The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1900-10-28

the streets. He was the sort of writer 10
call a spade a shovel and prefer a hon1ely
metaphor TO any other. He said, Tor
instance. that the Dukes Of Savoy loved
Geneva as the giutton loves a good,
plump fowl and to show his readers
how closely circumscrined were the Gene
van territories, he observed: one eouid
hardly spit over the wall without splitting
on the Duke of Savoy Moreover, when
he wished to mark the hour OF the day
at which any great event occurred he
never spoke of it otherwise than in its
relation to dinner time or supper time
zone can understand that this sort OF
think Jared upon Calvin, who had neither
appetite for food nor sense of humor, and
whose own prose style was marked by
classical precision and severe restraint
1t Jared upon him, no doubt. much as the
writings OF Mr.. Kipling jar upon the En-
giish disciples of Flaubert. But Calvin
was wrcng-mislea by that personal eaus-
ton which misleads so many critics. He
had no right 10 judge Bonnivard's book
by the classical standards of France, for
the good reason that II was not the work
of a Frenchman, and claimed no relation
with French literature. 1T was Gene
van, racy of the soil-alrhost the only.
and certainly the best, articulate express
sion of Geneyan thought and manners in
kAk0 tat, 1h@t t'& ~ ~
and professors had begun to break down
the barriers and make Geneva an intel
lectual dependency of France. Moreover.
the style was the man. as IL always Is,
and the man was a man with a singular
" acute mind and a keener capacity for
penetrating sophisms and seeing things
as they really were than ANY other Gene
van man OF letters of his period. Calvin.
in short, never showed his limitations
more clearly thar when he forbade the
printing of the Chronicle of Downward.
"Saddest OF all. however, is the story of
the interference OF the consistory with
the historians matrimonial affairs. At
the age OF GO, being then, for the third
time. a widower. he had given shelter in
his house TO a nun who had lately run
away from a convent. The consistory
promptly Informed him that this was con-
trary to good morals. and that he must
marry the young woman without delay.
Downward objected. His relations with
his protege, he pleaded, were Platonic;
his age and his infirmities were such that
they could never be anything but Pia-
tonic: consequently he begged to be ex-
cused. The ministers replied that this
excuse was frivolous, and that Bonni-
wards infirmities need not hinder him
from entering the holy estate. He yield
ed to their authority, II not to their bet
ter judgment; and three years later we
ind his wife arraigned before the con-
sistory on a charge OF inndelity. II was
not Downward who brought the charge.
On the contrary, he appeared as a witness
for the defense. testifying that he had
found nothing to complain of In his wife's
conduct, except that she had urged him
to be mefo devout than he cared to be.
had taunted him fer not preaching the
Gospel, and had beaten him for inviting
his friends to drop in upon him and drink
a glass of wine. His evidence. however,
did not save her. Her guilt was proved;
and, in accordance with the cruel cus-
tom or the age. she was sewn UP into a
sack and shot,. like a load OF rubbish. into
the Rhone."