Читать книгу Children's Stories in English Literature: From Shakespeare to Tennyson - Henrietta Christian Wright - Страница 6

While Shakespeare was a lad wandering among the lanes and fields of Stratford, and learning the wisdom of nature from the lips of nature herself, another boy, two or three years older, was wandering through the streets of London, or visiting the court, and learning the ways of the world and the wisdom of men from the crowds that thronged what was then perhaps the most interesting city in the world.

This was Francis Bacon, son of Nicholas Bacon, Lord Keeper of the Great Seal, and a man of influence at court. The boy was born at York House, so called because it had been formerly the dwelling of the Archbishop of York, and, outside of the royal palaces, it was considered one of the finest mansions in London.

His mother, who was a daughter of Sir Anthony Cook, tutor to Queen Elizabeth's brother, Edward VI., had studied in the evening the same lessons that the young prince learned in the morning, and was considered a woman of fine education in those days, when all ladies of high birth read Greek and Latin poetry, and studied grave questions of philosophy and religion. She was Bacon's first teacher, and it was well for him that besides a knowledge of books she also possessed a strong, earnest character, so that from the beginning his great talent was well directed by this wise and loving friend. But learning from books was but a small part of his early education. At his father's house gathered all the great and learned men of the day. Thither came the great statesmen and lords of the realm, who discussed grave matters of state, and the part that England was to play in the history of the world. And close beside them could be seen those famous men whose names were ringing all over Europe, because they were the champions of Protestantism, the new religion which England fostered, and for which so many thousands had lately laid down their lives on the battle-fields of the Netherlands. And there also were to be found great men of science, who were studying the secret laws of nature, and men of adventure who had carried the English flag into hitherto unknown regions of the earth, and men of letters whose works were to be a glory to England forever; and in such company as this, both in his father's house and in the homes of his young playmates, Bacon learned those lessons which can never be taught from books, and which give to the learner knowledge of men and the world.

Bacon was also frequently present at those grand entertainments which Elizabeth loved to give and take part in, and he no doubt saw many a time the same representations of the miracle plays and masques which charmed the soul of the boy Shakespeare away in quiet Stratford. Only there was this difference, that while Shakespeare went to Kenilworth an unknown and uninvited visitor, taking only such cheer as was given to the humble village folk, Bacon visited the court and the houses of the nobility as a welcome guest, the pet of the Queen, who called him her little Lord Keeper, a favorite among the sons of nobles, respected by the great men who honored his father, and the idol of the fashionable ladies, who admired his beauty and wit.

Thus from the beginning the world was a wide place to Bacon, and he began early to think about those questions which were being discussed by the great men of the times, and to take an interest in those great events which were happening. For England was then passing through one of the most important periods of her history. The Protestants of the Netherlands were looking to her for help in the struggle for freedom from the tyranny of their King, Philip II. of Spain; great companies were being formed for the purpose of colonizing America; the English navy was just beginning that career of greatness which made the flag of England feared in every sea, and above all, the English people themselves were divided into two parties, one of which was loyal to Elizabeth and Protestantism, while the other favored the Catholic Church, and was continually plotting to bring the Queen of Scots to the throne. It was a time for wise thought, careful plans, and great action, for no one could guess the answer to any of the difficult questions that the English nation was then called upon to solve, and every thoughtful man could not but feel the importance of the hour.

But besides these great political questions, other subjects were then demanding attention. Problems in natural science that no man had been able to unravel were now being studied out, and as each question was answered it seemed to lead the way to still greater discoveries, so that the world of science appeared like a fairy land, the gates to which were being unbarred one after another, so that all who would might enter in and share its wonders. And all these things Bacon heard discussed day after day, and they were as familiar to him as the legends of the elves and fairies who inhabited the woods and dales of Warwickshire were to the boy Shakespeare.

When a boy has such surroundings as these he becomes thoughtful, and when he hears continually great questions discussed by great men, from many points of view, he also gains the habit of thinking independently, and learns that the wisest man is he who studies and thinks for himself. Therefore Bacon, when very young, began to ponder over the questions that few of his companions troubled themselves about, even in that age when boys took up the responsibilities of life very early, and when every great man was still a young man.

This early training showed its influence upon Bacon, who was gifted with an inquiring mind, and who was continually trying to find out causes. There is a story told that, in his tenth year, he left off playing with his companions one day to find out the reason of an echo which came from a vault near the playground; and when he was only twelve he was thinking upon the laws which govern the imagination. He entered Cambridge at thirteen, and remained at the University three years, during which time he made few friends among the professors, as he thought them too willing to follow what was accepted as truth, without seeking to discover whether it were really truth or not. He said that his fellow-students were shut up in little cells and spun cobwebs, instead of living in the light and seeking knowledge for themselves. And he compared the university to a becalmed ship, which only moved by the breath which came from the outside.

