet evidently quite in earnest4 ,i am as poor as a peasant girl1 and mean to dress like one1 ay1 and to work like one too1 so long as ,i needs must be dependent upon others4 ,not if ,i am still to be master here1 said ,roger1 very decidedly1 taking the fishing-creel out of her hands4 ,like a wandering princess you have come to me2 and like a wandering princess ,i intend that you shall be treated1 so long as you condescend to honor me by your presence in this kingdom of barren rocks4 ,but the fish1 said the laughing and blushing ,nellie2 in the meantime1 what is to be done with the fish8 ,nora will be in pain about it2 for she told me last night that there wasn't a blessed fish in the bay that would be worth a 'thraneen' if only half-an-hour were suffered to elapse between their exit from the ocean and their introduction to her kitchen4 ,nora is quite right1 said ,roger1 responding freely to the young girl's merry laugh2 and it has cost me both time and pains1 ,i do assure you1 to impress that fact upon her mind4 ,but ,maida has already told her all about it2 and here she comes1 he added1 as he caught a glimpse of the old woman descending leisurely toward the pier4 ,so now we may leave the fish with a safe conscience to her tender mercies1 and1 if you are inclined for a stroll1 ,i will take you up to yonder rocky platform1 from whence you will see the ,atlantic1 as unfortunately we but seldom see it on this wild coast1 in all the calm glories of a summer day4 ,to ,be ,continued4 -------- #cbh ,mexico1 ,by ,baron ,humboldt ,footnote #eg ,footnote #eg3 ,essai politique sur le ,royaume de ,nouvelle-,espagne4 #b vols4 fol4 ,chez ,f4 ,schoell4 ,paris4 ,some old books1 like some old married couples1 deserve a second celebration4 ,fifty years are surely long enough to wait for a rehearsal of nuptials2 and a married pair who can for a half-century live at peace with themselves and the public1 respected and esteemed1 receive a merited recognition and a pleasing recompense4 ,books that have circulated with an equal longevity and enjoyed universal appreciation1 have also their rights for a share of the cakes and ale4 ,if the old people have only a new coat and a new gown1 they look young again2 if the old favorite volumes are honored with a fresh binding1 their backbones seems strengthened4 ,it is charming to witness an ancient dame clinging to the side of her equally ancient husband for time almost out of mind2 and it has a home look to find two venerable tomes1 called ,volume ,one and ,volume ,two1 supporting and comforting each other on the same shelf in the library4 ,when one of the aged who have trudged on through life together drops off1 how soon the second follows after2 and when one book is lost or destroyed1 its companion pines away in dust1 if not in ashes1 till1 finally neglected1 it mysteriously disappears4 ,but ,baron ,humboldt's two folios on ,new ,spain or ,mexico indicate that time1 as yet1 has written no wrinkles on their brow4 ,they are good for another lease of life of equal length2 their high state of preservation has imparted a healthy appearance2 and perhaps grandchildren hereafter will be delighted to make their acquaintance4 ,on the present occasion1 the compliments of the season1 and of the editor1 must be extended to them4 ,and in the interchange of courtesies1 let us hear what they have to say for themselves4 ,it is somewhat surprising in modern times that ,humboldt's folios on ,mexico should have retained so long their pre-eminence4 ,the baron wrote upon subjects wherein our knowledge is continually increasing1 where important changes are daily made by new discoveries1 and where a constant demand is kept up for new books4 ,his great essay is devoted to branches of political and social sciences1 which in their nature are progressive sciences1--geography1 topography1 economical and commercial statistics4 ,but in the case of the baron1 an exception is found in the general law in relation to the rise1 reign1 and fall of standard authorities4 ,his supremacy in the department of ,mexico was established in the first decade of the present age2 it may not be destroyed in the last4 ,yet one fact is truly remarkable3 his essay was published in #ahaa in ,paris1 in the most imposing and expensive form1 in two volumes in folio2 it had been anxiously expected2 it was instantly translated into all the modern languages of ,europe2 it was received with eulogiums and commendations2 but no second edition was ever called for4 ,this singular fate of a performance so much extolled1 and still quoted1 needs some explanation2 and in giving this1 the interest manifested abroad in the situation of ,mexico must also be explained2 for in truth1 the popularity of the essay was1 for the most part1 due to the importance of and attention bestowed upon that rich province of the king of ,spain on the western shores of the ,atlantic4 #cbi ,mexico had been a resplendent gem in the ,spanish crown from the time of the conquest by ,cortez in #aeba2 it had been the envy of rival nations1 and often the prize which they desired to win from its rightful sovereign4 ,england was eager to supply its market with ,african slaves1 in order to gain access to its ports1 and thereby stimulate the contraband trade4 ,france was perpetually on guard at the ,bahamas to capture its bullion fleets1 bearing their precious cargoes from ,vera ,cruz to ,cadiz4 ,the ,dutch defeated the best of ,spanish admirals1 and carried off the richest spoils2 while all three1 ,english1 ,french1 and ,dutch cruisers1 partly privateers1 partly public armed vessels with their piratical captains and crews1 in times of profound peace made private war on every ship sailing under the flag of ,castile4 ,the capital of that far-off country was described in the last century as one of the wonders of the modern world4 ,we read in ,spence's ,anecdotes1 that a travelled gentlemen who had seen several of the most splendid courts abroad1 stated in the presence of ,mr4 ,pope1 the poet1 that he had never been struck so much with anything as by the magnificence of the ,city of ,mexico1 with its seven hundred equipages and harness of solid silver1 and ladies walking on the paseo waited upon by their black slaves1 to hold up the trains1 and shade with umbrellas their fair mistresses from the sun4 ,but this ,new ,spain had nothing attractive beyond its wealth2 it had no arts1 sciences1 or history2 no literature1 poetry1 or romance4 ,with the death of ,hernando ,cortez1 these had died out4 ,no one desired more on these subjects4 ,but everybody wished to learn all that could be learned of its prolific revenues1 and of its enormous resources in the precious metals1 then supplying the commerce of all nations with coin4 ,nothing was talked of1 listened to1 or considered1 when discussing the condition of that country1 except its vast production of silver4 ,thank you1 said ,tom ,hood1 when dining with a ,london ,amphictyon1 who was helping his plate too profusely1 thank you1 alderman2 but if it is all the same to you1 ,i will take the balance in money4 ,interest in ,mexico was taken in nothing else4 ,it must be remembered that credit in commerce is of recent origin1 and paper currency of still more recent creation4 ,both1 comparatively speaking1 were in their infancy at the close of the last century4 ,precious metals were then the sole1 or at least the great1 medium of commercial exchanges2 and consequently1 silver and gold performed a more important part in the markets than they do now4 ,they were more highly appreciated and sought after4 ,then it was1 that the ,mexican mines yielded the far greater portion of the total product2 and1 of course1 the control of these mines was supposed to afford the control of the commerce of the world4 ,economists and statesmen1 therefore1 turned their gaze upon that strange land beyond sea1 as the only land in that direction worthy of their notice4 ,but the notice bestowed upon it was absorbing4 ,napoleon1 availing himself of the imbecility of the king of ,spain1 and of the venality of the ,prince of ,peace1 endeavored to divert the ,mexican revenues from the royal ,house of ,trado at ,seville to the imperial treasury of ,france4 ,ouvrard1 also1 the most daring speculator in the most gigantic schemes under ,napoleon1 the contractor-general for the armies and navy of the ,french empire1 undertook1 on his own responsibility1 to enter into a private partnership with the ,spanish sovereign to monopolize the trade of ,mexico1 and divide equally the profits4 #ccj ,napoleon assented to this arrangement2 ,english bankers took part in the negotiation2 and the ,british government under ,william ,pitt gave it their sanction and aid4 ,yet1 strange to relate1 all this transpired while ,england was at war with ,france and ,spain1 and a ,british fleet blockaded the harbor of ,vera ,cruz4 ,these hostile nations were drained of money1 and wanted an immediate supply4 ,france had anticipated the public revenues to meet the imperial necessity2 the ,bank of ,england had stopped specie payments2 ,madrid was threatened with a famine from a series of failures in the crops at home1 and no funds were in the royal coffers to purchase wheat abroad4 ,thus all were clamorous for coin1 which ,mexico only could produce4 ,it was known that fifty millions of silver dollars were on deposit in the ,consulado of ,vera ,cruz1 awaiting shipment to ,spain2 and it was well known1 also1 that1 if shipped1 the greater portion of the amount would soon find its way to ,paris and ,london4 ,in this state of affairs1 the emergency became so pressing upon the belligerents1 that their war policy was compelled to succumb2 the blockade was raised and the bullion exported4 ,we shall not soon forget how a similar exigency in the late war compelled the ,lincoln administration to permit provisions being furnished to the ,confederates1 in order to procure cotton to strengthen our finances4 ,cotton was king of commerce in #ahfd1 ,silver was king in #ahjd4 ,england1 at the same time1 was meditating seriously upon the resources and riches of ,new ,spain4 ,aware of the importance attached by the ,british cabinet to the subject1 ,dumouriez1 the distinguished ,french republican exile1 then in ,london1 addressed ,mr4 ,windham1 the ,secretary of ,war and for the ,colonies1 a paper advocating its conquest4 ,the general called attention to the fact that1 once in ,english occupancy1 the commerce of the two seas will be in your hands2 the metallic riches of ,spanish ,america will pour into ,england2 you will deprive ,spain and ,bonaparte of them2 and this monetary revolution will change the political face of ,europe4 ,it seems ,mr4 ,windham entertained the project1 and referred it to ,sir ,arthur ,wellesley4 ,in the sixth volume of the ,wellington ,supplementary ,dispatches1 the proposition is examined4 ,while such was the state of public opinion in ,europe1 finding expression daily in high quarters1 and of which the above are only isolated examples1 ,humboldt undertook his scientific expedition to ,spanish ,america1 and was preparing his great essay on ,new ,spain4 ,he landed in ,mexico in ,march1 #ahjc1 and remained in the country for one year1 engaged in the study of the physical structure and political condition of the vast realm1 and in the investigation of the causes having the greatest influence on the progress of its population and native industry4 ,but no printed work could be found to aid him in his researches with materials1 and therefore he resorted to manuscripts in great numbers1 already in general circulation4 ,he had also free1 uninterrupted access to official records2 records which for the first time were permitted to be examined by a private gentleman4 ,finally1 he embodied his topographical1 geographical1 statistical1 and other collections1 into a separate work on ,new ,spain1 hoping they would be received with interest at a time when the new continent1 more than ever1 attracts the attention of ,europeans4 #cca ,the original sketch was drawn up in ,spanish for circulation1 and from the comments thereon1 he informs us1 he was enabled to make many important corrections4 ,the ,essay reviews the extent and physical aspect of the country2 the influence of the inequalities of surface on the climate1 on agriculture1 commerce1 and defence of the coasts2 the population1 and its divisions into castes2 the census and area of the intendencias--calculated from the maps drawn up by him from his astronomical observations2 its agriculture and mines1 commerce and manufactures2 the revenues and military defences4 ,but ,humboldt very candidly confesses1 as incident to such an undertaking1 that1 notwithstanding the extreme care which ,i have bestowed in verifying results1 no doubt many serious errors have been committed4 ,it can be readily imagined what attention was given in ,europe to the first rude sketch of statistics published by him in #ahjd-e1 ,the cupidity and ambition of merchants1 statesmen1 and military men were aroused by this first authentic revelation of ,mexican revenues and resources4 ,all nations were anxious to learn more2 all classes of people listened in wonder to this true account respecting the prodigious production of the precious metals4 ,in this pleasing excitement1 ,humboldt was preparing his complete ,essay1 to satisfy the public desire4 ,having learned caution from the inaccuracies pointed out in his first rough publication1 he was in no great haste to send forth the final result of his labors4 ,thus1 he waited for four or five years2 and1 unfortunately for his own profit1 he waited too long4 ,the interest in ,mexico had gone by2 the golden visions of its boundless opulence had vanished2 its fascinations1 that had charmed for years1 like some castle raised by magic in a night1 resplendent with gems of ruby1 amethyst1 and jasper1 had passed away2 the spell of enchantment was broken4 ,for the rebellion burst out in #ahaj1 and commerce1 revenues1 industry1 all perished in the general ruin it created4 ,it was now1 in common estimation1 one of the poorest colonies of ,spain2 and what cared the public for more ,spanish poverty beyond the ,atlantic1 when too much of it already was visible in the peninsula8 ,the great ,essay1 therefore1 when finally published1 was not purchased with impatient eagerness2 it fell flat on the market4 ,for ,mexico was now ruined1 the public thought2 and so does the public continue to think1 even unto the present day4 ,thenceforth1 ,mexican antiquities only were attractive4 ,the ,edinburgh ,review1 in #ahaa1 writing on the essay1 commences3 ,since the appearance of our former article on this valuable and instructive work1 a great and1 for the present at least1 lamentable revolution has taken place in the countries it describes4 ,colonies which were at that time the abode of peace and industry have now become the seat of violence and desolation4 ,a civil war1 attended with various success1 but everywhere marked with cruelty and desolation1 has divided the colonists1 and armed them for their mutual destruction4 ,blood has been shed profusely in the field and unmercifully on the scaffold4 ,flourishing countries1 that were advancing rapidly in wealth and civilization1 have suffered alike from the assertors of their liberties and from the enemies of their independence4 ,the ,quarterly ,review did not notice the ,essay1 making no sign of its existence4 #ccb ,it is true1 some learned gentlemen gave a look into the work1 and scientific men studied it well4 ,but the learned and scientific were only a small1 select number in the general mass of readers2 and ,humboldt had not designed his information for1 and waited not the approbation of1 the select alone1 but of all classes alike that could read4 ,europe closed the map of ,mexico when the revolution broke forth1 and shut out all further inquiry into its political and industrial condition4 ,then it was that1 instead of a cordial greeting with open arms at every fire side1 which ,humboldt reasonably anticipated for his production1 the door was almost rudely slammed in his face4 ,he never forgot that treatment of the book2 he never wrote more upon ,mexico2 never furnished to the learned or unlearned a new edition1 with emendations and corrections1 notes and new maps4 ,as it went from the hands of the author then1 we receive it now4 ,at the moment1 however1 when ,europe closed the map1 ,america for the first time seriously opened it2 and just in proportion with receding time1 as ,mexico has faded into insignificance from ,european view1 in the same proportion with advancing time has ,mexico loomed up into importance with us4 ,they refused to ,humboldt then the high consideration his ,essay merited2 we bestow upon him now more respect and veneration than his ,essay deserves4 ,to the ,european mind1 ,humboldt's ,new ,spain was ,mexico no more2 to the ,american1 ,mexico is the same ,new ,spain--changed1 to be sure1 but still the land for enterprise and riches4 ,it was not altogether unknown to us before our revolution4 ,it had a consideration while the ,states were ,english colonies2 for ,northern merchants sometimes smuggled into its ports1 and sometimes1 too1 our fillibusters buccaneered on its coasts1 like other loyal ,english subjects sailing under the brave old ,english flag4 ,when our revolution came1 aid was invoked from ,spain as well as from ,france2 for the ,spanish sovereign had a personal insult to avenge on the ,british1 and ,spanish supremacy on the seas to maintain4 ,but ,spain1 though willing1 had1 first of all1 to concentrate her fleets4 ,one armada was contending with the ,portuguese in ,south ,america2 another was acting as convoy for the galleons1 with cargoes of silver1 proceeding from ,mexico to ,spain4 ,treaties with ,portugal were hastily patched up1 and the ordinanza of free trade liberated the convoy from protecting the ships laden with the silver4 ,the policy of that ordinance ,humboldt1 and many respectable ,mexican writers after him1 have much misunderstood2 and they are greatly mistaken in their estimate of its beneficial effects on mining prosperity4 ,after the ,united ,states became an independent nation1 ,spain1 in order to be rid of the ,louisiana incumbrance1 which was dependent upon the revenues of ,mexico for support1 transferred that territory to ,france2 and ,napoleon1 in turn1 sold it to the ,american government4 ,but did its boundaries extend to the ,sabine or the ,rio ,grande1 on the south8 ,and did they extend to the ,russian ,pacific possessions on the north8 ,these were uncertain questions1 and hence from this purchase originated those many diplomatic complications1 and no less numerous domestic controversies1 which have been the fruitful source of change in cabinets and of defeats of national parties1 with the downfall of not a few distinguished men4 ,hence1 also1 the first settlements in ,texas2 next the ,american colonists1 and the question of annexation2 the war with ,mexico2 the treaty of ,guadalupe ,hidalgo1 and the acquisition of ,california4 ,before these measures were decided1 however1 ,colonel ,burr had already1 with his band of adventurers1 undertaken that mysterious enterprise in the same direction1 whose object seems to have been as vague as the boundaries to be invaded were uncertain4 #ccc ,ouvrard1 also1 had solicited and effected the co-operation of leading merchants in ,northern cities1 in his joint speculation with the king of ,spain1 for the vast ,mexican commercial scheme4 ,and herein was given the great impulse to amassing those large private fortunes1 by ,mr4 ,gray of ,boston1 ,mr4 ,oliver of ,baltimore1 ,mr4 ,girard of ,philadelphia1 and the ,parish family4 ,subsequently came the ,mexican revolution1 protracted for twelve years1 during which period the commerce of that country1 previously a ,spanish monopoly1 was completely under the control of ,americans4 ,at the close of the ,napoleon wars ,spain desired the monopoly restored1 in order to transfer it to ,france4 ,this movement called forth1 in favor of free commerce1 the celebrated message announcing the ,monroe doctrine4 ,the message gave umbrage to ,russia in reference to her ,american possessions1 and fixed their ultimate destiny4 ,it also forced ,england to disclose her claim for the first time1 and to exhibit her title to the ,vancouver country south of the ,russian--a title until then unheard of and unknown to ,american statesmen4 ,the ,missouri ,compromise grew out of the acquisition of ,louisiana1 and its repeal grew out of the acquisition of ,california4 ,as a supplement to the treaty of ,guadalupe ,hidalgo1 was concluded the treaty for the ,messilla ,valley1 which negotiation sprung from a mistake in ,humboldt's maps1 faithfully copied by ,disturnell1 in giving a wrong location1 in longitude and latitude1 to ,el ,paso on the ,rio ,grande4 ,the invasion of ,mexico by ,france in #ahfb1 nearly kindled a desolating war between the ,united ,states and the ,french empire4 ,unforeseen obstacles1 however1 induced ,louis ,napoleon to pause in the conquest2 for he had1 in its inception1 been deceived respecting the condition of ,mexico and the ,mexican people1 and misled as to the easy development by ,france of the abundant resources of the country4 ,the moral support1 moreover1 extended to the liberal party by the ,american government compelled the ,french to abandon an expedition which was properly appreciated in all its imposing magnitude by the emperor1 but which so many to this day do not comprehend4 ,no one can fail to be astonished in contemplating the large space occupied by ,mexico in ,american affairs2 the immense acquisition of territory made from within her ancient landmarks2 the princely private fortunes accumulated from her commerce2 the vast treasures discovered in her former mines2 the rich agricultural crops gathered from her ,louisiana valley1 her ,texas loamy soil1 and her ,california plains2 while1 upon the margin of the ,mississippi river1 a city1 created by ,mexican aid and contributions1 has grown into an opulent mart of commerce1 surpassing all other ,american cities in the value of its exports1 in the happy era of our greatest prosperity4 ,nor can that prosperity ever return until ,new ,orleans once more becomes the leading emporium for the outlet of the great staples of this republic4 ,it is no less surprising to recall the fate of so many statesmen1 and others of mark1 who have risen to distinction1 or who have been forced to retire1 from questions growing out of their policy toward ,mexico4 #ccd ,it is no longer disputed that the first fatal error of the first ,napoleon was his invasion of ,spain1 thereby to control the ,mexican revenues2 perhaps it will soon be conceded that the first fatal error of ,louis ,napoleon was1 in too closely following in the footsteps1 in the same direction1 of his illustrious uncle4 ,colonel ,burr1 the ,vice-,president of the ,united ,states1 from his ill-starred adventure1 fell into disgrace and sunk into an infamous notoriety4 ,general ,wilkinson1 once upon the military staff of ,washington1 was both the accomplice and ruin of ,burr1 and died in obscurity in a voluntary exile4 ,the ,missouri ,compromise destroyed the aspirations of many ,northern statesmen who opposed its adoption1 and shattered the popularity of others who afterward advocated its repeal4 ,the question of annexing ,texas was the fatal rock upon which were wrecked the hopes of ,president ,van ,buren for renomination2 it defeated ,mr4 ,clay2 it elected ,mr4 ,polk4 ,in succession to the presidency1 were elected ,general ,taylor and ,general ,pierce1 from their distinguished positions in the war with ,mexico4 ,to the like cause1 ,colonel ,frmont was indebted for his popular nomination1 nearly crowned with success4 ,winfield ,scott was made a ,brevet ,lieutenant-,general for his meritorious services in the ,mexican campaign1 and many of the greatest generals in the recent strife1 both ,federal and ,confederate1 received their first practical lessons in the art of war on the same distant field4 ,to all of these historical celebrities1 the crude statistics or the elaborate ,essay of ,humboldt were well known2 for ,humboldt's publications were the only source of authentic information on ,mexico of much value4 ,other foreign authors1 who followed after1 copied extensively from him1 and native writers have not failed to quote from the same source4 ,but although foreign authors have drawn more from the ,essay1 they have been less circumspect in verifying the accuracy of its statements2 while the ,mexican writers1 availing themselves sparingly of extracts1 sometimes1 at least1 favor the public with interesting corrections4 ,travellers too often have given us too much of ,humboldt4 ,indeed1 it may be said1 they have fed upon him2 they have imbibed him with their pulque1 and taken him solid with their toasted tortilla4 ,his ,essay has been pulled apart leaf by leaf1 to be reprinted page after page in their1 for the most part1 ephemeral productions4 ,humboldt in pieces has been dished up to suit all customers4 ,an oyster could not be served in more varieties of style4 ,even foreign embassies have supplied some of these literary cooks4 ,none of them seemed to know that man1 even in ,mexico1 must have more than ,humboldt4 ,in a fervid imagination1 they thought he could be improved upon1 by reducing the ,essay to sublimated extracts4 ,but ,doctor ,samuel ,johnson hinted1 long ago1 that extracts from a work are as silly specimens of its author as was that by the foolish old ,greek1 who exhibited a brick from his house as a specimen of its architecture4 ,mr4 ,prescott1 on the contrary1 in his celebrated history of the ,conquest1 with his usual discriminating judgment1 has properly availed himself of the ,essay to afford his readers a vivid and veracious picture of the natural configuration of the country4 ,and to understand the country properly1 this is the primary lesson to be attentively studied4 ,but it is much to be regretted that ,mr4 ,duport1 in his standard ,french work on the production of its precious metals1 was misled by errors existing in the maps accompanying the ,essay4 ,in consequence1 he has made serious mistakes in describing its geological structure1 in the run and inclinations of the strata in the silver rock1 in the silver-bearing region4 #cce ,whoever desires to comprehend the political condition and the industrial or commercial resources of ,mexico1 ought to commence as ,humboldt commenced4 ,it is only through a strict investigation of its material interests that ,mexico can be understood4 ,to begin with an examination of its political history is to begin where the labor should end4 ,mexico1 for three hundred years1 was a colony1 and1 like other colonies1 had no history1 no policy of its own2 no armies1 no navies1 no wars2 nothing of statesmanship peculiar to itself2 for all were absorbed in the history of the mother country4 ,when emerging from a colonial chrysalis1 it did not become a nation2 it may be somewhat doubted if it has even yet reached that position4 ,as a republic1 its federal government has been without a policy1 its administrations without stability1 its finances without an exchequer2 its armies unable to conquer abroad1 or contend with foreign invaders at home2 it has no navy2 it is almost destitute of all the essential elements that constitute a people4 ,true1 ,mexico has had great vicissitudes of fortune1 with changes1 frequent changes1 and for the most part violent overthrows1 of the federal rulers4 ,but these convulsions have produced no serious results4 ,the storms passed over without indications of wide-spread disaster4 ,sunshine came again without any visible improvement2 no signs of increasing intelligence1 no symptoms of decay to the superficial observer2 for these petty conflicts originated in personal motives1 and so ended4 ,having no political object1 they are devoid of grave consideration1 of any interest or profit4 ,their civil wars have been of regular periodical return1 but these wars are of no more historical significance than the wars of the ,saxon ,heptarchy4 ,mexico1 for many reasons1 must still be contemplated1 while a sovereign nation1 as she was viewed when a viceroyalty of ,spain4 ,the country now appears in ,christendom as an enigma full of strange anomalies4 ,in the erroneous estimation of most men1 it is hastening on to ruin and decay3 calamities that came upon the people in their revolt from ,spain1 and which will cling to them until their race is extinct4 ,the royal finger of scorn1 too1 is pointed at the republic1 as a reproach and warning to all republican governments of their ultimate failure4 ,it would be vain to waste time on its political records1 to elucidate ,mexican questions4 ,these annals are dumb4 ,but to the mountains1 the mines1 the mills1 where the rich minerals are produced and industry is developed1 the inquirer must go to find out what ,mexico really is4 ,in observing the people in their private pursuits1 he will imperceptibly be led to comprehend their political institutions4 ,in daily contact with the distinct classes1 divided into castes1 he will in like manner be soon conversant with the most noted men4 ,enigmas will vanish upon nearer approach and on closer inspection2 anomalies will no longer embarrass4 ,perhaps previously formed opinions may be shocked1 rudely assailed1 and demolished4 ,he may see many lingering remnants of ,astec superstition in one caste1 where they often disobey the priest2 and much affectation of infidelity in another1 where they kneel as suppliants at the confessional to crave a blessing4 ,he will perceive marks of seeming decay everywhere1 amid indications of progress4 ,the federal government will be pronounced not only bad1 but bad as government in a republic can be2 yet will he find some consolation in knowing that the viceregal government was far worse4 ,in the dregs of a popular polity1 some protection for the people will be manifest1 which was denied under a king4 #ccf ,he will hear ,spain1 on all sides1 spoken of with reverence and respect2 he will soon understand1 on all sides1 that ,spaniards are detested4 ,he will be gratified with the cordial welcome bestowed upon ,americans2 and wonder at the common hatred1 in all classes1 to the ,united ,states4 ,while he is aware that millions upon hundreds of millions of dollars1 from outlying provinces torn from the nation1 have been yielded to their neighbor on the north1 he will also discover that the heart of the ,mexican territory has not been reached4 ,nor need he be surprised when the truth is revealed1 that the ,liberal executive will sooner forget the hostile invasion by ,france1 than forgive the moral support extended to the native cause by that ,american neighbor4 ,on the whole1 he may conclude that the ,mexicans1 after all1 are somewhat rational and sensible1 not entirely deficient in refinement and intelligence1 or in energy and industry4 ,but these opinions can only be formed by pursuing the method of ,humboldt1 and bearing his elaborate production in mind4 ,by constant comparison of his statements with more recent publications from the ,mexican press on the same subjects1 not only greater accuracy in details will be reached1 along with later information1 but the advancement in knowledge and wealth will be made apparent4 ,it is thus a just estimate of ,mexico at present with ,mexico of the past can be formed2 and while many imperfections in the parts of the ,essay will be detected1 no one can fail to admire and appreciate its general excellence4 -------- ,one ,fold4 ,and there shall be one fold4 ,disciple4 ,one ,fold6 ,good ,lord1 how poor thou art1 ,to have but one for all6 ,methinks the rich with shame will smart ,to stand in common stall ,with ragged boors and work-grimed men2 ,and ladies fair1 with those who when ,they pray have dirty1 hands4 ,dost think the wise can be devout ,when1 close beside1 an ignorant lout ,with mouth wide-gaping stands8 #ccg ,i would thou wert a richer ,lord1 ,and could an hundred folds afford ,where each might find his place4 ,look round1 good ,lord1 and thou wilt see ,most men the same have thought with me1 ,and herd with whom they best agree ,in fashion1 creed1 and race4 ,master4 ,good child1 thou hast a merry thought6 ,but folds like mine cannot be bought1 ,nor made at fancy's will4 ,if any find my fold too small ',tis they who like no fold at all1 ,the same who heed no shepherd's call1 ,whom wolves will find and kill4 ,my fold alone is close and warm1 ,shielding its inmates from all harm-- ,its pastures rich and sweet4 ,hither1 with gentle hand1 ,i bring ,the peasant and the crownd king ,together at my feet4 ,here no man flings a look of scorn ,at him who may be baser born1 ,for all as brothers meet4 ,the wise speak kindly to the rude2 ,the lord would not his slave exclude2 ,proud dames their servants greet4 ,my fold doth equally embrace ,the men of every clime and race1 ,and here in peace they rest4 ,here each forgets his rank and state4 ,and only he is high and great ,who loveth me the best4 ,the rich1 the poor1 the bond1 the free1 ,the men of high and low degree1 ,my fold unites in one with me-- ,with me1 the ,shepherd1 called ,the ,good1 ,who rules a loving brotherhood4 ,therefore1 in that my fold is one1 ,believe me1 it is wisely done4 ------ #cch ,translated ,from ,the ,french ,of ,m4 ,vitet4 ,science ,and ,faith4 ,meditations ,on ,the ,essence ,of ,the ,christian ,religion1 ,by ,m4 ,guizot4 ,some time ago political life seemed to be the prominent occupation in ,france4 ,m4 ,guizot was then cautiously defending his opinions1 and was really wearing out his energy and his life in this work4 ,at that time1 we have heard it wished more than once1 not that the struggle should cease1 but that death might not surprise him with his mind occupied solely with these passing events4 ,he needed1 as a last favor and at the end of an ambitious career1 some years of quiet and retreat to meditate upon the future1 and to revive the faith of youth by the lessons of riper years4 ,he required this for himself1 for the interest of his soul4 ,nothing then foretold that he would soon be engaged in the arena of metaphysical and religious controversy4 ,the disputes about these questions seemed almost lulled to sleep4 ,not that doubt and incredulity had surrendered their arms2 they followed their accustomed work1 but without noise1 without parade1 and without apparent success4 ,this was a truce which had allowed ,christian convictions to become reanimated1 to increase1 and to gain ground4 ,the proof of this was seen in those gloomy days1 when the waves of popular opinion1 which threatened to destroy1 bent1 completely subdued and submissive and with an unlooked-for respect1 before sacred truths and the ministers of religion4 ,this was the natural result of that bitter struggle which had lasted for fifteen years4 ,the aggressors could not undertake two sieges at one time1 and so political power became the target against which all their efforts were directed4 ,it is not the same now4 ,power is protected by an armor which has disheartened its adversaries2 and the more surely it is guarded1 the more exposed and compromised are other questions1 which equal or even exceed it in importance4 ,the spirit of audacity and aggression compensates itself for the forced forbearance from politics1 imposed upon it by the political power4 ,it sees that in religious matters the ground is not so well protected2 it feels more at ease there and not nearly so hard pushed4 ,from this fact there arises a series of bold attacks of a new order1 which scandalize the believing1 and astonish the most indifferent1 when they think for a moment of the preceding calm4 ,it is no longer men or ministers1 it is not a form of government1 it is ,god himself whom they attack8 ,we do not ask that the government should place the least restriction on the rights of free thought1 even should it be to the advantage of the truths that we venerate the most4 ,we desire to state the fact1 and nothing more4 ,it may be that these attacks are not important enough to cause as much anxiety as they have done4 #cci ,they are passionate1 numerous1 and skilfully arranged2 but they cannot shake the edifice1 and will serve rather to strengthen it1 by summoning to its aid defenders who are more enlightened1 and protectors who are more vigilant4 ,still1 they are a great source of trouble4 ,the restlessness1 the distress1 and the vague fears that the agitation of political affairs seemed alone capable of producing1 now arise in the heart of the domestic circle and in the depths of the individual soul from these new discussions4 ,it is not personal interests that are now risked1 but souls that are in danger2 and if the crisis is apparently less violent and intense1 it is really graver and more menacing1 and no one can remain neutral in the struggle4 ,and so ,m4 ,guizot wishes to take a part1 and has entered the fray4 ,he is of the number who1 at certain times and upon certain subjects1 do not know how to be silent4 ,in politics he held back and he forbore4 ,he saw the events1 but he did not say what he thought of them4 ,his debt in politics is now amply paid2 all the more since he owed it to himself1 as well as to his cause1 to reestablish the real sense1 the true physiognomy of the things he did4 ,he had to explain clearly his views1 his intentions1 his acts2 to interpret them and to comment upon them1 we can almost say1 to finish them during his own life2 to give the true key to his future historians2 in a word1 to write his own memoirs4 ,this was his duty1 and he has acted rightly in not delaying it4 ,it was not less for other ends1 and in the design of a greater work1 that he wished for twenty years' solitude and repose at the end of his life4 ,his desire was heard4 ,the days of calm and retreat have come1 not1 perhaps1 at the time that he desired1 and still less under conditions that he would have chosen1 but for his glory they are such that he can well think them fruitful1 worthy1 valuable1 full of vigor and of ardor4 ,happy autumn6 when the recollections of the world and the echoes of political strife are only the recreation of a soul incessantly engaged with more serious problems4 ,it is in these heights1 in these serene regions1 while he is questioning himself on his destiny and on his faith1 that war has come to seek him2 not the personal war of former times1 but another kind of war1 less direct and more general1 yet perhaps more provoking4 ,he is not the man to refuse the contest4 ,under the weight of years that he bears so well1 stronger1 more resolute1 younger than ever1 he has entered the arena2 he will be militant until the end4 ,what will he do8 ,what is his plan8 ,what position will he take8 ,the volume which is before us is an answer to these questions4 ,it is only a first volume2 but it is complete in itself1 it is a work that one cannot study too closely1 nor diffuse too widely4 ,the developments1 the additions1 and the supplements which the three remaining volumes will soon add to the work1 will1 without doubt1 make it still more comprehensive and solid2 but as it is now1 we consider it1 without any commentary whatsoever1 to be a most effective reply to the attacks which have recently been levelled against ,christian doctrines1 or1 to speak more correctly1 against the essence of all religion4 ,before entering into the work1 let us say something of the manner in which it is written4 ,we are not going to speak of the author's style4 ,we would announce nothing new to the world by saying that ,m4 ,guizot1 when he has time and really tries1 can write as well as he speaks4 #cdj ,his pen for many years has followed a law of progress and of increasing excellence4 ,he has shown in these ,meditations a new skill1 perhaps higher than in his ,memoirs even1 in the art of clothing his ideas in excellent language2 learnedly put together1 yet without effort or stiffness1 true in its coloring1 sober in its effects1 always clear and never trivial1 always firm and often forcible4 ,something more novel and more characteristic appears in this book4 ,it is in reality a controversial work1 but a controversy which is absolutely new4 ,it is more than courteous1 it is an impersonal polemic4 ,the author has1 certainly1 always shown himself respectful to his opponents2 he has ever admitted that they could hold different opinions from his in good faith2 and even at the rostrum1 in the heat of contests1 his adversaries were not persons1 they were ideas2 but the people he disputed with were always1 without scruple1 called by their names4 ,here it is different2 there is not a single proper name1 the war is anonymous4 ,in changing the atmosphere--in passing1 if we can be allowed the expression1 from earth to heaven1 or1 at least1 from the bar to the pulpit1 from politics to the gospel1 he changes his method and takes a long step in advance4 ,he endeavors to leave persons entirely out of consideration1 for they only embarrass and embitter the questions4 ,he forgets1 or at least he does not tell us1 who his adversaries are2 he refutes them1 but he does not name them4 ,is not this discretion at once1 good manners and good taste8 ,it is also something more4 ,without doubt1 by speaking only of ideas and not of those who maintain them1 one loses a great means of effective action4 ,in abstract matters1 proper names referred to here and there are a very powerful resource--they arouse and excite attention1 they give interest and life to the argument2 but what is gained on one hand is frequently lost on another4 ,the use of proper names1 though it may have nothing to provoke irritation1 still always incurs the danger of causing the debate to degenerate into a personal dispute4 ,the questions are reduced to the capacity of those who sustain them4 ,better take a plainer and more decided path1 and keep persons completely out of view4 ,m4 ,guizot has done well4 ,in no part of his book is there reason to regret the vivacity and attraction of a more direct polemic2 whilst the urbanity and the omission of names1 without really changing or diminishing the questions1 spread a calm gravity throughout the work1 almost a perfume of tolerance1 which gains the reader's confidence and disposes him to allow himself to be convinced4 ,it is true that this kind of polemics can only be maintained when greatness of thought compensates for the lack of passion4 ,it is necessary to take wing1 mount above questions1 conquer all and enlighten all4 ,such is the character of these ,meditations4 ,the comprehensiveness of his views1 the greatness of his plan1 and the clearness of his style1 alike impress upon it the seal of true originality4 ,it is not a theology that ,m4 ,guizot has undertaken2 he has not written for doctors2 he discusses neither texts nor points of doctrine2 he does not attempt to solve scholastic difficulties2 still less does he wish to mingle in the discussion of incidental events1 to descend to the questions of to-day1 and to follow1 step by step1 the crisis which agitates the ,christian world at this time4 ,he has grappled with more weighty and more permanent questions4 #cda ,he wishes to show clearly the truth of ,christianity in its essence1 in its fundamental dogmas1 or rather in its simplicity and innate greatness1 without commentary1 interpretation1 or human work of any kind1 and consequently before all disunion1 schism1 or heresy4 ,he has tried to expose the pure idea of ,christianity1 so that he can be more able to demonstrate its divine character4 ,such is his intention4 ,what has he done to attain it8 ,the book itself must answer this question4 ,but in these few pages how can we speak of it8 ,how can we analyze a work when one is tempted to quote every paragraph8 ,and on the other hand to give many extracts from a book1 is only to mutilate it and give an incorrect idea of its real value4 ,let us only try1 then1 to say enough to inspire our readers with the more profitable desire of studying ,m4 ,guizot himself4 ,i4 ,the beginning and the foundation of these ,meditations is a well-known truth1 which the author establishes with absolute certainty1 and which at this time it is useful to keep in mind4 ,this truth is1 that the human race1 since its first existence and in every place where it has existed1 has been engaged in trying to solve certain questions which are1 so to speak1 personal to it4 ,these are questions1 of destiny1 of life rather than science1 questions it has invincibly tried to determine4 ,for example1 ,why is man in this world1 and why the world itself8 ,why does it exist8 ,whence do they come1 and where do they both tend8 ,who has made them8 ,have they an intelligent and free ,creator8 or are they merely a product of blind elements8 ,if they are created1 if we have a ,father1 why1 in giving us life1 has he made it so bitter and painful8 ,why is there sin8 ,why suffering and death8 ,is not the hope of a better life only the illusion of the unhappy2 and prayer1 that cry of the soul in anguish1 is it only a sterile noise1 a word thrown to the mocking wind8 ,these questions1 together with others which develop and complete them1 have excited the deepest interest of the human race since it first existed upon the earth1 and it alone is interested in them4 ,they speak only to it2 among all living creatures1 it alone can comprehend and is affected by them4 ,this painful yet grand privilege is the indisputable evidence of its terrestrial royalty2 it is at once its glory and its torment4 ,this series of questions1 or rather mysteries1 ,m4 ,guizot places at the beginning of his ,meditations1 under the title of ,natural ,problems4 ,man1 indeed1 possesses them by his very nature2 he does not create or invent them1 he merely submits to them4 ,we do not mean by this that for humanity in general these problems are not obscure and confused1 without a distinct form or outline1 surrounded with uncertainties and frequently rather seen than clearly apprehended4 ,this must be true of the great mass of mankind1 who live from hand to mouth1 who go and come and work1 absorbed in petty pleasures or occupied with dreary toil4 ,still we think that there is not a single one1 even among these apparently dull and heedless men1 in whatever way he may have lived and whatever hardships he has had to sustain1 who has not at least once in his life caught a glimpse of these formidable questions and felt an ardent wish to see them solved4 ,make as many distinctions as you please between races1 sexes1 ages1 and degrees of civilization2 divide the globe and its inhabitants by zones or climates2 you will no doubt discover more than one difference in the way in which these problems are presented to the soul2 you will find them more or less prominent1 and more or less attention paid to them2 but you will find a trace of them everywhere and among all people4 ,it is a law of instinct1 a general law for all times and places4 #cdb ,if such is our lot1 if these questions necessarily weigh upon minds1 these questions which are the burden of the soul1 as ,m4 ,guizot calls them1 are we not really compelled to try to solve them8 ,it is on our part neither vain curiosity1 nor capricious desire1 nor frivolous habit which leads us to attempt it4 ,it is a necessity1 quite as serious and as natural to us as the problems are themselves2 a need we feel in some way to have lifted from us the weight which oppresses4 ,we must have a reply at any cost2 who can give it to us8 ,faith or ,reason8 ,religion or ,philosophy8 ,at every moment we see in what a very limited manner reason1 science1 and all purely human resources suffice to satisfy us4 ,it can be said that1 from the very infancy of human society up to the present day1 it has been from the various religions1 thought to be divine and accepted as such by faith1 that humanity has asked these indispensable responses4 ,we readily see from this1 what a deep interest is attached to these natural problems4 ,who will presume to tell us that religion proceeds from an artificial and temporary want1 which men have gradually overcome1 if the problems to which it answers are inherent in the race and can only perish with it8 ,it is the constant work and watchword of every materialistic and pantheistic system to distort the character of these problems and make them simply accidental and individual1 the result of temperament or of circumstances4 ,farther than this1 they had not yet gone4 ,they did not dare to deny1 in the face of universal testimony1 the continued existence of the problems themselves4 ,they disguised their significance1 they did not aspire to destroy them4 ,now they take another step4 ,in order to get the advantage in answering1 they begin by suppressing the questions4 ,this is the characteristic feature1 the first step of a system which makes a great deal of noise in the world to-day1 although it only claims to reproduce efforts which have been already more than once defeated4 ,it has1 however1 this kind of novelty1 this advantage over its associates which1 like it1 have issued from pantheism1 that it is not vague4 ,it sets forth its opinions clearly and without equivocation1 and by this fact this school of philosophy has gained the title by which it is commonly known4 ,we need hardly say that it is to ,positivism that we are alluding4 ,this promises with the greatest seriousness1 if we will only lend it our attention1 to free humanity from these untoward problems which now torment it4 ,its remedy is extremely simple3 it simply says to the human race1 ,why do you seek to know whence you have come and what is your destiny8 ,you will never find out a word of this4 ,do then your real duty4 ,leave these vain fancies4 ,live1 become learned1 study the evolution of things1 that is to say1 secondary causes and their relations2 on this subject science has wonders to reveal to you2 but final causes and first causes1 our origin and our destiny1 the beginning and the end of the world1 these are all pure reveries1 words completely without meaning6 ,the perfection of man as well as of society consists in taking no notice of these things4 ,the mind becomes more enlightened1 the more it leaves in obscurity your pretended natural problems4 #cdc ,these problems are really a disease1 and the way to cure it is1 not to think of them at all4 ,not to think of them6 ,ingenuous proposition6 ,wonderful ignorance of the eternal laws of human nature6 ,our age1 say they1 inclines to these ideas3 but let us not be disturbed by this4 ,men will not be persuaded by speaking to them in such a clear way1 any more than ,don ,juan could overcome ,sganarelle by his discourses on two and two are four4 ,positivism not only attempts the impossible1 but it frankly acknowledges it4 ,let us suppose for a moment that by some miracle it should triumph2 that man1 in order to please this system1 should cease to pay any attention to the problems which beset him1 should renounce the idea of fathoming these questions1 and should despise every attempt at a religious or even a metaphysical solution1 every inspiration toward the ,infinite4 ,how long does any one believe this would continue8 ,we do not think that the human mind would consent to be thus mutilated and imprisoned for two days in succession4 ,were this system far more fascinating1 the human soul would still rise above the limit to which ,positivism would confine it1 and would say with a great poet3 ,je ne puis1 l'infini malgr moi me tourmente4 ,and so we see1 whatever may happen1 ,positivism is not destined to give us the solution of these natural problems4 ,after1 as before1 its appearance1 the mystery of our destiny claims the attention of the human race4 ,m4 ,guizot describes another attempt1 of an entirely different character4 ,it is apparently less bold1 for its aim is not to suppress inquiry1 but merely to elude any definite solution of these natural problems4 ,it cannot be properly called a system2 it is rather a state of the individual soul1 which not unfrequently is found among cultivated minds2 it is a tendency to substitute what is called religious sentiment for religion itself4 ,they do not deny the great mysteries of life1 but consider them as being very serious and extremely embarrassing4 ,but in the place of precise solutions and categorical replies1 which could be required of a system maintaining fixed and clearly defined dogmas1 they content themselves with frequent reveries and long contemplations4 ,this is1 say they1 the religion of enlightened intellects2 we care for no solutions1 for they only serve to agitate and annoy4 ,it offers a complete contrast to ,positivism4 ,that recommends us1 as a sort of moral hygiene1 never to think of invisible things2 but these enlightened minds would have us reflect much1 if not continually1 upon them1 but always with the proviso that we must come to no conclusion4 ,the human race will not be satisfied with these modes of interpreting its destiny4 ,it requires something more than the blind negations of the one1 or the vague aspirations of the other4 ,man is not merely an intellectual or an emotional being2 he is both united4 ,he requires real answers1 and not beautiful dreams2 he requires true replies1 which satisfy his intellect as well as his heart1 which point out the way he must take1 which sustain his courage1 which animate his hope and excite his love4 ,the ideal that he seeks is a system of facts1 of precepts1 and of dogmas1 which will correspond to the wants that he finds within himself4 ,let us search for it1 for it is the great question for us all4 ,as we have already said1 there are two sources from which we may hope to learn the truth1 one entirely human1 the other half divine4 ,does the first suffice8 ,let us see4 #cdd ,,ii4 ,if science can reply to the appeals of our souls1 if by its own power and light it can reveal to us the end of this life1 can make us see clearly the beginning and the end1 so much the better2 we will cling to science without asking for anything more4 ,we have this exact and sure guide completely within our control2 why should we seek adventitious aid and inexplicable revelations8 ,it is true that everybody cannot be learned1 but everybody believes in science4 ,however scanty her proof may be1 the most rebellious yield as soon as she has pronounced her decision4 ,there is no schism or heresy with her4 ,if sometimes the savans quarrel1 which they can do perhaps even better than other men1 they are not long in finding a peacemaker3 they take a retort1 a microscope1 or a pair of scales2 they weigh1 compare1 measure1 and analyze1 and the process is terminated3 until new facts are ascertained1 the decree is sovereign4 ,what an admirable perspective opens before humanity if these hidden questions1 which now puzzle and confuse1 will in the future be cleared up and accurately determined by the aid of science4 ,time and the law of progress give us an easy way of putting an end to our perplexities4 ,the fruit of divine knowledge1 the old forbidden fruit1 we can now pluck without fear1 and we can satiate ourselves without danger of a fall6 ,unfortunately1 all this is only a dream4 ,in the first place1 the authority of science is not always admitted4 ,it has more or less weight1 according to the subject it may treat4 ,in the investigations of natural things1 in physics1 and in mathematics1 its decisions are law4 ,but when it leaves the visible world1 when it turns to the soul1 interminable controversies arise4 ,its right to be called science is then disputed2 for it appears to be only conjectural1 and half the time its principal efforts consist in trying to demonstrate that it has the right to be believed4 ,this is exactly the kind of science with which we have to do4 ,the questions which disturb man are not the problems of algebra or chemistry2 they are the secrets of the invisible world4 ,we cannot expect unanswerable solutions of these doubts1 for science1 in the field of metaphysics1 has none such to give us4 ,can science gratify its fancy in these investigations with perfect liberty and without limit8 ,no1 an impassable barrier opposes and imprisons it in the invisible universe1 as well as in the breast of physical and material nature4 ,all science1 whatever it may be1 has its determined limit in the extent of finite things4 ,within this limit1 everything is in its power2 beyond it1 everything escapes it4 ,could it possibly be otherwise8 ,it is the product of our mind1 which is finite2 how then could human science be anything but the explication of the finite8 ,induction1 it is true1 transports us to the extreme frontier of this material world1 to the door of the infinite1 and the results of induction are with reason called scientific2 yet what does this wonderful faculty1 this great light of science1 really do8 ,nothing else than to put us face to face with the unknown mysteries which are completely closed to us4 ,it shows them in perspective1 it makes us see enough to persuade us that they really do exist1 but not enough to make known any truth precisely1 exactly1 practically1 or experimentally--in a word1 scientifically4 ,the invisible finite1 that is to say2 the human soul1 the dwelling of the human ,ego1 science is capable of explaining2 the invisible infinite1 the supreme1 creative spirit1 escapes it completely4 #cde ,but this is exactly what must be penetrated and thoroughly known1 if we expect to resolve the great problems which concern our destiny in a scientific manner4 ,it is then impossible1 it is more than an illusion--it is folly to hope for a solution of these questions from human science4 ,is this equivalent to saying that philosophy is powerless to speak to us about natural problems8 that it has nothing to say to us about our duties1 our hopes1 our destiny8 ,no1 certainly not4 ,it is qualified1 it has the right to treat of these questions2 to treat concerning them1 not to resolve them4 ,the most daring effort of spiritual philosophy can never span the abyss2 it can only make the borders more distinct4 ,noble task1 after all6 ,a sound philosophy1 which abstains from useless hypotheses1 which gives us that which it can give1 namely1 the clear proof that an invisible order does exist1 that realities are behind these mysterious problems1 that they justly disturb us1 that we are right in wishing to solve them2 all this1 certainly1 is not worthless knowledge nor a trifling success for the human race4 ,as soon as this philosophy flourishes in a place1 if it be only among a small number of generous spirits1 the perfume is spread abroad1 and1 little by little1 one after another1 the whole people feel its influence1 and society is reanimated1 elevated1 and purified4 ,and religion1 we do not fear to say it frankly1 is badly advised and wants prudence1 no less than justice1 when1 in the place of accepting the aid of this system and welcoming it as a natural auxiliary1 seeing in it a kind of vanguard1 which is to prepare minds and overcome prejudices1 she keeps it at a distance almost with jealousy1 combats it1 provokes it1 places it between two fires1 and loads it with the same blame and bitter reproaches as the blindest errors and the most perverse doctrines receive4 ,if these unfortunate attacks had not been made1 perhaps we should not see certain reprisals1 an excess of confidence1 and a forgetfulness of its proper limits that its friends do not now always avoid2 for if it is true that we should be just toward it1 it is no less true that it should be held in check4 ,m4 ,guizot1 as a real friend1 has frankly rendered it this service4 ,perhaps no one before him has traced with so sure a hand the limits of philosophical science4 ,he claims for it the sincerest respect1 and ably sustains its legitimate authority1 but clearly points out the limit that must not be passed4 ,more than one1 its adherents will complain3 ,you discourage us4 ,if you wish us to maintain the invisible truths against so many adversaries1 do not deprive us of our weapons2 do not tell us in advance how far we may go2 let us trust that some day this gate of the infinite1 at which we have struggled for so many centuries1 will at last be opened4 ,we could answer3 ,if you had only made some progress during these centuries1 we could hope for more in the future4 ,we would not have the right to say1 ',so far shall you go1 but no farther4' ,but where are the advances of metaphysics8 ,who has seen them8 ,possibly there has been a progress in appearance1 that there is now more clearness and more method4 ,in this sense1 the great minds of modern times have added something to the legacy of the philosophers of ancient history2 but the inheritance has ever remained the same4 ,who will presume to boast that he knows more of the infinite than did ,socrates1 ,aristotle1 and ,plato8 ,the natural sciences seem destined to increase4 #cdf ,feeble at first1 they gradually go from victory to victory1 until they have created an empire1 which is constantly increasing and always more indisputable4 ,metaphysical science1 on the contrary1 is great at its birth1 but soon becomes stationary2 it is evidently unable ever to reach the end it is ever seeking4 ,if anything is needed to prove this immobility of metaphysics1 it will be done by referring to the constant reappearance of four or five great systems1 which in a measure contain all the thousand systems that the human mind has ever1 or will ever invent4 ,from the very beginning of philosophy1 you see them2 at every great epoch1 they are born again2 always the same under apparent diversities1 always incomplete and partial1 half true and half false4 ,what do these repeated returns to the same attempts1 ending in the same result1 teach us1 unless the eternal inability to make a single advance8 ,evidently man has received from above1 once for all and from the earliest times1 the little that he knows of metaphysics2 and human work1 human science1 can add nothing to it4 ,if1 then1 you rely on science to pierce the mystery of these natural problems1 your hope is in vain4 ,you see what they can attain--nothing but vague notions1 fortified1 it is true1 by the firm conviction that these problems are not illusory1 that they rest upon a solid foundation1 on serious realities4 ,is this enough8 ,does this kind of satisfaction suffice for your soul8 ,what does it signify if a few minds1 moulded by philosophy1 comprehending everything in a superficial manner1 remain in these preliminaries1 contented with this half-light1 and need no other help to go through life1 even in times of the most severe trial8 ,we are willing to grant what they affirm of themselves1 but what can be concluded from this8 ,how many minds of this character can be found8 ,it is the rarest exception4 ,the immense majority of men1 the human race1 could not live under such a system2 it is too great a stranger to the philosophical spirit2 it has too limited a perception of the invisible4 ,all abstraction is ,hebrew for it4 ,and even supposing that the vague responses that come from science were to be presented in a more accessible form2 still the essential facts would be for most men without value or efficacy1 and a most inadequate help4 ,what is the human race going to do if1 on one side1 it cannot do without precise responses and dogmatic notions concerning the invisible infinite1 and if1 on the other1 science is the only means of attaining this end8 ,if it aspires to learn truths which transcend experience1 and yet takes experience for its only guide8 ,if1 in short1 it will only admit and accept the facts that it observes1 confirms1 and verifies itself8 ,how shall we escape from this inextricable difficulty8 ,to ,be ,continued4 ----------- #cdg ,cowper1 ,keble1 ,wordsworth2 ,or1 ,quietist ,poetry1 ,and ,its ,influence ,on ,society4 ,the ,spanish priest1 ,michael ,molinos1 who spent the last eleven years of his life in the prisons of the ,inquisition1 was destined to exert considerable influence over many of the most thoughtful and gifted spirits of his age4 ,it was in #afge1 and in the heart of ,rome1 that he published a ,spiritual ,guide1 in which he pointed out various methods calculated to raise the soul to a state of contemplation and quietude1 in which she makes no use of her faculties1 is unconcerned about all that may happen1 and even about the practice of good works and her own salvation2 reposing on the love of ,god1 and1 through his presence1 safe1 all-sufficient1 and entirely blest4 ,it can be easily imagined how acceptable the unction of ascetic eloquence might render such doctrine to minds mystically disposed4 ,multitudes in every age are ready to run after any quack of human happiness who is ingenious enough to hide his fallacies under a show of reason2 and ,molinos had this advantage over many charlatans1 that before deceiving others he had completely deceived himself4 ,he was honest1 therefore1 and certainly a great advance on the ,quietists of the #adth century1 called in ,greek ,hesuchasts1 who in their monastery on ,mount ,athos passed whole days in a state of immobility1 contemplating1 as their historians say1 their nose or their navel1 and by force of this contemplation finding divine light4 ,molinos found many partisans in ,italy and in ,france1 where his system was fervently embraced by the celebrated poetess and mystic1 ,madame ,guyon1 who conceived herself called from above to quit her home and travel1 inculcating everywhere the gospel of quietism4 ,fenelon1 whose sweetness and goodness flung a charm around every opinion he expressed1 adopted in part the theories of ,molinos1 and ,madame de ,maintenon herself is numbered among ,madame ,guyon's converts to the ,spaniard's novel and dreamy creed4 ,the inmates of ,port-,royal1 and the ,jansenists in general1 had1 as may be conjectured from the example of ,fenelon1 strong affinities for quietism2 and the sympathy entertained for their sufferings by ,english ,calvinists in the last century1 sufficiently accounts for the poet ,cowper becoming an admirer of ,madame ,guyon's writings1 and imitating in the ,olney ,hymns many of her fervent compositions4 ,without falling into the errors of the ,quietists1 ,cowper imbibed much of their spirit1 and transfused it into his verses very happily4 ,his poetry is essentially of a quietist description1 provided the term be understood in a favorable sense4 ,his mind was naturally tranquil1 and even during the melancholy of his later days1 his mental aberration partook of the original placidity of his character4 ,his rhythm is musical1 his language choice1 and the flow of his thoughts calm and tranquillizing4 ,he discards stormy and passionate themes from instinct rather than resolve4 ,he delighted in such subjects as ,truth1 ,hope1 ,charity1 ,retirement1 ,mutual ,forbearance1 and ,domestic happiness1 the only bliss ,of ,paradise that has survived the ,fall4 #cdh ,and he has clustered around them all the graces of poetry and charms of ,christian philosophy4 ,in that work in which his powers are exhibited to most advantage and at greatest length--,the ,task--he has touched on every topic that is most soothing1 and in verses1 many of which have become proverbs1 has expressed1 with unrivalled precision and ease1 thoughts and feelings common to every ,christian who is ,happy to rove among poetic flowers1 ,though poor in skill to rear them4 ,he is never obscure1 his emotions are never fictitious1 his humor is never forced1 nor his satire pointless4 ,hence he became popular in his generation1 and has lost no particle of the credit he once obtained4 ,brighter stars than he have in the present century come forth and dazzled the eyes of beholders1 by the intensity of their radiance and the boldness of their career2 but they have not thrown the gentle ,cowper into the shade4 ,he still shines above the horizon1 a star among the stars of mortal night1 of heavenly lustre1 unobtrusive1 steadfast1 and serene4 ,he still exerts a wholesome influence on society1 still refreshes us in the pauses of the battle of life1 still refines the taste1 fills the ear with melody1 elevates the soul1 and fosters in many those habits of reflection from which alone greatness and goodness spring4 ,the ,lines on the receipt of his ,mother's ,picture have rarely been surpassed in pathos4 ,there never was a poet more sententious or a moralist more truly poetic4 ,he was1 says one of his biographers1 an enthusiastic lover of nature1 and some of his descriptions of natural objects are such as ,wordsworth himself might be proud to own4 ,his poems1 observes ,hazlitt1 contain a number of pictures of domestic comfort and social refinement which can hardly be forgotten but with the language itself4 ,of all his encomiasts1 none has spoken of him with more fervor than ,elizabeth ,barrett1 afterward ,mrs4 ,browning1 and the following stanzas from her beautiful poem called ,cowper's ,grave deserve to be quoted in connection with the present subject3 ,o poets1 from a maniac's tongue ,was pour'd the deathless singing6 ,o ,christians1 to your cross of hope ,a hopeless hand was clinging6 ,o men1 this man in brotherhood ,your weary paths beguiling1 ,groan'd inly while he taught you peace1 ,and died while ye were smiling4 ,but has ,cowper had no successor in the peculiar path he so successfully trod8 ,was ,wordsworth not in one sense a ,quietist8 ,were the subjects he selected not as passionless as those of his master1 and treated with equal thoughtfulness and calm8 ,no doubt4 ,yet there was an important difference between them4 ,the quietude which ,cowper inculcated was to spring from religion2 while that which ,wordsworth promoted had its sources principally in contemplation of the beauties of ,nature1 and in obedience to her powerful influences4 ,each of these gifted minds has benefitted society1 but in different ways2 and it is well that1 in a poetry-loving age1 there should be some counter-balance to the morbid excitement and passionate intensity which the school of ,byron1 ,moore1 and ,shelley rendered so popular4 ,it is well that minor and gentler streams should irrigate the ground which has been desolated by their torrents of impetuous verse4 ,it is well that divine no less than human love should have its laurel-crowned minstrels1 and that principle and conscience should be proved no less poetical than passion and crime4 #cdi ,it is undoubtedly difficult for one who foregoes the passions to rise to a very high eminence as a poet1 since the violent emotions of our nature are well adapted to verse1 and full of dramatic effect4 ,the bard of ,rydal-,mount has1 nevertheless1 attained a lasting celebrity1 after patiently enduring years--long years--of neglect and ridicule4 ,he has carefully eschewed those stormy and harrowing subjects with which poets of the highest genius had1 before his time1 generally delighted to familiarize our minds4 ,he leaves such themes as ,prometheus bound by ,jupiter to a rock1 with a vulture preying perpetually on his entrails1 ,footnote #eh ,count ,ugolino devouring the flesh of his own offspring in the ,tower of ,famine1 ,footnote #ei and ,satan summoning his fallen peers to council in the fiery halls of ,pandemonium1 ,footnote #fj to such masters as ,a,eschylus the ,thunderous1 ,dante1 and ,milton1 and addresses himself to the softer and more homely feelings1 and to the calmer reason of men4 ,he is firmly persuaded that a truer and deeper source of poetic inspiration is to be found in the every-day sights and sounds of ,nature2 that the changing clouds and falling waters1 the forest-glades1 wet with noon-tide dew1 the rocky beach1 musical with foaming waves1 the sheep-walks on the barren hill-side1 and the primrose by the river's brim1 supply the imagination with its best aliment1 and effectually tend to calm1 elevate1 and hallow the mind4 ,this is his great1 his constant theme4 ,his longer and more philosophical poems ring ever-varying changes on it1 and may be called an ,epithalamium on the espousals of ,man and ,nature4 ,but for his devoting a long life to the poetic development of this fundamental idea1 we should never have seen our literature enriched by the productions of ,shelley and ,tennyson's genius4 ,in poetry1 as in all that concerns the human mind1 there is a law of progress4 ,the poetic harvest-home of one generation is the seed-time of that which is to follow4 ,thus ,dante speaks of two poets 7,guinicelli and ,daniello7 now forgotten1 or known only by name1 in terms of strong admiration1 as predecessors to whose writings he was considerably indebted4 ,footnote #fa ,the following lines are but a sample of a thousand passages in ,wordsworth which set forth the agency of natural scenery in the work of man's education and refinement4 ,it is taken from the ,prelude1 a long introduction to the ,excursion1 which lay upon the author's shelves in manuscript during forty-five years3 ,footnote #fb ,was it for this1 ,that one1 the fairest of all rivers1 loved ,to blend his murmurs with my nurse's song1 ,and from his alder-shades and rocky falls1 ,and1 from his fords and shallows1 sent a voice ,that flowed along my dreams8 ,for this didst thou1 ,o ,derwent6 winding among grassy holms ,where ,i was looking on1 a babe in arms4 ,make ceaseless music1 that composed my thoughts ,to more than infant softness1 giving me1 ,amid the fretful dwellings of mankind1 ,a foretaste1 a dim earnest of the calm ,that ,nature breathes among the hills and groves8 ,footnote #eh3 ,prometheus ,vinctus4 ,footnote #ei3 ,l' ,inferno1 c4 xxxiii4 ,footnote #fj3 ,paradise ,lost1 ,book i4 ,footnote #fa3 ,il ,purgatorio1 xi4 #ig2 xxvi4 #aae1 #adb1 #ib1 #ig4 ,footnote #fb3 #ahje to #ahej4 ,wordsworth's life was an exemplification of the doctrine he taught4 ,cheerfulness and peace marked his character at each stage of his eighty years' pilgrimage1 and1 towards the close of his career1 he had the satisfaction of perceiving that his works were slowly effecting the result to which he had destined them--making a lasting impression on the literature of his age1 and leading many a thoughtful spirit from artificial to natural enjoyments1 from the imagery of dreamland to that of daily life1 from bombast to simplicity1 from passion to feeling1 and from turmoil to repose4 ,o heavenly poet6 such thy verse appears1 ,so sweet1 so charming to my ravished ears1 ,as to the weary swain1 with cares opprest4 ,beneath the silvan shade1 refreshing rest2 ,as to the fev'rish traveller1 when first ,he finds a crystal stream to quench his thirst4 ,footnote #fc ,footnote #fc3 ,dryden's ,virgil1 ,pastoral v4 #cej ,nor was ,wordsworth's love of nature and her soothing influences dissociated from religious belief4 ,he was no materialist1 maintaining the eternal existence and self-government of the universe by fixed and exclusively natural laws4 ,he was no pantheist1 worshipping nature as an indivisible portion of the divine essence--a body of which ,god is actually the soul4 ,he believed in other laws besides those which regulate the movements of the celestial bodies1 and the gradual formation and destruction of the strata that compose the surface of our globe4 ,the view which he took of the material universe was such as became a ,christian1 and is luminously expressed by him in the following lines3 ,i have seen ,a curious child applying to his ear ,the convolutions of a smooth-lipped shell4 ,to which1 in silence hushed1 his very soul ,listened intensely1 and his countenance soon ,brightened with joy2 for murmurings from within ,were heard--sonorous cadences6 whereby1 ,to his belief1 the monitor expressed ,mysterious union with its native sea4 ,e'en such a shell the universe itself ,is to the ear of faith1 and doth impart ,authentic tidings of invisible things4 ,of ebb and flow1 and ever-during power1 ,and central peace subsisting at the heart ,of endless agitation4 ,it is impossible to read the ,prelude and the ,excursion without perceiving that ,wordsworth's passion for natural scenery was no fictitious emotion1 assumed for the purpose of appearing brimful of philosophy and sentiment1 and making an effective parade of moon and stars1 flowers and rivulets1 in verse4 ,no1 it was a deep and abiding principle--a feeling of which he could no more have divested himself than ,newton of his bent toward science1 or ,beethoven of his ear for music4 ,this unaffected enthusiasm enabled him to speak with the authority of a master1 and to instil into the minds of disciples the ideas that had taken so strongly possession of his own4 ,from the poetry of inanimate nature1 the transition was easy to that of simple feelings1 particularly in rustic life4 ,in the innocent plays of children of the cot1 and the sparkling dews on the cheeks of wild mountain maids1 ,wordsworth found themes for reflection deep enough to sink into the memory of men4 ,who has not felt the inimitable simplicity of the verses in which the child1 who often1 after sunset1 took her little porringer1 and ate her supper beside her brother's grave1 persisted in saying3 ,oh6 no1 sir1 we are seven1 and in ignoring the power of death to sever or to annihilate8 ,purity marks all which this chief of the ,lake ,school has composed2 for how could he soothe the spirit if1 like ,moore and ,byron1 he pandered to vicious inclinations8 ,hence his successor as ,poet-,laureate congratulates himself very properly on wearing ,the laurel greener from the brows ,of him that uttered nothing base4 ,a poet's best eulogy is that which comes from a poet4 ,having quoted that of ,tennyson1 therefore1 ,i shall add that which ,shelley also bestows on ,wordsworth3 ,thou wert as a lone star1 whose light did shine ,on some frail bark in winter's midnight roar3 ,thou hast like to a rock-built refuge stood ,above the blind and battling multitude ,in honored poverty thy voice did weave ,songs consecrate to truth and liberty4 ,the quietude commended by infidel poets is1 at the best1 that of despair4 ,it is rest without repose1 pathetic but not peaceful--a spurious and delusive calm1 difficult to attain for a moment1 and certain not to endure4 ,yet now despair itself is mild4 ,even as the winds and waters are2 ,i could lie down like a tired child4 ,and weep away the life of care ,which ,i have borne and yet must bear4 ,footnote #fd ,footnote #fd3 ,p4 ,b4 ,shelley4 #cea ,such is their language2 so writes one of the most distinguished of these apostles of affliction4 ,how different are the feelings of the ,christian quietist3 ,nor let the proud heart say4 ,in her self-torturing hour1 ,the travail pangs must have their way4 ,the aching brow must lower4 ,to us long since the glorious ,child is born1 ,our throes should be forgot1 or only seem ,like a sad vision told for joy at morn1 ,for joy that we have waked1 and found it but a dream4 ,footnote #fe ,footnote #fe3 ,keble4 ,the ,christian ,year4 ,third ,sunday after ,easter4 ,nor is this strain unreal4 ,the writer's life was the best guarantee for the sincerity of his sentiments1 and the response he has wakened in myriads of hearts is a seal set on the depth of his convictions4 ,he hymned not the happiness of the ,christian1 because the theme suited an ambitious lyre in that it is lofty1 or an ordinary one in that it is familiar1 but because he was persuaded that the poet's highest glory consists in calming the agitated spirit1 as ,david did when he played cunningly on the harp in the presence of ,saul2 and that1 while it is incumbent on us to make others happy1 our paramount duty is to be happy ourselves2 that if we are not so1 the fault is our own2 and that there are in the religion we profess1 in every crisis and condition1 ample provisions for that happiness to which all aspire4 ,o awful touch of ,god made man6 ,we have no lack if thou art there3 ,from thee our infant joys began1 ,by thee our wearier age we bear4 ,footnote #ff ,footnote #ff3 ,keble4 ,lyra ,innocentium4 ,this is the key-note of his thoughtful rhymes4 ,keble's reputation as a poet was established long before the leading periodicals of the land called attention to the beauty of his compositions4 ,their publication in the first instance is said to have been owing to his seeing several of them in print without being able to conjecture by what means they had found their way to public light4 ,he soon learned1 however1 that some of his manuscripts1 which he had lent to a lady1 had been dropped in the street and lost4 ,he therefore resolved on completing and publishing ,the ,christian ,year4 ,it was not till nearly twenty years after its first appearance that it received in the ,quarterly ,review that meed of applause to which it was justly entitled4 ,the article which there called attention to its extraordinary merits was written1 we believe2 by ,mr4 ,gladstone1 whom neither the bustle of parliamentary life1 nor the aridity of financial study1 renders insensible to the charms of those muses who are generally supposed to haunt woods and caves1 and to smile only on the recluse4 ,to us ,catholics the name of ,keble will always be remembered with interest1 because he shared with ,drs4 ,newman and ,pusey the leadership of that great party in the ,anglican ,church which has given so many children to the true church1 and has spread through ,england and through the world many ,catholic doctrines and practices long dormant or forgotten4 ,we think of him with affection1 because he carried on to the end the work of soothing the troubled spirit by means of religious verse2 because he was through life the friend of that distinguished convert to whose genius and writings we owe so much2 and because he has1 both in prose and verse1 laid down1 more clearly and explicitly than any other ,protestant writer1 the grounds of our veneration of the blessed ,mother of ,god ,incarnate4,footnote #fg ,footnote #fg3 ,see ,lyra ,innocentium1 ,church ,rites2 and ,the ,month1 ,may1 #ahff1 ,john ,keble4 #ceb ,he did not1 indeed1 follow out his convictions to their legitimate results2 he fancied that he responded to them sufficiently by remaining where he was4 ,but his poems will ever remain a witness against the church in which they were composed1 because it can never reduce to practice the doctrines he taught in reference to the holy eucharist1 the confessional1 and the communion of saints4 ,meanwhile they are silently imbuing the minds of ,anglican readers with feelings and arguments favorable to the divine system of the ,catholic ,church4 ,though his ,christian ,year is adapted to the services of the ,church of ,england1 and though its chief purpose1 as stated in the preface1 is to exhibit the soothing tendency of the ,prayer-,book1 the author's sympathies are with the ,book of ,common ,prayer in its ,catholic1 and not in its ,protestant aspects4 ,during more than forty years it has been chiselling the ,anglican mind into a more orthodox shape4 ,it moulds the chaotic elements of faith into substance1 form1 and life4 ,it supplies the lost sense of ,scriptures1 and lays the foundation of towers and bulwarks it cannot build4 ,it opens bright vistas of realized truth1 and points to glorious summits from the foot of the hill4 ,it is not inspired with genius of the highest order2 the range it takes is more circumscribed in some respects than that of ,cowper2 it seldom reaches the sublime1 and is always pleasing rather than original4 ,but in spite of these drawbacks1 it has wound itself more and more into public esteem4 ,no poetry is read more habitually by members of the ,established ,church4 ,the number of those is very large who take down ,the ,christian ,year from their bookshelves every ,sunday and festival4 ,it rings every change on the theme ,resignation1 and presents it in all its truest and most beautiful lights4 ,it has extracted from the sacred writings the very marrow of the text1 has developed in a thousand ways the typical and mystic import of ,scripture histories1 expressed from them abundantly the wine and oil of consolation1 and conveyed it to us in poetic ducts of no mean kind4 ,as for some dear familiar strain ,untired we ask1 and ask again4 ,ever1 in its melodious store4 ,finding a spell unheard before2 ,footnote #fh so1 many ,anglicans of the devouter sort recur to ,keble's poems year after year1 and end the perusal only with death4 ,other poets charm and instruct the mind1 he forms it2 and while others are but read1 he is learnt4 ,even the conviction which he cherished of the heavenly mission of the church of ,queen ,elizabeth1 though misplaced1 added to the sweetness and soothing character of his verses4 ,but it is deserving of note that his latter volume1 ,lyra ,innocentium1 which contains more lamentation than he uttered before over the shortcomings of his own communion1 and more intense aspirations after ,catholic dogma and practice1 evinces at the same time less inward quietude in the writer1 and imparts less of it to the reader4 ,one poem1 indeed1 called ,mother out of ,sight1 on the absence of the holy ,mother of ,god from the ,english mind1 invoking her1 as it did1 in a strain of glorious verse1 was omitted1 lest it should perplex and disquiet those who were unused to such invocations1 and believed them to be forbidden by the ,anglican ,church4 ,footnote #fh3 ,christian ,year1 ,morning4 ,to cite passages from ,keble's poems illustrative of their soothing tendency1 would be to copy almost all he wrote4 ,they fell like the dew of ,hermon1 and were a sign and symbol of the man himself4 #cec ,his bright1 fresh1 joyous1 and affectionate nature1 says one who knew him well1 was an ever-flowing spring1 always at play1 always shedding a gentle1 imperceptible1 and recreating dew upon those who came within its reach4 ,there was a ,christian poetry about him1 a natural gift1 elevated and transformed by his consistent piety and religious earnestness1 which gilded the commonest things and the most ordinary actions1 and cast the radiance of an unearthly sunshine all around him4 ,footnote #fi ,what wonder that the illustrious author of the ,apologia used to look at him with awe when walking in the ,high ,street at ,oxford8 ,what wonder that1 when elected a ,fellow of ,oriel1 and for the first time taken by the hand by the ,provost and all the ,fellows1 he bore it till ,keble took his hand1 and then1 as he said1 felt so abashed and unworthy of the honor done him1 that he seemed desirous of quite sinking into the ground8 ,footnote #gj ,yet the greater was blessed of the less4 ,for depth and subtlety of reasoning1 for power and pathos in prose composition4 ,dr4 ,newman has surpassed beyond all measure everything which ,keble did or could accomplish4 ,in poetry1 the world in general has awarded the palm to ,keble1 and the world1 we believe1 is right4 ,in the art1 at least1 of calming the ruffled spirit1 the poet of ,the ,christian ,year has outdone his beloved rival and friend4 ,footnote #fi3 ,the ,month1 vol4 iv4 p4 #adb4 ,footnote #gj3 ,j4 ,h4 ,newman's ,apologia1 p4 #gf4 ,the ,lyra ,apostolica brought ,keble and ,newman together as athletes in the arena of poetry2 and that series of poems affords a good opportunity of comparing their several merits1 to those who have the key to the writers' names4 ,they appeared in the ,british ,magazine1 signed only with ,greek characters representing the following writers3 ,alpha ,j4 ,w4 ,bowden4 ,beta ,r4 ,h4 ,froude4 ,gamma ,john ,keble4 ,delta ,j4 ,h4 ,newman4 ,epsilon ,r4 ,j4 ,wilberforce2 ,zeta ,isaac ,williams4 ,by far the greater number of the pieces were written by ,keble and ,newman1 and almost all by the latter have reappeared this year in a series1 which supplies a poetic commentary on the author's life4 ,these ,verses on ,various ,occasions range over a period of forty-six years1 and having each of them the date and the place where composed attached to it1 the interest of the whole is thereby greatly increased4 ,among the poems is that remarkable one1 ,the ,dream of ,gerontius1 which was published in ,the ,catholic ,world in #ahfe4 ,but neither ,dr4 ,newman's verses thus collected1 nor the series entitled ,lyra ,apostolica in general1 are marked by that repose which is the prevailing feature of ,the ,christian ,year4 ,the motto chosen by ,froude for the ,lyra was truly combative1 and shows the feeling both of ,newman and himself1 then together at ,rome4 ,it was taken from the prayer of ,achilles on returning to the battle1 and it implores ,heaven to make his enemies know the difference1 now that his respite from fighting is over4 ,greek text ,footnote #ga ,footnote #ga3 ,iliad1 ,sigma #abe4 ,apologia1 p4 #ih4 ,the scars of warfare are visible even in ,newman's hymns4 ,he has evidently passed through many an inward conflict1 and fought with1 many an external foe4 ,he has vacated ground he once occupied1 and he defends principles which he once assailed4 ,he pierces many heights1 and depths1 and has to be always on his guard against his lively imagination4 #ced ,he is lucid as any star1 but not always as serene4 ,he flashes now and then like a meteor2 he hints and suggests in nebulous light4 ,he is a pioneer of thought2 he shoots beyond his comrades2 he walks with ,death and ,morning on the ,silver ,horns4 ,he sees1 where others grope2 he is at home1 where others feel confused and out of place4 ,he is1 like ,ballanche1 ,footnote #gb more satisfied of the truth of the unseen than of the visible world4 ,mysteries are his solemn pastime4 ,he strikes his harp in ,limbo1 as ,spaniards weave a dance in church before the ,holy ,sacrament4 ,his dreams are ,dantesque2 he is half a seer4 ,the veil of death is rent before him1 and his soul1 by anticipation1 launches into the abyss4 ,the chains of the body are dropped1 and angels and demons come round him to console and to harass his solitary spirit in its transition state4 ,his condition there1 like his poetry1 and like himself on earth and in the body1 is one of mingled quietude and disturbance2 ,and the deep rest1 so soothing and so sweet1 ,had something1 too1 of sternness and of pain4 ,footnote #gc ,footnote #gb3 ,dublin ,review1 ,july1 #ahfe1 p4 #aj4 ,madame ,rcamier4 ,footnote #gc3 ,dream of ,gerontius1 #b4 ,the happy1 suffering soul 7for it is safe1 consumed1 yet quickened1 by the glance of ,god17 sings in ,purgatory in a strain identical with that to which it was used in this mortal life3 ,take me away1 and in the lowest deep ,there let me be1 ,and there in hope the lone night-watches keep1 ,told out for me4 ,there motionless and happy in my pain1 ,lone1 not forlorn-- ,there will ,i sing my sad perpetual strain ,until the morn2 ,there will ,i sing and soothe my stricken breast1 ,which ne'er can cease ,to throb and pine and languish1 till possest ,of its sole peace4 ,footnote #gd ,footnote #gd3 ,ibid4 #f4 ,there is1 indeed1 one of ,dr4 ,newman's poems1 and that one the most popular and beautiful he has ever composed1 which is singularly pathetic and peaceful4 ,yet even here darker shades are not wanting4 ,the angel faces are lost awhile1 and the pride and self-will of former years recur to the memory like spectres4 ,it was in ,june1 #ahcc1 when becalmed in the ,straits of ,bonifacio in an orange-boat ,footnote #ge that ,dr4 ,newman wrote ,lead1 ,kindly ,light4 ,the ,pall ,mall ,gazette--no mean critic--has said of it recently1 ,footnote #gf ,it appears to us one of the most perfect poems of the kind in the language4 ,footnote #ge3 ,apologia1 p4 #ii4 ,footnote #gf3 ,jan4 #bc1 #ahfh ,lead1 kindly ,light1 amid th' encircling gloom4 ,lead thou me on6 ,the night is dark1 and ,i am far from home-- ,lead thou me on6 ,keep thou my feet3 ,i do not ask to see ,the distant scene--one step enough for me4 ,i was not ever thus1 nor prayed that thou ,would'st lead me on4 ,i loved to choose and see my path2 but now ,lead thou me on6 ,i loved the garish day1 and1 spite of fears4 ,pride ruled my will3 remember not past years4 ,so long thy power hath blest me1 sure it still ,will lead me on ,o'er moor and fen1 o'er crag and torrent1 till ,the night is gone2 ,and with the morn those angel faces smile ,which ,i have loved long since1 and lost awhile4 ,fond as ,dr4 ,newman is of modern poetry he has not imitated it4 ,his style is original--a rare mixture of strength1 sincerity1 and sweetness1 moulded rather after the choruses of ,greek dramas1 than the rich creations of ,keats1 ,shelley1 ,tennyson1 and ,longfellow4 ,hence his poems bear a nearer resemblance to ,milton's ,samson ,agonistes than to any other ,english production4 ,his lyrical pieces1 again1 often remind us of ,george ,herbert1 and of ,shenstone1 ,waller1 and ,cowley4 ,they have a clearness of expression and bright fluency1 which makes you love the writer even when you cannot greatly admire his verse4 ,one of the best specimens of his poetic faculty in the ,verses on ,various ,occasions is a poem called ,consolations in ,bereavement1 written in #ahbh4 #cee ,it turns on one idea--the rapidity of death's work in the case of the dear sister whom he mourns4 ,he solaces himself with the reflection that the deed was quickly done1 and thus derives comfort from a thought which is in most cases afflictive4 ,perhaps ,byron's lines were unconsciously running in his head3 ,i know not if ,i could have borne ,to see thy beauties fade3 444444 ,thy day without a cloud hath past1 ,and thou wert lovely to the last2 ,extinguished1 not decayed2 ,as stars that shoot along the sky ,shine brightest as they fall from high4 ,dr4 ,newman's poetry did not properly fall within the scope of this article1 but we have been led to speak of it because he was ,keble's colleague in the ,lyra ,apostolica1 and because the verses of the surviving poet have just appeared in ,england in a new form1 and have attracted general attention and been made the subject of admiring and affectionate criticism not merely by ,catholic periodicals1 but by non-,catholic reviews and newspapers of every political and religious shade4 ,indeed1 the praise bestowed on them by such journalists has exceeded that of our own critics1 because it has1 generally speaking1 been more discriminating and uttered by higher authorities in the literary world4 ,let us then rejoice that ,english literature includes three poets at least--,cowper1 ,keble1 and ,wordsworth--who are in a good sense quietists1 and the tenor of whose writings1 from first to last1 is tranquillizing4 ,they may not1 perhaps1 be the authors who will afford us most pleasure in the tumultuous season of youthful enjoyment2 but as years advance1 and the trials of life present themselves1 one by one1 in all their painful reality2 as reason matures and reflection ripens2 as the probationary character of our mortal existence becomes more and more clear to our apprehension2 as the discovery of much that is formal and hollow in society enamors us of rural retreats and sylvan solitudes2 as the inexhaustible treasures of beauty and magnificence in the material universe unfold before our gaze2 as the things unseen triumph over visible objects in our thoughts and affections1 we shall find in such poetry as we have attempted to describe1 more that is congenial and charming1 and shall cherish with fonder remembrance the names of ,cowper1 the mellifluous exponent of ,christian ethics and delights2 of ,keble1 the bard of ,biblical lore2 and of ,wordsworth1 the child and poet of nature4 ,like skilful tuners of roughly-used instruments1 they will reduce to sweetness our spirits' harsher and discordant tones1 and fit us to take our part in the everlasting harmonies of the boundless universe4 ,they will each make poetry1 in our view1 the handmaid of science and revelation1 accepting with rapture the vast1 amazing discoveries of the one1 and ever seeking to harmonize them with the momentous and soul-subduing disclosures of the other4 ,they will impart to mute matter the voice and power of a moral teacher1 imbue inanimate things 7to our imagination7 with life and feeling1 inspire us with a glorious sympathy with suns that set and rise1 with flowers that bloom and stars that glow1 with the birdling warbling on her bough1 and the ocean bellowing in his caves2 and will lead us by nature's golden steps to the footstool of the ,creator's throne2 for1 in the eyes of such poets1 earth is crammed with heaven1 and every common bush on fire with ,god4 ---------- #cef ,the ,early ,irish ,church4 ,footnote #gg ,footnote #gg3 ,essays on the ,origin1 ,doctrines1 and ,discipline of the ,early ,irish ,church4 ,by the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,moran1 ,vice-,rector of the ,irish ,college1 ,rome4 ,dublin1 #ahfd4 ,pp4 vii41 #ccg4 ,for sale by the ,catholic ,publication ,society1 ,new ,york4 ,the early ,irish ,church is now the subject of a close scrutiny and deep study1 that bids fair to shed upon it all the light that can be poured upon the subject by such written material as war1 oppression1 persecution1 and penal laws have been insufficient to destroy4 ,there are two schools1 and their emulating labors will allow little to escape1 both being well versed in ecclesiastical history1 the ,irish language1 annals1 and literature4 ,it is needless to say that there are a ,catholic and a ,protestant school--the latter of comparatively recent origin4 ,the ,anglican ,church in ,ireland1 studying what it had long despised1 now seeks to hold forth to the world that it is the real successor and representative of the early ,irish ,church2 while the ,catholic ,church in ,ireland is simply a papal continuation of the foreign church1 forced on ,ireland by ,henry ,,ii4 and ,pope ,adrian ,,iv41 and their respective successors4 ,unfortunately1 however1 the memory of man records not the fact that1 in the sixteenth century and later1 the ,thirty-nine ,articles and ,book of ,common ,prayer were presented to the ,irish as being the creed and liturgy of its early saints4 ,those who burnt the crosier of ,patrick broke with the early ,irish ,church as effectually as they did with the romanized ,irish ,church of later days4 ,at the beginning of this century1 ,ledwich1 following in the wake of the wild theories of ,conyers ,middleton1 denied entirely the existence of ,st4 ,patrick1 and his theory met with no little favor among those opposed to the church4 ,now his existence is admitted1 his life studied and written1 and efforts made1 with no little skill1 industry1 and learning1 to show that the ,roman ,catholic ,church has no claim to ,st4 ,patrick or the church which he founded2 a church so full of life1 that its missionaries spread to other lands1 and went forth with papal sanction to plant catholicity or revive fervor on the continent4 ,it is to this curious phase of controversy that we are indebted for the volume of ,essays which are here contributed by ,doctor ,moran1 and which evince his learning and research1 as well as his fitness for close historical argument4 ,that there should be much material for a discussion as to so early a period as the fifth century may surprise many1 especially those who have always been taught to clear with a bound some ten or more centuries prior to the sixteenth4 ,and it must be admitted that it is indeed surprising1 when we consider the wholesale destruction of ,irish manuscripts by the ,english in ,ireland from the time of ,henry down to the present century4 ,from the period of the invasion to the ,reformation1 though invaders and invaded were alike ,catholic1 the ,english treated the ,irish with such contempt that only five families or bloods were recognized as human1 and even monasteries were closed to men of ,irish race4 ,the literature of the proscribed was of course slighted and despised4 #ceg ,from the ,reformation the literary remains of earlier days were proscribed and destroyed1 not only as ,irish but as popish4 ,in this almost universal destruction1 the ecclesiastical books1 missals1 sacramentaries1 breviaries1 penitentials1 the canons of councils1 doctrinal books1 many historical and biographical treatises perished4 ,the ,irish people and their church hold by tradition to their predecessors1 and claim to be direct successors of the church and converts of ,st4 ,patrick4 ,nor can the ,anglican party which destroyed so much of ,irish literature now base any argument on the silence of manuscript authority or draw any inference in their favor from the absence of proofs1 for whose disappearance they are themselves accountable4 ,the uninterrupted adherence of the ,irish nation to the ,roman ,church gives it the force of prescription1 and it will hold good against all but the most direct and positive evidence4 ,no mere inferences can invalidate her claim4 ,the documents regarding the early ,irish ,church begin with the confession of ,saint ,patrick and his letter to ,coroticus1 a piratical ,british chief1 published by ,ware in #afef1 from four manuscripts1 and by the ,bollandists from a manuscript in the ,abbey of ,saint ,vaast4 ,the canons ascribed to the saint were published by the same1 as well as by ,spelman and ,usher4 ,of the lives of the saint1 the least valuable of all is that by ,jocelin1 an ,english monk1 who wrote soon after the conquest4 ,this is given in the ,bollandists and in ,messingham's ,florilegium4 ,earlier and better lives1 four in number1 were collected and published by ,colgan in his ,acta ,triadis ,thaumaturgae1 a work of which we doubt the existence of a copy on this side of the ,atlantic4 ,among these earlier lives1 one by ,probus is of much value4 ,it was printed1 strangely enough1 among the works of ,venerable ,bede1 in the ,basil edition of that father issued in #aefc1 and1 apparently1 the whole work was taken from manuscripts preserved at the ,irish convent at ,bobbio4 ,these are the more important material for the life of the apostle of ,ireland1 together with unpublished matter in some very ancient ,irish manuscripts1 codices known for centuries1 such as the ,book of ,armagh1 a manuscript of the eighth or ninth century1 which contains a life of ,saint ,patrick by ,muirchu-,maccu-,mactheni2 the ,leabhar ,breac1 considered the most valuable ,irish manuscript on ecclesiastical matters2 the ,tripartite ,life in the ,british ,museum1 the early national annals1 etc4 ,as to the antiquity and value of these ancient codices ,westwood in his ,palaeographia ,sacra ,pictoria 7,london1 #ahdc-e7 may be consulted4 ,for the liturgy of the early ,irish ,church1 we have a missal preserved at ,stowe1 in ,england1 and ascribed to the sixth century1 but which unfortunately has never been fully and completely published2 a missal preserved in the monastery founded by ,saint ,columbanus at ,bobbio1 and printed by ,mabillon in his ,iter ,italicum2 the ,antiphonarium ,benchorense2 the ,exposition of the ,ceremonies of the ,mass preserved in the ,leabhar ,breac and a treatise on the ,mass ,vestments in the same volume1 as well as the ,liber ,hymnorum1 and various separate hymns4 ,the lives of the ,irish saints1 many of which have been published by ,colgan1 ,messingham1 the ,bollandists1 as well as the meagre ,irish secular annals1 throw much light on the social and religious life of the ancient ,irish4 #ceh ,such is1 in brief1 the documentary array to be appealed to in the controversy1 as to the origin and character of the ,irish ,church4 ,and surely what has come down in fragments shows a church which the ,anglican ,church could not but condemn4 ,the warmest advocate of the identity of the ,anglican ,church in ,ireland with the early ,irish ,church1 would find the old ,irish mass1 as preserved in the ,stowe or the ,bobbio missal1 a very objectionable worship2 the monks and nuns unsuited to our age2 and the prayers1 penitentiary1 and belief in miraculous powers in the church utterly inconsistent with ,protestant ideas2 while the ,catholic ,irish would find the mass1 if said in one of their churches1 so like that they daily hear1 that it would excite scarce a word of comment2 monks and nuns would certainly excite less2 and the prayers of that early day still circulate with the commendation of the actual head of the ,catholic ,church1 the successor of ,celestine4 ,the position having been abandoned that ,st4 ,patrick never existed1 national pride1 which from the days of ,jocelin has bent its energies to prove that he was a ,briton of the island of ,great ,britain and born in ,scotland1 now would prove that he was a genuine ,englishman in his total renunciation of papal authority4 ,in the recent life of ,st4 ,patrick by ,dr4 ,todd1 this1 though treated lightly as a matter of slight import1 is really the marrow of the book4 ,the mission of ,st4 ,patrick has been uniformly attributed to ,pope ,st4 ,celestine1 who held the chair of ,peter from #dbb to #dcb2 and is intimately connected with a previous one of the deacon of ,celestine1 ,st4 ,palladius1 who made an unsuccessful attempt to christianize ,ireland2 and the mission of ,st4 ,palladius grew out1 it would seem1 of a deputation of ,gallic bishops to ,britain to check the progress of ,pelagianism4 ,todd endeavors ingeniously to break up these connected facts4 ,he seeks to show that ,palladius was a deacon not of ,st4 ,celestine1 but of ,st4 ,germain1 ,bishop of ,auxerre2 that the history of ,palladius and ,patrick have been confounded2 and that ,patrick was not sent to ,ireland till #ddj1 and consequently could not have been sent by ,st4 ,celestine4 ,this would1 to some extent1 deliver the early ,irish ,church from the terrible responsibility of having received its origin from ,rome4 ,dr4 ,moran's work is made up of three essays3 ,on the ,origin of the ,irish ,church and its ,connection with ,rome2 ,on the teaching of the ,irish ,church concerning the ,blessed ,eucharist2 and1 on ,devotion to the ,blessed ,virgin in the ,ancient ,church of ,ireland4 ,in the first of these essays he meets the arguments of the ,senior ,fellow of ,trinity by a careful and close examination1 showing that both ,palladius and ,patrick owed their mission to ,rome and to ,st4 ,celestine1 and settles conclusively the date of ,st4 ,patrick's landing in ,ireland4 ,he discusses at length the mission of ,palladius2 sketches the life of ,st4 ,patrick1 and his connection with ,st4 ,germain2 and states briefly the proofs of his ,roman mission4 ,he then refutes the array of modern theories in regard to the great apostle from ,ledwich to ,todd1 and accumulates evidence to show how the early ,irish ,church regarded the holy see4 ,the period when ,saint ,palladius and ,saint ,patrick successively proceeded to ,ireland1 was not one of obscurity4 ,the church was full of vitality1 and met ,nestorius in the east1 ,pelagius in the west1 the ,manichees in ,africa1 with the power and might of a divine institution4 #cei ,it was the day of ,st4 ,augustine1 ,st4 ,germain1 of ,vincent of ,lerins1 of ,cassian1 ,chrysostom1 ,st4 ,gregory of ,nyssa1 ,st4 ,jerome4 ,st4 ,basil1 ,st4 ,ambrose1 ,st4 ,athanasius1 even1 and ,st4 ,anthony were still fresh in the memory of those who had heard the words of life from their lips1 or gazed on them in reverence4 ,the ,council of ,ephesus was actually in session defining the honor due to the ,mother of ,god4 ,the canon of ,holy ,scripture had been settled thirty-five years before1 in the ,council of ,carthage1 and ,st4 ,jerome's version was gradually supplanting the ,vetus ,itala in the hands of the faithful4 ,the monastic life1 a vigorous tree planted at ,rome by ,athanasius1 had already spread over the ,latin ,church1 in its multiform activity and zeal4 ,it grew under the mighty hand of ,augustine1 was nurtured by that ,st4 ,martin of ,tours1 whose reputation was so widespread4 ,it gave a ,lerins1 with its school of bishops1 writers1 and saints2 the abbey of ,st4 ,victor at ,marseilles1 where ,cassian prayed and wrote4 ,but if this was a great age of the church1 the ,roman empire showed no such signs of vitality4 ,it was tottering to its fall4 ,along its whole western territory1 stretching from ,italy to ,caledonia1 the pagan barbarians of ,germany were pressing with relentless power1 threatening destruction to ,roman1 romanized ,briton1 and romanized ,gaul--for all of whom the ,german had but one name1 still preserved by the race1 the ,anglo-,saxon terming the descendants of the ,britons ,welsh1 as the ,fleming does the ,french or the south of ,germany the ,italian4 ,a little later this ,german race1 last in ,europe to embrace the faith and first to revolt from it1 overran ,britain1 establishing the ,saxon monarchy1 making ,gaul the land of ,franks1 and giving ,spain and ,italy ,gothic sovereigns4 ,before this torrent burst1 the church in ,italy1 ,britain1 and ,gaul was closely united4 ,heresies appeared and gained ground in ,britain4 ,to meet this ,pelagian enemy1 the insular bishops appealed for aid to ,gaul4 ,the bishops of that country in council1 selected ,st4 ,germain and ,st4 ,lupus to go to ,britain2 and ,prosper1 in his chronicle1 assures us that1 through the instrumentality of ,palladius the deacon1 ,pope ,celestine in #dbf sent ,germain in his own stead to root out heresy there1 and direct the ,britons to the ,catholic faith4 ,but this was not the only work4 ,to recover what was straying was well2 but a new island was yet to be conquered to the faith1 one in which the ,roman eagle had never flashed1 but which seems to the eye of faith a field white for the reaper4 ,attached to ,germain by ties of which there is no doubt1 was a man of ,roman-,british race1 whose whole associations were with the church of ,gaul1 who had been a slave for several years in ,ireland1 and yearned to return to it as a herald of the ,gospel4 ,he is stated1 in the earliest lives1 to have been recommended by ,saint ,germain to ,pope ,celestine1 as one fitted for such a work4 ,the pope1 however1 either to give greater dignity to the new mission1 or to leave no doubt of the ,roman character of the work1 chose in #dca ,palladius1 deacon of the ,roman ,church1 already mentioned1 to be the first apostle to the ,scots1 as the ,irish were then termed4 ,saint ,germain and ,saint ,lupus went to ,britain in #dbi1 and labored with zeal and success there during that year and the next4 ,the ancient ,irish writer1 who wrote a commentary on a hymn in honor of ,saint ,patrick by ,st4 ,fiacc1 and who is cited by ,irish scholars as scholiast on ,saint ,fiacc's hymn1 states that ,saint ,patrick accompanied the ,gallic bishops to ,britain4 #cfj ,in itself it would be probable4 ,the intimate relations between the ,bishop of ,auxerre and the ,british priest1 would naturally lead that prelate to choose him as a companion4 ,that ,palladius1 who had been the pope's agent in the matter1 accompanied them1 also1 would seem natural4 ,his selection for the ,irish mission after ,saint ,germain's return in #dcj1 would follow as naturally4 ,he was made bishop1 and sent to the ,scots 7,irish7 in #dca2 and that ,saint ,patrick was in some manner appointed by the pope to the same work1 or connected with the mission with a degree of authority1 is evident from the fact that1 when ,saint ,palladius1 after an ineffectual attempt to establish a mission in ,wicklow1 was driven from the country1 and died1 as some say1 in ,scotland1 his ,roman companions at once hastened to ,saint ,patrick1 to notify him as one who possessed some jurisdiction in the matter2 and all accounts agree that on this intelligence1 ,saint ,patrick at once proceeded to obtain the episcopal consecration1 and sailed to ,ireland4 ,looking at the whole action of the pope in regard to the checking of ,pelagianism in ,britain1 and the conversion of ,ireland1 this theory1 first suggested by ,dr4 ,lanigan1 answers every requirement4 ,it contravenes no fact given by any early author1 and is in perfect harmony with every part4 ,the ,rome-appointed subordinates of ,palladius reported to ,patrick as a recognized superior1 and it is utterly impossible that between him1 the disciple of ,germain and ,palladius1 the ,roman delegate to ,germain1 there could have been diversity of faith or ecclesiastical discipline4 ,the appointment of ,patrick to the ,irish mission was simultaneous with that of ,palladius1 to whom the priority was given4 ,on the death of ,palladius he succeeded1 and required but the episcopal consecration to begin his labors as a bishop in ,ireland4 ,this would make the ,roman origin of the ,irish ,church too clear for ,dr4 ,todd to accept it without a struggle4 ,with what might almost be termed unfairness1 he ignores the statement of a perfect catena of ,irish writers as to the character of ,palladius1 in order to make him a deacon1 not of the pope1 but of ,saint ,germain4 ,later lives of ,saint ,patrick1 written long after the death of the saint1 by introducing vague traditions1 have doubtless embarrassed the question4 ,that some took his appointment by1 ,celestine to have required his visiting ,rome after the death of ,palladius1 was natural2 but he would really have been appointed by ,celestine1 even though consecrated in ,gaul after the death of that pope1 if this was done in pursuance of previous orders of the holy see4 ,it would not be strange to ,catholic ideas that ,saint ,patrick had what would be now termed his bulls unacted upon1 either from humility or some other motive2 and the history of the church contains many examples where bulls have been so held1 to be acted on ultimately only when the necessity of the church made the candidate feel it a duty to assume the burden from which he shrank4 ,dr4 ,moran proves that ,patrick drew his mission from ,rome by a solid array of authorities1 which embrace some of the most ancient ,irish manuscripts extant4 ,the ,book of ,armagh contains two tracts1 one the ,dicta ,sancti ,patricii1 expressing his wish that his disciple should be ut ,christiani ita et ,romani2 the other the annals of ,tirechan1 written about the middle of the seventh century1 stating absolutely that in the thirteenth year of the ,emperor ,theodosius the ,bishop ,patrick was sent by ,celestine1 bishop and pope of ,rome1 to instruct the ,irish4 #cfa ,the ,leabhar ,breac1 styled by ,petrie the oldest and best ,irish manuscript relating to church history now preserved1 furnishes us evidence no less clear and decisive4 ,the second ,life of ,saint ,patrick1 ascribed to ,saint ,eleran1 7ob4 #ffd27 the scholiast on ,saint ,fiacc1 the ,life by ,probus1 are all equally explicit1 showing it to have been a recognized fact in ,ireland within two centuries after the apostle's own day4 ,dr4 ,moran1 besides these1 accumulates other authority of a later period1 some hitherto uncited1 and due to the researches of ,german scholars among the manuscripts still extant1 due to the hands of the early ,irish apostles of their land4 ,one argument of ,dr4 ,todd was based on the silence of ,muirchu ,maccu ,mactheni in the ,book of ,armagh2 but ,dr4 ,moran answers this fully by showing that part of that early writer's work is missing2 and that1 as the ,life of ,saint ,probus follows1 word for word1 the parts extant1 we may assume that ,saint ,probus followed him in other parts2 and in regard to ,saint ,patrick's mission1 ,saint ,probus is clear and plain4 ,the church in ,ireland1 then1 was the spiritual child of ,rome and ,gaul4 ,her great missionary1 a ,breton1 came from the schools of ,gaul1 with authority from ,rome1 and the church which he founded was in harmony with the church in ,britain1 ,gaul1 and ,italy4 ,what the faith of the church in those countries was1 admits of no doubt2 and were there no monuments extant to give explicit evidence of the faith of the ,irish ,church1 this would give us implicit evidence sufficient1 in the absence of any contradictory authority1 to decide what its faith1 doctrines1 and liturgy were4 ,the vice-rector of the ,irish ,college marshals his authorities again and shows that the church founded by an envoy from ,rome retained its connection with the holy see and its reverence for the ,see of ,peter4 ,he adduces hymns of the ,irish ,church1 various writings of successive ages1 express canonical enactments regarding ,rome1 and finally the pilgrimages to the holy city1 in itself an irrefragable proof of the veneration entertained for ,rome2 but he crowns all this by adducing the many extant cases in which ,irish bishops and clergy appealed to ,rome4 ,but it may be thought that the terrible changes caused by the invasion of the barbarians which in a manner isolated ,ireland may have led insensibly to differences of faith or practice in that island1 cut off from the centre of unity by the pagan ,england that had succeeded ,christian ,britain1 and the pagan ,france that replaced ,christian ,gaul4 ,have we aught to prove what the ,irish ,church believed and taught2 at what worship the faithful knelt2 how they were received into the body of believers2 what rites consoled them in death8 ,fortunately there is much to console us here1 as well as to convince us4 ,one of the most important parts of the work we are discussing is the clear and distinct manner in which he proves the ,irish character of the missal found at ,bobbio1 and reproduced by ,mabillon in his ,iter ,italicum4 ,having1 by what light we possessed1 come to the conclusion that it was in no sense ,irish1 we examined this portion with interest1 and must admit that the proof is clear4 ,bobbio was a monastery founded by ,st4 ,columbanus1 and its rich library gave much to the early printers1 and yet much still remains in the ,ambrosian library at ,milan4 #cfb ,this missal has no distinctive ,irish offices1 and its containing an office of ,st4 ,sigebert1 ,king of ,burgundy1 seemed to refute any idea of its being ,irish4 ,yet we know that ,st4 ,columbanus founded a monastery at ,luxeu before proceeding to ,bobbio1 and in both places retained his ,irish office4 ,the adding of a local ,mass would not be strange4 ,in itself this missal corresponds with that ,irish missal preserved at ,stowe in many essential points1 and with no other known missal2 the orthography and writing are undoubtedly ,irish2 the liturgy in itself is not that of ,gaul2 it resembles it in many respects1 but the canon is that of ,rome4 ,this striking feature appears in the ,stowe missal4 ,mabillon1 from its antiquity1 himself infers that ,saint ,columbanus brought it from ,luxeu1 and it is as probable that he brought it from ,ireland4 ,it gives us the ,mass of the ancient ,irish ,church1 and ,curry gives in his lectures a translation of an ,exposition of the ,ceremonies of the ,mass from the ,irish in the ,leabhar ,breac4 ,the ,mass and the exposition place beyond a doubt the belief of the ,irish ,church in the ,real ,presence4 ,the exposition is as distinct as if written to meet any opposition4 ,another division of that pledge1 which has been left with the church to comfort her1 is the body of ,christ and his blood1 which are offered upon the altars of the ,christians2 the body even which was born of ,mary the ,immaculate ,virgin1 without destruction of her virginity1 without opening of the womb1 without the presence of man2 and which was crucified by the unbelieving ,jews out of spite and envy2 and which arose after three days from death1 and sits upon the right hand of ,god the ,father in heaven4 7,curry's ,lectures1 p4 #cjg47 ,the words of the ,mass are no less explicit1 and the ,bobbio missal contains these words3 ,cujus carne a te ipso sanctificata1 dum pascimur1 roboramur1 et sanguine dum potamur1 abluimur4 ,the whole early literature1 the lives of the saints1 and other monuments teem with allusions to the sacrifice of ,christ's body and blood1 and the saying of ,mass is not unfrequently expressed by the term conficere ,corpus ,domini4 ,the proofs adduced by ,dr4 ,moran on this point extend to sixty pages1 showing the most exact research and learning1 and accumulating evidence on evidence1 meeting and refuting objections of every kind4 ,the sacrament of penance and its use is no less apparent2 nor is the devotion to the blessed ,virgin and the saints a point on which the slightest doubt is left4 ,dr4 ,moran's work is certainly1 since the appearance of ,lanigan's ,ecclesiastical ,history1 7#d vols4 ,dublin1 #ahbb17 the most valuable treatise on the early ,irish ,church1 and completely sets at rest the theories set up by ,w4 ,g4 ,todd1 in ,a ,history of the ,ancient ,church in ,ireland1 ,london1 #ahde2 and with great learning and skill by ,james ,h4 ,todd1 in his ,saint ,patrick1 ,apostle of ,ireland3 ,a ,memoir of his ,life and ,mission1 ,dublin1 #ahfd4 ,we need now a popular treatise embracing the result of his labor1 in a small volume1 like the work of ,w4 ,g4 ,todd1 and a volume containing the ,bobbio missal1 7that at ,stowe is probably sealed17 with the treatise on the ,mass and vestments from the ,leabhar ,breac1 and a selection of the prayers and hymns of the early church that have come down to us4 ,with these common in the hands of the clergy1 to familiarize them with what remains of the church of their fathers1 we may hope to see the old ,irish ,mass1 the ,cursus ,scottorum or ,mass of the early ,irish ,church1 chanted by the cardinal archbishop of ,dublin on the great patronal feast1 as the ,mozarabic liturgy is in ,spain1 or the ,ambrosian at ,milan4 ,it would be a living proof that1 if the ,irish and other churches laid aside their peculiar liturgies to adopt exclusively that of ,rome1 it was not that the former were objectionable2 but that unity was too desirable to be postponed4 -------- #cfc ,my ,angel4 ,he hath given his angels charge over thee4 ,there's an angel stands beside my heart1 ,and keepeth guard4 ,how ,i wish sometimes that he would depart1 ,and its strong desires would cease to thwart ,with his stern regard6 ,but he never moves as he standeth there ,with unwinking eyes2 ,and at every pitfall and every snare ,his silent lips form the word1 ,forbear6 ,till the danger flies4 ,his look doth oft my purpose check ,and aim defeat4 ,and ,i change my course at his slightest beck4 ',tis well1 or ,i soon would be a wreck ,for the waves to beat4 ------ #cfd ,translated ,from ,the ,french4 ,an ,italian ,girl ,of ,our ,day4 ,footnote #gh ,footnote #gh3 ,rosa ,ferrucci3 her ,life1 her ,letters1 and her ,death1 ,by the ,abb ,h4 ,perreyve4 ,the first ,italian edition of the ,letters of ,rosa ,ferrucci appeared at ,florence in #aheg1 a request for their publication having been made to her mother by his ,eminence ,cardinal ,corsi1 ,archbishop of ,pisa4 ,the pious prelate was not less desirous of seeing the account of so edifying a death published1 when he had learned the circumstances from the ,prior of ,san ,sisto1 who had attended ,signorina ,ferrucci in her last moments4 ,a second edition appeared in #aheh1 enriched with numerous details1 at the express request of ,monsignor ,charvaz1 ,archbishop of ,genoa4 ,during a brief stay which ,i made at ,pisa1 ,monsignor della ,fanteria1 vicar-general of the diocese1 spoke to me of the profound impression which the death of ,signorina ,ferrucci had left on all memories1 and of the edification which he hoped from her ,letters4 ,he expressed a wish that they should be made known in ,france1 and even urged me to undertake their translation myself4 ,authorities such as these1 and the testimony of persons of undoubted judgment as to the good this little work has already done1 have determined me to publish it for the second time4 ,may it edify yet again some young souls1 by showing them in ,christianity an ideal too often sought elsewhere4 ,december1 #aheh4 ,the following are the circumstances which led to the publication of the ,letters here presented to the reader4 ,toward the end of ,april1 last year1 7#aheg17 as ,i was returning from ,rome1 ,i stopped at ,pisa4 ,the hand of ,god conducted me then into the midst of a family1 of whose unclouded happiness ,i had been the witness only a few months before1 but which had now1 alas6 been visited by death4 ,it was one of those sudden1 heart-rending bereavements which make one falter on the desolated threshold of his friend1 and which chill on one's lips the tenderest words of consolation4 ,what would you say to the father and mother who lose an only daughter--their joy1 their life1 and1 moreover1 the pride and the edification of a whole town8 ,better be silent and ask ,god to speak4 ,happily1 in this case1 ,god did speak2 and the noble souls whose sorrows are to be recounted here1 were of the number of those who know his voice4 ,after the first tears and the first outpouring of a grief which time rendered only the more poignant1 the poor mother asked me to accompany her to the house where her daughter had died1 and which she herself had quitted from that day4 ,a servant belonging to one of the neighboring houses had the keys of this funereal dwelling1 and he opened the doors for us4 ,we expected to find only the presence of death and the vivid remembrance of the sorrows of yesterday in the silence of those deserted chambers2 but ,christian charity had watched over the spot1 and from our first steps a delicate perfume of roses betrayed its loving attentions4 #cfe ,indeed1 we found the chamber of the dead girl strewn with flowers4 ,they were fresh1 some faithful hand having renewed them that very morning4 ,this unlooked-for spectacle awakened in our minds the thought that the ,christian's death is not so much a death as a transformation of life4 ,therefore it was that1 when1 kneeling near the poor sobbing mother1 ,i asked her if she wished me to recite the ,de ,profundis1 she answered in a firm voice and almost smiling1 ,no1 let us recite the ,te ,deum4 ,the hymn concluded1 ,i led the pious woman from that room where her sorrow seemed changed into exultation1 and ,i said to her on the way3 ,from all that ,i know1 from all that ,i can learn of your daughter1 she was a saint4 ,the delicate piety of your neighbors attests how powerful is still the recollection of her3 the example of her life1 and the details of her holy death1 must not be lost4 ,you must preserve them for the edification of her companions2 for the edification of the town which has known her1 loved her1 venerated her2 for the edification of ourselves also1 who must one day die1 and whom the examples of all holy deaths encourage and support4 ,i was not the first to express this desire2 many friends had anticipated me in begging for a history which they believed well calculated to reflect honor on our holy religion4 ,before ,i left ,pisa1 ,i had obtained the desired promise1 pledging myself1 at the same time1 to make known in ,france1 to some ,christian readers1 this history1 wrung from the anguish of a mother by the single desire of promoting the glory of ,god4 ,some months later1 the book appeared at ,florence1 with the following title1 ,rosa ,ferrucci1 and some of her ,writings1 published under the supervision of her ,mother4 ,it remains1 then1 for me to fulfil1 on my part1 the pious obligation ,i have contracted4 ,rosa ,ferrucci was the daughter of the celebrated ,professor ,ferrucci1 of the ,university of ,pisa1 and of the ,signora ,caterina ,ferrucci1 a lady well known in ,italy for her poetry1 and for some excellent works on education4 ,it is little more than a year since this young girl was1 by her brilliant intellectual gifts and the holiness of her life1 the honor of the city of ,pisa4 ,the grave habits of a ,christian family1 all the veils1 all the precautions1 all the fears of modesty1 had not been able to shield her from a sort of religious admiration which she inspired in all who saw her4 ,how prevent mothers from pointing out the holy child to their daughters1 or the poor from blessing her as she passed8 ,rosa possessed natural talents of a high order1 and her education was singularly favorable to the full development of every gift of mind and heart4 ,at six years of age she read ,italian1 ,french1 and ,german4 ,at a later period she knew by heart the whole of the ,divine ,comedy4 ,she read in the original1 under the direction of her mother1 ,virgil1 ,cicero1 ,tacitus2 and1 among modern authors1 ,bossuet1 ,bourdaloue1 ,fenelon1 ,fleury1 ,milton1 ,schiller1 ,klopstock4 ,i mention at random the authors' quoted by her in her letters to her friends1 passing by writers of our own day4 ,she has left a correspondence in three languages--,french1 ,german1 and ,italian4 ,the greater number of the ,italian letters are addressed to a young gentleman of ,leghorn1 ,signor ,gaetano ,orsini1 a distinguished lawyer and perfect ,christian1 to whom ,rosa was betrothed1 and whose hopes have been shattered by her death4 #cff ,each part of her correspondence is remarkable1 but it is of the last-mentioned letters that ,i propose particularly to speak4 ,independently of her correspondence1 ,signorina ,ferrucci wrote many short treatises on religion and ,christian morality1 several of which have been published since her death4 ,here1 then1 we find in a young girl a degree of mental cultivation--a depth of learning1 ,i might say--which would be remarkable in a man even of distinguished education4 ,to dwell long on gifts so rare would interfere with the object ,i proposed to myself in writing this little history4 ,i will1 then1 remark here1 once for all1 that1 having for several weeks lived on terms of intimacy with this excellent family1 ,i have witnessed in this extraordinary girl only a child-like modesty1 which made her always skilful in self-concealment4 ,i omit1 then1 all that relates to this intellectual culture1 and to this taste for classical learning--a taste which was so pure1 so exalted1 in this young ,christian maiden4 ,understood and accepted in ,italy1 this literary turn of mind would seem strange in ,france1 where there exists an extravagant fear of raising woman above a certain intellectual level4 ,i prefer1 therefore1 having said on this point merely what was necessary1 to speak henceforth only of the virtues of the saintly girl4 ,even of these ,i shall specify but one4 ,i leave it to pious imaginations to guess what there must have been of meekness1 of purity1 of obedience1 of modesty1 of angelic devotion1 in such a soul4 ,i shall speak only of her charity4 ,love for the poor was with her a passion1 and that from her tenderest years4 ,certain souls seem to come into this world commissioned by ,god to do honor to a particular virtue2 everything in them converges to that as to a divine centre4 ,the voice of a mother and the voice of the church have but to quicken the germ of holiness committed to such souls before their terrestrial journey1 and1 as soon as the development of reason allows them to act1 they tend quite naturally to the end which the finger of ,god had pointed out to them from above4 ,rosa ,ferrucci brought with her a tender and unbounded love for the poor4 ,from the little birds which1 while yet an infant1 she used to feed in winter-time1 to the poor beggars of ,pisa1 whom she relieved by denying herself in dress and amusements1 and the neglected graves to which she carried flowers1 because1 she used to say1 ,i feel a pity for neglected graves1 all poverty touched her heart4 ,her mother relates some affecting incidents of her great charity4 ,during a severe winter her parents remarked that she no longer ate bread at her meals1 although she never failed to pick out the largest piece for herself4 ,they affected not to know her motive1 which she explained1 blushing3 ,have ,i done wrong8 ,indeed1 ,i did not know it was wrong2 but bread is so dear this year1 and this piece would be sufficient for one poor person4 ,if she met in her walks a poor woman tottering under the weight of a load of wood1 her first impulse would be to run to help her1 and it was difficult to restrain this charitable eagerness4 ,she would then complain1 declaring that she could never get accustomed to seeing poor people toiling so hard4 ,on her birthday she ran to her mother and said to her3 ,gaetano is indeed all that ,i could wish6 ,we have just formed a project which makes me quite happy4 ,we have promised that on our birthdays and saints' days1 instead of making each other presents1 which are often useless1 we will give a large alms to some poor family4 #cfg ,she was a good musician1 and knew how to interpret truly the sentiment of the masters4 ,one day she went to ,florence1 accompanied by her brother1 to purchase some pieces of music4 ,but just as she was entering the town1 she met a poor family1 who seemed to be in the last extreme of wretchedness4 ,their rent must be paid the next day1 or these poor people would be homeless4 ,farewell to the pieces of music6 ,and on her return home1 when her friends1 to conceal their real joy and admiration1 affected to chide her1 she answered3 ,what would you have had me do8 ,i could not help it4 ,tell me yourselves how ,i could have done otherwise than ,i did8 ,now1 you see well that it was impossible6 ,o holy impossibilities6 which embarrass only those who can never be resigned to the sufferings of others4 ,innumerable are the incidents of this kind which might be related of ,rosa2 for charity is never weary1 the more good it has done1 the more it desires to do2 but ,i leave this subject--reluctantly1 indeed--to dwell at more length on the two episodes of this ,christian life1 in which ,i think may be found the most solid edification and the best encouragement for souls4 ,i speak of a love and a death1 both transfigured by the cross4 ,the transfiguration of the life and heart of man in chastity1 in hope1 in sacrifice1 is a palpable glory of ,christianity and one of the surest marks of its divinity4 ,jesus ,christ1 when he came to sanctify the world1 did not destroy the natural conditions of human life4 ,since1 as before1 the shedding of his blood1 man is born in suffering2 he weeps1 combats1 loves1 and dies4 ,and yet1 if he is a ,christian1 all is changed for him4 ,from his cradle to his grave he walks in a marvellous light1 which transfigures all things in his eyes and thoroughly changes the meaning of life4 ,he suffers1 but each day he adores suffering on the cross2 he weeps1 but he has heard that1 ,blessed are they who weep6 he combats1 but with his eyes fixed on heaven2 he loves1 but in all that he loves1 he loves ,god2 he dies1 but then only does he begin to live4 ,nay1 even the entrance into beatitude is for the ,christian not the last transfiguration2 for a blissful eternity is but a continuous transfiguration in a glory ever increasing1 and1 as it were1 the eternal flight of created love toward ,infinite ,love4 ,this divine flight finds in heaven its region of glory2 but it must not be forgotten that its starting-point is earth--that before finally gaining the eternal heights1 it must first cross the fields of mourning1 lugentes campi4 ,footnote #gi ,footnote #gi3 ,virg4 ,a,en4 i4 #d4 ,hence it is1 that for the saints there is no interruption between heaven and earth2 the same path that conducted them yesterday from virtue to virtue1 will lead them to-morrow from glory to glory1 and their death is but an episode of their love4 ,hence1 also1 perhaps that mysterious fraternity of love and death which is the soul of all true poetry2 men catch a glimpse of it and chant it in their own tongue3 ,the twin brothers1 love and death1 ,at the same time1 gave birth to fate4 ,footnote #hj ,footnote #hj3 ,lopardi4 ,but only the saints know its true secret3 ,having a desire to be dissolved and to be with ,christ4 ,footnote #ha ,footnote #ha3 ,phil4 ,i4 #bc4 ,when the young soul of whom we now speak had reached a certain elevation in her flight toward ,god1 she1 too1 met the sweet and austere company of those two strong-winged angels--,christian love and death4 ,she loved3 almost as soon she presaged death1 and she died4 ,but she loved as a child of ,god loves1 and she died as a saint4 #cfh ,i have1 then1 little more to do than to translate her ,letters1 in which shines gloriously the beauty of ,christian love1 and to give an account of that death worthy of the church's brightest days4 ,as ,i have already remarked1 these ,letters are addressed to a young gentleman of ,leghorn1 to whom ,rosa had been betrothed for two years before her death2 a truly noble character whom heaven seemed to have made worthy of her4 ,a profound and tender love united these two kindred souls4 ,the simple and sweet manners of good ,italian society allowed their seeing each other often1 and did not forbid their almost daily correspondence4 ,an entire conformity of faith1 of piety1 of holy desires1 blended into a still closer union those hearts already so strongly bound to each other2 but a more celestial ray was continually passing from the soul of ,rosa into that of ,gaetano4 ,through her joys1 her hopes1 the festive preparations for her wedding1 and the dreams of the future1 this pious young girl always saw ,god4 ,one idea1 immense and insatiable1 was dominant over all her desires1 the idea of perfection4 ,she gazed through the veil of her joyous dawnings on the divine sun of eternal beauty4 ,her happiness embellished earth to her1 but the earth thus embellished immediately reminded her of heaven2 earthly love put a song on her lips1 but the song soon became a hymn1 and always ended with ,god4 ,it is this insensible and almost involuntary transition1 of which she herself seems unconscious1 from an earthly affection to ardent longings after divine love and perfection1 which constitutes all the beauty of her ,letters4 ,the reader must not forget that they were written by one who was little more than a child1 and that whatever there was of maturity in her young soul was derived from that sun of ,christian faith whose warm rays ripen the intellect1 in the continued childhood of the heart4 ,i would fain believe that this young ,christian's sisters in the faith1 will find in her ,letters something more than a subject of poetical dreaming4 ,in truth1 no life is so really practical as that of a saint2 and1 through the veil of beautiful language1 we may discover in the letters of ,rosa ,ferrucci many duties faithfully performed by her1 many lessons of duty faithfully to be performed by ourselves4 ,i would then beg of those young persons to read the following pages with recollection1 and1 in order to penetrate their true meaning1 to enter as much as possible into this young girl's ardent desire of perfection4 ,i have spoken of the eternal soaring of souls toward ,god4 ,have you ever1 in the beginning of autumn1 watched those flights of birds which1 lengthening out in a long train1 follow1 to the very last1 the same sinuosities8 ',tis said that the strongest1 flying in advance1 cleaves the air2 and that the weaker1 coming after1 enter with ease the aerial furrow4 ,ah6 too feeble that we are to attempt alone the road to heaven1 let us at least learn to enter the furrows of the saints4 ,their strong and certain wing will draw us onward in their track2 and when we shall see them so lovely because they were so loving1 we shall advance with less fear toward ,him who was the supreme object of their love4 #cfi ,rosa ,to ,gaetano4 ,pisa1 ,april #f1 #ahef4 ,i can never thank ,god enough for giving me in you1 ,gaetano1 an example and a guide for my whole life4 ,i cannot refrain from often saying so to my mother1 and ,i say it because it is in my heart4 ,spite of all the faults and imperfections which have so many times prevented me from remaining faithful to the good resolutions which ,i constantly make before ,god1 ,i have so high an idea of the perfection of a ,christian wife1 and of the duties ,i shall soon have to fulfil1 that ,i should indeed be terrified if ,i did not confide in the goodness of ,god1 who can do all1 and who will aid me who can do nothing4 ,i often speak to my mother of the holy respect with which the sacrament we are going to receive inspires me2 and ,i earnestly beg of you to ask our ,lord for the graces which are necessary to make me what ,i ought to be4 ,i promise you to use all my efforts for this end2 and ,i will dedicate the prayers of the month of ,may to this intention1 for ,i have great confidence that the ,blessed ,virgin will obtain for me what ,i still lack4 ,i believe that we shall have made great progress toward perfection when we come to detest sincerely all those little daily faults which seem trifles to us1 but which must be so very displeasing to the infinite perfection of ,god4 ,in all this1 be sure that ,i will receive your counsels and admonitions as they ought to be received from him who1 by the will of ,god1 takes the place of father and mother4 ,april #ag4 ,i am persuaded that the true means of preparing ourselves to receive the sacrament by which we shall be united for time and eternity is1 to use all our efforts to attain that state of ,christian perfection to which ,god calls us2 and ,i am also sure that1 if we cannot arrive absolutely at that degree of perfection which we ardently desire1 we can at least kindle in our hearts the flames of that divine love which is itself the whole law4 ,in this you will be my guide and my example1 ,gaetano2 we two shall have but one will1 one love also1 loving each other in ,god1 in whom all affections become holy4 ,our affection did not spring from outward accomplishments1 nor from fleeting beauty1 that flower of a day4 ,it was a stronger tie that bound our souls together4 ,we love each other because we love ,god4 ,in him does our union consist1 because in him is all the strength1 all the purity of our love2 because in him also is our supreme end4 ,hence come those alternations of joy and sadness1 according as we approach1 or seem to be receding from1 that ideal type of perfection which is the object of our desires4 ,ah6 how good ,god is2 and how often ,i bless him for having put such desires and such hopes into our hearts4 ,for me1 ,i now see in ,god not only the eternal power which created heaven and earth1 or the eternal love which redeemed us1 but also that sweet mercy which has given me in you1 as it were1 his crowning blessing4 ,april #be4 ,forgive me1 ,gaetano1 my eternal repetitions2 but what can ,i do8 ,for some time ,i have been able only to say the same things over and over again4 ,this very day reminds me of another day1 a dear and solemn one to me4 ,i recollect with unspeakable pleasure the solitary walk ,i took1 with my mother to speak of you4 ,the stillness of the country1 the fresh aspect of all nature1 the distant voices of the peasants1 which alone from time to time broke the profound tranquillity of the scene--all seemed new to me1 all spoke to my heart4 ,i shall never forget the humble little church in which1 for the first time1 ,i ventured to pray to ,god to bless these new thoughts--thoughts which held me suspended1 as it were1 between doubt and hope1 but which found my heart firmly resolved to do the divine will in all things4 #cgj ,from that day ,i have implored1 and still unceasingly implore1 the graces which we need in order to lead together a truly ,christian life4 ,do you do the same1 ,gaetano2 and let me assure you that ,i cannot now pray to ,god for myself1 without at once finding your name mingled in my supplications4 ,april #cj4 ,he only is worthy of a reward who has merited it4 ,do you not know that combat--and what is life but a continual combat8--must precede victory8 ,no1 ,gaetano1 we will not be like cowardly soldiers who would fain have the honors of a triumph without having seen the face of the foe4 ,let us rather strive to lay hold on eternal felicity1 which alone can satisfy our desires1 by faithfully performing all our duties2 by supporting1 for the love of ,god1 all the trials of life1 heavy or light2 by devoting ourselves as much as possible to good works2 then the desire of heaven will not be for us a dreamy ideal or subject of vague speculation1 but it will enter into our daily life to sanctify it4 ,may your life be prolonged to serve the cause of ,god by strong and constant virtues6 ,may #b4 ,i believe that1 without proposing to ourselves a too ideal and1 as it were1 an unattainable type of perfection1 we can effect much by earnestly striving to strengthen our will4 ,let us keep a watch over it1 and never allow it to incline toward what is evil1 even in the smallest things4 ,let us always bear in mind those beautiful words of the ,following of ,christ3 ,if each year we corrected one fault1 how soon we should become better6 ,yes1 strength of will is always necessary1 and not less in small trials than in great ones4 ,in this1 it seems to me ,christian perfection really consists2 for what can be more pleasing to ,god than to see our will always conformed to his8 ,footnote #hb ,footnote #hb3 ,the desire of ,christian perfection had inspired ,rosa ,ferrucci with the idea of collecting some short maxims1 which were well exemplified in her pious and innocent life4 ,among her papers were found this little selection1 which seems to us worthy of translation4 ,to see ,god in all created things4 ,to refer all to ,god4 ,to remember always ',god sees me4' ,to have a tender love for the holy ,catholic ,church4 ,to unite my actions to those of ,jesus ,christ4 ,to keep alive in my heart the desire of heaven4 ,to beg of ,god the faith and the constancy of the martyrs4 ,to have an unwavering confidence in the efficacy of prayer4 ,to succor the poor for the love of ,god4 ,to watch and pray4 ,to do good to all4 ,to obey my father and mother4 ,to be gentle and docile to my teachers4 ,to be silent as soon as ,i perceive in my heart the first motions of anger4 ,never to read a doubtful book4 ,to have a scrupulous regard to truth4 ,never to speak ill of any one4 ,to view in the best light the actions of others4 ,to subdue all feelings of envy4 ,to pray often for humility4 ,never to slight ,god's holy inspirations4 ,to work and study diligently4 ,frequently to raise my heart to ,god4 ,to forgive all1 at all times and in all things4 ,to seek my happiness in the performance of ,christian duties4 ,to do whatever is my duty1 and for the rest trust to the goodness of ,god4 ,to fear sin more than death4 ,to ask for the sacraments at the beginning of a serious illness4 ,to speak to ,god as a tender and beloved father4 ,to unite my death to that of ,jesus ,christ4 ,may #cj4 ,no affection which has not its source in the love of ,god can ever make us happy4 ,let us be well convinced of this1 and let us dedicate our whole life to ,him who has done all for us4 ,as for me1 ,i believe that just as the external pomp of worship is valueless in the sight of ,god if it is separated from interior devotion1 so works can do nothing to merit grace unless they are inwardly animated by a pure intention and the desire of pleasing ,god alone4 ,we must1 then1 always pass from what is without to what is within1 and it is this that ,i mean when ,i tell you that ,i often seek in visible things a lever to raise me toward the invisible2 discerning in all that meets my eyes here below an image of that ,eternal ,beauty which unveils itself only to the intelligence and to the heart4 ,thus nothing remains mute to me4 #cga ,how many things the mountains tell me1 and the stars1 and the sea1 and the trees1 and the birds6--things which ,i should not have known if this mighty voice of nature had not taught them to me4 ,oh6 how admirable is the goodness of ,god1 who thus by a thousand ways leads back our souls to the thoughts and the holy affections for which they were created4 ,i have been reading in the ,revue des ,deux ,mondes1 this beautiful idea of ,jean ,paul ,richter3 ,when that which is holy in the soul of the mother responds to that which is holy in the soul of the son1 their souls then understand each other4 ,this thought has made a great impression on me2 and it seems to me to contain a grand lesson for all mothers engaged in the religious education of their sons4 ,it shows us1 moreover1 the nature of those close ties which unite us to our relations and our friends4 ,and1 indeed1 why do we love one another with such a true and constant love8 ,because what is sacred to your soul is sacred also to mine4 ,why am ,i so deeply moved when ,i hear of some noble action8 when ,i contemplate the greatness of this world's heroes1 and1 above all1 the greatness of the saints and martyrs8 ,why do ,i weep as ,i think of the sacrifices they made with such self-devotion and fortitude8 ,because what they held sacred ,i also hold sacred4 ,could more be said in so few words8 ,yes1 every man ought to keep alive that celestial fire which ,god has kindled in his heart4 ,unhappy he who lets it languish and die out6 ,he loses it for himself1 and is himself lost for his brethren1 since he has broken the bond of love which would have united him to them for ever4 ,as the flame ascends on high1 ,which by its form upward aspires1 ,,so by nature our souls tend to rise toward ,god1 and if they return again toward earth1 there can be no longer for them either hope of peace or hope of happiness4 ,july #aj4 ,let us not be discouraged1 ,gaetano1 let us always hope2 our good ,god will help us to become better2 for1 if we lack strength1 at least we are not wanting in good desires4 ,they are a gratuitous gift of him who wills our good2 of him who has given us the most living example of humility2 of him who knows1 and will pardon1 the weakness of our poor nature1 if only we will combat with that perseverance which alone has the promise of victory4 ,ah6 if we truly loved the ,lord1 we should think of him alone--of him who is holy and perfect1 instead of always thinking of ourselves1 weak and miserable creatures2 and we should end by forgetting ourselves1 by losing ourselves1 to live only in him so worthy of our love2 and then we should indeed begin to know that we are nothing1 and that he is all4 ,jesus wishes us to be gentle with ourselves1 and would not have us fall into dejection when1 through the frailty of our nature1 we fail in our good resolutions4 ,at times when we are too much dejected at the sight of our miseries1 ,jesus ,christ seems to say to us1 as to the disciples going to ,emmaus3 ,what are these discourses that you hold one with another as you walk1 and are sad8 ,he who is called the ,prince of ,peace would have us pacific toward ourselves1 and full of compassion for our own infirmity4 ,when1 therefore1 we are seized with sadness at sight of our poverty and of the dryness of our souls1 let us say simply and humbly this little prayer of ,st4 ,catharine of ,genoa3 ,alas6 my ,lord1 these are the fruits of my garden6 ,yet ,i love thee1 my ,jesus1 and ,i will strive to do better in future4 #cgb ,july #ai1 7,feast of ,st ,vincent de ,paul47 ,do you know what we ought to desire8 ,neither honors1 nor riches1 nor any such earthly vanities1 which could add nothing to our peace4 ,do you know to what end our will1 strengthened by love1 ought to turn8 ,yes1 you know it well1 and often have you taught it me2 we ought both to aim at realizing in our life something of that perfection which1 after all1 can be but partially obtained on earth4 ,we ought to look at the things that are immortal and eternal1 rather than at those that are temporal and subject to change1 living in such a manner that a true love of ,god may actuate our hearts and our thoughts1 develop our sentiments toward what is good1 and direct all our actions to a holy end4 ,how many touching examples of virtues are recalled to our minds by this day and the festival which it brings6 ,what indefatigable and universal charity in ,st4 ,vincent de ,paul6 ,what lively and ardent piety6 ,what unbounded compassion for all the errors1 all the faults1 all the misfortunes1 all the sufferings1 physical and moral1 of men6 ,what exhaustless patience6 ,and who among us will dare to say that he cannot reproduce in himself some shadow of those beautiful virtues8 ,if we cannot1 like this illustrious saint1 relieve the sufferings of a great number of our fellow-beings1 at least we can be humble1 patient1 and animated by that true religion which is ever forgiving1 ever loving1 because it loves ,him who is all mercy and all love4 ,to ,be ,continued4 -------------- ,the ,episcopalian ,confessional4 ,it is with great satisfaction that ,catholics behold the adoption by any class of ,protestants of their peculiar rites or ceremonies4 ,it is an indication of an approach to the doctrines so vehemently renounced at the ,reformation1 and ought1 by strict logic1 to result in the return of many to the old faith4 ,and though1 unfortunately1 there are men who play with religious doctrines as if they were of no practical consequence1 there are always some who are in earnest1 and are found ready to make sacrifices for the sake of truth4 ,from the use of ,catholic ceremonies1 which are really all founded on vital doctrine1 some conversions must certainly flow2 and the ,protestant ,church1 which moves in such a direction1 is drifting from its old moorings1 and floating toward the safe waters where the bark of ,st4 ,peter rides out every storm4 ,if there be any of our practices which are essentially a part of our religious system1 surely that of confession is one which is absolutely peculiar to the ,catholic ,church4 ,it cannot lawfully exist without the faith which we hold1 and when used1 it drags along with it1 irresistibly1 our whole moral system4 ,it is hard to see how any one can confess his sins to a priest1 without accepting the sacerdotal and sacramental system1 which can have no life out of the ,catholic communion4 ,besides1 the practical influence of such confessions leads directly to those habits of devotion which have no home in ,protestantism4 #cgc ,in the few remarks we are now to make1 we do not intend to lose sight of these convictions1 while it is our object to consider briefly the adoption of the confessional in the ,protestant ,episcopal ,church1 the logical consequences which flow from it1 and even the dangers which attend it4 ,surely the subject is one of great moment4 ,if it be of any importance at all1 it is of vital importance4 ,it is either necessary to the soul1 or it is an assumption of powers prejudicial to the interests of true religion4 ,it cannot be looked upon as an indifferent matter1 which may be used or neglected1 according to the taste of the individual4 ,to a few reflections1 therefore1 upon it1 we earnestly invite the attention of the honest reader4 #a4 ,there is no doubt that there is quite a party in the ,episcopal ,church which upholds the practice of auricular confession1 and seeks to extend it4 ,there are ministers of that communion who are anxious to set up the confessional1 and disposed to teach its necessity4 ,in the city of ,new ,york1 it is well known that the clergy of ,st4 ,albans' are solicitous to hear confessions and love to be styled ,fathers1 on account of their spiritual relation to their penitents4 ,the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,dix1 the respected rector of ,trinity ,church1 the oldest and most influential corporation of his denomination1 is said to have quite a number of penitents1 and to be the most popular confessor1 especially among the higher class4 ,we presume he makes no secret of his practice1 while his position as the spiritual director of the ,sisters of ,st4 ,mary is notorious4 ,how general is the custom of confession in ,trinity parish we have no means of knowing1 nor do we know how many of the assistant ministers follow in the wake of their rector4 ,we have heard of one or two others who are disposed to be confessors1 and there are probably many such ministers whose names are not brought before the public4 ,we cannot suppose that any high-minded clergyman would be willing to hear confessions in an under-hand or secret manner1 and we must believe that they who do so are not ashamed of it1 nor unwilling to have their practice made public4 ,no offence is therefore intended by the mention of names1 and we will rest satisfied that none is given4 ,how many of the bishops favor auricular confession does not appear4 ,so far as we have heard1 no one has openly recommended it2 but the ,right ,reverend ,dr4 ,potter1 of ,new ,york1 has allowed a manual to be dedicated to him1 in which the practice is strongly urged1 and devotions for its use are extracted from ,catholic prayer-books4 ,while he has rebuked the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,tyng for preaching in a ,methodist church1 he goes openly to ,st4 ,alban's1 and1 to say the least1 gives sanction to ,ritualistic performances4 ,we have a right1 then1 to conclude that he favors the confessional1 and is willing to see it set up in the churches which he superintends4 ,it will be observed that this confession in the ,episcopal ,church1 is not simply consulting a clergyman in a private conversation about spiritual matters1 but the humble acknowledgment of sins in detail1 in order to receive absolution from one who thinks himself authorized by ,almighty ,god to give it4 ,it is certainly a sacrament in the true definition of the term1 an outward sign of an inward grace1 administered by one pretending1 at least1 to bear a commission from ,christ4 ,those who go to the ,episcopalian ministers to confess their sins1 surely go under this belief1 and no argument is necessary to show that they would not go1 unless under the conviction that their offences against ,god could be forgiven in no other way4 #cgd ,the ,ritualists have made of this a most important matter in their devotional books1 where can be found questions for examination of conscience1 tables of sins1 and prayers to excite contrition and improve the great gift of absolution4 ,when1 then1 we speak of the confessional in the ,protestant ,episcopal communion1 we are not drawing upon fancy1 but touching upon a fact which must have an important effect upon the body which it especially interests4 #b4 ,the first remark we have to make upon this acknowledged fact is almost a truism4 ,it is1 that auricular confession is not a ,protestant practice1 but quite the contrary2 and that they who adopt it cut themselves off from all sympathy with the doctrines of the reformation4 ,we hardly need to prove that there is not one ,protestant church which approves of the custom of which we speak1 or believes that its ministers have the power to remit and retain sin4 ,if the ,church of ,england be adduced against us1 we have only to point to the incontrovertible fact1 that she declares that penance is not a sacrament1 and therefore conveys no inward grace4 ,the absolutions left in her daily services are only declaratory of ,god's willingness to forgive the repentant sinner1 and could be as well used by a layman as by a minister4 ,for who cannot say that ,god pardoneth and absolveth all who are truly penitent8 ,and as for the absolution in the office of the visitation of the sick1 we have only to say that it is a relic of by-gone days which is seldom used1 and that whatever be its meaning1 it cannot1 contrary to the article1 be presumed to confer grace4 ,the ,english ,church certainly did never consider it a matter of any necessity1 otherwise it would have said so4 ,the ,episcopalians in the ,united ,states have not this form to refer to2 for the compilers of their liturgy have expunged it altogether1 at the same time that they omitted the ,athanasian creed4 ,in the form of the ordination of priests1 a substitute was also provided for the old words1 ,receive the ,holy ,ghost2 whose sins you shall remit1 they are remitted unto them4 ,the reason of this substitution we leave the honest reader to imagine4 ,we are informed that very few of the bishops are willing to use the old form1 and an ,episcopal minister of ,puseyitical views once told us that he was very anxious to have the bishop who ordained him use it1 but was restrained from asking this favor by the assurance of one of the prelate's intimate friends that1 if he said anything about it1 he would get a flat refusal1 together with a good scolding4 ,while thus the articles of faith in the ,episcopalian body deny the power of absolution1 the practice of that denomination of ,christians is entirely against it4 ,the ministers who hear confessions and the people who make them1 live in a dreamland1 about which once we read a very pretty piece of poetry4 ,this dreamland is not very extensive or tangible here1 and we wonder if now there are any somnambulists in or about ,buffalo4 ,we yield the right to every man to do as he pleases1 and call himself what he likes1 only we object to his having two contradictory characters at the same time4 ,it is not quite reasonable2 and we say1 with the good common sense of mankind1 ,my dear friend1 choose for yourself1 but please be either one thing or the other4 #cge ,but we go further1 and assert that the practice of confession is the assumption of a sacerdotal power which was the very first point attacked by the reformation1 and which is really the central point of the ,catholic system4 ,once admit the great power of absolution1 and you receive at the same time logically the doctrine of priesthood as it is held by the ,church4 ,this doctrine does not and cannot stand alone2 it brings with it the church in her unity1 and the necessary safeguards which divine wisdom has thrown around the exercise of so great a gift4 ,who has the power to forgive sins8 ,not every man1 nor every one who may choose to call himself a priest4 ,there must be some external call to so high an office2 and as it is ,christ's priesthood which is exercised1 there must be some way of authenticating the power delegated1 and articulating it to the great head of ,christianity4 ,the ,catholic ,church alone maintains the practice of confession1 and if she is good for this1 she is good for everything4 ,eclecticism may be advisable in matters of science1 but in divine revelation it is both absurd and impossible4 ,the foundation of faith is in the word of ,god4 ,the church is no teacher if she be not guided by supernatural light2 and if she be thus guided1 her authority is universal4 ,episcopalians may believe that their ministers can forgive their sins1 but they have no reason for such a belief4 ,their own church surely does not say so1 while the ,catholic voice expressly denies it4 ,it will be hard to see how they can prove it from ,scripture as applied to their particular communion4 ,not only is the unity of the church connected logically with the idea of priesthood1 but also that of sacrifice1 and of sacramental grace4 ,and these doctrines bring with them the ,tridentine system of justification1 which is diametrically opposed to the ,lutheran theory which underlies all consistent ,protestantism4 ,we do not believe that any one can go to confession for any length of time1 and not feel the truth of these remarks4 ,he will be irresistibly borne to the gates of the ,catholic ,church with whose faith his religious life will be in sympathy1 and he will1 day by day1 lose his love and respect for his own communion4 #c4 ,so far1 therefore1 we have reason to rejoice in the adoption of the confessional by the ,episcopalians1 and to renew our prayers for their conversion to that truth which at a distance proves so attractive to them4 ,yet there are dangers in regard to which the sincere ought to be forewarned1 and serious evils to many souls may result from the incapacity of confessors who have never been trained for this most delicate and difficult work4 ,it is in the spirit of ,christian charity that we revert to these dangers4 ,in the first place1 we hardly need say that no one but a duly authorized priest of the ,catholic ,church has the power to give absolution4 ,as we are addressing chiefly those who believe in some ecclesiastical system1 we have only to advert to the fact1 that to such a power both orders and jurisdiction are necessary4 ,the ,episcopal ,church does not admit the existence of this power1 and the whole ,christian world which does accept it1 unites in the opinion that the ,episcopalian clergy have no orders whatever1 any more than the ,methodists or ,presbyterians4 ,any layman is as good a priest as the most distinguished ,anglican minister4 ,such is the decision of the ,catholic ,church1 and of every sect which has retained the apostolical succession4 ,is this decision of no consequence to the ,ritualists who pretend to believe in authority and antiquity8 ,but orders are not sufficient for the exercise of the power of absolution4 #cgf ,jurisdiction is also required1 because they who believe in the priesthood must also believe that ,christ has left this great office in order1 and not in confusion4 ,the bishop is the supreme pastor of his diocese1 and no priest1 without his permission1 can validly either hear confessions or give absolution4 ,this principle of jurisdiction is one which does not seem to penetrate the heads of ,high-,church ,episcopalians2 but if they will reflect for a moment1 they will see its absolute necessity to the existence of the church4 ,suppose that valid orders are alone required to the exercise of the priesthood1 and the communion of the faithful1 and what is to prevent any priest from going off at any time1 and carrying with him all the essentials of the church8 ,then there would be as many churches as there are dissenting priests4 ,no intelligent man would form a society on such principles1 and surely our ,lord ,jesus ,christ did not do so foolish a thing as found a church containing in itself the very seeds of self-destruction4 ,we have heard that an excommunicated priest1 who bears1 to his sorrow1 the ineffaceable character of priesthood1 is willing to hear confessions since his apostasy4 ,but though he has valid orders1 he is no more able to give absolution than his associate ministers who have never been ordained1 because he has no jurisdiction from ,christ4 ,what do these ,fathers among the ,episcopalians pretend8 ,do they ask jurisdiction from their own bishops1 who1 having none1 have none to give8 ,or do they profess to have the whole ,catholic ,church in their own persons8 ,if so1 history has seen nothing so strange in all its curious record of ecclesiastical devices4 ,it is then a sad thing for a man to confess his sins and go through the humiliation of opening his whole life to another2 and then receive no pardon for the sins he so anxiously confesses4 ,we beg the attention of such earnest hearts to this point1 and say to them1 ,if you really wish to confess1 why not go at once where there is no doubt that ,christ has left the power of forgiveness8 ,secondly1 there is danger in the way and manner in which we are told that the ,episcopalian ministers hear confessions4 ,they ought1 for their own sake1 and for the sake of their penitents1 to adopt the rules and safeguards which the experience of the church has thrown around so important a work4 ,it is not prudent to hear the confessions of ladies in the minister's private room4 ,the presence of a plain cross1 or crucifix1 does not remove the objection4 ,it is too much of a burden to expect a lady to go through with all this unnecessary trial1 especially when she has the additional conviction that she is doing something which she would not wish the world to know1 or which she would not be willing to tell her husband or friends4 ,the ,catholic ,church has wisely provided that the priest shall sit where he need neither see nor distinguish the penitent1 and this is a safe rule to be imitated4 ,the same objection arises to the method1 said to be in vogue at ,st4 ,alban's1 where the minister sits in the chancel1 and the penitent kneels at his back4 ,if there be others in the church1 there is too much exposure1 and if the church is locked1 there is too much privacy4 ,the ,episcopalian clergy who become confessors ought to erect confessionals in their churches1 and sit there at given hours publicly and openly4 #cgg ,we understand1 also1 that in some cases1 at least1 the penitent is obliged to write out his confession in full1 and we consider this a dangerous and far too painful practice4 ,we have been informed that ,dr4 ,pusey wishes the general confessions which he hears to be written out carefully and left with him for his private study some days before the confession is made4 ,we are certain that such a course has been sometimes imitated in this country1 much to the disgust of ladies1 who have even spoken to us of it4 ,a sinner will do much1 no doubt1 in the fervor of penitence1 but no such thing as this ought to be done4 ,it is against the practice of the ,catholic ,church1 and in violation of instinctive delicacy and propriety4 ,no one is obliged to expose himself1 even to obtain the pardon of sin4 ,again1 it is unfortunate for the ,protestant clergy that they hear confession only by reason of their personal influence over their penitents2 that they do not understand the nature of the seal of secrecy2 and that they have no fixed system by which to direct their penitents4 ,the same results follow1 as if a doctor should essay to be a lawyer1 or a blacksmith a dentist4 ,personal influence is1 no doubt1 an instrument of much good2 but when it alone or principally governs the relations of confessor and penitent1 serious dangers may be imminent4 ,most of those who go to confession in the ,episcopal ,church are led to this step by reason of their confidence in the individual to whom they go1 and through the attraction of his piety or zeal4 ,they would hardly go to any one else1 and if he were to die or be removed1 they would be left without a director4 ,it is not so much the priest to whom they unburden their conscience1 as the favorite preacher whose good qualities have made strong impressions upon them4 ,this is not a healthy state of things1 and leads to sentimentality1 which is often mistaken for piety4 ,in the ,catholic ,church1 the habit of confession is as universal as prayer1 and the priestly character overshadows the individual4 ,among ,protestants the contrary is notoriously true1 and this difficulty in the way of the ,protestant confessor can hardly be removed until he shall have brought about in his communion the state of feeling which is second nature to ,catholics4 ,this he can never do4 ,he may lead individuals to the church2 he cannot convert the whole body with which he is identified4 ,with the best intentions in the world1 he does not and cannot understand the seal of secrecy which for ever closes the lips of the priest4 ,he is disposed as a man of honor not to betray confidence1 but experience teaches us that very few human secrets have been kept4 ,he has not been taught the sacred nature of his obligation1 nor the various ways by which he may expose his penitent1 and as he has assumed an office to which his church did not call him1 he stands or falls in human strength4 ,no motive higher than that of honor binds him1 and complicated as he is with the world1 and generally with matrimonial relations1 he really does not know how to act4 ,the ,catholic priest not only is bound by the fear of terrible sin1 but is also aided by the system which surrounds him1 in which he is trained and by that supernatural power which we know upholds the seven sacraments4 ,he is not an individual resting upon his unaided powers1 but the creature of his church1 the agent and representative of a vast power which girdles the ,christian world4 ,years of study and discipline have taught him the nature of his obligations1 while he himself is as much bound to confess his sins as to hear the burden of other consciences4 #cgh ,what an anomaly1 for a man who never confesses his own faults1 to undertake to listen to the accusations of others6 ,if they need the confessional1 much more does he need it4 ,is it not ,pharisaical to bind burdens upon others1 which we touch not with one of our fingers8 ,let men say what they will1 we believe1 and from experience we know1 that ,god upholds the confessor in his difficult task2 that he gives him superhuman wisdom2 that within the tribunal of penance a divine shield is over him to protect him against the weakness of humanity1 that he may walk unharmed where otherwise angels would fear to tread4 ,here we pity the poor and isolated ,ritualist1 going forth upon a dangerous sea1 in a frail bark1 with no trust but the strength of his own arm4 ,cast out by his own church1 and refusing communion with the great ,catholic heart1 how long will he stand the fury of the storm8 ,finally1 how shall he direct his penitents1 and by what system form their spiritual character8 ,moral theology is an extensive and subtle science4 ,the infallible church has given clear decisions upon all essential points of fact and morals1 and her doctors1 by years of patient labor and centuries of experience1 have matured the colossal system which has such mighty influence over the religious heart4 ,but what is all this to the ,protestant confessor8 ,he cannot avail himself of this without confessing the authority of the church2 and if he begins with such a confession1 where must he conscientiously guide his penitents8 ,if he deny this authority1 and by his own fallible wisdom choose the principles of his morality1 in what respect is his opinion worth more than that of the humblest layman8 ,can there be a more pitiable spectacle1 than that of a ,protestant minister with ,st4 ,liguori as his guide in leading the souls of others8 ,his spiritual life is surely made up of contradictions which must vex and perplex his conscience if he be an honest man4 ,and will he not unavoidably make grievous mistakes1 in the use of tools without experience1 in the details of a work for which he has had no preparation8 ,moreover1 there are often decisions which have to be made1 and in these he must either be a despot1 or he must make equivocal answers4 ,if a ,catholic accuses himself of unbelief or doubt1 the reply is easy2 for ,god's revelation is1 according to our faith1 in and through an unerring church4 ,if the ,protestant falls into a like danger1 how shall he find direction1 since for him there is no infallible church8 ,must he not go on his weary way of investigation1 and is not1 by his principles1 doubt his normal state8 ,if a ,catholic doubts the truth of any decision of his church1 he commits a sin against his own creed2 but since the ,episcopal communion openly disclaims infallibility1 how shall the ,episcopalian confessor tell his penitent not to doubt his church which herself tells him he ought to doubt her8 ,then it comes to this1 that he will either make him no reply1 or rule him with a rod of iron1 and bind him by his inflexible ipse dixit4 ,what has been the result1 in more cases than one1 of this arbitrary despotism in the hands of individuals who neither by their own church1 nor by any other1 have the right to direct souls8 ,loss of the moral sense1 failure to discern the first inspirations of faith1 and1 sometimes1 insanity4 ,we draw from the testimony of facts4 ,it is bad enough to be under a civil despot1 but it is worse to be under a religious autocrat4 #cgi ,then in the choice of penances we have heard of most frightful mistakes1 where the good of the penitent was in no way consulted1 but the vindication of the absolutism of the confessor4 ,think of a penance to blood for one lie1 or for the great error of attending ,mass in a ,catholic ,church4 ,think of penances which cover months and burden years with the chains of obligatory prayers and exercises4 ,but all this is really nothing compared to the morbid and unhealthy religious life which they engender1 in which slavish fear of ,god is the principal ingredient1 where sighs and solemn faces1 instead of cheerfulness and natural joyousness1 are the exhibitions of their piety4 ,to us1 7and we have had occasion to know the interior of more than one17 they seem to be perpetually toiling up a steep ascent under the weight of heavy burdens from which it would be wrong to expect relief4 ,forced to confess their sins as if doing some stealthy action1 they kill in their souls the bright light and1 elasticity of spirit which the great ,creator gave them4 ,god is not a tyrant1 but a merciful and beneficent father1 whose smiles of love are ever around his children1 and his priesthood are agents in the work of love to bring into even the erring heart the sunlight of a father's truth and mercy4 ,the confessor is no minister of justice1 but like his ,master1 the good ,samaritan to bind up the wounds of the broken heart1 to preach deliverance to the captive1 and joy to the mourner4 ,in what we have said1 we make no accusations against the good intentions of these ,protestant confessors1 for whom we especially pray4 ,we believe that they mean well1 and that they hope to sanctify their people by borrowing fruit from the garden of the church1 and transplanting it where it cannot and will not grow4 ,and as their only friends--for in their own communion they have few friends--we warn them of the risk they run1 and of the dangers to which they expose their penitents4 ,it is a fearful responsibility for them1 for which they must answer alone1 and in which no church will shield them4 ,some will1 through their incapacity1 lose their hold upon all religion1 and either live without hope or die without consolation4 ,others will shut their eyes to the plainest deductions of reason1 and having eyes1 will see not1 having ears1 will hear not4 ,many through divine grace1 and the honest heart which pursues principles to their legitimate results1 will find their way to that one faith where all things are in harmony1 where the aspirations of the soul are met with a full answer1 and the needs of the heart are filled from ,god's own fulness4 ,o children of men6 how foolish it is to enter upon the province of ,god1 and by human hands to make a religion1 when the all-merciful ,father1 who alone knoweth our frame1 has made one for us1 which in its completeness answereth to every want of our being4 -------- #chj ,sketches ,drawn ,from ,the ,life ,of ,st4 ,paula1 ,by ,the ,abbe ,lagrange1 ,vicar-general ,of ,orleans4 ,in ,three ,chapters4 ,chapter ,i4 ,if all the members of my body should be changed into as many tongues1 and should assume as many voices1 ,i should still be unable to say enough of the virtues of the saintly and venerable ,paula4 ,it is in these words of pious enthusiasm that ,st4 ,jerome1 himself so holy a man1 and accustomed to the guidance of so many noble souls1 begins his biography of ,paula1 when1 at the instance of her daughter1 ,eustochium1 and to dry her tears1 he undertook to record her mother's virtues4 ,placing himself with awe in the presence of ,god and his angels1 ,st4 ,jerome says3 ,i call to witness our ,lord ,jesus ,christ and his saints1 and the guardian angel of this incomparable woman1 that what ,i say is simple truth1 and that my words are unworthy of those virtues celebrated throughout the world1 which have been the admiration of the church1 and which the poor yet weep for4 ,noble by birth1 more noble still by her holiness2 powerful in her opulence1 but more illustrious afterward in the poverty of ,christ2 of the race of the ,scipios and of the ,gracchi2 heiress of ,paulus ,emilius1 from whom she takes her name of ,paula2 direct descendant of that famous ,martia ,papyria1 who was wife to the conqueror of ,perseus1 and mother of the second ,scipio ,africanus2 she preferred ,bethlehem to ,rome1 and the humble roof of a poor dwelling to the gilded palaces of her ancestors4 ,paula was born in ,rome1 about the middle of the fourth century1 the #eth of ,may1 of the year #cdg1 in the reign of ,constantius1 and of ,constans1 the sons of ,constantine1 seven years after the death of the latter prince4 ,julius was then ,pope at ,rome4 ,paula belonged1 through her mother1 ,blesilla1 to one of the most ancient and illustrious families of ,rome2 and it seemed as if ,providence wished to unite all earthly distinctions in this child1 for the purest blood of ,greece mingled in her veins with the noblest blood of ,rome4 ,at this time nothing was more common than alliances between the ,roman and ,greek families1 as is proved by the ,greek names which we find in the ,roman genealogies4 ,the father of ,paula1 ,rogatus1 was a ,greek1 and claimed royal descent from the kings of ,mycaenas2 and ,agamemnon himself is said to have been his direct ancestor4 ,st4 ,jerome gives no further detail of the family of ,paula1 excepting that he mentions casually that their possessions were vast1 including very important estates in ,greece near ,actium1 besides their domain in ,italy4 ,if1 says ,st4 ,jerome1 ,i take note of her opulence and wealth1 it is not that ,i attach importance to these temporal advantages1 but in order to show that the glory of ,paula in my eyes was not in having possessed them1 but in having laid them at the feet of ,jesus ,christ4 #cha ,a more real advantage of her birth was1 that her noble family were ,christians1 although a portion of them still remained pagans4 ,this intermingling of creeds must not surprise us2 for the resistance to conversion was great1 and throughout the fourth century it was a common thing to see worshippers of the true ,god and of ,jupiter under the same roof4 ,rome1 in truth1 presented then a great contrast4 ,christian ,rome and pagan ,rome stood face to face1 and pagan ,rome1 as yet untouched by barbarians1 still wore an imposing aspect4 ,the ,capitol still stood in pride1 crowned with the statues and temples of the heathen gods4 ,opposite1 on the ,palatine1 stood the ancient dwelling of the ,caesars1 with its marble porticoes2 and at the foot of the two hills the old ,forum surrounded with pagan temples4 ,further still1 and separated from the ,forum by the ,sacred ,way and the ,amphitheatre of ,flavius1 rose the immense ,colosseum2 and at the other extremity the great circus and the aqueducts of ,nero4 ,on the borders of the ,tiber was the mole of ,adrian1 the mausoleum of ,augustus1 with temples1 theatres1 baths1 porticoes1 etc41 on every side2 indeed1 every monument of luxury and superstition1 showing how deeply rooted paganism still was in the capital of the empire4 ,nevertheless1 by more than one sign it was easy to recognize that all this pagan grandeur was fast fading away before another power2 and if polytheism still found strong support in old traditions and customs1 institutions and monuments1 it was the influence of the past1 which was lessening every day4 ,the future belonged to the church1 and ,christianity was daily gaining the upper hand4 ,the pagan temples which were still standing were empty1 the crowd now disdaining sacrifices4 ,silence and solitude reigned around the gods1 while the new faith1 spreading out its magnificence in broad daylight1 covered ,rome with superb basilicas4 ,at the same time1 ,rome1 deserted by the emperors for political reasons1 which served the divine purpose1 seemed given up to the majesty of pontifical rule2 and the popes1 brought out from the ,catacombs and placed by ,constantine in the imperial palace1 already gave a foreshadowing to the world of the glory which should henceforth invest the ,holy ,see4 ,at this time there sprang from the bosom of the church a soul who was destined to exercise a vast influence upon the religious orders throughout the universe4 ,the blood of the martyrs and early ,christians had not been shed in vain4 ,it was just at this epoch in the history of ,christianity that ,providence gave being to a child destined by her holiness to be one of the marvels of the age4 ,we have sufficient data to know what her education was and under what influences she grew up to womanhood4 ,the old ,roman spirit and the ,christian spirit were both fitted to form a character of the highest order4 ,austere honor1 severe self-respect1 noble traditions of ancient customs1 were early inculcated in the mind of ,paula4 ,she came of a race of whom ,st4 ,jerome said3 ,remember that in your family a woman very rarely1 if ever1 contracts a second marriage4 ,besides the holy books which were her first studies1 her reading was vast and extended1 embracing both the literature of ,greece and ,rome4 ,we shall see how in after-life this early culture developed in her the rich gifts of nature1 establishing equilibrium between her intellect and her character4 #chb ,paula was brought up by her mother with that ardent love for the practice of her religion1 which in all its perfection belonged especially to the days when persecution made these observances most precious to the early ,christians4 ,she followed ,blesilla to the basilicas and to all feasts of the church1 and also to visit the tombs of the martyrs and to the ,catacombs4 ,this last devotion was peculiarly dear to the ,christians of the fourth century4 ,they sought to glorify those victorious soldiers4 ,see1 cried ,st4 ,chrysostom1 the tomb of the martyrs6 ,the emperor himself lays down his crown there1 and bends the knee4 ,there was not1 perhaps1 a family of ,christians in ,rome1 which did not have some loved member among the glorious dead lying in the long galleries of the ,catacombs4 ,saint ,jerome speaks of the pious attraction of these sanctified asylums in the great city of the martyrs4 ,in this atmosphere of love for the church1 and of faith in ,christ and in the divine origin of ,christianity1 young ,paula grew up4 ,it was in those days the custom for the daughters of noble houses in ,rome to marry young2 and when ,paula was fifteen years of age1 her parents gave her in marriage to a young ,greek whose name was ,toxotius4 ,he belonged1 on his mother's side1 to the ancient family of the ,julians1 which boasted1 as we know1 of going back to the time of ,a,eneas3 ,julius1 magno dimissum nomen ,ilo4 ,virgil's ,a,eneid4 ,toxotius did not have the faith of his bride4 ,these mixed marriages were not rare in those days2 witness ,monica and ,patricius1 the parents of ,st4 ,augustine4 ,christianity had tolerated such marriages from the beginning1 in the hope that the infidel husband might be won by the wife to her belief4 ,when1 robed in a white tunic of the finest wool1 according to custom1 her brow covered with the flammcum1 ,paula laid her trembling hand in that of ,toxotius1 who can tell with what holy emotion1 what elevation of thought1 what purity of feeling and of hope1 her soul was filled6 ,on the other hand1 ,toxotius does not seem to have been unworthy of his ,christian bride1 and the uncommon affection ,paula bore him ever afterward1 her inconsolable grief for his loss1 all proves that their marriage was among those which the world calls happy4 ,god blessed this union4 ,four daughters were successively born to them4 ,the eldest1 called ,blesilla after her grandmother1 seemed gifted with a vivacious and most interesting character2 her health was delicate1 but her full1 rich nature gave early promise of that rare beauty of mind and soul1 which developed perfectly in after-years to the joy of ,paula4 ,paulina1 the second1 had also a fine nature1 but the very opposite of ,blesilla's4 ,her light was not like her sister's1 a shining flame2 but with less brilliancy of wit1 and less vivacity of character1 she possessed great good sense and solid judgment1 giving promise of being as strong in character as her sister was brilliant4 ,as for the third of these young girls1 called by the graceful name of ,eustochium1 borrowed from the ,greek1 and meaning rectitude or rule1 she was a gentle child1 modest1 reserved1 timid4 ,one would say she was like a flower hiding within herself her own perfume2 but this perfume was sweet1 and on a nearer view one could not avoid seeing in this young soul all the treasures which would one day flower and bloom4 ,it is difficult to picture to ourselves ,rufina4 #chc ,she appears but once in the history of her mother1 at the moment of the departure of ,paula for the east1 sad1 bathed in tears1 and yet silent and resigned2 stamped1 even in childhood1 with that painful charm which belongs particularly to those beings not destined by providence to mature1 but to fall away and die young4 ,paula's married life was passed in the midst of all the magnificence which marked the decline and fall of the empire4 ,she passed through the streets of ,rome1 as did the other patrician ladies1 in a gilded litter1 carried by slaves4 ,she would have feared to put her dainty feet on the earth1 or to touch the mud of the streets4 ,the weight of a silk dress was almost too much for one so sensitive to carry2 and had a ray of sunshine intruded into her litter1 it would have seemed to her a fire4 ,et solis calor incendium1 etc41 etc4 ,epist4 ad ,pammachium4 ,in those days she used rouge and cereum1 like other women of her rank2 she passed much of her time at the bath1 which consumed so great a part of life in ,rome2 she spent the winter1 according to usual custom1 at ,rome1 and the summer in some villa in the country1 passing her time most agreeably between her books and a chosen circle of friends4 ,in the midst of all this luxury1 leading a life far removed from the virtues which she practised later1 ,paula was yet known and respected as a woman of great dignity of character and irreproachable conduct4 ,and if1 during these happy years1 the young wife of ,toxotius did not always sufficiently bear in mind the maxim of the apostle1 which teaches us to use the things of this world1 without giving them our affections inordinately2 if she tasted too freely of its pleasures and dangerous vanities1 in the trials which she was soon to encounter1 there was compensation to be made for this self-indulgence1 and1 in her austere penance1 a super-abundant expiation4 ,saint ,jerome tells us that ,paula had none of the barbaric arrogance common to the ,roman women--that which made them purse-proud1 cruel to their slaves1 passionate1 and impatient1 which ,juvenal describes so admirably in his imperishable satires4 ,in ,paula all these bad passions gave place to gentleness1 softness1 goodness4 ,this wealthy daughter of the ,scipios1 says ,st4 ,jerome1 was the gentlest and the most benevolent of women--to little children1 to plebeians1 and with her own slaves4 ,she possessed that excelling goodness1 without which noble birth and beauty are worthless1 and which is especially characteristic of a lofty nature4 ,this sweetness of mind1 combined with her austere sense of honor1 were the two features of her soul which1 by their contrast1 made her countenance most charming4 ,it is easy to conceive how such a woman performed the delicate social duties that devolved upon her4 ,her associations were of two kinds4 ,she was intimate with all the celebrated women in the church1 such as ,manilla and ,titiana2 at the same time the pagan relations of ,toxotius all loved her1 and she received them frequently at her house1 bearing in mind the duty of the ,christian woman to let them see her religion in such a light as would lead them to respect and honor it4 ,and so it was that1 by her fireside1 ,paula was the happiest of wives and of mothers4 ,her young family grew up joyously around her1 filling her with bright hopes for the future4 ,she had long wished to give her husband a son and heir4 ,her prayer was answered2 and she gave birth to a son1 her last child1 who received the name of ,toxotius1 after his father4 #chd ,this is all that history tells us of the first phase in the life of ,paula4 ,we see her thus with every happiness at once1 the pride1 says ,st4 ,jerome1 of her husband1 of her family1 and of all ,rome4 ,we know no more of her life up to the age of thirty4 ,the ,paula of history1 the saint whom ,god was to give as an example to souls1 is not the woman of the world1 nor the happy woman2 she is the woman struck as if by lightning1 blasted in her happiness2 and from this trial rising up generously1 and by a great flight soaring far above common virtues and the ordinary condition of pious souls1 up to those heroic acts which only emanate from great sorrows4 ,it would seem as if ,god had been pleased to accumulate upon her1 for thirty years1 all the felicity of earth--to adorn1 as it were1 this victim of his love1 and to make us comprehend the better by the subsequent destruction of this1 how vain is earthly happiness4 ,it is here that the historian takes hold of ,paula1 and that the veil is lifted from her4 ,now begins her true history1 the history of her soul4 ,paula was only thirty-one years of age when ,toxotius died and she became a widow4 ,the blow to her was terrible4 ,in the first moments of her grief she was completely stunned and powerless4 ,it was feared by her friends that she would not long survive the shock4 ,nothing could stop her tears4 ,she could not be comforted4 ,from day to day the void was growing deeper and deeper into her heart4 ,there is a decisive turning-point in the life of every one1 on which the future depends4 ,this moment had now come for ,paula4 ,two ways lay open before her--the world on one side1 ,god on the other4 ,she determined1 in her sorrow1 to give up the world1 to lead for ever afterward the life of a ,christian widow1 and to seek for consolation in this resolution4 ,after the first outburst of grief1 when she came to herself1 her decision was irrevocably made4 ,human things were never more to regain the hold they had had over her up till now4 ,she understood what ,god wanted of her2 namely1 to accept the sacrifice and change her whole life4 ,so1 as ,st4 ,francis de ,sales tells us1 the heart of a widow who could not give herself all to ,god during the lifetime of her husband1 flies in search of celestial perfumes1 when he has been taken from her4 ,paula was surrounded with many noble examples4 ,marcella lived in her palace on ,mount ,aventine1 where she had gathered together a band of widows and virgins from amongst the noblest families of ,rome1 who gave great edification by their virtue and charity4 ,how and for what purpose had ,providence permitted this community to be formed1 which gave such an impetus to the religious life8 ,it is necessary that we should answer in some detail1 for this is the key to the whole life of ,paula4 ,the church1 resting from the earlier persecutions1 which inflamed zeal and devotion1 was now in great peril from the growing influence of security and wealth1 in spreading a pagan and ,roman love of indolence and indifference4 ,the empire was declining1 and its moral fall was hastened by political troubles4 ,the degenerate ,romans consoled themselves for their abasement1 by the melancholy enjoyments of luxury and vice4 ,luxury and debauchery were already creeping into the ,christian lines1 thus attacking the most vital parts of the church4 ,false widows and virgins no longer scrupled to show light conduct beneath the veil4 #che ,there must be a remedy found equal to the evil4 ,god failed not to bring succor to his church1 and the spirit of holiness became all the more manifest in her faithful children1 in proportion as the peril was great4 ,the reaction commenced in the east1 with the great monastic foundations1 which rose up in opposition to the world1 performing prodigies in the way of austerities and moral improvement4 ,at ,rome1 strange to say1 the reform began where it was least to have been expected1 namely1 in the midst of the patricians4 ,the signal was given by women4 ,they threw themselves with ardor into the heroic path1 and soon their husbands followed them4 ,this regeneration was one of the most memorable in history1 as well as in the annals of the church4 ,it was started by ,st4 ,athanasius1 who brought it with him from the east4 ,thrice exiled by ,arian persecution1 the great patriarch three times sought refuge in ,rome4 ,he had brought with him the revelation of the wonders realized by the fathers in the deserts of ,egypt and on the banks of the ,nile4 ,his biography of the great ,anthony took hold of every imagination1 and gave new zeal to monastic life4 ,athanasius had passed seven years in the ,theban deserts2 he had known ,anthony1 ,ricomius1 and ,hilarius1 and told of the astounding graces of their supernatural life4 ,in one of these journeys of ,athanasius to ,rome1 a noble ,christian widow1 named ,albina1 had the honor of receiving him as her guest4 ,albina had a daughter1 ,marcella1 on whose noble soul the conversation of the great bishop made an extraordinary impression4 ,seated at his feet1 the young girl drank in every word that fell from his lips4 ,some months after1 out of deference to her mother's wishes1 ,marcella consented to marry2 but when1 at the end of seven months1 she became a widow and was free1 she made up her mind never to contract a second marriage1 but to devote herself in ,rome to the humble imitation of those virtues which ,athanasius had taught her to venerate and admire4 ,nevertheless1 her youth1 her wit and great beauty drew around her many admirers4 ,amongst others was ,cerealio1 of high birth and large fortune4 ,i will be more her father than her husband1 said he to ,albina1 who greatly desired the marriage1 ,i will leave her all my wealth1 being already advanced in years4 ,but ,marcella was inflexible4 ,if ,i wished to marry again1 said she to her mother1 ,i would marry a husband1 and not an inheritance4 ,cerealio was refused1 and this discouraged all other suitors4 ,marcella now gave up the world and made a desert of her magnificent palace4 ,there she lived austerely1 doing good works4 ,she bid farewell to jewels1 and even laid aside the seal ring always worn by the patrician women2 and rising above their prejudice against the religious state1 and particularly the coarse garb of the monks1 she was the first who dared to assume the abased dress1 and publicly imitated what ,st4 ,athanasius had taught her to believe good in the sight of ,god4 ,the example soon became contagious1 giving her many followers1 who astonished ,rome by their austerities and penances4 ,there was also at ,rome1 at this time1 a young patrician lady whose name was ,melanie4 ,suddenly1 when only twenty-two1 she lost her husband and two children1 and laid them in one tomb on the same day4 ,accepting this dispensation of the divine will1 ,melanie resolved to devote her whole life to the shining virtues of which ,marcella was so bright an example4 #chf ,to increase her faith further1 she started on a pious pilgrimage to the east1 where ,athanasius still lived4 ,she saw him at ,alexandria shortly before his death4 ,after having visited the monasteries of ,egypt and the ,holy ,land1 ,melanie was unwilling to return to ,rome and its corruptions4 ,she therefore founded for herself a monastery on the ,mount of ,olives1 where she lived an austere and good life4 ,this example still further inflamed the souls of the ,roman women1 and numberless were those now in search of perfection2 some remaining at home in their own houses1 like the virgins and widows of the first centuries2 others preferring to congregate together1 and1 without any fixed rule1 make the trial of community life4 ,the centre of all this movement was ,marcella1 who possessed in an extraordinary degree the power of attracting others to her4 ,she was truly the standard-bearer of this noble band1 of whose hearts grace had taken possession4 ,the venerable ,albina was like the revered ancestress of the little community formed on ,mount ,aventine4 ,the most prominent of those who joined ,marcella were ,sophronia1 ,felicitas1 and ,marcellina4 ,the latter was daughter of an ancient governor of the ,gauls4 ,outside of ,marcella's house1 the names best known among those who had devoted themselves to a life of austerity and virtue1 were ,lea1 a holy widow whom the church has canonized2 the admirable ,asella1 and ,fabiola1 who was of the ancient family of ,fabius4 ,all this movement toward religious life was greatly encouraged by the pious pontiff who then filled ,st4 ,peter's chair4 ,at the time ,paula became a widow4 ,pope ,damasus was nearly seventy-five years of age4 ,he was one of the noblest of the early popes1 and one of those who did most for ,christianity and for the development of ,christian piety4 ,he had a sister named ,irene1 who1 consecrating herself to ,god1 died at the age of twenty1 in honor of whom he composed a most touching epitaph4 ,such was the group of souls and the array of virtue which ,paula had around her1 and which attracted her1 when she became a widow1 to seek a more perfect life4 ,in the words of ,st4 ,jerome1 ,marcella1 like an incendiary1 blew upon these lighted cinders and set them in a blaze4 ,she found words to bid those eyes1 so dimmed by tears1 to turn to heaven2 and she urged that bruised spirit to rise up and seek ,god4 ,all this ,marcella did with a sister's tenderness4 ,her solicitude extended to the children of her friend1 and she begged that ,eustochium1 who already showed a predilection for the religious life1 might be confided to her care4 ,paula acceded to this wish with joy1 keeping with her ,blesilla1 ,paulina1 ,rufina1 and ,toxotius4 ,then she began with ardor and faith the new life she had marked out for herself1 and she soon outshone all others in virtue4 ,there was a sudden and admirable expansion of greatness in her soul4 ,with her this rupture with the world was but a higher flight toward ,god4 ,her first step in advance was a new and great love of prayer2 for so it is1 that the more the heart is closed to earth1 the more it opens to heaven4 ,her love of ,god and of celestial things grew stronger each day4 ,she lived most austerely1 practising every ,christian mortification4 ,all the habits of luxury of other days were thrown aside1 and the very comforts of life diminished4 ,she slept on the bare floor1 and rivalled in abstinence and fast the ascetics of the desert4 ,she often wept over the thought of the self-indulgence of her former worldly life4 #chg ,these tears1 together with those which she shed for her husband1 ,toxotius1 flowed so constantly and so abundantly1 that her eyes were injured1 and her sight endangered4 ,paula was the pale one1 pale with fasting and almost blinded by tears4 ,paula's heart was inflamed with charity4 ,she found in the poor another outlet of love for an ardent nature2 and as she surpassed ,marcella and all others in austerities1 so she also surpassed them in charities4 ,all her income was given in alms1 and never1 says ,st4 ,jerome1 did a beggar come away from her empty-handed4 ,it was now two years since ,paula had lived in this holy way1 when great news reached the little community of ,aventine4 ,in #chb1 ,pope ,damasus called to ,rome the ,catholic bishops in council1 and many venerable bishops were expected there from the east4 ,the object of the council was to decide several questions of faith1 as well as to put an end to the long pending schism of ,antioch4 ,a few bishops only answered the call of the ,roman pontiff1 the greater part excusing themselves in a letter which is celebrated in ecclesiastical history4 ,among those who came were ,paulinus1 one of the bishops of ,antioch1 and ,st4 ,epiphanius1 ,bishop of ,salamina in the island of ,cyprus4 ,it is easy to imagine the emotion produced among these recluses by the arrival in ,rome of such personages as these holy bishops1 who came from the mysterious east where the ,catholic faith had been cradled4 ,they had seen ,jerusalem and the ,holy ,land2 they knew the fathers of the desert1 whose fame filled the world4 ,what lessons of wisdom would they not be able to gather from such visitors6 ,paula obtained from ,pope ,damasus the honor of having ,st4 ,epiphanius as her guest1 and it was in her daily interviews with him1 as well as with ,paulinus1 that the desire to see the east1 which she was one day to realize1 first sprung up in her mind4 ,history has preserved few details of this council of the year #chb4 ,the great work to be brought about by these eastern bishops at ,rome was the new impetus which their presence was to give to religion among the ,christians of ,rome already in the way of life and truth4 ,there came from the east1 in company with the holy bishops1 a man destined to exercise great influence over the future life of ,paula and her friends4 ,this man was ,st4 ,jerome4 ,we must pause a moment and not pass by one who is perhaps the most striking1 the most original1 and the grandest figure of the fourth century4 ,he stands alone in his strength--different from ,st4 ,hilarius of ,poitiers1 the profound theologian2 from ,ambrose1 the sweet orator2 from ,augustine1 the great philosopher1 or ,paulinus1 the ,christian poet4 ,his features are marked and stern1 his character is austere and ardent2 the burning reflection from an eastern sky rests upon him2 he is laden with the learning of the ,christian and the pagan world2 the indefatigable athlete of the church1 he whose powerful voice moved the old world when they listened to his pathetic lament over the fall of ,rome1 and which moves us still when we read it now after the lapse of centuries6 ,such was ,jerome2 yet is this picture incomplete1 for we have not mentioned his special gift for the direction of souls4 ,he was their guide1 their father4 ,he it was who began this divine guidance1 entrusted afterward to ,st4 ,bernard1 and by him to ,st4 ,francis de ,sales1 from ,st4 ,francis de ,sales to ,bossuet and ,fnlon1 and so on down to our own times4 ,it is this special gift which gives him so prominent a part in the history of ,paula4 #chh ,pope ,damasus wished to detain him in ,rome after the departure of the bishops for the east1 in order that ,jerome should expound the holy ,scriptures and give answers to those who came to ,rome from all parts of the globe for explanations of the dogmas and discipline of the church4 ,a great friendship had sprung up between the sovereign pontiff and ,st4 ,jerome4 ,the study of the holy ,scriptures bound their affections together4 ,i know of nothing better1 wrote the holy father to him in one of his letters1 than our conversations about ,scripture2 that is to say1 when ,i ask questions1 and you answer2 and ,i say like the prophet1 that your voice is sweeter to my heart than honey to my lips4 ,after the departure of ,epiphanius and ,paulinus1 ,marcella and ,paula sought for ,jerome and entreated him to explain the ,scriptures to them at ,mount ,aventine4 ,the austere monk resisted them long1 but at last yielded1 and crowds came to hear him4 ,he would read the text1 and then make his comments4 ,the listeners were captivated by his eloquence1 and his language was peculiarly strong1 clear1 and forcible4 ,his monk's attire1 his cheeks1 sunken by penance and browned by the eastern sun1 and his deep voice1 all combined to throw a strange spell over his hearers4 ,he1 too1 soon discovered that he spoke to noble souls1 and thus was his abiding interest awakened by his own delight in opening such treasures to those so capable of appreciating them4 ,such was the ardor of ,paula and her friends in studying the ,scriptures1 that ,jerome was in admiration at their labor and perseverance2 and it excited him to further efforts1 and made him feel the necessity of undertaking a complete translation of the entire ,bible1 which1 indeed1 was the work of his life from that time afterward1 without remission2 being begun on ,mount ,aventine1 among his favorite disciples1 and only ending many years later1 with his life4 ,jerome now undertook the spiritual direction of ,paula1 ,marcella1 ,asella1 and their friends4 ,many of his letters to them have been preserved1 a monument of this wonderful direction4 ,he wrote to them unceasingly1 and what remains to us of this vast correspondence suffices to show the noble light in which he viewed ,christian duty4 ,their moral elevation is marvellous1 and when from theory he came to practice1 he seemed to trample under foot all human weakness and to expect from these high-born and gently nurtured patricians the abstinence and fasting of the ,anchorites of the ,theban deserts4 ,this direction of ,st4 ,jerome wrought wonders in the soul of ,paula4 ,she daily grew in grace1 and became a still more noble example of austerity1 of prayer1 of abundant charities1 and good works1 and of the fruitful study of the ,scriptures4 ,what shall ,i say of the worldly goods of this noble lady1 almost entirely spent on the poor8 exclaims ,st4 ,jerome4 ,what shall ,i say of her universal charity1 which made her love and succor beings she had never even seen8 ,what sick person was not nursed by her8 ,she sought the afflicted throughout the great city1 and ever thought she had met with a loss if the sick or the hungry had already found assistance before hers4 #chi ,this is what the love of ,christ brought about in imperial and corrupt ,rome when1 for the first time1 such ,christian heroism burst forth from the midst of the patricians1 their admirable and pious daughter shedding new lustre upon those glorious old pagan families4 ,to ,be ,continued4 ---------------- ,bound ,with ,paul4 ,the warden's wife followed her husband down the steps leading to the prison4 ',o caro ,duca mio1' is there an inscription over the door8 she asked2 for ,i have brought hope with me1 and will not let it go4 ,not having anything to say1 the warden kept silent4 ,he was used to his wife's fanciful ways of speaking1 and liked to hear her pleasant voice1 though her meaning might escape him4 ,for education had emphasized the difference which nature had pronounced between these two--a difference which ,william ,blake has defined in a word3 the man looked with his eyes1 the woman looked through hers4 ,besides1 the warden's attention was at the moment fully occupied4 ,the prison-bell had rung the second time1 and the convicts had finished their day's work4 ,mr4 and ,mrs4 ,raynor stood just within the great entrance of the prison1 and watched the sluggish streams of crime that oozed from the doors of the different shops1 joined in the yard1 and crept toward them--an ,acheron1 in which human faces presently became visible2 but faces bleached1 unwholesome1 and expressionless4 ,perhaps their souls had been scorched up in the baleful flames that had wafted these men hither1 or mesmerized in the leaden to-and-fro of their lives4 ,or1 more likely1 retired to some secret recess of the brain1 their restless wits might be working out new designs of evil4 ,an occasional spark in some sidelong eye favored the latter guess4 ,now for explanation1 the warden said1 keeping a strict eye on the advancing line1 yet aware of a hand stealing toward his arm4 ,be careful1 dear6 my revolver is on that side4 ,your man will go into the furthest cell in the first ward4 ,his name is ,dougherty2 his nationality1 of course1 a mystery4 ,he was sentenced ten years for assault and highway robbery1 and has now but two months to stay4 ,excepting this one affair1 he has always borne a good name1 and there couldn't be a better prisoner4 ,he might have been pardoned out long ago if he had tried1 but he never asks favors4 ,when he came here1 his only brother1 a decent fellow1 went to ,california4 ,he couldn't stand the disgrace4 ,but he writes once a month1 a very good letter1 too2 and when the ten years shall be up1 will come or send for his brother4 ,they say that ,dougherty behaved very well by him when he went away1 and gave him all his1 ,dougherty's1 money4 ,i shouldn't wonder4 ,the fellow has the strongest sense of duty ,i ever knew in a man4 ,that's what is the matter with him now4 ,he told the deputy yesterday that he should never go to chapel again4 ,he had before been in doubt about it1 he said2 but when the chaplain praised ,martin ,luther1 and called the church some ugly name or other1 then he knew that it was a sin for him to listen4 #cij ,i don't want to punish the man2 but1 of course1 he must go to chapel4 ,i can't make exceptions2 and half a dozen of the worst rascals here have some way got wind of the affair1 and have all at once experienced theology4 ,that tall1 heavy fellow1 who murdered his mother and his brother1 and then set fire to the house and burnt their bodies up1 had his feelings badly hurt when the chaplain said something sarcastic of the pope's great toe4 ,but ,dougherty is honest1 and if he will submit1 ,i can easily bring the others down4 ,if he should hold out1 there will be trouble2 for they will do for deviltry what he will do for conscience' sake4 ,if you can talk him over1 ,i shall be glad2 but ,i haven't much hope of it4 ,he is not a man likely to be influenced by a woman's soft words4 ,he is granite4 ,the wife smiled saucily4 ,i have seen a silly little pink cloud make a granite boulder blush as though it had blood in it1 she said4 ,at this moment the file of convicts reached the portal1 and came winding through in the slow lock-step1 separated noiselessly into detachments1 a part moving toward the lower cells1 the rest climbing the narrow flight of stairs leading to the upper tiers4 ,the faces of the men caught an additional pallor from the cold1 whitewashed stone of the prison1 and a darker shade as1 one by one1 they disappeared into the cells1 the doors clapping to in rapid succession behind them1 like the leaves of a book run over in the fingers4 ,in a few minutes the whole line had crumbled away1 and there were visible but the three tiers of iron doors1 each door with a hand thrust through the bars1 and a dim face behind them4 ,mrs4 ,raynor glanced up the block to the last cell4 ,the hand she saw there had a character of its own4 ,the fingers were not half closed1 listlessly waiting to be seen1 but firm and straight1 and the thumb was clasped tightly around the bar against which it rested--a dogged hand4 ,you think that the dungeon would have no effect8 she asked4 ,the warden repeated the word dungeon with a circumflex calculated to give the impression that the apartment in question was vaulted4 ,i doubt if even the strings will break him1 he said4 ,you take a ,catholic ,irishman born in ,ireland1 and you can't hammer nor melt him into anything but a ,catholic4 ,he may lie as fast as a dog can trot1 and steal your eye-teeth from under your eyes2 but if you cut him into inch pieces1 as long as he has a thumb and finger left1 he will make the sign of the cross with them4 ,you are losing courage1 little woman4 ,no6 ,well1 good luck to you6 ,i'm going off4 ,the lady walked up the ward1 nodding to the convicts who pressed eagerly for recognition1 stopping to speak to those who had requests to make1 and1 pausing at a little distance from the upper cell1 looked attentively at its occupant1 herself unseen by him4 ,the warden had well compared this man to granite4 ,he was tall1 thick-set1 as straight as a post1 had the broad1 combative ,irish head1 crowned with a luxuriance of dark-brown hair1 and square jaws that promised a tenacious grip on whatever he might set his mental teeth in4 ,but the face was honest1 though hard1 and the straight mouth did not look as though giving to lying or blasphemy1 but had something solemn in its closing4 ,the well-shaped nose was as notable for spirit as the mouth for firmness1 and the blue-grey eyes were steady1 not bright1 and rather small4 #cia ,altogether1 a man of whom one might say that1 if he was not so good1 he would not have been so bad4 ,this convict sat on a bench in the middle of his little whitewashed cell1 and appeared to be lost in thought4 ,but in his attitude there was none of that easy drooping which usually accompanies such abstraction4 ,he sat perfectly upright and rigid1 the only perceptible motion a quick one of the eyelids1 the eyes fixed--locked1 rather than lost in thought4 ,he rose immediately on seeing who his visitor was1 bowed with a soldierly stiffness that was not without state1 and waited for her to speak4 ,after a few pleasant inquiries1 civilly answered1 she told her errand4 ,it was not so easy as she had expected2 but she spoke kindly and earnestly1 urging the necessity for discipline in such a place1 and the unwillingness of the warden to inflict any punishment on him4 ,i have no doubt of your sincerity1 she concluded1 though the others mean only mischief4 ,but the decision must be the same in both cases4 ,he listened attentively to every word she said1 then replied with quiet firmness1 ,i am sorry1 ma'am1 that there is going to be any trouble about it4 ,but it would be a sin for me to go and hear ,protestantism called the church of ,god1 when it is no more a church than a barnacle is a ship4 ,that is not the question1 she persisted4 ,admitting that what the chaplain says may be false1 ,i still say that you ought to go4 ,you are here in a state of servitude2 you have no will of your own2 your duty is obedience to the rules of the place2 and the more difficult that duty1 the more your merit4 ,if you should listen with pleasure1 or even with toleration1 while your faith is attacked1 that might be sin2 but the listening unwillingly and with pain you can offer to ,god as a penance in expiation of the crime which obliges you to perform it4 ,i am speaking now as a ,catholic would4 ,i believe that your priest would say the same4 ,she paused to note the effect of her words2 but his face was unmoved4 ,i have a dear friend who is a ,catholic1 she added4 ,for her sake ,i should be sorry to have you punished for such a cause4 ,this plea made no impression whatever4 ,plainly1 the man was not soft-hearted1 nor susceptible to flattery4 ,he merely listened1 and appeared to be gravely considering the subject4 ,to yield would be humility2 to refuse would be pride1 she said4 ,you need not listen while in the chapel2 you can think your own thoughts and say your own prayers4 ,as he still pondered1 she again went over her argument1 enlarging and dwelling on it till it reached his comprehension4 ,he listened as before1 but made no sign of approval nor dissent4 ,either from nature or habit1 it seemed hard for the man to get his mouth open4 ,but at length he spoke4 ,you were right1 ma'am1 in telling me that my duty here is obedience1 he said2 but you left out one condition--obedience in all that is not sin4 ,if the warden should tell me to kill a man1 it would not be my duty to obey4 ,i do obey in all that is not sin4 ,it would be a sin for me to go to chapel4 ,he spoke respectfully1 but with decision2 and the lady perceived that their argument had reached a knot which only the hand of authority could cut4 ,she sighed1 and abandoned her attempt4 #cib ,could she abandon it8 ,remembering the dungeon and the strings1 her heart strengthened itself for one more effort4 ,she had begun by marching straight up to the subject1 challenging opposition2 it might be better to approach circuitously4 ,let me undermine him1 she thought2 and1 turning away1 as though leaving the captive to silence and loneliness again1 let the sense of returning desolation catch him for an instant1 then hesitated1 and glanced backward4 ,it was a good beginning2 he was looking after her4 ,the sight of a friendly face1 the sound of a friendly voice1 and liberty to speak1 were unfrequent boons in that place1 and too precious to be willingly relinquished1 ,the days must seem long to you1 she said4 ,she came nearer1 and leaned against the door4 ,yes1 they are long2 but ,i thank ,god for every one of them4 ,my coming here was the best thing that ever happened to me4 ,i was getting to be drunkard1 and this put a stop to it4 ,as he spoke1 he lifted his face and looked out at the strip of sky visible through the window across the corridor1 and his eyes began to kindle4 ,have you a family8 the lady asked4 ,he waited a moment before answering1 seemed to break some link of thought that had a bright fracture1 and his expression underwent a slight but decided change4 ,a light in it that had been lofty softened to a light that was tender1 as at her question he looked down again4 ,there's ,larry1 he said4 ,and who is ,larry8 ,the convict stared with astonishment at her ignorance4 ,and1 indeed1 ,mrs4 ,raynor was the only person about the prison who had not heard the name of this ,larry4 ,he is my step-brother1 ma'am1 he replied4 ,we had but the one father2 but he had his own mother4 ,when she died1 there were two of us left1 and ,i took the lad and brought him to this country4 ,he was five years old then1 and ,i was twenty4 ,i was a stone-cutter1 and thought to do better here2 and1 faith1 one way ,i have1 and another way ,i haven't4 ,shame never touched one of us at home4 ,who took care of the child8 ,mrs4 ,raynor asked4 ,myself1 ma'am4 ,he ate and slept with me1 and ,i took him on my arm as often as ,i put my hat on4 ,he had his little chair on the table in my shop1 or he played about at the end of a long string4 ,for the lad was venturesome1 and ,i never trusted him but with a tether4 ,he must have been a great care1 she said4 ,have you any children1 ma'am8 the convict asked4 ,no4 ,i thought that1 he said dryly2 then smiled4 ,larry was like a picture4 ,he had red cheeks and black eyes1 and his hair was like gold with a shadow on it4 ,it used to take me half an hour every morning to make his curls1 and they reached to his waist4 ,everybody noticed the child1 and they'd turn to look after him in the street4 ,one of the richest ladies in the city wanted to take him for her own1 and me to promise never to see him again2 and when she told what she would do for him1 ,i thought that perhaps ,i ought to let him go4 ,the lady coaxed him1 and gave him picture-books and candy1 and then asked him if he'd go and live with her2 and faith1 ma'am1 my heart didn't get such a scalding when ,mary asked her promise back1 and said she liked ,larry best1 as it did when that child went to the lady's knee and said he would go and live with her4 ,god forgive me1 but ,i hated her that minute4 ,well1 ,i told her that ,i would think about it1 and let her know the next day4 #cic ,that night ,i dreamed that she had him1 and that ,i saw him far off at play1 dressed in jewels1 and his little frock like a fall of snow4 ,i dreamed that ,i couldn't speak to him1 and that set me crying2 and ,i cried so that ,i waked myself up4 ,i put my hand out for the child1 but ,i couldn't find him4 ,he was a restless little fellow1 and had crawled down to the foot of the bed4 ,for a minute ,i thought that the dream was true2 and then ,i knew that ,i couldn't let him go4 ,i waked him up1 and asked him if he'd stay and live for ever with his brother ,john2 and ,i was a happy man when he put his little arms round my neck and said yes1 he would4 ,and ,i made a promise to the child that night1 while he was asleep in my arms1 that1 since ,i kept him back from being a rich man1 whatever he might ask of me in all his life1 if it was my heart's blood1 he should have it6 ,and1 ma'am1 ,i've kept my promise4 ,the tenderness with which he spoke of his brother invested the convict's manner with the softening grace which it so much needed1 and grew upon his rough nature like a gentian upon its rock4 ,this brother is in ,california8 ,mrs4 ,raynor asked4 ,the convict dropped his eyes4 ,he and ,mary went there when ,i came here1 he said4 ,who is ,mary8 ,mary is ,larry's wife1 was the brief reply4 ,you hear from them8 ,oh6 yes1 he said eagerly4 ,they write to me every month4 ,in his last letter ,larry said that he was coming after me at the end of my term2 but ,i sent him word not to4 ,i can go alone1 and he will send me the money4 ,the man seemed to have a jealous suspicion of her thought that he had been cruelly deserted4 ,i told them to go1 he said with a touch of pride2 and ,i shall go and live with them when ,i get out of this4 ,they wouldn't hear to my going anywhere else4 ,he broke off1 glanced through the window1 and said1 as if involuntarily1 ,there's the west wind6 then drew back1 rather ashamed when the lady looked to find what he meant4 ,you see1 ma'am1 we don't have much to think of here1 and there's only the sight of stone and iron1 and that bit of sky4 ,three years ago there wasn't a glimpse of green2 but two years ago ,i began to catch a flit of leaves when the west wind blew4 ,last summer ,i could see a green tip of a bough all the time1 and now in the high ,march wind ,i can see a bit of a twig4 ,it is an elm-tree1 the warden's wife said2 and the branches are longest on this side4 ,i think they stretch out for you to see4 ,you miss many a pleasant sight here1 ,dougherty4 ,what ,i miss is nothing to what ,i have seen1 he said quickly1 his eyes beginning again to kindle4 ,what do you mean8 ,he gazed at her searchingly for a moment1 as if to read whether she were worthy to hear2 then he looked up at the sky4 ,mrs4 ,raynor tried not to be impressed4 ,he is a thief1 serving out his sentence in the ,state prison1 she repeated mentally4 ,he is a poor1 ignorant ,irishman1 who can scarcely spell his own name1 and who reverences a polysyllable next to the priest4 ,i will tell you1 he said after a moment1 his voice trembling slightly1 not with weakness1 but with fervor4 ,when ,i first came here1 ,i had to pray all the time to keep myself from going crazy2 but by and by ,i got reconciled4 #cid ,you know we never have a priest here1 and must find things out as well as we can for ourselves4 ,all ,i wanted to know was whether ,god was angry with me4 ,sometimes ,i thought he was2 but that might be a temptation of the devil4 ,what ,i am going to tell you happened about six months ago1 at nine o'clock in the evening4 ,the night-watch was in1 and had just gone round4 ,he spoke to me1 and ,i answered him4 ,i was in bed1 and ,i shut my eyes as soon as he went back to his place4 ,something made me open them again1 and ,i saw on the wall of my cell here a little spot like moonlight4 ,it grew larger while ,i looked1 and the whole cell was full of the light of it2 and it trembled like the flame of a candle in the wind4 ,there didn't seem to be any wall here2 it was all opened out4 ,i pulled the blanket about me and went down to my knees on the stone floor4 ,i don't know how long it was before two faces began to show in the midst of the light2 and when they came1 it was still4 ,at first they were faint2 but they grew brighter till they were as bright as ,i could bear4 ,i couldn't tell whether it was the brightness in their faces or the thought in my heart1 that brought the tears into my eyes4 ,there was the ,blessed ,virgin with the ,infant ,jesus in her arms1 and they both looking at me and smiling4 ,and while they smiled1 they faded away6 ,how probable that would sound if it were related as having happened in the year of our ,lord #fb1 instead of #ahfb6 the lady thought1 restraining a smile1 awed by the perfect conviction of the speaker4 ,dougherty1 she said1 a man like you ought not to be caught at highway robbery4 ,how did it happen8 ,some swift emotion passed over his face2 but whether of fear or anger she could not tell4 ,the next moment he smiled grimly4 ,i know just how it happened1 ma'am1 he said2 for didn't the lawyers tell me8 ,oh6 but they told the whole story so plain you'd have thought they did the deed themselves2 and faith1 they made me almost believe ,i did it4 ,it is a very convincing way that the lawyers have about them4 ,they made out that ,mike ,murray was at our house one night1 and we all played cards and got drunk together2 and when we were pretty high1 that ,larry and ,i went out with ,mike to see him home2 and that ,i sent ,larry back1 he being too drunk to go on2 and that ,i waited upon ,mike out to a piece of woods1 and there ,i knocked him down and robbed him2 and that he was picked up half-dead the next morning1 and ,i was caught throwing the money away4 ,they proved that ,i only did it because ,i was drunk1 and that ,i never did a dishonest deed before2 and so they sent me here for ten years4 ,and the pity it was of poor ,mike ,murray6 ,it would have brought tears to your eyes to hear that lawyer go on about him1 as if ,mike was his own father's son1 and a saint to the bargain1 instead of a dirty1 drunken blackguard that ,mary was mad to see in the house1 and that beat his own wife with a stool1 and kicked her down-stairs every morning2 and that's the way she used to get down4 ,she told our ,mary that she was never without a sore spot on her head1 and that when she got to the top of a flight of stairs1 if it was in the church itself1 she'd look behind for the kick that ,mike always had for her4 ,indeed1 ma'am1 while the lawyer was talking1 ,i didn't believe he meant the ,mike ,murray ,i knew at all1 but a sweet1 gentle creature with the same name1 and that never took a sup of anything but milk4 ,and that's the story of my coming here1 ma'am1 the convict concluded1 giving a short laugh4 #cie ,you have had troubles enough1 ,mrs4 ,raynor said gently2 but now they are nearly over4 ,only two months longer1 and you will be free4 ,it won't hurt you to go to chapel for that short time4 ,i shall not go1 he replied4 ,she turned away at that1 went into the deserted prison-yard1 and stood there a moment recollecting a sermon she had heard not long before4 ,why should we not now have a saint after the grand old way8 the speaker had asked4 ,there is every reason why we should not6 she exclaimed impatiently4 ,those bizarre1 uncompromising virtues of the antique time would now scandalize the very elect4 ,we must not offend against les biensances1 though all the saints should clap their hands4 ,this poor ,irishman is unquestionably a little wrong in his head1 and will have to go to the dungeon4 ,for you1 ,madge ,raynor1 you had best return to your moutons1 and cease pulling at the skirts of the millennium4 ,what a quixotic little body you are1 to be sure6 ,to the dungeon1 accordingly1 ,dougherty was sent the next ,sunday and after a few hours1 the warden's wife went to see him4 ,a door of solid iron opened in the basement wall of the prison1 and let the light into a stone vestibule that was otherwise perfectly dark4 ,opposite this entrance was what looked like an oven or furnace-door1 about two feet square1 and also of solid iron4 ,removing a padlock from the inner door1 the guard opened it1 and called ,dougherty4 ,mrs4 ,raynor started back as the foul air from the dungeon struck her face2 for1 though there was an aperture artfully contrived so as to admit a little air and exclude all light1 it was not large enough to do more than keep the prisoner from actual suffocation4 ,you are acting like a simpleton6 the lady exclaimed when the convict's pale face appeared at the opening4 ,go to chapel next ,sunday1 and say your prayers under the parson's nose4 ,i will give you beads that shall rattle like hail-stones4 ,i thank you1 ma'am6 the man replied in his provokingly quiet way2 but ,i can't go to chapel4 ,you expect to enjoy staying here three days1 with bread and water once a day1 sitting and sleeping on bare stones1 and breathing air that would sicken a dog8 she demanded angrily4 ,that is nothing to what my ,lord suffered for me1 was the reply4 ,you fancy yourself a martyr1 and that the officers of the prison are children of the devil6 she said4 ,i don't blame them1 he answered4 ,they do what they think is right4 ,shut him up6 she exclaimed1 turning away4 ,it's a pity we haven't a rack for the blockhead4 ,he is pining for it4 ,dougherty did not complain nor yield2 but he was put to work again after three days1 that being the longest time the rules allowed a man to be kept in the dungeon4 ,mrs4 ,raynor was annoyed with herself for taking such an interest in this contumacious thief4 ,every day she protested that she would not worry about him1 and every day she worried more and more4 ,when ,sunday came again1 ,i will not go near him1 she said4 ,i will leave him to his fate4 ',what's ,hecuba to him1 or he to ,hecuba8' and even while speaking1 counted anxiously the last strokes of the prison-bell ringing for service4 #cif ,at that moment the convicts were entering the chapel1 all but the sick1 and that troublesome protg of hers4 ,i won't go near him1 she said in a very determined manner1 and1 five minutes after1 was on her way up the prison-stairs4 ,letting herself into the guardroom with a pass-key1 she found but one man on guard2 but the voices of others came through the open door of the hospital1 and with them a long1 agonized moan4 ,hurrying into the cell where the punishment called the strings was inflicted1 ,mrs4 ,raynor saw ,dougherty hanging by his wrists to a chain run through a ring in the ceiling4 ,his toes touched the floor and slightly relieved the otherwise intolerable strain on his shoulders and breast4 ,one of the guards kept the chain up1 while the deputy-warden stood by the convict and watched for the first sign of submission or of fainting4 ,the man groaned with pain1 and drops of perspiration rolled down his face4 ,will you give up and go to chapel next ,sunday8 asked the deputy4 ,o ,god6 strengthen me1 cried the convict4 ,no1 ,i will not go6 ,mrs4 ,raynor's pale face flushed as she heard this reply4 ,the moans became fainter4 ,now1 give up like a man1 the deputy said4 ,you've shown your grit1 and that is enough4 ,lord1 help me6 came in a broken cry4 ,he's going2 let him down1 the deputy said4 ,dead8 cried the warden's wife1 starting forward4 ,no1 madam2 he has fainted4 ,they applied restoratives1 and when his senses had returned1 led him1 reeling1 out into the guardroom1 and placed him in a chair by the open window4 ,did you ever read a history of the ,spanish ,inquisition1 ,mr4 ,deputy8 asked the warden's wife4 ,yes'm6 was the immediate reply4 ,this is just like it1 isn't it8 ,well1 ,dougherty1 you will be content now1 and go to chapel next ,sunday1 will you not8 asked the lady1 touching the convict's sleeve4 ,he lifted his heavy eyes4 ,he was still catching his breath like one who sobs4 ,i will die before ,i will go to hear the name of ,god and of his truth blasphemed6 he answered1 speaking with difficulty4 ,but if you should be again put up in the strings8 ,he shivered1 but replied without hesitation1 ,he that died upon the cross will strengthen me4 ,the fellow is a fool6 muttered one of the guard4 ,may ,god multiply such fools6 cried ,mrs4 ,raynor1 turning upon the speaker4 ,then to the convict1 ,i will urge you no more4 ,i am not capable of judging for you1 and you do not need help nor advice from me4 ,go your own way4 ,dougherty's own way was to persist in his refusal to attend chapel2 and since the officers had no choice but to punish him for his disobedience1 it chanced that for the next four weeks he was put up in the strings every ,sunday morning4 ,it shall not be done again1 the warden said then4 ,he has but a fortnight longer to stay2 and1 rule or no rule1 he shall do as he likes4 ,only a fortnight1 he said to the convict1 then you will be a free man4 ,dougherty's face brightened4 ,yes1 sir6 ,and ,i long to set my feet on the turf again4 ,a man doesn't know what green grass is1 till he gets shut up in a place like this4 ,don't come here again1 the officer said kindly4 ,let what you have suffered teach you to resist temptation4 #cig ,the convict looked at ,mr4 ,raynor with a singular expression of surprise1 not unmingled with a momentary indignation1 and seemed about to speak1 but checked himself4 ,it is only to keep from drink1 the warden went on4 ,i don't believe you would be dishonest when sober4 ,the convict dropped his eyes4 ,god knows all hearts1 he said4 ,the next day ,dougherty had a cold and a headache2 the second day he was unable to go to work2 the third day he had a settled fever4 ,he was removed to the hospital1 where the cells were larger1 and1 being next the outside wall1 had light and air2 a convict whose term had nearly expired was set to take care of him1 and ,mrs4 ,raynor visited him twice a day4 ,but the fever had got well fixed before the man gave up1 and it found him good fuel4 ,he burned like a solid beech log1 with a slow1 intense1 unquenchable heat4 ,his pale and sallow face became a dull crimson2 his strong1 full pulses beat fiercely in neck1 wrists1 and temples2 and his restless eyes glowed with a brilliant lustre4 ,mrs4 ,raynor was sometimes startled1 as she sat fanning and bathing his face1 fancying that she had soothed him to sleep1 to see those eyes open suddenly1 and fix themselves on her with a searching gaze1 or wander wildly about the cell4 ,but he lay almost as motionless as the burning log would1 locked in that fierce and silent struggle with disease4 ,nearly a fortnight passed1 and there were but two days left of ,dougherty's term of imprisonment2 but there was no longer a hope that any freedom of man's giving would profit him4 ,there was scarcely more than the embers of a man left of him2 not enough1 indeed1 for a fever to prey upon4 ,the flushes had become intermittent1 like the last flickerings of a fire1 and the parched and blackened mouth showed how he had been consumed inwardly4 ,it was ,may1 and the sweet air and sunshine came in through two narrow windows and lightened and freshened the cell where the convict lay4 ,everything was clean and in order4 ,the stone walls and floor were whitewashed2 a prayer-book1 crucifix1 medicine1 and glasses were carefully arranged on a little table between the windows2 and there was a spotless cover on the narrow pallet that stood opposite4 ,the door was wide open for a draught1 and now and then one of the guard1 approaching laboriously on tiptoe1 would put his head into the cell1 raise his eyebrows inquiringly at the convict-nurse who sat at the head of the bed1 receive a nod in return1 and retire with the same painful feint of making no noise4 ,neither of the two men was quite clear in his mind as to what he meant by this pantomime2 but the result with both was a conviction that all was right4 ,presently1 as the afternoon waned1 there was the soft rustle of a woman's garments in the corridor1 and a woman's unmistakable velvet footfall4 ,at that sound the convict-nurse went lightly out2 and ,mrs4 ,raynor came in1 and seated herself on the stool where he had sat1 and slipped a bit of ice between the lips of the patient4 ,he had been lying motionless and apparently asleep during the last hour2 but as she touched him1 he opened his eyes and fixed them upon her4 ,what does the doctor say1 ma'am8 he asked in a tone so firm that one forgot it was but a whisper4 #cih ,i think that you will want to see the priest1 she said gently4 ,i have sent for one1 and he will come tomorrow4 ,a slight spasm passed over the sick man's face1 his eyelids quivered1 and his mouth contracted for an instant4 ,it must come to us all sooner or later1 she continued2 and it is well for us that ,he who knows best and does best is the one to choose4 ,he said not a word1 but closed his eyes again2 and she kept silence while he went through with his struggle1 her own tears starting as she saw how the tears swelled under his eyelids1 and the stern mouth quivered1 and knew that he was tearing up the few simple hopes that had taken root in his heart3 the setting his feet on the green grass again1 the meeting his brother1 the dream of a cheerful fireside where he should be welcome1 the honest gains and generous gifts1 the happy laughter1 kind looks1 and sorrows from which love and faith should draw the sting4 ,simple hopes2 but they had struck deep1 and every fibre of the man's heart quivered and bled at their uprooting4 ,presently the watcher spoke softly3 ,like as a father pitieth his children1 so the ,lord hath mercy on them that fear him6 ,may his will be done6 said the convict4 ,but1 poor ,larry6 ,you want me to write to him8 ,yes ma'am6 he answered eagerly4 ,tell him that ,i was comfortable here1 and that ,i was willing to die2 and be sure to tell him that coming here was the best thing that ever happened to me4 ,don't let him know anything about the punishment4 ,larry'd feel bad about that4 ,don't forget6 he urged1 looking anxiously in the lady's face4 ,i won't forget1 she said4 ,he stopped a moment for breath2 then resumed1 ,tell him that my last words were1 that he should remember his promises to me1 and never taste liquor again4 ,and tell him to be kind to ,mary for my sake4 ,you see1 ma'am1 ,i was fond of ,mary2 but of course she liked ,larry best4 ,the lady blushed faintly1 and laid her cool white hand on his fevered one4 ,dougherty1 she said1 nobody but ,god thanks us for true love4 ,in this world a light love meets with most gratitude4 ,sometimes ,i've thought the same1 the man said gravely4 ,some are made to give1 and some are made to take2 but the ,lord gives to all4 ,the next day a priest came and spent some time with the sick man4 ,mrs4 ,raynor went up for her afternoon visit1 and found him still lingering there1 looking gravely and intently at his penitent1 who lay with an expression of perfect peace on his countenance4 ,poor man6 she sighed1 glancing toward the bed4 ,the father looked up with a light flashing into his thoughtful eyes4 ,poor man1 madam8 he repeated4 ,not so3 that man is rich6 ,it is for him to pity us4 ,she followed the priest out1 and spoke to him in the corridor4 ,dougherty's brother has come from ,california1 she said4 ,he reached here this morning4 ,it seems hard to keep him out1 but ,i hate to disturb a man who is dying4 ,the priest frowned4 ,keep the fellow out for to-day4 ,i have just given this man the viaticum1 and want him to be undisturbed4 ,his confession has exhausted him1 and he mustn't be made to talk much more4 ,how does his brother appear8 ,oh6 he is frantic4 ,he fainted when ,i first told him1 and ,i could hear him crying out in the yard when ,i got up into the guard-room4 ,i told him that he couldn't come in till he should have become quiet4 #cii ,what sort of fellow is he8 asked the priest coldly4 ,the lady hesitated4 ,in spite of her pity1 she did not fancy ,larry2 neither did she like the coldness the priest showed toward him4 ,he is a very handsome young man1 she said presently1 and very well dressed4 ,the father shrugged his shoulders4 ,oh6 then he should be admitted without delay4 ,she must1 of course1 free herself from such an imputation4 ,he looks weak and faithless1 she said2 but his grief is genuine2 and his having come so far shows that he loves his brother4 ,you might tell ,dougherty tonight1 and let ,larry in to-morrow morning if he behaves himself4 ,mrs4 ,raynor sat by her patient without speaking1 till presently he looked at her and smiled faintly4 ,may the ,lord reward you1 ma'am6 he said fervently4 ,you've been a good friend to me4 ,here is a note from your brother1 she said4 ,shall ,i read it to you8 ,he glanced eagerly at the folded paper in her hand--a note which1 in the midst of his lamentations1 ,larry had written and entreated her to take up to his brother4 ,read it6 the sick man said1 making an effort to turn toward her4 ,would you like very much to see your brother8 she asked4 ,dougherty's face began to work4 ,o ma'am6 has ,larry come8 he asked tremulously4 ,yes2 and presently he is to come in to see you4 ,of course1 he feels very much grieved1 you know4 ,that must be4 ,but when he shall see how resigned and happy you are1 he will take comfort4 ,seeing that he eagerly watched the paper in her hand1 the lady unfolded and glanced over it4 ,as she did so1 her face underwent a change4 ,it cannot be6 she cried out2 and1 crushing the note1 looked at the man who lay there dying before her4 ,he did not understand1 was too weak and dull to think of anything but the letter4 ,read it6 he said faintly4 ,she began breathlessly to read the blotted page3 ,my dear brother ,john1 for ,god's sake don't die6 ,i have come to take you back to ,california with me1 and ,mary and ,i will spend our lives in taking care of you4 ,we will make up to you what you have suffered for me1 going to prison for my crime4 ,the sick man started up with sudden energy and snatched the paper from the reader's hand4 ,the lad is wild6 he gasped4 ,he didn't know what he was writing6 ,she tried to soothe him1 to coax him to lie down2 but he sat rigid with that terrible suspense1 his haggard eyes fixed on hers1 a deathly pallor in his face4 ,you won't tell anybody what the foolish boy wrote6 he pleaded4 ,it was your brother1 then1 who robbed the man8 she said4 ,he sank back1 moaning1 upon his pillow1 ,all for nothing6 he said despairingly4 ,i've given my heart's blood for nothing6 ,o ma'am6 have you the heart to spoil all ,i've been trying to do1 and have just about finished8 ,it was a hard promise to give1 but she gave it4 ,without his permission1 what she had learned should never be revealed4 ,the poor lad wasn't to blame1 the sick man said4 ,it was drink did it4 ,drink always made ,larry crazy4 ,when he got home that night1 he didn't know what he'd been doing2 but in the morning ,mary found the money on him1 and the stain of blood on his hand4 ,i tried to throw the money away1 and they saw me4 #djj ,he paused1 gasping for breath4 ,he was making an effort beyond his strength4 ,tell me the rest to-morrow1 ,mrs4 ,raynor said1 giving him a spoonful of cordial4 ,but he went on excitedly1 clutching at the bed-clothes as he spoke4 ,it would have been the ruin of ,larry if he had come here4 ,he would never again have looked anybody in the face4 ,besides1 ,mary's heart was broke entirely4 ,so when ,i was caught1 ,i just bid ,larry hold his peace4 ,but ,i didn't tell any lie1 ma'am4 ,when they asked me in court if ,i was guilty or not guilty1 ,i said 'not guilty2' and it was true4 ,she gave him the cordial again1 wiped his forehead1 and1 noticing that his hands were cold1 first lifted the blanket to cover them1 then hesitated1 looked at him more closely1 finally laid it back4 ,he lay for a while silent and exhausted1 then spoke again4 ,you promise8 ,i promise1 ,dougherty4 ,set your heart at rest4 ,you are dying2 did you know it8 ,yes1 ma'am6 ,after a while he said faintly1 ,my time will be up to-morrow morning4 ,yes6 ,twilight faded into night4 ,mrs4 ,raynor went into the house for a while1 then returned to sit by her patient1 sending the nurse out4 ,one and another came to the cell-door1 looked in1 spoke a word1 then went away4 ,the heavy doors clanged1 there was a sound of rattling bars as the prison was closed for the night1 then silence settled all over4 ,the dying man lay perfectly quiet1 breathing slowly1 and responding now and then to the prayers read by his attendant4 ,he felt no pain1 and his mind was clear and calm4 ,he had no complicated intellectual mechanism to confuse his ideas of right and wrong2 there was no labyrinth of sophistry to entangle his faith1 no flutter of imagination to start a latent fear4 ,he had done what he could2 and he held on to the promises with an iron grasp4 ,that lonely watcher almost feared for him4 ,might he not be presuming on an act of devotion which1 after all1 rose from a love that was entirely human8 ,my friend1 she said1 even the angels are not pure before ,god4 ,perhaps you loved your brother too well4 ,if ,i had loved him less1 he would have been lost1 was the calm reply4 ,i haven't loved him well enough to sin for him4 ,do not be too sure1 she said4 ,i'm a poor1 ignorant man2 but ,i've done as well as ,i knew how2 and he has promised4 ,i never broke a promise to man nor woman2 and do you think that the ,almighty would do the thing that ,i would scorn to do8 ,are you not afraid of presumption8 ,it would be presumption to doubt the word of ,god4 ,do not rely on your own strength1 she urged4 ,i have no strength but what he gives me1 said the dying man4 ,while they talked1 or prayed1 or were silent1 the stars wore slowly and brightly past the open windows of the cell1 dropping down the west like golden sands in an hour-glass1 and counting out the minutes of that ebbing life4 ,then the dim and humid crescent of the waning moon stole by in the early morning twilight2 then the air grew alive with the golden glances of the dawn4 #dja ,as the sun rose1 the man called ,dougherty1 a convict no longer1 lay dead on his prison pallet1 his face white and calm1 the dull eyes half open1 as though the deserted body followed with a solemn gaze the flight of its emancipated tenant4 ,would you rather have been the angel loosing ,peter1 or ,peter in chains8 ,i would rather have been ,peter6 ---------- ,translated ,from ,le ,conseiller ,des ,familles4 ,the ,children's ,graves ,in ,the ,catacombs4 ,childhood and the grave6 ,should these two words be placed together8 ,must flowers fall before bearing fruit1 and children also die8 ,this is what mothers think1 and the church thinks as they do1 because the church is a mother4 ,in her view children do not die2 they are born again1 they are transfigured2 and the grave in which cold death places them resembles the white bed1 whereon1 perhaps the day before1 you saw them open their eyes to the sunlight4 ,do you recollect the ode in which a poet1 at the time eminent1 celebrated in beautiful verses the entrance of ,louis ,,xvii4 into the heavenly palace to which his father had gone by the rough road of martyrdom8 ,according to ,catholic belief1 all those little beings who die before making a name or obtaining a place in this world1 are also young princes1 heirs-apparent of a kingdom more beautiful than that of ,france1 and who1 like ,louis ,,xvii41 fall asleep in a prison to awake upon a throne4 ,this is why the church has no prayers of grief at their burial4 ,assured of their happiness1 she laments not1 but gives praise4 ,by the grace given at baptism1 they are received into glory4 ,she covers their remains with white drapery1 which calls to mind the vestment which she put over them at the baptismal font4 ,instead of mourning1 she invites the children of heaven to unite in praises1 ,laudate1 pueri6 ,the ,virgin1 who was herself a mother1 receives them at her altar1 where the triumphant procession congratulates the ,queen of angels that her empire is enriched by one more subject--,ave1 ,regina caelorum6 ,ave1 ,domina angelorum6 ,the funeral mass for little children is only a thanksgiving to ,god1 who has reserved a favored space for those blessed beings1 ,venite1 benedicti ,patris4 ,having read the gospel of our ,lord1 who blessed and caressed those to whom he promised the kingdom of heaven1 the last prayer of the church which throws a little earth upon the body that is to rise again1 is that we1 adult sinners1 may one day rejoice with them in the same kingdom4 ,read again this funeral service1 and if you have a mourning mother among your friends and relatives1 7who does not know one87 give her these consolations4 ,she will believe that she hears the voice of ,god1 who stopped the coffin of the widow's only son and restored him to her4 #djb ,but these are1 if ,i may speak thus1 only the first caresses of religion of the remains of children2 the honor which she accords to them is perpetuated in the worship with which she surrounds their graves4 ,paganism took little care of the tombs of those who had not furnished to their country a citizen or a soldier4 ,we know that they considered a child's life very unimportant4 ,virgil alone1 among the poets1 uttered a cry for the souls of young infants1 whom he represents as being cut down before the eyes of their mothers4 ,in those family sepulchres1 called by the ,romans columbaria1 ,i found several little busts in marble1 representing children1 by the side of which were funeral urns1 containing at the bottom several pinches of ashes4 ,this was all that remained4 ,among the innumerable inscriptions which cover the walls of the immense gallery of the ,vatican1 ,i saw several epitaphs coldly stating that ,junius ,severianus had lived two years2 that ,octavius ,liberalis died when he was five years four months and four days old2 that ,steteria ,superba had departed life at the age of eighteen months4 ,but there was no wish or hope of meeting them again1 and no religious emblem to console the mourners4 ,elysium did not exist for those shades without a name1 as they were called1 sine nomine manes1 and their sepulchre closed without hope and without glory4 ,the position of children in heathen times was revealed to me by an epitaph which ,i found at ,antibes1 the ancient ,antipolis1 to which the fashionable ,romans came to enjoy the fine coast and a sunny sky4 ,a stone detached from the ruins of a theatre1 now almost entirely destroyed by the action of the weather and the sea1 had the following inscription3 ,to the divine shades of ,septentrion1 a child of twelve years1 who danced two days in the theatre and pleased the people6 ,footnote #hc ,they made the poor slave-boy contribute for two days to their delight2 but he was overcome1 and they applauded-- saltavit et placuit4 ,see1 then1 what society made of this child--a plaything and a victim6 ,meditating upon this1 ,i recalled to mind the time when another infant of twelve years of age glorified ,god in the temple at ,jerusalem1 and also when the ,saviour took the hand of the dying girl and saying unto her1 ,arise6 restored her to her father4 ,i was obliged to leave these cursed ruins and enter for a moment into the temple of that ,god who1 to save these little ones1 took upon himself the form of a child--,custodiens parvulos ,dominus4 ,footnote #hc3 ,diis ,manibus pueri ,septentrionis1 annorum duodecim1 qui biduo saltavit in theatro et placuit4 ,,ii4 ,jesus ,christ was born1 was an infant2 and since that time a revolution in favor of children began1 which is perceptible in the epitaphs upon their graves4 ,the child becomes a king1 almost a god4 ,it is at least a soul called to heaven and expecting us2 and what new regards surround it for the future in that lapidary style1 which says so much in so few words4 ,i was at ,avignon1 and visiting the museum of that city1 my attention was attracted to a grave-stone of one of the first ,christian centuries4 ,it contained the following words3 ,florentiola1 pax tecum6 ,florentiola1 peace be with thee6 ,by the side was the monogram of ,christ1 surrounded with glory4 ,who was this little ,florentiola8 ,the tender diminutive proved plainly that she was an infant1 and a beloved one4 ,the wish expressed and the sign of ,christ the ,redeemer gave evidence that she was also a ,christian4 #djc ,this little name brought to mind another inscription which ,i found somewhere in one of our cemeteries1 upon the sepulchre of a young woman3 ,she bloomed1 blossomed1 and died4 ,of these three periods of life1 ,florentiola had passed through only the first2 but the last words expressed the hope that1 as she had given to this world the blossom1 she would yield the fruit in another3 ,pax tecum6 ,but one must go to the catacombs in ,rome1 and read1 in that great ,christian city of death1 the delicacies of the affections of earth1 and the hopes of a resurrection1 which are radiant upon the graves of little children4 ,in the cemetery of ,st4 ,priscilla1 ,i observed two epitaphs distinguished above all others by their brevity4 ,one of them consists only of a single melancholy word1 ,libera that is to say1 free4 ,a dove flying away1 carrying an olive-branch1 explains the meaning1 which to me appeared sublime4 ,this captive soul which had passed through the prison of earth was free at last6 ,the church conveys a similar idea at the funeral obsequies of little children3 ,anima nostra1 sicut passer1 erepta est de laqueo venantium4 ,laqueus contritus est1 et nos liberati sumus4 7,psalm cxxiii47 ,our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers4 ,the snare is broken1 and we are delivered4 ,the other one1 which ,i remarked at the same place1 containing only a word1 was quite as beautiful and more ,christian--,redempta1 redeemed4 ,this was also expressive of liberty1 but it was a freedom which had been acquired as the price of a ransom which was the blood of ,god3 ,redempta6 ,this last expression alludes to the grace given by baptism1 which liberates the soul held in bondage by the demon4 ,the children's epitaphs have it often1 and prove that the church had conferred the sacraments upon them at the most tender age4 ,you can find for instance1 in the museum of the ,lateran3 ,paulina1 neophyte of eight years2 ,candida1 neophyte1 twenty-one months old2 ,zozima1 neophyte1 five years1 eight months1 and thirteen days2 ,matronata ,matrona1 neophyte1 one year1 fifty-two days4 ,upon a grave in the catacomb of ,saint ,calista1 a ,grecian inscription was found by the ,canon ,profili1 consisting of the following words3 ,dionysius1 newly illuminated1 one year and four months4 ,this title of enlightened was given only to those who came into possession of it by baptism4 ,saint ,chrysostom mentions the enlightened in no other way4 ,this one1 collected in the cemetery of the new road ,salaria1 and preserved at the ,lateran1 is more explicit3 ,florentius dedicates this inscription to his well-beloved son1 ,apronianus1 who lived one year1 nine months1 five days4 ,he was loved by his grand-mother1 and seeing that he was nigh unto death1 she asked the church to make him a ,christian before he should leave the world4 ,footnote #hd ,footnote #hd3 ,florentius filio suo ,aproniano fecit titulum benemerenti qui vixit annum et menses novem1 dies quinque4 ,cum amatus fuisset majore su et vidit hunc morti constitutum esse1 petivit de ecclesi ut fidelis de seculo recessisset4 ,baptism1 which was conferred upon the newly-born1 was a great consolation to those who witnessed their departure from this world4 ,o ,magus1 innocent child6 said an inscription at the museum of the ,lateran1 thou hast gone to live among the guiltless4 ,how much more endurable is life6 ,with what joy the church1 thy other mother1 received thee1 when thou didst leave the world for her4 ,we will suppress the murmurings of our hearts and restrain the tears from our eyes4 ,footnote #he ,footnote #he3 ,magus puer innocens1 esse jam inter innocentes coepisti4 ,qum staviles 7stabilis7 tivi 7tibi7 haec vita est6 ,qum te laetum excipet 7excepit7 mater ecclesia edeoc 7de hoc7 mundo revertentem4 ,comprimatur pectorum gemitus1 struatur 7destruatur7 fletus oculorum4 #djd ,expressions of the most ingenious tenderness are shown in the last farewell to creatures of whom only smiles are known4 ,cyricus1 dear soul1 peace be with thee6 ,he lived a year and sixty-two days6 ,footnote #hf ,footnote #hf3 ,cyricus1 anima dulcis in pace1 vixit annum i4 dies lxii4 ,here reposes our dear soul1 named ,quiriace1 an innocent child1 beautiful and good1 who lived three years1 three months1 eight days4 ,footnote #hg ,footnote #hg3 ,hic posita est anima dulcis1 innoca sapiens et pulcra1 nomine ,quiriace1 quae vixit annos iii4 menses iii4 dies viii4 ,the word soul1 in the ,latin language1 is a term of great tenderness4 ,it signifies life as it is visible4 ,but in the ,christian language it has a more spiritual signification4 ,as the poet says3 ,thou callest me thy life2 call me thy soul6 ,i wish a name more lasting than a day4 ,life is of little value1 a breath extinguishes the flame2 ,but the soul is immortal as our love4 ,maternal affection creates1 in ,christianity1 a name for children which becomes as the family name for those beings who pass from earth1 having only glanced at its sorrows4 ,the mother remembers that the ,lord said1 the angels of these little ones behold the face of the ,father who is in heaven4 ,this was enough to make so many angels of those innocent babes by an intentional confusion4 ,this is hereafter to be their title3 and where is now the afflicted mother who1 at the death-bed of her son1 has not seen1 like the poet1 the radiant face of the angel bending over and calling the child who resembles him8 ,primitive epigraphy goes to show the cause of this synonymy upon the graves of children4 ,angelica1 bene in pace4 ,angelica1 child1 be happy in peace1 was one inscription of the ,catacombs4 ,upon another was written3 ,laurentius to his beloved son ,severus1 who lived four years1 eight months1 and five days1 and was called by the angels on the #gth of ,january4 ,footnote #hh ,footnote #hh3 ,severo filio dulcissimo ,laurentius pater benemerenti qui vixit annos iv4 menses viii4 dies v4 accersitus ab angelis1 vii4 idus ,januarii4 ,one is pleased to recognize in these funereal places1 the remembrances of school days1 being the only ones that the departed youths have left in life4 ,in several catacombs1 near the ,cubicula1 where the faithful ones assembled for prayer1 large halls can be seen1 which have neither altar nor pictures1 and no other embellishment than banks made in the turf1 mostly terminated by one or two elevated seats4 ,it is presumed that the antiquarians assembled children in school1 and instructed them in the catechism4 ,near one of these halls can be read the following epitaph in the catacomb of ,saint ,priscilla3 ,obrimos to ,palladios1 his beloved cousin and schoolmate1 as a remembrance4 ,in the catacomb of the new ,via ,salaria the school-teacher united with the mother to write an epitaph upon his pupil1 whom he had adopted in his heart4 ,with a holy and pure spirit1 this grave has been made to ,florentius1 a child of thirteen years1 by ,coritus1 his teacher1 who loved him more than a son1 and by ,corda1 his mother4 ,footnote #hi ,footnote #hi3 ,in spiritu sancto bono1 ,florentio qui vixit annis xiii4 ,coritus magister qui plus amavit quam proprium filium1 et ,cordeus mater filio benemerenti fecerunt4' #dje ,the glass paintings found at the same place are a finished representation of the education of young ,christians in those days4 ,on a chalice made of glass there is a child1 whom the father and mother are teaching to read the ,scriptures4 ,another one represents two little children1 ,pompeianus and ,theodora1 with their parents1 under the trees4 ,they are holding a copy of the ,gospel1 and ,pompeianus points to the monogram of ,christ which is erected in the midst of this ,christian family4 ,their father is discoursing and explaining to them the precepts of their faith4 ,but once torn from the bosom of their family1 who received children into the world of souls1 which they entered astonished8 ,the epitaphs recommend them to the saints in heaven to attend them on their entrance into paradise4 ,the mother of ,aurelius ,gemellus1 who died at the age of eight years1 added to the inscription engraved upon his tombstone the following3 ,o ,saint ,basilla6 we recommend to you the innocence of ,gemellus6 ,footnote #ij ,in former times this was to be found in the cemetery of ,saint ,basilla1 now of ,saint ,hermes4 ,footnote #ij3 ,commendo ,basilla1 innocentiam ,gemelli4 ,a similar prayer was addressed to this saint in the same catacomb1 but for another child3 ,o ,saint ,basilla6 we commend to thy care ,crescentinus1 and our daughter ,crescentia1 who lived ten months4 ,footnote #ia ,footnote #ia3 ,domina ,basilla1 commendamus tibi ,crescentinum et filiam nostram 444 quae vixit menses x4 444 ,more frequently it was to ,god they directed the loved soul1 ,lord ,jesus1 remember our child1 said a ,grecian inscription reported by ,northcote4 ,is there not a remembrance of the stammering of a child in prayer1 in the first pronunciation1 and in the orthography of the last word of the epitaph on a little girl8 ,regina1 bibas 7vivas7 in ,domino ,zezu6 ,regina1 live in the ,lord ,jesus6 ,if life is only a pilgrimage for us1 is not this particularly true of those who have only passed a few days in this world8 ,this idea has been rendered in the epitaph of a young ,christian2 and few have made so great an impression upon me as the following1 simple and short as it is3 ,peregrina1 vixit annos viii41 menses viii41 dies x4 ,decessit de corpore4 ,peregrina lived eight years1 eight months1 ten days1 then departed from the body4 ,did this name of ,peregrina1 pilgrim1 passenger1 allude to her rapid voyage upon the earth1 which she hastened to leave8 ,i incline to this beautiful idea1 which a similar inscription authorizes1 not far from there1 carved upon the tomb of a ,christian3 ,viator6 ,upon the grave-stones of children of the first centuries1 it is not uncommon to see a white dove1 carved upon an antique cup1 drinking from the border4 ,those who repose beneath that stone had drunk of the cup of life1 and taking a taste1 not wishing more1 had spread their wings and returned to heaven4 ,in that better land they become intercessors for their kindred on the earth4 ,what family has not theirs8 ,and who has not prayed to those young elect1 yesterday our brothers and sons1 to-day our defenders in that place from which they behold us and will prove their love for us8 ,the following can be read in the ,lateran ,museum3 ,matronata matrona1 intercede for thy parents6 ,she lived one year1 fifty-two days4 ,footnote #ib ,footnote #ib3 ,pete pro parentes tuos1 ,matronata ,matrona1 quae vixit an4 i4 di lii4 #djf ,and upon another stone3 ,anatolius has made this grave for his dear son1 who lived seven years1 seven months1 twenty-two days4 ,may the soul repose in happiness with ,god4 ,pray for thy sister6 ,footnote #ic ,footnote #ic3 ,anatolius filio benemerenti fecit1 qui vixit annis vii4 mensis vii4 diebus xxii4 ,spiritus tuus bene requiescat in ,deo4 ,petas pro sorore tua4 ,,iii4 ,i must confess that we have preserved little of the architectural simplicity in the inscriptions upon tombs4 ,it is just to say that they are of a poor style1 laden with lengthy common epitaphs1 emphatic declamations1 and warm protestations1 contradicted by the neglected and solitary aspect of those almost forgotten places4 ,i make an exception of the sepulchres of children4 ,if you find in a cemetery a grave which is preserved with love1 invested with crowns1 and dressed with fresh flowers1 you can recognize the place of a child4 ,in all countries of the world1 a delicate worship is devoted to the mortal remains of innocence4 ,the ,indian graves have become celebrated1 since ,chateaubriand described them so charmingly4 ,now that ,christianity has been established in those parts of the globe1 mothers no longer suspend the cradles of their sons upon branches of trees1 but their funerals have retained much of the simple grace of the time of ,chactas4 ,a missionary has written3 ,i had to attend the burial of a little child five or six months old4 ,they brought it to the church1 laying it upon a mat1 with garlands of flowers for a winding-sheet4 ,we should have thought that it was sleeping sweetly1 and notwithstanding its color1 ,i admired its angelic beauty4 ,after the prayers1 which the church addresses to the good ,god1 they dropped it gently into the grave1 as if it had been its cradle1 without covering even the face4 ,flowers were given in the place of earth1 to throw upon the body4 ,all the assistants did likewise1 and some commenced to weep4 ,it was sad to see the earth close over this little body so sweetly adorned1 and cover that young face which appeared to smile upon us4 ,it was to become food for worms2 but the beautiful soul was already in heaven with the angels4 ,i then united with the heavenly spirits to sing praises to ,god at the happiness of his little creature4 ,i hope that this child will not forget the young missionary who celebrated its deliverance from this world of misery4 ,footnote #id ,footnote #id3 ,vie de ,m4 l',abb ,chopart1 p4 #ahh4 ,this scene recalls to me a similar one which ,i witnessed in the village of ,beauvoisis4 ,i met in the street the funeral procession of a little girl who was being carried to the cemetery4 ,in advance of the coffin1 a child of ten years1 concealed under a floating drapery1 was carrying a basket of white flowers4 ,thus she walked1 gathering and smiling1 happy with her part1 until their arrival at the sepulchre2 then throwing her basket into the grave1 she disappeared among the trees1 delighted at having prepared this flowery bed for her playmate1 who was to sleep there the long night of death4 ,menander said in a celebrated verse1 ,he whom the gods love dies young4 ,and ,sophocles said before him1 ,it is good not to be born2 but if once born1 the second degree of happiness is to die young4 ,the ancients considered it fortune to be delivered from mortal misery4 ,what would they have said if those who left them had appeared upon the bosom of ,god in a beatitude and glory without end8 ,bene in pace6 ------------ #djg ,harem ,life in ,egypt and ,constantinople4 ,footnote #ie ,footnote #ie3 ,harem ,life in ,egypt and ,constantinople4 ,by ,emeline ,lott4 #dth edition4 #abmo1 pp4 #cab4 ,richard ,bentley4 ,new ,burlington ,street1 ,london4 #ahfg4 ,this volume has run through several editions in ,england within the last three years4 ,it is destined from its popularity to run through as many more2 but as yet1 it has found no publisher on this side of the ,atlantic1 although its merits are well-established in ,british literature4 ,observing a new edition announced by ,bentley1 it reminds us that the neat1 unpretending little work has not received any recognition from our republic1 nor has any attention been called to it4 ,in truth1 the ,american public1 deeply interested in travellers and travelling in the east1 or in whatever comes from the press illustrating scriptural scenes and events1 have strangely overlooked this production1 which furnishes a better insight into oriental domestic life than any account published for many years4 ,egypt is now what it was in the days of the crucifixion and of ,julius ,caesar2 it is unchanged1 it is unchangeable1 in its social structure1 as the pyramids in their architecture1 or the sands of the desert in their external aspect4 ,to understand the condition of the people now1 is to understand their condition when the ,israelites under the direction of ,moses went out from among them4 ,to enter the family circle in the valley of the ,nile for the purpose of learning their present mode of life1 is at once an introduction to all their progenitors who ever dwelt in the same region in the reign of the ancient ,pharaohs4 ,in order to see what a ,roman city was in the first century1 it is requisite to put aside the ashes from a submerged ,pompeii1 or to remove the superincumbent earth from a buried ,herculaneum4 ,but in ,egypt1 to comprehend what was the moral1 social1 intellectual1 religious appearance of the country when ,cleopatra sailed upon the river1 all that need be done is to push aside the mat which serves for a door to the first mud hovel met with1 or pass within the first portal where heavy hinges grate upon the ear an uncordial reception4 ,the same ,egypt can be seen which ,alexander of ,macedon1 ,sesostris1 and the shepherd-kings beheld4 ,egyptian institutions were never buried2 or1 if buried1 their sepulchre is above ground4 ,a living death is visible on all sides2 it is a palsy that struck the land long before the dawn of history1 and may remain as it now is1 when the history of the present century has passed into oblivion4 ,although the ,egyptian mind and morals will not die in their body1 still no motion is in its limbs1 no quickening vitality in its joints1 no trembling in its nerves2 the blood is stagnant2 a black pool as destitute of national animation as the waters of the ,dead ,sea4 ,progress is a term never heard of near the habitation of the ,sphinx2 and the period of ruins has gone by4 ,everything seems running rapidly to demolition2 but nothing is demolished2 decay has in that mysterious soil a perennial existence1 a species of recuperation1 that renews itself like the integuments of neighboring snakes1 lizards1 and toads1 which bury themselves in the same rich slime4 #djh ,a book1 therefore1 on modern harem life in ,egypt1 is in one sense a hand-book for historians in their explorations after the vanities and household troubles of good ,king ,solomon1 when his domestic peace and quiet1 his comfort and felicity1 were invaded by many more spinsters than the ,levitical law allowed to any one wise man4 ,this dame ,emeline is the very woman to aid them in their archaeological researches4 ,her volume furnishes important hints and information2 and if on the title-page nine centuries before the ,christian era were substituted for the date of publication1 instead of nineteen centuries after it1 the change would be so unimportant in a chronological point of view1 that no annalist would be aware of the anachronism4 ,it would look like a second edition of ,herodotus1 revised and improved1 for the benefit of the ladies1 and far surpassing in truth the first impression of that ancient ,halicarnassian1 full of his old gallinaceous and bovine stories4 ,mrs4 ,lott1 an ,english school-teacher1 was engaged in ,london to proceed to ,egypt in #ahfb-c1 to take charge of the education of his highness the ,grand ,pasha ,ibraim1 five or six years old1 the son of ,ismail ,pasha1 the viceroy1 and the grandson of the renowned and illustrious ,ibraim4 ,the lady in due time arrived at the port of ,alexandria1 consigned to the delicate consideration and tender mercies of the viceroy's agent1 like any other bale of valuable and perishable drygoods4 ,her first glimpse of the land in the culinary and creature-comfortable line of development was not favorable4 ,she next proceeded to the city of ,cairo by rail1 and was invited to the house of the vice-regal commercial partner1 a ,german in lineage and language1 but with principles and refinement somewhat neglected from want of proper planting and propagation in his youthful ,european culture4 ,at the residence of this gentleman she was perpetually served with the same dishes at breakfast1 noon1 and dinner--boiled and roast mutton1 stringy and dry1 vermicelli soup1 tomatoes stuffed with rice1 chicory1 spinach1 and the whole of the dishes were swimming in fat2 oranges and coffee followed after4 ,considering that the thermometer was raging above #ajj1 ,fahrenheit1 this oriental feed was rather oleaginous1 and the lady longed for the wings of a dove to devour her provender elsewhere4 ,so far she had learned one important lesson1 and thus paints it4 ,she says3 ,i can endorse the veracity of the statement made by a contributor to ,once a ,week1 who most naively and truthfully asserts that 'the land of ,egypt is ruled over by twenty princes3 one of whom is the viceroy1 eighteen of the others are known as consuls-general of ,european nations2 but the twentieth is the most powerful of all1 and his name is ,baksheesh1 7gift1 present1 bribery4'7 ,to the high and mighty ,prince ,baksheesh1 in duty bound we render all due homage2 we bow our lowest salaam1 and are pleased to make his acquaintance4 ,he is not wholly unknown to fame in this hemisphere2 for a popular superstition prevails in the rural districts that his majesty has many loyal subjects and followers in our own dearly beloved and dearly governed model republic4 ,prince ,baksheesh is a power in our institutions1 and a party to much of our legislation4 ,the misfortune of the unprotected female was1 that she did not propitiate the potentate2 the superabundant fat would have been speedily withdrawn from the bill of fare4 #dji ,at last the day arrived for her to remove to the harem of the viceroy on the other side of the river2 and she was destined to leave the hands of the agent in the same sort of consignment in which she had come into them1 that is1 amid bales1 barrels1 and boxes of merchandise4 ,the dame1 therefore1 had no opportunity to take a look into the royal market-basket1 to ascertain how ,ismail ,pasha provided for his little private family of three hundred females of different colors1 ages1 sizes1--and sexes of the feminine and neuter gender4 ,although the ,english governess has an eye for the ornamental and beautiful1 it is nevertheless only one eye2 the other throws its dark splendor upon the useful and substantial4 ,sometimes she endeavored to close both against sights which were neither the one nor the other4 ,the truth of history1 however1 compels her to supply her readers with specimens of all these4 ,she observes3 ,the vice-regal standard1 the everlasting crescent1 floated at the stem and stern4 ,on they rowed most vigorously1 and in less than ten minutes ,i was landed at the stairs of the harem4 ,the building is a very plain structure1 the interior of which is painted like the trunks of the trees of the ,dutch model village of ,broeck4 ,in appearance it resembles the letter ,e1 and is a large pile1 composed of five blocks of buildings4 ,proceeding to the one which faced the ,nile1 ,i entered the harem1 7'sacred1'7 passed through a small door--the grating sound of whose huge hinges still seems to creak in my ears like the grinding of the barrel-organ of an itinerant ,italian or ,savoyard--which led into a court-yard1 at that time lined1 not with a corps of the ,egyptian infantry1 with their shrill brass bands playing opera airs1 but with a group of hard-working ,fellahs and ,arabs1 toiling away like laborers in the ,london docks1 and rolling into the immense space hundreds of bales of soft ,geneva velvets1 the costliest ,lyons silks1 rich ,french satins1 most elegant designed muslins1 fast gaudy-colored ,manchester prints1 stout ,irish poplins1 the finest ,irish linens1 ,brussels1 ,mechlin1 ,valenciennes1 ,honiton1 and imitation laces1 ,nottingham hose1 ,french silk stockings1 ,french and ,coventry ribbons1 cases of the purest ,schiedam1 pipes of spirits of wine1 huge cases of fashionable ,parisian boots1 shoes1 and slippers1 immense chests of bon bons in magnificent fancy-worked cases1 boxes and baskets1 bales of tombeki1 and the bright1 golden-leaved tobacco of ,istambol1 7,constantinople27 ,cashmere1 ,indian1 ,french1 and ,paisley shawls of the most exquisite designs2 baskets of pipe-bowls1 cases of amber mouth-pieces1 cigarette papers1 and a whole host of miscellaneous packages too various to enumerate1 of other commodities destined for the use of the inmates of that vast conservatory of beauty1 all supplied by his highness's partners4 ,for1 be it known to you1 gentle reader1 that the ,viceroy of ,egypt may most appropriately be styled par excellence the ,sinbad of the age1 the merchant-prince of the terrestrial globe4 ,here ,i was received by two eunuchs1 one of whom was attired in a light drab uniform4 444 ,i was then ushered through another door1 the portals of which were guarded by a group of eunuchs1 similarly attired1 but whose uniforms were most costly embroidered4 ,their features were hideous and ferocious1 their figures corpulent1 and carriage haughty1 ,they also salaamed me in the most oriental style4 ,thence1 passing along a marble passage1 ,i entered a large stone hall1 which was supported by huge granite pillars which led me to the grand staircase1 where ,i was received by the chief eunuch1 who is called kislar agaci1 'the captain of the girls4' ,this giant spectre of a man 444 advanced toward me1 made his salaam1 and ushered me1 the hated1 despised ,giaour1 into the noble marble hall of the harem1 which was then for the first time polluted by the footsteps of the unbeliever4 ,the scene around me was so singular and strange that ,i paused to contemplate it4 ,the hall was of vast dimensions1 supported by beautiful porphyry pillars1 and the marble floor was covered with fine matting4 ,i was now handed over to the lady superintendent of the slaves1 a very wealthy woman1 about twenty-four years of age1 with fine dark-blue eyes1 aquiline nose1 large mouth1 and of middle stature4 ,she was attired in a colored muslin dress and trousers1 over which she wore a quilted lavender-colored satin paletot4 ,her head was covered with a small blue gauze handkerchief tied round it1 and in the centre of the forehead1 tucked up under it1 a lovely natural dark-red rose4 ,she wore a beautiful large spray of diamonds arranged in the form of the flower 'forget-me-not1' which hung down like three tendrils below her ear on the left side4 ,large diamond drops were suspended from her ears1 and her fingers were covered with numerous rings1 the most brilliant of which were a large rose-pink diamond and a beautiful sapphire4 #daj ,her feet were encased in white cotton stockings1 and patent-leather ,parisian shoes4 ,her name was ,anina3 she had been formerly an ,ikbal 'favorite4' 444 ,the lady superintendent now took me by the hand1 led me up two flights of stairs covered with thick1 rich ,brussels carpet of a most costly description1 and as soft and brilliant in colors as the dewy moss of ,virginia ,water4 ,the walls were plain4 ,then we passed through a suite of several rooms1 elegantly carpeted1 in all of which stood long divans2 some of which were covered1 with white1 and others with yellow and crimson satin4 ,over the doorways hung white satin damask curtains1 looped up with silk cords and tassels to correspond1 with richly gilded cornices over each4 444 ,against the walls were fixed numerous silver chandeliers1 each containing six wax candles1 with frosted colored glass shades made in the form of tulips over them4 ,on each side of the room large mirrors were fixed in the wall1 each of which rested on a marble-topped console table supported by gilded legs4 ,the only other articles of furniture that were scattered about the apartments were a dozen common ,english cane-bottom ,kursi-chairs4 ,she is next conducted further on to some dormitories1 where bedsteads are wanting1 being an article of furniture unused by the ,gypsies4 ,against the walls were piled up beds in heaps1 covered over with a red silk coverlet4 ,on the divan was placed a silver tray--both toilet-tables and wash-hand-stands being unheard-of comforts--containing the princesses' toilet requisites4 ,in her general inspection the governess is led to the apartments of the ,princess ,epouse1 the mother of the little boy for whom ,mrs4 ,lott is engaged4 ,this princess is dressed--but let dame ,emeline describe the scene1 as only a lady can do it3 ,the ,princess ,epouse1 attired in a dirty1 crumpled1 light-colored muslin dress and trousers1 sat la ,turque1 doubled up like a clasp-knife1 without shoes or stockings1 smoking a cigarette4 444 ,her feet were encased in babouches1 'slippers without heels4' 444 ,in front of the divan1 behind and on each side of me1 stood a bevy of the ladies of the harem1 assuredly not the types of ,tom ,moore's ',peris of the ,east1' as described in such glowing colors in his far-famed ,lalla ,rookh1 for ,i failed to discover the slightest trace of loveliness in any of them4 ,on the contrary1 most of their countenances were pale as ashes1 exceedingly disagreeable1 flat and globular in figure2 in short1 so rotund1 that they gave me the idea of large full moons2 nearly all were pass4 ,their photographs were as hideous and hag-like as the witches in the opening scene in ,macbeth1 which is not to be wondered at1 as some of them had been the favorites of ,ibrahim ,pasha4 444 ,some wore white linen dresses and trousers4 ,their hair and finger-nails were dyed with henna4 444 ,they had handsome gold watches 444 suspended from their necks by thick1 massive gold chains4 ,their fingers were covered with a profusion of diamond1 emerald1 and ruby rings2 in their ears were ear-rings of various precious stones1 all set in the old antique style of silver4 444 ,behind stood half-a-dozen of white slaves1 chiefly ,circassians4 ,the mother leaves a favorable impression on the mind of the governess1 who1 being finally dismissed from the interview1 pursues her explorations and makes a great discovery neither complimentary to the princess nor cleanly1 where water is abundant1 but where ablutions seem to be abnormal2 for it is written in her journal that ,thence we passed along a stone passage which leads to her highness's bath-room4 444 ,the marble bath is both long and wide1 with taps for hot and cold water4 ,the water actually boils into which their highnesses enter4 ,this only occurs when they have visited the viceroy1 and not daily1 or even at any other time4 ,the bath of the poets is a myth4 ,the governess at last reaches her own chamber1 where she is destined to sleep and seclude herself in her leisure hours4 ,the prospect at first is not inviting1 nor does a second view afford more encouragement2 an evident sense of disappointment1 if not of dismay1 is experienced2 and thus she pours forth her vexation3 #daa ,on the right-hand side of the first room was the small bed-room which was assigned to me as my apartment4 ,it was carpeted1 having a divan covered with green and red striped worsted damask1 which stood underneath the window1 which commanded a fine coup-d'ceil of the gardens attached to the palace of the viceroy's pavilion4 ,the hangings of the double doors and windows were of the same material4 ,the furniture consisted of a plain green painted iron bedstead1 the bars of which had never been fastened1 and pieces of wood1 like the handles of brooms1 and an iron bar1 were placed across to support the two thin cotton mattresses laid upon it4 ,there were neither pillows1 bolsters1 nor bed linen1 but as substitutes were placed three thin flat cushions2 not a blanket1 but two old worn-out wadded coverlets lay upon the bed4 ,not the sign of a dressing-table or a chair of any description1 and a total absence of all the appendages necessary for a lady's bed-room2 not even-- ,well1 well1 ,mrs4 ,lott1 the not even was1 in your civilized opinion1 certainly very odd to be sure4 ,but don't mind trifles2 let it be forgotten2 let us ramble elsewhere4 ,you were saying just now something about four broad steps2 go on2 that's right4 ,four broad steps led down into the garden1 close to a plain white marble-columned gate1 on the top of which stood out in bold relief the statues of two huge life-sized lions4 444 ,here and there were scattered rose-trees1 the brilliancy of whose variegated colors and the perfumes of their flowers were delightfully refreshing2 geraniums of almost every hue2 jessamines1 whose large white and yellow blossoms were thrice the size of those of ,england1 and a variety of indigenous and eastern plants1 shrubs1 and flowers1 which were so thickly studded about that they rendered the view extremely picturesque1 and perfumed the air1 grateful to the senses4 ,verbena trees1 as large as ordinary fruit-trees2 other plants bearing large yellow flowers1 as big as tea-cups1 with most curious leaves2 cactuses1 and a complete galaxy of botanical curiosities1 whose names the genius of a ,paxton would be perhaps puzzled to disclose1 ornamented those ,elysian grounds4 ,this is only one sketch of only one spot in the many gorgeous and luxurious localities4 ,space forbids copying more2 but the book states3 ,leaving these neglected scenes of amusement1 we proceed along a path to the right1 through a superb marble-paved hall1 the ceiling of which is in fresco and gold4 ,it is supported by twenty-eight plain pink-colored marble columns1 surmounted by richly-gilded ,indian wheat1 the leaves of which hang down most gracefully1 on each side of which1 and also above 444 are some very handsome lofty rooms1 the ceilings of which are also in fresco1 with superb gilded panels4 444 ,the grounds of ,frogmore1 the ,crystal ,palace1 ,st4 ,cloud1 ,versailles1 the ,duke of ,devonshire's far-famed ,chatsworth1 and our national pride1 ,kensington ,gardens and ,windsor ,home ,park1 exquisite1 beautiful1 and rural as they are 444 all lack the brilliant display of exotics which thrive here in such luxuriance4 ,the groves of orange-trees1 the myrtle hedges1 the beautiful sheets of water1 the spotless marble kiosks1 the artistic statuary1 are all so masterly blended together with such exquisite taste1 that these gardens 444 completely outvie them4 ,the princesses were sometimes as highly adorned as the halls of marbles and frescoes1 and as ornamental as the gardens of blooming exotics4 ,on the festival of the ,great ,bairam1 or on state occasions1 when lady visitors made formal calls to compare complexions and cashmeres1 their highnesses are spoken of with the highest delight3 ,they wore the most costly silks1 richest satins1 and softest velvets2 adorned themselves with the treasures of their jewel caskets1 so that their persons were one blaze of precious stones4 ,that crescent of females 7for they always ranged themselves in the form of the ,turkish symbol7 was then a parterre of diamonds1 amethysts1 topazes1 turquoises1 chrysoberyls1 sapphires1 jaspers1 opals1 agates1 emeralds1 corals1 rich carbuncles1 and rubies4 ,in short1 the profusion of diamonds with which the latter adorned their persons from day to day became so sickening to me that my eyes were weary at the sight of those magnificent baubles1 to which all women are so passionately attached4 #dab ,but weary as were her ,british eyes1 still she gazed in rapture when the darling gems were on exhibition2 moreover1 in the journal the impressions were faithfully recorded4 ,on another occasion1 when some princesses were coming1 ,the ,princess ,epouse1 the mother of my prince1 was attired in a rich1 blue-figured silk robe1 trimmed with white lace and silver thread1 with a long train2 full trousers of the same material1 high-heeled embroidered satin shoes to match the dress4 ,on her head she had a small white crape handkerchief1 elegantly embroidered with blue silk and silver1 and round it placed a tiara of ,may blossoms in diamonds4 ,she wore a necklace to correspond1 having large sapphire drops hanging down the neck4 ,her arms were ornamented with three bracelets1 composed of diamonds and sapphires1 and an amulet entirely of sapphires of almost priceless value4 444 ,at times my eyes1 when looking at the ,peris arrayed in all their gems1 have become as dim as if ,i had been fixing them on the noonday sun4 ,what young lady of an enterprising turn of mind would not be willing1 after reading these glowing descriptions1 to pack up her ,saratoga trunks1 to engage the ,adams ,express ,company1 and to charter the ,cunard line of steamers1 to aid her on to a glorious future near the base of the pyramids8 ,certainly not one of the ambitious and strong-minded4 ,but they need not ask the ,english governess to go with them4 ,she has been there2 she will respectfully decline going again--not she1 as ,shakespeare's other old lady in ,henry the ,,viii4 exclaims1 not for all the mud in ,egypt4 ,for another part of the story remains to be told2 another side of the picture to be presented2 and dame ,emeline tells it truthfully1 she paints it lifelike2 the rose is beautiful1 but beware the serpent under it4 ,mrs4 ,lott is apparently a gentlewoman1 refined1 accomplished1 intellectual1 with an appreciation of the difference between civilized society and barbarism4 ,but in the vice-regal harem1 education was not to be found2 ignorance was universal1 superstition reigned supreme4 ,none could read1 or write1 or sketch1 or converse on a rational subject4 ,no one could sing or perform on a musical instrument2 none cared for to-morrow or for a hereafter4 ,their daily routine had all the monotony of the desert with its burning sands1 destitute of variety in incident or shade of change2 it was equally unproductive and utterly worthless4 ,they had nothing to expect with pleasing anticipation2 they had nothing to remember with delight4 ,physically1 morally1 mentally they were unclean and debased4 ,their passions1 when aroused1 were ungovernable2 their greatest joy was revenge upon a rival2 and their revenge was deadly1 by suffocation or submersion1 poison or the bow-string4 ,their amusements were all sensual2 their weary hours of listless idleness were passed in indulgence of some enervating vice alike deleterious to health1 comfort1 and color4 ,the servants were steeped in only a lower depth of dirt and depravity4 ,the princesses had the power of life and death over them1 and it was a power often exercised2 they would put them to the torture for a trivial fault1 the breaking of a plate or the falling of a cup2 and cheeks and arms seamed with parallel rows of the red-hot iron1 attested how often and how unmercifully cruel had been their punishment4 ,the food of the menials was not prepared for them1 nor given to them2 but they purloined by stealth from the dishes on their way to the princesses' apartments2 and after their repast was ended1 the refuse of chicken and pigeon bones1 of mutton1 of soup1 of rice1 of vegetables1 and the rinds of fruit were tossed into a basket in one loathing mess1 mixed up1 around which the servants flocked like carrion birds1 and1 squatting on the floor1 inserted ravenously their reeking hands to pick out disgusting morsels with their dripping1 unwashed fingers4 #dac ,the laundry did not require much water2 for the volume informs us1 ,those who performed the duties of washerwomen were occupied daily in their avocation1 except on the ,sabbath1 7,fridays47 ,but that was not very laborious work1 since neither bed1 table1 nor chamber linen are used4 ,thus they were engaged until twelve1 when their highnesses partook of their breakfast separately4 ,it was served up on a large green-lackered tray1 minus table-cloth1 knives and forks1 but with a large ivory tablespoon1 having a handsome coral handle1 the evident emblem of their rank as princesses4 ,it was placed upon the soofra1 a low kind of stool1 covered with a handsome silk cloth4 ,the repast occupied about twenty minutes4 ,then pipes1 in which are placed small pills of opium1 or more often cigarettes and coffee1 were handed to them1 and each princess retired to her own apartment4 ,thus they became confirmed opium-smokers1 which produced a kind of intoxication4 444 ,their common indulgence in opium1 with a profuse supply of ,european wines and ,schiedam gin1 produced its natural results1 and is thus depicted3 ,oftentimes after the princesses had been indulging too freely in that habit to which they had became slaves1 their countenances would assume most hideous aspects2 their eyes glared1 their eyebrows were knit closely together2 no one dared to approach them4 ,in fact1 they had all the appearance of mad creatures1 while at other times they were gay and cheerful4 ,they only combed their hair 7which was full of vermin7 once a week1 on ,thursdays1 the eve of their ,sabbath1 7,friday1 ,djouma27 when it was well combed with a large small-tooth comb2 and pardon me1 but 'murder will out1' the members of the vermin family which were removed from it were legion4 ,it was afterward well brushed with a hard hair-brush1 well damped with strong perfumed water4 ,their highnesses never wore stockings in the morning1 nor did they change any of their attire till afternoon4 ,when the summer heats set in1 the harem was transferred to the coast at ,alexandria1 to inhale the fresh breezes from the sea4 ,the preparation for flight was attended with some rich scenes and ludicrous exhibitions4 ,but their transit on the railroad1 boxed up like pigs or poultry on a cattle-train1 is indescribable in a decent print4 ,the prelude to the trip will bear repeating2 it is an amusing contrast with the festal robes on the day of the ,great ,bairam2 the cutaneous sensation it excites is the penalty to pay for the knowledge imparted2 the company is right regal4 ,as soon as orders had been given to the grand eunuch to hasten the departure of the vice-regal family to ,alexandria1 444 there was bustle all day long4 ,one morning when ,i returned from the gardens1 444 ,i entered the grand pasha's reception-room2 444 there were their highnesses1 the princesses1 squatted on the carpet amidst a whole pile of trunks4 ,they were all attired in filthy1 dirty1 crumpled muslins1 shoeless and stockingless2 their trousers were tucked up above their knees1 the sleeves of their paletots pinned up above their elbows1 their hair hanging loose above their shoulders1 as rough as a badger's back1 totally uncombed1 without nets or handkerchiefs1 but1 pardon me1 literally swarming with vermin6 ,no ,russian peasants could possibly have been more infested with live animals4 ,in short1 their tout ensemble was even more untidy than that of washerwomen at their tubs2 nay1 almost akin to ,billingsgate fisherwomen at home2 for their conversation in their own vernacular was equally as low4 ,they all swore in ,arabic at the slaves most lustily1 banged them about right and left with any missile1 whether light or heavy1 which came within their reach4 ,at last the governess lost her health4 ,the food was too unsuitable for a ,christian woman1 and the atmosphere1 redolent of the overpowering rich perfumes of the gardens mingled with sickening1 stupefying opium smell and smoke1 along with other odors1 almost intolerable4 ,after visiting ,constantinople with the harem1 she threw up her engagement and returned to ,england4 ,this abasement of woman is not to be wondered at2 for wherever the ,christian idea of marriage is lost or subverted1 woman becomes the mere object of passion1 and degradation is sure to follow4 ----------- #dad ,translated ,from ,etudes ,religieuses1 ,etc41 ,par ,des ,peres ,de ,la ,compagnie ,de ,jesus4 ,the ,flight ,of ,spiders4 ,a ,paper ,read ,before ,the ,french ,academy ,of ,science1 ,march1 #ahfg4 ,about fifteen years ago1 ,i was sitting in an arbor of my garden1 reading1 when a little spider fell on my book1 whence ,i could not tell1 and commenced to run over the very line ,i was reading4 ,i blew hard to chase him away1 but he would not go4 ,he lifted himself strangely up1 and ,i cannot explain how1 but he lodged on a sprig of verdure just above my head4 ,well1 said ,i1 for a little animal like that1 this is a wonderful feat6 ,how has he accomplished it8 ,to satisfy myself1 ,i took him up again1 balanced him on my book1 and1 after assuring myself that he had no invisible thread to aid him1 ,i blew again1 and again the little fellow did the very same thing4 ,with redoubled curiosity1 ,i tried him once more1 and1 to see better1 ,i sat down in the bright sunlight4 ,again ,i balanced him on the book1 looked at him as closely as possible1 and1 when ,i felt assured no precaution could have escaped me1 ,i blew once more4 444 ,resuming the same inclined position1 the spider as quick as lightning darted the finest possible thread out of him1 raised himself in the air1 and disappeared4 ,i confess ,i was stupefied4 ,never had ,i imagined these little animals could fly without wings2 so ,i consulted several works on zoology1 but ,i was astonished to find there was no mention made of the flight of spiders1 nor of the ejaculatory movement of which ,i had witnessed so curious an example4 ,footnote #if ,footnote #if3 ,in ,m4 ,eugne ,simon's ,natural ,history of ,spiders1 the most recent work of the kind1 he says1 speaking of the manner in which l'pire diadme constructs its web3 ,several authors suppose that the spider darts its thread like an arrow1 others imagine it throws it upward in the air while flying as a fly would2 but neither of these explanations rests on observation1 and they are1 after all1 simple hypotheses4 ,then1 describing his own observation as to how a spider acts to make fast its great threads1 he says1 ,it seems to take a horizontal position1 and moves contrary to the wind4 ,m4 ,simon's work gives us nothing else to lead us to suppose he has observed the wonders spoken of4--,tr4 ,so there was a new question presented to me1 and my vocation to study the habits of these little animals--which hitherto had given me no concern--decided for me4 ,i immediately lost all repugnance1 all distaste1 and threw away all the unjust precautions of which the spider is too often the object1 and of which ,i was as culpable as any one else4 ,and from that time ,i welcomed its appearance2 was most happy to meet with it1 looked for it1 indeed1 and studied its habits almost with furor4 ,and ,i can say that1 thanks to this hearty preoccupation1 which never left me1 ,i found every opportunity to follow my inclination1 and knew where to find spiders in all sorts of unheard-of places4 ,such are the singular effects of curiosity once excited1 and still another proof that1 in order to study nature well1 we need only a mysterious glimpse of the unknown to redouble all our energies to explain it thoroughly4 ,and as in this study1 trifling as it may appear1 ,i seem to have met with facts not known hitherto1 but which deserve to be understood1 ,i here resume the principal ones3 those that treat of the flying of spiders2 of the habitation of some species in the air2 and of the gossamer or air threads--a singular phenomenon1 for a long time discussed in vain1 but which ,i believe ,i have definitively solved4 #dae ,i only ask the naturalists to judge one fairly1 not by theory1 but by facts4 ,and ,i am persuaded1 if they will take the pains to verify what ,i advance1 they will find me exact2 and1 if they begin doubtingly1 ,i hope1 after they have read my observations1 they will conclude as others to whom ,i have communicated them4 ,mocking and incredulous at first1 they have ended by believing their own eyes1 and testifying to the evidence presented to them4 ,may my labor prove useful1 and1 above all1 contribute to the glory of the great ,god1 whose just title is1 ,magnus in magnis1 maximus in minimis4 ,i4 ,threads ,thrown ,out ,by ,spiders4 ,the first thing that ,i perceived1 and that put me on the track of the rest1 was1 as ,i have just said1 that the greater part of aranides1 especially certain varieties of thomises lycoses1 etc41 besides the thread that they always draw with them1 have the power of darting one or more of extraordinary length1 and of which they make use to accomplish distances1 to fasten their webs from one point to another1 and even1 as we shall see further on1 to raise themselves in the air and there to seek their prey4 ,the spider always points his abdomen to the side where he wishes to go4 ,the thread shoots like an arrow1 fastens itself by the end to the place destined1 and the spider passes as under a suspended bridge4 ,if this thread is cut1 it is immediately replaced by another2 and the ejaculation is so prompt1 so rapid1 the thread so straight1 so tenuous1 so brilliant1 that it might be taken1 if ,i may so express myself1 for the jet of an imperceptible ray of light4 ,to perceive this clearly1 the spider must be held on a level with the eyes1 which should be shaded1 and examined with one's back to the sun4 ,the best time for such an observation is in the morning or evening1 when the sun is low in the horizon and the temperature is mild2 for without this latter condition the torpid spider is more inclined to creep along the earth than to throw out new threads4 ,sometimes1 to excite them1 they may be held by their ordinary thread and gently shaken or blown upon--just a few puffs of breath--which they detest4 ,i have thus been able to scan closely1 while watching their development1 this instantaneous jet of thread1 which could not be less than five or six yards long1 that is1 fifteen hundred or two thousand times the length of the spider4 ,what a tremendous apparatus must be necessary to these little animals for so rapid an ejaculation1 and one so disproportioned to their size6 ,and especially if we consider that this thread1 inasmuch as it adheres to the animal1 has not the appearance of an independent organ1 but seems solely to obey its will4 ,thus ,i have seen spiders1 who seemed to miss the end desired with the first stroke1 continue to hold the thread in the same direction1 and actually palpitate1 if ,i may so say1 while striving to make it adhere4 ,but a truly interesting sight1 and one obtained at a very trifling expense1 is that which the thomises bufo offer1 described by ,walckenaer1 in the first volume of his ,history of ,insects1 page #ejf4 ,in truth1 these araneides do not only throw out one thread1 but an entire bundle of them1 and are seemingly guided by the smaller threads1 just as a peacock unfolds by degrees his splendid plumage4 #daf ,and even in one's own room this sight may be enjoyed4 ,it is only necessary to collect these thomises and keep them in separate boxes1 and nourish them in winter with one fly or so a month4 ,then take the boxes out1 put them on a table in a very warm room1 and sit a little in the shade and watch them4 ,very soon from each box will appear a multitude of threads1 of extreme freshness and fineness1 which the spider throws into the air with inexhaustible profusion4 ,at certain seasons of the year we can enjoy this spectacle again1 and at even less expense4 ,,ii4 ,flight ,of ,spiders4 ,another property not less remarkable that these araneides possess 7thomises bufo1 lycoces voraces1 etc47 is that of flying2 that is to say1 of elevating themselves in the air1 there sustaining themselves1 and travelling about horizontally and vertically1 with or without a thread2 in a word1 acting exactly as if in their own element4 ,this fact ,i have witnessed a thousand times1 and it has been certified to by a great number of people1 who1 at first incredulous1 and alarmed for the laws of gravitation1 were compelled to confess the reiterated testimony of their own eyes4 ,i had some pupils under my charge1 and to them this study became a continued source of amusement4 ,during their recreation1 they found suitable spiders for me1 and1 when they brought them to me1 ,i rested them on my fingers and made them mount upward in the air2 and invariably1 after having watched them for some moments1 they were entirely lost to sight4 ,but when ,i made the discovery--of which ,i will speak later--of the general migration which some species make yearly toward certain regions of the atmosphere1 ,i had no longer any trouble to enjoy this performance to my heart's content4 ,the flight of spiders is sometimes very rapid1 particularly when they start4 ,they often escape from one's hands while they are carefully watched4 ,this happened to me one day with a voracious lycose that ,i had for a long time importuned without success4 ,just as ,i was going to give him up as entirely stupefied1 he suddenly escaped from me by a lateral movement1 so rapid that for a moment ,i lost sight of him2 but1 when ,i found him a moment afterward1 he was suspended quietly in the air4 ,i also remarked that he set out without throwing any thread1 and this was not the only time ,i made the same observation4 ,i was experimenting one day with some amateurs in the interior court of the college where ,i live1 and1 having started a lycose1 we saw him occupy himself at first with the neighboring galleries1 running up and down for about twenty yards1 about a tenth of a yard from the arch1 against which he knocked himself from time to time1 and groped about to look for a passage2 not finding one1 he threw himself back into the court1 raised perpendicularly1 and disappeared toward the clouds4 ,his thread1 if he had one1 could not have been longer than a tenth of a yard4 ,ordinarily1 however1 before they ascend1 they throw out a thread which they follow for a short time2 then1 arriving at a certain height1 they break it1 in order to navigate more easily4 ,if any is left before them1 they wind it rapidly with their feet1 throw it aside1 and form those pretty little crowns of white silk in form of cracknels1 that we often see flying in the air in time of gossamers4 ,again1 they balance themselves quietly with a thread which rises perpendicularly above them1 and gives them the appearance of floating4 #dag ,but a peculiarity still more remarkable in the flight of spiders is the attitude that they take in flying4 ,they generally swim backward1 that is to say1 the back turned from the earth1 the feet folded on the corselet1 and perfectly immovable4 ,how can such a flight be explained1 for they are already heavier than the air8 ,plunged into alcohol1 they sink quickly2 but in the air they seem to possess an ease1 a liberty1 a facility of transport1 so admirable that ,i have never been able to see in them the slightest motion1 nor even an apparent increase of weight4 ,does not this fact present an interesting question for the skilful to contemplate8 ,,iii4 ,how ,long ,they ,can ,remain ,in ,the ,atmosphere8 ,at this portion of my history ,i have to relate facts the most curious and unexpected2 and1 unfortunately for me1 more true than probable4 ,i acknowledge ,i was loath to publish them1 or assume concerning them any responsibility4 ,but ,i was firmly convinced1 and therefore hoped to be believed1 especially by this generation of fearless naturalists1 who are astonished at nothing in nature1 and who1 having often been surprised in the relation of almost incredible marvels1 must certainly make allowances for a few more in another quarter4 ,let us look at1 for instance1 the wonderful things related of the argyronete1 or aquatic spider4 ,footnote #ig ,footnote #ig3 ,the argyronete is a spider that lives in the water where she constructs a charming little edifice that appears surrounded with a silky mortar4 ,the down that covers her contains a certain quantity of air for respiration4 ,this gives her in swimming the appearance of a ball of quicksilver1 from which we have her name4 ,i could not tell anything more unlikely1 so ,i will only exact for the atmosphere a companion to what the ,pre de ,lignac discovered in the last century for the water4 ,yes1 ,i pretend there are spiders that live in the air as well as those living in water1 and that every year1 from the earliest days of spring1 there is1 unknown to us1 a general migration of spiders toward the atmosphere1 where they pass their best season1 form their nets1 chase their prey1 and only return to earth in the first fogs of autumn to find their quarters for the winter4 ,i add1 also1 that this ascent and descent give rise to the curious phenomenon1 still so badly explained1 of the gossamer4 ,and as it was to the study of this phenomenon that ,i owe my knowledge of the rest1 may ,i be permitted here1 by way of demonstration1 to relate briefly the path ,i have followed and the proofs which have led to the conviction ,i express8 ,attracted1 as ,i was1 by all that concerns spiders1 ,i could not remain indifferent to a fact so important and interesting as the periodical apparition of those threads which in spring and autumn we see flying about in long white skeins1 clinging to trees1 to hedges1 and to the vestments of the passers-by1 carpeting the country in a few hours with more silk1 and finer and whiter1 than could be spun in a year by all the reels in the world4 ,admirable netting1 glistening in the light of the setting sun1 and reflecting the sweetest1 softest tints of gold1 vermilion1 and emerald1 and receiving the pretty and poetical name of fils de la ,vierge4 ,was there not between this phenomenon and my preceding observations a secret tie1 some mysterious relation8 ,i seemed to foresee it1 and1 setting to work immediately1 rejected from the very beginning the usual explanation of this phenomenon4 #dah ,how1 indeed1 can we admit these floating gossamers as merely the refuge webs of spiders1 torn by the violence of the wind from the trees and forests and carried capriciously through the air8 ,will not the slightest observation convince us that they never appear but in the calmest moments1 on days foggy in the morning1 but afterward beautiful1 and not preceding a storm2 never in summer1 often in the spring and autumn1 and sometimes even in winter8 ,if the winds carry them1 why do they not appear in summer8 ,are violent winds and spider-webs both wanting8 ,and who has ever seen one of these webs carried by a hurricane1 especially in quantity sufficient to produce such a phenomenon8 ,for the fall of gossamers sometimes lasts for almost entire days1 and in certain countries during the middle of the day the fields are covered with them4 ,add1 too1 that violent winds are generally local1 while this phenomenon is universal1 and so periodical that in the same climates it appears at the same epochs1 and1 when one knows what produces it1 it is easy to predict the time and day of the apparition4 ,discontented1 then1 on this point with books and their explanations1 ,i turn completely to the side of nature1 and present all ,i observed4 ,from the first appearance of these threads in autumn1 ,i was struck with the immense multitudes of new spiders met with everywhere1 and which ,i had not seen during the summer4 ,little brown lycoses filled the air1 so that it seemed as if it had rained them4 ,if one walked in the fields1 the meadows1 the gardens1 on the borders of the woods1 among heaps of dried leaves1 scattered all through the forest everywhere1 could be seen myriads of these little brown spiders1 jumping up and flying before me in every direction1 and exactly such as ,i had already recognized as such excellent swimmers4 ,after having passed the winter in the earth1 in the holes of worms that they completed with a little silk1 they reappeared after the cold in great numbers1 to disappear again entirely in the first bright days of spring1 and as if by enchantment4 ,if one is seen again during the summer1 we may be sure it is some female retarded by laying her eggs1 and dragging laboriously her cocoon after her4 ,now1 what has become of the others8 ,for several months ,i could not satisfy myself on this point1 when1 on the #ba ,st of ,october1 #ahef1 in the enclosure of the little seminary of ,iseure1 near ,moulins1 ,i came to a positive decision1 ,i was observing the fall of a large quantity of gossamers1 which were falling on that day in large white flakes1 when ,i perceived close to me in the air one of those little black spiders descending gradually1 and as if she were jumping4 ,she held by an invisible thread to a large flake1 which came down slowly about seven or eight yards above her2 but1 keeping outside of it1 she hung by the end of the long thread1 like an aeronaut underneath his balloon4 ,my attention once attracted1 ,i noticed so great a number that ,i was astonished ,i had not taken care sooner2 for there was scarcely a flake underneath which there were not one or two1 and this sometimes even before the flake itself was visible4 ,footnote #ih ,footnote #ih3 ,there is an observation which confirms my own4 ,we read in ,darwin's ,journal1 page #aei3 ,mr4 ,darwin saw a large number of gossamers on the ship ,beagle1 when she was about #fj miles from the mouth of the ,rio de la ,plata4 ,it was the first of ,november1 and these gossamers were carried by a very light breeze1 and on each were found an immense number of little spiders1 similar in appearance1 about the twelfth of an inch in length1 and in color a deep brown4 ,the smallest were a deeper shade than the others4 ,none were found on the white tufts1 but all on threads4 ,journal of ,researches into the ,natural ,history and ,geology of the ,countries visited during the ,voyage of his ,majesty's ,ship1 the ,beagle1 #ahde4 #dai ,each one was separated by a slender thread1 and followed the motion of its balloon4 ,if they met a tree or a bush1 they landed upon it2 if not1 coming close to the earth1 they ran along and were lost in the verdure4 ,if ,i approached them too quickly or made a noise1 they remounted rapidly by their threads and went to disembark somewhere else4 ,i also examined some of the flakes4 ,they were all shining white mats1 appearing as if they had been washed4 ,several contained wings and feet of flies1 fragments of the case of little coleoptera1 and other remnants of their aerial festivities4 ,this encounter was for me a revelation4 ,i knew where the spiders1 whom ,i had seen disappear so brusquely1 took refuge1 and1 however rash my judgment may appear1 ,i felt assured ,i had solved an interesting problem4 ,but to establish seriously and give to science an opinion so new and original as that the atmosphere may be peopled with spiders1 ,i soon felt that more proof was necessary in order to sit down calmly under my personal conviction4 ,so ,i concluded ,i should not be doing too much if ,i added to the verification of their descent that of their ascension1 and could surprise them in this new migration4 ,i waited1 therefore1 impatiently for the spring4 ,but that spring1 and for five or six that followed it1 great was my disappointment2 for1 though ,i perceived several isolated ascensions1 yet nothing in the proportion ,i had imagined or that could justify my hypothesis4 ,i began then to doubt seriously my success1 when an incident occurred that relieved my embarrassment1 and proved how trifling sometimes are the causes which lift the veil from nature4 ,i was looking straight upward1 but sitting close to the earth1 and so as to be able as much as possible to exclude the sun from my eyes4 ,and here1 by the way1 a fact is made palpable1 by no means microscopic1 but which has escaped so long not merely the observation of the crowd of vulgar observers1 but of those even who are wide awake and study carefully2 namely1 that it is not necessary to carry one's nose always in the air1 if ,i may so express myself1 to examine closely1 to investigate1 or to render a faithful account of phenomena4 ,on looking upward--as an ascension only takes place on very beautiful days1 succeeding generally to bad weather--spiders cannot be distinguished from the multitude of other insects which fill the air4 ,but if1 on a beautiful day1 mild1 calm1 and brilliant in sunlight1 succeeding as nearly as possible to a rain warm with the south wind1 at about nine or ten o'clock in the morning1 a post is chosen on an eminence of a meadow or an avenue1 and there1 as near the ground as may be1 and crouching low1 the observer will look horizontally1 he will perceive a series of fire-works1 formed of innumerable threads launched from every direction and inclined toward the sky4 ,this is the prelude4 ,soon the spiders detach themselves and mount slowly by their threads4 ,the most conspicuous are the thomises bufo1 because they are the largest1 and because they only ascend with an entire bundle of threads1 which gives them the appearance of small comets4 #dbj ,thus have ,i decided #ast4 ,that there is not only one ascension every year1 but several1 at least partial ones2 that they do not always take place in spring1 but often in the autumn1 and sometimes even in the winter2 and in general1 from the descent which has taken place in the beginning of autumn until the definitive ascension in the spring1 there are but few favorable days of which the spiders do not profit to make an aerial journey1 or at least to throw out a large number of threads4 ,thus1 in the ,beaujolais1 where ,i have lived for several years1 there were partial ascensions on the #ast1 the #aith1 and the #bhth of ,november1 #ahfd2 the #bast1 the #bc;d1 and especially the #beth of ,october1 the #ith of ,november1 and the #fth of ,december1 #ahfe4 ,in #ahff1 the #ahth and the #cjth of ,january1 the #c;d of ,february1 the #c;d1 #adth1 and #cast of ,october1 and the #agth of ,december4 ,in #ahfg1 the #ajth of ,february1 444 the last1 however1 less considerable than might have been predicted by the beauty of the day4 ,the day previous was so mild1 though cloudy1 that many of the spiders may have embarked incognito4 ,many1 also1 may not have judged it a propos to fly away1 for a great number still remained on the ground4 ,i forgot to observe the temperature of all the days ,i have noted4 ,the director of the ,normal ,school of ,villefranche having had the kindness to show me the meteorological register which he had kept with great care1 ,i was able to prove that in calm weather only ten or twelve degrees of heat were necessary to induce them to mount upward4 ,the least exposed begin2 then immediately the others1 so soon as the heat reaches them2 but after three or four o'clock in the afternoon no more ascensions are perceived1 unless they are provoked2 and this does not always succeed1 #b;d4 ,before taking their flight1 they generally cling to some elevated object that they meet with easily1 such as shrubs1 bushes1 props of vines1 or blades of grass escaped from the scythe4 ,to these they affix their threads and warm themselves well in the sun before commencing their excursion4 ,this is the happy moment for amateurs to make their observations1 for there is scarcely a blade of grass that does not contain one or more2 and1 if the branches of young trees are suddenly struck with a slight blow1 a great number are detached1 suspended at the end of their threads2 and very often rare specimens are thus found not discoverable elsewhere4 ,,iv4 ,to ,what ,height ,do ,they ,raise ,themselves in the ,atmosphere8 ,on this point ,i have not been able to make any direct observation4 ,perhaps ,i have dreamed of offering objections to the concourse of intrepid human navigators who undertake such perilous excursions in the air1 and for my interest in the study ,i have found two excellent reasons4 ,the first1 that it would be well for them to know that1 if they have not had rivals1 they have had precursors1 who1 for #fjjj years1 have executed silently and noiselessly what they have claimed for themselves by every effort of puffs and publicity4 ,the second1 and a still more serious objection and that ,i believe will truly interest the future in this young industry1 is that if the argyronete and its bell has given to science the instrument with which the divers explore the depths of the sea1 why may not the study of aerial spiders furnish for aeronauts--these divers in air--the complete apparatus which they require to raise themselves to any height1 direct their movements1 and maintain themselves at will8 ,have not these little animals resolved this problem for centuries8 ,yet the present state of aerostation does not afford ground sufficient for comparison4 #dba ,we are1 therefore1 reduced to conjecture2 and1 if ,i may be permitted to express mine1 this is what ,i think3 ,i believe that spiders rise to the same height where on the fine days of summer one can see the swallows and martins hover1 almost lost to sight1 in pursuit of gnats that people these regions of the atmosphere4 ,i found this belief on the webs of spiders seen falling in autumn1 that seem to come at least from nearly such heights4 ,they begin to be seen at a hundred or a hundred and fifty yards1 and there is no great temerity in affirming that they have already traversed a good part of their course4 ,an observation made in #ahfd1 if conclusive1 would tend to make remoter still the habitation of spiders2 for the fog that determined the fall that year was a high fog1 that is to say1 one of those uniform mists that hide the sky for several days together1 and seem to extend to a great height4 ,but1 ,i repeat1 this is all conjecture4 ,one good observation would have been worth far more4' ,v4 ,conjectures ,on ,the ,mode ,of ,building ,of ,spiders ,in ,the ,air4 ,perhaps here ,i should stop1 and1 having stated facts1 leave to others their explanation4 ,how do spiders sustain themselves in the air8 ,how can they so long brave the winds1 the rains1 the storms2 arrange their webs in emptiness and without apparent means of support8 ,prudence counsels me to avoid these questions1 but my rle of simple observer permits them4 ,however1 in waiting for better things1 ,i decide still to hazard some conjectures1 were it only to prove that a fact once admitted1 it would not be absolutely impossible for the wisest to explain it4 ,the first idea that came to me was that these spider-webs raise themselves in the air as the kites of children1 and1 made fast to the tops of trees and edifices by long threads1 they are sustained by their own lightness4 ,this idea was suggested to me by a sight ,i was witness to one day at the ,seminary of ,vals1 near ,le ,puy4 ,from a corner where ,i was in shadow1 ,i perceived distinctly on each high ridge of the roof1 lightened by the rays of the sun1 long threads which rose perpendicularly in the air1 like large cords1 balancing themselves slowly right and left1 without ever going out of a certain field of oscillation4 ,but ,i soon gave up this idea4 ,how admit1 in truth1 that on two or three threads1 and without any other means of support1 spiders could weave their true webs8 ,would not some of these aerial constructions tumble down every day1 ruined by their own weight8 while it is acknowledged they only fall in autumn1 and always together4 ,i therefore rather incline to believe that the spiders are sustained in the air by the distention of an interior vesicle1 analogous to that of fish1 and that they ejaculate by their threads1 which are numerous1 and pierced with an infinity of little tubes1 large bundles of threads1 by which are taken the insects that serve for their prey2 that they resist the winds as fish do the tossing of the sea1 and their threads1 being glutinous1 are not dampened by the rain2 and also being excellent conductors of caloric1 as is proved by the abundant drops of dew which they pearl near the earth1 on the hedges1 etc42 and if after a calm night they are touched by an autumn fog1 these heavy and moistened threads weaken and fall one over the other1 and form the silky flakes that are seen from ten to eleven o'clock in the morning1 flying about in cloudy days with the spiders who inhabited them during the summer4 #dbb ,this1 hoping for better1 is the explanation ,i hazard1 and ,i submit it with the rest to the appreciation of competent men4 ,if only these pages attract attention to a merited subject1 and provoke numerous observations1 which alone can ever fully elucidate it1 the author will be more than repaid for the few researches he has presented in this article4 -------- ,translated ,from ,the ,revue ,du ,monde ,catholique4 ,john ,tauler4 ,by ,ernest ,hello4 ,history has an astonishing memory4 ,she records the day and hour of battles with exact fidelity4 ,she knows a thousand things4 ,she has recently discovered1 if ,i do not mistake1 the name of ,julian the ,apostate's cook4 ,she remembers everything of little importance4 ,the names of celebrated mistresses who have amused or poisoned renowned personages1 are transmitted from age to age4 ,erudition has been making strides during the last hundred years1 as if she had seven-leagued boots4 ,to deserve the admiration and gratitude of mankind1 however1 she should not have degraded herself1 but taken a higher sphere in her progress4 ,her memory indicates greatness of genius2 but she is like calumny1 she increases in size as she advances through the centuries4 ,in her labors1 researches1 and exploits1 she has been mostly busied with soldiers1 and frequently forgotten ,god and man4 ,she could not think of everything at once2 the hidden history of humanity is yet to be written2 the greatest events of the world are secret to this very day2 and those who reflect on them are men of a special caste4 ,if there were question of the battle of ,marathon1 or of ,antony and ,cleopatra1 our contemporaries would be found well instructed2 but do they know ,john ,tauler1 the ,german ,tauler1 of the ,dominican or preaching order8 ,master ,tauler was a great preacher--powerful and popular4 ,one day he gave a learned discourse1 in which he taught the way of perfection1 with all his characteristic assurance4 ,to become perfect1 he enumerated twenty-four conditions1 which he developed before an attentive and brilliant audience4 ,after the sermon1 a layman1 one of the poorest and most ignorant of his hearers1 came to him4 ,history1 by one of those distractions so usual for her to have1 when there is question of ,god1 has forgotten the name of this individual4 ,this simple layman said to ,tauler3 ,master1 the letter kills1 and the spirit gives life2 but you are a ,pharisee4 ,doctor ,tauler3 ,my son1 ,i am now old1 and no one has ever spoken to me in this manner4 ,the ,layman3 ,you think ,i speak too bluntly to you2 but it is your own fault2 and ,i can prove that what ,i say to you is true4 ,doctor ,tauler3 ,you will do me a favor1 for ,i have never loved the ,pharisees4 #dbc ,then the layman1 probing into the doctor's mental condition1 showed him that he was held captive by the mere letter of the evangelical law1 and devoid of its spirit4 ,you are a ,pharisee1 proceeded the layman1 but not a hypocritical ,pharisee4 ,you are not on the road to hell1 but on that which leads to purgatory4 ,doctor ,tauler embraced the man1 and said to him3 ,i feel at this moment as the ,samaritan woman must have felt at the well2 you have revealed to me all my faults1 my son2 you have told all that was most secret in my soul4 ,who1 then1 has told you8 ,it is ,god2 ,i am convinced it must be so4 ,i entreat you1 my son1 by the death of our ,lord1 to be my spiritual father1 and ,i1 a poor sinner1 will become your son4 ,the ,layman3 ,dear master1 if you speak thus contrary to order and reason1 ,i shall not remain with you any longer1 but straightway return to my own house4 ,doctor ,tauler3 ,oh6 no4 ,i beg you1 in the name of ,god1 to stay with me1 and ,i promise not to speak thus again4 ,the docility of ,tauler is sublime and touching4 ,his great good will1 which broke the pride of science1 led him into the paths of spiritual contemplation4 ,tell me1 ,i conjure you1 in the name of ,god1 said ,tauler1 how you have succeeded in arriving at the contemplative state8 ,the ,layman3 ,you ask me a very odd question4 ,i confess to you frankly that1 if ,i should recount or write all the wonderful things which ,god has been doing to me1 a poor sinner1 for twelve years1 there would be no book large enough to contain them4 ,the layman then recounted how he had been deceived in his spiritual life2 how1 influenced by ,satan1 he had practised imprudent austerities1 which would have injured both his body and soul2 and how1 warned by ,god1 he had returned to the paths of wisdom4 ,both ,tauler and the layman were then lifted up to the regions of contemplation4 ,the unknown monitor then said3 ,if the ,god whom we worship could be comprehended by reason1 he would not be worthy of our service4 ,but before his great illumination1 ,tauler suffered during two years frightful temptations4 ,abandoned1 poor1 suffering1 that man of iron was shaken like a reed4 ,the layman comes to his assistance1 and sustains in his time of misery him whom he had crushed in his period of pride4 ,for the first time1 said the layman1 ,god has touched your superior faculties4 ,at the end of two years1 the doctor again ascended the pulpit4 ,the crowd which came to hear him was large4 ,tauler cast his eyes over the expectant multitude1 then drew his cowl over his eyes and prayed4 ,the crowd awaited him2 but he spoke not a word4 ,tears filled his eyes and rolled down his cheeks4 ,tauler wept bitterly4 ,what a scene6 ,the audience become impatient4 ,some one asks ,tauler if he will preach4 ,tauler continues weeping4 ,he wept and wept2 and the multitude1 anxious to hear his inferior oratory1 and incapable of appreciating the higher eloquence of tears1 could not comprehend the doctor's conduct4 ,at last ,tauler dismissed the assembly2 for his sobs choked his utterance4 ,he asked pardon of the people for having kept them uselessly waiting2 and they went home4 ,now1 said some of them1 we see that he has become a fool4 #dbd ,but after five days' silence1 ,tauler preached before the friars of the convent1 and he was sublime4 ,one of the friars went to the pulpit and addressed the congregation as follows3 ,i am requested to make known to you that ,doctor ,tauler will preach here to-morrow2 but if he acts as he did last time1 remember not to blame me4 ,how will he succeed8 said one to another4 ,i do not know1 was the answer2 ,god knows4 ,this time ,tauler could control his voice1 and silence was his theme4 ,he had built his eyrie in silence1 as an eagle on the summit of a cliff4 ,his language1 worked out in silence1 seemed to long after it2 to return to its home1 and die away in the high sombre clouds of complete solitude4 ,silence is the doctrine of ,tauler2 his secret1 his food1 his substance and his slumber4 ,absolutely free from all oratorical finery1 his sermons go right to the mark1 without respect for conventionality or the cant of ordinary discourses4 ,he utters what he wishes to express2 praises solitude1 and returns into it4 ,this is the reason why his external word takes nothing away from his interior recollection4 ,his words do not betray his soul4 ,silence is the guardian angel of strength4 ,it was doubtless this profound doctrine of silence which gave to the eloquence of ,tauler an extraordinary virtue4 ,this man1 who seemed to come out of a tomb1 appeared with a thunderbolt in his hand4 ,fifty men1 after the sermon1 remained in the church as if transfixed by an invisible hand4 ,thirty-eight of them were able to move during the half-hour which followed2 but the twelve others could not stir4 ,tauler said to the unknown layman1 his adviser3 ,what shall we do with these people1 my son8 ,the layman went from one to the other and touched them1 but they were as immovable as rocks4 ,tauler was frightened at the paralysis which he had caused4 ,are they dead or alive8 said he to his friend4 ,what do you think8 ,if they are dead1 replied the layman1 it is your fault1 and that of the ,spouse of souls4 ,this fact1 which is historical1 seems like a legend4 ,this picture would be magnificent1 if an artist should sketch it4 ,the place where ,tauler had just preached was a cemetery1 and the twelve men who were lying on the ground in ecstasy resembled those who slumbered in death beneath4 ,the orator1 walking with his friend through the audience1 who had become almost his victims2 feeling the pulse and the face of his hearers1 to detect in them after the sermon1 as after a battle1 some sign of life2 passing through the ranks of the vanquished and healing the wounded1 must have seemed something superhuman4 ,at last the friend of ,tauler found that the thunderstruck hearers breathed still1 ,master1 said he1 those men still live4 ,request the nuns of the convent to take them away from here2 for this cold floor will injure them4 ,one of the nuns1 who was a listener to the fearful discourse1 had to be carried to her bed1 where she lay motionless4 ,the biography of ,john ,tauler1 which serves as prologue to his sermons1 says nothing of his exterior life2 but dwells specially on his unhistorical and legendary character4 ,those who wrote about him have not deigned even to inquire in what century he lived4 ,this strange man has dispensed history from its ordinary inquiries1 as if eternity had been the sole theatre of his terrestrial existence4 #dbe ,his friends are as strange as himself4 ,the astonishing layman1 who tells his name to nobody1 and gives us no means of discovering it1 was not the doctor's only teacher4 ,another of his instructors was a beggar1 just as extraordinary4 ,tauler1 according to ,surius1 petitioned ,god during eight years for a master capable of teaching him the truth4 ,one day when his desire was more than usually strong1 he heard a voice saying to him1 ,go to the door of the church4 ,thou wilt find there the man whom thou seekest4 ,he obeyed1 and met at the appointed spot a beggar1 whose feet were soiled with mud1 and whose rags were not worth three half-pence4 ,they began a dialogue1 of which the following is a portion3 ,doctor ,tauler4 ,good day1 my friend4 ,the ,beggar4 ,i do not remember ever to have had a bad day in my life4 ,tauler4 ,may ,god grant thee prosperity4 ,the ,beggar4 ,i know not what adversity is4 ,tauler4 ,well1 may ,god make thee happy6 ,the ,beggar4 ,i have never been unhappy4 ,urged for an explanation1 the mendicant affirms that1 by means of silence1 he had arrived at perfect union with ,god2 never being able to find pleasure in anything less than ,god4 ,tauler4 ,whence comest thou8 ,the ,beggar4 ,from ,god4 ,tauler4 ,where hast thou found ,god8 ,the ,beggar4 ,where ,i have left all creatures4 ,tauler4 ,where is ,god8 ,the ,beggar4 ,in men of good will4 ,tauler4 ,who art thou8 ,the ,beggar4 ,i am a king4 ,tauler4 ,where is thy kingdom8 ,the ,beggar4 ,in my soul4 ,we need often recall to our minds1 in reading ,tauler's life1 that he was really a man of flesh and bone1 an historical personage4 ,surius1 ,fathers ,echard and ,touron1 have written his real life circumstantially4 ,he was born in #abid4 ,he was an ,alsatian4 ,he lived at ,cologne1 and died probably at ,strasburg4 ,we cannot fix the date of his death4 ,it happened ,may #agth1 #acfa1 says ,father ,alexander4 ,father ,echard places it in the year #acgi4 ,another historian1 ,m4 ,sponde1 puts it in #acee4 ,let us now speak of his doctrine4 ,,ii4 ,the doctrine of ,doctor ,tauler is the practice of divine union4 ,this union1 transcending human thoughts and hopes1 is the secret of his life and the leading principle of his work4 ,his sermons are full of instruction regarding this union4 ,his ,institutions also teach it4 ,some writers hostile to ,tauler pretend to have found in his writings the foreshadowing of quietism4 ,this mistake can be refuted in three ways3 by the works of ,tauler1 which always affirm human activity to the most contemplative soul1 thus clearly separating the doctrine of the quietists from that of the ,german thinker4 ,secondly1 ,bossuet1 whom no one will suspect of any leaning toward quietism1 says of ,tauler3 ,he is one of the most solid and exact of the mystical theologians4 ,thirdly1 ,tauler himself predicted quietism in a remarkable monograph1 blaming strongly all that ,molinos1 ,madame de ,guyon1 and ,fenelon afterward asserted4 ,a close study of the ,alsatian doctor shows that he always gives to both internal and external activity all the reality and all the rights which they possess4 #dbf ,if any one1 says he1 ascends to such a height of contemplation as ,saints ,peter and ,paul reached2 and he perceives that a sick beggar needs his help to warm his soup1 or for any other service1 it would be much better for him to leave the repose of contemplation1 and aid the poor man1 instead of remaining in the sweetness of contemplative life4 7,institutions1 p4 #aie47 ,here is the plain truth and no illusion4 ,and elsewhere he writes3 ,men should not pay so much attention to what they do1 as to what they are in themselves2 for if the core of their heart be good1 their acts will be so also without difficulty2 and if their conscience be just and right1 their works cannot be otherwise4 ,many make sanctity to consist in action2 but action is not the chief element in it4 ,holiness must be judged in its principle as well as in its acts4 ,in other words1 we must be interiorly saints before we can perform exterior holy actions4 ,no matter how good may be our works1 they do not sanctify us as works4 ,it is we1 on the contrary1 who make them meritorious1 in virtue of inner sanctity which is their producing principle4 ,it is in the bottom of the soul that we find the essence of a just man4 7,institutions1 p4 #aef47 ,here is the truth again4 ,collate those two passages1 after having studied them separately1 and you will find that they throw complete light on the nature and value of human acts4 ,the almost continual ecstatic state in which ,tauler lived1 never made him forget his smallest duties4 ,it has been often remarked that grace adapts itself to the natural qualities of the individual whom it sanctifies4 ,this is as true of nations as of individuals4 ,in ,italy1 asceticism has the color of the sun4 ,italian ascetics shout1 burn with ardor1 and seem full of exaggerated transports to the nations of cooler blood4 ,the landscape of ,italian asceticism presents you a burning sky1 an ocean of fire1 and a scorching earth4 ,sadness is generally wanting4 ,in ,spain1 the hue is more sombre4 ,the same ardor is there2 but ardor tempered with jealousy4 ,there is interior disquietude in ,spanish mysticism1 and even adoration in it examines itself as if suspicious of its truth4 ,in ,germany1 profound gravity and stern austerity lead the soul into a horrible place4 ,in ,italy1 images come crowding together1 and divine love1 instead of rejecting them1 embraces them4 ,the soul of the ,italian saint holds garlands of flowers in his hands1 offering them joyously to the blessed sacrament4 ,familiarity and adoration unite1 like the two species of electricity before the thunder-clap4 ,familiarity1 wedded to adoration1 appeared in ,st4 ,francis of ,assisi4 ,the greatness of that strange man1 who saw brothers and sisters in everything1 and conversed with water1 fire1 the birds1 and his monks1 in the same tone and spirit1 is not immediately manifest to superficial minds4 ,plain good nature veils his wonderful character4 ,in ,germany1 those images which poetry presents to love are accepted with great precaution4 ,adoration is sober in thought and expression2 and aspires to something sublime1 whose form and name are intangible4 ,german adoration is philosophical1 meditative1 broad1 comprehensive1 austere1 silent1 wrapped up in herself1 and self-sufficing4 ,she borrows only what is strictly necessary from persons and things4 ,the world is a servant which she employs only with regret4 ,she holds aloof from all creatures1 and her words sound like concession4 ,she says to no one1 ,my brother1 or ,my sister4 ,if she had a brother4 he would be silence4 ,her sister would be the mist which surrounds ,god4 #dbg ,tauler is one of the most majestic representatives of ,teutonic asceticism4 ,a disciple of ,st4 ,dionysius the ,areopagite and of that layman of whom we have written1 in the wake of those two great characters he follows1 with eye and wing of eagle1 into the region of translucent darkness4 ,he does not flutter there1 he soars2 or1 if he flies1 his motion is so high and rapid1 that it seems like the active repose of a sublime and fruitful immobility4 ,tauler seems to desire obscurity4 ,the remarkable effects of his preaching on his audience are less like thunder pealing in his language1 than like the awful presence of the sacred cloud where the thunder is reposing4 ,every man is a universe in himself4 ,unity and variety are the two terms of the antinomy1 without which there is no life4 ,but perfection consists in equilibrium between those terms4 ,such perfection is very rare4 ,in general the antinomy of life is replaced by the contradictory1 which is death4 ,man is divided between good and evil1 always attempting an impossible reconciliation between them4 ,contradiction is a dead force which tries to serve two masters4 ,an antinomy is a living force which1 having chosen a master1 and obeying but him1 desires to serve him in a thousand different ways always useful4 ,nothing better displays the unity of a landscape than the variety of colors which it presents to the eye at the same time4 ,the lights and shades1 the undulations of the soil1 and the accidents of sun1 clouds1 villages1 forests1 and spires1 all are harmonized in the eye of the spectator2 and the more numerous1 varied1 and unexpected are the details1 the more does he experience delight and a certain dilation of mind and heart in the contemplation of their unity4 ,if he takes away some of the circumstances1 he mars the effect of the whole2 for he cannot even destroy a shadow without diminishing the sunshine4 ,what is true of a landscape is also true of a book or a man4 ,but ,tauler lost the balance between unity and variety1 for he gave all to one and nothing to the other4 ,few individuals1 even among the greatest saints1 have been so ardent in the sentiment1 love1 pursuit1 and conquest of unity4 ,he seeks after it incessantly1 and it haunts him4 ,he never seems to look at the road he is travelling4 ,he fixes his eyes solely on the goal ever present to his soul4 ,he turns neither to the right nor the left4 ,he knows not whether there be flowers or thorns on the borders of his pathway4 ,do not ask him to imitate ,st4 ,antony of ,padua1 and preach to the fishes of the streams4 ,he minds neither fishes nor birds4 ,he seems to regard creation as a stranger1 of whom he had heard tell long ago1 but whose remembrance is now but faintly glimmering in his mind4 ,his love of unity1 his call to unity1 his transports for it1 always take the same shape1 the same key and accent2 and produce in the end a certain monotony1 which is not a question of doctrine1 but an affair of nature and temperament4 ,tauler somewhere relates the history of a hermit1 from whom a troublesome visitor begged something that was lying in the cell4 ,the hermit went in to find the required object1 but forgot at the threshold what was wanted1 for the image of external things could not remain in his head4 ,he went out1 therefore1 and asked the visitor what he sought4 ,the visitor repeated his petition4 #dbh ,the hermit re-entered his cell1 but again forgot the request2 and was at last obliged to say to his guest3 ,enter and find yourself what you seek1 for ,i cannot keep the image of what you ask for sufficiently long stamped on my brain to do what you desire4 ,tauler1 in narrating this story1 unintentionally describes his own character4 ,in every one of his sermons1 he chooses a text and a subject4 ,this was required by circumstances and by his audience4 ,but the moment he enters the cell of his contemplation1 he forgets text and everything else1 and mounts into the realms of sublimity where he loses himself in that supreme unity after which his heart is always aspiring4 ,the moment he begins to fly1 he forgets the course he must take4 ,with one stroke of her wings1 his intellect finds her love1 and then soars in her natural element1 with plumes unruffled4 ,far above modes and forms of earth1 she stretches out her broad wings in the cerulean vault of her beloved repose4 ,if any should then ask him about some ordinary detail1 he would certainly answer like the recluse above mentioned3 ,enter yourself1 and find what you are inquiring after4 ,i cannot keep the image of material or minor things long enough in my mind to fulfil your request4 ,tauler is continually citing ,saint ,dionysius the ,areopagite4 ,in fact1 these two great men are at home in the same latitudes4 ,the sermons of ,tauler are to the works of the ,areopagite what a treatise of applied mathematics is to one on theoretical mathematics4 ,tauler1 like ,st4 ,dionysius1 dwells in the interior of the soul1 that secret and deep abode1 the name of which he is ever seeking without finding1 and which he ends by calling ineffable as ,god himself4 ,it is in this recess of the soul1 he preaches1 that the divine word speaks4 ,this is why it is written1 ',in the midst of silence1 a secret word was spoken to me4' ,concentrate then1 if thou canst1 all thy powers2 forget all those images with which thou hast filled thy soul4 ,the more thou forgettest creatures1 the more thou wilt become fit and ready to receive that mysterious word4 ,oh6 if thou couldst of a sudden become ignorant of all things1 even of thy own life1 like ,st4 ,paul1 when he said1 ',was ,i in the body or out of the body8 ,i know not1 ,god knows it4' 444 ,natural animation was suspended in him1 and for this reason his body lost none of its powers during the three days which he passed without eating or drinking4 ,the same happened to ,moses when he fasted forty days on the mountain1 without suffering from such long abstinence1 finding himself as strong at the end as at the beginning4 ,the desire of ,tauler that his hearers should become ,christian children1 ignorant or forgetful of everything in sublime ecstasy1 shows plainly the nature of his charity4 ,he wished for them absolute perfection1 contemplative and active1 transfiguration1 transport1 exactness1 total accomplishment of truth1 and the plenitude of all heavenly things4 ,the atmosphere in which he lived favored his hopes and helped the efficacy of his teaching4 ,he declares that in the monastery when a soul is suddenly called to some interior consideration1 it can leave the choir in the midst of the exercises1 and plunge itself unseen into the abyss of meditation to which ,god draws it4 ,he also affirms that when friars pass several days in ecstasy1 they have no reason to be disturbed at any irregularity of theirs which may result from such an accident1 provided they obey the rule again1 when they become masters of themselves4 #dbi ,thus the prodigious transports of true asceticism are ever strengthening2 while those of false mysticism enervate the soul4 ,hence it is that ,tauler1 though he is always speaking of ravishments1 never loses the character of force1 and of that austerity which is the sign of ,god and the test of true contemplation4 ,where then does ,god act without a medium8 ,in the depths1 in the essence of the soul8 ,i cannot explain2 for the faculties cannot apprehend a being without an image4 ,they cannot1 for instance1 conceive a horse under the species of a man4 ,it is precisely because all images come from without to the soul1 that the mystery is hidden from it2 and this is a great blessing4 ,ignorance plunges the soul into admiration4 ,she seeks to comprehend what is taking place in her2 she feels that there is something2 but she knows not what it is4 ,the moment we know the cause of anything1 it has no longer any charm for us4 ,we leave it to run after some other object2 always thirsting for knowledge1 and never finding the rest which we seek4 ,this knowledge1 full of ignorance and obscurity1 fixes our attention on the divine operations within us4 ',the mysterious and hidden word' of which ,solomon writes1 is working in our minds4 7,sermons47 ,many men of genius1 from the beginning of the world1 have studied the human soul1 and many are illustrious for the profundity of their psychological researches4 ,yet compared to the great mystical writers1 those philosophers are mere children4 ,merely human psychology skims over the surface of the soul1 only analyzing its relations to the interior world4 ,they are ignorant of the phenomena which take place in the secret recesses of the mind4 ,the great light1 the incarnate ,word1 alone can throw its rays into those abysses4 ,it is remarkable that those who study the soul for curiosity1 merely to find out1 and consecrate their life to such investigations1 discover very little4 ,while those who care nothing for simple science1 but who act virtuously1 obey and glorify the ,lord1 see all things properly4 ,instead of aiding vision to peer into the soul's penetralia1 curiosity dims the light4 ,simplicity is the best torch in those catacombs4 ,simplicity1 commissioned by ,god1 penetrates into the abysses of the soul1 with the audacity of a child sent by its father4 ,the interior and extraordinary efforts by which ,tauler rose to the height of contemplation1 gave him1 though he knew it not1 an astounding knowledge of the resistance which man makes to man and to ,god2 of our combats1 defeats1 and victories2 and of those artifices by which we veil from ourselves our true situation during the battle4 ,the rounds by which the soul ascends are counted1 and yet the ladder of perfection has no summit4 ,the gospel1 so merciful to sinners1 vents all its wrath on the ,scribes and ,pharisees4 ,all its charity is for external enemies2 all its severity for interior enemies4 ,jesus ,christ used the whip once in his life to show men in what direction his indignation was turned4 ,we have ,magdalen and the woman taken in adultery on the one hand2 the money-changers of the ,temple1 the ,scribes and ,pharisees on the other4 ,there is a line of fire separating sinners from the accursed4 ,all ,catholic doctrine1 all ascetical tradition1 is but the echo of ,christ's mercy and ,christ's anger4 ,tauler teaches like all the great doctors1 in this respect4 ,he reprobates exterior practices which are devoid of charity1 as the works of hell1 most hateful to the ,holy ,spirit4 ,the fixedness of his ideas gives a singular solemnity to his repetitions4 ,on every page his hatred of works done without interior life shows itself4 #dcj ,such works are his abomination4 ,in all his meditations1 prayers1 experiences1 and contemplations1 he condemns them4 ,this doctrine1 says he1 ought to be attentively meditated by those who torment and mortify their poor flesh1 plucking out the bad roots which lie hidden around the core of man's heart4 ,my brother1 what has thy body done that thou shouldst scourge it in that fashion8 ,those men are fools who act as if they wanted to beat their heads against the wall4 ,extirpate thy vices and thy bad habits1 instead of tormenting thyself as thou dost4 444 ,there are men in the cloister and in solitude whose soul and heart are always distracted by a multiplicity of external things4 ,there are men1 on the contrary1 who in public places1 in the midst of a market1 and surrounded by countless distractions1 know so well how to keep their heart and senses recollected1 that nothing can trouble their interior peace or injure their soul4 ,these deserve the name of religious far more than the former4 7,sermons47 ,tauler goes farther4 ,when those men who place ,god in external acts remain apparently virtuous1 the ,lord1 says he1 turns away from them4 ,but when1 in his mercy1 he allows them to fall into grievous exterior faults1 then he returns to them and offers them forgiveness4 ,tauler is always in the sky4 ,he never stays long on earth4 ,god1 says he1 can unite himself to the soul simply1 immediately1 and without image4 ,he acts in the soul by an immediate operation2 he operates in the depths of the mind where no image ever penetrates1 and which are accessible only to him4 ,but no creature can do this4 ,god1 the ,father1 begets his ,son in the soul1 not by means of an image1 but by a process similar to the eternal generation4 ,do you want to know how divine generation takes place8 ,god the ,father knows himself1 and comprehends himself perfectly4 ,he sees down to the very source of his being2 and contemplates himself1 not by aid of an image1 but in his own essence4 ,thus he engenders his ,son in the unity of divine nature4 ,in this manner also the ,father produces him in the essence of the soul1 and unites himself to her4 7,sermons47 ,all the discourses of ,tauler end by a refrain4 ,the chorus of his song is ever divine unity4 ,tauler is hardly a man2 he is a voice speaking in the wilderness1 calling men to descend into the depths of their souls4 ,all his doctrine may be resumed in this word1 to which we must give its etymological signification3 ,adieu1 ,dieu4 ,footnote #ii ,footnote #ii3 ,the point of these words is untranslatable4 ,the sense is adieu to creatures2 and turn to ,god-- ,dieu6--,translator's ,note4 ----------- ,new ,publications4 ,history of ,civilization in the ,fifth ,century4 ,translated1 by permission1 from the ,french of ,a4 ,frederick ,ozanam1 late ,professor of ,foreign ,literature to the ,faculty of ,letters at ,paris4 ,by ,ashley ,c4 ,glyn1 ,b4,a41 of the ,inner ,temple1 ,barrister-at-,law4 ,london3 ,w4 ,h4 ,allen ,co4 ,for sale by ,the ,catholic ,publication ,house1 #abf ,nassau street1 ,new ,york4 #dca ,a work like this furnishes the best antidote to the poison contained in the writings of such sophists and falsifiers of history as ,buckle and ,draper4 ,it substitutes genuine philosophy and history for the base metal of counterfeiters4 ,it exhibits truthfully what ,christianity--that is1 the ,catholic ,church1 which is concrete1 real ,christianity--has done in creating the civilization whose benefits we are now enjoying4 ,the translator's preface furnishes so interesting a sketch of ,m4 ,ozanam's life and literary career1 that we are sure of giving a great gratification to our readers by transferring the greater portion of it to our pages4 ,a few words may be said as to the career of the author1 ,frederic ,ozanam1 whose name has not yet become widely known in this country4 ,he was born ,august #bc;d1 #ahac1 at ,milan1 where his father1 who had fallen into poverty1 was residing and studying medicine4 ,his mother1 whose maiden name had been ,marie ,nantas1 was daughter to a rich ,lyonnese merchant1 and it was to that city that his parents returned in #ahaf4 ,the father obtained there a considerable reputation as a doctor1 and died from the effects of an accident in #ahcg4 ,his son pursued his studies at ,paris with great success1 and was destined for the bar4 ,he took a prominent place in the thoughtful and religious party among the students1 and his published letters show how he became identified with the movement set on foot by ,lacordaire and others4 ,he was especially distinguished1 however1 by the foundation of an association of benevolence1 called the ,society of ,st4 ,vincent of ,paul1 which from its small beginnings in ,paris spread over ,france1 and has at the present time its conferences1 composed of laymen1 in all the larger towns of ,europe4 ,m4 ,ozanam showed1 even during his student life1 a leaning toward literary pursuits1 and a distaste for the profession of the bar1 to which he was destined2 but he joined the bar of ,lyons1 obtained some success as an advocate1 and was chosen in #ahci as the first occupant of the professional chair of ,commercial ,law1 which had just been established in that city4 ,the courses of lectures given by him were well attended1 the lectures themselves were eloquent and learned1 and ,m4 ,ozanam seems to have preferred inculcating the science of jurisprudence to practising in the courts4 ,but in the course of the following year1 #ahdj1 he obtained an appointment which was still more suitable to his talent1 the ,professorship of ,foreign ,literature at ,paris1 and which gave him a perfect opportunity for the cultivation of his favorite pursuit1 the philosophy of history4 ,shortly after his appointment1 ,m4 ,ozanam married1 and the remaining years of his life were spent in the duties of his calling2 in travelling1 partly for the sake of health and pleasure1 partly to gain information which might be woven into his lectures2 and in visits to his many friends1 chiefly those who had taken an active part with him in upholding the interests of religion in ,france4 ,he never entered upon active political life1 though he offered himself upon a requisition of his fellow-townsmen as representative of ,lyons in the ,national ,assembly of #ahdh4 ,in politics ,m4 ,ozanam was a decided liberal1 in religion a fervent ,catholic4 ,his letters show a great dislike of any alliance between the church and absolutism1 and a conviction that religion and an enlightened democracy might flourish together4 ,he wrote in the ,correspondant1 which embodied the newer ideas1 and was frequently animadverted upon by the ,univers1 which represented the more conservative party in church and state4 ,his more important works were developed from lectures delivered at the ,sorbonne2 and his scheme was to embrace the history of civilization from the fall of the ,roman ,empire to the time of ,dante4 ,but failing health1 although much was completed1 did not allow him entirely to achieve the great object which he had originally conceived when a mere boy2 and the touching words in which he expressed his resignation to an early death1 when his already brilliant life promised an increase of success1 and his cup of domestic happiness was entirely full1 may be found among his published writings4 ,m4 ,ozanam seems to have continued his literary labors as long as rapidly increasing weakness would permit1 but after a stay in ,italy1 which did not avail to restore his broken health1 he reached his native country only to die1 ,september #hth1 #ahec1 in the fortieth year of his age1 and the heyday of a bright and useful career4 ,he was lamented by troops of friends1 old and young1 rich and poor--the latter indeed being under especial obligations to his memory4 ,his friend1 ,m4 ,ampre1 became his literary executor1 and undertook the task of giving his complete works to the public1 for which end a subscription was quickly raised among those who had known and respected him at ,lyons and elsewhere4 ,from the lectures which he had completed and revised1 from reports of others1 and his own manuscript notes1 an edition of his complete works was formed in nine volumes1 comprising ,la ,civilisation au ,cinquime ,sicle1 ,etudes ,germaniques1 ,les ,potes ,franciscains1 ,dante et la ,philosophie ,catholique au ,treizime ,sile1 and ,mlanges1 to which were added two volumes of his letters4 #dcb ,the work which has now been translated forms the first two volumes of the above series1 and was intended by the author as the opening of the grand historical treatise which he had designed4 ,as it was delivered originally in the shape of lectures1 and preserves that form in the ,french edition1 it has been necessary1 in order to preserve the continuity of the historical narrative1 to alter the constructions occasionally1 and to pass over a sentence here and there which refers solely to the audience of students to which the lectures were originally addressed4 --- ,the ,illustrated ,catholic ,sunday-,school ,library4 ,first series of #ab volumes1 pp4 #add each4 ,new ,york3 ,the ,catholic ,publication ,society1 #abf ,nassau street4 #ahfh4 ,this is the initial set of a ,new ,illustrated ,catholic ,sunday-,school ,library1 now in preparation by the ,catholic ,publication ,society4 ,it contains #ab handsome volumes1 put up in a neat paper box4 ,the titles of the volumes in this1 the first series1 are as follows3 ,madeleine1 the ,rosire2 ,the ,crusade of the ,children2 ,tales of the ,affections2 ,adventures of ,travel2 ,truth and ,trust2 ,select ,popular ,tales2 ,the ,rivals2 ,the ,battle of ,lepanto and ,the ,relief of ,vienna2 ,scenes and ,incidents at ,sea2 ,the ,school-,boys and ,the ,boy and the ,man2 ,beautiful ,little ,rose2 and ,florestine1 or ,unexpected ,joy4 ,from the above list it will be seen that the set comprises fiction1 history1 and adventures4 ,this set of books has been selected with an eye to give our ,catholic youth useful as well as entertaining reading4 ,the illustrations are good1 but might be better--however1 they are a great improvement on the class of illustrations heretofore printed in our ,catholic books4 ,the type1 paper1 and binding are excellent4 ,we hope these books will be extensively used as premiums in our schools1 as well as find a place in every ,catholic library in the country4 --- ,assemblee ,generale ,des ,catholiques en ,belgique4 #bg ,sept41 #ahfg4 ,bruxelles3 ,devaux4 ,this large volume of #ijj royal octavo pages1 which has been just received from ,m4 ,ducpetiaux1 of ,brussels1 is a complete record of the transactions of the late ,catholic ,congress of ,malines4 ,among other things it contains the complete report of ,f4 ,hecker on the state of ,catholicity in the ,united ,states1 correctly translated into ,french4 ,it is truly surprising to see what an immense amount of business can be transacted in one week1 when all are intent upon doing the work in hand1 and nothing else4 ,some of our legislators might learn a valuable lesson in this regard from this volume4 ,the noisy and vulgar writers for the newspapers1 and the other clamorous declaimers in speech and print1 who are constantly repeating their hoarse outcry of ignorance and superstition against the ,catholics of ,europe1 would be completely silenced and put to shame1 if that were a possible thing1 if the records of the ,congress of ,malines could be placed in the hands of all their intelligent readers4 ,we may safely challenge the world to produce another similar volume1 bearing so clear an impress of intelligence1 good taste1 patriotism1 philanthropy1 and religious zeal as this4 ,give us only a sufficient quantity of ,catholicity like this1 and we will renovate the earth4 --- ,received from ,kelly ,piet1 ,baltimore3 ,the ,ghost2 a comedy in three acts4 ,taken from the ,french4 ,pp4 #ej4 ,price1 #ej cents4 ,the ,banquet of ,theodulus2 or1 ,the ,reunion of the ,different ,christian ,communions4 ,by the late ,baron de ,starck4 ,new edition4 ,pp4#bjd4 ,price1 #a4 ,from ,h4 ,m',grath1 ,philadelphia3 ,white's ,confutation of the ,church of ,englandism1 and ,correct ,exposition of the ,catholic ,faith4 ,translated from the ,latin by ,e4 ,w4 ,o',mahony4 #a vol41 pp4 #cdb4 ,new ,edition4 ,price1 #a4be4 --- ,the ,catholic ,publication ,society has in press1 and will soon publish1 the second series of the new ,illustrated ,catholic ,sunday-,school ,library1 and a new edition of ,moehler's ,symbolism2 ,problems of the ,age1 ,nellie ,netterville1 and ,a ,sister's ,story are now being printed1 and will be ready in a short time4 ---------- #dcc ,,the ,,catholic ,,world4 ,vol4 ,,vii41 ,no4 #dj4--;,july1 #ahfh4 ,a ,plea ,for ,liberty ,of ,conscience4 ,foreseeing that we shall be obliged1 in this present article1 to present some very unpalatable truths to a portion of our readers1 we assure them in the outset that we do not wish unnecessarily to revive unpleasant recollections4 ,facts are facts1 however1 history is history1 and truth is truth2 and so long as we do not cherish a malevolent spirit1 or seek to embitter and envenom the minds of our fellow-men against each other1 there is no reason why we should not have liberty to speak plainly1 even about very ugly and very discreditable things4 ,on the present occasion1 we use this liberty in defence of the weak and defenceless against tyranny and oppression1 in defence of the rights of conscience and religious freedom in the case of a considerable number of persons grossly disregarded and violated4 ,the right which we undertake to defend is the right to embrace1 profess1 and practise the ,catholic religion2 and the wrong which we wish to contend against is the system of domestic and social tyranny by which this right is impeded4 ,it may appear to some a very curious statement1 yet we venture to make it boldly1 that in every part of the world where the ,english race is dominant1 ,catholics have been engaged1 ever since the era of ,protestant ascendency1 in a struggle for liberty of conscience against spiritual tyranny1 either political1 social1 or both combined4 ,we do not propose to go back to the period of penal laws1 civil disabilities1 and legal persecution in ,great ,britain and ,america1 just at present4 ,this is a chapter in history already tolerably well elucidated and likely to be still further commented upon in the future4 ,we will let it pass1 however1 for the present1 and confine our view to a more recent period1 during which1 theoretically speaking1 in ,england ,catholics have enjoyed full toleration1 and in the ,united ,states equal liberty with other citizens4 ,notwithstanding this theoretical liberty4 ,catholics have been exposed1 as every one knows1 to outbreaks of popular violence1 in which their blood has been shed1 their churches and other property burned and destroyed1 and their religion made the object of denunciation1 vituperation1 and ridicule in a wholesale manner4 #dcd ,the primary cause of this state of things is to be found in the representation which ,protestant preachers and writers have made of the ,catholic religion4 ,on this head we will content ourselves with quoting the language of a ,protestant clergyman1 the ,rev4 ,leonard ,w4 ,bacon1 of ,williamsburg1 ,l4 ,i41 which we have just seen in a report of one of his sermons published in the ,brooklyn ,times for ,march #agth1 #ahfh3 ,the duty of considering the question now submitted to us has required me to stand before shelves filled with volumes of antipapal literature1 and to glance from page to page of its contents4 ,the character of much of that literature is a shame and a scandal to the cause in which it is uttered4 ,it is full of evil and uncharitable talk against ,romanists and their clergy1 and deformed with bad temper and bad logic and reckless assertion4 ,a few sentences further on he designates a certain class of writers against the ,catholic religion as the scurrilous crew of antipopery-mongers1 who make a trade of the prejudices and passions of the ,american public1 feeding them with vituperation and invective4 ,this description applies to a class of writers in ,england and ,ireland equally as well as to the class designated among ourselves4 ,we pass over all that the general body of the ,catholic clergy and people have had to suffer from the general prejudice against them created and excited by the calumnies and invectives of these writers and declaimers against their religion4 ,we fix our attention upon one point only1 what those persons have had and still have to suffer from this prejudice who have become ,catholics from conviction and choice1 or who have wished to do so1 and would have done so1 had they not been deterred by the violent opposition they have encountered4 ,in ,england1 a little stream of reconversion began to set back to the ancient church during the cruel and despotic reign of ,elizabeth1 which continued to run during several succeeding reigns1 but at last was either totally or almost dried up4 ,its source received a new supply through the influence of the ,french clergy who were refugees in ,england1 and at length the current began to flow more fully and strongly than ever4 ,within the last twenty-five years the movement of return to ,catholic unity has been steadily progressing1 until it has become so considerable as to attract universal attention1 and awaken general anxiety concerning its probable results4 ,in the ,united ,states1 a few rare and isolated instances of conversion occurred from time to time during the early part of the present century1 which have become much more numerous within the past twenty-five years1 from various causes which we need not specify4 ,at present1 there are probably fifty thousand converts within the fold of the ,catholic ,church of this ,republic1 a great many more who would gladly become ,catholics if there were no sacrifices to be made in order to do so1 and an indefinite number of persons who are more or less favorably predisposed toward the ,catholic religion or partially convinced of its truth4 ,from the first day on which these strayed children of the holy ,mother ,church began to retrace their steps to her blessed fold to the present moment1 there has been essentially the same story to tell of the disregard and violation of that liberty of conscience and right of religious freedom which ,protestants have been so loudly proclaiming ever since they have had existence4 #dce ,in the earlier period of this disastrous epoch1 some have suffered a literal martyrdom1 and all along1 down to the present time1 many others have endured a moral martyrdom which is perhaps harder to bear as well as more lingering in its agony4 ,very many have needed a virtue and constancy truly heroic or bordering on the heroic1 in order to nerve themselves to the sacrifices and to push through the opposition which they have been forced to encounter as the condition of becoming members of the ,catholic ,church and following the voice of their reason and conscience4 ,those whose memory goes back over the last twenty or twenty-five years1 can recall the storm of indignation and obloquy evoked by the first remarkable conversions which took place as the sequel of the ,catholicizing movement originating at ,oxford4 ,as a general rule1 the converts in ,england1 even though belonging to the highest classes in society1 including the nobility1 and well known for their exemplary moral character1 found themselves ostracized from the circles in which they had been wont to move1 shunned by their most intimate friends1 in many instances excluded from intercourse wholly or in great measure with the members of their own families4 ,some persons of high rank were obliged to go abroad1 in order to find the society of persons of their own class which they needed for themselves and their families4 ,it was the same in our own country4 ,a convert to the ,catholic ,church found himself treated as an individual who had abjured ,christianity1 engaged in a conspiracy against his country and the human race1 or as if he had been detected in perjury or forging notes4 ,every one was speculating upon the motives and cause of his strange conduct1 as they have been recently1 in ,england upon the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,speke's sudden disappearance and mysterious rambles4 ,insanity was the most frequent and the most charitable reason assigned for an act generally considered as utterly unreasonable and disreputable4 ,some were excluded from the bosoms of their own families2 some were disinherited by those whose heirs of blood they would have been2 and others1 who were helpless1 dependent persons1 were thrown upon the world by near and rich relations1 who had hitherto supported them1 and would gladly have continued to do so had they consented to smother their consciences4 ,some have been thrown out of business and employment1 reduced to straits in order to gain a living1 or even to extreme poverty and suffering4 ,we do not allude now to those ,protestant clergymen with families who have resigned their benefices in the ,church of ,england1 or given up their salaried offices in the ,protestant ,churches of the ,united ,states4 ,the sacrifices made by these individuals1 although very great1 were unavoidably necessary1 and cannot be attributed to any injustice or illiberality in the ,protestant community4 ,but we refer to those cases where persons have been deserted and abandoned by those on whose previous good-will1 patronage1 or custom they had been dependent for the means of gaining their living1 for no other reason than the simple fact of their becoming ,catholics4 ,we may add to these more serious matters the infinitude of petty grievances and annoyances to which many persons are subjected by their relatives and friends4 ,their religion is attacked and ridiculed1 without regard to the proprieties of polite intercourse1 as if a ,catholic were out of the category of persons whose convictions and sentiments are entitled to respect4 #dcf ,obstacles are placed in the way of their fulfilling the duties of their religion4 ,their children are enticed to eat meat on days of abstinence1 to attend ,protestant churches1 to read anticatholic books1 to shun the society of ,catholics1 without regard to the conscience of the child or the authority of the parent4 ,every possible influence is brought to bear upon them to make them feel that their religion places them at a social disadvantage1 and that ,protestantism is more genteel and respectable4 ,in short1 if we try to imagine the state of things which converts to ,christianity had to struggle with in ,rome and the gentile world after the laws had ceased to persecute1 but before the ,christian religion had ceased to be a despised and unpopular religion1 we shall have a very good counterpart of the present condition of ,catholic converts in ,england and the ,united ,states4 ,the trials and difficulties of those who are on the way to the ,catholic ,church are even greater than those which have to be encountered afterward4 ,not to speak of the interior trials which are necessarily involved in the process of conversion1 even for those who are perfectly free and independent1 or even placed under influences which facilitate the transition to ,catholicity1 there are exterior difficulties in the case of most persons of the gravest and most distressing nature4 ,besides the opposition of relatives and friends1 in the shape of argument1 entreaty1 expostulation1 sorrowful disapprobation1 which is the more painful and the harder to be overcome the more kind and affectionate it is in manner and spirit1 the dread of wounding and grieving those who are dearest and most respected1 disappointing their hopes and incurring their displeasure1 there is often to be encountered the might of spiritual tyranny1 the violence of a parent's or husband's despotic will1 and1 in short1 a persecution worse to be borne than would be a summary trial and execution4 ,unhappily1 these trials are often too great for the courage of those who have received the inward vocation to the ,catholic faith1 and who are required to undergo so much if they would follow it4 ,some are afraid of losing caste1 some of being turned out of doors1 some of losing their livelihood2 others are afraid of encountering the anger and reproaches of their friends1 or the scorn and calumny of the world1 or the loss of popularity4 ,there are those who are deterred by their dainty and fastidious dislike of mingling with the poor1 and who cannot bring themselves to go to a church which is humble or mean in its appearance1 to receive the sacraments from a priest of unpolished exterior4 ,but these last have themselves only to blame1 although we may commiserate their weakness1 and lay the chief blame of it on the false maxims prevalent in the community at large4 ,it would be easy to cite numerous instances in illustration of all that we have just said upon this subject1 from personal knowledge or the testimony of others2 and if it were possible for the complete history of the conversions to the ,catholic ,church which have occurred during the last quarter of a century to be written and published1 it would be1 for the most part1 only an extensive commentary upon the statements we have made4 ,even then the saddest part of the story must remain untold1 unless all those who have been deterred from obeying the voice of conscience could be induced to publish their confessions to the world1 and those who have died in perplexity and distress for the want of those sacraments which their own cowardice or the refusal of their friends prevented them from receiving1 could come back from the grave to add their testimony to that of the living4 #dcg ,the writer of these pages was acquainted with a gentleman of eminent position in the world1 who was for a long time a ,catholic at heart1 and who on his death-bed desired to see a priest with whom he was intimately acquainted1 that he might receive the last sacraments from his hands4 ,this priest1 who was a man of the greatest dignity of character and universally venerated in the community1 called at the house several times1 was politely received1 but never permitted to see the dying man4 ,when the poor old man perceived his last hour drawing near1 he called his faithful ,irish nurse to his bedside1 as the only true friend to whom he could open his grief1 and confided to her the sorrow that was darkening his dying moments4 ,he told her that he desired to see a priest1 to make his confession and to receive the last sacraments1 but that his request was denied1 so that he had given up all hope of his salvation1 and believed himself doomed to die in despair4 ,the good girl comforted and soothed him1 assured him that he need not distrust the mercy of ,god1 and explained to him that in his case a perfect contrition for his sins would suffice for their full remission4 ,he begged of her to teach him how to make the acts of faith1 hope1 charity1 and contrition1 to recite prayers by his side1 and to help him to prepare for death4 ,she did so1 and through her holy ministrations his soul was tranquillized1 so that he died in peace4 ,the writer was once sent for by a man of unusual intelligence and plain1 respectable standing1 who was in reduced circumstances1 and dying of a slow consumption4 ,he learned from the lips of this man that he had been for some time perfectly convinced of the truth of the ,catholic religion1 and was satisfied that it was his duty to be received into the church4 ,nevertheless1 it was impossible to persuade him to act on his convictions1 because he was sure that the assistance of certain societies1 upon which his family depended1 would be withdrawn4 ,he hoped to recover1 and promised that1 if he did1 he would profess his faith openly2 but we never heard anything more from him1 and have never heard the conclusion of his sad history4 ,it is but a few months since a young widow lady1 a convert1 was turned out of house and home1 not very far from our own city1 after the decease of her father1 with whom she had been residing1 by her own brother1 for the sole reason that he did not wish to live in the same house with a papist4 ,we will not multiply instances2 but they will rise up in abundance before the memories of many who will read these pages2 and if a recording angel could take down what will be remembered1 thought1 and felt by all whose eyes will peruse these lines1 they would be transformed from a brief and tame summary into a whole volume of living and pathetic interest far surpassing the most thrilling tales of fiction2 ,tears will be shed1 sad memories will throng upon many minds1 many hearts will ache1 we are assured1 over the words we are writing in perfect calmness and composure1 and without any direct intention of awakening emotion4 ,some will think of trials past1 some of trials present1 and others will recall to mind their own weakness and timidity in the hour when they were tried and found wanting4 #dch ,there are many others1 however1 and will be many more hereafter1 to whom this plea for the liberty of conscience will be1 as we cordially trust1 not merely a subject of personal interest1 but also a practical help in surmounting their difficulties4 ,we allude to those who are now turning or who will hereafter turn their faces wistfully toward the ,catholic ,church1 but have first to overcome the obstacles we have described above before they can enter its portal4 ,for this class of persons we have the most profound sentiment of pity and sympathy4 ,the rich and independent1 the able-minded and able-bodied1 who can take care of themselves1 men who can assert their own rights1 and those generous youths to whom a glorious career is open in the priesthood1 do not claim our sympathy1 for they do not need it4 ,but we pity the helpless and dependent2 those who struggle with poverty and live on the bounty of others1 delicate1 gentle women1 and all the weak1 feeble children of ,god who would fain follow their conscience if they were let alone and not interfered with1 but who shrink back appalled when it is a question of nerving themselves to meet opposition and push their way through trials4 ,it seems to us that there is something hard and cruel beyond all other forms of tyranny in that usurped1 unjust despotism which is exercised over these tender consciences4 ,what can be a more odious or flagrant violation of all right and justice than to attempt to crush a conscience by force1 to quell it by threats1 to wear it out by opposition1 to stifle it by fear1 or to lure it by selfish1 temporal interests8 ,all will answer this question alike1 and admit1 at least in theory1 the wrong that lies in the attempt of any person to violate the rights of any other person's conscience4 ,the only point really open to discussion is1 ,what constitutes a violation of just and rightful liberty of conscience8 ,the question respecting the right or expediency of enforcing obedience to the dictates of conscience and the fulfilment of certain moral obligations is quite a different one1 though closely related to the antecedent question4 ,we cannot1 in arguing with non-,catholics on these points1 assume the truth of ,catholic principles1 or urge any consideration which necessarily presupposes the ,catholic religion to be the true one4 ,of course1 in the last analysis1 we must come back upon the fundamental principle that the law of ,god is supreme and must be obeyed at all hazards1 let come what will4 ,no matter what human laws1 what private interests1 what dreadful penalties1 may stand in the way1 ,god must be obeyed1 conscience must be followed1 duty must be done4 ,the authority of the state must be braved1 human affections must be disregarded1 life must be sacrificed1 when loyalty to the truth and to the will of ,god requires it4 ,those who reject the authority of the ,catholic ,church1 however1 do not admit that the ,catholic law is the law of ,god2 and we must therefore either make our sole issue with them on this precise point of the truth of the ,catholic doctrine1 which is the same thing as a declaration of perpetual war1 or we must find some middle term common to both1 upon which the peace of social relations can be settled and the mutual rights and liberties of conscience be secured4 ,we are obliged1 therefore1 to waive all claim of right and liberty to practise the ,catholic religion1 which is based on its positive truth1 so far as this argument is concerned1 and to present only such claims as a fair-minded person1 whether ,protestant1 ,jew1 or infidel1 may admit as just and reasonable1 without changing in the least his own particular opinions4 #dci ,it is not to be expected that all our arguments will be equally applicable to every class of persons1 whatever their religious opinions may be2 but we will endeavor to furnish at least one or two for each of the principal classes into which the non-,catholic community is divided4 ,if some of our ,catholic readers are offended by our seeming to take a tone too apologetic and defensive1 we beg them to remember that the early ,christian apologists were not ashamed to do the like4 ,they vindicated the ,christians of their own time from such accusations as worshipping an ass's head and drinking the blood of infants4 ,it is painful and humiliating to be obliged to vindicate ourselves from gross calumnies2 but it is an act of charity toward those who are deceived by these calumnies1 and still more toward these helpless and defenceless persons who must suffer from them4 ,we begin on the lowest possible ground by affirming that a person in becoming a ,catholic commits no offence against the laws of morality or against the civil and social laws commonly recognized among non-,catholics4 ,there is no treason against society1 no offence against domestic rights1 no repudiation of any moral duties or obligations1 nothing to make a person a bad citizen1 a bad neighbor1 a bad husband1 wife1 or child4 ,there is no disobedience against any lawful external authority which has any right to inflict any penalties affecting a person's social or civil rights4 ,there is no reason1 therefore1 why a person who embraces the ,catholic religion should be treated by his acquaintances or society in general as a criminal1 and made to suffer in his social and domestic relations4 ,in our heterogeneous society1 everything is tolerated which is not contra bonos mores4 ,that which strikes at the order and peace of the natural relations binding us together in society cannot be tolerated even on the pretext of liberty of conscience or opinion4 ,therefore1 ,mormonism has no rights under our laws1 and ought not to be tolerated1 and ,mohammedanism could not be tolerated4 ,if the ,catholic ,church were really what it has been represented to be by many1 it could not claim liberty or even toleration in non-,catholic states4 ,but it is not what its enemies have represented it to be4 ,a person who becomes a consistent ,catholic will be a good citizen and respect the laws4 ,he will be faithful to his social and domestic duties1 and strictly observant of all moral obligations4 ,it is not the spirit of the ,catholic religion to introduce discord or trouble into families or societies1 or to interfere with any just and lawful rights4 ,the only annoyance which can arise will be the annoyance which persons wishing to violate the natural laws will meet with from the conscientious observance of morality by the ,catholic party4 ,suppose a ,catholic lady wishes to go to ,mass1 to confession1 to devote a part of her time to meditation or charitable works8 ,does that necessarily interfere with the perfect fulfilment of all her duties toward her family and society8 ,is it any greater liberty than that which women generally expect to be conceded to them1 and which they take at any rate1 whether it is granted with a good or a bad grace8 ,let the question be decided by the actual conduct of those who have become ,catholics in their relations with others who are not of their faith1 and we are not afraid of the judgment which candid and fair judges will render4 ,certainly1 then1 they ought to enjoy the same liberty which is conceded to those who profess any other form of religion not contrary to the received standard of good morals1 and to those who profess none at all4 #ddj ,those who profess the latitudinarian opinion that all religions are alike1 and who claim unbounded liberty of opinion for all1 ought to be the first to give to ,catholics the full benefit of this privilege4 ,with those who are more strongly attached to their own form of religion and hold it to be the only true one1 the case is somewhat more difficult4 ,such persons may say that a person brought up in what they call the true1 ,evangelical1 reformed faith1 or in the pure1 apostolical1 ,protestant ,episcopal ,church1 especially if he has been a communicant1 and most of all if he has been a minister1 is an apostate from his faith as a ,christian1 a renouncer of his baptism1 and therefore a criminal before ,god and the church1 if he1 to use their language1 becomes a ,romanist4 ,let it be so4 ,when argument and persuasion have been tried and have failed1 let the church pronounce her spiritual censures on the disobedient member4 ,we cannot complain of that4 ,let him be canonically deposed if he is a minister4 ,we cannot complain of that1 either4 ,but is there any reason why our ,evangelical or ,high-,church friends should think it necessary or expedient to proceed any further8 ,suppose they do regard the person in question as a delinquent and as an unfortunate dupe of error and delusion4 ,will our ,evangelical friends affirm the principle that none but the elect are entitled to the rights and privileges arising out of natural and social relations8 ,will our ,high-,church friends affirm the same1 substituting for the elect1 consistent members of their own communion8 ,if not1 we cannot see why they may not allow ,catholics the same indulgence which they concede to sinners1 heretics1 and infidels4 ,we put them the plain question1 whether they have any right to interfere with the conscience and the religion of another1 or to use any kind of coercion or persecution against any one1 whatever may be the relation in which he stands toward them4 ,some of them may perhaps deny that a well-instructed member of that which they deem to be the true church can become a ,catholic conscientiously and sincerely4 ,but suppose it is so4 ,where is the authority to compel him to fulfil his conscientious obligations of a purely spiritual nature8 ,we are not now speaking of young children who have not attained to years of full discretion1 over whom parents certainly have an authority which must be respected4 ,but1 apart from this exception1 what authority can be claimed for enforcing any religious obligation by any other means than an appeal to the conscience itself8 ,if there are any who really think there is a right of excommunication in their church which extends so far as to exclude a person from his privileges as a member of society1 and to reduce him to the state of one who is vitandus1 or an outcast to be shunned by all1 we only desire that they will act out their doctrine impartially and universally4 ,is it not1 at least1 inexpedient to appeal to it in the present state of society1 while no kind of disability is contracted by those who profess the principles of ,bishop ,colenso or ,herbert ,spencer8 ,the case may be supposed of persons1 influenced by no ill feeling at all1 who would desire to withdraw from all intimacy with relatives or acquaintances who have joined the ,catholic ,church1 on the ground that their conversation and influence may be dangerous to young persons in the family4 ,such a motive as this we can respect1 for we can and must respect fidelity to conscience1 even when it is an erroneous conscience which is followed4 #dda ,moreover1 no one is bound to keep up any intimate relations which transcend the bounds of ordinary courtesy with any persons outside the immediate family circle1 unless it is agreeable to himself to do so4 ,but what is to be said of those who1 on a plea of conscience1 sunder the closest bonds of nature1 or threaten to do so8 ,we can easily understand that a ,jew1 a ,puritan1 an old-fashioned ,lutheran1 a ,presbyterian1 or an ,english ,churchman might be so thoroughly absorbed in his religion1 and so intense in his attachment to it1 that the conversion of a wife or child to the ,catholic ,church would be a far worse blow to his affections1 and a more blighting disappointment to his hopes1 than would be the sudden death of either one1 however tenderly loved4 ,an intelligent ,jewish gentleman once told the writer of this article that he was deterred from receiving ,christian baptism by the fear of causing the death of his aged father2 and this is not an unusual instance either among the descendants of the ancient ,pharisees or the adherents of the straitest sects of ,protestant ,christians4 ,in such cases1 where no softening of the temper and no modification of the mental condition takes place1 there is no room for argument4 ,the word of our ,lord must be fulfilled--that he came not to bring peace1 but a sword4 ,one who has to choose between submission to the will of another and the disruption of the most sacred human ties1 must choose the latter when the former involves the violation of a certain and known law of ,god4 ,there is1 therefore1 no other course open to a ,catholic in such a case except the one of professing and practising the ,catholic religion openly1 without regard to consequences4 ,if they are excluded from their homes and abandoned by their friends1 they must try to bear it patiently4 ,we would scorn to appeal to the mere sentiment of human pity or to the maxims of indifferentism1 in arguing with any man who should say that his religious principles require him to banish a wife1 a son1 or a daughter out of his house4 ,it is our opinion1 however1 that in most instances1 after persons have had time for cool reflection1 they will not deliberately affirm that their religious principles do require these harsh measures4 ,no one will pretend that they require or authorize any kind of tyrannical or vexatious persecution1 or an abandonment of those who have a natural claim to protection to poverty and suffering4 ,we are disposed to think that prejudice1 passion1 wounded pride1 and similar causes have a great deal to do with the line of conduct alluded to4 ,and one good reason for thinking so is the fact that so many firm and consistent ,protestants1 and even bishops or other clergymen of standing1 have acted differently1 and have treated ,catholic converts even of their own families with kindness and courtesy4 ,we have supposed hitherto that we were arguing with a person who would not admit that a convert from the religion he himself professes can be sincere and conscientious4 ,it is impossible1 however1 to sustain such a position on any ground which the majority of intelligent non-,catholics will admit to be reasonable2 for it can be sustained only by one of three arguments4 ,first1 that the illumination of the ,holy ,spirit gives to the individual reason an infallible certainty of the truth of some one form of anticatholic belief4 ,or1 second1 that some such form is at least made morally certain by rational evidence of such a kind as to exclude all probability that the ,catholic religion may be true4 #ddb ,or1 third1 that some certain and unerring authority1 to which one is bound to submit his private judgment1 exists in one of the several communions calling itself the true church of ,god4 ,the first argument cannot be brought into the forum of discussion1 because there is no certain1 external test by which it can be proved that such an illumination exists1 or by whom among various claimants it is possessed4 ,the second is refuted by the simple fact that so many intelligent and learned persons are convinced by the ,catholic arguments4 ,the third is refuted by the fact that no one of the churches claims infallibility4 ,high-,churchmen claim a teaching authority for their communion1 but it is not claimed by their church itself in any such sense as to exclude the right and duty of testing its claims and doctrines by private judgment on the ,scriptures4 ,those who make the claim of authority in behalf of this church do not pretend that it is more than a portion of the universal church1 and therefore1 by the very claim they put forth1 directly suggest and provoke an examination of the question what the universal church really teaches4 ,the most learned and eminent theologians among them distinctly assert that the doctrines of the ,church of ,england must be interpreted in conformity with the teaching of the ,catholic ,church4 ,will any reasonable person1 then1 pretend that one may not examine all the evidence that can be adduced to prove what that teaching is2 or that he may not conscientiously and sincerely adopt the conclusion that this teaching is really identical with the doctrine of the ,roman ,church8 ,we may cite here the judgment of ,dr4 ,johnson1 who was a staunch ,episcopalian1 upon this point4 ,boswell relates it in these words3 ,sir ,william ,scott informs me that he heard ,johnson say1 ',a man who is converted from ,protestantism to popery may be sincere4 ,he parts with nothing3 he is only superadding to what he already had4 ,but a convert from popery to ,protestantism gives up so much of what he has held as sacred as anything he retains2 there is so much laceration of mind in such a conversion that it can hardly be sincere and lasting4' ,footnote #ajj ,footnote #ajj3 ,boswell's ,johnson4 ,edit1 ,bait41 ,bond1 #ahef1 p4 #afh ,in truth1 every form of dogmatic and positive ,protestantism presents its lines of fracture from the great mass of ,christendom so conspicuously to the eye1 that it is absurd to pretend that its relation to that mass is not a thing to be examined and judged of by every one who is capable of judging for himself1 that is1 by every one who is responsible to his conscience and to ,god for his belief upon those doctrines affirmed by the ,catholic ,church and denied by his own detached body4 ,an old-fashioned1 strict ,israelite can make a far more plausible claim for authority over the conscience in behalf of the synagogue1 than any ,protestant can make for his church4 ,the ,jewish hierarchy had once authority from ,god1 and has only been superseded by the sovereign authority of ,jesus ,christ4 ,we cannot argue with him1 therefore1 that a ,jew who renounces ,judaism violates no obligation of conscience toward a lawful authority1 except by adducing the evidence that ,jesus is the ,messias foretold by the prophets4 ,upon his own premises he must regard such a person as an apostate and a rebel4 ,the only reason which could have any weight with him1 why he should continue to show the same kindness to a member of his family who had been baptized as before1 would be1 that it is better to leave such a case to the judgment of ,god1 and refrain from an exercise of severity which could do no good1 but rather aggravate the difficulty4 #ddc ,the majority of ,jews at present are1 however1 rationalists4 ,they place the essence of religion in mere ,theism and natural morality1 regarding the peculiarities of ,judaism as accidentals4 ,on their own ground1 therefore1 they can have no excuse for obtruding any claim of ,judaism over the reason1 conscience1 or private judgment of any of their number4 ,take away a divinely appointed1 infallible authority1 and in all matters of purely religious belief and practice each individual is in possession of full liberty1 for the right use of which he is responsible only to ,god4 ,moreover1 in matters of positive1 dogmatic doctrine1 the majority of non-,catholics acknowledge that only probability is attainable4 ,logic and good sense have brought them to this conclusion as contained in the premises with which they started4 ,but in questions of probability and matters of opinion1 persons of equal sincerity and conscientiousness may differ4 ,we are certain that this will be admitted as an axiom by our non-,catholic readers4 ,but if this be so1 those who profess to be convinced of the truth of ,catholic doctrines ought to be regarded as sincere and conscientious1 which we think most of our non-,catholic friends will also admit4 ,every one must see1 then1 how contrary to every right and honorable principle it is to attempt to act on the minds of those who desire to become ,catholics by any other means than argument and persuasion4 ,how dangerous1 how unjust1 how mean it is to strive to terrify or wheedle them into a forced acquiescence in the will of others through human and worldly motives6 ,it would be almost an insult to our readers to argue this point gravely4 ,those who follow the principles of ,demas in the ,pilgrim's ,progress1 and are in favor of religion only when she walks in silver slippers1 will not publicly avow and defend any such base maxims1 or maintain seriously that their great objection to the ,catholic religion is1 that it is not sufficiently genteel4 ,even the ,new ,york ,herald flouts scornfully the religion of velvet cushions1 which makes the elect to consist solely of the lite of society4 ,but at last we come at what is the real gravamen of the complaint against ,catholics on the part of those who are disposed to be fair and kindly4 ,it is not that we hold certain doctrines as opinions1 or adopt certain modes of worship as suited to our taste4 ,this could be allowed without difficulty as our undoubted right1 provided we would admit that the ,catholic ,church is only the best and most perfect among several forms of religion4 ,but we maintain its exclusive truth and legitimacy1 and proclaim it to be the only way of salvation4 ,it is unpleasant for one to have his wife1 or children1 or near friends1 look upon him as a person excluded from communion with them in spiritual things and out of the way of salvation4 ,very true6 ,but what does this prove8 ,it proves that the ideal of society is only actualized in religious unity4 ,it makes no difference what your ideal is1 whether it is something purely natural1 or1 under some form1 supernatural4 ,there must be unity either in some negative or some positive form4 ,that is1 there must be something to give those who are closely connected on the earth the same idea of the tendency and end of this earthly life1 and of the future life which is to succeed it4 ,yet we find that society is not in this ideal state among us4 ,it is impossible for ,catholics to sacrifice their convictions and violate the dictates of their conscience1 for the sake of a unity which they believe to be chimerical4 #ddd ,we believe that it is only the ,catholic religion which can bring society to its ideal perfection1 and therefore we shall1 for this reason1 as well as for higher ones1 do all in our power to make it universal4 ,probably our ,evangelical friends await the millennium1 and other classes of the religious community await the universal triumph of some kind of church of the future1 while the sceptics look for a millennium of science and common sense4 ,meanwhile1 it is probable that some time must elapse before any such epoch shall arrive1 and we must live together in all manner of political and social relations4 ,it is only by a jealous regard for the personal religious liberty of every individual that we can live together in peace and harmony4 ,is it not1 then1 better that1 if we cannot immediately heal all the wounds of society1 we should at least alleviate them as much as possible1 awaiting a more radical cure at a future time8 ,we have already1 in a former article1 expressed our views upon this point sufficiently1 so that we need not dwell upon it any longer at present4 ,happily1 these are the views which are practically carried out in a great number of cases1 and are gaining ground more and more4 ,the state of things we have described is becoming ameliorated even in ,england1 but much more in our own country4 ,if the just1 honorable1 and rational temper of the best class of non-,catholic ,americans toward the ,catholic religion and its members were universal1 and all persons disposed to become ,catholics were treated with the same delicate respect for their liberty of conscience which some have experienced1 there would be no occasion for this reclamation in behalf of that liberty4 ,those of our readers who can class themselves under this category may understand1 therefore1 that with them we have no controversy2 but are combating an enemy as hostile to their own domestic and social peace and well-being as to our own4 ---------- ,benediction4 ,we go so far1 and with so much trouble1 to obtain the blessings of certain holy persons1 and of the holy father the pope2 yet here is the ,lord of saints1 and the ,god of whom ,pius ,,ix4 is only the vicegerent1 and we cannot intermit our socialities or forego our ease to receive his blessing6 ,e4 ,a4 ,s4 ,the ,invitation4 ,the balmy ,may is breathing on the air1 ,the rich1 red sun sinks slowly down the west4 ,come forth1 dear soul1 and be an honored guest3 ,one doth invite thee to his house all fair2 ,one great and good1 this eve1 doth wait thee there4 ,nay1 nay1 not that dear friend whose hand hath prest ,so oft thy own2 not any ruler blest4 ,of happiest clime3 a nobler friendship share4 ,ah6 no2 no poet doth such kindness move2 ,no wise1 nor good1 nor grand1 nor holy1 whom ,the race reveres3 a better friend would prove ,his love2 a greater asks thee to his home4 ,within the tabernacle of his love1 ,the ,lord of heaven awaits thee3 wilt thou come8 --------- #dde ,nellie ,netterville2 ,or1 ,one ,of ,the ,transplanted4 ,,chapter ,,ix4 ,to this proposition ,nellie joyfully assented1 and he led the way accordingly up a rocky path winding westward toward the cliffs4 ,once or twice he turned as if to give her aid1 but ,nellie skipped like a young kid from rock to rock1 exulting in her independence2 and1 finding that she declined assistance1 he went on in silence until they reached a point among the cliffs1 high enough to give them a full sea view toward the west4 ,the ,atlantic lay beneath them1 rolling in its mighty volume of deep waters1 and dashing them against the cliffs below with the strength and calmness of a sleepy giant4 ,nellie had often seen the sea1 that narrow strip of water1 namely1 which separated her own birth-home from the birth-place of her kindred2 but of the mighty ocean1 with its thousand voices coming up from the deep caves below1 its murmurings and whisperings1 its infinite variety of tints and aspects1 its lights and shadows1 its clear green depths and crystal purity1 such as no smaller sheet of water can ever boast of1 she had never even dreamed before2 and as her eye roamed over the smooth expanse until it reached that uttermost point where sea and sky seem to blend together1 a sense of vastness and power fell upon her soul which almost oppressed her4 ,for a few minutes ,roger watched her as she stood there in hushed and breathless admiration1 but just as the silence was beginning to be oppressive he broke in by saying1 softly1 ,yes1 yes6 it is all bright1 and smooth1 and shining now2 but ,i have stood here on an autumn evening1 and watched it when it was black and swollen1 brimful beneath the coming storm--when the wind seemed almost a living power--a thing to be seen as well as felt--as it swept over that mighty mass of waters1 mingling its hoarse voice with theirs1 and forcing on their waves1 as a general forces on his troops1 until it dashed them in a very frenzy of fruitless valor against the beetling cliffs beneath us4 ,and1 in truth1 ,i almost prefer it in those moods1 he added1 like one thinking his own thoughts aloud2 for then it looks simply like what it is1 a huge monster ever greedy for its prey1 whereas1 now1 in this lazy sunshine1 it seems to me nothing more or less than a great smiling treachery1 wooing its victims toward it1 only that it may afterward the more thoroughly engulf them4 ,it is a great1 beautiful terror1 even as it is to-day1 said ,nellie breathlessly4 ,what a height we are above it6 ,it makes me giddy only to look down8 ,do not look1 then1 said ,roger anxiously1 but rather turn inward toward yonder isle1 which is only separated from the mainland by a narrow strip of water4 ,there are cliffs upon that island which look westward over the ocean and rise eighteen hundred feet above it1 and the inhabitants will tell you that1 when the weather is calm enough1 you can see from thence1 at the setting of the sun1 the ',hy ,brysail'--the enchanted isle1 the ',tir-na-n'oge1' or land of eternal youth and beauty1 to which death and sorrow never come1 and where 7so the old legend tells us7 a hundred years of this mortal life pass swiftly as a single day4 #ddf ,few1 as you may well suppose1 are the favored mortals who have ever reached it1 and fewer still1 if any1 who have ever come back to tell the tale of their adventures4 ,it is a pretty legend1 said ,nellie1 straining her eyes over the ocean as earnestly as though she seriously expected to discover the fairy island of which he spoke floating on its bosom4 ,have you ever really seen anything like land in that direction8 ,if you choose1 we can go some of these days on a voyage of discovery1 said ,roger1 smiling at her seriousness2 only1 if we do find ',hy-,brysail1' ,i warn you that we shall have to stay there4 ,such is the law by which adventurers to its shores are bound4 ,it does not seem a hard law either1 does it8 ,would you object to it4 ,mistress ,netterville8' to be young and beautiful for ever6 ,sorrow forgotten as if it had never been1 beneath the spells of that magic land6 ,nellie drew a long breath1 and her blue eyes grew well-nigh black with suppressed feeling as she looked westward toward the ocean4 ,but she did not answer4 ,well1 he said1 finding she would not speak1 will you try the adventure with me1 or do you still prefer earth and its passing showers to this land of eternal sunshine8 ,nellie sighed--it almost seemed as if she were making a real choice2 and when he playfully repeated1 ,have you decided8 which shall it be--this old kingdom of ,grana ,uaille or ,tir-na-n'oge8 she quite seriously replied3 ,not ,tir-na-n'oge1 certainly2 though a year ago1 perhaps1 ,i might have chosen otherwise4 ,but youth and its sunshine is not real happiness1 after all1 although sometimes it looks very like it2 and even if it were1 there is something to me in a life of happiness1 simple and unalloyed1 less noble1 and less like the choice of a soul predestined to eternity1 than in one of sorrow bravely borne4 ,sorrow has done its work well for you1 at all events1 said ,roger1 moved to a higher feeling of reverence than1 two minutes before1 he would have thought it possible to have entertained for a creature so young and still so childish4 ,woe to the soul upon which it does it not1 once that soul has been delivered to its guidance1 ,nellie answered softly1 and almost as it were beneath her breath4 ,roger gazed upon her silently4 ,it seemed as if she were changing beneath his very eyes from a bright1 impulsive child into a woman of deep and earnest feeling--a woman in every fibre of her fine1 strong nature--and yet still in the untried freshness of her sixteen years as innocent and confiding as a child4 ,then you prefer a happiness which would bring with it the zest of contrast8 he added1 as if to prove her further4 ,i would prefer1 at all events1 a happiness founded upon duty1 she answered gravely2 and then1 as if half-ashamed of her own earnestness1 she asked him lightly3 ,is it not strange to find these floating traditions of a paradise of peace and plenty among a people so completely bereft of both as these poor creatures1 by their very condition as a conquered race1 must necessarily be8 ,for that very reason6 he answered quickly2 for that very reason6 ,men despised as savages and treated as wild beasts1 will either brood over schemes of real vengeance or soothe themselves with dreams of unreal bliss4 #ddg ,is it wonderful1 therefore1 that these poor people1 with their dreamy and imaginative natures1 should sometimes look wistfully over the broad ocean1 and fancy they see a land where 7if once only it could be reached7 flowers1 and joy1 and eternal sunshine1 would console them for the misery endured among these barren rocks1 in which they have been forced by their enemies to seek--,i was going to say1 a home--it would have been far more correct to have said--a prison8 ,nay1 but now it is you that are unjust1 said ,nellie1 smiling--unjust to this fair land you live in4 ,the kingdom of ,grana ,uaille can in no sense of the word be called a prison2 and even were it ten times less beautiful than it is1 to me it would still remain the one bright memory left me to look back to in this great year of sorrow4 ,roger turned quickly round1 but ,nellie met his eye with such a look of frank candor and unconsciousness as to the possibility of any hidden meaning being attachable to her words1 that he felt tacitly rebuked beneath it1 and merely said3 ,ay2 but1 ,mistress ,netterville1 ,i was talking of a home4 ,home6 said ,nellie softly--home1 after all1 is but the place where the heart garners up its treasures4 ,these were almost the last words my dear mother said to me1 and now ,i feel their truth2 for if she were but once more at my side1 the barrenest island in ,clew ,bay would become to me1 ,i think1 at once as home-like almost and dear as ,netterville itself4 ,again ,roger seemed on the point of saying something1 but again he checked himself and was silent4 ,nellie saw the flush upon his brow1 and interpreted it her own way4 ,you are not angry4 ,colonel ,o',more1 she said1 with the simplicity of a child2 surely you do not fancy1 because ,i spoke of ,netterville1 that ,i am ungrateful for the kindness which has made this island like a second home to me4 ,no1 indeed1 he answered1 with a smile so bright that it must have reassured her even if he had not said a word in answer4 ,no1 indeed4 ,i was1 or at all events ,i am1 only thinking how ,i can best persuade you and ,lord ,netterville to consider this island as your home1 even in the absence of its lawful owner4 ,absence1 said ,nellie2 are you going then1 and wherefore8 ,wherefore8 said ,o',more quickly4 ,i marvel that you cannot guess4 ,because1 ,mistress ,netterville1 though ,i live upon this island1 and though its inhabitants acknowledge me as their chieftain1 it is yet a sorry fact that ,i am poor1 poorer in proportion than the poorest of the number2 an outlaw besides1 with every man's hand and sword against me1 and nothing but the traditions of past greatness to soothe1 or1 which much oftener is the case1 to add bitterness to the meanness of my present station4 ,why call it meanness8 said ,nellie1 flashing up4 ,you have fought and lost for your king and country1 as we all have fought and lost2 and your enemies may take your lands indeed1 but they cannot rob you of the glory of the cause for which you have contended1 nor can they make you other than you are1 a descendant of brave old ,grana ,uaille and the inheritor of her kingdom4 ,kingdom6 said ,roger1 with a little bitter laugh4 ,turn your eyes inland1 ,mistress ,netterville1 and look from the northern point of ,clew ,bay southward toward the spot where ,croagh ,patrick casts its shade upon the bright waters4 #ddh ,that was the old kingdom of ,grana ,uaille1 and my inheritance upon the day that ,i was born4 ,my earliest recollections therefore are connected with this wild land1 and every rock and cave in its fair winding coast-line was as familiar to me in my childish days as the toys in their nursery are to more tenderly nurtured children4 ,but they sent me at last to ,spain for that education which would have been denied me here1 and ,i only came back 7while still a mere raw boy7 to fight under the banner of my kinsman1 ,i will not trouble you with a history of that war2 you know it1 alas1 too well already6 ,but when ,preston took refuge in ,galway1 and the other chiefs of the confederation dispersed in different directions1 ,i made the best of my way hither1 hoping1 amid the wilds and fastnesses of my own country1 to be permitted to remain at peace4 ,rumors reached me on the way of the great scheme of the transplantation1 and of the numbers flocking from the eastern counties to usurp1 against their will1 the possessions of their poorer brethren in the west4 ,soon after that1 came tidings that the enemy had reserved the coast-line for themselves1 then that they had swarmed over into some of the ,clew ,bay islands1 and then1 at last1 that they had taken possession of and fortified ,carrig-a-hooly1 the old castle of ,grana and the spot where ,i was born4 ,still ,i pressed unhesitatingly forward2 for ,i remembered the ',rath1' and knowing that it was1 or used to be1 almost a ruin1 ,i hoped it would have escaped them1 and that ,i might find there a refuge and concealment for the moment4 ,mistress ,netterville1 you can guess at the result4 ,i went as you went1 and found as you found1 that it was occupied already4 ,major ,hewitson-- ,what of ,major ,hewitson8 a voice asked impatiently at his elbow4 ,roger turned1 and found himself face to face with ,henrietta1 who had glided so quietly up the mountain path that neither he nor ,nellie had an idea of her presence until she announced it by this question4 ,remembering her kindness of the day before1 ,nellie's first impulse had been to greet her eagerly2 her next was to retreat a step behind ,o',more1 with an uncomfortable though only half acknowledged consciousness that she herself would be considered by ,henrietta as one too many in the coming conversation4 ,there was1 in truth1 a flush on the young lady's brow and a sparkle in her eye1 by no means inviting to familiarity1 and without seeming conscious even of ,nellie's presence1 she repeated the question angrily to ,o',more3 ,what of ,major ,hewitson8 ,what of the owner of yonder castle8 ,roger looked at her steadily1 then removing his cap1 and speaking in his most courtly tones1 he answered quietly3 ,nothing1 ,mistress ,hewitson1 nothing at least1 unfit to be said in the presence of his daughter4 ,that won't do6 cried ,henrietta passionately1 that won't do4 ,i heard his name as ,i came up1 and ,i will know what you were saying of him4 ,roger laughed a bright1 merry laugh1 which ,nellie thought no ill-humor could have resisted1 and he answered frankly3 ,nay1 for that matter4 ,mistress ,hewitson1 if you insist upon it1 you are quite welcome to hear not only all that ,i did say1 but all likewise that ,i was about to say on the subject of your father4 ,i had just observed to ,mistress ,netterville 7whose person you seem somehow to have forgotten since yesterday7 that ,i found ,major ,hewitson in possession of my last refuge on the mainland1 and ,i was going to add that1 as he had thus made his fortune at my expense1 ,i trusted he would not endeavor to prevent me seeking mine1 where in these days ,irishmen most often find them1 under the golden flag of ,spain4 #ddi ,spain6 ,nellie's heart leaped up suddenly1 and then grew very still4 ,this1 then1 was the meaning of that word absence which had already startled and1 even against her will1 disturbed her4 ,this was his meaning4 ,he was about to leave ,ireland for ever1 and make a home for himself in his mother's land4 ,nellie's heart leaped up1 and then grew very still6 ,when she returned to a consciousness of the outward world around her1 ,henrietta was saying eagerly3 ,do not wait to know what he may think upon the subject2 but go at once4 ,remember you are an outlaw1 and that an outlaw is one whom the law permits to be hunted like a wild beast1 and slain whenever or however he may be taken4 ,and this1 then1 is the fate which your worthy father is preparing for me8 ,roger asked in a tone of bantering politeness1 which1 considering the circumstances and ,henrietta's evident excitement1 ,nellie could not help thinking almost unkind4 ,it is thus1 like a wild beast1 as you rightly term it1 that he is about to set upon me and slay me unawares4 ,i do not say it6 ,i do not know it6 said ,henrietta1 almost sobbing4 ,i only say--only know that there are fresh troops of soldiers coming in to-day2 that there have been for at least a week past prayer-meetings and preachings and waitings on the ,lord1 things which all portend a coming danger1 and one that probably will point toward you4 ,colonel ,o',more1 be merciful2 take my warning for what it may be worth1 and ask no further questions4 ,remember1 that if ,i think not with my father in these matters1 ,i am still1 at all events1 his daughter4 ,and now ,i must begone1 for with all my skill at the oar1 and little ,paudeen's to boot1 ,i shall have hard work to get back in time for the mid-day meal1 and the long and weary homily by which it is seasoned and made pleasant to unbelievers like myself4 ,henrietta turned as if to depart1 but yet she did not4 ,she seemed to be struggling hard with some hidden feeling1 and at last1 with an effort so violent that it was visible1 at least to ,roger's eyes1 she flung her arms round ,nellie's neck4 ,i know nothing of you but your name1 young mistress1 she said in a smothered voice2 but ,i know1 at least1 that ,i and mine have wrought you a great injustice4 ,that injustice unhappily ,i have no power to repair2 but yet1 if ever you have need of any help that ,i can give1 and will come and ask me for it1 believe me1 instead of heaping coals of fire on my head1 you will be giving me the only real happiness ,i can feel1 so long as ,i know that1 by my residence in these lands1 ,i am usurping the rights of others4 ,henrietta almost flung ,nellie from1 her as she finished speaking1 and then1 without another word1 either to her or ,roger1 she took the down path of the cliff1 and was out of sight in a moment4 ,the two whom she left behind her continued silent1 until they saw the corragh1 or small boat1 in which she had come1 and which had been waiting for her beneath the cliffs1 gliding once more out into the open bay2 then they also turned their steps homeward1 and ,roger1 with no small dash of enthusiasm in his manner1 exclaimed3 #dej ,brave girl6 would you believe it1 this is the second time she has given me notice of a snare8 only the first time1 he added1 with perhaps some intuitive guess at the sort of questioning that might be going on in ,nellie's mind1 only the first time it was by ,paudeen1 who sails her boat1 and who1 she well knows1 may be trusted in all that regards the safety of his chieftain4 ,but what is the old white-haired gospeller up to now1 ,i wonder8 ,i own ,i am fairly puzzled6 ,we are not1 ,i trust1 the cause of this fresh trouble to you8 said ,nellie timidly4 ,oh6 no4 ,i think not2 for your sake ,i trust not1 he answered thoughtfully4 ,it seemed to me to be altogether personal to myself2 for if it had been about the priest1 ,i think she would have said so4 ,the priest6 where is he8 ,nellie asked4 ,i did not even know that there was one upon the island4 ,not upon this island1 but on another1 as you shall see to-morrow if you choose to make one of his ,sunday congregation4 ,but yonder is your grandfather watching for you3 had we not better go and join him8 ,nellie assented1 and quickening her pace almost to a run1 she was in her grandfather's arms ere ,roger1 who came on more leisurely1 had time to join them4 ,lord ,netterville gazed lovingly into ,nellie's face1 and smiled as he saw the bright color which exercise had called into her pale cheeks4 ,then he turned courteously toward his host4 ,perhaps he had some vague idea in his old head that the fate of his grandchild was to be henceforth1 in some way or other1 connected with that of ,roger2 perhaps he was not himself aware of the significance of his action2 but this at all events is certain1 that1 instead of relinquishing ,nellie's hand1 he kept it tightly in his own1 and when the young chieftain approached to greet him1 laid it silently in that of ,roger4 ,there was enough in the action itself1 and still more in the way in which it was done1 to send the blood scarlet to ,nellie's brow1 and she struggled to release her hand4 ,for one moment1 however1 ,roger held it1 gently but firmly1 he even made a movement as if he were about to raise it to his lips2 instead of doing so1 however1 he dropped it quietly1 and said in a low voice3 ,not now1 not yet2 but when you are once more at your mother's side1 will you permit me to remind you of this moment1 and to ask for the treasure which ,i now relinquish1 at the hands of her who is your only lawful guardian8 ,chapter ,x4 ,early the next morning1 ,nellie found herself gliding over the waters of ,clew ,bay in one of the native corraghs of the country1 under the protection of her host4 ,he was captain and crew all in one1 and she was his only passenger2 for it had been decided on the previous evening that ,lord ,netterville was not in a fit state to endure the fatigue of such a voyage1 and with old ,nora to look after his creature comforts1 and ,maida to guard him in his lonely fortress1 ,roger assured his granddaughter that she need have no scruple in leaving him during the two or three hours required for their enterprise4 ,and ,nellie had readily obeyed2 for1 if the truth must be told1 she had begun to rely implicitly upon his judgment1 and to submit to it as unquestioningly as if she had been a child4 #dea ,the little shyness produced by ,lord ,netterville's thoughtless action of the day before had entirely worn off1 partly because she herself had striven womanfully against the feeling1 but chiefly because ,roger1 thoroughly comprehending how needful it was to her comfort that1 during her residence in his lonely kingdom1 she should be entirely at her ease in his society1 had adopted1 as if by instinct1 precisely the affectionate1 brotherly sort of manner which was of all others the best calculated to produce this result4 ,nellie therefore gave herself up without a thought to the pleasant novelty of a brotherly sort of petting and protection which seemed to call for nothing more than quiet acceptance on her part1 and she listened to ,roger with the keen and unsated interest of a child as he told her the names1 one after another1 of many of the clustered islands and rugged rocklets1 glittering like jewels in the deep bosom of the bay1 almost always contriving to add some little legend or stray scrap of history1 which gave each for the moment an especial1 and 7if the expression may be allowed toward inanimate objects7 an almost personal interest in her eyes4 ,at last he turned her attention toward the mainland1 pointing out the graceful windings of ,clew's varied shore1 its wave-worn caverns and rocky arches1 its cliffs with their mantles of many-colored lichens which made them look at that distance as if nature had stained them into an imitation of most curiously-colored marble2 and beyond these again1 its broad tracts of uncultivated bog-land1 purple with heath in autumn1 but now yellow with gorse or dark with waving fern1 its hills rising one above another in lonely1 savage grandeur1 with ,croagh ,patrick1 the monarch of them all1 standing up on the south side of the bay1 and looking down in haughty1 cold indifference upon its waters as they flowed beneath him4 ,nellie followed his eye and finger eagerly as he pointed out each individual feature in the scene before her2 but observing that he lingered for a moment on ,croagh ,patrick1 she turned toward him for explanation4 ,it is ,croagh ,patrick1 he said2 then perceiving that she was not much the wiser for the information1 he added in some surprise1 ,do you not know the legend1 that it was from the cone of yonder hill ,st4 ,patrick pronounced the curse which banished all venomous hurtful things from ,ireland8 ,had the saint lived in these days1 ,roger added1 in that undertone which ,nellie had by this time discovered to be natural to him in moments of deep feeling1 it is not1 ,i think1 against toads and snakes that he would have directed his miracle-working powers1 but against the men who1 coming to a land which is not their own1 make war in ,god's name against ,god's creatures1 hunting them down with horn and hound1 and snaring and slaying them with as little compunction as they would have snared or slain a wolf4 ,would he then have expelled me also8 asked ,nellie1 with a wicked smile4 ,you know that ,i1 too1 7and more's the pity67 have blood of the hated ,saxon in my veins4 ,certainly not1 said ,roger promptly1 with your blue-black eyes and blue-black hair1 he would without a doubt 7saint and prophet though he was7 have been deluded into believing you a ,celt4 ,and so ,i am almost1 said ,nellie1 with childish eagerness2 only consider1 ,colonel ,o',more1 we have been in the country almost three hundred years1 and in all that time1 until my dear father's marriage with my mother1 7who is unfortunately an ,englishwoman17 it has been the boast and tradition of our race that its sons and daughters have never wedded save with the sons and daughters of their adopted land4 #deb ,remember1 then1 that it will be for you to renew the tradition1 said ,roger suddenly1 and without reflection4 ,he repented himself bitterly a moment afterward1 as he caught a glimpse of the flush upon ,nellie's half-averted face1 and in order to undo the evil which he had done he added hastily1 ,yonder is our destination1 that bare1 black rock jutting out from the mainland far into the deep waters4 ,it is not then an island8 said ,nellie a little disappointed4 ,i fancied you said yesterday that it was one4 ,perhaps ,i did1 for it juts out so far and so boldly into deep water that1 from many parts of the bay1 it looks almost like an island4 ,you cannot see the hermitage from this1 but yonder is the church1 perched right upon the cliffs above4 ,perched6 repeated ,nellie1 with a sort of shudder4 ,i should hardly say even that it was perched1 for to me it looks as if it were actually toppling over4 ,and so it is1 said ,roger2 the tower is out of the perpendicular already1 and ,i never hear a winter storm without picturing it to myself as going 7as go most certainly it will some day7 crash over the cliff4 ,it is safe enough1 however1 in this calm weather1 he added1 for he saw that ,nellie was beginning to look nervous1 or ,i never should have thought of it as a refuge for its present occupant1 though1 for that matter1 it was but a choice of evils1 his life being in jeopardy whichever way he turned4 ,is he then especially obnoxious8 ,nellie asked2 or is it only that1 like all our other priests1 he is forced to do his mission secretly8 ,especially obnoxious8 ,i should think1 indeed he was1 said ,roger2 for he was chaplain to the brave old bishop whom they hanged at the siege of ,clonmel1 and was present at his death4 ,how he managed to escape himself1 has always been a marvel to me2 but escape he did1 and came hither for a refuge4 ,i stowed him away in the ruined hermitage overhead1 with a few other poor fellows who are outlawed like myself1 and in greater danger1 and his presence has never been even suspected by the enemy2 so that he might1 if he had been so minded1 have escaped long ago by sea4 ,but when he found us here1 without sacraments or sacrifice1 7for our priests have been long since driven into banishment17 he elected to remain1 and now1 at the peril of his life1 he does duty as a parish priest among us4 ,brave priest6 brave priest6 cried ,nellie1 clapping her hands4 ,he must feel very near to heaven1 ,i think1 engaged in such a mission1 and living like a real hermit up there on that barren rock4 ,and so in fact he is2 or at least he lives in a real hermit's cell1 said ,roger4 ,it was built in the time of ,grana ,uaille by a holy man1 in whose memory the rock is sometimes called 'the hermit1' though more generally known as 'the chieftain's rock4' ,but why the change of names8 asked ,nellie4 ,because1 he answered1 with the least possible shade of bitterness in his manner1 because1 as often happens in this wicked world1 persons who have been made heroes in the eyes of men are made more account of than those who are heroes only in the sight of ,god4 ,this hermit had lived here for many years in peace and quiet1 when the chief of a tribe of ,creaghts1 at enmity with ,grana ,uaille1 having been beaten by her in a battle1 took refuge with him among these rocks4' #dec ,the hermit hid him in the church1 which1 being an acknowledged sanctuary1 even ,grana ,uaille1 stout and unscrupulous as she was in most things1 did not dare invade in order to drag him from its shelter4 ,but she swore--our good old ,grana could swear upon occasion as lustily as her rival sovereign your own ,queen ,bess--,grana swore that neither the sanctity of his hermit friend or of his place of refuge should avail him aught1 and that1 sooner or later1 she would starve him into submission4 ,she landed accordingly with her men1 and surrounded church and hermitage upon the land side1 that toward the sea being left unguarded and unwatched because1 owing to the height and steepness of the cliff itself1 and the position of the church tower1 built almost immediately upon its edge1 there seemed no human possibility of evasion that way4 ,the chief1 however1 and his hermit proved too many for her after all2 for by dint of working day and night1 they succeeded1 before their store of provisions was entirely exhausted1 in cutting through the floor and outer wall of the church1 and so making a passage which gave them instant access to the cliffs outside4 ,this was by no means so difficult a task as at first sight it seems2 for the floor of the building is only hardened earth1 and its walls a mere mixture of mud and rubble1 the very tower itself being only partially built of stone4 ,i have often1 when a boy1 crept through the aperture1 but it is nearly filled up with rubbish now1 and almost1 or ,i think quite forgotten among the people1 who have been using the church for the last twenty years as a storehouse for peat and driftwood for their winter firing4 ,useful enough1 however1 the poor chieftain found it2 for one fine moonlight night he walked quietly through it into the open air1 swung himself down the cliffs as unconcernedly as if he had been merely searching for puffins' nests1 and finally escaped in a boat left there by his friends for that very purpose4 ,next day1 the hermit threw the church gates open1 and sent word to ,queen ,grana that her intended victim had escaped her4 ,you may imagine what a rage the virago chieftainess was in at finding herself thus outwitted2 but ,i have not time to tell you now1 for here we are close into shore1 and it is time to think of landing4 ,roger had lowered the sail while speaking1 and he now began sculling the boat round a low sandy point which hid the harbor from their view4 ,while he was occupied in this manner1 ,nellie1 chancing to turn her head in the direction of ,clare ,island1 perceived another corragh fast following in their track1 and rowed by a boy1 who was evidently working might and main in order to overtake them4 ,she mentioned the matter to ,roger1 who instantly ceased his toil1 and turned round to reconnoitre4 ,it is ,paudeen1 he said at once4 ,what1 in ,heaven's name1 has sent him to us here8 ,the boy saw that he was observed1 and without stopping a moment in his onward course1 made signs to them to await his coming4 ,roger did as he was desired2 and in a few minutes more the two corraghs were lying together side by side1 and so close that their respective occupants could have conversed easily in a whisper4 ,what is it1 ,paudeen8 asked ,o',more2 have you any message for me1 or is there anything the matter that you have followed us so far8 #ded ,it's ,mistress ,hewitson who is wanting to see you1 said the boy4 ,she was prevented leaving as soon as she intended1 and she sent me on before to ask you not to quit the island until she had spoken to you4 ,you were gone1 however1 before ,i could get there2 so1 guessing well enough where you would most likely be upon ,sunday morning1 ,i followed you down here4 ,but if you came straight from the mainland1 how is it that ,i did not meet you in the way8 asked ,o',more suddenly1 a strange suspicion of even ,paudeen's simple faith passing rapidly through his mind4 ,because ,i didn't come from it at all1 at all1 the boy answered curtly4 ,it is yonder they're staying now1 he added1 pointing to ,achill ,island2 and they do say in the house that ,clare ,isle will be the next to follow4 ,and is it to tell me this that ,mistress ,hewitson is about to honor me with a visit8 ,roger answered bitterly4 ,the formality1 methinks1 was hardly needed1 considering all that her father has robbed me of already4 ,sorrow know1 ,i know what she will be wanting2 but this at all events ,i know for certain1 that it is for nothing but what is good and kind1 said ,paudeen2 adding immediately afterward in a musing tone1 though how she can be what she is1 considering the black blood that is running in her veins1 it needs greater wits than ,i can boast of to be able to discover4 ,well1 well1 said ,roger1 ,i believe you are about right there1 ,paudeen4 ,so now go back at once1 and say to ,mistress ,hewitson that she shall be obeyed1 and that ,i will return to ,clare ,island in time to receive her at the landing-place4 ,let me go back also1 said ,nellie1 in a smothered voice4 ,if ,i and my grandfather have brought this danger to your door1 it is only just that we should share it with you4 ,share it4 ,mistress ,netterville8 ,nay1 but you would double it6 cried ,o',more vehemently4 ,in the face of anything like real1 present danger1 ,i should infallibly lose my life in anxiety for yours4 ,in point of fact1 however1 he added1 seeing that she still looked distressed and anxious2 in point of fact1 the danger 7whatever it is7 cannot be immediate1 since it is evident that ,mistress ,hewitson expects by her intended visit to give me such information as may enable me to evade it4 ,possibly she has heard further details concerning those plans of the old man1 her father1 at which yesterday she obscurely hinted4 ,it may even be1 as ,paudeen seems to think1 that they intend to put an ,english garrison on the island1 and she may hope to soften matters for us by giving me this previous notice4 ,any way1 ,i entreat you not to be over anxious2 for though ,i acknowledge that we live in perilous times and places1 yet still1 and if only for that very reason1 it behoves us to keep our common sense intact1 and not to allow it to be scared by every passing cloud that seems to threaten us with storm4 ,after such words as these1 ,nellie felt there was nothing for it but to land the moment the boat reached shore1 and ,roger helped her out with a sort of graceful tenderness1 which seemed tacitly to ask forgiveness for the constraint he had been compelled to put upon her inclinations4 ,then he pointed to a scarcely discernible path among the brushwood1 and said hastily3 ,that path will take you straight to the church4 ,if any one ask you any questions1 the watchword is1 ',god1 our ,lady1 and ,roger ,o',more4' ,farewell6 ,get as near the altar as you can2 tell them not to wait for me1 but ,i will be back in time to fetch you4 #dee ,he waited one moment1 to make sure that she understood him1 then pushed the boat out into deep water1 and without even venturing to look back1 pursued his way diligently homeward4 ,the breeze had died away1 so that he would1 he knew1 be infinitely longer in returning to ,clare ,island than he had been in coming from it4 ,as he passed ,paudeen1 he had half a mind to hail him1 but reflecting that he would probably lose more time by the stoppage than he could gain by the boy's assistance1 he changed his mind and went on his way alone4 ,it was hot and weary work1 but he put all his strength and will to it1 and did it in a shorter time than he had expected4 ,not1 however1 before his presence was apparently sorely needed2 for just as he neared the harbor1 the deep1 angry bay of the wolf-dog ,maida reached his ear4 ,this was followed by a woman's voice1 endeavoring probably to soothe the dog1 and this again by a long1 shrill whistle which came like a cry for aid across the waters4 ,thus urged1 ,o',more pulled with redoubled energy1 and next moment was in the harbor4 ,a corragh1 ownerless and empty1 was lying loose beside the pier1 and a few yards from the landing-place he saw a girl standing motionless as a statue1 one hand raised in an attitude of defence1 confronting ,maida1 who1 with head erect and bristling hair1 seemed to bid her advance further at her peril4 ,had she attempted to retreat1 had she shown even a shadow of timidity or of yielding1 the dog would undoubtedly have torn her into pieces2 but1 with wonderful nerve and courage1 she had so far stood her ground1 and1 rebuked by her stillness and unyielding attitude1 ,maida1 up to that moment1 had fortunately contented her sense of duty by keeping a close watch upon her proceedings4 ,horrified at the sight1 and dreading lest ,maida might mistake even the sound of his voice for a signal of attack1 ,roger hastily leaped on shore4 ,henrietta heard him1 and without even daring to turn her head in his direction1 whispered softly3 ,call off your dog--for ,god's dear sake1 call her off at once6 ,roger made no reply1 7for1 in fact1 he did not dare to speak17 but he made one bound forward and placed himself between her and her foe4 ,maida instantly abandoned her threatening look to greet her master1 and for one half-moment he employed himself in caressing and calming down her fury4 ,then he turned eagerly to ,henrietta3 ,how is this4 ,mistress ,hewitson8 ,for ,god's sake1 speak6 ,the dog has not injured you1 ,i trust8 ,henrietta did not at first reply4 ,she was as white as ashes1 and her eyes glittered with a strange mingling of courage and of desperate fear4 ,send away the dog1 she cried at last2 send away the dog4 ,i cannot bear to see her1 and then burst into tears4 ,roger said one word1 and ,maida instantly flew toward the castle4 ,he was about to follow in the same direction in order to procure some water1 but the girl caught him by the arm1 and held him so that he could not move4 ,calm yourself1 ,i entreat you1 he said1 fancying she was still under the influence of terror4 ,no wonder that even your high courage has given way4 ,let me call ,nora4 ,she will help you to compose yourself4 ,call no one1 ,henrietta gasped4 ,call no one2 but tell me1 is there not a priest and some other outlaws in hiding on the chieftain's rock8 #def ,what then8 he asked1 the blood suddenly rushing to his heart as he thought of ,nellie4 ,what then8 she repeated fiercely2 because1 7oh6 that ,i had known it but an hour ago17 because death is there1 and treachery and woe6 ,but whither are you going8 she cried1 following him as he broke suddenly from her grasp1 and began to retrace his way toward the pier4 ,whither8 whither8 he answered1 like one speaking in his sleep4 ,there1 of course4 ,where else8 ,my ,god1 that ,i should have left ,nellie there6 ,the girl6 cried ,henrietta2 and you have been there already1 and have had time to row all this way back8 ,my ,god1 then it will be too late to save her4 ,the church must be in flames ere now4 ,o',more made no reply1 but leaped at once into the boat4 ,what do you want8 he asked1 almost savagely1 as ,henrietta followed him4 ,what do you want here--you1 the child of her assassin8 ,i want to save her1 and1 still more1 to save my father1 if ,i can1 from this most fearful guilt1 she answered promptly4 ,roger made no further opposition4 ,once fairly out of harbor1 he rowed with all the energy of despair1 and ,henrietta helped him nobly4 ,they were obliged to trust entirely to their oars1 and the delay was maddening4 ,roger never cast a single glance toward the spot where all his soul was centred1 but ,henrietta could not resist a look once or twice in that direction4 ,suddenly she cried out4 ,what is it8 he asked nervously2 what is it8 ,they have fired the church1 she said1 in smothered tones4 ,there is a cloud of smoke2 and now--my ,god6--a jet of flame going through it to the sky6 ,he made no reply1 but he bent to the oar until the bead-drops of mingled agony and toil stood thick upon his brow4 ,god help them6 ,they must be trying to escape1 she muttered yet again1 as something like a shot or two of musketry reached her ear4 ,faster he rowed1 and faster4 ,the boat leaped like a living thing along the waters4 ,they were close to the cliff at last4 ,overhead1 the sky was hidden by a canopy of heavy smoke1 with here and there a streak of fire flashing like forked lightning athwart it4 ,underneath1 the water lay black as ink1 in the reflection of the clouded heavens1 as the boat rushed through it4 ,one more effort1 and they were in the cove--another1 and they were flung high and dry upon the beach4 ,roger jumped out without a word4 ,was he in time8 or was he not8 ,his whole soul was engrossed in that fearful question4 ,what are you going to do8 asked ,henrietta1 uncertain as to what her own share in the enterprise was to be4 ,he had been searching in the bottom of the boat for something2 but he looked up then with a kindling eye1 and said3 ,will you be true to the end8 ,so help me ,god1 ,i will6 she answered in that quiet tone which tells all the more of steady courage that it has no touch of bluster in it4 ,he had found what he wanted now--a cutlass and a coil of rope--and answered rapidly3 ,take the boat out of this1 then1 and wait beneath the cliffs4 ,wait till ,i come1 or until yonder tower falls1 as fall it must1 and soon4 ,after that1 you may go home in peace4 ,yes1 peace6 ,for happen what may1 your soul1 at any rate1 will be guiltless of this day's murder4 ,he shoved the boat back into deep water as he finished speaking1 and then1 without even looking back to see if ,henrietta followed his directions1 strode rapidly up the cliffs4 #deg ,chapter ,,xi4 ,happily unconscious of the peril by which her own life was so speedily to be placed in jeopardy1 ,nellie stood for a few minutes after ,roger left her1 watching his progress through the water1 and speculating anxiously enough upon the nature of the summons which had been delivered to him by ,paudeen4 ,in spite of his apparent coolness1 there had been something in the way in which he had almost forced her to leave him--something in the haste with which he had given her his last directions--something 7if it must be confessed7 in the very fact of his having rushed off without even a parting word or look1 which made her suspect the danger to be more real and immediate than he wished her to suppose it4 ,and now1 as she watched him bending to the oar as if his very life depended on his speed1 suspicion seemed all at once to grow up into certainty1 and she bitterly regretted the shyness which had prevented her insisting on returning with him to the island4 ,regrets1 however1 were now in vain1 and remembering that1 if she delayed much longer1 she would in all probability be too late for ,mass1 and so lose the only object for which she had remained behind1 she turned her face resolutely toward the path pointed out by ,roger4 ,it was less a path indeed than a mere narrow space left by the natural receding of the rocks and loose boulders1 which lay scattered about in all directions4 ,such as it was1 it led ,nellie in a zigzag fashion upward toward the cliffs1 turning and twisting so suddenly and so often1 that she could hardly ever see more than a yard or two before her1 while the boulders on either side1 being generally higher than her head1 and the intervals between them filled up with tall heather and scrubby brushwood1 she might as well1 for all that she could have seen beyond1 have been walking between a couple of stone walls4 ,the congregation had in all probability already reached the church1 or else they were coming to it by another path2 for not the sound of a voice or of a footstep either before or behind her could she hear1 though she paused occasionally to listen4 ,once indeed1 but only once1 at a sudden opening among the boulders1 she fancied she saw something like the glistening of a spear in the brushwood underneath1 and a minute or two afterward the air seemed tremulous with a low sighing sound1 as if some one were whispering within a few yards of her ear4 ,nevertheless1 when she paused again in some trepidation to reconnoitre1 everything seemed so lonely and so still around her1 that she was obliged to confess that her imagination must have been playing her sad tricks4 ,the light which she had seen was1 in all probability1 a mere effect of sunshine on some of the more polished rocks1 while the sough and sigh of the waters1 as they lapped quietly on the beach below1 might easily have assumed1 in that distance and in the calm summer air1 the semblance of a human whisper4 ,once she had satisfied herself upon this point1 she resolved not to be frightened from her purpose by any nervous fancies2 and stimulating her courage by the reflection that1 if an enemy really were lurking near1 her best chance of safety would be the church1 in which her countrymen and women were already gathered1 she toiled steadily upward until she reached the platform upon which it was erected4 #deh ,a sudden turn in the path brought her face to face with it almost before she fancied that she was near1 and she only comprehended how heartily she had been frightened on the way1 by the sense of relief which this discovery imparted4 ,it was a low1 mean-looking edifice enough1 with the hermit's cell built aslant against the wall1 and forming in fact a kind of porch1 through which alone it could be entered4 ,from the moment it first came in sight1 the path had narrowed gradually until there was barely room at last for the passing of a single person1 and while it appeared to ,nellie to descend1 the rocks on either side rose higher1 slanting even somewhat over1 so as partially to impede the light4 ,from this circumstance she was led to fancy that both cell and church had been built originally below what was now the present surface of the land1 a fact which1 joined to its desolate1 ruinous condition1 might easily have pointed it out to ,roger as a fitting place for the concealment of his friends4 ,the low door of the porch was closed and fastened upon the inside1 so that she was obliged1 very reluctantly1 to knock on it for admittance4 ,a moment afterward she heard the sound of footsteps1 the door was drawn back an inch or two1 and some one from behind it whispered in ,irish1 ,who are you1 and for whom8 ,for ,god1 our ,lady1 and ,roger ,o',more1 ,nellie promptly answered4 ,enter1 then1 in the name of ,god1 the voice replied2 and a strong hand being put forth1 she was drawn within the building as easily and unresistingly as if she had been a child1 and the door was again closed behind her4 ,the cell into which she had been thus unceremoniously introduced was very dark1 and she could only just perceive that the person who had played the part of porter was a tall1 soldierly-looking fellow1 and therefore1 she concluded1 one of the outlaws1 of whose residence in the building ,roger had informed her4 ,you have been long a-coming1 said the man4 ,why is not the chieftain with you8 ,how do you know that he brought me hither8 asked ,nellie1 startled by the knowledge he seemed to have of her proceedings4 ,we keep a good look-out seaward upon ,sunday mornings1 he answered significantly4 ,why did he go back8 ,a message--summons from the island1 said ,nellie2 not well knowing how much or how little it would be prudent to communicate4 ,it was nothing of any consequence1 ,i believe2 and he said you were not to wait4 ,he will probably be here before all is over4 ,good1 said the man2 then follow me4 ,he went on as he spoke1 ,nellie stumbling as well as she could after him in the dark1 until they reached the thick matting of dried grass which separated the church from the porch outside4 ,here the descent became so sudden that she would inevitably have been precipitated face foremost into the midst of the congregation1 if her conductor had not caught her by the arm in time to prevent this catastrophe1 and landed her safely on the other side4 ,the interior of the building1 as ,nellie saw it in that dim light1 had a much nearer resemblance to a ruinous barn than to a place of ,christian worship4 ,as ,roger had already told her1 it had been so long dismantled and forgotten as a church that the people had come to look upon it simply as a storehouse for their winter firing1 a fact amply attested by the piles of drift and brushwood which rose in all directions1 blocking up the narrow windows1 and forming a gigantic stack against the wall behind the altar4 #dei ,this latter was of stone1 facing the door by which she had just entered1 and so placed that there was a considerable distance between it and the wall beyond4 ,in this desolate-looking building about twenty or thirty people were assembled1 most of them women and young girls1 with a sprinkling of old men and half-a-dozen younger ones1 in whom ,nellie fancied she recognized the outlawed soldiers of the royal army4 ,two or three of these last stole a curious glance upon her1 as she moved onward toward the altar2 but the greater part of the congregation were so absorbed in earnest and loudly-uttered prayer1 that they seemed absolutely unconscious of the entrance of a stranger4 ,passing quietly1 so as not to disturb them in their devotions1 ,nellie made her way to a spot from whence she had a full view of the priest as he sat1 a little on one side1 engaged in hearing the confessions of those who presented themselves for that purpose4 ,he was in truth a hero in ,nellie's eyes--the best of all heroes--a ,christian hero4 ,he had stood by that brave old bishop who had gone to death for an act of patriotism which1 in the old heroic days of ,rome1 would have set him as a demigod upon pagan altars4 ,quiet and self-possessed1 he had knelt1 amid the thunders of the battle-field1 to hear the confessions of the wounded soldiers4 ,he had plunged into the fell atmospheres of plague and fever1 braving death in its worst and most loathsome forms in the exercise of his ministerial functions4 ,he had buried the dead--he had consoled the widow and orphan1 made such by the reckless cruelty of man2 and now1 when he had exhausted all the more heroic forms of service to his ,lord1 he had come hither1 like that ,lord himself--like the good ,shepherd of the ,gospel--to gather up the young lambs into his arms1 and to comfort a conquered and stricken people2 to pour the consolations of religion upon hearts wrung and disconsolate in human sorrow2 to preach of heaven to men forsaken of the earth1 and to teach them1 houseless and hapless as they were1 to lift up those eyes and hands1 which had been lifted in vain to their brother man for mercy1 higher and higher still1 even to that ,almighty ,father to whose paternal heart the life of the very least of his little ones was of such unspeakable and unthought-of value that not a hair might fall from one of their heads without his express permission4 ,thoughts like these passed rapidly through ,nellie's mind as she watched the old man bending reverently and compassionately to receive1 in the exercise of his ministerial functions1 each new tale of sin or sorrow which1 one after another1 the poor people round him came to pour into his sympathizing ear4 ,we have called him old1 for his hair was white and his face was ploughed into many wrinkles2 yet ,nellie could not help suspecting that the look of wearied1 patient age upon his features was less the effect of years1 than of the toil and suffering by which those years had been utilized and made fruitful in the service of his ,master4 ,altogether she felt drawn toward him by a feeling of reverent admiration1 which would probably have found vent in words1 if he had not been so completely occupied in his ministerial duties as to make it simply impossible to interrupt him4 ,for in a congregation deprived1 as this had been1 of a pastor for many months1 there was of course much to be done ere the commencement of the ,sunday service4 #dfj ,there were confessions to be heard1 and infants to be baptized1 and more than one young couple--who had patiently awaited the coming of a lawful minister for the reception of that sacrament--to be united in holy wedlock4 ,at last1 however1 all this was over1 and ,nellie had just made up her mind to go and speak to him in her turn1 when1 to her infinite annoyance1 he rose from his place and commenced robing himself at the altar4 ,kneeling down again1 therefore1 she endeavored to withdraw her thoughts from all outward things1 in order to fix them entirely upon the coming service4 ,in spite1 however1 of her most earnest efforts1 she felt nervous and unhappy at the prolonged absence of ,o',more1 and she could not help envying the people round her1 as with all the natural fervor of the ,celtic temperament1 they abandoned themselves to prayer2 prostrating1 groaning1 beating their breasts1 and praying up aloud with as much naive indifference to the vicinity of their neighbor1 as if each individual in presence there imagined that he and his ,god were the sole occupants of the church4 ,poor ,nellie could obtain no such blest absorption from her cares4 ,her eyes would glance toward the door for the coming of ,roger1 and her ears would listen for his footsteps2 once or twice1 indeed1 she felt quite certain that she heard him moving quietly behind the screen of matting1 which shut in the church from the porch outside1 and became1 in consequence1 nervously anxious to see him lift it and take his promised place beside her4 ,he never came1 however1 yet the sounds continued1 accompanied at times by a slight waving of the screen1 as if a hand had accidentally touched it2 and this occurred so often that ,nellie began at last to be seriously alarmed4 ,she thought of ,paudeen's mysterious message to his chieftain1 and her own half extinguished fancy of having seen a spear among the brushwood recurred vividly to her mind4 ,what if she had seen rightly1 after all8 ,what if an enemy were really lurking in the neighborhood2 or1 worse still1 crouching behind that terrible screen1 ready to massacre the congregation as they passed through it to the open air after service8 ,the thought was too terrible for solitary endurance1 and she was just about to lessen the burden by imparting it to her nearest neighbor1 when she found herself forestalled by a heavy1 stifling cloud of smoke1 which rolled suddenly through the church and roused every creature present to a sense of coming danger4 ,there was a rustle and a stir1 and then they all stood up1 men and women and little children1 gazing with wild eyes and whitened faces on each other1 uncertain of the how or from whence of the threatened peril4 ,the priest alone seemed to pay no attention to the circumstance2 nevertheless he felt and comprehended far better than they did the nature of the fate awaiting them1 and hurried on to the conclusion of the ,mass1 which was by this time1 