Though there were many Giants of old in Physic and Philosophy, yet I say with "Didacus Stella, "A dwarf standing on the shoulders of a Giant may see farther than a Giant himself;' I may likely add, alter, and see farther than my predecessors, and it is no greater prejudice for me, to endite afte rothers, than for Elianus Montaltus, that famous Physitian, to write de morbis capitis after Jason Pratensis, Heurnius, Hildesheim, &c. Many horses to run in a race, one Logician, one Rheto rician, after another. Oppose then what thou wilt, "Allatres licet usque nos & usque, Et gannitibus improbis lacessas." a I solve it thus. And for those other faults of barbarism & Dorick dialect, extemporanean stile, tautologies, apish imitation, a rhapsodie of rags gathered together from several dunghils, excrements of authors, toyes and fopperies confusedly tumbled out, without art, invention, judgement, wit, learning, harsh, raw, rude, phantastical, absurd, insolent, indiscreet, illcomposed, indigested, vain, scurrile, idle, dull and dry; I confesse all ('tis partly affected), thou canst not think worse of me than I do of myself. 'Tis not worth the reading, I yield it, I desire thee not to lose time in perusing so vain a subject, I should be peradventure loth my self to reade him or thee so writing, tis not operæ pretium. All I say is this, that I have presidents for it, which Isocrates cals perfugium iis qui peccant, others as absurd, vain, idle, illiterate, &c. Nonnulli alii idem fecerunt, others have done as much, it may be more, and perhaps thou thy self, Novimus & qui te, &c. We have all our faults; scimus, & hanc veniam, &c. thou censurest me, so have I done others, and may do thee, Cedimus inque vicem, &c. 'tis lex talionis, quid Go now censure, criticize, scoffe, and rail. pro quo. "Nasutus sis usque licet, sis denique nasus: Non potes in nugas dicere plura meas, Ipse ego quàm dixi, &c." Wert thou all scoffs and flouts, a very Momus, Than we ourselves, thou canst not say worse of us. Thus, as when women scold, have I cried whore first, and in some mens censures I am afraid I have overshot myself, Laudare se vani, vituperare stulti, as I do not arrogate, I will not derogate. Primus vestrúm non sum, nec imus, I am none of the best, I ain none of the meanest of you. As a In Luc. 10. Tom. 2. Pigmei Gigantum humeris impositi plusquam ipsi Gigantes vident. Nec aranearum textus ideo melior quia ex se fila gignunor, nec noster ideo vilior, quia ex alienis libamus ut apes. Lipsius adversus dialogist. Uno absurdo dato mille sequuntur. Non dubito multos lec tores hic fore stultos. Martial 13. 2. I am an inch, or so many feet, so many parasangs, after him or him, I may be peradventure an ace before thee. Be it therefore as it is, wel or ill, I have assayed, put myself upon the stage; I must abide the censure, I may not escape it. It is most true, stylus virum arguit, our stile bewrayes us, and as hunters find their game by the trace, so is a mans genius descried by his works, "Multò meliùs ex sermone quàm lineamentis, de moribus hominum judicamus; it was old Cato's rule. I have laid my self open (I know it) in this treatise, turned mine inside outward; I shall be censured, I doubt not; for to say truth with Erasmus, nihil morosius hominum judiciis, there is nought so peevish as men's judgments; yet this is some comfort, ut palata, sic judicia, our censures are as various as our palats. "Tres mihi convivæ prope dissentire videntur, Poscentes vario multum diversa palato," &c. Our writings are as so many dishes, our readers guests, our books like beauty, that which one admires, another rejects; so are we approved as mens fancies are inclined. "Pro captu lectoris habent sua fata libelli.” That which is most pleasing to one is amaracum sui, most harsh to another. Quot homines, tot sententiæ, so many men, so many mindes: that which thou condemnest he commends, " « 8 Quod petis, id sane est invisum acidumque duobus ” He respects matter, thou art wholly for words; he loves a loose and free stile, thou art all for neat composition, strong lines, hyperboles, allogories; he desires a fine frontispiece, entising