New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-09-19
thrice week before the Palace and thar - III
the life there Ia at Athens in this summer weatner
SOME ACCIDENTS or HISTORY.
From me Loadoa Standard.

From me LOad0a Standard.
NJ. Fouruer wrote o book on events when never
took plnce aud Lord Beaconspeias iA,ne, ,;bt
author of a learned essay on history when mIgne
have been enacted. An equally curious volume
might be penned on the triifes which nave deter
mined great events. IL was but q trne wnich gave
Spain for 80 manv generations the lordship OF the
New World, and enabled her by the wealth whicn
she derived from that source 20 become the mos.
powerful Nation in Europe. lt ~ well known that
Columbus dspirited with the refnsas when ne
met at SO mary Courts, dispatched his brother Bar
toiomeo 10 ask aid from Henry y IL OF Engsnd.
But 90 the way the mess ,nger fell into tine nanns
of pirates and by the time be reached London was
80 destitute that he had to try and earn the money
to clothe himself IN proper style before ne eoud oe
presented Court But by THAT time u was too ate
Even the fact that Ferdinand and Isabella sup
piled the funds to equip the expedp1i DION
de Marchena, the Qu-en's cOnfessor, hap
pened to be passing at the moment when
the mariner was knocking at the door OF
La Rabda Monastery to beg little bread ana
water for his boy Diego, and was struck with the
noble face of the dusty pedestrian. Had Bartoio,
meo Colon reached London IN time, had Christoval
been by any chance a little latero or little earlier
at the Monastery door, the fate of Europe might
have been changed, and the destiny or the Anglo
Saxon race altered. Three centuries Later it was
again nearly revolutlOnized Tor IN lSOo the Eng
sh held BuenOs Ayres, and 10 10 no secret that Ma
poIeon was almost persuaded to abandon Europe as
a field for his ambition and try what he could ao-
eomplIsh in the of carving out an empire
among the dissatisfied provinces or south America.
When Citizen BOnapar.e seemed little llkeiy TO SIT
offering his sword TO the sultan as at later period
Won MOltke actually did. lt Is curious now 10
speculate what would have been the present state
of the Eastern Question had Napoleon carried ms M
tentions into effect: or surprising that Moltke had
remaii ed IN the Turkish servic whether the Dan
ISL War would have been fought: OF fr'issias
The cropping of Louis WIS chin brought on
three centuries of bloodshed, and sarcastic remark
of Frederick tine Great on Elizabeth Peiroyns, OF
Russia, reused that vIrtuous Empress TO take such
"A vigorous part IN the Seven Years War that ut one
time Prussia seemed well nigh stricken unto death
Even CathaFine ll.-prOtOundly suspicious OF Pots-
dam after tie scandal about Queen EiIzabeth"-
carefully examined her husbands correspondence
before sue concluded an alliance with the Royal
Letter Writer. Ii Is hardly forty years since Louis
Philippe threatened war against the Texan Repu0-
lie because rate citizen had shot the trespas5ing
pigs the French Ambassador. As IT was he pre-
vented the Lone star eOVereignty from nOatlnS
their European loan. and thus. the King AMI the
DIGS combined fastened the annexation OF texas
70 the IJnlied States. The Dutch said 70 have
"iockeved us out of Malacca IN exchange for Java
by representing the map, which our simple
minded EnvOys took tor granted, the one territory
as large ana the other a. small and among the most
firmly rooted traditions OF American dlplohiacy Is
one which represents the English Commissioner as
agreeing rne surrender of Oregon because a
country in which Il salmon does not rise 10 the ny
cannon Toe worth much.n Laws have been altered
through accidents before the Queens printers boy
forgot 70 deliver Lord BcacOnsned's amendment to
a bill.
But if trifIes have determined the fate of laws
and nations, accidents equally small have caused
men TO follow pursuits TIE results OF WHICH nave
been not much less mOmeatOus TO culture and civil
lzatiOu. Father Malebranche devoted himself 10
PHILOSOPHY after reading Describes l. Homme
(owIrv became poet owing to his perusal OF cDen-
sers FAIRY Queen and Sir Joshua Reynolds had
never Thought of painting until richardson's
Treatise fell INTO his hands. Shakespeare might
have ended hls life a. a prosperous wOol-couber had
he been II uludeuU young tradesman Cornele
showed no KING for any literature except the law
ninth he fell IN love. ana feL GlIseu cOnpelled 10
tell the lady SO IN poetry and MOlere Inght nave
remained making tapestry had not Ms grand
could be an actor like MOnTOse. Balboa gDt never
nave discovered the Pacific had ne not been unslc-
cessful as a opkeeper in HIspanlola, and found it
necessary 90 dee TO the mainland, concealed from
his creditors, IN cask on board EuciSc0S vessel
and il /, certain that hal Cores become we'll
iricfad lawyer in Salamanca ne would never nave
lived to proudly tell Charles v mat ne Dat gwen
nm more provinces than MS father had iett HIM
cities Iguatius LoyOla was a soldier, and the on
der of e ,uIts IN CHR never have been founded had
he not accidentally begJnled the tedIum OF insct on
neressl ttted bV q wound vita reading Ine Lives
ot the saints GIbbon determined TO write his
famous work after listening TO the monks singing
vesuers in tine Temple of Jupiter, at Rome; and
La FontaIne was stimulated To cultivate literature
after hearing some verses OF MaiherOe.
Faraday might have remained J0urDeyman
bookbinder bad not kindly Mr. Dance invited him
TO hear SIR Humphrey Dayy lecture and Vaucan-
son only took to studying Gle mechanism OF CLOCKS
m order 10 bogue the weary hours which he had 70
pass W bile attending his mother at oniessi9D.
Had sir James simpson b en- successful IN MS
caudiiature for the post OF d HIGH ana parish
doctor the world III ght have lost the InestImable
boon of chlOrcfOrm for many years; and 10 the
wise discretion which the College OF surgeons
exercised in refusing their diploma 20 Oliver .iOld-
smith owe the vicar OF Wakeneid ana the
&" Deserted Village"