Изображения страниц
PDF
EPUB

count, he was accused of heresy, by Boniface, the apostle of Germany, and condemned by two councils, at Soissons in 744, and at Rome in 745. Having finally made his escape from prison, he is said to have been murdered by some peasants, on the banks of the Fulda.

[ocr errors]

ADALBERT, archbishop of Bremen and Hamburg, a descendant of a princely house of Saxony, received his office, in 1043, from the emperor Henry III, whose relation, friend and follower he was. He accompanied Henry to Rome, where he was a distinguished candidate for the papal chair. Pope Leo IX, in whose behalf he had spoken at the synod of Mentz, 1049, made him his legate in the north of Europe, 1050. He superintended the churches of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, but aspired in vain to the dignity of pope, or patriarch of the North. During the minority of Henry IV, who afterwards became emperor, he usurped, in concert with Hanno, archbishop of Cologne, the guardianship of the young prince, and the administration of the empire, and gained an ascendency over his rival, by indulging the passions of his pupil. After Henry had become of age to rule, A. exercised the government without control, in his name. A.'s pride and arbitrary administration induced the German princes, in 1066, to remove him by force from the court; but after a short contest with the Saxon nobles, who laid waste his territory, he recovered his former power, which he held till his death at Goslar, March 17, 1072. He excelled his contemporaries in princely qualities, in talent, and in strength of mind; and if he had possessed magnanimity, and a wise spirit of moderation, he would have deserved the name of the great, which has been given him. The injustice and tyranny which stained his administration were mainly instrumental in producing the confusion and calamities, in which the reign of Henry IV was involved.

ÅDALBERT of Prague, the apostle of Prussia proper, son of a Bohemian nobleman, was educated in the cathedral of Magdeburg, between the years 973 and 982, and appointed bishop of Prague in 983. He labored in vain to convert the Bohemians from paganism, and to introduce among them the ordinances of the church of Rome. Discouraged by the fruitlessness of his pious zeal, he left Prague, 988, and lived in convents at Montecasino and Rome, until the Bohemians, in 993, recalled him. But after two years, he again left them, disgusted with

their barbarous manners. He returned to Rome, and soon followed the emperor Otho III to Germany; on which journey he baptized, at Gran, St. Stephen, who subsequently became king of Hungary. After a visit to the monasteries of Tours and Fleury, he proceeded to Gnesen, to meet Boleslaus, duke of Poland; and being informed that the Bohemians did not wish to see him again, he resolved to convert the pagans of Prussia. But he lost his life in the attempt, being murdered by a peasant, April 23, 997, near what is now Fischhausen. His body was bought by Boleslaus, for its weight in gold, and became famous for its miraculous power. It was even visited at Gnesen by Otho III, in 1000, and removed from Bohemia by duke Brzetislaw. Its influence was greater than that of the saint himself. The Bohemians, who before had refused to receive the ordinances of the church, now suffered them to be introduced into Prague, on the sole condition, that these miraculous bones should be transferred to their city.

ADAM (Hebrew, formed of earth), the father of the human race, was, according to Genesis, made of clay, on the sixth day of the creation. God finished the work of creation by forming man according to his own image, making him master of all created things. He gave him Eve for his companion (in Hebrew, Heva, the mother of the living), formed of his flesh, that the earth might be peopled by their union. The garden of Eden, diversified with fruitful trees, was their abode, in which they found every thing to satisfy their wants, and to afford them pleasure. But in the centre stood the tree of the knowledge of good and evil; and of this their Creator had forbidden them to eat. Eve was beguiled by the serpent to take of this fruit, and to eat of it with her husband. This crime destroyed their felicity. The appearance of things was suddenly changed before their eyes. They perceived their nakedness, and endeavored to conceal it. In vain did A. seek to hide himself from the sight of God; in vain did he throw the blame of his transgression upon Eve; a curse followed them and the whole creation. Driven from the state of innocence, in which he was born, A. saw himself condemned to earn his bread by the sweat of his brow All the evils of life and the terrors of death came upon him. He had three sons, Cain, Abel and Seth, and died at the age of 930 years, 130 of which he passed in Paradise. The history of A. is

[blocks in formation]

found, with little variation, in the traditions of nearly all ancient nations, who seem to have derived their information

from a common source.

