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48 INTRODUCTION.
cruentamus, nec exta inspicimus, magnis ad virtutem instrumentis
hoc religionis incommodo privamurl. '
It is clear that here the writer is mainly exasperated not
by the inadequacy of Machiavelli's argument, but by his having
ventured to compare impartially the procedure of Christianity
and of Paganism. He has entirely overlooked what in reality
is one of Machiavelli's greatest merits; that he was, namely,
among the first to point out in the most brilliant and effective
manner the use made by the Romans of religion as an 'instrumentum
regni.' Machiavelli will not allow to Christianity, as
it existed in Italy in his day, even the value of a working
hypothesis ;--' hinc illae lacrimae.' Osorio concludes with
an apology for the length of his work, which is justified by
the growing popularity of Machiavellian ideas : '... praesertim
cum eorum numerum qui vel scriptis illius incitati, vel sponte
sua ejusdem sceleris atque furoris affines sunt, late et varie
diffusum intelligerem.'
Two other curious forms which the opposition assumed
almost at the same time as the publication of the Index may be
briefly mentioned here : the Jesuits, ever zealous in defence of
the Catholic Church, burnt Machiavelli in effigy at Ingolstadt _,
and held him up to general execration as ' subdolus diabolicarum
cogitationum faber' ; while Paolo Giovio introduced the system
of 'damning with faint praise,' and while professing to write
Machiavelli's panegyric, names him ' irrisor et atheosS. ' Thus
the 'stock' epithets, which are to become inseparable from
I Dmcorsi, ii. 2 : _Perch_ avendoci la nostra Religione mostra la verit_ e la
vera via, ci fa stlmare meno 1' onore del mondo : onde i Gentih stimandolo assai,
ed avendo posto m que]lo il sommo bene, erano nelle azioni loro pifi feroci. II
,:he si pub considerate da molte loro eostltuzioni, commciandosi dalla magmficenza
de' sacnfizj loro alia umiltk de1 nostn, dove _ qualche pompa pit1 dehcata
the magnifica, ma nessuna azione feroce o gagliarda. Qul non mancava la
pomps, n_ la magnificenza delle cerimonie, ma vi sl aggiungneva 1' azione del
sacrifizio pieno di sangue e di ferocia, ammazzandovisi moltitudme d' animali ; il
quale aspetto sendo termbile, rendeva gli uomini simili a lui.'
' I Gesuiti d' Ingolstad alla statua del Machiavelli, che facevano con processo
e ragioni sommarie abbrueiare, avevano apposta la seguente iscrlzione: Quoniam
fuit homo vafer et subdolus diabohcarum cogitationum faber, cacodaemonis
auxihator.' Ugo Foscolo, Frammenti, prefixed to the edition of The Prince, published
in Switzerland, i849. The story is told by most of the recent biographers.
s Elogla doctorum virorum, auctore Paulo Jovio ; Antwerp, I557. It is only
fair to add that Giovio also says of Machiavelli, ' ipse quoque natura perargutus
et docilis, salsique judicil plenus.'