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 PRINCETON, N. J. 
 SAMUEL AONEW, 
 
 OK PHILADELPHIA, PA. 
 
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 Cibrarjp of Che t:heolo0ical^^emmar;)p 
 
 PRINCETON • NEW JERSEY 
 
 3:^57 
 
I TT' 
 
 Sir George Mackenzie's 
 
 >Iorar Effays. 
 
 A 
 
ESSAYS 
 
 UPON SEVERAL 
 
 Moral SuhjeSts^ 
 
 VIZ. 
 
 The Religious Stoic. 
 
 Solitude preferr'd 
 to Publick Employ- 
 ment. 
 
 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 The Moral Hiftory 
 of Frugality: 
 With its Oppofite 
 Vices. 
 
 An EfTay on Reason. 
 
 By Sir Geokge Mackenzie, Kt- 
 
 To whicTi is Prefix'd , 
 
 Some Account of His Life and Writings. 
 With an INDEX to the Whole. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 Printed for D. Brown, R. Sare, J. Churchill^ 
 
 J. Nicholfon , B. Tooke , and G. Strahan. 
 
 M DCC XIIL 
 
r 
 
SOME 
 
 ACCOUNT 
 
 O F 
 
 Sir George Mackenzie. 
 
 ISuppofe there is the fame Curiofi- 
 ty in Readers , as there alway^ 
 hath been , to know as much as 
 they can of the Perfon vvhofe Works 
 they periite ; efpecially if it appears, 
 by what he has left behind him, that 
 he was a very Ingenious, Worthy 
 Man. And therefore , fince the 
 W^ritings of this Excellent Perfon 
 have been long fince made Publick 
 with great Approbation, and nothing 
 of his Life prefix'd to any of them, 
 I fhall venture to fend abroad with 
 A 3 this 
 
ij Some Account of the 
 
 this New Edition of his Moral 
 Tradls, fuch an Account of the Au* 
 thor as I find in JVood's AthencC O.v- 
 onienfes^ or have received from fome 
 of his Acquaintance, or have gather'd 
 from what he fays of himfelf in the 
 following Book. 
 
 Sir Georo;e Machnzie was born at 
 Dundee in the County of Angus , 
 1656. His Father was Simon Mac^ 
 Tienzie^ Brother to the Earl of Sea^ 
 forth ^ and his Mother Elizabeth the 
 Daughter of Dr. Ayidre^ Bruce , 
 Reftor of the Univerfity of St. An^ 
 drezv. He was fuch an early Profi- 
 cient in Learning, that when he was 
 about Ten Years old, he had read his 
 Grammar and the bell Claffick Au- 
 thors, fo that he was thought fit at 
 that Age to be fent to the Univerfity 
 of Aberdene. There, and afterwards 
 at St. Andre 'ws^ he went through the 
 Courfes of Logick and Philolbphy, 
 under the Tuition of feveral Emment 
 Mafters j and this he perform'd be- 
 fore 
 
Lip of the Author'^ &c. iij 
 
 fore he was quite Sixteen. In the 
 next place, he turn'd his Thoughts 
 with great Application, to the Study 
 of the Civil Law ; for which Pur- 
 pofe he traveird into France^ and 
 fettled himfelf in the Univerlity of 
 Bourges a clofe Student for about 
 Three Years. After this he return d 
 to his Native Country, and became 
 an Advocate in the Courts at Eden^ 
 hurgh ^ being then fcarce Twenty 
 Years of Age. In 1661. he vi^as 
 made Choice of, to be an Advocate 
 for pleading the Caufes of the Mar- 
 quefs oiArgyle : His next Promotion 
 was to the Office of a Judge in the 
 Criminal Court, which he difchar- 
 ged with great Juftice and Integrity. 
 This raifed him fo much in the Eftecrti 
 and Favour of King Charles II. that 
 he made him his Lord Advocate^and 
 one of his Privy Council. And nor- 
 withftanding the great Trouble and 
 Moleftation that was given him by 
 the Fanatick Party, yet he continued 
 in thofe Places, and lidod Steddy^ 
 A \ Fai.lhful 
 
iv Some Account of the 
 
 Faithful and Juft in the Opinion of all 
 Loyal and Good Men, to the End of 
 this Reign. 
 
 When King "^ames the lid, (the 
 Vllth of that Name in Scotland) 
 who came next to the Crown, attem- 
 pted to take away the Penal Laws, 
 requiring the CompHance of his 
 Judges, Sir George ftill held faft his 
 Integrity, and chofe rather to quit 
 his Station than betray his Truft : 
 Upon his Removal, Sir J'ohn Dalrim^ 
 j)le was put into his Place. But it 
 was not long before he was reftored,. 
 and continued Lord Advocate and 
 Privy Counftllor till King JVilliam HI. 
 made a Revolution in Scotland, Up- 
 on which Change of Government, 
 and the violent Proceedings of the 
 Kirk Party, fie left his own Country, 
 and retired to the Famous Univerlity 
 oi Oxford^ in September^ 1689.. ^^^^^ 
 in a Congregation of Regents, Junei, 
 ^690. he was admitted to ituJy in 
 tlie Publick Library, which lie much 
 frequented ail that Summer. 
 
 In 
 
Life of the Author^ &c. 
 
 In the Spring following, we find 
 him at Lodgings in St. jTaw^/s-Street, 
 Weftminfler^ near the Royal Palace ; 
 which was the lafl: Scene of his Life 
 in this World ; for in the Beginning 
 of May he died there, much lament- 
 ed of all truly Religious, Loyal, and 
 Learned Men. From thence his Bo- 
 dy was carried by Land into Scotland ^ 
 and after it had lain fome time in the 
 Abbey-Church of Halyrood-Houje at 
 Edenburgh^ it was, on the 26th of 
 "^une following, buried with great 
 State and Solemnity, in the Francif* 
 can or Grey^Fryars Church-yard, in a 
 Vault there made by himfelf, with a 
 Cupulo of Freeitone over it. 
 
 His Funeral was attended by all 
 the Council, Nobility, Colleges of 
 Juftice , Univerfity , Clergy , and 
 Gentry , and fuch a Concourfe of Peo- 
 ple, as was never fecn upon the like 
 Occafion. At the lame time was 
 falien'd to his Cofiin a large Infcripti- 
 on in Latin ; Fart of which runs 
 
 thus TatricC decus , religtonis Vin- 
 
 dcs^ 
 
Vj Some Account of the 
 
 dex^ Jiijlhice fropugnator^ luris Regit 
 ajfertor flrenuus If)* tndefeffus. Collegii 
 Juridici^ five Juriffrudentiam jummam^ 
 five elocjucntuim esimiam^ five in inflru^ 
 enda Jiir if consult or um Bibliotheca cu^ 
 ram^ <(sr locupletanda munificenttam fpe* 
 Bes , ornamentum imprimis iUuJire, 
 Comitatis exemplar^ eruditorum Mccce^ 
 nas eritditijfimus^ omnibus char us ^ ft 
 per due Ilium coUuviem ep^cipias. A quo* 
 rum vtolentik patriam fatri^que patrem 
 cum ore tum calamo acerrime vindtcavit^ 
 virulentiam jure }^ jufliuk temperavit^ 
 ferociam rationis viribus retudit^ ac 
 tantum non domuit. MonarchivC Genius 
 tutelaris^ fama^ eloquio ^ morum inte- 
 ^ritate^ fadis to' jcriptis clarus^ Eccle^ 
 jicc , Kegi , Republic ce , Liter is }S> 
 Amicis visit, Maij die cHavo ^ anno 
 1 69 1, iyi 'Domino obiit defideratilfmus, 
 7. e. ^^ The Glory of his Councrcy^ 
 ^*' the Champion of Religion / the 
 ^^ Patron of Juftice^the ftienuous and 
 ^^ undaunted Aflertor of the Royal 
 ^''Prerogative. He was a fhining 
 ^^ Ornament of the College of x'\dvo- 
 
 ^' cate?^ 
 
hifr of the Author^ &c. vij 
 
 ^^ cates, both for his perfect Know- 
 ^^ ledge of the Law, and his Eloquent 
 ^' Pleadings ; as alfo for his great 
 ^' Pains and, Munificence beftowed 
 '^ upon the Library there. He was 
 " a Perfon of Angular Humanity , a 
 *^ conftant Encourager of Learned 
 ^^ Men, and had the Love of every 
 ^^ Body, except the faftious and fedi^ 
 ^' tious Sort of People ; Whofe Rage 
 ^^ he oppofed with his Tongue and 
 *^ Pen, in Defence of his Prince and 
 '* Countrey , curbing their violent 
 '^ Spirits with the ftriit Reins of the 
 *' Law, and forcing them , for the 
 ^^ moft part , to contain themfelves 
 ^^ within the Bounds of Duty and 
 ^' good Order. He was zealoufly af- 
 ^^ fefted to Monarchy , entirely de- 
 ^' voted to the Service of his Church, 
 " his King, his Countrey , and all 
 ^^ his Friends. He lived in great Re- 
 " putatlon for his Eloquence, Since- 
 ^} rity , ftritt Virtue , and learned 
 " Works ; and was much lamented 
 " at his Death, which happen'd on 
 
 " the 
 
viij Some Account of the 
 
 "the 8th oi' May ^ in the Year 
 "1691. 
 
 He was a Gentleman of a Pleafant 
 and Ufeful Converfation ; but a le- 
 vere Oppofer of vicious and loofe 
 Principles in whomfoever he found 
 them : He was a great Lover of the 
 Laws and Cuftoms of his Country, 
 regardlefs of Riches or Popularity, 
 frugal in his Expences,and temperate 
 in his Diet ; A Faithful Friend, a 
 Loyal Subjeft, an Able Statefman, a 
 Conftant Advocate for the Clergy 
 and Univerfities, and a zealous De*- 
 fender of Piety and Religion in all 
 Companies. His Abilities in his Pro- 
 feffion were great, which he never 
 exerted but with the greateft Integri- 
 ty, being a Perfon of fl:ri£t Honour 
 and Juftice in all his Aftions. His 
 Natural Parts were extraordinary 
 good, which he improved by indefa- 
 tigable Pains , and made himfelf 
 thoroughly acquainted with all the 
 beii Writer?^ Ancient and Modern. 
 
 The 
 
Life of v.^o j^uthor^ &c. ix 
 
 The Gayety of his Fancy, and Ferti- 
 lity of his Invention, were corre6Jed 
 by fo exa£t a Judgment, that \vt is 
 copious upon all his Subjefts, and yet 
 very clofe and pertinent. All his 
 Thoughts are clear and coherent, 
 and his mod ferious Difcourfes have 
 fuch Variety of Curious Remarks and 
 Obfervations, as render them very 
 pleafant and diverting. 
 
 His Virtuoso or Stoic fliews us what 
 folid Fruits his green and tender 
 Years were able to produce : For he 
 was not Five and Twenty Years old 
 when he writ it. It is wonderful to 
 find fo young a-Perfon make choice 
 of fuch grave and weighty Subjeds 
 to employ his Thoughts upon ; and 
 to treat them with fuch Variety of 
 Learningand Exaftnefs of Judgment. 
 His Obfervations upon Divine and 
 Human Things are far beyond what 
 one would imagine him capable of ma- 
 king at that Age. But I was moft fur- 
 prized at theModefty and Piety of the 
 good Man, when I read that Paffage 
 
 in 
 
Some Account of the 
 
 in hisChaptcr of the Holy Scriptures, 
 f. 40,4.1. '•'I pity {jays /j^j thole, who 
 '^ out of an inadvertent (^and, as they 
 " think, finlefsj Humour, jeft with 
 *' thefe Divine Truths ; like foolifh 
 " Children, who love rather to fport 
 " with their Meat , than eat it. 
 ^' Thefe, tho' they intend not to pro- 
 ^^ phane Scripture, yet they vilify 
 " it : And we may fay of the Bible, 
 " as of taking God's Name in our 
 " Mouths, which muft not only not 
 " be done upon Defign to blafpheme 
 " and defame him, but muft not be 
 " taken but upon Neceffity ; and like 
 ^^ the Shew-bread, muft be ufed on- 
 '' ly when we are in Straights. I 
 " have been too guilty of this laft 
 ^^ Sin my felf ; and therefore left I 
 " fhould make no Atonement, I have 
 ^^ rather refolved to appear before the 
 " World in the Duft and Sackcloth 
 " of this filly Difcourfe, a Penance 
 " really to me very great". This 
 certainly is an Inftance of Ingenuity, 
 Piety, and Modefty, very uncom- 
 mon 
 
Life of the Authar^ &c. xj 
 
 mon in Young Men of fuch great 
 Parts and Learning. And let this 
 fuffice for a Tafte of the Spirit of the 
 Man, which is indeed all of a Piece, 
 Excellent throughout, as the follow- 
 ing Effays will abundantly teftify. 
 
 Ayitony Wood in his Alheme Oxonien- 
 fes^ has given this Catalogue of 
 Sir George Mackenzie^ Learned 
 Works, 
 
 1. Aretina, a Romance^ 8vo. 
 
 2. Religio Stoici, The Virtuofo or 
 Stotch^ 8vo. Trmted 1 66^. Edenb. 
 
 3 . Solitude preferrd to Tublick Em- 
 ployment. 8vo. Edenb. 
 
 4. Moral Gallantry. 8vo. 
 
 y . A Moral 7aradoic , maintaining 
 that it is e after to be yirtuous than Vi- 
 cious, 8vQ, 
 
 6. pleadings in fome Remarhable 
 C(^fes before the Sup'eme Courts of 
 Scotland. 4to. 
 
 7. Obfervations upon the i%th AB 
 Qf the 7jd "Parliament of King James 
 
 the 
 
xij Some Account of the 
 
 the Vlth, againfl ^iffojitions made in 
 ^Defraud of Creditors. 8vo. Edenb. 
 
 8. Of the LaisDS and Cufloms of 
 Scotland , in Matters Criminal. \to. 
 
 1678. Edeob. 
 
 9. Ohfervations on the La^ws and 
 Cufloms of Illations as to precedency ^ 
 'With the Science of Heraldry treated 
 as a Tart of the Civil Law of Nati- 
 ons \ "wherein Reafons are given for its 
 Trinciples , and Etymologies for its 
 harder Terms, Fol. 1680. Edenb. 
 
 10. Idea Eloquentioe Forenfis ho- 
 diernos : Una cum Aftione Forenfi 
 ex unaquaque juris parte, Se;^?. 1681. 
 
 Edenb. 
 
 11. Jus Regium : Or the jitji and 
 folid Foundations of Monarchy in gene^ 
 ral • and more efpecially of the Monar- 
 chy of Scotland ; maintained again fi 
 Buchanan, Naphthali^Doleman^ Mil- 
 ton, Jf/c. 8vo. 1684.. London. 
 
 This Book being dedicated and 
 prefented by the Author to thellni- 
 veifity of 0^w^, the Members there- 
 of affembled in Convocation^ 9 "fune^ 
 
 1684.. 
 
Life of the Author^ &c. xiij 
 
 1^84.. ordered a Letter of Thanks to 
 be fent to him for the faid Book, and 
 his worthy Pains therein, }s>c. 
 
 12. ne'Difcovery of the Fanatick 
 Tlotj Fol. 1684* 
 
 I J. Inflitutions of the Laws of Scot^ 
 land, 8vo. 1684* 
 
 14.. Trocefs againfl Bayly ^/ Jer- 
 vifwood. 
 
 15. ^ DeJ^nfe of the Antiquity of 
 the Royal Line of Scotland ; IVith a 
 true Account 'when the Scots "were go- 
 vernd hy Kings in the Ifle of Britain^ 
 8vo. 1685. London* 
 
 Written in anfwer to an Hiftorical 
 Account of Church Government,to'c* 
 publifhed by Dr. JVilliam Lloyd Bi> 
 Ihop of St.Afaph. Siv George's De^ 
 fcnfe was publiOied in the latter end 
 of ^une^ 1685 > ^^^ before it came 
 out^ it was animadverted upon by 
 Dr. Edward Stillingfleet ( who had 
 before feen the AiS. of it) in his Pre^ 
 face to his Book entituled Cfigines 
 BritamicvC^¥o\. June* 1685. Lon. 
 
 16, T'be Antiquity of the Royd 
 
 fa) L 
 
xiv Some Account of the 
 
 Line of Scotland farther cleared and 
 defended^ againji the Exceptions lately 
 offered by T>r. Stillingfleer,2>z his Vindi- 
 cation of the BiJJ^op of St. Afaph, 8w. 
 
 1686. Lond. 
 
 1 7. Ohfervations upon A3.S of Tar^ 
 llament^ Fol. 1686. Eden. 
 
 18. Qratio Inauguralis habita E- 
 denburgi Id. Mar. 1689, de ftrudtura 
 Bibliotliecae pure Juridical, & hinc de 
 vario in jure fcnbendi genere, Svo, 
 
 1690. 
 
 1 9. Moral Hiftory of Frugality.^ "with 
 its op fojite Vices ^ 8vo. 1691. Lon. 
 
 ao. hnbecillitas humanas rationis. 
 Alfa in Englifh, ?>vo. 1690. Lon. 
 
 1 1 . Vindication of the Government 
 of Scotland during the Reign of K. 
 Ch. II. Alfo the Method of proceed- 
 ing againjl Criminals c^nd Fanatical Co- 
 yenants^ 4to, 1691. Lon. 
 
 22. Anfisuer to the Scotch Mini- 
 Jlers : Being a Vindication of the Tro^ 
 feedings againfl Argyle. Edinb. 
 
 i:{, 'Di'fenfe of the proceedings of 
 fhe Tti'vj Coiuicii in Scotland. 
 
 * ' " ^4-. Me- 
 
Life of the Author^ Slc, xv 
 
 ^•4. Memorial about the Bifbops to 
 the Trine e of Orange ^ to'r. 
 
 He hath alfo (fays Wood) left be- 
 hind him about 14. MSS. of his own 
 Compofition, which in good Time 
 may fee the Light. 
 
 Befides his Ingenious Writings, I 
 have feen Two other Remains of this 
 Worthy Gentleman .* One, a Son of 
 his, who was Gentleman Commoner 
 of UniverJity-QoWQgt in Oxford about 
 Eight or Nine Years ago, and had 
 the Character of a very Sober, vvell 
 Accomplifh'd Man : The other , his 
 Pidlure, which is in the Hands of his 
 intimate Friend the Reverend Dr. 
 ^harlett^ Mafter of the faid College^ 
 to whom Sir George prefented it. 
 
 Th^ 
 
The Contents of the 
 Several Treatifes. 
 
 'Y'HB Religious Stoic : Or a Jhort Dif 
 
 •*• courfe on fever al Moral Suhje^s. With a 
 
 Friendly Addrefs to the Fanaticks of all 
 
 Sorts. Page i, 
 
 A Moral Ejfay , Preferring Solitude to Ptd- 
 
 lick Employment , and all its Appanages ; 
 
 Juch as Fame , Command , Riches , Flea^ 
 
 fureSy Converfation, &c. Page 89* 
 
 Moral Gallantry : A Difcourfe wherein the 
 Author endeavours to prove^ that Point of 
 Honour ( ahJiraHing from all other Ties J 
 obliges Men to he P^irtuous* And that there 
 is nothing fo Mean ( or unworthy of a Gen» 
 tleman ) as Vice. To which is added , A 
 Conflation againji Calumnies, Page 1 574 
 
 The Moral Hijlory of Frugality : With its 
 oppofite Vices^ Covetoufnefs^ I^iggardlinefs^ 
 Prodigality, and Luxtify* Page 185* 
 
 Rcafon. An Ejfay, Page j(5i« 
 
THE 
 
 Religious Stoic : 
 
 Or, A Short 
 
 DISCOURSE 
 
 ON THESE 
 
 Several Suhjecis. 
 
 F I Z. 
 
 Of Atheifm. Superftition. World's Creation. 
 
 Eternity, Providence, Theology. 
 
 Stridnefs of Churches. Of the Scriptures. 
 
 Of the Moral and Judicial Law. 
 
 Of Monfters. Of Man and his Creation. 
 
 Of the Immortality of the Soul. 
 
 Of Faith and Realbn. 
 
 Of the Fall of Angels; and what their Sin was. 
 
 Of Man's Fall. Of the Stile of Gemfis. 
 
 Why Man fell. 
 A Refutation of the AfJilnM-ies, &c. 
 
 W I T H 
 
 A Friendly Addreis to the Fanatics, 
 of all Sefts and Sorts. 
 
 By Sir GEORGE MACKENZIE. 
 
 Te men of Galilee, why fta»d ye gazing up hito heanjm Aft. i . 1 1 . 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 Printed in the Year M DCC XI. 
 
 i 
 
The S T O I C's Addrefs 
 
 l^ijthU Church may he notv concluded to he in a 'very 
 dijhmpered Condition , vvhen its Charity waxeth coldy 
 and its "Zeal hot, beyond what is due to either ; 
 and thoje fe'verijli Fits of unnatural Zeal, wherewith \ 
 the Church is troubled in its old and cold Age , he- <4| 
 tokens too much that it draws near its lajl Te- 
 riod. 
 
 The Incon/tderablenefs likewife of our Differences, 
 and Inconfidcratenefs wherewith they are purfued , indu- 
 ces me to belie've , that the Zeal novf A-la-mode, is 
 not that Holy Fire which is kindled by a Coal from the 
 Altar ', but is that Ignis fatuus, or Wild-fire, which 
 is but a Meteor pieced up of malignant Vapours, and 
 ts obferved to frequent Church-yards oftner than other 
 Threes. 
 
 I am none of thofe who ack?iowledge no Temples_, 
 hefides thofe of their own Heads. And I am of Opini- 
 on , that fuch as think that they ha've a Church within 
 their own Breafts , flwuld likewife believe their Heads 
 are Steeples , and fo jhould pro'vide them with Bells. I 
 htlicve that there is a Church militant, which, like the 
 ylrk , 77ii^fl lodge in its Bowels all fuch as are to be 
 fd'ved from the Flood of Condemnation : But, to chalk 
 out its bordermg Lines , is beyond the Geography of 
 my Religion. He was infallible who compared God's 
 Spirit to the Wind that bloweth where it lift- 
 eth ; we hear the Sound of it , but know not 
 whence it comes, or whither it goeth. And the 
 Name gra'vcn upon the white Stone , none knows but 
 he who hath it. Eli concluded Hannah to be drunk, 
 when jhe was pouring out her Soul before her A taker : 
 And Elias believed, that the Church , in his Days, 
 was fthitsd to his own Terfon ; and yet God told him, 
 that there were 7000 in Ifrael , who had not bowed 
 their Knees to Baal ." IVhy then (liould any pri-vaie 
 Cbriftian deter7i'iine magifhriaH, , tb.rt wherein the 
 greatef- of Vrophits erred ■'. 
 
to the FANATICS. 
 
 TiJe Reed v^heren'hh the Temple iv.ts to he r/aa^ 
 fttr'd y Rev. ir. 2. "ii^as only entrtifhad to av An'j^el -^ 
 and yet he had not in CommiJJion to meafure the 
 Court that was without, b£caure it was given 
 to the Gentiles. And albeit , Rev. 7. the Num- 
 ber of the Jews vjho were faved is determined ; yet 
 the Number of Gentiles is left indefinite , and Jald 
 to he nu7fiberlefs. 
 
 There is nothing more ordinary ^ than for each N!tlo7i 
 to confine the Church within themjelves. And in that 
 Nation again ^ one Corner will have themfel'ves the 
 Sandlum Sanftorum of that only Temple • albeit 
 our Sa'viour in his Gofpel ajfures us , that Mdn 
 Jhall come from all Corners of the World , and (it 
 down with Abraham , Ifaac , and Jacob. And 
 John in his Revelation tells us , that M:iltitudes of 
 all Nat ions y Kindreds and Families , were feen follow- 
 ing the Lamb. Upon this fame Block do thofe like- 
 wife fumble , who put the Bolt of their Unchari- 
 tablenefs upon the Gates of Hea'ven , to debar whole 
 Vrofejfionsj fuch as Lawyers and Phyf clans ^ from en- 
 tring in thereat ; notwithftanding that the abo've-ci- 
 ted place tells us j that there 7i> ere only 1200 of the 
 "Tribe of Levi^ the Briefi-chofcn ; and the like Number 
 ■ was pricked in the Tribe of Judah, the Lajvgiver. 
 A3.ron the Brief did mold the Golden Calf , and not 
 Mofes the Judge • and Korah and Dathan were 
 Levites , and yet mutiny'd againfi their Afjgi- 
 ftrates. 
 
 I fay not this to difparage that Holy FunHion • for 
 none Jhall wijh Aaron'^f Rod to flourijJ] more thar/ my 
 felf • and ordinarily ^ thofe oi^ho love not to touch 
 the Lord s Anointed ^ will Ukewife be fure to do his 
 Prophets no harm : But, I fay it to take off an Afper- 
 fion which hath [taind too long, and too unjultly, thofe 
 of my own Profcfjion. Is not the Church our common 
 Mother ? Albeit, I confefs, Jhe ps Ukewife their Nurfe, 
 in a more partlcidar vjay ; and fmce there is Heaven- 
 
 A 5 h 
 
TheSTOICs Addrefs 
 
 ly Manna eiwugh to aliment us all, -why flwuU 
 Chnllians deny to admit their Brethren to an etjual 
 Partage ? 
 
 It grie'ves me fore to fee my Mother ^ the Church, tor- 
 tttrdy like Rebecca , by carrying ftruggUng Twins in 
 her gained Bov^els. And feeing all Christians are but 
 pilgrims here, I admire that thofe Pilgrims fiould leave 
 ojf to journey, andfiandskirmijhing and fighting with 
 all Juch as ivlH not traijel their Road. And albeit we 
 acknowledge, that the Spirit of God takes pains, and is 
 fuffcimt for leading all Men in the way wherein they 
 jhoitld walk ; yet we mufl compel them, as if either 
 He needed our help, or we refolded to fiiare with him 
 the Glory of their Converfion. Thus God ( who loves 
 us all infinitely better than any one of us doth another ) 
 leaves tis, upon our own haz,ard, a freedom in our choice, 
 albeit we poor Mifcreants compel one another , denying 
 to our Fellow-creatures that Freedom which he allows all 
 the Creation. I ovijl) we would confider how each Man 
 eats, drinks, cares for his Family, and performs all 
 common Duties, rationally enough without any Com- 
 pulfion ; and yet, in the Affairs of Religion, wherein 
 Joiibtlcfs Man is led by a fir more infallible Affif^ance, 
 there are many Slips committed daily and g^ofly, not- 
 withfianding all Pains taken a?id Force ufed by one Man 
 towards another. Thus it fares with us as ivith Pati- 
 ents, whom when the Phyfician flints to a narrow Dyet, 
 then they loath even that Food, which their unreined Ap- 
 petite would never Lcve rejected. And this makes me 
 apt to believe, that if Laws and Law-givers did not 
 mflkc Heretics vain, by taking too much notice of their 
 Extravagancies, the World jhculd be no more troubled 
 •^'ith theje^ than they are with the Chimera^s of Al- 
 chymi{ts<7»^PhiIorophers. And it fares with them, 
 an with Tops, which, bow long they are fcourged, keep 
 foot az-d run plea fantly, bat fall how foon they are neg- 
 iccicd and IcU to :hf?/i''ilz'f-s. 
 
 in 
 
to the F A N A T I C S. 
 
 In order to which it was wittily ohfervedby our great 
 King James the Sixth, that the Puritans of his Age 
 firove with him, and yet ceded at firfiy in a Difference 
 between them and the Shoemakers of Edinburg ; For, 
 not only fleafes it their Humour to contend where they 
 gain Honour and can lofe none, but likewife, by contefi- 
 ing with Monarchs , they magnify to the People their 
 pious Courage: affuring the World, that fuch Attempts 
 require a particular AJJifiance from Heaven ; and when 
 their jangling hath extorted feme Concefjions from the 
 JMagifirate, (as ordinarily it doth^ then they frefs that 
 Succefs as an infallible Mark of the Jure-divinofhip 
 of their Quarrel. Albeit, I confefs, that when thefe 
 not only recede from the Canoniz,ed Creed of the Church, 
 but likewife incroacb upon the Laws of the State, then, 
 as of all others, they are the mofi dangerous , fo, of all 
 others, they jloould be mo jt fever ely punijljed. 
 
 Opinion, kept within its proper Bounds, is a pure A^ 
 of the Mind : And fo it would appear, that to punijh • 
 the Body for that which is a Guilt of the Soul, is as un- 
 jufi as to punijh one Relation for another. And this 
 blood'thirfiy Zeal, which bath reigJted in our Age, fup- 
 pofes our mofi merciful God to be of the fame Temper 
 with thofe Pagan Deities, who defired to have their Al- 
 tars gored with Blood ; and being Devils themfelves, 
 delighted in the Deflrutiion of Men : Whereas the Al'- 
 mighty, who delights not in the Death of a Sinner, but 
 rather that he ^jould repent and live, hath left no War- 
 rant upon holy Record, for perfecuting fuch as dijfent 
 from us : But even then when He commands that the 
 Prophets, who tempt other to Idolatry, JJjould be Jlain ; 
 yet fpeaks He nothing of punijlnng of thofe who are fe- 
 duced hy them. And why Jhoald v^e jJiew fo much Vio- 
 lence in thofe Things, whereof we can jliew no certain 
 Evidence ? as ordinarily we camtot in circumfundamen- 
 tal Debates. Are we not ready to condemn to day, as 
 Fanatic , what yefierday was judged Jiire-divino ? 
 And do not even thofe w>ho perfecuted others for their O- 
 
 A 4 pinions f 
 
The S T O I C's Addrefs 
 
 pinion/^ admire "why they JhouU he, t4pon that fcore^ Per- 
 fecuted them j elves ? So that {Victory defending uPen E- 
 'vent ) ii'e legitimate the Terfecutlo7is to be ufed by c- 
 tbers again Ji- our J elves , by the Terfeciitious ufed by our 
 fellies againfi others. Our Saviour forbids m to f luck 
 up the Tares , lefl the Wl^eat be pulled up with it ; and 
 how can the moft pious Perfecutors know^ that the Saints 
 are not deftroyed with the Sinners ? 
 
 Jt is remarkable , that our Saviour di farmed z.ealous 
 Peter, (ven when he was ferving Him in Pofon, in 
 hts greatefi Straits, ahd agaijijf the mojl profligate of his 
 Enemies J the Jews .' And that to prevent the irregular 
 Zeal J even of the firfi and be si ofchriflians, the Blcf- 
 fed ApoHleSy their divine Mafler thought it fit to arm 
 them^ not with Swords, but with Scrips ; and to root 
 out of their Hearts all Thoughts of Violence, did oft in-- 
 culcate to them, that his Kingdom was not of this JVorld ; 
 convincing them by an excellent Argument, That he had 
 no need of A^ms, or Armies • for elfe he could have 
 commanded Thoufands of Angels. Did ever God com- 
 mand the Jews to war againfl any neighbouring Nation 
 hecaufe they were Pagans, (a^uarrel which would have 
 lafied till all the IVorld had been con/^uered.) Or , did 
 cur Saviour leave in Legacy 'to his Servants , that they 
 pjou Id force others to turn Profelytes ? which doubt lefs he 
 had done, if he had nfolved to allow fuch a rude mean 
 of Converfion. All which makes me admire, why, in 
 our late Troubles, Men really pious, and.naturallyfober, 
 could have been fo tranfported, as to deftroy whom they 
 could not convince ; and to perjuade thofe who were con- 
 vinced, that Religion obliged them to deflroy others. 
 
 My Heart bleeds when I covfider how Scaffolds were 
 died with Chrifiian Blood, and the Fiehls covered with 
 the C.ircajjcs of tnurthered Chriflians ; and it's proba- 
 ble, that there were more damned by unprepared Deaths, 
 in the Fields, than were faved by peeping Sermons in In- 
 fsndiafy Churches : And in this I admire the Clemency 
 cf our Royal A'lifier, who, albeit his Caufe was more 
 
to the FANATICS. 
 
 jtij}- than theirs, alheh he mi^ht have convinced them 
 by obtruding to them their own Practices ; yet, hath ra-r 
 ther chofen to command with his Scepter than his Sword. 
 But, if the Glory of God were the Mark at v^hich 
 thefe do level, why befiow they not their Zeal, rather in 
 converting [uch as Jcarce know or acknowledge that 
 there is a God ? And why are they more ejiraged againfi 
 thofe who agree with them in moji thijigs, than theje 
 who dijjent fi'om them in all ? Take not Chriftians more 
 fains to refute one another, than to convince Gentiles ? 
 And fi and not fome Epfcofifis and Presbyterians at 
 greater Difiance, than either do 7i'ith Turks and Pa- 
 gans ? And to evidence, that rather Humour than Pie- 
 ty occajions our Difference, we fnay eafily perceive, that 
 the meaner the SubjeB is, the Heat ts always the 
 greater. 
 
 If I had ever known fo much as one whofe Faith had 
 been the Trophy of a Debate , IJljould allow of Debates 
 in A4atters of Religion : But feeing Men camwt be con- 
 vinced by Miracles, it were ridiculous to prefs Converf- 
 on by Arguments. All the Divines in Europe could 
 not prefs the bef founded of their controverted and pole- 
 mic Truths, with fo much Scripture,or fo many Miracles 
 as our bleffed Saviour did his ownDivinity(which is the 
 Foundation of all Truths : ) And yet the Je WSj and al- 
 inofi all the World befides, flghted this infallible Do" 
 Brine. And to evidence that there is a Seafon of Grace, 
 independent from Arguments, did not many Thoufands 
 turn Profelytes at Peter'j Sermon, whom all our Savi- 
 onr^s Homilies and Miracles could not perfuade ? If 
 0726 Jhould fay , that the Tefiimony of a few Fljhermcft 
 jl)ould not be believed In a matter of jo ^reat Confer 
 quence, as is the Salvation of the whole IVord ; efpe-^ 
 cially when they did depone as IVitnejJes , in a matter 
 wherein both their Honour and Livelihood was concern^ 
 ed^ might not this ftagger fome mean Chriftians ? And 
 yet I believe thefe Truths fo much the more, becaufe fucb 
 as thefe were its ft<'ft Afjcrters ', for , certainly it is one 
 
The stoic's Addrefs 
 
 of the greatefi of Miracles, that fo few y and fo illite- 
 rate Terfons were able to convince the whole World. 
 ThM we fee, that one may account that a A tirade, which 
 Another looks upon as a Folly ; and yet none but God's 
 Spirit can decide the Controverfy. Matters of Religion 
 and Faith, rejembling fome curious Piclures , and Op- 
 tick Vrifms, which jeeru to change Shapes and Colours, 
 according to the jeveral Stances from which the Afpicient 
 views them. 
 
 The Balance of our yudgwents hath catched fuch a 
 Bruife by Adam'/ Fall, that jcarce can we, by them, 
 know the weight of any Argument. But, which ts 
 worje, there is as great a defeti in our partial weighing 
 as in the Scales themfelves : For, when we take either 
 the pro or con of any Controverfy into our Patronage, 
 •we throw always in Arguments into that Scale where- 
 in our own Opinion lies * without ever taking leifure 
 to conclude what may be a Hedged for the antipode Propo- 
 fition : And thtn, when we receive an Anfwer, our In- 
 vention is bufied , not in ponderijjg how much Convicli- 
 cn it hath in it, but by what fight it may be anfwered ; 
 and th/zs either Pajfon , Interejl or freejue?it Aieditation, 
 are fill the Weights which caf the Balance. 
 
 This fery Zeal hath likewije made another Pimple 
 fajli out ijt the Face of the Funatick Church, and that 
 is, a Conceit that the Saints have the only Right to all 
 God's Creatures , the Wicked being only UJurpers, and 
 not Afafhrs of them : But I have heard this Opinion 
 ( fo bcajHy is it ) confuted by Balaam'/ Afs', who 
 could tell its Mjfter , Am not 1 thine own Afs ? 
 When Aaron and the People did Covenant without 
 Mofcs , then every Mtn did bring his Ear-rings to 
 make up the Gclden Calf. And we have lived in an 
 Age, wherein we have (een our Countrymen, like the 
 Chaldeans, take the Furniture both of the Temple, and 
 of the King's Houje, and carry them away to their Ba- 
 bylon of Confujlons • and in an Age', jiht^rein lobtr 
 
 MiH 
 
to the F A N A T I C S. 
 
 Men were forced to lend Money , to buy for their oivn 
 Arms the heavy Shackles of Slavery ^ 
 
 TantumReligio potuit fuadere malorum. 
 
 Religion douhtlefs aims at Two great Deftgns j one 
 is like the firji Table , to prfuade us to adore God Al" 
 mighty • another is to ferjuade us ^ like to the Second 
 Tahlcy to love our Neighbour j and to be a Mean to fet- 
 tle all thefe Jealoufes, and comfejce all tbefe Animo- 
 (ities which Interefi might occajion : And this appears 
 by the Doxology jubilied by the Angels at our Saviour s 
 Birth ; Glory to God, and Peace and Good-will 
 towards Men. And therefore ^ as every private 
 Chrifiian Jfjould be tolerated by his Fellov-'-Subjetls y to 
 workup God inwardly according to his Conjcience ; Jo 
 all Pwuld confpire in that Exterior Uniformity of 
 Wor^ipy which the Laws of his Country enjoin. The 
 frfi Remark which God made of m after the Creation^ 
 was y that it was not fit for man to be alone ; 
 there VJas only one Ark amon^fi the Jews by God's own 
 Appointment. And feeing the Gofpel terms the Church 
 Cbrifl's Spoufe , it were abjurd to think that He will 
 divorce from her upon every Error or Efcafe ; efpecially 
 feeing hps blejjed Mouth hath told m , that under the 
 Gofpel it is not laivful to divorce upon all Occafions ; 
 and if He will not for thefe deny her to be His Spouje, 
 jmich lefs jliould we deny her to be our Mother. May 
 not one, who is convinced in his Judgment that Mo^ 
 narchy is the befi of Governments, live happily in Ve- 
 nice or Holland ? And that Traveller were abfurd, 
 who v^ould rather fojuabble with thofe amongfi whom 
 he fojourns , than obferve thofe Rites and Solemnities 
 which are required by the Laws of the Places where he 
 lives ? TVhat is once fiatuted by a Law, we all confcnt 
 to J in chufng Commijfioners to Reprejent us in thefe 
 Parliaments where the Laws are made • and fo if 
 they ordain us to be decimated , or to leave the Nation 
 
 if 
 
The stoic's Addrefs', be. 
 
 if ire conform not ; ti'e cannot fay ^ when that L/tw 
 ts put to Execution , that we arc opprefs*d ; no wore 
 than vfe could complain , if one did remo've m legally 
 from thofe Lands which he purchajed from our Tntflee, 
 2i'hoM we had empower d to fell it. 
 
 As David faid to Saul , i Sam. 26. 20. Why 
 went the King out to catch a Flea ? So may I 
 fay to cur great Divines ^ Why contra vert they about 
 Shadows ? Is it fit that Chriftians , who find it too 
 great a 'Task to gcvern their private Souls y fijould be fo 
 much concerned how the Church is governed by others ? 
 Whereforey feeing many have beerffaved v->ho were mof 
 inexpert in thefe ^lefiions ; and that foolijli Zeal, Taf- 
 fioriy and too much Curiofity therein , hath damned ma- 
 ny ; I may conclude , that to pry into thefe, is neither 
 vecejjary, becaufe of the firjl; nor expedient , becaufe of 
 the lafi-. 
 
 Since Difcrction opend my Eyes, J have always judg d 
 if necejfary for a ChriBian to look oftner to his Practice 
 of Piety, than to Confeflion of Faith ; and to fear 
 7>iore the Crookednefs of his Will, than the Blindnefs of 
 his Judgment ; delighting more to walk on from Grace 
 to Grace , working out the work of his own Sal- 
 vation with fear and tremblingj than to ftand ftill 
 with the Galileans , curioufiy gazing up to Heaven. 
 True Religion and undefiled, is to vifit the widow 
 and the fatherlefs ; and the Ditty drawn up againfl 
 the damned Spirits flnrll be. That when Our Saviour's 
 poor ones were hungry, they did not feed them; 
 when they were naked, they did not cloach them ; 
 without mcntio7jing any thing of -their Unbelief in Aiat- 
 ters of Controverfy, or Government. And therefore, I 
 hope , that thefe to whom I addrefs my felf in this Dif- 
 courfe, will rather believe me to be their Friend, becaufe 
 of their Piety , than their Enemy , becaufe of their 
 Errors. 
 
 THE 
 
THE 
 
 Virtuofo or Stoic 
 
 CHAP. L 
 
 Of Atheifm. 
 
 ALBEIT Man be but a Statue of Dud: 
 kneaded with Tears, moved by the hid 
 Engines of his reftlefs Paffions; a Clod 
 of Earth, which the fhorteft Fever can 
 burn to Aflies, and the leaft Shower of Rheums 
 wafh away to nothing ; yet makes he as much 
 Noife in the World, as if both the Globes (thofe 
 glorious Twins) had been unwombed from that 
 formlefs Chaos, by the Midwifry of his Wit ^ he 
 fpeaks Thunder,looks Lightnings,breathes Storms, 
 and, by the Eloquence of his own Vanity, per- 
 fuades himfelf that his Commands are able to un- 
 hinge the Poles. From which boundlefs Pride, 
 I confidently conclude, that if a natural Inftind, 
 or as the Stoics term it , Tr^m tdv ^ov , had not ir- 
 refiftibly bowed his Faith to alTent to a Deity, he 
 had never, neither upon Defign, nor in compli- 
 ance to Cuftom (as Atheifts alledge) fufFer'd to 
 creep into his Creed, that there was one greater 
 than himfelf, who could rein his Affedions, and 
 bound their Aifedts, according to the Dictates of 
 his irrefiftible Will. 
 
 And 
 
The T'^irtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 And albcic Rc-_[^imenrs of ArgumenrSj Icvyed 
 both from the ftqtcly Fabrick of Heavens arched 
 Pend, and from the inimitable Embroidery of 
 Earth's flowry Boiil , be requifite for conquering 
 the Infidelity of others, and for rendering them 
 Tributaries to that All-forming ElTcnce : Yet, 
 doth my Faith render up the Arms of its depraved 
 Reafon, and turn Profelyte to this divine Truth, 
 upon the folc fight of one of thefe dying A- 
 theifts ; who, upon any furprizal, do, with A- 
 mazement, throw up their Eyes to Heaven, as if 
 they fcnt their Looks in Embaflage to beg Afli- 
 ftance from thence ; and cry, God faue me ^ as if 
 thefe beaftly Souls, when attacked unexpeAly, 
 knew whence their Health were to be expected .- 
 Like to other fick Brutes, who when ailaulted by 
 Sicknefs, are, by the Hand of that fame Storge 
 and Inftinc"^, led to fome Herb or Flower, which 
 is an Apothecary's Shop appointed by Nature for 
 them. 
 
 Neither think I thofc Arguments which are 
 t willed together of Three Propofitions fo ftrong 
 as thefe Inlands are \ where Truth, like the 
 Sun, fcems to dart home its Light in one unper- 
 ceivabie AA ; whereas in thefe, purblind Nature 
 may be miftakcn, not onlv judging of the Truth 
 of either of the Three Parts, but likewiie of 
 their Connexion and Alliance. I know that that 
 Mifcrcant, who began his Hell upon Earth, by 
 being burnt at Tholoufe for Theorick Atheifm, did, 
 upon his firil approach to the Fire, cry, O God : 
 Whereupon , being tax'd by the a (lifting Jcfuit, 
 anfwered, that thefe and fuch like Exprcfiions 
 were the Offspring of Cuftom : But poor Soul he 
 might have conlidcred , that feeing he had crept 
 from his Cradle into that Error, and had run bis 
 Glafs to its laft Sand, in propagating that hcllilh 
 Conceit; that thcrQlbre this Exprcflion w:is ra- 
 ther 
 
T'he Virtuofo^ or Stoic. ? 
 
 ther a Confeffion than an Efcape ,• rather a Pro- 
 duct of a rational Soul, than of depraved Cu- 
 ftom i for as it was in it felf a divine Truth, fo it 
 was in him contrary to a fettled Habit. 
 
 There is another Cabal of Atheifts, who think 
 that this Belief was at firft but the quaint Leger- 
 demain of fome Itrongly-pated Statefman ^ who 
 to over-awe the Capricioufnefs of a giddy Mul- 
 titude, did forge this Opinion of a Rewarder of 
 all Human Actions : And to enforce this, do in- 
 ftance Nam a Fomfillm, and Mahomet, whofe pal- 
 pable Cheats' grew up in their SuccefTors into Re- 
 ligions ; and whofe Inventions were received 
 •with as much Bigotry, by the wifeft of Men, as 
 is that Deity which is now the Objed: of our A- 
 dorations. Wherefore (fay theyj feeing the Ra- 
 tional Soul hath failed fo oft , and fo abfurdly in 
 its Difcoveries, how, or why fhould we fubmit 
 our felves flavifhly to its Determinations ? For 
 that which doth at fbme times err , can never at 
 any time be concluded infallible. 
 
 To thefe I anfwer, that albeit, as to the parti- 
 cular way of Worfhip, the World is oft-times de- 
 luded : And albeit, even as to their Apprehenfi- 
 ons of this incomprehenfible Effence, Multitudes 
 be fometimes milled, yet thefe ftaggering Fancies 
 Jix this great Truth , That there is a Sup-erne , vjho 
 'mitfl he Adored : For if this innate Inftind did not 
 co-operate with thefe Impolhires, in gaining an 
 Affent to their fi<5litious Religions and Hierar- 
 chies, it were impoflible for any Human Autho- 
 rity to eftablifli Principles fo remote from Rea- 
 fon, and to fub jugate by thefe , even the mildeft 
 Tempers. But I take the Root from which thefe 
 Errors do fpring, to be, that the Twilight of 
 darkened Reafon glimpfing to Man that imprejja of 
 the Divine Image, which though much decayed, 
 yet refts Ifill upon his Soul ; and not being able, 
 
 be- 
 
4 The Virtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 hecaufe of the Fainmefi of his Lights and the 
 decay of that Divine imprejja , to difcern exadly 
 what that Deity is, with whofe Image it is fignet- 
 ed , believes implicitely, with a profound Re- 
 f]ie<5t, any who hath the Confidence to obtrude 
 any Knowledge of it upon them : Concluding 
 in the Conclave of their own Thoughts, that 
 none durft contemn fo far that omnipotencThun- 
 der-darter, as to vend their own Fancies for fa- 
 cred Oracles. And albeit thefe hoodwinked Na- 
 tions did ere6l a TOi/^toc in their ownHearts, where- 
 in all thefe Vice-gods were worihipped, yet were 
 all thefe but Reprefentations of the true God. 
 I'or his Omnipotency and Power was adored in 
 their Mars ; his Omnifcience in their Jpollo, &c. 
 And it is very probable that the Heathens admired 
 lb each Attribute of God Almighty, that they 
 thought each deferved diftinft Altars 5 fo that 
 their Errors had their rife from rather too much 
 than too little Refpecl ; and that as the fame O- 
 cean receives feveral Names from the feveral 
 Shores it wafhes ; fo, according to the feveral 
 Operations of the moft High, did thefe deluded 
 Pagans eiiablifh feveral Deities. But that all thefe 
 did ultimately terminate in one, is clear from the 
 Infcription of that Athenian Altar, To the Un- 
 kvoTi'fi God-^ from the dcfignationof (tuij-Coiuh , from 
 their common Feafts or ^oBifia ; from the adjund 
 of Delphicus given to yipollo^ which in Greek figni- 
 i\cs ftm.fs ; as M.uroblits oblerves : From their Al- 
 tars ere<5led, Diif^jHe Deabuf^ue omnibus • and from 
 the general Invocation of all the Deities jointly 
 fubjoined to all their particular Sacrilices. So that 
 the great and all-comprehending Idea, wherein 
 he is reprefented, as in one big Mirror to us, was 
 by rhem broke in pieces ; and in each of thefe 
 Pieces taken alone did they lee a Deity, though 
 much abrid.<2;:d : whereas all thefe Pieces when 
 
 fet 
 
The yirtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 fet together, did reprefent but one, and each piece 
 did then fhew but a part. But to evidence that 
 our Belief of a Deity is not a State and Traditio- 
 nal Importure, I would willingly know, if ever 
 the skilfulleft of Satan's Emiffaries was able to in- 
 duce the World to believe that there was no God j 
 which (doubtlefs) might have at fonie occafions 
 contributed much to fome men's politick Defigns, 
 and which that Rebel would have attempted, if 
 either God had not reft rained him, or himfelf had 
 not known it impreftable. And it is moft remark- 
 able, that the hrft Promoters of that Divine Do- 
 ctrine were Perfons, who, both by Precept and 
 Practice, decried Ambition, and declined State- 
 Employments ; and fo it were abfurd to think that 
 they invented thefe, in Subordination to State- 
 Projeds. 
 
 There is alfo much Force in that Argument^ 
 wherein, from the Nature of Prophecying, is 
 concluded the Being of a God : For to forefee, is 
 doubtlefs a way of feeing far above the reach o( 
 Human Nature ; Man not being able to con- 
 clude but that. What is poffible upon both Parts, 
 may come to pafs upon either of its Parts. And 
 hence it was, that the Heathens themfelves term- 
 ed this Predidion Dl'vmation ; as if it could not be 
 but Divine. As alfo, if there were not a God^ 
 but that this were a Fiction, it would follow, thac 
 Error and Delufion (fuch as this ex hyfotheji) were 
 able, and adually did, of all other things, framo 
 a Man's Soul moft to Virtue : and that the Beft' 
 of Men ( fuch as the Adorers of a Deity ) were 
 both the greateft Cheats and Blockheads. All 
 which are Abfurdities to be hifs'd at by all who 
 are Mafters of the meaneft portion of Human 
 Reafon. 
 
 There lurketh much curious "fVaitemplation 
 in pondering , how that albeit ihe Parents of all 
 
 C Hea- 
 
The Virtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 Heathen Ifh Religions, have been incomparably 
 the chiefeft Wits in their times ; for elfe they 
 could not have imprefs'd the Spirits of their Dil- 
 ciples with fuch ab{tra(fl Principles : Yet all their 
 Models fecm repugnant to Common Reafon ; and 
 they have chofe to teach Principles which fcem 
 ridiculous. 
 
 Thus the Fidions related by the Poets of their 
 GodSj the Rites ufed by the Rowans^ and the Fop- 
 peries of the Alcoran , are Abfurdities unworthy 
 of a Rational Belief; if Man were not aded by 
 an Innate Principle, to place the Myfteries of 
 Religion above his Reafon. 
 
 By which we fee, that the Imputation caft up- 
 on the Scriptures of their Contrariety to Reafon_, 
 checks likewife the Principles of all Nations : 
 And certainly, if there were nothing revealed to 
 us in Religion, but what the fhort Line of our 
 Reafon might fathom, the Omnipotency of God, 
 and the Weaknefs of our own Reafon, fhould re- 
 main ftill unknown : and feeing our Reafon is 
 cn'y fuitablb to our Nature ; certainly if that In- 
 finicc F.Tv^nce and its Myfteries, might be com- 
 p-i',hended by that fame Reafon which mcafureth 
 things Finite, we might conclude God to be Fi- 
 .lice likewife: And is it not Impudence in us 
 who know not the ebbing and flowing of the 
 Sea, nor the Reafon why the AiLwant draweth 
 the Iron, to repine becaufe we cannot compre- 
 fiend the ElTence of God Almighty ? And then • 
 vainly to conclude, that becaufe we cannot grafp 
 within the fhort Arms of Our Underftanding, the 
 vafl Bulk of the Deity, that there is no Deity ? 
 A Conclufion as abfurd, as if one fliould lay, that 
 when the nimble Wings of an Arrow tranfport ic 
 above our fight, it did leave off to be, when it 
 left off to be perceived. And I am of opinion, 
 that My (Icrioulhcfs fuirs rarely well with Divine 
 
 Truths • 
 
. The Vtrtnojo^ or Stoic, 
 
 Truths ; the fineft Things ufing always to be beft 
 wrapt up. Thus if we liften to our hid Inclina- 
 ons, we will find a pleafing Veneration in refcr- 
 ved Silence ; and our Curiofity will fwiftly fol- 
 loWj what by its Retirednefs fleeth from us : Si- 
 lent GroveS;, whofe Bufli- top Trees lay their heads 
 together, as in a Confpiracyj to refift the Sun's 
 Entr}^, and powder its Light with Sables, creates 
 a Veneration in us. And as the Heathens did 
 chufe Groves, fo did the Primitive Chriftians 
 light their Devotions with Torches and Candles ^ 
 intimating thereby, that umbrag'd Silence was an 
 excellent Shrine for fmcere Devotions t A.nd in 
 this fenfe, it may be, the Word of God is faid to 
 be a Lanthorn to our Steps ; and the C^vqh Chm- 
 ches are compared to feven Candlefticks. Did 
 not our Saviour teach his Difciples in Parables ? 
 And was not the Ark vailed from the Eyes of the 
 People.^ The Pagans difpenfed their Divinity in 
 Hieroglyphicks ; and amongft human Writers, 
 the moft Myfterious carry ftill the Laurels : And 
 why fliould we vainly wifh to comprehend ths 
 Nature of the Deity, feeing Mofes, God's Inti- 
 mate, and Minion, could not have that allow- 
 ance ? And God himfelf, when for our neceffary 
 inftru^ticn He would difcover fomething of Him- 
 felf to us, is forced fer AvB?ato7m-dc4a.y ( as Divines 
 fpeak ) to difcover Himfelf in a Stile borrowed 
 from human Frailty, and to exprefs His infinite 
 Affections by our difordered Paflions. 
 * I believe that Socrates, Nature's greateft Difci-^- 
 pie, and the Deity's Frotomartjr, was a Profelyt^ 
 of the fame Faith which we profefs, and had his 
 large Soul illuminated by that Sun of Righteouf- 
 nefs, whofe refulgent Rays are now the bright 
 Torches of the Chriftian Church. Neither is 
 my belief in this daggered by the Silence of his 
 co-tempory Writers, as to this particular ; Seeing 
 
 C a thel^^i 
 
8 The Virtuofo^ or Sioic. 
 
 thefe, not being of the fame Perfuafion with him, 
 but beint^ convinced of his Moral Worthy did de- 
 Icribe his Opinions fuitably to their own appre- 
 henlion. Thus did thofe Pagan Hiftorians ad- 
 mire the great Saviour of Mankind, only for His 
 Moral Accomplifhments, without reaching thefe 
 Divine Principles^, by which He was aded. The 
 Stoics likewife were, in all probability, a Tribe 
 of John Eaptift's ; and God having refolved to 
 purge the Univerfe of its Original Unrighteouf- 
 nefs, by that bleflfed Manna which came down 
 from Heaven to give life to the World, did, by 
 their Dortrine of Abftemioufnefs, as by a fpare 
 Dyet, prepare its Body for receiving that divine 
 Dofe. And certainly, if Men had disbanded that 
 execrable Troop of Lutts, againft which thefe 
 , preached, and had liftened ( as the Stoic's Book 
 of Difcipline injoyned) to their own private Con- 
 fciences,and had, by Retiredncfs,abftra(5led them- 
 felves from the reach of Temptations, it had faci- 
 litated much their Converfion : For if the young 
 Lawyer, who came to confult Chrill how to draw 
 up his Security of Heaven, and of his Portion 
 there, had believed their Oracle, which decry 'd 
 Riches as the unnecefiary Baggage of Man's Life, 
 and the Mud which clogg'd the Wings of the 
 Soul's Contemplation, and kept it from foaring 
 its Natural Pitch, he had never refuled our Savi- 
 our's \ okc , becaufe he was commanded to fell . 
 all, and to give it to the Poor. Thus lil^ewife, if 
 the Rich Glutton had dieted hirHfelf according 
 to the fcant Prefcrint of their allowance, his 
 fcorchcd Tongue had not ftccd in need of a drop 
 cf Water to allay its Thirft. Neither had Nico- 
 demm needed to have mantled himfelf in the 
 darkncfs of the Night, when he came to our Sa- 
 . viour, our of fear left he fliould have been difco- , 
 vcrcd j feehig their Doctrine might have taught 
 
 him. 
 
The Virtuo[o^ or Stoic. 
 
 him, that Fear was a Paffion unworthy to be lodg- 
 ed in the Soul of Man : And that there is nothing 
 here^ which a Man either fhould, or needeth to 
 fear. 
 
 But albeit neither InfilnB nor Faith, were able 
 to convince us infallibly of this Truth ; yet is it 
 both more fatisfying, and more fafe to embrace 
 this Opinion, than its contary. More fatisfying, 
 becaufe Man's fummum bonum here, being lodged 
 in the Tranquility of his Spirit j that which can 
 beft plain and fmooth the rugged and uneven 
 Face of his frequent and inevitable Misfortunes, 
 muft bedoubtlefs themoft careflable of Opinions : 
 Wherefore,reeing nothing can ftrengthen fo much 
 Man's Frailty, nothing check fo foon his Defpair, 
 nothing feed fo much his Hope, nor animate fo 
 much his Courage, as to believe that there is a 
 God, who beareth the heavieft End of all our 
 Crolfes upon the Shoulders of his Lo-ve ; who is 
 able to turn, or arreft the giddy Wheel of For- 
 tune by the ftrong Hand of his Omnipotency ; 
 and who twifteth Lawrels of unimaginable Joys 
 for the Heads of thofe who fight under his Ban- 
 ners. If a Man leaned not his weary Soul upon 
 this Divine Reft, he were not only an Enemy to 
 Nature, but even to his own Happinefs. What 
 Rocks of Danger could Men efcape, if blind 
 Fortune did fit at the Helm. And if vertuous Per- 
 fons complain, as Affairs are prefently ftated,that 
 their Merits are not weighed with indifferency 
 enough in the Scales of Juftice; what might be 
 expe(5led, if Hazard got the Balance to manage ? 
 And thofe who leave their Native Countries, 
 when they perceive that the Law beginneth to 
 render its Oracles in an unconftant Stile, and 
 with a trembling Voice, behoved to leave the 
 World, if this Anarchy were by Atheifm eila- 
 C 5 ' bliftied 
 
J o The T/trtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 blifhed ? For as a Wife Stole well obferved , 
 
 iwfoljible to live In a tVorU void of Gofl, and void of 
 Trovidence. 
 
 It is likewife moft fafe ; for it there be a Deity, 
 doubtlefs thefe obdurcd Atheifts, whofe obftina- 
 cy hath conjured their Confciences to a con- 
 ftrain'd Silence, and bribed thefe infallible Wit- 
 neffes, to depone what fuited beft with their wild 
 Refolutions, or rather negleAed refolutely their 
 fincere Depofitions : Then certainly, the juft 
 Flames of that God's Indignation, whom they 
 have difclaimed, will heat for them a Furnace in 
 Hell, beyond what the other damned Spirits fhall 
 meet with in their Torture : Whereas albeit there 
 be no Tribunal, from which fuch a Thunderbolt 
 Sentence may be darted, nor no fupreme Judge 
 by whom our Actions fhall be canvas'd ; . then 
 thofe who have paid their Adorations at his Al- 
 tars, fhall be in no danger. Wherefore, feeing 
 it fhould be the task of a Virtuofo^ to turn out all 
 fuch Thoughts as may raife a Mutiny in his 
 Breaft ; it were a foolifh Toy in him to entertain 
 Atheifm, which is a Nurfery of Difquietncfs ; 
 for whofe Breaft could entoy a Calm, whilft a 
 Concernment of fo much Weight as his Eternal 
 Portion, did hinge from the weak Thread of a 
 mere maj-he, and of fuch a may-be as marches fo 
 near with a will-not^je ? 
 
 But if ye v/ould know, what difquieting Va- 
 pours Atheifm fends up to the Brain, when it is 
 once drunk in : Go to the Horror-creating Beds 
 of a dying Atheift, whofe roaring Voice might 
 awake the moft lethargy Confcience that ever the 
 Devil lull'd afleep : There ye fhall know by the 
 Urinal of his Eyes, and the \\'atcr ftanding there- 
 in, what Ccnvullipn-Fits his Soul fuffers; and 
 Ihall learn, from his own Mouth, how grievoufly 
 
 his 
 
The Virtuofo^ or Stoic. 1 1 
 
 his difeafed Soul is ftretched upon the rack of De- 
 fpair : Then it is that the voluminous Regifters 
 of his Confcience, which did lie formerly clap- 
 fed in fome unfearch'd Corner of his A^emory, 
 are laid open before him ; and the Devil, who 
 hitherto gave him the lelTening end of the Prof- 
 pedj to furvey his Sins in, turns now its magnify- 
 ing end to this fearful Eye. It fhould be then the 
 grand Defign of a Philofopher, to order his own 
 'Breaft aright, before he go abroad to viev/ the 
 Works of the Creation ^ left if he leaves its 
 Door unbolted, the Devil fteal from him his 
 richeft Jewel, whilft he fweats to enrich his 
 Contemplation with what is of far lefs Confe- 
 quence. 
 
 CHAR 11. 
 
 Of Superjlition. 
 
 IT is not wild Fancy to think, that Atheifm hath 
 been the produ(5t of SuPerfihion : For certain- 
 ly, many who were by humour Gallh's, finding 
 that Religion exa<3:ed from Men fuch inhuman 
 homage to its Recognizance, as was the facrifi- 
 cing Children among the Fleathens, wearing Pil- 
 grimages and hedick Lents amongft Chriftians, 
 did refolve rather to deny than to adore fuch Dei- 
 ties. Thus Lucretius revolted upon Agamemnon\ 
 facrificing his Daughter Iphigenia for the Grecian 
 Safety, crying out, 
 
 T'antum Religio fotutt fuadtre mctlorum. 
 
 And thus Tetronius Aihiter, a Monk of the 
 fame Ceil,y . :, 
 
 C 4 Trimus 
 
I ^ The Virtmjo^ or Stoic. 
 
 Vrlmiis in orhe dtos fecit tiwor. 
 
 fulmina Ct^lo 
 
 Cunt cadennt - 
 
 And to prevent this, our Saviour doth oft in- 
 culcate, that his Yoak is cafie, and his Burden is 
 light. And doubtlefs, as the ftraightcft Line is 
 always the fliorteft ; fo the moft rational Defigns 
 are aWnys eafilieft effectuated; and as Seneca hath 
 excellently oblerved. Licet Dens non ejfet, tamen non 
 feccarum oh peccati njilitatem. There is fomething 
 of meannefs in the gallanteft, and moft alluring 
 Sin. And this is moft energetically expreft in 
 Scripture, whilft it is faid that the Wicked weary 
 themfdves by their Sins. A Principle, which not 
 only the Magifterial Authority of God's Spirit, 
 but our Experience likewjfe places above the reach 
 of all Scruples : For are not the Inquietudes, the 
 Cheats, and palliated Parricides, and Sacrileges 
 brooded bv Ambition, the Churliftinefs and Clofe- 
 handednefs patented by Avarice, EfFcds unwor- 
 thy to be father'd upon any Rational Soul ; and 
 iftv^^hich wefhould fcarlet our Cheeks with Bluflies, 
 as well as enpale them through Fear, and fhould 
 fland/as much in awe of our Confciences, as moft 
 do of a Deity.'' Yet, it may be we are in a mi- 
 ilake, whilft we place Superftition in the excefs 
 of fuch Adorations, as are either commanded or 
 indifferent : For feeing the Objeft of our- Adora- 
 tion, God Almighty, is, in himfelf infinite, we 
 can never exceed either in our Refpecfls to him, 
 or in the Expreflions of them. Excefs being 
 only admiflible , where the Objeft is finite , 
 and where we attribute more than is due , 
 xyjiich can never be here. Thus if Kneel- 
 ing be lawful at any occafion, I hardly fee why 
 j: p got lawful to kneel ^t 3II Occafions. And if 
 
 thefe 
 
The J^irtuojo^ or Stoic, I g 
 
 thefe Exterior Rites and Ceremonies ( fome 
 whereof are allow'd in all Churches ) be judg'd 
 requifite, for expreffing our Vaffalage and Subor- 
 dination to God our Maker, either they are alto- 
 gether unwarrantable, or elfe we fhould propor- 
 tion them ( as far as in us lies) to that infinite 
 Object:. And feeing the Angels are faid to cover 
 their Faces with their Wings before him, the Pa- 
 triarchs to fall upon their Face and Worfhip ; and 
 our adorable Saviour, in that ConfliA wherein 
 he reprefented Sinful Man, is, by Matthev^, re- 
 marked to have fallen upon his Face ; by Mark, 
 to have fallen upon the Ground, and by Luke to 
 have Kneeled : What is crawling Man, that he 
 fliould account fuch Geftures fond Superftidon ! 
 It would appear then, that Superftition confifts 
 in Man's worfhipping God by Means unlawful ; 
 fuch as are Children-Sacrifices, and fuch like ; 
 whereby his Divine Attributes are mifreprcfented, 
 and tainted with Cruelty or Tyranny ^ and not 
 in an Excefs, in fuch Expreflions of our Refpedi; 
 as are in themfelves Lawful. And if there be 
 any Strength in that Argument, wherein we en- 
 force the Being of God, from the Harmonious 
 Confent and Affent of all Nations ; certainly, 
 by that fame Argument, we may eftablifli the De- 
 cency, if not the Neceflity of Ceremonies. For, 
 what Nation bows to Altars, without profound 
 and external Submiffions ? And, who lodges up- 
 on the Surface of our Globe, who pays not, as 
 the Reddendo of their Charter to thofeGods whom 
 they Worfhip, Ceremonial Adorations, wrapt up 
 in moft fubmiffive Rites ? 
 
 CHAP, 
 
14- T^ke Virtuojo^ or Stoic, 
 
 CHAP. III. 
 Of the World's Creation. 
 
 THAT God made all things for his Glory, 
 is an Expreffion, which, I think, looks not 
 well at theTeft of Reafon,and feems to have no War- 
 rant but unwary Cuftom : For beyond all Que- 
 ■ftion, his Glory was fo Brim-full formerly, that 
 it neither needed, nor could receive any confide- 
 rable Acceffion from this fmall Drop. And be- 
 fides this, the innate Apprehenfion we have of 
 doing any thing for one's Glory, dyes this Ex- 
 preflion with feme Guilt : Yet, I confefs, we 
 may warrantably fay, that when perverfe Man 
 calls his Power in Queftlon, or controverts his 
 Being only -wife i that then, God, for our Inftru- 
 <ftion, and the Vindication of his own Glorious 
 Attributes, doth many things for his own Glory. 
 And in this Senfe, the Scripture faith, that God 
 will punifh the Wicked, and deliver his People, 
 for his own Glory, And wherever it is faid, that 
 God doth, or createth any thing for his own Glo- 
 ry, it is doubtlefs in this Senfe ; in which Man 
 (who is made after his Image) may ad for his 
 own Glory without any Vanity ; albeit to ad for 
 his own Glory, in the firll Senfe, were in him 
 Criminal. It is then more probable, that God 
 being infinitely Good, and all Good- being jnl 
 / comwumcnU'vum, that his Dcfign in Creating the 
 W^orld, was to communicate and difplay hisGood- 
 nefs : And upon this Ba^e probably, hath Arifiotle 
 reared up his Error, of the IVorld's Exijhncy from 
 all Eternity ; for, feeing God was ab a;terno, infi- 
 nitely Good, and that Good is ftill Communica- 
 tive ; he did (it may be) conclude, xh-AX. ab a:- 
 tcrno, God did communicate his Goodnefs ; which | 
 
 could ' 
 
7he Virtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 could only be to Creatures. And therefore it 
 wasnecelTary that there fliould have been a World : 
 And fome Philofophers have averr'd^ that the 
 World flowed from God p^r emanatlomm^ ah aierno, 
 as Beams are lanced out from the Body of the 
 Sun. Albeit, I be none of Arlfiotlis Partizans, 
 nor hold my Philofophy of him, as my Superi- 
 or ; yet I canoot but think, that God hath com- 
 municated his Goodnefs to Worlds prior to ours, 
 which feems but a Conceit of 9682 Years {land- 
 ing. But I am not fo arrogant, as to determine 
 the time of the firft World's Birth, nor how ma- 
 ny Cadets it hath had ; refolvingto leave its Date 
 blank, to be fill'd up by fome arrogant Pretender. 
 Neither Should I accufe mine own Thoughts of 
 Hepefie, for concluding, that probably there are 
 at prefent thoufands of Worlds co-exifting with 
 ' ours ; whereof fome, it may be, are govern'd by 
 Maxims, if not contrary, yetatleaft different from 
 thefe which are our Canons. All which W^orlds, 
 albeit they were actually fubfifting, would lie in 
 the Bofomof the large imaginary Spaces, but like 
 fo many fmall Balls in the Corner of a large Ten- 
 nis-Court. I fhall not, for confirming this Opi- 
 nion, cite, with an ignorant French Curate, the 
 Parable of the Lepers ; where it is faid, Nojtne 
 funt decern mundi ? Becaufe I know that it was 
 wittily anfwered, Sed uhlfunt reliqui no'vem ? 
 
 CHAP. IV. 
 
 Of Eternity. 
 
 THat Eternity is all prefent, and that, in it, 
 there is neither preterit, nor future, is but 
 a Conceit, and a needlefs Myftery impofed upon 
 our Belief, which is really more Myilerious than 
 
 the 
 
1 6 7l?e J^irtuojo^ or Stoic. 
 
 the Trinity. Who knows but it is founded upon 
 an expreflion in Ckero^ wherein Eternity is call'd 
 aurnum inflans ? For how then can it be faid, that 
 God' was before the World ? For was is preterit, 
 and before the World there was, as themfelves al- 
 ledge, no time ; and fo there was a was in Eter- 
 nity. Is not God call'd by Himfclf Alpha and 
 Omegay firft and laft, the one whereof is preterit, 
 and the other future ? And it is faid. Rev. i6. ^. 
 O glor'iom God J who art, and wafi, and jhalt be. And 
 if it be anfwered, That this is only fitted to our 
 Capacities; certainly, that is all is craved: For 
 doubtlefs there is no fuch real thing, as thefe three 
 Meafures of Time, even in things finite and crea- 
 ted ; for they owe their Being only to our Con- 
 ceit, as well in the one as in the other. And 
 when God defcrib'd Himfelf by His Name J A H^, 
 J am, it was not meant, that no Meafure of Time 
 could be attributed to Him, but the prefent ; but 
 rather, that what He was, was to Man incom- 
 prehenfible. And that all we could know of Him, 
 was, that He exited ; and by that Expre{rion,that 
 all things to Him are prefent, was meant, that by 
 His Knowledge intuitive, ( as Divines term it ) 
 He comprehends all things which were to be, as 
 if they were really prefent ; and this is fpoke, not 
 of his Being, but of his Knowledge. Neither can 
 it be concluded, that if was, or jhall be, may be 
 attributed to God, then He mufi: be mutable, and 
 that was denotes Mutation ; for, as I faid for- 
 merly, thefe are but Terms, not really Exifting, 
 and fo cannot import any real Mutation. 
 
 CHAP. 
 
The J^trtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 CHAP. V. 
 
 Of Frovielence. 
 
 HOW God employs His uncontrolable Scepter, 
 after what faihion He governs this lower 
 World, and in what Charafters He writes His 
 Eternal Decrees, hath been the Arrogant Study of 
 fome mad-cap Pedants, who talk as Magifterially 
 of His Decrees, as if they were of his Cabinet- 
 Council. And albeit to deter fuch bold Intru- 
 ders, He deftroyed thoufands of His ancient Peo- 
 ple, becaufe they look'd into His Ark ; yet fuch 
 is the Petulancy of fome later Wits, that they 
 muft needs look into His unfearchable Bofom, 
 and there marfhal all His Decrees , and con- 
 ceit they underftand His way of working ; 
 and thus in difputing of Objects infinitely 
 removed by their Abftrufenefs from their Senfe, 
 they fhew themfelves more ridiculous, than 
 thofe who would difpute concerning the Quali- 
 ties of an Objed, before it come fo near as that 
 they may know of what Species it is : For feeing it 
 is a Maxim, That there is nothing in our Under- 
 Itanding, which hath not pafs'd to it thro' our 
 Senfes ; and that the Things of God are Imma- 
 terial, and fo fall not under the Cognizance of 
 our Senfes ; it mult be Folly to think, that any 
 Human Scrutiny can find out Mylleries that are 
 fo unfearchable, except they be imparted to them 
 by immediate Revelation ; a Kind of Correfpon- 
 dence which I conceive few now-a-days hold 
 with Heaven. Yet, I confefs, it is as hard to 
 confute the Fi(5lions, as it is impoffible for them 
 to come by the Knowledge of them. But as this 
 Study is unattainable, fo it is unprofitable ; for 
 feeing God's Art of governing the World, and 
 
 his 
 
J i> The JArtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 his Decrees of faving or damning its Citizens, is 
 a Trade we fhall never be able to prailife : why 
 fliould wc have fuch an Itch to underftand it ? It 
 fliOLild be enough to us to be faved, albeit we 
 know not how, or by what Manner of Decrees ; 
 except we be of the lame Metal with that foolifh 
 Patient, who would not be cured, becaufe the 
 Ph^■fician would not flicw him how the Cure was 
 to be compofed, and what were its Ingredients. 
 And is it not the Zenith and Top Branch of Mad- 
 neis for us to pry into God's unfearchableDecreeSj 
 who know not how our Neighbour's Calf is form- 
 ed in its Dam's Belly ? 
 
 It was a narrow Omnipotency, which fome 
 mean-fpirited Heathens allowed their Jupiter^ 
 when they conceited that he wanted Leifure to 
 difpofc of Trifles. 
 
 Non licet exigttis r eh its adcjfe Jovi. • 
 
 For if the Twinkling of an Eye,, were not time 
 fufficient for God to difpofe of all the Affairs of 
 this World, then there might be a greater Power 
 than his ; and the Power to difpofe fo faddenly, 
 were wanting to his Omnipotency ; and fo he 
 were not infinite, and confequently no God. 
 
 Neither was the Rodomontade of Alphonfmy 
 King of Fortuga/^movQ impious than this; when he 
 alledged, that if God had made ufe of his Advice 
 in framing the World, he had helped many things 
 in it, which he now could juftly tax of Error. 
 
 Thefe Two Extremes are the Two Poles, 
 whereon the Globe of Atheifm turns it felf ; fome 
 out of an impious Humility", complementing 
 God out of his Authority, by denying that he 
 diliiofes of the meaner Size of Bufinefs ; and o- 
 thcrs detrading from his Providence, in attribu- 
 ting 
 
T'he Virtuofo^ or Stoic, 1 9 
 
 ting his" Operations to Chance and Fate, or brand- 
 ing them with Injuftice or Imprudence. 
 
 There are among School-men, Two Opinions 
 which difpute Victory with ( ahnoft ) equal For- 
 ces: The one whereof will have God the fole A- 
 gent, and to make ufe of fecondary Caufes only, 
 as of Ciphers. Thefe fay, that it is not Fire 
 which burns, but that God burns ad frafentiam ig- 
 nis ; nor Water which cools, but that God cools 
 ad p-afentiam Aqu^ : which is in my Opinion the 
 fame thing as to fay. That God juggled with Man; 
 and as Charmers do, prefented Ingredients, but 
 wrought by hid Means. 
 
 In too near an Affinity with this, is the Do- 
 ctrine of Predeftination, as fome teach it*; where- 
 in they w^ell have Man to play the mere Specta- 
 tor in his own Salvation .• And albeit there be a 
 free and full Tender of Mercy made to loft Man, 
 yet will not allow him any Power to embrace or 
 reject it ; judging this one of the neceftary Appa- 
 nages of God's Omnipotency, that he doth fave 
 or condemn ex mero heneflacho-j never confidering, 
 that the Queftion is not , what God can do , but 
 what he doth: And that it derogates nothing from 
 his Omnipotency, that he will not damn poor 
 Sinners ; who according to their Doctrine can-' 
 nof be blamed for their Obftinacy, becaufe it was 
 never free to them to do otherwife. And how (\ 
 pray you) could the Sluggard in the Parable have 
 * been punifiied for not improving his Talent, and 
 laying it up in a Napkin, if God had by his De- 
 cree caft an infolvable Knot upon that Napkin, 
 wherein it v/as laid up ? 
 
 The other Opinion will have Secondary Caufes 
 the fole Agents; and teaches, that God, in the 
 firft moulding of each Creature, did dote it with 
 innate Qualities , fufficient to ad every thing re- 
 quiiite for its Subfiftance; but in Sign of its Subje- 
 
 jedic*. 
 
oo The Virtiiofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 (flion to its Maker, referred to himfelf, as his 
 Prerogative Royal, a Power to bend and bow thefe 
 Inclinations upon extraordinary Occafions, for 
 the Good of the Univerfc, or when his infallible 
 Omnipotence fhould think expedient. Thus when 
 that All-feeing Eye of the World , the Sun , was 
 jfirft turned off" the Frame, it had in Commiflion 
 to fow its Influences over the World without any 
 Retardment; yet was its Motion Arretted, and 
 turned back by an extraordinary Warrant, in the 
 Days of Jojlwa and Zedekiah. Thus they make 
 the Creatures refemble a Watch, which after it is 
 once compleated, goes by its own Springs and 
 Wheels, .without the Artifts extraordinary Afli- 
 ftance. Yet when either its Motion becomes ir-, 
 regular, or when the Owner finds it fit, it is un- 
 pieced, or hath its Index put forward or backward 
 at his Pleafure. And this laft feems to fuit bed 
 with the Principles, both of Chriftianity and 
 Stoicifm. With Chriftianity, becaufe it gives a 
 Check to Prefumption, and fuffers not Man to 
 think himfelf the fole Arbiter of his own Con- 
 dition ; becaufe God can eafily quafh thefe Baby- 
 /r;w-like Fancies, which his Toplefs Ambition is 
 ftill a building ; and to his Defpair, becaufe a 
 Lift from the ftrong Arm of Providence, may 
 heave him up above all his Difficulties. 
 
 This correfponds beft likewife with Stoicifm, 
 becaufe it pulls the Hands of a Sluggard from his 
 Bofom, and fets them at Work to prepare for 
 himfelf, and not to rcpofe his unreafonable Hopes 
 upon Divine Providence ; which only keeps thofe 
 from finking, who endeavour to fwim. This 
 likewife takes from Man all Excufc of finning ; 
 not fuffering him to lay over his Vitioufnefs upon 
 Providence ; a Shift too ordinary amongft fuch as 
 mifunderftand the rafhlefs Doctrine of the Re- 
 formed Churches. 
 
 This 
 
The yirtuofo^ or Stoic. ^^f 
 
 This Opinion makes us likewife underftand, 
 what the Heathens meant by Fortune, which they 
 termed ^/Viy- what the Stoicks meant by Fate, 
 which they confeffed to be irrefiftlbk -^ and in 
 what Senfe Philofophers concluded , that each 
 Man could hammer out his own Fortune. As to 
 the Pagan's Fortune, it cannot be thought^ that 
 feeing it was by themfelves confefs'd to be blind, 
 that they could truft it with the Reins of the ad- 
 mirably managed World. And feeing they con- 
 feffed , that it was always ftaggering and uncon- 
 ftant, it cannot be thought that they could afcribe 
 to it all the curious and juft Events, which they 
 themfelves admired hourly. Wherefore it is pro- 
 bablC;, that the Philofophers having, through the 
 'Profped of Nature,and by an uninterruptedExpe- 
 rience, obferved, that Man ( who aded from a 
 
 - Freedom of Spirit unreftrained either by Provi- 
 dence or Star-Influences, as to his ordinary Ope- 
 rationsjwas of a volative and capricious Humour; 
 therefore they conclude, that the State of Human 
 Affairs, which was framed and unframed at his 
 ill-fixt Pleafure, behoved neceffarily to be moft 
 fubje<5t to Changes. And that feeing the Vido- 
 ries of Cafar depended upon the Inclinations of 
 his Soldiers, who by abandoning him, would 
 
 -fetch his Profperity away with them, they had 
 Reafon therefore to term Fortune Frail, and ex- 
 pofed to Hazard. 
 
 Thus the Advancement of the reftlefs Courtier 
 
 is uncertain , becaufe it hinges from the Humour 
 
 of his Prince, whofe Spirit hath fome Allay of 
 
 ■ Unconftancy, as well as hath that of the. fearful 
 
 '■ SubjeA, who trembles under his Scepter. . And 
 
 • thus the Oyl-confuming Student can promife 
 
 - himfelf no Applaufe, becaufe the Paralytic Hand 
 "of the Multitudes Fancies, holds the Scales where- 
 in his Abilities are weighed. 
 
 D In 
 
2:1 The VdIhojo^ or Stoic. 
 
 In fine, Fartimc vvLis noihiiiG; to tliofe Ancients, 
 but uhe unbodied l-rccJiim of Man's \\ill, ccnfi- 
 dered nbftraftly from all parciculnr Perfons, and 
 rhc irinatc Qualities or all other Creatures 
 (' wiilch, bccaufc they arc mortal, muft therefore 
 T»c changeable ) than which nothing is more in- 
 conftant, nothing more blind. 
 
 The other Branch of Divine Providence , 
 which confifts in the Supreme Authority, where- 
 hy God makes all Human Indinations run fome- 
 times againfl: the Byafs of their Specifick Nature, 
 was by them termed Fiite. And this in their My- 
 thology, they fabled to be an Ad imam Chain, 
 which they faftned to the Foot of Jufitns Chair; 
 meaning by its Adamantine Nature, that it was 
 hard to be broke, like the Adamant-^ and by 
 faft^ning it to Jiffltcr's Chair, that it was the Pro- 
 dud of the Almighty's Power. Thus Fortune and 
 Fate were to them, but the Right and Left Hand 
 of Chriftian Providence. 
 
 Thefe Embodied AvgiJs, the Stoicks, finding 
 that Fortunes Megrim could not be cured, nor 
 Pate's Decrees relcindcd ; and yet refolving^ in 
 Spight of all External Accidents, to fecure to 
 thcmfclvcs a C-almncfs of Spirit ; did place their 
 ilappincfs in the Contempt of all thefe Follies,, 
 wdiofc Bloffoms Fortune covAd not blaitj and fought 
 for Happinefs in an Acquicfcence to all which 
 Providence did unalterably decree : So that nei- 
 ther Fortune nor Fate could rtand in tljic way of 
 their FFippinefs, becaufe they flighted the one, 
 and fubmitted to the other. 
 
 And in this Senfe, each Man in their Schools 
 was admitted to be Mafter of Wgrk to his own 
 Fortune; and that, without difparaging the Om- 
 nipotent Power of the great Fortune-maker, in 
 Submiffion to whom their Happinefs was placed. 
 
 Albeit 
 
The PirtUofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 Albeit the Kriowledge and Acknowledgment 
 of a God, be the Bafa of true Stoicifi-n, and at 
 firmer one than any the Heathens could pretend 
 to: Yet that Knowledgeof him, which by the 
 Guriofity of School-nieri, and the Bigotry of 
 Tub-preachers , is now formed in a Body of Di- 
 vinity, is of all others the lead neceffiiry, and the 
 moft dangerous. And whereas we did fee God 
 but in a Glafs formerly, that Glafs is how Co mi- 
 •fted and foil'd by each Pedant*s flegmatic Brcath> 
 that it is hard to fee him at all, but impoffible to 
 fee him there. And to extend a little thatMyfterlous 
 Analogy ; wc arc faid to behold God- here, as iri 
 a Glafs ; and as Objects arc befl perceived in the 
 fmootheft Mirrors ; fo tile plaineft Defcriptions 
 of him, are ftill the rrueft: For when he is {Q&n 
 by Atheifts in the Globe-glafs of their Infidelity, 
 iie appears lefs than really he is ; when beheld by 
 the Pagans in the Multiplying Glafs of Pagdnifm, 
 he appears many ; and wlien he is look'd upon irt 
 the Magnifying Glafs of Superftition, tho' he ap- 
 pear but one, yet he is mifreprefented, becaufe 
 he is reprefented, as inore terrible than he defires to 
 appear ; And ordinarily the better cut GlalTes are, 
 in the rhore Artificial, the worfe the Face^ as by 
 them reprefented. 
 
 C FI A P. VI. 
 Of Theory. 
 
 T"' HAT Firft Curfe which did fow all the 
 World with Briars and Thorns, did, of all 
 bther Things, fall moft heavily upon the Soul of 
 -Man; "Which becaufe it was chief in the Tranf- 
 gremori^*^ ibught in I^eafori to have been moft 
 
 D"^ tor- 
 
2 4- The JArtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 tortured in the Punifiiment. And now his difqni- 
 eted Spirit, is daily pierc'd with the Prickles of 
 Thorny Difputes and Debates j which, as like Bri- 
 axs> they produce no Fruit fit for alimenting that 
 noble Half of Man, which is his Rational Soul ; 
 fo do they , like Thorns, pierce his tender Con- 
 fcience, and fo fcrew his Torments to their high- 
 eft Pin. The Thoughts of God, and of Settle- 
 me,ht in him, which like Balm fliould cure thofe 
 Sores, is become that Hemlock which occafions 
 h)is Diftradions , and poifons his Meditations. 
 For albeit the Heroes of the Primitive Church, 
 d.i,d give Milk in abundance to Infant-Chriftians ; 
 yet many of their SuccefTors have mixt it fo with 
 the tart Vinegar of Contention, that the Milk 
 begins now to curdle, and fo is become loathfome 
 to the Appetite of tender Believers. For moft of 
 Churchmen being idle,and conceiving, that if they 
 taught only the Holy Scriptures, their Vocation 
 iplght by Laics be undervalued as ejfy; and that 
 tl^ey would be deny'd that Appl^ufe . which was 
 due to Quairitnefs of Wit, efpecially in a fettled 
 Church, wlli^rein Churchmen could not draw 
 Reverence from the People by Oracles, as did 
 tlie' Heathen Priefts j nor by Prophecies and Mir 
 racles, as did the Servants of the moft High, un- 
 der the Old and New Teftaments ; did therefore, 
 according ta their private Inclinations, frame 
 each to himfelf a new kind of Divinity. The 
 more Pragmatick Sort, and thofe whofe'Humour 
 VN^as edged with Choler, invented Polemic or 
 controverted Divinity ; And ib by an Inteftine 
 and Civil War of Opinions, railed within the 
 Bowels of Religiori, did wafte «i;id pillage thar 
 Holy Canaan^ whicji formerly- flowed with the 
 Milk of fincere Dortrine, and the Honey of Di- 
 vine Conf^lations. And then that precious Bloo^, .^ 
 which formerly . p,urplcd offly Pagan Scaffolds, 
 
 -^' dyed 
 
"The P^irtuofoj or Stoic, a 5 
 
 dyed now the Swords of Fellow-believers ; who 
 to propagate their private Judgment ^ buried 
 Churches under their Rubbiih, fed the Birds of 
 Heaven with the Carcafes of Pious and Reverend 
 Churchmen j and by the mad Hands of bigot 0~ 
 piniaftry, broke to pieces all the Sacred Bonds of 
 Natural and Civil Duties : And thus they raifed 
 the Devil of Contention, whom they could not 
 lay again ; and made this Itch of difputing, turn 
 the Scab of the Church. 
 
 Others again, in whofe Brains fullen melancho- 
 ly form'd Phantoms and Ideas , invented Schola- 
 Itic Theology; and thefe in abftrad Cells ereded 
 a Mint-houfe, for coyning the Drofs of their own 
 Contemplations into wonderful bombaft Notions; 
 and to make them go current in the fufFering 
 Church, gave them the Imprejja of Theology. 
 ■ A Third Sort, not able to foar their Pitch in 
 the Sky of Invention, refolved to fet up a Cor- 
 refpondence with Heaven: And this they called 
 Enthufiaftic, or Infpired Theology. And their 
 Cabbins were Poft-houfes, where one might 
 know what was refolved lately in the Conclave 
 of Heaven, whether the King or Parliament was 
 to wear the Lawrels, and what fliould be the IlTue 
 of our pious Rebellions. Thefe could likewife 
 caft the Horofcope of our Salvation ; and inven- 
 ted a Species of Phyfiognomy, whereby the)' - 
 could tell, if the Marks of Grace dwelt upon a 
 Face ; and if one had the Trads of an ElecS: of 
 God. After this Fafhion did they prophefy their 
 own Fancies, and call that Providence only which 
 made for them. 
 
 There wants not fome likewife, who out of a 
 well-meaning Defire, to make the Lamp of Truth 
 dart its Rays with the clearer Splendor, fnuff it 
 Ip nearly, that they extinguifh it quire, and leave 
 lis nothing but the Stink of its SnufF; like fome 
 D ; curi- 
 
1 6 The Virtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 curious Phyficians, who purge fo frequently, that 
 they deftroy the Body entrufted to their Cure. 
 \Vc in this lO.nnd liavc met with fome of thefe 
 Churktiws, who, I am confident, purged oftner 
 both Church and State, than Luke^ the beloved 
 Phyfician, would have prcfcribed, if we had had 
 the good Fortune to have been his Patients. 
 
 The talleft Wit is not able to reacli Heaven, al- 
 beit ( J know ) many disjoint their Wits in 
 ftretching tli'm too high in the Enquiry of its 
 Myfterics. Nciihci impute T our fliort coming iri 
 the Knowlc'lgc ol'-'hcfc Myftcries, folely to their 
 Obftrufenefs ^ bur I bcHcve our Meditations arc 
 more clouded in R clarion to thefe, than really 
 they need to be, becaufc of their innate Frailty: 
 For we fee, that fomc who a-e Mafters of much 
 Reafon in Things Human, betray much Folly \v\ 
 their Devotions; wherefore 1 am induced to be- 
 lieve, that it ^ires with the Soul in this, as ufually 
 it doth with the Body, whofc Pulls are proporti- 
 onably the weaker, as the thing grafp'd after is 
 plac'd above its true Reach. And fo thefe arro- 
 gant Pretenders pull but fliintly, becaufc thev raifc 
 their Meditations too high on their Tip-toes ; 
 whereby they are difabled from employing all 
 their natural Vigor, in pulling at thefe weighty 
 and fublime Truths, which they catch not by 
 that Corner which is nearefl, as meaner Wits do, 
 ( and fo are more fuccefsful ) but endeavour a 
 Fetch at what in Divinity is higheit ; by which 
 Effort their Endeavours are fliinter than thofe 
 whofe Spirit is of a lefl'er Size. And thefe Colof- 
 fi-ff Wits become the greateft Hereticks, as thofe 
 crJi^arily are mod burnt, whofe Fingers oftne ft 
 ■ftir up Fires ; and as Chirurgions have more Cuts 
 and Wounds, thaji anv other Mechanicks, who 
 handle not fo oft thefe wounding Tools. It i^ 
 not lit that mortrd M;ni (liould wrcftlc too much 
 
 with 
 
The Virtuofo^ or Stoic, ^7 
 
 with chefe Myfteries, left his Renfoiij hke Jacoh^ 
 be forc'd to come off halting. 
 
 Nothing hath more bufied my Thoughts than 
 to find a Reafon why the Heathens , who were 
 as aflidious and zealous too in the Worfhip of their 
 Gods, as we Chriftinns, did never frequent Ser- 
 mons, nor knew nofuch part of Divine Service; 
 whereof (probably) the Reafon was, becaufe their 
 Governors ( vvhofe Commands amongft them 
 were the fole jure-divinojhip of all Ecclefiaftick 
 Rites ) feared that Churchmen, if they had been 
 licens'd to harangue to the People , would have 
 infiuenc'd too much that grols Body ; which was 
 the Reafon likewife, why in thePrimitive Church 
 ( as one of their Hiftorians obferves ) ex formula 
 populo pradicabant, t ant am antifjuas timehat J\^uo^yHf j i 
 
 They preached only approved Sermons. So 
 much did Antiquity fear thefe Leaders of the 
 People; a Practice, as is reported, lately renew'd 
 by the Duke of Rujfia-. And this fecmerh alfo to 
 have been the Reafon , why all Liturgies have 
 prick'd Texts for their Preachers, left if they had 
 been left a Freedom in their Choice, they had 
 chofe fuch as might in the Letter, have fuited bell 
 with fuch feditious Libels as are now obtruded up- 
 on the People, in Lieu of pious Homilies, at re- 
 markable or feftival Occafions. Yet, 1 think, 
 that our late Doctors , who can find all Dodrine 
 in any Text, would eafily have eluded that Ca- 
 nonic Defign. If we fhould parallel the Homi- 
 lies, which thofe Renou'ned Fathers have left as 
 Legacies to Pofterity, with thefe which our Age 
 runs after, we would find, that the firft were 
 pointed Leflbns of Mortification; which, like 
 Mofes's Rod, could draw Gufhes of Tears from 
 the rocky Hearts of the moft obdured Sinners ; 
 Whereas many of thefe laft are butState-gazettes, 
 wherein the People are informed, what are the 
 Da Refolves 
 
a 8 the Vtrtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 Refolves of the Civil Magiftrate : And whereas 
 their firft Inftitution made them AmbalTadors of 
 Glad-tidings betwixt God and his People^ they 
 have made themfclves Heralds to denounce Wars 
 betwixt God's Vice-gerent and his Subjects. Thus 
 Peters SuccelTors will oft-times,like himfelf^rather 
 draw the Sword, than watch for their Mafler. 
 And fince our Saviour hath difarmed them, as he 
 did Veter^ and filled their Hands with the Keys, 
 thofe who offend them are fure to get over the 
 Head with thefe. I confefs, God hath not left 
 his Church without fome skilful Pilots, to lead in 
 his Servants with Security to the Harbour of Sal- 
 vation : To whom this Difcourfe and its Author 
 fhall pay all Refpeds. 
 
 c H A p, vn. 
 
 Of the Stri6lnefs of Churches. 
 
 MO ST of all Churches do, like coy Maids, 
 lace their Bodies fo ftrait, that they bring 
 on them a Confumption; and will have the Gates 
 of Heaven to have been only made for themfelves: 
 And as this Nigardlinefs hath pofTeft Churches, 
 from that Root hath ftem'd the Churlifhnefs of 
 fome private Chrillians, who will allow God but 
 a moft inconfiderable Number of thofe whom he 
 hath admitted to make up his vifible Church. 
 Thus fome Paftors will only admit Two or Three 
 to be Guetts at the Lord's Table, allowing no 
 wtdding Garment, but what is of their own fpin- 
 ring: and others, with their uncharitable Hands, 
 blur the Names of all their Acquaintances out of 
 the Book of Life, as if they were Keepers of his 
 Regifters and Rolls j and vnll only have Seats 
 kept in the Church triumphant, for three or four 
 ' ' ■* " • Sifters^ 
 
The JArtuojo^ or Stole, q^ 
 
 Sifters, who are fo frugal of their Devotions, as 
 to fpare them at Home, to the end they may be 
 liberal in publick. But both thefe fhould confider, 
 that the New Jerufakm is faid to have more Gates 
 than one; that John, in his Revelation, tells us. 
 That numberlefs Numbers were feen following 
 the Lamb; and that it is not probable, that the 
 wife Framer of the World made fuch a fpacious 
 Dwelling , as Heaven , to be inhabited by fo in- 
 confiderable a Number : Whereas Hell ( Hell in 
 the Geography of Believed Tradition ) is only 
 the fmall Kernel of this fmall Shell the Earth. I 
 know that many are called and few chofen ; and 
 that the Way is ftrait, and few enter in at it. _ But 
 we fhould confider, that thefe Chofen are faid to 
 be few, in.Refped only of thofe many who are 
 called : Which is moft certain ; for Ten Parts of 
 Eleven are Pagans or Mahometans ( and all are 
 called) ; of that Eleventh Part, many are malici- 
 ous Hereticks ; and amongft the Refidue many 
 are flagitious and publick Sinners : So that albeit 
 the greateft part of the regular Members of the 
 Vifible Church were fav'd, yet the Number wou'd 
 be fmall, in Comparifon of thefe others : The 
 Body of the Vifible Church muft (like all other 
 Bodies ) be compounded of contrary Elements. 
 And albeit I am not of Opinion, that this Body 
 fhould be fuffer'd to fwell with Humours j yet I 
 would not wifli, that it fhould be macerated with 
 Purgations. Its Nails ( though but Excrementi- 
 tious Parts) fhould not be fo nearly pared, as that 
 the Body may bleed ; yet they fhould be fo pared, 
 as that Chriftians may not fcratch one another. 
 They fhould feed not upon Blood, but Milk; and 
 they are unmannerly Guefls, who will not fuffer 
 others to fit at their Mafter's Table with them. 
 
 It pleafes my Humour to contemplate, how 
 that albeit all Religions war againit one another; 
 '■" ■' - . - yet 
 
'^o \fhe Virtnofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 yet are all of rhsm governed hy the fime Princi- 
 ples; and even by thofc Principles, in cfFeA , 
 which rhey i'eem to ahaminatc. Thus albeit the 
 Ccfiacion of Miracles be cried down by many , 
 yet do th.: mod Bii^or rclire, wh«t Miracles have 
 been wrou^lit by the Founders of their Hierar- 
 chies, and what Prophecies they have orat:uIoiifly 
 pronounced. And feeing all confefs, that God 
 in cur Days breaks the Profperous upon the fame 
 Wheel;, on whole Toji rhey did but lately tri- 
 umph y making Fortune adopt the oppreil in their 
 Vice ; why fhould we talk fo much of the ceafmg 
 of .Miracles? For doubtlefs chefe Effects are in 
 Policy as contrary to Nature, as are the Iwim- 
 ming of Iron, or fweetning of Rivers; or rather 
 more : Seeing in the firft, Man*s will is forc'd, 
 ( without which fuch Rcvohuions could not be 
 effeduated ) whereas in the lail , dull and feiifu- 
 al Qualities are only wrefted; wliich as they are 
 not lb Excellent, fo doubtlels are not able to make 
 fuch Refiftance, as the Soul of Man. \ea, I 
 fliould rather think, that the World being be- 
 come old, muft doubtlefs be more dim-fighred (a> 
 all old things are) than formerly; and therefore 
 God doth now prefenr greater Objeds of Admi- 
 ration to our Eyes, than he did formerly : For 
 Man is become fo Atheiflical, that if God did 
 not prefs his Meditation with fuch, infallible Te- 
 ftimonies of the Being of an irrefiftible Power, 
 he would doubtlefs fliake off all Refolutions of 
 fubmitting. Thus we fc-e, that in all the Tracl: of 
 Johns Revelations, Miracles grow l^ill more fre- 
 quent the nearer the World draweth to its Grave ; 
 and like all other Bodies, the weaker it becomes, 
 the more fubjed it is to all Alterations , and the 
 lefs is Nature able to reftfl:. And it would appear, 
 that if Miracles were requifite at firft for the E- 
 Ibblifhment of Relie;i^on, even when no older 
 
 Rcli- 
 
The T^irtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 Religion was to cede it , and to make an Exit; at 
 its Entry; much more fhould Miracles be necel- 
 fary, for fixing any Religion againft the received 
 Conftitutions of a previoufly fettled Church. 
 But to profecute my firft Defign; it is remarkable, 
 that albeit Infallibilicy be not by all conceded to 
 any Militant Church , yet it is afTumed by all : 
 Neither is there any Church under the Sun, 
 which would not fix the Name of Heretick^ and 
 account him ('almoft) reprobate^, who would re- 
 fule to acknowledge the leaft Rational of their 
 Principles ; And thus thefe Churchmen pull up 
 the Ladders from the Reach of others, after they 
 have by them fcal'd the Walls of Preferment 
 themfelvcs. That Churchmen fliould immerfe 
 themfelves in Things Civil, is thought Excentrick 
 to their Sphere, even in or dine did Jpiritualia : And 
 yet even the Cafuchlns, who are the greateft Pre- 
 tenders to abftrad Chriftianity and Mortification, 
 do, of all others, dipth moft in Things Civil. 
 The Fanaticks inveigh againft Presbyterian 
 Gowns. The Presbyterian tears the EpifcopalLawn 
 Sleeves, and thinks them the Whore of Babel's 
 Shirt. The Epifcopifi flouts at the Popifh Robes , 
 as the Livery of the Beaft. The Antinomian 
 emancipates his Difciples from all Obedience to 
 the Law. The Protefiant enjoins good Works, 
 and fuch are commanded, but place no Merit in 
 them. The Roman Catholick thinks he merits in 
 his Obedience. The Fanatick believes the Lord's 
 Supper but a Ceremony, though taken with very 
 little outward RefpeA. The Presbyterian allows 
 it, but will not kneel. The Efifcofifi kneels, but 
 will not adore it. The Catholick mixeth Adorati- 
 on with his kneeling. And thus moft of all Re- 
 ligions are made up of the fame Elements, albeit 
 their Afymbolick Qualities predomine in fome 
 piore than in others. And if that Maxim hold , 
 
 that 
 
3 ^ TThe J^irtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 that majm ^ minus non 'variant fpeciew, we may 
 pronounce all of them to be one Religion. 
 
 The Church, like the River Nilus, can hardly 
 condefcend where its Head lies; and as all conde- 
 fcend that the Church is a Multitude of Chrifti- 
 ans, fo join all their Opinions, and you fhall find 
 that they will have it to have, like the Multitude, 
 many Heads. But in this ( as in all Articles not 
 abfolutely necelTary for being faved ) I make the 
 Laws of my Country to be my Creed : And that 
 a clear Decifion herein is not abfoluteh' necelTary 
 for Salvation, is clear from this, that many poor 
 Clowns fhall be faved, whofe Confcience is not 
 able to teach their Judgments how to decide this 
 Controverfy, wherein (o many Heads have been 
 confounded , fo many have been loft, and fo ma- 
 ny have been fhrewdly knocked againft one ano- 
 ther; from which flinty Collifions much Fire, but 
 little r>ight, hath ever burft forth. 
 
 God, by his Omnifcience, forefeeing that it 
 was too dazlinga Sight for the Pur-blind Eyes of 
 Man's Soulj to behold him invironed with the 
 Rays of Divine Majefty, did beftow upon us three 
 Mirrors, wherein we might contemplate him, (as 
 we ufe to look upon the Sun in a Tub of Water, 
 not daring to eye his Native Splendor) : The one- " 
 was the Mirror of the Law; the Second is the 
 Works of the Creation; and the Third is the Soul 
 of Man, which he himfelf hath told us, is framed 
 after his own Glorious Image. 
 
 As for the Firft Mirror, the Law; God know- 
 ing that Infiin^, or as we term it, a 7unural Con- 
 fcience, were compleat Digefts of all that Man 
 was to obfervc, he did make that Mirror very 
 little, a Volume of only Two Pages; but that 
 Mirror is of late ^o muUered about, by marginal 
 Notes and Commentators, that the Mirror it felf 
 is almoft over-fpread by them : And it is very ob- 
 
 fervable. 
 
The JArtuofoif or Stoic. 5 :^ 
 
 fervable^ that in the Holy Regifters the Law is 
 ■ ftill abridged; but we never fee it enlarged : For 
 albeit the fundamental Laws of both Tables were 
 packed up in narrow Bounds, yet our Saviour 
 fums them up in thefe Two, Fear the Lord thy God 
 ■ivith all thy heart, and lo've thy Neighbour as thy [elf. 
 And the Apoftle Paul, in his Divine Epiftles, pro- 
 felTes, that he defires to kno-w only Chrifi, and him 
 crucified: So that I am confident, that if our Sa- 
 viour were to preach in Perfon once more to the 
 World, he would inveigh againft our Cafuifts, as 
 much as he did againft the Jeivijh Talmudifts ; 
 for the one, as well as the other, are equally guil- 
 ty of burdening the Shoulders of weak Chrifti- 
 ans, with the unneceftary Trafh of Human In- 
 ventions. For I remember to have feen a late 
 Cafuift difpute contentioufly amongft his othei^ 
 Cafes, whether Tobacco, taken in the Morning, 
 did break a commanded Faft, or not? To which, 
 after a feverifh Conflid, his Wifdom, forfooth, 
 returns this oraculous Anfwer; That if Xcb^cco b& 
 taken at the Nofe, .if breaks not the Fafi; but if it be 
 taken at the Mouth, then it breaks the Fafi; Which,' 
 becaufe I made a Collafterion betwixt the Cafu- 
 ifts and the Talmudifts, I fhall only mention, out 
 of "the Talmud ( which was the JeiiJH Comment 
 upon the Law)- a Cafe exadly parallel to this^ 
 wherein is decided, that if a Man carry a Burden 
 on the Sabbath-day upon both Shoulders, then he 
 is guilty of Breach of Sabbath; but that he is not 
 guilty, if he carry it upon one Shoulder. As to 
 my \)vvn private Judgment, ( which I fubmit to 
 my Spiritual Tutors ) I think, that feeing the 
 Confcience of Man is the fame Faculty with the 
 Jjidgment, when converfant about Spiritual Em- 
 ploymente, (as the Word nvei/umi, which imports 
 a Knowledge reflexive upon a Man's own felf, 
 doth abundantly evidence) .that therefore, as 
 
 there 
 
34 7^^^ jArtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 there are Judgments of different Tempers, fo 
 there are like wife Confcicnccs of different Frames ; 
 and which vary as much amongft thenifelves, as 
 natural Conftitutions do. And therefore, as the 
 fame Dole would prove noxious to one Conftitu- 
 tion, wherein another would find his Health ; fo 
 in one and the fame A.A, that Refolution may be 
 faving to one Confcience, which itiay condemn 
 another: For feeing God hath kindled a Torch 
 in each Man's Breaft, by whofe Flame he may fee 
 what Path he fhould beat; in which Senfe it is 
 faid, Fro'u. 20. 27. T/j^t the under Jh an divg of man is 
 the candle of the Lord '^ and can that Light mif-lead ? 
 And feeing Man muft be anfwerjtble according to 
 what it prefcribes to him, doubtlefs it is fitter that 
 he fhould hearken to the reiterated Didates of his 
 Confcience, than to the Refolution of any 
 School-Cafuift; and thdt for the fame Reafon, 
 that it is more Rational to obey the Law it felf ^ 
 than the wifeft Lawyer, who may either be de- 
 ceived hixnfelf, or h^ve a Defign to deceive others. 
 For if God hath endued' Man with every' thing 
 necelfary for working out the Work of his own 
 Salvation with Fear and Trembling, he hath 
 doubtlefs beftowed upon him an internal Touch- 
 ftone, by whofe Teft he may difcern betwixt 
 Good and Evil ; feeing to command Man to walk 
 uprightly, and not to teftow on him Eyes to fee 
 the Road, were to command a blind Man to 
 walk, and to punifh him if he went aftray. And 
 as the Compofure of Man's Body would be im- 
 perfeA and manck^ if he wanted a Palate tcTdif- 
 cern betwixt the Tafte of what is wholefome, or 
 what is putrid; fo if the Soul of Man were not 
 able to know its own Duty, and by the^Palsftew^^^^ 
 a natural Confcience, to difference betwixt law- '' 
 ful and unlawful ; certainly the Soul might be 
 thought to be but ill appointed. Thusi3caih arc,by 
 
 All 
 
The lArtuofo^ of Stoic. 5 5 
 
 2n intrinfick Principle, taught their Duty, and 
 do accordingly fliun or follow what is convenient 
 for them, vvithoui: confulting any thino; from, 
 without. And fliall Man be lefs perlpicacious, or 
 more defedivc than thefe ? As alfo feeiiig Man is 
 oft-times, by thoufands of Occafions, removed far 
 from the Aflillance of Chair or Piilpir-informcrs; 
 and in that his Rctirednefs hath moft of thefc 
 Cafes to be refolvcd ; it were abfiird to think, that 
 he then wants SuiTiciency of Help for their Re- 
 folurion. And it is mofi: obfervable in Scripture, 
 that Men are oft check'd for quenching the Spi- 
 rit, but never for not confulting Cafiiifts. I know 
 it may be thought, that when the Soul of Man 
 rages at fometime in a Fever of Luft, Revenge, 
 or ibme fuch Sin, that then the Confcience may 
 rave; yet I dare (]iv, that albeit the Soul, out of 
 an inordinstte Dell re to enjoy its own Pleafures, 
 may fet its Invention at Work, to palliate the Sin- 
 fulnefs of what it defires; ^'ct by fome lecret 
 Knell, the Confcience founds fcill its Reproof. 
 And I dare fay, that never Man erred without a 
 Check from his Confcience; nor that few have 
 finned, Jlfter an Approbation obtained from his 
 Confcience of what he was about : And vv hen 
 we affent to thefe Dodors, is it not becaufe our 
 Confciences, or our Judgments ( which are the 
 fame ) alTent to what they inform ? Which evi- 
 dences , that our Confciences are more to be be- 
 lieved than they ; by that Rule, Fropter cjuod miiim- 
 <^uoi(]\ efi tale J 8zc. But to convince us of the Fol- 
 ly of our AddrelTes to thefe Doilors, it may, and 
 often doth fall out, that that may be a Sin in me, 
 which a Cafuift pronounces to be none : as if 
 my Breail did fuggeft to me, that it v/ere a Sin 
 to buy Church-Lands; if there-after I did buy 
 them^ It were doubtlefs a Sin, albeit my DoAors 
 following the Canons of their particular Church, 
 
 alfiired 
 
5 6 The Vtrtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 alTiircd me, that the Sale of Church-Lands were 
 no Sin in it felf. I am confident then, that this 
 Cafuift-Divinity hath taken its Rife from the De- 
 fire Churchmen had to know theMyftery of each 
 Man's Breaft, and to the end, nothing of Import 
 might be undertaken without confulting their 
 Cell \ perfuading Men , that In or dine ad fpiritualia, 
 their Confciences, and confequently their Salva- 
 tion rriay be interefted in every Civil Affair. And 
 to confirm this, it is moft ufed by Jefiuts and In- 
 novators, who defire to know all Intrigues, and 
 fubvert all States ; whereas the Primitive Church 
 knew no fuch Divinity, neither have its Dodors 
 left any fuch Volumes. 
 
 It may be urged, that feeing the Confcience 
 is but a reflex Ad of the Judgment, that as the 
 Judgment is an unfure Guide, the Confcience 
 cannot pretend to be infallible ; and that the one, 
 as well as the other , is tutor'd by the fallacious 
 Principles of Senfe and Cufiew. And I my felf 
 have leen my Landlady, in France, as much 
 troubled in. Confcience for giving us Flefh to eat 
 in Lent, as if fhe had caft out the Flefli of a 
 Chriflian to be devoured by Dogs : And fo A- 
 theifm may attribute toCuftom thefe Inclinations, 
 whereby we are aded on to believe a Deity -, and 
 may tell us, that the Mahometans find themfelves 
 as much prickt in Confcience , for tranfgrcffing 
 their Prophet's Canons, as we for offending a- 
 gainft the Moral Law. And thus the ajioring ■ 
 of a Deitv might have at firft been brooded in the 
 Council-Chamber of a Stacefman's Head ; and 
 yet might have been at that time, by the Vulgar, 
 •and thereafter by the wifeft Pates, worfhipped 
 with profound Refpeds : Yet, if we pry nar- 
 rowly into this Conceit, we fliall find in it fome- 
 rhing of Inftind, previous to all Forgeries poffi- 
 ble. For what was it ( I pray you ) which en- 
 couraged. 
 
The Virtuofo^ or Stoic, * 37 
 
 courag^d, or fuggefled to thefe Politicians^ tliat 
 fuch a Thing as the Deity might be diilembled to 
 their People ? For their impofing that Cheats pre- 
 fuppofed fome pre-exilHng Notion of it. Or^ 
 how entred that Fancy firft in their wild FIead5 ? 
 Or, how could fo many contemporary, yet far 
 diftant, Legiflators fall upon the fame Thoughts, 
 efpeciall)^ it being fo remote from Senfe-^ and for 
 framing of which Idea, their Experience could 
 never furnifli a Pattern? Confcience then mufl: be 
 fomething elfe, than the Fumes of Melancholy, 
 or Capricio's of Fancy ; for elfe roaring Gallants, 
 who are little troubled, or can eafily conquer all 
 other Fancies, would not be fo haunted by thefe 
 pricking Pangs ; which if they were not infallibly 
 Divine, behoved to be merely ridiculous, and ta 
 want all Support from Reafon or Experience. 
 
 There is another File of Cafes of Confciencej 
 which is a Cadet of that fame Family ; and thefe 
 are fuch Cafes as were the Brood of thefe late 
 Times, Which Hke Infeds and unclean CreatureSj, 
 may be faid generari ex putri materia : An Inftance 
 whereof was the Famous Sifter, who ask'd^ if fhe 
 was oblig'd to execute her Cat for killing a Moufc 
 upon the Sabbath. This was a Theology taught 
 by old doting Wives, and ftudied by State-Expe- 
 <5tants, who to gain Applaufe, and in Hopes to 
 mount Preferment's Saddle, made ufe of this gil- 
 ded Stirrup. 1 (hall not inveigh againit this Fop- 
 pery, feeing it hath not polfeft Mens Conceit fo 
 long, as to have prefcribed the Title of Divinity , 
 but like a Meteor, which becaufe it is hxt to no 
 Orb, and is but a Mafs of inflamed Vapors, doth 
 therefore difappear immediately, how foon its 
 Subftance flaflies out^ and its Afhes are now en- 
 tomb'd in the fame Clay with its Brother Twain. 
 that pious Nofifi'fjfe;, wherein God Almighty was 
 treated with in Familiar, and not in Superior. 
 
 E C H A K 
 
'^8 Jke T^irtiiojo^ or Stoic. 
 
