114 Italy, 



The barbarous ancestors of the present semi-barbarous Russians, 

 who had for centuries eagerly sought to possess themselves of the 

 treasures of Italy, profiting now by its distracted state, Vandals, 

 Huns, Goths, and Visigoths, having left their frosty sterile lands, like 

 destructive locusts, rushed into its territory, easily defeated its dege- 

 nerate and undisciplined military forces, and conquered and enslaved 

 the whole peninsula. Thus the treasures collected during a thousand 

 years became the prey of barbarians, and the once proud mistress of 

 the world now experienced a severe retribution for the sufferings 

 which she had caused to many countries and nations in the days of 

 her former splendour and power. The gradual annihilation of know- 

 ledge, civilization, industry, and commerce, was naturally followed 

 by ignorance, superstition, slothfulness, and poverty. 



The Lombards having at last been conquered by Charlemagne, the 

 west and south of Europe were freed from their brutalizing despot- 

 ism and tyranny; and the dreadful darkness of the middle ages 

 having been succeeded by tranquillity, order, peace, and security, 

 with the eighth century Italy became once more the cradle of Euro- 

 pean civilization, and the hallowed reviver of science, literature, and 

 arts. The other nations in the mean time, following her example, 

 undertook the noble task of their regeneration. However, Charle- 

 magne committed two great errors: I. his "sanctioning, and even 

 augmenting the temporal power with which King Pepin had un- 

 wisely invested the I 3 opes ; 2. his not uniting the Italian peninsula 

 in one kingdom under a national government, over which the spiri- 

 tual sway of the successors of Peter should not be able to rule by 

 fomenting dissensions and bloodshed amongst its inhabitants. 



But notwithstanding its political division, and the ambitious en- 

 croachments of the Roman Pontiffs, Italy was greatly improving in 

 civilization and commerce. The republics of Venice, Genoa, Flo- 

 rence, and Siena, became the chief marts of European commerce 

 with the East Indies, and their citizens being scattered all over Europe 

 for the purposes of trade, rendered their country wealthy, respect- 

 able, and respected. 



Towards the beginning of the 13th century Italy was unfortunately 

 visited by two great scourges, which seemed to vie with each other 

 in order to tranform that paradise of Europe into a warlike and 

 bloody hall, and in fact did all in their power to put an almost insur- 

 mountable barrier against the progress of civilization and learning in 

 that country. These scourges were the devastating civil wars of the 

 Guelfs and Ghibelines, and the Holy Inquisition, which was founded 

 at the instigation of a fanatic Spanish monk, Dominic de Gousman, 

 who was well seconded and supported in his brutal views by an igno- 

 rant ex-debauched superstitious Italian Friar, Francis of Assisi. 



The Roman Pontiffs, however, were the real and interested secret 

 promoters of these evils, because they wished not only to retain, but 

 also ardently desired to encrease, their usurped temporal power, 

 against which the enlightened Italians of all classes had begun to 

 protest, and they had also dared to attack with their writings the 

 unbecoming worldly grandeur and unchristian pride of the Popes. 

 In order to prevent the spreading of these just but unpleasant re- 