ADAM. Three brothers of this name were sculptors. The eldest, Lambert Sigisbert, born in 1700, at Nancy, where his father was also a sculptor, went, at the age of 18, to Metz, and thence to Paris. After four years study in this city, he received the first prize from the academy, and soon afterwards went as a royal pensioner to Rome, where he passed 10 years. The cardinal of Polignac commissioned him to supply the parts wanting in the 12 marble statues, found in the palace of Marius, and known by the name of the family of Lycomedes, which task A. executed with great skill. When the erection of the large monument at Rome, known by the name of the fountain of Trevi, was contemplated, A. was one of the 16 statuaries appointed to furnish designs. That which he offered was accepted, but the jealousy of the Italian artists opposed its execution, and in 1733 A. returned to France. In 1737, he was chosen member of the academy, and afterwards professor. The statue of Neptune calming the waves, with a Triton at his feet, is a fine specimen of his skill. Besides various other works, he now finished the group of Neptune and Amphitrite, to adorn the basin of Neptune at Versailles. A. was skilful in working marble; his anatomy is correct and his drapery good; but he was led astray by the bad taste of his time, which confounded the provinces of painting and sculpture. He died in 1759. His brother, Nicholas Sebastian, born at Nancy in 1705, studied the same art, under the care of his father, and in the academy of Paris. At the age of 18, he was employed in a castle near Montpellier, and went, after 18 months, to Rome, in 1726. After two years, he gained the prize offered by the academy of San Luca, worked in connexion with his brother, spent nine years abroad, and was finally admitted into the academy of Paris. His Prometheus lacerated by the vulture was exhibited as a specimen of his powers, but not finished until some time after the exhibition. His masterpiece is the tomb of the queen of Poland, wife of Stanislaus. In regard to his merits, what has been said of his brother holds true of him. He died in 1778.-The third brother, Francis Gaspard, born at Nancy in 1710, was also a pupil of his father. In 1728, he joined his brothers in Rome, and improved greatly in their company. He

then returned to Paris, gained the first prize of the academy, and in 1742 visited Rome again, where he completed his studies. He then went to Berlin, instead of his brother Nicholas Sebastian, whom Frederic II had invited thither. He labored there several years, and died at Paris in 1759.

ADAMANT. (See Dramond.)

ADAMANTINE SPAR; a stone of peculiar hardness, approaching to that of the diamond. It will cut glass easily, and mark rock crystal. It is found in China and India, and, as M. Pini alleges, in Italy.

ADAMI POMUM. (See Adam's Apple.) ADAMITES; the name of a Christian sect, said to have existed in the 2d century; and also of a band of heretics, which, in 1421, appeared in Bohemia, during the commotions occasioned by the doctrines of Huss. They were called A. because both men and women were said to appear naked in their assemblies, either to imitate Adam in the state of innocence, or to prove the control which they possessed over their passions. The tradition respecting the former sect of this name appears to have had its origin in a name of derision given to the Carpocratians of indifferent reputation. (See Gnostics.) The accounts of the latter A. are not, to be relied upon with more certainty. These were also called Picards, from the founder of their sect, Picard, (perhaps also Beghards.) They appeared about the year 1421, on an island in the river Lusinicz, where Zisca surprised them, but was not able to destroy the whole sect. In the following year, they were widely spread over Bohemia and Moravia, and especially hated by the Hussites (whom they resembled in hatred towards the hierarchy), because they rejected the doctrine of transubstantiation. They subsequently formed one sect with the remaining Taborites, who have occasionally been confounded with the A.