 CHAP. VIIL 
 
 Of the Scriptures, 
 
 AS God did light the. Candle of a private 
 Confcience, in each private Breaft; fo 
 hath he hung up the I, amp of the Scriptures in 
 the Body of his Church : And thefc we may call 
 the Confcience. of the Church, whilft Militant. 
 Which Ibme, by the Breath of their Vanity, ahd 
 Storms of their Paflion, endeavour to blow out; 
 whilft others make no other Ufe of. its Light, 
 than to fliew them where to find a Jcft. And 
 within the Arms of this Divifion, lie folded all 
 theprophane Raceof Mankind. As to thefc lirfl ' 
 ( who fliould be firft, becaufe they are Satan's 
 Firtt-bori), and fo deferve a double Fortiori of this 
 Reproof) they contend, that tlie Scriptures are 
 written in a mean and low Stile,- are in fomc 
 Places too Myftcrious, in. others too Obfcure ; 
 contain many things incredible, many Repetiti- 
 ons, and many Contradidions. But thefe Mif- 
 creants fhould confider, that much, of the Scri- 
 pture's native Splendor is impaired by its Tranfla- 
 tOrs, who fearing to fall within the Verge of the 
 Curfes , pronounced againft fuch as fhould pare 
 from, or add to, any thing contained in that 
 Divine Book, were, and are willing, that their 
 Tranllation fliould want rather the Luftre, than 
 the Meaning of the Original. As alfo of all 
 Tongues, I believe the Hebrew adrriits kaft of a 
 Tranflation, efpccially into Northern Languages : 
 Tor as thofc Nations differ leaft in their Exprcffi- 
 ons, who becaufe of their Commerce or Conti- 
 guity , have the moft frequent Converfe ; fo 
 doubdefs the J.eirs and wc, by this Rule, fhould 
 
 in 
 
The J^trtuofo^ or Stoic, 59 
 
 in Language hold the leaf!: Cbfrefpondence. And 
 becaufe there is no pure Fountain of this Tongue 
 left, befides the Bible, it muft be hard to under- 
 ftand its Expreflioris, wherein the Tranflators cfin 
 find little or no Help frorri the Variety and Col- 
 lation of Authors. And feeing this Book was 
 penn'd indifFereritly for all Ages, Nations, and 
 Sexes, it was fit that its Stile fhould have been 
 Condefcending : For thofe who are tall, can pull 
 the Fruit which hangs low ; whereas thofe who 
 are low, cannot pull what perches high. And 
 it is very obfervable, that where the Fruit is great- 
 eft and ripeit, there the Branch whereoii it hangs 
 bows loweft: "When God appeared to EUjahy 
 I Kings 19. there came firft a terrible Wind, there- 
 after a great Earthquake, and then Fire j arid yet 
 God was in none of thefe, but fpoke in the fiirill 
 fmall Voice. His Divine Providence hath fo or- 
 der'd it, that our Conviction cannot be afcrib'd 
 to the Fard of Eloquence, nor the Slight of Lo- 
 gick, but merely to the Truth of what is therein 
 reprefented : Our Saviour will, with Clay and 
 Spittle, ill urninate our Eyes, as he did thofe of 
 the other blind Man in the Gofpel. And fuch is 
 the Strength of his Divine Arm, that he Can van- 
 quifli Satan, Misbelief, and Ignorance,, with any 
 Weapon. And as we think the Sun's Circumfe- 
 rence but little, becaufe it. is fituated fo far above 
 us ; i^b we conclude thefe Truths and Excellencies 
 but mean, becaufe they Ire plac'd above our frail 
 Reach; and will blame the Scriptures, when the 
 Fault lurks in our felves. That greatPhyfician wHl 
 cure us,like an Artift,with Simples fpecific for our 
 Difeafe ; and not like a Charleta7:,wnH perfumed & 
 gilded Nothings. It is not alway the beft Metal, 
 which carries the nioft pleafmg l/nfreffa^ nor doth 
 the painted Candle cafe the clcareft Light.. There 
 are many things in Scripture, which beCaufe of 
 E 2 our 
 
40 The yirtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 our Frailtyj appear ( like a StaiF in the Waters ) 
 to be crooked , albeit they be ftraighr. Why A- 
 hraham fnoiild have kill'd his Son Ifaac^ or the 
 Ifraelites liavc boirowed, and not reftored the <i/E- 
 gyp:'i.n Ear-rings^ ftaggers not my Belief; for 
 thcfe bciong'd to God, and neither to Abraham, 
 nor tl\e iy£^yftiavs ; and fo God might have given 
 Order to 2ny he pleafed to receive them : And 
 thofe who obey'd, were no more guilty than fuch 
 are, who by Order from the Mafter, receive 
 what he did formerly lend to Others. And as to 
 its Repetitions, they differ no doubt from one a- 
 nother, albeit we ( who think all things remo- 
 ved, though by a little Diftance from us, of one 
 Shape ) judge ill, in judging otherwife. And as 
 an Excellent Perfon hath well obferved, God 
 hath appointed thefe reiterated Expreflions to be 
 as fo many WitnefTes, to convince Hereticks and 
 others, who fhould call the Meaning of any one 
 Place in Queftion , or wreft it by what precedes 
 or follows it. 
 
 As to thofe others, in whom the Wine of God*s 
 Confolations (by being winded in the crack'd 
 Vcffels of their Heads ) turns into the tart Vine- 
 gar of prophane Satyrs, I condole their Conditi- 
 on : For that Stomach muft be very corrupt, 
 wherein the beft of Aliment putrifies moft ; and 
 probably, that indigefted Milk being converted 
 into excrcmentitious Bile and Humours, may caft 
 them in a Fever, which .fliall never cool- to all E- 
 tcrnity. I pity likewife thofe , who out of an in- 
 advertent ( and as they think, flnlefs ) Humour, 
 jeft with thefe Divine Truths ; like foolifli Chil- 
 dren, who love rather to fport with their Meat 
 than eat it. Thefe albeit they intend not to pro- 
 phane Scripture, yet they vilify it: And we 
 may fay of rhc Bible, as of taking of God's 
 Name in cur Mouths , which muft not only not 
 
 be 
 
ihe J^irtuofo^ or Stoic, ^i 
 
 be done upon Defign y to blafpheme and defame 
 him ; but muft not be taken but upon Neceffi'ty, 
 and like the Shew-bread^ muft be ufed only when 
 we are in Straights. I have been too guilty of 
 this laft Sin my felf ; and therefore, left I jfhould 
 make no Attonement, I have rather refolved to 
 appear before the World , in the Duft and Sack- 
 cloth of this filly Difcourfe, a Penance really 
 to me very great. 
 
 When I confider, how various and innumera- 
 ble are the Adions of Men, and that in all thefe 
 they need particular Inftrudions from above the 
 Poles ; I admire why there ^e fo many PaiTages 
 in Scripture, from which our Neceffity may ex- 
 peA no Affiftance. And therefore left I ftiould 
 think, that in Scripture there is any Wafte of 
 Words, I am induced to believe, that there run 
 many hid Allegories from Gene/is to Johns Re'veU- 
 tions ; wherein the Myftical Senfe deferves like- 
 wife the Name of God's Word. Might we not 
 have admired, why the Story of Hagar and her 
 Baftard, is there voluminoufly defcribed, and 
 what the Church or private Devotion was con- 
 cerned therein, if Faul, Gal. 4. 24. had not dil^ 
 covered the Myftery to us ? By which Things, a- 
 nother Thing is meant : For thefe Two Mothers 
 are the Two Teftaments ; the one which is Agar 
 of yiowntSlnaij which gendereth unto Bondage, 
 &c. I might here relate many Excellent Allufions 
 to prove this ; but I fhall fatisfy my felf with one, 
 which I did read in one Doctor E'verot-^ who 
 preaching u^on J ojhna i<^. 16... Then Caleb faU^ 
 he 71'ho fmiteth Kirjath-fepher and tdketh it, even to him 
 will I give Achfah my daughter to wife. And Otniel 
 took it. Sic. faith. That Caleb fignifies, a good Heart; 
 Kirjath-fepher , the Citj of the Letter; Achfah, the 
 yifon; Othniel, God's Opportunity. And fo the My- 
 ftical Senfe runs^ a good Heart faith, that who- 
 
 E 5 ever 
 
4^ The ViTtuojo^ or Stoic. 
 
 Gver will take in ( and fmitej as Mofes did, the 
 Kock ) the Letcer pf the Word, fhall have the 
 Yifion which lurl^s under it, difcovered, and given 
 to him. And God's own 1 ime is the only Mean 
 for acconipliniing this: As alfo it is moft remark- 
 able, that City which was called Klrjath-fepher be- 
 fore it was taken in, or, the City of the Letter^ was, 
 after it was conquered^ called Dehir^ which fig- 
 niiies an Oracle • fo that the Word, or Letter, is 
 no Oracle, till it be once, as it were, taken in 
 and overcome. Since the reading of which Ser- 
 mon, I believe, that one may profit more by an 
 HehrevJ Lexicon, tl^n b)' a Thpufand EngU^i Le- 
 jdlures. * 
 
 * Thofe who detrad from Scripture, by attribur 
 ting too Production of Miracles to natural Cau- 
 fes, do not much difparage the Power of God, 
 but ( tho' againft their depraved Intention ) cry 
 rather up his Omnipotency: For certainly, if 
 th^efe Miracles were produced by fecondary caufes, 
 then doubtlefs that produdive Faculty was be- 
 llowed upon them by the Almighty ; and if he 
 can make the Creatures produce fuch ftrange Ef- 
 fed:s, much more is he able to effectuate them 
 himfelf^ as it is more difficult for a great Matter, 
 to form curious c^nd admirable Characters, when 
 he leads a Scholar's Hand, than when he writes 
 them with his own; For fuch Help may be called, 
 refijilng JJfifiancc. I cannot likewife but blame • 
 many of our Preachers, who rather break than 
 'open Holy Texts ; and rather make new Mean- 
 ings, fuiting with their private Defigns, than tell 
 the Meaning of the Spirit. Who" would not 
 have laugh'd, to hear a Presbyterian obferve, 
 from the firft Chapter o^G^nefts, firft Verfe, That 
 whilft Mofcs relates what God made, he fpeaks 
 nothing of Bijlwps; by which it was evident (faid 
 po^ ^M/vw's Chaplain ) th^t Biftiops were npt of 
 
 Divine 
 
The J^irtuofo^ or Stoic. 43 
 
 Divine Inftitution : A Conceit as ridiculous as 
 that of a Prieftj who hearing Maria fpoken of 
 for to fignify Seas, did brag that he had found the 
 Virgin Alary named in the Old Teftament. Albeit 
 I" think Preaching no part of Divine Worfhip, 
 hearing being no Adoration ; yet, I love to go to 
 Churph, were it but to fee a Multitude met toge- 
 ther, to cbnfefs that there is a God: But when I 
 go to hear, I care not whom, knowing that 
 Chrill eleded Fifhermen to preach down Infide- 
 lity , when it was in the RufF of its Pride : and 
 that ?aul ( the moft fignal Trophy of our Chri- 
 ftian Faith ) was fent for Confirmation, not to 
 Peter J or yames at yerufalem^ but Ananias one ol 
 the meaneft amongft the Difciples. And feeing 
 our Salvation, by preaching, is a Miracle ; it is 
 ftill fo much the greater, by how much weakeiy 
 the Inftruments are. When the Pulpit was * 
 Mount Sinai, from which the Law was thundered,; 
 or a Mount of Olives, whereon our Saviours.. 
 Glorious Transformation was to be feen, then 
 were Sermons to be honoured ; but fince it is be- 
 come a McHint Cahar, whereon our BlelTed Sa- 
 viour fufFcrs daily by fcandalous Railings, Ser- 
 mons are become unlavjDury for the moft part. ; I 
 hate to lee that Divine Place made either a Bar, 
 whereat fecular Quarrels are with Palllon plead- 
 ed; or a Stage, whereon Revenge is by Satyrs 
 fatisfied ; or a School-chair, from which unintel - • 
 ligible Queftions are myfterioufly debated: But 
 amongft all thefe Innovations introduced by our 
 Infant Divines, I hate none more than thaj: of gi-' 
 ving Reafons for proving the Doctrine, vvhich be- 
 ing Scripture it felf, can be provje.d by j^pthing 
 that is more certain. As forijnftance; when the 
 Doftrine is, that God loved us freely, hov/ can tliis 
 be proved more convincingly than thus, my Text 
 (ays it ? And that is idem per idem, a moft unlogl- 
 
 E 4 c:il 
 
44- T^he T/irtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 cal Kind of Probation. When I then go to 
 Church, I fhould love to fpend my time in Prai- 
 fes and Prayers; which as they arc the only Parts 
 of Adoration, fo are they the natural Employ- 
 ments of the Church, either Militant or Trium- 
 phant : Yet it difpleafes me to hear our young 
 Pulpiteers fcriech and cry, like Baal's Priefts, as 
 if God Vv'cre no nearer them than the vifible Hea- 
 
 vens. 
 
 I 
 
 CHAP. IX. 
 
 Of the Moral Law, 
 
 T honours much our Employment , that God 
 Almighty was the firft and great Law-giver ; 
 and that our Blefled Saviour ftiles himfelf our Ad- 
 vocate. And it is an amazing Wonder, that we 
 are tied only by Ten 1 aws ; whereof Seven were 
 ena(5ted doubtlefs for our Advantage and Refpe<5t, 
 more immediately the Security of the Creature, 
 than the Honour of the Creator ; and are fuch 
 Reftraints, as Men behoved to have laid upon 
 one another, and which Nature lays upon us all. 
 And albeit I laugh at the Jewijh Cabala^ which 
 lays, that the Moral I,aw was vyritten Two 
 Thoufand Years before Mofes^ in black Letters at 
 the back of a clear burning Fire ; yet I cannot 
 approve Tertullians Wit, who endeavours to find 
 all thefe Ten in the Prohibition made to Adam. 
 There are indeed fome Sins, which fcarce a Con- 
 fequence can bring within the Verge of thefe 
 Commandments. As for Initance, Drunkennefs; 
 Yet thefe are fuch as are fo deltrudive to our Na* 
 ture, that there. needs no Law be made againft 
 them. So that the Prieft hit wittily, to whom 
 ^■"''" (h^t 
 
The JArtuofo^ or Stoic, 4.5 
 
 that Sin being confelTed, enjoined^ as a Penance, 
 their being drunk a fecond time : Which. makes 
 me conclude, that if Drunkennefs were to be 
 ranged under any of thefe Laws, it would fall 
 moft naturally under that. Thou jhall not kill. A.1- 
 beit the Fourth Commandment feems to refped 
 only the Honour of God, and that the Creature 
 feems to be no ways bettered by it ; yet our more 
 ferious Obfervation will difcover, that all bela- 
 bouring Creatures, as it were, exped an Eafe 
 the Seventh Day more than any other. Whether 
 it be, that Nature is by Cuftom framed to that 
 Expedation, I cannot tell : But we fee that God 
 chus'd that Number to be the Year of Jubilee a- 
 mongft his own People^ and that it is the Period 
 of all the feveral Confiftencies in our Life, Infan- 
 cy, Puberity, &c. And for this Reafbn Phyfi- 
 cians obferve, that the Child born in the Seventh 
 Month, is ftronger than that which is born in the 
 Eighth ; becaufe in the Seventh it is come to a 
 Knot, by paffing whereof, in the Eighth it is in 
 a State of Imperfedion : But what the Myftery 
 of this holy Climaderic is, I refer till we come 
 to that Sabbath of Reft, whereat we ordinarily 
 arrive after Seven times Nine Years hath fnowed 
 upon us. 
 
 We may think, that if God had intended, that 
 one and the fame Day of the Week ftiould have 
 been appropriated to have been a Sabbath, he had 
 defigned each Day by a fpecial Term, and had 
 commanded, that a Day of fuch a Defignation 
 fhould have been lequeftrated for a Sabbath ; and 
 that by defigning only the Seventh Day , he did 
 leave a Liberty to employ any Day of the Seventh 
 for that Ufe. Yet it is remarkable, that Mofes 
 nor the Je-jyijh Church durft not attempt the 
 Change of their New- Year's Davj but that the 
 Almighty was pleafed to beftow a peculiar San- 
 
 dion 
 
^^ • T^he Virtnofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 ction upon that Alteration: For, Exod. 12. 2. He 
 commands, That the Month wherein the Ifraelites 
 came from Egyft, fliould be by them reputed the 
 firft Month of their Year. Wherefore feeing 
 each Nation chalks out a diverfc Sabbath, it wou'd' 
 appear, that there is Ibmcthing of Humour in it, 
 as well as of Religion. The Fnwour Mahometan 
 chufeth Friday^ or dies Faieris ; the dull Jew, dull 
 Snturni, Day • the varlike Varthlans, Tljefdav, or 
 Alars's Day ; the cheery F.uropeans, Sunday. And 
 albeit the Chriftians are influcnc'd only by Infpi- 
 ration ; yet I am confident, that the Heathens did 
 follow that for Religion, which fuited bed with 
 their natural Temper. But this is a Meditation , 
 which iTiould travel no where beyond aMan'^s' 
 private Breaft, left it meet with Enmity, and be-' 
 get Scandal. 
 
 It would puzzle a Heathen much to hear, that 
 he who breaks one of thefe Laws, is guilty of the' 
 preach of all : But it troubles not mc, feeing; all 
 thefe X^aws are made to fhew our Obedience^, and 
 the Breach of any one of them fhews our Con- 
 tempt of him who is the Author of all. • And if 
 may be, this was typified in Mofes\ breaking both 
 Tables with one paffionate Fling, after he came 
 down from the Mount : For -if this breaking of • 
 them had not been pre-defigned for fome hid 
 Ind, doubtlefs he had been reproved for hisNeg- ' 
 ligence. However, we may from this learn t|;*e' 
 defperatc Nature of Paflion, which made Aiofes, 
 who was the meekeft Man-upon Earth, break all 
 the Laws of God in one Act. It might be alfo 
 argued, that feeing all the Laws of the Second 
 Table were ena(5led for, and refp.ed ultimately, 
 the Advantage of Man , that where Man is not 
 wronged, there the Law cannot he broke. And 
 thus, if a married Man fliould have Liberty fronn 
 liis xyifc to take another Woman, this could be 
 
 no 
 
^he J^ifttiofo^ or Stoic. 47 
 
 no more reputed Adultery, than it could be re- , 
 putcd Theft to take what belongs to our Neigh- 
 bour, himfelf confenting; and that for this Caufe, 
 Jacob's begetting Children with his Wife's Maids, 
 "is not in Scripture reproved as Adultery, becaufe 
 they were given to him by her felf, for that EfFeA; 
 but feeing the Pracftice of all the World con- 
 demns this Gonclufion, far be it from me to ex- 
 prefs it farther: Yet this is but a Sophifm; for 
 .feeing our Bodies are the Temples of the Holy 
 .Ghoft, we can no more beftow them upon fuch 
 XJfes, than a Church- Warden can give the Ufe 
 pf the Church to Taverners. 
 
 CHAP. X. 
 
 Of the Judicial Law. 
 
 Al.beit the Judicial Law ( which may be juft- 
 ly called the Judicious Law) is commonly 
 '^j-eputed to be but the Municipal Law of the Jewi-^ 
 yet feeing it was delivered, in almoft one Con- 
 text, with that Law which was thunder'd from 
 Mount Sinai with fo much Pomp, and is ingrofs'd 
 in the Books of Holy Truth, and feems nearlier 
 related to Reafon, than any other Law; I admire, 
 why it fliould not be religioufly obferved by all 
 Nations : Efpecially feeing, as it is the exaAeft 
 Picture of Jufticc that ever was drawn; fo it hath 
 this of a Pidure in it, that it fecms to look direcl- 
 ly upon all who behold it ; albeit they be placed 
 ( amongll themfelves ) in dire^ftly oppofite Situ- 
 ations and Stances. Thus this Law fuits even 
 with contrary Tempers, and the unequal Com- 
 plexions of all Nations. I know that the Cere- 
 monial Law is Ukewife inferted amongit the other 
 
 holv 
 
4-8 ' T^he Virtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 holy Canons^ and yet binds net us who live under 
 the JnrifdiAion of the Gofpel: But the Reafon 
 of this fcems to be, bccaufe thefe did immediate- 
 ly concern the Jevjijl) Church, and were conver- 
 lant about thefe holy things. And fo feeing the 
 Old Teftament is a Defcription of their Hierar- 
 chy, and of Go;' 's way of working in thofe times, 
 I wonder not to fee the Ceremonies amidft other 
 ficrcd Truths, and yet not obferved, feeing they 
 are exprcfly abrogated. But if the Judicial Law, 
 which refpedied not the Hierarchy of that Church, 
 was obligatory only whilfl: the Jewijh State was 
 in Being; I admire why the Spirit of God took 
 fo much Pains, firft to pen it, and then to deliver 
 it, .fo Canon-like, to Pofterity. And fince it is 
 a Principle in Law and Reafon, that Laws muft 
 Hill ftand in Vigor till they be exprefly abrogated, 
 and muft not be derogated from by Confequences 
 or Prefumptions; I admire why this Law, which 
 God hath enervated by no exprefs Text, fhould 
 be now looked upon as Statutes no wife A-la-mode. 
 It is true, that our Saviour, when the Woman, 
 convided of Adultery, was brought to him, did 
 not, according to that Law, pronounce the Sen- 
 tence of Death againft her ^ whence fome think, 
 that Churchmen following their Mafter's Exam- 
 ple, fhould not give their Suffrages in criminal 
 Cafes, and have only <fiKftv ctviuyLa.Kv\v, a bloodlefs 
 JurifdiAion; for they are appointed to be Nurfes, 
 not Chyrurgions. But it is as true, that our Sa- 
 viour profelfed in all the Trad: of his Life , that 
 he came not to be a Judge in Things Temporal ; 
 and his Defign in that place, was only to convince 
 them of their own Sins, and not to abfolve her, 
 nor ro abrogate the Law : And therefore he defi- . 
 red him who was freeft from Sin, to caft the firft 
 Stone at her. And whereas it is conjedured, 
 that thofc Words which our Saviour ftoop'd down 
 
 to 
 
The yirtuofo^ or Stoic. 49 
 
 to write in the Clay, immediately thereafter was 
 an Abrogation of that Law; this is Geomancy 
 more wild than any LelTon, which is alledged to 
 have been read in the Myfterious Face of Hea- 
 ven, and ftiould never be taught but in a Rabby's 
 Cabalaftick Gown. And whereas it is alledged, 
 that there are many Precepts in that Corpm Juruy 
 which refpeds only the Humour of the Jews, I 
 admire why that can be urged; for certainly 
 Theft, Murder, and thofe other Crimes puniflied 
 there, are the fame^rimes which reign amongffc 
 us; andfo, why not punifhable after that fame 
 Manner? Neither are the Humours of thefe Jews 
 more different from ours, than was the Genim of 
 the Romans ; and yet few or no Nations refufe to 
 call their modern Laws in that antique Mold. 
 And it is very probable, that as God did in the 
 Moral Law, teach Man how to be juft in his own 
 Anions ; fo he would likewife inftrud: him by a 
 Judicial Law, how to adminiftrate Juftice to 
 others. 
 
 What can perpetuate a Law more, than that 
 the Authority whereby it is enacted, fhould be 
 obligatory in. all Ages; and the Reafon whereon 
 it is founded fliould be Eternal ? And in what 
 Laws do thefe two Qualities appear more, or fo 
 much, as in the Judicial Laws of the Jews, where 
 the Eternal Lawgiver was Legiflator; and the 
 Occafion produdive of them, feemed rational 
 ( and necelTary ) to his infallible Omnifcience ? 
 And if in any of thefe Statutes our purblind Judg- 
 ments cannot fee a prefent Conveniency, we 
 fhould rather impute that to our own Simplicity, 
 than charge it as a Guilt upon his Divine Statutes. 
 And are there not many Municipal Laws in each 
 Country, which have no Hedge about them to 
 keep them untrampled upon by wanton and too 
 curious Wits? But that Excellent Max im, Omni- 
 um 
 
5^ ? he Virtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 urn <jua fecerufjt Majores mfiri^ non cfi reddendo rat id; 
 netjue cert a funt, incerta reddnentitr ; a Reafon fniift 
 not be rendrcd for all that our Anccilors have 
 enaded, left what is now certain, become then 
 uncertain. Albeit a Law enaAed only by Human' 
 Authority^ fecm unreafonable or inconvenient ,' 
 yet it retains its Vigor till it be abrogated by the 
 jaipe, or an higher Authority, than that where- 
 by it was firft itatu ted; and the I.aw fays. That 
 Tjihil efi tnm 7Taturale cjuam miumcjuodque eodcn) modo 
 dijfohl <juo colligatum eft. And feeing the Moral 
 and Judicial laws are twifted fo together, and are 
 oft incorpiorated in one Statute, as Lfx*. 20. 10. 
 DzHt. 2 2. 22. where Adultery is forbidden, and 
 the Adulterer is to die the Death; how can we 
 think the one half 'of this Law obligatory for e- 
 ver, and yet negleA its other half,, wherein the 
 Punifhment is fpecified, and which appeafs to 
 have been the Scope of the Divine Lawgiver ? 
 For the World needed not fo much to have been 
 acquainted , that Adultery was a Sin, as that Sin 
 deferved Death ; and if we allow our capricious 
 Humour the Liberty to reject what we think in- 
 convenient, we may at laft arrive at that Pitch of 
 Licentioufnefs, as to. abrogate by Our Pradicc^ 
 whatever chocks our prefent Humour. 
 
 There are many things much miftaken in that 
 Law, which makes the Diftbnancy betwixt it and 
 our Law, appear fo much the greater. As for 
 Inftance ; it is concluded, that by that Law, no 
 Theft was punifhablc by Death ; whefeof this is 
 given as a Reafon, becaufe there is no Proportion 
 betwixt the Goods and Life ; and that all that a 
 Man hath, he will give for his Life : Whereas 
 this Argument would prove, that no Guilt , but 
 Murder, fhould be puniflied with Death ; and fo 
 this Dart rather flees over, than hits the Mark at 
 which it is level'd. And if this Argument con- 
 cluded. 
 
"TheVirtnvfo^ or Smc, 51 
 
 eluded, why flioiild Adultery have been punifhcd 
 with Death by that Law, feeing there feems ilo 
 Proportion betwixt that Guilt and Death ? for 
 if 'vita & fama be in Law aqulfarnt, by that fame 
 Law, fecunid efi alter fanguis. But if there be no 
 Proportion betwixt Goods and Life, and if the 
 Punifhment of Theft, when it's aggrag'd to its 
 greateft Lleight, cannot in their Opimon reach 
 lb far as to be capital ; why was it, that by that 
 Law, NoAurnal Thieves might have been killed 
 by thofe who found them .'' Exod. 22. 2. For it 
 appears againft Rcafon, that more fliould be per- 
 mitted to a private and paffionate Party,than to a 
 difinterefted Judge. And it is clear by 2 5^?». 12. 5:. 
 Theft was in fome Cafes capital : For there Da- 
 v'id vows, that he who took his Neighbour's one 
 Sheep, and fpared his own many, Hiould furely 
 die j which being fpoke by a jull King to an Ex- 
 cellent Prophet, and not reproved, mulinot.be 
 thought a fiafh of Paffion, but a well-founded 
 Sentence. Were not likewife Two Thieves cru- 
 cified by the Jev^s, at the fame time with our ever- 
 Glorious Saviour } Which muft not be thought 
 a Romijli Execution, feeing the Law of the iJt?- 
 ?»^«j allowed no fuch Punifhment for Theft. I 
 judge therefore the Reafon why Murder and A- 
 dultery were punillied with Death, rather than 
 all Thefts, to have been, becaufe Theft may be 
 repaired by Reftitution, but Murder and Adultery 
 cannot. And albeit the Judicial Law commands 
 Reftitution only in the Theft of an Qx or Sheep, 
 (.things of fmall Moment, and which may be 
 fiollen to fatisfy rather Hunger than Lull ) ; yet 
 1 fee no Limits fet to Judges, commanding theni 
 not to inflid a capital Punifhment in extraordina- 
 ry Cafes : For certainly he who ftcals, may, for 
 ought he himfelf knows, be about the committing 
 ©f Murder , feeing to iteal what fhould aliment 
 
 any 
 
Tloe y^irtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 any poor one, is, in Effect, the fame thing as to 
 murder him. It is much controverted, if this 
 Law prohibits Self-murder ; and I think it doth : 
 For we are commanded to love our Neighbour as 
 our felf ; and fo fmce we are commanded not to 
 kill our Neighbour, that fame Law muft likewife 
 forbid our killing of our felves. But the Reafon 
 probably, why no exprefs Text did forbid that 
 Sin, was, becaufe the Spirit of God knew that 
 the Natural Averfion we have againft Death, 
 would in this do more than fupply a Law ; and 
 that thofe who would be fo dei'perate, as to neg- 
 lect the one, would never be fo pious, as to obey 
 the other. Or elfe God hath been unwilling, by 
 making fuch a Law, to intimate to the World, 
 that fuch a Sin might be committed. Yet it 
 feems ftrange, that many are in Scripture related, 
 as Saul, and others, to have killed themfelves, a- 
 gainft whom no Check ftands regiftred in holy 
 Records. But 1 ftop here , intending to beftow 
 a whole Trad upon the Judicial Law, a Task 
 hitherto too much negledled. 
 
 The Second Mirror, wherein God Almighty 
 is to be feen, is that of his Creatures : And in 
 that a Virtuofo may contemplate his infinite 
 Power, as in the other he may fee his admirable 
 Juftice. It is very obfervable, that when God, 
 or his Prophets, would prove his Greatnefs, the 
 Siiriy Oriotiy and the Lcviatbav, are made ufe of 
 as Arguments. And when the Spirit ^of God 
 dcfcribes the inimitable Knowledge of Solonjov, 
 beftowcd upon him by God, as an extraordinary 
 Mark of his Favour, he fays not, that he under- 
 wood the Quirks of Philofophy, or Notions of 
 Divinity ; but it is faid, that he knew all from 
 the Cedar of Lebanon, to the Hyffop that grows 
 upon the Wall. And in Earncft it is ftrange , 
 that when Man comes into the Gallery of this 
 
 World, 
 
The Pirtuofoj or Stoic. * 5 5 
 
 \Vorld;, He (hould take fuch Pleafure In gazing 
 upon thefe ill-drawn Fidions, which have only 
 paft the Pencil of Human Wit, and (hould not fijt 
 his Admiration upon thofe glorious Creatures, 
 which are the Works of that great Mafter; in fra- 
 ming whereof, God is content to be faid to have 
 fpent SiK Days, to the end, that Man might ad- 
 miTQ the EfFed:s of fo much Pains ; whereas his 
 Omnipotency might, with one fiat, have lum^ 
 mon'd them all to appear, apparell'd in thefe gor- 
 geous DrefTes which now adorns them. And it 
 is as ftraiige, that Man having that huge Vo- 
 lume of the Creation to revolve, wherein is fuch 
 an infinite Number of curious Tale-doufes to feaft 
 his Eyes with Curiofity, and to furnifh his folid 
 Knowledge, he fhould notwithftanding fpend fo 
 much Oyl and Sweat, in fpinning out.ens rationis, 
 materia fr'tTpa, fotenfia obedientialisj and fucli like 
 unintelligible Trafli, which like Cobwebs, are 
 but envenomed Duft curioufly wrought. And 
 becaufe the Grofs of Mankind was fo grof§, as 
 not to underftand God's Grej\tnefs by the abftrad " 
 Ideas which Inftinft prefented to him \ Therefore 
 to reach that fenfual Croud by the Trunch-man- 
 rie of Senfe, he hath bellowed upon them this 
 Mirror, wherein they may fee how infinite he is 
 in Power, who made Nothing fo fruitful^ as to 
 bud forth in this glorious Crop of , Creatures^ 
 which now inhabit the Surface of Heaven and 
 Earth. 
 
 € h: A P^ 
 
54 • The ViY'tuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 • CHAP. XI. 
 
 Of Monjlers. 
 
 I Admire that fuch Philofophers as have had 
 their Faces wafli'd at the JFont, can allow of 
 Monfters, and define them to be thePreter-inten- 
 tional Works of Nature, wherein Nature mifs'd 
 of her Defign, and was not able to effeduate 
 what fhe intended : For if Nature and Providence 
 fignify the fame thing in the Didionary of Chri- 
 ftianity, it were Blafphemy to think, that Trovi- 
 dence could not be able to effectuate what it once 
 defigned. All the Creatures are indeed, but as 
 Clay in the Hand of this great Potter ; but it were 
 impious to think, that his Art can be miftaken in 
 framing any Vellel: Wherefore I am apter to be- 
 lieve, that all thefe Creatures which the Schools 
 term Movflers , are rather the Intentions than Er- 
 rors of Nature; and that as Nature doth nothing 
 without Defign, fo it doth nothing without Suc- 
 cefs. And thus I rather admire Nature in thefe, 
 for her cunning Variety, than upbraid her with 
 Infufficiency and Weaknefs. Neither term I an 
 Hermaphrodite,Man or Woman, according to the 
 Prevalency of that Sex which predomines in it; 
 no more than I think that the Painter, when he 
 hath delineated curioufly an exad Mermaid, re- 
 folved to draw either a Woman or a Fifh, and not 
 one diftinft Creature piec'd up of both. And 
 doubtlefs this Error did at firit proceed from Man's 
 Vanity; who concluded, that every Frame which 
 anfwered not that Idea which refidcs in him, was 
 the Effect of Chance f and not of Nature \ asifA^rf- 
 ture had been obliged to leave in the Bibliotheque 
 
 of 
 
The JArtiiofo^ or Stoic. 5 5 
 
 of his Head, the Original of all fuch Pieces as 
 was to pafs its Prefs. 
 
 Seeing God in his Survey of the Creation, cal- 
 led all that he had made Good, becaufe they were 
 ufeful,! conclude^that thofeare the beft,which arc 
 the moil ufeful. And albeit I condemn Prodiga- 
 lity of Ignorance, in preferring a Diamond to a 
 Capon or Sheep • yet do I not condemn fuch of 
 Vanity, as (hine with thefe fparkling Creatures: 
 For fince God made nothing, which he did not 
 deftinate for fome Ufe, and feeing moft of thefe 
 ferve for no Ufe elfe , doubtlefs the wearing of 
 them is moft allowable. Yet can I not allow of 
 thofe gaudy Compounds, which Men create to 
 themfelves, as if fomething hadjbeen ftill wanting 
 after the Creation was finifhed; wherein Man 
 could fupply God, and Art Nature. The be- 
 llowing of an Hundred Pounds upon a Tulip, or 
 a Thoufand on a Pidure, are not to me the mere 
 Rants of Luxury; but are Courfes pre-ordained 
 by the Almighty, for returning to poor Artifans 
 that Money, which Oppreffion did at firft moft 
 unjuftly fcrew from their weary Hands. It is our 
 Ignorance of Nature's Myfteries which perfuades 
 us, that fome, if not moft, of the Creatures 
 ferve rather for beautifying the Univerfe, than 
 for fupplying Neceffity ; an Error which Expe- 
 rience daily confutes : So thofe Herbs which of 
 old cloathed only the uninhabited Mountains, do 
 now deferve their own Place in Apothecaries 
 Shops. And it is moft obfervable, that the Scur- 
 vy grows no where, but where the Difeafe rages, 
 which is cured by it. Seeing God loved Variety 
 in the Creation, lie cannot hate Curiofity in Man; 
 thefe Two being Correfpondents : And the one 
 without the other would be but as Flowers to the 
 Blind , or as Mufick to the Deaf. I laugh at the 
 fruitlefs Pilgrimages of fuch as travel to Joppa or 
 F 2 China, 
 
56 TheVirtuojo^ or Stole. 
 
 china, to fatisfy their CurioHry ; . there being a 
 Tredtsklns Clofct in each Tulip, and a Solomons 
 Court in each Lilly of the Field. And feeing 
 Men's Tempers are fo various, it was no Wonder 
 that the Creatures (which were made for hisUfe) 
 fhould have been made proportional to his Hu- 
 mour : But feeing Art hath in many things copi- 
 ed Nature to the Life, I think not the Symmetry 
 nor Varietry to be feen amongft the Creatures, 
 fuch an infallible Argument for proving the Being 
 of God, as is Infiinct, which all the Art of Men 
 and Angels cannot counterfeit : And herein is it, 
 that that grand Magician muft acknowledge the 
 Finger of his Maker, feeing here his own Art 
 fails. 
 
 Thofe who expeft equal Excellency in all the 
 Parts of this curious Fabrick, do not underltand 
 wherein its Symmetry confifts. All the Strings 
 of an Inftrument found not equally high ; and yet 
 they make up the Harmony : The Face of the 
 Earth looks in fome places deform 'd and patched ; 
 and yet it is there the Mother of rich Mines ( as 
 if God intended to beftow a great Portion where 
 he beftows an ill Face); and what we think De- 
 formities, were placed there as Patches ; and are 
 no more Blemiflies, than the Spots are to the Leo* 
 pards. 
 
 1 confefs, that at firft it puzzled much my En- 
 quiry, for what End thefe Mountains were made 
 fo near Neighbours to the divided Clouds: And I 
 once imagin'd, that thefe were rather the Effeds 
 of the Flood, than Creatures at lirft intended; 
 and were but the Rubbifh and Mud which thefe 
 impetuous Waters had heap'd up in a Mafs: But 
 1 was thereafter dilfuaded from this Conje(5lure, 
 by the«8th Chapter of Trov. where Wifdom pro- 
 ving its Antiquity, fays, That it was with God 
 before the Heavens were prepared, and the 
 
 Mountains 
 
T^he Pzrtuofoj or Stoic, 57 
 
 Mountains fettled ; by the Scope of which Text 
 it is clear^ that the Heavens, Hills , and the reft 
 of the Creation, are faid to bear one Date. It 
 is then more probable, that God forefeeing that 
 the Luft of Conqueft would, like the Needle of 
 the Compafs, look oft North ; as is evident by 
 comparini^ all the Monarchies ( firft the Affyriany 
 then Grecian y then Roman, now German^ did 
 therefore bound Ambition, as it were with high 
 Hills, ( albeit fince Ambition hath found a way to 
 climb over them ) as if he told them that they 
 fhould march no farther.Thus it is very obfervable^ 
 that the Northern Parts of one Kingdom are al- 
 ways more barren than the Southern jLimits of the 
 Countrey which lies to the North of it. The 
 North of England more mountainous and barren 
 than the South of Scotland, albeit it lye nearer the 
 Sun^ the South of England more pleafant and fer- 
 tile, than the North of France ^ and the South of 
 France, than the North of Italy, &C. 
 
 We muft likewife confider, that Nature bruifed 
 its Face fo when it fell in Adam, that it did then 
 contrad many of thefe Blemiflies which now de- 
 form it ; and that as it waxes old, its native Beau- 
 ty is the more deformed by furrowed Wrinkles. 
 We cannot judge what it was in Health, by its 
 prefent diftempered Condition, wherein it groans 
 and travelleth in Pain, as the Apoftle tells us. 
 And the Differences betwixt thefe Two States 
 may be known from this, that God, when he 
 compleated the Creation, law that all was good^ 
 whereas Solomon having reviewed it in his time, 
 faw all to be Vanity, and Vexation of Spirit, 
 
 F ? CHAP. 
 
5 8 The Virtiiojo^ or Stole. 
 
 CHAR XII. 
 
 Of Marty and his Creatioi. 
 
 TH E Third Mirror wherein God is to be ad- 
 mired, is Man. This is that noble Creature 
 which God was pleafed to mould laft of all others, 
 not willing to bring him home, till by the pre- 
 ceding Creations he had plcniflicd his Houfe a- 
 bundantly for him. And albeit in the Creation 
 of all other Creatures it is only faid, that God 
 fpoke, and it was: Yet when Man was to be fra- 
 med, the Cabinet Council of Heaven was called ; 
 and it is faid [ let m~\\ as if more Art had begi 
 to be fhewed here, than in all the remanent Fa- 
 brick of the terraqueous Globe, and glorious Cir- 
 cles of Heaven. It is like wife very obfervable, 
 that albeit all the Fifbes of the Sea were formed 
 by one Word, all the Beafts of the Field by one 
 K^,&c. Yet God v^-as pleafed to beftowTwo up- 
 on the Creation of Man ; by the firft , his Body 
 was created out of the Duft, and thereafter was 
 breathed in his Soul. And albeit tranfient Men- 
 tion is only made of all other Creations ; yet the 
 Hiftory of Man's Creation is twice repeated, 
 once Gen. i. 27. and again 2. 7. And left that 
 forefeen Deformity, wherewith he was to be be- 
 fmeared after his Fall, fhould make it be queftio- 
 ned, that at his firft Creation he had* receiv'd the 
 IwpreJJa of Gcd's Image, this is oft repeated. For 
 in the 26. 'v. Gen. i. it is f^.id. Let m make Man in 
 cur Image ^ and then again, and after our Likenefs. 
 And in the 27th t/. So God created man in his own 
 image ; and again immediately thereafter, in the 
 im^zge of God created he him. Yet I am confident, 
 that this Image is fo bedaled in the Mire of Sin, 
 and fo fhatter'd by its firft Fall, ai;d this Divine 
 
 Imfrejfi 
 
Tloe Virtuofo^ or Stoic. 59 
 
 In^prejja and Print fo worn out by our old vicious 
 HabitS;, that if this Genealogy hadnot been fo oft 
 •inculcatedjvve could not but have called it in que- 
 ftion, albeit our Vanity be ready enough to be- 
 lieve a Defcent fo Royal and Sublime. Where- 
 fore I muft again admire the Folly of Atheifts, 
 who, by denying a Deity^ cloud their own noble 
 Birth-right. 
 
 But albeit Man be made after God's Image, yet 
 that can be no Argument to conclude, that there- 
 fore God may be made after Man's Image, or re- 
 prefented under his Figure, as the Anthropomor- 
 phites fooliflily contend, no more than if we 
 fhould conclude, that becaufe a Copy may be ta- 
 ken of an Original, therefore an Original may 
 be taken of a Copy. Neither is this Reprefenta- 
 tlon falv'd from being Idolatry, by aH edging that 
 the Image is not worfhipped, but God, who is 
 reprefented by it: For it hath been well obferved 
 by an Ancient Father, That Idolatry in Scripture 
 is called Adultery. And it is no good Excufe for 
 an Adulterefs, that flie did lye with another be- 
 caufe he reprefented her Husband to her, and re- 
 fembled him as a Copy doth its Original: Yec 
 feeing nothing is roomed in our Judgment and 
 Apprehenfion, but what firft entred by the Wicket 
 of Senfe, it is almoft impoffible for Man to con- 
 ceive the Idea of any thing but veiled with feme 
 Shape , as each Man's private llefle<5lions will 
 abundantly convince him. 
 
 As the boundlefs Ocean keeps and (hews its 
 well-drawn Images, whilft it ftands quiet, with 
 a Face polifh'd like a Cryftal Cake, but lofes them 
 immediately, how foon its proud Waves begin to 
 fwell and enrage , to fpit its frothy Foam in the 
 Face of the angry Fleavensj fo whilft a Stoical 
 Indolency, and Chriftian Repofe, fmooths our 
 reftlefs Spirits^ it is only then that the Soul of 
 F 4. Mm 
 
6o The Virtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 Man can be faid to retain that Glorious Image of 
 God Almighty, with which it was imprefTed at 
 its created Nativity. But when the Waves of 
 Choler begin to roar, or the Winds of Vanity to 
 blow, then that Glorious Image is no more to be 
 difcerned in him, than the Shadows and Repre- 
 fentarions of In-looking Objeds are to be feen 
 and difcerned in the difquieting Bofom of the 
 troubled Waters. 
 
 CHAP. XIIT. 
 
 Of the Immortality of the Soul. 
 
 TH E Stings of a Natural Confcience, which 
 according to each Man's A<ftings, create to 
 him either Agues of Fear, or Paradifcs of Joy, 
 do, by thefe omniating Prcfages, convince us of 
 the Immortality of the Soul: And feeing we fee 
 jts Predi(5lions both in Dreams, in Damps of Me- 
 lancholy, and fuch like Enthufiaftick Fits, fol- 
 lowed by fuitable Events j why may we not like- 
 wife believe its Predidions, as to its own Immor- 
 tality ^ it being the Prudence of a Vlrtuofo to lay 
 hold of every Mean, which may allay the Rage 
 of his Hereditary Misfortunes? And to what end 
 would the Soul of Man receive fuch Impreffions 
 of Fear and Hope, if by its Mortality it were 
 not to be flatcd in a Condition, wherein its Fears 
 and Hopes were to have fuitable Rewards or Pu- 
 nifhments? Moreover,feeingGod is jaft,he will pu- 
 jiifh and reward; and therefore, feeing he punifhes 
 and rewards notMen according to their Merits or 
 Demerits here, there muft be doubtlefs a futurp 
 State wherein that is to be expelled. But that 
 whi<;h convinces my private Judgment moft of 
 
 this 
 
The T/trtuofo^ or Stole. 6 1 
 
 this Truth, is, that the nobleft Souls, and the 
 fharpeft-fighted, do, of all others, moft defire the 
 State of Separation,and have the weakell Attaches 
 to this Life ; which muft doubtlefs. proceed from 
 an AlTurance of Immortality, and that it hath, 
 from the Flfgah of its Contemplation, got a View 
 of the Spiritual Canaan. For feeing the brutiftieft 
 of Creatures abhors Annihilation, as the moft 
 averfable 111 in Nature, doubtlefs the Soul of 
 Man which is the moft Divine of all Creatures, 
 would never appete this Separation, if by it it 
 were to be extind, and to be no more. . And how 
 abfurd were it to believe, that Man's Soul fhould 
 be made after God's Image, and yet conclude it 
 mortal, a Quality repugnant to any thing that is 
 Divine? As alfo, how can the Soul be thought to 
 perifii with the Body, feeing thefe Accidents 
 which deftroy the Body, cannot reach it? How 
 can the Heat of a Fever burn, or Rheums drown, 
 that which is not Corporeal, and cannot be 
 touched ? And feeing Man's leaft Peccadillo 
 againft God Almighty, is againft one who is in- 
 finite,' were it not abfurd to think, that it could 
 be proportionally punifhed in the fwift Glafs of 
 Man's fhortLife? than which nothing is more fi- 
 nite, or fooner finiflied. 
 
 As the Soul is God's Image, fo its Produds are 
 the Images of his admirable Operations. Do 
 not Mathematicians create Eagles, Doves, and 
 fuch like Antoniata'si And fpring not Flowers 
 from the Chymifts Glaffes? And thus Art, which 
 is Man's Offspring, doth ape Nature, which is 
 the Workmanfhip of the Almighty : And there- 
 fore feeing the Soul can, with one Thought, 
 grafp both the Poles, can darp out its Conceits as 
 far as the fartheft Borders of the imaginary Spa- 
 ces, create Worlds, and order, and diforder all 
 that li in this which is already created ; it's ftrange 
 
 to 
 
6 2 77?^ Viytuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 to think it to be either Corporeal orMortal: For if 
 it were Corporeal and a Mafs of Blood,its Adings 
 wou'dbe lent and dull; neithercould its Motions be 
 fo nimble and vvinged,as are thefe of our agileSpi- 
 rits. It were impoilible for our narrow Heads, 
 to inn all thefe innumerable Ideas ( which are 
 now in them) if thefe were all corporeal; and 
 if thefe be not Corporeal, that which produces 
 them muft be doubtlefs Incorporeal, feeing Jimile 
 generatur a finiili ; and dull Flefh and Blood could 
 never produce fuch Spiritual Emanations. 
 
 As the Soul is God's Image, fo in this it refem- 
 bles him very much, that we can know nothing 
 of its Nature without its own Affiftance : Like a 
 Dark Lanthorn, or a Spy, it difcovers every thing 
 to us, except it felf. And becaufe it refufes us 
 the Light of its Candle, whilft we are in the 
 Queft of its Myfteries ; therefore it is that our 
 Re-fearches of its Nature are Gropings in the 
 Dark ; and fo ofttimes vain, if not ridiculous. A- 
 'vicenna, A'venoes^ and the Rertinant of that Ara^ 
 hian Tribe, admiring its prodigious Effcds, did 
 attribute our Spiritual Motions to affift ing Angels ; 
 as if fuch admirable Notions could not be fathe- 
 red upon lefs Sublime Caufes: Which Cardan like- 
 wife thinks, do offer their Affiftance and Light 
 to fenfitive Creatures, but that the Churliftinefs 
 of their Matter will not fuffcr them to entertain 
 fuch pure Eradiations. This difparages fo much. 
 Humanity, making Man only a Statue, that it 
 were againft the Soul's Intereft to admit of any 
 fuch Ideas : For as it tends more to the Artift's 
 Praife, to caufe his Products move from hid and 
 internal Springs, than from exrrinfick Caufes; as 
 we fee in Watches, and fuch like : So it is more i 
 for the Honour of that great Artilt, and more 
 fuitable to the Being and Nature of his Creatures, 
 that all its Operations flow from it felf, than 
 
 from 
 
7he yirttiofo^ or Stoic. 6 5 
 
 from aflifting but exterior Coadjutors,' wliich 
 makes me averfe from Arifiotles Opinion, of the 
 Motion of the Spheres by Intelligences. And it 
 were abfurd to think, that Men fhould be blamed 
 or praifed for thpfe EfFe«5ls which their AlTeffor 
 Angels could only be charged with. The Tlato- 
 nics alledged, that all Souls exifted before their 
 Incarceration in Bodies; in which State of Pre- 
 exiftence, they were doted with all thefe Spiritu- 
 al Endowments, which fhall attend them in the 
 State of Separation ; and that at their firft Alli- 
 ance with Bodies, their native Knowledge was 
 clouded SOTSTJAiwf ai'si^oAH, ivith the putting off Know- 
 ledge for a time, till by a Reminifcentia, their Intel- 
 lectuals revived, as by a RefurreAion. And Origen 
 added , that thefe Souls were, according to their 
 Efcapes committed in the State of their Primi- 
 tive Separation, yoaked with better or worfe Bo- 
 dies; a Shift taken, in all Probability, by him to 
 evite the Apprehenfion of God's being unjuft, 
 for infufing innocent Souls into Bbdies which 
 would infed them, and by drawing them into 
 inevitable Snares, at lafl; condemn them; or at 
 leaft their Infufion was the imprifoning thofe 
 who were not guilty : A Difficulty which ftraits 
 much fuch as maintain, that the Soul is not ex tra- 
 duce. What the Hazard of this Opinion may be, 
 mv Tvv^ilight is not able to difcover. 
 
 Itmay be, that thcStdcks miltake in making the 
 Souls of Men to be but Parcels, decerpt from 
 that Univerfal Anima Mnndi ( by which they 
 doubrlefs meant God himfelf ) was occafioned by 
 a Miftake of that Text, that God breathed into 
 mans no fir lis, the breath of Life ; concluding, that 
 as theBreath is a part of the Body which breathed 
 it ; fo the Soul behoved to be a part of thatDivine 
 EiTence : From which by a Second Confequence, 
 they concluded^ that the Soul being a part of that 
 
 Divine 
 
^4 The T^irttiofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 Divine Being, could not fiifTcr nor undergo any 
 Torments; as is nfTerted by ^S'r^fc^, Epift. 29. Ci- 
 cero, Tufc. 5-. and defended by their SuccelTors, 
 thofe primitive Hereticks, thtGvnfl'icksj AUnkhesy 
 and Vrifcilliani[^s. But this Baftard is not yrorth 
 the foitering, being an Opinion that God hath 
 Parrs^ and Man real Divinity; and is doubtlefs a 
 fhlfe and flattering Teftimony given by the Soul 
 ro it felf. For feeing the Soul is , by Divine O- 
 racles J told us to be made after God's Image, it 
 can be no more called a part of God, than the 
 PiAure fhould be reputed a part of the Painter. 
 
 Ariftotle , like the Devil ( who becaufe he 
 knows not what to anfwer, anfwers even in En- 
 gines) tells us, That Anima is 'iV'n>^.-)Aia.^ % Term 
 fixed to exercife the empty Brains of curious Pe- 
 dants, and apter to beget, than explicate Diffi- 
 culties. Neither believe I, that his Three Souls, 
 which he lodges in Man, to wit, the Rational, 
 Senfitive and Vegetative, do differ more amongft 
 themfelves, *than the Will, Underftanding and 
 Fancy differ from thcTwolaft: So that his A- 
 rithmetick might have beftowed Five Souls upon 
 Man, as well as Three. But feeing he, and ma- 
 ny of his Difciples, believe thefe to be Three, 
 and yet thefeThree to be but One ; I admire why 
 they fliould be fo nice, as not to believe that pi- 
 ous Myftery of the Holy Trinity : Whereof in 
 my Opinion, his Trinity of the Soul is 5s appo- 
 fite an Emblem, as was the Conceit of- a (imple 
 Clown,who being ask'd, how he could apprehend 
 the Three Glorious Perfons to be but one ? did 
 fold his Garment in three Pleats, and thereafter 
 drew out all three in one. 
 
 As the Heraldry of our Reafon cannot blazon 
 the Soul's Imprejfa ; fo can it not help us to line 
 out its Defccnt : And fuch would appear to be 
 the Excellency of that noble Creature, that Hea- 
 ven 
 
TheVirtuoJo^ or Stoic, 65 
 
 ven and Earth feem to contend the which fhal! 
 be the Place of its Nativity. Divines ( who are 
 obliged to contend for Heaven, becaufe they arc 
 its more immediate Penfioners ) will have it to 
 be created and infufed • whereas Philofophers 
 ( ambitious to have fo noble a Compatriot , and 
 willing to gratify Nature, which aliments their 
 fublime Meditations ) contend that it is ex traduce y 
 and is in Generation the Bodies other Twin. 
 And albeit it would appear from Scripture, that 
 God accomplifh'd the Creation the firft Seven 
 Days, and that Nature did then pafs Child-bear- 
 ing; yet that in my Judgment, muft be meant of 
 the Creation of whole Species, and not of hdl'vidu- 
 ah : And to prefs the Soul's not Traduftion, I 
 fliall lend only one Argument, not becaufe it is 
 the beft, but becaufe it is my own. We fee, that 
 there where the Soul is confefs'd to be ex traduce, 
 as in Brutes and Vegetative Creatures, that Na- 
 ture, as it were with a Pencil, copies the Young 
 from off the Old. The young Lions are rtill as 
 rapacious and roaring, as were their Syres from 
 whofe Loins they defcended: And theRofe being 
 pous'd up by the fait Nitre which makes it Vege- 
 tative, fpreads the fame Leaves, an4 appears with 
 the fame Blufhes or Palenefs that beautified its 
 Eye-pleafing Predecelfors. The Reafon of which 
 continual Affimulation, proceeds from the Seed's 
 having in its Bofom all thefe Qualities and Shapes, 
 which appear thereafter in its larger Produds, 
 whereof they were but a Map or Index. Whereas 
 Man refembles never, at leaft not oft, thofe who 
 are called his Parents: The vitious and tall Fa- 
 ther having oft low , but virtuous Children ; 
 which fhows, that the Soul of Man is not derived 
 by Generation, and that the Soul beftowed upoa 
 the Son's Body, is moft different and afymbclic 
 to that which lodged in the Father. And this 
 ^t may 
 
^6 The Virtuofo^ or Stole. 
 
 may be farther confirmed by that Excellent Paf- 
 fage, Tro'u. 20. 27. where it h faid. That the ««- 
 Aerflandwg of man is the candle of the Lord. Our 
 Soul is God's Image, and none can draw that I- 
 mage but himfelf- we are the Stamp of hisf)ivinc 
 Nature, and fo can only be formed by himfelf, 
 who is the glorious Seal. 
 
 Fromthis Divine Principle, that Man's Soul is 
 made after God's Image, 1 am almoft induced to 
 believe, that Prophecy is no miraculous Gift be- 
 llowed upon the Soul at extraordinary Occafions 
 only, . but is a Natural (though tlie higheltj Per- 
 fection of our Human Nature: For if it be natu- 
 ral for the Stamp, to have imprefs'd upon it all 
 the Traits that dwell upon the Face of the Seal ; 
 then it muft be natural to the Soul, which is God's 
 ImfreJJa, to have a Faculty of forefeeing- fince 
 that is one of God's Excellencies. Albeit I con- 
 fefs, that that Stamp is here infinitely bc-dimm'd 
 and worn off; as alfo we know by Experience , 
 that Men upon a Death-bed, when the Soul be- 
 gins ( being detached by Sicknefs from the Bo- 
 dy's Slavery ) to act like it felf, do forefee and 
 foretel many remote and improbable Events : And 
 for the fame ileafon, I do think Predidions by 
 Dreams , not to be extraordinary Revelations, 
 but rather the Produds natural of a Rational 
 Soul. And if fagacious Men can be fo fharp- 
 fighted in this State of Glimmering, as to/orefee 
 many Events which fall out; why may we not 
 fay. That Man, if he were rehabihtated in the 
 former State of pure Nature, might, without any 
 extraordinary Afli fiance, forefee and prophefy ? 
 For there is not fuch aDiflance betwixt that Fore^ 
 fight and Prophecy, as is betwixt the two States | 
 of Innocency and Corruption; according to the^ 
 received Notions which Men have fettled to ' 
 themfelves of that primitive State of Innocency- 
 
 From 
 
T^heVirtuofo^ or Stoic, 67 
 
 From the fame Principle may it likewife be 
 deduced, that natural Reafon cannot but be an 
 Excellent Mean for knowing, as far as is poffible, 
 the Glorious Nature of God Almighty. He hath 
 doubtlefs lighted this Candle, that we might by 
 it fee himfelf : And how can we better know the 
 Seal, than by looking upon its Impreflion. And 
 if Religion and its Myfteries cannot be compre- 
 hended by Reafon, I confefs it is a pretty Jeft to 
 hear fuch frequent Reafonings amongft Church- 
 men, in Matters of Religion. And albeit Faitb 
 and Reafon be look'd upon as Jacob and Efau, 
 whereof the Younger only hath the Blefling, and 
 are by Divines placed at the two oppofite Points 
 of the Diameter ; yet upon a fuperficial Enquiry, 
 it would appear by the Laws of his Country, 
 that Faith is but fublimated Reafon, calcined by 
 that Divine Chymical Fire of Baptifm ; and that 
 the Soul of Man hath lurking in ic, all thcfe Vir- 
 tues and Faculties which wc call Theological ; 
 fuch as Faith, Hope and Repentance : For elfe David 
 would not have prayed. Enlighten, Lord, my eyes, 
 that I may fee the "wonders of thy law ; but rather. 
 Lord, hefiow nevj eyes upon me. Neither could the 
 opening of Lydias Heart have been fufficient for 
 her Converfion, if thefe pre-exifting Qualities 
 had not been treafur'd up there formerly : So that 
 it would appear, that thefe Holy Flames lurk un- 
 der the Aflies of Corruption, until God, by the 
 Breath of his Spirit ( and that Wind which blCw- 
 eth where it lifteth ) fweep them off. And that 
 God having once made Man perfed in the firft 
 Creation, doth not, in his Regeneration, fuper- 
 add any new Faculty (for elfe the Soul had not at 
 firft been perfed ) but only removes all obftru- 
 ding Impediments. 
 
 CHAR 
 
68 The V^irtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 CHAP. XIV. 
 
 Of Faith and Reafon, # 
 
 • 
 
 I Am always afliamed;, when I hear Reafm called 
 the Step-mother of Faithy and proclaimed 
 Rebel againft God Almighty, and fuch declared 
 Traitors as dare harbour it , or appear in its De- 
 fence. Thefe are fuch Fools as they who break 
 their Profpeds, becaufe they bring not home to 
 their Sight the remoteft Objeds j and are as un- 
 juft as Jatob had been^, if he had divorced from 
 Leah, becaufe ftie was tender-eyed : Whereas we 
 Ihould not put out the Eyes of our Underltanding, 
 but (hould beg from God the Eye-falve of his Spi- 
 rit for their Illumination. Nor fliould we dalh 
 the ProfpeA of our Reafon againft the rocky 
 Walls of Defpairj btit fhould rather wafli its 
 Glafles with the Tears of unfeigned Repen- 
 tance. 
 
 Ever fmce Faith and Reafoi-i have been by Di- 
 vines fet by the Ears, the brutifh Multitude con- 
 clude, thofe who are niofl: reafonable, to be leaft 
 religious ; and the greateft Spirits, to be the leaft 
 Spiritual : A Conceit moft inconfiftent with that 
 divine Parable, wherein thofe who received the 
 many Talents, improved them to the beft Ad- 
 vantage; whilft he who had but one, laid it up 
 in a Napkin. And it is moft improbablcj that 
 God would chufe low Shrubs, and not tall Ce- 
 dars, for the building of his Glorious Temple. 
 And it is remarkable , that God in the Old Law, 
 refufed to accept the Firft-born of an Afs in Sa- 
 crifice, but not of any other Creature. And 
 fome who were content to be called Atheljis, pro- 
 viding they were thought Wits, did take Advan-* 
 
 tag^ 
 
The Virtuofo^ or Stoic. 69 
 
 tage in this of the Rabbles Ignorance^ and autho- 
 rized by their devilifh Invention^ what was at firft 
 but a Miftake: And this unriddles to us that My- 
 ftery, why the greateft Wits are moli frequently • 
 the greateft Atheifts. 
 
 When I confider^ how the Angels, who have 
 no Bodies, finned before Man ; and that Brutes, 
 who are all Body, fui not at all, but follow the 
 pure Dictates of Nature ; I am induced to believe, 
 that the Body is rather injuftly blamed for being, 
 than that really it is, the Occafion of Sin; and 
 probably the witty Soul hath in this cunningly 
 laid over upon its Fellow, that wherewith it felf 
 is only to be charged. What Influence can Flefll 
 or Blood have upon that which is immaterial? No 
 more fure than the Cafe hath upon the Watch, or 
 the Heavens upon its burgefling Angels? /Vnd fee 
 we not, that when the Soul hath bid the Body 
 adieu, it remains a Carcafs fit nor able for nothing? 
 I believe, that the Body being a Clog to it, may 
 flow its Purfuit after Objeds, and that it may oc- 
 cafion indiredly fome Sins of Omiffion: For we 
 fee palpably, that eating and drinking dulls our 
 Devotions; but I can never underftand, how fuch 
 dumb Orators, as Flefh and Blood, can perfuade 
 the Soul to commit the leaft Sin. And thus, al- 
 beit our Saviour fays, that /i-jl; and blood did not 
 teachVeter to gi^uehim hts trueEpitbets ; neither indeed 
 could it : yet our Saviour imputes not any a(5i:ual 
 Sin to thefe pithlefs Caufes. And feeing our firft 
 Sin hath occafioned all our After-finning, certain- 
 ly that which occafioned our firft Sin vv^as th& 
 main Source of finning ; and this was doubtlefs 
 the Soul : For our firft Sin being an immoderate 
 Defire of Knowledge, was the Effe(5l and Produ6t 
 of our Spirit, becaufe it was a Spiritual Sin; 
 whereas had it been Gluttony, Luft, or fuch like, 
 which feems Corporeal^ the Bodv had been more 
 
 G • to 
 
'^o The Virtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 to have been blamed for it. And in this Con- 
 teft, I am of Opinion, that the Soul wins the 
 Caufe, becaufe it is the beft Orator. ••* 
 
 CHAP. XV. 
 
 Of the Fall of Angels ^ and what their Sin was* 
 
 WHAT was the Occafion of the firft III is 
 much debated (and moll defervedly ) a- 
 mcngft VIoralifts: for that which was good, cou'd 
 not produce that which was evil; feeing that 
 which works Mifchief cannot be called good. 
 Nor can we afcribe the Efficiency of the firft E- 
 vil to Evil; for then the Queftion recurs, what 
 was the Caufe of that Evil? And by this the Sup- 
 pofition is likewife deftroyed, whereby the Evil 
 enquired after is llippofed to be the firft Evil: But 
 if we enquire, what could produce in the Angels 
 that firft Sin, whereby they forfeited their Glory? 
 we will find this Difquifition moft myfterious. 
 And it is commonly believed, but by what Re- 
 velation I know not, that their Pride caufed their 
 Fall, and that they catch'd their Bruife in climb- 
 ing; in defiring to be equal to their Creator, they 
 are become inferior to all their Fellow-Creatures. 
 Yet this Teems to me moft ftrange, that thefe 
 Excellent Spirits, whofe very Subftance was light, 
 and who furpaftcd far Man in Capacity and Un- 
 dcrftanding, fhould have fo erred, as to imagine, 
 that Equality feafible: A Fancy which the fond- 
 eft of Men could not have entertained. And it 
 were improbable to fay, that their Error could 
 have fproutcd at firft from their Underftanding; 
 and to think ic to have been fo grofs, as that fal- 
 len Man doth now admire it: But why may we 
 
 not 
 
The Virtiiofo^ or Stoic. / 7 1 
 
 not rather think, that their firft Error was rather 
 * a Crookednefs in their Will ;, than a Blindnefs in 
 their Judgment j and that they fretted to fee Man, 
 whom they knew to be inferior to themfelves by 
 rriafiy Stages, made Lord of all that pleafant 
 Creation, which they gazed on with a ftaring 
 Maze. And that this Opinion is more probable, 
 appears, becaufe this Sin was the far more bait- 
 ing, feeing it appeared with all the Charms 
 wherewith either Pride, Vanity or Avarice, could 
 busk it ; and explicates better to us the Occafion 
 of all that Enmity with which that Serpent hath 
 always lince purdied filly Man. But whether 
 God will fave juft as many Believers as there are 
 fallen of the Angels, none can determine ; nei- 
 ther can it be rationally deduced from that Scri*- 
 pture, St at nit tern?'mos gentium^ juxta numerum ^»- 
 gdorum Dei. But if it pleafe God fo to order it, 
 ic will doubtlefs aggrage their Puniflimenr, by 
 racking their Difdain. 
 
 And feeing the Angels have never obtained a TheSimf 
 Remiffion for this Crime, it is probable, that the ^^^f''^^^^ 
 Correfpondent of their Sin is in us the Sin againft ^^^ aelin/i 
 
 the Holy Ghoft. the Holy ' 
 
 For if thci: Lapfe had been pardonable, fome Ghoji. 
 one or other of them had in all probability efca- 
 ped ; but if this was not that unpardonable Sin, 
 I fcarce fee where it fliall be found. For to lay , 
 that it is a hating of Good, as God, is to make it 
 unprad:icable, rather than unpardonable: For all 
 Creatures appete naturally what is Good, and 
 God, as God, is Good ; io that it is impoflible 
 that he can be hated under that Reduplication. 
 
 It may be likewife conjectured, that voluntary 
 and deliberate Sacrilege is the Sin againft the 
 Holy Ghoftj becaufe Ananias and S^fhira., in 
 witholding from the Church a Part of the Price 
 for which they fold their Lands, are by Tder faid 
 
 G 2 ' to 
 
7 - The Vtrtuo\o^ or Stoic. 
 
 to have lied, not to Mari;, but to the Holy Ghoft ; 
 and his Wife is there faid to have tempted the 
 Spirit : But feeing both of them refolved to con- 
 tinue in the Church ( a Refolution inconfiftent 
 with the Sin againft the Holy Ghoftj and feeing 
 many Sins are more heinous, I cannot interpret 
 this lyirtg to the Holv Ghoft to be any thing elfe, 
 but a Sin againft Light, in which moft Penitents 
 have been involved : Albeit I confefs, this was a 
 grofs Efcape, feeing it robb'd God of his Omnifci- 
 evcy , and fuppofed that he was not privy to fuch 
 Human A<3:ings, as have not the Sun for a Wit- 
 nefs. I do then conclude, that the Sin againft 
 the Holy Ghoft may rather be a refolute under- 
 valuing of God, and a fcorning to receive a Par- 
 don from him : And this is that which makes the 
 Angels Fall irrecoverable, and, like the flaming 
 Sword, defends them from their Re-entry into 
 that Paradife from which they are exiled. And 
 albeit to fav, that the Angels Rebellion flows 
 from God's denying them Repentance, may fuit 
 abundantly well with his unftainable Juftice ; yet 
 it is hard to reconcile it with his Mercy. And 
 this makes my private Judgment place the Un- 
 pardonablenefs of this Sin, not in God's Decree, 
 but in rhefr Obduration and rebellious Impeniten- 
 cy : And the Reafon why thofe who commit this 
 Sin are never pardoned, is, becaufe a Pardon is 
 never fought. That Place of Scripture wherein 
 'Efati is faid to have fought the Blefling with Tears, 
 and not to have found it, aftoniflics me : Yet, I 
 believe, that if his Tears - had ftreamed from a 
 Senfe of his Guilt, more than of his Punifhment, 
 doubtlefs he had not wept in vain ; and in that he 
 tear'd,he was no more to be piticd,far lefs pardoned 
 than a Malefaftor, who upon the Scafl^old grants 
 fomc fewTears to the Importunity of hisTortures, 
 but fcorns to acknowledge the" Guilt of his Crime; 
 
 for 
 
The f^irtuofo^ or Stoic. jo 
 
 for Paiftf hy contracting our Bodies, firains out that li- 
 quid Matter, which thereafter globes it felf in Tears ' 
 there could come no Holy Water from the Pagan 
 Font of Efaus Eyes ; and if his Remorle could 
 have pierc'd his own Heart, it had eafily pierc'd 
 Heaven. Whilll others admire, I blefs God, that 
 he hath clos'd up the Knowledge of that unpar- 
 donable Sin under his own Privy Seal: For fee- 
 ing Satan tempts me to Sin with Hopes of an 
 After-pardon , this Bait is pull'd off his Hook by 
 the Fear I ftand under, that the Sin to which I 
 am tempted, is that Sin which can exped no 
 Pardon. And albeit it be cuftomary amongft Men 
 to beacon and fet a Mark upon fuch Shelves and 
 Rocks as deftroy Paffengers ; yet that is only done; 
 where Commerce is allowed, and Sailing necel- 
 fary : But feeing all Sin is forbidden, God was 
 not obliged to guard us with the Knowledge of 
 that Sin no farther than by prohibiting us not to 
 fm, but to ftand in Awe. 
 
 CHAP. XVI. 
 
 Of Mans Fall. 
 
 THAT firft Sin whereby our firft Parents 
 forfeited theirPrimitive Excellencies, was fo 
 pitiful a Frailty, that I think we fhould rather la- 
 ment, than enquire after it. To think that an 
 Apple had in it the Seeds of all Knowledge, or 
 that it could affimilate him to to his Creator, and 
 could in an Inftant fublimate his Nature, was a 
 Frailty to be admired in one o£ his Piety and 
 Knowledge. Yet I admire not that the Breach of 
 fo mean a Precept was punifli'd with fuch appear- 
 ing Rigor, becaufe the eafier the Command was, 
 the Contempt was proportionally the greater; 
 
 G ; and 
 
74- The Vtrtm^o^ or Stoic. 
 
 and the firft Crimes are by Legiflators^unifhed, 
 not only for Guilt, but for Example : But I rather 
 admire, what could perfuade the facile World to 
 believe, that A<i<jm was created not only innocent, 
 but even itorcd with all Human Knowledge : For 
 befides that we have no Warrant from Scripture 
 for this Allegiance , this his eafy Efcape fpeak- 
 eth far otherwife. 
 
 And albeit the Scripture tells us, that Man was 
 created perfelft ; yet that infers not that Man was 
 furnifhed with all Human Knowledge : For his 
 Perfcclion confifled in his adoring of, and de- 
 pending upon God ; wherein we f^e thofe. are 
 cxadeilywhofe Judgments are leaft peftered with 
 terreftrial Knowledge, and leaft diyerted with 
 unnccelTary Speculations. And thus it appears 
 that thofe Sciences^ after vvhich his Pofterity 
 pants, were not intended as noble ylppar^ages of 
 rhar rational Soul, but are rather tovifh Babies 
 buskt up by fallert Man, whereby he diverts him- 
 felf from refleding too narrowly upon his native 
 l^jailty. And tliiis Scripture tells. us, That God 
 riade man ferfeB^ but that he fovght out to h'lrnfelf ma- 
 fiy tn'ventions 'j 'where Perfection and Invention 
 feem to be Itated as Enemies: And it is palpable, 
 that thofe Sciences which are by us lawrel'd and 
 rewarded, are fuch as were inconfiftent with that 
 State of Innocency, fuch as law, Theology and 
 Phyfjck. And as for the reft, it is abfurd to think 
 that- Adams Happincfs did confift \h the Know- 
 ledge of thofe things which we our felves-account 
 cither impertinent or fuperfluous. But that which 
 convinces me moft of this,- is, that we forfeited 
 nothing by Ad.iw\ I-a1l, which Chrift's Death re- 
 itores not to ui; wherefore feeing Chrift by his 
 own, or his Apoltles Prcmifcs, hath not affured 
 us of any Sublunary or School-Knowledge; nor 
 hath our J^.xperience taught us, that Sciences are 
 
 entailed 
 
The Virtuofo^ or Stoic, . 75 
 
 entailed upon the Saints: I almoft believe;, that 
 Adam neither poffeft thefe before, nor yet loft 
 them by his Fall. Neither think I St. Paul the 
 more imperfedl, that he defired to know nothing but 
 Chrlfl, and him Crucified: So that the Difference 
 betwixt Adam and his SucceiTorS;, flood more in 
 the Straitnefs o^ his Affe^lions , than in the 
 Depth of his Knowledge. For albeit it be be- 
 lieved, that the Names whereby he baptized the 
 Creatures were full Hiftories of their Natures, 
 written in fhort Hand , yet this is but a Conje- 
 fture authorized by no Holy Text. It is a more 
 civil Error in the Jovljl) Talmudifts, to think 
 that all the Creatures were brought to Adam, to 
 let him fee that there were none amongft them fit 
 to be his Companion, nor none fo beautiful as 
 Eve-, than it is in their Cabalifts to obferve, that 
 the Hebrew Word fignifying Man, doth, by a 
 Tranfpofition of Letters, fignify likewife Benedl- 
 Blon • and the Word fignifying Woman, makes up 
 MaledlBlon. If v/e fnould take a Character of A- 
 dam\ Knowledge from the. Scriptures, we ihall 
 find more Imprudence charged upon him, than 
 upon any of his SucceiTors: For albeit the filly 
 Woman ,was not deceived without the Help of '■ 
 Subtiky ', yet Adam finned upon a bare Suggefti- 
 on, and thereafter vv^as fo fimple as to hide him- 
 felf, when God called him to an Account ; as if 
 a Thicket of Trees could have fconced him from 
 his AU-feeing Maker : and when he was accufed, 
 was fo fimple as to think his Wife's Commands 
 fufficient to exoner him; and fo abfurd, as to 
 make God himfelf fharer with him in his Guilt, 
 the Woman whom thou ga^vefi me, &c. 
 
 There is more Charm in acquiring new Know- 
 ledge , than in reflecting upon what wc have al- 
 ready gain'd, ( as if the Sfedes of known Objects 
 did corrupt, by being treafur'd up in our Brains). 
 ^ G 4 And 
 
76 T^he yirtiwfo^ or Sloic. 
 
 And this induces mc to believe, that ou^ Scant- 
 ncfsof Native Knowledge^ is rather a Happinefs 
 than a Punifhment : The Citizens of Lottdon or 
 Tarts arc not fo tickled by the Sight of thofe 
 •ftately Cities, as Strani^ers who were not born 
 within their Walls; and I may fay to fuch, as by 
 fpelling the Stars defire to read the Tortunes of 
 others, as our Saviour fa id to Tetcr, when he was 
 defirous to know the Horofcope of the beloved 
 Apoftle, What IS that to thee ? What can it advan- 
 tage us to know the Correfpondence kept amongft 
 the Planets, and to underftand the whole Anato- 
 my of Nature's Skeleton-^ in gazing upon whofe 
 Parts, we are oft-times as ridiculous as Children, 
 who love to leaf over talidouce Pictures ; for in 
 both,Variety is all the Ufury that can be expeded, 
 ^s the Return of our Time and Pains. And if 
 we pry inly into this fmall Mafs of our prefent 
 Knowledge, we fhall find that our Knowledge is 
 one of the fertileft Fountains of our Mifery : For 
 do not fuch as know that they are fick, groan 
 more heavily than a Country Clov/n, who appre- 
 hends nothing till Extremity creates in him fome 
 Senfe? And doubtlefs the Reafon why Children 
 and Ideots endure more, and drunken Men efcape 
 more Dangers than others, is, becaufe albeit they 
 cannot provide fuch apt Remedies, yet they are 
 Icfs acquainted with what they feel than we are. 
 Are not thofe who underftand that they are af- 
 fronted, more vex'd than fuch as are ignorant of 
 thefe Misfortunes ? And thofe who forefee the 
 Changes and Revolutions which arc to befall ci- 
 ther their Friends or their Countries, are thereby 
 more fadly difeafed , than he who fees no farther 
 than his Nofc. Our Saviour went when he did 
 forefee, th^n one Sronc of Jerufi/em fhodd not 
 be left upon another ; and when H^izjicl ask'd E- 
 ,//|t? ^vhy he wepr,' he tQl^ him. It was becaufe 
 
 ' he 
 
The TArtuofo^ or Stoic. 77 
 
 he did foreffee what Mifchief Haz,ael was to do 
 in Ifrael. Let us not then complain of the Lofs 
 of Adam's Knowledge, but of his Innocency"; 
 we know enough to fave us, and what is more 
 than that,^ that is fuperfluous. 
 
 Adam cannot be thought to have been the firft 
 Sinner, for E've finned before him ; fo that albeit 
 it feem a Paradox, yet it is moft probable, that 
 albeit Adam had for ever abftained from eating the 
 forbidden fruit, his Pofterity had been ftill as mife- 
 rable as now they are; feeing the Guilt of either 
 of the Parents had been fufficient to dafli the In- 
 nocence of the Children. For as the Scripture 
 tells us. Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean} 
 And David, in that Text which of all others 
 fpeaks moft exprefsly of Original Sin, lays the 
 Guilt upon her, and confeffeth only. That his 
 Mother had conceived him in Sin. 
 
 As Adam was not the firft Sinner, fo the eating 
 of the Apple may be juftly thought not to be the 
 firft Sin ; Eve having, before his eating the Apple, 
 repeated moft falfly the Command. For whereas 
 God did afture them. That in that day they did eat 
 the fruit, thej jhould furelj die : Eve relates it thus, 
 Yepjall not eat the fruit, left ye die', reprefenting only 
 that as a Contingent which was moft certain : 
 And whereas God had only faid, Tejhall not eat of 
 the fruit of the tree, Eve fays, God faid, Te jhall not 
 touch it ^ which, it may be, furniflied the Serpent 
 with this Argument to cheat her ; Ye fee God 
 hath deceived you, for the Fruit may be touched 
 Without Danger, why may it not be eaten with- 
 out Hazard } And it is probable that he hath fail- 
 ed in the one, as well as in the other. But to ab- 
 ftrad from this; it cannot be faid that the eating 
 of the forbidden fruit was the firft Sin ; for before 
 Adam did eat thereof, he behoved both to believe 
 •■he Serpent and misbelieve his Maker ; and thus 
 
78 The Virtuofo^ or Stoic. 
 
 Mifhelief was the firft Sin : For aftep hi had cre- 
 dited the Serpents Report, he was no longer In- 
 nocent ; and fo he did not eat the Apple till after 
 his Fall. What wifer are thofe Divines, who de- 
 bate whether Adam\ Falling-ficknefs and Sin ha^ 
 become hereditary, if our PredecefTors had come 
 out of his Loins before he fmned ; than thofe who 
 combated for the largell Share of the King of 
 Spain i Gold, if it had been to be divided ? 
 
 In the Almighty's Procedure againft poor Adam 
 for this Crime, his infinite Mercy appears to Ad- 
 miration ; and God forefeeing that Man might 
 fliarpen the Axe of Juflice too much .upon the 
 Whetftoncof private Revenge, leems^to have in 
 this Procefs formed to him an exa«5l Model of In- 
 quifition. For he arraigns and cries, Adaw, A- 
 Hatv, ivhere art thou ? He fliews him his Dittary, 
 Ha(i thou eat of the fruit whereof I comwanaed thee that 
 thou jhouldefi vot era ? He allows him Exculpation, 
 i0jo told thee ? and in order thereto, di4 examine 
 the Woman upon whom Adam did transfer the 
 Guilt. And albeit nothing could efcape his Om- 
 nifciency, and that he did fee Ad.im eat the Apple; 
 yet to teach Judges that they fliould walk accord- 
 ing to what is proved, and not according to what 
 they are themfelvcsconfciousto,hedid not condemn 
 him till firft he fhould have a Confeffion from his 
 own Month. And thus. Gen. 18. 21. the lord fays, 
 
 Becaufe the cry of Scdom is "reai I oi'tU go dov-n 
 
 nndfce v^hether they ha^ve dene altogether according to the 
 cry of ft, &G. And in the lafl place, albeit the 
 fatal Decree did bear. In fhat day that thou eatcfi 
 'hereof^ thou [hah furely die ; vet v.'ere his days pro- 
 longed Nine Hundred and Thiiry Years after the 
 Sin was commited. It is tco curious a Difquifiti- ] 
 on to enquire how God can be laid to he merci- 
 ful , Mercy being the Mitigation of Juflice ; of 
 which his pure Nature cannot be capable, feeing 
 
 whatever 
 
7he TArtuofo^ or Stoic. 7y 
 
 whatever he wills is juft; and fo he cannot be 
 thought in any thing which he wills , to recede 
 from Juflice: Andfo can no more properly be faid 
 to be mercifuljthan one A6t can be both theLaw, 
 and the Mitigation of the Law. But I will prefs 
 no Point of this Nature , knowing that humble 
 Modefty is the befl: Theology. 
 
 C g A P. XVII. 
 
 Of the Stile of Genefis. 
 
 THE Vatican of . Paganifm cannot, for the 
 Malenefs .of its Stile, match that matchlefs 
 Book of Ge«£/?y, whereof each Sentence feems a 
 Quarry pf rich Meditations, and each Word a 
 Spell, fufficient to corijure the Devil of Delfhos. 
 Might not that excellent Expreflion, Let us make 
 manr after pur inji^g^y c;onvince any of the Bejng 
 of .-ri Trinity, who deny Pluralityof Gods? It is 
 wojider/ul, that the Saturn-humor'd Jeiu can, in 
 this Paffage miftake his own Saviour ; and it is 
 ftrange that he fhould not, from the Triangular 
 Architedurc of his own Heart, conclude the Tri- 
 nity of the Godhead , whofe Temple it was ap- 
 pointed to be. Albeit I be an Admirer of this 
 Nurfe of Cabalifm • yet, I approve not the Con- 
 ceit of thofe doting Rabbies, Vv^ho teach that God, 
 from his own mouth, indited both the Words and 
 Matter of the Vejttateuch '^ whereas he furnifhed 
 only to the other Prophets the Matter and Subjed 
 unphrafed : for not only did God promife that he 
 fiiould put his Words in their Mouths, but like- 
 wife, they preface thus their own Prophecies, In 
 the days of fuch a King, the Word of the Lord 
 came to fuch a Prophet, faying, &c. Neither is 
 this Conceit confiftent with that high Efteem 
 which they, even in this intend for their Patron 
 
 Mofes ; 
 
!o The Virluofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 Mofes : feeing it allows him lefs Truft from his di- 
 vine Maftcr, than the other Penmen of Scrip- 
 ture had rcpofed in them. 
 
 CHAP. XVIII. 
 
 Why Man fell. 
 
 THAT Brain hath too little pia mater, that is 
 too curious to know, why God, who evi- 
 dences fo great a Defire to fave poor Man, and 
 is fo powerful, as that his Salvation needed ever 
 have run the Hazard, if his infinite Wifdom had 
 fo decreed, did yet fufFer him to fall : For if we 
 enter once the Lift of that Debate, our Reafon is 
 too weak to bear the burden of fo great a difficul- 
 ty. And albeit it may be anfwered, that God 
 might have reftrained Man, but that Reftraint 
 did not ftand with the Freedom of Mans Will 
 which God had beftowed upon him ; yet this An- 
 Iwer ftops not the Mouth of the Difficulty. For 
 certainly, if one fhould detain a mad man from 
 running over a Precipice, we could not be there- 
 by faid to have wronged his Liberty : And feeing 
 Man is by many Divines allowed a freedom of 
 Will, albeit he muft of Neceflity do what is EviL 
 and that his Freedom isfalv'd by a Liberty to chufe 
 only one of more Evils, it would appear ftrange 
 why his Liberty might not have confifted well e- 
 Dough with a moral Impoflibility of finning, and 
 might not have been abundantly conferved in his 
 Freedom to chufe one of more goods : yet thefe 
 Heafonings are the calling God to an account ; 
 and fo impious. For, if God had firft created 
 Man furrounded with our prefent Infirmities , 
 could we have complained? Why then fnould we 
 now complain, feeing we are but fall'n to a better 
 Eftate than we deferved ; feeing we ftumbled not 
 
 for 
 
The Virtuojo^ or Stoic, 8 1 
 
 for Want of Light, but becaufe we extinguifti'd 
 our own Light ; and feeing our Saviour's dying for 
 us may yet reinttate us in an happier Eftate than 
 that from which we are now falfn. 
 
 Albeit the Glafs of my Years hath not yet turn- 
 ed Five and Twenty, yet the Curiofity I have to 
 know the different Limbo's of def)arted Souls, and 
 to view the Card of the Region of Death, would 
 give me Abundance of Courage to encounter this 
 King of Terrorsjthough I were a Pagan: But when 
 I confider whatjoys are prepared for them who 
 fear the Almighty , and what Crazinefs attends 
 fuch as deep in Methufakms Cradle, I pity them 
 who make LongLife one of the ofteft repeated Pe- 
 titions of their Pater nofier ; and yet , thofe fure 
 are the moreadvanc'd in Folly, w ho defire to have 
 their Names enfhrin'd after Death in the airy 
 yionumtntoi Fame. Whereas it is one of the 
 Promifes made to the Ele<5t, That they jhall refifrom 
 their labours J and their works jhall follow them. Moft 
 Mens Mouths are fo foul that it is aPunifhment to 
 be much in them : For my own part, I defire the 
 fame good Offices from any good Name that I do 
 from my Cloaths ; which is to skreen me from 
 the Violence of Exterior Accidents. 
 
 As thofe Criminals might be judg'd diftra(fted 
 who being condemned to die , would fpend their 
 fhort Reprieval in difputing about the Situation 
 and Fabric of their Gibbets : So may I juftly think 
 thofe Literati mad, who fpend the fhort time allot- 
 ted them for Repentance, in debating about the 
 Seat of Hell, and the Torments of tortur'd Spirits. 
 To fatisfy my Curiofity, I was once refoiv'd, with 
 the Platonic, to take the promife of fome dying 
 Frendjthat he fhould return & fatisfy me in all my 
 private Doubts concerning Hell and Heaven ; yet 
 I was jullly afraid,that he might have return'd me 
 the fame anfwer which Abraham return'd to Di'ves, 
 
 Have 
 
S The Virtuofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 Hai/e they not Mofcs and the Prophets ; if they hear twt 
 them, wherefore "ivillthey be ferjuaded though onejhould 
 r:je from the dead ? 
 
 C P A P. XIX. 
 
 A Refutation of the Millenarians. 
 
 TH E Millertcu's Ephemerides, which alTure us 
 that Chrift fhall reign a thoufand years with 
 the Saints on Earth , is as fenfual an opinion as 
 that of the Turks, who make Heaven a Brothel, 
 wherein we fhall fatisfie our VenereousAppetites; 
 for the one fliews the vain Glory and vindidlive 
 Humor of the Saints, as palpably as the other 
 fhews the Luft of the Mahometans. If Chrift's 
 Reigning fo many Years be for convincing the 
 World that he is the real Mejpah , their Herefy 
 fliould have antedated his Coming, and his 
 Reign (liould rather have begun long fmce, when 
 many Ages were to be converted; or at 
 lealt it fhould not have been thrull out upon the 
 Selvage and Border of Time, when very few fhall 
 remain to be convinc'd : And if in this they in- 
 tend a Difplaying of Chrift's Glory, certainly 
 they are miftaken ; for what Honour can it be 
 for aKing,ro have his Foot-ftool made his Throne ? 
 So that 1 think , thefe poor Phanatics have taken, 
 the Patronage of this Error rather by Neceflity 
 than Choice, all other Opinions and Conceits 
 being formerly preengaged to other Authors. 
 
 C H A P. 
 
' T'heVtrtuofo^ or Stoic, %} 
 
 C H A P. XX. 
 
 The Author's Cenfure of this Ejfay^ and an 
 Account of his Defjgn. 
 
 AS I am not able, by th^Jacoys Ladder of my 
 Merits, to fcale Heaven i fo am I lefs able, 
 by the Jacob's Staff of my private Ability, to take 
 up the true Altitude of its Myfteries. I have tra- 
 vel'd no farther in Theology then a Sabbath-days 
 Journey ; and therefore, it were Arrogance in 
 me to offer a Map of it to the credulous World : 
 But, if I were worthy to be confulted in thefe 
 Spiritual Securities, I fhould advife every private 
 Chrift ian ; rather to ftay flill in the Barge of the 
 Church, with the other Dilciples, than by an ill 
 bridled Zeal, to hazard drowning alone with 
 Peter, by offering to walk upon the unlfable Sur- 
 face of his own fleeting and water-weak Fancies, 
 though with a pious Refolution to meet our Savi- 
 our. For, albeit one may be a real Chriftian, 
 and yet differ from the Church, which fays. 
 That the Wife Men who came to bow 
 before our Saviour's Cradle-throne, were three 
 Kings, and in fuch other Opinions as thefe where- 
 in the Fundamentals of Faith, and Quiet of the 
 Church are no ways concerned ; yet certainly, 
 he were no wife Man himfelf, nor yet found 
 Chriilian, who would not, even in thefe bow 
 the Flag of his private Opinion to the commands 
 of the Church. The Church is our Mother, and 
 therefore Vv'e fhould wed no Opinion without her 
 Cotifent v;ho is our Parent ; or if u'e have rafhly 
 wedded any, it is in the Power of the Church and 
 her Officials to grant us a Divorce. As for my 
 lelf, my Vanity never prompted me to be Stan- 
 dardbearer to any, either new Se(5l, or old Here- 
 
8 4 The Virtuojo^ or Stoic. 
 
 fy ; and I piry fuch as love to live like Pew-keep- 
 ers in the Houfe of God, bufied in feating others, 
 without ever providing a Room for themfelves. 
 If there be any thing in this Difcourfe which 
 may offend fuch as are really pious, it (hall much 
 grieve nie, who above all Men honour them moft. 
 What I have fpokcn againft Cafes of Confcience 
 and the like, ftrikes not againft their Chriftian- 
 Fellowfhip and Correfpondence, but againft the 
 flpiih Fopperies of pretending Counterfeits. It 
 Ihall always be my Endeavour for the future, ra- 
 ther to drop Tears for my own Sins, and the Sins 
 of otliers, then yrk for their Converfion : Our 
 Prayers help fuch as never heard them, whereas 
 thofe only who read ourDifcourfes are better'd by 
 them. Abraham's Prayers prevailed more with 
 God (^even for SoJom ) than Lot^s reiterated Ser- 
 mons ; and no Wonder that the Succefs be une- 
 qual, feeing in the one we have to do with a- 
 merciful God ; whereas in the other we muft 
 pufuade a hard-hearted People. 
 
 I intend not to purchafe from Pofterit^', the 
 Title of Reformer, feeing moft of thcfe have fliU'n 
 under the fame Guilt , and have had the fame 
 Fate with that curious Painter , who having 
 drawn an excellent Face, as happily as could have 
 been expelled from the fmootheft Mirror, did 
 thereafter dafh it afrefh upon the Suggeftion of 
 each Intrant, till at laft he reformed it from being, 
 any way like to the Original. 
 
 Dl'vlnity differs in this from all other Sciences, 
 that thefe being invented by Mortals, receive 
 Growth from Time and Experience ; whereas, 
 it being penn'd by theommnifcicnt Spirit of God, 
 can receive no Addition without receiving Pre- 
 judice. It is moft remarkable, that our Saviour's 
 Prayers, His Sermons, and the Creed delivered to 
 us by his Apoftlcs, were roomed up in far nar- 
 rower 
 
TIdc Virtuojo^ or Stoic. 8^ 
 
 rower Bounds than thefe of our times^ which aft 
 Hyciropfie o^ ill concodled Opinions hath fwell'd 
 beyond their true Dimenfions : many whereof 
 have either been brooded by <vmlty or hnerefi ; or 
 elfe ignorant and violent Defendents being brought 
 to a Bay, by fuchasimpugn'd their refoly'd upon 
 principles, have been forc'd to alTert, thefe by-blow 
 and Preter-intentional Tenets ; and having once 
 floored them have thereafter judg'd themfelves 
 concerned to defend them, in point of Scholaftic 
 Honour. Some well-meaning Chriftians likewife, 
 do fometimes, for maintenance of what is lawful 
 and piousj think that they may lawfully advance 
 Opinions, which otherwife^ they Would never 
 have allowed of ; and as in Nature wc fee, that 
 the Collifion of two hard Bodies makes them re- 
 bound fo much the farther from one another : So 
 Oppofition makes both Parties fly into Extremi- 
 ties. Thus I believe that the Debate betwixt 
 Roman^Catholicks and Vrotefianti , concerning the 
 Virgin 'Mary^ have occafion'd in fome amongft 
 both, expreflions, if not Heretical, yet at leaft 
 Undecent. Thus a great many Confejjions of Faith, 
 become, like Noah's Ark, a Receptacle of clean 
 and unclean : and which is alfo deplorable, they 
 do, like ordinary Dyals, ferve only for ufe in 
 that one Meridian for which they are calculated, 
 and by riding twenty Miles ye make them Hete- 
 rodox. I fpeak not this to the Difparagement 
 of our own Church, (which I reverence in all its 
 Precepts and Pra^6lices ) but to beget a bluftiing 
 Conviction in fuch as have diverted from it ; and 
 whofe Conventicles, compared with our Jerufa* 
 km, refemble only the removed Huts of thofe 
 who live apart, becaufe they are fick of the 
 Plague. 
 
 I am not at a maze, to fee Men fo tenacious of 
 eonrrary Principle; in Religion ^ for, Man's 
 
 H Thoughts 
 
':>6 The Virtnofo^ or Stoic, 
 
 Thoughts being vaft and various, he fnatchcs at 
 every offered ^uggeftion ; and if hy Accident he 
 entertain any of thofe many, as a divine Inimif- 
 fion, he thereafter thinls^s it were Blafphemy to 
 bring that Thouglu to theTeft of Reafon, becaufe 
 he hears that Ki/VA is above Reafon'^ or to re- 
 linquifli it^ becaufe the common Suffrage of his 
 Country funs it Counter^ feeing he is taught e- 
 ven by them, that the Principles of Belief mull 
 not be- chofen by the Poll. 
 - Atid feeing Faith is above Reafcn, (albeit as I 
 fl^id formerly/ it would feemothervvifc ) I wonder 
 not to fee, ev^en the beft temper'd Chriftians, 
 think that which is not their own Religion to be 
 therefore ridiculous. 
 
 Mv 'Defign alf alongft this Difcourfe butts ac 
 this one Principle, that Speculations in -Religion are 
 fjotfo necejjaryj and arc more dangerous tJjanfincere Pra~ 
 Hice. It is in Religion as in Heraldry, the fitn- 
 f ler the Bearing be, it is fo much the purer and 
 the ancienter. I will not fay that our School- 
 diftinAions are the Impreflions of the Devil's Clo- 
 ven Foot ; but I may fay, that our Fiery and 
 Principles fcarce ever grow after they begin to 
 fork in fuch dichotomies ; which, like Jacch and 
 Kfdii, divide and jar as loon as they are born, aiid 
 betwixt M'hom, the poor Propofirion out of 
 which both did ipring, is, like a Malefactor, moft 
 lamentably drag'd to pieces. I have endeavoured 
 to demonftrate, that Dogmaticalnefs and Para- ' 
 lytic- Scepticifm , are but the Jfocr^fha o^ true 
 Religion ; and I believe the one begets the other, 
 a? a Toad begets a Cockatrice. For the Sceptic, 
 j^crcciving, that the magifterial Dogmnrift errs 
 (•as thoie mull err fomewhcrc wha aiTcrt too 
 much) even in thofe things whereof he affirms 
 l?c is as fure as of any Principle in Religion, • 
 (^'hich is their ordinary Srilc) he finding out their 
 «••"; Error 
 
The TArtuo[o^ or Stoic, " 87^ 
 
 Error in one of their Principles, is thereby cm* 
 bold ned to contra vert ail. This being the Scope 
 ofthisElTay/I wifli that thofe who read, expound 
 it as Divines do Parables, ^i£ mnfupt arguwenta- 
 ti'va ultra fuum feodum. 
 
 '--r-'\ --^ '•-'■'■' - 
 
 CHAP. XXL 
 
 The AMd^'FAfiUgy, ^^^^ ., 
 
 I Doubt not but fome will think me no lefs ab- 
 furd in writing againlt Vanity, whilft I am fo 
 vain my felf as to write Books, than the Philofo- 
 phers were judged of. old, for denying Motion 
 whilft their Tongues mov^d in their Cheeks. But 
 to thefe my Anfwer fhall be, that finding many 
 groveling in their Errors, I have, in this ElTay, 
 profFer'd them my Afliftance j not to fliew my 
 Strength bur my Compajjlon. The Multitude ' 
 ( whicii:. albeit it hath ever been allowed 
 many Heads, yet was never allowed any Brains) 
 will doubclefs accufe, my Studies of. Adultery, 
 for hugging Contemplations fo Excentric to my 
 Employment. To thefe my Return is^ that thefe 
 Papers are but the Pairings of my other, Studies; 
 and becaufe they were but Parings , I have flung 
 them out into the Streets* I wrote them in my 
 Retirements when I wanted both Books and Em- 
 filoyment ; and I refolve that this fhall be the laft 
 Inroad I Ihall ever make into foreign Contempla- 
 tions. There are fome Thoughts in this Piece 
 which may feem to rebell againft the Empire o£ 
 the Schools 1 yet, who knows butmy Watch goes 
 fight, albeit it agree not with the public Clock 
 of the City ? efpecially where the Sun of Righ- 
 tsoufnsfs hath nor, by pointing clearly the Dval 
 H A ©i^ 
 
88 The J/irtuo\o^ or Stoic. 
 
 of Faithj (hewed which of the Two are in the Er- 
 ror. There are feme Expreffions in ir, which 
 Genfure may force to Ipeak ocherwife than 
 they have in commiflions ; yet none of them got 
 room in this Difcourfe, until they firft gare an 
 Account of their Defign to a moft pious and 
 learned Divine : and fo, it may be the Eines are 
 of themfelves ftreight, albeit they lye not paral- 
 lel'd with each Cenfurers crooked Rule. As this 
 Difcourfe intends for the Divines of our Church 
 allRefpeAsj fo all that is in it, is moft freely 
 fubmitted to their Cenfure. 
 
 jjje Author intended this Difcourfe only as an Intro- 
 
 ■ AuBion to the Stoics Morals'^ hut frobahly^ he will, 
 
 for many Tears f.fi/)^ ^^'"^* 
 
 'j fi! ]-^ ' -rn 
 
 POST S' i5 R 1 P T. 
 
 BY the Laws of this Country, the Author 
 means that Religion which is fetled by Law, 
 In other Expreflions the Author recommends 
 himfelf to the Glofs of the Readers Charity. 
 
 '■/■: AMORAL 
 
A MORAL 
 
 PREFERRING 
 
 SOLITUDE 
 
 T O 
 
 Publick Employment, 
 
 And all its 
 
 APPANAGES: 
 
 Such as FamQ, Command, Riches, 
 Plcafures, Converfation, Ifjc. 
 
 By Sir GEORGE MACKENZIE^ K'. 
 
 JVouUji thou be fpoken for to the King, or to 
 
 the Captain of the Hofi ? And jlie anjwered, I 
 dwell among miyie own People, 2 King. 4. 1:5. 
 
 L N 'D K: 
 Printed in the Year MDCCXI. 
 
 I 
 
T\ \A t:j Jii 
 
 i 
 
 I 
 
9^ 
 
 t — — ■ — i.i.. 
 
 To the Right Honourable 
 
 T O H N 
 
 Earl of C R A w FOR D, 6^^. 
 
 My LORD, '•<^. <^ ' -. : 
 
 ^ Being Man can glory in nothirfgy hut in that 
 kj} he is God's Image ', certainly that mujl he 
 his moji Gloriom State whehin'th^it Image 
 is ntojl clearly feen ; and this is SoKtude | where- 
 in his compojed Soul ^ like the fmeoth Face' of 
 the Ocean) reprefents^ with rnuch Advantage, 
 this Glorious Image which the unequal Rifiitgs of 
 ftormy andafpiring Waves of Ambition do ex- 
 ceedingly conceal. The Heathen Poet Lucretius 
 defcrihes the great Perfe^ions of the Deity to 
 confift in that it is, 
 
 -. — Privata dolore omni, privata periclis, 
 Ipfa fuis pollens opibus 
 
 And Cicero upon this fcore confejfes , That the 
 Philofophers Life was of all others mofl prefe- 
 rable^ becaufe of all others it approached nearefl 
 to that of the Gods, This, My Lord, invited 
 we to write this Difcourfe in its favours ; which 
 H 4 hecaufe 
 
5 * The Epiftle Dedicatory, 
 
 heeaufe I intended m a Bundle of Rodst for 
 whippingfuch as ivere fondly amhitiouSy J did 
 therefore flrip naked of thofe Leaves and Flou- 
 rifhes of Eloquence^ which ly making them more 
 pleafant, could not hut make them lefs /harp. And 
 if any ijx me for fending this Book to puhlick 
 View, from /^j/ Solitude which hoth it and I 
 fo much commend ;' my Anfwer is. That either it 
 ivill convince thofe who read ity and then it will 
 gratify that Solitude which it hath left ; or elft 
 It will meet with Cenfure and Difdatn, and then 
 its Fate will demonflrate how dangerous it is to 
 gadd Alroad : To prefs which is another of my 
 great Defgm. 
 
 J intend not ideally to depreciate fuch hy this 
 pifcourfe, as enjoy Honours and Employment '^ 
 that Defign lies as far out of my Koad^ as it is 
 raisd above my Power : But I intend hy it to 
 congratulate with fuch as either undervalue them 
 put of Inclination^ or have loft them hy Accident ; 
 and to difcipline fuch unquiet Humours-^ as like 
 fowaer , do in blowing up themf elves deflroy all 
 that is above them, or reffls their violent Afcent ; 
 Wherein as I oblige Philofophers by compliments 
 ing the ObjeSl of their Complacency^ fo I gratify 
 Statefmen hy reclaiming fuch as are the ordinary 
 Objed of their Fears. Neither jhould any thing 
 in this Difcourfe, which is picquant againfl thofe 
 Courtiers who have been rather Great than Good, 
 difpleafe fuch as are both Good and Great \ more 
 than it Jhould difpleafe a Gentleman of Noble 
 Shapes and Features, to fee a Painter draw ano- 
 ther Man (jhough of the fame Species with him- 
 
The Epiftle Dedicatory 9j 
 
 felf) tinier all the Difaivantaqes that can he^ 
 iracd hy a deforming Pencil. 
 
 That I jhould chufe your Lordfhip for my Pa^ 
 tron^ is no A^ of Virtue ; hecaufe your Conditio 
 tion^ as it flands circumfiantiate, made you ;//- 
 mofi the only P erf on who defervd it at all^and aU 
 together the Perfon who defervd it mofi ; for 
 leing the hefl Pattern for Solitary Perfonfy ye 
 were the Perfon who deferv d mofi to he the Pa^ 
 iron of Solitude/^ f^lf j efpeci ally having obli- 
 ged itfofar, as to prefer it to that Rival againfi 
 which it now difputes for Precedency ; and pre- ' 
 fer/d ity after its adverfe Party had heen your 
 old Acquaintance^ and had offer d to hrihe you 
 for your Suffrage^ with a Purfe heavy enough to 
 have weighed down a light Spirit, Fear not, my 
 Lord, the H^ant of Fame Q which is the only 
 thing that Solitude is thought to want ^i For 
 as the Heathens refemhled it to a Maid, fo it 
 hath this of a coy Maid likewife , that it courts 
 mofi thofe who feem mofi to undervalue it ; and 
 rarely any Perfon admires his own Servants fo 
 much , as it doth thofe who are Strangers to it. 
 And great Men have this Lofsy that their Supe- 
 riors will not admire them, as being lefs than 
 themfelves ; their Equals will not, hecaufe they 
 hate them ; nor their Inferiors, hecaufe they en- 
 vy them ; and do hut too oft imagine that they 
 are opprefi for feeding their- Luxury. That fa- 
 mous Rod which wrought fo many Miracles for . 
 others openly in Egypt , did never it felf ftou- 
 rifh till it was laid up in the Tahernacle, Q ac- 
 cording to their Opinion , who will have both 
 
 •fbefe 
 
94 J he Epiftle Dedicatory. 
 
 thefe to have been one and the fame") j and the 
 Diamond ceafes r.o^ to ^njoy a greater Luflre^ 
 though hid in the d':ikeji C-yner. than thefe plea- 
 Jjng B/rffjms do, :ihich ihe weakefl Breath of a 
 Storm Kill command down from thehighejJ Branch 
 upon which they perch, t amc then fhall tranf 
 mit your N^me to Foflerity^ as the Jews did 
 their embalm d Bodies which they preferv d per\ 
 fumed and odoriferous in fecret and retired GrotJi 
 and Sepulchres ; whereas it will preferve that of 
 more pub lick Perfons, only as the Egyptians 
 di^ theirs, whom by expofing to the open Sun 
 they kept as Mummy, but fo black and parch' d, 
 4fs that it had been better they had return d to 
 their former Afhes. But though Fame fhoulA 
 not thus gratify you, yet Virtue ( who hath fo 
 few deferving Followers now , that it cannot but 
 pile up Pyramids of Favours upon fuch a^ are) 
 will recommend you to fucceeding Ages, both to 
 tet fee that fj?e wants not her Trophies even in 
 this Dotage of the World ( wherein fi?e is noifo 
 deform' d by Age , as not to have Charms Jhong 
 enough to conquer fuch as deferve her Favour ) 
 and to engage others by this A^ of Gratitude to 
 a Dependance upon her. And amongfi her Ad- 
 mirers, Tou, as one of her Minions, fhAll have 
 flill all Deference paid you, hy 
 
 Y©ur Lordfhip's 
 
 Mod Humble Servant. 
 
95 
 
 
 s o L I T u E) j; 
 
 Preferr'd to 
 
 Publick Employment. 
 
 Generous CELADOR, 
 
 I Know that your Advancement, was to you, 
 but as the being throvvn up is to folid Bodies ; 
 from which State they cannot befo properly 
 faid to fallj as to run with Inclination to that 
 beloved Centre and Level from which they were 
 at ftrft rais'd. I know you made no other Ufe of 
 that Height which makes others giddy , than to 
 take, from off its loftieft Tops, a full Profpecft of 
 all thefe Vanities which fo much ravifh mean Spi- 
 rits. And your publick Deportment being 
 thus fo ex'ad: a Picture of true Virtue, I hope 
 your Retirement will be the fhadowing of that 
 noble Draught. 
 
 ■^ In the Confidence of this, I fend you this E- 
 logy o^ Solitude -J notasPhyficians fend Pills, with 
 iPraifes totheiraverfe Patients : for, as it were be- 
 low your Stoicifm to need fuch ^ fo it is above 
 my Skill, to be able to adminiftrate the meaneft 
 Remedy to fo well a complexion'd Soul as yours. 
 But I praife it to you , as we ufe to praife a Mi- 
 flrefs to her enamoured Gallant, whofe intimacy 
 with her^ thoughit far exceeds the Acquaintance 
 
 of 
 
tfues t9 
 hoth cam 
 fared. 
 
 96 Solitude prefer/ d 
 
 of ihv PxsircTjyet it breeds not in hzvEnamorato ^n 
 Ujiwillingncfs to hear what he already knows ; 
 Complacency being oftner the Produd ofour 
 Knowledge, than the Occafion of our Enquiry. 
 In paralleling Greatnefs and Solitude , as to their 
 Moral Advantages, I fhall hrfl make fome few 
 Retledions upon the Ends for which both 
 are fought ; upon the Employments wherein 
 ' both are exercifed ; and laftly upon the Revenue 
 made upon either of thefe Employments, when 
 Fate or-Dekfh (hall force us to leave both. 
 Seft, I As to the Defign which Men propofe to them- 
 The Mo' felvcs, in purfuing Greatncfs and publick Em- 
 ployment j all will tell you. That they feek thefe 
 either tounder-prop their falling Families, (whofe 
 proud * Tops begin to bow in Homage to that 
 Mortality, which will needs one Day triumph 
 over us and ours) or elfe to defend themfelves a- 
 gainftfomeconfiderable Enemy,or to wipe off the 
 Stains and Scars of Difloyalty or Prejudice. For 
 when opulent or great Perfons undertake them, 
 the very Rabble have fo much Prudence, as to 
 condemn thefe for mad Men. When Philofophers 
 or ftrong Spirits embark in them, they fay they 
 do it to ierve their Country, and not their 
 Inclinations; and Flatterers pretend. That, 
 they deilgn in thefe , the pleafmg of their 
 Prince, and. not of their Humour: So that as if all 
 were afhamed of them, all do excufe their Zeal 
 after them : whereas Solitude (like a great Beauty) 
 is courted for it fcif, and not for its Portion. And 
 fiich as intend publick Employments, will pre- 
 tend a Love and Delign for Solitude ; and when 
 they have attained their Honours , they 
 will ftillpraife Retirement : whereas, fuchaslive 
 privately, may fometimes pity, but. will never 
 feem to envy I'uch as are in publick. Employment. 
 And not only is Solitude counted for it felf, and. 
 
 Great- 
 
 
to TMick Employnieni . 97 
 
 Greatnefs for fome remoter End ; but even Great- 
 nefs and publick Employment are themrelves ofc 
 (if not always) defign'd as fubfcrvient to Sditude, 
 Thus Merchants hazard drowning, and^ like the 
 Sun, reel about the World, that they; may gain 
 as much as may afford them the Conveniency of 
 a Recefs. For this Lawyers empty their Brainsj 
 and Soldiers open their Veins ; and have oft no^ 
 
 « thing to fweeten their Anxieties, but the Remote 
 Profped of a folacing Retirement : So that Soli- 
 tude muft be excellent,feeing its Enemies buy it at 
 fo dear a rate. And even Cafar behoved to re- 
 create himfelf , with an allquando mihl licehit mihi 
 'vl'vere, efteeming that part of his Life to belong 
 to others, which was fpent on other Mens Em- 
 ployments. And feeing all aim at Solitude, it 
 muft certainly be by as much more nobler than 
 
 ' publickEmployment,as thcEnd is more noble than 
 the Means : and in this it approaches very near 
 the Nature of Happinefs, which is defined to be 
 that To 'which all things tend, and which it Jelf ref^eth 
 'nothing yet acquirable. But yet I mull condemn 
 thofe, who are at all this Pains to gain Solitudcy 
 whom for this I efteem as unskilful in the Art of 
 Happinefs , as thofe Navigators in Solomons time 
 were of the Art of Sailing ; who cruifed along fo 
 many tediousShoarsfor reaching theGold of O/j/jir, 
 a Journey eafily to be accoirrplifhed, in far lefs 
 than half the time. Happinefs is not the Pro- 
 dud of fuch Endeavours, and thefe are rath^^r 
 
 •Hindrances than Helps to Solitude. And this re- 
 members me of that notable Anfwer, given by 
 
 .iCineasthQ Philofopher, to Vyrrhus ^ who when ho 
 told him that he intended to conquer Greece, then 
 Rome, and fo all the World ; askt him, why he 
 propofed all thacToil to himfelf? To which P)r- 
 rhus anfwe ring, that he would do it to the End he 
 might at his return live happily and merrily Vvith 
 
 his 
 
88 Solitude f^'efcrrd 
 
 his Friends the refiduc of his Lite, Ci«f^/tancing 
 him moil (h fir ply, told him that he might live fo, 
 and do fo prcfcntly^jand fo need not be at fo much 
 fuperfluous Pains. 
 
 Miin is fo frail a Creature, andhisImperfeAions 
 arc fo great and many, that that can only make 
 him be reputed Excellent, which can beft con- 
 ceal his Natural Frailties .• And albeit our Judg- 
 ments are but fliallow, ycr hqrc lies our Misfor- 
 tune, that we are not able to abide the Tcft of 
 one anothers Judgment. And this is the Knack 
 for which Men who arc hlent and referved, or 
 melancholy and dumpifli , are reputed Wife : For 
 we admire not what we fee, but what we fee nor. 
 And yet, neither Melancholy nor Silence ferve fo 
 - to skreen our Infirmities, as Solitude does; feeing 
 futh as converfe in the World may be fathomed 
 by other Means than Difcourfe, and may upon 
 iinexpe(5led Rencounters be even provoked to 
 that likewife. Wherefore it is a virtuous Impo- 
 fture, and an allowable Charltanry, to defign 
 Retirement; becaufe that fecures againl^ al! the 
 Inconveniencies of either of thcfe, by abfti ading 
 lis from the Temptations of the one, and front 
 the Engines of the other: And if Melancholy or 
 Silence polfelfes any thing in their Nature, which 
 can be thought Excellent, certainly Solitude en- 
 joys the fame in* a more eminent Meafure; for 
 thefe make but Parcels of that Noble State; Si- 
 lence being but a Solltvdc in Difcourfe, and Me- 
 lancholy a Solitude in Humour : Whereas Solitude 
 is more Excellent than thefe, becaufe in polfef- 
 fing both their Advantages, it wants the aduft 
 Bile and Jealoufies of Melancholy, and the Con- 
 flipation of Silence. 
 
