the index, by which the whole book is governed and turned, like fishes by the tail. For to enter the palace of learning at the great gate, requires an expence of time and forms; therefore men of much haste and little ceremony are content to get in by the back door. For the arts are all in a flying march, and therefore more easily subdued by attacking them in the rear 15). Thus physicians discover the state of the whole body, by consulting only what comes from behind. Thus men catch knowledge by throwing their wit on the posteriors of a book, as boys do 16) sparrows with flinging 17) salt upon their tails. Thus human life is best understood by the wise man's rule of regarding the end. Thus are the sciences found, like Hercules's oxen, by tracing them backwards. Thus are old sciences unravelled like old

stockings, by beginning at the foot.

Besides all this, the army of the sciences hath been 18) of late, with a world of martial discipline, drawn into its close order; so that a view or a muster may be taken of it with abundance of expedition. For this great blessing we are wholly indebted to systems and abstracts, in which the modern fathers of learning, like prudent usurers, spent their sweat for the ease of us their children. For labour is the seed of idleness, and it is the peculiar happiness of our noble age to gather the fruit.

Now, the method of growing wise, learned, and sublime, having become so regular an affair, and so established in all its forms; the number of writers must needs have increased accordingly, and to a pitch that has made it of absolute necessity for them to interfere continually with each other. Besides, it is reckoned, that there is not at this present a sufficient quantity of new matter left in nature, to furnish and adorn any one particular subject to the extent of a volume. This I am told by a very skilful computer, who hath given a full demonstration of it from rules of arithmetic.

15) rear, Nachzug, die Arrière - Garde. To do dient manchmal dazu, henden Wortes zu ersparen. hier so viel als streuen.

drawn etc.

16) do scil. catch. die Wiederholung eines vorherge17) to fling, werfen, schleudern, 18) Die Construction ist hath been

This perhaps may be objected against by those who maintain the infinity of matter, and therefore will not allow that any species of it can be exhausted. For answer to which, let us examine the noblest branch of modern wit or invention, planted and cultivated by the present age, and which of all others hath borne the most, and the fairest fruit. For though some remains of it were left us by the ancients, yet have not any of those, as I remember, been translated, or compiled into systems for modern

use.

Therefore we may affirm, to our own honour, that it has in some sort been both invented, and brought to a perfection by the same hands. What I mean, is, that highly celebrated talent among the modern wits, of deducing similitudes, allusions, and applications, very surprising, agreeable, and apposite, from the pudenda of either sex, together with their proper uses. And truly, having observed how little invention bears any vogue, besides what is derived into these channels, I have sometimes had a thought, that the happy genius of our age and country was prophetically held forth by that ancient typical description of the Indian pigmies, whose stature did not exceed above two feet; sed quorum pudenda erassa, et ad talos usque ́pertingentia 1o). Now, I have been very curious to inspect the late productions, wherein the beauties of this kind have most prominently appeared. And although this vein hath bled so freely, and all endeavours have been used in the power of human breath, to dilate, extend, and keep it open; like the Scythians, who had a custom, and an instrument to blow up the privities of their mares, that they might yield the more milk 20): yet I am under an apprehension 21), it is near growing dry, and past all recovery; and that either some new fonde of wit should, if possible, be provided, or else

19) Ctesiae fragm. apud Photium. 20) Herodot. Lib. IV. cap. 2. Τοὺς δὲ δούλους οἱ Σκύθαι πάντας τυφλοῦσι, τοῦ γάλακτος εἵνεκε τοῦ πίνουσι, ποιεῦντες ὧδε· ἐπεὰν φυσητῆρας λάβωσι ὀστεΐνους, αὐλοῦσι προςεμφερεστάτους, τούτους ἐςθέντες ἐς τῶν θηλέων ἵππων τὰ ἄρθρα, φυσῶσι τοῖσι στόμασι· ἄλλοι δὲ ἄλλων φυσεόντων ἀμέλγουσι· φασὶ δὲ τοῦδε εἵνεκα τοῦτο ποιέειν· τὰς φλέβας τε πίμπλασθαι φυσεωμένας τῆς ἵππου, καὶ τὸ οὖθαρ κατίεσθαι. 21) to be under an apprehension, in Furcht seyn.

that we must e'en 22) be content with repetition here as well as upon all other occasions.'

This will stand as an incontestible argument, that our modern wits are not to reckon upon the infinity of matter, for a constant supply. What remains therefore, but that our last recourse must be had to large indexes, and little compendiums? quotations must be plentifully gathered, and booked in alphabet. To this end, though authors need be little consulted, yet critics and commentators and lexicons, carefully must. But above all, those judicious collectors of bright parts, and flowers and observandas, are to be nicely dwelt on, by some called the sieves and bolters of learning; though it is left undetermined, whether they deal in pearls or meal; and consequently, whether we are more to value that which passed through, or what staid behind 23).