In these college days Bacon planned a university which should be a true help and guide to earnest students, and this plan he put in writing many years after. Also at this time there came to him a hint of that system of philosophy which was to make his name immortal. And so, although his college training was of little direct use to Bacon, and he might have spent the time more profitably in private study, yet the very defects that he found led in time to the publication of his own great work, which was meant to remedy the evils that existed. He left Cambridge without taking a degree, and went to Paris under charge of the English Ambassador, as his father wished him to enter political life.

After four years spent on the Continent he returned to England and began the study of law, and from this time on the history of Bacon is closely connected with the history of English politics and English literature. His political life began in the House of Commons, and extended up to his sixtieth year, when he occupied the position of Lord High Chancellor, and held the title of Viscount St. Albans. But during this long period his work for literature and science was unceasing, and so important that his fame as a philosopher and writer will endure long after the memory of his political career shall have faded away.

Bacon's first important publication was a volume of essays written in English, and treating of almost every subject that is of interest to man. And it is in this volume that he shows his great knowledge of human nature, and his wide sympathy with human life. These essays include thoughts on character, truth, riches, fame, right living, friendship, love, and death, besides a variety of other subjects, not the least important being the essays on the building of houses and the making of gardens, which show so plainly the writer's interest in the things of common life, and his love and sympathy with the works of nature.

But the great desire of Bacon's life was to found a system of philosophy which would give to the world a better method of acquiring truth and knowledge than then existed. This thought had come to him dimly in his college days, and when he was twenty-five he made a sketch of a great work which should revolutionize the accepted methods of acquiring knowledge, and lead mankind into truer ways of thought, and throughout his long political career this idea never left him. It followed him everywhere, and at all times he cherished it as his chief joy, and in the excitement of political life found this work his greatest comfort and refreshment.

Up to this time the whole world of learned men had implicitly followed the doctrines of Aristotle, the Greek philosopher who lived about 300 B.C., and whose great mind had bestowed some new gift upon every branch of knowledge. The system of Aristotle was based upon the method of first laying down some law in regard to any subject or operation of nature, and then gathering together all the facts possible to prove that the law was true. Thus, in studying the cause of sound, Aristotle claimed that sound was governed by certain laws, and then gathered facts to prove this statement. This is called the Deductive method of reasoning, because the mind goes from the general law down to a particular fact or number of facts for proof. This method had been used in the schools for centuries, and was considered the only true way of arriving at a knowledge either of the laws of nature, or of any other department of learning.

But to Bacon this method of reasoning seemed false, and he believed that he could find the key to the interpretation of nature by exactly the opposite means—that is, by studying first the operations of nature and upon a knowledge of these building the laws which seem to govern the universe. This method of first collecting facts and from these establishing a law, is called the Inductive method, or often the Baconian Method, after its originator. And this system of Bacon was so new and startling that it came upon the world of learning with as great a shock as the discovery of the new world by Columbus. By this method every operation of nature was to be studied, and experiment after experiment made and proved before any conclusion could be proclaimed.

This method had really been followed many and many a time by the earnest workers for science, for the old alchemists and other students of nature had spent long lives in experimenting, and had arrived at some clear knowledge of many of the laws of nature. But these men were not great philosophers, and were, sometimes only learned in one direction. They were often regarded by their fellow-men as men who were striving to reach some unscalable height, and more than once they were only rewarded by seeing their work scorned, and by being themselves accused of witchcraft and sympathy with the spirits of evil.

But Bacon changed all this. In a day of great minds his was one of the greatest, and his voice was the voice of authority. He proclaimed the new gospel which made the crucible of the alchemist and the scales of the philosopher the open sesame to the undiscovered realms of nature, and made experiment the magic wand which placed the wonders of the world at the feet of the careful student. His philosophy, in fact, taught men not to make laws, but to find truth, and this is the greatest thing that any man can teach.

This alone was the true philosopher's stone which could turn all things to gold, and with it men learned to find great laws of nature revealed in the tint of the rose or the wings of the butterfly, or the stones that they trod over daily.

Thus the world of nature was thrown open to all, and even a child might enter in and learn its mysteries.

Bacon planned a great work which should set forth his system, but only a part of it was ever finished.

This work, written in Latin, was to have been called the Instauratio Magna, or Great Institution of True Philosophy, and was to consist of separate books which should contain, among other things, a summary of all knowledge then existing, a complete explanation of Bacon's new methods of discovering truth, a record of facts and experiments in the different branches of knowledge, and a summary of the results obtained by the Inductive method.

