THE TORCH OF REASON, SILVERTON, OREGON, MARCH 8, 1900.
3
moved to Prague, and thence were the pride of the city as one of tion of his taking off. That his must come when it would be the
1590) to Frankfort on the^Main, the centres of the Renaissance, works were examined is certaiu, for fate of his judges, or their creed
afterwards the birthplace (1,49) of Perhaps he thought the influence of on the 14th of January, 1599, and successors, to pale before the
his great poetical successor, G oethe , such friends, his reputation as a he was placed before the Inquisi- dawn of higher truth, as he did not
This was a very fortunate move, philosopher, his privilege as a for- tors and had read or presented to before the fire of torture In a
That city was more free and “seen- eigner and author, would make a him eight propositions, which bad similar way George H enry’ Lewes
lar” than any other place he had frank avowal his best defense. It been extracted from his books, in his invaluable “Biographical
ever dwelt in. It was the center of induced the great free city of which These were not, unfortunately, the ' History of Philosophy” (vol. 2, p.
many peoples, with variety and ex he was a guest to secure his imme- requirements and generalities of 106), says, “As men die, so thev
change of markets, and consequent diate departure therefrom in safety. Theology only,which he had hither- walk among posterity.” The sen
freedom in trade, in books, in ideas ile acted accordingly. He did just to had to plead to and which he tence which consumed his body
and even in religious. He natur- what \ oltaire or any sane man could promise to comply with, has embalmed his name. He had
ally looked for the society of the j would have done to get out of the The very first of them involved | said it would be so, “La morte d ’un
Italians there, and among them clutches of the far worse than wild the scientific truth of the Coperni- ! seculo fa vivo in tutti gli’ altri.”
were some Venetian /booksellers,
beasts— the cunning, sly, cruel, re- can System, and used his expres-! (The death in on« one age makes alive
the brothers Ciotto. Bruno
had morseless fanatics into whose pow- sion for it and which he had made in all ages to come.) But why and
t ,
been kindly received also by er he had fallen, and whose profes- the title of his great poem: “There how alive? Because his death
Wecbel, the most prominent pub sions and ideas of trurh and fal e are Numberless Worlds.” “The would be a part of the birth-throes
lisher at Frankfort, and had every hood were only that both were sim Universe is Eternal.” He had de of the New Era,which he could not
prospect of a quiet, honorable and ply instruments to effect their mur duced this from the laudable sense but see was plainly portended by
useful life there. But this good derous ends. The discovery of the and meaning of Copernicus. And the new Scientific View of the
fortune, alas! was not to be. When records of his preliminary trial or he was charged with other false true Solar System and the Num
these Venecian booksellers, Ciotto, examination at Venice, from May and blasphemous teachings; for in berless Worlds, as set forth in his
returned home, they were vocal to August, 1592, has thrown a new stance, that “Adam and Eve were last book, “De Innumerabilibus/»
about the wondrous ideas of Bruno, but lurid light on Bruno’s trial and n »1 the progenitors of the whole for which the first charge against
and they showed his late publica the sad remnant of his life. The human race.” He was to be com him shows expressly that he was
tions, among others, to one of their frankness of the victim was fully pelled to recant and deny the sci about to suffer. Strange to say,
nation’s young noblemen named taken advantage of under the in entific truth he had spent his life neither Dr. Draper nor Philoso
Mocenigo. This Mocenigo became struction that if he “told all” and to ascertain and teach. Rather pher Lewes seem to have seen “the
his Judas. He was a character not put himself on the “mercy” of the Chan do this he concluded to die consolation” with anything like
yet quite obsolete, in which mental tribunal, it would go well with him. the most awful of deaths. Time the reality in which it appeared to
curiosity and weakness were com I nder these circumstances he made was given him, and he replied, Bruno. It is quite possible that
bined with the idea that science, full statements as to his past life, “that he neither ought nor wished neither of them had ever medi
magic and mysticism, occultism, which would serve as a kind of to recant.” This reply makes him tated over the startling discoveries
theosophy, alchemy and necroman autobiography. That he had made the first and greatest martyr for of his last book as Bruno had done,
cy were all related. He thought many errors, promised to obey the Science and its Era, and in its re and as we may do. In a beautiful
that Bruno was an expert in them laws of the land and the require sults one of the great saviors of poem he had described his career as
all,and that great wonders could be ments of the holy church, were the mankind. In a similar position, that of Icarus, in which the flight,
done through him. Ciotto was in forms which were always imposed Galileo seems to have saved his life which would lead others heaven
duced to join with Mocenigo to in upon penitents; but we do not find by a recantation, with a mental re ward, must more than compensate
vite Bruno to come to Venice to in in all the confessions wrung from serve—“and yet it moves.” The for the fall. When soaring on the
struct this patron in the new learn him that he denied the facts of Sci devotion of Bruno to Truth after wing his Icarus sings thus:
ing and enjoy his liberality. Bruno ence, which he had learned to be eight years of imprisonment and La voce del mio cor per Paria sentó:
evidently thought that the coveted true, nor indeed that he told any torture is almost superhuman. To
“ Ove mi p arti, Temerario? China !
