The works of Francis Bacon, lord chancellor of England.

546 INTERPRETATION OF NATURE.
ignorance, most pernicious moth of letters, who i tories, who, in theories as madly as the rest,
twists and presses things with the chains of his did, more copiously indeed, from the supinest
method and compendium, till the things, indeed, conjectures, compound the promises rather than
if any there be, escape altogether and leap out; the aids of vulgar medicines. Take also thy
but he himself grasps the arid and most deserted companions the careless crowd of moderns. Io!
trifles. And Aquinas, indeed, with Scotus and Nomenclator, call them. But he replies, they
his fellows, contrived a variety of things, even are unworthy of having their names preserved by
when their subjects were nonentities; but this him. As, however, I recognise certain grades
man hath, even on subjects having real existence, among triflers of this kind, the worst and most
produced the vacuity of nonentity. And although absurd sort are those who in method and accurate
he is such a man, yet doth he impudently talk of discussion comprehend universal art, and are
uses to mankind, so that even when compared usually applauded for their elocution and arrangewith the sophists he seems to prevaricate. But ment; such is Fernelius. Those do less harm,
let us dismiss these. And now let Plato be sum- who display a greater variety and propriety of
moned, that polite caviller, tumid poet, insane observations, though deluded with and immersed
theologian. And, surely, when thou wast filing in the most foolish pretences; as Arnoldus de
and putting together I know not wlat philosophic Villa Nova, and others the like sort. I perceive,
rumours, and simulating knowledge by dissem- on the other side, the cohort of chymists, among
bling it, and tempting and loosening men's minds whom Paracelsus boasts himself above the rest;
with vague inductions, thou mightest either have who by his audacity merits separate correction.
ministered discourses to the feasts of literate and What oracles of Bacchus dost thou pour out
polite men, or also grace and love to ordinary in thy new meteorics, thou rival of Epicurus.
discourses. But, when thou didst counterfeit Yet he, as if asleep, or doing something else,
truth, which is as it were the indigenous inha- did in this matter as it were commit his opibitant of the human mind, migrating from no- nions to fate. Thou, more foolish than any fate,
where else, and didst turn aside our minds, which art ready to swear to the words of the absurdest
are never sufficiently applied and brought back to falsehood. But let us see thy other works. What
history and to things themselves, and teach them mutual imitations of the fruits of thy elements l
to enter into themselves, and under the name of what correspondencies; what parallels dreamest
contemplation to wallow amid their blind and thou, 0 fanatical joiner of idols! for thou hast
most confused idols, thou didst then commit a made man indeed a pantomime. Yet, how
capital offence. And afterwards, with scarcely notable are those interpunctions, thy species
less naughtiness, didst thou introduce an apo- namely, by which thou hast broken the unity of
theosis of folly, and dare to defend with religion nature. WVherefora'I can better endure Galen
thy meanest cogitations. For it is a slighter evil weighing his elements, than thee adorning thy
that thou hast been the parent of philologers, and dreams. For the occult properties of things exthat under thy guidance, and the auspices of thy cite him, but thee the common and promiscuous
manifold genius, ensnared and satisfied with fame qualities. Meanwhile, unhappy we, that dwell
and the popular and smooth jucundity of the amid such odiousimpertinences! But how eagerly
knowledge of things, they did corrupt the severer this most skilful impostor inculcates the triad of
investigation of truth. Among these were Marcus principles, a fiction not altogether useless, and
Cicero, and Anneus Seneca, and Plutarch of somewhat allied to things! Hear still graver
Chaeronea, and many others nowise equal to charges! By mingling things divine with things
these. Let us now proceed to physicians. I see natural, profane and sacred, heresies with fables,
Galen, a man of the narrowest mind, a forsaker thou hast polluted (0, sacrilegious impostor!)
of experience, and a most vain pretender. Art truth, both human and religious. The light of
not thou he, Galen, who took away even the nature (whose most sacred name thou so often
infanmy of ignorance and indolence in physicians, usurpest with impure mouth) thou hast not hid,
and put them in safety, the most sluggish definer like the sophists, but extinguished. They were
of their art and duty l who, by declaring so many the deserters of experience, thou the betrayer.
disorders to be incurable, proscribest so many of Subjecting by rule the crude and masked evidence
the sick, cutting off their hope and the industry of things to contemplation, and seeking the Proof physicians. 0, dogstar! 0, pestilence! Ea- teuses of substances according to the computations
gerly seizing and displaying thy fiction of mix- of motions, thou hast endeavoured to corrupt the
tore, the prerogative of nature, and thy sedition fountains of knowledge, and to strip the human
between the heat of stars and of fire, deceitfully mind; and thou hast increased with new and adreducest human power to order, and seekest to scititious windings and tediousness of expelidefend for ever thy ignorance by despair. Thou ments, those to which the sophists were averse,
art unworthy to be longer detained. Thou mayest and the empirics unequal; so far art thou from
also take away with thee thy fellows and con- having followed or known the representation of
fedexrates, the Arabians, the framers of dispensa- experience. And also the boastings of the Magi