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the earth was not the centre of the universe; and in the works of Martianus Capella he found it to be the opinion of the Egyptians that Mercury and Venus revolved about the Sun during his annual motion round the earth. Thus confirmed in his views, the difficulties that had previously surrounded them were gradually dispelled, and after thirty-six years of intense study, in which the labours of the observer and the calculations of the mathematician were combined with the capacity of the philosopher, he was permitted to develop the true system of the heavens.

"In his eye the Sun stood immoveable in the centre of the universe, while the earth revolved annually round him between the orbits of Venus and Mars, producing by its rotation upon its axis in twenty-four hours all the diurnal phenomena of the celestial sphere. Mercury and Venus revolving round the Sun within the Earth's orbit, and all the rest of the planets without it, while the Moon revolved monthly round the Earth during its annual motion. In the system thus constituted, all the phenomena of the celestial motions received an immediate explanation. The alternation of day and night, the vicissitudes of the seasons, the varying brightness of the planets, their stations and retro-gradations, and even the procession of the equinoxes, became the necessary result of the Copernican system.

"The circulation of these great truths, and the principles on which they rest, became the leading object of Copernicus' life. The canon of Ermeland, however, saw the difficulties of his position, and exhibited the most consummate prudence in surmounting them. Aware of the prejudice, and even of the hostility with which his discoveries would be received, he resolved neither to startle the one nor provoke the other. He committed his opinions to the slow current of personal communication. The points of opposition which they presented to received doctrines were thus gradually worn down, and they insinuated themselves into ecclesiastical minds by the very reluctance of their author to bring them into notice. In 1536 Cardinal Nico

las Schonberg, bishop of Capua, and Tidemann Gyse, bishop of Culm, exerted all their influence to induce Copernicus to lay his system before the world; but their entreaties were in vain, and it was not published till 1539, when an accidental circumstance contributed, with other causes, to alter his resolution. Having heard of the system of Copernicus, George Rheticus, professor of mathematics at Wirtemberg, resigned his chair, and repaired to Frauenburg to make himself master of his discoveries. After studying and adopting them, this zealous disciple prevailed upon Copernicus to permit their publication; and they seemed to have arranged a plan for giving them to the world without alarming the vigilance of the Church. Under the disguise of a student of mathematics, Rheticus published in 1540 an account of the manuscript volume of Copernicus. The pamphlet was received without any expression of censure, and its author was thus encouraged to reprint it at Basle with his own name. The success of these publications, and the flattering manner in which the new astronomy was received, combined with the solicitations and even reproaches of his friends, overcame the scruples of Copernicus, and induced him to place his manuscripts in the hands of Rheticus. It was accordingly printed at the expense of Cardinal Schonberg, and was published at Nuremberg in 1543, under the title of 'On the Revolutions of the Celestial Bodies.' (Nicolai CoperniciTorimsis De Revolutionibus erbium cœlesteum). Its illustrious author, however, did not live to peruse it. A complete copy was handed to him on his dying day, and he saw and touched it a few hours before he expired. In an introductory address— 'On the hypotheses of his work,' Copernicus propitiates such of his readers as may be alarmed at their novelty by assuring them that it is not necessary that astronomical hypotheses be either true or probable, and that they accomplish their object if they reconcile the calculus with observation. With the same view he inscribed his preface to the Holy Pontiff himself, and boldly alludes to the hostility to which his opinions will ex

pose him-'I have preferred,' says he, 'dedicating my lucubrations to your holiness, rather than to any other person, because in the very remote corner of the world in which I live, you are so distinguished by your rank, and your love of learning and mathematics, that you will easily repress the virulence of slander, notwithstanding the proverb that there is no remedy against the wound of the sycophant.' And 'should there be any babblers who, ignorant of all mathematics, presume to judge of these things, on account of some passage of scripture wrested to their own purpose, and dare to blame and cavil at my work, I will not scruple to hold their judgment in contempt . . Mathematics are written for mathematicians, and I am much mistaken if such men will not regard my labours as conducive to the prosperity of the ecclesiastical republic over which your holiness presides.' Thus recommended to the sovereign authority of the Church, and vindicated against the charge of being hostile to scripture, the Copernican system met with no ecclesiastical opposition, and gradually made its way in spite of the ignorance and prejudices of the age."

