724 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



century a similar declaration. St. Thomas Aquinas,* the great light 

 of the universal Church in the thirteenth century, whose works the 

 Pope now reigning commends as the center of all university instruc- 

 tion, accepted and handed down the same opinion. The sainted Al- 

 bert the Great,f the most noted genius of the mediaeval Church in 

 natural science, received and developed this theory. 



By these men a science was developed out of scriptural texts and 

 the principles of morals, and so firmly rooted in Scripture and theology 

 that it flourished for seventeen centuries. 



The main evils thence arising were two : First, the paralysis of 

 self-help, and the arousing of fanaticism ; and, secondly, the strength- 

 ening of ecclesiastical and political tyranny. 



As to the first of these evils the paralysis of self-help instead of 

 wise statesmanship striving to avert war, instead of scientific observa- 

 tion and reason striving to avert pestilence, instead of social science 

 taking proper measures against famine, we constantly see, at the ap- 

 pearance of a comet, all Christendom, from pope to peasant, whining 

 before various fetiches, trying to bribe them to remove these signs of 

 God's wrath, and planning to wreak this supposed wrath of God upon 

 misbelievers. 



As to the second of these evils the strengthening of ecclesiastical 

 and civil despotism examples appear on every side. It was" natural 

 that hierarchs and monarchs whose births were announced by stars, 

 or whose deaths were announced by comets, should regard themselves 

 as far above the common herd, and be so regarded by mankind ; that 

 passive obedience should thus be strengthened, and that the most mon- 

 strous assumptions of authority by such men should be considered sim- 

 ply as manifestations of the divine will. Shakespeare makes Calphur- 

 nia say to Caesar : 



" When beggars die, there are no comets seen ; 

 The heavens themselves blaze forth the death of princes." J 



Galeazzo, tyrant of Milan, expressing satisfaction on his death-bed 

 that his approaching end was of such importance as to be heralded by 

 a comet, is a type of many thus encouraged to prey upon mankind. # 



But, for the retention of this belief, there was a moral cause. No 

 doubt myriads of good men in the Christian Church, down to a recent 

 period, saw in the appearance of comets not merely an exhibition of 

 " signs in the heavens " foretold in Scripture, but also divine warnings 

 to repentance and improvement of life of vast value to humanity 

 warnings, indeed, so precious that they could not be dispensed with 



* For St. Thoauas Aquinas, see Maury, " La Magie et l'Astronomie," p. 181. 



t For Albert the Great, see "Alb. Mag.," lib. i, tract, iii, chaps, x and xi ; also ibid., 

 " Super sex principiis Gil berti Porretani"; also " Tractatus primus de causis impressio- 

 num," etc. The copy I have used is in the Cornell University Library. 



% " Julius Caesar," act ii, scene ii. 



* For Galeazzo, see Guillemin " On Comets." 



