Middletown transcript., 1871-03-18

tor now long period did the Roman Ein-
pire last aud what grand. and in many
respects bcncficcnt fact il is in the histo-
ry of the world That City Of Seven
Hills spread the civilization of Greece over
half the globe. We are her debtors, aud
build upon the solid concrete which she
spread so many centuries back. When
she failed, it was not by any sudden col.
lapsr, but by the slow decay of age, nccel.
Grated, it may be. by those vices which
were inherited from her days os naughty
strength aud youth. The dccline Of Rome
was like the twiIigh; Of . midsummer day
long luminous. rcgretful, passing into
darkness by soft degrees and Infinite mod
ifications Of decay. aud not seldom kind
ling into fresh fushcs Of vanishing glory
before the coming of the night And that
the Dark Ages were nat utterly dark, was
owing in the main to the ligh. reflected in
many places from the sunken empire.
Including the Greek monarchy Of Con-
stantinople (Which was Immediately de-
rived from that Of the Eternal City, } the
Roman Empire lasted till the year 1883
Of the Christian era, when the Turkish
Sultan, N!ahomet the Second, besigcd and
took the Eastern capital. There can be
no doubt that the Greeks Of the Lower
Empire were a depraved aud frivolous
race. whose weakness and effeminancy in
vited attack They had all the faults Of
their apcestcrs Of the Pagan ages, without
those rcdcemiug virtues which made the
earlier Greeks heroic. Yet the splendid
legacy Of literary and artistic culture
which they inherited from ancient times,
cnabled them to give new life to the in.
tcllcct of Europe. The dispersion of the
Greeks over the countries Of the North
and West led to the Renaissance that
great awakening Of the modern nations
from the sleep Of Italy, which had never
entirely lost its civilization, was first to
feel the glow of returning warmth and
Germany, France. Spain. aud England
soon followed The destruction OF the
Roman and Greek Empircs--if We are to
regard them as separate rulcs-was owing
partly to their vices, and partly To the in
cvitnblc conditions under which their
power was obtained but they fell with
dignity, and have left behind them many
enduring marks
II We turn our attention to the empire
of the Saraccns, we shall Gnd very similar
results occurring from very similar caus-
cs. The followers OF Mahnmet. like the
people Of Rome, aimed at establishing
universal dominion. The principal uf CO.
hosion in the one case was TO be religion,
rs in the other il had been law A.
vast community Of rcligiunisis, with Ma
homet for its Prophet, and the Arabian
Calilh for its high priest, was to con
qncr the kingdoms Of the earth, and to an
mex the waste places and the islands of the
sea. At one time it almost seemed us il
the Moslcms would accomplished this stu
pendous programme. From the Deserts
Of Arabia they swcp, over Palestine, Syria,
Armenia, Asia Minor Persia, India,
Egypt Morocco, Barbnry, Spain aud
Portugal. They suhjugated Italy as far
as Rome. Sicily, Gandia. Cyprus, and
other Mediterranean islands submitted to
the yoke. The south Of France was
threatened, and had not the advancing
tide been broken in Aquatoine by the val
or OF Charles Martel, the whole Of Europe
might have been torcibly converted to the
religion Of Mecca and Mcdina-a face
viii h would, Of course, have implied the
same result in the case of America.
In eighty years from the death Of Maho-
met, an empire Of proiigious magnitude
had been built up. aud in few more gen
eraiions il was greatly increased. But
the idea Of universal dominion though ca
pablc by its grandurc of carrying militia
ry race on tue wave Of spcecsg Ter con.
siderable time, has always been found in.
capable ef realization. When the cuihu-
sias'n of the first conception has died n.
way-whcn the momentum OF conqucring
zeal has slackened. and the yictors begin |
to think of sitting down under their vines
and hg't trees, aud OF enjoying what they
won--,hc reaction begins to ii, in Vast
armies are certain 10 become demoralizcd
when they cease TO be employ ed. Idle
ness and proiigacy oversprcad the empire,
and oppressed nationaltics seize upon the |
first opportunity for recovering their sep |
uratc existence The Arabian bond of |
union proved no more lasting than the |
Roman. The Saraccnic dominions broke
up into number of distinct Kingdoms.
and in certain directions the wave Of Ma
hometanism ebbed from the regions ii had
at one time covered. In later centuries
the Turks renewed to some extent the
victorious march of the Arabians Eu-
rope was once more mcnaccd. and the |
fall OF fConstantinoplc gave the Crescent u /
standing in the southeast Of Europe which
it has not yet lost.
Spain was ut one time the greatest Power
in Europe. Her conqucsts in America
aud in other parts ofthe world arc cmong
the most brilliant on record, unless We
may sny the' there can be no true briIlian-
ccy where such perfdy and cruelty exist.
But Spain is not now even n second-ra
power, and hor colonial possessions are Of
The smallest. She has perished though
! inc rapoci'y, Incidence. tyranny. sgd re-
'igious intolerance Of the covering classes.
Hnt ona nf I'M ,,.hsS, ,vtrra.d;,,m.., Z.