pictures, such as Hieron. Natali the jesuit hath cut to the Dominicals, to draw on the Readers attention, which thou rejectest; that which one admires, another explodes as most absurd and ridiculous. If it be not point blank to his humor, his method, his conceit, si quid forsan omissum, quod is animo conceperit, si quæ dictio, &c. If aught be omitted, or added, which he likes, or dislikes, thou art mancipium pauca lectionis, an idiot, an asse, nullus es, or plagiarius, a trifler, a trivant, thou art an idle fellow; or else it is a thing of meer industry, a collection without wit or invention, a very toy. Facilia sic putant omnes quæ jam facta, nec de salebris cogitant, ubi via strata; so men are valued, their labours vilified by fellows of no worth themselves, as things of nought, who could not have done as much. Unusquisque abundat sensu suo, every man abounds in his own sense; and • Ut venatores feram è vestigio impresso, virum scriptiunculà. Lips. Hor Hor. *Antwerp. fol, 1607. Muretus. Lipsius. whilest whilest each particular party is so affected, how should one please all? n m "Quid dem? quid non dem ? Renuis tu quod jubet ille.” How shall I hope to expresse my self to each mans humor and conceit or to give satisfaction to all? Some understand too little, some too much, qui similiter in legendos libros, atque in salutandos homines irruunt, non cogitantes quales, sed quibus vestibus induti sint, as Austin observes, not regarding what, but who write, orexin habet authores celebritas, not valuing the metale, but stamp that is upon it, Cantharum aspiciunt, non quid in eo. If he be not rich, in great place, polite and brave, a great doctor, or full fraught with grand titles, though never so well qualified, he is a dunce; but, as *Baronius hath it of Cardinal Caraffa's works, he is a meer hog that rejects any man for his poverty. Some are too partial, as friends to overween, others come with a prejudice to carp, vilifie, detract and scoffe; (qui de me forsan, quicquid est, omni contemptu contemptius judicant) some as bees for honey, some as spiders to gather poyson. What shall I do in this case? As a dutch host, if you come to an Inn in Germany, and dislike your fare, diet, lodging, &c. replies in a surly tone, aliud tibi queras diversorium," if you like not this, get you to another Inn: I resolve, if you like not my writing, go reade something else. I do not much esteem thy censure, take thy course, it is not as thou wilt, nor as I wil, but when we have both done, that of P Plinius Secundus to Trajan will prove true, 660 Every man's witty labour takes not, except the matter, subject, occasion, and some commending favourite happen to it." If I be taxed, exploded by thee and some such, I shall haply be approved and commended by others, and so have been (Expertus loquor), and may truly say with Jovius in like case (absit verbo jactantia) heroum quorundam, pontificum, & virorum nobilium familiaritatem & amicitiam, gratasque gratias, & multorum bene laudatorum laudes sum inde promeritus, as I have been honoured by some worthy men, so have I been vilified by others, and shall be. At the first publishing of this book, (which Probus of Persius' satyrs) editum librum continuò mirarihomines, atque avidè deripere cœperunt, I may in some sort apply to this my work. The first, second, and third edition were suddenly gone, eagerly read, and as I have * Hor. 1 Fieri non potest, ut quod quisque cogitat, dicat unus. Muretus. Lib. 1. de ord. cap. 11. n Erasmus. *Annal. Tom. 3. ad annum 360. Est porcus ille qui sacerdotem ex amplitudine redituum sordide demetitur. о • Erasm. dial. Epist. lib. 6. Cujusque ingenium non statim emergit, nisi materiæ fautor, occasio, commendatorque contingat. 