pied-coats, and are called Chrysalides by the wiser sort of men —that is, golden outsides, drones, flies, and things of no worth. Multitudes of such, &c.

-ubique invenies

Stultos avaros, sycophantas prodigos.

Many additions, much increase of madness, folly, vanity, should Democritus observe, were he now to travel, or could get leave of Pluto to come see fashions, (as Charon did in Lucian) to visit our cities of Moronia Pia, and Moronia Felix-sure I think he would break the rim of his belly with laughing.

a Si foret in terris, rideret Democritus, seu, &c.

A satyrical Roman, in his time, thought all vice, folly, and madness, were all at full sea,

"Omne in præcipiti vitium stetit.

*Josephus the historian taxeth his countreymen Jews for bragging of their vices, publishing their follies, and that they did contend amongst themselves, who should be most notorious in villanies: but we flow higher in madness, far beyond them,

Mox daturi progeniem vitiosiorem ;

d

and the latter end (you know, whose oracle it is) is like to be worst. 'Tis not to be denied; the world alters every day. Ruunt urbes, regna transferuntur, &c. variantur habitus, leges innovantur, as Petrarch observes--we change language, habits, laws, customs, manners, but not vices, not diseases, not the symptoms of folly and madness; they are still the same. And, as a river (we see) keeps the like name and place, but not water, and yet ever runs,

(*Labitur et labetur in omne volubilis ævum) our times and persons alter, vices are the same, and ever will be. Look how nightingals sang of old, cocks crowed, kine lowed, sheep bleated, sparrows chirped, dogs barked; so they do still: we keep our madness still, play the fools still, nec dum finitus Orestes we are of the same humours and inclinations as our predecessors were; you shall find us all alike, much at one, we and our sons,

Et nati natorum, et qui nascentur ab illis;

and so shall our posterity continue to the last. But, to speak of times present

* De bello Jud. 1. 8. c. 11. Iniquitates vestræ neminem latent; inque dies singulos certamen habetis, quis pejor sit. € Hor.

2 Juven.

b Juven.

If Democritus were alive now, and should but see the superstition of our age, our religious madness, as Meteran calls it, religiosam insaniam-so many professed Christians, yet so few imitators of Christ, so much talk of religion, so much science, so little conscience, so much knowledge, so many preachers, so little practice-such variety of sects, such have and hold of all sides,

g

* obvia signis signa, &c.—

such absurd and ridiculous traditions and ceremonies-if he should meet a Capouchin, a Franciscan, a pharisaical Jesuite, a man-serpent, a shave-crowned monk in his robes, a begging frier, or see their three-crowned soveraign lord the pope, poor Peter's successour, servus servorum Dei, to depose kings with his foot, to tread on emperours necks, make them, bare-foot and bare-legg'd at his gates, hold his bridle and stirrup, &c. (O that Peter and Paul were alive to see this!)—if he should observe a prince creep so devoutly to kiss his toe, and those redcap cardinals, poor parish priests of old, now princes companions-what would he say? Cœlum ipsum petitur stultitiâ. Had he met some of our devout pilgrims going bare-foot to Jerusalem, our lady of Lauretto, Rome, St. Iago, S. Thomas shrine, to creep to those counterfeit and maggot-eaten reliques -had he been present at a masse, and seen such kissing of paxes, crucifixes, cringes, duckings, their several attires. and ceremonies, pictures of saints, indulgencies, pardons, vigils, fasting, feasts, crossing, knocking, kneeling at Ave Maries, bells, with many such

-jucunda rudi spectacula plebi,

praying in gibberish, and mumbling of beads-had he heard an old woman say her prayers in Latine, their sprinkling of holy water, and going a procession,

*monachorum incedunt agmina mille;

Quid memorem vexilla, cruces, idolaque culta, &c.) their breviaries, bulls, hallowed beads, exorcisms, pictures, curious crosses, fables, and bables-had he read the Golden Legend, the Turks Alcoran, or Jews Talmud, the Rabbins

* Lucan.

