saw plainly, that opinion of store was a cause of | faith, the greatest number of wits have been emwant; and that both works and doctrines appear many, and are few.

the light whereof man discerned of every living and benefits, appearing and engraven in his works, creature, and imposed names according to their which without this knowledge are beheld but as propriety, was not the occasion of the fall; but through a veil: for if the heavens in the body of the moral knowledge of good and evil, affected to them do declare the glory of God to the eye, the end to depend no more upon God's command- much more do they in the rule and decrees of ments, but for man to direct himself. Neither them declare it to the understanding. And could he find in any Scripture, that the inquiry another reason, not inferior to this, is, that the and science of man in any thing, under the mys- same natural philosophy principally amongst all teries of the Deity, is determined and restrained, other human knowledge, doth give an excellent but contrariwise allowed and provoked. For defence against both extremes of religion, superconcerning all other knowledge the Scripture pro- stition, and infidelity; for both it freeth the mind nounceth, "That it is the glory of God to conceal, from a number of weak fancies and imaginations, but it is the glory of man (or of the king, for the and it raiseth the mind to acknowledge that to king is but the excellency of man) to invent;" God all things are possible: for to that purpose and again, "The spirit of man is as the lamp of speaketh our Saviour in that first canon against God, wherewith he searcheth every secret ;" and heresies, delivered upon the case of the resurrecagain most effectually, "That God hath made all tion, "You err, not knowing the Scriptures, nor things beautiful and decent, according to the re the power of God;" teaching that there are but turn of their seasons; also that he hath set the two fountains of heresy, not knowing the will of world in man's heart, and yet man cannot find God revealed in the Scriptures, and not knowing out the work which God worketh from the be- the power of God revealed or at least made most ginning to the end;" showing that the heart of sensible in his creatures. So as he saw well, that man is a continent of that concave or capacity, natural philosophy was of excellent use to the wherein the content of the world, that is, all forms exaltation of the Divine Majesty; and, that which of the creatures, and whatsoever is not God, may is admirable, that being a remedy of superstition, it be placed or received; and complaining, that is nevertheless an help to faith. He saw likewise, through the variety of things, and vicissitudes of that the former opinions to the prejudice hereof had times, which are but impediments and not impuis- no true ground; but must spring either out of mere sances, man cannot accomplish his invention. In ignorance, or out of an excess of devotion, to have precedent also he set before his eyes, that in those divinity all in all; whereas it should be only few memorials before the flood, the Scripture above all; both which states of mind may be best honoureth the name of the inventors of music and pardoned; or else out of worse causes, namely out works in metal; that Moses had this addition of of envy, which is proud weakness, and deserveth praise, that he was seen in all the learning of the to be despised; or out of some mixture of imposture, Egyptians; that Solomon, in his grant of wisdom to tell a lie for God's cause; or out of an impious from God, had contained, as a branch thereof, that diffidence, as if men should fear to discover some knowledge whereby he wrote a natural history of things in nature which might subvert faith. But all verdure, from the cedar to the moss, and of all still he saw well, howsoever these opinions are that breatheth: that the book of Job, and many in right reason reproved, yet they leave not to be places of the prophets, have great aspersion of most effectual hinderances to natural philosophy natural philosophy; that the church in the bosom and invention. and lap thereof, in the greatest injuries of times, ever preserved, as holy relics, the books of philosophy and all heathen learning; and that when Gregory, the bishop of Rome, became adverse and unjust to the memory of heathen antiquity, it was censured for pusillanimity in him, and the honour thereof soon after restored, and his own memory almost persecuted by his successor Sabinian; and lastly, in our times, and the ages of our fathers, when Luther and the divines of the Protestant church on the one side, and the Jesuits on the other, have enterprised to reform, the one the doctrine, the other the discipline and manners of the church of Rome, he saw well how both of them have awaked to their great honour and succour, all human learning. And for reason, there cannot be a greater and more evident than this, that all knowledge, and specially that of natural philosophy, tendeth highly to the magnifying of the glory of God, in his power, providence,