The most important part of this work was the second book, called the Novum Organum, in which Bacon lays down the principles of his new method, and it is this on which his fame as a philosopher rests, for it was the proclamation of the Inductive method which placed him among the great discoverers of the world. Indeed, Bacon himself was content with the glory of having given this great idea to the race, and was well satisfied to leave the work of proving its value to others. In this respect he says of himself: "I sound the clarion, but I enter not into the battle," and the succeeding ages have shown that this trumpet call led indeed to glorious conquest.

The idea of a model college, which should be an ideal institution of learning, had followed Bacon from his own college days, and one of the most interesting of his works is a romance called The New Atlantis in which he draws a picture of what a university should be.

This is the story: A ship, sailing from Peru to China, was sent by contrary winds far out of its course, and for many days was driven helplessly through the waters of an unknown sea. The provisions gave out and despair settled upon all hearts, for the sailors well knew that, even if the wind changed, they should all starve long before they had time to reach their destination, and that no other ship would ever flash its white sails upon the gray horizon that shut them in, for these waters had never been explored, and no chart of them existed.

And so they gave themselves up to despair and prayed that God would either deliver them out of their trouble or permit them to die speedily, for no human help seemed near. But as the ship still drifted on through strange waters and under strange skies, they saw one day, toward evening, a sight which gladdened all hearts and brought hope to the most despairing. Far away on the edge of the horizon they saw where the clouds seemed to darken and hold their shape, and by this they dared hope that land was near, and so all night they steered the ship toward that place. When the day dawned they saw that their hope had not been in vain, for an unknown land lay before them with its shores covered with trees, and a little sailing brought them into a good harbor which they perceived to be the port of a fair city, and so they made all the more haste to land.

But before they could leave the ship a crowd of people appeared warning them off with gestures, and presently a small boat carrying eight persons came up to the ship, and one who appeared to be the leader came on board and presented a scroll of yellow parchment on which was written, in Greek and Hebrew and Latin and Spanish, an order forbidding the strangers to land, and ordering them to leave the coast in sixteen days; yet offering help if they were in any need through sickness or other trouble. The chief man of the ship's company wrote an answer in Spanish, declaring that unless they were permitted to land many of their sick would die, and when this reply was carried to the land another boat came back bearing one of the officers of the city, who signed to them to send some one to meet him. And so they sent their chief man in a boat which was allowed to come only within six yards of the other, and then the visitor from the city stood up, and in a loud voice asked if the ship's company were Christians. And when he received answer that they were, he said that if they would swear that they were not pirates, nor had shed blood within forty days, they might land. And as everyone could take this oath in sincerity, they were told that they would be allowed to enter the city.

In a short time after this they were permitted to go on shore, and were given a shelter in the Stranger's House, a mansion devoted to the use of all strangers who might come to the land. The weary voyagers here received the best care and attention from the servants appointed to the management of the house, and the sick were so carefully nursed, and treated with such excellent remedies that in a few days every one was well. And then, the people of the city, seeing that their visitors meant them no harm and were grateful for all the kindness they received, did everything in their power to make the days pass pleasantly. For these people were very hospitable, and delighted in entertaining strangers, and showing them their beautiful city, with its fine mansions and fair streets and gardens, and the visitors did not wonder when their entertainers told them strangers who came to that city never wanted to return to their own homes again.

But what puzzled the visitors very much was, that although this island was quite unknown to the rest of the world, and no one had ever heard its name, yet the rest of the world seemed to be very well known to the people of the island. They could talk about all the different places of Europe and Asia and Africa, could speak the languages of many countries, and knew all the latest inventions in mechanics, and all the latest discoveries in science, besides being familiar with the history of many persons famous throughout the world. Another thing that was also puzzling was the fact that none of the inhabitants of the city could be persuaded to accept the slightest payment for the services they performed for their guests. If one were pressed to accept money he would answer that it was considered the highest crime for any one to be twice paid for the same service, and that each citizen was expected by the city to be kind to strangers, that being the law of the land, to provide for which there was a special fund set aside. Therefore no one would receive any gift, though the visitors offered them gold and velvet and jewels, and other things of value.

