the final
extinction of that Roman Empire of the East which had originated with
Constantine. For this reason the date of its fall (1453) is also employed
as marking the beginning of modern Europe. It was at least the closing of
the older volume, the final not undramatic exit of the last remnant of
the ancient world, with its long decaying arts and arrogance, its wealth,
its literature, and its law.[4]

Greek scholars fleeing from the sack of their city brought many
marvellous old manuscripts to Western Europe and were eagerly welcomed by
Pope Nicholas and all of Italy. Nicholas even preached a crusade against
the terrible Turks, and tried once more to rouse Europe to ancient
enthusiasms. But he failed, and died, they say, heartbroken at his
helplessness.

THE CLASH OF RACES IN THE EAST

The Turks had recovered from their defeat by the Tartars of Timur, and
became once more an active menace. With Constantinople in their power,
they attacked the Venetians and compelled those wealthy traders to pay
them tribute. Venice by sea and Hungary on land remained for a century
the bulwarks of Christendom, and were forced, almost unaided, to
withstand all the assaults of the East. They wellnigh perished in the
effort. In Hungary this was the period of the great hero, Hunyady, a
man of unknown birth and no official rank, who roused his countrymen to
repeated effort and led them to repeated victories and defeats against
the vastly more numerous invaders.[5]

Hunyady died, worn out with ceaseless warfare, and his son, Matthias,
was elected by acclamation to be monarch of the land the father had
preserved. This was the proudest era in the history of the Hunnish race.
Under Matthias they even resumed their German warfare of five centuries
before, and won from a Hapsburg emperor his city of Vienna, ancient
capital of Austria, the eastmark or borderland which had been erected by
Otto the Great to hold the Huns in check. For a few years Matthias placed
his kingdom amid the foremost states of Europe; but with his death came
renewed disunion and disorder to his lawless people, and the fierce,
fanatic Turks returned again to their assaults.

Further north the yellow races were less successful. Along the shifting
borderlands of Asia which mark the line of demarcation between the two
mightier families of man, the tide turned ever more steadily in the
Aryans' favor. The Russians, under their chief, Ivan III, threw off the
galling Tartar yok