Essays of Michael, seigneur de Montaigne in three books : with marginal notes and quotations and an account of the author's life : with a short character of the author and translator, by a person of honour / made English by Charles Cotton ...

CHAP. LIV. (Book 54)

Of Vain Subtilties. (Book 54)

THere are a sort of little Knacks, and fri∣volous Subtilties, from which Men some∣times expect to derive Reputation and Ap∣plause: As the Poets, who compose whole Poems, with every Line beginning with the same Letter: We see the shapes of Eggs, Globes, Wings and Hatchets, cut out by the Ancient Greeks, by the measure of their Ver∣ses, making them longer or shorter, to repre∣sent such or such a Figure. Of this nature was his Employment, who made it his busi∣ness, to compute into how many several Or∣ders the Letters of the Alphabet might be transpos'd, and found out that incredible number mention'd in Plutarch. I am mightily pleas'd with the humour of the Gentleman, who, having a Man brought before him, that had learn'd to throw a Grain of Millet with such dexterity and assurance, as never to miss the Eye of a Needle; and being afterwards entreated to give something for the reward of so rare a performance, he pleasantly, and in my opinion ingeniously, order'd a certain number of Bushels of the same Grain to be deliver'd to him, that he might not want wherewith to exercise so famous an Art. 'Tis a strong evidence of a weak Judgment, when Man approve of things for their being rare and new, or yet for the difficulty; where Ver∣tue

and Usefulness are not conjoin'd to re∣commend them. I come just now from play∣ing with my own Family, at who could find out the most things, that had their principal force in their two Extremities; as, Sire, which is a Title given to the greatest person in the Nation, the King, and also to the Vulgar, as Merchants and Mechanicks, but never to a∣ny degree of Men between. The Women of great Quality are call'd Madams, inferiour Gentlewomen, Mademoiselles, and the meanest sort of Women, Madams, as the first. The Canopy of State over Tables are not permit∣ted, but in the Palaces of Princes, and Ta∣verns. Democritus said, that Gods and Beasts, had a more exact and perfect sense, than Men, who are of a middle Form. The Romans wore the same Habit at Funerals and Feasts; and it is most certain, that an extream Fear, and an extream Ardour of Courage, do equally trou∣ble and lax the Belly. The Nickname of Trembling, with which they Sirnam'd Sancho the XII. King of Navarre, sufficiently infor∣meth, that Valour will cause a trembling in the Limbs, as well as Fear. The Friends of that King, or of some other person, who up∣on the like occasion was wont to be in the same disorder, try'd to compose him, by re∣presenting the danger less, he was going to engage himself in: You understand me ill, said he, for could my Flesh know the danger my Courage will presently carry it into, it would sink down to the ground. The faint∣ness that surprizes us from Frigidity, or dislike

in the exercises of Venus, are also occasio•••• by a too violent desire, and an immodor•••••• heat. Extream Coldness, and extream He••••▪ Boil and Roast. Aristotle says, that Sows 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Lead will melt, and run with Cold, and 〈◊〉〈◊〉 extremity of Winter; as with a vehem•••••• Heat. Desire and Satiety fill all the grada••∣ons above and below Pleasure with Grief▪ Brutality and Wisdom meet in the same Cen∣ter of Sentiment and Resolution, in the suf∣fering of Humane Accidents; the Wise con∣troul and Triumph over ill, the others know it not: These last are, as a Man may say, on this side of Accidents, the other are beyond them; who after having well weigh'd and consider'd their Qualities, measur'd and judg'd them what they are, by vertue of a vigoro•••• Soul leap out of their reach. They disda•••• and trample them under foot, having a solid and well fortified Soul, against which the Darts of Fortune coming to strike they must of necessity rebound, and blunt themselves, meeting with a Body upon which they can fix no Impression; the ordinary and midd•••• condition of Men, are lodg'd betwixt the•••• two Extremities, consisting of such, who p••••∣ceive Evils, feel them, and are not able to support them. Infancy and Decrepitude mee•• in the imbecility of the Brain; Avarice and Profusion in the same thirst and desire of get∣ting. A Man may say with some colour of truth, that there is an Abecedarian Ignorance that precedes knowledge, and a Doctoral I••∣norance that comes after it; an Ignorance th••••

knowledge does create and beget, at the same time that she dispatches and destroys the first Of mean understandings, little, inquisitive, and little instructed, are made good Christi∣ans, who by Reverence and Obedience impli∣citely believe, and are constant in their belief. In the moderate understandings, and the mid∣dle sort of capacities, the error of Opinions is begot, and they have some colour of rea∣son on their side, to impute our walking on in the old beaten path to simplicity, and bru∣tishness, I mean in us who have not inform'd our selves by Study. The higher, and nobler Souls, more solid and clear sighted, make up another sort of true believers: who by a long and Religious Investigation of truth, have obtain'd a clearer, and more penetrating, light into the Scriptures, and have discover'd the Mysterious and Divine secret of our Ec∣clesiastical Polity. And yet we see some, who by this middle step, are arriv'd to that su∣pream degree with marvellous Fruit, and Con∣firmation; as to the utmost limit of Christian intelligence, and enjoying their victory with great Spiritual Consolation, humble acknow∣ledgment of the Divine Favour, exemplary Reformation of Manners, and singular Mode∣sty. I do not intend with these to rank some others, who to clear themselves from all suspi∣cion of their former Errours, and to satisfie us, that they are sound and firm to us, render themselves extream indiscreet and unjust, in the carrying on out Cause, and by that means bl••mish it with infinite Reproaches of Violence

and oppression. The simple Peasants are good People, and so are the Philosophers: Me•• of strong and clear Reason, and whose Souls are enrich'd with an ample instruction of profita∣ble Sciences. The Mongrets who have disda••••'d the first form of the Ignorance of Letters, ••and have not been able to attain to the other, (••••∣ting betwixt two Stools, as I, and a great ma∣ny more of us do,) are dangerous, foolish and importunate; these are they that trou∣ble the World. And therefore it is, that I for my own part, retreat as much as I can ••••∣wards my first and natural Seation, from whence I so vainly attempted to advance. The vulgar and purely natural Poesie, has 〈◊〉〈◊〉 it certain Proprieties and Graces, by wh•••• she may come into some comparison with 〈◊〉〈◊〉 greatest Beauty of a Poesie perfected by 〈◊〉〈◊〉. As is evident in our Gascon Villanels and 〈◊〉〈◊〉 that are brought us from Nations that have no knowledge of any manner of Science, no•• 〈◊〉〈◊〉 much as the use of Writing. The indiffer•••• and middle sort of Poesie betwixt these 〈◊〉〈◊〉 is despis'd, of no Value▪ Honour or Este•• But seeing that the Ice being once broken▪ and a Path laid open to the Fancy, I have found, as it commonly falls out, that what we make choice of for a rare and difficult Subject, proves to be nothing so, and that after 〈◊〉〈◊〉 invention is once warm, it finds out an infin•••• number of paralle•• Examples. I shall only 〈◊〉〈◊〉 this one; That were these Essays of 〈◊〉〈◊〉 considerable enough to deserve a Censure 〈◊〉〈◊〉 might then I think fall out, that they, 〈◊〉〈◊〉

not much take with common and vulga•• Ca∣pacities, nor be very acceptable to the singu∣lar and excellemt sort of Men, for the first would not understand them enough, and the last too much, and so they might hover in the middle Region.