reat Athenian
philosopher, whose teachings are the subject of most of Plato's
writings, was accused of corrupting the youth, and condemned to drink
hemlock.]
[Footnote 188: Martin Luther (1483-1546) preached against certain
abuses of the Roman Catholic Church and was excommunicated by the
Pope. He became the leader of the Protestant Reformation.]
[Footnote 189: Copernicus (1473-1543) discovered the error of the old
Ptolemaic system of astronomy and showed that the sun is the centre of
our planetary system. Fearing the persecution of the church, he
hesitated long to publish his discovery, and it was many years after
his death before the world accepted his theory.]
[Footnote 190: Galileo (1564-1642), the famous Italian astronomer and
physicist, discoverer of the satellites of Jupiter and the rings of
Saturn, was thrown into prison by the Inquisition.]
[Footnote 191: Sir Isaac Newton. (See note 53.)]
[Footnote 192: Andes, the great mountain system of South America.]
[Footnote 193: Himmaleh, Himalaya, the great mountain system of Asia.]
[Footnote 194: Alexandrian stanza. The Alexandrian line consists of
twelve syllables (iambic hexameter). Neither the acrostic nor the
Alexandrine has the property assigned to it here. A palindrame reads
the same forward as backward, as:
"Madam, I'm Adam";
"Signa te signa; temere me tangis et angis";
or the inscription on the church of St. Sophia, Constantinople:
[Greek: "Nipson anomemata me monan opsin,"]
]
[Footnote 195: The reference is to sailing vessels, of course.]
[Footnote 196: Scorn eyes, scorn observers.]
[Footnote 197: Chatham, William Pitt, Earl of Chatham (1708-1778),
this distinguished statesman and orator. He became very popular as a
statesman and was known as "The Great Commoner."]
[Footnote 198: Adams. The reference is presumably to Samuel Adams
(1722-1803), a popular leader and orator in the cause of American
freedom. He was a member of the Continental Congress and a signer of
the Declaration of Independence. Emerson may have in mind, however,
John Adams (1735-1826), second president of the United States.]
[Footnote 199: Spartan. The ancient Spartans were noted for their
courage and fortitude.]
[Footnote 200: Julius Caesar (100-44 B.C.), the great Roman general,
statesman, orator, and author.]
[Footnote 201: St. Anthony (251-356), Egyptian founder of monachism,
the system of monastic seclusion.]
[Footnote 20
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