The new world had come into existence! Renascence, the lucky heir,
gathered the ripe fruit from the tree of art which had blossomed so
marvellously. God was no longer sought in the depth of the soul, all
emotion was projected into the world of sense. Churches were built, not
from an irresistible impulse, but as store-houses of the pictures which
were painted with amazing rapidity. The fundamental principle of
personality was externalised in the Renascence. Vanity and boasting,
traces of which frequently appeared in the age of chivalry, grew
exuberantly. No less manifest than the incomparable genius and _esprit_
of the heyday of the Renascence--although far less frequently commented
on--was the desire to be conspicuous, to shine, to display wealth and
learning. The essence of personality, instead of being sought in the
soul, was sought in outward magnificence. As a matter of fact, the much
extolled Renascence only perfected the various branches of art and
poetry, which had sprung up in the period of the Crusades.
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