MENINGITIS. 319 MENNONITES. in 1?00, Pearson prodiit^d the disease cxperi- uieiitally in horses bj- feeding nioidy corn silage. Fur further study of the problem, consult: Dclaudie ExiJCriment >Statio)i Heiiorts for 1891, 1892, 1893, and 1895 (Newark, 1891, 1892, 1893, 1895) : Deluicarc Exjieritnciit Htution ISuUctin .Yo. -li (Newark, 1899) ; Maryland Experiment malion Bulletin So. o.i (College Park, 1898) ; Indiana Experiment Station Report for 1S'J7 (Lafayette, 1897). M^NIPPEE, nia'nj'pa'. A political satire in prose and verse, published in France in 1594, directed against the Catholic League and in favor of political religious toleratiim. The name is borrowed from the ^atira Mcnippca of the Roman satiric poet Varro, who had taken as a model the Greek cynic Jlenippus, Diogenes's pupil. Its full title was De la vertti du Catholieon d'Espafjne et dc la teniie des Etats dr Paris. It was the joint work of Leroy, Gillot, Passcrat, Rapin, Chrestien, Pithou, and Durant, chiefly lawyers. It ostensibly reports an assembly of the States at Paris, with a satirical introduction and a burlesque close, and is the best travesty of its kind in any language before Butler's Eudi- brus (1063). Its political eflfect was immediate and lasting. The Menippee is well edited by Labitte (1801). For a clear analysis of this satire, consult Suchier and Birch-Hirschfeld, Ge- srhirhte der franzosischen Litteratur (Leipzig, 1000). MENIP'PTJS ( Lat., from Gk. MhmTro;) ( c.250 B.i'. ). A Greek philosopher of the Cynic School, born at Gadara, in Syria. He is said to have been a slave by birth, and to have acquired con- siderable wealth, the loss of which cause<l him to hang himself. His writings, now com[)li'tely lost, were a medley of prose and verse in which he satirized the follies of men. particularly of phi- losophers. These were the model for Varro's Menippean fiatires, as well as for satires of Meleager and Lucian. See MliNiPp£E. MEN'NO SI'MONS (1492-1559). The found- er of till' later school of Anabaptists (q.v. ) in Holland, from whom the ilennonites (q.v.) take their name. He was bom at Witmarsum. in Friesland. in 1402: took orders in 1510; and was a priest in his native place from 1531 to 1530. The stiidy of the New Testament, how- ever, excited grave doubt in his mind regarding the truth both of the doctrine and constitution of the Church, and in 1530 lie withdrew from it altogether. He attached himself to the party of the Anabaptists, was rebaptized at Leeuwar- den, and in 1537 was appointed a teacher and bishop in the university of what was then known as the Old Evangelical or Waldensian Church at Groningen. Henceforth his great endeavor was to organize and unite the scattered members of the Anabaptist sect in Holland and Germany. With this design he spent much time in travel- ing: but Friesland was his chief residence until persecution compelled him to flee. Finally he settled in Oldesloe, in Holstein, where he was allowed to establish a printing press for the diffusion of his religious opinions. Here he died. January 13, 1559. He was a man of ear- nest and spiritual nature, with no trace about him of the wild fanaticism of the earlier Ana- baptists. His book of doctrine, Elements of the True Christian Faith, was published in Dutch in 1539. His works in English translation are published by the -Meunonite Publishing Society at Elkhart, Ind. MENNONITES. A denomination of evan- gelical Protcst;int Christians which arose in Switzerland in the sixteenth century. The be- ginning of the sect was in a congregation foniied in Zurich in 1525 by Conrad Grebel and his associates, Manz and Blaurock. Stress was laid upon discipline rather than dogma; abstinence from the vanities of the world was imposed; and (the State being regarded a,s unchristian) the principle of refusing to participate in civic duties, to bear arms, and to take oaths was up- held. The movement begun at Zurich extended through Switzerkaid and into Southern (Germany and Austria. The attitude of its adherents toward the State exposed them to persecution, which continued in Switzerland through the whole of the sixteenth century, and provoked emigrations into Moravia and Holland. The Anabaptists (q.v.) were active in Westphalia at the same time, and, professing some of the same views with Grebel's followers, gave occa- sion for the introduction of heresies and trou- bles. After the Anabaptist disaster at lliinster, Jlenno Simons (q.v.) l>ecame a leader among the followers of Grebel, and placed their move- ment upon a sounder footing. Allying himself with the more sober-minded elements of the Ana- baptists after 1530, he organized congregations in Northern Germany and Holland, and by virtue of his piety, discretion, and ability, made such an impression upon the body that, although he was not its founder, his name became idcnti- iied with it. The Mennonite Confession of Faith, in eighteen articles, was adopted in Holland in 1632. It embodies the usual evangelical doc- trines concerning God, the fall of man, the au- thority of the Scriptures, repentance, and bap- tism, and contains articles relating to discipline and conduct. Grace is presented as designed for all. The view taken of the Lord's Supper accords with that of Zwingli. In the United States the sacrament is observed twice a year, usually in the spring and fall, the connnunicants having been previously examined concerning their spir- itual condition. The rite of foot- washing (q.v.) is observed in connection with it. I3aptism, which is only upon confession of faith, is ad- ministered by pouring. After baptism the kiss of peace is given by the minister, or by a repre- sentative sister, if the convert is a woman. Cor- rect discipline and rectitude are considered more important elements in the Christian life than learning and the elaboration of doctrinal points. Divorce is condemned, except for adultery. The bearing of arms and taking of oaths are regarded as wrong, and the liolding of olliccs under the State is not encouraged. The Church polity is congregational, with a ministry of bishops, priests or elders, and deacons. The Mennonite Church has been divided in both Holland and Switzerland. The dilTerent branches in Holland were reunited in 1801. A division took place in Switzerland in 1020 be- tween the Lapland and Lowland Mcnnonites when Jacob Amen, of the Bernese Alps, held that ex- communication of one party dissolved the mar- riage tie, and proscribed the use of buttons and the trimming of the beard. Traces of this sepa- ration are found in the United States and Cana- da in the Amish congregations.
