Balthasar Hübmaier

“ He took with him no books but the Bible, and had a long interview—or rather, a series of interviews—with Hübmaier, of which he has left a full account. It is open to suspicion in some particulars, but in the main bears the impress of truth.
Faber reached Greisenstein December 14th, and in his visit to his former friend was accompanied by Lord Mark of Leopoldsdorf and Ambrozius Salzer, rector of the Vienna gymnasium—neither of whom, however, seems to have taken any part in the discussion. ”

“ It is possible, even probable, that it required all their power and social standing to secure their own immunity from prosecution. But the suspicion may, after all, do them an injustice. Much was made in the preliminary accusation, and throughout the process, of Hübmaier's alleged disloyal conduct at Waldshut. It was no uncommon thing, in those days, to arrest a man on a charge of sedition and condemn him for heresy, or vice versa. ”

“ When they went through a town by night women crowded to see them, often in their nightclothes; by day men left their business and followed as if they, too, would go on pilgrimage, some with a hayfork in their hands, others with a scythe. The more sensible thought the people had all gone crazy. Impostors appeared, and at length the Regensburg council found itself compelled to adopt some measures of repression, or at least of control.
These pilgrimages aroused much attention and discussion in the whole Empire. As to Hübmaier's exact part in them there is almost nothing to warrant an inference. ”

“ Vadianus (Watt) , Swiss reformer, friend of Hübmaier, 57; his opinion of Hübmaier, 245
W
Waldshut,town of, described, 51; character of people, 52; Hübmaier' s first pastorate, 51-54; second pastorate, 57; reforms of 1524, 72; opposition of clergy, 74; town summoned by Ferdinand, 74 sq.; second summons, 79; Hübmaier leaves, 81; last negotiations with Ferdinand, 94 sq.; has sympathy of Zürich, 95; hundreds become Anabaptists, 112; visited by Grebel, 113; captured by Austrians, 122, 123 ”

“ A rare theologian, skilled in law and wisdom, he often sows the good seed among the people. A knotty logician, a master of sentences, whatever mathematician or astronomer teaches, all that orator, historian, or poet knows—I'll be hanged if this single man does not know it all!" ↑ Loserth, p. 15, note 4. ↑ Hoschek says (i., 120) that, by the influence of Eck, Hübmaier himself was elected superintendent of Peacock Hall, but this appears to be an error. Cf. Loserth, p. 16. ↑ From his examination while in prison at Zürich, Egli, Actensammlung zur Geschichte der Zürcher Reformation, S. 432. ”

“ Faber (Heigelin) John, Roman Catholic theologian, testifies Hübmaier was no iconoclast, 73; celebrates mass in Waldshut, 123; confirms torture of Hübmaier at Zürich, 137; interview with Hübmaier at Greisenstein, 226-230 ”

“ There is no reason to doubt that the explanation he made to the Zürich council, already quoted in full, correctly represented both his private views and his public teaching, not only up to that time, but to the end of his life. The fact that at Nikolsburg he found this doctrine closely associated with Hut's chiliasm and denial of the right of the sword, would not be likely to incline him to its acceptance, to say the least. ”

“ But all this was speedily to change.
↑ That Hübmaier was no fanatical iconoclast we know from Faber, who informs us that after the catastrophe at Waldshut there were found a costly and beautiful Joachim, besides a vesper picture and a Sebastian. Quoted by Loserth, p. 44. ↑ For example, his sermon on April l0th, in which he said, on the text "I am the good shepherd": "Those who do not enter in by the door and are thieves and robbers are those pastors who preach the legends, untruths, and dreams of the monks, [and] withhold the gospel from the people, which is the true soul-murder." ”

“ Weissenburger, Wolfgang, Swiss reformer, 120 sq.
Widemann, Jacob, Anabaptist preacher, his communistic ideas, 162; joins forces with Hut, 163; continued activity at Nikolsburg, 150, 176; in the socialistic communities, 251
Will, Luther's doctrine of, 193, 196; Hübmaier's doctrine of, 193-195
Wyeland, William, of Regensburg, kindness to Hübmaier, 49
Z
Zürich, city of, Hübmaier's visit to, 57; second disputation at, 57-65; reform in, 66; conduct of Hübmaier at, 74, 75; first disputation at, 92; people divided, 100 ”

