A farrago of several pieces being a supplement to his poems, characters, heroick pourtraits, letters, and other discourses formerly published by him / newly written by Richard Flecknoe.

The Birth-Day.

A General silence was in Heaven, and expectation on Earth, with a busie whispering in either, as if some great and extrordinary business was to be done. When Mercury in the name of Iupiter, summond a council of all the Gods: which being assembled, Iupiter commanded the destinies to spin out one of their finest and most lasting Threds of life, to which Mars was to give a warlike spirit, Pallas wisdom, Mercury eloquence, and finally the Gra∣ces whatsoever was wanting else, to render it every waies accomplisht, when Lucina presently was dispatcht to earth, to assist at the nativitie of this illustrious Child, whom Iupiter was pleas'd parti∣cularly to honour, by breathing into it a spirit of his divinest air, (For though all, he inspires be celestial and divine, yet there is some grosser then o∣thers, as there is here on earth, he reser∣ving still the most rarified and refined,

for your most noblest Bodys,) and those whom he favours most, mean time on earth (as at lanching of some great Ship-Royal.) There was a great and joyful Assembly, in longing expecta∣tion of the Infants coming into the world; when behold the mother having invocated Iuno thrice, and Lucina as oft, was at last happily delivered of a Son, who had all the aforesaid endow∣ments of Heaven, and all the applaudis∣ments that possibly could be on Earth; for celebration of his Nativitie: And as there are never wanting some on Earth, who undertake to know all that is done in Heaven. Your Astrologers undertook by inspection of his stars, and calculating his nativity, to foretel that in the ma∣nagement of Arms and perfect know∣ledge of the Equestrian Art, he should be the compleatest Cavalier of his time, and every waies the most accomplished. But it was not their predictions that made him so, but his being so, that verified their predictions.

How he past his youth, is not necessary to declare, (for youth most commonly

are but the same in little, as afterwards they are in great when they are men,) And how great he was, would require a Chronicle to tell, as how he surpassed Lucullus rate in peace, (who held that none who could not spend a private pa∣trimony at an entertainment, should be accounted splendid and magnificent) and Crassus rate in war, (that none should be counted rich, that could not maintain an Army at their own proper cost.) To tell his name only is Chroni∣cle enough;) 'Tis William Duke of Newcastle▪ who as if his fate and the Crowns were inseparably conjoynd, supported the Crown whilst he stood; and when (by the iniquity of the times) he fell, the Crown fell too; till they were both at last restored again, and raised to greater heighth then ever they were before. The Crown by Heavens favour, and He, by favour of the Crown.