History That 's Persons Time and Place two of which he Hath oft ommitted here but chiefly Time Which next to Persons is herein the prime For if we knew the time when they did live We might a more exact conjecture give Of their devising of it but how ere We read Women th' Inventors of it were And be it true 't is no disparagement That worthy Women did it first Invent. For they in other things have famous been As may in History be plainly seen To instance in a few Semiramis Who liv'd in Abrahams time renowned is Whose manly courage and stout heart was such That Babels Empire she enlarged much And India her high praise can testifie Had shee not falne to sensuality So likewise Tomaris a Sythian Queen By her brave vallour no less fame did win Who in the Field durst th' Persian Monarch meet Warlike Cyrus though his Armies were great Him shee orecame and in a Tub of bloud Did cast his Head saying if it be good There drink thy fill in bloud thou didst delight And much bloud spilt now bloud shall thee requite So th' Amasoman Queen Penthasitia Stout Achilles could not her dismay Though he 't is said was seven Cubites high His height nor strength could not her terrifie Neither did on his manly power stand But durst encounter with him hand for hand Although he Hector and brave Troylus slew Yet shee had hopes that shee might him subdue And though shee fail'd What Man could more adventer Then in the Lists with such a Champion enter So in Phylosophy Hippacia was Learned so well shee many did surpass For to her lasting praise 't is write that shee In th' open Schooles oft read Phylosophy So Sapho was an excellent Poet known As by those that have writ of her is shown So an English Woman at Rome frequently In mans apparrel read Divinity Whose Learning and whose Zeal was thought so great That shee thereby attain'd the Papall seat And by the name of John the Eight t is true Was Pope of Rome until she fell in two So Mercia a Noble Lady who A King of Britains Wife was long ago Here devis'd Laws which long after her name Were Mercian Lawes call'd to her greater fame To omit others Queen Elizabeth Even from her Crowning to her latest breath No Man could her excell in each degree As t is known to her famous memory So our Silk-weaving here in London was Wrought first by Women may report take place Who did not only work it but also Kept Shops themselves and sold it many know And to the World the same to signifie They Linnen Cloath about their Shops poasts ty Which in their memory is used still By many that such sorts of Ware do sell And to maintain this Weavings Credit I Did take this task in hand and that thereby I might take off reproach that lyes on it Was the Chief cause these lines by me were writ Whose true worth to uphold and blaze his praise I will endeavour to my last of dayes Thus a few worthy Women I have shown But many many more are likewise known Many several wayes as excellent As Men and full as able to invent Rare workes would they their studies bend thereto As I for instance in a few here show Then Weavers think it no disgrace to you That Women found your Trade out Be it true Thus to my skill who our Art did devise I truely to you do Anatomize Now something in its praise I mean to show That the true worth of Weaving all may know And also stop their months who villifie Our usefull Science undeservedly The Second Canto He divers Noble Persons here Names that in Weaving frequent were Then he declares its usefulness And also sundry Trades express That do depend upon it and What Multitudes of People stand Engaged to it Then its praise He amplifieth many wayes And farther to that purpose he Shews the liberall Arts to be Therein included and likewise Doth them with Weaving Sympathize And divers other matters couch'd Are in this Canto not here touch'd WEaving Invented as before is writ Though much uncertain who devised it Yet doth experience shew 't is of such use That a more needfull Trade none could produce And in its infancy was found so rare That personages of worth known frequent were To Spin and Weave as Hercules for one Whose like if true no time hath ever known His Twelve great Labours makes the World admire That he such difficulties could acquire Yet he laid by his Club and Lyons skin And for a Ladies love sate down to Spin. So likewise Sardanapalus although he Did sway th' Assirian first great Monarchy Took much more pleasure with Women to Spin And use the Weaving Trade then he took in Such great Magnificence Attulus likewise Though King of Asia minor did devise First to Weave Gold and Silver with Silk and So gain'd as much fame as by his command So famous Queens and Ladies frequent were To Spin and Weave as Writers do declare As Omphate and Yo le who Hercules lov'd dear Though famous for their beauty did not forbear To use our Trade And Queen Penelope Vlisses chast and constant Wife yet shee Was more delighted with the