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honoured your lordship as much, I think, as any son of Adam can love or honour a subject; and continue in as hearty and strong wishes of felicity to be heaped and fixed upon you as ever; so, as low as I am, I had rather sojourn in a college in Cambridge, than recover a good fortune by any other than yourself. To recover yourself to me (if I have you not) or to ease your lordship in any thing, wherein your lordship would not so fully appear, or to be made participant of your favours, in your way; I would use any man that were your lordship's friend. Secondly, if in any of my former letters I have given your lordship any distaste, by the style of them, or any particular passage, I humbly pray your lordship's benign construction and pardon. For I confess it is my fault, though it be some happiness to me withal, that I many times forget my adversity: but I shall never forget to be, etc. 5 March, 1621.

Stephens's CCLXXIII. To the KING's most excellent Majesty.

second col-
lection,
P. 164.

May it please your Majesty,

I ACKNOWLEDGE myself in all humbleness infinitely bounden to your majesty's grace and goodness, for that, at the intercession of my noble and constant friend, my lord marquis, your majesty hath been pleased to grant me that which the civilians say is res inestimabilis, my liberty. So that now, whenever God calleth me, I shall not die a prisoner. Nay, farther, your majesty hath vouchsafed to cast a second and iterate aspect of your eye of compassion upon me, in referring the consideration of my broken estate to my good lord the treasurer; which as it is a singular bounty in your majesty, so I have yet so much left of a late commissioner of your treasure, as I would be sorry to sue for any thing that might seem immodest. These your majesty's great benefits, in casting your bread upon the waters (as the Scripture saith) because my thanks cannot any ways be sufficient to attain, I have raised your progenitor, of famous memory (and now,

I hope, of more famous memory than before) king Henry VII. to give your majesty thanks for me; which work, most humbly kissing your majesty's hands, I do present. And because in the beginning of my trouble, when in the midst of the tempest I had a kenning of the harbour, which I hope now by your majesty's favour I amentering into, I made a tender to your majesty of two works, An history of England, and A digest of your laws, as I have, by a figure of pars pro toto, performed the one, so I have herewith sent your majesty, by way of an epistle, a new offer of the other. But my desire is farther, if it stand with your majesty's good pleasure, since now my study is my exchange, and my pen my factor, for the use of my talent; that your majesty (who is a great master in these things) would be pleased to appoint me some task to write, and that I shall take for an oracle. And because my Instauration (which I esteem my great work, and do still go on with silence) was dedicated to your majesty; and this History of king Henry VII. to your lively and excellent image the prince; if now your majesty will be pleased to give me a theme to dedicate to my lord of Buckingham, whom I have so much reason to honour, I should with more alacrity embrace your majesty's direction than my own choice. Your majesty will pardon me for troubling you thus long. God evermore preserve and prosper you.

Your majesty's poor beadsman most devoted,

Gorhambury, 20 Mar. 1621.

FR. ST. ALBAN.

second col

CCLXXIV. To the Right Honourable his very Stephens's good Lord, the Lord Marquis of BUCKING-lection, HAM, High Admiral of England.

My very good Lord,

THESE main and real favours which I have lately received from your good lordship, in procuring my liberty, and a reference of the consideration of my release, are such, as I now find that in building upon your lordship's noble nature and friendship, I have built

p. 157.

upon the rock, where neither winds nor waves can cause overthrow. I humbly pray your lordship to accept from me such thanks as ought to come from him whom you have much comforted in fortune, and much more comforted in shewing your love and affection to him; of which also I have heard by my lord Falkland, Sir Edward Sackville, Mr. Matthews, and other ways.

I have written, as my duty was, to his majesty thanks touching the same, by the letter I here put into your noble hands.

I have made also, in that letter, an offer to his majesty of my service, for bringing into better order and frame the laws of England: the declaration whereof I have left with Sir Edward Sackville, because it were no good manners to clog his majesty, at this time of triumph and recreation, with a business of this nature; so as your lordship may be pleased to call for it to Sir Edward Sackville when you think the time seasonable.

I am bold likewise to present your lordship with a book of my History of king Henry the seventh. And now that, in summer was twelve months, I dedicated a book to his majesty; and this last summer, this book to the prince; your lordship's turn is next, and this summer that cometh (if I live to it) shall be yours. I have desired his majesty to appoint me the task, otherwise I shall use my own choice; for this is the best retribution I can make to your lordship. God prosper you. I rest

Your lordship's most obliged friend

and faithful servant,

Gorhambury, this 20th of March, 1621.

FR. ST. ALBAN.

