The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1889-10-23
FRAGMENTS az n1sroRY.

EDITOR OF 9HE tREss There are those in
every community disposed to refer to the An
clients for examples of vir'ue and morality
Their op rOTtunlti-s for obtaining light and
knowledge were meager lrdeed compared with
the present The musical Instruments of prIm-
tive times nrnish u striking example The
Egyptian fdte was a cows horn with three or
four hole in il, and their narp or Tyre had only
three stri .s; tho Grtcian Tyre had seven
string> aHd was very small. being held in one
hand the Jew ish trumpet that made the wa',s
of Jericho fall tiewn. were only rams horls;
their flute was the Same as the Egyptian; they
had ,trumental music bat by percussion.
OF which the greatest boast made was the
pSaltefy, ii sm II. triao2uiar harp or Tyre, with
wire strings ANA struck with an on needle or
stick; their s..ekhtt was something like bag
pipe; the timbrel was a tambougine, and the
dulcimer was q horizontal harp with wire
strings, and struck with stick like the psalterY.
They had no written music; had scarcely VOW
ell in their language, AID yet according TO Jo-
sephus. they had 2CG O o 0musicians playing at the
dedication of the Temple of solomon. Mozart
would have died in greatest agony in such
a concert.
In the early history of Egypt there was no
law against man marrying his mother. sister.
the wife was completely under the control of
the husband. The Roman idea of family made
the tat"er despot with power of life and death
over his children who could not do anything
without his consent. This was the case with
male children who had reached mature age
Women. according to the opinion of the early
Romans. were always children. Their idea was
that women required protection and guidance
all their lives, and could never be freed from
despotic control. Accordingly. when Roman
girl married, she had to choose whether she
would remain under the control of her father.
or pass into the hands of her husband In the
early ages of the city, she usually passed from
the power of her father into the hands of her
husband. and the position she occupied was that
of daughter to her husband. She thus became
entirely subject to him and was at his mercy.
Roman history supplies many instances of
the despotism which husbands Iexercised over
their wives. Tie slightest indiscretion was
sometimes punished by death, while men might
do what they liked, without let or hindrance.
IF you were to catch your wife," was the law
laid down by Cato the Censor, in an act of in
fidelity, You would kill her with impunity
without a trial; but if she were to catch you,
she would not venture to toueh you with her I'm
ger and indeed, she had no right" i" Wives were
prohibited from tasting wine at the risk of the
severest penalties
The conduct of Egnatius was praised who,
car hing his wife in the act of slipping the for
hidden liquid, beat her to death. The same
sternness appears in the reasons VIII ch induced
some of the Romans to dismiss their wives.
sulpicius Galius dismissed his because she ap-
peared IN the streets without a veil Antistius
Vetus dismissed his because he saw her speak
n " fo a froa i'm
Sempronius Sophus sent his away because she
had ventured to go to the public games without
informing him of her movement is. While Greece
and Rome had their scholars. philosophers and
statesmen, they all failed in devoting their
thoughts and energies to the practical affairs of
life, and an eminent scholar has well said, ,"There
was more craftsmanship in the mind of ABR ham
Lincoln in his brief life than in a the statesmen
of Greece and Rome for fse-hundred years.
Lecky says that sometimes there were 5000
scholars gathered together in woods and camps
for discussion and thought upon themes that had
no application to human life One oftheir favor
ite themes was the nature of the human spirit,
and as 10 how many spirits could probably dance
upon the point of needle; and they would al
so inquire what kind of c ub Cain kireI ibei
with whether it was hickory beech oak or sassa-
fras; and one of those philosophers wrote TWEEN
ty essays ON the probable height of the Virgin
Mary, the probable size of her hand o. foot, aR'i
the probable color of her hair. They thought it
disgraceful to come down to common affairs of
life. While the men were engaged in that kind
IF thinl ing ami discussion. the 'men were
slaves doing the drudgery; aud this reaches
over the pagan and christian world. up TO TIE
sixteenth century. Xenophon t, ought the du',
of the wife lay in keeping her husbands utbes
mended and .ean
Prior to the sixteenth centu Y. the woneI
ploWed the ground with eroOk,d stick, cut
the grain with kind of case kmift thresII. d it
with u club ground it between two locks, and
bak, d the bread IN the ashes. Meanwhile. the
great men of that date were busy about the def
aition of spirit, or the origin of the human &c
Or about the nature of the Deity, or the nature
IF the devil We are indebted to Greece and
Rome for their ACHE .enents in art and archi-
sectrlre. but their progress was funded and
nourished that they ights rye but the purpose
of the privileged class.
With all their boasted teachings of science of
,rt and of classics, they were still false 10 so
ciety and to state. from the fact that the very
character OF their Institutions and their teach
ings coul'l never reach or benefit the masses
Sad indeed ie the result of ignorance but sadder
yet will be the fate of nations which foster sys-
TENS calculated only to benefit a miserable ar
istocracy. Not only Greece and Rome, but other
ancient nations. who have adopted this policy,
have tottered and fallen. leaving but their ruin
and history to relate alike the story of their
grandeur and power. and of their decay and
downfall. EPB
RAvENNA. o., Oct. 18th. 1859.