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A39868 Lucian's ghost: or, Dialogues between the dead, wandering in the Elyzian shades. Being certain satyrical remarques upon the vain ostentatious humours of several learned and philosophical men and women, as well ancient as modern. Composed first in French, and now paraphras'd into English, by a person of quality. Fontenelle, M. de (Bernard Le Bovier), 1657-1757. 1684 (1684) Wing F1413B; ESTC R213744 36,631 141

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a Critick on his death which still had something in 't that was glorious but how could you pretend to prefer yours to his for if I mistake not you dy'd quietly in your Bed and there was nothing in 't that was remarkable Adrian What! was not that remarkable to make these Verses just as I was breathing out my last Adieu my little Soul my dear'st delight To what far Country dost thou take thy flight Trembling and naked thou'lt alone be left And of thy Body's clothing quite bereft What will become of all thy Jollity When thou art gone I know not where from me Cato in my mind treated Death too seriously but I made it my diversion and 't is on this account that I do pretend mine to have surpast his 'T is much easier to Brave one's fate than 't is to Rally at it and to entertain it kindly when it comes to our relief than when we have no occasion for it M. Austr I 'll allow you dy'd more decently than Cato yet 't was my misfortune never to hear of those Verses which were the ornament on 't Adrian See how the world 's impos'd on because Cato tore out his own Entrails rather than fall into the hands of his Enemies yet such an action shines so in Story that every body that beholds it is dazel'd with its lustre but let a man die calmly and in such good humour to droll on death it self yet our dull Historians ne'er regard it M. Austr Alas there can be nothing truer than what you say for I my self when I thought I should have dy'd took my farewell of the World more handsomely than you and yet 't has made but little noise in it Adrian How what say you M. Austr I was Daughter to an Emperour and betroth'd to a King's Son who after the death of his Father sent me back again with disgrace to my Friends without ever consummating the Marriage and not long after I was contracted to another King's Son and on my Voyage to his Country there arose so dreadfull a Storm that I was in apparent danger of my life yet I was calm enough to write my own Epitaph which was this Margr'et that Royal Damsel here is laid Who twice was Marry'd and yet dy'd a Maid I must confess I dy'd not then yet what 's the same I thought I shou'd Cato's firmness was extravagant in its kind and so was your Jollity in another but mine was the onely natural and easie he was too serious you to vain and I the onely rational person Adrian What! do you reproach me then that I had too little concern for death M. Austr Yes you seem'd as if you slighted its approaches yet I doubt you took as much pains to dissemble your resentments as Cato did to rip up his Bowels I expected without fear to be shipwrack't every moment and yet in cold blood I made my own Epitaph If there had not been something natural in my story the world might have made some difficulty in believing it or at least that I did it out of extravagancy or fear but at the same time I was a poor Maid and though twice contracted was like to be so unfortunate as to die one and you may observe that I regretted the severity of my Fate and 't is that which makes my story appear so natural and from whence it borrows all its lustre your Verses if you observe speak nothing but what seems strain'd and affected whereas mine easily represent my fortune without art or dissimulation Adrian On my word I ne'er could have believ'd that the trouble of dying with your Virginity on your hands would have prov'd so glorious M. Austr You may make your self as merry with me as you please yet my death if it may be so call'd hath this advantage over yours and Cato's that as you liv'd with the reputation of Philosophers so in honour you were oblig'd to die and if you had but dar'd to fear it the world might have been very severe on you on that occasion but for my part I might have trembled at the apprehension of drowning and made my cries reach the Heavens and no body e'er esteem me the less for it yet I was compos'd enough to write my own Elegy Adrian Between you and I was it not made on Land M. Austr That trifling evasion of yours is a little uncivil I made no difficulty of believing you Adrian I own my self subdu'd by your reasons and shall henceforward be of your opinion That that vertue is greatest and most commendable which surpasses not the bounds of nature DIALOGUE V. Between Erasistratus and Harvey Era. YOU tell me wonders What that the Bloud Circulates in the Body that the Veins carry it to the Heart and the Arteries receive it from thence to convey it to the exteriour Parts Har. I have demonstrated it by so many Experiments that now there is no one doubts it Era. Then we Ancient Physicians were very much deceiv'd when we attributed to the Bloud onely a slow and gentle Motion from the Heart to the Extremity of the Parts The World has reason to be much oblig'd to you for abolishing this old mistake Har. I am satisfy'd it has and not onely for that but by putting 'em into a Method of making all those modern discoveries in Anatomy which so much Illustrate the Art of Physick the Motion of the Bloud was no sooner discover'd but immediately there were new Canales new-Pipes and new Repositories found out for it It seem'd as if the whole Frame and Machine of Man's Body were taken in Peices and cast over a-new What Advantage the modern Physicians have over you who pretended to cure the Diseases of that Body ye had so little knowledge of Era. I grant you that the Moderns are something better Naturalists than we but yet I do deny that they are better Physicians I should desire very much to see how you or any of 'em would have manag'd such a Patient as Antiochus in his Quartane Ague You must needs have heard of my Success in that Case and how I discover'd by the brisker Motion of his Pulse in the presence of Stratonice that he was enamour'd of that Beautifull Queen and that his Disease proceeded from that Violence he did himself in Endeavouring to conceal his Passion yet I perform'd that difficult Cure without the knowledge of the Circulation of the Bloud whereas had you been in my Place you would have found your self extremely puzl'd with all your Inventions your new Pipes and Canales would have serv'd you then but to little purpose the Disease was in the Heart and therefore 't was of more Importance to know that Har. That 's not always necessary to be known neither are all those that are sick Inamour'd of their Mother-in-Laws as was Antiochus I doubt not but for lack of this knowledge of the Circulation of the Bloud you let many of your Patients die on your Hands Era. Then you believe your