 Except fomc volatile Heads, whofe mercurial 
 Crmplexion hath inclined them rarhcr to a Reil* 
 Icfsncfs, than virtuous A^iv-ity j and who^ Hk6 
 
 the 
 
to Tuhlich Employment, 99 
 
 the Wind, are nothing at all when they are not 
 moving ; and ye will find the Relidue of Men 
 fo averle from Toil and Employments, that they 
 muft be either brib'd to them by Gain, or baited, 
 with Honour : And the moft diligent amongft 
 active Statefmen will wifli , that their long'd-for 
 Triumphs, or defired Employments, were at a 
 Period, that they might enjoy thi'mfelves ( for fo 
 they term it ) m a folltary Retircnicnt ; which is 
 that Canaan of Reft, which, like Mofts on Tif^ah^ 
 they fee afar off, but wirhoul; Hopes of Enjoy.- 
 ment; and fo fond are thefe upoiji one Moment 
 of it when enjoyed, that they will difoblige for 
 it On- Waiters, negle<^ their Intereft, ' and flight 
 oft great Advantages. Thus then we fee that 
 Nature, Inclination and Pleafure, vqzq all for 
 Solitude ^ and that Publick Employment is unna- 
 tural in its Rife, and wearying in its Sequel, as it 
 IS dangerous ( if not fatal ) in its Termination. 
 
 I know that there are fome great Perfons, who, 
 like great Fifhes, never come to Shoar till they 
 be wounded ; Diiafters, Affronts and Neceflities 
 driving them there for Shelter, rather than 
 Choice; and this makes man}'' think that thele 
 Encomiums given to Solitude, are either contrived 
 by Pedants, who could never reach Preferments, 
 or by degraded Courtiers, who after they have 
 been outed of their publick Employments^ ha- 
 rangue againf^ ^vhat thev have loit, to farisfy not 
 their Reafon, but their Revenge. But , to thefe 
 i anfwer, that Solitude is by this Obiedion prov <i 
 to be an Excellent State, feeing even the Diftref- 
 Ced expect an Afyle and Protedion there : For 
 DiftrelTes make us run where we may expedHelp; 
 $: that muft ht the fecureft Harbour,to which the 
 diftrelTedft VefTels make, their Application. And 
 I believe baft thefe Elegies, which Solitude gets 
 from fuch who know both States j agid becaufe 
 
loo Soliiude prefer/ d 
 
 fome ufe this as a Pretext, therefore it mud be 
 Excellent : For the excellcntell Things are oiily 
 iifed;, and can only fcrve as Pretexts ; and that 
 cannot but be much rcfpecfted amongft Men, 
 whofe v(?ry Shadow can make Mifery pafs for 
 Virtue, and make Misfortunes be efteemed Hap- 
 pinefs. Yet certainly Misfortunes may make 
 Men real Philofophers, as AfRictions make real 
 Ghriftians: And it is very probable that one, 
 who after much Confidence in Court and Riches 
 hath been tumbled down unexpcd:edly, will be 
 more really convinced of its Slipperinefs and 
 Emptinefs, than fuch as never found the Effeds 
 of lb much Revolution. But there are many al- 
 io, fuch as Dloclefian and Gbarles the Vth, both 
 Emperors, and many others, who after a com- 
 pleat Fruition of all Courtly Succcfs and Pleafure, 
 iiave taken a folemn Congy of it, whilft it yet 
 fmiled upon them ; and I am confident many 
 more wouldj if they did not apprehend much 
 Hazard in their Retreat from thole who thought 
 themfelves injured by them in their Profperity. 
 
 Sect. t. In balancing the Employments of Solitude with 
 
 The Em- thofc of Greatncfs, becaufe Greatnefs /.vill ftill 
 
 phymentt (^ruggle for Precedcricy, I fhall therefore fcan firll 
 
 cuUUtof ^^^ Difadvantages ; amonglt which, this is one, 
 
 ioth com- That either Publick Perfons have attained to the 
 
 f»r(J. Fruition of what they defign'd • and in that Cafe 
 
 there are many ways to make thefti hiiferable, 
 
 becaufe the Subftracftioh of any one of thefe ma-^ 
 
 ny Enjoyments, robs them of all the Satisfa<ftiori 
 
 they can enjoy in what renlains ; and there are 
 
 but few ways to make them happy, becaufe little 
 
 can be added to their prefent PolTclIions: Or they 
 
 have not attain'd to what they \uv6 proje(fted ;' 
 
 and then they fret more, and fuffer more Dif- 
 
 quietings , than the mcaucH Servant whom they 
 
 com- 
 
. to ^ublich Employment. 
 
 conimand^ and like that Man in the Parable^ 
 confider more the one loft Sheep, than the ninety 
 nine which yet remain. Did the Conqueft of 
 all that the Sun fees, reftrain Alexander from 
 weeping, becaufe he could conquer no' more ? 
 No. For Ambition is like Hunger ,• which tho' 
 it is once fatisfied , continues no longer fo than 
 it hath for a little time prey'd upon what was 
 at firft prefented to it ; and, like the Fire, is fo 
 far from being fatisfied with what is thrown into 
 it, that it is by that new Fewel not only enabled 
 to deftroy, but likewife forc'd to feek more Ali- 
 ment for fuftaining its wafting Rage. 
 
 Thofe who are in publick EmployiHent have 
 either many Dependers , or not : If they have 
 not, they are not fatisfied ; for the Scope of fucli 
 is to be depended on , and the mifling of this 
 renders them more miferable, than Poverty or 
 Sicknefs could a Stolck : But if they be encircled 
 by Crowds of Attenders , then are they interef- 
 fed , not only in maintaining their own Pofts^ 
 but likewife in fuftaining their numerous Clients i 
 in whofe Fall their Reputation is , as in their 
 own Standing , equally intereffed. And whett 
 they have been at great pains to effeduate the 
 Pretences of thefe their Dependers , if thefe 
 Pretences fucceed , then either the Pretenders 
 whom they affift do arrogate theSuCcefs to them- 
 felves, or their own Merits ; or elfe they think 
 it but the Price of their Attendance, and fo look 
 upon it as paid before beftowed : Whereas the 
 Party with whom thefe have to do , will ever 
 thereafter carry the Patron at implacable Ma- 
 lice. Or, if thefe Pretences fucceed not, then 
 they impute it to the want of ConduA , or of 
 Gratitude in thefe their Ibfcy Patrons. And if 
 any two , or more of thefe Dependers fliould 
 juftle amongft themfelves , ..( as ordinarily falls 
 
 I one 
 
 JOI 
 
\02 
 
 Solilude preferred 
 
 out amongft fuch as are Rivals in Favour ) then 
 the Grandee is divided in his Refolution ; and as 
 he gains no new Friend by afliftinp; the one , fo 
 he loles an old Servant by oppollng the other. 
 And when a Grandee hath fpawn'd out his Eftate 
 amongft his Favourites, One of a Thoufand will 
 not prove grateful : But tho' all the Thoufand 
 fliould prove grateful to one , the Ingratitude of 
 that one will be more unpleafant , than can be 
 repair'd by theGratitude of all the remanent Nine 
 hundred ninety and nine. 
 
 As to their Equals , fuch as are in publick Em- 
 ployment, lye under this Inconvenience , That 
 either they pleafe them not , and thefe they ei- 
 ther find or make their Enemies ; or, if they en- 
 deavour to pleafe all , then the Task is either 
 impoflible, or unprofitable : Impoflible, becaufe 
 after that they have crook'd their own Humour, 
 to make it fall parallel to another Man's uneven 
 Fancy, then they may inftantly lofe their Pains; 
 when, upon the fame Principle (oi pleafing all) 
 they endeavour to oblige one , who either is, or 
 is believed to be , either Rival or Enemy to him 
 who was firil obliged. And is there any thing 
 more ordinary ( tho' nothing more unjuft ) than 
 to hear, Te muft eitha' not he my Friend^ or that 
 Mans Enemy ? This Pleahng all is likewife un- 
 profitable, becaufe Things are not valued by Ad- 
 vantage but by Propriety : And thus we value 
 that Friendfnip moft, which is born to us folely, 
 or in a {greater meafure than to others. Where- 
 by it appears clearly, that if ye carry equally to 
 all , ye oblige none ; and if more to fomc than 
 to others , ye difoblige thofe to whom ye carry 
 leaft ; which certainly (becaufe our Love is 
 like our fclves, moft; fmite) muil be the great- 
 eft part : And thefe who are difobligcd , arc 
 more zealous in their Enmity , tlian rhofc who 
 
to Publick Employment, I o -^ 
 
 are obliged are in their Friendfliip. The Con- 
 clufion of all which is , That albeit the great 
 Pleafure of Publick Employment is , that there- 
 by they may oblige many to a Dependance up- 
 on them j yet Men gain by it more and more 
 vigorous Enemies than fuch as are Reclufe do, 
 albeit they profufe none of their ineftimableTime 
 upon fo uncertain a Purchafe. 
 
 As to their Superiors ; it vexes doubtlefs fuch 
 as are at fo much Toil to be high themfelves^, to 
 fee any yet higher than themfelves ; and the}^ 
 count as many Croifes, as the}'' do Superiors. If 
 Statefmen be not at tho, highelt pitch of Fa- 
 X'our, they fret at the Unluckinefs of their own 
 Fate , and exclaim againft their ijl-fliced Stars t 
 And if they attain to it , then they are oft jea- 
 I'oufed by their Promoters. And Sejavus is loaded 
 with more Contumely by his Patron 1iherh^Sji\\2in. 
 ever he was with Honours. And after that thefe 
 plodding Pates have raifed their Defigns to that 
 Line, that they conceive they may jullly admire 
 its noble Strudure, and their own Skill in its. 
 Contrivance ; then that Fabrick, upon which 
 for fpoflibly ) their whole Life, they have laid 
 out the whole Stock of their Happinefs and Ex- 
 pedtation, may be in one Moment blown over 
 by one Word from their Prince, who is a Man 
 fubjed to his own Fate , as they are to theirs : 
 ^And when they perceive that the fame Prince is 
 thereafter forc'd to yield to his own Deftiiiy, 
 they cannot but conclude , That they have been 
 themfelves mean Perfons , Vv/ho were fo eafily 
 deftroy'd by one who was fo eafily deftroy'd 
 himfelf. If Parmemo had not killed Jttahs , or 
 Cleander Varmenio, their Difobedience had been a 
 Crime ; and when they obey'd , their Obedi- 
 ence was really a Crime in them , and was ha- 
 ted as fuch bv Jlexander who commanded it : 'So 
 ' 1 z that 
 
I04- Solitude preferred 
 
 that Superiors do oft tye their Favourites to the 
 Obfervance of what is contradiftory";, and confe- 
 quently require what is impoflible. 
 
 Seft. 3. It was nobly faid by that grand Mafter of Sto- 
 icifm, Seneca J that^ ^li multa aglt, fafe fe fortund: 
 ohjlcit. And publick Perfons are in this , like 
 great Garifons, which by how much the great- 
 er they are , are fo much the worfe to be de- 
 fended ; and by how much the richer they 
 are , are fo much the more ftoutly aiTaulted. 
 For eftablifhing this great Truth , which is tmum 
 ex TKirabiUh/ts Stolcorum , I fhall under-prop it by 
 thefe Two fubfervient Conclufions. i. That fee- 
 ing that is only , in all the Schools of Philofo- 
 phcrs , defin'd to be morally good , which is 
 ccmpleat at all Points ; and that to be evil, which 
 labours of the leaft DefeA ; certainly it muft be 
 a great Task, not only to do good, but even not 
 to fall into the Commiflion of Evil. The Se- 
 cond Conclufion fhall be, That as it is almoft im- 
 poflible not to flip into the committing of Evil, 
 yet ourEfcapes are never forgot when once com- 
 mitted ; and not only wrong they us as to that 
 Action , but .they likewife detrad from all our 
 fubfequent good Actions. And albeit it be very 
 hard to do what is good , yet our good Actions 
 are moft unfrequently remembred ^ or if they 
 be, then they are efteemed Duties , and fo they 
 bring us by that Remembrance no other. Advan- 
 tage from Men , than not to bring a Tafh upon 
 us. Marfhal Birons many Vivftories, obtained by 
 his Valour for Henry the IVth. \ iValfiiens for the 
 Emperor , nor Ejjex's for Queen Eliz>aheth , dij 
 not ejv'cufe their After-Treafon. And Balaam^ 
 Beaft (tho' otherwife an Afs) could tell its Ma- 
 ftcr , Hai:e not J ridden with thee e-ver fmce I waf 
 thine ivitlxtH ftumbrptg ; and yc >!oiv ihott hnjt fimck 
 
to Ttiblick Employment. i o 5 
 
 me thrice ? From all which it follows, That pub- 
 lick Employments , becaufe they oblige a Man 
 to many Actions , they therefore engage him in 
 many Misfortunes , and lay him open to much 
 Detraction. Neither doth Man's Mifery ftint it 
 felf here ; but, which is worfe , Envy, Malice 
 and Miftake, blaze us for more vicious than 
 really we are. We commit fome Efcapes, where- 
 in we miftake our felves ,• but we are faid to com- 
 mit others , wherein others do but miftake us : 
 We commit fome , which are really our own 
 Tranfgreflion ; but we are faid to commit others, 
 which are but other Men's Imputations. Such as 
 are in publick Employments can never want Ri- 
 vals ; and fuch as want not Rivals can never mifs 
 Mifreports ; efpecially in our Country, where 
 the way to Preferment is fo narrow , that we 
 imagine no Man can get by his Neighbour , ex- 
 cept he run over him. O, what a Divine State 
 then muft Solitude be^ wherein a Virtuous Inacti- 
 vity fortifies us againft all thefe Inconveniences, 
 and begets in us a Tranquility , not conceivable 
 by fuch as do not polTefs ic ! 
 
 Have you not, my Lord, oft heard great Men 
 fay ;, I rnufl do this , and ajjcnt to that ; the' neither 
 the one nor the other fatisfies my Judgment } Have you 
 not feen great Men forc'd to abandon their moft 
 deferving Friends ; forc'd to connive at, and oft 
 to congratulate the Promotion of their greateft 
 Enemies .'' Will they not be fometimes oblig'd to 
 put on a conftrain'd Countenance , feign an un- 
 natural Mind , and exprefs what is diametrically 
 oppofite to their Thoughts ; all which are Servi- 
 tudes which Greatnefs exads from us. For eve- 
 ry Force is a Yoke ty'd upon our Nature ; And 
 Man , being more Noble than Brutes , becaufe 
 he is more free than they are, certainly what 
 impairs his Freedom , deftroys his Reaibn. And 
 
 I :; moft 
 
io6 Solitude preferred 
 
 moft of thefe Reftraints, as they are againft Ma- 
 ture , in being Servitudes , fo they are againft 
 Virtue , in being oppofite to what our Reafon 
 would (if not over-power'd by IntercO: or Fan- 
 cy) exaA of us. And I /hould think , that the 
 fame Impulfe which hurries Men on to defire to 
 be great that they may be Mafters , fliould with 
 far more Reafon carry them to be Solitary : For 
 there they are emancipate from thefe Neceffities, 
 and have none to obey but God and Nature ; 
 Mafters who command us to do nothing^but what 
 ■were fit for our felves to do , albeit we were not 
 commanded. 
 
 As thefe Countries are efteemed moft excellent 
 and preferable, whofc Neceflities are fupply'd by 
 their native Commodities , pulling out of their 
 own Bofom all that their Inhabitants require ; fo 
 by the fame Rule^ Solitude muft be by much pre- 
 ferable to publick Employment , feeing this re- 
 quires and wants but little , but the other needs 
 much , and is not fatisfied when it gets what it 
 needs. Solitude requires no Avarice to maintain 
 its Table , nor Oppreflion to bear up its Train : 
 It is fatisfted without Coaches , Lacqueys, Trea- 
 fures and Embroideries. The Solitary Man is 
 not vext that others muft take the door of him- 
 felf , or are able to maintain a more fumptuous 
 Table than he : He is not difquieted at the In- 
 frequency of Guefts, nor Ecchos of his Equal's 
 Praifes. And feeing great Men are ftill dif- 
 quieted at the Advancement of others, they muft 
 ftill be unfortunate; for tho* thev were capable to 
 receive,yet they are not able to Tuftain theWeight 
 of all Employments alone. 
 
 Ccnfider rhofe Clouds which fit oft upon the 
 Countenance of Men in Employments ; their 
 Gate like to that of a difriidder'd Ship, and their 
 pifcourfe disjointed^ and blown^, as it were, all 
 '. ' to 
 
to Fuhlich Employment, . 1 07 
 
 to pieces by their tempeftuous Paffions ; and ye 
 will find fuch ( many times ) to differ but by an 
 Ace from thofe who have Keepers ^t Bedlam i 
 And by thefe Diforders ye may perceive , that 
 Employment and Madnefs are of too near an 
 Alliance ; and if the one , certainly both mull 
 be Difeafes^ feeing both have the, fame Sym- 
 ptoms^and the fame Prognofticks. And in thefe 
 Diflempers , how oft fpeak the T/hings which 
 are thereafter either quarreli'd obenly , or at 
 leaft are the Seed-plot of contimlal Heart-burn- 
 ings to thofe at whom theyainrl? But to abftracl 
 from all thefe accidental Difadvantages ; is it 
 not a Madnefs for a Rational Soul, for whom all 
 the World was created , to obferve nothing in 
 this World , but whether another manages his 
 Procefs well ; with what Harmony ftrikes ano- 
 ther Man's Pulfe ; or how to brigue the Favour 
 of a Minion : A(fls fo extrinflck to the Nature 
 of an Immaterial Creature , fuch as the Soul, 
 that if Men got not Money by rhefe Employ- 
 ments 5 they would themlelves condemn them 
 as ridiculous. And is there any thing more or- 
 dinary^ even amongfl the Herd of brutifh Bufy- 
 bodiesj than to chide their Friends for attending 
 either the Perfons or Employments of thofe who 
 reward not fuch Pains, and for fo doing upbraid 
 them as Mad-Men ? And fo they are indeed. By 
 which it is moft evident , That Men in Employ- 
 ment have nothing to excufe their Madnefs ; 
 but. That they are not mad, but for Money or 
 Preferment. And is it not a fhame for fo noble 
 a Creature as Man, to be content to fliew himfelf 
 mad for any Hire whatfoever ? 
 
 'Solitude has likevvife this Advantage over pub- 
 lick Employment, that there is no Vice commif- 
 fable in Solitude, to which Men in publick lie not 
 yet more open j whereas, there are fome Crimes, 
 
 I 4 fuch 
 
Solitude freferrd 
 
 fuch as Treafon, Sedition , Oftentation , and a 
 whole Tribe of the like nature , which Retired 
 Perfons can hardly commit ; and tho' they could, 
 yet hardly does that State admit of thefe Tem- 
 ptations , which are previoufly neceflary to the 
 Commiflion of them. Is there any thing more 
 ordinary, than to hear one who is accufed for de- 
 ferting his Friend or Party, to anfwer, that his 
 Office, or prefent Deflgns, occafion'd and requi- 
 red that Defection ? And are not Men , for ac- 
 complifiiing their Proje<5ls , tempted to betray 
 Secrets, to become Rivals to their Friends, and 
 affifting to their Enemies ? Whereas, no Record 
 can wicnefs againft Retired Perfons , that they 
 ever either ruin*d their Native Country, betray'd 
 their Prince, or deferted their Friend. At leaft, 
 if any in that State have been tempted to the 
 leaft beerec of any fuch Crime, certainly they 
 'had committed more and greaterVillanies, if they 
 had lived in publick , where thofe wicked Incli- 
 nacions might have been ftrengthned by Exam- 
 ple, Defign^ Paflton , Revenge , or fome fuch 
 ^remptation. And if our Inclinations be fo 
 wild when they are caged up in Solitude , how 
 untame will they become when they are licenfed 
 to range abroad ? He who would ftab his Prince 
 who had never the Occafion to offend his re- 
 mote Cell , would burn the World , if he had a 
 Defign to which that might be fubfervient. Did 
 not Ncroj Tiberius, Heliogahuhts and Others, enjoy 
 the Repute of Noble Souls , before their mount- 
 ing the Imperial Throne brought them new Vi- 
 ces with new Honours , and made them as much 
 beyond others in their Debauches, as they were 
 in the Power which fed them in that their diffo- 
 lute Humour ? Since then no honeft Perfon can 
 deny , but that it were better never to have the 
 grcatcft Honour , than to be faid by After-ages 
 
 to 
 
to *Publick Employment. " 109 
 
 to have committed the leaft Villany ; certainly 
 the State of Publick Employment is fcarce to be 
 wi{hed for , feeing therein Men are tempted to 
 commit the greateft of Crimes ; efpecially fee- 
 ing thefe their Efcapes mull be committed in 
 publick , where they are never concealed , and 
 but feldom (if ever) pardoned. 
 
 As to the Periods of both , certainly Solitude Seft. 4. 
 hath by much the Advantage : For look over the T^f ^«'''- 
 Calendarof all thofe Heroes or Grandees who "^'"f^o*^- 
 have governed Kingdoms, or were Favourites of 
 the firft Rate to fuch as did govern theiri ; and 
 ye will find moft of their Fates marked with the 
 red Letters of a violent Death, or the black Let- 
 ters of Shame. Ignominy overtakes whom Fate 
 hath left undeftroy'd, and gleans the Grapes after 
 : the other hath cut down its Vintage : 
 
 * — — Sine cade d^ [anguine pauci 
 Defcendunt Reges d^ ficca morte Tyranni. 
 
 It is obferved, that betwixt Julius Cafar and 
 Charlemain, Thirty Roman Emperors have been 
 flain, and many fince. And I am fo afhamed of 
 the Cruelty of thofe who are of the fame Species 
 with my felf, that I muft conceal the many other 
 Murthers of Kings and Grandees : And as to the 
 Difgrace of others, thefe can hardly be fuffici- 
 ently either numbred or regretted. And albeit 
 others are not deterred from embracing thofe Ho- 
 nours under which their firft Owners have been 
 .crufhed, upon the Account that they imagine 
 their Predeceifors Ruin to have flowed from fome 
 perfonal Fraily or Error, againft which they are 
 confident they can guard ; yet certainly all fliould 
 even from this Anfwer conclude, That Greatnefs 
 muft be moft undefirable , feeing at leaft it difco- 
 
 vers 
 
1 1 o Solitttde freferr\i 
 
 vers thefe Frailties, or tempts Men to commit 
 thofe Errors , which thereafter occafions thefe 
 Ruins. Neither find we any fuch Dangers to at- 
 tend Solitude, either ncceffarily, or by Accident : 
 So that albeit thefe be the Misfortunes of thefe 
 Men, and not of the Employment, yet feeing 
 thefe are only the Misfortunes of Men in Employ- 
 ment, I fee not why Emplo^inent fhould be fo 
 defirable by Men who fear Misfortunes. But the 
 truth is, it is impoffible to ward againft the unex- 
 pected Blows which are rhrufi: in at fuch • for 
 rhey are fo cunningly contrived by the Attackers 
 (becaufe of the Danger of being difcovered) that 
 they are fooner felt than forefeen. Who could 
 difappoint the Malice of thofe who killed thofe 
 noble Princes, Henry the Third, and Henry the 
 Fourth of Frafjce ? Who could have targetted 
 Buckingham againft Feltons Thruft .'' And all the 
 Prudence of Cafars Court cculd not avert his 
 Maflacre in the Senate, efpccially being contrived 
 by his Confident Brutus ; Et tu , /// Brute , faid 
 that great Emperor. And that which renders the 
 fudden Fall of thefe Heroes the more deplorable, 
 is , That by being fudden it not only diforders 
 their Affairs and endangers their Souls, but like- 
 wife fo amazes their Friends and Followers , that 
 they are thereby incapacitate from providing a- 
 gainft the Sequels of that Fall, and are themfelves 
 (who only can help their falling Friend) brought 
 to fall with him. I have often remarked with 
 wonder, how ghaftly the Favourites of a falling 
 Minion do look, and how ailonifhingly they arc 
 jook'd at by their former Inrimntes- and which 
 is ftrange, not only do the Enemies of a fallen 
 Grandee infult over his Misfortunes, but even 
 thofe who were his former Well-wifhers, are (to 
 avert the Jealoufy of thofe who occafion his Fall) 
 
 nccefli- 
 
to TuU'ick Employment. 1 1 1 
 
 neceffitated to inveigh moft bitterly againft his 
 Memory. 
 
 Dum jacet in rlpa calcemus C3efaris hoBem, 
 
 Neither can I fee how Greatnefs can be defended 
 againft Misfortunes ; for ordinarily thefe rife from 
 fuch unexpected Beginnings, that none fee hi (or 
 apprehend the leaft Danger by) them : And all 
 the World is not able by Conjecture, to fall upon 
 that medium by which Providence intends to infer 
 their Ruin. Who could have gueffed, that Mor- 
 decats difcovering a Plot to AhafueruSj\N\\QXtm Ha- 
 wan was not concerned, would be the Mean to de- 
 ftroy that great Favourite ? I have oft heard the 
 Friends of thofe who are now low , ask at fuch 
 as told them of the Slipperinefs of Favour , how 
 could their Patron ever be deftroyed ? and it was 
 impoflible that could fall out during fuch a Go- 
 vernment. And yet I have my felf feen thefe 
 Men outed of all their confident Expectations : 
 A paffionate Expreflion, a rafh Ac^, a Jealoufy or 
 Mif-information which could not be forefeen, 
 becaufe then there was no bottom for fuch a Con- 
 jecture, hath ruined oft-times fuch as never ex- 
 pected any Alteration : And who can promife 
 that they fhall never drop one word in Paflion^ 
 ac^ any thing without a previous Deliberation, or 
 never fall under Misinformation ? And, which 
 is yet worfe, when Mifinformations are forged 
 againft great Men ; they are not acquainted by 
 fuch as either give or receive them , and fo their 
 Defence becomes impreftable. I have heard of 
 Favourites who have been ruined, becaufe the 
 Queen faid they were handfome Men, or the 
 King thought them to excel himfelf in any thing 
 wherein himfelf pretended to a Mafterftiip : And 
 
 what 
 
Ill 
 
 Solitude preferrd 
 
 what plodding Pate could have ftav'd off, or fore- 
 feen thefe Misfortunes ? No, no, 
 
 Lud'tt in httmanis dfuina prudentia rehri-s. 
 
 And feeing there are many who have the Courage 
 to throw away their Lives upon the Revenge of 
 a fmall Affront, or to hazard them in an open, 
 and yet almoll barren Robbery, why fhould it 
 be thought, that to fatisfy fo impetuous a Paffion 
 as Revenge, there (hould not be fome found who 
 will hazard Death, by giving it in the Revenge 
 of either an Injury done to a Family or Nation , 
 much more of an Affront fix'd upon the Under- 
 taker himfelf, in his Honour, or entire Fortune, 
 as oft falls out ? 
 
 But albeit great Men and publick Minifters 
 efcape the Fate of a Murder or Maffacre, yet 
 how is their Happlnefs founded ? Is it not either 
 upon the Humour of a capricious People, if in a 
 Commonwealth ? And then how unfolid is that 
 Happinefs where the Foundation is fo fleeting ? 
 Confider Rowe^ which though the wifeft of all 
 Republicks, yet, upon a Jealoufy or a Miftake, 
 or fometimes out of Wantonnefs, dcftroyed in an 
 inftant the mod careffed and moll deferving of 
 her Favourites. Or , upon the Favour of a 
 Prince, if in a Monarchy ; and then ye muil 
 confefs them oftentimes fubjeft to all the Capri- 
 ces of a lofty Humour, licens'd by the Extent of 
 his Power, to equal his Power and his Humour ; 
 and entic'd, by the Infligation of Enemies or Ri- 
 vals, to ftretch his Humour beyond all his allowed 
 Power. Whv did Solyman the Magnificent, cut 
 the Throat ot Ibrah'nn Bajja his Confident ^ Was 
 ir not to fatisfy the Fancy of a Concubine i Or 
 Jui'mian pull out the Eyes of valiant Bdlifar'tHs ? 
 Was it not to gratify an infolent Wife ^ So that a 
 
 Statcf' 
 
to Tublich Employment. 1 1 ^ 
 
 Statefman lies open not only to the hazard of his 
 Mafter's Fancy, but to the Paffion of his Wife, 
 his Concubines, his Favourites and Fellow-Ser- 
 vants, and even to Fate it felf, which is the moil 
 comprehenfive of all Dangers. 
 
 But albeit a Statefman were able to efcape pri- 
 vate Revenge, and to manage with Succefs, his 
 Prince's Humour, and to fatisfy that of his Fa- 
 vourites, yet he is ftill obnoxious to ragiom del 
 ftato, and Intereft of State, by which his Prince 
 is oft ("to evite the Rage of a Multitude) either 
 forc'd to objed his Minion to their Rage, as the 
 Head in a natural Body defends it felf by throw- 
 ing up its Hand or Arm to receive the Stroak, or 
 el(e he may be pull'd from the kind Bofom of his 
 unwilling Mailer : And of this Hazard our own 
 Age affords us a lamentable Inftance in the Per- 
 fon of the great Earl of Strajford, whom popular 
 Fury did drag to the Scaffold ,• his Prince's Pro- 
 tedlion not being fufficient for his Defence ; who 
 viewing from that deplorable Stage , the Incon- 
 llancy of Courtfhip and Advancement, did leave 
 in Legacy to his Son, a ftrait Command never 
 to aim at higher Promotion than that of a Jullice 
 of Peace in his own County. 
 
 Confider likewife how fometlmes the Satiety 
 of a Prince produces the fame Ruin of Favou- 
 rites, which is at other times the Produd of his 
 Cruelty. And Comtmnes obferves, that Le2i>!s the 
 Eleventh of France ufed to fay , That feeing 
 Princes grew weary of Houfes, Countries , and 
 other inanimate Things, which could never of- 
 fend them, and which no Rival or Enemy was 
 at the pains to traduce, it was no wonder that 
 they were wearied of Favourites, who were fub- 
 jed to all thefe Inconveniences. Princes do like- 
 wife ruin their Grandees, fometimes to fatisfy 
 their Vanity, in Ihewing that their Power is able 
 
 to 
 
1 1 4. Solitude prefer/ d 
 
 to remove thofc who think they cannot fall with- 
 out a Miracle ; and fomctimes to make way to 
 new Favourites, thinking it Injuftice to entail all 
 Honours upon the fame Perfons. And, as in the 
 Body Natural, Co likewife in the Politick, it is 
 obfervable, that Nature hath provided more Dif- 
 cafes, than the beft of Phyficians can prevent by 
 Remedies. 
 
 To conclude this Period , be pleafed to con- 
 clude the Unluckinefs of Publick Employment 
 from thiS;, That not only amongft Rivals, one of 
 two Pretenders fatisfy by their Fall the Rap;e of 
 Fate, but when it hath affirted the one to deilroy 
 the other, it then turns its Fury againft the late 
 Viiftor : Thus Vom^ey and Cafar's Blood purpled 
 equally the Swords of Murderers, agreeing in 
 nothing but their Def^Liny. Hannibal beats the Ro- 
 ynans -^Scipio beats Hannibal ; and thcRomafts banifh 
 Scifio. Bellifarim makes Gilimer , King of the 
 Goth.f, ridiculous, leading him as a Priibner in 
 his Triumph ; and Fare renders BeWfarius yet 
 more ridiculous, driving him to beg , with this 
 Expreflion, Befiov but a Farthing ufon Bellifarius. 
 And it is moft obfervable, that during our Civil 
 Wars, Four moft eminent Perfons who did head 
 contrar)-, as well as different Parties, did all lofe 
 both their Heads and their Fortunes in the Quar- 
 rel ; whereas it might have been expcdied , that 
 at leaft one of the Oppofites , fhould have worn 
 unfading Lawrels ; And really there was more 
 Hazard in the fear of being the one who was to 
 be deftroyed (for they might certainly have ex- 
 peded, that one of themfelves fliould fall ^ than 
 all the Grandeur , which the Survivors might ex- 
 pert, could fnfficicntly rcquiic 
 
 And when the Monarch or Commonwealth, 
 which a Statefman hath long ferved, intends, ei- 
 ther in compliance with their Interefts, or to gra- 
 tify 
 
gion» 
 
 to Tuhltck Employment. 1 1 5 
 
 tify their Humour, to out their Servant of his 
 Employment, or in order thereto to fix a Crime 
 upon him ; then how can he efcape from that 
 Trial, or defend his Right againft that Purfuit ? 
 For where the Judge is Party, there the Law may 
 prove Advocate. And in thefe contrafoi , I re- 
 member few Decifions, amongft all who have 
 colle<5ted them, of any Subjed who came off with 
 Honour. 
 
 Seeing as of all otherThing5,fo of ourThoughts S^eft. ?. 
 the firft-born fhould be facrificed to our Almighty ^^"f!'^^^ '* 
 Maker ; I therefore refolved to begin my firft f^^!^\^ii, 
 Difcourfe with thefe Refledions , which Solitude 
 might borrow from Devotion. But,, fince Ora- 
 tors recommend the laft place in our Difcourfe, 
 to the ftrongefl Perfwafives ( as being able when 
 plac'd there to leave the frefhefl: Impreflions , upr- 
 on the leaving Reader) I (hall therefore in this' 
 laft place, (which is, alas ! the too ordinary Room 
 allowed to Devotion) recommend to you, to 
 'confider,that God poffelFes moreExcellencies,and 
 we labour under more Sins, than can be fully con- 
 templated, in the one Cafe , or lamented in the 
 other, throughout the whole Flux of Eternity. 
 And after that we have evacuated our more refined;" 
 Spirits, in chafe of thefe fleeing Follies , will ic 
 fatisfy him to have our dulled Thoughts (the lame 
 of the Flock) ferved upon his Holy Altars ? And 
 feeing he ftiles himfelf a Jealous GOD, certainly 
 he cannot but be jealous, that becaufe we converfe 
 with others more than with him, we muft there- 
 fore either love thefe better , or exped more ei- 
 ther Advantage or Pleafure in their Society than 
 in his. 
 
 I confefs that Publick Employment, is lawful 
 in it felf, and neceffary to the Commonwealth, 
 •and that Men may ferve G OD in the Intervals" 
 
 of 
 
i6 Solitude prefer/ d 
 
 of their other Publick Negotiations. But the 
 Queftion is not , What is lawful in it felf ; but 
 what is convenient for us ? And feeing we run 
 already but too flowly that Divine Race , I fee 
 not why we fhould flow our Pace yet more , by 
 taking on the Burthen of Publick Employment. 
 And feeing all our Time is but too fliort for the 
 Service of him, whom far more excellent Crea- 
 tures than we worfnip unceflantlyjTime without 
 end ; I think it ftrange, that we fhould content 
 our felves to ferve him per Tarenthejin , or by In- 
 tervals. 
 
 To thefe I fhall add this important Confidc- 
 ration ; That mofl of Temptations are in Soli^ 
 mde difarm'd of thefe Charms, which render 
 them formidable to us in publick : Love wants 
 there the Prefence of an inflaming Objed to 
 fecond it ; Revenge wants the Prefence of the 
 Party injured to prefs it ; and Vanity , when it 
 wants Admirers , wants Force. Tho' Mofes was 
 the meekefl Man upon the Earth whilft he liv'd 
 in the Defart ; yet the Extravagancy of thofe 
 whom he govern'd , when Providence had ad- 
 vanced him , made him offend his Maker fo 
 highly , that all his former Services could not 
 obtain , even from the Father of Mercies , a 
 Liberty to enter into an Earthly Canaan. If 
 Nanwan had liv'd an Hermit , he needed not 
 have crav'd the Prophet's Leave to bow to the 
 Idols of his Mafler in the Houfe of Rimmon. 
 And if Dai'id had not been Governor of Ifrael, 
 he had wanted the Means both to humble Bath- 
 jheba , and kill Uriah. Such is the ill Fate of 
 Publick Employment, that it not only affords us 
 Temptations, but the Means likewife of effe<5lu- 
 ating that to which we are tempted. 
 
 It was 5 I confefs , G O D 's own Verdid of 
 Man, That it was not good for him to be alone j 
 
 but 
 
tp Tu^lick Employment. 1 1 7 
 
 but this was when becaufe of his Congenial In-. 
 nocence , he needed not fear the Contamination.. 
 of Society. But to demonltrate what the Hazard 
 of being in Company is ; even A^am could not 
 live one Day in it^ and live innocent ; for the 
 firft News we hear of hirn, after that E've was af- 
 fociate to him^ is, that he had forfeited that native 
 Purity. 
 
 1 know that our Saviour was carried by SataA 
 to the Wildernefs, that he might tempt hirri there. 
 But it is moft obfervable, that after that experien- 
 ced Enemy found that his Divinity would not 
 yield to any thing therein reprefented, he there- 
 after ( as the laft;, and fo the ftrongeit Shift left 
 to him unefTayed ) did bring him to Jerufakm ; 
 and having advanced him above the Temple^ he 
 profFer'd him the Half of the belted World;, and 
 all its Glories; a Temptation fitted only forfuch 
 as value Honour and Publick Employment. 
 
 When God Almighty intended to converfe with 
 Mofesy he called him from the populous Camp to 
 the Top of Mount S'ma'i. And our Saviour did 
 not difclofe the Glories of his Transfiguration at 
 Jerufakm^ but upon the Top of the Mount of 
 Olives. The \^'idow who intended a Lodging for 
 Elijha, thac great Prophet, did build it apart upon ^. ^. 
 the Wall, furnifliing it only with a Stool and ^^j^^"*^^' 
 Candleftick : And when he asked her. If hejljond 
 peak for her to the K/ng, or Captain of his Hojt ? She ^ Kings 
 told hirri, without farther Anfwer, That flje diveh 14.12, 
 a?r7on^(I^ her own Friejuis, and in her own Comttry ; in- 
 timating thereby, that there was no need of any 
 I-avour Kings could beftow upon fuch as enjoy'd 
 fo happy a Recefs. I recreate niy felf to think I 
 fee Elijah fitting under a Junip-r Tree, or in d 
 concealed Grove, vifite^ in that Solitude by tlie 
 ftme Gody who refufed his.Prefence to niighry 
 Jkah • and to contemplate how Aha^lah was able 
 
 K to 
 
1 1 
 
 Solitude preferred 
 
 to find no tnfc upon his purpled Coucli^ till he 
 difpatched in Qucfl: of it fome of his chiefeft 
 Captains to court it from the fame Prophet, fit- 
 ting upon the Top of a Mountain : By all which 
 Places and Pofturcs the Spirit of God (who lofes 
 no Ohfervarion ) intends doubtlefs to enamour 
 us of Solitude and Recefs. And it is very obferva- 
 ble, that none of thefe old Prophets are found in 
 Scripture at Court, orinPublick, but as bearded 
 Comets appear in the Air, where they have no 
 other Errand than to denounce Judgments to the 
 Place over which they hover. 
 
 God Almighty, who becaufe he is the Object 
 ns well as Enjoyner of our Devotions, (hould,and 
 does upon thcfc and n;any other Scores,beft know 
 how to addrcfs them, hath commanded us to re- 
 tire into our Clofets ( the moft folitary of all our 
 Rooms); and to make thefc yet more retired, 
 hath ordained us to clofe our Doors behind us, 
 when we make any Religious Applications to 
 hini ; promifing, that he who Jecth in fenet, will 
 reward m openly : And if we will conlider thefe 
 gaudy Diftraclions, whereby our publick Devo- 
 tions arc almoil rendred no Devotion at all ; and 
 that there is more Noife in the World, than will 
 fufFer us to hear that flill Voice which cries behind 
 us. This is the way, walk ye in it ; certainly we 
 may conclude from both Reafon and Experience 
 ( as well as out of Obedience to Divine Com- 
 mands ) that Solitude is the true Forge of the pu- 
 reft Devotions. When God did intend to difci- 
 plinc his beloved ( though rebellious ) Ifrael, he 
 chofe firft the Wildernefs o(- Sinai, and then the 
 Two Captivities, to be his Sacred School. And 
 Hofea 2. 14. he tells his own People, that he ivill 
 allure her ( meaning the yoi^i/^J Church) andbrin^ 
 her to the irihkrnefs, and j}eak comfortably unto her. 
 
 Rcligi- 
 
to Tuhlich JEmpldyment. 1 1 9 
 
 Religion hath another Quarrel at Advance- 
 ment, which is, that it divells oft-times its Enjoy- 
 crSj not only of Devotion and of Frieiidiliip, 
 which is a Moral Virtue, but even of Affection; 
 which is fo natural to Brutes themfelves, that a 
 Man is worfe than thefe when he wants it : And 
 not only forego they it upon fuch Neceflities as 
 might at leaft excufe, if not juitify their ib doing, 
 but do fo like wife to fatisfy their Humours ; a Sla- 
 very which deferves to be condemned, though its 
 Objed were in it felf juftifiable. No Man could 
 have believed, if Scripture had not told it. That 
 S.aul would, from being an abfolute Monarch, '^^"^-^ 
 defcend to fo low a Bafenefs, as to caft away his 
 Daughter Mlchal , merely that he might deilroy ^ , 
 her Husband^ Or that a Prince of MuVum vv^ould ^^ / 
 have proftituted his Daughter Co^jhi to the pro- 
 mifcuc|^s Multitudes of the IJraeluifi Cam.p, of 
 Defign to tempt them to a Sin which could not 
 but be attended with his own Infamy, as well as 
 their Ruin. Was it not for this that Romulns ce- 
 mented the firft Foundation of the Roman Walls 
 with the Blood of his Brother Rernns ? And tho' 
 Ahel and Cain had the Divilion of what tempts, 
 ( I will not fay ) fitisfies now the Ambition of 
 many Thoufands to gratify their Expectations \ 
 yet was not fo ample a Partage able to prevent 
 the fpilling even of a Brother's Blood, by one 
 whofe Crime was fo much the greater^ that it 
 was without Prefident, and was to become an Ex- 
 ample to many Thoulands of fuccccding Ages. 
 Many whereof might, and have been thereby 
 not only encouraged to commit afrefn this old 
 Sin, but likewife to feek, in the Greatnefs of this 
 Offence , Excufes , whereby to IclTen their own 
 Barbar.ity. 
 
 K 2 Buc 
 
i:2o 
 
 Solitude frefet'rd 
 
 But if any call in Queftion the Advantages 
 that accrue to Devotion by Solitude, let him caft 
 back his Eye upon the Primitive Church, where- 
 in the material Fabrick was contriv'd dark, and 
 fituatcin the remoteft Corners and foHtary Groves, 
 both by Pagans and Chriftians ^ as if that black 
 Enamel heighten'd the Luftre of the Golden 
 Candlefticks : And upon the infinite Swarms of 
 fuch as became Monks and Hermits, encouraged 
 thereto by the Homilies and Intreaties of the 
 nobleft Fathers ; of which State the Emperor 
 Jtifiinlan did, after he h^d kept that Oecumenick 
 Council, become fo enamour 'd, that he hath re- 
 giftcr'd its noble Elogies in the Frontifpiece of 
 his Divine Codex. Whilft upon the other Hand, 
 the Heathens of Old, and now the Mahometans, 
 did and do teach. That one of their Mifchief- 
 Tormcnts in their Hell fhall be, that Men will 
 there be cai\ loofe to thofe Occupations and Ci- 
 vil Employments, which here exercis'd them ; 
 efteeming it a Torture for illuminate Spirits, and 
 fuch as are defecate from Senfuality, to be re- 
 embarafs'd with fuch terreftrial Affairs* as bufy us 
 in this our earthly State. Pardon, my Lord, this 
 Inroad I have made upon Devotion j and learn 
 from it, that Solitude and Devotion are fo nearly 
 related, that we can hardly praife the one, and 
 not commend the other. 
 
 I fhall here ufe the Authority of great Heroes ; 
 who, after the Fruition of both, . have Jby much 
 preferr'd Solitude , whereas ( which is very 
 ibange ) there is not a fmgle Teftimony to be 
 had from fuch as thefe, in Favour of Publick 
 Employment. 
 Marlneus The firft fliall be of Charles thi Great, who^je- 
 lik ts. ing to die, cry'd out to thofe who ftood about 
 him; Ob! how t'ai?t are the Thoughts of Men '^ avd 
 how wretched are they that affire to Glory ? li^haf hiJth 
 
to Tublick Employment, i ^ i 
 
 my Kingdonj, or the Service of fo mam Men gaind 
 me ? Much more bappy had. I been, if injlead of a 
 Sceptre, I had ivielded an Hed^ing-Bill ; and If of a 
 * King, I (hould have made my (elf a Cloivn : Follow- 
 ing in this almoft the very Expreflions of Alphon- 
 fus, his Brother. Suatocopius, King of Bohejma, 
 and Moravia, having loft a Battel agalnft the 
 Emperor Arnold, did retire himfelf into a Wilder- 
 nefs ; where after he had lived a long time with 
 Three Hermits, he at his Death told them. That 
 there was not any Greatnefs preferable to 'the 
 Tranquillity of that Solitude. The fafe Sleep (faid 
 he ) which we enjoy here, makes the Roots javoury, 
 and the Waters fweet ; whereas the Cares of a Kingdom 
 make all Meat and Drink tafie bitter. That Fart of 
 my Life, which I have pafi with yon , was true Hap- 
 finefs ; whereas that which I led upon my Royal Throne ^ 
 deferves more the Title of Death than of Life. ^ And 
 Giges, King of Lydia, pufF'd up with his great 
 Wealth and many Vi<5i:ories, having asked the 
 Oracle of Apollo, If there was any Man happier 
 in the World than himfelf, had Agejilaus the poor 
 Arcadian Shepherd preferred to him. And Slmllis, 
 one of Adrian the Emperor's Chief Captains, ha- 
 ving retired to the "Country after all his Prefer- 
 ments, caufed to grave this Epitaph upon his own 
 Tomb^; Here lies Similis of a very great Age , whp 
 yet lived but [even Tears. I might here cite Con- 
 fiantine, that Excellent King of Scotland ; T^eoda- 
 tus. King of th6 Goths -, Charles the Fifth ; Serto- 
 rius, and Hundreds of other Princes, if I thought 
 it not of more Advantage to Solitude to fay of 
 thefe, that they are fo many they cannot be 
 cited. 
 
 Seeing then Rcafon and Experience do imprefs Sea, 6. 
 us with lb pungent DilTuafives from Greacnefs, Fame ex- 
 
 K. 2 let '""'■»f'^- 
 
Solitude freferr^d 
 
 Ut 11? a little examine , whnt can be in it able to 
 preponder to fo weighty Dircouragcmcnts. 
 
 The firfl Prize contended for by great Perfons, 
 is Fame^ a Revenue paynble only to our Gholh ; 
 and to deny our felves all prefent Satisfn<5lion, or 
 to cxpofe our felves to fo much Hazard for this, 
 were ns G;reat Madnefs as to flarve our felves , or 
 fight defperately for Food to be laid in aur Tombs 
 after our Death. Either l^ublick Minifters value 
 much the Difcourfesof the Multitude j and if fo, 
 they err in offending them as oft as their Gain or 
 Pleafurc affords them the meanelf Temptation : 
 Or elfe they value ihefe not; and if fo, why is 
 rbere fo much Pains taken for Fame, which is no- 
 thing elfe but a Collection of their Suffrages? 
 which Reflection recommends much to me that 
 Stoical Jeer given to Hannibal by Juvenal: 
 
 1 demenSj c^ fccvas curve fer Alfes, 
 
 tit pueris flaceas, d^ declamatio fias, 
 
 (Fool, 
 — Climb o'er the Jlfes, thou mad, vain-glorious 
 Thar thou may Children pleafe, and be their 
 
 ( Theme at School. 
 
 J-or ccnyincing us of the Folly of this Paflion, 
 He pleafcd to confider. That either our Souls 
 have the fame Period with our Life, and then to 
 talk *of us after Death, is to talk of what 
 is not ; and what Advantage brings it to 
 us, when feeing we are not, what is faid of 
 IIS cannot effec'l what isnot: Or our departedSouls 
 fcrvive in eternal Blifs ; arid then tlic loud Ha- 
 lelujahs of Miriads of Angels, will fo eafily drown 
 the Voice o^ Fame incur Ears, that it will not be 
 heard by us ; and our Souls will be fo replete with 
 infinite Joys, that there Wili be no Room for its 
 Rcoprt , thou^^h \r vvcre cxaudible ; for Fame, 
 
 '*' . bein^ 
 
to Tuhlich Employment. 1 3 ^ 
 
 being but Air^ muft yield and flee out at the Ac- 
 cefs of any thing, that is more foHd. Or elle the 
 * Souls of thofe, who are praifed, will be damned- 
 and then they will not be fufceptible of any 
 pleafing Impreffions. And I am confident that 
 one of the Torments of damned Spirits, is, that 
 they imagine all the World to be full of their In- 
 famy. And feeing the Fame of the greareftof 
 Men is not able to folace him in theFit of a Fever, 
 or Gravel j Why fiiould we imagine that it can 
 lelTen the Weighty of fuch prefling Torments, as 
 infernal Horror, or eternal Damnation? To 
 talk of Am^h'ialus, who never was, is the fame 
 thing as to talk of Alexander^ only Ar/iphlalus, 
 cannot be ftained with Cruelty, Vanity and 
 Drunkennels, as Alexander is. But albeit Fawe 
 were to be courted, what Share of it can we ex- 
 pert, who are fcarce known beyond the Line of 
 our own Hiftor}^, and but tranfiently in that like- 
 wife ? Who amongft us would toil as we do, to 
 be efteemed, as Tofenbam or Bajard, ( whom I 
 believe very few have heard of) and yet thefe 
 aded upon the Continent of the World, and did 
 greater things than the prefentState. of Affairs will 
 admit us to do. And I am confident, chat there 
 liv'd lately at the Gown o'i. France and Spain, Flun- 
 dreds of Courtiers, who enjoyed far taller Ho- 
 nours than we ; and who would not have embraced 
 the Honours we grafp after ; and yet Fame 
 fcorns to be at fo much Pains as once to mention 
 their Names. How many know not at prcfent, 
 the Name of that Grand Vifier, who but lately 
 made Germany tremble ? and to fay that it was the 
 Grand Vifier, is to praife his Office, and not 
 himfelf. Who can name the greatefh Cardinals 
 at Rome, or Dog'i of Fen'ice ^ And yet, what infinite 
 pains is taken to gain thefe Employments, by 
 fuch as live upon the Place ? 
 
 K 4 • I 
 
Solitude peferrd 
 
 I fmile to fee underling Pretenders, and who 
 live in a Country fcarce defign'd in the exadeft 
 MapSjfvveatnnd toil for fo unmafTy a Reputation, • 
 that when it is hammered out to the moft ftretching 
 dimendons, will not yet reieh the ncareft: Towns 
 of a neighbouring Country: Whereas, examine 
 fuch as have but lately returned from Travelling 
 in mod flouiiHiing Kingdoms, and though Curi- 
 ofity was their greateli Errand, yet ye will find 
 that rheyfcarce know who is Chancellor orPre- 
 fidcnt in thefe Places ; and in the exat^left Hifto- 
 ries, wehearbut few News of rfiefanioufeft Plea- 
 ders, Divines or Phyficians ; and by Soldiers 
 thefe are under-valued as Pedants, and thefe by 
 ^them as Madcaps , and both by Philofophers as 
 Fools. 
 
 But though Fame were defirable, yet publick 
 Employment is not always attended by it : for, 
 either Advancement is attributed to the Fancy 
 of the Advancer, or to Fate and Hazard. And in 
 either of thefe cafes, the Pcrfon promoted is not 
 honoured, but his Fate ; and it will be loudly 
 proclaimed as a thing moft ftrangc. That one of 
 fo meen Merit or fo rebellious Principles, or 
 tainted with any fuch Vice (as Envy will either 
 find or make ) Ihould be promoted to fuch Ho- 
 nours : whereas if the fame Perfon had fatisfied 
 himfelfwitha folitary Life, his real Vices had 
 neither been difcovered, nor fuch forged Vices 
 proclaimed; and becaufe People blame Minions, 
 whilft they live,for what they dare not chai-ge up- 
 on their Mafter, their Envy or Revenge tranf- 
 mits to Pofterity that Character which was re- 
 ceived to their Prejudice whilfl: they yet govern- 
 ed. Was Terenn'iHs famous, though CornwoJus 
 then Emperor rais'd him next to the Throne ? or 
 Oliver the Barber, though Lnvis ii. made him 
 his Minion ? No, for Princes can beftow Great- 
 
 nefs,> 
 
to T^hlick Emfhyment, ^ ^ 5 
 
 nefs, but Fame lies no more under their Jurifdidi- 
 on than the Winds do , from which it doth but 
 little differ. Of all Witneffes Fame is the moft 
 fufpeded becaufe it ordinarily flatters moft thofe 
 who depended upon it, and were at greateft Toil 
 to gain its Suffrage, and to depone falfly againft 
 the greateft of fujch Men as value not its teftimo- 
 ny : And as its Report is by Law judged to be un- 
 ftable as Water; So in this it refembles much the 
 Water, that it prefents (like to it) the ftreighteft 
 Objeds to our Sight, as crooked and uneven. 
 And fince Fame depends upon the credulous Mul- 
 titude,and upon unreftrainableAccidents,who can 
 affure himfelf of its Suffrage ? or believe it when 
 it is obtained ? If the Soldiers prove cowardly, 
 andlofe a Battel, the General is forever affront- 
 ed, 'and yet he cannot help it: or if a Servant 
 betray a Statefman's Secret, then the Matter's 
 Prudence is for ever traduced Ignominy being 
 like all other black Spots (a Tenacioufncfs peculi- 
 ar only to that Colour) which cannot be worn off:, 
 nor wafht out : And the Defigns of Statefmen be- 
 ing as latent as the Springs which do inwardly 
 move mechanick Machines,the People (whofe In- 
 telligence cannot reach thefe) judge of the Defigns 
 by the Events: Andifatany timetheEventanfwer 
 the Contriver's Expedlation, then the malicious 
 Multitude afcribe this Succefs, either to Hazard 
 or to their Power. And to fpeak ferioufly, Few- 
 er is fo happy a fuffragant, that it takes off much 
 of that Repute which is due to the Contriver : 
 For who 'can be foyl'd, having fuch a Second ? 
 And to convince us, that Power and Command 
 conceals what Strength and Energy there is really 
 in the Governor's Wit, refled but a little upon 
 thofe pitiful Rebels, who govern'd lately this 
 Country, and did feem moft wife, while they 
 were.vefted with Power: Of which being now 
 jigain divefted, . their Wit falls far ftiort of the firft 
 
 Caft. 
 
1^6 Solitude p'eferrd 
 
 Cafl". Like thofc Venetian Ladies, whofe Native 
 Stature rifes and lows in Appearance, according 
 to the Height of thofe SocchH whereupon they 
 walk. But if Fame be the great Prize, I fee not 
 why the Literati and Firtuo/i, or retir'd Curioji, may 
 not put in for as large a Share in it , as moft ( if 
 not any ) Statefman : For if .that Maxim hold, 
 that fro^ter ijuod unum <^NOiI<j; eft tale, propter hoc, illud 
 jffum eft majus tale ; certainly it follows in true 
 Logick, that feeing folitary Perfons are the Dif- 
 penfers and Bertowers of tame upon great Men, 
 they cannot mifs it themfelves. How had e^fwe- 
 /t/s Condu(5l, or Achilks's Valour been forgot, 
 had not Homer or Virgil fung their Elogies ? And 
 after a great Man hath defeated Kingdoms., a Pe- 
 dant is ( like the filly Worm ) able in one Njght 
 to confume that bloiToming Gourd of his Repu- 
 tation; and feeing the World know not what the 
 one did, they will believe what the other faid. 
 Hiftory ( which is the grand Regifter of Fame) 
 is known for the moft part only to retir'd Perfons; 
 and thefe will admire moft what fuits moft with 
 their own Humour : And Fame it felf being moft 
 obliged to fuch as ftudy Solitude, it obliges ordi- 
 narily thefe moft, becaufe they have obliged it. 
 Ariftotle hath prov'd himfelf by his Syllogifms , a 
 greater Perfon than Akxandtr his famous Scho- 
 lar : Solon is more famous for his Moral Advice to 
 Crefus, than Crefus who poffefs'd thofe Mountains 
 of Gold, which were the Subjed of his Advice : 
 And Cicero's Tongue, though puU'd out of his 
 Head by Anthony, hath fpoke out his Praife louder 
 than all the Acclamations of the Roman Legions 
 and Ecchoing Artillery could proclaim that more 
 than Monaich. And feeing that Man is happieft, 
 who is happy whilft he is a Man; fuch as attain 
 to Fame by Solitude, are happier than great Men, 
 becaufe they are happy whilft they are able to find 
 
 it; 
 
to TuUick Employment, i ay 
 
 it; whilft the others have it only when they arc 
 not fenfible of what they have. Compare Julius 
 Cafar ( to the Stature of whofe Repute our 
 dwarfifh Endeavours will never be able to rife ) 
 with Lucatij who wrote the Story of his Wars, 
 and ye will find Lucan the much happier : Confi- 
 der Cafar, macerate oft with Hunger^ -ftiffned 
 with unrewarded Toyl , jealous of his own Sol- 
 diers, and apprehenfive of the Senate, tortured 
 with the uncertain Events of the War, and terrifi- 
 ed by the having kill'd his Son-in-law Fojnpy, af- 
 ter he was fure of the ViAory : And then return 
 your RelieAions upon Lucan, fitting in the Bofom 
 ofafhadowy Grove, flanktwith a cry ftal Stream, 
 and there creating thofe noble Lines, which have 
 lince carried his Fame as far as C^farh Actions ; 
 and having in this the Advantage of Cafar, even 
 as to Pofterity, that Cafar\ Soldiers, Tomfeyh 
 ill Fate, the Senates Irrefoluton, and the Coward- 
 linefs of their Auxiliaries, (hare with Cafar in the 
 Event, and really more than he ; whereas Lucajt 
 inherits the fole Praife of his Story now, as he 
 did the Pleafure of having wrote it whilft he was 
 yet alive. But to conclude the Folly of Famcy 
 confider even this generous Lucan, falling under 
 the Sword of Nero-, becaufe that cruel Prince 
 was afhamed to fee himfelf i^o far out-done in Wit 
 by one of his own SubJeAs : and from this learn. 
 That Fame is fufpicious to its Dependers when it 
 beftows its Favours, and unjuft when it denies 
 them. 
 
 Next to this, the Satisfa(51:ion received in com- Sea-. 7. 
 manding others, isadmir'das one of the ravifhing ^^^ ^^^'*' 
 Advantages of publick Employment : and the ■^"^. "^^^ 
 Soul of a Man in this feems to have retain'd ftill ZJZTers 
 a falfe Appetite of being likQ to its Maker. But examine4. 
 feeing this Defign could not be managed even by 
 
 the 
 
I a 8 Solitude p) efei r 'd 
 
 • the Judgment and Purity of the greateftof Angek 
 fo as not to deferve the fevered Punifliment, and 
 ■ did in them prove alfo incfre<'l:ual ; I find that 
 kttle hopes can be entertained of our fucceeding 
 in it. But confider ferioufly, that it being a con- 
 genial Humour in all Mankind, to defirelTecdom; 
 certainly, great Men mull; conclude, that their 
 Dependers would not bow to fuch Homages, 
 if they thought not thereby to oblige their Pa- 
 trons to the full Requital of what they fo highly 
 value : And therefore thefe being Debts rather 
 contraded by us, than Favours done us, I fee not 
 why we fhould fo highly prize them • and feeing 
 in Return to thefe, Protedion, Salaries and 
 Offices are expeded, all which put us to real 
 Pains; confider if thefe imaginary Pleafures de- 
 ferve to be bought at the rate of fuch real Vexati- 
 ons. The Magnifico muff himfelf bow to his 
 Prince, bear his Extravagancies, fvvear a Friend- 
 fhip with thefe whom he hates, difpenfe with 
 Affronts, fpend all his time in Attendance at 
 Court, and in obferving thofe Humours, which 
 he muft hereafter fuperftitioufly obey ; and all 
 this that he may gain wherewith to repay Sa- 
 lutations, Flatteries, Legs, Congies, and fuch 
 like pitiful Pleafures ; and thathemay fcrew him- 
 felf fo far into the Refped of the People that he 
 may have Hats pull'd off to him, which will be 
 likewife done (and for the fame Reafon likewife.) 
 CO a lifclefs Chair of State or the meaneft Fool, 
 if his Shoulders be flrong enough to bear a Title, 
 or any other the meaneft Mark of his Prince's fa- 
 vour. And that he may be magnified by his De- 
 penders,whom becaufe of their Intercft none will 
 believe, being bribed to depone what they fay of ^ 
 him ; is not this Satis fadion a mccrAd of Fancy ? 
 And is it not fafer to tranllate our Fancy to fomc 
 other Objed, than to moderate it here ^ And who 
 
 can 
 
to Tiiblick Employment , I '2 9 
 
 can alTure himfelf;, that when he hath arrived at 
 that Pitch of Command which he prefently pro- 
 poles, that this fhall terminate 'his Ambition ? 
 And is not the French King as much troubled, 
 that he cannot command the Grand Signior , as 
 a French Courtier is for being lower than his 
 King ? And after that a Chancellor hath rendred 
 his Place, by any fhort PofTeffion, familiar to 
 him, he then defpifes what he enjoys, by the 
 fame Principle which invited him to defire that 
 Employment, when it was yet above his Reach* 
 But abftracling from thefe Confiderations, What 
 can it advantage any Man that another bows to 
 him ? It can neither cure Gout nor Gravel : And 
 when he is difpleafed at any thing elfe, it is fo far 
 from being able to folace him, that that which 
 vexes him moft is, that any Perfon can be found 
 who dares difpleafe one who is fo great as he ^ 
 and if he had not been fo great, that Accident 
 which now grieves him could not have vexed 
 him: So that irp-wifhing to be great, we willi 
 that we may be made more fufceptible of Af- 
 fronts, than Nature hath already made us. 
 
 I need not tell you, Celador, that great Men 
 are oblig'd to attend more rubmiffively their Su- 
 periors, than v^ do them, becaufe thefe have 
 more Defigns than we, and Defign is the Occafi- 
 on of our Dependance: So that if there be any 
 Pleafure in liberty, we enjoy it more than thefe; 
 and if there be none. Why is there fo much Pains 
 taken to be great, uponExpedarion, that Great- 
 iiefs fets at liberty ? A private Man is not obliged 
 to oppofe his Relations, fight againft his Country^ 
 
 five his own Judgment the Lye; all which are 
 ut the meanell Impofitions that fome Princes 
 lay upon Greatnefs : and why fiiould Men pur- 
 chafe, at {o dear a Rate, the Liberty to ferve 
 others, which is all that Greatnefs Cvan bellow? 
 
 I know 
 
150 Solitude fref err' d 
 
 Seft. 8. J Inflow that Society is one of thofe Satisfa^ti- 
 
 faaion^'cf ^^^ which vve rank aniongfl: the Pleafures of the 
 'socitty ex- firft Magnitude' ; and that as to the PolTeflion of 
 »minii. this^Solitarinefs Teems to cede to publick Employ- 
 ments. But when we confider^ that the Prero- 
 gative of Society ftandsnot in feeing one another, 
 bnt in rational Converfation, it will appear that 
 the Difference is not wide. For, what Pleafure 
 can be received by talking of new Fafliions, 
 buying and felling of Lands, Advancement or 
 Ruin of Favourites, Victories or Defeats of ftran- 
 ger Princes, which is the ordinary Subject of ordi- 
 nary Converfation ? And really, I have admir'd 
 to fee Perfons of Virtue and Honour long much to 
 be in the City, where when they come, they 
 found, nor fought for no other Divertifement, 
 than to vifit one another ; and there to do nothing 
 clfe, than to make Legs, view others Habit, talk 
 of the Weather, or fome fuch pitiful Subjed : and 
 it may be, if they made a farther Inroad upon any 
 other Aff"air,they did fo picque one another,that it 
 afforded them Matter of eternal Quarrel ; for 
 what was at firft but an indifferent Subjed, is by 
 intereft adopted into theNumber of our own Quar- 
 rels. This begets Heats; Heats, Opprobries; Op- 
 probries. Revenge ; and Revenge leads either to 
 fret, if we cannot fatisfy its Thirft ; or to Ruin, 
 if we cannot quench it. How many likewife 
 are in thefe Reincounters, tempted either to be- 
 tray their Ignorance or Malice .'' And if one know 
 not the new Name of fuch a Difh or D rets, fuch 
 an Intrigue, or fucR a Quarrel or Marriage, then 
 they are efteemed Blockheads. Moft of Men de- 
 fjre to frequent their Superiors, and there Men 
 muft either fuffer their Raillery, or mull 
 not be fuffcred to continue in their Society: 
 If we converfc with thofe who fpcak with more 
 Addrcfs than cur fclves, then we repine equally 
 
 at 
 
to Tuhlich Employment, 1 5 i 
 
 at our own Dulnefs, and envy the Acutenefs that 
 accomplifhes the Speaker ^ or if we converfe with 
 duller Animals than our felves, then we are wea- 
 ry to draw the Yoke alone^ and fret at our being 
 in ill Company : But^ if Chance blow us in a- 
 mongfl our Equals, then we are fo at guard to 
 catch all Advantages, and fo interelfed in Point 
 d' honneur, that it rather cruciates, than recreates 
 us. How many make themfelves cheap by thefe Oc- 
 cafions, whom we had valued highly, if they 
 had frequented us lefs? And how many frequent 
 Perfons, who laugh at that Simplicity which the 
 AddrelTer admires in himfclf as AVit, and yet both 
 recreate themfelves with double Laughters ? It is 
 remarked by Geograj^hers, That no King alive is 
 worfhipp'd by his Subjeds, but the King of Bino^r^ 
 and that he is never f^Qn by them : and certainly, 
 if he were feen, he would not be v\/orfhipp\L 
 And thus thefe ancient Heroes were never deify'd 
 till Death had, by burying themfelves, buried the 
 Memory of thefe Infirmities, which, though they 
 were but few in fome, and mean in others, had 
 notwithftanding enough of Allay in them to. 
 make the Committers not only be conceived no 
 Gods, but oft-times to reprefent them as frail 
 Men. Familiarity Is (in the Proverb) [aid to breed 
 Contempt - which it does not only by that natural 
 Satiet}^, whereby nothing can become Common 
 and continue (to our Apprehenfion) good, but 
 likewife ^ by laying open to Cbnverfers thefe 
 Lapfes and Failures, which if they deferve not 
 Contempt, do, at leaft ieffen that Repute Vv^hich 
 was in others founded for them rather upon 
 Ideas which they framed of our Perfedrions, than 
 upon thefe Merits which might juitly challenge 
 them. Familiarity hath likewife this Prejudice 
 in It, that it blunts thofe Endeavours in us, 
 whereby Repute is ordinarily required; and in 
 
 remitting 
 
1 5 1 Solitude preferrd 
 
 remitting that Exa6lnefs whereby we entertain 
 Strangers, we lofe that Share of Efteem which 
 Exadncfsand PoHtenefs deferves j thefe extraor-^ 
 dinary Parads, made ordinarily to our lefs Fami- 
 liars, being a Holy-Days Drels in Converfation, 
 which though it flatters, ceafes not therefore to 
 weary us. Our Saviour does himfelf, and of him- 
 felf, lay it in holy Scriptures, that a Prophet bath no 
 Honour In his own Country ; and the foolifll jFcays 
 gave him Ground to fay To, when they concluded 
 that he could not work Miracles, becaufe his 
 Mother and Brethren dwelt amongft them, and 
 becaufe they did know him and his Extra(ftion» 
 
 But if Variety be that which is admired in So- 
 tietv, certainly our own Thoughts, or other 
 Mens Books, can in thefe far exceed Converfati- 
 on ; polTefling above it this Advantage, that we 
 can never be either importuned or betrayed by 
 thefe, as is much to be fear'd from the other. And 
 it is mofl remarkable, that after Solomon hath fixt 
 a Vanity and Vexation of Spirit upon all the A(ftionS 
 of Men, and hath after feveral times fubjoined it 
 to publick Employment, he only fays. That 
 Reading is a Wearinefs to the Flejlj^ without adding 
 it to be a Vexation of Spirit. But albeit Society 
 were to be valued at the Rate imagin'd, yet fo- 
 litary Perfons enioy mere the Sweets of Society^ 
 than great Men do : For in all Addreffes to thefe^ 
 the Addreffers confider only what is fit for their 
 |M-ivate Tntereft ^ and lirrle clfe is added, befidcs 
 the dropping of a flattering Expreflion'or two: 
 And when any difmtercflfed Subjecl is fallen upon 
 with them, it is fpoke to with fo muchConftraintj 
 and the Speakers are fo hemm*d in byDifcretioii 
 and RefpcA, that the Difcourfe is manag'd with 
 much Di Hid vantage. And our very Duty teach- 
 eth us, that to fpeak learnedly is Pedantry thercj 
 and to fpeak religiouQy is impertinent ; fo that 
 
 wg 
 
to Puhlick Employment, 1^3 
 
 we miift either tmnlgrefs our Duty, or elfe be 
 mean in our Converfation. But, albeit the Hu- 
 mour of the Grandee were fo noble, as to admic 
 of Freedom in Converfation ; yet few ingenious 
 Spirits (who are the only beft Companions) can 
 fpeak freely in Publick, or to Publick Perfons : 
 whereas the moft hidebound Orator can pour his 
 Conceptions into his Neighbours Bofom, in 
 their natural Set and Fafhion, and with as little 
 Alteration as a Difcourfe receives by being call 
 ofFthePrefs upon Paper. 
 
 Refled but upon thefe many Thoufand Apolo- 
 gies which are carried up and down amongft fuch 
 as converfe much together ; and which, as they 
 make up the greateft part both of their Employ- 
 ment and Vexation , fo are not incident to any 
 who live folitarily , thefe being the natural Pro- 
 dud of Conference and Rencounters : And ye may 
 conclude. That either thefe who make fuch Apo- 
 logies, are as real in making them, as they feem 
 paffionate in having them to be believed; and 
 then Converfation may appear to be moft dan- 
 gerous, feeing thefe prove, that Men may 
 eafily miftake, and are fo eafily miftaken by fuch 
 as daily frequent them, as yet to need lb folemn 
 and fo numerous Apologies ; or elfe thefe are but 
 feign'd, and then they prove Converfation to be 
 yet more dangerous; feeing, as Men are fubjecft 
 to miftake and be miftaken, fo our own real A- 
 pologics for thofeMiftakeswill not be believed,be- 
 caufe of the frequency of other Counterfeits ; nor 
 can we, for the f^me Reafon, difcern whether 
 fuch as are made to us be real or not : What was 
 the Subject of this Day's Conference will be the 
 I Subjed of an Accufatioil to morrow; and that 
 Secret, which we thought we did but lately de- 
 pofitate in our Friends Breafts, will fhortly fly in 
 Our Faces from the iMouth of our Enemies : But 
 
 L though 
 
154- X Solitude preferred 
 
 though our Friend were real and fecret, yet his 
 Inconftancy may make thefe ei'-her no Virtues at 
 all, or ineffedrual and unprofitable ones ; a Qua- 
 lity now lb ordinary, that I take Pleafure to fee 
 both my felf and others miftake the feveral In- 
 terefts which they knew intimately a Year ago ; 
 Cabals and Intrigues moulding themfelves almoft 
 every Month in different Shapes, according to 
 theHumoursor Interefts of the Parties concern'd: 
 And fo peftilcntial is the Malignity of Converfa- 
 tion that even Ladies fail here, and this piece of 
 Frailty they are fuffer'd to carry about them to 
 keep them from being ador'd, becaufe of their 
 other amiable Qualities : For if their Con- 
 verfe were not dangerous , becaufe that any 
 Error is there a Crime, and no Affront can there 
 be revenged ; certainly there fhould no place elfe 
 be frequented. Confider, I pray you, how Dif* 
 courfes are laught at, though never fo witty, if 
 three or four combine to reprefent them as ridi- 
 culous ; how a Slip, either in the Choice or Ac- 
 cent of a Word, becomes irreparable, by being 
 incurr'd in a Society where nothing is defign'd 
 bur Cenfure ; and when any prove happy in 
 that Trade of Gibing, they muft be gadding A- 
 broad (fo tempting is this Folly) though fure to 
 meet in thefe Journeys the Repute o^ Jlight or dif- 
 honeft ; and that Jeerer, who at the Beginning was 
 eftecm'd a Wit, is,by continuing his Trade (yea, 
 though he improve in it)undervaluedasaBuffoon. 
 It was nobly obfcrved by Marcus Antoninus, that 
 great Emperor , and Philofopher , That a Wea- 
 ver or Cobler would willingly fequeftrate them- 
 felves from all Society, that they might profecute 
 their feveral Trades; and yet Man cannot retire 
 himfelf, that he may admire the Creation, and 
 exercife his own Soul, which is the great Trade 
 of a rational Creature, and of a true Philofopher. 
 
 And 
 
to Tuhlich Employment. * 3 5 ' 
 
 And fince Gain can prevail with all fo far, as to 
 make them renounce Society^ and efteem Com^ 
 pany an idle Folly ; certainly, if we would re- 
 fled upon the great Advantages of Solmdey both 
 as to Morality and Devotion_, it were an eafy 
 Matter to prefer it to thofe which are in them- 
 felves but TrifleS;, if not- Burthens. 
 
 I have thefe three Arguments to perfwade me^ ^^^ ^ 
 That Solitude, Contemplation 5 or a Country That SolU 
 Life^ have more of Pleafure in them than publick tude is 
 Employment : The firft is. That Pleafure being ^orepUa^ 
 in Men an A61 of the Fancy, and confequently f^fi^^*^ 
 of the Soul ; certainly thefe Pleafures, which do Eifjp/oy^ 
 more immediately affed the Soul, mufl needs be ment. 
 the moft a£live Pleafures • and fuch are thofe 
 which arife from Contemplation : whereas fen-* 
 fual Pleafures, and fuch as arife from exterior Ob- 
 jeds, do arrive but confequentially at that im- 
 material Agent, and fo they do move it with far 
 lefs Vigor. A fecond is. That Contemplation 
 does often drive our Souls into Ecftafies, and is 
 fo charming, that it may be rather faid to ravifli 
 than plcafe, committing fo open a Rapture uport 
 our Souls, that it pulls them almoft into a ftate 
 of Separation : Thus thdfe old Hermits are the 
 Members of the ancient Church, who are ofteft 
 remark'd to have become thus nobly fenfelefs, 
 being as far tranfported out of chemfelves, as 
 they had formerly tranfported themfelves out of 
 the World, and lying whole Weeks under that 
 fpiritual Amazement, and drunk, as it were. 
 With thofe ftreams of Confolations which flow 
 from thofe blelfed Cifierns, the open Wounds of 
 bur glorious Saviour. And amongftthe Heathens, 
 did not Vythagoras almoftdiftrad with the Satisfa- 
 dion coriceiv'd in finding thatNoble and Famous 
 Demonftration mentioned in the fecond Book of 
 Effclid} Was not Pl'pjj' fo ravifh'd with the Pleafure 
 
 La of 
 
i^(-> Solitude 'preferr\l 
 
 of contemplating the Rarities of the Hill VefuvluSy 
 as for further Enquiry to approach fo near, that 
 he loft himfelf in its Flames? And was not Arclji- 
 medcs lb much pleas'd with his Demonftration 
 upon the Sands of Siracufe, that he would not 
 lofe lb much time from it, as wherein he might 
 beg his Life from the rude Conquerors ; Whereas 
 beiides what comes from Fear or Revenge, wc 
 read nor hear of no Tuch mighty Paflion in any 
 of thofe who live in the Fruition of publick Em- 
 ployments, or fophifticate Satisfactions, The 
 third Argument is, that we find the Satisfaction 
 refulting from Honour and Ambition, to cede to 
 very mean Pleafurcs, and to fuch as have no- 
 thing of fatibfying in them, befides what they 
 owe to the Corruption of our Senfcs, and to be 
 fuch as do themfelves yield eafdy to this Energe- 
 tick Pleafure of Contemplation. 
 
 Is not a Gallant^ and even a Statefman, who 
 is in Love with a Miftrefs, and fometimes with a 
 Whore, or hath an unquenchable Thirft for 
 Wine or Companionry, willing to prefer the Sa- 
 tisfadion of thefe Paffions to all Advancement, 
 or the Pleafures which he can receive by them ? 
 And this evidences, that this Dellre to govern, 
 is, of its own Nature, none of the ftrongcft ; at 
 leaft that our Fancy may have other Objeds 
 lefs dangerous, and equally pleafing, whereupon 
 to dote. And a Pedant, reading powpey's Ani- 
 ons in good Latin, is as much enchanted with it, 
 at leaft with the having written handfomcly his 
 Epitaph, as For/jpej could have been himfelf in 
 the Fruition of all his Glories, and the moll 
 fpreading Ruff of his Pride. And a Country 
 Gentleman is as much taken with a happy 
 Chacc, or a Clown with a mean Hire, as the 
 happieft Favourite can be with the Purchafe of 
 ilic hj^hell Office, which the Fear to lofe, or 
 
 new 
 
to Tuhlick Employment, 1^7 
 
 new Pretences , and much anxious Atten- 
 dance, doth lelTen much to him : But if thefe 
 Conceflions of Gain or Honour occafion Raptures 
 in the Receivers, that Joy brings more Tickling 
 with itjthan is fit for the Spirit of Man to receive; 
 and occafions Want of Sleep, Difcompofure in 
 Difcourfe, and all thofe other Extravagancies 
 which proceed fromGriefat other times: Where- 
 as Solitude gives no other 'Pleafures than what 
 is fit for our Recreation, or fuitable to our Reafon 
 and Stoical Indifferency ; fo that feeing every 
 State hath Pleafant Objects provided for the En- 
 joyers Fancy , that State mud: be moft preferable 
 which fancies Objeils the leaft dangerous ^ and 
 fuch is Solitude, but fuch is not Publick Employ- 
 ment. 
 
 I think theAncIentPhilofophers put but a mean 
 Compliment uDon Man, when they call'd Jiim 
 a little JVorld : for certainly, his vaft Soul hath in 
 it Nobler I^/e^/ of all that is created, than the 
 Flnitenefs of Matter will allow to the Creation 
 it felf. Whofe Spirit is fo narrow, but it can in 
 one Thought reprefent larger Spheres, a more 
 vaft Globe, and more bound lefs Seas, than all 
 thofe which were brouorht from the Bofom of 
 the firft Chaos ? And after infinite Expence hath 
 impoveriflied a building Prince, the meaneft Pea- 
 fant can in his Fancy add exceedingly to its 
 Bulkiihnefs ; and which is more, that Faculty 
 can mould Ideas of thoafand.^ of Species never yet 
 created, that can bring forth more Monfters than 
 Africk, and can produce more Novelties than 
 America \ and as we cannot but admire thefe Pro- 
 ductions, for their Variety ; fo we cannot but 
 love them, becaufe they are our ovv^n. And thus 
 feeing there can be no Pleafure in that Variety, 
 which is to be difcerned in the World, but what 
 our Fancy takes, (for what elfe is therein behold- 
 
 L ; ing 
 
:}3 8 Solitude p'eferr'^d 
 
 inp; real Caftles^ Navies, Courts or CitieSj but a 
 divertifingof our Fancies ? for Nature needs none 
 of thofe) certainly, Retirement hath ia this the 
 Start of its Rival : for there Fancy is at fuller Free- 
 dom and roves with lefs Contradion, than when 
 it is limited by the Narrownefs of the Senfes ; 
 through which Wickets, certainly nothing can 
 enter which is auguft or ample. In Publick we 
 fee the fame Men moft ordinarily dill a(5t the 
 fame things ; and we our felves are fo much bu- 
 fied with our Intereft, that we regard little even 
 the fmall Variety which is difcoverable in them. 
 Aud certainly, it is a great Difparagementto the 
 Creation, to think that there is not Variety 
 enough there, to bufy our Meditation ; or that 
 there is lefs there than in a City or Court : It is 
 true, tliat we'll fee Variety of Hangings, Cabi- 
 nets, and fuch like Toys ; but if we would view 
 the various Faces of the Sky but one day, we 
 would perceive more of Variety in thofe, more 
 pf Excellent Colours and various Motions, than 
 in Ten Thoufind fiich Trifles as thefe. Confider 
 but the Eeauty of one Tulip, and its feveral Frec- 
 kles ; the Morion of one Bird, and its feveral 
 Wheelings, the Shapes of feveral Wornis, and 
 tbeir different Crawlings, and ye will find Tasfc 
 enough, and more Variety there, than a City 
 can afford ; wherein they may reprefent a Paint- 
 ed Rofe, but not its Smell , the Shape of a 
 Fowl , but not its Motion : And ypt Men 
 there dote upon that one Quality of Shape in Pi- 
 <5tures , more than upon ten thouland real Spe- 
 cies in the Complex of all their Excellent Qualities j 
 which if ye call Finenefs, I fee no Realbn why 
 ye may not call Madnefs Virtue. It is not then 
 Want of Variety in Nature, but Want of Ohferva- 
 tion in us, which occafions this Error ; and he 
 undcrftood all things infinitely better than we, 
 
 who 
 
to TM'ich Employment, 139 
 
 wko faid. That Solomon in aU his Glory was not like 
 one Lilly of the field. It's reported of a great Phi- 
 lofopher^, that for fifty Years he employ'd himfelf 
 in the Obflirvation of Bees, and all that time 
 found both new Task and Pleafure ; and never 
 any could fay, that he had obferved fully all that 
 was to be oDferved in Flowers, Anatomy, Aftro- 
 logy, or any of thofe Sciences, amongft which 
 the lead copious in mcafuring Lengths hath Ad- 
 vantage of our Lives; and y : we complain, that 
 Retirement ( where thefe ar<" onlv to be found ) 
 haLh.noi Employment or Divertifement enough 
 for us. 
 
 But if thefe fuffice nor, my dear Celador, enter 
 into your own Breaft, and there furvey the feve- 
 ral Operations of your own Soul, the Progrefs 
 of your Pallions, the Struglings of your Appe- 
 tite, the Wandrings of your Fancy, and ye will 
 find, I alTure you, more Variety in that one Piece, 
 than there is to be learned in all the Courts of 
 Chrifiendom. Reprefent to your felf the laft Age, 
 all the Anions and Interefts in it; how much 
 this Perfon was infatuate with Zeal, that Perfon 
 with Luft ; how much one purfued Honour, and 
 another Riches ; and in the next Thought draw 
 that Scene, and reprefent them all turned to Dull 
 and Afiies. 
 
 The World is a Comedy, where every Man a<5ts 
 t-hatPart which Providence hath affigned him ; and 
 as it iseffceemed more noble to look on, than to ac^; 
 fo really I know no fecurer Box,from which to be- 
 hold itjthan a fafe 5<>/<!V«^e ; and it is eafier to feel 
 than to exprefs the Pleafure which may be taken in 
 ftanding aloof, and in contemplating the Reelings 
 of the Multitude, the Excentrick Motions of 
 great Men, and how Fate recreates it felf in their 
 Ruin ; as if it fed them with Succefs, as the Ro- 
 inans fed their Gladiators, who ferved for nothing 
 L 4 elfe. 
 
140 
 
 Sea. 9. 
 Solicude 
 enriches 
 more than 
 fublick 
 Etn^loy- 
 tnent. 
 
 ! Solitude freferrd 
 
 elfe, but in beating one another to recreate the 
 difintereffed Beholders. Confider, how fome 
 are cartelling for not drinking off a Glafs;, others 
 fretting at the Promotion of their Equals ; one 
 vexed that he was not fafely delivered of his pre- 
 pared Harangue, another fcanning every Syllable 
 of his frowning Miftrefs's Letter : And even theie 
 Humours again laught at by fome; and that 
 Laughter wept at by others of thefe Virtuofo's, 
 who pretend to a Didatcrfhip in Moral Philofo- 
 phy. 
 
 • 
 Some admire Publick Employment, and prefer 
 it to Solitude, becaule the one gains ( whilft the 
 other waftcs ) an opulent Fortune ; But thefe 
 lliould confider, that as thofe Merchant-Ventu- 
 rers would eminently deferve to be efteemed mad, 
 who would hazard their Stock in a Voyage, 
 where certainly Ten of a Thoufand Bottoms will 
 not return unfliipwiack'd ; fo Pretenders to Ad- 
 vancement muil be mad, feeing Icarce Ten of a 
 Thoufand prove fuqcefsful in the Defign, fo few 
 are the Preferments which can enrich, and fo 
 many the Hazards in reaching them ; and which 
 is worfe, of thefe Ten which are preferr'd, fcarce 
 Lour will be found who do not prove fo unhapi- 
 ly long liv'd, as not to furvive their Conquefts 
 and Honours ; and having got a Glimpfe only of 
 Happinefs, en /'.rZ/jwr, do become fo much the 
 more miferable, char thev have been once [lappy. 
 And as to thefe with whom Greatnefs is pleas'd 
 to continue, do they not oft-times, by raifing 
 ihemfelves as high as their "Fancy, raife them- 
 fclvestoo high for their Eftates ; and the one by 
 fwelling, make the other to burft ? How few 
 Grandccs'are not forc'd to eke up their Spend ings 
 with contratted Debts after their own Revenues 
 arc wafted ? Wiiereas, fuch as live privarclv, and 
 
 in 
 
to 'Puhlick Employment. 14^ 
 
 in a Country-Life^ tranfmit to their Pofterity the 
 Remainders of that yearly Rent, which refts af- 
 ter all Neceflities are defray'd : So that the 
 Countryman muft be rich , feeing his Neceffities 
 overcome not his Fortune , and publick Perfons 
 muit be reputed Poor, feeing they have not Suf- 
 ficiency for their Maintenance. Is not a little 
 Man as well cloach'd in his Four Yards of Cloth, 
 Jls a Taller is in Six ? And are not the Princes of 
 Italy efteem'd but petty Princes, becaufe in defi- 
 ring to be fuch, they have made thofe Fortunes, 
 which might have made them rich Subjects, too 
 fmall for the Support of fo weighty Titles, as 
 that of Sovereign ? But admit that thefe Enjoy- 
 ments continued for the Enjoyer's Life-time ; yet 
 God ordinarily takes from the Length of the 
 Duration, what thefe added to the Breadth of 
 their Conquefts. As a too hairy Concoftion de- 
 ftroys the Body, fo a too foon Conquefl-Eftate 
 deftroys the Conqueft ; and what like Jonah's 
 Gourd flourifhes in one Night, lofes the next 
 thofe BlolToms wherewith it was adorn'd. Hafien 
 not to' he rich, was the Counfel of a great Mora- 
 lift, as well as Divine ; and God Almighty gave 
 us no other Task, than to Gain our BrWd, and 
 th^it with thefv^eat of our Brow : So that in defi- 
 ring great and fudden Eftates, we are peccant 
 both as to the Matter and Manner of our Acqui- 
 fition. Andwhatcan we propofe reafonablytoour 
 felvcs in thus doing ? For little can defend us a- 
 gainft our prcfent Neceffities, and nothing can 
 defend againft the future. And when thefe 
 Riches are pil'd up, they ferve cither to fatisfy 
 Nature, and that is eafy ; or to fatisfy Fancy, 
 and that is impofiible. When a publick Minifter 
 hath gainM, by eithcrToil, Oppreffion, or a long 
 courted Favour, a great Sum, he poffibly makes 
 a great Entertainment, or buys a great Jewel, 
 
 with 
 
N 
 
 14^ Solitude preferred 
 
 with that or the equivalent, and either furfeits 
 in the one, or vexes himfelf in lofing the other j 
 and albeit he do not. What Pleafure is there in 
 cither of thefe, but the fcrving of our Fancy af- 
 ter the fame Manner that Children do, when we 
 laugh at them for hugging Toys and Baubles ? 
 Moft Men are much troubled in the fpcnding of 
 what they gain, as in gaining it ; and thus one 
 Trouble creates another by an alternate Succef- 
 lion. All we gain ( faith Solomon ) is either for 
 Food or Rayment (Pomp and !:.uperfluicy being 
 no Defign allow'd by Nature ) and much or Fine 
 of either of thefe ferve not to defend againft ei- 
 ther Cold or Hunger : And fo feeing the Peafant 
 or folitary Philofopher, attains fooner to the true 
 End of Riches by his Sobriety, than the other by 
 his Abundance ; certainly he muft be the richer : 
 And that is moft Excellent which attains fooneft 
 to the End for which it was dcftinate. If fuch 
 want Money to give Lawyers or Phyficians, they 
 alfo want Employment for thefe; and without 
 Employment no Man defires Money: So that 
 Riches are really (though they remain) but like 
 Exod \6 ^^^ Manna J whereof He who gathered little had a- 
 fS^ * hundance '^ and he ivho gathered too much^ had'nothing 
 over: And if Riches remain not, hut take the 
 ovlngs of the morning, and flee away , as oft they 
 do; then confider, thatpublick Perfons are moft 
 fubjedl: to thefe Alterations ; for Forfeitures, Al- 
 terations of Government, or Favour, Inteftine 
 Wars, Luxury, Gain, Popular Fury, or an Heir 
 confiding in his Father's Profperity, or Educate 
 amidft many fpending Wanters, and fuch other 
 diftblute Perfons as frequent publick Places, w;ll 
 fooner drive to that Neceffity, which Men fliouLd 
 o.nly fear, than Moderation or Retirement can 
 do. And when great Men are impoverifli'd by 
 thefe Accidents, they are alham'd becauib of their 
 
 former 
 
 
to Tublich Employment. 143 
 
 former State, and incapable by Want of fuitable 
 Breeding 'to repair their Loltes, or fatisfy their 
 Neceflities by Pains or Frugality, as private Men 
 can^ and which is wcrfe than all this, their for- 
 mer Profpericy makes Want far more unfuppor- 
 table to fuch, than to the other to whom the 
 greateft Hardftiips have been rendred familiar. 
 
 As to fuch who think, that Publick Employ- ^^^ ^^^ 
 ment and Command will afford them Conveni- xhe Sati's- 
 ence to fatisfy their Luft, I can fay nothing, but faBiontf 
 that iis better to live in a fober Solitude , wherein Lup c^n^i^ 
 Men may fo tame theix- Lufts, that they need not ^^' ' 
 fadsfy them. There is no Pleafure in eating, 
 but to fuch as are hungry ; and certainly it were 
 for our Advantage, rather that we could live 
 without being hungry, than even to have a: much 
 as might facisfy Hunger when it comes: High 
 Feeding, and Want of better Empioymcnt, begets 
 this ; and what impair:^ thefe extinguiflie? it: 
 Whereas I am confident, fuch as are fcrvilely fub- 
 Jed to it, fuffer more Anxiety in the purchi'/mg 
 of that Conveniency , than private Men can do 
 by the Want of Bread ; for they will for that Pur- 
 pofe difoblige Friends, cheat their Intimates, 
 prove ungrateful to their fweet Bedfellows, fuffer 
 themfelves to be talked of, and run a thoufand o- 
 ther Hazards, which they would not encounter 
 for flaving off the greatefl: of thefe Neceffities 
 under which mean Men fuffer^ and when this i? 
 gain'd, what brings it but Sicknefs, Jealoufies, 
 Horrors in Confciencc, and Reproach amongft 
 Men ? 
 
 When I compare 5i?//r^^ie with Publick Employ- Sec^. i f. 
 ment, as to their Recreations, I find that the one ^^f J^r *•'* 
 follows only fuch as becaufe Nature hath invented, H'f^^li^, 
 it doth therefore fweeten, and fuch as have no fared. 
 
 Danger 
 
144- Solitude prcferrd 
 
 Danger in thenij befides that of being too much 
 Charming ; as Hunting, Hawking, Angling, 
 and the like, whcrehi wc have Occalion to learn, 
 as well as to praifc the Workman (liip of our 
 mighty Maker: And in the other, fuch Divcrtife- 
 ments are moft familiar, as if they have not been 
 invented to gain Money, or feed Luft, yet are 
 not really Recreations, if they look not towards 
 thefe Ends; and which arc attended by fo much 
 Toil , Fretting , Sweating , Swearing , Lying , 
 Cheating, and other Vices, that their great Plea- 
 fures are the worft of Torment, except their 
 tragick Periods; of which Nature are Cards, 
 Dice, Tennis, Dancing, Drinking, Feafting, 
 ' and Whoring; which do oftner divert Men from 
 being real Chriftians, than divertife thofe who 
 are really fuch. If great Men enjov not Recre- 
 ations, they become unfit for Employment, and 
 Emplo3''ment becomes a Burden to them ; and if 
 they fequeflrate the meaneft Portion of time for 
 private Recreations , they are curft by thofe 
 Thoufands whom Multitude of Affairs, rather 
 than Eazinefs, hath deferr'd ; and who are fo 
 unreafonable, as only to confider, that they are 
 put off, but not to confider wherefore. 
 
 Sea-. T2. Thoueh Food and Ravment arc no Conftitu- 
 * V . /« e'^ts , yet they are too orten look d upon as con- 
 their Food iiderablc Appendages or our more material Hap- 
 andRa). pincfs ; and thefe ufed by great Men, tho' they 
 vxnf. cannot make the Enjoyer happ)', vet ferve to 
 make the By-ftandcrs conclude themfelves unhap- 
 py in the Want of them : And therefore I flial! 
 make thefe few Refleclions upon both , whereby 
 it will appear, that as to thefe the meaneft Men 
 are more happy than the greateft Monarch. 
 
 As to Ravment, certainly that ufed by private 
 Men is muli Noble, molt Eafy, and attended by 
 
 feweil 
 
to T^iblicK Employment. 145 
 
 feweft Inconveniencies : Mofl Noble^ becaufe in 
 thefe. Great Men follow the Mode, but mean 
 Men make their own Mode ; and fo the one as to 
 that is a Subjed^ and the other a Sovereign. 
 Great Men are Servants not only to the Fafhion, 
 but to fuch Cloaths as are in it; they muft abftain 
 from every thing which may foil or diforder them, 
 & muft employ much of thatTime andLife, which 
 is the only thing they pray for, and which they 
 buy with much Torture and Money from Phyfi-^ 
 cians, merely in adjufting them every Morning ; 
 and though it faould prejudge their Health or E- 
 ftalte, they muft have thefe Faftiionable and Rich. 
 How many Shifts will be ufed^ and other Plea- 
 fures abandoned, that Money may be got to give 
 for thefe ? Whereas a folitary Perfon wears fuch 
 as are convenient for his Health, and may be 
 fubfervient to any Employment ; and that his are 
 more eafy, appears from this. That Great Men, 
 when they refolve to take their Eafe, lay afide 
 their E obes, which ferv'd for nothing elfe but 
 make themielves fweat, and others gaze : Jewels 
 and Embroideries may make Cloaths , by being 
 ftiff, ufelefs and infupportable, but neither are 
 neceftary to cover our Nakednefs , or entertain 
 our natural Heat. And when the Fafiiion chan- 
 ge*, thefe rich Suits ferve only either to make the 
 Owner ridiculous, if he wear them, or to make 
 him fret and grumble Vv^hen he muft lay them 
 afide ; and though they continue faftiionable, yet 
 if another out-ftrip us in a more fumptuous Suit 
 or Retinue, then we repipc, and by miffing our 
 Defign of being more gallant than others, we 
 likewife mifs our Happinefs ,- which becaufe it 
 was not plac'd upon fomething which was in our 
 own Power, it is therefore in the Power of every 
 other Man to take from us. 
 
 As 
 
146 Solitude p'eferrd 
 
 As to Food, that which is us'd by mean Men i.<; 
 both more naturalj& more pleafant : More natural, 
 becaufe it is prepar'd with lefs Toil, and being 
 cook'd by Nature it felf, ferves Nature more ade- 
 quately, as to all Intents and Purpofe^ : it nei- 
 ther entices Men to eat, till they be unable for 
 their Affairs, nor brings it Sicknefs; it affords 
 Strength, and prolongs Life ; whereas, wheri 
 publick Employment brings Riches, and thefe 
 have hir'd Cooks, all they can do, is to cheat the 
 Stomach into an Oppreffion, and by Fumes fent 
 from thence, chafe away fine Thoughts out^of 
 our Heads ro make Room for Vapours. Solitary 
 Perfons dine when, they pleafe, but great Men 
 when it fuits with their Bufmefs ; and as they are 
 more fubjed: to Invitations, to Feafts and Enter- 
 tainments , fo they niuft there fit longer, and 
 eat more than Nature requires, and they muft ei- 
 ther difoblige their Hofl, or kill themfelves. I 
 know many, who in place of complimenting 
 fuchas they invite, make them envy them ; and 
 many who are vcxt when they hear of another 
 who lives at a nobler Rate than themfelves, and 
 who pillage the Poor, that they may entertain 
 the Rich. That the Food of private Men is more' 
 pleafant, arifes from this, that the Stomach hath, 
 by its Fumes, depraved the Taflc, fo that nothing 
 can relifh ; or Cuftom hath rcnd'cd the fineft 
 Delicacies fo ordinary, that nothing can appear 
 Pleafant ; a Peafant by fafling longer, oj work- 
 ing more laborioufly than at 01 her times, can 
 thereby heighten theRclifh of hisDifli beyond all 
 the Art in the Emperor's Kitchen, or Apothecary*s 
 Shop. And I have heard of a Merchant's Wife, 
 who being much fubjecHi.to Difeafes whilfl hef 
 Husband's Trade flourifh'd, did live very longhand 
 very healthfully, after he was broke. And when 
 rich Perfons fall fick, who knows but their Phy- 
 
 ficiao 
 
to Tuhlich Employment, 1 47 
 
 ficiail may contribute to make the Difeafe conti- 
 nue longjOr the apparent Heir to make it end fud- 
 denly : And when the Phyfician is honeft, does 
 he riot forbid the Ufe of all thefe Delicacies, 
 whereof Greatnefs boafts as an Advantage. 
 
 The greateft Pretext ufed to excufe this Zeal, Sea. 13 
 after publick Employment, is. That the Country Objeft. 
 mufl: be ferved, and Man is not made for himfelf. J]^"'*« 
 To which my Anfwer is, that this makes Em- J^a^^f 
 ployment the Objed of our Duty, not of our Paf- fcrvj, 
 fion, and infers it as a Neceflity, not as a Choice, 
 which is all that is contended for. Who is fo 
 abfurd as to deny his Country that Service, 
 which is really but the Return of its Protection ? 
 Or, who will be fo mad as not to contribute ei- 
 ther Skill or Agility in faving that Ship from fmk- 
 ing, wherein himlelf fails ? And this makes me 
 conclude fuch as rebel againfl their Governors, to 
 be as mad as thofe are, who pull down their own 
 Houfes, which defend them oft againft the Cir- 
 cumambient and Bluftering Storms ; and gives 
 me a Veneration for the Perfons of fuch as are my 
 Superiors, to whom nothing faid here, that is 
 difadvanrageous, fhould be applied. But if the 
 ferving of our Country be that Impulfe .which 
 only ads us on to undertake Employments, this 
 fame defign fhould make us wait till we be called 
 for by our Country : Do not Pretenders to Em- 
 ployment, in defiring each to enter firft, obftru6t 
 all Entry to Employments ? As we fee, in cn- 
 tring at publick Places , where the preffing of 
 all hinders the Entry of all. Do we not upon 
 this Account oft remark , That Offices are kept 
 vacant by Princes, becaufe of the Multitude 
 of Rivals wh,o compet for Preference ; and fo by 
 their Hafte to enter, prejudge the Country more, 
 than by th^r Entry they caa affift it ? Whereas, 
 
 if 
 
14.8 Solitude pre f err d 
 
 if it were for the publick Good that we under- 
 took thcfe Employments, all would wait till 
 their rational Reluctancy were vanquifli'd, with 
 either the Importunities of their Prince^or Con- 
 veniencv of their Country : And when 
 that Defign for which they were called, 
 were fatisfi'd or driven to its defign'd Period, they 
 ^ would willingly folace themfclves again, by their 
 
 Retreat to thefe Country Employments, from 
 which they were at firil rather driven, than 
 brought. And certainly, if the publick Intereft 
 were that which only did invite Men to appear 
 in Publick, they would not repine at their being 
 laid afrde, nor force an Entry through the very 
 Sides of their Country, making a Breach in its 
 Ramparts, becaufe they cannot enter at its 
 Gates, as too many Pretenders daily do. 
 
 Sea. 14- Should not fuch as the Statq have thought 
 jtisjajl ^f fQ remove from Employment, confider , 
 'h^uu\T '^^^^^ others have an equal Title by Nature 
 changes in to Advancement with them- and that if their 
 faviur. Predeceflbrs in thefe Offices had not been remo- 
 ved, they had not been advanc'd ? So either it was 
 Injuftice to remove thefe, or elfe it is no Injuftice 
 to remove them ; and they fliould rather prove 
 grateful for having enjoy 'd thefe Honours fo long, 
 than ingrate in Repining, that they retain'd 
 them not ftill ; which were as unnatwal as if the 
 Sun fhould conftantly dwell in one of his Twelve 
 Houfes Cmaking that the only Summer-houfe in 
 Heaven) and fhould not, by fucceflive With- 
 drawings and Returns^ magnify his Prefence by 
 his Abfence, and by that conftant Change be (o 
 juft, as not to gratify all that he may pleafc a few. 
 If thofe who are in Offices, were not fubjeA to 
 Alterations, they would prefumc too much, and 
 fuch as wanted them would certainly defuair ; 
 
 where- 
 
to Tub lick Employment, 149 
 
 whereas , now the Fear of being degraded , 
 makes fuch as are in Employment virtuous and 
 compaffionate , fearing left their Pradice be- 
 come their Ditty ; and the Hope of Advancement 
 makes fuch as yet have not attained to it^ walk lb as 
 may deferve Applaufe,and fo as they may IhunRe- 
 proach : If fuch Alterations were not incident to 
 great Men, they would oft want Occafion and 
 Time to repent of thofe Sins which they commit- 
 ted in Publick, either by Inadvertence, having 
 their Thoughts diftracfled with many Things ; 
 or by Extravagancy, havingtheir Thoughts rais'd 
 above their juft Level. And if there were not 
 fuch Alterations, grent Men fnould neither have 
 time to admire GOD's many Wonders, nor to 
 review his many Mercies, and it fhould be un- 
 known whether Greatnefs or Solitude were the 
 moft Chriftian State. 
 
 Many noble Spirits have been frighted from Seft. 1?. 
 Solitude^ as conceiving it to be a State wherein S^»t"d^ 
 the Soul contracts a Ruft, which cankers its own /f/^,"^^, 
 Subftance and makes it unpleafant to others, and cityofs^i^, 
 that it begets Men the Name of a Country-Clown, rit, 
 and unfafhions him as to the World. But thefe 
 fhould confider, that feeing the Finitenefs of our 
 Souls allows not a compleat Accompliftiment, it 
 is our Wifdom to fill our narrow Rooms with the 
 moft neceffary Provifions, and thefe are The 
 knowledge , of God, and his Works ; from which will 
 refult that Tranquility of Spirit which is pecu- 
 liar to Philofophy, and is theGueftof Solitude i 
 So that when in Exchange of Compliment, Court- 
 Ihip, Knacks, Repartees, and fuch other Appen- 
 dages of Converfation, we beconie Pious, Lear- 
 ned, and Moral Philofophers ; I think us Lofers 
 in no other Senfe, than a Tree is, when its 
 gaudy Flourifti ripens into fuch Fr jit as can both 
 
 M pleafe 
 
\^o 
 
 Soliiude preferred 
 
 pleafc the Rclifh, and feed the Body. It may be, 
 aPhiloibpher may forget by .his Solitude whether 
 to give a Lady his Right or Left Hand • but if in 
 his Solhiuk lie hath Icarn'd to know what is right 
 or wron.e; in her or his own Adions, I think fhe 
 fhould ellecm him fo much the more,and he is by 
 much the more happier. And ifthe World conclude 
 him improven, who in learning how to order an 
 Army, hath forgot how to order a Ball ; 1 fee 
 not why. they fhould account him an Apoftate in 
 Breeding, who is fo Intent upon the Contempla- 
 tion of a Deity and its Produdions, as not to care 
 to adore thefe Mortal GoddelTes, except for 
 whom the Preffers of this Objedion have little 
 or no Devotion, being rather devoted Servants 
 to thefe, than devout Servants to the Almighty: 
 And how can that Soul ruft which is in continual 
 Exercife, as thofc of Philofophers are? And this 
 is more to be feared in fuch, as by living in Pub- 
 lick are ftill bufied, and yet idle : for may not 
 we be bufy in folliciting for unnccelTary Favours 
 to others, in receiving and paying VifitSjin driving 
 on unnecelTary Factions, and yet our Souls con- 
 tra(5l a Ruft, whofe Canker may make it at laft 
 moulder away to nothing ? For what Share can 
 our Souls take in fuch Adions, wherein it hath 
 no other Concernment than fuch as a Man hath 
 in the Motions of his Enemies ? 
 
 Let us then admire Solitude (Noble Celador) fee- 
 ing to it Religious Perfons flee when they would 
 feek god's Face ; Sick Men when they would 
 feek Health : Here Statefmen find their Plots, 
 Learn'd Men their Knowledge, Poets their fublime 
 Fancies. \n Solitude, neftle the greateft of Saints; 
 in Publick, range tlie greateft of Sinners ; to the 
 one we owe the beft of Inventions ; to the other 
 the worft of Cheats. 
 
 Having 
 
to Tuhlick Employment, 151 
 
 Having thus rais'd this pitiful Structure to its 
 Cape-ftone, I refolve to furnifh it with thefe two 
 Landskips , the one of SoUtudej the other of 
 Greatnefs. 
 
 When I come to reprefent Solitude, 1 mull con- Seft. 16. 
 fefs that its Advantages are fo great^ as that if ^/^^ ^«"'^- 
 any thing can furpafs them it muftbe the Efteem ^^Z* "/^o- 
 I have of them- And for contriving its Land- 
 skip, I reprefent to my feif ^'mtus Matius fofl^ 
 humius , that noble Roman , who having been 
 brought from his Plow to govern that great City, 
 did after he had conquer 'd its Enemies, return to 
 his former Employment; and being ready to 
 leave them, call'd for a Balance, and by putting 
 the Fafces (or Marks of Authority) in one Scale, 
 and his Plow in the other, did let them fee, that 
 thefe Imperial Enfigns were the far lighter. Not 
 far from him, I reprefent Timon the noble Athe- 
 nian, and Ger/tf;? Chancellor of Fr<!rwce, who rtarv'd 
 after they had fpent their Eftates in Compliment 
 and Liberality ; exclaiming againil all Publick 
 Perfons as perfidious, and Friends (as they found) 
 to a Man's Fortune, but not to himfelf. Here 
 Diogenes undervalues fo far all Alexander s Prefents, 
 as to prefer one Sight of the Sun to all that he 
 could command, who commanded all that the 
 Sun fliin'd upon : And there Fiacre^ that illu- 
 rious Scot refufes to return from his Hermitage to 
 receive the Crown of his Anceftors. Here lurks 
 St. Jerom, laughing in the midft of his own 
 Torments at the Follies of the World : and there 
 the great Conftantine bewails with Tears the Want 
 o( Solitude-, and the Multitude of thofe Diffcradti- 
 0ns, which though they did not extinguifli, yet 
 did difturb his Devotions. Below thefe ftands a 
 Country-Gentleman, admiring the Folly of a 
 Venetian Ambaflador, for being vext to Death, be- 
 M 2 caufe 
 
15^ Solitude freferrd 
 
 caufe he was at a Feftival plac'd upon a Stool, 
 and not upon a Chair ; and fmiling to fee 2.RuJ[ian 
 Ambaflador, who could not ftep (though very 
 found) till he was led by two Attendants ; and to 
 hear, of the Emperor's and 7/o-y^i AmbalTadors, 
 who at their laft Meeting, behov'dj like two 
 Pcndula's Clocks, either to fet their paces equal- 
 ly, cu* elfe not to be reputed juft. Reprefent to 
 your felf rich Valleys, where the liberal Soil 
 needs neither be brib'd by yearly Acceflions, nor 
 courted with nice Attendance , nor torn by In- 
 ftrumcnts (as in City-gardens) before it will be- 
 llow any thing upon its Mailers; but without 
 keeping clofe Doors (as thefe do) keeps an open 
 Houfe to all PalTengers, for Herbs and Flowers of 
 all Talles and Liveries. Here the Nightingale 
 is conllrain'd to Hay, without any other Cage 
 than that of the native Pleafures of the Place ; 
 and here the Sun looks from Morning to Night 
 with a pleafing Countenance upon the ofF-fpring 
 of his own Beams, neither clouded with Smoak, 
 nor intercepted by Angles of falling Houfes \ anc^ 
 thefe, in Effed, differ ftom Gardens, but n- 
 t'rofe from Meetre, where the Materials are oft- 
 times richer, though the Contrivance be not fo 
 artifical. Here the Levelling,thoughafpiringTree>. 
 lay their Heads together, to protcd fuch as feek 
 Shelter under their well-cloath'd Branches: and 
 the Cryllal Streams run flowly and turn many 
 Windings, as if by that and their quiet Murmur- 
 ings, they would exprefs an Unwillingnefs to 
 leave fo pleafant a Field; and in token of their 
 Thankfulnefs, do in a generous Manner (becaufe 
 without fliewing how) enrich freely the Neigh- 
 bouring Lands, and draw to their Maftcr hisj 
 PIdure in one inllant, without putting him toj 
 the Pains of frequent or long fitting, beyond all 
 the Skill of V^nif^.jck or /h'gcloy entcrcaiuing like- 
 wife] 
 
to Tuhlick Employment, 1 5 3 
 
 wife for him whole Plantations of FiOies^ which 
 may afford him bothAliment and Recreations be- 
 yond all that the City can boaft^ where Water ne- 
 ver comes, but empty, and as a Prifoner, and 
 like all other things and Perfons corrupts, if it but 
 Hay a while there. Here old Age crowns, with 
 Innocency's Livery, thofe who have innocently 
 improved their Youth; and Youth beftows 
 Strength, becaufe it knows that the Strength it 
 beftows is not to be revell'd away in Whoring 
 and Banquetting. Here Ladies fcorn, and need 
 not fubmit their native Colours to fading, and 
 in their blufhing at the Sins and Impudence of 
 City Gallants fhew a Scarlet far exceeding the no- 
 bleft Lillies, though Solcmon and all the Glory of 
 his Court was not to be compar'd to one of thefe. 
 Here Compliments (which, like Cobvv^ebs, are 
 but the artifical Texture of pitiful Stuff, woven 
 by,poifononsSpiders) are look'd upon as unnecel- 
 fary and dangerous ; unneceffary, becaufe there 
 goes much ofTime and Pains to their Contrivance, 
 yet do they not perfwade fuch as they are addrefl 
 to, to believe them fo well as Country Ingenuity 
 does its Inhabitants: and dangerous, becaule 
 they are ordinarily but handfomDifguifes for fuch 
 cheating Inclinations, as are fent abroad to betray 
 the Party concerned. Here Lovers are not like 
 Prifoners , coupled together with Chains of Me- 
 tal, nor joyn'd, like Princes, in a League for 
 Civil Intereft. Jealoufie, that moral Fever^ 
 which tortures fo the Soul of Man , as that 
 GOD was content to ordain a Miracle for fatis- 
 fylng his doubts , finds no Employment here : for 
 Vertue entertains thofe Matches which it felf _ 
 hath made, and lengthens out their Productions 
 to many more Ages, than are able to confume 
 Thoufands of publick Families. And (to,dif- 
 patch) here. Nature, the Eldefl Daughter of 
 M 2 Providence, 
 
154 Solitude pef err'' d 
 
 Providence, governs as Queen Regent, and 
 receives fo abfolute a Deference to all her Laws, 
 that Man may be here thought to be reitor'd to 
 that Primitive Innocence, which he formerly 
 forfeited by his Courtfliip. 
 
