of the historians of these times. Sir Henry Saville preferred William of Malmesbury to all other historians with whom he was acquainted, both for judiciousness and fidelity: bishop Warburton speaks in terms equally high of Matthew Paris.

But, the wonder of the thirteenth century is Roger Bacon. It is a disgrace to his countrymen, that neither a complete collection of his works, nor a full and able account of his life and literary labours, has yet appeared. He first studied at Oxford; thence he removed to Paris, and took the degree of doctor in that university.. "After his return to

Oxford," says Mr. Chalmers, in his General Biographical Dictionary, "he was considered, by "the greatest men in that university, as one of the "ablest, and most indefatigable inquirers after "knowledge that the world ever produced; and "therefore, they not only showed him all due re"spect, but likewise, conceiving the greatest hopes "from his improvements in the method of study, they generally contributed to his expenses; so "that he was enabled to lay out, within the com

pass of two years, no less than 2,000/-(an im"mense sum for those times),-in collecting curious authors, making trials of various kinds, and " in the construction of different instruments, for "the improvement of useful knowledge." He was master of the Latin, Greek and Hebrew languages; deeply versed in all branches of mathematics; in the sciences of optics, geography, astronomy and chemistry. The composition and effects of gunpowder were probably discovered by

him he certainly made great discoveries in chemistry. He had enemies; but, he had many powerful friends, and he was patronized by every pope of his time. The encouragement, which he received from his countrymen, has been mentioned. A nation, in which there was so much science on one side, and so much patronage and encouragement of science on the other, could not have been generally unlearned. It must be added, that, while Roger Bacon was employed in the manner we have mentioned, John Holywood, or Johannes de Sacrobosco, as he is sometimes called,-(for whose birth Nithesdale, Yorkshire, Durham, and Dublin contend,)—was considerably extending the boundaries of science. He acquired from the Moors in Spain, and communicated, both to England and France, the system of circulating decimals,—the uttermost limit of pure arithmetic.

In fact, so far, at the time of which we are speaking, had the spirit of literary ardour proceeded, and so widely was it circulated, that, in every southern and several northern states of Europe, there was an irresistible tendency to a new and better order of things. For a time, the religious controversies, which then began to disturb the world, rather retarded than accelerated the march of science and the general improvement of

the human mind.

СНАР. Х.

THE PRELIMINARIES OF THE REFORMATION.

THE chapter,-perhaps the most interesting in his works,—in which Mr. Gibbon gives an account of the Paulicians, professes to show, that there had long existed, in a numerous portion of christians, an anxious wish to simplify both the religious creed, and the religious observances of the times; and several protestant writers have laboured to prove, that they would have been satisfied with a moderate reform. A different opinion is, however, maintained by Mosheim.-" Before the reforma"tion," to use his own words*, "there lay concealed, "in almost every part of Europe, particularly in Bohemia, Moravia, Switzerland and Germany,

many persons, who adhered tenaciously to the "following doctrines, which the Waldenses, Wick❝liffites and Hussites, had maintained; some, in a

disguised, and others, in a more open and public "manner :—that the kingdom of Christ was an assembly of true and real saints; and ought, "therefore, to be inaccessible to the wicked, and unrighteous; and also exempt from all those in"stitutions, which human prudence suggests, to << oppose the progress of iniquity, or to correct and "reform transgressions." From these principles, they inferred, that, "all things ought to be in com*Cent. xvi. c. 3, s. 2, 5.

"mon among the faithful; that, taking interest for "the loan of money, tythes, and tribute, ought to "be entirely abolished; that, in the kingdom of "Christ, civil magistrates were absolutely useless; "and that God still continued to reveal his will to "chosen persons."

Some protestant writers of eminence have defended the Waldenses, and the other denominations of christians, which have been mentioned, from the charges thus brought against them by Mosheim.

But both catholics and protestants agree that the opinions and conduct of the Waldenses, the Albigenses, the Wickliffites, and the Lollards, led to the reformation under Henry the eighth with their history, some canons of the fourth council of Lateran, the establishment of the inquisition, and the proceedings of the council of Constance against John Huss, are connected :-a succinct account of all these occurrences shall now be presented to our readers: we shall then mention some remarkable publications, which show the general state of the public mind during the period which immediately preceded the reformation.

X. 1.

The Waldenses.

THE separations from the church of Rome, which we have noticed, began with the Waldenses. These most probably derive their origin from Peter Waldo, a rich merchant of Lyons, who, about the year 1160, from an impulse of devotion, converted all

his property into money,

the

and distributed it among

poor. He was followed by many; they were called "The poor men of Lyons." In imitation of the apostles, they began to preach and instruct: they wore a particular kind of sandal, and had other singularities. They were reproved by the clergy; the pope enjoined them silence; but they persisted in their practices, and applied to his holiness for an approbation of their institute; and he, judging it to be irregular, and, in some instances, superstitious, rejected it.

They then proceeded to further excesses; they affirmed, that the church had failed from the time of St. Sylvester, by possessing temporalities; that it was unlawful for ecclesiastics to hold estates or prebendal possessions; and that, like the apostles, they ought to work with their hands; that no tythes should be paid to them, and nothing bequeathed to churches; that bishops, by tolerating wars, were accessory to the murders which they occasioned, and themselves became murderers; that it was not lawful to swear, even in a court of judicature; that both the temporal and the spiritual process of ecclesiastical courts was unjustifiable; that there was no foundation in scripture for purgatory, prayers for the dead, the observation of festivals, the invocation of saints, the veneration of images, crosses, or relics; that any sacrament, administered by a priest in sin, was null. They did not deny transubstantiation, but their doctrine respecting it was erroneous in some respects: they rejected the canon of the mass, and recited, in the vulgar tongue, the words