Wisdom's dictates, or, Aphorisms & rules, physical, moral, and divine, for preserving the health of the body, and the peace of the mind ... to which is added a bill of fare of seventy five noble dishes of excellent food, for exceeding those made of fish or flesh ... / by Tho. Tryon.

Of the Original of most Human Inventions.

1. FRom the Kingdom of Cain joined with the outward Principle of this World, that is, from the first and 3d Principles does proceed and arise most Arts and Inventions, and not from the Nature of Abel or second Principle of Gods Love, which therefore we find complaining, that Man was made Upright, but had sought out many Inventions.

2. It may easily be observed, that most In∣ventions or curious Arts in Man do proceed from an ill Ground or Root, viz. from the high, proud, fierce Principle; this is manifest in the generality of Arts and new Inventions that are brought to light in our times, and the same is to be under∣stood from the beginning, else the Lord had not complained of them.

3. Few and easie are the things that serve for the support of Humane Nature, and to supply its Necessities, as plain Plowing, keeping of Sheep, and the like, which every Man is taught by his Natural Genious or Instinct, without being be∣holding to a Master of Art, but on the contrary, those innumerable Arts, and needless Inventions, that stand Man in no stead, but lead him to vanity and evil, are very hard, difficult, and chargeable to be obtained, and if any of such Inventions do chance in some respect to assist Man, it was not the intention of the Inventor so much fixt on the general Good, as on Ambition, Covetousness, and the like, that he might get Money by it, be e∣steemed Famous, and have the Praise of Men.

4. If you Read over Polidore, Virgil, Books of the Inventions of things; or Paucicolus, of things lost and found; or were it possible to number up

all the Inventions since the beginning of the World, there will not perhaps appear one of a thousand that was needful, or indeed beneficial unto Mankind, and clear of Evil in the Root.

5. Therefore Cain is mentioned to be the first that built a City, as signifying, that he was the Father of needless and harmful Inventions, which Cities and great Towns have chiefly applied them∣selves unto, for nice Inventions and superfluous Arts are not promoted amongst Plowmen and Sheepherds, for they are plain down-right, or rather upright honest Men, and imploy them∣selves equally Innocent and Necessary; thus were all the holy Patriarchs, plain simple Herdsmen and Sheepherds, in whom was contained the Royal Line of the Divine Principle, or holy Seed of the Woman, that can bruise the Head of the Inventions, or Serpentine Nature, as Abel, Abra∣ham, Isaac, and Iacob; and at the Manifestation or Birth of Jesus, the Grand Shepherd of Souls, the same was first proclaimed by the Angels to those that were innocently tending their Flocks.

6. Not to insist on those black Arts which are generally decried, as Negromancy, Conjuring, the Skill of mixing and preparing Poysons, and the like; What do most of the rest and more ap∣plauded Crafts tend unto, but either Violence, Oppression, and the Destruction of Men, or to fraud and Cousenage, or to Gluttony, Drunken∣ness, Luxury, and Effeminacy, or to Pride and Vanity?

7. What kind of Property or Principle was that in Man which first invented and daily im∣proves the use of Warlike Weapons to kill, mur∣ther, and destroy those of their own Kind, as well as o••her inferior innocent Creatures, that raked into the bowels of Hell for Brimstone, Nitre, & Saltpetre,

to furnish them with Gunpowder, and Studied the Art of Mining and Blowing up their natural Brethren by Hundreds at a blast? Did not all such things originally arise from the Bottomless Pit, that deep dark poysonous Abyss of Fierce∣ness and Wrath? And still from the same horrid Fountain do proceed all new Inventions that tend to the Destruction of Man, wherein it may be observed, that Christians have been more unhap∣pily Ingenious than those they call Heathens, which is much to be lamented, though the latter have so far learnt of them, that now they are grown no less expert in the mischievous uses of those Inventions, and not seldom do therewith plague and destroy the Original Authors.

8. From what Principle in Man did the Inven∣tion of Ships arise, or what real Necessity was there for the same, has the most merciful and bounteous Creator planted Man in any Country which does not afford sufficient to supply all the necessities of Nature? For, Did not those mil∣lions that inhabited those vast Regions since called America, subsist without the Art of Navigation, any further than meer Nature taught them for many Ages before? Columbus could boast of discovering a new World, how many have been swallowed up by the vast Ocean through means of Seafaring Attempts, which seldom had better aim, than either to Disquiet, Conquer, and Ro•• Innocent peaceable People, or to obtain such things as are not at all needful, but serve only to please the vanity of the multitude, and procure Diseases.

9. Considering the certain and inevitable dan∣ger that attends Navigation, we may justly say, that all things brought from remote parts by Se••, are the price of Blood; Now if a Prince cause a

single Man to be put to Death, or one privately kill another, or if a Man hang or drown himself here on shoar, then what a great deal of trouble it makes amongst the Relations, and also the People, (which indeed when done by the Hands of Justice, is much to be lamented, that People should live so contrary to Human Society, that there should be any kind of cause for killing of Human Creatures) but there do daily many thou∣sands expose their Lives in going to Sea to fetch superfluities that serve only to promote Vanity and Diseases, and when they loose their Lives, and perish through their own Folly and ill Con∣duct, little or no notice is taken of it; as in one Storm thousands of Men sink to the bottom of the Sea in their Ships laden with Spices, Wines, and the like, which if they had brought to Land, they nor no others could not have sustained their Hunger and Lives one Week, but could have done abundance of hurt to the Eaters and Drinkers thereof.

10. What Tongue or Pen can express the ha∣zards, the horrors, the miseries, that People ex∣pose themselves to in Tempests at Sea, and to what purpose, to fetch Wanton Men Pearls to hang at the Ears of their more Wanton Mistresses, to bring Pepper to strew over our Cucumbers, Mangoes for our Mutton, or Claret, Florence Wine, Brandy, and a thousand other Strong Li∣quors to Intoxicate our Gallants, and make them spend their Means, ruine their Healths, shorten their Lives, be mad, quarrel, kill one another, and so to be hang'd for't: Certainly did our friendly courteous Women, and nice Ladies, and others pretending to Piety and Conscience, con∣sider all this, they would not be so fond of these foreign Need-nots, but rather be of David's mind

touching the Water his Soldiers procured, which he counted the price of Blood, and though he had need of it, yet he would not receive nor drink it.

11. What Principle or Property in Man was it that first invented all Strong Intoxicated Drinks, which do chiefly serve to destroy Mens Souls and Bodies; Did not he that first invented the making of Wine commit one of the greatest Evils through Drunkenness? which is still the grand cause and in-let of Adulteries, Whoredom, Murders, Blasphemies, and all kind of Diseases, and Oppressions both of Body and Mind, whence it is clear that this Invention did proceed from the Bitter Root.

12. From whence did and do the daily Inven∣tions, Compositions, and Preposterous mixtures of Foods proceed, which merely serves to stupify the Intellectuals, and distemper the Body with incurable Diseases, doth not all such pernicious Inventions proceed and arise from the Poysonous Root; as also all Plays, Games, Fine Cloaths, Rich Furniture, Stately Buildings, as Pyramids, and a thousand sorts of stately Structures of vast Charge, invincible Labour, and Hazards to those that build them? Will any body say, that such things are necessary to the Life and well-being of Man? Are they not rather contrary to the Command of our Lord, Having Food and Rai∣ment be ye therewith content.