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TO THE RIGHT HONOVRABLE MY VERY GOOD LORD, THOMAS, LORD COVENTREE, BARON OF AYLSBOROVGH, LORD KEEPER OF THE Great Seale of ENGLAND, and one of his MAIESTIES most honorable privy Councell.

AFter that I had duely weighed, and consi∣dered the different natures and conditi∣ons of men, and saw every one walking a severall way, delighting himselfe in (a) a severall thing, according to his phantasie and inclination; one in one Page  [unnumbered] thing, another in another; the Gram∣marian in his Etymologies, the Poet in his Poetrie, the Rhetoritian in his Elo∣cution, the Sophister in his Aequivocati∣ons, the Logitian in his syllogisticall De∣monstrations, the Musitian in the va∣rietie of his notes, the Geometritian in his Triangles and Quadrangles, the Ar∣chitect in his Labyrinthes, the (b) Apo∣thecary in his Drugges, the Anatomist in his Dissecations, the foolish Oneiropo∣lus in his Exposition of Dreames, the Cynicke in his privacie, the (c) Epicure in his taste, the Stoicke in his dulnesse, the Huntsman in his dog, the (d) Faulk∣ner in his Hawke, the Artificer in his toole: how some are taken with Anti∣quities, some with Novelties, some with Tragedies, others with Comedies, some with invectiue Satyres, others with smooth Encomiums; and how ge∣nerally the most are Censorious, and are ever pulling the Scribe by the (e) haire, Page  [unnumbered] Cùm ipsi quidem ne pilum habent, nec in∣genij nec judicij. These things, I say, after that I had duly weighed, & with∣all considered, how difficult a thing it is for the most curious Cooke and Ca∣ter, to please the severall palates of so (f) disagreeing a multitude; I began to withdraw my pen from my paper, and in the midst of my journey Palinodi∣am canere; but when I called to minde what I learnt in my minoritie (g) quòd regium est audire malè, cùm facias benè; and how Neptune, Vulcan, and Mi∣nerva, together with the most noble Princes, Peeres, and Potentates, haue not beene free from the censure of (h) Momus, and the iniurious calum∣nies of ignominious persons, I went on with a greater alacritie, & thought it no disparagement to beare my part with such good Company in such a Consort. The calumnies of Momus are as the prayses of Mecaenas: (i) An∣tisthenes Page  [unnumbered] did never more suspect him∣selfe, than when he had an ignomini∣ous man applaud him, then, then did he vse to enquire what evill he had committed. Simile gaudet suo simili: e∣very thing delighteth it selfe in that, with which it hath a sympathie in qualitie and condition. Sues margari∣tam non curant, gallus Aesopi escam ma∣gis quàm hyacinthum invenire desiderat; spernit bos muscas: it is the nature of swine to wallow in the mire, of Cocks to preferre a graine of Corne before the richest Diademe, of Oxen and Asses to ha•e the Muses.(k) Caligula hated Virgil and Livie, and would haue banisht them out of all Libraries, but he had his reward for it, he dyed like a (l) beast, & had not so much as a pen to remember him, but with detestation and hatred. (m) Alexander loved Ho∣mer, Archilaus Euripides, Africanus Ennius, Lysander Sophocles, and they Page  [unnumbered] lost nothing by it, their noble acts and atchievements haue bin well set forth, with deserved Encomiums to all suc∣ceeding ages. Let the dogs barke then, I know it is the nature of them so to doe, and they cannot live but they must doe it; let the Asses kicke, it is hereditary to them.

Let the envious man split himselfe with Calumnies; it is as naturall to him as for the Salamander to liue in the fire, or the Camelion by the ayre. I (n) envie him not, but pittie him, and wish him not to hurt himselfe, but to remember what befell to Phoebus his Crow; let me haue the loue of Mecae∣nas onely, which I shall esteeme like vnto Ajax his Buckler & Achilles his Speare, to defend me against the Ca∣ligulaes of our time, and the hydra-like Page  [unnumbered] multitude. Vnto you therefore (right Honorable) (seeing that I find it hath beene a Custome of olde to dedicate Churches to God, and Bookes vnto good men) as vnto a true (o) Mecae∣nas doe I present these my Miscel∣lanea. The malefactor betakes him∣selfe to the Sanctuarie for refuge, be∣cause he hath offended; the (p) oppres∣sor shrowds himselfe vnder the wings of Greatnes, that he may the more freely exercise his crueltie. Innocen∣cie onely seekes refuge, that shee may be free from oppression. The hearbes haue no greater enemies than the weeds, nor Art than ignorance, which is ever fraught with malice and de∣traction. Against these enemies onely these intellectuall fruits desire shelter; whilest the Shepheard is at hand, the sheepe are in safetie; whilest the Chic∣kens are vner the wing, the Vulture will not proffer to make a stoope; but Page  [unnumbered] when the Shepheard is carelesse, and the Henne leaves her Chickens, then doe the Wolues and Vultures ty∣rannize, and sport themselues in the ruines of those harmelesse Crea∣tures.

These fruits of mine would wander in the world, as sheepe without a Shepheard, subject to the (q) blasting of every carping Zoilus and Momus, did not some vigilant eye watch and defend them. Wherefore I haue Commended them to your Lordships safe protection, and tuition. I must ingenuously confesse, when I had fully finished this Discourse; and weighed it in the ballance of judge∣ment, and found it a little too light, I felt some reluctation in my selfe, whether I should present so worthy a Peere with so vnworthy a present; but when I considered; In minutissi∣mis gemmis nonnunquam esse maximum Page  [unnumbered] pretium, that with noble mindes small things are highly valued and estee∣med; and how I had often found, In maximis personis mel•itam quandam morum suavitatem, summa cum digni∣tate copulatam elucere; I resolved to runne the adventure of it. Receiue it then (Right Honorable) with the same hand with the which it is deli∣vered, and accept of it as a small pledge of his service, who may per∣haps sometimes present your Lor^p. with some (r) sharpe and soure things, but never with malicious venemous things; So shall you more and more oblige him that presumes to offer this toy and trifle vnto you, that if any more serious thing happen in future times to come within his thoughts, to make your Lor^p. partaker of it, and at all times to desire vnto your Lor^p: health and prosperitie, accu∣mulated with yeares and honors, the Page  [unnumbered] proper fruits and effects of so noble, just, and generally approved and ap∣plauded proceedings.

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