g Fa

e Superstitio est insanus error. f Lib. 8. hist. Belg. ther Angelo, the Duke of Joyeuse, going bare-foot over the Alps to Rome, &c. h Si cui intueri vacet quæ patiuntur superstitiosi, invenies tam indecora honestis, tam indigna liberis, tam dissimilia sanis, ut nemo fuerit dubitaturus furere eos, si cum paucioribus furerent. Senec. i Quid dicam de eorum indulgentiis, oblationibus,

votis, solutionibus, jejuniis, cœnobiis, vigiliis, somniis, horis, organis, cantilenis, campanis, simulacris, missis, purgatoriis, mitris, breviariis, bullis, lustralibus aquis, rasuris, unctionibus, candelis, calicibus, crucibus, mappis, cereis, thuribulis, incantationibus, exorcismis, sputis, legendis, &c. Baleus, de actis Rom. Pont. * Th. Nauger.

m

Comments, what would he have thought? How dost thou think he might have been affected? Had he more particularly examined a Jesuites life amongst the rest, he should have seen an hypocrite profess poverty, and yet possess more goods and lands than many princes, to have infinite treasures and revenues-teach others to fast, and play the gluttons themselves; like watermen, that rowe one way and look another-'vow virginity, talk of holiness, and yet indeed a notorious bawd, and famous fornicator, lascivum pecus, a very goat-monks by profession*, such as give over the world, and the vanities of it, and yet a Machiavellian rout interested in all matters of state-holy men, peace-makers, and yet composed of envy, lust, ambition, hatred and malice, fire-brands, adulta patria pestis, traitours, assassinates-hac itur ad astra; and this is to supererogate, and merit heaven for themselves and others! Had he seen, on the adverse side, some of our nice and cu-. rious schismaticks, in another extream, abhor all ceremonies, and rather lose their lives and livings, than do or admit any thing papists have formerly used, though in things indifferent (they alone are the true church, sal terræ, cum sint omnium insulsissimi)-formalists, out of fear and base flattery, like so many weather-cocks, turn round-a rout of temporisers, ready to embrace and maintain all that is or shall be proposed, in hope of preferment-another Epicurean company, lying at lurch as so many vultures, watching for a prey of church goods, and ready to rise by the down-fall of any-as "Lucian said in like case, what dost thou think Democritus would have done, had he been spectatour of these things-or, had he but observed the common people follow like so many sheep one of their fellows drawn by the horns over a gap, some for zeal, some for fear, quo se cumque rapit tempestas, to credit all, examine nothing, and yet ready to dye before they will abjure any of those ceremonies, to which they have been accustomed -others out of hypocrisie frequent sermons, knock their breasts, turn up their eyes, pretend zeal, desire reformation, and yet professed usurers, gripers, monsters of men, harpies, devils, in their lives, to express nothing less?

What would he have said, to see, hear, and read so many bloody battels, so many thousands slain at once, such streams of blood able to turn mills, unius ob noxam furiasque, or to

Dum simulant spernere, acquisiverunt sibi 30 annorum spatio bis centena millia librarum annua. Arnold. 1 Et quum interdiu de virtute loquuti sunt, sero in latibulis clunes agitant labore nocturno. Agrippa. 2 Tim. 3. 13.—But they shall prevail no longer: their madness shall be evident to all men. tatis sinus solebat esse, nunc litium officina, curia Romana. Budæus. tibi videtur facturus Democritus, si horum spectator contigisset?

m

Benigni

Quid

1

make sport for princes, without any just cause, *for vain titles (saith Austin) precedency, some wench, or such like toy, or out of desire of domineering, vain-glory, malice, revenge, folly, madness, (goodly causes all, ob quas universus orbis bellis et cædibus misceatur) whilest statesmen themselves in the mean time are secure at home, pampered with all delights and pleasures, take their ease, and follow their lust, not considering what intolerable misery poor souldiers endure, their often wounds, hunger, thirst, &c.? The lamentable cares, torments, calamities and oppressions, that accompany such proceedings, they feel not, take no notice of it. So wars are begun, by the perswasion of debauched, hair-brained, poor, dissolute, hungry captains, parasitical fawners, unquiet hotspurs, restless innovators, green heads, to satisfie one mans private spleen, lust, ambition, avarice, &c. tales rapiunt scelerata in prælia caussa. Flos hominum, proper men, well proportioned, carefully brought up, able both in body and mind, sound, led like so many beasts to the slaughter in the flower of their years, pride, and full strength, without all remorse and pitty, sacrificed to Pluto, killed up as so many sheep, for devils food, 40000 at once. At once, said I ?—that were tolerable: but these wars last alwayes; and for many ages, nothing so familiar as this hacking and hewing, massacres, murders, desolations

