historical lecturers and essays-第23节

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rebellion；　horrors　unutterable；　and；　meanwhile；　Don　Carlos　had　set



his　mad　brain　on　having　the　command　of　the　Netherlands。　　In　his



rage；　at　not　having　it；　as　all　the　world　knows；　he　nearly　killed



Alva　with　his　own　hands；　some　two　years　after。　　If　it　be　true　that



Don　Carlos　felt　a　debt　of　gratitude　to　Vesalius；　he　may　（after　his



wont）　have　poured　out　to　him　some　wild　confidence　about　the



Netherlands；　to　have　even　heard　which　would　be　a　crime　in　Philip's



eyes。　　And　if　this　be　but　a　fancy；　still　Vesalius　was；　as　I　just



said；　a　Netherlander；　and　one　of　a　brain　and　a　spirit　to　which



Philip's　doings；　and　the　air　of　the　Spanish　court；　must　have　been



growing　ever　more　and　more　intolerable。　　Hundreds　of　his　country



folk；　perhaps　men　and　women　whom　he　had　known；　were　being　racked；



burnt　alive；　buried　alive；　at　the　bidding　of　a　jocular　ruffian；



Peter　Titelmann；　the　chief　inquisitor。　　The　〃day　of　the　MAUBRULEZ；〃



and　the　wholesale　massacre　which　followed　it；　had　happened　but　two



years　before；　and；　by　all　the　signs　of　the　times；　these　murders　and



miseries　were　certain　to　increase。　　And　why　were　all　these　poor



wretches　suffering　the　extremity　of　horror；　but　because　they　would



not　believe　in　miraculous　images；　and　bones　of　dead　friars；　and　the



rest　of　that　science　of　unreason　and　unfact；　against　which　Vesalius



had　been　fighting　all　his　life；　consciously　or　not；　by　using　reason



and　observing　fact？　　What　wonder　if；　in　some　burst　of　noble



indignation　and　just　contempt；　he　forgot　a　moment　that　he　had　sold



his　soul；　and　his　love　of　science　likewise；　to　be　a　luxurious；　yet



uneasy；　hanger…on　at　the　tyrant's　court；　and　spoke　unadvisedly　some



word　worthy　of　a　German　man？







As　to　the　story　of　his　unhappy　quarrels　with　his　wife；　there　may　be



a　grain　of　truth　in　it　likewise。　　Vesalius's　religion　must　have　sat



very　lightly　on　him。　　The　man　who　had　robbed　churchyards　and　gibbets



from　his　youth　was　not　likely　to　be　much　afraid　of　apparitions　and



demons。　　He　had　handled　too　many　human　bones　to　care　much　for　those



of　saints。　　He　was　probably；　like　his　friends　of　Basle；　Montpellier；



and　Paris；　somewhat　of　a　heretic　at　heart；　probably　somewhat　of　a



pagan；　while　his　lady；　Anne　van　Hamme；　was　probably　a　strict



Catholic；　as　her　father；　being　a　councillor　and　master　of　the



exchequer　at　Brussels；　was　bound　to　be；　and　freethinking　in　the



husband；　crossed　by　superstition　in　the　wife；　may　have　caused　in



them　that　wretched　vie　e　part；　that　want　of　any　true　communion　of



soul；　too　common　to　this　day　in　Catholic　countries。







Be　these　things　as　they　mayand　the　exact　truth　of　them　will　now　be



never　knownVesalius　set　out　to　Jerusalem　in　the　spring　of　1564。



On　his　way　he　visited　his　old　friends　at　Venice　to　see　about　his



book　against　Fallopius。　　The　Venetian　republic　received　the　great



philosopher　with　open　arms。　　Fallopius　was　just　dead；　and　the　senate



offered　their　guest　the　vacant　chair　of　anatomy。　　He　accepted　it：



but　went　on　to　the　East。







He　never　occupied　that　chair；　wrecked　upon　the　Isle　of　Zante；　as　he



was　sailing　back　from　Palestine；　he　died　miserably　of　fever　and



want；　as　thousands　of　pilgrims　returning　from　the　Holy　Land　had　died



before　him。　　A　goldsmith　recognised　him；　buried　him　in　a　chapel　of



the　Virgin；　and　put　up　over　him　a　simple　stone；　which　remained　till



late　years；　and　may　remain；　for　aught　I　know；　even　now。







So　perished；　in　the　prime　of　life；　〃a　martyr　to　his　love　of



science；〃　to　quote　the　words　of　M。　Burggraeve　of　Ghent；　his　able



biographer　and　commentator；　〃the　prodigious　man；　who　created　a



science　at　an　epoch　when　everything　was　still　an　obstacle　to　his



progress；　a　man　whose　whole　life　was　a　long　struggle　of　knowledge



against　ignorance；　of　truth　against　lies。〃







Plaudite：　　　Exeat：　　　with　Rondelet　and　Buchanan。　　And　whensoever



this　poor　foolish　world　needs　three　such　men；　may　God　of　His　great



mercy　send　them。















PARACELSUS　｛13｝















I　told　you　of　Vesalius　and　Rondelet　as　specimens　of　the　men　who



three　hundred　years　ago　were　founding　the　physical　science　of　the



present　day；　by　patient　investigation　of　facts。　　But　such　an　age　as



