THE MORNING OF MODERN TIMES.
LESSON FROM HEATHEN MYTHOLOGY--VICISSITUDES OF ROMAN CHURCH--BONIFACE
POPE--ADVANCEMENT IN CIVILIZATION--WORK OF THE ROMAN CHURCH--INVENTION
OF PRINTING--GUTENBERG--BIBLE FIRST PRINTED--COLUMBUS--HIS WONDERFUL
DREAM--HIS GREAT VOYAGE--DISCOVERY OF AMERICA--TRIALS AND TRIUMPHS.
"It breaks--it comes--the misty shadows fly:
A rosy radiance gleams upon the sky;
The mountain tops reflect it calm and clear,
The plain is yet in shade, but day is near."--_Chas. Mackay_.
The fifteenth century may be justly considered the commencement of
modern times; for then began the great {75} revolution in science,
religion and general knowledge, which has continued until the present
time. The time-worn colossus of Rome was tottering under its own
weight. Great princes filled the thrones of all the principal countries
of Europe. The minds of men seemed awakening as from a sleep. A spirit
of scientific research had seized the learned, and a desire for
knowledge found its way even to the homes of the lowly.
In every grade of society a new life was in motion. "What an age!"
exclaimed Huetton, the religious knight of Germany, "studies flourish,
minds are awakening; it is a joy merely to be alive!"
The history of those times cannot be correctly told by a simple recital
of facts. This truth should ever be acknowledged, that God is ever
present on that vast theatre where successive generations of men meet
and struggle. It is true He is unseen; and the unthinking multitude may
pass heedlessly by. To the ignorant crowd, the history of the world
presents a confused chaos; but to men of thought, it appears as a
majestic temple on which the invisible hand of God is at work.
Modern minds might learn a lesson from heathen mythology. The name
given by the ancient Greeks to the Deity shows that they had received
some primeval revelation of this great truth. He was styled _Zeus_, or
the life-giver to all that lives--to nations as well as individuals.
From his inspirations Minos and other legislators professed to have
received their laws; and on his altars kings and people swore their
solemn oaths. This great truth is taught by one of the most beautiful
fables of heathen mythology.
Thus _Zeus_, the life-giving principle is the father of _Clio_, the
muse of history, whose mother is _Mnemosyne_, or memory. History then
is the memory of men's acts and God's providences, and combines a
heavenly with an earthly nature. She is the daughter of God and man;
but, alas, the purblind philosophy of the nineteenth century has not
attained to the lofty views of heathen wisdom!
What a startling fact, that men brought up amid the glorious light of
the present age should deny that divine {76} intervention in human
affairs which even the very heathens admitted!
The beginning of the fifteenth century finds Boniface IX., on the
pontifical throne. During his reign the papal power culminated and
began to decline.
No empire of ancient or modern times has experienced such marvelous and
varied vicissitudes, as those which have befallen the empire of the
Roman church. Born in obscurity and reared in adversity, that church
nevertheless succeeded in climbing to a loftier throne and grasping
the scepter of a more absolute dominion than either a Xerxes or an
Alexander could boast. Pretending to despise mere worldly gains, she
cunningly turned the channels of riches towards herself, and emptied
them without scruple into her own coffers.
When Boniface ascended the papal throne, the authority of Rome was
apparently greater than ever; but in reality it was much undermined by
the advancing labors of civilization.
Society had made a great advance in the previous eight hundred years.
In the seventh century, a cloud of more than Egyptian darkness
overshadowed Europe. Then it was occupied by wandering savages; now
it was organized into families, neighborhoods and cities. The seventh
century left it full of bondmen; the fifteenth found it without a
slave. Where there had been trackless forests there were now the abodes
of civilized men. Instead of bloody chieftains drinking out of their
enemies' skulls, there were grave professors teaching the laws of
nature and the principles of science.
Nor was this all. Rome herself had a preparatory work to do, and had
she confined herself to that work, and sought not to trammel the minds
of men, she would have continued a blessing to the race. Never before
in the history of the world was there such a system. From her central
seat she could equally take in a hemisphere at a glance or examine
the private life of any individual. In all Europe there was not a man
too great or too obscure, too insignificant or too desolate for her.
Surrounded by her solemnities every one received his name at her altar;
her bells chimed at his marriage; and her knell tolled at his funeral.
When even to his friends his lifeless corpse had become an offense, she
received it into her {77} consecrated ground, there to rest until the
great reckoning day. In times of lawlessness and rapine, she sheltered
the helpless from the tyrant, and made her sanctuaries a refuge for the
despairing and oppressed, But like all man-made systems of religion,
she failed by attempting to enforce fixed laws on society in the
presence of higher truths and advancing civilization.
During all these centuries mankind had slowly but surely advanced and
Abraham's seed, the Jews and Saracens, had been the leaders of that
progress. Quietly the materials had been gathering until the whole
continent was ripe for revolution.
Meanwhile God had raised up instruments, by which the commerce,
politics and religious thought of Europe were completely changed.
In A. D. 1484, there were living in various parts of Europe three
persons who were destined to set in motion these mighty movements.
