The Camden chronicle. (Camden, Tenn.) 1890-current, 1903-07-24


hglOus liberty IN Europe. They we're the
| Crusades and the Renaissance The reir.
iOus enthusiasm OF Europe. dormant iDf
centuries, WIS fiudied by the fiery e,d
Quence of Peter the Hermit. A. be preached
n crusade against the "inhde Turks for
| the purpose of rcscuing the Hoy Sepulcher
from their hands. IT, was AZ when "A dodF
/ Is suddenly opened into a house where =
| fire has been long smoderng, smosksrcd
in its own smoke. The whoe building il
wrapped Boo n sudden conHauation: or as
when a volcano long extinct bursts into
sudden activity. A spontaneous uprising,
~ OF one man, Unparalleled N history,
took place among all Glasses Of people.
| Kings and peasants priests aud lawyers,
merchants and bankers were swept by the
same mighty impulse and fired by the same
| zeal, which for the time burned alike IN
/ evory breast and submerged calculations
and selilptcrest. All alike were moved 10
venture life and fortune IN the holy cause.
During the space of 200 years seven up-
| heavnls OF the population took place known
az the Crusades. five of them prodgous
and two Of them only relatively lesser. AL
OF them mighty Before the frenzy kim
| died by Peter the Hermit died out inn
meuse treasure was squandered, multitudes
| OF lives were sacrificed and apparently
nothing accomplished: total and disastrous
/ failure seemed to attend 1t ALL
But here again we are mistaken # we
| judge by appearances. For although the
/ Crusaders whitened the plains # Asia Nh.
nor with their homes and dyed the grass
| of Northern Africa with their blood with
ont achieving any permanent results IN
/ either Asia or Africa, their exodus iron
/ Europe and their return TO their former
| homes were attended by consequences IN
/ Europe far greater than would cave been
! the conquest of all the Fast and the reecue
! Of the relics Of s. the saints. In the frst
| pace they had broken the power OF the
! Saracens by successive impacts upon hem,
| by prolonged conflict with them
They had fought fire with fire. Religious
| fanaticism was matched against religious
! fanaticism and it inflicted such punish-
| ment upon the rapacsous and cruel MuSsu-
man that he has never been able to rally
| from It. Although he reached the shores
| OF Europe later on. he was exhausted with
| the struggle. and las continued in state
| OF languishing impotency ever since. In
| the second place the Crusades had
| marked and lasting effect upon the Cru
/ saders Themselves and IN spite OF TIER
| suffering and losses the gain was greater
| than the loss, for it brought them into di-
| rect and immediate contact with the
| East, at that time the cultivated and re-
| fined portion of the world. Constantine
|
! Of ancient art and learning. and the cen
tres Of the wealth and culture of the East,
| had become familiar to them. Antioch
was for time in their hands. The splen-
! did buildings. fine fabrics. beautiful STAT
ucs, costly gems, were a revelation to the
| Crusaders, and served as object lessons.
| while the elegant refnements, splendid
| courtesy, magnificent manners and ancient
learning of the East were not without Their
effect upon the coarsc, nude ana untamea
barbarians of the West. Those who sur
Vived the conflict returned with new ideas
Of the character of the world in which they
lived. of the meaning of civilization, OF the
possibilities of humanity, and OF the de
! fects Of Europe They had been to school
aud had travelled. Their view Of life had
| been broadened and their minds enriched
| by contact with superior conditions OF hR.
and a great mental and moral revolution
lad been wrought in them.
But the Crrsades had also an immediate
and lasting effect unOu Eurone itself. For
| nv enlisting in the Crusades the serf bought
his freedom from the soil. The debtor was
freed from his creditor He that went ont
slave came hack free man with gold
fnip in his pocket and some new ideas OF
the world in his head Serfdom. villainaGe
and slavery we've practically abolished IN
Europe The cities also had been able, by
immense sums of msrey paid to Che hered-
Ttary princes, who held lordshlp over them.
TO buy their freedom and secure charters
for themselves which made them independ-
rnt in the control of petty rulers. and by
the long absence of the mobiles in the Fast,
the middle classes had learned to admins
ter their own affairs, and so the backbone
of the feudal system was broken and the
Deriod of freedom and enlightenment came
in Modern industrlaEsm was lnangurated.
New ideas spranG mn and redistribution
of wealth and privileges took place, to-
gether with q new sense of their own place
IN the world and new wants and ambi-
tions in the common people. The imme-
date results to Europe of the Crusndes
were incalculablS. A new spirit OF human
ity and Of enterprise, Of hone and Of am
billion had sprung up, and the death war
rant was signed of the ancient regime OF
ignorance, superstition and terror which
had regned for a thousand years.
The second great movement that hast
ened the final eonhTct for religious liberty
was the Renaissance or revival Of learning
, in Europe which followed unon the taking
NJ ConstantinOple by the Turks in It5c.
That was momentous event for Western
Europe 1t sent hundreds Of Greek scho4-
ars and iteratti to find refuge in the West.
The learning AVID the MSS. which they
brought with them created great stir.
Schools. academies ana universities spTahS
MP everywhere. and the church ceased to
be the sole custodian Of knowledge u
waa as part Of that movement that the
University of Wittenberg was established
nv the Flector of Saxonv to which one
Martin Luther came in 1903 as nreacher
and professor of theology A sn'rit of in
e ruirv was awakened, Investigations were
|, | Instituted. and historical and scientific
! | studies were taken up in real earnest. The
! cold and lifeless Journalism that had chag
acterized tire logic Of the school mer dis
q 1 r 1 l.. u. I. 4 D..