 Seft. 17. Tor framing the Landskip of Grcatnefs, repre- 
 The Land- fent to vouu fclf Jlexander running Uke a Mad 
 skifbf Man up and down the. World ; and killing every 
 Greatnefs. -j^^jj^ ^^.j^q would not call himMafter(for certain- 
 ly we would call any Man mad, who would 
 behave himfelf fo in our Streets, and yet they 
 might as juftly do the one as he the other) and 
 all this to gain as much as might make him a Per- 
 fon worthy of being poyfon'd ; and etteeming all 
 his Greatnefs fo meanly, as to, prefer to its Enjoy- 
 ment the Embraces of a Whore, who would have 
 prolUtuted herfelf to the meaneft of hisAttenders. 
 Here lies Tiberius, toiling more for the Title of 
 Emperor, than a Porter would do for Bread, 
 and yet preferring to all that Rowan Pomp (after 
 he knew what it was) the Pleafure of feeing a na- 
 ked Strumpet, than which" no Man is fo mean, as 
 not to enjoy many greaterPleafures: There fland^ 
 Hannibal, as a Sn'hz,^ gaurding the King of Bi- 
 thynla^ here Chancellor Bacon Harts at Liberty, 
 and there the D. d' ^/-x/^ftarv'd inPrifon ; in this 
 Bed lies a jealous Courtier, tortured with anothers 
 growingnot only greater,but even equal with him ; 
 ^ in another lies one loaded with Wounds, recei- 
 ved for his Country or Princ but not regarded 
 by them : not fir from thefelies Anthony ftabbing 
 bimfelf, and dtfar flabb'd by the Senate. In ano- 
 ther Corner, ye may perceive a rich Heir Id- 
 ling that rich Suit to a Frippery, wherein he had 
 but lately fpent a great Fortune at Court ; and 
 another defpniring under thefe Wounds which 
 he did receive, for challenging one who took 
 ■ '■ ■ • the 
 
to Publick Employment. 1 5 5 
 
 the Wall of him. Here ye may fee the Head of 
 a Nobleman, who to be reveng'd of his Prince 
 for complimenting another, was content to ha- -- - 
 zardthe Happinefs both of Prince and Country, 
 in a Rebellion which at la ft could not but ruin 
 himfelf and his Family : And there you may fee 
 the Quarters of another, who after he had gain'd 
 much more Honour than he at firft defign'd, yet 
 was fo defirous to have more, as that to fatisfy 
 that defired fuper-addition, he would hazard what 
 he was already pofTeffcd of in Jeopardies, which 
 any Man, not blinded by Ambition, might have 
 feen to be fatal. In a third Corner lies Heaps of 
 fuch as Somerfet^ Marquis D' Jncre, Duke Murdoch., 
 Cardinal TVolfey and others, whom nothing but 
 their Affronts have made famous, albeit they were 
 the greateft Minifters and Minions of their Age. 
 In a fourth Corner are reprefented many great 
 Men, who having left a plealant Countrey to 
 come to a City, cover'd with Smoak and infect- 
 ed with Stink, are there vex'd to get Money to 
 entertain their Ladies in that Luxury and Fine- 
 nefs, whereof the one tempts them, and the other 
 tempts others to entertain thefe Amours which 
 are dangerous, and may prove fatal : and who 
 have likewife quit their own Families, wherein 
 all thefe Refpeds were paid them, that they are 
 glad to have occafion to pay at that Court, for 
 which they exchang'd their former Rehdence ; 
 and who, by the Difeafes- occafion'd by want of 
 that fi"ee Air which- they have left, are rendred 
 unable to relifh all the other Pleafures which they 
 expected to enjoy in the City. And if after all 
 this, ye will not conclude a Solitary Life to be 
 more noble than publick Emplo^^meiit, yet at lead 
 ye will, with Seraph ick Mr. Bojk, confcfs, That 
 there is fuch a kind of difference betv^xt Virtue 
 fliaded by a Private, andfliining in a Publick Life, 
 
 M 4 as 
 
156 Solitude freferrd 
 
 as there is betwixt a Candle carried aloft in the 
 open Air, and inclofed in a Lanthorn \ in the 
 former of which Situations it gives more Light, 
 but in the latter it is in lefs danger to be blown 
 
 out. 
 
 T fhall ( Celador) in this laft place, clofc this 
 Difcourfc with the laft Advantage of Solitude ; 
 -which is, That by abftrading its Favourites from 
 being Rivals to Great Men, and from being Sha- 
 rers 'with Covetous Men, it conciliates to them 
 that Applaufe, which as it was due to their Me- 
 rit, fo was obftruded by thcfc and the like In- 
 centives. 
 
 DefunBus atnahhur ideWj 
 
 hath been the Fate of many who were perfecuted 
 whilft they were alive : And Death and Solitude 
 have rbis in common, That the>' fuffer Enemies 
 and oblige' Friends, to exprefs their former E- 
 fleems : Fame refembling in this a Shot, where 
 the Ball is fled, before the Report . arrive at our 
 Ears. 
 
 But I have fpent fo much of the Age of this 
 Night, in ending this Letter, that it now begins 
 to grow gray ; and the dapling Twilight brings 
 as much Light as to let me fee, that I have been 
 rather Zealous than Mannerly, in Ihewing you 
 how much I am. 
 
 Dear Celador, 
 
 Tour mofi Humble Seriuintj 
 
 and Sincere TFeH-Tjjijlier. 
 
 Moral 
 
Moral Gallantry: 
 
 DISCOURSE 
 
 WHEREIN 
 
 The Author endeavours to prove, 
 
 That Point of Honour, 
 
 ( abftrafting from all other Ties ) 
 obliges Men to be Virtuous, 
 
 And that there is nothing fo Mean ( or 
 unworthy of a Gentleman ) as Vice. 
 
 To which is Added , 
 
 A Confolation againft Calumnies : 
 Shewing how to bear them Eafily and 
 Pleafantly. 
 
 Written in Return to a Perfon of Honour, and 
 athisDefire fubjoin'd to this Difcourfcjbecaufe 
 of the Contingency of the Subjed. 
 
 By Sir GEORGE MACKENZIE^ K\ 
 
 Though God did not know, nor Men would not punijh Vice, yet 
 would I not commit it ; fo mean a thing it Vice. Seneca. 
 
 LONDON: 
 Printed in the Year M DCC XT. 
 
 
59 
 
 To His G R A C E 
 
 JOHN Earl of Roth ess, 
 
 His Majefty's High CommilTioner , Lord 
 High Chancellor, Lord Prefident of His 
 Majefl:y*s Exchequer and Council , and 
 General of His Majefty's Forces in 
 Scotland^ &:c. 
 
 May it pleafe Your Grace, 
 
 Mr Ohligations to Ton are fuch as way 
 excufe real Tajfion in a Stoic, and 
 feeming Flatteries in a Philofopher : 
 And my Gratitude defervd not to afftre to that 
 Name J if it Jhould not, like them, want Mea- 
 fures. But , feeing your Modefly makes you 
 think even what is Juflice to your Merit to he 
 Flattery ; as the Greatnefs of your Merit keeps 
 the highefi Eulogies I can give you from heing 
 fo ; / Jhall fetain my Refpe^s for you in a 
 Breaft, which may difpute Sincerity as to your 
 Inter ejls , with the frfl of thofe who pretend 
 to it : With which I fhall the fooner reft fatif- 
 fisd, hecaufe no Paper, nor any thing elfe ex- 
 
ifo An Epiftle Dedicatory. 
 
 cept the Heart which fends you this ^ is capa- 
 lie to contain or exprefs that Kindnefs it feels 
 for you. In the above-ivritten Enumeration of 
 your Titles^ I have neither defigncl to flatter 
 you, nor to contribute to your Fame ; hut ra- 
 ther., to remember you how much you are Debtor 
 to Troiidence for its Kindnefs ; and we to you 
 for your repeated Cares : That thereby ye may 
 he thankful for it., and we to you. In order to 
 ivhich, I have prefented you and my Countrey 
 with thefe Difcourfes ; which by inciting both 
 to be yirtuous, will not allow either to be In- 
 grate : And therein if I evidence not Abili- 
 ties y I will at leafi Kindnefs and Refpe^ ; 
 which cannot but far outvalue the other, filing 
 the lafl relates to you, and the fir jl refpelis on- 
 ly my Self. Since then holy Altars have not 
 difdaitid to offer up Figeons and fuch like va- 
 lue- lefs things, which nothing but the Sincerity 
 of the Offerer could render conjiderahle ; refufe 
 not to accept and revift thefe, though unfnijhd 
 Difcourfes. And if a Mans I aft Words may be 
 helievd ; / ( who am to make thefe my lafl 
 Wcrds in Print, and confine my Thoughts for. 
 the future to my ordinary Employment } do af 
 fure you that they are prefented with all imagi- 
 nable RefpeH and Zeal, by 
 
 Your Grace's mod Hum51e Servant, 
 
 '^ George Mackenzie. 
 
 
i6i 
 
 TO THE 
 
 Nobility and Gentry. 
 
 My Lords and Gentlemen, 
 
 HAving lighted this, tho' the fmallefl; and 
 dimmeft of Virtues Torches, at Honours 
 pureft Flame ; I thought it unfuitable 
 to place it under the Bufhel of a priv^ate Protedi- 
 on j but rather to fix it upon fuch a Confpicuous 
 Elevation as your Exalted Names ; that Virtue 
 might launch out from thence its glorious Beams 
 more radiantly ; and the better dired thofe who 
 intend to be led by it. Narrower Souls than 
 yours, have not Room enough to lodge fuch vaft 
 Thoughts, as Virtue and Hofmir fiiould infpire : 
 And that which raifed you to that Height which 
 deferves this Compliment from Virtue, does de- 
 ferve that ye fhould not, when ye have attain'd 
 to that Height, negled its Addrefs, tho'fent you 
 by themeaneft of its and your Servants. 
 
 Ye may (My Lords and Gentlemen) make your 
 felves llluftrious by your Virrue • and which is 
 yet Noble, (becaufe more Extenfive) ye may 
 illuftrate Virtue by your Greatnefs ; and as the 
 IwpreJJa of a great Prince, makes Gold more cur- 
 rent, the' not m.ore pure ; lb your Patrociny and 
 Example may render Virtue more Fafliionable 
 and Ufeful, than now it is. Undervalued Virtue 
 makes then its Application to you, as to thofe 
 whom, or vvhofe PredecefTors it hath obliged ; 
 and Perfecuted" Virtue deferves your Patronage, 
 as Rewarded- Virtue is worthy of your Imitation. 
 
 And 
 
I 62 77:?^ Epifile. 
 
 And feeing it did raife your Families, and oifers 
 ftill to railb Monuments for your Memory ; ye do 
 in that Afliftance but pay your Debt, and buy 
 Fame from fucceeding Ages. And as what is en- 
 graven upon growing Trees does enlarge it 
 felf as the Tree rifes; fo Virtue will 
 be ferious to advance you, knowing that it will 
 receive Extenfion accordingly as ye are promoted. 
 Virtue is nothing elfe, but the Exercile of thefe 
 Principles, which refped the Univerfal Good of 
 others ; and therefore Nature out of Kindnefs to 
 its own Productions, and Mankind in Favour to 
 their own Interefts, have Enobled and Adored 
 fuch as were ftricl Otfervers of thofe. The only 
 Secure and Noble Way then to be Admired and 
 Honoured, is to be Virtuous ; this will make you, 
 as it did AugHJtusj the Ornament of your Age ; 
 and as it did Titus Vefpajtan^ the Delight of Man- 
 kind. This is (tho' to my Regret) the Way to 
 be Nobly Singular, and Truly Great. For Men 
 follow you , when ye are Vicious, in Compli- 
 ment to their own depraved Humours ; but when 
 they (hall aflimihte themfelves to you in your 
 Virtues, they will fliew truly their Dependance ^ 
 and that they follow you, and not their own In- 
 clinations. In Vice ye but follov/ theMode of 
 others; but in re-entringFzVr//e into the Bon-grace 
 of the World, ye will be Leaders ; by this your 
 Lives will become Patterns, and your Sentences 
 Laws to Pofterity; who fliall enquire into your 
 Anions, not only that they may admire,' but 
 (which is more) that they may imitate you in 
 them. I intend not by this Difcourfc (My 
 Lords and Gentlemen) that all Virtues fliould 
 (brink into the Narrownefs of a Cell, or Philofo- 
 phcr's Gown ; No, no ; Publick Virtues are in 
 their Extenfion, as much preferable to private, 
 ^s the one Place is more Augufi than the orher ; 
 
 of 
 
The Epflle. i6g 
 
 of which to give you but one Inftance ; (for the 
 Principle is too well founded to need more) there 
 is more Virtue in relieving the Oppreffed , than 
 in abftai^iing from Oppreffion ; for that compre- 
 hends thi^, and adds to it the Noblenefs of Cou- 
 rage^ and the Humanity of Compaffion. The 
 one is the JEmployment of Philofophers^ but the 
 other of that Omnipotent GOD^ whom thefe 
 Philofophers with trembling adore : In the one 
 we vanquifh, but in the other we only fly. Tem- 
 ptations. Virtue has Employment for you, Great 
 Souls, as well as for retired Contemplators ; and 
 thp' Jnftice , Temperance, and thefe Vertues 
 wherein none fhare with you, be more Intrinfe- 
 cally Nobler than the atchieving the greateil Vi- 
 (S^ories, wherein Fate, Soldiers and Accidents, 
 challenge an Intereft ^ yet Virtue loves to beftow 
 Lawrels as well as Bays j and hath its Heroes, as 
 well as Philofophers. Rouze up then your Native 
 Courage, and let it overcome all things, except 
 your Clemency ; and fear nothing but to ftain 
 your Innocence ; undervalue your Anceftors no 
 othervvife, than by thinking their Actions too 
 fmall a Pattern for your Defigns ; and aflift your 
 Prince, till he make the World ( which is wafli'd 
 by the Sea on all Quarters ) that Ifle which fhould 
 acknowledge his Sceptre : Your Time makes the 
 richeft Part of the Publick's Treafure ; and eve- 
 ry Hour ye mifpend of that, is facrilegious Theft 
 committed againft your Countrey. Throw not 
 then fo much Time away, ( tho fome be allowa- 
 ble ) in Hunting and Hawking, which are not 
 the Nobleft Exercifes, feeing they favour always 
 the Strongeft, and do incline Men ( tho furdly ) 
 to Oppreflion and Cruelty ; ( for which R.eafon 
 ( I believe ) Nlmrodj the firlt Tyrant, is in Scri- 
 pture obferved to have been a mighty Hunter ) ; 
 and with LucuUus, that Glorious Romany think it 
 
 the 
 
164 The Efijlle. 
 
 the Nobleft Hiintingj to purfue Malefactors by 
 Juftice in Peace, and irreclaimable Enemies by 
 Armies in War. Raife Siege from before thefe 
 coy Ladies, ( I fpeak not of the Nobler Sort, for 
 to court fuch will oblige you to learn Wit, Libe- 
 rality, Patience, and Courage ) who do heighten 
 their Obflinacy of Defign to make you lengthen 
 your Purfuits, and lay it down before thefe ftrong 
 Cities, which are by no forced Metaphor called 
 the Miftreflfes of the World ; level theii* proud 
 Walls, when they refufe your juft Commands, 
 with the Ground wher»on they ftand, and leave 
 it as a Doubt to your Pofterity, when they fee 
 their Ruins, to judge whether your Fury, or the 
 Thunder, has hghted there. But, if ye will jufti- 
 fy your Compliments to deferving Beauties, em- 
 ploy your Courage, as well as Affedion, in their 
 Service ; ( for till then ye ferve them up but by 
 halves. ) And as Cafar at his parting, told Cho- 
 fatra. Think your felves unworthy of them, till 
 ye have raifed your own Value by Tuch Exploits as 
 Courage has made Great, and Virtue has made Ge- 
 nerous. Court them, as he did her, with no other 
 Serenades, than the pleafant Noife of your Vi(9:o- 
 rics; and after ye have returned, covered not with 
 Perfumes or TifTue, but with defervcd and bloiTo- 
 ming Lawrels; then that fame virtuous Courage, 
 which hath forced a Paflage through Walls and 
 Ramparts, ( piercing where Shot of Cannon 
 languifli'd, or gave back) will find an Entry in- 
 to the hardefl Heart ; which, if it yield oot to 
 thofe Gallant Importunities of Fate and Fame, ic 
 is certainly more unworthy of your Pains, than- 
 ye of its Choice. But forget hot amidft all your 
 Trophies, rather to chaftife Pride, thah to be 
 proud of any your Plumpcll: SuccefTes; (which 
 become Cheats , not Vicflories , when Men. 
 arc vain of them ) for by fo doing you fhall 
 
 become 
 
The Efiflle. 165 
 
 become ValTal? to it. Whilft ye toil to enflave 
 others to you, endeavour rather to deferve, than 
 to court, Fame: For in che one CaCe, ye will 
 make it your Trumpet ; whereas in the other, it 
 will become your Imperious Miftrefs, and yc 
 will thus oblige it to follow you ^ whereas other- 
 wife you may weary your felyes in following it. 
 The Noblelt Kind of Vanity, is to do Good, not 
 to pleafe others, of to expeA a Reward fi-orii 
 them; and Fame is nothing elfe, but to do fo of 
 Defign, to gratify your own Gallant Incli- 
 ilatiOns, judging that the having done what is 
 Good jind Great, is the Nobleft Reward of both; 
 and fcattering, like the Siin, equal Light, when 
 Men look, or look not upon it. The Nobleft 
 Kind of Detradion, is to lefTen thofe who rival 
 your Virtue, not byobfcuring their Light, as the 
 dull Earth Eclipfes the Moon ; but by out-fhining 
 it, as the Sun renders all thefe other Stars Incon- 
 fpicuous, which fhine, but appear not at the fame 
 time with it ; raife your Spirits, by thefe Hero- 
 ick Exploits, to fo generous a Pitch, that ye 
 heed not think Heaven it felf too high for you ; 
 and as if all Things here below were too unwor- 
 thy a Reward for that Courage, to which all 
 thofe Things do at laft iioop ,• attemjjt Heaven, 
 (if ye will be truly CouragiousJ which the Scrip- 
 ture tells us is taken hy Violence j and the Violent take it 
 hy Force. And when Virtue hatth iilade you too 
 Great for this Lower World, the Acclamations 
 and Plaudites of fue'h as confider the Heroickriefs 
 and Juftice of your Adions, jfliall be driven up- 
 wards with fuch Zeal and Ardour, that they 
 Ihall (as it were) rent the Heavens, to clear an 
 Entry for you there ; Where, when ye are 
 mounted, tho' Cafar of Auguft^us, Alexan-der or 
 Antoninus , were adorning the Skies, transformed 
 into Stars, as their Adorers vainly imagiji'd, yet 
 
 N w« 
 
1 66 The Efijlle. 
 
 we may with Pity look down upon them, as Span- 
 gles, which at beft do but Embroider the Out- 
 fide of that Canopy, whereupon ye are to tram- 
 ple. Ye fhall there have Pleafure, to fee our 
 BlelTed Saviour interceed for fuch as were Virtu- 
 ous, and welcome fuch as come there under 
 that winning Charader ; and fhall from thefe 
 lofty Seats, fee fuch Terreftrial Souls, as by their 
 I.ove to the Earth, were united and transformed 
 into it, burn in thofe Flames, which took fire firft 
 from the heat of theirLufts here ; which tho* it be 
 an Infupportable Punifhment,yet yields in Horror 
 to thefe Checks they fhall receive from their 
 Confcience, for having undervalued, or oppref- 
 ■fed, that Virtue which I here recommend. 
 
 THE 
 
 Author's Delign & Apology. 
 
 T Hough I can hj 710 other Calculation than that of 
 tny Sins J he found to be oU^ yet in that fmall 
 Fared ofTh/ie which I have already tranfaBed^ 
 I have by my own Fraclic'e been fo criminal , and by 
 my Exa?yiple adopted fo many of other Mens Sins into 
 ■the number of my own, that though I pouldfpend the Re- 
 fulue of my Allowance without one Error, {which is e- 
 ^ually imfojfible and defrable) yet that negative Goodnefs 
 heing a Duty in it felf could expiate my foregoing Sins jj 
 no more, than the not contracting ne-iu Debts can be ac- 
 counted a Vayment of the old. ■ The Confideration of 
 ouhich prevailed with me to endeavour to reclaim others 
 from their Vices by Difcourjes of this nature ; that in 
 their frofelyted Tra^tice I might be virtuous, as I hays 
 heen vicious iu the Fractice of fuch as have followed my 
 ■£xa?/iple : And that I might, in the Time they flwuhl 
 
 employ 
 
An Apology. 167 
 
 ism^hy '}velly redeem ivhat Imy felfh(idfomif-f^ent. In 
 order to which y I did refol've to addrefs my [elf to the 
 Nobility and Gentry, as to thofe ivhofe Reafo7i jvas 
 bejl iUnminated ^ and by frevailing with whom, the. 
 World (who imitates them^ as they defend upon them) . 
 may he mofi compendioujiy gained to the Profejfion of 
 Philofophy ; and to fuch as hwue mojt Leifure to refieti 
 up07i luhat is offered^ atid fewefi Temptations to ahjlra^ 
 them from obeying their own V erf uajions. And as Thy- 
 fcians do judge their Medicaments , will be mofi fuccefs-^ 
 fulj ii'hen they rather fecond than force Nature ^ folre- 
 fol'ued to tifethe Ajjiftanceof thehr own Inclinations ^ in 
 my Dijcourfes to them ; laying afide an Enemy, and 
 gaining thus a JtrJtndy by one and the fame Task, 
 Wherefore finding that mofi of them ivere either taken by 
 an Itch for Honour, or a Lo've to Eafe , I hav6 fitted 
 their Humours with t7Vo Difcourfes ; in the one ii^hereof, 
 I endea'vour to prcve, That nothing is fo mean as 
 Vice; and in the next I Jl)all pro'ue, That there is 
 nothing fo eafy as to be Virtuous. I had, Iconfsfsj 
 fome Thoughts of this Difcourfe, when Ifirfi undertook 
 • the Defence 0/ Solitude ^ but I thought it fit to acquaint 
 my [elf with writing, by writing to pri'Vate Perfons, 
 before I attempted to write to fuch as were of a more 
 elevated Condition : And that it was fit to invite all 
 Menfirflto Solitude; which I prefer as the fecurefi 
 Harbour of Virtue. But if fome would purfite a publick 
 Life, as the more Noble^ I thought it fit to demonfirate 
 io them. That there is nothing truly Noble, iput what 
 isfincerely Virtuous. I doubt not but fome will, out of 
 Mi flake, ( I hope few willj out of Malice) think, that 
 ihe Writing upon fuch Foreign SubjeBs, binds this 
 double Guilt upon me, that I defert my 07i>n Employment j 
 and do invade what belongs to thofe of another Vrofejfion , 
 hut if we numha the Hours that are [pent in Gatning , 
 Drinking, or bodily Exercifes (at none of which I am 
 dextrous) if we confidcr 71'hat time ts fpent in Journeys^ 
 and in attmdijig the Tides and Returns of Affairs ^ we. 
 
 N 2 ^i^ 
 
x68 An Apology. 
 
 will find many mere vacant Interludes, than arefaficl'- 
 ent for writing ten Sheets of Paper in two Tears Space ; 
 (ffecially upon a Subje^ which requires no Reading, and 
 Oifherein no Man can write happily, but he who writes 
 bis own Thoughts. TVith which, pardon me, to think 
 him a fober IVit, who cannot fill one Sheet in three 
 Hours ; by which Calculation, there needs go only thirty 
 Sele^ Hours to ten Sheets: And his Life is moji ufuri- 
 oufiy employed, who cannot fpare Jo many out of two 
 Tears to his Divertifements ; efpecially, where the 
 Materials ate fuch daily Obfervations as are thrufi 
 upon me, and all others, by our Having in the World ; 
 and are fo Orthodox and Undeniable, that an ordinary 
 Dfefs cannot but make them acceptable. And fo few (/ 
 way fay, none) have written upon the Subfeti, that 
 Jam not put to forge fomewhat that may be new. But 
 ovhatever others judge of this, or me, I find that it is 
 a Tart of my Employment, as a Man and Chrifi-ian, 
 to plead for Virtue againfi Vice. And really, as a 
 Barrifirer, few Subjects will employ more my Inventi- 
 on, or better more my unlabour'd Elo<^uence, than this 
 can do. And I find, that both by writing andfpeak- 
 ing Moral Vhilofophy, 1 may contract a Kindnefsfor 
 Virtue ', feeing fuch as refeat a Lye with almoft any 
 Frequency, do at leaf really believe it. Neither is 
 there any thing more natural, than to have much Kind- 
 fiefs for either theje Ferfons, or Sciences, wherewith we 
 are daily converfa?jt : And by this Trofejfion and Debate, 
 J am oHiged {though I fear that Jfatisfy not that Obli- 
 , gation) by a new and firong Tye to be Virtuous, lefil 
 elfe be inconjcquential to my own Principles, and fo be 
 reputed a Fool, either in 7tot following what I commend, 
 or in commending fo much, what by my Pratt ice I de- 
 clare is not worth the being followed. And therefore if 
 J cannot tleafure others, (which is my great Aim, and 
 will yield me great Satisfaction) I will at leaf- profit 
 my fclf : fVhich becaufe it is mere Indepevdejtt, is thtre- 
 ,fcre more Noble ; and fo will fuitbefi- with my Sub- 
 ject, tho the other wmldfuit betttr with my Dejires, 
 
169 
 
 DI SCOU RSE, 
 
 Endeavouring to Prove, 
 
 TTjat Point of Honour ohliges Men to 
 he Virtuous : And that there is 
 nothing Jo mean as Vice, or fo un- 
 ^worthy of a Gentleman. 
 
 BY how much the more the World 
 grows Older, by fo much (like fuch as 
 wax Old) its Light grows dimmer ^ 
 and in this Twilight of its declining 
 Age, it too frequently miltakes the Colours of 
 Good and Evil ; and not infrequently believes 
 that to be the Body, which is but its Shadow. 
 But amongft all its Errors, thofe which concern 
 Honour, are the moft (becaufe confpicuous, 
 therefore ) dangerous ; every Fault being here 
 an Original Sin, and becoming, becaufe of the 
 Authority of the Offender, a Law, rather than 
 an Example. Some conceive themfelves obli- 
 ged in Honour, to endeavour to be fecond to 
 none; and therefore, to overturn all vyho are 
 their Superiors: Others to think every thing 
 juft, whereby they may repay (tho' to the Ruin 
 of Publick Juftice ) the Favours done to their 
 N % ptivate 
 
lyo Moral GdUantry. 
 
 private Perfons, or Fortunes. Some imagine, 
 that they are in Honour bound to live at the 
 Rate, and maintain the Grandeur of their Pre- 
 decelTors, tho' at the Expence of their ftarving 
 Creditors ; (obedient to Nature in nothing oft- 
 times, but in this fantaftick keeping of their 
 Ranks)' and there want not many who judge it 
 derogatory to theirs, to acknowledge thefe Er- 
 rors of which they Hand convinced. Young 
 Gallants likewife look upon Virtue, as that 
 which confines too narrowly their Inclinations ; 
 judging every thing mean which falls fhort of all 
 the Length, to which Power or Fancy can 
 ftretch it felf ; and as a Genteel Wit hath hand- 
 fomly exprefs'd it, they believe that. 
 
 Honour is nothing hut an Itch of Blood '^ 
 A great DeJIre to be extra'vagantly Good. 
 
 And thus whilfl: every Man miftakes his Fancy 
 for his Honour, they make Honour to belike 
 the Wind; (from which at that Rate it doth little 
 differ ) than which nothing founds higher, 
 and yet nothing is lefs underftood. To vindi- 
 cate Honour from thefe Afperfions, and reclaim 
 Perfons otherwife Noble from thefe Errors, I 
 have undertaken this Difcourfe: TheNoblenefs 
 ofwhofe Subjed dcfcrves, that it had been il- 
 luminate by the Viftorious Hand of mighty 
 Cafar ; and to have been writ by a Quill pluck'd 
 from the Wing of Fame. But 1 hope, the Rea- 
 ders will confider, that feeing I am able to fay 
 fo much upon it, that more Sublime Wits would 
 be able fay much more. And as in refining of 
 Metals, the firft Workmen require ufually leaft 
 Skill, fo I hope that after I have digged up with 
 rather Pains than Art, the firll Oar, it will hereaf- 
 ter be refined by fome happier Hand. 
 
 I have 
 
Moral Gallantry. 171 
 
 I have in great Efteem thofe Honours which i^'^fi'^e 
 are derived from Anceftors: (thoueh that be to be ^^^"^^ , 
 great by our Mothers Labours, rather than our p^, 
 ownj and to thofe which Princes beftow; (though 
 that be but to be gallant in Livery) and I believe 
 that we may juftly interpret 'Nthuchadmz.Xjars Dan. 2. 
 Image ( whereof the Head is faid to have been 
 Gold, the Breaft Silver, and the Belly Brafs, the 
 Legs Iron, and the Feet Clay) to be a Hiercgly- 
 phick of this lower World, wherein Nature hath 
 imprefs'd the feveral Ranks of Mankind with 
 gradual advantages fuitable to their refpedive 
 Employments ; the meaner fort falling like dregs 
 to the bottom ; whilft the more refined Spirits 
 do like the Cream rife above ; thefe like Sparkles 
 flying upward i whilft the others do like thecon- 
 temn'd Afhes lie negleded upon the level. And 
 feeing the Wife Former of the World did dellgn 
 by its Fabrick, the Manifeltation of his Glory ; 
 it is moft reafonable to conclude, that he would 
 adorn fuch as are moft confpicuous in it, with 
 fuch Charms and Accompli ilimenrs, as might 
 mOil; vigoroufly ravifh the Beholders into the Ad- 
 miration of that Glorious Eifence they repre- 
 sent. The Almighty being hereby fo khid to 
 iuch whom he hath deprived of the Pleafure of 
 Commanding others, as to give them the Plea- 
 fure of being commanded by fuch as they need 
 not be afhamed- to obey; and fo juft to thofe 
 whom he had burdened with that Command, as 
 to fit them for it by refembling Endowments: 
 And as by the Heroicknefs of thefe who repre- 
 fent him, he magnifies his own Wifdom in that 
 Choice ; fo by their Publick-Spiritednefs, he ma- 
 nifefts his Love to thefe who are to be governed. 
 Thus as amongft the Spheres, the Higher ftill roll 
 with the greateft Purity; and as in natural Bo- 
 N 4 die^^ 
 
7^ Mo7'al Gallantry. 
 
 dies, the Head is as well thp higheft as the no- 
 bleft Part of that pretty Fabric k, ( from being 
 vain whereof nothinp; could let us, bat that as 
 the Apoftlc fays, It ts gi'vtn m, and it ts 7iot our 
 civn WorkmaTjjlnf ) ; fo ' amongft Men ( each 
 thereof is a little World , or rather a nobler 
 Draught of the greater ) the highcft are ordina- 
 rily the more fublime; for fuch as attain by Ele- 
 ction to that Height, muft be prefumed beft to 
 deferveit;ruch as force aPalTage to it, could not do 
 fo without Abilities far raifed above the ordinary 
 Allowance : And fuch as by their Birth are ac- 
 counted Noble, have ordinarily (like Water) their 
 Blood fo much the more purify'd, by how much 
 the f-irthcr it hath run from its firft Fountain. 
 Anti(^'uicv is an abridged Eternity; and that being 
 one of God's Attributes, thefe do oft refemble 
 him moft in his other Attributes, who can pre- 
 tend with greateft Juftice to this : And as in na- 
 tural Bodies, Durnrion doth argue Finencfs and 
 Strength of Confticution , fo wc cannot but ac- 
 knowledge, that thofc Families have been moft 
 worthy, who have worn out the longeft Traft 
 of Time, without committing any fuch enor- 
 mous^ Crime, or being guilty of either fuch Rafh- 
 nefs or Infrugality, as moth away thefe their 
 Linages ;which, like Jo7jah\ Gourd, rather appear 
 to falute the World, thnn to fix any Abode in it. 
 Yet there is a Nobility of Extraction much 
 raifed above what can owe its Rife to Flefb or 
 Blood : and that is Virtue, which being the fame 
 in Souls, that the other is in Bodies and Families, 
 muft, by that Analogy, furpafs it as far as the 
 Soul is to be preferred to the Body : And this 
 Mortal Honour and Nobility, pri/.es its Value fo 
 far above all other Qualities, that the Stoical Sa- 
 V^'fii following the Ditlates or Doctrines of that 
 
 School, 
 
Moral Gallantry. 173 
 
 School, is bold to fay. That nothing but Virtue 
 deferves the Name of Nobility. 
 
 Nohilipas fola efi atq^ unica Virtus. 
 
 And in Oppofition to this Nobility, but moft 
 confequentially to that Do(5trine, Seneca, a Par- 
 tifan of the fame Tribe, doth with a Noble 
 Haughtinefs of Spirit tell us. That licet Deus nef- 
 cirety nee homo funiret, feccatum, non tamen feccarerriy 
 ob feccatt tnUtatem ; though God did not know , 
 nor Man would not punifh Vice, yet I would 
 not fin ; fo mean a Thing is Vice. For proving 
 of which, I fhall advance and confirm thefe two 
 great Truths, That Men are in Tolnt of Honour 
 obliged to be virtuous: And that there is no Vice 
 which is not fo mean, that it is unworthy of a 
 Gentleman: And fliall lead you unto that Sera- 
 glio of private Vices, of which, though the weak- 
 eft feem in our Experience to have Strength 
 ei^iough to conquer fueh who pafs for great Spi- 
 rits, or Wits in the World ; a Philofopher will 
 yet find, that thefe Defeats given by them to 
 noble Spirits , do not proceed from the Irrefifti- 
 blenefs of their Charms, but from the Inadver- 
 tence of fuch as are captivate ; and is rather a 
 Surprize than a Conqueft : For thofe great Souls 
 being bufied in the Purfuit of fome other Projed, 
 wan: nothing but Time to overcome thefe Follies, 
 or elfe thefe Vices and Paflions (which is a great 
 Argument of their Weaknefs ) do then aifault 
 fuch Heroes, when they are become now mad 
 with their Profperity. But if we will ftrip Vice 
 or Pallion of thefe gaudy Ornaments, which 
 Error and Opinion lends them, or advert to our 
 own Anions, we will find that thefe overcome 
 us not, but that we by our own Mifapprehenfion 
 of them overcome our felves ; as will appear, 
 
 firft. 
 
^74- Moral Gallantry. 
 
 firft, by fome general Reflections ; to which m 
 the fecond place, I (hall fiibjoin fome particular 
 Inftances ; and fhall by a fpecial Induction of the 
 moft Eminent Virtues and Vices, clear. That 
 there is nothing fo Noble as Virtue, nor nothing 
 fo mean as Vice. I 
 
 As to the general Reflexions, I fhall begin 
 with this ; that if Advancement be a noble Prize, 
 Virtue - doubf^^^s Virtue muft by this be more noble than 
 trihutet ' Vice, feeing it beftows ofteft that fo much defired 
 more to Rcward. From further proving of which from 
 Mvance- Reafon, confidcr, that no Man will alfociate 
 mcnt than ^jj.|^ vicious Perfons, (without which no Project 
 ^*" ^' for Advancement can be promoted). For who 
 will hazard his Life and Fortune with one whom 
 he cannot believe .'' And who can believe one 
 who is not virtuous ? Truft, Fidelity, and Sin- 
 cerity, being themfelves Virtues : Or who fhould 
 expe<fl to gain by Favours the Friendfhip of fuch, 
 as by their Vices are ingratfe to God and Nature ? 
 Who have been to fuch liberal, infinitely far a- 
 bove human Reach; (and thus likewife vicious 
 Perfons are contemptibly mean, feeing they are 
 fo infinitely ingrate. ) And in this appears the 
 Mcannefs of Vice, that it can efPedluate nothing 
 .without counterfeiting Virtue, or without its real 
 Affiftancc : When Robbers aflTociatc, they enter- 
 tain fomething Analogical to Friendfhip and 
 Truft, elfe their Vices would be but barren ; and 
 without Mumility fhewed to Inferiors, the proud- 
 «d Men and Tyrants would owe but little to the 
 -Grcatnefs of their Spirit. When Undertakers 
 league together, either they'truil: one another 
 becaufe of their Oaths, or becaufe of their In- 
 terefts only ; if the Firft, they owe their Succefs 
 to Virtue ; if the Second, then they never fully 
 ' cement, but aflift each other by Halves ; refer- 
 ring the other Half of their Force to attend that 
 
 Ciiangc, 
 
Moral Gallantry. 
 
 I 
 
 Change, which Interefl may bring to their AiTo- 
 dates : And do fuch as fight for Hire ( Intereft 
 being nothing elfe ) acquit themfelves with fuch 
 Valour, as thofe whofe Courage receives Edge 
 from Duty, Charity, Religion, or any fuch vir- 
 tuous Principles ? Vicious Perfons have many Ri- 
 vals, and fo meet in their Rifing with much Op- 
 pofition : The Covetous fear the Promotion of 
 him who is fuch ; and the Ambitious of him who 
 is of the fame Temper : But becaufe all expert 
 Civility from the Courteous, and Money from 
 the Liberal ; they therefore wifh their Prefer- 
 ment, as what will contribute to their own In- 
 tereft : And Princes are induc'd to gratify fuch, 
 as knowing that in fo doing they tranfmit to their 
 People what they bellow upon fuch Favourites ; 
 and that they preclude the Challenges of thofe, 
 who repine at their Favours as mifplac'd, when 
 not bellowed upon themfelves. 
 
 If there be any thing that is noble and defira- f^'^tueis 
 bleinFame, Virtue is the only (atleaft as the X'.XHJ 
 ftraightell, fo the nearell ) Road to it ; Polleri- fa^e%han 
 ty taking our A<5lions under their Review with- yice. 
 out the Byafs of Prejudice, Palfion, Intereft, or 
 Flattery. And of fuch as Story canonizes for its 
 Grandees, Alexander is not fo truly Glorious for 
 defeating the Indians, as for refufing to force Da~ 
 rhtis fair Daughters ; for in the one a great part 
 is due to the Courage of his Soldiers, and the 
 Brutilhnefs of his Oppofers ; whereas in the other 
 he overcame the Charms of fuch, as might have 
 overcome all others j and was put to combat his 
 own Youth, which had gain'd for him all his 
 Vidories: The meaneft of his Soldiers could 
 have forc'd a Pris ner , but Fame referved it as a 
 Reward worthy of Alexander m his Chaftity, to 
 vanquifh a Monarch, and gratify a generous La- 
 dy ; to difpleafe wKom was as great a Crime as it 
 
 was 
 
176 Moral Gallantry, 
 
 was to ravifh others. Nor was TVllliam the Conr 
 qucror more honoured for llibjeding a Warlike 
 Nation^ than for pardoning Goffatrkk and Eafia- 
 cbeof Bulloign, after fo many Re voltings : F.orin 
 the one, he conquered but thefe who were lefs 
 than himfelf ; but in the other he conquered 
 himfelf, who was their Conqueror. Arlfiides was 
 elteemed more Noble in undergoing a patient 
 Banifhment, than thefe Ufurpers who condemn- 
 ed him to it, whofe Name$ remain as obfcure as 
 their Crimes are odious ; vvhilft his is the conti- 
 nual Ornament of Pulpits and Theatres. And 
 all the i^<jw<7» Glories do not celebrate Nero's Me- 
 mory to the fame Pitch with that of Seneca Sy 
 who did (like the Sun) then appear greateft 
 when he was nearell to the Setting. Alexander is 
 only praifed when we remember not his killing 
 Farrmnio : And the Famous Hugh Capet of France 
 ends his Glory, where we begin to talk of his 
 Ufurpation ; and ( to difpatch ) this is one great 
 Difference betwixt Virtue and Vice, in relation 
 to Fame ; That Vice, like a Charletan, is applaud- 
 ed by the unacquainted, or like rotten Wood may 
 fhine in the dark ; but its Fuftre lelTens at the 
 Approach of either Time or Fight ; whereas tho' 
 Virtue may for a time lie under the Oppreflion 
 of Malice, ( which Martyrdom it fuffers only 
 when it is miftaken for Vice ) ; yet Time enoblcs 
 it, and Fight does not lend it Splendor, but fcrves 
 only to illuminate its Beholders ; and fo to enable 
 them to difcovcr what native Excellencies it pof- 
 (effes. 
 >« jiriru^ I^ Amfhialus or Orondates had been charged ii) 
 mint from thcfe Romanccs ye fo dote upon, with Drunken- 
 Rsmanctf. nefs, Opprcffion, or Envy, certainly it had lef- 
 fcn'd their Efteem even with fuch as moll admire, 
 though they will not imitate, thefe Virtues. And 
 to fhew how much Kindnel§ Virtue breeds for 
 
 fuch 
 
Moral Gallantry. ijj 
 
 fuch as pofTefs it, confider how, though ye know 
 thefe to be but imaginary Ideas of Virtue, yet we 
 cannot but love them for that, as ye ca:n love 
 them for nothing elfe, feeing they never obliged 
 you or your Relations ; and fince abftrad Virtus 
 conciliates fo much Favour, certainly Virtue in 
 you will conciliate much more : For befides that 
 Idea which will be comi*)n to you with them, 
 fome will be obliged thereby to love you, as their 
 Benefadors ; and others becaufe they know not 
 when ye will become fo ; and at leaft they will 
 honour your Virtue, as that which will fecure 
 them againlt your Wrongs ; and which will af- 
 fure them of your good Wiflies, if you cannot 
 lend them your Affiftance. Would not the moft 
 proftitute Ladies hate Statlra or FartheniJJa, if they 
 had been reprefented under any one-of thefe their 
 own Vices ; whofe Number can find their Ac- 
 count no where but in the Moments they live, 
 nor Excufes no where but in the Madnefs of fuch 
 as commit them ? And would not our Gallants 
 think it ridiculous to fee thefe Heroes brought in 
 by the Author of C^jj'andra or Tarthenijfa, glory- 
 ing in having made their Comrades brutifti by 
 drinking, or poor Maids miferable by Unclean- 
 nefs : And though Whoring be cried up as one of 
 thefe Genteel Exercifes, that are the Price of fo 
 much Time and Pains : yet we hear of none of 
 thefe who are fo much as faid to have had a 
 Whore, far lefs to glory in it. But to turn the 
 Medal ; Confult your own Exi3erience, and it 
 will remember you of many hopeful Gentlemen, 
 whofe Advancement hath been fo far difappoint- 
 ed by thefe Vices, that they fell fo low as to be- 
 come Objeds of Pity to fuch as fear'd them once, 
 as their accomplifh'd Rivals. And to let us fee 
 the Folly of Sin ^ I have known fuch as hated 
 Nigardlinefs fo much, as that to ihun it, they 
 
 fpen': 
 
1 78 Moral Gallantry, 
 
 fpent their Abortive Eflates before they were full 
 Matters of them ; brought by that Excefs to flee 
 Creditors, ftarve at Home, walk in Rags, and 
 which is worfe, beg in Mifery; and fo to fall in- 
 to the Extremity of that Vice, whofc firft and 
 moft innocent Degrees they laught at in others : 
 And when they begg'd from thefe who were both 
 Authors and CompaMJpns in their Debaucheries, 
 (expeAing to be fuppned as well by their Juftice, 
 as their Compaffion) did get no Return but that 
 Laughter which was a LeiTon taught by them- 
 felves ; or at beft, a Thoufand Curfes for having 
 bred them in a way of living, that did naturally 
 occafion fo much Mifchief. If then Poverty be 
 mean and ignoble, certainly Vice mufl; be fo too ; 
 feeing bcfides Sicknefs, Infirmity and Infamy, it 
 hales on Poverty upon fuch as entertain it. 
 Virtue rai- When the World was yet fo Young as to be 
 fed the |g^ i^y 5incerity, in place of that Experience 
 W R-:- which makes our Age rather witty than honeft ; 
 man£w- its Heros, who equally furpafled and ennobled 
 firtf. Mankind by their Virtue, were for it deified , 
 even by thefe their Contemporaries, who in 
 poffeffing much more both Riches and Power 
 than they, wanted nothing but this Virtue io be 
 much greatter than they were. And thus Nim- 
 rod's Kingdom could not build him Altars, tho' 
 fmcere Radamanihus had Fire kindled on his by 
 the heat of their Zeal, who knowing him to be 
 mortal, could not, even in Ipite of his dying, but 
 worfhip that Immortal Virtue which fhined in 
 him. And as Cicero informs , thefe Gods of the 
 Tagans were at fir ft but Illuftrious Hero's whofe 
 Virtue, rather than their Nature, rend red them 
 immortal, and worthy to be woifliipped, evenin 
 the eftimation of fuch undilciplin'd Brutes, as 
 thought the Laws of >Nature a Bondage, and the* 
 Laws of God a Tabic. We find, though Lkurgns 
 
Moral Gallantry, 17^ 
 
 in Lacedemon, AriBides in Athens^ and Efamlnon' 
 das in Thebes, were not born to command, yet 
 their Virtue beftovved on them what their Birth 
 denied ; and both without, and againft Factions, 
 they were elefted by their Citizens to that Rule, 
 which they did not court; and were preferred to 
 fuch as both by Birth and Pains had fairer Preten- 
 ces to it. And whihl: Greece tiourifhed, Reges philo- 
 fo^habant , (d^Vhilofofhiregehant-^ thefe Common- 
 wealths being more numerous than their Neigh- 
 bours in nothing but the fmcere Exercife of Rea- 
 fon. And when Tyranny and Pride had, by wa- 
 fting thefe Commonwealths , made place for the 
 Roman Glory ; nothing conquered fo much the 
 Confinersof that gloriousState,('whofeCenter was 
 Virtue, and Circumference Fame) as their Virtue. 
 Thus th^Phalerlons are hy Plutarch laid to have fent 
 AmbalTadors ro Rome, refigning themfelves over 
 to the Roman Government, becaufe they found 
 them fo Jufi: and noble, as to fend back their 
 Children who had been betrayed by a School- 
 mafter. When P^rr/^^j was ad vertifed by the Romans 
 to beware of Poyfon from one of his own Sub- 
 jeAs , who had offered to difpatch him ; he did 
 then begin to fear that he fliould be conquered by 
 their Arms, who had alread}^ fubdued him by 
 their Civilities. And fuch Eiteem had their J u- 
 ftice gained them, that they were chofen Um- 
 pires of all neighbouring Nations ; and fo gained 
 one of tjie Oppofites firil to a Confederacy, and 
 then to a Dependancy upon them. And Attains 
 .King of Pergamus did in Legacy leave them his 
 Kingdom, as to thofe whole Virtues deferved it 
 as a Reward j which occafioned St. Augujiine to 
 fall out into this Eloquent Expreffion : Becaufe 
 God ( faith he ) v^ould not hejtoiv Heaven upon the 
 Romans, they being Pagans ; he bef^oived the Empire 
 ef ths World upon th^m , becaufe they x^ere Virtuous, 
 
 And 
 
^8o Moral Gallantry. 
 
 And many have been raifed to Empires by no o- 
 ther Afliftance than that of their Virtue. As 
 Nuwa PowpiltuSy Marcus Antoninus , Tertlnax and 
 VefpapM; whilft the Want of this hath in Spight 
 of all the Power with which vicious Governors 
 have been Hirrounded, degraded others from the 
 fame Imperial Honours; as Tar^uinius Superbus, 
 Demitian, Comtvodus. And generally there is biit 
 one Emperor to be ^Q.tn in that long Roman Lilt, 
 who was unfortunate being virtuous : And not 
 one whofe Vice was not the immediate Caufe of 
 Ruin to its Author. 
 yirtue Antiquity hath alfo tranfmitted to us the Me- 
 
 hath mad* mory of Socrates, Zem, and Other Philofophers, 
 philofe- under as obliging Eulogies, as thefe of the moft 
 Vdmireda* Famous Empcrors; whom Virtue (to let us fee 
 hvePrin- that Riches and Honours are but the Inftruments 
 (tj. of Fame, and not the Difpenfers of it ) hath 
 
 without any Afliftance raifed to this Pitch above 
 thefe Princes; that they have conquered our E- 
 fteem without the Aid of Armies, Treafures , 
 Senates, or flattering Hiftorians, and ceafe not 
 like them to command when they ceas'd to live ; 
 but by their Precepts and Difcourles force worthy 
 Souls yet to a more entire Obedience , than the 
 others did whilft they were alive,by their Sancfti- 
 ons and penal Statutes. For Princes govern but 
 a fhort time one Nation ; and by thefe Laws they 
 awe but fuch vicious Perfons, whom it is more 
 Trouble than Honour to command. But thefe 
 Illuftrious Philofophers, and fuch as imitate their 
 Virtue, have thereby attained to a Sovereignty 
 over both the Wills and Judgments of the bcft of 
 all fuch as are fcattered amongft all the other 
 Kingdoms of the World. And Marcus Aurelius, 
 who was "one of the greatcft Emperors, doth re- 
 commend to Kings as well as Subje<5ts, to think 
 that one of thefe Philofophers is beholding all 
 
 thcii 
 
Moral Gallantry. 1 8 1 
 
 their AdionSj as a moft efficacious Mean to keep 
 Men in Awe, not to commit that Vice to which 
 they are tempted. 
 
 I have feen very great Men fliun to own even 
 their beloved Vices, in the Prefence of fuch as f^ice^nufi 
 they needed not fear for any thing but their Vir- ^"f/^*"^. 
 tue. And it is moft remarkable, that Nero, who /y. 
 exceeded all who then lived in Power, and all 
 who fhall live (I hope) in Cruelty, did ftill 
 judge himfelf under fome Reftraint, whilft Sene- 
 ca was at Court to be a Wltnefs to his Adions. 
 And every vicious Perfon muft flee Publick, and 
 the Light ( which fhows the xMeannefs and Cow- 
 ardlinefs of Vice ) when he is to rellgn himfelf 
 over to any of thefe Criminal Exercifes ; by 
 which likewife when committed Men become 
 yet more Cowards; for who having fpent his 
 jLife at that unworthy Rate, will not ( if he be 
 Mailer of any Reafon ) tremble and be afraid to 
 venture upon fuch Exploits, which by taking his 
 Life from him, may and will prefent him before 
 the Tribunal of that God whom he hath offend- 
 ed ? and from whom ( which will not a little 
 contribute to his Cowardlinefs ) he cannot exped 
 that Succefs, whereof the Expedation lelfenSj 
 or heightens to its own Meafures, the Courage 
 of fuch as are engaged. 
 
 We may eafily conclude the Meannefs of Vice ^^^'"'!"^\ 
 from this alfo, that Servants without Pains or ^n^J^-^ 
 Art equal us in them; for thefe can Whore, y^gg. 
 Drink, Lie, and Opprefs: But to be Temperate, 
 Juft, and Compaflionate, are Qualities whereby 
 we deferve, and are by fuch as know us not,, 
 judged to be Matters and well defcended. And 
 have not Servants Reafon to think themfelves as 
 deferving Perfons as their Mafter53 when they 
 find themfelves able to equal, or furpafs them in 
 
 O whac 
 
i82 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 what they glory in, as their great Accomplifh- 
 ments? 
 y,ce but Seeing what is imitated is ftill nobler than 
 copi^a Vir. ^j^^j. i^^jj-jjj-es, certainly Vice muft be the lefs 
 noble, becaufe it l^ut copies Virtue, and owes to 
 its Mask and our Errors, what it polTelTes of 
 Pleafure or Advantage. Cruelty pretends to be 
 Zeal, Liberality is counterfeited by the Prodi- 
 gal, and Luft endeavo^s-to^jafs for Love. 
 ^U Fices ^^ there any thing more ignoble than Fear, 
 employ which does as Slaves fubjed: us to every Attempt- 
 Fear. er ? And have not all Vices fomewhat of that 
 unmanly Paflion .'' In Covetoufnefs we fear the 
 Want of Money,inAmbitionthe Want ofHonour, 
 in Revenge the Want ofjufticcjinjealoufy Rivals ^ 
 and when we lye we fear to fpeak openly. 
 MFicet Is there any thing more mean than Depen- 
 makeiu dance ? And does not Ambition make us to de-- 
 depend up- p^^^j upon fuch as have Honours .'' Covetoufnefs 
 upon fuch as have Riches ? and Luft upon the 
 Refufe of Women .'* Whereas Virtue feeks no o- 
 thcr Reward than is paid in doing what is virtu- 
 ous"; and owes its Fee only to it felf ; leaving 
 Vice in the fervile Condition of ferving for a Fee, 
 even thofe whom it moft hates. And generally 
 in all Vices we betray a Mcannefs, becaufe in all 
 thefe we confefs Want and Infirmities: In Ava- 
 rice we appear either Fools in defiring what is 
 not neceftary, in difobliguig Friends, hazarding 
 our Health, and other Neceflaries, for what is 
 not fo in its felf; or elfe we confefs that our Ne- 
 ceflitics are both greater and more numerous than 
 thefe of others, by heaping together Rich- 
 es and Money, which ferve for nothing when 
 they ferve us not in fupplying our Wants. In 
 Ambition we confefs the \\*ant of Native Ho- 
 nour and Excellency: In Luft, Want of Conti- 
 ncncy ; In Anger we want Command of our 
 
 felves ; 
 
Moral Gallantry. i8^ 
 
 (elves ; and in Jealoufy we declare we think not 
 our felves worthy of that Love alone, wherein 
 we cannot feai* Rivals upon any other Account. 
 And in Jealoufy Men likewife wrong their own 
 Honour in fufpeding their Ladies or Friends • 
 whereas Virtue perfuades us, that our Neceflities 
 may be confin'd to a very fmall Number; and 
 that thefe may be repaired without any Lofs of 
 •Friends , and but little of Time. It teaches us 
 that Riches were created to ferve us ; and that 
 therefore we difparage our felves, when we fub- 
 jed our Humour to our Servants* And from it 
 We learn to rate fo juftly the Excellencies of that 
 Rational Soul, which is the Image of God Al- 
 mighty, as to exped from it, and no where elfe 
 under the Sun, any true and folid Happinefs ; 
 and to account nothing more noble than it , ex- 
 cept the Almighty God whofe Offspring it is> 
 and whom it reprefents. 
 
 There is nothing more mean than to be cheat- yiHUe aU 
 ed, and all Vices cheat us : Treafon promifes lovos us » 
 Honour, but leads to a Scaffold ; Lull Pleafure, M ^-^^^ 
 but leads to Sicknefs; and Flattery cheats all fuch °l°^^^ 
 as hear it ; and fuch as are Proud are double mi- 
 ferable, becaufe they are both the Cheaters3 and 
 the Perfons cheated. Thus Vice cannot pleaie 
 without a Crime ; and thefe are even then gain- 
 ing the Hatred and Contempt of others , when 
 they are enquiring, or hearing from Flatterers, 
 that the People feek no where without them Ob- 
 jeds of Love and AdVniration : Whereas Sacred 
 Virtue allows us to admire our felves, and which 
 is more, to believe that all thefe things for which 
 vicious Men negleA the Care of their Souls, are 
 unworthy of our Refearch ; and certainly the 
 Soul is a more noble Creature than that Earth, or 
 Metal , which we ftain our Souls to get: For 
 our Souls do cenfure all thefe things; it finds 
 
 O % bef^ds 
 
184 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 DefeAs in the noblefl Buildings and fhews by 
 defiling more, an Unlatiablenefs in all extrinfick 
 Objeds ; it determines the Price of all other 
 Creatures, and like the Magiftrate in this Com- 
 monwealth, affigns to every thing its Rate ; to 
 Day it cries up the Diamond, and to Morrow it 
 allows Preference to the Ruby : Thefe Treats and 
 Colours which ravifh this Year, pafs the next for 
 no Beauty. Red Hair pleafes the Italian, and 
 our Climate hates it; and it is probable that this 
 Change of Inclination is not a culpable Incon- 
 ftancy in Man, but a Mark of his Sovereignty o- 
 ver ail his Fellow-Creatures. Virtue teaches him 
 not to owe his Happinefs to the Stars, nor to be 
 like them foolifh Emperors, fo fondly vain, as to 
 think that he fhall have no other Reward for his 
 Virtue, than the being transformed into one of 
 thefe lelTer Lights, which he knows to have been 
 created only for a Lanthorn to him, or at the beft 
 but to adorn with their numberlefs AfTociates 
 that Firmament, which was created to be one of 
 thefe Arguments, whereby he was to be courted 
 into a Belief of, and Love for, that God who 
 thinks him fo Excellent a Creature, that he is 
 faid to be glad at the Converfion of a Sinner, 
 and to grieve at his OblHnacv. And if we will 
 ccnlider the miraculous Fabrick of our Bodies, 
 which though we be but dull, yet we may fee to 
 be all Workmanfhip; and wherein the Number 
 of Wonders equals that of Nerves , Sinews, 
 Veins, Bones, or Ligaments'; the curious Fabrick 
 of that Brain, which lodges (' without Croud or 
 Confufion ) fo many thoufand of different and 
 noble Thoughts ; the Artifice of thofe various 
 Organs , that cxprefs fo harmonious Airs and ra- 
 vifliingExpreflions; the Charmingnels of thefe 
 L.ines and Features in Ladies, which like the Sun 
 fcorch as well-as illuminate the Beiioklers: We 
 
 may 
 
Moral Gallantry. 
 
 xnay conclude that our Soul muft be a moft Ex- 
 cellent PiecCj feeing all this Contexture is ap- 
 pointed to be but a momentary Tabernacle for it, 
 when it is in its loweft and unworthieft Eftate ; 
 and which when the Soul deferts, is thrown out 
 with all its Wonders , left it fhould by its Stink 
 trouble the meaneft of thefe Senfes^ which ferves 
 the Souls of thefe who are alive. Confider, how 
 this Soul grafps in one Thought all that Globe 
 for which ambitious Men fight , and for fome of 
 whofe Furrows the avaritious Man doth fo much 
 toil. Confider, how it defpifes all that Avarice 
 has amafs'd ; how it is pleafed with no External 
 Objed4onger than it fully confiders it ; and what 
 a great Vacuity is left in our Defires , after thefe 
 are thrown into them ; and by all this we may 
 learn that Vice difparages too much the Soul, 
 when it imagines that any finite thing can bound 
 its Thoughts ; and we are but cheated when we 
 liften to thefe Proffers, which Vice makes ufe of. 
 Honour, Pleafure, or Advantage : For who can 
 be fo mean to think that all thefe Faculties were 
 beftowed upon our Souls, thefe Features upon 
 our Bodies, and fo much Care taken of both by 
 Providence, for no other End than that we fliou'd 
 admire that Wine which Peafants make ? thofe 
 Colours which proftitute Whores wear ? that we 
 fhould gain Fortunes, which ferve too oft to cor-, 
 rupt thefe for whom they are prepared ? Or Re- 
 fpe6t from fuch as bow not tous, but to our Sta- 
 tions. 
 
 Having thus over-run thefe general Confidera- 
 tions, whereby Men who are gallant may be 
 courted to a Love for Virtue ; my Method leads 
 me now to fall down to thofe Inftances of par- 
 ticular Vices and Virtues, wherein I may make 
 nearer Approaches to the A<ftions of Mankind : 
 And feeing there is too much of Eafe, too little 
 O 5 of 
 
i86 - Moral GciUantry. 
 
 of Cogency, in writing full and tedious Effays 
 upon thefe common Theams, I (hall confider 
 them only as they relate to Gallantry ; promifing 
 no other Track of Art in all this Difcourfe, hut 
 that 1 fhall purfue my Defign fo clofely, as not 
 to employ any Argument againft Vice, nor aflift 
 Virtue with one Thought, but fuch as may decry 
 the one as mean, and cry up the other as Genteel 
 and Handfome. 
 Dijjimula- ^r^ ^^^^ j.j^^^ Deference to great Men, that 
 *'"''' even their Vices fhould have the Precedency of 
 
 all others; and therefore I fhall begin this Inve- 
 iftive with Dijjmulation, which is peculiarly their 
 Sin ; for when the meaner Sort arc guilty of the 
 lame thing, it is in them called Falfhood ; from 
 which Diflimulation differs nothing, but that it is 
 the Cadet of a Nobler Family. And this evin- 
 ces what an ugly and ungenteel Vice Diflimulati- 
 on is, feeing he is no Gentleman who would not 
 chufc rather to die or ftarve, than to be thought 
 falfc : All DifTemblers fhew an inability to 
 compafs without thefe pitiful Shifts, what in dif- 
 fembling they defign, for this is the laft Refuge ; 
 and by this Courage becomes unneceffary : And 
 we oft fee that Cowards dilfemble beft, gallant 
 Men laying that Weight upon their Courage, 
 which others do upon Diflimulation. And at this 
 unworthy Game it is not requifite to be Gallant, 
 provided men be Wicked. Dif/mjulatio^t is hut ^ 
 Courtly Cowardlinefs, and a Stately Cheat: 
 And certainly he "is too much afraid of his own 
 either Courage or Fate, and values too much his 
 PriiLe above his Honour, or Innocence, who can 
 Itoop to play this underboard Game: Wherea* a 
 gallant and generous Soul will not fear any Event 
 ib much, as to leave his Road for it; and will 
 own what isjufl with fo much Noblenefs of Re- 
 fplutjon, that though Fate Ihould tumble down 
 
 upon 
 
JHoral Gallantry, 187 
 
 upon him Mountains of Misfortunes, they may 
 prehaps overwhelm , but they fhall never be able 
 to divert him. Where are then thefe gallant 
 Refolutions of our Fore-fathers ; who Icorn'd 
 even Vidories gained by Treachery, Falfhood, 
 Poyfons, and fuch other unhandfom Means ? 
 Where is the Roman Fortitude , which advertifed 
 Tyrrhus of his Phyficians Offer to poyfon him, 
 though their greateft Enemy? And which 
 caufed Marcus Regtilus chufe to return to be a 
 Martyr for Virtue, rather than ftain the Roman 
 Faith ? Where are thefe Refentments of the Lie 
 in frivolous Caufes, when great Men magnify in 
 their Diflimulation what is in EfFed Lying and 
 Treachery ? To deceive one who is not obliged 
 to believe us, is 111 ; but to cheat one whom our 
 own fair Pretences have induc'd to believe us, is 
 much worfe ; for this is to murther one whom 
 we have perfwaded to lay afide his Arms : And as 
 Diflimulation thrives never but once ; fo to ufe ic 
 cuts off from the DilTembler that Truft and Con- 
 fidence which is neceffary in great Undertakings; 
 for who will depend on thefe whom they cannot 
 truft ? And after DilTemblers are catcht, as feldom 
 they efcape, the abufed People hate and perfecute 
 them as Violaters of that without which the 
 World cannot fubfift. I appeal to the Reader, if 
 he hath not heard Enemies lov'd for their Inge- 
 nuity ; and if he hath not feen thefe Cut-throat 
 Lights blown out and end in a ftinking Snuff; 
 and as if every Man had efcaped a Cut-purfe ; if 
 every man did not blefs himfelf, and rejoyce to 
 fee thefe DilTemblers fall. And I may juftly fay, 
 that Difl^imulation is but the Theory of Cutpur- 
 fmg, or Murther : Confider how unpleafant any 
 thing appears that is crooked , and ye will find 
 natural Argument againft Diflimulation ; and 
 tho' it hath great Patrons, and can pretend to an 
 
 O 4 old 
 
1 8S Moral Gallantry. 
 
 old PolTefTion, and much breeding at fome 
 Courts, (though all who are gallant there hate it) 
 yet it is never able to gain Efleem; and can de- 
 fend it felf no other ways than by a cowardly 
 Lurking, and (hunningto be difcovered. Neither 
 can there be Co much Wit in this Art, as can 
 Juftify its Error ; for Women, and the meaneft 
 Wits are oft-times moft expert in it ; All can do 
 it in fome Meafure , and none ever ufed it long 
 without being difcovered ; and fuch only are rcn- 
 dred its Prey, as make it no great Conqueft ; 
 they being either our Friends, who expected not 
 our Invafion, or Fools whoarenot worthy to be 
 gloried in as our Trophies. 
 
 There are none of the Vices which rage a- 
 mongft them, more deftrudive to either their 
 Honour, or to the Honour of that Common- 
 wealth which they compofe, than Envy, and 
 (which both follows it, and aggravates its guilt) 
 Detraction. Envy is mean, becaufe it confeiFes 
 that tlie Envier is not fo Noble or Excellent as the 
 Perfcn envied ; for none are envied, but fuch as 
 pofTefs fomewhat that over-reaches, or excels 
 what is poffeft by fuch as do envy. This Vice 
 acknowledges, thathe who ufeth it, wants much 
 of what is defirable; and which is meaner, much 
 of what another pcflciTes ; and as if we defpair'd 
 of rifmg to anothers Height, it makes us endea- 
 vour to pull him down to the Stature of our own 
 Accomplifliments. Moft Men effay to imitate 
 the A(ftions of thefe whom they envy; fo that in 
 derra«5ling from thefe they leave others to under- 
 value what they themfelvcs- defign ardently to 
 perform. And thus, if thefe DerraAers be fo 
 much favoured bv Fate, as to atchieve any iuch 
 great Adlion; as that is which they undervalue in 
 others, they get but a barren 'Vi(5lory; and 
 wliich is more infupport»ible, they fee them- 
 
 felvei. 
 
Moral Gallantry. 189 
 
 felves punifhed by their own Vice. And to con- 
 vince us how mean Vices Envy and Detradion 
 are ; we may obferve, that^ fuch as are viftori- 
 ous, judge it their Honour, to magnify thefe 
 who were vanquifli'd ; and Men wound extream- 
 ly their own Honour, when they detract from 
 Perfons who are more deferving in the Eyes of 
 the World than themfelves ; for they force their 
 Hearers to conclude, that the Detra<fters them- 
 felves muft be undeferving ; feeing thefe who de- 
 ferve better, are by their Confeffion, cry'd dov/n 
 as being of no Merit; which remembers me of ^*^ 
 this excellent PafTage ift Plinius the Second, T/^i '/*' 
 ip(i mlnlfiras in alio laudando ;aut enim is tjuem laudas, 
 tihi f»perior eft],aut inferior '^ fi inferior ^ ^ laudanum tt* 
 multo wagis^ Jl faperior, neque jure laudan^ns, ttf 
 multo minus-. Thou ferveft thy ownlntereft when • 
 thou praifeft others ; for either he whom thou 
 praifeft, is thy inferior, and then if he deferves 
 to be praifed, much more thou ; if he be thy Su- 
 perior, and deferves not to be praifed, much lefs 
 thou. All Men are either our Friends, or our 
 Enemies, or fuch who have not concerned them- 
 felves in our Affairs. We are bafe becaufe in- 
 grate, when we detrad: from our Friends ,• and 
 we alfert our own Folly, when by Detrad:ion 
 we endeavour to leifen the Worth of thofe whom 
 we have chofen for fuch : We leifen likevv'ife our 
 Honour, when we detraA from our Competitors 
 and Enemies, becaufe to conteft.with undeferving 
 Perfons is ignoble ; and to be vanquifh'd by them 
 has little of Honour in it : Whereas as all Events 
 are uncertain , if we be overcome by fuch 
 as our Detractions have made to pafs for 
 undeferving, our Overthrow will by fo much 
 become the more defpicable ; and to detraA from 
 fuch as expedled no Wrong from us, and who 
 are Strangers to us and our Affairs, is not only 
 
 impru- 
 
190 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 imprudent and unjufl^ but is as difhonourable and 
 little gallant^ as that is to wound one who ex- 
 peds not our AlTault, and whofe Innocency as 
 to us, leaves him difarm'dj and the Word Backbi- 
 ting clears to ns, that Detraction is a Degree of 
 Cowardiinefs ; for it aiTaults only fuch as are un- 
 prepared or abfent ; which is held difhonourable 
 amongft the leaft of fuch as have Gallantry in any 
 Efteem. He who praifes, beftows a Favour ; 
 but he who detraAs, commits a Robbery, in ta- 
 king from another what is juftly his ,• and cer- 
 tainly to give, is more noble than to take. Envy 
 is alfo moft prejudicial *o great Undertakings, 
 feeing fuch as are engaged, muft refolve either 
 not to ad what is neceitary for compleating fo 
 great i^rojeds, or if they do, to fall under the 
 » Envy of thefe for whom they ad them ; and the 
 Undertakers do obftrud by Envy their own 
 Greatnefs, becaufe they are by that Vice perfua- 
 ded to crop fuch as begin to perform in their 
 Service, Attempts worthy of the being confide- 
 red. How deftrudive likewife this Vice is to the 
 Glory of Kingdoms and Commonwealths, does 
 but too clearly appear from this, that all who are 
 in them are cither defpicable by not being wor- 
 thy of chc being envied, or elfe will be deftroy- 
 ed by that Vice, which levels its murthering En- 
 gines at fuch only who are the nobleft Spirits, 
 and who deferve moft Promotion from their 
 Country. Carthige was deftroyed by the Envy 
 which Haftno and Bomllcar bore to Hannihijl, who 
 by denying him Forces to proi'ecute his Italian 
 Conquefts, did involve themfelves with him in 
 the common Ruins of their Country; which 
 (hews the difhonourable Folly of Envy in confpi- 
 ring againft it felf, with thele, who being Ene- 
 mies to both the Oppofites, fides firft wich the 
 one in gratifying his Envy, and then deftroys: the 
 
 . other. 
 
Moral Gallantry. 191 
 
 other, whofe Paflion it firft ferv'd. Pitiful Ex- 
 amples whereof our own Age affords us, where- 
 in many great Men were by Envy driven to op- 
 pofe Principles, whereon they knew the Publick. 
 Safety and their own private Intereft to depend. 
 Flamlnitts, the Roman General, endangered Rome 5 
 and Terentius Varro did almoft lofe it out of Envy 
 to Fahlus Maxlmus ; and fuch was the Force of 
 Envy, that it did defeat the great Scifio, and ba- 
 nifhed him from that Rome which he had made 
 both fecure and great ; and did by his Exampk 
 cool the Zeal of fuch who retained their Blood in 
 its Veins, as in an Arfenal, for no other End than 
 the Service of their Country; as a Conlequence 
 of which Envy, it was obferv'd, that in the next 
 Age moft of Rome's Citizens declin'd rather to 
 entertain that Fame, which the former courted, 
 than to be expofed to the Cruelty of that Envy 
 which did ufually attend it. Detraftion brings 
 likewife thefe great Difadvantages to our Repu- 
 tation ,• that it engages both thefe from whom we 
 detrad, and their Friends, partly out of Revenge, 
 and partly for Self-Defence , to enquire into our 
 Errors and Frailties ; and to publifli fuch as upon 
 Enquiry they have found, or to hatch Calum- 
 nies, if Truth cannot fupply them : And in that 
 Cafe, Rate of Game obliges us to favour the 
 Counterer ; for we defend what may be our own 
 Cafe, in favouring what is at prefent but the 
 Defence of others. It legitimates likewife thefe 
 Calumnies which are vented by us, by fuch as 
 our Detradion hath not yet reach'd, who will 
 think it their Prudence ( like thofe who fear In- 
 vafion ) to carry the War into the Territories of 
 fuch, from whom thev do, upon well founded 
 Sufplcions, expedt Acts of Hoftility. If then 
 our own Honour be dear to us, we fliould not 
 invade the Honour of others ; For Revenge, the 
 
 ' ■ adiveft 
 
9^ A f oral Gallantly. 
 
 a<fliveft of Paffions ( when added to that Love 
 of Honour, which is equal in us and them ) will 
 oblige them to do more againft our Honour, than 
 we can do in its Defence. 
 
 Whoring renders Men contemptible, whilft it 
 tempts them to embrace fuch as are not only be- 
 low themfelves in every Senfe, but fuch as are 
 fcarce worthy to ferve thefe handfomer Ladies, 
 whom the}' either do, or may lawfully enjoy. 
 Doth not this Vice perfuade Men to lie in Cot- 
 tages with Sluts, or ( which is worfe ) Strum- 
 pets ? To lurk in Corners ; to fear the Encoun- 
 ter of fuch as know them ; and to bribe and fear 
 thofe Servants, who by ferving them at fuch Oc- 
 cafions, have by knowing their Secrets, attaine^d 
 to fuch a fervile Maftery over them, that I have 
 been ashamed to hear Gentlemen upbraided by 
 thefe Slaves, in Terms which were the adequate 
 Punifhment , as well as the Effecfl of their Vice. 
 Men in Whoring mull defign either to fatisfy 
 their own Neceflities, or their Fancy ; if their 
 Neceflities, then as Marriage is more convenient, 
 fo it is as much more noble than Whoring, as it 
 is more genteel for a Perfon of Honour , rather 
 to lodge conftantly in a well appointed Palace , 
 than to ramble up and down in blind Ale-houfes ; 
 in the one a Man enjoys his own, whereas in the 
 other he only lives as Thieves do by Purchafe : If 
 to fatisfy Fancy, certainly it fhould pleafe more, 
 at leaft it is more honourable to be fecure againft 
 Rivals, than to be furc to be equal'd by them. 
 Who will fancy a divided A^ffeclion .'' And who 
 can be fure that fhe who dciboys her Honour for 
 us, will not refign the fame to a Second, or 
 a Third ; for befides the Experiment we have of 
 her Change ; Oaths, Honour, and Obligations 
 can be no convincing Evidences of, or Sureties 
 for what fhe Promifes ; feeing fhe is then break- 
 ing 
 
Mm'al Gallantry, 193 
 
 ing thefe, when flie gives Strangers thefe new Af- 
 furances. And this makes me laugh to hear Wo- 
 men fo fooliftij as to rely upon fuch Pronaifes as 
 are given by Men who deftroy their Nuptial 
 Oaths, when they make them. And if Women 
 be fuch Excellent Perfons, as to deferve that 
 RefpeA, and thefe Adorations, which are paffio- 
 nate enough to be paid before Altars ; certainly 
 every Man flioald endeavour to fecure the Efteem 
 of one of thefe rare Creatures : Which is more 
 noble than to reft fatisfied with a Tenth, or Six- 
 teenth Part, like Men fliaring in a Caper. And 
 therefore feeing Fancy nor Honour allow no Ri- 
 vals, I am confident that no Man can fatisfy his 
 Eancy, nor fecure his Honour, in preferring a 
 Whore to a Wife, or in ufing Whores when he 
 wants one. Have not Whores ruined the Repute 
 of fome' great Men, who entertained them," by 
 caufing them to negle<3: to purfue their Vi(9:ories, 
 as Thais did to Alexander , and Cleopatra to AUrk 
 Antony ? Have they not betrayed their Secrets 
 wherein their Fame was moft interelTed, TisBdilah 
 did to Samffon ? And there is nothing more or- 
 dinary than to hear fuch (like Herod) fwearthat 
 they dare not refufe their MiftrefTes, whatever is 
 within their Reach • and thus they muft either 
 prove bafe in perjuring themfelves, if they think 
 not what they fay \ or are contemptibleSlaves both 
 to their Paffions, and to thefe who occafion them, 
 if they refolve to perform what they promife ; 
 which makes likevv^ife thefe to be dangerous Ma- 
 ilers, who depend upon the Humour of a Wo- 
 man ; and fo concludes them unfit to be great. 
 It were then a generous Expiation of this Vice 
 in fuch as are opprefs'd by it , to ufe it ( not its 
 Objeds ) as Mahomet tlie Great did his gallant 
 Miferefs Irme, whofe Life and Head he facrificed 
 to the Repinings of his Court, and Janlfars ; 
 
 who 
 
94- Moral Gallantry. 
 
 who challeng'd him juftly for loving rather to be 
 conquered by one filly Woman, than to conquer 
 theWorld,whercin fhehad many^but he noEquals. 
 It is noble to deliver Ladies out of Danger , but 
 not to draw Dangers on them ; and to puniftt. 
 fuch as fcofF at them, rather than to make them 
 ridiculous: And what Thoufands of Dangers are 
 drawn upon Ladies by being debauched, when 
 married ; and if they be not married, are they 
 not thereby made the Proverb of all fuch as know 
 them? And to thefe I recommend Tamar\ Words, 
 who when Amnon offered to lye with her, told 
 him. Thou jhah he as one of the Fools in ifrael '^ and 
 I, -whither piall I caufe my Shame to go ? And after 
 this, let them remember that when he had fatis- 
 fied his Luft, then he inftantly ( as is too ordi- 
 nary ) defpifed her Perfon. And fmce Ladies 
 will not ftain their Honour with this Vice, till 
 they be married , I conceive they fhould much 
 lefs after; for there the Obligation is doubled. 
 From all which it follows, that Luft is equally 
 bafe and ignoble, whether it difcharge it felf up- 
 on Equals or Inferiors ; betwixt which Two 
 there is only this Dift'erence, that it is brutal in 
 the one Cafe, and cruel in the other. 
 
 There is no Vice whereby Gallantry is more 
 ftain'd, than by Breach of Promife ; which be- 
 comes yet more Sacrilegious , when Ladies are 
 wrong'd by it. And of this , Whoring makes 
 Men likewife guilty, when it robs from Ladies 
 their Husbands ; robbing likewife fuch upon 
 which it beflows them, both of their Honour 
 and Quiet. And thus , though it makes fuch as 
 ufe it barren, ( God in this refifting the Propa- 
 gation of Sin ) yet it felf brings forth its Faults 
 in full Cluftcrs. And Nathans Parable to David 
 proves it likewife to be fo high an Opprcffion, 
 that no Man of Honour would commit it, if hs 
 
 would 
 
Moral Gallantry, 195 
 
 would but ferioufly reflect upon his own AAions. 
 From which Parable this new Obfervation may 
 be likewife made^ that tho' D^i/ii was guilty of 
 Murther and Whoring ^ yet the Prophet made 
 choice only of this laft to altonifii this Warlike 
 Monarch , and raife his Indignation againft this 
 Vice , when Ihadowed out under a foreign and 
 borrowed Reprefentation. Though Murther be 
 fo barbarous a Crime in it felf , that the Barbari- 
 ans did inftantly conclude P^«/ guilty of it^ when 
 they faw the Viper faften upon his Hand. The 
 unjufteft Extravagance of Luft is that whereby 
 Men contemn fuch as become their Wives , tho' 
 they admired them when they were their Miftref- 
 fes ; for in this they confefs it is a Meannefs to be 
 theirs ; for fince that time the Negleders thought 
 them amiable, they fweet Creatures have oft 
 contraded no Guilt ; nor leiTen'd the Occafion 
 of that Efteem no otherwife^ than by marrying 
 their inconftant Gallants , who feemed to have 
 fo warm a Paffion for them. And it is llrange , 
 that Men fhould admire their own Eloquence, 
 Courage, Eftates, and all things elfe they poffefs, 
 for no other Caufe , than becaufe they are their 
 own; and yet fliould undervalue their Wives 
 ( the nobleft thing they poffefs ) upon this and 
 no other Account. 
 
 I cannot think Nature fuch a Cheat, as that if 
 Women had not been the excellenteft of Crea- 
 tures, it would have beautified them with Charms, 
 and armed their Eyes with fuch piercing Glan- 
 ces, that to refift them is the next Impoffibilicy to 
 the finding a Creature that is more accompliih'd 
 than they ; and I confefs, the Love we bear 
 them is not only allowable in it felf, as an Incli- 
 nation that is of its own Nature Ncble and Virtu- 
 ous; but likewife, becaufe it obliges fuch as are 
 engaged in it to defpife all mean Vices, fuch as 
 
 Avarice 
 
J 96 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 Avarice or Fear ; and is incompatible with all 
 difingenuoiis Arts, fucli as Difltmulation or Flat- 
 tery. And rbouj^h fuch as are guilty of Who- 
 ring, do jiiftify their debording by a Love to that 
 glorioas Sex; yet by this Pretext they are yet 
 more unjuft and vicious than their former Guilt 
 made them ; for by roving amongft fo many, 
 they inrijTiate that they are notfatisfied with their 
 firft Choice; and that not only there are fo me 
 of that Sex, but that there is none in it who de- 
 fervcs tl cir entire Affection. Or elfe by dividing 
 them amongll: fo many, they think their Kind- 
 nefs fufficient to make Numbers of Ladies happy; 
 by both which Errors, they wrong not only 
 themfelvcs by fwearing otherwife to the Ladies 
 to whom they make Love, but they wrong like- 
 wife the Innocence and Amiablenefs of that 
 fwect Sex, in whom no rational Man can find a 
 Blemifh, befides their Efteem for fuch Perfons 
 as thefe, who indeed admire them no where but 
 in their Compliments; and who are ofc fo bafe, 
 that not only their Society is fcandalous, but they 
 are ready to tempt fuch as they frequent; or if 
 they fail in this, are oft ^o wicked, that they, to 
 fatisfy either their Revenge or Vanity, do brag 
 of Intimacies and Allowances which they never 
 poftefsM. If then Gallants would be lov'd by their 
 Mirtrefles, they muft be virtuous, feeing fuch 
 love only thefe who are fecret, many things paf- 
 fing amongft even Flatonkks, which fhould not be 
 revealed. Thefe who are couragious, fceing-this is 
 appointed to be a Protection to the Weaknefs 
 of their Sex ; and thefe who are conftanr, fee- 
 ing to be relinqufh'd infers either a want of Wit, 
 in having chofen fuch as would quit them with- 
 out a Defect ; or elfe that they were abandoned be- 
 caufe of Defe(5ls, by fuch as the World mav juftly 
 from their fii-ft Ardency, conclude, would never 
 
 have 
 
Moral Gallantry. ^97 
 
 have abandoned them without thefe; what Lad)' 
 without a Cheat, will be induced to love one 
 walled with Pox and Inconftancy? one whoili 
 Drunkennefs makes an unfit Bedfellow, as well 
 as a Friend ? And though fome worfhip the Re- 
 ifcks of Saints, yet none but thefe who are mad 
 as well as vicious, will worfliip the Relicks of 
 Sinners. 
 
 Neither is the Meannefs of this Vice taken off, 
 by theGreatnefs of thele with whom it is fhar'd ; 
 which may be clear from this ; that either Affe- 
 ction, Intereft, or Ambition, are in the Defign 
 of thefe Offenders. If Affedion, it fllould excufe 
 no more her who is Whore to a Monarch, than 
 her who is fuch to a Gentleman \ for Affection 
 refpeds the Perfon, but not the Condition of 
 fuch as are lov*d : And it is certainly then molt 
 pure, when it cannot be afcribed to, or needs the 
 Help of either Riches to bribe, or Power to re- 
 commend it. But if Riches be defign'd, theil 
 the Committer is guilty both of Avarice and 
 Whoring ; and fhe is not worthy to be a Mi- 
 ftrefs, who can floop to a Fee like a Servant. 
 And fhe who defigns Honour and Repute by 
 thefe Princely Amours, is far difappointed : For 
 though flie may command Refpeft, yet Efteem is 
 not fubjed to Sceptres. And I am confident 
 that Lucretia, who chus'd rather to open her 
 Veins to a fatal Launce, than her Fleart to the 
 Embraces of a Sovereign , is more admired than 
 Thais, Pofaa, Jane Shore, and Madam Gabriel ^ 
 whofe Obedience to their own Kings was si 
 Crime in them, though it was Loyalty in others. 
 Blufhes are then the noblefl kind of Paint for 
 Ladies, and Chaflity is their molt charming Or- 
 nament: And if thefe Would fend out their E- 
 milfaries> to learn by them how to reform their 
 Errors^ as they ofc do to reform tbctr Revenge, 
 
 t-» they 
 
198 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 they would cafilv perceive, that loofe Men laugh 
 at their Kindncls, virtuous Men undervalue them 
 and it. And whenever any Judgment is poured 
 out upon the Kingdom, or Misfortune overtakes 
 thefe Minions, then all is afcribed by Divines to 
 their Loofenefs ; and it is one of theallowableft 
 Cheats in Devotion, to invent miraculous Re- 
 fcntments from Heaven upon their Failures. 
 Young Ladies, to recommend their own Chafti- 
 ty are obliged, in good Breeding, at leaft to fay 
 they hate them : Such as arc married, are bound 
 by their Intereft to decry fuch as may debauch 
 their Husbands ; and thefe who are old, rail a- 
 gainft them, as thofe who place all Happinefs in 
 what, becaufe of Age, they cannot pretend to : 
 Whereas fuch as are chaft, are recommended 
 with magnifying Praifes , for Patterns to fuch as 
 are vicious; and are copied as admirable Origi- 
 nals, bv fuch as are virtuous. And I cannot 
 omit this one Refledion, that chaft Women arc 
 more frequently tainted with Pride, than with 
 any other Vice ; Nature as it were allowing to 
 them to raife their own Value far above others , 
 whom they have ( almoft ) Reafon to contemn, 
 as Perfons who proftitute themfelves ; ( which, 
 and the Word humbling^ are leflening Epithets of 
 Whoring ) ; and fuch who are nafty, fpotted, 
 and unclean. 
 
 Luft and Ohfcenity in Difcourfe, run in a vi- 
 cious Circle, and by an odious Inceft beget one 
 another ; for as I.ult prompts Men to Otfcenity, 
 fo Obfcenity pimps Men into Luft ; but in this 
 Obfcenity is more culpable than Luft, that in the 
 one, Men alledge a natural Advantage, and fome 
 a Neceflity ; but in the other they have no 
 Temptation, and fo fall under that Curfe, TVoe 
 unto them that fm without a C<ittfe. In. the one Men 
 fin covertly, making by their Bhiflie?, as by a ta- 
 cit 
 
Moral Gallantry, I99 
 
 cit Confeflidn, fome Attonenient for their Guilt ; 
 but ill the other Men divulge their Sin, and by 
 gracing it with what, if the SubjeA were honeft^- 
 might pafs for Wit , do invite fuch as wifli to be 
 reputed Wits, firft to admire, and then to imitate 
 them in their Sinning ; and the beft of fuch as 
 ule that Eloquence, become thereby mofl ignoble| 
 being in Effed but Cooks , who prepare' Sawces 
 for provoking a luftful Appetite in their Hearts. 
 And I aditiire, that feeing Comedians are hifs'd 
 off the Stage , when they attempt it , that fuch 
 ,as are fo far greater than thefe , as Mailers are a- 
 bove Buffoons, fiiould imagine that they can 
 magnify themfelves by it. This Vice may well 
 enough be ranged under one of the Species of 
 Sodomy, feeing fuch as ufe it, employ in their 
 Luft thefe Members, which were fo far from be- 
 ing deftinate for fo low Ufes, that the Vfalmlfi in 
 faying , He ivill fraife God with h^s Glory , ( which 
 Interpreters render to be the Tongue) doth fhew 
 lis, that our Tongues are amongft the nobleft 
 Parts of our Body. And when I confider, how 
 Melodious it is in its Harmonies ^ how Eloquent 
 in its Expreflions ; how whole Multitudes are re- 
 claimed from their greateft Furies by it ; and how 
 Cicero is in Spight of all his other Faults, fo ad- 
 mired for it, that thoufands fweat and toil daily;; 
 to make one in that Number, wherein he is ac- 
 knowledged to be by them all far the firft : When 
 I confider, how miraculoully it expreires,with the 
 fame Motion, fo varying Sounds, that tho' Man- 
 kind be innumerable , yet each in it hath his di- 
 fl:in6l Tone and Voice ; and how with little dif- 
 ferent Pofitions , it fignets the fame Air with 
 Words fo extremely differing, that one may think 
 that each Man hath a Spirit (peaking out of hims 
 I muft tell out in Regrates and Wonders, thatj 
 and how fo Excellent a Faculty is fo much abiv 
 
 P % f^ai 
 
*2oo Moral Gallantry. 
 
 fed I Neither mud we conclude, thatbecaufe fuch 
 go away unanfwercd, that they owe this to the 
 Sharpnefs of their Wit, but rather to the Depra- 
 vednefs of its Subject ; wherewith the greateft 
 part of accurate Spirits are fo little acquainted, 
 that fome know not the Terms, and others know 
 them only to hate them. We muft not think, 
 that we admire for Wits fuch ftill at whom we 
 laugh : And I believe many laugh at fuch as are 
 prophane, as they do at fuch as they fee flip and 
 catch a Fall , though never fo dangerous. I re- 
 grate in thisVice,both to fee fharpMen fo vicious, 
 and fo much Wit fo mifemployed ; for though we 
 may fay here, that Materlam fuperabat opus, yet 
 fuch is the Abjeftnefs and Worthlefsnefs of the 
 Matter, that it is not capable of Ornament, no 
 more than Excrements are to be admired, though 
 they were gilded, and carv'd out by the moft cu- 
 rious Hand ; and their Wit is at leaft to be charged 
 with this Error , that it chufes not SubjeAs wor- 
 thy of their Pains ; for whereas the Quaintnefs 
 of Fancy doth, when employ'd about indifferent 
 SubjeAs , beget its Mailers Refpecft ; and when 
 upon Excellent Admiration, all that it can do 
 here , is but to Excufc the Faults it makes ; and 
 fo at leaft is fo beggarly an Employment, that 
 it's fcarce able to defray its own Charges. I ac- 
 count him no Wit, who cannot deferve that 
 Name, though he be barr'd any one Subjetft, efpe- 
 cinlly fuch a Subjeft as Obfcenity is; wherein 
 former Traffickers have been fo numerous, and 
 fo vacant from other Employments, that as no- 
 thing which is excellent, lb little th^it is new, can 
 be faid upon it; and what is faid, is tranfmitted 
 from Ear to Ear, with fo much of Secrecy, that 
 as no Hiftorian will write it, fo fewer will know 
 it, than will know any of thefe wirtv ProduAi- 
 0ns of Learning, or moral Pliilofophv, which 
 
 all 
 
Moral Gallantry, 101 
 
 all Men indifFeren/ly defire to read and repeat: 
 Whereas this will' be altogether fupprefs'd from 
 fucceeding Ages; and of the prefent, Ladies_, 
 Statefmen, Lawyers, Divines, and Phyficians, 
 are not allowed to give it Audience. I have 
 heard Women, though loofe, fay. That they lo- 
 ved none of thefe, who publilh their Shame, 
 tho' they fatisfied their Luft ; and that fuch did 
 often evaporate their Luft in thefe Raileries, or 
 defign to fupply their Defeds in fuch Difcourfes. 
 And I know that Lacquies, or Bawds, will be 
 more accurate in that Kind of Eloquence, than 
 the nobleft of fuch as ufe it, ( if any who are 
 noble ufe it at all. ) Men muft either think Wo- 
 men great Cheats, in loving what they weep and 
 blufh at; or elfe they are very cruel, in torment- 
 ing their Ears with fo grating Sounds. And if 
 Women be fuch Excellent Creatures, as Mens 
 Oaths and CompHments make them, certainly 
 Obfcenity muft be a mean Vice, feeing of all o- 
 thers, fuch decry it moft. For Compliance with 
 whom , it is ftrange that thefe who offer to die , 
 will not much rather abandon a Piece of Imagina- 
 ry Wit ; and which paifeth not even for fuch, but 
 amongft thefe who are fcarce competent Judges. 
 It is moft unbefeeming a Gentleman, for fuch 
 as frequent Ladies , to fpend fo much time in 
 ftudying a kind of Wit , that not only cannot be 
 ferviceable, but which cannot in any cafe be ac- 
 ceptable or recreativ^e to thefe lovely Perfons ; for 
 whofe Devertifement and SatisfaAion, even ' 
 thefe obfcene Ranters do pretend that they em- 
 ploy all their time and pains; and whom they will 
 doubtlefs at fome Occafions offend , by flipping 
 into one of thefe criminal Expreffions, which 
 Cuftom will fo famiharize, that it will be as im- 
 poffible for them to abftain, as it will be for thefe 
 ©thers to hear what is fo fpoke without Trouble 
 P :; and 
 
202 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 and DiflatisFadlion. Such as have their noble 
 Souls buficd about great matters, find little time 
 to invent Exprcflions or mould Thoughts con- 
 cerning fuch pitiful Subjects. And I appeal to the 
 worft of thefe, if they do not abominate f uch ai^^ 
 are in Hiftory noted for Obfcenity; and if they 
 would not hatfc any, who would adorn their Fu- 
 neral Harangue with no other Praifes , but that 
 they were fo wittily prophane, that they would 
 force Ladies to blufh. Debauches to laugh^, Statef- 
 men to undervalue them, and chafe Divines 
 from theirTable. ■ 
 
 "jnjtiYks Avarice is fo.bafe aVice, that the term SorUlA 
 ,indLih- is improperly ufed in Morality, whenitis other- 
 tality. wife applied; and by tcnn'mg onQ^ Noble Ferfon, 
 we intend to fignify, that he is liberal: This is 
 that Vice, which by ftarving great Defigns, hin- 
 ders them to grow up to their full Dimenfion<;. 
 None will oiny about difmcmbred Bodies, ahd 
 wear Scars in their Service, nor gain Vidories 
 for thefe, whofe Avarice will fo little Reward 
 their Pains, that they oft-times refufe to fupply 
 thefe Necefiicics which were contradred in 
 theit own Employments. No great Man hath' 
 both the Hearts and the Purfes; of his Inferiors. 
 And few have been famous or profperous bAit' 
 fuch as have been as ready to be flow Riches upon 
 their Friends, as they have been ready to take' 
 Spoil from their Enemies. T/je7r7iJhc!cs ftndlhg 
 himfclf tempted to Eook upon a great Treaflir^, 
 blufh'd at his Error- and turning to iiis Servant 
 fa id, Take thou that Moneys, for thou art mtTht- 
 rniftocles. 7lo?vc then begun to be jealous <"'f 
 Cafars Greatnefs, when he begun to put rlie 
 Army in his Debt. It was faid of phat Noble 
 .'Duke of Gfiijcj that he was tlie grearcft: IJfurer 
 jn Fi-ance; for he laid out hisEftare in Obligations. 
 AJid Tacitus obfervesj that Feip^r^m had equaKd 
 
 the 
 
Moral Gallantry. 205 
 
 the greateft of the Roman Heroes ^ if his Avarice 
 had not leffen'd his other Virtues : Which is the 
 Obfervation made by Vhill'^ de Comlnes^ upon 
 Lewis the nth. of France. PerfeHs, out of love to 
 his TreafureSj loft both his Kingdom^ and thefe; 
 being as a Punifhmentto his Avarice^ led in Tri- 
 umph in the Company of his Coffers by a Rowan 
 General;, who gloried, and is yet famous for having 
 died almoft a Beggar. The World love Efteem, 
 and follow fuch as are liberal; Hiftorians celebrate 
 their Names ; Soldiers fight their Battels; and their 
 Beadfmen importune Heaven for fuccefs to their 
 Arms; but no Man can have a Kindnefs for fuch 
 as will prefer to them a little ftamped Earth ; or 
 value no Obligations but thefe which bind to a 
 paying of Mony. And it is well concluded by 
 the World, that no vaft Soul can reftrid all its 
 Thoughts to thatEmploy ment, which is the Task 
 of Porters and Coblers. In this Vice we make 
 our Souls toferve our Riches; whereas initsop- 
 pofite Virtue, Riches, and every thing elfe 
 (whofe Price thefe may be) arc by fuch as are 
 truly liberal, fubjeded to the meaneit Employ- 
 ment, to which the Soul can think them con- 
 ducive. And the Soul is too noble and well ap- 
 pointed an Apartment, to be filled with Coffers, 
 Bags, and fuch like Trafli, which even thefe, 
 who value them moft, hoard up in their darkeft 
 and worft furnifh'd Rooms : And fuch as are libe- 
 ral, are theMafters; ( for it belongs to thefe on- 
 ly to fpend) whereas the Avaritious are in Efled 
 but their Cafh-keepers; who have the Power to 
 keep, but not the Allowance to fpend what is 
 under their Cuftody. 1 am confident, that Ze- 
 no is more famous (and to be rich ferves for no- 
 thing elfej for throwing away his Money, when 
 it begun to trouble his nobler Thoughts; than 
 Crafus, whofe Mountainous Treafures ferved on- 
 ly to bribe a more valiant Prince to deftroy 
 P 4 them 
 
^oj^ Moral Gallantry. 
 
 them and him. And Alarcus CraJJus,thQ richefti^<'- 
 w^w, was fo far undervahied by Julius Cafar ; 
 that he faid^ he would make himfclf richer in 
 one Hour, than thcfe Riches could their Mailer; 
 which came accordingly to pafs, when by his Li- 
 berality he gained the Roman Soldiery ; and 
 they gained for him the Empire of that World, 
 whereof Craffus\ Eflate was but a fmall one, 
 though his Avarice made it a great Spot in him. 
 This Vice implies a prcfcnt Senfe of Want, and a 
 pear of future Mifery.; to be hoarding up what 
 fervcs for nothingelfe, except to prevent, or fup- 
 ply us in thcfe Conditions. But Noble Spirits, 
 who defign Fame and Conqucfts, Virtue and 
 Jleligibn , raife their Thoughts above this low 
 Vice y and deflgn not to gain Riches, but Men, 
 who are Maftcrs of thefc ; and with whom when 
 gain'd, they can foon bring all things to their 
 Pevotion : And therefore inPoint of Honour we 
 arc obliged to haroAvarice,and chcrifhLiberality. 
 Though Treafon cheats with fair Hopes of 
 ^i''J!y£. Glory and Advancement ; and at leail this Vice 
 ,».. pretends to have whole \\'oods of I.awrels at its 
 
 Difpofal ; yet the mofl ordinary Preference it gains 
 lylcn is the being firlt amongft Fools and vicious . 
 Perfons; for thev are then wronging both that 
 Honour they polTels, and that to which they 
 afpire ; when they by their Ufurpation learn 
 others how fwcet it is to rebel .'\gainft their 
 Superiors: And fuch as Employ the Com- 
 mons againli their Sovereign muft cxpe«fl 
 to allow them greater Liberty than fuits with the 
 Honour of Governors^ and mull flile them- 
 felvcs the Servants of the People. Flow meanly 
 muit thefe flatter that unreafonable Crew .'^ Swear 
 Friend fliip with fucji as have wrongM their Ho- 
 nour? Lye, dilFcmMe, cheat, beg; meet in dark 
 Corners with their AlfocLirc^ ; and fuffcr fo 
 
 ft}UCl^ 
 
Moral GaUantry, '205 
 
 much Toil and Mifery^ as wants nothing but the 
 Noblenefs of the Quarrel to make them Martyrs. 
 It is not fafe for any Man in point of Honour, to 
 undertake Defigns wherein it is probable he 
 will fail, and wherein if he fail, it is moll 
 certain that his Honour will fuffer : And 
 there is no Crime wherein Men are more like 
 to fail, than in this ; the Rabble whom they Em- 
 ploy, being as uncertain , as they are a furious 
 Inftrument : And like the Elephant, ready ftill to 
 turn headagainft fuch as Employ them in Battel; 
 And who will truft the Promife of thefe Lea- 
 ders, (for without large Promifes, Rebellion can 
 never be efFed:uate) who in thefe Promifes are 
 betraying their own Allegiance ? And fuch as 
 thefe employ, will (at leaft may) confider, that 
 how foon they have effeduate thefe treacherous 
 Defigns; they will either difdain the Inftru- 
 ments as ufelefs ; or dertroy them as dangerous 
 and as fuch , who by this late Experience, are 
 abler to ruin them , than they were their Prede- 
 ceflbrs. And when fuch Tray tors are difappoint- 
 ed of their defigns,they are laught at as Fools; for 
 nothing but Succefs can clear them from that 
 Imputation; and expofed to all the Ludibrie, and 
 thereafter to the Tortures of Enemies ; who can- 
 not but be violent Executioners, feeing their 
 Ruin was fought by theRebelHon. Is there any 
 thing more ignoble than Ingratitude? And thefe 
 Traytors are ingrate ; feeing none can pretend to 
 thofe Arts, but fuch as have been by the Bounty 
 of thefe, againft whom they rebel, advanced to 
 that Height, which hath made them giddy ; and 
 to that Favour with the People, upon which they 
 bottom their Hopes. And do nor Men and Story 
 talk more advantagioufly of Footmen and Slaves 
 who have relieved rheir Mafters, than of the grea- 
 teft of fuch as have rebelled againft their Princes ? 
 
 All 
 
"506 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 All Mankind being concerned to magnify that 
 wherein their own Safety is concerned; and to 
 decry the fc Arts whereby their Ruin is fought. 
 That fame People who cut Sejantis in as many 
 pieces as he had once Favorites ; did raife a Sta- 
 tue to FoMpey's Slave, for ftaying by the Carcafs 
 of his dead Mafter. And as Alexander hang'd Beffus, 
 who had betrayed to him his Maiter ; Sptamenes 
 2.n^ AntigoTtus caufed to maffacre thefe Higerfftdesy 
 who had betrayed the gallant Euwenes : So Charles 
 the Ninth of France, did refufe to punifh fuch as 
 had cppofed him, when he was in Rebellion ; 
 for faid he, Such as have been faithful to the 
 King againft me, when I was but Duke of Or- 
 leans, will be faithful to hie, when I am raifed' 
 from being Duke of Orleans^ to be King of Fraytce: 
 Inconftancy is likewife an ignoble Vice, fee- 
 ing it '(hews, that either Men were foolifh fn 
 their firft Choice, or that they were foolifh* in 
 rclinquifhing it ; it fhew-, that Men are too 
 much filbjed to the Ifnprefnons of others ^"and 
 fmall or light things are thcle which arc (boneft 
 blown off from their firft Stations : Whei*fcfls vir- 
 tuous and conftant I'erfons do fhew their <3teat- 
 nefs in the Impofltbilitv of their bein,^ remoVed: 
 This Vite likewife is unfit for fuch ^s'dfefign 
 great Matters, feeing no Pnrty will Car6 much 
 ro gain fuch for Friends, whom they cahnot re- 
 tain >;' and when they t'clFyou that ftichare not 
 worth their pains, they tell you how n>ean an 
 Ffteem they pur upon Inconftancy. All Affaii^s in 
 the World arc fubjec^ to change ; and it is moft 
 certain that fome Occafion or otlicr will (ome- 
 what raife all Parties : To be conftant then to 
 any one^ will gain him who is fix'd, the Honour 
 of being fure to his Friends, which will magnify 
 him amonefl: fuch as are in difference, and pro- 
 cure him Rcfped even from his Enemies ;' who 
 
 will 
 
Moral Gallantry. '207 
 
 will admire him for that Quality, which by eu- 
 furing their own Friends to them will advantage 
 their Interelt more than they can be prejudged 
 by him, as their Enemy, how confiderable foever 
 he be. Augufitus Greatnefs cannot perfwade the 
 World to pardon him this fault : nor can Cateh 
 Severity, nor Self-murther , dilTwade them from 
 admiring that Conftancy , which had as much 
 extraordinary Gallantry in it as may be a Remif- 
 fion for his Crime: Befides, that it made C^?/^** 
 (even when his Vi(5lories had raifed him to his 
 greateft Height and Vanity ) regrate the lofing 
 an opportunity to gain fo great a Perfon. 
 
 There is amongft many others one EfFe6l of -^"^"'^e- 
 Inconftancy, which I hate, as mean, and un- Jalv/un- 
 worthy of a Gentleman; and that is, to alter conjiant 
 Friendfhips upon every Elevation of Fortune ; as Friendjhif. 
 if (forfooth) Men were rais'd fo high, that they 
 cannot, from thefe Pinacles, know fuch whom 
 they have left upon the firft Level. But really this 
 implies a Weaknefs of Sight in them , and no 
 Imperfedion in their Friends, upon whom they 
 caft down their Looks, and who continue ftill of 
 their firft Stature, though the others Eyes conti- 
 nue not to polTefs the fame clearnefs. A gene- 
 roGs Perfon fhould not entertain fo low Thoughts 
 of himfelf, as to think that what is the Gift of 
 another, can add fo much to his intrinfick Value, 
 as to make him confefs in the undervaluing of 
 his former Friends, the Meannefs of his own 
 Parts, and former Condition : And he obftruAs 
 extremely his own Greatnefs, who obliges his 
 Friends, to ftop and retard it ; as what may be 
 difadvantageous to their Intereft, by robbing 
 them of fo rare an Advantage as is a Friend. 
 Whereas the nobleft Trial of Power is, to be able 
 to raife thefe whom Men honoured formerly 
 with that Title ; for by this others will be invi- 
 
 tea 
 
'2o8 Moral Galliinlry. 
 
 red to depend upon them \ and they may there- 
 by juftify their former Choice; and let the 
 World fee, thr^t they never entred upon any 
 Friendfhip that was mean, or low. Fricndfliip, 
 the greatefl: of Commanders, hath commanded 
 us to flay by our Friend ; and he who quits the 
 Port afligned to him, is either Cowardly, or a 
 Fool ; and a Gentleman fliould think it below 
 his Courage, as well as his Friendfhip, to be 
 boaftcd from a Station which he thought fo ad- 
 vantageous, out of either Fate or Intcreft: Which 
 recommends much to me that gallant Rant in 
 Lucan, when after he had preferred Cato to other 
 Men, he in thefe words extols him above the 
 Gods; 
 
 Vtctrix cflufa diis ^IcJculty fed vicia Catoni. 
 
 The Gods did the Vichrious approve^ 
 
 But the great Cato did the Vanf^uifii'd love. 
 
 But left my Tcdioufncfs fhould make the Con- 
 ftancv I plead for, feem a Vice; I fliall fay no 
 more of a Subject, whereof I can never fay 
 enough. 
 Drunkenncfs is fo mean a Vice, that I fcorn to 
 ^^r" take Notice of it; knowing that none will allow 
 it, but fuch as arc mad; and fuch as are mad are 
 not to be reclaimed by Moral Difcourfes. Yet I 
 cannot but prefs its Meanneis from this, that 
 though Noab was a Pcrfon of the greateft Autho- 
 rity, his once being drunk is remarked in Scri- 
 pture, to have made him dcfpicable in the Eyes 
 even of his own Children; (whom he had alfo 
 lately obliged to a more than natural Relpcd, 
 by faving them from that Deluge, which drown- 
 ed in their Sight the reft of Mankind. ) And 
 Vet he might have cxcufed liimfelf more tliaa 
 thidf© of rhi>> Age ; as not knowing the Stvcngth 
 >• of 
 
 jifjj 
 
Moral Gallantry. 0.0^ 
 
 of that new found Wine: And having been drunk 
 but once, might have defended himfelf by Curi- 
 ofity, which too few now can alledge. It is a 
 mean and mad Compliment, to requite the kind- 
 nefs of fuch as come to vifit us, with forcing 
 them (after the Wearinefs of Travel) to drink to 
 fuch Excefs, that they commit and fpeak fuch 
 Follies, as make them return home from that 
 Itrange Place , without being remarked for any 
 thing elfe, than the ridiculous Expreflions they 
 vomited up with their (linking Excrements. 
 Why are Servants turn'd out of Doors, and each 
 Man ('which is very mean) obliged to ferve him- 
 felf, when Men enter upon that beaftly Employ- 
 ment? Is it not, that Servants may not hear, or 
 fe^what Extravagancies are there to be commit- 
 ted? And is it not an ignoble Part in Perfons of 
 Honour, to do refolutely what they dare not 
 own before the meaneft who attend them? Men 
 by this Vice bring themfelves to need their Ser- 
 vants Legs to walk upon , and their Eyes to fee 
 by ; but which is worfe, they muft be governd 
 at that time, by the fervile Difcretion of fuch, 
 (who will be emboldned by this, to undervalue 
 both them and their Commands) and thefe Ma- 
 fters are accounted wifeft, who do moft fubmif- 
 fively follow their diredions. Judge if that Exer- 
 cifecan be noble, which in difabling us to ferve 
 our Friends, makes us uncapable to difcern the 
 Favours they do us; and meafure its Difadvan- 
 tages by this, that when Men have their Sences 
 benighted with the Vapours of Wine, they are 
 thereby unfitted to lead Armies , to aflift at 
 Councils, to fit in Judicatories, to attend Ladies; 
 and differ nothing from being dead, but that 
 they would be much more innocent if they were 
 fo. Men are then very ready to attack unjuftly 
 
 the 
 
2 1 o Moral Gallantry. 
 
 the Honour of others ; and moft unable to de- 
 fend their own : And fuch ns they wrong then, 
 do with a fcornful Mercy pardon their Failings 
 with the very fame Difdain which makes them 
 forgive Fools, or furious Perfons: And that in 
 my Judgment fhould be the moft touching of all 
 Affronts. And if we efteem Roots according to 
 the prettinefs of the Flowers they dlfplay, (as if 
 they would give a grateful Account to the Sun, 
 of what its Warmnefs has produc'd) certainly we 
 will find Drunkennefs (as the Apoftle fpeaks of 
 Avarice) the Root of all Bitternefs. For this is 
 that Vice, which keeps Men at prefent from at- 
 tending fuch of their own, and of their Friends 
 Interefts, as concern moft their Fame : And as to 
 the Future, begets fuch Difeafes, and Indif|5bfi- 
 tions, as makes their Bodies unfit Inftruments for 
 great Atchievements. And feeing to talk idly, 
 (a CharacHier fo unworthy, that a Gentleman 
 would fcarce fuffer another to give it of him^ 
 without hazarding his Life in the Revenge) is 
 the moft pardonable of its Errors, its other Mad- 
 nefs mutt be beyond all Remiflion. By this 
 Men are brought to difgorge the deepeft buried 
 Secrets ; to reveal the Intimacies , or afperfe the 
 Names of Ladies; to enter upon foolifli Quarrels; 
 and the next Morning, either to abjure what 
 they faid , or fight unjuftly their Comrades ; 
 and Victory is not in that Cafe rewarded with 
 Fame, but is tainted with the Afpcrfiorj of a 
 drunken Quarrel ; and is notafcrib'd to Courage, 
 but to Neceffity. 
 
 I confefs. Whoring is in tbis a more extenfive 
 Vice, than others ; that it corrupts ftill two at 
 once, for no Man can fin fo alone: but drinking 
 (as if it fcorn'd not to be the greateftVice) does 
 furpafs it in another Quality ^ which is, that one 
 vicious Perfon can force or tempt whole Tables 
 
 and 
 
Moral Gallantry, , i\\ 
 
 and Companies to be drunk with him. And if 
 great Men fhould be known to love this Vice, all 
 fuch as have need to accoft them,, would be in 
 danger, either by Complacency, or Intereft, to 
 plunge themfelves into this miferable Excefs. In 
 other Vices , Men debauch only their own 
 rational Souls ; but here Men add to that, the In- 
 gratitude of employing againlt God and Natur^, 
 thefe Rents and Eftates, which were kept by 
 Providence, from more pious Perfons; that great 
 Men might by that Teftimony of his Kindnefs, 
 be engaged to a Religious Retribution. So that 
 fuch as employ their Eftates in maintaining their 
 Drunkennefs, commit almoft the fame Sacrilege 
 with Behejhaz.zar; who was terrified by a mira- 
 culous Hand upon the Wall ; delivering his fatal 
 Sentence, for caroufmg with his Nobles in the 
 facred Veffels, that were robb'd from the Temple 
 of JerufaUm. 
 