fortunately1 well-nigh over4 ,he had hardly finished the communion prayer before the heat and suffocation had become unbearable4 ,in an agony of terror1 the people made a rush to the gates1 and tore down the screen of matting which separated the church from the porch beyond4 ,then arose a wild cry of despair1 filling the church from floor to ceiling--the cry of human beings caught in a snare from whence1 except by a cruel death1 there was no escaping4 ,the porch was already a blazing furnace1 filled almost to the roof1 with fagots burning in all the fury that pitch and tar1 and other combustibles flung liberally among them1 were calculated to produce4 #dfa ,these1 then1 were the sounds which had disturbed ,nellie during ,mass4 ,the enemy had profited by the rapt devotion of these poor people to build up1 unheard and unsuspected1 their death-pile in the porch1 after which doughty deed they had retired1 closing the gates behind them1 and trusting the rest to the terrible nature of the ally they had so recklessly invoked4 ,to attempt a passage through that sea of fire in its first wild fury would have been instant death2 and amid the cries of women and children1 many of whom were well-nigh trampled to death beneath the feet of their fellow-victims1 the crowd swayed backward4 ,then came another horror4 ,an unhappy girl1 one of the foremost of the throng1 in her eagerness to escape1 had rushed so far into the porch that her garments caught fire1 and1 mad with pain and fear1 she flung herself face downward upon a heap of driftwood near her4 ,it was all that was needed to complete the work of destruction4 ,the wood1 dry and combustible as tinder1 ignited instantly1 and in two minutes more was a mass of flame4 ,in vain some of the men1 with the priest at their head1 leaped on it in a wild effort to trample it out before it could spread further4 ,as fast as it was stifled in one place it broke out in another1 the subtle element gliding along the walls and seizing upon stack after stack of wood with an ease and speed that mocked at all their efforts to extinguish it4 ,no words can paint the horrors of the scene that followed6 ,heavy volumes of black smoke1 ever and anon rolling upward from some new spot upon which the fire had fastened1 at times shut out the light of day1 and made the darkness almost palpable to the senses4 ,fire1 bright and angry1 flashing at first here and there at intervals1 like forked lightning1 through the gloom2 then coming thicker and quicker1 as it grew with what it fed on1 hurrying and leaping in its exultant fury1 licking up and devouring with hungry tongues all that opposed its progress--now spreading itself in sheets of molten flame1 now contracting into red1 hissing streams1 bearing a terrible resemblance to fiery serpents1 but never for a moment slackening in its work of woe1 winding hither and thither1 and in and out1 and fastening with all the malice and tenacity of a conscious creature upon everything combustible within its reach1 until the very rafters overhead were wreathed in flame--and underneath that awful canopy the panting1 shrieking crowd1 struggling in that sulphurous atmosphere of smoke and fire1 rushing backward and forward1 they knew not whither1 in search of a safety they knew too well they could never find2 for even while obeying the animal instinct to fly from danger1 there was not a creature there who did not feel to the very inmost marrow of his being1 that unless a miracle were interposed to save him1 he was doomed then and there to die4 ,nellie was the only person in the church1 perhaps1 with the sole exception of the pastor1 who made no vain effort at escaping4 ,driven by the swaying of the others1 after their first rush to the door1 backward toward the altar1 she had remained there quietly ever since1 praying1 or trying to pray1 and shutting eyes and ears as much as might be to the terrible sights and sounds around her4 ,accident had1 in fact1 brought her to the only spot in the building where safety was for the moment feasible4 #dfb ,the altar was built1 as we have already said1 of stone1 and being placed at some distance from any of the walls1 the space in front1 though stifling from heat and smoke1 was clear of fire1 and consequently of immediate danger4 ,hither1 therefore1 the priest1 who1 having done all that man could do toward the stifling of the flames1 now felt that another and a higher duty--the duty of his priestly office--must needs be exercised1 endeavored to collect his flock1 and hither1 at his bidding1 one by one they came1 every hope of rescue extinguished in their bosoms1 and scorched1 and bruised1 and half-suffocated as they were1 lay down at his feet to die4 ,there was no loud shrieking now--the silence of utter exhaustion had fallen upon them all1 and only a low wail of pain broke now and then from the white1 parched lips of some poor dying creature1 as if in human expostulation with the sputtering and hissing of the flames that scorched him4 ,once1 and only once1 a less fitting sound was heard--a curse1 deep but loud1 on the foe that had so ruthlessly contrived their ruin4 ,it reached the ear of the priest as he stood before the altar1 sometimes praying up aloud1 sometimes with look and voice endeavoring to calm his people1 waiting and watching with wise1 heroic patience for the precise moment when1 all hopes of human life abandoned1 he might lead them to thoughts of that which is eternal4 ,but that muttered curse seemed to rouse another and a different spirit in his bosom1 and filled with holy and apostolic anger1 he turned at once upon the man who spoke it4 ,sinner6 he cried1 be silent6 ,dare you to go to ,god with a curse upon your lips8 ,what if he curse you in return8 ,what if he plunge you1 for that very word1 from this fire1 which will pass with time1 into that which is eternal and endures for ever8 ,o my children1 my children6 cried the good old man1 opening wide his arms1 as if he would fain have embraced his weeping flock and sheltered them all from pain and sorrow on his paternal bosom1 see you not1 indeed1 that you must die6--with foes outside1 with devouring flames within1 all hope of life is simple folly4 ,die you must4 ,so man decrees2 but ,god1 more merciful1 still leaves a choice--not as to death1 but as to the spirit in which you meet it4 ,you may die angry and reviling1 as the blaspheming thief1 or you may die 7,o blessed thought67 as ,jesus died--peace in your hearts and a prayer for your very foes upon your lips4 ,have pity on yourselves1 my children2 have pity on me1 who1 as your pastor1 will have to answer for your souls1 as for my own1 to ,god--and choose with ,jesus4 ,put aside all rancor from your hearts4 ,remember that what our foes have done to us1 we1 each in our measure1 have done by our sins to ,jesus4 ,pray for them as he did4 ,weep1 as he did for your sins 7not his7 upon the cross1 and kneel at once1 that while there yet is time ,i may give you1 in his name and by his power1 that pardon which will send you safe and hopeful to the judgment-seat of ,god4 ,clear1 calm1 and quiet1 amid the confusion round him1 rose the voice of that good shepherd1 sent hither1 as it seemed1 for no other purpose than to perish with his flock2 and like a message of mercy from on high his words fell upon their failing hearts4 ,they obeyed him to the letter4 ,hushed was every murmur1 stifled every cry of pain1 and1 prostrate on their faces1 they waited with solemn silence the word which they knew would follow4 ,and it was said at last4 #dfc ,with streaming eyes1 and hands uplifted toward that heaven to which he and his poor children all were speeding1 the priest pronounced that ,ego te absolvo1 which speaking to each individual soul as if meant for it alone1 yet brought pardon1 peace1 and healing to them all4 ,something like a low ,amen1 something like a thrill of relief from overladen bosoms1 followed2 and then1 almost at the same instant1 came a loud cry from the outside of the church--a crashing of doors--a rush--a struggle--a scattering of brands from the half-burned-out fagots in the porch--and1 blackened with smoke and scorched with fire1 ,o',more leaped like an apparition into the midst of the people4 ,a shout almost of triumph greeted his appearance1 for they felt as if he must have brought safety with him4 ,it seemed1 in fact1 as if only by a miracle he could have been there at all4 ,unarmed as he was1 he had rushed through the ,english soldiers1 and they1 having all along imagined him to be in the church with their less noble victims1 were taken so completely by surprise that they suffered him to pass at first almost without a blow4 ,by the time they had recovered themselves1 their leaders had staid their hands4 ,it was better for all their purposes that he should rush to death of his own accord than that they should have any ostensible share in the business4 ,no further opposition1 therefore1 being offered to his progress he easily undid the gates1 which were only slightly barricaded on the outside1 and having cleared the porch at the risk of instant suffocation to himself1 he now stood calling upon ,nellie1 and vainly endeavoring to discover her in the blinding atmosphere of smoke around him4 ,she was still where she had been from the beginning--at the foot of the altar1 faint and half-dead with heat and fear4 ,but the sound of his voice seemed to call her back to life1 and1 with a cry like a frightened child1 she half-rose from her recumbent posture4 ,faint as was that cry1 he heard it1 and catching a glimpse of her white face1 rushed toward her4 ,in another moment he had her in his arms1 wrapped carefully in his heavy cloak1 and shouting to all to follow and keep close1 he rushed behind the altar4 ,half an hour before this had been the hottest and most dangerous position in the church1 but ,o',more had well calculated his chances4 ,the real danger now was from the roof1 which1 having been burning for some time1 might fall at any moment4 ,below1 the fire1 having rapidly exhausted the light material upon which it had fed its fury1 was gradually dying out1 and boldly scattering the fagots upon either side as he moved on1 ,roger made his way good to the only spot in the building from whence escape was possible4 ,here the floor sank considerably below the general surface1 and dashing down a heap of brushwood which still lay smouldering near1 he lay bare an aperture effected in the wall itself1 and going right through it to the cliffs beyond4 ,through this he passed at once1 carrying ,nellie as easily as if she had been a baby1 and landing her safely on the other side4 ,the people saw1 and with a wild cry of hope rushed forward4 ,even as they did so the roof began to totter4 ,they knew it1 and maddened by the near approach of death1 pressed one upon another1 blocking up the way and destroying every chance of safety by their wild efforts to attain it4 #dfd ,in the midst of this confusion1 a shower as of red-hot fire poured down from the yielding rafters4 ,then came another cry 7oh6 so different from the last7--a cry of grief and terror mingled--then a crashing sound and a heavy fall--and then a silence more terrible even than that cry of terror--a ghastly1 death-like silence1 only broken by the hissing and crackling of the flames above1 and the deep sough of the sea below--and all was over4 ,to ,be ,continued4 ------- ,translated ,from ,the ,french ,of ,m4 ,vitet4 ,science ,and ,faith4 ,meditations ,on ,the ,essence ,of ,the ,christian ,religion1 ,by ,m4 ,guizot4 ,conclusion4 ,,iii4 ,the way is found4 ,man has the gift of believing not only the things he sees and knows by his own intellect1 but also those he does not see and which he learns through tradition4 ,he admits1 he affirms with confidence the facts which are asserted by others1 when the witnesses seem competent and reliable1 even in cases where he cannot verify their truth or submit them to a rigid criticism4 ,thus in the authority of witnesses we have that which constitutes faith2 faith properly so called1 which is the belief in the divine truths1 as well as purely human faith1 which is confidence in the knowledge of another4 ,both require the same act of intelligence2 but1 if it concerns the affairs of this world1 the authority of the witness is easily established1 for he has only to prove his competence and his veracity2 while for superhuman things it is necessary that he himself should be superhuman1 that he should prove it to us1 that we should feel by the way he speaks that he knows and has dwelt in the heaven of which he is speaking1 and that he has descended from it4 ,if he is only a man1 he is without a claim upon us4 ,manifest signs of his mission and authority are necessary2 such signs must be unusual and incomprehensible2 they must command respect and force conviction2 they must be miraculous facts entirely beyond mere human power4 ,such is the supreme and necessary condition for every solution of these natural problems1 or1 what amounts to the same1 for any great and true religion4 ,the appearance of a being eminently divine is necessary1 who will show the character of his mission and his right to claim obedience by miracles4 ,miracles and religion are1 then1 two correlative terms1 two inseparable expressions4 ,do not try to preserve one and get rid of the other2 the attempt will fail4 ,if you could effect this divorce1 both would disappear4 ,religion without miracles is only a human doctrine2 it is simply philosophy1 which has no right to penetrate the mysteries of the infinite1 and which can only speak in hypotheses1 without force and without authority4 ,there is no way1 then1 to help it3 miracles must be admitted4 ,this is the great stumbling-block4 ,it is said3 ,that would be allowed when the world was young1 and when man himself1 ignorant and a novice1 had not demonstrated for so many centuries the stability of nature's laws6 #dfe ,then he could suppose that there was some hidden power1 which at certain times and for certain ends played with these laws and suspended them at will2 but to-day1 in this advanced age1 wise as we are1 how can we be expected to bend our enlightened reason to these uncertainties8 how can we give science these injurious contradictions8 ,yes1 you believe yourselves to be extremely learned4 ,you think that you thoroughly understand the laws of nature1 because from time to time you have wrested some of her secrets from her2 and these being always more or less marvellous1 you immediately conclude that she has spoken her last word6 ,strange assumption6 ,look behind1 and you are right1 you have accomplished an immense distance4 ,look ahead1 and the end is as far as in the days of your fathers1 the distance to be overcome remains always the same1 you have not advanced a single step4 ,far from adding to your presumption1 the progress of your knowledge should rather make you feel more keenly your ignorance4 ,the more conquests you make1 the more your radical impotence is shown4 ,yet you presume to say that the laws of this world allow or do not allow this or that1 as if you completely understood them1 while at every moment new and unexpected facts1 which are granted by yourselves1 defeat your calculations1 mock your predictions1 and derogate from laws which you proclaim absolute and eternal6 ,no one doubts that a general and permanent order reigns in this world2 but that this order is inexorably determined in its trifling details1 that nothing can alter it1 that it will remain the same for ever1 you cannot say any more than can we2 or rather1 you1 as well as we1 are living witnesses that an unbending mechanism does not govern all things here below4 ,indeed1 what do you do1 you1 a feeble atom1 an imperceptible creature1 when you forbid the ,sovereign ,master the great ordainer of things1 the least deviation1 the slightest infraction1 of the laws he has made8 ,do you not violate these laws so far as you are able every day1 every hour1 and in every way8 ,the plant that the natural order would cause to bloom in summer1 you cover with flowers in winter2 you change the flavor and the form of the fruit1 and the color of the flowers2 you bend the twigs and branches1 and make them grow against their nature4 ,and it is not only over vegetation and inanimate objects that you exercise your caprices4 ,how many living beings have you transformed1 and completely altered their natural mode of life6 ,what unexpected missions and what strange destinies has your fancy made them undergo6 ,it may be said that these are only little miracles2 but after all1 how do the greatest ones differ from them8 ,they are both infractions upon the apparent order of nature4 ,is the real order subverted by this8 ,is the relation of cause and effect broken because our gardeners derive and propagate from a graft new and innumerable varieties8 ,no2 and since this is true1 there can be no good reason for refusing to admit a series of deviations above these of every-day experience4 ,the miraculous cures1 the wonderful transitions from extreme feebleness to health1 and the intuitive power of a saint1 which enables him to read the very thoughts of men1 can all be effected without compromising or menacing the universal order4 ,everything depends upon the degree of power you grant the ,author of these acts1 to him who1 holding all things in his hand1 can make the exception as easily as the rule4 #dff ,there is but one way to deny absolutely the possibility of miracles1 which has been in all times by instinct and by nature affirmed by the human race1 and that is to suppress ,god and profess atheism1 either atheism simply in its gross crudity1 or that more delicate and better disguised form which finds favor in our times1 and which honors ,god by pronouncing his name1 but gives him no other care than the servile protection and the dull supervision of the worlds he has created1 but which he does not govern4 ,if this is the way in which ,god must be considered1 if fatalism is the law of the world1 let us speak no more of miracles or of the supernatural2 for this is already decided1 and there can be no discussion about it4 ,if1 on the contrary1 entering into yourselves1 you feel that you are intelligent and free1 ask yourself1 ,where did ,i get these wonderful gifts1 liberty and intelligence8 ,do you get them from yourself8 ,are they born in you and only for you8 ,do you possess them completely8 ,do they not emanate from a higher1 more perfect1 and more abundant source1 in a word1 from ,god himself8 ,then1 if ,god1 if the ,omnipotent1 is also the sovereign intelligence and the sovereign freedom1 how do you dare to forbid him to mingle with affairs here below1 to follow with attention the beings he has created1 to watch over their destiny1 and to declare his wishes to them by striking manifestations of his power8 ,he can most certainly do this1 for he is free and all-powerful4 ,with the idea of ,god thus presented to the mind1 a complete and living ,god1 the question is completely transformed4 ,and it must be acknowledged that we have no longer to demonstrate the possibility of miracles3 it is for our opponents to prove their impossibility4 ,but the great critics of to-day1 at least those who have the most ability1 have carefully refrained from attempting this task4 ,they attack supernatural facts in a different way1 not as being impossible in themselves1 but as lacking proof3 in the place of openly denying them1 they try to weaken the authority of those who attest them4 ,what testimony would then be destroyed by them8 ,let it be noted that in the historical statement of natural facts1 even those which are extraordinary and more or less uncertain1 the testimony of men1 sustained and strengthened by constant tradition1 is allowed to be sufficient2 and1 indeed1 to what1 in most cases1 would our historical knowledge amount1 if this sort of proof were not admissible8 ,but for supernatural facts they are far less accommodating4 ,many other guarantees are demanded4 ,they require ocular proof1 which must be made in a proper way and duly announced by them to be certain4 ,this is the condition upon which they offer to yield2 without it1 there is to be no belief4 ,whence it would follow1 that1 whenever the ,divinity proposed to do anything beyond the ordinary laws of nature1 it would be bound to give these opponents notice1 so that they could produce their witnesses4 ,the work would then proceed in their presence1 and1 when the miracle was accomplished1 they would immediately begin their statement4 ,perhaps our readers may think that we are trying to excite a laugh at their expense1 or1 at least1 that we are exaggerating4 ,such is not the case2 we are only echoing their own words1 and we could quote from the very page where this system is set forth as the sole method of establishing the truth of miracles4 ,however1 it is useless to dwell upon this way of asking for impossible proofs and proclaiming a readiness to believe1 but placing one's belief upon unheard-of conditions4 ,this is only a subterfuge1 an attempt to evade what they dare not solve1 and an effort to destroy in practice that which they seem theoretically to concede4 #dfg ,there are others more frank1 less diplomatic1 and perhaps also less learned1 who call things by their right name1 and who loudly declare a new dogma as the great principle of reformed criticism1 and this is the complete denial of supernatural facts4 ,the manner1 the air1 and the lofty disdain with which they look down upon those simple souls1 who are credulous enough to believe that the ,almighty is also intelligent and free1 should be seen4 ,they announce that all intercourse between them and us is broken1 that we have nothing to do with their books2 they do not care for our praise or for our censure1 since they do not write for us4 ,one is almost tempted to repay their disdain with interest2 but there is something better to be done4 ,we have just shown that man1 with his limited power and liberty1 can modify the laws of nature4 ,let us see1 now1 if ,god in his infinite sphere has not the same power1 and if there is not some well-known and striking example of it4 ,there is one instance which both in time and by its evidence is the most convincing of all4 ,it is not one of those facts which we have learned by narration or by testimony1 whether written or traditional4 ,all narratives can be contested and every witness can be suspected2 but here the fact is its own witness1 it is clear and irrefutable4 ,it is the history of our first parents1 of the commencement of the human race2 for our race has had a commencement1 of this there can be no question4 ,no sophist would dare to say of man1 as they have said of the universe1 that he has existed from all eternity4 ,on this point science confirms tradition1 and determines by certain signs the poque when this earth became habitable4 ,upon a certain day1 then1 man was born2 and he was born1 as it is hardly necessary for us to say1 in an entirely different manner from that in which one is born to-day4 ,he was the first of his kind3 he was without father or mother4 ,the laws of nature1 on this occasion at least1 did not have their effect4 ,a superior power1 working in his own way1 has accomplished something beyond these laws1 and in a more simple and prompt manner1 and the world has seen an event take place which is evidently supernatural4 ,this is the reason why some savants have taken so much pains to find a plausible way to explain scientifically1 as a natural fact1 this birth of the first man4 ,some would persuade us that this enigma is explained by the transformation of species-- a singular way of avoiding a miracle1 only to fall into a chimera4 ,indeed1 if anything is proved at all and becomes more certain as the world grows older1 it is that the preservation of species is an essential principle of all living beings4 ,you may try1 but you cannot succeed in infringing upon this law4 ,the crossings between closely allied species1 and the varieties produced by them1 are smitten after a certain time with sterility4 ,are not these impotent attempts1 these phantoms of quickly disappearing creations1 the manifest sign that the creation of a really new species is forbidden to man8 ,yet would they try to convince us that in the earliest ages1 in times of ignorance1 these kinds of transformations were accomplished without any effort2 while to-day1 notwithstanding the perfection of instruments and of methods1 notwithstanding the aid of every sort that we draw from science1 they are radically impossible6 ,try1 then1 to make a man4 ,but1 we are answered1 this is a matter of time4 ,it may be so4 ,but only begin1 let us see you at work1 and you can have as much time as you please4 #dfh ,take thousands of centuries1 and yet you can never transform the most intelligent baboon into a man1 even of the most ignorant and degraded type4 ,this dream having disappeared1 another is invented4 ,the absurdity of the transformation of species is admitted1 and another theory is adopted1 that of spontaneous generation4 ,the intention is to establish that man can be born either with or without parents2 that nature is induced by various circumstances to choose one of these two ways1 and that one is not miraculous more than the other4 ,it is well known what vigorous demonstrations and what irrefutable evidence science brings against this theory2 yet1 in spite of its absurdity1 it has been often reproduced and considered worthy of refutation4 ,but supposing that doubt was yet possible1 and that we could believe in the birth of little beings1 without a germ1 without a ,creator2 now could this mode of production aid us in solving the question of the birth of the first man8 ,what is the highest pretension of the defenders of spontaneous generation8 ,in what state would they put man in the world8 ,as an embryo1 a foetus1 or as one newly born8 ,for no one is permitted to believe in the sudden birth of an adult1 in possession of a body1 of physical power1 and of mental faculties4 ,yet this is exactly the way in which the new inhabitant of the earth must have been created4 ,he must have been born a man1 or else he could not have protected himself1 he could not have found food to prolong his life1 and he could not have perpetuated his race as the father of the human family4 ,if he had been born in the state of infancy1 without a mother to protect and nourish him1 he would have perished in a single day of cold or hunger4 ,if this theory1 then1 had been able to answer the tests to which it has succumbed1 it would yet be of no service in clearing up the question we are discussing4 ,the only way to solve it satisfactorily is to admit frankly that it must have been something superior and unknown to the laws of nature4 ,in order to explain the appearance of the first man upon this earth1 the man of ,genesis is necessary1 made by the hand of the ,creator4 ,this is not a jeu d'esprit1 an artifice1 or a paradox4 ,it is the undeniable truth4 ,it must be admitted by every one who will reflect4 ,every sound mind1 which is in good faith and which carefully considers this question1 is invincibly compelled to solve it in the way that it is solved in the book of ,genesis4 ,there may be doubts about the complete exactness of certain words and details2 but the principal fact1 the supernatural fact1 the intervention of a ,creator1 reason must accept as the best and most sensible explanation1 or rather as the only possible explanation of that other necessary fact1 the birth of an adolescent or an adult man4 ,here1 then1 we have a miracle well and duly proved4 ,if this were the only one1 it would be sufficient to justify belief in the supernatural1 to destroy every system of absolute fatalism1 to demonstrate the freedom of the ,divinity1 and to assert his true position4 ,but it may be well for us to say1 if since the existence of the human race it had received no proof of the care of its ,creator other than this miraculous act in which it was created1 if no intelligence1 no help1 or no light had come from above1 what would it know now of the mysteries of its destiny1 of all these great problems which beset it and occupy its attention8 ,the creation of man does not give us the reason why he was created4 #dfi ,this is not one of those miracles from which the light bursts forth to flood the world4 ,it is a manifestation of divine power3 it does not teach us the divine will4 ,we shall see another fact1 on the contrary1 which1 though not less mysterious1 will speak far more clearly4 ,this did not happen amid the fleeting shadows of chaos upon the scarcely hardened earth2 but in a completely civilized world1 and at a historical period which can be fully investigated1 this new miracle took place4 ,the clouds will disappear1 and the broad day will gladden all hearts4 ,blessed ,light6 ,long promised and awaited1 the complement of man's creation1 or1 rather1 a true and new creation1 bringing to humanity1 with love and heavenly pardon1 the solution of every question1 the answer to every doubt6 ,during the long series of centuries which separates these two great mysteries1 these two great supernatural facts1 the creation and the redemption of man1 the human race1 guided by its own light1 has not for a moment ceased to search after divine truths and the secret of its destiny4 ,but it has sought ignorantly1 it has groped in the dark1 and it has wandered astray4 ,in every part of the world the people solved the enigma in their own fashion1 each making its own idol4 ,it is a sad1 an incoherent spectacle2 and of all these curious and imperfect forms of worship1 which sometimes become impure and disgusting1 there is not one which gives a complete and satisfactory answer to the moral problems with which one is harassed4 ,their pretended answers really answer nothing1 and are but a collection of errors and contradictions4 ,has man been created for such ends as these8 ,has not his ,creator1 in forming him with his hands1 in teaching him by an intimate communication the use of his faculties1 made him to see1 to love1 and to follow the truth8 ,yes2 and this explains the instinctive gleams of truth that are found in every portion of the race2 but man has received liberty at the same time that he received intelligence1 and it is this supreme gift which assimilates him to his ,author1 and imposes1 together with the honor of personality1 the burden of responsibility4 ,he was tried1 he had the power to choose1 and he chose the bad2 he has failed1 he has fallen4 ,clearly the fault was followed by the greatest disorder and distress1 and the offended ,father withdrew his grace from the disobedient son4 ,they are separated3 the erring one1 because he fears his ,judge2 the ,judge1 from his horror of the sin2 but the father lies hid beneath the judge4 ,will the exile1 then1 be eternal8 ,no2 for the promise is made to the very ones whose fault is punished1 and the time of mercy is announced in advance1 even at the moment of chastisement4 ,every tie is not yet broken between the ,creator and this unfaithful race4 ,a single bond is maintained1 a handful of worthy servants preserve the benefit of his paternal intercourse4 ,who can doubt this8 ,for several thousand years the entire human race1 in all places and in every zone1 bows before the works of nature1 deifies them1 and adores them4 ,how1 then1 can it be explained that one little group of men1 and only one1 remained faithful to the idea of a single ,god8 ,it may be answered that this is something peculiar to one race2 that it embraces more people than is generally supposed2 that it is true of all the ,semitic tribes as well as of the ,hebrews4 ,a truly impartial and exceedingly learned philology1 recently published1 affirms the contrary4 ,it is demonstrated that the ,jews alone were monotheists4 #dgj ,reason certainly cannot forbid us to believe that this unique and isolated fact was providential1 since it was at least most extraordinary and marvellous4 ,thus1 while the ancient alliance between man and his ,creator continued in a single part of the globe1 a part scarcely perceptible in the immense human family1 while the divine truth1 as yet veiled and incomplete1 though without any impure mixture1 is revealed as in confidence1 and1 so to speak1 privately to the modest settlement chosen for the designs of ,god1 all the rest of the world is abandoned to chance and wanders at random in religious matters4 ,why1 then1 only in religious matters8 ,because it was in this that the fault took place4 ,man has foolishly wished to make himself equal to ,god in the knowledge of the divine1 of the infinite1 of those mysteries which no mind can fathom without ,god's assistance4 ,it is another thing in regard to the knowledge of the finite1 to purely human science4 ,god is not jealous of this4 ,what does he say in exiling and chastising the rebel8 ,work1 that is to say1 use not only your arms1 but your mind2 become skilful1 powerful1 ingenious2 make masterpieces2 become ,homer1 ,pindar1 ,a,eschylus1 or ,phidias1 ,ictinus1 or ,plato4 ,i allow you to do all1 save attaining to divine things without my aid4 ,there thou wilt stumble1 until ,i send thee the help ,i have promised to show thee the way4 ,thy reason1 thy science1 and even thy good sense will not prevent thee from becoming an idolater4 ,indeed1 is it not remarkable that religion in the world of antiquity should be so inferior to the other branches of human understanding8 ,think of the arts1 literature1 philosophy2 humanity cannot excel them4 ,they were at the summit of civilization4 ,all that youth and experience combined could bring forth of the perfect and the beautiful1 you see here4 ,these first attempts are the works of a master1 and will live to the latest ages1 always inimitable4 ,but return for a moment1 consider the various religions1 question the priests4 ,what an astonishing disparity6 ,you would believe yourself to be among uncultivated people4 ,never were such dissimilar productions seen to spring from the same evil at the same time and in the same society4 ,on one side1 reason1 prudence1 justice1 and the love of truth2 on the other1 a degrading excess of falsehood and credulity4 ,it is true that1 here and there1 under these puerile fables1 great truths shine forth2 these are the remnants of the primitive alliance between ,god and his creature2 but they are only scattered1 and are lost in a torrent of errors4 ,the great fault1 the infirmity of these ancient religions1 was not the symbolism which surrounded them1 but their essential obscurity and sterility4 ,these were not capable of saying a single clear and definite word in regard to the problems of our destiny4 ,far from making them clear to the great mass of men1 they seemed rather to try to conceal them under a thick cloud of enigmas and superstitions4 ,this was1 however1 the only moral culture that the human race1 evidently punished and separated from ,god1 received for thousands of years4 ,in the place of his priests it had philosophical sects1 schools1 and books to tell man his duty4 ,but how many profited by this help8 ,who understood the best1 the purest1 and the greatest philosophers8 ,how far could their warnings reach8 ,outside the limits of ,athens1 the words of ,socrates himself could not penetrate to relieve a soul1 to break a chain1 or to make a virtue take root4 ,do we say his words8 ,why1 even his death1 a wonderful death1 the death of a just man1 remained unfruitful and ignored6 #dga ,the time became critical2 pagan society was entering upon its last phase and made its last effort2 the empire was just born1 and1 although it may be said that it could boast1 during its long career1 of many days of repose and even of greatness1 it was not without its revolting scenes2 and one can say1 without any exaggeration or partisan feeling1 that from the reign of ,tiberius it was shown by experience that all purely human means to elevate the race were visibly at an end4 ,then it was that1 not far from the region where primitive traditions located the creation of man1 under this sky of the ,orient which witnessed the first miracle1 a second was to be accomplished4 ,a sweet1 humble1 modest1 and at the same time sovereign voice speaks to the people of ,judea in language before unknown2 speaks words of peace1 of love1 of sacrifice1 and of merciful pardon4 ,whence does this voice come8 ,who is this man who says to the unhappy1 ,come to me1 ,i will relieve you1 ,i will carry your burdens with you8 ,he touches the sick with his hand1 and they are cured2 he gives speech to the mute2 he makes the blind see and the deaf hear4 ,as yet there is nothing excepting these things2 but this man knows the enigma of this world completely2 he knows the real end of life and the true means of attaining it4 ,all these natural problems1 the vexation of human reason1 he resolves1 he explains without an effort and without hesitation4 ,he tells us of the invisible world2 he has not imagined it1 his eyes have seen it1 and he speaks of it as a witness who had but lately left it4 ,what he tells us is unassuming1 intelligible to every one1 to women1 to children1 as well as to the learned4 ,how does he come by this marvellous knowledge8 ,who were his masters and what were his lessons8 ,in his early childhood1 before lessons and masters1 he knew already more than the synagogue4 ,studies he never made4 ,he worked with his hands1 gaining his daily bread4 ,do not seek for his master upon this earth3 his ,master is in the highest of the heavens4 ,is not this the witness of whom we have spoken above1 the superhuman1 the necessary witness for the solution of natural problems and the establishment of true religious dogmas8 ,to say that such a man is more than a man1 that he is a being apart from and superior to humanity1 is not saying enough4 ,we must learn what he really is4 ,let us open the candid narratives which preserve the story of his public mission1 of his preaching though ,judea2 open the gospels1 where the least incident of his acts1 his words1 his works1 his sufferings1 and his bitter agony are written4 ,let us see what he says of himself4 ,does he declare himself simply a prophet8 ,does he believe himself to be only inspired8 ,no2 he calls himself the ,son of ,god1 not as every other man1 remembering ,adam1 could have been able to say it4 ,no2 he meant the ,son of ,god in the exact and literal interpretation of the word1 son born directly of the father1 the son begotten of the same substance4 ,try to force the meaning and distort the texts to make them say less than this1 but you cannot succeed4 ,the texts are plain1 they are numerous1 and without ambiguity4 ,there are only two ways in which the divinity of this man can be denied3 either his own testimony must be attacked1 if the gospels are admitted to be true2 or the gospels themselves must be rejected4 #dgb ,in order to attack his own evidence1 it must be supposed that1 by a lack of sagacity1 he in good faith formed a wrong judgment about his own origin1 or perhaps better1 by a deceitful intention1 he knowingly attributed to himself a false character4 ,this being1 whose incomparable intelligence forces you to place him above humanity1 this is he who is not capable of discerning his father4 ,and on the other side1 this inimitable moralist1 this chaste and beautiful model of all virtues1 this is he whom you suspect of a disgraceful artifice4 ,there is no middle course3 either this mortal must be the ,son of ,god1 as he has declared1 or you must put him in the last rank of humanity1 among the innocent dupes or the cunning charlatans4 ,or1 on the contrary1 do you wish to attack the gospels8 ,nothing is less difficult1 if you remain at the surface4 ,arm yourself with irony1 provoke the smile1 treat everything in a superficial manner1 and you will certainly gain the sympathy of the scoffers4 ,but if you wish to investigate the things1 and to take1 in the name of science1 an impartial view1 you will be compelled to acknowledge that most of the facts in the gospels are historically established2 that they are neither myths nor legends2 that the place1 the time1 and the persons are absolutely put beyond all doubt4 ,what right1 then1 has any one to refuse credence to this series of facts1 where another series1 which is admitted1 is sustained by no better witnesses1 nor more direct proofs1 nor any other superiority1 except a pretended probability which is determined by each for himself8 ,nothing can be more arbitrary and less scientific than this way of making a choice1 deciding that this evangelist should be implicitly believed when he is mentioning such a speech1 but that1 when he tells us what he saw himself1 he is no longer trustworthy2 and that this one1 on the contrary1 falsifies the discourses that he reports1 but that he announces certain facts with the certitude of an ocular witness4 ,all this is only pure caprice4 ,but it is certain that the gospels1 however closely they may be examined1 bear the criticism successfully1 and ever remain imperishable4 ,what book of ,herodotus or of ,titus ,livius carries such an intrinsic evidence of good faith and veracity as the recitals of ,st4 ,matthew or of ,st4 ,john8 ,are you not charmed with these two apostles1 who frankly tell us what they have seen with their eyes and heard with their ears8 ,if you1 who were not there and who saw nothing of these things1 believe that you can give them a lesson1 and tell them1 in virtue of your scientific laws1 how all these things happened without their understanding them1 and by what subterfuges their adorable ,master deceived them1 it will not be only the orthodox and faithful who will resent and controvert your boldness--voices that you dread more1 from the midst of your own ranks1 will openly proclaim your falsehoods4 ,footnote #aja ,footnote #aja3 ,the human soul1 as some one has said1 is great enough to enclose every contrast4 ,there is room in it for a ,mohammed or a ,cromwell1 for fanaticism together with duplicity1 for sincerity and hypocrisy4 ,it remains for us to ascertain if this analogy should be extended to the ,founder of ,christianity4 ,i do not hesitate to deny it4 ,his character1 when impartially considered1 opposes every supposition of this kind4 ,there is in the simplicity of ,jesus1 in his artlessness1 in his candor1 in the religious feeling which possessed him so completely1 in the absence of all mere personal designs1 of every egotistic end1 and of all cunning2 in a word1 there is in all that we know concerning him something which entirely repels the historical comparisons by which ,m4 ,rnan has allowed himself to be governed4--,m4 ,edmond ,scherer1 ,mlanges d',histoire ,rligieuse1 pp4 #ic1 #id4 ,after all1 suppose they were deceived1 that the hero of this great drama was only a skilful impostor1 what do you really gain by it8 ,the miracles cannot be thrown aside4 ,on the contrary1 you have one miracle more1 and one which is more difficult than all the others to explain4 ,it is necessary to account for this most wonderful fact1 that cannot be suppressed by any critic1 the establishment of ,christianity in the ,roman ,empire4 #dgc ,take every sentence of the gospels1 accept these supernatural facts without reservation1 the cures1 the exorcisms1 the elements stilled1 the laws of nature violated or suspended3 all these things are not too much1 rather they had hardly enough to make us understand the triumphant progress of such a doctrine1 in such a time1 and among such a people4 ,nothing less than miracles could transform the world in this manner1 changing all the opinions commonly received1 completely altering the moral and social state of the people1 and not only giving them purer and more enlightened views1 but truths which were entirely unknown to them4 ,if1 then1 you tell the truth1 if this stupendous revolution rests upon a comedy1 if we must consider the partial miracles false which surround and explain the principal miracle1 which precede and seem to prepare and open the way for the great miracle1 what will be the result8 ,you have not destroyed1 and cannot destroy1 the principal miracle3 it has become still more miraculous4 ,,iv4 ,let us not lose sight of our argument4 ,we were seeking a practical and popular way to solve the great problems of our destiny1 and we have proven that human science alone is unequal to this task4 ,we have seen that there is only one way for man to attain this end1 that satisfactory solutions can only be derived from faith1 that wonderful gift which under the authority of a superhuman witness makes us believe with certitude things which neither the eyes of the body nor the eyes of the mind could immediately comprehend4 ,has the witness which lies at the foundation of ,christian convictions the wished-for authority8 ,in other words1 is it truly divine8 ,we believe that we have established it1 and the most hasty reading of a single page of the ,bible will demonstrate it far more clearly than we have done4 ,see also the admirable harmony of the ,christian system1 and the responses1 as clear as they are sublime1 it gives to questions so long unanswerable4 ,it is by its capacity to penetrate mysteries to read the invisible1 to explain the obscure1 not less than by its miraculous victory1 that ,christianity demonstrates both the true character of its origin and the sincerity of its divine ,founder4 ,we remember on this subject some moving sentences that we will be permitted to quote4 ,they are from an author who recently received an eloquent tribute of regrets and praises1 and who1 for the past twenty years1 has been remembered with grief by all the friends of sound philosophy4 ,in a well-known lecture1 when considering these same problems of human destiny1 ,m4 ,jouffroy spoke thus3 ,there is a little book that is taught to children1 and upon which they are questioned in the church4 ,read this little book1 which is the catechism4 ,you will find in it a solution of all the questions ,i have asked--of all1 without an exception4 ,ask a ,christian the origin of the human race1 what is its destiny1 and how it can attain it1 and he can answer you4 ,ask that poor child1 who has scarcely thought of life and its duties1 why he is here below1 what will become of him after death1 and he will make a sublime answer which he may not fully comprehend1 but which is not the less admirable4 ,ask him how the world was created and for what end2 why ,god has put animals and plants upon it2 how the world was peopled1 if by one family or by several2 why men speak different languages1 why they suffer1 why they combat1 and how all these things will end2 and he knows it all4 #dgd ,origin of the world1 origin of man1 questions about the different races1 destiny of man in this life and in the other1 relation of man to ,god1 duties of man toward his fellow-men1 rights of man over creation1 he is ignorant of none of these things2 and as he becomes matured1 he will not hesitate to take advantage of his natural and political rights1 for he knows the rights of the people1 for these come1 or1 as it were1 flow of themselves1 from ,christianity4 ,this is what ,i call a great religion4 ,i recognize by this sign that it leaves none of the questions which interest humanity without an answer4 ,footnote #ajb ,footnote #ajb3 ,mlanges ,philosophiques1 par ,m4 ,th4 ,jouffroy4 ,vol4 i4 #ahcc1 p4 #dgj4 ,we love to read again these words of a master and a friend1 who in his youth was nourished with ,christian truths1 and who1 perhaps1 would have tasted them again if the trials of life had been prolonged for him4 ,without doubt1 it is necessary to avoid indorsing opinions which are no longer our own sentiments2 but certainly it can be permitted to preserve a faithful and complete remembrance of their spirit4 ,even at the time when ,m4 ,jouffroy doubted1 when he left his pen and told us with assurance how ,christian dogmas would die1 there would have been but very little necessary to teach him to his cost how they perpetuate themselves6 ,faith has its evil days2 its ranks seem decimated and its army dissolved1 but it can never perish4 ,in order to replace deserters1 to recruit its strength unceasingly1 has it not the sorrows and miseries of this world1 the need of prayer1 and the thirst of hope8 ,let us leave this sweet and profound thinker whose brilliant career we love to trace2 let us return to that great and firm soul who now engages our attention1 and to whom we are attached by so many friendly ties and remembrances4 ,without having followed him step by step1 we have not lost sight of him4 ,we have taken a hasty glance at his work in trying to express its spirit4 ,we must now return to each of these meditations in detail4 ,what things have escaped us6 ,what brilliant passages1 what keen observations1 what profound thoughts6 ,at most1 we have only taken account of that part of the book where the limits of science1 the belief in the supernatural1 and especially the marvellous harmony between ,christian dogmas and religious problems1 that are innate to man1 are treated with so much wisdom and authority4 ,that which ,m4 ,jouffroy1 in the remarks we have quoted1 indicates in a single glance1 ,m4 ,guizot establishes with convincing arguments by comparing each dogma with the natural problem to which it corresponds4 ,no one has yet so accurately explained the harmonious relation of these questions and these answers4 ,there are two morceaux which demand particular attention3 they are the two meditations on the revelation and inspiration of the holy books4 ,there are here ideas and distinctions of rare sagacity which point out what justly belongs to human ignorance1 without allowing the reality of inspiration of the ,bible to suffer the slightest suspicion4 ,but the chief triumph of this work1 that which gives it at once its most charming color and its sweetest perfume1 are the last two meditations1 ,god according to the ,bible1 ,jesus ,christ according to the ,gospels4 #dge ,these two pictures are in as different styles as the subjects they contrast4 ,nothing could be bolder1 more striking1 more truly ,biblical1 than the portrait of the ,god of the ,hebrews2 of that ,god who has no biography1 no personal events1 to whom nothing happens1 with whom nothing changes1 always and invariably the same1 immutable in the midst of diversity and of universal movement4 ,i am he who is4 ,he has nothing else to say of himself2 it is his definition1 his history4 ,no one can know more of him1 even as no one can see him4 ,and if he were visible1 what a misfortune6 ,his glance is death4 ,between him and man what an abyss6 ,it is a long distance to traverse between such a ,god and the ,god of the ,new ,testament--from ,jehovah to ,jesus ,christ4 ,what novelty1 what a transformation6 ,the solitary ,god goes out from his unity2 he completes everything1 yet remains himself2 the provoked ,god lays aside his anger1 he is affected1 he is pacified1 he becomes gentle1 he gives man his love1 he loves him enough to redeem his fault with his ,son's blood1 that is1 with his own blood4 ,it is this victim1 this ,son1 obedient even unto death1 that ,m4 ,guizot endeavors to paint for us4 ,sublime portrait1 attempted many times1 but always in vain6 ,shall we say that he has succeeded in this impossible task8 ,no2 but he has made a most happy effort4 ,he makes us pass successively before his divine model1 by showing the attitudes1 if we may be allowed the expression1 which enable us to see the most touching aspects of this incomparable figure4 ,sometimes he places him amid his disciples only1 that chosen and well-loved flock2 sometimes in the ,jewish crowd in the ,temple1 at the foot of the mountain1 or on the border of the lake2 sometimes among the fishermen or the sedate matrons2 sometimes with artless children4 ,in each of these pictures1 he gathers1 he brings together1 he animates by reuniting them1 the scattered characteristics of ,jesus ,christ4 ,his sober and guarded style1 powerful in its reasoning1 brilliant in its contests1 seems to be enriched with new chords by the contact with so much sympathy and tender love4 ,it is not only the impassioned eloquence1 but it is a kind of emotion1 more sweet and more penetrating1 that you feel while reading his thoroughly ,christian pages4 ,we understand the happy effect that this book has already produced upon certain souls4 ,its influence1 however1 cannot descend to the masses4 ,its tone1 its style1 its thoughts1 have not aspired to popular success2 but from the middling classes and the higher circles of society1 how many drifting souls there are to whom this unexpected guide will lend a timely aid6 ,such a ,christian as he is must work this kind of cure4 ,he is not the man of the workmen2 he has neither gown nor cassock4 ,it is a spontaneous tribute to the faith1 and more than this1 for it declares that he too has known and vanquished the anxieties of doubt4 ,every one1 then1 can do as he has done4 ,no one fears to follow the steps of a man who occupies such a position in the empire of thought1 who has given such proofs of liberty of spirit and of deep wisdom4 ,it is not a slight rebuke to certain intelligent but careless ,catholics to see such an example of submission and faith come from a ,protestant4 ,there is yet a greater and more general service that these ,meditations seem to have fulfilled4 ,during the eight or ten months since they were published1 the tone of antichristian polemics has been much depressed4 ,one would have expected a manifestation of rage1 but there has been nothing of the kind4 #dgf ,the most vehement critics are reserved1 and their attacks have principally consisted in silence4 ,hence a sort of momentary lull4 ,many causes1 without doubt1 contributed in advance to this result1 if it were only the excess of the attack and the impertinence of certain assailants2 but the book1 or to speak more properly1 the action of ,m4 ,guizot1 has1 in our opinion1 its own good part in this work4 ,so clear and vigorous a profession of faith could not be lightly attacked4 ,in order to answer a man who frankly calls himself a ,christian1 it would be necessary to have resolved and to declare openly that one is antichristian2 but those who are1 no longer care to acknowledge it4 ,it is well known that our day is pleased with half-tints2 it has a taste for shadows1 and is always ready to strike its flag when it sees an opponent's colors4 ,christianity itself gathers some profit from the little noise that is made about these ,meditations4 ,it is not the least reward of their author4 ,may he continue in the same tone1 compelling his adversaries to persevere in their silence4 ,he will embarrass them more and more1 while he will always add fresh courage and power to those who are sustaining the good cause4 -------- ,saint ,mary ,magdalen4 ,from ,the ,latin ,of ,petrarch4 ,the following lines were written by the great ,italian poet1 ,petrarch1 on the occasion of a visit to ,sainte-,baume1 near ,marseilles1 where tradition points out the tomb of ,saint ,mary ,magdalen4 ,he inscribed them on the grotto1 in which she is said to have passed the last thirty years of her life4 ,dulcis amica ,dei1 lacrymis inflectere nostris1 ,atque meas attende preces1 nostraeque saluti ,consule3 namque potes4 ,neque enim tibi tangere frustra ,permissum1 gemituque pedes perfundere sacros1 ,et nitidis siccare comis1 ferre oscula plantis1 ,inque caput ,domini pretiosos spargere odores4 ,nec tibi congressus primos a morte resurgens ,et voces audire suas et membra videre1 ,immortale decus lumenque habitura per aevum1 ,nequicquam dedit aetherei rex ,christus ,olympi4 ,viderat ille cruci haerentem1 nee dira paventem ,judaicae tormenta manus1 turbaeque furentis ,jurgia et insultus1 aequantes verbera linguas2 ,sed maestam intrepidamque simul1 digitisque cruentos ,tractantem clavos1 implentem vulnera fletu1 ,pectora tundentem violentis candida pugnis1 ,vellentem flavos manibus sine more capillos4 ,viderat haec1 inquam1 dum pectora fida suorura ,diffugerent pellente metu4 ,memor ergo revisit #dgg ,te primam ante alios2 tibi se pris obtulit uni4 ,te quoque1 digressus terris ad astra reversus1 ,bis tria lustra1 cibi nunqum mortalis egentem ,rupe sub hc aluit1 tarn longo tempore solis ,divinis contenta epulis et rore salubri ,haec domus antra tibi stillantibus humida saxis1 ,horrifico tenebrosa situ1 tecta aurea regum1 ,delicias omnes ac ditia vicerat arva4 ,hc inclusa libens1 longis vestita capillis1 ,veste carens ali1 ter denos passa decembres ,diceris1 hc non fracta gelu nec victa pavore4 ,namque famem1 frigus1 durum quoque saxa cubile ,dulcia fecit amor spesque alto pectore fixa4 ,hc hominum non visa oculis1 stipata catervis ,angelicis1 septemque die subvecta per horas1 ,coelestes audire choros alterna canentes ,carmina1 corporeo de carcere digna fuisti4 ,translation4 ,sweet friend of ,god6 my tears attend1 ,hark to me suppliant and defend-- ,o thou1 all-potent to befriend6 ,not vain that care thou didst accord-- ,thy hands1 uplifted o'er thy ,lord1 ,upon his head sweet odors poured1 ,and touched his feet with unguents rare-- ,the kiss of love imprinted there-- ,and wiped them with thy beauteous hair4 ,not vain1 when he in majesty ,rose up from death1 'twas given to thee ,the first to meet1 to hear1 to see4 ,this glory did the ,lord divine1 ,the ,christ august1 to thee assign1 ,made this unending splendor thine4 ,unto his cross he saw thee cling1 ,unawed by threat and buffeting-- ,the taunts the furious rabble fling2 ,for him he saw thee lashed with scorn1 ,yet clasping1 faithful and forlorn1 ,those feet with nails now pierced and torn4 #dgh ,he watched thy tear-drenched face below-- ,thy bosom stricken in thy woe-- ,thy long fair hair's dishevelled flow4 ,all this he saw1 while from his side ,his other loved ones scattered wide1 ,and left alone their ,crucified4 ',twas therefore1 mindful of those sighs1 ,he1 deigning from the tomb to rise1 ,sought his first welcome from thine eyes4 ,and heavenward when from earth he sped1 ,through thrice ten years for thee here spread ,a feast by angels ministered4 ,this rugged cave obscure and lone1 ,black rock-dews dripping down the stone4 ,for thee a regal palace shone4 ,no fields with harvest wealth besprent ,accord such manna as was sent2 ,thy needs did heavenly gifts content4 ,here through ,december's frost and sleet4 ,thy long hair1 falling to thy feet4 ,enrobed thee in a robe complete4 ,no fear appalled2 love made thee bold2 ,love sweetened sufferings manifold4 ,the rock1 the hunger1 and the cold4 ,here1 hid from mortal eyes1 to be ,cheered with celestial company4 ,angelic bands encompassed thee4 ,and still a dweller in our sphere4 ,seven hours each day rapt hence1 thine ear ,the alternate choirs of heaven could hear4 ,c4 ,e4 ,r ------- #dgi ,glimpses ,of ,tuscany4 ,santa ,maria ,del ,fiore--,the ,duomo4 ,i4 ,we are approaching ,florence by rail from ,pisa1 a dismal1 dripping ,february morning4 ,it is twelve years since ,i first saw that famous ,duomo of ,santa ,maria del ,fiore4 ,i came suddenly upon it1 as ,i was trying to find my way alone to the opera at the ,pergola1 the first night ,i got to ,florence4 ,i shall never forget the impression it made on me--an honest1 original impression1 for ,i had never read or heard of the ,piazza and its wonders4 ,i only knew ,giotto by his ,o4 ,orgagna1 ,arnolfo1 ,brunelleschi1 were names utterly unknown4 ,but the beauty and immensity of that mighty square1 asleep in the starlight1 overwhelmed me4 ,it was like a step1 unawares1 from time into eternity4 ,no ,pergola that night for me4 ,i crept back to the hotel1 bewildered and awed into something like earnestness2 for the ,lord seemed enthroned in that consecrated place1 and ,i was afraid of him as he sat there1 stern1 conscious1 omnipotent4 ,but ,i was younger then2 disposed to go into raptures over everything artistic1 especially ,italian art4 ,the decade between thirty and forty diminishes one's enthusiasm dreadfully4 ,i am almost afraid to meet my old favorite now1 lest the spell of a fine remembrance should be broken for ever4 ,but the train is rushing on1 the road curves1 and there's the same ,duomo1 looking as if ,our ,lady of ,flowers herself had settled down on the city1 with ,giotto's campanile1 like an archangel1 standing guard beside her4 ,there she sits in her gray mantle1 grayer through the mist and snow1 queen of all the landscape--grander1 lighter1 lovelier than ever4 ,here we are at the station1 and now driving past the baptistery2 but1 far or near1 that cupola ever full in view like a guardian presence4 ,you do not wonder here1 as before ,saint ,peter's1 what has become of the cupola2 you are not obliged to fall back a league to see what is nearly overhead4 ,nave1 transept1 and tribune go swelling up1 with buttress and demi-cupola diminishing as they ascend1 and all converging into one enormous drum from which springs the central dome4 ,dante could see it from his chair in its very shadow4 ,arnolfo and ,brunelleschi may see it from their seats of marble scarce twenty yards from the foundation-stone4 ,angelo may see it from his home in ,santa ,croce4 ,the masons of ,fiesole can see it from their hills1 the peasants of ,san ,casciano from their vineyards2 and1 far down the ,arno1 the boatmen from ,pisa look up to it as they plod wearily along4 ,i am domesticated in ,florence2 the slow ,tuscan spring is passing into summer2 and1 from being simply a joy1 this great cathedral has become a study4 ,arnolfo1 son of ,lapo1 or ,cambio1 was the great stone-poet who traced that ground-plan1 itself an epic4 ,he was commissioned by those wonderful republicans to construct a church1 as worthy as man could make it of the glory of ,god and the dignity of the city of ,florence4 #dhj ,the inclination of ,arnolfo's genius was toward the ,gothic2 but he was a many-sided and myriad-minded man4 ,his walls of ,florence suggest the ,egyptian1 his court of the ,bargello the ,saracenic1 his ,palazzo ,vecchio a perfectly new idea4 ,he has all the versatility of ,shakespeare4 ,arnolfo's first conception of ,santa ,maria del ,fiore may still be seen in fresco1 copied from the last wooden model1 in the ,spanish ,cloister of ,santa ,maria ,novella4 ,up to the first cornice1 the cathedral1 as it now stands1 is almost as purely ,gothic as the campanile2 and1 by reference to the fresco1 you will perceive that ,arnolfo's original idea was to carry this ,gothic treatment up to the very cross that crowns the lantern4 ,for instance1 the lantern in the fresco is without either ball or scroll1 the clerestory buttressed1 and with pointed instead of circular lights1 the windows of the cupola pointed4 ,yet1 as it is certain that ,arnolfo lived to finish the clerestory1 and to unite 7serrare7 the smaller cupolas and tribunes1 it is clear these variations in his plan1 these departures from the pointed1 these approximations to the round1 were deliberately made by ,arnolfo himself1 or by his direction4 ,as the work advanced1 he felt that something more must be conceded to the coming cupola4 ,it was not enough to have it octagonal instead of spherical1 and enrich its eight marble ribs with ,gothic tracery2 the antagonism between the two styles must be met and softened from the start4 ,see how gradually this is done1 and at what an early stage these concessions begin4 ,in the fresco1 the blind arches1 both over the lower tribunal windows and just under the lower tribunal cornice1 are slightly pointed2 in the building itself they are round2 the niches above the cornice1 also1 are pointed in the picture and round-topped in the stone4 ,it is more than probable that these concessions were dictated by the greater prominence which the cupola was assuming in ,arnolfo's new vision of his temple4 ,now is it impossible1 that he might have nearly anticipated the exact plan of the heir of his inspiration and partner of his glory8 ,the tendency is that way4 ,but1 with the completion of the clerestory and the unification of the smaller cupolas1 ,arnolfo departs1 and1 after an interval of a century and a quarter1 ,brunelleschi enters4 ,there they are1 seated side by side in marble1 close to the stone that marks where ,dante1 too1 sat gazing at their ,duomo4 ,arnolfo looks more like a dreamer than a doer1 although he was both2 in ,ser ,brunelleschi's face there is more of the mathematician than the poet4 ,he could never have traced that ground-plan1 never have dreamed that shining archangel called the campanile2 but he did what neither the pupil of ,cimabue nor the son of ,cambio could perhaps have managed as well1 he built that matchless cupola4 ,brunelleschi had his one great dream1 the solution of a vast and novel architectural difficulty4 ,what ,arnolfo had hinted became his grand ideal4 ,he nursed his dream for years at ,rome1 communing with the spirit of classic art2 at last he told his dream in ,florence1 and with infinite difficulty got leave to act it out4 ,since that noble carte blanche to ,arnolfo1 ,florence had declined2 she was no longer up to the proud standard of that earlier day4 ,the superintendents are slippery and slow in engaging ,filippo2 and ,filippo himself must finesse more than a little to secure the engagement4 #dha ,there is this difference1 to be sure1 that the ,duomo was the culmination of ,arnolfo's professional career and but the beginning of his successor's2 that the latter1 like all gallant adventurers1 had to win his spurs before he could be fully trusted4 ,still1 the two inseparable elements of self and gain are more conspicuous here than in the purer ,christian ages1 whose architects disdained or forbore to register their names2 whose works preserve no personal memorial of their masters2 so that1 says ,vasari1 ,i cannot but marvel at the simplicity and indifference to glory exhibited by the men of that period4 ,there is1 unfortunately1 no such simplicity to marvel at now4 ,as early as #adjg1 ,filippo submitted an opinion to the superintendents of the works of ,santa ,maria del ,fiore1 and to the syndics of the guild of wool-workers1 7powerful gentlemen in those days17 that the edifice above the roof must be constructed1 not after the design of ,arnolfo2 but that a frieze1 thirty feet high1 must be erected with a large window in each of its sides4 ,this suggestion1 together with the additional thirty feet for the gallery1 comprised the single1 sublime conception to which the ,duomo owes its crowning beauty2 the rest of the task is chiefly mechanical4 ,but such immense mechanics require immense genius4 ,filippo had supplied the idea1 but there was no one found wise enough to execute it4 ,the wardens and syndics were much perplexed2 and ,filippo1 after laughing at them in his sleeve1 returned to ,rome4 ,he had hardly gone before they wrote him to return4 ,he came2 and after patiently listening to the long array of difficulties which mediocrity always opposes to the inspiration of genius1 admitted that the most enormous dome of ancient or modern times must present certain difficulties in its erection1 like other great enterprises2 that he was confounded no less by the breadth than by the height of the edifice2 that if the tribune could be vaulted in a circular form1 one might pursue the method adopted by the ,romans in erecting the ,pantheon2 but that following up the eight sides of the building to a convergence1 thus dove-tailing1 and1 so to speak1 enchaining the stones1 would be a most difficult and novel undertaking4 ,yet--and this touch is worthy of ,arnolfo's age or any other--yet1 remembering that this is a temple consecrated to ,god and the ,virgin1 ,i confidently trust that1 for a work executed in their honor1 they will not fail to infuse knowledge where it is now wanting1 and bestow strength1 wisdom1 and genius on him who shall be the author of such a project4 ,nothing can shake ,filippo's joyous trust in himself2 he acts as if he carries a divine commission in his pocket to finish what ,arnolfo began1 and can therefore afford to laugh at all human appointments or interference4 ,with amazing confidence and magnanimity1 he concludes his interview with their worships by exhorting them to assemble1 on a fixed day within a year1 as many architects as they can get together2 not ,tuscans and ,italians only1 but ,germans1 ,french1 and all other nations1 to the end that the work may be commenced and intrusted to him who shall give the best evidence of capacity4 ,the syndics and wardens liked ,filippo's advice1 and would also have liked him to prepare a model for their edification4 ,but with all his piety and self-reliance1 ,ser ,brunelleschi was a ,florentine like their worships1 and therefore keen enough to keep his model to himself4 ,it then suddenly occurred to these grave gentlemen that money might be an object to ,filippo1 as it occasionally is to other men2 and so they voted him a sum1 not stated by ,vasari1 but not large enough to justify his remaining in ,florence4 ,so back to ,rome once more marches the ,ser ,brunelleschi4 #dhb ,meanwhile that noble city of ,florence has ordered her merchants resident abroad to send her at any cost the best foreign masters4 ,in the year #adbj1 these best foreign masters1 and best ,italian masters besides1 and the syndics and superintendents1 and a select number of distinguished citizens1 and little ,filippo himself1 just returned from ,rome1 are all assembled in the hall of the wardens of ,santa ,maria del ,fiore4 ,after listening to a hundred absurd plans1 ,brunelleschi unfolds his own at full length4 ,whereupon the assembled syndics1 superintendents1 and citizens1 instead of being at all edified by his remarks1 proceeded to call him a simpleton1 an ass1 a madman1 and bade him discourse of something else4 ,which he1 instead of doing1 stuck to his point1 and finally lost his temper and flew in their faces4 ,whereupon they called him a fool and a babbler2 and considering him absolutely mad1 arose against him as one man1 and incontinently turned him out of doors by the head and heels4 ,imagine the rage of ,arnolfo the ,goth1 after such treatment2 or ,angelo the mighty1 stalking down the ,via ,romana2 or ,dante1 wandering ghost-like into eternal exile6 ,the indomitable1 practical ,filippo did none of these things1 but prudently shut himself up at home lest people in the streets should call out1 ,see where goes that fool6 ,it was not the fault of these men1 says the sympathetic ,vasari1 that ,filippo did not break in pieces the models1 set fire to the designs1 and in one half-hour destroy all the labors so long endured1 and ruin the hopes of so many years4 ,but ,filippo was less a poet1 enamoured of an inward vision of beauty1 than an architect determined to solve an architectural problem4 ,plainly enough1 since ,arnolfo had set the example in the clerestory1 the windows of the cupola were also to be circular instead of pointed4 ,his inventive faculties were therefore restricted to the organization of that vast dream1 to the determination of the ascending curves and the conception of the lantern4 ,it was not the offspring of his soul1 but of his mind1 that ,filippo had offered the syndics and superintendents2 and the inventor of new combinations and possibilities of matter is apt to possess a more elastic temperament than the creator of new forms of beauty4 ,instead of fretting himself to death or cultivating the princely revenge of silence1 ,filippo1 strong in his mission and calculating on the proverbial caprice of his native ,florence1 began to experiment on individuals instead of assemblies2 so successfully1 too1 that another session was soon convened4 ,profiting by discomfiture1 ,filippo modified his tactics4 ,he salutes the superintendents as magnificent signors and wardens1 and condescends to be more explicit about his still hidden model4 ,he even goes so far as to prove the dome-within-a-dome1 which had so enraged their excellencies1 a possibility4 ,he spoke with such emphasis and confidence1 that he had all the appearance of having vaulted ten such cupolas4 ,in a word1 they surrendered at discretion2 and1 rather in despair than hope1 made him principal master of the works4 ,the man of talents was victorious where a mere man of genius would have been badly beaten4 ,but--in these artistic complications there is always a but--,lorenzo ,ghiberti1 just famous for his doors of ,paradise1 was a favorite in ,florence2 so ,florence resolved to associate ,lorenzo with ,filippo4 ,this was a bitter pill to ,ser ,brunelleschi1 but he swallowed it2 and for two years they worked together at the twelve braccia to which their labors were limited by the wardens4 #dhc ,but--there was also a 'but' on the right side--when the closing in of the cupola toward the top commenced1 and the masons and other masters were wailing in expectation of directions as to the manner in which the chains were to be applied and the scaffoldings erected1 it chanced on one fine morning that ,filippo did not appear at the works4 ,on inquiry1 it turned out that he had tied up his head1 called for hot plates and towels1 and gone to bed complaining bitterly4 ,an attack of pleurisy4 ,most inopportunely2 for at this most critical moment in the enterprise the whole burthen fell on ,lorenzo4 ,lorenzo was besieged by practical questions2 ,lorenzo was persecuted with a thousand interrogatories2 ,lorenzo waded completely out of his depth into a sea of troubles2 the masons and stone-cutters came to a stand1 and finally the work stood still4 ,at this juncture1 the syndics and wardens resolved to pay the sick man a visit4 ,they condoled with him in his illness and also lamented the disorder which had attacked the building4 ,is not ,lorenzo there8 asked the sufferer4 ,he will not do anything without you1 replied the wardens4 ,but ,i could do well enough without him1 murmured the invalid4 ,the wardens withdrew1 and sent ,filippo a prescription in the shape of an announcement of their intention to remove ,lorenzo4 ,filippo instantly recovered1 but only to find his rival still in place and power4 ,whereupon he made one more prayer to their worships1 namely1 to divide the labor as they divided the salary1 and give each his own separate sphere of action4 ,this was granted3 the chain-work assigned to ,lorenzo1 the scaffolding to ,filippo4 ,the scaffolding proved a miracle of success1 the chain-work a monument of failure4 ,the wardens1 and syndics1 and superintendents1 and influential citizens1 fairly driven to the wall1 made ,filippo chief superintendent of the whole fabric for life1 commanding that nothing should be done in the work save by his direction4 ,how much richer the world would now be in every department of art1 had half its men of genius but possessed a tithe of ,brunelleschi's elasticity and determination4 ,left to himself1 ,filippo worked with so much zeal and minute attention1 that not a stone was placed in the building which he had not examined4 ,the very bricks1 fresh from the oven1 are said to have been set apart with his own hands4 ,so conscientious were the builders of those days when art was supreme and religion a practical inspiration4 ,the energy and resources of this model architect are inexhaustible4 ,nothing escapes him4 ,outlets and apertures are provided1 both in security against the force of the winds1 and against the vapors and vibrations of the earth4 ,wine-shops and eating-houses are opened in the cupola4 ,high over ,florence1 ,filippo is undisputed lord and master of a small town of his own4 ,and so1 for twenty-six years1 they wrought under his eyes at this architectural miracle4 ,he lived to see the lantern carried to the height of several braccia3 it was not finished till fifteen years after his death4 ,he left plans for the gallery1 which were either lost1 stolen1 or destroyed4 ,that great1 broad belt of dingy brick and mortar clamoring to earth and heaven for completion1 ruins the effect of the dome and gives the whole edifice a shabby appearance4 ,only one of the eight sides is finished4 #dhd ,this was done in ,carrara marble by ,baccio d',agnolo1 and would have been carried all around the dome but for the interference of ,michael ,angelo1 then omnipotent in ,italy1 who denounced it as a mere cage for crickets2 adding that he himself would show ,baccio what he ought to do4 ,the old art-dictator made a model accordingly1 which1 after long debate1 was rejected4 ,so our ,lady of ,flowers still lacks her girdle4 ,it is much to be regretted1 since ,michael could suggest nothing better1 that he did not hold his peace4 ,the present model may not be faultless1 but it is infinitely better than nothing2 and no one else has suggested anything as good4 ,it was condemned1 not as defective in itself1 but unequal to the magnificence of the building2 and1 also1 because it seemed to violate some secret purpose of ,brunelleschi's in cutting off1 as it did1 the line of stones which he had left projecting4 ,be this as it may1 ,filippo's purpose has never been divined and never can be2 all the plans of the great masters are lost2 and there seems to be small use in continuing the interdict of a much over-estimated authority till doomsday4 ,that cestus of alternate head and garland just under the colonnade is abominable1 but it is difficult to see how the present design could otherwise be improved4 ,it harmonizes with all the windows1 and niches1 and arches in the tribune2 it relieves the blankness of the perforations1 and is in sympathy both with the windows of the lantern and the upper window of the campanile4 ,it is the sub-dominant without which the blended ,gothic and classic is a discord4 ,arnolfo might have done it better1 but no one else4 ,it is a poem which ,baccio was as well qualified to trace as any of the rest of them4 ,apart from his glorious consummation of the ,duomo1 ,i do not like ,brunelleschi4 ,he did more than any other man to repel the ,gothic influences1 which1 under ,arnolfo and others1 were penetrating ,tuscany2 he insured the triumph of the round arch over the pointed1 and paved the way to the monstrosities of the ,renaissance4 ,but his cupola of ,santa ,maria del ,fiore is the supreme miracle of architecture4 ,it exceeds the cupola of the ,vatican1 both in height and circumference1 by eight feet2 and although supported by eight ribs only1 which renders it lighter than that of ,saint ,peter's1 which has sixteen flanked buttresses1 is nevertheless more solid and firm4 ,unlike the ,roman dome1 it has stood unassisted and unstrengthened from the first2 so firmly grounded by the forethought of ,arnolfo1 so closely knit by the energies of ,filippo1 that it has not sunk or swerved an inch in four centuries4 ,the noblest speech that ,buonarotti ever made was1 that he would not copy1 but could not surpass it2 the finest compliment ever paid by one man of genius to another was his dying wish to be buried where he might arise1 not in sight of his own ,pantheon in the air1 but in full view of the vaulted tribune of ,santa ,maria del ,fiore4 ,another name1 however1 is associated with the growth of the ,duomo--a name not inferior to either ,arnolfo or ,filippo4 ,just beside the vast cathedral is the wondrous bell-tower ,giotto reared--his solitary1 or only conspicuous architectural feat4 ,before ,giotto's time1 the modern painters copied nature about as closely as most actors and orators now do2 that is1 their men and women bore only a weak1 conventional resemblance to humanity4 ,the son of ,bondone inaugurated the naturalistic movement which culminated in ,da ,vinci and ,raphael2 unquestionably a most honorable distinction4 ,but what can all he ever painted1 judged as a living fact1 amount to when weighed against the startling splendor of this divine campanile8 #dhe ,i have seen something of ,giotto1 far from all1 but enough to know that1 save as undeveloped germs and hints1 his pictures are little more than crudities belonging to the infancy of art1 amazing at his time1 but not more than curious at ours4 ,but this campanile1 into which he suddenly ascended without an effort1 is the transfiguration of architecture--the product of an art at its best and highest4 ,architecture never had advanced1 never has advanced a step beyond it4 ,it might be added1 never can advance2 for beyond a certain recognized point in the realization of beauty1 human genius is not permitted to push its way4 ,vasari devotes thirty pages to the consideration of ,giotto's pictures1 and but one to the campanile4 ,yet these pictures are mouldering in convents or shrouded in chapels1 or buried in dim galleries1 scattered far and wide over the world2 and1 save over some ambitious student or patient virtuoso1 they no longer exist as a spell or a power4 ,but this lofty campanile is a perpetual influence2 an influence as indestructible as the ,iliad--a joy as unceasing as the joy of sunrise--the joy of a work that is perfection of its kind4 ,so fair1 so frail1 and yet so firm6 ,it does not need the glass case suggested by imperial condescension4 ,it knows how to take the lightning and the storm4 ,it knows how to bear the weight and thunder of its mellow bells4 ,its beautiful head is at home in the skies1 and seems to belong to heaven as much as the flowers belong to earth4 ,giotto's plan would have crowned it with a spire of a hundred feet2 but1 whether for true artistic considerations1 or because it was ,gothic1 or because it was too expensive1 succeeding architects have always advised its omission4 ,besides its own independent loveliness1 this bell-tower exercises an important influence over the group to which it belongs1 not only by the development of form1 but also by the subtler qualification of style4 ,but for the pure ,gothic of ,giotto1 the predominance of the round in the tribunes and cupola would overwhelm ,arnolfo's pointed witchery beneath the clerestory4 ,as it is1 the supremacy of the classic at one end of the stately pile is balanced by the ascendency of the ,gothic at the other4 ,high up in air the pious rivalry between the two great styles is continued1 each lifting its choicest offering to the very footstool of the ,padre ,eterno1 each doing its best in honor of our ,lady of ,flowers4 ,the facade of ,santa ,maria is wanting1 like her girdle4 ,giotto is said to have finished two thirds of it1 subsequently torn down to be restored in a more modern style6 ,the fresco in the cloister of ,san ,marco gives only part of it1 and ,i could make but little of that4 ,as ,i remember the fresco of ,arnolfo's facade1 it was meant to be composed of statues1 niches1 and pillars--something as deep and rich as the faade at ,pisa4 ,whoever may finish it1 let us trust that the shallow mosaic of ,santa ,croce will be avoided4 ,the baptistery completes this memorable group2 faded1 unattractive without1 sombre and majestic within4 ,the interior of ,santa ,maria is a disappointment4 ,glorious stained glass1 splendid arches1 but none of the light1 the joy1 the shining paradise of ,saint ,peter's4 ,if we may believe ,vasari1 the interior1 like the exterior was to have been crusted with ,florentine mosaic1 even to the minutest corners of the edifice4 ,but the days are dead when such a deed was practicable4 #dhf ,instead of colored marbles1 we have a pale olive overspreading all the edifice2 instead of the mosaic for which ,filippo had provided iron supports1 the lack-lustre frescoes of ,vasari and his successors1 which ,florence ought to have summarily whitewashed1 as suggested in ,lasca's madrigal4 ,fortunately1 these frescoes are the only pictures4 ,pictures in large churches are distracting and insignificant2 and moreover1 you can rarely more than half see them1 try your best4 ,least of all1 has a picture any business in a ,gothic church4 ,for my own part ,i would as soon see the pyramid of ,cheops hung with pictures as the ,duomo4 ,in a church1 you want all the superhuman you can get--nothing human but human souls4 ,angels and dragons and effigies are more in keeping there than the best statues2 those ghostly groups and faces in the old stained glass look better than if they were a thousand times more natural4 ,the old mosaics harmonize because they are not only typical1 but imperishable as the structure itself4 ,the decisive objection to a picture in a church is its apparent fragility4 ,the outer robes of our ,lady of ,flowers are dull with the dust and wear of five centuries4 ,see how those new bits of marble which the workmen are inserting1 green1 white1 and red1 flash and sparkle in the sun6 ,what a celestial vision it must have been when all that world of mosaic was fresh and stainless6 ,but even as she is1 faded and unfinished1 what an invaluable possession6 ,what would ,florence be without it8 ,it is a central magnet that holds together her present1 past1 and future2 that unites all her children in one vast family1 making her1 in the truest sense of the word1 a community4 ,it stands before her everlastingly1 a memorial of her youthful wealth and power2 a monument of present greatness1 a protest against decrepitude to come4 ,it binds her fast to her renown1 her honor1 and her faith2 it is the solemn1 visible bond between her and ,god4 ,the ,duomo belongs not only to ,florence1 but to all the hills and valleys around1 to the villas of ,morello1 to the cloisters of ,fiesole1 to the huts on the ,apennines4 ,every peasant within sight of its cupola1 within sound of its campanile1 has a share in its daily benediction4 ,for four centuries1 the generations that people that fair amphitheatre have found it the most unchanging feature in their landscape4 ,it is as much the portion of their lives as the stars1 their river1 or their own vineyards4 ,in the first blush of every morning1 it rises before the sun2 and when the stars and moon are shining1 the lantern of ,santa ,maria del ,fiore takes its place amongst them as part of the pageantry of the skies4 ---------- #dhg ,the ,condition and ,prospects of ,catholics in ,england4 ,by ,an ,english ,catholic4 ,surrounded as we are on all sides by apostles of progress1 ever ready to taunt and ridicule those who linger in the shadows of the past1 it would be distressing indeed to ,catholics in general1 and especially to ,english ,catholics1 if they could with justice be reproached as stationary or retrograde4 ,happily they are of all men least open to the charge4 ,they advance on a double line4 ,they share in the common march of society2 they adopt every latest improvement2 they fully accept and reciprocate the blessings of civilization2 but their religion also1 which is in itself progress1 increases and multiplies throughout the globe1 and particularly in the ,british empire4 ,it has derived strength from the world's social and political changes2 it is inspired more than ever with the breath of freedom2 and the very means which accelerate science and commerce supply it with wings and coat it with mail4 ,it not only advances on a double line1 but it has likewise a twofold nature and a duplex power4 ,this wonderful religion is both old and new2 it unites the weight and authority of age with the freshness and vigor of youth4 ,to the ,english it is both ancient and modern4 ,it was the venerable faith of their ancestors1 and it is1 by a gracious revolution in the moral world1 the old religion revived1 with all the charms of novelty--a second spring revisiting the long desolate and wintry land4 ,it comes back to us with all its time-honored appliances2 with its sacred symbols and solemn rites2 its orders1 congregations1 and retreats2 its colleges1 institutions1 poor schools1 homes1 orphanages1 almshouses1 hospitals1 and libraries--but it comes1 moreover1 with means and advantages proportioned to its difficulties1 and such as in old times it could not boast4 ,it has now in its hands the mighty machinery of the press1 with the ,scriptures1 the ,missal and ,church ,offices in the vulgar tongue4 ,it flourishes amid liberal institutions1 and acquires no little vigor from free discussion1 persuading where once it ruled4 ,it affiliates to itself all physical truths1 all discoveries in science1 as affording fresh evidence of the power and wisdom of ,god4 ,it engages in historical research with impartiality formerly unknown1 relying on documentary proofs1 and scrutinizing all that is legendary4 ,it joyfully accepts and utilizes the steamship1 the railroad1 and the telegraph4 ,it finds in them fresh instruments of good1 new links to knit nations together in a common faith1 swift convoys of ,christian missions1 and electric tongues of flame to spread the gospel of ,christ4 ,during the last forty years the ,catholic renaissance in ,england has been rapid beyond all that could have been expected or was even hoped4 ,it is not to the emancipation act of #ahbi1 to the increase of the episcopate in #ahdj1 nor to the creation of the hierarchy in #ahej1 that this surprising growth is mainly to be ascribed4 #dhh ,the removal of political disabilities gave ,catholics in ,england1 no doubt1 a respectability and courage which they had not before2 but they would still have continued1 on the whole1 a despised and scattered remnant--mere pebbles and detritus as ,newman says1 ,footnote #ajc of the great deluge--if there had not arisen in the very heart of the ,established ,church a little band of learned and pious men1 who1 strong in genius and in prayer1 valiantly defended many distinctively ,catholic doctrines1 and ended by professing openly or virtually their adhesion to our entire system of faith and morals4 ,this it was which caused ,english ,catholics1 when they emerged1 as it were1 from the catacombs1 ,footnote #ajd to lift up their heads1 to challenge a new investigation of the grounds of their belief1 and to submit them confidently to every test that history1 ,scripture1 reason1 and experience could apply4 ,the ,tractarian movement infused fresh blood into the church's veins1 and it has1 during a period of thirty years1 swollen our waters with a confluent stream4 ,footnote #ajc3 ,sermons on ,various ,occasions1 p4 #bcb4 ,footnote #ajd3 ,card4 ,wiseman's ,address to the ,congress of ,malines1 p4 #i4 ,the tide thus set in a right direction does not cease to flow1 and it is fed by sources external to ourselves4 ,scarcely a week passes but some persons knock at the gates of the church for admittance1 who have learned the elements of ,catholicism from alien teachers4 ,several high-church periodicals1 widely circulated1 such as the ,union ,review and the ,church ,news1 lay down1 with extraordinary boldness and precision1 doctrines which the so-called reformers labored to explode4 ,rumors are ever afloat of important conversions about to take place1 and thus ,catholics in ,england are constantly encouraged1 while ,anglicans are proportionally unsettled and alarmed4 ,the ,establishment is dying by the hands of its own pastors4 ,three hundred of them have quitted its pale1 forfeited their position in society1 forsaken a thousand comforts1 prospects1 and endearments1 to follow the church in the wilderness and the pillar of fire4 ,the largest-minded and the largest-hearted man ,anglicanism ever produced1 has long since taken his seat among the doctors in the true temple1 and one whom ,anglicans esteemed for his piety from boyhood upward1 is now the primate of the ,english ,catholic ,church1 and regarded among its bishops as facile princeps for learning and ability1 both as a speaker and writer4 ,the talents which were employed in promoting schism are thus turned into a healthier channel2 and a multitude of able and ingenious converts in every literary guise operate beneficially on the public mind4 ,the loud demand for unity of doctrine1 a fixed standard of belief and morals1 authority in matters of faith1 primitive antiquity1 asceticism1 symbols1 sacraments1 and aesthetics1 is being supplied4 ,catholic missionaries are covering the face of the land1 and they are welcomed wherever they pitch their tent4 ,thirsting souls1 weary of broken cisterns1 gather round them1 and ask eagerly for living water from deeper wells4 ,abbeys are raised on ancient sites2 convent-walls crown the hills2 church-bells tinkle in secluded vales2 and in the towns and cities1 fanes richly adorned and well served invite with open doors the docile to be taught and the penitent to be shriven4 ,the genius of the two ,pugins1 the father and the son1 has revived the love of mediaeval architecture2 and the new churches vie with each other in majestic structure and ornate detail4 ,the winter is now past1 the rain is over and gone4 #dhi ,the flowers have appeared in our land2 the voice of the turtle is heard4 ,the fig-tree hath put forth her green figs2 the vines in flower yield their sweet smell4 ,footnote #aje ,footnote #aje3 ,canticles1 ii1 #aa-ac4 ,what a contrast within forty years6 then the heavenly dove flying over ,england scarcely found where her foot might rest4 ,the waters were abroad on the whole land1 and she returned into the ark4 ,in #ahcj only #dcd priests ministered through the entire country2 and these were attached1 for the most part1 to obscure chapels in low quarters of the town1 or to gloomy1 old-fashioned houses in the country4 ,four hundred and ten unsightly buildings were then called churches2 and ,england 7which in the olden time1 before the ,reformation1 owned #ef convents of the ,dominican order alone ,footnote #ajf7 could not at that date claim a single religious house consisting of men4 ,sixteen scanty communities of nuns there were1 who sighed and prayed in secret1 being but the skirts of the garment of the ,lamb's ,bride4 ,a change has come over the scene2 and how great that change is1 the following table will in some degree show3 ,in #ahed4 #ahfd4 #ahfg4 ,catholic clergy in ,england #ibb #abfg #adch ,catholic clergy in ,scotland4 #acd #agh #bja ,churches1 chapels1 and stations in ,england #fgh #ijg #ajhb ,churches1 chapels1 and stations in ,scotland #acd #aia #bja ,communities of men in ,england #ag #ef #fg ,convents in ,england4 #hd #agc #baj ,convents in ,scotland4 #j #ac #ag ,footnote #ajg ,footnote #ajf3 ,fr4 ,palmer's ,life of ,cardinal ,howard4 ,introd4 #da-eh4 ,footnote #ajg3 ,statesman's ,year-,book for #ahfg1 p4 #bch4 ,catholic ,directory1 p4 #bfg4 ,in the ,diocese of ,westminster alone there are more than twice as many religious communities of women as there were in the whole kingdom 7,ireland excluded7 forty years ago4 ,the population1 it is true1 multiplies rapidly and in an ever increasing ratio1 but the spread of ,catholicism does far more than keep pace with this advance4 ,it outstrips it in a striking degree1 and gives continual promise of further increase4 ,the distance between churches lessens2 the means of grace are more copiously supplied2 the discipline of the church is more fully carried out2 the prejudices of our foes are partly dispelled2 their attacks become less violent2 the press is more civil2 the state more conciliating4 ,in many localities1 such as ,bayswater1 ,notting-,hill1 ,kensington1 ,brompton1 and ,hammersmith1 in the ,west of ,london1 the number of ,catholic churches1 convents1 and charitable institutions is greater than would be found over an equal area in many countries where the church is supreme4 ,the number of persons attached to the congregation of the ,oratory in ,brompton exceeds #hjjj1 and upwards of #ac1jjj attend the services of ,st4 ,george's ,cathedral in ,southwark4 ,the ,english ,reformation1 happily1 did only half its work1 and the tap-roots of ,catholicism have never been thoroughly eradicated from the popular mind4 ,new suckers are ever springing up1 and persistent culture soon obtains its reward4 ,the vast metropolis is not all included in one diocese4 ,the ,archbishop of ,westminster and the ,bishop of ,southwark both reside in ,london1 and divide the pastoral care of the great city between them4 ,one hundred and sixty priests1 secular1 regular1 and unattached1 minister under ,dr4 ,grant1 while #bba1 including ,oratorians and ,oblates of ,st4 ,charles ,borromeo1 serve under the primate4 ,the average attendance of children at the poor schools of the ,diocese of ,westminster was1 in the year #aheg-h1 #hfdh2 and nine years later1 in #ahff-g1 it amounted to #ab1jef4 #dij ,this increase sufficiently proves that great efforts are made to instruct the ,catholic poor children in ,london4 ,many of them1 especially those of ,irish extraction1 pass their days in rags1 filth1 and beggary1 living like little ,arabs1 as they are familiarly called4 ,in #ahff it was estimated that from #gjjj to #ab1jjj ,catholic children were thus wandering through the streets of the capital2 but the exertions of ,cardinal ,wiseman and ,archbishop ,manning have produced the happiest results1 and diminished the evils which want of funds and the difficulties of the case leave for the present without adequate remedy4 ,it is certain that the poor children of ,catholics have in the ,english bishops most able and tender-hearted advocates1 and that numerous monastic bodies of men and women are ready to second their efforts with devotion truly heroic4 ,it is on the lambs of the flock that the hopes of ,catholic ,england depend1 and just in proportion as they are educated or uneducated1 will they be ornaments or disgraces to the religion they profess4 ,nothing but superstition and vice can be built on ignorance2 and the clergy in ,england are everywhere earnest in promoting the culture of the mind4 ,it is almost as vain to teach religion without secular knowledge1 as it would be presumptuous and profane to impart secular knowledge without religion4 ,nature and grace alike ordain that they should go together1 and on this principle the ,poor ,school ,committee1 or ,council of ,catholic ,education1 invariably acts4 ,there is in ,england1 at the present moment1 a strong tendency to compulsory education4 ,the leading thinkers of the day incline to this plan1 and press on the legislature the expediency of providing a state system of education1 of which all the poor1 ,catholics as well as ,protestants1 should avail themselves4 ,the secular instruction would1 in this case1 be common to all the children1 while the religious instruction would be in the hands of the ministers of the several religions which the parents might profess4 ,the ,catholic bishops and clergy look with fear and suspicion on such a project1 believing it impossible safely to separate secular and religious instruction4 ,they are of opinion that the system would work badly1 and prove a failure2 that non-,catholic teachers would insensibly instil false doctrine and wrong views into the pupils' minds1 and that the denominational system1 which provides separate schools for each section of professing ,christians1 is the best1 and1 indeed1 the only good one for ,catholic interests4 ,they point to ,ireland1 where the national education is regarded as a national grievance4 ,they bid you remark how1 in that valley of tears1 both ,catholics and ,protestants separate their children if they can4 ,they prove to you that1 in national schools with ,presbyterian masters1 thousands of ,catholic children are taught the ,protestant religion from the lips of ,protestant teachers4 ,footnote #ajh ,they complain that while the ,english receive from the state important help toward denominational education1 to the ,irish all such help is persistently refused4 ,footnote #ajh3 ,archb4 ,manning's ,letter to ,earl ,grey1 #ahfh1 p4 #bb4 ,it remains to be seen how far their remonstrances will be attended to1 and how far the national education in ,great ,britain can be made to harmonize with ,catholic4 ,happily1 there is no disposition on the part of the state to force on any portion of the people a measure obnoxious to them2 and the scheme of national education introduced into ,ireland under the auspices of the ,catholic and ,protestant ,archbishops of ,dublin1 7,drs4 ,murray and ,whately17 having proved abortive1 it is the less likely that ,catholics in ,england will be obliged to accept any conditions to which they may be decidedly adverse4 #dia ,there is1 however1 great difficulty in adjusting state concessions to ,catholic wants and demands4 ,it is almost impossible for ,protestant rulers to understand our feelings1 and they often run counter to them1 even when they are trying to satisfy them with the best intentions4 ,thus1 for instance1 though the government has thrown open the ,universities of ,oxford and ,cambridge to ,catholics1 allowing them to matriculate and proceed to the degree of ,bachelor of ,arts1 difficulties have recently been raised by ecclesiastical authority respecting their availing themselves of this opening4 ,the ,catholic bishops1 in fact1 have recommended parents and guardians not to send their sons and wards to ,oxford and ,cambridge2 and though their advice does not amount to a prohibition1 it has1 nevertheless1 a deterrent effect4 ,catholic noblemen and gentlemen of large property have1 at present1 no other means of giving their sons an education suited to their rank1 and such as will form their minds and manners for parliamentary and diplomatic service1 except by sending them to these universities1 where science is1 so far as they are concerned1 entirely divorced from religion1 and their personal faith is in great danger of being compromised4 ,the ,catholic colleges at ,oscott1 ,ushaw1 ,stonyhurst1 and the like1 though admirable for ordinary purposes1 do not meet these exceptional cases4 ,they have not1 they do not1 and they cannot produce men equal to the times--men who carefully get up subjects1 read much and study deeply1 write and speak in public with authority1 and leave deep footprints on the sands of time4 ,footnote #aji ,such laborious and efficient servants of their country are not likely to be formed by any rgime less strict and comprehensive than that of our universities2 and the consequence is that1 at this moment1 there are about a dozen ,catholic young men studying at ,oxford 7not to mention ,cambridge7 in spite of episcopal discouragement4 ,footnote #aji3 ,dublin ,review1 ,october1 #ahfg1 p4 #cih4 ,the principle of mixed education being absolutely condemned by the church1 the want of a ,catholic university in ,england is felt more and more4 ,but it can only be the result of time1 since the cost of endowments and professorships1 not to speak of buildings1 would1 as yet1 be out of proportion to the number of ,catholics in ,england and the means they possess4 ,the matter1 however1 is now under consideration at ,rome1 and it is expected that means will be devised shortly to meet the existing want4 ,before the ,reformation1 sixty-six universities covered ,europe1 and most of them sprang from small beginnings1 and were built amid difficulties quite as great as any we shall have to encounter4 ,footnote #aaj ,footnote #aaj3 ,see ,christian ,schools and ,scholars1 vol4 ii4 chap4 i4 and ii4 ,in the mean time1 the government of ,mr4 ,d',israeli favors1 to a certain extent1 the denominational system1 and proposes ,footnote #aaa to charter the ,dublin ,catholic ,university1 to endow it from the public treasury1 and to grant it the right of conferring degrees4 ,footnote #aaa3 ,march1 #ahfh4 ,this plan1 if carried into effect1 will materially aid the ,irish portion of the church1 but will not supply the want of university education which is felt in ,england4 ,already the benefits resulting from the state endowment of ,maynooth ,college for priests are clearly manifest1 and the present race of ecclesiastics in ,ireland differs entirely1 in several important particulars1 from that of the past generation4 #dib ,they are less ,galilean than they were when educated in ,france1 less disposed to accept of state pensions1 improved in manners and appearance1 more priestly1 and perhaps more firmly attached to the ,holy ,see4 ,the old-fashioned hedge-priest has disappeared1 and if one of our bishops now dines at the ,castle in ,dublin1 he has not1 as was sometimes the case in days of yore1 to borrow a pair of episcopal small-clothes for the occasion4 ,the system of mixed education has not taken root in ,ireland1 though backed by all the influence of the state4 ,the following table will prove that neither ,catholics nor ,protestants there approve it1 and that1 though they sometimes submit to it as a kind of necessity1 they avail themselves of it as little as possible4 ,the table exhibits the entire number of schools in ,ireland under the control of the ,national ,board1 and it ought to be remembered that in these it is not allowable to teach the ,catholic religion1 to use ,catholic emblems1 to talk of the holy father1 use the sign of the cross1 or set up a crucifix or an image of ,our ,lady4 ,footnote #aab ,the schools are1 in fact1 secular1 so far as ,catholic children are concerned1 and their religious instruction is left to the zeal and labor of their own pastors4 ,footnote #aab3 ,speech of ,card4 ,cullen4 ,catholic ,protestant ,children4 ,children4 ,schools4 #b1ded with ,catholic teachers4 #cgc1gef none #b1dhc with ,catholic teachers4 #cba1fda #bd1cha #a1ajf with ,protestant teachers only4 #bi1gbb #aad1gbf #ahd with ,protestant teachers only4 none4 #ah1gjb #aca with mixed teachers4 #ac1fij #ac1cje ,footnote #aac ,footnote #aac3 ,report of ,national ,board of ,education1 #ahff4 ,report of ,meeting of ,clergy of ,dublin1 #ahth ,dec4 #ahfg1 p4 #ad4 ,in ,england1 grants are made from time to time by the ,privy ,council of the ,queen toward defraying the expenses of ,catholic poor-schools1 for it is only in a hobbling way that public opinion in this country moves toward religious and political equality4 ,the oppression of minorities by majorities has been in vogue so many centuries1 that the ,houses of ,parliament can with difficulty be induced to administer even-handed justice to all4 ,the ,poor-,school ,committee1 composed entirely of ,catholic noblemen and gentlemen1 conducts the affairs of ,catholic poor-schools with the concurrence of the bishops and clergy4 ,the schools which are subsidized by government are subject also to government inspection4 ,but this causes no inconvenience1 because the inspectors are ,catholics1 approved by the bishops1 and comfortably salaried by the state4 ,the reformatory schools are most useful and interesting institutions4 ,they date from #ahed1 when a law was passed to the effect that juvenile offenders should1 after a few weeks of imprisonment1 complete their term of punishment in a reformatory approved by the secretary of state for the ,home ,department4 ,by the exertions of ,cardinal ,wiseman and others1 reformatories were established for ,catholic children1 in order that they might be kept separate from those of other religions1 and be duly instructed by ,brothers of ,mercy1 or other pious and charitable persons1 under the direction of a priest4 ,reformatory schools have been followed by schools of industry1 to which magistrates send vagrant children1 found by the police in the streets without shelter or home4 ,these schools also are recognized by the secretary of state1 and the members of the ,conferences of ,st4 ,vincent of ,paul watch over the children's interests and provide1 as far as may be1 for their welfare4 #dic ,allied to these are such schools as ,st4 ,vincent's ,home for destitute boys1 at ,hammersmith1 ,footnote #aad where eighty poor boys are boarded1 clothed1 and educated for four shillings a week each1 with thirty shillings on entrance for outfit1 etc4 ,the ,catholics of ,england do not wait till they become a rich and powerful body before they engage in extensive works of charity4 ,on the contrary1 the number of their charitable institutions is immense1 considered in proportion to their means4 ,footnote #aad3 ,now removed to ,fulham4 ,during the ,crimean war the want of ,catholic chaplains in the army was felt painfully4 ,soldiers and sailors are1 of all men1 most careless about their souls1 and ,catholic soldiers were doubly abandoned in the hour of sickness and death1 having no minister but a ,protestant one to attend them1 while in his ministrations they had no faith4 ,a few volunteer chaplains were therefore allowed to accompany the troops1 and this has led to their being regularly appointed1 and to such chaplains being placed on an equality with the ,protestant in rank1 salary1 and retiring pensions4 ,vessels1 also1 are moored in the great harbors and prepared for ,catholic worship4 ,a chaplain is specially appointed to the service of such ships1 and to provide for the ,catholic sailors' spiritual wants4 ,the spirit of the ,irish tar is no longer vexed with the thought that he must live1 fight1 and perhaps die for a government which abhors his religion1 and deprives him of its consolations4 ,the captains of men of war in the neighborhood of the floating churches just spoken of1 are obliged to see that the ,catholic seamen attend ,mass1 and are not now1 as formerly1 compelled to assist at the ,church of ,england prayers4 ,the field of labor of ,catholic army chaplains gradually extends2 besides being attached to many home stations1 such as ,aldershot1 ,chatham1 ,portsea1 ,woolwich1 etc41 they are found in foreign stations also1 such as ,bermuda1 ,halifax1 ,mauritius1 ,new-,zealand1 ,st4 ,helena1 and ,malta4 ,the ,catholic chaplains1 it may be added1 live on the best terms with the officers and with the ,protestant clergymen in the same barracks4 ,we never interfere with each other1 said one of the former a few days since to the writer2 indeed1 for my part1 ,i would not think of trying to convert the ,protestants2 ,i would rather spend all my time in striving to convert the ,catholics4 ,i am sure that1 out of every hundred of our own men1 there are eighty that need to be converted4 ,the prisons and union work-houses also1 which used to be the scenes of so much injustice toward ,catholic prisoners1 paupers1 and children1 ,footnote #aae have now assumed a more liberal and ,christian aspect4 ,footnote #aae3 ,the ,workhouse ,question4 ,lamp1 ,aug4 #ai1 #ahfe4 ,chaplains are appointed to the larger houses of correction to minister to ,catholic inmates1 and ,catholic children in the workhouses enjoy the benefits of instruction in the religion of their parents4 ,there is in the ,catholic ,directory1 which appears annually1 a list of the charitable institutions in each diocese1 and nothing can be more cheering and hopeful than the view it presents4 ,thus1 in the ,directory for #ahff1 we find in the ,diocese of ,westminster alone #c ,almhouses2 #a ,asylum for ,aged ,poor2 #a ,home for ,aged ,females2 #a ,hospital served by ,sisters of ,mercy2 #a ,house of ,mercy for ,servants out of ,place2 #a ,night ,refuge2 #a ,st4 ,vincent of ,paul's ,shoe-,black ,brigade2 #b ,refuges for ,penitents2 #a ,reformatory ,school for ,boys2 #g ,industrial ,schools for ,boys1 and #aa for ,girls4 #did ,the impression made on society by these admirable institutions is very great4 ,they receive much countenance and support from non-,catholics2 they instruct and console the ignorant and afflicted members of our own body2 they call forth an abundance of self-denying labor and charity on the part of our own people1 and tend more powerfully than any arguments to propagate the ancient faith4 ,they prove that our religion emanates from a ,god of love1 that we are not mere political schemers nor superstitious devotees1 but sober-minded1 practical ,christians1 battling with sin1 and relieving misery in every shape4 ,the ,english public is peculiarly alive to the services of ,sisters devoted to works of ,charity4 ,you cannot walk through the streets now1 or travel by railway1 without meeting them1 and everywhere they are respected4 ,their costume provokes no ridicule1 their youth and good looks 7if such they have7 are secure from insult4 ,their crucifix and beads are badges of which all know the import1 and involuntary blessings attend their steps4 ,they are1 in their way1 the apostles of ,england4 ,their devotion to the sick and wounded in the ,crimea won for them the favor even of their foes4 ,few will refuse them alms when they ask it for the poor4 ,they are types of self-sacrifice1 daughters of consolation1 angel visitants4 ,they impersonate the ,gospel4 ,many of them come from abroad1 from ,france1 ,italy1 and ,belgium1 impelled by an invincible desire for the conversion of ,england4 ,their looks bespeak their mission no less than their garb4 ,they are calm1 collected1 gentle4 ,children yearn toward them with instinctive fondness1 and vice itself is shamed by their silent purity4 ,the names of their several orders tell plainly on what their hearts are fixed4 ,they belong to the ,good ,shepherd2 they are the ,faithful ,companions of ,jesus2 they are handmaids of the ,holy ,child ,jesus1 of ,notre ,dame de ,sion1 of ,jesus in the ,temple1 of ,marie ,reparatrice4 ,they are ,sisters of ,mercy1 of ,providence1 of the ,poor1 of ,nazareth1 of ,penance1 of the ,holy ,family1 of ,st4 ,joseph1 of ,st4 ,paul1 of the ,cross4 ,they address themselves to the heart rather than to the understanding1 but they are not on that account less powerful instruments in the work of social improvement4 ,they have broken down many of the barriers which prejudice had raised against the ,catholic religion1 and helped more than any logical triumph to subdue the hostility and soften the language of the press4 ,that mighty engine is1 on the whole1 an auxiliary to the ,catholic cause in ,england4 ,if it promulgates many falsehoods respecting us1 it is almost always ready to publish their confutation also4 ,it reproduces our primate's pastorals and all other documents of public interest that emanate from our bishops4 ,it helps us1 in the main1 in the battle we are fighting for the attainment of equal political privileges1 and employs the pens of many ,catholic writers4 ,no respectable periodical taboos a contributor because he is a ,catholic1 nor excludes him from its staff if his writing be up to the required mark1 and his conduct in reference to controversial matters be discreet4 ,many non-,catholic journals are edited or sub-edited by ,catholics1 and this accounts in part for the altered tone of the press toward us of late4 #die ,our own literature has recently been marked by fewer controversial books and pamphlets than it was some twenty years ago4 ,then1 every convert of distinction1 when admitted into the church1 thought it incumbent on him to publish those reasons which had influenced him most powerfully in so momentous a change4 ,the library tables in ,catholic families were covered by the writings of ,wiseman1 ,newman1 ,faber1 ,renouf1 ,lewis1 ,dodsworth1 ,northcote1 ,allies1 ,ward1 and ,thompson4 ,each presented his plea for ,catholicism from a different point of view1 and each added something to the aggregate of arguments derived from ,scripture and antiquity4 ,the controversy is now taking another turn4 ,the church's historical ground is less violently contested1 and she is drawing from her inexhaustible armory weapons to meet subtler foes4 ,she faces the sceptic2 she probes liberalism with ,ithnriel's spear2 she establishes from the very nature of things the necessity of an infallible standard of faith and morals4 ,she draws up her line of arguments with a more compact front and extended wings4 ,she appears at the same time more unbending and more liberal4 ,she recognizes more freely and joyfully than ever the workings of the ,holy ,spirit in communions external to her pale1 while she insists with extraordinary earnestness on her exclusive possession of the entire and incorrupt deposit of the faith4 ,such was the purport of a remarkable letter addressed to the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,pusey by ,dr4 ,manning1 now ,archbishop of ,westminster1 in #ahfd4 ,never were orthodoxy and liberality more happily united than in this pamphlet4 ,never did a ,catholic prelate and divine make larger admissions without sacrificing a particle of ,catholic theology4 ,it is marked by the charity of an apostle and the accuracy of a logician4 ,the same remarks apply to the archbishop's work on ,england ana ,christendom4 ,we will venture to say that there is no one ,roman ,catholic writer of eminence in the world who has spoken more emphatically than he--we doubt if there is one who has spoken with equal emphasis--on the piety and salvability of persons external to the visible church4 ,footnote #aaf ,footnote #aaf3 ,dublin ,review1 ,july1 #ahfg1 p4 #aaj ,the life of ,catholicism in ,england is evinced by its numerous associations4 ,in every place where it has taken root1 ,catholics enrol themselves in societies1 confraternities1 or institutes for social1 intellectual1 and religious purposes4 ,in no diocese do these flourish more than in that of ,westminster4 ,the ,archbishop personally promotes social intercourse by throwing open his drawing-rooms every ,tuesday evening1 during the ,london season1 to such gentlemen as may think proper to attend his receptions4 ,there1 may be met1 from time to time1 prelates from distant countries1 ambassadors1 members of parliament1 noblemen1 heads of colleges1 artists1 men of science1 converts1 and old ,catholics1 with now and then a non-,catholic guest1 whom curiosity1 respect for the primate1 or yearning toward a calumniated church1 draws into company to which he is little used4 ,the ,stafford ,club is another centre of union1 comprising about #cjj members1 and including among them a large part of the titled and moneyed ,catholics of ,england1 ,wales1 and ,scotland4 ,the archbishops and bishops of ,england and ,ireland are ex-officio honorary members1 and they frequently avail themselves of the privilege4 ,a middle class club has lately been opened in the city under the primate's patronage1 and at this lectures are delivered1 to which1 as well as to all other advantages1 non-,catholic members are admissible4 #dif ,the only condition required of such members is1 that they shall observe the rules of courtesy1 and abstain 7together with ,catholic members7 from unbecoming controversy on religious and political questions4 ,lecturing is not so popular a form of instruction in ,england as in the ,united ,states1 yet it is much more generally in vogue than it was1 and it is destined1 we believe1 to exert a wide influence hereafter in propagating anew the ,catholic faith through the ,british empire4 ,what we need and hope for is the reaction of ,catholic ,ireland on ,catholic ,england4 ,centuries of cruel misgovernment have retarded the civilization of that unhappy country1 and the loss which it sustains is not its only1 but also ours4 ,in knowledge1 education1 manners1 commerce1 industry1 liberty1 in all that constitutes national maturity1 it is behind ,england4 ,reading1 lecturing1 mental activity1 in ,ireland are all in the back ground2 and consequently the church1 which there keeps alive the faith in the heart of a peasant and small farmer population1 does not act indirectly on ,english ,catholic society with that force which would belong to it under more favorable circumstances4 ,the centuries which have ripened ,england and ,scotland with flower and fruit1 have swept over ,ireland in withering and desolation2 ,footnote #aag she has therefore little to give us1 much to receive from us4 ,if ,england had been bountiful to her1 she would1 in return1 have been bountiful to ,england4 ,if we had shared with ,ireland our material prosperity1 she would now be imparting to us more spiritual blessings1 communication between the two churches would be more brisk1 and their relations would be marked by more complete unity of feeling and purpose4 ,footnote #aag3 ,archbishop ,manning's ,letter to ,earl ,grey4 p4 #ag4 ,the time is probably drawing near when this healthy and reciprocal action of the ,irish and ,english ,catholic ,church will be fully restored4 ,if ,england is to retain ,ireland at all as a part of the empire1 it must be by establishing equal laws1 repealing all penal enactments against ,catholics and their religion1 resolving the national system of education into denominational schools1 disestablishing and disendowing the ,protestant ,church1 and placing on ,irish landlords such restrictions in the tenure of land as will secure the tenant from misery and hopeless serfdom4 ,she must stanch the bleeding wounds of emigration1 and wipe away the tears of ages4 ,then1 and then only1 can we hope to see ,ireland a prosperous nation1 her people thrifty and happy1 her civilization raised to a level with other ,christian countries of ,europe1 and her church putting forth all its native might to console and instruct its own congregations1 and to aid in the work of recovering ,england to the faith of the ,apostles4 ,political and social degradation1 such as that which afflicts ,ireland1 is incompatible with a free and flourishing church1 with a high moral tone1 religious zeal1 and exemplary lives on the part of its victims4 ,cottiers1 and tenants at will of absentee landlords1 having no security that their outlay is their own1 and that they will ever reap the advantage of it2 barely earning their potatoes and buttermilk by the sweat of their brow1 and looking wistfully across the ,atlantic to the comparative wealth and luxury enjoyed by five millions of their fellow-countrymen in ,america2 liable at any moment to be evicted for political motives1 or that their rent may be raised2 galled and maddened by the remembrance of #ej1jjj evictions in one year2 ,footnote #aah such persons1 we say1 deprived of the protection of the law1 must be more than human if they do not in many instances prove themselves lawless4 ,but the day of redress is at hand1 we trust4 ,may the day of retribution be averted6 ,footnote #aah3 #ahdi4 ,butt's ,land ,tenure in ,ireland1 p4 #cd4 #dig ,it is1 perhaps1 matter for regret that ,english ,catholics have now no political leader4 ,since the voice of ,daniel ,o',connell was hushed by death1 no representative of their interests in parliament has appeared gifted with genius and eloquence of a commanding order4 ,mr4 ,pope ,hennessy has been excluded from the ,house of ,commons by his ,irish constituents in consequence of his conservative principles1 which are not popular among them1 and has accepted the governorship of ,labuan4 ,his talents are thus almost lost to the ,catholic cause2 and though there are more than thirty ,catholic members in the ,commons1 their influence is not what it should be4 ,it is neutralized by the many ,irish ,protestant members who represent landed interests2 and valuable as are the services of ,mr4 ,maguire1 ,mr4 ,monsell1 ,mr4 ,blake1 and ,major ,o',reilly1 it is to ,protestant rather than to ,catholic champions that we look now for advocacy of ,irish tenant claims1 and the redress of ,irish wrongs4 ,in the ,house of ,lords we are most feebly represented4 ,out of twenty-six ,catholic peers1 seventeen only have seats1 and none of these are distinguished as debaters4 ,footnote #aai ,footnote #aai3 ,see ,lord ,mahon's ,hist4 of ,england1 vol4 i4 p4 #af4 ,in the time of ,charles ,,ii4 the ,catholic peerage was more numerous than it is now in proportion to the commoners4 ,long after that period1 also1 the lords and gentry held a higher position than was in harmony with the scanty number of their poorer co-religionists4 ,indeed1 we have not yet recovered the blow which was inflicted on us by the expulsion of the peers ,footnote #abj under the rule of a sovereign who was even then a ,catholic by conviction1 and avowed himself such on the bed of death4 ,but though the heads of old ,catholic families in ,england do not1 as a rule1 shine as public characters1 they have a title to respect which none others can claim4 ,they represent those who suffered a long period of banishment for conscience' sake1 treasuring in their hearts a faith more precious than courtly splendor4 ,for this they were outcasts and pariahs1 bowed beneath invidious disabilities and penal laws1 deprived of all the material advantages which spring from good education1 brilliant careers1 and fine prospects4 ,despair of this world had become a part of their inheritance1 and it is no wonder that their successors to this day are somewhat rustic and unskilled in the ways of cabinets and courts4 ,footnote #abj3 ,flanagan's ,english and ,irish ,history1 p4 #ffe4 ,the ,catholic revival1 in short1 in ,england--a revival of whose reality and strength we daily see the proofs--is not to be ascribed to external causes4 ,no zealous autocrat1 no lordly oligarchy1 no foreign invasion1 no laws1 no concordats1 have brought it about4 ,everything was against it1 and everything seems now to favor it4 ,penal statutes1 as decided and almost as deadly as those of the ,caesars1 forbade it2 the ,revolution of #afhh excluded from the throne any sovereign professing it2 ,george ,,iii4 fought against it as stoutly and more successfully than he did against the ,american ,colonies2 ,pitt succumbed in his efforts to obtain for it some measure of justice2 ,fox abandoned its cause politically as hopeless2 ,footnote #aba and the ,grenville cabinet1 with all the talents1 was dismissed1 because it planned a trifling concession to ,catholic officers in the army and navy4 ,footnote #aba3 ,pellew4 ,life of ,lord ,sidmouth1 ii4 #dce4 ,jesse's ,george ,,iii4 iii4 #dgf4 #dih ,george ,,iv41 like his father1 frowned on ,catholic emancipation1 and yielded to it only under the pressure of a threatened rebellion4 ,but though political privileges were granted to ,catholics1 it was deemed impossible that their dark1 decrepit superstition should ever regain its footing in ,england4 ,the book of common prayer witnessed against it2 the preface to the ,protestant ,scriptures called its head antichrist2 a thousand and ten thousand pulpits thundered against it ,sunday after ,sunday2 dissenters scorned and trampled on it as the worn-out garments of the ,babylonish harlot2 millions of tracts and volumes pointed out its supposed errors1 and cart-loads and ship-loads of ,bibles were dispersed through the land as antidotes to its poison4 ,yet it spread4 ,it triumphed over obloquy4 ,it appealed in its defence to that very ,bible which was believed to condemn it4 ,it courted inquiry4 ,it asserted its own divinity4 ,it baffled the law1 bent the will of kings and parliaments1 scattered the arguments of its enemies like chaff1 and advanced steadily as the tide1 sapping every dam1 and levelling every breakwater that opposed its flow4 ,in the bosom of the adverse church it found advocates1 and in almost every family it made converts4 ,new concessions are made to it in every session of parliament2 higher and higher offices in the state and in the magistracy are entrusted to its members2 the paltry restrictions which yet remain in force will soon be swept away1 and having once obtained social and political equality1 we have not the remotest doubt that it will obtain1 also1 superiority approaching as near to supremacy as will be consistent with the liberty of every other portion of society4 ,there is an increasing disposition among sectarians in ,england to make common cause with ,catholics on a variety of grounds4 ,one of these grounds has already been mentioned4 ,they would willingly see national education everywhere made purely denominational1 and many of those among them who are strongly attached to their own particular form of belief would concur with the ,catholic primate in asking that the schools endowed by the state may1 in each place1 be given over to the majority1 whether ,catholic1 ,anglican1 ,presbyterian1 or ,dissenting1 and that schools required by the minority may be supported on the voluntary system4 ,footnote #abb ,there is1 however1 a difficulty in this proposal which would give rise to endless jangling4 ,in some places there is no majority1 religious persuasions are equally divided4 ,in others the majority is small and fluctuating4 ,what is the majority this month may be the minority in the next4 ,how could their rival claims to endowment be adjusted in such cases8 ,footnote #abb3 ,letter to ,earl ,grey1 p4 #bj4 ,but again1 there is a growing disposition among religious men of all denominations to make common cause with the ,catholic ,church in her warfare against infidelity and social crime1 particularly drunkenness4 ,their ministers now are constantly coming in contact with our priests1 sitting with them on committees1 and speaking side by side with them on platforms on subjects affecting the general weal4 ,they are beginning to recognize the great fact that our war with infidelity is not of yesterday1 that we have from age to age maintained the fundamental truths of revelation in the face of a world of scoffers1 and that if the banner of the cross could fall from our hands1 it would lie in the dust4 #dii ,ritualists imitate our solemn rites2 sedate churchmen have a friendly feeling toward us because we hold the apostolic succession2 ,biblical scholars in all sects defer to us as the mediaeval guardians and copyists of the ,bible2 ,low-,churchmen endorse our doctrines of grace2 ,dissenters hold out to us the right hand of fellowship1 because we also are non-conformists as regards the ,established ,church2 and even ,quakers ,footnote #abc see in us some hopeful features when they hear us declare that we are affiliated in spirit to all who desire to know and obey the truth1 and who err only through invincible ignorance4 ,footnote #abc3 ,see speech of ,mr4 ,bright in the ,house of ,commons1 ,march #acth1 #ahfh4 ,as time goes on1 they will give us more credit for spiritual acumen4 ,they will see how justly we have estimated the claims of each successive pretender to religious inspiration and knowledge of divine mysteries4 ,they will ratify our decision on the isms of this as of former centuries4 ,they will admit1 for example1 that we have divined the true nature of animal magnetism1 with all those extraordinary phenomena which perplex so many minds in ,england and elsewhere4 ,to some persons these manifestations appear wholly impostures1 to others they seem real and useful1 and to others again1 indifferent1 absurd1 and unworthy of attention4 ,the church1 on the contrary1 after sifting the evidence adduced concerning them1 pronounces them real in many instances1 useless1 unlawful1 and ,satanic4 ,theologians like ,perrone and ,ballerini have devoted long attention to them1 and laid bare their wickedness in its most deadly aspects4 ,under a mask of mingled absurdity and terror1 they reveal just so much of the invisible world as may deceive and ruin souls4 ,they are horrible mimicries of the angelic and spiritual economy of the church4 ,in all these phases of mesmerism1 somnambulism1 clairvoyance1 table-turning1 table-rapping1 and evocation of spirits1 they testify to the truth of divine revelation in respect to the spiritual world4 ,so far they are of some advantage1 for the evil one is always rendering involuntary homage to the ,gospel which he seeks to pervert4 ,but in exchange for this1 they draw deluded multitudes away from the true and lawful way of holding communion with the dead1 piercing the mysteries of the world unseen1 obtaining divine guidance1 mental illumination1 cure of bodily infirmities1 signal answers to prayer1 visions1 ecstasies1 and knowledge of future events4 ,from none of these things are the faithful debarred in the church1 but in spiritism1 or demon-worship1 they are attracted to them in ways which are generally fatal to their morals and their faith4 ,we have heard from an intimate ally of ,mr4 ,home1 now a convert to the ,catholic ,church1 that in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred those who put themselves in communication with spirits by means of table-speaking1 lose their belief in the ,christian religion and adopt a loose mode of life4 ,the political grievances of which ,english and ,irish ,catholics have still to complain1 are of old not of recent origin4 ,they belong to a system now virtually exploded1 and if our statute-book were a tabula rasa they could not be written in it again4 ,there is full proof of this in the fact that ,great ,britain legislates for her colonies more justly than for ,ireland1 or even for ,england4 ,in ,sydney and ,melbourne1 in ,australia1 there are ,catholic colleges endowed by the government1 and in ,canada there is an endowed ,catholic ,university4 ,yet ,ireland1 with #d1ejj1jjj ,catholics1 has hitherto asked in vain for the like favors4 #ejj ,the colonies1 moreover1 are not burdened with a ,protestant establishment1 but lie open to the exertions of ,catholic and ,protestant missionaries alike1 who receive from the state equal encouragement and occasional subsidies4 ,the consequence is1 that in almost every colonial dependency of ,great ,britain the true church is in full activity1 and gives ample proof of her divine mission4 ,the following table of our episcopate will show how wide is the field of action afforded to it by the tolerant system which ,england has pursued of late years4 ,if she had not at the ,reformation fallen from the faith1 there would not perhaps at this moment be an idol temple in the world4 ,if she should ever return as a nation to the fold of ,christ1 her mighty influence may1 with the help of other ,christian people1 suffice to break in pieces every fetish and exorcise the races possessed by demons4 ,the figures here given are of the year #ahfg2 and it may be observed that in all the twenty vicariates of ,india1 ,burma1 and ,siam there was an increase of the ,catholic population over the preceding year1 with the exception only of those which are under the ,portuguese ,archbishop of ,goa4 ,in his province there was a small decrease4 ,footnote #abd ,footnote #abd3 ,catholic ,directory #ahfh1 p4 #ai to #bf4 ,archbishops ,bishops ,vicars ,apostolic ,england #a #ab 444 ,ireland #d #bd 444 ,scotland 444 444 #c ,malta ,gozo 444 #b #a ,gibraltar ,quebec ,halifax ,oregon ,british ,columbia #b #ag #b ,harbor ,grace ,st4 ,john's1 ,newfoundland ,west-,indies #a #a #b ,africa 444 #a #d ,india1 ,burma1 444 444 #bj ,australia #a #aj 444 ,new ,zealand 444 #b 444 ,total #i #fi #cb ,from this it appears that there are now no ,catholics in the ,british empire invested with the episcopal office4 ,the number is little short of that of the ,anglican ,bishops1 with all the power and influence of the state1 and a vast ,protestant population to give effect to their exertions4 ,yet1 poor and comparatively unaided as our bishops are1 the results of their labors in the colonies and among the heathen far exceed anything which rival missionaries can boast4 ,as to the ,russian clergy1 their torpor in regard to idolatrous nations has often been commented on1 and they are strictly forbidden by imperial edicts to endeavor to make converts among them4 ,footnote #abe ,it is therefore with ,protestant missionaries only that we have to vie1 and these1 through their disunion1 lose1 in great measure1 the fruits of their zeal4 ,the two millions sterling per annum1 which their societies in the ,british isles alone expend1 ,footnote #abf do not enable them to make head against the rapid extension of the ,catholic faith4 ,in ,china1 ,india1 ,ceylon1 the ,antipodes1 ,oceanica1 ,africa1 the ,levant1 ,syria1 ,armenia1 and ,america1 they have signally failed in converting the heathen1 and in rivalling the happy results of ,catholic missions4 ,footnote #abg ,footnote #abe3 ,wagner's ,travels in ,persia1 vol4 il4 #bjd4 ,footnote #abf3 ,the ,times1 ,april #ai1 #ahfj ,footnote #abg3 ,marshall's ,christian4 ,missions1 vol4 i4 #i-ae4 ,every ,catholic nation is a vast missionary society1 and if ,england had been such to this day1 her ,indian possessions would be basking in the full light of the gospel4 ,but1 alas6 how awfully has she betrayed her trust4 ,the speeches of ,burke1 the lives of ,clive and ,hastings1 bear witness against her4 ,rapine and cruelty marked the earlier stages of her ,indian government4 #eja ,during long years she left the ,indians to their idols1 and then recruited her treasury by a tax laid upon them1 and commanded her troops to pay homage to the demons of the land4 ,her efforts for their conversion1 if they can be called hers1 are feeble and unsystematic1 while ,catholic missions in every part of ,british ,india are steadily conducted on a uniform plan4 ,eleven years ago there were about a million ,catholics in the wide territory1 and the spirit which guided ,s4 ,franois ,xavier1 ,robert de' ,nobili1 ,john de ,bretto1 and ,laynez1 prospered the work of their hands4 ,since that time the ,madras ,catholic ,directories show that constant progress has been made4 ,in some dioceses from #ejj to #ajjj souls are reclaimed annually from ,hindooism1 ,mohammedanism1 and ,armenian sects4 ,the lives of the converts are often most edifying1 and though much ignorance and superstition has to be weeded out of them1 they show forth on the whole the glory of ,him who has called them out of darkness into marvellous light4 ,registries of adult baptisms being kept at each of the stations1 it is easy to ascertain the progress made4 ,in #ahei1 #bfad adults in the province of ,madura were received into the church1 and the native college of ,negapatam1 frequented by young men of high caste only1 had produced seven priests1 eight theological students1 a large number of catechists and school-masters1 with several government officers4 ,the ,jesuit fathers had founded five orphanages and three hospitals1 beside convents of ,carmelite and ,franciscan nuns1 where ,hindoo women1 under the constraining influence of divine grace1 led devout and austere lives4 ,footnote #abh ,it has hitherto been the policy of our rulers to avoid interfering with the religion of the natives1 ,footnote #abi but the time1 we may hope1 is at hand when more righteous and merciful principles will prevail in the councils of state4 ,by promoting schism1 ,england delays the conversion of the heathen4 ,friends and foes alike testify to the inefficacy of ,english ,protestant missions4 ,they can destroy faith1 but never inspire it2 and those who desire to read the true records of the triumph of the cross in heathen lands1 and especially in the dominions of ,great ,britain1 must seek them1 not in the publications of ,london ,missionary ,societies1 but in the ,annals of the ,propagation of the ,faith1 and the writings of ,mr4 ,marshall and ,father ,strickland4 ,footnote #acj ,footnote #abh3 ,mission de ,madurt1 par ,l4 ,saint ,cyr1 ,s4,j4 7#ahei47 ,footnote #abi3 ,marshall's ,christian ,missions1 vol4 i4 #dab-dai4 ,footnote #acj3 ,catholic ,missions in ,southern ,india to #ahfe4 ,the present ,earl ,grey1 though an ,anglican1 once said to a gentleman from whom we heard it1 that he wished1 for his part1 that ,catholic bishops only were supported in the colonies by the ,english government2 for that they alone1 in his opinion1 were actuated by pure motives and self-sacrificing zeal4 ,earl ,grey does not stand alone in his truly liberal sentiments4 ,indeed1 it is wonderful how generous and enlightened many of our statesmen have become suddenly1 since the ,fenians have threatened their ,english homes4 ,impossible as it is for us to defend their conspiracy1 it seems to bear out the assertion that no people ever obtained their rights by mere remonstrance and petition4 ,the injustice of maintaining a ,protestant establishment in ,catholic ,ireland now flashes upon our rulers like light from heaven1 though they have been told of it before a thousand times4 ,now they are as eager for its destruction as they were for its support4 ,now they see the matter as all ,europe1 all the civilized world except themselves1 saw ft long ago4 #ejb ,now they quote with approval the question proposed by ,sir ,robert ,peel3 ,this missionary church of yours1 with all that wealth and power could do for her1 can she in two hundred years show a balance of two hundred converts8 ,now they endorse the opinion of ,goldwin ,smith1 that ,no ,roman ,catholic mission has ever done so much for ,roman ,catholicism in any nation as the ,protestant establishment has done for it in ,ireland4 ,footnote #aca ,it has1 to use ,mr4 ,bright's words1 made ,roman ,catholicism in ,ireland not only a faith1 but absolutely a patriotism4 ,it has made the ,irish more intensely ,roman than the members of their church are found to be in almost any other kingdom in ,europe4 ,footnote #acb ,don't talk to me of its being a church6 exclaimed ,burke4 ,it is a wholesale robbery4 ,it is an anomaly of so gross a kind1 said ,lord ,brougham1 just thirty years ago1 that it outrages every principle of common sense4 444 ,it cannot be upheld unless the tide of knowledge should turn back4 ,irish ,toryism1 wrote ,john ,sterling1 in #ahdb1 is the downright proclamation of brutal injustice1 and that in the name of ,god and the ,bible6 ,all this ,english statesmen1 who long obstinately resisted truth and justice1 now see and acknowledge from a conviction too prompt to have been inspired by anything but fear4 ,terror has been known to turn the hair gray in a night1 and to fill the mind with wisdom in a day4 ,in saying this1 however1 we do not mean to express any approval of ,fenianism1 knowing it1 as we do1 to be a detestable conspiracy1 secret1 unlawful1 and condemned by the church4 ,footnote #aca3 ,letter in ,morning ,star1 ,march #cj1 #ahfh4 ,footnote #acb3 ,speech in the ,house of ,commons1 ,march #ca4 ,the disestablishment of the ,irish ,protestant ,church will directly affect the condition of the ,catholics in ,england4 ,it will place their ,irish brethren on a social level with ,protestants1 and thus add to the respectability of the entire body of ,catholics in the three kingdoms4 ,it will diminish the number and influence of those ,irish ,protestant clergymen who cross the channel year by year to declaim on the platforms of our halls and assemblies against the supposed corruption of the ,church of ,rome4 ,it will remove ten thousand heart-burnings from the people of ,ireland1 and enable them1 though differing in religion in some districts1 to live together in peace and harmony4 ,it will increase self-respect in both sections of the community--in the ,protestant1 because they will no longer be grasping oppressors2 in the ,catholic1 because they will no longer be fleeced and oppressed4 ,the relative merits of their creeds will then have to be discussed on even ground1 and no weapons but those of the sanctuary will avail in the fight4 ,the voluntary system by which their ministers will be supported will throw them entirely upon their moral resources1 and every adscititious aid in propagating their belief will be happily rescinded4 ,the settlement of the ,irish ,church question will soon be followed by legal improvement in the condition of tenants as regards their landlords2 and thus the two crying evils of our ,irish administration being redressed1 speculation will be encouraged1 commerce will thrive1 fortunes will be made1 emigration will be arrested1 and emigrants recalled4 ,the church of ,catholics will share in the general prosperity1 and chapels now little better than mud hovels will be razed to the ground to make room for buildings stately and fair as the collegiate churches of ,windsor1 ,middleham1 and ,brecon1 in the olden time1 or as the ,priory of ,stone1 the ,orphanage of ,norwood1 and the ,college of ,st4 ,cuthbert1 near ,durham1 at the present day4 #ejc ,there is at this moment a concurrence of events favorable to the ,catholic religion in the ,british empire1 such as never was seen before since the ,reformation4 ,no fires of ,smithfield1 no renegade queen like ,elizabeth1 no ,spanish ,armada1 no ,gunpowder ,plot1 no ,puritan ascendency1 no despotic house of ,stuart1 no ,pretender1 no ,titus ,oates1 no ,french or other foreign invasion1 no ,lord ,george ,gordon1 no rebellion like that of ,robert ,emmett and ,lord ,edward ,fitzgerald1 is looming in the distance1 marring the prospect1 and nearing us to turn hope into despair4 ,even ,fenian outbreaks are1 we believe1 anticipated and virtually undone4 ,every sun that shines is ripening the harvest1 and were it not that the enemy is more busy than ever in sowing tares1 we might expect that within a century the whole1 or at least the larger part1 of the population of the three kingdoms would be included in the domain of the church4 ,what we have most to dread is the spread of unbelief in its subtlest and most engaging form4 ,it comes among us with stealthy tread1 and with the smile of hypocrisy on its face4 ,it professes respect for the ,christian religion1 but with homage on its lips carries contempt in its heart4 ,it regards all religions as superstitious1 and the ,christian as the best among bad ones4 ,it pervades every branch of our non-,catholic literature1 and offers fruit slightly poisoned to every lip4 ,it combats dogma and the supernatural in every shape1 appeals in all things to the senses1 sets up humanity as its idol1 and studiously confounds the distinction between right and wrong4 ,it maintains the authority of ,scripture1 provided all that is supernatural and miraculous be eliminated4 ,it reveres ,jesus ,christ when placed by the side of the mild and honest ,aurelius1 ,cakya ,mouni1 ,footnote #acc and the sweet and humble ,spinoza4 ,footnote #acd ,it cites as examples of men most filled with the spirit of ,god1 ,moses1 ,christ1 ,mohammed1 ,vincent of ,paul1 and ,voltaire4 ,footnote #ace ,it inscribes the name of ,christ on volutes in tapestried drawing-rooms1 ,footnote #acf together with those of ,socrates1 ,columbus1 ,luther1 and ,washington4 ,it affirms that we can never be sure that the opinion we are endeavoring to stifle is a false opinion1 ,footnote #acg and that no one can be a great thinker who does not recognize that1 as a thinker1 it is his first duty to follow his intellect to whatever conclusions it may lead4 ,footnote #acg 7sic7 ,it approves of hearty good-will evinced toward all persistence of endeavor1 whether the object of that persistence be good or evil according to moral or religious standards1 and it is drawn strongly into sympathy with such poets as ,robert ,browning in their keen love for humanity as such1 a love which is displayed toward weakness and evil as much as toward strength and goodness1 provided only the attribute be human4 ,footnote #ach ,such sympathy with all that is human it accounts divine4 ,it worships1 in short1 the creature more than the ,creator2 it feels no need of grace1 and still less of atonement4 ,it relapses1 consciously or unconsciously1 into the frozen zone where ,comte reigns supreme master of a system of icy negatives called philosophy--negatives the more specious because veiled under the term positivism--where all but facts attested by the senses must be renounced1 and all final causes1 all supernatural intervention1 scattered to the wind4 ,footnote #aci ,footnote #acc3 ,the fourth ,buddha4 ,footnote #acd3 ,renan4 ,vie de ,jesus ,footnote #ace3 ,autobiography of ,garibaldi4 ,edited by ,alexandre ,dumas4 ,footnote #acf3 ,in ,victor ,hugo's ,house in ,guernsey4 ,see his ,william ,shakespeare1 p4 #efh4 ,footnote #acg3 ,john ,stuart ,mill on ,liberty1 p4 #ai4 ,footnote #ach3 ,john ,t4 ,nettleship's ,essays on ,robert ,browning4 ,preface4 ,footnote #aci3 ,cours de ,philosophie ,positive1 #ahci4 ,politique ,positiviste1 #ahea-d4 #ejd ,toward this the ,protestant mind in ,england is daily tending with increasing proneness1 that portion only excepted which looks upward toward ,catholic ritual and dogma4 ,its presence is more and more apparent among educated men1 in ,parliament1 the universities1 the learned professions1 the reviews and journals of the day4 ,it is an enemy that meets us in every walk1 and is more difficult to grapple with than any definite form of error4 ,it objects not merely to this or that part of our ,creed1 as ,lutheran s and ,calvinists did on their first appearing1 but it meets us in limine with doubts which pagans would have been ashamed to profess4 ,even writers on the whole ,christian1 like ,samuel ,taylor ,coleridge1 have aided in forming it2 but ,neology1 ,strauss1 ,comte1 ,mill1 ,carlyle1 ,sterling1 ,hugo1 have brought it in like a flood4 ,mazzini propounds it openly in ,macmillan's ,magazine1 while the ,saturday ,review and the ,pall ,mall ,gazette adapt it weekly and daily to the palate of the million4 ,not that the free-thinkers are agreed together2 they often jeer at each other4 ,singular what gospels men will believe1 cries ,carlyle1 ,footnote #adj even gospels according to ,jean ,jacques4 ,but this is the language of each1 ,adieu1 ,o church2 thy road is that way1 mine is this4 444 ,what we are going to is abundantly obscure2 but what all men are going from is very plain4 ,footnote #ada ,footnote #adj3 ,thomas ,carlyle's ,french ,revolution1 ii4 #gj4 ,footnote #ada3 ,carlyle's ,life of ,sterling1 p4 #bhf4 ,these1 then1 are the two great antagonists1 the ,catholic ,church and ,infidelity in its last and most popular shape of ,positivism4 ,people in ,england are choosing their sides1 and drawing nearer and nearer to one or the other of these champions4 ,minor differences are merging into the broad features which distinguish the two4 ,to the positivism of ,comte there stands opposed the positivism of the ,church4 ,she alone speaks positively1 authoritatively1 uniformly1 and permanently1 respecting the invisible world1 the ,first ,cause1 the revelation of ,god in ,christ1 in the ,gospel1 the ,scriptures1 and the ,church4 ,she bears witness at the same time of ,god and of herself1 and even those who cannot accept her testimony admit that of all the enemies of infidelity her presence is the most imposing1 and her language the most unwavering and distinct4 ,none can accuse her of hostility to science1 for the ,holy ,see in this1 as in all past ages1 has repeatedly declared with what favor it looks on really scientific labors4 ,it is impudently bruited abroad1 wrote ,pius ,,ix4 to ,m4 ,mahon de ,monaghan1 ,footnote #adb that the ,catholic religion and the ,roman pontificate are adverse to civilization and progress1 and therefore to the happiness which may thence be expected4 ,rome1 says the ,dublin ,review1 ,footnote #adc does not aim directly at material well-being2 she does not teach astronomy or dynamics2 she propounds no system of induction2 she invents neither printing-press1 steam-engines1 nor telegraphs2 but she so raises man above the brute1 curbs his passions1 improves his understanding1 instils into him principles of duty and a sense of responsibility1 so hallows his ambition and kindles his desire for the good of his kind and the progress of humanity1 that1 under her influence1 he acquires insensibly an aptitude for the successful pursuit even of physical science1 such as no other teacher could impart4 ,footnote #adb3 ,see ,rome et la ,civilisation4 ,paris1 #ahfc4 ,footnote #adc3 ,april1 #ahff1 pp4 #bii1 #cja4 #eje 4444 ,it is manifest to all whose thoughts reach below the surface of things1 that the services which ,lord ,bacon rendered to philosophy1 and ,newton to science1 were indirectly due to the ,catholic ,church4 ,if the ,catholic ,church is ever to be rebuilt among us in anything like its ancient power and splendor1 it must be raised on a broad basis4 ,we do not mean that its real foundations admit of change or extension4 ,they are the same from age to age4 ,but they must1 to meet the wants of the age1 be made to appear as comprehensive as they really are4 ,happily1 tolerant maxims now prevail in religion1 and liberal views in politics4 ,the divine right of hereditary kings is exploded1 and persecution is no longer held up as a sacred duty4 ,the ,catholic ,church1 rightly understood1 is the most liberal of all institutions4 ,it is the source and security of true freedom1 and it is only when perverted that it can serve the cause of despotism4 ,it has everything to gain from liberty1 and everything to lose by adopting tyrannical principles4 ,its best friends in ,england are those who labor to develop and exhibit its alliance with all that is true in science and good in mankind1 and who rely more upon its heavenly powers of persuasion than on any excommunications and anathemas1 who conciliate to the utmost without compromise1 and relax rules without ever breaking or warping them4 ,anti-catholic writers have labored hard to prove that our religion is the enemy of progress1 and it is therefore our duty and interest to show by word and deed how utterly false their assertions on this subject are4 ,it will be a greater triumph for the church to have demonstrated her superior philosophy after fair discussion1 than it would have been to suppress that discussion or to shirk it4 ,we have really nothing to fear4 ,catholicism lies at the root of all sciences1 and it alone makes progress possible4 ,such are the views of the wisest and best of those ,english ,catholics who work in the literary hive4 ,they heartily adopt the words of ,m4 ,cochin1 in his speech at ,malines4 ,christianity is the father of all progress1 of all discoveries4 ,every science is one of ,god's arguments1 and every progress one of ,god's instruments4 ,modern science is but an offshoot of the ,gospel1 a result of the ,incarnation4 ,it redeems our bodies from a thousand disabilities and discomforts1 as the ,cross has redeemed our souls4 ,the discovery of ,america1 the art of printing1 the telescope1 the microscope1 the clock1 the mariner's needle1 the steam-engine1 superseding the slaves who were once the machinery of the world1 gas1 telegraphic wires1 what are they but minor gospels and temporary redemptions for the toiling and weary sons of men8 ,the ,church views such improvements with delight1 and sees in them the means1 when rightly employed1 of restoring the broken alliance between earthly and heavenly blessings4 ,is this what you call material progress8 ,no1 no2 it is all moral improvement4 ,you might as well call the press a material improvement as the railroad and the telegraph4 ,as the one brings thought into immortal life1 so the others redeem man from the sorrows of intervening distance4 ,the ,church affiliates them gladly to herself1 and traces a moral advance in every material gain1 a development of redemption by ,christ in the progress of agriculture1 improved machinery1 in chloroform1 in short-hand1 lithography1 photography1 the respirator1 and ever implement and utensil which makes labor less irksome and pain less poignant4 #ejf ,in the science of political economy especially1 ,english ,catholics are anxious to rectify prevalent mistakes1 and place that delightful study on its proper basis4 ,the writings of ,ricardo and ,adam ,smith1 of ,mc,culloch1 ,senior1 and ,mill1 have familiarized persons' minds with the subject1 but they have failed to show how every principle and statement of sound political economy rests on some maxim of the ,gospel or of the church4 ,the ,utilitarian doctrines of ,jeremy ,bentham were as bald and selfish as those of ,malthus on ,population were immoral and absurd4 ,self-restraint and self renunciation are the soul of thrift1 the source of wealth1 the element of labor1 the main-spring of exertion1 the corner-stone of the social edifice1 the health of the community1 the rectifying principle which keeps the whole machinery of society in active and harmonious operation4 ,it would make the rich poor in spirit1 and the poor comparatively rich4 ,it would place a happy limit to the extremes of wealth and indigence4 ,it is1 or should be1 the fundamental principle of the production and distribution of wealth4 ,if duly carried out1 it would promote solidarity in all its branches to a wonderful extent1 and secure liberty as the condition requisite for the very existence of property and the only possible sphere of mutual exertion4 ,m4 ,perin ,footnote #add has shown with admirable force and precision how ,catholicism establishes self-renunciation as the corner-stone of all social relations1 and guarantees the greatest freedom to man1 and the greatest security to property4 ,the ,dublin ,review ,footnote #ade also has done good service in popularizing ,m4 ,perin's arguments and supplying an antidote to the defective teaching of ,john ,stuart ,mill1 and other non-,catholic political economists4 ,footnote #add3 ,de la ,richesse dans les ,socits ,chrtiennes4 ,footnote #ade3 ,april1 #ahff4 ,christian ,political ,economy4 ,the ,academia of the ,catholic ,religion1 founded by ,cardinal ,wiseman in #ahfa1 continues to be productive of happy results4 ,its main design was to exhibit1 in the lectures delivered at its meetings and published afterward1 the alliance between sacred and secular science4 ,it is affiliated to the ,academia in ,rome1 and two volumes of essays read before it have already appeared in print4 ,footnote #adf ,the rich and varied learning of ,cardinal ,wiseman1 the clear1 incisive style of ,dr4 ,manning1 the minute mediaeval lore of ,dr4 ,rock1 the calm and affectionate tone of ,mr4 ,oakeley1 the acumen and exhaustive faculties of ,dr4 ,ward1 render these publications very attractive to ,catholics who are fond of argumentative writing4 ,they keep up active thought and speculation in a highly influential circle1 and are valuable landmarks in the history of the ,catholic revival in ,england4 ,the meetings of the ,academia are held at the ,archbishop's residence in ,york ,place1 ,london4 ,footnote #adf3 ,first ,series1 #ahfe4 ,second ,series1 #ahfh4 ,longmans4 ,it is a remarkable fact that at this moment ,footnote #adg there are two political parties in the state1 each of which is bent on advancing ,catholic interests1 though in different ways4 ,footnote #adg3 ,april1 #ahfh4 ,mr4 ,disraeli and ,mr4 ,gladstone1 the heads respectively of the ,conservative and ,liberal parties1 are seeking to redress one of the great evils of ,ireland1 the former by levelling up and the latter by levelling down4 ,the government would1 if it were able1 raise the ,catholic church in ,ireland to a footing with the ,establishment by endowing a ,catholic ,university and the ,catholic priesthood1 while the opposition proposes simply the disestablishment and disendowment of the ,irish ,protestant church4 #ejg ,in both cases the result would be religious equality in ,ireland1 though there can be no doubt that the plan suggested by the ,liberals is the more rational and feasible one4 ,it is the one1 moreover1 which is sanctioned by the ,cardinal ,archbishop of ,dublin and by the ,archbishop of ,westminster4 ,on ,sunday1 the #abth of ,april1 the faithful in ,london signed a petition in favor of ,mr4 ,gladstone's resolutions by the ,archbishop's express recommendation4 ,it is pleasant to see the ,catholic ,primate and the future ,prime ,minister of ,england thus cooperating in the interests of the ,catholic religion1 especially when we remember that they are old friends and were at college together4 ,the ,easter of #ahfh has been marked by great increase of spiritual activity in the churches of large towns4 ,numbers of ,catholics who had neglected the sacraments have been restored to the use of them1 and ,protestants come ,sunday after ,sunday to hear the sermons delivered in our churches4 ,footnote #adh ,footnote #adh3 ,weekly ,register1 ,april #aa1 #ahfh4 ,the public mind is stirred on the subject of our religion1 and curiosity in very numerous instances ends in conversion4 ,a recent clerical convert has placed #ejjj in the hands of a prelate for the good of his diocese1 and a whole community of ,anglican ,sisters of ,mercy have yielded to the direction of clergymen who are priests indeed4 ,the ,ritualist parsons are busy fraying the way for ,roman missionaries4 ,their altars are draped in colors according to the season1 acolytes bend before them and serve1 water is mingled with their sacramental wine1 lights are burning at their communions1 the host is elevated1 their robes are gorgeously embroidered1 and dense clouds of incense mount before their shrines1 as if they were dedicated to the ,god of unity under the patronage of ,catholic saints4 ,many of their flock are deluded by this empty pomp1 but many also are led by it to the true springs of faith and the observance of a better ceremonial4 ,during the first half of the present century #bfj religious houses and colleges have been raised in ,england to repair the loss of #fha monasteries of men and women uprooted at the time of the ,reformation4 ,if we continue and end the century with equal exertions--and it is probable we shall exceed rather than fall short of them--we shall by that time have nearly as many religious institutions as our forefathers could boast after the sway of the church in ,england had lasted #hjj years under royal protection4 ------------- #ejh ,sketches ,drawn ,from ,the ,abb ,lagrange's ,life of ,st4 ,paula4 ,in ,three ,chapters4 ,chapter ,,ii4 ,god had given great compensation to ,paula in the rare natures of her children4 ,the eldest1 and perhaps the most gifted1 ,blesilla1 combined with delicate health an ardent soul1 quick wit1 and a charming mind4 ,her penetration astonished even ,st4 ,jerome4 ,she was full of those characteristics that make one hope everything and fear everything4 ,she was but fifteen when she lost her father1 and seventeen when ,st4 ,jerome first knew her1 in the first bloom of her youth and beauty4 ,she spoke ,greek and ,latin with perfect purity1 and the elegance of her language was remarkable1 as well as the quickness of her intellect4 ,paula1 full of anxiety for such a nature1 sought to give her the counterpoise of solid piety4 ,but ,blesilla1 though capable of exalted virtues1 was intoxicated by the splendors of the sphere in which she was born and educated4 ,like all young girls of her rank1 she loved dress1 luxury1 and entertainments1 and neither the death of her father nor her mother's example had detached her heart from the world1 neither did her early widowhood2 for ,paula had given her in marriage to a young and rich patrician of the race of ,camillus1 who died in a short time after1 leaving ,blesilla a widow and without children4 ,but even this blow did not suffice1 and1 after the usual time given to mourning1 the worldly and frivolous tastes of the young widow again rose to the surface4 ,she passed many hours before her glass1 busy in adorning herself1 surrounded by her slaves occupied in dressing her hair and waiting on her1 and entertainments of all sorts were her delight4 ,paulina1 the second daughter of ,paula1 was1 as we have already said1 a great contrast to her sister4 ,less brilliant1 but not less agreeable1 great good sense was her chief attribute1 with sweetness of disposition4 ,less captivated by the world than ,blesilla1 she was more inclined to be pious4 ,the equilibrium in her nature was excellent4 ,but there was nothing in any way uncommon about her4 ,she seemed born for the ordinary destiny of woman4 ,she was now sixteen1 and ,paula1 with an instinct truly maternal1 felt that what she had to do for her child was to give her a protector worthy of her1 in a husband of sound character and amiable disposition4 ,but the pearl of ,paula's children was her third daughter1 ,eustochium1 who was sweetness and candor itself1 and all innocence and piety4 ,her distinguishing feature was her love for her mother1 whom she never for a moment quitted4 ,marcella kept her with her for some time1 and when the child returned to ,paula1 she clung more than ever to her mother1 like a young vine4 ,her only wish was to follow in the footsteps of ,paula and to be like her1 and to consecrate herself also to the service of ,god with her young virginal heart4 ,soft and silent1 but hiding under this veil of timidity a remarkable mind1 ,eustochium was formed for high purposes4 ,she was not fourteen when ,st4 ,jerome came to ,rome4 #eji ,rufina was then only eleven or twelve years of age1 and the time had not yet come for anxiety about her4 ,it was1 however1 different with ,toxotius1 who was younger still1 but had not received baptism1 his father's family having assumed his guardianship2 and they were pagans1 which grieved ,paula1 who hoped to make her son a fervent ,christian4 ,such was the family of ,paula4 ,her many duties to them had excited the interest of the austere monk1 who1 together with ,marcella1 wished to do everything possible to aid ,paula in her cares4 ,blesilla at once filled the mind of ,st4 ,jerome with the ardent wish to save her from the career of worldliness on which she seemed bent2 but in vain did he try to bring her to grave thoughts4 ,paulina was easier to guide1 for ,providence aided the pious efforts of her friends in the husband chosen for her by her mother1 who was ,pammachius1 of whom ,st4 ,jerome has said that he was the most ,christian of the noble ,romans1 and the most noble of the ,christians4 ,he was also the old and tried friend of ,st4 ,jerome1 to whom this marriage gave great happiness1 as well as to ,paula and ,marcella4 ,as for ,eustochium1 she continued to expand and bloom under the influence of her mother4 ,in vain were the rich dresses of her sisters and their shining jewels spread out before her4 ,her taste for religious life was becoming more and more decided every day4 ,notwithstanding her great youth1 none of the maidens of the ,aventine surpassed her in prayer1 or in following ,st4 ,jerome in his laborious studies of the ,scriptures4 ,she had learnt ,hebrew1 and1 like her mother1 had inspired ,st4 ,jerome with singular devotion and interest4 ,the increasing vocation of ,eustochium aroused opposition in her father's family2 for it was not possible that the progress of monastic tendencies among the patrician women should be allowed to take root without resistance in ,rome1 where opposition was made by law to anything like celibacy for men1 with open advocacy of matrimony and the honors of maternity for women4 ,st4 ,jerome undertook to modify these ideas with his powerful pen1 and1 in his answer to the attack of one named ,helvidius1 came off the field completely victorious4 ,it was about this time1 #chd ,a4,d41 that ,blesilla fell ill of a pernicious fever1 which for a month threatened her life4 ,this illness brought her wisdom4 ,the following is the story of her conversion1 from ,st4 ,jerome3 ,during thirty days1 he says1 we saw our ,blesilla burning with a devouring fever4 ,she lay almost bereft of life1 panting under the struggle with death1 and trembling at the thought of the judgments of ,god4 ,where then was the help of those who gave her worldly counsels8 of those who prevented her from living for ,christ8 ,could they save her from death8 ,no4 ,but our ,lord himself1 seeing that she was only carried away by the intoxication of youth and the errors of her century1 came to her1 touched her hand1 and cried out to her1 as to ,lazarus1 ',arise1 come forth and walk6' ,she understood this call1 and she arose and knew that she owed the boon of life to him who had given it back to her4 ,she was then but twenty years of age1 when she shone in her new-born beauty of holiness4 #eaj ,she1 who formerly passed long hours at her toilet1 now sought only to find ,god2 and1 instead of the ornaments in which she had liked to appear1 she now covered her fair head with the veil most becoming for a ,christian woman4 ,all the money that had been spent for adorning herself now went to the poor4 ,and this ardent soul1 once consecrated to ,god1 gave itself up entirely1 and1 passing with a great flight beyond ordinary natures1 at once reached the summit of human virtue and perfection4 ,eustochium and ,paula had not more ardor4 ,jerome was admirable in his manner of seconding this generous enthusiasm4 ,he now instructed her in the ,scriptures1 and she studied first ,ecclesiastes1 then the gospels1 and ,isaiah4 ,she learned ,hebrew to read the ,psalms4 ,her energy was wonderful1 for her steps still tottered from illness1 and her delicate neck drooped under the weight of her young head4 ,but the divine book was never out of her hands4 ,how shall we paint the joy of ,paula at this change in her beloved child6 ,her dearest wishes had been granted4 ,this1 too1 was a fruitful conversion2 others imitated such an example2 and ,paula's house soon became a sort of monastery1 which ,jerome would call the fireside church4 ,he gives a most beautiful description of ,paula and her children at this period1 when the blessing of ,god was so visibly on her household4 ,her fervor increased4 ,she determined on a complete sacrifice of her worldly goods1 and1 in the words of ,st4 ,jerome1 being already dead to the world1 though still living1 she distributed all her fortune among her children1 thereby entirely initiating herself into the holy poverty of ,christ4 ,notwithstanding all the consolations ,god had sent her1 she was still uneasy and dissatisfied2 her life was not yet all that she sighed for4 ,a great disgust toward ,rome filled her mind1 and the descriptions ,epiphanius had given her of the ,east rose up for ever in her1 making her soul long for the monastic life of the desert4 ,the example of ,melanie was then to increase this longing1 for ,melanie had now been for some years realizing her dreams in her convent on the ,mount of ,olives4 ,there was now nothing to prevent ,paula from going4 ,blesilla1 as well as ,eustochium1 wished to follow their mother in her pilgrimage1 and many of their friends desired to join them4 ,st4 ,jerome1 the veteran pilgrim1 was to be their pilot to holy places4 ,he had strengthened them all in the love of ,god and nourished them with the ,holy ,scriptures4 ,his letters to ,eustochium at this time were exquisite4 ,what could be more touching than the friendship uniting the austere old monk and this sweet young maiden8 ,o my ,eustochium6 ,o my daughter6 ,o my sister6 he wrote to her1 since my age and charity alike permit me to give you these names1 if you are by birth the noblest of ,roman virgins1 ,i beseech you guard zealously your own heart and keep it from evil4 ,imitate our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 be obedient to your parents1 go out rarely1 and honor the martyrs in the solitude of your chamber4 ,read often and you will learn much4 ,let sleep surprise you with the holy book in your hands1 and1 if your head drop down with fatigue1 let it be on the sacred pages4 ,eustochium was grateful to him for his wise counsels1 and1 wishing to express her appreciation of his letters to her1 she gathered courage to send him a little offering of a basket of cherries1 with several of those bracelets called armillae and some doves4 ,the whole was accompanied by a sweet1 girlish letter1 full of affection4 ,the cherries1 she said1 were a symbol of purity1 to remind him of his letters2 the bracelets were such as were given to reward brilliant deeds1 and were to put him in mind of his own victories in controversy2 and1 lastly1 the doves were emblematic of his tenderness to her from her childhood4 #eaa ,st4 ,jerome received with great kindness the little offerings of his spiritual daughter1 and thanked her for them in a letter full of affection1 mingled with the grave counsels which ever flowed from his pen4 ,the time was approaching for the departure of ,paula for the ,east4 ,it was in the autumn of #chd ,a4,d41 when ,blesilla suddenly fell ill of the same fever which had once before laid her so low4 ,the news of her illness filled her friends with consternation1 for ,blesilla was tenderly loved by them4 ,she sank so rapidly that there was soon no hope left of her recovery4 ,this was but four months after her conversion1 and ,god already judged her ready for a better life1 and called her to himself4 ,she was but twenty1 and was going to die4 ,her mother1 her sisters1 her relations1 her friends1 ,marcella and ,st4 ,jerome1 all gathered around her death-bed in tears4 ,blesilla alone did not weep4 ,though the fever was consuming her1 a ray of celestial light illuminated her countenance with a beauty not of earth1 and transfigured her4 ,her only regret was1 that her repentance had been so short4 ,she turned to those who were around her3 ,oh6 pray for me1 she cried1 to our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 to have mercy on my soul1 since ,i die before ,i have been able to accomplish what ,i had in my heart to do for him4 ,these were her last words2 every one present was moved to tears by them4 ,jerome eagerly offered consolation4 ,trust in the ,lord1 dear ,blesilla1 said he2 your soul is as pure as the white robes you have worn since your consecration to ,god1 which though but recent was so generous and complete that it came not too late4 ,these words filled her soul with peace4 ,and shortly afterward1 to use the words of ,st4 ,jerome1 freeing herself from the pains of the body1 this white dove flew off to heaven6 ,her obsequies were magnificent1 followed by all the ,roman nobles4 ,such was the custom of the patricians4 ,a peculiar interest and sympathy were felt in the fate of this brilliant young woman1 as well as universal compassion for the sorrow of her venerable mother4 ,the long procession walked through the streets1 followed by the coffin covered with a veil of gold4 ,st4 ,jerome1 though not approving of this display1 dared not interfere to prevent it1 as it seemed a sad consolation to ,paula to see the honors paid to the child so tenderly loved4 ,she undertook to accompany ,blesilla to her last resting-place2 but her strength failed1 and1 having taken but a few steps1 she fainted away and was brought back to her house insensible4 ,the days that followed the funeral only increased her grief4 ,she was crushed by it4 ,in vain did she try to submit to the divine will1 her heart failed her1 and ,jerome felt that he must make an effort to give her strength1 or else she would succumb to the pressure4 ,the effort was great on his part1 for ,blesilla was his beloved pupil1 and this death annihilated all his own cherished hopes of her4 ,he never found the courage to conclude a commentary1 begun expressly for her1 on ,ecclesiastes4 ,but feeling it a duty to help ,paula1 he wrote to her a letter filled with true delicacy of feeling and ,christian faith4 ,he commenced by weeping with her over the lost ,blesilla1 for he said3 ,while wishing to dry her mother's tears1 am ,i not weeping myself8 #eab ,he continued this noble letter in these words1 alike reproachful and sympathizing3 ,when ,i reflect that you are a mother1 ,i do not blame you for weeping2 but when ,i reflect also that you are a ,christian1 then1 ,o ,paula6 ,i wish that the ,christian would console the mother a little4 ,he reminded her of the children she had left1 and with all the authority of his holy office bid her take care lest1 in loving her children so much1 she did not love ,god enough4 ,listen1 he says1 to ,jesus1 and trust in him3 ',your daughter is not dead1 but sleepeth4' ,then ,jerome would picture to ,paula her daughter in all her celestial glory4 ,he would suppose ,blesilla calling upon her mother in these words3 ,if you have ever loved me1 ,o my mother6 if you have ever nourished me from your bosom1 and trained my soul with your words of wisdom and virtue1 oh6 ,i conjure you1 do not lament that ,i have such glory and happiness as is mine here6 ,what prayers does ,blesilla not now offer up for you to ,god6 ,and ,st4 ,jerome adds1 ,she is praying for me also1 for you know1 ,o ,paula6 how devoted ,i was to her soul1 and what ,i did not fear to brave1 that she might be saved4 ,st4 ,jerome's letter awoke new ,christian strength and resignation in the broken spirit of ,paula4 ,the tears ceased to flow1 but the wound bled inwardly and never healed4 ,the void left by ,blesilla in her mother's heart must ever make it desolate4 ,rome became insupportable to her1 and the pilgrimage to the ,east1 so long thought of1 seemed now the only thing that could interest her4 ,about this time ,pope ,damasus died4 ,he was a great loss to ,st4 ,jerome1 for his successor had not the same moral courage1 and dared not sustain the old monk in advocating monastic life1 which so enraged the patricians4 ,finally1 worn out by persecution1 and perhaps longing to return to that solitude he had never ceased to regret1 ,jerome determined to leave ,rome4 ,this was in the year #che ,a4,d4 ,his friends were only waiting for his signal to accompany him in numbers1 and many were the tears shed by his gentle pupils in ,rome at his departure4 ,his farewell letter to them all was addressed to the venerable ,asella1 through whom he sent his last greetings to ,paula1 ,eustochium1 ,albina1 ,marcella1 ,marcellina1 and ,felicity1 his sisters in ,jesus ,christ4 ,many of these he was destined to see no more4 ,but the decision of ,paula was irrevocable4 ,she had no longer any earthly tie to detain her4 ,her son1 moved by the example of his mother and sisters1 had received ,christian baptism1 and was soon to marry a young ,christian maiden1 the cousin of ,marcella4 ,rufina was to remain during her mother's absence with her sister ,paulina and ,pammachius1 and also with ,marcella1 her second mother4 ,eustochium was to accompany her mother1 as well as a large number of the pious community of the ,aventine4 ,they left ,rome in the autumn of #che ,a4,d4 ,paula courageously bid farewell to her children1 and the friends who had followed in troops to see her embark4 ,leaning on the arm of ,eustochium1 she was seen on the deck of the vessel1 her eyes averted1 that her strength might not fail her as she witnessed the sorrow of her loved ones whom she was leaving4 ,for ,st4 ,jerome tells us1 ,paula loved her children more than any other woman4 #eac ,the voyage was favorable1 the vessel touching at many places of classic interest4 ,when they finally reached ,salamines in the ,island of ,cyprus1 what was her joy on finding her venerable friend1 ,st4 ,epiphanius1 waiting on the shore to receive her1 happy in being able to return the hospitality he had enjoyed under her roof in ,rome three years before4 ,the ,island of ,cyprus was filled with monasteries and convents founded and protected by ,epiphanius1 which were a great attraction to ,paula4 ,holy hymns were sung where ,venus but lately had reigned supreme2 and the grave of the holy patriarch ,hilarion stood near the ruins of the ancient temple of the heathen goddess4 ,after leaving ,cyprus1 ,paula went to ,antioch4 ,there ,jerome and the priests and monks who had accompanied him from ,rome were awaiting her with ,paulinus1 the bishop4 ,they wished to detain her2 but since her feet had touched land her ardor to reach ,jerusalem had so increased that nothing could stop her4 ,to follow the footsteps of ,christ1 to see where his precious blood was shed1 then to visit the anachorites of the desert1 such was ,paula's thought4 ,eustochium and her companions shared this desire4 ,no time was lost4 ,a caravan was organized1 ,jerome and his friends on dromedaries1 ,paula and her suite on asses1 and they began their journey together4 ,the road from ,antioch to ,jerusalem was long and fatiguing for women so delicately bred4 ,a journey in those days was full of perils of which we now have no idea4 ,but ,paula was indefatigable1 deterred by no dangers and complaining of no inconveniences1 as she crossed the icy plains at this most trying season of the year4 ,st4 ,jerome tells of the cities that she saw1 and of the emotions that she felt as her knowledge of ,scripture and of holy books brought up recollections and associations either of ,jewish or of ,christian history wherever she went4 ,besides1 ,jerome was there1 with his prodigious memory and knowledge1 to throw light on every step4 ,as ,paula approached ,jerusalem1 her soul was more deeply moved1 than it had yet been4 ,the view of the landscape around the city was desolate1 even as early as the fourth century4 ,she entered by the ,gate of ,jaffa1 also called the ,gate of ,david and the ,gate of the ,pilgrims4 ,the proconsul of ,palestine had sent an escort to meet her1 to receive her with honor2 but with that sentiment which later made ,godefroi de ,bouillon refuse to wear a golden crown where ,god had worn one of thorns1 ,paula refused to lodge in the palace offered for her convenience1 and she and her whole suite staid at a modest dwelling not far from ,calvary2 then she started at once to visit the ,holy ,places4 ,who can describe her feelings as she entered the church of the ,holy ,sepulchre8 ,in the fourth century1 the stone which closed the entrance to the tomb of our ,lord was still to be seen by the faithful pilgrims4 ,to-day it is covered by a monument of marble4 ,as soon as ,paula saw it1 with great emotion she embraced it2 but when she entered into the sepulchre itself1 and went up to the rock on which had laid the body of our ,lord1 she could no longer restrain her tears1 and1 falling on her knees1 sobbed and wept abundantly4 ,all ,jerusalem saw these tears1 and were edified at the great piety of this noble ,roman lady1 the daughter of the ,scipios4 ,st4 ,jerome tells us that1 while she was in ,jerusalem1 she would see everything1 and that she was only dragged away from one holy place that she might be taken to another4 #ead ,after having visited ,jerusalem1 the pilgrims travelled all over the ,holy ,land1 commencing with ,bethlehem and ,judea1 then visiting ,jericho and the ,jordan1 ,samaria and ,galilee as far as ,nazareth1 and finally1 reorganizing the caravan1 they set out for ,egypt2 not1 however1 before paying a visit to ,melanie1 in her convent on the ,mount of ,olives1 whence they returned to ,jerusalem4 ,paula would now have fixed herself at ,bethlehem but for this longing to visit the fathers of the desert4 ,they started on this1 the longest and most fatiguing part of their journey1 and were sixteen days in going from ,jerusalem to ,alexandria4 ,this city was the ,athens of the ,east4 ,in such an atmosphere of learning1 there had been great intellectual development among the ,christians1 and the school of ,christian philosophers of ,alexandria was renowned throughout the world4 ,this was what detained ,paula and ,eustochium1 and particularly ,jerome1 some time at ,alexandria1 where they were received with great hospitality by the bishop1 ,theophilus4 ,but even the most interesting studies could not make ,paula forget the principal object of her voyage to ,egypt1 and her desire to see and to know the ascetics1 that wonderful class of men1 who voluntarily exiled themselves from the world and from all human ties1 and astonished mankind by incredible austerities1 and by consecrating their lives entirely to spiritual things and to a future existence4 ,at this time the number of these anachorites had so multiplied1 that it was said that in ,egypt the deserts had as many inhabitants as the cities4 ,monastic life was then in all its glory4 ,the great anachorites1 ,paul1 ,antony1 ,hilarion1 and ,pacomius1 were dead2 but their disciples lived1 as celebrated as themselves4 ,a great work of organization had been accomplished among them4 ,the first men who came to the desert lived alone in caves or cells1 each following his individual inspiration4 ,paul had lived forty years in a grotto1 at the entrance of which was a spring and a palm-tree1 drinking the water of the spring and eating the fruit of the tree1 being his only nourishment4 ,antony's life had been more extraordinary still4 ,but when the number of the hermits increased1 they felt the necessity of community life being established1 and the cenobites began to take the place of the anachorites1 though there remained many of the latter1 dividing1 as it were1 the hermits into two kinds1 the ,anachorites and the ,cenobites4 ,large convents spread out along the banks of the ,nile to the furthest extremity of ,egypt4 ,it was not easy to visit these establishments4 ,in going there1 many years before1 ,melanie and her companions had been lost for five days1 and their provisions being exhausted they had nearly died of hunger and thirst in the desert4 ,crocodiles1 basking in the sun1 had awaited with open jaws to devour them1 and numberless other dangers had beset them4 ,but this did not discourage ,paula1 and her route being happily chosen1 she accomplished her journey safely to the mountain of ,nitria1 where five thousand cenobites lived in fifty different convents1 under the rule of one abbot4 ,the news of her coming had preceded her1 and the ,bishop of ,heliopolis had come to welcome the noble lady4 ,he was surrounded by a great crowd of cenobites and anachorites4 ,as soon as they perceived the caravan1 they came forward singing hymns4 ,paula was soon surrounded4 ,she declared herself most unworthy of the honors accorded her1 and at the same time glorified ,god1 who worked such marvels in the desert4 ,the bishop first conducted the pious band to the church situated on the summit of the mountain1 and there1 with that hospitality for which the monks of the ,east were ever remarkable1 the travellers were given the best rooms attached to the convent and intended for the use and convenience of strangers4 #eae ,fresh water was brought to them to wash their feet1 and linen to dry them1 and the fruits of the desert to refresh their palates2 after which they were allowed to visit the convents and the hermits1 whose life was very simple and very free1 at the same time holy and austere4 ,ambitious of reducing the body to servitude1 and to penetrate the secrets of things divine1 they united action with contemplation4 ,their days were passed between work and prayer4 ,some were to be seen digging the earth1 cutting trees1 fishing in the ,nile1 or perhaps plaiting the mats on which they were to die4 ,others were absorbed by the reading of1 or meditation on1 the ,holy ,scriptures4 ,the monasteries swarmed like bee-hives4 ,after having witnessed the cenobitical life1 ,paula went to the desert of cells to see the anachorite life1 which there was carried out in all its austerity and all its poetry4 ,these monks had no walls built by man1 but had retired to the mountains as to the most inaccessible asylums4 ,caverns and rocks were their dwellings1 the earth their table1 their food roots and wild plants1 and water from the springs their refreshment4 ,their prayers were continual1 and all the mountain hollows rang with ,god's praises4 ,these grottoes did not communicate with each other1 and the isolation of the anachorites was complete4 ,once a week1 on ,sunday only1 they left their cells1 and1 dressed in robes made of palm-leaves or of sheepskin1 they went to the church of ,nitria1 where they saw one another1 and also met the cenobites4 ,paula wished to know and listen to these pious men4 ,she therefore visited all the grottoes1 one by one1 talking always of the things of ,god to their inmates4 ,paula's next visit was through a still more savage country to see those called by ,st4 ,jerome the columns of the desert4 ,she cared not for dangers nor fatigue1 so that she could contemplate such men as ,macarius--the disciple of ,antony and ,pacomius--a man so austere that he had astonished ,pacomius himself1 who had watched him during the whole of one ,lent plaiting mats in his cell1 without speaking to any one1 all absorbed in ,god1 and only eating once a week1 on ,sunday1 a few raw vegetables4 ,none could surpass this great ascetic4 ,he permitted the pilgrims to penetrate into his grotto1 and delighted ,paula with his holy conversation and instruction4 ,jerome admired likewise the prodigies of this pure and austere life2 but more occupied than ,paula with the doctrines he heard discussed1 he had perceived that some of the monks were less enlightened than others4 ,it seems1 as it afterward was proved1 that the theories of ,origen were already beginning to trouble the inhabitants of the desert4 ,there remained now1 to complete ,paula's insight into the life of the hermits1 but to visit the convents founded by ,pacomius1 which she hesitated not to do4 ,there were six thousand monks living in them1 governed by the venerable ,serapion4 ,their rule divided each monastery into a certain number of families4 ,their frugal lives enabled them to extend their charities far and wide4 ,their fasting and abstinence lasted all the year round1 becoming only more strict in ,lent4 ,paula enjoyed their hospitality greatly1 learning much from ,serapion that delighted her about this well-organized monastic life which realized her ideal4 #eaf ,she thought for a moment of establishing herself in the desert1 and of requesting ,serapion to admit her colony under the rule of ,pacomius2 but the love of the ,holy ,places prevented her from carrying out this plan4 ,she said her resting-place was not in these deserts1 it was in ,bethlehem4 ,already had she lingered too long6 ,she had now learned all that she wished to learn1 enough for her own guidance4 ,she therefore embarked with her entire caravan for ,maioma1 a sea-port of ,gaza2 and from there1 without stopping on her way1 she returned to ,jerusalem1 and thence to ,bethlehem1 with as much rapidity1 says ,st4 ,jerome1 as if she had had wings4 ,here the news awaited her of the death of her daughter ,rufina4 ,the blow was terrible to ,paula1 but her mind was strengthened by all she had seen1 and the voice of ,god reached her heart and comforted her1 and gave her stronger hope than she had ever had in reunion hereafter with her beloved children4 ,she sought to make herself worthy of immortality1 and her faith and her good works brought her consolation and peace4 ,she resolved to found two monasteries3 one for herself1 ,eustochium1 and her friends from the ,aventine2 the other for ,jerome and his followers4 ,this was done without delay1 and they at once began the life which they longed for--a life of labor1 of study1 and of prayer4 ,to ,be ,continued4 ------------- ,to ,the ,count ,de ,montalembert1 ,with ,a ,copy ,of ,inisfail4 ,footnote #adi ,footnote #adi3 ,from a forthcoming volume of ,poems1 by ,aubrey de ,vere1 now in press by the ,catholic ,publication ,society4 ,your spirit walks in halls of light3 ,on earth you breathe its sunnier climes3 ,how can an ,irish muse invite ,your fancy thus to sorrowing rhymes8 ,but you have fought the church's fight6 ,my country's cause and hers are one3 ,and every cause that rests on ,right ,invokes ,religion's bravest son4 ---------- #eag ,the ,legend of ,glastonbury4--,a ,d4 #fb4 ,down in the pleasant west of ,england a river--the copious ,brue--follows its course to ,bridgewater ,bay1 between the ,sedgemoors and other rising grounds4 ,somersetshire farmers now drive their ploughs and graze their cattle where ,i am going to describe water3 thanks to those ,benedictine monks whom they have so clean forgotten4 ,but at ,christmas-tide1 some sixty years after the first ,christmas the world ever saw1 there were no monks at ,glastonbury2 for the simple reason1 there were no ,christians there4 ,no one had banked out the waters of the ,bristol ,channel1 and converted a brackish and unwholesome swamp into fine arable or pasture land4 ,the ,brue had it all its own way1 to make islands1 pools1 and treacherous bogs with its unrestrained waters2 until it had got so far west as to struggle with the advancing tide of the bay4 ,glastonbury has the holiest memories of any place in ,england2 and they date from the first moment when the faith was planted there4 ,the sacred name of our ,lord was brought to this marshy district in a far-off heathen land by one of his own disciples1 ,saint ,joseph of ,arimathea4 ,who has not heard of the ,glastonbury thorn8 ,a history of ,somerset would be incomplete which did not mention its blossoming every ,christmas that comes round4 ,it was fair and fragrant for fifteen hundred winters1 while all around was sapless and dead4 ,people try to account for this standing miracle by something peculiar in the soil1 as they would explain away the freedom of ,ireland from snakes and toads1 or the healing virtues of ,st4 ,winifred's ,well4 ,there were probably ,sadducees in ,jerusalem who thought the ,pool of ,bethesda was all nonsense1 or a mere chalybeate4 ,anything you like about the powers of nature1 but nothing of the marvels of grace4 ,chemistry to any extent1 but of miracle not one jot4 ,thorns blooming at ,christmas8 ,it is all a question of earth1 soil1 stratum1 and the lay of the ground1 with those who are of the earth1 earthy4 ,but we are now on our way to ,glastonbury as ,christian pilgrims1 staff in hand4 ,and it is very fit that we should regard the old thorn 7or such suckers and cuttings of it as may be found7 with reverence4 ,for that thorn is a ,christian tree1 planted by ,christian hands4 ,more than this3 it was planted by the hands whose unutterable privilege it was to unfasten and take down from the cross1 and bear with adoring reverence to the tomb1 the body of ,god1 separated from his soul1 united ever with his divinity4 ,we are accustomed1 in our meditations on the passion1 to contemplate the emaciated1 agonized form of our ,lord stretched and racked upon the cross2 or1 after the ,consummatum est1 when eventide was come1 laid stark and bloodless in the arms of the ,queen of martyrs1 his most desolate ,mother4 ,naturally we lose out of sight1 by comparison1 other agents and events in what followed his expiring cry4 ,yet look again4 ,in the growing dusk of that first ,good ,friday1 at the foot of the cross1 and in the group of five or six persons to whom the eternal ,father seems to commit the lifeless body of his ,son1 there is the saint of ,glastonbury4 #eah ,with the dolorous ,mother1 and the beloved disciple1 and the saintly1 penitent ,magdalene1 and the other holy women1 and ,nicodemus1 ,st4 ,joseph of ,arimathea also bears his part4 ,to come back to ,glastonbury2 we must pass over some thirty years from that sacred paschal eve4 ,pentecost soon followed it1 with its fiery tongues on the apostles' brows4 ,they were illuminated and strengthened to preach the faith over the earth lying in darkness4 ,so they separated on this world-wide mission1 each on the path whereon the guidance of ,god's ,spirit led him4 ,their sound went over all the earth1 and their words unto the ends of the whole world4 ,st4 ,philip went into ,phrygia1 and1 by some accounts1 was martyred there4 ,others make him to have preached the gospel in what is now ,france1 and that ,st4 ,joseph was one of his companions4 ,a better supported tradition has it that ,st4 ,joseph1 with ,st4 ,lazarus and his two holy sisters1 ,martha and ,mary1 landed at ,marseilles from ,judea4 ,anyhow1 here comes ,st4 ,joseph of ,arimathea to ,britain1 with a faithful band of eleven disciples4 ,he has reached the distant region of tin-mines which the old ,phoenicians had discovered and worked in ,cornwall1 ,scilly1 and1 perhaps1 the ,mendip ,hills4 ,he is come not for precious metals1 but to bring the priceless word of life4 ,so1 rather more than sixty years after the ,incarnation1 and while ,saints ,peter and ,paul are still alive in ,rome1 though the day of their martyrdom draws near1 we find ourselves on the brow of ,weary-,all ,hill1 a mile or so south-west of the spot where ,glastonbury ,abbey will be built4 ,weary-,all ,hill6 the name it has been known by for generations back4 ,but not a likely name to be given it by ,st4 ,joseph and his eleven companions1 as they stood on it for the first time1 eighteen centuries ago2 as they looked on the marshy plain1 dotted with islands1 in and out of which the glassy stream is winding4 ,weariness1 at least lassitude of spirit1 was unknown to those apostolic men4 ,had they not come all this way to bring the everlasting gospel8 ,had not their feet been beautiful upon the mountains as they crossed them1 bearing this message of heavenly love8--mountains deep in snow1 yawning with frightful clefts and precipices1 gloomy with impenetrable forests1 to which this ,weary-,all is scarcely a mole-hill8 ,at length1 then1 said ,st4 ,joseph1 when the twelve had paused on the brow of it to recover breath2 for few of them were young1 and it was rather a pull for a ,somersetshire hill--at length we have reached the end of our pilgrimage4 ,as he spoke1 he pointed with his long staff to the little group of islands already noticed4 ,a cheery ,december sun lingered on the scene1 and1 though it was evening1 still cast a gleam upon the wide-spread water4 ,the ,brue was winding along1 noiseless and limpid1 sprinkled with its dark islets1 as the shining coils of a snake are variegated with the spots upon its skin4 ,there was no ice yet1 though it was already the ,christmas season4 ,perhaps the sea-water that mingled with the marsh from the ,bristol ,channel prevented its formation4 ,the leafless thickets that fringed the slopes of ,west ,sedgemoor1 and clothed both islands and marshland in irregular clumps1 allowed a more distinct view of the mirror of waters than when shaded with summer foliage4 ,there was a kind of grave and sober animation over the whole scene4 #eai ,a short distance further off1 to the east1 rose a solitary peaked hill1 perhaps even then called the ,tor4 ,it has several scarped lines1 or passes1 drawn around it1 denoting that the ,romans had fortified it as a stronghold1 which they occupied from time to time4 ,years after1 a little chapel in honor of ,st4 ,michael the archangel will be built on its summit4 ,years later1 again1 that little chapel will be enlarged into a stately church1 the tower of which still remains4 ,and nearly fifteen centuries after ,st4 ,joseph first stood on ,weary-,all1 the last abbot of the stately ,benedictine monastery1 as ,glastonbury had become1 was martyred there with two of his monks4 ,his crime was1 that he rendered to ,caesar only those things that were ,caesar's1 and refused to acknowledge the tyrant ,henry ,,viii4 as head of ,god's church in ,england4 ,northward of where we stand1 at the distance of five miles and more1 the abrupt range of the ,mendip ,hills caught at that moment almost the last beams of the declining sun1 as it sank1 fiery red1 toward the western ocean4 ,the end of our pilgrimage1 said ,st4 ,joseph again1 slowly1 and gazed down on the peaceful spot4 ,these are the islands of which the heathen king spoke3--how are we to name him8 ,arviragus1 answered one of his companions1 nay1 it was the saint's own nephew1 called ,helaius4 ,permitting us to set up there a ,christian altar1 and to proclaim the names and the praises of ,jesus and ,mary4 ,may the kindness be returned a hundred-fold into his own bosom1 ejaculated ,theotimus4 ,amen1 answered ,st4 ,joseph fervently4 ,and ,joseph his son1 and ,simeon and ,avitus1 and the rest1 responded4 ,then all knelt there on the brow of the hill2 all but ,hoel1 their poor pagan guide to the spot4 ,and with ,christian psalms1 and the ,gloria ,patri1 and invocations to the court of heaven to assist them in their praises1 they poured out thanksgivings to him who had permitted their long wanderings to cease1 and their missionary life in this heathen land to begin4 ,hoel stood near1 leaning on his shepherd's crook4 ,he guessed in general what it was about2 but he understood neither ,hebrew nor ,greek4 ,he is a true ,briton of that date1 is ,hoel2 and he might literally be called true blue1 for he is painted all over in blue patterns with the juice of the woad1 like his northern cousins1 the ,picts4 ,his scanty garments are dyed the same hue with the same plant1 which yields its juice plentifully in this part of ,britain4 ,he looks at the saint1 and thinks he is inquiring the name of that principal island in the group to which his staff points4 ,iniswytryn1 cries ,hoel1 in explanation4 ,you're ,latin scholars1 gentlemen2 so ,i suppose you know what that means--,glassy ,island4 ,footnote #aej ,footnote #aej3 ,insula ,vitrea1 the ,roman and therefore the ,british name 7by a slight corruption7 of what was afterward called ,glastonbury4 ,glas is the ,celtic word for grayish blue1 ,greek text and enters into numerous local names in ,ireland1 ,wales1 and the ,highlands4 ,its affinity with our word glass is probably more than a coincidence of sound1 the ancient glass being mostly of the same neutral tint4 ,others derive the name of the place from the woad-plant1 glaisn1 which grows abundantly in this watered district4 ,glass1 in those days1 imported by the ,romans into ,britain1 sorry stuff as the best of it would now be reckoned in the ,birmingham or ,st4 ,helen's foundries1 was thought a wonder of rarity and beauty4 ,so ,glassy ,island was a name equivalent to our calling another island that we love very dearly the ,first flower of the earth1 and first gem of the sea4 #ebj ,hoel now spoke again in the same strange jargon as before1 composed of ,british1 or what we should call ,welsh1 and a little ,latin4 ,it was the dialect of those parts of ,britain where the ,romans had established their colonies and introduced their tongue4 ,be it noted1 we are at this moment near the ,roman colonies of ,uxella1 or ,bridgewater1 ,ad ,aquas1 or ,wells1 and ,ischalis1 or ,ilchester4 ,so you are going to settle down there1 remarked ,hoel4 ,won't you offer some sacrifice on first sighting the place8 ,we have no means of sacrificing this evening1 friend1 answered ,st4 ,joseph calmly1 nor to-morrow morning1 ,i fear1 unless we obtain materials1 which at present we lack4 ,means6--materials6 said ,hoel1 musing with himself4 ,well1 every nation1 ,i take it1 has its own customs4 ,but ,i know those who would not be long without providing the materials4 ,st4 ,joseph wished to ascertain what was passing in the man's mind4 ,the zeal which urged ,st4 ,paul to become all things to all men1 that he might save all1 burned in the holy missionary's bosom4 ,it made him seek out all that might serve the purpose of his coming4 ,he had everything to learn3 language1 habits of thought1 customs of social life1 and the very observances of ,british heathenism4 ,and how1 he asked1 would you offer a sacrifice1 good friend1 when you had nothing to offer it with8 ,i8 ,nay1 ,i could not4 ,what good would a sacrifice be from a peasant like me8 ,to pray is to make an offering1 is it not8 ,yes2 but ,i don't mean that4 ,you know ,i mean something more2 why1 something really sacrificed--consumed1 to make the gods favorable4 ,have you no such sacrifice in your religion8 ,then it can't be the true one1 ,i'm sure6 ,certainly1 said ,st4 ,joseph1 we have the one true and adorable ,sacrifice1 of which all others are mere shadows1 and some of them very dark1 distorted shadows4 ,every morning we offer to the true and living ,god that spotless ,lamb who alone can take away sin1 or be a worthy thank-offering to his majesty and his mercy4 ,a lamb8 said ,hoel1 still musing2 why1 that's not to be had at this season4 ,but would nothing else do instead8 ,for example1 now1 ,i've a nice-- ,do not concern yourself1 answered ,st4 ,joseph1 and smiled again1 kindly4 ,we shall be able to provide ourselves in a few days1 when we have made acquaintance with the neighborhood4 ,i suppose they grow wine in these parts8 ,wine8 repeated the peasant1 opening his eyes4 ,oh6 yes1 to be sure4 ,then1 after a pause3 ,you're fond of wine1 then1 after all1 like our own ,druids8 ,well1 ,i should hardly have thought-- ,helaius could hardly repress a smile at his mistake4 ,hoel looked at him2 then1 as if he had hit on the cause of his amusement1 laughed his loud clownish laugh1 too4 ,wine8 ,ah6 the very best1 if you can buy it of those gray-bearded gentlemen2 and old mead1 and metheglin2 or cider from our apples hereabout4 ,we grew a mortal sight of 'em4 ,footnote #aea ,footnote #aea3 ,glastonbury was afterward called by the ,saxons ,avalon1 or the ,island of ,apples4 ,then he broke out into singing1 and a kind of war-dance1 to please his companions1 as he deemed3 ,all under yon oaks1 and the mistletoe sprouting4 ,when victims have bled in the circle of stones4 ,we drink down the sunset with sword-play and shouting1 ,and he that refuses1 we'll raddle his bones3 ,his bones6 ,and he that refuses1 we'll raddle his bones6 #eba ,it was difficult not to smile at his extravagant tones and gestures4 ,gently1 gently1 said ,st4 ,joseph to his companions1 or we shall be misleading him1 and doing harm4 ,oh6 never mind1 ancient sir1 remarked ,hoel encouragingly1 though he had not understood what was said4 ,all quite right--why shouldn't one8 ,only1 it strikes me1 you've no place to lay in a stock of it at present4 ,now1 our ,druids burrow out caves1 'tis thought1 somewhere under their cromlechs-- ,listen6 interrupted ,st4 ,joseph1 laying his hand on the other's arm4 ,he looked into ,hoel's face1 and gained his attention in a moment4 ,listen1 while ,i say a thing to you4 ,bread and wine1 the ordinary food of man in our native land1 have been appointed by him whom we serve1 as the materials of that true sacrifice which he will accept4 ,he requires1 and will admit1 no other4 ,animals were sacrificed to him of old1 before he appointed this new and better way2 but now-- ,you spoke of a lamb1 interrupted the peasant1 growing rather sulky1 so ,i just took the liberty of informing you as we'd none at your service4 ,it was not the moment to pursue such high and mysterious truths with him any further4 ,but ,hoel himself would not be let off1 nor would he let off ,st4 ,joseph4 ,something seemed to be working in his mind4 ,a lamb is a lamb1 persisted he doggedly1 though he seemed to mean no disrespect2 and a sacrifice is a sacrifice2 and bread is bread1 ,i hope2 and wine1 ,i'm sure1 is wine4 ,all things are what they have been created by ,god1 answered ,st4 ,joseph very gently1 until it is his holy will and pleasure to change them in any way1 or even to change them into other things4 ,hoel looked at him1 but said nothing4 ,his look1 though1 meant inquiry1 and this ,st4 ,joseph perceived4 ,is not a tree changed into something very different from what it was before1 he went on1 when the warm air of spring breathes upon it1 and the sap rises into it1 and it puts forth green buds1 and they swell1 and burst1 and afterward come leaves and fruit8 ,true1 answered he2 and then was silent1 thinking4 ,did you ever see one of the trees down yonder blossom at this season8 ,for all answer1 ,hoel laughed1 and pointed to the leafless boughs on the island1 and the shores around them4 ,could the gods whom you worship cause them to do so8 ,not one of 'em all1 answered he1 with a somewhat scornful gesture4 ,then1 who makes winter pass and spring return2 the bud burst forth1 and the fruit ripen8 ,a pause4 ,the poor pagan was not prepared to answer4 ,now1 continued ,st4 ,joseph1 my ,god1 the one living and true1 not only has appointed the laws by which seasons come round with their produce1 and the sun rises and sets4 ,he sometimes1 moreover1 changes these things1 according to his own all-perfect will1 so that the sun stays motionless in the heavens above1 and the tree blooms in mid-winter on the earth below4 ,hoel mused1 and mused again1 while his eyes wandered from the speaker to the rest1 in whose looks he read confirmation of the words4 ,then he turned to take a sweep over the wintry scene that lay beneath and around4 ,woods and thickets skirting the slopes of ,sedgemoor1 the osiers lining the banks of the ,brue1 the few apple-trees that were even then on ,iniswytryn--all without sign of a leaf4 #ebb ,he bent his eyes to the ground1 knit his brows1 seemed determined to hear no more1 and to believe nothing of what he had heard4 ,still the gentle1 persuasive voice of the saint sounded in his ears3 ,what is that1 friend1 you have in your hand8 ,my shepherd's crook1 was the brief and surly answer4 ,and see1 my pilgrim-staff1 that has aided my steps so far4 ,yours was cut from a ,british sapling1 out of your moist soil1 ,i dare say1 no longer ago than last autumn4 ,mine1 under a burning sky1 long years since1 in ,judea1 a land you never heard of4 ,it came from a thorn-brake that had furnished thorns for a crown of which you know nothing4 ,which of these two staves would bud the quickest1 if they were planted side by side8 ,hoel looked up1 pleased to find something he understood4 ,mine would1 of course1 he grinned out4 ',tis a right slip of mountain-ash1 and would have leaves next spring1 if ,i struck it into the ground4 ,and what if mine now budded before you could count ten8 ,you jest with me where ,i see no jest1 exclaimed the countryman1 disposed now to be angry1 or you speak as one of the unwise4 ,there is no jest here1 answered ,st4 ,joseph with unruffled look4 ,you say truly4 ,by no power of mine could the seasons alter1 or the effects of them4 ,my ,master has said3 ',all the days of the earth1 seed-time and harvest1 cold and heat1 summer and winter1 night and day1 shall not cease6' ,but what if his power and his will unite to make some wonderful change in all this8 ,his power is great in the summer1 answered ,hoel1 casting a look at the declining sun2 but in the winter time he seems further off1 or feebler4 ,he cannot melt the ice1 nor draw up the dew1 nor warm my fingers while ,i stand watching my sheep4 ,it was plain he was speaking of his deity1 then sinking in the west1 lower every moment4 ,ah6 said ,avitus1 is it even such darkness as this into which the land is plunged8 ,would we had pushed on sooner from ,gaul6 ,courage1 brother1 whispered ,simeon in answer4 ,there has been no time lost1 ,man can do but little1 except pray and obey4 ,if he does these well1 he does good all around him4 ,what says the holy text8 ',well done1 good and faithful servant2 because thou hast been faithful in a little4' ,meanwhile ,st4 ,joseph had been in silent prayer4 ,by some inspiration he felt moved to ask for power to work the first miracle ever wrought in ,britain4 ,our ,lord had promised3 ,these signs shall follow them that believe4 ,in my name they shall cast out devils1 they shall speak with new tongues1 they shall take up serpents1 and if they shall drink any deadly thing1 it shall not hurt them3 they shall lay hands on the sick1 and they shall recover4 ,amen1 amen1 ,i say to you1 he that believeth in me1 the works that ,i do1 he shall do also2 and greater than these shall he do1 because ,i go to the ,father4 ,and whatsoever you shall ask the ,father in my name1 that will ,i do2 that the ,father may be glorified in the ,son4 ,and even while ,st4 ,joseph prayed1 it seemed as if witnesses of the miracle1 and disciples of the truth1 were being given him2 for1 stealing up the ascent from various directions1 knots of the wild ,britons1 in threes and fours1 converged on the summit of ,weary-,all ,hill4 #ebc ,i do not suspect ,hoel of treachery1 or that he had meant to lead the foreigners into a snare4 ,it is likely the rude inhabitants had perceived them from afar as they stood there1 their forms traced on the hill-top against the red sunset sky4 ,but these new-comers seemed to have no friendly intention4 ,most of them held in their hands the rude weapons of ancient ,british warfare4 ,the bare arms of some were stained blue with the juice of the woad2 others were tattooed2 they had the wild and savage look we have seen in prints of the ,sandwich ,islanders4 ,so1 with threatening aspect and gestures1 on they came1 brandishing their lances and celts1 or bronze hatchets1 and beginning a sort of war-cry4 ,yes2 the moment was come1 and the sovereignty of the true ,lord both over nature and grace was to be manifested in one and the same moment4 ,st4 ,joseph told his companions how strongly the thought had come into his mind4 ,it had1 indeed1 guided much that he had already said to ,hoel4 ,as by one impulse1 they all knelt again1 and besought our ,lord to remember now his promise2 so that the soul that had remained impervious to his word might see his work4 ,st4 ,joseph then approached the peasant1 who by this time was surrounded by his countrymen4 ,in a mild voice1 yet with an authority not to be resisted1 he said3 ,plant your staff here1 upright in the ground4 ,hoel was startled1 looked at him1 then slowly obeyed4 ,the multitude still gathered1 their gestures more threatening every moment4 ,call now1 if you will1 on your gods1 that the staff may bud and blossom4 ,the peasant turned by a kind of instinct to the setting sun2 clouds were mantling round it2 its form was veiled2 nothing seen but a dull and rusty stain of sunset fast paling into twilight4 ,hoel shook his head4 ,you will not call on it to hear1 to help you8 ,he was answered by a gesture which implied that the power of ,hoel's god was set for that night4 ,then ,st4 ,joseph1 with another ejaculation of prayer1 struck his thorny staff into the ground beside the other4 ,he made over it the sign of the cross1 saying3 ,by the grace of him who for us men hung on the tree on ,calvary1 wearing the thorny crown1 ,i bid thee be as thou wert wont to be in the bloom of spring6 ,there was still light enough to see how1 here and there on the length of the staff1 the shrivelled rind began to swell and to break1 how the green buds shot forth and lengthened into twigs2 how these ramified out again1 branch from branch1 sucker after sucker2 how the old staff expanded into a shapely trunk of thorn-tree1 crowned with a pollard head of rustling leaves4 ,and then through the keen wintry air was wafted such a fragrance as had never saluted the senses of shepherd1 or of dreaming bard1 wandering through the brakes and thickets of leafy ,may4 ,the seasons had been reversed at the strong prayer of the just4 ,he who enabled ,josue to command the greater and lesser light in the firmament1 ,move not1 ,o sun1 toward ,gabaon1 nor thou1 ,o moon1 toward the valley of ,ajalon1 now honored the name of the true ,josue1 the ,captain of salvation1 by the things that spring up in the earth1 ,footnote #aeb which obey their ,lord as perfectly as sun1 and moon1 and stars4 ,footnote #aeb3 ,benedicite omnia germinantia in terr ,domino4--,dan4 iii4 #gf4 #ebd ,what cries of astonishment broke from the rude men who crowded round6 ,how they came trembling to the feet of ,st4 ,joseph2 how they kissed the hem of his robe1 and adored him as a god6 ,they thought he was ,baal himself2 they shrieked out that the sun had set in clouds because ,baal had come in person to take the place of his representative4 ,and though ,st4 ,joseph and his companions testified by signs of abhorrence and earnest words how much the rude impiety disturbed them1 yet1 ,speaking these things1 they scarce restrained the people from sacrificing to them4 ,footnote #aec ,footnote #aec3 ,acts xiv4 #ag4 ,but this reverence1 misguided and idolatrous at first1 soon found its true channel1 and was directed to the ,giver of every best gift4 ,and so the gospel was preached in ,glastonbury1 and grew1 and flourished1 and breathed out its fragrance like the thorn itself4 ,then1 after nearly fifteen hundred years1 came a winter more killing than any ,christmas during which the thorn had bloomed2 and a famine1 not of bread1 nor a thirst of water1 but of hearing the word of the ,lord4 ,the decree of spoliation went forth2 the royal commissioners1 with a warrant from ,henry ,,viii41 thundered at the gates4 ,the choir of ,glastonbury1 as of numerous other shrines in ,england1 was desecrated2 treasures of literature in the library and scriptorium were torn in shreds and scattered to the winds1 with the relics of innumerable saints4 ,the abbot1 and two of his brethren1 were drawn on a hurdle to the ,tor1 and martyred on its summit2 the community dispersed1 and the ruins1 covering many acres1 were given over to strangers1 as a stable for their cattle4 ,but this was long after ,st4 ,joseph and his companions had been gathered to the saints4 ------------- ,the ,sun4 ,footnote #aed ,footnote #aed3 ,this lecture was delivered by ,m4 ,secchi to the scholars of the school of ,saint ,genevieve1 on the #bhth of ,july last1 at a scientific soire1 presided over by ,mgr4 ,chigi4 ,it occupied two hours in the delivery1 during the whole of which time the lecturer held captive the attention of his distinguished audience1 who testified their appreciation of its scientific and literary merits by warm applause4 ,the lecture will speak for itself4 ,but in publishing it1 there is one thing which cannot be reproduced2 that is1 the deep interest which necessarily attaches to the hearing a learned man himself explain his experiments and his discoveries4 ,a number of figures were necessary for the illustration of certain parts of the lecture2 and these1 prepared from ,m4 ,secchi's designs by ,m4 ,duboscq1 optician1 were projected on a screen1 by the aid of the electric light1 thus enabling the spectators to follow the learned astronomer with greater ease4 ,of these designs1 etc41 only the most essential have been given in the published lecture4 ,gentlemen3 ,from the beginning of my stay in ,paris1 ,i was invited by persons to whom ,i owe great deference to lecture to you on some of the subjects which are studied at the ,observatory of the ,roman ,college4 ,this invitation ,i felt to be in the nature of a command1 which ,i would readily have obeyed long before1 had ,i not been prevented by numerous and incessant cares4 ,i cannot1 however1 leave ,france without discharging the debt2 and it is for this purpose that we have met together1 on the present occasion4 ,i propose to speak to you of the sun1 and to show you what science teaches us of its physical constitution4 #ebe ,for eighteen years ,i have studied the sun1 and observed all that passes over its surface4 ,i hope1 also1 to interest you in acquainting you not only with the fruit of my own labors1 but also with the discoveries of my learned contemporaries4 ,what is the sun8 ,such is the question which has been frequently asked me4 ,i confess it has always perplexed me to reply to it4 ,i should not be pardoned1 perhaps1 if ,i should say ,i know nothing of the matter2 nevertheless1 it is impossible for me to give a complete and satisfactory answer4 ,you yourselves have addressed this question to me with an eagerness which ,i appreciate as a particular honor2 and1 in responding to your desire1 ,i am going to place before you the very interesting results which we have obtained in the study of this luminary1 to which1 after ,god1 its creator1 we owe all the physical blessings we enjoy here below4 ,to deal with this vast subject in something like an orderly form1 let us speak first of the new means of observation with which modern science has furnished us2 after which we shall see what advantage we have derived from them1 and in what way they have served to make us better acquainted with the sun4 ,astronomers1 gentlemen1 are not privileged beings4 ,like simple mortals1 they are dazzled by the sun4 ,far from sharing the penetrating sight which poets accord to the eagle1 they cannot fix their gaze on the bright orb of day without exposing their eyes to the greatest danger2 and this danger becomes more serious if they employ their instruments for this purpose without taking proper precautions4 ,until recently1 two means have been employed to protect the eyes of the observer3 first1 the reduction of the objective aperture of the glasses2 and second1 providing strongly-colored glasses4 ,these two expedients present the most serious inconveniences4 ,the first deprives the observer of the advantages which he would gain from the large apertures1 and the confusion of the image is greatly augmented by the diffraction which the small diaphragms cause the light to undergo2 while the second will not permit of our distinguishing the different colors which may meet in the sun2 and on this account the observer is liable to fall into very grievous errors4 ,the means now in use effectually obviate this double inconvenience1 inasmuch as they allow of the use of the entire aperture of the glasses1 and leave to the different parts of the sun their natural color4 ,the first means consists of the employment of the reflective glass4 ,a rectangular prism of crystal is disposed in such a manner as that its hypothenuse has an inclination of #de degrees on the axis of the glass4 ,the light1 on reaching the surface1 divides itself into two very unequal parts4 ,the reflected rays are rather feeble1 but of sufficient brightness to make them pass through a glass faintly colored1 falling perpendicularly on one of the faces of the prism1 without reaching the eye of the observer4 ,the colored glass1 not having to sustain so high a temperature1 is not so liable to break1 as often happened in the old method4 ,if the colored glass is completely done away with1 we shall succeed by adopting a method which rests on the properties of polarized light4 ,when the light is reflected by a glass mirror under an angle of #ce degrees #be minutes1 it undergoes a modification which is called polarization4 ,if the rays thus polarized are received on a second glass mirror under the same inclination of #ce degrees #be minutes1 they will divide into two parts1 one part of which will traverse the glass1 and the other will undergo a second reflection4 #ebf ,the quantity of light reflected by the second mirror will depend on the relative position of the two surfaces of reflection4 ,it will be at the maximum if these surfaces are parallel1 but otherwise if they are perpendicular2 so that1 by varying the relative position of the two mirrors to each other1 we may either augment or diminish gradually the intensity of the reflected rays4 ,such is the property of the polarized light1 which is utilized for making observations of the sun4 ,to the eye-glass of the instrument are fixed two smooth mirrors1 so adjusted as to make to the direction which the light follows an angle equal to the angle of polarization4 ,one of these mirrors can turn round to the reflected rays4 ,then1 by putting the surface of the second almost perpendicular to that of the first1 we can observe the sun as easily as we can the moon1 seeing it in its natural color1 and we can regulate at will the intensity of the light4 ,it is to this new arrangement of the eye-glasses that we owe the greater part of the discoveries of which ,i am about to speak to you4 ,i ought to add1 however1 that in the astronomical glasses we employ not only two1 but three and even four1 of these reflections4 ,but to come to the consideration of the sun4 ,everybody knows that it has spots2 that these spots1 relatively very small1 are of a black color1 and also1 that they adhere to the body of the sun4 ,they move in a manner leading us to the conclusion that this luminary turns on its own axis in the space of twenty-five and a quarter days1 and that its equator has an inclination of seven degrees and a half on the ecliptic4 ,these spots are far from being constant4 ,they undergo1 on the contrary1 the greatest changes both of form and size4 ,they show themselves particularly in some zones1 and appear and disappear at very irregular periods4 ,the maximum and the minimum are reproduced at intervals of about eleven years4 ,one of the most curious discoveries of our times is1 that this periodicity of the solar spots has some correspondence with terrestrial magnetism4 ,it is impossible to discover the point at which the two classes of phenomena unite1 but the existence of the fact is incontestable4 ,thus1 we have just seen the spots pass through the minimum4 ,from ,september1 #ahff1 to ,march1 #ahfg1 there were scarcely any of them2 and during the same period the magnetic perturbations have been very feeble4 ,as soon as the existence of these spots had been fully ascertained1 the questions naturally arose1 ,what is the cause of them1 and what their nature8 ,on these points there have been numerous opinions1 all as diverse as possible4 ,this is not to be wondered at2 for hitherto there has been no correct observation from which could be learned the character and the particulars of the phenomena we desire to explain4 ,so1 without stopping to discuss ancient theories1 ,i am about to bring before you the latest observations1 and the conclusions at which we have arrived4 ,the drawings of the first observers represent the spots as formed with a black centre surrounded by a gray tint of a uniform figure1 which is called penumbra4 ,it is not surprising that1 with such imperfect means of observation1 the theory of the spots should remain so long uncertain1 and that these phenomena should have been taken for simple clouds floating in the solar atmosphere4 ,this theory1 which was put forth by ,galileo1 has been revived in our day4 ,the solar spots have an aspect completely different from that which we see in the ancient cuts4 #ebg ,i am going to show the drawing of several of them as observed at the ,roman ,college4 ,i designed them myself1 by a very rapid process1 such a process being very important for objects essentially variable1 and which change their form with great rapidity1 and in a short space of time4 ,here is1 first1 one of the most common forms4 7,figure #a47 ,it is a round spot1 consisting of a black centre1 around which is a penumbra all ragged4 ,the first thing you wall observe is1 that the figure of the penumbra is far from being uniform4 ,it is composed of filaments1 very long and very thin1 which converge toward the centre4 ,these have been called wisps of straw1 willow-leaves1 etc4 ,i prefer to call them currents1 being aware1 at the same time1 that it is impossible to compare them to any known thing4 ,they are more scattered near the outline of the penumbra1 and they become condensed near the centre1 where the light is stronger and brighter4 ,these luminous threads start from the outline of the spot1 traverse the penumbra1 and often run into the black space that forms the centre1 where we see them floating singly1 gradually becoming smaller1 and disappearing after a while4 ,the penumbra is not always composed exclusively of threads like those you see4 ,the centre is often surrounded by a uniform pale color1 over which the currents are disseminated4 ,these currents are not always continuous1 and their different parts present an appearance which may be compared to elongated grains4 ,in spite of the increased power of the instruments we employ to observe the sun1 the detached parts of the spots often appear to us as microscopic objects4 ,in order to form an exact idea of their real dimensions1 we must always remember that1 at this distance1 four fifths of a second is equal to #adj kilometres1 and consequently these apparent threads1 whose seeming width is at most not more than one or two seconds1 are in reality immense currents1 being1 about the middle1 of #fjj or #gjj kilometres in width1 while their length is at least equal to the diameter of the terrestrial globe4 ,the drawings which you have just seen represent some of these spots in their complete form and exactly defined4 ,but they present themselves oftener under fantastic and irregular forms4 ,they are sometimes accompanied by a kind of tail1 itself formed of black spots1 and which seems to follow the centre in its motion4 #ebh ,we have here a curious example4 ,the centre is not quite black2 we meet with shadows there--some gray1 and others red2 the filaments on all sides fall toward the centre1 and their edges are turned back and bent1 as if they had experienced some resistance1 or as if they had encountered a whirlwind4 ,here is a spot of this kind1 7,figure #b17 the details of which are most instructive1 and most important in a theoretical point of view4 ,we find the centre divided in several parts by the luminous threads4 ,this appearance was remarked by the ancient astronomers1 who explained it by supposing that on the surface of the sun solid crusts were formed1 which broke into shivers like glass under a blow from a stone4 ,modern observations1 however1 do not admit of this explanation4 ,they show us clearly that these divisions are produced by currents which1 leaving opposite edges1 meet in the middle of the centre1 and thus divide the spot into several parts4 ,the formation of a spot is never instantaneous4 ,it is ordinarily announced by the appearance of several black points1 and by a kind of diminution in the thickness of the luminous bed4 ,these little cavities multiply themselves2 one of them develops itself1 absorbing the others1 and the process ends in the formation of a black spot in the centre4 ,in this first phase the movements of the spots are very irregular1 and their advance is always to the front1 by reason of the solar rotation4 ,the drawing which is now before you represents the first appearance of a great spot which was formed almost suddenly on the #cjth of ,july1 #ahfe4 ,the day preceding that of its appearance1 in observing the sun as usual1 we had remarked only three little cavities1 of which we noted the position4 ,on the #cjth of ,july1 at mid-day1 we found in the place of these cavities an enormous spot1 the surface of which was equal to at least ten times the size of our globe4 ,it was so mobile1 and its form changed so constantly1 that we could scarcely draw it4 ,we could discover in it four principal centres1 where the movement of the matter was visible in the form of a whirlwind4 ,in an interval of #bd hours it had undergone some considerable changes4 ,on the #cast of ,july1 the four centres were completely distinct1 and the matter which separated them seemed as if it were stretched out4 #ebi ,during the