and Satan's throne unmolested. But from the confession of their own bishops even this is with difficulty accomplished. One of them says, “he found the neophytes so little improved in their knowledge of the Christian faith, as scarcely to be able to repeat the prayers in an intelligible manner.” Their Latin as might well be expected, was difficult to understand, and he says, “the natives made it half Latin, half romance.”
In the review of these strange proceedings, the mind is struck with admiration at the noble and dignified conduct of Las Casas and his dominican brethren. At a time when persecution was the error of the age, they boldly rose above the prejudices of education, and reverting at once to the simplest principles of Christianity, preached, and practised doctrines which many of their successors even in the nineteenth century have yet to learn. Nor did they do it without cost. To effect their labour of love they endured hardships, suffering famine, sickness and injuries, and in many cases sighing for martyrdom, cheerfully resigned themselves to a cruel death. Of such may it not be said, that erecting on a good foundation, “wood, hay, stubble,” when in the day that shall be revealed “the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is,” though theirs may be burnt and the builders suffer loss, yet, “they themselves shall be saved; yet so as by fire.”