 My Emplo^^ment, as well as Philofophy, obli- f„j^pce. 
 ges me to implead Injuftice as the worft of Vices; 
 becaufe it wrongs the bell of Men, and the belt 
 of things; the beft of Men, feeing they have ftill 
 the beft of Pleas; and fo Injuftice can only 
 reach them; and thefe will not by Flattery, 
 Bribing, or Cheats, conciliate the Efteeni of 
 fuch as have a Latitude, to return them this un- 
 juft advantage ; which good Men neither need, 
 nor will accept. Injuftice likewife debauches the 
 Laws, which is the beft of things; and in afti'ont- 
 ting whereof, of all others, great Men are 
 (when guilty) moft ungreat : becaufe it is their 
 Guardian and Fence; by which they exadRefped 
 and Treafures from others ; and without which 
 fuch Ma gift rates who are unjuft, could not e- 
 fcape thefe hourly Maflacres which a robb'd and 
 oppreft People would pour upon them. And 
 ihongh fuch as are generoufly unjuft, intend 
 
 thereby 
 
212 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 thereby to compliment their Friends, to repay 
 old Favours; yet in F.ffbA, this Requital, is as 
 bafe, as if one fhould rob a Church, to pay his 
 particular Debts. Ite is not worthy of yourFriend- 
 ihip, who willexped fuch Returns: And Virtue 
 is not like Vice, fo penurious or poor, as that it 
 cannot build upon any other Foundation, than 
 the Ruins of another. Such as intend by their 
 Injuftice to gain Eflecm from the Party advan- 
 tflg'd thereby, are much miftaken : for though 
 they fhould gain the Efleem of one thereby, 
 yet they would lofe that of many Thoufands ; 
 and he who is wrong'd will difclofc the Injuftice 
 done him, more than the other dare brag of the 
 Favour. And I have my felf heard, even the 
 Gainer hate and undervalue his unjuft Patron j 
 loving not theTraitor but the Treafon : Confider- 
 ing, that by that Precedenthimfelf was laid open 
 to moreHazard, than he thereby reap'd of Advan- 
 tage ; for that fame Injullicc, which cenfured 
 him of his late Conqueft, made him unfurc both 
 of it, or all that he had or fhould gain thereafter. 
 And to be unjufl for a Bribe , is as mean, as to 
 ferve in the worft of Employments for a Fee ; it 
 is to be as bafe as a Theif, and lefs noble than a 
 Robber ; and it deferves all thefe bafe Reproach- 
 es that are due to Avarice, I.ving, Flattery, In- 
 gratitude, Treachery and Perjury : All which 
 are Sharers in this Caper, when it profpcrs ; and 
 when it profpers not , it leads to thefe ignoble 
 Ports, Infamy, Poverty, the Scaffold, Pillory, 
 or Gibbets. 
 Puklick Though my having ufurp'd fo far upon the 
 
 spirited- Reader's Patience, makes all I can fay for the 
 "cA- future Criminal j yet fuch Refped I owe, and 
 
 fuch 1 bear to the Memory of thofe Noble Patri- 
 ots, who have by their Publick Spirircdnelsji 
 fettled for us that Peace, whofe Native Produ<5fc 
 
 ttll 
 
Moral Gallantry, ^13 
 
 all our Joys are, that I cannot but recommend 
 that prot€j6ling Virtue^, to fuch as live now, for 
 the nobleft" Ornament of a great Soul; and if 
 our Adions be fpecified and meafured by their 
 Objects , certainly thofe Souls muft be account- 
 ed greateft, which center all their Cafes upon 
 the publick Good ; fcorning to wind up their 
 Defigns upon fo fmall a Botronij as is private 
 Tnterelt. By this., the Heathens became Gods; 
 and Chriftians do by it (which is more) refem- 
 ble theirs. This is the Task of Kings and Prin- 
 ces ; whereas private Intereft is the Defign of 
 Ghurls and Coblers : Who can fo juftly ex- 
 ped: univerfal Praife, as thefe who dQCip;n Uni- 
 verfal Advantage ? And none will grudge, that 
 Riches fhould be carried into his Treafures, who 
 keeps them but as Jofeph did his Corn in Grana^ 
 Ties, till others need to have their Neceffities fup- 
 plied. ■ 
 
 Thefe are defervedly ftiled Tatrei T atria ? and, 
 it is accounted moral Paricide, to wound the 
 Reputation of fuch as the Commonwealth terms 
 its Parents. And when thefe Treafures which 
 private Incereft have robb'd from the Publickj 
 fha'l after they have ftain'd the Acquirer with 
 the Names of Avarice and Cruelty, invite Po- 
 fterity to recall them from his Offspring, as not 
 due to them : Then fuch as have, like Provi- 
 dence, toiled only for the good of their Coun- 
 try and Mankind, Ihall find their Fame, like 
 Medals, grow ftill the more Illuftrious, by all 
 Acceffions of Time ,• and that the new bora 
 Generations fhall augment the Numbers of their 
 Admirers, more than following Years can moul- 
 der away thefe heaps of Coin, which avaritiouS 
 Men railed as a Monument for their Memory. 
 Epaminondas is more famous and adqaii^ed, than. 
 Cvicfiis ^ and Fame may be betteJ" believed con- 
 
 Q cerning 
 
ai^ Moral Gallantry. 
 
 ccrning him ; feeing he left neither Gold, nor 
 Money, to bribe from it a Suffrage. And albeit 
 he was fo bufied in raifing the Glory of his 
 Country, that he had no time to gain as much 
 Money, as to raife the Meaneft for his own ; 
 yet we find him at no Lofs thereby, feeing each 
 Theban aflifted at his Funeral, as a Mourner : And 
 Nature lays it as a Duty upon all whom it brings 
 to the World, to magnifie him who endeavoured 
 to refemble it, in the Univerfalities of his Fa- 
 vours. That glorious Roman, who threw him- 
 felf into the devouring Gulf, to divert the Wrath 
 of the Gods from his Country, did, in ex- 
 change of a few Years (which he might have 
 liv'd) add an Eternity of Fame to his Age ; and 
 by the Glorioufnefs of that Action, has buried 
 nothing in that Gulf, but hisperfonal Faults. And 
 Brutus, by dying for his Country, is not more 
 juftly called the laft of Romans, than he may be 
 called the firft of Men : And for my part, I think 
 that he facrificed Cafar, rather as a ViAim to his 
 injur'd Country, than to his private Malice. For 
 as Mr.Cowley well remarks ; the pretext of Friend- 
 (hip can be no Reafon, why aMan fhould fuffer 
 without Refentment, his Mother to be violated 
 before his Eyes. Paul likewife, whom Grace had 
 raifed as much above thefe as Reafcn hadraifed 
 thefe above others, was fo zealous in this Vertue, 
 that after he had known the Joys of Heaven more 
 intimately than others, who had not like him tra- 
 velled through all thefe ftarry Regions j yet 
 fuch was his Affection to his Country, that he 
 was content to have his Name expunged out of 
 the Book of Life, that Room might be made for 
 theirs. But if Men will love nothing but what 
 will advance their private Intereft , they will at 
 ieaft, upon this Score, love their Country ; be- 
 
 caufs 
 
Moral Gallantry, 215 
 
 jcaufe, when it becomes famous, they will fliare' 
 in the Advantage : As the being a Roman^ was 
 fufficient to make one terrible when Rome flou- 
 riihed. And I imagine, that it was fufficient to 
 incite one of that glorious Republick, to under- 
 •take, or fufFer the hardeft of things, to remem- 
 ber him that he was a Roman ; and at all times ' 
 the unacquainted ftill eiteem us, according ro 
 the Prefumptions they can gather from our 
 Country, Race, and Education. For befides 
 that a Hawk of a good Neft is ftill preferred ^ 
 .we fee , that Example and Emulation, are the 
 ftrongeft Motives that can either induce, or ina- 
 ble Men to be noble and valorous : And though 
 fome term this but Fancy ; yet granting it were 
 no more ^ it is fuch a Fancy, as tends much to 
 our Honour ; becaufe it heightens in others a 
 Fear of us, and leffens in us the Fear of them. 
 I may then conclude with this ; that as the Rays 
 of the Sun are accounted a more noble Eighty 
 than any that is projeded from a priv.ite Candle ; 
 and as amongft Perfumes, thcfe are accounted 
 nobleft, whofe Emanations dart to the greateH: 
 diftance ; fo amongft Souls^ thofe are the moft 
 excellent, which refped moft the Advantage of 
 others. 
 
 I confefs there are fome Vices , which by ^mhitiea 
 Ihrouding themfelves under the Appearance of ^l^/^J"^'*^ 
 good, do advance themfelves too far in ill go- 
 verned Efteems ; as we fee in Ambition and Re- 
 venge ; yet to our feverer Enquiries it will ap- 
 pear, that Ambition is ignoble ; feeing fuch as de- 
 fire to be promoted, confefs the Meannefs of 
 that State they prefs to leave. This Vice ob- 
 liges Men to ferve fuch as advance its Defigns '^ 
 exchanging its prefent Liberty, for but the un- 
 certain Expectation of commanding others ; and 
 paying greater Refpeds to Superiors for this Ex- 
 Q, i pedation. 
 
 yicti 
 
2 16 'Moral Gallantry. 
 
 pe^lation , than it will be able to exaft from 
 thole whom it defigns to fubjcd. What is Ad- 
 vancement, but the People's iivery ? And fuch 
 as expe(5l their Happinefs from them, muft ac- 
 knowledge, that the Rabble is greater and no- 
 bler than themfelves : And by exchanging their 
 natural Happinefs, for that which is of its be- 
 llowing, they confefs their own to be of the 
 lead Value ; for no Man will exchange for what 
 is worfe. A Courtier admiring the Philofopher 
 gathering his Herbs, told him, that if he flatte- 
 red the Emperor, he needed not gather Herbs ; 
 but was anfwer'd , that if he could fatisfie 
 himfelf with Herbs , he needed not flatter 
 the Emperor ; and without doubt , Flattery 
 infers more Dependance, than gathering of 
 Herbs. And in the Difpute for Liberty j Dioge- 
 ves had the Advantage of the Stagyrite-^ when he 
 told him, Diogenes did dine when it pleafcd Dio-^ 
 genes ; but Arifiotle not till it pleafed /Jexander, 
 Vanity, Vanity is too airy a Vice to be Noble ; for it is 
 
 but a thin Cruft of PnVe ; and but a pretending 
 Caiet of that Gallant Sin ; It is I confefs, iels 
 hurtful than Pride, becaufc it magnifies it felf, 
 without difparaging others ; (for if we admire 
 others when compared with our felves, we are 
 not vain, but proud) and it is oft the Spur to 
 great Aclions ^ being to our Undertakings, what 
 lome Poifons are to Medicines ; which, though 
 they be hurtful in a Dofe apart ^ yet make the 
 Compounds they enter more Operative and 
 Pointed. And I have heard fome defend, that 
 Vanity was no Sin; becaufe, in admiring our 
 felves at a greater Rate than we deferv'd, we, 
 without detracting from our Neighbour, heigh- 
 tened our Debt to our Maker ,* which might 
 be an Error, but was no Fault. But Vanity, 
 being an Error in our Judgment, it cannot but 
 
 be 
 
Moral Gallantry. 0. 1 7 
 
 be Mearij as all Errors are ignoble : And he is 
 a very Fool (which is the ignobleft of Names) 
 who underftands not himfelf; he who un- 
 derftands not his own Meafures, cannot go- 
 vern himfelf ^ and fo is unfit to govern others ; 
 and it is the Employment of a great Soul, ra- 
 ther to do things worthy to be admired, than to 
 admire what himfelf hath done. But leaving to 
 purfue the Croud of its ill EiFe6ls , I fliall fingle 
 out fome of thefe I judge moll Enemies to true 
 Gallantry; amongft which,I fcruplenot to prefer 
 in Meannefs , the being -vain of Profperkj/j and 
 derived Power : Which fhews, that we prefer 
 and admire more what others can beftow, than 
 what we pofTefs our felves ; whereas vertuous 
 Perfons may juftly think , that nothing can 
 make them greater ; and to be vain of Profperi- 
 ty, fhews we cannot bear it ; and fo concludes, 
 us under a Weaknefs : To take Advantages of 
 others, when we are more powerful than they, 
 is as bafe, as it is for an Armed Man to force 
 his Enemy to fight, when he has no Weapon : 
 This is Cowardlinefs not Courage ; and who de- 
 fers not his Revenge, till his Rival be equal 
 with him, implies a Fear of grappling upon e- 
 qual Terms. That one Expreffion, of one of 
 the Kings of France, that he fcorn'd when he 
 was King of France, to remember the Wrongs 
 done to the Duke of Orleans, makes his Name 
 grateful in Hiftory : And if great Men would 
 refled ferioufly, how a Word from him they 
 ferve, (though but a Man, who muft himfelf 
 yield oft times to a mean difaller^ or how the 
 leaft Error in their own Conduct, can over- 
 turn the fixedft of their Endeavours ; and make 
 them in being unfortunate, ridiculous withal ; 
 certainly they would call this Prefumption r;i 
 ther Maduefs, thanVanitv* and" would coiichidti 
 Q 1' i'^ 
 
ai8 Moral Gallantry. 
 
 it more gallant, to bear Adverfity with a gene- 
 rous Courage ; than to be a Fool or flattered by 
 Profperity ; which vanquifhes as oft thefe for 
 whom, as thcfe againft whom it fights. 
 The Mean. Neither can 1 leave this Period, till I inveigh 
 nf/xo/yf- .j^l^ that meaneft of Vanities, whereby Men 
 Riches and ^^c vain 01 hliates and T.erritones : For, leeing 
 IftifttJ. Man is born Lord of all the World ; why fhould 
 he retrench his own Right, by glorying in fo 
 little a Part of it, that his Share will efcape an 
 exa6t Geographer. I wifh fuch would remem- 
 ber, that PoMpcy beftowed Kingdoms upon his 
 Slave? ; and yet EftBetus, who was a Slave, is 
 more admired than he^ and yet admired for no- 
 thing but his Virtue • and why fliould Men be 
 Proud of enjoying that, upon which the mean- 
 eft Beggar pours out his Excrements : If thefe 
 be vain, becaufe they may call it their own ; 
 what hath the Mafter, but that (as Sclcmon fays) 
 he beholdcth it with his Eyes ? and at this rate, 
 I may glory, in that the glorious Heavens are 
 fprc ad over me ; for I may behold the one with 
 as impropriating Eyes, as he can do the other. 
 And he who wants a Tomb, which thefe have, 
 hath the Heaven for a Vault and Burial Place ; 
 •^Ciclo tegituVy ejtii non hahct urnan?. 
 
 But if the Anfvver be, that thefe Rents will 
 allow them the keeping of a Table for their 
 Grandeur; (which I wiih were the only Excufe) 
 that Anfwer makes them Servants, and burdens 
 them wi:h a Ncccffity to provide for fach as 
 thev entertain ; and fo they are vain of being 
 Servants ; and Servants to fuch as will rife from 
 their Table, to read and admire above them, 
 Tlato, Socrates y or which is lefs, the Author of a 
 well-contrived Play. But to leave this Folly ; 
 thefe may have fome Pretext, for preferring their 
 own Eftates, above thefe of others ; but vvhy 
 
 fhould 
 
Moral Gallantry. 219 
 
 fhould they admire themfelves for their Eflates ? 
 Which is no part of themfelves ; and fo they 
 Ihould not in Reafon think better of themfelves 
 than others for it. Under the fame Condemnati- 
 on fallfuch as are vain of their Horfes, Lacqueys, 
 orfuchlike things; which is moft unjuft, ex- 
 cept their Horfes and they were all one. 
 
 Such as cruft themfelves over with Embroi- The Mean- 
 deries, and after they have divided their time "/^ "^^l 
 betwixt their Comb and their Mirrors , are vain ^'^'j?^^" ^' 
 of thefe filly Toys which are the Creatures and . 
 Workmanfhip of Servants, muft be certainly ve- 
 ry low and mean-Spirited ; when they imagine 
 to add to their natural Value, by things that have 
 no Value in them, but what our Fancy (which 
 is the moft defpicable Quality of that Soul the}'' 
 negled) gives them. And do not they amongft 
 the reft of Mankind, difparage very much even 
 thefe MiftrelTes upon whom they beftow thefe 
 Adorations, which they deny their Mighty Ma- 
 ker, when they imagine by fuch Contemptible 
 Means, to fcrue themfelves into their Efteem ? 
 How ignobly undervalue they their own 
 Thoughts ; the noble Converfation of Excel- 
 lent Men and Accurate Books ; (to write fome 
 whereof, Cafar and the greateft of the Emperors 
 have laid afide their Swordsj when they impend 
 upon Ribbons and Laces, that Age of Time, 
 which would be mifimployed, though it were let 
 but out in Moments,uponfuch Womanly Exercife? 
 But if Ladies or their Suitors, will magnifie thefe 
 handfom Shapes and Colours ; which are too 
 often beftowed upon them, to repair the Want 
 of thefe Noble Qualities, of which thofe who are 
 Mafters maybe more juftly vain; Why are not they 
 afraid by Whoring, Fairding, Drinking, Glut- 
 tony, or macerating Envy, to blaft thefe florid 
 Advantages upon which themfelves do,and would 
 have others to dote ? Q 4 1 
 
aao Moral Gallantry, 
 
 Prtfnment J j^^ft hcrc endefivour to fubdue one Error ; 
 Xonourablt ^^^^^ ^^ ^Y ^^ miich the more dangerous, that 
 it wears the faircfl Mask of all other Vices : And 
 this is that whereby Men are induced to believe, 
 that true Honour is but a Confequent of Prefer- 
 ment ; and that Preferment is feldom without 
 Honour J but Honour comes never without Pre- 
 ferment ; and not only arc the I ees of the Peo- 
 ple taken with this Opinion ; but the Gallanted 
 of Men, who are fpheer'd far abcve thofe, do 
 in thiSj flide eafily into the Senfe of the Neigh- 
 bourhood. "Yet it remains IHll an Error ; for 
 true Honour is an innate Elevation of the Soul ; 
 whereby it fcorns every thing which is more 
 mortal than it felf ; and nothing is more frail 
 than Preferment ; whofe Paint is wafht off by 
 the leaft Storm • and whofe Being depends up- 
 on the Fancy or Humour of others : Whereas 
 true Honour is independent ; and as it cannot 
 flow from any other, fo it can't ftoop to them. 
 He is truly gallant whofe Innocence fears not the 
 Jurifdi6lion of Men ; and who looks upon 
 Scepters, and fuch Gilded TriHes, as Imperti- 
 nent Toys , when they are not fway'd by the 
 Hand of Virtue ; and who would not value 
 Power for any other End, but to be a Second to 
 thefe Inclinations which are fo reafonable, that 
 they fhould not need Power to make them to 
 be obey'd ? Tyrants can beftow the talleft Pre- 
 ferments, but they cannot make Men truly 'ho- 
 nourable ; which fliews that thefe Two differ. 
 And Hdiogaboltis'i Cock was ft ill but a bafe Fel- 
 low, though his Made r's doting made him as 
 great as were his own Vices. A Statue be- 
 comes not taller by the height of its Bafis ; nor 
 a Head more wife or noble for being adorn'd 
 with a (haggy Plumage. Julius defar, though 
 
 no 
 
Moral Gallantry, * ^^i 
 
 no Emperor, has ai more lafting Glory than 7?- 
 herius who was fo. And Cato gloried more In 
 that the People asked why he was not preferr'd, 
 than he would have done in enjoying the great- 
 eft Honours they had to beftow. Preferment is 
 but the Creation of Men , but true Honour is 
 of god's own Creation : And as we fliould e- 
 fteem this laft as a Piece done by the nobler 
 Mafter ; fo we fhould love it befe, becaufe it 
 is more our own, than what rifes from another's 
 Favour. Greatnefs, when moft advantagioufly 
 beftowed, can but produce Love, or Fear ; to 
 beget Fear, is not noble ; becaufe the Devil doth 
 this moft ; and thefe who come next to him in 
 Bafenefs, come neareft to him in this : Brutes, 
 Savages, and Mad-men, have fufficiency enough 
 for that Undertaking ; But to beget Love is pe- 
 culiar to true Honour : And fo generous a 
 Paffion is Love ; that it is fooneft elicite, when 
 leaft commanded. A Virtuous Perfon is like- 
 wife a greater Governor, than he who fufFers 
 himfelf to be commanded by a Vicious Woman , 
 and a thirfty Appetite ; or than that King 
 who futfers himfelf to^be led by the Ears 
 with Flatterers; and to be forced by his own Pride 
 to difobey his Reafon, by which alone he is tru- 
 ly great ; and which when any Man difowns 
 abfolutely, he is to be thrown into a Dungeon. 
 or Bedlam. Preferment leaves and obliges us to 
 bow to others, for fatisfying our Intereft ; fo 
 that Intereft is confeft by great Men, to be 
 greater than they. But Virtue and true Honour 
 teacheth us to fubje(5i: our Intereft to our felves ; 
 and puts it in our own Power to make our felves 
 happy. And what a Pilot is in the Ship , a Ge- 
 ral in an Army, the Soul in the Body ; that is 
 a Philofopber amongft thefe with whom he con- 
 
 verfes. 
 
• ^^1 Moral Gallantry, 
 
 verfes. Nee enlm unquam in tantum fic convalefcet 
 rtequitia • nunquam fee contra -vtrtutes conjurabittiX • 
 tit nm 'vlrtutis nowen 'venerabile & Sacrum maneat. 
 Sen. Efijt. 14. To which purpofe I mull cite 
 Stat, Sih. 
 
 Vive Midegaz.isy & Lido ditior auro, 
 Troica ^ Euphrate fu^ra diademata falix, 
 ^em non ambigui fafces non mobile vulgtis, 
 Sfemque metumque domaSy <uitio fublimior omni, 
 Exewptus fat is. 
 
 The if^nt. In Revenge, we muft ufe Inftruments, who 
 ileneff of exad more, and will upbraid us more than the 
 Revenge. L^w will do, whcn it fatisfies us our Wrongs. 
 And does not the Philofopher, who denies that 
 he can be wrong'd^ more nobly ; than he who 
 confefles, that he is both fubjedl to Wrongs, and 
 hath received fo great a one, that he cannot but 
 purfue its Revenge ? He who conceals his 
 Wrongs, is only wrong'd in private ; whilft he 
 who revenges his Wrong, is wrong'd in publick : 
 And certainly, the publick Wrong is more Igno- 
 ble. And feeing we conceive our felves con- 
 cern'd in Honour, to punifh fuch as would 
 divulge an Affront , that was fmothercd as 
 foon as given ; we cannot be faid to wrong our 
 own Honour , when we in feeking Revenge 
 proclaim fuch Wrongs, as had elfe either vanifht, 
 or been leffened by the Concealment ; ' which 
 ^ remembers me of a Story, that goes of an Old 
 
 i?v; Man, at whofe Bald Head, a rotten Orange 
 
 being thrown in the Street, clapt his Hat upon 
 it ; and faid, I fhall fpoil the Villains Sport,who 
 expe<fled to fee me come fhewing my Head all 
 befmeared over, and complaining of the Injury. 
 It is one of the moft picquant Revenges, to un- 
 dervalue our Enemies fo far, as not to think 
 
 them 
 
Moral Gallantry. 21 j 
 
 them worthy of our noticing ; and we fhew our 
 felves to be greater than they, when we let the 
 World fee, that they cannot trouble us. When 
 Children and Fools do the fame things, that 
 we fret at in others of more advanced Years, we 
 pafs them without a Frown ^ which fhews, that 
 it is not the Ads done us by our Enemie?, buc 
 our own Refentment, which in EfFeA injures 
 us ; fo that it is ffcill in our Power to vex fuch as 
 defign to affront us ; by laughing at, or under- 
 valuing thefe, and fuch like little Endeavours, as 
 what cannot reach our Happinefs. He who par- 
 dons, proclaims that by fo doing, he fears not 
 his Enemies for the future; but Revenge implies 
 a Fear of what we defire upon that Account to 
 lelTen. Thus Cowards, and none but they are 
 cruel ; feeing they then only account themfelves 
 fecure, when their Enemies have loft all Capa- 
 city to refift. In Revenge we ad the Executio- 
 ner ; but we Perfonate a Prince when we par- 
 don ; in the one we beftow a Favour, and fo 
 are Noble ; but in the other, we difclofe our 
 Infirmity, which is Ignoble. 
 
 I admire Paffive Courage, as a Virtue which ThegnUan. 
 deferves its Palms beft of all others, becaufe it '7"-^^*" 
 toils moft for them. Honours and Rewards are ''^'''■'• 
 but Gifts to them, but they are Conquefts to it : 
 And it merits as much Praife, as it meets with 
 Injuries. A'vida efi perlculi ifirtus , e^ cjuo tendant 
 non <juld pajfurajity cogitat ^ cjuoniam d^ tjuod -pajju- 
 ra efi ] gloria pars efi : This Vertue hath rather 
 a greedinefs for, than a defire to find Dangers ,• 
 and feeing its Sufferings make the greateft Part of 
 its Glory ; it runs out to meet them, thinking 
 that to attend them , is a Degree of Cowardli- 
 nefs. And if we remark narrowly, we will find 
 that all other Virtues owe their Gallantry to 
 this ; And have no other Title to that Glorious 
 
 Qua- 
 
114- Moral Gallantry. 
 
 Quality, but in fo far as they borrow Excellen- 
 cies from it. Friendlhip is then only gallant, 
 when to gratifie our Friends, we expofe to Inju- 
 ries for them, either our Perfons or Intereft. 
 Gratitude is then Noble, when we confider not 
 what we are to fufFer ; but what we owe, or 
 (which is more gallant) what is requifite for the 
 Service of fuch as have obliged us. Juftice is al- 
 ways excellent, but is then only moft to be ad- 
 mired, when we refift Temptations ; and where 
 we refolve to fufFer, for having been juft, the 
 Envy and Rage of thefe, who confider only how 
 much they have been prejudg'd,but not how much 
 the publick Good hath been thereby advanced. 
 
 By this it is that a virtuous Perfon fhews how 
 great he truly is ; and that Power and Command 
 were the Inftruments only, but not Parts of his 
 former Worth. He who yields to Affliction, 
 fhews that thofe who inflid it, are greater than 
 himfelf ; but he who braves it,fhews that it is not 
 in the Power of any thing but of Guilt, to make 
 him tremble. It is eafy for one who is affifted 
 by Power and Fate, to urge thefe Advantages ; 
 but to dare thefe, fhews a Pitch beyond them : 
 And this induces me to think, that PafHve Cou- 
 rage is more Noble than what is Active. For 
 one who fights gallantly in an open Field, and 
 in the View or Front of an Army, is aflifted by 
 the Example of others, by Hope of Revejige or 
 Vi(^orv ; and needs not much fear that Death 
 which he may fhun, as probably as meet : But he 
 who in a noble Quarrel adorns that Scaffold 
 whereupon he is to fuffer, evinces that he can 
 mafter Fate, and make Danger lefs than his 
 Courage, and to ferve him in acquiring Fame 
 and Honour. But this Virtue defervcs a larger 
 Room, than my prefent Wearincfs will allow it 
 in this Paper; and therefore I will leave it for 
 Praifes to its own Native Excellencies. 1 fhall 
 
rfv,"^ 
 
 Mdrit Gallmtrf. 225 
 
 I fhall ( My Lords and Gentlemen ) leave 
 thefe Reflexions to your own Improvement ; for 
 I am confident that the Heat of your own Zeal 
 for Virtue, will kindle in your Breafts fuch noble 
 Flames, as that by their Blaze ye may fee further 
 into this Subject, than I can difcover : And in 
 this Eflay I defire to be efteem'd no otherways 
 prefumptuous, than a Servant is , who lights his 
 Matter up thofe Stairs which himfelf intends to 
 mount. 
 
 A MORAL 
 
 PARADOX: 
 
 Maintaining 
 
 That it is much eafier to be 
 Virtuous than Vicious. 
 
 They weary themfel'ves to commit Inicjuity . Jer. 9. f. 
 
 T O 
 
 Sir Robert Murray, 
 
 One of the Honourable Members of the 
 Royal SOCIETY. 
 
 SIR, 
 
 TH O' 7 cannot hut with much T^ankfulnefs re* 
 fent your Favours, ( 'wherein ye did both pre- 
 vsnf and Qutdo my Wtj^ts ) ; jef it were a J)lf^arage* 
 
 ment 
 
aa6 The Epiftle Dedicatory. 
 
 mevt to tber»y that I jlwuU look upon my felf as your 
 Debtor for them J feeing ye be flowtd thtm jo freely ^ that 
 they affearrd Gifts, not Obligations. And fo in this 
 Dedication I defign to pay, not them hut my RefpeHs^ 
 i^either intend I by it, to recommend ycu to To ferity^ 
 for in that I would difoblige Fame, which hath refclvcOy 
 hyfpeaking Truth of you, to repair and attow its for^ 
 mer Guilt, in having fo oft ly^d of others. But, Sir, 
 J have chofe you to be the Patron of this Bock ^ becaufe 
 your BraEiice is the firongefi Argument, whereby I can 
 ' evince what is undertaken in it ; ( which is to prove} 
 That there is more Eafe in Virtue than in Vice, 
 And feeing to undertake the Proof of that, were the next 
 Crime to the doubting of it ; and that your JVor thine fs 
 and my Efleem of it , are much raifed above the frail 
 Helps of Compliment, or a wearying Dedication ; let 
 we ajfure you and the World of both, by the innocent 
 Vanity I take in the Title of 
 
 Your Sincere Friend^ 
 
 and Humble Servant;^ 
 
 Geo. Mackenzie. 
 
 It 
 
27 
 
 1 
 
 It is eafier to be Vi r f iJ6 u s 
 than Vicious. 
 
 As thefe Spies deferved III of the Ifiaeli^ , . , 
 tijh Camp; who having inflamed ^""*^*'^* 
 their Breafts with Defires of conquer- 
 ing Canaan, by prefenting them of 
 its Vines, who each Clufter was a Vintage, and 
 each Grape a Boctle ; did thereafter, by a cru- 
 el Paricide , deftroy thefe fame Inclinations 
 which they had begot, by telling thofe their 
 hopeful Brethren, that the Country was as un- 
 conquerable, as pleafant, and that its Men were 
 Giants , as well as its Fruits. So by the fame 
 Meafures we have Reafon to fear, that thefe 
 Divines and Moralifts are unhappy Guides to us 
 poor Mortals ; who after they have edged our 
 Inclinations for Virtue, as the moft fatisfying 
 of all Objeds; do thereafter affure us, that it is 
 attended with as much Difficulty as it is furnifh'd 
 with Pleafure : And that like fome coy Lady, it 
 poiTeffes Charms, not to fatisfy, but to exa4: 
 our Longings. This infortunate Errorhat;h in aU 
 probability, fprung either from the Vanity of 
 thefe Baftard Philofophers, who having cheated 
 the People into an Efteem for themfelves, as Vir- 
 tuous, refolved by the fecond Artifice, to heigh- 
 ten that Efteem, by perfwading thefe their Ad^ 
 mirers, that Virtue was a Work of much Difficul- 
 ty as it met with Praife. Or elfe from the Zeal 
 of fome Preachers, who to make us antedate our 
 Repentance, refolved to perfwads us^ that Faith 
 
 and 
 
aa8 It k eafier to be Virtuous 
 
 and thefe other Spiritual Virtues, could not but 
 be hardly attainable, as certainly they are, when 
 Moral Virtue, which was a lower Story of Per- 
 fedion, was of fo difficult anAfccnt; or elfe, 
 which is yet mod probable, our Lazinefs and vU 
 cious Habits being called to an Account for thefe 
 Misfortunes^ which they occalion, have run 
 themfelves under the Prorecflion of this defence, 
 that Virtue is mcft difficult and uneafv, and is de- 
 ftitute of both pleafureand advantage: By which 
 Conceit, many are difTwadcd in this An;e from 
 undertaking a Refolution of being Virtuous, 
 though otherwife they much honour it; and 
 Wickedncfs is not only furnifh'd bv this with an 
 Excufe to detain fuch as it hath already overta- 
 l?en; but with Charms to entangle thefe who are 
 yet ftated in an Indifferency for either. And 
 though the Heat of Zeal in Preachers, fhould 
 not be too much difproved in this Age ; wherein 
 the Coldnefs of their Hearers Charltv needs thofe 
 warmer Influences; and though they mav be al- 
 lowed to bend our crooked Humours to the con- 
 trary Side of what they incline to, of Defign to 
 bring them to a defired Streighrnefs : Yet if we 
 confider that infallible Theology delivered by 
 our Saviour, we may find, that he inviced his 
 Difciples, by alTuring them , that bis Yoke was 
 eafy, and his Burthen very I'lf^ht-^ and by upbraiding 
 them, for wearying themfel'ves with their (Iks, and 
 ^OV troubling theynfcl'ves about many things. And fmcc 
 the former Artifice hath either by being too fa- 
 Tnlliary preached, loft its Operation with fuch as 
 love curiofity ; or by being too fcverely prefl, 
 ^ifcouraged too much thefe who love too well 
 their own Flefh and Blood, to welcome any 
 Doftrine that ftands fo oppofite to it ; I wifh 
 thefe fame Preachers would now endeavour to 
 reclaim Mankind, by alluring them that Virtue 
 
 is 
 
■ than Yicion^, o.iq 
 
 is much eafier^ and much more advantageous 
 than Vice. Imitating in this their great Maftef, 
 who after his Diiciples had wearied themfelves 
 with catching no Fifhall the Night over ; did^ by 
 perfwading them to throw out their Nets upon 
 the other Side of the Boat^ put them upon the 
 way of catching more atone Draughty thari 
 they had catcht in their former whole Nights 
 fifhing. But leaving (^with much refignation) 
 my Ghoftly Fathers to manage the Courfe of 
 our Devotion ^ as their Knowledge and Piety 
 fhall judge moll fit; I fhall endeavour to clear 
 from Reafon and Experience , That Moral VWtut 
 is of lefs Wearinefs, and fuits better with our na- 
 tural Inclinations, than Vice or Paflion doth. 
 And although I fail in an Undertaking, which 
 IS too Noble an Enterprize to receive its Accom- 
 plifliment from fo weak a Hand ; yet if I fhall 
 excite others, out of pity to me, or Glory be- 
 caufe of the' SubjeA, to defend what I could 
 Hot, ortoloVe that Virtue which I recommend, 
 1 ihall reft fatisfied with a Return, which be- 
 caufe it will be above my Merit, I have already 
 placed above my ExpeAation; and fo I may 
 meet with a Foil, but cannot with a Difappoint- 
 merit. 
 
 All Creaftrcs defign tafe- and for this ilptf £-sp i//A 
 onW Brutes do toil, but inanimate Things like- comftten0^ 
 wife fhew for it fo much of Inclination, that ^'^' 
 they will deftroy all intermediate Objects, that 
 hinder them from joyning to their Centre; to 
 which they have no other Tendency, but becaufe 
 they find that Eafe which is deflred by their Na- 
 ture ; and becaufe all things find Eafe in it, 
 therefore all things flee thither, as to the love- 
 lieft of all Stations. And that Happinef^ 
 Gonfiflsin. Eafe, is clear from this, that either 
 
a 3G> It is eafier to he Virtuous 
 
 we want that we need, as the Accomplifhment 
 of our Nature; and then Nature muft move to- 
 wards the Acquifition of what it wants ; or clfe 
 we want nothing; and then Nature will enjoy 
 it felf without any further Motion ; nam natura 
 nihil agit frufira ; and it were mod fruftraneous 
 for Nature, to feek what it wants not : From 
 which we may conclude, when we fee any Crea- 
 ture reftlefs, and in Motion, that certainly it ei- 
 ther wants fomething to which it moves, or is 
 opprefs'd by a Surcharge of fomewhat, from 
 which it flies. This hath made Philofophers 
 conclude, that all Motion tends to fome Reft ; 
 Lawyers, that all Debates refped fome Decifion ; 
 Statefmen,that all War is made in order to Peace; 
 Phyficians, that all Fermentation and boiling of 
 the Blood or Humours, betokens fome Diflatisfa- 
 dtion in the Part afFeded ( and to fhew how 
 muchHappinefs they place in Eafe, they term all 
 Sicknefs Difeafes) which imports nothing more, 
 than the Abfence of Eafe, that happieft of States, 
 and Root of all PerfeAions. And that Divi- 
 nity may fmg a part in this re^uieM, Scripture 
 teUs Ls, that GOD hallowed the feventh Day, 
 becaufe upon it he refted from his Creation; and 
 that Heaven is called an Eternal Sabbath, becaufe 
 there we Ihnll find Eafe from alI|Bur Labours; 
 there G O D is faid, when well pl^s'd, to have 
 favoured a fweet favour of reft ; and he recom- 
 mends his own Gofpel as a burthen that \s eafy. 
 That rhcii wherewith I fhall task my felf in this 
 Difcourfe, fhall be to prove, T!jat Virtue is more 
 
 ruiout ^""fy ^^^« ^^'"^• 
 
 ferfont For Clearing whereof, confider, that all Men 
 
 tnofi dif- who dellgn either Honour, Riches, or to live hap- 
 fembie yir- ^\\y \^ j-j!^^ W6rld, do either intend to be Virtuous 
 Ts'd^tHcul. ^^ ^^ ^^^^ pretend it; thefe who refolve to deftroy 
 ter than to the Liberties of the People, will ftilc themfelves 
 kiVirtuous. Keeper* 
 
than Vicious. 0> 3 
 
 Keepers of their Liberties; and fuch as laugh at 
 all Religion, will have themfelves believed to be ' 
 Reformers; and of thefe two the Pretenders have 
 the difficulteft part, for they muft not only be at 
 all that Pains, which is requifite in being virtu- 
 bus; but they muft fuperadd to thefe, all the 
 Troubles that Diflimulation requires; which cer- 
 tainly is a new and greater Task than the others 
 and not only fo, but thefe muft over-a6l Virtue^ 
 iipon Defign to take off that Jealoufy which be- 
 <:aufe they are confcious to themfelves to deferye, 
 they therefore vex themfelves to remove. Mofes, 
 the firft, and amongft the beft of the Reformers, 
 was the meekeft Man upon the Face of the Earth; 
 But Jehu, who was but a Counterfeit Zelot, 
 drove furioufly, and called up By-ftanders to fee, 
 what elfe he knew they had Reafon not to be- 
 lieve; and the jufteftofall i^e/'s Chair -men, 
 took not fo much Pains to execute Juftice, as 
 Ahfalon ; who is faid to have ftaid as long in 
 the Gates of Jerufalem^ as the Sun ftay'd above 
 them ; informing himfelf of all Perfons and Af- 
 fairs, though with as little Defign to redrefs 
 their Wrongs, as he fhewed much Inclination to 
 know them ; and all this, that the People might 
 be gained to be the Inftruments of his Unnarural 
 Rebellion: And fuch is the Laborioufnefs of 
 thefe feeming Copies of Virtue, that in our ordi- 
 nary Converfation we are ft ill jealous of fuch as 
 are too ftudious to appear virtuous; though we 
 have no other Reafon to doubt their Sincerity, 
 but what arifes from their too great Pains ; froni 
 which we may Conclude, that thefe Who intend 
 to be virtuous, have a much eafier Task than thefe 
 Pretenders have ; becaufe they have not their own 
 Confcience, not the Jealoufnefs of others, to 
 wreftl© agaiiiftj and which is yet vvorfe, thefe 
 
 R 2 wane 
 
2^- It is eajier to he Virtuous 
 
 want that habit of Virtue which renders all the 
 Pains of fuch as are really Virtuous eafy to them : 
 And what is more difficult, than for thefe to aA 
 againft Cuilofn, which Time renders a fecond 
 Nature; and which, as fhall be faid hereafter, is 
 fo prevalent as to facilitate to virtuous Perfons 
 the hardeft Part of what Virtue commands ? Be- 
 fides this, thefe DilTemblers have a difficult part 
 to a<ft, feeing they ad againft their own inclina- 
 tion; which is to offer Violence to Nature, and 
 the working not only without the Help of that 
 {trongeft of all Seconds, but the toiling againlt 
 it, and all the Afliftance it can give; which how 
 great a Torment it proves, appears from this, 
 that fuch as have as much Generofity as may en- 
 title them to the Name of Man, will rather wea- 
 ry out the Rage of Torture, than injure their 
 own InclinatiOTs. I imagine that Haman was 
 much diftrefs'd, by being put to lead Mordecais 
 Horfcin compliance with his Mafter'sCommands; 
 and one who is obliged by that Interell which 
 makes him diffemble, to counterfeit a Kindnefs 
 for one whom he hates, or omit an Applaufe of 
 what he undervalues, is certainly by that Necef- 
 fitv more cruciate by a thoufand Stages, than 
 fuch as intend upon a virtuous account to love 
 the Perfon, and really to praife that in him, 
 which they are forc'd to commend ; which is fo 
 far from being a Torment when it is truly virtu- 
 ous, thatreal Love makes him who has it; hun- 
 gry of an Occafionto fhew it; and to purfueall 
 Means for heightning that Applaufe, which tor- 
 ments the other. Confider what Difficulty we 
 find in going one way, whilft we look another, 
 awd with what Hazard of Humbling, tb/.it At- 
 tempt is attended, and ye will find both much 
 Difficulty and Hazard to wait^on Difiiniulation ; 
 Hvherein we ar^ried to a double Task; for we 
 
 nuill 
 
than Vicious. ^ g 5 
 
 muft do what we intend, becaufe of our Incli- 
 nations; and what we pretend, becaufe of our 
 Profeflion ; and if we fail in either, which is 
 more probably, than where Simplicity only is 
 profefs'd , ( Two Tasks being difficulter than 
 one ) then the World laughs at us, for failing in 
 what we propos'd ; and if we fret at our felves, 
 for failing in what we privately defign'd : And 
 not only does Diflimulation tie us to a double, 
 but it obliges us to two contrary Tasks ; for wc 
 needed not diffemble, if what we intend be not 
 contrary to what we pretend: And thus Men in 
 Diflimulation do but ( like Penelope ) undo in the 
 Night, what they were forc'd to do in the Day- 
 time. 
 
 Diflimulation makes Vice likewife the more 
 difficult, in that Diffemblers are, never able to 
 recover the Lofs they fuflain by one Efcape ; for 
 if they be catch'd in their Diflimulation, or 
 dogg'd out to be Impoftors, (which they cannot 
 mifs, but by a more watchful Attendance than 
 any that Virtue requires ) then they of all Per- 
 fons are moll hated ; not only by thefe whom 
 they intended to Cheat, but by all others, though 
 unconcerned in the Crime ; and both the one 
 and the other do yet hate it, as what ftrikes at 
 the Root of all humane Society: And for this 
 Caure,Murther under Truft, is accounted fo im- 
 pious and facrilegiousabrcachof Friendfhip,that 
 Lawyers have heightned itsPuniflmient, from that 
 of ordinary Murther, to that of Treafon ; and the 
 grolTeft Politicans haveconfeft this Diflimulation 
 to be fo horrid a Crime, that it was not to be 
 committed for a lefs Hire than of a Kingdom : 
 Whereas virtuous Perfons have their Efcapes 
 oftner pitied than punifned ; both becaufe thefe 
 Efcapes are imputed to no abiding Habit, and be- 
 caufe it is not to be feared that they will offend 
 
 R ; for 
 
2^4 It is eafter to he Virtuous 
 
 for the future; feeing what they laft failed in; was 
 not the effed of any innate and permtment Qua- 
 lity; but was but was a tranfienc and defignlefs 
 Frailty. 
 pijjimuU- Diffimulation is from thislikewife more pain- 
 fiott. ful than Virtue, which it emulates; that the 
 Diffembler is obliged not only fo to diffemble, as 
 that thefe whom he intends to cheat, may be- 
 lieve him ferious ; but fo likewifc, as that others 
 may underftand that he is not ferious. Thus I 
 have my felf feen a Gentleman, whodiffembled 
 a Love and Fondnefs for one whom he was obli- 
 ged to perfwade that flie was his Miftrefs, acft fo 
 covertly that perfidious p?rt, that his real Mi- 
 ftrefs was really Jealous that he dilTemblcd Vv^ith 
 her, and not with the other: And to remove 
 this, put the Gallant to as much new Pains as 
 his former Cheat had coft him. And 1 have 
 hea'"d of 'he like Accidents, though in different 
 Ad'cus; as of a Rebel, who counterfeited Loy- 
 a]*-y fo, that his Complices did really diftruft 
 his F^:ednefs to rhefe damn'd Principles which 
 le f^ill retained. And in ordinary Conver- 
 fxrk- yc will often find, that in diflem- 
 bHnr. with the one Party, ye lofe ftill the 
 otncr ; and it is impoflible ro regain them who 
 nre fo lofi-, but by a fhamcful Difcovery of the 
 former C'neat: And after all that Lofs,this Doubt 
 js Oi'l kf"r ; How can I know but this Man dif- 
 fcm.bles with me, who is fo exquifite in thatr Art, 
 as even to have made me jealous, that his Diffi- 
 mulation was not counterfeit?- 
 yirtuerc Let us a littleconfider; how few Inftruments 
 tjuirtsfv- Virtue requires, and we will find it eafy to be 
 er inftru, virtuous : It Tcquires no Arms, Exchequer, 
 7hanyice ^uards, nor Garifon ; It is all thefe to it felf, 
 in every Senfe wherein it needs them ; Whereas 
 Vice is a Burden to its Votaries as well in the a- 
 
 bundance 
 
than Vicious, 235 
 
 bundance of thofe Attendants which it requires, 
 as in the Difficulty of thofe Attainments which 
 it propofes. And this is that happy Topick, 
 from which our wife Saviour reproved Martha, 
 when he told her. That jhs wearied her felf ahotit 
 many things^ whereas there was one thing necejjary. 
 By which f-eing he commended Devotion^ I 
 may well prefs from it the Excellency of Moral 
 Virtue. The ambitious Man is obliged to have 
 his Houfe planted with a Wood of Partizans ; as 
 well tolecare tharCondition which fo many envy 
 and rival, as to magnify himfelf by fo unequall'd 
 Attendance. This Defire to command^made Hanl- 
 ^^/force aPalTage through the Rocky Alfs ; Cafar 
 to commit himfelf to the Mercy of a ftormy Sea, 
 and fo many weary Journeys. This obliged Xerxes 
 to entertain vaft Navies; and Darius fuch Armies, 
 as reduced all Mankind into one Incorporation. 
 And fo much doth Ambition tie its Dependers to 
 depend upon fuch Numbers, that tho' that Army 
 of Lacquies which attend them,fignifies no more 
 thanfo many followingCyphers,yet the fubftra^l- 
 ing of any one of thefe doth by fo much lelfen 
 the Value of what they follow. Doth not Pride 
 require Flatterers ; and thofe Flatterers Salaries ; 
 and the Provifion of thefe Salaries muchPains and 
 Anxiety.'' Doth not it require Precedency? a fui- 
 table Eftate and Applaufe ? And are not thefe 
 inattainable, without more Toil and Fatigue 
 than any thing that Virtue enjoyns.'* Covetouf- 
 nefs requires afliduous Drudgery, and Mines as 
 bottomlefs as the Defires which crave them : It 
 craves every thing which it felf can imagine. 
 Luxury feeks only after what is unufual , and 
 what is rare. It muft in Aficius crave Food from 
 the Indies ; fetch to Rome, in Heliogahalus, Fiflies 
 when far from the Sea; and more for one Belly, 
 than might enrich Thoufands of Nobler Crea- 
 R 4 tures* 
 
2^6 It is eafier to &e Virtuous 
 
 tures. Luft requires Plurality cf Women;, Abun- 
 dance of Streni!;tl), Numbers of Pimps^, and much 
 Money. Whereas Virtue craves only what is 
 tit; and pcrfwades us to believe that only to be 
 fit, whicii is abfolutely necelTary. Catos Table 
 is compleatly furnifhed with one pidi, and his 
 Body with one Vefture. 
 
 Utitc eiju'rla vlcijje famem.» 
 
 And the Philofopher going by well and rich 
 furnifh'd Shops, could cry out with Pleafure, 
 OhI how manv things are there of which I ftand 
 not in need? Not only arc thefe many Initru- 
 ments troublefomc, becaufe they are fuperfluous, 
 but likewife becaufe by their Number they add 
 to thefe natural Neccftities, under which even 
 virtuous Men nre weighed, as long as they are 
 Men. Thele who have fo numerous Families, 
 cannot remove when their Neccflity calls them ; 
 but they rni-ft expecft till their Retinue be ready; 
 and when thefe are prepared, it is no eafie Clo^ 
 to draw'fo many after them; or when any Mii- 
 fortune overtakes any of thefe many, they rnuft 
 fuffer in thefe, as oft as each of thefe fuffers in 
 themfelves; and their Miferies are augmented by 
 every new Increment that is added to their For- 
 tunes. A great Treafure is not only an Entice- 
 ment to make its Mafter be affaulred, er betray- 
 ed, but is likewife lineafy to be tranfported: and 
 Cvicfus's many Bags are overtaken, when Mo- 
 neylefs S0I071 efcapes with Safety. I fhall then 
 conclude, that Virtue is eafier than Vice, be- 
 caufe it requires fewer Inftrumcnts. 
 
 ;rtue is likewife eafy, becaufe it is fitted for 
 
 Irices and Occafions^ whereas Vice is ilinted 
 
 . ;*.Ic:!: ones. One m^y be juft every where, 
 
 but 
 
tha?i Yicious. 137 
 
 buj Bribing requires Opportunity, Mediation 
 of others, and that thefe others be dexterous in 
 the Conveyance, and clofe as to their Humour. 
 Adultery muft bufy it felf to find a convenient 
 Room ; it requires the Husband's Abfence, a 
 faithful , and yet a faithlefs Servant. And al- 
 beit with the Concourfe of thefe Provifions, it 
 may attain its Aim oftner than it is fit; yet will 
 it want that Satisfaction oftner than it wifhes. 
 Whereas Chaftity is circumfcribed by no fuch 
 Limits; but is as free as pure, depending upon 
 nothing that is extrinfick, and Debtor for its 
 Happinefs to nothing that is not it felf. 
 
 I cannot here but reproach Vice for tying r/ce re. 
 us, not only to Place, Times, and Numbers of i^ires 
 Inflruments; but which is worfe, for referring "'^'*yf, 
 all our Endeavours to Defigns that are either un- ""^"■^^ 
 feifible in themfelves, or at bell, do become fo 
 becaufe of our Fancy, orExcefs. Vanity is not 
 fatisfied without Applaufe from others ; which 
 being an Ad of their free Will who beftow it, 
 doth therefore depend upon their eledion : 
 whereas Virtue is farisfied with its own teftimo- 
 ny ; and is fatisfied with nothing that others fay, 
 except it be bottom'd upon what they are con- 
 fcious to themfelves to deferve. Advancement 
 proceeds not from him who defires it, but he 
 muft exped it from another ; and no Man can 
 fatisfy his own Luft. O then happy Virtue I who 
 art thy own Treafureand Expectation; thou alone 
 may 'ft dote upon thy felf without a Fault ; and 
 in thee only Self-love is no wav Criminal. 
 Whereas Vice is uneafy, becaufe it fetches its Sa- 
 tisfactions from" abroad ; and is barren, becaufe it 
 cannot find them at Home. Covetoufnefs muft 
 fcorch in hulks its Suiters ; it muft freeze them in 
 la^ova Zemblii ; it terrifies them at Sea ; and fhip- 
 wrecks them upon the Shore. Whil ft Virtue recom- 
 mends 
 
^3^ It is eafier to he Virtuous 
 
 mends to us, to feek our Happinefs in no fo- 
 reign Pleafure: And Diogtms finds without 
 Danger in his Tub, wha: thefe Sailers purlue in 
 their dangerous Bottoms. But Vice mi^ht plead 
 it felf Icfs guilty, if its Defign were only difficult; 
 but Difficulty is not all : For Vice either requires 
 what is impoflible, or what, by not being bound- 
 ed, may very eafily become fo. Covetoufnels 
 makes nothing enough , and propofes not only 
 what may ratisfy,but what may be acquired. Am- 
 bition likewife will have everyMan to be higheft; 
 which is impoflible, becaufe there cannot be ma- 
 ny highelt; and the firft Attainer leaves nothing 
 to his implacable Rivals but the Impatience of 
 being difappointed : Which not only difquiets 
 their prefent Eafe, but begets in them Projeds 
 of attacking him by whom they conceive them- 
 fclves vanquifli'd. And thefe Defigns being form- 
 ed by Perfons whofe Judgments are much difor- 
 dered hy Intereft ; (which like fir'd Powder, flees 
 out not always where it may)and againlt Perfons 
 already fecured by Power, Fame,Law, and other 
 Advantages, they ripen into no other Iflfue, than 
 alnft Ruin to thefe who werefo foohfli, as not to 
 fatisfy their prefent Humour with their prefent 
 Fortune. 
 Vice in De- Philofophers have divided all Vices into thefe 
 feB and in which confilf in Excefs, and thefe which imply 
 Excefs are ^ DcfcA ; the onc fHooting as far over the Mark 
 'tttfy. ^ ""' ^^ ^^^^ other comes ffiorr of ic ; and if we compare 
 Virtue with cither of thefe, we will find it more 
 eafie than either ; for as to -thefe which over- 
 reach Virtue, they muft be as much more unea- 
 fic than it, as they exceed it ; for having all in 
 them which that Virtue polTeffes which they ex- 
 ceed, they mult require cither in Acquifition or 
 Maintenance, all the Pains that the exceeded 
 Virtue cxtraAs ; Thus Prodigality requires all the 
 
 vSpending 
 
f^^w Vicious. 039 
 
 Spending and Pains that Liberality needs ; and 
 running equally with all its lengthy, it begins to 
 require more Pains and Travel where it outfhoots 
 the other : And thus Prodigality beftows not 
 only enough^ as Liberality does^ but it lavifties 
 out more than is fit ; taking for the Standard of 
 its Bounty, all that it hath to beftow ; and not 
 either what it felf can fpare, or what its Object 
 needs : Jealoufie pains it felf more than true Love, 
 with all thofe Extravagancies, which are fo un- 
 fufFerable to the Party loved, and fo difquieting 
 to the Lover himfelf, that Phyficians have ac- 
 counted this a Difeafe, and the Law harh made 
 it a Crime. As to thefe Vices, which by being 
 placed in Defed, Teem ro require lefs Trouble 
 than the Virtue they fall fhort of; as the others 
 require more, becaufe of their Excefs .; yet fo 
 uneafie is Vice, that even thefe, thouo;h they ex- 
 ceed not Virtue in their Meafures, do yet exceed 
 it in their Toil : For Nature defigns Accom- 
 plifhment in all its Productions ; and therefore 
 frets, and is difquieted at thefe immature Ef- 
 fects ; and is as much more wounded by thefe 
 than by Virtuous Productions ; as the Crafts are 
 by being fpoiled of their greener Fruits, or as a 
 AVoman is by her too early Birth. We fee a 
 Mifer more cruciate by his fcanting Penuriouf- 
 nefs, than a Noble Perfon by his generous Libe- 
 rality : for thefe are obliged to keep themfelves 
 out of thefe Occafions of fpending ; a Task 
 great enough, becaufe all Men endeavour, both 
 out of Envy, and out of Humour and Sport, to 
 draw them unto thefe Snares, and when they 
 are within their own Circle, they are forced by 
 . that reftlefs Vice, to defcend to Thoufands of 
 Tricks, which are as wearying, as unhandfome. 
 I have feen fome fo careful of their Eftates, that 
 ^hey brook'd better to have their Names and 
 
 Souls 
 
'240 It is cafler to he Virtuous 
 
 Souls burrhen'd than thefe ; and to preferve 
 which, they were at more trouble than any can 
 have the Faith to believe, befides thefe who had 
 the Humour To to do. If to hold or draw with 
 our full force be a trouble, both thefe are the Po- 
 ftures of Covetoufncfs, wherewith it is kept up- 
 on conftant Guard, and in continual Employ- 
 ment I and if at any time they remit any thin,^ 
 of that Anxiety, they repine at their own Neg- 
 ligence ; and imagine that they loft as much as 
 they hop'd once to have gained. Fear is the 
 Defed of Courage ; but yet it is more uneafie 
 than Courage; and really this alone has more 
 imeallnefs,than all the Fraternity of Virtues ; for 
 Virtue is at worft bufied about what is ; but Fear 
 is frighted at what is not, equally with what is. 
 Vices op. y'T^^^ likewife is therefore lefs eafie than Virtue, 
 pefeone a- bccaufe Virtue propofcs only one Aim, which is 
 nether ; fix'd and ftablc ; whilft Vice and Fancy leaves us to 
 rehereat undetcrmination, that is,uneafie as well as dange- 
 *a(r!^Vr ^^"^- When it hath preft us, to make Arniies 
 Fdhw. fall as facrific'd to the Idol of our Ambition ; 
 and for humouring that Paflion, to bring Cities 
 as well as Men level to the Ground ; then it 
 will in the next Thought perfvvade us even to 
 laugh at our Ambition ; and to exchange it for 
 Love to a Miftrefs or Companionry ; as it once 
 ferv'd the otherwife Great Alexander, 
 The Pra. As Virtue makes good Neighbours ; fo all the 
 nice rfone Virtucs are fo far fuch amongft themfelves '; that 
 it'lirllc ^^^ ^^'^' ^^'^^' interfere not with one another, 
 ther vir. but the Excrclfc likewife of the one, facilitates 
 tues. the PracT:ice of the others ; thus whilft we pra- 
 ftifc Temperance, we learn to be Juft ; becaufe 
 ' Temperance is the juft Meafure of enjoying and 
 ufmg all Contingents ; and wc learn by it to be 
 patient ; Patience being a Temperance in Grief, 
 'Sorrow or Affii<^ion : Patience is likewife the 
 
 Exercife 
 
^Z?^^ Vicious. 24.1 
 
 Exercife of Fortitude ; and Fortitude is a juft 
 Proportion of Courage, and a temperate Exer- 
 cife of Boldnefs. And this occafioned the Phi- 
 lofophers to term this Noble Alliance^, the Gol- 
 den Chain of Virtue ; each being link'd with, and 
 depending upon its Fellow. But if we turn the 
 ProfpeA, we will find, that though Diflention 
 be a fpecial Vice fo chara6ler'd ; yet all Vices, 
 have fomewhat of their ill-natur'd Humour in 
 them ; and agree in nothing but in this, that 
 each of them doth difagree with each other ; 
 which makes the Practice of them both tedious 
 and difagreeable : For all of them confifting the 
 one in Excefs, the other in Defed ; they can- 
 not but difagree ; Excefs and Defect being in 
 themfelves moft contrary.: Thus Prodigality op- 
 pofes Avarice, Cowardlinefs Courage, and Fond- 
 nefs Hatred ; and as Virtuous Perfons have a 
 kindnefs for one another , hecaufe the Objed of 
 their Love requires, as well as admits Rivals; 
 fo Vice, endeavouring to engrofs wha: it pur- 
 fues , makes Rivals altogether unfupportable. 
 Ambition inciteth each of its Dependers to be 
 chief; and yet allows only one of thefe many to 
 enjoy, what it makes all of them defire. Thus 
 Avarice's Task is to impropriate the PolTef- 
 fion of what was created ; and is neceifary 
 to be diftributed amongft many Thoufands : 
 And Envy will not only have its Mafter to be 
 full of Applaufe ; but will likewife ftarve the 
 Defires and Merits of others ; judging that it 
 felf cannot be happy if others be. Vice then 
 muft be lefs eafie then Virtue, becaufe it hath 
 more Enemies than Virtue ; and becaufe the 
 Virtues are more harmonious amongft themfelves 
 than Vices are. 
 
 Vices not only make Enemies to themfelves ; Providence 
 but by a Civil War (as a juft Judgment upon ^^/^P^'"- 
 
 them) 
 
04.2 It^ i^ eajjer to he Virtuous 
 
 them) they deftroy one another ; Providence 
 intending thereby, to hinder the Growth of 
 what, though it profper not well, yet is alrea- 
 dy too noxious to Mankind ; and upon the fame 
 Principle of Kindncfs to what bears his Image , 
 GOD Almighty, and His Providence, do de- 
 fign the unfuccefsfulnefs of Vice ; as being ob- 
 ftrucftive of his Glory, as well as deftru<ftive to 
 his Creatures, being equally thereto engaged by 
 a love to his own Honour and Service ; and by 
 ' a hatred as well to thofe who commit Vice, as 
 to the Vice which is committed. Thus GOD 
 confounded thofe Tongues which had fpoke fo 
 much Blafphemy againll him ; whilft they were 
 endeavouring to raife a Tower as high as their 
 Sins. And when D^t/^/ intended to fpill NabaVs 
 Blcod, GOD is faid to have ftop'd him from 
 being an unjull Executioner, whom he intended 
 to make a moil juft Judge. And fmce Balaam's 
 Afs cpcn'd its Mouth to ipcak this Truth, they 
 muft be mere ftupid than AiTcs^who will not be- 
 lieve it. 
 Tffe Lav The Law likewife by its Punifhments, con- 
 tnakes Fice tributes all its Endeavours to crufh Vice, and to 
 une»fit. arreft its Succefs ; forbidding by its Edids, any 
 Perfon to aflift it ; and making not only Aflift- 
 ance, but Counfel ; not only Counfel but Con- 
 nivance ; not only Connivance but Conceal- 
 ment of it, to be in moft Cafes fo Criminal, that 
 all the Honours which Vice promifeth, of the 
 Treafures it gives, cannot be able to redeem 
 thofe who are found to have Higlited this Prohi- 
 bition. Muft it not then be difficult to be viti- 
 ous , where Afliftants and Counfeliors are fo o- 
 ver-aw'd, and the Intenders fo terrified, that 
 few yNxW engage as Inftruments ? And tViefe 
 who do, are fo difordercd by Fear, that vitious 
 Projcdors arc as little to exped Succefs, as vir- 
 tuous 
 
than Vicious. 24.3 
 
 tuous Perfons are to wifh it for them. And to 
 evidence how much Oppofition the Law intends 
 for Vice ; it not only punifhes Vice with what it 
 prefently inflifts ; but it prefumes it ftill guilty 
 for the future : Semel malus femper prafumitur ma- 
 lm ; and upon that Prefumption, many vitlous 
 Perfons have fufFer'd for that whereof they were 
 Dtherways innocent. Though Rebellion hath 
 promifmg Charms^ to allure the Idolaters of Am^ 
 oition and Fame ; yet the Law doth fo far ftand 
 againft it, that few will concur with the Con- 
 trivers^ except fuch Fools as have not the Wit 
 to promote it, or fome defperate Perfons, with 
 whom few will join, becaufe they are known to 
 be difcontent: And though Revenge reliflies 
 Blood with a plealing Tafte ; yet the feverity 
 of excellent Law cools much of that inhuman 
 heat ; and leffjns the Pleafure, by fharpning the 
 Punifhment. Vice then muft be uneafie, feeing 
 the Law oppofes it, and renders its Commiflion 
 dangerous, as well as odious. 
 
 Men likewife join with God and the Law in ^^n f^e in 
 a Confederacy againft Vice ; and though they f"y '-^ '^' 
 too oft approve it in the warmnefs and diforder 'f^^ ^;v*^" 
 of their Paffions, yet in their Profeflions and avdfo it is 
 Conventions they laugh at it, and inveigh a- une»[%e, 
 gainft it; and tho the preffure of a prefent Temp- 
 tation, overcomes them fo far as to commit what 
 they difallow ,• yet they do but infrequently, and 
 with fo many checks from within, as that its 
 Commiflion cannot be thought eafie : Con- 
 fider, how amongft Men, we hate even thefe 
 Vices in others, which we are guilty of our 
 felves; and how we even hate thefe Vices in 
 others, by which we our felves reap no fmall 
 Advantage. Alexander gloried to deftroy that 
 bafe Perfon, who had murthered his greateft 
 Eneg[iy Dmm \ aad DavU is commended, for 
 
 having 
 
?44- J^ ^ eafier to be Virtuous 
 
 having caiifed to kill him, who but faid, that 
 he had killed Saul. Who will employ one who is 
 Perfidious ? And fo uneafie is Vice, that much 
 Pains and Difcourfe will not perfuadc us to be- 
 lieve one who ufes to lie ; whilft we will foon be- 
 lieve what is really a Lie, from one that ufes not 
 to abufe our truft ; few Judges are fo precifely 
 juft, as not to think that they favour a Virtuous 
 Perfon ; good Men do likewife reward fuch as 
 own an Intereft fo allowable, and wicked Men 
 own fuch as are Virtuous, out of defign thereby 
 to expiate their former Vice , and to perfwade 
 the World , that they are not really Vitious, 
 though they be efteemed fo : fo that Teeing Re- 
 ward as well as Inclination, and juft Men as well 
 as unjuft, advance Virtue, and oppofe Vice; 
 Vice cannot but be more uneafie than Virtue, 
 which is all to be proved. 
 f^icemtkef \ ^m from refled:ing upon the progrefs and 
 «x /f/»r aS gi-Q^vt;!^ of Vicc, convinc'd very much of its un- 
 eafinefs. If we look upon Rebellion, Revenge, 
 or Adulteries, we find them hatcli'd in Corners as 
 remote from Commerce as thofe Vices are them- 
 fehxs from Virtue ; and as black as the guilt of 
 their Contrivers ; and almoft as terrifying as the 
 worft of Prifons are to fuch who are but in any 
 meafure Virtuous. None of the Contrivers dares 
 truft his Colleague ; and which is yet worfe, 
 none of them hath Courage enough to reflecft 
 upon what he is to do ; he muft be too bad to be 
 Succefsful, who is fo defperately wicked, as not 
 to tremble at the Wickcdnefs he projecfls ^ and 
 thefe Bleflings which adorn the Face, when they 
 are the Motions of Modefty, become Stains and 
 Blemifhes, when they are fcnt there by Fear, 
 or a troubled Confcience. And it is very pretty 
 to obfcrve , with how much Art and Pains, fuch 
 as are guilty of Vice, endeavour to niun all Dif- 
 courfe^ 
 
than Vicious. ^4.5 
 
 courfes, that can rene\^ to them the leaft Refle- 
 ction upon their former Failings ; and how they 
 muft often times difoblige their own Envy and 
 Malice, in not daring to vent or reproach others 
 with that Guilt , which might beeafily retorted ; 
 and thus Vicious Men have as many Matters as 
 their Vices have Witneffes: And tho' they are 
 bold enough to commit Vice, yet they often- 
 times want the Courage to own it ; and Servants, 
 if confcious to. thefe Crimes, become thereby ne- 
 ceflary to their Matters ; nor do wicked and vi- 
 cious Perfons fear only fuch as do, but (which is 
 more extenfive) fuch as may know their Vices ; 
 and tremble at its memory, as if the Sun or 
 Moon would divulge their Secrets; and by acci- 
 dent, they have oft confefs'd Crimes upon Mi- 
 ttakes ; and have made Apologies for that where- 
 of they were not accus'd ; which hath made the 
 Confettbrs to be laught at for their Error, as 
 well as hated for their Crimes. 
 
 Another Argument to inforce, that Virtue is ^^ ^ ^^^^ 
 more eafie than Vice, is, that feeing Nature is the natural to 
 Spring of all Operations, certainly that muft be I'e'virtam 
 moft eafie, which is mott natural ; and when ^^"^ ^^"'' 
 we would exprefs any thing to be eafie to a Per- 
 fon or Nation, we lay, it is natural to them; and 
 Miracles are uneafie and difficult, becaufe they 
 run the Counter-trad of Nature, being either a- 
 bove, againft, or befide its Affiftance : But fo it 
 is, that Virtue is a more natural Operation than 
 Vice, both becaufe it lefs infefts Nature than 
 Vice does ; and becaufe Nature dlfcovers more 
 of a Bent to ad vicioufly thanvirtuoully; which 
 are the only two Senfes in which any thing is 
 laid to be natural. 
 
 That Virtue of thefe two prejudges Nature 
 leaft, is clear from this, that Sobriety eherifketh 
 S ' itj 
 
24^ It is e after to he Virtuous 
 
 it,when iris run down by Intemperance ; Murder 
 Ki'Js it; Gluttony choaks it ; and Jealoufie keeps 
 it not alive but to torment it; and generally 
 whenever Nature is diftreft , it fives to Virtue, 
 either for Protedion, as to Courage, Juftice, 
 and Clemency; or for Recovery, as to Tempe- 
 rance, Induftry, and Chaftity : Few Gray Hairs 
 owe their Whitenefs, except to that Innocence 
 whofe Livery it is; Rapin, Oppreflion, and 
 thefe other Vices, heightening their infolence a- 
 gainft Man, to that Point, that he muft ferve 
 them in being his own Cut-throat ; to be com- 
 mended for nothing elfe, flive that they rid the 
 World of fuch, who came only into it, to deface 
 that glorious Fabrick, whereof the Almighty re- 
 fented fo the Pleafure of having created it; that 
 he appointed a day of each Seven to celebrate its 
 Feftivals. Are not IbmeSins faid to be Sins againji 
 our oivn bodies ? Net becaufe all are not foin fome 
 Meafure; but becaufe fome are fo in fo eminent 
 a Meafure, that the Apoftle, who knew much 
 of all Mens Inclinations, thought that their be- 
 ing lb much fuch, was enough to reftrain fuch 
 Perfons from committing them, as were ye-t fo 
 wicked, as not to obey a Saviour who dyed for 
 them. And why is it that Laws are fo fevere a- 
 gainft Vice, but becaufe it deflroys and corrupts 
 the Membersof the Commonwealth? I have oft, 
 norwithftandingthe Precepts of Stoicifm, which 
 forbids me to be fo effeminate, as to pit}' any 
 thing; and notwithftanding the Principles of 
 Juftice, which forbids me' to pity Perfons 
 who are flagitious; yet been driven to that excefs 
 ofCompaflion for the ftate of vicious Perfons , 
 that I have no more remembred even the Wrongs 
 that thcv have done me: To fee the Pox wear 
 out a Face which had been fo oft Fairdcd ; and 
 
 the 
 
than Yicious, 24.' 
 
 Gout felter Feec^ that as the Pfalmiit fays, were 
 fwift to do ill, are but too ordinary Encounters to 
 excite Compaflion : But to fee the Wheel fatned 
 with the Marrow of tortured Mifcreants ; and 
 the Rack pull to Pieces their Receptacles of 
 Vice J- are great Inftances how great an Enemy 
 Vice is to Nature ; under whofe ill Condudt , 
 and for whofe Errors it fufFers Torments^ which 
 are much fooner felt than expreft. 
 
 Since then Nature is fo oppos'd by Vice, it 
 cannot be it felf fo unwife, in the meaneft of 
 thefe many Degrees which we afcribe to many 
 Creatures whom it makes wife^, if it difpofed not 
 Mankind to entertain an averfion for Vice, 
 which is fo much its Enemy. Shall the Sheep, 
 the fillieft of all Animals, or the Earth, the dul- 
 left of all the Elements, flee from its OpprelTors? 
 And fliall Nature, which fhould be wifer than 
 thefe, becaufe it beftows thefe Inclinations upon 
 them, which makes them pafs for wife, be fo 
 imprudent, as not to mould Men fo, as to in- 
 cline them to hate Vice, which fo much hurts 
 it ? Is there any Vice committed, to which we 
 may not find another im.pulfive Caufe than Na- 
 ture ? And are not moft Vices either committed 
 by Cuitom, by being miftaken for Good, by 
 Intereft, or Inadvertence, as fliall be fliewedin 
 the Clofe of this Difcourfe ? And feeing Nature 
 defigns to do nothing in vain^ it is not imagina- 
 ble that it fliould prompt us to Vice, wherein 
 nothing but Vanity can be expelled, or from 
 which nothing elfe can be reapt. Thefe who are 
 fo injurious to Nature (becaufe it appears Nature 
 hath been lefs liberal to them, of Underflanding, 
 than to others) as to faften this reproach upon it 
 of inclining Men to Vice, do contradid: theni- 
 felves, when' they fay that Nature is fatisfyed 
 with littlb.j and defires nothing that is fuperfluous; 
 S 2 v/hereas 
 
^4-8 It is eafier to he Virtuous 
 
 whereas all thefe Vices which condfl: in Excefs, 
 do ftretch themfelves, to Superrtuity; whilft 
 upon the other Side, thefe Vices which confift 
 in Defed, are yet as unnatural; hecaufe in 
 thefe the Committers deny themfclves what is 
 neceffary for them^ and fo are moft unnatural : 
 Nature defiring to fee every thing accompliflied 
 in its juft Proportions^ and fatisfied in its juft 
 DeHres. 
 E(f:b Vice All Viccs have their own peculiar Difeafes, 
 bring! a ^q vvhich they inevitably lead ; Envy brings 
 jPjaaiDif- ^^^ to Lcannefs^as if it were fed with its Mafter's 
 Flelh^ as well as with its Enemies Failings ; Luft, 
 the Pox and Confumptions ; Drunkennefs^ Ca- 
 tarrhs and Gouts ; and Rage, Fevers and 
 Phreniies ; which is a Dcmonftration of their 
 Uneafmefsand Incommodioufnefs : And I might 
 slmoft fay, that thof; Vices are like Frogs, Lice 
 and other defpicabb and terrible Infe(fts, gene- 
 rated and kneaded out of excrementitious Hu- 
 mours. Luft is occafioned by the fuperfluity 
 and Heat of the Blood ; Drunkennefs by a Dry- 
 hefs of the VefTels ; and Rage by the Corrupt!* 
 on and Exuberancy ofCholer. Confider, how 
 much the Frowns of Anger disfigure the fweeteft 
 Face ; how much Rage difcompofes our Dif- 
 courfe ; and by thefe and its other Poftures, ye 
 will find Vice an Enemy to Nature. So that in all 
 thefe, Nature labours under fomc Diftemp^r; and 
 is diftrefs'd in its Operation ; and a^ls them not 
 out of Choice, but as fick Men rife to hunt for 
 what their Phyficians deny them. And for all 
 this it follows, that Vice is neither natural in its 
 Productions, nor in its Tendencies ; not being 
 defigned by Nature in the one, nor defigning to 
 preferve Nature in the other. 
 
 I confefs there is a Rank of Virtues, which 
 are fupernatural, fuch as Faith> Hope and Re* 
 
 pcntance 
 
than Vicious. 249 
 
 peiitance ^ but either there could be no Contra- 
 diftindion of thefe from fuch as I treat of, or elfe^ 
 thefe of which I. here fpeak, muft be natural. 
 To deny our felves, if we will follow Chrift ; 
 and what Flefh and Blood did not teach Veter, to 
 emit that noble Confeflion of Chrift 's being the 
 Son of the Eternal GOD, proves that fome Spi- 
 ritual Truths are above the reach of Reafon; 
 yet with Relation to thofe other moral Virtues, 
 that fame infpired Volume aflures us, 77:'^!? the Gen- j^^^^ ^^ 
 tiles, who ha've no Law, do by Nature the thhtgs con j^. 
 tained in the Law, are a Law unto themfelves ^ jvhich 
 jhew the work of the Law written in their hearts ; their 
 Confcience alfo hearing witnefs, and their Thoughts in 
 the mean time accusing , or elfe excujing one another : 
 And elfewhere the wicked are faid to be without Rom. i. 
 natural AffeEiion. Are not all Sins, even in the di- 31-! 
 ali^t of Philofophers and Law-givers, as well as 
 in the Language of Canaan, termed unnatural ? 
 What is Paricide, Ingratitude, Oppreffion, Ly- 
 ing, &c. but the Subverfion of thefe Laws, 
 whereof our own Hearts are the Tables ? Doth 
 not Nature, by giving us Tongues to exprefs our . 
 Thoaghts,teachus,that to difguife our Thoughts, 
 or to contradiA them, • is to be unnatural : And 
 feeing the not acknowledgement of Favours, ob- 
 ftruds the future Relief of our Neceflities,itmuft 
 be as unnatural to be ungrate , as it is natural to 
 provide Supplies for our craving wants. 
 
 I will not fully exhauft the Miferies that wait The Homr 
 upon Vice, by telling you, that no Man who is */ ^onfd. 
 really vicious, finneth without ReluAancy in ^:'^ '^^^^' 
 the Commillion ; but I muft likewife tell you, ^ j^*_ ""' 
 that though all the Preceding Difadvantages 
 were falv'd, yet the natural Horror which refults 
 from the Commiffion of Vice, is great enough to 
 render it a Miracle, that any Man fhould be vi- 
 
 S 2 cious. 
 
 un- 
 
5^0 It is e after to he Virtuous 
 
 clous. Confcicnce cnn condemn us without Wit- 
 nefTes, though wc bribe off nil WitnefTcs from 
 without; or though by Sopliiflry and Art, we 
 render their Depofitions inrucccfsful : And 
 though Remifltons can fecure us againft all ex- 
 ternal Punifiiments , yet the Arm of that Execu- 
 tioner cannot be ilopp'd. And if ye confider how 
 Men become thereby inconiblable^by the Atten- 
 dance of Friends, and the Advantage of all ex- 
 terior Plcafures , ye cannot but conclude that 
 Vice is to be pitied, as well as (hunn'd ; and 
 that this alone makes it more uneafie than Virtue, 
 whereby the greateft of Misfortunes arc fweet- 
 ned ; and outward Torments, by having their 
 Profpcft turn'd upon future Praife and Rewards , 
 renderd Pleafures to fuch as fuffer them ; and are 
 look'd upon as Ornaments, by fuch as fee them 
 infli(fled, and draw Praifes from fucceeding Ages. 
 
 Hie murtis ahemis efio 
 
 Nil confcire Jihiy nulla ^allefccre culpa j* 
 
 • was the Determination of a Pagan , who could 
 derive no Happinefs from the Divine Promifes, 
 upon which we are obliged to rely for Rewards; 
 which though they be too great to be underftood 
 hy the Sons of Men, yet are not fo great, but 
 that they may be expe(5led by us, when we fhall 
 he adopted to be the Sons of that God, whofe 
 Power to beftow can be cquafd by nothing,' but 
 by his Defire to gratify. After Succefs hath 
 crown'd vicious Deflgns, yet Vice meets with 
 this Uneafmefs of Remorfe, wherein the Souls 
 of Men are made to forget the Pleafure of Suc- 
 cefs, and are punifhed for having been fucccfsful : 
 And rhefe will either not remember their Succefs, 
 in which Cafe they want all Pleafure ; or if they 
 think upon it, that Thought will lead theni back 
 
 to 
 
than Vicious. 251 
 
 to confider the Guilt and Bafenefs to which they 
 owe it^ which will vex and fret them. Virtue 
 afflids at moft but the Body, and in thefe Pains 
 Philofophy comforts usj but Vice affliAs our 
 Souls^ and the Soul being more fenfible than the 
 Body, ( feeing the Body owes its Senfiblenefs to 
 it), certainly the Torments of Vice mutt be 
 greateft. And this feems the Reafon why our 
 Saviour, in defcribing the Torments of Hell, 
 placeth the worm that never dies, before the fire that 
 never goeth out: And that the Rebukes of a natu- 
 ral Confcience, are of all Torments the moll 
 infupportable , appears from this, that albeit 
 Death' be the moft formidable of all Torments, 
 ( Men fufFering Tortures, Phyfick, Contumelies, 
 Poverty, and the fharpeft of Afflictions, to lliun 
 its Encounter )j yet Men, in Exchange of thefe, 
 will not only welcome Death, but will alTume 
 it to themfelves ; adding the Guilt and Infamy 
 of Self-Murther, the Confifcation of an Eftate, 
 and the infamous Wants of Burial , to the Hor- 
 rors of an ordinary Death ; and all this to fhift 
 the prefent Gna wings of .a Confcience. The 
 Horrors likewife of a guilty Confcience doth in 
 this appear moft difquieting, that thofe who have 
 their Confcience fo burden'd, do acknowledge, 
 that after Confeffion they find themfelves as 
 much eafed, as a fick Stomach is relieved by vo- 
 miting up thefe Humours, whofe Difquietnefs 
 make fuch as fuifered them, rather fick Perfons, 
 than Patients ; whereas whatever be the prefent 
 Troubles which arife from Virtue, yet if they 
 continue not, they are tolerable ; and if they 
 continue , Cuftom and the Afliftance of Philo- 
 fophy will leffen their Weight ; and at beft the 
 Pain is but temporary, becaufe the Caufe from 
 which they defcend is but momentary : If they 
 be not fharp and violent, they are fufFerable; 
 
 S 4 and 
 
^5- It is eafier to te Virtuous 
 
 and if they be violent, they cannot laft ; or at 
 lead the Patient cannot laft long to endure them. 
 Whereas thefe Retleftions that difquiet us in 
 Vice, arifing from the Soul it felf, cannot perifh 
 whilft that hath any Being. And fo the vicious 
 Soul muft meafure its Grief by the Length of 
 Eternity, tho' Vice did let out its Joys but by the 
 Length of a Moment ; and did not fill even the 
 narrow Dimenfions of that Moment with flncerc 
 Joy ; the Knowledge that thefe were to be fhort- 
 Jiv'd, and the Fear of fucceeding Torment^ pof- 
 feffing much of that little Room. 
 
 The firfl Objection, whofe Difficulty deferves 
 ^mol%llt' an Anfwer, is, That Virtue obliges us to oppofe 
 fant than Plcafures^ and to accuftom our felves with fuch 
 rice. Rigorsj Serioufnefs, and Patience, as cannot 
 but render its Praftice uneafy; and if the Rea- 
 der's own Ingenuity fupply not what may be re- 
 join'd to this, it will require a Difcourfe, that 
 fhall have no other Dcfign bclides its Satisfaction ; 
 and really to fhew by what Means every Man 
 may make himfelf eafily happy, and how tofoft- 
 en the appearing Rigors of Philofophy, is a 
 Defign, which, if I thought it npt worthy of a 
 iwecier Pen, fhould be aflifted by mine ; and for 
 which I have, in my current Experience, ga- 
 thcr'd together iome loofe Refle(5lions and Ob- 
 fervations, of whofe Cogency I have this Affu- 
 ranee, that they have often moderated the wildeft 
 of my own ftraying inclinations, and fo might 
 pretend to a more prevailing Afcendant over 
 iuch, whofe Reafon and Temperament makes 
 them much more rcclaimable: But at prefent my 
 Anfwer is, That Philofophy enjoins not the 
 crofling of our own Inclinations, but in order 
 to their Accomplifhment ; and it propofes Pleaf- 
 fare as its End, as well as Vice ; tho* for its more 
 ftx'd Eftablifhtnent , it fometimes commands 
 
 what 
 
than Vicious. ^53 
 
 what feems rude to fuch as are Strangefs to its 
 Intentions in them. Thus Temperancjg refolves 
 to heighten the Pleafures of Enjoynient, by de- 
 fending us againft all the Infults of Excefs^ and 
 oppreflive Loathing ; and when it leffens our 
 PleafureSj it intends not to abridge them^ but to 
 make them fit and convenient for us ; even as 
 Soldiers, who tho' they propofe not Wounds and 
 Starvings, yet, if without thefe they cannot 
 reach thofe Lawrels to which they climb , they 
 will not fo far difparage their- own Hopes, as to 
 think they fhould fix them upon any thing, 
 whofe Purchafe deferves not the fullering of 
 thefe. Phyfick cannot be called a cruel Employ- 
 ment, becaufe to preferve what is found, it will 
 cut off what is tainted; and thefe vicious Perfons, 
 whofe Lazinefs forms this Doubt, do anfwer 
 it, when they endure tho, Sicknefs of Drunken- 
 nefs, the Toiling of Avarice, the Attendance of 
 rifing Vanity, and the Watchings of Anxiety ; 
 and all this to fatisfy Inclinations, whofe Short- 
 nefs allows little Pleafures, and whofe ProfpeA 
 excludes all future Hopes. Such as difquiet 
 themfelves bv Anxiety ( which is a frequently 
 repeated Self-Murther ) are more tortur'd, than 
 they could be by the Want of what they pant 
 after ; that long'd-forPoffeflion of a Neighbour's 
 Eftate, or of a Publick Employment, makes 
 deeper Impreffions of Grief by their Abfence, 
 than their Enjoyment can repair : And a Philo- 
 fopher will fooner convince himfelf of their not 
 being the neceffary Integrants of our Happinefs • 
 than the Mifer will, by all his Affiduoufnefs, 
 gain them. 
 
 There are but Three Inllances of Time, and 
 in each of thefe vicious Perfons are much 
 troubled ; the ProfpeA of ufual Infuccefsfulnefs, 
 Difficulties^ or lacohveniencies, do torment be- 
 fore 
 
54 It^^ eafier to he Virtuous 
 
 fore the Commi/Tton ; Horror, Trembling, and 
 Relu<5tancy, do terrify in the K6k. \ and Confci- 
 ence fucceeds to thefe after Commiflion , as the 
 laft, but not the leafl: of thefe unruly Torments. 
 And as to the Pleafures of Vice, it can have 
 none in any of thefe Parcels of Time, befide 
 the prefent; which prefent is by many Philofo- 
 phers, fcarce allowed the Name of Time ; and 
 is at beft fo fwift , that its Pleafures muft be too 
 tranfient to be poffefs'd. T confefs, that Revenge 
 is the moil enticing of all Vices 3 infomuch, that 
 a wicked Italian faid. That God Almighty had 
 referved it to himfelf, becaufe it was too noble 
 and fatisfying a Prerogative to be beftowed upon 
 Mortals ; yet it difcharges at once its Pleafure 
 with its Fury ; and like a Bee, languifhes after 
 it hath fpent its Sting \ and when it is once a6led, 
 which is oft in one Moment, it ceafeth from 
 that Moment to be a Pleafure \ and fuch as were 
 tickled once with it, are afraid of its Remem- 
 brance, and think worfe of it, than they did 
 formerly of the Affront, to expiate which, it 
 was undertaken. Thirty Pieces of Silver might 
 have had fome Lechery in them , at Jtiia; firft 
 Touch ; but they behoved to have a very unre- 
 fembling EffcL^:, when he took no longer Plea- 
 fure in them, than to have come the next Week 
 to offer them back; and becaulc they were re- 
 fufed, to rid himfelf of his life and them toge- 
 ther. 
 
 The Pains of Vice may be concluded greater 
 than thefe of Virtue, from this ; that virtuous 
 Perfons are in their Sufferings aflilted by all the 
 World; vicious Perfons doing fo to expiate their 
 own Crimes ; and virtuous Perfons doing the 
 fime, to reward the Virtue they adore \ and if 
 thefe Endeavours prove infuccefsful, every Man 
 by bearing a Share in their Grief, do all they 
 
 can 
 
thanYicious, 155 
 
 can to leiTen it ; but vicious perfons have their 
 Sufferings augmented by the Difdain, and juft 
 Opprobries thrown upon them by fuch as were 
 WitnelFes to their Vices ; and fuch as had any 
 Inclination for them^ dare not appear to be their 
 Well-wifhersj left they be reputed Complices of 
 their Crimes. 
 
 I need not fear fo much Weaknefs in this my 
 Theme^ as to bring up a Thoufand of thefe In- 
 Itances to its Aid, that lie every where obvious 
 to the leaft curious Obfervation : What is more 
 laborious than Pride ? wherein by robbing from 
 others what is due to them, the Acquirers are 
 ftill obliged to defend their new Conquefts with 
 m.ore Vigilance than Virtue needs ? The proud 
 Man muft be greater than all others, and fo 
 muft toil more than they all, his Task being 
 greater than all theirs jointly. And the jealous 
 Man muft never be fatisfied, till he know not 
 only what is Truth, but what he fears to be fo ; 
 being moft unhappy in this, that if he get Affu- 
 rance of what he fufpe(5ts, then he ism.ade really 
 miferable; or if he attain not to that Afturance, 
 he muft ftill toil for it, and make himfelf mifera- 
 ble by his Pains, till he become really fo, by 
 being informed of what at one Inftant he wifh- 
 es to be falfe, and endeavours to makt true. Re- 
 venge is moft painful, both in perfwading us 
 that thefe are Affi'onts, which of their own Na- 
 ture are no Affronts ; and then in bringing on us 
 much more Hazard than their fatisfacftion can 
 repay. For one Word fpoke to us, which (it 
 may be) the Speaker intended as no Injury, how 
 many have, by murdering the Speaker, or fome 
 rafli Attempt, deprived themfelves of the Privilege 
 of feeing their Friends without Horror ,• or of 
 comingabroad withoutimminent Danger^ skulk- 
 
2 5 6 I^ ^^ eajier to he Virtuous 
 
 ing in Dens like Theives ; imprifoned for Fear 
 of Prifon ; and dying daily to (hun the Death 
 they fear ? Whereas Socrates^ by laughing at him 
 who fpat in his Face, had then the Pleafure to 
 fee himfelf at prefent fatisfied; and did forefee 
 the Hopes of future Praifes. Guiltinefs muft 
 fearch out Corners ; it muft at all Rates fecure 
 Favourites ; it muft fhun to meet with fuch as 
 are confcious to its Guilt ; and whenever two 
 Men fpeak privately in Prefence of fuch as are 
 vicious, they perfwade themfelves that fome- 
 what is there fpoke to their Difadvantage ; and 
 like one who labours of a Sore, they muftftill 
 be careful that their Wound be not toucht. 
 
 To conclude then this Period, confider, that 
 every Thing that is uneafy muft be unpleafint ; 
 and that Vice is more uneafy than Virtue, ap- 
 pears from the whole foregoing Difcourfe. 
 Why Men I hope the preceding Difcourfe hath cleared 
 arc always o^ 2M thefe Doubts, that can oppofe this well 
 ■vicmt. founded Truth ; leaving only this ObjedioH 
 here to be anfwered : If Vice be lefs eafy, and 
 lefs natural than Virtue ; why do the greater 
 Part of Mankind range themfelves to its fide ? 
 leaving Virtue as few Followers, as it profelTes to 
 defire Admirers ? In Anfvver whereto, I confefs 
 that this Qbjeclion proves Men to be mad but 
 not Vice to be eafy; even as when we fee Men 
 throw away their Cloaths,run the Fields over, and 
 expofe themfelves to Storms, leaving their con- 
 venient Homes and kind Family, we conclude 
 fuch as do fo to be mad ; but are not induc'd to 
 believe that what they do is eafy. And certainly 
 Vice is a Madnefs, as may appear convincingly 
 from this, that when we fee others run to thele 
 Exceflesj (which we thought Gallantry in our 
 felves, when wc were ading the like) we ^sk 
 
 them 
 
than Vicious. 257 
 
 them ferioufly. What, are ye mad ? And Hazael, 
 when the Cruelty he was to ("and did) commit, 
 was foretold him by the Prophet, did with Ad- 
 miration ask, TVhat ? am I a dog that I jhould do 
 thefe things ? And the Prodigal, when he freed 2 Kipgs £ 
 himfelf from thefe vicious. Rovings, is faid to ^^• 
 have come to himfelf^ by which Word Madnefs is " *^* 
 ufually exprefs'd. Men are faid to be mad, when 
 they offer Violence to their Bodies ; and it is a 
 more advanc'd Degree of Madnefs, to offer Vio- 
 lence to our Souls ; which we then do ( befides 
 the ruining of our Bodies ) when we are vicious. 
 And to fuch as prefer their Bodies to their Souls, 
 I recommend the Survey of fuch Bodies, as 
 have wafted themfelves in Stews and Taverns, 
 or have left Limbs upon the Field, where they 
 laft quarrelled after Cups, for Vanity, or Mi- 
 ftreffes. The Second Anfwer is. That Men 
 miftake oft-times Vice for Virtue ; and are enti- 
 ced to it by an Error in their Judgments , rather 
 than any Depravednefs in their AffeAions. 
 Thus Drunkennefs recommends it felf to us, un- 
 der the Notion of Kindnefs ; and Prodigality 
 under that of Liberality : Complacency likewife 
 is the great Pimp of much Vicloufnefs to well- 
 difpofed Perfons ; and many are by it enticed to 
 err, to gratify a Miftake in their Friendfhip ; for 
 they are perfwaded, that Friendfhip and Kind- 
 nefs are fo innocent and fweet Qualities, that 
 they cannot command,, what are not juft as 
 themfelves. 
 
 Cuftom alfo, as it is a Second Nature, fo it is 
 a Step-mother to Virtue ; and whiift we endea- 
 vour to fliun the Vice of being t/^i« a.nd fmgnlar^ 
 we flip into thefe Vices , which are too familiar 
 to be formidable ; and which we would not have 
 committed, if the Mode and Fafhion had not 
 determin'd us thereto , againft our firft and pure 
 
 Inch- 
 
P58 It is enfter to be Virtuous 
 
 Inclinations. Thus the Germans believe Drink- 
 ing to be Kindnefs : And the Italian is, by the 
 Cuftom of his Country, induc'd not to tremble, 
 but to love Sodomy. We have Intereft likewife to 
 blame, for mucli of that Wickednefs, which we 
 falfly charge upon Nature : For this bribes us to 
 oppofe what naturally we would follow; but a- 
 bove all, Want of Confideration is the frequent 
 Occafion of many of thefe Diforders ; fo that 
 Virtue is not poftpon'd by Choice, but by Neg- 
 ligence ; neither would it be more difficult for 
 us to be virtuous in many of our Anions, than it 
 would be for us to confider what we are about to 
 do. And I may feal up this Period with the 
 blunt Complaint made by a poor Woman, who 
 after her AfFedion and Intereft had forc'd from 
 her many paflionate Regrates againft her Son's 
 Debordings, concluded thus; Alas ! my Son will 
 never recover, for he cannot think : Therefore I 
 muft conclude, that feeing it is eafy to think, it 
 muft be likewife eafy to be virtuous. 
 The f^ prove ^^ ^^ indeed hard for one who is drunk to ftand 
 theUneaf:- upright, or foF onc who hath his Eyes cover'd 
 ntfsaJfo with Mire to fee clearly;' and yet ftanding up- 
 ef^prtvate y\^^ ^ qj. feeing clearly , are not in themfelves 
 '7ndluhu- difficult Tasks; juft fo Virtue is eafy in it felf, 
 nteur:. though our Prc-cngagcment to the contr:jiy Ha- 
 bit, rather than to the Vice it felf, rendei-s its O- 
 peration fomewhat uneafy ; whereas, if we had 
 once imbrued our Souls with a Habit of Virtue , 
 its Exercife would be far eafier to us than that 
 of its contrary; for it would be afliftcd by Rea- 
 ibn, Nature, Reward, andApplaufe; all which 
 oppofe the other. He who becomes temperate , 
 finds his Temperance much lefs troubicfome, 
 than tlie moft habitual Drunkard can his Excefs; 
 who can never render it fo familiar, but that he 
 will be conftrain'd to make Facc<, when .he 
 
 quaffs 
 
than Vicious. 259 
 
 quaffs off a tedious Health ; and will at fome- 
 times find either his QuarrelSj, the betraying his 
 Friend's Secret, or his Crudities, to importune 
 him. No Lyar hath fo much accuftomed him- 
 felf to that Trade , but he will difcover himfelf 
 fometimes in his Blufhes, and will be oft diftref- 
 fed to Ihape out Covers for his Falfenefs; where- 
 as he who is free from the Bondage of that Ha- 
 bit, will always find it fo eafy , that he will ne- 
 ver hear a Lye, without admiring with what 
 Confidence it could have been forg'd. 
 
 Whereas to know the Eafmefs of Virtue , we 
 need only this Refledion, that every vicious 
 Perfon thinks it eafier to conquer the Vice he 
 fees in another. He who whores, admires the 
 Uneafinefs and Unpleafantnefs of Drinknig ; 
 and the Drunkard laughs at the fruitlefs Toil of 
 Ambition ; which fhews that Vice is an uneafy 
 Gonquefl , feeing the meaneft Perfons can fub- 
 due it. 
 
 Though Truth and Newnefs do of all other 
 Motives, court us fooneft to Complacency , and 
 that my prefent Theme may pretend to both ; 
 yet fo ftudious am I of Succefs, where I have a 
 Tendernefs for the Subjed for which I contend, 
 that for further Conviction of its Enemies, I 
 muil recommend to them to go to the Courts of 
 Monarchs ; and there learn the Uneafinefs and 
 Unpleafantnefs of Vice, from its fplitting thofe 
 jii Oppofitions and Fadions, which afford the 
 reafonable Lookers-on as difagreeable a ProfpeA, 
 as that of a fliipwrackt Velfel. And when Fa- 
 ction has once difmembred a Society, is it not 
 ftrange to fee what Pains and Anxiety mufl be 
 fhewed by both Oppofites, to difcover and ruin 
 each others Projeds ? Other Men toil only to 
 make themfelves happy ; but thofe muft labour 
 likewife to keep their Oppofites from being fo ; 
 
 tbev 
 
iko It U cafier to be Virtuous 
 
 they muft feek Applaufe for themrelves, and tnuft 
 ftop it from their Enemies ; they muft fhun all 
 Places where thefe are entertained , and all Oc- 
 callons which may bring them to meet , though 
 Inclination or Curiofity do extremely bend them 
 to go thither. They muft oppofe the Friends of 
 their Enemies, though they be defirous, and 
 oblig'd upon many other Scores to do them good 
 Offices : They grow pale at their Appearances, 
 and are difordered at what Praife is given thofe, 
 though beftowed upon them for promoting that 
 publick Good, wherein the Contemners fhare 
 for much of their own Safety : And it is moft 
 ordinary to hear fuch factious Zealots fwear, 
 that they would chufe rather* to be deftroyed by 
 a publick Enemy^ than preferv'd by a Rival. 
 From all which it is but too clear , that all vici- 
 ous Perfons are Slaves ; which though the unea- 
 fieft of States, yet to (hun a Lofs of fuppofed 
 Liberty, moft Men refufe to be virtuous. If we 
 go to Phyficians, we will find their Shambles 
 hung round with the Trophies of Vice. For 
 Temperance, Chaftity, or the other Virtues, 
 fend few thither : But Wantonnefs repays there 
 its cne Moment's Pleafure with a Year's Cure ; 
 and makes them afraid to fee that disfigured Face, 
 for whole Reprefentation they once doted upon 
 their flattering Mirrors. There lie fuch Prifo- 
 ncrs, as the drunken Gout hath fetter'd ; and 
 there lie louring fuch as Gluttony hath opprefs'd. 
 I,et us go to Prifons and Scaffolds, and there we 
 will fee fuch furnilh'd out With the Envoys of 
 "fnjuftice , Malice , Revenge , and Murders. 
 fet us go to Divines, and they will tell us of 
 the horrid Exclamations of fuch, as have upon 
 their Death-bed feen mufter'd before them, thofe 
 Sins, which how foon they had their Vizards of 
 Senfuality and Luft pulled off) did appear in Fi- 
 gures 
 
,. than Yicious. a6i 
 
 gures monflrous enough to terrify a Soul which 
 took leifure to confider them. 
 
 Hi funt (Jul trepidant^ d^ ad omnia fulgura patient, Juvenal. 
 
 And though the Confciences of Soldiers have 
 oft-times their Ears fo deafned with warlike 
 Sounds, or welcome Applaufes, that they cannot 
 hear; and their Eyes fo coverv*d with their Ene- 
 mies Gore, that they cannot fee thefe terrifying 
 Shapes of inward Revenge ; yet, if we believe 
 Lman, neither could the Wrongs done to Cafar 
 fo far legitimate his Fury ; nor the prefent Joy, 
 or future Danger, fo far divert him from refle- 
 cting upon his by-palt A«5lions ; nor could the 
 Want of Chriftianity (which enlivens extreme- 
 ly thefe Terrors beyond the Creed 0^3. Roman,\vho 
 believ'd that Gallantry was Devotion ) fo far 
 favour his Cruelty ; but that he and his Soldiers 
 were the Night of Pbarfalia's Battel thus difturb'd. 
 Lucariy Book 7. 
 
 But furious Dreams difiurb their refilefs Refi^ 
 Pharfalia'j Fight remains in e'v*ry Breaji'^ 
 Their horrid Guilt fiill works i the Battel fiands 
 In all their Thoughts^ they brandijii empty Hands 
 Without their Swords : you would have thought the 
 
 ( Field, 
 Had Groan' d, and that the guilty Earth did yield 
 Exhaled Sfir its y that in the Air did move ^ ; ' 
 And Stygian Fears foJJ'efi the Night above ; 
 A fad Revenge on them their Cow^uefi takes i 
 . Tlieir Sleeps prefent the Furies hijjing Snakes, * 
 
 And Brands ' their Countrymen's fadGho^s appear : 
 To each the Image of his proper Fear. 
 One fees an old Mans Vifage, one a young ; 
 Anothei's tortur'd ail the Evening long 
 
 T irith 
 
26 1 It is eafter to he Virtuous 
 
 With his /lain Brother s Spirit ; their Fathers fight 
 Daunts feme : but Caefar'j Soul all Ghofis affright. 
 
 TheChara^ But that I may reft your Thoughts from the 
 philofo. ^oi^*^ ^"^ Horror of thefe Objeds , let me 
 f her, and lead them into a Philofopher's Cell or Houfe ; 
 hit Eafe. (for Virtue is not like Vice^ confin'd to Places ;) 
 and there ye will fee Mcafures taken, by no lefs 
 noble nor lefs erring Pattern, than Nature. His 
 Furniture is not the Offspring of the laft Faflii- 
 on ; and fo he muft not be at the Toil, and keep 
 Spies for informing him, when the fucceeding 
 Modemuit caufeth^febe pull'd down; and needs 
 not be troubled, to fill the Room yearly of that 
 contemn'd Stuff he but lately admir'd. He is not 
 troubled that anoth^rs Candlefticks are of a later 
 Mould ; nor vext, that he cannotmufterfo many 
 Cabins or Knacks as he does. He fpends no fuch 
 idle times as is requifite for making great Enter- 
 tainments ; wherein Nature is opprcll to pleafe 
 Fancy ; and muft be by the next days Phyfick 
 tortur'd to cure its Errors: His Soul lodges clean- 
 ly ; neither clouded with the Vapours,nor cloy'd 
 with the Crudities of his Table : He applies e- 
 very thing to its natural ufe ; and fo ufes Meat 
 and Drink, not to exprefs Kindnefs ('Friendfliip 
 doing that Office much better ) but to refrefti, 
 and jiot ro occafion his Weaknefs. His Dreams 
 are neither difturb'd by the horrid Reprefentati- 
 on of * his laft days Crimes ; nor by the too deep 
 Impreflions of the next Day's Defigns, but are 
 talm as the Brcaft they refrefli , and pleafant as 
 the Reft they bring. His Eyes fuffer no fuch 
 Eclipfe in thefe as the Eyes of vicious Men do, 
 when they are darkened with Drunkennefs , 
 or exceflive Sorrow ; for all his DarknelTes 
 fucceed as feafonably to his Recreations , 
 as the Day is followed in by the Night. 
 
 In 
 
thanY'icious. 063 
 
 in his Gloaths, he ufes not fuch as require two 
 or three Hours to their laborious Dreffing ; or 
 which over-awe the Wearer fo, that he mull 
 ihun to go abroad to all Places, or at all Occafi- 
 ons , left he offend their Luftre ; but he pro- 
 vides himfelf with fuch as are moft eafy for 
 tJfe ; and fears not to fiain thefe, if he keep his 
 Soul unfpotted : He confiders his Body and Oi> 
 gans, as the Eafement and Servants of that rea&> 
 fonable Soul he fo much loves ; and therefore 
 he eafes them, not upon Defign to pleafe them, 
 but to refrefh them ,• that the Soul may be there- 
 by better ferv'd ,• and if at any time he deny 
 thefe their Satisfadion, he defigns not there^ 
 by to torture them ; For Gratitude ob- 
 liges him to repay better their Services : (and a 
 Man Ibould not be cruel even to his Beaft) ; but 
 he does fo, left they exceed thefe Meafures^ 
 whofe Extent Virtue knows better to mark out 
 than they ; or elfe he finds that during the rime 
 he minifters to thele Appetites, he may be more 
 advantagioufly employ din enjoying the pure and 
 Spiritual Pleafures of Philofophy. But leaving 
 this outer Court, let us ftep into a Philofopher's 
 Breaft, (a Region as ferene as theHeavcn whence 
 it came) and there view how fweet Virtue infpires 
 gentleThoughts,whofeStorms raife notWrinckles, 
 like Billows in our Face> and blow not away our 
 difobliged Friends. Here, no mutinous Paflion 
 rebels with fuccefs ; and thefe petty Infurredions 
 of FlefK and Blood, ferve only to magnify the 
 Strength of Reafon in their Defeat. Here, all 
 his Defires are fo fatisfied with Virtue, as their 
 Reward , that they need, nor do not ruii abroad, 
 begging Pleafures 'from every unknown Objed: 
 And therefore it is, that, not placing his Happi- 
 nefs upon what is fubjed to the Empire of Fate, 
 €apricioft^FQ«310^ cannot make him miferable : 
 
^64. It is eajier to be Virtuous 
 
 for it can rcfume notliing but what it hath given : 
 And therefore ;, feeing it hath not beftowea Yir- 
 . tue and Tranquility, it cannot call it away, and 
 whilft that remains all other LolTes are inconfi- 
 B'erable. And as few Men are griev'd to fee what 
 js not their own deftroy'd, fo the virtuous Philo- 
 Topher , having always confidered what is with- 
 out him as belonging to Fortune, and not to 
 him, he fees thofe burnt or robb'd with a dif in- 
 tefefted indifferency : And when all others are 
 allarm'd with the Fears of enfiiing Wars and In- 
 A'afions , he ftands as fixt (though not as hardj 
 as a Rock, and fuffers all the foaming Waves of 
 Fate and Malice to fpend their Spite and Froth 
 at his Feet. Virtue, and the Remembrance of 
 what he hath done, and the Hopes that he will 
 flill ad virtuoufly> are all his Treafures ; and 
 thefe are' not capable of being pillag'd : thefe are 
 Jiis infeparable Companions, and therefore he 
 can never wanta divcrtifmg Converfation : And 
 feeing he is a Citizen of the World, all places are 
 his Country; and he is always at home, and fo 
 can never be banifhed ; and feeing he can ftill 
 exercife his Reafon equally in all places, he is 
 never (like vicious perfonsj vex'd, that he muft 
 -ftay in one place, and cannot reach another ; 
 like a Sick Man, whofe difeafe makes him always 
 tumble through all the Corners of his Bed; 
 He is never furprizcd,becaufe he forecaOs always 
 the worft ; & as this arms him againftDifcohtents, 
 fo if a milder Event difappoint his Apprehen- 
 fions , this heightens his Pleafurc. He 
 lives without all dellgn, except that one of obey- 
 ing his Reafon; therefore it is that he can ne- 
 ver be miferable, feeing fuch are only fo, who 
 are cj-ofs'd*in their Dellgns; and thence it is, 
 that when he he.ys that his Aftions difpleafe the 
 .J^'orTd, he is hljt" troubled, feeing -he* "delignM 
 
 ■ "^ not 
 
tJMH Vicious. ^65 
 
 not to pleafe them ; and if he fee others carry 
 wealthy Pretences to which he had a Title^, he 
 is little troubled, feeing he defign'd not to be rich. 
 The Frowns or Favours of Grandees alter him 
 not, feing he neither fears the one, nor expeds 
 Promotion from the other. He defires little, 
 and fo is eafily happy ; feeing thefe are without 
 .controverfy happy, who Enjoy all they defire ; 
 and that Man puts himfelf in great Debt, who 
 widens his Expedations by his Defires: Thus, 
 he who defigns to buy a neighbouring Fiel,d, 
 •mull itraiten himfelf to lay up what will reach 
 its Price , as much as if he were Debtor in the 
 like Sum; and Defire leaves ftill an Emptinefe 
 Which muft be filled. He finds not his Breaft in- 
 vaded ( like fuch as are vicious ) by contrary 
 Paffions; Envy fometimes perfvvading, that.o-r 
 thers are more deferving ; and Vanity af?- 
 furing, that none deferves fo much. HisPaf- 
 fions do not iriterefs him with extreme con- 
 cern in any thing; and feeing he loves nothing 
 too well, he grieves at the lofs of nothing too 
 much ; Joy and Grief being like the contrary 
 Motions of a Swing, or Tendula-^ which muft 
 move as far (exa(ftly) to the one Side, as it run 
 formerly to the , other. He looks upon al| 
 Mankind as fprung from one common Stock 
 with himfelf; and there is as glad to hear of 
 other mens Happinefs , as others are to hear of 
 their Kindred and Relations Promotion. If he 
 \& advanced to be a Statefman ; vvhilft he con4 
 tinuesfo, he defigns more to difcharge vvelLhl^ , 
 prefent Truft, than to court a Higher ; whic]\ 
 double Task burdens fuch. as are vicious ; and 
 having no pri^^ate .Defign, if the publick whi^ch 
 he ferves, find .out one fitter for. the Employ- 
 ment, he is well fatisfied ; for his 'Dq^)^^ of fer-' 
 ving the Publick is thereby more promoted. And 
 
 T ? if 
 
366 It is eafier to he Virtuous 
 
 if he be preferr'd to be a Judge, he looks only to 
 the Law as his Square; and is not di{1:ra(fted be- 
 twixt the Dcfires to be juft, to pleafe his Friends, 
 to gratify his Dependers, and to advance his pri- 
 vate Gain. The Philofopher is not rais'd by his 
 Greatnefs above, nor deprefs'd by his Misfor- 
 tunes below his natural Level : For, when he is 
 in his Grandeur, he confidcrs that Men come to 
 him but as they go to Fountains ; not to admire 
 its Streams ( though clear as Cryftal) but to fill 
 their own Pitchers ; and therefore, he is nei- 
 ther at much Pains to preferve that State, nor 
 to heighten Mens Efteem of it; but confiders 
 his own Power as he does a River, whofe Streams 
 are always pa (ling, and are then only pleafant 
 when they glide calmly within their Banks, In- 
 juries do not reach him; for his Virtue places 
 him upon a Height above their Shot; And what 
 Calumnies or Offences are intended for him, do 
 but like the Vapours and Fogs that rife from the 
 Earth, not reach the Heaven; but fall back in 
 Storms and Thunder upon the Place from 
 which they were fcnt. Injuries may ftrike his 
 Buckler, but cannot wound himfelf; who is fen- 
 fible of no Wounds, but of thofe his Vices give 
 him. And if a Tyrant kill his. Body, he knows 
 his immaterial Soul cannot be ftabb'd^ but is fure 
 ■ it will fly as high as the Spheres ; (nothing but 
 that Clog of Earth hindring it to move upward 
 to that its Centre) and that from thence, he will 
 with great Pontpej, (in Lucan) fmile down when 
 he fhall fee with illuminate Eyes his own Trunk 
 to be foinconfiderableaPieceofnegleAed Earth. 
 And to conclude, the Philofopher does in all his 
 Actions go to the ftraiteft way; which is^ 
 becaufe of that, the fliorteft , and therefore the 
 EaficfV. 
 
 When 
 
than Vicious. a 67 
 
 When I have conftellate all thefe towring Eu- 
 logies, which Gratitude heaps upon its Benefa- 
 d:ors ; which foolifh Youths throw away upon 
 their Miftreffes; and which Flatterers buzz into 
 the depraved Ears of their Patrons : When I have 
 impoverifh'd Invention, and empty 'd Eloquence 
 of their moft flowry Ornaments : When I fhall 
 have decoded thePains of a whole writing Age, 
 into one Panegyrick , to bellow a Compliment 
 upon Virtue, for the Eafe it gives us, and the 
 Sweets of its Tranquility , I (hall have 
 fpent my time better, than in ferving the nioft 
 wealthy or recreating Vice ; and yet I fhall ob- 
 lige Virtue by it lefs,than by adingthe leaft part 
 of what is Reafonablej or gaining the foonell 
 reclaimable of fuch as are vicious ; and therefore 
 I fhall leave off to write, that I may begin to ad 
 virtuoufly, tho one of my Employment may^find 
 a Defence for writing moral Philofophy, in the 
 Examples of Cicero, Du Vaire that famous French 
 Prefident, the Lord Verulam, and Thoufands of 
 others. -^^--ilt 
 
 I have (to deal ingenuoufly) writ thefe* two 
 ElTays to ferve my Country, rather than my 
 Fame or Humour; and if they prove fuccefsfui. 
 Heaven has nothing below it felf, wherewith it 
 can more blefs my wifhes. But if thefe fucceed 
 not, I know nothing elfe wherewith I would 
 flatter my Hopes ; and fo whatever be the Event 
 of this Undertaking, (as my Refolutions ftand 
 now form'd) Adhufor ever to Writing. 
 
 T 4 A Coh- 
 
a68 
 
 A 
 
 Confolationagainft Calumnies : 
 Shewing how to bear them eafily 
 and pleafantly. 
 
 ( Written in Return to a Perfon of Honour, 
 and at his Defire ful;yoin'd to the foregoing 
 Difcourfe, becaufe of the Contingency of 
 the Subje<3;s. ) 
 
 My Lordy 
 
 TH O* my Friendfhip pay its Incenfe no 
 where with fo much Devotion, as when it 
 bows to your Merit; and though your charming 
 Letter had a Bait hung at its each Line, yet I am 
 equally afraid and afham'd to return, in Anfwer 
 to either, that defined Confolationy which may 
 fliew very much Vanity in me to undertake, and 
 very little Friendfliip to be able to perform. For 
 eithar your Misfortunes arc not fo pointed as ye 
 reprefent , and then I muft fhew your Weaknefs 
 when I deted thcDefecfls of vvhat conquers you; 
 or, if they have Powers refembling the Greac- 
 ncfs of thefe Complaints which ye form of them, 
 then it will fhew too muchDifunion in ourFriend- 
 jfhip ( pardon the Levclingnefs of that Word, 
 feeing ye have authorized what it expreffes ) to 
 be able to comfort you , when you are not able 
 
 to 
 
agalnfi Calumnies. 169 
 
 to comfort your felf ; and not to be difcompofed 
 by the fame Abfences of Spirit and Courage that 
 obliges you to crave that Affillance, which my 
 Modefty or Sympathy Ihould make me decline to 
 offer. Yet feeing ye pofltbly crave this, to try 
 rather my Obedience than to fupply your Necel- 
 fities; I will expofe my own real Defctfls, to 
 help thefe imaginary ones in you : And this be- 
 ing the laft thing I am ever to print, I fhall think 
 my Reputation expires nobly, wheu it dies a 
 Martyr in your Quarrel. 
 
 The Misfortune you complain of, is, that your 
 Name is loaded" with Mif-reports -, and that your 
 Innocence doth not proted you againft that In- 
 juftice : And albeit I am forry to fee fo noble a 
 Name as yours fo ill lodg'd, as in the venemous 
 Mouths of the indifcreet World ; yet I am glad 
 to hear that your Fortunes are fo full, as that yc 
 find no Incommodity, but what is fo foreign, 
 and may be fo eafily remov'd. 
 
 Be pleafed therefore to confider, that tho* ye 
 imagine all the World talks of you ; yet that is- 
 your and not their Error ; for few have either 
 Time, Convenience, or Humour, to. enquire 
 •into, or hear fuch Reports as thefe which trouble 
 you : And I know by Experience, that where 
 Men fall in your Misfortunes, or under any Af- 
 front, they conceive all they meet or know, con- 
 fider nothing fo much as their Cafe : Whereas I 
 my felf have met fuch Perfons without any lef- 
 fening Thoughts of them, and without any 
 Change in my Humour towards them, befides 
 what was wrought by a Pity to fee reafonable 
 Men flip into fuch an Error. It is the Nearnefs 
 of Concern, which induces Men to believe this; 
 and fo they fhould conclude, that feeing others 
 are iiot fo concerned in thefe Mifinformations, 
 they will not apprehend them with the fame 
 
 Feelings. 
 
myo AConfolatton 
 
 i^eelings. Every Man imagines his own Difeafe 
 
 greateft, and admires why others are not (enfi- 
 ble of his Sufferings; whilft thefe admire why 
 he fees not his own to be much iefs than he ima- 
 gines. And as Self-love makes us imagine, that 
 all the World hears of our Advantages ; fo it is 
 an equal Error to believe, that all Men are in- 
 form 'd of our Misfortunes ; and I have regrated 
 to my Friends ( who of all others fhould have 
 known beft my Misfortunes ) what they knew 
 not, but from my own Apologies. 
 
 Of thefe few who hear fuch Reports, Reafon 
 iliould oblige us to believe, that fewer believe 
 them : For Reafon teaches us to prefume Men to 
 be juft ; and really they fo are, except they be 
 byaffed by Prejudice or Intereft ; whereas if they 
 be juft, they will little Credit fuch Difcourfes ; 
 it being fo indifpenfible an Effential of Juftice, 
 not to condemn fuch as -we have not heard to de- 
 fend themfelves againft what they are accufed of: 
 That though God could not but know, what A- 
 dam had done when he had finn'd in Eden ^ yet 
 he would not fentence him , till he cited him to 
 appear in his own Defence ; Adam, vjbere. art tJjou ? 
 And when the Cries of Sodom's Sins were be- 
 come as great as the Guilt was which occafioned 
 them ; yet God fays. We -will go do-wji and fee. 
 
