юн PREFACE. THE following narrative is founded, as much as possible, on Calvin's correspondence; and, wherever it was practicable, he has been left to speak for himself. Where that could not be done, recourse has been chiefly had to Ruchat's elaborate History of the Reformation in Switzerland, and to Dr. Paul Henry's recently published biography of Calvin.† Considerable information has also been gathered from the Lives of Farel and Beza, from the pens of Kirchhofer and Schlosser; and, for the nature of Calvin's intercourse with Servetus, and other Antitrinitarians, from Mosheim's very ample account of Servetus in the second volume of his "Ketzer-Geschichte," and from Trechsel's work, "Die Antitrinitarier.” In the last are given the minutes of Servetus's trial * Histoire de la Réformation de la Suisse, nouvelle Ed., 7 vols., 8vo, Nyon, 1835-1838. † Das Leben J. Calvins des grossen Reformators, 3 b., 8vo., Hamburg, 1835-1844. at Geneva, from a copy in the Archives of Berne; and as these differ only in the orthography from the account recently published by M. Rilliet, from the original documents, the author has less reason to regret that he was unable to procure the latter work. In order to verify as much as possible the facts stated in the course of the narrative, the extracts from the Registers, or Council Book of Geneva, published by M. Grénus, in his "Fragmens Historiques," and "Biographiques," have also been consulted. Before the publication of Dr. Henry's Life of Calvin, no adequate biography of him can be said to have existed; but that work presents materials abundantly sufficient to satisfy the most minute inquirer into the actions and opinions of the Genevese Reformer. Its appearance in an English dress, from the pen of Dr. Stebbing, might seem to supersede the necessity for another work on the same subject, and, had that gentleman's book been published earlier, the present one would probably have never been undertaken; but the greater part of it was written, and a considerable portion already in the hands of the publisher, before Dr. Stebbing's translation was announced. There were circumstances, moreover, which did * See P. Henry, Leben Calvins, iii., Beil. 3. not discourage the author from proceeding. Without entering into any minute criticism of Dr. Stebbing's version, it may at least be said that it does not place the original work fully and fairly before the English public; the greater part of the notes, and nearly all the appendices, which form together about a third part of it, being omitted. These contain letters and other documents which do not always bear out the statements in the text. The original work itself, too, seemed liable to some objections. The author is far from charging Dr. Henry with any intentional want of candor; for which quality, on the contrary, considering that he is so ardent an admirer of Calvin's character, he is remarkable: but the bias of a probably unconscious prejudice has evidently led him now and then to keep some circumstances in the background, and to represent others in a light not entirely in accordance with the evidence. The form of his work, too, did not seem well adapted to the taste of an English reader; a remark which may, perhaps, be justified by the fact, that Dr. Henry himself has thought it necessary to apologize for its diffuseness and want of connection. * As the nature and extent of Calvin's intercourse with the Anglican church, and with the Marian * See the Prefaces to his second and third volumes. |