Observations, censures, and confutations of notorious errours in Mr. Hobbes his Leviathan and other his bookes to which are annexed occasionall anim-adversions on some writings of the Socinians and such hæreticks of the same opinion with him / by William Lucy ...

Sect. 11.

To discourse of the Stoicke Philosophy, were needles,* 1.1 because the common Authors, which are read by the generality of men, as Tully, Seneca, Epictetus, doe mani∣festly shew how they placed humane happinesse in his owne breast, and in his power, which is the injoyment of himself, without the disturbance of passions. And, to this end, they imposed that impossible meanes of rooting out passions, as living onely by reason; which certainly, if it could be done, would make man's life like that of the Angels; or his bodily life like his spi∣rituall, And these Cardinal vertues, Prudence, Justice, Fortitude, Temperance, to be the supports of all this worke; and that man's happinesse hath no dependence

upon any thing without him; these certainly carried with them much more perswasive reason to induce the end, which these vertues aimed at, then any thing Mr. Hobbes hath delivered.* 1.2 Then, for Aristotle, who, as appeare's, in the tenth of his Ethickes, Cap. 7. make's, first, the happinesse of man to consist in action, and that in the noblest action of man, which is of man's Under∣standing; then in the excellentest Act of his Under∣standing, which is Contemplation; and last of all, in the perfectest act of Contemplation, which is the Contem∣plation of God. I will not discourse his reasons, which were worthy his writing this way. A man may be happy alone without any reference to a Common-wealth, yea the businesse of publique affaires would but hinder and distract this; and throughout that book, these vertues are taught in relation of this chief Good of man, his happinesse, in which he may well rest, and seek no further; but, in his Politiques, he shewe's how the same vertues conduce to the publike; Mr. Hobbes, therefore, was much to blame, when he, in generall, passed so weake (though cruell) a Censure upon the universality of morall Philosophers, as to say, they did not see wherein the goodnesse of these Vertues, they wrote of, consisted: and his instance is as much to blame, which is, that

Notes

• * 1.1

  Wherein the Stoicks placed hum••ne hap∣pinesse.
• * 1.2

  Wherein Ari¦stotle.