 It were like wife Injuftice to condemn Men up- 
 on the Depofitions of fuch as fhall have no War- 
 rant for what they talk, but common F^;?;^^ which 
 is fo infamous a Witnefs , that it hath been con- 
 victed of a Thoufand Millions of grofs Lies, 
 and ftands condemned in the Regifters both of 
 facred and prophane Story. And fo unwortliy 
 is the Off-fpring of this common Whore, that ye 
 will fcarce find one in an Age, who will own ic 
 for his ; and as if every Man condemned it, even 
 thefe who relate thefe Difcourfes will ftill difown 
 
 CO 
 
againfl Calumnies. 571 
 
 to be Authors of them : And I may fay of them, 
 as the Laws fay of Baftards, that Patrem demon- 
 firare nequetmu Why then fhould we think, that 
 juft Men will believe^ what even unjuft Men are 
 afhamed to maintain ; and what is told v/ith fo 
 much Caution and Secrecy, as may convince 
 fuch to whom it is told, that the Relater dares 
 not undergo the Trial ? The other Warrants 
 of their Difcourfes are the Teftimonies of fuch, 
 as Men may fee by the feverifh Zeal of the Re- 
 laters, that they are too much interefs'd to be be- 
 liev'd ; and when we hear fuch Difcourfes, we 
 ihould examine why was the Relater at the pains 
 to difperfe thefe Informations ; which if we do, 
 we will find, that Intereft or Prejudice does 
 prompt them ; and fo in believing thefe, we give 
 the Informer Reafon to laugh at our Simplicity, 
 in being fo eafily prompt by him , ( which may 
 juftly give him ground to prefer his Wit to ours,) 
 and we become but the Executioners of his Re- 
 venge and Malice : Should not, and will not rea- 
 fonable Men think, that thefe who are fo offici- 
 ous as to reporf fuch Difcourfes , wherein they 
 are not interefs'd , will be fo unjuft as to make , 
 as Well as tell, fuch Calumnies? And thefe who 
 are Bufy-bodies in interefling themfelves in fuch 
 Tattles, may be Liars in forging what they 
 want. None fhould be believ'd, but fuch as are 
 virtuous; and fuch will never be Authors of 
 Mifreports, or curious to talk of other Mens Af- 
 fairs; for virtuous Perfons v/ill be afham'd to 
 have it thought , that they fpend their Time fo 
 meanly, as to have Leifure to hear or enquire in- 
 to what does not concern them : And as the Law, 
 fo Men fhould always fufped WitneflTes, who of- 
 fer themfelves to depofe without being command- 
 ed, or interrogate. Wife Men will likewife ex- 
 amine, upon what ground the Relater founds 
 
 himfelf; 
 
7*7 ^ > ^^ Cojifolation 
 
 himfelf ; and if tliey do not, they arc unjuft ; 
 or if they do ^ they will cafily find that the 
 weakeft Prcfumptions make the ftrongcft of his 
 Arguments : And in place of making you crimi- 
 nal, your Accufers will thus make thcmfelvcs ri- 
 diculous. Who will condenui upon Ptefumpti- 
 ons ? and upon fuch as arc only Prcfumptions to 
 Perfons ignorant and malicious? What may be, 
 may not be^ and therefore it's bad Logick to \fi- 
 fer J that fuch an evil Thing is done , becaufc it 
 may be fo ; for the Conclullon (hould follow the 
 weakeft Propofition ; and therefore we fiiould ra- 
 ther conclude, that fuch an Evil is not done, be- 
 caufe it may be that it is not done. No rational 
 .Man fhould judge of any Action, whereof he 
 ^knows not the Delign of the A<ftor ; for fomc 
 ,A<n:ions are good or evil, according as the Dcfign 
 is. St. ycrome went to Taverns, to obfcrve and 
 . {reform; which was a Virtue in him, though it 
 
 was a Crime in others ; and therefore, feeing we 
 know not other Men's Defigns, we (hould not 
 cenfure their Attiions. One Circumftance alfo 
 will vary the Cafe; and feeing few Men know 
 all Circuniftances df other Mens Actions, it is 
 Raflinefs to cenfure what but may be vicious ; 
 .and Injuftice to be rafh in cenfuring, feeing what 
 we cenfure may be virtuous. Another Ground 
 which pcrfwades mc, that few believe what \i 
 difadvantagious to another Man*s Honour, is, 
 that though Fame nnd Life be but paraleU'd in 
 I,aw 3 yet in Honour Fame is much dearer than 
 Life, becaufc it lafts longer than Life, and be- 
 caufc I>ifc without it is a Torment; but It with- 
 out Life is h much a Happincfs, that more die 
 for Fame than by Courage. Seeing then we 
 need not fear that juft Men will pronounce 
 againft our Life without impregnable Evidences, 
 vvliy ihould we fear that they will pronounce a- 
 
 againft 
 
againfl Calumnies. ^75 
 
 gainft our Honour, upon foundlefs and flight 
 Mifreports? It is like wife Mens own Intereft not 
 to believe fuch Difcourfes of others , left they 
 thereby eftablifh a Precedent againft themfelves ; 
 for will not they think that the next Turn may 
 be theirs^ and that being mortal as you, they 
 are liable to the fame Accidents ; and that if fuch 
 Difcourfes fhould receive Accefs, their Innocence 
 and Pains are eafily difappointed ? And there- 
 fore I hope ye will think, that common Intereft 
 is a fufficient Security for your Fame amongll 
 wife Men ; and that upon that Score, prudent 
 Men will not believe fuch Reports, as juft Men 
 will not upon the former: It is alfo moft ordinjt' 
 ry to find, that fuch as have been once cheated*, 
 will be more cautious for the future ,• Brute«; 
 themfelves being fo wife, as to beware of that 
 Snare where they were once entrapp'd. It is then 
 moft probable, that feeing moft Men have once, 
 and many too often been cheated with Mifre- 
 ports, having been induced to wrong their Friends 
 hereby, and their Relations; that fuch therefore, 
 even amongft thefe who can be unjud, yet will 
 be fo no more; and that we will be fecured by 
 the Experience, though not by their Virtue. 
 
 As to thefe who will talk to your Difadvan- 
 tage, I fhall clafs them thus ; Some will out of 
 Raillery, fome will through Mifinformation, 
 feme by Intereft and Malice. Thofe who talk 
 out of Raillery, deferve not your Malice ; nor 
 "fhould their Difcourfes fret you, feeing their 
 "Humour is generally known to tlefign rather Jeft 
 than Truth ,• and fo what they fay, may divert 
 ■Others as a Treat of Wit, but cannot wrong you 
 ^s a difobliging Truth , no more than Virgil can 
 'be belicv'd a Fool, becaufe he is ahtick in Bur- 
 lefque Verfe; and feeing thefe ufe you, as they 
 Tife^ their Friends and themfelves, ye Ihould be 
 
 no 
 
74 A Confolation 
 
 no more angry than the King is, when h& fees 
 his Face pofted up for a Sign to a Country Ta- 
 vern. Scripture and Devotion fufFer with you 
 on this Account ; and becaufe the fineft things 
 are moft univerfally known, therefore they ar« 
 moft ordinarily the Subjeft of fuch Entertain- 
 ment. That being the Obje(ft thought only 
 worthy to rail at, which deferves not to be fo u- 
 fed ; and Men being ufed to make that appear rir 
 diculous, which is not fo in it felf. 
 
 Thefe who talk to your Prejudice through 
 Mifinformation , receive but fo flight an Impref- 
 fion, as will make them fpeak but faintly, and as 
 will not hinder them from being eafily removed 
 from their received Intelligence ; and after they 
 are reclaimed by your Friends, or a ripen'd Infor- 
 mation, they will judge it a Duty to expiate 
 their former Error, by confeffing to the World 
 their former Injuftice ; fo that by one of thofe 
 Penitents more will be regain'd, than can be de- 
 bauched by twenty Mifinformers ,• Men' being 
 generally more inclin'd to believe fuch as have 
 experienc'd both, than fuch ds pretend only an 
 Acquaintance with one of the oppofite Sides. 
 
 As to fuch who fpeak out of Malice, they do 
 either prefs their Dcfign with fuch Vehemency, 
 as they may eafily be fufpe<5led ; or elfe they 
 over-a<5l themfelves by telling fo improbable 
 Untruths, that they are eafily difcovered : Few 
 likewife are unacquainted with the Hurnour of 
 fuch ; and God has in a Manner put Cains Mark 
 upon them, that they may not be believ'd. Ma- 
 lice cannot conceal it felf, no more than it can 
 the Faults of others; and the. Authority of fuch 
 is ordinarily of fo little Advantage to the Caufc 
 they manage, that it hangs Contempt upon A 
 Report, that they Ipread it ; And how foon it is 
 
 known 
 
againfi Calumnies. ■275 
 
 known to have begun at them, it leaves on to 
 be either regarded or believed. 
 
 Thofe whom Intereft perfwades to talk of 
 you, as being Rivals to either your Fame or 
 Love, do foon difcover themfelves and their 
 Paflion; and by that Difcovery they fecure 
 you : For after that, the Hearers confider more 
 their Intereft, than your Crimes ; and in place 
 of hating you , becaufe of that alledged Guilt , 
 they pity and favour you, as a Perfon who is fo 
 perfecuted. Others do feed fuchMifreport,not be- 
 caufe they rival youjbut becaufe they would have 
 you to rival them ; defigning to have you loaded 
 with the like Guilt with which themfelves ftand 
 charge'd ; and, expe(fting either to divert thereby 
 the publick Noife, and make you the Seat of that 
 War ; or hoping to lelTen their own Guilt by 
 fharing it with you : Thefe you fhould pardon, 
 even as we pardon thofe who gripe us when^ 
 they are like to drown ; neither need ye fear 
 fuch Informers, feeing their Intereft is known ; 
 and therefore none will believe them but fuch 
 who are fimple ; as that their Belief is not 
 worthy your Pains or Anger. 
 
 Having, thus clear'd off many of thofe, whom 
 your Lordfhip fufpeded as Enemies ; my next 
 Chapter fhall be to comfort you, againft what 
 Impreffion thofe who remain can leave on you. 
 In purfuance whereof, my firft Conclufion fhall 
 be, that nothing can be Arbiter of your Fate, 
 but what hath Power to make you happy as well 
 as mlferable; by the Application whereof , and 
 of the Rule of Contraries, pardon me to alTurc 
 you, that except ye thought the Rabble might 
 have made you happy, making you great or fa- 
 mous , ye had never fear'd or courted their Suf- 
 frage ; and feeing they are fo miferable and un- 
 ^onftant a Crew > what an empty and unfix'd 
 
 Happi- 
 
ly^ A Consolation 
 
 H^pinefs muft that be which ye expected ? The 
 ivay then not to value common Reports is, not 
 to value what Favours the Multitude can do you ; 
 that Happinefs which ye purfue amongft them, 
 your'own Breaft, and it only, can beftow : And 
 as nothing that is not fpiritual, can make your 
 Spirit happy ; fo nothing can wound aSpirit, that 
 is nothing it felf but Breath and Air : And I alTure 
 you, that thefe detract too much from the Noble- 
 nefs of Man's Soul, who imagine, that there is 
 any thing elfe under the Sun, whereupon his 
 Happinels or Unhappinefs doth depend ; for all 
 exterior Enjoyments do no otherwife enrich or 
 impoverifh it, than thefe Rivulets which difgorge 
 themfelvcs into that Bafon of the Ocean,* do by 
 their Accefs or Recefs fill or empty its ftill equal 
 Waters. How can Man be faid to be Lord of all 
 the Creation, if his Happinefs does depend upj- 
 on Riches, Territories, or any thing without 
 him ? And therefore it was nobly concluded by 
 EpUietus, that what is- without us , and does not 
 depend upon our Choice, fhould not afFeft us. 
 
 And therefore, feeing Reports cannot reach 
 us, 'chey fhould not grieve us ^ unjuft Calumnies 
 fall no otherwife upon a wife Man, than Hall 
 upon a ftrong Houfe^ whofe Fall caufeth grea- 
 ter Noifc than Prejudice. It is true, that thefe 
 may hinder us from being preferred ; but a virtu- 
 ous Perfon knows, that his Happinefs lies not in 
 Preferment, and fo he values no more what can 
 obftrud that, than a covetous Man does the Lofs 
 of what may promote his Knowledge ; or the 
 Amorous what cannot difappoint his Love. A 
 virtuous Man may by Want of Preferment , be 
 floppM from doing what Good the DifFufivenefs 
 of his noble Humour would flretch towards o- 
 phers : But his Country is only a Lofcr in this, 
 |nd not he ; for he pkafes himfclf in the doing 
 
 -. iT ■ what 
 
againji Calumnies* ayj 
 
 what good is within his prefent Reslch ; dnd in 
 being willing to do more if Occafion offered. 
 
 I confefs that Mifreports do (bmetimes grieve 
 our Spiirirs^ but it is our Fancy, andnotthefe. 
 Who have that Afcendant over us ^ as is clear 
 from this, that the fame Words fpoke by a Friend 
 or Fool;, will not trouble us, which would en- 
 rage us if they dipt from any other Perfon^ and 
 till we know what is fpoke of us , what 
 is fpokeil does not trouble us ; which fhews 
 that not our Enemies , but we wound our 
 felves : And feeing they never trouble us, but 
 when, and at what Proportion we do value 
 them ; it is clear, that not thefe but our own 
 Reflexions do grieve us. For if thefe grieved us, 
 the Meafures of our Grief would be ruled by any 
 fhing in us; and all Affronts and Injuries fhould 
 be to all equally difquieting; whereas now they 
 yield to our Humours; nor is 1 jovial,fereneSpirit 
 troubled like a Melancholian, whofe Humour 
 gives much of that black Tincture to our Crolfes 
 which fo affright u$. The way then to alfure our 
 felves againft Mifreports, is, not by informing 
 all that great Mafs of our Acquaintances , or by 
 fhunning what difp'Ieafes others : (for what will 
 perfwade them that they have ai'ight to judge: 
 us) but the nearer Cutis to tslrne our own Af- 
 fedionsj and bring them fo under Rod to our 
 Reafon, that nothing may offend us, but what 
 offends it; even as the way to preferve a Body 
 from Difeafes, is to purge away thefe noxious 
 Humours which corrupt the befl of Aliments. 
 
 Ler us confider that Men are either juft, or 
 iinjuft; if jult, we need notfear their Reproaches, 
 for they never reproach Irinoceijc^^^ and we 
 fhould not fear to have our Guilt. reprbach*d ; if 
 iinjuft we fliould not fret; becaule kiinatural to 
 U them 
 
'ij^ A Confolation 
 
 them to Reproach even the Innocent,- and we 
 have asjuft Reafon to think our felves unhappy ,be- 
 caufeDogs bark at us; or the Winds & Storms flop 
 our journeys. This requires Submiffion, but not 
 Grief; and is a Misfortune to them, but not to 
 us. And as we fliould conform our felves to the 
 Laws of the Place where we live ; fo feeing; the 
 Decrees of Providence haveappointed the wicked 
 to perfecute the juft ; it is Reafon to obey, not 
 only bccaufe we cannot help it, but becaufe our 
 Maker hath commanded it. Such as calumniate 
 us, . do, ih fo doing, fhew either Ignorance or 
 Malice; and that being the worft of Ills, they 
 prejudge themfclvcs more than us; and we have 
 our Revenge in their Offence. Fear not that 
 their Malice will be conftant if it be vigorous j 
 for it muft want in Length what it grows to in 
 . Height ; and fome frefli Objed will divert them 
 from toothing upon you ; or at Icaft, their natu- 
 ral Inconltancy will make them llagger from 
 \vhat they are at ; and they will fconer fix no 
 where, than fix lopg any where; and like a 
 Swing, they will probably run as far in the other 
 FA'treme of admiring you, as they did to that 
 of fpeaking to your Prejudice ; and as thofe upon 
 whom the Plague breaks, need never fear a Re- 
 lapfe"; fo, vour furmounting this Report will fc- 
 cure you againft all tuture Invafions. 
 
 Men fboulddogcnerousthings, not forEfteeni 
 but for Virtue; and 1 may fiy they are then moft 
 generous, when they meet not with Applaufc ; 
 for .then they make the World their Debtors , 
 init when the World applauds them , they 
 pnv them: And whereas they ufe the World 
 in rhe one C^afc, as a Prince does his Subjecfls ; 
 jhe World ufes them in the other Cafe, as a Man 
 dotja.hi^. Merchant or Servant. 
 , :. :. Nothing 
 
againft Calumnies. ay^ 
 
 Nothing that is not in our Power fiiould grieve 
 ps ; and fo it Holds truer in Philofophy than Po- 
 licy, , that qulf<ft4}s efi faher fua fortuna ; a wife 
 Man's Inclinations are his Stars; and nothing can 
 make him unhappy, but what can Pollute thefe. 
 Seeing then we are not anfwerable for other 
 Mens Follies, why Diould their Mifreports 
 (which are the cheifeft of thefe) trouble us ? And 
 if it be made Arbitrary to them to grieve us^' 
 what a precaifious Happinefs is ours ; which is 
 fubjedl to the Caprice of fuch as are capricious^ 
 ignorant, and malicious; to efcape one of which 
 three, is as impoflible as to pleafe them all. No 
 Man is worfted in his Efteem , becaufe another 
 commits a Fault ; why then mould I be grieved 
 as if I were guilty, becaufe another Man is fo 
 Guilty, as to calumniate me ? And it is too 
 much Compafliori in nie to be forry for him who 
 wrongs me. 
 
 There is no Man fo foolifh, as to purfue a 
 prize not worthy of his Pains; or to grapple with 
 one; who is not worthy to be defeated. Corifi- 
 der then that your Adverfaries acknowledge, that 
 they fear your Worth when they endeavour to 
 lelTen tt by Calumny ; knowing, that they dare 
 not enter the Lifts with you upon equal Terms ; 
 arid therefore they call the World by this commoh 
 'Fame to their Afliftance; which imports, thai: 
 nothing lefs than a Multitude can overcome fo 
 Heroick a Spirit. No Place is undermined, but 
 vvhat is too itrong for the AlTailants open Forces _. 
 and no Man was ever painfully malign'd, but fuch 
 ai were of fo noble an Humour^ that nothing 
 but Malice joyn'd with Pains could ruin. Le- 
 velling is the natural EfFe6l of Mans Pride; and 
 as no great Soul will defcend to. confider his In-* 
 feri«rs ,• fo fuch as Fate hath plgcM bdo^ voiw 
 
8 o \A Consolation 
 
 do naturally defign either to rife to your Height, 
 or to pull you down to their own Stature : And 
 hence it is, that your Endowments making the 
 firft unpradicable, Self-intereft makes the fecond 
 ncceflary : and the Liberty of Repining is % 
 charitable Allowance, which fhould be indulg'd 
 to thofe, to whom Providence having deny'd 
 what we poffefs, we fhould, in Recompence of 
 that Partage, fufFer fome Expreflions from them; 
 which when granted, does no ways make . up 
 that Lofs. The Confideration whereof made 
 that generous Prince, Henry the Fourth of France, 
 fay, when he heard that his Subjeds talk'd of him 
 with more Liberty than Juflice ; That he could 
 not but Pardon them, feeing they had nothing 
 elfe to recompence their not being Kings of 
 France, It were Injuftice in you to defireboth 
 the Price, and the thing whereof you have the 
 Price : So that feeing ye poflefs that Happinefs 
 which deferves publick Envy, k were unjuft that 
 ve fhould not fuffer it, and unmerciful that ye 
 Ihould not fuffer a Word to pafs with the Loofers. 
 Confider likewife, that all Mankind is born to 
 Mifery, that is a Law not a Punifliment; and 
 Envy is too common to be a Misfortune : Who 
 cfcapes it in fome Meafure, but fuch as never at- 
 tempt any thing that was worthy of Confidera- 
 tion? And who thinks Death a Misfortune, fmce 
 all mull fubmit to it ? So that I may fay to your 
 Lordfliip, that nothing can cure this better, than 
 to wear about your Arm the Names of three 
 Perfons, who have pafs'd through this Valley of 
 Tears, without being foil'd by fome Drops of 
 .Calumny; and to find thefe three, will be as 
 hard as to find the Philofopher*s Stone. Men 
 fhould not repine then, becaufe they are p\irfued 
 by fome Trouble ; but they Ihould confider^ 
 \vh«hcr tlieir Trouble be greater than that of o- 
 * . thcr 
 
againjl Calumnies. 1 8 1 
 
 dier Men : And by this Rule we will find, that 
 they efcape eafily to whofe Share of this general 
 Taxation, nothing falis but Mifreports. For fuch 
 as lye entomb'd in Prifon, or are ftarv'd in Po- 
 verty, to be relieved j and which is lefs, the am- 
 t)itious for Preferment, or the Vindidive for. fa- 
 tisfying his Revenge, would allow the World to 
 'talk of them at their own Rates : So that your 
 TQrment is but their Choice j and ye do at the 
 (ame Altars complain of what they would beg 
 -jfrora them. 
 
 * No Merchant efteems himfelf miferable, be- 
 Siaufe fee owes fome Debt ; but he compares his 
 Debt and Credit, and is fatisfied, if more be ow- 
 ing to him than Jjc owes to others. Do then, 
 my Lord, confider what Advantage ye poflefs ; 
 and think not that Providence deals churlilhlv 
 with you, when ye.find rfiat even Malice i^nutt 
 'find more things to admire ip^Vou'_, than it^ can 
 find to carp at ; for to have biir one Trouble is la 
 Happinefs, feeing if ye wanted all, ye would be 
 "^ God J and it is fuflficieni: Happinefs to polTefs 
 that Quiet, which differs but by one Remove 
 from his. Number your Friends; and I aili' con- 
 fident ye will find thefe to furpafs the Nurtibef of 
 fuch, as dare fay they arc your Enemies : But 
 ifhough they were fewer than your Enemies., yet 
 be not fo unjuft to your Friends, as to think that 
 one Friend is not worth a Thoufand Enemies. ■ 
 Wife Men number not, bur ponder Vices ; but 
 ye may fecurely do both. Will notaCourrier 
 value the Opinion of his Prince, and a Lover 
 -the Efteem of, his Miftrefs, above all th& Suffra- 
 ges of all the Remanent of Mankind? 'Afnd 
 fhould not a virtuous Perfon content himfelf witli 
 'the Approbation of God Almighty ? And which 
 is next, with the Efteem of .a Friend, whofe 
 U > '--^^^^ ■• -^ Know- 
 
^8l A Confolation 
 
 Knowledge and Virtue makes him all tjiefe tp 
 fuGh as rightly rate Friendfhip ; 
 
 Saty amico temlblfxUx. 
 
 Ills Friendfliip is a conilant Purchafe , but the 
 Multitude's Applaufe is uncertain and painful ; 
 and thefe fhould rather be laugh 'd at who court 
 ir_, than they who want it. 
 
 Confidcr fcrioufly, whether it be not more 
 cafy and pleafant to be enjoying your felves with 
 a generous Friend, than be running up and 
 down the World , gaining fuch as ferve for no- 
 thing, but to fay. Ton are a brave Gentleman ; 
 which if it were a fine thing, they would not 
 have it to bellow : For it is not reafonable -to 
 think that Providence would depofite fine things 
 in fuch Hands ,- and it chiifes its Servants ill, if 
 thefe be its Stewards. 
 
 I having then fpoken formerly to you as a 
 Philbfopher, let me ufe the Stile of a Gentle- 
 man ; and in that tell you. That the World hath 
 no Right to judge you • you are a Peer, and 
 fhould not be judg'd by Commons : Laugh at 
 them when they ufurp, and let not your Melan- 
 choly be the Executioner of their Sentence. It 
 is alledg'd, that no Beaft dares purfue a Man, if 
 he hold his Face undauntedly to ir : Thc^ pur- 
 fue not Men but Cowards; and the Rabble 
 knows not when ye err, but becaufe yer blufli. 
 Do not then by your Anxiety wrong Innocen- 
 cv, and eftablifli not a Preparative by your 
 ) ielding, whereby other virtuous Perfons may be 
 opprefs'd ; but be fo charitable even to thofe un- 
 jufi Creatures who calumniate you, as to reclaim 
 thern from that Humour, by laughing them out 
 of it. For 1 affure 3^ou^ they will ufe you as 
 Men do Children, who continue to hold out 
 
 theii: 
 
againfl Calumnies. -8^ 
 
 . their Fingers to them, when they find it vexes 
 them. No Man will lofe his Pains • and upon 
 this Account ye will find, that feeing Men ca- 
 lumniate you becaufe they think to vex you, 
 they will give themfeives no longer that Trouble, 
 than they find they are able to give it you. 
 
 The Example of thefe Bethpemites y who fell 
 the Sacrifice of their own Sin, for prying into 
 the Bofom of the Ark, forbids my Eyes to be. Co 
 facrilegious, aS to look inwardly into the-Dg- 
 . figns of God Almighty , ( whereof it was but^ 
 Type) in raifing that Dull wherewith your 
 Name feems to be at prefent fomewhat fullied : 
 And feeing it is unjuft to judge of thefe Men's 
 A6lions,with whofe Pefigns we are not too inti- 
 mate, it were unmannerly to repine at God's 
 Difpenfations, whofe Anions are fitted more 
 for our Wonder than our Enquiry. But yet I 
 may at a pious Diftance judge, that Providence 
 hath defign'd thefe Reports rather for Trophies , 
 than Trials to your Courage ; intending in your 
 Cafe to teach the World , that it is as eafy for"U 
 generous Soul to conquer, as to complain of Ca- 
 lumnies : And fo I hope your Repute (hall rife 
 more glorious after this Refurredion. Do then, 
 my Lord, retire from under the Ernpire of Fawe^ 
 to the Sanduary of Friendiliip ; where generous 
 Souls, by mingling together, become themfeives 
 greater. And from that feeure Poit, confider. 
 How the happy Angels admire to fee us, who 
 are defign'd to be Sharers of their Happinefs, fo 
 foolifh as to be vain of Fame, or vex'd when we 
 want it 5 feeing they polfefs thefe Joys for which 
 we pray, and yet value not a far more noble 
 Fame than that after which we pant. Ye arc 
 innocent, and may adore your Maker; which 
 compleats the Pleafures of thefe Bleffed Spirits : 
 And what can be Wanting to one who poffeifcs 
 
 U 4 To 
 
^§4 A Confolatimi^ &c 
 
 fo much ? Confider likewifc, how thcfe Hum- 
 mings, and this Noife of us poor Mortals, out- 
 live not the prefent Age : For who knows what 
 was faid of the Nobleft Ladies who lived in 
 Queen Elizabeth's Court; much lefs in the Coun- 
 try during her Reign? And Hiftory fcorns to 
 preferve ifuch ridiculous Fopperies, as have no 
 furer Foundations than Rumor or Malice : But 
 tho' it did, yet a little Time fliall confume us 
 and them. And therefore I fliall finifh this Let- 
 ter, as Virgil doth his Refledion upon the Battels, 
 Toil, and Noife of the Bees 5 
 
 m tnotus animorunty atej-^-hac certamina tanta, 
 . 7t*heris txigm jaEiu, comfrejja quiefcunt^ 
 
 ijsrrrr 
 
 ^•hTf 
 
 THE 
 
n ' . -'■ ■ ■!. - 
 
 THE 
 
 MORAL HISTORY 
 
 O F 
 
 FRUGALITY, 
 
 With its oppofite 
 
 VICES, 
 
 Covetoufnefs^ 7 i ^Trodigality^ 
 Niggardlinefs^^ (Luxury. 
 
 By Six GEORGE MAC KEI^ZIEyK\ 
 
 LONDON: 
 Printed in the Year MDCGXI. 
 
i I 
 
 
 i 
 
 -.Vi 
 
 i t 
 
287 
 
 T O T H E 
 
 UNIVERSITY 
 
 P F 
 
 OXFORD.' 
 
 
 FhSngfuch various Ophior/s ^diieermng the 
 firfl and fundamental Rules of Jufiice, ur^ 
 ged with great Anitnojity^ and that the 
 Laws of hJatiQV.^ 1^,CJS alledged hy all Sides ; / 
 refohed, after having fiudied the Roman Laws^ 
 and the Municipal Law of our own Nation Forty 
 Tears^ to fpend fome Time in enquiring ferioujly 
 into the Laws of Nations. For this End I reti- 
 red into your Famous Univerjity^ whofe Lihrary 
 the Learned and Curious Selden has enrich'd with 
 Books on thefe Suhje^s , beyond what is to he 
 found in any other in Europe ; nor could it he 
 that any thing could have been added to his Ex- 
 cellent Colle^iony if your extraordinary Care^ 
 ' and this lajl Age, had not furnifhed you with 
 many Books, which either had efcaped him, or 
 he could not know : But after I had with all the 
 Diligence I could, inflruHed my felf as far as t 
 
 thought 
 
3^8 D E D I C A T I O N. 
 
 thought was pojfthle^ I dearly found that thefe 
 Debates were not fo much occafioned hy the hams 
 of t^ations, as fed hy Luxury and Avarice, 
 which of late have given Authority to that which 
 fotne Men think a mere ohligingLaw^ called Con- 
 veniency : And therefore I refolved to attack 
 likewife this power ful Enemy of Law and Juflice ; 
 and Inowprefent my Undertaking to you^not only 
 iecaufe it was firfl formed within your Univerfi- 
 tyy hut hecaufe I know that you of all Men^ with 
 greateft Reafon, think your felves rather Stew- 
 ards than Proprietors of Benefits, heing you 
 reckon the Wants of thofe who are in Diflrefs 
 amongfi your principal Debts , and hecaufe that 
 to fupply thefe is the greatefi Convenience a felf- 
 , doomed and illuminated Chrijlian ought to Jluefy. 
 ^nd after 1 had calculated what you have of Iqte 
 hejlowed upon the Exiled French Frotejlants, 
 the Fugitive Jnihy and the Starving Clergy of 
 your own Trofeffion in Scotland ; hefiies the 
 particular Briefs poured in daily upon you for 
 Alms to your own Countrymen^ whom Accidents 
 have ruined'^ I couU not hut admire, how even 
 Frugality it f elf could have made you live with 
 that Neatnefs I obferved among you, I am to 
 lay up the other Marks of Efteem I have for 
 your Learnings and that Elogy which is due to 
 your Libraries, whereof each of your Colleges has 
 one, which might almofl fupply the Want of a 
 Bodleian any where elfe, until I compleaty by 
 the Helps J found ammtgjl you, the Ohfervati- 
 CMS I am now writing upon the Dige/is, and fame 
 iHuflrious Qu^ions, which have in this lafi Age 
 
 employed 
 
DEDICATION. aSj 
 
 employed and divided the heft Lawyers and Statef- 
 men in Europe, lut efpeciafly in Britain. And 
 who, refiding among you^ could fee in your Lihra- 
 riis the Tame of Learned Men of all NatioHi 
 flillfo frefhy or could converfe with many of your 
 own now livings who have made profound Lear- 
 ning even ufeful and witty ^ without heing forced 
 hy a nohle Emulation to leave all other Pleafures^ 
 that he might retire into your Libraries ^ or his 
 own Clofet, there to purchafe feme Share of that 
 improvement, which every private Mans Breafi 
 toncurs with the World to effeem ^ I am 
 
 Your moft obliged. 
 
 and Humble Servant, 
 
 Geo. Mackenzie, 
 
2^0 
 
 The Copy of a Letter fent together "with 
 the ^Dedication. 
 
 Mr. HinJmarJh, 
 
 I Have fent you the Dedlcatidn to the Uni- 
 vcrfity of Oxford^ which the Author of 
 the Hiftory of Moral Frugality^ now deceafed, 
 defigned for that Book. If there be any 
 thing in it unworthy of that Society , or the 
 Author, it muft be imputed to the fatal Di- 
 Hemper of Body which he languiihed under, 
 when he wrote it ; and though it falls far be- 
 low wh^t thjlt. Univerfity might have juftly 
 expedled from him, and he was inclined to 
 have faid of them j yet as it is, I allow you 
 to Print it, becaul^ the World may thereby 
 know the high and juftEdeem, that Sir George 
 Mackenzie retained, even to his dying Daiy, of 
 that Famous Society. 
 
 London, S I K, 
 
 May 1 6, 
 1 69 1 . Tour Servant^ 
 
 Arch. Cockburn. 
 
 The 
 
091 
 
 The Moral Hiftory of Fru- 
 gality^with its oppollte Vices, 
 Covetoufnefs, Nig gardlinefs. 
 Prodigality, and Luxury. 
 
 Discourse I. 
 
 WH E N I confider how many Sea. I. 
 have had their AfFedions TheOccap. 
 warm'd by pious Sermons, how •« "f^^^'- 
 many Moral Philofophers have '^;/,/X. 
 convinced thofe who have read them, and yet 
 how few have been reform'd by either ; I begin 
 to think, that there muft liefome ftrange hidden 
 Engine in the Heart of Man, which is able to 
 pull back even thinking Men from improving 
 thefe Impreflions : And that which feems to be 
 one of the chief Occafions of this, is, that Men 
 are become fo poor, by the general A'varice and 
 Luxury which now unreafonably tyrannize over 
 the World, that they are tempted to be Wicked 
 to latisfy their Imaginary fantaftick Neceffities. 
 Thus we are uncharitable, becaufe we want Mo- 
 ney for our Imaginary Wants: We are difloyal 
 to get it by Rebellion ; for fupplying thefe. Men 
 betray their Country, King, Friends and Ma- 
 tters, to get Employments whereon to live, and 
 then betray their Truft in thefe Employments, 
 
 that: 
 
i(^'l The Moral Htjlory 
 
 that they may be able to live without them* 
 And thus . Luxury and A'varice oifer. not only 
 the Temprations , but furnifh the Excufes , 
 when they nerfuade us to yield to them • 
 they tell -us that Chanty muft begin at Home, 
 that we muft prefer our felves to our Friends, 
 and that Neceflity is exempted from Law. And 
 whilft Preachers, Philofophcrs and Friends are 
 are;uinj» from the Principles of Religion, Reafon 
 and Honour, they by an Influence as latent, but 
 ilronger than tha't of the St^rs, draw Mfens At- 
 tention from confidering the Force of thefe Ar- 
 guments , to confider what Charms arc in Ri- 
 ches, and the Eafe which Riches procure ; and 
 lb Men are not Profelytes, becaufe they are not 
 Hearers. 
 
 Therefore to fecure U5 ftgainft this reigning 
 Diftraclion, and thofe Temptations, let us em- 
 brace ancient Frugality^ under whofe Empire 
 Vice was of old curbed with great Succefs, and 
 which by freeing us from Poverty, fccurcs us 
 againft all the Snares which it occafions. For 
 if I can once bring my felf to live on a little, 
 and to enjoy that little with as great Pleafure as 
 ethers follow their Rccreatiofis, why fhould I 
 ruin my Soul or Mankind , that I may get what 
 frugality will perfuade me to te fuperfluous? 
 And if I once be convinced by this faithful Coun- 
 Jcllor, that a great Eftate is a great Snare,! will 
 tiot pay down for it my Honour and Quiet, as a 
 competent Price. I heard a Dutch Ambajfador tell 
 %\n^Charle!:xhc Second^ That he hnd fpefit only 
 a hundred Gilders in Meat and Drink in Hohnd 
 during a whole Year after he had been AmbafTa- 
 <lor" in moit; Courts, nor had he ever been in 
 tetter JicjUh, or Compiia>:. AQd when the 
 
of Frugality. ^95 
 
 king asked why he had done fo unufual a thing ; 
 Heanfwered^ To let his Gountr^'-men fee, that 
 one needed not betray or injure their Native 
 Country to get whereon to hve ; which> as it 
 was the Defign of this his Conduct, is now the 
 Defign of my Book. 
 
 This friendly, wife, and convenient Virtue of Sea. It. 
 Frugality has two Capital Enemies, Avarice, and ihc Ene- 
 Luxury ; the one whereof forfeits it, and the o- ^'^^ "/ 
 ther iiarves it. The one cheats us by reprefent- ^^"^ '^-^' 
 ing a great Eflare as too little, and the other by 
 reprefenting a littleEftate as too great. But if thefe 
 IdiohyA^varice^^Luxtiry ^v^QTt once thrown down in 
 the High Places, we fliould no more fee Church- 
 men facrificing to them their Religion, Judges the 
 Laws, Statefmen their Honour, and m.oft Men 
 their Quiet and Tranquility. And fmce Interelt 
 has got fuch an Afcendant over Mankind, that 
 it has brought Law and Virtue within its Power, 
 and under its Dominion, nothing now feeming 
 reafonable or legal, but what it recommends ; 
 ^tis fit by this Method I now propofe, to make it 
 Confiftent with Virtue; and I hope fo to managed 
 my Theme, as to render it fubfervient to that 
 Virtue with which it hasfeemed to be fo long at 
 Variance. 
 
 It may feem that fome Grains of A'Varlce and 
 Luxury, are mixt oft-times by the great Ph3''ficiarfc 
 with Virtue, as Poifon is with the be fc Medica-* 
 ments, to make them adive and ufeful ; and as 
 fome Pride heightens true Courage, and fome 
 Jealoufie makes Prudence more cautious,fo with- 
 out A'varice Merchants would not toil to bring us 
 NecelTaries , nor Soldiers defend even the juft-^' 
 eft Quarrels ; and a little, LMxr/rj is now requifitc 
 to diffufe Riches among theindigent : But when 
 thefe Vices exceed their AIlowaHCe^ and fot up 
 
 % fo.t 
 
a 94 ^^^ Moral Hijiory 
 
 for themfelves, then is Virtue obliged to curb 
 them, who having been call'd in as Auxiliaries, 
 defign to turnConquerors: Yet L cannot allow my 
 lelf this way of thinking ; for befidc that it does 
 too much Honour to Vice, we cannot juftly fay 
 that Luxury and Avarice are requifite to excite 
 Virtue; for when they tend to what is good, 
 they change their Nature with their Defign. But 
 to fet this Thought in its true light, we may 
 fay that Frugality has all the A6livity by which 
 A'varice deceives us, and can give all the true 
 Pleafure and Eafe by which Luxury recommends 
 it felf ; and it is not to be lefs efteemed than Pro- 
 digality, becaufe it does notdazlc us with afalfe 
 Magnificence, as that does ; no more than true 
 Courage is to be lefs valued than Bragging, or 
 Eloquence than bombaft Floridnefs. 
 Sea. III. To enable us to underftand the better how 
 Goctsdc much Frugality is founded upon the Principles of 
 fgnto Religion and Reafon, and how weak Enemies 
 ^'"'u^'u >^'^^'*'^^ ^^^ Luxury are upon due Examination , 
 h^FrZa- if i^ fif fQ ^^'^^^ f^^""^ ^^'^^'^ f^"'^ ^'^^y Creation. 
 lity. And thus we will find that God Almighty having 
 
 created the World, to the end Men might live, 
 admiring his Providence, and tailing his Good- 
 nefs; it was juft that all whom he brought to it, 
 fhould be fupplied in it; and that Men being to 
 him as our Families are to us, it was unjuft for 
 any of the Family to hoard, or to eat up the 
 Portion of many others ; and incredible, that he 
 would fuffer any of them to want. In order to 
 the better maintaining this his great Defign, he 
 did limit our Natural Neceflities within very nar- 
 row Bounds: We need little Meat, few Cloaths; 
 and he made all our Generous Inclinations point 
 outwards towards the (liaring with our Neigh- 
 bours, what fhould be convenient for them. Li- 
 berality was given Man, that he might fupply 
 
 th? 
 
of FrngaMtyi 295 
 
 the Want of Meat arid Drink in his Neigh- 
 bours; Courage, that he might thereby fupply. 
 their Want of Power; Compaflionj that he 
 might in their Miferies afford them Confolation; 
 jultice, that they might defend one another a- 
 gainft the Oppreflion of thofe who defired too 
 much, &c. His Divine Wifdom has for the 
 fame End imprinted an Abhorrence upon our 
 Minds againft Avarice, NiggardUnefs, Trodigality^ 
 and Luxury, as Pyrates, and the common Enemies 
 of this juft and equal Diftribution ; and has ena- 
 moured us of Frugality, as its Protedor and Bul- 
 wark. For this fame End alfo God at firft made 
 all things common, and they continued fo, till 
 Mankind multiplying upon the Earth, it was fic 
 that Propriety fhould by a Divifion be intro- 
 duced , to the end the Earth might be the better 
 Cultivated , and fo made the more ufeful for 
 inany. But left the Proprietor ihould think 
 that by this Divifion all others were to be 
 excluded from any Share in it , the fame 
 Divine Providence made him need the Help 
 of very many others, to the end they might be 
 alfo provided for ; and made him fee, by thet 
 Uncertainty of Hurtian Affairs, that this Pro- 
 priety was fo ill fecured, that it was necelfary 
 for him to accuftom himfelf to live upon that 
 little to which he might probably be reduced; 
 and that it was fit to fupply others, becaufe he 
 might need one Day to be fupplied by others. 
 And left fome fhould be unmindful of this Un- 
 certainty, he made Glory, and even Trodigality 
 dnd Luxury ufeful, to draw Superfluous Riches 
 from thofe Who would not otherways have part- 
 ed with them, and he made it as a Duty upon Mart 
 to believe himfelf only a Steward. 
 ^ To the end alfo that Man might be the more 
 ferifible, that this equal Diftribution was his ge- 
 % t neral 
 
196 The Moral Hiftory 
 
 neral De(ign in all the Crcariorij he let him fee 
 Inftances of it ever)' where, and even in Brutes, 
 wh® are e;uided merely by Inftincl, and have 
 not that luminous and generous Guide of right 
 Reifon. The Lion^ndynlttircj the mod rave-, 
 nous of all Beafts, have no Store-houfe; and the 
 the Ants have, yet that proceeds from Inability 
 to travel in Winter, and not from a Defire to 
 leave any Remnant beyond the Year. Thus 
 God has given to the Beails of the Field that 
 Moderation by Initincl, which Man, created to 
 adore him, is to beg from hinij in thefe words. 
 Give us this day our daily Briad. So that Frugality 
 is the true Mathematick of Chriftian Morality, 
 and there can be nothing naore againft Nature, 
 than Avarice and Luxury. 
 
 Sea. IV. Notliing can recommend this Frugality more, 
 ThatFru- than that in the Commonwealth of the 5^ £':/'j, of 
 gality-cvas which God Almighty was Contriver and Gover- 
 the Bafts of ^^^ f^j. many Years, Frugality {ttms to have been 
 
 *&Gol'!rn- '^^^ *^^"^^^^ -^^^^^ ' ^"*^ ^^ ^^^^^^ ^^^^ ^^^^ multiplied 
 went a. them to a vaft Multitude, and pent them up in 
 tnongftthe vcry narrow Bounds; They us'd no Taylors, 
 Jews Cooks, nor Paftry-men. Jbraham, who had ra- 
 ther an Army than Family of Servants, makes his 
 Wife bake Bread for his Guefts, Gen. 18. 6. Each 
 Family furnifhed it felf all Sorts of Tradefmen ; 
 and in place of Lordfhips, each containM him- 
 felf within his Field, in which the Judges, and. 
 even the firft Kings, laboured. Gideon was 
 threfhing in his Barn, when the Angel call'd him 
 to deliver the People, Judg'. 6. 11. When S*?«/. 
 got the News of the Invafion on Jahejl) Gikady 
 he (tho a King) was leading- two Oxen, i Saw. 
 II. ^. Thus their Servants did not encourage 
 thiir I.azinefs, but affift their Induftry. The 
 Simplicity of their Diet appears from Efau's be- 
 
^/Frugality. ^97 
 
 ing tempted with a Difli of Pottage^ Abrahams' 
 feafting the very Angels, by bringing himfelf a 
 Kid from the Flock, Gen 1 8. 6. at one time ; 
 and a Calf at another, with Bread bak'd under 
 the Ailies. Boaz. treated his Miftrefs Ruth (who 
 was gleaning) by allowing her to dip her Bread 
 with the Servants in the Vinegar; and xho Rebecca. 
 feafted Ifaac with well-feafoned Venifon, yet 
 that was only one Difh, made for a Prince, on 
 a great Defign, and when his great Age required 
 fomewhat to recover rather a loft Appetite, than 
 pamper a ftrong one. Their chief Pleafures 
 were, that Innocence which grew from Frw^^//- 
 ty, and that Health which is the natural Effed: 
 of a fimple Diet. Their Affiduity in Labouring 
 excluded Houfe-games, and well-laboured Fields 
 allowed no Hunting, Hawking, or other Field 
 Exercifes. We read of no Feafts among them, 
 fave thofe that were rather Rewards of their 
 Induftry, than the Contrivances of their Luxu- 
 ry. Such as thofe which they had at their Reap- 
 ing, Vintage, &c. And the only Feail we 
 read of, made by Da'uid's Children, even after 
 he was exalted to be King, was at their Sheep- 
 fh earing. 
 
 Nor did God, under the New Teftamertt, Sea. v. 
 leave off his great Defign of inftruding Men to OurSavr 
 live foberly ; but on the contrary, Luxury and **'' ^"^^ 
 Avarice having grown up amongft the Jews, as df^y.^ and 
 Tares amongPc the Wheat, after the Almighty Bulwark 
 himfelf had left off to cultivate them by his own '» hisGo' 
 immediate hand ; He thought it again neceifary •^^^• 
 to reprefs and root out thefe Weeds, and to 
 fow amongft them new and frefh Seeds of 
 Sobriety and A'loderation. In order whereunto, 
 he fent his Son to be Born in the Houfe of a fru- 
 gal Artifan, and to work with him at his Trade, 
 X 2 until 
 
^98 The Moral Hiflory 
 
 until he thought fit himfelf to come abroad to 
 work out the Work of our Salvation. That Idle- 
 nefs might want a Pattern in our great Mafter, 
 he chofe alfo for his Difciples and Courtiers, 
 Men as poor as a Trade could fuffer them to 
 be. He commanded them, and all others, tb 
 pray only for their daily Bread; Excluding in 
 the Word Daily, the covetous Wifties of thofe, 
 who lengthen their Defires beyond thofe plain 
 Neceflities that are inconfirtent with Luxury. 
 And fo great a Defire had he to fecure Man 
 againft thefe Two great Tyrants, that he not 
 only by his Example and Dodrine difcredits and 
 forbids them, but he defccnds from being a Legi- 
 flator , to reafon with Mankind againft them. 
 And he reafons upon no Subje<9: more frequent- 
 ly, nor ftrongly, than againft avaritious Anxiety. 
 if you he (Taith our Saviour) the Children of God, 
 ^ill he not care for his own Children ? Jince you 
 who are vncked care for yours. God cloaths the Lil- 
 lies and Flowers of the Field, more glorious than 
 Solomon,t\\o they are to be cut down the next day; 
 and feeds the Fowls of the Air; adding. Are you 
 not better than they ? He fhews in the Parable of the 
 five Loaves and two Fifhes, how eafie it is fof 
 him to provide for his own Family : His Omni- 
 potency being a fufficient Granary for thofe that 
 depend upon him. By teaching us that we are 
 Stewards, not Proprietors, He fhews how mi- 
 ferable thofe are that lay up theirTreafures where 
 the Moth can eat, or the Thief break through 
 and fteal. And by that terrible Sentence, O .' 
 Mat 6. 19, thou Fool, this night thy Soul fljall be taken from thee ; 
 2o, 21. He has left a dreadful Impreflion of the Uncer- 
 tainty of thofe Riches, which are too oft preferred 
 to the Heaven that is loft for them. Stop here, 
 G my Soul, and read with Aftonifhmcnt, that 
 dreadful Sentence pronounced by the infalliblgi 
 
 |udge- 
 
of Frugality. 299 
 
 Judge; and join to it another, wherein thefe who 
 preferred their Riches to the diftreffed Members 
 of Jefus Chrift, are condemned to Torments 
 xvhjch fliall endure as long as they could have 
 wiftied their Riches to have done; Winn I was 
 hungry, you did not feed me , &C. 
 
 The BlelTed Apoftles fufficiently illuminated Seft. VI. 
 by the Divine Power and Goodnefs for fo great ^'^^o- 
 a Work as the Converfion of the World, conti- contlnue'd 
 nued to preach this excellent Do6trine, calling by the a- 
 Avarice Idolatry, and in that one word compre- fofiies and 
 bending a greater Satyr 'againft it, than all that P^'mifive 
 ever the Philofophers taught ; but very confe- ^""''^^' 
 quentially to the Dodrine of their great Mafler, 
 who affured his Difciples, that they could not 
 both ferve God and Mammon. In them alfo 
 we find that judicious LelTon, to ufe the World 
 as if we ufed it not ; not foolifhly throwing a- 
 way Riches as the Philofophers did, left they 
 might be thereby tempted ; nor hoarding them 
 up as Mifers do ; but fufFering them to flow on 
 gently, and in their natural Courfe, for the good 
 of others ; and keeping a loofe Hand on them, 
 • left our Hearts being too much united to them, 
 Ihould not be united by Love to God Almighty, 
 who declares himfelf irreconcileable with Mam- 
 mon: And to make this great Dodrine go the 
 more eafily down,and give it a morepleafant Re- 
 lifh, they aflure us, that the chief Ornaments of 
 reafonable Creatures are Mercifulncfs, Patience, • 
 Innocence, Charity ; and not large Territories , 
 fwelling Treafures , fplendid Titles , fine 
 Cloaths, nor thofe other gaudy Trappings, 
 which are no part of us, and confequently can- 
 not be the Standard by which we are to be mea- 
 fured. 
 
 X 4 The 
 
^oo The Moral Hijlory 
 
 The World having been debauched by the Ro- 
 wan Luxury, as that \va^ fed by their Spoils^ 
 Mankind was , under Nero , Hdiogabalus , 
 and fome other of the Rowan Emperors , de- 
 praved beyond what we can believe. And even 
 at that time^ when all their Philofophers could 
 gain very few Profclytcs to Virtue, the Apoftles 
 and their Difciples were able to make many 
 Thoufands to Chriftianiry, and to refine them 
 to a Degree of Moderation, Sobriety, and In- 
 nocence, which thefe Philofophers thcmfelves 
 admired far more than others did them ; and cer- 
 tainly thofe numerous and* entire Converfions, 
 were infallible Proofs of the Verity of that Re- 
 ligion which they taught; and the Primitive 
 Chriftians were as great Miracles themfelves, as 
 any that were wrought amongft them. If we 
 propofe then thcfe admirable Patterns to our 
 felves, we (ball find, that mofi: of the Rich a- 
 mong them did woik with their own Hands, to 
 avoid thereby that Idlenefs which brings on Lu- 
 Ca/r. de ^^O'j Curioilty, Backbiting, and many other 
 Sp . Aced. ViceSj which are inconfiltent with the Chriftian 
 (■ 7. Con- Religion ; and all the Poor were commanded to 
 ilituc. A- work, that they might thereby have to pay their 
 TcVrul"^' ^^^^^' ^^^ ^° "^^ks of Charity; they fubdued 
 Apol c.-, ^^^^^ Bodies by Facing, and their Spirits by Hu- 
 y. " ^' mility; nor would they have been Soldiers, buc 
 becaufe the Severity of Military Difcipline a- 
 mong the Romans at that time , did oblige .them 
 to the Sobriety and A(3:ivity, which overcame 
 A'varlce and Luxitry, as well as their Enemies ; 
 they did feldom eat fave once a Day, but then 
 never fed upon what Luxury prepared, nor di- 
 verted themfelves with what it invented ; they 
 valued not Health it felf, but that they might 
 fervc God with it ; nor Riches, but becaufe they 
 nii^ht be ufeful to the Poor, 
 '••• ' ' Nevei 
 
of Frugality. goi 
 
 Never any Man wifh'd more earneftly t6 be 
 rich, than I to have iiv'd in thofe glorious 
 Times , and to have {"ecn thofe great Triumphs 
 over Luxury and A'uarke. But w^e may correct 
 the ufelefs Wifh, by the juft Remedy of reading 
 and meditating much upon what they have left 
 for our Inftrud:ion in their Excellent Writings, 
 and above all^ by living as they did ^ for with- 
 out doubt, the moft pleafant, and moll comfor- 
 table Profped: of Virtue^, would be to fee it in 
 our Actions; and the moft joyful Image of In- 
 nocency, would be to fee it graven upon our 
 Hearts. 
 
 Thofe Commonwealths, or Societies of Men, ^^^ yj 
 which grew up from Confent, and were not the hoto the ' 
 Produd of popular Fadion and Fury, did found other com- 
 themfelves upon Sobriety, as their true Bafis ;'»""- 
 that beine the kindly Nurfe of Equality, and ^^'*^" 
 
 o ,, . -^ , , ^ were 
 
 nothing contributing more to make the common yj,^„^^^<,„ 
 Treafure rich for the publick Safety, than that Frugality, 
 private Citizens ftiould facisfy themfelves with ^^ Lace- 
 what is neceffary. They juftly concluded, that j^^"' 
 as the Body Natural muft perilli, if the Blood Holland, 
 does not circulate ; fo alfo the Riches of the 
 Commonwealth become ufelefs, or rather cor- 
 rupted, vv^hen they ftagnate by being hoarded in 
 the buried Treafury of private Men. They 
 made alfo many Laws againft Luxury, and the 
 Severity of their Military Difcipline and Cen- ' 
 fures exceeded yet thofe Laws. Cato was more 
 celebrated for his frugal Severity , than Cafar or 
 Tsmpy for their Conquefts : The Ro?nan Poets 
 and Hiftorians vie one another in their Expref- 
 fions of Efteem of him ; and Lucan gives this 
 Character both of Frugality and him : 
 
 *• - Hi mores, hac dim Immota Cutonls 
 
 SeBa ftfit^ fer'uare modum, finemq; tenere. 
 
3°2 Jhe Moral Hiftory 
 
 Naturam<i[-fe<ji4iy fatriaej'^ impendere 'vitam 
 Nee Jib i, jedtoti genitum Je credere mundo, 
 Huic epiiU vicijjl'famemy magniqi penates 
 Suntmo'uijfe hiemem tecto^ fretiofaq-^ 'vefiis 
 Hirtam membra fuper Romani more ^)nritis 
 Induxijje togam, Venerifj-^ huic maxlmus ufm. 
 Progenies : Urbi pater efi, urbiq-^ maritus ; 
 *^[ufiitia cultory rigid'i jervator hofiefii : 
 In commune bonus, ?iullofj; Catonis in aclits 
 Subrepjit, patremq-^ tulit Jibi nata 'voluptas. 
 
 Which M(jy has tranflated thus : 
 
 7'hefe were his Alanners, this fowre Cato'/ Se^y 
 To keep a Mean, holdfaji the End, and make 
 Nature his Guide, die for his Countrey^s fake. 
 For all the World, not him, his Life was lent. 
 He thinks • his Feafis but Hunger s Banijliment ; 
 His choicefi Buildings were but Fence from Cold -^ 
 His hefi Attire rough Gowns, fuch as of old 
 Wiis Roman Wear ; and nothing but Defre 
 Of Progeny in him warmd Venus Fire. 
 Father and Husband both to Rome was he. 
 Servant to Jufice and fir i^ Honefiy : 
 For th* publick Good ; in none of Cato'j Ach 
 Creeps felf-born Plea fur e, or her Share exaHs. 
 
 But I read not of any Laws made agamft Ava- 
 rice, fince the Tenth Law in the Decalogue ; of 
 which the Reafon may feem to be, that tlie great 
 Irregularity of Covetoufnefs arifes from the in- 
 ordinate Love to Riches, which being a latent 
 Ad of the Mind, can be known to none fave 
 God ; and therefore it can be punifhable by no 
 Laws, but thofe which are made by him who«is 
 the Searcher of Hearts ; and the Contempt 
 which follows Avarice, is in it (blf a fufficient 
 Temporal Puniflmient. 
 
 To 
 
of Frugality. * 305 
 
 To underftand the Progrefs of Frugality, and 
 its oppofite Vices , in the other unhallowed Na- 
 tions, we muft recur to the more ancient Hifto- 
 ries of the World , where we'll find that Nature 
 endeavoured to pleafe thofe who were fituated in 
 deiert Countries, fuch as the Scythians, with the 
 Thoughts of their being fecure by their Frugali- 
 ty againft the Invafions of thofe who were tempt- 
 ed to Robberies by the Expedation of Spoil ; 
 and thus their Ambaffadors diverted Alexander 
 from the Hopes of conquering them, telling 
 him'. That he could gain nothing but Blows by 
 invading them, who had no Pleafure in any 
 thing but in defending their Native Country, 
 and whofe Courage had never been effeminated 
 by Luxury, nor ftained by Rapine. In other 
 Nations, where Plenty was able to corrupt, their 
 Lawgivers did moft induftrioufly turn all the 
 Edge of their Laws againft Luxury, making Fru~ 
 gality the Fundamental Law of their Govern- 
 ment • as we fee in Lacedemon, which Rome after- 
 wards did imitate ^ and Rome has in this of late 
 been imitated by Holland. But I find this Diffe- 
 rence between the Frugality of Lacedemon, Rome, 
 and Holland, that the great Defign of Lycurgus in 
 Lacedemon , was to wean his ambitious and facti- 
 ous Countrymen fi'om too ardent a Defire of 
 coming into the Government, that thereby they 
 might enrich themfelves : and therefore he did 
 allow no Salary to Statefmen fave Fame ; and 
 preferred none to be fuch, but they who fhew'd 
 a Contempt of Riches. The Romans recom- 
 mended Frugality and the Contempt of Riches , 
 becaufe they found nothing was fo neceffary for 
 a warlike Nation, as the Love of Glory ; and 
 nothing was fo great a Rival, or rather an Ene- 
 my to Glory, as A'varice : They alfo confider'd 
 juilly, that Frugality harden'd Men into a Tem- 
 per 
 
504 • T^he Moral Hiftory 
 
 per of being Soldiers. The Hollanders pradifed 
 at firft FrHgality, rather through Necefliry than 
 Choice ; but finding thereafter, that it was pro- 
 bable they might enlarge their Territories ' by 
 Commerce, as the Romans did by Conqueft, 
 they recommended Frugality, as that'^which could 
 beft enlarge tlieir Trade ; and thus they by fail- 
 ing their Ships with fewer Men, and feeding 
 thefe Men, and their Manufacturers too, lefs 
 fumptuoufly than other Nations do, have been 
 ?Me to out-fell them; their Merchants and 
 Tradcfmen likewife living lefs prodigally than 
 other Merchants, are able to lay out more of 
 their Stock in Trade, and to fell at eafier Rates : 
 Nor do fo many of them break as elfewbere ; 
 and the breaking of one Merchant, who hath 
 * lived fumptuoufly, endangers Twenty. By this 
 Frugality likewife they are able to contribute, and 
 do contribute m.ore freely to the paying of Tax- 
 es, than any other Nation ; for Men part freely 
 with that without which they may live. So 
 that Frugality is amongft them, not only a Nurfe 
 to their Trade, but a Bulwark to their Country : 
 Yet I cannot but blame them for making Fruga- 
 lity , not only the chief of their Virtues, but a 
 fliarer in their Religion ; they having few Mer- 
 chants or Tradcfmen, who do not fell and work 
 freely on the Sunday ; and one of them excus'd it 
 to me, by telling,that he was worfe than an Infi- 
 del who provides not for his Family; &: from this 
 Politick has arifen poflibly that great Fadlion in 
 Holland^ who oppofe the Morality of the Sabbath. 
 As to the Management of Publick Employ- 
 ment , Holland and Venice have always thought ic 
 unjuft to defraud thofe who are able to fervc the 
 Publick, of neceflary Subfiftence : For feme- 
 times the abler Statefmen have not whereupon to 
 live I, but on the other Hand, the greateft Men 
 
 among 
 
^/Frugality, 505 
 
 among them have very mean Salaries, which are 
 neither able to feed their Luxury, nor raife their 
 Avarice. They laugh at Monarchies, and fay. 
 They heftow fo large Salaries upon their Mini- 
 fters , that they are generally diverted from the 
 publick Affairs, by following thofe Pleafures 
 with which vaft Salaries do daily tempt them ; 
 and thus they ufe the Publick, as thofe Coach- 
 men do, who otherwife skilful enough, yet if 
 they have too much good Liquor, they overturn 
 their Maflers in the plaineft ways. 
 
 Mahomet defign'd to found a New Empire as 
 well as Religion, and made his Religion fubfer- 
 vient to his Empire, teaching his MuJJelmen or 
 Believers, that they fhould be fav'd accordingly 
 as they fliew'd Zeal for enlarging his Kingdom ; 
 and by an entire and blind Obedience to the 
 Emperor's Command, they might fave their 
 Souls in fending their Heads. In Recompence 
 of which fevere Obedience he allow'd them 
 Plurality of Wives here, and promis'd them new 
 Scenes of carnal Pleafures for ever hereafter: fo 
 that he feem'd (contrary to all other Inftitutions) 
 to found his upon Luxury ; but yet no Society 
 is oblig'd to ftudy the contempt of Riches fo 
 much as they : For the end that their Treafury 
 might only be rich, Aiahomet oblig'd them to 
 believe that all belong 'd to the Emperor, and 
 tjnat no private Men had Property; perfua- 
 ding them, that when the Treafury was rich, all . 
 private Men were fecure; and that by extending 
 the Limits of the Empire, every man who was 
 vigorious and aAive in the Conqueft, had the 
 Opportunity thereby of making himfelf great 
 and rich. Which hath made me very oft admire 
 how human Nature could allow Men to believe 
 a Point that was fo ftretch'd ; but Mahomet ow'd 
 his Succefs in this more to the Brutality of his 
 
 Fol- 
 
3o6 T^he Moral Hijlory 
 
 Followers, than to the Solidity of his own Rca 
 fon. And if we confider more narrowly his 
 Principles, we will find that he did not chiefly 
 defign to gratifte their Luxury , but to teach what 
 was ufeful to his own Intereft : For he allow'd 
 them Plurality of Wives only to compenfate, 
 and make them infenfible by this impious Li- 
 berty , of the great Prejudice he had done them 
 in robbing from them their Liberty, and Pro- 
 perty ; but he difcharg'd them the Ufe of their 
 delicious Wines, becaufe it might difable them 
 at any time from going about their publick Em- 
 ployments, it appears at firft diflficult to recon- 
 cile their being fo avaritious with the Want of 
 Property ; for Reafon teaches us to value little 
 that of which we cannot be fecure : But we muii 
 confider^ that no Vice looks further than the 
 prefent time ; thus A'Var'ice is every where un- 
 fecure of its Prey, as well as among the Turks \ 
 and this Inftance of the Turks is enough to 
 prove, how far A'Var'ice makes us toil beyond 
 what we ought to do ; however it wants not 
 its own colours there ; for it perfuades them^ 
 that it's good once to be in polTeflion of Riches ; 
 that none can take them away fave the Empe- 
 ror; and that he can have no Temptation to take 
 them from any, fave fuch as are Fadious, and 
 Traitors. 
 
 To return to my former Defign, I continu^ 
 to obferve, that Men having no Defence againft 
 ihefe Vices, fave the ufe of their Reafon, asfoon 
 as this Reafon was bribed by Avarice^ or made, 
 drunk by Luxury, it ranged it felf on the Side of 
 thofe Vices, and then frail Man was foon over- 
 come by his own Auxiliaries ; which a more re- 
 fined Sort of Men call'd the Philofophers per- 
 ceiving, they run to the Afliftance of Reafony 
 and they gain'd indeed many Profelytes, though 
 
 thej' 
 
of Frugality. 307J 
 
 they could not gain entire Countries. And after 
 Others had made a great Progrefsin Greece^ Pytha- 
 goras made one in Italy ; and his Recommendati-* 
 on and Efteem of Frugality retains yet great Vi- 
 gor amongft the Brachmans in India, as Confuci- 
 us's, has done amongft the Chhefe for many Ages. 
 And the fame Dodrine was tranfmitted by them 
 to the Druids , the joint Prefts and Philofophers 
 of our Northen Regions; who made Silence 
 and Frugality the Nurfesand Supports of all Vir- 
 tue. Lycurgus difcharg'd the Ufe of all Gold 
 and Money^ and made his Iron Coin founplea- 
 lant and unportable, that (as he thought) no 
 Man would be covetous of it. He ordered all 
 Men to eat in common and publickly, that none 
 might live more delicioufly than others. The 
 Romaji fumptuary Laws fet limits to Extravagan- 
 cy, and their fevere Cenfots were efteem'd in 
 their Magiflracy according as they punifh'd the 
 TranfgrelTors of thefeLaws. Some of the Philo- 
 fophers threw away their Riches left they 
 lliould be tempted by them ; and others of them 
 did in their Cynick way not only bark againft 
 Riches, but vainly glory in fordid and nafty Po- 
 verty. By which Laws and Philofophy the lefs 
 attentive part of mankind may think themfelves 
 better guarded againft thefe Vices, than by the 
 Precepts of either the old or new Teftament : 
 But thefe Lawgivers not knowing the Heart of 
 Man fo well as he who made it, fram'd Laws 
 that were inconfiftent with true Natural Reafon, 
 or at leaft fubdued Nature only for a time, but 
 eould not reform it. They gained few Profe- . 
 lytes but either by the Novelty of their Dodrine, 
 or by a Love to Singularity, or from a hid de- 
 fign of making the People believe that if they 
 were brought into the Government, they would 
 not rob and fqueeze the Riches of their Sub- 
 Jeas, Th© 
 
tue 
 
 508 The Moral Htflary 
 
 Sea. VII. 'jj^g Heroes who • condemned Anjarlce and 
 ent Heroes ^^^g^'d at Luxury, never failed of being; univer- 
 and Fhi/o- Tally admired, and having their Memories cele- 
 fophcrs brated, (the great and peculiar Reward of Vrr- 
 Tvere ad- j.^^^ yy^ fjnd that Efammondas the Thehan, by be- 
 Thisvn- ing buried at the publick Expence (after he had 
 been Mafter of all the Subftancc of the Com- 
 monwealth, and not having wherewith to bury 
 himfelf) was more efteemed, than thofe who 
 had all the Riches in the City. Nor does the 
 Roman Hiftor}'' remember with fo much Applaufe 
 the Triumph of any of their Generals, as it does 
 the Generofity of Fahriuus, who when he was 
 tempted by Tyrrhus King of Eplrus to betray 
 his native Countr}^ overbalanc'd that Kings 
 Gold by his own more folid Virtue. I fball not 
 contend much for the Sincerity of the Heathen 
 Philofophers ; bur fure I ara, that their pro- 
 fefling Enmity to Riches and Prodigality, does 
 fully evince that the moft Ambitious Mind can 
 ftnd nothing worthier of its Imitation ; nor 
 could Nature teach the Vulgar any Thing that 
 they could more eafily believe, than that he de- 
 ferved moft to be admired, who valued himfelf 
 leaft upon his Riches. We have many ScAs of 
 thofe Philofophers, who put Virtue under the 
 Tuition of Sobriety; fuch as the Tjthagoreansy 
 Stoicks, and even Epicurus himfelf taught, that 
 he who could live upon Bread and Water, was 
 equal to Jupiter ; and he exprefted fo much Joy 
 in his Sobriety, that it burft forth into Ra- 
 ptures. They do all in their Difcourfes againfl 
 A'varice and Luxury overflow/ as /iii^crj do, when 
 they are fwellM with too great abundance. And 
 in thofe Tajjions, expreffed themfelves with a 
 natural force and zeal, which was thought ini- 
 mitable by Hypocrific. And their refufing the 
 ' ■ * " Employments 
 
of Frugality. 509 
 
 Employments and Riches which they cried out 
 againft, was concluded to be a very probable 
 Argument of their Sincerity. They admir'd 
 the wife Gallantry of one of the Athenian Philo- 
 fophers, who when he was reproached as railing 
 only at Riches, becaufe he could not command 
 them ; left his Philofophy for fome time, and 
 turning Merchant^ enhanfed the whole Trade 
 of the City : but then divided what he gained 
 moft Generoufly betwixt the Commonwealth 
 and the Poor ; defigning to gain nothing by his 
 Trade, but theBelief that he was in earneft a 
 Philofopher. Nor can I forget Phocions generous 
 Anfwer to the Ambajfadors or Alexander who 
 having brought him a great Sum of Money, he 
 ask*d. Why Alexander fent him that vaft Sum of 
 Money ? And when they had anfwered, that he 
 had fent it to fhew his Efteem of his great Vir- 
 tue ; He replied , that he hoped Alexander would 
 fufFer him to enjoy that Virtue for which he e- 
 fteemed him, and which he had never gain'd by 
 Riches. And tho' the Philofophers were very 
 exceffive in their Contempt of Riches, and con- 
 tradided thereby Nature as well as the Multi- 
 tude; (which made them in the End as Ridi- 
 culous, as the Vices truly were which they con- 
 temned : Yet certainly God did think fit to fend 
 thefe Philofophers into the World a little before 
 his Son, to convince Men, that the Vices 
 which he was to curb by his Gofpel, were ab- 
 horr'd by thofe whom they Honoured with 
 the Names of Wife Men, and Lovers of th? 
 Truth," 
 
 COVE^ 
 
5 1 o T'he Moral Hiftory 
 
 COV ETOU SNESS. 
 
 DISCOURSE IL 
 
 '■ TX7H EN Nature beG;anfirft to yield toVice, 
 
 Thep,-i: •"' V and to be mifled by blind Appetites, 
 feofco- it yielded to Ambition in the ^«fe/j, to Vanity 
 
 r^eo 
 
 how* ^" ^'^^i ^"^ '•^ R^^'^"g^ mCain : But it did coit 
 '.. « were Vice many Ages before it could prevail io far as 
 •:-v.fTcd to perfuade Men to toil and fweat beyond Ne- 
 ' '^h ccrfity, or to believe that to be necelTary which 
 i.'conve- ^ "iuperfluous: fo far were thefe contrary to 
 F-operiY. Nature ; nor had it ever been able to corrupt rea- 
 fonable Men without difguifing its Defigns; and 
 therefore it firft reprefented to them that Men 
 growing numerousand unjuft, it was fit to divide 
 that Land which they inhabited ; pretending 
 that the Earth which God had given them would 
 be daily beautified by thofe to whom each Por- 
 tion fliould fallj and every Man remaining con- 
 tent with his own Share fhould want all Pretext 
 of opprefling his Neighbour. This Property 
 became afterwards fo charming, and Men were 
 fo pleas'd with what they had, that by a fatal 
 Miftake they concluded the more they had, they 
 would be the more pleafed ; and fo that which 
 was defigned to bound our Appetites,, didrenlarge 
 them. 
 
 Thus A'varice was the firft of the two Extremes 
 which attacked Frugality ; and as the Number 
 of Men increafed upon the face of the Earth, it 
 increafed with them ; for its Pretences grew 
 thereby much ftronger, becaufe it was fo much 
 the abler to perfuade Men that by how much 
 
 the 
 
of Frugality. 5 1 1 
 
 the Multitude of Sharers grew, the Shares muft 
 lelTen by the fame Meauire : and that they 
 would not be able to fupply their Neceffities 
 without making laborious Provifions for them. 
 And when Men grew very numerous. Avarice 
 thought it time to fuggeft to them, that if they 
 multiplied by the Proportions formerly obferved, 
 the Earthwhich was already fcarce able to fupply 
 them, wQuld fhortly become abfolutely infuffici- 
 ent. Tho Avarice had thus got fome Footing in 
 theWorld, yet becaufe Commerce was then only 
 entertained by Exchange, it could make no con- 
 fiderable Progrefs, till men for their own Deftru- 
 <aion had digged up Gold andSilver, thofeMetals 
 which have deftroyed more then Iron or Steel; & 
 then it getting fomething that was durable, and 
 might be hoarded up;, toil'd to Excefs ; but even 
 that Money it laid up, being thereby barren, was 
 fo much the lefs defirable, therefore ir fuggefted 
 to Men the taking Bonds and Obligations, with 
 eating Ufury. And thus Avarice grew up to its 
 full Perfedion. 
 
 Avarice in the next place borrowed New For- j^'J}' 
 ces from the Experience of Mankind; for as ^^^y^/a^. 
 time ran on, *twas eafie to obferve that Favour der which 
 and Security were to be bought by Money ; and Avarice 
 from this it fuggefted that it' was inculfata Ttitela, '"f"^^^^^^ 
 and one of the wifeft Duties of felf defence to 'fjchasits 
 hoard up Riches as the means whereby Men promifes 
 could ranfom themfelves from all Dangers. Ic ^'^ gratify 
 borrowed alfo Affiftance from all the Paffions, ^^«^^^> 
 and when it found any Man too ftrong for it by rZl'h^'^' 
 his innate Reafon, it transformed it felf into the their Ne- 
 Likenefs of his favourite Inclinations, and did cefjincf, 
 like the Ivy with the Oak q-eep up to a*Height 
 to which k could not naturally have rifen. And 
 Y 2, rhii* 
 
5 1 a 77:7^ Moral Hiflory 
 
 thus when it found a Man incline to Ambition, 
 it endeavoured to perfuade him, that without 
 Money all his generous Thoughts would turn 
 Crimes ; that it only could raife him Soldiers, 
 becaufe Men muft venture their lives for that 
 without which they cannot fupport them. That 
 this would hire them New Counfellors by ma- 
 king his Intereft theirs, and that the making of 
 Peace and War was more its Prerogative, than 
 of Kings and Primes ; who though they vainly 
 founded their Power upon their Right of Blood 
 and the Juftice of their Laws, yet they owed it 
 only to their Treafures \ nor had the Faces 
 of Emperors fo much influence any where 
 as upon their Coins. And thus Avarice like the 
 Smoak which it truly refembles, raifed it felf a- 
 midft the tovvring Flames of Ambition. 
 
 We fee Riches prove the moft fuccefsful of all 
 Gallantries : for let whining Lovers talk what 
 they pleafe of their Chains, the ftrongeil: ones 
 are made of Gold ; and Jupiter himfelf could not 
 otherways win Danae^ than by defcending on her 
 in a Golden Shower. "What cannot be expelled 
 from the Force of Gold, when it not only be- 
 comes the beft of all the Paints and Beauty Patch- 
 es that Ladies can ufe, but is miraculouily able 
 in our Matches to make the Crooked Streight, 
 and the Blind fee ? In vain is Blood pretended 
 to, except this make it circulate ; and Men*: 
 Parts are look'd on as Airy Notions when a 
 Competitor appears, who hath fuch foHd Ad- 
 vantages as Lands and Riches. I have with 
 Contempt and Difdain confider'd the Omnipo- 
 tency of Mammon, in commanding the moll: 
 beautiful and haughtv Ladies to humble them- 
 felves to the Son^ of thofe who had got their E- 
 ■ftates by Infamy, and had themfclves Souls that 
 were unworthy of any other Bodies, than thofe 
 
 dcfor- 
 
<^/ Frugality/ 3^? 
 
 deformed ones, which every one abhor'd, 
 but the bought Bride, and her bribed Relati- 
 ons. 
 
 If any Man defign to purfue his Revenge, 
 Money will furnilli him a Murtherer ; or if he re- 
 folve to improve himfelf in Arts and Sciences, he 
 muft owe his Education, Travels, Books, and 
 Inftruments to his Riches ; and poffibly he may 
 buy a Poem, Play, or other Book which niay af- 
 terwards make the Stock of his Reputation. He- 
 who wants Children muft adopt Riches in their 
 Place, and after he has comforted himfelf againft 
 the miferies of Old Age by being courted by all 
 who either expeA Succeffion, or Legacies, He 
 at laft thinks he can perpetuate more his Name 
 by leaving a great Eftate, than by leaving a Son, 
 though recommended by the beft Parts and Edu- 
 cation ; having obferved in the long Courfe of 
 his Life, that a great Eftate is more efteemed 
 than generous Qualities. I have known A'va- 
 rke infmuate it felf with fome, as 'twere only a 
 pleafant Effect of the Love of Proportion and 
 Harmony ; and thus he who wants only two 
 or three hundred Pounds of ten thouland a 
 Year, or he who has a whole Barony, except 
 fome few Acres belonging to a poor Neighbour, 
 can be as little at eafe till he get thefe, as he 
 whofe fine Lodging wants fome Rooms to coni- 
 pleat its Symmetry: Which falfe Colour did 
 tempt King Ahah to covet that Vineyard which 
 he got to the Deftrudion of his ^een and King-* 
 dom. It infinuates it felf on Gamefters as an In- 
 nocent Love of Divertifement, and perfuades 
 them that their Anger for lofmg proceeds not 
 from an Efteem of the Money they have loft, 
 but from the Shame of being overcome. It per- 
 fuades the Lazy, that if they come once to an 
 Eftate they not be afraid of lofmg any thing by 
 Y ; their 
 
3 1 4- The Moral Eiflory 
 
 their Slothfulnefs. And thus it promifes to be a 
 Hedge to that foft and nice Humour, k ^er- 
 fuades thofe who are in Debt, that any thing 
 is lawful which may pay it. 1 was pleas'd once 
 to hear a Lady fay, that fhe abhor'd Privateer- 
 ing fo much, as a kind of publick Robbery, that 
 fhc would no way fuffer the Money arifmg from 
 the Prizes in which flie had Intereft, to enter 
 into her Pack ; that is to fay, fhe would buy no 
 Land with it for her Heir, but defign'd with it 
 only to clear her Debrs A nice way indeed of 
 reconciling; Covcrpufnefs with Honour, Law 
 and Confcience. Yet T could not but regret to 
 he?'- another I,advwhomI eftcemed much more, 
 fav, Oh, tha;- my Debts were paid ; to the end 
 I n/ghc have the great Pleafure cf doing Works 
 of Charity : To which my Anfwer was, Madam, 
 Sell a little cf the Land you lately bought, 
 and pay thofeDebrs,and yet ye (hall have remain- 
 ing thrice as much Land as ever you expeded. 
 Seft. ni. jiqjarlce borrows fometimes a Mask from a 
 fiilnce M[3^*s Temperament ; it perfuades eafily the 
 from Melancholy, that he may ftarve, and that in 
 
 Mens laying up Riches he only provides for Nature j 
 different without which he is as much a Self-murderer as 
 Tempera- jf j^g fhould cut hisown ThtOHt ; Nam efili ali- 
 **"'^'" menta negat, Necat. And for the fame Reafon 
 we fee the older Men grow they grow the more 
 Covetous^bccaufc the more MalanchoHyy for not 
 being able to gain as they did when they were 
 Young, they think they fliould fupply this by 
 Niggardlincfs and Avarice,and rcfolve to gain E- 
 fteemby it, fmce they can by noway elfe. Upon 
 which Confiderations the Elo^ncnt Jpofile, Heh. 
 12. I. defigns J^'arice by thc^Q words, And the 
 fin which dothfo eajily hcfet us ; for the Greek words, 
 tMmeL<^-ni Aiutpva, may be better tranflated the 
 well Circumftantiated Sin, or the Sin which 
 
 hath 
 
of Frugality. . 515 
 
 hath the fair Pretences ; and in this Avmice is 
 the moft dangerous of all Sins, that others oc- 
 cafion Remorfe by their Heinoufnefs, but 
 A'varice precludes it ; for few or none are 
 ever convinced that it is a Sin, and fo cannot 
 repent for it. 
 
 Though thefe be the Difguifes under M^hich it 
 ofr-times recommends it felf to us, as the Pro- 
 dud of Reafon^ yet it is too well known, 
 that Avarice is fometimes fo abfurd that it feems 
 to have more of a Difeafe than a Vice in it, and 
 to be rather a total Want of Reafon than a cor- 
 ruption of it. But alas! it is fuch a Difeafe as 
 comes not by Fits, as other Vices do ; for the 
 Drunkard may be quenched, and the Leacher is « 
 foon drain'd, but the Mifer and Covetous Man is 
 always tortured. And in this it differs from o- 
 ther Difeafes, that thofe who are fick of it, de- 
 fire never to be Cured, and therefore it refem- 
 bles more a Madnefs, which makes Men admire 
 and value themfelves, even in that wherein all 
 Men elfe fee they are diftraded. For there are 
 Men truly mad, who talk reafonably enough on 
 all Subjeds, fave on that one, in which they are 
 diftempered ^ not unlike an Excellent Lute, hav- 
 ing all its ftrings well tun'd , fave one, but 
 the lead defed is fufficient to difconcert 
 all the Harmony. Nor does Bedlam it felt 
 lodge greater Varieties of Madmen, than Avarice 
 produces ; for fome will be fo mad as to ftarve 
 themfelves, and the very Heir to whom they are 
 to leave their plentiful Eftate. And fome have 
 paft by their ftarving Relations, to leave it to one 
 who had no recommending Qualities, fave that 
 he would fucceed him in his Humour, as well as 
 his Eftate, and keep together the beloved Trea- 
 fure : And fome who would not leave Six-pence 
 to the Poor, have left their whole Eftate to Per- 
 
 Y 4 fons 
 
J 1 6 The Moral Hiflory 
 
 fons who have bribed them out of it, by incon- 
 
 llderablc Prefcnrs (for Bribing is the only Flatte- 
 ry that can prevail on the Avaritiousj ) and 
 though they would not give a Shilling for an 
 Eloquent Panegyrick, have yet left itall to fuch 
 infipid Flatterers, & have fuffered their Eftatesto 
 taken away by ProcelTes, or expofed to publick 
 Enemies, rather than fecure them by a timely 
 and prudent Expence againft either. I have al- 
 fo admired to find, that Men who are fure of no 
 Property, as in Turkey, and it may #be nearer, 
 flioiild of all Men be moft Avaritious, though it 
 is probable that they toil for their Tyrants, rather 
 than Fleirs, and yet the counterfeit Happinefs 
 of Griping, is irrefiftible. So that A'varlce feems 
 only to fport it felf with its Votaries, and to ufe 
 them fis the Devil docs Witches. 
 
 Seft. 4. A'varlce having thus corrupted the Rcafon of 
 jttspro- jy/jankind, thii Corruption propagates it felf 
 hy^hnita- by Imitation and Example ; for as A'varice arifes 
 tien aud oftcn ftom a diftempered Judgment, like to the 
 ixapifle. Hemlock fpringing out of Mud ; ib it is fome- 
 times copied by Imitation, as a Pidure isdraw^i 
 by a Face. And I mud here obfervc, that Pa- 
 rents have a mod fpecial Obligation to be Vir- 
 tuous beyond others; for Children whilft young, 
 do eafily like fofc WaK, receive ImpreHiops from 
 their Example, becaufe of the RefpeA they have 
 to them, and their being conftantly in' their 
 Company. So that Parents fhare in their Chil- 
 drens Crimes without leffcning the Childrens 
 Guilt, by bearing this Share. The being like- 
 wife meanly bred, docs oft-times by a fixed 
 Habit draw over fome Mens Inclinations to this 
 Byafs, and though they refcue themfelvcs from 
 Poverty, they arc pot able to recover from thaf 
 vicious Habit. 
 
 There 
 
d?/ Frugality. 517 
 
 There are likewife fome Countries, in which ^j^^'Y^'/. ^ 
 by general Cuftom Vice feems to be authori- ly'fhfrel 
 zed ; as Drunkennefs in Germany, Revenge and fpeaive 
 Jealoufy in Italy : The Induftry of Holland in- Countriet 
 dines Men fomewhat to A'varke ; the Pride of "'^^''^ ^^^ 
 Scotland to Prodigality ; and the Plenty of Eng- 
 land to Luxury ; in which Cafes, Reafon is ra- 
 ther prevented , than corrupted or perfuaded. 
 Nor durft either Prodigality or Avarice under- 
 take to corrupt Nature and Reafon fo highly, 
 if they had not the Afliftance of General Ex- 
 ample, to which Men, by a falfe Modefty, think 
 they are in Reafon obliged to fubmit : And 
 oft-times a General Cuftom palTes for Nature, 
 in fuch as underftand not , or have no mind to 
 underftand the Difference , and to examine • 
 wherein the Copy differs from the Original. 
 1 confefs, that Rich and Trading Nations, fuch 
 as England , may be allow'd greater Scope to 
 Sumptuoufnefs ; as Men who have great Re- 
 venues, without the leaft Imputation of Luxury, 
 do live proportionably to what they poffefs, 
 without being cenfured by any Reafonable Man 
 for fo doing. 
 
 The Church hath alfo concurred to its Afli- ^^^- ^^• 
 ftance : and Avarice havine eained even fome i^^ ^^^f' 
 Churchmen to be its Chaplains , ( who love ^^^^z 
 Eafe, and concluding Riches neceffary for pro- church- 
 curing it ) that they might more eafily convey '"^^ ; and 
 them into their own Channel , have endea- ^^'"^• 
 voured to make Riches as neceffary for other 
 Men's Salvation , as they thought they were 
 for their own Eafe. And tho' we poor Mor- 
 tals think them only Snares , yet they have of 
 l£|.te become the beft Antidote ngainft Sin ; and 
 ^ Man may as well by them purchafe a Place 
 
5i8 The Moral Hi ftory 
 
 in Heaven as in Earth, and as eafily free him- 
 (elf from Purgatory as Poverty : Or , if any 
 Man defig;ns to ruin the State , by raifmg Fa- 
 <ftions and Rebellions, Money alone can furnifli 
 him, from the Altar , with the beft Trumpeter 
 of Sedition. It is no wonder we Laicks accufe 
 Churchmen of Avarice^ fince they tax one ano- 
 ther with this Vice. Thofe who feparated from 
 the Church of Rowe , objeded that A'varice had 
 kindled the Fire of Purgatory, invented MafTes 
 to fave Men by Money from its Flames , had 
 wrought falfe Miracles, &c. Thofe who fepa- 
 rated from the Epifcopal Churches , pretended 
 that Bifhops had arrogated that Superiority , to 
 make thereby great Benefices necerfary. Thofe 
 who fubdivided from Tresbytery^ cried out againft 
 Soul-felling Stipends ; and all thofe Churches 
 may probably conje(5lure , that thofe DilTenters 
 cry down Stipends , out of a Dellgn to excufe 
 themfelves from the Payment of them. Nor is 
 Covctoufnefs able to debauch private Church- 
 men , and fet particular Setls at Variance with 
 one another ; but 'tis fubtile enough in fome 
 Collecbive and Reformed Meetings of the Cler- 
 gy , to influence the Decifion of General Cafes 
 of Confcience, tho' ( I confefs ) with a Deli- 
 cacy peculiar to it felf. It will fuggeft , that 
 the Clergy are to be refcued from Contempt, 
 and ought to have wherewith to maintain, not 
 only themfelves, but Hofpitaliry, and Founda- 
 tions of Charity. From which humblerThoughts, 
 Cardinal rala^'tcino, in hlsHidory of the Coun- 
 cil of Trent , rifes by an infolcnt Flight to de- 
 fend all the Magnificence of the Church of 
 Rowe, under pretence that Mankind is govern'd 
 by Senfe, as well as by Reafon ; and therefore 
 they muft fee in the Church , and its Minifters, 
 what may draw Refpecfl from the Outward , as 
 
 well 
 
of Frugality. 3 1 9 
 
 well as from the Inward Man. It pafTes for 
 Pure Devotion in that Church, to hook into its 
 Patrimony all they can , ( tho' by as palpably 
 forg'd Donations as Conftantines was ; ) and it 
 would be judged Sacrilege, to quit what is once 
 acquired. Nor fhall you find in all your Tra- 
 vels any more Covetous , and thereby greater 
 Oppreflbrs , than fome , who having left the 
 World to retire to I^eligious Koufes , are made 
 by them their Procurators. But tho' thefe Con- 
 fi.derations may fufficiently juftify the Liberal, 
 but Suicable Provifions , which have been be- 
 ilow'd on the Church of England, for promo- 
 ting Charity and Learning ; yet they can never, 
 with VaU'vlcino , vindicate the Exceflive Sums 
 brought in by thofe Indulgences to theTreafures 
 of the RomijJj Church , which occafion'd the 
 dreadful Wars of Germany : And they extreme- 
 ly condemn thofe Impropriators, who have made 
 not only the Preachers , but the Gofpel it felf 
 contemptible,by denying a Competency to them 
 who fcrve at the Altar. 
 
 At which Inconfiftency of Defigns, occafion'd 
 by the natural Force of Covetoufnefs ( which 
 can be difguifed , but never mortified ) I have 
 frequently been aftonifhed. In Secular Meet- 
 ings alfo, it can perfuade not only the Hearers, 
 but the Speakers themfelves , to go along with 
 whatever it dictates : And it will infinuate it 
 felf at laft fo far , that a Man will really be- 
 lieve himfelf publick-fpirited , when at the 
 bottom his chief Inclinations arife from private 
 Intereft , which we now by a kind and gentle 
 Word call Convenience ; which is in effect a 
 Combination of Luxury and Avarice , each' 
 whereof finding themfelves too weak apart to 
 encounter the Strength of Reafon, have moil 
 reniarkably in this Age join'd their Forces toge- 
 ther 
 
-^<io The Moral Htflory 
 
 their nnd affumcd the infinuating common Name 
 of Convenience. O , Happy Orator ! Teach me 
 thy Art of PerfiiaHonj and beftow thv Bags up- 
 on thofe who delight to trudge under them; 
 But if I could perfuade as thou canit , I would 
 endeavour to refcue Mankind from thy Tyran- 
 ny ; for if thou, bewitching Convenience, be 
 made the Standard, farewel for ever to the Glo- 
 ry of Martyrdom , to the Loyalty of Subjeds, 
 to the Dutifulnefs of Children, and to the Ties 
 of Friendship. 
 
 Having thus feen A'varlce condemned by Na- 
 ture, by the great Author of it, by all the great 
 and wife Societies of Mankind, and by that 
 fame general Agreement of Men, which hath 
 taught us that our Souls are Immortal : 
 
 Having feen the Original and Progrefs of 
 Frugality and A'varlce, and the feveral Masks un- 
 der which y^'c^ricf has cheated us ; It will be fit 
 to proceed to confider the Remedies and Argu- 
 Ynents whereby we may fecure our felves againft 
 its Influence. 
 
 Sc6t. VII. The true way to wean us from Avarice, is firft 
 
 j^rgumenti fo find out, what docs in our Breaft incline us 
 
 and Reme. ^q jj-^ ^^^ {f jj- j^g fhjjf ^ve may be eft ccm'd, 
 
 Amice!^ we fiiall eafily find this but a Cheat, becaulc none 
 
 but the Avaricious themfclves efteem other Men 
 
 for being Rich j and we may be as well in love 
 
 with Cheating, becaufe thofe who value that 
 
 Craft and Subtiky are pleafed with fuch as are Ma- 
 
 flers in it : But if we can' once perfuade our 
 
 felves that Riches arc not to be admired, and 
 
 are rather given to Men for Eafe than for E- 
 
 fteem , we fhall be clearly convinced , that this 
 
 is but a faint Colour to excufe it : And when 
 
 Men in Trade or Employments die very Rich, 
 
 the generality of Mankind concludes that they 
 
 have 
 
o/ Frugality. 311 
 
 have taken a Latitude of gaining by any Means, 
 or are Guilty af the Folly of having defrauded 
 themfelves of Neceffaries, to lay up fo much as 
 might corrupt their Heirs by Luxury. It has 
 been frequently obferved^ that the Children of 
 Avaritious Men, have proved more Luxurious 
 or Prodigal, than others ; which proceeds ei- 
 ther from their abhorring of Avarice , becaufe 
 they found themfelves when they were young 
 oppfeffed by it, or becaufe finding their Parent?, 
 much reproached with it , they thought them- 
 felves obliged in Honour to fhun that Vice which 
 occafioned this Reproach : Or elfe having con- 
 ceived an Opinion when they were young, that 
 their Parents were very Rich , as all Avaritious 
 Men are thought to be , they concluded they 
 might allow themfelves to fpend the more free- 
 ly. But upon the whole Matter , I muft con- 
 clude that Indiaft wife who laugh'd at the Europe- 
 ans, who toil exceffively to make their Children 
 exceffively Lazy. 
 
 1 doubt not but fome Men have been defirous 
 to gain Money by their Employment, becaufe 
 the want of Pracflice is look'd upon as want of 
 Parts .: But I have obferved few who deferving 
 to be eileem'd for Parts, have miffed it from the 
 Wifer fort, becaufe they wanted Pradice : And 
 thofe, and not the Multitude,are the true Judges. 
 Nor is that Wit or Learning which gains Money 
 the crue Meafure of Efteem ; being rather the 
 Mechanick Part of true Senfe, given by Nature 
 to us for maintaining our Bodies, than the fub- 
 lime Part bellowed by Heaven for. adorning our 
 Souls, We have few Monuments at this Day of 
 the rich Lawyers among the Romans , that gained 
 great Eftates, but we retain ftill great Efteem 
 for thofe who contemned them. And have we 
 not feen fome rich Jvlen among our felves^ who 
 
 having 
 
J a a The Moral Hiftory 
 
 having gained even to Envy, died more neglefft- 
 ed, and fcorned, than they whom Poverty had 
 •ftarved, and who now are remembred for no- 
 thing but as Inftances of Folly and Madnefs. 
 That can never pafs for Wit, nor deferve Efteem 
 among reafonable Men , which naturally tends 
 fo far to debafe our Reafon : Nor did the lUu- 
 ^noM'i Turenne (toinftance likewife the Brave ) 
 want that Efteem which the greareft Mifers in 
 the World would have coveted, though he never 
 valued that Money which they admire, having 
 died without being Mafter of Fifty Pound> tho' 
 he could have been Mafter of far more than 
 thofe Mifers durft have wifhed. Fame is the 
 Heritage of the Virtuous, and Efteem is a Rent 
 that all Men muft pay them. Such as think 
 that by Riches they can fecure themfelves againft 
 Danger, have certainly forgot how many Ava- 
 rice has made a Prey ; nor did ever any rave- 
 nous Creature chufe to devour the Lean. Men 
 look on the Avaritious as Pyrates, agahift whom 
 Intereft arms all Mankind ; and though Drun- 
 kards love Drunkards , yet the Avaritious hate 
 all who are fo, as Men do thofc Rivals who are 
 preferr'd by their Miftrefs. Money may indeed 
 fupply the Want of Tnnocence , when Men arc 
 accufed : But few Tyrants or Robbers are con- 
 tent with a Part when they may have the Whole : 
 And when Darius offered to Alexander , all on 
 this fide of Euphrates, Alexav Jo- laughed at it, and 
 ^defired him to offer fomething to him which he 
 could not take. Tyrants alfo and Statefmen are 
 invited to rob Avaritious Wretches, becaufe the)*" 
 can commit this Crime with the Applaufe of the 
 far greater Part of Mankind, who are glad to 
 fee thofe robbed, who robb'd them ; or uho at 
 leaft hindred Riches to circulate for the Supply 
 of the Poor and Needy. But the Knaves whom 
 
 Moncv 
 
of Frugality. . 323 
 
 Money defends, are thofe only whom the love 
 of it has made Knaves ; and it were better not 
 to be tempted to the Crimes that Avarice occa- 
 fions, than to be defended by the Treafure which 
 it lays up; fmceitmay, and oft-times does fail to 
 defend^ and at bell but fecure fome few againffc 
 the many Evils which it occafions. 
 
 The befl Plea that Avarice can make, is, that 
 it provides againit thofe Neceflities which other- 
 wife would have made us miferable ; but the 
 Love of Money deferves not the Name of Ava- 
 rice, whilft it proceeds no farther. And it is 
 then only to be abhorr'd, when it cheats and a- 
 bufes us, by making us believe that our Necefli- 
 ties are greater than they are. In which it treats 
 us as Fools, and makes us Slaves ; but it is indeed 
 moft ridiculous in this, that oft-times after it has 
 perfuaded Men that a great Eftate is necelTary , 
 it does not allow them to make ufe of any fuita- 
 ble Proportion of what they have gained ; and 
 fmce nothing can be called NecelTary feut what 
 we need to ufe, all that is laid up cannot be faid 
 to be laid up for Neceflity. And fo this Argu- 
 ment may have fome weight when it is prefs'd 
 by Luxury, but it is ridiculous when it is alledg'd 
 by Avarice. 
 
 I have therefore oft-times admired, how a 
 Perfon that thought it Luxury to fpend two hun- 
 dred Pound, toil'd as a Slave to get four hun- 
 dred a Year for his Heir : Either he thought, an 
 Honeft and Virtuous Man fhould not exceed 
 twf) hundred Pound in his Expence, or not ; 
 if he thought he fliould not , why did he bribe 
 his Heir to be Luxurious by leaving him more ? 
 If he thougjit his Heir could not live upon fo 
 little, why fhould he who gain'd it, defraud him- 
 felf of the true Ufe ? 
 
 I know 
 
324. T'hc Moral Hiflory 
 
 I know fome who prefcrve themfclves againft 
 A^iirice, by arguing often with their own Heart> 
 that they have twice as much as they expected ; 
 and more than others who they think liv^e very 
 contentedly ; and who did bound their Defigns 
 in the beginning with moderate Hopes, and re* 
 fufe obftinately to enlarge, left they fhould thus 
 launch out into an Ocean that has no Shoar. 
 
 To meditate much upon the Folly of others 
 who are remarkable for this Vice, will help fome- 
 what to limit it ; and to rally him who is Ridi- 
 culous for it, may influence him and others to 
 Contemn it. 1 muft here beg rich and avariti* 
 ous Men's leave, to laugh as much at their Fol- 
 ly, as I could do at a Shepherd who would weep 
 and grieve, becaufe his Mafter would give him 
 no more Beafts to herd : Or at a Steward , be- 
 caufe his Lord gave him no more Servants to 
 feed. Nor can I think a Man who having gain'd 
 a great Eftate is afraid to live comfortably upon 
 it, lefs ridiculous than I would do him, who hav- 
 ing built a convenient , or it may be a ftately 
 Houfe, fhould chufe to walk in the Rain, or ex- 
 pofc himfelf to Storms, left he ftiould defile and 
 prophane the Floor of his almoft Idolized 
 Rooms. They who think that they are obliged 
 to live as well as others of the fame Rank , do 
 not confider that every Man is only obliged to 
 live according to his prefent Eftate. And there- 
 fore this Ncceflity will alfo grow with' our E- 
 ftates ; and this Temptation rather makes our 
 Neceflities endlefs , than provides againft them. 
 And he , who having a Paternal Eftate of an 
 Hundred Pound a Year, will not be fatisfied to 
 live according to it , will meet with the fame 
 Difficulty when he comes to an Eftate of Ten 
 thoufand Pound ; and, like the wounded Deer, 
 he flees nor from the Dart , but carries it along 
 
 with 
 
of Frugality. 3^5 
 
 with him. We are but Stewards, and the Stew- 
 ard fliould not be angry that he has not more to 
 manage; but fhould be careful to beftow 
 what' he has; and if he do fo, neither his Mafter 
 nor the World can blame him. 
 
 The next Cure againft Avarice, is, to confi- Sea.VIII 
 der what abominable and dreadful EffeAs it pro- The 
 ducech in the World, how like the evil Spirit ^''"^^^^f 
 that poffefTed the poor wretch fpoken of in the Jlp[^ 
 Gofpel, it drags him up and down through 
 Deferts and Mountains, throwing him fome- 
 times into the Fire, and fometimes into the Wa- 
 ter. No Climate fo Hot, nor Cold, no Sea fo 
 Boifterous, nor Shoar fo Rocky, but the Avari- 
 tious Man muft venture upon it. And after he 
 has gained fomeching at the Price of fo much 
 Toil and Slavery, it barbaroufly ftarves, and ty- 
 ranoufiy denies- him the Uie of his own. As 
 if God defigned to punifh thofe Sinners fo ; 
 That he will let all the World fee them want the 
 Ufe of that for which they have damn'd them- 
 felves. There can be nothing more Inhumane 
 than Avarice, when itperfuades men to enter in- 
 to Plots and Factions, that they may augment 
 their Eftates ; and yet will not allow them to be- 
 ftow fuch a Portion of thefe upon their Defigns, 
 as may fecure themfelves by making the Villany 
 fuccefsful And we have feen of late Men of vaft 
 Fortunes,: forefeit them, and their Lives too, ra- 
 ther than contribute what was inconfiderable, 
 but abfolutely neceflary for the Succefs of their 
 Enterprize. Many alfo are perfuaded, as it were to 
 Bury themfelves alive in Mines, and Coal-pits, 
 or to Sacrifice many of their \ears, by living in 
 fuch Places as Scanderoon, exchanging Life it lelf, 
 which is moft defirablc, for Money, that tyran- 
 
 Z noi^s 
 
3^6 "Xhe Moral Hiflory 
 
 nous Idol. Envy, th?it cruel Torturer of the 
 Soul, deferves a Place amongft the Executioners 
 which attend Avarice. For moll Mens Avarice 
 proceeding from comparing themfelves with o- 
 thers^ thismuft neceflarily beget Envy; &Envy 
 forces Men to toil till they be as rich as thofethey 
 envy.I confefs that Ambition raifesalfo Envy, but 
 in the ambitious it refines it felfinto a noble Emu- 
 lation, and forces thofe who are polTeft with it, 
 .to do what may exalt, them to an equal height 
 with others. And this requires Liberality, Cle- 
 mency, &c. But the Envy of the Avaritious, 
 deprcfTes the Spirit to that Earth, with which he 
 is, by a Love to it, united ; and makes him ftarve 
 the Poor, bribe, cheat, and opprefs; that he 
 may be as rich as thofe who occafioned this 
 Paffion. The Envy that arifcs from Ambition, 
 cannot always keep a Man on the Rack, for 
 the Occafion fails, tho the Inclination remain: 
 But in this alfo. Avarice is the molt difquieting 
 of all Vices, and Paflions, that every, thing that 
 it fees, or hears, both kindles and feeds its 
 Flame. 
 
 In vain do we cxped Juftice, if Judges weigh 
 Money againft Arguments, or if WitnelTes value 
 Gain more thanan Oath. In vain do Kings and 
 Commonwealths fortifie their Towns, if Ava- 
 rice govern them. Nothing is fecure that can 
 be bought, nor is Religion it felt fecure at the 
 Altar, if its Priefts can be brib'd . 
 
 Such as would fhun Coveto.ufnefs fliould fhun 
 the afpiring to great Dignities, wliich feems to 
 make Avarice rather aDebt, than a Vice ; And 
 perfuade Men, that the Robbing others to 
 maintain their Grandeur, is a Duty, not a Sin ; 
 And that he who maintains not his Honour for- 
 feits it. And thus men fupport. Avarice by Pride, 
 3fld,varnifhit with the deceiving Lutlrcof Gcne- 
 rofity. It 
 
t>f Frugality;- 517 
 
 It contributes, not a .little to our being Avari- 
 tious , that, when Children, we are bred to an 
 Efteem of Money , before we can underftand 
 any thing. And therefore this Impreffion lafts 
 with them , even after their Underftanding is 
 gone. For we fee, that. Men in Bedlam are al- 
 ways asking Money ; and that when Avaricious 
 Men are on their Death-bed , paft the Senfe of 
 every thing elfe , yet they ftili grafp at their 
 Money and Bonds. Parents fhould likewife 
 carefully confider in Breeding their Children^ 
 what their Genius or Temper is. For there are? 
 fome Trades which incline more to one Vic© 
 than another. As for inftance ; the being a 
 Lawyer , is thought to incline them to Avarice^ 
 becaufe in that Employment Men are always 
 Treating, and Contending about Riches ; and 
 ^re oft-times, by defending unjuft Acquifitions, 
 tempted to think the Guilt contraded by them, 
 very fmall ; Familiarity leflening always Gruih 
 on fuch Occafions, , And therefore, if a Man 
 find his Child inclined to love Money-, hs 
 fhould breed him. to no Trade that can inflame 
 Kis Defires. • And a Lawyer, engaged once in; 
 the Employrrient, fhould , and I am fure fome 
 do , balance this Inconveniency, by the high 
 Efteem they have for Juftice, whereby they can 
 only fecure Fame and Property, the Two. mod 
 definable of all Things : .And. the great Expsri*- 
 ^nce they have above others of the Uncertainty' 
 of Riches and Eftates^ihouldconvince^ them, 
 moft of all Men , ,of the Folly as well as Gnilt 
 of this V ice. Soldiers are generally inclined to 
 Luxury , becaufe they are not frequently in Bu-^ 
 fmefs relating to Eftates and. Commerce. And 
 in, the Interludes of their Dangers , they are 
 inclined to recreate tllemfelves even to Excefs; 
 to compenfate the Toil they have fiifFei'My ?ind 
 Z 2 the 
 
^iS The Moral Hiflory 
 
 the Rifques they have run. On the other hand, 
 a Child inclined to Luxury fhould rather be bred 
 a lawyer. And tho' this be not the proper Place 
 of fpeaking againft Luxury,ytt the Contingency 
 of the Matter obliges me to fay , that Soldiers, 
 of all Men , fhould -(hun moft Luxitry ; for it 
 foftens too much, makes Men too Lazy , and 
 fucceeding Dangers the more intolerable. The 
 proper Sanctuary againft both thefe Vices, 
 fhould be the Employment of Churchmen ; and 
 we fhould fly for Prote<5lion againft thefc to the 
 Horns of the Altar : Yet , as I have formerly 
 obferved , the World is much inclin'd to be 
 jealous of their Avarice, tho' they, of all Men, 
 ihould , and I hope do Ihun it moft. For he 
 who preaches againft A'varice , and yet afts it, 
 is no more a Preacher, but a Mountebank ; nor 
 can his Difcourfe convince , whofe Example 
 diftwades ; moft Men being more led by Senfe 
 than by Reafon. By this Vice alfo , Church- 
 men fall under that Contempt, which overturns 
 their 'Church , and in Confequence takes away 
 their Benefice. And this Vice cannot but dou- 
 bly augment their Torments to all Eternity. 
 
 Upon the whole Matter then ; Men fhould 
 confider moft of all Things the Education of 
 their Children , as the only way to make them 
 happy, which is all the Avaritious defign' 
 And this is not to be done by Providing too 
 much , but by making them to be content with 
 every thing. One who is bred up in folid Vir- 
 tue , will not probably fpeak, or do what may 
 forfeit his Eftate ; as he will not endanger it, 
 or his Health, by Women, and Drinking : He 
 will think the little that is left him , enough : 
 and his Frugality will make it fo , if it do not 
 find it fo. 
 
 Wc 
 
«;/ Frugality. 529 
 
 We need no Eloquence but folid Reafon , to 
 charge the Avaricious Man with Theft, in deal- 
 ing from the Commonwealth the true Ufe of 
 thofe Riches which are neceffary for the Sup- 
 port of the Common Treafure , the Neceffities 
 of the Poor , and the Increafe of Commerce ; 
 which made Timandridtis the Lacedemonian chide 
 his Son , who valued himfelf for having fpent 
 nothing, as having thereby defrauded his Coun- 
 try , his Neighbours , and the Poor. We may 
 likewife char^ him with Murther , ( as I for- 
 merly inftanced ) for he takes away the Life of 
 the Poor, who refufes the Means of Supporting 
 it : And Men feel too much , not to find that 
 A'varice tempts its Slaves to invade their Neigh- 
 bours in Time of War , killing all thofe who 
 intercept their Prey, and murthering in time of 
 Peace, by Proceffes, thofe from whom they can 
 exped any Eftate. It makes Men at lalt Athe- 
 ifts, by perfuading them that God is not able t» 
 fupply their Neceffities ; and they are really lb, 
 when they truft it, and not him. Idolaters they 
 alfo are , becaufe they worfliip Riches as their 
 only Deity. 
 
 To raife our Thoughts higher than thofe Mo- Seft, ix. 
 ral Arguments : We may eafily difcern how i>^otJon 
 much ftronger Helps Chriftianity affords us , fZ'J 
 than we can exped from the Heathens, or thofe and befl 
 Thoughts which Nature fuggefts : For we have Remedies 
 immediate Promifes from an Omnipotent God, againft a- 
 that tho(p who depend on him fhall never want. '"«'''<^^- 
 And to alfure them the more of his Care , he 
 calls the Poor his Children, his Family ; and 
 has wrought Miracles to relieve their Neceffi- 
 ties ; by which Advantage no Heathen Philofo- 
 pher could have fecured Men againft the Fear 
 of Want, which is a ftrong Temptation to A-va^ 
 Z 2 rice. 
 
'3?o The Moral Hipry 
 
 rice. And againft which the Jfofile very wifely 
 guards us, Heh. 1:5. f. Let your Con'verfatlon Ife 
 "without Covetottfncfs , and be content with fuch things 
 as you have ; for he hath [aid , / will never leave 
 tbecy nor forfake thee. And becaufe this immode- 
 rate Care ftretches it felf to our Pofterity , that 
 fame God hath defir'd us to leave our JFather- 
 lefs Children upon him , and declares himfelf 
 the Father of the Fatherlefsj and Husband of 
 the Widow. 
 
 •' 
 
 Seft.X. We mayalfo fee by Chriftianity the Purity 
 The chri. f^at is required in its Believers , beyond what 
 ■S"*" ""^ the moft Spiritual Heathens could imagine. 
 PMopby ^^^ ^^"^^y condemned only the outward Effefts 
 eompared,l of Covetoufnefs , when they prevailed againft a 
 0t tofheir Man'^s Reafon , and proceeded fo far as to 
 KtmidUs. wrong the Society in which he lived , or the 
 Neighbours whom he injur'd , by Theft, Rob- 
 bery or Cppreffion. But Chriftianity defig/i- 
 ing to make the Heart a Tempfe/or the Holy 
 Ghoft, and ^Jan an Heir of Heaven , it did 
 therefore command him. to keep his Heart pure 
 from that Concupifcence and Covetoufhefs , 
 which polluted or diforder'd the Inclination, 
 without wronging any elfe, favc the Perfons in. 
 whom thefe Defires were raifcd. And thus, he 
 who defires to have a great F.ftate, without de- 
 firing any other Man's ; or who wifhes that 
 his Neighbour's Lands or Moveables were his, 
 even for a Price', is condemned by Chriftia- 
 nity, as guilty of Covetoufnefs andi Concu- 
 pifcence, and as one who has not learned that 
 noble Leflbn , To he content with his own Condi- 
 tion, whatever it he. An Accompliftiment,which 
 the Great Judge of all Things requires in thofe 
 whom he will own for his Servants. And for 
 our better tinderftanding the Heart of Man , It 
 
 will 
 
of Frugality. 351 
 
 will be fit to diftinguifh Three Degrees in this 
 Irregularity. The firft is that, whereby the ex- 
 terior and fenfible Objed , entring in by the 
 Senfe unto the Fancy , does fo fuddenly move 
 the Appetite, that the Judgment has no Leifure 
 to perceive , much lefs to make Reflexions up- 
 on it. And there can be no Irregularity in 
 this Degree, except we have fail'd to accuftom 
 our Judgment and Reafon to be watchful , as \t 
 ought to be , over the very firft Motions ot 
 our Appetite, and to obferve continually ( as a 
 good Centinel ) what enters in by the Ports of 
 our external Senfes. v. 
 
 The Second Degree is, when the Obje^fc 
 makes its Impreflion upon the Appetite , anti 
 raifes Commotions , whereby the Judgment 
 takes a wrong View of the Objed , tho* after- 
 wards the Judgment overcomes ; yet this Dif^ 
 order deferves the Name of a Vicious , or Irre- 
 gular AfFedion : Not unlike to that Diforder 
 a Rider is put in , when his Horfe boggles, at 
 qny fudden Object with which the Beaft is fiir- 
 prized , and \yhich , tho' his Rider pVQrcome 
 without Difficulty, yet it fhews, that he has not 
 fufficiently managed the Horfe he has taken in 
 charge. 
 
 The Third is , When this Commotion in the 
 Appetite lafts fo long , and prevails fo much, 
 that ic makes the Judgment doubt which Party 
 it fhould take ; and becomes like to a Rider, 
 who keeps his Saddle, but with Difficulty. In 
 this Degree , St. Taul reprefents Man's Reafon 
 and his Covetoufnefs wreftling againft one ano- 
 ther. I confefs, that Arlfiotle acknowledges that 
 there are fome Appetites in a Man repugnant to 
 Reafon , which indeed he blames : And that 
 IPlato (before him) taught in his eloquent way, 
 that the Chariot of Reafon was drawn by two 
 Z 4 Horfe?3 
 
35^ "* The Moral Htflory 
 
 Horfes, whereof one was black and refty, 
 difobeyinp; the Reins of him who governed 
 them. Seneca alfo numbers thofe Appetites 
 which oppofe our Reafon, among: the Culpa- 
 ble Paflions : But none of them difcover'd the 
 Irregularity of the firft Two Degrees ; and the 
 bed of them faw only the Irregularity of the 
 Third with fo dim an Eye, and thro' fo thick 
 Clouds, that St. Taul had Reafon to alTert, that 
 if the I,aw (meaning the Moral Law of God) 
 had not faid, thou jl)ah not Covet , Man had not 
 perceived the Sin that lies in Simple Concu- 
 pifcence. And whereas the Heathens did on- 
 ly forbid thefe immoderate Cares as inconve- 
 jiient, our Holy Religion goes higher, not 
 only in its Purity , but in its Penalty. For 
 all Anxiety , as to our felves , or Covetouf- 
 nefs , either relating to our felves or Neigh- 
 bours , are forbid upon pain of difpleafing a 
 kind Father , and an Infinite God , and be- 
 comes uneafy , by the cutting and fevere Re- 
 proach of a Terrified Confcience. Whereas* 
 among moft Heathens , the Confcience did 
 take no notice , nor thunder out its Terrors 
 upon fuch fpiritual and inward Delinquen- 
 cies. 
 
 FJRSl- 
 
<?/ Frugality. ' jjg 
 
 PARS I MO NT 
 
 AND 
 
 NIGGJI^DLINESS 
 
 DISCOURSE HI. 
 
