V. THE THREE POEMS "IN MEMORIAM," VI. MADAME de KrudENER.

Part II.,

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No half-snatched glimpse thro' smoke and So I awake. Each dusty pane

From The British Quarterly Review. ITALIAN UNIVERSITY LIFE IN THE MIDDLE AGES.

THE chief centre of scientific activity during the Middle Ages was in Italy. As traders in those troublous times bound themselves together in guilds, so men of science formed those celebrated academic bodies, most of which exist in a modified form amongst us to-day, for mutual protection and support. Inasmuch as Italy contained the shattered remnants of knowledge which had survived the ruin of the old world, so, naturally, to Italy, its then acknowledged fountain-head, flocked students from every nation and every tongue who thirsted after wisdom.

Of course, as at Oxford, vague tradi tions about founders were current in the Italian universities. One of them claimed to have received its first charter from the

empress Matilda, another from Charlemagne, just as Oxford professes to trace her pedigree to King Alfred; but it is sufficient for our purpose to know that, during three or four centuries after Fred eric I. gave a charter of freedom to Bologna, academic life was at its height in Italy, and to this period we will conse quently confine ourselves.

Rich republics and cities prided themselves on their universities; few were without them in mediæval Italy. When they had decided upon opening one within Frederic's concessions to the jurists of their walls, a regular embassy was de Bologna at the Diet of Roncaglia gave of another academic institution, offering spatched to the scholars and doctors the first elements of power to that Alma Mater of Italian universities, and, based them more extensive liberties than they on these liberties, societies sprang up settle amongst them. Having thus obthen possessed if they would come and exact parallels to which are not to be found in the world's history. They were tained a satisfactory charter, the doctors so many small republics governing themand schloars, together with their families, selves according to their own laws, pam- received with the greatest rejoicing and would migrate to their new home, to be pered by the larger republics or cities in which they were placed, and the scholars honor. After a city had been decimated themselves were rulers of these universi- by war or pestilence, this method of inties. The students chose their teachers creasing the population by gathering toand elected their governors, and they sawed; this is the course Florence pursued, gether a nucleus of study was often adoptafter the arrangement of the material which they wished to learn; and they compelled every professor to write out at the beginning of term time his pagina, which contained a programme of what he thought himself capable of teaching These pagine were presented to the college or assemblage of students, who nois: ily discussed the topics before them, and if a professor was considered deficient in any point, he very soon found it best to leave the university.

In constitution they resembled independent corporations planted in a State, composed of masters and scholars who lived a common life, were under the same laws, and enjoyed alike the privileges of this corporation. The inhabitants of the city

around them were forbidden in any way to interfere. Duke Hercules, of Ferrara, laid a fine of two hundred ducats on an inhabitant who so much as entered the university precincts without special leave.

Villani tells us, after the great plague of 1348. Often, too, after a war, it would be hindrance should be put in the way of stipulated in the treaty of peace that no idence with one of the contending States, some celebrated doctor taking up his resA bull from either the pope or the emif so be he would agree to their terms. peror, which was never refused, was then obtained. The newly arrived scholars and doctors elected their governors, formed their statutes, and opened their lecturerooms, and the new university was then raised up on a flourishing basis, much to the disgust of the mother Bologna, who complained that hers was the only orig. ceased to thrive, spite the multiplicity of inal true university; though she never her offspring.

At Bologna, in the fourteenth century, there were thirteen thousand scholars,* * Muratori.

Bologna may be said to have been the typical university of medieval Italy; all others were modelled on her example. The first jurists of the day regulated her statutes, and, moreover, she was the first to rejoice in the name of "university." On her list of doctors appeared popes, cardinals, archbishops, ambassadors, the flower, in short, of the nobility of Europe; and in republican Bologna nobles were allowed to wear only the same dress as the other students, their privileges consisted in being entitled to sit on the first benches at lectures and in being obliged to pay higher fees.

dividea into ultramontani, foreigners, and | having most privileges, they thought othcitramontani, Italians. Amongst the for- ers wished to interfere with them." mer were German, French, Belgian, Spanish, English, Polish, Greek, Irish, and Portuguese; each nationality had its own professors; * nobles and princes came to Italy from all parts. Amongst the foreigners, the Germans enjoyed the greatest number of immunities, from the fact that the German emperor's power in Italy was unquestionable, and he had said that foreigners, more especially Germans, ought to have the most privileges, inasmuch as they sojourned in a hostile country, with none to protect them; so they had a privilege given to them which none others had, namely, that of being judged in all cases, criminal and civil, by councillors of their own nationality; consequently they held themselves in great esteem, as the following anecdote shows. At Padua, in 1558,† one of the medical professors, whilst explaining in a lecture the formation of the muscles of the tongue, cast some. slur on the German pronunciation. Insulted beyond measure at this, the Germans in a body left Padua to pursue their studies elsewhere, but not before they had created serious riots in the town, which made the rector humbly entreat them to depart.