ADAMS, John, a distinguished patriot of the American revolution, was born at Braintree, Massachusetts, October 19, 1735. The ancestors of Mr. A. had left England for the wilds of America, in order to enjoy their religious opinions unmolested. They were among the first settlers of Massachusetts, Henry Adams, the great-great-grandfather of John, and one of the original proprietors of the town of Braintree, having fled from England, with other Puritans, in the year 1630. Their condition was that of substantial yeomen, who possessed the fee simple of

their lands, and maintained themselves and families by manual labor. Mr. A. having, when yet a boy, evinced great fondness for books, and readiness in learning, his father determined to give him a collegiate education, and placed him, in consequence, under the care of Mr. Marsh (who was afterwards the preceptor of the celebrated Josiah Quincy), that he might be prepared for entrance into the university of Cambridge. He remained in that institution until the year 1755, when he received his bachelor's degree, and in 1758 that of master of arts. Whilst at college, he is said to have been distinguished by intense application, retentiveness of memory, acuteness of reasoning, boldness and originality of thought, strength of language, and an honesty of character which could neither assume nor tolerate disguise. After he had left college, he commenced the study of law, at Worcester, with colonel James Putnam, and, during the period he was so engaged, instructed pupils in the Latin and Greek languages, in order to be able to defray his expenses himself.-Before proceeding farther, it may not be amiss to notice the posture of affairs in Massachusetts at that epoch. For a long time past, that province had been disturbed by almost unremitted contentions between its inhabitants and the parliament of Great Britain, on various important subjects. The English legislature had, in fact, nothing to do with the colonies, as all dominion acquired by conquest or discovery invariably accrued to the king. To him alone the emigrants paid allegiance and applied for protection, and, although parliament always affected to believe itself entitled to regulate their concerns, they received very little interruption from it in the exercise of the privilege granted them by the king of governing and legislating for themselves. In the course of time, however, parliament became jealous of the power, approaching to independence, which they enjoyed, and began to impose unconstitutional restraints upon their commerce, to violate their charters, and, in short, to treat them so arbitrarily, that their spirit was completely roused, and a vigorous resistance called forth. Massachusetts, especially, had become a theatre of perpetual struggle for power on the one side, and for freedom on the other. But it was hitherto only an intellectual warfare, no idea of a separation from the mother country having ever been entertained. In 1758, Mr. A. left the office of colonel Putnam, and entered that of Jere

miah Gridley, then attorney-general of the province, and of the highest eminence at the bar. Gridley had, some years previously, superintended also the legal studies of James Otis, and, proud of his two pupils, used often to say, that "he had raised two young eagles, who were, one day or other, to peck out his eyes." In 1759, Mr. A. was admitted, at his recommendation, a member of the bar of Suffolk. Mr. A. commenced the practice of his profession in that part of his native town now called Quincy, but first brought himself into notice by his defence of a prisoner in the county of Plymouth, from which time a sufficiency of lucrative business generally occupied his attention. In 1761, he was admitted to the degree of barrister at law, and shortly afterwards was placed in the possession of a small landed estate by his father's decease. In February of this year, an incident occurred, which inflamed his enthusiasm in the cause of his country's rights to the highest pitch. The British cabinet had long shown a desire to assert the sovereign authority of parliament over the colonies in all cases of taxation and internal policy; but the first evidence of its having determined to do so was an order in council, issued this year, enjoining the officers of the customs in Massachusetts Bay to execute the acts of trade, and make application for writs of assistance to the supreme judicature of the province. These writs were a species of general search-warrants, authorizing those who were empowered to carry them into effect to enter all houses, warehouses, &c., for the purpose of discovering and seizing such goods as were not discharged from the taxes imposed upon them by the acts. The officers of the customs applied for them, in pursuance of their instructions, to the court at Salem, but the demand was refused, on account of doubts concerning their constitutionality. It was then determined to have the affair argued by counsel in Boston. Great alarm now pervaded the whole community. Mr. Otis was engaged, by the merchants of Salem and Boston, to oppose the concession of so formidable an instrument of arbitrary power. In order to do so with entire freedom, he resigned the lucrative station of advocategeneral in the court of admiralty, which he then enjoyed. Of the masterly manner in which he performed his duty, Mr. A., who was present at the discussion, has transmitted a vivid account. "Otis," says he, "was a flame of fire! With a `promptitude of classical allusion, a depth