“ Gall, Hübmaier's visit to, 57
Savonarola compared to Hübmaier, 237
Schaffhausen, Hübmaier's first residence at, 67; second residence there, 81 sq.; refuses to surrender Hübmaier, 82; Hübmaier appeals to council of, 82, 83
Scriptures, do not warrant infant baptism, 10, 16, 57; supremacy of, 16, 58, 66, 89 sq., 180; supremacy acknowledged by Swiss reformers, 92; inspiration of, 16; interpretation of, 17, 183 (see also Exegesis)
Schwertler, at Nikolsburg, 248; expelled, 249
Socialism, among Anabaptists, 172, 176, 215, 250 sq. ”

“ D'Hubert did follow. He could do nothing else. Yet in vindication of his sanity it must be recorded that as he passed through the ante-room the notion of opening the street door and bolting out presented itself to this brave youth, only of course to be instantly dismissed, for he felt sure that the other would pursue him without shame or compunction. And the prospect of an officer of hussars being chased along the street by another officer of hussars with a naked sword could not be for a moment entertained. ”

“ Balthasar was conscious of being drawn towards her by some terrible power. Still he turned his head away with a desperate effort, and lifting his eyes he again saw the star. Thereupon the star spoke and said: “Glory to God in the Heavens and peace on earth to men of good will!
“Take a measure of myrrh, gentle King Balthasar, and follow me. I will guide thee to the feet of a little child who is about to be born in a stable between an ass and an ox. ”

“ These would have been his last words on earth if General D'Hubert had been holding the pistols in his hand. But the pistols were lying on the ground at the foot of a tall pine. General D'Hubert had the second's leisure necessary to remember that he had dreaded death not as a man but as a lover, not as a danger but as a rival--not as a foe to life but as an obstacle to marriage. ”

“ Buffle here.”
“Here he is, ma’am, and yours truly,” said Buffle, removing his hat.
He could afford to. She was not beautiful, but she seemed to be in trouble, and a troubled woman can command, to the death, even worse men than free-and-easy miners. She had a refined, pure face, out of which two great brown eyes looked so tenderly and anxiously, that these men forgot themselves at once. She seemed young, not more than twenty-three or four; she was slightly built, and dressed in a suit of plain black. ”

“ Upon the way, Balthasar questioned his guide as to the extent, resources, and prosperity of the Grand Duchy, but could obtain no satisfactory reply; the young peasant was profoundly ignorant upon all these subjects. The four leagues were got over in something less than three hours, which is rather rapid travelling for Germany. It was nearly dark when Balthasar entered Karlstadt. The shops were shut, and there were few persons in the streets; people are early in their habits in the happy lands on the Rhine’s right bank. ”

“ And now the seconds, who had been standing in close group with the heads of their horses together, separated at an easy canter, leaving a large, clear field between him and his adversary. Captain D'Hubert looked at the pale sun, at the dismal fields, and the imbecility of the impending fight filled him with desolation. From a distant part of the field a stentorian voice shouted commands at proper intervals: An pas—Au trot—Charrrgez! . . . Presentiments of death don't come to a man for nothing, he thought at the very moment he put spurs to his horse. ”

“ He was still under the sway of these contradictory sentiments when the surgeon amateur of the flute came to see him. More than three days had elapsed. Lieut. D'Hubert was no longer officier d'ordonnance to the general commanding the division. He had been sent back to his regiment. And he was resuming his connection with the soldiers' military family by being shut up in close confinement, not at his own quarters in town, but in a room in the barracks. Owing to the gravity of the incident, he was forbidden to see any one. ”

“ He seized the little fellow with furious hands, drew a stiletto from its sheath, and buried it in the young rogue's breast.
At this moment, however, a shout of "Bravo! Bravo!" broke out from all sides. Hamburg's enthusiastic sons and daughters were paying the tribute of their uproarious applause to the great artist, who had just ended the first of his concert, and was now bowing with even more angles and contortions than before. And on his face the abject humility seems to me to have become more intense. From his eyes stared a sorrowful anxiety like that of a poor malefactor. "Divine!" ”

