73 



methods of Cyprian and Athanasius lost their 

 undisputed sway. This earlier renascence made 

 the v second period of the Middle Ages : the 

 period distinguished by the Arabian version of 

 Aristotle ; by a check to the chimeras of realism ; 

 by some liberty of secular knowledge, for even 

 vX bishops came out of the Mussulman school of 

 Toledo and arrayed themselves in vestments of 

 Arab work decorated with sentences from the 

 Koran ;' and again by the coming of the friars, 

 the Dominican and Franciscan especially, whose 

 influence upon the thought of the Middle Ages 

 was considerable, and soon rivalled even that of 

 the universities, wherein later, as we have seen, 

 they filled some of the chairs. 



The issues of all schemes of thought led indeed 

 as inevitably to natural science, as all ways to Rome. 

 The logic and rhetoric of the learned Dominicans 

 the watch-dogs ("Domine cani") of the Lord against 

 the wolves of heresy, culminating in the systems 

 of Albert and St Thomas, by their rationalism 

 defined, and in defining restricted, the dominion 

 of the Faith. Keen defenders of the Faith recog- 

 nised this danger, and whimpered even against 

 Albert that " philosophiam profanam in limen 



