THE LIFE OF ANTONIO ROSMINI.
If we consult any of even the most recent general histories of philosophy-for example, those of Schwegler, Erdmann, and Ueberweg-we shall naturally come to the conclusion that, since the days of the Reformation, when Scholasticism fell into disrepute and the apostles of new doctrines, such as Giordano Bruno and Lucilio Vanini, perished at the stake, there has been no philosophy in the Catholic countries, no fresh thought in the Church—indeed, no advance in speculation, except developments of Cartesianism, anywhere. Nevertheless, this is so far from being the case that Italy, the very centre and home of Catholicism, may be safely affirmed to have produced in the last hundred years more solid thought, more thought that will prove a lasting possession, than any other single country in Europe, and to be at the present day the only country blessed with a system of thought that still asserts its ability to furnish a rational basis for life according to the highest ideals.
It is, indeed, true that Italy, after the decay of Scholasticism, fell for a time into a condition of philosophic sterility; but this was in large measure compensated for by the scientific labours of such men as Galileo Galilei and Giambattista Vico, each of whom marked an epoch in the study