“ Hubbard leaned back in his chair, and sent a puff of cigar smoke floating upward, before he answered.
"I can't enter my man for the triangular contest," said he. "He won't go into a competition unless he's paid for making the design. He says, in so many words, that he doesn't want the commission to make the statue unless he can do it in his own way. He will be unhindered, or he will let the whole thing alone."
"For my part," Mr. Irons responded, settling himself in his chair, with a certain air of determination, "I don't take a great deal of stock in this letting an artist have his own way. ”

“ Had it not been for that, General D ‘Hubert felt capable of mounting a horse and pursuing his late adversary in order simply to embrace him from excess of happiness. “I owe it all to this stupid brute,” he thought. “He has made plain in a morning what might have taken me years to find out—for I am a timid fool. No self-confidence whatever. Perfect coward. And the Chevalier! Delightful old man!” General D’Hubert longed to embrace him also.
The Chevalier was in bed. For several days he was very unwell. The men of the Empire and the post-revolution young ladies were too much for him. ”

“ His name came up with some others; and hearing it repeated General D'Hubert's tender anticipations of a domestic future adorned by a woman's grace were traversed by the harsh regret of that warlike past, of that one long, intoxicating clash of arms, unique in the magnitude of its glory and disaster--the marvellous work and the special possession of his own generation. He felt an irrational tenderness toward his old adversary, and appreciated emotionally the murderous absurdity their encounter had introduced into his life. ”

“ To this succeeded pleasant fir-woods, then birch and beech, and before eight we came to Grenzbäuden (frontier-buildings) , a place renowned for its hospitality wherever lives a German who has seen the mountains. Three houses offer entertainment; but Hübner's is the most resorted to. There you find spacious rooms, a billiard-table, a piano, maps on the walls, and a colonnade for those who prefer the open air; and sundry appliances by which weather-bound guests may kill time. But, by common consent, Hübner's chief claim to consideration is, that Hungarian wine never fails in his cellar. ”

“ This was clearly one of Hubert's most decisive victories. He had his day's extension solely in order to interview the politician at 6 P.M.; he was to [pg 349] interview the politician solely in order to obtain his day's extension. But Hubert insists morbidly that his was a moral defeat, amounting to utter suppression. He called upon the politician at 6 P.M. to thank him personally. Again he could get no further than the secretary, who, learning that Hubert's train would not depart at all that day, regretted that the politician would, on second thoughts, be out for a week. ”

“ Lying in his bed with the windows of his room open wide to the sunshine of Provence, he perceived at last the undisguised aspect of the blessing conveyed by that jagged fragment of a Prussian shell which, killing his horse and ripping open his thigh, saved him from an active conflict with his conscience. After fourteen years spent sword in hand in the saddle and strong in the sense of his duty done to the end, General D'Hubert found resignation an easy virtue. His sister was delighted with his reasonableness. "I leave myself altogether in your hands, my dear Léonie," he had said. ”

“ She nodded and asked in her turn:
“What is the statue and what does it signify, Humphrey?”
I hesitated, but Bastin answered:
“Just a rather ugly woman who hid up her figure because it was bad. Probably she was a relation of the artist who wished to have her likeness done and sat for nothing.”
“The goddess of Health,” suggested Bickley. “Her proportions are perfect; a robust, a thoroughly normal woman.”
“Now, Humphrey,” said Yva. ”

“ When Madam Gruithuissens departed, Humphrey and Mary Gifford were alone together. The servant who had been sent with the news keeping watch at the door outside, and Humphrey, for the time, seemed to go over, half unconsciously, the scenes of the taking of Axel, and Mary listened to it not exactly with half-hearted sympathy, but with the perpetually recurring cry at her heart that God would restore to her her only son.
It is ever so—the one anxiety, the one centre of interest to ourselves, which may seem of little importance to others, drives out all else. ”

“ Without any trace of the finicality that so often is pure morbidity, Hubbard was the most conscientious man I ever knew, a man who was continually thinking of others and how he might help them. Doubtless some will see in his brave life's struggle only a determination to win for himself a recognised place as a writer and expert upon out-of-door life ”