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of Rome and the degenerate traditions of the Church, and finding his own folitude, being no ways aided by the opinions of his own time, was enforced to awake all Antiquity, and to call former times to his fuccour, to make a party against the present time. So that the ancient Authors, both in Divinity and in Humanity, which had long time slept in Libraries, began generally to be read and revolved. This by confequence did draw on a neceffity of a more exquisite travail in the languages original, wherein thofe authors did write, for the better understanding of those Authors, and the better advantage of preffing and applying their words. And thereof grew again a delight in their manner of Style and Phrafe, and an admiration of that kind of Writing; which was much furthered and precipitated by the enmity and opposition that the propounders of those primitive, but seeming new opinions, had against the Schoolmen; who were generally of the contrary part, and whofe Writings were altogether in a different Style and Form; taking liberty to coin and frame new terms of Art to express their own sense, and to avoid circuit of speech, without regard to the pureness, pleasantness, and, as I may call it, lawfulness of the Phrase or Word. And again, because the great labour that then was with the people, (of whom the Pharifees were wont to fay, Execrabilis ifta turba, quæ non novit legem), for the winning and purfuading of them, there grew of neceffity in chief

price and request eloquence and variety of discourse, as the fittest and forcibleft access into the capacity of the vulgar fort; so that these four causes concurring, the admiration of ancient Authors, the hate of the Schoolmen, the exact study of Languages, and the efficacy of Preaching, did bring in an affectionate study of eloquence and copia of fpeech, which then began to flourish. This grew speedily to an excess; for men began to hunt more after Words than matter; and more after the choiceness of the Phrase, and the round and clean compofition of the fentence, and the fweet falling of the clauses, and the varying and illustration of their works with tropes and figures, than after the weight of matter, worth of fubject, foundness of argument, life of invention, or depth of Judgment. Then grew the flowing and watery vein of Oforius, the Portugal Bishop, to be in price. Then did Sturmius fpend fuch infinite and curious pains upon Cicero the Orator, and Hermogenes the Rhetorician, befides his own Books of Periods, and imitation, and the like. Then did Car of Cambridge, and Afcham, with their Lectures and Writings, almost deify Cicero and Demofthenes, and allure all young men that were ftudious, unto that delicate and polished kind of Learning. Then did Erafmus take occafion to make the fcoffing Echo: Decem annos confumpfi in legendo Cicerone; and the Echo answered in Greek, Ove, Afine. Then grew the Learning of the Schoolmen to be utterly despised

to istempe

learning

as barbarous. In fum, the whole inclination and bent of those times was rather towards copia than weight.

Here therefore, is the first diftemper of Learning, when men study words, and not matter; whereof though I have represented an example of late times, yet it hath been, and will be Secundum majus et minus in all time. And how is it poffible but this fhould have an operation to difcredit Learning, even with Vulgar capacities, when they fee Learned men's works like the first Letter of a Patent or limned Book; which though it hath large flourishes, yet it is but a letter? It seems to me that Pygmalion's frenzy is a good emblem or portraiture of this vanity for words are but the Images of matter; and except they have life of reason and invention, to fall in love with them is all one as to fall in love with a Picture.

But yet, notwithstanding, it is a thing not haftily to be condemned, to clothe and adorn the obfcurity, even of Philosophy itself, with fenfible and plaufible elocution; for hereof we have great examples in Xenophon, Cicero, Seneca, Plutarch, and of Plato alfo in some degree; and hereof likewise there is great use: for surely, to the severe inquisition of truth, and the deep progress into Philofophy, it is fome hinderance; because it is too early fatisfactory to the mind of man, and quencheth the defire of further fearch, before we come to a juft period but then if a man be to have any use of fuch knowledge in civil occasions, of conference,

counsel, perfuafion, discourse, or the like; then fhall he find it prepared to his hands in those Authors which write in that manner. But the excefs of this is fo juftly contemptible, that as Hercules, when he saw the Image of Adonis, Venus' Minion, in a Temple, faid in difdain, Nil facri es; so there is none of Hercules' followers in learning, that is, the more fevere and laborious fort of Inquirers into truth, but will despise those delicacies and affectations, as indeed capable of no divineness. And thus much of the first disease or diftemper of learning.

The fecond, which followeth, is in nature worse than the former: for as fubftance of matter is better than beauty of words, fo, contrariwise, vain matter is worse than vain words: wherein it seemeth the reprehenfion of St. Paul was not only proper for those times, but prophetical for the times following; and not only respective to Divinity, but extensive to all knowledge: Devita profanas vocum novitates, et oppofitiones falfi nominis fcientiæ, For he affigneth two Marks and Badges of suspected and falfified Science: the one, the novelty and strangeness of terms; the other, the strictness of pofitions, which of neceffity doth induce oppofitions, and fo questions and altercations. Surely, like as many substances in nature, which are solid, do putrify and corrupt into Worms; fo it is the property of good and found knowledge, to putrify and diffolve into a number of fubtle, idle, unwholefome, and, as I may term them, Vermiculate queftions, which have indeed a kind of quickness, and

life of fpirit, but no foundness of matter, or goodnefs of quality. This kind of degenerate Learning did chiefly reign amongst the Schoolmen: who having sharp and ftrong Wits, and abundance of leisure, and small variety of reading, (but their wits being shut up in the Cells of a few Authors, chiefly Aristotle their Dictator, as their persons were shut up in the Cells of Monasteries and Colleges,) and knowing little History, either of Nature or time, did, out of no great quantity of matter, and infinite agitation of Wit, fpin out unto us thofe laborious Webs of Learning, which are extant in their Books. For the wit and mind of man, if it work upon matter, which is the contemplation of the creatures of God, worketh according to the stuff, and is limited thereby; but if it work upon itself, as the Spider worketh his web, then it is endless, and brings forth indeed Cobwebs of learning, admirable for the fineness of thread and work, but of no fubftance or profit.

This fame unprofitable fubtilty or curiofity is of two forts; either in the subject itself that they handle, when it is a fruitlefs fpeculation or controverfy, whereof there are no small number both in Divinity and Philosophy, or in the manner or method of handling of a knowledge, which amongst them was this; upon every particular pofition or affertion to frame objections, and to thofe objections, folutions; which folutions were for the most part not confutations, but diftinctions: whereas indeed the strength of all Sciences is, as the strength

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