These were Gutenberg, Columbus and Luther. Around these men cluster
many notable events; and a history of their lives and times would
include some of the brightest pages in the annals of our race.
Gutenberg was then an old man living at Mentz, in Germany. His
broad shoulders, well knit frame and strong arms showed that he was
acquainted with labor, and capable of great endurance. His broad
and full forehead indicated a man of reflective mind and inventive
faculty. His keen, full grey eye revealed a soul full of earnestness,
intelligence and power. He had conferred on mankind the most useful
invention, since Cadmus, nearly three thousand years ago, taught the
barbarian Greeks the art of writing. This invention was the art of
printing, which has been such a mighty instrument for the transmission
of thought, and the civilization of the world. The Saracens had
already invented the art of making paper from linen rags. Previous to
this, parchment was the only substance well adapted for writing upon.
Paper-making and printing produced great changes in the manufacture of
books. By the one, books were greatly cheapened, by the other, greatly
multiplied. Thought could now be transmitted cheaply and swiftly in a
thousand different directions. Priestcraft saw the {78} danger, and,
terrified lest truth should emerge, immediately attempted to control
and restrain the press. At this time the art of printing was known to
only five or six persons. It is curious to observe that even war was
the means of quickening the growth and extension of this wonderful art.
In 1462, the storming of Mentz dispersed Gutenberg and his co-workers
and gave the secret to the world. In A. D. 1465, it appeared in Italy;
in 1469, in France; in 1474, Caxton brought it to England, and in 1477
it was introduced in Spain.
Meanwhile Pope Alexander VI., excommunicated all printers not licensed
by him, and an order was issued to burn all books not recommended by
the papal authorities. But these frantic struggles of the powers of
darkness were unavailing. Lovers of books were gratified by seeing them
multiplied by thousands. The Bible was printed as early as 1454, and
was followed shortly afterwards by other important books.
The power of the press continued to increase, until at the present time
it is without doubt the most powerful aid to modern civilization.
At the beginning of the fifteenth century a profound ignorance
prevailed concerning the western regions of the Atlantic. Its vast
waters were regarded with awe and wonder; and though from time to time,
pieces of carved wood and other relics of Indian skill had floated
to the shores of the old world, giving to its wondering inhabitants
evidences of land beyond the watery horizon, yet no one ventured to
spread a sail and seek that land veiled in mystery and peril.
Columbus was the first who had the inspiration to conceive and
the heroic courage to brave the mysteries of this perilous deep.
He unfolded to the wandering gaze of the inhabitants of Europe a
new hemisphere, and opened it to their spirit of discovery and
enterprise--opened it also, alas, to their cupidity and cruelty!
Christopher Columbus was born in the city Genoa, about 1447, and became
one of the most remarkable men of any land or time. Having carefully
studied the sciences of geography and astronomy he became convinced
that the earth was not flat, as most men then believed, but was really
a vast globe or ball. He perceived that when the moon was eclipsed,
the {79} shadow which the earth cast upon the moon was round; and he
reasoned that as the shadow was round, the object that made that shadow
must be round also.
He visited the great Saracen schools in Spain, and there received
additional proof of this truth. Spain, was then a great maritime
nation, and there he conversed with great sea-captains whose voyages
were already attracting the attention of the learned. He himself also
made a voyage to far off Iceland, and possibly to Greenland, to which
country the pope had already sent a bishop and several missionaries.
[Image: Christopher Columbus.]
In A. D. 1485, when Columbus was about thirty-eight years of age he
made his first application to the king of Portugal for aid in his great
scheme of maritime discovery, but without success. He then successively
applied to Spain, Genoa, Venice and England.
But the monarchs of Europe were under the control of Rome, and
therefore too busy in aiding her religious persecutions to listen to
the appeals of science.
Indeed in the very year in which Columbus made his first application,
the Inquisition put to death nearly seventeen thousand persons, besides
imprisoning thirty-two thousand {80} more. Nor was this all, ninety-two
thousand Jews had suffered confiscation of their property, and had
been given the unenviable choice of death, banishment or perpetual
slavery. And the Saracens, who had dwelt in Spain for more than seven
hundred years, or nearly twice as long a time as has elapsed since the
discovery of America, were expelled from the lands which they had so
long cultivated and beautified, and from their cities which had so long
led the world in the arts, sciences and general civilization.
One evening in the autumn of A. D. 1485, a man of majestic appearance,
pale, care-worn, and though in the meridian of life, with silver
hair, leading a little boy by the hand, asked alms at the gate of a
Franciscan convent near Polos--not for himself, but only a little bread
and water for his child. That man was Columbus, destined to startle the
inhabitants of Europe with the discovery of a new continent. But he was
obliged to wait until he could take advantage of the commercial rivalry
of Spain and Portugal.
The trade of Eastern Asia had always been a source of immense wealth
to the nations that had controlled it. For more than a thousand years
Venice had held the keys to that commerce. As discoveries extended,
other nations perceived the possibility of opening new routes to the
East and thus rivalling the commercial greatness of Venice. One of these
plans was to sail around the southern end of Africa, the other to sail
directly westward across the Atlantic. It was plain to every thinking
person that if India could be reached by sailing westward, maritime
power would pass from the Mediterranean countries to those upon the
Atlantic coast.