[blocks in formation]

of research, a rapid summary of historical events and dates, a profusion of legal authorities, a prophetic glance of his eyes into futurity, and a rapid torrent of impetuous eloquence, he hurried away all before him. American Independence was then and there born." He afterwards adds, “Every man of an immensely crowded audience appeared to me to go away, as I did, ready to take arms against writs of assistance." Speaking of this discourse on another occasion, he said, "that James Otis, then and there, first breathed into this nation the breath of life."-In 1764, he married Abigail Smith, second daughter of the reverend William Smith, of Weymouth, and grand-daughter of colonel Quincy, of mount Wollaston, a lady every way worthy of her husband, endowed by nature with a countenance singularly noble and lovely, and with a mind whose fine powers were improved by an excellent education. Her ardor in the cause of her country was as elevated as his own, and her piety unaffected and exemplary. About a year afterwards, Mr. A. published in the Boston Gazette several pieces, under the title of "An Essay on Canon and Feudal Law," which were reprinted in London, in 1768, and called "A Dissertation on Canon and Feudal Law." It is, perhaps, not the smallest proof of its merit, that it was there attributed to Gridley, who at that time enjoyed the highest reputation for ability. The friends of the colonies in England termed it "one of the very nest productions ever seen from North America." The name of the real author was afterwards divulged, in 1783, when it was published in Philadelphia, by Robert Bell, in a pamphlet form, with lord Sheffield's observations on the commerce of the American States, and entitled "An Essay on Canon and Feudal Law, by John Adams, Esq." It seems to have been the principal object of the author to extinguish, as far as possible, the blind and almost superstitious veneration of his countrymen for the institutions of the parent country, by holding up to their abhorrence the principles of the canon and feudal law, and showing to them the conspiracy which existed between church and state, for the purpose of oppressing the people. He inculcates the sentiments of genuine liberty, as well as the necessity of correct information on the part of his fellow-citizens, in order that they might be prepared to assert and maintain their rights by force, if force should ever become necessary. It was indeed a work eminently calculated to excite the people

66

of America to resist, at all hazards, any infringement of their liberties.-In December, 1765, Mr. A. was engaged, as counsel with Mr. Gridley and Mr. Otis, to support, before the governor and council, a memorial presented to the former, from the town of Boston, praying that the courts, which had been closed on account of the opposition to the stamp act, might again be opened. Through their united exertions, the petition was successful. In the same year, he removed to Boston, where he continued in the practice of his profession on a very extensive scale. After he had resided there about two years, the crown officers of the province, thinking, perhaps, that his patriotism was not without its price, made him an offer, through Mr. Sewall (between whom and himself an intimate friendship subsisted, formed at the time when he was studying with colonel Putnam), of the office of advocate-general in the court of admiralty, the most lucrative post in the gift of the governor. This office also was one which conducted its incumbents directly to the highest provincial honors. He refused it, however, as he says in his preface to the late edition of Novanglus, decidedly and peremptorily, though respectfully."-In 1769, he was appointed chairman of the committee, chosen by the town of Boston, for the purpose of drawing up instructions to their representatives, to resist the encroachments of the British government. His colleagues were R. Dana and Jos. Warren. At the time they were thus employed, the metropolis was invested by an armed force, both by sea and land, and the state-house surrounded by a military guard, with cannon pointed at the door. Large majorities of both houses of parliament had signified their approval of the measures adopted by the king; had promised him their support, and besought him to prosecute, within the realm, all those who had been guilty of treasonable acts, in Massachusetts, since the year 1767, in accordance with the decree of parliament of the 35th of Henry VIII. Nevertheless, the committee performed their task with undaunted firmness, and reported the instructions which, no doubt, contributed to produce the strong resolutions subsequently adopted by the legislature of Massachusetts. It was on account of these instructions and resolutions, that the provincial garrison was withdrawn, by order of the governor, from the castle, and regular troops, in the pay of the crown, substituted. The instructions also formed

