University of Santa Clara - Redwood Yearbook (Santa Clara, CA)

Page 19 text:

THE REDWOOD 11 even of the present time obscure and interesting only to the history student. Eight centuries have rolled by since scholasticism flourished, and we are still to find a system equal to it. ' ' Certainly the age which has given us a philosophy unimproved by eight cen- turies ' efforts, which has given us so great an educational force as the Uni- versity is not a Dark one. To elevate workers from slaves to free men, to make labor respectable, where it was dishonorable, is an achievement which would reflect credit on any age. This is exactly what was done during the Middle Ages. In the fourth century nearly all workers were slaves, the freemen that worked were looked upon with utmost contempt. Persons who labored were, according to the times ' opinion, worthy of no con- sideration whatever. The Church ex- erted her whole influence against this injustice. She taught a doctrine, quite u.nheard of before, that the rich were in duty bound to care for and aid their poorer brethren in case of need. She taught that all men were equal before God ; she did as much as possible to pre- vent the oppression of the workers. By the sixth century the rural work- ers had risen from serfdom to slavery. This was not an insignificant advance. Though bound to the soil they were no longer mere chattels, they could not be sold as domestic animals. The condi- tion of serfdom gradually became less intolerable and the serfs made substan- tial advances as the time passed. The Crusades gave them material as- sistance in their struggle upward. Many rallied under the standard of the Cross and thereby gained freedom. Accord- ing to a Protestant historian, the reli- gious enthusiasm caused not a few no- bles to grant freedom to their serfs. Also, as I have mentioned before, the Federal barons, weakened by the cost of the campaigns, could not keep the workers in subjection. A calamity that befell Europe in the fourteenth century, indirectly helped the cause of labor. In 1350, the Black Death, similar to the Bubonic plague, entered Europe from Asia and spread over the whole continent. The devas- tation and damage it wrought, can scarcely be imagined. A third of Eu- rope ' s population died. Such a great decrease in population, naturally made labor scarce and much sought for. In addition, an unsettled state, caused by the dread disease, gave the peasants more liberty. Consequently, instead of staying and working in one place, as they had to do before, they sought new places in which to work, and either re- ceived wages for their labor, or rented lands for themselves. As a result, a system of free labor set in, which de- veloped unfolded, and produced the pre sent wage system. The division of the profits in the Middle Ages, was more just than at present. The laborer received a greater percentage of the wealth that came from his hands than does the Modern worker. The Catholic Encj clopedia is authority for the statement that the poorest one-tenth of the population in

Page 18 text:

10 THE REDWOOD are indebted for what precision and an- alytical subtlety they possess. The Universities developed a well proportioned intellect. The studies of Latin grammar, rhetoric, logic, arith- metic, astronomy, and music i resented as broad a course as is given by any Modern University. It should be not- ed that music included besides what the term implies, history, literature and similar things. When the student had finished this course it was a safe con- clusion that he was quite capable of undertaldng professional studies. This is a significant utterance by such an eminent man as Huxley, The scholars of the Mediaeval Universities seem to have studied grammar, logic, rhetoric, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, theol- ogy and music. Thus their work, how- ever imperfect and faulty, judged by modern lights, it may have been, brought them face to face with all lead- ing aspects of the many-sided mind of man. And I doubt if the curriculum of any Modern University shows so clear and generous a comprehension of what is meant by culture as this old Trivium and Quadrivium does. What have these old Universities contributed to man ' s store of knowl- edge? Without doubt their greatest and most important contribution is scho- lastic philosophy, much despised by those who are ignorant of it. But it is slowly coming into its own. Whom- soever reads St. Thomas changes his ideas concerning scholasticism. His works have been for years the stand- ard philosophical writings of the Church. Scholastic philosophy is distinctly a product of the old Universities ; Albert- us Magnus, the first of the great school- men, did much to shape it. But the largest part of the work was done by his pupil St. Thomas Aquinas. His great achievement was the demonstra- tion of the reasonableness of the Church ' s doctrines, and to do it, he called to his aid Aristotlean philosophy and supplied proofs of his own. Father Vaughn says of him, ' ' He had the intel- lectual honesty of Socrates, the keen- ness of Aristotle, the yearning after wisdom of Plato. The amount of work he accomplished was incredible. Though he died at the age of forty-two, his works would fill twenty large folio volumes of matter so deep that it would take a lifetime to comprehend it; and all this was accomplished in spite of his sacerdotal duties, incessant teaching, and physical ailments. What Professor Saintsbury of Edin- borough University writes of Scholasti- cism will prove a revelation to many, And there have been in these latter days certain graceless ones who have asked whether the Science of the nine- teenth century after an equal interval, will be of any more positive value, whether it will not have even less com- parative interest than that Avhieh ap- pertains to the scholasticism of the thir- teenth century? It is quite certain that in time to come improvements mil render the in- ventions of the nineteenth century and

Page 20 text:

12 THE REDWOOD the Mediaeval times were not as wretch- ed as the poorest one-tenth now. The degraded poverty and misery of slums and factory districts were unknown. Such misery was prevented or remedied by the monasteries, guilds and charita- ble institutions of the day. It is a frequent boast in this country that a man of the poorest parents can rise to the Presidency. We think that merit is offered unusual opportunities to manifest itself, and that if a man ap- plies himself diligently he can improve his condition. In a measure this is true. But recall that there are numer- ous menial tasks in Modern life, re- quiring little mental effort; that there are many disagreeable positions which give ability no chance to show itself. How high can an operator in a cotton mill rise? What hope is there for a ditch digger with a moderate-sized fam- ily, or what fate confronts his chil- dren? No intelligent observer of Mod- ern life is unaware of the fact that there are many situations which neces- sity forces one to take and continue in, that offer not the slightest opportunity for advancement. Agriculture, the most general employment during the Middle Ages, in comparison with such occupations, is a Paradise. In Mediae- val times, if a man wished to become an artisan or a mechanic, he appren- ticed himself and v as quite sure of some day becoming a master in his trade. There were no positions such as tending machines that make the worker a machine himself. Anyone ' s chances might be greatly increased by studying at a University, attendance at which, not the direst poverty could prevent. If there were no chances to rise to such exalted positions as at present, there were far more chances for moderate advancement. One man could not become a ruler of a nation, but a million did not have to remain practically slaves. An interesting feature of industrial life in Middle Ages are the guilds. In a way they may be considered as cor- responding to the trade unions, though they differ in many respects. The guilds were formed to further the prac- tice of religion, to aid the needy and to unite the workers of one trade, for purposes of protection. They sought to increase spiritual welfare of their mem- bers by pious exercises and by present- ing morality plays; they conducted funerals and assisted the needy. As the employer and employee belonged to the same guild and associated together, trouble between capital and labor was unknown. Master and man, united as comrades in a fraternal organization, and as brothers in religion, presented a solid front to competition. There were strikes then, but the employees did not strike against the employers. The em- ployer and the employee both struck against some injustice done their trade. The guilds exercised a supervision over the training of artisans. They se- lected the apprentices, protected their rights and gave the examinations by which a journeyman became a master. In the Mediaeval cities there was an abundance of employment for skilled