Selected quad for the lemma: book_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	know_v	name_n	write_v	5,306	5	5.6704	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A93102	The vveepers: or, the bed of snakes broken. Wit vitiated, and made a pander to wickednesse; instanced in a pack of knaves (calling themselves servants to the late King) worthy the anger of the present age; and the wonder and indignation of all posterity. Six cupping-glasses, clapt to the cloven feet of the six dæmons, who govern the times by turns from Munday to Saturday annually. / By S.S.	Sheppard, S. (Samuel)	1652 (1652)	Wing S3171; Thomason E674_34; ESTC R207208	8,681	17

THE VVEEPERS OR The bed of Snakes broken Wit Vitiated and made a Pander to Wickednesse Instanced in a Pack of Knaves calling themselves Servants to the late King worthy the Anger of the present Age and the wonder and indignation of all Posterity Six CUPPING-GLASSES clapt to the cloven Feet of the six Daemons who Govern the times by turns from Munday to Saturday Annually To wonder at past Prodigies forbeare AEgypt and Africa are blended here Dajustum Sanctumque videri Noctem peccatis fraudibus objice nubem By S. S. LONDON Printed for Thomas Bucknell at the Signe of the Golden-Lion in Duck-lane 1652. READER IF thou askest me what I mean to trouble the World that is already under such a glut of Books thou maist easily perceive that I consulted not at all with advantaging my Name or wooing publick Esteem For what I now write I know there was much of naked Truth in it and might possibly finde a more than common acceptance aswel for the Rarity as the Reality of the Subject c. If any Simplician take exceptions let him turn the Buckle of his Girdle he that manifests distemper at the perusall of these Sheets must of necessity be a Knave or Foole or both If any man deny me the liberty of speaking Truth I will take it I say I will take it I am an Independent I feare not Some I doubt not so much doat upon a dirty Diurnall a Weekly Accompt or a ridiculous non-sensicall Mercury that they will condemne me to no worse Pennance than to bathe in blew Flames for presuming to bid Defiance to so reverend a Rabble pew mew vew A Degenerate besotted insaniated ignorant People a Monster onely fit to feed on such Raffe and Garbage I feare the Censure of Vertuous and Judicious Men But I laugh at and contemne the rage of these Cumane Asses Masquers Mummers painted Puppets out-sides Whiflers walking Pictures Shadowes Gulls Vizards Butter-flies I owe thee nothing Reader and look for no favour at thy hands God buy THE WEEPERS IS not this Mundus furiosus a mad World Is it not manifest that we are fallen into the dregs of time we live in the ●ust of the Iron Age and must accordingly expect to feel the Dotages of a decrepit World What is become of Truth Sincerity Humility c. Those Antiqui mores whither are they gone Did they attend Astrea into heaven and have left such degenerous Successors as Crueltie Pride Fraud Envy Oppression c. Such qualities as abundantly justifie the worst of Heathen When all things are ruffled and confus'd it is the Devills Holy-Day and therefore Knaves Work Day Pausanias tels of a Chappel in Acrocorinth Dedicated to Fraud and Cousenage those Twin-Goddesses may be fit Objects for the worship of Heathen but 't is pity they should be so much adored by Christians Thou hast here Reader a full discovery of such foule Impostors that thou wilt cease to wonder at any Monstrosity or Prodigie upon Record take heed of being blasted for I present to thy view the Pests of the Age men that live as if huge Sinnes would merit heaven by an Antiperistasis We know that a good aime much lesse a good pretence such as these Harpies use as a Cloak for their egregious and most unparallel'd couzenage cannot justifie a bad Action and therefore we ought to be as solicitous about the lawfulnesse of the means as about the goodnesse of the end Those Gentlemen already bitten may possibly rescue themselves from future Circumventions if they examine the lawfulnesse of every Circumstance leading to the end propounded before they are tickled and transported with the beautie of their pretence The World must know and more especially the English Nation that Providence tolerating the lines and lineaments of Monarchicall Government here in our Borean Clime to be blotted out that that which is new written might be more legible some pretenders to the late Kings service as of his Bed-chamber his Wardrobe his Guard his Kitchin c. have thought fit to make an Improvement of these turbid Intervals and under pretence of of gathering money for the late Kings distressed Servants in generall have pocketed up many pounds for their owne private uses and while those for whom they seem to obsecrate languish invironed with all those fatalities incident to indigent men they feed high sleep soft wear rich Apparell and wallow in all excesse of Riot It were vain to inform these Latrocinians that while they abuse others they forget that self-couzenage with which in the interim they abuse themselves God permitting the Devill to revenge the Imposture My task is in order to my obligation so to paint forth their cursed contrivances their putrid policies and fraudulent insinuations pointing at their persons so punctually that no man if but Master of one eye shall fail to distinguish them severally though mingled amongst thousands of men more honest that so those Gentlemen those Citizens or others who have tasted of their traps may be sensible of their abuse and prosecute accordingly These subtle Vipers detected and delivered up to publick deserved infamie who committing a Rape upon the body Politick seem to put out the Lawes as others upon a like occasion put out the Lights I must confesse that person is very rare that can boast of such an absolute Saintship whilst he is amongst Mortals but that now and then there are some Actions will fall from him which confesse Humanity and require Candor some Leaves in the Volume of the fairest life that call for a clement censure there will be common frailties But cannot fix too rigid a censure on these treacherous Mendicants who to purchase a flame of Triumph a frolick for some sew dayes not onely deprive many distressed Families of a present reliefe but render them by this damn'd delusion incapable of future reflections such hath been the casinesse and credulity of some Gentlemen and others such the subtilty and dissembled Sanctity of these Quacks that they have met with as great a pronesse in them to be cozen'd as they brought willingnesse to delude but I shall damne their design down to the lowest Hell from whence originally it came and turn their feigned Tears into reall Contrition not that they can be pensive for their pernicious practices but my meaning is in reference to the blazing of their several basenesses to the utter ruine of their golden Income when in stead of Charitable Compensation and Compassion they shall meet with Contempt and Castigation The Prime Ring-Leaders the Master-Theeves the Plowers the main Wheeles upon which this Prodigious Machine moves are in all seven You will think it strange to finde some Pulpit-men in an high degree accessory to this guilt but doe not we a●l know that there hath been no floud of misery that hath happened this dozen years but did spring from or at least was much swelled by their Holy-Water And I rank the Rogues for they march like Noah's unclean beasts by paires