Che
raro e senza duol troppo ardi-
liberty of philosophizing and the untruth as to his past life. It was the sentence of his judges, pro
m ento.”
influence of this great friend, would two mouths after this examination nounced one week before his execu
Non temer, respondió, l’alta ruina!
protect him for a time at least in closed before the report of it was tion, he made the memorable re Fendi sicur le nubi e muor contento
Venice; nor can there be a doubt forwarded to the chief officer of the ply, “Perhaps you pronounce this S’il ciel si filustre morte ne destina!
that he was most anxious to visit Inquisition at Rome. This delay sentence with greater fear than I My h e a rt’s own voice in the light air,
I h e a r:
again the sunny land of his birth, seems to confirm the said impress- receive it.” “Majori forsitan cum “ W hither
soarest thou, Rash One?
Descend !
and of his mother tongue. He left it ion that further proceedings might timore sententiam in me dicitis,
hut to grief comes ardor too as
as a refugee, he would return as an be avoided or mitigated by a release quarn ego accipiarn.” This answer Seldom piring.’’
honored instructor and Philosopher! or some minor penalty, as was af- 1 proves that he felt, that he stood re
.. a r not, . is . my reply,
, thy
.. fate
. . aloft!
, ,
Soon he appeared in Venice terwards the case with Galileo. th e re as a re p re s e n ta tiv e of som e- Boldly cleave the clouds, and die con-
than his J judges; ’ that if
T, for
, fjeath
, W"1 so
- illustrious
,, * •
u
(1592), and soon he and his power But the “holy office” at once re thing * higher
®
Heaven
des-
quired
the
tansfer
of
the
proceed-
he
was
there
to
die
as
a
witness,
a
tines
thee!
ful host and pupil were in a state
of “misunderstanding”. The hon ings to itself at Rome, and the ex- martyr to the Truth, and in vindi
Thus in words singularly pro
tradition
of
the
prisoner.
To
this
cation
of
the
right
and
duty
of
man
est science and the “Art of memo
phetic he had foretold his fate and
extradition
the
Venetian
authori-
to do and Buffer for the highest he allticipaled it8 consolation,
ry” which Bruno had professed to
We]1|
UH hagten ()ver that
teach,were there, but not the magic ties obj<‘°‘«d. ,h '19 showing that could conceive; and, above all, the
and necromancy which Mocenigo ’here were friends and herhaps priceless liberty Io think! The high- execution, too horrid for words!
had expected; and his heart and “reasons of state” ir; Bruno’s favor. est proof of the consolitary value of Tl,e procession was formed to have
mind were just wicked and vindic- II «•»« not until the pope personally the new view of the world was thus him executed “without the shed
live enough to make the true sci- interfered and required ¡ ta a a “spe- given. Many of the admirers of ding of blood,” that is, by fire on
„Camp ,)f E,„w e r 8 H ow he
ence the means of revenge for his cial favor” to himself that the Ven- Itruno seem not to appreciate
disappointment.
He denounced ellans y,elded- ar,d Bruno wa8 re‘ this no,able ma,ter ful|y- For was clothed in the garment of
his instructor and guest at “the moTed- in Febrllary- ’593, to the instance, Prof. John W. Draper,Iflaming
(San Beni,„);
Holv Office” in Venice,as a heretic, Pris,,n of tbe In1"i8ion at Rome, in his grand “Conflict Between Re- friend cou,j greet him. the
and Bruno was placed
placed under sur- The ways of the inquisition are of- ligion and Science” fp. 180), fe8, or by his aide made hia last
veilance. Nay, more —hewasbase- ten Past findin« oul- Why the vie- says, in a most eloquent and momenl8 lerrible by promise of
ly tempted to expose his views, and ,im wa9 there k”Pt in Pr'9On for beautiful passage, “The philosophi- strangulation instead of fire if he
after being unknowingly played 9>x years without any record, does cal opinions, for the sake of which wou| d o„,y ri.cant. Kinallyi the
with as a cat t would play with a not aPPHar- Perhaps it was to oh- he surrendered his life, could give crae, 8ermon over> hfi ¡g chaj ned
nis works
worKs and to pe-
pe him no consolation.” The truth is to the . lofty
n r .., 23,
09 tain copies of his
ftv a stake,
f.
. for
to make
m°U8e, he was arrested (May
1592) just as he had completed his ruse them, and then try to make that he was possessed of a con- thousands a “ Roman holiday,” for
arrangements and was about to re him recant; perhaps also by tor- viction which rendered the ordin- it was a great festal occasion. The
turn to his friends at Frankfort. ture to make him disclose who had ary fanaticism of religious martyr- smoke and flames began to rise, the
While in Venice he had been re- been his intellectual friends or pa- dom trivial and childish in com- cross is raised before him. He
ceived as an honored guest in the P^8i perhaps to let time appease parisou. His answer, given above, turns his face away, then that
literary and scientific circles which his friends, and “the deep damna- proves that he knew that the time 1
Continue«! on 5th page.