Classic Poem

81

For though the words she vse, seeme leuels true,
And strong, to show the crookednesse of Error;
Yet in the inward man there's nothing new,
But masked euill, which still addeth terror,
Helping the vanity to buy or sell,
And rests as seldome as it labours well.

82

Besides their Schoolemens sleepy speculation,
Dreaming to comprehend the Deity
In humane reasons finite eleuation;
While they make Sense seat of Eternity,
Must bury Faith , whose proper obiects are
Gods mysteries , aboue our Reason farre.

83

Besides, these Nymphs of Nemesis still worke
Nets of opinion, to entangle spirits
And in the shadow of the Godhead lurke,
Building a Babel vpon faithlesse merits ;
Whence Forme, and Matter neuer can agree,
To make one Church of Christianitie .

84

The Ancient Church which did succeed that light,
In which the Iewes high Priest-hood iustly fell,
More faithfully endeauour'd to vnite,
And thereby neerer came to doing well;
Neuer reuealing curious mysteries,
Vnlesse enforc'd by mans impieties:

85

And when that Disobedience needs would deale
With hidden knowledge, to prophane her Maker;
Or vnder questions contradiction steale,
Then wisely vndertakes this vndertaker
With powerfull Councels , that made Error mute;
Not arguments, which still maintaine dispute.

86

So were it to be wish'd, each Kingdome would
Within her proper Soueraignity,
Seditions, Schismes, and strange Opinions mould
By Synods , to a setled vnity;
Such, as though Error priuately did harme,
Yet publike Schismes might not so freely swarme.

87

For though the World, and Man can neuer frame
These outward moulds, to cast Gods chosen in;
Nor giue his Spirit where they giue his Name;
That power being neuer granted to the sinne:
Yet in the world those Orders prosper best,
Which from the word , in seeming, varie least.

88

Since therefore she brookes not Diuinity,
But Superstition, Heresie, Schisme, Rites,
Traditions, Legends, and Hypocrisie;
Let her yet forme those visions in the light,
To represent the Truth she doth despise;
And, by that likenesse, prosper in her lies:

89

To which end let her raise the discipline,
And practise of Repentance, Piety, Loue;
To image forth those Homages Diuine,
Which euen by showes, draw Honour from aboue;
Embracing Wisdome, though she hate the good,
Since Power thus uayl'd is hardly understood .

90

Lawes be her next chiefe Arts, and instruments;
Of which the onely best deriued be,
Out of those tenne words in Gods Testaments,
Where Conscience is the base of policie;
But in the world a larger scope they take,
And cure no more wounds, than perchance they make.

91

They being there meere Children of disease,
Not form'd at once by that all-seeing might,
But rather as Opinions markets please,
Whose diuerse spirits in times present light,
Will yet teach Kings to order, and reduce
Those abstract rules of Truth, to rules of Vse.

92

Therefore, as shadowes of those Lawes diuine,
They must assist Church-censure , punish Error,
Since when, from Order, Nature would decline,
There is no other natiue cure but terror;
By Discipline, to keepe the Doctrine free,
That Faith and Power still relatiues may be.

93

Let this faire hand-maid then the Church attend,
And to the wounds of Conscience adde her paines,
That priuate hearts may vnto publike ends
Still gouern'd be, by Orders easie raines;
And by effect, make manifest the cause
Of happy States to be religious Lawes.

94

Their second noble office is, to keepe
Mankinde upright in trafficke of his owne,
That fearlesse each may in his cottage sleepe,
Secur'd that right shall not be ouerthrowne;
Persons indifferent, reall Arts in prise,
And in no other priuiledge made wise.

95

Lastly, as linkes betwixt mankinde, and Kings,
Lawes safely must protect obedience ,
Vnder those Soueraigne, all-embracing wings,
Which from beneath expect a reuerence:
That like the Ocean , with her little springs,
We for our sweet may feele the salt of Kings.

96

Physicke , with her faire friend Philosophie ,
Come next in ranke, as well as Reputation;
Whose proper subiect is Mortalitie ,
Which cannot reach that principall Creation,
Mixtures of Nature, curious mystery
Of timelesse time, or bodies transmutation;
Nor comprehend the infinite degrees
Of qualities, and their strange operation;
Whence both, vpon the second causes grounded,
Must iustly by the first cause, be confounded.

97

Therefore, let these which decke this house of clay,
And by excesse of Mans corruption gaine,
Know probabilitie is all they may,
For to demonstrate they cannot attaine:
Let labour, rest, and dyet be their way
Mans natiue heat, and moisture to maintaine,
As Healths true base, and in disease proceed,
Rather by what they know , than what they read .

98

Next after comes that Politicke Philosophie ,
Whose proper obiects, forme and matters are;
In which she oft corrupts her mystery,
By grounding Orders offices too farre
On precepts of the heathen, humours of Kings,
Customes of men, and times vnconstant wings.

99

Besides, what can be certaine in those Arts,
Which cannot yeeld a generall proposition,
To force their bodies out of natiue parts?
But like things of Mechanicall condition,
Must borrow that wherewith they doe conclude,
And so not perfect Nature, but delude.

100

Redresse of which cannot come from below;
But from that Orbe, where power exalted raignes,
To order, iudge, to gouerne, and bestow
Sense, strength, and nourishment, through all the veines,
That equall limbes each other may supply,
To serue the Trophies of Authority.