This academic body was divided into two distinctive parts, the jurists and the artists. So superior was law considered in those days, that the former held their heads high above the latter class, amongst whom were reckoned those who studied and taught medicine, philosophy, grammar, etc. Each of these had a rector to itself, though the rector of the artists was immeasurably inferior to the rector of the jurists, and had to receive the sanction of the latter before his election was considered valid, and for long years the artists had to pay an annual tribute to the jurists, and in the streets of medieval Italy pitched battles would occur between these two academic factions on the much-vexed question of precedence. This was, in addition to the above-mentioned conglomeration of nationalities, another element of discord amongst the students in Italy.

Two distinct classes of overseers were elected to control the affairs of the universities. Firstly, those who watched over the executive interests of the academic body, and, secondly, those who taught and

Although in the lecture halls students of different nationalities were separated, occupying their own benches, and having their own professors, nevertheless the coexistence in the same town of so many scholars of different tongues, nations, and customs was a source of endless discord. The rectors of the universities were frequently not equal to coping with the riots that ensued, for they had originally been elected to their office by the students, and every rector felt in a measure bound to rule with a light band. In 1579 a French-looked to scientific progress, such as the man and a German fell out at Padua, and the whole university was shortly in arms. The Senate had at length to interpose, and closed seven law schools, four medical, and one of philosophy, "and," adds the annalist of this university, "the Germans were the most tumultuous, for,

Mazzetti, Repertorio di Professori Bolognesi. ↑ Facciolati.

Ibid.

doctors, the licentiates, and those scholars who were allowed to enter the arena of dispute, if anybody could be got to listen to them.

To the first class belonged the rectors, who ranked above all civil and ecclesiastical authorities, in fact, on a level with cardinals of the university. They were elected by the professors and scholars; but, though the honor was great, the ex

pense attending the office was such that many were compelled to forego the dig. nity on that score. Of the many festive days at an Italian university, the installation day of the incoming rector surpassed all others in grandeur. The professors, bishops, and all the magistrates of the city, assembled in the cathedral, whilst a procession went to the new rector's house to conduct him thither. This procession was headed by trumpeters and tambourine players. Twelve scholars carried for him his golden fasces, as emblem of his dig nity. Behind followed the keepers of the seal of the statutes, carrying the rector's hat, after whom stalked a beadle with silver sceptre. Then came the rector himself in his scarlet toga ornamented with gold, and accompanied by the syndic and other university officials, each in the gown that distinguished him. All the students in the town followed in the rear.

of them all were the beadles (bidelli), whose duties brought them face to face with the students and with the professors. They not only exercised the office of spies on the behavior of the former, but they also pulled up the latter for any misconduct or neglect of duty.

Firstly, the beadles had to assist the professors in any dispute or disturbances that might arise amongst the students at their lectures; secondly, they had to see to the cleanliness of the schools, to arrange the benches and the order of precedence in which the students should sit; thirdly, they kept the books of the students when they went out, and lastly they had to keep a strict surveillance over the conduct of the professors, and to report to headquarters any deficiency in the exercise of their duties; as, for instance, if they arrived late at lecture or gave up too soon, the beadle's duty was to send in their names as delinquents, and if the case was proved against them, a heavy deduction was made from the professor's salary.

In the cathedral one of the doctors read an oration in praise of the university magistrates and of the new rector in particular, after which some ancient and dis- Fabroni, in his history of the Pisan tinguished professor was chosen to pre- university, gives us an instance of a bitter sent him with the seal and statute. In report sent in by a beadle concerning an elegant speech the rector responded, Professor Pier Filippo, who ought to have mass was said, and the church festivities lectured for three hours a day, but was were at an end. Not so those in the accustomed to perform only half his task. town, jousts and tournaments occupied But nothing can equal the ignominy the afternoon, the victors at which re- heaped upon a professor at Turin,* owing ceived their guerdons from the rector's to the report of a beadle. The jurist Nehands, and the day grew old in revelry.vizzano in one of his lectures happened to Decidedly it was an honor to be a rector; but he had to pay for it all, and was counted stingy if the table in his courtyard did not groan with viands, and if his vats did not run with wine for the populace.

The rector had supreme authority over the students in cases civil as well as criminal. The syndic of the unversity was the next official, and acted as vice-rector when occasion required. The councillors were appointed to look after the interests of the different foreign students who had elected them. Then there were numerous other officials, such as the peziani, who looked after the books, "six good men chosen from the bosom of the university;" the stazionarii, who looked after the MSS. But perhaps the most interesting

cast some slur on the capacity of the female
sex, the beadle reported him as slander-
ing those who could not defend them-
selves, by reason of their exclusion from
the university and the hall of dispute.
Not only did the professor by this bring
down on his head the indignation of the
fair sex of the whole city, but even the
pupils took up the cry against him, and
poor Nevizzano was condemned to appear
in the public square to apologize for his
disrespect by carrying two Latin lines
written in large letters on his forehead,
which may be thus roughly rendered:

Silly's the bird that doth dirty its nest,
Much as the man who doth women molest.
Such were the duties of the beadle of

* Villauri.

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