The works of Francis Bacon, lord chancellor of England.

BOOK I. NOVUM ORGANUM. 363
idle and indolent men received some mere reports duce a completely different method, order, and
of experience, traditions, as it were, of dreams, as progress of continuing and promoting experience.
establishing or confirming their philosophy; and For vague and arbitrary experience is (as we
have not hesitated to allow them the weight of have observed) mere groping in the dark, and
legitimate evidence. So that a system has been rather astonishes than instructs. But when expursued in philosophy with regard to experience, perience shall proceed regularly and uninterruptresenlbling' that of a kingdom or state which edly by a determined rule, we may entertain
would direct its councils and affairs according to better hopes of the sciences.
the gossip of city and street politicians, instead,," 101. But after having collected and prepared
of the letters and reports of ambassadors and mes- an abundance and store of natural history, and
sengers worthy of credit. Nothing is rightly of the experience required for the operations of
inquired into, or verified, noted, weighed, or rnea- the understanding, or philosophy; still the unsured, in natural history. Indefinite and vague derstanding is as capable of acting on such maobservation produces fallacious and uncertain in- terials of itself with the aid of memory alone,
formation. If this appear strange or our com- as any person would be of retaining and achievplaint somewhat too unjust, (because Aristotle ing by memory the computation of an almanac.
himsetf, so distinguished a man, and supported by Yet meditation has hitherto done more for discothe wealth of so great a king, has completed an very than writing, and no experiments have been
accurate history of animals, to which others with committed to paper. We cannot, however, apgreater diligence but less noise have made con- prove of any mode of discovery without writing,
siderable additions, and others again have com- and when that comes into more general use we
posed copious histories and notices of plants, may have further hopes.
metals, and fossils,) it will arise from a want of 102. Besides this, there is such a multitude and
sufficiently attending to and comprehending our host as it were of particular objects, and lying so
present observations. For a natural history com- widely dispersed, as to distract and confuse the
piled on its own account, and one collected for understanding; and we can therefore hope for no
the mind's information as a foundation for philoso- advantage from its skirmishing, and quick movephy, are two different things. They differ in ments and incursions, unless we put its forces in
several respects, but principally in this; the due order and array by means of proper, and well
fbrmer contains only the varieties of natural spe- arranged, and as it were living tables of discovecies without the experiments of mechanical arts. ry of these matters which are the subject of inFor as in ordinary life every person's disposition, vestigation, and the mind then apply itself to the
and the concealed feelings of the mind and ready prepared and digested aid which such ta..
passions are most drawn out when they are dis- bles afford.
turbed; so the secrets of nature betray themselves 103. When we have thus properly and regumore readily when tormented by art, than when larly placed before the eyes a collection of partileft to their own course. We must begin, there- culars, we must not immediately proceed to the
fore, to entertain hopes of natural philosophy then investigation and discovery of new particulars or
only, when we have a better compilation of natural effects, or, at least, if we do so, must not rest sahistory, its real basis and support. tisfied therewith. For, though we do not deny
99. Again, even in the abundance of mechanical that by transferring the experiments from one art
experiments there is a very great scarcity of those to another, (when all the experiments of each have
which best inform and assist the understanding. been collected and arranged, and have been acFor the mechanic, little solicitous about the in- quired by the knowledge and subjected to the
vestigation of truth, neither directs his attention judgment of a single individual,) many new exnor applies his hand to any thing that is not of periments may be discovered, tending to benefit
service to his business. But our hope of further society and mankind, by what we term literate
progress in the sciences will then only be well experiencee; yet comparatively insignificant results
founded, when numerous experiments shall be are to be expected thence, whilst the more irnreceived and collected into natural history, which, portant are to be derived from the new light of
though of no use in themselves, assist materially axioms, deduced by certain method and rule from?n the discovery of causes and axioms: which the above particulars, and pointing out and deexperiments we have termed enlightening, to fining new particulars in their turn. Our road is
distinguish them from those which are profitable. not along a plain, but rises and falls, ascending
Thiey possess this wonderful property and nature, to axioms and descending to effects.
that they never deceive or fail you, for, being used 104. Nor can we suffer the understanding to
only to discover the natural cause of some object, jump and fly from particulars to remote and most
whatever be the result, they equally satisfy your general axioms, (such as are termed the princiaim by deciding the question. ples of arts and things,) and thus prove and make
100. We must not only search for and procure out their intermediate axioms according to the
a greater number of experiments, but also intro- supposed unshaken truth of the former. This