Weaving Trade Then in those many Woers that shee had And so chast Lucrece wife to Collatine A worthy Roman Prince did not decline The Weaving Trade for shee late in the night Was with her maides found therein to delight And though it after prov'd her overthrow Yet shee renowned is for being so So great Augustus Caesars Queen though he Were the head of the Worlds fourth Monarchy And shee his Empress the greatest Woman in Europe Asia and Affrica yet was seen Oft to be frequent about Weaving and Not on her husbands Stately titles stand So Char-le-main renowned King of France Who the Pope and his own worth did advance To be the Western Emperour yet did His Daughter Weave neither were they forbid By him for all his State to use the same Nor did they in so doing impair their fame And doubtless many worthy Persons moe That my smal reading never came to know And it is out of question many of these If 't were not all of them though Histories Do not reveale the same did rather choose Both Gold and Silke then courser stuf to use In their thus exercising Weaving as We instance may in Attulus who was More noble numbred and as was his state Most rich more rich materials aimed at And so we may imagine of the rest But every one as to their mind seem'd best But my aim is Silk-weaving to prefer And none can say concerning these I err How-ere they are a Glory to our Trade And grac'd it much although it now be made Contemptible by some Antiquity Were proud to use so rare a Mistery Nor was our worthy Famous Science then Better approv'd of or esteemed with men Then it deserved and all may confess That to this day it doth deserve
used before this time many a day If others say of Leather that I suppose If Weaving were not they wanted to make Cloathes But why might not those Tents of Cloath be wrought And Weaving ere that time into use brought For the Worlds glass I ghess had then run out At least five hundred years or thereabout And might not the Weaver be as well then As the Smith the Mason and Musitian And doubtles many other Trades whose use That profit brings not which ours doth produce And if as sayth Josephus Astronomie Invented was by Seth unto which he Could not atain but first he skill'd must bee In Arithmetick and in Geometrie So others might as their Genius inclin'd Imploy their Studies other Arts to find And none could be more fit nor was more needed Then Weaving if they their own welfare heeded But I must leave it doubtfull because none Can certainly affirm when it begun Now I le return again and as I go As far as my reading doth reach will show Who and what they were that are said to be The first Inventers of our Misterie Here I must take my Rise and to you show What Lanquet or Cooper would have us know Out of their Chronicle for they do say Weaving invented was by Naamah Sister to Tubal-cain and so might be For shee noting her Brethrens industry That each of them a several Art devised Might shee not also thereby be surprised With emulation of their far spred fame And perhaps hoping so to have her Name Enrolled among theirs bent all her powers To bring to pass this worthy Art of ours And that Her Brother Jabals Tents might be Of Cloath shee wrought none knowes the contrarie But this may be a truth for if we look Judiciously into the Sacred Book Among the Daughters born to Men before The universal floud the World run ore You shall not read of any one but shee And Lamech's Wives that nam'd are expresly And for some special reason doubtless shee Was mention'd above others although we Know not the cause nor I think ever hath Reavealed been more then what that Text saith But leaving her as very probably To be th' Inventor of our Mistery I doe intend here also to declare What others besides her recorded are To be the first Devisers of it that What thereof written is I may relate Poliodorus in his History De Inventione Rerum doth specifie Three worthy Women and of these three one Minerva is and he sayes shee alone Devised first to make Wool into Cloath Which very likely is to be a troath For I remember that I formerly Have read of Bacchus who most Valiantly Did lead an Army into India where He won much fame as Histories declare And that Minerva as Couragiously Being his Sister bore him Company And many Countreys and great Citties he Conquer'd being alwayes Crown'd with Victory Until he siedge did to one Citty lay From before which he soon was driven away By Lightning and Thunder that did proceed From off those Walls as we do plainly read And what can any Man judge this to be But Thundring Cannon shott For certainly It then in use among them was though we But late yet much to soon are come to be Accquainted with it not being yet three hundred years But they as many thousands as appeares For so long t is since Bacchus and Minerva did Conquer East-India as of them we read So Printing hath in Chyna and those parts Been no Man knows how