101

Once in an age let Gouernment then pease
The course of these traditions, with their birth;
And bring them backe vnto their infant dayes,
To keepe her owne Soueraignity on earth;
Else viper-like, their parents they deuoure:
For all Powers children easily couet power.

102

Now for these instrumentall following Arts ,
Which, in the trafficke of Humanity,
Afford not matter, but limme out the parts,
And formes of speaking with authority:
I say who too long in their cobwebs lurks,
Doth like him that buyes tooles, but neuer works.

103

For whosoeuer markes the good, or euill,
As they stand fixed in the heart of Man:
The one of God, the other of the deuill,
Feele, out of things, Men words still fashion can:
So that from life since liuely words proceed,
What other Grammar doe our natures need?

104

Logike comes next, who with the Tyranny
Of subtile rules, distinctions, termes, and notions,
Confounds of reall truth the harmony,
Distracts the iudgement, multiplies commotion
In memory, mans wit, imagination,
To dimme the cleare light of his own creation.

105

Hence striue the Schooles , by first, and second kinds
Of substances, by essence, and existence,
That Trine , and yet Vnitednesse diuine
To comprehend, and image to the sense;
As doe the misled superstitious minds,
By this one rule, or Axiom taken thence;
Looke where the Whole is, there the Parts must be ,
Thinke they demonstrate Christs vbiquity .

106

The wise reformers therefore of this Art
Must cut off termes, distinctions, axioms, lawes,
Such as depend either in whole, or part,
Vpon this stained sense of words, or sawes:
Onely admitting precepts of such kinde,
As without words may be conceiu'd in minde.

107

Rhetorike , to this a sister, and a twinne,
Is growne a Siren in the formes of pleading,
Capturing reason, with the painted skinne
Of many words; with empty sounds misleading
Vs to false ends, by these false forms abuse,
Brings neuer forth that Truth, whose name they vse.

108

Besides, this Art, where scarcity of words
Forc'd her, at first, to Metaphorike wings,
Because no Language in the earth affords
Sufficient Characters to expresse all things;
Yet since, she playes the wanton with this need,
And staines the Matrone with the Harlots weed.

109

Whereas those words in euery tongue are best,
Which doe most properly expresse the thought;
For as of pictures, which should manifest
The life, we say not that is fineliest wrought,
Which fairest simply showes, but faire and like:
So words must sparkes be of those fires they strike .

110

For the true Art of Eloquence indeed
Is not this craft of words, but formes of speech,
Such as from liuing wisdomes doe proceed;
Whose ends are not to flatter, or beseech,
Insinuate, or perswade, but to declare
What things in Nature good, or euill are.

111

Poesie and Musicke , Arts of Recreation,
Succeed, esteem'd as idle mens profession;
Because their scope, being meerely contentation,
Can moue, but not remoue, or make impression
Really, either to enrich the Wit,
Or, which is lesse, to mend our states by it.

112

This makes the solid Iudgements giue them place,
Onely as pleasing sauce to dainty food;
Fine foyles for iewels, or enammels grace,
Cast vpon things which in themselues are good;
Since, if the matter be in Nature vile ,
How can it be made pretious by a stile?

113

Yet in this Life, both these play noble parts;
The one, to outward Church -rites if applied,
Helps to moue thoughts, while God may touch the hearts
With goodnesse, wherein he is magnified:
And if to Mars we dedicate this Art,
It raiseth passions which enlarge the minde,
And keepes downe passions of the baser kinde.

114

The other twinne, if to describe, or praise
Goodnesse, or God she her Ideas frame,
And like a Maker, her creations raise
On lines of truth, it beautifies the same;
And while it seemeth onely but to please,
Teacheth vs order vnder pleasures name;
Which in a glasse, shows Nature how to fashion
Her selfe againe, by ballancing of passion.

115

Let therefore humane Wisedome vse both these,
As things not pretious in their proper kind;
The one a harmony to moue, and please;
If studied for it selfe, disease of mind
The next (like Nature) doth Ideas raise,
Teaches, and makes; but hath no power to binde:
Both, ornaments to life and other Arts,
Whiles they doe serve, and not possesse our hearts.

116

The grace, and disgrace of this following traine,
Arithmetike, Geometrie, Astronomy,
Rests in the Artisans industrie, or veine,
Not in the Whole, the Parts, or Symmetrie:
Which being onely Number, Measure, Time,
All following Nature, helpe her to refine.

117

And of these Arts it may be said againe,
That since their Theoricke is infinite;
Of infinite there can no Arts remaine.
Besides, they stand by curtesie, not right;
Who must their principles as granted craue,
Or else acknowledge they no being haue.

118

Their Theoricke then must not waine their vse,
But, by a practise in materiall things,
Rather awake that dreaming vaine abuse
Of Lines , without breadth ; without feathers, wings:
So that their boundlesnesse may bounded be,
In Workes, and Arts of our Humanity.

119

But for the most part those Professors are
So melted, and transported into these;
And with the Abstract swallowed up so farre
As they lose trafficke, comfort, vse, and ease:
And are, like treasures with strange spirits guarded,
Neither to be enioy'd, nor yet discarded.

120

Then must the reformation of them be,
By carrying on the vigor of them all,
Through each profession of Humanity,
Military , and mysteries Mechanicall:
Whereby their abstract formes yet atomis'd,
May be embodied; and by doing pris'd.