THE WARFARE OF SCIENCE. 387 



gers to Scripture : by which, of course, they meant their interpretation 

 of Scripture. 



Among the first who took up arms against the new thinkers was 

 Eusebius. He endeavored to turn off these ideas by bringing science 

 into contempt. He endeavored to make the innovators understand 

 that he and the fathers of the Church despised all such inquiries. 

 Speaking of the innovations in physical science, he said : " It is not 

 through ignorance of the things admired by them, but through con- 

 tempt of their useless labor, that we think little of these matters, turn- 

 incr our souls to better things." * 



Lactantius asserted the ideas of those studying astronomy to be 

 " mad and senseless." ' 



But the attempt to " flank " the little phalanx of thinkers did not 

 succeed, of course. Even such men as Lactantius and Eusebius can- 

 not pooh-pooh down a new scientific idea. The little band of thinkers 

 went on, and the doctrine of the rotundity of the earth naturally led 

 to the consideration of the tenants of the earth's surface, and another 

 germ idea was ^ warmed into life the idea of the existence of the an- 

 tipodes, the idea of the existence of countries and men on the hemi- 

 sphere opposite to ours. 



At this the war spirit waxed hot. Those great and good men de- 

 termined to fight. To all of them such doctrines seemed dangerous; 

 to most of them they seemed damnable. St. Basil and St. Ambrose* 

 were tolerant enough to allow that a man might be saved who believed 

 the earth to be round, and inhabited on its opposite sides ; but the 

 great majority of the Fathers of the Church utterly denied the possi- 

 bility of salvation to such misbelievers. 



Lactantius asks "... Is there any one so senseless as to believe 

 that there are men whose footsteps are higher than their heads ? that 

 the crops and trees grow downward ? that the rains and snow and 



* See Eusebius, " Prfep. Ev.," xv., 61. 



2 See Lactantius, " Inst.," 1., iii., chap. 3. Also, citations in Whewell, " Hist. Induct. 

 Sciences," Lond., 1857, vol. i., p. 194. To understand the embarrassment thus caused 

 to scientific men at a later period, see " Letter of Agricola to Joachimus Vadianus " in 

 1514. Agricola asks Vadianus to give his views regarding the antipodes, saying that he 

 himself does not know what to do, between the Fathers on one side and learned men of 

 modern times on the other. On the other hand, for the embarrassment caused to the 

 Church by this mistaken zeal of the Fathers, see Kepler's references and Fromund's re- 

 plies.; also De Morgan, " Paradoxes," p. 58. Kepler appears to have taken great delight 

 in throwing the views of Lactantius into the teeth of his adversaries. 



3 " Another germ idea," etc. See Plato, " Timaeus," 62 C, Jowett's translation, N. 

 Y. ed. Also " Phsedo," pp. 449, et seq. Also Cicero, " Academic Quest.," and " Tusc. 

 Disput.," ubl supra. For citations and summaries, see Whewell, " Hist. Induct. Sciences," 

 vol. i., p. 189, and St. Martin, "Hist, de la Geog.," Paris, ISTS, p. 96. Also Leopardi, 

 " Saggio sopra gli errori popolari degli antichi," Firenze, 1851, chap, xii., p. 184, et seq. 



* For opinion of Basil, Ambrose and others, see Lecky, " Hist, of Rationahsm in Eu. 

 rope," New York, 1872, vol, i., p. 279, note. Also Letronne, in Revue des Deux Mondes, 

 March, 1834. 