 THERE is I confefs a difference betwixt Sea.l. 
 Avarice^ and exceffive Tarfimony or Niggard- "^^toru 
 linefs ? that wrings^ from others what Is theirs ; ^p"''ff,f 
 this only exceeds in fparing too much what is Parfimony 
 oaes own ; the one rifes purely from a fear of or Nig- 
 Want, and therefore ia the firft Ages of the gajdli- 
 World it was fcarce known ; the other from a *' 
 defire to heap up, tho ufelefly ; the one is a kind 
 of Self-defence, the other an Invafion ; and 
 therefore the one is the worft, the other a- 
 mongft the beft of Neighbours; for as the Mi- 
 fer checks us when we exceed in our Expence, fo 
 he is moil unwilling to wrong us, left he thereby 
 encourage others to wrong him. The Nig- 
 gard is, generally fpeaking, a better Subject 
 than the Avaritious, for he is afraid to lofe what 
 he has, whereas the Avaritious loving more" 
 what he wants than what he has, hazards 
 the prefent in expedation of a greater advan^ 
 cage. 
 
 NiggarMnefs oft-times grows up rather from 
 Education than any vitious Inclination, 
 and I have ^etn fome become Parfimonious 
 by living near Prodigals, having occafion daily 
 %o abhor their Extravagancies, and to be terrified 
 
 at 
 
3:54 The Moral Hijlory 
 
 at the Miferies to which they have feen them 
 reduced by thefe Extravagancies. Men exprefs 
 their abhorrence of this Vice in calling fuch as 
 are maftcred by it, Mifcrs ; as if they were 
 the moft miferablc of all Men: but yet they 
 muft have fome Pleafure in it, elfe they would 
 not be fo afliduous and diligent about it; certain- 
 ly they think"tofpare, is to gain; and therefore 
 they wonder why others who take fuch pains to 
 eain, fliould laugh at them for taking pains to 
 Ipare. Nor do they fee that rhcy want any of 
 thefe things, for providing of which others take 
 y V, pains to heap up Money, or that they fliould toil 
 .,^,/, to get Money to entertain ethers ; and upon 
 , '- ' thefe grounds it is that we find the Parfimonious 
 to be generally proud, thinking they fliall never 
 need to depend upon any. But yet Parfimony 
 is to bepitifd, fmce it exceeds, for it muft pro- 
 ..'L. ceed from a too high value of Riches, and fo ar- 
 gues a blindneFs in ourReafon. And it employs 
 too much of that Time which might be better be-^ 
 ftowed, ftarving both Charity and Friendfhip, 
 th? greater Duties, as well Comforts of our Life. 
 Yet it may feem a more excufable Vice than./4- 
 ry^^/cc; for A'var'ice ftill promifes to employ the 
 Mony that it tempts us anxioully to feek, in the 
 fervice of Charity and Generofity ; but after we 
 have got the Mony, Parfimony will not allow^. 
 Men to employ it, no not on their own Ivleceffi-i'.' 
 ties, though the Niggard (God knows) is him- 
 felfa great Object of Charity; which made Horace 
 account ic a Madnefs rather than a Vice. 
 
 "parens oh hare His cur^im nipjfum'^.ue feverus 
 AJJidet infitjo ••• ' 
 
 The Scripture alTures- us that Riches take th< 
 ' ^^ ^: wifigs. 
 
 «« 
 
of Frugality. 5? 5 
 
 wings of the morning and flyaway. They da ?*^- ^^* 
 not wait till others come and take them ffom us; ^^^,^7 
 but they naturally tend to fly about, and there- ofseHp' 
 fore they run away with fo much haft, as de- ture eem^ 
 ferves to be called taking of Wings, and they P*''^^ 
 leave us fd foon, that this haft is called the Wings pj^'f//'^ 
 of the Morning; and when they have taken ^Z//*^"'* 
 wings, I imagine I fee them looking back with Sul>jeS{, 
 contempt, and laughing at thofe who thought 
 to have fecured them and kept them Prifoners. 
 Let us then endeavour, with the wife Apoftle to 
 learn to be content in aH conditions, expeding 
 more permanent Riches and Treafures : Imita- 
 ted in this by Horace who reflecting on the In-. 
 ftability of Fortune, had the fame Thought from 
 his Fountain, as moft of the Heathens borrow 
 from the Scripture; 
 
 Fortuna favo lata negot'to, ^ 
 Luduminfolentem luderefertinaxy 
 Tranfmutat incertos honores, 
 
 Nunc mihij nunc alio henigna^ 
 Laudo manentem : (i cleres qnatit 
 Pennas, rejigno c^ua dedit ; &' meii 
 Virtute me in'vol'vCy prohamque 
 Fau^eriem fine dote quiero. 
 
 1 muft remark by the way, the different Genius 
 o^ Virgil ^nd Horace, which, appears in this, as 
 well as with relation to all Morality: Firgil loves 
 Virtue as a part of Devotion, 
 
 Aiide fjofpes contemner opesy d^ te quoquQ 
 
 dignum, ,. , / 
 
 Flnge Deo. — — — 
 
 Horace loves it as conducing to his Eafe, as w^ 
 fee in this and many other palTages in his Satyrs 
 
 » Condemn 
 
3 ? 6 'I'he Moral Hiflory 
 
 condemn it eafily. Jwuer^al'm his^rails at it bitterly, 
 and troubles himfelf almoft as much in writing 
 againftit, as Coveroufnefs could have vexed him ; 
 like Seneca who grows angry in writing aganift 
 Anger. 
 
 The Scripture fpeaking againft Covctoufnefs 
 compares it to an evil Eye, which makes the Bo- 
 dy dark, Matth. 6. And Horace tells us that an 
 honeft Man, 
 
 Oculo irretortofpecht acervos. 
 « 
 The Scripture calls Avarice Idolatry. And the 
 Poets alluding to this_, fay 
 
 Pr^efentewijue fewper fojfidet area Deum. 
 
 Sea. III. One of the chief Pleafurcs and Arts of Mo- 
 
 Thatthe- j-^j Philofophy lies in conlidering the various 
 
 mturs fn Mixture of Pailions and Vices with one another ; 
 
 MtTMiity, as to which Tlutarcb himfelf has not been fpeci- 
 
 mnd their al cnough. Contenting himfelf with obferving 
 
 vartout y^vhQ were Covetous , who Prodigal , &c. but 
 
 ArenT/ret ^^ S^^^ ^'^^^ Glanccs of this , upon which I 
 
 fui/y en- will poflibly beftow an Effay apart : It is obferva- 
 
 eiuireJ in. blc that many in the late Civil Wars who were 
 
 ro\ snin- known Niggards, beftowed frankly their Eftates 
 
 ^vhereof is ^^ ^^^ Service of King Charles I. Many who 
 
 given »n would not beftow a hundred Pound in the Edu- 
 
 this Sub- cation of their Heir, do beftow with JDelight 
 
 >"^' many Thoufands in building the Houfe they are 
 
 to leave him ^ and that beautiful young Lady 
 
 who allowed a Favour to a rich old niggardly 
 
 Excife-man in France to get Money to preferve 
 
 her Father's Life, has left it dubious what Name 
 
 this Tranfgreflion deferved. The different and 
 
 contrary Effects produced by the fame Vice or 
 
 Paflion are Proofs of this ; As for Inftance, a 
 
 meer 
 
»/ Frugality. 337 
 
 meer Niggard ftarves his Caufe ; for he dares 
 nOrt beftovv fo much as one Shilling upon Hope 
 it iv?lf ; whereas if Niggardlinefs be quickened 
 by fome degrees of Avarice, no Man is a fran- 
 ker <Slient than the Niggard; for he knows 
 Money is a better Fee^, than the good Dinner 
 the Luxurious thinks a fufficient Reward. It is 
 ordinarily obferved that a Niggard's Feaft is the 
 greateft, and the Reafon feems to be, that they 
 deilgn thereby to convince the World that their 
 Parfimony proceeds not from their over-valuing 
 Money. But in my Opinion they as Painters 
 not ufed to paint, miftake Proportions more 
 than ethers do , or it may be they feldom Treat 
 without defign of Gain, and lb their Entertain- 
 ments are Bribes and not Feafts. 
 
 L U X U K r. 
 
 DISCOURSE IV. 
 
 ON E might reafonably have thought , that j^^^ |^ 
 as the World grew older , Luxury would The Rife 
 have been more fliunned. For the more Men snJPro. 
 multiplied, and the greater their Dangers grew, i""'/^ */ 
 they fhould have been the more eafily induced ^**'"*^^' 
 to fhun all Expence, that they might the more 
 fuccefsfuUy provide againft thofe Inconvenien- 
 cies. But yet it proved otherwife, and Luxury 
 was the la ft of all Vices that prevailed over Man- 
 kind ; for after Riches had been hoarded up, 
 they rotted as it were unto Luxury ; and after 
 that Tyranny and Ambition had robbsd many 
 
 poor 
 
3?8 The Moral Hijiory 
 
 poor Innocents , Luxury more cruel than they, 
 Wiis made ufe of by Providence, to revenge their 
 Quarrel : And fo triumphed over the Conque- 
 rors. Thus when Rome had by Wit and Courage 
 fubdued the World , it was drovvned in that In- 
 undation of Riches, which thefe brought upon 
 it. 
 Sca,II. This Vice has its ovvn Masks and Difguifes 
 ^^^r!s'un ^°^» ^^^ ^^ transforms icfelf into Virtue , whilft 
 ^der which 1^^^^ ^^at it runs fafter from Avarice, and laughs 
 Luxury more loudly at it than Liberality it felf does, 
 infmuatt: ^nd to that height that it fcems .to be angry at 
 itself. Liberality, as being only a kind of Niggardli- 
 nefs. It pretends to keep open Table to thofe 
 who ftarve, and to have an open Purfe always 
 for Men of Merit. .Beauty and Learning are its 
 Penfioners , and all mariner of . Divertifemetits 
 are ftill in his Retinue. It obliges the peaceable 
 to favour it, as an Enemy to every thing that is 
 uneafy : And ir engages Men of Parts to fpeak 
 for it,' becaufe whilft it lavifhes the Tre^fures 
 others have hoarded up, it feeds the Hdpe and 
 Expedations of fuch as were provided by Na- 
 ture of fiothing, but a Stock of Wit. And 
 there being fcldom other matcKes betwixt Libe- 
 rality and Prodigality , but fuch as are to be 
 meaiured by exad Reflexions upon the Eftates 
 of the Spenders, it fometimcs praifcs that as Li- 
 bcrality,\yhich ought to be condemned as Luxu- 
 ry. And even where the Tranrgreflion'may be 
 difcerned, the bribed and., jnterefted Multitud^e 
 will not acknowledge , that Liberality by ex- 
 ceeding its Bounds has loft its Name. Some al-. 
 fo from the fame Principle authorize this Vice, 
 by the pretext of Law, crying out that every 
 Man fhould have .Liberty to difpofc of his ow^, 
 as he pleafes, and bv the good of Commerce, 
 faying with a ferious Faccj that Frugality would 
 
 fihiq 
 
«/ Frugality. 339 
 
 ri^in all Trade \ and if no Man fpend beyond 
 his Meafure, Riches fhould not circulate j nor 
 Ihouid virtuous, laborious, or witty Men find in 
 tjiis Circulation, occafions to excite or reward 
 their Induftry. And from this probably flows" 
 the Law of England's not interdiding Prodigals, 
 denying him the Adminiftration of his own E- 
 i^ate, as the Laws of all other Nations do. 
 
 I know alfo fome very devout Men, who Se^^. III. 
 would perfuade us, that it is not fit to decry Luxu- f'*"^ '^^' 
 ry too much in this Age, becaufe it entertains 1^^"^',^*^^ 
 and feeds fo many poor Artifans, and others who PeopU 
 would ftarve without its Afliftance , having no' f^ink Lu- 
 other Trade, but the making Perfumes, Laces, *^"''jy""' 
 Embroideries , and fuch things which Frugali- "fupf^^the 
 ty contemns as Baubles, or abhors as Poiions. ciecay ef 
 And though when Charity had in the Youth q( charify. 
 Chriftianity, Vigor enough to perfuade Men to 
 entertain the Poor as Members of the fame Bo- 
 dy with them : Yet God feems now to permit 
 Luxury to throw away that Money amongft the 
 Poor, which Charity cannot perfuade them to 
 give. Others again recommend Luxury as that' 
 which occafions the fharpning of Wit , and the 
 beautifying of theUniverfe^* for thofe who have 
 Wit, ftudy Painting, Architedure, Sculpture; 
 and by thefe the Rich adorn the World, and 
 make it a more glorious Inftance of his excellent 
 Skill, who ftrft formed it , and bellowed thofe 
 excellent Talents on Men for improving it. 
 That fame God alfo has- made Jewels, Perfumes, 
 and many other Things which he muft allow 
 to be ufed by Luxury, lince Frugality knovv^s no 
 ufe for them. But the great Advocate for I,uxu- 
 ry, is Self-Love, that Orator which never falJis 
 to perfuade. And it fuggefts to us , that the 
 greateft of our Concerns fhould be for our felves, 
 and thdt a reafonable Man (hould think all 
 
 thrown 
 
5^o T'he Moral Htflory 
 
 thrown away, which he fpends not to pleafe 
 himfelf. And which he can no way do fo well 
 as by gratifying all his own Appetites and Incli- 
 nations with the full Enjoyment of all they cai\, 
 define ; the Publick Good, and Charity, being 
 meer Notions invented by Philofophers and Di- 
 vines, to make us (hare with them that Money, 
 which when they have once got , they laugh at 
 us for parting with. 
 
 I confefs, that all the Arguments that plead 
 for Avarice feem to conclude at la ft in Favour 
 of Luxury ; for to what purpofe fhould a Man 
 lay up Money , except he ufe it ? And Nature 
 would not allow one to toil much for it , if it 
 were not, that he promifed to himfelf to live 
 one Day foftly and pleafantly , on thef Fruits of 
 thefe Labours : And on the other hand. Luxury 
 never approves any Argument or Pefign that 
 Avarice can bring ; for it is fo much taken up 
 with the prefent Pleafure of ufing what it has, 
 that it will allow it felf no time to forefee , or 
 toil for what it may want. 
 
 Many who have been very Prodigal andLuxu- 
 rious , have afterwards turned very Avaritious ; 
 whereas they never gained one Profelyte from 
 Avarice. And I have known fome who have 
 fpent a very prodigal and luxurious Youth, 
 throwing away the4ittle they had, who fo foon 
 as they grew rich , became fo fond of it , that 
 they could not part with what was fufficient to 
 fupply their Neceflity. And when I asked them 
 why they run from one Extreme to another, in 
 fpight both of Reafon and Cuftom : They an- 
 fwered , that what formerly they had was not 
 worth their care ; and therefore they fpent it in 
 Hopes thereby to gain more. In which we may 
 fee a new and different View of the genius of 
 / Ava- 
 
of Frugality. 54-1 
 
 Avarice and Luxury, and the Motives whence 
 
 they rife. s a IVi 
 
 As Avarice differs from Parfimony, fo does j!|^ ^^^^ 
 Prodigality from Luxury ^ for Prodigality is a rencebe- 
 profufe fpending on others , but Luxury upon twixt Pro- 
 ofs felf. In Prodigality a Man feems to value digaiity 
 every Man more than himfelf, becaufe he pre- '""'^«*«'- 
 fers them, defrauding himfelf of Neceflaries, to ^^' 
 beftow upon them. In Luxury a Man prefers 
 himfelf to all others, robbing and cheating them 
 by all Arts and Devices , to get thereby Super- 
 fluities , to feed himfelf and his Lufts. For 
 which Reafon , and . fmce alfo the Scriptur? 
 fpeaks fo much againfi: Luxury, and not againd 
 Prodigality, it may feem ftrange, why the Laws 
 are fo fevere to Prodigals in interdicting and 
 forbidding them the Adminiftration of their own 
 Eftates, without putting any reftraint upon the 
 Luxurious : Whereas it feems that the Prodigal 
 is lefs an Enemy to the Commonwealth than 
 the Luxurious ; feeing he is ready to prefer his 
 Fellow-Citizens to himfelf ; and generally they 
 who get the Prodigals Means have more Wit 
 than he, and csin make better XJk of what they 
 get from him ,• and fo fhould by the Laws be 
 preferred to him. But I think the Reafon of 
 this is, that the Law fears, that after he hath dif- 
 fipated his own , he may fall a Burden on the 
 Society : And therefore it , confiders him as a 
 generous kind of Idiot, and fo puts him under 
 Tuition as it does an Idiot. And thus it cares 
 for him more than for the Luxurious ; and it 
 were to be wifhed that by the fame Compaffion 
 it provided alfo Tutors for the Niggard, who ii5 
 in greater Danger to be ruined by himfelf, than 
 the Prodigal by others. To which nothing Qm 
 be anfwered, but that the Law thinks this Churi 
 Unworthy of its Care ; and that the Gommon- 
 
 A a wealth^ 
 
H^ l^he Moral Hiftory 
 
 wealth would lofe little, though he fhould ftarve 
 himfelf. 
 
 vSince Self-love is Man's chief Counfellor , it 
 feems that Men are more naturally inclined to 
 Luxury than Prodigality ; as they are inclined 
 to love themfelvcs better than their Neighbours. 
 But yet on a more feriousReflexion it will appear, 
 that even Prodigality has Self-love to plead for 
 it , becaufe Ambition , which is a more violent 
 Paffion than Senfuality, drives a Man to Prodi- 
 gality , as that whereby he may raife his Repu- 
 tation by buying that Fame , of which only he 
 is greedy. 
 
 Sea. V. rY^Q great Arguments that weigh with me 
 <i-S'"'^ againft Luxury, are firft , That Luxury difor- 
 Luxttry, dcrs, confounds , and is inconfiftcnt with that 
 ^ fi'li , juft and equal Oeconomy , whereby God go- 
 Thatitis verns the World as his own Family , in which 
 wZfhZ' ^^^ ^^" ^^5 ^^^ Children , or Servants ; for as 
 equal Di- ^^6 Avaritious hoards up for one , that which 
 firibution fhould be diftributed among many ; fo in Luxu- 
 whcrehy j-y Qne vicious Man fpends upon himfelf what 
 ^"rfth ^ould maintain many hundreds ; and he furfeits 
 ^mrid. ^ ^^ make them ftarve. This is not to be a Stew- 
 ard but Mafter. . Nor can we think that the wife 
 and juft Judge of all Things , will fuffer in his 
 beautiful World , what the moft negligent and 
 imprudent amongft us , could not fuffer in his 
 private Family. 
 
 The fecond Argument is, That Nature fhould 
 be Man's chief Rule in things relating to this 
 World ; and Reafon his great Diredor under 
 God in making ufe of that Rule, and the Eyes 
 (as it were) by which we are to fee how to fol- 
 low it. By this Nature teaches us how to pro- 
 portion the Means to the End , and not to em- 
 ploy all the Inftrumejiti whereby fuch an End 
 
 may 
 
of Frugality. 345 
 
 may be procured, but only fuch as are neceffary^ 
 and fuitable for the procuring of it ,- which Pro- 
 portion Luxury neither underftands nor follows ; 
 and therefore we mull conclude it unnatural and 
 unreafonable ^' and that Frugality is the true 
 Mathematicks of Moral Philofophy : And by 
 this we may condemn not only fuch as Senecio 
 was in the Roman Hiitory , who delighted to 
 have his Cloaths, and his Shooes, twice as large 
 as were fit for his Body and Feet j which the 
 Luxurious laughed at, with others; but even 
 fuch as keep twice as great Tables, build twice as 
 great Houfes, pay twice as many Servants as are 
 fit for them , are as mad as he. For 
 though that Difproportion be not fo very 
 perceptible as the other, becaufe the Bulk of a 
 Man's Eftate is not fo eafily meafured and known 
 as that of his Perfon ; and becaufe there are 
 twice as many Fools of this kind , as there are 
 of the other, fo that Reafon is out- voted , 
 though it cannot be anfwered ; yet the Folly is 
 the fame every where ; and in this it is more 
 dangerous, that Senecio wronged only himfelf , 
 whilft they oft-times wrong and ruin both their 
 Pofterity and Neighbours. To convince us that 
 Luxury is a great defed in our Reafon, we fhall 
 ordinarily find that young Men, Fools, and Wo- 
 men, are moft given to it. Thus I have ^ttn a 
 Man, otherwife judicious enough , much fur- 
 prized, when it was reprefented, that his Build* 
 ing (though it feemed to him and many others 
 to carry no great Difproportion to his Eftate) 
 yet would in Forty four Years ( which is but a 
 (hort time) equal his Eftate, allowing the Inte- 
 reft of his Money to equal the Capital Sum in 
 the fpace of Eleven Years and an half , which 
 it did by Law ; for loo /. forborn for Forty 
 eight Years , at 6 fer Cent, compound Intereft, 
 A a 2 amounts 
 
344- T^he Moral Uijlory 
 
 amounts to 17^4 ^. 4 ^. ^ d. And how tnany 
 may forbenr 100 /. ? and this Sum in Ten Years, 
 which is but a very fhort time , will amount to 
 2774/. 12 ^. by fimple Multiplication without 
 Compound Intereft. And very few confider 
 the Extravagancy of this Age, in which Houfes 
 and Furniture go out of Fafhion^ as Hats or 
 Shoes do. Nor does the Expence of Building 
 contain it felf within the Walls ; for it obliges a 
 Man to a fuitable way of living , there being 
 nothing more ridiculous, than to fee one who 
 lived in a Palace at Home , travel and lodge A- 
 broad with fuch Equipage, and in fuch Inns, as 
 Men who live in ordinary Houfes do. We fhould 
 therefore be very proportionable in our Expencey 
 for that which widens a Man's Fancy in any one 
 thing, makes it Extravagant in all things. As 
 they who ufe their Stomachs to too much of any 
 one Meat, will make it craving as to all others. 
 Whereas on the other Hand , that which fhould 
 enamour Men of Frugality, is, that it accuftoms 
 us to Reafoning, and Proportion • obferving 
 exadly the leaft perceptible Proportions, and 
 the fmalleft Confequences. Which makes me 
 call to mind the remarkable Story of the Holland 
 Merchant, who having married his Daughter to 
 a Luxurious rich Citi/en, to the great DiiTatif- 
 ynizht ^"^^^^^^ ^f his Wife, flie came the next Day to 
 flfduct'tt t'"^s Bride and Bridegroom, and offered them 
 Turhyy the Egg of a TurkyHen, and defired her Daugh- 
 vhich ter to ufe herfclf in exacftlv looking to the Pro- 
 ^^1'^^. J duA of that Egg, to confider the great Things 
 7nto many: which Frugality can do in other Matters. But 
 ufndthf her Husband and flie having laughed at the Eef- 
 priceof fon, the Mother improved fb far tl\e Egg, that 
 *H'^'^^^* wirhin Twenty Years the Advantage of it, and 
 TwLe,^ the Luxury of that married Couple grew fo faft. 
 Cows,' Sec. that 
 
 For that 
 
(?/ Frugality. 345 
 
 that they needed the meaneft Affiftance, and 
 the Produd of the Egg afforded a comfortable 
 one; for with the confiderable Sum that was ga- 
 thered by itj they ftocked themfelves anew^ and 
 by the help of the (formerly flighted ) Leffon 
 of not defpifing the meaneft Things , raifed 
 themfelves again to a very confiderable Eftate. 
 And if any Man will but confider Yearly, what 
 heruperfluouflyfpends,and how much that would 
 multiply in procefs of time , he will eafily per- 
 ceive that what he fpends in the Confequence is 
 vaftly greater than appears to him in the.firft 
 Calculation : As for Inftance , if a Man who 
 may fpend f oo /. per Annum does fpend 600 , this 
 fmall Error of 100/. a Year will amount in 
 44 Years at 6 fer Cent, to the Sum of 157; /. 6 j. 
 and odd Pence. And though a Man thinks it 
 fcarce worth his Pains, to manage fo as to pre- 
 ferve 100 /. he muft be very Luxurious , who 
 thinks it not worth his Pains to gain the Sum of 
 I ;7:> /. And it is a great Defed in our Reafon, 
 that thofe Ills which follovy by necelTary Confe- 
 quence are defpifed as mean , becaufe the Con- 
 fequences themfelves are remote. And as that 
 is the beft Eye, fo that is likewife the belt Rea- 
 fon, which fees clearly at a great Diftance. A- 
 nother great Error that Luxury tempts us to, by 
 not reafoning exa(5lly, is, that ic makes us cal- 
 culate ourEftates vv^ithoutdeducing^vv'hat ispaya- 
 ble out of them to the Poor^ to the King and to 
 Creditors, before we proportion our Expence ; 
 whereas we fhould fpend only what is truly our, 
 own ; and the Law to prevent Luxury tells us 
 that , id tantum nofirum eji <jMod deduBis debithy 
 afud nos rcmanet : That is only ours which re- 
 mains with us, after our Debts are deduced. Nor 
 will a proportional Part of 6ur Eftates anfwer 
 the Equivalent of our Debts. For if I owe 
 A a ; TOO /. 
 
54-6 The Moral Hijlory 
 
 100 /. a Year , no part of my Eftate that pays 
 me loo /. a Year will pay it ; for many Acci- 
 dents may hinder me to get my own Rent, but 
 no Accident will procure an AbatemcHt of my 
 Debt. And this leads me to confider that Fru- 
 gality numbers always the Accidents that may 
 intervene, amongft other Creditors ; and the wife 
 Hollander obferves, that a Man fhould divide his 
 Eftate in three Parts, upon one third he fliould 
 live , another third he fhould lay up for his 
 Children, and the laft he fhould lay by for Ac- 
 cidents. There are few Men who do not in 
 their ^Experience find5that their whole Life beinp; 
 ballanced together, they have loft a third part al- 
 x-yays of their Revenue by Accidents. And mofl 
 Families are deftroyed by having the Childrens 
 Provifion left as a Debt upon them. So that a 
 Mart fhould at leaft endeavour to live upon the 
 one half ; and leave the other half for his 
 Children. 
 
 Scft.Vf. The next Argument that difcredits Luxury 
 Thg other ^jj-j^ jyjg ^ js ^ That it occalions many and great 
 fs^thaT liiconveniences, both to him who labours under 
 Luxury is it , and to the Commonwealth under which he 
 
 mofl incon- liyes. 
 
 venientfor 'phg Luxurious Man opprefTes that Nature 
 
 ^^^'^^^^J^^^' which fhould be the Foundation of his Joy j 
 
 bimfeif, and, by falfe Reafoning, he is made by this Vic€ 
 
 aadtbtSo- tp believe, that becaufe fome Eafe and Aliments 
 
 "'^y are pleafant , therefore the more he takes of 
 
 Uvi?'"'^ them , the more he will be pleafed. And the 
 
 f^rft Proofs by which he is convinced that he is 
 
 cheated in this, are thofe Gouts , Gravels , and 
 
 other Difeafes , into which thofe Vices , when 
 
 they are fwell'd , overflow , and deflroy that 
 
 Ground , which a gentle Watering would have 
 
 rcfrefh'd. Then he begins to undcrftand that 
 
 Medio- 
 
of Frugality. 5^7 
 
 Mediocrity is the Golden Rule , and that Pro- 
 portion is to be obferv'd in all the Courfe of our 
 Life. 
 
 Luxury alio makes a Man fo foft , that it is 
 hard to pleafe him ^ and eafy to trouble him : 
 So that his Pleafures at laft become his Burden. 
 Luxury i^^ a nice Mafter , hard to be pleafed : 
 Res efi ffvera Voluftas , faid he who knew it beft. 
 Whereas the Frugal and Temperate Man can, 
 by Fafting till a convenient time , make any 
 Food pleafant ; and is by Travelling , when it 
 is convenient , harden'd fufficiently, not to be 
 troubled by any ordinary Accidents. The Lu- 
 xurious muft at laft owe to this Temperance, 
 that Health and Eafe which his falfe Pleafures 
 have robb'd him of ; he muft abftain from his. 
 Wines, Feaftings and Fruits, until Temperance' 
 has cured him. And I have known many, whc 
 after they have been tortur'd by the Tyranny of 
 Luxury , whilft they had Riches in abundance 
 to feed it , became very healthful and ftrong 
 when they fell into that Poverty which they 
 had fo abhorr'd : Some whereof have confefs'd 
 to me , that they never thought themfelves fo 
 happy, and that they w^re never fo well pleas'd, 
 as fmce they had'efcap'd the Temptations of 
 that dangerous Vice. Luxury does ^ot more 
 ruin a Man's Body, than it debafes his Mind ; 
 for it makes him fervilely drudge under thofe 
 who fupport his Luxury ; In pimping to all 
 their Vices , flattering all their Extravagancies, 
 and executing the moft dreadful of their Com- 
 mands. I have oft-times remark'd with great 
 pleafure, that in Commonwealths, where to be 
 Free was accounted the greateft Glory, nothing 
 reigned fave Frugality , and nothing was rich 
 fave the Common Treafure. But under thofe 
 Monarchies which have degenerated into Ty- 
 A a 4 ranny. 
 
34S The ]\ioral Hijlory 
 
 ranny. Care is taken to have thofe who get 
 the Publick Pay fpend it luxurioufiy , to the 
 end J that thofe they employ may ftill want , 
 and fo may be oblig'd to that Contemptible Sla- 
 very , to which none would bow if they could 
 otherwife live. It is alfo very obfervable , that 
 thofe who dwell in the Richell Countries, which 
 
 , incline Men to Luxury , fuch as Greece and Italy ^ 
 are poor, and Slaves ; whereas the hard Rocks 
 of Svjitz.erland breed Men who think themfelves 
 rich and happy. I heard , that a Churchman 
 call'd that the beft Religion, which was able to 
 entertain a Coach and Six Horfes ; but I am 
 fure, that if the Mafter who was in it knew that 
 he had made himfelf a Rafcal to get the Coach, 
 he could not be fo eafy in it, as if he walk'd on 
 foot with his Innocence. I .like well his Re- 
 ply, who , being tempted to comply with what 
 his Confcience could not digeft , faid to him 
 who tempted him, I can contentedly walk on 
 foot , but you cannot live without a Coach : I 
 will be advis'd by my Innocency ; confult you 
 with your Grandeur. Rulers can beftow Trea- 
 
 ; fures, but Virtue only can beftow Efteem ; and 
 all the Refpeft that is beftow'd upon a Vicious 
 Man, is no more to be valued , and is as ridicu- 
 lous as a Copy of Verfes (writ for Money) in 
 Praife of a Coward. Nor can either fine Houfes 
 or Gardens, large Territories, or pleafant Fields 
 delight him , who when he walks in them , 
 muft remember that they, were purchafed at 
 the Rate of the Curfe of God, and his own In- 
 famy. 
 
 From all which we may eafily fee , that the 
 Luxurious are not only ufelefs , but Enemies to 
 the Commonwealth wherein they live : Ufe- 
 lefs , becaufe they become effeminate and foft, 
 unable to defend and improve their Native Coun- 
 try ; 
 
^/Frugality. 343 
 
 try ; Enemies, becaufe they debauch the Inno- 
 cent J and aflift the Guilty. Whereas the Fru- 
 gal Man takes more Pleafure in being a good 
 Example to the Youth j and in oppofing the 
 Lufts of Tyrants, than the Luxurious can do in 
 feeding upon what their Cooks prepare , or in 
 dallying with the Proftitute whom his Money 
 can buy. TIjc Pleafure of Sin lafis hut for a mo^ 
 ment ; but a good Confcience is a continual Feafi^ 
 The one pleafes only thofe Corrupted Flatte- 
 rers, whom the Luxurious himfelf contemns ; 
 whilft the other pleafes the Heroick , the Wife, 
 and the Virtuous , whom the Vicious muft ad- 
 mire in fpite of his Corruption : And even ma- 
 ny Thoufands , who tho' they are not Virtuous 
 therafelves, yet are by Conviction, or Intereft, 
 forced to appear as fuch. 
 
 I fhall clofe thefe few Arguments againft Lu- 
 xury, in obferving, that it appears from all that 
 hath been (aid, how unfatiable both Avarice, 
 and Luxury are ; both of them are aded by 
 Imagination , which can never be fatisfied nor 
 bounded : The one feeks Money only , that he. 
 may have the Pleafure to have it lying by him ; 
 and the other , that he may pleafe his Fancy in 
 fpending it. And yet, I think , that Avarice is 
 a more fevere Mafter than Luxury. For the- 
 Luxurious- Man propofes only what he may 
 fpend , but the Avaritious Man covets every; 
 thing : The one is fatistied fometimes in Enjoy-, 
 ing what is got ; but the other gets no fooner 
 any one thing, than he prefently runs after 
 another ; and when he has reaped the Fruit of 
 his Pains , he is made poor again by Poffef- 
 fion. 
 
 From 
 
350 7he Moral Hiftory 
 
 l/^/J^'* From thefe Rcfleclions alfo may arifc Reme- 
 •g»inft" ^^^5 againft luxury to any thinking Man: 
 Luxury. For tho' when we confider the Luxurious as 
 they fhine at Courts , live in Sumptuous Pala- 
 ces, faluted in the Streets, adorned with Pane- 
 gyricks ; it is probable , that moft Men will 
 think, that Philofophers and Divines have only 
 writ againft Luxury, becaufe they could not at- 
 tain to the Riches that are neceflary for main- 
 taining it : Yet , to balance this, let us confider 
 the vaft Numbers of thofe whom it has drown- 
 ed in Pleafures, others whom it has fent to ftarve 
 in Prifons, and drag'd to Scaffolds by its Temp- 
 tations. I have oft-times feen the Luxurious 
 railed at with much Malice by thofe they fump- 
 tuoufly entertained, who envied the Entertainer 
 for being able to treat them fo highly, and for 
 Living fo far above their own Condition : Con- 
 cluding, that they were rather called to be Wit- 
 neffes of the Entertainer's Abundance , than 
 Sharers in his Bounty. And tho' fome think 
 to make an Atonement for their Oppreflion, by 
 Living fumptuoufly upon its Spoils ; yet no 
 Wife Man will pardon a Robber , becaufe he 
 gives back a fmall Share of the great Riches he 
 has taken. 
 
 Some think Riches neceflary for keeping 
 greatTables, and excufe this, by the Hopes they 
 have of Good Company. And a Great Man 
 told me, he wifhed fuch a Man's Eftate, that he 
 might keep us all about him. But my Anfwer 
 was , That the Luxurious gather'd about them 
 ordinarily the worft of Company ; and wor- 
 thy Men valued more Virtuous Converfatjon 
 than Sumptuous Diet , which they rather fhun- 
 ned than follow 'd. I believe there are few fo 
 Prodigal of their Money , but that they have 
 
 oft 
 
of Frugality. 35 
 
 oft fome Regrets for having fpent it : From 
 which the Frugal Man is exempted , by the 
 Affurance he has from his Virtue that he can 
 live happily upon the little he has, and can with 
 Pleafure find, that he is neither opprelTed by the 
 Weight of Riches , nor terrified by the Fear of 
 Want ; breeding up his Pofterity not to need 
 thefe great Patrimonies, which he cannot give. 
 I know , that fome think they are never to be 
 charged with prodigal and ufelefs Spending , if 
 they take exad: Account of their Servants of 
 what they fpend : But our Inclinations may 
 cheat us as much as our Servants ; and there- 
 fore I am very well pleafed with the Anfwer of 
 that Father , tho' Mifer , who having feen his 
 Son very bufy in taking in his Accounts , told 
 him , Son, Son, fpend nothing you can fpare ; 
 but after it is once fpent , think not you can 
 make it up, by keeping an exad Account your 
 felf, or taking in fuch Accounts from your Ser- 
 vants. 
 
 I am fo far from thinking that Luxury is ufe- 
 ful, becaufe it fuftains many poor Artizans, that 
 I think there would be no Poor , were it not 
 for Luxury and Avarice; for all would have 
 fomewhat, and none would have too much. 
 The Commonwealth of the Je-ws , inftituted 
 by God Almighty, proves moft Artifans to be 
 unnecelTary ; and tho' a prefent Innovation in 
 this Point may ftarve fome , yet it would not 
 ftarve fo many , as might be eafily entertained 
 upon what the Luxurious and Avaritious poflefs 
 beyond a due Meafure : And in a little time, all 
 thefe Artifans. who now drudge to pleafe Luxu- 
 ry, would follow other Trades , wherry they 
 might pleafe God Almighty much bette ; whofe 
 Service is the chief End of Man, and to pleafe 
 whom is his chief Happinefs^ And thefe Arts 
 ' . neither 
 
35^ 
 
 The Moral Hiflory 
 
 Sca.viii. 
 
 , This Dif- 
 courfe is 
 not difign- 
 td agsihji 
 true, but 
 immode- 
 rati Pitt' 
 
 fuTtt. 
 
 neither provide Meat ncr Drink, as the Husband- 
 man does : from which it follows clearly, that 
 Husbandry, and not thefe Trades fuftains the 
 World. And there would be need of no fuch Arts 
 to draw Money from the Rich forthefupply of the 
 Poor/incethis wouldbringMentoagreaterEqua- 
 lity as to Riches & Poverty. It is very obfervable, 
 that many of thefe Tradefmen ftarve, whereas 
 few Husbandmen do ; and it is alfo obfervable 
 that Prodigality and Luxury entertain always 
 the worft of Men, for they are ordinarily fuch 
 who Trade in things that pleafe the Vicious : 
 Men being either by Force, or Cuftom, eafily 
 induced to imitate the Mafters on whom they de- 
 pend, and to efteem thofe whom they ferve : 
 whereas the Frugal Man not only chufes fit oc- 
 cafions on which to fpend his Mony, but Per- 
 fons worthy of his Employment. And yet if 
 Men do beftow their Mony upon Perfumes, Pi- 
 cT:ure? and fuch other Baubles, with defign to let it 
 fall into Hands which needed it, their fincerity 
 in this defign will certainly refcue them from 
 the feverity of a Cenfure which they would o- 
 therwife deferve. 
 
 This Difcourfe tends not to forbid the ufe of 
 all Pleafure, nor even the pleafing our Senfes ; 
 for it is not to be imagined, that God Almighty 
 brought Man into the World, to admire his 
 Greatnefs, and tafte his Goodnefs, without al- 
 lowing him to rejoyce in thefe things which he 
 fees and receives. The beft way to admire an 
 Artift, is to be highly pleafed with what he has 
 made ; and a Benefaftor is ill rewarded, when 
 the Receiver is not pleafed with what is beftow- 
 cd: his Joy being the jufteftMeafure, and Stan- 
 dard of his Efteem. We find that in Eden the 
 tafting of all the fweet and delicious Fruits was 
 
 allowed 
 
of Frugality, 5 5 3 
 
 allowed, fave only that of the Tree of Know* 
 ledge : and why fliould all thefe Fruits have been 
 made fo pleafant to the Eye, and fo delicious to 
 the Taft, if it had not been to make Man, his 
 beloved Gueft happy there? And I really think 
 that the Eye has got the quality of not being fa- 
 tisfied long with any Objed, nor tlie Ear with 
 hearing any Sound, to the end that they might 
 by this Curiofity, be obliged to feek after that 
 Variety in which they may every Moment dif- 
 cover new Proofs of their Matter's Greatnefs, 
 {md Goodnefs. But I condemn the pleafmg of 
 the Senfes only , where more pains is taken, 
 and more time is fpent in gratifying them, than 
 is due to thofe inferior or lefs noble Parts oft he 
 Reafonable Creature. The Soul being the No- 
 bler and more Sublime parr, our chief Care 
 fhould be laid out in Pleafing it, as a wife Subjeft 
 fhould take more Care in Pleafing the King, 
 than his Minifters, and the Matters than his 
 Servants. The true and allowable Luxury 
 of the Soul confitts in Contemplation, and 
 Thinking, or elfe in the Practice of Virrtie, 
 whereby we may employ our Time in being ufe- 
 ful to others : albeit when our Senfes, and other 
 inferior Faculties have ferved the Soul in thefe 
 great Employments, they ought to be gratified 
 as good Servants : but not fo as to make them 
 wild Matters, as Luxury does, when it rather op- 
 prefTes than refrefties them. I do alfo think that 
 our chief Pleafure fhould not be expected from 
 the Senfes; becaufe they are too dull, and un- 
 adive to pleafe a thinking Man ; they are only" 
 capable to enjoy little, and are foon blunted 
 by enjoyment: whereas Religion, and Vir- 
 tue, do by the ravittiing hopes of what we 
 are to Exped, or the Pleafant remembering of 
 what we havedone, affoi"d conttantlv new Scenes 
 
 of 
 
:^ 5 4- 7^^^ Moral Hijlory 
 
 of Joy, and which are juftly augmented by the 
 concurring Teftmonies of the bert of Mankind, 
 ^v'ho applar.J our Virtuous Atflions, and decry 
 the Vicious. So that the Virtuous Man is by as 
 many degrees pleafed beyond the Vicious, as the 
 pai^ and future exceed the fingle Moment of 
 the prefent time, or as many Suffrages exceed 
 one. Nor doubt I, but thefe who have relieved 
 a ftarving Family by their Charity, have feaft- 
 cd upon the little which they have beftowed 
 '.vith more Joy, than ever Lucullus, or Aficius did, 
 in all the Delicacies their Cooks could invent. I 
 am convinced, that any generous Gentleman 
 would be much more troubled to think, that his 
 poor Tenants who toil for him, are fcrued u^ 
 to fome degrees that look too like Oppreflion, 
 than he could be pleafed with any Delicacies 
 which thatfuperplus of Rent could buy for him :& 
 that he who has refcued a poor innocent Crea- 
 ture from the Jaws of a ravenous OpprefTor, 
 finds a greater Joy irradiated on his Spirit, by 
 the great and juft Judge; than any General does 
 in that Night, wherein he has defeated his Ene- 
 mies merely for his Glory. We remember to 
 this day with veneration and efteem, John the 
 Baptifi's Locufts and Wild Hony ; but the delici- 
 oufnefs of Herod'' s Feafts lafted no longer than the 
 Taft : And even the Pleafure of the prefent 
 Moment, which the Luxurious only enjoy, 
 is much leifened, by the Prevailing Conviction, 
 which arifes from that fmall remaining force, 
 which is ftill left in the reafonable Faculty of 
 the moft Corrupted Men : and which can ne- 
 ver be fo blinded, as not to have fome glimmer- 
 ings, whereby it can difcever the uglinefs and 
 deformity of Vice. It may furprize a fcrious 
 Man, to fee that Men immediatly after being at 
 the Sacrament of Baptifm, or about the Ccle- 
 
 bratioii 
 
e/ Frugality. 555 
 
 brations of Marriage (which all acknowledge to 
 be of Divine Inftitution, and which many own 
 to be a Sacrament alfo) they fhould run out im- 
 mediately into fuch Luxurious Extravagancies, 
 as may make Lookers-on rather conclude , that 
 they acknowledge nO God , than that they are 
 obliged to him for thofe great Mercies^ or that 
 they hope by their Gratitude, to improve them 
 into Bleflings. 5e£^ jX 
 
 Whether Avarice, Prodigality, or Luxury be me'ther' 
 the more dangerous and polluting Vice , is lefs ^variccy 
 worth our Care than the avoiding of all three. ^*'<>^'i'*^^- 
 But however, it feems that Avarice lies under 2''//'?^*" 
 more Difadvantages , than any of the Two. monDan^ 
 For Prodigality and Luxury are ufeful to many, geroHf. 
 Avarice to none. Thefe are ordinarily the Ex- 
 travagancies of Youth, and are cured by Age ; 
 but the other grows ftronger by it. Intereft and 
 Self- Prefer vation may contribute much to cure 
 thefe, but both do argue moft frequently to the 
 Advantage of Avarice. Thefe have a great deal 
 of Liberality in their Compofition , and Prodi- 
 gality has all that Liberality has, except its Mo- 
 deration ; whereas Avarice has nothing of Vir- 
 tue in it. Luxury wants many Things , but A- 
 varice all Things. Luxury may feem the more 
 defirable Quality in a Governor , becaufe they 
 who love to pleafe themfelves , are obferved to 
 defire all may be pleafed about them ; or at leaft 
 they are fo bufy in pleafing themfelves, that 
 they are not employed about thofe new Projeds, 
 which avaritious Rulers are ever inventing. The 
 Luxurious alfo are more eafily influenced , and 
 more exorable, becaufe they will not endure the 
 Torture of oppofmg the Importunity of the 
 Miferable. But I have heard it afferted, that 
 the Luxurious make the worft Soldiers, becaufe 
 that Vice effeminates and foftens ; whereas Ava- 
 rice 
 
55^ The Moral Hiflory 
 
 rice makes Men hardy and laborious : And the 
 Love of Pay and Preferment will make the ve- 
 ry Noife of Canons become Melodious. How- 
 ever, Agur thought it worthy, not only of his 
 Wifh, but of his Prayer, that God -would give him 
 fieither Poverty nor Riches , hut would feed him -with 
 Food convenient for bint. . And as the Life is com- 
 pared to a Lamp, fo like a Lamp it burns long- 
 eft and cleareft, when it is neither op'preft with 
 too much Oil, nor ftarved for want of it : And 
 in this likewife we have occafion of admiring 
 the Wifdom and Goodnefs of God, who when 
 we break all Squares , forces us even by our Vi- 
 ces to ballance one another : And makes things 
 return to that juft Proportion , which he at firft 
 defigned. Thus he not only opens every wife 
 Man's Eyes , to fee that it is his Intereft to hold 
 the Scales equal, betwixt Riches and Poverty : 
 But when any vicious Man runs to an Extreme 
 in any of the two, all others, though as vicious 
 as he , find it their Intereft to lie heavy upon 
 the other Scale. If any affeA an univerlal Mo- 
 narchy, all Princes who are not Fools , or gui- 
 ded by Fools or Knaves, combine againft him ; 
 if a private Neighbour do avaririoufly incline to 
 opprefs, he will joyn even thofe who were E- 
 nemies before, in a firm defign of bonnding his 
 Violence : And the Avaritious and Luxurious 
 are in a conftant Enmity againft one another. 
 So that while each endeavours to draw that 
 which is contended for to his own fide , it muft 
 neceftarily remain in the middle : And whilft 
 the Frugal and Virtuous Man , is going about 
 his Affairs, he is fecurcd by vicious Men's being 
 Spies upon one another ; and the very feeing 
 thcmruntoanExccrs,i«;anewObligatiGn on fuch 
 as are wife, to prav with Agw, that God would 
 give diem neither Poverty nor Riches. Every 
 
 fuig}: 
 
of Frugality. 357 
 
 fingle Man alfo has the fame Balance within 
 himfelf ;. and thus though the exceflive Love of 
 Money incline a Man to opprefs, yet the fear 
 of being oppreffed, flops his Career : And ma- 
 ny would pollute themfelves and others by A->- 
 dultery , Gluttony , &c. if Avarice w:ould al- 
 low them to go to the Price : He who is fondeft 
 of Pleafure, is forced by the fear of Law _, and 
 the love of Health , and Self-Prefervation, to 
 imitate that Moderation, which he would other- 
 ways negled : For if he have enjoyed too much 
 at any time, he is cloyed with his own Excefs, 
 and is forced to commend the Temperate whom 
 he formerly fcorned. 
 
 The chief thing that can recommend Fruga- ^pUafant 
 lity to all Men , but efpecially to Magiftrates , '^'"^ "f 
 is that it employs every thing to the Ufe for ^^^^jf^ 
 which it was ordained. If Men were enamour- g^uty 
 ed with it, and made it their chief Care , we -would fro* 
 fhould ihortly fee bloody Wars ceafe every where, '^"'^^ '» '^' 
 fince ( let Men talk now what they pleafe of ^"''^''' 
 Glory ) the great defign of the War , is rather 
 to gain Land, than Reputation ; of which this 
 is a convincing Proof, that thofe who talk of 
 Glory , take more pains to gain Towns and 
 Countries by Bribes and Cheats , than by expo- 
 fmg their own Perfons to Danger, or obferving 
 Capitulations. Nor fhould we fee Monarchs be- 
 trayed by their Minifters, nor Commonwealths 
 by their Rulers as now moH frequently they 
 are ; Statefmen would not ruin their Native 
 Country, and confequently their own Pofteri- 
 ty, that they might get fuperfluous Riches ; nor 
 would fuch as are under their Care be tempted 
 to rebel againft their Sovereign, to be free from 
 their Oppreflion, and to enter into Combinati- 
 ons, againft thofe Rulers; 4fct Reafon would 
 make all our Laws, and Duty would make us 
 obey them. B b If 
 
35^ 
 
 T'he Moral Hiflory 
 
 Sea. X. 
 Haw hup- 
 fythe 
 mrld 
 vpould he 
 if Men 
 would he 
 Moderate 
 in their 
 Expence 
 and Plea- 
 furcs. 
 
 If Frugality prevailed , it would opeft the 
 Store-Houfes of Charity , the Poor would he 
 fed, the Sick would he taken care for , and the 
 Prifoner would be relieved. This would reftore 
 Men to their Sleep, which is now oftentimes 
 broke by the Fear of Want , or the Oppreflion 
 of Abundance. This would prevent the Me- 
 lancholy caufed by the one , and the many Dif- 
 eafes occafioned by the other. And we fliould 
 have a fatisfied Mind in a Ibund Body : A fru- 
 gal Woman's ftaying within Doors , would pre- 
 vent the Jealoufies of her Husband ; and the 
 Husband by minding his Bulinefs, would there- 
 by fecure her againft the infecting Difeafes 
 vvhich he contrads in his Idlenefs : And Parents 
 living thus regularly ^ would not have Children 
 who will prove rather Croffes than Comforts, 
 wilhing either their Parents dead through Ava- 
 rice ; or making them Beggars during their Life 
 by Luxury. 
 
 Frugality would enable every Man to live fo 
 wellj that the Servant needed nor cheat his Ma- 
 iler, nor the Tenant the Landlord ,• but on the 
 contrary, every Man would take as great Plea- 
 fure to help his Neighbour, when he needed his 
 Afliftance, as Men do now in Hunting and 
 Hawking ; and certainW there muft be more 
 Delight in helping a realoriable Creature , bear- 
 ing the Image of God, that is in diftrefs ; than 
 in rifmg early, and fitting up late, and giving 
 our felves far more Toil and Vexation than Fru- 
 galit}^ requires , merely to kill poor innocent 
 Creatures that never offended us. 1 know that 
 it is hard to reform a World, wherein that which 
 is wantinz^ camiot be numbered ^ and that vhich is 
 crooked cannot be rrtiMe flretght. And it fccHTS thart 
 fuchDevils asAvarice and Luxury ,cannot be calt 
 
 out 
 
of Frugality. 359 
 
 but without Falling and Prayer; but yet the op^ 
 pofing of thefe, is fo much every Man's Intereft, 
 ^nd is fo fuitable to Nature ( from which Men 
 will get all poflible Afliftance ) that if Kings 
 and Governors would concur with God and Na-i 
 ture , theTask would be Eafy,as theEfFeds would 
 be pleafant. I cannot but commend moft cor-^ 
 dially the Quakers , who have let us clearly fee 
 that if Men pleafe, they may emancipate them- 
 felves from the Tyranny of Cuftom in this par- 
 ticular ; , and this one excellent Endeavour does 
 not only give them much Tranquillity, and en- 
 ables them to help all thofe of their Perfuafion 
 to a degree that is to be admired and commend- 
 ed, but it really makes them acceptable in the 
 Neighbourhood : And attones very much for the 
 other Irregularities with which they are charg- 
 ed ; and they may convince us , at leaft in this 
 one Point, that if fuch sis have much Power 
 and Reafon fhould concur together, they would 
 eafily make Mankind Happy , by making them 
 ifrugal. 
 
 Bb a REi- 
 
R K A S O W 
 
 A N 
 
 ESSAY. 
 
 B Y 
 
 Sir GEORGE MACKENZIE, KK 
 
 V 
 
 
 LONDON: 
 Printed in the Year MDCCXL 
 
3^? 
 
 For the Honourable 
 
 ROBERT BOTLE, Efq; 
 
 I 
 
 KnoTif nothing (Sir,) more inconp(l:ent ivith Right 
 Reafofiy or ivhlch defaces more to be reformed a- 
 wongfi Learned Men ^ than their Way of Dedicating 
 Books. And, that we may the better imderfiand what 
 ought to be done In this Age, let us look back Into what 
 was done by the Ancients. 
 
 The Foets did Indeed invoke their Gods , or the 
 Mufes 5 In the Beginning of their Works ', but that 
 was rather to obtain their Affifiance , than to befioiv 
 upon them Vanegyricks : But their Fraifing the Gods, 
 was a fafe SitbjeB , in which they could not exceed. 
 And therefore, tho' thefe Invocations were the firfi Oc- 
 cafion of vmting Dedications to Mortals , yet Flattery 
 in this made than mifiake their Model fo far , that at 
 la ft fome of the Poets did likcwife invoke the Ajfi- 
 fiance of their Emperors, as if they had been Gods as 
 well as Patrons. 
 
 Others of the Poets did very anciently Dedicate 
 their Works to Men alfo : As Hefiod , ivbo _ jvas 
 older than Homer , dedicates , or rather addrejjes his 
 Firft Poem to Perles. But 'tis very obfervable, that 
 he and others , in inch like Addrejjes, rather excite the- 
 Perfons ( to whom they addrefs ) to Virtue and Glory, 
 than magnify them for hav'tvr attain d to the Perfect' 
 
 B b ; ^» 
 
564 The Dedication. 
 
 on of either , or both. Tet fome of thefe Poets have 
 left us Dedications fo excelleTit , that they are as little 
 to be imitated as cenfurd ; fuch aSy 
 
 Hor. Efifi. I. Lib. 2. 
 Cum tot fuftineas & ranta Ncgocia folus : 
 Res Italas Armis tuteris : moribus ornes : 
 •Legibus emendes: In publica Conimoda peccem. 
 Si longo Sermone morer tua tcmpora, Cacfar. 
 
 ^nd others of them, fuch as Virgil, end their Po- 
 ems with very decent and delicate Compliments ; as 
 that which clofes the Fourth Book of his Geor- 
 gicks, 
 
 Hxc fuper arvorum cultu pecorumq; canebam, 
 Et fuper arboribus : Cxfar dum magnus ad akum 
 Fulminat Euphratem bello, Victorq,- volenres 
 Per populos dat Jura, viamq^ affedat Olympo. 
 
 which exceed , in my humble Opinion , the fam'd and 
 large Dedications of Grotius and Caufabon. 
 
 It was ufual amongfi the modefi Ancients , to ad- 
 tlrefs their Books to juch as they thought able to correal 
 them , feeking rather Advice than Patronage. And 
 thus Plutarch teUs us in the Life of I.ucuDus , That 
 Scylla having wrote an Hlfiory ^ fent it to Lucullus 
 iiff^at<pU' to ^^ corrected ; and the Greek Word ufed there ^ 
 vmn. feems to me to import only Adlocutio. And T think 
 
 that the Ancients have found ProteBion and Patronage, 
 even in thofe Addrejjes wherein Advice was fought 
 for. Who durfl have ccnfur*d , as Tully objervcs, 
 what Brutus or Pomponius Atticus approved ? 
 
 Some alfo prefixed modefl Prefaces ; wherein they 
 acknowledged the Favours done them , and told the 
 Occafion of their Writing ; as Vitruvius to Au- 
 guftus. Others did thereafter , In Imitation of the 
 Writers of Tragedies and Comedies, addrefs them- 
 
 lelves 
 
The Dedication. 365 
 
 (elves in a Prologue ; as Valerius Maximus to Ti- 
 berius : Afid this I think he did to gi-vc his Fancy 
 Scope, as a Toet , to fraife -with the Latitude that Po- 
 ets take. For that ?'s the fir jl Debauch I find commit- 
 ted of this kind ; for he could not ha've [aid greater 
 Things to a worje Man. 
 
 To Jhun v^hich Excefs , fome ga've to their Books 
 the Names of the >,lufes, as Herodotus j or of Men 
 of great Merit, as Plato did in his Socrates , or 
 Tully in Lxlius, &C. or elfe omitted all AddreJJes, 
 as Thucidides, Livy, Saluft ; or at moft extended 
 not their AddrejJes beyond a mere Compellation , fuch 
 as that in St. Luke to Theophilus ; by which pojji- 
 bly mjy be meant any Chrisiian under this Appella- 
 tive Name , rather than a particular Patron or 
 Friend : As fome Books are noiv addrejfed to the 
 Chrifiian Reader , in Imitation , it may be, of him. 
 For, 'tis obfervable , that the Churchmen imitate this 
 K^.v<i^ Gi'opKi of St. Luke. And thus Origeii 
 dedicates his Book again ji Celfus , with this Com- 
 pellation , (piKi^? 'A/a.S£9'<7£ ^ and Eufebius names his 
 Vatron Oso^tj (P»a.69sk. 
 
 At lafi; the Word Dedication was brought In by 
 Flattery ; and Books were dedicated to Men in Imita- 
 tion of their Dedicating Temples , Statues , and other 
 Things to the Gods. Nor did this extravagant way 
 of ExceJJive Praifing ever appear, till the World was 
 ( under Tiberius) corrupted in all its Morals. This 
 depraved Cufiom was alfo much heightned by the Pa- 
 negyricks made by Pliny to Trajan, and by Eu- 
 febius to the Great Conftantine ; who thought 
 that they might more jufily praife the Good , than 
 others might Impious Emperors ', tho I am afraid, 
 the Eloquence which charms us in thofe Two Difcoar- 
 fes, Jhall never be able to account for the ill Exam- 
 ple they have given. 
 
 My 
 
566 The Dedication. 
 
 My De(ign In all this is to JIkvj , That we can a! 
 little juftify our Flattery by the Practice of the Anci- 
 ent s, as by the Frinciples of Reafon, by -ivhich they al^ 
 ivays regulated their Eloe^ucnce. And therefore It 
 feews to me , that Dedications Jlmuld be brought back 
 to the ancient Model , either of a naked Cowpellation, 
 nuhich fatisfies abundantly Friendfkip ^ or of acknow- 
 ledging Favours which Jatisfes Gratitude , or of Ex- 
 citings the Ferfons to whom we write , to deferve thofe 
 TratJ'cs v'hich are now mojh unjujHy bej^ow^d upon 
 them, which is a Chrifiian Duty. And 1 cannot but 
 obferve Three very ill Confeejuences which artfe nai it- 
 rally and nccejjarily from our late Dedications. The 
 firji is 3 That they learn Men to lye and flatter • and 
 Cufiom hath almoft legit iinated this Crime , and made 
 it a Duty. Secondly , They have poifond the very 
 Fountains of Truth Jo far , that Pojhrity can hardly 
 dif^inguijjh betwixt thofe who have defer v^d well or 
 ill ^ Flattery thitiking always ft to fupply , by its 
 excejfive Fraifes, what is wanting in dueAlertt : ' And 
 thcrcforey by how much tlnir Patrons deferve ill, they 
 traife fo much the more ', and the only Mark of Virtue 
 in an Author ^ or Merit in a Patron now is , that 
 there is no extraordinary thing faid in any Addrefs to 
 the one by the other. For who can believe an Author 
 fpeaks Truth in his Book , v^ho lies and flatters i n 
 its very begijjning ; or that a Patron has any Modify 
 or com7non Senfe, who fuffcrs himfclf to be fo impoft d 
 up072 ? If the Patron believe what the Author f^ys, he 
 muf he a Fool ; and if he believes him not , he mufi 
 think the Author one ; and f nee they who lie improba- 
 bly, are thought Fools in all Things elfe , why n&t in 
 this too J in which they exceed the moH Ro?naniick 
 TraveUtrs, for they only would impofe on tts in things ■ 
 which we know not, but thefe in things wherein v>e 
 cannot hut dif cover them ? And I wonder why they do 
 not as well praife the French King for having found 
 out America j o^ for having van<juifi)t Alexander 
 
 the 
 
The Dedication! 367 
 
 the Great , as for thofe things which they of late af- 
 fcribe to him in their Dedications. Thirdly , our late 
 Dedications have really corrupted the Eloquence of the . 
 Age ; for whereas the true Ornaments of Eloquence are 
 to be natural and decent in exfrejjing our Thought s^ 
 thefe Dedication^ have blown our Stile into a Tympa- 
 ny, and have ruined its natural Beauty by fulfome and 
 ill-placed daubing Paints : f Which made Chryfip- fAojw/ A 
 puSj as Laertius tells us , decry all Dedications to "^Jd'^^wf 
 King's and Princes^ left they (hould entice Men to Flat- ^^ y-T^f^ 
 tery • mt this were to run from one Excejs to am- ^ y'^^, 
 ther. diCxiA 
 
 Idejign, Sir, nothing in this Ejjay, but to hold out y^-"^^*, 
 a Lanthorn to thofe who are ready to jfplit on a Rock ; ^ ! '^ 
 and I wijh rather that this may be one of the Works ^^^^^a'^ 
 that njay follow me, than one of thofe that may fjjcrg. 
 bring me Reputation : And I fend this to you as Lucul- 
 lus did to ScyWa. for CorreBion ; or as Cicero did to 
 Atticus, as a Token of our Friendship , and of my jufi 
 J^Jteem of your Fiety and Learnings 
 
 G. M. 
 
 PART 
 
368 
 
 PART I. 
 
 H(/w njceakly Men reafon in 
 matters of greatefi Impor- 
 tance. 
 
 IT may feem a boIdUudertaking in any man 
 to own right Reafon in this Age, it being 
 the declared Enemy of our Incerefts andf 
 Inclinations; for it may poflibly excite Man 
 to refled upon what the World and himfelf does; 
 and fo infpire him with Thoughts contrary to 
 thofe which are generally received, and that is 
 the only unpardonable Error. It may likewife 
 fecm ridiculous to think, that there is any com- 
 mon Standard of Reafon amongft Men, fmce 
 that charms in one Country, which is abhored 
 in others ; and the very imaginary Lines which 
 divide Kingdoms, feem likewife to divide their 
 way of thinking, and to make a different Geo- 
 graphy in the Reafon which they adore, as well 
 as in the Earth on which they trample. Every 
 Age of the World has almoft had a different 
 wayof reafoning,and every Age inMan fuggefts to 
 him contrary Thoughts : In the prefent he con- 
 demns what himfelf formerly admir'd : So little In- 
 fluence has it upon the befl refin'd Judicaturesjand 
 Alfcmblics, that the moft infallible Churchmen, 
 
 the 
 
j4n EJfny oyiKe^i^on, 569 
 
 the mod Learned Judges, and the moft Zea- 
 lous Patriots, muft truft to Voting, becaufe 
 they cannot to Reafoning ; and they are 
 by this likevvife fo often mifled , that it may 
 be expeded Men will one day agree to decide 
 Matters by the feweft Votes ; as the wifer have 
 always told us, that Votes are rather to be 
 weighed, than numbred. It has often grieved 
 me, that Men could guefs the Decifion and De- 
 termination of any Point to be debated, before 
 they had the Reafons to be produced upon ei- 
 ther fide; and to hear them laugh at fuch as truft- 
 ed to the Solidity of the Reafons they were to • 
 produce ; being fully ccjpvinced that the Point 
 would be determined by Intereft, and not by 
 Reafon. TheJw^^ o^Peru was much in the right, 
 when he regretted, that his Predeceffors had not 
 obliged him to worfhip a Reafonable Man; 
 yet his Choice in this had been unfuccefsful; for 
 it would have been as hard to have found him, 
 except he had believed his Prieft, who had un- 
 doubtedly told him he was the Man. And the' 
 I believe not that Fretjcb Phyfician who affures 
 us, he found in his Travels a Nation that differ- 
 ed altogether from us in our way of reafoning, 
 as if God defign'd to fliew Mankind that his Om- 
 nipotency is not tyed in this to any known 
 Meafures ; yet I fee, even amongft our felves, 
 that Conveniency ( the gentler Name of Avarice) 
 Pride, Revenge, Bigotry, Education, and every 
 thing elfe, pafsfor Reafon, except Reafon it felf ; 
 which makes me oft-times cry out, Is this that no- 
 bler Creature formed after the Image of God, for -ivhom 
 Chrifi dyed, and who is to he Co-heir with him of his 
 everlaftingKingdoms ? All which notwithflanding, 
 it is undeniably true, that there is fomething in 
 Man more fublime than can be afcrib'd to Flefh 
 and Blood ; that dull Matter could never infpire 
 
 him 
 
570 An EJfay on Re^Con. 
 
 him with thefe penetrating, fubtile, comprc- 
 henfive , generous , and elevated Thoughts , 
 which made the Pagans believe, that his Soul 
 was farticula Di'vina Natura,^ parcel of that fame 
 Divine Subftance of which the Gods were form- 
 ed ; and that Men fo qualified were demi-Gods. 
 And God Almighty himfelf has by a furer Re- 
 velation revealed to us, that this noble Soul was 
 formed after his Image ; and it was moft confe- 
 quential that God who is infinite, being to com- 
 municate himfelf to fome of his Creatures, to 
 the end his Greatnefs and Goodnefs might be 
 . known to them, he ftiould in order to this breathe 
 into them fomewhat that might comprehend, 
 at leaft , fome Ideas or that infinite Perfedion ; 
 and therefore it was necelfary that the Soul 
 fhould be an Image of what was infinite. And 
 that we might underftand this from fome exteri- 
 or and fenfible Reprefentations and Things, he 
 has formed his very body (the Casket wherein 
 that Noble Jewel is kept) after a very wondeo*- 
 ful Manner, thus by fmalla'ndinterceptible Rays 
 darted into his Eye, the Reprefentations of the 
 vaft Hemifphere are imprinted fo on that little 
 Tablet, that it feems as great and diftincl there, 
 as in the Original ; all he ever heard is bid up 
 in his Memory, as diftinclly as Papers in a Ca- 
 binet. And almolt by the fame Morion of the 
 Tongue , or at leaft, without any ftudied vari- 
 ation, vaft Numbers of delicate Words, or har- 
 monious Sounds, do, in a way unknown,- and 
 unperceptible by Fiefh and Blood, fally oiit in 
 mighty Swarms and Armies, which pafling thus 
 undifcovcred, through the Air, enter ric man'y 
 rhoufand Ears in the fame Figure , Ranks, and 
 Files, wherein they were at firft fpoke; and 
 there, in a Spiritual Vv'ay, they charm ibme; and 
 enrage others j they animate fome, and difcou- 
 
 raec 
 
^ An EJfay onKe^hn. 571 
 
 rage others ; working almoft as great Varieties as 
 they bring. 
 
 Divine Wifdom alfo forefeeing that Interell 
 would perfuade Men to pull all to Pieces, whilft 
 each drew all to himfelf, he impreit upon this 
 Soul common Principles , which even thofe 
 muft reverence who negletl them ; and there- 
 fore they err, not in the Rule, but in the Ap- 
 jDlication , and cheat themfelves by Subterfuges ; 
 the recurring to which infers necelfarily, that 
 thefe Principles are fubmitted to by the moft 
 ftubborn, and fomewhat refpeded by the wil- 
 deft in fublunary Matters ; and yet in what con- 
 cerns our immortal Souls, and Eternal State, 
 we are more negligent; as will appear too clear- 
 ly by thefe following Particulars, which I have 
 claiTed according to their different Inferences. 
 
 I have oft-times admir'd to fee Men bufied 
 iabout nothings fave external and fenfual Ob- 
 je<5ls ; but it is yet ftranger to find , that 
 amongft fuch as are convinc'd that Knowledge 
 is as much to be preferr'd to all other things, as 
 the Soul is to the Body, there are yet fome fo 
 fenfual, even in this Point, that the knowledge 
 they feek after is but a more delicate Senfuality. 
 Mathematicians confider chiefly how to mea- 
 fure Bodies ; Phyficians how to know and cure 
 Men, as Soldiers do how to deftroy them. But 
 the Study of Chriftian Morality ( which has for 
 its ObjeA the Soul of Man heighten'd by the 
 Chriftian Religion, teaching him how to un- 
 derftand the Duty of that Soul to God ) is too 
 much negleAed, as a thing obvious and eafy. 
 Whereas when cur Saviour came into the World, 
 he neither taught Mathematicks, Medicine, nor 
 Phyfiology, tho all thefe were much confider'd 
 in that Age wherein he affum'd our Nature ; and 
 he could have made himfelf as much admir'd by 
 
 ckar- 
 
qjo. An EJfay on Reafon. 
 
 clearing myfterious Doubts in thefc, as by work- 
 ing Miracles : But he pafling by all thcfe as lefs 
 ufeful NocionSj and fuch as too frequently divert 
 and diftrad:, rather than inform, he declares he 
 was come to make Man happy ; and begins his 
 Miniftry by an admirable Sermon on the Mount, 
 whereby in order to the making him happy, he 
 teaches him to reafon rightly upon his Duty to 
 God and Men. And it is ftrange, that we fhould 
 think dull Matter is able to afford more noble 
 Contemplations, than that fubtle, that fublime, 
 that vaft, and that nimble Soul, which retains fo 
 far the Image of its Maker, as to be infcrutable 
 in all its Faculties. And O I what wonderful 
 Springs and Motions, what various Windings 
 and Flights, what boundlefs and new Spheres 
 and Worlds are there in his Reflections ? And 
 what Things are daily faid, and Volumes writ- 
 ten on the Love to Women, which is but the 
 Excurfion of one of them ? Our Difeafes can- 
 not conceal themfelves, being tied to Matter ; 
 but the Difeafes of our Immortal Souls are fo 
 concealed by Self-Love, which loves to cover 
 its own Imperfedions, and to hide its own Re- 
 treats, that they are paft finding out. And if a 
 little Microfcope can difcover to the Eye new 
 and ftrange things in Objeds that have been 
 daily feen, without being confider'd for many 
 Ages; what wonderfnl Difcoveries may.ferious 
 thinking Men make in fo immcnfe an Objed, 
 that has been fo much neglc6ted ? Efpecially, 
 fince the Thoughts of Men do change and vary 
 themfelves into as manyShapes,& give themfelves 
 as many Colours as they pleafe: And every Duty 
 or Error is really a different Object, as they are 
 in Conjunction with, or in Oppofition to one 
 another ; whereas all other Objeds are incapa- 
 ble 
 
Alt EJfay on Reafdli. 573 
 
 ble of fuch Variations either from thettifelveS'Qr 
 others ; And tho' God has defign'd to' be known 
 in his Works, yet he feems on purpofe to have 
 inade the Knowledge of them fo unfearchable 
 to Natural Philofophers , and the Succefs fo lit- 
 tle able to reward or honour their Endeavours, 
 to the end they might the more relifh Moral 
 Philofophy, which is then only uncertain when 
 like the other it grows more a Science than a 
 Duty. 
 
 In my Rejifoning I will ufe the Forms pre- 
 fcrib*d by God himfelf in his Holy Scriptures ^ 
 wherein when he would convince Man of his 
 Folly, Sin, or Ingratitude^ he argues with him 
 from his own Conceffions in thefe Cafes , or 
 his own Practice on all other occafions : As foe 
 Inftance, when he fends Nathan to Da-vidy ha 
 asks him what the Mart deferv'd , who having 
 great Herds and Flocks of his own, took a poor 
 iClan's Lamb out of his Bofom ? And David, 
 having in great Anger fworn that he fhould die, 
 Nathan then tells him, it was his Ca(e, and con- 
 demns him from his own Mouths And God fays 
 to his People, who acknowledg'd him to be their 
 Lord and Father, but walk'd not fuitably to their 
 Acknowledgmeilt ; If I be a Father, -ivhere is mine 
 Honour ; and if I be a Mafier , 'where is my Fear ? 
 Makch. I. 6, He calls to them, Ifai. 1. 18. Comcy 
 let us reafon together • and admiring the Unrea- 
 fonablenefs of unthinking Man , he appeals to 
 the Heavens and Earth, Hear , O Hea'vens , and 
 gi'veear, O Earthy for the Lord hathffoken ! I hav4 
 nouriJl)ed and brought up Children, and they ha-ve re~ 
 helled againfi me ' The Ox knoweth his Owner , end 
 the Afs his Mafiers Crib • but \iv^t\doth not knowy 
 my Peofle do not ccnfidcr ! And in the feveral Go- 
 jfpels we find our bleifed Saviour, after the fam& 
 riianner, confuting the Je^s, and convincing ali 
 
 C c hi»* 
 
37+ ^^ E[fayon Reafon. 
 
 his Hearers. Nor do I Hnd fo much delicate rea- 
 foniug In any of thofe Books , highly elteem'd 
 by our Men of Senfe, who flight too much that 
 admirable one , which God himfelf owns as his 
 Sacred Word : And I admire our Saviour, as 
 much for bis Reafonings as for his Miracles. 
 Thus when he would convince Men of the Fol- 
 ly of caring inmioderarelv for the Things of 
 this World, he asks them, What Profit fhall it be 
 to gain all the World, that foon perifiies, if they 
 lole their own Soul, which is Immortal ? yifid 
 which of you, ( fays our Lord ) by taking thought , 
 can add one ctih'tt to his fiature ? Ajid urges them , 
 not to fear Want, becaufe, if they who are fin- 
 ful know how to provide for their own Families, 
 how much more ihall your Father , which is in 
 Heaven, know how to provide for you, if ye be 
 his Children ? Behold , (fays our BlelTed Maker) 
 the Fowls of the Air, for they fow net, neither do they 
 reap, yet your Hea'venly Father feedeth thew ; are not 
 you much better than they ? 
 
 For eflablifhing this my Pofition , it is fit to 
 confider, that fuch as are reafonable, endeavour 
 to flicw it in the greatefl Concerns ; and it im- 
 plies a want, or weaknefs of Reafon, to be ex- 
 2i&. and delicatein inconfiderable and filly Things, 
 and yet to err and be carelefs in Matters of great- 
 eft Confequence ; And who would not laugh at 
 an AmbalTador or a General , who would value 
 himfelf upon his dancing or playing upon the 
 Lute, beftowing upon thefe Exercifes the time 
 due to his King , Country , and Negotiations ? 
 Which makes me admire, why in this foolifli 
 Age, we call thefe Men of good Senfcs, and 
 ftrong Spirits, who can cricicile Virgil^ 'Jwvenal, 
 Li'vy, Tacitus, or it may be, underfland the Ma- 
 thcmaticks , or Converfation ; whiTft we are 
 conYinc'd,that albeit they believe rlicr^; is a God, 
 . .. vet 
 
An EJf^y on Reafon. -375 
 
 yet they mind him not, and care lefs for their 
 Souls than they do for any of their ordini^^ Re- 
 creations, though they are forc'd to tremble at 
 its ili Condition, when theV begin to confider 
 it. ^ ; 
 
 One of the things which prompted rire to 
 write this Book , was the reading of a French 
 Treatife , De la Juftejje , wherein tho' he made 
 me exped great Matters, by promifing to learn 
 us to think juftly ; yet it only taught how to 
 chule true Epithets, or underftand Criticifms, 
 and fuch trivial Knacks : But, alas , it is more 
 to be regrcted, that Men fhould have the Senfe 
 to laugh at others, for not having confidered th® 
 Plot and Defign of their Plays ^ whilit many 
 who pafs for refin'd Wits, want one in their 
 whole Life ; and where the want of it is not on- 
 ly a greater Shame, but is of greater Danger, 
 fmce a Man cannot err here without being rui- 
 ned to all Eternity : And one of thefe great 
 Wits, without a folid Defign in his Life, appears 
 to me, like a glorious firft-rate Ship , magnifi- 
 cently equipped, richly gilded, and abundantly 
 provided of all NeceiTaries ; but becaufe it wants 
 a Rudder, and a skilful Pilot, fluduating in a 
 great Storm, and ngar a dangerous Shore , qit 
 which it is driven with Violence , threlten'd by 
 the Wind, and overflown by the Billows ; fome- 
 times fhatter'd by one Rock , and fometimes by 
 another, till at la ft it 'finks down irrecoverably 
 into an unfathomable and dreadful Abyfs. Whe- 
 ther then is the Owner of this Ship, who looks 
 on unconcernedly,and perhaps, would not leave 
 his Whore, Game, or Supper ; or that Poet, 
 who wrote his Play without a Plot, moft to ht 
 contemn'd ? Yet he who has no dengn to favd 
 his immortal Soul from endlefs Torments , is a 
 much greater Fool than either j which recom- 
 C G a mends 
 
37^ An Ujfay on Rcafon. 
 
 men#l to me the Senfe of a Wifer, tho' a jlca- 
 then Poet, on this Subjeft ; and which I wifii 
 the whole Tribe would ferioufly confider. 
 
 Difcite, miferiy c^ caufas cognofcite rerttw, 
 ^uid fumus, d^ (juldnam 'Victuri gjgnimitr , ordo. 
 ^t'ls datiii , aui met a <juam mollis jiexus O' unde. 
 j^is modus argentOy ejuid fas optare, tjnid afper. 
 Utile nummus habet : fatr'tj: carifjiie propinqttit 
 .^iintum ditrgiri deceat : (jnem te Dens ejje 
 Jujjit d^ humana ^ua farte locatus cs in re. 
 
 It is a pleafant thing to hear us admire Men, 
 for confidering exadly the Anatomy, Speciali- 
 ties, and Natures of Fifhes, Fowls, Flies, and 
 otlier Infed:s ; and yet never confider whence 
 ihemfelves , came, whither they are going, or 
 what is their Duty whilllthey remain here. And 
 I wonder why we, fhould think it juft , to look 
 upon Men in Bedlam, though they be very Rea- 
 fonable in many Things , if they be very diftra- 
 6ted in any one ; as I know one , who feem'd a 
 difcreet Perfon, and could . converfe molt per- 
 tinently in every thing, till they fpoke of the 
 Moon ; but upon hearing that nam'd , fell in- 
 stantly a flaring, and into gfeat Extravagancies, 
 believing himfelf to be Secretary to t^e Moon. 
 And others will be difcreet enough \,, till you 
 mention the Name of fuch a Man or Woman ; 
 and yet; we do not conclude fuch Mad and Di- 
 itra<fteJ, who, though they underlland to n\ea- 
 fure Fleaven, never defign to enter into it j and 
 who can eloquently convince Men of eternal 
 Torments, and fright them from the wicked 
 Courfe which lead to thefe, and yet ruin them- 
 fclvcs on the Precipices againlt which they guard 
 others. And who would not think a Phyliciaii 
 mad, for all his Skill, it after he hqd made a 
 
 karn- 
 
An Effay on ReafonJ 377 
 
 learned 'OiGzomvCq, to prove a Liquor to be Poy-r 
 fon , he ftiould drink it off hitnfelf ; and yet 
 more, if he would not take an Antidote, thougl^ 
 ready, and which Ije knew would fecure him. 
 
 I fliall but lightly touch that ridiculous and im- 
 pudent Extravagance of fome , who rather pre- 
 tending to Reafon, than having it, take pains to 
 perfuade themfelves and others, that there is not 
 a God; whilft even the Subtilty which they ufe, 
 when tliey are endeavouring to prove this their 
 AlTertion, does necelTarjly prove his Being ; It 
 being impoflible , that Matter and Chjance , 
 (their great Idols) could forge and polifh fuch 
 fubtile Notions ; And how can tliey imagine^ 
 that fince their own little Afrair§*coald not be 
 managed without Forefight and Condujfl ,' that 
 yet this great and glorious Univerfe, which com- 
 prehends fo many Millions fuel) as they, fhould 
 be fo exadly and juftly governed by blinci 
 Chance ? If there were po Men but the filly 
 nnd humourous AfTerters of this Opinion , I 
 Ihould be afhamM to bring Man as an Inftance 
 of the Power and Wifdom of God : Let us 
 then confider this Creature , formed of I knovy 
 not what, fed, breathing , and growing in the 
 Womb, we know not how ; but from thofe de- 
 fpicable Beginnings , one rifes in a fhort time, 
 to meafure the Heavens , to calculate their Mo- 
 tions, and to imitate their Lightning and Thun- 
 der ; another does for his own Glory , form 
 fuch Models of Religion as feduces , and draws 
 after him Millions of Men , contrary to their 
 former Interefts, as well as former Inclinations ; 
 A Third, by his Skill, Condu(51:, and Courage, 
 makes even the remoteft Countries of the World 
 to tremble, overturning, and confounding that 
 World, whereof he is fo fmall a part : And :^ 
 Foarth , by drawing fweetly and gently toge- 
 C c ; ther 
 
^7^ A^ EJfiiy on Reafon. 
 
 ther very diftaint and different Reflexions , and 
 Thoughts which come readily, as it were upon 
 his Call, from their fcveral Repofitories , forms 
 an Harangue, or a Poem, which pleafes or tor- 
 ments the Hearers irrefiftibly , as they have 
 Commiflion from their Author ; it being har- 
 der to refift them than to make them : Can fo 
 regular Things be afcribed to wild Chance , or 
 fuch fubtle Things to dull Matter , which by its 
 Nature moves neceffaiily and without Choice ? 
 The beft contriv'd Machine can only repeat ; 
 but Man chufes his own Thoughts , and varies 
 pr changes them as he pleafes. 
 
 I dcf-re ourAVits to confider , that every thing 
 which they f c, or know, is fo marvelloufly fit- 
 ted to feme Ufe, that as they could not be want- 
 ed, fc- thcV cannot be contrived better: And it 
 is ridiculous to anfwer with Ep/curu^, (who, tho" 
 he denied Providence , yet denied not a Deity) 
 that thefe Things were not made for thefc Ufes, 
 as we pretend, but were, in procefs of time, 
 niade ufe of to thefe ends by Wit or Neceflity : 
 For even Brutes ^o* immediately after they are 
 brought forth , run to thofe Things which they 
 need, with greater exa^tnefs than Man could 
 teach them. And how could Men , by. Reafon, 
 jnake every thing ufeful, if fo infinite a Being 
 did not dired and fupervife their almoft infinite- 
 ly various Neceffities and Defigns, and inftrud 
 them, by the ufe of Thinking, (that wonderful 
 Engine) to accommodate every thing to its true 
 XJCq. The next thing I recommend to them, is 
 to confider that ail the Principles of Juftice and 
 Government , without which the World could 
 not fubfift, depend upon the Belief of this infi- 
 ;nite Being ; for how could I convince a Man 
 without this , that it were not fit to poyfon his 
 Brother for an Eftate ; or his Prince ^ when hs 
 ' ' thought 
 
An EJfay on Reafon. 3 79^ 
 
 thought that by that he might Hep into his 
 Throne ; which oft-times might be done co- 
 vertly enough , to efcape the Punifliment of 
 Laws, if they could that of Confciencc. 
 Nor is it of any Force to tell us , that Po- 
 liticians have only invented this for their 
 own Conveniency, fince even this Anfwer.pre- 
 fuppofes that there was a Pre-difpofition on the 
 Spirits of Men, to receive and fubmit to this In.i- 
 preffion, which is an unanfwerable Proof of its 
 Truth 3 and this Trick had not been long be- 
 liev'd, had it been only fuch ; nor could their 
 Inventions fecure us againft private Treachery, 
 tho' it could againft open Force ; nor can I o- 
 mit to obferve from this Anfwerj how unfit thefe 
 Men would be to govern others, and how un- 
 fufferable they are under all Governments, who 
 thus expofe to Contempt that which they con- 
 fefs to be the great Engine of Government. I 
 might likewife urge the Confent of all Nations; 
 which, by how much they became the more po- 
 lifh'd and civiliz'd, do fo much the more reft on 
 this Belief. The Certainty that has arifen from 
 Predictions which are above Nature, and the 
 wonderful EfFe6ts wrought by Miracles, even 
 againft it, are confirm'd to us , by the unerring 
 Teftimony of thofe Senfes which our Atheifts 
 make the only and fure Teft of KnowIedge.And 
 do not we perceive, that that Light of Reafon, 
 which by conftant and penetrating Reflexions, 
 in time, difcover'd, overcame, and baffled eve- 
 ry Cheat and Error ; has notwithftanding,more 
 fully fix'd, afcertain'd , and clear'd the Being of 
 a God, whofe .Power affords us fuch Protedi- 
 on ; and whofe Providence affords us fuch beau- 
 tiful and pleafant Contemplatipns , that to love 
 that Life, without believing his Being , is to be 
 without that Senfe and Wit which thefe wild 
 C c 4 Seep- 
 
5S0 An E[fay on Reafbn.^ 
 
 Scepticks pretend to ; who whilft they fliun to 
 be miferable, make themfelves fo , and whilft 
 they pretend to pafs for >yits, demonftrate them- 
 felves to be Fools and Brutifh. I purpofely a- 
 void the Proof of this by Metaphyfical Argu- 
 ments, becaufe God's own way of proving it, 
 is 5 by defiring us to confider the Sun , Moon, 
 and Stars, and the other Objeds, which are ob- 
 vious to all Men ; for it was fit , that what was 
 to be univerfally believ'd,fhould be inferr'd from 
 what was univerfally feen : And fuch as under- 
 stand not thofe Metaphyfical Notions , are apt 
 to believe that there is a Defign to ipipofe upon 
 them. ' • • 
 
 But fince our Curiofity muft be always fome- 
 what fitisfied with Arguments raifed above Senfe, 
 I fliall offer this one : It cannot be deny'd, but 
 that there is fomething in Man that can compare 
 two or more ditferent things ; fuch as. Whether 
 the Pain of the Head or the Leg be greateft ? 
 And that this cannot be done by any thing that 
 is material, is very clear : For if fo, it muft be 
 done by fomething that touches at once both the 
 things to be compared ; and no material thing 
 can do that in the fame Points : And if it be in 
 different Points, then it cannot judge of the dif- 
 ference betwixt the two; for they muft be touch- 
 ed in one common Point , elfe there can be no 
 Application of the material Judge to both- at the 
 fame time. And if this Judgment muft be made 
 by fomfething In Man that is immaterial, and fo 
 . is able to extend its indivifible Self to both the 
 Things to be compared ; then it necelfarily fel- 
 lows , that this muft be a Spirit ; for there can 
 be nothing immaterial but a Spirit : And if we 
 can once comprehend a Spirit , wc crm never 
 deny there is a God. For the hardeft Things 
 that- are objcded'againft his Being, are thof'd 
 ■ < which 
 
'Aa EJfay on Reafon^ 381 
 
 which ftrike againft the Behig of Spirits in ge- 
 neral. 
 
 Becaufe few or none are really diftrafted by 
 this kind of Madnefs, tho' they could wifh they 
 were , by fmothering their Reafon with lllufi- 
 fions, that they may cover their Crimes to them- 
 felves, with the Hopes of Impunity; Ihaftento 
 another kind of Unreafonable Men, who, tho* 
 they acknowledge there is a God , do yet, by a 
 deplorable Negligence, little mind how to pleafe 
 and obey him. And that I may enforce upon my 
 Reader the Weaknefs of their Reafonings,! wifh 
 any o^ us would think , that if a Society of 
 Men were fhipwreck'd upon , or fent Prifoners 
 to an unknown Ifle ; were it not moft unreafo- 
 nable for them to fit Reading , Difcourfing , or 
 Gaming, and not to think who were Mailers of 
 that IAq , and how they might live in it ? And 
 if they learned that it belonged to a great Prince, 
 who had abfolute Power of Life and Death,were 
 it not unreafonable , not to defire to obtain his 
 Friendfliip ? But much more to rejed it, if he 
 offered it with Riches and Preferment, upon no 
 bther Condition, fave that they would attend at 
 his Court, love him , and not wrong one ano- 
 ther ? But this is ourCondition in a much ftrong- 
 eV Cafe : For we are here in a World created by 
 God Almighty , in which he can kill and pre- 
 ferve, not the Body only, but the Soul too ; nor 
 for fome time only, but for ever : Nor requires 
 he any harder Condition of us , than that we 
 would love the Lord our God with all our Hearts, 
 nltid our Neighbours as our felves ; which are fo 
 far from being hard Leffons , that one would 
 think we could not but take great Delight in 
 them , if they were not prefcrib'd to us as our 
 Duty, For if a Man be admir'd once for his 
 great Courage , Condud: ^ or Learning ,♦ who 
 
 would 
 
58a yh Effay on Reafon. 
 
 would not be pleas'd with being allow'd to con- 
 verfe with him ? Who amoiigft us would not 
 have taken pains to have becn,lov'd by Cafar, 
 as his Friend, but more, as his Son ? But it Ca^ 
 far had been as expert a Mathematician as he 
 was a Soldier, and could have burnt his Enemies 
 Ships, like Archimedes ; if he had invented Gun- 
 powder for his Magazines , and found out the 
 whole New World, as well as conquer'd a confi- 
 derablePart of the Old : How much more would 
 we yet have efteem'd him ? And to proceed fur- 
 ther ; if this Cafar could either have fav'd his 
 own Life , by knowing the Secrets of, or by 
 killing alone all his Aflaffinates , or prolong'd 
 for many Hundreds of Years that of his Ser- 
 vants ; we fhould yet more have rejoic'd in his 
 Service and Adoption. But what is all this to 
 the Infinite Perfedion of the Great King of 
 K,ings , whofe Servants, Friends, nay, and a- 
 dopted Sons we may be ? He it is who govern'd 
 Cafar, as he does the Flics or Ants ; who, with 
 one Word made dtfar and all the World, where- 
 of he conquer'd only a Part which he was not 
 able to retain. By whofe Skill the Heavens 
 were ftretched out, in which vain Cafars great- 
 eft /ambition v^^as, to be a little Star ; Who not 
 only knows, but in one Moment governs all the 
 various , and almofl infinite Thoughts and De- 
 fign? of Angels , Men , and Devils ; and who 
 forces them all, how contrary foever to one ano- 
 ther, to agree in the great Defigns he has in Go- 
 verning the World. 
 
 Who would not rejoice to ferve a Mafter, that 
 knew when he were innocent, and who, as he 
 15 cxa(5tly juft to his Servants , fo could not be 
 irnpos'd i;pon by others, to their prejudice ; and 
 th(j' t.ven i)Warm5 of WitneflTes combined againfl 
 rhem, rouVi fee thro' the Mifts that they threw 
 
 up ; 
 
An EJfay on Reafon . 3^3 
 
 up ; which no Earthly Mafter^ how Juft foever, 
 can do ? But fuch is our Heavenly Mafter, who 
 can alfo not only enrich us when we are poor, 
 and cure us when we are fick ; but can tame 
 our Pa {lions, illumtnate our Ignorance^ftrength- 
 en our Inclinations, fweeten our Tempers, and 
 make all thefe Joys compleat , by the Removal 
 of all Fears or Jealoufies that can end or leffen: 
 them. Can we give any reafonable Account, 
 why we fliould be careful to keep the Road ex- 
 adly , if we knew there were great Precipices 
 on every hand , into which whoever fell were 
 irrecoverable ; and yet knowing , that in our 
 Voyage to Eternity , there are Precipices that 
 lead to dreadful Pits of Fire and Brimftone, 
 kindled by the Wrath of an angry God ; we 
 notwithftanding, go on carelefsly , laughing at 
 fuch as admoniih us, and minding little Trifles, 
 which v/e are convinced will pleafe no longer 
 than we poiTefs them. 
 
 How fallly do we reafon, in rqflefting on our 
 felves and others ? For we think them mad,who 
 endeavour not to get themfelves cur'd , when 
 they find they are tormented with Gout and 
 Gravel ; yet who amongft us is at any Pains, fo 
 much as to feek Remedies for his Paflions and Vi- 
 ces, which of all other Difeafes torment us moft. 
 And if we heard a Fellow in Livery vtilue him- 
 felf upon the Richnefs of his Suit ; would we 
 not efteem him an airy and foolifh Creature ? 
 But if we faw a Man who were concfemned, 
 and going to the Scaffold, admire himfelf , and 
 talk of his Power and Glory , would we noc 
 conclude him diftracfked ? And yet this is the 
 true Stare of a Vain and Glorious Monarch, who 
 has nothing but what he has receiv'd from an 
 Infinite God, who can recal it when he pleafes ; 
 and whoj whilft he talks of his Glory and Great- 
 
 ijefsj 
 
3.84. An E[fay on Reafon. 
 
 nefs , is by that God condemned to die as irre- 
 deemably, as muft the meaneft Slave over whom 
 he inrults- And fince we would laugh at a vain 
 Coxcomb , who whilft he were entertaining his 
 Friends in his Mafter s Houfe , as if it were his 
 own , were taken oat of it by the Ears , and 
 forc'd to tremble under the LaJfh; How ridicu- 
 lous rauil we conclude Bdjliaz^z^r, (and which is 
 the Cafe of too many other Great Men) who, 
 whilft he "was J^eaftin^ all his Nobles , and per- 
 fuading them of hi^ Independence, was feized by 
 an irrefiftible Horror , which fliak'd him all to 
 pieces. • 
 
 I doubt not for all this , but Learned Men 
 will think they may juftly value themfelves on 
 their own great Parts and Skill ; and you may 
 read long Ledures made by them on this Sub- 
 ject : But how unreafonablc are they in ^his ? 
 fmce thefe Endowinents are given them as Ex- 
 ternal Things are given to others ; and a School- 
 Boy may more juftly admire Jiimfelf, becaufe he 
 can repeat excellent Line's made by another; or 
 a Man, becaufe the borrowed Furniture, that 
 he would make us believe to be his own , were 
 within, and not without door, or were finer than 
 that borrow'd Stuff which another had, whom 
 he defpis'd. If Two poor Men fhould borrow, 
 the one Ten, and the other a Thoufand Pounds, 
 the Difference of the borrowed Sums, fhould 
 not ceafe to leave both of them equally poor. 
 But he is really a wife and reafonablc Man, 
 who knowing that what he has is borrow'd, en- 
 deavours not to boaft of it as his own , but to 
 repay ( as much as he can ) the Intereft to the 
 true Owner for the Loan. Let us then con- 
 clude this Period with the Apoftle*s juft Reafon- 
 ing, 1 Cor. a. 7. For -wbo maketh thee to differ frqm 
 another ? and what hafi thou that thou didfi not r^-. 
 
 ceive ? 
 
- ^An EJfay on ReafSb: 5^5 
 
 cel've ? Niow^ if thou didfi receive it , why dofi thou 
 glory as if thou hadfi not received it ? 
 
 Being once in Company with a great Wit, 
 who , feeing Two poor Chairmen fweat in 
 carrying a grofs, corpulent, vain Fellow • he 
 cry'd out , that he had rather be hang'd y than 
 ferve fo jneanly fuch a Rogue. Whereupon I 
 told him he was doing a meaner thing, in bear- 
 ing the Extravagancies of" a violent and ty- 
 rannous Statefman ^ to pleafe whofe extrava- 
 gant Humour, I had feen him fweat more than 
 thefe poor Men did ; who had alfo in this the 
 Advantage of him , that they did fo to get 
 Bread for tjieir Family ; whereas he did the 
 other to feed that Ambition and Avarice, which 
 tended to deftroy himfelf. 
 
 Man's Unreaforiablenefs appears alfo in the 
 Unfuitablenefs of the Means he ufes , to the 
 Ends he propofes to himfelf. Who would not • 
 think hini a Fool, who woi^d endeavour to cure 
 si mad Dog , . by putting a Golden Collar ab6ut 
 his Neck ? Or who would think to cure a Fever 
 in a Man, by beftowing a great Office on him ? 
 iBut are not Men fuch Fools , when they think 
 they can quiet their Paflions by Riches, or their 
 Minds by Advancement ? Spiritual Diftempers 
 are to be cur'dby Spiritual Means ; and as the 
 fineft Thoughts cannot feed the Body , fo nei- 
 ther can the greateft Riches , or any other ex- 
 ternal thing fatisfy the immaterial Soul ! 
 
 If I were defirous to get Preferment , would 
 not I endeavour to pleafe him from whom I 
 were to exped it , and not his Enemies ? But 
 tho' we fay that we exped , or at leaft wifh to 
 be Favourites to God Almighty , and to be by 
 him happy for ever ; yet we Ipend not our time 
 m obeying him, but in ferving openl}^ and 
 
 affi- 
 
3^6 0n EJfay on Reafoi. 
 
 afliduoufly the World, the Devil , and our own 
 Lulls, which arc his declared Enemies ; and that 
 too fo refolurely, that any reafonable Man can- 
 not ( upon confidering our Adions ) but con- 
 clude , That either we car'd not for what he 
 could give , or elfe that we were fubtle enough 
 to cheat him , or ftrong enough to over-power 
 him. 
 
 If a Man were going to live in another 
 Country , would he not endeavour to accuftom 
 himfelf to the Cuftoms of it, and to carry with 
 him Things that were ufeful in that Country ? 
 And would we not laugh at him , if he fpent 
 his Time in Building and Adorning that Inn, 
 which he were to leave ? But this is our Condi- 
 tion, who bcftow all our Thoughts on thcThings 
 of this World , from which we fhould expec^l to 
 remove every moment, and in which we cannot 
 ftay long. 
 
 It is moft (Irange that Men , to fecure them^ 
 felves againll Fortune , fhould put themfelvcs 
 more and more infb its Power. For the Re- 
 medies we ufe are to grow richer and greater ; 
 and nothing fubjecfls us more to Accidents than 
 thefe do ; for it is for thefe that Men are pur- 
 fu'd and deftroy'd, and they are ofrner Crimes 
 than Defences. 
 
 God has promifed, that if ve feck we Pj/iII fn^l^ 
 if we kfjock it jhall he of end ; fo that PraVer is 
 the true way to attain to what is defirable : And 
 Men may pray fccurely at their own Bedfidc, or 
 in walking about their own Field. But yet M«n 
 will leave this furc, fife, and eafy way, and 
 fail to the Indies amidft Storms, and travel thro* 
 the Defarts of Arabia amongft Thieves, to get 
 unneceflary Riches ; expole themfelves to Can- 
 nons, and watch in Camps , to get Honours ,• 
 trufting the Seas', Winds and Cannons , more 
 
 than 
 
An Ejfay on Rea fon. 5 8 f 
 
 than their own kind and merciful Father , who 
 made and governs all thefe. 
 
 When we have Chi Idren^ we are very defirpus 
 to leave them well fecur'd , and confequently 
 provide them Eftates : But tho' we take pains to 
 breed our Colts and Hawks, we take no pains in 
 teaching our Children their Duty to their Ma- 
 tter , as we do thofe Beafts ; and probably by 
 not being bred to a juft way of Reafoning, they 
 may lofe by one Extravagance all that we hav^ 
 left them, or at leall live unhappily , in not 
 knowing how to ufe it aright. And the fame 
 Parents which would beftow their Eftates to free 
 their Children from burning for a Month in a 
 Fever , will , to get them a little Addition to 
 that fame State, breed them fo, as may occafion. 
 their Burning to all Eternity. 
 
 If any Man were guilty of Crimes , and fo 
 needed the King's Pardon ; v^^ould we not think 
 him a mere Brute> if he fliould, inftead of 
 feeking it earneftly and fmcerel}', run up and 
 down railing at him, and reviling his Laws ? 
 Yet molt of our Wits, who have indeed more 
 Guilt than Wit, and are not fure what Moment 
 they fhall be damn'd for ever, make it their Bu- 
 finefs rather than Sport, to treat in Ridicule his 
 Divine Majert y and Laws. . 
 
 Let us a little examine the unreafonablenefs 
 of Mens arguing in Matters of Honour, 
 wherein they pretend to be fo exacl, and deli- 
 cate, and we fliall be convinc'd how weak their 
 Reafon is. 
 
 And in the firft Place, would not right Rea- 
 fon didate to us, that thofe things are fitteft for 
 Men of honour, which are moft approv'd and 
 recommended by that Judge whom all acknow-* 
 ledge to underhand beft what is great, glorious^ 
 and juft r Who would believe any thing to he 
 
 Honourable 
 
gS8 'An EJfay on ReafohJ 
 
 honourable for a Soldier, which Cafar 6t 
 Marefchal Turenne had condemned as unjuft and 
 mean? And if this Rule hold, we muft conclude. 
 That it is the Almighty/God, the Glorious Ma- 
 ker of Heaven and- l^rth, and of the heart of 
 A^an ; and not theinfolent Courtier, the huffing 
 Hector, or the unftable and ignorant Rabble, 
 who muft give the Rules to juft Honour and true 
 Grandeur. Nor fhould the beft of mortal men 
 be able to perfwade us, that any thing is ho^ 
 nourable, but according as it agrees with the re- 
 veal'd Will of the Omnipotent and Infallible 
 Judge ; fpr if he be Infallible, it is ridiculous 
 that his. Judgment fhould not be acquiefc'd in ; 
 and if we think him not Infallible, we CJtnnOt 
 think he is ■'Sod. 
 
 ^ If any ,^ Man ,lhould call one perjur'd, efpeci- 
 ally ,if he WereaPerfon of Quality, he would 
 relent .it . irreconQileably ; and yet are not all 
 fuch as arejguilty. of Adultery, guilty of Perjury ,• 
 and to aggravate thjS Perjury, it is Perjury a- 
 gainfta Lady, to injure whom, and to whom 
 the breach of ah ordinary Promife, would be 
 thought a fhameful Crime .^ biit yet much more, 
 when it is confidered, that upon that Oath the 
 Lady had deliver'd her felf up, and by the like Oath 
 hadforfakenallthe reft of Mankind, : So then, if 
 Perjury be a Villa'ny, when committed in the 
 moil trivial things, and to a Perfori who never 
 obliged us ; what can it then be, when commit- 
 ted in the greateft Concern, and wh6n t\\t Oath 
 was given in the moft confiderate Mariner, and 
 iinder the greateft Obligation to the moft deferv- 
 ing Perfon, and to one of that delicate Sex, 
 which the moft unworthy are unwilling to in- 
 jure or cheat ? 
 
 I doubt not, but all who pretend to Rcafon, 
 wilt acknowledge, that Ingratitude is the. moi? 
 
 abominable 
 
An Effayon Reafori.' ' ^85^ 
 
 Abominable of all Vices^ and moft inconfiftenjt 
 vvir> true Honour. And if a Prince had oblir 
 ged one of his Subjects, behaving himfelf as a 
 kind Father to him, wctild he not be a very 
 Rogne if he v^ere ungrateful ; but 5^et more, if 
 he refufed to obey him, after many Promifes 
 and Vovirs, nay, and after many Pardons, hav- 
 ing feveral times relapfed again and again into 
 thofe Crimes, and even employed the Forces 
 with which the King had trufted him, againft 
 himfelf? And yet the King of Kings, and our 
 Heavenly Father, having heaped hourly fuch 
 JFavours on us, that it needs a Maris whole time 
 to repeat them, becaufe every Moment of our 
 time makes a part of them, we angratefut 
 Mifcreants employ all the ftrength of our Spirits 
 ^nd Bodies in offending him daily, to that 
 height, that tho' we our felves tremble when 
 we think with confufion upon them, and vow 
 againft, and mourn for them ; yet we, urireafona- 
 ble Men, return with the Dog to the Vomit, and 
 with the Sow to the Puddle, and add the Breach 
 of our new Vows to our old Sins. 
 
 I know that Pride has form'd for its own De-- 
 fence a Body of Law Call'd Point of Honour • 
 as one inflance whereof, amongft others, I urge 
 how unreafonably Men repair their Honour, iii 
 endeavouring to take a Man's Life for a word, 
 damning both themfelves and him, and by way 
 of Complirrtent drawing innocent Men (and 
 fuch ordinarily as have the greateft Kindnefs 
 for them) into the fame Hazard and Condemna- 
 tion ♦ which in fpight of all the Gallantry ima- 
 ginable, does prove how little ufe of true Rea- 
 fon Men have, tho' they value thetrifelves very, 
 much as if they were the fole Mafters of it. For 
 this is not only contrary to the Law of God, the 
 B4 trii« 
 
590 An Eifayon Reafon. 
 
 true Fountain ofHonour^ as of all Good, but 
 to the Laws of our Country : And what can be 
 more abfurd, than that fome private, young, 
 and ranting Hedors fliould be able to make that 
 pafs for generous and gallant, whieh whole 
 Nations aflfembled, have after much Reafoning 
 and Deliberation condemned as a Crime in all 
 Ages and Countries . And even the fame Men, 
 who brag of this when enrag'd,, and in the Field, 
 condemn it in Parlaiment and in cold Blood. But 
 nothing difcredits this Heroifm more, than that 
 thofe, who would not yield up their Revenge 
 to God, nor their Confcience, have been 
 frighted from it by the French King and the 
 Gallows. 
 
 if one Man give another the Lye, he muft 
 ^ay down his Life, becaufe a Man of Honour 
 would rather chufe to dye than to be a Lyar, or 
 rather thought one ; but this Man of Honour 
 will flatter, rill all Men laugh at him for lying fo 
 grolly; &this Eloquence of Knaves muft likewife 
 make his Patron a Fool for being capable to believe 
 what none believes, fave himfelf; fothat this Flat- 
 terer, who yet palTes for a Man of true Honour, 
 makes himfelf a Lyar, and his Patron a Fook 
 How oftentimes alfo have we fecn thefe Men of 
 Honour lye and flatter, to promote FaAion, and 
 to pleafe the Multitude, which they were there- 
 by deilgning to Cheat ,• as if the addition of a 
 Cheat could make a Lie honourable. Rebellion 
 and Pimping are Noble Flights of Glory and 
 Kindnefs, to which faft)ionable Men, and 
 Men of Honour can only pretend, and a Prero- 
 5*;ative deny'd to thofe Men who are truly virtu- 
 ous. If Men, who are tender of their Reputati- 
 on, were reafonablc, would they not confider, 
 ijiat all thefc their Crimes and Vices arc known 
 
 to 
 
An EJfay on Reafon. 391 
 
 to thgt Great God, who is the Fountain of 
 Truth, and the Rule of Purity, and fliall at 
 the Great Day be known to Men and Angels ? 
 If a Lady confidered, that all her uhchaft 
 Thoughts, and a Perfon who palTes for ah Ho- 
 neft Man, that all his Secrets and Cheats would 
 be difcover'd to their Neighbours, though as 
 guilty asthey, it would confound them : How then 
 will all Men look, when the Siris they are en- 
 deavouring to cover, fliall be laid open in that 
 Illuftrious AlTembly, where Irinopence and 
 Knowledge fhall be iri fuch high Perfection ? 
 How can we then be judg*d Reafonable Crea- 
 tures, when we dare do that before the Almigh- 
 ty God, who is of purer Eyes than that he can 
 behold Iniquity, which wedurft not attempt be- 
 fore our own Servants, who depend on us, and 
 are as frail as our felves ? And if we cannot abide 
 the Accufation of our own Confcience, how 
 ihall we be able to hold up our Faces in fo glori^- 
 ous a Judicature ? And catri Men be Reafonable 
 Creatures , aind yet riot mind fo great a Con- 
 cern? 
 
 Fame, that tacit Acknowledgment of Im- 
 mortality, even in thofe who believe it hot, is 
 purfued fo extra vag;antly, that Idolatry it felf is 
 jfiot more Jhexcufable. For to gain the opinion 
 of a brutal Multitude, we facrifice to them our 
 t)uty, ouf Quiet and our Security ; and what 
 Defigncari, we have, or return can we expe6t 
 for all. this ? For if we be not Immortal, 
 what fignifies our. l?eing efteem'd, when We 
 are to have no Being? And why flipuld we 
 give our felves real Trouble for an imaginary 
 Good? And if we befieve the Chriftian Reli- 
 
 §ion, it teaches us that either we muft be fav'd 
 r d^frin'd ; if fav'd. Fame from Men will fig- 
 D d a ;tiifjr 
 
39^ An E[[ay on Reafon. 
 
 nify nothing:, when we difcover how foolifh 
 we were to adore fuch Worms ; if damn'dj that 
 which made a great part of our Crime, cannot 
 be an alleviation of its Punifhment. But if a 
 Man, believing there is a God, did argue juftl^V 
 • he would value highly the being efti^em'd by 
 that Wifdomthac cannot err, and whofe Suffrage 
 will lail to all Eternity. Men can oniy raife 
 our Charad:er, without being able to raife our 
 Merit, but our great Mafter can really make us- 
 merit, and open others Eyes of the to underftand 
 it, when true ; which no Man can do ; and his 
 Efteem brings Rewards fuitable to its Greatnefs; 
 and therefore is only worthy of our Pains, efpe- 
 cially, if vve beftowed that Pains in ferving him, 
 which we do in gaining Fame; we might ex- 
 pect from his GoodncTs what can never be valu- 
 able when obtalii'd from Men, becaufe of their 
 Meanncfs ; or fecure, becaufe of their Injuftice 
 or Caprice. If we faw any of our Acquaintance 
 running up and down among mean and ignorant 
 People, to perfuade them to praife and admire 
 him, we would laugh at his Folly, as well as Va- 
 nity ; but this is the Condition of us poor blind 
 Sinners, who are flck and dejeded, ifourfilly, 
 blind Fellow-Mortals do not admire us, and 
 praife our Actions. 
 
 I have remark'd in my own time, that fome 
 by taking too much care to be efteem'd and ad- 
 mir'd, have by that cour fc mifs'd their aim ; 
 whiril others of them, " who fliunn'd it, did 
 meet with it, as if it had fallen on them, whil'ft 
 it was flying from the others; which proceed- 
 ed from the unfit means thefc able and reafon- 
 able Men took to elfablifli their Reputati- 
 . on. It is very llrange to hear Men value them- 
 felves upon their Honour, and cHeir being Men 
 of their Word in Trifles, when yet that fame 
 
 Honour 
 
An EJfay on Reafon.' 595 
 
 Honmir cannot tie them to pay the Debts they 
 have contraded upon folemn Promife of fecure 
 and fpeedy Repayment ; ilarving poor Widows 
 and Orphans, to feed their Lulls ; and adding 
 thus, Robbery and Oppreflion to the difhonoura- 
 ble Breach of Truft. And how can we think 
 them Men of Honour, who, when a Potent and 
 Foreign Monarch is opprefling his Weaker 
 Neighbours, hazard their very Lives to aflift him, 
 tho'they would rail atany of their Acquaintance, 
 that meeting a ftrong Man fighting with a wea- 
 ker, fhould aflift the ftronger in his Oppreffion. 
 
 The fureft and moil pleafant Path to uni- 
 verfal Efteem, and true Po-pularity, is to 
 be juftj for all men eileem him moil who 
 fecures moil their private Interef!:, and -pro- 
 te(fls beil their Innocence. And all who have any 
 Notion of a Deity, believe that Juiliceis one of 
 his chief Attributes ; and that therefore, who- 
 ■ever is juil, is next in Nature to him, and the 
 befl PiAure of him ^ and to be reverenc'd and 
 Icv'd : But yet, how few trace this Path ? moil 
 Men chufing rather to toil and vex themfelves, 
 in feeking Popular Applaufe, by living high, 
 and inprofufe Prodigalities, which areentertain'd 
 by Injuilice and Oppreffion, as if rational Men 
 would pardon Robbers, becaufe they feailed 
 them upon a part of their own Spoils; or did 
 let them fee fine and glorious Shows, made fos 
 the honour of the Giver upon the Expence 
 of the robb'd Spectators. But when a vir- 
 tuous Perlbn appears Great by his Merit, 
 and obey'd only by the charming Force of'h-i? 
 Reaion, all Men think him defcended from that 
 Heaven which he ferves, and to him they glad- 
 ly pay the Noble Tribute of deferyed Praifes.;- 
 
 Another great Clafs of Arguments, to prove 
 how ill Men rea Ton in Matters of gre^teft Im- 
 ■ D d ; ''^- portanc^ 
 
39+ -^ ^Jf^y ^^ Reafon. 
 
 portance, may be brought from the CpntradJdi- 
 ons we are guilty of in our ConduA. As for 
 Inftance, Life is the thing in the World mofl 
 valu'd ; for without it we can enjoy nothing ; 
 and yet {p unreafonable are we, that for a Com- 
 plement, we will hazard it fo far, as may be ra- 
 ther call'd a lofing of it. When time is going, wq; 
 cry out againft Provicjence, for having made ic 
 fo fhort ; and when it is gone, we would give 
 all the World to redeem it ; and yet we are wea- 
 ry of it fo far as to beftow Money upon any 
 thing that will help to fpend it ; and give it a- 
 way in Vifits, to fuch to whorn we would not 
 give any thing elfe. We would for no Money 
 quit, one Year of our Life ; and yet for the fame 
 Money which we fo undervalued in the exprefs 
 Exchange, moft Men do really give away very 
 many of their beft Years, fmce they are fpent in 
 gaining Money. 
 
 We exclaim againft Tyranny, Ufurpation 
 and Oppreflion, and in this we are much in the 
 right: But why then do we admire, and cry up 
 fuch as have been great Oppreflbrs and tJfurpers, 
 as Alexander, C^fiir ? For in this, we are not only 
 unjuil upon the Matter, but Enemies to our 
 felves; for that Efteem we put upon them who 
 have been fuch, invites others to make us the 
 Prey of our own Errors. 
 
 Moft Men do admire, and prefer thcmfelves 
 to all others, which is a great Proof of our un- 
 reafonablenefs ; but yet, even thefe cannot ftay 
 with themfelves, and by being afraid to look irl- 
 to their own hearts, contradiA the Eftcerii 
 which yet at all times they have for themfelves^ 
 to an unfufferable Excefs. All Men defire to pre- 
 fer the beft Company; and when Men prefer 
 any Company to the being alone, they demor;- 
 ftrate that themfelves are not the' bciV. 
 
 Moft 
 
An EJfay on ReaforJ 395 
 
 Moft Men, when they are young, Gontemii 
 Riches, and love them when they are old ; and 
 thoughour Wits fcorn to think or fay with the 
 Vulgar, yet even tkefe are fwayed as much and 
 as ftrongly by vulgar Vices, as tl-jofe who never 
 exclaim'd againft the unthinking Crowd. Al! 
 Creatures ftand in awe pf others, according to 
 the Efteem they have of them ; and tho' we ad- 
 mire our own Perfe(9:ions, and value our felves 
 far above our proportion, yet ftand w^e not in awe 
 to commit Wickednefs when a|one, which we 
 durft not commit if others were prefent ; and 
 thus we are fo unreafonable, that we want a due 
 reverence and efteem for our felves, where we 
 ought to have it, and have it pxceffively where 
 we ought to want it totally. 
 