long and other Arts As Weaving and such as did them concern And there Minerva might her knowledge learn Although 't is very likely that they there The Countrey being hot all Silk did wear But shee to Greece returning where the Sun Being not so vehement first begun To exercise her Silk in Wool and so It may be true what Poliodore doth shew And this is a good reason to produce To us that Silk-weaving was first in use And those Garments of which we in Scripture read T is very like did all from Silk proceed But let me mention Bacchus once agen Who returning Victor back to Greece did then From India bring Vines with him home and so They Wine in Europe here first came to know And for this great and good Commodity They with a God-head did him dignify Whose memory continueth to these times We idely stiling Bacchus God of Wines Who hath more followers then the greatest Sect Of all these many that us so infect Minerva no less Honour by our Trade And other Arts shee taught gain'd being made The Goddess of Arts and Armes so I Shee being our Matron would shew her deitie And this their Weaving and their Vines I ghess They had from Noah who did those parts possess After the floud who there the Vine did plant And being Drunk therewith did Covering want And I suppose that Garment which was brought Some kind of work was by a Weaver wrought And Weaving be as I did lately say Invented by or before Naamah But I have long digrest now I le proceed To shew more what from Poliodore I read Linnen Cloath sayeth he th' invention was Of one Arachne being a Liddian Lass But what shee was or when liv'd he doth not Name But Ovid sayes shee of mean Parents came He further writes that one Pamphila who The Daughter was of Platis did first show The way of Weaving Silk whose dwelling Place As he relates in th' I le of Ceos was But in what Age shee liv'd he doth not show Neither do I in my smal reading know But that must be long since otherwise shee Could not th' Inventor of Silk-weaving be Further he goeth on and doth relate That Cloath of Gold and rich Roabs of estate Th' Invention was of Attulus Nay he In one place sayes the Babilonians be Th' Inventors of our Art and in another Th' Egyptians but how this can hang together Let others Censure for some ingeniously Think he hath herein dealt as faithfully As when our Eighth King Henry did imploy Him to compile one entire History Containing the Occurrences of our Nation Since People in it first had Habitation Unto those times that the deeds of our Ile He into one sole Vollumne might compile And to that purpose our Chiefest Histories Ancient Reccords Books of Antiquities Were to his Lodging or his Study sent As I have said onely for that intent But he either envying our Iles fame should surpass The Italians praise where he a Native was Or for he was not able that to do Which by the King he was appointed to Or through his negligence they all were fired Without a rescue and suddainly expired Which work hath since by learned Cambden been Effected as to his lasting praise is seen For his Brittama doth Proclame his worth And Englands Fame and Monuments set forth But for the other if the Abridgement be Translated from his large Book faithfully He hath dealt as careless with our Mistery For three things do compleat a
is as may appear Sweet Rhetorick I might go on and more Flowers pluck from thine inexhausted store And like a Gordian-knot wove curiously Them to augment Silk-weavings praise here tye But Paranymia or the Proverb says Enough is as good as feasting therefore to raise More similitudes I thought it not fit Or to my skill I de have endeavour'd it All hail sweet Musick thou bringst up these reres Delightful sounds like Harmony of the Spheres How shall I frame a fit propinquitie Whereby with thee to gain affinitie Thy Gamuth is the first step to thy Science To which our pricking patterns have alliance No one in thee can a proficient prove That therein is not skill'd nor can we move One degree forward toward perfection If this be not our ground to build upon Nor a Musitian can his melody Make pleasing to himself or standers by Unless a Concord in his strings be found Nor can our workmen any work make sound Whose tools and tackling remain out of frame But when by skill both rectifie the same Then thou and we a Diapason strike Thy Musick 's sweet our Wares our Chapmen like And all thy Figures we do imitate Thy Large Long Brief Semi-Brief Sharp and Flat All which I could demonstrate here if so My Time would time permit me it to do But I 'll forbear and briefly shew how we Do correspond with them in Melody Thy pleasing sounds proceed from Instruments Ours an Harmonious voice whose rare accents Have often forc'd sweet Philomel forbear Her sugred notes our sweeter tunes to hear Nay great Apollo the Musitians God What time he here on earth made his aboad Was so delighted with the curious strains Of well-tun'd ditties