500 



LUTHER QUADRICENTENNIAL. 



12th. The Crown Prince had been deputed 

 by his father, the aged Emperor, to represent 

 him on this occasion, and 50,000 persons were 

 assembled as spectators of the ceremonies. 

 "Unser Fritz" performed his part with de- 

 corous zeal. At the appointed time he went 

 in state to the Castle church, and placed a 

 magnificent laurel- wreath upon the grave of 

 Luther. In the mean while a long procession 

 had been moving toward a large hall the 

 same in which Luther had delivered those 

 lectures which made the university famous in 

 his day. This was now reconsecrated as 

 Luther Hall ; the Crown Prince saying at the 

 close of the proceedings: "May this festival 

 serve as a holy exhortation to us to uphold 

 the great benefits of the Reformation, and to 

 strengthen our resolution to be ever ready to 

 defend the Evangelical creed, liberty of con- 

 science, and religious toleration ! May Luther's 

 anniversary help to confirm us in the resolve 

 to enliven the Protestant feeling, preserve the 

 German Evangelical Church from disunion, and 

 lay the foundations of an everlasting peace ! " 



Germany is not all Protestant, and the 

 Catholics could not be expected to look with 

 favor upon a commemoration like this, which 

 it was now evident would assume a national 

 character. The Wittenberg celebration was 

 hardly over when it was proposed that the 

 Catholics should observe the month of October 

 as a "month of prayer." It was especially 

 urged that the Catholic children throughout 

 Germany should "join together in fervent sup- 

 plications to Heaven for a speedy reunion of 

 all Christian peoples within the fold of the one 

 true Church." This recommendation was car- 

 ried out to a very considerable extent, though 

 it could hardly call forth much enthusiasm. 



The preliminary celebration at Wittenberg 

 was essentially the imperial one; that at 

 Berlin was rather municipal and civic, though 

 the Emperor and the royal family bore some 

 part in it. On Friday the capital began to put 

 on a festal aspect. Flag-staffs were raised on 

 the roofs, and decorations pervaded the streets 

 and public buildings. A somewhat cynical 

 correspondent does not fail to notice that 

 "the shopkeepers, great and small, appear to 

 combine gratitude to the great reformer with 

 an effort to turn an honest penny, by exhibit- 

 ing his portrait in their windows for sale." As 

 evening fell, the bells of the churches sounded 

 their loudest peals, and on Saturday, at half- 

 past seven in the morning, they rang out again. 

 The pupils of all the public schools marched in 

 long procession to attend divine worship ; and 

 as the churches were insufficient to contain 

 them, services were also held in public halls. 

 The grand procession moved early from the 

 town hall toward the church of St. Nicholas, 

 the oldest place of worship in Berlin. The pro- 

 cession was much like those with which we are 

 familiar, wanting, however, the military ele- 

 ment. In front moved heralds and musicians. 

 Then followed the Protestant clergy, the pro- 



fessors and students of the university, the 

 chief officials of the city, of the kingdom of 

 Prussia, and the empire. Last came the minor 

 officials and common citizens. By noon the 

 church was crowded. After a pause of half 

 an hour, the Emperor, the Crown Prince, and 

 the princes William and Frederick Charles 

 made their appearance. Then the liturgy was 

 recited, drums were beaten, trumpets blown, 

 and Luther's " Ein' feste Burg " pealed forth like 

 a song of victory to the roar of the great organ. 

 General - Superintendent Bruckner delivered 

 the sermon of the day. It was a long and not 

 over - brilliant discourse, the leading theme 

 being that "Luther's grandest work, and most 

 precious legacy to the world, was the purifi- 

 cation of the Christian faith." 



The celebration at Eisleben was by far the 

 most characteristic one which we find de- 

 scribed. In this mining town Luther was 

 born, and here he died. His connection with 

 Eisleben was in both respects altogether acci- 

 dental. His parents resided in the neighbor- 

 ing village of Mansfeld. His mother had gone 

 to Eisleben in order to make some household 

 purchases, when he was born. Not long after- 

 ward his father took up his residence at Eisle- 

 ben, and here Luther's boyhood was passed. 

 He himself supposed that he was born at 

 Mansfeld. He was sent to school at Mansfeld 

 at the age of twelve, and it does not appear 

 that he was ever after that in his native town 

 for more than a few days, until a month be- 

 fore his death. He went there, not from any 

 longings to revisit the home of his childhood, 

 but for the purpose of bringing about a recon- 

 ciliation between the two Counts of Mansfeld, 

 who were at feud. The weather was inclem- 

 ent, and he was seized with a severe cold, 

 which resulted in pneumonia. He was not 

 thought to be in special danger until the day 

 before his death. Only four days previous he 

 had delivered his last sermon. 



Eisleben possesses few memorials of Luther. 

 The house in which he was born is still stand- 

 ing in the street that bears his name, though 

 somewhat changed. It was partially burned 

 in 1594, but was restored at the expense of the 

 town, and^was again restored in 1817; but the 

 interior of the lower part remains unaltered. 

 The entrance is modern, and over the door is 

 a bust of Luther, and this inscription : "In 

 this house Dr. Martin Luther was born, 10th 

 of November, 1483. God's word is Luther's 

 lore; therefore fails it never more." The 

 house in which he died is also standing, near 

 the market-place. On the front is a small 

 tablet which simply says, " In this house Dr. 

 Martin Luther died, the 18th of February, 

 1546." The humble house in which he was 

 born is uninhabited and unfurnished, except 

 for a few relics of Luther, which are of doubt- 

 ful authenticity. In the more pretentious 

 dwelling in which he died, the guest of the 

 town-clerk, Luther's death-chamber and the 

 sitting-room are unoccupied and unfurnished. 