 . S^flf'-kw; th^ falfeft tho' the fubtileft of all Rea- 
 fbners, endeavours to perfwade us, that in Re- 
 venge, we fliall, by feeing our Enemies ruined, 
 remain our felves the excellent Creatures, our 
 Rivals being thus deprefs'd : And this is that hid 
 Reafon which juftifies to us that Paffion which 
 is truly moft inhumane. But what an improper 
 Argument is this ? For we are not one whit the 
 more excellent, that another is ruined by an Ac- 
 cident. Another Argument brought by Re- 
 venge, is, that thus we fhall fecure our felves 
 againft our Enemies, and fo Revenge would pafs 
 with us under the dif2;uife of Self-defence ; but 
 becaufe this would feem cowardly, and be in 
 effed, a tacit acknowledgment of Fear ; we 
 rather fay, that in Revenge, we will teach o- 
 thers not to attack us. But all thefe are falfe 
 reafonings; for tio Man fecures his true Quiet 
 by Revenge, for it raifes an , Enemy within, 
 which is always prefent, and able to difquiet : 
 And all Men conclude themfelves obliged to de- 
 D d 4 ftroy 
 
^55^ y?^ EJfay on Reafon.' 
 
 flroy the Revengeful Man, by the fame Argu- 
 ment that he purfues his Revenge; and thus a- 
 Man is tortured by it after he has prevail'd. 
 
 Moft Men defire to be in Employment, from 
 a fecret Defire to be admir'd ; whereas when they 
 are in Employments-, they do not thofe Juft and 
 Virtuous Things, for which they would be truly 
 admir'd : And albeit Self-love makes them be- 
 lieve, that the being fear'd is a Mark of true Do- 
 minion ; yet they confider nor, that even Do- 
 minion is only at the Bottom defireable, becaufe 
 it is a Sign of Merit and innate Excellency ; and 
 does pleafe, becaufe it makes us believe, by the 
 Suffrage of others , that we are Noble and Ex- 
 cellent Pcrfons, of which, even the leaft reafo- 
 nable cannot ferioufly be perfuaded, except they 
 believe they have done viriucus things. And 
 thus it were more reafonable to do what is really 
 virtuous, than to cheat our felves, with thinking 
 that others admire us. And it is very unreafo- 
 nable not to do things rather for Virtue it felf, 
 than for the Applaufe which follows it, fmce 
 that Applaufe derives its defireablenefs from Vir- 
 tue, and fo Virtue it felf fhould be much more 
 defired : And which fhews yet more the Weak- 
 nefs of our Reafcn, tho' in this we contradict 
 the undeniable Sentiments of Mankind, yet we 
 are cheated into it by a Miftake, ns if it were • 
 eafier to attain to the Applaufe cf Virtue ,' than 
 to Virtue it felf; whereas quite contrary, it muft 
 be more difficult to attain Applaufe, fmce it de- 
 pends upon many Thoufands of Rivals and ca- 
 pricious Fools ; whereas Virtue fprings from a 
 Man's own Breaft, and we may have it, and 
 keep it in fpight of all Mankind. 
 
 Every Man alfo may, in his private Station 
 and Employment, find Thoufmds of Inftances 
 to confirm this Truth. And thus a Courtier 
 
 fhould 
 
An EJfay on Reafon] 59^ 
 
 fhould confider, that' when he fees his Prince 
 bow and pray to a Superior;, before whom he 
 acknowledges himfelf to be a Worm and a Va- 
 pour , that certainly it is fit to do nothing todif- 
 pleafe that Superior Power, for gaining the Fa- 
 vour of that P-ince who adores him ; and who 
 would not think him mad, who would fcorn to 
 depend on a Monarch , but would take pains to 
 flatter his Footman ? When a Lawyer obferves, 
 that Men take fuch pains to fecure in Law an 
 Intereft that cannot be fecur'd againft Accidents, 
 he fhould in Reafon conclude, that it is brutifh not 
 to take more pains to fecure that which fhall ne- 
 ver fail : And when he obferves, how zealoufly 
 the Eldeft Men defend a Life, that Accidents, 
 nay, and Nature probably will end with the Pro- 
 cefs, fliould he not confider what pains jfhould 
 be taken to fecure a Life that continues for ever, 
 free too from that Care, and thofe Sickneffes, 
 that even before Death make this Life miferable ? 
 If a Soldier, who was befiee;'d by his Ene- 
 mies, fhould abandon his Watch, and fpend his 
 tiiue in Gaming and Drinking, or fliould lofe 
 the glorious Opportunity of defeating them, for 
 a Feaft ; or as Mark Antony, for a Miftreft : 
 Efpecially if they be fuch Enemies, whom we 
 know would not only kill, but torment us to 
 Death ; Were he not to be accounted a Fool ? 
 But that is our Cafe ; for being furroundsd with 
 Temptations and Devils, we fpend our Time in 
 Toys and Trifles; and whilO: we hear that others 
 have receiv'd an Lnmortal Crown, for having 
 overcome their Spiritual Enemies, we, who va- 
 lue Fame and Glory fo much, fpend our time in • 
 pleafing Two or Three filly Courtiers, whom 
 we defpife whilll^ we attend them, and laugh at 
 the Actions whica we feem to admire. A Mer- 
 chant were ridiculousj if he fhould fpsnd his 
 
 Stock 
 
5 9 S \An EJfay on Rcafon . 
 
 Stock and his Time in buying up Wares that 
 were unfafhionable in that Country where he 
 has his Abode ; and yet moft Men employ them- 
 felves wholly in gathering Riches, and getting 
 that Knowledge, which can neither be carried 
 to Heaven with them, nor can comfort rhem 
 when they are in Hell. And I have oft applaud- 
 ed the Remark of a Gentlewoman, who hearing 
 a whole Society admire one of her Acquain- 
 tance for a great Wit, told them, That his Fa- 
 ther had left him a great Eftate, which he had 
 fpent amongft Whores, that he had himfelf 
 married a'.Whore, and had chang'd the Orthodox 
 Religion, in which he was bred up, for a worfe, 
 and was not devout in that neither ; and dcfir'd 
 them to confider, if that Man deferv'd to be 
 call'd a Wit ? 
 
 Nor are we only unreafonable in purfuing our 
 rieafures and Vices, but the very Mealbres we 
 take in being Virtuous, fhew how weak our Rea- 
 Ton is, and how ill we ufe it. For our Friend- 
 fhip is, for the moft part, but the preferring 
 thofe for whom wc have a Kindnefs, to tb^^fe 
 who deferve better both our Kindnefs and tlVofe 
 Employments ; and thus we rob the Common- 
 wealth, to repay the Debt our Gratitude owes. 
 The Courage of many is but a hypocritical dif- 
 guiMng of tiicir Fear, or a dull Ignorance of 
 their Danger. For when a Man goes to-Battel, 
 he fears to die ; but to difguife this Fear, he con- 
 fiders the Shame of flying; and knowing certain- 
 ly that his Reputation would be ruined, he fears 
 more this certain Lofs , than the Hazard of be- 
 • ing kill'd : But if he cannot attain to that, he at 
 lea ft braves it out, and endeavours to cheat; 
 others, when he cannot fatisfy himfelf. 
 
 Libernlity and Charity are oft-times but the 
 difguifcd Effects of Vanity, wherein Men tacit-. 
 
 ly 
 
j4n E[fay onV^e^Con. 399 
 
 ly defign rather their own Perpetuity , thsn the 
 Advantage of thofe on whom they beftow what 
 is given ; in which they ad very unreafonably : 
 For if they lent it to God , he would reftore ic 
 with a very enriching Intereft ; but in beftowing 
 it on' Fame, they beftow it on a Cheat, which 
 has oft deceived both them and others. And it 
 llill feems ftrange, that we will beftow it on thac 
 Multitude ( for Fame and the Multitude are the 
 fame thing ) to preferve any one of whom from 
 ftarving, we would not beftow one Farthing. 
 And yet the World eftecm thofe who do fuch 
 things , more than they do reafonable and judi- 
 cious Perfons. 
 
 It is one of the chief and Fundamental Di- 
 lates of Reafon, that we fhould do to others as 
 we would wifh them to do to us. But tho' we 
 exclaim againft our Equals, poor Mortals, if 
 jthey refufe us this Meafare, yet we allow it not 
 to our great King and Sovereign. If we heard 
 that any , who pretended to be our Friend , did 
 f\t tamely and hear us rail'd at , and contemned, 
 we would conclude them bafe and treacherous ; 
 and a King would for this treat his Subjects as 
 Rebels : But yet we fit not only to hear impious 
 Creatures rail at Religion, and oft-times at Pro- 
 vidence it felf , with fo little Refentment, that 
 we comply and even admire the Mifcreant. I 
 remember that I fuggefted once to a Perfon of 
 Quality, who was bufv about his Accounts, to 
 confider if our Steward flioiild fpend our Rents 
 upon his own Affairs, or upon maintaining his 
 own Family in Luxury, and much more if he 
 ■fhould riot it away with our Enemies, would we 
 not hate him as a Rogue, and at leaft recal the 
 Truft we gave him. But the Great Mafter of 
 the Family of the Faithful, having appointed us 
 only to be Stewards, not to appropriate, but to 
 
 bsftow 
 
4.00 "An EJfay on ReafonJ 
 
 bellow the Eftates he gave us, for the Ufe of 
 his poor Children and Servants, preferring us 
 kindly to as much as may fatisfy our Convcnien- 
 cy ; for fo the Scripture, and even Reafon it felf, 
 teaches us ; ( for why fhould the wife God have 
 beftowed fo much upon fome, vvhillt others 
 want, if he had not defign'd to level all by this 
 Neceflity of Diilribution ; ) yet we fee his Chil- 
 dren ftarve, whilft we employ the Portions due 
 to them upon the Wicked, who are his Enemies. 
 And thus we ufe the Almighty Cod at the rate 
 we would not fuffer from the meancfl o*" our 
 Servants. And fo unreafonable are even fucli as 
 are convinc'd of the Reafonablenefs of Charity, 
 that by doing their charitable Anions in Publick, 
 they lofe the Reward, by not preferving the true 
 Defign of it ; for as our Saviour argues. Mat. 6. 4. 
 It is 'very ju ft, that (ince they btftov tht'ir Charity to 
 vain the Afflaufe of A'len, they jJiculd be rewarded 
 ovJth the Applaufe for which they beftowed it : And 
 how can they exped a Reward from God, to 
 pleafe whom it was not given ; and he is not 
 obliged to repay what was not lent him : And 
 they cannot exped double Payment ; for being 
 paid by Men, -the Obligation is fully fatisfied. 
 
 I fhall conclude thefe Obfervaticn!; with what 
 ordinarily we conclude our unreafonable Lives, 
 and that is Death-bed Repentance, vvhic'h of all 
 Things is the moft unreafonable. Tor if we be- 
 lieve the Rewards and Torments which attend 
 our future State, and make the Delay fo dange- 
 rous, why delay we ? And if we believe neither 
 of thefe, why repent wc ? The one cannot but 
 make our prefcnt Pleafures very bitter, by the 
 Fear that muft thereupon haunt us ; and the other 
 cannot but needlefly cut off the Pleafures, which 
 we exclude as inconfiftent with true Repentance. 
 But which of us being condcmn'd to horrible 
 
 Torments, 
 
'An Ejfay on Reafon] 401 
 
 Torments , would delay to feek a Remiffion till 
 the laft Hour ? Or being invited to leave our Cot- 
 tage CO receive a plent'ful Efliate^ would delay to 
 undertake ^is Journey ? And yet we eafily delay 
 our ReDentanCj which can only preferve us, 
 condemned Sinners^, from Eternal Torments; 
 and which would certainly bring us^ poor 
 WretcheS;, to that Inheritance of immortal Glo- 
 ry. And tho' we, condemn our felves for leaving 
 the Difpatch of our Htde Concerns till the laft 
 Hour; yet we delay that great and neceffary 
 Work, on which a long Eternity hangs, for eve- 
 ry Trifie. And that which aggravates much this 
 Negled, is, that the Reafons which encourage 
 us to it are as w^ak, as the thing it felf is abfurd 
 and dangerous. For the Hope we may live, has 
 for its Foundation a frail Body, that every Acci- 
 dent can deftroy ; and it is a Wonder, that when 
 we hear of Co many unexpe<5ted Deaths, we 
 fliould not tremble to think, what if I had died ? 
 And tho' the Mercy of God be as infinite as his 
 Juftici^, yet it is infupportable Infolence in us to 
 think, that we can be fav'd when we pleafe : 
 This IS not only to undervalue him as the laft 
 thing to be chofen, which implies that our infi- 
 nitely glorious Maker is of all things leaft wor- 
 thy of our Choice; but in this we exalt our felves 
 above him, as if we might command him to be- 
 stow upon us Heaven and Happinefs, whenever 
 we thought fit to call for it. And which of us 
 would beftow the meaneft Favour upon him, 
 who would refolve to oppofe , or but negled: us 
 as long as he pleas'd. The delaying makes us the 
 unfitter, not only to crave , but even to receive 
 Mercy ; and fince all our Life, albeit as pioufly 
 fpent as Human Frailty can allow, is fhort 
 enough for fo great a Work, What can we ex- 
 ped from a few fickly Hours diftraded by new 
 
 Pains^ 
 
40 a An EJfay on Reafon.' 
 
 pains, and amazed at fo many old Sins ? And thg 
 r Scripture having commanded us to repent, and 
 
 bring forth good Works, it has every where 
 inade good VVorks, and a fubfcquent Amend- 
 fnent of bur Lives, the Mark as well as Fruit of 
 fincere Repentance : And therefore fince a Death- 
 bed Repentance muft want this Proof, it cannot 
 but be by fo much the more uncomfortable to us 
 and our Friends. Nor is there any generous 
 Soul, who having receiv'd io great and undefer- 
 ved a Pardon, would not defire to be able to livcj 
 that he might magnify that Infinite God to whom 
 he ow'd it. I know that the Thief on the Crofs 
 has been a Stumbling-block to many others ; but 
 we reafon very weakly frpjin .this Inftance of 
 Cod's Mercy : For he-by believing the Divinity 
 of our Saviour amidft all that could have been 
 faid againft it, when even the Jev-syvcrt defiring 
 him to come down from the Crofs, and they 
 ■would believe in him ; and the other Thief was 
 leviling him ; did evidence as much Faith in 
 that contraded Span when dyings as the beft of 
 us can do in a prolong'd Life. And it being fie 
 for the Saviour of the World to (hew his t>ower 
 and Mercy when he was leading Captivity Cap- 
 tive, that happy Thief can be no Precedent for 
 us, who remain unconverted after fo many Mi- 
 racles, that no reafonable Man can now doubt 
 of, efpecially if he never heard, as it's probable, 
 of thatGofpel which we have fo oft undervalued ; 
 :ind if he has not negleded former Offers of 
 Mercy, which we have To oft contemned. 
 And ihall we prefume on God*s Goodnefs, be- 
 caufe one Man was fav'd , and but one, to pre- 
 ferve Mankind from Defpair j not remembring, 
 that as the Thief obtain'd a Pardon when he 
 fought it, fo Efiit found no Place for Repentance, 
 tho* he fought it earneftly, M.iz.ij. And 
 
 ihoi 
 
An EJfay on Reafon. 40^ 
 
 tho* thofe who came in at the laft Hour , got as 
 much as thofe who had wrought at the firft ; 
 yet it is remarkable, that it is faid, they came 
 not fooner, becaufe no Man had defired them. 
 •But let me conjure any Noble Soul to confider, 
 that if God be worthy of the Adoration of An- 
 gels through all Eternity; and that we confefs, 
 that to walk like Enoch with him, will be fo ar 
 miable and glorious ; why fhould we delay it for 
 Pleafures that are unworthy of a reafonable Soul, 
 and which laft but for a Moment ? For at leaft 
 We Ipfe fo much unexpreflible Joy and Pleafure ; 
 and in delaying our Repentance we continue to 
 be fick when we may be whole, to be blind 
 when we may fee, to be poor when we may be 
 xich3 to lie in Prifon when we may live at Liber- 
 ty, and to be Slaves to our Enemies, when we 
 may be Heirs to a Kingdom: Alt which induces 
 me to believe, that they who delay Repentance, 
 defign not to repent, but flatter themfelves with 
 a falfe Conceit of it ; for to repent is to be 
 grieved, and no Man who is grieved, can put it 
 off at his Pleafure, no more than a N'fan can be 
 griev'd, or not, as he pleafes. As alfo if a Man 
 i-efolv'd fmcerely to repent, 'tis neceffary that he 
 were tonvinc'd of the Greatnefs of his Danger, 
 and w£re fidtually afham'd as well as afraid there- 
 of; and if he were truly touched with thefe 
 Convidions, he would not continue in the 
 Courfes which occafion'd them. And to finifh 
 %]\y is it not the Height of Unreafonabknefs for 
 a Man to continue to do thefe things, of which 
 he knows he muft be aflmm'd, and for which he 
 refolves to be exceedingly troubled and aftiided? 
 And if we were coming into a Room where a 
 Man was wounding himfelf, would we not con- 
 clude him yet madder, if he told us, that he 
 would give himfelf more and more, becaufe 
 
 fuch 
 
404. An J^Jfay on Reafon.' 
 
 fuch a Man got fo many Wounds, and yet W3^ 
 cured. 
 
 Let me therefore conclude this Difcourfe with 
 the noble and juft Reafoning us'd by St. Teter, 
 2. Eft ft. ^. 10, II. But the (liy of the Lord n'ill ccme 
 as a thief in the night, in the which the heavens tvilt 
 tafs away -imth great noifcy and the elements fiill mdt 
 'ivith a fervent beat^ and the earth alfoy and the works 
 that are therein flmll he burnt up : Seeing then that all 
 thefe things fljall he dijjol'ved, v^hat manner of perfons 
 ought ye to he in all holy Converfatlcn ar.d Gridlinefs ? 
 
 And what a frighted Creature will the ,^reateft 
 Hero be, when he finds himfelf in the midft of 
 a burning World, having ^^reater Terrors with- 
 in his Breaft than thefe raisd by an Omnipotent 
 God, and which will force him to cry to the 
 Hills and Mountains to fall upon him , and co- 
 ver him from the Face of this angry Judge ? 
 
 But thefe great and fad Truths need ( alas ) 
 to be preach'd by an Angel, to Hearers landing 
 upon the Brink of their Grave, and having, 
 Heaven and Hell open'd before them. 
 
 ^Wb«M^«MMaMi^aMMafllM£9M 
 
 PARt 
 
 i 
 
An Efay on Reafoil. 405 
 
 PART 11. 
 
 Whence poceeds it that Man is fo tin-' 
 reafonable^ and ho-w to improve our 
 Reafon. 
 
 IT is indeed very ftrangC;, that Man, who 
 improves daily fo much in all Arts and Scien- 
 ces, that are neither fo neceiTary, fo eafie^ 
 nor fo advantageous to us, fhould ftill de- 
 creafe in this excellent Study, this Noble and 
 Ufeful Knowledge : Let us then enquire a little 
 into the occafions of thefe Errors in his Reafon- 
 ings, and ' we fliall find them fo filly, that they 
 alio difcover to us new Weakneffesin his Reafon." 
 I know that we generally charge this oa 
 Man's Atheifm, imagining he would reafon Juft- 
 ly, if he believ'd the Principles I have laid down ; 
 but this is a Miftake, for Atheifts reafon moft 
 weakly, as well as others, and moft inconfe- 
 quentially to their own Principles; for even A- 
 theifts difquiet themfelves for Fame and Money, 
 and by Whoring and Drinking deftroy their 
 Bodies, which is all they dote upon, arxd iJiould 
 prefer ve, and which fliews their Uureafonable* 
 nefs, according to their own Principles; and 
 that Infidelity is not the caufe of falfc Reafoning, 
 apears clearly, becaufe fach as are not Atheifts^ 
 reafon falfly ; and we may obferve , that 
 fuch as beHeve that by the ill Diets they ufe, 
 their terriblePains will be? renew'd^do yet adven- 
 ture on them. Oh, that they only of all Man- 
 E e ' ' kind 
 
4o6 '^An EJfay on Reafon. 
 
 kind were the unreafonable Men! But how un- 
 reafonable are they, who believing there is a 
 Crown of Glory referv'd for thofe that will run 
 that Heavenly Race, chufe rather to fit Tipling 
 and Gaming ; that believe the Son of God ftands 
 ftretching out his Arms, ready to preferve them, 
 and yet will rather fmk down into that fearful 
 Pit from which there is no Redemption ; who 
 will rather ftarve than feek that Heavenly Man- 
 na, and languifh of their Wounds^ than leek the 
 Balm of Gilead, from the hand of a loving Fa- 
 ther ; whom no Judgments on others can awa- 
 ken, nor Mercies to themlelves can oblige; Sick, 
 amidft fo many Cures ; Poor, amidft fuch Plen- 
 ty; Blind, notwithftanding fo much Light; 
 and Infenfible, fpight of fo many Convidi- 
 ons. 
 
 But how can Men reafon well, fincethey nei- 
 ther underltand the true ufe of Reafon, nor what 
 Man is ? And thefe are the two firit and great 
 Occafions of our Errors. 
 
 As to Reafon, let us examine ourfelves nar- 
 rowly, and we fhall find that Men think they 
 need not Reafon in the great and confiderable 
 defigns of Life ; as if thefe were matters to be ta- 
 ken upon truft ; and as if Reafon were to be 
 iis*d only in Matters of State, or in Debate or 
 Trade. And I defire to know, who fits 
 down to reafon with himfelf, why he lives fo, 
 or to know, if what he does, is according to the 
 .Rules given him, for regulating his Actions. 
 I have my felf fpent Twenty Years in reafon- 
 ing eagerly to fecure other Mens Eftates ; but 
 I have fpent very little time to confider, by a 
 robler Reafoning, why do Ifpend fo much time 
 V • reafoning for other Men, and yet fo little for 
 ),j felf; tho' in the mean time, I do but too, 
 ^^rvch prefer my felf to all others ? You will find 
 
 feme 
 
An EJfay on Reafon. ^07 
 
 fome Divines very bufie in arguing, whether 
 God from all Eternity could have made Crea- 
 tures, and yet thefe Men will never confider 
 what fliall become of them in Eternity. The Cure 
 then of this, is to confider Reafon, not as a 
 Tool, ufeful for Gain or Fame only, but as a 
 Square, put in our Hands by our kind God, to 
 inftrud us how to make our Adions ftraighc 
 and even; and as a Workman does ftrft mind to 
 have all regulated by his Square, and after his 
 Work is finifhed, applies the Square to what he 
 has made ; fo ought we, when any thing is de- 
 fign'd by us, refolve to do all in it by the Rules 
 of Rei^fon, and when the AAion is ended, exa- 
 mine if it be fo : And to invite us to this, God 
 has not oblig'd us to feek for this any foreign or 
 remote Remedy ; no, nor to owe our Remedy 
 to any other ; but has plac'd his Candle in our 
 BreaftSj and honour'd us with the being our own 
 Governors and^ Diredors. Let us then thi'nk, 
 and think on Matters of Importance, and of 
 Matters that import us ; let us think as much of 
 Heaven, which cannot be taken from us, when, 
 once we are poffeffed of it, as wc do of temporal 
 Eftates, in the polTeffion of which we cannot be 
 fecured. Let us think as much upon our felves, 
 whom we value too much, as upon others, whom 
 we value too little. 
 
 We ufe oft-times our Reafon to argue faldy 
 for Intereft, Or by Pre-engagement; and this de- 
 bauches our Reafon, after vvhich it continues 
 ^eafily in this Error : For this takes off that Re- 
 ference and Efteem we ought to have for juft 
 reafoning. Thus Lawyers favouring ftill, and 
 being oblig'd to maintain the Caufe of shofe who 
 have retained them, force their Reafon to find 
 Arguments for their own (ide; Divines thinking 
 theinfeives obliged to defend the Pofidons of 
 t f> ? that 
 
4o^ An EJfay on Rcafon. 
 
 rhnt Church wherein they were born, reafon 
 Uillinirs defence: States- Men, to fortifie their 
 Party , endeavour to perfwade all Men to em- 
 hrpjceit; and Orators, not excepting ,the Phi- 
 lolophers amongil them, to bcautifie their Dif- 
 couiTes, urge things that are meer Flouriihes, 
 having much Luftre, but no vStrength ; great In- 
 {lanccs whereof are to be feen in Seneca , ar\d 
 generally in all the Heathens, who as I fliall 
 fliew exprefly elfewhere , were forc'd, by not 
 knowing the true Principles whereupon Reafon 
 was to be built, to maintain by falfe Reafonings 
 the true Principles that they defign'd to recom- 
 mend. We do likewife form our Morality by our 
 Intereft,and guide not our Interefl: by our Morals ; 
 and after we have form'd any Defign, we find 
 outReafons to perfwade us that it is juft: And 
 thus weofr-timesmiftakelntereft. Imaginations, 
 and Prejudices, for folid Reafon ; the true Cure 
 whereof lies in being painful and curious in our 
 firit Reafonings; and as careful not to com- 
 mit Errors by fcilfe and carelefs Arguings, in 
 Matters of eternal Happinefs, as Mathematici- 
 ans are in their Demonftrations about Figures 
 and Couclufions, which cannot fecure them a- 
 gainft one Misfortune, nor add one day to their 
 Lives 
 
 Bigotry, and falfe Conceptions of Religion, 
 do alfo darken much our Reafon; for fome- 
 times, by implicit Faith and Infallibility, ( thofe 
 great Tyrants over Reafon ) we accuftom our 
 felves to Lazinefs, wherein we lofe the habit of 
 Reafoning ; and fometimes by impofing upon 
 us things inconfiftent with it, and by teaching 
 us that it is a dangerous Guide, we lelTen our 
 own Efteem for it, and create infenfibly in our 
 felves a Jealoufie that it is an Impofturc ; and we 
 
 baffle 
 
An Epiy on Reafon. 409 
 
 baffldit fo on thefc occafions that at other times it 
 dares not try its own flrengch. T confefs, that 
 it ought in a juft fubmiflion yield to his Com- 
 mands who made it, nor fliould we hear the- 
 Servant when the Mafter fpeaks ; but except 
 when the Will of God does exprefly ordain ones 
 Reafon to fubmit, we ought not to deny our 
 felves the true excercife of it, to pleafe Men, 
 who underftand not its true ftrength, or do up- 
 on dafigns impofe on us the abandoning of it. 
 And this has infeded us fo far, that by it a4l o- 
 ther Sciences did fall very low. And if fome 
 bold Defender, fuch as Omes and others, 
 had not interpos'd, we had been led by implicit 
 Faith, in all the Objedsof Knowledge as well as 
 in all the Objeds of Faith ; and every School- 
 man would have exaded as much abfolute Sub- 
 miflion to his own Dictates asweftiouldpay to the 
 unerringCommands of our infallibleCreator.And 
 oft-times Self-love paffing for Religion, blinds us 
 whilil it promifes Illumination : As a clear In- 
 ftance whereof I fhall defire any wife Man to 
 confider, that if this were true Zeal which led 
 Men to hazard all they have for the ridiculous 
 difference about indifferentCeremonies orTenets, 
 why do they not hazard all they polfefs for the 
 defence of the Chriitian Religion againfl the 
 Turks ; fince in found Reafon , and by a Mathe- 
 matical Certainty, the whole is to be preferred 
 to a part. And to prove that this is the effect of 
 Self-love, and not of true Devotion, it is very 
 obfervable, that the lefs the Differences be in 
 fuch Cafe§, we are ordinarily the more paflio- 
 nate in them, being inclin'd rather to have our 
 Sentiments fu{lain'd,than theCommands of God 
 obey'd j moft Men being to themfelves their 
 own only God, and being afliam'd that they 
 E e 2 fliould 
 
+ > o An EJfciy on Reafon. 
 
 fhould err even in the meaneft Circumdance^ 
 
 Men may think me infolent when I tell them 
 that they underftand not themfelves ; but they 
 fhould bear this from me^ who would willingly 
 wifh that they could juftly tax me of a I.ye in it. 
 But for my Security I muft put them in mind, 
 ^hat Monfieur Tafchal told them before me^ that 
 he had laid afide the Study of the Mathematicks, 
 becaufe few underftood to converfe with him in 
 it, and betook himfelf to confider Man ; as 
 thinl^ing that a Subjeft fo near, and of fuch Con- 
 cern to every one, that all could not but under- 
 Hand it; and yet he found this lefs underftood 
 than the other. But that I may contribute my 
 mean Endeavours for clearing them in this, I 
 muft defire them to confider, that Man being 
 created to love and admire God, it muft follow 
 by a neceflary Confequence, that God was to 
 be the Center of all his Knowledge ; and right 
 Reafon was a drawing of all his Conclufions as 
 fo many Lines, to reft upon God as that Center. 
 But Man defigning to exalt himfelf, does by a 
 vvoful Miftake make himfelf the Center ; and 
 Self-love, as another Reafon, draws ^11 into this 
 Deflgn. And thus, whereas we jfhould ftudy to 
 uuderftand the excellent Works of the Crea- 
 tion, that in them" we may underftand the In- 
 finitenefs of that wonderful Creator ; w^ ftu- 
 dy them only thereby to adorn our own 
 Spirits, and thus to raife an Efteem in others 
 for us ; and crook in all the Conclufions 
 we make to our felves and our Conveniency, as 
 the Center of all our Defigns. And thus we 
 have invented new Sciences , Arts and Recrea- 
 tions , fuch as Criticifms, Raillery, Comedies, 
 Tragedies, &c. merely that our Works may be 
 admir'd as much as his. And therefore it is im- 
 pcfTMc we can ever reafon juftly , flnce all the 
 
 Lines 
 
An EJfay on Reafon. 4- vl 
 
 Lines of our Reafoning tend to a wrong Cen- 
 ter : But if we return to our Duty , in refol- 
 ving to love and admire him, and not our felves, 
 every Conclufion, being drawn froiii true Prin- 
 ciples and Pofitions, would recover its Original 
 Streighmefs. And thus, if we adOr'd God more 
 than Kings and Princes, we would not dif- 
 pleafe God to pleafe them , tftat We might be 
 enrich'd or advanc'd by them. If we ftudied 
 iOnly to know him in his Creatures, and not to 
 raife our own Fame by them , wd would not 
 toil and vex our felves to acquire Fame , nor 
 forget Serving and Adoring him, that we might 
 get time to know thofe Sciences, and be efteem'd 
 for, and delighted in that Learning. Self-love, 
 amongft its other Cheats , hinders us to ftudy 
 Chriftian Morality , becaufe that would let us 
 fee how vile and frail we are ; and therefore, 
 as a Diverfion, it carries us impetuonfly to ftudy 
 other Sciences , wherein we may admire our 
 own Wit and Sagacity. But that which feems 
 to me the true Notion of Learning , is, that it 
 fhould be a Defign to know and admire God in 
 his Works ; for which Natural Philofophy and 
 Mathematicks are to be ftudied ; in his Provi- 
 dence, which we may know by Hiftory ; iii 
 his Juftice , to be known by Law • and in his 
 Governing the Soul of Man, which is the Ob- 
 jeft of Moral Philofophy ; but above all , in 
 himfelf , and the Myfteries of our Salvation, 
 taught by Divinity when well dire6led. 
 
 A Proof of which, as well as a new Caufe of 
 our Errors in Reafoning is , That the firft Rule 
 by which our Reafons are fquared and direded, 
 are the Writings of thoie Illuftrious Heathens, 
 who in our Youth are recommended to us as 
 the only Guides and Patterns : The beft of 
 which, fuch as Plata , Epi^etus , Seneca and o- 
 E e 4 thers. 
 
412 'An EJfay on Reafon. 
 
 thers, being abfolutcly ignorant of Man's gr^at 
 Difeafe, which is Original Sin, could not but 
 miftake the Remedies of his Actual Tranfgref- 
 fions ; and knowing nothing more excellent 
 than their own Reafon , they concluded it was 
 fufficient. And having, from their Poets and 
 Traditions, learned rqean low Thoughts of their 
 Gods , who w(*re in thofe Days made the chief 
 Actors of the Sins they fhould have punifhed ; 
 and defcrib'd as more employ'd in fatisfying 
 their own Paflions , than in Governing of the 
 World ; thofe mifled Philofophers did not only 
 equal themfelves to, but raifed thcmfelves above 
 the Gods whom they taught others and thcm- 
 felves to adore. And to that Height did this 
 Miftake in their Rcafon'm^ fly , that Seneca con- 
 cludes his Wife-man much preferable to the 
 Gods , becaufe the Good they did, arofe from 
 the Neceflity of their own Nature ; whereas 
 Man , being left to a Freedom in his Actions, 
 made them good by his own wife Choice. 
 EfiBetus founds his Philofophy upon that only 
 Principle ; I'hat the Things within us are in our own 
 Tower, but the Things without us are not. Whereas 
 St. Paul from Heaven afltires us , That of our 
 fei'ves , as of our felyes , we ca-n do no good ; And 
 our own Experience doth moft convincingly a- 
 gree with St. Taul, ngainft EpiBetus. And where- 
 as a Principle in any Science fliould be an- un- 
 controverted Truth ; we find daily , that this 
 Principle is an abfolute Lye. For that Man, 
 who thinks that he can with an unerring Hand 
 govern his Paffions , has never undertaken the 
 Subduing of them. And video meliora, p'ohct^ue, 
 Jeteriora fecjuor, agrees much better with our own 
 Experience , as well as with St. Taul ; who , 
 tho* among the greateft of Saints , complains 
 juftly, .Rom. 7. Jf. That which I would, that d^ 1 
 
 not ; 
 
An Effay on Reafon. 4.! J 
 
 not ; hut what I hate, that do I ,• and therefore is 
 forced to cry out , JVho jliall deli'veP me from this 
 body of death ? Cicero's Difcourfe concerning the 
 Nature of Gods , and Plato's Dialogues of the 
 Immortality of the Soul, may convince us how 
 weakly thofe great Patterns of Philofophy do 
 reafon, even upon thofe Subjeds where Reafon 
 was not altogether miftaken. And from thofe, 
 and all the Writings of the Ancient Pagans , I 
 do more juftly conclude. That thofe great Ideas 
 which our Mailers have given us of them , and 
 the Eloquence which fhines every where in their 
 Writings , have mifled us from the Ways that 
 lead to the New Jerufalem ; and from admiring 
 the Beauty of Holinefs which fiiines in thofe 
 Scriptures , which have God Almighty and the 
 Holy One of Ifrael for their Author and Sub- 
 ject ; and in which we are taught to exped more 
 Help from Heaven , than from our felves, a- 
 gainft our Innate and Original Corruption ; 
 which is more to be overcome by Praying than 
 Thinking , and can never be overcome with- 
 out that Humility and Self-denial , which was 
 abfolutely unknown to the Heathens ; as I hope 
 to prove in another Difcourfe , where thefe 
 Thoughts fliall have their full Scope. 
 
 I am far from defigning in this to root out Self- 
 love , but rather to dired and improve it. For 
 certainly God has grafted Self-love in every 
 Man's Heart, to the end Man might thereby be 
 the more oblig'd to love him, to whom he owe? 
 all thofe Excellencies which he loves in him- 
 felf ; and that he may be thereby oblig'd to pre- 
 ferve himfelf as a Part of the Univerfe,and which 
 is in general preferv'd by every Man's Loving 
 himfelf : And fo far has God allow'd this Self- 
 love , that he punifiies Man when he deftroys 
 himfelf. But that Self-love which I here in- 
 veigh 
 
4r ^ 4- An EJfay on Reafon . - 
 
 veigh againft, is a falfe and Impofturc-Paffion, 
 whereby Man makes himfelf the Spring , from 
 which all his Defigns follow the Mark ac which 
 they aim, and the Rule by which they are to be 
 fquaredj than which nothing can be more unrea- 
 fonable. For how can we juftify our felves, 
 in requiring abfolute Deference from all that is 
 ours i if we yield it not to that Infinite Being 
 to whom we owe all ? And as he brought us 
 out of nothing, fo we fhoiild iHll remember that 
 wc are nothing before him. If every Man made 
 himfelf the Rule, and drew all to himlelf, what 
 a diftra<5ted thing would this World be ? And 
 how impoflible would it be for any Man to live 
 comfortably in it ? And as a private Man would 
 he efteem'd mad , who in a Court would think 
 that all Things fliould be defign'd there for his 
 Glory and Pleafure ; fo , much more is Man 
 a diftraclcd Creature, when he makes himfelf 
 the chief Aim of all his Adions. Whereas , if 
 a Courtier take great Care to pleafe the Mo- 
 narch , and to deiign his Glory and Advantage, 
 he will thereby raife himfelf in a fecurer , as 
 well as a jufter wa}'". And therefore , becaufe 
 Self-love is fo ttrong an Orator , and is ftill at 
 the bottom of all Perfwafion , we fliould exa- 
 mine cautioufly what is urged upon us under the 
 Difguife of Self-love ; and whether we do re- 
 ally love our felves , when we yield to thofe 
 Things to which we are tempted. I fhall con- 
 clude this Period with a fad Affertion ; That in 
 fpite of all that Men profefs , yet too many re- 
 ally , at the bottom , millake thcmfelves fo far, 
 as to think that they have no Original Frailties, 
 and therefore that they are able to command 
 their Pafltons ; and that they need no Divine 
 Afliftance ; that they are nothing elfe, fave that 
 Body which we fee -, that they are not to die 
 
 fo 
 
An EJfay on Reafon. 415 
 
 fo foon ; and that the Things they are doine; 
 now^ are the only Things to be card for , and 
 will remain with them for ever. And if moft 
 Men have this Idea of themfelves , I defire to 
 know how they can draw juft Conclufions from 
 fuch miftaken Principles. 
 
 Another Caufe of our Reafoning fo weakly,' 
 is. That the Things of another World are too 
 remote to feem great to us , and too fpiritual to 
 be difcerned by carnal Eyes. Th^ leaft thing;, 
 when plac'd immediately before our Eyes , will 
 intercept, and exclude all further Profped ; and 
 even the leaft confpicuous Objeds, and Senfual 
 Things do , by a conftant Tide of Emanations, 
 flow in continually upon us, fo as to fill our 
 Thoughts , and leave little Room for any thing 
 elfe. But as a Remedy to this , let us confidcr, 
 that fince even Corporal and Senfual Pleaf-ires 
 charm us only when we think much upon rhem, 
 it follows, that Thinking is the Source and O- 
 rigin of Efteem : Tho' we fee not the Riches of 
 a golden Mine, yet our Belief will make uS 
 toil for it; and the Hope of fucceeding to an E- 
 ftate will oblige us to follow eagerly what ':hat 
 Hope fuggefts. And fince Faith is the Kvldince 
 of things not feen, it does reprefent Things to 
 come with a Certainty that makes them pre- 
 fent ; and albeit it may be objeded , that we 
 have feen fome fuch Things as thefe Mines, 
 and worldly Succeflions, and therefore it is that 
 we believe and love them more ; yet that is of 
 no Moment. For the Miracles that Men have 
 heard of, and the wonderful Works of Provi- 
 dence which we daily fee, efpecially when born 
 in upon us by the Convidion of our own Con-* 
 fciences, feem as ftrong Motives as any that 
 Senfe can afford. Confcience , that luminoas 
 Senfe of the Soul , being ftronger , and more 
 
 perfua- 
 
4^1 ^ An E[fay on Reafon. 
 
 perfuafiVe to any that will hear it , t han any 
 of our dull and outward Senfes, which have on- 
 ly Afliftahce from flupid Flefh and Blood : Con- 
 verfation alfo about Thinp;s Spiritual and Divine, 
 will be in placQ of Senfual Emanations to us, 
 and will reprefent a future Life , and the World 
 to come^ to a hearkning Soul, as if it were prc- 
 fent ; nor will the Almighty fail to aflift that 
 Eloquence which has him for its only and ul- 
 timate Scope. 
 
 The Soul certainly being a Spiritual Subftance, 
 can more eafily unite it felf to immaterial Ob- 
 jeAs, fuch as a future State of Happinefs, than 
 to the terreftrial Objects, with which we fill it ; 
 and the only Fault is in us , who do not apply 
 our felves to the thinking on thele. Do we not 
 find that fuch as afpire to Fame^ are more taken 
 with it than any Man is with Meat or Drink, 
 yea, and Fife it felf , for the Conqueft whereof 
 all thefe are contemn'd : And yet Fame is a 
 meer immaterial Objed , that has nothing afFe- 
 6ting the Senfes, otherwifc than by thinking no- 
 thing Prefent , nothing Corporeal ; and gene- 
 rally, the Spirit of Man is more pleas'd with 
 Expectation than with any prefent Pofleffion 
 whatfoever ; fo far, that if we exped: any little 
 Accident, it will bufy more our Thoughts, and 
 faften them more to it than a thoufand Things 
 of greater Value already polFefs'd. This then 
 can be no fuch hard Task as our Lazinefs per- 
 fuades it to be. 
 
 Tho' we be convinc'd of the Truths on which 
 I have founded my Obfervations, yet we advert 
 not to them, nor heed them. Thus tho' an Ob- 
 jeA were moft confpicuous,yet if we dote fo up- 
 on any other , as never to turn our i.ycs that 
 way, we fhall not be taken with either its Value 
 or Beauty. We arc bred up in a great Eftcem 
 
 for 
 
An EJfay on Reafon . 417 
 
 for the Things of this World , and fo are rather 
 pre-engag'd than blind , and buy not that PegirJ, 
 of Price, becaufe we have laid out our Stock om 
 other Trifles ; which is a great Defect in our 
 Reafon, and for which we would contemn o- 
 ther Merchants .- And this is to be cur'd by ha- 
 ving a true Value for Things, and by redifying 
 all our Ideas • and therefore he who refolves to 
 Reafon juflly , fhould begin firft to confider, 
 when any thing occurs, of what Ufe it may be, 
 and of what Value it is. As for Inftance, Is 
 this Land , for which I am finfully providing 
 Money, worth Heaven ? Or this Man , whom 
 I am to pleafe , abler to make me Happy than 
 God Almighty , to whom in this I prefer him ? 
 And fo , like a skilful Chymift, refolve every 
 Thing into its true Principles , and then try its 
 Value ; and like a Merchant, who has been oft- 
 en cheated , refolve at laft to confider what fuch 
 Things are worth, whether they will be fafhio- 
 nablc where we are going , and whether they 
 will return us the Stock we lay out upon them. 
 For improving this Thought, we fhould .con- 
 fider, that though we difcover Truths , yet we 
 do not take time to ponder them fufficiently : 
 And thus , though we be convinc'd , yet we 
 improve not fufficiently our Convidions. Self- 
 love, and the Love of Eafe has us'd us to a par- 
 tial and fuperficial Way of Enquiry ; and from 
 this alfo proceed thefe Wanderings which wea- 
 ken thofe pious Meditations, and diflurb that 
 Earneflnefs in Prayer, by which we can only 
 procure a iuit Illumination in our Reafoning : 
 Defultorinefs of Thought grows daily when it 
 is not lelTen'd , and the next Days Wanderings 
 are the Punifhment of thofe which we fufTered 
 to prfevail Yefterday. But fhould we not be 
 afliara'd, 'that we cannot think our Salvation 
 
 wor- 
 
4 1 8 'An EJfay on ReafonJ 
 
 worthy of fome ferious Hours, fince it is that 
 which Go'^ Almighty has conftantly deilgn'(!, 
 and follow'd from all Eternity , though we are 
 far more concerned in it. And that we can 
 fpend many entire Hours upon a Queftion of 
 Law or Mathematicks , and yet cannot fix our 
 The uf hts upon that infinite Being, in whom 
 there are far more infinite Perfedions j an Ob- 
 ^dc that can never be exhaufted, where every 
 Thought would open a new Scene of Thoughts, 
 yet more delightful ; by which Angels have been 
 for many Thoufands of Years detain'd in con- 
 ftant Raptures , contemplating thofe admirable 
 Myfteries, which the Scripture tells us the An- 
 gels defire to pry into, finding by a conftant En- 
 quiry, new Matter of Holy Learning and Blef- 
 fed Curiofity ; and are faid by God himfelf to 
 have learn'd this from thofe happy Chriftians to 
 whom thofe Myfteries were firft reveal'd , Efh. 
 ;. 8. Learn then, O Chriftian , to manage thy 
 Spirit, try firft by what means thou ufeft to fix 
 it on other Occafions, and improving thefe 
 from the obvious Advantages that pious Fixation 
 will yield above all others,, beg humbly, by 
 Prayer, a new Supply to thy native Forces, ac- 
 knowledge to God that thou haft taught thy 
 own Thoughts this Seditioufnefs and Tumultua- 
 rinefs of which thou complain*ft ; and hope, 
 that as by frequent Yieldings thou feddeft that 
 Vice into a Habit, fo that by frequent and refo- 
 lute Oppofitions thou may'ft deftroy that obfti- 
 nate and dangerous Habit, and introduce a con- 
 trary one, which will make thy Fixednefs eafy 
 and plcafant. Frequent Reafonings do alfo not 
 only make us argue more ftrongly and eafily, 
 but do warm us into a Convidion firft, and then 
 ipto a I ove for that for which we contend ; 
 Andtlius Lawyers are ofc-times convinc'd, evei^ 
 
 in 
 
'^An EJfay on Reafon^ 41 9 
 
 in the ill Caufes they plead ; and Hereticks fix 
 themfelves in their Errors, by frequent Contefts 
 for them. Why then fhould we not argue more 
 frequently both againft our felves, and with o- 
 thers, upon thefe excellent Truths, by which al- 
 fo we fhould be engag'd in Honour to walk fui- 
 tably to thefe Truths, of which we profefs to 
 others that we are convincM ? And who could 
 be fo abfurd, as after he has been debating a- 
 gainft another for his Drinking, yet would invite 
 him to a Debauch ? But, alas, every Man loves 
 to debate in his own Calling, except the Chrifti- 
 an : And it is become as much a Shame to talk 
 of Devotion as it ought to be our Glory and De- 
 light; and Men feem afraid to debate, left by be- 
 ing too much convinc'd of what they ought to 
 do , they fhould be too much terrified for what 
 they have done ; and fo thefe Convi Aions beget 
 an uneafinefs to them, when to gratifie their Hu- 
 mour they are tempted to renew their fins. 
 
 Hypocrifie affords us a clear Proof of this Par- 
 tiality, as well as of Man*s contradicting him- 
 felf ; ' for to confefs there is a God who is Omni- 
 fcient, who knows the fecrets of Hearts, and 
 before whom there is nothing hid in Heaven or 
 Earth, and yet to think that we can conceal our 
 Thoughts from his all-feeing Eye, implies a flat 
 Contradi<5lion ; as it alfo does to care for no- 
 thing but what may caufe an efteem in our felves 
 for our felves. We really value other Mens 
 approbation, becaufe it confirms us in our own: 
 nor would the vaineft Man alive value all the 
 Flatteries imaginable, if he thought he could not 
 defcrve them. Yet in Hypocrifie we muft know, 
 tliat we deferve not the Applaufe to which we 
 pretend :,and it is worthy of our thoughts, to en- 
 quire impartially, how Men can reconcile thefe 
 
4^0 An EJpiy on Reafon. 
 
 in themfelves ; for the moft debauched Reafon 
 will not adventure upon any Contradiftion with- 
 out -fome fceming Reconciliation. And tho' at 
 the firft, it may fecm that Want of Confiderati- 
 on is the Caufe of this, yet this cannot be ; for 
 if we know not that we are mafquing, it is no 
 Hypocrify j and on the contrary, Hypocrify re- 
 quires great Refle<5lion, becaufe it needs muchL 
 Precaution. The Reafon then of the firft muft 
 be, that as to God we truft our Repentance,, and 
 to his Mercy ; as if forfooth, we did him little 
 Wrong, by making his Creature appear more 
 Excellent than it is ; and as if it might prejudge 
 his Service, to let others fee, that we are many 
 times more wicked than they ; or that we did 
 God good Service, in encouraging others to be 
 pious by our good Example ; and that we by 
 Hypocrify, do only raife an Efteem, or come to 
 an Employment by which we may be truly fer- 
 viceable to God in our other Actions. But I re- 
 ally think, that the Heart of Man is fo narrow, 
 that it can hold only one Scheme of Thoughts at 
 once ; and therefore this little Soul being fill'd 
 with a Defire of Applaufe, and with the Shame 
 of being filly and undeferving, it reflects indeed, 
 but all its Reflections look that way. The Man 
 is full of this, and intent upon it, and fo he fees 
 not the Contradidion, how palpable focver it 
 be ; but yet it is fo notorious and difcemable, 
 that I may juftly conclude his Reafon weak, if 
 not blind, who does not difcern it. The Cure 
 then of this fubtile Cheat, muft be by purfuing 
 thisTmpofture into its fecretRecefs ; by feeing 
 this Player before he put on his fine Cloaths and 
 Diiguifes ; by turning all our Thoughts to God , 
 aud from our felves ; adverting fexioufly and im- 
 partially to every little Circumftance in the De- 
 fign that is to be confidered. 
 
 I have 
 
An EJfay on Reafon.' 4/2 1 
 
 1 have aft-times admir'd the prevalency of ' 
 Cuftom above Reafon ; and tho' Brutes, who' 
 ^vant Reafon, or Children, in whom it is yec 
 itarce ripened/ beled by it ; yet what a ftrange 
 thing is it, that in men who have Reafon in' 
 maturity, Cuftom becorries not only a fecond 
 Nature, but overcomes Naturejand is a fecond 
 Nature, becaufe it ahnoft extrip^tes Reafon,' 
 which was our firft Nature ? For tho' the oMer 
 we grow, our Reafon fhould grow the ftron- 
 ger, yet it falls ftill weaker, and melts {o beforie 
 Cuftom, that even the virtuous and du- 
 tiful Anions we do, feem rather the efFecSs 
 of Cuftom than of Reafon. For if they 
 proceeded from, Reafon, the fame Reafon 
 ivhich prompted us to do them, would ob- ^ 
 ligeusto a6t vertuoufly on all other Occafions. 
 And we fee that we alter our Vertues as the Fa- 
 fhions and Cuftoms of our Country chang^; 
 But to conclude this Expoftul?ition, I cannot 
 but wonder that a Man ftiou.ld be call'd rea- 
 fonable, after he has trufted the making 
 Laws and Moulds for living happily and du- 
 tifully, to the Multitude or Crowd, the worfl; 
 Ofali Judges; and which we our felves con- 
 temn as ail ignorant, giddy, and eapriciout 
 Rabbld. 
 
 Of which Influence of Cuftofn over Reafon, 
 many different Caufes occur to me ; for fom'e- 
 times I think that Cuftoms eftablifti and fix 
 themfelves in us whilft we are yet j^oiing, that 
 Reafon can neither defend it felf nor us, efpe- 
 cially as tounufual Pieafures, Which are the 
 proper and natural objects of our firft years : 
 and like Weeds that have over-grown the 
 Ground, tho' ne^^er fo fertile, they hinder the 
 better Plants from growing up. To prevenft 
 F f which;; 
 
4i^a jdn EJfay on Ke^ifon. 
 
 which, it is necefTary that we teach young 
 ones to reafon very early, and accurtom them 
 to a Chriftian Logick , that is better than 
 what they can learn in the Schools. Thus we 
 may make Cuftom it felf ufeful rather than 
 hurtful to Reafon, and teach it tofcrve, where- 
 as now it governs. And I know one who cur'd 
 his habitual Swearing, by arguing with himfelf. 
 That fince even the King's Enemies were able 
 to reftrain themfelves from fpeaking Treafon, 
 by refleding on its dangerous Confequences^ 
 it wasftrange, that he who was convinc'd that 
 Swearing did draw more dangerous confequen- 
 ces, could not abftain from a Cuftom that was 
 altogether hateful, without the leaft allay of 
 Pleafure or Advantage, to which the others 
 might pretend. 
 
 Sometimes I think, that Cuftom having the 
 force of the Multitude which fupports it, 
 they all concur to pull back a well refolved 
 Man from his virtuous Refolutions; and 
 Cuftom prevails rather by numbers than by 
 jtrength: And to prevent this, it is necel- 
 faryfor a man who refolves to Reafon 
 juftly, to withdraw for fomc time from the 
 Crowd: Pro-v. i8. r. A man, ikys Solomon, ha- 
 *ving feparated himfelf, meddleth with all TVifdom* 
 And Seneca tells us , That fanahimur modo a ca- 
 tu feparewur. Jefus Chrift alfo, who.hastrir 
 umphedover the World, is by ftrong Intercefli- 
 ons to be called in againft this potent Enemy, 
 who has fhewn us, that he can throw out and 
 difpoftcfs that Devil whofe Name is Legion : 
 But .the Multitude, is never fo corrupt, but 
 that Itill Tome are to be found who can afllft us 
 in reafoning juftly upon things ; and we fhould 
 alfo remember, that we value fo little the 
 ^ ' Multitude, 
 
An EJfay on Reafon. 413 
 
 Multitude, that we ftand not in awe of what 
 they lay of us, when we are gaining Money^; 
 or fatisfying our Pleafures: why then fhould 
 we ftill fpehd all we have, and deny our felves 
 all Pleafures in foil owing Cuftom, or court- 
 ing Fame; fince Cuftom and Fame are but 
 the Dictates of the Multitude, an Homage 
 which unthinking men are forced to pay the 
 Rabble, becaufe they dare not ferioufly refle<i 
 on what they do? Or which defigning Men 
 pay them in hopes to make them firft Tools to 
 their Ambition, and thereafter Slaves to theic 
 Tyranny. 
 
 But at other times theftrength ofCuf-cni' 
 flows from our Lazinefs, who love the way 
 thatis chalked out to us, and think it fafer to 
 follow, rather than lead the Crowd ; cheated 
 to this by a cowardly Humility, which proves 
 bur never having confidered the Noblenefs of 
 our own Origine ; Which is to be cured t jT, 
 a generous Refolution cf defnifing difficulties jj' 
 and of being Slaves as allPerfons are who love 
 better to obey, than to Examine the Didates of 
 others. And we are moft unreafonable, when 
 we have fo itrong defires to lead the Multitude 
 to our Ruin, as in feditious Tumults and Fadi- 
 ons; and yet will be content to be tamely led 
 by them in what is much nobler and of greac 
 confequence. How much more do we praife 
 thofe great Leg;iflators,who governed the Mul- 
 titude by their Virtues, than thofe Sycophants 
 who adored them by Submiftions? There is 
 Light in Virtue and Religion, and there is 
 none dares refift it; it is able to aftoniflias well 
 as convince: nor are men fo wicked as not td 
 defire to be affifted by fome happy Genius, iii 
 what they are convinced is beft<; And every 
 Man almod ftands- only iri awe of another, ex- 
 Ff2 peeing 
 
4-a^ An Ejfay on Reafon. 
 
 pe<9:ing and wifhing fome Mofes to undertake 
 their delivery. 
 
 Generally Self-love feems to lead into thefe 
 Sentiments^ as thinking the Multitude will cry 
 up their own Inclinations, and is unwilling to 
 check that Multitude from which it expec^ls 
 applaufe; and whofe many Suffrages it needs 
 to maintain it, againft that inward fenfe it has 
 of its own weaknefs andfillinefs* And this is to 
 be cured by a noble refledion upon the Digni- 
 ty of our firft Creation ; and a defire to be a- 
 gain like to that God whofe Image at firft we 
 were, and whofe Sons we may yet be, if 
 we can raife our hopes above thofe lower 
 Spheres of fenfual Joys and Pleafures which 
 poyfon us when they leem fweet, and cheat 
 us when they appear great. 
 
 One of the dreadful efFeds of our following 
 the Example of others^ is, that we think it is 
 fufficientto be asreaTonable as rhey ; And thus 
 we foolifh and unre^fonable Mortals, Hint and 
 bound one anothers goodnefs. Now this we 
 Ihall eafily perceive to be moft unreafonable, 
 when we confiderthat noManwillfatisfie him- 
 felf in being as powerful or rich as his Neigh- 
 bours,' tho' thefe be much lefs defirablefor a 
 Soul and Spirit, which is the Image of an In- 
 finite God , and is after all its beft Endeavours 
 here very far from attaining to that degree of 
 Perfection which is even requifite to the Life of 
 a Chriftian. Devotion is a Race, and who is 
 It that when he runs with many Rivals, will 
 content himfelf to be in the Throng, efpecially 
 if the Prize be confiderable: And therefore the 
 Apoftle exhorts us to forget thofe things which arg 
 behind, and to reach forth to thofe things that are 
 
 before, 
 
An EJJay on Reafon. 4.15 
 
 before, frejflng towards the mark, for the prize of . 
 the high calling in Chrifi J efus, Phil. :;. 14. We 
 are not only obliged to prefs on to obtain the 
 Crown, but being purfued by our fpiritual 
 Enemies, we are concerned toufe allthefpeed 
 thatispoflible. And would not we conclude 
 him mad, who if he were purfu'd for his Life, 
 would not defire to be paft all danger, but con- 
 tent himfelf that he were not the laft amongft 
 thofe who endeavoured to efcape? 
 
 It is ftrange, that notwithftanding that Gu- 
 ftom does fo lead us when we go, not where 
 we ought to go, but where others have 
 gone before us, yet we oft-times err to a 
 contrary Extreme, and by a contrary 
 Reafon, which is as falfe and more dange- 
 rous than the other; reafoning weakly and 
 falfely from a defign and defire to be fingular, 
 and confequcntly to be admir'd. Thus even 
 whilft in this we oppofe the multitude, we de- 
 fign to pleafe them too ; for no Man admires 
 what does not delight him ; and probably, 
 thefe fame Contradiftors would have chofen ra- 
 ther to have gone to Fame in the beaten Path, 
 by a direct pleafing and following of tbehi ; 
 but finding a Crowd before them in it, which 
 they could^not pafs by, they, by a long and a 
 dangerous circuit, run before, and endeavour 
 to keep the Pafs on their Rivals, and hinder 
 them from coming up at Fame; & tho' they want 
 the Multitude at prerent,yet they hope to make 
 them follow, elfe they would not differ from 
 them; for few would care to continue alone till 
 the laft, tho' they love to be fingular at firft; 
 yet this humour is a very great Enemy to true 
 Reafoning, for it introduces a habit of arguing 
 falfly ; and it is difficult in this dark eftate to 
 F f ; recpver 
 
/if, An EJfay on Reafon. 
 
 recover our Road if we once quit our Light ,-one 
 Error emboldens us ro commit another;, and it 
 is the punifhmen'' of it when committed ; even 
 thcfe who care not to oppofe Truth, love to 
 be confequential in their oppofition ; for to 
 do UKewife, were ro be guilty of a double and 
 more palpable Vice in reafoning. 
 
 Anoiher great hindrance to right Reafon- 
 ing, is Senfuality : For though I am far frorn 
 being of their opinion, who think the Soul 
 nothing but the Animal Spirits ; fmcewe can- 
 not conceive how Matter can think fo deli- 
 cately and fubtily ; yet there is no doubt but 
 the Temper of the Body has great influence 
 on the Mind ; and that Sobriety does purifie 
 the Blood, and make thefe animal Spirits fitter 
 Organs for the Soul ; as on the other hand, 
 Drunkennefs drowns it. Gluttony ftupifies 
 it; and even after that time has difTipated thofe 
 loads which opprefs the So^ii, there remains a 
 i\ock of dregs which are eafily inflam'd into 
 I.uit, Rage, and other brutal Pafficns, which 
 in a more lading manner enflave it. There- 
 fore Pagans have recommended Sobrietv as a 
 Diet for the Soul as well as the Body; and the 
 Scripture Fa{ling,as a Religious Duty. And 
 fmce there is none of us fo Brutal, but if we 
 were about to Preach, Plead, or afTift in a 
 publick Judicature, we would be careful to a- 
 void all thefe ExcefTes, left thereby our Reafon 
 might be difturbed or clouded ; we ought much 
 more to fhun them, with an Eye to the Service 
 of an Infinite God, and the prefervation ot 
 our immortal Souls ; minding in this the obfer- 
 vation of the Prophet, PFine, and m-iv wine take 
 away the /jf^rf : Andtheadvice ofour Saviour, 5?e 
 that you he not overcharged with fur f siting and drunks- 
 wnefs. 
 
 There 
 
Jin EJfay on Reafon. 427 
 
 There refnain yet two vigorous Enemies to 
 our Reafon to be fubdued. Bigotry and Rail- 
 lery^ which tho they be contrary to one ano- 
 ther, Bigotry treating things that are ridicu- 
 lous .as Sacred, and Raillery treating things 
 Sacred as ridiculous, yet they both confpire a- 
 gainft our Reafon, and are the favourite Ex- 
 travagancies of the Times, which obliges me to 
 infift the more upon them. 
 
 I define Bigotry to be a laying too much 
 ftrefs upon any circumftantial Point of Religi- 
 on or Worfhip, and the making all other ef- 
 fential Duties fubfervient thereto; and got its 
 name from an occafion extravagant like it felf. 
 Rolland ^vHDukQ o( Normandy, be- 
 ing obliged to do homage to Charles ^"^i^^^Z't. 
 King of France, for that Dutchy, 
 refus'd to kifs his Foot, except the King would 
 raife it himfelf to his Mouth ; and when it was 
 told him that the Solemnity confifted in his 
 taking up the King's Foot and kifling it, he 
 anfwer'd, Nefe begot, that is to fay in old Nor- 
 man, Not fo, by God ; Whereupon the King 
 and Court derided him, and the Normans 
 were from that occafion called Bigots, as they 
 who adhered pertinacioufly to Ridiculous Ex- 
 travagancies. Thefe latter Ages having in this 
 dotage of the World produc'd multitudes, who 
 miftaking Reformation for Humour, and fee- 
 ing fome Devout Men admired for feparating 
 from Idolatrous and fuperftitious Churches, be- 
 caufe they would not reform great and funda- 
 mental Errors, imagined that every thing 
 was to be ftruck at with the fame zeal whicn 
 thefe fhewed in Matters of greateftconfequence ; 
 and by a farther effect of the fame zeal, they 
 preceded to force others to concur with them 
 
 I' f 4 in 
 
4.a8 An EJfay on Reafon. 
 
 in their extravagancies ;which furprizing diftr^^ 
 <5tion forced Men to beftow on them tliej 
 Name of Bigots. Superftition could not fo 
 well agree ro them, that being only an exceflive 
 Worfhip paid to a Deiry, true orfalfe, from an 
 ill-grounded fear of mifchieffrom it: nor could 
 dogmatizing ferve, that being only a pofitive- 
 nefs in any Opinion, joyned to the Vanity 
 of thinking that the Dogmatizer had right to 
 dictate to others : nor Opiniatrity, becaufe 
 that confifts only in adhering too ftifly to any 
 Opinion in fpight of the beft Reafons ; nor 
 Schifm, becaufe it is an unneceffary Separati- 
 on: nor Herefie, for tho' it is an obftinate Er- 
 ror in fome important Point, yet it is always 
 in matters of Faith ; whereas Bigotry refts only 
 in matters of fmall importance. But tho' Bigo- 
 ,try properly relatesto matters Ecclefiaftical in 
 our late accentation, yetitis by aneafieftretch 
 ufed to exprefs opiniatrities of all kinds; and 
 if we confider its original, we muft conclude, 
 that it has been drawn to matters Ecclefiaftick, 
 and is appropriated now to them, becaufe they 
 are the moft remarkable and frequent inftances 
 or effefts of this mifcheievous Principle. For 
 we may juftly fay, that Bigotry is the Hypo- 
 condriacifm of Reafon, the Bedlam of Religi- 
 on, and the Ape ef Infallibility. 
 ■ Inftances of this Bigotry, as they are very 
 frequent, fp they are very ancient. The A- 
 poftles themfelves were forc'd very early to 
 inveigh againft Zeal that was not according to 
 Knowledge; and the chief of their Scholars, 
 who had been fo happyasto hear them preach, 
 did yet rend the Church by a dreadful Schifm, 
 which foon after grew to that height, that 
 the Weftern Church excommunicated the Ea- 
 
 llerii 
 
An EJfay on ReafonJ .4^? 
 
 ftern, for differing from them in the obfervatl- 
 on of Eafier. 
 
 Thebeftwayto deter Men from fpending 
 their Time and Zeal in the fervice of Bigotry, 
 either as its Chaplains, or as its Emiffaries or 
 Executioners, will be toconfiderthe great De- 
 feds under which it labours, and the fad efFe<^s 
 which it produceth. 
 
 The firft pernicious cffed of Bigotry^ is that 
 it obtrudes on us things of no moment as mat- 
 ters of the greatefl importance. Now, as it 
 would be a great defed in a Man's Senfe to 
 take a Star for the Sun ; or in an Orator to 
 infift tenacioufly on a point which deferved nq 
 confideration ; fo it muft be a much greater 
 error in a Chriftian to prefer, or even to e- 
 iqua! a meer Circumllance to the folid Points of 
 Religion. 
 
 But thefe miftakes become more dangerous, 
 by inducing their Votaries to believe, that be- 
 caufe they are Orthodox in thefe matters, they 
 are the only People of God, and all who joyn 
 not are Aliens to the Commonwealth oiljraelx 
 And from this fprings firft, that they,' as 
 Friends of God, may be familar with him, 
 and as Friends do one to another, mayfpeak to 
 him without diftance or premeditation; thence 
 it is'that we hear dreadful Nonfcnce infolently 
 Vented in extemporary Prayers, fuch as would 
 induce one to think that they do not believe 
 him to be a God to whom they fliew fo little 
 refpectj for who can think that Infinite Wif- 
 dom can confider them as Friends, who dare 
 addrefs to him (6 unfuitably? Bigotry having 
 thus, corrupted our reafoning in Matters of 
 Religion, it eafily depraves it in the whole 
 courfe of our Morals and Politicks, 
 
 The 
 
43^ An EJfay on Rea fon . 
 
 The Bigots in the Second place, proceed to 
 fancy, that they who differ from them are 
 Enemies to God, becaufe they differ from 
 God's people ^ and then the Old Teftament is 
 confuked for expreffions denouncing Ven- 
 geance againft them: All Murders become Sa- 
 crifices by the Example of Thlneas and Ehud ; 
 all Rapines are hallowed by the Ifraelites her- 
 rowing the Ear-rings of the Egyptians ; and 
 Rebellions have an hundred forc'd Texts of 
 Scripture brought to patronize them. But I of- 
 tentimes wonder where they find Precedents 
 in the Old Teftament for Murdering and Rob- 
 bing Mens Reputation, or for lying fo Impu- 
 dently for whpt they think the good Old Caufe; 
 which God forefeeing, has commanded us 
 not to lie, even for his fake. 
 
 TheThird Link of this Chain, is. That they 
 fancying themfelves to be the only Ifrael, con- 
 clude that God fees no Sin in them, all is al- 
 lowable to them ; and (as one of themfelves 
 faid) TIjey -will be as good to God afjother v>ay. 
 
 The Fourth is. That fuch as differ from 
 them are Baftards, and not the true Sons of 
 God, and therefore they ought to have no 
 (hare of this Earth, or its Government ; hence 
 flow thefe holy and ufeful Maxims, Domini- 
 on is founded in Grace • and the Saiilts have 
 the only Right to govern the Earth. Which 
 being once upon an occafion earneftly prefs'd 
 \nCrormvd\ little Parliament, it was anfwered 
 by the Prefident of his Council, That the 
 Saints deferved all things .-but that Publick 
 Employment was fuch a drudgery, that it 
 would be unjuO: to condemn the Saints to it ; 
 and that the fccureft way to make the Com- 
 monwealth happy, was to leave them in a pi- 
 ous 
 
An EJfay on Reafon. 2^.3 
 
 ous Retirement, interceding for the Nation at 
 the Throne of Grace. 
 
 The Fifth Error in their reafoning, is. 
 That feeing their Opinions flow immediately 
 from Heaven, no earthly Government can 
 condemn any thing they do, in profecution 
 of thefe their Opinions ; thence it is that they 
 raife Seditions and P.ebellions without any fcru- 
 ple of CorP:ience and believing themfelves 
 the Darlings and Friends of God, they think 
 themfelves above Kings, who are only their 
 Servants and Evecutioners. 
 
 It may feem ft ange, that fuch Principles as 
 Bigotry fuggefts, fhor.ld be able to produce fo 
 ilrange effeds ; and many fanciful Perfons pre- 
 tend it to be from God, beciufe it prevails fo. 
 But this wonder will be much lefTen'd if we 
 confider fir ft. That the greateft part of Man- 
 kind are weak or difhoneft, and both thefe 
 fupport Bigotry with all their Might. Many 
 virtuous Men alfo promote its Intereft, from a 
 miftaken good Nature, and vain Men from a 
 defign of gaining Popularity. Thefe who 
 are difoblig'd by the Government joyn their 
 Forces with it to make to themfelves a Party ; 
 and thofe vvhoare naturally unquiet or fadious, 
 find in it a pleafant divercifement ; whereas on 
 the other fide, few are fo concerned for Mo- 
 deration and Truth, as the Bigots are for their 
 belov'd Conceits. 
 
 There is alfo a tinfel Devotion in it which 
 dazzles the Eyes of unthinking People ; and 
 this arifes either from the new Zeal, that like 
 Youth, is ftill vigorous, and has not as yetfpent 
 it felf fo as that it needs to languifh ; or elfe, 
 from the Bigot's being confcious that his Opi- 
 nions need to be difguis'd under this Hypocri- 
 tical Mask. 
 
 Severity 
 
45 ^ An EJfay on Rca(bn.' 
 
 Severity alfo increafes the Number and Zeal 
 of Bigots. Human Nature inclines us wifely 
 to that Pity which we may one day need ^ 
 and few pardon the Severity of a Magiftrate, 
 becaufe they know not where it may ftop. I 
 have known alfo fome very ferious Men, who 
 have concluded, that fmce Magiftrates, have 
 not oftentimes in other things a great concern 
 for Devotion, their forwardnefs againft thefe 
 Errors muft arife either from the Cruelty of 
 their Temper, or from fome hid defign of car- 
 rying on a particular Intereft, very different 
 from, and oft-times inconfiftent with the Re- 
 ligious Zeal they pretend. And generally, 
 the Vulgar believe that all Superiors are in- 
 clin'd to triumph over thofe who are fubjedb- 
 ed to them ; many have alfD nfecrer Perfwa- 
 fion that the Magiftratcs are ftill in League 
 with the National Church, and its Hierachy, 
 which they fufped to be Supported by them, 
 becaufe it maintains their Intereft, and they 
 are apt to confider Churchmen but as Penflo- 
 ners, and fo as Partizans to the Civil Magi- 
 flrate. 
 
 Many are drawn into the efteem of fuch 
 Opinions as they fee Men fuffer difficulties for. 
 But this miftake was forefeen by the Primitive 
 Church, who therefore declared that nmTana 
 . fedCaufa facit Martyrem, Chriftian Prudence 
 does not allow a Man to fell his precious Life 
 for an incompetent Price ; Forwardnefs that 
 way does not always recommend an Opinion : 
 Men of all Perfwafions have died with firm- 
 nefs; Pagans, yea, Women, for their Coun- 
 try or Husbands have fhewed a Courage be- 
 yond any of thefe Bigots or Euthufiafts. The 
 Hiflory of China relates a notable Inftance of 
 
 fantaftical 
 
An EJfay on Reafon^ 4-3 3 
 
 fahtaftical Bigotry; an Hundred Thoufand 
 Chinefes, who had born Tamely the Nation's be- 
 ing enflav'd by the Tl^rff^r^, without making a^ 
 ny Effort to recover their Liberty, chofe ra- 
 ther to dye than conform to the Tartars^ 
 in turning up their Mliftachers after their 
 Mode. Vanity well difguis'd can flatter 
 Men with the Glory of Martyrdom ; and 
 it's obfervable that this Firmnefs faints often 
 where Executions are Private^ however^ this 
 fhould prevail with a Wife Magftrate, never to 
 make Religious Opinions Criminal. 
 
 The true Cures then of this Difeafe feem to 
 be, Firft, to endeavour to plant Reafon early 
 and carefully in the Hearts of Young ones, oa 
 to recover it in thofe of more advanced Years ; 
 for this is a mOre folid and effe(5tual way, than 
 the immediate oppofing, or offering to cure 
 this Imperfedion it felf, will prove; Men 
 love their old and familiar Acquaintance. 
 Travelling abroad conduces much to this Cure; 
 for fuch as converfe only with thofe of their 
 own Perfwafion, are daily warm'd into new 
 degrees of Zeal ; whereas^ when we fee that 
 Men of true Senfe differ from us^, we will be in- 
 clin'd fromaChriftian Modefly and Humility, 
 firft to doubt our own Opinions, & then to hear 
 Inftrudion. The Orthodox Clergy fhould by 
 their Pious Lives conduce to this Cure ; anj 
 even Laicks fliould, by their ferious and De- 
 vout Converfation, convince them that Sin- 
 cerity and Piety are not infeparable from fuch 
 humorous Conceits. Thefe poor deluded Peo- 
 ple fhould confider what Mifchiefs and Defo- 
 lations thofe Vulcano's of Zeal have brought up- 
 on this Ifland by their dreadful Eruptions ; there 
 
 being 
 
43+ -^ mf^y ^^ Reafon. 
 
 being but very few Families, in which fome 
 of their Children have not bcenfacrificed to 
 this Molcch: Nor can our Navies or Armies fe- 
 cure us while this Enemy lodgeth within us, 
 and is cherifhed by us. They fhould alfo con- 
 fjder, That Religious Reafon left to it felf 
 will at laft overcome thofe Prejudices, which, 
 like Meteors, may fliine for a time, but will 
 at laft vanifh into the common and undiflin- 
 guifli'd Air. 
 
 But the beft bf aH Remedies, is, to confider 
 ferioufly the Dcdrine and Pradice of our 
 Bleifed Saviour (to form our Reafon by which, 
 is the great defign of this ElTay) and therefore 
 they fhould remember, that our Savicur fore- 
 feeing the inconfequentialnefs of their AcftionSj 
 did obferve, that they did ftart at Straws, and 
 fwallow Camels; that they tithed the Mint 
 and Annife, but forgot the great things of the 
 Law. Our Saviour's reafoning in the Parable 
 of the Tublican and Tharifee^ fiiould hr.mble all 
 fpiritual Pride; and his humble and fubmif- 
 five Form of Prayer fliould bridle the indilcre- 
 tion of all rude Addreffers. He fiiffered not 
 the Sons of Zehedee to call for Fire from Hea- 
 ven, that he might thereby Inftrud: the World 
 how unfuitable their Zeal was to his Gofpel ; 
 he reafoned againft fighting Peter, that if his 
 5-ingdon were of this Earth, his Servants 
 would fight for him ; and if he needed any 
 Afliftance, he might call for Legions of An- 
 gels : Nor can I think, after this Inftance, our 
 Saviour would have trufted Peter j in his ab- 
 fence, with two Swords, fince he was fo for- 
 ward in his own prefence, when he had but 
 one: But if others will be fo blind as nc t to 
 follow our Saviour's way of reafoning, let us 
 
 at 
 
An EJfay on Reafon. 435 
 
 at leaft follow it, in praying for them;,, b^caule 
 they know not what they are doing.,' Yet I 
 wifli both they and we would confider, that we 
 refemble too much at this time the unhappy . 
 Jews J who, by fighting amongft themfelve,5 for 
 fmall Matters, relating to their Religiou;s !^tes 
 occafioned their being totally dt^f>y.ed, 
 and extirpated by the Romans who befieged 
 them. 
 
 I know no greater Enemy to juft Thought oc 
 Reafon ing, than Raillery and Satyrs, and the 
 new way of reafoning, ridiculous Smiles. Moft 
 Men are fo famous for this kind of arguing, 
 and do by it confute and baffle fo much all 
 who oppofe it, that it paiTes for the ftronger 
 way of Reafoning ; Vidory being ftill account- 
 ed the Effedas well as the Reward of Strength : 
 But this way looks fo filly to Men when they 
 retire and are alone, that they begin to won- 
 der what it was that pleas'd themfo before they 
 left, the Converfation. And therefore I think 
 it worth my pains to fearch a little into the 
 caufes of this vulgar Error, Why Men are fo 
 much pleafed with Raillery, and why it prevails 
 fo in the World at this day. 
 
 The firft caufe of this, in my opinion, is, 
 that Men naturally love Truth, as the Eyes do 
 Light, or Brutes Food ; for Truth is indeed 
 the Light and Food of the Soul; yet milling it, 
 after much enquiry, and a paflionate fearch, 
 they do either conclude there is none, and fo 
 laugh at all others who feek it; or in revenge, 
 contemn it as a Cheat; and this breeds at firft 
 Raillery and Satyrs; even as we fee, that 
 when Gallants are rebuked by a fevere ,Mi- 
 ftrefs,they pleafe or revenge themfelves in rail- 
 ing at her, or treating her in ridicule. As 
 Stacefmen and Courtiers feldom fail, when 
 
 thrown 
 
/J.36 [An EJfay on Re^Cori. 
 
 thrown off, touferhe Court and Employments 
 from which they are fall'n^ after the fame 
 manner. And fince too few feek after Truth' 
 * it felf, naked and unrewarded j others again, 
 weary of the toils and fcverity required in true 
 reafoning, reft on this as theeafieft; even 
 as Men content themfeh'es with gilded Plate, 
 when they cannot attain to true Gold ; and 
 Raillery has become by this as ordinary as the 
 falfe Jewels, with which fo many now pleafe 
 themfelves inftead of true ones • and at a 
 diftance, and on the pubHck Theatre, even 
 of Bufinefs, the one appears brisker than the 
 other. 
 
 Raillery pleafes alfo Mens Selflove better 
 than Truth ; for Truth is too honeft to ferve 
 our Revenge; whereas Raillery does tempt 
 the Jefter to flatter himfelf, and is an ordi- 
 nary occafion for others to flatter him as a for- 
 midable Wit: Nor can the World find fo fit a; 
 Tool for Revenge as Raillery ; fince few diirft 
 even for fear of checks of Confcience ftab 
 their Neighbour, or for Honour wound him 
 when his back isturn'd,if it were not in a plea- 
 fant Jeft, which makes Malice pafs for Wit; 
 and cheats the Satyrifts into a belief that they 
 defign not to wrong him, but to pleafe the 
 Company • The Hearers alfo would hate.fuch 
 . Enemies to Mankind, if they were not fo ra-^- 
 vifli'd with the way, that they had not time to 
 think on the Malice. This Misfortune^ alfo at- 
 tends it, that it tempts men to do or fa*y many 
 things on which they would not otherwife ad- 
 venture, prefuming that their Wit, which is 
 fo much admir'd, will alfo fright or bribe o-" 
 thers from accufing or punifliing them. 
 • Truth is a fober and equal Pleafurc^ free 
 from all tranfports, andhating them ^ and fo 
 
 feemt 
 
'An EJfay on Reafon. 437 
 
 feems dull and flat to young and warm Spirits ; 
 whereas that Paflion which accompanies Rail- 
 lery, either in Joy or Revenge, is more vigorous - 
 and elevated ; and it is indeed a Wonder to think 
 what Force and Energy there is in the Soul, 
 when the Sails of its Imagination are filled with 
 the profperous Gale of Applaufe, and by what 
 fecret Springs the Fancy is able to raife it to fuch 
 Heights when it is warmly pleas'd ; or what in- 
 finite Numbers 6f ravifhing Images appear to a 
 itrong Fancy: And how it creates lb many 
 plealant Notions out of other Men's Infirmities : 
 And what greaf Variety and Newnefs it con- 
 •ftantly produces, forming always various Scenes 
 of Joy, to the Wonder even of fober Men : I 
 deny not, but fome do from Good Nature, and 
 to pl^afe the Converfation, fcofFand jeft, and, 
 as I faid formerly, fome feeing it fo much ad- 
 mir'd, think it is truly Good, it being a kind of 
 Modefty, to believe that Good which pleafes 
 others ; and fome feeing Vi<3:ory attend it, think 
 it is the ftrongeft Way of arguing ; and, thus 
 this Weed rifes and fpreads, and we fit with de- 
 light under the refrefliing Shades ; and with 
 thefe Raptures of Malice or Pleafure, Scoffers 
 are fo much taken, that they have not the lei«^ 
 fure to think on what they ought to do, or even 
 on what they are doing ; and thus they forget 
 frequently the Duty they owe to Great Men, to 
 whom they have Accefs , and can hardly keep 
 themfelves within that Moderation in Converfa- 
 tion, Eating, Drinking, and other Exercifes that 
 are requifite for preferving Health and Quiet, ot 
 for obferving the Rules of Decency and Difcre- 
 tion, I conclude, that Jefting and Satyrs are fo 
 far from being ^ Relaxation of Spirit to thofe 
 who are wearied with ferious Employments, ai 
 i& pretended, that they arc ofc-times rather a 
 
 G g mevsr 
 
438 An EJfay on Reafon. 
 
 new and ftudied Toil, and moft of thefe Extra- 
 vagancies ^could fcarce be pardoned ,• like bitter 
 and fowre'Fruits, which can hardly be eaten, ex-. 
 ^cpt wbon confcded with great Care and Ex- 
 pence. But if we look further into the Matter,-. 
 We (hall find -that nothing wrongs more both 
 Reafon and Piety, and is more deftruftive to 
 ^true Friendfliip, or more inconfiflent witli Sin- 
 . cerity. 
 
 For clearing whereof we may obferve, that 
 every Faculty of the Soul contributes a peculiar 
 Way to our Reafoning : The Judgment does 
 bring folid Arguments, the Memory Inflances, 
 Examples, and Citations, the Fancy or Imagi- 
 nation beautifies rather than illuminates its Ob- 
 jed:s with Similies, Metaphors, and other Rhe- 
 torical Figures ; fo that Raillery neglecting the 
 other two ^ fports it felf lightly amidit thofe 
 Flowers, without minding the great Bufinefs ; 
 and I have obferved, that few who have been 
 once bewitched with this way, ever minded any 
 ether. This fuffers them not to penetrate fur- 
 ther than the outfide of Things, and fo it is im- 
 poflible, that they who ufe it as their conftant 
 divertifement, can have any deep Thoughts, or 
 can feaich into the Bottom of Affairs. 
 
 I have alfo obferved, that Raillery arifes oft- 
 times from an undervaluing of all Perfons and 
 Things j and nothing can be more contrary to 
 Religion or Government than this is. To Re- 
 ligion, becaufe, when a Man contemns all that 
 God has created, he undervalues what the Al- 
 mighty himfelf was pleafed with, and rejoyced 
 in, and fcorns thofe great Exemplars of Piety and 
 Devotion, whom God has called his Friends, and 
 Men after his own Heart ; and fo in effcd he 
 concludes, that God (blaffed be his holy Name) 
 made not good Choice, and knew not how to va- 
 lue 
 
An EJay on Reafon. 439 
 
 iue Men a-right. And therefore I ftand aftonifh'd 
 to hear Ballads againfE Mofes and Da'vid, fo much 
 admlr'd by fuch as confefs there is a God, that 
 the Scriptures are his Didates, and they the Pen- 
 men of thefe Scriptures, and fo Secretaries to 
 God : Nor do fuch Scoffers make good States- 
 men; for none are fuch, fa ve they who from ± 
 Principle of a Conviction and Perfuafion, ma-^ 
 nage publick Affairs to the Advantage of thofe 
 who employ them : Whereas they who believe 
 that nothing is worth their Pains, can never do 
 any thing with AlFedlion and Vigor ,• and fmce 
 they care not for the Things themfelves, and 
 Icorn fuch as employ them, they muft never care 
 for what Events attend them. Have we not feeti 
 fome of thefe great Wits prove the worft of all 
 States-men in our own Days ? and as far below 
 theMeaneft in Management, as they were above 
 the Wifeft in Wit and Sharpnefs. Wh^t Friends 
 alfo thefe prove,is fufficiently underftood to thofe 
 whom they have loft for a Jeft, after all the Ser- 
 vices they could have done them : And it is very 
 obfervable, that if Three or Four of therh he in 2 
 Room, they who remain after fuch Cpnverfations 
 will fall on him who is gone, with all the Malice 
 imaginable ; and we very feldom fee Two fuch 
 Wits true friends. 
 
 Ifhall end thefe RefLedions writh thlsAdditioii^ 
 that generally Satyrs are made up of Impiety,Ma- 
 lice or Bawdry ; the Firft, unworthy of a Chri- 
 Itian; the Secotld, of a Gentleman; and the laft^ 
 of a Sober Man ; and in which Railers have A- 
 theifts for their Mafters, Satyrrcal Wafps for their 
 Comrades, and oft-times Fools and Mad-men for 
 their Superiors. Unhappy Meri, who do Things 
 that they n>uft be afiiam'd of j and whereof the 
 Pleafure is leffen'd in the prefent Tlnie by Checks 
 t)f Confdence , aod grows bitter afterwards b)^ 
 
44-0 An EJfay on Reafon. 
 
 Fear of Torments ; a quality our Saviour never 
 cpuntenanc'd, which his Favourites have ever 
 zealoufly decry'd, in which Buffoons and Play- 
 ers have exceeded the greateft Kings, the moft 
 Renowned Heroes, and the Wifeft Men ; a cow- 
 ardly ExtravagancyjWhich ever attacks the Weak; 
 and a mercilefs Humour, which triumphs over 
 the Unfortunate : Upon which accounts all Men 
 make it their Intereft to expofe the Scoffer, as 
 finding in his Ruin their own Self-defence ; and 
 becaufe they know he cannot be pleafed, except 
 they be miferable ; therefore they conclude, that 
 they cannot be fecured till he be humbled. 
 
 I defign not by this to leffen the Efleem due 
 to true Wit, and that Pleafantnefs in Converfa- 
 tion which arifes from it as Flowers from the 
 Root. The Almighty certainly defign'd to make 
 all Men happ}', and there is no Happinefs with- 
 out Pleafure ; and as he rejoyced, when he faw 
 that all that he had made was Good, fo he was 
 defirous that Mnn might find out this Good, both 
 for making himfelf thereby Happy, and for in- 
 vinng him the more to magnify the Creator, 
 and therefore to fweeten the Miferies which 
 naturally imbitter Human Life : God has illu- 
 minated fome with a Pleafantnefs of Humour, 
 which rejoyces the Society into which they 
 come, as the Sun illuminates the Room into 
 which it enters : thefe are they who having 
 Peace of Confcience at home , are there- 
 by allowed to be glad ; and who having Wit, 
 employ it in turning the right fide of Things to 
 them, underl^anding as well to find out what is 
 pleafanc in any Objed, as Artifts do to find a 
 Mine of Gold in a barren Mountain. This is 
 the true Ufe of Wit ; and if at any time they 
 ufe it to treat Vice or Extravagancy in ridicule, 
 it is not from Malice to the Perfon, but from 
 
 Dclire 
 
An EJiay on Reafon. 44.1 
 
 Defire to reform him, and Mankind by him. 
 There is a Juftice in Scourging, Defaming, and 
 Banifliing Vice ^ and this Jurifdidion is given - 
 by Heaven immediately to fuch as have Senfe j 
 of whom, upon that account, the greateft Ru- 
 lers Hand in awe ; and fo much Reverence is 
 due to them, that the reft of J^Iankind beftow 
 Applaufe according to their Inclinations : Bit- 
 ternefs then, and lullen Morofenefs in Wit, is 
 the Tyranny of this Jurifdidion : If it be info- 
 lent, it is the wrong fide of this delicate Pidure, 
 a flafliing Light, which at firft dazles, but there- 
 after blinds ; a delicious Fruit corrupted into Bit- 
 ternefs, and a beautiful Face wrinkled by fret- 
 ting Humours. 
 
 The Ancients term'd Wit a Salt ; and that is 
 not fit for Food, but for Seafoning ; it may be 
 us'd plentifully in Converfation, moderately in 
 Bufinefs, but never in Religion. 
 
 They who enter into a Fadion, do not pro- 
 perly Reafon weakly : but defert Reafon altoge- 
 ther, as one does who leaves his own to go into 
 another Country, whereof the Laws, Cuftoms 
 and Language ate different. The Defign and 
 Center of Fadion is to drive on fuch a Projed, 
 and adhere to thofe who profecute it. And 
 therefore nothing muft be allow'd or argu'd but 
 with refped to thefe. Hence it is, that in vain 
 you Reafon with them ; for one may Tranfub- 
 Itantiate as foon as Convert them ; all that their 
 Friends fay is unanfwerable, and they contemn 
 and fcorn what is faid by their Ad verfaries when 
 they cannot anfwer it ; there is no Crime they 
 dare not commit, for the Guilt feems but fmall 
 when divided amongft fo many Bearers ,• they 
 warm themfeives by clubbing into a kind of Be- 
 lief, and they vote themfeives into a fhadow of 
 Infallibility j vvhilft they cry out againfl others 
 
 Gg ? as 
 
4^^ An EJfayon Reafon. 
 
 as Slaves to the Government, they become really 
 Slaves to the Fa<5tion, their Liveries and Chains 
 being feen by all, except themfelves : But the 
 great Salary with which their Bondage is to be 
 rewarded, is Applaufe from their Friends, or it 
 may be the Mob, to whom naturally their Ap- 
 peal lies, and the getting into the Government, 
 where they will be abhorred for pradifing every 
 thing they formerly decry 'd, and fo have that 
 Reputation for which they toil'd, blafted by their 
 own old Arguments: This Extravagancy is in it 
 felf fo unacceptable to all devout and reafonable 
 Men, that it is forc'd to ufe Railory to baffle Re- 
 ligion by Bigotry, and Reafon by Railery ; and 
 I believe that Faction \v3.s the firft Introducer of 
 the one into the Church, and of the other into 
 the State. 
 
 My chiefeft Wifh then fhall be, that God who 
 has ennobled me with right Reafon, may make 
 me happy in the right tJfc c>f it ^ that I may 
 neither fell it for Money, nor barter it for Famc^ 
 and that it may never be dazlcd by the fhining 
 Brightnefs of Favour, nor clouded by the black 
 Shadows of Fear ; and tho' the Pci tion beftow- 
 cd upon me be very fmall, that yet I may em- 
 ploy that one precious Talent fo, as that 1 may 
 have from my Glorious Mafter that only defira- 
 ble Charad:er , fVell dunCj good and faithful Ser^ 
 njant ; thou hafi been faithful in a few things , entev 
 thou into the joy of thy Lord, Matth. 2^. 2;, 
 
 f J N I s. 
 
THE 
 
 INDEX 
 
 A. 
 
 Page 
 
 ABfalon his Policy, a 3 1 
 Ad»m. The Extent 
 of his Knowledge, 
 74. his Weaknefs difco- 
 ver'd in his Fall, 75. not 
 the firft Sinner, 77. God's 
 merciful Procedure in 
 judging him, 7 8 why God 
 fufFer'd him to fall, 80 
 
 'Adultery y when not to be 
 imputed, 47. Woman ta- 
 ken in it, 48. the Guilt of 
 it, 388 
 
 'Alexanders Chaftity his great- 
 eft Glory, i7y 
 
 jSlphonfus King of P$rtugal, 
 his Cenfure of the Crea- 
 tion, 18 
 
 'jtmbitiOH, infatiable, 101,235. 
 mean, 2 1 5 
 
 Angelt, their S!n, 70 
 
 ^r;f^;«»Philofophers impute 
 
 our Spiritual Motions to 
 
 afllfting Angels, 62 
 
 Archimedes. How he died, 
 
 13^ 
 
 Ariflotlis Account of tfie 
 Soul, 64 
 
 Atheifm. The Folly and 
 Trouble of ir, 10, 377, 
 40 J. Arguments againft 
 it, 378. &c. 
 
 Atheijl burnt at Tholoufe, 2. 
 Praftical Atheift, j8 1 
 
 Avarice, 293. Some Good 
 of it pretended , ihid. 
 'Tis Idolatry, 299 
 
 Avarici and Greatnefs incon- 
 liftent, 202, What Law 
 againft Avarice, 302. The 
 firft Caufe of it, 3 10. Pre- 
 tences for it, 311, &c. 
 320, 321, &c. 'Tis the 
 Sin, WL 12. I. which 
 cafily befers us, 3 14. The 
 moft incurable of Vices, 
 315, Remedies againft it, 
 320, Its Tyranny, 315. 
 Whether more dangerous 
 than Prodigality or Lu- 
 xury, \ 355 
 
 Aujiin fSc.) his Obfervation 
 on the Virtue of the Old 
 
 Gg ^. 
 
 Belli. 
 
the I NT) E X. 
 
 B. 
 
 BElUfsrius. The Caufc 
 ofhisFalJ, ^112 
 
 Bigottry ; Name and Thing , 
 427, pernicious EfFe£ls of 
 it, 429, d^'f Cures of it, 
 43 ?f &c. the bcft is the 
 Doftrine and Praftice of 
 our Lord, 454 
 
 Bifhoft, not in the firft Chap- 
 ter of Genefis, 42 
 
 Body of Man, whether the 
 Caufe of his Sins, 69. cu- 
 rioufly framed, 184 
 
 C. 
 
 Cj4lun>nies hurt not a wife 
 Man, 276. though they 
 are always thrown upon 
 him, 280 
 
 Capuchins , great jyiedlcrs in 
 Stare- Matters, 3 r 
 
 Cajn'fls and Commentators, 
 the Harm they do, 32,33, 
 &c. 
 Cato, his Charafter from Lu. 
 
 can, 301 
 
 Cauf:s, the Power of Second 
 
 Caufes, 19 
 
 Ccvfors ( Roman ), their Bull- 
 
 ncls, - . .^^^ 
 
 Chain faflen'd to Jupiter s 
 Chair, 22 
 
 Charles the Great, and other 
 Princes exchange their 
 Thrones for a Solitary 
 Life, 121 
 
 Chjjlity the fi,rtitt^ Orna- 
 ment of a Woman, 197. 
 Why chaft Women are 
 prouder than others, 1 98 
 
 Chincfcsy a notable Inllanc? 
 
 'of thdr Sigoctry, ' 433 
 
 0rlfienings , the luxurious 
 Extravagancies ac them , 
 
 Chrijlianity preferable to Phi- 
 Jofophy, in that ic forbids 
 Concupifcence, 330 
 
 Church, her Authority, 8} 
 
 Churches and Churchmen , 
 how they redrain Salva- 
 tion, 28 
 
 Churches charge one another 
 with Avarice. 318. Laity 
 jealous of Churchmen's 
 Avarice, 328 
 
 Cineas, his Saying to King 
 Pyrrhus, 97 
 
 Co(»c^ and Six, 348 
 
 Con.monwealtht, founded in 
 Frugality, 301 
 
 Company. See Employment and 
 Society. 
 
 Cenfcicnce the beft Cafuift, 34 
 Erring Confcience, 35 
 
 Contemplation, the Pleafure 
 of it, ^ f3j 
 
 Convenience, a Combination 
 
 of Luxury and Avarice , 
 
 319, &c. 
 
 Converfation , the common 
 Impcrtinencics of it, 130, 
 
 ' 132,133 
 
 Covetoufnefs, 202. See yiva- 
 
 rice. 
 Courage, often feigned, 398 
 Creatiin, the Reafons of it, 
 
 Cuftom prevails over Reafon, 
 421. and why, 422, cc. 
 
 D. 
 
 D EdicatioMS'f ^ood and bad, 
 363 
 Deformities, as we call them, 
 arc no Blemifhes, 56 
 
 DttrnBim, 
 
The INDEX. 
 
 "J 
 
 Detra^ion , how it may be a 
 Virtue, 165'. criminal and 
 bafe, i88,&c. its ill Con- 
 fequences, 191 
 
 Devotion, beft praftifed in 
 Solitude, 118,120 
 
 Diet , what moft natural and 
 mofl: pleafant, 1^6 
 
 Difputei in Religion, the E- 
 vil of them , 24. the 
 
 ' Grounds, ii>i^. 
 
 Dijpmulation, the mean Vice 
 of great Men, 1 85, Wo- 
 men expert at it, 188. it 
 pafles not long undifco- 
 ver'd, ibid, and 233. no 
 body will truft DiiTcm- 
 blers when detefted, 234 
 
 Divines , Polemick , Schola- 
 ftick, Enthufiaftick, 24, 25 
 
 Divinity , how it differs 
 
 from other Sciences , 84. 
 
 how concife our Saviour's 
 
 $^{lem, ibid, how (Irange- 
 
 *ly enlarged upon, ihid.^ 
 
 Dominion , not founded itv 
 Grace, Stoicks y/ddrefs, 8. 
 The Affirmative was 
 prefs'd in Olivers little 
 Parliament, 430 
 
 Drefs, what Sort is beft, 145- 
 
 Drunkemiefs , an ' inveftive 
 againft it, 2o8,d'"f. 
 
 Duelling condemn'd,389, 390 
 
 Dutch, See Hollanders. 
 
 Dutch Ambafladors Frugali- 
 
 ' ty, ^292 
 
 E. 
 
 E/tfp, defircd by all Crea- 
 tures, ?29 
 Education of Children with 
 ' Refpeft to particular Vi- 
 ces , 327 , 387. to falfe 
 Reafofting, ^ii^&e. 
 
 EmpUyment (Puhlick) , Rca- 
 fons for feeking it,96,i47. 
 Difficulties and Hazards 
 of it, ici, &c. Madnefs, 
 Faflion, and Vices attend- 
 ing it , 107, 108. Mur- 
 thers of great Men , I09, 
 1 10. Slipperinefsof high 
 Stations, m, 112 
 
 England may be allowed to 
 be fumptuous, 317 
 
 Envy, 188. Deftru£tive to 
 States and Kingdoms, 193 
 
 Eternity, what it is, 15 
 
 Eve. See Mam. 
 
 F. 
 
 FJcetious Men reafon 
 weakly, 441 , &c. 
 
 Faith, fome Account of if, 
 6y. not oppofite to Rea- 
 fon, 63 
 
 Fall of Man See Adam 
 
 Fame, a large Difcourfe of if, 
 121, c^c. Fame common, 
 siyo. the Pains Men take 
 for Farrfe, 391 
 
 Familiarity breeds Contempt, 
 
 Fanaticks, their dark Divini- 
 ty, 23. Bigotry, 430 
 Fate, of the Stoicks, 2 1 
 Favourites, Caufes of their 
 Ruin, 112, 113, 114. Rea- 
 fons for their Removal, 
 148 
 Fiacre, an illuftrious Scot, a 
 ' Hermit, 15I 
 Fortune, of the Pagans, 21, 22 
 France, a.fuperftitious Land- 
 lady there, 3(5 
 Friendjhip , the common 
 ground of it, 398 
 Frugality , the great good of 
 it, 292. obfcrved by the 
 
IV 
 
 *the I Niy EX. 
 
 yevs, 295, &c. enjoioM by 
 Chrift, 297, and his A- 
 poftles, 299. Foundation 
 of Commonwealths, 301. 
 xx'ould make the World 
 happy, 358 
 
 G. 
 
 GErfoH, had the Fate of 
 Timenf i y i 
 
 Chofi (Htly) , the Sin againft 
 him, 71, 72 
 
 Cod, his being abfolutely ne- 
 ceffary for the good of 
 Man, 9, lo. He has pro- 
 
 • vided Suftcnance enoqgh 
 for al] Men, 294, &c. the 
 moft delightful Objeft of 
 our Meditations, 418 
 
 Go W, its Power, -^12, &c. 
 
 Greatnefs; a Defcription of 
 it, 154. See Em^loytaent. 
 
 H. 
 
 HAppinefj confifts in Eafe, 
 22g,&C. 
 
 HeB, the Pagans and Mahtme' 
 r*H/ Notion of it, 120 
 
 Hermits, their Raptures, ijy 
 
 Heroes, their Temperance and 
 Abftinence, 308 
 
 HoSanders , their Frugality , 
 304, and Policy in allow- 
 ing fmall Salaries, ibid. 
 they divide their Eftates 
 into Three Parts, 346 
 
 Holland Merchant ; Story of 
 a Turkey's Egg, 344 
 
 Honour miftaken, 159, 389. 
 true Honour, 388 
 
 Hyftrifj. 4I9 
 
 J 
 
 Eahujy, 153, aj^i^JJ 
 
 Jthvt hii Oflentatlonof Zeal, 
 
 Jtrtm (St.) why he went to 
 Taverns, 272 
 
 Jefus ChrifV, what he thought 
 moft needful toteachMen, 
 
 371 
 
 Jtvs, their Ancient Fruga- 
 lity, 296 
 
 Image- IVtrJhiPf Idolatry, 59 
 
 Imaginary Neceflities put 
 Men upon mod diflionefl 
 Praftices, 291 
 
 Inctnftancy, an ignoble Vice, 
 2o6, efpecially in Friend- 
 fhip, 207 
 
 Indian laughs at EuropeanSf 
 321. 
 
 InfallihiUty, affum'd by all 
 StGti in Religion, 31 
 
 Ingratitude to God, the Guilt 
 of ir, 388. and Unreafo. 
 nablenefs, ^°^ 
 
 Injufiice, a Cenfure upon it, 
 211 
 
 Inka of Peru would worfbip 
 a reafonable Man, 369 
 
 InfiinB, a great Proof of the 
 Divine Being, $6 
 
 Inter eji outvotes ReiCon, 3^9 
 
 Irene, Miftrefs to Mahomet the 
 Great, 193 
 
 Italians counC Red Hair a 
 Beauty, 184 
 
 Judgment, how falfe its Ba- 
 lance. Stoicks Jddrefs, 8 
 
 K. 
 
 K beetling, lawful in all 
 Afts of Worfhip, 12 
 Knowledge , the lefs we know, 
 the happier for us, 7^ 
 
 ^ LemdUrdf 
 
The IN'D E X. 
 
 V 
 
 L. 
 
 Ltjfndlord, a good one, 3^4 
 Law, Moral,32, 44,e^<r.Ju. 
 
 dicial of the Jewt , 47^. 
 
 whether obligatory to us , 
 
 Liberality wins Love, 103 
 
 Lufi ; its Caufes and EffeQs , 
 143, J44 
 
 Luxury, 293. Of the Romans 
 in later times, 3 GO. Soldi- 
 ers inclined to it, 327. Its 
 Rife and Progrefs, 337. 
 Its Difguifes, 338. Whe- 
 Cher neceflary for Trade, 
 339> 351' Ends in Cove- 
 toufnefs, 340, Arguments 
 againft it, 342, c^f. 350 
 
 lycHrgHs made Iron Money, 
 3c6 
 
 M. 
 
 MMtiM Pojlhumius, his 
 Way to prove a Ru- 
 llick Life better than pub- 
 lick Employments, iji 
 
 Mahomet's Defign in Religi- 
 on, was Empire, 325 
 
 Maliccj 274 
 
 iif<f« defined, i, 58, df'c. 137, 
 37^^ > 377- Miftakes his 
 chief End, ^10,411 
 
 idelancholy , filent Men, why 
 reputed wife, 98 
 
 Men. in great Pofts, their Ser- 
 vitude, Jo J. See Employ- 
 ment. 
 
 Millenaries rtfuzed. 82 
 
 Miracles, what ftill remains 
 ' of them, 30 
 
 Money, Children taught to 
 love it, 327 
 
 A^»w^w, intended by Nature, 
 
 Mont, her Secretary, 375 
 M«r«/ Good and Evil, 104 
 Mefes, hisMeeknefsand Pat 
 
 fion compar'd, n6 
 
 Mountains , whence, and for 
 
 what Ends, 57 
 
 N. 
 
 N At ions, their particular 
 Vices, 317 
 
 Nature , how perfcft at firft, 
 is now unknown to us, 57 
 tJebucbadnezxari Image cx- 
 plain'd, 171 
 
 Niggardlinefs, what it is, an J 
 whence it fprings, 333. 
 how it makes Men proud, 
 
 334. Stories of Niggards, 
 
 335. Niggards Feafts, 337 
 Nimrod , ih what Senfe a 
 
 mighty Hunter, 16} 
 
 Nobility , Ancient , of what 
 
 Account, 172 
 
 O. 
 
 OBidience , why due to all 
 God's Laws, 4(J 
 
 Obfcene Difcourfe, how meaa 
 and unworthy, 198, &c. 
 Old Men, why moll covetous, 
 314 
 
 P. 
 
 PArenttf mofh obliged tO 
 be virtuous, 3i<5 
 
 ^arjlmany. See Niggardlinefs, 
 Pafcal left the Mathematicks 
 to ftudy Man, 4I0 
 
 Paffion, the defperate Nature 
 of it, 4(S 
 
 Patiente, the Gallantry of i^ 
 
 223, 22a 
 
 Perfidioufnefs, Scc Rtbellion. 
 Ptrfe- 
 
vj 
 
 the I N'D E X. 
 
 Ptrftcution for Religion con- 
 demned. Stoicks AddrtfSf 
 5,6 
 Philofepher , his Charafter , 
 262, &c. Severe Manners, 
 3C7 308. One norabic 
 Example , 309 Milofo- 
 phers falfe Principles, 41 2 
 Philofyphy ( Moral ), the Rife 
 and Progrefs of it, 306 
 Pbocion , his Contempt of 
 Riches, 309 
 
 Plato's Chariot of Reafon,3 3 1 
 Platonifii hold Pre-exiftence 
 of Souls, 6} 
 
 Pleafure, what it is, 1 3 y,! 36 
 Pliny, how he died, 13^ 
 Poljitheifm, the Ground of it. 
 
 Power gains filly Men the 
 Reputation of Wifdom , 
 ?2j. Power of com- 
 manding others, how fa- 
 tisfaaory, 127, 135 
 
 preachers of old, confin'd to 
 certain Texts and Ser- 
 mons, 27. Modern Preach- 
 ers, 228 
 
 Predrjiinatiott, 1 9 
 
 Private Life, the Happinefs 
 of it. See Solitude. 
 
 Prodigality, 239. the Diffe- 
 cence betwixt it and Lu- 
 xury. 34I 
 
 Prophets lived much in Soli- 
 tude, 117 
 
 Providence, JJvhat we know 
 of ir, 17.' it muft b^fub- 
 mitred to, 283 
 
 Publick Lfe Set- Employment. 
 
 PtiUick-SpiriCiduef, its Pia fe, 
 21?, d^f. 
 
 Q 
 
 Q 
 
 UiherSf their Frugality, 
 3?9 
 
 R. 
 
 RaHU, not to be truftcd , 
 275,282 
 
 Raillery, why fo much ufcd, 
 435, &c. 437. Railers , 
 fliallow Men, 438 
 
 Reafon outvoted in all things, 
 3(59. Falfe Reafoning about 
 Pafllons, 383. Parts, 384. 
 Means, 385. fionour, 387. 
 Employments, 395, &c. 
 Caufes of faJfe Reafoning, 
 406, Fame, Intereft, 407. 
 Bigottry , 427. implicit 
 Faith, Conceit, 408, 409, 
 &c. Remotenefs of Spiri- 
 tual Things, 41 j. Want 
 of thinking, 4I7. Hypo- 
 crify, 419 Cuftom, 4?i, 
 &e. Raillery and Satyr, 
 
 43 5 
 
 Rebellion, a bafe Sin, 2r4 
 
 Reformers, compar'd to fool- 
 ifh Painters, 84. of no 
 Relifiion^ 231 
 
 Religion, its Two Dcfigns. 
 Stoicks Addrcfs,^. no State- 
 Project , 5. the Harm 
 which Curious Wits do \ty 
 26 
 
 ReVigiouf Difputer, not expe- 
 dient, ibid. lo, 24. not 
 necefTary to be underllood, 
 32. Speculations leis need- 
 ful than Prai>ice, 96 
 
 Repentance on a Death-bed, the 
 Unreafonablenefs of it , 
 40c, &c. 
 
 Revenge,in ignoble Vice,222. 
 enticing, 254, 2yj. mif^ 
 chievous to the A£tor,39y 
 
 Riches; a Supeifluity not to 
 be dcfirtd, 14I, 1^2. the 
 Pains Men take for them, 
 386. Romans, 
 
the I N^ E X. 
 
 vy 
 
 Romans, their Luxury in la- 
 ter Times, 300 
 
 S. 
 
 SAhhath, on what Day kept 
 in various Nations, 46 
 
 Satj/Vf 439. See Raillery. ^ 
 
 S. Serif turet, our Tranllatien 
 of them, 38. how abufed, 
 38, 4c, 42. whether Mat- 
 ter or Words from God, 
 79. excell other Books in 
 Reafoning, 374 
 
 Serif turet defended, 6 
 
 Scythianfy Frugality their Se- 
 curity, 303 
 
 Self-Love, 342, contradiSted, 
 394, 39^. both laudable 
 
 ' and culpable, 41 3 , &e. 
 
 Self-Murder, why not forbid- 
 den by any exprefs Text, 
 52 
 
 Senecio, a luxurious Roman, 
 
 343 
 Senfet, how far to be pleafed, 
 
 Scnfuality has a great Influ- 
 ence on the Mind, 425 
 5«r7W9»;, Ancient andModern, 
 their Cbaraaer, 17, 43. 
 Why no Preaching among 
 the Pagans, 27 
 
 Severity of Maglftrates in- 
 creafes the Number of Bi- 
 gots, 432 
 Slanderers f Four Sorts, 273 
 Society, the Danger of it, 
 117,130. common Imper- 
 tinencies in it, 130 
 Socrattf, his Religion the fame 
 with ours, 7 
 Soldiers , inclined to Luxury, 
 327 
 Solitude preferable to publick 
 Employment, 96, &e, ic6, 
 
 107. more advantageous 
 for Religion, 115, &(, 
 what Princes embraced it, 
 i2i. it hath moft folid 
 Pleafnre, 135. moft Va- 
 rieties, 138, 139. and in- 
 nocent Recreations, I44. 
 and valuable Accomplifh- 
 ments, 149, ijo. a Land- 
 skip of Solitude, 151 
 Soul, immortal, 60, &c whe- 
 ther pre-cxiftent, 6^3 . va- 
 rious Opinions of its Na- 
 ture, 63, 54. more the 
 Caufe of Sin than the Bo- 
 dy, 59.its Sovereignty,! 83, 
 1 8 J. the moft excellent 
 Soul, 2iy. its Pleafure , 
 35 3, 372. and noble Pow- 
 ers, 372. its Good not 
 confider'd, •;7J, 376 
 
 Stfich, their Happinefs, 22. 
 their Opinion of Humaa 
 Souls, 6^ 
 
 Strafford (Earl of), fome Ac- 
 count of his Fall, Hj 
 Suferjiition, 1 1, 
 
 Switzerland has more Free- 
 men than Italy or Greece, 
 348 
 
 THeft 
 fni 
 
 T. , 
 
 among the Jewt 
 fometimes puniihed 
 with Death, 51 
 
 Time, how eafily parted with, 
 
 394 
 
 rf«f^ yields a fober and fe- 
 
 date Pleafure, 43(5 
 
 Turene (Marefchal^, died not 
 
 worth 50/. 322 
 
 Turkif) Policy, 30$ 
 
 Tyranny, we praife It in Alexm 
 
 under, Caftr, &c. 
 
 Fanit/ 
 
VllJ 
 
 The INT) E X. 
 
 VAnity expofcd, 216. in 
 Riches, 21 8. in Appa- 
 rel, 219. in Preferments, 
 
 220, &c. 
 
 Fenetiant, their Policy In al- 
 lowing fmall Salaries, 304 
 
 Fice, a mean thing, 173,174, 
 177, 181, 182. it makes us 
 depend or/ others, 182. it 
 requires that which is im- 
 polfible, 237. Vices are 
 oppoficc to, Virtues con- 
 fiftent with, one another, 
 £40. Providence refifts 
 Vice, 241 . the Law makes 
 it uneafy, 242. even the 
 vicious condemn it, 243. 
 it makes Men timorous, 
 244, 249, 261. 'cis hurtful 
 to Nature, 248. why Men 
 are generally vicious, 2y5 
 
 Firgil, his different Genius 
 from Horace and 'Juvenal, 
 
 3 3? 
 
 Virtue Negative and Pofltive; 
 an Inftance of each^ l.')3 
 
 l^irtues of great Men moft 
 gcnerallyimirated,l<^2,i57 
 
 r/rfBf the beft Nobility, 172, 
 ^c. it contributes moft to 
 ones Advancement, 1 74, 
 178,180. and Reputation, 
 17<?, 17(5. it raifed the Ro- 
 man and Grecian Empires^ 
 
 179. It Is pretended to by 
 all Men, 230. it is eafy to 
 be virtuous, 234, &c. 245 
 and pleafant, 252 
 
 Virtuoui Man, how much 
 better pleafed than the vi- 
 cious, 354 
 
 Votes \ the fe weft ihould de- 
 cide, 3 69 
 
 W. 
 
 WEddingSy Extravagan- 
 cies at them cenfu- 
 «d, 35J 
 
 PVheringfthe Shame and other 
 Mifchiefs of it, 192, &c. 
 cfpecially to Womcn,i94, 
 
 ff^ife, how much preferable td 
 a Whore, 192, &c. 
 
 William the Conqueror's Cle- 
 mency his greateft Glory, 
 l^6 
 
 IVit; what cannot be allow'd 
 for fuch, 200, (ire. 398. 
 what may, 440. 441. ijfe 
 of it, il^id. 
 
 Wits, like fair, ungovern'd 
 Ships, 37J 
 
 2. 
 
 ZEal of Fanatlcks defch'i 
 bed. Stoiiks Mdreft, 
 
 F i N i s. 
 
wm 
 
 J^