pen'd by pregnant brains That had he not engaged been to keep The numerous flocks of King Admetus Sheep Then when rude Pan with his Pipes rustick play Durst to contend with his Harps lofty Lay The Weavers Songs with ravishing Melody Did so delight the God of Harmony That with them he would here have sympathiz'd And such rare Songs to their sweet notes devis'd That like to Orpheus their inchanting Ditties Should tame wild Beasts build up Towns Cities For this he did acknowledge to their praise They did for Song from all Trades bear the Bayes Thus 'twixt Apollo and Minerva I Though in rude sort have wrought affinity But wanting her Invention and his Wit My weak skill hath not fashion'd it so fit As better Artists might that better know For my Pen here my Ignorance doth show Here I have shew'd you how our Mysterie With the Seven Liberal Arts doth nigh agree And now I 'll shew that ours more useful is Than all of them but pardon me in this For let none think 't is in the least my thought That those rare Arts should in contempt be brought Of which the World hath so much use and I As dearly love as my own liberty Or what is dearer to me but to show Our Trades true worth and likewise let such know Their ignorance who do it so despise Though of its usefulness before their eyes Nay on themselves they every day partake Without regard thereof but as the Snake Did being nigh frozen dead the man intreat To put him in a place where he some heat Might re-assume to save his nigh lost life Which being attain'd he doth repay with strife And foul ingratitude his love even so Those Peacocks now in their great bravery know No want of Cloathing Nor of the supply Silk-weaving yields the same to beautifie If not all Silk therefore us they scorn But should they go a while as they were born Naked or Cloath'd in Leather then they would Respect our Trade and wish it ever should Flourish in fame and reputation till Time the last minute of its course fulfill But to my purpose first for the numbring Art What man is there that would not gladly part With it and promise ne'er to use it more Rather than be debar'd of that rich store And Comfort that our Trade doth yield and so Geometry who would not it forego Before he 'd loose the part he doth possess In our rich Trades most happy usefulness Astronomy too as useless is compar'd To our Arts worth as any thereof debar'd Would soon acknowledg and Musick not at all May with us into Competition fall For the other three there need no more be sed But us our Mother-Tongue would bring to bed And I suppose it a much lesser harm were To want them all than Cloaths to keep us warm there I do not mean the plain part of each Art Which I to Leather-Garments may consort But the abstruse part of each one might be Much better spar'd than our rich Mystery But to have both is best for neither we Could want without great loss and blest be he By whose Assistance we do both possess And dayly partake of their usefulness But now a word or two to shew the cause That such contempt upon Silk-weaving draws Then I herein have now no more to say But wish our Trade in good fame flourish may The end of the second Canto The third CANTO Here its worth repeating he Shewes what the chifest causes be Of its disparagement and doth shew From what weak grounds the same doth flow To redress which useth declamations With invective dehortations Then he extolleth such by whom It Credit gaineth and doth come To shew what worth not long ago It had in London and also Doth now retain by means of some Who are Silk-weavers and so from One circumstance to another he Proceeds till his task ended be IF Weaving be of such Antiquity So useful nay of such necessity That all the world in general doth it need And also standeth other Trades instead And that Personages great and eminent Did with delight and pleasure it frequent What is the cause 't is now despised so Or by what means into such contempt grow Being of most Trades the Primum mobile Or the first mover Pole or Axel-tree By which they are and principally move As the inferior Orbs by that above Or as Learn'd Record terms his Arithmetick The ground of Arts so we justly the like May stile our Trade the ground of Trades or it May truely be compared very fit To the foundation of a house for who Is he that doth not by experience know That without it the Building soon would fall So likewise many Trades yea almost all Were brought to ruine having no remedy But by the help of our rare Mystery Four Causes here I 'll principally name That chiefly are the reasons of the same The first some shop-keepers that buy our Ware Who when bad Trading is so cruel are So griping and unconscionable that When poor men come to sell will bid a rate Of so small profit knowing they perforce Must any money take or do things worse Thus by the low rate they in hard times give Poor Weavers they constrained are to live Meanly and