days which followed1 this form became more and more marked4 ,soon there were four spots clearly defined1 which ultimately assumed the form of four independent craters or cavities4 ,in the interior of these craters we perceived some light shadows1 whose form reminded us of that of the clouds we call cirrus4 ,their color was different from that of the other part of the sun which presented itself to view4 ,as the polariscopic eye-glass does not change the color of objects1 we are enabled to see that these clouds are often of a very decided red2 and1 as this tint is clear and well marked1 it is impossible to confound it with the effects due to the achromatism of the instruments4 ,you see here a great number of spots presenting this appearance1 and especially in ,figure #b1 where the red shadows seem intertwined with the white shadows4 ,i have more than once seen these luminous tongues1 so to speak1 transform themselves into red veils4 ,this hasty view is1 however1 so complete as to convince us that the spots cannot be compared to clouds1 their aspect not warranting such a comparison4 ,if any part of them may be compared to clouds1 it is more the luminous matter2 for we see it precipitate itself in the obscure space1 and there dissolve in much the same way as we see the vapor which forms the mist dissolve into thin air4 ,all that we are required to believe is1 that these apparently black masses are but rents made in the luminous veil which covers the solar body1 and to which we give the name of photosphere4 ,it is this bed which transmits light and heat to us4 ,it is suspended in the solar atmosphere1 just as clouds in the terrestrial atmosphere4 ,what appear to us as spots in the sun is simply the effect of the rents which take place in it4 ,we are confirmed in this view by the well-ascertained fact that the spots are depressions in the solar body1 and that they have the form of a funnel4 ,this form becomes very perceptible1 when the spots are drawn by the rotary movement toward the solar disk4 ,when we examine a spot situated toward the centre of the sun1 we find that the shape of the penumbra is more regular4 ,but when the spot moves toward the edge1 we see the penumbra diminish on the side of the centre1 and increase on the opposite side1 in which case it presents the appearance of a cavity in the form of a funnel looked at obliquely4 #ecj ,this effect is very clearly indicated in the drawing 7,figure #c7 which you have now before you1 and for which we are indebted to ,m4 ,tacchini1 the astronomer1 of ,palermo4 ,we have observed this same spot at ,rome1 and we have made a drawing of it similar to that you now see2 but ,i would rather exhibit that of ,m4 ,tacchini1 because it cannot be objected that it was made under the influence of a preconceived idea4 ,you see that in this spot the edge of the aperture is raised much in the same way as in the craters of the moon1 and around these apertures are elevations1 clearer and more luminous1 which we call faculas4 ,the conclusions which ,i have just presented to you are also those to which ,m4 ,faye arrived1 in studying the apparent perturbations in the movements of the spots4 ,in short1 what settles the question definitively is the study of the spots of exceptional grandeur when they reach the edge of the solar disk4 ,it is then very easy to prove that the centre is lower than that part of the outline from which radiates the facule4 ,both ,m4 ,tacchini and ,i proved this at ,rome1 in studying the grand spot of ,july1 #ahfe1 at the moment in which it disappeared behind the disk of the sun4 ,the spots1 then1 are apertures1 rents made in the photosphere4 ,but how is it that these spaces do not fill up immediately8 ,this is a serious difficulty1 and it leads us to study the structure of the photosphere4 ,if the photosphere was solid1 all the movements which take place in it would be impossible4 ,it is1 then1 fluid4 ,but1 on the other hand1 a fluid would naturally spread itself until all points of the surface were on the same level1 and it would require very little time to fill a gap having the dimensions of even the largest of the spots4 ,the celebrated ,william ,herschel saw this difficulty1 and he met it by a solution which we still adopt1 because it has been confirmed by observations and discoveries2 so that what to ,herschel was but a conjecture has become to us a demonstrated truth4 ,the photospheric matter is like our clouds1 gauze-like and transparent as ours4 ,we often see among the clouds differences of level--disruptions which enable us to perceive the blue of the sky in the space which separates them4 ,the same thing happens in the sun2 and this hypothesis1 which is so useful in explaining the phenomena ,i have just set before you1 accords perfectly with all the particulars observed4 ,we have seen1 in effect1 the luminous matter remain suspended and floating in the midst of the centre1 and the photospheric currents melt in obscure parts1 just as our clouds dissolve1 apparently dispersing themselves in a space completely deprived of vapor1 when the temperature is sufficiently elevated4 ,the little white veil in ,figure #a is a cloud about to be dissolved4 ,without this dissolving force1 the matter which radiates from the circumference to the centre would not be long in filling up this gap4 ,as ,i told you just now1 we have been able to seize the fact of this dissolution of the solar atmospheric matter1 and to see these cloud-like forms change into red veils occupying a large surface in the centre4 ,one thing alone remains to be proved--the existence of a transparent atmosphere4 ,we have for a long time presumed its presence and its action to explain a well-established fact1 namely1 that the edges of the sun impart to us less of heat and light than the centre4 ,this fact1 inexplicable by any known laws of radiation1 is easily explained by the action of an absorbing atmosphere2 for the rays part at the edge before passing through a thicker atmospheric stratum1 proving necessarily an absorption more considerable than that which flows to the centre4 #eca ,the existence of a solar atmosphere1 which was formerly regarded as probable1 has been reduced to certainty by the observation of eclipses1 and it has been shown that veritable clouds float in this gauze-like bed4 ,everybody has heard of the magnificent aureola which surrounds the moon during the total eclipse of the sun4 ,it is a truly solemn moment when1 the last rays having just disappeared1 we see the shadow of the moon projected on a sky of leaden hue1 with a perfectly black disk surrounded by a magnificent luminous glory1 like that which we see represented around the heads of the saints4 ,this aureola1 at least the part nearest the disk1 is owing to the atmosphere of the sun4 ,this spectacle is magnificent1 but it becomes much more instructive when we examine it through a good telescope4 ,we then perceive around the disk of the moon gigantic flames1 of a lively red1 the height of which is incomparably greater than the diameter of the earth4 ,some are suspended without any support1 and others take a horizontal direction1 like the smoke that comes out of our chimneys4 ,these flames were designated protuberances2 but we knew not how to explain them4 ,it was even doubted whether they were real2 and we were quite disposed to attribute them to an optical illusion4 ,these doubts have disappeared since the observations we made in ,spain during the eclipse of #ahfj4 ,on that occasion we were stationed at ,desertio de las ,palmas1 on the coast of the ,mediterranean1 while ,m4 ,de la ,rue took up his post at ,riva ,bellosa1 at a short distance from the ocean4 ,we succeeded at both these stations in photographing the sun at the period of the total eclipse1 and a comparison of the two photographs has proved that the protuberances have a real existence1 that they have a form so fixed as to give identical images at two points distant from each other by several hundreds of kilometres4 ,the perfect resemblance of the two photographs is the more remarkable1 from their not having been executed at the same moment4 ,between the two operations an interval of ten minutes elapsed4 ,these protuberances1 considering their distance and their bent forms1 can be nothing but clouds suspended in the solar atmosphere1 and it is these which form the red veils that we have seen in the centre4 ,the observation of eclipses proves to us conclusively that the sun is really surrounded by a stratum of this red matter1 which we ordinarily see only on the most elevated summits4 ,in the photograph taken at ,desertio de las ,palmas during the total eclipse1 the exterior form of the atmosphere is perfectly visible4 ,we see that it is more extended at the equator than at the polar regions1 which is a natural effect arising from the movement of rotation which the sun possesses4 ,we see1 in short1 that this atmosphere is livelier in its action in the two zones on each side of the equator1 in which the spots ordinarily show themselves4 ,the existence of a solar atmosphere being perfectly in accordance with all known principles and with all ascertained facts1 there is no longer any room for calling it in question4 ,we describe the sun1 then1 as surrounded by a dense atmosphere in which floats the photospheric matter4 ,the surface of the photosphere is far from being uniform and regular4 ,it is1 on the contrary1 wrinkled all over1 and again covered with granulations4 ,these granulations1 first perceived by ,herschel1 have been carefully studied in later times4 #ecb ,when our atmosphere is calm and the observation very precise1 the whole bottom of the solar disk appears covered with small luminous grains1 separated by a very fine and very dark net-work1 resembling in appearance partially desiccated milk1 examined through a microscope4 ,these points1 or white grains1 are of different sizes4 ,where there are openings1 we see around each of them some lines of grains in the form of leaves1 more or less oval4 ,their mean dimension is about the third of a second4 ,these grains are only the upper part of the flame which inclines toward the openings1 thus proving that there is a very sensible power of attraction in the apertures4 ,we may even say that these granulations resemble the appearance which the clouds known as cumuli present when1 from the summit of a mountain1 their upper part is examined4 ,the largest spots would be1 then1 but an exaggeration of this net-work1 ordinarily so fine1 produced by the force which caused the flame1 or rather1 the stratum of the cumulus4 ,but what is it that produces these spots in the sun8 ,here the difficulty is singularly complicated4 ,to reply satisfactorily to this question1 it would be necessary to become acquainted with what passes in the interior of the solar globe4 ,but let us1 without hesitation1 and without attempting to delude ourselves1 confess that our study of the sun is confined to its external stratum1 and to the most striking phenomena of which it is the seat2 whereas1 with regard to the interior mass1 it is only by the process of induction that we are enabled to arrive at any knowledge4 ,observations which we have just made lead us to the conclusion that the spots are owing to emanations issuing from the solar body1 almost similar to the way in which matter is ejected by our volcanoes4 ,this is proved both by the form of the craters1 which you have just seen1 and by the columns of clouds1 analogous to those arising out of volcanoes1 or out of chimneys1 observed during eclipses4 ,here1 then1 is how we explain the constitution of the photosphere and the formation of the spots4 ,the exterior stratum cools itself constantly by radiation1 passes into the gauze-like state1 or state of vapor1 and ends by precipitating itself in the liquid state1 or even in the solid1 remaining1 however1 suspended in the solar atmosphere1 as clouds do in ours4 ,it is this condensed matter that forms the photosphere1 and it is from that principally we receive light and heat4 ,from some cause or other1 a movement from below takes place in the gauze-like mass which is situated underneath4 ,by this movement the photospheric stratum1 raised at first1 spreads itself on all sides1 forming a sort of cushion1 and ends by separating itself1 leaving a wide opening in the form of a crater4 ,while the volcanic emission lasts1 the spot remains open1 and it disappears only at the moment when the equilibrium is reestablished1 by the luminous matter filling up the void which was formed4 ,if this theory is correct1 the circumference of the spots ought to form the mountains above the exterior surface4 ,now1 we have just seen that the outline of the spots is always surrounded by faculae1 which constitute prominent elevations4 ,supposing it is true that the interior mass is the seat of violent action1 this conclusion has nothing surprising in it1 and we are led to it by a certain number of other phenomena equally remarkable4 #ecc ,thus1 every time that a spot is produced1 we remark that it is visibly projected with a quickness greater than that of the solar rotation4 ,the projecting mass is then animated with a quickness greater than the surface of the photosphere2 and1 in order to explain this fact1 we must admit that the matter of the interior stratum possesses a quickness greater than the superficial part4 ,this novel conclusion is supported by another fact4 ,we know now that the rotation of the spots has not the same angular quickness under all the parallels4 ,the quickness is sensibly greater in the equatorial zone than in the higher latitudes4 ,this circumstance forces us to the conclusion that the sun is not a solid globe1 but that its structure admits of the different strata of which it is formed having a movement of rotation independent of each other as regards velocity4 ,in fact1 the only explanation we can give of this difference of quickness is1 that the interior mass is fluid1 and that it is moved by a rotary process1 more rapid than that of the external surface4 ,we cannot1 however1 undertake the formal demonstration of this point on the present occasion4 ,this fluidity of the sun is calculated to surprise you2 but you will cease to regard it as incredible when ,i remind you of certain ascertained facts about this luminary4 ,the gravity of its surface is twenty-eight times greater than that of the surface of our globe1 from which results an enormous pressure capable of condensing a large number of substances1 or1 at least1 of singularly diminishing their volume4 ,looking simply at this fact1 the mean density of the sun ought to be much greater than that of the earth4 ,it is nothing of the kind1 however1 but just the contrary2 for the specific gravity of the terrestrial globe is four times greater than that of the solar mass4 ,we must admit the existence of a repulsive force capable of overcoming the molecular attraction1 and of rarefying the substances which the weight tends to condense4 ,this repulsive force is probably owing to the heat1 and1 in fact1 the temperature of the sun is estimated at not less than five millions of degrees4 ,at this temperature no matter could remain solid1 even in spite of the enormous pressure of which we have already spoken4 ,it is1 then1 impossible for us to admit the existence of a solid mass1 and much more that of a cold centre in the interior of the sun4 ,and here an objection presents itself to which ,i ought to reply4 ,if the interior mass of the sun is at a temperature so very elevated1 how is it that1 when the photosphere opens1 a black spot is presented to our eyes8 ,in examining this opening1 we perceive a substance of which the temperature is extremely elevated1 and which ought1 consequently1 to be very luminous4 ,how is it1 then1 that1 on the contrary1 it presents to us the appearance of a very deep black8 ,my reply is1 that the black color of the spots is a purely relative matter2 that it is owing to the contrast of the brilliant light which comes to us from the photosphere4 ,if we could see those apparently dark parts away from the glittering mass of the sun1 they would appear not only luminous1 but dazzling with light4 ,but you will say to me1 it still remains true that the interior mass of the sun is less luminous than the photosphere2 but since the superficial part constantly cools by radiation1 it follows that there ought to be less heat1 and1 consequently1 less brilliancy in the photosphere than in the interior mass4 #ecd ,with your permission1 ,i will make a reply to this which might1 at the first blush1 appear paradoxical1 but which is1 nevertheless1 the expression of truth4 ,it is precisely because it is of so very high a temperature that the interior mass of the sun sends us a less degree of light and heat2 it is precisely because it is cooled at the point of condensation1 to precipitate itself in the liquid or solid state1 that the photospheric matter becomes hotter and more luminous4 ,to make this plain1 we have only to recall certain well-known principles of physics4 ,two bodies equally hot may not emit the same quantity of heat4 ,one of them may cool itself rapidly in heating the bodies which surround it2 while the other may let its heat escape only very slowly1 and heat but feebly the neighboring bodies4 ,in this case1 we say that the first has a more considerable radiating power4 ,now1 philosophers know that gas has a very feeble radiating power1 and that it may be consequently at a very high temperature without emitting around it a great quantity of light and heat4 ,you have an illustration now before your eyes4 ,this lamp1 fed by lighted gas1 gives a very brilliant flame1 because the carbon remains there some time in suspension before burning4 ,let us throw into the flame a little oxygen2 immediately the flame pales1 becomes bluish1 and ceases to be luminous4 ,its temperature1 notwithstanding1 has greatly increased1 and it is now the celebrated gas by the aid of which ,m4 ,sainte-,claire ,deville melts his platina so rapidly4 ,the change results from the very rapid combustion of the carbon by the oxygen4 ,as soon as this takes place1 the flame1 no longer containing any solid body1 loses almost all power of emission1 and ceases1 in spite of its high temperature1 to have the brilliancy which it possessed at a lower temperature4 ,to convince you perfectly1 let us put a solid body in this flame1 now so pale1 and you will see it become more brilliant than ever4 ,we introduce1 for example1 a piece of lime1 and the apartment is at once illuminated by the ,drummond light1 one of the most brilliant of our artificial lights4 ,but1 leaving the earth1 let us now return to the sun4 ,the interior mass is undoubtedly at a very high temperature--so high1 indeed1 that all the substances composing it must be in the state of gas1 possessing only a feeble radiating power2 while the photosphere is composed of matter precipitated in a liquid or solid state1 of which the radiating power must be considerable4 ,here is the explanation of what seemed paradoxical in my answer4 ,the hottest part of the sun is not the part which warms and lights us most1 because1 being in the state of gas1 it produces only a feeble radiation4 ,two questions now present themselves4 ,how is it that the sun preserves indefinitely so elevated a temperature in spite of the enormous amount of heat which it loses daily8 ,of what kind of matter is this luminary composed8 ,and what the nature of the radiation which sends to us daily the light and heat which we need8 ,it is undoubtedly impossible to give a complete and satisfactory answer to these questions4 ,we may yet be able1 however1 to do so2 and we are persuaded that science in its progress will only confirm and develop the explanations which we give to-day of first principles4 ,in the first place1 it is impossible to admit that the sun is simply a luminous globe1 not possessing any means of renewing the heat which it loses at every moment2 for1 in that case1 at the end of a few years its temperature would be lowered in a very appreciable manner2 and it would not require an age to effect a complete change in the phenomena which are dependent on it4 ,there must be1 then1 a source of heat in the sun4 #ece ,we are in the habit of comparing things we do not know with those with which we are familiar4 ,thus we have been led to think of the solar globe as the seat of a combustion similar to that we witness on our hearths4 ,this idea is deceptive4 ,we know the quantity of heat which each substance throws off in a state of combustion2 we know1 too1 what a vast body the sun is2 and we are able to calculate with a rough but sufficient approximation the quantity of heat which the body of the sun would produce in burning4 ,the result of this calculation is1 that1 at the elevated temperature which the sun possesses1 the combustion of the solar mass could not be kept up during many ages4 ,since the historic period this temperature would have been so lowered as to produce a change in the seasons that has not taken place4 ,we are compelled1 then1 to abandon the idea of a mass in combustion1 as well as that of a luminous globe1 and to acknowledge that there is a secret which has escaped us4 ,this secret1 gentlemen1 chemistry is charged to unveil to us4 ,astronomers profit eagerly by all the discoveries which physical science makes1 and it is by this means alone that they arrive first at conjecture1 and afterward at a knowledge of what is taking place at prodigious distances4 ,it is thus that the phenomenon of dissociation recently discovered by ,m4 ,sainte-,claire ,deville1 puts us in the way of explaining the permanence of the solar temperature4 ,we know that no combination can resist heat4 ,whatever may be the stability of the combination1 whatever energy the affinitive force may possess1 if the temperature is raised to the proper degree1 the elements separate1 and remain together simply in a mixed state1 wanting to combine anew when the temperature is lowered4 ,this is what we call dissociation2 and this is just the state1 for example1 in which we find oxygen and hydrogen gas1 exposed to a temperature of #bejj degrees4 ,at such a temperature they remain in a mixed state1 without being able to form water1 which ought to result from the combination of these two elements4 ,but the phenomenon of dissociation cannot take place without the intervention of an enormous amount of heat4 ,to illustrate this1 let us suppose a kilogram of ice at zero4 ,in liquefying it would absorb #gi degrees of heat2 to make it warm1 #ajj degrees would be required2 in evaporation it would absorb #fdj2 and to dissociate it1 #ciee1 or nearly #djjj degrees would be necessary4 ,what we say of water is equally true of all the combinations2 all that is required being to change the numerical degrees of the latent heat1 for fusion1 for volatilization1 and for dissociation4 ,this being so1 we arrive at the conclusion that even the least considerable quantity of matter in a state of dissociation may be regarded as a magazine of latent heat continually tending toward sensible development4 ,the temperature of dissociation of water is almost #bejj degrees4 ,the temperature of the sun being at least five millions of degrees1 the whole mass of which it is composed ought to be in a state of dissociation1 and to contain consequently an enormous quantity of latent heat independent of the sensible heat2 to which is owing this prodigiously elevated temperature4 #ecf ,what1 then1 is the effect which the solar matter ought to produce on the radiation of which it is the seat8 ,almost the same effect that radiation produces on a liquid body which has reached a temperature of solidification4 ,the heat necessary to keep up the radiation is borrowed from that part of the liquid which solidifies1 so that the temperature1 instead of decreasing1 remains constantly at the point at which solidification ceases4 ,this is really what passes on the surface of the sun4 ,this brilliant mass1 raised to a temperature of five millions of degrees1 has a tendency to cool itself rapidly4 ,the radiation produces1 in fact1 a coolness in the superficial stratum4 ,by reason of this coolness1 part of the gas which composes the atmosphere is lowered below the temperature of dissociation2 it yields then an enormous quantity of heat1 which from latent becomes sensible1 and prevents also an ulterior lowering of temperature4 ,it is sufficient to repair the continual loss of heat that a mass of several kilograms passes daily from a state of dissociation to one of combination2 and it is evident1 considering the enormous size of the solar globe1 that things may remain in this state during millions of ages without the temperature of the sun changing in a manner which may be felt by us4 ,i say1 by us1 for our knowledge of this temperature is obtained at no less a distance than several hundred thousands of degrees4 ,it appears1 then1 from the very nature of the sun1 that it does not possess an inexhaustible quantity of latent heat4 ,a day will come when it will no more be able to lose heat without being cooled in a sensible manner1 but that cooling will not take place before a very distant period1 and long after we have disappeared from this world4 ,by way of recapitulation of the several views we have set forth1 let us endeavor to give you a precise idea of the sun1 as regards both its interior and its surface4 ,the reasonings which we have just advanced1 founded partly on astronomical observations and partly on known principles of science1 lead us to regard the sun as composed of a fluid or gauze-like mass1 surrounded with a photospheric stratum1 the matter of which has passed through the first stage of condensation4 ,according to the views held by ,laplace1 the sun proceeded from the hands of its creator in a nebulous state4 ,we are led to believe that the interior mass is still in this state4 ,a change has taken place only on the surface1 because there only could the loss of heat owing to radiation produce a partial cooling4 ,the result of this cooling is the condensation of a relatively small quantity of matter1 which1 possessing a very considerable power of emission1 forms the photosphere4 ,it is in the presence of this photosphere that the only difference exists between the sun and a nebula1 between the myriads of stars which people the heavens1 and the nebulae with whose existence the telescope makes us acquainted4 ,we come1 at length1 to the last with which we proposed to deal3 ,what is the constituent matter of the sun8 ,what are the elements which enter into the composition of its atmosphere and of the photospheric bed8 ,some years ago1 to put a question like this would have been regarded as rashness2 to attempt to answer it1 the height of folly4 ,we only knew1 from the analysis of meteoric stones1 that cosmical matter did not contain any other elements besides those of which our globe is composed4 ,but to-day we can go further1 thanks to the discoveries of the ,german ,kirchoff4 #ecg ,we all know the solar phantom1 and the brilliant colors which result from the decomposition of the white light4 ,this phantom seems continuous if we make the observations in a rough manner2 but if we employ delicate means1 we see that it is formed of a multitude of black streaks and of brilliant rays perfectly distinct from each other4 ,it is impossible to imitate this appearance artificially4 ,all that we are able to do is to project on a screen the figure of a solar appearance taken from a drawing4 ,you see that it is furrowed over with a considerable number of black streaks1 of which the principal ones are1 according to ,fraunhofer1 who discovered them1 indicated by the letters of the alphabet1 ,a1 ,b1 ,c1 etc4 ,these streaks are extremely numerous3 we have counted no fewer than #de1jjj of them4 ,i have said that it is impossible for us to imitate this appearance with our artificial lights1 and it is precisely here that we are able to discern the nature of the different sources of light4 ,in fact1 each source has an appearance peculiar to itself1 and by which it is characterized4 ,the brilliant line of the ,drummond light gives a continuous appearance1 and it is the same with all the simple incandescents4 ,but when we analyze the light of a body in combustion1 we arrive at an entirely different result4 ,the appearance obtained in this case is crossed by rays which1 instead of being black1 are1 on the contrary1 more brilliant than the colors in the midst of which they are formed4 ,the same thing happens when we make the rays emanating from the electric light pass through a prism1 because in this case there is combustion1 that is to say1 a combination of the oxygen in charcoals1 mixed with foreign matter1 from which is produced the voltaic bow4 ,if we are content to restore these burning coals1 they will give a continuous appearance just as lime4 ,the brilliant spectral rays are not always the same4 ,they depend on the nature of the metal which is found in the flame1 and which takes part in the combustion4 ,you see at this moment the appearance which silver presents3 it is characterized by a magnificent green ray4 ,here is now the appearance of copper1 which1 we know1 has a yellow ray1 accompanied by a fine group of green rays1 different from those which silver produces4 ,we now burn some zinc1 which gives a magnificent group of blue rays1 a fine red ray1 and another of violet4 ,finally1 we shall close these experiments with burning brass1 which is1 as you are aware1 a mixture of copper and zinc4 ,you will recognize in the appearance which is produced the characteristic rays of those metals1 each of them producing its proper effect1 as if it were alone4 ,we learn but little1 however1 from these experiments1 of the nature of the substances of which the sun is composed2 for the rays which we have produced are all brilliant1 while those of the solar appearance are black4 ,let us see1 then1 in pursuing this subject1 if it would not be possible for us to obtain these black lines with our artificial lights4 ,let us produce1 in analyzing the ,drummond light1 a perfectly continuous appearance4 ,now1 let us make this appearance1 before reaching the screen1 pass through a deep layer of hypoazotic acid4 ,immediately you see it discontinued4 ,it is like the solar appearance1 crossed over by a multitude of black lines4 ,the hypoazotic acid is not the only gas that produces this result4 ,the vapor from brome1 that of iodine1 will give equally the black lines in the same circumstances1 only these lines are different from those we have just seen in the experiment made with the hypoazotic acid4 #ech ,thus1 the gases1 the vapors1 possessing the property of absorbing certain luminous rays1 certain colors1 these rays1 found no longer in the appearance1 are necessarily replaced by the black lines we have just observed4 ,all the gases1 all the vapors1 could not1 ,i am convinced1 produce this result2 for it is clear that their power of absorption1 being less considerable1 could not make itself felt1 unless by means of a stratum the thickness of which should be greater than that which we are able to use in our experiments4 ,we find a proof of this in what passes in the atmospheric air4 ,under a feeble thickness no sensible absorption is produced2 but it is certain that the atmospheric mass absorbs a great number of rays1 and consequently gives birth to many black lines2 for in the solar appearance we observe new and very marked lines1 when the sun being near the horizon1 his rays pass through a bed of air of very considerable thickness4 ,these rays are principally owing to the vapor of water4 ,we can equally affirm the absorbent power of the atmosphere which surrounds the planets ,saturn1 ,jupiter1 and ,mars4 ,their appearances contain lines very different from the solar appearance4 ,yet1 as the light which they transmit to us comes to them from the sun1 we are forced to conclude that that light undergoes some modification in travelling over its transparent path4 ,it is the atmosphere of the planets which produces this result4 ,the sun also possesses an atmosphere1 as we have seen1 and this atmosphere ought necessarily to exercise an influence on the rays which traverse it4 ,such is1 in fact1 the origin of the rays which we notice in the solar appearance4 ,they are owing to the atmospheric absorption1 and the bed of transparent but absorbent vapor which surrounds the atmosphere1 and which the rays pass through before they spread themselves in space4 ,but how are we to ascertain the nature of the vapors which produce the black lines we observe8 ,here physical science comes again to our aid1 and the question we have just put finds its answer in a recent discovery4 ,we have seen that a certain substance in burning gives birth to certain luminous rays which characterize it4 ,we have also seen that this same substance1 in a state of vapor1 absorbs1 on the contrary1 certain rays1 and produces in consequence certain black lines which are equally characteristic4 ,now1 by a singular coincidence1 these two powers1 emissive and absorbent1 are identically the same4 ,each substance1 in a state of vapor1 absorbs precisely the rays which it is capable of producing in combustion1 so that the black streaks produced in the first case occupy identically the same place as the brilliant lines observed in the second4 ,we may demonstrate this interesting theory by the following experiment1 due to ,m4 ,toucault4 ,we know that sodium produces in burning a beautiful yellow light4 ,well1 let us burn some sodium in the coals1 and between these two substances the electric light is produced4 ,the metal while it is burning volatilizes largely2 the vapors which are produced absorb precisely the rays which they should have emitted in their combustion2 and you see that in the yellow1 instead of a brilliant line1 we have a very dark line4 ,what we have just seen take place with the sodium has been equally proved by experiments on a great number of metals1 and1 by induction1 we may extend the application to all those on which it has been impossible to make experiments4 #eci ,let us apply this principle to what concerns the light of the sun4 ,the photosphere is composed of condensed substances1 precipitated in a solid or a liquid state1 floating in a transparent and absorbent atmosphere4 ,this matter1 being simply incandescent1 ought to present to us a continuous appearance1 and this continuity can be disturbed only by the absorption of the solar atmosphere4 ,from this it follows1 that to ascertain the chemical nature of the substances which compose this atmosphere1 it will be sufficient to compare the black lines of the sun with the bright lines of our artificial lights4 ,this has been done4 ,m4 ,kirchoff first discovered that the sun contains sodium2 for the line ,d of ,fraunhofer coincides perfectly with the brilliant lines of this metal4 ,it is equally well known that iron1 copper1 and twenty other substances which exist upon the earth in a solid state1 would1 at a temperature of five millions of degrees1 be necessarily in a state of vapor4 ,after having thus made a chemical analysis of the sun1 astronomers wish to go further2 they have sought to know equally the composition of the stars4 ,we have been led by this to some very remarkable consequences2 we have been able to make a kind of classification of these stars1 and to determine the group to which our sun belongs4 ,it remains1 then1 for us now to apply the spectral analysis to the myriads of stars which stud the heavens1 to those far distant suns1 the greater part of which1 perhaps1 surpass in grandeur and brightness that which is the centre of our planetary system4 ,it remains for us to interrogate these scarcely perceptible bodies1 sparkling at such an incalculable distance1 and to demand and draw from them the secret of their chemical composition4 ,this enterprise is daring1 but it is not rash4 ,the difficulties are alarming2 yet learned men are not discouraged1 for they are accustomed to see difficulties disappear before strenuous and persevering labor4 ,we commenced our study of the stars with the complicated instruments which we employ for the sun2 but we soon found out that this complication was useless4 ,we have been able to reduce our instruments to the number of two1 a cylindrical glass and a prism4 ,and ,m4 ,wolff1 of the ,paris ,observatory1 has succeeded recently in suppressing the cylinder1 keeping only the essential element1 that is1 the prism intended to produce the appearance4 ,we have examined a great number of stars1 and ,i am going to submit to you some of the results at which we have arrived4 ,you see at this moment the appearance which the star ,orion presents4 ,this star is of a yellow color2 the appearance which it produces is deeply streaked2 and it is one of the most beautiful in the heavens4 ,you will find there the line ,d of sodium1 and the line b of magnesium4 ,these are two fundamental lines which have served as marked points to compare this appearance with that of the sun4 ,besides sodium and magnesium1 a of ,orion contains iron1 copper1 and several other known metals2 but it is singular that hydrogen is not found there in the free state1 as in the sun4 ,there is1 then1 some essential difference between the stars1 of which you will be more convinced as we go further into the subject4 ,here is the appearance of ,sirius4 ,you see it is not nearly so fine4 ,you will find two large bands in blue1 in the place of the streak ,f of the sun2 two others in violet2 and one1 very faint1 in yellow4 ,the two first are attributable to hydrogen1 and the last to sodium2 but we know not to what substance the violet is owing4 ,in the green there are also some very fine lines1 but very difficult to seize4 #edj ,what is most remarkable is1 that all the white stars present the same appearances1 and half the stars that are visible belong to this type4 ,thus the fine stars of the ,lyre1 of the ,eagle1 of the ,bear1 ,castor1 etc41 ought to be ranged by the side of ,sirius4 ,there is1 however1 an exception in zeta of the ,bear1 which is a yellow star4 ,the magnificent stars of ,arcturus1 of the ,goat1 of ,procyon1 belong1 on the contrary1 to the class of which our sun is a type1 except that the iron line ,e is much more marked4 ,their color1 of light yellow1 led to the inference that they were analogous to the sun1 and the supposition has been confirmed by spectral analysis4 ,all know substances have an appearance which is peculiar to them1 and which characterizes them4 ,can we say as much of the stars8 ,do they also present marked differences in their appearance8 ,this has been the subject of very interesting researches4 ,the task has been undertaken at the observatory of the ,roman ,college1 and it has led to a result altogether unforeseen1 namely1 that the stellar appearances appertain to only a very limited number of types4 ,we may classify them in three groups4 ,the first group is that of the white stars like ,sirius2 the second1 that of the yellow stars1 of which ,arcturus and the second are members2 and ,orion may be regarded as a type of the third1 in which we ought to place a of ,hercules1 and ,beta of ,pegasus4 ,these two last-named stars have very remarkable appearances4 ,they seem formed of a multitude of channels1 which are divided by large black bands4 ,this form of appearance shows us that the stars which belong to this type are surrounded with atmospheres heavily charged with vapor4 ,in this group enters all the red stars1 and in particular ,omicron of the ,whale1 that celebrated star which has been called ,the ,wonderful4 ,several small stars of a blood-red color have appearances resembling each other4 ,it is remarkable that in all the appearances belonging to stars of this type1 the black lines occupy the same place1 which proves that in general they are all made alike4 ,i have observed further that certain types abound in certain parts of the heavens1 and that the stars of the same kind are generally grouped together4 ,thus the white stars are found in the ,pleiades1 the ,bear1 the ,lyre1 etc42 the yellow in the ,whale1 ,eridan1 etc4 ,the constellation of ,orion deserves particular attention2 it abounds in stars of a green color1 reminding us of the nebula which is found in the same region of the sky4 ,this small number of types1 and the grouping of which ,i have spoken1 constitute an unforeseen fact1 the importance of which is considerable from a cosmological point of view4 ,we should not1 however1 be hasty in drawing conclusions from it4 ,a curious fact has been established with regard to one of the white stars in ,cassiopeia4 ,its appearance is directly the opposite of that which is presented by stars of the same color1 for1 in place of black lines1 it shows some brilliant lines4 ,this phenomenon has appeared to me so extraordinary1 that ,i am anxious whether it is an isolated fact4 ,i have observed more than five hundred stars1 selecting some of the largest1 and ,i have found only one1 ,beta of the ,lyre1 which possesses the same peculiarity4 ,m4 ,wolff says that among the small stars of the ,swan he has found some examples of the same kind4 ,a most remarkable fact is1 that these brilliant lines were found in a transient star which glittered for a time in the ,crown in ,may1 #ahff4 #eda ,these observations upset the theories which had been prematurely built upon facts formerly known4 ,still1 there is nothing inexplicable here4 ,you have seen that sodium burning gives a line of a very lively yellow1 while the line becomes black if the sodium is increased to a considerable quantity4 ,might not the same thing happen with the hydrogen1 which produces the brilliant lines of which ,i have spoken to you8 ,might not a small quantity act by radiation1 while the action would be one of absorption should the mass be greater8 ,after having examined the stars1 it was impossible to resist the temptation of observing the nebulae4 ,you know that we designate by this name the kind of white clouds which are found spread in the heavens1 and of which the nature is not perfectly known4 ,herschel has assured us that many of them1 by means of the telescope1 may be resolved into a multitude of small stars approaching very closely to each other4 ,we infer from this that the greater part are composed in the same manner1 and that the feebleness of our instruments is the only thing that prevents us from proving it4 ,it is1 however1 admitted that many of these nebulae are formed of cosmical matter in a state of vapor not condensed4 ,everybody knows the nebulae which compose the ,milky ,way4 ,but besides those which are visible to the naked eye1 there is a vast number whose existence the telescope has revealed to us4 ,one1 of the most celebrated is that which is found in the magnificent constellation of ,orion3 we have carefully drawn it at the ,roman ,college1 and you see at this moment a sketch of it on the screen4 ,the nebulae possess a very feeble light1 and we had our doubts of success in seeking to apply the spectral analysis to them4 ,we have1 however1 succeeded beyond our hopes4 ,the appearances obtained in these observations are very singular4 ,they reduce themselves constantly to luminous streaks1 all the other colors failing2 it is1 in another way1 that which happens when we burn an alcoholic solution with marine salt2 the flame1 analyzed by the spectroscope1 gives simply a yellow streak4 ,in the nebulae we find two green lines and a blue one4 ,such is the result which we obtained in examining the large nebulae of ,orion1 and that of the ,milky ,way in ,sagittarius4 ,such is that1 also1 which furnishes the little nebulae called planetaries1 on account of their form1 which resembles that of the planets4 ,these facts have been established for the first time by ,m4 ,huggins4 ,as ,i have just told you1 the nebulas present generally but three lines2 one belongs to azote1 another to hydrogen1 and the third is unknown4 ,this result1 which was not known before1 is of the highest importance2 for it teaches us that the nebulae are composed of gas and of vapors far removed from their point of saturation and condensation4 ,these appearances1 with luminous lines1 distinctly isolated and separated from one another1 appertain essentially to gas1 and1 we ought to add1 to gas raised to a very high temperature4 ,thus we have made a discovery by the aid of the prism1 for which the most powerful glasses had failed us4 ,the nebulae1 notwithstanding their shining points1 are not in general a collection of stars1 but masses of cosmical matter in a state of dissociation under the action of an extremely elevated temperature4 ,the collections of stars are perfectly distinguishable by the continuity of their appearances1 as we see in the nebulae of ,andromeda1 and in some others which are well known4 ,the discovery opens a vast field of investigation1 and will be an epoch in science4 #edb ,we have wandered far into the depths of space1 very far from the point from which we started4 ,this is of no consequence1 however1 for between the sun1 the stars1 and the nebulae there is a close relation4 ,the sun is simply a star approaching nearer to us than others4 ,according to a bold hypothesis1 its entire mass was at one period in a state of dissociation1 which a great part of it still actually preserves4 ,the only thing that makes it differ from the nebulae1 and causes us to rank it among the stars1 is its superficial stratum of inconsiderable thickness4 ,what mysteries do we not discover in nature1 when we investigate it by the aid of those principles and instruments with which modern science has furnished us6 ,and in the presence of the wonders1 what an exalted idea ought we to form of the splendors of the universe and the power of its ,creator6 ,permit me1 gentlemen1 in closing this lecture1 to quote an admirable thought of ,saint ,gregory of ,nazianzus4 ,the sun1 says that father1 is the most perfect image of the ,deity4 ,you see the effects which it produces2 you enjoy its benefits2 but you cannot contemplate it directly1 nor sound its depths4 ,the loss of life1 the greatest of the earthly blessings we enjoy1 would be the punishment of the madman who would dare to invade its mysteries4 ,it is the same with the ,deity2 it is impossible for us to see in himself2 and we ought to content ourselves with admiring here below those traces of his infinite perfections which shine in his works4 ,we have succeeded1 by the means with which science has furnished us1 in examining this dazzling star1 and in doing so we have seen some unexpected wonders2 but how many other wonders have escaped us1 which will doubtless be discovered at some future time6 ,if we can thus speak of the material sun and its splendors1 what shall we not say of its prototype1 when1 freed from this material covering of sense1 and reduced to a state of pure intelligence1 we contemplate him with the eyes of our soul8 ,science and ,faith are two rays issuing from the same focus1 the one direct1 the other reflected4 ,as long as we are upon this earth we should be content with the second1 our vision not being strong enough to support the brightness of the first4 ,but a day will come when we shall see the ,divinity face to face2 and1 in the meantime1 the man who denies his unfathomable mysteries1 under the pretence that our feeble powers are not equal to their comprehension1 is as foolish as the rude peasant who should deny the wonders with which ,i have entertained you1 under the pretext that his eyes are dazzled by the light of the sun4 ,a day will come when the direct rays of the ,science of ,divinity will no longer dazzle our intelligence3 the high destinies which awaits humanity will permit of our contemplating the unclouded essence of the ,deity1 as the reward of the persevering but not blind fidelity with which we shall have here below1 without pride as without baseness1 believed in his existence and admired his greatness4 ---------------- #edc ,translated ,from ,the ,french4 ,an ,italian ,girl ,of ,our ,day4 ,footnote #aee ,footnote #aee3 ,rosa ,ferrucci3 her ,life1 her ,letters1 and her ,death4 ,by the ,abb ,h4 ,perreyve4 ,continued ,from ,page #cgb4 ,i here interrupt1 for a moment1 the order of these ,letters1 to introduce a fragment from one of the writings of ,signorina ,ferrucci1 in which is found1 eloquently developed1 the idea with which the last letter closes4 ,need we wonder that1 to so a pure a soul1 ,christianity was all mercy and all love8 ,certainly not4 ,the passions of men have so often disfigured the sweet countenance of the gospel that those outside the household of faith form a false idea of it1 and1 in their inability to distinguish what is divine from what is human1 they reject all4 ,but1 if they would only learn to leave men and draw near to ,god1 to flee vain disputes and go to the centre where all is calm1 they would soon know that the genius of ,christianity is indeed love4 ,pure souls1 whom anger and dispute have not marred1 know this well4 ,the young author whom ,i am about to cite understood it1 and it is with a feeling of respect that ,i transcribe these beautiful pages1 which breathe so strong a perfume of the gospel3 ,the love of ,god1 which inflames the heart of man and infuses into it a holy zeal1 has assuredly nothing in common with that implacable fanaticism with which infidelity so unjustly charges the religion of ,jesus ,christ4 ,and yet it is but too true that the sons of one ,heavenly ,father1 the inhabitants of a world watered by the ,redeemer's blood1 have more than once1 while waging cruel war upon each other1 ranged themselves under the standard of the cross4 ,but because such horrors darken the page of history1 are we to conclude that the love of ,god banishes all toleration from the human heart1 or can we deny that the ,catholic religion is all love8 ,and shall the blind fury of men make the world forget the numberless benefits which1 for nineteen centuries1 the gospel has bestowed upon all nations and upon its most cruel enemies8 ,o church of the ,redeemer6 who dost pray for thine enemies1 and dost show thyself ever ready to succor them1 even as our ,heavenly ,father maketh his sun to shine upon the most ungrateful of mankind1 who was it that filled thy heart with that holy and ever active love of all the virtues8 ,who gave thee the strength to oppose at all times a tranquil front to the masters of the world8 ,whence have thy martyrs derived that courage which made them joyfully bend their heads under the axe of the executioner8 ,who taught thee to confound the subtle contradictions of the philosophers1 and1 with the same hands1 to break the chains of the slave8 ,how is it that1 ever firm and immovable1 thou alone hast survived the vicissitudes of all things and the overthrow of so many thrones8 ,who has given thee such power of persuasion that by its prodigies from the very stones are raised up children to ,abraham8 ,in fine1 whence hast thou received that inviolable authority which resolves all doubts1 dissipates our errors1 humbles the mighty1 sustains the weak1 enlightens the world1 pardons all faults1 and consoles in every affliction and in every distress8 #edd ,ah6 who does not see that so many miracles have been wrought by the sole power of that divine love kindled in thee by ,jesus ,christ8 ,for just as thou lovest ,jesus in fatigue and in repose1 in tears and in joy1 in persecution and in peace1 in combat and in victory1 so also thou lovest in him and for him the humble and the great1 the faithful and the unbelieving1 the poor and the rich4 ,there is not on this earth a human being for whom thou dost not pray1 and whom thou wouldst not1 at any price1 bring back to the bosom of him who suffered for all men because he loved all4 ,oh6 may thy desires soon be fulfilled1 holy church of the living ,god6 ,how1 then1 can that man call himself the friend of ,god and the true son of the church of ,jesus ,christ1 who would oppose arms to arms1 violence to violence1 forgetting these words of ,christ1 ,love your enemies1 ,father1 forgive them1 for they know not what they do8 ,the blind apostles of intolerance show well that they have never penetrated in its true sense the life of the ,redeemer1 who1 suffering every injury1 and even the death of the cross1 drew the whole world to himself by the irresistible power of pardon and of love4 ,he who would be willing to forget his prejudices1 and1 retiring into the solitude of his own heart1 would plant there the sweet image of ,jesus ,christ1 such a one would soon learn how far the power of ,christian meekness transcends that of the sword1 and he would shudder at the thought of pursuing with fire and steel them whom the cross alone may vanquish4 ,ah6 if ,jesus crucified entered truly into our hearts1 how many things would he not make them understand6 ,footnote #aef ,footnote #aef3 ,della ,carit ,cristiani4 ,again1 ,i find1 in the same paper1 this beautiful sentiment3 ,i believe that charity consists not solely in compassionating the sufferings of the poor and relieving them4 ,its character is more general3 it must be the soul of all our sentiments4 ,for my part1 ,i see charity in patience1 in humility1 in faith1 in docile submission to superiors1 in justice1 in courage1 in fortitude1 in contempt of the world1 in the desire of heaven4 ,charity is1 indeed1 the light of ,god1 infinite as himself4 ,whoever has received into his heart a ray of this divine light is bound1 if ,i may so speak1 to communicate its warmth to the whole world4 ,we return to the letters4 ,july #ae4 ,sweet were the impressions1 ,gaetano1 which our walk yesterday in that beautiful garden left on my mind4 ,is it not true that the flowers1 the trees1 the blue sky1 the pure soft air1 the song of the birds1 the hum of the insects--all conspired to speak to our hearts of ,god8 ,i feel1 too1 that all these beautiful things seemed more joyous to me because you were there1 for to me they all seemed to reflect the feelings of your heart4 ,then those beautiful verses of my mother's which ,uncle ,g---- read to us affected me powerfully4 ,earth and heaven1 flowers and songs1 all borrowed a new charm from the harmony of those beautiful stanzas4 #ede ,july #bb4 ,i do not know the places you speak of1 unless you mean ,romito and ,antignano4 ,i went as far as ,la ,torre on foot1 one beautiful ,august morning1 without suffering much from the heat1 which was tempered by the sea-breeze4 ,after having traversed that long1 steep road1 which becomes at every step more solitary and more closely shut in between the hills and the sea1 ,i went up to the top of the little fortress1 and thence for a long time ,i gazed on the neighboring islands and the vast horizon where sea and sky seemed to unite1 and ,i even discerned some of the lands of the ,maremma4 ,another time1 with the ,plezza1 the ,gabrini1 and other friends1 we went as far as ,romito4 ,the sun had already sunk below the horizon4 ,every moment the last glimmering of twilight was becoming more faint1 and soon the moon rose behind the hills4 ,her pale rays were reflected in the sea1 where nothing was seen save a solitary fishing-boat2 and the gentle murmur of the waves1 as they came slowly to die on the rocky shore1 was the only sound that broke the stillness of the night4 ,we crossed from time to time the dry bed of one of those torrents which fall from the mountains into the sea2 and thus1 now talking1 now silent1 gazing1 admiring1 we passed the two little towers1 and1 arrived at the limits of the two communes1 we stopped and turned back1 as if we had reached the ,columns of ,hercules1 ,there is a comparison that would please my good friend ,louisa ,v----4 ,would you believe it1 in her last letter she gravely compares me to a navigator steering toward a new world4 ,yet no1 she says1 love is a world as old as the earth4 ,that may be1 my good ,louisa2 but to me it is new1 all new1 ,gaetano1 and ,i believe1 even1 that it will never grow old1 like everything that comes directly from ,god1 who is endless duration in eternal youth6 ,on this is grounded my sure hope that1 after having united us here on earth1 he will unite us again in the life to come2 and this thought alone raises me from earth to heaven6 ,this was not the first time that ,rosa had visited ,antignano4 ,that calm and lovely shore had witnessed the sports of her childhood4 ,three or four years before the date of the last letter we have given1 she wrote from that place to one of her young friends the following pretty letter3 ,antignano1 ,july1 #ahec4 ,in spite of our joy at being here1 believe me1 my dear ,maria1 we feel your absence sadly4 ,it turns to melancholy the joyous memories of last year4 ,this is from my heart1 ,maria2 how happy ,i should be to have you at this moment by my side6 ,come back to us then1 dear friend1 come back6 ,the little wood where we spent so many happy hours1 the great shady trees1 the smiling country1 and the sea--all call you back4 ,why1 it is but two days since ,i heard a wave which came bounding over the sea say to you1 ,come down1 young girl1 from the flowery bank into this calm sea1 and yield to the invitation of the sun1 who with his brilliant rays is brightening air and earth and water4 ,but this pretty song of the naiad was suddenly interrupted1 for my poor wave broke and expired on a rock4 ,all its sister wavelets murmured the same prayer to you1 but all1 like the first1 soon broke upon the shore2 and ,i grew pensive at the sight1 for those poor waves1 vanishing so quickly1 seemed to me a true image of our shattered hopes1 which cause us so many tears4 ,meanwhile a little interior voice remained with me1 and murmured sweetly in my ear1 ,courage1 courage6 ,why are you sad8 ,cannot ,maria come back8 ,i am your good friend ,hope1 listen to me and believe me3 ,i promise you that next year ,maria shall be here4 ,this consoled me a little1 for ,i always believe what my good friend ,hope tells me4 ,courage1 then1 and patience1 and ,i am sure of having you yet at ,antignano4 ,dear ,maria1 pardon this letter1 which is as long as it is foolish1 and1 if you do not understand it1 seek in it only a new proof of my tender affection for you4 ,meanwhile1 let us leave the world of dreams and enter that of news4 444 #edf ,to ,gaetano4 ,july #bh4 ,this day brings to us a mournful anniversary4 ,poor ,charles ,albert6 on this day1 and at the very hour in which ,i write1 he yielded up to ,god his soul1 oppressed with grief1 but still full of an unshaken confidence in the justice of his cause and the imprescriptibility of his rights4 ,doubtless the saints have welcomed into heaven him who on earth loved ,god and suffered for justice' sake4 ,it is with feelings of compassion that ,i think of the king1 his son1 surviving all his family1 who have1 one after the other1 gone before him to the grave4 ,this enthusiastic remembrance of the house of ,savoy is not the only one to be found in the letters of ,rosa ,ferrucci4 ,the misfortunes of the king1 ,charles ,albert2 the death of the ,duke of ,genoa1 his son2 the ruin of so many hopes1 for a moment triumphant--all these often call forth in her correspondence plaints and regrets4 ,i like to see this love of national independence in so pure a soul4 ,she says somewhere3 ,in considering the history of nations1 we discover at every step new and infallible proofs of the wisdom and omnipotence of him who directs the affairs of the world2 of that mysterious justice which surpasses all human understanding as the heavens surpass the earth4 ,hope1 then1 in the ,lord1 ye victims of oppression6 ,acknowledge the hand which alone can give you deliverance6 ,and you1 usurpers of the rights of the vanquished1 triumph not without trembling at the tears which you have caused to flow4 ,he lives1 he will live for ever1 who will never remain deaf to the lamentations of his people ,israel4 ,if he defers his justice1 are you to cease to believe in him8 ,because he can wait1 will your presumption know no bounds8 ,do you forget that ,god is patient because he is eternal8 ,footnote #aeg ,footnote #aeg3 ,della ,carit ,cristiani ,patriotism was1 however1 a family tradition with ,rosa ,ferrucci4 ,at the time of the memorable events which1 in #ahdh1 threatened the speedy overthrow of ,austrian rule in ,italy1 ,signer ,ferrucci1 with his colleagues in the ,university of ,pisa1 quitted his chair1 and1 at the head of the students1 who had formed themselves into a body1 set out for the army1 accompanied by his young son4 ,they took part in all the battles of that unfortunate campaign--at first in its victories1 then in its reverses--and returned to ,pisa only after the ruin of the last hope4 ,these are facts too little known in the contemporary history of that unhappy ,italy whose faults are the theme of every tongue1 while few know how many noble hearts she can still produce4 ,we resume the correspondence3 ,august #d4 ,may ,i tell you1 ,gaetano1 what ,i have been thinking about our future life8 ,we must first1 as we have so often said1 have continually present to our minds the will of ,god1 endeavor to accomplish it in all things1 and be ever submissive to it from our inmost hearts4 ,then we must have but one heart and one soul in serving ,god1 and ,i hope that we shall have but one heart also in loving our dear parents4 ,what ingratitude would be ours if in our happiness we forgot them to whom we owe so much1 and who loved us before we knew what love was6 ,footnote #aeh ,footnote #aeh3 ,prima che noi potessimo sapere che fosse amore4 #edg ,let us endeavor so to regulate the affections of our hearts that one shall not be stifled by the other1 but that all1 forming a sweet harmony1 may rise toward him who created us1 and for whom alone we must live4 ,may he alone be the end of all our actions and of all our thoughts6 ,then fatigue will never overcome our courage1 our duties will never seem too heavy1 our life will be calm1 our intentions pure1 and we shall taste even here below that interior peace1 ,which no one knows but he who feels it4 ,such is the plan of our life4 ,i have but lightly sketched it1 fearing that ,i might seem to be giving counsels and prescribing rules to you4 ,all this is possible only by the grace of ,god4 ,let us beg it through the intercession of the ,blessed ,virgin at the approaching festival of the ,assumption2 we have so great need of her protection and guidance4 ,we pray for grace and it obtain ,from her who is its mother4 ,september #ae4 ,to-day ,i am as sad as ,i was joyous yesterday4 ,your departure1 the thought of an inevitable separation from my father and mother1 a thousand conflicting feelings in my heart1 undefinable to myself1 have made me weep4 ,alas for us women6 we are weaker than the leaves which are stripped from the trees and scattered by the first wind of autumn2 and1 childhood scarce passed1 our hearts1 capable only of loving and suffering1 are torn by a thousand contrary emotions of joy and sadness4 ,pardon me these murmurs1 ,o my ,god6 ,no1 ,i ought not to weep1 but ought rather to pour out my soul in thanksgiving4 ,i open my whole heart to you1 ,gaetano1 because it is you who are to be the support of my life2 to share all my thoughts1 dispel my fears1 and be my counsellor and guide4 ,singular thing6 my new hopes have made all my feelings more keen and ardent4 ,hence those alternations of joy and sadness1 to whose deepest emotions ,i was till lately a stranger4 ,as it is1 ,i do not know how ,i am to tear myself from the arms of those who watched over my childhood and who love me so much4 ,but let us forget all this to-day4 ,i can no longer speak of my mother without my eyes filling with tears4 ,it is drawing near that dear ,october4 ,if ,i cannot enjoy your ruralizing1 ,i can1 at least1 be happy in thinking of the pleasure you will find in it4 ,you are going to see your mountains again1 and those pine-groves1 which from my childhood ,i have ever loved and admired4 ,in the midst of the flowers1 the plants1 the trees1 you will think often of him who created us with souls capable of loving the beautiful and good2 of him who this year has opened to you the horizon of a new life1 in which ,i hope you will never find either regrets or thorns4 ,oh6 how easy1 as it seems to me1 does the beauty of the country make the love of ,god4 ,how sweet it is to think that the same ,god who gives the dews and the fertilizing rains to the earth1 foliage to the trees1 flowers and harvests to the fields1 is also that loving ,father who supports us in all our trials and so sweetly invites our souls to repose in himself6 ,let me speak to you of the good ,god1 ,gaetano2 ,i love so much to think of him4 ,september #be4 ,i cannot express the pleasure it is to me to gaze into the deep azure of the beautiful mornings of which ,the air is sweet and changeless1 and of the lovely evenings when the stars seem to speak1 and tell in a sacred language the wisdom of ,god4 ,the country does good to our souls4 ,in admiring its beauties and its treasures ever new1 we are led more easily to think that1 if earth was made for man1 man was created to love ,god4 ,i often say to myself1 ,what1 then1 will heaven be1 if there is so much of beauty on this poor earth1 where we are not so much dwellers as pilgrims8 444 ,on the eve of ,st4 ,john's day1 all ,florence was illuminated4 ,there was nothing to be heard but games and noisy laughter among the people4 ,every one was gazing eagerly at the fireworks and the illuminations2 but no one thought of admiring the most beautiful ornament of the feast--,i mean the moon1 whose tremulous rays were reflected in the ,arno1 lengthening the shadows of the trees4 #edh ,september #bh4 ,next year we will go to the country together4 ,if you knew how ,i love your mountains1 with their tall pines1 their flowers1 their streams1 and their green summits4 ,i still remember the moment ,i left them4 ,it was a ,november morning4 ,the faint rays of a cloud-veiled sun shed a pale light on the horizon1 the leaves were falling from the trees1 and the snow of the day before still covered the summits4 ,all nature was solitary and sad4 ,who could have told me then1 that to this melancholy spot which ,i was leaving as a child1 ,i should return with you a happy bride8 ,october #bc4 ,enjoy well your ruralizing2 its pleasures are a thousand times sweeter than those of our towns4 ,how pleasant it is of an evening to climb the heights1 and thence behold the vast expanse of heaven still purpled by the sun's last rays2 to see at one's feet the fields1 the pine groves1 the pale olives1 the elms1 yellow-tinted by autumn1 the little1 scattered cottages of the peasants1 with the smoke of the evening fire rising from the roof1 and the village church1 which seems by the tolling of its bell to mourn the dying day1 ,il giorno pianger che si muore6 ,transcriber's note3 ,this sentence is blurred4 ,i am far from all this now1 but ,i often think of it4 ,again ,i see our happy day at ,cuccigliana1 our mountain walk1 and that beautiful horizon1 with its luminous depths1 which promised me a joyous future4 ,how many things nature can say6 ,how she can speak to the heart6 ,how1 above all1 she can speak to it of ,god6 ,flowers1 hills1 forests1 earth1 and sky--all are more beautiful when we have learned to discern in them the beauty of ,god4 ,how many times already1 ,gaetano1 have ,i gone over again our walk on the ,serchio1 where the rustling of the leaves was the only accompaniment to our long conversations6 ,ah6 may ,god bless thee1 may he render thee happy1 and all my desires will be satisfied4 ,eve of ,all ,saints' ,day4 ,oh6 if the feast of to-morrow should one day be our feast6 ,do not suppose1 however1 that ,i am presumptuous enough to hope that we shall ever be like the saints of our altars4 ,no2 but ,i believe that not only those great saints1 but also all the souls of the just who are admitted to the beatific vision of ,god1 are invoked on this great day by the church4 ,this it is that emboldens my desires4 444 ,if you are sad1 recollect that it has pleased ,god thus to alternate in this world our joys and sorrows1 in order to implant more deeply in our souls the desire of that life in which weeping shall be no more4 ,then shall we be united ,i hope1 in the love and blissful contemplation of that ,god whom we now adore under the veil of faith4 #edi ,meanwhile it is sweet to say to one's self3 ,god loves me infinitely more than ,i can love myself4 ,he thinks of me and watches over me with a tenderness surpassing all the tenderness of a mother4 ,what1 then1 should ,i fear8 ,and besides1 how be ,christians and not be willing to suffer for love of a ,god who has suffered so much for us8 ,i would share these thoughts with you1 ,gaetano1 because ,i find in them my strength and consolation every day4 ,treasure them in your heart1 call them often to mind1 and your sadness will disappear as ,la neve al sol si disigilla4 ,footnote #aei ,footnote #aei3 ,the snow dissolves before the sun4 ,i do not think we shall lose by the exchange when1 having finished ,milton1 we read ,virgil together4 ,that great man seems to me indeed ,the light and honor of the other poets1 as our ,dante says4 ,we shall reap from this reading the great advantage of being able to compare the principal episodes of the ,a,eneid with the best passages of other poems4 ,i assure you ,i do not regret the time ,i give to my little studies2 if ,i had to commence them again1 ,i should apply myself only with more diligence and attention4 ,i owe to them the best pleasures that ,i have known2 above all1 ,i owe to them community of intellectual life with you4 ,footnote #afj ,footnote #afj3 ,i would for a moment call the reader's attention to this sentiment4 ,such should1 indeed1 be the chief end of the studies of every ,christian woman--community of intellectual life with her husband1 community of intellectual life with her sons4 ,now that ,i do not take lessons1 and that1 consequently1 ,i have no more leisure1 ,i know no more lively pleasure than to shut myself up in my little room with my books and my pen2 and even during those hours which ,i ought and which ,i am determined to devote to needlework1 ,i love still to think of what ,i have read and to beguile the time by these pleasant memories4 ,having had some time for study to-day1 ,i resumed the reading of ,muratori1 taking the history of the wars of ,odoacer and ,theodoric4 ,the subject is a familiar one1 but ,i return to it always willingly1 because ,i think the history of the middle ages even more important for us to know than ancient history4 ,and then what joy of soul to see the church1 in all places and in the most barbarous ages1 the mother and guardian of civilization1 the friend and consoler of the vanquished1 the last bulwark of the oppressed against the unbridled pretensions of power6 ,poor ,italy6 how she has suffered6 ,what carnage6 ,how much blood shed in vain6 ,how many tears6 ,january #a1 #aheg4 ,let us pray ,god1 let us pray him with our whole heart to-day1 ,gaetano1 to bless our union1 our souls1 our actions1 our thoughts1 our life4 ,may he deign to preserve long those who are dear to us1 to shield us from great misfortunes1 and1 above all1 never to withdraw his grace from us6 ,such are the prayers that we will offer together1 united in heart1 though separated by distance4 ,god will see the sincerity of our desires1 and he will grant them4 ,the serenity of the heavens gladdens all nature1 and rejoices also our souls1 which in the light of the sun seem1 as it were1 a reflection of the ,increated ,light4 ,i do not think ,i am superstitious1 ,gaetano2 and if the new year had commenced in the midst of lightning1 thunder1 and dismal rains1 ,i should certainly not1 on that account1 have augured ill for our future4 ,but now1 contemplating the calmness and pureness of the sky and of the whole horizon1 ,i ask of ,god to give us a life like to this beautiful day1 that is to say1 such a life that nothing may ever be able to disturb in our souls that peace whose source is in ,god1 its eternal fount4 #eej ,january #d4 ,after some cold days1 the weather has again become very mild1 and the air is balmy as with the first perfumes of spring4 ,how brightly the sun shines to-day6 ,its warm beams inundate my little room4 ,seated at my table1 at some distance from the window1 my eye wanders involuntarily to what ,i can see of the sky4 ,i fancy ,i see a great blue eye looking down lovingly on me4 ,ah ,gaetano6 how good is ,god6 ,i have just learned the death of a very dear friend4 ,young1 beautiful1 brought up in opulence1 the only daughter of a mother who idolized her1 she wished to become a ,sister of ,charity in order to serve ,god in his poor4 ,for ten years she has been a tender mother to the orphan1 and she has just died in the bloom of her days4 ,dear and good ,sister ,maria6 how happy ,i should have been to see her again6 ,i do not cease thinking of her6 ,schiller would say here3 ,cease to weep3 tears do not resuscitate the dead4 ,ah6 with what a far different power do the words addressed by the ,redeemer to the afflicted come home to our hearts3 ,blessed are they that weep1 for they shall be comforted6 ,the more ,i meditate on these words1 and then look on earth in its renewal1 the pure light and deep azure of the sky1 the more ,i am impressed1 death notwithstanding1 with the infinite goodness of ,god and the ineffable bliss of a future life4 ,i hear sometimes of the good being oppressed by the wicked2 ,i often see virtuous persons in misfortune2 will not1 then1 the just also have their day and their recompense8 ,ah6 often1 when at night ,i raise my eyes toward the twinkling stars1 ,i think of those happy souls who are there on high1 higher than the stars1 in the eternal enjoyment of the beatific vision1 of adoration and love without end4 ,if man would only fix his soul on such thoughts1 what is there on earth that could discourage him8 ,i received your dear letter this morning1 ,gaetano1 and lest you should suppose ,i thought it too gloomy1 ,i must tell you that ,i1 too1 have been thinking of death the whole day1 and that ,i even offered a special prayer to our ,lord to be merciful to me when the hour shall have come for me to pass from time to eternity1 and1 as ,i hope1 from the human to the divine4 ,we have need of abandoning ourselves with a child-like confidence into the arms of ,god1 if we wish to keep alive in our hearts the hope of seeing in heaven him whom we adore on earth4 ,for my part1 if1 instead of thinking of him alone1 ,i turned to think of myself1 ,i really know not whither my reflections might lead me4 ,but hope1 which is a ,christian virtue1 is a firm expectation of future glory1 ,i will1 then1 forget my fears and believe that1 despite our imperfections1 we may one day taste in the bosom of ,god a happiness even of the shadow of which we cannot catch a glimpse on this earth4 ,we shall then know in what overflowing measure the ,lord rewards even the feeblest efforts of his friends4 ,we shall know how everything here below was inevitably passing away with ourselves1 how this earthly life vanished more lightly than a dream1 and that there remains nothing to man after death but love1 that ethereal part of the soul which ,god claims all for himself4 ,yet more3 ,i believe that the love which shall unite and commingle our souls on high will not be absorbed in the contemplation of the divine essence in such a manner that the sweetness of loving each other still shall escape our perception4 #eea ,i believe1 on the contrary1 that it will be the triumph of love to exist and to endure in ,god1 and to unite in one canticle of praise the souls which ,god made to love one another4 ,more sorrow--,matilda is dead6 ,footnote #afa ,oh6 how we loved her4 ,she was an angel6 ,it is we only who suffer1 for to her it is pure happiness to have quitted earth4 ,not a murmur was ever heard from her lips4 ,she found all peace and all strength in the love of ,god4 ,her soul so easily opened itself to joy4 ,the day before her death1 seeing some flowers1 ,what beautiful things our ,god has made6 she exclaimed4 ,her friends wished to inform her father of her imminent danger4 ,this she constantly opposed1 wishing to spare that poor father the agony of a last farewell4 ,here are examples4 ,footnote #afa3 ,matilda ,manzoni1 daughter of the celebrated author of ,i ,promessi ,sposi4 ,i do not know the introduction you speak of2 but my mother has read to me the admirable verses of ,manzoni which are prefixed to it4 ,how many things these verses recall to me4 ,they have affected me powerfully4 ,returning in memory to the times that are past1 ,i fancied as ,i listened to them that ,i heard the sweet voice of my poor ,matilda1 who1 in reciting this beautiful poetry1 evinced so tender an admiration for her father's genius4 ,we were at ,viareggio4 ,it was a beautiful summer evening1 and the peace of a starlit sky penetrated deep into our souls4 ,matilda said to me3 ,rosa1 if you could only tell me the first verse of those stanzas1 ,i am sure ,i could recite the whole4 ,for some time ,i ransacked my poor memory in vain4 ,suddenly came the word1 ,pause awhile4 ,that word was enough4 ,matilda recited without failing in a word--and oh6 with what feeling--the whole piece of poetry4 ,dear friend6 she is with us no longer1 and we shall see her no more on earth4 ,when ,i parted with her last1 ,i said to her3 ,farewell till we meet again4 ,i ought to have said3 ,farewell till we meet in heaven4 ,when the storm came upon us1 ,footnote #afb two terrific peals of thunder were heard at once4 ,i confess1 ,gaetano1 ,i did not expect to reach ,pisa4 ,and oh6 how terrible is the thought of death1 when all around reminds one of the almighty power of ,god4 ,i trembled as ,i thought of eternity4 ,i saw my own nothingness1 and that my only refuge was in the bosom of ,god4 ,there did ,i cast myself with all the confidence of my soul4 ,unperceived by any one1 ,i drew from my bosom my crucifix1 and1 concealing it in my hand1 ,i pressed it to my lips4 ,i felt then what help religion will give us in our last moments1 for ,i immediately regained courage1 and all my fears vanished4 ,footnote #afb3 ,signorina ,ferrucci was1 with her parents1 returning from ,leghorn to ,pisa1 when they were surprised by a violent storm1 which is the subject of this letter4 ,to ,signorina ,louisa ,b----4 ,i received your sad and tender letter yesterday1 my dear ,louisa1 and ,i answer it without delay1 to prove to you that your sorrows are mine4 ,poor ,antonietta6 ,yet1 why weep for her8 ,her soul has winged its flight to the celestial regions1 where1 as she said in her delirium1 all was ready to receive her4 ,it is not to her1 then--it is to you1 to your family1 to ourselves1 that our tears belong4 #eeb ,as soon as ,i heard the sad tidings1 ,i raised my heart to ,god1 and offered him a fervent prayer for your mother and yourself4 ,as to ,antonietta1 ,i could not pray for her1 because ,i saw her truly in the midst of the angelic choirs4 ,dear friend1 would that ,i could console you2 but ,i feel with sadness my utter inability4 ,it is ,god alone who has the secret of true consolation4 ,is not he our good ,father8 ,does not he await us in that blessed abode where there are neither sorrows nor tears1 but where reign eternal peace and happiness8 ,and then1 my poor ,louisa1 if life seemed to promise your dear sister happiness and joy1 has not death put her in possession of joys more pure1 happiness more profound1 than she could ever have desired8 ,oh6 how enviable is her lot4 ,she will never know the troubles1 the disappointments1 the disenchantments of this life4 ,she will be spared all the suffering which is inseparable from a long existence4 ,death has been to her a beautiful angel1 come from heaven to crown her with flowers4 ,dry your tears1 ,louisa3 your sister is happier than we4 ,to ,gaetano1 ,each day is bringing you nearer the mournful anniversary you spoke of in your last letter4 ,i beg1 ,i conjure you1 ,gaetano1 to allow to your heart no sentiment but that of resignation4 ,remember that we shall see in heaven those who are taken from us on earth2 and that the sufferings of this life are the means by which we are to attain endless beatitude4 ,i speak thus1 not to preach patience to you1 which it would ill become me to do1 but to give you a word of consolation2 for ,i know all that you have suffered1 all that you still suffer in secret4 ,the cares of business and the multiplicity of exterior duties will not prevent sorrowful memories from taking possession of your soul4 ,you can1 then1 but offer your sufferings as a sacrifice1 believing that they will render us more worthy of the divine love4 ,if ,i already shared your life1 ,i would do everything in my power to console and encourage you on these sad days4 ,meanwhile let us both strive each day to lessen our imperfections1 and to let the love of ,god have fuller scope in our hearts4 ,thus shall we1 if not without fear1 at least without remorse1 reach that solemn moment of our life1 the one that will end it4 ,may ,god1 who1 we hope1 will one day unite us on earth by holy ties1 deign to unite us also in heaven6 ,january #ba4 7,three days before the commencement of her illness47 ,truly we must be always ready to die when and as ,god wills1 and to love him infinitely more than all the things of this world which are passing away with our frail lives4 ,our immortal soul is not made for this world1 where all is fleeting1 dissolving1 changing4 ,by the very nature of its being1 it yearns for heaven4 ,for me1 living or dead1 in this world or the next1 ,i will be ever thine1 my ,gaetano1 in the love that ,god knows and blesses4 ,this letter is the last that ,rosa ,ferrucci wrote4 ,concluded ,in ,next ,number4 ---------- #eec ,the ,sanitary and ,moral ,condition of ,new ,york ,city4 ,a glance at ,new ,york ,city1 embracing the entire of ,manhattan ,island1 will show that its geographical position1 its advantages for sewerage and drainage1 in fact for everything that would make it salubrious and healthy1 cannot be surpassed by any city in this or any other country4 ,and still1 with its bountiful supply of nature's choicest gifts1 many of our readers will be surprised to hear that our death-rate is higher than that of any city on this continent1 or any of the larger cities of ,europe4 ,we append a table showing the relative per annum mortality in various cities3 ,death4 ,population4 ,new ,york #a in #ce ,london #a in #de ,paris #a in #dj ,copenhagen #a in #cf ,christiansund1 7,norway47 #a in #dj ,liverpool #a in #dd ,philadelphia #a in #dh ,boston #a in #da ,newark1 ,n4 ,j #a in #dd ,providence #a in #de ,hartford #a in #ed ,rochester #a in #dd ,footnote #afc ,footnote #afc3 ,health in ,country and ,cities4 ,w4 ,f4 ,thorns1 ,m4 ,d4 ,let us first examine the conditions which favor and cause this excessively high death-rate1 and then approximate as nearly as possible what our percentage of mortality should be1 under good hygienic regulations4 ,the primary cause of the present condition is1 evidently1 in the packing system of the tenant-houses2 and how the unfortunates exist in the fetid air and dirt of these dens1 it is impossible to imagine4 ,the name tenant-house is applied to all buildings containing three or more families4 ,there are at present in our city #ah1ehb of these residences4 ,in these live over a half-million of people1 or more than half of our entire population4 ,these houses vary in condition1 from the apartments over stores on our prominent thoroughfares1 which often contain all the comforts and conveniences of more aristocratic and imposing structures1 through many gradations to the cellar1 garrets1 and model tenant-houses1 occupied by the most miserable of our inhabitants4 ,such an economy of space was never known to be displayed in sheltering cattle as is here shown in the houses1 if they can be so called1 of the laboring classes4 ,we give a description of one of these establishments1 for the benefit of those who have never examined a model tenant-house4 ,on a lot #be by #ajj feet two buildings are erected1 one in the front1 the second in the rear4 ,between the houses is a yard or open space1 in which are located rows of stalls to be used as water-closets4 ,the buildings are frequently seven and eight stories high1 including basement4 ,through the middle of each house runs a hall three to four feet wide4 ,on each side of the hall are the apartments1 as they are termed1 more properly coops or dens4 ,there are sometimes three or four sets of these coops to each half1 making six or eight families to the floor2 and so they are packed1 from the cellar to the roof of the establishment4 ,as the term suites of apartments is rather deceptive to the uninitiated1 we will state this means simply two--one1 the common room1 where all the cooking1 washing1 and other family work is performed1 and in some instances used additionally for manufacturing purposes1 as shoe-making1 tailoring1 etc42 the other is the sleeping-room4 #eed ,the first is generally #h feet by #aj1 and the second #g by #h1 with an average height of #g feet4 ,not unfrequently two families--yea1 four families--live in one of these small sets of dens2 and in this manner as many as #abf families1 numbering over #hjj souls1 have been packed into one such building1 and some of the families taking boarders and lodgers at that4 ,and worse yet1 all around such tenements1 or in close proximity to them1 stand slaughter-houses1 stables1 tanneries1 soap factories1 and bone-boiling establishments1 emitting life-destroying exhalations4 ,footnote #afd ,footnote #afd3 ,mr4 ,dyer's ,report on the ,condition of the ,destitute and ,outcast ,children of this city4 ,imagine rows of such houses1 so close to each other as to shut out the air and sunlight from their inmates1 and you have a picture of the condition of some portions of the lower wards of ,new ,york ,city4 ,of the #ah1ehb tenant-houses4 ,dr4 ,e4 ,b4 ,dalton1 the ,sanitary ,superintendent1 reports #eb per cent in bad sanitary condition1 that is1 in a condition detrimental to the health and dangerous to the lives of the occupants1 and sources of infection to the neighborhood generally2 #cb per cent are in this condition purely from overcrowding1 accumulations of filth1 want of water-supply1 and other results of neglect4 ,dr4 ,e4 ,harris1 the efficient ,register of ,vital ,statistics for the ,board of ,health1 informs us that1 although the ,fourth ward has given up nearly one half its space for mercantile purposes1 it still retains the population it had in #ahfd4 ,this is effected by driving the poor tenants into smaller space and more miserable dens1 which they are obliged to accommodate themselves to1 as there is no rapid transportation at their command by which they could reach homes in more salubrious districts1 and still retain their employment in this section4 ,the result is1 that in some locations the people are packed at the rate of nearly #cjj1jjj to the square mile4 ,here are congregated the vilest brothels1 the lowest dance-houses1 and other dens of infamy4 ,it is doubtful if throughout ,europe1 and certainly in no other part of ,america1 in the same amount of space1 so much vice1 immorality1 pauperism1 disease1 and fearful depravity could be found1 as some of the worst of these locations present daily for our consideration4 ,our readers must not suppose1 from our frequent references to the ,fourth ward1 that it contains all of this character of trouble existing in ,new ,york4 ,this is not the case4 ,in portions of all the wards in the lower part of the island1 as well as up-town by either river-side as high as ,fiftieth street1 will the same condition be found1 but not in so concentrated a form as in the ,fourth ,ward and its immediate surroundings1 which has for a long time held the unenviable reputation of being the worst locality on the island4 ,practical hygienists give #ajjj cubic feet as the standard amount of air-space for each individual4 ,dr4 ,w4 ,f4 ,thoms1 in his pamphlet on ,tenant-,houses1 thinking that quantity impracticable in this character of building1 gives #gjj cubic feet as the minimum in which a person can live and not be injured by the carbonic acid he constantly expires4 ,with many of the 'fever-nests' not more than #cjj to #djj feet to the individual are given2 and ,captain ,lord's report shows that in #bhi houses the quantity allowed each inmate is only between #ajj and #cjj cubic feet4 #eee ,the zymotic or foul-air diseases1 as they are termed by some1 formed #bi4cf per cent of our total mortality during last year4 ,footnote #afe ,footnote #afe3 ,dr4 ,harris's ,report4 ,belonging to this class are the diarrhoeal maladies1 ,asiatic cholera1 cholera-morbus1 typhoid and typhus fevers1 small-pox1 measles1 scarlet fever1 and others of this kind2 also the dietetic disorders1 inanition1 scurvy1 etc4 ,it will be readily seen that1 in such locations as are above described1 a very large proportion of the mortality from this class must arise4 ,consumption also1 which might properly be termed the constant scourge of the human family1 assists largely in running up our death-table4 ,the late ,archbishop ,hughes1 in speaking of this disease1 said it was the natural death of the ,irish emigrant in this country4 ,this remark is equally true of persons coming from all other countries1 partially on account of foreigners not being acclimated to the vicissitudes of our climate1 but more particularly because so many of them dwell in damp1 leaky shanties1 or in cellars which are frequently below the level of high water4 ,here the seeds of the disease are planted by which the miserable victims of hectic fever1 night-sweats1 and other attendant evils are hurried to their untimely graves4 ,in the fifteen months ending ,december #cast1 #ahfg1 #dabc persons died in our city of this disease4 ,the largest number of these were between the ages of #be and #dj4 ,one thousand seven hundred and sixty-five were natives of ,ireland1 #adcj were ,americans1 #fjj ,germans1 and #cbh from other foreign countries4 ,upon the infants1 however1 of these polluted districts death fastens his relentless grasp1 and from their ranks under the age of five years he claimed last year over one half the entire mortality of the city4 ,the blood of these innocents is poisoned from birth by the noxious influences of bad air and adulterated food2 consequently their nutrition is defective1 and the majority of them are found frail1 puny1 and miserable4 ,in this condition they are little able to stand the irritation attendant upon the process of dentition1 and during this period a large number of them rapidly sink from diarrhoea1 marasmus1 or some kindred disorder4 ,seven thousand four hundred and ninety-four of these little ones died last year under twelve months of age4 ,this is supposed to be little less than one fourth of all the infants born alive during the same period4 ,is it not enough to send a thrill of horror to the breast of every mother1 to think that one out of every four infants born1 must perish before it reaches its first birthday8 ,this is well known to be twice too high a death-rate for the first year of infant life1 and experience demonstrates1 that the infant death-rate is a safe index of the general rate of mortality1 both in the total population and in the adults of any city or district4 ,that is1 if in the ,sixth ward we find a high death-rate in children1 and if it is vastly higher than that in the children of the ,fifteenth ward1 then we shall find 7as we actually have found7 that the death-rate is excessively high in the total number of adult inhabitants of the ,sixth1 while there is a very low death-rate in the ,fifteenth that buries the smallest percentage of its infants4 ,footnote #aff ,footnote #aff3 ,dr4 ,harris's ,report4 ,an easy solution to this is found in the greater susceptibility of early infancy from extreme delicacy of formation4 ,just as the accurate thermometer indicates immediately every change in the temperature1 so these frail organizations blight first under detrimental influences1 before the more matured portion of the population are perceptibly affected by the same causes4 #eef ,the following will strikingly elucidate the greater expectation for human life to persons living in even comparatively salubrious districts4 ,the death-rate in the ,fourth ward1 in #ahfc1 was about #a in #be of the population2 in the ,fifteenth1 in the same year1 it was #a in #fj4 ,why should this wide difference in the mortality exist in two sections of the same city adjacent to each other8 ,the reason is obvious3 there are but few of the densely over-crowded tenant-houses in the ,fifteenth or healthy ward1 while the ,fourth presents a population of nearly #bj1jjj souls packed in these buildings4 ,thus it is shown that persons living in the ,fifteenth ward1 have two and a half times more chances for life than those residing in the ,fourth4 ,the all-important question to the social economist now recurs3 ,what is the necessary or inevitable mortality of the total population of this city8 ,we cannot do better than refer to the mortality above given for the ,fifteenth ward1 which is #a in #fj4 ,why is it not practicable to bring our sanitary regulations to such perfection as to reduce the mortality of the entire city to near this standard8 ,thus we would save many lives1 now sacrificed by diseases which we have the power in a great measure to control2 and we would lessen the general death-rate of the city to between #af1jjj and #ag1jjj to the #a1jjj1jjj1 instead of ranging1 as it now does1 from #bc1jjj to #bf1jjj to the same amount of population4 ,to look at this fearful drain of human life is painful enough2 but the moral aspect of the subject will be found even more deplorable4 ,the constant inhalation of vitiated air lowers the vitality and poisons the entire organism1 and1 as a natural consequence1 predisposes these unfortunates to a continual desire for stimulation4 ,this1 in fact1 is a manifestation of nature1 which1 by a wise dispensation of ,providence1 when depressed or disordered from any cause1 has a constant tendency toward health4 ,they1 however1 do not appreciate that pure air1 cleanliness1 and substantial food would quench this natural longing2 but they seek that which is more gratifying to their depraved appetites2 as for the time being it steals their reason and blunts their sensibility to present misery4 ,these facts account to a great extent for the large number of rum-holes found in the neighborhood of these tenant rookeries1 which is reported in certain localities to be one for less than every two houses4 ,many of these low groggeries are so disgustingly filthy1 and their poisonous compounds so corrupting of every moral feeling1 that they can properly be placed on an equality with the despicable ,chinese opium-dens found in the neighborhood of ,whitechapel in ,london4 ,the following figures demonstrate the immense number of votaries who frequent drinking-saloons in this city1 and the vast sums of money squandered annually in these degrading haunts3 ,there are at present #ebjc licensed rum-shops in ,new ,york2 #fig1bjb persons visit these daily1 #d1ahc1bab in a week1 and #bah1bbd1bbf in a year4 ,the total amount of money paid out for drinks across the bar and at the drinking-tables of the liquor-shops of ,new ,york is #gcf1bhj4ei a week1 or #ch1bhf1eij4fh a year4 ,footnote #afg ,footnote #afg3 ,dyer's ,report4 ,this is the account of the licensed bar-rooms3 how many unlicensed ones exist it is impossible to know4 ,when we consider that the highest estimate made of our population gives us only #a1jjj1jjj of inhabitants1 the foregoing figures certainly are astounding1 and deserve most earnest consideration4 #eeg ,in connection with this subject1 it will be interesting to examine the annals of crime for the past year4 ,there were #hj1ecb ,footnote #afh arrests made during the twelve months ending ,october #cast1 #ahfg4 ,footnote #afh3 ,report ,metropolitan ,police4 ,these embrace offences of every grade1 from petty larceny to murder4 ,the number of the latter is #ei1 or an average of more than one a week4 ,this total number of criminals amounts to nearly one twelfth of our entire population1 and certainly shows a very low grade of morals in our community4 ,it would be most interesting to know what proportion of these criminals date the commencement of their career in crime1 from the time they began to drink intoxicating liquors4 ,one of the saddest features in our city is the condition of the homeless children4 ,the number of these between the ages of five and fifteen years is stated to be #bjj1ijj1 of which not more than #ge1jjj attend ,sunday-school1 leaving the vast number of #abe1jjj of our children unreached and uncared for1 of which it has been estimated that nearly #dj1jjj are vagrant children4 ,footnote #afi ,hundreds of these children are confirmed drunkards1 and thousands of them are accustomed to strong drink4 ,children from the age of fourteen years down to infants of four are daily met in a state of intoxication4 ,they come drunk to the mission-schools4 ,the little creatures have many a time lain stretched upon the benches of this institution1 7,howard ,mission17 sleeping off their debauch4 ,hundreds of them have become veteran thieves1 and thousands more are in training for the same end4 ,nine hundred and sixty girls and #c1ieh boys1 between the ages of ten and fifteen years--making a total of #dfah--were arrested during the year ending ,october #cast1 #ahfg1 for drunkenness and petty crimes4 ,footnote #agj ,footnote #afi3 ,r4 ,g4 ,pardee1 ,esq41 communication to ,new ,york ,observer4 ,footnote #agj3 ,dyer's ,report4 ,the arrests for the same period between the ages of ten and twenty years amounts to the fearful number of #ac1ffj4 ,is it not melancholy to contemplate these little creatures1 made to the image and likeness of ,god1 allowed to develop in such haunts of crime1 every faculty as soon as awakened blunted by the atmosphere of sin surrounding them8 ,if not rescued from their fate at an early age1 we know they are the embryo criminals who will in the future fill our prisons and grace our scaffolds4 ,how can it be otherwise8 ,nurtured in a hot-bed of crime from infancy1 educated in pilfering and beggary in childhood1 it is but human that they should develop these accomplishments in rank luxuriance as they grow to manhood4 ,it seems strange that ,mr4 ,bergh's attention has never been drawn to the condition of the miserable tenants and the homeless children4 ,he and the rest of his society take every means to remedy the complaints of ill-used quadrupeds2 but unfortunate biped humanity may be stalled in filthy dens with imperfect drainage and no ventilation1 or1 the little ones starve and die on our thoroughfares1 without finding a humanitarian to raise a voice in their behalf4 ,it is true1 our cattle should be cared for1 but a just ,god will demand at our hands some protection for his poor4 ,he has said--his truths are all eternal-- ,what he said both has been and shall be-- ,what ye have not done to these my poor ones1 ,lo6 ye have not done it unto me4 ,footnote #aga ,footnote #aga3 ,proctor4 ,the radical relief for the evils growing out of the tenant-house system can only be reached by1 first1 condemning and tearing down the worst class of these buildings2 and1 secondly1 remodelling those which1 by their construction1 are susceptible of such improvement as will insure the inmates at least the blessings of sunshine and pure air4 #eeh ,these stringent measures are unfortunately1 for the present1 impracticable1 as1 should they be carried into effect1 two thirds of the inhabitants of these dens would be thrown upon the streets without shelter4 ,space must be found adjacent to the city where neat and comfortable cottages can be built for the laboring classes1 and transportation of such character provided as will enable them to reach these abodes in as little time and at as small an expense as it now consumes to get to their tenant dwellings4 ,the beautiful shores on the opposite sides of the ,hudson and ,east rivers must eventually be dotted by the villages of these working people4 ,it has been reported that a very wealthy gentleman of our community proposes building a number of such houses somewhere in the vicinity of ,new ,york4 ,to be the projector of such a philanthropic enterprise would entitle him to the love and admiration of the people now1 while in after-years it would be pointed out as a monument of his generosity to the struggling poor4 ,the proposed ,hudson ,highland ,bridge1 the ,east ,river ,bridge1 and the tunnel under the ,east ,river1 all of which1 we hope1 will be pressed rapidly to completion1 will form the first of the links which are to bind our ,island ,city to the surrounding rural districts4 ,the location where the first will span the ,hudson is near ,fort ,montgomery1 in the ,highlands2 the second is intended to connect the lower part of the city with ,brooklyn2 and the iron tubular tunnel is1 as its name indicates1 a wrought-iron tunnel1 to be laid at the bottom of the ,east ,river2 it also is to connect ,brooklyn with ,new ,york4 ,in a sanitary point of view1 we think these proposed means for rapid communication between our island and the neighboring country vie in importance with the gigantic enterprise which gives us the water of the ,croton river for our daily consumption1 and the ,central ,park for the recreation and amusement of our pent-up population4 ,over the ,east ,river ,bridge it is intended to run cars by an endless wire rope1 worked by an engine under the flooring on the ,brooklyn side4 ,the minimum rate of speed is put down as twenty miles an hour4 ,it is such travelling facilities as these structures will afford which are necessary to enable the workingmen to reach healthful and salubrious homes outside of the metropolis4 ,we would thus be able to disgorge the immense surplus of population which it is impossible for us to accommodate in our midst4 ,but while we keep this in our minds as the great ultimatum which will eventually relieve us1 we must in the mean time use every effort in our power to ameliorate as much as possible the misery surrounding us4 ,since the establishment of the ,board of ,health1 in ,march1 #ahff1 strenuous efforts have been made by that body to remedy the most glaring defects in the tenant-houses4 ,nothing could bear better evidence of the good results effected by the wise sanitary measures they have adopted than the saving in our mortality rates during the last year4 ,it has been asserted that our present code of health laws are better than those of any other city on this planet2 and had the commissioners1 in the execution of these laws1 been sustained in their laudable efforts for the public good by the courts of justice1 no doubt much more would have been effected4 #eei ,the ,sanitary ,superintendant1 ,dr4 ,e4 ,b4 ,dalton1 reports #ce1jde inspections made during the last year2 #aa1dad of these were in tenement-houses1 #aa1dgc to yards1 cellars1 waste-pipes1 etc42 the remainder1 to private dwellings1 slaughter-houses1 establishments for fat-melting and bone-boiling1 stables1 piggeries1 etc4 ,this amount of visitations by the sanitary inspectors shows great activity in their department1 and entitles them to much credit4 ,the evils1 however1 attending the entire of the present systems are so numerous that1 without a good deal of active legislation1 it is to be feared the root of the trouble cannot be reached4 ,in the first place1 no person should be allowed1 in the future1 to build a house to be occupied by more than three or four families1 without its plan of construction being first officially approved of by an appointed superintendent4 ,this would confine the sanitary evils1 so far as the internal arrangement of tenements are concerned1 to those we now have2 and1 in the second place1 as ,dr4 ,dalton suggests1 the erection of a front and rear tenement on the same lot should be strictly prohibited4 ,the importance of these means cannot be overestimated4 ,in addition1 many changes apparently slight in themselves can be effected in the existing houses1 which would materially add to the comfort and chances of life of the inmates4 ,miss ,f4 ,nightingale says3 ,it is a fact demonstrated by statistics1 that in the improved dwellings the mortality has fallen in certain cases from #be to #ad per #ajjj2 and that in the common 'lodging-houses1' which have been hot-beds of epidemics1 such diseases have almost disappeared through the adoption of sanitary measures4 ,one condition probably more pregnant with disease to the tenants than almost any other is1 that so large a percentage of the water-closets in the tenant buildings are not connected with the regular sewers4 ,the consequence is1 these places become choked up with accumulations of filth1 and give forth noisome and offensive odors1 most detrimental to health4 ,this alone is sufficient to cause a large amount of the diarrhoeal diseases which pervade our community during the hot season with such fatal results4 ,the inspector of the ,fourth ,sanitary ,district1 for the ,citizens' ,association1 in #ahfd1 reported less than #cj per cent of the privies in his district as being connected with drains or sewers4 ,he also says3 ,there is a section of my district1 embracing at least nine blocks1 in every part of which the peculiar odor arising from privies is always distinctly perceptible during the summer months4 ,from this region fever is never absent4 ,i refer to typhus and typhoid1 for intermittent and remittent fever do not prevail in this neighborhood1 even in the low tract adjoining the river4 ,such a gentle fiend as paludal miasma flies affrighted from the terrific phantoms of disease that reign supreme in this domain of pestilence4 ,the landlords who grind the last cent of rent possible from their tenants should be obliged1 at least1 to do all in their power to preserve them from palpable occasions of disease4 ,at a small expense in comparison to the income this class of property yields1 the proper connections with the sewers could be made1 and thus much suffering avoided4 ,one great trouble the sanitarian encounters is1 the disinclination of a large portion of this class to adopt habits of cleanliness4 ,they seem actually to riot in and be proud of their filthy surroundings4 ,and their example is unfortunately contagious1 as it is known frequently to be the case that where neat1 clean1 and respectable families are thrown in contact with them1 they1 too1 soon degenerate into the same condition4 #efj ,it would be true of many thousands that1 if left to the uncontrolled indulgence of their reckless and filthy habits1 they would convert a palace into a pig-sty1 and create 'fever-nests' and hot-beds of vice and corruption under circumstances most favorable to health1 comfort1 and social elevation4 ,footnote #agb ,footnote #agb3 ,report of ,association for ,improving the ,condition of the ,poor in ,new ,york4 #ahfc4 ,this fact1 although discouraging1 should be but a greater incentive to keep constantly over them a vigilant sanitary inspection1 to show them the baneful effects of their habits of living1 and to cause a spirit of emulation to assist themselves in purifying their homes and surroundings4 ,this can be done4 ,their reckless and filthy habits are1 in many instances1 but the indication of a lowered moral and physical status1 the result of the poverty1 starvation1 and misery they have endured4 ,a little encouragement1 and a constant stimulation as to the right means to be adopted1 would soon cause many of them to overcome their vitiated and depraved tastes4 ,these combined facts1 we think1 necessitate a thorough house to house examination of all this character of property in the city1 by competent sanitary persons1 so that the ,sanitary ,superintendent may know the exact condition of each tenement4 ,with such knowledge many advantageous improvements could be made and many nuisances abated1 without waiting for a report from either the occupants or sanitary police1 as is now done4 ,this action is at present rendered more essential as the summer is coming on1 and under the influence of its long1 hot days the animal and vegetable decomposition will make the air putrid with its life-destroying exhalations4 ,our death-rate from the diarrhoeal1 and other miasmatic diseases1 will1 as usual1 run up to the highest mark2 and should cholera get a foothold in the city1 it is questionable if it could be controlled by the ,health ,commissioners as readily as it was in the summer of #ahff4 ,the question1 how to deal wisely with the abuse of alcoholic stimulants1 has been earnestly discussed and considered by the press1 by municipal and legislative bodies1 from the pulpit1 and also by countless temperance associations1 without reaching a solution of this great problem4 ,philanthropic efforts are constantly made to stop the tide of self-destruction without avail2 and the originators of such movements seem all to arrive at the conclusion that it is impossible to thoroughly restrain the appetite for strong drinks by any character of laws which may be enacted4 ,the only resource that remains is to throw around the trade such restrictions as will confine it to its narrowest limits4 ,this is to be effected not alone by legislative enactments1 but also by a moral and religious influence4 ,public opinion has great weight1 and every man who loves the well-being of his race should frown down this social evil to the utmost of his power4 ,ministers of the gospel should persistently teach the enormity of the ills resulting1 as they alone fully know1 from this cause4 ,a great many persons think the present laws have no influence in restraining drunkenness1 and that as much liquor is consumed now as formerly4 ,as a proof of their efficacy1 we will give here a portion of a table1 taken from the report of the ,excise ,commissioners for last year1 comparing the number of arrests for offences actually resulting from the excessive indulgence in intoxicating drinks on ,sundays1 when the rum-sellers were obliged to keep their glittering shops closed the entire day1 and ,tuesdays1 when the prohibition applied only to before sunrise4 #efa ,months4 ,year4 ,days4 ,arrests4 ,march1 #ahfg #e ,sundays1 #baj ,march1 #ahfg #d ,tuesdays1 #dga ,april1 #ahfg #d ,sundays1 #aie ,april1 #ahfg #e ,tuesdays1 #dhj ,may1 #ahfg #d ,sundays1 #abc ,may1 #ahfg #d ,tuesdays1 #chj ,as it is well known that before the enaction of these laws the arrests on ,sunday far exceeded those of any other day in the week1 this should convince the most sceptical of the effect of the ,sunday prohibition4 ,the estimated number of vagrant children in this city is nearly #dj1jjj4 ,forty thousand immortal beings floating1 day by day1 toward physical and moral destruction6 ,throw aside all the dictates of ,christianity1 and look upon these children in the future4 ,according to our free institutions1 they will have the same amount of control over the destinies of the nation as our own offspring1 although the latter may be thoroughly educated to make good and intelligent citizens4 ,here we are allowing to be nurtured the element which1 in the riots of #ahfc1 threatened to deluge the length and breadth of the island with tumult1 conflagration1 and bloodshed4 ,every year1 with the constantly increasing tide of emigration1 new material is added to develop this character at a more rapid rate4 ,such being the case1 self-protection demands that something be done to give these children homes and draw them from the pollution surrounding them4 ,in the lower portion of the city1 there are some institutions intended particularly to take care of these little vagrants1 and they form the only breakwater to this torrent of infantile depravity4 ,the first of these is the ,five ,points ,mission4 ,this was established under ,an ,act1 passed in ,march1 #ahef1 by the ,senate and ,assembly of the ,state of ,new ,york1 to incorporate the ,ladies' ,home ,missionary ,society of the ,methodist ,episcopal ,church4 ,the intentions of the ladies forming this association are shown in the second paragraph of the above-named act1 and reads3 ,the objects of said society are1 to support one or more missionaries1 to labor among the poor of the city of ,new ,york1 especially in the locality known as the ',five ,points2' to provide food1 clothing1 and other necessaries for such poor2 to educate poor children and provide for their comfort and welfare2 and1 for that purpose1 to maintain a school at the ,five ,points1 in said city1 and to perform kindred acts of charity and benevolence4 ,the ,old ,brewery1 a most notorious den of infamy1 just at the ,five ,points1 was selected by the association as headquarters for their missionary labors2 and to gather round them here the little ones of this worst location of the city1 to be fed1 clothed1 and instructed in the rudimentary ,english branches1 as well as the ,methodist ,episcopal faith1 became a labor of love4 ,this enterprise prospered1 and now1 in place of the ,old ,brewery1 stands a large1 commodious mission-building4 ,a peculiar feature in the management is1 that entire families are taken in1 and given work of some kind to do1 so that it forms a character of tenant-house4 ,the institution contains some #ah families1 including between #fj and #gj children4 ,one thousand and nineteen children have been taught during the year in the day-school4 ,immediately opposite and facing this is the second of these institutions1 the ,five ,points ,house of ,industry4 #efb ,this was established under the supervision of the same gentleman who at first had control of the ,five ,points ,mission1 the ,rev4 ,l4 ,m4 ,pease4 ,through some misunderstanding1 he withdrew from the mission and founded the ,house of ,industry4 ,his beginning was very small1 and consisted of an effort to obtain work for a number of unhappy females who desired to escape from their criminal way of living4 ,his next step was the establishment of a day-school2 soon afterward men and women were employed in making shoes1 baskets1 etc4 ,the success of the enterprise was quickly assured1 and it rapidly enlarged its sphere of usefulness4 ,some time since1 the manufacturing of baskets1 shoes1 etc41 was given up1 and it is now simply a house of refuge1 where homeless children are educated1 fed1 and clothed4 ,during the winter1 a meal was given1 in the middle of the day1 to destitute adults4 ,one of the gentlemen informed us that #cbe men and women partook of this meal daily during the cold weather4 ,the average number of children given three meals was also #cbe1 making #acjj meals given by this institution daily4 ,the whole number of children taught here during the last year was #abhi4 ,an interesting feature connected with this enterprise is the boarding-house which has recently been established for working-girls4 ,a large tenement-house was bought1 and fitted up in the most complete manner2 and here homeless working-girls can get good1 substantial board for three dollars and a quarter a week4 ,this is of great advantage to these poor young women1 who are overworked at meagre pay1 and enables them to live for about one half the price they would be obliged to pay for board in a respectable lodging-house4 ,in the internal arrangements1 everything is done to add to the comfort as well as the mental improvement of the inmates4 ,in the public parlor there are an organ and a piano1 also several sewing-machines4 ,these are at the disposal of any one in the house1 at all times4 ,two evenings in the week they have night-school4 ,the ,germans teach their language in exchange for ,english4 ,the matron states3 ,through the kindness of some publishers1 we have #e daily papers1 #ab weeklies1 and #d monthlies4 ,three daily ,german papers are sent us2 also a ,german magazine1 published at ,leipsic1 ,germany4 ,some six years ago1 the third of the houses for this special work was established at ,no4 #dj ,new ,bowery1 by the ,rev4 ,w4 ,e4 ,van ,meter4 ,the ,howard ,mission 7as this establishment is called7 far exceeds the ,house of ,industry in its internal appearance4 ,the latter1 with its massive bare walls and iron gratings resembles more a prison for culprits than a home for little ones4 ,the former1 to the contrary1 is built with a desire to surround the children with everything that can please and attract them4 ,the assistant superintendent remarked to us that their wish had been to make their mission home more beautiful and enticing than any saloon could be4 ,the two large halls are neatly finished and artistically adorned4 ,in the lower one1 through the benevolence of a gentleman1 a fountain is constantly playing1 several hanging baskets of moss and evergreens swing from the ceiling1 and at the base of the fountain is a pretty reservoir containing gold-fish4 ,this institution has received1 in six years1 #geha children2 and the ,march number of the ,little ,wanderers' ,friend1 published by this house1 states that for this month 7,february7 #fai children have been fed at its tables1 clothed from its wardrobes1 and taught in its schools4 #efc ,these houses all have their regular religious services1 morning1 noon1 and night1 with ,sunday-schools1 singing1 and prayer-meetings4 ,on ,sunday mornings1 the prisoners from some of the station-houses1 under arrest for disorder and drunkenness the night previous1 are taken to the ,howard ,mission1 and furnished with coffee and bread1 and then1 before leaving1 they have a religious discourse preached to them4 ,in addition1 these houses have regular visitors1 who call at the homes of those making complaints1 to assist and comfort the sick1 and1 at the same time1 to find out if the statements given by them are correct4 ,in order that those not familiar with the workings of such institutions may see the charitable work these ladies effect1 we extract the first two items from the visitors' diary in the ,april number of the ,monthly ,record of the ,five ,points ,house of ,industry1 #ahff3 ,called on ,mrs4 ,l---- 1 ,irish ,catholic2 is a widow1 with two small boys2 tells me she cannot get enough work to support the family2 would be willing to sew1 wash1 pick hair1 or any of the various female employments1 if she could get it4 ,we offered to feed and clothe her boys if she would send them to our school1 which she readily promised4 ,visited ,mrs4 ,g----1 #ca ,m---- street1 ,irish ,catholic4 ,she lives in a small attic room1 rear building2 is a widow1 with one child2 has been but a few days out of the hospital2 found her little girl sick with fever2 promised to send a doctor and give her necessary assistance4 ,although these institutions are doing something by their work to alleviate the condition of a portion of this vast army of #dj1jjj stray waifs1 still it is most evident that they are utterly inadequate to provide for more than a small fraction of this number4 ,it is well known that nearly one half the population of this city profess to be members of the ,roman ,catholic religion2 and1 to show the great excess of persons belonging to this church among the lower classes in our city1 we extract the following analysis of a block of buildings from the ,little ,wanderers' ,friend for ,march1 #ahfh3 ,fifty-nine old buildings occupied by #chb families1 in which are #b ,welsh1 #g ,portuguese1 #i ,english1 #aj ,americans1 #ab ,french1 #ci negroes1 #ahf ,italians1 #ahi ,polanders1 #bah ,germans1 and #hab ,irish4 ,of these1 #aac are ,protestants1 #bhg ,jews1 and #ajfb ,roman ,catholics4 ,the ,catholic ,reformatory in ,westchester county1 established by the late ,dr4 ,ives1 is doing everything possible for the children under its control2 but the little vagrants1 unless arrested for some petty crime and thus committed to that institution1 are not within reach of its benefits4 ,the ,rev4 ,f4 ,h4 ,farrelly1 the pastor of ,st4 ,james's church1 has labored most zealously during the last three years in the cause of the ,catholic children in his immediate vicinity4 ,he has established a poor-school in the basement of his church1 under the charge of the ,sisters of ,charity4 ,the average daily attendance here is #bjj1 and these are furnished with a meal at noon1 in order to facilitate their remaining in the institution the entire day4 ,during the year1 two suits of clothing are furnished to as many as the good father's means will permit4 ,this school will be removed to the very elegant five-story mission-house1 now nearly completed1 on the corner of ,james street and ,new ,bowery4 ,this structure is of brick with freestone trimmings1 and has a front of #aaa feet on ,new ,bowery1 and #hc feet on ,james street4 ,it will be divided into #ba class-rooms4 #efd ,this enterprise will take more means for its support than ,st4 ,james's parish can possibly furnish1 and it deserves and should have the sympathy and pecuniary assistance of all ,catholics4 ,it is impossible to calculate the amount of good to be effected by the establishment of a large home1 under the supervision of the ,sisters of ,charity or ,mercy in this location4 ,these good ladies are peculiarly adapted to care for the wants of the poor1 the sick1 and the afflicted1 as they devote all their energies1 according to the intention of their institution1 to these classes of society4 ,and why8 ,because simply in so doing they fulfil the wishes of ,the ,master4 ,thus their mission is one of love1 and to strictly attend to duty the greatest pleasure of their lives4 ,this is the solution of their great success in the management of hospitals1 schools1 and charitable institutions2 and the large number of their magnificent edifices devoted to these purposes1 found throughout almost every portion of the known world1 attest the success with which ,god blesses their labors4 ,to these good sisters the poor emigrants could appeal1 without even apparently denying their religion1 for a little sustenance to keep their miserable bodies from perishing2 the sorrow-burdened could communicate their troubles1 confident of a ready sympathy2 and to these the homeless little vagrant could come1 knowing a mother's tender love and gentle forbearance awaited him4 ,in the home a room should be devoted to the use of mothers--a place where they could leave their babes to be fed and taken care of for the day4 ,this would enable poor widows to do washing and other kinds of work1 and thus many could support their families who are now entirely dependent upon public charity4 ,in addition to the home1 a large farm should be procured near the city1 where the children taken permanently under the care of the institution could be raised and educated4 ,this is advisable1 because1 in the first place1 it would be more economical1 and secondly1 experience demonstrates that a large body of children do not thrive well in such establishments when located in cities4 ,we feel confident there would be no trouble in supporting this home1 as the great ,catholic heart always responds liberally to appeals made for the poor1 and in this institution the weight of the burden should be equally borne by all the ,catholics in the city4 ,in addition to all this1 to take care of these little wanderers is a matter of great import in the light of political economy4 ,they form the fountain-head from which a large proportion of our criminals are developed4 ,if they could be made useful members of society1 it would relieve the city of a large proportion of the taxation which is now necessary to support our various prisons2 and the energy now shown in the commission of crime would become a source of material wealth to the country4 ,there is one other subject we wish to mention before concluding this paper3 it is1 the condition of the night-lodgers at the station-houses4 ,from the report of the ,board of ,metropolitan ,police1 we find that #aje1dfj persons were accommodated with lodgings at the various precincts during the last twelve months4 ,mr4 ,s4 ,c4 ,hawley1 the very accommodating chief clerk of this department1 informs us that the number this year will be much greater4 ,over #ajj1jjj sought refuge in the station-houses1 glad to obtain the bare floor to rest their weary limbs2 but how many pace our streets nightly1 poverty-stricken and despairing1 but too proud to seek a shelter in these abodes of crime6 ,it is a stigma on the fair fame of this great city that1 throughout its length and breadth1 there is not one refuge1 established by religious or philanthropic efforts1 where the homeless can find shelter from the wintry night blasts4 #efe ,our beasts and our thieves and our chattels ,have weight for good or for ill2 ,but the poor are only his image1 ,his presence1 his word1 his will2 ,and so ,lazarus lies at our doorstep1 ,and ,dives neglects him still4 ,footnote #agc ,footnote #agc3 ,proctor4 ,in ,montreal1 ,canada1 refuges are connected with the church property1 and are superintended by the female religious orders1 we think more particularly by the ,gray ,nuns4 ,in #ahfj1 the ,providence ,row ,night ,refuge was established in ,london1 under the care of the ,sisters of ,mercy4 ,there is no distinction made as regards religious creed1 and the only requisites necessary for admission are1 to be homeless and of good character4 ,before retiring1 a half-pound of bread and a basin of gruel are given to each lodger1 and the same in the morning1 before they are allowed to commence another day's efforts to obtain work4 ,what charity could so directly appeal to our hearts as this8 ,think how many men and women arrive daily in this metropolis1 in search of employment6 ,for days they eagerly seek it without success1 hoarding their scanty means to the uttermost4 ,finally the time comes when the last dime is spent for bread1 and they wander along1 their hearts filled with dread1 as night covers the earth with her sable mantle1 knowing not whither they shall turn their weary steps4 ,think of the poor woman wending her way through the pelting storm2 garments soaked and clinging to the chilled form2 heart filled with despair1 and crying to ,heaven for shelter2 head aching1 temples throbbing1 brain nearly crazed with terror2 finally1 crouching down under some old steps to wait the first gleam of day to relieve her from her agony4 ,if one in such condition should reach the river-side1 what a fearful temptation it must be to take that final leap which ends for ever earth's cares and sufferings1 or1 still worse for the poor female1 the temptation to seek in sin the refuge denied her in every other way6 ,there the weary come1 who through the daylight ,pace the town and crave for work in vain3 ,there they crouch in cold and rain and hunger1 ,waiting for another day of pain4 ,in slow darkness creeps the dismal river2 ,from its depths looks up a sinful rest4 ,many a weary1 baffled1 hopeless wanderer ,has it drawn into its treacherous breast6 ,there is near another river flowing4 ,black with guilt and deep as hell and sin3 ,on its brink even sinners stand and shudder-- ,cold and hunger goad the homeless in4 ,footnote #agd ,footnote #agd3 ,proctor4 ,what a mute appeal for such institutions is the case of the little ,italian boy found dead on the steps of one of our ,fifth avenue palaces last winter6 ,think of this little fellow as he slowly perished that bitter night1 at the very feet of princely wealth4 ,how his thoughts must have reverted to his dark-browed mother in her far-off sunny home6 ,and think of that mother's anguish1 her wailing ,for a birdling lost that she'll never find1 when she heard of her boy's death1 from cold and starvation1 in the principal avenue of all free ,america6 ,we consider we are safe in saying that in no other work of charity could a small amount of money be made to benefit so many as in the founding of these refuges4 ,in the police report it is recommended that several of these be established in different parts of the city1 to be under the supervision of the police4 ,this is a great mistake4 ,these people always associate station-houses and the police with crime2 consequently it is bad policy for them to come constantly in contact with either4 #eff ,this is the objection to the lodging-rooms used in the various precincts4 ,official charity1 as a rule1 hardens those who dole it out1 and degrades its recipients4 ,there are thousands of noble-hearted women attached to our different churches1 who1 if they once thoroughly understood this subject1 would not cease their efforts until societies were established and refuges opened4 ,how could it be otherwise6 ,how could they nestle their little ones down to sleep in warm1 comfortable beds1 and think of ,god's little ones freezing under their windows8 ,how could they go to sleep themselves1 and feel that some poor woman was probably wandering past their doorways1 dying from want and exposure8 ,we hope1 before the chilling winds of next ,november remind us of the immensity of suffering the winter entails upon the poor1 some philanthropic persons will have perfected this design1 and have the refuges in working order4 ,if such should be the case1 the founders will find an ample reward in the words of ,holy ,writ1 ,he that hath mercy on the poor1 lendeth to the ,lord3 and he will repay him4 ,if we could thus1 by the adoption of every possible sanitary precaution1 deprive our death-tables of all avoidable mortality2 and by a proper religious influence elevate the moral character of the people1 we should1 in the first place1 save thousands of lives1 now necessary to develop our vast resources2 and1 secondly1 our advance toward perfection in healthfulness and public virtues would go hand in hand with the gigantic strides being made in the adornment of our beautiful island4 ,our people would no longer seek other places in quest of health1 as none more salubrious than ,new ,york could be found2 and strangers1 instead of saying1 as is said of that most beautiful of ,italy's fair cities1 ,see ,naples1 and die6 would exclaim1 ,go to ,new ,york1 and live6 ---------- ,wild ,flowers4 ,the child1 ,mercedes1 youngest of the three ,whom ,god has sent me for a mother's crown4 ,brought me wild flowers1 and with childish glee ,thus prattled on1 as at my feet she cast them down3 ,see1 mamma6 here are saucy flowers ,i found ,hiding behind the hedge1 like boys at play4 ,just peeping up their heads above the ground4 ,to watch if any one should chance to pass that way4 ',aha6' said ,i1 'whose little flowers be you1 ,and from whose garden have you run away8 ,your leaves are dripping with the morning dew4 ,fie1 naughty things6 ,what1 think you1 will the gardener say8 #efg ',come1 let me take you to my mamma's home2 ,and she will put you in a golden vase1 ,where you shall stand and look around the room1 ,and see your pretty1 rosy faces in the glass4' ,i took them softly up1 and here they are4 ,and now1 my mamma1 ,i should like to know ,whose garden they have wandered from so far4 ,and why they did not stay at their own home to grow8 ,i said3 ,my child1 these flowers have never strayed ,from any other home4 ,their place to grow ,is just behind the hedge1 down in the glade4 ,though no one may their beauty see or sweetness know4 ,then she3 ,why1 mamma dear1 how can that be8 ,what use for them to grow there all alone8 ,why look so pretty if there's none to see8 ,or why need they smell any sweeter than a stone8 ,no one on earth may see1 ,i then replied-- ,no one may know that flowers are blooming there ,but ,god4 ,mercedes clapped her hands1 and cried1 ,god's flowers6 ,oh6 keep them1 mamma1 in your book of prayer4 ,methinks the child did choose a fitting place ,to put those unnursed blossoms of the field3 ,like them1 our humble prayers with beauty grace ,the heart's rough soil1 and unto ,god their perfume yield4 ----------- ,translated ,from ,the ,french4 ,faith ,and ,poetry ,of ,the ,bretons4 ,the bay of ,st4 ,malo is strewn here and there with rocks1 upon which forts have been erected to protect the town by their cross fires4 ,one of these1 the ,grand ,b1 was formerly armed with cannon2 but the fort is now abandoned1 and only recognizable midst its ruins by the cross at the extremity of the beach1 resting apparently on the blue sky above4 ,to this cross all eyes are attracted1 to this all steps turn1 so soon as the breakers leave a shore of sand and granite for a pathway for the travellers4 ,after having ascended a rough and steep declivity1 a naked and desert plateau is attained1 where a few sheep find with difficulty a herb to browse upon2 then a turn through a defile of rocks1 and on the steepest point a stone and cross of granite4 ,this is the tomb of ,chateaubriand4 #efh ,no longer a poetical tomb2 leaning against the ,old ,world1 it contemplates the ,new2 under it1 the immense sea1 and the vessels passing at its feet2 no flowers1 no verdure around it1 no other noise than the incessantly moving sea1 covering in its tempests this naked stone with the froth of its waves4 ,here he chose his last resting-place2 and we wonder what thought inspired the wish that not even his name should be inscribed upon his tomb4 ,was it pride1 or humility that actuated him8 ,to me it appears that this humility and this pride were from the same source--a perfect disenchantment with the world4 ,this man1 who had proved so many projects abortive1 so many ambitions misplaced2 this traveller who had overrun the universe1 visited the ,east1 the cradle of the ,old ,world1 and the deserts of ,america1 where was born the ,new2 the poet who could count the cycles of his life by its revolutions1 was overwhelmed at the end of it by a sadness that knew no repose4 ,he1 whose youth was preluded by ,considerations on ,revolutions1 so comprehended life in his latter years as to write ,the ,biography of the ,reformer of ,la ,trappe4 ,the silence and solitude of the cloister were in harmony with the sadness of his soul4 ,having been charged with the most important missions1 having accomplished the highest employments1 and set to work the most skilful and powerful men1 he retired from the whirling circle of the world1 penetrated with the overpowering truth1 how little man is worth1 how little he knows1 and how seldom he succeeds in what he undertakes4 ,the usual source of joy--pride1 the intoxication of the world--only provoked in him a smile2 for all men he had the same contempt--did not even except himself--and knew well1 according to the ancient proverb1 that there is very little difference between one man and another4 ,footnote #age ,footnote #age3 ,thucydides4 ,through humility1 then1 he cared not for any inscription on his tomb1 not even a name4 ,what mattered it who read it6 ,men were nothing1 and he was one of them6 ,but through pride also1 he chose this naked stone4 ,travellers would come from all parts of the world1 they would contemplate it and say1 ,chateaubriand6 ,his name would be echoed by the waves that came from1 and those that parted for1 distant shores2 and men were obliged to know where he lay4 ,thus--ever-recurring instability of the human soul6--in him were united the most contrary sentiments--the disenchantment of glory1 and the belief in the immortality of a name2 the disdain of scepticism1 and the thirst for applause2 the impression of the ,christian's humility1 and an instinct of sovereign pride4 ,here1 however1 we find truth3 this cross1 the sign of eternity on this stone marked by death1 is the immutable testimony of the emptiness of human pride4 ,chateaubriand desired only a cross on his tomb1 while ,lamennais1 his compatriot1 rejected it3 both obedient to the same preoccupation1 in negation as in faith4 ,the cross1 dominating the tomb where the ,breton poet reposes1 is the symbol of the genius of his country1 of ,catholic ,brittany4 ,faith1 in ,brittany1 has a particular character1 allied to a poetry peculiar to ,breton genius4 ,in this country material objects speak2 the very stones are animated1 and the fields assume a voice to reveal the soul of man conversing with his ,god4 ,this is not imagination2 no one can be deceived in it4 ,so soon as one enters ,brittany1 the physiognomy of the country changes1 and the sign of this change is the cross4 ,on all the roads1 at all the public places1 is raised the cross2 of every epoch from the twelfth to the nineteenth century we find them1 and of every form4 #efi ,there1 simple crosses of granite raised on a few steps2 here1 crosses bearing on each side the image of ,christ and the ,virgin1 rude sculptures in themselves1 but always impressed with a sincere sentiment4 ,the ,bretons not only understand the tenderness of the ,blessed ,virgin1 but they feel her grief2 they share it with her1 and express it with an energetic truth4 ,look at the picture of the ,virgin holding her dead son on her knees1 in the church of ,st4 ,michael at ,quimperl4 ,it is a primitive painting by an unskilled hand1 and one totally ignorant of the resources of art2 the design of it is incorrect2 yet what an expression of grief6 ,the painter wished to portray the living suffering of the mother2 the mouth is distorted1 the eyes are fixed1 the pupil seems alone indicated3 yet this fixedness of look seizes upon you2 you stop1 you remain to examine it1 you forget that it is a representation1 and see the ,virgin herself1 immovable in her grief1 with no power to express her sorrow2 petrified1 yet living4 ,at one side1 leaning against the wall1 is a statue of the ,virgin1 conceived with as contrary a sentiment as possible4 ,she is all tenderness and delicacy1 and has a leaning attitude1 the head inclined1 with the gentle look of the ,mother who calls the sinner to her side4 ,her robe falls in numberless plaits1 her mantle envelops her with a harmonious grace2 for she is no longer the ,mother of sorrow1 but the sweet consoler of human kind1 holding her ,son in her arms1 whom she presents to bless the earth1 ,notre ,dame de ,bot ,scao1 ,the ,virgin of ,good ,news4 ,the faith of sailors in the ,blessed ,virgin is well known1 that of the ,breton sailors particularly4 ,at ,brest1 we look in vain for a museum of pictures4 ,brest is not a city of art2 it breathes of war2 the port1 filled with large ships1 the arsenal and its cannon1 its shells1 its gigantic anchors1 the forts built on the rocks1 the animated movement of the streets1 where soldiers of all kinds go and come1 and sailors constantly arriving from all parts of the world1 give to it an air of intense reality--a character at once powerful and precise4 ,man has built on the rock his granite home1 and we may believe it is immovably established4 ,but ascend the steps that lead from the lower to the upper town1 and under a vault you will find four pictures appended to the wall4 ,here is the museum of ,brest4 ,sea pictures dedicated to the ,blessed ,virgin1 the departure of the vessel1 women and children on the beach on their knees during a tempest1 the vessel tossed by the waves1 and the arms of the sailors extended to heaven2 and on their return1 the rescued sailors1 bending their steps1 with tapers in their hands1 toward the chapel of ,notre ,dame2 and underneath1 touching legends1 cries of the soul that implores1 humbles itself1 or renders thanks4 ,holy ,virgin1 save us6 ,holy ,virgin1 protect those who are now at sea6 ,man we see in his weakness1 his aspirations1 and his hopes--the true man2 the rest was but the mask4 ,they seize every opportunity and use every pretext to testify their faith4 ,at ,saint ,aubin d',aubign between ,rennes and ,saint ,malo1 you go along a tufted hedge2 you see a cross cut of thorn--a cross which grows green in the spring1 among the eglantines and roses4 ,footnote #agf ,footnote #agf3 ,at ,st4 ,vincent les ,redon1 a tree is cut in the form of the cross4 ,you return to visit the land of ,carnac--a land so pale and desolate1 where the standing stones are squared by thousands1 gigantic and silent sphinxes that for twenty centuries have kept their impenetrable secret--what is that cross that rises on an eminence8 #egj ,one that they have planted on an isolated ruin in the land--a cross on a ,druidical altar1 and before the army of stones which mark1 perhaps1 a cemetery of a great people4 ,elsewhere1 at the cross-way of a road near ,beauport1 a spring gushes out and flows among the rocks1 forming both basin and fountain on the heaped-up stones2 in an arched niche is enclosed a ,virgin crowned with flowers2 all around1 the field morning-glory1 the periwinkle1 and the eglantine have peeped through the moss and herbs1 and enlaced the rustic chapel with their flowery festoons1 and fallen again on the infant ,jesus4 ,opposite lie fields of green thorn-broom1 and above their long1 slender stalks appear the half-destroyed walls of an ancient abbey1 roofless1 opened to heaven1 and silent4 ,through the blackened arches appears the blue sea1 whose prolonged and incessant roaring fills the air4 ,in this ,catholic country par excellence1 all the churches are remarkable4 ,there is no village1 however small1 of which the church does not form an interesting part2 and here and there1 as at ,gurande and ,vitr1 we find the beautifully carved pulpits enclosed in the wall1 from which the missionary fathers1 on certain extraordinary occasions1 speak to the people assembled in the square4 ,at ,carnac and ,rennescleden we have the arched roofs so exquisitely painted2 at ,roscoff1 ,crozon1 and elsewhere1 medallions of stone and wood framing the altar with quaint gilded sculptures2 then1 again1 we meet with a tabernacle formed for an architectural monument1 a sort of palace in miniature1 with its wings1 pavilions1 columns1 domes1 galleries1 and statues1 7as at ,rosporden27 then an antique confessional greets us in a little chapel near ,chateaulin1 and a canopy sculptured in wood or even crystal1 at ,landivisiau4 ,an odd ornament1 which is found in only one church--that of ,notre ,dame de ,comfort1 on the way to the ,bec du ,raz--is called the wheel of good fortune1 and is composed of a large wheel suspended from the roof of the church1 and entirely surrounded by bells4 ,on days of solemn feasts1 for baptisms and weddings1 the wheel is turned1 and1 agitating all the bells at once1 forms a noisy chime1 which times the march of the procession1 and adds a joyous and silver-toned accompaniment to the voices of the young girls chanting the canticles to the ,blessed ,virgin4 ,finally1 we meet with one of those trunks of trees1 large squared pillars of oak1 encircled with heavy bands of iron1 and placed in the middle of the church1 by the side of a catafalque of blackened wood1 but sowed with whitened tears2 the trunk and the coffin1 emblems of the fragility of life1 and the ,christian principle above all others1 charity4 ,the churches in the towns are truly chefs-d'oeuvres1 the cloisters of ,trguier and ,pont l',abb1 for example1 where the arcades are so light and so finely carved2 or the bas-reliefs inside the portal of ,sainte ,croix1 at ,quimperl1 a vast page of sculptured stone1 finished with the delicacy and richness of invention1 the charming qualities of youth and of the ,renaissance4 ,then1 in all these churches1 near the altar1 you perceive immediately the painted statue of the parish saint1 one of the ,breton saints1 not found elsewhere--,saint ,cornly1 ,saint ,gunol4 ,saint ,thromeur1 ,saint ,yves especially4 #ega ,saint ,yves has the privilege of being represented in almost all the churches1 even in those of which he is not patron2 the remembrance of this great1 good man1 this wise priest1 this incorruptible judge1 is indelibly impressed on the heart of every ,breton4 ,sometimes he is seen in his judge's robe1 his cap on his head1 and listening to two litigants1 one in red velvet1 embroidered in gold1 with his grand wig1 his silken stockings1 and sword2 the other1 the poor peasant1 all in rags1 holes on his knees and his elbows1 and naked feet in his wooden shoes4 ,the great lord1 with his cap on his head1 and an air of pride1 presents the saint a purse of gold2 the peasant1 with timid look and attitude1 his head bent down1 his cap in his hand1 humbly awaits his sentence4 ,he has nothing to give1 but justice will not fail him4 ,saint ,yves turns toward him with a gracious smile1 and1 handing him the judgment written on parchment1 lets him know it is his4 ,and thus the history of the middle ages3 the church protecting the peasant1 the weak against the powerful and the strong4 ,as to monuments1 properly called1 nowhere can we find more of these beautiful churches of the middle ages1 testimonies of the piety1 the science1 and the taste of so glorious an epoch4 ,here1 the ,cathedral of ,dol1 of the best day of ,gothic art--the thirteenth century--imposing by its massiveness1 its grandeur1 and the noble simplicity of its ornaments and the harmony of its proportions1 the granite of whose towers1 in the lapse of ages1 is permeated with the air of the sea1 has a color of rust1 we might say built with iron2 there1 ,trguier and its exquisite wainscoting1 benches1 altars1 stalls1 pulpit in brilliant black oak1 carved in such fine and delicate designs1 with inexhaustible variety2 not a baluster alike1 enough models to furnish the entire sculpture of our time2 and further on1 ,saint ,pol de ,leon and its spire of granite2 daring and easy1 a prodigy of equilibrium1 immovable1 girded with open galleries like graceful crowns1 flinging to heaven its tiny sharpened bells2 so beautifully carved1 so aerial1 the joy of ,brittany1 as well it may be1 its legitimate pride2 then ,folgoat1 a little unknown village north of ,brest1 lost at the extremity of the isle1 and necessary to leave one's route to see it2 but even here1 two ,breton princes1 the ,duke ,jean ,,iii4 and the ,duchess ,anne1 have constructed a royal church accumulating all that ,gothic art in its richest ornamentation1 united to the most ingenious caprices of the ,renaissance1 could have imagined of delicacy and brightness2 portraits sculptured1 statues of the finest style reflecting their antiquity1 a richly ,gothic and carved choir1 and a gallery--one of those graceful and original monuments of ,catholicism so seldom met with--of lace-work1 where trefoils1 roses1 and foliage are carved in indestructible blue granite4 ,the hammer of the ,revolution has only knocked off small pieces of these beautifully carved stones4 ,they resisted the passions of men1 as they have defied the action of time4 ,with the bells1 of such varied forms1 and the vessels for holy water1 we will conclude4 ,these bells are of every style--of the ,renaissance1 the ,roche-,maurice-les-,landerneau1 of ,landivisiau1 of ,ploar1 of ,pontcroix1 and of ,roscoff4 ,many are hung with smaller and lighter bells and ornamented with two-story balustrades1 like the minarets of the ,east2 then the coverings1 spires as they are called1 are like that of ,trguier1 open1 that the winds of the sea may pass through them1 and adorned with crosses1 roses1 little windows1 cross-bars1 and stars like the cap of a magician4 #egb ,the vessels for holy water also express the character of the age4 ,at ,dinan1 in a church of the twelfth century1 an enormous massive tub is supported by the large iron gauntlets of four chevaliers2 the old crusader dress1 armed cap-a-pie in the service of ,christ4 ,in a church of the fifteenth century1 at ,quimper1 is one of an entirely opposite character--a small column1 around which a vine is entwined1 and above an angel1 who1 with wings extended1 appears as if it had descended from heaven to alight upon the consecrated cup4 ,again1 and as if inspired by a still more ,christian sentiment1 we find the exterior vessels for holy water1 so common everywhere in ,brittany1 of which the most remarkable are at ,landivisiau1 at ,morlaix1 and ,quimperl4 ,the interior ones seem only accessories2 the exterior1 isolated before the door1 have a more precise signification3 they solicit the first impulse of the soul2 the ,christian1 in stretching out his hand toward the blessed vase1 pauses1 and prepares his heart for the coming devotion4 ,how well these ,breton architects have understood religion6 ,these exterior vases are living monuments1 little pulpits1 with their emblems1 symbols1 and heads of angels enveloped in their wings4 ,their canopies1 prominent1 sculptured1 and under them1 standing and always smiling1 our blessed ,mother1 who seems to invite the faithful to enter the house of prayer4 ,and prayer1 as some one has said1 is the fortress of life4 ,the ,breton people believe and pray3 a hidden power is theirs--religion2 its effectiveness attesting not only its existence1 but its life4 --------- ,sayings ,of ,the ,fathers ,of ,the ,desert4 ,abbot ,pastor said3 ,he who teacheth something and doth it not himself1 is like unto a well which filleth and cleanseth all who come to it1 but is unable to cleanse itself of filth and impurities4 ,a brother asked ,abbot ,pastor the meaning of the words3 ,he who is angry with his brother without cause4 ,he answered3 ,if in all cases where thy brother wisheth to put thee down thou art angry with him1 even though thou pluck out thy right eye and cast it from thee1 thy anger is without cause4 ,if however1 any one desireth to separate thee from ,god1 then mayest thou be angry4 ,abbot ,pastor said3 ,malice never driveth away malice2 but1 if anyone shall have done thee an injury1 heap benefits upon him1 so that by thy good works thou destroy his malice4 ,a brother came to ,abbot ,pastor1 and said3 ,many thoughts enter my mind1 and ,i am in great danger from them4 ,then the old man sent him out into the open air1 and said3 ,spread out thy garment and catch the wind4 ,but he answered that he could not4 ,if thou canst not do this1 replied the old man1 neither canst thou put a stop to these thoughts2 but it is thy duty to resist them4 ,abbot ,pastor said3 ,experiments are useful1 for by them men become more perfect4 ----------- #egc ,new ,publications ,discussions in ,theology4 ,by ,thomas ,h4 ,skinner1 ,professor in the ,union ,theological ,seminary4 ,new ,york3 ,anson ,d4 ,f4 ,randolph1 #ggj ,broadway4 ,hints on the ,formation of ,religious ,opinions4 ,addressed especially to young men and women of ,christian education4 ,by ,rev4 ,ray ,palmer1 ,d4,d41 ,pastor of the ,first ,congregational church1 ,albany4 ,same publisher4 ,these two volumes are very much alike in their general scope and character4 ,both are written in a calm1 philosophical style1 and with the praiseworthy view of presenting the claims of the ,christian religion on the reason and conscience of men1 combating scepticism1 and removing difficulties and objections derived from the infidel literature of the day4 ,professor ,skinner begins with a very good essay on miracles as the basis of a reasonable1 historical belief in the teaching which they authenticate1 and then proceeds to develop his own views respecting certain special topics which he can assume will be admitted by his particular audience to be contained in that teaching4 ,these relate chiefly to the mode by which fallen man may obtain restoration to the divine favor through the ,redeemer of our race4 ,the author's object is to show that this mode1 as explained by himself1 exhibits the attributes of ,god in a manner consonant to the dictates of reason and the truths of natural theology1 and is one by which any sincere1 well-intentioned person can make sure of obtaining grace from ,god1 pardon and eternal life4 ,the author's view is that of the new school of ,calvinists1 which is a great improvement on that of the old school in a moral1 though not in a logical1 sense4 ,such preaching and writing as that of ,professor ,skinner must have a good influence on those who still believe in ,christianity and know no other form of it than the ,presbyterian4 ,it puts forward the goodness and mercy of ,god1 and encourages the sinner to hope for grace and pardon1 if he will be diligent in prayer1 meditation1 and other pious exercises1 and this appears to have been the practical end proposed to himself by the author in this volume4 ,dr4 ,palmer's essays are more elaborate and consecutive in their character1 and aim more immediately at satisfying the intelligence4 ,he first portrays in a clear and impressive manner the evils of scepticism1 and then proceeds to exhibit the evidence of the truths of natural theology and of the fact of a divine revelation1 which is also accomplished with a considerable degree of ability and force4 ,the result at which he aims is to convince his readers that they are morally bound to recognize ,christianity as true1 and to form some definite opinions as to its real meaning1 which may serve them as a practical rule and guide for attaining their eternal destiny4 ,the capital defect in his argument is1 that he reduces the evidence of the being of ,god to mere probability1 thus leaving the mind where ,kant left it1 in a state of scientific scepticism with no better basis of certainty than the practical reason4 ,of course1 then1 he has nothing more to propose under the name of ,christian doctrines than probable opinions4 ,no doubt1 it is obligatory on all to act upon opinions which are solidly probable in regard to the momentous interests of the soul1 where there are no other equal probabilities to balance them1 and no greater certainty is attainable4 ,we deny1 however1 emphatically that man is left in this state by the ,christian revelation4 ,the being of ,god is a metaphysical certainty4 ,the fact of revelation is a moral certainty1 reducible in the last analysis to a certainty which is metaphysical and sufficient to produce an absolute assent of the mind without any fear of the contrary4 #egd ,the articles of faith proposed by the revelation of ,god ought to have the same certainty1 since it is necessary to believe them without doubting4 ,our respected authors cannot propose a reasonable motive for believing all the doctrines of their sect or school without any doubt1 but can only propose opinions more or less probable1 or even directly contrary to reason4 ,we do not think1 therefore1 that they will be able to satisfy the reason of any person who thinks logically that their theories of ,christianity are true and complete4 ,the most they can do is to breed an anxious desire to find out with certainty what ,christianity is and to attain to a rational faith4 ---- ,celebrated ,sanctuaries of the ,madonna4 ,by ,rev4 ,j4 ,spencer ,northcote1 ,d4,d41 ,president of ,st4 ,mary's ,college1 ,oscott4 ,for sale by the ,catholic ,publication ,society1 ,new ,york4 ,this is a valuable contribution to ,catholic literature1 and presents a subject of interest not only to ,catholics1 but to the public at large2 for great public facts are always of interest1 whatever may be our opinion in regard to their significance4 ,a clear and full account is given in this book of the principal facts connected with the origin of some of the sanctuaries of the ,madonna in ,europe1 particularly of the ,holy ,house of ,loreto and the recently established pilgrimage of ,la ,salette in ,france4 ,we do not see how any one can read it and resist the conviction that ,god has1 by his own finger1 established and maintained the devotion of the faithful at these holy places4 ,it is easy enough to cry superstition1 and to call everything supernatural superstitious4 ,but the evidence of facts speaks for itself1 and we commend this book to the candid reader1 confident of his favorable judgment in spite of all preconceived opinions1 as able to speak for itself4 ,we have1 moreover1 found it most attractive1 and have read it from beginning to end with unflagging interest4 ,it is calculated to quicken the faith of the dumb ,christian1 open his eyes to the unseen world1 and fill his heart with desire for virtue and the love of ,god1 and1 as well1 to produce in the mind of the careless a deeper conviction of the truth of spiritual things1 which may make him set less value on the present1 and prize more highly the world to come4 ,we hope this book may attract attention and be widely circulated4 ----- ,notes on the ,rubrics of the ,roman ,ritual3 ,regarding the ,sacraments in general4 ,baptism1 the ,eucharist1 and ,extreme ,unction4 ,by ,rev4 ,james ,o',kane1 ,senior ,dean1 ,st4 ,patrick's ,college1 ,maynooth4 ,new ,york3 ,the ,catholic ,publication ,house4 #a vol4 crown #hvo1 pp4 #ebg4 #ahfh4 ,this is one of the most excellent commentaries upon the ,ritual that has come under our notice4 ,the reverend author has for several years delivered lectures upon the ,rubrics to the senior class of theological students in ,maynooth1 and the substance of these lectures is to be found in the present volume4 ,that he is eminently qualified for such a difficult task1 is apparent from the thoroughly practical as well as theoretical knowledge he displays in treating of the administration of the sacraments4 ,priests on the mission will find the book one of the most useful works for reference on the subjects treated of which can be found in the ,english language4 ,it has been examined by the ,sacred ,congregation of ,rites1 and received its approbation1 and can1 therefore1 be consulted and followed with confidence as good authority4 ------ ,appleton's ,annual ,cyclopedia for #ahfg4 ,this valuable work appears to receive more care and attention each year4 ,the present volume is of unusual importance on account of the political events in our own country and elsewhere1 bearing on the ultimate destiny of the ,christian world1 which are recorded in its pages4 #ege ,it contains1 also1 a very fair statement of the history and present condition of the ,pope's temporal dominion1 and of the principal events in the history of the ,catholic ,church during the year4 ,in the article on the ,roman ,catholic ,church1 it is incorrectly stated that the ,council of ,florence is by some regarded as oecumenical4 ,it is universally regarded as oecumenical1 and was one of the most important councils ever held in the church4 ,the ,patriarch of ,constantinople1 the ,greek ,emperor1 the representatives of the other ,eastern patriarchs and of the ,russian ,church1 and a number of other ,eastern prelates were present1 and discussed all their causes of difference with the ,roman ,church during thirteen months1 after which they signed the ,act of ,union1 and united in a solemn definition of the supremacy of the ,pope4 ,the ,council of ,basle is enumerated among the certain oecumenical councils1 although all its acts from the twenty-fifth session have been condemned1 and none of those of the prior sessions approved1 by the ,holy ,see4 ,although a few ,galilean writers have maintained that this council was oecumenical during its earlier sessions1 their opinion is generally rejected and is of no weight4 ------ ,red ,cross2 or1 ,young ,america in ,england and ,wales4 ,by ,oliver ,optic4 ,boston3 ,lee ,shepard4 ,this volume1 the third of the series published under the title of ,young ,america ,abroad1 continues and concludes the travels and adventures of the naval cadets on ,british soil and in ,british waters4 ,london1 ,liverpool1 ,manchester1 the ,isle of ,wight1 the ,lake ,district1 ,snowdon1 the ,menai ,straits1 etc41 are visited1 affording an opportunity for the introduction of a great deal of miscellaneous information regarding the physical geography and history of many interesting localities4 ,so far the book is unexceptionable4 ,the adventures of the students1 however1 are1 in ,oliver ,optic's usual style1 exaggerated to the very verge of credibility2 and though they will doubtless be relished by the class for which they are written1 we no less decidedly think that1 as mental food for youth1 the selection is not the most judicious1 and that the author could very easily1 with equal credit to himself and greater benefit to his juvenile readers1 serve up something else more nutritious1 if less palatable1 or not so highly seasoned4 ,as regards the students themselves1 it seems to us1 also1 that the author has not yet hit upon the golden mean3 the good boys are almost too good1 the bad equally untrue to nature4 ,our experience with boys--and it is by no means slight or superficial--tends to prove that with those who1 from an indisposition to submit to an iron rule1 are commonly known as wild1 such impatience of restraint generally springs from exuberant animal spirits1 and is seldom1 if ever1 met with in connection with meanness1 much less vice4 ,per contra1 the greatest sycophants are1 as a rule1 the meanest and most depraved4 ------ ,chaudron's ,new ,fourth ,reader4 ,on an ,original ,plan4 ,by ,a4 ,de ,v4 ,chaudron4 ,mobile3 ,w4 ,g4 ,clark ,co4 ,pp4 #cbh4 #ahfg4 ,exteriorly1 this book presents a by no means pleasing appearance2 hence1 the greater our surprise1 and1 we may add1 our pleasure1 at the variety and excellence of its contents1 in which respect it is nowise inferior to any of those in use in our public schools4 ,while we cannot expect for ,mrs4 ,chaudron's ,series of ,readers an extended circulation in this city1 in view of so many and generally deserving rivals already firmly established amongst us1 we do with confidence recommend them1 if in their general features they resemble this1 the only one of the series submitted to us4 -------- #egf ,imitation of ,christ ,spiritual ,combat ,treatise on ,prayer4 ,boston3 ,p4 ,donahoe4 ,pp4 #haf4 #ahfh4 ,decidedly opposed to small type in books of a religious or educational character1 we can cheerfully overlook its use in this instance1 giving us1 as it does1 complete in one volume and in bulk not exceeding the average size of prayer-books1 three such admirable devotional works4 ------ ,irish ,homes and ,irish ,hearts4 ,by ,fanny ,taylor1 author of ,eastern ,hospitals1 ,tyborne1 ,religious ,orders1 etc41 etc4 ,boston3 ,patrick ,donahoe4 ,pp4 xi4 #bae4 ,the original work1 of which this volume is a very neat reprint1 was favorably mentioned in ,the ,catholic ,world for ,september1 #ahfg4 ,hence we need not enter into details4 ,it is enough to say that the author1 leaving the beaten track of ordinary tourists1 devoted herself to the visitation and inspection of the various charitable and religious institutions of ,ireland1 the number and excellence of which amply vindicate the warmth of ,irish hearts and the depth of ,irish faith4 ,this volume gives the result of her examination4 ,it unfolds not a new1 but to many an unexpected1 phase of ,irish character1 and will well repay a perusal1 from which few can rise without being benefited thereby4 ------ ,choice of a ,state of ,life4 ,by ,father ,c4 ,g4 ,rossignoli1 ,s4 ,j4 ,translated from the ,french1 #a vol4 #afmo1 pp4 #beb4 ,baltimore3 ,john ,murphy ,co4 #ahfh4 ,this is a well-reasoned little treatise on vocations1 or the choice of a state of life1 an important matter too little thought of in our day1 when material things have the upper hand1 and spiritual things are made of so little account4 ,many1 no doubt1 fitted by their talents and called by an interior voice to the priesthood or the religious state1 neglect the call2 and others again1 quite unfit1 thrust themselves forward1 allured by some prospect of worldly advancement4 ,this little book clearly exposes the motives which should govern us in the choice of a state of life4 ,if read in a calm and undisturbed state of mind1 we do not doubt it will do a great deal of good1 and induce many to embrace the better part which shall not be taken away from them4 ------ ,margaret3 ,a ,story of ,life in a ,prairie ,home4 ,by ,lyndon4 ,new ,york3 ,charles ,scribner ,co4 #ahfh4 ,a pleasantly told story of everyday life4 ,the interest in the narrative is well sustained throughout2 the incidents natural1 yet effectively introduced2 and the characters strongly marked and sufficiently diversified4 ,life in a prairie home1 however1 if here faithfully described1 differs materially from what it is generally supposed to be4 ,the incidents are such as to be equally possible in any village in any one of the original thirteen states4 ------ ,elinor ,johnston3 ,founded on ,facts2 and ,maurice and ,genevieve1 or ,the ,orphan ,twins of ,beauce4 ,philadelphia3 ,peter ,f4 ,cunningham4 ,pp4 #acf4 ,two charming stories for children1 tastefully got up1 if we except an occasional inequality in the pages and carelessness in typography1 which we hope to see avoided in future volumes4 ,there is no reason why books intended for children should not be as creditable in appearance as those for adults4 ,that this can be done is proved by the beautifully uniform series just issued by the ,catholic ,publication ,society4 ------ ,books ,received4 ,from ,john ,murphy ,co41 ,baltimore3 ,the ,first-,class ,book of ,history1 designed for pupils commencing the study of history1 with questions2 adapted to the use of academies and schools4 ,by ,m4 ,j4 ,kerney1 ,a4,m41 author of ,compendium of ,ancient and ,modern ,history1 ,columbian ,arithmetic1 etc41 etc41 etc4 ,twenty-second revised edition4 ,enlarged by the addition of ,lessons in ,ancient ,history1 #a vol4 #afmo1 pp4 #cce4 ---- ,from ,p4 ,o',shea1 ,new ,york3 ,o',shea's ,popular ,juvenile ,library4 ,first series4 #ab vols41 illustrated4 ------------- #egg ,the ,catholic ,world4 ,vol4 ,,vii41 ,no4 #da4--;,august1 #ahfh4 ---- ,a ,new ,face ,on ,an ,old ,question4 ,a few months ago ,i described a visit which ,i had recently paid to a friend of mine in the country1 and repeated a little of the conversation we then had together upon subjects especially interesting to ,catholics4 ,footnote #agg ,footnote #agg3 ,see ,the ,catholic ,world1 ,march1 #ahfh2 article1 ,canada ,thistles4 ,i was so well pleased with what ,i saw and heard on that occasion that ,i resolved to spend a few more days with him2 and last month1 as soon as the warm weather set in1 ,i presented myself one evening at his hospitable door1 valise in hand1 and was soon comfortably installed as a guest4 ,if ,i found his house an embodiment of domestic comfort during the winter1 it was still more delightful1 now that the lawn and meadows wore the brilliant green of early summer1 and the prairie-roses1 climbing over the great1 roomy piazza1 shook down perfume into the open windows1 and drew around the place the ceaseless song of bees and the whir of the restless little humming-bird4 ,the library which had charmed me so much when the blazing wood-fire shed a ruddy glow of comfort over the bookshelves and the big writing-table1 and the tempting arm-chairs1 was a thousand times more attractive1 now that green branches and bunches of roses filled the old-fashioned fire-place1 and windows1 open to the floor1 let in the breath of new-mown hay1 while creepers and honeysuckles kept off the glare of the sun1 and waved gently in and out with the south-west breeze4 ,here we used to sit and chat on warm afternoons1 and our conversation generally turned upon the religious topics in which we were both so much interested4 ,one day we were talking about the great improvement of late in the style of discussion on the ,catholic question4 ,we don't hear so much of the old slanders1 said my friend1 but there is rather an inquiry into the reasons of our success and the best methods to meet us4 ,whenever that inquiry is conducted honestly and thoroughly1 it is found that the only way to meet us is1 to come over boldly to our side and fight under our banner4 ,as an illustration of what ,i have said1 continued he1 picking up a pamphlet from the table1 take this sermon on ',christ and the ,common ,people1' by the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,hinsdale1 a ,protestant clergyman1 of ,detroit4 ,he states the subject of his discourse boldly enough3 ',we start1' he says1 'with the confessed failure of ,protestantism to control spiritually the lives1 and to mould religiously the characters1 of the millions4 #egh ,what are the reasons8' ,he declares that ,protestantism has scarcely won a foot of ground from ,romanism in more than two hundred years4 ',geographically1 it is where it was at the close of the century in which ,luther died4 ,neither is ,protestantism stronger religiously or politically than it was in the seventeenth century2 some deny that it is as strong' ,nor can it be claimed that it is now making any material gains in any of these directions4' ,again3 ',in the ,protestant countries1 no ground has been wrested from false religion or irreligion within a hundred years2' and in the principal ,american cities the ,protestant denominations are unquestionably losing ground4 ,there is good authority for stating that in ,cincinnati1 for instance1 the communicants in the ,protestant churches are fewer by two thousand than they were twenty years ago2 yet the population of the city has increased during the interval by something like a hundred thousand4 ,well1 ,mr4 ,hinsdale being1 as ,i should judge1 a gentleman of common sense and honesty1 does not try to relieve his mind from the pressure of these disagreeable facts by cursing the ,catholics1 but sets himself to work to find out the reasons for the greater prosperity of our church4 ,i need not read them to you2 for of course the great reason of all--the assistance of ,heaven--he does not perceive2 but he makes some significant admissions4 ,he tells his people that ,catholicism is the especial religion of the poor1 and that ,protestantism is restricting itself daily more and more closely to the rich2 and he quotes a saying of ,theodore ,parker's3 ',if the poor forsake a church1 it is because the church forsook ,god long before4' ,i am a ,protestant of the ,protestants1' ,mr4 ,hinsdale adds1 'but have no hesitation in affirming that in some particulars we should stand rebuked before ,romanists this hour2 none in declaring that in some respects the ,romish priest understands the methods of ,christ better than the evangelical preacher4' ,now1 when the alarm of ,protestants at the increase of our churches takes such a form as this1 ,i believe that good results must flow from it4 ,no doubt you are right1 said ,i2 but ,i am afraid few of the anti-popery preachers are like this gentleman of ,detroit4 ,here1 for example1 is an address1 delivered at the last anniversary of the ,american and ,foreign ,christian ,union1 by the ,rev4 ,dr4 ,talmadge1 of ,philadelphia4 ,he begins with the admission that the cause of popery is still flourishing1 'although in the attempt to destroy it there has been expended enough ink1 enough voice1 enough genius1 enough money1 enough ecclesiastical thunder1 to have torn off all the cassocks1 and to have extinguished all the wax candles1 and to have poured out all the holy water1 and to have rent open all the convents1 and to have turned the ,vatican into a ,reformed ,dutch church1 and the convocation of cardinals into an old-fashioned prayer-meeting1 and to have immersed the pope1 and sent him forth as a colporteur of the ,american and ,foreign ,christian ,union4 ,but somehow there has been a great waste of effort4 ,the plain fact is1' he continues1 'that ,romanism has to-day1 in the ,united ,states1 tenfold more power than when we first began to bombard it4' #egi ,and the moral he draws from this survey of the situation is1 that the ,protestants had better 'change their style of warfare1' and introduce into the fight the principle of holy love1 and the example of charity and devotion4 ,nothing could be more sensible than this remark of his3 ',bitter denunciation on the part of good but mistaken men never pulled down one ,roman ,catholic church1 but has built five hundred4 ,there is only one way to make a man give up his religion1 and that is by showing him a better4' ,brave words1 you say1 and so they are4 ,yet this very sermon is full of just the sort of bitter denunciation which the preacher denounces4 ,the whole address is a condemnation of the speaker himself--one of the finest pieces of unconscious satire ,i ever read4 ,i don't believe ,the ,observer itself could do the raw-head and bloody-bones business better than ,dr4 ,talmadge does it4 ,never mind4 ,get these people to admit the principle of honest and gentlemanly dealing in religious controversy1 and you may leave their practice to reform itself4 ,for one man who was impressed by ,dr4 ,talmadge's swelling invectives1 ,i make little doubt that there were five who carried away in their hearts his advice to be charitable1 courteous1 and just4 ,the ,english ,nonconformist preacher1 ,newman ,hall1 who travelled through the ,united ,states recently1 told his congregation on his return home that one of the greatest dangers of ,protestantism nowadays was injustice toward ,roman ,catholics4 ,i am afraid that his advice was not much relished in ,england1 for you know injustice to ,catholics is one of the pet foibles of ,englishmen2 but it is not so bad here4 ,the ,american people are naturally fond of fair play4 ,you have only to convince them that a certain course of conduct is unjust1 and they will change it of their own accord4 ,do you mean to say1 then1 that you believe reason and logic are henceforth to supersede violence and slander in the discussion of the ,catholic problem8 ,not entirely1 of course4 ,but ,i believe that falsehoods are rapidly losing their efficacy in polemics1 and that ,protestants recognize this fact and are preparing to adapt themselves to the altered conditions of the conflict4 ,and ,i do not mean to insinuate that as a class they do this merely from policy4 ,most of them probably used to believe the old standard lies2 at least1 they did not disbelieve them4 ,they repeated them by rote1 because they had been brought up to do so1 and they never thought of stopping to inquire into their authority4 ,now that the slanders have ceased to serve a purpose1 it is naturally easier to convince those who used to profit by them that they are slanders4 ,what ,i mean to say is1 that the tendency of our time is toward fairness and good sense in religious disputes4 ,you and ,i1 for example1 are quite young enough to remember when ',romanism' was popularly regarded as an unknown horror1 no more to be tolerated than the plague or the yellow fever4 ,it was not thought to be a question open for debate4 ,a ,protestant would no more have dreamed of examining the merits of popery than the merits of hydrophobia4 ,but now it is a very common thing for our adversaries to admit that we have done wonderful service to humanity in our day2 that in some particulars we have done and are still doing more than any other denomination2 only we belong to a past age and ought now to give way to fresher organizations4 #ehj ,i remember a rather striking sermon which ,i read in a ,detroit newspaper1 the other day1 on the 'irrepressible conflict' between ,catholicism and ,liberalism1 by the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,mumford1 a ,unitarian clergyman4 ,the greater part of the discourse was as illiberal as anything could be4 ,mr4 ,mumford saw in the ,catholic ,church a tremendous engine of oppression1 and thought it was scheming to get control of the negroes in the ,southern ,states1 and through them to direct the politics of the whole country-- ,he saw no danger in the great influence which ,methodism has acquired over the colored people1 did he8 ,no2 and he forgot to mention that the ,catholic ,church is almost the only one in ,america which has never been tainted by the intrusion of politics4 ,well1 ,i was going on to say that1 with all ,mr4 ,mumford's prejudices and absurdities1 he had the honesty to acknowledge that the ,catholic ,church is really entitled to the gratitude of mankind1 and declared that he was glad it had secured some foothold in ,america1 'to act as a restraint upon the intolerance of the ,protestant churches4' ,i am afraid that you rather exaggerate the importance of admissions like these4 ,they are so often made merely for rhetorical effect6 ,they are little patches of light artfully thrown into the picture to heighten the effect of the shadows4 ,i know that ,i don't refer to them as proofs of a willingness to examine the nature and grounds of ,catholic doctrine1 though ,i believe that there is much more of such willingness than there used to be1 but as an evidence that a spirit of fairness and good-breeding is beginning to prevail in religious controversy2 and from that spirit ,i cannot but expect good results4 ,so far ,i have no doubt you are right2 and one of the good results1 it seems to me1 must be the gradual extinction 7or possibly the reform7 of denominational newspapers of the old bludgeon-school4 ,the ,observer must go out of fashion whenever reason comes in4 ,there will be no room for the religious brawlers when those who differ in creed learn to talk over their differences in a common-sense way4 ,don't you think there is a change in the tone of the press already8 ,the secular press certainly has improved wonderfully in its treatment of ,catholics4 ,about the religious periodicals ,i am not so sure3 some of them are tamer than they were formerly1 but the old stand-bys lash their tails as furiously as ever1 and the less they are heeded the louder they roar4 ,but that is only natural4 ,you see the same thing at the theatres4 ,when a play ceases to draw very well1 the single combats become doubly fierce and the red-fire is frequent4 ,the violence of the denominational organs must not be taken as an evidence of the sentiment of society4 ,if they really led the opinions of their readers1 we should have an anti-,catholic crusade every year4 ,i wonder if you have noticed1 however1 that some of the ,protestant religious papers which have usually been mild in their tone have been roused of late to an unaccustomed bitterness against us8 ,yes1 and ,i hardly know how to account for it4 ,i think the explanation is this4 ,the calm discussion of ,catholic questions1 as we said before1 must logically lead to the discovery of ,catholic truth4 ,there are ,protestant writers who see this and do not want to see it4 ,they perceive whither the current is bearing them1 and they struggle against it4 ,they rail at the church by way of protest against the growth of an unwelcome1 dimly foreseen conviction1 as an encouragement to their tottering unbelief1 just as boys whistle to keep up their courage4 #eha ,have you ever seen a dying sinner try to fight off death8 ,it is in some such hopeless effort as his that ,the ,liberal ,christian and a few other journals are now engaged4 ,i do not say that they understand this themselves4 ,i do not charge them with absolutely resisting the progress of conviction1 or1 to speak more exactly1 the resistance is instinctive rather than voluntary2 but they feel or suspect1 perhaps without fully comprehending1 that1 if they keep on as they are going1 they must come pretty soon to the ,catholic ,church1 and that provokes them4 ,the ,liberal ,christian1 you know1 is edited by ,dr4 ,bellows1 an accomplished gentleman1 who was thought some years ago to exhibit a decided leaning toward the church4 ,i am not prepared to say whether this supposition was correct or not2 but it is certain that he saw more clearly and exposed more boldly the inherent defects and logical tendencies of ,protestantism than any other ,protestant ,i can remember1 and in one of his published sermons he declared that ,unitarians 7his own sect7 had more sympathy with ,catholicism than with any other form of religion4 ,it might seem strange to find him among the foremost revilers of that very ,catholicism2 but my theory explains it4 ,the hostility which glistens in his letters and runs mad1 sometimes1 in the miscellaneous columns of his paper1 is the revolt of his ,protestantism against the progress of unwelcome ideas--an effort of his unregenerate nature1 so to speak1 to throw off something which does not agree with it4 ,ah6 how many men have trod in the same path he is now following1 and have been led by it to the bitter waters of disappointment6 ,he saw the fatal gulf into which the ,protestant bodies were plunging4 ,he felt that hunger of the spirit which nothing but the church of ,god ever satisfies4 ,he raised a cry for help1 and when he found that there was no help except from the ,holy ,catholic ,church1 he turned his back upon her1 and bound himself down once more with the narrow bonds of what is called ,unitarian 'liberalism4' ,and now1 of course1 he misses no opportunity of declaring his detestation of the succor which he has refused4 ,he has failed in his aspirations after a mock church1 and naturally he vents his disappointment on the real one4 ,he fancies that he is moved by principle1 when he is really instigated by pique4 ,he imagines that he is an earnest1 honest seeker after an answer to what he well terms 'the dumb wants of the religious times1' when he is--but ,i have no business to judge his motives4 ,that is ,god's affair4 ,we must presume that he is courageous and sincere1 and that whenever he finds the right road he will boldly walk in it4 ,nine years ago1 ,dr4 ,bellows delivered an address before the alumni of the ,harvard ,divinity ,school1 on ',the ,suspense of ,faith1' which was generally supposed to indicate his wish to engraft a ritual and a priesthood upon the ,unitarian denomination1 bringing it perhaps nearer to ,episcopalianism than to any other system of worship4 ,there was no such thought in his mind1 ,i am sure2 though his sentiments1 had they been acted upon1 might have led many men through ,episcopalianism into the ,catholic ,church4 ,i will not weary you with the whole of it2 but let me read a few lines which have a special application to what we have been saying4 #ehb ,he is trying to account for the fact that ,unitarianism is in a posture of pause and self-distrust and he says3 ',if1 with logical desperation1 we ultimate the tendencies of ,protestantism1 and allow even the malice of its enemies to flash light upon their direction1 we may see that the sufficiency of the ,scriptures turns out to be the self-sufficiency of man1 and the right of private judgment an absolute independence of ,bible or church4 ,no creed but the ,scriptures1 practically abolishes all ,scriptures but those on the human heart2 nothing between a man's conscience and his ,god1 vacates the church2 and with the church1 the ,holy ,ghost1 whose function is usurped by private reason3 the church lapses into what are called religious institutions1 these into ,congregationalism1 and ,congregationalism into individualism--and the logical end is the abandonment of the church as an independent institution1 the denial of ,christianity as a supernatural revelation1 and the extinction of worship as a separate interest4 ,there is no pretence that ,protestantism1 as a body1 has reached this1 or intends this1 or would not honestly and earnestly repudiate it2 but that its most logical product is at this point1 it is not easy to deny4 ,nay1 that these are the tendencies of ,protestantism is very apparent4' ,when he comes to speak of ,unitarianism as the representative and most logical exponent of ,protestantism1 he expresses himself in a still more remarkable way4 ,religion1 he thinks1 like everything else in the world1 has been constantly making progress1 and ,unitarianism has always been in the van4 ,now this progress seemed to have reached its limit2 there is a pause1 a partial recoil1 in some cases a turning back to the formalism and ritual worship of ,rome1 in others a headlong rush into the abyss of pure rationalism4 ,in fact1 ,dr4 ,bellows believes that to create an equilibrium in the relations between ,god and man1 two opposing forces are in operation--a centrifugal force1 which drives man away from submission to divine authority1 that he may develop his own liberty and functions of the will1 and a centripetal force1 which leads him to worship and obedience4 ,these are represented respectively by ,protestantism and ,catholicism1 and he seems to think them destined to alternate--perhaps for all time1 though about this his meaning is not very clear4 ',is it not plain1' he says1 'that1 as ,protestants of the ,protestants1 we are at the apogee of our orbit2 that in us the centrifugal epoch of humanity has1 for this swing of the pendulum at least1 reached its bound8 ,for one cycle we have come1 ,i think1 nearly to the end of our self-directing1 self-asserting1 self-developing1 self-culturing faculties2 to the end of our honest interest in this necessary alternate movement4' ,that means1 if it means anything that ,protestantism has done its work1 at least for the present age2 that it has accomplished all it can2 and there is nothing left for man but a return to the centripetal force1 or to the ,catholic ,church4 ,exactly3 that would be the logical complement of the position he assumed in the curious discourse from which ,i have been quoting2 but the misery is that he had not the courage to be logical4 ,ah6 how well ,i remember the impression produced at the time by that sad1 sad cry of weariness and disappointment which went up from his pulpit when he perceived that the toil1 and speculation1 and uneasiness of years had brought him to no goal2 that he had developed man's faculties without finding a use for them2 that he had achieved an intellectual freedom without knowing what to do with it2 that1 as he well expressed it himself1 'there was no more road in the direction he had been going4' #ehc ,many1 as we have seen1 when they reached that point on their journey whence this whole dismal prospect was visible1 turned back to the church which their fathers had forsaken1 and there found peace2 and ,dr4 ,bellows had stated so boldly the miseries of his own situation that it was no wonder people thought he too would follow that course4 ,but he set himself about finding a new road1 imagining a new church which was to arise at no distant day1 and combine the most conservative of liturgies with the most radical of creeds4 ,it was to be constituted on strictly centripetal principles4 ,speculation having proved empty1 worship was to be essayed as a change4 ,doubt being but sorry fare for a hungry soul1 there was to be a good deal of faith1 and preaching not being a gift of all men1 place was to be made for prayer4 ,what that church was to be1 how it was to arise1 and when it was to make its appearance1 he did not pretend to say4 ,but it must come soon1 because 'the yearning for a settled and externalized faith' was too strong to be left unsatisfied4 ,it was to be1 ,i must suppose1 a mingling of the revelations of our ,saviour with the dreams of ,luther1 ,calvin1 ,fox1 and ,swedenborg2 because1 as ,dr4 ,bellows says in one of his lectures1 'the religious man who has no vacillations in his views1 who is not sometimes inclined to ,calvinism1 sometimes to ,rationalism1 sometimes to ,catholicism1 sometimes to ,quakerism1 has an imperfect activity1 a dull imagination1 and a timid love of truth2 for all these faiths have embodied great and interesting spiritual facts which the free and earnest explorer will encounter in his own experience1 and find more vividly portrayed in the history of these sects than in himself4' ,it was to possess a fixed creed1 but nobody was expected to believe in it1 for 'inconsistencies of opinion' are to be expected of everybody1 and doubt1 fear1 and scepticism are actually desirable1 provided they are 'the work of one's own mental and spiritual activity1 and not of mere passive acquiescence in the forces that one encounters from without4' ,it was to be a true church1 of course1 yet a false church also2 because ,dr4 ,bellows declares that 'truth is too large to be surrounded by any one man or any one party1' and there are always two great parties in religion as there are in politics1 'and each has part of the truth in its keeping2' so that1 of course1 neither can be wholly right4 ,he wanted his church to be a historical church1 for ,christianity is a historical religion1 and 'a faith stripped of historic reality1 disunited from its original facts and persons1 does not promise to live and work in the human heart and life4' ,he seemed to have forgotten that history is the growth of time1 and cannot be conferred upon a new-born infant4 ,the future church must have rites and ceremonies1 for without them religion hardly 'touches our daily habits and ordinary career1' and is1 like ,unitarianism1 'an unhoused1 unnatural1 and disembodied faith4' ,it must be a visible church1 yet without a priesthood2 a divinely instituted church1 yet without authority2 receiving its doctrines by divine revelations1 yet only true in part2 eternal1 yet changeable1 ,i am not surprised that ,dr4 ,bellows has not yet found it4 ,surely he never uttered any such extraordinary farrago as you have been putting into his mouth8 #ehd ,not in those words1 of course1 nor with that collocation of thoughts2 but all that ,i have said you will find either in his ,suspense of ,faith1 or in the volume of sermons published under the title of ,re-,statements of ,christian ,doctrine1 7,new ,york1 #ahfj47 ,i have represented1 as fairly as possible1 the vagueness of his aspirations and the inconsistency of his principles4 ,it is only clear that he wanted to be a ,protestant and a ,catholic at the same time4 ,he was shocked at the results of his own centripetalism1 and he longed for a visible church1 with a tangible creed and a set form of worship2 only he wanted to make the church himself2 not to be the founder of a new sect--he disclaimed that1 and was unwilling even to change the form of service in his own congregation--but to dream about it1 to speculate upon what it ought to be1 to mould and influence opinion1 until1 by a seemingly spontaneous movement1 the new church should arise from the midst of the people4 ,poor man6 ,he sees1 by this time1 that nobody feels the want of this new church1 and nobody believes in it2 and he hates the true church1 partly because it is a continual reproach to him1 bringing to mind a duty unfulfilled and a happiness unappreciated1 and partly because it continually revives his disappointment4 ,i have serious doubts1 however1 whether ,dr4 ,bellows ever comprehended the beauty of the ,catholic religion half so well as many people supposed that he did4 ,read his books with a little care1 and you will see that he never took but the most superficial view of religion3 he never got at the core of it4 ,religion to him--as to how many others6--was a thin philosophy which amused his intellect1 a sentimental poetry which tickled his aesthetic instincts2 it was not a life4 ,of that vital ,christianity which comprehends the whole relationship between ,god and man1 which is both a creed1 a worship1 and the very essence of devout life1 his heart seems to have been void4 ,yes1 he says something almost equivalent to this in his sermon on ',spiritual ,discernment4',footnote #agh ,footnote #agh3 ,re-,statements of ,christian ,doctrine4 ',all the triumphs of ,protestantism1' he declares1 'the universal improvement of private and public morality1 of public education1 respect for the individual1 have grown out of the increasing care to keep the church and the world apart--religion and other interests distinct subjects of thought and attention4' ,and the word 'world' here he does not use in its bad sense1 but merely as synonymous with secular affairs4 ,again he says1 that 'the ,catholic ,church succeeded wonderfully in blending life and religion together1 faith and daily usage1 pleasure and worship1 philosophy and the ,gospel2' and this1 he thinks1 was its great fault1 while the great merit of ,protestantism was1 that it carefully separated what the church had so carefully melted together4 ,that gives you the real old ,puritan idea of piety--a something to be put on at stated times1 and then put off again1 like the long faces which old-fashioned ,protestants pull for ,sunday wear2 to have no intimate connection with daily life1 but to be kept carefully apart1 like the best coat which our ancestors used to lay by in lavender leaves1 to be worn on days of ceremony4 ,what is the good of a religion which does not blend with work-a-day life8 of a faith which is not felt in daily usage8 of a worship which must be kept apart from our pleasures1 from our business1 from any of our honest pursuits8 #ehe ,why1 the very beauty of religion is1 that it shall be in man's heart at all times and in all places4 ,if it cannot accompany us everywhere1 if it can only live in the artificial atmosphere of ,sunday meetings1 it is not worth having4 ,the danger against which we have most to guard is not1 ,dr4 ,bellows thinks1 that of forgetting our religion1 but that of growing too familiar with it4 ,his ,god is an awful rather than a loving ,god1 and our sin against him is not that we go so far away from him1 but that we bring him so near to us4 ,in effect he tells us to fetch out our piety once a week or so1 on stated occasions1 but not to let it interfere with our daily walk and conversation1 for that would be sacrilege4 ,all this shows1 as you say1 that he has no comprehension as yet of the true nature of religion2 and shall ,i tell you why he is so slow to acquire it8 ,i believe that he is not really in sympathy with ,christianity4 ,what do you mean8 ,oh6 he is nominally a ,christian1 of course4 ,he would be horrified if you told him he was not4 ,but he has no sympathy with the religion of ,christ4 ,our ,saviour1 in his opinion1 was only the expounder of a system of ethics1 and1 to tell the truth1 it is not clear to me wherein the ,christ of ,unitarianism is essentially superior to ,socrates or ,benjamin ,franklin4 ,the worship of our ,lord ,dr4 ,bellows emphatically denounces as rank 'idolatry4' ,we may only reverence him as a creature specially favored by the ,almighty1 and a teacher to whose word we owe the most profound respect4 ,take away from your religious system the idea of ,god in the person of his divine ,son perpetually present with the faithful1 and helping them to bear the burdens of humanity which he himself has borne1 and it is but a cold1 cheerless1 fallacious belief which is left you4 ,it is no longer religion2 it is only a false philosophy4 ,devotion vanishes2 faith1 hope1 and love are exchanged for a code of rules of behavior2 and ,god withdraws from the world into the impenetrable mystery of the heavens1 where the voice of prayer indeed may reach him1 but his presence is never felt by man1 and his love never fills the heart4 ,he is no longer the dear ,lord of the ,christian saints1 but the ,allah of the ,moslems4 ,you have hit it exactly2 and now let me tell you that ever since ,dr4 ,bellows set out on the foreign tour in which he is still occupied1 ,i have watched for the record of his impressions of ,oriental life1 feeling certain1 from what ,i knew of him1 that he would find an attraction in ,mohammedanism which he never saw in ,christianity4 ,i was not mistaken4 ,he is not a polygamist3 he has no taste for a sensual heaven2 ,i don't suppose he prefers the ,koran to the ,bible2 and ,i never heard of his keeping the inordinate fasts of ,ramadan2 still1 the creed of ,islam seems1 in its main features1 to have caught his fancy1 and he loads it with indirect praises1 which he never thought of bestowing upon any form of ,christianity4 ,let me read you an extract from one of his recent letters to ,the ,liberal ,christian3 ',these people1' he says1 referring to the ,egyptians1 'know nothing of ,christianity which ought to give it any superiority in their eyes over ,mohammedanism4 ,when the ,arabian prophet commenced his marvellous work1 there is little doubt that he was animated by the sincere enthusiasm of a religious reformer4 ,mohammed recognized both dispensations1 the ,mosaic and the ,christian2 and his intelligent followers to this day speak reverently of the ,christ4 ,they evade the authority and use of our ,scriptures1 by asserting that they have been thoroughly corrupted in their text4 ,a learned ,mohammedan in ,india1 however1 has just written the introduction to a new ,commentary on our ,bible1 in which he ably refutes the ,mussulman charge of general corruptness1 and adduces all the passages quoted out of the ,old and ,new ,testaments in the ,koran4 #ehf ,but what have ,mussulmans seen of ,christianity to commend it greatly above their own faith8 ,is it alleged that ,mohammedanism has owed its triumphs and progress to the sword8 ,is it the fault of ,christians if the ,cross has not advanced by the same weapon8 ,what infidel rage of the ,crescent has ever exceeded the fanatical soldiering of the ,crusades1 and what has ,coeur de ,lion to boast over ,saladin in enlightenment or appreciation of the ,christian spirit8 ,and if we come to bowing1 and fasting1 and washing1 and external forms1 ,i confess that the degrading prostrations1 and crossings1 and mummeries of the ,greek and ,catholic churches1 with the gaudy trappings of robes and jewels1 the worship of saints and images1 and the deification of a humble ,jewish woman1 appear to me to have nothing in the presence of which ,mussulmans could feel the lesser reasonableness1 purity1 or dignity1 or the lesser credibility of their own unadorned and simpler superstition4 ,compared with ,catholic and ,greek legends1 the ,koran is a model of purity and elegance of style1 and its worst superstitions do not much exceed in grossness the popular interpretation given to monkish fables4 ,as it respects ecclesiastical interference and tyranny1 ,mohammedanism is a whole world in advance of ,romanism or the ,greek ,church4 ,it is essentially without priest or ritual1 in any ,catholic sense4 ,the ,mussulman is his own priest4 ,he finds ,allah everywhere1 and he has only to turn toward ,mecca1 and bow in prayer1 and his field1 his boat1 the desert1 is as good an altar as the mosque4 ,it is truly affecting to see the fidelity of the common people to their faith1 the apparent heedlessness of observation1 the absorption in their prayers1 the careful memory of their hours of devotion4' ,and1 speaking of the absence of symbols and rites in the mosques1 he adds3 ',surely there is something grand in this simplicity1 and something vital in a faith which1 aided by so little external appliance1 has survived in full vigor twelve hundred years' ,why don't he admire the vitality of the devil8 ,satan has survived in full vigor a good deal more than twelve hundred years4 ,that would be about as logical4 ,but is it not melancholy to see how far a man whom we would like to respect can be carried by his uncontrolled vagaries6 ,he demanded a 'historical church3' there is only one in ,christendom1 and that he will not have2 and now it almost seems as if he felt an occasional temptation to search for one outside of ,christendom4 ,protestantism1 he finds1 has run its course4 ,catholicism he will have nothing to do with4 ,what1 then1 is left him1 if he will be a religious man at all8 ,that seems to be the question which perplexes him and the small but intelligent school of thinkers of whom he is the representative4 ,as the ,jews are still waiting for the ,christ they crucified eighteen hundred years ago1 so the ,bellows school are watching for the coming of that ,christianity which they have already rejected4 ,and both1 it seems to me1 are sick at heart with hope long deferred4 ,yes2 we hear little now of the confident prophetic tone in which ,dr4 ,bellows some years ago discoursed of the glories of the new religion of humanity1 and predicted a resettlement of worn-out creeds and a revival of suspended faith4 ,he writes now rather of the desolation of the present than of brightness which he discerns in the future4 ,and this brings us back to the point from which we started4 ,while ,protestant theologians in general are discarding vituperation1 there are certain of our opponents who show us a bitterness to which they were not formerly accustomed1 because they have been disappointed in their own religious aspirations1 and have a vague1 half-conscious1 and wholly unwelcome impression that the ,catholic ,church alone is capable of satisfying them4 ,dr4 ,bellows1 for instance1 travels through ,europe and finds that ,protestantism is everywhere lifeless4 ,he is bold enough to say so2 but he takes his revenge in the next breath by trying to show that the ,catholic ,church is no better4 #ehg ,he is powerless to arrest the decay which is destroying his own organization1 but he seems to find a melancholy compensation in attacking ,catholicism4 ,he reminds me of what the boy said when he was thrashed by a school-fellow3 ',if ,i can't whip you1 ,i can make faces at your sister4' ,he visits ,paris1 and confesses that ',protestantism makes next to no headway' in ,france1 and is torn by internal dissensions4 ,he goes to the heart of ,protestant ,germany1 and finds the general aspect 'one of painful decay in the faith and spirituality of the people4' ,all over the continent1 he observes that where the ,catholic faith has died out1 'nothing vigorous has shot up in its place1' and the masses of the population are 'without aspiration1 devoutness1 or faith in the invisible4' ',protestantism1 as it appears here1 is a chilled1 repulsive1 ungrowing thing1 entering very little into the national or the social and domestic life1 and apparently not destined in any of its present forms to animate the passions or win and shape the hearts and lives of the middle classes4 444 ,out of the present elements of faith and worship in ,germany ,i see no prospects of any healthy and contagious religious life arising4' ,nay1 what is worse than all1 the peculiar form of ,protestantism upon which1 if upon any4 ,dr4 ,bellows would rely for the regeneration of ,europe1 is in no better way than the others4 ',it does not appear1' he says1 'that the liberal element in the ,protestantism of ,germany1 ,i mean that branch of its ,protestantism which we should consider 'most in sympathy with ,unitarianism1 is very earnest or creative4 ,it seems still rather a negation of orthodoxy than an affirmation of the positive truths of ,christianity4 444 ,forced to take positive ground1 ,i fear that a large part of this extensive body would be compelled to abandon ,christian territory altogether4' ,from ,berlin he writes that 'the whole life of the national church is sickly and discouraging2' from ,strasburg1 that ,protestantism 'must learn some new ways before it will become the religion of the people of ,france1 ,italy1 or even ,germany2' from ,vienna1 that the ,protestantism of ,austria is 'essentially torpid and unprogressive1 presenting nothing attractive or promising4' ,these passages1 and many more of similar purport1 we may take as equivalent to the little boy's confession that he could not whip his antagonist4 ,when it comes to the other part1 the making faces at his sister1 ,i am bound to say that ,dr4 ,bellows shows more temper than strength4 ,in ,vienna1 he deplored the lukewarmness of the ,catholic people all through ,germany1 yet1 in several previous letters1 he had contrasted their zeal in church-going with the indifference of the ,protestants4 ,he accuses the clergy of avarice1 though in ,rome he compliments the priests for their personal merits1 their 'seriousness1 decorum1 and fair intelligence4' ,he declares that 'the ,catholic ,church is an artful substitute for anything that a human soul ought to desire2' that she is 'the chief hinderance to progress2' that she has 'glorified the blessed ,mother into the ,almighty2' that she 'mutters spells and practises necromancy at her altars1' and all that kind of thing1 which ,i need not repeat1 because we have heard it in almost the very same words scores of times before4 ,but the most curious of all his angry attacks was made--where1 think you8 ,why1 on a steamer in the ,levant1 where there was nothing whatever to provoke him3 where the onslaught was so perfectly gratuitous that it burst upon the calm flow of his letter like a thunderbolt rending the summer sky4 ,here it is3 #ehh ',roman ,catholicism1 weak in every member1 is prodigious in its total effectiveness1 because it is a unit4 ,it is quietly seizing ,america1 piece by piece1 state by state1 city by city4 ,in a new state like ,wisconsin1 for instance1 it has the oldest college1 the largest theological school1 the best hospitals and charities1 the finest churches2 and what is true of ,wisconsin is equally true of many other ,western states4 ,protestantism1 with a hundred times the wealth1 intelligence1 public spirit1 and administrative ability1 by reason of its sectarian jealousies and divisions can have no parallel successes1 and is losing rapidly its place in legislative grants and in public policy4 ,the ,irish ,catholics spot the members of state legislatures who vote against the appropriations they call for1 and are able in our close elections to defeat their return4 ,representatives become servile and pliable1 and ,romanism flourishes4 ,a ,quaker gentleman of wealth1 in the ,west1 7the story is exactly true17 married a ,vermont girl who had become a ,catholic in a nunnery where she was sent for her education4 ,it was agreed that1 if children were given them1 the boys should be reared in the faith of their father1 the girls in that of their mother4 ,the ,vermont mother gave her husband ten girls1 but never a son6 ,eight of them grew up ,catholics1 married influential men1 and brought up their children ,catholics1 and in some cases brought over their husbands1 and so the ,roman ,church was recruited with ,protestant wealth and ,quaker blood to a vast extent4 ,so much for sending ,protestant girls to ,roman ,catholic seminaries1 and then complaining that so many ,protestants are lost to the superstitions of ,romanism6 ,there is an apathy about the ,roman ,catholic advances in the ,united ,states among ,american ,protestants1 which will finally receive a terrible shock4 ,there is no influence at work in ,america so hostile to our future peace as the ,roman ,catholic ,church4 ,the next ,american war will1 ,i fear1 be a religious war--of all kinds the worst4 ,if we wish to avert it1 we must take immediate steps to organize ,protestantism more efficiently1 and on less sectarian ground4' ,well1 upon my word1 the conduct of that ,vermont girl was abominable4 ,i suppose ,dr4 ,bellows thinks she never would have been artful enough to swindle her husband out of all his expected boys if she had not been brought up in a convent4 ',so much for sending ,protestant girls to ,roman ,catholic seminaries6' ,i should think so1 indeed6 ,the story is very ridiculous2 but the moral ,dr4 ,bellows draws from it is worse than ridiculous4 ,if we wish to avert a religious war1 he says1 'we must take immediate steps to organize ,protestantism more efficiently1 and on less sectarian ground4' ,that means that ,protestantism must maintain an overwhelming preponderance in this country by fair means or foul4 ,if it cannot convert the papists with the ,bible1 it ought to knock them on the head with a bludgeon4 ,and the same atrocious sentiment is still more plainly expressed by an ,irish writer in ,the ,liberal ,christian of ,feb4 #bith1 who says1 ',popery and ,fenianism are ,siamese curses1 withering every noble and humane feeling wherever they exist4 444 ,they deserve no toleration2 they should receive no mercy4' ,there's a 'liberal' ,christian for you1 with a vengeance6 ,well1 we can afford to ridicule such fears and threats2 but it is very sad4 ,here1 where nearly all honest people seem to have made up their minds to reform their bad language1 and be as polite in discussing sacred questions as in talking over secular affairs1 a sect which professes toleration and fairness beyond all others goes back to the old style of polemical blackguardism4 ,i can appreciate the unfortunate position of the liberal ,christians1 when1 having pushed ahead so far1 they find that there is 'no more road' in that direction1 and can understand that only one of two courses may seem open to them1 either to berate the ,catholics or to join them2 but the instruction which the barrister received from his attorney when the law and the facts were both against him1 ',abuse the other side1' does not apply so well to religion as to jury trials4 ,we must have a different style of argument if anybody is to be converted or improved by the discussion4 ------- #ehi ,nellie ,netterville4 ,chapter ,,xii4 ,when first ,o',more unfolded the cloak in which he had brought ,nellie safely through the flames1 she lay so white and still that1 for one brief1 terrible moment1 he almost fancied she was dead4 ,the fresh air1 however1 soon revived her1 and1 opening her eyes1 filled with a look of terror which afterward haunted them for months1 she fixed them upon ,roger1 and whispered nervously3 ,where are the rest--the priest and all8 ,where are they8 ,they are with their ,god1 ,i trust1 he answered solemnly4 ,at that awful moment he felt that he could say nothing but the truth1 terrible as he knew that truth must sound in the ears of the pale girl beside him4 ,his words1 in fact1 seemed to cut through her like a knife1 and she fell upon her knees1 exclaiming3 ,i only saved--,i only saved6 ,o my ,god1 my ,god6 have mercy on their souls6 ,then suddenly remembering that1 if she were safe1 she owed it entirely to ,roger1 she added earnestly1 ,you have risked your life for mine4 ,how shall ,i thank you8 ,by helping me once more to save it1 he answered curtly4 ,nellie1 he went on rapidly1 for he knew too well that every moment they lingered there was fraught with peril--,nellie1 you are saved1 and yet not safe yet6 ,your life1 however1 is in your own hands now1 and with courage and good trust in ,providence1 ,i doubt not we shall pull safely through4 ,nellie seemed to gather up her mind for a great effort1 and said calmly3 ,only say what ,i must do1 and ,i will do it4 ,the case is this1 said ,roger shortly3 ,yonder tower1 and he pointed to the burning pile overhead--yonder tower must fall soon1 and1 if we linger here1 will crush us in its ruins4 ,on the other hand1 even if we could creep round to the opposite side of the church1 a thing in itself almost impossible1 the fanatical demons who guard the gates will probably shoot us down like dogs4 ,the cliff1 therefore1 is our best--almost our only chance4 ,nevertheless ,i leave the choice in your own hands4 ,only remember you must decide at once4 ,the cliff1 then1 be it6 said ,nellie1 with white lips but flashing eyes4 ,god is more merciful than man4 ,he will save us1 perhaps2 if not1 his will be done--not mine4 ,i will trust entirely to him--entirely to him and you4 ,almost ere she had finished speaking1 ,roger had undone the rope which he carried round his waist1 and was looking eagerly about him for some means of securing it in such a way as to make it useful to ,nellie in her descent4 ,fortunately for his purpose1 a thorny tree had planted itself1 some hundreds of years before1 in a fissure of the rocks so close to the walls of the tower that1 old1 and gray1 and stunted1 as it now was1 its roots had in all probability penetrated beneath their broad foundation1 and were quite as firmly settled in the ground4 ,upon this ,roger pounced at once1 and having tried it sufficiently to make tolerably sure of its powers of endurance1 he passed one end of his rope round the thickest and lowest portions of the stem1 and made it fast with a sailor's knot4 #eij ,the other end he threw over the cliff1 and then watched its fall with a terrible1 silent fear at his heart lest it should prove shorter than his need required4 ,down it went and down1 and he stooped over to mark its progress until ,nellie felt sick with fear1 and turned away to avoid the giddiness which she knew would be fatal to them both4 ,at last she heard him say1 ,thank ,god1 it has reached the platform6 ,then he turned round and anxiously scanned her features4 ,nellie1 he said1 this thing is difficult1 but not impossible4 ,i have seen you bound like a deer down cliffs almost as steep1 if not so high4 ,the great1 the only real peril1 is in the eyesight4 ,lot's wife perished by a look4 ,you must promise me neither to glance up nor down1 but to keep your eyes fixed on the rocks before you4 ,hold well by the rope2 take it hand over hand like a sailor1 7,i remember that you know the trick27 and leave the rest to me4 ,there is really a path1 though you can hardly see it from this spot2 and there are chinks and crevices besides1 in which you will easily find footing4 ,you must feel for them as you descend2 and when you are at a loss1 ,i shall be below to help you4 ,neither will you be quite alone1 for ,i am going to fasten you by this cord1 so that1 if you should happen to let go1 ,i may perhaps be able to support you4 ,my ,god6 said ,nellie1 white with terror1 as he passed a strong1 light cord1 first round her waist and then his own1 in such a way that there was length sufficient to enable them to act independently of each other1 while1 at the same time1 neither could have fallen without almost to a certainty insuring the destruction of both4 ,my ,god1 ,i cannot consent to this4 ,go by yourself2 my fall would kill you4 ,but you will not fall--you shall not fall1 he pleaded anxiously1 if only you will abide by my directions4 ,go alone1 ,i do beseech you6 she answered1 with a shiver4 ,you cannot save me1 and ,i shall but insure your destruction with my own4 ,nay1 then1 ,i give it up1 he answered1 almost sullenly4 ,we will stay here and die together1 for never shall it be said of an ,o',more that1 in seeking safety for himself1 he left a woman thus to perish4 ,then1 in ,god's name1 let us try6 said ,nellie2 only tell me what to do1 and ,i will do it--if ,i can4 ,hold fast the rope1 that is all4 ,never let one hand go until the other has grasped it firmly1 and leave the rest to me4 ,i will help to place your feet in safe resting-places as we go down4 ,only trust me1 and all will yet be well4 ,i will trust to you and to ,god1 and our ,lady1 said ,nellie1 unconsciously repeating the password of the morning4 ,her color was rising fast1 and her eyes had begun to sparkle with excitement4 ,o',more seized the propitious moment1 and1 almost before ,nellie knew it1 she had begun her perilous descent4 ,are you steady now--quite steady8 he asked1 in as low a voice as if he feared to startle the air with motion by speaking louder4 ,yes6 with the natural instinct of a mountain climber ,nellie had already found a rough indented spot in which her foot was firmly planted1 and he descended a step lower4 ,thus inch by inch they went1 ,nellie ever clinging to the rope1 and ,o',more guiding her descent with a success he had hardly looked for1 and which he felt to be almost miraculous4 #eia ,his heart at last beat high with hope2 for he saw by the distance which they had descended that they must be nearing a sort of shelf or platform formed by a sudden bulging out of the lower strata of the cliffs1 and he knew that they were safe if they could only reach that spot1 the rest of the path being so well marked that1 even without his aid1 ,nellie could easily have found her way from thence to the sands beneath4 ,but the surge of the sea boomed louder and louder as she approached it1 and at last1 fairly forgetting ,roger's caution1 she turned her head a little1 and glanced downward4 ,then1 for the first time1 she became fully conscious of the terrible position she occupied1 suspended as it seemed by a very thread between earth and sky1 and with the great1 deep1 awful ocean rolling hundreds of feet below her4 ,her head swam1 her eyesight failed her1 she had just enough presence of mind left to grasp the rope firmly by both hands1 when1 feeling as if her senses were utterly deserting her1 she cried out3 ,o my ,god1 ,i am going6 ,save me1 ,roger1 ,i am going6 ,no1 no6 he cried1 in agony1 for he knew only too well the danger of the thought4 ,hold fast--hold on2 for ,christ's dear sake1 hold on6 ,one step--two steps more1 and you are safe4 ,there6 he cried1 in a voice hoarse with emotion1 as he felt his own foot touch the platform2 and seizing ,nellie by the waist1 he drew her1 hardly conscious of what he was doing1 by main strength to his side4 ,there1 oh6 thank ,god--thank ,god1 you are safe at last6 ,he was just in time4 ,nellie had that very moment let go the rope1 and if he had not caught her1 would inevitably have been dashed to pieces on the rocks below4 ,as it was1 he landed her safely and gently on the ledge where he himself was standing1 and without venturing to loose her entirely from his grasp1 laid her down1 that she might recover from her nervous panic4 ,you are safe1 he kept repeating1 as if it required the assurance of his own voice to make certain of the fact4 ,you are safe6 and then with an instinctive yet entirely unacknowledged consciousness on his part1 that his own safety might perhaps be at least a portion of her care1 he added--we are safe now4 ,you can stay here until you are quite yourself again2 only do not look up or down--at least not just yet1 not until the giddiness is gone4 ,you forgot ,lot's wife1 or this never would have happened4 ,nellie was not insensible1 though she looked so4 ,she only felt as if she were in a dream4 ,she understood perfectly all that ,roger said2 the shadow even of a smile seemed to pass over her white lips as he alluded to ,lot's wife2 but his voice fell with a muffled sound1 as if it came from a great distance1 on her ear2 and earth1 and sky1 and cliff1 and ocean1 all seemed blending and floating in a wild fantasy through her brain4 ,by degrees1 however1 a sort of awakening seemed to creep over her1 but she did not use it at first either to look up or speak4 ,possibly she felt that words would be powerless to express her thoughts1 and was glad of any excuse for silence4 ,roger did not like to hurry her1 and he therefore employed the next few minutes in scanning the sea in search of ,henrietta4 ,she was there1 exactly in the place in which he had bidden her to wait for him2 but she was watching the burning tower overhead1 and had evidently very little notion that any of its victims had escaped4 ,from the spot where he was standing1 he could easily have made her hear him2 but fearing that his voice might rouse up some hidden foe1 he turned to ,nellie for assistance4 #eib ,have you a handkerchief1 he asked1 or anything of that kind which you could give me for a signal8 ,without answering1 without even looking up1 7so obedient had she grown1 poor ,nellie67 she untied the scarlet kerchief1 which1 in her harmless vanity1 she had that morning thrown over her head and knotted beneath her chin1 as the last thing wanting to her costume of a native girl1 and gave it into ,roger's hand4 ,he waved it for some time without success2 but at last ,henrietta saw it1 and began to row vigorously into shore4 ,now you may look1 cried ,roger joyfully1 helping ,nellie to stand up2 now you may look2 for you will see nothing but what it is good for you to see4 ,henrietta ,hewitson is waiting for us in the boat below1 and the sooner we leave this resting-place the better4 ,henrietta ,hewitson6 cried ,nellie1 roused effectually to life again by the mention of her name4 ,his daughter6 ,how kind1 how noble6 ,shall we not go to her at once8 ,if you are able1 he answered4 ,the rest of the way is easy--easier far than the cliffs of ,clare ,island1 which you climbed with me yesterday4 ,easy6 oh6 yes1 surely it is easy1 cried ,nellie wildly4 ,o my mother--my mother6 she sobbed1 with a little gasp2 ,i shall see her once again--and my grandfather6 the poor old man will not be left desolate1 after all4 ,roger saw that she was growing every moment more and more excited1 and he cut the matter short by carrying her down to the beach and laying her in the boat1 as if she had been a baby4 ,henrietta received her with a look of remorse1 as if she felt that she herself must seem1 somehow or other1 responsible in ,nellie's eyes for the pain and misery she had been enduring for the last few hours2 and while she wrapt her tenderly and affectionately in a cloak taken from her own shoulders1 ,roger sent the boat1 by a few vigorous strokes of the oar1 to a safe distance from the rocks near which they had embarked4 ,this manoeuvre placed them in full view of the burning tower1 and he dropped his oar and gazed upon it as if irresistibly attracted by the spectacle4 ,the body of the church was by this time a smouldering heap of ruins1 but the tower1 wrapt in its terrible robes of fire1 still stood bravely up as if in defiance of its coming doom4 ,for a single second it remained thus1 unyielding and apparently uninjured1 than it began visibly to totter4 ,another moment1 and it was swaying backward and forward like a leaf in an autumn storm2 and yet another1 and1 as if in a last wild effort to escape from the flames that swathed it1 it plunged right over the cliffs1 the fragments of its ruined walls crashing and crumbling from rock to rock till they fell with a roar like thunder into the waters underneath4 ,both girls1 at the first symptom of the catastrophe impending1 had instinctively shut their eyes2 but ,roger1 on the contrary1 looked on as steadily as if he were keeping a count of every falling stone in order to set it down in his debt of vengeance against those who had done the deed4 ,not a syllable1 however1 did he utter1 until the last stone had fallen1 and the last fiery gleam disappeared from the cliff2 but then1 as if unable any longer to endure in silence1 he threw up his arms toward heaven1 and exclaimed3 #eic ,men1 women1 and children all sent before their time to judgment6 ,o ,god6 what punishment hast ,thou reserved in this world or the next that shall be heavy enough for such a deed as this6 ,curse me not--curse not6 cried ,henrietta1 with anguish in her voice1 ,the doom1 ,god knows1 is heavy enough already4 ,curse you6 said the astonished ,roger1 you1 to whom ,i owe more than my own life a thousand times4 ,nay1 ,mistress ,henrietta1 what madness has made you fear it8 ,i fear6 ,i fear6 ,why should ,i not8 sobbed ,henrietta4 ,the sin of the parents shall be visited on the children1 and he is my father1 after all6 ,your father6 your father6 ,roger muttered1 trying to keep down the storm of passion that was choking him4 ,well1 well1 he is1 as you say1 your father1 and so ,i must perforce be silent4 ,alas6 alas6 ,henrietta pleaded1 if you did but know the completeness of his religious mania1 you would also comprehend how easily a man1 merciful in all things else1 can in this one thing be merciless4 ,nay1 said ,roger bitterly2 it needs1 ,i think1 no great stretch of intellect to understand it thoroughly4 ,a man1 fresh from the siege of ,tredagh1 where children were dashed from the battlements1 lest1 'like nits1 they should become troublesome if suffered to increase1' will1 doubtless1 merely consider the holocaust of human life which lies buried beneath yonder ruins as a whole burnt-offering1 smelling sweet in the nostrils of the ,lord1 which he1 as his high-priest1 has been deputed to offer up4 ,he broke off suddenly1 for a hand was laid upon his arm1 and a white face lifted pleadingly to his4 ,speak not thus of her father1 whispered ,nellie4 ,speak not thus2 see how she is weeping6 ,her tears are his best plea for mercy1 then1 said he in a gentler tone1 and seizing the oars1 he began to row as vigorously as if he hoped to quiet his boiling spirit by the mere fact of bodily exhaustion4 ,nellie made no answer1 and silence fell upon them all4 ,the deed just done was not of a nature lightly to be forgotten1 and they went quietly on their way1 as people will1 upon whom the shadow of a great terror still hangs heavily4 ,just1 however1 as they entered the harbor of ,clare ,island1 ,nellie caught sight of a well-known figure1 and uttered a cry of joy4 ,it was ,hamish1 and1 in her impatience1 she scarcely waited until the boat was fastened ere she was at his side4 ,but there was no gladness in his eye as he turned to greet her4 ,he was deadly pale1 and his left arm hung powerless at his side4 ,nellie saw nothing of this at first1 however1 she was thinking so entirely of her mother4 ,is she come1 dear ,hamish8 she cried4 ,where is she8 ,in ,dublin1 he answered curtly4 ,in ,dublin--and you here8 cried ,nellie in dismay4 ,because she sent me1 he replied4 ,what is it1 ,hamish8 ,what is it8 faltered ,nellie1 struggling with a sense of some new and terrible misfortune impending over her4 ,she is sore sick--sick even unto death1 ,hamish reluctantly replied4 ,he could not bring himself to utter the terrible truth as yet4 ,nellie stood for a moment mute with terror4 ,she read upon her foster-brother's face that worse news than even this was about to follow2 but when she would have asked what it was1 courage and voice completely failed her4 ,she knew it1 however1 soon enough4 ,from his seat by the door of the tower1 ,lord ,netterville had caught a glimpse of ,hamish1 and came down at once to greet him4 ,excitement seemed for one brief moment to have restored all his faculties1 and he cried out eagerly3 #eid ,you here1 good ,hamish6 ,i am heartily glad to see you6 ,and what news bring you from ,netterville8 ,how goes my lady daughter8 ,ill1 do you say--sore stricken8 ,nay1 man1 remember that she is still but young4 ,it cannot surely be an illness unto death8 ,yea1 but it is1 my lord1 said ,hamish1 speaking almost roughly in his agony4 ,death1 and nothing short of death1 as surely as that ,i am here to say it4 ,art thou a prophet8 asked ,roger1 bending his dark brows upon him1 and half tempted to suspect a snare4 ,art thou a prophet1 that thou darest to speak thus confidently of the future8 ,sir1 said ,hamish1 driven at last beyond his patience1 and hardly knowing how to break his news more gently1 it needs not to be a prophet to foresee that the widow of a royalist and a ,catholic to boot1 shut up in prison and condemned on a false charge of murder1 is in danger--nay1 said ,i danger8--and is as certain of her doom as if she were already in her coffin4 ,nellie uttered a wild cry1 the first and last that escaped her lips that day1 and ,lord ,netterville repeated faintly1 ,murder6 ,ay1 murder2 and in another week she dies1 ,hamish answered1 now desperate as to the consequences of his revelation4 ,nellie turned short round toward ,roger3 ,i must go6 she said4 ,i must go at once4 ,of course you must1 he answered1 in that helpful tone which had so often that morning already reassured her4 ,she has sent me hither to conduct you1 ,hamish--with some latent jealousy of the interference of a stranger--was beginning1 when1 unable any longer to conceal the bodily anguish he was enduring1 he uttered a moan of pain1 and leaned back against the low wall of the pier4 ,then for the first time ,nellie looked into his face1 and saw that he was as white as ashes4 ,my ,god6 my ,god6 she cried in her perplexity4 ,what is to become of us8 ,he is dying too4 ,no1 no1 ,hamish mustered his failing strength to answer1 ,it is nothing4 ,they shot at me as ,i took boat from the beach1 and hit me in the arm2 but it is not broken1 and if only ,i could stop the bleeding1 ,i should be well enough to start at once4 ,but he grew paler and paler as he spoke1 and the blood gushed in torrents from his arm1 as he tried to lift it for their inspection4 ,roger shouted to ,norah to bring down a cordial from the tower1 and he then helped ,nellie and ,henrietta in their nervous and not very efficient endeavors to check the bleeding with their kerchiefs4 ,hamish was by this time well-nigh insensible1 but a cup of wine revived him1 and having ascertained that he was merely suffering from a flesh-wound1 ,roger sent back ,norah to rummage out some bandages which he remembered were among his soldier stores4 ,with these he stanched the blood1 and carefully bound up the wounded arm1 assuring ,nellie at the same time that her faithful follower was merely suffering from loss of blood1 and that in a few days he would be as well again as ever4 ,nellie must be forgiven if at that moment she had no thought excepting for her mother4 ,a few days1 she cried despairingly2 then ,i must go back alone2 for my mother will be dead by that time4 #eie ,hamish did not hear her4 ,he was leaning back in that half-dreamy state which often follows upon loss of blood2 but ,roger answered instantly3 ,you shall go at once2 but certainly not alone4 ,he turned round to look for ,lord ,netterville2 the poor old man had sunk upon the ground1 and in his helplessness and perplexity was weeping like a child4 ,lord ,netterville6 said ,roger suddenly4 ,lord ,netterville dashed the tears from his eyes1 and looked up anxiously in the young man's face4 ,lord ,netterville1 ,roger repeated1 giving him his hand and helping him to stand up1 you see how the case stands2 your granddaughter must go to her mother1 and go at once4 ,any delay were fatal4 ,this poor fellow is totally unable to accompany her4 ,will you trust her to my care8 ,i swear to you that she shall be as dear and precious to me as a sister1 and that ,i will watch over her and wait upon her as if ,i were in very deed her brother4 ,with a look of relief and confidence that