Tlie West India Company and the Walloons. 57 



out going into the historical particulars which finally led to the forma- 

 tion of the Dutch republic, it is sufficient to say that the union 

 brought about by the prince's personal popularity, and the people's 

 trust in him was distasteful to the larger cities; and even at this early 

 day foreshadowed that division which afterwards became so prominent 

 in the Netherlands — the land party against the sea party — the Cal- 

 vinist against the Arminian — the popular against the civic and aris- 

 tocratic. But William of Orange came to his death by the hand of 

 the assassin, and the work he had begun was therefore transferred to 

 his second son Maurice. He had all the characteristics of the family 

 of Nassau; he was cool, calculating, ambitious, firm and self-possessed; 

 and in addition to these qualities he was endowed with a military genius 

 that gave him the rank of the greatest captain of the age. For this 

 position he was chiefly indebted to that wise statesman and pure pa- 

 triot John of Barneveldt; and the terrible stain upon his record, is 

 his ordering the execution of this wise and pure-minded man. Under 

 the leadership of Maurice, the war on land was prosecuted with vary- 

 ing success — but the war at sea was carried on with great vigor; and 

 the sea fight at Gibraltar in 1607 ruined the Spanish fleet, and left 

 her great commerce at the mercy of her assailants. Then ensued ne- 

 gotiations for peace; and the party lines became more distinctly drawn; 

 Grotius and Barneveldt representing the patriot party, while agaiust 

 them were opposed the official classes, the army, the navy, the East 

 India Company, the clergy and the populace. But the patriotic peace 

 parry prevailed, and a truce with Spain for twelve years was signed. 

 It was during the negotiation for this truce that the project of form- 

 ing the West India Company was presented to the States General. 

 It met with a stern opposer in Barneveldt. He argued, that to form 

 a company for the avowed purpose of preying on Spanish commerce, 

 would necessarily tend to prolong the war; and so powerful was his 

 influence and so potent his arguments that as long as he lived he was 

 able to prevent the consummation of his plan. 



It will take us but a moment to sketch in a brief manner the circum- 

 stances that led to the execution of this great man. The part he took 

 in bringing about the truce with Spain had made Mauripe his deter- 

 mined enemy, and the two men became leaders in a struggle that was 

 partly political and partly theological. There had been two professors 

 of theology appointed in the university at Leyden — Jacob Van Har- 

 mansen, called by the Latin name of Arminius — and Francis Gomar. 

 Arminius assailed, and Gomarus defended the current popular the- 

 ology. The views of Arminius spread among the upper classes in the 