CCLXXV. To Father Redempt. BARANZAN.' Domine Baranzane,

LITERAS tuas legi libenter: cumque inter veritatis amatores ardor etiam candorem generet, ad ea, quæ ingenue petiisti, ingenue respondebo.

9 From Niceron, tom. III. p. 45.

'He was a Barnabite monk at Annecy in Savoy, who in his Lectures on Philosophy, began to discard the authority of Aris totle. He died the 23 Dec. 1622, at the age of 33.

Non est meum abdicare in totum syllogismum. Res est syllogismus magis inhabilis ad præcipua, quam inutilis ad plurima.

Ad mathematica quidni adhibeatur ? Cum fluxus materiæ & inconstantia corporis physici illud sit, quod inductionem desideret; ut per eam veluti figatur, atque inde eruantur notiones bene terminatæ,

De metaphysica ne sis sollicitus. Nulla enim erit post veram physicam inventam; ultra quam nihil præter divina.

In physica prudenter notas, & idem tecum sentio, post notiones primæ classis, et axiomata super ipsas, per inductionem bene eruta et terminata, tuto adhiberi syllogismum, modo inhibeatur saltus ad generalissima, et fiat progressus per scalam convenientem.

De multitudine instantiarum, quæ homines deterrere possit, hæc respondeo:

Primo, quid opus est dissimulatione? Aut copia instantiarum comparanda, aut negotium deserendum. Aliæ omnes viæ, utcunque blandiantur, imperviæ.

Secundo (quod et ipse notas) prærogativæ instantiarum, et modus experimentandi circa experimenta lucifera (quem aliquando trademus) de multitudine ipsarum plurimum detrahent.

Tertio, quid magni foret, rogo, si in describendis instantiis impleantur volumina, quæ historiam C. Plinii sextuplicent? In qua tamen ipsa plurima philologica, fabulosa, antiquitatis, non naturæ. Etenim veram historiam naturalem nihil aliud ingreditur præter instantias, connexiones, observationes, canones. Cogita altera ex parte immensa volumina philosophica; facile perspicies maxime solida esse maxime finita.

Postremo, ex nostra philosophandi methodo excipietur in via plurimorum operum utilium messis, quæ ex speculationibus aut disputationibus sterilis aut nulla est.

Historiam naturalem ad condendam philosophiam (ut et tu mones) ante omnia præopto; neque huic rei deero, quantum in me est. Utinam habeam et adjutores idoneos. Neque in hac parte mihi quidpiam accidere poterit felicius, quam si tu, talis vir, primitias huic operi præbeas conscribendo historiam cœlestium, in

Stephens's second collection, p. 158.

qua ipsa tantum phænomena, atque una instrumenta astronomica, eorumque genera et usum; dein hypotheses præcipuas et maxime illustres, tam antiquas quam modernas, atque simul exactas restitutionum calculationes, et alia hujusmodi sincere proponas, absque omni dogmate et themate. Quod si huic cœlestium historia historiam cometarum adjeceris (de qua conficienda ecce tibi articulos quosdam et quasi topica particularia) magnificum prorsus frontispicium historiæ naturali extruxeris, et optime de scientiarum instauratione merueris, mihique gratissimum feceris.

Librum meum de progressu scientiarum traducendum commisi. Illa translatio, volente Deo, sub finem æstatis perficietur: eam ad te mittam.

Opera tua, quæ publici juris sunt, inspexi; magnæ certe subtilitatis & diligentiæ in via vestra. Novatores, quos nominas, Patricium, Telesium, etiam alios, quos prætermittis, legi. Possint esse tales innumeri velut etiam antiquis temporibus fuerunt Anaximenes, Anaxagoras, Democritus, Parmenides, et alii (nam Pythagoram ut superstitiosum omitto.) Inter istos tam antiquos quam modernos differentiam facultatis agnosco maximam, veritatis perparvam. Summa rei est, si homines se rebus submittere velint, aliquid confiet; sin minus, ingenia ista redibunt in orbem.

Stabilita jam sit inter nos notitia; meque, ut cœpisti, maxime autem veritatem ama. Vale. Tui amantissimus,

Apud Ædes meas,

Londini Junii ultimo, 1622.

It

CCLXXVI. To the KING.

S. ALBANS.

may please your most excellent Majesty, IN the midst of my misery, which is rather assuaged by remembrance, than by hope; my chiefest worldly comfort is, to think that since the time I had the first vote of the commons house of parliament for commissioner of the union, until the time that I was this last parliament chosen by both houses for their messenger to your majesty in the petition of religion (which two were my

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