378 General Biology 



pleasure was the Roman ideal. Christianity strenuously opposed such 

 an ideal, and soon won Emperor and people to its side. The moment 

 this occurred, all efforts on the part of both student and soldier were 

 directed toward performing such acts as would bring glory to the God 

 they had accepted. And, as always, when the ideal of a nation is thrown 

 aside, the pendulum swings completely over to the other side. Conse- 

 quently, after Christianity was adopted, suffering, from having been 

 considered a burden and a nuisance to men who held pleasure as their 

 ideal, became something to be endured and practically enjoyed, inasmuch 

 as he who suffered was thus imitating in some small measure the suffer- 

 ings of the founder of Christianity. It follows that no great impetus 

 was given to work that had for its object the relief of physical discom- 

 forts. At this time, also, barbarian hordes were a constant menace, 

 and wars and rumors of wars not only kept men in the field, but forced 

 all energy to be directed toward setting up some kind of military and 

 defensive stability. And, while many scientific applications are produced 

 for destructive purposes in war, there can be no true science at such 

 time. Little serious studious work can be accomplished unless there is 

 leisure and freedom from danger. 



At this time there were only two fields of work in which a youth 

 of ambition might enter — the army and the Church. The first attracted 

 men who sought physical power, while the second attracted those who 

 sought knowledge. 



The Church, therefore, established universities and libraries in the 

 monasteries — the only place where one could find men interested in 

 learning. It was here that the works of the great writers of antiquity 

 were preserved and used during the times when wars were not being 

 waged. 



Even during these trying times some of the monks compiled animal 

 stories which were, however, concerned principally with pointing out 

 a moral. Such stories were collected in book form and became known 

 as the Physiologus. The physiologus in turn developed into another 

 book of similar import called the Bestiaries, while on the botanical side 

 a book, which may be compared with the bestiaries, was the Hortus 

 Sanitatis. 



Later, another botanical work appeared, called the Herbals. 



In the thirteenth century, Europe became somewhat settled. There 

 was then sufficient leisure and safety to permit men to lead studious 

 lives. The fame of the great scholars of that day spread rapidly. Every- 

 where studious men sought whatever books they could find, and read 

 them. Printing had not yet been invented, so it was only in the monas- 

 tery libraries that books (written by hand) could be found. These were 

 read with avidity, and much which had lain neglected during centuries 

 of war and turmoil now was made known to the new generation. This 