8. He thought also, that there wanted not great contrariety to the further discovery of sciences in regard of the orders and customs of universities, and also in regard of common opinion. For in universities and colleges men's studies are almost confined to certain authors, from which if any dissenteth or propoundeth matter of redargution, it is enough to make him thought a person turbulent; whereas if it be well advised, there is a great difference to be made between matters contemplative and active. For in government change is suspected, though the better; but it is natural to arts to be in perpetual agitation and growth. Neither is the danger alike of new light, and of new motion or remove; and for vulgar and received opinions, nothing is more usual, or more usually complained of, than that it is imposed for arrogan y and presumption, for men to authorize themselves against antiquity and authors, towards whom envy is ceased, and reverence by time amortised;

FILUM LABYRINTHI.

of sense and demonstration. But to use the poet's language, men ought to have remembered, that although Ixion of a cloud in the likeness of Juno begat Centaurs and Chimeras, yet Jupiter also of the true Juno begat Vulcan and Hebe. Neither is it just to deny credit to the greatness of the acts of Alexander, because the like or more strange have been feigned of an Amadis or an Arthur, or other fabulous worthies. But though this in true reason should be, and that men ought not to make a confusion of unbelief; yet he saw well it could not otherwise be in event, but that experience of untruth had made access to truth more difficult, and that the ignominy of vanity had abated all greatness of mind.

it not being considered what Aristotle himself did, I pass, hold much more of imagination and belief than upon whom the philosophy that now is chiefly dependeth, who came with a professed contradiction to all the world, and did put all his opinions upon his own authority and argument, and never so much as nameth an author but to confute and reprove him; and yet his success well fulfilled the observation of Him that said, “If a man come in his own name, him will you receive." Men think, likewise, that if they should give themselves to the liberty of invention and travail of inquiry, that they shall light again upon some conceits and contemplations which have been formerly offered to the world, and have been put down by the better, which have prevailed and brought them to oblivion; not seeing, that howsoever the property and breeding of knowledges is in great and excellent wits, yet the estimation and price of them is in the multitude, or in the inclinations of princes and great persons meanly learned. So as those knowledges are like to be received and honoured, which have their foundation in the subtilty or finest trial of common sense, or such as fill the imagination, and not such knowledge as is digged out of the hard mine of history and experience, and falleth out to be in some points as adverse to common sense, or popular reason, as religion, or more. Which kind of knowledge, except it be delivered with strange advantages of eloquence and power, may be likely to appear and disclose a little to the world, and straight to vanish and shut again. So that time seemeth to be of the nature of a river or flood, that bringeth down to us that which is light and blown up, and sinketh and drowneth that which is solid and grave. So he saw well, that both in the state of religion, and in the administration of learning, and in common opinion, there were many and continual stops and traverses to the course of invention.

9. He thought also, that the invention of works and further possibility was prejudiced in a more special manner than that of speculative truth; for besides the impediments common to both, it hath by itself been notably hurt and discredited by the vain promises and pretences of alchemy, magic, astrology, and such other arts, which, as they now

10. He thought also, there was found in the mind of man an affection naturally bred and fortified, and furthered by discourse and doctrine, which did pervert the true proceeding towards active and operative knowledge. This was a false estimation, that it should be as a diminution to the mind of man to be much conversant in experiences and particulars, subject to sense, and bound in matter, and which are laborious to search, ignoble to meditate, harsh to deliver, illiberal to practise, infinite as is supposed in number, and noways accommodate to the glory of arts. This opinion or state of mind received much credit and strength by the school of Plato, who thinking that particulars rather revived the notions, or excited the faculties of the mind, than merely informed: and having mingled his philosophy with superstition, which never favoureth the sense, extolleth too much the understanding of man in the inward light thereof. And again, Aristotle's school, which giveth the due to the sense in assertion, denieth it in practice much more than that of Plato. For we see the schoolmen, Aristotle's successors, which were utterly ignorant of history, rested only upon agitation of wit; whereas Plato giveth good example of inquiry by induction and view of particulars: though in such a wandering manner as is of no force or fruit. So that he saw well, that the supposition of the sufficiency of man's mind hath lost the means thereof.