new Discoveries are of great use and benifit to the World Har. Without doubt they are Era. Then pray Answer me one question what 's the reason the Dead come crowding hither as thick as e'er they did Har. Oh! if they dye now 't is commonly the Fault of the Patient not of the Physicians Era. Therefore your modern discoveries do conduce very little to the Cure Har. Perhaps they han't leasure to make those advantages of our discoveries as they might but 't is probable in a little time we may see more surprizing Effects Era. On my word all things remain in the same Station where they were there 's a certain measure of necessary knowledge which Men do easily attain to and they are so far oblig'd to Nature for inspiring 'em with that which is so much to their advantage Men were very unhappy if they were always beholding to the slow and often unsuccesfull Motions of their reason for all they know and those things that are not of the like necessity are discovered by degrees and long pursuit of many Years Har. Why may not a skilfull Anatomist make the same advantage of the perfect knowledge of the Machine of a Man's body as an Artist doth of a Clock or Watch and by the in-sight that he has of its springs and wheels best know how to regulate its Motions when they are disorder'd but if it be of so little use as you would have it men strive in vain to advance that Science and 't were much better if 't were let alone Era. Oh no! then there would be much diverting knowledge lost but for any use there 's in 't I think to discover some new conduit in the body or some new Star in the Heavens is much the same We cannot break great Nature's rule who has Ordain'd that men must mutually succeed one another which can be done by no other way but Death Mankind may make defences and seem to combate with diseases till they come to the brink of Fate but neither the newest discoveries in Anatomy nor a search into the Closest recesses of the Body can ever make Mankind pass over that Nature will still be Conquerour and Death will put an end to all their Pretensions DIALOGUE VI. Between Berenice Cosme II. de Medicis C. de med I am told by the modern Wits lately come hither some news which troubles me you know Galilaeus who was my Mathematician had discover'd certain Planets which move about Jupiter and in honour to me call'd 'em de Medicis that they are now known no more by that Name but call'd the Satellites it must needs be that the World is grown ill natur'd to rob me of that honour which is my due Beren I never knew a more remarkable instance of its Malice C. de med You may speak without concern nor have you the same reason to complain as I you made a vow to cut off your hair if your Husband Ptolomy return'd Victor from I know not what Wars which he afterwards did and you to perform your vow made an offering of your hair in the Temple of Venus but the next Day a certain Mathematician stole it thence and Publish't that 't was taken up to Heaven and plac't amongst the Stars and to this Day one of the Constellations goes by the Name of Berenice's hair they might as well call the Stars after a Prince's name as a Woman's Locks yet you are remembred in the Skies and I am forgotten Beren Were it in my Power to present you with my Heavenly Locks I should be very willing to part with 'em for your satisfaction and yet have no reason to upbraid you with the greatness of the Obligation C. de med I should esteem it very considerable to be assur'd my name should live as well as yours Beren Alas if all the Constellations were call'd by my name what should I be the better they are plac't above in the Heavens whilst I am here below Men know not how to Rob Death of 's due and yet they wou'd make two or three Syllables survive this is a very pleasant evasion were it not as well that they and their names dy'd together C. de med I am not of your mind we naturally desire to die but as little as may be and after Death it self we endeavour to preserve our lives on some Marble-stone or Monument Beren Why those very things which seem to give us Immortality do also at length die themselves On what ' Object would you fix your name neither City Town nor Empire could answer your desire C. de med 'T was well contriv'd then to give it to the Stars for they always last Beren Nor there could you be secure the Stars themselves being Subject to the same Fate of changes and revolutions and if we can believe Astronomers new ones rise and the old do disappear and it may come to pass at length that my Locks may also vanish or if we knew how to fix it on something that was more permanent our names as well as that whereon it was set might suffer a Grammatical Death by the change of words and letters enough to puzzle the greatest antiquaries to find 'em out Sometime since there were two of the Dead who disputed one with another with some heat and I observing on 't desir'd to know who they were and what was the grounds of their Controversie and I was told that one was Constantine the Great and the other was an Heathen Emperour and that their past greatness was the Subject of their quarel Constantine said he had been Emperour of Constantinople and to give it the Preference said it was situated upon three Seas the Euxine the Thracian Bosphorus and the Propontis The Heathen Emperour said he was so of Stambould which has as advantageous a situation on the black Sea the Strait and the Marmorean Constantine was surpriz'd at the resemblance between Constantinople and Stambould but after he had exactly inform'd himself of the situation of the place he was much more so when he found it was the very same which he knew not because of the alteration of the name and cry'd out Alas I might as well have left it it 's ancient name of Bizantium for who can find the name of Constantine in Stambould I doubt 't is therefore drawing near it's utmost Period C. de med I am somewhat satisfi'd and resolve hence forward to be more patient and since we cannot free our selves from death not to be concern'd about our names which is of so much less Consequence Modern Dialogues DIALOGUE I. Between Anne of Britain and Mary of England Anne of B. CErtainly you were very well pleas'd with my death for I was no sooner dead but you crost the Seas to Espouse Lewis the Twelfth my Husband to seat your self in that Throne which I had but just forsaken but yet you enjoy'd it not long and your youth and beauty which so much charm'd the King hasten'd his death and your departure Mary