By these methods, in a few weeks, there starts up many a writer, capable of managing the profoundest and most universal subjects. For what though his head be empty, provided his commonplace - book be full? And if you will bate him but the circumstances of method, and style, and grammar, and invention; allow him but the common privileges of transcribing from others, and digressing from himself, as often as he shall see occasion; he will desire no more ingredients towards fitting up a treatise, that shall make a very comely figure on a bookseller's shelf, there to be preserved neat and clean, for a long eternity, adorned with the heraldry of its title *), fairly inscribed on a label; never to be thumbed or greased by students, nor bound to everlasting chains of darkness in a library; but when the fulness of time is come, shall happily undergo the trial of purgatory, in order to ascend the sky **).

Without these allowances, how is it possible we modern wits should ever have an opportunity to introduce our collections, listed under so many thousand heads of a different nature? for

22) e'en, statt even.

23) to stay behind, zurückbleiben. *) In England werden die Bücher gebunden in den Buchläden aufgestellt. **) Diess ist Ironie, und ein vortreffliches Beispiel von Swift; denn die Ironie macht ein Ding auf eine besondere Weise lächerlich.

want of which, the learned world would be deprived of infinite delight, as well as instruction, and we ourselves buried beyond redress in an inglorious and undistinguished oblivion.

From such elements as these, I am alive to behold the day, wherein the corporation of authors can outvie all its brethren in the field: a happiness derived to us with a great many others, from our Scythian ancestors; among whom the number of pens was so infinite, that the Grecian eloquence had no other way of expressing it, than by saying, that in the regions. far to the north it was hardly possible for a man to travel, the very air was so replete with feathers 24).

The necessity of this digression will easily excuse the length; and I have chosen for it as proper a place as I could readily find. If the judicious reader can assign a fitter, I do here impower him to remove it into any other corner he pleases. And so I return with great alacrity to pursue a more important concern.

24) Herodot. Lib. IV. cap. 7. τὰ δὲ κατύπερθε πρὸς βορῆν λέγουσι ἄνεμον τῶν ὑπεροίκων τῆς χώρης οὐκ οἷά τε εἶναι ἔτι προσωτέρω οὔτε ὁρᾶν, οὔτε διεξιέναι ὑπὸ πτερῶν κεχυμένων· πτερῶν γὰρ καὶ τὴν γὴν καὶ τὸν ἠέρα εἶναι πλέον, καὶ ταῦτα εἶναι τὰ ἀποκληΐοντα τὴν ὄψιν.

70

SECTION VIII.

A TALE OF A TUB.

The learned Aeolists) maintain the original cause of all things to be 1) wind, from which principle this whole universe was at first produced, and into which it must at last be resolved; that the same breath which had kindled, and blew up the flame of nature, should one day blow it out.

Quid procul a nobis flectat fortuna gubernans,

This is what the adepti 3) understand by their anima mundi; that is to say, the spirit, or breath, or wind of the world. For examine the whole system by the particulars of nature, and you will find it not to be disputed. For, whether *) you please to call the forma informans of man, by the name of spiritus, animus, afflatus, or anima; what are all these but several appellations for wind? which is the ruling element in every compound 5), and into which they all 6) resolve upon their corruption. Farther, what is life itself, but as it is commonly called, the breath of our nostrils? Whence it is very justly observed by naturalists

1) Unter den Aeolisten werden alle diejenigen verstanden, die inspirirt zu seyn glauben. 2) S. Anmerk. 5. Sect. VII. 3) Die Adepten, d. h. diejenigen, welche das Geheimniss aller Geheimnisse, oder die höchste Stufe der Erkenntniss erlangt haben. Jenes Geheimniss war indess nichts weiter, als der sogenannte Stein der Weisen oder die Goldmacherkunst. Der Stein der Weisen ist ein Ausdruck, durch den man ein allgemeines Auflösungsmittel bezeichnete, welches den Urstoff aller Dinge enthalten und die Kraft besitzen sollte, Alles in seine Bestandtheile aufzulösen u. s. w. 4) whether or können nicht immer durch ob oder übersetzt werden, sondern sie werden auch zur Aufstellung ungewisser und zweifelhafter Sätze gebraucht, wo im Deutschen die Ungewissheit bei dem ersten durch Beihülfe von mögen oder durch es sei nun, dass ausgedrückt wird. 5) compound, Masse, hier so viel als Körper. all, d. i. compounds.

6) they