SEQUELA CHARTARUM;

SIVE

INQUISITIO LEGITIMA

DE CALORE ET FRIGORE.

SECTIO ORDINIS.

Charta suggestionis, sive memoria fixa.

THE Sunbeams hot to sense. The moonbeams not hot, but rather conceived to have a quality of cold, for that the greatest colds are noted to be about the full, and the greatest heats about the change. Query.

The sun noted to be hotter when it shineth forth between clouds, than when the sky is open and serene.

The middle region of the air hath manifest effects of cold, notwithstanding locally it be nearer the sun, commonly imputed to antiperistasis, assuming that the beams of the sun are hot either

The beams of the stars have no sensible heat by themselves; but are conceived to have an augmentative heat of the sunbeams by the instance follow-by approach or by reflection, and that falleth in ing. The same climate arctic and antarctic are observed to differ in cold, viz. that the antarctic is the more cold, and it is manifest the antarctic hemisphere is thinner planted with stars.

The heats observed to be greater in July than in June; at which time the sun is nearest the greatest fixed stars, viz. Cor Leonis, Cauda Leonis, Spica, Virginis, Sirius, Canicula.

the middle term between both; or if, as some conceive, it be only by reflection, then the cold of that region resteth chiefly upon distance. The instances showing the cold of that region, are the snows which descend, the hails which descend, and the snows and extreme colds which are upon high mountains.

But Qu. of such mountains as adjoin to sandy

The conjunction of any two of the three highest vales, and not to fruitful vales, which minister planets noted to cause great heats.

no vapours: or of mountains above the region

Comets conceived by some to be as well causes of vapours, as is reported of Olympus, where any as effects of heat, much more the stars.

The sunbeams have greater heat when they are more perpendicular than when they are more oblique as appeareth in difference of regions, and the difference of the times of summer and winter in the same region; and chiefly in the difference of the hours of mid-day, mornings, evenings, in the same day.

The heats more extreme in July and August than in May or June, commonly imputed to the stay and continuance of heat.

The heats more extreme under the tropics than under the line commonly imputed to the stay and continuance of heat, because the sun there doth as it were double a cape.

The heats more about three or four of clock than at noon; commonly imputed to the stay and continuance of heat.

inscription upon the ashes of the altar remained untouched of wind or dew. And note, it is also reported that men carry up sponges with vinegar to thicken their breath, the air growing too fine for respiration, which seemeth not to stand with coldness.

sun.

The clouds make a mitigation of the heat of the So doth the interposition of any body, which we term shades: but yet the nights in summer are many times as hot to the feeling of men's bodies as the days are within doors, where the beams of the sun actually beat not.

There is no other nature of heat known from the celestial bodies or from the air, but that which cometh by the sunbeams. For in the countries near the pole, we see the extreme colds end in the summer months, as in the voyage of Nova Zembla, where they could not disengage their

The beams of the sun do disclose summer flowers, as the pimpernel, marigold, and almost all flowers else, for they close commonly morning and evening, or in overcast weather, and open in the brightness of the sun: which is but imputed to dryness and moisture, which doth make the beams heavy or erect, and not to any other proThe trees in the cold countries are such as are priety in the sunbeams; so they report not only fuller of rosin, pitch, tar, which are matters apt a closing, but a bending or inclining in the for fire, and the woods themselves more combus-"heliotropium” and “calendula.” Qu. tible than those in much hotter countries; as, for example, fir, pineapple, juniper. Qu. Whether their trees of the same kind that ours are, as oak and ash, bear not, in the more cold countries, a wood more brittle and ready to take fire than the same kinds with us?