About this time Columbus had a wonderful dream, or vision. An
unknown voice spoke to him, and said: "God will cause thy name to
be wonderfully resounded throughout the earth; and will give thee
the keys to the ocean which are held with strong chains." From this
time forward, Columbus looked upon himself as chosen from among men
to accomplish the purposes of heaven; to bring the ends of the earth
together, that all nations, and peoples, and tongues might be united
under the banner of the Redeemer.
{81} Isabella and Ferdinand were then joint king and queen of Spain.
Meanwhile, Columbus had gained many influential friends, among whom
was a Jewish sea-faring family named Pinzon, and Luis de Santangel the
spiritual adviser of Queen Isabella.
At this time Columbus seemed more likely to fall into the hands of the
Inquisition and suffer for his heresy than to succeed in his great
enterprise.
At this juncture Luis de Santangel obtained audience with the queen,
and addressed her with all the energy of a man who speaks for the last
time in behalf of a favored project. Isabella listened attentively,
hesitated a moment and then pledged her jewels to raise the amount
necessary for the expedition. Contemporary writers have been
enthusiastic in their descriptions of Isabella: but time has sanctioned
their eulogies. She is one of the purest and most beautiful characters
on the pages of history.
At length, on the 17th of April, A. D. 1492, Columbus was ushered
into the royal presence, and received his commission. Immediately he
commenced preparations, and on the 3rd of August, 1492, set sail on his
ever-memorable voyage. The expedition consisted of three small vessels:
the _Santa Maria_, commanded by Columbus; the _Pinta_, by Martin Alonzo
Pinzon; and the _Nina_, by Vincent Yanez Pinzon. "The Pinzons were
doubly interested in this voyage, for while they sought for a new and
profitable route of commerce, they doubtless also felt a desire to find
an asylum for their persecuted Jewish brethren." (See Lovel's American
History, Canadian edition.)
Having touched at the Canary Islands they sailed directly westward. On
losing sight of the last trace of land the hearts of the crews failed
them. Behind them was everything dear to the heart of man: country,
family, friends, life itself; before them everything was chaos, mystery
and peril.
Columbus tried in every way to soothe their distress and inspire
them with his own glorious anticipations. He described to them the
magnificent countries to which he was about to conduct them: the
islands of the Indian seas, teeming with {82} gold and precious stones;
the regions of Mangi and Cathay with their cities of unrivalled wealth
and splendor. Nor were these promises made for purposes of deception.
Columbus evidently believed that he would realize them all.
For many days they were gently but speedily wafted over a tranquil sea,
but when near the middle of the Atlantic, they, for the first time,
observed the variation of the needle of the compass, which no longer
pointed directly north, but had veered around and pointed in a somewhat
different direction.
[Image: Ships of Columbus.]
Columbus was greatly perplexed yet dared not communicate his thoughts
to anyone. It seemed as if the very laws of nature were changing,
as they advanced, and they were entering another world subject to
unknown influences; that the compass was about to lose its mysterious
virtue, and without that guide what was to become of them on a vast and
trackless ocean? Columbus gave an explanation of this phenomenon which
satisfied the crew though unsatisfactory to himself. His situation was
daily becoming more critical in proportion as they {83} approached
the regions where he expected to find land. At length, on the 9th of
October, the crew broke out in open mutiny and threatened to throw
him overboard, designing then to return to Spain. A compromise was
effected, that if they would continue to sail westward three days
longer, and no land was discovered he would then return. Two days
passed away and still no sight of land.
[Image: Landing of Columbus.]
{84} On the evening of the second day, Columbus remained on deck. What
were the feelings that pervaded his breast no one but God can tell;
with nothing but the heaving ocean beneath him and the silent stars
o'er head. Anxiously he stands upon the prow of his vessel and peers
into the darkness. It is one o'clock! Suddenly a gleam as of a torch is
seen in the horizon! Is it a flash of phosphoric light as is sometimes
seen on the surface of these tropical seas, or is it a blaze of fire
indicating the habitations of men?
Soon the joyful cry of "Ho! land, ho!" resounded throughout the ship,
and the booming of cannon announced the discovery to the other vessels.
When the dawning of the morning came, they beheld in all their grandeur
and beauty, the hills and valleys, streams and forests of a new world.
The men who had been so lately mutinous now came forward and bowed down
before Columbus, and did homage to him as though he were a god.
Trials before triumphs have ever been the lot of self-taught men, and
will be to the end of time. If the chosen heroes of this earth were
counted over, they would be found to be men who stood alone and labored
and waited; while those for whom they agonized and toiled poured upon
them contumely and scorn.
The very martyrs of the past who were hooted at, reviled and spit upon
by the mob, are the ones who are honored now. They suffered cruel
tortures and burnings; to-day, the children of this generation are
gathering up their scattered ashes to deposit them in the golden urn of
a nation's history.
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