Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	author_n	read_v	write_v	2,323	5	5.1781	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A70046	Reason and judgement, or, Special remarques of the life of the renowned Dr. Sanderson, late Lord Bishop of Lincoln together with his Judgement for setling the church, in exact resolutions of sundry grand cases very seasonable at this time.	D. F.; Sanderson, Robert, 1587-1663. Judgment in one view for the settlement of the church.	1663 (1663)	Wing F10; ESTC R224352	48,079	100

most considerable places in a Kingdome so he would usually say That the Practical Way is the best when as Aristotle speaks We learn that by doing which we learn to do And now I would willingly enlarge on his minority and his first appearance in solid and pious Learning with which he always abounded but that it is like the beginning of Nilus hardly to be found and we know no minority of his being one that did 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 excel his equals and himself in a staid worth above his years and time always eminent always excellent And therefore I follow him furnished with excellent Rules of Grammar and Rhetorick with choice pieces of History Poetry and Oratory with an elegancie in Latine a good judgement in Greek serious in his designe prudent in his study industrious in his way clear in his apprehension searching in his understanding serene orderly and methodical in his thoughts sober and civil in his carriage the School having added to his great Parts that humility meekness modesty obedience and civility as advantaged by his good disposition rendred him to his dying day submissive to Superiours obliging to his Equals tender to his Inferiours amiable and charitable to all I follow him with as much duty observance and affection though not with so much ability as other men to the University of Oxford where in Lincoln-Colledge with a slow but sure pace he proceeded in all rational and solid Learning his unwearied minde strugling with the intricacies perplexities darkness and confusion of Nature and aiming at that clear and genuine apprehension of things we were created in after the image of God in knowledge not so intent upon the notions as the nature of things As he had attained to so much Grammar as enabled him to speak his minde properly and so much Rhetorick as to express it perswasively so he endeavoured to gain so much Logick as might order guide and direct his thoughts methodically in apprehending things distinctly in judging of them exactly in finding out the truth that lies in them successfully in discovering the errours deceits and fallacies imposed upon us in them evidently and urging the truths found out convincingly His way was 1. to write the Rules his Tutor suggested or his Books afforded for he writ most he read or heard as he said to stay his active and young soul upon things until he had distinctly conceived them 2. To debate those Rules with himself and others which he had so written 3. To practise them upon some Question or other till they became as his native Reason as his own soul. Whereby he afterwards attained in all cases a great happiness to comprehend things fully to state Controversies exactly to lay them before others both clearly and compendiously to finde out the merit of a Cause the right joynt of a Question exactly to confirm a Truth pertinently properly and acutely insomuch that as he composed a new Logick an excellent way of Reasoning so he was himself for many years the publike Reason of the Church looking into Debates deeply opening them solidly and conspicuously determining them impartially conscientiously and clearly pressing Truth and Duty convincingly his Reasons were strong and demonstrative his Allegations close and pertinent his Observations choice and prudent his Deductions clear his Censure impartial his Expressions apt suitable weighty and accurate his Discourse steady judicious undistracted made up of abstract notions of Reason Experience and Religion his Thoughts calm smoothe and methodical He was a great engrosser of private Systemes and Papers and he would say The united Reason of many industrious and serious searchers after the Truth make one compleat man He would gather the acutest Arguments he found among Philosophers to quicken though not to instruct himself these smart trifles he would say would help us to that acuteness and distinctness of apprehension that might be useful in greater matters and it was equally useful and pleasant to observe the various workings of several Reasons with mens several defects and excellencies by the correcting the one whereof and imitating the other a man might raise a frame of soul most knowing most clear and almost innocent He advised yong men to advance towards a clear understanding of any thing by these steps 1. To understand the word by which it is expressed in all its acceptations 2. To understand all the words in the learned Languages by which that thing is expressed with the Original of those words and the reason why they were made use of to express that thing with all the words that are neer to it and their signification 3. Then to apprehend the nature of the thing with what it hath common with other things and what it hath special in it self what relation it hath to other things in the world whence it proceeded for what end it was made with other things that are like it Thus to know a few things exactly is to be very learned As to any Question that was to be debated the words he said must be clearly understood and the notion of the things in debate stated and then what is granted on all sides concerning the things rightly understood must be shewed and what is controverted as there will be very little when words and things are well understood must be clearly laid down as it is understood on all hands and convincingly proved by a proper reason from the nature of the thing or from authority pressed and cleared from all evasions cavils and subterfuges which cavils must be proposed faithfully and honestly and answered briefly and fully ingeniously candidly and modestly His advice about reading of Authors was this 1. To observe the nature of the thing handled and so know what to look for from him what part of Learning he may satisfie you in 2. To observe the Author and the occasion time and way of writing 3. To observe what is said of the thing handled in direct Propositions 4. To note what is said indirectly of it out of other Learning as Rhetorick Philology History c. 5. To take notice what new Explications the Author useth beyond what we have in the old Learning his several Conclusions and Arguments with the Topicks from whence they are taken with his answer to Arguments and Objections He would say It was no less then a miracle of knowledge that men might attain to if they proceeded thus distinctly in reading Authors and in pursuing after knowledge He advised young men to use common-place-Common-place-books in the beginning whereof there might be a common table containing the general heads of the book under which generally the special heads may be written with references to the pages where those heads are handled with a little blank space after each sort of heads wherein more heads if we meet with them may be inserted for every head let there be reserved a page where what notable sentence notion rule or particular soever is suggested to us in reading meditating discoursing may be