one of the specific charges made against the colony by the committee of the lords of council for plantation affairs, to the lords of council, July 6, 1770.—A striking example of the firmness and uprightness of Mr. A. occurred during the course of that year. He had, hitherto, been very active in stimulating the people of his province to the strenuous maintenance of their rights, and had thereby aided in producing an excitement greater than he could have wished, and which he found it necessary to counteract. The people of Boston had become exasperated at the idea of a garrison placed in their city, and were extremely hostile to the soldiers composing it. These feelings led to an attack upon a party of them under the command of captain Preston, March 5. They fired on the assailants in self-defence, and killed several of them. The soldiers were immediately arraigned before the civil authority, and Mr. Adams, in conjunction with Josiah Quincy and Mr. Sampson S. Blowers, was requested to aid them upon their trial. Although the minds of the people were inflamed almost to madness, and the defence of the accused seemed to involve a certain loss of popularity, Mr. A. immediately undertook to act as their advocate. Mr. A. was no demagogue; he saw that the honor of his country was at stake, and he rejoiced, as has been well said, in the opportunity of showing to the world, that the cause of America did not depend upon a temporary excitement, which could stifle the voice of justice, but upon the sober, steady, persevering determination of the people to support their rights. The cause was conducted by him and his colleagues with great ability, and the soldiers were all acquitted save two, who were found guilty of manslaughter, received a slight branding as a punishment, and were then discharged. Scarcely any thing which occurred during the revolution confers more honor upon the national character, and did more service to the cause of America, than this triumph of justice. Mr. A. soon received a proof that the public confidence in him was not diminished, by his election, in May, 1770, to the legislature of his state, as one of the representatives of the town of Boston. His conduct in this new situation displayed the same patriotism, courage and hostility to the despotism of the mother country, by which he had always been distinguished. He took a prominent part in every public measure, and served on several committees, who reported some of

the most important state papers of the time; among which were the address and protest to the governor against the removal of the general court from Boston to Cambridge. In Bradford's History of Massachusetts, we find the following account of a controversy in which Mr. A. was engaged in the year 1773. "The ministerial regulation for paying the salary of the judges, which rendered them wholly dependent on the crown, was the occasion of a learned and able discussion in the public papers, by William Brattle, senior member of the council, and John Adams. The essays of the latter were written with great learning and ability, and had a happy effect in enlightening the public mind on a question of very great importance. It subjected him, indeed, to the displeasure of governor Hutchinson and the ministerial party; and at the next election in May, when chosen by the assembly into the council, the governor gave his negative to the choice. These essays were published in the Boston Gazette of February, 1773, under Mr. Adams's proper signature, and would make a pamphlet of 50 or 60 pages."-In 1774, he was again rejected by governor Gage, and soon afterwards he was appointed one of the committee of the town of Boston, who prepared the celebrated resolutions on the Boston port-bill. June 17, of this year, governor Gage, having dissolved the assembly, this body, before separating, passed a resolution to appoint a committee to meet other committees from other colonies, for the purpose of consulting upon their common interests, and, in consequence, Mr. Thomas Cushing, Mr. Samuel Adams, Mr. John Adams and Mr. Robert Treat Paine were elected to the first continental congress, which met at Philadelphia in the following September. Soon after Mr. A. was chosen, an incident occurred which gives an idea of his feelings on contemplating this great and daring national movement. His friend Sewall, who had taken the ministerial side in politics, and was at that time attorney-general of the province, hearing of his election, invited him to a morning walk, in the course of which he endeavored to dissuade him from his purpose of assuming the seat in congress to which he had been appointed. He told him that the determination of Great Britain to pursue her system was fixed; that her power was irresistible, and would involve him in destruction, as well as all his associates who persevered in opposition to her de

« ПредыдущаяПродолжить »