But all this was understood when the governor of the city explained their peculiar customs one day to the chief men of the ship's company. He said that about three thousand years before, this island, which was called Bensalem, was renowned for its commerce, and had in its service fifteen hundred strong ships which sailed to every port of the world, carrying merchandise and bringing back the products of other nations. That then the ships of China and Egypt, Phœnicia and other Eastern nations, came regularly to their harbors, bringing gold and jewels and merchandise of every kind, and carrying also as passengers men from Persia and Arabia and Chaldea, who had heard of the fame of Bensalem, and had come to look upon its glories. And that, furthermore, there traded with them the people of that great country Atlantis, which lay to the west, and which was famous for its magnificent temples and palaces and cities, and also the people of Peru and Mexico, two other proud and mighty kingdoms. And he said that these latter nations were so great that they determined to conquer all the rest of the world. So a great expedition was sent eastward across the Atlantic, and through the Mediterranean Sea, to conquer the nations of Europe, but what happened to it no one in Atlantis ever knew, for not one man returned from that voyage. The manner of their death, or what nation held them captive, was never told, and it was only known that their ships had passed like a flight of birds across the gray bars of the horizon never to return again.

At the same time an expedition was sent to conquer Bensalem, and this likewise came to an unfruitful end, for the King of Bensalem was a mighty warrior, and he made a cunning plot by which all the ships and men fell into his hands before a blow could be struck, and then being merciful as well as mighty, he allowed the captives to return home again upon their oath that they would never again bear arms against him. And so neither of the two expeditions conquered the world, or any part of it.

But because the people of Atlantis had not been content with their own greatness and wealth, and had sought to harm other nations, vengeance overtook them, and a great deluge fell upon the land, and all the mountains poured down their swollen streams into the valleys, till not a place of safety remained, so that nothing escaped save a few beasts and birds, and some wild races of men who fled to the caves in the mountains. This flood lay over the land so long that, when the waters dried up, the land was desolate everywhere, and not a trace remained of all its glory. The few people who were left were forced to clothe themselves with skins of beasts, or to migrate to the warm valleys and wander naked, for they had no material or skill for making clothing. And so Atlantis passed away from the memory of man, for no ships left her shores, and all knowledge of this great country was lost to Europe and the rest of the world excepting Bensalem alone. But the ports of Bensalem still remained open to strangers for centuries, and ships came thither from all the countries of the East, so that knowledge of the island was spread abroad, and some account of it crept into the histories that were written by the ancient nations. And traditions of its greatness were handed down from one generation to another long after those nations had ceased to visit it. For their voyages ceased after a time, owing to the fact that the old nations fell into decay, and new nations sprung up to take their places, and all this brought about wars and conquests and occupations enough at home. Then fewer voyages were undertaken, and gradually all commerce with Bensalem ceased, and navigation declined, and men only went on short voyages in familiar waters, carried in ships that were worked by oars, and that were not strong enough to brave the rough waves of the outer ocean. And in time, too, the ships of Bensalem ceased to visit other nations, and the reason of this is as follows:

About a thousand years after the destruction of Atlantis a ruler of great power came to the throne of Bensalem, and being wise and thoughtful, he pondered constantly on the best means of bringing greater happiness and prosperity to the kingdom. But this seemed hard to accomplish, as throughout the length and breadth of the land there were peace and plenty everywhere, and not one subject had cause to complain of his lot.

Then the king, who was learned in the history of all the nations of the world, thought that since he could bring no greater happiness to his country than that which already existed, he would at least try to make that happiness enduring, so that when he passed away he could leave behind him a promise of perpetual prosperity. He therefore ordained certain laws which forbade any stranger to land upon the coasts of the island, and which also forbade the people of Bensalem to go abroad, for he believed that all the troubles which vexed the nations of the old world came from intercourse with strangers.

But in order that the people of the island should not become utterly indifferent to the welfare of others, he ordered that all ships coming to their coast should be received for a few days, if help of any kind was needed. And if the ship's company wished, they could also be allowed to make the island their home, on condition that they would never ask to return to their own country. Besides ordaining these laws, this wise king did another thing which kept his memory ever before the people, and this was the erection of a great temple of learning, called Solomon's House, in which knowledge of every kind was taught. The teachers of this college were allowed from time to time to visit other countries for the purpose of studying and bringing back with them any new knowledge which might come to the world. These voyages were conducted with such secrecy, and under such disguise, that the presence of the visitors was never suspected in the different countries which they visited, and so the memory of Bensalem passed almost entirely away, though its own people were kept familiar with all the progress of the world. And this was the reason why the island was not down upon any maps or charts then used, and why the people of the ship had been led to think that they had come to some land unknown to the rest of the world.

