The morning call., 1892-10-21

the tissue OF every mythology of the world.
All peoples found it in their sacred litera-
ture. Thus the evidence of the senses was
confirmed by the testimony Of all myth
ologies and the doctrine was believed to be
an essential part of every religion. Against
such evidence it was in vain that Few
scientific men affirmed that Astronomical
and geographical evidence was abundant to
prove the rotundity Of the earth. The peo-
pie simply laughed them to scorn.
But one there was Columbus of renown
Who sailed the sea and proved the earth globe.
With profound belief in the teachings of
science he rejected the teachings of the
senses, the teachings Of popular opinion,
the teachings of mythology and the teach
ings of religion. and he found that the indi-
cations of science were true.
This discovery had q mighty effect
upon the industrial and intellectual prog
ress of mankind; it gave new world to
civilization and resulted in the establish
ment of new world of nations. But this
was not all; its effect was to give to man
kind a new world of thought; it
was the great event which estab-
lished the authority of science. Au-
terror to the time science was cultivated by
the few, the very few, and the many held it
in contempt This brilliant discovery, the
result of applied science, raised it to the
throne of authority, speedily multiplied the
men engaged in research and turned the
attention of all the people to the value Of
exact or scientific knowledge. 1t did not
work these results in the twinkling of an
eye, it required the contemplation of some
generations of men to have its full signi-
ficance realized, yet no other great revolu-
ton has been so speedily accomplished.
The elevation of science or knowledge
into the position of responsibility. admira-
ton and honor speedily effected trans
formation i'll civilization. Four great stages
OF human culture are revealed toIthe student
OF man. In the first stage. usually called
savagery. man gathered his subsistence
from nature-the sea. the river. the forest
and the plain furnished him with subsis-
tence. and men were organized into savage
tribes scattered throughout the world.
When agriculture was invented and animals
domesticated man passed into the second
stage Of culture known as barbarism; still
men were organized in tribes, and the tribes
themselves as in savagery were groups Of
kindred, herds of men woven into small
bodies polite with warp of streams Of
Then men learned to build cities, and
stronger Tribes conquered weaker tribes
and made them retainers and slaves, and
thus tribes coalesced into tribes. With the
erection of cities handicrafts or Industrial
trades were developed In savagery and
barbarism all men had the same trade
hunting. fishing and food-gathering from
nature; In barbarism the cultivation OF the
cpil md ha IF Hac in ha irA TO,
great division Of labor was developed
one man was worker in metal. an
other in clay, another in stone; some
men were herdsmen, others were tillers Of
the soil; so from generation to generation
handicrafts were multiplied. This third
stage is known as civilization in the science
of neutrality-suspicious. tits called early
civilization. Then Columbus discovered
America. and science as applied science was
honOred. The effect was to turn mems
attention to the laws and powers of nature,
and to inaugurate a series of brilliant dis
coveries and inventions. Man speedily be-
came themaster of water, wind, Ere, lightning
and lower life. He learned the structure Of
the heavens and the structure of the earth
with its geological formations-its ocean
currents and its aerial circulation. These
the bondmen. Thus was inaugurated the
fourth stage of human culture, usually
known as enlightenment, but sometimes
called modern civilization.
The first stage Of culture called savagery
was the hunter stage; the second, called
barbarism. was the shepherd stage; the
third. called civilization, was the artisan
stage; the fourth, called enlightenment, is
of
America marks the inauguration Of the in
ventor stage and of all the transformations
IS most clearly marked, so that 1t can be de-
fined by single great epoch thus it is
that Columbus is the prophet and culture
hero of mooern civilization. In sayasery
man worshiped the lower animals;
to him the bear, the eagle. the
bird and the shark were DDS, and his
worship was terpsichorean, for he sang and
danced to the honor Of lis gods. In bar
barism man wOrshiped the powers Of ma
ture, the sun, moon and stars. fire and
water the dawning and the cleaning the
meteor and the rainbow, all the mysterious
phenomena OF the heavens, and his worship
was sacrifciaL To the gods he sacrificed
food and poured llbati0ns and slaughtered
heeatombs and sacrificed captives in war.
In the third stage man defed and
worshiped the personifed powers of
the human soul, and he had a god
of war, god of love. god Of ievelry and
a great variety of diviniIies, each one rep
resenting some human trait. He still re-
tanned the terpsichorean worship but more
Of sacrifcial worship, but he added new
element to his religion which may be de-
nominated fiiucial worship. that is he wor-
SHIPPED by faith. profound belief in and
reverence for his deities, who thus became
the rulers of the destinies of men, and by a
proper worship were made copartners with
mankind in the affairs of the world. In
early civilization the germs OF new reli-
gion were planted. and man learned at last.
slowly and imperfectly at first, to believe in
a enc supreme God who rules the universe
with eternal laws, and at last he learned to
worship this God with ethical conduct Sin
spirit and in truth"
The era of modern enlightenment inaugu-
rated by Columbus was one In which the
industries of mankind were transformed.
From the artisan to the inventor stage was
one in which the institutions of mankind
were transformed from despotic Govern
meDts to representative Governments. and
was finally the epoch in which the whole
world of modern civilization was converted
to monotheism. The discovery of America
is worthy of the grandest celebration ever
made by civilized man, and it is now easy
to predict that such a celebration will be
made j. w. POWELL.
FIRST COLU1BIAN POEn.
The very first OF all Columbian poems ever