written and reserved for future use His minde thus guided by sure and constant Rules of Reason made the more methodical and so more happier progress in learning Languages and Intellectual Sciences Philosophy History Poetry Philology and the whole circle of Learning which he throughly studied and methodically digested making each part illustrate and help another until he became a great Master of the whole and his Parts voted him Fellow of the House an excellent advantage for young men to improve their first years of prudence and discretion and made him an eminent Tutor in the University where he at once learned and taught advancing his own Parts and Reason while he improved his Pupils I learn said he much from my Master more from my Equals and most of all from my Disciples And indeed he allowed himself no other diversion then what the giving encouragement and instruction to ingenious young Students yeilded him a thing he peculiarly delighted in as wherein he could observe the several weaknesses of Reason and their respective remedies Here he was as retired as he could being able but not forward to appear and very willing to improve himself His modest thoughts and distrust of himself made him a while satisfie himself with the conscience of well-doing having the highest pleasure of enjoying Worth without noise and Vertue without applause being a great Stream of Learning without noise deep and clear While he was in the University he generally spent eleven hours a day in study which industry of his dispatched the whole course of Philosophy and picked out in a manner all that was useful in all Classick Authors that are extant drawing Indexes for his private use either in his own paper-Paper-book or at the beginning and end of each book which will testifie his indefatigable pains to as many as shall peruse his excellent and well-chosen Study This assiduity continued to his dying day as if he had resolved to depart studying and go immediately from his pursuit of revealed truth to the view of the eternal He disposed himself and time to perpetual industry and diligence not only avoiding but perfectly hating idleness and hardly recommending any thing more then this Be always furnished with somewhat to do as the best way to innocence and pleasure There was not a minute of the day he left vacant from business of necessity civility or study you should hardly see him without his book or hardly meet him without his plodding thoughts and meditations A clear and calm way he had of weighing duely what he should do in designing what he had considered and soberly performing what he had designed His minde was wholly inward where lay his Scoenes of discreet prudent and pious undertakings In sicknesses if they were not so violent as to make the recollection of his thoughts impossible he never intermitted study but rather re-inforced as the best ease of his distemper and diversion of his pain His way was to cast into paper his Observations and direct them to his great designe I may say of him as the reverend Dr. Fell saith of his good friend the excellent Dr. Hammond That considering his time of prayer and instructing his family his perusal of the writings of friends and strangers when inrended to be publick his review of his own works his reception of visits whether for civility or for resolution of conscience or information in point of difficulty which were numerous and great devourers of his time he being reckoned the ablest and faithfullest Casuist in the world his general Correspondencies by Letters which took up the proportion of a day in each Week and more I say he that shall consider these instances of diligence besides his own vast reading must be to seek what point of time remained undisposed of and learn to redeem the time It pleased God he had a body suited to that pains he was designed for a faithful Assistant rather then an impediment to his great Soul symbolizing with it in an exact temper neither failing it through the weakness of organs nor burthening it with the redundancy of humours nor clogging it with sad melancholy nor disturbing it with an active unsetledness nor ruffling it with angry choler neither too large for it nor too narrow but every way proportionable Although he indeed was pleased to write thus of himself in his Preface to his Book of the Obligation of Conscience Nimirum ut ignavus miles quem sola fortem facit desperatio tum demum acris fertur ad pugnam cum nullus reliquus est effugio locus ita mihi ingenium est Des otium spatium tempus nil sit Vexantur frustra calami diffluit mens vagatur excurrit torpet In arctum cogas Subsistit excitatur recolligit vires quasque habet quandoquidem exerto est opus exerit universas ut verbo dicam quod agi necesse est hoc agit Vt solis radii qui laxo liberoque coelo diffusi sic modice calefaciunt vix ut sentias iidem in concavi speculi umbonem velut in centrum coacti adductique acriter urunt Multo usu à prima lanugine ad hanc canitiem edoctus didici quam non sit vanum illud Pythagorae hemistichium 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Quod ignavae mentis vitium etsi nonnullis fortasse videri possit habere modestiae speciem aliquam mihi tamen una hac idonea excusatione defendi posse videtur quod sit certis quibusdam hominibus ego in hoc censu 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ita congenitum insitumque ab ipsis cunabulis ut frustra sit quisquis exillo numero id ulla speret à se posse vel arte corrigi vel industria superari Yet I am assured that he never considered longer then till he could discern whether things proposed were fit or no when that was determined he would without any slow delay in spending that time to gaze upon a business which might serve to do it go about another when he had perfected one business he could not endure his soul should stand still but he instantly considered what was next to be undertaken constant course of business running along with a constant course of time His Carriage grave comely and modest his Garb plain and studious such as became a great Scholar and a solemne Divine alwaies meditating some great and good design retiring within himself and taken up with his own great thoughts equal in all his actions doing nothing rash violent or pecipitant in his words gesture or understanding even and composed entire modestly endeavouring what he thought his duty diligently pursuing what was within his reach and resolvedly fixt upon what he judged within his capacity the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the square and solid man seldome failing and therefore seldome repenting his speech was as calm and even as his soul so sober so steady so apt so ordered so weighty when serious so pleasant when devoted to an harmless mirth which