mediaeval methods of reckoning time were crude. It is said that Caesar found on the coasts of Britain water-clocks which were of Eastern origin.' Sundials were known in Germany as early as the tenth century; they were indispensable even as late as the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries for the regulation of all other timepieces. The famous astronomer Tycho Brahe made use of sand-clocks in his observa tions. Nevertheless, the invention of wheel-and-weight clocks dates far back in the Middle Ages.
The archdeacon Pacificus, who died at Verona in 846, is said to have discovered the principle upon which the construction of all such clocks depends, though it is also asserted that this style of clocks was derived from the Arabians. But the machinery was so extensive that it could be operated only in towers and steeples, and the clocks were very costly. As late as 1483 the magistrate of Auxerre had for the latter reason to obtain the royal permission to purchase one. The earliest clock of this kind, however, is mentioned in 1332 at Dijon.
As is well known, watches were invented by Peter Hele in the year 1500, and were known by the name of " Nuremberg eggs." For more than a century after their invention the utility of watches was hampered by the difficulty of regulating them, and especially by the lack of a uni form division of time. So-called "large" and "small" clocks were used; that is, the clay was divided either into twice twelve hours (/5/. 42, fig. 24) or into twenty-four hours. In some places—for example, Nuremberg— the first division of twelve hours was counted from sunrise, and the sec ond began at nightfall. Consequently, the shortest day consisted of eight hours, and the longest night of sixteen hours. To reconcile the different measurements of time, clocks were made with several hands which simultaneously indicated them all; comparative tables were also used.
Conclusion.—It would lead us too far were we to make mention, if only by classes, of all the conveniences and devices by means of which the Euro pean of the Middle Ages—the Southerner euvironed in political and social disorganization, the Northerner dependent on his impoverished and barren soil—sought to lighten the struggle for existence. Constantly deepening and widening the compass of his feelings, he endeavored to establish for himself as a retreat from the inhospitable outer world a congenial home, a pleasant fireside. The products of his handicraft bear throughout all European countries the same general character impressed upon them, as we may see from the remains which have come down to us: a glance at our illustrations will suffice to make this clear.
These palpable evidences of his endeavors are to be looked upon as the index of a fresh and exuberant life; never are they constructed with an eye to the useful alone; everywhere the hand of the artist, sculptor, or painter is apparent; and although in respect to style they are for the most part inferior to the productions of classical antiquity, they have yet au intrinsic worth of their own no less significant.
Erroneous in many respects is that view which finds expression in the current term "Dark Ages." Where all the objects with which man is brought into daily contact are pregnant with color and life; where, for example, entire church-portals, fountains, and other similar objects are painted and gilded; where porticos are completely ornamented with illus trated scenes and streets are transformed into picture-galleries,—the cre ative, conservative, and appreciative spirit must be alive and active. Before, however, following out this spirit in its compass and development it will be necessary to cast a glance at the material foundations which formed the resources of mediaeval life.