It must not, however, be forgotten that when the truth was spoken beyond the sphere of intelligence, it evoked scorn; that Copernicus was satirized on the stage of Elbing; and, above all, that what he did was done with miserable wooden instruments on which the lines were often only marked with ink, and that that was a hundred years before the invention of the telescope.

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LUTHER, MARTIN-1483-1546.*

Luther was born at Eisleben, in Germany. His father, who was a miner, removed thence to Mansfield in 1484. Luther made rapid progress in Latin and his other studies when at school, and, in 1501, entered the university at Erfurt, where he obtained the degree of master, and lectured on the physics and ethics of Aristotle. It was at this time that he discovered in the library of the university a Latin Bible. His father intended him for the law. Luther's delight with the Bible, of which the clergy of his time knew nothing but the gospels and epistles, and the excerpts in common use, induced him to turn his attention to the study of divinity, which, added to his natural serious tendency, and the sudden death of his friend, Alexis, in his presence when they were travelling together, resolved him, in opposition to the wish of his father, to adopt the monastic life. He entered the monastery of the Augustines at Erfurt in 1505. Though pure and innocent, the notion that he was wicked so tortured him as to produce a serious illness. It was during that illness that one of the elder brothers, who had become attached to Luther, told him that faith in Jesus was all that was necessary to secure the forgiveness of his sins. This doctrine came to Luther as a revelation. He had been taught to believe in good works and indulgences. Fortunately for him, Staupitz, the provincial of the order, was a man not merely of heart, but of intelligence. He soon discovered the genius and acquirements of Luther, and at the same time de livered him from the menial duties of the cloister, and encouraged him to prosecute his studies. In 1507 he was made a priest, and in 1508 was appointed professor of philosophy at Wittenberg, where he asserted the right of reason, repudiated the scholastic philosophy, and became a popular teacher.

*This sketch is derived from "Hazlitt's translation of Michelet's Life of Luther." David Bogue, Fleet Street, 1846.

1510 he was sent, on business of his order, to the court of Leo X. at Rome; on reaching the city, he proceeded to the convent of his order, near the Porto del Popolo. He says—“On arriving, I fell on my knees, raised my hands to Heaven and exclaimed: Hail, holy Rome! made holy by the holy martyrs, and by the blood which has here been spilt." The war against the French he soon found to be the sole subject that then engrossed the Pope and Rome. He was shocked at the levity of the Italian clergy. He tells us that he more than once heard a priest, when consecrating the host, say—" Bread thou art, and bread thou wilt remain; wine thou art, and wine thou wilt remain." Luther quitted Rome at the end of a fortnight. He afterwards said "I would not for a hundred thousand florins have missed seeing Rome; I should have always felt an uneasy doubt whether I was not, after all, doing injustice to the Pope. As it is, I am quite satisfied on the point."

Michel Angelo had designed for Julius II. the Cathedral of Saint Peter. Leo X. needed funds to carry on the mighty work. To raise money, he sold to Francis I. what did not belong to him, the rights of the Church of France; he created thirty-one cardinals at once; he entrusted the sale of indulgences in Germany to the Dominicans. Tetzel, a man of notoriously immoral character, hawked the commodity in the churches, the public streets, in taverns, and in ale-houses; handing over as little as possible to his employer, he pocketed the balance. When buyers flagged, Tetzel invented crimes, infamous atrocities, things unheard of and unthought of; and when his audience stood aghast at each horrible suggestion, he used calmly to repeat the burden of his song-"Well, all this is expiated the moment your money chinks in the Pope's chest." These things were done in the name of the Archbishop of Mayence, who had the superintendence of the sale of indulgences in Germany. Luther became indignant, the matter went to his soul; if he spoke he ran great risks; if he remained silent he believed he should incur damnation. On the festival of All

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