9 Præf. hist. • Laudari à laudato laus est. • Vit. Persii. X said, not so much approved by some, as scornfully rejected by others. But it was Democritus his fortune, Idem admirationi et irrisioni habitus. "Twas Seneca's fate, that superintendent of wit, learning, judgement, ad stuporem doctus, the best of Greek and Latin writers, in Plutarch's opinion; "that renowned corrector of vice," as "Fabius terms him, and painful omniscious philosopher, that writ so excellently and admirably well," could not please all parties, or escape censure: How is he vilified by Caligula, Agellius, Fabius, and Lipsius himself, his chief propugner? In eo pleraque pernitiosa, saith the same Fabius, many childish tracts and sentences he hath, sermo illaboratus, too negligent often, and remisse, as Agellius observes, oratio vulgaris & protrita, dicaces & inepte sententia, eruditio plebeia, an homely shallow writer as he is. In partibus spinas & fastidia habet, saith * Lipsius; and as in all his other works, so especially in his epistles, alie in argutiis & ineptiis occupantur, intricatus alicubi, & parum compositus, sine copia rerum hoc fecit, he jumbles up many things together immethodically, after the Stoicks fashion, parum ordinavit, multa accumulavit, &c. If Seneca be thus lashed, and many famous men that I could name, what shall I expect? How shall I that am vix umbra tanti philosophi, hope to please? "No man so absolute (Erasmus holds) to satisfie all, except antiquity, prescription, &c. set a bar." But as I have proved in Seneca, this will not alwayes take place, how shall I evade? 'Tis the common doom of all writers, I must (I say) abide it; I seek not applause; Non ego ventose venor suffragia plebis; again, non sum adeo informis, I would not be a vilified. b laudatus abunde, Non fastiditus si tibi, lector, ero." I fear good mens censures, and to their favorable acceptance I submit my labors, eecet linguas mancipiorum Contemno." As the barking of a dog, I securely contemn those malicious and scurrile obloquies, flouts, calumnies of railers and detractors; I scorn the rest. What therefore I have said, pro tenuitate meá, I have said. u Minuit præsentia famam. Lipsius Judic, de Seneca. Lib. 10. Plurimum studii, multam rerum cognitionem, omnem studiorum materiam, &c. multa in eo probanda, multa admiranda. * Suet. Arena sine calce. Introduct. ad Sen. ▾ Judic. de Sen. Vix aliquis tam absolutus, ut alteri per omnia satisfaciat, nisi longa temporis præscriptio, semota judicandi libertate, religione quadam animos occuparit. 2 Hor. Ep. 1. lib. 19. • Eque turpe frigide laudari ac insectanter vituperari. Phavorinus A. Gel. lib. 19. cap. 2, Ovid. trist. 1. eleg. 6. Juven. Sat. 5. One One or two things yet I was desirous to have amended if I could, concerning the manner of handling this my subject, for which I must apologize, deprecari, and upon better advice give the friendly reader notice: It was not mine intent to prostitute my muse in English, or to divulge secreta Minerve, but to have exposed this more contract in Latine, if I could have got it printed. Any scurrile pamphlet is welcome to our mercenarie Stationers in English; they print all, "cuduntque libellos In quorum foliis vix simia nuda cacaret;" But in Latine they will not deal; which is one of the reasons When I peruse this tract which I have writ, Et quod gravissimum, in the matter itself, many things I disallow at this present, which when I writ, Non eadem est ætas, non mens; I would willingly retract much, &c. but 'tis too late, I can only crave pardon now for what is amisse. I might indeed (had I wisely done) observed that precept of the poet, "" nonumque prematur in annum," and have taken more care: Or as Alexander the physician would have done by Lapis Lazuli, fifty times washed before it be used, I should have revised, corrected and amended this tract, but I had not (as I said) that happy leisure, no Amanuenses or assistants. Pancrates in Lucian, wanting a servant as he went from Memphis to Coptus in Egypt, took a door bar, and after some superstitious words pronounced (Eucrates the relator was then present) made it stand up like a serving-man, fetch him water, turn the spit, serve in supper, and what work he would besides; and when he had done that service he desired, turn'd his man to a stick again, I have no Aut artis inscii aut quæstui magis quam literis student, hab. Cantab. & Lond. Excus. 1976. Ovid. de pont. Eleg. 1. 6. Hor. 8 Tom. 3. Philopseud. accepto pessulo, quum carmen quoddam dixisset, effecit ut ambularet, aquam hauriret, urnam pararet, &c. such |