Bartoleme Las Casas [pp. 829-851]

Bartolicne Las Casas.
Well does he deserve their grati tude. At'the beginning, Las Casas
was a missionary unto the missions;
he taught the clergy first that the
natives were intellectual beings like
themselves; he organized the move ment for the extirpation of slavery; he
instructed them how to appeal to the
conscience of the dying man holding
fellow-men in bondage; he ordered
them to refuse the sacraments to
the strong, who approached the holy
altar; he reported the plan for the
missionary government to the sove reigns in Spain; he organized it in
America; and originated the method
by which the docile creatures were collected into communities or pueblos,
far removed from the white race; he
laid down the rules for the hours of
labor and repose, for their instruction and for their civilization. He
instituted the regulations for the guidance of the priests, and instilled into
them the duty of watching over their
flock at all times, in all places; to
shield them from oppression; to alleviate their distress in sickness; to
soothe them in affliction; to counsel
them when in health; to be their
guide, comforter, and friend. Nor has
one of his teachings been changed
or set aside. They remain to this
day in full vigor in every pueblo,
from the furthest confines of California to the most remote mission of
Paraguay. When he passed away
from earth, at the extreme age of
ninety-two, the spirit with which his
zeal was animated, was caught up by
the priesthood who sat at his feet to
listen to his inspired words. The
germ he planted in their bosom grew
with their growth, strengthened with
their strength. A world was redeemed, and an humble monk from
Seville, a truly God-fearing man,
Bartoleme Las Casas, was their redeemer.
The time has gone by when the
European mind can do him justice.
Colonial affairs of the Western con tinent have no longer an interest in
that quarter. His native land has
thrown him off. It is only in America
the greatness of his achievement can
be portrayed, the lustre of his fame
renewed. Nor can this pleasing task
be accomplished in Spanish Amer ica, where as yet a provincial literature
prevails. It must come, if come at all,
from out of our own republic. More
than one half of the immense, wide spreading territory of the United
States once belonged to Spain; and
Spanish missionary institutions,
laws, customs, and manners under lie the Anglo-Saxon historical, leg islative, and judicial superstructure
of a later period. Jurists are now
in search, groping in the dark, for
the clue to that seemingly inextricable labyrinth of civilization on
which Spanish-American history is
founded, and from whence contemporaneous laws and customs are
derived, in order to elucidate intricate principles daily arising in the
adjudication of titles to lands.
The highest court approaches the
deciding of such cases withl some
trepidation and more distrust, lest
they misapprehend a Spanish colonial law or do nriot understand the
reason for the enactment of the law;
or because, also, a contract may Le
misinterpreted from misinformation of
local institutions and local phrases,
that throw their atmosphere around
expressed stipulations in legal documents. They now feel the necessity
for an exposition dating back to the
commencement of Castilian occupancy on this continent and the institution of missions. In vain have
they sought for that source of
knowledge, for that corner-stone
upon which to construct the true
theory over again of viceregal domination. At last they will turn to
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