was touching to behold1 the old man wrung the hand which ,roger gave him1 and then silently turned toward ,nellie4 ,roger did did not ask her if she would accept him as an escort2 he felt that after the events of the morning she would need no protestations of loyalty at his hand1 and merely said3 ,in two hours we can start2 but ,i shall have to go first to the mainland to look for horses4 ,nay1 that shall be my business1 said ,henrietta suddenly4 ,in two hours hence1 at the foot of the round tower1 you will find them waiting2 and ,i will bring you at the same time a letter to a friend1 who may1 ,i think1 prove useful to you in ,dublin4 ,follow me not now1 she added in a tone that admitted of no reply1 as ,roger made a movement as if he would have gone with her to the boat1 follow me not now2 ,i can best arrange matters if ,i go alone2 but in two hours hence ,i shall expect you4 ,chapter ,,xiii4 ,henrietta was as good as her word1 and1 thanks to her energy and kindness1 ,nellie1 with ,roger for an escort1 was enabled to commence her journey that very afternoon1 both she and her companion being mounted upon good swift steeds1 which the young ,english girl had made no scruple of abstracting for the purpose from her father's stable4 ,she had done even more than this2 for she had conquered her pride and petulance sufficiently to write a letter to ,major ,ormiston1 in which she entreated him1 by the love he once professed to bear her1 to do all he could for ,nellie1 and to procure her every facility for access to her mother4 ,this she had given to ,roger1 hinting to him at the same time that her correspondent was high in favor of the ,lord ,deputy1 and might possibly be able to induce the latter to commute the sentence of death hanging over ,mrs4 ,netterville into one of fine or imprisonment1 even if he could not or would not grant her a full pardon4 ,of this hope1 however1 ,roger said not a syllable to ,nellie1 fearful1 if it should come to naught1 of adding the bitterness of disappointment to the terrible measure of misery which in that case would be her portion4 ,the journey to ,dublin was a difficult and a long one1 and if ,nellie had been allowed to act according to her own wishes1 she would probably have used up both herself and her horse long before she had reached its end4 #eif ,fortunately1 however1 for the accomplishment of her real object1 ,roger took a more exact measure of the strength of both than1 under the circumstances1 she was capable of doing for herself1 and he insisted every night upon her seeking a few hours' repose in any habitation1 however poor1 which presented itself for the purpose4 ,with this precaution1 and supported also in some measure by the very excitement of her misery1 ,nellie bore up bravely against the inevitable fatigues and discomforts of the journey4 ,the horses1 however1 proved less untiring4 ,in spite of ,roger's best care and grooming1 both at last began to show symptoms of distress1 and they were a long day's journey yet from ,dublin when it became evident to him that his own in particular was failing rapidly4 ,henrietta had chosen it chiefly for its quality of speed2 but it was too light for a tall and powerfully-built man like ,roger2 and more than once that day he had been compelled to dismount1 and proceed at a walking pace1 in order to allow it to recover itself4 ,night was rapidly closing in1 and ,nellie1 who1 preoccupied by her own anxieties1 had not as yet remarked the state of the poor animal1 ventured to remonstrate with ,roger upon the slowness of their proceedings4 ,then for the first time he pointed out to her the exhaustion of their steeds1 acknowledging his conviction that his own in particular was in a dying state1 and that two hours more1 if he survived so long1 would be the utmost measure of the work that he could expect him to accomplish4 ,nellie was for a moment in despair1 and then a bold thought struck her--why not ride straight for ,netterville8 ,they had been for some hours in the country of the ,pale1 and they could not be very far from her old home now4 ,every feature in the landscape was becoming more and more familiar to her eyes1 and she was certain that1 in less than the two hours which ,roger had assigned as the utmost limit of his steed's endurance1 they would have reached her native valley4 ,once there1 they would not only be in the direct road to ,dublin1 but they would also have a better chance of finding horses than they could have in a place where they were entirely unknown4 ,netterville1 it was true1 was now wholly and entirely1 with its fields and stock1 in the hands of the ,parliamentarians2 but she was certain of the fidelity of the poor people there1 and as certain as she was of her own existence1 not only that they would not betray her1 but that they would also do all they could to help and speed her on her way4 ,the plan seemed feasible2 at all events1 no other presented itself at the moment to ,roger's mind1 and accordingly1 after having done all he could to relieve his horse1 and prepare him for a fresh spurt1 they struck right across the country eastward toward the sea4 ,nellie proved right in her conjectures4 ,in even less than two hours from the moment in which they started1 they reached the valley of ,netterville--reached it1 in fact1 just in time2 for ,roger had barely leaped from his horse's back ere the poor animal was rolling on the turf in the agonies of death4 ,nellie then proposed that they should walk to the cottage of old ,grannie1 and dismounted in her turn4 ,her horse was not so exhausted as that of ,roger1 nevertheless it was even then unfit for work1 and would in all probability be still more so on the morrow4 ,roger therefore thought it better to leave it to its fate than to run the risk of attracting notice by bringing it with them to ,grannie's habitation4 #eig ,he hoped1 as ,nellie did1 that they would have a good chance of finding fresh steeds at ,netterville next morning2 and after carefully hiding the two saddles in a clump of gorse1 they set out on their way on foot4 ,the old woman received ,nellie with a cry of joy4 ,no sooner1 however1 did the latter mention the business which had brought her there1 than the faithful creature stifled all her gladness at this unexpected meeting with her foster-child1 and turned to weep in good and sorrowful earnest over the woe and shame impending upon the house of ,netterville1 in the person of its unhappy mistress4 ,while ,nellie ate1 or tried to eat1 the simple fare set before her by her hostess1 ,roger told the latter of the fate which had befallen their horses1 and inquired as to the possibility of replacing them by fresh ones4 ,grannie shook her head despondingly4 ,royalists and ,parliamentarians alternately1 she said1 had seized upon every available horse they could find in the country1 until1 as far as she knew1 there was not a garran fit for a two hours' journey within ten miles of ,netterville4 ,as to ,netterville itself1 if there were any horses left in its stables1 7which she doubted17 they must of necessity belong to the ,english soldier to whose lot1 in the drawing of the debentures1 the castle and its grounds had fallen2 much1 the old woman added with a chuckle1 to the disgust of the officer who commanded them at the time of the recent murder1 and who1 having coveted the place exceedingly for himself1 was supposed to have pressed the matter heavily against ,mrs4 ,netterville for the facilitating of his own selfish wish4 ,roger listened to all this in silence1 privately resolving to risk his own detention1 if discovered1 as an outlaw1 and to visit the stable of ,netterville next morning1 in hopes of procuring a fresh mount4 ,as nothing1 however1 could be done till then1 he entreated ,nellie to lie down and rest1 after which he left the hut1 there not being a second chamber in it1 and throwing himself on a bank of heather on the outside1 was soon fast asleep4 ,it was long before ,nellie could follow his example1 but at last she fell into that state of dreamless stupor which often1 in cases of extreme exhaustion1 takes the place of healthy slumber4 ,such as it was1 at all events1 it was rest--rest of body and rest of mind--a truce to the aching of weary limbs1 and to the yet more intolerable weariness of a mind1 wincing and shivering beneath a coming woe4 ,the first gleam of daylight roused her from it4 ,there was never any pleasant twilight now1 between sleeping and waking1 in ,nellie's mind6 ,with the first gleam of consciousness came ever the pale image of her mother1 and there was neither rest nor sleep for her after that4 ,in the present instance1 anxiety as to the chance of being able to prosecute her journey at all1 was added to her other troubles2 and1 unable to endure suspense upon such a vital point even for a moment1 she opened the door quietly1 so as not to disturb old ,granny1 and looked out for ,roger4 ,he was nowhere to be seen1 and she guessed at once that he had gone up to the castle4 ,then a longing seized her to look once more upon the old place where she had been so happy formerly2 and1 without giving herself time to waver1 she walked hurriedly up the valley4 ,she did not1 however1 venture to the front of the house1 but resolved instead to take a path which1 skirting round it1 would lead her to the offices behind4 #eih ,it was1 by one of those strange accidents which we call chance1 but for which the angels perhaps have quite another name1 the very path which her mother had always taken when visiting the sick soldier4 ,the door of the room which he had occupied was slightly ajar as ,nellie passed it2 and1 moved by an impulse for which she could never afterward thoroughly account1 she pushed it open without noise1 and entered4 ,the room was not uninhabited1 as she had at first supposed4 ,a woman1 evidently in the last stage of some mortal malady1 lay stretched upon the bed1 and a soldier of the ,cromwellian type was seated with an open ,bible in his hand beside her4 ,he had probably been employed either in reading or exhorting1 but at the moment when ,nellie entered1 it was the woman who was speaking4 ,i tell you1 soldier6 ,nellie heard her querulously murmur--,i tell you1 soldier1 it is mere waste of breath1 your preaching4 ,so long as that woman's death lies heavy on my soul1 so long ,i can look for nothing better in the next world than hell4 ,at that very moment ,nellie noiselessly advanced1 and stood in silence at the foot of the bed4 ,the woman recognized her at once1 and with a wild shriek flung herself out of the bed at her feet4 ,the girl recoiled in horror and dismay4 ,she had learned the whole story of her mother's condemnation from ,hamish ere she left ,clare ,island4 ,murderess of my mother6 she cried1 in a voice hoarse with anguish4 ,dare not to lay hands upon her daughter4 ,mercy6 mercy6 cried the woman1 grovelling on the ground1 and seeking with her white shrunken fingers to lay hold of the hem of ,nellie's garment4 ,mercy6 mercy6 ,where shall ,i find mercy for my mother8 ,nellie asked1 as white as ashes1 and shaking from head to foot in the agony of her struggle between conscience and resentment--the one urging her to forgive her foe1 the other to leave her to her fate4 ,where shall ,i find mercy for my mother8 ,you see1 soldier--you see1 moaned the poor wretch upon the floor1 the daughter cannot pardon me2 why then should ,god8 ,what would you have8 cried ,nellie1 almost maddened by the mental conflict4 ,what would you have8 ,i cannot cure you4 ,what can ,i do8 ,you can forgive1 the woman answered feebly2 then perhaps ,god will pardon also4 ,o my ,god6 my ,god6 give me strength and grace sufficient6 cried ,nellie2 and then1 by an effort of almost superhuman charity1 she stooped1 put her arms round the dying creature's neck1 and kissed her4 ,the woman uttered a cry of joy1 and fell back heavily out of ,nellie's arms4 ,a long silence followed4 ,nellie looked at the dead1 white face1 lying quietly on the floor beside her1 and felt as if she were dying also1 so utterly did her senses seem to fail her1 and so dead and numbed were all her faculties in the heavy strain that had been put upon them4 ,a hand was laid at last upon her shoulder4 ,nellie started violently4 ,she had totally forgotten even the existence of the soldier4 ,nay1 fear not1 maiden1 nor yet grieve inordinately1 he said1 in a voice of mingled pity and admiration4 ,thou hast acted in all this business 7,i am bound to bear testimony to the truth7 in a way worthy of thy mother's daughter4 ,thank ,god1 at least1 that ,i forgave her1 ,nellie murmured beneath her breath1 scarce conscious of what he was saying4 #eii ,nay1 and in very deed1 he answered1 thy presence here has been a crowning and a saving mercy for the poor wretch whom we have seen expire4 ,ever since ,i found her here last night1 dying alone and in despair1 ,i have been striving for her with the ,lord1 and praying and exhorting1 but1 as it seemed to me1 all in vain1 until thy kiss of peace fell like a balm more precious even than that of ,gilead on her soul1 and restored it1 ,i cannot doubt1 7for ,i saw a light as of exceeding gladness settle upon her dying features17 restored it to long banished peace4 ,thank ,god that he gave me grace to do it6 ,nellie once more whispered4 ,it seemed as if she were powerless to think of aught besides4 ,they who do mercy shall in due time find it6 rejoined the soldier1 putting a small scrap of written paper into her hand4 ,in this very room thy mother tended me1 when my own comrades had deserted me1 fearing the infection2 in this very room yonder woman1 having been expelled the other portions of the mansion1 since order has been taken for the separation of ,god's elect from the sinful daughters of the land1 took up her abode some three days since2 and in this very room ,i last night found her1 dying of the malady of which1 but for thy mother's care1 ,i must have also perished1 and so moved by the prospect of eternal retribution which lay before her1 that she of her own accord did dictate1 and did suffer me to write down on the spot1 a full confession of her own guilt in the matter of the murdered ,tomkins1 ,she told me then--and many times afterward in the course of the long night she did continue to aver it--that she herself it was who did the deed for which ,mrs4 ,netterville stands condemned to die2 she having1 in a drunken squabble4 seized the man's pistol and shot him dead upon the spot4 ,and she furthermore avowed1 with unspeakable groanings and many tears1 that1 terrified at the consequences of her own act1 and moved besides by a fiendish desire of vengeance against thy mother1 who had in some way unwittingly1 in times past1 offended her1 she not only accused her of the murder1 but maintained that accusation afterward upon oath when examined before the ,high ,court of ,commissioners in ,dublin4 ,now then1 maiden1 rise up and speed4 ,thy mother's life is in thy hands2 for with that paper1 writ and witnessed by one who1 however humble1 is not altogether unknown as a zealous soldier in the camp of ,israel--with that paper1 ,i say1 to attest her innocence1 they must of a certainty acknowledge it1 and let her go4 ,how shall ,i thank thee1 ,o my ,god6 cried ,nellie1 scarcely able to believe her ears that she had heard the soldier rightly4 ,it is good to praise ,god always1 he replied sententiously1 but at this moment briefly4 ,thy present care must be to get to ,dublin with what speed thou mayest4 ,alas6 said ,nellie1 how shall ,i get there8 ,i have ridden day and night ever since ,i heard this unhappy news1 and only yesterday evening our horses were so knocked up1 that ,i and my companion had to find our way hither as best we could on foot4 ,there are but two horses in these stables1 and neither of them are mine to offer1 said the soldier1 evidently distressed and anxious at the dilemma in which his protge was placed4 ,nevertheless1 and the ,lord aiding me in my endeavors1 ,i will do what ,i can4 ,come with me to the courtyard--,i doubt not but thou knowest the way well enough already4 #fjj ,yes1 indeed6 poor ,nellie knew it well enough1 and at any other time she might have wept at revisiting on so sad an errand a spot hitherto pleasantly associated in her mind with many a childish frolic1 and many a petted animal1 the favorites of the days gone by4 ,just now1 however1 she had no inclination to dwell on the memories of the past4 ,joy at the proved innocence of her mother1 and a wild fear lest she herself should arrive too late in ,dublin to allow of her profiting by the disclosure1 filled her whole soul1 and left no room there for sentimental sorrows4 ,she found ,roger already in the yard1 engaged in hot discussion with an officer of the ,english army1 a coal-black charger1 which the latter was holding carelessly by the bridle1 being the apparent object of the dispute4 ,ay1 muttered her conductor1 as he glanced toward the group2 it is1 ,i see1 even as ,i suspected1 and ,i shall have to pay dearly for ,black ,cromwell4 ,then leaving ,nellie a little in the background1 he went up to the ,english officer and said3 ,here is an unhappy maiden1 ,captain ,rippel1 bound upon an errand of life and death1 and sorely in need of a good steed to bear her4 ,the fate of a grave1 ,god-fearing woman1 even of ,mistress ,netterville herself1 the late owner of this mansion1 is dependent on her speed1 and1 had ,i twenty horses in the stable1 as ,i have not one1 ,i declare unto thee as ,god liveth and seeth1 that she should have her choice among them all4 ,yea1 and undoubtedly1 the other answered with a sneer4 ,nevertheless1 since it is even as thou sayest1 and that thou hast them not1 ,i fear me1 good master sergeant1 that this young daughter of ,moab1 who has been lucky enough to find favor in your eyes1 will be none the better for your good intentions4 ,sir1 if you be a man--a gentleman--you cannot1 you will not refuse6 cried the indignant ,roger4 ,consider1 this young lady is here a suppliant where once she dwelt the honored mistress of the mansion1 and you cannot of a surety say nay6 ,remember it is no gift we crave1 for this purse contains double the value of your steed1 strong and of admirable breeding as undoubtedly he is4 ,he held up a purse as he spoke1 the parting gift of ,henrietta1 from whom1 however1 he had accepted it merely as a loan1 to be afterward repaid in some of the most valuable of the articles yet left him in his tower4 ,it was well filled and heavy2 but with a little smile of scorn the officer waved it quietly on one side4 ,and how am ,i to be certified1 ,i pray you1 that this young maiden--who seems to have cast witchcraft on you both--is in reality ,mistress ,netterville1 or any other indeed than a base impostor8 he asked with a most offensive leer4 ,scarce five days have as yet elapsed since ,i came hither1 sent by the ,lord ,high ,deputy himself1 to put order in this garrison1 and to separate the elect of ,god from the sinful daughters of the land1 and-- ,sir1 do you dare6 cried ,roger1 suddenly cutting short his speech2 and1 raising his hand1 he would have struck him to the ground if the soldier had not placed himself hastily between them1 saying in a monitory tone to ,roger3 ,if thou wouldst not destroy the young maiden's hopes altogether1 sir1 leave this affair to me4 ,another look or word of thine1 and it will utterly miscarry4 #fja ,roger felt the man was right4 ,it was not by violence or angry words that he could best serve ,nellie4 ,he checked himself at once1 therefore1 and fell back1 while the soldier said quietly to his superior officer3 ,thou hast not1 peradventure1 captain1 forgotten the offer which thou didst make to me some three days since1 when first the way in which the ,lord had disposed of our lots was made known to us at ,netterville8 ,forgotten--no1 in sooth--not ,i6 the other answered roughly4 ,nor have ,i forgotten either with what manifest folly and ingratitude thou didst reject it2 better though it was by a hundred pieces of good gold1 than that which one of thy comrades didst thankfully accept from ,major ,pepper4 ,throw ,black ,cromwell and the white mare ,daylight into the bargain1 and ,i accept1 the soldier answered quietly4 ,what1 part with ,black ,cromwell8 ,black ,cromwell1 who hath carried me unhurt through more battles than ,david himself ever fought against the ,philistines8 the officer demanded with well-affected astonishment4 ,verily and indeed1 master sergeant1 thou art1 as ,i do perceive1 notwithstanding thy good odor for most punctilious sanctity--thou art1 ,i say1 but an extortioner after all4 ,had it been the mare alone1 now1 though she also is a very marvel for strength and speed--,i had never said thee nay2 but to talk to me of parting with ,black ,cromwell is to prick me1 so to speak1 upon the very apple of the eye4 ,nevertheless ,i have a fancy for him1 and if ,i cannot get him1 ,i will still hold fast to ,netterville1 the inheritance which the ,lord himself hath of late assigned me in this new land of promise1 the other steadily replied4 ,there is the good horse4 ,battle of ,worcester1 he is stronger than ,black ,cromwell1 and would altogether suit the maiden better1 his superior rejoined in a coaxing tone4 ,yea1 but he hath an ugly trick of going lame ere the first mile is over1 ,sergeant ,jackson responded with a knowing smile1 and then he added in a tone which was evidently intended to bring the discussion to an end1 ,it will be all in vain to dispute this matter any further4 ,captain ,rippel4 ,if you have in truth1 as you seem to say1 made up your mind to keep ,black ,cromwell for your own riding1 ,i1 on the other hand1 am equally resolved not to part with this house of ,netterville1 which will serve me well enough1 ,i doubt not1 as a residence1 once ,i have brought my old mother hither to help me in its keeping4 ,nay1 then1 usurer1 take the horse and thy money with it6 cried the officer1 in a tone far less expressive of vexation than of triumph at the result of the discussion4 ,take thy money and hand me over that debenture which1 with the loss of such a charger as ,black ,cromwell1 is1 ,i fear me1 but too dearly purchased4 ,without deigning to utter a single syllable in return1 ,sergeant ,jackson took the purse which the other in his affected indignation almost flung at his head1 with one hand1 while with the other he drew forth from the breast-pocket of his coat a paper1 being the identical debenture in question1 and presented it to his officer4 ,captain ,rippel snatched it hastily from him1 ran his eye over it to make sure that it was the right one1 and then1 turning on his heel1 sauntered out of the courtyard1 without even condescending to glance toward the spot where ,nellie stood anxiously awaiting the result4 #fjb ,sergeant ,jackson instantly dived into one of the stables1 and seizing a side-saddle1 7,nellie's own saddle of the olden times17 he led forth a strong1 handsome mare1 as white as milk1 and began to saddle it in hot haste2 while ,roger1 taking the hint1 did the same for ,cromwell4 ,i am afraid ,i have cost you very dear1 ,nellie said in a low1 grateful tone1 as she stood beside the sergeant4 ,believe me1 for nothing less than a mother's life would ,i have suffered you to make such a sacrifice4 ,nay1 maiden1 call it not a sacrifice1 he answered without looking round1 and giving a pull to the girths to make sure that they were tight4 ,or if thou needs must think it one1 remember that1 had not thy good mother saved my life1 ,i should not have been here to make it4 ,nellie's heart was too full to speak1 and she suffered him to lift her in silence to her saddle4 ,he settled her in it as carefully and tenderly as if1 instead of a simple soldier1 he had been one of the old courtly race of cavaliers1 from which she was herself descended1 and then1 with one last whispered word of gratitude for himself1 and one last loving message for old ,grannie1 which he promised to deliver to her in person1 ,nellie rode forth from ,netterville1 and1 without even giving it a farewell glance1 turned her horse's head toward ,dublin4 ,chapter ,,xiv4 ,the city of ,dublin1 as it stood within its walls in the days of the ,protectorate1 barely covered ground to the extent of an ,irish mile1 and was built entirely on the south side of the ,liffey4 ,that side1 therefore1 only of the river was embanked by quays1 and not even that in its entirety2 the space now occupied by the new custom-house and other buildings1 to the extent of several thousand feet1 being then mere ooze and swamp1 kept thus by the continued overflowing of the tides4 ,to the north of the ,liffey1 however1 there was a suburb1 built1 as time went on and the exigencies of an ever-increasing population required1 outside the walls of the fortified city4 ,it was called ,ostmantown1 now ,oxmantown1 and occupied a very insignificant space between ,mary's ,abbey and ,church street2 ,stoney ,batter1 ,grange ,gorman1 and ,glassmanogue1 being merely villages scattered here and there in the open country to a considerable distance northward4 ,a bridge of very ancient date1 the bridge of ,dubhgh-all1 also at a later period styled the ,old ,bridge1 formed the sole means of communication 7except by boat7 between the city and its northern suburb4 ,built upon four arches1 and closed in on the ,dublin side by a strong gate-house with turrets and portcullis1 the ,old ,bridge1 like all others of similar antiquity1 was broad enough and strong enough to form a sort of street within itself2 shops being erected upon either side1 and traffic as busy and as eager there1 as in the more legitimate thoroughfares of the city4 ,from ,old ,bridge men passed at once into ,bridge street1 7,vicus ,pontis formerly17 a long1 narrow thoroughfare1 hemmed in on one side by the city walls1 and on the other by a tolerably handsome row of houses4 ,these houses were almost all built in the cage-work fashion of the days of ,queen ,elizabeth1 and roofed in with tiles and shingles4 ,many of them also possessed inscriptions which1 cut deep into the wood above the doorway1 stated the name and calling of the owner1 with the addition frequently of some pious sentiment or appropriate phrase from ,scripture4 #fjc ,this custom seems to have been a favorite one in ,dublin1 and in the more antique portions of the city there existed houses1 even to a very recent period of its history1 upon which might still be read the names and occupations of the men who1 more than two hundred years before1 had resided within their walls4 ,on the day on which we are about to introduce ,dublin to our readers1 there had been a considerable amount of stir and bustle going on among its inhabitants1 and more especially among those of ,bridge street4 ,rumors had1 in fact1 been rife since early dawn of an expected rising of the rebels 7as the king's partisans were then styled by their opponents7 in the north2 and men speculated in hope and fear1 as their secret wishes moved them1 on the probability of the report4 ,it received something like confirmation in the afternoon1 one or two regiments of recently arrived ,english soldiers1 armed from head to heel1 and evidently ready to go into action at a moment's notice1 having been marched out of the city and sent northward4 ,later on in the day1 moreover1 it became known that the ,lord-,deputy himself1 ,henry ,cromwell1 the best of ,ireland's recent rulers1 accompanied by a strong escort1 was proceeding in the same direction1 and might be looked for at any moment at the ,ormond ,gate1 which shut out ,bridge street on the city side1 just as the ,gate-house closed it on that of the ,old ,bridge4 ,but if people stood at their doors and windows to do honor to the coming of their king-deputy1 there yet seemed to be another and still stronger attraction for them at the end of the street opposite that by which he was expected to appear4 ,eyes were cast quite as often1 though more furtively1 in the direction of the ,old ,bridge as in that of the ,ormond ,gate2 for1 in the midst of other rumors1 there had come a whisper1 no one knew how or by whom it had been first set agoing1 that a person suspected of belonging to the rebel party had just been arrested on the river1 having attempted1 by means of a boat1 to elude the passage of the ,old ,bridge1 and so penetrate unchallenged into the heart of the city4 ,there followed1 as a matter of course1 much secret and some anxious speculation as to the rank and real object of the arrested person1 but no one ventured to make open inquiry into the matter4 ,cromwell's brief reign of blood had stricken men dumb with fear4 ,to have shown the smallest interest in persons suspected of belonging to the rebel party1 would have been but to have drawn down suspicion on themselves2 and suspicion1 in those hard times1 was too nearly akin to condemnation to be heedlessly incurred4 ,instead1 therefore1 of going at once to the ,gate-house and ascertaining the real facts of the case from its guardians1 people were content1 while awaiting the appearance of the military cavalcade from the castle1 to question and conjecture among themselves as to the rank and real business of the arrested man4 ,a flourish of trumpets before ,ormond ,gate put a stop at last to their gossipings4 ,heads and eyes1 if not hearts and good wishes1 were instantly turned in that direction2 the gate was flung open1 and ,henry ,cromwell1 surrounded by a goodly company of officers and private gentlemen1 rode at a brisk pace through it4 ,a moment afterward1 and he had swept past all the gazers1 and pulled up opposite the ,old ,bridge4 ,the guard at the ,gate-house instantly turned out to receive him1 the portcullis was drawn up1 and he was actually spurring his horse forward to the bridge1 when a girl1 in the habit of a western peasant1 darted through the soldiers and flung herself on her knees before him4 #fjd ,the movement was so rapid and unexpected that1 if the ,lord-,deputy had not reined up his steed until he nearly threw it on its haunches1 he must inevitably have ridden over her4 ,a moment of silent astonishment ensued4 ,the girl herself uttered no cry1 and said not a syllable as to the nature of her petition2 but as she lifted up her head toward the ,lord ,henry1 her hood1 falling back upon her shoulders1 revealed a face of ashy whiteness1 and there was a pleading1 agonized expression in the dark eyes she raised to his1 which told more than many words1 of the inarticulate anguish of the soul within4 ,henry ,cromwell was not of a nature to be harsh to any one1 much less to a woman2 but there had been information enough sent in to him that morning to make him suspect a snare1 and he turned sternly for explanation to the chief officer of the guard4 ,what means this unseemly interruption1 corporal8 he asked1 as the latter was vainly endeavoring to induce ,nellie to rise from her knees4 ,is this maiden a prisoner8 or if not a prisoner1 is she distraught1 that she thus ventures1 bare-headed and dressed in such ungodly play-acting fashion1 to rush into our very presence8 ,a prisoner of only half-an-hour's standing is she1 may it please your excellency1 the soldier answered promptly1 she and her companion6 ,they were seen attempting to cross the river in a boat borrowed from some of the natives on the other side1 and as it seemed to me that their purpose must needs be seditious to demand such secrecy1 ,i caused both to be apprehended1 and have kept them here to wait your honor's further directions in the matter4 ,ormiston1 said the ,lord-,deputy1 turning to one of the younger of the group of officers behind him1 remain you here1 and examine1 with ,corporal ,holdfast1 into this business4 ,if there be aught which seems important hid beneath this masquerading folly1 follow me at once to ,glassmanogue1 where ,i shall have business to detain me for a couple of hours2 but if it be only1 as ,i do suspect1 the silly freak of a love-sick maiden1 in that case ,i shall not look for you before to-morrow morning1 when you will bring me1 as ,i have explained already1 the last despatches which may have come from ,england4 ,having thus somewhat summarily despatched poor ,nellie's business1 but little dreaming of the great service he had done her in appointing young ,ormiston her guardian1 ,henry ,cromwell dashed over the bridge1 and1 followed instantly by his escort1 galloped northward4 ,the moment ,nellie saw that her efforts to hold speech with the ,lord-,deputy himself would prove in vain1 she had risen of her own accord1 and1 the hood once more drawn modestly over her head and face1 had stood aside to let him pass1 with a calm1 sad dignity in her look and bearing which had its due effect upon the rough soldier who had made her captive4 ,he did not again attempt to touch1 or even to address her1 but standing near her silently and respectfully1 seemed to wait until of her own accord she should return with him to the ,gate-house4 ,thus unmolested1 ,nellie forgot his existence altogether1 and equally heedless of the crowd1 which1 having gathered in the wake of the ,lord-,deputy1 was now gazing curiously and compassionately upon her1 she stood considering what her next move should be1 when1 in obedience to his orders1 ,harry ,ormiston approached her4 #fje ,as he took ,corporal ,holdfast's place beside her1 ,nellie lifted her eyes to his face1 and recognized him instantly as the young officer who had been riding with ,henrietta on the day of their first meeting in the wilderness4 ,a soft cry of joy escaped her lips1 and ,harry ,ormiston broke down in his half-uttered greeting4 ,he also remembered her face--have we not already told our reader that it was by no means one easily to be forgotten8--but of the when or the where that he had seen it1 he had no such distinct a recollection4 ,silently1 and with a look of timid hope stealing over that fair face1 ,nellie drew ,henrietta's missive from her bosom and placed it in his hands4 ,ormiston glanced at the superscription1 and with a flush of honest joy mantling on his features1 eagerly tore it open4 ,scarcely1 however1 had he read three lines ere the scene among the mountains1 which had ended in his quarrel with his betrothed1 rose before him like a vision1 and instantly remembering ,nellie as the fair girl who had been in some measure1 albeit unwittingly1 its cause1 he turned sharply upon ,corporal ,holdfast4 ,how is this1 corporal8 ,i fear me you have made some grave mistake6 ,this young maiden whom you hold a prisoner is the bearer to me of a token from one whose zeal and faithfulness in the good cause cannot be suspected--even from a member of the household of that brave and ,god-fearing ,major ,hewitson1 who has set up his camp on the very edge of the wilderness1 and thus made of his small garrison a very tower of strength against the incursions of the enemy4 ,nay1 and if your honor says it1 it must needs be true1 the man--a bluff old soldier1 with little pretensions to sanctity in his composition--answered with suppressed impatience2 and therefore ,i can only marvel that a maiden1 known and esteemed by the family of worthy ,major ,hewitson1 should not only have sought to cheat our vigilance by crossing the river privately in a boat1 but should have done so in the company of a man whom ,i myself can testify to having been a chief of some repute in the army of the ,irish enemy1 having crossed swords with him at the battle of ',knocknaclashy1' as ,i think they call it in their barbarous language1 where he fought 7,i needs must own it7 with a valor worthy of a better cause4 ,major ,ormiston turned1 gravely but kindly1 to ,nellie4 ,i fear me much1 he said1 that you have been but ill-advised in all this business4 ,why not have presented yourself openly at the bridge if the matter which has brought you hither will bear investigation8 and why1 more than all the rest1 have you come attended by a person whose very company must needs render you suspect yourself8 ,o sir6 said ,nellie1 weeping sadly1 as she began to fear that even ,henrietta's recommendation to mercy might perhaps avail her little2 we had not the password1 without which we never should have been permitted to enter ,dublin by the bridge2 and our errand is1 alas6 of such a nature1 that every moment lost is of deep and sad importance4 ,our errand1 ,ormiston thoughtfully repeated4 ,this errand1 then1 is not entirely your own1 but is in some way or other interesting also to the man by whom ,master ,holdfast tells me you are accompanied4 #fjf ,he should have said 'a gentleman1' ,nellie answered1 with a slight rebuking emphasis on the latter word--a gentleman who1 at his own great trouble1 and1 ,i fear me1 risk1 has enabled me to accomplish this journey2 in which1 however1 he has no other interest than such as any kind and noble heart might feel in the sorrows and perils of an unprotected girl4 ,where is he--this other prisoner8 ,ormiston asked1 turning for information to the corporal4 ,in the gate-house1 sir1 where we have him safe under lock and key2 for he was no prisoner to be left at large like this silly maiden1 who begged so hard to be allowed to see the ,lord-,deputy go by1 that ,i found it not in my heart to deny her so small a favor2 for the doing of which1 ,i trust ,i have not incurred the displeasure either of your honor or of his highness the ,lord ,henry4 ,certainly not1 honest ,holdfast2 you have acted both well and mercifully in all this business4 ,and now lead the way to the gate-house1 and trouble not your wits about this young maiden4 ,i myself will be her surety that she attempt not to escape4 ,he offered his hand very respectfully to ,nellie as he finished speaking1 'and she suffered him to lead her in silence toward the bridge4 ,as they entered the gate-house1 however1 she quietly withdrew her hand and glided from his side to that of ,roger4 ,ormiston instantly recognized the latter as the dispossessed owner of the ,rath1 and an officer1 beside1 of some standing in the recently disbanded army of the ,irish4 ,courteously saluting him1 therefore1 he informed him that he had been deputed by the ,lord-,deputy to inquire into the nature of the business which had brought him to ,dublin1 adding an earnest hope on his own part that it might prove to be in no way connected with political affairs4 ,that1 most assuredly1 it is not1 said ,roger1 pleased and touched by the young officer's manner1 and satisfied by ,henrietta's letter1 which ,ormiston still held open in his hand1 that he was addressing the person for whom it had been intended4 ,my business is one which solely concerns this young gentlewoman1 and concerns her1 in fact1 so nearly1 that if you cannot aid her1 as ,mistress ,hewitson half hinted that you could1 ,i trust1 at all events1 you will give me as much of my liberty for this one day as may enable me to do so myself4 ,i too am a soldier and an officer4 ,major ,ormiston1 and you may trust me that ,i will not abuse your favor4 ,sir1 said ,nellie imploringly1 you have not read the letter--if you would but read the letter6 ,mistress ,hewitson half promised that you would help me6 ,thus called upon1 ,ormiston ran his eyes over ,henrietta's letter1 which1 concluding it to be on matters merely personal to himself1 he had been reserving for more private1 and therefore more satisfactory perusal4 ,nellie watched him anxiously as he read on1 and with a spasm of anguish at her heart she saw that1 as he gradually took in the nature of its contents1 his first look of eager joy disappeared1 and was succeeded by one of deep and tender pity--pity which made itself felt in the very accents of his voice1 as he exclaimed3 ,young ,mistress ,netterville6 ,good ,god6 ,and ,i never even dreamed of the relationship6 ,alas6 that you should have come so far1 only to find sorrow and disappointment in the end4 ,oh6 not dead6 not dead6 cried ,nellie1 terrified by his words and looks4 ,say1 not dead--not dead--,i do entreat you6 #fjg ,no1 no6--not dead--yet1 he answered nervously4 ,he could not bring himself to say that she was to die upon the morrow4 ,nay1 ,major ,ormiston1 ,roger here interposed1 for ,nellie was sobbing in speechless anguish1 if not dead all is well--or may at all events yet be well--for this most injured lady4 ,i have hope still--hope in the honor and justice even of our enemy4 ,see this paper6 ,it was writ by the soldier who hath lately received as his share in the ,irish spoil the house and lands of ,netterville1 and who is ready to aver on oath that he took it down word for word from the lips of the very woman who did that deed for which ,mrs4 ,netterville stands condemned to die4 ,ormiston glanced rapidly over the papers which ,roger had drawn from his bosom and given to him4 ,yes1 yes6 he cried joyfully1 ,i doubt it not in the least4 ,sergeant ,jackson is well known as a man of truth beyond suspicion1 and these lines1 moreover1 do but repeat the defence which the unhappy lady urged over and over again upon her trial1 insisting that the accusation against her was an act of private vengeance4 ,but all this can be discussed hereafter4 ,time presses2 and whatever is to be done to save her1 must be done at once4 ,the ,lords ,chief-,justices1 suggested ,roger2 but ,ormiston shook his head with a little smile of scorn4 ,little likely they to reverse a sentence pronounced in their own courts6 he said4 ,no1 no6 it is to the ,lord-,deputy we must appeal4 ,i will ride after him at once1 and in a couple of hours at the furthest you may look for me with the result4 ,i trust in ,god that it may be a good one4 ,he left the room without waiting for an answer1 and in another minute they heard him gallop across the bridge4 ,the next two hours were passed by ,nellie in an agony of expectation which was painful to behold4 ,she could not stay still a moment4 ,sometimes she paced the narrow guard-room with rapid and impatient footsteps--sometimes1 regardless of the presence of the ,english soldiery1 she flung herself on her knees1 weeping and praying almost aloud in her agony4 ,every stir upon the bridge--every sound from the street beyond1 seemed to announce the return of her messenger1 and at these moments she would stand up1 shivering from head to foot in such a fever of hope and fear1 that ,roger at last became seriously alarmed1 and remonstrated firmly and affectionately with her on her want of self-command4 ,at last1 to his inexpressible relief1 a bustle at the doorway announced ,ormiston's return1 and a moment afterward the latter entered the guardroom4 ,nellie stood up1 as white as ashes1 and utterly incapable of either speaking or moving toward him4 ,shocked at the mute anguish of her face1 ,ormiston took her hand in his2 but when she looked at him1 expecting him to address her1 he hesitated1 like one doubtful of the effect of the tidings he was bringing4 ,for ,god's sake1 speak at once6 cried ,roger4 ,anything is better for her than this suspense6 ,say1 is it life or death8 ,not death1 certainly--at least ,i hope not1 said ,ormiston1 vainly seeking in his own mind for some fitter words by which to convey his meaning4 ,the blood rushed to ,nellie's temples1 and the pupils of her eyes dilated1 but still she could not answer4 ,you hope8 ,roger repeated sadly4 ,he saw1 though ,nellie did not1 that there still existed some uncertainty in the matter4 #fjh ,there is a reprieve at all events1 he said1 in the same joyless tones in which he had before replied4 ,the color faded from ,nellie's cheek1 and the gladness from her eye4 ,only a reprieve--only that1 she muttered1 in tones so hoarse and changed that the young men could hardly believe it to be hers--only that6 ,but the rest will follow1 said ,ormiston1 trying to reassure her4 ,the ,lord-,deputy will himself inquire into the business1 and-- ,nay1 then1 she is safe indeed6 ,nellie interrupted him to say4 ,with that confession1 furnished by her chief accuser1 her innocence must be clear as daylight4 ,o sir6 she is safe--surely she is safe6 she added1 trying to reassure herself by the repetition of the word1 and yet sorely puzzled by a something in ,ormiston's eyes which looked more like pity than sympathy in her joy4 ,safe8 ,i trust so--with all my heart and soul ,i trust so1 he answered gravely4 ,nevertheless1 my dear young lady1 ,i would counsel you1 as a friend1 not to suffer your hopes to soar too high1 lest any after disappointment should be too terrible for endurance4 ,if she is reprieved1 she will be pardoned2 and if she is pardoned1 she will live1 ,nellie repeated slowly1 like one trying yet dreading to discover the hidden meaning of his words4 ,she will live1 he amended gently2 yes1 certainly1 if ,god hath decreed it as well as man4 ,nay1 if she is in ,god's hands only1 ,i am content1 said ,nellie1 with a sudden return to confidence1 which somewhat astonished ,ormiston4 ,i also have been in ,god's hands1 she added1 with an appealing look toward ,roger1 and can tell how much more merciful they are than man's4 ,sir1 ,i conclude from what you say that she is ailing2 may ,i not go to her at once8 ,if you are strong enough1 he was beginning1 but she interrupted him with a burst of grief and indignation4 ,how8 not strong enough8 and ,i have come all this way to see her6 ,o mother1 mother6 she sobbed convulsively1 little you dream your child is near1 bringing peace and pardon to your prison6 ,roger saw that ,ormiston knew more than he liked to tell1 and asked in a low voice3 ,the poor lady1 then1 is very ill8 ,dying6 the other answered curtly4 ,will her daughter be in time to see her1 think you8 ,in time2 but that is all4 ,she has burst a blood-vessel1 as ,i have just now learned1 and this reprieve seems little better than a mockery2 for no one dreams that she could have survived for the tragedy of to-morrow4 ,then let ,nellie go at once1 said ,roger promptly4 ,she has ridden night and day to see her mother1 and sad as the meeting may be1 it would be sadder still if they met no more4 ,let her go at once4 ,and so it was decided4 ---------- #fji ,newman's ,poems4 ,,by ,h4 ,w4 ,wilberforce4 ,the little volume of poems published anonymously under this humble title1 ,footnote #agi produced an impression immediately on its publication1 not only among ,catholics but among ,english readers in general1 which could hardly have been caused by a volume of poems from any other writer of the day1 with the exception1 perhaps1 of the ,laureate4 ,the explanation is to be found in the initials ,j4 ,h4 ,n4 at the end of the preface--a signature long ago of world-wide celebrity4 ,footnote #agi3 ,verses on ,various ,occasions4 ,london3 ,burns1 ,gates ,co4 #ahfh4 ,for sale at the ,catholic ,publication ,house1 #abf ,nassau street1 ,new ,york4 ,there may be those who feel surprised to find that a man chiefly known as having been1 under ,god's providence and grace1 the main author of the ,oxford movement of #ahcc1 should be found to have possessed and exercised extraordinary poetical gifts4 ,it may perhaps be partly a lurking feeling of envy1 partly a just perception how rarely any one man combines numerous unconnected powers1 which makes the world at large reluctant to admit that any man has greatly distinguished himself in a line far removed from that specially his own4 ,but that feeling1 be its origin what it may1 does not in reason apply to the case before us1 because it would seem that the gifts which specially qualify a man to produce a deep effect upon the hearts and consciences of his fellows1 to be the founder and leader of any great school of thought1 social1 moral1 political1 or religious1 are very much the same as those required for the making of a great poet4 ,this is at first sight so obvious1 that we incline to think the only real argument against it would be1 an appeal to experience4 ,it will be said1 there is a small class of men who have won among their fellows 7as if it were a title of honor formally secured to them7 the name of the poet1 and no one of them has been1 except in his own special art of poetical composition1 among the great leaders of human thought4 ,but this is easily accounted for4 ,a man immersed for years in public affairs of any kind1 however richly his mind may have been stored with poetical images1 and however natural it may have been to him to have sought for them a poetical expression1 can rarely have had leisure to cultivate the merely artistic part of poetical composition to the degree necessary for success as a poet4 ,it is hardly likely that in his case there should combine the many accidental circumstances necessary 7over and above the possession of great poetical endowments7 for the composition1 publication1 and general diffusion of any considerable poetical work4 ,and even if all these should happen to meet1 the mere fact of being very greatly distinguished in any other line is of itself1 we strongly suspect1 enough to prevent any man from being chiefly remembered as a great poet4 ,the name of the poet ,cowper is a household word in every ,english family4 ,but if ,william ,cowper1 ,esq41 of the ,inner ,temple 7as his name stands on the title-page7 had risen to the woolsack1 we believe that1 even though he might have written the same poems1 he would never have gained the title4 #faj ,if indeed mediocrity in everything else had sufficed to gain a high and permanent reputation for a man of equal mediocrity in poetical talents1 we should now have talked of ,cowper's friend as the poet ,hayley4 ,but that the highest poetical genius does not obtain the title for a man otherwise conspicuous1 is proved by the example of ,shakespeare4 ,merely because he has left behind him dramatic works to which the world affords no rival1 not even the preeminent poetical genius shown in his poems has caused the world at large to speak and think of him as the poet ,shakespeare4 ,nor would ,dryden1 despite of his matchless lyric poems1 have attained the title1 if among his numerous plays he had written ,hamlet1 ,macbeth1 and ,lear4 ,it seems to us that these considerations are enough to answer the objection from experience1 which might perhaps be urged against our opinion1 that the qualities which qualify a man to exercise a deep influence on his fellows and make him a leader of the souls of men1 are in fact the same as those which qualify him for success as a poet4 ,we think this volume will convince most of those who read it that we are right4 ,the weighty and touching thoughts of these poems bear the stamp of the same mint from which issued those volumes of sermons1 which1 far more than any other work1 have impressed a permanent stamp upon the generation of ,english readers which is now tending1 as ,dr4 ,newman says of himself1 toward the decline of life4 ,it is impossible to read them without feeling that1 if his life had been one of mere literary leisure1 his chosen employment would probably have been poetry4 ,as it is1 he has evidently resorted to it1 not when he was thinking of others1 but when he sought to relieve the fulness of his own soul4 ,in this world he has written in prose2 his poetry has been the record of his inner struggles and emotions1 and has been written for himself and his ,god4 ,as long as any memory of the ,english nation and the ,english language remains among men4 ,dr4 ,newman1 we doubt not1 will be remembered and reverenced2 not indeed as one of the few whom poetry has made great1 but as one of the great men who have written poetry4 ,and so far from deeming it strange that such should be the case with the great author of the movement of #ahcc1 we1 for our part1 should have thought it strange if1 in a man of the highest literary culture1 the intense feelings in which that movement originated had not relieved themselves by poetical expression4 ,we believe1 indeed1 that few if any great moral movements have taken place in which something more or less of the same kind has not been found4 ,perhaps the most remarkable exception was the change of religion in ,england in the sixteenth century2 the leaders in which not only produced no great poetical work1 but did not leave behind them so much as a hymn4 ,this was a striking contrast1 not only to the contemporary movement in ,germany1 and to that of the ,methodists in the eighteenth century1 but also to that of the earlier ,lollards4 ,the explanation1 however1 is not far to seek4 ,lord ,macaulay says1 ,ridley was perhaps the only person who had any important share in the ,english ,reformation1 who did not consider it as a mere political job4 ,now1 attractive as jobbing is to many very clever men1 it is hardly qualified to inspire any poetical afflatus4 ,cranmer was too busy getting what he could for himself1 to be musing over poetical images4 #faa ,besides1 the ,reformation in ,england appealed not so much to men's deeper feelings1 as to their natural and reasonable dislike to have their property confiscated and themselves imprisoned1 hanged1 and cut up alive2 and this last kind of appeal neither needed nor encouraged poetical powers4 ,to return to the volume before us1 the poems were so evidently written only for the author himself that it is our signal good fortune that they have ever been published4 ,the greater part of them first appeared in a series called the ,lyra ,apostolica1 in many successive numbers of the ,british ,magazine1 edited by the late ,hugh ,james ,rose1 in which several of ,dr4 ,newman's earliest prose writings were originally published4 ,it was afterward issued in the form of a small volume1 the first edition of which appeared in #ahcf4 ,by far the greater part of it was supplied by ,dr4 ,newman2 the other poems1 by five of his intimate friends4 ,footnote #ahj ,footnote #ahj3 ,these were ,john ,bowden1 with whom 7,dr4 ,newman writes in the ,apologia7 ,i spent almost exclusively my undergraduate years4 ,he died just before ,dr4 ,newman became a ,catholic4 ,his two sons are now fathers in the ,london ,oratory4--,hurrell1 ,froude1 whose noble character and high gifts ,dr4 ,newman has sketched with admirable force1 truth1 and beauty1 in three pages of the ,apologia1 which he sums up by saying3 ,it is difficult to enumerate the precise additions to my theological creed which ,i derived from a friend to whom ,i owe so much4 ,he made me look with admiration toward the ,church of ,rome1 and in the same degree dislike the ,reformation4 ,he fixed on me the idea of devotion to the ,blessed ,virgin1 and he led me gradually to believe in the ,real ,presence4 ,he died ,february #bith1 #ahcf1 prematurely1 says ,dr4 ,newman1 and in the conflict and transition-state of opinion4 ,his religious views never reached their ultimate conclusion1 by the very reason of their multitude and their depth4--,john ,keble1 the author of ,the ,christian ,year1 of whom ,dr4 ,newman writes 7,apologia1 edition i4 p4 #ge7 words expressing deep feelings shared by many who are now1 by ,god's grace1 members of the ,catholic ,church4 ,he died in #ahfe1 and at this moment1 on his birthday1 ,april #bgth1 the first stone of a new college at ,oxford1 erected as a testimonial to him1 and bearing his name1 is being laid by the ,archbishop of ,canterbury4--,robert ,isaac ,wilberforce1 second son of ,william ,wilberforce4 ,from his earliest years his character seemed made up of truth1 purity1 unselfishness1 tenderness of affection1 and indefatigable diligence4 ,as his great powers developed1 they showed themselves perhaps the more remarkable from their combination with a degree of humility so extraordinary as to be his chief characteristic4 ,after a university career of unusual distinction1 he was elected fellow of ,oriel ,college1 on the same day with ,hurrell ,froude1 with whom he is classed by ,dr4 ,newman1 in the ,apologia1 as one with whom he was1 in particular1 intimate and affectionate4 ,he became a country clergyman1 and afterward archdeacon2 and in #ahch published 7in combination with the present ,bishop of ,oxford7 the ,life of ,william ,wilberforce4 ,his theological works were all of later date4 ,it is characteristic that he always declared he would never have undertaken any of them if ,mr4 ,newman had not left the field unoccupied4 ,in the opinion of most persons1 except himself1 his equal in learning and ability was not then left in the ,church of ,england4 ,in #ahed1 he became a member of the ,catholic ,church1 and died in #aheg1 while studying at ,rome for the priesthood4--,isaac ,williams was fellow of ,trinity ,college1 ,oxford4 ,he remained much longer in ,oxford1 sharing ,mr4 ,newman's intercourse and counsels4 ,in #ahdj1 ,mr4 ,newman dedicated the beautiful volume on ,the ,church of the ,fathers to my dear and much admired ,isaac ,williams1 the sight of whom carries back his friends to ancient1 holy1 and happy times4 ,he is1 perhaps1 best known by his published poems2 but he has also published a series of devotional commentaries on the gospels1 of great beauty and to which many are deeply indebted4 ,he died in #ahfe4 ,dr4 ,newman went to visit him in his country retirement only a few days before4 ,our readers1 we think1 will feel an interest in this brief memorial of a group of men so closely connected with the collection in which many of these poems originally appeared4 ,to these are added1 in the present volume1 a few of earlier and a good many of later date4 ,all of them seem equally to have been composed without any view to publication1 and considering that their illustrious author has always been remarkable for a dislike to put himself forward1 and for an almost extreme susceptibility of feeling1 some persons may wonder that he has ever been able to persuade himself to give them to the world4 ,we do not share their wonder2 for we long ago came to the conclusion that it is by men of the greatest natural reserve that the fullest confidences of their inner feelings are not unfrequently made4 ,in the common intercourse of society such men display least of their real feeling4 ,but being distinguished from others by the depth and strength of their thoughts and affections1 more lasting convictions and emotions1 and greater self-knowledge1 they can1 upon any call of duty1 speak out most unreservedly and sincerely2 and the pain it gives them to make any revelation of their inner selves is such that1 to do it completely1 costs them little1 if anything1 more than to speak of themselves at all4 #fab ,this1 all the world sees1 has been exemplified in the ,apologia1 and in its measure it has been the same with the ,lyra ,apostolica1 and with the present volume4 ,the poems in the ,lyra were1 nearly all of them1 the expression of the thoughts which crowded into the mind of ,dr4 ,newman during a tour in the ,mediterranean1 between ,december1 #ahcb1 and ,july1 #ahcc4 ,the present volume adds very greatly to their interest by giving the place and day of their composition4 ,thus1 the poem headed ,angelic ,guidance was written on the day on which he left ,oxford4 ,in our days1 in which a very few hours upon the ,great ,western takes ,oxford men to ,falmouth without trouble or fatigue1 the date1 ,whitchurch1 ,december #c;d1 #ahcb1 is interesting4 ,whitchurch is a somewhat dreary and secluded village1 at which the direct road from ,oxford to ,southampton intersected the mail road from ,london to ,exeter and ,falmouth4 ,there was in those days a coach to ,southampton1 to the top of which ,mr4 ,newman mounted1 7the present writer and other ,oriel friends standing in the street1 in front of the ,angel ,inn1 to see the last of him47 ,before midday he reached ,whitchurch1 and there had to wait till night for the ,falmouth mail4 ,we should be curious to know what has become of the large inn at ,whitchurch which was maintained by this sort of traffic4 ,it must long ago have been shut up4 ,mr4 ,newman's life had hitherto been almost entirely confined to one or two places1 and now he was starting alone for distant lands1 and began by waiting many hours at a lonely and 7crede experto7 sufficiently dreary inn4 ,his thoughts turned to the guardian angel who1 as he already believed1 bore him company4 ,the ,apologia tells us how early in life his thoughts had run upon angels and their ministrations4 ,he says of these lines3 ,they speak of 'the vision' that haunted me4 ,that vision is more or less brought out in the whole series of these compositions4 ,we need hardly say how much these circumstances add to the interest of the poem1 which appeared in the ,lyra without any explanation of the circumstances under which it was composed4 ,it is impossible to read these poems without feeling how much a man takes with him from home of the thoughts which are called out even by the most striking and memorable scene4 ,the events going on in ,england--the evident decay of what he still believed to be the reformed church--formed the coloring medium through which he looked at all he saw4 ,thus1 at sea1 the day he left ,gibraltar1 he wrote the lines headed ,england3 ,tyre of the ,west1 and glorying in the name ,more than in ,faith's pure fame6 ,o trust not crafty fort1 nor rock renown'd ,earn'd upon hostile ground2 ,wielding ,trade's master-keys1 at thy proud will ,to lock or loose its waters1 ,england6 trust not still4 ,dread thine own power6 ,since haughty ,babel's prime4 ,high towers have been man's crime4 ,since her hoar age1 when the huge moat lay bare1 ,strongholds have been man's snare4 ,thy nest is in the crags2 ah6 refuge frail6 ,mad counsel in its hour1 or traitors1 will prevail4 ,he who scann'd ,sodom for his righteous men ,still spares thee for thy ten2 ,but1 should vain tongues the ,bride of ,heaven defy1 ,he will not pass thee by2 ,for1 as earth's kings welcome their spotless guest1 ,so gives he them by turn1 to suffer or be blest4 ,the ,apologia tells us that the golden lines1 ,lead1 kindly light1 were composed when the orange-boat in which the author sailed from ,palermo to ,marseilles was becalmed in the straits of ,bonifacio4 #fac ,it is not mentioned1 we think1 that it was in the darkness of the night4 ,they are here headed1 ,the ,pillar of the ,cloud3' ,lead1 ,kindly ,light1 amid the encircling gloom1 ,lead ,thou me on6 ,the night is dark1 and ,i am far from home-- ,lead ,thou me on6 ,keep ,thou my feet3 ,i do not ask to see ,the distant scene1--one step enough for me4 ,i was not ever thus1 nor prayed that ,thou ,should'st lead me on4 ,i loved to choose and see my path2 but now ,lead ,thou me on6 ,i loved the garish day1 and1 spite of fears4 ,pride ruled my will3 remember not past years4 ,so long ,thy power hath blest me1 sure it still ,will lead me on4 ,o'er moor and fen1 o'er crag and torrent1 till ,the night is gone2 ,and with the morn those angel faces smile ,which ,i have loved long since1 and lost awhile4 ,off ,algiers1 in sight of the grave of that great ,african church which produced ,st4 ,augustine1 ,st4 ,cyprian1 and ,tertullian1 is the date of ,the ,patient ,church1 in which1 in spite of all appearances to the contrary1 the writer1 relying on the promise of ,christ1 looked forward to the ultimate victory of the church1 and which begins3 ,bide thou thy time6 ,watch with meek eyes the race of pride and crime2 ,sit in the gate and be the heathen's jest4 ,smiling and self-possest1 ,o thou1 to whom is pledged a victor's sway1 ,bide thou the victor's day6 ,on ,december #bhth1 #ahcb1 ,mr4 ,newman caught his first sight of a ,greek shore4 ,it is highly characteristic that the first thought which it inspired to the most finished classical scholar of his day in ,oxford1 was not of ,thucydides1 not even of ,homer1 but of the ,greek fathers3 ,let heathens sing thy heathen praise1 ,fall'n ,greece6 the thought of holier days ,in my sad heart abides2 ,for sons of thine in truth's first hour4 ,were tongues and weapons of his power4 ,born of the ,spirit's fiery shower4 ,our fathers and our guides4 ,all thine is ,clement's varied page2 ,and ,dionysius1 ruler sage1 ,in days of doubt and pain2 ,and ,origen with eagle eye2 ,and saintly ,basil's purpose high ,to smite imperial heresy1 ,and cleanse the altar's stain4 ,from thee the glorious ,preacher came1 ,with soul of zeal and lips of flame1 ,a court's stern martyr-guest2 ,and thine1 ,o inexhaustive race6 ,was ,nazianzen's heaven-taught grace2 ,and royal-hearted ,athanase1 ,with ,paul's own mantle blest4 ,at ,corfu1 the narrative of ,thucydides brought to his mind the thought which he worked out in the sermon on ,the ,individuality of the ,soul1 published six years later2 and in which he says3 ,all who have ever gained a name in the world1 all the mighty men of war that ever were1 all the great statesmen1 all the crafty counsellors1 all the scheming aspirants1 all the reckless adventurers1 all the covetous traders1 all the proud voluptuaries1 are still in being1 though helpless and unprofitable4 ,balaam1 ,saul1 ,joab1 ,ahitophel1 good and bad1 wise and ignorant1 rich and poor1 each has his separate place1 each dwells by himself in that sphere of light or darkness which he has provided for himself here4 ,what a view this sheds upon history6 ,we are accustomed to read it as a tale or a fiction1 and we forget that it concerns immortal beings who cannot be swept away1 who are what they were1 however this earth may change4 ,the germ of that sermon is contained in the lines headed ,corcyra1 ,january #gth1 #ahcc4 ,the ,lyra contains some beautiful and well-known lines3 ,did we but see1 ,when life first open'd1 how our journey lay ,between its earliest and its closing day4 ,or view ourselves as we one day shall be1 ,who strive for the high prize1 such sight would break ,the youthful spirit1 though bold for ,jesus' sake4 ,but thou1 dear ,lord6 ,while ,i traced out bright scenes which were to come1 ,isaac's pure blessings1 and a verdant home1 ,didst spare me1 and withhold thy fearful word2 ,willing me year by year1 till ,i am found ,a pilgrim pale1 with ,paul's sad girdle bound4 ,they are headed1 ,our ,future4 ,what ,i do1 thou knowest not now2 but thou shalt know hereafter4 ,it gives them a new interest to find that they were composed at ,tre ,fontane1 the spot of the martyrdom of ,st4 ,paul4 #fad ,the verses called ,day ,laborers1 composed while waiting at ,palermo for a passage home1 7as is described in the ,apologia17 show the author's deep sense of having a work to do4 ,they are headed1 ,and ,he said4 ,it is finished3 ,one only1 of ,god's messengers to man1 ,finished the work of grace which he began2 444444 ,list1 ,christian warrior6 thou whose soul is fain ,to rid thy mother of her present chain2-- ,christ will avenge his bride2 yea1 even now ,begins the work1 and thou ,shalt spend in it thy strength2 but1 ere he save1 ,thy lot shall be the grave4 ,we have insisted on the peculiar value of the poems written during this short tour1 7the only one of the kind in which the illustrious author has ever indulged himself17 because it adds a new and special interest to compositions which1 even when published without any such interest1 attained a wide and deserved celebrity4 ,he seems at the time to have felt that that tour was to be the only distraction of the kind in a life of toil2 and that he was enriching himself with images of beauty 7worthy1 as he says1 in itself rather of angelic than mortal eyes7 which were to last him for many a long year3 ,store them in heart6 ,thou shalt not faint ',mid coming pains and fears4 ,as the third heaven once nerved a saint ,for fourteen trial years4 ,that the remembrance has been fresh and keen1 we see in the lines on ,heathen ,greece written in #ahef1 and first published in that exquisite volume ,calista3 ,where are the islands of the blest8 ,they stud the ,a,egean sea2 ,and where the deep ,elysian rest8 ,it haunts the vale where ,peneus strong ,pours his incessant stream along1 ,while craggy ridge and mountain bare ,cut keenly through the liquid air4 ,and1 in their own pure tints arrayed4 ,scorn earth's green robes which change and fade4 ,and stand in beauty undecay'd4 ,guards of the bold and free4 ,it is worth notice that the pregnant lines on ,the ,sign of the ,cross were written before the author left ,oxford1 and while he was as yet1 as he expressly tells us1 so ignorant of ,catholic doctrine that even when waiting at ,palermo1 just before he returned home1 he says3 ,i began to visit the churches1 and they calmed my impatience1 though ,i did not attend any services4 ,i knew nothing of the presence of the blessed sacrament there4 ,we might linger equally upon many poems which equally deserve it1 but pass on to those written since the author was a ,catholic4 ,among these are not to be reckoned the translations from the ,latin ,hymns of the ,breviary1 which were made in #ahcf-h4 ,there are a few which bear the date ,littlemore1 a date full of touching recollections to the friends of the author4 ,it is a hamlet locally separated from the parish of ,st4 ,mary's1 of which he was vicar1 but belonging to it4 ,he had built a church there for the use of his parishioners1 and retired there from time to time for his own as well as their benefit4 ,when he gave up his connection with the ,oxford movement1 7as the ,apologia shows17 he retired there altogether1 and staid there till he became a ,catholic in #ahde4 ,of those written since the author became a ,catholic the best known1 probably1 are ,the ,pilgrim ,queen1 and ,the ,queen of the ,seasons4 ,it is indeed cheering to find a great genius1 who had so long been more or less crippled by the chill1 stiff system of ,anglicanism1 opening out1 like a flower beneath the spring sun--beneath the genial teaching of the ,catholic ,church3 #fae ,but ,i know one work of his infinite hand4 ,which special and singular ever must stand2 ,so perfect1 so pure1 and of gifts such a store1 ,that even ,omnipotence ne'er shall do more4 ,the freshness of ,may1 and the sweetness of ,june1 ,and the fire of ,july in its passionate noon4 ,munificent ,august1 ,september serene1 ,are together no match for my glorious ,queen4 ,o ,mary6 all months and all days are thine own4 ,in thee lasts their joyousness1 when they are gone2 ,and we give to thee ,may1 not because it is best4 ,but because it comes first1 and is pledge of the rest4 ,apart from the freedom of thought which the author has gained from the ,church1 7,ye shall know the truth1 and the truth shall make you free17 there seems to us an ease and flow about the very language and metre of these ,catholic hymns which we do not find equalled in the author's earlier poems1 sublime as are their conceptions4 ,but it is remarkable that the poem which unites both these qualities in the highest measure1 is that which was composed last1 ,the ,dream of ,gerontius4 ,like the others it seems to have been written for the author alone1 and to have been published merely as an act of friendship to the editor of ,the ,month4 ,is it too much to hope that the high sense of its exceeding depth and beauty which has been shown by the whole ,english world may not only encourage the author1 as he tells us it did1 to publish his collected poems in the volume before us1 but to compose more8 ,for it is plain that as yet at least his arms are not dimmed or his force abated4 ,the ,dream of ,gerontius begins with the thoughts of one who feels himself at the gate of death and the prayers of the assistants by his bedside4 ,then ,gerontius says3 ,novissima hora est2 and ,i fain would sleep4 ,the pain has wearied me4 444 ,into thy hands1 ,lord1 into thy hands4 444 ,and the priest says the commendation4 ,then follows3 ,soul ,of ,gerontius4 ,i went to sleep2 and now ,i am refreshed-- ,a strange refreshment3 for ,i feel in me ,an inexpressive lightness1 and a sense ,of freedom1 as ,i were at length myself4 ,and ne'er had been before4 ,how still it is6 ,i hear no more the busy beat of time1 ,no1 nor my fluttering breath1 nor struggling pulse2 ,nor does one moment differ from the next4 ,i had a dream2 yes1 some one softly said1 ',he's gone2' and then a sigh went round the room4 ,and then ,i surely heard a priestly voice ,say1 ',subvenite2' and they knelt in prayer4 ,i seem to hear him still2 but thin and low4 444444 ,he does not yet know whether he is living or dead4 ,then he finds himself held1 ,not by a grasp ,such as they use on earth1 but all around ,over the surface of my subtle being4 ,as though ,i were a sphere1 and capable ,to be accosted thus1 a uniform ,and gentle pressure tells me ,i am not ,self-moving1 but borne forward on my way4 ,and hark6 ,i hear a singing2 yet in sooth ,i cannot of that music rightly say4 ,whether ,i hear1 or touch1 or taste the tones4 ,oh6 what a heart-subduing melody4 ,then follow the songs of the guardian angel over the soul which he was set to tend4 ,after a long while ,gerontius takes courage and says3 ,soul4 ,i will address him4 ,mighty one1 my ,lord1 ,my guardian spirit1 all hail6 ,angel4 ,all hail1 my child6 ,my child and brother1 hail6 what wouldest thou8 444444 ,soul4 ,i ever had believed ,that on the moment when the struggling soul ,quitted its mortal case1 forthwith it fell ,under the awful presence of its ,god1 ,there to be judged and sent to its own place4 ,what lets me now from going to my ,lord8 ,angel4 ,thou art not let2 but with extremest speed ,art hurrying to the just and holy ,judge2 ,for scarcely art thou disembodied yet4 ,divide a moment1 as men measure time4 ,into its million-million-millionth part4 ,yet even less than that the interval ,since thou didst leave the body2 and the priest ,cried ',subvenite1' and they fell to prayer2 ,nor scarcely yet have they begun to pray4 ,we must not linger on the converse between the soul and its guardian angel1 nor at the marvellous description of the demons in the middle region1 their impotent rage--impotent against one who has now no traitor within4 #faf ,then he comes within the reach of the heavenly choirs4 ,we have the hymns of the successive choirs4 ,at length1 as they approach the veiled presence of ,god1 the soul hears again the voices it left on earth1 for in that presence the voices of prayer are heard3 ,soul4 ,i go before my ,judge4 ,ah6 4444 ,angel4 4444 ,praise to his name6 ,the eager spirit has darted from my hold4 ,and1 with the intemperate energy of love1 ,flies to the dear feet of ,emmanuel2 ,but1 ere it reach them1 the keen sanctity ,which with its effluence1 like a glory1 clothes ,and circles round the ,crucified1 has seized4 ,and scorch'd1 and shrivell'd it2 and now it lies ,passive and still before the awful throne4 ,o happy1 suffering soul6 for it is safe1 ,consumed1 yet quickened by the glance of ,god4 ,soul4 ,take me away1 and in the lowest deep ,there let me be4 ,and there in hope the lone night-watches keep1 ,told out for me4 ,there1 motionless and happy in my pain1 ,lone1 not forlorn1 ,there will ,i sing my sad1 perpetual strain4 ,until the morn4 ,there will ,i sing1 and soothe my stricken breast1 ,which ne'er can cease ,to throb1 and pine1 and languish1 till possest ,of its sole peace4 ,there will ,i sing my absent ,lord and love2-- ,take me away4 ,that sooner ,i may rise1 and go above1 ,and see him in the truth of everlasting day4 ,then follow the words of the angel1 and those of the souls in purgatory4 ,at length the angel concludes3 ,angels1 to whom the willing task is given1 ,shall tend1 and nurse1 and lull thee1 as thou liest2 ,and masses on the earth1 and prayers in heaven1 ,shall aid thee at the throne of the ,most ,highest4 ,farewell1 but not for ever6 brother dear4 ,be brave and patient on thy bed of sorrow2 ,swiftly shall pass thy night of trial here1 ,and ,i will come and wake thee on the morrow4 ,any one who has read this wonderful poem will complain that we have omitted this1 and this1 and this1 which especially deserved to be quoted4 ,it is most true4 ,it would be impossible to give any idea of its matchless weight and beauty1 except by transcribing the whole of it2 and we have wished only to give a sample which may direct to it the attention of any reader to whom it may yet be unknown4 ,the preface contains a dedication of the volume of ,mr4 ,badeley1 one of ,dr4 ,newman's ,oxford friends and followers1 who before this time knows far more of that world of spirits than even the gifted eye of the most illustrious seer has ever pierced2 for he had hardly received this dedication when he received his summons to it4 ,he was the son of a ,protestant physician at ,colchester1 who1 many years ago1 was the medical adviser of a convent in that neighborhood1 and created a good deal of suspicion among his fellow religionists1 by bearing testimony to the supernatural nature of a cure of one of the nuns who was his patient4 ,mr4 ,badeley himself graduated with high honors at ,oxford in #ahbc1 and afterward studied the law1 in which he attained a high reputation and great success4 ,he directed his special attention to ecclesiastical questions1 and hardly any case connected with them came before the courts in which he was not retained4 ,in this preface ,dr4 ,newman bears testimony to the fidelity with which he followed the religious movement in which the volume originated from first to last4 ,he was counsel to the ,bishop of ,exeter in the celebrated ,gorham case1 and his argument upon it was published in a pamphlet which attracted much notice4 ,he also published a book against the alteration of the law of marriage4 ,at last a new light shone upon his path2 he followed it faithfully1 and it led him into the ,catholic ,church4 ,he was1 perhaps1 the only lawyer from whom was actually accepted1 on his conversion to the church1 a sacrifice of his worldly interests1 nearly equal to that made by many ,protestant clergymen4 #fag ,the loss of practice has no doubt been risked by all who have become ,catholics2 by him1 owing to the nature of his principal business1 it was in a great measure incurred1 nor did he ever recover what he had lost4 ,but the time is short4 ,it is but a few weeks since he was cheered by ,dr4 ,newman's words1 ,we are now both of us in the decline of life2 may that warm attachment which has lasted between us inviolate for so many years1 be continued1 by the mercy of ,god1 to the end of our earthly course1 and beyond it2--and his earthly course is already over2 the sacrifice is gone by4 ,he is now able to estimate its real value4 -------- ,sonnet4 ,sharp lightnings flash1 tempestuous thunders roll3 ,i shudder--and yet wherefore8 ,for the dead ,sleep undisturbed in consecrated bed4 ,and thou1 who didst yield up thy sweet1 young soul ,so mildly to thy ,maker1 and console4 ,by dying acts1 the hearts which love thee best1 ,must1 even on this first night1 sublimely rest ,in thy still sepulchre1 by yon green knoll4 ,yet one1 ,i know1 will tremble as she hears ,the storm above her darling2 and each dart ,of the forked lightning will to anguish start ,a legion of dread shapes and tender fears2 ,for who can sound the fountains of her tears1 ,choice instincts1 lodged in her maternal heart8 -------- #fah ,the ,second ,plenary ,council of ,baltimore4 ,footnote #aha ,footnote #aha3 ,concilii ,plenarii ,secundi ,baltimorensis1 ,acta et ,decreta4 ,baltimore3 ,john ,murphy ,co4 ,the good city of ,baltimore witnessed1 in ,october1 #ahff1 the most numerous and imposing ecclesiastical assemblage ever gathered in the ,united ,states4 ,forty-seven archbishops and bishops1 with two mitred abbots1 convened in ,plenary ,council1 under the presidency of the ,most ,rev4 ,archbishop of ,baltimore1 delegate of the ,apostolic ,see4 ,for two weeks they met daily in consultation1 their labors being interrupted only by the solemn sessions prescribed by the ,pontifical4 ,after a free but harmonious interchange of ideas1 they adopted practical resolutions1 which they embodied partly in decrees1 partly in petitions to the ,holy ,see4 ,their work done1 it was not published to the world1 but sent to the mother and mistress of all churches for revision1 correction if necessary1 and final recognition or approval4 ,and now1 almost two years after the celebration of the ,council1 the ,,acts and ,,decrees1 as revised and approved by the ,holy ,see1 are published under the authority of the same most reverend prelate that as delegate apostolic had presided over the deliberations of the council4 ,the work is thus complete3 the new legislation takes its appropriate place in our canon law2 an epoch is marked in the history of the ,american church4 ,from the beginning of the church1 the celebration of councils has been looked on as a most efficient means1 under ,god1 of preserving discipline1 arriving at proper conclusions on practical matters1 and promoting the common good4 ,the very first question that arose in the infant ,christian community was decided in the ,council of ,jerusalem1 where the apostles and the ancients consulted together4 ,every succeeding age saw councils meet to decide ecclesiastical questions4 ,indeed1 the history of the church may be said to be a history of councils4 ,gradually1 as ecclesiastical discipline assumed regular outlines1 and was settled according to fixed rules1 proper arrangements were made for the regular meeting of prelates for consultation and mutual consolation and enlightenment4 ,it would be foreign to the purposes of this paper to dwell on the ancient discipline in this regard2 but a short exposition of the actual law and practice of the church will enable the reader properly to appreciate the importance of the work of the late ,plenary ,council4 ,the ,council of ,trent 7,sess4 xxiv4 ,de ,reform1 c4 #b7 decreed that the ancient practice of holding councils should be renewed1 and fixed a regular period for their celebration4 ,each archbishop was to call his suffragans together every three years1 and these were strictly obliged to obey the summons4 ,the object of these meetings was to regulate morals1 correct excesses1 settle controversies and do all other things permitted by the sacred canons4 ,st4 ,charles ,borromeo celebrated several such councils1 which were not only productive of immense good to the church of ,milan1 but have remained as a pattern on which the proceedings of all subsequent councils have been modelled4 ,but councils of bishops were not in favor with the civil rulers1 whose aim it was to fetter1 and1 if possible1 to enslave the church4 #fai ,they prevented the execution of the salutary decree of ,trent1 which1 with a few exceptions1 remained almost a dead letter from the time of ,st4 ,charles to the present century4 ,to the church of the ,united ,states belongs the credit of having revived the custom of holding councils4 ,not long after the establishment of the hierarchy1 the first ,provincial ,council of ,baltimore was convened1 and was followed in regular succession by others1 held every three years1 according to the prescriptions of the fathers of ,trent4 ,when new archiepiscopal sees were erected1 ,rome1 anxious that the ,american church should retain as far as possible a uniform discipline1 suggested the holding every ten years of a plenary council1 to be composed of all the bishops of the various ecclesiastical provinces of the country1 under the presidency of a delegate to be nominated by the ,holy ,see4 ,accordingly1 the ,most ,rev4 ,francis ,patrick ,kenrick1 of illustrious memory1 then ,archbishop of ,baltimore1 was appointed delegate apostolic1 and convened the first plenary council in his metropolitan church1 in ,may1 #aheb4 ,the second should have been held in #ahfb1 but the civil war then raging made it necessary to defer it4 ,as soon as peace was restored1 measures were taken to convene the prelates1 and1 as we have seen1 the council was actually held in #ahff4 ,the title plenary sounds odd to some ears1 and has1 if we remember aright1 provoked some little discussion in the public prints4 ,the term national is frequently given to the council in common parlance1 and would probably have been its official title also but for the caution of the ,holy ,see4 ,rome1 enlightened by wisdom from above and rich with the experience of ages1 looks on a tendency to nationalism in the church as one of the greatest dangers that can arise1 almost1 indeed1 as the forerunner of schism4 ,when she was about to propose to the ,american prelates the decennial convening of a council of all the bishops of the various provinces of the country1 the question of the official title at once arose4 ,national was not liked1 general was too ample1 provincial too restricted4 ,a learned ecclesiastical historian suggested plenary1 the title given to the general councils of the ,african church in the fifth century--councils rendered famous by the genius of ,st4 ,augustine1 and their explicit condemnation of ,pelagianism4 ,the title was adopted4 ,it avoids the narrowness of nationalism1 while it fully expresses the idea of a full council of all the prelates of the ,american church4 ,the object of a plenary council is plainly indicated by the ,holy ,see4 ,strictly speaking1 provincial councils could provide all the necessary legislation4 ,but there would be danger of a loss of uniformity4 ,even among the best persons1 the old adage1 that where there are many men there are many minds1 is verified4 ,to prevent this divergence of views from manifesting itself too much in practice1 it has been deemed advisable to call occasionally all the bishops together1 that their united counsels may adopt such measures as will keep the ,american church one not only in faith and in the essential points of discipline1 but even in the principal among the secondary matters of the latter branch4 ,it is not necessary to descant on the advantages of such uniformity4 ,the faithful1 if they do not expect it1 are at least edified and consoled by it2 and1 for the great purposes which the church is called on to carry out in this country1 it brings into practical effect1 as far as is possible1 the great motto1 ,viribus unitis4 ,to gain it were well worth the sacrifice even of fond predilections and of cherished usages4 #fbj ,the plenary council1 then1 is to look to the wants of the whole ,american church1 and to do for it what a provincial council does for an ecclesiastical province4 ,canon law is necessarily couched in general terms1 and cannot be applied in the same way everywhere4 ,a great portion of it1 in fact1 consists of decisions given for particular localities under peculiar circumstances1 of which the principle only is or can be of general application4 ,it thus happens not infrequently that the general regulations have to be modified to meet other wants1 other times1 other circumstances4 ,this is one of the first duties of local councils4 ,they propose1 and1 with the approval of the supreme pastor1 enact those regulations to which their wisdom and experience may point as necessary to carry out the real spirit of the general law4 ,in these they do not contradict1 much less abrogate2 on the contrary1 they enforce the observance of the canons4 ,we know there is an impression abroad that canon law does not oblige in this country2 but a more erroneous or more mischievous idea could scarcely have been propagated4 ,if it be said that all the circumstances contemplated by the canons do not exist here1 and that such laws as presuppose these circumstances are not1 on that account1 applicable here1 the proposition is correct2 but1 if it be said that the law itself does not oblige1 the proposition is simply monstrous4 ,we do not know whom it would affect worse1 the higher or the lower orders of the clergy1 the religious or the seculars4 ,all would be very much in the same position2 all would soon be glad to return to the reign of law4 ,if canon law does not oblige in this country1 what becomes of the impediments of matrimony8 ,where do the religious orders find the charter of their privileges8 ,on what does an aggrieved clergyman rely for the right of appeal8 ,where is the proof that every ,christian of either sex1 that has come to the years of discretion1 is obliged to approach worthily1 at least once a year at ,easter1 the holy sacrament of the blessed eucharist8 ,the origin of the erroneous idea appears to be1 that1 the organization of the church in this missionary country not being yet completed1 certain privileges1 generally granted by the ,holy ,see1 have been withheld2 and1 as one case may easily occur to the clerical reader1 we shall take the liberty of using it to exemplify our meaning4 ,the nomination1 institution1 and consecration of bishops are inherently and radically the exclusive right of the ,holy ,see4 ,no matter by whom it may have been exercised at any time1 if it was not in virtue of a permission expressly or tacitly granted by the successor of ,st4 ,peter1 the exercise was a schismatical act4 ,this no ,catholic can deny4 ,by canon law the right of presentation of three names to the pope has been granted1 not to all the clergy of the diocese1 but to the cathedral chapter1 a body in the composition of which the diocesan clergy1 by the same law1 exercised but little influence4 ,in this country there are no cathedral chapters2 in fact1 it is impossible thus far to erect them according to the canons4 ,the right of presentation of the three names has been accorded by ,rome to the bishops of the province instead4 ,this is an instance in which a privilege granted by the canons to a body which has no existence among us has been transferred by the supreme authority to another body that can exercise it4 #fba ,we are not now either blaming or praising the arrangement2 that would be beyond our province4 ,we are merely stating what the law is1 and endeavoring to help to dispel an error which may be1 if it has not been1 productive of evil4 ,as canon law1 then1 does oblige in this country1 numerous questions must necessarily arise in the application of its ordinances to our circumstances and wants4 ,the whole social fabric here is very different from that of ,europe when the decretals were issued4 ,it thus becomes necessary to adopt such measures as may save the principle of the law1 and1 at the same time1 avoid the inconvenience of a too literal understanding4 ,this is one of the first and most important works of a council4 ,it involves a patient and careful study of the law2 a thorough knowledge of the circumstances of the country2 a prudent foresight1 which may be able to discern what measure is most likely to be practically successful4 ,we may instance the question of the tenure of church property4 ,if there were in practice real religious freedom among us1 if the church were allowed to hold her property according to her own laws1 there would be no difficulty4 ,the actual canon law would provide for the security of the tenure1 for the good use of any revenues that might accrue1 and for any rights or legitimate influence the donors might reasonably expect to be allowed4 ,but1 at least in most of the states1 the wisdom of the legislature has interfered1 simply to prevent the ,catholic ,church from executing her own long-tried1 satisfactory laws on the subject4 ,to save the vital principle1 the security and the independence of church property1 it has been necessary to adopt various expedients1 which may be1 we do not doubt are1 the best that could be devised under the circumstances1 but1 considered in themselves1 are far from satisfactory4 ,they1 of course1 are only temporary2 and it is ardently to be desired that the time will soon come when wiser civil legislation will permit the execution of the mild and equitable provisions of the canons4 ,it is easy to see that a wide field is thus opened for the wisdom and industry of the fathers of a plenary council4 ,but the correction of abuses is also expressly assigned by the decree of ,trent as one of the objects of their labors4 ,to err is human1 and it is only too easy to fall away from the strict observance of the canons4 ,such has ever been the experience of the church4 ,in this country1 thank ,god1 positive abuses are rare1 if they exist at all4 ,there is a general desire to become acquainted with the law of the church and to observe it as closely as circumstances will allow4 ,but necessity has1 in the past1 introduced many customs which no longer have its sanction or excuse4 ,yet it is found hard sometimes to leave the old paths and take the broad highways of the canons or the rubrics4 ,sometimes doubts arise as to whether the exceptions formerly allowed are still permitted4 ,thus1 there is ample matter for wise and cautious legislation1 neither so lax as to allow abuses to grow up1 nor so strict as1 by substituting the letter for the spirit1 to make the law kill rather than give life4 ,there must of necessity arise in the course of time many most important practical questions1 which can be nowhere better decided than in council4 ,mutual advice1 comparing of ideas1 and discussion naturally lead to wise conclusions4 ,in a country like ours1 where so many cases arise which are without precedent1 the necessity of frequent counsel among the prelates is obvious4 #fbb ,and doubtless the regular celebration of councils has contributed greatly to that success which has especially marked the external government of the church in ,america4 ,fewer mistakes have been made here1 perhaps1 than anywhere else in the same time1 while the successes have been great1 nay1 brilliant4 ,the wisdom of the old has been handed down to the young2 the experience of one generation has been used for the benefit of that succeeding2 and there has been an uninterrupted unity of practical views from the days of ,carroll to the present4 ,thus1 ,england1 ,dubois1 ,brut1 ,kenrick1 ,hughes1 though dead1 still live4 ,not merely their works remain behind them1 but their spirit still speaks in the halls of the archiepiscopal residence1 and in the sanctuary of the metropolitan church of ,baltimore4 ,another special duty has been assigned by the ,holy ,see to our ,american councils--that of proposing the erection of new episcopal sees1 and the names of candidates to fill either them or the older ones that may be canonically vacant4 ,the erection of new sees is a special feature of the church in new countries4 ,every council of ,baltimore has proposed the creation of new bishoprics1 and1 in most cases1 the propositions have been favorably considered by the ,holy ,see4 ,the growth of the church can thus be traced through the acts of the various councils1 and the steps can be counted1 one by one1 by which1 from one bishop at ,baltimore1 the ,american hierarchy has progressed to its present development4 ,its growth has been more rapid than even the material progress of the country2 and as we look at the far ,west1 sure to become the happy home of millions of ,catholics1 imagination is scarcely bold enough to call up the numbers by which the bishops will be counted in future councils4 ,we have already alluded to the duty of selecting candidates to fill episcopal sees4 ,it is an important and a difficult task1 requiring the exercise of some of the highest qualities that should be possessed by those who are1 in the highest sense1 rulers of men4 ,the ,holy ,see has been so impressed with its importance and difficulty that it has earnestly urged that the bishops of the province should meet every time that there is a see to be filled4 ,when1 however1 the vacancy occurs about the time of a council1 or when the fathers ask for the erection of new sees1 the question of candidates to be recommended must be considered in its sessions4 ,from this cursory glance at the work of a plenary council1 it will be seen that the two weeks given to the celebration of the one lately held could have been by no means a time of rest4 ,on the contrary1 the conscientious performance of this work required the employment of every available moment4 ,every preceding council of ,baltimore had devoted itself to the attainment of the different objects which we have indicated4 ,the measures adopted were timely and wise1 and the legislation forms the groundwork of our particular church law4 ,nor will we wonder at the success attained when we think of the great names that adorned those councils1 of the illustrious prelates whose learning1 prudence1 foresight1 zeal1 and piety instructed and edified the past generation1 and laid the broad and solid foundations on which the grand structure of the ,american church is rising4 ,all honor to these great men6 ,they were men of great power1 and endued with their wisdom1 444 ruling over the present people1 and by the strength of wisdom instructing the people in most holy words4 ,let the people show forth their wisdom1 and the church declare their praise4 #fbc ,but the ,american church had grown out of its infancy1 and it was time to commence to build on the foundations so deeply and so skilfully laid4 ,it would have been impossible1 even had any one desired it1 merely to re-enact in the second plenary council what had been done before--merely to pass a few general decrees1 recommend the erection of new sees1 provide for the filling of them and of those already existing and vacant by apostolic authority1 and then separate4 ,had the council confined itself to this1 it would have failed of performing its allotted work4 ,these considerations had their due weight with the most reverend prelate1 who most fitly was chosen for the high and important office of delegate apostolic4 ,he determined upon a comprehensive plan1 the execution of which by the council should1 by meeting one of the chief present wants1 impress its celebration and its work in indelible characters on the history of the ,american church4 ,as early as ,april1 #ahff1 this plan had been distributed to the archbishops and bishops1 the heads of religious orders1 and all others who of right were to be present at the council4 ,he next convoked a body of theologians to initiate the preparatory studies4 ,they were taken from the religious orders as well as from the secular clergy2 many of them were or had been professors of theology or canon law2 some were favorably known for high offices they had already held or for well-deserved reputation for learning4 ,the coetus met daily as long as the greater part of its members could remain in ,baltimore1 and in that time the main points were gone over carefully and thoroughly1 and the recommendations of the theologians thereon submitted to the most reverend archbishop4 ,some divines who could not be present sent their contributions in writing1 so that we do not say too much when we assert that the best talent of the country was employed in these initial steps4 ,the many occupations1 however1 in which the greater part of the coetus were engaged at home rendered a protracted stay of all impossible1 and the remainder of the work was necessarily confided to a fewer number4 ,the most reverend delegate apostolic1 himself a most indefatigable worker1 watched over all the proceedings4 ,every paper was submitted to his final revision before it went to the printer4 ,indeed1 as he was the promoter1 so he was in reality the principal of the laborers in the great work1 to which he brought learning1 improved by conference2 judgment1 matured not only by age1 but by long practice in every branch of the ministry2 a ready pen1 whose labors1 in other departments1 for the cause of our holy religion1 had already procured for him a high and well-deserved reputation4 ,and we are sure his colleagues will not blame us if we say that1 under and after the archbishop1 ,very ,rev4 ,james ,a4 ,corcoran1 ,d4,d41 of the diocese of ,charleston1 deserves to be especially remembered for his industry1 his erudition1 his talents4 ,the graceful style in which so many of the decrees are couched is so peculiarly his own that it can never be mistaken2 and it will make the second plenary council remarkable for what1 perhaps1 would scarcely be expected in this remote country--a ,latinity that would grace even the most finished documents that come from ,rome herself4 ,the work thus went on until the drafts of the decrees formed a large volume1 which1 for greater convenience1 was printed4 #fbd ,the inspection and the examination of it by the fathers and the theologians of the council were thus rendered more easy2 indeed1 it would be difficult to conceive how1 without this preparation1 the work could have been done at all4 ,as each bishop was entitled to bring two theologians1 there was a very large attendance of the clergy of the second order4 ,to these must be added many vicars-general1 the heads of religious orders1 and the superiors of the greater seminaries4 ,all these clergymen were divided into congregations1 after the pattern of the ,milan councils of ,st4 ,charles ,borromeo4 ,each congregation was presided over by a bishop1 with a vice-president and a notary4 ,this last officer kept a minute of the proceedings of the congregation1 and drew up its final report4 ,the whole matter of the proposed decrees was distributed among these congregations1 and thus the preparatory work was subjected to a searching1 minute investigation4 ,it may be here interesting to the general reader to give a short account of the mode in which the business of a council is managed4 ,we learn from the acts that there were four different meetings at the ,second ,plenary ,council3 #a4 ,private congregations4 #b4 ,public congregations4 #c4 ,private sessions4 #d4 ,public sessions4 ,the private congregations were the meetings of the committees or congregations of theologians1 each in a separate room4 ,the public congregations were held in the cathedral1 and there assisted at them all the synodales that is1 all who had a right to be present at the synod1 from the ,most ,reverend ,president to the youngest theologian4 ,at these congregations the theologians had the floor1 the bishops confining themselves to asking questions1 or proposing difficulties4 ,the private sessions were meetings of the prelates alone4 ,the officers of the council were also present1 but merely to record the acts4 ,the work of the council was really done in these private sessions4 ,in them the decrees were passed1 and the acts show that there were a close scrutiny and a thorough investigation of the measures proposed4 ,the public sessions were solemn ceremonies in the cathedral4 ,after pontifical high ,mass1 the decrees already passed were solemnly read and promulgated4 ,they thus became a law as far as the action of the council could make them such4 ,all that they needed was the approval of the ,holy ,see4 ,in this manner the decrees of the ,second ,plenary ,council of ,baltimore were prepared1 examined1 discussed1 matured1 until now they are published as the law of the ,american church4 ,in looking over them one is astonished at the variety of matter on which they treat4 ,faith1 and the errors opposed to it now so prevalent1 the church and her government1 the primacy of the ,roman pontiff1 the powers1 rights1 and duties of archbishops and bishops1 the rights and duties of the clergy1 church property1 the sacraments1 the sacrifice of the ,mass1 and all the proper conducting of divine worship1 uniformity in the celebration of festivals1 and other points of discipline1 the status of religious1 the education of youth1 good books1 the ,catholic press1 zeal for the salvation of souls1 the spiritual welfare of the blacks1 secret societies--these are some of the subjects which1 as even a cursory examination shows us1 are treated in these decrees4 ,these are1 indeed1 what the original plan intended them to be4 ,they give a clear and lucid exposition of canon law as adapted by authority to the circumstances of this country4 #fbe ,they supply a want long felt1 and they will remain for all time to come the guide and the rule of action of all ecclesiastics1 from the hoary missionary bowed down with age and labors to the young priest whose elastic step leads him joyously from the seminary walls to his first appointment1 from the mitred prelate to the humblest of the great army of missionaries that are bringing to our countrymen the good tidings of peace4 ,they are clear and comprehensive2 they were carefully prepared1 every quotation1 even though it were of a few words1 was verified2 and they are in every sense authoritative4 ,prescinding altogether from their binding force1 they were carefully prepared originally2 next1 they were literally sifted by the theologians of the council2 afterward they were discussed1 and sometimes modified by the fathers2 lastly1 they were subjected to the scrutiny of ,roman theologians1 and were finally approved with very few emendations4 ,they have thus undergone the trial of a threefold criticism1 and deserve proportionate attention and respect4 ,but1 what is far more important1 they are binding as laws1 and the ,s4 ,congregation de ,propaganda ,fide has expressed its wish that they be faithfully observed by all whom it may concern4 ,they have been1 moreover1 made by authority the text of a course of canon law in our ecclesiastical seminaries4 ,the future clergy of the country are thus to be formed on them4 ,to the volume that contains them they are afterward to look for enlightenment and instruction in the performance of the duties of the ministry4 ,nothing more need be1 indeed little more could be1 said in their praise4 ,the ,acts and ,decrees have been published in a goodly volume1 in imperial octavo1 by the well-known firm of ,john ,murphy ,co41 ,baltimore4 ,we need not say that the material part of the book is highly creditable to the publishers4 ,the good quality of the paper1 letter-press1 and binding is commensurate with the importance of the work and the magnitude of the occasion which brought it forth4 ,the volume contains all the official documents1 from the first letter of ,rome appointing ,archbishop ,spalding delegate apostolic1 to the last communication of the ,cardinal ,prefect of ,propaganda in regard to the decisions of the ,holy ,see4 ,a copious and well-arranged index gives access to the mass of matter scattered through the work1 thus rendering as easy as possible a reference to any given point4 ,we congratulate ,mr4 ,murphy on the honor done him by the privilege of placing his imprint on the title-page of so great and important a publication4 ,it is a fitting reward for many services rendered to ,catholic literature through a long and useful business career4 ,we hail this volume as the beginning of a new period in our ,american church1 the period--detur venia verbo--of the reign of law4 ,it marks an improvement1 a step in advance1 a progress4 ,but the progress is legitimate1 because it commenced where all such movements must commence1 if they be ,catholic1 with the proper authority4 ,a work begun1 carried on1 and brought to completion as this has been1 is--we need not say--a safe guide2 and one for which1 we may be permitted to add1 every lover of our holy religion should feel deeply grateful to those through whose zeal and labors it has been accomplished4 ,by it this young church now takes her place with the most ancient and best regulated churches of the ,old ,world3 a light is given to our feet1 lest inadvertently we stumble in the darkness3 a sure guide is afforded1 alike to young and old1 to prelate and subject1 to cowled monk and surpliced priest4 -------- #fbf ,translated ,from ,the ,french4 ,an ,italian ,girl ,of ,our ,day4 ,concluded4 ,to any one who has read this sweet and pious correspondence ,i need not point out how strongly toward the end it inclines to heaven4 ,was it a presentiment of death8 ,it may have been4 ,we cannot deny to certain souls the grace of having heard from afar the call of ,god4 ,for me1 ,i think ,i see in this case the natural movement of a very pure love in a lofty soul4 ,there are souls that see ,god everywhere4 ,she of whom ,i speak was one of these1 and1 from her infancy1 all that was beautiful on earth had been for her but a veil designed to temper the brightness of the ,eternal ,beauty4 ,thus in the new and unknown regions of earthly love1 through the first wonder and the first dreams1 she soon found again the divine countenance2 but this time more radiant than ever1 more vivid1 more irresistible2 and that chaste flight which had carried her to the hopes of earth passed beyond and bore her away to heaven4 ,that a person has not had the happiness to feel this heavenly attraction1 is no reason that he should either wonder at it or attempt to deny it4 ,it is in the logic of our heart1 and ,i believe there are few souls that in various degrees have not felt its power4 ,it was known to ancient philosophy1 whose greatest glory it is to have expressed by the mouth of ,plato1 its king1 the progression of love from bodies and from souls to ideas and to ,god2 and ,st4 ,augustine1 who bore in his heart the gospel of ,jesus ,christ1 has not rejected this part of the ancient heritage4 ,who has not read that conversation at ,ostia1 in which two holy souls1 beginning with the love that united them on earth1 came at last to touch heaven8 ,we were speaking sweetly together1 444 and whilst we converse and look up to heaven1 we reach it with the whole aspiration of our heart4 ,footnote #ahb ,it is this soaring1 this upward flight that ,i speak of2 this it is1 ,i believe1 which carried the soul of the saintly young bride to the desire of that eternal region where all desires are satisfied4 ,footnote #ahb3 ,st4 ,augustine's ,confessions4 ,the heavenly instinct had not deceived her4 ,two days after that on which she wrote the last letter we have given1 a death-bearing blast was breathed upon her1 and she was seized with a slight fever which at first gave no uneasiness except to the ever-anxious heart of a mother4 ,yet on the very first day she had said to her1 ,take my little desk and keep it in memory of me4 ,these words were startling1 coming from a person so clear-sighted4 ,the illness suddenly assumed an alarming character1 and the physicians recognized it as the miliary fever1 a terrible epidemic which was then desolating ,tuscany1 and which seemed to pick out only choice victims4 ,the young patient had divined her danger2 she at once asked for the sacraments1 and received with a humble and tender love the last visit of that ,saviour whose blood never fails us1 from our cradle1 which it sanctifies1 to our death-bed1 where it strengthens and consoles us4 #fbg ,the patient now felt herself better4 ,great and happy day6 she said2 if ,i am restored to health1 never shall ,i forget it4 ,what strength there is in the holy viaticum6 ,my dear mother1 how sweet and consoling is our religion6 ,ah6 believe me1 if any one feared death1 he could do so no longer after having received the blessed ,eucharist4 ,then she called her betrothed4 ,gaetano1 she said1 if it is the good pleasure of ,god to unite us on earth1 he will restore me2 but if he has other designs in our regard1 then1 my ,gaetano1 we must be resigned and adore his holy will1 must we not8 ,the young man could not answer4 ,she continued3 ,in my ,english prayer-book there is an act of thanksgiving for the reception of the holy viaticum3 take the book and read it to me4 ,and a voice1 tremulous with sorrow1 began to read the following admirable prayer3 ,glory and thanksgiving be to thee1 ,o ,lord6 who in thy sweetness hast been pleased to visit my poor soul4 ,now let thy servant depart in peace according to thy word4 ,now thou art come to me1 ,i will not let thee go2 ,i willingly bid farewell to the world1 and with joy ,i go to thee1 my ,god4 ,nothing more1 ,o dear ,jesus6 nothing more shall separate me from thee3 in thee ,i will live1 in thee ,i will die1 and in thee ,i hope to abide for ever4 ,i desire to be dissolved and to be with ,christ2 for ,christ is my life1 and to die will be my gain4 ,now ,i will fear no evils1 though ,i walk in the shadow of death1 because thou art with me1 ,o ,lord6 ,as the hart pants after the fountains of water1 so does my soul after thee3 my soul thirsts after the fountain of living water4 ,oh6 when shall ,i come and appear before the face of my ,god8 ,give me thy blessing1 ,o divine ,jesus6 and establish my soul in everlasting peace2 such peace as only thou canst give2 such peace as it may not be in the power of my enemy to destroy4 ,oh6 that my soul were at rest in thy happiness1 and in the enjoyment of thee1 my ,god1 for ever6 ,what more have ,i to do with the world8 ,and in heaven what have ,i to desire but thee1 my ,god8 ,into thy hands ,i commend my spirit4 ,receive me1 sweet ,jesus6 ,in thee may ,i rest2 and in thy happiness rejoice without end4 ,amen4 ,when the reader's voice had ceased1 the young patient wished to take some repose4 ,but she still seemed collected1 and continued to pray4 ,her brother was expected to arrive from ,florence4 ,settle the room1 she said to her mother1 and put back upon my table the things that were taken off it when it was prepared for an altar4 ,i do not wish that poor ,antonio should perceive1 on entering1 that ,i have received the last sacraments2 but remember1 dear mother1 always look upon that little table as a sacred thing1 for it has borne the body of ,jesus ,christ4 ,all that day she held her mother's hand1 and spoke of nothing but the happiness of having received the holy communion4 ,toward evening she remembered that she was to have visited such and such poor persons that day4 ,this thought troubled her1 and she could be calmed only by the assurance that before night some one should carry to those poor persons their accustomed succor4 ,from this time she began to converse with ,jesus ,christ1 speaking to him with an ardor which the violence of her sufferings rendered more intense4 ,o ,jesus6 this bed seems to me of fire--but no1 ,i will not complain4 #fbh ,thou willest that ,i should serve thee in suffering1 and in suffering ,i will serve thee4 ,thou knowest that ,i should not grieve to die if my death did not cause such great affliction to those who love me4 ,if thou seest that ,i should make a good ,christian wife1 ,i would say1 ',o ,lord6 heal me6' ,but what is it that ,i am asking8 ,no1 not my will1 but thine be done6 ,in the middle of the night1 seeing her mother's shadow still bending over her pillow1 she exclaimed1 ,o the heroic love of mothers6 ,she thought so much of the least things that were done for her4 ,my poor father1 she said1 how good he is2 what care he takes of me2 for my sake he deprives himself entirely of sleep4 ,he has called in three physicians1 and he wishes one of them to remain night and day near my room4 ,it is too much1 my ,god6 ,mother1 what say you of my ,gaetano8 ,ah6 now indeed ,i feel how happy ,i should have been with him2 for the more ,i know him1 the more ,i feel that he loves me1 as you love me4 ,she asked to have prayers recited by her bedside1 and began herself in a low tone the prayers for the agonizing4 ,her mother interrupted her4 ,rosa1 my child1 why these sorrowful prayers8 ,you will recover1 my child2 do not always be thinking of death4 ,she answered1 ,ah6 but if all day ,i have not been able to think of anything but death2 if ,jesus wishes to take me1 must ,i not be ready8 ,she suffered terribly2 one moment nature prevailed1 and she uttered a complaint4 ,her betrothed said to her1 ,rosa1 think of what our ,lord suffered4 ,thanks1 ,gaetano2 ah6 how that thought consoles me6 ,the dawn of the following morning only brought an accession of the malady4 ,three skilful physicians saw all their efforts powerless against its violence4 ,one of them1 who loved ,rosa as his own child1 wept4 ,the patient became delirious4 ,let us go6 let us go6 she cried2 dear mother1 adieu6 my home is not here1 my home is above6 ,let us go6 let us go6 adieu6 ,she repeated these words1 sometimes in ,french1 sometimes in ,italian4 ,she called her father1 when he was absent1 talking to him as if she saw him beside her2 when he was present1 looking for him and calling him still4 ,she wept over the misfortunes of a poor widow whom in her dreams she saw left destitute2 the next moment it was a little orphan that she cradled in her arms1 and that drew tears from her eyes4 ,nothing could calm her delirium1 which was still full of these charitable memories and images4 ,at one time she seemed to see the ladder of ,jacob1 and she exclaimed3 ,but ,i--am ,i pure enough to go up with these angels8 may ,i go forward8 may ,i join their choirs1 ,i who was preparing for earthly espousals8 ,she then recovered her consciousness1 and asked for a chapter of the ,flowerets of ,st4 ,francis on holy perseverance1 during the reading of which she cried out suddenly1 as if struck with horror1 ,o the evil spirits6 the evil spirits6 ,her mother hastened to her1 threw her arms round her1 and pressed her to her heart1 saying1 ,listen to your mother1 ,rosa1 my dear child4 ,why these cries8 why these terrors8 ,you need not fear the evil spirits1 my child2 and they are not devils that surround your bed1 but the angels of heaven4 ,have you not always loved ,god8 have you not loved the poor8 have you not been a good and obedient child8 ,but her countenance grew stern4 ,hush1 she said1 tempt me not to pride4 ,and her face was overspread with the shadow of a profound and austere humility4 #fbi ,her delirium returned1 and now with a violence that neither words nor remedies could calm4 ,as a last resource1 her mother said to her1 ,rosa1 my child1 ,i am quite exhausted4 ,if you could calm yourself a little1 ,i might lean my head on your hands and sleep4 ,calm yourself1 my child1 for my sake4 ,and saying this1 she affected to fall asleep4 ,from that moment the poor child was silent2 love was stronger than delirium4 ,a long stupor followed2 an ivory paleness overspread her features2 the veil of death was upon her brow4 ,the victim was ready4 ,but there is no victim without sacrifice1 and no sacrifice without pain4 ,jesus trembled and wept1 and was sorrowful even unto death in the ,garden of ,gethsemane4 ,the hour of cruel sacrifice was come for this young ,christian4 ,she felt the cold iron of the sword1 but again divine love remained victorious4 ,suddenly she wakes1 opens her large1 terrified eyes1 while the blood rushing from her heart in an impetuous tide1 crimsons her face and lights up her eye4 ,she seems to come out of a dream1 and now for the first time to understand all4 ,it must be1 then6 she cried1 it must be6 ,i must die6 ,i must leave my father's house6 ,i must leave my betrothed6 ,no1 no6 ,i am to live with him1 ,i am to make him happy6 ,a flood of tears bathed her countenance2 a cry of anguish burst from her soul4 ,adieu1 ,gaetano1 adieu6 we shall see each other no more6 ,it was a terrible struggle in that poor heart4 ,the joyous preparations for her wedding had suddenly given place to the dismal preparations for the grave4 ,the bride seemed to entwine her dying fingers in her nuptial wreath and to clasp it convulsively--but1 if it be ,god's will8 ,her mother put to her lips a picture of our ,lady of ,good ,counsel1 which the young girl had near her bed4 ,instantly she became calm1 joined her hands1 bowed her head1 and remained perfectly silent4 ,what was passing at that moment in the superior part of that beautiful soul8 ,the eye of ,god alone1 infinitely holy1 can read such secrets4 ,what we know is that1 after this long silence1 the dying girl pronounced in a clear1 firm voice1 the words1 ,thy will be done4 ,and from that moment the name of ,gaetano was never upon her lips4 ,she recited the ,litany of the ,blessed ,virgin4 ,at the invocation1 ,gate of heaven1 pray for us1 she pressed her mother's hand and smiled4 ,did she then see the eternal gates opening8 ,the ,prior of ,san ,sisto1 her confessor1 was by her bedside4 ,she asked for extreme unction1 and answered distinctly to all the prayers4 ,an extraordinary grace of peace and resignation seemed from that moment to have entered her soul4 ,she needed consolation no longer2 it was she who now consoled and encouraged all around her4 ,her poor mother1 wild with grief1 threw herself upon her bosom4 ,i still hope1 she said1 sobbing2 yes1 my ,rosa1 ,i still hope that you will recover2 but if this be not ,god's will1 oh6 pray to him1 supplicate him to call me also to himself4 ,i will not1 ,i cannot live without you6 ,but ,rosa said1 ,no1 mother1 you must not wish for death4 ,you have too many duties to accomplish upon earth2 remember the mother of the ,machabees4 ,then stretching out her hand and laying it on the head of the sorrow-stricken woman1 she said1 ,i bless her who has so often blessed me6 ,o ,blessed ,virgin6 change the sorrow of this poor mother into the consolation of the poor1 the afflicted1 and the sick2 and do thou1 ,o my ,god6 grant that we may all adore unto the end thy holy decrees4 ,she drew from her finger a little ring1 and said to her mother1 ,keep that in remembrance of me2 and placing in her hands the ring of her betrothal1 she said1 ,give that to--you know whom--it is a noble soul4 ,but she spoke not his name4 #fcj ,the end drew near2 her family and friends surrounded her bed2 every one was weeping4 ,she said smiling1 ,you are all around me1 ,i am very happy2 thanks4 ,then suddenly1 ,who wishes to have my hair8 ,no one ventured to answer4 ,a long1 half-reproachful look was cast on the weeping faces around4 ,a voice cried1 ,i do4 ,rosa recognized it and said1 ,my mother shall have it4 ,she motioned to the ,prior of ,san ,sisto to come to her1 and said to him in a whisper1 ,i beg of you to return this evening to my poor mother and do all you can to console her4 ,from this time she seemed to retire to the feet of ,god1 henceforth to speak to him alone4 ,she said1 ,i suffer1 my ,jesus1 but all for thy love6 ,i do not fear hell1 because ,i love thee too much4 ,i am on fire1 ,i am in flames6 ,o ,jesus6 burn me1 consume me in the flames of thy love6 ,it was now with difficulty that these holy ejaculations came from her oppressed bosom4 ,again1 however1 and for the last time1 she rallied4 ,death had a hard struggle with her vigorous and innocent youth4 ,this time the dying girl spoke the very language of the saints1 and her farewell to earth was worthy of a ,st4 ,catharine of ,sienna4 ,o ,lord6 she said1 bless all men6 bless this city of ,pisa6 bless her people6 bless her bishop and her pastors6 bless the ,catholic ,church6 bless her sovereign ,pontiff6 bless her ministers and her children6 ,have pity on poor sinners2 enlighten heretics2 be merciful toward those who believe in thee1 merciful also to those who believe not4 ,pardon all2 be a loving ,father to the good and to the wicked4 ,have pity on my soul1 ,o ,immaculate ,virgin6 ,give to all thy peace1 ,o ,jesus6--that peace-- ,she was silent4 ,a film gathered over her eyes2 they saw no longer the things of earth1 but a better light began to dawn on them4 ,yes1 yes1 she murmured1 ,i see now2 ,i begin to see--,o the heavenly ,jerusalem6 ,o the angels6 oh6 how many angels6 ,how beautiful6 ,yes1 certainly1 willingly1 my ,god6 ,where am ,i8 who calls me8 where then8 ,let us go6 let us go1 my ,god6 ,let us go forward6 ,andiamo6 andiamo6 avanti6-- ,the words died on her lips2 she made the sign of the cross1 kissed the crucifix1 and while mortal eyes still sought her upon earth1 she was following the ,lamb in the eternal choirs of the virgins4 ,such is this beautiful death1 every detail of which we have learned from her who1 after having assisted at the sacrifice1 did not die1 but1 like ,mary1 had to come down living from ,calvary4 ,will ,i be pardoned if ,i add some reflections on these letters and this narration8 ,i said when commencing them that1 as it seemed to me1 they glorified ,christianity in the two-fold transfiguration of love and of death4 ,it seems to me yet clearer1 now that ,i have finished them1 that this is indeed their characteristic and their merit4 ,yes1 it is the glory of ,christianity to have rendered possible1 nay frequent1 this sanctity of love which ancient philosophy pursued in its dreams1 but which it had never either contemplated or exemplified4 ,it is the glory of ,christianity to have so well schooled1 so well regulated the heart of man1 to have made that heart at once so virginal and so strong1 as to be capable of loving more1 and better than ever1 all that is lovable on earth1 and at the same time capable of always loving it less than ,god4 #fca ,it is the glory of ,christianity to have made a young girl--not a philosopher1 not a poet1 but a simple and pious girl--to realize unconsciously in her heart that sublimest conception of human wisdom2 the continual1 incessant passage of love from the shadows of being and of beauty1 to the infinite being and the infinite beauty1 from divine phantoms1 to use the expression of ,plato1 to the eternal reality4 ,it is the glory of ,christianity to have in all things opened to man a road toward ,god2 to have taught him to make all his affections serve as so many steps whereby he may ascend to the absolute love3 ,in his heart he hath disposed to ascend by steps4 ,footnote #ahc ,in fine1 it is the glory of ,christianity to have worked this prodigy1 that a holiness so extraordinary1 a perfection so superhuman1 neither destroys nor fetters the pure affections of earth2 so that the saints did not attain to the loving ,god alone by stifling in their hearts all love for their fellow-beings2 but1 on the contrary1 they learned to love all mankind more than themselves1 by first loving ,god above all4 ,footnote #ahc3 ,psalm lxxxiii4 #f4 ,whoever1 after seeing this1 will meditate on the nature of the human heart1 and on its history when abandoned to itself1 will be forced to admit that here is indeed a transfiguration4 ,and as regards death1 ,i find this transfiguration to be1 if possible1 more striking still4 ,death learned upon the cross that its highest office is to be the auxiliary of love4 ,there an indissoluble fraternity was established between these two great forces2 and there love received its mission to transform death into sacrifice4 ,the ideal statue of the dying ,christian is not then the ancient gladiator1 falling1 resigned but passive1 his head bowed1 his dim eye fixed on the earth which is fast escaping from him1 impatient for the approach of nothingness1 plunging willingly into eternal night4 ,no2 his ideal is the ,crucified1 dying erect1 above the earth1 exaltatus a terra in the attitude of the priest at the altar1 pardoning all men1 loving them to his latest breath1 acquiescing in his death1 nay1 willing it1 making himself the solemn deposit of his soul into the hands of his ,father1 at once the subject and the king of death1 at once priest and victim4 ,such is the ,christian fraternity of ,love and ,death4 ,hence it is1 that through the differences of ages1 of conditions1 of minds1 all holy deaths resemble one another2 it is still love ruling death and transforming it into sacrifice4 ,we have just portrayed the last hours of a betrothed bride who died in sacrificing to ,jesus ,christ her nuptial crown2 ere while we followed through tears of admiration the account of another death1 grander1 more celebrated1 more striking4 ,footnote #ahd ,footnote #ahd3 ,these lines were written a few days after the death of the ,rev4 ,father de ,ravignan4 ,we give them to-day just as the first emotion dictated them1 persuaded that time cannot take from the virtues of the saints their eternal actuality4 ,now1 what similitude could we expect to find between the last hours of a holy religious1 an illustrious orator1 a great and heroic soul1 and those of a simple young girl1 strong only in her innocence8 ,and yet ,i venture to compare these two deaths1 and the longer ,i consider them the more do ,i find that they resemble each other1 that they are blended together in one ruling sentiment2 they are both a sacrifice1 and a sacrifice conducted by love4 ,sacrifices very different1 victims very unequal1 ,i admit4 ,what peace in the death of the holy ,father de ,ravignan2 or rather1 what triumph of the ,christian will over death6 ,how he rules it6 #fcb ,he speaks of this last affair which is to be conducted1 like all others1 with decision and energy2 he gives the directions for the sacrifice2 he offers it himself6 ,when did he more truly live than on that bed of death8 when was he more wakeful than in that seeming sleep6 ,then was he so strong and vigorous that he seemed to dominate death itself2 in this resembling1 as far as is possible to man1 ,christ upon the cross1 whom1 say the doctors1 death could not approach except by his express order4 ,what love1 in fine1 in his every word and in those desires of heaven1 for the impatience and the ardor of which he reproaches himself6 ,for my part1 ,i fancy ,i see him welcoming death1 for which he had been preparing himself for more than thirty years1 with that grave1 sweet smile whose charm was so extraordinary4 ,the young bride of ,pisa is far from this severe grandeur4 ,there are tears1 there are regrets in her last farewell4 ,there is one earthly name that lingers on her lips even to the confines of heaven4 ,she does not command death--she obeys it2 and yet here1 too1 ,i see an altar1 a victim a sacrifice4 ,here1 too1 ,i see the will1 more tremulous1 more surprised1 indeed1 than in the great religious1 but still armed by love1 ending by conducting itself the last affair1 and by absorbing death in its victory4 ,once again1 what becomes of death in such deaths8 where is it8 ,it seems to disappear3 ,death1 where is thy victory8 ,where is thy sting8 ,it is swallowed up6 ,let our souls become inebriated with hope at the recital of holy deaths2 let us yield ourselves without fear to the attraction which they give us for the life to come4 ,undoubtedly1 the true secret of dying well is to live well2 and our imperfection does not allow us to treat death as may the saints4 ,but surely the love which transfigured their death1 is at least begun in our souls2 it may increase1 and1 the hour come1 may transform for us also the supreme defiles into regions of light and peace4 ,among the paintings which have been found in the catacombs of ,rome1 there is one that has always struck me as having a profound meaning3 it is a jewelled cross1 from all sides of which spring stems of roses1 which bloom around it1 and cover its severe nudity4 ,footnote #ahe ,footnote #ahe3 ,two of these crosses1 adorned with gems and flowers1 have been discovered among the frescoes of the cemetery of ,st4 ,pontianus1 whose origin seems to have been anterior to the third century4 ,one of them surmounted an altar2 the other1 which decorated a baptistery1 is one of the most valued monuments of ,christian archaeology4 ,throughout its entire height1 and on both arms1 it is covered with precious stones1 richly figured1 alternately square and oval4 ,the two arms support flambeaux1 with the flame clearly outlined2 from them also depend two little chains1 at the extremity of which are suspended the traditional ,alpha and ,omega4 ,from the foot of the cross to the arms spring on both sides stems of roses covered with leaves and flowers4 ,directly under this painting was the baptismal font1 formed from a stream whose waters1 ever smooth and limpid1 seem even now1 after the lapse of fourteen centuries1 to await the immersion of the catechumens4 ,the discovery in a baptistery of this cross enveloped in splendor1 light1 and love1 authorizes our conjectures as to the signification it must have had in relation to the neophytes4 ,this precious fresco is carefully reproduced in the great work of ,m4 ,perret on the ,roman catacombs4 ,it is very rarely that the cross is found in the catacombs4 ,perhaps for the tender faith of the neophytes it was dreaded-the sight of that instrument of torture which was yet odious to the whole world1 and was dragged daily through the streets for the punishment of slaves4 ,it was1 doubtless1 to assist the transition from horror to love that the ,christian instinct had covered that cross with precious stones and blooming roses1 red still with a blood shed by ,divine love for the salvation of mankind4 ,be that as it may1 this symbol seems to me to express gloriously the transfiguration of death by ,christianity4 ,ah6 neophytes that we are1 neophytes of death and a life to come1 let us regard the dying moment as a cross which ,jesus and his saints have covered for us with encouragement and hope4 #fcc ,when the children of the first ,christians wondered to see a gibbet on the altar1 their fathers pointed to the jewels and roses1 and told them of the ,redeemer's love4 ,if death terrifies us in its austere nakedness1 let us look at the love which can transfigure it1 and can make our last hour the happiest1 and above all1 the most precious in our life4 ,rosa ,ferrucci was mourned4 ,the whole public press of ,tuscany told of her death2 poets chanted it2 inscriptions were composed in her honor1--the ,italian scholars excel in this art so little cultivated among us2--,i transcribe one which ,i think touching3 ,,chaste ,,youths1 ,,tender ,,virgins1 ,,decorate ,,with ,,tears ,,the ,,tomb ,,of ,,rosa ,,ferrucci1 ,,sweetest ,,girl1 ,,in ,,the ,,polite ,,arts ,,versed ,,beyond ,,the ,,custom ,,of ,,women2 ,,who1 ,,on ,,the ,,very ,,eve ,,of ,,marriage1 ,,whilst ,,unaccustomed ,,joys ,,filled ,,her ,,silent ,,breast1 ,,completed ,,her ,,youthful ,,life ,,secure4 ,secura6 beautiful word--word full of peace6 and yet less eloquent than one single word which ,i once read on a fragment of marble taken from the ,roman catacombs1 ,footnote #ahf and which ,i now bring to the tomb of her who has passed from earthly espousals to the nuptials of the ,lamb4 ,the case here also was that of a young ,christian maiden4 ,was she affianced like ,rosa ,ferrucci8 ,was it the hand of a betrothed spouse that closed her tomb8 ,the word we speak of1 does it indicate her virginal glory1 or was it her name8 ,the little stone saith not4 ,all that we know is1 that the hand which carried into the consecrated galleries the mortal remains of the young ,christian1 after having marked the place of her repose1 took a fragment of marble1 laid it against the opening1 fastened it by a little clay1 and choosing a word among those which the ,gospel had just given or explained to the world1 engraved these six letters3 ,chaste1 ,footnote #ahf3 ,this fragment is now preserved among the monumenta vetera ,christianorum in the ,belvedere gallery of the ,vatican4 ------------- ,memoirs ,of ,count ,segur4 ,to record the actions and opinions of one who labored efficiently in the attainment of ,american independence is an agreeable task4 ,the deeds of soldiers are always interesting to the historian and attractive to the reader4 ,the philosophical principles that led gay young men from the brilliant capital of ,france to the distant regions of a new world1 in order to practically assist in the assertion of human liberty1 cannot be ignored1 much less neglected1 in our all-investigating age4 ,count ,segur participated in the stirring scenes over which the genius of ,washington presided1 and he has transmitted to us the treasure of his experience in the first volume of his memoirs4 ,as he lived in the times preceding the great ,revolution which overthrew so many old forms of power and honor throughout ,christendom1 and as his facilities for obtaining a correct knowledge of the state of society and of systems in his day were extensive1 his introductory pages are very instructive4 #fcd ,this will appear from one comprehensive sentence of his own3 ,my position1 my birth1 the ties of friendship and consanguinity1 which connected me with all the remarkable personages of the courts of ,louis ,,xv4 and ,louis ,,xvi42 my father's administration1 my travels in ,america1 my negotiations in ,russia and in ,prussia2 the advantage of having been engaged in intercourse of affairs and society with ,catharine ,,ii41 ,frederick the ,great1 ,potemkin1 ,joseph ,,ii41 ,gustavus ,,iii41 ,washington1 ,kosciusko1 ,lafayette1 ,nassau1 ,mirabeau1 ,napoleon1 as well as with the chiefs of the aristocratic and democratic parties1 and the most illustrious writers of my times2--all that ,i have seen1 done1 experienced1 and suffered during the ,revolution2 those strange alternations of prosperity and misfortune1 of credit and disgrace1 of enjoyments and proscriptions1 of opulence and poverty2 all the different occupations which ,i have been forced to occupy1 and the various conditions of life in which fate has placed me--having induced me to believe that this sketch of my life would prove entertaining and interesting2 chance having made me successively a colonel1 a general officer1 a traveller1 a navigator1 a courtier1 the son of a minister of war1 an ambassador1 a negotiator1 a prisoner1 an agriculturist1 a soldier1 an elector1 a poet1 a dramatic author1 a contributor to newspapers1 an essayist1 a historian1 a deputy1 a counsellor of state1 a senator1 an academician1 and a peer of ,france3--,certainly a catalogue of sufficiently varied offices1 winding up rather prosperously6 ,the family of ,segur was ancient and honorable4 ,in the field and in the cabinet his forefathers had distinguished themselves1 and our author helped to extend his ancestral reputation4 ,highly gifted by nature1 his ample opportunities of cultivation and acquirement made him familiar with the various branches of science then taught4 ,he became deeply imbued with those philosophical notions that had begun to spread themselves abroad under the reign of ,louis ,,xv41 and continued to gather might until they brought his successor to the block1 and even still keep ,europe in a state of unrest4 ,from #agec to #aggd1 when ,louis ,,xv4 died1 young ,segur had occasion to learn as much as his youthful judgment would enable him1 concerning the wretched state of society around the court of that weak and degraded prince4 ,it was under his reign1 or rather that of his mistresses--for their influence had more to do with the government than the king's--that the storm was brewed which swept away with terrible force so many corrupt systems of legislation and social life4 ,the philosophers began to point their weapons against ancient customs4 ,parliamentary decrees came to the assistance of the latter1 but their acts of rigor against philosophical writings produced no other effect than to cause them to be sought after and read with a greater avidity4 ,public opinion became a power of opposition which triumphed over every obstacle2 the condemnation was a title of consideration for its author2 and under the reign of an absolute monarch1 liberty having become a fashion in the capital1 exercised a greater sway in it than the monarch himself4 ,who can fail to see that such results will always inevitably follow similar proceedings6 ,human nature has something imperatively logical in it1 and it will act according to its laws1 which are nothing else than the laws of ,providence4 #fce ,there is a deep philosophy in what he says3 ,power was still arbitrary1 and yet authority lost its influence2 public opinion escaped despotism by railing at it2 we did not possess liberty1 but license4 7,p4#ag47 ,the lethargy of one weak mind produced all this confusion4 ,the parliament1 clergy1 philosophers1 and courtiers1 all joined for different purposes in the same common cry against the shameful indolence of the court4 ,the revolution which was silently moving through public opinion was scarcely dreamed of by anybody4 ,rash measures of resentment1 always the resort of weak and tyrannic minds1 only served to irritate what had been provoked1 and the folly of the king was shown in small acts of petty tyranny4 ,but death came to remove him and his turpitude from the ,french throne4 ,segur narrates it3 ,in the month of ,april1 #aggd1 as ,louis ,,xv4 was going to hunt1 he met a funeral1 and1 being fond of asking questions1 he approached the coffin and inquired who it was they were going to bury8 ,he was told it was a young girl who had died of the small-pox4 ,seized with a sudden fear1 he returned to his palace1 and was two days afterward attacked with that cruel malady1 the very name of which had alarmed him4 ,the hand of death was upon him2 his flesh became corrupted2 mortification ensued1 and carried him off4 ,his corpse was covered with lime1 and conveyed to ,st4 ,denis without any kind of ceremony4 7,p4 #cb47 ,he proceeds to philosophize upon the desertion of the royal fallen shadow by his most subservient flatterers1 and observes that in proportion as they had been slavish to his whims and their own interests during his life1 so did they evince their indifference to him when departed4 ,they turned immediately to the rising sun1 and offered him their adulatory worship4 ,still1 the principles which had been set to work in former years continued to advance even under the benignant reign of ,louis ,,xvi41 who finally atoned for the faults of his predecessors4 ,the author sums up succinctly the condition of the tottering society1 daily becoming weaker3 ,the object of every one was to repair the old edifice2 and1 in this simultaneous attempt of all1 it was levelled with the ground4 ,too much light was brought to the work by many1 and a conflagration ensued4 ,the consequence of this has been1 that1 for the last fifty years1 our harassed lives have been to each of us a dream1 alternately monarchical1 republican1 warlike1 and philosophical4 7,p4 #fc47 ,the misfortune is1 that this dreaming has not yet ended in ,france1 or1 indeed1 in any part of ,europe except ,switzerland4 ,but we must hasten to the events which drew him into connection with the ,american war4 ,he became a soldier1 and1 after fighting several duels1 found himself carried away by the enthusiasm which filled his countrymen at the sound of the first cannon-shot fired in defence of the standard of liberty4 ,i recollect1 he says1 that the ,americans were then styled insurgents and ,bostonians2 their daring courage electrified every mind1 and excited universal admiration1 more particularly among young people4 ,the ,american insurrection was everywhere applauded1 and became1 as it were1 a fashion2 and ,i was very far from being the only one whose heart beat at the sound of liberty just waking from its slumbers1 and struggling to throw off the yoke of arbitrary power4 ,on my arrival at ,paris1 ,i found the same agitation prevailing also there in the public mind4 #fcf ,nobody seemed favorable to the cause of ,england2 all openly expressed their wishes for the success of the ,bostonians4 ,eager as were these young enthusiasts to fight in ,america for the cause of liberty1 many obstacles interposed to prevent or defer the carrying out of their intentions4 ,the ,french government was not in a very prosperous financial state at the time1 as the country had scarcely recovered from the mad speculations of the ,scotchman ,law during the preceding reign4 ,besides1 ,england was then powerful3 her fleets swept the sea1 and she had just conveyed across the ,atlantic #dj1jjj mercenaries1 to cut the throats of ,american freemen and stifle the rising spirit of liberty4 ,private aid was1 indeed1 freely afforded to the colonists2 arms and ammunition were conveyed across the ocean in spite of embarrassing neutrality laws1 and many enterprising officers were allowed to resign their positions in the ,french service and serve under ,washington4 ,when the ,american deputies1 ,silas ,deane1 ,arthur ,lee1 and ,benjamin ,franklin1 arrived in ,paris1 and were received with such cordiality at the ,french court1 a new stimulus was given to the general desire of assisting the revolutionists4 ,the appearance of those republican delegates produced a sensation in that brilliant capital4 ,nothing could be more striking than the contrast between the luxury of our capitol1 the elegance of our fashions1 the magnificence of ,versailles1 the still brilliant remains of the monarchical pride of ,louis ,,xiv41 and the polished and superb dignity of our nobility1 on the one hand2 and1 on the other hand1 the almost rustic apparel1 the plain but firm demeanor1 the free and direct language of the envoys1 whose antique simplicity of dress and appearance seemed to have produced within our walls1 in the midst of the effeminate and servile refinement of the eighteenth century1 some sages contemporary with ,plato1 or republicans of the age of ,cato and ,fabius4 7,p4 #aja47 ,no less impressive than their unpretending exterior1 the honesty and artless sincerity of the ,american deputies gained the hearts of the ,french people1 and enlisted in their cause the generous enthusiasm of the warlike portion of the nation4 ,numerous offers of service were made1 and among the most distinguished were ,lafayette1 then a young man1 the ,count de ,noailles1 and ,count ,segur4 ,the two latter were obliged by their parents to desist from the enterprise1 which they had already arranged to carry out by crossing the ocean2 but ,lafayette succeeded in purchasing a vessel1 which he armed and manned at his own expense1 and1 taking with him some experienced officers1 sailed from a port in ,spain and reached ,america1 where he met with a reception due to his merits and noble purpose4 ,a brave and experienced soldier1 ,m4 de ,valfort1 afterward chief instructor of ,napoleon ,buonaparte1 accompanied the ,marquis and rendered efficient service during his stay in the ,new ,world4 ,some time was now spent by young ,segur in attending to the events which ,voltaire and his colaborers were bringing about in the world of literature4 ,he was a visitor at the family residence of ,segur1 whose mother was a woman of note in the metropolis4 ,the count himself narrates several interesting incidents respecting the arch-infidel1 with whom he appears to have been on intimate terms4 ,with regard to his death there is one thing worth recording4 ,immediately after his triumphal entry into ,paris1 death came upon him4 ,segur says that he recanted his former errors4 #fcg ,the clergy1 no longer venturing to oppose him1 now hoped to convert him4 ,at first ,voltaire yielded2 he received the ,abb ,gauthier1 confessed himself1 and wrote a profession of faith1 which1 without fully satisfying the priests1 greatly displeased the philosophers4 ,after escaping the danger1 he forgot his fears and his prudence4 ,a few weeks after1 upon being taken extremely ill1 he refused to see a priest1 and terminated1 with apparent indifference1 a long life4 ,there is a different version of the latter half of the story4 ,it is related that he cried most piteously for a priest2 but his philosophical friends refused to accord him his request1 and he died with imprecations most horrible upon their heads for denying his dying wish4 ,political changes at length enabled the count to embark for ,america1 and become an actor in the great drama of freedom1 of which he had been long an earnest spectator at a distance4 ,war was declared between ,france and ,england4 ,the ,french1 under ,arthur ,dillon and ,count ,noailles1 directed by ,d',estaing1 captured the town of ,grenada2 after which the latter sailed for ,savannah1 designing to seize that important position4 ,notwithstanding the valor of the ,french and ,americans in the successive assaults upon the works1 they were obliged to retire with loss1 rendered still more lamentable by the fall of the brave ,pulaski1 who fought in ,america for the liberty which had been crushed in his own land4 ,a concise and accurate narrative of the principal events that preceded the surrender of ,cornwallis to the united arms of ,america and ,france1 occupies a considerable space in the memoirs before us4 ,the bravery of the ,french1 very naturally1 obtains a prominent notice until the moment of capitulation arrives4 ,the ,english troops then defiled between the two allied armies1 drums beating1 and carrying their arms1 which they afterward deposited with their flags4 ,as ,lord ,cornwallis was ill1 ,general ,o',hara defiled at the head of the ,english troops1 and presented his sword to the ,count de ,rochambeau2 but the ,french general1 pointing to ,washington at the head of the ,american army1 told him that1 the ,french being only auxiliaries1 it was for the ,american general to receive his sword and give him his orders4 7,p4 #bcg47 ,strange incidents happen in all wars4 ,about this time1 the ,french general1 ,de ,bouill1 made an attack on the ,dutch islands of the ,west ,indies1 lately captured by the ,british4 ,having during the night landed his troops in the island of ,st4 ,eustatia1 he advanced at break of day to attack the principal fortress of the island1 whose garrison was then engaged in manoeuvring on the plain4 ,the vanguard of ,m4 de ,bouill was composed of an ,irish regiment in the service of ,france3 deceived by the sight of their red coats1 the ,english thought they saw a part of their own countrymen1 and suffered themselves to be approached without suspicion4 ,undeceived too late1 they vainly fought with courage2 they were routed on all sides1 and pursued with so much ardor that ,french and ,english entered pell-mell into the fortress1 which remained in our possession4 ,how many foreign battle-fields have found the ,irish in the vanguard of armies1 yet what avails their valor to their own country6 ,in #aghb1 ,count ,segur got permission to set out for ,america1 and a frigate1 ,la ,gloire1 of thirty-two guns1 was placed at his disposal to carry important despatches to ,count ,rochambeau from his government4 #fch ,he had as fellow-passengers the ,duke de ,lauzun1 the ,prince de ,broglie1 the ,baron ,montesquieu1 ,count de ,lomnie1 an ,irish officer named ,sheldon1 ,polawski1 a ,polish gentleman1 and others eager to assist the inhabitants of a new world fighting for liberty1 of which men were allowed to dream in the ,old ,world4 ,enthusiastic as he had previously felt upon the subject1 he could hardly restrain himself1 now that he was on his way to accomplish his most cherished hopes4 ,a letter dated from ,brest ,roads1 onboard ,la ,gloire1 ,may #aith1 #aghb1 contains some remarkably philosophical passages2 and when writing his memoirs1 forty-two years afterward1 he could find no fitter language to convey the sentiments which then agitated his mind4 ,in the midst of an absolute government1 everything is sacrificed to vanity1 to the love of fame1 or what is called glory1 but which hardly deserves the name of patriotism in a country where a select number of persons1 raised to the first employments of the state by the will of a master1 and on the precarious tenure of that will1 engross the whole legislative and executive power2 in a country where public rights are only considered as private property1 where the court is all in all1 and the nation nothing4 ,a love of true glory cannot exist without philosophy and public manners4 ,with us1 the desire of celebrity1 which may be directed to good or evil1 is the prevailing motive1 while promotion depends not upon talents1 but upon favor4 ,a most pernicious course1 and certain to produce disastrous consequences in any organization6 ,he proceeds to expose the facility with which men adapt themselves to any absolute system in which the ambitious and selfish portion of the community find adulation and sycophancy the readiest ladders to power and eminence1 while the truly meritorious find their virtue an obstacle to favor1 if not an occasion of suspicion and fear4 ,if the ,french nation continued without change under the system of government such as ,count ,segur represents that of his day1 it would be more difficult to account for the phenomenon than the revolution which destroyed it4 ,the intelligent appreciation of right and freedom that incited those ,frenchmen to dare the perils of the ocean preparatory to the more serious dangers of the battle-field for the sake of liberty1 we should not too easily forget in the present age4 ,it was no whimsical adventure that led them over the waves to engage in the pursuit of chimerical gratification4 ,in separating at this time from all ,i hold dear1 ,i do not make so painful a sacrifice to prejudice1 but to duty4 444 ,being a soldier1 ,i leave my family1 my native place1 and all the charms of life1 in order strictly to fulfil the duties of a profession1 perhaps the noblest of any1 when engaged in a just cause4 ,an interesting narrative of the voyage1 in company with the frigate ,l',aigle1 of forty guns1 and bearing a treasure of two million and a half livres for the aid of the ,americans1 is given in a few pages of the memoirs4 ,they fell in with an ,english frigate of seventy-four guns1 and a memorable engagement ensued4 ,this vessel was the ,hector1 formerly a ,frenchman1 taken by the ,english at the defeat of ,de ,grasse4 ,in the midst of the engagement1 ,vallongue1 the ,french commander1 cried out to the ,english captain to strike his colors4 ,yes1 yes1 said the latter ironically1 ,i am going to do it2 and completed his answer by a terrible broadside4 ,so near were the vessels that the men used pistols2 and even the rammers of the guns were wielded as clubs4 #fci ,for three quarters of an hour ,la ,gloire bore the brunt of the unequal conflict2 but1 at length1 aided by ,l',aigle1 they so disabled the ,english vessel that they expected soon to capture her4 ,next day1 however1 other sails appearing in sight1 they abandoned the ,hector1 which afterward sank1 and the crew was rescued by an ,american ship4 ,an incident of the battle may be related1 as showing the coolness and gayety of the ,french character1 even amidst the most appalling scenes3 ,the ,baron de ,montesquieu was standing near us1 7on the deck27 we had of late been amusing ourselves with rallying him in regard to the words liaisons dangereuses1 which he had heard us pronounce1 and1 in spite of all his inquiries1 we had still evaded explaining to him that such was the title of a new novel1 then much read in ,france4 ,while we were thus conversing together1 our ship received the fire of the ,hector1 and a bar-shot--a murderous junction of two balls united by an iron bar--struck a part of the quarter-deck1 from which we had just before descended4 ,the ,count de ,lomnie1 standing at the side of ,montesquieu1 and pointing to the shot1 said very coolly1 ',you were wishing to know what those liaisons dangereuses were8 ,there1 look1 you have them4' ,soon after this event they approached ,delaware ,bay1 where they captured an ,english corvette4 ,being ignorant of the channel1 however1 they were necessarily delayed1 and they were placed in a most critical position by the appearance of an ,english fleet1 whose superior force seemed to leave them no chance of escape4 ,this they effected1 nevertheless1 with the greatest difficulty1 carrying with them the gold which they had been obliged to throw into the river when pursued by the ,english1 but which they afterward fished up and secured4 ,they then proceeded on the way to ,philadelphia1 and the ,count gives amusing incidents that occurred on the route4 ,sometimes well treated by the inhabitants favorable to the cause of freedom1 they were also subjected to much annoyance by the tories and the timid or vacillating between both sides4 ,a certain ,mr4 ,pedikies is particularly mentioned as having received them coolly and suspiciously1 while promises1 bribes1 and threats were necessary to oblige him to afford them any aid4 ,the contrast evident between the ,americans and his own countrymen1 is noticed by the writer in an aspect very favorable to the former4 ,what especially attracted his attention was1 the absence of different classes in society and of all poverty4 ,all the ,americans whom we met were dressed in well-made clothes1 of excellent stuff1 with boots well cleaned2 their deportment was free1 frank1 and kind1 equally removed from rudeness of manner and from studied politeness2 exhibiting an independent character1 subject only to the laws1 proud of its own rights1 and respecting those of others4 ,their aspect seemed to declare that we were in a land of reason1 of order1 and of liberty4 7,p4 #cbj47 ,he describes the face of the country1 its boundless resources of agricultural wealth1 and stores of future happiness and power4 ,philadelphia1 then the capital of the country1 attracted his admiration1 and he enters upon a disquisition concerning the ,quakers1 who inspired him with a very high esteem for their principles of peace and rectitude4 ,he says that most of them were tories1 and cannot blame them1 because their religion forbade its members to engage in war4 ,friend1 said one of them to ,general ,rochambeau1 thou dost practise a vile trade2 but we are told that thou dost conduct thyself with all the humanity and justice it will admit of4 #fdj ,i am very glad of this2 ,i feel indebted to thee for it2 and ,i am come hither to see thee1 and to assure thee of my esteem4 ,another discovered a very ingenious mode of avoiding participation in the deeds of war1 even by paying taxes to support it1 and at the same time of complying with the law of ,congress imposing taxation4 ,the day upon which the collectors called1 he placed a certain sum of money apart where they might find it1 and thus he would not give1 but allowed it to be taken4 ,at ,newport1 he became acquainted with a venerable member of the same sect2 and the ,frenchman became an ardent admirer of ,polly ,leiton1 the beautiful and modest daughter of his host4 ,she made no pretence to conceal her abhorrence of war1 and candidly addressed the ,count in terms not at all complimentary to his military notions4 ,thou hast1 then1 she said1 neither wife nor children in ,europe1 since thou leavest thy country1 and comest so far to engage in that cruel occupation1 war8 ,but it is for your welfare1 he replied1 that ,i quit all ,i hold dear1 and it is to defend your liberty that ,i come to fight the ,english4 ,the ,english1 she rejoined1 have done thee no harm1 and wherefore shouldst thou care about our liberty8 ,we ought never to interfere in other people's business1 unless it be to reconcile them together and prevent the effusion of blood4 ,but my king has ordered me to come here and engage his enemies and your own1 said ,segur4 ,to this she replied that no king has a right to order what is unjust and contrary to what ,god ordereth4 ,having transacted important business with ,m4 de ,luzerne1 at ,philadelphia1 and fully acquainted himself with the state of affairs and eminent men of the times1 he set out for the camp of ,washington and ,rochambeau1 on the banks of the ,hudson4 ,in the narrative of his journey thither1 he shows himself a keen observer1 and highly appreciates the character of the inhabitants1 as well as the magnificent aspect of the country through which he passed4 ,schools1 churches1 and universities met him at every town2 while kindness1 comfort1 happiness1 were everywhere displayed4 ,the modest tranquillity of independent men1 knowing no power above them but the influence of law1 and that law the expression of their own will2 the vanity1 servility1 and prejudices of ,european society unknown2 the general spirit of industry and the honorable occupation of labor common to all2 such phases of life1 so strange to the traveller1 attracted his deepest attention4 ,the inns at which he stopped on his way were generally kept by captains1 majors1 colonels1 generals1 who conversed with equal facility upon military tactics and agricultural projects1 and were no less entertaining in their stories of campaigns against the ,english than in their success in clearing forests and raising crops on the sites of ,indian wigwams4 ,this very naturally surprised the inquisitive ,frenchman2 but1 while it presented to him a new phase of human society1 it approved itself very highly to his judgment4 ,two things1 however1 he found to condemn2 or1 as he himself says1 shocked him more than he could express4 ,one was a vile custom1 the moment a toast was given1 of circulating an immense bowl of punch round the table1 out of which each guest was successively compelled to drink2 and the other was1 that1 after being in bed1 it was not unusual to see a fresh traveller walk into your room1 and without ceremony stretch himself by your side1 and appropriate a part of your couch4 #fda ,trenton and ,princeton recalled to him the memory of brilliant exploits performed in the cause of liberty by ,washington and ,lafayette2 but at ,pompton he would have fallen into the hands of the ,britishers1 had he not been warned of his danger by an old woman sitting at her door1 engaged by a spinning-wheel4 ,having at length crossed the majestic ,hudson1 which he eloquently describes1 he was cheered by the sight of the ,american tents1 and soon reached the headquarters of ,rochambeau1 at ,peekskill4 ,he took command of a veteran regiment of ,soissonnais1 which had been awaiting him1 and he was received with the greatest enthusiasm4 ,it had been formerly named ,segur1 from his father1 who had commanded it at the famous battles of ,lawfeld and ,rocoux4 ,in both these battles the old warrior was wounded at the head of his regiment1 once by a musket-ball through his breast1 and again by another shot that shattered his arm4 ,although he felt annoyed at the absence of active operations in the field1 still he found amusement enough among his numerous countrymen1 with whom he was now associated4 ,one young officer of artillery particularly attracted his attention4 ,this was ,duplessis-,mauduit1 who had most signally distinguished himself in several engagements1 and who carried his attachment to liberty and equality so far as to be highly displeased if any one called him ,sir or ,mister4 ,he would be called simply ,thomas ,duplessis-,mauduit4 ,his appreciation of the character of ,washington is in accordance with the estimation in which that great man was and is held by all4 ,too often1 he says1 reality disappoints the expectations our imagination had raised1 and admiration diminishes by a too close view of the object upon which it had been bestowed2 but1 on seeing ,general ,washington1 ,i found a perfect similarity between the impression produced upon me by his aspect and the idea ,i had formed of him4 ,his exterior disclosed1 as it were1 the history of his life2 simplicity1 grandeur1 dignity1 calmness1 goodness1 firmness1 the attributes of his character1 were also stamped upon his features and in all his person4 ,his stature was noble and elevated2 the expression of his features mild and benevolent2 his smile graceful and pleasing2 his manners simple1 without familiarity4 ,he did not display the luxury of a monarchical general2 everything announced in him the hero of a republic4 ,expecting to find an army without organization1 and officers without suitable military knowledge1 he was surprised to find well-drilled battalions1 and officers fully competent in all departments of their service4 ,he dined frequently with ,washington1 and gives instructive descriptions of the habits of those ,revolutionary heroes4 ,the toasts most frequently given after dinner at headquarters were1 ,the ,independence of the ,united ,states2 ,the ,king and ,queen of ,france2 ,success to the allied armies4 ,the generous spirit of brotherhood that united the two nations in those days seems to have become unknown in our times2 while she that was then the cruel enemy has now become the flattered friend4 ,who will deny that nations sometimes act the life of individuals8 ,washington's opinions on this point are worth recording3 ,he spoke to me of the gratitude which his country would ever retain for the ,king of ,france1 and for his generous assistance2 highly extolled the wisdom and skill of ,general de ,rochambeau1 expressing himself honored by having observed and obtained his friendship2 warmly commended the discipline and bravery of our army2 and concluded by speaking to me1 in very handsome terms1 of my father1 whose long services and numerous wounds were becoming ornaments1 he said1 to a minister of war4 7,p4 #bec47 #fdb ,the ,americans and ,french were closely besieging the ,british at this time in ,new ,york1 and although the prudence of the generals restrained the impetuosity of the allies1 who eagerly sought to attack the enemy in their defences1 it was not possible to prevent the execution of some daring exploits4 ,but the armies soon separated1 the ,french marching toward ,newport and ,providence1 thence to ,boston4 ,they were ordered to the ,west ,indies1 where the decisive blow was to be struck at the ,english1 and1 as it eventually turned out1 the independence of the ,states soon after followed4 ,we cannot but admire the wisdom displayed in this book of memoirs1 written eighty-five years ago1 amidst scenes and times that could afford material from which the future greatness of the country could be predicted only by a very sagacious mind4 ,he clearly foresaw1 in the rising colonies then about to emerge into a powerful nationality1 all the resources which1 by judicious and liberal legislation1 led to the wonderful prosperity with which our country is blessed4 ,the religious toleration and equality which reigned everywhere he highly eulogized1 and accounts very philosophically for the necessity of such a state of things4 ,it must be borne in mind that ,count ,segur was a follower of ,voltaire1 although of a ,protestant family4 ,for this reason the ingenuousness with which he testifies to the origin of this religious toleration is more deserving of notice4 ,at page #cga1 he says3 ,the multiplicity of religions rendered toleration indispensable among them1 and1 what will1 perhaps1 appear singular1 the example of this toleration was set by the ,catholics4 ,no church1 therefore1 was privileged or considered the established church2 the ministers of each religion were paid by those who professed it1 and there existed between them not a fatal spirit of jealousy1 a source of discord1 but a laudable emulation of charity1 benevolence1 and virtue4 ,it is pleasing to record this generous tribute of respect to the liberal spirit which influenced the religious denominations of those ,revolutionary times4 ,it is true that in all religious sects there are some members who are ever ready to clamor for persecution1 and eager to adopt forcible measures to compel their unwilling neighbors to believe according to their own special measure of belief4 ,and it is difficult1 perhaps impossible1 to name one religious party that has not1 when sufficiently strong to do so1 been led into the commission of acts which succeeding generations would willingly have effaced from the record of their predecessors4 ,for instance1 what intelligent ,presbyterian of the present day would not willingly blot from the page of her history the deeds that stain the ,scotch ,church in the days of her influence8 ,buckle1 one of the deepest non-,catholic writers of the present age1 says that her real character was one of the most detestable tyrannies ever seen on the earth4 ,when the ,scotch ,kirk was at the height of its power1 we may search history in vain for any institution which can compete with it1 except the ,spanish inquisition4 ,between these two there is a close and intimate analogy4 ,both were intolerant1 both were cruel1 both made war upon the finest parts of human nature1 and both destroyed every vestige of religious freedom4 7,vol4 ii4 p4 #cbb47 #fdc ,it is more truthful to admit the opinion of ,mr4 ,buckle than to attempt to controvert his facts of proof by which he establishes his position4 ,we only advert to this as elucidating the principle that1 although there may be individual ,presbyterians and individual ,catholics who feel a disposition to recur to the unchristian acts of some of their predecessors1 yet it cannot be denied that they are exceptional4 ,the general spirit of toleration which ,count ,segur so justly appreciates1 is too deeply implanted in the institutions of the ,republic to be blown away by any foul blast of weak bigotry4 ,another subject upon which he wisely commented is equally important to show his great foresight4 ,after aptly describing the reasons from which he presaged the future greatness of the nation1 he observes that the only danger to be apprehended hereafter for this happy ,republic1 7which then consisted of three millions of inhabitants17 is the state of excessive opulence of which its exclusive commerce seems to hold out the promise1 and which may bring luxury and corruption in its train4 7,p4 #cgd47 ,has not this already come to pass8 ,again he asks3 ,is not that difference which is observable between the manners and situation of the ,north and ,south calculated1 in fact1 to create an apprehension for the future of a political separation1 which would weaken and perhaps even dissolve this happy union1 which can only retain its strength while it remains firm and intimate8 ,the past few years have proven the justness of his views4 ,we cannot better conclude than by transcribing his relation of an incident which evinced the bravery of his friend ,lynch1 an officer of the staff of ,count d',estaing1 at the storming of ,savannah3 ,m4 d',estaing1 at the most critical moment of that sanguinary affair1 being at the head of the right column1 directed ,lynch to carry an urgent order to the third column1 which was on the left4 ,these columns were then within grape-shot of the enemy's entrenchments2 and on both sides a tremendous firing was kept up4 ,lynch1 instead of passing through the centre or in the rear of the columns1 proceeded coolly through the shower of balls and grape-shot1 which the ,french and ,english were discharging at each other4 ,it was in vain that ,m4 d',estaing1 and those who surrounded him1 cried to ,lynch to take another direction2 he went on1 executed his order1 and returned by the same way2 that is to say1 under a vault of flying shot1 and where every one expected to witness his instant destruction4 ',what6' cried the general1 on seeing him return unhurt1 ',the devil must be in you1 surely4 ,why did you choose such a road as that1 in which you might have perished a thousand times over8' ',because it was the shortest1' answered ,lynch4 ,having uttered these words1 he went with equal coolness and joined the party that most ardently engaged in storming the place4 ,it has been a pleasure1 as well as an instruction1 to accompany in his thoughts and actions one of those many noble and brave foreigners who aided1 by their services1 in the establishment of our independence1 and forced a powerful foe to relinquish her grasp upon a nation struggling for liberty4 -------- #fdd ,notre ,dame ,de ,garaison4 ,in the province of ,aquitaine1 a short distance from the village of ,monlon1 among the hills of ,les ,hautes ,pyrnes1 is a valley bearing the name of ,garaison1 where stands a votive chapel in honor of the ,blessed ,virgin4 ,it is a favorite place of pilgrimage for all the country around1 which has been approved of by ,popes ,urban ,,viii1 and ,gregory ,,xvi41 who have enriched it with indulgences4 ,it was erected in consequence of the apparition of our ,blessed ,lady on the spot1 about the year #aejj1 to a young shepherdess who was guarding her flock in the valley4 ,the legend is as follows1 somewhat abridged4 ,it is supported by most unobjectionable witnesses at the time of the event1 by tradition1 and the unanimous voice of the country around2 by public documents1 and by the effects which followed and which still exist4 ,as for me1 however1 this is of little moment1 these legends not being matters of faith4 ,it is sufficient for me to know that the spot in question is one dear to ,mary and peculiarly favored by ,heaven4 ,it has been sanctified by the sighs of contrition1 by the pure confessions1 the fervent communions1 and the sudden and miraculous conversions of those who have gone thither in honor of the ,mother of our ,lord4--,but the legend3 ,a young girl of twelve years of age1 ,anglse de ,sagazan1 was guarding her flock near a large hawthorn which shaded a fountain of living water4 ,the deep shade and the soft murmur of the fountain invited repose1 and1 opening her basket of provisions1 the young shepherdess seated herself by the spring to dip her dry brown bread in the clear1 cold water4 ,suddenly a lady of majestic mien1 with a serene countenance and gracious regard1 clothed in a long1 white robe1 which fell in graceful folds to her feet1 stood before the astonished maiden1 who1 dazzled by her appearance1 remained immovable and speechless4 ,then our gracious ,lady1 who loveth the poor and the humble1 declared to her that she had chosen this spot as a place of benediction1 whereon she wished a shrine erected in her honor1 around which her children might gather with more than ordinary assurance4 ,this apparition occurring three days in succession1 the maiden related to her father what had happened4 ,he1 in turn1 reported the occurrence among his neighbors1 who were quite incredulous1 but yet1 through curiosity or inspired by ,god1 flocked to the fountain1 where was still to be heard the voice of the ,virgin1 though no one saw her but the pure eyes of the shepherdess4 ,the people went to seek the cur1 and returned to the fountain with banners1 chanting hymns in honor of ,mary4 ,they erected a large cross on the spot4 ,after that the water of the fountain seemed miraculously changed1 and the sick went thither to be healed4 ,the sudden restoration of many to health made the spot celebrated in a short time4 ,the number of miracles increasing1 the present elegant vaulted chapel was erected by the voluntary offerings of grateful pilgrims1 and there the benediction of ,heaven descended upon the votaries of ,mary4 #fde ,at this day wonderful are the prodigies wrought on soul and body at the shrine of our ,lady of ,garaison4 ,ages ago ,god healed many who1 at the troubling of the waters1 descended to the angel-guarded ,pool of ,siloam4 ,his ways are not as our ways4 444 ,i made a pilgrimage to ,notre ,dame de ,garaison in ,june1 #ah--4 ,the evening before1 ,i went to shrift1 by way of preparation1 and the next morning left at an early hour with a party of friends1 who completely filled our private diligence4 ,there were five of us1 and two servants1 besides the driver and his more efficient wife4 ,i might call her the driver and him the postilion4 ,quite a procession we should have made in honor of our ,lady of ,garaison6 ,we ought to have gone plodding along the highway in sandal shoon and penitential garb1 with pilgrim staff and scallop-shell1 knocking our breasts as we went1 as did the votaries of the middle ages4 ,but in these days1 when stout old ,christian flies along the celestial railroad with his burden of sin carefully stowed away in the baggage-car1 ,i1 a feeble pilgrim1 may be excused for seeking as comfortable a seat as could be found in our rickety old diligence4 ,as ,i got in1 ,i caught a satisfactory glimpse of a large basket1 in which were light1 crispy pistolets1 heaps of deep-red cherries1 flasks of water1 and bottles of mild vin rouge1 which our servant had thoughtfully provided for our outer man4 ,and they were not disdained in our drive of thirty miles4 ,such due attention having been paid to our bodily wants1 we were quite at leisure to abandon ourselves to our spiritual musings or our devotions6 ,who could wish to have his soul constantly disturbed and pestered by a jaded and craving body8 ,it is quite contrary to the religious as well as philosophic spirit of this enlightened nineteenth century1 and though ,i was somewhat ascetic1 and rather inclined to the sterner rules of medieval times1 the thought almost reconciled me to my corner1 where ,i braced my weary back1 and to the aforesaid basket1 whence ,i fortified my body4 ,ciel6 ,i exclaimed1 as ,i found myself en diligence and the stone cross of ,st4 ,oren's ,priory fast disappearing1 have ,i returned to the middle ages1 or am ,i dreaming8 ,i could not help rubbing my eyes1 and wondering what some of my more enlightened ,american friends would think1 if they could see me seriously1 deliberately setting off on a pilgrimage 7even in a carriage67 of thirty miles1 to pay my devotions at a shrine of the ,virgin ,mary6 ,but yes--my head was quite sound1 though filled with the vows ,i wished to offer in a spot peculiarly dear to our ,lady4 ,this was the first visit ,i ever made to one of these places of popular devotion1 and so1 apart from my religious motives1 ,i felt some curiosity to see this mountain chapel1 away almost upon the confines of ,spain4 ,the roads are fine in that part of ,france1 and bordered by magnificent shade-trees4 ,owing to recent rains1 we had no dust4 ,we passed waving wheat-fields1 luxuriant vineyards hedged with hawthorn1 and away on the neighboring hills was many an old chteau with its venerable towers1 and hard by an antique church4 ,i found everything novel1 and consequently interesting4 ,going and returning we stopped at most of the villages4 #fdf ,in every one we found an old vaulted stone church1 with thick walls and doors1 ever open to the passer-by4 ,in each were several chapels1 adorned with oil paintings1 bas-reliefs1 and statues of the saints1 and in every church were the stations of ,via ,crucis well painted1 and the little undying lamp of olive oil burning near the gilded tabernacle--announcing the presence of the ,divinity--the ,shekinah of the new ,israel--and recalling the beautiful lines of ,lamartine3 ,ple lampe du sanctuaire1 ,pourquoi dans l'ombre du saint lieu1 ,inaperue et solitaire1 ,te consumes-tu devant ,dieu8 ,ce n'est pas pour diriger l'aile ,de la prire ou de l'amour1 ,pour clairer1 faible tincelle1 ,l'oeil de celui qui fit le jour4 444444 ,mon oeil aime se suspendre ,a ce foyer arien2 ,et je leur dis1 sans les comprendre4 ,flambeaux pieux1 vous faites bien4 ,peuttre1 brillantes parcelles ,de l'immense cration1 ,devant son trne imitent-elles ,l'ternelle adoration4 ,c'est ainsi1 dis-je mon me1 ,que de l'ombre de ce bas lieu ,tu brles1 invisible flamme1 ,en la prsence de ton ,dieu4 ,et jamais tu n'oublies ,de diriger vers lui mon coeur1 ,pas plus que ces lampes remplies ,de flotter devant le ,seigneur4 ,footnote #ahg ,footnote #ahg3 ,in the absence of a suitable poetic version of the above1 we subjoin--for such of our readers as are not familiar with the language of the original--the following prose translation of it1 from ,digby's ,ages of ,faith3 ,pale lamp of the ,sanctuary1 why1 in the obscurity of the ,holy ,place1 unperceived and solitary1 consumest thou thyself before ,god8 ,it is not1 feeble spark6 to give light to the eye of him who made the day3 it is not to dispel darkness from the steps of his adorers4 ,the vast nave is only more obscure before thy distant glimmering4 ,and yet1 symbolic lamp1 thou guardest thy immortal fire1 thou dost flicker before every altar1 and mine eyes love to rest suspended on this aerial hearth4 ,i say to them1 ,i comprehend not2 ye pious flames1 ye do well4 ,perhaps these bright particles of the immense creation imitate before his throne the eternal adoration6 ,it is thus1 say ,i to my soul1 that1 in the shade of this lower place1 thou burnest1 a flame invisible1 a fire which remains unextinguished1 unconsumed1 by which incense can be at all times rekindled to ascend in fragrance to heaven6 ,in these churches there was always an altar to the ,virgin1 too1 adorned with lace and flowers1 and streaming with gay ribbons and pennons1 after the taste of the country4 ,in one we found a wedding party1 and were in season to hear the ,ego conjungo vos of the cur over a very modest and subdued-looking pair4 ,we often passed huge crosses of wood or stone erected by the wayside1 to which were attached the instruments of the ,passion4 ,i noticed among the passers-by that the women made the sign of the cross and the men raised their hats4 ,i did not find the villages very agreeable4 ,the houses were of stone1 with tiled roofs1 and had a cold1 forbidding look4 ,the paved streets were narrow1 with no sidewalks1 and anything but cleanly4 ,i thought of our fresh ,new ,england villages1 their white cottages and green blinds1 and front yards filled with flowers and shrubbery4 ,but those of ,france were more antique and more picturesque--at a distance4 ,flocks of sheep dotted the country1 each guarded by a shepherdess1 who wore a bright scarlet capuchon1 which covers the head and falls below the waist4 ,it is picturesque1 if not graceful1 and at a distance the wearer looks like one of her native but overgrown coquelicots4 ,they were generally spinning1 after the manner of the country1 with the distaff under one arm and twirling the spindle in the hand1 thus laying their hands to the spindle and their hands hold of the distaff after the manner of ,old ,testament times4 ,how they contrive to spin with these two instruments is past my comprehension1 but they do succeed admirably4 ,every now and then we met a donkey groaning under the weight of his ears and of a huge cage1 or panier1 as large as himself on each side1 filled with live poultry or fruit and vegetables4 ,perched on the top between these queer saddle-bags was a bright-eyed1 sunburnt paysanne1 most patiently thwacking ,old ,dapple marketward4 ,the oxen looked as if they fared better2 they were sleek and clean1 that is1 what ,i could see of them1 for they were almost entirely encased in great coverings1 as if they were elephants4 #fdg ,their drivers wore a blouse of blue cotton1 and wooden shoes with most impertinently turned-up toes4 ,they are worn 7the shoes7 both by men and women4 ,they make a terrible clatter2 you would think the ,philistines upon you2 but they are very durable4 ,the country reminded me of the interior of ,new ,england4 ,the hills were finely wooded1 more so than ,i had expected in that old country4 ,on leaving ,monlon1 we entered a valley1 narrow at first1 but which gradually opened1 forming a basin of considerable extent1 with green meadows and shady thickets4 ,it is bounded and crowned by hills1 and a few hours distant are the ,pyrenees4 ,this valley is solitary--secluded1 but not wild or uncultivated4 ,perhaps there is a score of houses in it4 ,from about the centre rise the turrets of ,notre ,dame de ,garaison4 ,the whole country was once covered with magnificent oaks which had been planted by the old chaplains1 but the vandals of a later day had cut away whole forests4 ,the rain poured down in torrents when we entered the valley of ,garaison1 but that did not prevent us from admiring the locality so favorable to devotion4 ,far from any city1 free from noise1 the chapel is buried among the hills and forests of ,aquitaine1 a spot chosen by ,god in which to reveal his presence and power6 ,what a delicious solitude6 ,we drove to a little auberge--,hotel de la ,paix6--erected for the accommodation of pilgrims4 ,in the olden time they were sheltered in a monastery1 which was devastated during the ,revolution1 and now1 when great festivals draw crowds of people1 the women often remain in the house all night4 ,leaving our carriage at the hotel1 we immediately went to the church in spite of the rain1 passing through a long avenue of majestic oaks4 ,the principal entrance to this sacred retreat is quite imposing4 ,the front is decorated with a statue of the ,virgin1 holding the dead ,christ in her arms--the bodies of natural size1 and the work of a skilful hand4 ,the buildings form a vast enclosure1 in the centre of which is the chapel1 having on the north and south two courts which separate it from the rest of the edifice4 ,i was surprised to find so fine an establishment so far away from any city4 ,we passed through a cloister shaded by cypresses to the chapel4 ,over the door and at the sides are niches1 in which are statues4 ,the vestibule1 as in all these old churches1 is very low4 ,here my attention was attracted by a great number of small paintings which cover the walls and vault1 forming a complete mosaic4 ,these ex-voto are not remarkable as works of art1 but precious on account of the miraculous events which they retrace4 ,they represent the persons who have been cured of their infirmities by the intercession of ,mary2 to each is attached a label bearing the name of the person and the date of the cure4 ,these paintings were left untouched at the ,revolution1 though the venerable guardians of this sanctuary were driven from their cherished solitude2 and the sacred vestments1 the holy vessels1 the silver lamps1 the jewels1 and other ex-voto of all kinds1 which had been offered the ,virgin in gratitude for grace received1 were carried away2 the fine statues of the twelve ,apostles were destined to the flames1 but were rescued by the people of ,monlon1 whose church they now adorn4 ,from the vestibule we passed into the nave4 ,one feels an inexpressible emotion of piety and devotion on entering this beautiful church4 #fdh ,i went immediately to the grand altar to pay my devotions to our ,lady of ,garaison1 while the servant took my letter of introduction to ,m4 le ,suprieur1 who was fortunately at liberty4 ,i found him a tall1 fine-looking gentleman1 instead of a hoary old hermit1 and as polite as a ,parisian4 ,he wore a flowing soutane1 confined at the waist by a fringed girdle1 and on his head was a sort of skull-cap1 such as the priests wear in that country--,i imagine1 to protect their tonsured heads from the cold4 ,he conducted me over the whole establishment4 ,in his room ,i saw the skull of the shepherdess to whom the ,virgin appeared4 ,she died a nun1 and more than a century old4 ,after her death1 her body was given to the chapel1 which had been erected during her life1 and to which she had been permitted to resort from time to time4 ,the fountain is under the grand altar2 but the water is conducted into a basin in a vault to the east of the chapel4 ,every one says the waters still perform wonderful cures4 ,the superior said it was not owing to any mineral qualities2 and as ,i was not able to analyze them1 ,i contented myself with drinking quite freely of them1 bathing therein my forehead1 and inwardly praying ,god to heal every infirmity of body and soul4 ,on the basin is a bas-relief representing the ,virgin's appearing to the shepherdess4 ,the arches and walls of the sacristy are covered with the frescoes of a by-gone age1 but which have not lost their brilliancy of color4 ,they represent the descent of the ,holy ,ghost upon the ,apostles2 angels bearing to our ,saviour the instruments of the ,passion1 etc4 ,over the grand altar of the church1 in a niche1 is a statue of ,notre ,dame de ,garaison1 the mother of sorrows1 holding in her arms the inanimate body of her divine ,son4 ,there are four small chapels1 two on each side1 separated by walls which advance to the principal nave1 and are there converted into pilasters to support the vault4 ,in them are some oil paintings1 two of which are very fine1 the angel guardian and a ,madonna4 ,the niches1 which were robbed in #aghi1 have been newly furnished with gilded statues of the twelve ,apostles1 large as life1 and bearing the instruments of their martyrdom2 and one of our ,saviour in the midst4 ,on the vault are painted the patriarchs and prophets of the old law4 ,these gilded statues and altars give a most brilliant appearance to the lightly vaulted ,gothic chapel4 ,in the south court is a fountain4 ,mary stands with her divine babe in her arms1 sculptured in white marble4 ,the water spouts out at her feet through four small masks1 and falls into a basin of pure white marble1 whence it flows into another still larger4 ,the statue has been a little injured by exposure to the weather2 but still it reminds one that ,mary is the channel through which the grace of ,god comes to us--that through her flow the waters of benediction and of grace upon man6 ,the refectory is vaulted and paved4 ,in it is a whispering gallery1 common in the monasteries of the middle ages1 so one could communicate from one corner to the other opposite in the lowest tone4 ,i am sure the knight of the couchant leopard was no more surprised or awed by the midnight procession he witnessed in the little chapel of ,engaddi1 than was ,i at a late hour in the evening1 when1 while ,i was still rapt in prayer1 and quite unconscious of what was going on around me in this still mountain chapel1 ,i found the altar suddenly illuminated1 and a door opened to a long procession of white-robed priests and about a hundred young men3 ,taper and ,host and ,book they bare1 ,and holy banner flourished fair ,with the ,redeemer's name4 #fdi ,they passed around the chapel1 chanting ,tantum ,ergo1 and then returned to the altar to give the benediction of the ,blessed ,sacrament4 ,the richly gilded chapel was radiant with reflected light1 and the strains of ,o salutaris ,hostia6 seemed to float upward in celestial tones1 as they issued from lips purified by solitude and prayer4 ,i never felt more devotion at this solemn rite than there1 in the shadow of the ,pyrenees4 ,i forgot my fatigue1 and yielded to heartfelt emotion4 ,exiled from my native land1 to which ,i might never return1 and among those who were almost entire strangers to me1 ,i felt myself folded to the bosom of divine ,providence1 and that the ,all-,father would have me consider every part of his world as my home1 and all those souls1 which he has breathed into human forms1 as my brethren and sisters4 ,it was a late hour when ,i fell asleep on my hard bed at the ,hotel de la ,paix4 ,coldly looking down upon me from a rude frame was1 for my guardian saint1 a picture of ,napoleon le ,grand2 but1 though he had routed many a formidable host1 he did not put to flight a single sweet fancy or holy thought that thronged my brains1 waking or sleeping4 ,at an early hour ,i was again before the altar of ,our ,lady4 ,priests were celebrating the holy mysteries at every altar when ,i entered the chapel4 ,at seven o'clock1 ,m4 le ,suprieur offered the ,holy ,sacrifice for my intentions1 at which ,i communicated4 444 ,my devotions ended1 ,i rambled around the garden and through the cloisters1 drank again from the fountain1 and then prepared for my departure4 ,i had gone to ,garaison with a deeper intent1 more serious purpose1 than is my intention to unveil here4 ,i bore in my heart a burden--a burden common to humanity--which ,i laid down at the feet of ,mary1 thinking1 as ,i did so3 ,oh6 might a voice1 a whisper low1 ,forth from those lips of beauty flow6 ,couldst thou but speak of all the tears1 ,the conflicts1 and the pangs of years1 ,which at thy secret shrine revealed ,have gushed from human hearts unsealed6 ,i left that chapel in the strong embrace of the everlasting hills1 and with sunlight flooding its walls like a glory4 ,turning to give it a last look1 at the last turn in the valley1 it seemed like a lily rising up in the green meadows--fit type of her to whom it is dedicated4 ,since that time ,i have visited many a shrine of la belle ,france1 but ,i turn to none with a more grateful heart than ,,notre ,,dame ,,de ,,garaison4 ----------- #fej ,count ,ladislas ,zamoyski4 ,translated ,from ,the ,french ,of ,ch4 ,de ,montalembert4 ,the nineteenth century1 which is already drawing to a close1 will in the course of its history present nothing more grand1 more touching1 more deeply impressed with the stamp of moral beauty1 than ,poland--vanquished1 proscribed1 abandoned by the world4 ,this nation in mourning and in blood1 which yet will not die--this race of indomitable men and women1 which survives all tortures1 all treasons1 and all catastrophes1 what a spectacle and a lesson does it present6 ,its existence is at once a defiance and an appeal3 a defiance to adverse fortune1 and an appeal to what seems the too tardy justice of an avenging ,god4 ,abandoned and calumniated by successful iniquity1 by selfish opulence1 by the ever-ready worshippers of success1 a sight intolerable to their conquerors1 and a reproach to the powerful of the world--there they abide1 like ,mardochai before ,aman1 firmly resolved to forget not1 to despair not1 nor to capitulate2 incomparable types of suffering1 of sacrifice1 of unwearying patience1 of lofty patriotism2 invincible martyrs and confessors1 not only of faith1 but of right1 of country1 and of liberty6 ,in the centre of this group of proscribed and oppressed1 like some great oak struck by lightning in the midst of a burning forest1 stands out in bold relief the noble figure of ,count ,ladislas ,zamoyski4 ,ere yet the waves of forgetfulness and indifference have effaced his noble memory1 let us endeavor to recall and rescue from oblivion some traits of an existence which1 by every title1 belonged to ourselves2 for in ,france he was born1 7during a journey of his parents there17 and in ,france he died1 ,footnote #ahh having passed here the greater part of the thirty-seven years which he spent in exile1 without having at any time returned to his true country4 ,footnote #ahh3 ,january #aath1 #ahfh4 ,here it would seem appropriate to speak of the ancestors of the illustrious dead4 ,but how can we fitly portray to this generation the splendor and power of those ancient houses of ,poland and ,lithuania1 whose immense possessions1 countless adherents1 and extent of influence find no parallel in our own country1 even at the most aristocratic periods of its history8 ,it was a ,zamoyski who headed the embassy which came to offer the crown of ,poland to a brother of ,charles ,,ix42 ,footnote #ahi and some one of this race is ever to be found dominant in their country's annals4 ,they may have had equals1 but ,i know that in their native land none ever assumed to be their superiors4 ,footnote #ahi3 ,for an account of this embassy1 see the excellent work of the ,marquis de ,noailles1 ,henri de ,valois et la ,pologne in #aegb4 ,nothing is more a propos to our immediate subject than the legend of their device and bearings4 ,a ,king of ,poland1 whose people had some cause for discontent1 being engaged in a conflict with the ,teutonic chevaliers1 saw on the field of battle a ,zamoyski dying1 his breast pierced with three lances4 ,the king approached to aid and comfort him4 ,to mnicy ,transcriber's note3 blurred4 boli6 exclaimed the dying hero4 ,it is not that which pains me6 or in other words1 ,a wound does less harm than a bad prince or a bad neighbor4 #fea ,these three words and three lances have ever since been the armorial bearings of the ,zamoyski family4 ,reflecting upon them1 we find in them a singular appropriateness to that one of the line whom we have best known2 that illustrious and wounded hero whom we have had so long before our eyes with the deadly steel in his heart1 and on his lips a word of proud resignation or intrepid disdain4 ,fortunate are those great races who1 before they are submerged by the rising tide of equality and modern uniformity1 can give forth one last flash of glory1 and furnish to the historian some great heart enthusiastic for a good cause and a noble faith2 some vigorous lover of right and duty1 capable of signalizing himself by a generous death1 like our own ,duke de ,luynes1 or by an entire life of devotion and sacrifice1 like ,count ,ladislas ,zamoyski4 ,for reason as we will1 so long as men are men1 they will be always and everywhere moved by a something--,i know not what--a kind of realization of completeness1 which nobility of birth imparts to great virtues or great misfortunes4 ,ladislas ,zamoyski1 in his #bhth year1 was an officer of the lancers in the ,polish army1 and aide-de-camp to the ,grand ,duke ,constantine2 he was desirous above all things to serve his country as a soldier and a citizen1 when the military insurrection of ,warsaw broke out1 at the end of ,november1 #ahcj4 ,it was1 as has often been repeated1 the advance-guard of the ,russian army1 directed against the ,france of ,july1 which turned back against the main body4 ,although the count had taken no part in the insurrection1 the high rank of his family and the precocious maturity of his mind enabled him to profit by the particular position which he held near the prince1 whose arbitrary and unwise acts had contributed more than anything else to provoke the revolt4 ,he obtained from the brother of the emperor the order which separated the ,polish troops from the ,russian1 and gave a sort of method to the military movement1 which soon expanded into a national revolution4 ,believing himself freed now from all allegiance to the grand duke1 the young count took part in all the exploits of the campaign of #ahca--;a campaign which has left imperishable recollections in the minds of all who were living at that time4 ,for ten months all ,europe stood breathless1 gazing with deep and varied emotions on those fearful turns of fortune4 ,every incident produced vehement agitations at the ,french tribune1 in the streets of ,paris1 and even in the reviews held by the ,french king4 ,there was something both of heroic and legendary interest in this conflict1 so disproportioned yet so prolonged1 between a handful of brave men on the one side1 and the colossal resources of ,russia on the other--a conflict where the veteran comrades of ,dombrowski and ,poniatowski were led on by youths inflamed with holy zeal for their country's liberty1 where the first place was so long held by the ,generalissimo ,skrzynecki1 true paladin of the middle ages1 who always put in the orders of the day for his army prayers to the ,holy ,virgin as ,queen of ,poland1 and who1 brave in the field and devout at the altar1 was so pre-eminently hero1 ,christian1 and ,catholic4 ,i know not how upon this point the young ,poles of our own day stand2 but ,i know they would be faithless to the most noble examples of the heroes of #ahca if they should suffer themselves to be enervated by religious indifference1 or1 sadder still1 should they ever trail through the depths of atheism and modern materialism that banner which their ancestors never separated from the cross of ,jesus ,christ4 #feb ,when1 finally1 the countless masses which ,russia threw upon ,poland had dislodged the insurgents from all their positions2 when the attempts at intervention made by the ,french government were rendered nugatory by the icy and cynical indifference of ,lord ,palmerston2 ,footnote #aij when ,europe resigned herself to be a tranquil spectator at the sacrifice of a nation1 ,ladislas ,zamoyski1 firm to the end1 in the front rank of combatants1 holding then the grade of colonel1 laid down his arms with the last division of the ,polish army1 that of ,ramorino1 defeated in ,gallicia4 ,he crossed then the frontiers of that country which he was destined never more to see1 and came1 wounded and suffering1 but not less resolute than in the first days of his manhood1 to put himself at the disposal of his uncle1 ,prince ,adam ,czartoryski1 the venerable chief of the ,polish emigration1 as he had been president of their national government4 ,footnote #aij3 ,see the correspondence between ,prince ,talleyrand and ,lord ,palmerston on the ,polish question1 ,july1 #ahca1 in the documents submitted to the ,english parliament by order of the ,queen1 in #ahfa4 ,it was then that we saw him for the first time among us4 ,young1 tall1 commanding1 active1 and untiring1 he carried in his deportment and in those glorious wounds the credentials of his mission4 ,always occupied with the cause of his country1 but with a serenity and stability far beyond his years1 he attracted to himself all attention4 ,a solitary and embarrassed wanderer in a world which was so soon to grow heartlessly indifferent to ,poland1 he entered calmly and resolutely upon that obscure1 laborious1 and uncongenial path which honor and duty had traced for him4 ,i must be permitted here a just homage to that first ,polish emigration of #ahca1 which1 preceded by the members of the national government1 by the ,count ,platen and ,general ,kniacewicz1 and grouped about ,prince ,czartoryski1 the ,generals ,dembinski1 ,dwernicki1 ,rybinski1 and the former ministers1 ,malachowski and ,morawski1 have given us1 for nearly forty years1 such noble examples of fortitude and devotedness1 of modest dignity and magnanimous resignation4 ,how many of these yet remain to whom ,i can address this last testimony of an admiration which ,i shall always account among the most salutary and most lasting emotions of my life8 ,i owe to them a great good--the power to know and to comprehend the grandeur and beauty of a vanquished cause6 ,forced by circumstances to immolate everything in the worship of their assassinated country1 not one hesitated before this stern requisition4 ,rich and poor1 old and young1 citizens and soldiers1 all were called on for sacrifices painful and unexpected1 and none shrank back2 indeed1 to many the privations they were obliged to endure formed a strange contrast to their previous habits of prodigality and almost oriental luxury4 ,ladislas ,zamoyski was conspicuous in this career1 so new to himself and his comrades4 ,the subsidies which his friends forced him to accept were invariably reserved for some general object1 or divided among his less fortunate companions1 saying3 ,i learn every day to do without something4 ,one thing only did he guard carefully--his beloved sword1 as1 with juvenile navet1 he was accustomed to call it1 in the warm hope and belief that it might yet serve his country4 #fec ,the ,french refugees1 whom the ,edict of ,nantes expelled from their homes1 represented liberty of conscience odiously persecuted1 and by this title they won the active sympathies of all the ,protestant nations4 ,the ,irish emigrants1 who1 about the same time1 were the victims of an intolerance as bitter and inconsistent in ,protestant ,england1 found in ,france and ,spain places freely opened to them1 and which they honorably filled4 ,the ,french emigration of #agib represented not only loyalty to a monarchy1 but an entire social order1 whose end no one believed so near--an order which still reigned in nearly the whole of ,europe2 to this they owed1 at least during the first years of their exile1 the aid and support of all the powers affected or threatened by the ,revolution4 ,it was quite otherwise with the ,polish emigration of #ahca1 which1 nevertheless1 personified1 at one and the same time1 liberty both political and religious1 and1 more than all1 a grand people1 erased1 by injustice1 by a crime without a parallel1 from the list of nations1 and unanimous in protesting against that decree4 ,they received from perplexed and divided ,europe not one of those consolations and encouragements which it was their right to expect4 ,france and ,england had generous alms to solace needs purely material1 but nothing more4 ,ruled by a double fear--that of the ,muscovite preponderance from without1 and that of dangers from demagogues within--no statesman1 even the most liberal1 was able or willing to espouse the ,polish cause4 ,it was a sadder thing still that a misapprehension prevented their receiving a sympathy which otherwise would have been first offered4 ,beyond the little circle of liberal1 free-hearted ,catholics--a circle then very limited--the ,polish refugees1 victims of the most bitter persecutor of the church in the nineteenth century1 met no response from the religious world4 ,it was a time when ,catholic ,europe1 monarchical and aristocratic1 was miserably prostrate before the ,austria of ,prince ,metternich and the ,russia of the ,emperor ,nicholas4 ,consequently1 at ,paris1 and1 above all1 at ,rome1 there was to be caught not one glimpse of salvation4 ,there existed among the defenders of the throne and the altar an animosity to the ,poles truly revolting1 unjustifiable traces of which even yet remain4 ,it was the heaviest cross1 for a multitude of ,christian souls1 which the ,polish emigration hid in its bosom4 ,i have the right to speak of it1 for no one1 perhaps1 on this subject1 has received more mournful confidences1 and no one1 ,i venture to believe1 has done more to induce among ,catholics a happy change--a change commencing with the good and fatherly ,pope ,gregory ,,xvi41 and precisely on occasion of ,count ,ladislas ,zamoyski1 whom he was pleased1 at my request1 to encourage to visit him in ,rome4 ,footnote #aia ,footnote #aia3 ,until #ahcg1 no ,pole was allowed to enter ,rome1 without a passport vis by ,austria1 ,prussia1 or ,russia2 consequently1 this excluded the exiles of #ahcj4 ,but how time and efforts must fail in making reparation for this strange misunderstanding6 and how much it must have aggravated the sorrows inseparable from prolonged exile--those sorrows which every noble heart must comprehend1 even without having experienced them1 and which inspired1 in a sad1 gifted soul1 the last ray of its genius6 ,he passed1 a wanderer on earth4 ,may ,god guide the poor exile6 ,i move among the crowd2 they gaze at me1 and ,i at them1 yet each to each is unknown4 ,the exile is alone everywhere1 ,footnote #aib ,footnote #aib3 ,paroles d'un ,croyant4 #ahcc4 #fed ,count ,zamoyski1 always sincerely attached to the faith of his fathers1 even before the death of a beloved mother had developed in him a fervent piety1 lived long enough to witness this happy change in ,catholic opinion4 ,he had the consolation of seeing the entire church moved1 at the voice of its chief1 by the incomparable sufferings of ,poland4 ,in ,france1 at least1 every ,catholic worthy the name addressed prayers without ceasing to the divine mercy1 that the country of ,st4 ,hedwige and ,sobieski might one day resume her place1 free among the nations4 ,this harmony between the irrepressible aspirations of his patriotism and the daily increasing fervor of his religious sentiments threw over the last years of his life a warm and consoling light4 ,but before arriving in port1 how stormy the voyage6 ,bound by soul yet more than by the ties of blood to his uncle1 ,prince ,adam ,czartoryski1 he had been twenty-five years his lieutenant1 his coadjutor1 and the sharer of his fortunes2 like him1 too1 encountering continually repulse1 deception1 and injustice1 without being embittered or discouraged4 ,belgium1 always hospitable1 took full possession of her nationality in the same year1 #ahca1 when ,poland seemed to have lost hers4 ,she immediately opened the ranks of her army to ,count ,ladislas1 with the grade of colonel1 a position he had won on the bloody banks of the ,vistula4 ,for fifteen years ,footnote #aic he watched in vain for an opportunity to once more draw his sword in behalf of his own land1 or for some cause which might even indirectly serve her interests4 ,footnote #aic3 ,from #ahcb to #ahdg4 ,he was obliged to content himself with employing his intercourse with the political men of the two great constitutional countries1 to secure to the ,polish question1 in the order of the day1 some parliamentary discussion or some diplomatic bias1 and to obtain from the ,french chambers and the ,english parliament those periodical demonstrations which seemed to him so many protestations of right against the most odious of political crimes2 so many guarantees against a proscription which the sad destinies of men too often drew down on them1 to the profit and encouragement of injustice4 ,at length1 in #ahdf1 he thought he saw the dawn of better days4 ,in the short counterfeit alliance between ,pius ,,ix4 and ,italian liberty1 he hastened1 with sixty other ,polish officers1 to offer their devotedness and military experience to the new pontiff1 whom all believed menaced by ,austria even more than by the ,revolution4 ,from thence he passed as a volunteer into the army of ,charles ,albert1 and shared1 by the side of that noble and unfortunate sovereign1 in all the vicissitudes of the struggle between ,piedmont and ,austria4 ,austria1 we must remember1 at the time we speak of1 was not the liberal ,austria of the present day2 and no ,pole could look on this empire as aught save the author and accomplice of the calamities of his country4 ,piedmont being defeated and restricted to its ancient limits1 it was to ,hungary that ,count ,zamoyski next turned his steps4 ,hungary was then in a state of insurrection against ,austria1 but was also a victim herself to an insurrection of her ,sclavic population1 unwisely irritated4 ,to gain from ,hungary a recognition of the rights of these people--rights so misunderstood or ignored by the rest of ,europe--was the mission of ,count ,zamoyski1 and for which he was willing to confront new perils4 ,the ,russians1 however1 soon arrived1 and1 combining their armies with those of ,austria and with the revolted ,croats1 ,hungary was soon crushed4 #fee ,after the decisive defeat of ,teneswar1 the remnants of the ,polish legion passed into ,servia1 and from thence to ,turkey4 ,for two years he occupied himself here in disciplining those indomitable spirits for future contests2 for to the honor of the ,ottoman ,porte be it recorded that it refused the demands of the ,russian and ,austrian governments for the extradition of the ,polish and ,hungarian refugees4 ,during a short revisit which he made to ,france1 the ,eastern question arose1 and he immediately returned to ,turkey4 ,he took part1 with the rank of general1 in the campaign on the banks of the ,danube1 and through the entire ,crimean war devoted his strength1 his rare intelligence1 his military experience1 to forming regiments of ,polish ,cossacks1 ostensibly for the service of the sultan1 but indulging in the hope of seeing them ultimately admitted to the ranks of the allies4 ,in ,january1 #ahef1 the preliminaries of the ,peace of ,paris came to dash aside once more his patriotic day-dreams1 and to destroy every chance of resuscitation which had seemed offered to ,poland in this rupture1 so pompous but so fruitless1 between ,france and ,england and ,russia4 ,no adequate reason has yet been given for that blind delusion which prevented the powerful allies1 in #ahee1 or ,napoleon ,i41 in #ahab1 from using against ,russia the only power which she could not control1 to recall ,poland to that national existence which was her sacred right2 and which1 at the same time1 was the only efficient guarantee for the independence and security of ,europe4 ,made desperate by this thwarted expectation1 ,poland suffered herself1 in #ahfc1 to be drawn into that strenuous but unfortunate effort whose miserable consequences are in the memories of all4 ,count ,zamoyski1 now suffering with age and infirmities1 made one last attempt to prevail on ,england to unite in some kind of action with ,france1 and not to stand by in silence at those massacres and outrages which ,russia perpetrated with such impunity1 a mockery to the civilization of the nineteenth century4 ,he failed1 and this was his last attempt4 ,he died1 leaving ,europe more than ever exposed to perils he had warned her against1 more than ever recklessly serving the ,muscovite power4 ,he died1 seeing ,russia supremely powerful in the ,east1 and free to put the seal on all the bloody hypocrisies of her history3 here1 making the world resound with her solicitude for the civil and religious liberty of the ,cretans1 while she crushed out with her unholy foot the last palpitations of ,polish freedom1 and extirpated1 with infernal perfidy1 the last vestiges of ,polish ,catholic faith3 there1 instigating against regenerated ,austria a formidable conspiracy of her ,sclavic subjects1 while the highways and mines of ,siberia are strewn with the skeletons of heroic ,poles1 whose only crime was to spurn the yoke of those ,russians who are a hundred-fold less truly ,sclavic than their victims4 ,the history of ,count ,ladislas ,zamoyski is1 then1 a sad one2 it is the story of a life-long shipwreck4 ,all his designs were frustrated1 all his hopes deceived4 ,always hastening from disappointment to disappointment1 from defeat to defeat1 he wearied never1 paused never1 was successful never4 #fef ,deeming no sacrifice too great1 and no detail too minute for the service of his country1 he was prompt to avail himself of any circumstance or encounter any new risk which might gain for her a friend1 remove an error1 or stimulate in her behalf the indifferent4 ,self-armed against disasters1 he raised himself from each defeat with the tenacity of an old ,roman on the battle-field1 where he had been once overthrown1 to fall again1 wounded and crushed down by an implacable adversity4 ,it would seem as if so many trials1 mental and material1 public and private1 might suffice to fill that measure of suffering which is the lot of all below4 ,but no6 he had still to endure those which would appear more fittingly the portion of the idle and prosperous4 ,crippled with wounds and infirmities1 the last ten years of his life were passed in physical sufferings which made them one prolonged torture4 ,he endured1 during all this time1 the prolonged weariness1 the distastes1 the feebleness of failing health2 and he supported them with the same imperturbable patience1 the same tranquil and unconquerable courage1 which had sustained him through the sad vicissitudes of his public life4 ,how great the virtue1 crowned by those great sufferings6 ,there is in it a grand and mysterious lesson1 and one1 above all1 which ,god seems to have designed for our instruction and edification2 for his character more than his career at all times raised him far above the mass of human kind4 ,no one could approach him without feeling a profound respect before a strength of mind so determined1 a patience which never failed2 before that singular union of bravery and gentleness1 that generous sense of honor1 that equanimity1 that integrity4 ,rich in the domestic happiness which ,providence accorded to his declining years1 he was content to live1 content to suffer2 yet appreciating any relief1 and humbly thankful for those rare moments of respite which were permitted to his numerous infirmities4 ,without disavowing the aspirations of his youth1 he had purified and transformed them in the crucible of self-denial and sacrifice4 ,what remained to him of generous pride was so tempered that the most exacting could not have reproached him4 ,his ,christian fervor brightened as the chills of age encircled him2 and the destinies and well-being of the church inspired him no less than those of his country4 ,he gave a proof of this devotion in the past summer1 7#ahfg17 when1 so broken in health1 he went to ,rome to lay at the feet of ,pius ,,ix4 a last homage4 ,in the midst of those ftes of the ,centenary of ,st4 ,peter1 where were gathered the bishops and the faithful of the entire world1 except those bound fast and gagged by the ,muscovite autocrat1 ,ladislas ,zamoyski appeared1 like the living spectre of absent1 enchained ,poland4 ,nor was it only faith3 it was still more--charity--which animated this soul1 so ,christian and chivalrous4 ,how can we depict that compassion and generosity1 so irrepressible1 toward his destitute compatriots6 or how sufficiently admire that charity of forgiveness to his enemies--the pitiless enemies of his nation6 ,never one word of bitterness crossed his lips4 ,what is to be thought of the ,russians8 said a friend to him1 one day1 and how far are they implicated with the emperor8 ,i never judge them1 he replied3 ,i pray for them4 ,for us1 who are not bound to exercise such superhuman moderation1 who are witnesses and not victims of these atrocities1 we raise beside the tomb of this just man a cry of grief and indignant surprise4 ,usquequo1 ,domine sanctus et verus1 non judicas et non vindicas1 sanguinem nostrum de iis qui habitant in terr8 #feg ,how long1 ,o ,lord6 shall crime and falsehood triumph8 ,how long wilt thou leave unpunished this martyrdom of a ,christian nation1 which will soon have lasted an entire century8 ,but all rebellious thoughts against the tardiness of divine justice are checked1 all the poignancy of sorrow is subdued1 by the remembrance alone of the departed dead4 ,he is gone6 ,his long and cruel trials are over6 ,he has entered into light and peace6 ,he lives in the bosom of his ,god1 and his memory will be for ever cherished among men1 with the annals of his illustrious house and of his unfortunate country4 ,he leaves behind a name which will be a crown of glory to his children1 born in the land of exile where he died1 and rocked in their frail cradle on a stormy sea4 ,he leaves a sacred grief1 which is a treasure to her alone1 to the youthful and admirable woman who gave herself to him in his darkest hour2 the intrepid sharer in his vicissitudes and perils1 the loving and faithful consoler of his sufferings and decline1 and who enjoyed a happiness with him in this world which is to be interrupted only for a few brief days4 ,finally1 he leaves a great and profitable example to all who have known and loved him2 above all1 to those who1 subjected to slighter trials1 submit to them with less patience and less courage4 ---------- ,the ,catholic ,church ,and ,the ,bible4 ,does the ,catholic ,church condemn the ,bible and forbid her people to circulate and read it8 ,we answer3 ,,no6 ,on the contrary1 the ,catholic ,church believes the ,bible to be the inspired word of ,god himself1 and constantly incites her people to its diligent perusal4 ,in testimony of which1 we offer3 first1 her official declarations2 and second1 her unvarying practice4 ,first1 her official declarations4 ,the holy ,council of ,trent1 which closed its sessions in the year #aefd1 and whose canons and decrees are the voice of the universal church1 binding upon every ,catholic under pain of sin1 distinctly says3 ,the ,holy ,o,ecumenical and ,general ,council of ,trent1 444 following the example of the orthodox fathers1 does with due veneration and piety receive all the books of the ,old and the ,new ,testament1 of both which ,god himself is the immediate author4 444 ,and1 lest any doubt should exist as to what books this council has thus received1 a catalogue of the same is annexed to this decree4 7,here follows a list of the sacred books1 as found in4 ,english ,catholic ,bibles47 ,now1 if any one shall refuse to receive these books entire1 with all their parts1 according as they are accustomed to be read in the ,catholic ,church and are contained in the ancient ,latin ,vulgate edition1 as sacred and canonical1 444 let him be anathema4 ,footnote #aid ,footnote #aid3 ,can4 et ,dec4 ,conc4 ,trid4 ,sess4 iv4 #feh ,again1 the ,pope1 who1 as the head and mouth-piece of the ,catholic ,church1 administers its discipline and issues orders to which every ,catholic1 under pain of sin1 must yield obedience1 has positively declared1 that the faithful should be excited to the reading of the ,holy ,scriptures3 for these are the most abundant sources which ought to be left open to every one1 to draw from them purity of morals and of doctrine2 which declaration may be found in the preface to the ,english ,catholic ,bibles now in use4 ,second1 her unvarying practice4 ,the ,catholic ,church1 from the beginning1 has provided effectual means1 not only for the distribution of the ,bible among her people1 but also for their knowledge of the truths which it contains4 ,one of her holy orders is that of ,reader1 whose duty1 as her catechism says1 is to read the ,sacred ,scriptures to the people in a clear and distinct voice1 and to instruct them in the rudiments of faith4 ,footnote #aie ,footnote #aie3 ,catechism4 ,cone4 ,trid4 pars4 ii4 ,de ,ordin4 ,again1 from the beginning1 it has been made the daily duty of her priests and religious persons to recite the divine office1 which consists of psalms1 of readings from the ,bible1 and of prayers4 ,the new revision of this office made by ,gregory ,,vii41 in which its different parts were first collected into one volume1 became known as the ,breviary1 and is still so called4 ,from this was translated and compiled1 in great part1 the ,daily ,morning and ,evening ,prayer of the ,protestant ,episcopal ,church1 the epistles1 gospels1 lessons1 and psalms of which1 thus borrowed1 present1 as is well known1 so large a portion of the ,holy ,scriptures4 ,indeed1 the ,breviary is but the ,bible1 in a form adapted to devotional uses1 and illustrated with pious meditations and devout prayers4 ,before us lies a copy1 published in the year #afcb1 during the ,huguenotic wars and persecutions4 ,it bears the official order of the great ,richelieu2 and1 as we turn over its leaves1 we find that a large part of the whole ,bible is embraced within its pages1 and we perceive that as long as this book can be found in the hands of all her clergy1 and is accessible to every one who seeks it1 so long1 within the borders of the ,catholic ,church at least1 the ,holy ,scriptures will be widely circulated and intimately known4 ,again1 in every age1 the most eminent and pious of the pastors and scholars of the ,catholic ,church have devoted their lives to the study and explanation of the ,bible4 ,the sermons of the first eight centuries were principally oral commentaries on the sacred text4 ,the great libraries of valuable ,christian works1 which have come down to us from the primitive church1 are made up of volumes directly based on ,holy ,scripture4 ,their writers are well known as men of great intellect1 of unwearied zeal1 of deep and humble piety4 ,look at this list of some of them3 ,in the second century1 ,pantaenus1 ,clement of ,alexandria1 and ,origen2 in the third century1 ,pierius1 ,pamphilus1 ,hesychius1 and ,eusebius2 in the fourth century1 ,hilary1 ,ambrose1 ,jerome1 ,augustin1 ,chrysostom1 and ,ephrem2 in the fifth century1 ,cyril1 ,theodoret1 and ,isidore of ,pelusium2 in the sixth century1 ,gregory the ,great1 ,cassiodorus1 ,procopius1 and ,primasius2 in the seventh century1 ,maximus1 ,isidore of ,seville1 ,julian of ,toledo1 and ,john ,damascene2 in the eighth century1 ,venerable ,bede1 ,alcuin1 and ,rabanus ,maurus2 in the ninth century1 ,christian ,druthmar1 ,walafridus ,strabo1 ,remigius of ,auxerre1 and ,sedulius2 in the tenth century1 ,o,ecumenius and ,olympiodorus2 in the eleventh century1 ,nicetas1 ,lanfranc1 and ,theophylact2 in the twelfth century1 ,euthymius1 ,anselm1 and ,rupert2 in the thirteenth century1 the great ,thomas ,aquinas and ,hugo de ,sancto ,caro2 in the fourteenth century1 ,nicholas de ,lyra1 ,paul of ,burgos1 and ,gerson2 in the fifteenth century1 ,laurentius ,valla1 ,tostatus1 ,denis the ,carthusian1 ,marsilius1 and ,le ,fvre3 in the sixteenth century1 ,cornelius ,lapide1 ,maldonatus1 and ,jansen of ,ghent2 in the seventeenth century1 ,natalis ,alexander and ,john ,baptist du ,hamel2 in the eighteenth century1 the learned ,calmet1 of whose work the famous ,dr4 ,adam ,clarke has written3 ,this is1 without exception1 the best comment on the sacred writings ever published1 either by ,catholics or ,protestants4 ,footnote #aif ,footnote #aif3 ,horne's ,introduction4 ,vol4 ii4 part4 iii4 chap4 ,v4 sec4 iii4 #c1 ,am4 ed4 #ahcf4 #fei ,certainly1 no age1 illuminated with such lights as these1 deserves to be called dark2 no people1 taught by such teachers1 could ever have been ignorant4 ,and when we remember that1 as an eminent ,protestant clergyman has said1 the writings of the dark ages are made of the ,scriptures2 not merely1 that the writers constantly quoted the ,scriptures1 and appealed to them as authority on all occasions1 but that they thought and spoke and wrote the thoughts and words and phrases of the ,bible1 and that they did this constantly as the natural mode of expressing themselves1 7,the ,dark ,ages4 ,by ,rev1 ,s4 ,r4 ,maidand1 ,d4,d4 ,london1 #ahec27 and remember1 further1 that this could not be so1 unless the people who wrote and those who read alike had free access to ,holy ,scripture both possessing the books and being permitted to circulate and use them1 we shall be far enough from believing that in the ,catholic ,church the ,bible has ever been a hidden book1 or that the doors of its rich treasure-house were ever closed to men4 ,again1 the efforts of the ,catholic ,church to preserve and perpetuate the ,bible have been unceasing4 ,as early as the fourth century1 by the direction of ,pope ,damasus1 ,st4 ,jerome entered on the work of preparing a full and perfect copy of the ,scriptures4 ,he devoted twelve years to the study of the ,hebrew1 ,syriac1 and other oriental languages4 ,he collected at ,jerusalem and in the ,east all the most accurate versions1 both of the ,old and ,new ,testaments4 ,from these1 revised1 compared1 and corrected with each other1 he prepared that ,latin version which is commonly called the ,vulgate1 and which1 as all biblical critics allow1 is the most perfect and complete copy of the ,bible which now exists4 ,during the period between the fourth and sixteenth centuries1 every great monastery 7and ,europe was full of them7 had its scriptorium1 or writing-chamber1 in which copies of the ,scriptures were constantly produced4 ,of the #adjj manuscripts of the ,new ,testament which are now extant1 not one was written earlier than the fourth century1 or by other than ,catholic hands2 and ,protestants themselves have no higher origin for their ,scriptures than these ,catholic copies1 and no surer ground of reliance on their accuracy than the fidelity and learning of ,catholic scholars4 ,how easy1 if the ,catholic ,church condemned the ,bible1 would it have been to neglect this multiplication of the sacred books1 and to silently destroy existing copies6 ,yet those who depend altogether on her labors for their boasted ,scripture1 have said1 and still will say1 that she fears the ,bible and would gladly banish it from men4 ,but when the age of printing came1 her efforts were redoubled4 #ffj ,according to the popular idea1 translations of the ,scripture into the vulgar tongues were never made before the ,reformation1 or even till long after it1 by ,catholics4 ,nothing could be more false4 ,the ,bible1 either wholly or in part1 had been translated and published in no less than seven of the common languages of ,europe1 before ,luther and his ,reform were ever dreamed of4 ,in the year #adff a translation into ,german was printed1 copies of which still exist4 ,this translation passed through sixteen different editions at ,strasburg1 ,nuremberg1 and ,augsburg1 in the course of a few years1 and was followed by another translation1 of which three editions were published at ,wittemberg in #adgj1 #adhc1 and #adij2 two at ,cologne in #adgj and #adhj2 one at ,lubeck in #adid2 one at ,haberstadt in #aebb2 and one each at ,mayence1 at ,strasburg1 and at ,basle1 in #aeag4 ,luther first published his translation in #aecj1 nine years after the ,diet at ,worms and twelve years after he had turned ,reformer4 ,before his time1 therefore1 there were no less than twenty-seven different editions of the ,bible in the ,german language in circulation among the people1 besides almost innumerable editions in ,latin1 a tongue with which the clergy and the learned of that age were well acquainted4 ,in the year #adga a translation of the ,bible into ,italian was printed both at ,rome and ,venice1 and passed through thirteen different editions before the year #aebe4 ,two different translations into ,french were also published2 one in #adgh1 which was printed in seventeen successive editions before #aedf2 and the other in #aeab1 which also passed through many editions4 ,in #adgh a translation into ,spanish was published1 which was reprinted in #aeae with the express sanction of the ,spanish ,inquisition4 ,in #adge1 a translation into ,flemish was published at ,cologne1 of which seven new editions were printed before #aecj4 ,in #adhh1 the ,bible1 in the ,bohemian language1 was printed at ,prague1 and again produced at ,cutna in #adih1 and at ,venice in #aejf and #aeaa4 ,an edition in ,sclavonian was also published at ,cracow in the first part of the same century4 ,add to these the different versions made in the dark ages1 and you have no less than twenty-two translations and seventy printed editions of the ,holy ,scriptures in the vulgar tongues of ,england1 ,germany1 ,france1 ,spain1 ,italy1 and ,sweden1 prepared by the ,catholic pastors and scholars of ,europe1 and distributed among their people1 before ,luther and his ,bible were ever heard of4 ,when ,protestant historians relate that this renowned ,reformer never saw a ,bible till he was twenty years of age1 and had been a student at the university upward of two years1 and depict his wonder and delight at its discovery1 7,hist4 ,ref4 ,d',aubign1 vol4 i4 p4 #aca17 we hardly know whether to condemn the ignorance of the ,reformer or the dishonesty of the historian1 one of which must be true4 ,circumstances certainly seem to cast the odium of falsehood on the latter1 rather than that of unparalleled stupidity upon the former4 ,after the ,reformation began1 the ,catholic ,church applied herself to preserve and perpetuate the ,scriptures with the same diligence and zeal as of old4 ,a new translation into ,german appeared in #aecd1 and passed through twenty different editions within the century4 ,another was printed in #aecg1 and also passed through several editions4 ,still another was published in #afcj1 and during the past fifty years there have been several others4 ,between the years #aebe and #aefg1 eight different editions of the ,italian translation of #adga were printed1 with the formal permission of the ,holy ,office at ,rome4 #ffa ,another translation appeared in #aecb1 which passed through ten editions within twenty years4 ,another still was published in #aech1 #aedf1 and #aedg1 and more recently there have been several others2 the principal of which is that of ,antony ,martini1 which in #aggh