this　would　naturally　produce　men　of　a　very　different　stamp；　men　who



could　not　imitate　their　patience　and　humility；　who　were　trying　for



royal　roads　to　knowledge；　and　to　the　fame　and　wealth　which　might　be



got　out　of　knowledge；　who　meddled　with　vain　dreams　about　the　occult



sciences；　alchemy；　astrology；　magic；　the　cabala；　and　so　forth；　who



were　reputed　magicians；　courted　and　feared　for　awhile；　and　then；　too



often；　died　sad　deaths。







Such　had　been；　in　the　century　before；　the　famous　Dr。　FaustFaustus；



who　was　said　to　have　made　a　compact　with　Satanactually　one　of　the



inventors　of　printingimmortalised　in　Goethe's　marvellous　poem。







Such；　in　the　first　half　of　the　sixteenth　century；　was　Cornelius



Agrippaa　doctor　of　divinity　and　a　knight…at…arms；　secret…service



diplomatist　to　the　Emperor　Maximilian　in　Austria；　astrologer；　though



unwilling；　to　his　daughter　Margaret；　Regent　of　the　Low　Countries；



writer　on　the　occult　sciences　and　of　the　famous　〃De　Vanitate



Scientiarum；〃　and　what　not？　who　died　miserably　at　the　age　of　forty…



nine；　accused　of　magic　by　the　Dominican　monks　from　whom　he　had



rescued　a　poor　girl；　who　they　were　torturing　on　a　charge　of



witchcraft；　and　by　them　hunted　to　death；　nor　to　death　only；　for　they



spread　the　fablesuch　as　you　may　find　in　Delrio　the　Jesuit's



〃Disquisitions　on　Magic〃　｛14｝that　his　little　pet　black　dog　was　a



familiar　spirit；　as　Butler　has　it　in　〃Hudibras〃：











Agrippa　kept　a　Stygian　pug



I'　the　garb　and　habit　of　a　dog　…



That　was　his　taste；　and　the　cur



Read　to　th'　occult　philosopher；



And　taught　him　subtly　to　maintain



All　other　sciences　are　vain。











Such　also　was　Jerome　Cardan；　the　Italian　scholar　and　physician；　the



father　of　algebraic　science　（you　all　recollect　Cardan's　rule；）



believer　in　dreams；　prognostics；　astrology；　who　died；　too；　miserably



enough；　in　old　age。







Cardan's　sad　life；　and　that　of　Cornelius　Agrippa；　you　can；　and　ought



to　read　for　yourselves；　in　two　admirable　biographies；　as　amusing　as



they　are　learned；　by　Professor　Morley；　of　the　London　University。　　I



have　not　chosen　either　of　them　as　a　subject　for　this　lecture；



because　Mr。　Morley　has　so　exhausted　what　is　to　be　known　about　them；



that　I　could　tell　you　nothing　which　I　had　not　stolen　from　him。







But　what　shall　I　say　of　the　most　famous　of　these　menParacelsus？



whose　name　you　surely　know。　　He　too　has　been　immortalised　in　a　poem



which　you　all　ought　to　have　read；　one　of　Robert　Browning's　earliest



and　one　of　his　best　creations。







I　think　we　must　accept　as　true　Mr。　Browning's　interpretation　of



Paracelsus's　character。　　We　must　believe　that　he　was　at　first　an



honest　and　high…minded；　as　he　was　certainly　a　most　gifted；　man；　that



he　went　forth　into　the　world；　with　an　intense　sense　of　the



worthlessness　of　the　sham　knowledge　of　the　pedants　and　quacks　of　the



schools；　an　intense　belief　that　some　higher　and　truer　science　might



be　discovered；　by　which　diseases　might　be　actually　cured；　and



health；　long　life；　happiness；　all　but　immortality；　be　conferred　on



man；　an　intense　belief　that　he；　Paracelsus；　was　called　and　chosen　by



God　to　find　out　that　great　mystery；　and　be　a　benefactor　to　all



future　ages。　　That　fixed　idea　might　degeneratedid；　alas！



degenerateinto　wild　self…conceit；　rash　contempt　of　the　ancients；



violent　abuse　of　his　opponents。　　But　there　was　more　than　this　in



Paracelsus。　　He　had　one　idea　to　which；　if　he　had　kept　true；　his　life



would　have　been　a　happier　onethe　firm　belief　that　all　pure　science



was　a　revelation　from　God；　that　it　was　not　to　be　obtained　at　second



or　third　hand；　by　blindly　adhering　to　the　words　of　Galen　or



Hippocrates　or　Aristotle；　and　putting　them　（as　the　scholastic



philosophers　round　him　did）　in　the　place　of　God：　　　but　by　going



straight　to　nature　at　first　hand；　and　listening　to　what　Bacon　calls



〃the　voice　of　God　revealed　in　facts。〃　　True　and　noble　is　the　passage



with　which　he　begins　his　〃Labyrinthus　Medicorum；〃　one　of　his　attacks



on　the　false　science　of　his　day；







〃The　first　and　highest　book　of　all　healing；〃　he　says；　〃is　called



wisdom；　and　without　that　book　no　man　will　carry　out　anything　good　or



useful　。　。　。　And　that　book　is　God　Himself。　　For　in　Him　alone　who



hath　created　all　things；　the　knowledge　and　principle　of　all