(

0

-—ignoto cœlum clangore remugit) they care not what mischief they procure, so that they may enrich themselves for the present: they will so long blow the coals of contention, till all the world be consumed with fire. The Psiege of Troy lasted ten years, eight months: there died 870000 Grecians, 670000 Trojans: at the taking of the city, and after, were slain 276000 men, women, and children, of all sorts. Cæsar killed a million, Mahomet the 9 Second Turk 300000 persons: Sicinius Dentatus fought in an hundred battels; eight times in single combat he overcame, had forty wounds before, was rewarded with 140 crowns, triumphed nine times for his good service. M. Sergius had 32 wounds; Scæva the centurion, I know not how many; every nation hath their Hectors, Scipios, Cæsars and Alexanders. Our Edward the Fourth was in 26 battels afoot: and, as they do all, he glories in it; 'tis related to his honour. At the siege of Hierusalem, 1100000 died with sword and famine. At the battel of Cannas, 70000 men were

r

*Ob_inanes_ditionum titulos, ob præreptum locum, ob interceptam mulierculam, vel quod e stultitiâ natum, vel e malitiâ, quod cupido dominandi, libido nocendi, &c. "Bellum rem plane belluinam vocat Morus, Utop. lib. 2. » Munster. Cosmog. 1. 5. c. 3. E Dict. Cretens. 9 Jovius, vit. ejus.

r Comineus.

S

quis

slain, *as Polybius records, and as many at Battle Abbye with us; and 'tis no news to fight from sun to sun, as they did, as Constantine and Licinius, &c. At the seige of Ostend, (the devils academy) a poor town in respect, a small fort, but a great grave, 120000 men lost their lives, besides whole towns, dorpes, and hospitals, full of maimed souldiers. There were engines, fire-works, and whatsoever the devil could invent to do mischief, with 2500000 iron bullets shot of 40 pounds weight, three or four millions of gold consumed. Who (saith mine author) can be sufficiently amazed at their flinty hearts, obstinacy, fury, blindness, who, without any likelyhood of good success, hazard poor souldiers, and lead them without_pitty to the slaughter, which may justly be called the rage of furious beasts, that run without reason upon their own deaths? * malus genius, quæ Furia, quæ pestis, &c. what plague, what Fury, brought so devillish, so bruitish a thing as war first into mens minds? Who made so soft and peaceable a creature, born to love, mercy, meekness, so to rave, rage like beasts, and run on to their own destruction? how may Nature expostulate with mankind, Ego te divinum animal finxi, &c. I made thee an harmless, quiet, a divine creature! how may God expostulate, and all good men! yet, horum facta (as one condoles) tantum admirantur, et heroum numero habent: these are the brave spirits, the gallants of the world, these admired alone, triumph alone, have statues, crowns, pyramids, obelisks to their eternal fame, that immortal genius attends on them: hac itur ad astra. When Rhodes was besieged, fossa urbis cadaveribus repleta sunt, the ditches were full of dead carcases; and (as when the said Solyman great Turk beleagred Vienna) they lay level with the top of the walls. This they make a sport of, and will do it to their friends and confederates, against oaths, vows, promises, by treachery or otherwise

" dolus an virtus, quis in hoste requirat?

*

leagues and laws of arms, (* silent leges inter arma: for their advantage, omnia jura, divina, humana, proculcata_plerumque sunt) Gods and mens laws, are trampled under foot; the sword alone determines all; to satisfie their lust and spleen, they care not what they attempt, say, or do:

* Lib. 3.

- Rara fides, probitasque, viris qui castra sequuntur.

de bello. Ut placidum illud animal benevolentiæ natum tam ferinâ vecordiâ in mutuam rueret perniciem. vius.

Hist. of the Siege of Ostend, fol. 23.

*Erasmus

Rich. Dinoth, præfat. Belli civilis Gal.

u

Dolus, asperitas, injustitia, propria bellorum negotia.

t JoTertul.

y Lucan.