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A HISTORY OF BOHEMIAN LITERATURE

little favour in England, Komensk^ yet remained in London up to June 1642, He here wrote, for the benefit of Hartlib and his other English friends, his Via Lucis, in which millennarian views are very noticeable. Soon after his arrival in London, Komensky had received a letter from Louis de Geers, a rich Dutch merchant, who had important business connections with Sweden. He had already entered into correspondence before, and the letter of De Geers was forwarded to Komensky from Lissa. De Geers in his letter suggested that Komensk^ should proceed to Sweden for the purpose of reorganising the schools of that country accordIt is a proof how ing to his new educational theories. soon he had lost his hope in English aid for his pansophic plans that in November 1641 Komensky already conditionally accepted the offer of De Geers. The latter had really thought of Komensky only as a man who was already an authority on matters of education ; but Komensky himself, sanguine as ever, saw in a visit to Sweden an opportunity of expounding his pansophic views to the Chancellor Oxenstiern, and also — a more sensible object — of enlisting the sympathies of the Swedish statesman for the Bohemian exiles. In June 1642 Komensky left England, and first proceeded to Holland. It is a proof of the great celebrity that he had already attained that he here received yet While travelling in Holland, Komanother invitation. ensky met Richard Charles Winthrop, formerly Governor of Massachusetts, who suggested to him that he should proceed to America and become rector of Harvard College, that had been founded six years before. Komensky-, who was bound by his agreement with the Swedish Government, in the name of which De Geers had