received the written endorsement and recommendation of ,pope ,pius ,,vi4 ,thirty-nine different editions of the ,french translation of ,le ,fvre1 as revised by the doctors of ,louvain1 were published between #aeej and the year #agjj1 since which latter date many new versions1 and many reprints of former versions1 have appeared in ,france2 of one of which the great ,bossuet is said to have distributed fifty thousand copies with his own hands4 ,in ,spain1 likewise1 the ,bible1 and especially the ,new ,testament1 has been frequently reprinted4 ,the most famous ,spanish edition is the renowned ,polyglot ,bible of ,cardinal ,ximenes1 in six folio volumes1 published at ,alcala in #aeae4 ,in the year #aehb1 the ,new ,testament in ,english was issued from ,rheims1 and in #afji1 the ,old ,testament1 in the same language1 was printed at ,douay1 the two together forming the ,douay ,bible1 an edition which1 if not the most elegant in phraseology1 is still generally admitted by all critics to be more faithful and correct than any other version in the ,anglo-,saxon tongue4 ,this latter version has appeared in almost every form1 from the largest and most ornate to the smallest and least expensive1 and may be found in almost every ,catholic family which possesses the ability to read it4 ,nearly the same may be said of all other versions in the common languages of the present age4 ,they were intended not for the learned1 but for the people4 ,the encouragement which they received came from the people1 not in opposition to1 but in consequence of1 the permission and recommendation of the pastors of the church3 and it is simply incredible that all these different translations should have been made1 and these numerous editions printed1 unless the ,bible had been freely read and freely circulated among the ,catholic masses both of ,europe and ,america4 ,so far1 therefore1 from ever hiding the ,holy ,scriptures1 or even keeping them in the background1 history proves1 beyond the possibility of doubt or denial1 that the ,catholic ,church has always occupied the foremost position in the preservation and diffusion of the written word of ,god2 and that to her efforts1 and to her efforts alone1 is due not only the continued existence of the ,bible itself1 but also of those vast treasures of research and investigation which tend to throw light upon its meaning1 and enforce its teachings on the hearts of those who read it2 nay more1 that ,protestants themselves possess a ,bible1 only so far as the same church has bestowed it on them2 and that their commentaries and expositions are but mere digests and abridgments of the laborious and extensive works of ,catholic philosophers and theologians4 ,how1 then1 when the ,council of ,trent--which is the unerring voice of the universal church--when the ,pope1 who is the head and ruler of the faithful--when the unvarying practice of all ages of ,catholics throughout the world--proclaims that the ,catholic ,church believes the ,bible to be the inspired word of ,god1 and one of the great means for the enlightenment and instruction of mankind--how1 then1 can ,protestants ask whether the ,catholic ,church condemns the ,bible1 and forbids its members to circulate and read it8 ,does not all history answer them8 #ffb ,do not thousands of sermons1 homilies1 and commentaries answer them8 ,do not hundreds of translations1 scattered over all ages and all lands1 answer them8 ,does not their own possession of the ,bible at the present day1 which they profess to prize so highly1 and for which they are indebted to that same church1 answer them8 ,how1 then1 can they believe those slanders which have1 for so many years1 been uttered against the church of ,god in reference to the ,scriptures8 ,above all1 how can they repeat them1 after the often made and complete demonstration of their falsehood8 ,still it is asked1 ,what1 then1 about these ,bible burnings1 this actual hinderance1 in particular instances1 to the use of the ,bible8 ,and why does not the ,catholic ,church join with the great ,bible societies of the age in the diffusion of the ,bible1 or at least form societies of her own for the same purpose8 ,these are important questions1 and questions1 too1 which must be answered1 if the preceding demonstration would have its full effect upon the mind2 and for this reason we will now consider them4 ,what is the ,bible8 ,very few ,protestants ever seem to know1 or at least to remember1 what the ,bible really is4 ,most of those whom we have met appear to regard it as a book1 delivered in its present form directly by ,god to man4 ,but this is not so4 ,on the contrary1 the ,bible is a collection of different books1 written at various periods during the space of more than fifteen hundred years4 ,some of them were originally in ,hebrew1 some in ,chaldaic1 some in ,greek4 ,they had no less than thirty-six different authors1 most of whom were widely separated from each other either in place or time2 and they were neither collected into one volume nor arranged in the shape of the present ,bible1 until many years after the establishment of the ,christian church4 ,now1 it is evident that1 when we say1 ,the ,bible is inspired1 ,the ,bible is the word of ,god1 we mean just this1 and nothing more1 namely1 that the original manuscript1 which any one of these authors wrote with his own hand1 exactly as dictated to him by the ,holy ,ghost1 was inspired1 and contained the revelation of ,god4 ,when a copy of that original manuscript was made1 the copy was not inspired4 ,if it precisely corresponded with its original1 it would give a perfectly correct idea of that original2 if it differed from it1 it would1 so far1 fail to give such idea2 and would1 to that extent1 fail to be a sure guide to the knowledge of the written word of ,god4 ,so with a translation2 if it rendered the ideas contained in the original manuscript into another language so exactly that a reader of the translation would receive precisely the same impressions that were intended to be conveyed by the original--supposing them to be rightly understood by him--then would the translation1 in its turn1 make known the exact truth of ,god4 ,but if there was in this the smallest deviation1 and the ideas imparted by it were not precisely those imparted by the original1 then it would not convey the word of ,god4 ,and since not one of these original manuscripts is now preserved1 it becomes evident that there is not an inspired book in existence2 but1 at the best1 only copies and translations of books that were inspired1 but have long ago been lost or destroyed4 #ffc ,but even these copies which we now possess are not first copies1 made directly from the original manuscripts themselves4 ,moses wrote his five books of the ,old ,testament upward of three thousand years ago2 and the oldest existing copy of them was made within the past nine hundred years4 ,how many successive generations of copies1 so to speak1 filled up the intermediate two thousand years1 no one can tell4 ,the same is true1 in their degree1 of the remaining books2 copy of these also being made from copy1 and so on1 until the art of printing was discovered4 ,all of these copies1 both of the ,old and the ,new ,testament1 were made by hand1 in rude characters1 and with ruder implements1 while languages were constantly changing1 and different ideas were being conveyed to different generations by the same words and phrases4 ,from these copies all of the modern translations have been made1 and these translations are the ,bible1 as commonly read and circulated among men4 ,now1 we ask in all candor1 what certainty there is1 on ,protestant grounds1 that any of these modern translations is the real word of ,god8 ,to be such1 the translation must be an infallible rendering from the copy2 the copy must have been exactly like the preceding copy1 and that1 again1 exactly like its predecessor1 and so on back to the original inspired manuscript itself4 ,and are ,protestants so certain of this1 that they have any right to feel sure that1 when they open their ,bible1 the ideas which they receive are precisely those which ,god intended that the words of ,moses1 ,samuel1 ,daniel1 or the ,evangelists should convey8 ,and yet1 unless they are sure of it1 how can they really believe what they read in it1 and stake the salvation of their souls on the correctness and fidelity of copies and translations1 about which they can never1 by any possible evidence short of a new revelation1 become satisfied8 ,our object is not1 however1 to destroy faith in the ,bible as the word of ,god1 7a truth which1 on ,catholic grounds1 is thoroughly demonstrable17 although it is worth while to reflect on the difficulties which surround the attempt to make it the sole teacher of divine revelation2 but to call to mind how important1 how absolutely necessary1 it is1 that the ,bible which we read should be a true translation from a correct copy of the original inspired book4 ,and we think the reader will agree with us when we say1 that the greatest care to secure correctness is none too great1 and the most rigid exclusion of all erroneous1 or even suspicious1 copies and translations cannot be too rigid2 but that1 on the contrary1 it is the duty of every ,christian to obtain1 and of the ,christian church to provide1 the very best and most perfect ,bibles possible2 and then to abandon and condemn all others4 ,and this is exactly what the ,catholic ,church has always done and is doing at this day4 ,we have already mentioned the labors of ,st4 ,jerome4 ,this holy man lived at an age when most of the old manuscripts were still existing1 when those copies of the ,old ,testament which had been in use during the life of ,christ had not all perished1 and when the originals of the ,new ,testament1 or1 at least1 copies of them which had been made under apostolic supervision1 were still attainable4 ,all these1 and many others--,hebrew1 ,syro-,chaldaic1 ,greek1 ,latin1 and ,syriac--he collected1 and1 having thoroughly compared them with each other1 and restored the original text to its highest possible purity1 he translated it into the ,latin tongue1 which was then1 and probably always will be1 the most definite and expressive of human languages4 #ffd ,this translation is called the ,vulgate4 ,it is the most complete and accurate version of the ,bible in existence1 and the only one which was made from the originals1 or first copies1 of the ,new ,testament1 and from authoritative copies of the ,old4 ,protestant critics have said of it3 ,the ,vulgate may be reasonably pronounced1 upon the whole1 a good and faithful version4 ,footnote #aig ,it is allowed to be1 in general1 a faithful translation1 and sometimes exhibits the sense of ,scripture with greater accuracy than the more modern versions4 ,footnote #aih ,the ,latin ,vulgate preserves many true readings where the modern ,hebrew copies are corrupted4 ,footnote #aii ,it is in general skilful and faithful1 and often gives the sense of ,scripture better than modern versions4 ,footnote #bjj ,footnote #aig3 ,campbell's ,dissertations on the ,gospels4 ,diss4 ,x4 part iii4 #aj4 ,footnote #aih3 ,horne's ,int4 ,vol4 i4 p4 i4 ch4 iii4 iii4 p4 #bgg4 ,am4 ed4 #ahcf4 ,footnote #aii3 ,ibid4 ,footnote #bjj3 ,gerard's ,institutes4 ,chap4 iv4 sec4 #d1 p4 #hb4 ,am4 ed4 #ahbc4 ,this most excellent ,vulgate edition is the very one which the ,catholic ,church has sanctioned as the authorized text of ,scripture4 ,the ,council of ,trent decreed1 that the ancient and ,vulgate edition 444 should be deemed authentic in public readings1 disputes1 sermons1 and expositions1 and that no one should dare or presume1 on any pretext1 to reject it4 ,footnote #bja ,footnote #bja3 ,sess4 iv4 ,moreover1 as the original manuscript of ,st4 ,jerome was no more imperishable than others which had gone before it1 and as it could be perpetuated only in copies1 the church has put forth every effort to secure these in abundance and perfection4 ,they were all written in her own monasteries1 under the very eyes of her priests and bishops4 ,they have been subject to constant and thorough revision4 ,when printing was invented1 and ,bibles began to multiply on every side1 7some of them filled with dangerous errors and perversions17 she remedied this evil by stringent legislation4 ,thus1 the same council says3 ,desiring to impose some limit upon printers in this matter1 who1 444 without licenses from their ecclesiastical superiors1 do print these books of ,holy ,scripture1 444 this ,holy ,synod decrees and declares1 that hereafter the ,holy ,scriptures1 and especially the ancient and ,vulgate edition1 shall be printed with the utmost exactness2 and that it shall be lawful for no one to print1 or to have printed1 any books concerning sacred things1 444 unless they shall have been examined and approved by the ordinary4 444 ,this approval shall be given in writing1 and shall appear1 either written or printed1 authentically in the front of the book2 and both the approval and the examination shall be made gratis1 to the end that good things may be countenanced and evil things condemned4 ,footnote #bjb ,footnote #bjb3 ,sess4 iv4 ,in this manner has the ,catholic ,church secured the preservation of the pure text of ,scripture4 ,starting at an age when it was possible1 if it ever was1 to obtain an exact version of the word of ,god1 she1 by the hand of ,st4 ,jerome1 prepared one which has stood the test of the most hostile criticism4 ,exercising over this her constant vigilance1 she brought it down to the age of printing4 ,then1 rigidly excluding all editions which could not undergo the most searching scrutiny1 she openly endorses all those which are genuine and faithful1 so that the ,catholic reader of to-day1 seeing in his ,latin ,bible the approval of his bishop1 and knowing that no bishop could sanction any false version without being immediately discovered and punished1 knows also that what he reads and studies is the ,holy ,scripture1 as ,moses and the prophets wrote it1 as ,christ and his apostles used it1 and as the church of all ages has received it4 #ffe ,advancing one step further1 the care of the church next manifests itself in the ,bibles for the people4 ,these are1 of necessity1 translations into the vulgar tongues4 ,they are all made from the ,vulgate by persons duly authorized for the purpose1 and must also be certified as correct by ecclesiastical authority1 before they can be printed1 sold1 or read4 ,take1 for instance1 the ,english translation1 commonly called the ,douay ,bible4 ,this version was prepared by some of the most eminent ,english scholars on the continent of ,europe1 who possessed a wide acquaintance with the ,greek and ,hebrew as well as with the ,latin and more modern tongues4 ,this version is admitted by all critics to be exact and literal1 and to exhibit1 as far as a translation can do so1 the precise sense of the original text of ,scripture4 ,it has received the approbation of the ,holy ,see and of innumerable bishops2 and every new edition bears the official recommendation of the ecclesiastical superior1 who vouches for its completeness and its purity4 ,it is hardly possible that1 with all these precautions1 the ,douay ,bible should fail to be1 in fidelity of rendering1 the most perfect copy of the ,scriptures that exists in the ,english tongue4 ,but the ,catholic ,church has not stopped even here4 ,no one denies that in the ,bible there are many passages difficult to understand1 and that it is impossible for those who have no access to the original manuscript and no opportunities for critical research1 to ascertain the true meaning of these passages without external aid4 ,the object of commentaries and expositions is to supply this aid2 but these have long ago grown so voluminous and costly as to be beyond the reach of ordinary men4 ,and so1 to meet this final difficulty1 the church accompanies every translation into a vulgar tongue with proper notes and comments1 prepared by competent and pious persons1 for the illustration of the sacred text4 ,from this brief sketch of what the ,catholic ,church has done concerning the ,bible1 it will be perceived3 #a4 ,that the church possesses1 in the ,latin ,vulgate1 the earliest1 purest1 and most exact version of the ,holy ,scriptures which exists in the whole world2 #b4 ,that her translations of the ,vulgate into the languages of the people present them with the purest and most exact version of the ,bible which they can possibly obtain2 #c4 ,that by her notes and comments she affords to them freedom from serious error and mistake in their perusal of the sacred text4 ,now1 for a moment1 let us turn to the ,bibles which ,protestantism offers1 and inquire as to their reliability4 ,the ordinary translations of ,protestants are made from ,greek and ,hebrew manuscripts4 ,these manuscripts1 as we have seen1 are copies1 not originals1 and1 of course1 are not inspired4 ,they are1 therefore1 reliable so far as they present the exact ideas presented by their originals1 and no further2 and the fidelity with which they do this depends1 in a great measure1 upon their own antiquity and their nearness to the originals themselves4 ,but not a manuscript of the ,old ,testament in ,hebrew now exists which dates back further than the eleventh century4 ,the oldest extant ,greek manuscripts of the ,new ,testament are not older than the fourth century2 and these are confessedly imperfect1 and1 in some places1 entirely wanting4 #fff ,out of these manuscripts and later ones1 however1 ,protestant translators are first compelled to select a text which shall represent1 as near as they can make it do so1 the original ,greek and ,hebrew1 and then1 from this text make their translation4 ,to the first translation this work presented no small difficulties4 ,they were unskilled in the languages in which these manuscripts were written4 the manuscripts disagreed extensively among themselves1 and many of them were without lines or punctuation marks1 and in characters long fallen into disuse4 ,it is not surprising1 therefore1 that the first ,protestant versions were1 both in the text and in the translation1 exceedingly erroneous1 and in some portions1 utterly unreliable4 ,most of these difficulties have vanished with advancing years4 ,protestant scholars have become versed in ,greek and ,hebrew4 ,they have learned to read with accuracy the ancient characters in which the manuscripts were written1 and their extensive research among the various versions has done much to clear their text from ambiguity4 ,but the fact still remains1 that the best ,greek or ,hebrew text1 which they can reach1 is later by many centuries1 and more fallible by numerous successive copyings1 than those from which the ,latin ,vulgate was prepared2 and1 consequently1 can bear no comparison in purity and genuineness with that which ,st4 ,jerome produced from the first copies1 if not from the originals themselves1 of the ,new ,testament1 and from versions of the ,old1 which ,christ had sanctioned by his personal use4 ,and it is this difference1 between the sources of the text of ,catholic and ,protestant ,bibles1 which gives the ,catholic version its deserved preeminence1 and has won for it the encomiums to which we have referred4 ,extending our view to the translations made and used by ,protestants we perceive this difference still subsisting4 ,most of these were the result of private enterprise1 and never have received the sanction of great ecclesiastical authority4 ,even the ordinary ,english1 or ,king ,james version1 7which is the one in common circulation in this country17 was a private venture of the king whose name it bears2 and though indorsed by him as the head of the state church of ,england1 it has never received the approval of any authority which can strictly be called ecclesiastical4 ,the people who now use it have no other guarantee of its correctness than the fact that their fathers used it before them4 ,they look in vain for any mark upon its pages which shall assure them1 on an authority they know to be reliable1 that what they read is the true word of ,god4 ,on the contrary1 if they examine their own writers1 they find the sentiment prevailing the the king's version is not the word of ,god4 ,it is accused of being without fidelity1 ambiguous and incorrect1 even in matters of the highest importance2 ,footnote #bjc and a well-known commentator has even said1 ,that it is not so just a representation of the inspired originals1 as merits to be implicitly relied on for determining the controverted articles of the ,christian faith4 ,footnote #bjd ,footnote #bjc3 ,horne's ,int4 ,bibliographical ,appendix1 p4 #cg1 ,am4 ed4 #ahcf4 ,footnote #bjd3 ,macknight4 ,general ,preface to ,epistles1 sec1 #b1 vol i4 p4 #bf1 ,am4 ed4 #ahaj4 ,these general statements are applicable to other ,protestant translations as well as to the ,english4 ,none of them are perfect1 or are even claimed to be so4 ,each is in turn vilified and condemned by the authors of the others2 and not one of them has yet received the sanction of such an authority as can assure the reader that he will find upon its pages the revelations of ,god4 ,footnote #bje ,footnote #bje3 ,in #ahcc1 the ,rev4 ,t4 ,curtis1 an ,english ,protestant clergyman1 published a work ,on the ,errors and ,corruptions in ,modern ,protestant ,bibles4 ,the work contains ,four ,letters to the ,hon4 and ,rt4 ,rev4 the ,lord ,bishop of ,london1 with specimens of the intentional and other departures from the authorized standard1 to which is added a postscript1 containing the complaints of a ,london committee of ministers on the subject2 the reply of the universities1 and a report on the importance of the alterations made4 ,in the course of his work1 ,mr4 ,curtis gives various instances of the largest church ,bibles found very erroneous4 ,on one occasion an important part of a text he had taken in the lesson of the day1 to his great astonishment was not in the church ,bible when he came to read the lesson4 ,in a note on the same page1 ,mr4 ,curtis says3 ,the church ,bible still in use in the parish church of ,st4 ,mary's1 ,islington1 is a remarkably erroneous one4 ,a clergyman1 who some years ago officiated in this parish1 assured me he was occasionally at a loss to proceed in reading the lessons from it4 ,one passage 7l ,john i4 #d7 has1 ,i have reason to believe1 been read erroneously in this church four times a year for many years4 ,mr4 ,curtis says1 7page #hj17 ,the ,british and ,foreign ,bible ,society have never circulated a single copy of the ,scriptures that has not contained ,,thousands of intentional departures from the authorized version6 ,who can now say with truth that the pure word of ,god is read or heard in ,protestant churches or families8 #ffg ,here1 then1 the matter comes to a distinct issue between the ,catholic and ,protestant ,churches4 ,the ,catholic ,church has a reliable and accurate text from which to translate2 a competent and literal translation1 containing all sufficient notes and explanations2 and never publishes a copy of even this without the express sanction of one whom her people know to be able to judge and impartially to decide on its fidelity and truth4 ,the ,protestant churches1 on the other hand1 have a text confessedly corrupt and unreliable2 innumerable contradictory translations1 each of which is admitted to be1 in many respects1 erroneous1 and none of which enjoys the sanction of any spiritual authority4 ,how could the ,catholic ,church do less than to command those of her children who wish to read the ,bible1 to read the one which she has provided for them8 ,how could she do less than expose to them the faults and errors of the ,protestant translations1 and forbid their use by the faithful8 ,what right would this church1 what right would any church1 have to be called a spiritual guide1 if1 having the pure wheat herself1 she permitted those who follow her to feed on coarse grain1 gathered from the store-house of her enemies8 ,in reference to such a matter1 reason and common-sense dictate a rigidly exclusive policy2 and that is just the policy which has been1 and is now1 pursued by the ,catholic ,church4 ,her rules are few and simple1 but sufficient4 ,they are these3 #a4 ,that those who would read the ,scriptures in a vulgar tongue must read a ,catholic version4 #b4 ,that not only must this version be a ,catholic one1 but it must also have been approved by the proper spiritual authority4 #c4 ,that the version must not only be ,catholic and properly approved1 but must be accompanied by approved notes and explanations4 #d4 ,that those who in the judgment of their pastors would derive more hurt than good from the perusal of the ,scriptures1 may be forbidden to read them altogether4 ,strict as these rules may seem1 we believe that any one who reviews the reasons for them will now say1 that at least the first three of them are eminently just1 and that the ,catholic ,church1 in prescribing and enforcing them1 has acted wisely and for the best interests of men4 ,and when we further state that she has never prevented the circulation of any ,bible1 or taken any ,bible from her people1 or burned any ,bible1 except those false1 imperfect translations which1 so far as they are imperfect1 are not the word of ,god1 we believe that it will be admitted that in this also she has done nothing but her duty toward the people committed to her care4 #ffh ,but that the fourth rule is also just1 we think a moment's reflection will determine4 ,at the date of the ,reformation1 as we have seen1 the ,bible had been largely printed in many languages4 ,when ,luther and the other reformers began to preach1 they pointed to their own translations of the ,scriptures as the sole divine authority1 and bade all the people to read them and examine for themselves4 ,and hence arose a ,babel of religions1 of which we1 at this day1 can form no adequate conception4 ,text was pitted against text1 author against author4 ,men claimed the most outrageous license under the name of ,christian liberty4 ,the sacred words of ,god were bandied from mouth to mouth in jest and song and ribaldry4 ,the contagion spread even into the borders of the ,catholic ,church4 ,the danger was most imminent that1 by this fearful abuse1 men might lose all respect1 not only for true learning1 but also for the ,bible and for ,christianity itself4 ,it became absolutely necessary to put a check somewhere2 and the ,council of ,trent1 therefore1 decreed that in order to repress all that rashness by which the words of ,holy ,scripture are turned about and perverted to profane uses1 to wit1 to buffoonery1 to fables1 vanities1 detractions1 impious superstitions1 devilish incantations1 divinations1 lots1 and even impious libels1 no one should dare to take the words of ,holy ,scripture in any manner for these uses1 but that all such presumers upon1 and violators of1 the word of ,god1 should be punished4 ,footnote #bjf ,footnote #bjf3 ,sess4 iv4 ,when further measures became necessary1 on account of the increasing turmoil and disputes1 the rule which we have cited was adopted2 a rule under which no one who is able to be profited by the reading of the ,bible was ever hindered from perusing it1 and by which1 probably1 thousands who1 but for it1 might have made utter shipwreck of their souls through the abuse of ,god's holy word1 have been saved from pride and error4 ,but this rule is now virtually rescinded4 ,the occasion for its exercise has long since passed away4 ,the increasing learning of biblical scholars1 the progress of intelligence among the masses1 the subsidence of the wild storm of fanaticism and impiety which marked the age of its enactment1 have removed the necessity for enforcing it2 and the sole restraint now placed upon the reading of the ,scriptures1 is that contained in those three rules which we have seen to be so wise and just4 ,how then1 when no conditions are imposed upon the use of the original ,greek1 ,hebrew1 or ,latin texts of ,scripture1 and when only such ones are imposed upon the use of popular translations as tend to give the people a more accurate and reliable version of the word of ,god1 how can it be said1 with even the semblance of truth1 that the ,catholic ,church forbids or even discourages the reading of the ,bible2 or how can it be denied that1 in providing her children with complete and accurate ,bibles1 she has given them every inducement to their careful and continued study8 ,but now we think we hear it asked1 with redoubled earnestness3 ,if the ,catholic ,church possesses the most perfect of all copies of the ,bible1 and really desires it to be read among her people1 why does she not coperate with the existing ,bible societies in its diffusion1 or1 at least1 form such societies of her own8 #ffi ,the answer is an easy one4 ,the commandment which the ,catholic ,church received from ,christ was1 ,go into all the world and preach the ,gospel1 not ,go1 distribute ,bibles2 and the commandment which she received she has obeyed4 ,the energies1 the money1 which ,protestants would have expended in printing and circulating translations of the ,scriptures1 she has expended in founding churches1 hospitals1 convents1 and seminaries1 and in providing the whole world with missionaries1 by whose labors1 nations1 to whom the ,bible could have no access1 have been subjugated to the faith4 ,she recognizes but one means for the conversion of mankind1 and that is1 the voice of the living teacher2 and never can she substitute another in its stead4 ,moreover1 ,god gave the sacred books of the ,old ,testament to his own ,israel1 not to heathens4 ,our ,lord1 through his apostles1 bestowed on ,christians1 not on pagans1 the inestimable treasures of the ,new4 ,the ,bible is for those who believe already1 for the man of ,god1 that he may be thoroughly furnished unto all good works1 not for the infidel and heathen1 who perhaps read it1 but are infidels and heathens still4 ,such is the will of ,god1 as the ,catholic ,church has received the same1 and the facts of history prove that she is right4 ,for when ,protestantism arose1 its great aim was to spread the ,bible4 ,its history has been the history of ,bible-circulation1 and in the ,bible ,society has culminated the ,reformation4 ,these societies have labored bravely1#j4 ,we read that previous to the year #ahcd1 a single society in ,germany had distributed nearly #c1jjj1jjj copies of the entire ,bible1 and #b1jjj1jjj more of the ,new ,testament4 ,that by another society in ,great ,britain1 over #ce1jjj1jjj copies of the ,bible1 or ,new ,testament1 had been put into circulation before #ahei2 and that another in ,new ,york publishes every year more than #bej1jjj ,bibles1 and twice that number of ,new ,testaments1 and parts of ,scripture4 ,but what are the results8 ,where are the nations which have been added to the ,christian fold8 ,where are the signs of well-developed and intelligent piety in the great ,protestant empires of the age8 ,have not their own writers told us that the boundaries of ,protestantism are the same to-day that they were when ,luther left it--that no new nations have been added to its numbers1 and1 with the exception of the ,anglo-,saxon portion of this continent1 that no new territory has been subjected to its sway2 that for the heathen it has done comparatively nothing1 and for the irreligious of its own lands but little more8 ,look at the ,united ,states1 for instance1 all of whose people come of good ,christian stock4 ,the census of #ahfj fixes the population at over #cj1jjj1jjj1 while a census of professing ,christians1 of all ,protestant denominations1 estimates their number at less than #f1jjj1jjj4 ,is the proportion greater in ,germany or in ,england8 ,and what a comment is this upon the boast of these societies1 that they evangelize the world1 and that the work they are performing is the work of ,god6 ,and has the ,catholic ,church by preaching done no better8 ,while men yet lived who heard the voice of ,luther1 the ,catholic preachers of ,europe had won back to the church more than one half of what she lost by the ,reformation4 ,in a few years longer the continent of ,south ,america1 the ,canadas1 and thousands of the inhabitants of ,india1 ,china1 and ,japan1 were sheltered in her bosom4 ,another century1 and again the ,catholic faith was blossoming in ,england1 and springing green and vigorous from the soil of our own land4 ,to-day where is the country in which she is not strong and valorous1 strong in the blood of her martyrs1 valorous in the surety of her victory8 #fgj ,does history leave a doubt upon the mind as to the true means of ,christian labor8 ,or who can wonder that the ,catholic ,church refuses to substitute the human means for the divine1 or even to waste her energies and money on what experience has shown to be so fruitless8 ,she has the ,bible for her children4 ,she places it within the reach of all4 ,those who are able1 can buy it for themselves4 ,to those who are unable to buy1 she gives it when they ask4 ,but never has she taken pains to strew the pure pearls of written revelation underneath the feet of infidels and heathen--mindful that1 as the ,lord warned her1 they will turn again and rend you4 ,in conclusion1 let us ask of every ,christian reader a single favor more4 ,it is1 that he will candidly examine the best authorities upon this important subject2 that he will carefully reflect upon the reasons we have offered1 and decide for himself the great questions which we have tried to answer4 ,and when he finds1 as he surely will1 that the ,catholic ,church does not condemn the ,bible1 or forbid her people to circulate and read it--that she has never prohibited or burned a ,bible which she did not know to be erroneous and liable to lead her children into error--that she has never cast her lot in with the ,bible society1 simply because she follows the command of ,christ--let him undo the evil he1 perhaps1 has done1 in stating that concerning her which he now knows is false1 and manfully assert the truth he now has learned1 thus doing justice to the church of ,god4 ,footnote #bjg7,no reference 9973 ,macaulay's ,misc41 art4 ,ranke's ,history of the ,popes4 ------- ,sketches ,drawn ,from ,the ,abb ,lagrange's ,life ,of ,st4 ,paula4 ,in ,three ,chapters4 ,concluded4 ,chapter ,,iii4 ,the government of ,paula in her newly founded monastery was admirable1 and she herself was the example of all virtues1 as was also ,eustochium4 ,the fame of her rule spread throughout the ,east1 and went back to ,rome1 where ,marcella still lived and gloried in her friend4 ,the chief happiness of the recluses was to study the ,scriptures1 which they now read from beginning to end4 ,jerome read with them1 explaining everything4 ,his grotto was not far off1 and he passed his nights there1 by the light of a lamp1 surrounded with manuscripts and assisted by others copying for him2 for he was now growing old1 and his failing eyesight no longer allowed of his enduring the fatigue of writing4 ,he resumed the study of the eastern dialects in order the better to comprehend the original of the holy works1 and1 encouraged by ,paula and ,eustochium1 resumed his work of translation1 which was continued for nearly twenty years under their saintly influence4 ,at the end of three years ,paula's monasteries1 church1 and hospital were all finished1 with their surrounding walls1 which in those times were so necessary a protection from the raids of the neighboring ,arabs4 #fga ,the number of the recluses had increased1 and ,paula now divided them into three communities1 each one having an abbess or mother at its head1 after the plan of ,st4 ,pacomius4 ,during the week their vows of enclosure prevented all intercourse with the outer world4 ,they all went on ,sunday to the church at ,bethlehem2 for the holy sacrifice of the ,mass was not offered up at their own chapel1 ,st4 ,jerome never having deemed himself worthy to mount the steps of the altar1 such was his profound humility2 and ,vincentius1 the only priest they had beside1 did not attempt to officiate where ,jerome dared not4 ,paula was the soul of her communities4 ,her austerities were as great as her charities1 and these were without number4 ,st4 ,jerome represents her like a devoted mother to each and all of her spiritual daughters1 loving them all and studying their characters equally1 in order to guide each one according to her individual nature and for the best4 ,intellectual activity was greatly encouraged among them by her1 and she took care to furnish them with books and food for the mind4 ,in this ,jerome was of great assistance to her4 ,his convent was the dwelling of science and letters as well as of asceticism4 ,he had around him many men of vast erudition1 who in taking care of their souls did not forswear the paths of learning1 and in solitude pursued their studies4 ,they also wrote books which were read with great avidity by ,paula and her religious family4 ,jerome himself1 in addition to his great works1 composed many pious biographies1 and among others the life of ,st4 ,epiphanius1 at the particular request of ,paula4 ,the latter had now taught her daughters to copy the ,psalms1 which ,jerome had translated at ,rome by the order of ,pope ,damasus4 ,this was a work of importance1 as exactness was necessary in order to repair the harm done to the work by neglect of the original manuscripts4 ,copying thus became universal in all monasteries1 owing to the impetus given to it by ,paula1 and to it we are indebted for the preservation of much that is of inestimable value to ,christianity4 ,paula now urged ,jerome to revise all his various translations of the ,holy ,scriptures1 and this prodigious work was concluded by him as early as the year #cij4 ,the book was dedicated to ,paula and ,eustochium4 ,to ,paula particularly1 palmam ferat qui meruit1 great praise is due for the holy influence she exercised for so many years over ,st4 ,jerome1 to such a noble purpose1 and which produced such fruits in the translation of the ,bible called the ,vulgate1 still used in the church after the lapse of so many centuries4 ,all these pious labors gave great renown to ,paula's monasteries1 and she who had thought to hide herself from the world1 saw the curious world appear at her gates1 attracted by the beacon light of ,bethlehem4 ,her buildings could scarcely contain the visitors who flocked to see her4 ,st4 ,augustine himself had sent his beloved friend1 ,alypius1 across the seas to witness these wonders and to see ,jerome and ,paula4 ,augustine afterward wrote to ,jerome1 thus beginning a friendship between these two great men1 one of whom was just risen above the horizon of the church1 while the other great luminary was on the decline1 though spreading out his rays in all the splendor of the setting sun4 #fgb ,but that which most astonished the pilgrims to ,bethlehem was not ,jerome nor any other inhabitant of this holy place1 but ,paula in the midst of her virgins4 ,what country1 says ,st4 ,jerome1 does not send hither its pilgrims to see ,paula1 who eclipses us all in humility8 ,she has attained that earthly glory from which she fled2 for in flying from it she found it1 because glory follows virtue as shadows follow the light4 ,among all the visits paid to the recluses1 none filled them with so much joy as that of the venerable ,epiphanius1 whose early lessons had had so much to do with the religious training of ,paula4 ,he1 too1 was delighted2 he had seen nothing more perfect in the desert4 ,the order1 the prayerful and fervent nuns1 the austere and laborious monks1 the wonderful intellectual activity1 amazed him4 ,he remained some time with his friends at ,bethlehem1 praising ,god for what he saw4 ,about this time the discussions on ,origenism began to trouble the church of ,alexandria1 and finally penetrated to ,jerusalem and to ,bethlehem4 ,jerome was estranged from ,rufinus and ,melanie1 and others of his early friends1 by differing with them on the subject of this celebrated heresy4 ,paula was afflicted at this1 and foresaw clouds in the future which did not fail to burst on her own monasteries4 ,the great doctrinal combats of the fourth century1 in which the church was destined to come off victorious1 ,paula would gladly have avoided entirely1 but in spite of herself she became involved in them4 ,her sorrow was great when she saw her monasteries as well as ,st4 ,jerome and herself excluded from the ,holy ,sepulchre because of their clinging to their old friend ,st4 ,epiphanius1 who was the champion of orthodoxy and the great antagonist of ,origenism1 ,the ordination of a priest for the monasteries was the ostensible cause of their being put under the ban4 ,this priest was ,paulinianus1 the brother of ,jerome1 and the validity of his ordination by ,epiphanius was questioned by ,john1 the ,bishop of ,jerusalem1 on the ground of the youth of ,paulinianus1 but in reality because ,john1 instigated by ,rufinus1 was profoundly irritated against ,jerome and ,epiphanius on account of his own leanings toward the doctrine of ,origen4 ,he forbade the entrance of the church of the ,nativity or of the ,holy ,sepulchre to all who considered the ordination of ,paulinianus canonical4 ,this1 of course1 included the recluses of ,bethlehem4 ,their dismay was great4 ,epiphanius did not consider it derogatory to his dignity for him to bend his white head before the younger bishop and sue for clemency for others4 ,he explained the great want of a priest at the monasteries1 and the motives for the ordination of ,paulinianus1 and he begged ,john1 for the sake of charity1 to cease such persecution2 and then the illustrious patriarch1 on his knees1 conjured him to abjure the false doctrines that had divided them4 ,but ,john would not yield1 and talked only of the offence of the uncanonical ordination4 ,whereupon1 ,epiphanius thought it his duty to expose him1 and demanded of the recluses that they should suspend all communion with the bishop of ,jerusalem until the latter should renounce his errors4 ,notwithstanding this moderation1 the rancor of ,john burst upon them4 ,all ecclesiastical functions were forbidden ,jerome and ,vincentius4 ,paula's catechumens were refused baptism1 and his wrath went so far as to deny religious burial to the hermits as if they were excommunicated4 ,paula suffered inwardly from this warfare1 so different from the quiet and repose she longed for4 #fgc ,herself untouched by the arguments of the heretics1 she became an object of envy4 ,but the voice of calumny could not disturb the serenity of her mind1 and by no word or sign did she ever show impatience or anger4 ,she endeavored also to console ,st4 ,jerome for the wounds he had received4 ,she loved to quote ,scripture to him1 to soothe his mind4 ,it was in the ,bible that she always found strength to endure every evil4 ,finally1 ,bishop ,john1 carrying his hatred to ,jerome to its climax1 passed a decree of banishment against him4 ,jerome1 worn out by contention1 wished to depart at once1 but ,paula said to him these touching words3 ,they hate us and would crush us1 but let us return patience for hatred1 humility for arrogance4 ,does not ,st4 ,paul bid us return good for evil8 ,and when our conscience tells us that our sufferings do not proceed from sin1 we are very certain that the afflictions of this world are only the assurance of eternal reward4 ,bear1 then1 with the trials that assail you and do not quit our beloved ,bethlehem4 ,in this way ,paula sustained and soothed the old monk by the delicacy and serenity of her own noble soul1 which lived so high up in the love of ,god that the storms of this world passed by leaving her unharmed4 ,after a while ,jerome was freed from this phase of persecution by the ,metropolitan of ,palestine1 ,cesarius1 who was a prudent and wise man4 ,these perils ended1 ,paula encouraged him to recommence his great labors on the ,bible1 and also to renew his correspondence with his friends1 and to think no more of this painful episode1 but to suffer the tempest without to rage and no longer disturb him4 sic ,we will turn away from these discussions1 at which we have glanced but cursorily1 though unavoidably1 to rest our minds in the contemplation of virtue4 ,jerome now wrote more of his most admirable letters1 and ,paula continued the even tenor and pious practices of her life4 ,she received a visit from ,fabiola1 who came from ,rome in search of that peace and solitude which she believed could be best found in ,bethlehem4 ,this visit gave great joy to the recluses2 for ,fabiola could tell them of all their friends in ,rome1 of ,paulina and ,pammachius1 of ,toxotius and his wife ,laeta1 and of the young ,paula1 called after her venerable grandmother4 ,she brought them messages from ,marcella and the ,aventine4 ,while ,fabiola was with them1 they resumed the habits of former years1 and read the ,holy ,scriptures together1 ,jerome explaining it to them4 ,the ardor of ,fabiola was wonderful4 ,after she had ended her visit and left ,bethlehem1 much was done by ,rufinus and ,melanie to estrange her from her old friends4 ,but she could not be moved and had determined to settle near them4 ,at this time1 however1 dark rumors of invasion threw consternation among the quiet inhabitants of the monasteries4 ,it was rumored that the ,huns threatened ,jerusalem4 ,other cities had already been besieged1 and they were now before ,antioch4 ,arabia1 ,phoenicia1 ,palestine1 and ,egypt were filled with terror4 ,on all sides preparations for defence were being made1 and the walls of ,jerusalem1 too long neglected1 were now under repair4 ,to save her monasteries from insult1 ,paula meditated flight1 and conducted her whole community to the sea-shore1 ready to embark if the barbarians made their appearance4 ,but the ,huns having suddenly diverged in another direction1 ,paula brought back her followers to their beloved monasteries1 and with a joyful heart once more took possession of them4 #fgd ,these events decided ,fabiola to return to ,rome4 ,when all the troubles had ceased1 ,jerome wrote to her3 ,you would not remain with us2 you feared new alarms4 ,so be it4 ,you are now tranquil2 but1 notwithstanding your tranquillity1 ,i venture to say that ,babylon will often make you sigh for the fields of ,bethlehem4 ,we are now at peace1 and from this manger1 which has been restored to us1 we once more hear the wail of the infant ,christ1 the echoes of which ,i send you across the seas4 ,unfortunately1 however1 the peace and quiet did not last long4 ,after three years the dispute with the ,bishop of ,jerusalem was renewed with great violence4 ,but the bishop1 ,theophilus1 having only declared himself against ,origenism1 ,john was finally brought to reason by him1 and ,jerome and ,rufinus were reconciled in his presence1 before the altar in the church of the ,holy ,sepulchre4 ,peace now reigned in the monasteries on what appeared to be a surer foundation4 ,but other sorrows came pouring in4 ,news arrived from ,rome of the death of ,paulina1 when she was but thirty1 and ,pammachius was left a widower and without posterity4 ,his loss in the daughter of ,paula was great1 for theirs was an admirable and holy union2 for ,paulina loved her husband and would have endeavored not only to make him happy1 but virtuous4 ,the grief of ,pammachius was overwhelming4 ,he had now but one wish on earth1 which was to do something for the good of ,paulina's soul4 ,it was an ancient custom in ,rome at the obsequies of persons of distinction to give alms in honor of the dead1 and to perpetuate their memory4 ,this was called the funeraticium4 ,on the day fixed for that of ,paulina the streets of ,rome were thronged4 ,troops of the poor1 the lame1 and the maimed wended their way to the church in answer to the invitation of ,pammachius4 ,the gilded door of the great basilica was open before them1 and ,pammachius himself was there distributing on all sides abundant alms in the name of ,paulina4 ,who can describe the grief of ,paula when the news reached ,bethlehem of the death of ,paulina8 ,she was ill for days afterward1 and ,eustochium feared for her life4 ,jerome wrote to ,pammachius on the sorrowful event4 ,who can see1 cried he1 without grief1 this beauteous rose gathered before her time and faded away8 ,our precious pearl1 our emerald1 is broken4 ,paula's only consolation was in the admirable conduct of ,pammachius4 ,this death was prolific1 said ,st4 ,jerome1 for it gave a new life to ,pammachius4 ,he had always been a good ,christian1 he now became a heroic one4 ,he thought of heaven1 where his faith made him see his beloved ,paulina2 the example of ,paula and ,eustochium1 and of his holy friend ,jerome1 all combined to detach him from the things of earth4 ,he felt inspired with the noble resolution to consecrate to ,god the remaining years of his life4 ,he assumed the dress of a monk and passed his time in charities and prayer4 ,the jewels of ,paulina were converted into money and given to the poor1 and also her dower and the house of the noble senator was thrown open to all who were in want4 ,fabiola generously seconded him in founding hospitals1 and their combined resources enabled them to accomplish great charities in ,rome4 #fge ,ordinary husbands1 said ,st4 ,jerome1 show their affection and love by scattering roses and lilies and violets over a grave4 ,our ,pammachius has covered the tomb of his departed wife with holy ashes1 and with the perfume of charity4 ,these are the aromatics with which he has embalmed ,paulina4 ,such fruits were a great solace to ,paula4 ,when she heard that he had given away ,paulina's dower to the poor1 she exclaimed1 ,these are indeed the heirs that ,i would see my daughter have6 ,pammachius has not given me time even to express my wish2 he has been beforehand with me6 ,in the midst of her grief a ray of joy came from ,rome1 in the proposition from ,toxotius and ,laeta to send young ,paula to her grandmother4 ,they had determined that1 in order to secure such holy training for their child1 she should leave ,rome and go to the ,east1 where ,paula and ,eustochium would bring her up in the way of truth4 ,eustochium begged her of ,laeta1 and young ,paula did eventually come to ,bethlehem to join her aunt2 but her venerable grandmother was no longer there to receive her4 ,the burden of years was now beginning to be felt by ,paula4 ,sorrow and sadness pressed upon her1 yet the ineffable beauty of her soul was greater than ever4 ,st4 ,francis de ,sales says of her that she was like a beautiful and sweet violet1 so sweet to see in the garden of the church4 ,it is this exquisite and rare perfume which we must enjoy more in speaking of her in the years just before her death1 when ,god seemed to touch her soul with a singularly soft and mellow light1 like the evening of a fair day4 ,she had been much disturbed by the renewal of the dissensions between ,st4 ,jerome and the ,origenists4 ,we have already said how she had grieved over the first encounter1 seeing bishops against bishops1 friends against friends1 hermits against hermits4 ,but the new struggles were still more painful to her3 they had become personal1 and1 notwithstanding the reconciliation with ,rufinus1 he had attacked ,st4 ,jerome's character and writings1 and the latter was obliged to defend himself4 ,paula had also witnessed another painful sight4 ,after the council condemning ,origen1 the monks accused of sharing his erroneous opinions were driven away from the desert1 and among them were many whom ,paula had formerly known and venerated1 and who were now homeless wanderers4 ,the severity of the ,patriarch of ,alexandria against them grieved her deeply2 and1 the most bitter of all1 her tears were those she shed for the throes of the church and for the evil passions of men4 ,new sorrows came upon her also4 ,she heard of the death of ,fabiola1 her old and dear friend4 ,then came the death of ,st4 ,epiphanius1 who had been to ,paula like a beloved father4 ,toxotius1 her only son1 was now taken away4 ,all her children but ,eustochium were dead4 ,what was left for ,paula but suffering8 ,physical infirmities accumulated upon her the result of her austerities4 ,of these she would merely say1 ,when ,i am weak1 then it is that ,i am strong2 and again1 ,we must resign ourselves to carrying our treasure in brittle vases1 until the day comes when this miserable body shall be robed in immortality4 ,she also loved to repeat these words3 ,if the sufferings of ,christ abound in us1 his consolations abound also4 ,sharers of his bodily agony1 we will also be partakers of his glory4 #fgf ,the things of earth could no longer touch her1 for she had seen how passing they are and knew that they could not last4 ,the longing for the heavenly country grew in proportion4 ,she would say with the patriarchs of the desert1 ,we are but travellers on the earth4 ,and when her sufferings increased1 she murmured gently1 ,oh6 who will give me the wings of a dove1 that ,i may fly to everlasting rest8 ,she no longer belonged to the earth1 she was almost in heaven4 ,her soul had reached such extraordinary perfection that she seemed already to see the glory and to hear the harmonies of heaven4 ,peace and joy were suffused throughout her being1 rising above her sufferings4 ,her love of ,god grew greater1 and death seemed to her not a separation from those she loved on earth1 but an indissoluble union with ,god1 in whom all joys are found again4 ,who1 says ,st4 ,jerome1 can tell without tears how ,paula died8 ,he himself wrote immortal pages on the subject1 which have consoled many a dying soul since4 ,when ,sainte ,chantal was on her death-bed1 she asked to have read to her once more ,st4 ,jerome's account of the death of ,paula1 to which she listened with wonderful attention1 repeating several times these words3 ,what are we8 ,nothing but atoms alongside of these grand nuns4 ,it was in the year ,a4,d4 #djc that ,paula fell ill4 ,when it became known that her life was in imminent danger1 the whole monastery was in consternation4 ,eustochium could not be comforted2 she who had never quit her mother from childhood could not bear the thought of separation4 ,her love for her mother1 which had always been so touching1 shone now in all the ardor and strength of her nature4 ,she would yield her place by the bedside to no one by day or by night4 ,every remedy was administered by her hands1 and she would throw herself on her knees by the bed1 and implore ,god to suffer them to die together and be laid in one tomb4 ,but these tears and these prayers could not postpone the hour marked by ,god for the end4 ,her time had expired2 ,paula had suffered enough and wept enough4 ,she should now see joy1 and put on the robes of glory4 ,it became evident that her strength was failing1 and that she had but a few days left to live4 ,she bore her sufferings with admirable patience and heavenly serenity4 ,she was grateful for the care bestowed on her by ,eustochium and the devoted daughters of the house1 but her whole mind was given up to the thought of opening ,paradise4 ,her lips were heard to murmur her favorite verses from ,scripture4 ,the ,bishop of ,jerusalem and all the bishops of ,palestine1 together with a great number of religious1 flocked to her bedside to witness this saintly death4 ,the monastery was filled with them4 ,but ,paula1 absorbed in ,god1 saw them not1 heard them not4 ,several asked her questions1 but she did not answer4 ,jerome then approached and wished to know if she were troubled and why she did not speak4 ,she answered in ,greek1 ,oh6 no2 ,i have neither trouble nor regret2 ,i feel1 on the contrary1 great inward peace4 ,after these words she spoke no more1 but her fingers ceased not to make the sign of the cross4 ,at last1 however1 she opened her eyes with joy1 as if she saw a celestial vision1 and as if hearing the divine voice of the canticle1 ,rise up1 come to me1 ,o my dove1 my beloved1 for winter is past and the rain has disappeared4 ,she spoke as if in answer1 for she continued1 in low but joyful tones1 the words of the sacred song3 ,flowers have appeared on the earth1 the time for gathering them has arrived4 ,then she added1 ,i think ,i see the good things of the ,lord in the land of the living4 ,with these words on her lips ,paula expired4 #fgg ,she had lived to the age of fifty-six years eight months and twenty-one days2 of which time1 twenty-five years had been passed since her widowhood in religious life4 ,her obsequies were a marvel4 ,before consigning her body to the tomb1 it was carried to the church of the ,nativity at ,bethlehem1 which she loved and where she lay for three days with uncovered face1 for the visitation and veneration of the faithful4 ,crowds flocked from all parts to do her honor1 and bishops sought to take part in the funeral ceremonies and to show respect to the lamented deceased4 ,among the hermits of the desert1 it was almost esteemed a sacrilege to stay away4 ,john of ,jerusalem himself officiated4 ,but the most touching part of the spectacle was the long array of the poor1 following in the procession1 and weeping for their mother4 ,death had not altered the noble countenance of ,paula2 she was only pale1 and looked as if sleeping4 ,the people could not tear themselves away from this last view of her beloved features4 ,she was finally interred under this same church1 in a grotto1 where her tomb may still be seen up to the present time4 ,during the week following her burial1 the crowd continued to linger about her tomb1 singing psalms in ,hebrew1 in ,greek1 and in ,latin or in ,syriac4 ,all this time1 the sorrow of ,eustochium had been terrible to behold4 ,her very being was rent in twain4 ,she could not be torn away from her mother's body up to the last1 but would remain by her1 tenderly kissing her eyes1 throwing her arms around her1 and beseeching to be buried in the tomb with her4 ,this continued until the grave shut out the form of ,paula from her for ever4 ,jerome tried to console her1 though himself bowed down by grief4 ,of all the souls he had directed1 none were so lofty nor so intimately connected with his own as that of ,paula4 ,so crushed was he by this loss1 that it was long before the world again heard his mighty voice4 ,he found some solace in composing two epitaphs in her honor1 to be engraved1 one at the entrance of the grotto where the grave lay1 the other on the grave itself4 ,the following is the translation of the inscription on the sepulchre of ,paula3 ,the daughter of the ,scipios1 of the ,gracchi1 the illustrious blood of ,agamemnon1 rests in this place4 ,she bore the name of ,paula4 ,she was the mother of ,eustochium4 ,first in the senate of ,roman matrons1 she preferred the poverty of ,christ and the humble fields of ,bethlehem1 to all the splendor of ,rome4 ,in this epitaph1 ,paula's whole history is told4 ,the other epitaph of ,st4 ,jerome1 engraved on the entrance of the grotto1 reproduces1 in other terms1 the same record of virtue1 and1 what is more1 shows its sublime origin4 ,it is in the following words3 ,seest thou that grotto cut in the rock8 ,it is the tomb of ,paula1 now an inhabitant of the heavenly kingdom4 ,she gave up her brother1 her relations1 ,rome1 her country1 her wealth1 her children1 for the grotto of ,bethlehem1 where she is buried4 ,it was there1 ,o ,christ6 that your cradle was4 ,it was there that the ,magi came to make you their mystical offerings1 ,o man ,god6 ,eustochium desired ,st4 ,jerome1 besides these two epitaphs1 to write a funeral eulogium on her mother4 ,with a hand trembling with age and emotion1 he performed this pious duty4 ,we should here mention that most of the details we have endeavored to give in this short narrative1 are taken from what is1 perhaps1 considered the most eloquent and touching of all his writings4 #fgh ,at the conclusion1 he thus apostrophizes her3 ,farewell1 ,o ,paula6 ,sustain1 by your prayers1 the declining years of him who so revered you4 ,united now by faith and good works with ,christ1 you will be more powerful above than you were here below4 ,i have engraved your praise1 ,o ,paula6 on the rock of your sepulchre1 and to it ,i add these pages2 for ,i wish to raise to you a monument more lasting than adamant1 that all may learn that your memory was honored in ,bethlehem1 where your ashes repose4 ,paula's good works died not with her4 ,her monasteries were continued piously and courageously by ,eustochium1 the worthy daughter of such a mother4 ,with time1 heresies arose to disturb the atmosphere anew2 and the controversy of ,pelagius aroused the latent powers of ,jerome1 and for some time absorbed him1 to the detriment of his studies4 ,but at the prayer of ,eustochium1 and in memory of ,paula1 he finally resumed his labors1 and in the year #djc concluded his great work in the translation of the ,bible1 which is called the ,vulgate1 and was adopted by the church in the last universal council4 ,the ,pelagians having set fire to the monasteries of ,bethlehem1 all the buildings erected by the pious care of ,paula were burned to the ground4 ,this act was odious to the whole world4 ,it was admirable to see the serenity of ,eustochium under this trial4 ,she went to work1 and1 using for that purpose the noble dower brought to her by her niece ,paula1 who had come to her at ,bethlehem1 the monasteries were soon built up again1 and filled with their former inhabitants4 ,about this time1 ,alaric1 ,king of the ,huns1 overran ,rome with his barbarian hordes1 and numberless ,christian refugees from them came to the ,east in search of an asylum4 ,pammachius and ,marcella were dead1 but many of their friends were numbered among the exiles4 ,eustochium and ,jerome received all who came with wide-open doors1 and the hospitality of ,paula still lived in her successors4 ,eustochium survived her mother only sixteen years4 ,she expired without a struggle1 like one falling asleep4 ,no further details are given of her last moments4 ,this was on the #bhth day of ,september1 ,a4,d4 #dah4 ,her remains were laid by those of her mother1 according to her wish4 ,st4 ,jerome did not long survive her4 ,her death was his last great sorrow2 and he died in the following year4 ,he was too old now to resist the final dispersion of what he had called his domestic church4 ,marcella1 ,asella1 ,paula1 ,fabiola1 ,pammachius1 ,eustochium1 had all ceased to live4 ,rome itself was gone1 for1 to a ,roman heart like that of ,jerome's1 her captivity was her death4 ,he fell into a state of settled melancholy1 his voice having become so weak and feeble that it was with difficulty he could be heard at all4 ,it was soon impossible for him to be raised from his miserable couch1 but by means of a cord suspended from the roof of his grotto2 and in this position he would recite his prayers1 or give his instructions to the monks for the management of the monastery4 ,he died at the age of seventy-two years1 after living thirty-four years at ,bethlehem4 ,his eyes rested1 when he was dying1 on young ,paula1 who was beside him4 ,she who had been his spiritual child from her cradle1 now performed the last sad offices for him4 ,we have no details of his obsequies4 ,according to his request1 she placed his remains in the grotto not far from the venerable ,paula1 her grandmother1 and ,eustochium4 ,united in life1 they were so also in death4 #fgi ,jerome's principal disciple1 ,eusebius of ,cremona1 now assumed the head of his convents1 while young ,paula continued to rule those of her grandmother's4 ,we know nothing more4 ,with the correspondence of ,jerome died all traces of these communities1 and night fell upon the ,east4 -------- ,glimpses ,of ,tuscany4 ,,ii4 ,the ,boboli ,gardens4 ,the high wall of our raised garden binds on the southern entrance to the ,boboli3 our white spirae droops down into it like a willow1 so large and in such perfect bloom that strangers stop to sketch it as they pass4 ,the good grand duke has gone since ,i last was here2 the ,sardinian bayonet is gleaming exactly where the ,austrian sentinel stood4 ,the ,boboli has changed masters--not for the first time--and accepts the situation with the serenity of a veteran4 ,it is a bright ,sunday morning4 ,there is still time for a walk there before the ,military ,mass at ,santo ,spirito4 ,twelve years have not disturbed the placid sameness of this creature of the hill-side3 the laurels are clipped just as evenly1 the old busts and statues look at you1 or at each other1 just as archly or just as stolidly4 ,it is all thoroughly man-made--intensely artificial4 ,every impulse of nature has been stifled in tree and shrub1 until they no more dare to lean out of line than soldiers on parade4 ,the very crocuses steal timidly through the grass1 as if they were afraid of doing wrong4 ,grove nods to grove1 each alley has its brother2 ,one half the garden represents the other4 ,it looks human1 every inch2 the ,lord is completely banished2 his ,spirit could not possibly walk in such a garden4 ,and yet this creature of man seems clothed with imperishable bloom3 this death of all nature seems able to outlive all other life4 ,you cannot despise it1 for it possesses the semblance of indestructibility-- unchangefulness in the midst of change4 ,in the forests1 dissolution and reproduction are palpably waging their unending warfare2 even on the eternal ,apennines1 the snow comes and goes1 the lights and shadows of the clouds are endlessly shifting4 ,but in this miniature world monotony counterfeits the terrible fixity and relentlessness of fate4 ,nature is deprived of all free-will1 and moves obedient to a fixed design4 ,it is difficult to say how far civilization1 apart from religion1 may go with advantage in remodelling the natural man4 ,it is equally difficult to say how far art may safely encroach upon nature in reconstructing a landscape4 ,some of the grand elemental presentations disdain our interference4 ,we have no control over the clouds1 or the curves of the ocean1 or the nocturnal radiance of the skies4 #fhj ,but the surface of the earth is an unfinished sketch1 which the ,creator has left us to humanize1 in some small degree1 after our fancy4 ,we do not make even the smallest impression upon its planetary aspect2 but1 after centuries of toil1 we succeed in partially changing its more immediate expression4 ,we take the groundwork ready made1 accept the laws as we find them1 and then1 inspired by the supreme longing after unrevealed beauty1 which1 in some shape or other1 haunts every human soul1 proceed to establish a little paradise of our own4 ,but above and beyond that last temporal ,eden1 there is still another--the one beyond the grave4 ,i1 who am an immortal spirit capable of sharing the celestial joy of angels1 predestined for the beatific vision2 ,i1 whose hereafter should be passed amid perpetual light1 and peace1 and beauty2 may ,i not have imaginings of better forms1 of sweeter faces1 of fairer prospects1 of deeper skies1 and even of diviner stars than those revealed to the senses8 ,did ,raphael ever see a face that equalled hers of the ,san ,sisto8 ,was there ever in the flesh a form to rival the ,apollo of the ,vatican8 ,is there any pattern in nature for ,giotto's ,campanile8 ,is there any voice in the woods or seas to suggest the melodies of ,kreutzer or the harmonies of ,beethoven8 ,and may we not1 then1 poetize our landscapes too1 and throw into the face of nature the expression of a human soul8 ,but here is precisely the difficulty3 the landscape has a soul of its own1 which must not be murdered1 even to make way for ours4 ,the ,grand ,master has been at work before us2 his works have wandered1 of their own sweet will1 into shapes and combinations that exhibit the grace beyond the reach of art4 ,the mountains1 the streams4 the valleys1 are full of these sweet surprises4 ,the true artist can do little more than reproduce them1 squared and framed1 for parlor contemplation3 the true gardener can do little more than display them to the best advantage4 ,it is more than likely1 though1 that1 when the ,boboli ,gardens were laid out by the ,medici1 the artists employed had only to deal with unornamented slopes of olive orchards and arable land4 ,the landscape was less to be remodelled than created4 ,the surface under treatment was artistically as blank as uncolored canvas-- as meaningless as quarried marble4 ,with this difference1 however3 that while the groundwork of the painter fades and wrinkles1 while marble stains and shatters1 while even the sculptured arches of great cathedrals crumble into dust1 the living canvas on which the landscape gardener works is not only imperishable1 but so charged with vitality that it gains instead of losing by duration2 or1 should a touch of decay at last appear1 it is but in transition to new phases of beauty4 ,one would think that1 where human fancy is free to conceive a garden of delight1 and human means sufficient to ransack the ages and spoil the climes for its embellishment1 the result could not escape being a public and paramount attraction4 ,i take this ,boboli ,garden as a sample of most public gardens or parks4 ,are they popularly1 or even selectly1 attractive8 ,are they ever thronged1 except at stated hours1 when people chiefly congregate to exhibit themselves and criticise each other8 ,was an artist1 by any miracle1 ever caught there more than once1 save in the capacity of casual saunterer8 ,are they not startlingly unfrequented1 in spite of their superb richness and beauty8 #fhl ,however conducive these civic ,edens to municipal health1 have not the park police an almost exclusive monopoly of the fresh air and gravel8 ,do these magnets draw by dint of their intrinsic beauty8 ,it may safely be questioned4 ,and may not this failure be attributed to our vague1 unpronounced repugnance to having nature out of harmony with itself and ourselves8 ,notwithstanding all the gilt and carmine of the new emblazonry1 we keep asking the gay palimpsest to restore the lost features of our first friend4 ,the curse that fell on ,adam also visited the earth from which he was taken4 ,the heart of fallen man is full of yearning2 the face of nature is full of sympathetic sadness2 her voice is nearer a sigh than a song4 ,more than half the year is clouded1 more than half the hours belong to night1 and over more than half the world goes the wail of the unresting seas4 ,the vast distances are everywhere softened or shaded into pensiveness2 the very sunshine turns to blue and purple on the hills2 it is only the small near which presumes to be glad with the flash of a rivulet1 the song of birds1 or the glance of flowers4 ,and1 in these minor poems too1 there is apt to lurk some sly suggestion of the unattained4 ,even where the universe is transfigured by the coming morn1 and the world thrills with the joyous cry of reawakened life1 the momentary exultation1 the piercing delight of existence1 are soon sobered by toil1 or care1 or thought2 and1 bright as the coming day may prove1 the impression left on human hearts is that of promise unfulfilled4 ,the poorest part of sunrise is the sun itself2 the horns on the ,rigi are silent as soon as the orb is fairly up4 ,it may not be overbold to affirm that some of these grander parks1 such as the ,bois de ,boulogne1 bear no mean resemblance to the first paradise itself4 ,but our lot is changed since then2 the primitive tradition of ,deity incarnate has been fulfilled4 ,eden could no longer content us2 we would not care to pass those ,cherubim with the flaming sword1 even if we dared4 ,between us and any possible paradise lies the grave4 ,it is worse than mockery to expect the sorely laden ,christian heart to find more than casual enjoyment in arbitrary walks1 and endless beds of roses1 and artificial fountains1 and manufactured grottoes4 ,sorrow1 passion1 death1 were encountered by ,god in descending to man2 sorrow1 passion1 death1 must be encountered by man in ascending to ,god4 ,spiritual felicity is less to be extracted from violets and roses than from sackcloth and ashes4 ,temporal happiness is not to be compassed by meandering through shaded avenues and even lawns1 but by the sweat of the brow and the work of the hands2 and in our respites from toil we like the wild1 suggestive irregularities of nature better than a too glaring array of brightnesses with which we are seldom in complete accord4 ,the post-,adamic garden needs depth and gloom and mystery as well as sunshine and flowers4 ,i do not mean to say that the ,boboli is wholly glad2 much of it is sad or saddening enough4 ,that long1 grim avenue of cypress would suit the valley of the shadow of death4 ,arnolfo's dark1 mighty wall goes striding down the hill-side like a phantom4 ,the ,boboli was only meant to be wholly glad4 ,though probably not designed by a ,greek1 it is nevertheless ,grecian1 or rather ,athenian2 for1 in art1 ,athens is ,greece4 ,by an exceptional felicity and refinement of mental1 moral1 and physical organization1 the ,athenian realized in himself the most perfect development of natural civilization4 #fhb ,the dark1 religious mysteries which tinge and sadden ,hindu1 ,egyptian1 and most ,gentile life had little hold upon the ,greek4 ,athens1 in her prime1 succeeded in escaping the pressure and responsibility of the hereafter4 ,she aimed at making time a success independent of eternity4 ,the real heaven of the ,athenian and his disciples1 in both classic peninsulas1 was this world1 not the next4 ,eternity was but the ghost of time1 a vague prolongation of the present for better or worse in ,elysium or ,hades1 the shadow projected by a vast material world as it moved through endless space4 ,the poets of ,greece dictated her popular theology2 her sculptors carried beauty to the very borders of the beatitude1 giving such glory to form that the inspired likeness is mistaken for the divine original4 ,it is impossible to tell where the hero ends and the god begins4 ,we have the deification of man in marble or fable1 instead of the humanization of ,god in the flesh2 or1 in other words1 the identity of religion and art4 ,this pleasant way of being one with ,god1 this graceful fulfilment of destiny1 imparted a complacency to ,athenian life which we cannot imitate4 ,in every dark and awful place1 ,rude hill and haunted wood4 ,this beautiful1 bright people left ,a name of omen good4 ,unlike the children of romance1 ,from out whose spirit deep ,the touch of gloom hath passed on glen4 ,and mountain1 lake1 and steep2 ,on ,devil's ,bridge and ,raven's ,tower1 ,and love-lorn ,maiden's ,leap4 ,grecian life1 in its highest aspect1 was an attempt to reproduce the perfections of a lost ,eden2 ,christian life1 in its highest aspect1 is purification1 self-denial1 self-immolation1 for a paradise which can never be reached in this world1 and only in the next after life-long fear and trembling4 ,and although we strive more or less successfully to substitute the joys of the spirit for those of the flesh1 yet ,even we ourselves1 who have the first-fruits of the spirit1 groan within ourselves1 waiting for the adoption of the sons of ,god1 the redemption of our body4 7,st4 ,paul4 ,footnote #bjh7 ,after the knowledge of good and evil1 our paradise must have no walls4 ,the broad expanse of which each one of us may chance to be the centre1 bounded by the horizon and vaulted by the sky--the whole visible landscape1 with its fitful light and shade1 its changing blight and bloom1 its alternating sigh and song1 whether subdued into use or wild as on the morning of the first ,sabbath--this whole visible universe is the only garden in harmony with the vast aspiration1 the ceaseless yearning of ,christian life4 ,our opened eyes would weary of the walled ,eden1 as ,rasselas wearied of the ,happy ,valley4 ,footnote #bjh3 ,for the suggestion of this text of ,st4 ,paul the writer is indebted to a notice in the ,freeman's ,journal of ,father ,ryan's beautiful lines1 ,why does your poetry sound like a sigh4 ,it is a pure and paramount joy to grapple with the rugged earth and bend it to your will2 a joy to pierce the forest to your liking and smooth a bare expanse into velvet lawn3 of mortal joys perhaps the purest and most enduring4 ,but when all is done8-- ,take your stand behind the ,pitti ,palace almost anywhere high up the hill1 on the observatory itself1 if you choose4 ,all the wide valley of the ,arno1 with its circumference of cultured hills and woodless mountains1 is before you4 ,for thousands of years industrious generations have been at work on that fair panorama4 ,yellow villas are dotting all the heights2 olive-trees are wrapping all the slopes in pale monotony2 the vines are trailing everywhere in endless procession over mutilated mulberries2 the long gray walls are solemnly parcelling out the small ,tuscan farms4 #fhc ,all ,florence is beneath you1 with its domes and towers and spires1 its streets and bridges1 its memories and suggestions4 ,the atmosphere is so transparent1 the cultivation so perfect1 that the area described by half the radius of vision seems to enclose only a vast kitchen-garden4 ,but further on1 the mist and haze are settling2 the enchantment of distance is falling2 ,vallambrosa1 gleaming on its mountain's breast1 turns into some mysterious opal2 the records traced by man through all those centuries are gradually erased by the quiet alchemy of nature1 and the same eternal story reappears as vividly as if the superscription were but the shadow of a dream4 ,turn to the ,boboli at your feet4 ,do you wonder it is a failure--that ,florence never goes there8 ,they love their own little gardens dearly and the flowers in their windows2 for these are but sweet thefts from nature to embellish home4 ,but for these attempts to compress universal beauty into a given space1 for this overprizing1 overadorning of the near1 only to be lost1 or merged1 or overlooked in the glory of the far1 the ,christian heart can have but little relish4 ,the bells of ,santo ,spirito are ringing2 and ,i wonder1 on my way there1 if that cold white hand of ,athens will ever quite relax its hold on ,christian life4 ------------- ,translated ,from ,le ,correspondant4 ,anecdotical ,memoirs ,by ,a ,former ,page ,of ,the ,emperor ,nicholas4 ,one day1 some months after my admission among the pages1 as the classes were being dismissed1 ,i heard a great noise4 ,people were running to and fro1 agitated and hurried2 officers of the service1 pages of the bedroom1 inspectors1 all seemed to be in a state of extraordinary excitement4 ,gentlemen1 look out6 look out6 the emperor6 cried in an authoritative tone the head of our company1 while his deep1 sonorous voice reechoed throughout the dormitory1 where1 according to custom1 we were all assembled before dinner4 ,at this name ,i was deeply moved4 ,my mother and my companions had often1 very often spoken to me of the emperor in recitals where legend mingled with reality1 but ,i had not yet seen him face to face4 ,the officer on duty arranged us in military order1 each one standing near his own bed1 and so we waited for him4 ,soon the captain of the guard announced that the czar was coming up the great stairway4 ,the dormitory1 ordinarily so noisy1 became perfectly still4 ,there was a moment of solemn silence1 religious in its perfect stillness4 ,we hardly dared to breathe4 ,the officer1 with his helmet on1 placed himself at the threshold4 ,suddenly1 in the opening of the large doorway1 appeared a man of tall stature1 in the uniform of a general and in the midst of a cortge of superior officers4 #fhd ,his countenance was severe1 his whole exterior imposing4 ,this was ,nicholas ,i4 ,since then ,i have seen1 and closely1 most of the sovereigns of ,europe1 and more than once have been admitted to the honor of direct conversation with them2 but never have ,i beheld a figure more royal or more profoundly imprinted with supreme majesty2 never have ,i since experienced the icy impression that this view of the czar produced upon me4 ,he walked straightforward in lordly style1 his leaden eyes coldly fixed on those of each person to whom in turn he addressed himself1 and gazing deeply into each face with a penetration that seemed to mark the very secrets of the soul4 ,his step impressed you2 his aspect intimidated2 and his attitudes1 so truly sovereign1 added to a physiognomy so haughty1 reflected the guiding sentiment of his life1 his utter contempt for mankind1 and his mystical faith in his own all-powerfulness4 ,of colossal height and admirably beautiful in face1 his hard and penetrating eye subjugated you at once4 ,simply clad1 even in peasant attire1 he would have been recognized by his look and his imperial carriage1 and surrounded even by twenty generals in full uniform1 the cry would have resounded1 ,the emperor6 it is he6 ,he made the tour of the room1 and1 after speaking to several pages1 came at last to where ,i stood4 ,as he neared my bed1 the director approached him and said3 ,sire1 this is ,d----4 ,ah6 bowed the emperor1 and turning toward me3 ,how is your mother8 ,well1 sire4 ,she is a good friend of mine4 ,are you satisfied with your present position8 ,yes1 sire4 ,how long since he entered among the pages8 asked the czar of the director4 ,about two months since1 sire4 ,and conducts himself well8 ,very well4 ,bravo6 ,until now the conversation had been in ,french4 ,and1 resumed the emperor1 but this time speaking ,russian1 have you learned ,russian8 ,not yet1 sire1 ,i replied in ,french4 ,what6 here two months1 and not yet a word6 ,why1 that is outrageous4 ,can't you even say no in ,russian8 ,i ask pardon1 your majesty2 ,i do speak ,russian with my comrades4 ,well1 why then1 stupid1 if you can speak it with your comrades1 do you answer me in ,french when ,i address you in ,russian8 ,because1 if ,i express myself incorrectly to a simple page1 ,i am not annoyed1 whereas1 with your majesty-- ,very well1 that will do4 ,i had heard he wished nothing badly done in his presence1 and ,i knew too little ,russian to dare venture it before his majesty4 ,did you hear that8 said the emperor2 and turning toward ,general ,philosophoff1 ,here is one who will never be a fool1 added he1 and passed on4 ,nicholas ,i41 ,paulowitch1 the third son of the ,emperor ,paul ,,iii41 had never dreamed of a crown4 ,he believed himself destined for the pompous and useless life of a grand duke4 ,between him and the empire were two older brothers1 both young and both intelligent4 ,however1 since his earliest youth his character had shown itself self-willed1 domineering1 and tyrannical1 in a manner the presage of his reign and harbinger of his politics4 #fhe ,there has been discovered among the books used in his education while he was quite a child1 a volume of the ,history of ,russia1 by ,karamsin1 and on the margin of which are written in his own hand these remarkable words1 ,the ,czar ,ivan ,,iv41 the ,terrible1 was a severe but a just man1 as one ought to be to govern a nation4 ,such sentiments loudly expressed by ,nicholas could not fail to alarm a people and court who still remembered the reign of his father1 ,paul ,i41 only dead twenty-three years4 ,the reign of this crowned fool had1 notwithstanding its short duration1 tired out even ,russia itself--,russia1 too1 already so corrupted by the habit of despotism2 and a revolution in the palace had at last put an end to the follies of this barbarian1 this second ,heliogabalus4 ,during the reign of ,alexander ,i41 the court and town spoke freely of the despot ,paul4 ,nicholas1 who neither could nor dared reinstate the memory of his father1 and who considered it impolitic to permit a people to express themselves irreverently of a czar1 forbade throughout his whole empire even the mention of a name so abhorred4 ,the legend of his death he especially interdicted1 and so long as the reign of ,nicholas lasted1 the memory of ,paul ,i4 remained in silence and obscurity4 ,while his brother ,alexander ,i4 governed the empire1 ,nicholas1 who1 as we have said1 believing it impossible he should ever reign1 kept himself in comparative obscurity1 concentrated all his attention on the troops1 each day passing them in review1 and occupied himself only with the lot of the soldier and the amelioration of his condition4 ,the marriage of the ,grand ,duke ,constantine with the ,princess of ,lowicz brought him unexpectedly nearer the throne4 ,at the death of the ,emperor ,alexander1 and notwithstanding the unequal marriage of his brother1 he was still uncertain of his approaching advancement4 ,but when he learned1 first by the will of ,alexander1 then by the letter of ,constantine intrusted to the ,senate1 and finally from ,constantine himself1 his renunciation of the empire1 he accepted the crown1 and from the day he did so1 faithful to his character1 he understood how to reign fully and absolutely4 ,firmly convinced that he represented celestial power on earth1 sincerely persuaded that to his own people he was the mandatary of ,god1 and held within himself divine prerogatives1 he watched with an overshadowing jealousy the sacred deposit with which he believed himself charged1 and any attempt against his authority appeared to him a sacrilege and proved him inexorable4 ,the conviction that he never pardoned even the simple appearance of such a crime isolated him in the midst of his court and people1 enveloped him in an atmosphere of gloom and terror1 and placed him at a distance that added to his prestige and the respectful fear he inspired4 ,it is said that one evening1 about two years after his death1 one of his aides-de-camp1 7in the midst of an animated conversation17 recognizing the portrait of the emperor in the drawing-room1 suddenly left his place1 and quickly turned its face to the wall4 ,during the life of the czar1 ,i had such a terror of him1 said he1 that ,i fear the copy1 with its terrible eyes fixed upon me1 may disconcert and embarrass me as greatly as did the model4 ,this very intentness of look was in truth the power of intimidation which the emperor possessed4 ,intending to win a confidence from any one or force a confession1 he fastened on his victim his cold and immovable eyes4 #fhf ,the unfortunate was literally fascinated4 ,he knew that a word or a gesture from the autocrat sufficed to annihilate him1 and the least contraction of his brow froze the blood in his veins4 ,terror is the necessary auxiliary of every despotism1 democratic or aristocratic1 monarchical or republican4 ,yet these jealous instincts1 and this implacable firmness in punishment1 were not solely due to the character of the ,emperor ,nicholas1 but also to the sad experiences which signalized the commencement of his reign4 ,conspiracies against the new czar1 revolts occasioned by the appearance of cholera1 indeed all sorts of disorders1 ,nicholas had to suppress on his accession to the throne4 ,from the very first he learned these bloody retaliations1 and never pardoned4 ,the first conspirators of his reign1 ,pestel1 ,mouravieff-,apostol1 and the poet ,relieff1 were condemned to be hung4 ,the emperor signed the decree after the ,russian formula1 ,byt po siemau 7,so be it47 ,they were then conducted to the place of execution4 ,relieff1 a poet of the highest order1 was the first one led to the scaffold4 ,just at the moment when the executioner1 having passed the slip-knot1 over his head1 had raised him on his shoulders to launch him into eternity1 the too weak cord broke1 and he fell forward bruised and bleeding4 ,they know not how to do anything in ,russia1 said he1 raising himself without even turning pale1 not even to twist a rope4 ,as accidents of this kind--besides being very rare1 were always considered occasions of pardon1 they sent1 therefore1 to the ,winter ,palace to know the will of the emperor4 ,ah6 the cord has broken8 said ,nicholas4 ,yes1 sire4 ,then he was almost dead8 ,what impression has such close contact with eternity produced on the mind of the rebel8 ,he is a brave man1 sire4 ,the czar frowned4 ,what did he say8 asked he severely4 ,sire1 he said1 ',they know not how even to twist a rope in ,russia4' ,well1 replied ,nicholas1 let them prove to him the contrary4 ,and he went out4 ,a wealthy ,polish lord1 the ,prince ,roman ,sanguszko1 had been condemned1 as a conspirator1 to serve the rest of his life as a simple soldier1 and to immediately join a regiment fighting in ,caucasia4 ,on the margin of the sentence1 the emperor wrote in his own hand1 ,on foot6 ,such severity was in him a system4 ,he sincerely believed in it as a necessity1 and a part of the sanctity of absolute power4 ,in ,russia1 especially1 his knowledge of the character of his people fortified him in his belief1 and he let no opportunity escape to declare his despotism4 ,of all the heterogeneous elements that compose the immense empire of ,russia1 there is not one that ever seems likely to develop in the slightest degree the idea of liberalism2 not a single nationality in which servilism is not innate1 and to which the people themselves are not as much attached as the nations of the ,east to liberty4 ,hence it is that among the ,russians1 properly so-called1 and who constitute the main portion of the population1 we find the nobility infected with an inveterate sentiment of servile obsequiousness1 and the people predisposed by temperament1 and moulded by past experience1 to the most abject submission4 #fhg ,they all have the same character as the great princes of ,kieff1 who1 when under the yoke of the ,tartars1 went to receive the investiture of the ,khan of the ,horde d',or2 and who1 after having held his stirrup and offered him a glass of koumys1 ,footnote #bji were obliged to lick from the neck of his horse the milk that dropped from his moustaches4 ,do we need greater evidence of the servility of the ,russian people than the reign of the crowned tiger1 ,ivan ,,iv4 the ,terrible1 a despot without parallel in history1 whose subjects1 more patient than the ,romans under ,caligula and ,nero1 not only were contented to bear with his follies and crimes1 but actually supplicated him to resume the throne1 after his voluntary abdication through disgust of others and himself8 ,the reign1 too1 of ,peter the ,great1 whose savage grandeur could not absolve him from cruelty1 and even the possibility in the nineteenth century of such a despot as ,nicholas ,i41 what greater proofs do we require8 ,footnote #bji3 ,camel's milk fermented4 ,as to the half-savage nations of the northern limits of ,russia and ,siberia1 with populations perhaps only yesterday awakened to anything like social life1 their need is still1 as with children1 the master1 and the ferule4 ,it is easy to understand1 then1 how a man armed like ,nicholas with an iron will and immense authority1 and comprehending perfectly the character of his people1 should have conceived this superhuman idea of his own power4 ,never thwarted by the least resistance1 only now and then by an occasional murmuring1 we can need no better explanation of his apparently exaggerated despotism1 of his inveterate faith in the sanctity of his domination1 his conviction that in himself centred his whole empire1 and the faculty1 in fine1 which he possessed in so great a degree1 of entirely ignoring mankind4 ,one day1 a short time before the ,crimean war1 at a grand military review at ,krasnoe-,selo1 the emperor1 on horseback1 presented his troops to the empress seated in her carriage4 ,suddenly appeared on the drill ground a cariole drawn by one horse1 and out of which stepped a feld jaguer1 7courier of the palace17 charged with two autographic letters from the ,king of ,prussia to the emperor and empress4 ,as the empress was the more easily approached1 he handed her the first letter1 and ran toward the emperor to present the second4 ,but some steps from him he pauses1 turns pale1 and bursts into tears4 ,the letter is lost4 ,trembling from head to foot1 he retraces his steps to try and find it1 but the soldiers1 the aides-de-camp1 the horses1 have already trodden it in the dust1 and the precious envelope cannot be found4 ,what ails that animal8 asked the emperor of one of his aides-de-camp4 ,i do not know1 sire4 ,well1 go and ask him1 and bring me his reply4 ,the aide-de-camp spurred his horse1 and from the lips of the poor feld jaguer he learned that an autograph letter from the ,king of ,prussia to the ,emperor of ,russia had been lost4 ,he brought the czar the information4 ,the face of ,nicholas clouded instantly2 his expression was gloomy and severe4 ,take charge of this man yourself and without allowing him to communicate with any one1 conduct him immediately to ,siberia4 ,let him not be harshly treated1 but let him never again appear in ,europe4 ,the aide-de-camp1 as well as the unhappy feld jaguer1 were both to set out1 without even changing their boots1 for this journey of #bjjj leagues4 ,the aide-de-camp returned eight months afterward1 and was recompensed by promotion from the emperor1 but the poor courier was doubtless dying or dead in the neighborhood of ,tobolsk1 such faults as his having escaped an amnesty4 #fhh ,such instances 7,i witnessed the one ,i am about to relate7 were not rare in the life of ,nicholas4 ,one morning in the spring1 when a freshet of the ,neva had rendered its crossing extremely perilous1 the emperor1 on looking from the window of his ,winter ,palace1 saw a large crowd watching1 in evident stupefaction1 a man directing himself1 by leaps from one piece of ice to another1 toward the opposite shore4 ,he called his attendant aide-de-camp4 ,look at that fool1 said he4 ,what courage6 ,run and see what motive he has for so exposing his life4 ,the aide-de-camp learned the particulars and returned4 ,sire1 he is a peasant who has bet he would cross the ,neva for twenty-five roubles1 and is trying to gain the reward4 ,give him twenty-fire lashes1 replied ,nicholas2 a man who risks his life in this miserable way would be capable of anything for money4 ,to a desperate caprice of the same kind is due the construction of the railroad from ,st4 ,petersburg to ,moscow1 called the ,nicholas railroad4 ,the emperor had in his court a certain general1 ,kleinmichel1 a disagreeable person1 exceedingly unpopular1 and of equivocal fidelity1 but who pleased by his reticence and promptness in executing orders4 ,when the road was decided upon by a counsel of ministers1 and its erection considered urgent1 a map of ,russia was brought to the czar1 who was asked to look over the course designated by the different engineers and give his preference4 ,nicholas1 without saying a word1 took the map1 marked a straight line from ,moscow to ,st4 ,petersburg1 and said to the stupefied engineers3 ,this is the line of the railroad4 ,but1 they all cried1 impossible4 ,your majesty will find no one to undertake such a work4 ,it would be to hide treasures in a desert4 ,no one undertake it when ,i command it to be done6 said ,nicholas4 ,we shall see4 ,and signalling ,kleinmichel from a corner3 ,kleinmichel1 said he1 you see this line8 ,yes1 sire4 ,this is a new railroad ,i propose constructing in my empire4 ,sire1 it is magnificent6 ,you think so8 ,will you charge yourself1 then1 with the execution of my orders8 ,with the greatest pleasure1 sire1 if your majesty orders it4 ,but the funds1 the funds8 ,don't be troubled about them4 ,ask for all the money you want4 ,and turning to the engineers3 ,you see1 said ,nicholas to them1 ,i can get along without you4 ,i will build my own railroad4 ,and the construction of this road lasted ten years4 ,it did not deviate an inch from the line marked out by the imperial finger2 and leaving on one side1 at about a distance of ten leagues1 the villages of ,novgorod1 ,twer1 and a host of others equally rich and important1 it traversed1 in the midst of marshes and woods1 nothing but immense solitudes2 #gjf kilometres of iron rail cost ,russia #djj1jjj1jjj francs--a little more than half a million a kilometre--of which the devoted ,kleinmichel1 but that as a matter of course1 took a good share4 ,nicholas1 however1 was right in saying nothing could resist him4 #fhi ,some weeks after the inauguration of this railroad an ambassador arrived at ,st4 ,petersburg4 ,according to custom and to pay him attention1 everything was shown him in detail1 all the objects of interest in the city4 ,he expressed no surprise or admiration2 his oriental gravity was proof against either4 ,what could we show him that would astonish him8 asked the emperor of ,menschikoff4 ,show him the accounts of ,kleinmichel for the ,nicholas railroad1 replied the prince1 laughing4 ,a few days later1 ,general ,kleinmichel1 in presence of the emperor1 was discussing with ,menschikoff some question upon which they could not agree4 ,the general proposed to the prince a wager4 ,with pleasure1 replied the latter1 and this shall be the stake1 if your excellence permits it4 ,he who loses shall be obliged--at the expense of the winner--to go to ,moscow and return by the railroad your excellence has just finished4 ,what joke is this8 asked the emperor4 ,a very simple one1 sire4 ,the road is so constructed that one is very sure to break his neck on it2 so1 you see1 we are playing for our lives4 ,the emperor laughed heartily at the joke1 but ,kleinmichel took care not to accept the bet4 ,these two instances prove that ,nicholas knew how1 now and then1 to listen to a truth well said4 ,he was too certain that none of his subjects dared fail him in the respect he required1 so he could afford to listen to those who were bold and witty enough to approach him with the truth4 ,menschikoff1 the same who commanded at ,sebastopol1 was one of these2 better than any other1 he always maintained before the czar his frank speech1 and ,nicholas1 little accustomed to such frankness1 loved him dearly1 and frequently amused himself with his sallies4 ,general ,kleinmichel was the aversion of ,menschikoff4 ,one day the latter entered the cabinet of ,nicholas at the moment when the emperor was playing with one of his grand-children1 the ,grand ,duke ,michel1 still quite an infant4 ,astraddle on the shoulders of his grandfather1 the little prince made the czar serve for his horse4 ,see1 cried ,nicholas gayly1 see how this little imp treats me4 ,i am growing thin under it4 ,the little monkey is so heavy1 ,i shall fall with fatigue4 ,zounds6 quickly replied ,menschikoff1 little ,michel 7in ,german ,klein-michel7 ought not to be a very light load1 if he carries about him all he has stolen4 ,notwithstanding his jokes1 which spared no one1 ,menschikoff delighted ,nicholas1 who could readily enough withdraw him from the chief command at ,sebastopol1 but would not deprive him of his friendship4 ,this was of more ancient date1 and founded on the two good qualities of courage and sincerity4 ,sometimes1 but rarely1 others approached the emperor as familiarly4 ,the celebrated poet1 ,pouchkine1 for example1 dared to express himself in his presence with a frankness which1 even in occidental ,europe1 and in a constitutional state1 would pass for audacity4 ,in the palace of the ,hermitage1 where they were walking together1 the emperor had led the poet into a gallery of pictures that contained the portraits of all the ,romanoffs1 from ,michel ,fedorovitch to the last reigning sovereign1 and had ordered him to improvise some verses on each4 #fij ,pouchkine obeyed2 but coming to the portrait of ,nicholas1 he was silent4 ,well1 ,pouchkine1 said the emperor1 what have you to say of me8 ,sire6 ,some flattery1 of course8 ,i don't wish to hear it2 so tell the truth4 ,your majesty permits me8 ,i order you4 ,believe in my imperial word1 you shall not suffer4 ,so be it1 sire4 ,and he wrote the famous distich3 ,des pieds la tte la toile est admirable2 ,de la tte aux pieds le tzar est dtestable4 ,footnote #baj ,footnote #baj3 ,from feet to head the picture is admirable3 ,from head to feet the czar is detestable4 ,the emperor made no reply1 but he asked ,pouchkine for no more verses4 ,notwithstanding his despotism1 and the arbitrary acts that signalized his reign2 notwithstanding the innumerable banishments into ,siberia and ,caucasia1 it is seen the emperor could sometimes bear to hear the truth4 ,the instinct of justice was born in him2 despotism had smothered it1 unfortunately1 but his better nature frequently triumphed4 ,often the hereditary grand duke had1 in this respect1 to submit to severe reprimands4 ,one day1 in #ahcb1 a year after the revolt of the ,poles1 whom ,nicholas had handled with implacable rigor1 the grand duke1 in the presence of his father1 had called them accursed4 ,rebuking publicly his son3 ,imperial ,highness1 said ,nicholas1 your expressions are unseemly4 ,if ,i chastise the ,poles1 it is because they have revolted against my authority2 but to you they have done no harm1 and you are destined to reign over them4 ,you have no right to make any difference in your future subjects4 ,be assured1 such sentiments make bad sovereigns4 ,the sentiment of gratitude was no more a stranger to the ,emperor ,nicholas than the spirit of justice4 ,true1 he guarded as faithfully the remembrance of injuries as of services1 and if he never forgot those who had served or defended him1 neither did he ever forgive those who had made the least attempt against his power4 ,while the ,troubetskois1 the ,mouravieffs1 the ,tchernicheffs1 worked in the mines of ,siberia1 still there could be seen1 at the end of his reign1 several generals perfectly unqualified1 yet provided with advantageous employments1 without any great power1 it is true1 but well lodged1 well fed1 honored1 and tranquil4 ,if they committed any absurdity1 and this frequently happened1 he changed their places according to capacity1 or sometimes secretly directed them in the exercise of their functions1 never failing in his goodness toward them4 ,these men1 in the military revolt of #ahbf1 had offered their swords to assist his growing power4 ,strange character6 ,curious mixture of faults and good qualities1 of littleness and grandeur2 brutal and chivalrous1 courageous even to temerity1 and distrustful even to poltroonery2 equitable and tyrannical1 generous and cruel1 at once the friend of ostentation and of simplicity6 ,his palace was magnificent1 his court splendid1 the luxuriousness of his courtiers dazzling1 while1 in his own person1 his habits and tastes1 he affected an imposing austerity4 ,his working cabinet was almost bare2 he slept always on a camp bed4 ,the oldness of his uniform1 and of his military cloaks1 was proverbial at ,st4 ,petersburg4 ,worn out1 pieced in different places1 they evidenced1 by their shining neatness1 how carefully they were preserved4 ,at his repasts even1 he drank no wine2 he never smoked1 and the odor of tobacco was so disagreeable to him that it was forbidden1 not only in the ,winter ,palace1 but in the streets of ,st4 ,petersburg4 #fia ,even the ,grand ,duke ,alexander1 the czar truly1 and an inveterate smoker1 was obliged to sit under the mantel-piece1 to enjoy the luxury of a cigar in the imperial palace4 ,loving beyond everything military discipline1 and rigorous in his formulas1 ,nicholas1 who for thirty years was accustomed to this refrain1 ,master1 thy slave is here to obey thee--,nicholas could only comprehend order and uniformity4 ,reviews were his favorite passion2 during his reign1 he transformed his empire into a barrack4 ,he passed his life in manoeuvres1 exercises1 and miniature wars4 ,the soldiers adored him1 although he was only eclipsed in the severity of military rule by the ,grand ,duke ,michel4 ,it is true1 the latter pushed his worship of discipline to such an extent that the emperor himself was often amused at the expense of his younger brother4 ,one day he met an officer with his clothes torn and covered with mud1 and without helmet or sword4 ,the officer1 finding himself discovered1 and knowing he was to blame1 was terribly frightened1 and nearly fell backward in making the military salute4 ,nicholas fixed a severe look upon the poor devil1 which made him totter4 ,but1 suddenly changing his tone and countenance1 he said gayly3 ,go1 dress yourself2 but take good care you don't meet my brother6 ,rising with the dawn1 and at work from the earliest hour of the day1 whether at his palace in winter or in the field in summer1 he hardened himself1 as well as others1 to both cold and fatigue4 ,an excellent rider1 his horses were magnificent and marvellously cared for2 he always mounted alone those that were reserved for him1 and out of two or three hundred sent every year to his stables for his own use1 he could scarcely find a dozen to suit him4 ,in manoeuvres ,i have seen him twenty times1 at the moment of the loudest cannonade and in the most frightful noise1 jerk1 in his impatience1 his horse's bit until the jagged lips of the poor beast were streaming with blood4 ,sometimes this torture lasted several minutes2 the sides of the beautiful animal whitened with foam2 he trembled in agony1 and yet never lost for a moment his statue-like immobility4 ,such methods of proceeding1 applied by ,nicholas equally to everything that surrounded him1 generals1 servants1 horses1 and courtiers1 were fortunately tempered in him by the sense of justice1 of which ,i have already spoken1 and especially by the fear of public opinion1 not only in ,russia1 but in all ,europe4 ,he seemed ashamed of the despotism he practised1 and strove to conceal it from the governments and people of the ,west4 ,in proportion as he affected to despise their arms1 so much the more did he respect their ideas4 ,we know that it is customary at the court of ,st4 ,petersburg to be presented to the emperor in full uniform4 ,and even more1 that there is no condition in life1 however trifling1 which has not its distinctive costume4 ,it is related that one morning ,lord ----1 ambassador from ,england1 arrived in his carriage at the gate of the ,winter ,palace1 was recognized1 and went up to the apartments of the emperor4 ,he was in his great-coat4 ,seeing it1 the chamberlain-in-waiting1 who did not dare remark this infringement of the laws of etiquette in such an important person1 immediately sent word to the chancellor of the empire4 ,count ,nesselrode1 and meanwhile retained the ambassador under various pretexts4 #fib ,the count arrived in haste1 and the morning toilet seemed to have the same effect on the chancellor as on the chamberlain4 ,i am delighted to see you1 my dear count1 said ,lord ---- to ,m4 de ,nesselrode4 ,i wanted to speak to his majesty on some very important business1 but ,i have been detained here nearly an hour4 ,because we do not dare1 my lord-- ,do not dare--what8 ,we cannot introduce you to the emperor in such morning nglig4 ,nglig6 said he1 throwing a rapid glance at his person1 and aware of his reputation for elegance1 and supposing he had been guilty of some impropriety in his toilet4 ,in ,russia1 no one is admitted in similar costume to the presence of the sovereign4 ,would full uniform be necessary8 asked smilingly the reassured ambassador4 ,exactly1 my lord4 ,oh6 pardon me1 then4 ,i will go dress myself4 ,and he left1 shrugging his shoulders4 ,the emperor was furious when he heard of the adventure4 ,cursed fools6 he grumbled1 they represent me a barbarian6 ,when1 an hour afterward1 the ambassador returned to the palace in official uniform1 the emperor excused himself with great anxiety1 blaming the narrow-mindedness of his servants1 and declaring loudly that he did not occupy his brain with such trifles4 ,when you wish1 my lord1 added he1 giving him his hand1 to come and see me as you did to-day1 do not be incommoded1 ,i beg of you1 by any such formula4 ,this fear of ,western irony affected all his relations with ,europeans4 ,we know the flattering reception he gave the ,marquis de ,custine1 ,horace ,vernet1 and twenty other illustrious strangers4 ,those employed in his empire were as anxious to throw dust in the eyes of travellers as himself4 ,nothing could be more amusing than the arrival of a stranger at ,st4 ,petersburg1 under the reign of ,nicholas4 ,as no one could remain in the city without a permit1 all new-comers hastened to the police to have their cards presented them1 and the scenes enacted were truly comical4 ,the following dialogue will give a good idea of them3 ,you wish to live at ,st4 ,petersburg8 ,yes1 sir4 ,how long8 ,each one then fixed the probable duration of his stay4 ,well1 your permit will be given you4 ,here a pause4 ,the policeman gives the necessary order1 then resumes the conversation4 ,well1 what do you think of ,st4 ,petersburg8 ,it is an admirable city4 ,are not our theatres as fine as those of ,paris8 ,most assuredly4 ,is not the perspective from ,newski a superb view8 ,truly4 ,do they not tell idle stories of us in ,paris1 and are they any freer than we8 ,prejudices these1 nothing more4 ,travellers1 like me1 are here to rectify such errors4 ,a proof that ,russia is free1 ,i can move about with perfect liberty4 ,have you seen the emperor8 ,yesterday evening at the ,thtre ,michel4 ,is he not a remarkably handsome man8 ,the handsomest ,i have ever seen4 #fic ,sir1 your permit must be ready by this time4 ,will you go and receive it1 and prolong your stay in ,russia as long as you please4 ,you will see that you have judged our country correctly4 ,notwithstanding all his efforts to conciliate ,european opinion1 the ,emperor ,nicholas was not rewarded in his travels by any praise whatever4 ,once out of his own country1 he quickly discovered he had deceived no one1 and his despotism was in ,europe the object of universal unpopularity4 ,from the ,holy ,father he received his first lesson3 a lesson1 however1 both given and received with dignity4 ,it was well known that he had changed hundreds of ,catholic into ,greek churches1 in all the western provinces of ,russia and ,poland4 ,curious to visit ,rome1 he asked permission of ,gregory ,,xvi4 to enter the holy city4 ,the pope asked1 in return1 by what ceremonial he wished to be received4 ,as a ,catholic sovereign1 replied the emperor4 ,lodged at the ,quirinal1 he went the next day in ,eastern style with a guard of ,cossacks to visit the holy father1 who received him standing at the head of the staircase of the ,vatican4 ,nicholas knelt to receive the benediction of the venerable pontiff1 who1 after having given it to him1 without being at all impressed with his ,attila-like costume1 said to him with a serenity almost angelic3 ,my son1 you persecute my sheep4 ,i8 cried ,nicholas in a disconcerted tone4 ,yes1 you1 my son4 ,you are powerful4 ,do not use your strength to oppress the weak4 ,holy father1 ,i have been slandered4 ,the conversation continued some time in the cabinet of the pope1 and the emperor remained1 during his stay in ,rome1 on terms of the most affectionate respect with ,gregory ,,xvi4 ,he afterward sent him a magnificent altar of malachite1 that may be admired at the church of ,st4 ,paul1 outside the walls4 ,an inscription1 dictated by ,nicholas to ,st4 ,peter at ,rome1 recalls his visit to the ,capital of ,christianity3--,nicholas came here to pray to ,god for his mother1 ,russia4 ,in ,london1 as is well known1 he was received with great popular demonstrations4 ,we need not relate here the tumultuous scenes to which he had to submit1 and how his carriage was more than once covered with mud4 ,with a brutality unworthy a sovereign1 and at times a delicacy astonishing in a man of such a character1 the most contrary qualities and defects reproduced themselves in a hundred acts of his life4 ,for instance1 one night ,i saw him fisticuff a poor ,jew in the face1 and accompany the act with the most sonorous oaths1 because in giving light to the postilions of the ,berlin imperial1 he had awakened him with a start1 by throwing the light of his lantern into his face4 ,again1 at ,warsaw1 where he went to receive the ,king of ,prussia and the ,emperor of ,austria1 he took ,francis ,joseph into his arms to force him to occupy the seat of honor in his carriage1 which the young emperor was unwilling to accept3 a courtesy1 according to the ,cossack1 that would have exactly suited him4 ,yet this man1 so rude and so haughty1 evidenced occasionally great delicacy of sentiment4 ,one very cold day1 returning from a review1 where he had been almost frozen1 he stopped at the house of a lady1 whom he knew to be in ill health1 and met the doctor in the waiting-room4 ,how is ,madame ----8 said he to the latter4 #fid ,very poorly1 sire4 ,the cold of ,st4 ,petersburg is killing her4 ,ah6 the cold is injuring her8 ,feel my hands4 ,they are frozen1 are they not8 ,very cold1 sire4 ,well1 ,i will wait here until they are warm2 ,i would not for the world increase her malady4 ,and the emperor waited in this sort of an antechamber1 talking to the doctor1 until his hands resumed their natural warmth4 ,so this character1 which1 at first sight1 appeared all of a piece1 was composed of contrasts the most dissonant4 ,nicholas bared his breast to the revolted regiments in #ahbf and recalled them to duty by this single attitude2 at the time of the cholera1 alone amid a populace mad with terror and exasperated by famine1 a gesture from him1 a single word1 could constrain the delirious multitude and throw them on their knees before him2 in cases of fire1 so frequent at ,st4 ,petersburg1 and under the burning beams1 a hundred times he uselessly risked his life2 yet on another occasion1 when the safety of an empire depended upon him1 he resolutely refused to repair to ,sebastopol4 ,his long reign was fatal to ,russia4 ,for nearly thirty years it accomplished nothing4 ,during the lifetime of ,nicholas1 the wheel-work of the machine moved regularly under his powerful hand1 the cogs upon which he impressed the movement never being completely paralyzed4 ,but the evil1 being hidden1 was not the less deep or real4 ,under this show of factitious strength1 the downfall was already visible1 and the approaching disaster keenly felt4 ,the army1 upon which ,nicholas concentrated all his attention and intelligence--the army1 his strength1 his hope1 his pride1 began to be disorganized under the influence of an administration without control4 ,alone1 the will of the czar sustained the edifice1 and his pride sustained his will4 ,and this word pride embodies to my mind the character1 the conduct1 the whole politics1 of the ,emperor ,nicholas4 ,his ruling passion was pride1 a pride incommensurable1 a pride such as neither ,louis ,,xiv41 ,henry ,,viii41 nor ,solyman the ,magnificent--these three crowned representatives of capital sins--could ever equal4 ,the idea of humiliation would leave him smiling1 so entirely he believed such an event impossible4 ,it may be truly said that he never submitted1 for the first repulse he had to suffer killed him4 ,this pride in him passed all bounds1 and touched sometimes on the aberrations of a ,schahabaham4 ,one day1 one of his aides-de-camp came to him very much excited1 and throwing himself at his feet3 ,sire6 cried he1 ,i beg your majesty to grant me a favor4 ,speak4 ,permit me to fight a duel4 ,never6 replied the emperor4 ,nicholas had a horror of duels4 ,in his eyes1 all blood was criminally shed in ,russia that was not for the country or in his service1 and he punished the guilty in this respect most severely4 ,sire1 ,i am dishonored4 ,it is necessary for me to fight4 ,what do you say8 ,i have been struck in the face4 ,ah6 said the emperor1 contracting his brows4 ,but no1 ,i cannot permit a duel4 ,you must come with me4 ,and taking him by the arm1 he conducted him before the assembled court1 and1 in presence of all1 kissed him on the offended cheek4 #fie ,go1 now1 said he1 and resume your tranquillity2 the affront is washed out4 ,during the war of the ,crimea1 and especially in the first part of it1 ,nicholas1 very restless1 waited every day for news from the south4 ,each one tried his best to conceal the bad turn affairs had taken2 but after the battle of the ,alma1 the truth had to be confessed4 ,a courier1 ,colonel ,a41 was despatched to him in great haste4 ,he received orders to repair immediately to the czar4 ,well6 what news8 said the emperor to him brusquely1 giving him scarcely time to enter or fulfil the accustomed formalities of etiquette4 ,the battle has been fought1 sire4 ,finish6 said the emperor1 with an emotion that caused his usually firm voice to tremble4 ,alas6-- ,you say--8 ,fortune has failed us4 ,we are--8 ,we are beaten1 sire4 ,the emperor arose from his seat4 ,it is impossible1 said he in a quick manner4 ,the ,russian army has taken flight4 ,you lie6 cried ,nicholas with a frightful explosion of anger4 ,sire-- ,you lie4 ,my soldiers never fly4 ,sire1 ,i have told you the truth4 ,you lie1 ,i say1 you lie4 ,and his eye beaming with anger1 his lips contracted1 his hand raised1 he threw himself on the military courier and tore off his epaulettes4 ,go6 ,you are now only a soldier4 ,the unhappy colonel1 pale with shame1 smothering his rage and the tears that rose to his eyes1 went out1 his soul in despair4 ,but hardly had he reached the staircase1 when he heard the voice of the emperor begging his return4 ,he retraced his steps1 and ,nicholas1 running to meet him1 embraced him ardently1 begged pardon for his brutality1 and offered for his acceptance the post of aide-de-camp4 ,may your majesty hold me excused1 replied the poor officer2 for1 in taking off my epaulettes1 you have deprived me of my honor4 ,i leave them in your hands with my dismissal4 ,you are right1 replied ,nicholas4 ,it is not in my power to repair the offence of my hasty action4 ,ah6 we are both unhappy1 and ,i am vanquished4 ,yes1 completely vanquished6 ,and1 walking up and down with an agitated step1 the subdued lion in his cage1 his heart bleeding with the wound given his pride3 ,go1 leave my empire1 continued he1 turning to ,colonel ,a----1 and pardon me4 ,we must not meet again4 ,both of us would suffer too much in each other's presence4 ,the mortification attending the first reverses of his army before ,sebastopol was a mortal blow to his health2 yet1 had not his stubborn pride brought about these reverses8 ,self-deceived thoroughly as to the real condition of his empire1 the disastrous news of the ,alma came upon him like a thunder-bolt4 ,some honest men1 sent to the different stations1 signalized the imperfect state of the fortifications of ,sebastopol1 the disorganization of the army1 the deplorable condition of the roads4 ,they informed the emperor that the soldiers1 in their march toward the south1 were dying by thousands for want of sufficient nourishment and necessary clothing4 ,thanks to the bad quality of the grass and hay1 whole regiments were in a few days entirely dismounted4 ,and now the alarming news spread with rapidity4 #fif ,each day brought fresh tidings of new embarrassments1 new checks1 and new misfortunes4 ,nicholas at last opened his eyes4 ,he saw the colossus1 with its feet of clay1 tremble to its base2 he felt his power crumble in his hands1 his prestige fade and disappear4 ,from the windows of ,peterhoff1 his loved summer residence1 he could follow with his telescope the evolutions of the allied fleet4 ,turkey itself1 hitherto so despicable in his eyes1 was transformed into a redoubtable enemy4 ,now he began to think of the ravages that continued theft had made in his empire1 the disorders in the finances1 the corruption of public morals1 and every one was doomed to punishments4 ,by his order1 judgments1 condemnations1 banishment to ,caucasia and ,siberia1 were daily multiplied4 ,it was too late2 the gangrene had reached the wound4 ,tears of grief and rage flowed with the consciousness of his impotence4 ,he opened his eyes to the fall of ,russia with each victorious flash of the allied cannons2 and the edifice of terror that had taken him twenty years to build1 he saw crumbling1 stone by stone1 and felt that the military quackery with which he had intimidated ,europe had frightened no one4 ,with the mocking pride of ,titan1 he bled at every pore4 ,repeated blows of this kind ended by undermining his constitution1 till now so vigorous4 ,little by little he sank1 bent his haughty head1 and tottered1 with slow and saddened step1 to the grave4 ,it was ,february4 ,under a gray and cold sky1 a penetrating1 driving snow enveloped ,st4 ,petersburg in a whitened dust4 ,the streets1 the houses1 the beards and furred great-coats of the passers-by1 all were white4 ,the great city resembled a giant asleep under the snow4 ,an inexpressible sadness took possession of you1 weighed down your whole being1 and froze your very heart4 ,you seemed to be at the pole itself4 ,on this day the emperor1 an early riser as usual1 came out of his bedroom and entered his cabinet1 where were already assembled his general aide-de-camp1 his other aides1 the chamberlain1 and gentlemen of the bed-chamber4 ,perceiving his general aide-de-camp1 he called to him1 and said3 ,i am suffering4 ,send for ,mandt4 ,i will go myself1 sire4 ,yes4 ,i have a grand review at the end of the week1 and must be there4 ,mandt1 his attendant physician1 ,prussian by birth1 a man of science1 and an excellent practitioner1 hastened to the emperor1 who1 after having given his orders1 had returned to his apartments4 ,it will be nothing1 gentlemen1 said the doctor to us on leaving the imperial chamber2 only the emperor should abstain from going out1 as the least imprudence may aggravate a malady which at present portends nothing serious4 ,the emperor remained two days in his room1 and there was a sensible improvement in his condition4 ,but his wasted figure1 his dull eyes1 and waxy color betrayed the existence of a hidden malady4 ,the third day1 the courier from the south brought him news--sad news1 certainly1 for it had been a long time since his couriers had anything happy to tell him4 ,the next day was terribly cold1 icy1 heavy1 impregnated with the boreal fog2 yet this was the day of the review at which the czar wished to assist4 ,he threw a small military cloak over his uniform1 and at the appointed hour left his cabinet1 to mount his horse4 ,mandt was waiting for him in the antechamber4 #fig ,sire6 said the doctor to him in a supplicating voice1 and trying to retain him4 ,oh6 it is you1 doctor4 ,i am better1 thank you4 ,yes1 sire1 better1 but not well yet4 ,oh6 indisposed merely1 ,no1 sire1 a serious malady4 ,i come to beg your majesty not to go out4 ,impossible6 ,sire1 for pity's sake-- ,you are crazy1 ,mandt4 ,sire1 you had better be resigned4 ,you believe there is danger8 ,it is my duty to warn you of it4 ,well1 ,mandt1 if you have done your duty in warning me1 ,i will do mine by going out4 ,and the emperor1 without listening to another word1 pursued his way4 ,mandt1 stupefied for a moment1 ran after him1 and rejoined him in the court-yard1 at the moment he mounted his horse4 ,sire1 cried he1 resuming his supplications1 deign to listen to me-- ,i have said it1 ,mandt4 ,i thank you1 but to insist would be useless4 ,sire1 in this condition6 ,well8 ,it is your death1 sire4 ,and then8 ,it is suicide4 ,and who has permitted you1 ,mandt1 to scrutinize my thoughts8 ,go1 and insist no longer4 ,i order you4 ,after the review1 he returned to the palace1 pale1 trembling1 icy cold4 ,i am threatened with my malady1 said he to his aide-de-camp4 ,shall ,i send for ,mandt8 ,useless2 he has already warned me4 ,he warned your majesty8 ,yes2 that ,i would kill myself4 ,the aide-de-camp turned pale4 ,ah sire6 what do ,i hear8 ,to die1 is it not the best thing ,i can do8 ,farewell1 my old friend1 ,i have need of rest4 ,let no one disturb me4 ,all night the imperial family1 who had been apprised of his condition1 the doctors1 ,mandt and ,rasel1 united in the anteroom1 waited with anxiety--not daring to knock at the door of the emperor--for the moment he might call to them4 ,obedience1 in this court1 was so blindly servile that it imposed silence on the most natural and imperious sentiments4 ,toward two o'clock something was heard between a groan and a sigh4 ,mandt thought he might knock gently at the door of the imperial chamber4 ,i have forbidden any one to disturb me1 murmured the emperor1 in a voice still feeble1 but which retained an accent of authority4 ,that night was spent in mortal inquietude1 in inexpressible anguish1 and not until the next morning was the doctor informed by the valet de chambre that his august patient would like to see him4 ,well1 ,mandt1 you were right4 ,i believe ,i am a dead man4 ,these were the first words of ,nicholas4 ,o sire6 ,i spoke as ,i did to dissuade your majesty from so great an imprudence4 ,let us see3 look me in the face and tell me if there is yet hope4 ,i believe so1 sire4 ,i tell you ,i am a dead man4 ,i feel it4 ,go on1 make use of your trade4 ,sound my lungs2 ,i know that science will confirm my conviction4 ,mandt1 having accomplished the orders of the emperor1 shook his head4 ,well8 ,sire-- ,you are troubled1 ,mandt2 your hand trembles4 ,see1 ,i have more courage than you4 ,come1 let us have the sentence1 and quickly1 for ,i have to settle my affairs in this world1 and ,i have a great many of them4 #fih ,your majesty troubles yourself unnecessarily4 ,no case is ever desperate1 and with the grace of ,god-- ,nicholas gazed at his doctor fixedly in the eyes4 ,the latter looked down confusedly4 ,you know1 ,mandt1 ,i cannot be deceived easily4 ,let us have the truth now1 and only the truth4 ,do you think that ,nicholas does not know how to die8 ,sire-- ,well8 ,in forty-eight hours you will be dead or saved4 ,thank you1 ,mandt1 said ,nicholas in a voice of deep emotion4 ,now good-by1 and send me my family4 ,the doctor prepared to leave the room4 ,mandt6 called ,nicholas1 on seeing him direct his steps toward the door4 ,sire4 ,let us embrace each other1 my good old friend4 ,we will perhaps never meet again on earth4 ,you have been an honest and faithful servant4 ,i will recommend you to my son4 ,what do you say1 sire8 ,never see you again6 ,i sincerely hope the contrary1 and that my attentions-- ,your attentions will be superfluous4 ,there will be time for me only to see my ministers and my priest1 and make my peace with ,god4 ,human science can do no more for me1 and1 indeed1 ,i do not wish to try it4 ,and now at the close1 sire1 ,i revolt1 cried the doctor4 ,i have no right1 and my duty forbids my thus abandoning you4 ,mandt1 do you answer for my cure8 ,the doctor hung his head1 and could not reply4 ,farewell1 then1 my friend4 ,sire1 if not1 then1 as your physician1 permit me as a devoted servant to see you again4 ,who can tell8 ,god is great6 and for the destiny of the ,russia which he protects1 may work a miracle4 ,and because ,i know that ,god protects ,russia1 so neither do ,i wish nor hope for my restoration to health4 ,mandt1 let my family come now4 ,i assure you the time will soon fail me4 ,mandt wept4 ,with tears in his eyes1 he went out and related to the courtiers his conversation with the emperor4 ,strange contradiction6 ,this man1 whom ,i have tried to depict as so severe and haughty1 was adored by all who approached him4 ,courtiers1 soldiers1 servants1 burst into tears4 ,lost in the crowd with them1 ,i mingled my complaints and prayers4 ,then1 after the empress and the grand hereditary duke1 the imperial family1 all in tears1 entered the apartment of the emperor4 ,the door closed upon them1 and all that passed there1 all that was said in this supreme grief1 only ,god knew4 ,mandt1 however1 with a voice choked with emotion1 continued his recital1 and we listened to him with the keenest attention4 ,how and by what indiscretion the news he had just given us was spread in the city1 ,i cannot tell2 but already1 before the death of the czar1 it was believed at ,st4 ,petersburg that ,mandt had helped to poison him4 ,from this to the pretended act itself there was but one step toward belief1 and this was soon overcome2 so the exasperation1 true or false1 against the honest doctor1 knew no bounds1 and they would have torn him to pieces in the streets4 ,the name of ,nicholas still inspired such terror that every one endeavored to give some public demonstration of grief as a claim on his benevolence in the event of his returning to life4 ,yet after his death these manifestations changed their character1 and the contrast between such marks of affection and the epithets with which they loaded his memory when they were certain he really ceased to exist1 was a lesson for kings to contemplate4 #fii ,for the time1 though1 the anger of the people against the poor doctor was so blindly furious1 that it is related of a thief1 seized by the collar by a passerby1 from whom he had tried to steal his watch1 that in order to escape1 he raised the cry1 ,hist6 hist6 it's ,mandt1 comrades1 it's ,mandt6 ,the interview between the emperor and his family lasted three hours1 three long hours1 during which expectation for us was changed into real anguish4 ,by degrees retired1 one by one1 the children1 the grand-children1 and his brothers4 ,the grand hereditary duke came out last1 bathed in tears4 ,an hour flew by1 and not a sound was heard from the imperial chamber2 no one dared enter4 ,mandt listened attentively1 holding his breath4 ,suddenly a loud noise was heard in the corridors2 a courier from ,sebastopol arrived4 ,as the whole court knew the impatience with which the emperor awaited the news from the ,crimea1 the aide-de-camp general on duty1 thinking to please the emperor1 knocked at his door4 ,do they still want me8 murmured the emperor2 tell them to let me rest4 ,sire1 a courier from ,sebastopol4 ,let him address himself to my son2 this concerns me no longer4 ,soon the primate1 followed by the clergy1 arrived to offer the last consolations of the church4 ,then the ministers were presented1 the ,count ,orlof at their head4 ,this lasted during the night4 ,at ten o'clock1 the emperor asked for the officers of his household4 ,his face already bore the impress of death2 a cadaverous paleness betrayed the progress of the decomposition that preceded the fatal moment2 lying on his camp-bed1 he addressed us some farewell words1 which the first strokes of death-rattle interrupted1 and took leave of us with a waive of his hand4 ,none of us slept that night in the ,winter ,palace1 none of us after that hour ever saw the emperor alive4 ,the next day1 the #ahth of ,february1 at mid-day1 the grand chamberlain of the palace was sent for by the physicians to the imperial bed4 ,at half-past twelve o'clock1 returning among us1 ,nicholas ,paulowitch is dead1 said he4 ,we went out silent and sad4 ,the next day1 on the walls of ,st4 ,petersburg could be read this inscription3 ,russia1 grateful to the ,emperor ,nicholas ,i4 for the #ahth of ,february1 #ahee4 -------- #gjj ,translated ,from ,the ,french ,of ,the ,pere ,landriot-- ,addressed ,to ,women ,of ,the ,world4 ,household ,duties4 ,she giveth meat to her household1 and a portion to her maidens4' ,we finished the question1 vulgar perhaps in one sense1 yet so important in many others1 of sleep3 ,footnote #baa a benefit of divine ,providence accorded us each day to repair our strength1 renew our life1 and provide for the weakness and precipitation of man2 a time for repose and sage counsel4 ,footnote #baa3 ,see ,early ,rising in ,the ,catholic ,world for ,september1 #ahfg4 ,sleep is a precious dictate1 a solitary bath for body and soul1 and a prudent counsellor and daily preacher to remind us of our approaching and last departure4 ,but like all good things1 sleep is subject to abuse1 and then it produces effects entirely contrary to the will of the ,creator3 weakening1 stupefying1 and dulling the faculties1 it becomes for humanity a living sepulchre4 ,if the abuse of sleep coincides with the quality1 that is to say1 if the hours by nature destined to it are considerably changed--night turned into day1 and day into night--the constitution is assuredly ruined1 and an infirm old age prepared1 a never-ceasing convalescence4 ,parties and midnight revels have killed more women than the most exaggerated mortifications and if religion commanded the sacrifice the world requires of its votaries1 the recriminations against it would be unending4 ,in a hygienic light1 physical as well as moral1 it is better to retire and rise early4 ,everything gains by it--health1 business1 and the facility and excellence of prayer4 ,but we must not dissimulate2 and the struggle with the pillow is1 in its very sweetness1 one of the most violent that can exercise man's courage2 and to break these chains of bed1 it is necessary to exercise an almost superhuman energy4 ,the enemy is deceitful1 dangerous in his caresses1 and generally ends in persuading us2 we think he is right2 and1 after all1 it is a cruelty to martyrize ourselves4 ,i have not wished1 ladies1 to conceal the difficulties2 but ,i have pleaded my cause1 which is also yours4 ,to your wisdom and reason ,i submit it1 and ,i trust to succeed at such a tribunal4 ,if you wish to appeal1 and present the cause before the tribunal of ,idleness1 listening to its numerous lawyers1 in advance ,i may tell you the first judgment will be suspended4 ,well1 ,i will consent to lose1 but on one condition--that you will insert this explanation in the judgment3 that the case was gained before ,judge ,reason2 but that1 in the supreme court of ,indolence1 ,idleness1 surrounded by his lawyers1 revoked the decision4 ,now for the end of our text3 ,the strong woman giveth meat to her household1 and a portion to her maidens4 ,formerly1 ladies1 when families and societies were truly ,christian1 the domestics1 according to the etymology of the word1 were really a part of the house2 for domestic comes from the ,latin word domus1 which signifies house4 ,in those days1 a family formed a body2 the father and mother were head1 and the domestics themselves had their place in the organization of the family2 they were only subordinate members1 but they were a part of the body4 #gja ,therefore1 they always lived in the house1 passed their lives there2 and when they were no longer able to work1 they were cared for with paternal and filial affection2 and when the hour of death came to them by length of time1 they had fallen into decay as a branch dying on its trunk4 ,the relations of benevolence and ,christian charity united masters to servants2 and while the latter accepted the place of inferiority1 they felt themselves loved1 and loving in return1 a tie was formed stronger than massive gold--the tie of love4 ,saint ,augustine speaks to us with much feeling of the nurse who cared for his mother's infancy1 and who had even carried on her back the father of ,st4 ,monica1 as young girls then carried little children3 ,sicut dorso grandiuscularum puellarum parvuli portari solent4 ,footnote #bab ,footnote #bab3 ,confessions1 i4 #i1 c #h4 ,this remembrance1 continued ,st4 ,augustine1 her old age1 the excellence of her manners1 assured her in a ,christian house the veneration of her masters1 who had committed to her the care of their daughters2 her zeal responded to their confidence2 and while she exercised a saintly firmness to correct them--to instruct1 she was always guided by an admirable prudence4 ,nowadays1 ladies1 things have changed4 ,such examples are rare2 but without doubt1 there are still honorable exceptions--servants who love their masters1 and who make part of the family as true children of the house1 serving with ease and gentleness1 because they are guided principally by affection1 and bearing the faults of their masters1 who1 in return1 are patient with them1 until household affairs glide on with a smoothness which1 though sometimes very imperfect1 is1 after all1 a small evil4 ,yes1 we do still find ,christian families where domesticity is thus understood2 but alas6 they become rarer every day6 ,in our time1 owing to a spirit of pride1 independence and irreligion are spreading everywhere2 good servants are hard to find1 and perhaps also good masters2 and as two fireplaces placed opposite each other are mutually overheated1 so the bad qualities of the domestics increase those of the masters1 and vice vers4 ,servants have exaggerated pretensions2 they will not bear the least reproof2 everything wounds them2 and on the other side1 masters do not command in a ,christian spirit4 ,thus1 everywhere is heard a general concert of complaint and recrimination2 masters accuse their servants1 servants do as little as possible for their masters2 and certain houses become like omnibuses1 where the servants enter only to get out again at their convenience4 ,i have told you1 ladies1 that1 if ,i had to preach to your husbands1 ,i could add a kind of counterpart1 not adverse to your interests1 but to complete my instructions2 but1 addressing myself to you1 my words must be limited to your duties4 ,i would add here1 also1 that1 if ,i had to preach to your servants1 ,i would be obliged to give them advice very useful for your household organization2 but they are absent2 my instruction is to you2 so ,i must leave in shadow all their shortcomings4 ,it appears to me your duties to them will be well accomplished if you enter into the spirit of this text3 ,she riseth while it is yet night1 and giveth meat to her household1 and a portion to her maidens4 ,look at the sun2 it rises on the horizon1 and1 in shedding its beams1 seems to distribute work to every creature1 and1 by way of recompense1 prepares their nourishment in advance4 ,is it not he who1 while lighting the world1 invites the artisan to his shop1 the laborer to his field1 and the pilot to leave his port8 #gjb ,is it not he who prepares the germs in the bosom of the earth--who warms them1 and conducts them to that point of maturity that the statesman waits for as impatiently as the laborer8 ,woman1 says the ,scripture1 should be the sun of her household4 ,she should lighten and warm like the planet of the day4 ,her rays are emitted in indicating to each one his duties1 in distributing the work in wise and suitable proportions1 and1 when all is justly ordered1 superintending its execution4 ,then everything goes on admirably1 because brightened by the spirit of regularity that guides the mistress of the house4 ,her glance1 given to all around her1 projects the light2 and this light is the strongest and most insinuating of counsellors1 as well as a gracious but severe monitor4 ,a woman who presides well over her household need talk but little2 her presence speaks for her1 and the simple conviction that she has her eyes everywhere1 and that the least detail is not unknown to her1 prevents any irregularity4 ,but see1 on the contrary1 a house where the mistress rises late1 and sleeps morally the rest of the day4 ,everything is left to chance2 disorder introduces itself everywhere1 in heads as in business2 a general pell-mell of ideas and objects--a confusion which recalls the primitive chaos4 ,madam sleeps late1 the servants rise only a little earlier2 during the day1 madam dreams1 occupies herself with her toilet1 in matinees1 and visits1 and the house1 given up to itself1 becomes what it may4 ,the children are almost abandoned1 and work accumulates in the most delightful disorder4 ,woman1 the sun of her house1 should not be satisfied to illuminate it2 she should warm it also1 and with her heart4 ,you ought1 ladies1 to watch your servants1 demand an account of their proceedings in-doors and out1 watch over them particularly in their connection with your children2 for too often the heart and mind are lost by servants1 and1 were it permitted to reveal all the human heart can tell us in this respect1 you would be seriously alarmed4 ,about twenty years ago1 ,i had charge of a seminary4 ,one day ,i received a visit from a very indignant father1 who told me with bitterness that his child had been corrupted in our establishment4 ,i knew to the contrary2 but ,i had no defence to offer1 so in silence ,i bore an unmerited reproach4 ,some time afterward ,i had permission to speak1 when ,i was able to prove to him that it was in his own house that his child was lost1 by keeping company with a servant4 ,watch1 then1 your children1 ladies1 by watching your servants4 ,watch their going out and coming in1 their bearing and their company2 watch their words and actions4 ,but1 ,i beg of you1 watch with kindness1 for the light of your supervision should be warm with ,christian affection4 ,love your servants1 and always remember that they are human--the image of ,god1 and that they have been bought by the blood of ,jesus ,christ4 ,as much as possible1 speak to them with kindness1 and1 if an occasional impatience escapes you1 endeavor to repair it by sincere benevolence4 ,that your watchfulness may not engender suspicion and restlessness1 do not appear a spy on their actions4 ,we often make people good by believing them so1 and bad by accusing them of qualities they do not possess2 or1 at least1 we freeze their hearts1 and permanently harden them4 ,avoid everything which appears like ill-humor1 meanness1 or caprice4 #gjc ,to-day madam is in a good humor1 and all goes well2 the servants may be as merry1 and make as many mistakes as they please2 nobody notices them4 ,to-morrow the moon reddens in its first quarter3 woe to the inhabitants of the house6 woe to the servants6 ,madam's coffee is cold1 yet it bears its ordinary temperature2 the soup is too salty1 yet the usual quantity was put into it4 ,the room is full of smoke1 it was the servant's fault1 and yet the poor creature made neither the wind nor the chimney4 ,a racket in the kitchen2 madam's voice is heard from the cellar to the garret-- from the court-yard to the neighboring houses4 ,nothing renders authority more ridiculous than such conduct4 ,the servants are tired out2 they lose every sentiment of affection and confidence1 because they see no regard is shown them2 that they are considered inferior beings1 entitled to no respect2 and that1 even on days when caprice is not predominant1 they only encounter airs of silent pride and haughtiness4 ,without doubt1 ladies1 there is a just medium to be preserved4 ,many servants are unreasonable1 and take advantage of favors accorded them2 are exacting and indiscreet2 they require masters without faults1 and are completely blinded to their own4 ,treat them as friends1 said an ancient philosopher1 and they lack submission2 keep them at a distance1 and they resent your conduct and hate you4 ,footnote #bac ,footnote #bac3 ,confucius1 ,entr4 ,philos4 c4 #ag4 ,the middle course of wisdom is therefore hard to find2 but it is so in all worldly affairs1 yet it is necessary to resolve it4 ,the heart of a ,christian woman appears to me best adapted for this work of conciliation2 she can preserve her authority by demonstrating a wise firmness1 recalling the words of ,fenelon3 ,the less reason you find in men1 the more fear requisite to restrain them4 ,footnote #bad ,the strong woman must be able to cope with such difficult minds1 often so pretentious and ridiculous in their exactions1 and put them in their place when wisdom and occasion demand it4 ,but1 in her ordinary conduct1 let her remember that she commands her brethren1 for whom our ,lord died2 that love and gentleness are the best1 the most ,christian roads to persuasion1 and that severity should always be reserved for circumstances where reason and charity fail4 ,footnote #bad3 ,de l',education des ,filles1 c4 #ab4 ,fenelon says again that1 in certain houses1 servants are considered no better than horses--of natures like theirs--human beasts of burden for their masters4 ,footnote #bae ,nothing can be more opposed to sentiments of faith and reason2 servants are brothers1 to be loved and treated as such2 they owe you their service and fidelity1 and if they fail1 recall them to duty prudently1 with a charitable compassion and firmness that does not exclude affection4 ,a single word will often dispel a cloud and dissipate increasing shadows1 and give you1 in return1 the deep and solid friendship of your servants4 ,is this not far better than forced relations1 coldness and constraint that freeze the heart and poison innumerable lives8 ,the fable itself teaches us a lesson in telling us that the friendship of the ant is not to be despised4 ,footnote #bae3 ,ibid4 ,the strong woman giveth meat to her household1 and a portion to her maidens4 ,the spirit of ,god neglects no detail1 because in life everything is important4 ,let your servants work2 nothing is better for them2 but do not traffic with either their food or duties4 #gjd ,treat them a little like the children of the house2 you will not only interest your charity1 but your service will gain by it4 ,do not calculate with an avaricious hand what may do them good and alleviate their lot4 ,you will gain on one side what you lose on the other2 and besides1 is not the true affection of a devoted heart worth more than a piece of gold8 ,it is not only food and material comforts you must assure your servants4 ,how ,i love to see the ,christian woman enlarge her maternal heart and reserve in it not only a place for her children1 but for all the people of her household6 ,yes1 she must have a mother's affection for all1 and let the least one understand that he has part in the warmth of her soul and the fireside of her heart4 ,thus she realizes the comparison that ,i always love to repeat1 because she is truly great in her splendor and simplicity1 and1 in proportion as she is examined1 new aspects are discovered2 then the strong woman is the sun of her household3 sicut sol oriens4 ,the planet of day sheds its light on the clouds1 the high mountains1 and the gilded palaces1 but he never omits the little valley flower or the blade of grass that claims his warmth4 ,he does not give it so abundantly as to the oaks of the mountain1 but it is always the same light1 and suffices for their life and happiness4 ,thus the strong woman pours her intimate affections on her family and her true friends1 but her soul has still a reserve for her servants4 ,she gives them less than her husband and children1 but it is all from the same source1 and bears with it for them the same unction4 ,after such a distribution of work1 of care and affection1 do not expect to find no faults in your servants4 ,to these servants1 ,i would say3 ,bear with the faults of your masters and mistresses2 the best of them are imperfect1 and for you the true way to modify their defects is to reply only by patience and an immovable docility2 sweetness and patience do much more than anger and violent recrimination1 as various elastic substances are1 we know1 among the best agents to arrest the impetuous movement of the cannon-ball4 ,to you1 ladies1 ,i say3 ,bear with the faults of your servants1 as they are never wanting4 ,with two such sureties1 with the certainty of patience on the part of the servants1 and in return on that of the masters1 you will be sure to pacifically organize the interior of your households4 ,if the tether of patience is short at one end1 you can stretch it at the other2 and such is the admirable teaching of ,christianity1 wherever the relations of mankind exist1 it establishes reciprocal duties on so firm and solid a foundation that1 if one is lacking1 the other becomes more strong to resist it4 ,thus it preaches to the husband love and respect2 to the wife1 love1 respect1 and submission2 to masters1 benevolence2 to servants1 deference and patience2 but in such a way that1 if the first are faithless to their duties1 the fidelity of the second will more than repair the defect4 ,nature evidently holds another language2 if our neighbor fails in his obligations1 we believe ourselves freed from ours1 and this spirit of free exchange in point of bad proceedings is not1 perhaps1 one of the least causes of our perturbations in the family and society4 ,there are some faults1 says ,fenelon1 that enter into the marrow of the bones4 ,then1 said the ,archbishop of ,cambrai1 if you wish to correct such in your servant1 he is not wrong to resist correction1 but you are foolish to undertake it4 ,footnote #baf ,footnote #baf3 ,lettres ,spirituelles1 #aic1 t4 #a4 p4 #eed1 d4 ,didiot4 #gje ,you have a horse that is one-eyed1 you would wish him to see clearly with both eyes2 it is you who are entirely blind4 ,alas ladies6 in this world we are all slightly one-eyed1 therefore we must bear with each other4 ,you have a servant who does not always display the judgment you require of him2 tell me1 why do you employ him in any delicate business8 ,he has made a blunder1 but were you not the first cause of it8 ,you have another who never sees more than a few steps before him2 you cannot expect better of him1 he is short-sighted4 ,you are angry because he cannot see leagues off2 you are the unreasonable one4 ,another one is lame1 and him you would have walk straight2 do you not see that you exact the impossible8 ,i tell you1 ladies1 that poor human nature is full of weaknesses1 and having once perceived certain infirmities in your neighbor1 keep them in remembrance1 and don't demand a reform in what cannot be corrected4 ,bear ye one another's burdens1 said ,saint ,paul2 it is the rule of true wisdom1 of peace and domestic happiness3 ,alter alterius onera portate4 ,footnote #bag ,footnote #bag3 ,galat4 vi4 #b4 ,but1 you say1 he is thick-headed1 ,i cannot put up with him4 ,alas6 thick heads we meet with everywhere4 ,have you not yourselves sometimes the same complaint8 ,besides1 don't be so hard to please in servants2 you may end by finding none at all4 ,you have one who pouts1 another who is violent2 you may have one impertinent1 another pettish2 choose between them4 ,the best course1 believe me1 is to put up with the evil1 provided it is bearable4 ,this world and all it contains is only one grand misery2 accept your share of it2 murmuring and changing those who surround you will do no good4 ,well and good1 ,i hear you say4 ,you have just spoken of those who keep many servants2 ,i am more modest2 a nurse1 or at most a cook1 constitutes my household4 ,in this case1 if you will permit me1 ,i will find you an establishment where the retainers are numerous and very difficult to govern4 ,the fathers of the church teach us that the human soul1 in its organization1 is a house complete in itself4 ,we find in it intelligence1 the soul properly called1 the imagination1 and the senses4 ,intelligence is the husband1 the soul the wife2 and imagination1 with its numerous caprices1 represents an establishment of troublesome servants2 while the five senses may portray five grooms at the carriage-ways opening into the street4 ,to listen to such a world as this1 and make it agree1 is no easy matter4 ,intelligence wishes one thing1 the soul another2 the husband and wife are just ready to quarrel4 ,then imagination comes in with its thousand phantoms1 its fantastical noises1 its clatter by night and by day3 can you not believe your household in good condition to exercise your patience8 ,then the porters of this castle1 the eyes1 the ears1 without considering the nerves--a sort of busy battalion which makes more noise than all the rest4 ,what an interior6 what confusion6 what a tower of ,babel6 ,ladies1 ,i will repeat here the words of ,scripture3 ,rise early to give work and a portion to this establishment of servants2 put them in order from the first dawn of day4 ,clear up your imagination2 it needs more time and care than a disordered head of hair4 ,see how your ideas fly hither and thither2 how the mad one of this dwelling sings and grows impertinent2 how she reasons1 how she scolds1 and how absurd she is4 ,intelligence would restore her reason2 useless to try6 time lost6 #gjf ,she cries louder1 and becomes longer and more violently nonsensical4 ,she makes so much noise that it could be called1 according to ,saint ,gregory1 the multiplied voices of several servants1 whose tongues are perfectly sharpened3 ,cogitationum se clamor1 velut garrula ancillarum turba1 multiplicat4 ,footnote #bah ,footnote #bah3 ,moral1 i4 ,i1 c4 #cj1 t #a4 p4 #edf1 d1 ,mign4 ,here is a beautiful household to organize every morning4 ,you complain of having no work for it4 ,i have just found you some4 ,bring peace into the midst of this distraction2 substitute harmony for confusion1 and so adjust this harmony that it shall last undisturbed until evening1 and ,i will give you a brevet1 a certificate1 as an excellent mistress of a house4 ,formerly1 the poor human head was not subject to such distraction2 and why8 ,because it was subject to ,god2 and from thence all the powers of man1 mind1 heart1 will1 imagination1 senses1 all were submitted to the head of the house1 because this head himself was obedient to ,god4 ,since the primitive revolt1 all has been upset in man2 and our poor nature has become like a house where all dispute1 husband1 wife1 and servants1 that is1 mind1 heart1 imagination4 ,there is a simple way to re-establish peace1 not quite complete1 but at least tolerable1 for this would bring back ,god into the house3 let ,god be head1 the commander of all2 let the thought of him preside everywhere1 and soon order will be entirely restored4 ,in the morning especially1 ,i know nothing that can pacify us interiorly and calm all around us better than a look toward heaven1 a thought of love directed on high1 and bringing1 in return1 the peace of ,god4 ,in the morning1 if the head aches1 rest it at the foot of the cross2 if the heart suffers1 place it on the heart of our ,lord2 if the imagination is feverish1 calm it with a drop of the blood of ,jesus ,christ2 and if the whole being is in ebullition1 ask ,god to send it refreshment in the dew of heaven6 ,be faithful to these recommendations1 ladies1 and you may repose the length of the day under your vine and your fig-tree2 that is1 you will enjoy the intimate happiness that ,god has promised his friends1 and which is one of the sweetest recompenses of virtue3 ,et sedit unusquisque sub vite su1 et ficulne1 su1 et non erat qui eos terreret4 ,footnote #bai ,footnote #bai3 ,i ,mach4 xiv4 #ab4 ------------- #gjg ,a ,sister's ,story4 ,footnote #bbj ,footnote #bbj3 ,a ,sister's ,story4 ,by ,mrs4 ,augustus ,craven4 ,translated from the ,french by ,emily ,bowles4 #hvo1 pp4 #eci4 ,new ,york3 ,the ,catholic ,publication ,society4 ,we do not usually go to ,france for pictures of domestic life2 yet1 when we do find a cultivated ,french family penetrated with the home instincts which are so much more common on the opposite side of the channel1 and lavishing upon the members of their own household an affection elevated and sanctified by true piety1 there is a charm about the scene which is apt to be wanting in our own more commonplace experience4 ,the charm1 to be sure1 often asserts itself too boldly2 for the ,frenchman has a keen relish for sentiment1 and in nine cases out of ten the rapture with which love fills his heart is only half of it inspired by the object of his passion1 while the other half is an unconscious admiration of the delicacy of his own feelings4 ,he makes a romance out of love for his father and mother1 and his affection for his sweetheart is an extravagant poem4 ,still1 unless you analyze it too closely1 which there is no need of your doing at all1 the poem is almost always beautiful and delicate1 and sometimes possesses the true poetical aroma4 ,a ,sister's ,story is a romance of love1 trial1 happiness1 and death4 ,nobody but a ,french woman could have written it2 yet the sentiment is not what is commonly called ,frenchy1 because it is etherealized by a genuine ,christian refinement1 and because1 moreover1 it is a true history4 ,the ,count de la ,ferronnays1 who was ,french ambassador at ,st4 ,petersburg in #ahai1 and afterward at ,rome1 had a large family of children1 one of whom1 ,pauline1 married an ,english gentleman1 and is the author of this book4 ,another1 ,albert1 is the hero4 ,they all loved one another with a rare and touching tenderness1 and loved ,god1 too1 with a simple and unaffected devotion4 ,the revolution of #ahcj deprived the ,count of his diplomatic appointment1 despoiled him of most of his fortune1 and1 as he was a stanch adherent of the ,bourbons1 left him without hope of a future career in the service of the state4 ,the family seem1 however1 to have accepted their reverses cheerfully1 and to have made little change in their way of life1 except by practising a stricter economy than they had been used to4 ,they passed most of their time in ,italy1 mingling with people of rank and distinction1 or travelling in search of health1 as one or another of them showed symptoms of approaching disease4 ,albert was a young man of handsome appearance1 and1 we should judge1 of no mean accomplishments4 ,he was warm-hearted1 remarkably sensitive1 somewhat of a dreamer1 romantic1 poetical1 and pure in heart4 ,the life of a man of society he sanctified with the piety of a recluse4 ,the revolution which cut short his father's public career destroyed also the young man's prospects in life1 and left him1 just entering manhood1 without fixed occupation1 and without much hope of obtaining employment suitable to his rank and tastes4 ,this enforced idleness1 coupled with the delicacy of his constitution1 already perhaps undermined by the pulmonary disease which was so soon to carry him off1 predisposed him to a melancholy reflectiveness which1 though corrected by his devout aspirations1 was nevertheless morbid4 #gjh ,the feminine delicacy of his nature was developed by close intimacy with his sisters1 and his religious elevation was doubtless heightened by his frequent intercourse with ,montalembert1 whose sentiments he fully shared1 though he was unable to join in his labors1 with ,m4 ,rio1 whom he accompanied to various parts of ,italy1 with the ,abb ,gerbet1 and with other distinguished ,catholics of that brilliant day4 ,among the acquaintances of the ,count's family in ,rome was the ,countess d',alopeus1 widow of the celebrated ,russian plenipotentiary at ,berlin1 and afterward wife of ,prince ,lapoukhyn4 ,she had a daughter1 ,alexandrine1 a beautiful and amiable girl1 apparently1 like ,albert1 of a pensive turn of mind1 and1 though a ,lutheran1 7her mother being a ,german17 of a strongly religious disposition4 ,albert fell in love with her the first time they met1 and from that time love and religion filled up all the rest of his short life4 ,it was but a little while before ,alexandrine learned to return the tender sentiment4 ,the intimacy ripened fast2 but there were many difficulties in the way of marriage1 and it was only after two years1 marked by severe trials1 that they were at last united in #ahcd4 ,ten days afterward ,albert burst a blood-vessel1 and from that time until his death1 in #ahcf1 their happiness was clouded by the gradual approach of the untimely fate which they could hardly help foreseeing4 ,the picture which ,mrs4 ,craven1 with the help of the journals and letters of this dear young couple1 has drawn of their courtship1 their love1 their few hours of happiness1 and their admirable married life1 with all its consolations and all its sufferings1 is full of the most delicious beauty4 ,it could not have been so natural1 had it not been drawn from the life2 it would not have been so exquisite1 had not the artist been herself a poet4 ,by the side of her husband's dying bed1 ,alexandrine was received into the ,catholic ,church4 ,she appears to have possessed a stronger though not a more lovely character than ,albert1 and in her widowhood its magnificence was fully developed4 ,during the twelve years she survived her husband1 she learned to the full the great lessons of self-abnegation1 humility1 and detachment from all worldly things4 ,even in the first days of her sorrow1 ,god rewarded her with a strength which surprised all who knew her2 and this was succeeded after a while by a completeness of resignation and a spiritual joy which were no less than saint-like4 ,we shall see1 writes ,mrs4 ,craven1 in beginning the narrative of these final years1 by what efforts of resignation1 by what self-surrender1 she obtained peace1 and entered upon that other period of her life which she speaks of in her story1 and of which she once said1 ',even before old age and death1 faith gave me rest6' ,this rest1 which went beyond resignation1 even beyond peace1 which ,alexandrine had soon recovered2 a rest which marked the latter part of her life by a joyousness unknown to her young days1 she did not attain till she had gone through many fresh sorrows4 ,it was ,god's will that she should outlive most of those who had proved her firmest friends and most tender comforters in her widowhood4 ,almost at one time she lost her own brother1 my father1 ,eugnie1 and ,olga1 7,albert's sisters1 to whom she was deeply attached47 ,it may be that this was allowed that1 when after such repeated blows she was still able to say she was happy1 no one might mistake the source whence that happiness sprang4 #gji ,she gave herself up to the service of the poor and suffering1 and in order to make herself more like the objects of her charity1 whom she loved so tenderly1 she used to deprive herself of all the little every-day luxuries and conveniences which belonged to her station1 and in which naturally she took a particular delight4 ,she made trial of a conventual life1 but that was clearly not the path in which ,god wished her to walk1 and her director bade her leave it4 ,during the latter part of her life she resided principally with ,albert's mother1 in ,paris4 ,here is a picture of her occupations at that time3 ,to meet the deficiency in her resources1 she gradually restricted her own expenditure to the narrowest compass1 and deprived herself of everything short of absolute necessaries4 ,one day ,i happened to look into her wardrobe1 and was dismayed at its scantiness4 ,when we1 any of us1 made this kind of discovery1 she blushed and smiled1 made the best excuses she could find in return for our scoldings1 and then went on just the same1 giving away all she possessed1 and finding every day new occasions for these acts of self-spoliation4 ,she had1 of course1 long ago sold or given away all her jewels and trinkets1 but1 if she ever happened to find among her things an article of the smallest value1 it was immediately disposed of for the benefit of the poor4 ,for instance1 one day she took out of its frame a beautiful miniature of ,princess ,lapoukhyn at the age of twenty1 and sold the gold and enamel frame1 defending herself by saying that it was the only thing of value she still possessed1 and did not in the least enhance the value of her mother's charming likeness4 ,two black gowns1 and a barely sufficient amount of linen1 constituted her whole wardrobe1 so that she had reduced herself1 as far as was possible in her position of life1 to a state of actual poverty4 ,her long errands were almost always performed on foot1 and at dinner-time she came home often covered with dirt and wet to the skin4 ,one day1 when she was visiting some ,sisters of ,charity in a distant part of ,paris1 one of them looked at her from head to foot1 and then begged an alms for a poor woman much in need of a pair of shoes4 ,alexandrine instantly produced her purse and gave the required amount1 with which the sister went away1 and in a quarter of an hour returned1 laughing1 and bringing with her a pair of shoes1 which she insisted on ,madame ,albert's putting on instead of those she was wearing1 which were certainly in the worst possible condition4 ,on her return from these distant excursions1 she usually put on her evening dress and came down to ,madame de ,mun's drawing-room1 where she found my mother1 who also had often been engaged in similar charitable duties4 ,during that winter ,i often joined this little circle1 now so thinned by death1 and so soon to break up altogether4 ,for one brief moment ,i would fain pause and look back in thought to that well-remembered room and its long table1 at which my mother and ,madame de ,mun were wont to sit1 with ,eugnie's children playing at their feet2 and at the place near the lamp1 where ,alexandrine was to be seen every evening1 with her head bending over her work2 her brown hair divided into two long plaits1 a way of wearing it which particularly became her1 though it was certainly not chosen on that account4 ,she did not1 however1 profess to be free from all thought about her appearance2 on the contrary1 she was always accusing herself of still caring for admiration2 and when once she heard that somebody who had accidentally spoken to her had said she was pretty1 she exclaimed with half-jesting indignation3 ',i really believe that1 if ,i were in my last agony1 that would please me still6' ,very pretty certainly she looked on those evenings1 in her simple black dress2 always calm and serene1 and brightening up whenever the great interests and objects of life were the subjects of conversation4 ,otherwise she remained silent1 occupying herself with her embroidery1 or else1 taking her little book of extracts1 so full of beautiful thoughts1 from her pocket1 she read them over and added new ones from her favorite books4 444444 ,time never hung heavy on ,alexandrine's hands4 ,after such trials and sufferings1 she could say as ,madame ,swetchine did3 'that life was lovely and happy2 and ever1 as it went on1 fairer1 happier1 and more interesting4' ,the melancholy which was natural to her character in youth1 and which the radiant happiness that for a moment filled up her life had not been able to overcome--that melancholy which was the sign perhaps of some kind of softness of soul1 and which so many deaths and such floods of tears could naturally have increased--had been completely put down and overcome by the love of ,god and the poor4 #gaj ,one day as ,i saw her moving about her room which she had made so bare1 with an air of the greatest gayety1 we both of us suddenly recalled the terrible days of the past1 when her grief had been full of gloom1 and then she said1 what was very striking to any one who knew how deep was her unutterable love to the very last1 ',yes1 that is all true2 those were cruel and dreadful days2 but now1 by ,god's grace1 ,i mourn for my ,albert gayly4' ,subsequently she was admitted1 as a lodger1 to the convent of ,st4 ,thomas of ,villanova1 in ,paris1 and there she died with the peacefulness and holy joy which she had merited by her life4 ,by what austerities she had prepared for and probably hastened her end1 we may judge from this incident3 ,one morning at ,mass in the convent chapel1 a lady happened to hear her cough1 and noticing her pale looks and poor apparel1 she went to one of the sisters1 and told her that there was a lady in the church who was probably too poor to provide herself with necessaries1 and that she should be very happy to supply her with milk daily1 if she had not the means to purchase it4 ,this kind soul was quite ashamed when the sister told her the poor lady was ,madame ,albert de la ,ferronnays2 but ,alexandrine1 much amused1 laughed exceedingly at the mistake1 and did not treat herself better than before4 ,one loving hand which has traced this beautiful story whose outlines we have thus roughly reproduced1 has illustrated it with many touching reminiscences of the other members of the charming family circle1 of which ,albert and ,alexandrine are the central figures4 ,there is an exquisite pathos in every page1 and ,the tender grace of a day that is dead is delineated with an unaffected delicacy which must move every heart4 ,miss ,bowles1 we should add1 has proved herself an admirable translator1 so good a one that her version reads like an original4 ---------- ,translated ,from ,the ,french4 ,breton ,legend ,of ,st4 ,christopher4 ,as every one knows1 ,st4 ,christopher had very broad shoulders2 so in former times he was ferryman for the river of ,scorff4 ,one bright day1 our ,lord arrived at the bank of the river with his twelve apostles4 ,christopher made haste to take them in his arms1 and was delighted to pay them every possible respect4 ,well1 said our ,lord1 what are your wages8 ,ask for ,paradise1 whispered ,st4 ,peter4 ,let me alone1 ,i have my own ideas4 ,if1 my ,lord1 you desire to bestow a favor on me1 promise that every object ,i wish for shall be obliged to enter my sack4 ,i will do it1 said our ,lord1 but on condition that you never ask for money1 and only for those things of which you have need4 ,so1 for a long time1 things went well2 the sack filled only with bread1 fruits1 beans1 and other vegetables2 and often it was emptied for the benefit of the poor4 ,but alas6 who can say they may not enter into temptation8 ,one morning ,christopher was passing through the street of a neighboring town1 when he stopped before the shop of a money-changer4 #gaa ,he did wrong1 for all those heaps of money excited his curiosity and gave him very bad thoughts4 ,see1 said the wicked broker to him1 what you can do with all this money6 ,you can rebuild the huts of the poor1 and make life for them so happy and desirable4 ,don't you wish it was all yours8 ,christopher had a moment of weakness1 and the money jumped into his bag4 ,but don't be severe3 ,christopher was not yet the saint he afterward became1 only a mere mortal man4 ,so this first failing led to others1 and while it must be confessed he was very generous to the poor1 he loved his own good cheer and did not hesitate to enjoy it4 ,so one day1 as he was reposing on the grass after an unusually good dinner1 the devil passed that way1 and began to bully him and crack some of his disagreeable jokes4 ,christopher was not remarkably patient1 his fists were itching for a fight1 so in a moment he was on his feet and pitched into the devil right royally4 ,as the forces were pretty equal1 the battle lasted two days1 and the end could not be foreseen4 ,the thick grass disappeared from under their feet1 and from afar the noise of the blows resounded like two hammers falling and refalling one upon the other4 ,they would have been at it yet if ,christopher had not happily thought of his sack4 ,ah cursed devil6 by the virtue of our ,lord thou shalt enter my sack4 ,so in he popped1 and ,christopher was not slow to draw the cords tight and swing him over his shoulders1 while he wondered at the same time how in the world he would ever get rid of him4 ,a forge appeared as he walked1 and two brawny men were beating the red fire with tremendous blows4 ,this gave him an idea2 so he addressed himself to the smiths1 and said3 ,i have got a wicked animal in my bag2 ,i could not pretend to tell you all the villanous tricks he has played in his life2 so1 if you will forge him until he is about as thick as a sixpenny piece1 ,i will give you a crown4 ,they consented2 and1 notwithstanding the cries and somersaults of the devil1 they hammered and beat him the whole night long4 ,when the day dawned1 a weak voice cried out1 ,christopher1 ,christopher1 ,i give up2 what shall ,i do to get out of this8 ,swear obedience to me for ever1 and never trouble me again4 ,i swear it4 ,very well2 get out with you1 and ,i will not say ,au revoir4 ,from this moment1 ,christopher entirely changed his life1 only occupied himself in good works1 and1 when he grew too feeble to be ferryman for the river ,scorff1 he retired into the little hermitage1 upon the ruins of which is built the chapel still to be seen4 ,there he lived in prayer and penitence1 and was visited by many pilgrims1 who were attracted by his great reputation of sanctity4 ,however1 when after his death he presented himself to ,st4 ,peter1 who1 we know1 holds the keys of ,paradise1 he was refused admittance1 because the latter said he had formerly rejected his advice1 and he feared to let him in4 ,the poor ,christopher1 very sad1 and looking rather snubbed1 wandered about1 and in his distraction took the stairs that led to hell4 ,he descended an unheard-of number of steps1 and finally arrived at a door1 where was a very good-looking young man1 who courteously invited him to enter2 but ,satan happened to pass by1 and1 seeing him1 cried out nervously3 ,no1 no6 not in here2 ,i know him well4 ,send him away1 he is entirely too cunning for me6 #gab ,so ,christopher could do nothing but remount to the entrance of ,paradise1 where he could at least listen outside to the delicious strains of heavenly harmony issuing from within1 and he felt more and more desirous to be admitted4 ,he paused and thought2 then1 putting his ear as close as possible1 ,my ,lord ,st4 ,peter1 said he1 what admirable harmony you have in there6 ,if you would only set the door ajar1 ,i might at least hear and enjoy it4 ,st4 ,peter was kind-hearted1 so he did as he was asked2 and instantly ,st4 ,christopher threw in his sack1 and sprang in after it4 ,at home1 at last1 said he1 and you can't turn me out4 ,st4 ,peter conceded he was right1 so he has since remained in heaven1 and we must acknowledge he well deserved so comfortable an abode4 ------------- ,supplement to the article on ,the ,sanitary and ,moral ,condition of ,new ,york ,city in our ,july number4 ,the ,sanitary ,and ,moral ,condition ,of ,new ,york ,city4 ,the letter which is published below is an evidence that our ,july correspondent's observations on the neglected condition of a great number of children in ,new ,york struck a telling blow in the right direction1 and has called forth one response of the right kind1 which1 we trust1 will not be the only one4 ,a number of our good friends have shown themselves to be somewhat hurt by the remarks made in the article alluded to1 on the efforts of certain ,protestant institutions among the vagrant children of this city4 ,the article was not written for the purpose of showing what the small number of zealous ,catholics--who are alive to the duty and necessity of rescuing this unfortunate class of our own children--are doing1 but of working up the whole ,catholic community to an active co-operation with these pioneers of charity1 in undertaking that which they are not doing1 and cannot do1 while they are so feebly sustained4 ,one principal motive for doing this is1 the fact that sectarian philanthropists are forestalling us in the work we ought to have attended to long ago1 and drawing away from the fold of the church the lambs we have neglected to take care of4 ,every one knows1 none better than the leaders of every ,protestant sect themselves1 that they have no more determined adversaries than we are in their aggressions on the ,catholic religion4 ,at the same time1 we do not feel called upon to deny them all humane and philanthropic motives1 or to denounce them as actuated by mere hatred against the ,catholic religion4 ,they do an irreparable mischief to the unfortunate children whom they draw away from the fold of the church2 yet1 we are willing to believe they do it ignorantly1 and with an intention of doing them good4 #gac ,so far as their efforts among the young unbaptized heathen of ,new ,york are concerned1 they can undoubtedly effect something in reclaiming them from the wretched condition in which they are4 ,we desire to confine them to that sphere1 and wish them a fair field to compete with us in1 and to show what they are able to accomplish4 ,we hope1 as the result of all philanthropic efforts for the relief of the degraded classes made by all kinds of institutions1 and by individuals of all kinds of theoretical opinions1 that the superiority of the ,catholic ,church1 and its necessity to our moral and social well-being1 will be demonstrated4 ,we must demonstrate it1 however1 by action1 and not by mere argument4 ,we must show practically that we are able to master and subdue the elements of vice and misery that rage over the turbulent sea of this vast population4 ,in a former volume of our magazine1 we did full justice to the work which the ,catholic ,church has accomplished1 and is still carrying on among our own people in this city1 in an article entitled ,religion in ,new ,york4 ,the article in our last number may appear to have too much overlooked the statistics there given respecting the care of ,catholic children4 ,the statement of the whole number of children in the city was inadvertently cited from ,dr4 ,harris as being the number of vagrants1 although the correct number 7#dj1jjj7 was given in several other places4 ,another quotation from a ,protestant source1 which was cited for the purpose of showing the small proportion of children in ,protestant ,sunday-schools1 contains a statement that #abe1jjj children are without instruction1 which also inadvertently passed uncorrected4 ,the #fj1jjj children in ,catholic ,sunday-schools1 and1 we suppose1 also the ,jewish children1 as well as those who are privately taught at home1 ought to have been deducted4 ,there are said to be #ie1jjj children in ,protestant ,sunday-schools4 ,the whole number of children is estimated at #bjj1jjj4 ,there is1 then1 a vague neutral ground between vagrancy and the ,sunday-school domain1 occupied by some thousands1 more or less--how many1 we cannot correctly estimate4 ,we are immediately concerned only with ,catholic children4 ,it is not possible to figure up precisely the numbers1 every day increasing1 of these children1 in every stage of neglected moral and religious education down to the most complete vagrancy4 ,we know1 however1 that they are to be counted by thousands1 and would be sufficient by themselves to people a respectable ,southern or ,western diocese4 ,we know that comparatively nothing is doing to reclaim them2 and as for any further practical remarks as to what ought to be done1 we give place for the present to the writer of the letter which follows1 who is sorry for these poor children one thousand dollars4 ,we trust that her good example will be followed by others1 and shall be happy to receive in trust whatever may be contributed toward the establishment of an institution such as she recommends1 and of which the ,sisters of ,charity are ready to assume the charge whenever the requisite funds are provided4--,ed4 ,c4 ,w4 ,rev4 and ,dear ,father ,hecker3 ,the article in ,the ,catholic ,world1 for ,july1 on ',the ,sanitary and ,moral ,condition of ,new ,york ,city1' has excited in my mind the greatest interest1 and1 ,i may add1 self-condemnation4 ,it is true ,i knew the facts mentioned there before1 but never were they so fully brought home to me as in reading that article4 ,i could say nothing but ',mea culpa1 mea culpa4' #gad ,yes1 through my fault1 and the fault of every ,catholic1 these many thousands of little children are left uncared for2 except1 indeed1 by those who have been more zealous to spread error1 uncertainty1 and darkness than we to give them the true bread of life4 ,are we indeed the children of the church8 ,have we ever listened to these words of our ,saviour1 ',inasmuch as ye have not done it unto these my little ones1 ye have not done it unto me'8 ,god forgive us1 and grant that every ,catholic1 in reading that article1 may be moved to a true contrition4 ,why cannot the several hundred thousand ,catholics in our great city establish a ,central ,mission ,house for these little neglected ones of the flock8 ,for1 of these forty thousand vagrant and uncared-for children1 we cannot doubt that far more than one half have inherited the ,catholic faith4 ,the burden of supporting this great work of charity should not be borne by one parish or section of the city1 and that the least able to bear it2 but every parish should feel as if this house demanded its own especial care4 ,and not only every parish in ,new ,york ,city1 but throughout the arch-diocese and the whole country2 for1 as the poverty of the ,old ,world finds its first refuge in our city1 so the charity of the ,new ,world should be concentrated here to meet it4 ,father ,farrelly is doing a noble work4 ,god bless him for it6 ,and as to the ,reformatory established by ,dr4 ,ives1 only ,god can know the good it has already done and is yet to do4 ,catholics are not accustomed to speak much of what they do1 but we who have done little or nothing cannot shelter ourselves behind those who1 alone and single-handed as it were1 have tried to meet this torrent of poverty and crime4 ,as an act of reparation on my part for past neglect1 ,i place in your hands a check for one thousand dollars1 7#ajjj17 as a beginning of this noble work4 ,the ,sisters of ,charity or ,mercy will surely be ready to take charge of such a house1 for where will they find so true a work of charity or mercy8 ,i beg of you1 reverend father1 to publish this in your magazine2 for ,i do not doubt that ,god has touched other hearts1 and that this little beginning1 when known1 will grow like a grain of mustard-seed1 and become a great and noble work4 ,yours1 etc41 444444 ------------- #gae ,new ,publications ,problems of the ,age3 ,with ,studies in ,st4 ,augustine on ,kindred ,topics4 ,by the ,rev4 ,augustine ,f4 ,hewit1 of the ,congregation of ,st4 ,paul4 ,new ,york3 ,catholic ,publication ,house4 #ahfh4 ,this volume1 being chiefly a republication of some of our own articles1 cannot1 of course1 receive from us an independent and impartial criticism4 ,we can only state its scope and design1 leaving it to other critics to judge of its merits4 ,the topics which it discusses relate to the dialectic unity of the natural and supernatural in the universal order of truth and being4 ,it is intended to meet the intellectual difficulties of those who cannot see this dialectic unity1 and who1 therefore1 apprehend a contradiction between the natural and the supernatural1 or1 at least1 a chasm between the two1 which makes it impossible to explain their relation to each other on rational principles4 ,it is more especially adapted to that class of persons who are rather perplexed by an apparent contradiction between reason and faith1 than to those who are either positive infidels or positive sceptics4 ,there are many such persons1 predisposed to admit a spiritual philosophy and the truth of ,christianity1 but still in a state of doubt respecting both philosophical and revealed truths4 ,the reason of this is1 because the current philosophy of ,protestantism is shallow and sophistical1 and the current theology of ,protestantism irrational4 ,it is necessary1 therefore1 to present a sound philosophy as a cure for intellectual scepticism1 and a sound rational theology as a cure for religious doubt4 ,the ,problems of the ,age is a contribution to this work4 ,it is neither a system of philosophy nor of theology1 but rather a clue to find both the one and the other4 ,it proposes to the man bewildered in the labyrinth of scepticism a path which will lead him out into the open day of certitude1 and leaves it to him to try the path or himself1 and ascertain by his own examination whether it be the right one4 ,protestantism first destroyed theology1 and then philosophy4 ,rationalism has tried to reconstruct both2 but1 having only the dbris to use as a material1 and no formula to work by1 has failed signally4 ,the author of the volume before us has endeavored to derive a formula from the works of the best ,catholic philosophers and theologians which gives the principles of construction1 to present an outline of the plan according to which all true builders always have been working1 and always must work1 in the rearing of that temple whose porch is science and whose sanctuary is faith4 ,the first principles of reason and the first principles of faith are presupposed as given4 ,the existence and the attributes of ,god are briefly demonstrated from the first principles of reason1 as the basis of faith in revealed truths4 ,the connection between rational knowledge and supernatural faith is exhibited1 and the point of transition from one to the other designated4 ,the principal mysteries of revelation are then taken up1 and their dialectic relation to the great truths of natural theology1 respecting ,god as the first and final cause of the creation1 is pointed out4 ,as the perversions of ,calvinism represent some of these mysterious doctrines in such a way that they are irreconcilable with natural theology1 a considerable space is devoted to the clearing away of these misconceptions4 ,the principal philosophical difficulties in the way of apprehending certain doctrines are also noticed1 and a solution given4 ,the topics most thoroughly treated are those which relate to the supernatural destiny of man1 his primitive condition1 the fall1 original sin1 and the final consummation of all things1 including the redemption of the human race through the ,incarnation4 #gaf ,the ,studies in ,st4 ,augustine is a subsidiary essay intended to refute the allegation that the ,calvinistic doctrines have been justly deduced from his writings and the authoritative teaching of the church in his time4 ,in doing this1 the evidence is clearly presented of the fact that several of the chief distinctive doctrines of the ,catholic ,church were held by the whole church at the time when the great doctor flourished4 ,it is also shown that modern ,catholic theology1 although far more precise and definite in many points than the ancient theology could be1 is the only true and legitimate offspring and development of its principles4 ,the drift of the whole book in both its parts is to present a clear conception of what the ,catholic doctrine is1 and to show that this conception is in harmony with the rational principles on which a spiritual and theistic philosophy must base itself4 ,it is adapted1 therefore1 to stimulate thought and awaken an appetite for truth1 much more than to satisfy the mind4 ,those who are influenced by its arguments must desire a more thorough exposition both of the principles of reason and of those of faith1 in order to perceive more clearly the objective truth1 both of philosophy and of revelation1 unless they are already well-informed on both points4 ,the first branch of science has been handled in the most satisfactory and thorough manner in the philosophical articles of ,dr4 ,brownson's ,review4 ,there are also some able articles on the same topics to be found in ,the ,catholic ,world4 ,it is much to be regretted that these articles are not to be had in a separate volume1 so as to be easily accessible1 and that there is no complete treatise on philosophy1 which is sufficient to meet the wants of our day1 written in the ,english language4 ,the second branch of science1 which embraces the evidence of the positive truth of revelation1 has been more extensively cultivated4 ,the shortest and most satisfactory way to a conclusion on that point is1 to take up at once the proof of the divine institution and authority of the ,catholic ,church4 ,two things only are necessary to be proved3 ,first1 there is a ,god2 second1 ,god reveals his truth and law through the ,catholic ,church4 ,it ought not to require a very long time1 or a very difficult process1 to establish these two truths in any mind not prepossessed by error and prejudice4 ,those who are unfortunately so prepossessed have no other choice but to work their way out the best way they can1 and every one who lends them a helping hand does a great service to his fellow-men4 ---- ,parochial and ,plain ,sermons4 ,by ,john ,henry ,newman1 ,b4,d41 formerly ,vicar of ,st4 ,mary's1 ,oxford4 ,in eight volumes4 ,vol4 ,i4 ,new edition4 ,rivingtons1 ,london1 ,oxford1 and ,cambridge4 ,for sale at ,the ,catholic ,publication ,house1 ,new ,york4 #ahfh4 ,truly ,anglicanism is a unique phenomenon1 or1 rather1 congeries of phenomena1 and of its phases there is no end4 ,its newspapers in this country are rather remarkable for virulent hostility to the ,catholic ,church1 and offensive language about ,catholic persons and things4 ,only the other day1 the ,hartford ,churchman1 which professes to be decent1 gave currency to the shameless report that the late unfortunate ,cardinal d',andrea was poisoned4 ,the language used about ,dr4 ,newman has been frequently vituperative and insolent in the extreme4 ,the ,english ,high ,churchmen are usually far more gentlemanly than their ,american confrres1 and their tone and language are often far more decorous when they speak of ,catholic affairs4 ,even in ,england1 however1 as well as in this country1 a smattering of ,catholicism very frequently produces an increase of animosity and bitterness against the ,catholic ,church4 ,the more nearly some approach her1 the more they become inflamed1 like comets approaching the sun1 and the attraction is suddenly turned into a repulsive force1 which drives them back into the dreariness of space4 ,there are some1 however1 in ,england1 among those who cling to the ,established ,church1 whose spirit is kind and loving toward those whom they would fain regard as their fellow-,catholics1 even though these are converts from ,anglicanism4 ,a remarkable proof that the number of these is considerable is found in the fact that a new edition of ,dr4 ,newman's ,sermons is announced by the ,rivingtons1 and that the first volume has already issued from the press1 with a preface by the ,rev4 ,w4 ,j4 ,copeland1 rector of ,farnham4 #gag ,the typographical execution of the volume is extremely beautiful4 ,the preface is sad and tender1 like the hymn of a captive ,israelite in ,babylon4 ,dr4 ,newman has1 we believe1 consented to this republication4 ,we remember well the delight and instruction we received from these ,sermons when they were first republished in this country1 and the pleasure we experienced in visiting1 a few months ago1 the church of ,st4 ,mary the ,virgin1 at ,oxford1 where they were preached4 ,we are not able to say whether they contain anything un-,catholic or not2 if so1 it cannot be sufficient to be in any way dangerous1 or to detract from their generally ,catholic doctrine and spirit4 ,the editor says that their author is not to be considered as reasserting all their sentiments1 and that he would undoubtedly wish some parts of them altered or omitted4 ,they are models of the most perfect ,english style1 and1 as such1 of great value to ,catholic preachers4 ,their circulation among ,protestants to as great an extent as possible is something most devoutly to be wished1 and likely to do an extraordinary amount of good4 ,no doubt the ,protestant clergy here1 whatever may be the case in ,england1 will discourage their being read2 yet the younger clergy of all denominations will undoubtedly read them themselves1 and will not be able to hinder great numbers of the most cultivated among the laity from doing the same4 ,they are wonderful compositions1 the like of which our language does not contain2 and those who are not already familiar with them will deprive themselves of a very great pleasure if they do not avail themselves of the opportunity of becoming so4 ,we feel extremely obliged to the editor and publishers for sending out this new and beautiful edition1 and we hope its influence may be to draw the hearts of our ,protestant friends and brethren nearer to us4 ,we are extremely anxious that the violent and hostile controversy between us should cease1 and that we might have the opportunity of discussing with them1 in a calm and quiet way1 the points of difference which separate them from ourselves4 ,while their tone and manner are so discourteous and unfair1 this is impossible2 and we hope they may learn a lesson from ,mr4 ,copeland1 and others among themselves who are of like spirit with him1 as well as from the ci-devant ,vicar of ,st4 ,mary's1 who is revived once more in his surplice and hood1 to preach again among his former people1 as the prophet of the ten lost tribes4 ----- ,appleton's ,short ,trip to ,europe4 7#ahfh47 ,principally devoted to ,england1 ,scotland1 ,ireland1 ,switzerland1 ,france1 ,germany1 and ,italy2 with ,glimpses of ,spain1 ,short ,routes in the ,east1 etc42 and a ,collection of ,travellers' ,phrases in ,french and ,german4 ,by ,henry ,morford1 ,author of ,over ,sea1 ,paris in '#fg1 etc41 etc4 ,new ,york3 ,appletons4 ,this is a very pretty1 convenient1 and useful hand-book for travellers1 full of useful advice and valuable directions1 which we can cordially recommend to every person about to make a tour to ,europe for the first time1 as the best book of the kind we are acquainted with4 ,there are some allusions and remarks scattered through the book which seem intended to enliven it and give it a flavor of humor1 and which will doubtless please a certain number of its readers4 ,others1 however1 may perhaps think they detract from the general good taste evinced by the author1 when he confines himself to a more quiet and simple style of giving information4 ,sidney ,smith's coarse pun on the name of ,st4 ,peter1 and the author's own very dull attempt at wit in regard to the relics of the martyrs in the church of ,st4 ,ursula1 at ,cologne1 will not render the book any the more agreeable to ,catholic tourists1 and we should think not to any persons of refined taste4 ,the allusions made occasionally to the supposed vicious propensities of a certain class of tourists are still more objectionable4 ,they are like whispering behind the hand1 or exchanging nods and winks1 in good company4 #gah ,the guidebooks of ,paris are models of the most perfect taste and elegance in style1 and so are those of ,baedeker1 for the continent1 with the exception of an occasional falsehood or sneer about something ,catholic4 ,in our judgment1 these are the proper models to imitate4 ,we cannot omit remarking1 while we are on the subject of guide-books1 that it would be a work of great service to ,catholic tourists1 if some competent person would prepare a guide-book for their use1 with reference to all the places and objects specially interesting to them as connected with their religion and its history4 ----- ,rhymes of the ,poets4 ,by ,felix ,ago4 ,philadelphia3 ,e4 ,h4 ,butler ,co4 #ahfh4 ,a very amusing satirical essay upon allowable rhymes1 selected from the verses of a large number of poets4 ---- ,lake ,george3 ,its ,scenes and ,characteristics1 with ,glimpses of the ,olden ,times2 to which is added some account of ,ticonderoga2 with a description of the route to ,schroon ,lake and the ,adirondacks4 ,with ,illustrations4 ,by ,b4 ,f4 ,de ,costa1 #a vol4 #abmo1 pp4 #aif4 ,new ,york3 ,a4 ,d4 ,f4 ,randolph4 #ahfh4 ,this is an excellent little book for tourists to ,lake ,george and the surrounding country4 ,the first white man who saw ,lake ,george was the ,jesuit missionary1 ,father ,jogues1 who1 having arrived at that beautiful lake on the eve of the festival of ,corpus ,christi1 called it ,the ,lake of the ,blessed ,sacrament1 a name it retained until changed by the ,english to its present one4 ,the author takes pains to correct the many misstatements of other writers with regard to historical events which occurred in the vicinity of the lake4 ,the account of the defeat of the ,english by ,montcalm1 #ageg1 is given2 and the reported connivance of that general in the massacre of the ,english troops after their surrender is disposed of as one of the wild exaggerations of the day4 ,yet it is only a few years ago that a distinguished general1 while on a visit to the lake1 reiterated1 in a speech to his admirers1 the terrible cruelty of the ,french in allowing the captives to be massacred in cold blood1 and asserted that it was one of the customs of that barbarous age1 and therefore was not prevented by ,montcalm4 ,mr4 ,de ,costa says1 with reference to this reported massacre3 ,that class of writers who furnish what may be called apocrypha of history1 have delighted in wild exaggerations of this event4 ,drawing their material from the crudest sensation accounts of the day1 they have not hesitated to record as facts the most improbable fancies4 ,it is to be regretted that these accounts have crept into so many of our popular school histories1 in one of which1 now extensively used1 we are informed that1 when ,montcalm went away1 he left the dead bodies of one hundred women shockingly mangled and weltering in their blood4 ,the account is based upon a supposed letter of ,putnam's that was never written1 and is of the same authority as that favorite but now exploded story of the school-boy1 which relates ,putnam's descent into the wolfs den4 ,he also truly says that national enmity has had much to do with these misrepresentations of ,montcalm1 who was every way a noble and humane man1 as well as the ablest general of his day in all ,north ,america4 ,religious animosity had its share in it1 too1 and no small share either4 ,the ,french were ,catholics2 the ,english1 ,protestants2 and it was only in perfect keeping with the ,english literature of the day to paint everything done by the ,french ,catholics in the darkest colors possible4 ,but this calumny cannot stand the tests of the critic of to-day1 and we are glad to see a little hand-book like this1 which must become popular with the tourist of the ,northern lakes1 stamp the fictions which have crept into history as they deserve1 and give its readers the truth4 #gai ,the work is printed on good paper1 and illustrated with wood-cuts of the most noted places referred to in its pages4 ------ ,democracy in the ,united ,states3 ,what it has ,done1 ,what it is ,doing1 and ,what it will ,do4 ,by ,ransom ,h4 ,gillett1 formerly ,member of ,congress from ,st4 ,lawrence ,county1 ,n4,y42 more recently ,registrar and ,solicitor of the ,united ,states ,treasury ,department1 and ,solicitor for the ,united ,states in the ,court of ,claims1 etc4 ,new ,york3 ,d4 ,appleton ,co4 #ahfh4 ,this is what1 we suppose1 will be termed1 in the language of the market1 a seasonable book1 it being brought out just in time for1 and adapted to1 the political campaign upon which the country has now fully entered4 ,it aims to give a succinct but complete history of the ,democratic party1 of its measures and its leading men1 from its beginning down to the present time4 ,we are not ourselves politicians enough to judge how faithfully or reliably this has been done4 ,the volume--a compact one of some four hundred pages--is brought out in the ,messrs4 ,appleton's excellent style of book publishing1 and will1 of course1 have an extensive sale4 ------ ,histoire ,de ,france4 ,par ,v4 ,duruy4 ,nouvelle ,edition1 illustre d'un grand nombre de gravures et de cartes geographiques4 ,paris3 ,hachette4 7,new ,york3 ,christern4 #b vols4 #abmo47 ,this is a part of a course of compendious universal history prepared by a number of learned writers1 under the direction of ,m4 ,duruy4 ,it is a clear and succinct history of ,france from the earliest epoch to the year #ahae1 with an appendix containing a summary of events from #ahae to #ahff4 ,the history of ,france is of the greatest interest and importance1 and but little known among us1 especially in its ,catholic aspects4 ,this book is1 therefore1 one of the most useful text-books for the instruction of classes studying the ,french language1 which can be studied2 and most invaluable also for others1 who are able to read ,french1 and who desire to have a brief but complete exposition of ,french history4 ,besides its numerous and valuable maps1 it contains more than #cjj remarkably well-executed and artistic woodcuts1 which add very much to its value and interest4 ,the study of the ,french language and literature has been too much neglected in our ,american colleges and higher schools4 ,every person of liberal education ought to read and speak the ,french language4 ,we recommend this book to the attention of teachers1 parents1 and all persons occupied with the study of ,french1 and also to intelligent tourists1 to whom it will prove an invaluable companion on a visit to ,la ,belle ,france4 ------ ,o',shea's ,popular ,juvenile ,library4 ,first series4 #ab vols4 ,beautifully illustrated4 ,new ,york3 ,p4 ,o',shea4 #ahfh4 ,the titles of the volumes in this series are as follows3 ,the ,inquisitive ,boy and the ,little ,ragman2 ,the ,picture and the ,country ,cousins2 ,augusta and ,christmas ,eve2 ,the ,young ,guests1 and other stories2 ,the ,page1 and other stories2 ,the ,young ,artist2 ,the ,gray ,woman of ,scharfenstein1 and other stories2 ,the ,young ,painter2 ,tailor and ,fiddler2 ,sobieski's ,achievements2 ,hedwig of ,poland2 ,the ,young ,countess4 ,these tales are taken principally from the ,german and ,french1 and are unexceptional in matter4 ------ ,the ,catholic ,crusoe4 ,adventures of ,owen ,evans1 ,esq41 ,surgeon's ,mate1 set ashore with five companions on a desolate island in the ,caribbean ,sea1 #agci4 ,given from the ,original ,,mss41 by ,rev4 ,w4 ,h4 ,anderdon1 ,m4,a4 ,new ,york3 ,d4 ,j4 ,sadlier ,co4 #abmo1 pp4 #eai4 #gbj ,a notice of ,dr4 ,anderdon's very entertaining story appeared in ,the ,catholic ,world for ,december1 #ahfg4 ,the reprint before us is very well got up1 but lacks an interesting feature of the original edition1 namely1 its maps and illustrations4 ------ ,the ,queen's ,daughter2 or1 ,the ,orphan of ,la ,granja4 ,by the author of ,grace ,morton1 etc4 ,philadelphia3 ,peter ,f4 ,cunningham4 ,pp4 #ajh4 ,a pleasant tale for young folk1 neatly bound1 and1 in general typographical execution1 a very decided improvement on its predecessor1 ,elinor ,johnstone4 ------ ,the ,complete ,poetical ,works of ,thomas ,campbell1 with a ,memoir of his ,life4 ,new ,york3 ,d4 ,appleton ,co4 #ahfh4 ,so far as the paper and binding are concerned1 this edition of ,campbell is beautifully got up2 but we cannot say as much for the type1 which is the very reverse of beautiful4 ------ ,a ,popular ,treatise on the ,art of ,house ,painting1 ,plain and ,decorative4 ,by ,john ,w4 ,masury4 ,new ,york3 ,d4 ,appleton ,co4 ,a very useful book1 on an important subject1 for those who would preserve their houses1 and have them tastefully and1 at the same time1 economically painted4 ,the mechanical portion of the work is executed in the ,messrs4 ,appleton's best style4 ------ ,celebrated ,sanctuaries of the ,madonna4 ,by ,rev4 ,j4 ,spencer ,northcote1 ,d4,d4 ,philadelphia3 ,p4 ,f4 ,cunningham4 #ahfh4 ,this is an ,american edition of ,dr4 ,northcote's work1 the ,english edition of which we noticed in our ,july number4 ,it is brought out in very handsome style1 and reflects credit on the taste of the publisher4 ------ ,announcements4--,the ,catholic ,publication ,society has in press1 or in preparation1 the following new works3 #a4 ,symbolism4 ,by ,adam ,moehler4 ,this will be ready about ,august #ast4 #b4 ,second ,series of ,illustrated ,sunday-,school ,library4 ,ready about ,september #ast1 twelve vols41 for titles of which see advertisement on second page of cover4 #c4 ,memorials of those who suffered for the ,catholic ,faith in ,ireland1 in the ,sixteenth1 ,seventeenth1 and ,eighteenth ,centuries4 ,collected and edited from the original authorities1 by ,myles ,o',rielly4 ,b4,a41 ,,ll4,d4 ,this will be one of the most important books relative to ,ireland ever published in this country4 ,it will be ready about ,september #ast4 #d4 ,cradle ,lands--,egypt1 ,palestine1 etc4 ,illustrated4 ,by ,lady ,herbert4 ,ready ,november #ae4 #e4 ,love2 or1 ,self-,sacrifice4 ,by ,lady ,herbert4 #f4 ,life of ,father ,ravigan1 ,s4,j4 #g4 ,third ,series of ,illustrated ,sunday-,school ,library4 ------ ,books ,received4 ,from ,p4 ,donahoe1 ,boston4 ,plain ,talk about the ,protestantism of ,to-day4 ,from the ,french of ,mgr4 ,segur4 #a vol4 #cbmo1 pp4 #bec4 ,price1 #fj cents4 ,from ,j4 ,b4 ,lippincott ,co41 ,philadelphia4 ,alleghania2 or1 ,praises of ,american ,heroes4 ,by ,christopher ,laomedon ,pindar4 --------------------- #gba ,the ,catholic ,world4 ,vol4 ,,vii41 ,no4 #db4--,september1 #ahfh4 ,the ,veneration ,of ,saints ,and ,holy ,images4 ,the veneration paid to saints by ,catholics with the formal approbation or tacit sanction of the supreme authority in the church is1 together with the use made of their images and that of ,christ in religious worship1 under the same sanction1 the one feature of the ,catholic system most obnoxious to ,protestants4 ,they do not hesitate ordinarily to qualify it as idolatry1 that is1 as a rendering of the worship due to ,god alone to creatures1 both living and inanimate1 similar to that which the heathen system of polytheism ascribes to its numerous divinities and their images4 ,we propose to discuss this matter briefly1 not with the intention of proving that the ,catholic doctrine and practice are truly a genuine outgrowth of the ,christian religion by extrinsic evidence1 but of showing their intrinsic harmony with ,christian first principles1 and refuting the objections derived from these first principles against them4 ,as the subject naturally divides itself into two distinct parts1 already clearly indicated in our opening paragraph1 we shall confine our remarks at present to the first part of it1 or that relating to the veneration of saints4 ,the preliminary charge of idolatry1 or a direct contradiction to the monotheistic doctrine of natural and revealed theology1 is perfectly groundless1 and1 however it may be modified and diminished1 there is not an atom of truth in it upon which any objection to the ,catholic doctrine can be based4 ,idolatry1 or the worship of the creature instead of the creator1 originates in ignorance or denial of the true conception of the one living and true ,god4 ,god is not worshipped1 because he is not known or believed in4 ,by necessary consequence1 something which is not ,god is conceived as highest1 best1 most excellent1 most powerful1 without reference or relation to ,god as the author and sovereign of all that has any existence4 ,the pantheist is an idolater of all nature1 but especially of himself4 ,even ,socrates1 ,plato1 and ,aristotle were not free from idolatrous principles1 although probably free from all sin in the matter1 since they ascribed to the universe a certain amount of being not caused by the intelligence and will of ,god as creator4 #gbb ,neither are our modern rationalists free from the same error1 since they withhold from ,god the homage of their reason1 and give it to themselves as to persons possessing intelligence which is independent of ,god4 ,wilful and obstinate heretics are all likewise in the same category2 for1 by rejecting a part of what ,god has revealed1 they1 by implication1 profess to be superior to ,god in intelligence1 and substitute an idol of their own vain imagination in lieu of that eternal truth which is identical with the essence of ,god4 ,idolaters1 in the strict sense of the word1 or polytheists1 such as the ancient ,greeks and ,romans were1 paid a formal worship to their gods1 as superior beings having a supreme and irresponsible control over nature and over men4 ,it was a worship which was a substitute for that originally given to the true ,god1 totally contrary to it1 and an insuperable barrier to the spread of monotheism as a religion4 ,these false divinities were1 therefore1 the rivals of the true ,god1 and filled the place in the religious worship of the heathen which was filled by him in the worship established by divine revelation from the creation of mankind4 ,it is evident1 from the very statement of what idolatry is in itself1 that a veneration paid to any creature1 which is proportionate to the degree of excellence which it has received from the creator1 is not idolatrous1 and cannot detract from the supreme veneration which is due to ,god as the sovereign lord of the universe4 ,those who condemn the religious honor paid to created natures by the ,catholic ,church cannot therefore lay down an a priori principle from which to demonstrate in advance that this honor is necessarily idolatrous1 unless they previously demonstrate that the excellence ascribed to these natures is such that ,god cannot communicate it to a creature4 ,the worship paid to the sacred humanity of our ,lord ,jesus ,christ is that which is apparently the most obnoxious to the charge of idolatry of any other species of relative worship which the church has decreed to be due to any created nature4 ,our chief controversy is1 therefore1 with ,jews1 ,mohammedans1 ,unitarians1 and others who claim to be pure theists and who deny the incarnation4 ,what we affirm against these is1 that they cannot demonstrate the impossibility of the incarnation4 ,they cannot demonstrate the impossibility of a hypostatic union between the human nature and the divine nature1 by virtue of which the personality of the human nature is divine1 and the human nature is the nature of ,god1 and thus worthy of relative adoration4 ,therefore1 they cannot argue that the divinity of ,jesus ,christ has not been revealed1 and that divine worship is not due to him by the law of ,god1 because ,god cannot reveal such a doctrine or command such a worship without contradicting the essential truth of his nature4 ,suppose that evidence is given sufficient in itself to authenticate the revelation of the mystery of the incarnation1 and at once it becomes evident that divine worship is due to ,jesus ,christ as ,god incarnate1 precisely because worship is due to ,god4 ,the question is then only debatable on the point whether this revelation has been made or not4 ,if it could be proved that it has not1 and that ,jesus ,christ is a created and finite person1 it would follow that the worship paid to him by all orthodox ,christians is idolatrous4 #gbc ,it would be idolatrous to worship any man who should pretend to be ,god incarnate when he is not1 or who should be erroneously believed by his disciples to be a divine person1 without any reference to the question whether any such incarnation can be or has been decreed by the wisdom of ,god4 ,we are not attempting to prove the truth of the doctrine of the divinity of ,jesus ,christ1 or to prove directly that the worship we pay to him is not idolatrous4 ,everything1 we admit1 depends on proving it4 ,if it cannot be proved1 ,christianity is a superstition1 and must be classed with ,brahmanism1 ,buddhism1 and ,mohammedanism4 ,for the proof of the truth and reality of the incarnation1 we must refer the reader elsewhere4 ,we are intent on showing that no elevation of created nature which is possible is in any way incompatible with the supreme dignity and sovereignty of ,god1 and1 consequently1 no honor due to such an elevated nature incompatible with the supreme worship due to the divine majesty4 ,we are also intent on showing that it is principally the fact of the incarnation on which the whole question hinges1 and the worship paid to ,christ against which the objections of so-called theists to saint-worship are levelled4 ,the incarnation is the principle of saint-worship4 ,all orthodox ,protestants are accused of idolatrous saint-worship by ,unitarians1 ,jews1 ,mohammedans1 and all pure theists4 ,it is true that the orthodox do not regard ,jesus ,christ as a mere saint1 but all others regard him as being1 at the highest1 only the greatest among the saints4 ,all ,protestants who are orthodox on the incarnation1 and conformed in belief to the doctrine of their own confessions and great divines1 believe that the holy humanity of ,jesus ,christ is entitled to divine worship4 ,they are obliged to worship not only the divine nature of ,jesus ,christ1 but also his human nature1 his soul and body4 ,yet1 the human nature of ,christ is a created and finite substance1 not possessing a single divine attribute4 ,how1 then1 can it receive the worship due to ,god alone8 ,evidently it cannot receive such a worship as terminating in itself1 or as absolute4 ,it is impossible for the intellect to make the judgment that the substance of the body and of the soul of ,jesus ,christ is the infinite1 self-existing being whom we call ,god1 and from whom all things derive existence4 ,why1 then1 is the humanity of ,jesus ,christ to be worshipped8 ,because of the divine person to whom it belongs4 ,the soul and the body of ,jesus ,christ are the soul and body of the ,son of ,god4 ,the same person who is ,god is also man1 and his humanity is inseparable from his person4 ,it is1 therefore1 on account of and in relation to his divine person that his human nature is adored with the worship of latria4 ,if our ,lord should condescend to come upon the earth again1 we are persuaded that every sincere ,protestant who believes in his divinity would gladly prostrate himself at his feet to pay him supreme adoration1 and1 if he were able to look upon his face1 would feel that he was gazing upon the very countenance of ,god1 and that the eyes of the ,lord of heaven and earth were fixed upon him4 ,if there are any whose mind or feelings revolt from the worship of the ,son of ,god in his human body and through the medium of his visible form1 let them admit at once that they are no believers in the incarnation1 that they have abandoned the doctrine of the ancient ,protestant confessions and are really ,unitarians4 ,those who fully admit the ,catholic doctrine that the sacred humanity of ,jesus ,christ is to be adored must range themselves at once on our side and prepare to defend our common cause4 ,they must defend themselves and us against the charge of idolatry4 #gbd ,they cannot do it without laying down the principle that1 when a created nature is elevated to a special union with the divine nature1 and made to participate with it in dignity1 it is worthy of a proportionate religious veneration4 ,the more orthodox ,unitarians cannot deny this principle without condemning themselves4 ,they give a veneration at least equal to that which ,catholics call the worship of hyperdulia to ,jesus ,christ2 and as they do not acknowledge in him any dignity differing in kind1 but only one differing in degree1 from that of angels1 prophets1 martyrs1 confessors1 and other saints1 they cannot consistently deny the propriety of giving a lesser veneration1 or worship of dulia1 to the saints4 ,episcopalians and other ,protestants dedicate days and churches in honor of the ,blessed ,virgin and the saints1 which are acts of very high religious veneration4 ,only those who refuse all religious veneration either to ,jesus ,christ or to any created nature1 because they deny any supernatural elevation of created nature into a mysterious union with the divine nature1 have any pretext or appearance of consistency in their charge of idolatry against ,catholic saint-worship4 ,yet it is precisely the trinitarian ,protestants who are loudest and most violent in repeating this charge4 ,so far as rationalists and ,unitarians are concerned1 it is not of much utility to discuss the question of the veneration of the ,virgin and of the saints directly4 ,the preliminary question of the incarnation has first to be settled4 ,it is the divine worship we pay to ,jesus ,christ which is their great stone of stumbling and rock of offence4 ,we leave them aside1 therefore1 to pursue the one direct line of argument on which we started1 namely1 that the veneration of saints flows logically out of the worship of the sacred humanity of ,christ2 and is rooted in the doctrine of the incarnation4 ,orthodox ,protestants are bound to pay divine worship1 or the adoration of latria1 to the soul and body of ,jesus ,christ2 a worship which would be idolatry if the humanity of ,christ were not united to the divine nature in one personality1 so that the worship of ,christ as man is necessarily referred to his divine person and terminates upon it4 ,for the same reason1 they are bound to pay an inferior veneration1 or worship of dulia1 to the saints1 because they also are united to the divine nature through the incarnation and in ,christ1 as his co-heirs and brethren1 the participators of his glory4 ,they are not united with the divine nature in one personality1 therefore they cannot receive divine worship4 ,but they are in a lesser mode made partakers of the divine nature1 as the ,scripture explicitly declares1 and1 therefore1 deserve a veneration commensurate with their degree of union1 which is ultimately referred to ,god1 who is worshipped in his saints4 ,to compare the veneration of the saints of ,god with the ,greek polytheism is simply absurd4 ,it is connected with and springs out of the doctrine of pure monotheism and the worship paid to the one true ,god4 ,it does not1 in the slightest degree1 supplant this doctrine or worship1 confuse the idea of ,god1 or interfere with the recognition of his sole and absolute sovereignty4 ,it presents necessarily1 and by its very essence1 the saints as the creatures1 the servants1 the courtiers1 ministers1 and favored friends of ,god1 intercessors and advocates for men before his throne4 #gbe ,it presents1 therefore1 necessarily1 ,god as their creator1 sovereign1 and as the source and fountain of all their sanctity1 beatitude1 and glory1 the author and giver of all the blessings asked for through their intercession4 ,the perpetual presence of the true idea of ,god preserves the idea of the hierarchy of creatures from all corruption or perversion1 and keeps continually before the mind their relation and subordination to the supreme and absolute ,lord of the universe4 ,in the same way1 the presence of the true idea of the incarnation prevents the idea of the mediation of the saints between ,god and man from being corrupted4 ,it is impossible for the ,blessed ,virgin or any other saint to take the place in the ,catholic idea which belongs to ,jesus ,christ as the ,redeemer and ,saviour of mankind1 the ,mediator between ,god and man4 ,it is clearly understood and vividly realized that ,jesus ,christ is the medium of union between ,god and man through the hypostatic union of human nature with the divine nature in his person4 ,his expiation of sin derives its infinite value from the divinity of his person4 ,his merits derive their infinite value also from his divinity4 ,he is the source and fountain of grace and mercy1 because he is ,god and possesses life in himself4 ,he is the sacrifice perpetually offered in the divine eucharist1 the perennial source of life from which the soul is fed in the holy communion4 ,the mediation of the saints is derived from him1 subordinate to and dependent on his mediation4 ,the ,blessed ,virgin and the saints are honored on account of their relation to him1 and are invoked as his agents and ministers in dispensing grace4 ,it is impossible1 therefore1 to attribute to them any separate merit or independent power2 and1 so far from the devotion to ,our ,lady or the saints impeding the view of ,christ1 it only brings him into bolder relief1 and by contrast and comparison enhances the conception of his infinite elevation1 as their and our creator and sovereign1 above all creatures even the most exalted4 ,dr4 ,johnson with his usual strong good sense1 saw this1 and with his usual manly honesty avowed it1 as every one knows who has read his ,life by ,boswell4 ,intelligent ,protestants ought to be ashamed of themselves for perpetually reiterating the stupid charge against the ,catholic ,church1 that she substitutes the ,virgin and the saints as objects of worship in the place of ,god1 or as objects of confidence in the place of our ,saviour ,christ4 ,the only excuse for those who make this assertion is invincible ignorance1 an excuse not very creditable to men who profess to be theologians4 ,it may avail for those who have grown too old to make any new studies or receive any new ideas1 and for those whose intelligence and learning are so circumscribed that they cannot become acquainted with or understand the arguments of ,catholic theologians4 ,but for those who have the obligation and the opportunity to study and understand these grave questions1 but yet persist1 either through culpable ignorance or wilful dishonesty1 in misrepresenting ,catholic doctrine1 there can be no excuse4 ,in spite of our desire to stretch charity to its utmost limits1 we cannot help thinking that they are afraid to meet the question openly and fairly1 afraid to investigate1 and afraid to discuss the issue between us on its real merits4 ,they apprehend1 more or less vaguely or distinctly1 that they cannot maintain their ground if they state the ,catholic doctrines fairly and argue against them as they really are4 ,their instinct of self-preservation teaches them that their only safety consists in the smoke which they create by their incessant fusillade of misrepresentation1 and which hides the true aspect of the field from their deluded followers4 #gbf ,we leave this part of our subject with a reiteration of what we have already affirmed and proved4 ,the attempt to prove a priori from the idea of ,god1 or from the idea of the incarnation and mediation of the ,word made man1 that the religious veneration of the saints is incompatible with the supreme worship due to ,god1 and the supreme confidence we are bound to repose in the merits and grace of the sacred humanity of ,jesus ,christ1 is perfectly futile4 ,the only real question is one of evidence3 whether the ,catholic ,church can furnish evidence of her divine authority to teach that the ,blessed ,virgin and the saints have received a subordinate office of mediation1 and are to be honored and invoked by a special and formal cultus4 ,if the evidence which is proposed can be refuted1 the worship of the saints may be qualified as a vain observance1 a superstition1 a useless addition to ,christianity4 ,but it can never1 with any reason1 be denominated idolatry2 because it distinctly limits itself to that veneration which is simply commensurate with a merely created and derived dignity1 leaving intact and perfect the supreme worship of ,god4 ,it can never be denominated a substitution of many saviours and mediators in place of the one ,saviour and ,mediator ,jesus ,christ2 because it leaves the doctrine of his mediation intact and perfect4 ,that this evidence can be demolished by sound historical learning1 scientific exegesis of the ,scriptures1 or solid theological arguments1 we have no fear4 ,we do not think our antagonists have much hope of doing it4 ,they have already said all that can be said on their side1 and only damaged their own cause by it4 ,they cannot get rid of the universal testimony of all ages and countries to the ,catholic doctrine1 without resorting to principles which subvert their own foundation and leave them to sink down into the pit that has swallowed up ,rnan and ,colenso4 ,these topics have been exhaustively handled by numerous and able ,catholic writers1 to whom we refer those readers who wish to investigate them4 ,we turn now to the second part of our subject1 which relates to the honor paid to the sacred images of ,christ and the saints4 ,anticatholic writers are so illogical1 careless1 and confused in their arguments against ,catholic doctrines and practices1 and use so much rhetoric1 directed merely ad captandum vulgus1 especially when they take up this1 which is one of their favorite themes1 that it is very difficult to follow and refute them in a clear and methodical manner4 ,they deal very much in assertions and vituperative expressions1 in misrepresentations1 ridicule1 and low attempts at wit1 in unmeaning laudations of themselves as the only enlightened and spiritual persons in the world1 and wholesale depreciation of ,catholics1 especially the simple and pious peasantry and common people of ,catholic countries4 ,we suppose that the substance of their objections against the veneration of images1 extracted and reduced to a clear and precise statement1 would be something like this3 ,the use made of images in religious worship by ,catholics is idolatrous1 because it either is actually an adoration of images as gods in place of the true ,god1 or1 if not1 leads to and encourages such a worship1 and bears the outward appearance of being identical with it4 ,it is1 therefore1 to be condemned1 as intrinsically dangerous in itself1 and therefore prohibited under the old law1 and as in many cases among the uneducated grossly superstitious and heathenish4 #gbg ,it is1 therefore1 on a par with the idolatry of the ,greeks and ,romans1 and other pagan nations1 which is so severely denounced in the ,holy ,scriptures1 and so unmercifully ridiculed by the early ,christian writers2 although enlightened ,catholics1 like enlightened pagans1 may be free from the grossness of the vulgar superstition4 ,a full discussion of the subject would require us to go into the question of the nature of image-worship among the heathen nations4 ,this has been done already by ,bishop ,england1 who has handled the whole matter with great learning and ability in his ,letters to the ,gospel ,messenger4 ,it has also been briefly but satisfactorily treated in an article on ,is it ,honest8 in a former number of this magazine4 ,we may assert it as a certain and established fact1 that the heathen priests and other intelligent advocates of polytheism held the opinion1 so far as they were sincere believers in their own system1 that the divinities whom they worshipped were in some way bound to their images1 and acted through them as the soul acts through the body4 ,they did not1 of course1 worship the metal or wood of which the images were composed2 but they did worship the images themselves1 as being animated statues informed by a divine virtue1 and really containing the persons they represented4 ,philosophers like ,socrates1 ,plato1 and others1 and persons who were imbued with the principles of the more sound and monotheistic philosophy1 were not idolaters in the strict and gross sense4 ,they regarded the divinities of the popular mythology as only a sort of genii1 and probably considered their images as only representations intended to impress the senses and keep alive the belief and devotion of the people4 ,but the doctrine of polytheism was not the doctrine of the sounder and higher philosophy4 ,the system was idolatrous1 both in its substitution of imaginary beings for the one1 true ,god1 and also in its offering of the worship due to ,god to images as containing their imaginary divinities4 ,it is necessary to take into account1 in estimating the idolatrous character of this heathen worship1 not only that it terminated upon objects which were not divine as the ultimate end of the homage given1 without reference to the supreme creator and lord1 but also that these objects were unreal and imaginary beings4 ,it was not1 therefore1 merely an undue exaltation of the creature1 but a substitution of mere creations of the imagination in lieu of the true ,god4 ,it was1 therefore1 not only polytheism1 or a denial of the unity of ,god1 and a division of the deity among many beings possessing divine attributes1 but idol-worship1 that is1 the worship of nonentities in place of the real1 infinite ,being4 ,the image represented nothing real4 ,it was worshipped as related to an imaginary divinity1 supposed to reside in it and to communicate to it a certain divine quality4 ,there being no such person really existing1 the image was a mere idol2 and the worship had no real object to terminate upon except the material of which it was composed4 ,a man who cherishes and honors the picture of his wife has a real and legitimate object upon which the affections and emotions awakened by the picture may terminate2 but an artist who falls in love with a picture painted after an imaginary ideal in his own mind loves a mere painted form1 an idol1 and is1 therefore1 guilty of an absurd form of picture-worship4 #gbh ,if this love takes the place of the love of ,god in his soul and leads him to place his supreme good in this imaginary being1 he is an idolater4 ,the heathen had nothing in their idols but lumps of wood1 stone1 or metal1 fashioned to represent some imaginary being4 ,they were therefore open to all the ridicule and scorn of the prophets and other servants of the true ,god1 for shaping to themselves gods which were the mere creations of their own art and skill4 ,the condemnation of idols in the ,holy ,scripture falls1 therefore1 not chiefly upon the mere use of images as representing the object of worship1 but upon the making and honoring of images representing beings who1 if they existed1 would not be entitled to the worship they received1 and who1 in point of fact1 had no real existence4 ,idolatry is also called in the ,scripture demon-worship1 because1 as we understand it1 the demons by means of it seduced men away from the worship of ,god1 and also because1 by possessing the images of the false gods1 speaking through the oracles1 and inciting to the commission of a multitude of crimes in connection with idolatry1 they reduced the heathen into servitude to themselves4 ,the prohibition of images to be used in the worship sanctioned by the divine law was a precept of discipline enacted for a special reason4 ,the reason was the same which lay at the foundation of that economy by which the trinity of persons in the ,godhead1 the incarnation of the ,son in human form1 the hierarchy of angels1 the glory of the ,mother of ,god1 the exaltation of the saints to a deific union1 were at first obscurely revealed1 and only gradually disclosed to the clear knowledge and belief of the generality of the faithful4 ,it was necessary to establish first the doctrine of the divine unity and spirituality1 then the ,trinity