The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1858-07-20

shall crumble irto dust; but the alphabet,
with its talent, magical power to reveal
knowledge and truth, will remain to thu
latest period ofrecorded time; and our art
the actual exponent of alphabetic efficiency
will share the same enduring fate.
Tho Greek language having been rem
dered as perfect as any other that ever ex-
isted, its harmonious and musical sounds
were rcverberated in temple and forum,
and were listened TO by pooplo who APP
preciated in high degree the power Of
real eloouence: While that Grecian ora
tor, charmed by bis sweet and captivating
utteranccs, the sensitive ears of his audito-
ry, be impellcd at his will, by the force
and vigor Of bis speech, that spirited and
lively people to deeds of valor and heroism
celebrated in history. Athens was the seat
of ancient learning, of ancient refinement,
and OF most of the knowledge which the
world then possessed. 1t was there that
architecture received its grandest designs
and most chaste decorations, which were
executed with askill and finish, exciting
the admiration and wonder of all succeed
ing generatons--it was there that sculp-
| ture arrived at the highest perfection, chal-
longing imitation by all the mo!ern artists
whj are most gifted in giving the delicate
touches of The chisei. 1t is the Greek Ian
guage in which Plate disccursed to his dis
ciples on his sublime philosophy, almost di-
vine--in which Socrates taught his lessons
of wisdom--in which Dcmosthencs shook
Senates, awed Kings, and stirred tho hearts
OF his countrymen to acts Of astonishing
valor in the feld--t WAS that language in
which Homer sung in heroic verse, whose
cadcnces fell upon the car 'in link'd sweet
less," charming the souls Of his listeners
but, alas Greece had no Printing Press
to preserve her profound wisdom from be-
ing partially lost to succeeding times, or to
band down to postcrity the lettered pro
ductions of her elegant scholars, Frag
mcnts of these alone remain with us to
tantalize our curiosity to know more Of her
precious attainmcnts. Of these, after the
wreck Of her fortunes, tho remains took
their fight TO rising Rome, and she was
stripped OF her e'cganco TO decorate anoth-
er people and another a.e. She lost her
pre-emincnt grandeur, and was left as By
ron found her
"-Greece-but living Greece no more."
A learned historian has related in state
ly language, the rise and fall of Rome En-
pire, and lamented, with the feelings ola
true scholar, the degeneracy Of her last
days, and the barbarsm into which she
fell. The medieval ago Of darkness had
covered, as with pail, the mental treasures
committed to keeping Of fragile and per.
ishable materials. A few souls, enligh-
tened above their age, emerged from the
prevailing darkness, to rcscuc from total
oblivion, the remains of ancient learning,
1 ~. so .',..'sso yi,, ''lI,ss -,
tho dark cells 6f monastic cloisters, or
lying hid amidst the worthless and super
stitious trash Of the Vatican. CT these en-
thusiastic scholars and antiquarians, Pc
trarch was the chief. As Wickliffe was
the "morning star" of the reformation, so
was the former that Of the revival Of learn
ing. To his labors is the present ago
chiefly indebted for what remains of the
genius of ancient sases, and for opening
the stores Of ancient learning, on the verge
of eternal oblivion. 1t was he who as if
inspired with acknowledge Of great
coming event, prepared the way for its
successful mission. llallam, the rhiloso-
pical writer on this epoch, says:-"While
the learned Of Italy were eagerly explCr
ing these recent acquisitions of manuscripts,
decphered with difficulty and slowly circu
lated from hand TO hand, few obscure
Germans had gradually perfected the most
important discovery recorded in the annals
of mankind"
Tho discovery, above alluded to by our
author, was the art Of Printing, which
burst upon tho world like Minerva, who
leaping upon the earth in her divine
strength and radiant armor, was ready at
the moment of her nativity, to sLbdue and
destroy her enemies"
Printing was first discovered about the
middle Of the 5th century, and, from the
best authority, we must give to John Gut
tenbefg-a German-the renown of being
the first to cast separate type in matrices
engraved for the purpose. This is the es-
sence of the discovery, fnd its apparent
simplicity should not excite surprise that
it was not before invented, as many impor-
tant discoveries have been made even III
more enlightened times, appearing quite as
simple, after they were found out The
era, in which printing on moveable types
was invented was prolific of other inven-
tions, which, because we every day expcr-
iencc their convenience, We forget were
unknown before that comparatively late
period. The same may be said Of more
modern inventions, which, from habit,
have become Indispensable to Us, but which
within our recollection, were hardly "dream-
cd of in our philosophy
Indeed, the Imagination would not be
put to very hard task were it to attempt
to figure 10 itself tic barren condition in
which mankind would have been placed
at the present day, if the alphabet, if pa
per, if printing, had remained among those
things that arc not. 1t is something for
the hand to execute a curious machine af'
ter a sample Of it is presented to the at.
tention, but il is still more the evidence OF
genius TO conceive in the mind an original
mechanism fitted to accomplish given
object, and, at the same time to embody
it in meterial form. John Gutenberg did
all this, and thereby imortalized his name
He had genius impelled by noble utilita