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Show THE GREAT REFORMATION OF Til 10 HSTU CKNTl'RV Hy 0. N. Lund, Jr. It was four hundred years ago Wednesday of this week since Martin Luther, the leader of the German Reformation hailed his ninety-five Propositions, or Theses, to the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg and defied the Catholic church, which then practically ruled the world. The power of Romanism was so great at that time that it swayed mighty empires em-pires and made kings and rulers bow to its wishes, and it ruled the people with a most cruel despotism. Its trinity was in fact ignorance, superstition super-stition and fear. To go against this power meant death and many times much worse .than death. Its hand of massacre and blood shed was everywhere, ev-erywhere, and in every city was the torture chamber and the dungeon. Martin Luther defied this power and in all the world's history the magnificence of his courage add his superb manhood and ' his superior ! learning shines out pf that dark I period of the world's history as a i beautiful light and will forever be I an example that will thrill the minds (and heart's of mortal men. He principally prin-cipally is to be thanked for striking off from the hands of the human race the worst shackles that ever bound God's children. Those shackles not onty cur, mto the flesh and bone but they cut into the very souls and minds of men and women. Martin Luther, with what aid he could muster, mus-ter, struck a blow against oppression and cruelty and slavery and superstition super-stition among men, and the sound and effect of that blow has helped to make better every day of life for four hundred years. |