The New York herald., 1921-10-30
The Good Old Middle Ases.

to think of rather indefinite Pc
riod when robber barons and knights
went about gathering in spoils and
scattering death. This view is mis-
taken IL we are to trust the studies
and investigations Of those persons
who refuse to accent with compla-
cent confidence the dictum that every
thing is better to-day than it was
yesterday. The Middle Ages, accord
ing to these investigators, were not
so bad or SO rough as they have been
represented they, in fact, offer q
refutation of the theory of social evo-
luton, which G. STRLING TAYLoK
says in the Nineteenth Century and
After was to the effect that the vast
drama Of life proceeded satisfacto-
rily from sort of jellyfsh on the
beach Of some hot paleozoic sea un-
til it reached the dizzy height Of
q man."
Mr.. TAYLOR would not have the
twentieth century believe that all was
perfect in mediayal times. There
were robber barons in those days and
some of them were cruel tyrants. but
the services which they could de-
mand from their subjects were fixed
by custom and not by arbitrary rule
of the lord. The baron had his du-
ties as we'll as his rights, and one of
his important duties was to protect
his people and to respect the laws
which they enacted. He did most of
the lighting, for the peasants obliga-
tions ceased when he performed his
duties as a member of the local mill
tary organization in home defence.
The well to do gentleman got the
spoils of aggressive warfare and me-
dieval law provided that he should
do the fighting.
Kings figured then as little as
kings in exile do to-day. There was
king Of the English and king Of
the French, but their rule in most
cases was less powerful than the
government of modern state, either
republic or monarchy. The power Of
ruling was in the hands of the small
social units of society of which the
kingdom was composed. II London
or Paris had suddenly disappeared
from the map and the king and all
| his officials had vanished England
or France would not have been over
whelmingly conscious OF the disaster,
for they in the main ruled them
selves and judged themselves In their
own courts" Mr.. TAYLOR says:
Medieval life was maze of care
fully defined social relationships, but
this code was not drawn up and en-
forced by a king or a central coun-
cil 1t was planned and promulgated
by those small groups OF citizens who
met together in their county and hun
dred courts, in their trading guilds
and their manoriai and borough
councils"
While in medieval society there
was little central government, It does
not mean that anarchical conditions
existed or that there was lack OF
order or laws. II was time when
men were controlled by an elabo-
rate code of social regulations. The
training OF the medieval man was to
place the welfare Of the whole So
ciety before any advantage to him
self as an individual. The Middle
Ages surpassed all other periods "in
its passion for the group FORM" 1t
was the period of the guilds. War
dens inspected workshops in order
that craftsmen should not compete
unfairly against their fellows or
cheat their customers. No member
OF a guild could steal march on his
comrades by working at night or
holidays. and it was considered that
work done in such times was likely
to be bad work and thus dishonest
work There was too rule that
good bargain in stock or raw ma
terial must be shared by all members
of the guild. There was little over
production: normal man regarded
his work as the supplying of goods
and services which his neighbors
asked OF him."
There was selfish fighting in me.
dieval times. but there were in real
ity fewer pillaging raids between
rival barons than some historians
have represented. It was a rule that
soldiers who did violence to women.
priests or pilgrims OF to farmers
stock or tools or churches should be
excommunicated by the Church. By
the Truce OF Con all fighting was for
hidden from every Wednesday to the
following Monday morning. during
Lent and Advent, and on festival
days of the Virgin, the Apostles and
many OF the saints Having just I
seen all Europe fighting for four
years, except the first Christmas
Day." says MIR. TAYLOR. I'VE are In n |
position to recognize this as another |
noteworthy difference between the
medieval system and the modern"
The medieval man lived in close