NEW CHAPTERS IN THE WARFARE OF SCIENCE. 461 



gians of the Reformation, while admitting that storms were caused 

 by Satan and his legions, opposed the baptism of bells, and denied 

 the theory of their influence in dispersing storms.* Luther, while 

 never doubting that troublesome meteorological phenomena were 

 caused by devils, regarded with contempt the idea that the demons 

 were so childish as to be scared by the clang of bells ; his theory 

 of diabolic power made them altogether too powerful to be affected 

 by means so trivial. The great English reformers, while also ac- 

 cepting very generally the theory of diabolic interference in storms, 

 reproved strongly the baptizing of bells, as the perversion of a sacra- 

 ment, and involving blasphemy. Bishop Hooper declared reliance 

 upon bells to drive away tempests, futile ; f Bishop Pilkington, while 

 arguing that tempests are direct instruments of God's wrath, is very 

 severe against using " unlawful means," and among these he names 

 "the hallowed bell "; J and these opinions were very generally shared 

 by the leading English clergy. # 



Toward the end of the sixteenth century the Elector of Saxony 

 strictly forbade the ringing of bells against storms, urging penance 

 and prayer instead ; || but the custom was not so easily driven out of 

 the Protestant Church, and in some quarters was developed a Protest- 

 ant theory of a rationalistic sort ascribing the good effects of bell- 

 ringing in storms to the calling together of the devout for prayer or to 

 the suggestion of prayers during storms at night. A As late as the 

 end of the seventeenth century we find the bells of Protestant churches 

 in Northern Germany rung for the dispelling of tempests. Q In Cath- 

 olic Austria this bell-ringing seems to have become a nuisance in the 

 last century, for the Emperor Joseph II found it necessary to issue an 

 edict against it ; but this doctrine had gained too large headway to 

 be arrested by argument or edict, and the bells may be heard ring- 

 ing during storms to this day in various remote districts in Europe. 



For this was no mere superficial view. It was really part of a deep 



terrify the demons, compel the powers " ; and when a canonist like Durandus explained 

 the purpose of the rite to be, that " the demons hearing the trumpets of the Eternal 

 King, to wit, the bells, may flee in terror, and may cease from the stirring up of tem- 

 pests." (See Ilerolt, " Sermones Discipuli," xvii, and Durandus, " De ritibus ecclesise," 

 ii, 12.) (I owe the first of these citations to Eydberg, and the others to Montanus.) 



* The baptism of bells was, indeed, one of the express complaints of the German 

 Protestant princes at the Reformation. See their " Gravam. Cent. German. Grav.," 51. 



f See his "Early Writings," 197 (in "Parker Society Publications "). 

 % See his "Works," 177 (in "Parker Society Publications"). 



* E. g., by Tyndale, Bishop Ridley, Archbishop Sandys, Bccon, Calfhill, Rogers. It 

 is to be noted that all these speak of the rite as " baptism." 



| See Peuchen, " Disp. circa tempestates," Jena, 1697. 



A See, e. g., the " Conciones Selectaj " of Superintendent Conrad Dieterich (cited by 

 Peuchen, " Disp. circa tempestates "). 



Q See Schwimmer, " Physicalische Luftfragen," 1692 (cited by Peuchen, as above). 

 He pictures the whole population of a Thuringian district flocking to the churches on the 

 approach of a storm. 