The governor of the city furthermore told them how the country had been converted to Christianity. He said that one dark night the people saw a great pillar of light shining far out at sea, upon the top of which blazed a large cross. The whole population of that part of the coast was soon gathered on the beach watching this strange sight, and several of the chief men rowed out in boats to see what it might mean. But as they neared the light a strange feeling bound them so they could not move, and they were therefore forced to remain in the boats at some distance from it. And at this, one of the men present, who was a member of Solomon's House, fell upon his face and prayed that God would deign to reveal what this thing might mean. And presently he found that his boat was able to move, and he approached the column of light, but as he came nearer, the pillar and cross broke up into thousands and thousands of stars, which floated away and were lost in the space of heaven, and there was nothing left but a small cedar chest, out of one end of which a green branch of palm was growing. This ark floated toward him of its own will, and he received it into his boat, and opening it found therein the books of the New Testament which had been committed to the sea by one of the apostles, in order that the message of Christ might be carried to distant lands. And so the members of Solomon's House read the book, and finding in it a message of love and peace to mankind, they accepted its story, and called themselves Christians from that day.

This history of Bensalem interested the visitors very much, and they were glad to accept the invitation of the governor of the city and visit the House of Solomon and see for themselves some of the wonders that it held. And they found that this college excelled all other colleges that had ever been seen or heard of in ancient or modern times.

It not only had great buildings especially devoted to study, but it had resources such as no other seat of learning had ever possessed. It had great lakes and rivers under its control, both of salt and fresh water, for the study of the fish and water-fowl that inhabited them. It had artificial wells and fountains tinctured with medicines for the cure and study of disease, and great houses where artificial rain, snow, hail, and ice were produced. There were also certain rooms, called chambers of health, where the air was laden with those perfumes and odors of plants that were considered preservative to the health. Then there were great orchards and gardens wherein grew every kind of tree or shrub or flower known to the whole earth. There were parks and enclosures for birds and beasts, both of those kinds that had their home in the island and those that had been brought from the various parts of the world.

There were factories where paper, linen, silks, velvets, dyes and stuffs of every kind were manufactured. There were houses for studying light and heat and motion, and so far advanced were they in their knowledge of these subjects that they could bring light from dark objects, make artificial rainbows, produce colors, shadows, and figures of things that were far off or not in sight, and make things that were near by appear at a great distance or vanish utterly before the eyes of the spectator. In the house of sound there were bells and rings and instruments of all kinds for producing strange sounds. All the voices and notes of beasts and birds were exactly imitated by some instruments, while others gave forth echoes and sounds of the human voice, sometimes making the voice shriller and sometimes deeper. There were also trumpets and pipes to carry sound from one place to another.

There was besides, a house of precious stones where were kept great stores of gems, and numbers of fossils and minerals, and these were used for study, and were not considered a part of the wealth of the kingdom. There was also a house devoted to the study of motion. Here were machines for flying, and boats and ships that could sail under water, and swimming girdles, and images of men, beasts, birds, fishes, serpents, and other animals, which were worked by machinery and imitated exactly the motions of the thing each represented; there were here also all kinds of engines of war, and compositions of gunpowder, and curious powder that was unquenchable and could burn in water, and fireworks of all kinds. There was also a house for the study of mathematics, geometry, and astronomy, furnished with the most perfect instruments.

And there was a house of deceit, where all manner of juggling was taught, together with tricks of various kinds, so that it would be impossible for anyone educated in that house ever to be imposed upon.

There were besides, great towers built upon high mountains, for the purpose of studying the wind and atmosphere and stars, so that the people would know whether to expect tempests, earthquakes, plagues, comets, drought, and other calamities, and could be taught how to prepare against them. There were also deep mines and caves where one could study the interior of the earth, and where new metals were produced by laws of chemistry not known to the Eastern world. And, in fact, there were separate houses for the study of every possible art or science, not the least interesting being a gallery of invention where were samples of every art known to the world, and which was adorned with busts of all the great inventors, such as the inventor of music, the inventor of letters, the inventor of printing, and so on.

The visitors were lost in amazement at the resources and wealth of this wonderful college, and when they thought of the wisdom of these people and their wealth and power, which they used only for good, they could well believe the assertion that of all the ships which had ever visited this land not one ever returned, and out of all the many strangers who had come there since the proclamation of the law against aliens, only thirteen had ever gone back to their own land.

Bacon did not finish the New Atlantis, and we can only guess what the end might have been, but the part that he has left gives us a clear idea of what he thought a state should be, and of his broad views of education.

This dream of an ideal commonwealth where all men were brothers and each one was given a fair chance in life, shows that Bacon, like other great philosophers, did not think such a thing an impossibility and had faith in the good that the future might bring to mankind. Bacon died in 1626 from the effects of a cold caught while trying the effect of snow to arrest decay in the dead bodies of animals. He was buried at St. Albans in the church of St. Michael's.