and ,incarnation1 so firmly in the faith of the people of ,god1 that it could not be disturbed by anything similar to the corrupt worshipping of created things1 before it was safe to allow the glorification of all creation and all nature1 which is the consequence of the ,incarnation1 to be fully manifested4 ,the ,trinity and ,incarnation were but dimly revealed1 and only explicitly known by the lite of the faithful1 in order that the attention of the childish1 imperfect minds of those who lived in those early ages1 surrounded by a brilliant and seductive polytheism1 might be fixed principally on the unity and spirituality of the divine nature4 ,it was the special mission of the patriarchal and ,mosaic dispensations to preserve and hand down the doctrine of the one1 true ,god4 ,there would have been a danger in distinctly revealing the ,trinity before the time1 that the dogma would have been corrupted and perverted by a false conception of the plurality of persons in the divine being1 as of a plurality of beings4 ,the ,incarnation would have been perverted also into anthropomorphism1 or the conception of the divine nature as identical with human nature4 ,too distinct a knowledge of the angelic hierarchy would have dazzled the minds of a people predisposed and continually tempted to idolatry1 and would have withdrawn them from the contemplation and worship of ,god4 ,sculpture and painting would have affected their senses and imagination too powerfully1 and would have fostered the disposition to conceive of the divine nature as divided among many deities1 and resembling material1 created objects4 ,it was necessary that ,christ should come and manifest himself to men in his true character1 and that he should establish an infallible church1 competent to teach and define the ,trinity and ,incarnation in their relation to the divine unity1 to condemn all errors1 and to direct the development of theology with unerring certitude1 before the grand and abstruse mysteries of faith could be safely exposed to the gaze of the multitude4 #gbi ,our ,lord himself proceeded with great caution in these matters1 and so did the apostles and their successors4 ,the trinity in unity and the person of ,christ had first to be proposed and to be sunk indelibly into the mind of the church1 before the ,blessed ,virgin and the saints could be brought prominently forward2 and religion had first to be imbued with spirituality and pure1 robust morality1 before the splendor of worship and the riches of the fine arts1 and all the subsidiary means of impressing the senses and the imagination1 could receive their due development4 ,nevertheless1 that the unity of revelation might be manifest and the continuity of development be kept unbroken1 everything which was destined to bloom forth in its season in full splendor upon this grand plant of ,god whose branches are destined to overshadow the world1 existed in germ and bud from the very beginning4 ,it would lead us too far to follow up this thought4 ,orthodox ,protestants will admit it in regard to the principal mysteries of ,catholic faith4 ,the text of ,scripture shows plainly that ceremonial1 architecture1 and music1 in a word1 all that was not liable to lose its symbolic character too easily in the minds of the people1 were profusely employed in the religion of the old law4 ,philosophy1 poetry1 science1 and literature were kept in abeyance to a great extent1 and yet given sufficiently for intellectual culture in the inspired writings4 ,and1 notwithstanding the restriction placed on sculpture and painting1 yet images were to a certain extent made use of1 by the divine commandment1 for symbolic purposes in the sanctuary and in the temple4 ,this is their true and legitimate use1 and they are to be classed with other symbols1 emblems1 or exterior signs and representations to the senses of persons and things in the supersensible and celestial world4 ,sacraments1 holy places1 holy things1 temples1 altars1 vestments1 ceremonies1 images1 all belong to the same order1 and find their reason and principle in the ,incarnation4 ,the ,incarnation is the highest consecration and elevation of material substance and form4 ,the body of ,christ is hypostatically united to the divine nature and made the true1 living image of the ,godhead1 as the ,second ,council of ,nice teaches1 the medium by which ,god is manifested in the sensible and visible order4 ,through ,christ the whole material universe is sanctified and united with ,god as its final cause4 ,the fanciful theosophies and mythologies of the heathen world were only abortive efforts to express this truth4 ,mr4 ,gladstone has recently given utterance to this idea in very beautiful language1 so far as ,greek polytheism is concerned1 in his review of ,ecce ,homo4 ,heathen art was similarly a perverted foreshadowing of ,catholic art1 copied after the ideal1 not of redeemed and glorified but of fallen nature1 not of heaven but of hell1 which is but a dark counterpart of heaven4 ,modern ,protestants will generally admit the lawfulness and utility of sculpture and painting1 considered as the outward expression of the ,christian ideal of beauty1 the representation of persons1 scenes1 places worthy of respect1 means of improving the senses and imagination with religious ideas4 #gcj ,they are not like their ancestors1 who defaced sanctuaries1 rifled the tombs of the saints1 burned relics1 broke stained-glass windows1 destroyed sculptures and paintings1 and1 with barbarous vandalism1 did what they could to efface the glorious monuments of the ages of faith4 ,the remnants of these sacred relics of antiquity which they have now in their possession they preserve with jealous care4 ,they even make use of sculpture and painting to perpetuate their own heretical tradition1 as well as to set forth what they have retained that is truly ,christian4 ,they adorn their churches with works of art1 and erect monuments and statues to their own chiefs and leaders1 as1 for instance1 the monument to the ,english pseudo-martyrs at ,oxford1 and the statue of ,luther recently unveiled with so much pomp and ceremony at ,worms4 ,they are1 therefore1 precluded from making objection to the use of sculptured or painted images of ,christ and the saints in general1 and are restricted to objections against certain uses of these images in religious rites or worship1 and certain acts of respect and veneration which are exhibited toward them4 ,we will1 therefore1 proceed to show that this use of images is precisely identical in principle with that use of them to which ,protestants do not object1 and in conformity with the natural and necessary laws of the human mind1 which even the most violent iconoclasts cannot break4 ,the human mind is forced to use images as its media2 and1 although it is not necessary to have these images sculptured or painted1 it is by reason of the aforesaid necessity of using images of some kind that man instinctively seeks in sculpture and painting a suitable outward form and expression of his intellectual images1 and finds so much pleasure in beholding these intellectual images expressed in works of art by others4 ,the human intellect is incapable of contemplating the divine essence immediately4 ,it forms an intellectual conception or image which represents ,god to itself1 but which is most imperfect and inadequate4 ,any one who should believe that ,god really is like the conception or imagination he is able to form of him1 would commit as great an absurdity as one who should believe that he is like a venerable old man with a long white beard4 ,not only is the conception or intellectual image of ,god formed by the mind always inadequate1 but it is often false in certain respects4 ,aristotle's conception of ,god was essentially a false one2 so is that of the ,deists1 of the ,calvinists1 and of those ,universalists who deny his retributive justice4 ,even the highest contemplatives1 as they themselves positively affirm1 although they speak of a certain purely spiritual and imageless view of ,god1 never contemplate ,god so directly that they can dispense with every intellectual species or image as a medium1 and intend only by imageless contemplation to designate a degree of subtility in their intellectual operations which renders them pure and spiritual by comparison with those of grosser minds4 ,probably most persons of uncultivated intellects represent ,god to their imagination under some majestic and venerable human form1 and think of him as seated on a throne1 in a superb palace1 with his ministering angels1 also clothed in corporeal forms1 attending upon him4 ,those whose clear intellectual conceptions enable them to rid themselves of every image borrowed from the human figure in thinking of ,god1 will still find that their minds make use of certain emblems1 figures1 or images of the divine attributes1 such as light1 the sea1 the atmosphere4 #gca ,much more will they find themselves compelled to transfer to their conception of the divine intelligence and volition the analogy of their own manner of thought1 of their sentiments and affections4 ,in the same manner1 when a person thinks of ,jesus ,christ1 meditates on his life1 death1 and glorified state in heaven1 he will form to himself images which represent his ideal conception1 images so much the more distinct as they reflect the humanity of ,christ with which we are far more immediately united than we are with the divine nature1 and which we are therefore able to represent more exactly and vividly to our imagination4 ,are we to say1 then1 that every person worships the image of ,god or of ,jesus ,christ which his intellect has formed1 and becomes thereby an idolater8 ,certainly not4 ,his reason and faith assure him of the existence of ,god and ,christ as objectively real1 distinct from his own mental conception1 and surpassing all his apprehensions4 ,his intention in worship is directed to ,god as he really is1 and is true worship1 although the intellectual media which the soul is obliged to make use of are imperfect and inadequate4 ,the case is no way altered if the sculptured or painted image of ,christ is made use of1 instead of or together with the intellectual image4 ,the crucifix is only a permanent image affecting the exterior senses1 as the intellectual representation is a transient image affecting the interior senses4 ,coleridge says that a picture is an intermediate somewhat between a thought and a thing4 ,the same may be said of a statue1 though a statue is more of a thing than a painting is4 ,the material substance employed by the artist is merely the substratum of the form1 which is something ideal1 as language is merely the medium of thought4 ,in painting or sculpture of real merit1 the higher and more perfect conceptions of men who possess the artistic gift are transferred to the minds of those whose ideal conceptions are of an inferior order1 or who1 at least1 are not able to give their conceptions an outward and permanent expression4 ,the artist who makes a statue or painting of our ,lord intends to represent him according to the ideal which he has in his own mind4 ,his object is to bring the ideal conception of ,christ vividly and distinctly before the imagination of the beholder4 ,the more completely he succeeds in producing the desired effect1 the more perfect will be the identification of the image with the object it represents in the imagination of the beholder2 that is1 the image1 the more completely it is an image1 the less does it attract attention to its own separate reality1 and the more does it fix the attention of the mind on the object it represents4 ,a person whose mind is susceptible to the influence of art1 looking at a masterpiece of painting or sculpture1 forgets that it is only a representation1 and seems to himself to be looking at the reality4 ,his imagination transports him to the scene of crucifixion1 and he is spell-bound as he gazes on the face of the dying ,christ4 ,the same emotions arise in his mind that would arise if he were actually gazing upon the crucifixion itself4 ,if he is a ,christian1 he will spontaneously elicit acts of worship toward the ,son of ,god dying on the cross4 ,these interior acts will manifest themselves by exterior signs1 by the respectful posture1 the silence1 the reverential expression of countenance1 the moistened eye1 which betray the workings of the soul within to any attentive observer4 ,suppose that he kneels down and offers a prayer1 that he kisses the feet of the image of ,christ1 that he exclaims aloud1 ,my ,lord and my ,god6 is that idolatry8 #gcb ,is he worshipping a picture or a statue8 ,if he is1 then all the merely interior and mental acts of a person who is affected by a statue or picture of ,christ are equally idolatrous4 ,if the sculptured or painted image of ,christ is really substituted for ,christ himself1 and receives as a reality1 distinct in itself1 any homage or affection which it terminates as an ultimate object1 then all admirers of works of art are guilty of the same species of absurdity1 commit the same unreasonable act1 in a lesser degree1 which culminates1 in the case supposed1 in the supreme folly of adoring marble1 ivory1 canvas1 and paint4 ,that class of persons who go into raptures over works of art1 therefore1 have nothing to say against the ,catholic use of the crucifix which is not contradicted by their own practice and avowed sentiments4 ,if the devout sentiments awakened by a crucifix or a painting of the crucifixion are legitimate for once and for the space of half an hour1 they are legitimate at all times4 ,if it is lawful to go to a picture-gallery in order to see a masterpiece1 it is lawful to buy it1 to hang it in an oratory1 to visit it every day1 and to make a regular and constant use of it1 as a means of exciting devotion4 ,if the inward sentiments it awakens are lawful1 so is their outward expression2 and if this outward expression is in itself lawful1 it may be prescribed as a law by the ritual of the church4 ,the same principle that justifies the making of a crucifix1 and the looking upon it with emotion1 justifies the church in placing it above the altar1 bowing or genuflecting before it1 incensing it1 exposing it on ,good ,friday to veneration1 and chanting the words3 ,ecce lignum crucis1 venite adoremus4 ,the crucifix1 considered as a material object1 is merely treated with the same respect which is shown to a ,bible1 an altar-cloth1 a chalice1 or any other object devoted to sacred uses4 ,as a representation1 it is not distinguished from the object which it represents1 and the acts of interior or exterior veneration which terminate upon it are merely relative1 and are referred altogether to ,jesus ,christ4 ,they are like the kiss which a man imprints upon his wife's picture1 or the uncovering of the head when a procession passes the statue of ,washington4 ,there is only one question1 therefore1 in regard to the veneration given to the crucifix1 and that is1 ,does the object or person represented1 that is1 our ,lord ,jesus ,christ1 deserve the worship of latria1 or divine worship1 which we pay to him1 and which we signify by these exterior marks of respect toward his image8 ,the same is the case with the images of the ,blessed ,virgin and the saints4 ,the veneration paid to them has no respect to the material of which they are composed1 but passes to their prototypes1 that is1 the persons represented4 ,the only question1 therefore1 is1 ,do these prototypes deserve the honor we intend to pay them8 ,if they do1 it is right to signify this honor by marks of respect to their images1 such as bowing1 offering incense1 burning lights1 decorating the shrines in which they are placed with flowers1 and kneeling before them to offer prayers4 ,we have already shown that those who have the mere devotion of taste and imagination toward statues and pictures act in a manner precisely analogous1 and pass through the same mental process which is exhibited by the ,catholic in the respect which he pays to the sacred images of ,christ and the saints4 #gcc ,the only difference is1 that the latter makes use of his imagination in the service of a real and practical faith and piety4 ,his devotion is not a mere intellectual or sentimental devotion1 but a spiritual exercise4 ,it is1 therefore1 less dependent on the artistic merit and excellence of the representation than the merely sentimental excitement of the votary of art4 ,a rude crucifix or a simple image of the ,blessed ,virgin is sufficient for the only purpose for which the devout ,catholic makes use of them1 as a help to fix the senses and attention1 a sort of step-ladder by which he may raise his mind to the contemplation of ,christ and his blessed mother4 ,many other circumstances give value to sacred objects besides their intrinsic worth4 ,their history1 their antiquity1 the associations connected with them1 the traditions of past ages which cluster about them1 often give them a sacredness far beyond the charm of symmetry and beauty4 ,of the two1 we should much prefer to have ,bernini's exquisite statue1 over which the ,rev4 ,mr4 ,bacon goes into raptures which betray his refined love of art1 destroyed1 rather than the venerable statue of ,st4 ,peter1 which1 with manners the reverse of exquisite and refined1 he calls a grimy idol4 ,even persons of the most exquisite taste often love an old house1 old portraits1 old articles of furniture1 and many other old things1 intrinsically ugly and valueless1 far more than any similar objects which are new1 costly1 and fabricated in the highest style of art4 ,for the same reason1 certain objects of devotion1 which are devoid of all artistic excellence1 may be very dear and venerable to ,catholics of the most cultivated taste4 ,much more1 then1 it is natural that rude and unsightly statues or pictures should be objects of devotion to ,catholics of uncultivated taste4 ,protestants make a great mistake in judging of the sentiments of the common people in ,catholic countries4 ,they attribute to superstition what is really to be ascribed only to uncultivated taste4 ,the sentiments which are awakened by masterpieces of art they can understand2 but they cannot understand that ordinary and even grotesque images are masterpieces of art and models of beauty to the rude and childish mind of the multitude4 ,to their prejudiced and distorted fancy1 these images appear like idols1 and the devotion of the people toward them like a stupid idol-worship4 ,they do not appreciate the fact that they are to these simple people what chefs-d'oeuvre of religious art are to them--a vivid representation1 in outward form1 of their own highest ideal4 ,the susceptibility of these untutored minds to those emotions which are awakened through the senses is far greater than that of the more educated1 though it is not so chastened4 ,this is especially the case with the southern races4 ,poetry1 music1 painting1 everything which appeals to the imagination1 finds a ready response in their ardent temperament4 ,it is1 therefore1 a proof of the highest wisdom in the church that she has taken advantage of all these means of impressing religious ideas upon the minds of all classes of men in every stage of intellectual development4 ,there are some whose devotion takes a more purely intellectual form1 and who elevate their minds to ,god and heaven more easily by interior recollection and meditation than by any exercise of the imagination or any outward aids4 ,a few prefer the solitude of a cell or a cave to ,cologne ,cathedral1 and an hour's abstracted contemplation to all the pageantry of ,st4 ,peter's4 #gcd ,such are permitted and encouraged to follow the bent of their own inclination and the leading of the divine ,spirit4 ,the mass of men1 however1 even of the educated and cultivated1 need the help of the exterior world to give them the images and emblems of divine and spiritual things without which they cannot fix their attention or awaken their emotions4 ,the quality and quantity of the helps and instruments with which they worship ,god vary indefinitely4 ,the devotion of those whose state is a kind of intellectual childhood1 or in whose temperament imagination and passion predominate1 will necessarily be more sensuous than that of more cultivated minds or races of a more cool and sedate temperament4 ,it is the same principle1 however1 which pervades and regulates all2 the spirit is one1 though the form varies4 ,the true mystic1 who is absorbed in the contemplation of the divine nature1 does not deny to the sacred humanity of ,christ1 to the ,blessed ,virgin1 the saints1 or to any holy things1 their worth and excellence1 although he does not fix his attention upon them so frequently and so directly as others4 ,the great saints and theologians of the church never despise the devotions of the people or accuse them of superstition4 ,the distinction between the intelligent few and the superstitious many in the ,catholic ,church1 is one which the most highly educated and spiritually minded ,catholics disdain and repudiate as a dishonor to themselves4 ,it is made by sciolists1 who are unable to answer the arguments of our theologians or to deny the sanctity of our saints1 and who seek to evade in this way the overwhelming force of the evidence for the truth of our religion4 ,the veneration of saints and the use of images in religious worship1 they say1 though it does not prevent the lite of ,catholics from offering a supreme and pure worship to ,god and looking up to ,jesus ,christ as their only ,saviour1 leads the multitude to superstition and idolatry4 ,we are better judges of the fact than they are4 ,they know next to nothing of the practical working of our religion1 or of the ideas and state of mind of our people4 ,we know these things4 ,we have1 at least1 as much abhorrence of idolatry as they have1 and as much zeal for the enlightenment and spiritual welfare of the multitude4 ,we know that there is no taint of superstition or idolatry in the devotion of our people4 ,the ,catholic ,church keeps the ideas of ,god and ,christ vividly before the minds of her children2 they realize them in a manner of which those who are out of the church have no conception4 ,the accusation of withdrawing from ,god and our ,lord that which is due to them--to divide and scatter it among inferior beings--comes with a very bad grace from ,protestants4 ,what have they done to reclaim mankind from polytheism and to spread the worship of the true ,god8 ,they have done nothing1 except to cripple the efforts of the ,catholic priesthood by sowing dissension in ,christendom and giving the scandal of disunion to infidels4 ,they have bred anew the old heresies against the ,trinity and the ,divinity of ,christ which had become extinct1 together with the more monstrous error of pantheism4 ,we1 the ,catholic priesthood1 have conquered the ancient heathenism1 have planted everywhere ,christianity1 have established on an immovable foundation the doctrine of the divinity of ,jesus ,christ1 together with the worship of his adorable name4 #gce ,we are now carrying on the work of converting the heathen1 and of defending theism and ,christianity against the hosts of enemies raised up against them by the revolt of the sixteenth century4 ,if ,christianity is to gain in the future new and more glorious triumphs over the false religions of the world1 it will be through our labors and our blood that she will win her victories4 ,not only do the defence and advancement of the supernatural order rest on us2 we are obliged also to defend nature1 reason1 the arts1 the poetry and romance of life1 from a gloomy ,puritanism1 a hopeless scepticism1 a desolating materialism1 which would sweep away all spiritual philosophy1 all sound science1 all gayety and charm in life1 all joyousness in religion1 all ideality and heroism in the sphere of human existence4 ,it is against a universal iconoclasm we have to contend--an iconoclasm which seeks to throw down and deface the image of celestial truth and beauty1 to break the painted windows through which the light of heaven streams in upon this earthly temple1 to efface those angelic and saintly forms with the ,madonna who is the queen of the whole bright multitude1 to overthrow the cross1 and finally to drag down the sacred humanity of ,christ1 together with the deity that dwells in it and is worshipped through it1 leaving mankind without a temple1 an altar1 a ,saviour1 or a ,god4 ,we have learned the nature of the warfare we are engaged in too well from the conflicts of eighteen centuries1 to be deceived or misled4 ,we know that an attack on the smallest portion of the edifice of the ,catholic ,church means its total subversion1 and that1 consequently1 it is just as necessary to resist it as if it were avowedly aimed at the foundation4 ,we know that we cannot and must not yield up the smallest fragment of ,catholic truth for any plausible end whatever4 ,although1 therefore1 the veneration of saints and holy images is not among the most necessary and fundamental parts of the ,catholic religion1 yet1 as the principle from which it proceeds is an integral portion of ,catholic doctrine1 we shall always maintain it with the same fidelity as we do the primary truths of the ,creed1 the ,unity and ,trinity of the ,godhead1 the ,incarnation1 ,passion1 and ,resurrection of ,jesus ,christ4 ,the images of ,christ1 of the ,blessed ,virgin1 and of the saints1 will always remain above our altars and on the walls of our churches2 the ,salve ,regina and ,litanies of the ,saints will never cease to be chanted in our solemn services2 and we shall continue to adore the ,incarnate ,word in his sacred humanity with the worship of latria until the end of the world4 ------ #gcf ,nellie ,netterville2 ,or1 ,one ,of ,the ,transplanted4 ,chapter ,,xv4 ,before leaving the guard-room1 ,ormiston poured out a large goblet of wine from a flask which he had sent one of the soldiers to procure at a wine-tavern hard by1 and insisted upon ,nellie drinking it to the last drop4 ,the remainder of the flask he gave to ,roger1 who1 truth to say1 was almost as much in need of it as ,nellie2 and they then all went forth together1 ,o',more having previously pledged his word1 both to ,ormiston and ,holdfast1 to consider himself merely as a prisoner at large1 until they themselves should release him from his parole4 ,their way led them from the gate-house into ,bridge street1 and from thence to ,ormond ,gate1 ,earl's ,gate1 ,geata-na-,eorlagh1 as it was then sometimes called4 ,with ,major ,ormiston in their company1 this was opened to them without a question1 and they afterward proceeded1 as fast as ,nellie's strength permitted1 up the steep hill street1 debouching into the ,corn ,market4 ,entering the latter1 they found themselves face to face with ,newgate1 the great criminal prison of the city4 ,there it stood1 dark1 strong1 and terrible--too strong1 ,roger could not help thinking1 to be a fitting prison for the frail1 dying woman it was guarding for the hangman4 ,it seemed1 indeed1 almost like an abuse of power to have cast her there1 so helpless as she was1 and powerless1 in the strong grasp of the law4 ,newgate had originally formed a square1 having at each of its four angles a tower1 three stories high1 and turreted at the top4 ,two of these however1 those facing toward the city1 had been recently taken down2 and when ,nellie looked upon it for the first time1 it consisted merely of the gate-house1 with its portcullis and iron gates1 and a strong tower at either end4 ,near the prison stood the gibbet1 metaphorically as well as really2 for few1 indeed1 in those sad days1 were the prisoners who1 once shut up within the walls of ,newgate1 ever left them for a pleasanter destination than the gallows4 ,from the position in which it stood1 they could hardly avoid seeing it as they passed onward toward the prison2 but in the faint hope of sparing at least poor ,nellie's eyes this terrible apparition1 ,ormiston stepped a little in advance of his companions1 and placed himself between her and it4 ,roger1 however1 upon whose arm she leaned1 knew1 by the sudden tremor which shook her frame that this tender caution had been in vain4 ,nellie1 in fact1 had already seen and guessed at the ghastly nature of its office there2 and as her eye glanced reluctantly--and almost1 as it were1 in spite of herself--toward it1 she felt as if she had never before thoroughly realized the awful position in which her mother stood4 ,what wonder that she grew sick and giddy as the thought forced itself1 in all its naked reality1 on her mind1 that her mother--her mother1 the very type and personification of refined and delicate womanhood--might at any hour be dragged hither1 shrinking and ashamed1 beneath the rude hangman's grasp8 #gcg ,what wonder that her very feet failed to do their office1 and that ,roger was compelled rather to carry than to lead her past the spot1 never pausing or suffering her to pause until they stood before the gates of ,newgate8 ,here1 as at the city gate1 the name and authority of ,ormiston procured them ready admission1 the jailer receiving them with courtesy1 and showing them at once into a low1 vaulted room on the ground-floor of the prison4 ,notwithstanding this1 however1 ,ormiston had no sooner announced the name of the prisoner they had come to visit1 than the man showed symptoms of great and irrepressible embarrassment4 ,the prisoner had been very ill1 he muttered2 had burst a blood-vessel in the morning1 and the bleeding had returned within the hour4 ,a doctor had been sent for1 and was at that moment with her2 but if ,major ,ormiston could condescend to wait1 he would call his wife1 who was also in attendance on the poor lady1 and would tell her to announce the arrival of a visitor4 ,it must be done gently1 he repeated over and over again1 very gently2 for the doctor had already told him that any sudden shock would of necessity prove fatal4 ,ormiston eyed the man curiously as he blundered through this statement4 ,he knew enough of ,newgate1 as it was then conducted1 to doubt much if the visit of a doctor was a luxury often vouchsafed to its inhabitants2 and feeling in consequence that some mystery was concealed beneath the mention of such an official1 he was almost tempted to fancy that ,mrs4 ,netterville was already dead1 and that1 on account of the presence of her daughter1 the man hesitated to say so4 ,the next moment1 however1 he had leaped to another and more correct conclusion1 though for ,nellie's sake1 and because intolerance formed no part of his character1 he made neither question nor comment1 as the jailer evidently expected that he would1 on the matter4 ,greatly relieved by this apparent absence of suspicion on the part of the ,english officer1 the man brought in a stool for ,nellie to sit upon1 and then once more announced his intention of going in quest of his wife4 ,just as he opened the door for this purpose1 ,ormiston caught a glimpse of a tall1 gray-haired man1 who passed down the passage quickly in company of a woman4 ,the jailer saw him also1 and with a sudden look of dismay upon his features1 closed the half-opened door1 and turned again to ,ormiston4 ,it was the doctor1 he said with emphasis--the doctor who had just taken his departure2 and as there was nothing now to prevent their seeing the sick lady1 he would send his wife at once to conduct them to her cell4 ,a long ten minutes followed1 during which time ,nellie sat quite still1 her face hidden by her hands1 and shivering from head to foot in fear and expectation4 ,the door opened again1 and she sprang up4 ,this time it was the jailer's wife who entered4 ,the poor lady had been informed1 she said1 of the arrival of her daughter1 and was longing to embrace her4 ,would the young lady follow her to the cell8 ,nellie was only too eager to do so1 and they left the room together4 ,ormiston hesitated a moment as to what he would do himself2 but not liking to leave ,nellie entirely in the hands of such people as jailers and their wives were in those days1 he at last proposed to ,roger to follow and wait somewhere near the cell during her approaching interview with her mother4 #gch ,to this ,roger readily assented1 and they reached the open door just as ,nellie entered and knelt down by her mother's side4 ,more than a hundred years later than the period of which there is question in this tale1 the treatment of prisoners in the ,dublin ,newgate was so horrible and revolting to the commonest sense of decency and humanity as to demand a positive interference on the part of government4 ,there is nothing1 therefore1 very astonishing in the fact1 that the state in which ,nellie found her mother filled her brimful with sorrow and dismay4 ,the cell in which she was confined was low1 and damp1 and dark1 and this she might have expected1 and was in some degree prepared for2 but she had not counted on the utter misery of its appointments2 and the sight of her pale mother--death already haunting her dark eyes1 and written unmistakably on her ghastly features--stretched upon the clammy pavement1 a heap of dirty straw her only bed1 and a tattered blanket her only covering1 was such a shock and surprise to ,nellie that1 instead of joyfully announcing the fact of her reprieve to the poor captive1 as she had intended1 she fell upon her knees beside her1 and wept over her like a child4 ,mother6 mother6 was all that she could say for sobbing1 as she took her mother's hand in hers and covered it with tears and kisses4 ,mrs4 ,netterville appeared for a moment too much overcome to speak1 or even move1 but gradually a faint flush passed over her wan face1 and her eyes at last grew brighter and more life-like1 when ,nellie1 making a strong and desperate effort to command her feelings1 suddenly wiped away her tears and bent over the bed to kiss her4 ,o mother6 mother6 the poor girl could not refrain from once more sobbing1 is it thus that ,i see you after all8 ,nay1 child1 the mother gasped with difficulty1 you should rather thank ,god for it on your knees4 ,see you not it is an especial mercy8 ,if ,i had not burst a blood-vessel to-day1 to-morrow--yes1 to-morrow--a shudder ran through her wasted frame1 and she broke off suddenly4 ,but ,i have brought you a reprieve1 sobbed ,nellie1 hardly knowing what she said1 or the danger of saying it at that moment--a reprieve which is almost a pardon4 ,only a few days more1 and you would have been free1 whereas now--now--tears choked her utterance1 and1 hiding her face on her mother's scanty coverlet1 she sobbed as if her heart were breaking4 ,mrs4 ,netterville half raised herself on her pallet bed4 ,for one brief moment she struggled with that desire for life which lurks in every human breast1 and which ,nellie's exclamation had called forth afresh in hers4 ,for one brief moment that phantom of life and liberty1 lost just as they had been found again--lost just as they had become more than ever precious in her eyes--that contrast between what was to be her portion and what it might have been1 deluged her soul with a bitterness more intolerable than that of death itself1 and her frail body shook and trembled like an aspen leaf beneath the new weight of misery thus laid upon it4 ,that one unguarded word of ,nellie's had1 in fact1 changed1 as if by magic1 all her thoughts and feelings and aspirations4 ,death and life1 and health and sickness1 freedom and captivity1 had each put on a new and unexpected aspect in her eyes1 and that very thing which1 only a minute or two before1 had seemed to her soul as a source of real consolation1 had suddenly taken the guise of a great misfortune4 ,it was as if ,god himself had mocked her with feigned mercy2 a weaker soul might so have said1 and sunk beneath the burden6 ,but with that strong and well-tried spirit the struggle ended otherwise4 #gci ,clasping her wasted hands together1 and lifting up her eyes to heaven1 the dying woman exclaimed1 in a voice which none could hear and doubt of the truth of the sentiments it uttered1 ,my ,god6 my ,god6 ,thy will1 not mine1 be done6 ,then she fell back quietly on her pillow1 exhausted indeed with the effort she had made1 but calm and smiling and resigned1 as if that sudden glimpse of renewed happiness and life had never1 mirage-like1 risen to mock her with its beauty4 ,the first use ,mrs4 ,netterville made of her victory over nature was to comfort ,nellie4 ,weep not1 dear child1 she whispered tenderly2 weep not so sadly1 but rather thank ,god with me for the consolation which he has given us in this meeting4 ,where is ,hamish8 she added1 turning her dim eyes toward the open door1 where ,ormiston and ,o',more were lingering still1 and evidently fancying that one or other of them was her absent servant--where is ,hamish8 ,he has done my bidding bravely2 why comes he not forward1 that ,i may thank him8 ,hamish is not here1 mother2 ,i left him with my grandfather4 ,god help you1 child6 moaned ,mrs4 ,netterville1 a sudden spasm at her heart at the thought of her unprotected child1 ,god help you6 have you come hither all this way alone8 ,mother1 said ,nellie in a smothered voice1 ,i am not alone4 ,roger ,more came with me4 ,without him it would have been impossible4 ,roger ,more--,roger ,more1 repeated ,mrs4 ,netterville1 trying to gather together her memories of the days gone by4 ,it was in the arms of a ,roger ,more that your father breathed his last4 ,in mine1 dear lady6 cried ,roger1 unable any longer to resist the temptation of presenting himself to ,nellie's mother--in mine6 ,and knowing that the father did me the honor to call me friend1 ,lord ,netterville has had the great kindness to entrust me with the daughter in this long journey1 which the love she bears you compelled her to undertake4 ,something in the tones of ,roger's voice1 rather than in the words he uttered1 seemed to strike on the mother's ear4 ,she smiled a grateful smile of recognition1 and then turned a questioning glance1 first upon his face and afterward on ,nellie's4 ,perhaps ,roger interpreted that glance aright4 ,at all events1 he took ,nellie's hand1 and1 as if moved by a sudden inspiration1 laid it on her mother's1 saying3 ,only the day after that on which ,i saw her first1 ,i told her that ,i would never ask for this dear hand until her mother was by to give it4 ,her mother gives it1 said ,mrs4 ,netterville solemnly4 ,yes6 for ,i guess by ,nellie's silence that her heart is not far from you already4 ,mother1 mother6 cried ,nellie1 resisting ,mrs4 ,netterville's feeble efforts to place her hand in ,roger's--not here--not now--not when you are dying4 ,for that very reason1 gasped the mother4 ,my son1 she added1 fixing her eyes full on ,roger1 you can understand4 ,i would see my ,nellie in safe hands before ,i go4 ,it would be the fulfilment of my dearest wish1 said ,roger earnestly1 if only it be possible4 #gdj ,it is possible1 she was beginning2 but pausing at the sight of ,ormiston1 who had by this time joined himself to the group around her bed1 she added in an apprehensive tone1 but there is a stranger present4 ,not a stranger1 but a friend1 the young officer replied1 in a tone of sincerity it would have been impossible to doubt1 even if ,nellie had not whispered1 ,a friend1 indeed6 ,without him we could hardly have been with you now4 ,then ,i will trust him as a friend1 ,mrs4 ,netterville replied4 ,the gentleman who left me as you entered-- ,the doctor1 ,ormiston interrupted1 with a marked emphasis on the word4 ,well1 the doctor1 she replied1 with a languid smile4 ,he can do all ,i need1 and he lives close at hand1 with the merchant ,william ,lyon1 who knows him not1 however1 she added1 mindful of the safety of the person named--who knows him not in any other character than that of a lodger and chance sojourner in the city4 ,in ten minutes he shall be here1 said ,ormiston1 if ,i can induce him to come with me4 ,meanwhile ,i will give orders to the jailer to leave you undisturbed4 ,if you permit it1 ,major ,ormiston1 ,i will go with you1 said ,roger1 not only zealous for the success of the embassy1 but anxious1 likewise1 that before taking such a decided step ,nellie should have the opportunity of a private conference with her mother4 ,i think my name1 and a word which ,i can whisper in his ear1 may be of use--otherwise he might fear a snare4 ,ormiston assenting to this proposition1 the young men departed1 and for the first time since the commencement of their interview mother and daughter were alone together4 ,for some minutes1 however1 neither of them spoke4 ,mrs4 ,netterville lay back1 endeavoring to recover breath and strength for the coming scene1 and ,nellie was completely stunned4 ,the shock of finding her mother dying at the very moment when she had hoped to restore her to new life--the bodily weariness consequent on her journey--the sudden1 and1 to her1 the most inexplicable resolution to which ,mrs4 ,netterville had come in her regard--all combined to paralyze her faculties1 and1 hardly able to think or even feel1 she sat like a statue on the floor beside her mother4 ,from this state of stupor she was roused at last by the sound of the dying woman's voice3 ,nellie6 ,mother6 cried the girl2 and then1 as she felt that poor mother's hand feebly endeavoring to twine itself round her neck1 she burst into a fresh flood of tears4 ,they saved her senses1 perhaps--who knows8 ,creatures as strong in mind as she was1 and stronger far in body1 have died or gone mad ere now beneath such a strain on both as had been put upon her for weeks4 ,nellie1 my child--my only one--weep not6 her mother whispered tenderly4 ,believe me1 little daughter1 that ,i die happy4 ,o mother1 mother6 ,nellie sobbed2 and ,i thought to have given you life6 ,mrs4 ,netterville paused a moment1 and then1 in a voice tremulous with feeling1 she replied3 ,nellie1 ,i would not deceive you4 ,life is no idle thing to be cast off carelessly as a garment2 and for one brief moment the thought that1 but for this sudden malady1 ,i might yet have lived some years longer1 filled my soul with sorrow6 ,but it is over now--more than over--and ,i am at peace4 ,why should ,i not8 for you are safe--you for whom ,i chiefly clung to life6 ,yes6 now that a man good and generous1 as ,i long have known ,roger ,more to be1 is about to take my place beside you1 ,i go without repining--nay1 'repining' is not the word1 she said1 correcting herself--,i go in great joy and jubilation to the presence of my ,god4 #gda ,o mother6 sobbed ,nellie1 cut to the soul by this allusion to her marriage1 that is the worst of all4 ,do not insist upon it1 ,i entreat you4 ,silence1 ,nellie6 ,mrs4 ,netterville answered1 almost sternly4 ,think you ,i could die happy if ,i left you--a child--a girl--unprotected in this wild city8 ,mother1 be not angry1 ,i beseech you1 ,nellie pleaded1 if ,i remind you that ,i came hither safe6 ,ay1 but you were coming to your mother1 and the world itself could say no evil of one bent on such a mission4 ,to-morrow1 ,nellie1 you will be motherless1 and ,i will not have it said of you hereafter1 that you went wandering through the country protected by a man who had no husband's right to do it4 ,child1 child6 ,mrs4 ,netterville added1 in a tone of almost agonized supplication1 if you would have me die in peace1 if you would not that your presence here 7instead of joy7 should cast gall and vinegar into the cup of death1 you will yield your will to mine1 and go back to your grandfather a wedded woman4 ,mother6 cried ,nellie1 terrified by the vehemence with which her mother spoke1 dear mother1 say no more6 ,it shall be even as you wish4 ,i promise4 ,alas6 alas6 this weary bleeding has commenced again--what shall ,i do to aid you8 ,mrs4 ,netterville could not speak1 for blood was gushing violently from her lips1 but she pointed to a jug of water on the floor4 ,nellie took the hint at once1 and dipped a handkerchief into the water2 with this she bathed her mother's brow1 and washed her lips1 until by degrees the hemorrhage subsided1 and the dying woman lay back once more pale and quiet on her pillow4 ,just then1 to ,nellie's great relief1 the jailer entered1 bearing a lighted torch2 for the sun was going down1 and the cell was almost dark already4 ,after him came ,ormiston and ,o',more1 accompanied by the gray-haired man who had been with ,mrs4 ,netterville at the moment of their own arrival in the prison4 ,ormiston took the torch from the jailer's hand1 and placing a gold piece there instead1 dismissed him1 with orders to close the door behind him1 and to give them due notice before shutting up the prison for the night4 ,as he set the torch in the sconce placed for it against the wall1 the light fell full upon ,mrs4 ,netterville's face1 which looked so pale and drawn that for a moment he thought that she was dead1 and whispered his suspicion to the stranger4 ,the latter drew a small vial from his bosom1 and poured a few drops upon her lips4 ,they revived her almost immediately2 she opened her eyes1 and a smile passed over her white face as they fell upon her visitant4 ,you here again1 my father6 she murmured beneath her breath4 ,i thank ,god that you have had the courage4 ,you know the purpose for which ,i need you8 ,i know it--and1 under the circumstances1 approve it1 the stranger answered quietly4 ,the sooner1 therefore1 that it is done the better it will be for all4 ,poor child--poor ,nellie6 murmured ,mrs4 ,netterville1 as she caught the sound of the low sobbing which1 spite of all her efforts at self-control1 burst ever and anon from ,nellie's lips4 ,poor little ,nellie6 no wonder that she weeps4 ,it is a sad1 strange place for a wedding1 is this prison-cell6 #gdb ,these are strange times1 said the priest kindly1 and they leave us1 alas6 but little choice of place in the fulfilment of our duties4 ,nevertheless1 sad as all this must seem at present1 ,i am certain that your daughter will1 some day or other1 look back upon her wedding in this prison-cell with a sense of gladness no earthly pomp could have conferred on marriage2 for she then will understand1 even better than she does now1 how1 by this concession to a mother's wishes1 she has secured peace and happiness to that mother's death-bed4 ,that is1 he added1 turning and pointedly addressing himself to ,nellie1 if sorrow for her mother's state is the sole cause for all this weeping8 ,nellie felt that he had asked indirectly a serious question1 and she was too truthful not to answer it at once4 ,she did not speak1 however--she could not2 but she gave her hand to ,roger1 and made one step forward4 ,come nearer1 whispered her mother1 come nearer1 that ,i may see and hear4 ,roger drew ,nellie nearer1 until they both were standing close to the sick woman's pillow4 ,raise me up1 the latter whispered faintly4 ,he lifted her in his strong arms1 for she was as helpless as a child1 and placed her in a sitting posture1 with her back supported by the wall near which her bed was placed4 ,as soon as she had recovered a little from the faintness consequent on this exertion1 she waved her hand to ,roger as a signal that the ceremony should begin4 ,the priest turned at once to the young couple1 and commenced his office1 making it as brief as possible4 ,brief1 however1 as it was1 and bare of outward ceremonial1 ,ormiston1 as he stood a little in the background1 could not help feeling that he never before had looked on1 might never again behold1 such a strangely touching scene4 ,the wasted features of the poor mother1 for whom death seemed only waiting until her anxiety for the safety of her child had been set at rest for ever2 the fair face of ,nellie1 pale now with grief and watching1 but ready as a budding rose to flush into yet brighter beauty with the first return of sunshine2 ,roger1 with such a look of grave yet conscious gladness in his eyes as best suited the mingled nature of the scene in which he was a foremost actor2 the priest1 who1 at the risk of his own liberty or life1 was fulfilling one of the most solemn offices of his sacred calling2 the vaulted roof above1 glistening in the damp as the light flashed on it1 and the bare1 bleak walls around1 with the names of many a weary captive inscribed upon them2 joy and sorrow1 hope and fear2 life springing forward1 on the one hand1 to its brightest hours1 and sadly receding1 on the other1 into the shadows of the tomb--all were gathered together in that prison-cell1 and combined to form a picture which would have needed the pencil of a great master to render in its full force and truth4 ,it was done at last6 ,nellie had said the word which made her a wedded wife1 and ,mrs4 ,netterville folded her in her arms1 and whispered1 ,thank you1 dearest1 thank you2 for ,i know what this must have cost you6 and then placing her hand in ,roger's1 added1 ,take her1 my son--take her2 ,god is my witness that ,i give her to you without a fear for her future happiness4 ,to you in whose arms the father died ,i may well intrust the daughter6 #gdc ,you shall never repent it1 mother--never6 said ,roger1 with that calm1 determined manner which better than many words1 brings assurance to the soul1 of truth4 ,i loved her from the first day ,i saw her1 not so much for her brightness and her human beauty1 as for that higher beauty which ,i thought ,i discovered in her soul1 and which she has bravely proved since then4 ,over beauty such as that time has no power2 the love1 therefore1 that springs from it must last for ever4 ,it is well1 my son1 replied ,mrs4 ,netterville1 ,i thank you1 and believe you4 ,and now1 be not angry if ,i bid you go6 ,for this one day ,nellie must be all my own--to-morrow there will be no one to dispute her with you4 ,she spoke the last words hurriedly1 for the jailer entered at that moment to inform ,ormiston that the prison was about to be shut up for the night1 and that it was his duty to see that all strangers left it4 ,but not ,nellie--not my child8 said ,mrs4 ,netterville1 with an appealing look1 first to the jailer and then to ,ormiston4 ,surely you will leave ,nellie with me8 ,they must6 cried ,nellie passionately1 for by force alone can they drag me from you4 ,sir1 said the dying woman1 addressing herself this time to ,ormiston alone1 add this one favor1 ,i beseech you1 to all the others you have done me1 and let my child close my dying eyes8 ,i cannot refuse you1 madam1 he replied1 much moved4 ,but is your daughter equal to the effort8 ,would it not be better to have the jailer's wife as well8 ,no--no6 cried ,nellie1 answering before her mother1 who looked half inclined to assent to this proposition1 could reply4 ,i am equal1 and more than equal4 ,i would not have a stranger with us to-night for the world4 ,come for her1 then1 at the first dawn of day1 said ,mrs4 ,netterville1 with a glance1 the meaning of which they understood too well4 ,she gave her hand in turn to each of the young men1 and then signed to them to withdraw4 ,ormiston did so at once2 but ,roger turned first to ,nellie1 and taking her passive hand1 lifted it silently to his lips4 ,not to save his life or hers could he have done more than that in the solemn presence of her dying mother4 ,he then followed ,ormiston4 ,the priest lingered a moment longer to speak a word of cheer to his poor penitent2 but the jailer calling him impatiently1 he also disappeared1 and the cell-door was closed behind him4 ,chapter ,,xvi4 ,the rattling of the key in the lock as the jailer shut them up for the night came like a death-knell on poor ,nellie's ear4 ,so long as ,ormiston and ,roger had been there beside her1 she had1 quite unconsciously to herself1 entertained a sort of hope that something 7she knew not what7 might yet be devised for the solace of her mother2 and now that they were gone indeed1 she felt as people feel when the physician takes his leave of his dying patient1 thus tacitly confessing that all hope is over4 ,the lamp1 which1 in obedience to a word from ,ormiston1 the jailer had brought in trimmed and lighted for the night1 revealed the cell to her in all its bleak reality1 and as she glanced from the straw pallet1 which at ,netterville they would have hesitated to place beneath a beggar1 to the pitcher of cold water1 which was the only refreshment provided for the dying woman1 ,nellie felt anew such a sense of her mother's misery and of her own inability to procure her comfort1 that1 unable to utter a single syllable1 she sat for a few moments by her side weeping hopelessly and helplessly as a child4 #gdd ,mrs4 ,netterville heard her sobbing1 and1 after waiting a few minutes in hopes the paroxysm would subside1 said gently3 ,nellie--my little one--weep not so bitterly1 ,i entreat you2 you know not how it pains me4 ,how can ,i help it1 mother8 sobbed the girl1 unable to conceal the thought uppermost in her own mind4 ,you suffer1 and the lowest scullion in the kitchen of ,netterville would have deemed herself ill-used in such poverty as this6 ,is that all1 my child8 said her mother1 with a faint smile4 ,nay1 dear ,nellie1 you may believe me1 that1 to a soul which feels itself within an hour of eternity1 it is of little moment whether straw or satin support the body it is leaving4 ,eternity6 yes1 eternity6 she murmured to herself ,alas6 alas6 how little do we realize in the short days of time the awful significance of that word1 for ever6 ,mother1 you are not afraid6 burst from ,nellie's lips1 a new and hitherto unthought-of anxiety rushing to her mind4 ,afraid6 ,mrs4 ,netterville echoed the expression with a smile4 ,no1 my daughter1 by the grace of ,god and goodness of ,our ,lady ,i am not afraid4 ,nevertheless eternity1 with its ministering angel ,death1 are awful things to look on1 ,nellie1 and if ,i could smile at aught which makes you weep1 it would be to think that such a silly grievance as a straw pallet could add to their awfulness in your eyes4 ,not to their awfulness1 mother1 ,nellie sobbed1 but to their sorrow2 it is such a pain to see you comfortless4 ,and has no one else been comfortless in death8 ,mrs4 ,netterville whispered almost reproachfully4 ,only consider1 ,nellie1 this straw bed which you lament so bitterly is a very couch of down compared to ,his1 when he laid him down upon the hard wood of the cross to die4 ,mother1 forgive me2 ,i never thought of that1 said ,nellie humbly4 ,i only thought of your discomfort4 ,think of nothing now1 dear ,nellie1 but this one word of ,scripture1 ',blessed are the dead who die in the ,lord2' and hope and pray that it may be so with me to-night4 ,now1 dry your eyes and listen1 for ,i have much to say1 and but little time left wherein to say it4 ,dry your eyes1 for ,i cannot bear to see you weeping thus4 ,your tears have almost the power to make me repine at death4 ,the last hint was sufficient4 ,nellie resolutely checked her tears1 and laid her head down on her mother's pillow1 in order that the latter might speak to her with less danger of fatigue4 ,then1 in a few earnest1 touching words1 ,mrs4 ,netterville set before her daughter the duties of her new state of life1 and gave advice1 which1 precious as it would have been at any time1 was doubly precious then1 coming as it did from the lips of a dying mother2 after which1 true to an idea ever uppermost in the ,irish mind1 and which she had too thoroughly adopted her husband's country not to feel as keenly upon almost as he could have done himself1 she adverted to her own place of burial4 ,it cannot be at ,netterville1 ,i know1 she said4 ,i may not sleep1 as ,i had ever hoped1 by the side of my brave husband6 ,but in your new western home1 dear ,nellie--in your new western home1 where the churches1 ,i believe1 are yet undesecrated--there1 if it be possible1 ,i would gladly take my rest--there1 where you can come sometimes to pray for your poor mother1 and where1 when my husband's father follows me1 as no doubt he must full soon1 he can be laid quietly to sleep beside me4 #gde ,she paused1 and ,nellie muttered something1 she hardly knew what1 which she hoped would sound like an assent in her mother's ears4 ,not for worlds would she have saddened her at such a moment by allowing her to discover that ,roger1 like themselves1 had been robbed of his inheritance1 and that1 instead of that quiet western home of which she spoke so confidently1 her wedded life with him must be spent of necessity in a foreign land4 ,whatever she did or did not say1 her mother evidently fancied it was a promise in conformity with her wishes1 and went on in that low1 rambling way peculiar to the dying3 ,it was not thus--not thus that ,i had thought to visit that wild land4 ,i dreamed of a resting-place and a welcome--a meeting of mingled joy and sadness--and then a homely life1 and at its close a peaceful ending4 ,but it is better as it is--much better4 ,our next meeting will be all of joy--joy in that eternal home where ,god gathers together his beloved ones1 and bids them smile in the sunshine of his presence4 ,yes1 yes6 it is better as it is6 ,as ,god wills4 ,he knows best--he knows1 and then ,nellie stopped1 powerless to complete the sentence4 ,remember me to my father1 ,nellie1 ,mrs4 ,netterville continued faintly--for father ,i may truly call him who has been in very deed a parent to me ever since ,i was wedded to his son4 ,and poor ,hamish also--let him not think himself forgotten1 and tell him especially of the gratitude ,i feel for this great consolation procured me by his faithful service--my ,nellie's heart to rest on in dying--my ,nellie's hands to close my eyes in death4 ,the last words were barely audible1 and after they were uttered ,mrs4 ,netterville lay for a long time so mute and still that1 fancying she was asleep1 ,nellie hardly dared to move1 or even almost to breathe1 lest she should disturb her4 ,at last she felt her mother's hand steal gently in search of hers4 ,your hand1 dear ,nellie1 she whispered softly4 ,nay1 do not speak1 my daughter1 but take my hand in yours1 that ,i may feel1 when ,i cannot see1 the comfort of your presence4 ,nellie took her mother's hand in hers4 ,it was as cold as ice1 and she gently tried to chafe it4 ,but the movement disturbed the dying woman4 ,it prevents me thinking1 ,nellie1 she whispered faintly1 and my thoughts are very sweet4 ,the words sent a gush of tenderness and joy to ,nellie's heart1 telling her1 as they did1 that her mother's was at peace4 ,but the physical condition of that poor mother still weighed heavily on her soul1 and taking the mantle from her own shoulders1 she laid it on the bed1 hoping thus gradually and imperceptibly to restore warmth to the failing system4 ,mrs4 ,netterville perceived what she had done1 and1 true to that forgetfulness of self which had been the chief characteristic of her life1 she would not have it so4 ,nay1 nay1 child1 she murmured as well as she could1 for she was by this time well-nigh speechless1 put it on again1 for you need it1 and ,i do not4 ,this death-chill is not pain4 #gdf ,she tried to push it from her as she spoke1 and became so uneasy that ,nellie1 in order to calm her1 was forced to resume the garment4 ,satisfied on this point1 her mother closed her eyes like a weary child1 and fell into a dozing slumber4 ,it was the stupor preceding death1 but ,nellie1 never suspecting this1 felt thankful that her mother's hacking cough had ceased1 and that her breathing had become less painful4 ,for more than an hour she sat thus1 her mother's hand in hers--praying1 watching1 weeping--weeping silent1 soundless tears--not sobbing1 lest it should disturb the sleeper4 ,the night passed onward in its course1 but day was yet far off when the lamp began to waver4 ,sometimes it flickered and sputtered as if just going to be extinguished1 and then again it would flare up suddenly1 casting strange shadows through the gloomy space1 and deepening the pallor on the sleeper's brow1 until it almost seemed as if she were dead already4 ,lower still1 and lower1 after each of these fresh spurts1 it sank1 while ,nellie watched it nervously2 but just as she fancied that it had actually died out1 it flashed up high and bright again1 full upon her mother's face4 ,nellie turned eagerly to gaze once more upon those dear features4 ,even as she did so1 a rush of darkness seemed to fill the cell--darkness that could be almost felt--and a pang seized upon the poor girl's heart1 for she knew at once by intuition that the lamp was now gone indeed1 and that she had looked for the last time on the face of her living mother4 ,the sudden change from light to darkness seemed somehow to disturb the invalid4 ,she opened her eyes wearily1 and something like a shudder passed over her2 but when she felt her daughter's hand still clasping hers1 a heavenly smile 7pity that ,nellie could not see it then--she saw its shadow on the dead face next day1 however7 settled on her features1 and she whispered3 ,you here still1 dear child8 ,thank ,god--thank ,god for that6 ,mother1 what would you8 ,nellie asked1 amid her tears4 ,it is coming1 ,nellie2 be not frightened1 dearest4 ,it is coming like a gentle sleep4 ,pray for me1 dear one2 pray loud1 that ,i may hear you4 ,what prayer could ,nellie say at such a moment8 ,an orphan already by the loss of her father1 she was about to be doubly orphaned in her mother's death1 and her thoughts turned naturally and spontaneously toward that other ,parent whose home is heaven1 and who1 ,father as he is to each of us1 has pledged himself to be so in a yet more especial and individual manner to the fatherless of his earthly kingdom4 ,the words of the ,our ,father seemed to rise unbidden to her lips4 ,our ,father who art in heaven4 ,who art in heaven1 her mother repeated after her2 and then came a pause of sweet1 and solemn meditation4 ,thy kingdom come1 ,nellie once more found voice to say4 ,mrs4 ,netterville had ever kept the desire of that kingdom in her heart of hearts4 ,surely he was now calling her to enjoy it in eternity6 ,so ,nellie thought1 and the thought gave her strength and courage to go on4 ,thy will be done6--that will which was calling her last parent from her side4 ,nellie sobbed aloud as she uttered the words1 but ,mrs4 ,netterville took them up1 and1 in a voice of ineffable love and sweetness1 kept repeating over and over again1 as if she never could weary of the sentiment4 ,thy will be done2 thy will--thy will--thy will1 ever merciful and to be adored--thy will1 my ,god1 my ,father1 and my ,redeemer--thy will1 not mine1 be done6 #gdg ,nellie listened until she almost felt as if she herself were standing with her mother on the threshold of eternity4 ,a sweet and awful calmness settled on her soul4 ,she knew intuitively that her mother was in the very act of dying1 but she no longer felt fear or sorrow4 ,it was as if the ,judge of the living and the dead1 not stern and exacting1 but tender and approving1 was descending in person to that bed of death to speak the sentence of his faithful servant4 ,it was as if saints and angels were crowding after him1 bowed down1 indeed1 beneath his awful presence1 but yet glad and jubilant over the crowning of a sister spirit1 and bringing the songs and sweetness of heaven itself on the rustling of their snowy wings4 ,and in the midst of such thoughts as these1 ,nellie still could hear her mother's voice repeating1 ,thy will1 my ,god1 not mine1 be done4 ,fainter still and fainter grew that voice1 as the soul which spoke by it receded toward eternity2 then all at once it died away1 and ,nellie felt that the last word had been said in heaven4 ,it was very dark now1 and very cold--the cold that precedes the dawn--cold in ,nellie's heart within1 and cold in the outside world around her4 ,she shivered1 and was scarcely conscious that she did so4 ,was her mother really dead8 ,she knew it1 and yet could scarce believe it4 ,for a little while she knelt there still1 waiting and holding in her breath in the vague1 faint hope that once more1 if it were even for the last time1 once more that sweet1 plaintive voice might greet her longing ear4 ,but it never came again4 ,at last1 by a great effort1 she put forth her trembling hand and touched her mother's face4 ,it was already growing cold1 with that strange1 hard coldness which makes the face of the dead like a marble mask to the living hands that touch it4 ,she shuddered2 nevertheless1 with an instinctive feeling of what was right and proper by the dead1 she did not withdraw it until she had pressed it gently on the eyelids1 and so closed them without almost an effort4 ,that done1 she knelt down once more1 and1 hiding her face in the scanty bedclothes1 tried to pray4 444444 ,day began to dawn at last1 and a few sad rays forced their way into that gloomy cell2 but ,nellie never saw them4 ,sounds began to come in from the newly-awakened city1 but ,nellie never heard them4 ,the prison itself shook off its slumbers1 and there was a slamming of distant doors and an occasional hurried step along the passages2 and still she took no heed4 ,she knew1 in a vague1 careless way1 that at one time or another some one would be sent to her assistance1 and that was all she thought or cared about it4 ,in the mean time she prayed1 or tried to pray2 but when at last they did come1 they found her stretched upon the floor1 as cold almost and quite as unconscious as her dead mother4 ,chapter ,,xvii4 ,to the memory of ,francis1 ,twelfth ,baron of ,netterville1 one of the ,transplanted1 and of ,mary1 the widow of his only son4 #gdh ,nellie stooped to decipher the inscription1 but it may be doubted if she saw aught save the stone upon which ,hamish1 in obedience to his master's dying orders1 had engraved it1 for her eyes were full of tears4 ,a hurried journey to the west1 another death-bed1 and a few weeks more of tears and renewed sense of desolation had followed the events recorded in our last chapter1 and then at last a holy calmness settled upon ,nellie's soul--a calmness and a happiness which was all the more likely to endure that it was founded upon past sorrows bravely met and meekly borne1 in a spirit of true and loving resignation to the will of ,him who had laid them on her shoulders4 ,from the day of her departure from ,clare ,island1 the old lord had drooped like a plant deprived of sunshine1 and he died on the very evening of her return1 his hand in hers1 smiling upon her and her brave husband1 and leaving for only vengeance on his foes the inscription which heads this chapter1 to be engraved upon his tombstone4 ,nellie laid him to rest beside her mother2 for through the kindness of ,ormiston she had been enabled to carry out ,mrs4 ,netterville's dying wishes1 and to bear her remains to that western shore which she had so fondly and so vainly fancied was to be her daughter's future home4 ,ormiston had done yet more4 ,he had obtained a reversal of the sentence of outlawry against ,roger1 coupled with the usual permission to beat his drum1 as it was called1 for recruits to follow his banner into foreign lands1 to fight in the armies of foreign kings4 ,it was the evil policy of those evil times4 ,to rid ,ireland of the ,irish was the grand panacea for the woes of ,ireland1 the only one her rulers ever recognized1 and of which1 therefore1 they availed themselves most largely1 careless or unconscious of the fatal element of strength they were thus flinging to their foes4 ,as a native chieftain and a well-tried soldier1 ,roger had a double claim upon his people1 and short as had been the time allotted to him for the purpose1 fifty men1 of the same breed and mettle as the soldiers who fought at a later period against an ,english king until he cursed1 in the bitterness of his heart1 the laws which had deprived him of such subjects1 had already obeyed his summons4 ,they assembled under the temporary command of ,hamish1 near the tower1 waiting the moment for embarkation1 and the ship that was to convey them to their destination was riding at single anchor in the bay on that very morning when ,nellie and her husband knelt for the last time beside her mother's grave4 ,it was like a second parting with that mother4 ,but with ,roger at her side she could not feel altogether friendless or unhappy1 and they prayed for a little time in silence1 with a calm sense of sadness which had something of heavenly sweetness in it4 ,at last it was time to go1 and ,roger laid a warning finger upon his young wife's shoulder4 ,she did not say a word1 but she bent down once more and kissed her mother's name upon the stone2 then she gave her hand to ,roger1 and they left the churchyard together4 ,while she had been lingering there1 ,henrietta had landed with ,ormiston at the pier to bid her a last adieu4 ,the quick eye of the ,english girl instantly perceived the goodly company of recruits assembled near the tower1 and with a little smile of malicious triumph she pointed them out to her companion4 ,ormiston shook his head reprovingly4 ,he was too thoroughly a soldier not to lament the policy which drafted large bodies of men into foreign armies1 but he was full at that moment of his own concerns1 and had little inclination to waste time in discussing the wisdom of his leaders4 ,the truth was1 ,henrietta's reception of him on his arrival from ,dublin the night before had disappointed him4 #gdi ,he had come in obedience to her own written orders1 as conveyed to him by ,nellie1 and instead of the frank1 loving meeting which his own frank and loving nature had anticipated1 he had found her shy1 cold1 and1 he was forced to confess to himself1 almost unkind4 ,at first he consoled himself by attributing this in a great measure to the presence of her father1 before whom she always seemed naturally to assume the bearing of a spoiled and unruly child2 but when at her own invitation he had rowed her that morning to ,clare ,island1 and her manner1 instead of softening1 as he had hoped1 grew even colder and more constrained than it had been before1 he became seriously distressed1 and unable to endure the suspense any longer1 they had hardly landed from the boat ere he turned short round upon her1 and said3 ,henrietta1 before you move one step further1 you must answer me this question--are we in future to be friends or foes8 ,not foes6 ,oh6 certainly1 not foes6 ,henrietta stammered1 taken quite aback by the suddenness of the question4 ,oh6 certainly1 not foes6 ,because ,i cannot endure this uncertainty much longer1 he went on as if he had not heard her4 ,i must have an answer1 and that soon4 ,i might1 indeed1 insist upon your own letter1 but ,i will not4 ,it was written under a sudden impulse1 and the word that gives you to me for a wife must be said with a calm consciousness of its import4 ,what shall that word be1 ,henrietta--yes or no8 ,yes1 if you will have me1 she said1 in a low voice1 half-turning away her head as she did so4 ,if6 ,so long and so faithfully as ,i have loved you1 and do you still talk of if8 he answered1 almost reproachfully4 ,there is an 'if1' however1 said ,henrietta2 and when you have heard me out1 you will have to decide the question for yourself4 ,nay1 the only 'if' for me is the 'if' that you really love me1 he replied wistfully1 and in a way which showed he felt by no means certain upon that score4 ,that is the very thing1 she answered1 flushing scarlet4 ,harry1 dear ,harry1 remember that ,i have never had a mother's care1 and promise to be still my friend1 even if what ,i have got to tell you should alter all your other wishes in my regard4 ,what can you have to say that could do that8 he asked impatiently4 ,for ,god's sake1 ,henrietta1 say it out at once1 whatever it may be6 ,it is not so very easy1 perhaps1 she said in a low voice4 ,and then she added quickly3 ,they call me a woman grown1 ,harry1 and yet in some few things ,i think that ,i am still almost a child4 ,in a great many things rather1 ,i should say1 he could not resist saying1 with a smile4 ,that smile reassured her1 and she went on quickly3 ,you know that it has never been a new thing to me to consider myself your wife1 ,harry4 ,my father has treated me from childhood as your affianced bride1 and we have played at being wedded in the nursery4 ,you cannot be surprised1 therefore1 if in my feelings toward you there has been something of unquestioning security1 which does not enter usually1 ,i think1 into the relations in which we stood toward each other4 ,this kind of sisterly feeling--oh6 do not look so cross1 ,harry1 she cried1 suddenly stopping short1 or ,i shall never be able to go on4 ,do not talk of sisterly feeling1 then1 he answered moodily1 for that ,i cannot bear4 #gej ,i need not1 for ,i do not feel in the least like a sister to you now1 she answered1 with a pretty navet1 that made him almost depart from the attitude of cold seriousness in which he had elected to receive the confessions of his betrothed4 ,he checked the impulse1 however1 and signed to her quietly to proceed4 ,you know1 for you were with us at the time1 she accordingly went on1 how much ,i was charmed with this wild western land when my father first brought me hither4 ,you know1 too1 of my indignation when ,i found that the real owner had been deprived of it in order to our possession4 ,true1 ,i had heard before of the law of transplantation enacted for the benefit of our army1 but not until it stared me in the face as an act of private injustice1 done for the enrichment of myself1 did ,i thoroughly appreciate its iniquity4 ,from that moment the very abomination of desolation seemed to me to rest upon this land1 which ,i had once felt to be so beautiful4 ,i grew angry and indignant with all the world--with my father chiefly1 but with you also1 ,harry1 because1 though ,i acquitted you of all active share in the robbery1 ,i yet felt that it was your character as a good officer1 capable of holding it against the enemy1 which had encouraged him to commit it4 ,from dwelling upon the injustice1 ,i went on almost unconsciously to question of its victim4 ,at first1 however1 ,i only thought of him with a sort of contemptuous pity1 as of a half-tamed savage wandering sadly among the hills which had once been his own4 ,but one day ,i met him4 ,you remember that evening when ,i returned home so late1 that you and my father became alarmed and went out to seek me8 ,i told you then that ,i had lost my way1 but ,i did not tell you that it was the ,o',more who had helped me to regain it1 and who1 finding ,i was nervous at the lateness of the hour1 had walked back with me nearly to the gates4 ,he was a gentleman1 there was no mistaking that2 and there was something so foreign in his look and accent1 that ,i never even dreamed of him as the owner of the ,rath1 until ,i asked him to come in and make the acquaintance of my father4 ,then--,i can hardly tell you in what words1 but ,i know that they were courteous1 and that ,i felt them to be all the more cutting for that reason--he told me ,,who he was4 ,in my surprise and shame1 ,i tried1 ,i believe1 to stammer out something like an apology for the wickedness of which he had been the victim2 but he cut me short with a cold1 quiet smile1 pointed to the gate1 which we had by this time almost reached1 saluted1 and so left me4 ,harry1 from that moment1 wild dreams began to float through my brain as to how ,i might restore him to his own4 ,there was one way1 and only one way1 in which1 as a woman1 ,i could do it4 ,remember1 ,i was not yet seventeen1 dear ,harry4 ,i have need to be reminded of it1 he answered bitterly1 when ,i am forced to listen to such things as you are saying now4 ,and yet ,i loved you all the time1 ,harry2 ,i did1 indeed1 she answered in a low1 earnest voice4 ,i loved you1 although ,i think ,i knew it not--should never1 perhaps1 have known it quite1 if we had not at last quarrelled and parted1 as ,i thought1 for ever4 ,in the first keen suffering which that parting caused me1 my heart woke up all at once to a true knowledge of itself1 and ,i felt that1 dormant as my love for you had been1 it had yet become so deeply rooted in my whole being that by no effort of my own will1 7and you know that it is a pretty strong one1 ,harry17 she added with a faint smile--by no effort of my own will could ,i have transferred it to another4 #gea ,go on1 said ,harry1 now smiling in his turn1 for she had paused in a little maidenly confusion at this full and frank avowal of her sentiments in his regard--go on1 for ,i can listen to you with patience now1 ,ettie4 ,i never dreamed again1 ,harry1 of any other than yourself1 she answered softly2 and ,when1 the day after your departure1 ,i went to ,clare ,island to warn him of a coming danger1 7but not1 ,i do assure you1 with any other motive17 ,i saw at once that if he ever cared for any woman in the world1 it was1 or soon would be1 ,nellie ,netterville4 ,it did not grieve me that it was so1 but ,i confess it wounded my woman's vanity a little1 and for a moment ,i felt inclined to be angry with her4 ,but ,i was ashamed of the pitiful feeling1 and for the first time in my life1 perhaps1 ,i tried to conquer my evil passions4 ,in this her sweet1 quiet frankness greatly helped me1 and her forgetfulness or forgiveness of the great injury ,i1 or at all events1 my father1 had inflicted on her1 made me blush for my own unkindness4 ,if ever you take me for a wife1 ,harry1 and that you find me a more manageable one than ,i have given you reason to expect1 remember that you will owe it entirely to her example4 ,nay1 nay6 not entirely6 here interposed ,harry1 for the sun shines in vain upon a barren soil4 ,and now1 continued ,henrietta1 regardless of the compliment1 can you forgive me1 ,harry8 ,believe me1 you know all1 ,i have told you the truth1 and the whole truth4 ,i would not deceive you in such a matter for the world4 ,my love1 ,i believe you1 and ,i am more than satisfied1 he answered in a tone of trustful tenderness which left no room for doubting in ,henrietta's mind4 ,and1 ,harry1 she added pleadingly1 our home that we have left in ,england is as pleasant1 if not so sublime1 as this1 and we can call it1 at all events1 honestly our own6 ,some day1 dear ,ettie1 we will go there2 and should your father's death ever place these lands at our disposal1 we will leave them to their rightful owner4 ,o ,harry6 how could ,i doubt you8 she said remorsefully4 ,can you ever forgive me for it8 ,yes1 if you will never doubt again1 he answered with a bright smile4 ,but1 hark6 the bugle sounds1 and yonder is ,roger and his wife talking to old ,norah at the tower-gate4 ,henrietta looked in that direction1 and she saw that ,nellie was taking leave of the old woman1 who had flung herself at her feet1 and was sobbing bitterly4 ,this much she could guess from the attitude and action of both parties2 but she could not guess the infinite delicacy and feeling which ,nellie contrived to put into that last farewell1 nor yet the reverent admiration with which ,roger watched his young wife1 as1 silencing her own deeper sorrows1 she soothed the old woman's clamorous grief over the departure of her hereditary chieftain and his bride1 her beautiful1 darling1 young honey of a new mistress6 ,nellie was still occupied in this manner when the bugle once more sounded4 ,the soldiers1 who at the first summons had mustered together under the command of ,hamish1 instantly put themselves into motion1 and1 with flags flying and pipers playing1 marched past the tower1 saluting ,roger as they did so1 and coming down to the place of embarkation amid the wails of music which1 martial and spirit-stirring in the beginning1 had died gradually away into such wild1 plaintive strains as best befitted the thoughts of men who were leaving their native land for ever4 #geb ,another moment1 and ,nellie threw herself into ,henrietta's arms1 and the two girls sobbed their farewells in silence4 ,then some one separated them almost by force1 there was a short bustle of departure and a clashing of oars1 and when ,henrietta could see again through her blinding tears1 ,nellie had nearly reached the ship which was to convey her to her new home2 while over the crested waves came the voices of the soldier-emigrants singing that farewell song which rang so often and so sadly in those days along the coasts of ,ireland1 that it has left1 unhappily1 many an echo still to wake up thoughts of bitterness and distrust in the minds and memories of her living people4 ,years afterward1 when ,henrietta was a happy wife and mother in her quiet ,english home1 and her friends1 thanks to her generosity and her husband's1 were once more settled in that western land which was dearer to them than all the shining kingdoms of the earth1 the music of that wild ,ha-till would strike at times suddenly on the chord of memory1 and she would weep again almost as bitterly as she had wept upon that late autumn morning when1 floating over the waters of ,clew ,bay1 came those voices to her ear1 sadly singing3 ,mute in our grief1 our fortunes broken4 ,land of ,eire1 ,footnote #bba farewell1 farewell6 ,sad is that word--half-wept1 half spoken-- ,sad as the sound of the passing bell4 ,ha-till1 ha-till6 we return no more1 ,eire1 beloved1 to thy winding shore6 ,ever in dreams to see thee weep6 ,ever to hear thy wail of pain6 ,bitter as death1 and as dark and deep4 ,the grief that we carry across the main4 ,ha-till1 ha-till6 we return no more1 ,eire1 beloved1 to thy winding shore6 ,happy the dead who have died for thee6 ,more happy the dead who died long ago6 ,who never in sleep had learned to see ,the grief and shame that have laid thee low4 ,ha-till1 ha-till we return no more1 ,eire1 beloved1 to thy winding shore4 ,farewell6 we have poured out our blood like rain1 ,we asked for naught but a soldier's grave2 ,yet say not thou we have sought in vain4 ,while foes confess that thy sons are brave4 ,ha-till1 ha-till6 we return no more1 ,eire1 beloved1 to thy winding shore4 ,footnote #bba3 ,the ancient name for ,ireland4 ,the ,end4 --------------- #gec ,the ,holy ,shepherdess of ,pibrac1 ,canonized ,by ,pope ,pius ,,ix4 ,in #ahfg4 ,in the latter part of the sixteenth century1 beneath the walls of ,toulouse1 bloomed1 almost unseen and unknown1 a little flower of the fields1 whose delicate chalice emitted a perfume scarcely perceptible to mortal sense4 ,it passed away1 and seemed forgotten2 but its odor still lingered where it had blossomed2 and after a few years had gone1 its dust was gathered into the sanctuary1 that the holy place might be filled with the celestial fragrance4 ,germaine ,cousin was born at ,pibrac1 a village of nearly two hundred families in the environs of ,toulouse1 about the year #aegi4 ,the parish church was dependent on the great ,priory of the ,knights of ,malta in that city4 ,the chateau belonged to the ,du ,faur1 ,lords of ,pibrac4 ,the actual proprietor was ,guy1 famous at once as an orator1 a poet1 and a successful courtier4 ,once the proudest remembrance of the place was the visit of ,catharine de ,medicis and her daughter1 ,margaret of ,navarre1 who were magnificently entertained by the ,lord of ,pibrac4 ,but now the visit of the two queens1 and the fame and opulence of the great orator1 are nearly forgotten2 while the memory of our holy shepherdess has lived for nearly three centuries in the hearts of all the inhabitants of ,pibrac4 ,the chateau is a forsaken ruin2 but the church has become a place of pilgrimage1 because ,germaine prayed beneath its arches1 and there found a tomb4 ,her father was a poor husbandman1 to whom tradition gives the name of ,lawrence4 ,her mother's name was ,marie ,laroche4 ,from the first moment of her existence1 she seemed destined to suffering and affliction4 ,she was infirm from her birth1 being unable to use her right hand1 and afflicted with scrofula4 ,while yet a child1 she became motherless2 and1 as if these were not trials enough to accumulate at once upon the head of one so frail1 her father did not long delay to fill the vacant place on his hearth4 ,absorbed in her own children1 this second wife1 instead of pitying the hapless orphan whom ,providence had confided to her care1 conceived an aversion for her4 ,but the trials to which ,germaine was subjected were proofs of the divine favor4 ,to them she was indebted for the brilliancy of her virtues1 especially humility and patience4 ,as soon as she was old enough1 her step-mother1 who could not endure her presence at home1 sent her forth to guard the flocks4 ,this was her occupation the remainder of her life4 ,but even in the depths of her lonely life1 our shepherdess created for herself a more profound solitude4 ,she was never seen in the company of the young shepherds2 their sports never attracted her2 their jeers never disturbed her thoughtful serenity2 she only spoke sometimes to girls of her own age1 sweetly exhorting them to be mindful of ,god6 ,we know not from whom ,germaine received her first religious instructions--what hand1 friendly to misfortune1 revealed to her the great truths of salvation4 ,doubtless1 it was the cur of the parish2 for holy church despises not the meanest of her children2 and her sagacious eye is quick to discover the chosen of ,god4 #ged ,but1 whoever it was1 he did but little1 and there was little to be done4 ,god himself perfected the religious training of his handmaiden4 ,she early learned what must for ever remain unknown to those who do not recognize in him the fountain of all wisdom4 ,living amid the wonders of creation1 she contemplated them with the intelligent eye of innocence4 ,blessed are the pure in heart1 for they shall see ,god--see him in the brilliant stars1 the burning sun1 the unfathomable heavens1 and the changing clouds--see him in the flowers and plants that cover the surface of the earth6 ,germaine learned from the open book of nature a wondrous lore2 and her attuned ear caught and comprehended that mysterious1 anthem of praise1 which1 floating through creation1 is unheard by more sinful man4 ,her pure soul united in the eternal song3 ,benedicite omnia opera ,domini ,domino3 laudate et superexaltate eum in saecula6 ,although ,germaine was a poor infirm orphan1 subjected to the heavy yoke of a severe step-mother1 and exposed by her occupation to the inclemency of the weather1 she bore all her trials with cheerfulness1 never brooding over her sorrows4 ,one of the characteristics of the saints which particularly distinguishes them from ordinary ,christians1 is1 the use made of the common occurrences of life4 ,they share in common with other men1 and often in a greater degree1 the trials common to humanity2 but they are chastened1 purified by them1 and they look upon the afflictions of this life as a means of assimilating them to ,him who was a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief4 ,even in the manifest ill treatment and injustice of the malignant and wicked1 they disregard the channel1 but accept the suffering1 as a means of perfection4 ,the extent to which this principle is carried1 is peculiarly ,catholic2 and1 in reading the lives of our saints1 we cannot but be struck by it4 ,they never struggled against their trials1 and therefore were cheerful under them2 for the greater part of our wretchedness proceeds from struggling against the current of life4 ,this is the key to the saying of ,fnlon3 ,non-resistance is a remedy for every ill4 ,the paternal roof was not for ,germaine1 as for most--even the most wretched--a refuge and a place of repose4 ,and yet neither her poverty1 nor sorrows1 nor infirmities1 could have rendered her insensible to that which surpasses all the other pleasures of life--the happiness of being loved4 ,by a divine foresight1 ,god has placed in the hearts of parents1 by the side of that fount of love for their offspring1 a well of singular tenderness for the unfortunate child1 the black lamb of the flock4 ,this peculiar love ,germaine had not4 ,she had not even the legitimate share of her father's heart4 ,she was denied a place at the fireside2 she was hardly allowed shelter in the house4 ,her step-mother1 irritable and imperious1 would send her away to some obscure corner4 ,she was not permitted to approach the other children--those brothers and sisters whom she loved so tenderly1 and whom she was always ready to serve without manifesting any envy on account of the preferences of which they were the object1 and she the victim4 ,the inflexible harshness of her step-mother obliged the infirm girl to seek a place of repose in the stable1 or upon a heap of vine branches in an out-house4 #gee ,but ,germaine knew too well the value of sufferings not to accept with joy these humiliations and this injustice4 ,and1 as if her cross were yet too light1 she imposed upon herself additional austerities4 ,during the greater part of her life1 she denied herself all nourishment but bread and water4 ,so great a conformity to her poor1 suffering1 and persecuted ,saviour1 kindled in the heart of ,germaine an ardent love for his adorable humanity4 ,notwithstanding her feebleness and other obstacles1 she assisted every day at the ,holy ,sacrifice of the ,mass4 ,even the obligations of her calling could not keep her from church at that hour4 ,confiding in ,god1 she left her flock in the pasture1 and hastened to the foot of the altar4 ,it is a misguided piety which induces us to neglect the duties of our state of life in order to satisfy our devotion2 but with ,germaine this was the result of prompt obedience to a special inspiration4 ,she knew who would guard her sheep2 while she1 poor lamb of ,christ's flock6 went to refresh herself at the fountain of living water4 ,even when her sheep were feeding close by the wood of ,boucone1 which skirted the fields of ,pibrac1 and abounded with wolves1 at the sound of the church bell she would plant her crook or her distaff in the ground1 and hasten to the feet of the divine ,shepherd4 ,at her return1 she always found her sheep unharmed4 ,not one was ever devoured by the wolves1 nor did they ever stray into the neighboring fields4 ,long after ,st4 ,germaine's death1 the peasants of the hamlet remembered the unearthly brightness of her face as1 week after week1 she approached the holy sacraments4 ,a celestial brightness1 a more ethereal beauty1 ,shone on her face and encircled her form when1 after confession1 ,homeward serenely she walked with ,god's benediction upon her4 ,in the ,holy ,eucharist she found a compensation for every grief4 ,that divine ,spouse to whom she was pledged placed himself as a seal upon her heart1 thereby strengthening it to endure the trials of life1 and enriching it with such abundant grace that1 while dwelling at large in the great temple of nature1 her life gleamed before him1 brightly1 and purely1 and constantly1 like the undying lamp of the sanctuary6 ,like all the saints1 ,germaine had a singular devotion to ,mary--that devotion so dear to the ,catholic heart1 and which is considered by the fathers as a mark of predestination4 ,the world does not realize how much it has owed to ,mary during these eighteen hundred years2 yet some1 some of us know how dark and almost unbearable it would be with its sorrows1 and cares1 and privations1 if over all were not diffused the beauty and softness1 the sweet charm of virginity and love1 from the divine face of ,mary6 ,to ,germaine1 the ,ave ,maria was another salutation of the angel preluding the overshadowing of the ,holy ,ghost2 and she murmured the sacred words with infinite tenderness1 above all1 at the hour when they are on every lip4 ,as soon as she heard the ,angelus bell1 which has three times a day1 for six centuries1 intoned the ,ave ,maria between heaven and earth1 it was remarked that1 wherever she might be1 she immediately fell upon her knees as if insensible to the incommodiousness of the place4 ,the ,rosary was her only book2 and to her this devotion was no vain repetition4 ,love1 says ,lacordaire1 has but one word1 and1 in saying that for ever1 it is never repeated4 #gef ,ever transformed to meet our needs4 ,oft as ,devotion counts her beads1 ,as if those beads had caught the light ,in her celestial girdle bright1 ,but each with its own colors dight4 ,thus1 whensoe'er that prayer is heard1 ,fresh thoughts are in each solemn word3 ,an orb of light comes from the skies ,to kindle holy liturgies2 ,it gathers and gives back their rays4 ,now turned to prayer1 and now to praise4 ,the love of ,god insensibly leads to the love of one's neighbor4 ,germaine1 when she could1 used to draw around her the little children of the village1 and endeavor to explain to them the truths of religion1 and sweetly persuade them to love ,jesus and ,mary4 ,this little school1 held in the shade of a thicket of the lone fields1 was a spectacle worthy of the admiration of angels1 and is a proof of the unselfishness of real piety1 even in the most lowly4 ,although the piety of ,germaine produced a profound impression in the village1 yet the world is the same everywhere1 and always conceives a secret aversion to piety4 ,it cannot avoid censuring it in some way1 however unobtrusive a piety it may be4 ,religion imposes esteem upon the world1 and the world avenges itself by raillery4 ,so the wits of ,pibrac persecuted ,germaine with mockery2 they laughed at her simplicity1 and called her a bigot4 ,but if ,god permits1 for the perfection of the saints1 that their virtue be turned into ridicule1 he knows1 when it pleaseth him1 how to render them glorious in the eyes of the world4 ,in order to reach the village church1 ,germaine was obliged to pass the ,courbet1 a stream she generally crossed without difficulty in ordinary weather2 but after heavy rains1 it was too wide and deep to be passed on foot4 ,one morning1 as she was going to church1 according to her custom1 some peasants who saw her afar off stopped at a distance1 and asked one another in a tone of mockery how she would pass the stream1 now so swollen by the rain that the most vigorous man could hardly have stemmed the torrent4 ,dreaming of no obstacle1 and perhaps not seeing any1 ,germaine approached as if none existed4 444 ,o wonder of divine power and goodness6 ,as of old the waters of the ,red ,sea opened for the passage of the children of ,israel1 so those of the ,courbet divided before the humble daughter of ,lawrence ,cousin1 and she passed through without wetting even the edge of her garments4 ,at the sight of this miracle1 afterward often repeated1 the peasants looked at one another with fear2 and from that time the boldest began to respect the simple maiden whom they had hitherto scoffed at4 ,after having thus glorified the faith of ,germaine by dissipating the material obstacles to the performance of her duty1 ,god wished also to glorify her charity to the poor4 ,if any one could believe himself exempted from the obligation of charity and alms-giving1 it was certainly our shepherdess4 ,she had no superfluities2 she lacked even the necessaries of life4 ,what was there1 then1 to retrench1 in her life of extreme privation and severe penance8 ,how economize the reward of her labor1 which consisted only of a little bread and water8 ,but charity is ingenious2 and1 seeing only our suffering ,lord in the person of the poor1 ,germaine often deprived herself of a part of the bread which was allowed for her nourishment1 doubly glad to give it to the hungry1 and increase the treasure of her privations4 ,such are the deeds of the saints which will one day reproach us with terrible power6 ,what will the rich man say when he beholds1 rising up to confront his hardness of heart1 the alms of ,lazarus6 #geg ,the pious liberality of ,germaine made her an object of suspicion to her step-mother1 who1 not divining her resources1 accused her of stealing bread from the house4 ,one day she learned that ,germaine1 who had just gone with the flock1 carried in her apron some pieces of bread4 ,furious1 and armed with a cudgel1 she immediately ran after her4 ,some of the other inhabitants of ,pibrac happened to be on their way at this very moment to the house of ,lawrence ,cousin4 ,seeing this woman almost beside herself with passion1 they divined her intentions1 and hastened to protect ,germaine from the ill treatment with which she was menaced4 ,overtaking the step-mother1 they learned the cause of her anger4 ,finding ,germaine1 she seized her apron1 and instead of bread1 it was filled with bouquets of roses1 although it was a season when those flowers were not in bloom4 ,thus ,god confounded the malice of her implacable enemy by renewing a miracle1 likewise wrought in favor of ,saint ,elizabeth of ,hungary and other saints4 ,from this time1 ,germaine was regarded as a saint4 ,lawrence ,cousin1 conceiving more tender sentiments toward this pious child whom he had so little known1 forbade his wife's annoying her any more1 and wished to give her a place in his house with the other children4 ,but ,germaine1 accustomed to suffering and loving privation1 besought him to leave her in the obscure place which her step-mother had assigned her4 ,it was now that ,germaine attained and proved the perfection of her humility4 ,we must not consider it a trifling honor to have been esteemed at ,pibrac2 nor a small reward to have had a place at the fireside of ,lawrence ,cousin4 ,human nature is the same everywhere4 ,there is no theatre too small for ambition4 ,we know there are as many cabals for the first place in a village as for the chief place in an empire4 ,perhaps it may not be entirely useless to speak of the exterior of the blessed ,germaine4 ,the manners and customs of the remote provinces of ,france retain so much of primitive simplicity1 they change so little year after year1 and the people in these localities have such a marked appearance1 that we may form a reasonable idea of her person and habits4 ,she is represented in paintings and engravings as we see scores of shepherdesses in the south of ,france at this day--seated on a hillock in the fields1 and surrounded by her flock4 ,with a spindle in her hand1 and under her arm the distaff laden with flax1 she is spinning1 after the primitive manner of that country4 ,she is rather below the medium size1 and is slight in form4 ,she has the long head of the ,toulousains1 and their dark1 ,spanish complexion and eyes4 ,the face1 half hidden by the picturesque scarlet capuchon1 is expressive of silence1 interior silence2 and forcibly speaks of the deep1 deep calm within4 ,a pleasing sadness1 or rather a subdued joy1 veils her face4 ,there is an introspective look about the eyes which shows that her spirit has passed the bounds of sense1 and is concentrated in one mysterious thought--some dream of a heavenly world4 ,sitting alone1 away from her kind1 her thoughts were pure and holy and bright1 like the fragrant flowers of her own green meadows4 ,she must have seemed to the other peasants like some phantom of unearthly love1 as she sat there enveloped in a divine ethereal atmosphere4 #geh ,in the distance rise the towers of the church1 and the antique chteau of the ,lords of ,pibrac1 and between murmurs the ,courbet4 ,over all1 is the sunlight of her own bright clime4 ,perhaps the miracle of the roses is the most popular representation of ,saint ,germaine1 as something not quite so unearthly4 ,there is no mystery about the look of the fierce step-mother1 as with one hand she raises the cudgel over the head of the resigned-looking girl1 and with the other grasps the apron from which tumble out the bright and fragrant flowers4 ,the face of ,germaine is somewhat sad1 and her eyes are cast down in fear to the earth4 ,tremulous and mute she stands before her step-mother1 for she is humble and sore afraid4 ,there is a reflective charm about her of which she is wholly unconscious1 for it emanates from that spiritual beauty visible only to the intelligences and bright ardors around the throne4 ,saint ,germaine died soon after the miracle of the roses4 ,almighty ,god1 having sanctified her by humiliations and sufferings1 withdrew her from this world when men1 becoming more just1 began to render her the honor her virtue merited4 ,she terminated her obscure and hidden life by a similar death1 but according to appearance this terrible moment1 which confounds human arrogance1 gave her no terror or pain4 ,one morning1 ,lawrence ,cousin1 not seeing her come out as usual1 went to call her where she slept--under the stairs4 ,she made no reply4 ,he entered and found her upon her bed of vine-branches4 ,she had fallen asleep while at prayer4 ,god had called her to enjoy the reward of eternal life4 ,she had ceased to suffer4 ,it was about the commencement of the summer of the year #afja that ,saint ,germaine entered into the joy of her ,lord4 ,she was twenty-two years of age4 ,that same night two pious men were overtaken near ,pibrac by the darkness of night1 and obliged to await the return of day in a neighboring forest4 ,all at once1 in the middle of the night1 the woods were flooded with a light more brilliant than the dawn1 and a company of virgins1 clothed in white garments and surrounded by a dazzling light1 floated by on the darkness toward the house of ,lawrence ,cousin4 ,soon after they returned1 but there was another in their midst--more radiant still--who had on her head a chaplet of fresh flowers4 444 ,people came in crowds to her funeral1 wishing to honor her whom they had too long despised1 whom too late they had known4 ,this was the first testimony of public veneration4 ,her body was buried in the church in front of the pulpit4 ,forty-three years after1 it was found entire and preserved from corruption4 ,it had been embalmed with her virginal purity4 ,in her hands were a taper and a garland of pinks and heads of grain4 ,the flowers had scarcely faded4 ,the grain was fresh as at the time of harvest4 ,the holy body was removed and finally placed in the sacristy1 where people of all ranks1 incited by the wonders wrought at her tomb1 came to offer their homage4 ,in #ahdc1 more than four hundred legally attested miracles had been wrought at her shrine1 and so excited the faith of the people in her power before ,god1 that the ,archbishop of ,toulouse1 and nearly all the other prelates of ,france1 petitioned the ,holy ,see for her beatification4 ,it had been desired before the ,french ,revolution1 but it was not attempted till the time of ,gregory ,,xvi4 #gei ,when the commissioners went to examine the condition of the remains of the venerable ,germaine1 a most extraordinary scene took place4 ,the inhabitants of ,pibrac1 thinking that the beatification of their shepherdess might terminate in the loss of their holy treasure1 came in a body to the door of the church4 ,they received the commissioners with threats and even with stones1 so it was only with difficulty an entrance could be effected into the church4 ,the furious multitude followed1 and the examination was made in the midst of a frightful tumult4 ,no6 no6 was heard on all sides4 ,no beatification4 ,st4 ,germaine cures us when we are sick2 that is enough4 ,she belongs to us4 ,we wish to keep her4 ,the brief for the beatification of ,germaine ,cousin was issued by the order of his holiness ,pius ,,ix41 on the #ast of ,july1 #ahec4 ,the ,triduo which was held at ,pibrac1 in #ahed1 in honor of this event1 manifested the joy and the faith of the people4 ,altars1 lighted up by the bright sun of ,france1 were erected in the fields once trod by the feet of ,germaine1 so that hundreds of ,masses could be offered at once4 ,the whole country around poured in4 ,toulouse seemed vacated4 ,there were eighty thousand persons assembled around that shrine4 ,on the first day there were fourteen thousand communicants4 ,in the procession were eighteen hundred young ladies robed in white4 ,they all held white lilies in one hand1 and wax tapers in the other1 and as they entered the church and passed the altar1 they deposited their tapers on one side and their lilies on the other4 ,conspicuous in the procession were those who had been healed by the intervention of the holy shepherdess4 ,lights were in their hands1 and they made an offering of gratitude at the altar4 ,the house in which the blessed ,germaine had lived was endangered during those days of religious triumph4 ,it was in a tolerable state of preservation1 but every one seemed anxious to secure a portion of the walls that once sheltered her1 and especially of the spot sanctified by the angel of death4 ,a resident in the south of ,france at the time of the beatification of ,saint ,germaine1 as she was even then1 with one accord1 called in that country1 ,i was forcibly impressed with the enthusiastic veneration and confidence with which she was regarded by all classes4 ,every week ,i heard of some new miracle at her tomb2 so they soon ceased to excite wonder1 and seemed to belong to the established order of events4 ,there was scarcely an individual in my circle of acquaintance who had not been1 at least once1 to prostrate himself at her shrine1 and there was a lively faith in her protection1 which proved to me how strongly the spirit of the middle ages still animates the hearts of the faithful4 ,so popular a devotion was a novelty to me--a native ,american--but ,i could not long remain insensible to its influence4 ,one misty ,october day found me likewise an humble pilgrim at the shrine of the holy shepherdess of ,pibrac4 ,the very air of that antique chapel inspires devotion4 ,a supernatural influence seemed to impregnate everything around me4 ,i saw1 too1 that ,i was not the only one who felt this subtle influence penetrating to the very heart2 for the faces of all the pilgrims1 priests1 religious1 and laymen of every rank who are constantly arriving and departing1 were indicative of a holy awe4 ,though ,i got there at a late hour1 and it was raining1 ,masses were still being celebrated1 and the church was full4 ,it was no festival4 ,it was so every day4 ,masses were said at every altar from early dawn till the latest canonical hour4 #gfj ,prostrate groups from different parishes were always there1 clustered in the nave1 or gathered about the shrine2 and here and there were lone pilgrims who1 like me1 had been brought from the ends of the earth4 ,and around and over all were constellations of brightly burning tapers1 emblematic of the prayer of faith1 left there by the pilgrim as loth he slowly left the hallowed sanctuary4 ,the tomb of ,saint ,germaine is in a side chapel1 protected by a grate4 ,her relics are covered with gold and silver and precious stones1 ex votes1 which gleam in the light of the votive candles around4 ,involuntarily there comes to the heart in this fitting place1 and to the lips1 the strain1 ,exaltavit humiles6 ,lord1 behold1 he whom thou lovest is sick6 is the cry of every weary1 sin-laden heart2 above all here1 where thou dost love to display thy goodness and thy power4 ,the sacred heart of thy humanity1 ever touched with feeling for our infirmities1 is not hardened4 ,it is still as tender and as compassionate as when thou didst weep over the grave at ,bethany1 and thy hand is as powerful4 ,i believe that thou1 who art honored in thy saints1 dost heal here both soul and body of those who approach thee with faith and with love1 especially with love4 ,many sins are forgiven her1 because she hath loved much1 was uttered centuries ago1 but has been repeated times without number since1 over penitent1 loving souls4 ,o power of love over the divine heart6 ,it is only the cold1 the feeble in faith1 who have no power to draw from this inexhaustible well of compassion4 ,if every ,catholic heart were1 as it should be1 a chapelle ardente1 all aflame with the love of ,god1 how soon would the spiritual infirmities of entire humanity be healed1 and the wounds of ,christ's bleeding body be bound up6 ,reader6 let the aspiration of divine love1 indulgenced by our sovereign pontiff on the #gth of ,may1 #ahed1 in honor of the beatification of ,germaine ,cousin1 be often on our lips and in our hearts3 ,jesu1 ,deus ,,meus1 ,,amo ,,te ,,super ,,omnia6 ,jesus1 my ,god1 ,i love thee above all things6 ---------- #gfa ,from ,the ,latin ,of ,prudentius4 ,an ,elegy4 ,aurelics ,prudentius ,clemens1 the glory of the early ,christian poets1 was born in ,spain in the year #cdh4 ,he studied eloquence in his youth under a celebrated master4 ,he was twice made governor of provinces and cities1 raised to the highest rank1 and placed at the court by the ,emperor ,theodosius ,i41 next in dignity to his own person4 ,but in the vigor of his age1 he quitted worldly honors and employments1 made a pilgrimage to ,rome1 and thence returning to ,spain1 led a secluded life1 consecrating his leisure to the composition of sacred poems4 ,he is esteemed the most learned of the ,christian poets1 and1 for the sweetness and elegance of his verses1 has been compared to ,horace4 ,venient cit saecula1 quum jam ,socius calor ossa revisat1 ,animataque sanguine vivo ,habitacula pristina gestet4 ,quae pigra cadavera pridem ,tumulis putrefacta jacebant1 ,volucres rapientur in auras1 ,animas comitata priores4 ,quid turba superstes inepta ,plangens ululamina miscet8 ,cur tam bene condita jura1 ,luctu dolor arguit amens8 ,jam moesta quiesce querela1 ,lacrymas suspendite matres1 ,nullus sua pignora plangat3 ,mors haec reparatio vitae est4 ,sic semina sicca virescunt ,jam mortua1 jamque sepulta1 ,quae reddita cespite ab imo ,veteres meditantur aristas4 ,nunc suscipe1 terra1 fovendum1 ,gremioque hunc concipe molli2 ,hominis tibi membra sequestro1 ,generosa et fragmina credo4 #gfb ,animae fuit haec domus olim ,factoris ab ore create2 ,fervens habitavit in istis ,sapientia1 principe ,christo4 ,tu depositum tege corpus2 ,non immemor ille requiret ,sua munera fictor et auctor1 ,propriique aenigmata vults4 ,veniant mod tempora justa1 ,quum spem ,deus impleat omnem2 ,reddas patefacta necesse est1 ,qualem tibi trado figuram4 ,non si cariosa vetustas ,dissolverit ossa favillis1 ,fueritque cinisculus arens1 ,minimi mensura pugilli2 ,nee si vaga flamina1 et aurae ,vacuum per inane volantes ,tulerint cum pulvere nervos1 ,hominem periisse licebit4 ,translation4 ,the hour is speeding on amain ,when back into its olden form1 ,once more with ruddy life-blood warm1 ,the spirit shall return again4 ,the freed soul soars aloft through space3 ,so1 dust with dust1 aloft through air1 ,this heavy clay swift gales shall bear ,from its sepulchral resting-place44 ,why doth the crowd surviving fill ,the air with a lamenting vain8 ,why with such idle griefs arraign ,the justice of the ,eternal will8 #gfc ,oh6 end these pangs with murmurs rife1 ,o mothers6 cease your tears1 your woe2 ,weep not for your dead children so1 ,death the renewal is of life4 ,the dead1 dry seed lies hid from view1 ,to burst forth to new glorious bloom2 ,the former beauty to resume1 ,the ancient harvest to renew4 ,o earth6 in thy soft bosom keep1 ,and quicken with new warmth this clay1 ,this sacred frame to rest we lay4 ,it smiles in thy embrace to sleep4 ',twas once the immortal spirit's cell4 ,that breath breathed from the lips divine2 ,here was the living wisdom's shrine1 ,here deigned the ,christ supreme to dwell4 ,guard it beneath thy faithful sod1 ,for ,he1 one day1 will re-demand ,from thee this labor of his hand4 ,this breathing likeness of its ,god4 ,oh6 for the appointed hour to rend ,the grave6 the hope ,god gives is sure3 ,safe1 beauteous1 through these gates obscure ,what now descendeth shall ascend4 ,yes1 though this frame divinely planned ,be wasted by decay and rust1 ,and naught left save a little dust4 ,the filling of the smallest hand3 ,though these strong sinews ashes be ,on wandering breezes wafted wide1 ,inviolate ever shall abide ,the mortal's immortality4 ,c4 ,e4 ,b4 --------- #gfd ,translated ,from ,der ,katholik4 ,the ,ancient ,irish ,church4 ,the history of the ancient ,irish church1 for many reasons1 claims our respectful attention4 ,in the time of the migration of the ,european races1 this church had a great mission to accomplish among the ,germanic tribes4 ,when the ,goths had overrun ,spain1 the ,franks and ,burgundians conquered ,gaul1 the ,anglo-,saxons invaded ,britain1 the ,vandals spoiled ,africa1 and the ,lombards gained strongholds in ,italy2 when the ,alemanni and ,sueves had penetrated into the valleys and claimed the mountains of ancient ,helvetia2 who was it in those stormy times that elevated the moral condition of those peoples1 drew them out of the darkness of ,german paganism1 or converted them from ,arianism2 regenerated them internally1 civilized and incorporated them into the kingdom of ,god1 after they had devastated the provinces of the ,western empire1 leaving ruins1 deserts1 confusion1 and desolation behind them in their plundering march8 ,it was the missionaries of the ancient ,irish church that rescued ,europe from the barbarism of that period4 ,evidently sent by ,god1 those ,irish missionaries founded new ,christian colonies in different lands1 hewed down the forests1 civilized the deserts1 founded churches1 schools1 and monasteries4 ,as the ,roman empire without the barbarians was nothing but an abyss of slavery and rottenness1 so would the barbarians have been a wild chaos without the monks4 ,the monks and barbarians combined produced a new world which we call ,christendom4 ,germany also owes much to the missionaries of the ancient ,irish church4 ,in the olden time ,ireland was called the island of saints and sages2 as her people in our days receive from us the honorable title of martyr-nation of the west1 for their inflexible fidelity to their faith during three centuries of shameless and brutal persecution4 ,no one but ,god in heaven knows the number of the saints whose dust is mingled with ,irish soil1 wrote one of the oldest ,irish writers1 the biographer of ,st4 ,ailbe of ,emly4 ,we count1 not by hundreds1 but by thousands1 the holy ,irish bishops1 abbots1 priests1 monks1 and virgins4 ,even in the days of ,st4 ,patrick1 and still more after his successful apostolate1 ,ireland was not only a great training-school for foreign missionaries1 but a second ,thebais1 in which the exercises of the spiritual life were thoroughly practised1 and where students could devote themselves in solitude to the study of philosophy and holy writ under the ablest professors4 ,pious men went from ,britain1 from the ,european continent1 from ,france1 and even from ,rome1 to the classic and holy island of saints1 to learn the doctrines of ,christian perfection1 literature1 and theology1 in the renowned monasteries of the land of ,columba and ,colombanus4 ,even to this day ,ireland is specially favored by ,god4 ,there are no snakes in it or other venomous reptiles4 ,the very dangerous portion of the animal kingdom is entirely excluded from its sacred ground2 and all attempts to naturalize poisonous creatures there have been unsuccessful4 ,the old ,irish rhyme reads3 #gfe ,st4 ,patrick was a holy man1 ,he was a saint so clever1 ,he gave the snakes and toads his ban1 ,and drove them out for ever4 ,throughout ,ireland there are great fields of wheat and grain of every description1 and many lakes4 ,the climate is mild1 and snow so rare that cattle can graze in the fields all the year round4 ,rain showers are frequent1 and give such fertility and verdure to the soil as no other land in ,europe possesses1 so that the island is known as ,green ,erin1 or the ,emerald isle4 ,the plants1 flowers1 and trees of ,ireland1 in their shape1 color1 and material1 remind one somewhat of ,normandy in ,france1 or of ,asturia in northern ,spain4 ,the ,history of the ,ancient ,irish ,church has been just presented to the public by an author who is in a better condition than most of his contemporaries to write such a work1 which charms us more and more the more frequently we read it4 ,we speak of the recent work of the ,bishop of ,st4 ,gall1 ,dr4 ,charles ,john ,greith1 in which we recognize one of the greatest efforts of ,german historical literature4 ,we cannot1 therefore1 refrain from imparting to our readers an epitome of the contents of this remarkable and highly interesting production4 ,the right reverend author considers his work of four hundred and sixty-two pages as an ,introduction to the history of the ,bishopric of ,st4 ,gall4 ,he published the book on the commemoration and centenary of the consecration of the cathedral of ,st4 ,gall1 ,august #agth and #ahth1 #ahfg1 and dedicated his literary effort to the chapter and the clergy of his diocese4 ,from early youth the distinguished author has been familiar with the legends and history of ,st4 ,gall1 and studied them with love and veneration4 ,love for that great ,irish missionary saint1 whose worthy successor ,dr4 ,greith is1 inspired the work whose continuation we desire most earnestly4 ,st4 ,gall has left behind him a world-wide reputation as the apostle of the ,swiss ,alps4 ,centuries have not diminished his fame1 which the gratitude of ,christians sanctions4 ,veneration for ,st4 ,gall has been spread far beyond the boundaries of ,switzerland2 from the foot of the ,alps to ,upper ,burgundy and ,alsace1 even to the limits of the ,vosges2 then into ,brisgau and the ,black ,forest1 to the ,suabian ,alps1 and thence into ,nibelgau1 and ,algau4 ,in all these regions1 the monks of ,st4 ,gall imparted the blessings of religion and education4 ,full of admiration for the ,christian zeal of ,st4 ,gall and his disciples1 our author recalls the words spoken by ,ermenreich of ,reichenau1 to ,abbot ,grimald of ,st4 ,gall1 over a thousand years ago3 ,how could we ever forget the island of ,ireland1 from which the rays of ,christian light and the sun of ,christian faith have shone upon us6 ,taking this expression for his motto1 the right reverend writer gives us his magnificent ,history of the ,ancient ,irish ,church and its ,connection with ,rome1 ,gaul1 and ,germany4 ,divided into six books1 the work describes in the two first the migrations of the barbarians and the fall of the ,roman empire2 then the heresies which swarmed in the church of the period2 then the school of the island of ,lerins1 where ,st4 ,patrick1 the apostle of ,ireland1 was instructed4 ,the four last books are consecrated to ,st4 ,patrick and his apostleship in ,ireland2 to ,st4 ,columba1 the apostle of ,scotland2 to ,st4 ,colombanus and his deeds in ,france1 ,flanders1 and the north of ,italy2 and to ,st4 ,gall1 the apostle of ,germany4 ,the sixth and last book treats of ,christianity and its customs in the ,irish church4 #gff ,the illustrious author made use of manuscripts as well as printed works in the compilations of his history4 ,many manuscripts were at his disposal in ,st4 ,gall itself4 ,the original sources of ancient ,irish history consist of different materials2 genealogies which trace the origin of kings or saints and their relatives2 annals which give the year of the death of saints1 or of other distinguished characters2 church calendars which give the day of the month on which the death of a saint occurred2 and finally1 the lives of the saints themselves4 ,these biographies are copiously used4 ,we cannot restrain our desire to quote what the author thinks of those sources of history4 ,erudition is not sufficient for us to judge the biographies of the ancient saints2 we must have sympathy with them in their zealous labor2 and a spiritual relationship in their faith4 ,every age must be judged according to the ideas1 and customs which prevail in it2 and every saint according to the circumstances in which he lives4 ,the poetic as well as the historical element1 the legendary as well as the authentic1 must be combined in forming a correct estimate of a saint's character4 ,even in the early part of the middle ages1 every cathedral church1 large monastery1 or distinguished hermitage1 possessed its hagiographers1 who wrote the lives of the saints of the place1 either from authentic written documents1 traditions1 or from knowledge acquired as eye-witnesses4 ,since ,john ,moschus published his collection of legends1 extraordinary diligence in the criticism and sifting of the ancient biographies of the saints has been manifested in the church4 ,the collection and critical works of the ,bollandists1 of ,lurius1 ,mabillon1 d',achery1 and others1 keep their reputation undiminished to the present day4 ,these writers display such a thoroughness in their researches1 that the modern rationalists have been unable to find a flaw of any consequence in their criticism4 ,the truthful historian must describe those apostles of religion and civilization among the ,germans1 such as they were1 children of their century1 representatives of its ideas1 views1 and manners4 ,following this method1 he will not cast doubt on the purity of their motives1 or try to lessen their merit in drawing entire nations of barbarians out of the darkness of paganism and immorality into the light of ,christianity and virtue4 ,the blind party spirit of our times recognizes no justice1 and modern paganism is only satisfied when it can throw everything that is noble and holy out of history4 ,the modern pagans tear with scorn the ,holy ,scriptures into shreds before our eyes1 and subject to a lawless criticism the ablest records of ecclesiastical history1 while they try to overturn every monument that might shelter the weary pilgrims of earth on their road to heaven4 ,,ii4 ,the most trustworthy documents regarding the first traces of ,christianity in ,ireland1 inform us that up to the time of ,pope ,celestine ,i41 7a4d4 #dbb-dcb17 that country had not been converted4 ,up to the year of our ,lord #dcb1 no ,christian missionary had trodden the soil of the island1 or caused the light of faith to shine over the hills and through the valleys of green ,erin4 ,palladius and ,patrick were the first apostles1 7,a4,d4 #dcj47 ,it is true1 several ,high-,church ,english writers have endeavored to prove the establishment of an ,irish church prior to ,st4 ,patrick2 but this theory is unsupported by any authentic documents4 #gfg ,besides1 the attempt of those writers was prompted by the partisan desire of proving an original separation in belief between ,ireland and ,rome4 ,nevertheless1 it is not improbable that many non-commissioned ,christians may have gone from ,britain and ,gaul into ,ireland before the year #dcj1 and formed small communities1 or lived scattered among the heathens4 ,on the wings of every day commerce1 the flower-seeds of ,christian faith must have been borne to ,erin from ,britain and ,gaul2 as from the earliest times direct business relations were kept up between ,nantes1 other harbors of ,armoric ,gaul1 and ,ireland4 ,to the north-west of ,gaul also came the ,irish rovers1 under the guidance of some distinguished chieftain1 in quest of plunder1 and frequently carried off ,christians into captivity4 ,in this way ,st4 ,patrick1 when a youth of sixteen years of age1 was taken from the coast of ,armorica by the pirates of ,king ,niall1 and with many thousand others detained in bondage1 as he informs us himself in his writings1 7p4 #hf47 ,besides the fact that there was no ,irish church prior to ,st4 ,patrick1 though there may have been individual ,christians in the country1 we must prove that the ,christianity imported into ,ireland was ,roman1 and that her apostles received their mission from the pope4 ,pope ,celestine1 in the year #dca1 sent ,palladius1 deacon or arch-deacon of the ,roman church1 as the first missionary4 ,this apostolic man1 who had long been casting his eyes toward ,britain and the other western islands of ,europe1 had a double and very important task to execute in ,ireland1 namely1 to strengthen the dispersed ,catholics in the faith1 and to evangelize the heathens4 ,he landed in ,hay-,garrchon1 penetrated into the interior of the country1 baptized many1 built three churches in the province of ,leinster2 but1 taken altogether1 his mission was unsuccessful1 and he met with much opposition4 ,but when ,palladius understood that he could not do much good in ,ireland1 he wanted to return to ,rome1 and died on the voyage1 in the territory of the ,picts4 ,others say that he received the crown of martyrdom in ,ireland4 ,what ,palladius begun--but which ,god's providence willed to remain incomplete--,patrick accomplished in sixty years of apostolic labor4 ,him ,god chose as the instrument1 and fitted him for this holy work4 ,that he received his commission from ,rome from the hands of ,pope ,celestine1 ,a4,d4 #dcb1 cannot be doubted2 for the fact is confirmed by a crowd of witnesses1 both ,roman and ,irish4 ,we must1 therefore1 consider and reverence ,patrick as the apostle of the ,irish people4 ,all the early ,irish annalists unanimously agree that his mission began in the year #dcb1 and that he died in #dic--;an apostleship of sixty years6 ,how great and glorious for him and for his people6 ,patrick was born ,a4,d4 #chg1 in ,boulogne-sur-,mer1 in modern ,picardy1 and was of noble ,roman origin4 ,in his sixteenth year1 in a marauding expedition of an ,irish clan called ,niall1 he was carried prisoner to ,armoric ,gaul2 thence to ,ireland1 and there sold to a pagan officer named ,milcho1 whose swine he herded for six years4 ,after this1 he escaped1 and returned to his native land4 ,having fully determined to consecrate himself to the service of ,god1 he went to ,marmontiers1 the monastery of ,st4 ,martin of ,tours1 to study there the principles of ,christian science and perfection4 #gfh ,a few years after1 he visited the happy island of ,lerins1 near ,marseilles1 at that time one of the most famous schools in ,christendom1 and met there1 as fellow-students1 the holy monks ,honoratus1 ,hilary1 ,eucherius1 ,lupus1 and others4 ,an interior voice there told him that he should return to ,ireland to preach the ,gospel in that country2 and he therefore travelled from ,lerins to ,rome1 in order to represent to the holy see the darkness of heathenism which brooded over ,ireland4 ,but1 as the apostolic see was not then in a condition to provide for the ,irish mission1 ,patrick went back to ,gaul1 and remained with ,st4 ,germain of ,auxerre1 under whose guidance he made further progress in holiness and learning4 ,such was his life up to the year #dbi4 ,in this year he accompanied ,bishop ,germanus and ,lupus to ,britain1 who were sent by the pope to root out ,pelagianism in that country4 ,thus was ,patrick prepared for his apostleship4 ,it was then he heard of the mission of ,palladius1 and its failure4 7,a4,d4 #dca47 ,the holy ,bishop ,germanus cast his eyes on ,patrick1 who knew the ,irish language1 people1 and country from personal observations4 ,did he not seem peculiarly fitted--sent1 in fact1 from heaven1 to undertake the conversion of the ,irish nation8 ,patrick1 therefore1 with the priest ,legetius as his companion1 went to ,rome1 and received from ,pope ,celestine his blessing and the necessary authority to undertake the task of converting ,ireland4 ,it is hard to tell now whether he was consecrated bishop by ,celestine before his departure1 or by ,bishop ,amatorex1 of ,eboria1 a city in north-western ,gaul4 ,he reached ,ireland in the first year of ,celestine ,,iii4 ,a life of continual triumphs began for him4 ,he was repulsed from the coast of ,dublin3 no matter2 he sailed for ,ulster1 and landed at ,strangford4 ,he converts the chieftain ,dicho and his whole house1 and celebrates his first ,mass in ,ireland in a neighboring barn4 ,at the royal city of ,tara1 he meets ,king ,leoghaire1 with all his clan2 defends and explains ,christianity in their presence1 and gains a victory over the ,druids4 ,dublach1 a ,druid and poet1 is converted1 and sings1 for the future1 only hymns in the honor of the true ,god4 ,the daughters of the king1 ,ethana and ,fethlimia1 also bow to the yoke of the ,gospel1 and consecrate their virginity to ,god1 and many other holy women follow their example4 ,thus1 a happy beginning was made in the island4 ,soon the converts number thousands4 ,everything succeeds2 the conversion of the ,irish people was effected without persecution or martyrs4 ,patrick frequented the national assemblies1 and used the occasion to preach to the multitudes4 ,he destroyed idolatry and idolatrous practices throughout the whole land1 and built churches to the living ,god on places that had hitherto been dedicated to the worship of idols4 ,wherever he went1 he baptized crowds of men1 provided the new ,christian communities with churches1 made the most virtuous of his disciples priests and bishops1 and appointed them to govern the faithful1 and extend the reign of the ,gospel4 ,thus did he labor year after year1 going about preaching1 baptizing1 and blessing1 in ,leinster1 ,ulster1 ,munster1 and ,connaught2 and everywhere his astonishing activity and self sacrifice effected wonderful results4 ,everywhere the people were ready and docile for the reception of ,christianity4 ,divine ,providence wonderfully protected him from all danger4 #gfi ,but when the whole island was converted to ,christ1 congregations formed1 and churches erected in all parts of the country1 ,st4 ,patrick thought of building a metropolitan cathedral for the primate of ,ireland4 ,he chose for this purpose the heights of ,admarcha1 or ,armagh1 near which stood the old royal fortress of ,emania4 ,after the building of his cathedral and the conversion of the ,irish1 ,st4 ,patrick passed the remaining years of his life partly at ,armagh1 partly at his favorite spot at ,sabhul1 where he began his missionary career4 ,he assembled a few synods1 wrote his ,confession1 as it is called1 on the approach of death1 and was attacked by his last illness at ,sabhul4 ,when he felt his end approaching1 he collected his remaining strength1 and endeavored to go to ,armagh1 which he had chosen as the place of his burial2 but1 warned by a voice from heaven1 he returned to ,sabhul1 and died there eight days after1 on the #agth of ,march1 #dic4 ,,iii4 ,let us now glance at the disciples and followers of this great man4 ,they followed up his work with such zeal and indefatigable activity that1 at the end of the sixth century1 ,christianity was spread over all ,ireland4 ,we distinguish1 in the ,irish church1 ,fathers of the ,first ,order1 and ,fathers of the ,second ,order4 ,the holy men from ,rome1 ,italy1 ,gaul1 and especially from ,wales or ,cambria1 who followed ,st4 ,patrick as their leader1 and aided him in his labors1 are the ,fathers of the ,first ,order4 ,patrick brought with him from ,rome1 in the year #dcb1 nine assistants2 in the year #dci1 ,secundinus1 ,auxilius1 and ,iserninus1 were sent to him from ,rome4 ,the two former of these1 together with ,benignus1 were present as bishops at the first synod of ,armagh1 in the year #def4 ,bishop ,trianius1 a ,roman1 another disciple of ,st4 ,patrick1 imitated so exactly the life of the great apostle1 that his food was nothing but the milk of one cow1 which he took care of himself4 ,the first mitred abbot of ,sabhul was ,dunnius2 and the first bishop of ,antrim was ,leoman1 ,patrick's nephew4 ,the oldest ,irish bishops appointed by ,patrick1 were ,patrick of ,armagh1 ,fiech of ,sletty1 ,mochua of ,aendrun1 ,carbreus of ,cubratham1 and ,maccarthen1 of ,aurghialla4 ,seven nephews of ,st4 ,patrick1 who followed him from ,cambria1 are invoked in the ,irish litanies as bishops4 ,they are the sons of ,tigriada1 ,brochad1 ,brochan1 ,mogenoch1 ,luman2 and the sons of ,darercha1 ,mel1 ,rioch1 and ,muna4 ,when the heathen ,anglo-,saxons conquered ,britain in the year #dej1 and sought to destroy the old ,british church1 many learned and pious men fled to ,ireland1 and joined ,patrick4 ,thirty of them were made bishops1 and devoted themselves to the special task of converting the neighboring islands4 ,the most renowned of these ,welsh missionaries are ,carantoc1 ,mochta of ,lugmagh1 and ,modonnoc1 who introduced the rearing of bees into ,ireland1 where they had never been seen before4 ,three companions of ,st4 ,patrick--,essa1 ,bitmus1 and ,tesach--were expert bell-founders1 and makers of church-vessels4 ,the fact that ,patrick was sent from ,rome1 that his first assistants were ,romans1 and that his co-laborers from ,gaul and ,britain were sons of the ,roman church1 completely destroys the ,anglican hypothesis of an ,irish church independent of ,rome4 #ggj ,even ,albeus1 who1 on account of his services1 was called the second ,patrick1 ,declau1 and ,ihac1 the apostles of the ,mumons2 ,enna1 or ,enda1 the founder of the great monastery of ,aran2 ,condland1 ,bishop of ,kildare1 all disciples of ,st4 ,patrick1 were educated and consecrated bishops in ,rome4 ,there also were ,lugach1 ,colman1 ,meldan1 ,lugaidh1 ,cassan1 and ,ciaran1 consecrated and afterward numbered among the earliest bishops and fathers of the ,irish church4 ,from the time of ,st4 ,patrick1 continual communication was kept up between ,rome and ,ireland by countless pilgrims1 as many documents attest1 7,greith1 p4 #adb-aef47 ,patrick left his love and reverence for the ,apostolic ,see of ,peter as a precious legacy to his immediate disciples2 and they1 in turn1 to their successors up to the present day4 ,the frequent pilgrimages of ,irish bishops1 abbots1 and monks1 are facts so well proven1 that the ,anglican theory of a separate ,irish church is shown to be a pure invention1 no longer contended for as truth by any respectable historian4 ,let us now pass to the fathers of the second order in the ,irish church1 and their illustrious foundations4 ,the founders of those numerous ,irish monasteries1 which counted their inmates by hundreds and thousands1 those men who were mostly brought up by the immediate successors of ,st4 ,patrick1 belong to the ,second ,order of ,irish ,fathers4 ,twelve of them1 instructed by the renowned ,abbot ,finnian1 at ,clonard1 are called the twelve apostles of ,ireland4 ,at their head stands ,columba1 the apostle of the ,picts1 shining among them like the sun among the stars4 ,their names are1 ,columba1 of ,iona1 ,corngall1 of ,bangor1 ,cormac1 of ,deormagh1 ,cainech1 of ,achedbo1 ,ciaran1 of ,clonmacnoise1 ,mobhi1 of ,clareinech1 ,brendan1 of ,clonfert1 ,brendan1 of ,birr1 ,fintan1 ,columba1 of ,tirgelass1 ,molua ,fillan and ,molasch1 of ,damhs-,inis4 ,these holy men erected all over ,ireland and in the adjacent isles churches and convents1 which became centres of art1 learning1 and sanctity4 ,the monastery of ,clonard1 founded in ,meath by ,abbot ,finnian1 contained during his lifetime three thousand monks4 ,at ,clonmacnoise1 a monastery founded by ,st4 ,ciaran1 in the middle of ,ireland1 agriculture was made a special study2 and ,monastereven on the ,barrow1 ,monasterboyce in the valley of the ,boyne1 ,dearmach1 etc41 were renowned institutions4 ,these first and oldest ,irish monasteries were not large1 regularly-built houses1 but composed of numbers of separate cells or huts1 made of wicker-work1 stalks1 and rushes4 ,the church or oratory stood in the midst of the huts1 and was made of the same material4 ,it was at a later period that the ,roman architecture was introduced into ,ireland2 and then stone edifices took the place of the primitive structures4 ,special mention is always made in the ,irish annals of the erection of a stone church1 for the people preferred wooden buildings1 and their preference shows itself up to the twelfth century4 ,the stone churches were looked upon as the fruit of foreign architecture1 as ,st4 ,bernard informs us in his life of ,st4 ,malachy4 ,the ,roman church gradually introduced into ,ireland the fine arts and a higher order of architecture1 as she had done at an earlier date in ,gaul and ,britain4 ,choral singing became usual4 ,the church hymns took the place of the ,druidical rhapsodies2 and the muses of ,inisfail forgot to sing of heroes1 and learned to tune their harps to sing the praise of ,christ and his saints4 ,the ,irish missionaries reclaimed barren lands and made them fertile1 ameliorated the condition of agriculture1 spread commerce1 and discovered new islands in the sea4 ,many of the ,irish saints1 at the period of which we are writing1 were great navigators4 #gga ,dr4 ,greith paints in glowing colors the life of ,st4 ,columba and his labors in ,ireland1 the ,hebrides1 and ,scotland1 as well as the discipline and rules of the ,abbey of ,hy1 which was founded by him4 ,we cannot enter into details1 but refer the reader to ,dr4 ,greith's book4 ,columba was born on the #gth of ,december1 #eba4 ,in the first half of his life1 ,ireland was the scene of his zeal2 the second half was spent among the ,scots and ,picts4 ,in ,ireland he founded ,durrow1 ,derry1 and ,kells4 ,he went with twelve disciples to ,caledonia in the year #efc4 ,christianity among the ,scots had degenerated2 and the ,picts were still pagans4 ,the king of the ,picts1 ,brudrius1 gave him the island of ,iona or ,hy1 where his works began which ,god crowned with wonderful success4 ,he soon became the beacon light for all the faithful priests and laity of ,ireland and ,caledonia4 ,he visited ,ireland to counsel his noble relatives1 settle their disputes1 or oversee the churches and monasteries which he had established1 and travelled among the ,picts preaching the ,gospel1 founding monasteries1 and erecting churches which should consider ,iona as their mother4 ,he built thirty-two churches1 to most of which monasteries were attached1 in ,scotland2 and eighteen among the ,picts1 in the space of thirty-three years1 7#efc-eig47 ,even during his lifetime he was so celebrated that1 from all sides1 princes1 nobles1 bishops1 priests1 monks1 and the faithful of all classes ran to him for counsel in their difficulties1 consolation in their distress1 and help in their necessities4 ,columba fought against the superstition of the ,picts1 the cunning of their magicians1 and the wickedness of lawless men4 ,princes' sons1 whose fathers had lost their lives and crowns in battle1 went to ,iona to lay their grievances before ,columba1 and to each one according to his need1 the saint gave consolation and hope4 ,the common people brought their children to him1 to ask him to decide their vocation4 ,it was not an unusual spectacle to see kings and nobles lay aside the insignia of their greatness at ,iona1 and break their swords before its altars4 ,columba's prayers were very powerful4 ,his blessing controlled the elements and the forces of nature4 ,he seemed to rule nature as a lord4 ,he had also the gift of prophecy4 ,he died ,june #ith1 ,a4,d4 #eig4 ,his departure from life was made known to many holy men in different parts of ,ireland and ,scotland at the same time1 who declared that ,columba1 the pillar of so many churches1 had gone to-night to the bosom of his ,redeemer4 ,the isle of ,iona was illuminated by a heavenly light1 emanating from the countless angels who came down to take up the happy soul of the saint to the bosom of his ,god4 ,the ,irish monasteries increased wonderfully during the sixth century4 ,finnian's monastery at ,clonard1 as already mentioned1 contained #cjjj monks2 and that of ,bangor and ,birr had the same number2 ,st4 ,molaissi had #aejj monks around him2 ,colombanus and ,fechin had each #cjj2 ,carthach1 #hfg2 ,gobban1 #ajjj2 ,maidoc1 ,manchan1 ,natalis1 and ,ruadhan1 each #aej2 ,revin and ,molua were each the head of several thousand4 ,there was no common rule for all those convents1 like that which ,st4 ,benedict wrote for the religious of his order1 7,a4,d4 #ebi47 ,each monastery had its own laws4 ,columba had made no special rule for ,hy or for his other monasteries4 ,st4 ,colombanus was the first who collected and methodized the customs and traditions of ,irish monastic life4 #ggb ,a thorough investigation of the most ancient custom of the ,celtic church1 proves that it was in communion with the church of ,rome4 ,the trivial differences between the two churches regarded neither dogma1 nor morality1 nor the essentials of the ,liturgy1 of the ,mass1 or the ,blessed ,sacrament4 ,the supremacy of the pope was recognized by all the ,irish2 and the celibacy of the clergy observed as in the other ,western churches4 ,in the ceremonies of the ,mass1 it is true1 there were certain usages and forms observed not ,roman1 as was the case also in the churches of ,spain and ,gaul4 ,the rites of baptism in the ,irish church were simpler than those of the ,roman4 ,the difference mainly consisted in the style of the tonsure and in the time of celebrating the ,easter festival4 ,the ,irish and ,britons did not keep the reckoning of the ,abbot ,dionysius the ,little1 as he is styled1 regarding ,easter1 and tenaciously clung to the old ,roman calculation4 ,every departure from it seemed to them contrary to the traditions of their fathers4 ,it was only in the year #gaf1 and after hard and bitter fighting1 that perfect union between ,rome and ,ireland was effected in this particular4 ,the history of the ,irish1 as well as of the ,british church1 is of the greatest importance for ,germans who want to know the origin of ,christianity in their own land4 ,but we shall develop this point in a second article4 ---------------- ,european ,prison ,discipline4 ,i4 -- ,newgate4 ,we take pleasure in offering to ,american readers the following record of a visit to ,newgate1 as exhibiting the enlightened humanity shown in the treatment of public criminals in ,london4 ,the guide whom we have selected as the interpreter of ,newgate's mysteries is an imaginary personage4 ,he expresses the impressions1 thoughts1 and comments of several persons1 not the convictions of a single individual4 ,this way1 sir1 please4 ,yes1 the passages do seem gloomy1 coming in out of the sunny street1 crowded with free men hurrying to and fro on business4 ,here we are in the kitchen2 you see the good allowance of meat and potatoes the prisoners have for dinner four times a week2 the other three days they have a good strong soup instead of meat2 morning and night a mess of oatmeal1 and with each meal half a pound of bread4 ,yes1 they are well fed2 better here1 many of them1 than they would be outside4 ,just look over your shoulder1 sir4 ,through that low iron door behind you the condemned prisoners pass out into the square to be hanged4 ,why through the kitchen8 ,can't say1 sir4 ,it has always been so and that's all1 ,i suppose4 ,do they take it quietly for the most part8 ,why--sometimes they give us a little trouble1 but--yes1 generally they bear it pretty well1 poor fellows6 #ggc ,more narrow passages1 with grated rooms like aviaries on each side4 ,these are the apartments where the prisoners receive their friends1 separated from them by two gratings several feet apart4 ,it will remind you of the picture in ,old ,curiosity ,shop1 where ,mrs4 ,nubbles and ,barbara's mother go to see ,kit in prison4 ,a prisoner can receive a visit once in three months1 write one letter1 and receive one2 but they are seldom here so long4 ,newgate is only a house of detention before trial1 except for those condemned to death--a mere jail4 ,here we are in one of the great oblong halls with tiers of cells opening on to galleries4 ,up this iron staircase in the middle of the hall and across this little bridge1 and we stand outside a cell door4 ,in the ,american prisons you have seen1 you say that the cells open on a corridor1 with a grated door1 and sometimes a grated window4 ,not so1 here4 ,the door is solid1 with merely a small hole for purposes of surveillance1 and a trap below it through which food1 etc41 may be passed4 ,if the prisoner wants anything1 he rings a bell1 the action of which is curious4 ,fix your eye on the bell-spring outside4 ,i pull the bell inside and a tin flap flies back1 showing the number of the cell4 ,thus the officer knows what bell has rung1 and the prisoner1 having no power over the flap when it has once sprung back1 cannot avoid discovery if he has rung merely in order to give trouble4 ,the cell is sufficiently large1 you see1 and is lighted from the court-yard through that arched window near the ceiling4 ,a nice little room enough1 with the bedding stowed away on one of those shelves in the corner4 ,on the shelf below is the prisoner's bowl with the spoon lying on it4 ,everything must be in its place4 ,if the spoon were on the shelf1 it would be out of place2 it must lie on the reversed bowl4 ,resting against the wall is his plate1 and on the lowest shelf are his books4 ,oh6 yes1 you may examine them--the same in all the cells1 ,bible1 ,prayer-,book1 hymns1 and psalms4 ,footnote #bbb ,the other volume comes from our library1 and is changed every day1 if necessary ,at this little turn-up shelf the prisoner takes his meals1 or reads by the small shade-lamp above it4 ,in the corner is a nice copper basin with plenty of water4 ,there are two apertures1 one to admit warm air1 the other for ventilation2 every comfort provided for him1 you see4 ,yes1 we keep the prisoners entirely apart from each other1 never two together1 unless some one comes here for drunkenness1 and has delirium tremens1 and then we put two others with him for safety's sake4 ,now we'll go up to the next corridor2 in the one below are the doctors' cells1 where fresh prisoners are kept until they have passed through a sanitary examination4 ,footnote #bbb3 ,prisoners who do not belong to the ,established ,church can be visited by a priest or by a dissenting minister4 ,step into this cell1 occupied1 as you see1 by a mere boy4 ,there's his pile of oakum on the floor4 ,go on with your dinner1 my man2 no need to stop for us4 ,as we go up higher1 more light comes in from the courtyard2 the upper cells are reserved for prisoners who are likely to be here some time4 ,the next cell occupied too1 you see1 though we've not many prisoners here now1 the trials being just over4 ,yes1 sir1 this man is trying to educate himself a little2 has a dictionary on the shelf beside the library-book--a volume of travels this time4 ,now that we are in the corridor again1 let me tell you that this same shock-headed young man is condemned to ten years of penal servitude and twenty lashes1 for highway robbery with violence4 ,the lashes are to be received before he leaves ,newgate1 but more on that subject presently4 #ggd ,here we are in the old part of ,newgate4 ,in your reading1 no doubt you've come across the name of ,mrs4 ,elizabeth ,fry4 ,it was in this same long1 dark room that she used to assemble the prisoners1 and read and pray with them4 ,no1 ,i have no means of judging of the durability of her conversions4 ,it is easy to talk of converting criminals2 but perhaps her chief merit lay in setting the example in ,england of a friendly and trusting intercourse with these poor wretches4 ,yes1 it is strange to see the whipping-block in this room1 but indeed1 sir1 corporal punishment has become an absolute necessity4 ,it is never used to force prison discipline1 but is administered in execution of a sentence1 imposed by a magistrate for wanton violence4 ,it is a curious fact that these brutes1 who go about garroting inoffensive travellers1 breaking jaws and skulls with their brass knuckles or dusters1 as they call them1 are the veriest cowards on earth when physical pain comes to themselves4 ,in this very room they will cry like children1 and beg to be forgiven1 ,i don't feel half the pity for them that ,i do for the poor creatures going to be hanged4 ,footnote #bbc ,this iron door survived the fire in the ,gordon riots1 you see4 ,come through here1 if you please1 sir4 ,this is another of the large rooms in old ,newgate1 where prisoners were kept before the solitary system came into vogue4 ,the change is a most fortunate one for all concerned1 ,i'm confident4 ,footnote #bbc3 ,we are not fully convinced of the wisdom of introducing the whipping-block once more into the honorable company of penal inflictions in ,england4 ,one of the most satisfactory cases of reformation we have known among persons guilty of grave crimes1 was that of a garroter4 ,it is our strong impression that corporal punishment would have degraded him beyond all human hope of redemption4 ,at least1 great care should be taken to keep the use of this instrument of torture within the bounds of absolute necessity4 ,imprisonment may soften the heart2 perhaps many persons have died well on the scaffold1 who would have died impenitent under other circumstances2 but however great may have been the number of spirits crushed by flogging in prisons1 we venture to doubt whether there is a single instance on record of its having produced or aided reformation4 ,i've no question that many a crime was hatched here among the men herded together in these cells4 ,you can see for yourself what kind of talk there would be among them4 ,perhaps some footman was sent here for stealing his master's purse4 ,what a chance for an old hand to get a little useful information in a friendly way3 ,your master was an easy1 comfortable kind of a man1 was he8 ,well1 them well-to-do city-men mostly is easy-tempered4 ,not partickerlerly well-to-do1 an't he8 ,old family he belongs to1 eh8 ,what lots o' plate some o' them poor noblemen do have6 ,wonder myself that they don't sell it and get the good out on it1 'stead of hiding it away at the banker's8 ,don't keep it at the bankers6 ,pity the poor cuss as cleans it1 then6 ,go to ,brighton or ,bath1 of course1 when the season's over2 ,i thought as much2 it takes poor folks to travel1 etc41 etc4 ,and then1 the first step after getting out of ,newgate would be to make love to the maid-servant when the family was out of town4 ,very devoted he'd be1 until some evening he'd think it such a pity there were no oranges in the house1 or something else to cool your mouth with2 there was such a nice1 respectable place round the corner2 wouldn't she just step round there and choose something for herself8 ,and then1 while the the poor girl was gone1 the accomplices1 well instructed as to the whereabouts of the plate1 would ransack the safe at their leisure4 ,you may depend upon it1 sir1 it was a good thing for society when the present discipline was adopted4 #gge ,the little court-yard we are crossing now is one of those where the prisoners take their exercise4 ,oh6 yes1 sir2 they all have regular times for exercise1 and in these yards within the building there is no possibility of their making their escape4 ,i am going to show one of our cells for solitary confinement4 ,let me turn up the gas in this small room4 ,you see this door which ,i open1 and again an inner door1 which ,i open too4 ,step in1 sir4 ,now1 turn so that your eye may catch the gaslight outside4 ,here is a bedstead2 you can feel it1 if you don't see it4 ,in this cell1 pitch-dark and cut off from the rest of the prison so completely that no shouts or screams would be heard1 unruly prisoners are confined for any period between one hour and three days1 with only bread and water for food4 ,there is ventilation and warmth here1 as in the other cells4 ,the doctor comes each morning to see that mind and body are sound4 ,only by sentence of a magistrate can the confinement be prolonged beyond three days4 ,yes1 sir1 it is an awful place2 and then1 too1 the men look upon it as sheer lost time4 ,we have soldiers in here sometimes1 and they say that they can make up for three days on bread and water in the guard-house1 by spending their whole pay in eating and drinking when they come out2 but here it's just loss of rations1 and nothing else4 ,you'll hardly ever catch an old thief in here4 ,oh6 don't stop my grub1 whatever you do1 he'll say1 and so he takes care to behave well enough to keep out of solitary4 ,the prisoners who mind it least are little ragamuffins1 accustomed to creep into any dark hole1 to curl themselves up and go to sleep4 ,they are never afraid of anything4 ,decent boys1 in prison on suspicion of forgery or whatever1 are dreadfully scared4 ,but you'll be glad to get out into the daylight again1 ,i am thinking1 sir4 ,i'll show you our chapel now4 ,in that screened gallery the women sit1 where they can see everything without being seen4 ,there is divine service here every morning1 as well as on ,sundays4 ,no1 sir2 ,i've no authority to show you the female side of the prison1 which is quite distinct from ours1 and has female warders1 and a committee of lady visitors4 ,the system of female keepers works perfectly well2 but it would have been impracticable before we adopted separate cells1 because the talk among the prisoners was such as no decent woman should hear4 ,a wicked woman is a thousand times worse than a bad man1 and less intelligent1 too4 ,you see1 sir1 a woman falls because she is either pretty1 or silly1 or unprotected4 ,now1 bad men and boys are often the most intelligent of their class1 and are selected as tools for that very reason1 by older rogues than themselves4 ,it is one of the terrible features of the case1 that the country loses valuable servants in these quick-witted outlaws4 ,here we come out upon the sloping passage1 leading to the criminal courts--,birdcage-walk1 the old thieves call it4 ,over-head we get the light through the open iron-work1 you see4 ,under the flags are buried all those who have been hanged1 and the initial letter of the name is scratched on the wall above the grave4 ,that iron door at the end leads to the court-rooms4 ,yes1 indeed1 sir1 some of the prisoners one learns to like best are those awaiting execution here1 educated men sometimes4 ,oh6 yes2 ,i know the names that all these letters stand for4 ,muller lies there4 ,no1 he was not much of a man1 any way4 ,here's ,courvoisier1 who murdered ,lord ,russell2 he was my lord's valet4 #ggf ,those five letters stand for five pirates4 ,this one was a coachman1 who murdered a female in the city1 and burned the remains in his stable4 ,here's a man who killed his wife4 ,why1 yes1 sir2 there are a good many in here for wife-murder2 aggravating1 ,i suppose1 at times4 ,that was an ,italian1 who killed another female in the city4 ,this man hung his own child in the cellar4 ,oh6 no1 he was not insane2 jealous of his wife1 or something of the sort1 ,i believe4 ,there are a good many more here1 but their cases were not so well known4 ,another court-yard to be crossed1 sir1 and here we are in one of the condemned cells4 ,a good deal larger it is than the common cells1 you see1 with a bedstead1 a good-sized table1 and a long bench4 ,from the time of his condemnation1 the poor fellow is never left alone1 night or day2 two officers take turn and turn about in staying with him4 ,oh6 certainly1 sir1 they talk with him2 not about his case1 of course1 but of any book they have been reading1 or of things outside the prison1 and so on4 ,the idea is not to let his mind dwell much on what is before him1 and so spare him all the suffering we can4 ,you are right1 sir2 it would be absolutely impossible to dispense with capital punishment in this country4 ,murder is common enough now1 but ,i am confident it would be much more frequent if the fear of death were withdrawn4 ,your professional thief never commits murder4 ,all rogues have an especial line of business4 ,a house-breaker is never guilty of highway robbery2 a highway-man never picks pockets2 and they none of them commit murder4 ,now1 sir1 there is a deal of talk about the horrors of a public execution1 and the bad effect such a sight must have on the people4 ,well1 sir1 ,i am of a different opinion4 ,the people who come to a hanging are the very scum of ,london4 ,some gentlemen there are1 too1 ,i know1 by the looks of the windows opposite2 but the crowd is chiefly made up of the mere scum and dregs of ,london4 ,i think1 sir1 it is a lesson to them1 and a lesson they need badly4 ,sometimes we say to the little ragamuffins who get in here1 ,did you ever go to a hanging8 ,yes1 sir4 ,and what did you think of it8 ,why1 ,i wasn't in a very good place1 sir2 ,i couldn't see much4 ,well1 don't you know that if you go on as you're going now1 you may come to commit murder one of these days1 and be hanged yourself8 ,oh6 no1 sir6 ,i mustn't commit murder4 ,he has learned that much1 if he's not learned anything else4 ,footnote #bbd ,footnote #bbd3 ,we present this argument simply as a statement of one side of an oft-mooted question1 but we are far from being convinced of its validity4 ,i believe that if capital punishment were abolished1 a thief1 instead of leaving his pal 7as the vulgar term is for accomplice7 in a mask1 to watch the man and wife while he searches for plate1 would kill them both4 ,he would know that he could only be transported for life1 and if he killed the officers placed in charge over him1 the law could only repeat the same sentence4 ,yes1 sir2 you are right2 capital punishment is sometimes too severe a penalty1 in proportion to the crime it punishes4 ,it falls1 now and then1 on a man who has not led a bad life in general1 but who is possessed by one passion--jealousy1 or revenge1 or whatever4 ,there should be a clearer distinction of circumstances in pronouncing sentence4 ,a man who sets out to do a thing1 with a distinct determination to take life if he can in no other way accomplish his purpose1 commits murder4 #ggg ,a man devoured by passion1 and acting under its influence1 should be judged less severely4 ,and yet1 sir1 since the penalty of death is less designed as a punishment of criminals than as a defence of the public1 even this distinction is very hard to make4 ,we can only hope that our children will judge the matter more wisely than we do4 ,this room1 sir1 inclosed in glass1 is the apartment where a prisoner meets his solicitor4 ,the door is closed upon client and counsel1 and the officer in attendance cannot hear their talk1 or learn what points are to be used in the defence4 ,here we are in the room where the prisoner is prepared for execution4 ,i'll get the key1 and unlock the closet where our irons are kept4 ,this is the old style1 sir1 very cumbrous1 as you see4 ,here are the identical irons ,jack ,sheppard wore4 ,they would be so much too large for me1 that ,i could slip my foot out at once2 but in those days they wore pads around the ankle1 so that the ring fitted close4 ,when you read of ,jack's breaking loose from his irons1 it sounds very grand2 but all he did was to unwind the pad from his ankle1 and draw his foot out4 ,these are the irons we use in travelling with convicts2 here are common handcuffs1 as you see2 and here is the sort of harness worn by prisoners about to be executed4 ,it pinions the arms firmly1 and1 at the last moment1 fastens the legs together4 ,why1 no1 sir2 ,i can't say that educated men bear it any better than ignorant ones4 ,i've seen educated men most awfully frightened4 ,i think it was death they feared1 sir1 not shame4 ,when they are ready1 they pass through this passage1 and out through the iron door ,i showed you in the kitchen1 on to the square4 ,step into this cabinet a moment1 sir4 ,on those shelves are casts taken after death from those who have been executed4 ,there is ,muller1 there is ,courvoisier1 there is ,marchand4 ,the young fellow with negro features was only nineteen4 ,he murdered his fellow-servant4 ,yes1 the one next him looks like a negro too2 you are probably right1 sir4 ,the one with the well-formed1 dimpled chin little thought how his pleasure-loving youth would end4 ,surprisingly life-like they all are4 ,yes1 these are the men who lie under the flags in the ,birdcage-walk4 ,this way1 sir1 for your hat and cane4 ,good day1 sir4 ,astonishingly fine weather for the season4 ,,ii4 ,saint ,lazare4 ,the ancient convent of ,saint ,lazare1 in ,paris1 once the home of ,st4 ,vincent de ,paul1 is now a prison for women taken from the lowest depths of ,parisian life4 ,their name is legion2 their sufferings from sickness and neglect before arrest are unutterable4 ,france has no law for such as they beyond the will of the prefect of police4 ,what alleviation1 you ask1 has been found for this corrosive social evil8 ,a more effective one than disbelievers in ,french virtue would anticipate4 ,all females who come under the notice of the police for sanitary reasons or criminal matters1 are sent to ,saint ,lazare1 where1 instead of jailers1 there are fifty-five ,sisters of ,charity4 ,footnote #bbe ,footnote #bbe3 ,or1 more strictly speaking1 fifty-five ,sisters of ,marie ,joseph1 the sisterhood devoted to prison discipline in ,france4 ,how many of the miserable creatures are converted by intercourse with these noble and refined women1 ,god only knows4 ,the day of judgment will reveal the difference between real and apparent success4 ,but a woman who has been first the plaything and then the scorn of society1 must think more tenderly of ,god in ,saint ,lazare1 than in any ordinary prison or workhouse4 #ggh ,two objections which may be made to the system of treatment adopted at ,saint ,lazare1 ,i will try to answer before enumerating the very details which would probably suggest them4 ,in the first place1 it may be urged that the prisoners are made so comfortable that imprisonment becomes a reward rather than a punishment1 a bribe rather than a threat4 ,secondly1 it may be with truth asserted that the wicked poor receive better care in such an establishment1 than society gives to the virtuous poor who have never seen the inside of a jail4 ,to the first objection ,i answer1 that imprisonment is never easy for such women to bear1 because the passions which bring them so low1 love of excitement and vanity1 find no food in a well-ordered prison2 that the opposite system has been tested ever since the world was1 and still the world overflows with impenitent sinners2 that at least half the prisoners of ,saint ,lazare are wicked for want of precisely what they find there--judicious training2 a decent dwelling-place1 good example2 and1 last and best reason of all1 that this system is the one most in accordance with the teaching and example of ,christ4 ,and my answer to the second objection is this4 ,let us seek out the honest poor1 provide them with decent lodging-houses at low prices1 with practical education1 useful and entertaining reading1 innocent amusement1 and1 above all1 with religious and moral instruction2 but do not let us relax our efforts to reform sinners merely because we have shamefully neglected our duties toward saints4 ,we may say truly that the respectable poor are hard to find1 because their very virtues conceal them from the public eye4 ,we have no such excuse where sinners are concerned2 for they are festering in every jail1 penitentiary1 and almshouse in every city throughout the world4 ,justice1 not charity1 demands that society should provide decent asylums where its victims may hide their wretchedness4 ,but let us examine the discipline of ,saint ,lazare in detail1 that the reader may judge for himself whether these objections have been satisfactorily disposed of4 ,the inmates are divided into three classes3 #ast4 ,women who have been tried for crimes and condemned2 #b;d4 ,filles publiques1 consigned to ,st4 ,lazare by the police for sanitary or other reasons2 #c;d4 ,young girls and children sent thither by their parents 7correction paternelle7 for safe keeping1 or brought there by the police as vagrants4 ,the uniform is neat and inconspicuous1 dark blue for one class of offenders1 and maroon for the other2 ,i think the children wear no uniform4 ,the clothes-rooms are arranged very methodically1 under-clothing and dresses being laid on shelves in orderly piles which would satisfy the most fastidious ,yankee housekeeper4 ,the common prison garments are comfortable and well made2 but there is a higher grade of clothing for those who can afford to pay for it1 who are there on pistole1 as the technical term is1 taken from an old ,french coin4 ,the same is to be said of food and lodging2 comfortable accommodations being provided for all1 while small luxuries can be purchased at a small expense4 ,tariffs are posted all over the prison1 that the inmates may know the fixed prices of various articles1 and not be subjected to dishonesty on the part of sub-officials4 #ggi ,the present writer1 who endured the terrible ordeal imposed on all conscientious visitors1 of tasting everything the various kitchens produced1 can answer for the excellent quality of soup1 coffee1 bread1 etc41 etc4 ,having been allowed to content himself with visual proof in passing through the well-ordered pharmacies1 he can only vouch for their neatness and apparent convenience4 ,the work-rooms are generally furnished with tiers of benches graduated nearly to the ceiling1 so that one sister can superintend a roomful of work-women4 ,the gentleman who accompanied me in my first visit showed me with some pride the comfortable straw seats4 ,the empress came here one day1 he said1 and asked the prisoners if they were in need of anything4 ,they told her the wooden benches were uncomfortable1 and her majesty ordered these seats to be made1 where they can sit and sew all day without great fatigue4 ,yes1 our empress is a good and charitable soul4 ,many institutions send work to be done at ,saint ,lazare1 and each prisoner receives a certain proportion of the proceeds of her labor1 that she may have the wherewithal to begin an honest life when her term is out4 ,each day's earnings she writes down in her own little account-book1 a dingy record of hopes1 as it must be to some of them4 ,the court-yards1 where there is an hour's recreation twice a day1 are large and cheerful4 ,in the centre are large tanks where the women are allowed to wash small articles of clothing2 an inestimable privilege1 as any one knows who has seen prisoners trying to extemporize a laundry in their cells with a tin wash-basin4 ,these courts are the favored haunts of sparrows who twitter as cheerfully within the old prison walls as under the eaves of good men's dwellings4 ,a magpie was hopping about in the cloister with the air of an habitu1 looking amazingly as if he were there on sentence4 ,there are a number of infirmaries1 all tended by ,sisters of ,charity1 and well supplied from a kitchen devoted to hospital diet4 ,the patients are of the lowest class1 their maladies the saddest that flesh is heir to4 ,that such a hospital should have any attraction to the visitor is impossible2 but remembering the hosts of such forlorn creatures who throng our jails and almshouses in ,america1 ,i longed to transport wards and warders to the other side of the ,atlantic and inaugurate a change in prison discipline for women4 ,footnote #bbf ,footnote #bbf3 ,in the ,february number of ,the ,catholic ,world appeared an article entitled ,paris ,impious1 and ,religious ,paris1 giving some interesting details concerning ,saint ,lazare4 ,i had the good fortune to be accompanied by a gentleman associated for many years with prison reforms1 and charged with high authority in the matter of prison discipline in ,paris4 ,he makes it his rule to visit the prisoners at all times and seasons1 that he may detect any breach of discipline or lack of fidelity on the part of the superintendents4 ,he is a man who under the wretched disguise of vice recognizes humanity1 no matter how defiled2 who looks rather to remove the causes of sin than to procure its punishment1 and sees in every culprit a good man spoiled4 ,let no one suppose that ,i mean to advocate a feeble administration of justice4 ,no2 in a prison1 over-indulgence means chaos2 present weakness means future severity4 ,at ,saint ,lazare steady1 unswerving vigilance is observed1 and silence enforced among the prisoners4 ,discipline being maintained evenly1 not spasmodically1 the prisoners can be allowed privileges very important to them4 #ghj ,visitors are admitted twice a week to converse with the women through two gratings1 as at ,newgate1 a sister standing in the narrow passage between4 ,recreation in the yards is taken in common1 instead of separately4 ,it is surprising to find how a prisoner clings to the privilege of seeing his fellow-creatures1 even when there is no chance of communication4 ,the peculiar pangs inflicted by the solitary system1 when endured for a long time1 can only be appreciated by those who have had confidential intercourse with prisoners4 ,the prisoners' chapel is very cheerful1 and has a pretty sanctuary with stained-glass windows1 and an altar beautifully cared for4 ,one of the points most worthy of approval in ,saint ,lazare1 is the attractive form under which religion is everywhere presented4 ,in each dormitory1 infirmary1 and work room1 is an oratory2 or1 at least1 some image or picture suited to impress the souls of the prisoners4 ,one part of the establishment is full of tender associations to every ,christian soul--the sisters' private chapel1 whose sanctuary was once the cell of ,saint ,vincent de ,paul4 ,the stone floor in the recessed window where he used to pray is worn hollow with the pressure of his knees4 ,saint ,lazare was frequented in those days by many pilgrims1 and in his cell the saint sought refuge from distraction and dissipation of spirit4 ,it is from kneeling-cushions such as his1 that the prayers go up to heaven which work true reforms1 which achieve immortal victories whose laurels are fresh centuries after the conqueror's soul glories in the presence of ,god4 ,i have never stood in any cathedral with a soul more filled with veneration than in this little chapel of ,saint ,lazare1 where ,saint ,vincent de ,paul prayed2 and where his children pray still1 devoted to the work most repugnant to human nature1 that of tending beings who remind us what we should all be but for the grace of ,god4 ,one infirmary is a lying-in hospital4 ,the mothers can keep their young children at ,saint ,lazare1 or send them away as they choose4 ,in this infirmary shone forth the kindly spirit of my guide4 ,this always touches me1 he said2 for ,i am a pre de famille and he went from baby to baby with gentle looks and womanly sweetness1 a man stalwart of frame as a grenadier4 ,and it touched me1 too1 though ,i am not pre de famille1 to see the lines of little cribs1 and the poor1 forlorn mothers tending their tiny waifs and strays4 ,there is one serious defect in the construction of ,saint ,lazare1 making it in that respect unsuitable for a prison4 ,there is but one large dormitory for the adult prisoners who are in good health4 ,the others sleep1 two1 three1 or even four in a large cell1 and with no arrangements for surveillance beyond a small aperture in the door1 covered with glass4 ,i remarked upon the imprudence of this arrangement1 and was told that the danger was fully appreciated and deeply regretted4 ,the ,french government is too generous in its treatment of public institutions to leave this evil long unremedied1 ,i am confident4 ,another defect in the regulations surprised me4 ,there is no daily ,mass in the public chapel of ,saint ,lazare1 the prisoners hearing ,mass on ,sunday only4 ,i had no opportunity of asking the reason of this omission1 and will therefore refrain from making farther comment upon it4 ,the third department in ,saint ,lazare is the most interesting1 being the portion devoted to young girls and homeless children4 #gha ,the sentence is for six months only1 but can be renewed if found expedient4 ,my guide called to him child after child1 and talked with them as he might talk with his own children at home4 ,one little thing cried bitterly4 ,her mother had turned her into the streets to shift for herself1 and the police1 finding her wandering about the city1 had brought her to ,saint ,lazare4 ,he held her little hand in his and patted it softly as he said all the comforting things he could think of2 there was not much to be said1 one must confess4 ,i asked where she would be sent when the six months were out4 ,to some industrial establishment under the charge of ,sisters of ,charity1 was the answer2 ,the empress sees to all such things4 ,the young people are kept entirely separate from the prisoners1 in the new part of ,saint ,lazare4 ,they have several hours' schooling1 and have their working hours1 in which they earn money for themselves and for the establishment1 as the women do4 ,each child has an exquisitely neat cell to herself for the night1 opening with a grating on to a corridor1 so that the watching sister can exercise a strict surveillance4 ,whenever ,i see the right thing done in the right way for public offenders1 ,i think of the man who first turned my attention to the subject of prison discipline--,governor ,andrew1 as he will be to us all in ,massachusetts1 no matter who holds the state reins4 ,surely the sun has not often shone on any spirit more steadfast or more tender than his2 surely1 the days of chivalry produced no knightly courage more unblenching than his2 surely1 whatever blessings come to ,massachusetts in her future career1 her children will never forget how valiantly that brave man fought for judicious legislation1 for a humane execution of the laws1 and for the equal rights of ,catholics and ,protestants--will never forget ,john ,albion ,andrew6 -------------- ,translated ,from ,le ,correspondant4 ,a ,heroine ,of ,conjugal ,love4 ,marquise ,de ,la ,fayette4 ,when1 at the end of the year #ahfd1 the children of ,madame de ,montagu1 having overcome the natural scruples of filial modesty1 consented to open to the public the treasure of noble examples and ,christian virtues enclosed in the remembrances of their mother1 ,le ,correspondant was the first among the public organs to announce the lively interest felt in the recital4 ,the success more than justified our predictions4 ,there is no one who would not be edified by the perusal of the life of ,madame de ,montagu1 and the book has already taken its place in our libraries4 #ghb ,since that publication1 the ,duchess of ,ayen1 around whom are grouped five daughters widely differing from each other1 and each with a strongly marked individuality1 has become in some sort the type of the ,christian mother in modern society4 ,indeed1 maternal love was in truth the terrestrial passion of her heart1 and would entirely have occupied it1 had not the care of this dear flock borne with it higher duties1 and rendered greater her accountability4 ,the marvellous gift had been given her to form souls2 to develop the budding good within them1 and1 while respecting the originality peculiar to each1 to arm them with incomparable strength4 ,we need not return to what1 four years ago1 we have already published of the ,christian discipline1 the simple and retired life to which the ,duchess of ,ayen had accustomed her daughters1 realizing in them her type of true womanhood1 making the heart superior to destiny1 neither dazzled by fortune or success1 nor cast down by the ills of life4 ,when the life of ,madame de ,montagu was first published1 only in episode we recognized those of the noble daughters of the ,duchess d',ayen1 reserved by ,providence for the rudest trials1 or destined for a bloody immolation4 ,we speak of the ,viscountess de ,noailles1 who with her mother and grandmother1 the old ,marchioness of ,noailles1 perished on the scaffold1 and ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 the voluntary prisoner of ,olmutz1 in truth one of the most touching heroines of conjugal love4 ,in the life of their sister they are but secondary figures2 but as it is permitted even among the saints of paradise to have a preference1 we must confess that1 in this beautiful group of heroic figures1 our predilection has always been for the two eldest4 ,it will be readily understood1 then1 with what respect and emotion we have opened the book1 in which we would not only find the abridged recital of the actions of ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 but could see her act1 hear her speak herself of her dearly loved mother1 listen to the passionate accents of her voice1 and1 indeed1 almost feel the very beatings of her heart4 ,this volume1 printed by ,tchener with great typographical care1 contains the life of the ,duchess of ,ayen1 written by ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 in the fortress of ,olmutz1 on the margin of a ,buffon1 with a little ,india-ink and a tooth-pick1 and subject to the hateful inspection of the ,austrian jailers4 ,we could not find a more touching relic4 ,nowadays we mount distinguished autographs in gold2 should this ever pass into public sale1 would it not justify unheard-of extravagances8 ,and we have now this life of ,madame de ,la ,fayette compiled by a daughter worthy of her1 ,madame de ,lasteyrie1 herself the representative of the virtue and charity of a race of which1 according to an expression applied to an eminent royal family1 all the daughters were chaste and the sons valiant4 ,and to these two recitals we add another document1 that we had the good fortune to publish in ,april1 #ahdg1 in which the good ,abb ,carrichon1 an ecclesiastic full of zeal1 but timid in character1 and who only by the grace of the holy ministry could rise to intrepidity1 relates1 in the most perfect good faith1 the anguish he endured1 when to his lot it fell to give to the three condemned ones the peace and consolation of last pardon4 ,those who may be astonished to find in a whole generation of the same family so many and such extraordinary virtues1 may rest assured of its truth4 ,imagination has added nothing to the edifying recital of these beautiful lives4 ,the original documents that we give to-day in their sublime nakedness1 bear an accent of austere heroism and holy enthusiasm that strengthens the heart and penetrates it with the love of good2 they vouch for our first publication4 #ghc ,in the rapid analysis we will try to make from these documents1 we will present the most striking traits of the character and life of ,madame de ,la ,fayette4 ,adrienne de ,noailles1 second daughter of the ,duchess of ,ayen1 was of ardent temperament1 of deep sensibility1 with a lively imagination and a mind well informed4 ,she ever refused to adopt any idea imposed upon her1 that could not be subject to a free discussion4 ,she seized difficulties and penetrated to their depths4 ,while still a child1 she was troubled by doubts of her religion1 even when1 at the age of twelve1 she was prepared for her first communion4 ,she does not give us the nature of these doubts1 but it is clearly seen they never interfered with the practice of piety2 on the contrary1 her thirst for truth increased her fervor4 ,her pious mother was not alarmed at this state of her soul2 she divined the source1 and waited with confidence for grace to dissipate the clouds4 ,only1 she believed it best to defer the first communion of her daughter until1 calm and reassured1 she could enjoy her supreme happiness in all its plenitude4 ,and she did not presume too much on the integrity of her daughter2 never was more solid piety or firmer faith implanted in a heart of deeper conviction4 ,if we were to study anew the perfect model of a mother which the ,duchess of ,ayen presents in the portrait drawn of her by ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 a portrait depicted1 too1 with a sincerity that does not fear to let us penetrate the shadows1 and so prove its reality1 we should dwell upon the profoundly ,christian spirit that directed her in the choice of her sons-in-law4 ,we there see her rising above all worldly considerations1 seeking above all things in them the moral qualities which may assure the happiness of her daughters2 for she did not look upon marriage1 as is too often done1 as a simple affair of interest1 of fortune1 or of vanity1 but it was1 in her eyes1 the sacred tie in which love should bear the greater part4 ,god1 who united man and woman1 and who said1 ,man shall leave father and mother1 and cleave to his wife1 and they two shall be one flesh1 has he not made love the duty of ,christian marriage8 ,under the old rgime and among the nobility1 marriages were contracted early1 and ,mesdemoiselles de ,noailles were scarcely twelve or thirteen years old when the first proposition for their hands were made for them to their mother4 ,one of these candidates1 the ,marquis de ,la ,fayette1 was himself only fourteen years old4 ,his extreme youth1 his isolated position1 having lost all his near relations1 an immense fortune suddenly acquired1 which the ,duchesse d',ayen looked upon only as a temptation1 all these considerations1 which in a purely worldly view would have seduced many a mother1 decided her at first to refuse him1 notwithstanding the good opinion she entertained of his character4 ,the ,duke d',ayen strongly insisted on an alliance which combined every advantage of rank and wealth1 but the duchess for several months none the less persisted in her refusal2 and it was only after a more attentive examination of the character of ,m4 de ,lafayette had reassured her of the future of her daughter1 that1 demanding a delay of two years1 she finally gave her consent4 ,the idea of the moment when she must resign her daughters into the keeping of another1 filled her with apprehension2 evidently1 she desired for them a felicity that she had not enjoyed herself1 that of entire conformity of tastes1 thoughts1 and character in the companions of their lives2 and when the marriages were resolved upon1 it is delightful to read in the recital of ,madame de ,la ,fayette the detail of touching cares with which this tender mother charged herself1 to prepare these eldest daughters for their new stations--one to espouse the ,viscount de ,noailles1 a cousin whom she had loved since her infancy1 and the other to be united to ,m4 de ,la ,fayette4 #ghd ',my heart attracted me to ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1' says with much simplicity the manuscript of the prisoner of ,olmutz1 'and with a sentiment so profound1 that our union has always been one of firmness and tenderness through all the vicissitudes of this life--through all the good and evil that have been our lot for twenty-four years4 ,with what pleasure ,i discovered that1 for more than a year1 my mother had looked upon and loved him as her son6 ,she detailed to me all the good she had known of him--what she thought of him herself1 and ,i soon saw he possessed for her the filial charm that made the happiness of my life4 ,she occupied herself in aiding my poor head1 especially about this time so empty and so weak1 to keep from going astray during such an important event4 ,she taught me to ask1 and she asked for me1 the blessings of heaven on the state ,i was about to embrace4 ',i was then only fourteen and a half years old1 and1 having new duties to perform1 my mother believed it her duty to reapply herself to the care of forming my sister and myself for our future destinies4 ,the confidence with which we always conversed with her1 gave her abundant opportunity4 ,it was not the kind of confidence to which1 ,i believe1 mothers oftener pretend than obtain from their children--that inspired by a companion of one's own age--but the perfect and intimate trust which needs the direction and approval of a parent1 and causes a pang of fear in any step1 visit1 or conversation1 of which she may not approve4 ,a confidence1 in fine1 which always returns to its support--to its guide1 in whose light it would repose as well as in its tenderness2 a guide who1 if even one could not always approve its decisions1 and might encounter its reproaches1 would still be considered necessary1 and to whom the idea of dissimulation would be insupportable4 ',such was my feeling toward my mother1 who often permitted me to argue with her4' ,the ceremony of the marriage accomplished1 the husband of sixteen years set out for his regiment1 and the young bride testified by her grief at this separation all the affection she experienced for him4 ,he returned3 the religious education of ,madame de ,la ,fayette was completed1 she made her first communion with an entire faith and in the most humble dispositions1 and soon after1 on the #aeth of ,december1 #agge1 she became a mother for the first time4 ,the faculty of loving knew no bounds in this youthful heart4 ,identified in all the tastes1 aspirations1 sentiments1 and interests of him who had given her the right to say1 in all sincerity1 ,i love you religiously1 worldly1 passionately1 she adopted the political faith of her husband1 and1 without any personal afterthought1 without weakness or hesitation1 from her most tender age1 valiantly accepted all the sacrifices and all the perils of the public life of a man whose political preoccupations governed him exclusively4 ,he held the best part of her heart2 but1 immovable in her religious faith1 ,madame de ,la ,fayette never sacrificed a principle nor a practice of piety to her conjugal idolatry4 ,it is remarkable1 also1 that this ardor of passion for her husband never weakened the vivacity of her tenderness for her mother1 her children1 and her oldest sister1 who1 from the cradle1 had been her dearest friend4 #ghe ,inasmuch as she was sufficient for every duty1 so her soul was sufficient in all its affections4 ,the war which broke out about this time between ,england and her ,american colonies1 opened to the ,marquis de ,la ,fayette the brilliant arena that would give immortality to his name2 but for his young companion began an existence full1 at the same time1 of anguish and delirious joy1 of grief and devotion4 ,the family of ,noailles had strongly adopted philosophical ideas1 and willingly followed the liberal views of the eighteenth century4 ,the generous enthusiasm1 however1 which led ,m4 de ,la ,fayette to devote himself to the service of the ,american people vindicating their independence1 was at first severely disapproved of and considered madness by the ,duke d',ayen and the ,marshal de ,noailles4 ,the marquis was nineteen2 he had been married three years1 was already a father1 and soon expected a second child4 ,madame de ,la ,fayette and the ,duchess d',ayen alone understood the motives that determined the departure of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette2 the former studied in every way to conceal the torture of her heart1 preferring to be considered insensible1 or too much of a child1 to giving the appearance1 by showing her grief1 of wrong to the object of her worship4 ,meanwhile1 the great struggle1 of which the new world was the theatre1 and in which aristocratic ,england found herself at war with the principal democracy of modern society1 held all ,europe in suspense4 ,the greatest interest was felt in ,france for the success of the ,americans4 ,while the ,french government1 though understanding how matters stood1 hesitated1 nevertheless1 to take an open part in the quarrel1 public opinion declared itself still more favorably for the ,united ,states2 the various incidents of the war were greedily sought after1 each success of the insurgents excited enthusiasm1 and soon all hearts beat in unison with that of ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 for the success of the young hero who had so actively contributed to such glorious results4 ,we must transport ourselves to this time1 recall its events1 watch the fever of public opinion1 to understand what must have been1 after two years' absence1 the first return of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 and the intoxication of joy his wife experienced4 ,he was not long in setting out again for the new world1 and did not return from there finally until #aghb1 after the brilliant campaign of which his valor assured the success1 and which terminated by the surrender of ,lord ,cornwallis4 ,his return was unexpected1 a surprise for the court as well as the city3 the memoirs and memories of the ,count de ,segur furnished curious testimony to support what we have said4 ,we read3 ,all who lived in that day will still remember the enthusiasm occasioned by the return of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 an enthusiasm of which the queen herself partook4 ,they were celebrating1 at the ,hotel de ,ville1 a brilliant fte on the occasion of the birth of an heir to the throne4 ,the news came of the arrival of the conqueror of ,cornwallis4 ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 who assisted at the fte1 received a special mark of favor2 the queen placed her in her own carriage1 and drove to the ,hotel de ,noailles1 where the marquis1 her husband1 had just alighted4 ,footnote #bbg ,footnote #bbg3 ,tome i4 p4 #ahj4 ,the excess of sentiment of ,madame de ,la ,fayette for her husband at this time1 was such that she suffered intensely in his presence4 ,she endeavored to conceal her passion for him1 and trembled lest she might seem importunate1 and weary him4 ,some years after1 she confessed to ,m4 de ,la ,fayette this passionate attraction for him which she had so resisted2 but1 she added gently1 you need not be dissatisfied with what is left4 #ghf ,we1 who have only known ,m4 de ,la ,fayette soured and old1 and do not feel well disposed toward him1 because1 under the restoration1 he shadowed his glory as liberator of two worlds by intrigues with secret societies2 we find it difficult to imagine him so charming1 carrying away every heart4 ,but it was even so2 and1 at the same time that popular favor rendered him so powerful among the multitude1 the most beautiful1 the proudest1 the most brilliant ladies of the court1 were madly in love with him4 ,but we are not writing a biography of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 and it will be understood that1 in an article on the saintly companion of his life1 we would not wish any controversy on so illustrious a person1 and for whom1 with some reservation1 we profess great and sincere respect4 ,we will not speak1 then1 of the events of the revolution1 in which he played so prominent a part1 only inasmuch as our heroine was mingled with and took part in them4 ,the abolition of the slave-trade was one of the philanthropic preoccupations of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette4 ,he bought a plantation at ,cayenne1 la belle ,gabrielle1 in order to give an example of a gradual enfranchisement of the slaves1 and referred to the active charity of his wife the details of his enterprise4 ,with this view1 she kept up a correspondence with the priests of the seminary du ,saint-,esprit1 who had a house at ,cayenne4 ,if circumstances did not permit the realization of her hopes1 at least she had the consolation of knowing that1 thanks to the religious instruction given to the blacks on this plantation1 they were guilty of less horrors than at any other point in the colonies4 ,we must recognize here1 too1 and to its eternal honor1 that ,america has always been the portion of the globe where liberty of conscience1 loudly proclaimed1 has never ceased to be practised4 ,it was not so in old ,europe and in ,france before #aghi1 so the contrast presented by this free state of things1 and the numerous vexations to which the different religions were exposed with us1 could not but forcibly strike ,m4 de ,la ,fayette on his return4 ,after a journey to ,nimes1 where he studied more closely the situation of the ,protestants1 he was able to present1 with full knowledge of the case1 a proposition to the ,assembly of the ,notables in #aghg1 demanding their restoration to the civil rights of which they had been despoiled4 ,i love to remember that an eminent ,catholic clergyman1 ,mgr4 ,luzerne1 ,bishop of ,langres1 and later1 ,cardinal1 warmly supported the proposition for this act of justice4 ,madame de ,la ,fayette shared these sentiments1 and received with lively interest the ,protestant ministers whom the result of the affair attracted around her husband4 ,a zealous child of the ,catholic ,church1 she detested the persecutions that could only alienate her children1 and which appeared to her so opposed to the spirit of ,christianity4 ,after #aghc1 ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 whose family had increased considerably1 and whose political importance had reached its height1 left the hotel de ,noailles1 to establish himself in his own house1 rue de ,bourbon1 now the rue de ,lille4 ,and there the ever-increasing wave of the revolutionary movement1 that was never able to overcome the virtue and brightness of a king1 the most estimable as a man of any who ever wore a crown1 found our heroine4 ,the high position of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 deputy of the nobility1 member of the ,constitutional ,assembly1 and commander-in-chief of the ,parisian ,national ,guard1 imposed obligations on him in which his wife never repudiated her part4 ,she was seen to accept the successive demands of each of the districts of ,paris1 to the number of sixty2 to preside at the blessing of flags and other patriotic demonstrations4 ,the general kept open house1 and did its honors in a manner to charm his numerous guests4 #ghg ',but1 says her daughter1 ,madame de ,lasteyrie1 initiated into her most secret thoughts1 'what she suffered in the depths of her own heart1 only those who heard her speak1 can tell4 ,she saw my father at the head of a revolution of which it was impossible to foretell the end4 ,every evil1 every disorder1 was judged by her with a complete lack of illusion in her own cause2 yet she was so sustained by the principles of her husband1 and so convinced of the good he could do1 and the evil he might avert1 that she bore with incredible strength the continual dangers to which she was exposed4 ,never1 said she to us1 did ,i see him go out during this time1 without thinking that ,i heard his last adieu4 ,no one was more terrified than she by the dangers of those she loved2 but in these times1 she rose above herself1 and in her devotion to my father1 hoped he could prevent the increasing crime4' ,we may infer from these words the perpetual anguish of ,madame de ,la ,fayette during the three first years of the revolution4 ,in the ,duchesse d',ayen she found a support full of sweetness and tenderness2 who1 though sharing none of the opinions of her son-in-law1 believed firmly in the rectitude of his intentions4 ,her angelic sister1 the ,viscountess de ,noailles1 felt exactly as she did1 loved equally a husband1 young1 handsome1 brave1 and charming1 associated in the most advanced ideas of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 and1 like him1 a member of the ,assembly4 ,the eldest daughter1 too1 of ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 began at this time to be of much comfort to her2 she had her make her first communion in #agij4 ,it was1 in the midst of the great political events of that epoch1 the first concern of her maternal heart4 ,the civil constitution of the clergy was to be one of the most sensible tribulations of ,madame de ,la ,fayette4 ,she considered she should1 more particularly on account of her personal situation1 declare her attachment for the ,catholic ,church2 consequently she was present at the refusal of the oath which the cur of ,saint ,sulpice made from the pulpit1 of whom she was a parishioner2 she was constantly meeting there with persons most known by their opposition to the new principles1 and with those then called the aristocratie4 ,she took part assiduously in the offices1 at first in the churches and afterward in the oratories where the persecuted clergy took refuge4 ,she continually received the nuns who fled to her for protection2 or priests not under oath1 whom she encouraged in the exercise of their functions1 and the preservation of their religious liberty4 ,she well knew that such conduct was hurtful to the popularity of her husband1 of great importance to her to preserve1 but no consideration could stop her in what she considered a duty4 ,m4 de ,la ,fayette never interfered with the conduct of his wife2 he held as nobly to his principles of liberty of conscience in this respect as in all others4 ,aloud he disapproved of the oath extorted from the ,catholic priests1 opposed it wherever he could1 and was at least successful in preventing the articles relative to this civil constitution of the clergy from being constitutional2 on the contrary1 they were even rejected from the class of ordinary laws that any new legislature might revise4 ,for ,general ,la ,fayette deluded himself that the constitution of #agia was destined to last4 ,but whatever his sentiments1 that which made him respect the religious convictions of his wife1 and oppose all his power to the persecution of the clergy1 does great honor to his character4 #ghh ,as the priests under oath were habitually received by the commander of the ,national ,guard at ,paris1 ,madame de ,la ,fayette never dissimulated before them her attachment to the ancient bishops2 but she mingled in her expressions so much adroitness with her sincerity that she never wounded them4 ,only once she deviated from the rule of tolerance that she imposed on herself on her husband's account1 and that was when the newly elected constitutional ,bishop of ,paris1 came to dine officially with the general4 ,she would not recognize by her presence the quality of his diocese1 and dined out1 although she knew by doing so it could not fail to be made a subject of remark4 ,meanwhile1 the ever-increasing revolutionary delirium multiplied disorders1 paralyzed the efforts of the constitutional party1 and rendered the part of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette more and more difficult4 ,he was suspected on both sides1 by the court and by the ,jacobins1 and was rapidly wearing out the remains of an expiring popularity in an already useless struggle4 ,the king1 to escape the odious tyranny of which he was the victim1 attempted to fly from ,paris2 we know the rest4 ,arrested at ,varennes1 brought back to the ,tuileries1 he and his family were placed in the closest confinement4 ,the unhappy prince at last resigned himself to accept the constitution1 the ,constituent ,assembly terminated its sittings1 and was replaced by the ,legislative ,assembly1 and ,general ,la ,fayette1 sincere in the illusion that the revolution was finished and the future secured1 gave in his resignation as commander of the ,national ,guard1 and set out for ,auvergne with his wife and children4 ,now in the destiny of ,madame de ,la ,fayette there came a short truce of happiness2 the journey from ,paris to ,chavaniac was a series of ovations that popular enthusiasm spread1 for the last time1 before her idol4 ,the ,duchess d' ,ayen and the ,viscountess de ,noailles came a little while to share this apparent and transitory calm2 but the ,duke d',ayen had emigrated to ,switzerland1 and ,madame de ,montagu had taken refuge in ,england4 ,the formation of three grand army corps had been decreed1 in imminent danger of a foreign war2 the command of the centre was confided to ,general ,la ,fayette1 who repaired to his camp in #agia4 ,the year #agib saw the hideous journey of the #bjth of ,june1 soon after followed by the scenes more lamentable still1 of the #ajth of ,august4 ,at the news of the wicked attempt of the #bjth of ,june1 the ,general de ,la ,fayette did not fear to address to the assembly1 from ,maubeuge1 where were then his head-quarters1 a letter in which he declaimed with indignation and vehemence against the ,jacobins2 and finally1 quitting his camp1 he hastened to ,paris and appeared at the bar of the ,assembly2 there to brand energetically the violences committed at the ,tuileries1 and demand the punishment of the guilty4 ,was not this act of courage alone sufficient honor for a lifetime8 ,but finally1 seeing he had nothing to hope from the ,assembly1 he attempted to organize a resistance at ,sedan in order to save ,louis ,,xvi4 ,the triumphant ,jacobins replied1 on the #ajth of ,august1 by a decree of proscription to the refusal which ,m4 de ,la ,fayette made to recognize the fall of the king2 a price was put upon his head1 and1 constrained in his turn to seek a refuge in a foreign land1 the patriot of #aghi fell on the frontier into an ,austrian post1 was arrested with his aides-de-camp1 conducted first to ,namur1 then to ,wesel1 and considered by the allied powers as an enemy of universal peace1 whose liberty was incompatible with the surety of ,european governments4 #ghi ,the arbitrary detention of ,,mm4 de ,la ,fayette1 ,latour ,maubourg1 and ,bureaux de ,pusy1 remains one of the disgraces of the government of the ,emperor ,francis ,,ii41 and he cannot be blamed enough for it2 but in the condition of parties and in view of the renown of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 had it not for him some great advantages8 ,in our eyes1 the five years of carcere duro inflicted upon the hero of ,american liberty1 completed his glory4 ,such were the sentiments of ,madame de ,stal when she wrote to congratulate him on his release3 ,your misfortune has preserved your glory1 and if your health can be restored1 you will come out perfect from the tomb where your name has acquired a new lustre4 ,but dating from this epoch1 what was not the ineffable anguish of ,madame de ,la ,fayette8 ,informed of the arrest of her husband1 she had but one thought--to release him or share his captivity4 ,but she had two other duties to fulfil2 to get her son out of ,france1 and1 if possible1 to confide him to the friendship of ,general ,washington1 and to protect the interests of the creditors of ,general ,la ,fayette by giving them the sequestrated estates for security1 and in both she experienced great difficulty4 ,arrested at ,chavaniac1 where she was resting with her son1 aged thirteen1 her two daughters1 and the aged aunt who had brought up ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 she obtained from ,roland1 then minister of the interior1 permission not to be taken to ,paris1 but to remain at ,chavaniac on parole4 ,encouraged by this testimony of humanity1 and hoping to be delivered from an engagement that weighed so heavily on her1 she smothered her natural pride and again addressed herself to ,roland3 ',i can only attribute to a sentiment of kindness1' she wrote him1 'the change you have brought about in my situation4 ,you spare me the dangers of too perilous a journey1 and consent to give me my retreat for my prison4 ,but any prison1 be it what it may1 is insupportable to me1 since ,i have learned this morning from the gazette of ,m4 ,brissot1 that my husband has been transferred from town to town by the enemies of ,france1 and is being conducted to ,spandau4 ,whatever repugnance ,i may feel to owe a service to those who have shown themselves the enemies and accusers of him whom ,i revere and love as he only is worthy of being loved1 yet it is in all the sincerity of my heart that ,i vow eternal gratitude to him who1 while relieving the administration from responsibility and giving me my freedom1 will afford me the opportunity to rejoin my husband1 if ,france is sufficiently free to allow me to travel without risk4 ,on my knees1 if necessary1 ,i ask you this favor4 ,judge of my present state of mind4 ,noailles ,la ,fayette4 ,a faithful friend bore this letter to ,roland4 ,he appeared deeply moved1 and replied immediately3 ,i have placed your touching appeal1 my dear madam1 before the committee4 ,i must observe1 however1 that it would not appear to me prudent for a person of your name to travel in ,france1 on account of the unfortunate impressions just now attached to it4 ,but circumstances may change4 ,be assured if they do1 ,i shall be the first to seize upon them for your advantage4 ,for three months the poor woman was without any news of the general1 though she redoubled every effort to obtain it2 she wrote to the ,princess of ,orange1 to the ,duke of ,brunswick1 to ,klopstock1 but all in vain4 ,toward the middle of ,june1 there came to her1 through the interposition of the ,united ,states minister1 two letters from ,m4 de ,la ,fayette2 they were dated from the dungeon of ,magdebourg1 and the inquietude they gave her concerning the health of her husband made her more than ever anxious to join him4 #gij ,governeur ,morris1 then ,american minister1 proved her constant and faithful friend1 and from him she accepted the loan of money of which she had need1 to pay some debts and for the daily expenses of her family4 ,at this time many of the wives of emigrants believed it necessary for their personal security1 and preservation of their fortunes1 to be divorced2 ,madame de ,la ,fayette would never consent to save her life by such an act1 and whenever she found it necessary to present a petition or make a demand1 she took a pride in commencing all she wrote1 ,the wife of ,la ,layette4 ,in the midst of all these terrible agitations1 the fervor of our heroine never decreased4 ,she submitted with sweet resignation to the divine will1 and associated in her exercises of piety the women of the village1 who1 like herself1 were deprived of the holy sacrifice of the ,mass1 which was no longer celebrated4 ,these innocent meetings were the subject of many denunciations2 of aristocracy they could not accuse her1 but now it was fanaticism4 ,at the end of the year #agie1 after the complete defeat of the ,girondins1 the persecutions against the priests and the ci-devant nobles were redoubled1 and some of the effects of the general were exposed to sale4 ,this courageous wife repaired to ,brionde1 where the auction took place4 ,citizens1 said she1 to the district1 ,i feel myself obliged to protest before the sale about to take place1 against the enormous injustice of applying the laws of emigration to him who now is the prisoner of the enemies of ,france4 ,i demand of you certificate of my protestation4 ,the #abth of ,november1 ,madame de ,la ,fayette was informed she would be arrested the next day2 and truly she was carried off in the evening by a detachment of the ,national ,guard1 and incarcerated at ,brionde4 ,her children remained at ,chavaniac1 but at the end of a few months the jailer was won over1 and ,m4 ,frestel1 preceptor of the young ,georges1 conducted them1 one after the other1 to their mother4 444 ,it was in this prison of ,brionde that the news reached her that ,mesdames de ,noailles and ,madame d',ayen1 both arrested1 had just been transferred to the ,luxembourg2 then in ,may1 #agid1 came the order to bring the ,citoyenne ,la ,fayette to ,paris4 ,she entered there the #aith ,prairial1 eve of the fte of the ,supreme ,being1 three days before the one when1 according to ,madame de ,lasteyrie1 they built up terror upon terror4 ,placed at la petite ,force1 at the end of fifteen days she was transported to ,plessis1 where she found her cousin1 the ,duchess of ,duras4 ,the massacres of the revolutionary tribunal at this time were no less than sixty a day2 everything seemed to announce to the prisoner that she was being led to certain death4 ,one of the buildings of ,plessis served as a depot to the ,conciergerie1 and each morning saw twenty prisoners depart for the guillotine4 ,the idea that one may soon be of the number1 wrote ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 gives firmness for such a spectacle4 ,she made a will at ,plessis1 of which several passages are given2 nothing could be more noble and beautiful4 ,it begins in this way3 ,lord1 thou hast been my strength and my hope in the extreme evils that are poured down upon me2 thou art my ,god4 #gia ,fifty days were thus passed by the prisoner1 when on the #ajth ,thermidor1 a great tumult being heard in the street1 it was supposed the populace were rushing to massacre all in prison2 it was the announcement of the death of ,robespierre4 ,the representatives1 ,bourdon de l',oise and ,legendre came soon after to visit the prison and assign the fate of each4 ,all were set at liberty except ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 on whom they were not willing to pronounce sentence until they sent for the decision of the committee4 ,the unhappy woman was but little concerned at the prolongation of her captivity2 for she had just learned that her mother1 her grandmother1 and her sister had perished on the #dth ,thermidor4 ,her grief was overwhelming1 but she never revolted1 her prayers preserved her4 ,now1 she wrote to her children1 ,i find the sentiments of those ,i mourn1 those1 too1 that ,i desire1 and those that ,i pray ,god to put in my heart1 and sometimes ,i obtain all at once4 ,notwithstanding the active solicitations of ,mr4 ,monroe1 the new minister from the ,united ,states1 ,madame de ,la ,fayette was not liberated2 ,le ,piessis was used for other purposes1 so she was transferred to the ,maison ,delmas1 rue ,notre ,dame des ,champs2 she remained there four months1 and met there with the strangest people1 for it was now the partisans of the reign of terror who peopled the prisons2 but there1 as everywhere1 she gained the respect of all4 ,her physical sufferings were great during the rigorous winter of #agid and #agie4 ,everything froze in her room1 and she was peculiarly sensitive to cold4 ,god granted her in her distress a precious consolation in the visits of the ,abb ,carrichon4 ,he gave her all the details she hungered after of the death of the three dear persons that he had accompanied to the scaffold1 and with him she made a complete examination of all the faults of her life4 ,on the #bc;d of ,january1 #agie1 the deliverance1 so long retarded1 of ,madame de ,la ,fayette was finally signed1 and she was set at liberty4 ,her first care on leaving prison was to hasten to ,mr4 ,monroe and thank him for all he had done for her1 and begged him to finish the good work by obtaining passports for herself and family4 ,she had but one aim1 to rejoin her husband in ,germany with her daughters1 and place her son in safety in ,america4 ,the letter she wrote ,general ,washington1 in which she portrays with simplicity1 firmness1 and dignity the obligations she was under to ,m4 ,frestel for his devotion to her and her family1 and begs for him the regard he deserves1 is truly remarkable4 ,as to her son1 she expresses herself thus3 ,my wish is1 that my son may lead a very retired life in ,america1 and continue the studies that three years of misfortune have interrupted2 and that being far away from scenes which might abase or too strongly irritate him1 he may work to become an efficient citizen of the ,united ,states1 of which the principles and sentiments are entirely in accordance with those of ,french citizens4 ,when the time came to part with her only son1 the separation seemed cruel to her mother's heart2 but she was firmly convinced she acted in this matter as her husband would have dictated4 ,she found her strength in this thought4 ,as we read of so many sacrifices1 sufferings1 and sorrows so valiantly supported1 we find ourselves so associated in the sentiments of this incomparable person1 that we wait with feverish anxiety the moment when she should rejoin her husband4 ,the memoirs of ,madame de ,montagu give us the details of the touching reunion of ,madame de ,la ,fayette at ,altona with her two sisters and her ,aunt de ,tess2 they will be found in the account of ,madame de ,lasteyrie4 #gib ,the conversation with the ,emperor of ,austria is also there given4 ,he granted her permission to shut herself up at ,olmutz1 and by opening heaven to her1 he could scarcely have made her happier4 ',we arrived1' wrote ,madame de ,lasteyrie1 'at ,olmutz1 the #ast of ,october1 #agie1 at eleven o'clock in the morning1 in one of the covered carriages found at all the posts1 our own having been broken on the way4 ,i never shall forget the moment when the postillion showed us from afar the steeples of the town4 ,the vivid emotion of my mother is ever present with me4 ,she was almost suffocated by her tears2 and when she had sufficiently recovered herself to speak1 she blessed ,god in the words of the canticle of ,tobias3 ,thou art great1 ,o ,lord1 for ever1 and thy kingdom is unto all ages1 for thou scourgest and thou savest1 etc41 etc4 ,my father was not informed of our arrival2 he had never received a letter from my mother4 ,three years of captivity1 the last passed in complete solitude1 inquietude concerning all the objects of his affection1 and sufferings of every kind1 had deeply undermined his health2 the change in his countenance was frightful4 ,my mother was struck by it2 but nothing could diminish the intoxication of her joy1 but the bitterness of her irreparable losses4 ,my father1 after the first moment of happiness in this sudden reunion1 dared not ask her a question4 ,he knew there had been a reign of terror in ,france1 but he was ignorant of the victims4 ,the day passed without his venturing to examine into her fears1 and without my mother having the strength to explain herself4 ,only at night1 when my sister and ,i were shut into the next room assigned to us1 could she inform my father that she had lost on the scaffold her grandmother1 her mother1 and her sister4' ,madame de ,la ,fayette shared her husband's captivity twenty-seven months4 ,she paid with her health--we may say with her life--the privilege of being reunited to him she loved1 and proving to him her tenderness2 but it was such great happiness to her that1 whatever the severity that accompanied it1 it seems not even at such a price to have been too dearly bought4 ,at last the success of the ,french arms opened the dungeon of ,olmutz4 ,the ,french plenipotentiaries1 in signing the treaty of ,campo ,formio1 exacted that the prisoners should be immediately set at liberty4 ,the gates of the fortress were therefore opened to them1 and the #afth of ,september1 #agig1 they set out for ,hamburg4 ,it was just five years and a half since their arrest4 ,happy to owe his liberty solely to the triumph of the ,french army1 ,m4 de ,la ,fayette addressed to ,general ,bonaparte the expression of his gratitude and that of his companions in arms1 in these terms3 ,hamburg1 ,oct4 #f1 #agig4 ,citizen ,general3 ,the prisoners of ,olmutz1 happy to owe their deliverance to your irresistible arms1 have enjoyed in their captivity the thought that their liberty and life were attached to the triumphs of the republic and to your personal glory4 ,to-day they enjoy the homage they would love to render to their liberator4 ,it would1 indeed1 have been gratifying to us1 ,citizen ,general1 to have offered in person the expression of these sentiments1 and to have looked upon the theatre of so many victories1 the army that won them1 and the hero1 who has placed our resurrection among the number of his miracles4 ,but you know the journey to ,hamburg has not been left to our choice4 ,it is from the place where we have said good by to our jailers that we address our thanks to their conquerors4 ,in the solitary retreat in the ,danish territory of ,holstein1 where we will go to try and re-establish the health you have saved1 we will join to our vows or patriotism for the republic the most lively interest in the illustrious general1 to whom we are not only attached for the services he has rendered our country and in the cause of liberty1 but for the particular obligations that we delight to owe him1 and that the deepest gratitude has for ever engraven in our hearts4 ,salutation and respect4 ,lafayette1 ,latour ,maubourg1 ,bureaux de ,pusy4 #gic ,among all the marks of sympathy showered upon the escaped victims of ,austrian tyranny1 none touched ,m4 de ,la ,fayette more deeply than one from ,madame de ,stal--full of respect and emotion4 ,mathieu de ,montmorency added to it a few lines in which these words strike us3 ,the constant occupation of your misfortunes and your courage has outlived in me1 and ever will1 my alienation from all political activity2 but ,i believe ,i should renew all my ancient enthusiasm to welcome one so constant in the cause of liberty4 ,although the health of ,madame de ,la ,fayette was destroyed1 she preserved her wonderful activity and force of character4 ,it was she1 the only one of her family1 whose name was not on the list of the banished1 who was able the first to enter ,france1 and there regulate her affairs and the return of all her relations4 ,it was she again who1 after the #ahth ,brumaire1 understood that ,general ,la ,fayette should return immediately without waiting for any authority that might possibly have been refused him4 ,sure of the marvellous tact with which she judged her surroundings1 he followed her advice without any other information4 ,the news of his arrival in ,paris was not pleasing to the first consul2 he wanted the general to return to ,holland and solicit his entrance1 like every one else4 ,madame de ,la ,fayette called upon him1 was graciously received1 exposed the peculiar position of her husband1 and the favorable effect that his return could not fail to produce on all honest and patriotic men1 and proved herself noble1 skilful1 and prudent4 ,i am delighted1 madame1 said the first consul to her1 to have made your acquaintance2 you have great good sense1 but you understand nothing of business4 ,however1 it was agreed to that ,m4 de ,la ,fayette might remain openly in ,paris without asking permission4 ,madame de ,lasteyrie1 in her recital1 in which the most noble sentiments are expressed so simply and happily1 has given us a page that portrays the whole soul of her heroic mother4 ,retirement would still have been preferable to my father under the consular magistracy of ,bonaparte2 under the despotism of ,napoleon1 it was1 through honor1 enforced upon him4 ,in either case1 it fulfilled the wishes of my mother4 ,after so much suffering and exhaustion1 a retired life--perfect quietude would not have been necessary for her--in which in peace she could consecrate the affections of her soul to those dearest to her1 was the only earthly happiness she sought4 ,she felt too deeply1 too passionately1 ,i may say1 the emotions of family life to desire others4 ,neither the grandeur of her former state1 nor the clat even of her misfortunes1 had excited in her that pride of imagination which cannot bear a simple existence4 ,her devotion rose above every trial1 but the sentiments and easy duties of an obscure destiny sufficed for her heart4 ,love filled it entirely4 ,what can we add to this picture8 ,nothing1 only to ask the perusal of the admirable letter of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette1 which ends the volume4 ,he there relates the long agony1 the tender and charming delirium of the heavenly creature whose affections he possessed4 ,to have seen him a practical ,christian would have been the realization of her most cherished wish4 ,if ,i am going to another home1 you must feel1 she said to him once1 that ,i shall be occupied there with you4 ,the sacrifice of my life would be very little1 however much it may cost me to part with you1 if it could assure your eternal happiness4 ,another time1 she said to him3 ,you are not a ,christian8 ,as he did not reply1 she said3 ,ah6 ,i know what you are1 a fatalist4 ,you believe me proud1 answered the general1 are you not a little so yourself8 ,oh6 yes6 she cried1 with all my heart4 ,i feel that ,i would give my life for that sect4 #gid ,another time1 in this half delirium which led astray her ideas1 but never her heart1 she said3 ,this life is short1 troubled2 let us be reunited in ,god1 and set out together for eternity4 ,her ,god and her husband were her thoughts to the last moment4 ,she died on ,christmas night1 the #beth of ,december1 #ahjg1 pressing the cherished hand and saying1 ,i am yours for ever4 ,those who wish to finish this picture of conjugal love1 must do as we have done1 seek in the memoirs of an illustrious contemporary the scene that completes it4 ,in the ,memoires de ,m4 ,guizot1 in the year #ahcd1 we read3 ,some months before ,m4 de ,talleyrand had retired from public affairs1 another celebrated man1 very different in character1 and celebrated in other ways1 had disappeared from all worldly scenes4 ,no life had been more exclusively1 more passionately political than that of ,m4 de ,la ,fayette2 no man had more constantly placed his political sentiments and ideas above all other preoccupations and all other interests1 and yet in his death he was completely estranged from them4 ,having been ill for three weeks1 he approached his last hour2 his children and family alone surrounded his bed4 ,he spoke no more1 and they supposed he could not see4 ,his son ,george noticed that1 with an uncertain hand1 he sought something on his breast2 he came to the assistance of his father and laid in his hand the medallion that ,m4 de ,la ,fayette always wore suspended from his neck4 ,he pressed it to his lips1 and expired4 ,this medallion contained the likeness and hair of ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 his wife whom he had lost twenty-seven years before4 ,thus1 already separated from the entire world1 alone with the thought and image of the devoted companion of his life1 he died4 ,when his obsequies were spoken of1 it was a recognized fact in the family1 that ,m4 de ,la ,fayette wished to be buried in the little cemetery adjoining the convent of ,picpus1 by the side of ,madame de ,la ,fayette1 in the midst of the victims of the revolution1 for the most part1 royalists1 and of the aristocracy1 whose relations had founded this pious establishment4 ,this wish of the veteran of #aghi was scrupulously respected and carried out4 ,an immense crowd1 troops1 national guards1 people of all kinds accompanied the funeral procession through the avenues and streets of ,paris4 ,arrived at the gate of the convent1 the crowd was stopped2 the interior enclosure could not admit more than two or three hundred persons2 the family1 the near relations1 the principal authorities entered alone1 walked silently through the convent into the modest garden1 then penetrated the cemetery4 ,there no political manifestation took place2 no discourse was pronounced2 religion and the intimate memories of the soul alone were present2 politics had no place near the death-bed or the tomb of the man whose life it had filled and governed4 ,lon ,arbaud4 ------------- #gie ,translated ,from ,the ,revue ,du ,monde ,catholique4 ,flaminia4 ,by ,alexandre ,de ,bar4 ,so you really believe that the soul lives for ever8 said the ,baron ,frederic4 ,certainly ,i do1 answered the ,count ,shrann4 ,that is very strange1 replied the first speaker1 emptying at a single draught a tankard of beer whose size a ,german could alone look at without trembling4 ,and you believe that those whom we have loved in this world we shall again love in the next1 and they will remember us even as we shall remember them8 ,certainly ,i do6 again replied the count4 ,this is yet more strange1 observed the baron2 and then both of them continued to smoke on in silence4 ,they seemed1 indeed1 so completely absorbed in the contemplation of the bluish clouds of smoke which they continued to puff forth so regularly into the already misty and thickened atmosphere1 that one might reasonably have thought that the discussion would end there2 but such was not the case4 ,let us profit by this interval to make known to our readers who were the ,count ,shrann and the ,baron ,frederic4 ,they were two old fellow-soldiers1 of whom the recollection yet remains in the minds of those who knew them1 as being the most perfect type of that warm and devoted friendship which is less rare than one thinks or than one will admit4 ,they were two brave ,germans1 who had courageously held their places during the wars in the commencement of this century4 ,they had fought side by side with all the ardor of their youth and patriotism1 and had on many occasions saved each other's lives by their bravery4 ,this community of dangers and obligations had yet further strengthened the links of a friendship commenced in their childhood2 so that when the peace of #ahae gave to ,europe1 wearied out by war1 a time of rest1 our two friends placed their experience and capabilities at the service of their country1 as they had already offered the tribute of their blood and courage1 each taking on himself the tie and responsibility of married life4 ,both married on the same day the two daughters of a neighbor whom the war had ruined2 and if their brides were little endowed with worldly possessions1 at least they were rich in virtues1 and that is a wealth which equals the former1 although it be much less sought after1 and1 we may even add1 more difficult to find4 ,unfortunately these marriages so alike in happiness were far less so in their duration2 for at the end of two years ,gertrude1 the wife of the ,baron ,frederic1 died1 leaving in the heart and life of her husband a void which nothing could fill4 ,many were the efforts made to console the poor baron1 many were the mothers who lavished on him their sweetest smiles2 many were the maidens who directed on him their chaste regards1 and who pictured to themselves a brilliant future in which his name and fortune held a prominent place2 but all was useless1 for the baron remained quite insensible to these efforts and designs4 #gif ,his friend1 and even his sister-in-law1 counselled him to seek in a new marriage that close and loving friendship which he was so well adapted to appreciate2 but at length1 seeing him so obstinately faithful to the memory of ,gertrude1 they feared to afflict him1 and so ceased to press him on the subject1 trusting all to time1 which1 nevertheless1 rolled on without bringing any change to the baron's regrets and resolutions4 ,his was one of those strongly organized minds where the impressions1 lively as they are lasting1 resist the stronger that they are unaccompanied by outward efforts4 ,hence was it that the baron supported1 without giving way an instant1 the blow which had struck him1 and yet the wound in his heart remained as sensitive and as painful as on that day when with his own hands he placed his well-beloved ,gertrude in her shroud4 ,old age came on1 bringing with it its longing for rest1 and then the two friends quitted their public life as they had entered it1 side by side4 ,the baron went to live with his brother1 for thus he designated his friend2 and only once every year left his castle to visit his own property and tenants1 toward whom he showed a kindness without limit4 ,some of these tenants abused that kindness1 and paid their rent year after year1 with tears1 excuses1 and complaints1 the worthy baron leaving them unmolested2 and when his steward spoke to him of sending off the estate these families1 he replied3 ,better that this should happen to me1 who have patience with them1 than send them away to those who probably would have none4 ,no sooner was he returned to the castle than he forgot all these things1 and recommenced spoiling and fondling his nephews and nieces1 of whom he had no small number2 for the ,count ,shrann was a descendant of those ancient families who seemed to have presented the prolific virtue of the golden age2 nor did the number of his nephews and nieces give any anxious thoughts to the baron1 since often would he say to his friend3 ,why torment yourself so much about the future of your children8 ,you will always have enough to settle them all in life2 and besides1 ,i myself1 who have but cousins in ,i do not know what remote degree of affinity1 ,i find it but just that these my nephews should inherit my property before them4 ,and then the count became silent1 for he found the baron's answer quite natural1 and such as he himself should have made1 had their positions been reversed4 ,between these two men1 so closely united by affection and so similar in heart and understanding1 there was but one subject on which their point of view was diametrically opposed1 and that was the one with which they were engaged at the opening of this chapter4 ,count ,shrann1 who had been brought up by a loving and pious mother1 was a ,catholic both in heart and soul2 whilst the ,baron ,frederic had1 on the contrary1 lost both his parents at a very early age1 and had been brought up by his uncle1 who boasted of being the friend and the protector of the ,encyclopedists2 so that ,frederic had been educated in that cold and barren school of materialism which ,voltaire has the doubtful honor of having founded4 ,baron ,frederic believed in nothing spiritual1 a circumstance which caused great chagrin to his friend1 whence it happened that on this1 as on so many former occasions1 the two friends1 after the dinner-hour1 had passed long hours in smoking and drinking huge tankards of beer1 whilst making the same questions and the same answers on this1 the one great subject of their difference in opinion and faith4 #gig ,so you believe that the soul lives for ever8 said the baron4 ,certainly ,i do1 replied the count4 ,it is very strange1 answered the baron2 and then both recommenced to smoke yet more vigorously than before4 ,after a lapse of time during which two less serious men would have discussed three or four such subjects of conversation1 the count recommenced3 ,what do you see so strange in my remark8 ,it is to see a mind such as yours give way to similar ideas and tales fit only1 to say the best of it1 to frighten children with4 ,i1 for my part1 am yet more astonished to see a man so logical as yourself refuse to believe it2 and how dare you treat as springing from weakness of mind that belief which you cannot deny fortifies the soul and places it above the blows of adversity8 ,the soul1 the soul1 replied the baron1 what is the soul8 ,a name without a substance1 and ,i do not know what of indefinable and vague4 ,a something that we can neither see nor touch1 and which eludes both the senses and the understanding4 ,i1 for my part1 believe in nothing but that which ,i can see or touch4 ,i would remind you1 my dear friend1 that there are a crowd of things in which you believe1 without ever having seen them4 ,it is because science explains those things1 and ,i believe in her4 ,science6 why1 you are too clever not to admit of her inability to give you a full explanation of any one thing4 ,science proves that the fact exists1 but she does not explain the first cause of its existence4 ,she discovers the eternal laws which rule the universe1 and it is by that means that she conducts the unprejudiced spirit from the discovery of things created to the knowledge of the ,creator of all things2 but the first causes of these same laws are utterly unknown to her4 ,and what tells you that she will not yet discover them8 ,never6 ,for if the human understanding is immense1 yet it is not infinite4 ,we have seen many discoveries and marvels2 our great-grandchildren will witness yet many more2 but these will not be produced in any more developed sense than that which ,i just now indicated to you4 ,the first causes will ever rest unknown to them as for us4 ,but where are the proofs which prove the existence of the soul1 and render it palpable to the eyes of the understanding8 ,the eyes of the heart1 do they not equal those of the understanding8 quickly answered the count4 ,what6 ,you feel within yourself a soul which thinks and which loves1 which possesses in itself a longing for happiness1 a thirst for truth1 so utterly beyond the happiness and the truths of this world that it can only be a souvenir or a revelation1 from on high1 of something purer and more perfect2 you love the good and you spurn the evil1 even to self-sacrifice2 nay1 more1 you prefer death to the evil2 you hear in the depths of your heart that powerful voice which cries to all humanity that the soul cannot die2 and yet you ask for a proof of the existence of this soul1 and of its immortality6 ,death is visible to us on every side4 ,he menaces us2 he presses upon us2 all that is above1 beneath1 on each side of us1 is dead or dying4 #gih ,man alone drives back before him that supreme law of final decay and oblivion2 he whose life is comparatively much shorter than that of all other existences in this world1 he alone hopes for an eternity which has no type here below1 and which he could not even have conceived in himself1 had it not been revealed to him4 ,surrounded by errors1 he dreams the truth2 wretched in this life1 he dreams of a happiness without alloy2 mortal1 he dreams of immortality4 ,is not all this an infallible proof of his future destiny8 ,god1 who created man1 would not he be both cruel and unjust had he given him all these profound aspirations toward a future state of happiness1 only to plunge him finally in the abyss of eternal death8 ,that secret voice speaks to you also1 my friend2 it resounds in the silence of your heart1 and offers to you1 as it does to others1 its consoling hopes4 ,why do you not listen to it8 ,when you saw before you1 pale and discolored1 destined to an inexorable decay1 the body of her whom you so much loved2 when the mouth that had so lately spoken to you1 closed for ever2 when those eyes1 in which you had ever read their tenderness1 became fixed1 dull1 and without expression2 when that hand1 which had but a moment before sought yours to press it for a last time1 fell for ever powerless1 equally insensible to the kisses with which you covered it1 and to your tears1 which rained on it-- ,here the baron1 without trying to hide his emotion1 dried1 with the back of his hand1 the tears that this recollection of his beloved ,gertrude caused him4 ,the count continued3 ,that mouth1 those eyes1 that hand1 they are the same2 but where is the soul which animated them8 ,did you not then hear that interior voice which called with yet greater force1 ,thou shalt see her again8 ,that body which the earth will hide to-morrow is but the form1 and not the essence--the outward shape1 but not the living spirit4 ,a soul which you loved1 and which rendered to thee an equal affection1 animated that form1 and rendered it palpable to your senses2 that soul has fled1 and the body falls back lifeless4 ,the outward form rests here motionless and insensible1 but the soul has remounted toward that celestial country where it shall await your coming1 ready again to love you with an affection which shall have to suffer no second separation4 ,and this is so true1 my friend1 that even whilst you deny this consciousness that the soul has of its future life and of its existence1 you yourself obey that feeling2 for you are faithful1 not to the simple memory of ,gertrude1 but to ,gertrude whom you feel to be still living1 though far distant from you1 and you desire to be able to say to her1 when the moment of your meeting shall come3 ',thou seest that no other love has ever been mingled with thine in my heart2 my own beloved one1 thou didst wait for me1 and ,i am come as full of thy recollection and of thy love as on that day when thou didst leave me4' ,whilst the count was thus speaking1 the baron had literally hidden himself in clouds of smoke1 out of which came forth1 by and by1 a voice1 trembling and changed by deep emotion1 which answered3 ,ah6 that ,i could believe as you do6 ,in taking away from men these consoling thoughts1 the materialists cried loudly that they were but working for the happiness of humanity yet wrapped in the shades of superstition2 whilst1 in truth1 they were but plunging it into a gulf yet more profound and more implacable2 for there is no real happiness possible where there exists a constant fear of losing that happiness4 #gii ,i know very well that the error was much more pleasant than the truth1 and that in place of the hope1 perhaps false1 but certainly full of consolation1 to re-find our friends one day1 they have left us but the terrible certainty of having for ever lost them1 and that they leave us with the heavy burden of misery which is crushing human nature1 after having broken the very support that aided man to bear its weight4 ,now that the evil is done1 how remedy it8 ,and if ,i do not believe1 what must ,i do that ,i may believe8 ,acknowledge humbly our utter helplessness2 humble the pride of an imperfect reason1 which is irritated by the thought that there is something above it2 listen to our conscience which speaks within us2 and then1 meekly kneeling down before the ,god who has created the universe1 repeat to him1 with simplicity and faith1 these words of the blind man in the gospel1 who cried1 ',lord1 that ,i may receive my sight6' ,god is not deaf to persevering prayer4 ,pray1 therefore1 and you shall see likewise4 ,certainly1 said the baron1 if ,i saw1 ,i should at once believe2 but who ever saw a soul8 ,my great-grandfather did1 answered the count4 ,you are joking4 ,not at all4 ,adolphus ,shrann1 my great-grandfather1 saw not only one soul1 but even two6 ,he was dreaming1 then4 ,no1 for he knew what he was going to see1 and that thought alone was sufficient to keep him awake4 ,ah6 then in that case somebody made a jest of him1 and by some optical delusion caused him to believe that he had seen a veritable supernatural vision4 ,no1 ,i assure you it was not so1 replied the count4 ,i am determined to relate the history to you in full1 this evening2 and1 added he1 with a voice changed by the ardent friendship that he felt for the baron1 ,i should esteem myself really happy if its recital could cause you to kneel down side by side with me before the altar of that ,god whom you are so worthy to know4 ,it is but there that we are separated1 and did you know all that my true friendship suffers in the thought that1 after living these long years together1 and after having shared all the trials and the pains of this life until our old age1 notwithstanding this1 ,i should yet be alone when the hour comes to receive the recompense4 ,ah6 my dear ,frederic1 that single thought would suffice to empoison the joys of paradise4 ,here the two friends warmly shook hands1 and after having again replenished their tankards and their pipes1 the count commenced the story that you are going to hear4 ,you know1 said the count1 that the ,shrann family has always been cited as one of the most fruitful in all ,germany4 ,and you6 you certainly have not derogated from the example of your ancestors1 said the baron4 ,neither had the ,count ,franz1 the same who was raised from the rank of baron to that of count by ,ferdinand ,,iii41 in #afde1 since he was the father of fifteen children1 eight boys and seven girls2 and of these lads ,adolphus1 the seventh son1 was the only one who remained to perpetuate the name and race1 for the others gave their lives to defend their country and the empire4 ,but if this numerous offspring was an honor to the family1 it was also a great cause of anxiety to the count2 it being a fact that though a numerous family be a source of fortune to a poor farmer1 such is not the case with a poor nobleman2 and it was no slight task to place advantageously all these children1 so that they might worthily bear and uphold their family name4 #hjj ,count ,franz made1 therefore1 the most active endeavors to marry his daughters and to establish his sons2 and he succeeded as well as he had hoped1 since only one son remained at home1 and that was ,albert1 the youngest child2 nor did the future of this the last scion of his race much disturb the count1 destined as he was1 by him1 from his very youth1 to enter the church4 ,but divine ,providence often smiles at and overthrows our wisest calculations1 and this is what occurred in ,albert's case2 for1 notwithstanding the serious tendency given to his education1 it was found that of the eight sons of the count this1 the youngest1 showed the greatest courage and taste for war4 ,this martial spirit was the great despair of his tutor2 for the lad left on the smallest pretext his studies and his books to play with an old rusty sword that he had found in one of the lumber-rooms of the castle1 and with this he amused himself for hours1 fencing against his desk or stool1 and shouting all the war cries and songs that he had heard or read4 ,when the vexed tutor complained of his pupil's conduct to the count1 and of his little attention to his more serious studies1 joined to his openly expressed contempt for them1 the count answered1 ',bah6 never mind2 time will change all this1 and you know that it is only natural that he should have imbibed a little of the family taste for war4' ,the seventh son1 ,adolphus1 likewise distinguished himself by his recklessness of danger and by his great courage4 ,this conformity of tastes1 yet more than the similarity of their ages1 had closely united these the two youngest brothers together2 so that when the day came that the younger saw the elder leave home as a lieutenant in the army1 to engage in that life of adventure and danger of which they had so often talked together1 he was seized with a yet stronger repugnance to the future destined for him4 ,the prospect of spending his days in the retirement of the cloister1 instead of sharing with his brother the glorious achievements of a soldier's life1 inspired him with not only a strong distaste for this future1 but even with an aversion to all that then surrounded him4 ,albert fell into a great despair and lethargy2 no longer did his tutor dread that rusty sword with which ,albert had been wont to frighten him2 not that his studies progressed any better for that2 for although he read with pleasure the ,iliad and the ,a,eneid1 he shrunk back with distaste from the study of theology1 and when any observations were made to him on the subject1 alleged that 'he should always know enough to cause him to die from ennui4' ,not that the sentiment of religious feeling was dead within him1 far from that2 he was1 on the contrary1 animated with the liveliest and most sincere faith2 nor was it that he felt an invincible repugnance to the obligations of the priesthood1 for he was generous1 sober1 charitable1 and patient1 and therefore esteemed slightly the sacrifices that the ecclesiastical state requires4 ,what he disliked and dreaded above all was a life of uniformity and of repose1 such as seemed to him the life of a priest4 ,this antipathy to the future for which he was destined grew from day to day1 when1 unable at last to fight any longer against his inclinations1 he armed himself with all his resolution1 and respectfully represented to his father his invincible dislike to becoming a priest1 and asked of him the favor of being allowed to become a soldier4 #hja ,great was the discomfiture of the count on hearing this demand4 ,what was he to do8 he who had made all his arrangements in order that ,albert might become a bishop2 and here was this son who in place of bearing the mitre and pastoral staff1 desired nothing less than to wield the sword and don the coat of mail4 ',it is very perplexing1' at last answered the count1 after having scratched his ear several times2 'this idea of yours completely upsets all my plans2 but rather than see you become a bad priest it shall be as you desire4 ,although1' again added he with a heavy sigh1 'it is very perplexing4' ,albert1 after having again explained to his father all the reasons for his repugnance to the life of a priest1 continued1 ',you see1 my dear father1 that it is not a taste for the pleasures of the world that drives me from the priesthood2 it is only my dislike to the monotony of such a life that hinders me from embracing it4 ,my vocation leads me to follow a career of danger and of change1 and not one of ease and uniformity4 ,but ,i think that there is a means of conciliating the ideas that your tenderness had suggested for me and my own tastes4' ',i desire nothing better than that1' answered the count with visible chagrin1 'but how to do so1 that is the question4 ,i wish you to become a bishop1 and you desire to become a captain2 now1 we are no longer in the days when bishops wore a suit of mail inside their robes4' ',that is true1 dear father2 but you could place me in a position to become one day a knight-commander1' 7here the count lifted up his head with an air of satisfaction47 ',the order of ,st4 ,john of ,jerusalem1' continued ,albert1 'is a glorious order1 assimilating to the church by its vows and its constitutions1 and to the army by its obligations and labors4 ,the ,turks are now menacing ,christendom2 what more glorious use can one make of one's sword than to defend one's brothers in ,jesus ,christ1 and to oppose one's self against the barbarity of the ,mussulman1 who already regards ,europe as a wild beast does his prey8 ,what more glorious destiny than to consecrate one's courage and one's life to force back even to the very sands of ,asia those hordes of infidels whose domination1 similar to a pestilential atmosphere1 has brought ruin and death upon the fertile countries where it extends8 ',if1 then1 as ,i hope1 you will consent to my desires1 ,i shall find in that career the occasion to place in a yet higher rank the glorious name that you have given me2 and thus both my ancestors and yourself shall have reason to be proud of their descendant4 ,my worthy ancestor1 on hearing this proposition1 felt a similar satisfaction to that which a man would feel who1 after being shut up in a chest during some hours1 could at last stretch his limbs out again in liberty4 ,therefore was it that he seized eagerly a proposition which drew him out of a great difficulty2 for between ourselves1 be it said1 the worthy man was more accustomed to fighting than to solving difficult questions4 ,it was easy for the count to prove the sixteen quarters of nobility which the rules of the order required for the admission of ,germans2 moreover1 he had several friends in the order whose influence he made use of2 nothing1 therefore1 opposed itself to the realization of ,albert's desires2 and1 in consequence1 a few weeks after the above related conversation1 he left ,germany1 and became page to ,nicholas ,coroner1 then ,grand ,master of the order1 and ,governor of ,malta4 #hjb ,in this position he did not fail to make himself very soon remarked by his dauntless courage and impetuous audacity4 ,the requisite occasions did not fail him2 each day the galleys of the order darted from their ports1 as the eagle from his eyrie1 and1 powerful as the eagle1 seized on some one of the innumerable ,turkish pirates which were then ravaging the coasts of the ,mediterranean1 burning villages1 and carrying off their wretched inhabitants to reduce them into a painful and degrading slavery4 ,in this manner the order rendered the most important services to ,europe1 whilst the most adventurous spirit in it found means1 in this incessant warfare1 to satisfy his thirst for danger4 ,albert1 ardent and indefatigable1 scorning danger and braving ,death1 who seemed to shrink back before so much bravery and audacity1 fought so often and so well1 that scarcely was the time of his novitiate finished1 than1 by the general consent of his companions in arms1 and the approbation of the grand master1 he was created knight4 ,in truth1 it was impossible to show more valor and self-diffidence4 ,this latter quality shows forth the more1 that it was not an ordinary virtue in the order4 ,some years thus rolled on1 during which the bravery of ,albert had caused him to be known and remarked in all the commanderies of ,europe2 but the time was come when at length he should appear on a field more worthy of his talents4 ,i will not here give you a recital of the events which brought the troops of ,mohammed ,,iv4 under the walls of ,vienna2 since1 in the first place1 you recollect them as well as ,i do2 and in the second place1 it is too sad a thought for him who feels within him a soul truly ,german1 to reflect that there was a day when ,german hearts beat with fear before the standards of ,mohammed6 ,at the time when the ,hungarians1 with a blindness that even their excess of patriotism does not excuse1 called into the heart of ,europe those born enemies of ,european civilization1 ,albert was in ,germany4 ,at the first news which reached him of the march of ,mustapha on ,vienna1 he hurried to the commanderies that were nearest to him1 and animating the zeal of the knights1 united together without great difficulty a few of his companions1 with whom he hastened on to that city4 ,they reached ,vienna on the very day that ,leopold ,i4 left it2 and terrible was the consternation then reigning in that town1 abandoned by those who ought to have been the first to face the danger and animate the courage of others by their example4 ,the brave ,count of ,staremberg commanded the fortress which he did not dare hope to save1 although he was determined to die in its defence4 ,the aid that ,albert brought was joyfully accepted by him2 for he had but eight or ten thousand men to defend the city against the ,turkish army1 whose number was three hundred thousand2 and besides this1 the city was badly provisioned and insufficiently armed4 ,nevertheless1 the defence was organized in the best manner possible2 arms were distributed to all the citizens2 and even the schoolboys were taught to carry arms1 and perform the active service of the defence of the walls2 whilst the entire population determined to suffer famine1 and all the other horrors of a prolonged siege1 rather than yield tamely to the enemy4 ,these preparations made1 they awaited the infidels2 nor did they wait long2 for in a few days after the departure of the emperor1 the ,turkish army encamped before ,vienna1 and opened its first trench4 #hjc ,then began in earnest that terrible siege4 ,albert performed prodigies of valor2 now directing a sortie1 then driving back an assault1 ever in the foremost rank1 he1 as it were1 multiplied himself1 going on every side2 he foresaw and provided against all emergencies2 his courage excited even the most timid1 whilst his unchangeable calm reassured their fears4 ,in the midst of all this peril1 which seemed endless1 he alone seemed at his ease2 so much so1 that the ,count of ,staremberg used to say1 ',oh6 that ,i had only one hundred knights like him2 for then1 in place of resting here blocked up1 like a rat in his hole1 ,i would drive back1 and follow up these three hundred thousand ,turks to the very walls of ,constantinople6' ,during all this time1 notwithstanding the pressing demands of the ,pope1 ,innocent ,,ix41 and in spite of the necessity which bound the other ,christian nations to prevent ,vienna's falling into the hands of the infidels1 the aid so much needed was but slowly organized4 ,already had the siege lasted two months1 and nothing had yet happened to relieve the despair of the wretched inhabitants1 already weakened by famine4 ,there seemed to them no alternative between a cruel and lingering death and a yet more painful slavery4 ,almost were they reduced to the last extremities4 ,it was quite impossible to obtain provisions1 and the ammunition was nearly exhausted1 whilst many of the cannon had become useless for service2 and yet no voice was heard that spoke of surrender4 ,soldiers and citizens1 alike excited by the example and firmness of the chiefs1 supported with courage and resignation all the horrors of a desperate defence4 ,at last the signals and banners of ,king ,john ,sobieski were seen from the walls as he came to their rescue1 leading the combined forces of ,europe4 ,it was time6 ,the ,king of ,poland1 notwithstanding the immense inferiority of his troops in point of numbers1 hesitated not a moment to take the most favorable position for giving battle to the enemy4 ,mustapha1 on his side1 divided his troops into two divisions1 the one destined to make a last and desperate assault upon the city1 and to enter it by main force through the breaches already made in its walls2 whilst the second division was to stop the passage of ,sobieski1 and to hinder him from giving any aid to the besieged4 ,but the impetuosity of the attack of the ,christians was such that the battle became but a rout on the side of the ,mussulmans1 as they fled before their pursuers on every side1 and were as soon and as completely dispersed as is a wisp of straw before a hurricane4 ,vienna free1 ,europe breathed again1 being once more delivered from the immediate fear of the crescent1 whilst awaiting the day when the ,mussulman should be for ever driven back to the arid sands from whence he came4 ,this heroic defence spread a new lustre upon the arms and reputation of the order4 ,but none of its knights had acquired a similar renown to that of ,albert4 ,the name of this young warrior was in every mouth1 his souvenir in every heart1 and he shared with ,john ,sobieski the enthusiastic ovation made by the ,viennese to their deliverers4 ,the loudest acclamations of admiration and gratitude greeted him during the day that he accompanied the ,king of ,poland1 who1 still covered with the blood of his enemies1 went in solemn state to the cathedral of ,st4 ,stephen1 there to assist at the ,te ,deum which was sung in thanksgiving to ,god for this miraculous delivery of the city from the ,turks4 #hjd ,mustapha1 forced to make such a speedy retreat1 had left in the possession of the ,christians all his treasures1 tents1 and baggage4 ,among the spoil was found the standard of the ,prophet4 ,this1 it was decided1 should be offered to the pope as a gage and as a memorial of the victory1 and it was ,albert who was chosen to perform this honorable mission4 ,his old father nearly died with joy on learning of the glorious renown of his son2 and ,i leave you to guess if he did not praise himself in his heart for not having resisted the desires of ,albert4 ,the old count foresaw in the future his family giving a grand-master to the ,order of ,st4 ,john1 and he trembled with happiness in thinking of the honor which would thus result to the ,shrann race and name4 ,in fact1 one could hardly say where would have stopped the worldly honors of ,albert1 had not ,god reserved for him a yet more sweet and glorious recompense for his labors in his service4 ,at this point of his story1 the count took a few minutes' repose1 minutes that were fully employed1 to judge by the manner in which he emptied the tankard that stood before him2 and as the two friends did nothing without each other's aid or example1 the baron hastened to imitate his friend2 and when his tankard left his lips1 there did not remain sufficient in it to satisfy the thirst of a wren4 ,then1 grasping with a firm hand the immense jug of beer which awaited their good pleasure1 he filled his own glass and passed the jug on to the count1 who1 with an equal dignity and silence1 took his share4 ,it is true that the baron paid but a slight attention to all these details of a family history that the count so complacently related to him2 perhaps he was getting impatient for the appearance of the two souls that had been promised him2 but he let no indication of his impatience escape him1 and continued to smoke on with great tranquillity1 puffing forth clouds of smoke which seemed timed to the cadenced sounds of an old clock that stood beside him1 whose sculptured oak case would have delighted the taste of an antiquary4 ,at length the count recommenced3 ,the ,turks appeared to have abandoned their projects upon ,germany1 but the war yet continued with activity between themselves and the order and the ,venetians on the shores of the ,mediterranean4 ,notwithstanding the greatest sacrifices1 and the most valiant efforts on the part of the ,turks1 ,candia had fallen into the hands of the order2 a new expedition was then resolved upon to lay siege to ,coron1 and ,hector de ,la ,tour de ,maubourg1 having been chosen as its commander1 he made choice of ,albert for his lieutenant4 ,upon one of the galleys that the pope had joined to the allied fleets of the ,knights of ,st4 ,john and of the ,venetians1 the young ,giovanni ,balbo1 only heir to one of the most distinguished names in the republic of ,venice1 had been sent out by his father4 ,this illustrious family had long been a friend to our house1 and1 in fact1 we counted several alliances between the two families4 ,when1 therefore1 ,giovanni learnt that ,albert was in the fleet1 he made several attempts to become acquainted with him2 and succeeded so well1 that in a short time they became the greatest friends in the world4 ,on this event1 so slight in its appearance1 nevertheless depended the destiny of ,albert4 ,you must have remarked1 my friend1 that it is the same with us all4 ,the acts the most important in our lives1 those which decide our future1 and from which result our happiness or misery in this world1 have always as their first commencement1 some circumstance which is perfectly indifferent in itself1 but the results of which have an influence on our entire destinies4 #hje ,one would say that divine ,providence mocked our proud reason1 in thus making use of events which at first sight seem so utterly unfitted to arrive at the end which it proposes to itself2 and ,i might even add1 that this impenetrable mystery would alone suffice to eyes less wilfully blinded than your own1 to prove the existence of an unseen power that is unrestrained by human laws and prejudices4 ,does ,god owe to each one of us a miracle8 ,ought he to suspend for each individual man the eternal laws which govern the universe8 ,can we not believe in him unless we see the very rivers flow back to their sources8 ,does he not manifest himself to us at each instant of our lives1 on each side of us and in us8 ,is not the admirable connection of events which exists in this world sufficient to make the certitude of his power and of his incessant action shine forth to the vision of the soul1 as shines forth before the eyes of the body the brilliant multitude of planets that have each their appointed path in the wide space of heaven8 ,the siege was terrible1 and its success cost to the ,order of ,malta one and twenty of its bravest knights2 ,hector de la ,tour de ,maubourg was among the number of the dead1 and ,albert1 who had flown to his side to protect him1 had fallen covered with wounds1 which caused his life to be despaired of4 ,his youth1 the strength of his constitution1 and1 above all1 the tender care taken of him by his friend ,giovanni1 finally triumphed over the severity of his wounds1 and as soon as he was sufficiently recovered to bear the fatigues of the voyage1 ,giovanni brought him to ,venice to visit his family1 who received him with the warmest hospitality4 ,i have told you that ,giovanni was the only heir of the ,balbo family2 this was but partly true1 since there were two daughters1 ,flaminia1 who had then attained her eighteenth year1 and ,antonia1 who was but seventeen4 ,nothing could be more unlike than these two sisters1 ,flaminia and ,antonia4 ,although both were in looks and in character equally charming1 ,heaven had gifted them with very dissimilar talents and tastes4 ,nevertheless1 this did not impede the existence of an intimate friendship between these two natures so diametrically opposed2 and1 later in their lives1 it proved no hinderance to a complete confidence4 ,it is thanks to this confidence--that arose between them one day by reason of an imperious necessity of mutual aid and sympathy--that ,i can now describe the more intimate particularities of this history4 ,antonia1 as you may judge from the portrait of her hanging in the room1 was one of that sort of beauties that seem to overflow with vigor and life4 ,her complexion slightly brunette2 her eyes of a deep black1 ever glistening under her well-arched eye-brows1 notwithstanding the depth of her eye-lashes2 her mouth ever smiling1 with its full and firmly designed lips2 her perfectly chiselled nose1 whose nostrils dilated at every instant2 and1 above all1 the extreme vivacity of her face1 where was portrayed1 as in a mirror1 every emotion that agitated her1 even the most fugitive2 all in her appearance indicated one of those vigorous natures that have need of real physical exertion4 ,an over-rich development of physical forces impedes the flight of the imagination4 ,thus1 ,antonia was always remarked for the vivacity of her impressions1 for the impetuosity of her sentiments1 and for the sallies of her quick and brilliant spirit4 #hjf ,but that world of reverie1 peopled with vague and indefinable forms2 that world illumined by a supernatural light1 where we catch the glimpses of a happiness unknown here below2 that world which is created by the soul and colored by the imagination1 was to her quite unknown4 ,whilst her sister delighted in all this1 and listened with her whole heart to those harmonious voices which spoke to her of a coming happiness penetrating and sweet as the joys of heaven1 ,antonia was bounding like a young fawn among the trees of their garden1 or1 mounted on a spirited horse1 rapidly ascended the paths of the mountains that surrounded the town4 ,the same impetuosity was to be remarked in her sympathies and antipathies2 she could not moderate her expression of them1 nor did she even seek to impose upon herself a useless constraint on this subject4 ,on the other hand1 ,flaminia seemed already to bear in her entire appearance the impress of those sorrows that she was destined to suffer4 ,her look1 so sweet and sad even in its smile1 was half veiled with her eyelids1 and gave to her face an indefinable expression of melancholy4 ,that expression could be again found in her delicately shaped mouth1 and even in her movements full of languor and grace4 ,whilst ,antonia1 lively and petulant1 employed by every outward effort the too abundant forces of her life and youth1 ,flaminia seemed to place hers in reserve for the terrible moment of need4 ,she concentrated in the depths of her soul all her impressions2 nor could she give to herself a reason for so doing4 ,she had the consciousness of her exquisite sensibility1 and protected it1 under the shield of indifference and affected calm1 against all contact that could have wounded it4 ,but under this apparent indolence an attentive eye could have easily recognized the marks of an ardent soul and of a strong nervous organization4 ,a sudden flame would at moments lighten up those glances usually veiled in indifference1 the soft and musical voice took an accent of enthusiasm1 and her whole expression changed1 being animated by the power of an emotion that she no longer restrained1 and whose vibrations were the more violent1 because her soul1 far from pouring itself on all that surrounded her1 as did ,antonia's1 was one of those that at a given hour in life is destined to concentrate all its force on a single thought and on an only affection4 ,outwardly cold and impassible1 her excessive sensibility showed itself by scarcely perceptible signs2 but later in life1 happy to find at her side a heart filled with similar ideas1 all this ice melted4 ,is there not in us1 at the moment when life commences1 that is to say1 at the epoch when the soul awakes from the long slumber of infancy1 a vague presentiment of our future destinies8 ,for the same reason that we have so often seen the bravest soldiers tremble on the morning of a battle1 feeling beforehand that death will call them during the day1 is there not likewise in us a voice which warns us of the trials that we shall have later in our lives to endure8 ,the birds have a presentiment of the coming storm1 even when the atmosphere is yet full of splendor2 the very insects that crawl upon the ground foresee in the autumn the rigors of the approaching winter1 and envelop their eggs with a double covering of silk2 and why should man be less favored than the birds or insects8 ,why should he be the only creature that is delivered up1 as it were1 with his hands and feet bound1 to the rigors of the future8 #hjg ,it is possible that ,flaminia obeyed that sentiment of moral modesty that causes us to hide from all eyes our better qualities--those secret riches of our hearts1 that we may lavish them without stint upon the hidden object that we have chosen4 ,she knew herself to be incapable of half-loving any object1 and she felt that her heart was a fragile instrument2 that1 if touched by a skilful hand1 it would render harmonious sounds1 but that it would infallibly break under a rude or awkward touch2 and she wished to preserve it from such a fate4 ,none of those surrounding her suspected the power of this instrument2 on the contrary1 her great outward calmness passed for the evident indication of a certain coldness of heart1 whilst the expansive nature of her sister was considered as the sign of an extreme sensibility4 ,flaminia was much grieved at being thus misunderstood1 and very often1 in the silence of the night1 bitter tears flowed from her eyes2 very often the ivory crucifix which hung at the head of her couch1 saw opening before it that soul so full of purity and love1 that came to seek1 at that inexhaustible source1 a present consolation and a future strength4 ,sometimes she fancied that she heard in herself the distant mutterings of the heart's tempest2 then she prayed with ardor1 almost feverishly1 as she listened to the murmur within her of those mysterious voices which warned her of a near peril1 and told her to spread around her those riches of affection full of loving ardor1 that then devoured her1 and that one day would consume her4 ,in these moments of instinctive alarm1 she drew herself yet closer to ,god1 hiding herself under the shadow of his protecting hand1 ever lifted up over those who with faith invoke it2 and then she felt herself reassured4 ,at such moments as these was it that she felt herself to be so completely alone1 notwithstanding the parental tenderness that surrounded her1 and she suffered by this loneliness4 ,in truth1 ,flaminia was right--she was alone2 for though both the ,prince and ,princess ,balbo cherished their daughter1 yet time seemed to have passed on for her alone1 and not for them4 ,the child had merged into the young girl2 the nave graces of the infant had given place to the more opened charms of youth1 yet they had remarked nothing of all this4 ,they dreamt not even that parental affection ought to be modelled after the child of whom it is the object1 and ought to transform itself and grow with that child4 ,they did not understand that the protecting tenderness accorded to the infant who shelters himself under it as does a bird in its nest1 becomes insufficient for the heart that time has developed1 and that has need of leaning upon sentiments less protecting and more friendly4 ,one of the most dangerous shoals in the difficult task of educating children1 is doubtless that of noticing the first moments when the child whom we have held until then under our hand1 and caused1 as it were1 to live of our own life1 lays aside the trammels of infancy1 and seeks to fly with his own wings4 ,it is then that we ought to know how so to modify our affection that we may inspire that freedom and that confidence in ourselves that will protect this second period of life1 as a salutary fear protects the first4 ,now for the development of these sentiments1 so fragile and delicate1 we must seize the instant when the child commences to become a man1 when he first feels awakening in him thoughts and sensations that are his own1 and not simply the echo or reflection of our own4 #hjh ,it is at that moment1 and then only1 that we can ever arouse such confidence4 ,if we allow this fleeting and critical period of his existence to escape us1 never can we hope to recall it2 and however powerful may be his sense of filial affection1 the child will never again show us that confidence that we have repulsed2 we shall have left his young heart1 just awakening to the dawn of life1 in an isolation that is always painful1 and oftentimes dangerous1 since it lends to the already strong voice of the passions the charms of solitude and mystery4 ,unhappily--and this is almost always through an ill-advised tenderness--we too often close our eyes to this transformation2 habit blinds us1 and the child escapes from our control4 ,such had been the case with ,flaminia4 ,her mother was one of the most virtuous and excellent of women2 the prince1 as ,i have already told you1 adored his children2 but both of them1 as well as ,giovanni1 who was fifteen years older than the eldest of his sisters1 regarded these two lovely girls but as the two children who so lately had charmed them by their navet and grace4 ,this situation1 in which the two sisters shared1 should have sooner given rise to a confidence equal to their friendship2 but besides that their difference of tastes often separated them1 no exterior event had yet happened to show them the power of their mutual affection and the community of ideas that ought to be its consequence4 ,thus ,flaminia lived alone and gave herself up without reserve to the sweet charm of vague reverie2 she listened with a deep joy to those mysterious aspirations that spoke to her of happiness1 nor could she assign any form to these thoughts1 that1 all uncertain as they were1 yet threw her into a delicious trouble4 ,she sought solitude1 and spent long hours sitting at the balcony of her window1 her forehead leaning on her long white hands1 while her eyes filled with tears that had no sorrow as their source1 as she regarded the deep and large purple shadows which the setting sun cast on the blue waters of the ,mediterranean4 ,although she was unconscious of the meaning of these frequent reveries1 and would have been unable to explain the reason of that melancholy1 so full of mingled pain and pleasure1 into which she loved to plunge herself1 yet she hid most carefully from every eye the state of her mind1 dreading above all things lest any one should suspect the happiness she felt in yielding to its charm4 ,at the moment when providence was about to bring together ,albert and ,flaminia1 he also found himself in some such a state of mind as that which ,i have just portrayed4 ,a glorious renown had at first seemed to him the only thing in this world worthy of envy2 but that idol so ardently followed had been1 little by little1 despoiled of its brilliant prestige2 the nearer he approached it1 the more faint and dim became the aureole of splendor with which he had believed it surrounded2 and when he at last saw himself in full possession of his desire1 when the renown of his name had resounded to the most distant commanderies of his order1 which regarded him as its firmest support and most assured hope2 then he saw with affright that a glorious name is insufficient in itself1 and that it must be regarded in a ,christian life1 or at least in connection with some one who is dear to us1 and whose heart would rejoice and sympathize with our glory4 ,when ,albert at last understood the truth1 he felt himself sad and unhappy2 for be looked vainly around him--he was alone6 #hji ,an immense void then made itself felt in his soul--a void that even his glory was unable to hide from him1 and which friendship was powerless to fill4 ,like ,flaminia1 he felt himself isolated on the earth2 but while her solitude was sweetened by a hope as vague as her thoughts and desires1 that of ,albert was a bottomless abyss1 full of discouragement and despair4 ,the profound darkness of night then fell upon his soul1 an obscurity similar to those sombre and cold nights in winter1 when the eye sees not a single star piercing the sky covered with clouds2 and when the sad heart hears but the moans of the wind that bends the tops of the bare trees as it passes over them1 mingled with the boding cry of the birds of prey which slowly wheel around in the thick and misty atmosphere4 ,a lassitude had fallen on him similar to that which a traveller feels at the sight of a straight and monotonous road which extends as far as the eye can reach in a dry and burning plain4 ,seeing nothing around him that seemed worthy either a desire or an effort1 he allowed himself to be carried slowly on by time toward the common end2 nor did he hasten that course by his vows2 for even whilst he firmly believed in the joys of eternity1 he felt not his soul drawn toward them4 ,if he had run forward to meet death1 it was through his natural intrepidity2 for he felt in its presence but the same desolating indifference that he had shown at the moment of his recovery to life4 ,such were the secret sentiments of ,albert and ,flaminia when their mutual destiny placed them for the first time in presence of each other in the ancient salon of the ,palace ,balbo4 ,we are both of us1 my dear ,frederic1 so far distant from the time when our hearts first experienced these impressions of affection1 that there now remains to us but a very slight recollection4 ,you are deceived1 interrupted the baron2 from the day when for the first time ,i saw my poor ,gertrude1 until that when ,i placed her in her tomb1 ,i have forgotten nothing of all that has passed between us4 ,there is not an hour of that much-regretted time which is not present in my memory2 not an incident1 however slight it may have been1 that ,i cannot recall in even its slightest details6 ,you can the more easily understand1 then1 continued the count1 how it was that these two souls united themselves so closely the one to the other1 that there soon existed between them but a single life1 a single taste1 and a single thought2 and how it was that they both preserved1 even until their very last moment1 the most absolute certainty of their mutual affection1 without ever having interchanged a single word on the subject4 ,scarcely had they been but a few days together1 when already ,albert had penetrated into all the thoughts of ,flaminia4 ,he read in her heart as in an open book2 he divined all its secrets2 that soul which to all others was closed1 he saw opening1 and breathed all its perfumes foresaw all its destinies6 ,was it1 then1 in a few commonplace conversations that he had gained so complete an insight into that heart habitually closed8 ,no2 he had not judged ,flaminia by any acquaintance that he had gained of her character by her words or actions2 he had only looked upon her1 and instantly1 by intuition1 he had understood her2 and this was so true1 that there were moments when it might have been said that he saw her think4 ,on her side1 ,flaminia saw the soul of ,albert by that same light which ,i should call supernatural1 did ,i not consider it as one of the eternal laws instituted by the ,creator4 #haj ,she knew him to be loyal and generous1 and she saw his unchangeable goodness and patience2 not because he had had any occasion of showing them before her1 but because a lively and penetrating light thus showed him to her4 ,all that ,albert felt found in her an echo2 the mirror does not more faithfully produce the image than did her soul his slightest sensations4 ,by his side she felt happy1 because she felt herself understood and loved4 ,a new existence then opened for her2 movement and activity succeeded to her vague reveries and habitual indolence2 new horizons showed themselves each day to her soul4 ,nature became more beautiful1 the flowers more sweet1 the sun more brilliant2 it seemed to her that her eyes had been shut until then1 and that they now opened for the first time4 ,at the same time that a new affection acquired over her soul a stronger influence than her affection for her family had yet exercised on her1 even these became more lively and more complete4 ,nevertheless1 it was no longer at that source whence she had so long drawn her sensations and ideas that she now went to seek them3 all came to her from ,albert1 or had reference to him4 ,she saw by his eyes and thought by his ideas2 her tastes1 her desires1 were nothing else than the tastes and desires of ,albert4 ,were he present1 she seemed to live with delight2 in his absence it seemed to her that her life lost its intensity1 and all became sad and indifferent to her2 he was the soul that gave life to all4 ,in a word1 he had become a part of herself1 an indispensable condition for the perfection of her being and existence4 ,i have no need to tell you that she did not render to herself so exact an account of the state of her soul as that which ,i have just sketched to you4 ,she had1 in truth1 the consciousness of the change that was taking place in her1 but the reasons of this change remained enveloped in a profound obscurity that her spirit could not penetrate2 she obeyed her feelings of tenderness without being able to analyze them4 ,and yet the more she felt that ,albert alone filled her heart and thought1 the more she instinctively enveloped herself exteriorly1 with regard to him1 in her mantle of ordinary indifference4 ,but when hazard left her alone with ,albert1 then a sudden transformation took place in her4 ,all that indifference melted away1 as do the last snows of springtime under the heat of the sun4 ,she delivered herself up unrestrainedly to the generous enthusiasm of her loving nature1 her expression became more gentle1 her voice more tender1 and her heart beat faster in her bosom1 which rose and fell agitated by an emotion so delicious and powerful that it resembled even grief2 for in our weak nature1 joy and suffering have a very near resemblance4 ,concluded ,in ,next ,number4 ---------- #haa ,john ,sterling4 ,whatever importance may attach to the life and writings of ,john ,sterling1 is due to the fact of his having been a representative man4 ,without being supremely original1 without anything wonderful in his career1 he has been made the subject of a memoir by two eminent men1 ,archdeacon ,hare and ,thomas ,carlyle4 ,the one represents ,anglican belief1 which is partial infidelity1 and the other nineteenth-century belief1 which is infidelity1 pure and simple2 and both the one and the other have drawn the portrait of their friend and hero in colors of their own mind4 ,archdeacon ,hare has traced with regret the lapse of ,sterling into unbelief1 while ,carlyle has seen in that very lapse a rise into transcendental faith of the highest order4 ,neither of them has neglected1 but1 on the contrary1 both keenly appreciated ,sterling's literary labors and merits2 and both would concur in pointing him out as a type of that new creation of thinkers and supposed philosophers in whom doubt and trust are ever contending for the mastery--who are ever seeking1 and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth--a mongrel breed1 sprung from an unnatural union between scepticism and ,christianity4 ,john ,sterling was born at ,kaimes ,castle1 in the ,isle of ,bute1 on the #bjth of ,july1 #ahjf4 ,his father rented a small farm attached to the ,castle1 and the first four years of ,johnny's life were spent on a wild-wooded1 rocky coast1 among headlands1 storms1 and thundering breakers4 ,nature gave him a good schooling2 for1 when he left the ,isle of ,bute1 it was for the well-grassed1 many-brooked village of ,llanblethian1 in the ,vale of ,glamorgan4 ,five years more passed in that pleasant spot1 and time never effaced the lovely images it imprinted on ,sterling's mind4 ,every line and hue1 he said1 were more deeply and accurately fixed in his memory than those of any scene he had since beheld4 ,beautifully and with deep feeling did he retrace the impressions they made on his childish fancy1 in an article written in the ,literary ,chronicle in his twenty-second year4 ,he had not seen the spot since he was eight years old1 yet he described the old ruin of ,st4 ,quentin's ,castle1 the orchard of his home1 the school where he used to read the well-thumbed ,history of ,greece by ,oliver ,goldsmith1 and the garden-sports of himself and his playmates1 with as much distinctness as if they had been souvenirs of the previous spring4 ,very precious are such recollections1 for one personal experience is worth a hundred facts learnt from books4 ,when ,napoleon returned from ,elba1 in #ahae1 little ,sterling was in the midst of ,french school-boys1 at ,passy1 shouting1 ,vive l',empereur4 ,his father had become a writer in the ,times1 under the name of ,vetus1 and was in hopes of being appointed one of its foreign correspondents4 ,the ,hundred ,days which convulsed ,europe drove the ,sterlings from ,france2 and fortune1 who tries literary aspirants with her ficklest moods1 shifted the father from ,russell ,square and ,queen ,square1 to ,blackfriars ,road and the ,grove1 at ,blackheath4 ,at last he rode at anchor1 and was permanently connected with the ,times4 #hab ,john was sent to ,dr4 ,burney's school1 at ,greenwich1 and afterward came under the tuition of ,dr4 ,waite1 at ,blackheath1 and of ,dr4 ,trollope1 the master of ,christ's ,hospital4 ,he was twelve years old when his younger brother1 ,edward1 died4 ,it was an early age to become familiar with death4 ,john felt the loss as if he had been a ,catholic4 ,god or nature1 one knows not which1 taught him the communion of saints4 ,edward is near me now1 he used to say to himself4 ,edward is watching me4 ,he knows what ,i am doing and thinking4 ,he is sad for my faults4 ,i must1 ,i will strive to do what he would approve4 ,very active was his mind at this period4 ,his keen eye observed everything2 his soul was winged4 ,he read the entire ,edinburgh ,review through1 from the beginning1 and cart-loads of books from circulating libraries1 wading1 as ,carlyle says1 like ,ulysses toward his palace1 through infinite dung4 ,no advantages of education were denied him4 ,at the ,university of ,glasgow he was tutored by ,mr4 ,jacobson1 since ,regius ,professor of ,divinity at ,oxford and ,bishop of ,chester2 and in #ahbd1 when he was in his nineteenth year1 he removed to ,trinity ,college1 ,cambridge1 where another man of eminence1 ,julius1 afterward ,archdeacon ,hare1 became his tutor and his lasting friend4 ,he was in all respects worthy of such friendship4 ,a youth who1 with a delicate frame1 could stand waist-deep in the river1 to aid in passing buckets to and fro1 when the buildings of ,king's ,court were on fire1 must have had a singular disregard of self1 and readiness for all moral enterprise4 ,somebody must be in it1 he said1 when his tutor remonstrated with him4 ,why not ,i1 as well as another8 ,friendships were the best gift ,sterling received from ,cambridge4 ,the classical knowledge he acquired there was not very exact1 nor did he submit to any strict discipline4 ,in the ,union he was the master-bowman1 and out of such comrades as ,charles ,buller1 ,richard ,milnes1 ,john ,kemble1 ,richard ,trench1 and ,frederic ,maurice1 he made of the two last dear and intimate friends4 ,he and ,frederic ,maurice1 indeed1 married two sisters2 and to him and ,coleridge he owed chiefly the formation of his opinions and character4 ,the latter was at that time beginning to found a school of thought1 and the former1 ,frederic ,maurice1 is now1 and has long been1 a recognized leader of the ,broad ,church party1 in the ,anglican communion4 ,if ever there was a moonstruck prophet1 ,samuel ,taylor ,coleridge was one4 ,as a poet1 he was a star2 as a divine1 an ignis fatuus4 ,he subjected faith to reason1 coquetted with infidelity1 embraced ,germanism1 and discoursed by the hour on the church and the ,logos in language all musical and shining1 but conveying no meaning whatever to any one of his hearers4 ,footnote #bbh ,footnote #bbh3 ,carlyle's ,life of ,sterling1 p4 #gc4 ,your reason 7,vernunft7 bound you to accept a multitude of facts and principles which your understanding 7,verstand7 rejected4 ,with a good understanding only you might be an unbeliever1 but reason would exalt you into a ,christian4 ,everything depended on this distinction1 and if you could not comprehend it1 7which nobody could17 so much the worse for you4 ,yet ,english society was fast being ensnared by such theosophic nonsense and hazy ,kantean transcendentalism4 ,the clear dogmas of traditional faith and the simplicity of ,scripture1 likewise1 were being observed in a cloud of jargon4 #hac ,dr4 ,pusey in his youth was sliding into ,german subtleties2 ,isaac ,taylor was watering ,christianity down into human philosophy2 ,dr4 ,arnold was pleading for an ,erastian church comprising all sects and denominations2 ,dr4 ,hampden's terminology was effacing the time-hallowed language of the schools2 ,coleridge1 with his drunken imagination1 and ,milman1 with his rationalistic solution of ,scripture miracles1 were paving the way for ,strauss and ,renan2 and if it had not been for the ,oxford revival of primitive tradition and patristic lore1 the ,english mind would have wandered away into the bleak desert of infidelity without one oasis--one guiding path by which to return to the fresh pasture of truth and peace4 ,sterling1 unfortunately1 was not brought under this happier influence4 ,the seed sown in him by ,coleridge and his compeers produced1 as we shall see1 its natural fruit1 and made him a forerunner of that worship of humanity which is now to so large an extent superseding the worship of ,christ4 ,after spending a year in ,trinity ,college1 ,cambridge1 he migrated to ,trinity ,hall1 and in #ahbg1 quitted the university altogether4 ,he had to seek a profession1 and knew not what to choose4 ,he tried a private secretaryship1 and ended1 of course1 with literature--the profession of all clever men who have none4 ,for that1 and especially for periodical literature1 he was best fitted1 for his thoughts were quick and brilliant1 beautifullest sheet-lightning not to be condensed into thunderbolts1 deriving their momentum from swift strokes1 not from metallic weight4 ,the copyright of the ,athenaeum being for sale1 ,sterling and his gifted friends thought it would make a fine opening for them4 ,he wrote much in it in the years #ahbh and #ahbi1 together with ,maurice1 who was editor4 ,his ,shades of the ,dead1 ,alexander the ,great1 ,joan of ,arc1 ,wycliffe1 ,columbus1 ,gustavus ,adolphus1 ,milton1 and ,burns1 are full of thought1 color1 and enthusiasm1 but they produce a saddening effect4 ,they are a beautiful mirage in the dry wilderness2 but you cannot quench your thirst there6 ,sterling knew not the stand-point from which alone the characters of past times can be duly appreciated4 ,he describes ,joan of ,arc as perhaps the most wonderful1 exquisite1 and complete personage in all the history of the world1 yet he maintains that her persuasion of the outward appearance of divine agency was caused by a diseased excitability of the fancy4 ,as if to hear a voice from heaven to assist her in governing herself1 to see an angel1 and receive visits from the departed1 implied of necessity a diseased imagination6 ,he sees in ,wycliffe a ,gospel hero almost as full of immortal wisdom as ,coleridge1 his ,christian ,plato1 ,he couples him with ,erigena1 who questioned transubstantiation--the master-sorcery1 and ,berengarius1 who opposed the same monstrous doctrine4 ,but he tells us in praise of these new lights1 what may well be regarded as dispraise1 that they encouraged themselves to cast away the belief of all that ,luther afterward rejected by the simple study of the ,bible1 unaided by general knowledge1 and without the guidance of sufficient interpreters4 ,such is the fatal admission of one of whom his friend and biographer1 ,archdeacon ,hare1 writes that the most striking and precious quality in his writings is the deep sympathy with the errors and faults1 and even with the sins1 of mankind4 ,here1 then1 is another admission--an admission1 not of the disciple1 but of the master1 that while ,sterling combated that ,catholic religion which is from first to last the worship of ,christ1 he was already exhibiting the most decided symptom of ,positivism1 or the worship of ,humanity4 #had ,he dwells1 again1 with delight on the goodness and greatness of ,columbus2 he assures us that he was a diligent student of the ,bible1 had a childlike simplicity of faith in the truths of religion2 was1 in his own belief1 the chosen minister of providence1 watched over by saints and angels1 pointed in his path across the waters by the mother of the ,lord1 and holding in his hand the cross as the only ensign of triumph2 and yet1 with strange perversity1 he comes to the conclusion that the mind of this fearless discoverer was in many respects dark and weak1 and that his faith1 though nobler than that of the multitude around him1 was not the purest ,christianity4 ,sterling himself1 in short1 held a purer creed1 7if he could only have defined it17 and we shall see presently to what it led4 ,when his mind first came into ,coleridge's plastic hands1 it was simply chaotic as regards religion4 ,instructed by the oracle of ,highgate1 he engrafted a belief in ,christianity1 such as it was1 on his original piety of heart1 7as ,carlyle calls it17 and his religion1 which was as good as altogether ethnic4 ,in this new phase of mental hallucination1 his sceptical zeal against what he deemed superstition abated1 and his radicalism1 toning down1 lost some of its wildest features4 ,in this frame he wrote and published a novel called ,arthur ,coningsby4 ,it was then his only book1 and it brought him little satisfaction4 ,the babe was still-born1 and had it lived1 the father1 as it seems1 would have had little love for his own offspring4 ,coleridge's moonshine glittered on his pages1 but its outlooks into futurity were confused and sad4 ,it was gilded vacuity1 opulent misery4 ,the hero is himself--a youth plunging into life without any fixed principle to guide him2 full of democratic1 utilitarian1 and heathenish theories2 he suffers shipwreck--the shipwreck of the mind2 and then by the hand of some semi-,christian quack1 like dreamy ,coleridge1 is guided into a port which is no harbor1 and a church where there is no anchorage4 ,such was ,arthur ,coningsby4 ,but to ,carlyle ,sterling never mentioned the name of the novel1 nor would hear it spoken of in his presence4 ,during the years in which it was planned1 written1 and published1 from #ahbi to #ahcb1 ,sterling wooed and won ,susannah ,barton1 a kindly and true-hearted wife1 to share his pleasures and trials2 made an intimate friend of ,general ,torrijos1 a ,spanish exile2 and was silly enough to aid him and a little band of democrats 7including an ,irishman named ,boyd1 who had more money than wits7 to purchase a ship in the ,thames1 arms and stores1 for the purpose of invading ,spain and proclaiming a republic6 ,sterling himself was to have taken part in the mad expedition2 but ,cupid1 as usual1 was stronger than ,mars2 and ,susannah1 who was not yet ,mrs4 ,sterling1 prevailed on her lover to lay his armor aside4 ,of course1 the ,spanish envoy got tidings of the plot2 and the ship1 with its crew and cargo1 was seized in the king's name when dropping down the river4 ,coleridge's moonshine1 it seems1 was not strong enough yet to dispel the dark frowns of democracy4 ,in #ahcj1 the marriage contract was sealed2 but alas6 in this fallen world the glad moment of our realized hopes is almost always dashed with some strange and unexpected sorrow4 ,sterling's health failed1 and his lungs1 menaced by consumption1 asked for a warmer climate4 #hae ,the year #ahca found him in the island of ,st4 ,vincent in the midst of tropic vegetation1 tornadoes1 and slaves as yet unworthy of freedom4 ,one hurricane1 fiercer than its fellows1 stripped the roof from the house where ,sterling lived1 and whirled about the cottages of the negroes as if they had been chaff4 ,meanwhile1 in ,december1 #ahca1 ,torrijos1 the deluded democrat general1 reaches ,spain1 runs ashore at ,fuengirola with fifty-five desperadoes like himself1 seizes a farm1 barricades it1 is surrounded1 surrenders1 is haled with his comrades to ,malaga1 and with them all1 the rich ,irishman included1 is swiftly fusiladed4 ,i hear the sound of that musketry1 wrote ,sterling2 it is as if the bullets were tearing my own brain4 ,no wonder1 for to his brain the folly of a wild enterprise was mainly due4 ,repentance came2 religion was his study2 and prayer1 earnest prayer for guidance1 arose from his lips as he sat under the dates and palms1 and gazed on the mirror of summer seas4 ,such prayer had been answered more fully if teachers such as ,coleridge1 with his gift of words1 and ,edward ,irving1 with his gift of tongues1 had not already imbued him with a multitude of truths which were half untruths1 and untruths which were half truths4 ,he believed himself to be in possession of the blessings of ,christ's redemption2 and though he scarcely as yet knew the elements of ,christianity1 he began to think of teaching it4 ,it is always the way with pious ,protestant youths4 ,they have vocations to preach before they are schooled2 and what ought to be taken for presumption is hailed by their friends as the most signal proof of grace4 ,so ,sterling1 wearied of ,west ,india life1 formed a vague scheme of anti-slavery philanthropy1 and turned his face toward ,europe and his thoughts toward the ministry of the ,established ,church4 ,it was in ,june1 #ahcc1 and on the banks of the ,rhine1 that the unripe aspirant for holy orders met his old friend and tutor1 the ,rev4 ,julius ,hare4 ,that worthy gentleman encouraged a desire he should rather have checked1 and ,sterling was not long in arriving at a determination to become ,mr4 ,hare's curate at ,hurstmonceaux in ,sussex1 and wear1 at least1 the surplice and stole1 though he had no hood or academical degree to adorn himself withal4 ,so on ,trinity ,sunday of the following year1 he came out of ,chichester ,cathedral a raw deacon1 and established himself with his family in a modest mansion in a quiet1 leafy lane of ,hurstmonceaux4 ,very diligent was ,sterling in his pastoral duties2 but the fervor of his zeal soon cooled4 ,in ,september he began to have misgivings1 and in ,february following he had quitted the path he had prematurely chosen4 ,the reason assigned was loss of health2 but ,carlyle guessed shrewdly1 and with too much truth1 that ,sterling was disappointed even to despair by the church whose garment he had spasmodically caught by the hem4 ,the virtue he expected did not go forth from it1 and the glimmer of truth which reached him came through a dense cloud of confused writings4 ,the very names of these betokened chaos1 and the twilight that struggled through them was sufficient neither to cheer nor to guide4 ,many pages of ,archdeacon ,hare's memoir are filled with extracts from ,sterling's letters1 and accounts of his favorite studies at this period4 ,they form a labyrinth none can thread1 where he wanders to and fro without landmarks1 bourn1 light1 or hope4 ,the more he reads the ,old ,testament1 the less can he believe in its miracles2 and having no guide who speaks with authority1 he applies for satisfaction in vain to one charlatan after another as confused1 fanciful1 and blind as himself4 #haf ,fancy a system of theology taught by ,tholuck1 ,schiller1 and ,olshausen2 by ,schleiermacher1 ,mackintosh1 and ,milman1 by the ,koran and ,kant1 by ,jonathan ,edwards1 ,coleridge1 and ,maurice6 ,such were ,sterling's instructors1 and it is not to be wondered at that they created more doubts than they removed1 and that under their influence he discarded all faith in a hierarchy1 a church1 and a ,bible written by plenary inspiration4 ,christianity1 he thought1 could only become true by changing with the times2 and if any existing society or church was to be the nucleus of a new system1 it could only be by the sloughing off of much that was old4 ,how utterly deplorable would be the condition of the human race if left to the teaching of such philosophers and divines4 ,after two thousand years of ,christian schooling1 it would know nothing more than ancient ,greece and ,rome of ,god and of its own destinies4 ,all revelation must be doubted of anew in order that anything may be believed1 and the improved ,christianity to be given in these last days to the world would owe all its changes and improvements to men as feeble and fallible as ourselves4 ,better1 far better1 had it been for you1 ,john ,sterling1 to be instructed by a simple parish priest bred among the mountains1 and ministering in that church which is the pillar and ground of the truth1 than be handed over as you were by ,coleridge1 ,maurice1 and ,hare1 to ,strauss1 ,mill1 and ,carlyle--from unbelief in the bud to unbelief in full1 gaudy1 flaunting blossom4 ,we cannot discover anything imposing in ,sterling's talents4 ,even in secular learning he was a reed shaken by the wind4 ,his essays and poems want definite view and bold outline4 ,it is a grand thing to see both sides of a question1 but it is a pitiful thing to say as much for one side as for another4 ,the want of first principles makes all ,sterling's pages dreamy and pointless4 ,he has no point to steer from1 no harbor to steer to2 he is always toiling against wind and tide1 making no way1 and accounting it triumphant success only not to be shipwrecked4 ,had he confined his criticisms to matters of taste1 he might have been endured1 but he will be piercing the clouds without any ballast to steady or rudder to guide his balloon4 ,in ,february1 #ahce1 ,sterling first became personally acquainted with that extraordinary writer1 ,thomas ,carlyle4 ,he met him in his natural element1 the society of brilliant free-thinkers4 ,he was side by side with ,john ,stuart ,mill at the ,india ,house1 and then at ,sterling's father's with the ,crawfords and other literati1 with whom unbelief was wisdom4 ,his writings1 and particularly ,sartor ,resartus1 made a great impression on ,sterling1 though he saw the strange and extravagant defects of its style1 and labored hard to convince the author of his own belief in a personal ,god4 ,but the poison did its work4 ,the strong inward unrest1 the ,titanic heaving of ,teufelsdrckh's spirit communicated itself to ,sterling's1 and whirled it away still further from central peace4 ,carlyle could only stimulate the intellect1 and fill it with exuberant images4 ,he had heard without regret of ,sterling's abandonment of democracy1 and he saw with greater satisfaction his defection from parochial work4 ,he regarded the pen as his vocation1 and the greatest instrument for good in the world4 ,not that ,sterling broke outwardly with the church1 or declared himself a renegade4 #hag ,on the contrary1 he now and then performed service for a friend at ,bayswater1 but it became more and more evident that his faith in ,christianity was partial and unsound4 ,his mind was not in the highest degree devotional1 nor had he that fear of the ,lord which is the beginning of wisdom4 ,his knowledge of ,german writers hitherto was confined to semi-sceptics and self-appointed evangelists1 ,neander and the like4 ,carlyle introduced him to higher souls1 if literary merit constitutes height4 ,he brought him to the feet of ,goethe1 ,richter1 ,schiller1 and ,lessing1 and with these he tried to satisfy the void which an imperfect religion had been unable to fill4 ,mr4 ,dunn1 an amiable ,irish clergyman1 became one of their chosen circle1 and we learn from ,sterling himself that his theology was compounded of the ,greek fathers1 mystics and ethical philosophers1 and that its main defect was an insufficient apprehension of the reality and depth of sin4 ,the very word sin is considered objectionable in the school of ,carlyle and ,mill1 because it1 is the correlative of grace4 ,sterling's friends seemed fated to be the enemies of his soul4 ,he had another named ,edgeworth1 a nephew of ,miss ,edgeworth the novelist4 ,he was well read in ,plato and ,kant1 yet even less of a believer than they4 ,he entertained not creeds1 but the ,platonic or ,kantean ghosts of creeds4 ,so says ,carlyle1 of whom ,sterling bears witness1 that his fundamental position is the good of evil1 and the idleness of wishing to jump off one's own shadow4 ,deplorable health again1 in #ahcf1 drove ,sterling to a sunnier clime4 ,he was always dodging and jerking about to escape the scythe of ,death4 ,at ,bordeaux his feeble frame revived1 and he delved in the mines of literature for fine gold4 ,the theological fever in his mind had abated4 ,such is ,carlyle's account--and the health of pure reason returned1 or almost returned4 ,he had done with theology1 rubrics1 church articles1 and the enormous ever-repeated thrashing of the straw4 ,but did he find the grain8 ,if theology is chaff1 where shall we look for wheat8 ,will the heart of mankind accept literature as the summum bonum1 the guide of life1 the antidote of sin1 sorrow1 and death8 ,yet for it ,carlyle and ,sterling bid farewell to ,christianity1 and cry3 ,adieu1 ye threshing-floors of rotten straw1 with bleared tallow-light for sun2 to you adieu6 ,the ,sexton's ,daughter was a poem which indicated ,sterling's gradual renunciation of those fragments of ,christianity which still clung to him4 ,he even began to think of attacking revelation1 on the principle of folly rushing in where angels fear to tread4 ,the ,christian religion1 he believed1 would be really indebted to him for meddling with its foundations1 and he should be doing good to theology1 by writing what would for ever exclude him from ministering even in the ,church of ,england4 ,his letters at this period are full of distressing jumble1 which ,archdeacon ,hare records as ,christian with a certain unction1 and ,carlyle1 more sagacious1 claims as antichristian with a chuckle of delight4 ,a sickly shadow of the parish church still hung over ,sterling's compositions1 according to the latter biographer1 and he gives an amusing description of the parson-like way in which his friend read aloud the ,sexton's ,daughter at ,blackheath1 and gave painful effect to its maudlin morality4 ,it was a dreary pulpit1 or even conventicle manner2 that flattest moaning hoo-hoo of predetermined pathos1 with a kind of rocking canter introduced by way of intonation1 each stanza the exact fellow of the other1 and the dull swing of the rocking-horse1 duly in each4 #hah ,the invalid poet had returned from ,bordeaux1 but he did not remain long at ,blackheath4 ,again he crossed the waters in cheerful quest of balmier air1 and the manifold bliss of health4 ,daily he rode among the rocky slopes and redundant foliage of ,madeira1 writing to ,carlyle often for recreation1 and reading ,goethe's ,life and ,works with fear and delight4 ,he called him the most splendid of anachronisms1 and spoke of his life as thoroughly1 nay1 intensely pagan1 in an age when it is men's duty to be ,christian4 ,in truth1 he adds1 ,i am afraid of him1 ,i enjoy and admire him so much1 and feel ,i could so easily be tempted to go along with him4 ,thus all things conduced to lead ,sterling's mind down the steep4 ,lyell's ,geology opened a new flutter 7not line7 of thought1 and bewildered him with the view it presented of the abysmal extent of time4 ,from ,professor ,wilson1 alias ,christopher ,north1 the presiding spirit of ,blackwood1 ,sterling received great encouragement--perhaps more than he deserved4 ,but ingenious madness is all that the public requires in the magazines of some countries4 ,laudari a ,laudato is always a rare delight4 ,had ,carlyle been editor1 his criticisms on ,sterling's ,tales and ,poems would have been more severe1 yea1 and more just than ,wilson's--he of the ,isle of ,palms4 ,thus he says of ,the ,onyx ,ring3 ,there wants maturing1 wants purifying of clear from unclear2 properly there wants patience and steady depth4 ,the basis is wild and loose2 and in the details1 lucent often with fine color1 and dipt in beautiful sunshine1 there are several things misseen1 untrue1 which is the worst species of mispainting4 ,this it was that blurred and marred all poor ,sterling's productions2 everything was misseen1 and therefore mispainted4 ,in one particular he was to be praised and envied--he saw things on the sunny side4 ,in spite of sickness1 he was cheerful1 and buoyancy of spirit kept him afloat on a sea where many would have sunk4 ,john ,stuart ,mill was now editing ,the ,london and ,westminster ,review1 and ,sterling was sufficiently vague and unsound to be thought a valuable contributor4 ,in that ,review he discoursed of ,montaigne1 ,simonides1 and ,carlyle1 while in the ,quarterly of #ahdb1 he criticised ,tennyson4 ,of these critiques the best is that on ,simonides1 for the subject was best fitted to ,sterling's taste and powers4 ,he was a better judge of ,greek poetry and ,greek character than of writers like ,montaigne1 ,carlyle1 and ,tennyson1 who have lived in ,christian times1 and must be judged by ,christian rules4 ,he could hardly wander wide of his theme while dealing with the bright wine1 luscious fruit1 honey1 and crystal founts of ,ceos1 while gathering up the costly fragments of its gifted bard1 and rendering in ,english the chaste and delicately chiselled verses of him who has not left a single line inspired by love4 ,but the case was altered when ,sterling tried to appreciate ,montaigne1 ,the task was above him4 ,he was neither a believer nor an unbeliever1 but partly both4 ,he could neither wholly praise nor wholly blame ,montaigne's scepticism4 ,he had an instinctive leaning toward the writer who adopted ,que say-je8 as his motto1 and followed the natural religion of ,sbonde4 ,he honored one whose writings were condemned at ,rome1 and thought1 for that very reason1 they must have some good in them4 #hai ,he admired an essayist who sat loose to the received opinions and belief of his time1 chose ,plutarch for his favorite author1 7as ,rousseau and ,madame ,roland did after him17 and of all men seemed most thoroughly to have revered and loved the saint1 prophet1 and martyr of pagan wisdom1 ,socrates4 ,perhaps ,socrates would not be in such good odor with the sceptics of our day1 if he too had not been in some sense an unbeliever4 ,perhaps it is in his protesting character that they chiefly admire him1 and trace in him some resemblance to the sage of ,wittemburg4 ,they admire him1 and set him up as a model1 because he was a witness against the established and popular religion of his country4 ,yet it may be that ,socrates had really more faith than they have1 and with all the disadvantages of paganism1 made1 if we may so speak1 a better deist than nineteenth-century sceptics4 ,perhaps his mind was clearer1 after all1 than ,montaigne's1 or than ,sterling's1 who wrote of ,montaigne that1 in the bewilderment of his misunderstanding at the immensity and seeming contradictions of the universe1 perhaps he even hoped that one day or other the puzzle of existence would find its solution in the accompanying puzzle of revelation4 ,we have not time1 in this place1 to follow ,sterling's review of his friend ,carlyle's works4 ,suffice it to say1 what we believe to be the fact1 that he discovered ,carlyle's intellectual stature to be high because the literary world had already recognized it as such2 but he did not discover the extent of ,tennyson's powers because the literary world had not yet recognized them4 ,this is not very complimentary to ,sterling's critiques or penetration--but dreamy and indistinct beauty is all that he ever reaches1 and his expos of ,carlyle's philosophy is as hazy and unsatisfactory as his appreciation of ,tennyson is hesitating and imperfect4 ,after founding the ,sterling ,club1 our hero once more turned his face toward the sweet south4 ,in company with his friend4 ,dr4 ,calvert1 he crossed the ,alps1 and wandered from city to city through the garden of ,europe1 till he reached1 in the winter of #ahch-i1 the city without a rival4 ,perhaps ,sterling was apt to let other people reflect for him4 ,if he had set his own thoughts originally to work1 he could hardly have failed to detect in the metropolis of ,christendom something more than he pretended to find4 ,a philosophic mind1 even of a minor order1 could not allow itself to dwell on ,rome1 the ,holy ,see1 and the pontifical line1 without finding in them matter for the greatest consideration and most searching inquiry4 ,whence the mighty1 the enduring influence of these on mankind and mankind's history1 if there lie not at their root1 principles which escape the glance of superficial observers8 ,whether divine1 human1 or diabolical1 they must deserve philosophical research1 were it only for the magnitude of their results4 ,yet ,sterling is bold enough to affirm that one loses all tendency to idealize the metropolis and system of the hierarchy into anything higher than a piece of showy stage-declamation1 at bottom thoroughly mean and prosaic4 ,again he tells us that ,the modern ,rome1 pope and all inclusive1 are a shabby attempt at something adequate to fill the place of the old commonwealth4 ,so warped was his judgment that ,st4 ,peter's itself found little favor in his eyes4 ,his artistic notes are as unsound as his religious ones4 ,prejudice jaundiced all4 ,i have seen the pope1 he says1 in all his pomp at ,st4 ,peter's2 and he looked to me a mere lie in livery4 #hbj ,but to him perhaps ,st4 ,peter on his cross would not have appeared truth in undress4 ,he derived1 it is to be feared1 little good from his visit to the tombs of the apostles4 ,to him they were tombs indeed--vaults1 charnel-houses1 painted sepulchres4 ,mrs4 ,sterling's premature confinement recalled him to ,england1 and in the summer of #ahci he was housed at ,clifton1 and enjoying the noxious friendship of an amiable deist1 ,mr4 ,frank ,newman1 brother of the great convert to ,catholicism of the same name4 ,he1 too1 had once professed ,anglican ,christianity1 but he resigned his fellowship at ,oxford1 and openly combated the divinity of the ,holy ,ghost4 ,at ,clifton ,sterling became familiar with ,strauss2 we do not mean ,strauss in person1 but in his still more dangerous ,life of ,christ4 ,here was1 indeed1 a lie in livery1 yet ,sterling pronounced it exceedingly clever and clear-headed1 with more of insight1 and less of destructive rage than he expected4 ,it would work1 he said1 deep and far1 and it was well for partisans on one side and the other to have a book of which they could say1 ,this is our ,creed and ,code--or1 rather1 ,anti-,creed and ,anti-,code4 ,alas6 ,john ,sterling1 are you come to this8 ,the lie in livery whom you saw in ,rome would have taught you better4 ,he bid you adore him whom ,strauss denies1 and hold fast to him as the ,way1 the ,truth1 and the ,life4 ,there is little to be said of ,sterling's poetry1 and that little such as his ghost might not like to hear4 ,it never caught the public ear1 and if it had caught1 could not have charmed it4 ,he had not the slightest taste for music1 nor any tune in him4 ,his verses were merely rhymed1 and barely rhythmical speeches1 not songs4 ,the thoughts were not much above the sound1 and the latter was as unmusical as a drum4 ,carlyle strongly advised him to stick to prose1 and declared that his poetry had a monstrous rub-a-dub1 instead of a tune4 ,whether in prose or verse1 haze1 insufficiency1 and failure marked all he attempted4 ,at ,falmouth1 as at ,clifton1 he moved in a luminous atmosphere of intellects gone astray4 ,while there he published ,the ,election1 a poem in eleven books1 which describes in heroic verse the contest between ,frank ,vane and ,peter ,mogg for an ,english borough4 ,there were graceful touches here and there2 but the pages wanted that originality which is the only passport to permanent success4 ,the ,election was followed by ,strafford and ,coeur de ,lion1 but the one subject was too dramatic1 and the other one too epic1 for ,sterling's muse4 ,in #ahdb1 he was listening to rhapsodists reciting ,ariosto on the mole at ,naples1 or boating round the promontory of ,sorrento4 ,his spoiled and purposeless existence was drawing near its close4 ,a painful sense of its uselessness forced itself frequently on his mind4 ,his life1 he wrote1 had ceased to be a chain1 and fell into a heap of broken links4 ,versatility in his father became irresolution in him4 ,that father1 ,edward ,sterling1 possessed an improvising faculty without parallel1 and had a fair field for its display in the pages of the ,times4 ,there1 conjurer-like1 he set forth three hundred and sixty-five opinions in the year upon every subject4 ,there1 day after day1 he hit the essential animus of the great ,babylon with extraordinary precision4 ,there he performed to admiration his marvellous somersaults1 not only without shame1 but with the ease and daring of one who is always right4 #hba ,there he appeared as ,whig or ,tory1 ,peelite or ,anti-,peelite1 not as the whim took him1 but as it took the blatant public for whom he wrote4 ,there ,captain ,whirlwind1 as ,carlyle used to call him1 let loose his winds1 and1 securely anonymous1 looked forth from his cave on the seething seas and thundering surges which he rolled on the shore4 ,the son could not but reflect in a degree the father's face4 ,hence1 in ,john ,sterling we find1 to his misfortune1 great and habitual uncertainty4 ,christianity1 he wrote1 not long before his death1 is a great comfort and blessing to me1 although ,i am quite unable to believe all its original documents4 ,what kind of ,christianity was this which comforted him1 and whence did it derive its evidences8 ,the same inconsistency and vagueness appears in his remark--and it was one of his latest--that he had gained but little good from what he had heard or read of theology1 but derived the greatest comfort from the words1 ,thy will be done4 ,as if these words did not involve the whole circle of theology1 as the egg contains the chicken1 and the acorn the oak4 ,in the beginning of #ahdc1 ,sterling broke a blood-vessel2 his mother also became seriously ill2 and his father's mansion at ,knightsbridge1 built on the high table-land of sunshine and success1 was filled at once with bitterness and gloom4 ,very affectionate and pious were ,sterling's letters to his mother2 nor can it be said that death came to either of them unawares4 ,they saw the grim shadow approach1 and awaited his stroke with such fortitude as their sense of religion gave them4 ,dear mother1 wrote ,sterling1 there is surely something uniting us that cannot perish1 ,i seem so sure of a love which shall last and reunite us1 that even the remembrance1 painful as that is1 of all my own follies and ill tempers cannot shake this faith4 ,when ,i think of you1 and know how you feel toward me1 and have felt for every moment of almost forty years1 it would be too dark to believe that we shall never meet again4 ,on ,good ,friday1 #ahdc1 ,sterling's wife had borne him another child1 and1 with her infant1 was doing well4 ,the post arrived on the ,tuesday following1 and ,sterling left her for a moment to read the tidings brought of his mother4 ,he returned soon with a forced calm on his face1 but to announce his mother's death4 ,alas6 another bereavement1 still more desolating1 was at hand4 ,in two hours more his beloved wife also was numbered with the dead4 ,his two best friends were cut down by a single blow2 to him they died in one day--almost in one hour4 ,a mother's love is unique3 there is nothing like it in the world2 a wife's love is all that imagination can picture of earthly affection2 and to ,sterling they were now both things of the past4 ,alone1 alone he must pursue his pilgrimage1 haunted by the perpetual remembrance of joys never to return4 ,my children1 he cried1 require me tenfold now4 ,what ,i shall do1 is all confusion and darkness4 ,it is in such seasons of bereavement especially that the ,catholic realizes his church as the mourner's solace and the outcast's home4 ,but ,sterling1 unhappily1 was debarred from this best and sweetest consolation4 ,friends he had in abundance1 but they were almost all errant meteors like himself1 and stars shining in mist4 ,by the death of his mother he became rich1 when riches could no longer purchase increase of joy4 ,he took a house at ,ventnor in the ,isle of ,wight1 and there strove to live for his children and in a sphere of poetry4 #hbb ,but his lyre had few listeners2 and it would be but loss of time to criticise at length what is now forgotten4 ,now and then he went up to town1 and even entertained friends in his father's desolate dwelling at ,knightsbridge4 ,it was like dining in a ruin in the crypt of a mausoleum4 ,his silent sadness was manifest to all through the bright mask he sometimes wore4 ,i am going on quietly here1 rather than happily1 he wrote from ,ventnor to ,mr4 ,frank ,newman2 sometimes quite helpless1 not from distinct illness1 but from sad thoughts and a ghastly dreaminess4 ,the heart is gone out of my life4 ,that life was fast ebbing away1 and he knew it2 he was drifting into the vast ocean of eternity1 and he watched without regret the receding shore4 ,a certain piety sustained him4 ,god is great1 he would exclaim with ,moslem fervor1 ,god is great4 ,his heart yearned especially toward ,carlyle1 and the ,maurices were constantly at his side4 ,infidelity and semi-,christianity1 in death as in life1 were his presiding genii4 ,he clasped the ,bible in his feeble hand1 though he believed it but in part4 ,he prayed to be forgiven2 he thanked the all-wise ,one2 but it was long since he had begun to deem himself the opponent1 the antagonist of everything that is1 and antagonism is a frame of mind little conducive to peace and joy4 ,a few days before his death he wrote to ,carlyle3 ,i tread the common road into the great darkness1 without any thought of fear1 and with very much of hope4 ,certainty1 indeed1 ,i have none4 444 ,toward me it is more true than toward ,england1 that no man has been and done like you4 ,heaven bless you6 ,if ,i can lend a hand when ,,there1 that will not be wanting4 ,to this same friend1 four days before his death1 he addressed some stanzas which ,carlyle has not published1 but says they were written as if in starfire and immortal tears4 ,his eyes were closed on this world on the #ahth of ,september1 #ahdd4 ,he sleeps in the burying-ground of ,bonchurch1 and is embalmed in the memory of his friends4 ,his natural virtues were of the highest order2 his life was correct1 his temper uncomplaining1 his soul transparent1 and his imagination lively4 ,standing1 as he did1 midway between belief and unbelief1 he conciliated the esteem and friendship of believers and unbelievers1 if ,archdeacon ,hare and ,mr4 ,maurice are to be reckoned among the former4 ,the archdeacon1 indeed1 goes far in the excuses he makes for ,sterling1 saying1 ,such men we honor1 although they fall2 nay1 we honor them the more because they fall2 a sentiment so extravagant that the most liberal ,catholic will condemn it without hesitation4 ,every life has its moral2 and that of ,sterling's is certainly no exception to the rule4 ,he is a type of educated ,england in the present day--half-,christian1 half-infidel4 ,nature and cultivation had given him all that was requisite to make him a useful member of society1 and to cheer his dying hours with the retrospect of an existence applied to the happiest and highest ends4 ,but one thing was wanting in him1 a steady purpose and a clear view of the means by which it was to be obtained4 ,if he had been fortunate enough to know1 enjoy1 and exemplify the ,catholic religion1 it would have supplied him with a definite scope1 and have laid down a rule of faith and obedience by which to compass his ends2 it would have collected all his scattered forces1 given edge to his arguments1 sober color to his imagination1 satisfaction to his yearnings1 rest to his disquiet1 comfort to his sadness4 #hbc ,it would have enabled him to realize with all the certitude of faith facts which by the light of nature he could not credit1 and truths which he could not comprehend4 ,it would have taught him with authority things which his teachers propounded in doubt1 asserted feebly1 or distinctly denied4 ,it would have saved him from a wasted existence1 from the shallow theology of ,archdeacon ,hare and his ,guesses at ,truth1 from the puzzle-headed metaphysics of ,coleridge1 the wild utterances of ,edward ,irving1 the ,arian tendencies of ,maurice and ,dean ,stanley1 the supercilious incredulity of ,carlyle1 the proud unbelief of ,francis ,newman1 and the efforts1 intentional or unintentional1 of them all to bring about an unnatural and odious alliance between infidelity and ,christian faith4 ,they have labored hard to establish a school1 and in ,england the results of their toil is unhappily everywhere apparent4 ,unbelief is wearing a ,christian mask2 and often has the language of ,christ on its lips4 ,ministers of religion scatter doubts in evangelical terms1 and scoffers mimic the tones and language of honest disciples4 ,atheists and ,deists do homage to the son of ,mary1 and speak respectfully of saints1 doctors1 and popes4 ,protestant divines apologize for sincere unbelievers1 and quote with approval the writings of the apostles of doubt4 ,conciliation and compromise are loudly called for on both sides1 and hatred of all law and dogma is extolled as charitable and wise4 ,the proposal of marriage between ,christianity and ,infidelity is openly published2 and the ,catholic ,church alone solemnly and persistently forbids the banns4 -------------- ,saint ,columba4 ,columba1 gentlest of all names6 ,bequest ,of a strong ,celtic mother to a child ,who1 unto life's meridian1 kept the wild1 ,impassioned grandeur of his race2 his guest ,the patriot bard2 while innocence oppressed ,flew1 with the instinct of souls undefiled1 ,to his great heart1 who1 to the guileless mild4 ,called heaven's swift curse upon the lifted crest ,of lawless power4 ,and still the generous mind ,pores1 kindling1 o'er heroic legends quaint1 ,in which grave history dips her brush to paint ,that nature fierce and tender2 but combined ,with grace celestial1 till the man we find ,crowned with th' eternal glories of the saint4 ---------- #hbd ,gheel4 ,a ,colony ,of ,the ,insane1 ,living ,in ,families ,and ,at ,liberty4 ,the ,belgian ,kempen ,land is a vast stretch of sandy plains in the provinces of ,anvers1 ,brabant1 and ,limburg4 ,its chief parish1 ,gheel1 has a population of some #ab1jjj1 about one fifteenth of which are lunatics in family treatment1 and many of them occupied in the usual routine of domestic1 field1 and garden work4 ,this custom has prevailed there for a thousand years4 ,in the seventh century1 a chapel was built and dedicated to ,saint ,martin1 the apostle of the ,gauls4 ,some cells of pious hermits surrounded it and formed the principal nucleus of ,gheel4 ,here the young daughter of a pagan king of ,ireland sought a refuge from his incestuous love1 accompanied by ,gerrebert1 the priest who had converted herself and her mother to ,christianity4 ,her father1 discovering her traces1 pursued her1 caused ,gerrebert to be put to death1 and his servants refusing to execute his sanguinary orders against his daughter1 he cut off her head with his own hands1 thus avenging1 by the most horrible crime1 the defeat of his guilty passion4 ,certain lunatics who witnessed this terrible martyrdom1 and others whom piety led to the grave of the victims1 as the legend runs1 were cured4 ,gratitude and faith attributed the merit of these cures to the holy young virgin1 henceforth honored as the patroness of the insane4 ,attracted by hopes of a miracle1 other families brought their afflicted to the foot of the memorial cross and double bier4 ,the visitors1 on their departure1 confided their patients to the charity of the residents4 ,this custom became an institution4 ,little by little1 a village was formed here1 animated by work as well as prayer1 and which became1 at last1 an important burgh4 ,a large and beautiful church1 built in honor of ,saint ,dymphna1 replaced ,saint ,martin's chapel1 early in the twelfth century1 and was consecrated on its completion in #acdj1 by the ,bishop of ,cambrai4 ,the popular devotion there was approved by a brief of ,pope ,eugene ,,iv41 in #adjj4 ,a vicariate composed of nine priests and a director was instituted in #aech1 and in #aefb changed into a chapter consisting of nine canons and a deacon4 ,from these times up to our own day1 a current of pilgrimage has been sustained by the malady and by faith4 ,this fountain of prayer in the desert1 these pious cares solicited and granted1 have become a source of industry and liberty for the insane1 and of prosperity for the district4 ,this is readily explained4 ,the barren soil of the ,kempen renders it difficult to live there1 hospitality was more onerous there than elsewhere1 and economy as well as religious charity counselled the host to have but one board with his guest4 ,to keep him apart would have been losing the time of those occupied in taking care of him4 ,left at liberty1 he would naturally accompany them to the fields1 and there1 before the soil which solicited arms1 another step of progress was accomplished4 ,so1 without any constraint1 by the attractions of social labor and of gentle influences1 many of the insane became useful members of the family4 #hbe ,the first inspirations of religion1 reenforced by considerations of economy1 came to be organized in a secular practice of humble virtues by the habit of affectionate cares4 ,thus1 in the rude middle ages1 the ,gheel folk1 without the light of science1 but in that of a religious faith made fruitful by the heart and sustained by their interest1 practised a treatment of insanity based on the liberty of movement1 on rural and domestic industry1 and on the sympathy of an adoptive family1 far from all that might recall a sinister past4 ,the arbitrary discipline founded on geometrical and military ideas in modern times has not spared ,gheel2 yet1 whatever abuses ten centuries had introduced and habit protected there1 as well as its good services1 were ascertained by a most thorough inquest4 ,the new regulations for ,gheel in #ahea-'eb-'eg and '#eh secure1 as far as written laws can go1 the well-being of the insane4 ,the insane are admitted at ,gheel without distinction as to nation1 religion1 age1 sex1 or fortune4 ,every one is welcomed with sincere sympathy1 and receives the same hygienic and medical care1 though nothing prevents the rich from enjoying their fortune1 or whatever1 in the way of luxuries1 their relatives may provide for them4 ,one ,english gentleman1 for instance1 consumes in festive entertainments the income of a large estate4 ,of late years1 the ,belgian administration has excluded from ,gheel certain dangerous forms of lunacy1 such as homicidal and incendiary monomanias1 and those who are constantly bent upon escaping from any place to which they may have been taken1 or whose affections are of such a nature as to disturb public decency4 ,it does not appear1 however1 that this recent transfer of #bej patients had been called for by any disasters4 ,it was rather a concession to administrative routine1 and ,mr4 ,parigot1 the inspector at that time1 regrets that the colony should thus have lost a class of patients the control of whom best attested its moral power4 ,both the patients and their guardians felt aggrieved by this arbitrary measure4 ,no distinctive dress is worn by the insane2 their garments are such as are worn by the country folk in general1 so that nothing calls public attention to them1 nor reminds them of their peculiar situation4 ,liberty under all its forms is the good genius which has inspired1 protects1 and preserves this colony3 especially the liberty to come and go1 to sleep or get up1 to work or to rest1 to read or write or talk at pleasure1 to receive one's friends or correspond with them without any restriction4 ,the supreme science of government consists in not contradicting the insane1 but humoring their innocent fantasies1 or imposing nothing by force1 but obtaining all by persuasion4 ,unless some evident and particular inconvenience prevents it1 they enter public places1 smoke a pipe at the caf1 play a hand of cards1 read the papers1 or drink a glass of beer with the neighbors4 ,the tavern-keepers are not allowed to sell wine or distilled liquors4 ,if liberty1 equality1 and fraternity are not political terms there1 they are the realities of common life4 ,the lunatic is a man1 and is treated as such by the same right as all his brothers in ,god4 ,you would never hear at ,gheel such a complaint as this1 by a poor lunatic confined in an asylum1 where1 indeed1 he was the subject of intelligent and devoted cares3 #hbf ,they call us patients1 to control and to oppress us1 but they do not allow us the indulgence of sick folk6 ,often after a restless night1 ,i would like to sleep in the morning4 ,but no3 the hour has come1 the bell rings1 we must rise whether we will or not4 ,i am not1 then1 a patient any longer6 ,at ,gheel1 no bell strikes the limit between sleep and waking4 ,pleasure1 the example of activity1 and appetite1 are stimuli sufficient to counteract sluggishness4 ,sleep is never disturbed1 unless by order of the physician on some particular occasion4 ,often1 says ,dr4 ,parigot1 ,i have asked on entering1 ,where is ,mr4----8 ,the answer would be1 ,doctor1 our heerke is still abed2 his breakfast is waiting him there by the fire2 and this at ten or eleven o'clock4 ,it may be asked whether the frequency of accidents and of escapes does not counterpoise the advantages of so much liberty4 ,no6 accidents are neither common nor serious4 ,quarrels and spats are easily appeased2 they occur very seldom1 which is due1 in part1 to the tendency of the insane to keep apart rather than to associate with each other4 ,this tendency is not contravened at ,gheel1 as at asylums1 where the annoyance of forced association exasperates susceptible characters and irritable nervous systems4 ,i am really mad1 then1 for them to condemn me to live with these people6 cried a monomaniac in despair4 ,enter almost any hall of an asylum where the insane assemble to warm themselves3 you will be heart-struck by the sinister expression of this feeling in persons most of whom are as sensible as yourself to manias which are not their own1 and whose punishment consists in finding themselves everywhere and always with the insane4 ,these men and women are overwhelmed with ennui4 ,the room in which they pass the night does not belong to them1 and this warmed gallery1 that yard1 that garden1 are for them but walled cages4 ,you may read upon their faces the aggravation thus occasioned1 while the chances of their cure diminish daily4 ,now1 turn to the lunatic at ,gheel1 who enjoys the free air1 and feels a property in his chamber1 in his books1 his tools1 his plants1 his stones and various collections4 ,he adorns his domicile after his own fashion2 his inscriptions or designs appear upon the walls4 ,he is busy in acting his dream2 he roams in the woods and fields2 he fishes in the streams1 or spreads snares for birds1 or labors at his will4 ,another writes all day in the sand of the streets the story of his thoughts-- hieroglyphics to which he alone has the key4 ,a third relieves his inward agitation by external movement2 all day innocently busy1 he returns tranquillized to his lodgings at night ,the rest are at work with their hosts1 or at sport with the children1 their friends and peers4 ,that melancholy which engenders the disgust of life1 may often be calmed by a change so complete in one's whole existence1 while the predisposition to it is not aggravated by the despair of incarceration4 ,dispersion in families distinct and often isolated1 counteracts the danger of contagious imitation4 ,in the course of half a century1 only two acts of personal violence are on record4 ,the enjoyment of their personal liberty sufficiently explains why so few try to escape from ,gheel4 ,most of the patients have found there a deliverance from previous constraint2 yet1 to provide against all casualties1 the administration1 as soon as advised of the disappearance of a patient from his guardian's premises1 sets in movement an effective police corps4 #hbg ,before this was instituted1 the spontaneous intervention of the neighbors sufficed2 for it was understood1 for many leagues round1 that any individual whose demeanor awakened suspicions of his sanity1 should be conducted to ,gheel as to his legal residence4 ,the restorer of a runaway was also entitled to mileage for his trouble4 ,when it is known that a certain lunatic is beset with the idea of escaping1 which may take possession of the insane like any other1 it is customary1 after obtaining a permit therefor from the physician in charge1 to fasten two rings or bracelets1 covered with sheep-skin1 upon the legs1 with a covered chain1 about a foot in length1 connecting them4 ,by this means the lunatic1 without being confined1 has his movements obstructed1 while attention is directed to him4 ,how preferable this is to the mortal ennui1 to the sullen despair of confinement in an asylum6 ,what matters it to the patient that his limbs are free1 if before him is the barrier of bolts and bars--of massive doors1 and impassable walls6 ,the morale of the insane cannot be otherwise than favorably affected by association with persons who protect him with solicitude1 while they appeal to his good sense and good will1 admitting him on a footing of equality to their hearths1 their tables1 and their work3 such a welcome banishes from his mind the idea of humiliation and oppression1 which everywhere else is connected with that of sequestration4 ,instead of being a pariah shaken off by society1 he now belongs to humanity2 his dignity as a man is safe1 for it is respected in its chief privilege--liberty4 ,in the name of this liberty1 he is trusted--he is constituted1 in a measure1 the arbiter of his own lot4 ,if he does not abuse it1 supervision of him is relaxed4 ,if his freedom be sometimes limited1 the least remaining gleam of reason suffices to render him conscious that the restrictions imposed are not hostile in their spirit1 but are simply precautions which he may disarm by a rational conduct4 ,such sentiments sustain or awaken within him the life of the soul2 they influence his manners and bearing4 ,he does not lose the habit of society1 and if he one day return home1 it may be without shame or embarrassment2 his absence will have been a journey1 and not a humiliating sequestration4 ,translated from political into psychologic language1 liberty is spontaneity2 and if we analyze it more profoundly1 we find this term applicable to those actions only which employ the limbs1 the senses1 and the intellectual faculties as ministers of our inmost affections of will4 ,for all spontaneous action1 the head1 the hands1 and the heart are in union--the conflict between the spirit and the flesh is reconciled4 ,this supreme harmony implies the unison of man with himself1 with his fellow-creatures1 and with his spirit-fountain life4 ,express it as you will1 its conception is the basis of the ,christian therapeutics of insanity4 ,all must be obtained of the lunatic by gentleness1 and not by intimidation or violence2 nothing ought to oppress the individuality of the patient4 ,the mission of the guardians is to render inoffensive1 amiable1 and useful1 a person imperfectly conscious of his acts4 ,it is by one of the noblest powers of the spirit that they say to him virtually1 ,be free1 and understand the sympathies that animate us4 ,alexander of ,macedon accepted the beverage of his physician ,philip before mentioning that ,philip had been accused of intending to poison him4 #hbh ,now the insane are1 in the immense majority of cases1 no more guilty of ill intentions than the ,acarnanian doctor1 and our ,alexanders of ,belgium are poor peasants4 ,these ,gheelois have faith in their providential mission1 faith in the ancient miracles which have predestined their country to the cure of insanity1 faith in their own power4 ,esquirol one day expressed to a peasant of this place his apprehensions about paroxysms of mania4 ,the countryman laughed at his fears1 and said3 ,you do not understand these folks2 ,i am not strong1 and yet the most furious of them is nothing for me4 ,this is the way they all talk4 ,the sentiment of an unlimited and privileged power is insinuated from childhood into the soul of the ,gheelois by example and tradition4 ,this power grows with his muscular force and experience2 it imposes upon the insane1 who feels himself feeble and disarmed before a master1 and usually submits without resistance4 ,any desired help can be had1 moreover1 at a moment's warning1 from the neighbors4 ,the exigencies of family life with the insane invite the inhabitants of ,gheel to respect their inoffensive fantasies1 and to study in all its aspects the difficult art of directing their erring wills1 of redressing their false ideas when they threaten mischief1 of taking advantage of a lingering sentiment of sociality or a last gleam of reason1 to secure themselves against violence and surprises4 ,on the other hand1 as they can have recourse to material constraint only in accidental cases1 as they can reckon but exceptionally on the intelligent obedience of patients1 it is especially by the evolution of sympathies1 those quick rays of the soul which usually survive the intellect1 and are often extinguished only with life1 that the ,gheelois have understood the tactics of social government4 ,that women should excel in this diplomacy is not surprising4 ,on them devolves the most delicate and important part of a system based on managing by gentleness the most whimsical characters4 ,simple1 ignorant1 laborious1 without the vanities of fashionable life1 but kind by nature1 religious by education1 and guided by her heart1 the woman of ,gheel accomplishes marvels of devotion and sagacity4 ,by her cares1 which no disgust repels1 she is the visible ,providence of the poor madman4 ,by her ingenious expedients1 she averts stormy crises1 and never shows herself afraid4 ,without title or costume1 she is a true sister of charity4 ,to maintain her power over her fantastic subjects1 she studies their intimate thoughts1 observes their least gestures1 divines their secret projects1 and learns to read souls the most dissembling4 ,to subdue the most savage1 the young girl does not shrink from the manoeuvres of an innocent coquetry4 ,at other times1 it is the imperious magnetism of the look1 of the attitude1 of the voice1 that lays its spell upon the spirit and dissipates fury4 ,it is not rare to see maniacs of herculean frame obeying little women bowed and emaciated by age1 and whose only arms are a few words spoken with authority4 ,the husbands and fathers are not backward in these arts of management4 ,besides their innate turn for it1 the peace of their household and their interests lead them to it4 ,all idleness is a loss1 and the boarder losing his time and making others lose theirs1 if he remained a non-value1 would soon become a burden4 ,compulsion to labor is out of the question4 ,it is necessary to humor the lunatic1 to entice him by rendering the work attractive4 ,is he restive8 #hbi ,they are patient4 ,is he awkward8 ,they make fun of his blunders without humiliating him2 he will do better next time4 ,as soon as he succeeds a little1 he is flattered and encouraged2 he soon comes to like the job4 ,gradually he is tamed and trained4 ,behold him1 then1 an active and a useful member of the family1 proud of himself1 a friend and child of the house1 rising at the same hour as his companions and sharing their toils4 ,fallen as he may be from man's estate1 does he not still afford greater capacities of sociability than those of wild beasts8 ,to succeed in the education of the insane1 the inhabitants of ,gheel have displayed a persevering and intelligent energy1 the power of which is enhanced by the natural sympathy of man for man4 ,much charity in the heart1 gentleness upon the lips1 friendly actions1 reasoning even1 at an opportune moment1 exert a sovereign empire over characters whose susceptibility is exalted by disease4 ,patience is the first of virtues necessary in this community1 and it has always risen to the height of the aberrations it has had to meet4 ,no eccentricity provokes either surprise or anger4 ,for twenty years ,daniel ,peter has been boarding with a ,gheelois4 ,this maniac covers the walls of his chamber with the most original caricatures2 never does he mingle with the members of the family2 he likes only one of the children1 ,joseph2 but he loves him to the point of abdicating his own personality4 ,he nicknames all around him1 persons and beasts1 even the matron1 whom he calls the tambour major4 ,when she asks him through the door whether he wishes to eat1 he replies3 ,joseph would like it2 or else1 ,joseph will have none4 ,the only way of getting anything from him is to compare him with some tall object1 calling him a tree1 a mast1 a tower1 etc4 ,on ,sunday only he will eat no meat1 and takes flight at sight of a woman or of a horse4 ,notwithstanding all these whims1 he is beloved by all the family1 and remains inoffensive1 because he is well treated4 ,he returns to his lodgings regularly every evening after having wandered in the woods and over the heath4 ,from this exchange of kind offices1 which is the general tone1 the most solid attachments spring4 ,you must have seen the afflicted family of der ,phleger around the sick-bed of die ,phlegling1 you must have witnessed the touching scenes when the latter goes forth cured from the establishment1 in order to get a clear idea of the means which constitute the basis of the treatment and the proper employment of which assure the success of the colony4 ,these testimonies of gratitude and of mutual affection1 these tears of happiness and of regret1 these promises to see each other again1 are the sincerest homage that can be rendered to the solicitude of the guardians4 ,footnote #bbi ,footnote #bbi3 ,bulckeus4 ,report of #ahef1 pp4 #cd1 #cc4 ,transcriber's note3 ,this line is blurred4 ,nothing better proves how deeply these feelings have penetrated1 not merely into individual souls1 but into the blood and race1 than the conduct of the children of ,gheel toward the insane4 ,elsewhere generally1 and even at ,horenthals1 in the neighborhood1 we have seen the unfortunate persecuted and derided4 ,childhood1 especially1 is without pity for them4 ,nothing like this at ,gheel4 ,there the ,zott is1 even for children1 an amusing companion1 without wickedness1 often a comrade of their games1 sometimes a protector4 ,it seems that between beings who have not yet quite attained their reason1 and those who have lost it1 some alliance is formed4 ,dr4 ,parigot relates his first visit as inspector to a farm near ,gheel4 #hcj ,it was a cold1 snowy spell in the winter4 ,the family were pressing round the hearth beneath the vast chimney-place1 and the best seat was occupied by a lunatic4 ,the unexpected appearance of a stranger on the threshold of this poor house1 troubled the quiet inhabitants a little4 ,the frightened children took refuge1 with little cries1 between the legs of the maniac4 ,this poor man's affection for the children was vividly depicted in his countenance1 as he protected them with a gesture4 ,this affection was1 perhaps1 the only tie that attached him to society1 but this tie of love protected himself1 by deserving the regard of his hosts4 ,we have been gently touched by seeing in the streets of ,gheel an old man bearing two children in his arms1 while two others followed his steps4 ,the intellectual focus was extinct1 or projected but a feeble and vacillating light1 but the affectional focus still revealed by its glow the moral grandeur of man even in his saddest miseries4 ,a woman of ,gheel was in company with a maniac1 when suddenly he was seized with a paroxysm of excitement4 ,the danger was great1 her presence of mind was still greater4 ,she took the young child that she was bearing in her arms1 and whom the madman loved1 placed it in his arms1 and availed herself of this diversion to slip out by the door2 then1 concealed behind the window1 she followed with eye and heart the movements of the lunatic4 ,marvellous calculation6 the child had at once and completely calmed the madman1 who1 having caressed him and set him upon the floor1 was now playing with him4 ,a few minutes afterward1 the mother could reenter1 the crisis was passed4 ,no one at ,gheel blamed this conduct in the mother1 who had estimated justly the fascination of infancy4 ,when the equality of age invites to friendship1 this becomes very lively between the children of the house and the insane4 ,there is one family which boards a young lunatic1 who is also deaf and dumb4 ,she has become a cherished sister for the daughters of her host4 ,when they are at work together1 enter and announce that you come to take the afflicted child back to the hospital4 ,instantly a cry of terror1 followed by the precipitate flight of these girls1 carrying their friend along with them1 will teach you how lively is the alarm of their tenderness4 ,a woman of beautiful and noble countenance1 and superior education1 had been found insane at ,brussels1 without any information concerning her4 ,from her own imperfect answers1 it seems she was a native of ,mauritius1 where her father had been a man of note in the ,french revolution4 ,entrusted to a family of farmers at ,gheel1 they welcomed her with a delicate deference for her probable antecedents4 ,during twenty years1 they served a little table apart for her1 with more elegance than their own2 yet they received on her account only the pittance allowed for paupers4 ,one day when ,mr4 ,parigot mentioned this1 they answered him1 ,it is enough1 doctor2 we love our little lady1 and we wish to keep her here4 ,no one could pay us for what we are doing2 but we have no children1 and this is our society4 ,a father on his death-bed had recommended to his daughter a poor lunatic1 who had witnessed her birth1 and who had amused her when little4 ,when she married1 she brought him in dower to her husband by the terms of the contract4 ,heaven blessed her generosity4 ,the lunatic lived to be nearly a hundred years old4 ,during this period1 their house had to be rebuilt2 but the spouses made a sacrifice of its symmetry and convenience1 so as to leave untouched the cell of this old man which had become endeared to him by a long abode4 #hca ,the relatives of patients are often too poor to offer presents4 ,one day ,dr4 ,parigot was visiting a young epileptic4 ,as he had always found him well cared for1 and knew that his friends came to see him every year1 he ventured to ask the mistress of the house what she received on his account4 ,she smiled and replied3 ,our ,joseph's relations are poor like me1 and make their journey afoot4 ,i keep them here a week1 and they return afoot1 but ,i give them a rye loaf and bacon to eat on the road4 ,these are our presents4 ,the exercise of these pious and delicate virtues has formed in the heart of the ,gheel folk a sentiment of corporate honor and of mutual responsibility1 which withstands individual perversions as well as the conflicts of social life4 ,the whole community is interested in the fate of these unfortunates4 ,every one there might affirm concerning the insane1 the humani nihil a me alienum puto4 ,the household that has no lunatic seems to lack something1 and looks out for a favorable occasion to supply this want4 ,the reciprocal supervision of the inhabitants prescribes moderation and justice to all4 ,if woman presides in the household1 and man out of doors1 the eye of the community1 watching over both1 protects the weak in the course of daily life1 as in the struggles which a paroxysm sometimes necessitates4 ,denounced by the cries of the victim1 any arbitrary violence would be promptly reported to the physicians and to the administration4 ,if official defenders were absent1 the public voice would suffice1 and it could not be silenced4 ,any suspicion of improper conduct is readily cleared up by the interchange of visits in the neighborhood1 and thus a protection is established permanent1 universal1 invisible1 sanctioned by custom and superior to all administrative patronage or written rule4 ,a population thus reared in the practice of sincere devotion to a special humanitary office1 by immemorial tradition1 by interest1 by personal and communal honor1 and by religious faith1 may well bear comparison with the most zealous servants of any public or private asylum4 ,the brothers or sisters of charity1 who are but casually guardians of a certain infirmity the more difficult of treatment1 because it attacks the soul as well as the body1 can hardly possess those hereditary faculties and the thousand expedients which from infancy upward germ in the child and develop in a family and locality1 devoted to the treatment of insanity4 ,how much more unequal is the comparison with simple mercenaries6 ,heaven forbid we should ignore the abnegation of self1 so often evinced in the most obscure services1 or the unprovided aptitudes which neither danger nor disgust discourage4 ,yet it cannot be denied that the insane generally persist in regarding all overseers as jailers and complacent tools of the injustice of families or of society4 ,at ,gheel1 on the contrary1 the most susceptible patients can see around them only hosts who take in boarders1 and among whom they often find friends and companions4 ,before all disinterested judgment1 what is elsewhere the competition of business here assumes the character of a social and medical mission1 while a closer analysis discerns1 in this creation of a lively faith sustained at once by charity and interest1 a fortunate equilibrium of the springs of human action4 ,the twofold motive of honor and interest acts in effect like a spring regulated by a counterpoise4 #hcb ,is the guardian distinguished for his sagacity and fidelity in the discharge of his assumed cares8 ,he will be kept upon the list and recommended to families by the administration4 ,he will have the opportunity of selection1 and may exercise it so as either to gratify his sympathies or to advance his interests4 ,in the sphere of a true rural life1 are freely developed those affinities which re-ally man with the beast and bird1 and this first degree in the scale of affections is far from being without influence on the state of certain patients4 ,some are interested in the cattle which they tend1 in the horses1 the dogs1 or the birds1 of which they make companions4 ,one lunatic at ,gheel is constantly thinking of birds2 no one is more ingenious than he in catching them4 ,once caged1 he never leaves them1 he takes them from his cell into the family apartment1 or1 while they disport in the sunshine1 their vigilant master mounts guard to protect them from their enemy the cat4 ,is it doubtful that these child-like enjoyments dissipate many sorrows1 or that they aid to re-establish the harmony of the soul with the body8 ,deprive this man of the society of his birds1 indubitably his condition will be aggravated4 ,whether as predisposing or exciting causes1 wounded pride and vanity and passional isolation amid the pressure of crowds underlie many forms of insanity4 ,in assembling under his protection the group of inferior animals1 every man may innocently satisfy sentiments which are ruffled and disappointed among his own species4 ,spiritual space is enlarged about him1 and the heart is amused by the play of passions similar to his own in organisms so different as to render impossible the collisions of rivalry4 ,to this first appeasement of internal agitation by all the voices of nature1 labor comes to add its powerful revulsion4 ,its benefits are now so universally known and proclaimed that1 wherever space permits1 it is becoming one of the bases of treatment4 ,at ,bictre1 the neighboring farm of ,saint ,anne is in great part cultivated by a squad of lunatics chosen among those who most readily accept the discipline of command and corporeal exercise4 ,work is at ,gheel the easy law of every day and every dwelling1 allowing for the antipathy which certain lunatics evince toward every occupation1 and for incapacity by certain kinds of illness4 ,but industry at ,gheel has this precious distinction1 that there the insane works among persons of sane mind1 whose speech and actions bring him back to reason1 whereas elsewhere he is surrounded with his companions in misfortune1 whom he finds the same in the fields as at the asylum4 ,instead of being sequestrated in fantastic and unnatural society1 he continues to live in the real bosom of a social family whose children are reared by his side1 he hears rational conversations and witnesses amusing scenes4 ,does he desire to take part in these8 ,he is obliged to the act of intelligent reflection4 ,occasions naturally supervene when the lunatic1 butting against inflexible reality1 is led to recognize the bewilderment of his ideas4 ,the family compassionates his real or imaginary troubles1 and the latter are not the least afflictive4 ,the lunatic is very sensible of such kindness2 for among many of them1 the memories of childhood1 of friendship1 or of neighborhood1 are preserved quite vivacious amid the ruins of the intellect4 ,the death of a parent or friend will often draw warm tears4 #hcc ,the unfortunate is consoled by showing interest in him4 ,when this sympathetic indulgence can no longer be asked of the natural family1 where hope for it elsewhere than in the adoptive family8 ,less discomposed by its tenderness1 the latter more easily obtains the obedience of the lunatic1 who even through his darkened reason1 fails not to perceive that he has neither the right nor the means of imposing his caprices on strangers4 ,one fact constantly occurs at ,gheel upon the arrival of raving maniacs4 ,after a few days passed in their guardian's house they can scarcely be recognized4 ,coming with the strait-jacket or in bonds1 they are appeased as soon1 almost1 as these are taken off4 ,must this change be attributed to the new sphere that environs them1 to the regard that is extended to them1 or to the new current of impressions and ideas that traverses their own folly8 ,these influences1 severally useful1 are strengthened by their association4 ,through them1 what remains sound in the mind is aided by good tendencies2 what there is morbid1 is restrained4 ,at ,gheel is perpetually renewed the phenomenon which occasioned so much surprise at ,bictre1 at ,charenton1 and in all the hospitals of ,europe1 when intrepid humanity broke their chains and whips1 considered1 until then1 the only possible instruments for controlling the insane4 ,it now remains for science to confess that every closed establishment is in itself a chain1 the last but the heaviest that remains to be suppressed4 ,the lunatic taken to an asylum is1 from the first1 assailed with painful impressions1 bunches of large keys1 massive doors1 bolts1 bars1 cells1 yards1 walls1 guardians1 uniforms1 regulations1 bells1 all the appearances and all the realities of a prison4 ,at ,gheel1 welcomed with alacrity by the family to which his abode secures a pension1 he feels himself at his ease4 ,this first welcome exerts over the insane soul the most auspicious influence2 for one who comes from a hospital1 it is a true emancipation4 ,by daily repetition1 this contentment soon becomes an energetic preference4 ,when of late years certain councils of the ,belgium hospitals decided on withdrawing their insane from ,gheel1 to transfer them to a rival establishment for the sake of some trivial economy1 it occasioned the most touching scenes4 ,guardians and lunatics embraced each other weeping1 and several of the latter hid themselves to escape from this transfer4 ,force had to be employed with others4 ,besides breaking in upon their affections and their habits1 they knew they were passing from liberty to confinement6 ,when questioned on this subject1 their feelings clearly appear4 ,a foreign physician visiting ,gheel with me1 one day asked a lunatic who had spent some time in one of the lock-up establishments1 which system he preferred4 ,you may answer that for yourself1 he replied reservedly2 but a long and silent look beaming with joy was the expressive interpretation of these words4 ,this attachment to ,gheel and to the guardian's family often survives the cure4 ,guardians have often been known to keep gratuitously1 wards restored to their right minds1 but who had lost their families or their relations with the world4 ,not seldom is a friendly correspondence kept up all their lives1 while living far apart4 ,annual pilgrimages from ,brussels to ,gheel renew ties formed during the malady4 #hcd ,there seems to be no possible doubt that life for the insane is more benign at ,gheel than in the immense majority of asylums4 ,patients sent there in the initial period of insanity1 frequently experience a change for the better1 and many recover their reason4 ,some cures have been effected at ,gheel1 after two or three years of abortive treatment elsewhere4 ,maniacs1 much agitated1 in whom the spring of life preserves its energy1 are cured sooner than the quiet ones1 who often become imbecile4 ,monomaniacs1 especially religious monomaniacs1 are seldom cured4 ,they are more fortunate with intermittent forms of insanity1 and such are the patients preferred by the ,gheelois1 as most helpful in their work4 ,cures are more frequent on the farms1 where the insane labor1 than in the village1 where they are less occupied4 ,it seems to be ascertained that the number of cures has diminished with the falling off in devotion1 and this result is no surprise to science1 which1 without intervening in the religious question1 accounts faith among the most powerful therapeutic agents4 ,among the patients classed as curable1 the proportion of cures has averaged between fifty and sixty-five per cent4 ,unfortunately1 about three fifths of the patients sent to ,gheel are desperate cases1 on whom all the resources of art have been vainly exhausted elsewhere2 for ,gheel makes no flourish of trumpets1 and only of late years has possessed even an infirmary1 or a corps of physicians4 ,its simple hygiene of liberty1 and the family life of poor peasants1 is not calculated to exert the prestige of those sadly magnificent palaces in which the insane are confined by thousands1 and where pretentious science so unwisely snubs nature4 ,certain medical administrators have even pretended that ,gheel was only fit for the incurable4 ,formerly1 they came in search of miracles2 now1 they seek a last abode here4 ,it should be remarked1 moreover1 that hospitals1 where the keeping of the insane is a burden1 are inclined to dismiss them as cured on the earliest signs of real improvement2 while at ,gheel1 where their keeping is a source of profit1 and where the patient is often more comfortable than at home1 nothing hastens his departure1 which is authorized only after mature examination by the physician of the section and the general inspector4 ,the chances are greater here than elsewhere1 that the patient's dismissal corresponds to a solid cure4 ,in default of complete restoration1 the conditions of life at ,gheel determine in the insane a general amelioration which constitutes the gentlest manner of being compatible with mental derangement4 ,the morbid state1 reduced to its simplest expression1 excludes neither physical comfort nor a certain order of moral enjoyments1 some of which are delicate even to refinement4 ,the subversive tendencies are attenuated1 if not quite annulled4 ,a young lady1 confined for a year in a large asylum1 used to break up there everything that she could lay her hands upon1 and the severest restraints had to be forced on her4 ,at ,gheel1 free among the peasants1 she breaks up only little bits of wood4 ,unable to overcome entirely the fatal impulse that besets her1 still she understands that she is in a family which deserves consideration1 since1 far from oppressing her1 they allow her to obey her instinctive needs of active movement4 ,the young lunatic does her hosts as little harm as she can1 and this trait admirably exhibits the influence of ,gheel1 which mitigates when it cannot cure1 and obtains1 better than any other system1 the state of passive innocence4 #hce ,this innocence rises occasionally to a sympathetic and rational benevolence4 ,among the old lunatics there are1 generally1 compatriots or acquaintances of the new-comers4 ,the former become the interpreters of their companions in misfortune2 they initiate them into the kind of life led at ,gheel2 they advise them how to manage1 point out to them what the place presents of interest1 and thus assist in naturalizing them4 ,if liberty is the first principle of the colonial system1 labor is the second4 ,although every lunatic is free to abstain from it1 and no physical discipline or coercive measure is brought to bear on him1 a few sympathetic words and example frequently suffice to wean the insane from idleness4 ,from half to two thirds of the whole number are usefully occupied4 ,the household cares are shared by women1 by the aged and the infirm1 along with the children and servants of the family4 ,most of the artisans1 such as tailors1 shoe-makers1 cabinet-makers1 blacksmiths1 bakers1 curriers1 etc41 find a place in the local industry4 ,some work on their own account1 and are patronized in proportion to their skill4 ,there used to be at ,gheel an excellent cabinet-maker1 very intelligent1 and who earned a good deal of money in the exercise of his trade4 ,a ,dutchman1 he had served in the ,french army1 was made prisoner in ,russia1 then incorporated among the ,cossacks of the ,don4 ,in #ahae1 being in ,belgium1 he deserted1 or rather resumed his liberty and nationality1 and married at ,brussels1 where he fell into hallucinations which occasioned his transportation to ,gheel4 ,he lived twenty-five years there1 practising his art with success1 and talked very rationally about matters in general1 only he affirmed that the devil every night entered his body by the heels1 and lodged somewhere in it1 which led him to conclude all his discourses by asking for a probe to hunt the evil spirit4 ,care is taken to place every lunatic in a family so situated in village or country1 as to employ his or her industrial capacities to the best advantage4 ,the furious maniacs are most in request by the peasants1 a preference easily explained4 ,fury attests the energy of the organism2 the internal force1 physical or moral1 is disordered but abundant4 ,in their periods of calm1 madmen of this class are vigorous laborers2 whereas no profit can be made of an idiot or a paralytic4 ,on a sudden and violent paroxysm of acute mania1 the farmer's family1 aided by the passengers and neighbors1 soon obtain control of it4 ,quieted again1 the lunatic resumes his work1 and this work1 which profits the farmer1 ameliorates by an energetic and continuous diversion the state of the patient1 rendering his paroxysms less frequent4 ,although the importance of working is now very generally understood1 few asylums are provided with adequate grounds1 workshops1 and implements for employing their patients to advantage2 hence this progress is still a rare exception1 and even when it exists1 its benefit is much diminished by the vexatious constraint of its discipline resembling penitentiary labor4 ,in most of the rich establishments life passes in oppressive idleness1 leaving the patient all day long to his dreams1 without procuring him that muscular fatigue so propitious to sleep at night4 ,it is enough to drive a sane man mad4 ,as for mental occupation with books1 games1 spectacles1 and social assemblies1 they tend to excite instead of reducing the circulation of the brain1 and are often opposed to the desired equilibrium of the organism4 #hcf ,in the ,russian hospitals1 the military organization of labor becomes but a tribute of passive obedience to absolute authority1 and ceases to effect energetic revulsion from the bewilderment of the mind4 ,so needlework affords to women a kind of instinctive or mechanical activity of the fingers1 which leaves the imagination vagabond4 ,such labors1 prolonged for many hours1 are so much the more objectionable from their sedentary nature1 which rather favors than averts glandular obstructions and correlative disturbance in the circulatory and nervous systems4 ,the mode of life of the small farmer1 considered as a whole1 combines natural interests with varied occupations and movements requiring skill and strength in moderate degree1 observation and attention4 ,above all1 man feels himself here a direct coagent with the elemental forces1 a shareholder in the commonwealth of the universe1 alternately obeying and commanding1 utilizing and enjoying the play of solar and planetary forces4 ,it is true that all have not equally the intellectual consciousness of their participation in this great drama1 nor the intimate satisfaction and dignity that accrue from it2 yet none can be alien to its penetrating virtues1 they sustain the meanest hind and the most oppressed slave2 much more1 the free1 the voluntary1 and amateur collaborator4 ,the aspects of nature wear the color of the spirit2 they are sanative in proportion as man becomes the mirror1 the guide1 and the instrument of her powers4 ,in the prisoner1 at best their suggestions cherish painful aspirations4 ,for the free laborer alone are they pregnant with infinite sweetness4 ,the arts1 and especially music1 contribute to the social life of ,gheel1 and repeat for many a tormented spirit the experience of ,david with ,saul4 ,footnote #bcj ,footnote #bcj3 ,i ,kings xvi4 #bc4 ,a lunatic1 surnamed ,colbert the ,great1 a skilful violinist1 founded the harmony or choral society1 and his name is still honored in the memory of all the ,gheelois4 ,his portrait adorns the hall where the society holds its meetings1 and this homage attests the cordial fraternity1 devoid of prejudices and of false shame1 which characterizes the ,gheel folk4 ,in their concerts1 at patriotic or religious festivals1 the parts are distributed to the musicians according to the irrespective talents2 if they play or sing well1 nothing more is required4 ,to improve natural gifts1 there is a singing-school for the insane4 ,mller1 a distinguished ,german composer and chief of the harmony club1 is the director designated by the public voice1 who solicits the honor of forming1 among the insane1 pupils who shall assist him in his concerts4 ,several of the insane are members of the choir of ,saint ,dymphna4 ,many of them piously mingle in the processions4 ,they are often seen in this church imploring on their knees the grace of heaven4 ,only those whose illusion it is to believe themselves gods or kings1 do not kneel1 but otherwise behave themselves with decency and respect4 ,here1 as elsewhere1 individuals subject to aberrations of reason1 still undergo the influence of the prevailing tone and manner of deportment1 and give in their turn good examples4 ,they are generally much attached to the faith of their childhood4 ,in health or in sickness1 and at the approach of death1 they are admitted to the sacraments of the church whenever their condition is not such as to exclude moral conscience4 ,these acts raise the poor lunatic in his self-respect1 and in the eyes of the population they are a medicine of the soul4 #hcg ,toward the close of the eighteenth century1 when the rigors previously enforced against the insane were relaxed1 a king was the first to experience the benefits of an opposite system4 ,george ,,iii4 was treated by ,willis on the conditions of personal liberty1 out-door amusements1 and the family life4 ,the sons of ,willis1 faithful to their father's lessons1 continued to receive at ,greatford1 lunatics boarded in private families1 but at prices which limited this privilege to the wealthy4 ,gheel1 without splendid palaces1 gardens1 and parks1 which delight visitors1 but make little impression on those who are used to them1 accords to the poorest the treatment of ,george ,,iii41 and with the precious addition of work4 ,in ,france1 ,pinel was the promoter and persevering apostle of the reform first inaugurated at ,bictre1 then extended to the ,salptrire and ,charenton4 ,aiming to raise to the dignity of patients those hapless victims who had previously been treated as criminals or as wild beasts1 beaten and chained1 he realized half his programme in making them simple prisoners1 watched and cared for with intelligence4 ,his successes were propagated throughout ,europe1 and all public or private asylums abandoned the system of direct violence or constraint1 to give1 in the measure of their resources in grounds and buildings1 a larger part to liberty of action and to labor4 ,the so-called non-restraint system of ,england merely substitutes for active cruelties dark cells padded with mattresses4 ,some asylums endeavor to utilize the influence of the director's family circle1 but only at ,gheel are the common rights of man accorded to the insane4 ,benevolent sentiments toward the insane have been cherished in ,mohammedan countries2 regular and methodical labor with a view to economy is common to many establishments2 excursions and amusements are organized by a few3 but nowhere so effectively as at ,gheel have liberty1 sympathy1 and labor been combined in the common interest of the insane and of their keepers4 ,these1 with the sedative influence of a mild1 moist climate on the temperament1 and the consolations of religion for the soul1 have almost divested insanity of its dangers1 and authorize emancipation from those chains of stone which elsewhere weigh no less than chains of iron on the unhappy victims of fear and distrust4 ,this humble parish addresses to every conscience a lesson eloquent in its simplicity of tender devotion toward our brothers the most fallen1 and whom the world disdains and repulses4 ,it shows how charity may precede and complete science4 --------- #hch ,life's ,charity4 ,and the great sea closed over that wild struggle1 and the wreck went down with its precious freight of immortality6 ,there was a single cry that came from the white lips1 one glance from the tearless1 appealing eyes4 ,all ready6 sounded a rough voice from the long-boat4 ,for my child6 she called out to me1 above the awful din and tumult4 ,and ,i could only clench the rosary with its precious crucifix in my bosom1 and spring into the already crowded boat4 ,i missed and fell1 and1 grasping an oar1 fought the angry sea for life4 ,i vaguely recollect a fearful shriek1 as the steamer turned and settled2 and when she sank1 the strong current drew in the last of the boats1 the boat in which she had taken refuge4 ,i closed my eyes1 but in my ear rang the agony1 the wild despair of that cry1 ,my ,god6 my ,god6 ,i suppose ,i fainted2 for ,i only remember opening my eyes on the deck of a small vessel1 which was scudding under bare poles before a perfect hurricane4 ,weeks passed by1 and in a quiet ,english village1 on the soft1 balmy south coast1 ,i lay trying to regain the strength which brain fever had quite exhausted4 ,my kind ,english nurse told me that through it all ,i grasped the rosary1 and her heart was touched by my devotion to the crucifix4 ,this recalled that fearful autumn morning1 when1 amid the dimness of the fog1 the ,arctic went down to her burial4 ,reverently ,i kissed the crucifix1 and murmured my ,credo2 from the very depths of my soul went upward1 ,i believe in ,god6 ,then1 as ,i clasped the cross1 ,i felt it move2 but ,i went through my prayers1 and ,i suppose that the pressure of my hands caused the spring to move1 and a closely folded paper fell upon my breast4 ,the crucifix was large and hollow4 ,i carefully unfolded the delicate paper1 and a shudder passed over me as the vision of that pale woman1 struggling amid the breakers1 arose from memory's gloaming4 ,the very first words that met my eye were1 ,i believe in ,god6 and1 she wrote1 ,i will follow his guidance4 ,far from those that are dearest to me1 ,i have buried my husband where his fathers rest2 and now1 my child's voice calls me from my home across the ,atlantic4 ,i dreamed last night of a fog1 a dense mist1 that hung like a curtain2 of a fearful crash1 and a vision of anguish that seems too real for dreaming2 but my child's voice is echoing in my heart1 and may ,god speed my wanderings6 ,a sorrow as of coming woe oppresses me2 but ,i believe in ,god6 and his mercy will save me4 ,my little daughter1 ,marguerite ,cecil1 is with her guardian1 ,henry ,alan1 ,no4 #hf ,east ---- street1 ,new ,york4 ,may the everlasting ,arms forever enfold her6 ,ruth ,cecil4 ,poor lamb6 my heart whispered1 the one idol1 and so desolate6 ,well1 the spring found me on my journey to the busy metropolis2 and wending my way to ,east ---- street1 ,i found the most elfish little fairy that fate had ever set drifting on life's ocean all alone4 ,a bonnie wee thing was ,madge ,cecil2 so frail that her tenure here seemed too slight for holding2 yet from the wonderful gray eyes came flashes that gave promise of a splendid future4 #hci ,golden hair courted the sunbeams1 and1 flecked with light1 wrapped around the most graceful contour that twelve summers had ever shone upon4 ,she knew of her mother's death1 for her deep mourning dress contrasted almost painfully with the delicate whiteness of her complexion4 ,and when ,i drew her upon my knee and put the rosary in her hand1 she threw her arms around me1 and sobbed as though her heart would break4 ,i really trembled as ,i listened1 for a storm of passionate agony was convulsing a frame which had little to offer in combat4 ,mamma6 mamma6 she sobbed out1 and she clasped me closer4 ,will ,god take me home to her8 ,o mamma6 come back6 ,my heart ached for the child1 whose grief seemed agonizing her very soul1 so ,i tried to quiet her1 and told her of the brighter home where1 with the holy ,mother of ,god1 her own mother would be singing hallelujahs4 ,i told her that this earth was only a brief journeying-place which led to the sweet haven of eternal love1 the land where farewells could never bring a cloud1 nor partings cast a shadow4 ,then the large gray eyes looked trustingly up into my face1 and with her arms around me1 ,i felt the love of my heart go out toward her with a strength and purity ,i had never known before4 ,soon after this1 her guardian placed her at ,madame ,cathaire's large boarding-school1 and ,uncle ,hal1 as she now called me1 was always her chosen confidant and friend4 ,years passed1 and ,i watched her beautiful girlhood unfold4 ,she had rare talents1 a quick intellect1 and intense appreciation of the beautiful2 indeed1 a purer spirit seldom lived in this mortal tenement4 ,yet1 with her enthusiastic1 impulsive nature1 she possessed a quiet strength of control that caused visions of the old martyrs to rise2 for ,i felt that she1 too1 could wrestle with passion1 and1 with ,god's grace1 subdue all sin4 ,and thus time sped on1 and each passing season left its impress only to mature and render more perfect the succeeding2 and her eighteenth birthday found her the realization of spiritual loveliness4 ,the exquisite golden curls of her childhood fell in irregular waves from the low ,grecian brow1 and the sweet1 earnest eyes always recalled those of ,guido's angel1 bearing the branch of lilies1 in his beautiful picture of ,the ,annunciation4 ,she was living with her guardian1 and her great wealth attracted many in a city where gold is the winning card4 ,there was a charming freshness and navet in the young girl1 and at times almost a religious light gleamed from the depths of her large gray eyes4 ,her guardian's nephew1 ,henry ,elsdon1 had just returned from ,europe1 and ,i watched him as he dallied1 at first carelessly1 among the crowd that gathered around her4 ,i did not fancy the young man1 and there was an indescribable barrier which rose up always when ,i tried to like him4 ,he was what the world would call handsome and distingu1 but the droop of the lower lip1 the heavy jaw1 and narrow forehead truly told of the fierce animal nature within4 ,madge was very lovely in this first season1 and it was plainly apparent that he entirely failed to impress her2 indeed1 at times her coldness toward him was marked4 ,on returning from vespers1 one mild ,may evening1 she asked me to accompany her on her ,sunday visits4 ,of course1 ,i went1 for who could refuse her8 ,down the dark streets we wandered1 till we arrived at an old brick house that1 a hundred years ago1 may possibly have been in its prime4 #hdj ,she tapped at the dingy door1 and1 like an angel of light1 her presence seemed to brighten the room4 ,a sick woman lay stretched on a miserable pallet1 and a racking cough shook her weak frame2 but a smile of happiness illumined the pinched features1 and her voice was tender as it thanked ,madge for her gentle deeds of love4 ,a woman's kindliness is nevermore beautifully displayed than in a sick chamber2 and my heart did homage to the young girl1 as she knelt by the sick woman's bed1 murmuring1 in low1 comforting tones1 the prayer3 ,visit1 we beseech thee1 ,o ,lord6 this habitation1 and drive far from it all the snares of the enemy4 ,may thy holy angels dwell herein1 to preserve her in peace2 and may thy holy benedictions always remain with her1 through ,christ our ,lord4 ,amen4 ,her face was radiant1 and her upturned eyes were holy with inspiration4 ,just then a shadow darkened the doorway1 and ,i looked1 to meet the eyes of one perfectly absorbed in the scene before him4 ,my startled movement recalled ,madge1 and a soft color deepened in her cheeks as she seemed to feel the observation of the stranger4 ,o ,miss ,cecil6 here is ,mr4 ,grey1 who has been as kind as yourself4 ,this is ,miss ,cecil1 ,mr4 ,grey4 ,and then he advanced1 and the fading sunlight fell upon a splendid specimen of manhood4 ,six feet of magnificently proportioned height1 and a head which ,vandyke would have gloried in2 steel-gray1 flashing eyes1 a brow upon which intellect and will were marked1 and a complexion which the suns of ,southern ,europe had darkened into olive4 ,pardon me4 ,miss ,cecil1 but the likeness is perfect1 and the name so familiar4 ,was your mother ,ruth ,anderson8 ,tears streamed from her eyes as she half-whispered1 ,yes6 ,she could never speak calmly of her mother1 for her love seemed only to strengthen as years made the loss more keenly felt4 ,in an instant he was by her side1 and1 with the tender but perfectly respectful manner--the manner so acceptable to a woman--he told her how eagerly he had sought for this child of his old and esteemed friend4 ,he had gone abroad with her mother1 and remained in ,europe till within a few months4 ,he had read of the fearful doom of the ,arctic1 and vainly tried to trace the child4 ,i need not tell you1 ,madge1 how very glad ,i am to see you1 and1 before long1 ,i shall hope to be a very good friend4 ,and they did meet very often4 ,madge spent the summer at ,newport1 and ,mr4 ,grey's cottage was near her guardian's lovely home4 ,i suppose there is truth in the old and familiar theory of elective affinities2 for the strength of his nature seemed to absorb her gentle1 loving trust1 and her impulsive1 passionate heart was entirely swayed by his steady1 strong affection2 in truth1 each chord felt the echo from his4 ,and so1 in the autumn1 ,i was not surprised when she pointed to a magnificent solitaire diamond on the forefinger of her left hand1 and told me that she had promised to be the wife of ,newton ,grey4 ,they had returned to ,new ,york1 and ,madge and ,mr4 ,grey were looking over a portfolio of engravings at the further end of the library1 while ,i sat smoking in front of the bright coal-fire1 dreaming day-dreams1 as the smoke curled and floated away1 when suddenly the door opened and ,henry ,elsdon came in4 ,i shall never forget the look that1 only for one single moment1 darkened his features2 only for an instant his face looked thus1 and then1 with a quick1 soft step1 he crossed the library1 and suavely joined the circle around the engravings4 #hda ,i could see that ,newton ,grey would never stoop to suspect him2 but ,madge recoiled from him1 for there was not the slightest affinity between such natures4 ,uncle ,hal1 she told me one morning1 ,i always feel that ,i ought to cross myself when ,henry ,elsdon comes near me1 that ,i may pray to be saved from some impending evil4 ,and my lamb was right1 for truly a wolf did prey near for her destruction4 ,business called me to the ,south1 and ,i left ,new ,york to breathe the balmier air of ,charleston4 ,it was a delicious winter1 that soft season in the sunny ,south4 ,violets in the gardens in ,december1 and the scarlet winter roses and sweet mignonette brightening the lovely villa--like houses on the battery4 ,i was slowly descending the stone steps that led from the beautiful cathedral1 while the last echoes of the bishop's gentle voice yet rang in my ears1 when a letter was put into my hands by my friend ,colonel ,everett4 ,i did not open it then1 but strolled down ,broad street1 to the ,mills ,house1 and in my pleasant room ,i sat down to enjoy ,madge ,cecil's confidence4 ,imagine my horror as ,i read3 ,come to me1 dear ,uncle ,hal1 for ,god alone can strengthen me in this fearful sorrow4 ,i cannot understand1 but yesterday ,mr4 ,grey left me after a short visit1 and to-day they tell me that he is dead4 ,i hear low whisperings of a terrible sin1 of which ,henry ,elsdon is guilty4 ,for my dead mother's sake1 come and aid your desolate ,madge4 ,i left that evening1 and on ,saturday held my darling in my arms4 ,then the whole story in its fearful detail was repeated4 ,henry ,elsdon had wished to marry my ward1 but she had refused him1 some time before her engagement with ,newton ,grey4 ,elsdon's pride was piqued1 and he determined to be revenged4 ,then began a system of deceit that was ,machiavelian2 for with subtle skill he won ,grey's friendship1 till at last1 in one unguarded moment1 he dared to speak lightly of ,madge4 ,in an instant ,grey rose1 his face white with a terrible calm3 ,i am in my own rooms1 ,mr4 ,elsdon1 therefore you are safe2 but you must feel that each word that you have uttered shall be retracted1 else there can be but one settlement4 ,and1 by ,god6 there shall be but one settlement6 ,and ,elsdon's face glared with hate4 ,and so in the code that teaches murder--cold1 passionless1 brutal murder--they sought refuge2 and ,newton ,grey fell1 pierced through the temples4 ,sorrows seem truly convoyed on this ocean of life1 this sea of wild unrest2 for in a few months ,mr4 ,alan lost his fortune1 and1 of course1 my ward's wealth was also engulfed in the great whirlpool of ruin4 ,a strange suspicion clouded my heart1 and with an intuition of the truth1 ,i felt that ,i could single out the demon who had spread destruction in this home4 ,but with the suavity of deceit1 he subtly turned aside the tide of censure1 so justly his due1 and the world even forgave him for the duel2 for strange travestied stories floated through the city4 ,who gave them to the public8 ,i felt1 ,i knew that ,henry ,elsdon had only added to the infamy which weighed upon his soul2 but as yet the avenger had not struck1 the race of hell had not been accomplished6 444 ,it was the exciting winter of '#fj -- ,december1 #ahfj6 ,south ,carolina had torn herself from her sisters1 and ,washington was in a ferment4 ,crowds congregated at the hotels to watch the opening of a season fraught with destiny4 #hdb ,men with reckless1 evil passions increased the excitement2 for cognac burned and whiskey infuriated1 and the whole mass of humanity seemed consumed by the one madness1 mutual hate6 ,it was the evening of the #bgth of ,december4 ,the telegraph had spread the news of ,anderson's evacuation of ,fort ,moultrie1 and the agitation was culminating in effort4 ,there is a season when enthusiasm pulses1 till the wild madness intoxicates all feeling2 then some sudden crowding on of events drives the fierce current into action1 and the mighty mass heaves and surges with one will1 one heart1 for the conflict2 and so it was to night4 ,i stood on the corner of ,pennsylvania avenue and ,seventh street1 watching the changing faces which the gas-light flared upon1 when a woman's voice in wild terror startled me4 ,in the name of the cross1 forbear6 she cried4 ,and ,i turned to see a face pale with fear and horror4 ,in an instant ,i was beside her2 she held the cross of her rosary toward the man who had dared1 not only to insult a woman1 but one of ,god's ministering angels1 those pure spirits of comfort1 the ,sisters of ,mercy4 ,i struck the brute from her1 but not without recognizing the features1 even though inflamed and distorted by liquor4 ,she almost fainted in my arms1 but ,i placed her in my sister's carriage1 just then passing1 and ordered it to drive to the address which she gave4 ,what there was in the tones of that woman's voice ,i could not explain to myself2 but a sad chord vibrated till the echoes waked in my heart feelings that ,i thought were sleeping quietly in a jealously guarded grave of the past4 444 ,four years had gone by since that night1 and the war that shook this continent had closed2 ended were the years that had brought their holocaust1 the proof of the calibre of the men who had died on the field of honor4 ,grant's triumphant legions garrisoned the ,confederate capital1 and ,i was appointed surgeon in charge of ---- ,hospital1 where the sick and wounded of both armies were tended by the ,sisters of ,mercy4 ,the intense heat of those early summer days ,i can never forget1 and the poor fellows in blue and gray tossed from side to side on the narrow cots in the fever wards4 ,it was my night in ---- ,hospital1 for ,i was appointed to relieve ,dr4 ----1 and ,i observed a sister bending over a patient whose white face and faint voice told me that his hours were numbered4 ,sister ,mary1 said the feeble tones1 will you bathe my temples8 they burn and throb as fiercely as my own heart4 ,sister1 can a vile wretch ask you to stand near when he is dying8 ,sister1 you who are pure and holy1 tell me if ,god will pardon me8 ,he came to save sinners6 ,i heard the low voice whisper4 ,and she smoothed back the tangled masses of dark1 waving hair1 and tenderly soothed the poor fevered brow on which the dews of death were gathering4 ,stay near me1 sister4 ,let me hold your hand1 while ,i listen to your voice1 that recalls one in the long ago4 ,o ,god6 look down in mercy6 ,and she whispered sweet words of comfort that calmed the unrest of sin and shame4 ,sister1 if ,i could give all the years that ,i have wasted1 if ,i would toil and struggle and pray for pardon1 would ,christ have mercy upon one whose years are heavily weighted with sin8 ,repent1 and ye shall be saved4 #hdc ,ah ,god6 ,i do repent1 and if a thousand years of suffering could atone for all1 ,i would not shrink from a single pang4 ,sister1 and he turned and held her hand closer1 and gazed long and anxiously into her half-averted face4 ,my ,god6 can it be8 ,but she turned further into the shadowy twilight1 and her face was almost hidden4 ,sister1 ,i must tell you1 because there is something in your tone and look1 though ,i cannot see you well1 that brings her back to me2 so be patient for a little while and do not leave me yet4 ,in the long ago ,i loved1 and she whom ,i worshipped gave me no return4 ,i think that circumstances might have moulded her differently1 though my selfish passions taught me then to care for little1 save what contributed to my own gratification4 ,well1 ,i watched her love for another1 and the devil influenced me2 he stole away my truth1 my love1 my honor6 ,i was mad with jealousy1 ,i was wild with disappointed love1 and ,i swore to be revenged4 ,therefore the schemes ,i laid1 the deceit ,i practised2 ay1 ,i bided well my time4 ,i stole the friendship of her lover1 and poured my poison into his ears2 but his noble nature shamed me1 his trust could not be shaken2 then--ah6 how well ,i remember the evening--,i spoke of her as my heart never believed2 ,i lied1 wickedly1 maliciously lied1 upon her6 ,then his knightly spirit rose1 and he fell by my hand6 ,i had begun2 the poison was maddening2 ,i could not stop1 even though murder barred my path2 so ,i counselled her guardian as to investments1 and in one mad moment her fortune crashed with his4 ,still ,i tracked her on her mission of mercy to ,washington2 ,i dogged her steps when she left the couch of the sick woman whose death agonies she had soothed2 ,i stood near the door of the wretched hovel1 listening to the sweet tones of her voice that is haunting me to-night2 and--,i hardly knew what ,i was doing1 ,i only felt that there was yet something undone which might humble her1 might place her at my mercy2 hell's fires raged in my heart--and1 may ,god forgive me1 but ,i spoke words to her which no man should utter and live4 ,but she escaped me1 and was torn from my grasp1 while her pallid face grew whiter still as she spoke in terror1 ',in the name of the cross1 forbear6' ,since that evening1 ,i have never seen her face2 but1 sister1 to-night all her saintly purity comes back to shame me1 and ,i feel that the flames of hell would be less fiery if ,i could hear her say1 ',i forgive you6' ,there was a brief pause2 the twilight of ,june shadowed the whitewashed wards1 and the young moon shed a soft light over the starry heavens2 but was it a message that flashed from ,our ,lady's crown1 that lit the pallet over which the sister leaned8 ,ay1 the face of ,guido's angel1 the angel of the lilies1 shone over the dying man1 as the sweet voice whispered1 ,do good to them that hate you1 and pray for them which despitefully use you4 ,her voice6 he cried4 ,and a sudden strength seemed to possess him2 for1 seizing her hand1 he pushed back the black bonnet1 and whispered1 ,madge ,cecil1 dare ,i pray for your pardon8 ,and forgive us our trespasses1 as we forgive those who trespass against us4 ,amen4 ,and she gave him her crucifix1 which he pressed to his lips4 ,then let me die in your faith2 for1 if its doctrines teach you even to forgive me1 then through the prayers of your church will ,god grant mercy to my soul4 ,he fainted in her arms1 and she summoned me4 ,dr4 ----1 take care of him till my return4 #hdd ,i had heard it all1 but she failed to recognize me4 ,grief had whitened my hair1 and an iron-gray beard covered my face2 and ,i preferred that she should not know me yet ,soon ,i saw her return with ,father ,baker4 ,my cordial had revived ,elsdon1 and in faint voice he repeated his wish4 ,let me be received1 father1 into the communion of the ,holy ,catholic ,church1 and pray ,god to have mercy on my soul4 ,the time was short1 and no precious moment of it was to be lost4 ,the good priest proceeded at once to his work of preparing the poor man for death4 ,his penitence seemed sincere and profound1 and his desire for the sacraments of the church most earnest4 ,they were at once administered to him2 and on his fervently expressed wish that the holy viaticum might be permitted to him1 it was brought4 ,a snowy linen cloth was spread on the table by his bed1 and two candles placed beside the crucifix4 ,solemnly we gathered near1 for we felt that his life was fast fleeting4 ,i have never seen nor realized more of the agony of contrition than when he slowly repeated after the priest1 suffering at each word most intensely1 ,jesus1 ,son of the living ,god1 have mercy upon me6 ,at last he grew calmer4 ,a quiet peace rested on his pale face1 and after receiving the most holy communion1 he murmured faintly1 ,jesus1 have mercy on me6 ,holy ,mary1 pray for me6 and folding the crucifix to his heart1 he closed his eyes and we thought he slept4 ,a deathlike stillness reigned1 broken only by the solemn tones of the priest's voice3 ,into thy hands we commend his spirit1 which has been created and redeemed by thee6 ,and in that pentecostal hour1 when the storm of her life wailed its wild requiem in her heart1 a holy calm1 as a message from ,god1 glorified her exquisite face1 for the ,comforter had sealed her with the expiation--the working out of life's great charity-- ,do good to them that hate you1 and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you4 -------------- ,the ,rights ,of ,catholic ,women4 ,by ,a ,lady4 ,we took occasion1 some months ago1 to sketch a number of the charitable works of ,paris1 in the hope of stirring the emulation of some of our leisured1 zealous1 and wealthy fellow-citizens to undertake something of the kind in this densely crowded city4 ,the correspondent whose communication is given below1 and whose contributions have often graced our pages1 has felt her soul stirring with the same impulse in visiting ,catholic ,europe4 ,her earnest words came appropriately after the letter we published last month respecting a ,refuge or ,central ,mission-,house for vagabond children4 ,there lies an open field where hundreds may work without jostling each other2 and we hope this iron may be hammered while it is hot into a practical shape1 and not merely serve as a poker to a useless fire of sentimental philanthropy4 ,there is nothing like reducing the abstract to the concrete1 sentiment to work1 resolution to definite action4 #hde ,we venture to suggest something else1 also1 to those of our fair readers who may be awakened to a desire of claiming their woman's rights by the appeal of their gifted countrywoman4 ,it is practical1 and yet not so difficult1 as sending checks for one thousand dollars1 or searching the streets for vagrant children4 ,a society exists in ,paris for making and embroidering vestments and other ornaments for the altars of poor churches and missions4 ,why not inaugurate the same work among the ladies of ,new ,york1 for the benefit1 first1 of small country churches and chapels in our own diocese1 and secondarily of similar churches elsewhere8 ,we cannot rival ,paris by a sudden coup de main or accomplish everything in a day4 ,but it is possible to make a beginning with one necessary work of charity after another1 and to bring them gradually to the colossal dimensions which want and misery and vice have attained without any effort4--,ed4 ,c4 ,w4 ,in ,the ,atlantic ,monthly of ,april and ,may1 #ahfh1 appeared a generous and high-toned article1 entitled ,our ,roman ,catholic ,brethren1 in which the author1 appreciating the fact that no one can lose ground by treating with justice those who differ from him in opinion1 frankly recognized the noble struggles of our priesthood and the success with which they have been crowned4 ,one assertion in this article we shall venture to comment upon1 making this the occasion for a few suggestions to the ,catholic women of the ,united ,states1 whose right to share the labors of ,catholic men is inalienable and incontestable1 being founded upon the unvarying teaching of the church4 ,the author1 in speaking of a missionary bishop whom he had known and respected as an absolute gentleman1 an exquisite human being1 in whom all the frailties springing from self-love had been consumed1 leaving the whole man kind1 serene1 urbane1 and utterly sincere1 concludes thus3 ,a ,catholic priest1 indeed1 would be much to blame if he failed to attain a high degree of serenity1 moral refinement1 and paternal dignity2 because1 be it understood1 he has neither family cares nor business anxieties to harass him4 ,most assuredly true1 so far as concerns priests in a ,catholic country1 where the ranks of the priesthood are full2 perhaps true in a purely missionary country1 where the priest1 in his intervals of repose1 communes with his only companions1 ,god and nature2 absolutely untrue when applied to a parish priest in the ,united ,states1 drained of his spiritual riches all day1 and often half the night1 and for relaxation thrown sometimes upon the companionship of his inferiors4 ,it is no uncommon thing to see a noble priest1 at the very centre and core of life1 when powers should be ripe1 strength unbroken1 hope and nerves unshaken1 break down1 crushed under the weight of work which should have been divided between several persons1 leaving to each one work enough to occupy a man of average capacity1 time for study1 and time for the recuperation of his spiritual powers by prayer and meditation4 ,now1 where is the remedy for this8 ,not in a sufficient number of clergymen1 because we cannot hope for such a blessing for many years to come4 ,not in a diminution of labor1 thank ,god1 for the domain of the church is constantly widening1 and souls are clamoring more and more eagerly for the privileges of religion4 #hdf ,the assistance must come from the laity1 not working each one after a fashion of his or her own1 but in a systematic manner1 doing the work recommended by the parish priest in the way most agreeable to him4 ,that the ,conference of ,st4 ,vincent de ,paul contains all the elements necessary for providing ,catholic men with missionary work1 we are well aware2 therefore we address ourselves exclusively to ,catholic women4 ,early in ,february of the present year1 on a radiant ,roman day1 the remains of ,saint ,ignatius1 bishop and martyr1 were brought in triumph to the ,colosseum from their resting-place in ,san ,clemente4 ,there1 where1 #ageh years before1 the cry had gone up from #hj1jjj spectators1 ,ignatius to the lions6 the ,litany of the ,saints arose to heaven2 there1 where wild beasts had snarled over their consecrated prey1 canonized bones lay on a gorgeous bier1 surrounded by cardinals1 bishops1 priests1 and religious1 gathering about them in veneration4 ,one1 at least1 of those who watched the scene from the crumbling galleries1 asked herself eagerly if ,god has ceased to call upon his children for sacrifices1 as he called upon the early ,christians2 and conviction answered4 ,no2 that1 though martyrdom has a mysterious value in the eyes of the church1 she tenderly loves those who patiently endure the pangs of that incurable malady which we call life4 ,and the ,christian passing through the catacombs of ,rome to-day1 pausing in silent awe beside the tombs of martyred virgins1 mothers1 children1 and pontiffs1 draws in with every breath the same glorious assurance which gave them strength to suffer--the assurance that ,god would have us serve him with every nerve and fibre of our being4 ,he claims from the nineteenth century1 as he claimed from the first1 not1 indeed1 its blood1 but its energies1 its faith1 its charity4 ,he summons every soul capable of the sacrifice of self to a life in the catacombs1 to a holy1 interior solitude1 where his inspirations can be distinctly heard1 where the buzz and hum of the world are inaudible4 ,and as1 after the celebration of the sacred mysteries1 the early ,christians were dismissed1 and sent back to the performance of their ordinary avocations1 invigorated and renewed2 so ,god releases such souls after communing with them1 and sends them forth to work for him1 setting upon them three signs to distinguish them from other laborers--peace1 simplicity1 and perseverance4 ,in the early ages the laity suffered martyrdom with the clergy4 ,in our own day1 the laity should share the labor of the clergy4 ,we are not summoned to bear witness to ,god in one mighty confession of faith sealed with our blood2 but we are bound to show our fidelity to him by lives of unremitting devotion1 to lighten the burdens weighing on the priesthood1 to do our utmost to leave them leisure for the direction of souls1 and for those works of supererogation which are the very heart and pulses of a life consecrated to ,god4 ,there are four things which we do not wish to recommend to ,catholic women2 namely1 neglect of domestic duties1 overexertion on the part of invalids1 indiscreet activity in recent converts1 the undertaking of difficult enterprises by those who are not gifted with executive faculty4 ,home is the training-school of souls1 and a mother's chief duty is to her husband and children4 ,the physically weak serve ,god by renunciation and sacrifice1 hardest and noblest of all apostleships4 ,converts1 generally speaking1 should show their families1 by tact1 affection1 fidelity to home duties1 that conversion has only knit them more closely to old friends and to natural claims2 and this is seldom consistent with much exterior activity soon after conversion4 ,it is very rarely advisable to undertake any work of importance without the advice of a judicious confessor2 a just appreciation of one's personal strength and weakness is too rare a gift to be relied upon as a right4 #hdg ,it is our misfortune in the ,united ,states that the number of communities is very small in proportion to the work to be done2 but though a clergyman would rather receive assistance from religious than from any one else1 he would gratefully accept the aid of women of the world1 provided they were possessed of judgment1 tact1 and perseverance4 ,to take up a charitable enterprise from love of excitement and lay it aside just as one's assistance had become valuable1 would not be a proceeding modelled on the actions of the early ,christians4 ,to make one's way into a public institution to patients or prisoners in a manner at variance with the regulations of the establishment1 would not tend to advance the cause of religion4 ,to foster the whims of the poor and excite in them false wants1 would add to their sufferings1 not lessen them4 ,all these mistakes may easily be made by well-meaning persons who have not prudence4 ,with fidelity1 modesty1 and common sense1 it is impossible to make serious blunders1 and it is possible to do a great deal of good without the sacrifice of much time or comfort4 ,those who have health and leisure can work for the church2 those who are too busy or too ill to undertake missionary labor can pray for the church4 ,all who have an hour to spend or an ave and pater to recite1 or an ache or a pain to offer to ,almighty ,god1 can do their share of the blessed work4 ,without questioning the fact that the highest of all vocations is the call to a religious life--conceding the point that the work done by women has been usually better done by religious than by women of the world--we think there is a tendency to deny1 to that obligation resting upon us all to do the work ,god marked out for us1 the name of vocation1 unless it leads us to a life in the community or to marriage4 ,we venture to predict that an important share is to be taken in the work of the church in this country by women who have neither a vocation to join a religious order nor to marry4 ,there is a correspondence between the various vocations of religious orders and those of persons living in the world4 ,let us read over the golden record1 and decide which path we are called to follow4 ,there are the working orders1 ,sisters of ,charity1 of ,mercy1 of the ,good ,shepherd2 the teaching orders1 ,ursulines1 ,sisters of the ,visitation1 ,ladies of the ,sacred ,heart1 and that sweetest of orders1 the ,sisters of ,notre ,dame1 whose fame is hidden behind humility and obedience2 and the contemplative orders1 on whose prayers hang the fruit of thousands of energetic enterprises4 ,most of the prisons1 work-houses1 and hospitals in the ,united ,states need the influence of judicious women4 ,as such institutions are almost exclusively filled with poor people1 and as more than half our poor people are ,catholics1 more than half the inmates of asylums1 penitentiaries1 etc41 are ,catholics2 it is1 then1 a matter of justice that ,catholic prisoners1 patients1 and paupers should be under ,catholic influences4 #hdh ,obedience to discipline is a principle most strongly inculcated by the church1 and no consistent servant of the church will infringe the smallest regulation in any institution to which he has admission4 ,when this truth is fully recognized1 ,catholic ladies will be allowed to visit freely all the public establishments in the ,union4 ,let those who wish to do work corresponding to that of the working orders use all available opportunities for alleviating the sufferings and ameliorating the condition of the lower classes4 ,there are hosts of children who must learn the catechism2 not after a parrot-like fashion1 such as any ignorant person can teach it to them1 but in a vital manner1 so that the truth shall be set in their souls like a jewel1 to be transmitted to future generations as a precious heritage4 ,every well-disposed and intelligent ,catholic child can be sent forth from his course of instruction in the ,sunday-school with the fervent determination to be a missionary in his own little sphere4 ,those who emulate the labors of the teaching orders have not far to seek for their work4 ,the ,catholic literature of ,france1 ,germany1 and ,italy should be in general circulation in ,america1 through the medium of good translations4 ,women are especially fitted to be translators4 ,their impressionable and adaptive minds make it easy for them to understand an author's thought and adopt his style4 ,let those who would follow in the footsteps of the contemplatives of earlier ages1 whose leisure hours were given to writing for the benefit of religion1 study critically their mother tongue and one other modern language1 and thus unlock some of the treasures of foreign literature to those less gifted than themselves4 ,but enough1 and more than enough for the present4 ,we have sought to arouse a sense of the importance of the work to be done1 not to explain the best method of accomplishing it4 ,we have tried to show ,catholic women what are their rights1 leaving it to ,god to awaken in them a noble ambition to claim and appropriate those rights4 -------------- ,the ,last ,gasp ,of ,the ,anti-catholic ,faction4 ,protestantism and the ,protestant denominations may be considered under two aspects4 ,under one aspect1 the former is an imperfect ,christianity1 and the latter are societies professing each a certain form of this ,christianity4 ,as such we respect them1 recognize the ,christian and evangelical truths they retain1 honor the virtue and goodness which are found among their adherents1 and freely admit their great utility in many important particulars4 ,we have no desire to wage a fierce polemical war upon them1 but rather desire to discuss with them in a fraternal spirit the differences between us1 the causes which keep us in separation1 and the means of reconciliation and reunion4 ,under the other aspect1 the one is a denial of the first principles of ,christianity1 and the others are aggregations under the control of party-leaders whose principal object is the destruction of the church of ,christ with its dogmas and discipline4 #hdi ,although particular denominations do not avow a hostile intent toward all dogma and discipline1 each one professing to maintain whatever it has selected as its constitutive principle out of the entire ,christian system1 yet the general sum and result of their combined efforts against the ,catholic ,church tends to the utter demolition of ,christianity4 ,this active1 anti-,catholic ,protestantism in our own day and country is principally confined to a comparatively small fraction of nominal ,protestants4 ,it is a wheel within a wheel1 an imperium in imperio1 a ring1 a faction1 very impotent1 but extremely turbulent4 ,the deadly quarrels of its component members with each other interfere materially with their unity of action against their common enemy4 ,now and then1 however1 a common sentiment seems to awaken in them that they had better postpone their private disputes until they have compassed by their united energies the fall of ,babylon4 ,such a phenomenon has appeared quite recently in the ecclesiastical heavens4 ,the newspapers of the principal sects have resounded with a call for united efforts on the part of ,episcopalians1 ,presbyterians1 ,unitarians1 etc41 against the progress of the ,catholic ,church in the ,united ,states4 ,dr4 ,bellows1 who is as restless as if he were pursued by the ,eumenides1 and who seems to get into a more uncomfortable frame of mind every day as he prosecutes his travels1 sends over a loud call showing the necessity of doing something to preserve that ,protestantism which it has been the business of his life to overwhelm with ridicule and contempt4 ,the liberal papers1 false to their reiterated protestations of hatred against orthodox ,protestantism and sympathy with ,catholics1 re-echo the sound1 which is taken up by one and another of the lowing presses in turn1 until each one quid lachrymabile mugit4 ,dear friends1 what is the matter8 ,if you will permit the citation of a somewhat trite classical passage1 permit us to ask1 ,tantaene animis coelestibus irae8 ,we have been much at a loss to divine the immediate exciting cause of such a sudden aggravation of symptoms in our domestic sick man4 ,we think1 however1 that we have at last discovered that we are the innocent cause ourselves1 through a few little harmless tracts1 which were intended as a poultice1 but have proved1 we suppose on account of the extreme irritability of the patient's skin1 a violent blister4 ,we made the discovery by reading the following circular1 which we publish cheerfully1 in order to promote as much as possible that free and lively discussion which our excellent friends at the ,bible ,house desire3 7,private47 ,american and ,foreign ,christian ,union1 #bg ,bible ,house1 ,new ,york1 ,june #ag1 #ahfh4 ,mr4 ,editor3 ,dear ,sir3 ,we are desirous of employing1 in your journal1 the pen of one of your ablest contributors1 in the fair and thorough discussion of the recent publications and pretensions of the ,roman ,catholic ,church4 ,you have doubtless seen some of the popular tracts of the ,catholic ,publication ,society4 ,they have been circulated in all parts of the country with great assiduity4 ,they are very ingenious and plausible1 and very fallacious4 ,it is matter of common interest to all who love evangelical truth that these fallacies should be promptly and effectively exposed4 #hej ,we have a proposition to make which seems to us to be for the mutual advantage both of your enterprise and of ours4 ,if you will send us the address of that one of your contributors or collaborators whose papers on this subject will be most acceptable to you and your readers1 we will make proposals to him for contributions to your journal1 we supplying him with a copy of the series of popular tracts of the ,catholic ,publication ,society1 and such other documents as he may need1 and paying for his literary labor at a generous rate of compensation4 ,if you shall succeed in introducing us to writers on the ,roman ,catholic controversy who are learned1 accurate1 and courteous1 and at the same time lively and effective in their popular style1 we shall hope to continue and renew an arrangement which must be for the advantage of all the parties to it1 and of the great cause of ,christian truth4 ,yours respectfully1 ,j4 ,romeyn ,berry1 ,h4 ,c4 ,riley1 ,leonard ,w4 ,bacon1 ,e4 ,f4 ,hatfield1 ,samuel ,i4 ,prime1 ,committee on ,publications of the ,american and ,foreign ,christian ,union4 ,naturally1 we have been on the alert ever since receiving this interesting circular1 expecting a rare treat from the articles to be furnished by the learned1 courteous1 lively1 and well-paid contributors to the press who must have jumped at once at this handsome offer4 ,we have not yet gathered in a very ample collection of choice moreaux as the result of our study of the anti-,catholic press4 ,we have obtained1 however1 a few gleanings which may be indications of an abundant harvest yet to come4 ,here is one from ,the ,episcopalian1 which no reader of that paper will expect to find either accurate1 courteous1 or lively1 but which1 as communicating a piece of rare and recondite information1 may fitly prove a sample of the learned style3 ,it has been suggested--and1 we think1 not without some reason--that the origin of ritualism in the ,protestant ,episcopal ,church may be traced to the ,roman ,catholic ,church itself2 in other words1 that the ,roman ,church1 with the view of proselyting the ,episcopal ,church1 has sent among us secret emissaries1 of the ,jesuit stamp1 who1 while pretending to be ,episcopalians1 are really ,romanists1 and whose mission it is to introduce one ,romish novelty after another1 until the congregations in which they are introduced are gradually but surely drawn into the communion of the ,romish ,church4 ,to those who have studied the far-seeing policy of the ,roman ,church1 and its secret workings for ages past1 this suggestion will not seem strange or far-fetched4 ,that equally subtle means for proselyting have been used by that church in times past no one can doubt who has read its history2 and what has been done can be done--or1 at least1 tried--again4 ,freese4 ,trenton1 ,n4,j41 ,june1 #ahfh4 ,the following1 from ,the ,brooklyn ,union1 if not learned or lively1 is at least in a high degree accurate and courteous1 being a most respectful remonstrance against the audacity of ,catholics in presuming to be so numerous1 and to lay the corner-stone of a cathedral in open day on ,sunday3 ,he that ,rules the ,city ,rules the ,country4--,the ,pope of ,rome well knows this axiom4 ,the ,jesuits know it4 ,the politician knows it4 ,they all act upon it4 ,cities are chosen as their centres of organization4 ,from these centres their power radiates through every town and village and hamlet and district of our land4 ,in a government like our own1 this is particularly true4 ,the pulsations of life and power of our larger cities1 both in religion and politics1 indicate the condition1 in these respects1 of our whole country4 ,hence the favored policy of the ,papal hierarchy of inducing its subjects1 when emigrating to the ,united ,states1 to settle within the limits or easy access of our cities4 ,statistics show that the foreign ,papal immigration1 ,east1 ,west1 ,north1 and ,south1 settle chiefly within or about our cities4 #hea ,no one with his eyes open has failed to see this with respect to ,new ,york1 ,new ,orleans1 ,st4 ,louis1 ,chicago1 ,cincinnati1 and ,buffalo4 ,the foreign population of these cities rule them4 ,they present a majority of thirty thousand in ,new ,york4 ,what may be their exact proportions in our other populous cities1 the writer has at present no means of ascertaining4 ,but from the number1 the grandeur1 and the costliness of their cathedrals and educational institutions in other cities--in such as ,chicago and ,st4 ,louis--we should judge that their number is greater in proportion to their population than it is in ,new ,york4 ,this statement has reference to the ,papists4 ,for the infidel proportion who come to our shores from ,europe1 and who have been driven to infidelity by the tyranny and wickedness of ,papacy1 have no sympathy with that system in propagating its means of worship4 ,all their sympathies are with our free institutions4 ,their licentiousness and disregard of the ,christian ,sabbath are the fruit of their infidelity4 ,even for this the ,papal ,church is responsible before ,god4 ,but the ,papacy1 in its spirit and in its policy and in its designs1 is opposed to our republican government4 ,it is the sworn inveterate enemy to every principle and policy which favors republicanism4 ,no bishop1 no priest1 and no member of the ,papal ,church ever has been or ever can be a loyal subject of a free government4 ,every pretence or profession or act which they avow to the contrary is the necessary outgrowth of wilful deception1 hypocrisy1 and falsehood4 ,among the masses of her members an oath of loyalty may be the result of ignorance2 and it may be permitted to remain of binding authority so long as it does not conflict with their first and paramount obligations with their church4 ,but with the bishops1 the priests1 and the ,jesuitical hordes of their hierarchy1 an oath of loyalty or of testimony is of no value as a test of truthfulness4 ,nay1 it is often taken as a means of deception1 to accomplish some concealed purpose4 ,their fundamental doctrines of mental reservation and universal subordination to ,rome necessarily exclude from their virtues that of true patriotism4 ,that this hierarchy has for some years past been collecting1 arranging1 and concentrating the elements of her strength in and around the cities of the ,united ,states1 is evident to any one who has watched its progress4 ,her power is abundantly manifest in the influence which she has exerted in the legislation of our cities and our states1 in the appointments of many of our highest offices of trust and power1 in the disposition and distribution of our public charities1 and in the control of our popular system of education2 and that the time has come1 in their judgment1 when she can1 with safety to herself1 openly assert her power1 can be seen in the popular tracts1 now numbering some thirty-one1 of her religious press1 in the public discussions of her periodicals1 in her politico-religious organizations1 as well as in her open and defiant ,sabbath parades1 and other desecrations of that blessed day4 ,let her have full scope to her power and freedom as a church1 in a legitimate way4 ,let her seek to build up her cause as a system of religion1 the same as ,protestant churches in our country4 ,but let her not attempt to ride rough-shod upon the rights of ,protestants by her noisy parades1 with drum and fife and boisterous shouts in front of our churches upon the ,sabbath--by her insolent and brutal outrages upon unoffending ,protestants when peaceably pursuing their avocations4 ,let her no longer refuse to listen to the respectful remonstrances of ,american citizens against such encroachments4 ,public religious services and the administration of the ,lord's ,supper in some of our churches were almost entirely prevented by the noise and confusion of the ,papal parade on a late ,sabbath4 ,this nuisance has been repeated in ,new ,york and ,brooklyn in opposition to the respectful but earnest petition of ,protestant laymen and clergy4 ,on these occasions1 several of our largest streets were piled up with city passenger-cars1 that were forced to stop running on account of the procession4 ,and what was all this confusion1 all this violation of law and order1 upon the ,christian ,sabbath for8 ,why1 simply that a single ,papal congregation might lay the corner-stone of the church of the ',immaculate ,conception4' ,hundreds of quiet and orderly churches must be interrupted in their worship1 the rights of large corporations must be trampled under foot1 and the stillness of the ,sabbath be invaded by the drum and fife and shout of a drunken rabble1 for the sake of a single ,papal congregation6 ,such occasions are not without a purpose4 ,they afford the priesthood a fine opportunity of testing the strength of numbers1 of trying the patience of the ,protestant community1 of gradually corrupting their respect for the ,christian ,sabbath1 and of intimidating politicians with a show of power4 ,their design is a political one4 ,there is no religion about it4 ,her power is broken upon the ',seven ,hills' of ,italy1 and she is trying now to re-establish it in the metropolis of ,america4 ,but who dare array himself against her avowed determination to subordinate all things to her purpose8 #heb ,what politician1 what party1 or what partisan newspaper dare oppose the political system of ,papal hierarchy8 ,it remains for the ,protestant clergy of our evangelical denominations to take up the cause of religious liberty4 ,no one will dare to speak out if they remain silent4 ,the eyes of all are toward them4 ,they must take the lead in the conflict with 'the man of sin4' ,god has thrown the responsibility upon them4 ,they can1 if they will1 sway both the religious and political destinies of our nation4 ,let no one talk about the danger or the fanaticism of introducing politics into our pulpits4 ,the days of such cowardly conservatism are past4 ,let politicians as well as ,papists1 at whose feet the former bow1 be made to feel that patriotism is a ,christian virtue1 and that its sacred fire is kept alive and pure only in the breasts of those who swear by an open ,bible and a free conscience4 ,if our ,protestant ministers will do their duty1 the masses of our people will see the danger which threatens us4 ,they will unite their strength in a successful issue with the powers of darkness1 and our politicians1 seeing the strength of such a combination1 will withhold their sympathy and patronage from a system which1 in the garb of religion1 aims its death-blow at the very root of our civil liberty4 ,c4 ,the following is a specimen of the lively and effective style3 ,catholicism4 ,a ,reply ,to ,j4 ,g4 ,parton's ,article ,in ,the ,atlantic ,monthly4 ,this little treatise is respectfully presented to ,j4 ,g4 ,parton and all our ,catholic brethren1 by their brother and friend1 ,charles ,w4 ,gilbert4 ,and ,jesus came and spake unto them1 saying4 ,all power is given unto me in heaven and in earth4--,matthew xxviii4 #ah4 ,this is the stone which was set at naught of you builders1 which is become the head of the corner4 ,neither is there salvation in any other3 for there is none other name under heaven given among men1 whereby we must be saved4--,acts iv4 #aa1 #ab4 ,it behooved him to be made like unto his brethren1 that he might be a merciful and faithful high-priest in things pertaining to ,god1 to make reconciliation for the sins of the people4 ,for in that he himself hath suffered being tempted1 he is able to succor them that are tempted4--,hebrews ii4 #ag1 #ah4 ,galesburg1 ,june #bb1 #ahfh4 ,mr4 ,j4 ,g4 ,parton3 ,dear ,sir3 ,i flatter myself you will excuse me for the liberty ,i have taken in addressing you this letter4 ,it has been called for by reading a communication in ,the ,atlantic ,monthly1 in ,april last1 respecting our ,catholic brethren4 ,i have neither time nor space to write half ,i want to1 only to mention a few points3 ,and first1 you say there is a difference between ,catholics and ,protestants in the mode of praying2 you say a ,protestant hides his face in his hands1 but ,catholics do not1 though they kneel1 but the body is upright4 ,dear sir1 do you not know the reason8 ,our ,catholic brethren worship images1 which ,god has forbidden4 ,turn to the second commandment3 ,thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image1 or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above1 or that is in the earth beneath1 etc4 ,thou shalt not bow down thyself to them1 nor serve them3 for ,i the ,lord thy ,god am a jealous ,god1 visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me2 and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me1 and keep my commandments4 ,thou shalt not take the name of the ,lord thy ,god in vain3 for the ,lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain4 ,remember the ,sabbath-day1 to keep it holy4 ,six days shalt thou labor1 and do all thy work1 etc4 ,take your ,bible and read all the commandments4 ,dear sir1 can you find one of our ,roman ,catholic brethren that keeps the commandments8 ,turn to the ,first ,epistle general of ,john1 second chapter1 fourth verse1 ,he that saith1 ,i know him1 and keepeth not his commandments1 is a liar1 and the truth is not in him4 ,you speak of their communion4 ,do they drink the wine and eat the bread1 as ,christ has commanded8 ,no1 no6 ,a little wafer is put on the tongue4 ,please turn to the seventeenth chapter of ,revelation1 fourth verse4 ,the next topic is the ,catholic ,sabbath-school4 ,sir1 what is a ,sabbath-school without the ,bible to direct us how to teach little children the way of life and salvation8 ,do you not know that the priests do not allow the ,bible to be read in a ,sabbath-school nor in a day-school8 ,this is the reason they will not send their children to the ,protestant schools4 #hec ,what said ,st4 ,paul to ,timothy8 ,and that from a child thou hast known the ,holy ,scriptures1 which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in ,christ ,jesus4--#b ,timothy iii4 #ae1 ,we read also1 in the sixteenth verse1 ,all ,scripture is given by inspiration of ,god1 and is profitable for doctrine1 for reproof1 for correction1 for instruction in righteousness4 ,what said ,jesus8 ,search the ,scriptures2 for in them ye think ye have eternal life3 and they are they which testify of me4--,john v4 #ci4 ,you say the children in the ,sabbath-school sing to the ,virgin ,mary the following stanza1 ,o ,mary6 ,mother1 etc4 ,dear sir1 who is this ,mother ,mary8 ,let ,christ answer4 ,turn to ,matthew xii4 #ej3 ,for whosoever shall do the will of my ,father which is in heaven1 the same is my brother1 and sister1 and mother4 ,read also in ,mark iii4 #ce2 also ,luke viii1 #ba4 ,you quote the prayer that the superintendent uttered1 in ,latin4 ,how edifying that must have been to the children1 especially when he used the word immaculate ,host6 ,could the children have understood that word1 they would have blushed4 ,you give us a glowing description of the different cathedrals1 and how they are occupied4 ,now1 my dear sir1 let me tell you1 the best prayer-meeting that ,i ever enjoyed was in a log-cabin4 ,read ,st4 ,john iv4 #bc1 #bd4 ,jesus told the woman of ,samaria that the hour had now come when the true worshippers shall worship the ,father in spirit and in truth2 for the ,father seeketh such to worship him4 ,god is a ,spirit3 and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth4 ,christ told the woman of ,samaria she need not go up into the mountains nor to ,jerusalem to worship the ,father1 but anywhere1 in the log-cabin or in your house1 if you worship ,god in spirit4 ,the next topic is1 you say3 ,our ,catholic brethren are very candid1 and are as truly and entirely convinced of the truth of their religion as any ,protestant4 ,i am now almost seventy-three years of age1 and have labored among our ,catholic brethren more than forty years4 ,i have seen many of them happily converted1 born again2 as ,christ told ,nicodemus1 told him repeatedly1 ,except a man be born again1 he could not enter heaven4--,john iii4 ,yes1 ,i have seen them put off the old man with all his deeds and put on ,christ2 yes1 his very countenance was changed2 yes1 he will not visit the ,dutch gardens or saloons on the ,sabbath4 ,said a converted ,roman ,catholic lady to me1 the other day3 ,i have perfect peace now4 ,when ,i belonged to the ,roman ,catholic ,church1 ,i was in constant misery4 ,said a converted ,catholic man1 aged sixty-six years3 ,i never took any comfort before4 ,i asked him if he was ready to die4 ,he said1 ,yes4 ,i asked him how he knew4 ,putting his hand on his breast1 he said1 ,spirit tell me so4 ,so ,christ says his ,spirit shall enlighten every man that cometh into the world4 ,in all my conversation with our ,catholic brethren1 ,i have never found the first one that could say with ,st4 ,paul3 ,i long to be absent from the body that ,i might be present with the ,lord1 that ,i might be clothed upon with another body like unto his4 ,our ,catholic brethren are taught that there is a purgatory4 ,i wonder if ,st4 ,paul had to go there first4 ,i have often asked our ,catholic brethren where the penitent thief went to1 that was crucified with ,christ1 when ,christ said to him1 ,to-day shalt thou be with me in paradise4 ,if there is a purgatory where we have to go to atone for our sins1 ,christ must have suffered in vain1 though he cried on the cross1 ,it is finished4 ,i have seen ,catholics die in despair4 ,i had one in my employ as a sailor on the ,north ,river4 ,he caught a severe cold2 it ran him into a quick consumption4 ,i asked him if he would like to have me read the ,bible to him4 ,he said1 ,no2 he said the priest had forbidden him to read the ,bible or hear it read4 ,as he was failing very fast1 ,i went in again and asked him if he wished me to read to him in the ,bible4 ,he said1 ,no1 but wished ,i would go and call the priest4 ,i did so1 and after the priest went away1 ,i went into his room and asked him if he was happy4 ,he answered1 ,no1 and cried bitterly1 and said1 ,i am going to hell6 ,i am going to hell6 and died in a few minutes4 ,you next speak of young men that were studying for the ministry2 you say they study ,latin1 ,greek1 and theology4 ,dear sir1 what is theology8 ,if ,i understand it1 it is a ,science of ,god4 ,how can they study theology without the ,bible1 the word of ,god8 ,they are not allowed the ,bible1 so a converted ,roman ,catholic priest published to the world1 at least he said that there was not more than one in twenty that ever saw a ,bible4 ,you say the ,catholic ,church is getting very rich1 ,i do not doubt it4 ,oh6 how ,i pity the poor ,catholic brethren4 ,see how they toil and work to support the priest and the nunneries1 and to build meeting-houses to please the eye and charm the weak minded4 ,and what do they get for all this8 ,let echo answer4 ,look at our poor-houses4 ,every winter thousands have to go to our poor-houses to be taken care of by our ,protestant churches4 ,here in our city many would have perished this last winter1 had not our poor-master fed them4 #hed ,you next give us a history of a wonderful miracle that was performed in ,washington in #ahbd4 ,dear sir1 do you think any ,protestant with one eye1 and that half-open1 can be made to believe such nonsense8 ,if you wish to see miracles wrought in the nineteenth century1 just give the ,bible to our ,catholic brethren1 then you may see greater miracles performed than you speak of2 for to see a man that is dead in sin changed to a spiritual man1 made alive in ,christ1 is a miracle4 ,our ,catholic brethren are taught that their church was the first church4 ,let me inform you that there was no ,roman ,catholic church on the earth for three hundred years after the death of the apostles4 ,permit me to quote a few passages from the word of ,god4 #b ,thessalonians ii4 #c1 #d3 ,let no man deceive you by any means3 for that day shall not come1 except there come a falling away first1 and that man of sin be revealed1 the son of perdition2 who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called ,god1 or that is worshipped2 so that he as ,god sitteth in the temple of ,god1 showing himself that he is ,god4 ,could an angel from heaven portray the character of the pope in any plainer language8 ,i ,timothy iv4 #a-e3 ,now the ,spirit speaketh expressly1 that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith1 giving heed to seducing spirits1 and doctrines of devils2 speaking lies in hypocrisy2 having their conscience seared with a hot iron2 forbidding to marry1 and commanding to abstain from meats1 which ,god hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth4 ,for every creature of ,god is good1 and nothing to be refused1 if it be received with thanksgiving3 for it is sanctified by the word of ,god and prayer4 ,paul speaks of visiting the churches2 that is to say1 little bands of ,christians4 ,we read in the ,acts of the ,apostles xv4 #c3 ,and being brought on our way by the church2 that is to say1 a few ,christians4 ,read1 also1 xvi4 #e3 ,likewise greet the church that is in their house1 etc4 ,you will now turn to ,revelation xiii4 #af-ah3 ,and he causeth all1 both small and great1 rich and poor1 free and bond1 to receive a mark in their right hand1 or in their foreheads4 ,now1 every true ,catholic receives the sign of the cross in his forehead every ,ash-,wednesday2 every priest1 when he is ordained for the ministry1 receives the mark of the cross in his right hand4 ,a converted ,roman ,catholic priest1 going through one of the streets in a ,southern city1 picked up the thirteenth chapter of ,revelation1 and1 reading it1 he was convinced that he was one of those that had received the mark in his right hand1 and was led by the ,spirit to see his error and was happily converted1 and became a ,baptist minister4 ,give the ,bible to all our ,roman ,catholic priests and brethren in ,america1 and in less than five years there would not be a ,roman ,catholic church in existence4 ,rev4 ,mr4 ,hyacinthe1 a ,roman ,catholic priest1 in ,paris1 ,france1 has come out in favor of reading the ,bible4 ,he is now preaching in the ,notre ,dame cathedral to audiences of three thousand4 ,he presses upon the people1 in the most eloquent words1 the study of the ,bible4 ,the news from ,italy is very interesting4 ,thousands of our ,catholic brethren are inquiring and receiving the ,bible1 that they may learn the way to ,christ4 ,in less than five years there cannot be found a ,roman ,catholic in all that vast kingdom1 except in ,rome1 where the ,catholic religion has to be protected by an army4 ,that is a curious religion that has to be protected by the ,,sword4 ,shame6 shame6 ,that great city is soon to be destroyed1 according to ,god's word4 ,see ,revelation xiv4 #bj3 ,and the wine-press was trodden without the city1 and blood came out of the wine-press1 even unto the horses' bridles1 by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs4 ,you are aware1 ,i suppose1 that the pope claims two hundred miles square around ,rome4 ,the above number of furlongs make just that number of miles4 ,let ,bonaparte send ,,all his armies to ,rome1 and he could not prevent this prophecy from being fulfilled when the time comes4 ,dear sir1 you have a great deal to say about our ,catholic brethren exercising greet faith4 ,paul says1 ,faith without works is dead4 ,what are the works that ,god requires8 ,let me tell you4 ,it is not only to clothe the naked and feed the hungry2 but it is to go out into the highways and hedges1 and invite the sinner1 the wayward--yes1 the poor drunkard--to become reconciled to ,god2 to put off the old man with all his deeds1 and put on the new man which is after ,christ4 ,did you ever learn of one of our ,catholic brethren doing the like8 ,you speak of children being confirmed4 ,what does that mean8 ,why1 made ,christians4 ,dear sir1 who can change the heart of a child or a man8 ,no one but ,god4 ,what saith the ,bible1 speaking of those that were ,christ's8 ,which were born1 not of blood1 nor of the will of the flesh1 nor of the will of man1 but of ,god4--,john i4 #ac4 #hee ,you tell us that in this easy and pleasant way our ,catholic brethren join the church4 ,dear sir1 does joining a church make a man ,christ-like8 ,christ says3 ,if ye have my spirit1 ye are mine2 if ye have not my spirit1 ye are none of mine4--,romans viii4 #i4 ,read the whole chapter2 it contains the whole plan of salvation4 ,our ,catholic brethren are taught that the ,virgin ,mary was born immaculate6 ,what blasphemy6 ,and also that the church is infallible6 ,when ,christ asked ,peter and the disciples1 ,whom say ye that ,i am8 ,peter answered and said1 ,thou art the ,christ1 the ,son of the living ,god4 ,upon this acknowledgment or confession of ,peter1 that ,christ was the son of the living ,god1 ,christ said1 ,i will build my church--not upon ,peter1 as the pope claims4 ,you say our ,catholic brethren are not ashamed to be found praying4 ,please turn to the sixth chapter of ,matthew1 and read the sixth verse1 which is as follows3 ,but thou1 when thou prayest1 enter into thy closet1 and when thou hast shut thy door1 pray to thy ,father which is in secret2 and thy ,father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly4 ,you say the superintendent of the ,catholic ,sabbath-school you visited told you that he had visited many of the ,protestant ,sabbath-schools and had copied after them4 ,i wonder where he found a ,protestant ,sabbath-school without the ,bible6 ,you say that the ,catholics expect to rule in this country1 and that all ,protestant children will be in their ,sabbath-schools4 ,let me say1 ,let ,god be true1 but every man a liar4--,romans iii4 #d4 ,st4 ,paul has prophesied that the time shall soon come when the ,sword of the ,spirit ,,shall destroy the ,man of ,sin4 ,there are thousands of our ,catholic brethren in ,america that are sick of the ,catholic religion1 and will soon leave it4 ,when ,i was engaged in teaching a ,sabbath-school of ,catholic children1 a father and mother called on me and wanted to put their children in my school4 ,i said1 ,your priest will not allow you to do so4 ,they said they did not care anything about their priest2 they had been brought up in ignorance2 they did not want their children brought up so4 ,you cannot tell us of a ,sabbath-school in all ,italy1 or in any other country where the ,roman ,catholics rule1 except those that have been established by ,protestants4 ,you tell us about ,roman ,catholic benevolent societies4 ,where1 oh6 where is there an asylum for the blind and deaf and dumb1 that they may learn to read the word of ,god1 and get a knowledge of our ,saviour ,christ ,jesus1 and learn the way to heaven8 ,you cannot show one in any ,catholic country4 ,permit me to give you another graphic picture from the ,bible1 giving a picture of the priests' dresses4 ,please turn to ,revelation xvii4 #d1 #e2 ,and the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet color1 and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls1 having a golden cup in her hand1 etc4 ,now1 all this ,i have seen in the great cathedral in ,montreal4 ,i have seen our ,catholic priests and brethren bowing down to graven images for several minutes4 ,mr4 ,j4 ,g4 ,parton1 dear sir1 ,i sincerely pray that you will1 after reading this communication1 repent1 7not do penance17 and turn to the ,lord1 and not be under the necessity of calling upon the rocks and mountains to fall on you and hide you from the face of the ,lamb4 7,revelation vi4 #af47 ,do read1 also1 verse #ag3 ,for the great day of his wrath is come2 and who shall be able to stand8 ,do read this communication carefully1 and pray that it may be blessed to your salvation4 ,no more at present1 and ,i remain your friend in ,christ1 ,charles ,w4 ,gilbert4 --------- #hef ,new ,publications4 ,the ,vickers and ,purcell ,controversy4 ,respectfully presented to all the lovers of truth4 ,by ,john ,b4 ,purcell1 ,archbishop of ,cincinnati1 ,printed for the benefit of ,mt4 ,st4 ,mary's ,seminary of the ,west4 ,benziger ,brothers1 ,printers to the ,holy ,apostolic ,see1 ,cincinnati and ,new ,york4 #ahfh4 ,the gentleman calling himself the ,rev4 ,thomas ,vickers1 ,minister of the ,first ,congregational ,society of ,cincinnati1 is a living contradiction in terms4 ,according to the statement in the volume before us1 he believes in no personal ,god1 declares the ,christ to be a theological fiction1 and the ,bible a crutch4 ,what there is reverend about ,mr4 ,vickers1 what sense there is in his claiming the title of minister1 or what appropriateness in his professing to belong to a ,congregational ,society1 we are at a loss to divine4 ,what greater absurdity of nomenclature can there be1 than calling a pantheistic lecturer against ,christianity and ,theism by the name of a ,congregational minister8 ,of what use is a church1 or a minister1 on his principles1 or1 rather1 denial of principles8 ,nevertheless1 in this very absurd and unnecessary character of minister1 ,mr4 ,vickers appeared at the laying of the corner-stone of a new temple of ,german infidelity1 denominated1 with a ludicrous disregard of common sense1 ,st4 ,john's ,church1 and made a speech1 which occasioned the controversy contained in the little volume under notice4 ,in this speech1 ,mr4 ,vickers welcomed and blessed the undertaking of the society of ,german infidels calling themselves ,st4 ,john's ,church1 in the name of the ,anglo-,american portion of the population of ,cincinnati4 ,at the same time1 he gave utterance to the most contemptuous scorn of everything which the professedly ,christian part of that population holds as sacred and divine in religion4 ,this was1 to say the least of it1 a piece of cool impertinence on the part of the young gentleman in question4 ,mr4 ,vickers1 we believe1 passed a few years in ,germany1 studying what he calls science2 and he appears to have returned with a strong impression on his own mind that he is destined to enlighten the benighted believers in the ,christian revelation in ,cincinnati with the rays of this ,german luminary4 ,he is not the first to engage in this experiment4 ,it has been tried before1 and we recommend to the attention of the illuminati of ,cincinnati the following description of its result1 from the pen of ,dr4 ,hedge1 of ,harvard ,university4 ,it is extracted from an article in the ,christian ,examiner3 ,some thirty years ago1 a club was formed of young men1 mostly preachers of the ,unitarian connection1 with a sprinkling of elect ladies--all fired with the hope of a new era in philosophy and religion1 which seemed to them about to dawn upon the world4 ,there was something in the air--a boding of some great revolution--some new avatar of the ,spirit1 at whose birth these expectants were called to assist ',of old things1 all are over old3 ,of old things1 none are good enough3 ,we'll show that we can help to frame ,a world of other stuff4' ,for myself1 though ,i hugely enjoyed the sessions1 and shared many of the ideas which ruled the conclave1 and the ferment they engendered1 ,i had no belief in ecclesiastical revolutions to be accomplished with set purpose2 and ,i seemed to discern a power and meaning in the old1 which the more impassioned would not allow4 ,i had even then made up my mind1 that the method of revolution in theology1 is not discussion1 but development4 ,my historical conscience1 then as since1 balanced my neology1 and kept me ecclesiastically conservative1 though intellectually radical4 ,there haunted me that verse in ,goethe's bright song1 ',the ,general ,confession1' as applicable to ecclesiastical incendiarism as it is to political3 ',came a man would fain renew me1 ,made a botch and missed his shot4 ,shoulder shrugging1 prospects gloomy3 ,he was called a patriot4 ',and ,i cursed the senseless drizzle1 ,kept my proper goal in view3 ,blockhead6 when it burns1 let sizzle2 ,when all's burned1 then build anew4' ,others judged differently2 they saw in every case of dissent1 and in every new dissentient1 the harbinger of the ,new ,jerusalem4 ',the present church rattles ominously1' they said2 'it must vanish presently1 and we shall have a real one4' ,there have been some vanishings since then4 #heg ,ah me6 how much has vanished6 ,of that goodly company1 what heroes and heroines have vanished from the earth6 ,thrones have toppled1 dynasties have crumbled1 institutions that seemed fast-rooted in the everlasting hills have withered away4 ,but the church that was present then1 and was judged moribund by transcendental zeal1 and rattled so ominously in transcendental ears1 is present still4 ,it was finally resolved to start a journal that should represent the ideas which had mainly influenced the association already tending to dissolution4 ,how to procure the requisite funds was a question of some difficulty1 seeing how hardly philosophic and commercial speculation conspire4 ,an appeal was made4 ,would ,mammon have the goodness to aid an enterprise whose spirit rebuked his methods and imperilled his assets8 ,the prudent ,god disclaimed the imputed verdure2 and the organ of ,american ,transcendentalism1 with no pecuniary basis1 committed to the chance and gratuitous efforts and editing of friends1 if intellectually and spiritually prosperous1 had no statistical success4 ,it struggled1 through four years1 with all the difficulties of eleemosynary journalism2 and then1 significantly enough1 with a word concerning the ',millennial ,church1' sighed its last breath1 and gave up the ghost4 ,i prize the four volumes among the choicest treasures of my library4 ,they contain some of ,emerson's1 of ,theodore ,parker's1 of ,margaret ,fuller's1 of ,thoreau's best things2 not to speak of writers less absolute and less famous4 ,meanwhile the association1 if so it could be termed1 had gradually dissolved4 ,some of the members turned papists--,i should say1 sought refuge in the bosom of the ,catholic ,church4 ,a few of the preachers pursued their calling1 and perhaps have contributed somewhat to liberalize and enlarge the theology of their day4 ,some have slipped their moorings on this bank and shoal of time4 ,one sank beneath the wave1 whose queenly soul had no peer among the women of this land4 ,of one ',a strange and distant mould ,wraps the mortal relics cold4' ,finally1 a fragment of this strangely compounded body lodged in a neighboring town1 and became the nucleus of an agricultural enterprise in which the harvest truly was not plenteous1 and the competent laborers few2 and of which1 the root being rottenness1 the blossoms soon went up as dust4 ,mr4 ,vickers may thank the ,archbishop of ,cincinnati for having given his very boyish lucubrations a little momentary notoriety1 which they never could have acquired by their own merit4 ,they are crude1 ill-mannered1 replete with commonplace1 effete1 and senseless vituperations of all that is venerable in ,catholicity and ,christianity1 and betray an ignorance of the subjects treated of which makes them unworthy of any serious attention4 ,the point which the discussion chiefly turns upon is freedom of thought4 ,if ,mr4 ,vickers is a disciple of the ,german pantheistic school1 as we suppose him to be1 he is not in a condition to maintain that there is any such thing as thought or freedom4 ,we intend to give abundant proof of this assertion1 in a series of articles1 to be published in our ,magazine1 on ,pantheism1 in which we shall show1 to the satisfaction of any person capable of metaphysical reasoning1 that pantheism destroys the possibility of thought1 in the true sense of the word1 as the intellection of real1 objective truth4 ,pantheism destroys1 also1 all possibility of freedom by reducing all phenomena to a fatal1 invincible necessity4 ,a pantheist is bound to accept all the persecutions of the middle ages1 all the definitions of the church1 and the encyclical of the pope1 as manifestations of ,god4 ,our godlike friends are too much like the wife of the ,connecticut corporal1 who replied to the query of her innocent offspring1 ,o ma6 are we all corporals now8 with the haughty rejoinder1 ,no1 indeed6 only your pa and ,i4 ,mr4 ,vickers and the members of the free-thinking coterie are not the only participators in the universal deity4 ,if ,mr4 ,vickers's brilliant exposition of the doctrine of the immaculate conception was a divine inspiration1 ,archbishop ,purcell was equally moved by divine inspiration to the paternal castigation which he administers to his young and somewhat forward fellow-celestial4 ,in fact1 ,mr4 ,vickers1 the archbishop1 the book containing their controversy1 ,the ,catholic ,world1 ourselves1 our readers1 ,st4 ,thomas1 ,torquemada1 ,luther1 ,heidelberg ,university1 and the ,jesuits1 are all one thing1 or one nothing2 a ,seyn1 or a ,werden1 or a ,nichtseyn2 all bubbles on the fathomless ocean of infinite--nonsense4 #heh ,it is a wonder that ,mr4 ,vickers lays so much to heart1 and makes such a serious business out of that which has no reality4 ,a nephew of the great ,german philosopher1 ,hegel1 who was also a favorite pupil of ,feuerbach1 and who is now a devout ,catholic1 told us1 some time ago1 that he asked ,feuerbach why philosophy was making no progress1 but seemed to be at a stand-still4 ,the latter replied1 that they had already proved by philosophy the nothingness of everything1 and it was1 therefore1 useless to push philosophy any further1 adding1 that it was time to go back to common sense4 ,such is the end of that lawless1 intellectual activity which ,mr4 ,vickers calls free thought4 ,it is like a head of steam that bursts its boiler1 and is then dispersed in the circumambient atmosphere4 ------ ,memoirs and ,letters of ,jennie ,c4 ,white--,del ,bal4 ,by her mother1 ,rhoda ,e4 ,white1 #a vol4 royal #hvo1 pp4 #cfc4 ,boston3 ,patrick ,donahoe4 #ahfh4 ,we must presage our notice of this interesting book1 by saying we have a dislike to memoirs written by fond and partial friends4 ,lives of the saints we love to read1 but our digestion was early impaired by the memoirs of good children 7who all died young7 with which we were fed for ,sunday food1 and we have latterly been in the bad habit of turning away from a book labelled1 ,memoirs of1 etc4 ,however1 we read ,jennie's life with interest2 and it is a beautiful story1 giving to the reader a delightful insight into a truly ,catholic family1 where the breath of piety permeates the daily walk of every member1 mingling with and heightening the light-hearted pleasures peculiar to the seasons of childhood and youth4 ,the tale of her courtship and marriage is told with a sweet and winning grace1 which charms us by its naturalness4 ,quite unlike the prevailing spirit and sentiment of ,young ,america is the history of the prompt obedience to the mandate of parental authority1 in giving up their engagement4 ,the accepted lover1 a resident of ,santiago1 ,new ,granada1 had promised his aged father not to forsake his own country1 and ,jennie's father could not give his consent to the taking of his first-born to that far-off foreign land4 ,after a struggle1 they parted with aching hearts1 released from their engagement2 but the influence of the true woman in the mother reunited that broken bond4 ,contrary to the fate of many ,american girls who go to foreign homes1 ,jennie's marriage was an exceedingly happy one4 ,the secret is very plain--they were both earnest ,catholics4 ,oneness in faith1 and earnest-heartedness in that faith1 are the best securities for happiness in married life4 ,the sight of this happy young creature1 leaving so fond a circle of friends1 and such a home as ,jennie left behind in ,new ,york1 to go to a comparatively unknown land--a country distracted by revolutions1 with churches closed and priests exiled--gives us a glowing picture of the self-sacrificing spirit of true love4 ,her journeys by land and by sea1 before she reached her destination1 were perilous indeed2 and we could not but ask1 ,yankee-like1 why such a refined and cultivated and intelligent people as those among whom her lot was cast should never have provided some more comfortable way of reaching their country4 ,she was the first ,american lady there1 and attracted much attention and admiration by her brave1 active spirit1 as well as by her large ,catholic heart4 ,her letters to her home friends are lovely from their childlike simplicity and truthfulness2 giving us glimpses of many homesick heartaches1 even when she was decking herself for the dance4 ,sometimes there appears a little excess in her efforts to be gay1 when she writes1 ,i danced every piece but one till five in the morning4 ,mrs4 ,del ,bal went to ,new ,granada at a time when the so-called ,liberals1 under ,mosquera1 were in the ascendant1 proclaiming a pretended religious liberty1 of which some of the first acts were the disbanding of all religious communities1 turning the sisters upon the world1 shutting up the churches1 banishing the priests1 unless they took an oath whereby they would cease to be ,catholics2 in fact1 ,mosquera made himself pope4 ,professing to establish a government in which there should be no connection between church and state1 the government framed this article for the twenty-third of their ,constitution3 #hei ,in order to sustain the national sovereignty and to maintain public peace and security1 the national government1 and in some cases the state government1 shall exercise the right of supreme inspection over all religious worships1 as the law shall determine4 ,this is a law of liberty very like those the ,english ,catholics enjoyed under ,queen ,elizabeth4 ,mrs4 ,del ,bal exerted herself to give the press at the ,north the true state of the case with regard to this matter1 since the public papers have loudly lauded ,mosquera and his government4 ,how far she succeeded in influencing minds that swallow eagerly anything called liberal1 we are not told4 ,our friend ,jennie was loyal to her heart's core1 and never ceased to call herself and her husband ,american citizens2 and her thorough celebration of the glorious ,fourth was a complete success4 ,american thrift and industry carried her through what would have been impossible to a ,new ,granadian4 ,but it is ,jennie's almost superhuman efforts to revive the faith in the land of her adoption which excite our wonder and admiration1 even more than the tender breathings of her woman's heart1 separated for ever from the earliest loved4 ,she had everything to struggle against in her work2 deplorable ignorance among the lower classes1 and the falling away from faith and duty in the educated2 and this in a land once hallowed by the daily sacrifice4 ,well might she call the country ,god forsaken1 when those who should have cared for the sheep became themselves grievous wolves devouring ,god's heritage4 ,the secret of the country's desolation we may read in this sentence3 ,it is a well-known fact to ,protestant travellers and a wound in the heart of the ,catholic world1 that the ,catholic priesthood in this part of the world and in the ,west ,india ,islands1 scandalize the faithful4 ,why are they permitted to remain in the church8 is asked often by ,protestant and ,catholic4 ,because they are sustained by a government which will not acknowledge papal authority2 and if the archbishop were to remove them to-morrow1 if need be1 they would be reinstated by the bayonet4 ,hence these scandals4 ,but we turn from this sad picture to our young friend4 ,working with all the ardor of a soul given to ,god1 filled with the love of ,christ1 her prayers and labors brought forth abundant and immediate fruits2 but not till that day when the ,great ,master shall make up his jewels will it be known how many were brought back to faith and duty by her efforts4 ,the missionary spirit pervaded all her life1 and we may believe that love for souls1 in part1 led her to give her consent to so sad and final a parting from her early home2 for she laid her plans for these poor1 neglected people before she left her father's roof4 ,she found some pious1 devoted women in ,santiago1 7where are they not found87 and she gave them work to do4 ,everything prospered in her hands3 ,sunday-schools1 altar societies1 associations of the ,sacred ,heart2 and at last1 through her instrumentality1 the laws were repealed that closed the churches1 the ,te ,deum was sung1 the sanctuary lamp was relighted1 and 'la nina ,jennie' was acknowledged1 by the grateful people1 as a public blessing ,god sent4 ,it is extremely touching to mark how1 amid the constant terror of revolution1 the wearing care of churches1 hospitals1 ,sunday-schools1 altar societies1 plantations1 and housekeeping1 with a retinue of easy-going1 lazy servants1 she turns to entertain a dear friend with tales of her beloved parents1 recalling the happy and united life at home1 and then runs to console these absent ones by telling them1 in her letters1 with the artlessness of a child1 that her husband must be good1 since she is so happy with him1 away from all she loved before6 ,only four years was she permitted to cheer the heart of her fond husband--only four years to lead the life of a devoted missionary in that desolate vineyard4 ,the snapping of the chain by death that bound that household2 the departure of her noble father--we may well believe-- coming upon a heart filled with care for the souls about her1 lying in worse than heathen darkness1 hastened her own death4 #hfj ,as we close the volume1 we can not mourn for her nor for her dear family2 it is a blessed privilege to have such a friend in heaven4 ,life is only bright when it proceedeth ,toward a truer1 deeper life above3 ,human love is sweetest when it leadeth ,to a more divine and perfect love4 ,no1 we mourn for ,santiago1 and pray our dear ,lord to compassionate a country so piteously torn by revolutions1 and abandoned by those who should be first to hear the cry that comes over the land to all ,catholics1 ,send us priests who have an apostolic spirit1 good judgment1 and tact6 ,the publisher's portion of the work is well done4 ,it is well printed on fine paper1 and the binding is in keeping with the rest of the book4 ,it is1 in fact1 the handsomest book ,mr4 ,donahoe ever published1 and we are glad to see so great an improvement in his book-making4 ------ ,the ,woman ,blessed by all ,generations2 or1 ,mary the ,object of ,veneration1 ,confidence1 and ,imitation to all ,christians4 ,by the ,rev4 ,raphael ,melia1 ,d4,d4 ,london3 ,longmans1 ,green ,co4 #ahfh4 ,for sale at ,the ,catholic ,publication ,house1 ,new ,york4 ,dr4 ,melia is an ,italian priest1 residing in ,london2 a man of solid learning1 great zeal for the conversion of ,protestants1 and possessing a competent knowledge of the ,english language4 ,his work is a comprehensive treatise on the dignity and office of the ,blessed ,virgin1 and the reasons for the veneration and invocation of ,mary practised in the church2 to which is added a devotional treatise on the imitation of her virtues4 ,the author goes thoroughly into the arguments from ,scripture1 tradition1 reason1 theology1 and antiquities4 ,his style is lively1 popular1 and somewhat diffuse1 so that his learning is brought to the level of the understanding of ordinary readers1 and his arguments made plain by ample and minute explanations4 ,the book is also illustrated by fac-similes from ancient works of art4 ,it is a treasury of knowledge on the charming and delightful subject of which it treats1 and both ,catholics and ,protestants who wish to gain thorough1 solid information respecting the ,catholic devotion to ,mary1 with ease and pleasure to themselves1 will find this book to be the very one they are in need of4 ,the author is entitled to the thanks of all ,english-speaking ,catholics for this labor of love1 and we trust that his excellent work may be the means of increasing and diffusing1 both in ,england and ,america1 that solid and fervent devotion to the ,blessed ,mother of ,god which is both the poetry and an integral part of the practical piety of our religion4 ------ ,we have just received from ,messrs4 ,murphy ,co41 ,baltimore1 ,the ,acts and ,decrees of the ,second ,plenary ,council of ,baltimore4 ,the ,catholic ,world1 for ,august1 contained an elaborate article on this work1 written from an advance copy kindly furnished by ,mr4 ,murphy4 ,it is unnecessary to say anything more with regard to its contents1 except to reiterate what was then said as to its external appearance4 ,it is a handsome volume1 finely printed on good paper1 and bound in various styles and in the best manner known to the art of binding1 and is a credit to the publisher4 ,it is for sale at the ,catholic ,publication ,house1 ,new ,york4 ------------------------------