all others both in the composition and application of his Druggs for as an Ignorant or Cheating Apothecarie may commit a great â—…rrour in the first Concoction so the attenders may be guilty of great mistakes in the application especialy in the matter of Catharties and Phlebotomy for I have known some weak Patients purged to Death by a double or triplâ—… Dose above that which should have been given as also some rash 〈◊〉 to send their patients out of the world by drawing too much of their blâ—…od in it for example in the beginning of an Hectick Feaver when the vigouâ—… of nature is no wayes decayed its fit to evacuat so much Blood as may sensibly abate their preter-natural Heat and Drought but if ane inconsiderable Surgeon draw no less than is usually due in a Pleurisy He will hurrie the Patient the more speedily to his Grave In fine since there be some specificks the due proportion thereof is confined to some few Graines let the Doctor trust no other hand with the Scales than his own for I knew an ignorant 〈◊〉 who gave such a prodigious quantity of Laâ—… to a poor frantick Woman as might have killed an Horse and would undoubtedly have caused â—…he Patient in lieu of 4 dayes to sleep to the sounding of the last Truâ—…pet unless that drugg had been found to be verie old and corrupt in the Apothecaries pot whereby it had lost much of the natural Vertue of a Paregoric FAB CCXI. Page 182. This Vultur is a lively Emblem of a Lyâ—… â—… 〈◊〉 a â—…olyphemus and of the old inhabitants of Tauriea Chersonesâ—…s all which were â—…o inhuman as to murder their guests a good man who is naturally apt to beleeve protestations semblable practices of kindness credâ—…lity bâ—…ing the great unperfection of honest hearts is no doubt brought into a great 〈◊〉 as our Author hath well observed when suspicions of the dishonesty of his friend are suggested to him Yet great soules have judged it inconsistent with true generosity to distrust their old friends and it framed well with some of them Thus Alexander the great as Quintus Curtius informes at large being advertised by his eldest captain Parmenio that His principall Physician had been bribed by Darius Codomannus with a verie great sum of money to poyson his royall Master the first time he gave him any Physicke yet Alexander took the medicinall potion with the one hand and gave his Physitian the said line with the other to read and in the mean time drunk the Potion to the bottom such was the confidence of this royall patient neither did his trustee disapoint him a parallel to this great confidence wee find long afterwards in the Emperour Trajan who being informed by some that his old friend a Roman senatour had a designe upon his life he went the next day to the senatours house privately without any of his Guards and told him that he was come to supp with him but before supper said the Emperour to his friend I must make use of your bath and of your barber and having come home verie late He called for those informers now said he you may perceive that you are all guilty of a caluminous accusation for if my old friend had any design upon my liâ—…e he had never a better opportunity than was afforded him this day for by his Slaves He might have smothered mee in the bath by his barber He might have cut my throat or by his Cook he might have poysoned me so that I having returned safe and sound ye may perceive the falshood of your information But the famous Dion who was the principall actor in drâ—…ving Dâ—…onysins the younger from his Tyrannical nest at Syracuse ruined himself with his too great confidence in Calippus the Athenian whom he trusted above all the world and being informed by his nearest relations and that again and again that Calippus had a design upon his liâ—…e yet he still answered them that he would rather choose to dye a thousand deaths than to distrust his old friends he was I confess the more inveigled by the manie tears and oaths of Calippus to persevere in his former trust and good opinion of his friend yet notwithstanding of these reiterated protestations that old treacherous villain when he found oportunity dispatched that brave and good man in hopes to obtain the Principality of Syracuse to himself but iâ—… this He was not only disappointed but shortly afterwards justly killed with that same dagger where with Dion had received his mortal wound as is reported by Plutarch in the Historie of His life FAB CCXIII. CCXIV. Page 184. The Crow thinks Her own Issue fairest is an old proverb which the Commentator doth well extend not only to the Fruit of the Body but also to the productions of the Brain it being verie observable that all the pretenders to those faculties which depend mostly on the imagination such as Poâ—…sy Musick and the Art of Limning or painting be they never so great Bunglers at them they imagine themselves to be excellent so did Dionysiâ—…s the old Tyrant of Syracuse as to Poesy tho' he was the worst at it that ever did it for who knowes not the bantering of that rigid Philosopher Carrie me back again to the Quarries how soon He heard Him read but a line or two of a new Poem he had made and beleeved it to be much better than the former which the Philosopher had derided and I dare say that pitifull Scots Rymer Mr. Zachary Boyd thought Himself as good at the Poetical Trade as ever his Countryman Buchanan was deemed to be tho' the one was as good as could be found in any nation if wee beleeve the famous Ios. Scaliger and without breach either of Truth or Charity it may be said that a worse could not be found any where than was the other For all Nero's divine voice as his parasites termed it with his incomparable dexterity in handling the Lute as his Sycophants also soothed Him and His Quantus Artifex pereâ—… which were the last words He spoke in this world yet if he Had been as poor as some Fidlers are I dare say He would have earned less dayly wages than some of them have done and it s verie possible that Vesâ—…asian afterwards Emperour would have heard them more placidly than He did His Lord and Master in the Amphitâ—…eatre at Rome for it had allmost cost Him His Life because that Divine Voice forsooth had not preserved Him from sleeping A Sâ—…ythian Prince was justly deemed a beastly Dunâ—… for preferring the Neigâ—…ing of his own Horse to the ravishing Music of the famous Musician â—…smenius but if Nero had been the Competitor it s verie probable He should neither have been termed a brute nor a blockhead Paulus Iovius tells us that it was one of the great Divertisements of Leo Xâ—… to call for the worst of Poets of Musicians and Painters that were to be found in all Italy and to make them believe
SOME OBSERVATIONS ON THE FABLES OF AESOP As commented upon by Sir Roger L'Estrange Kt. Yet not on all for some need not any Addition or Review and there be many of them which are coincident as to the Individual Scope I mean the same Moral Instruction which is couched in them Illustrated with severall pertinent Stories of Antient and Modern History By a Divine of the Church of Scotland EDINBURGH Printed for Mr. Andrew Symson and are to be sold by Him at the Foot of the Horse-Wynd in the Cowgate And by Mr. Henry Knox in the Lucken-Booths M. DCC THE AUTHOR'S PREFACE HE 〈◊〉 be very injurious to Truth besides the great Reflection upon his own Iudgement who doeth not acknowledge that the Morals and Reflections â—…f the said Author are penned with a great deal of 〈◊〉 yet they might have appeared the more pleasant and profitable to the 〈◊〉 Reader If they had been 〈◊〉 with pertinent little Stories which would have abunâ—…antly Compensed for 〈◊〉 the Bulk of the Book Thus the Essays of Sir â—…rancis 〈◊〉 would be found full of 〈◊〉 and strong 〈◊〉 suppose not any parcell of History were sound there but his exempâ—… 〈◊〉 these 〈◊〉 with such notable Hints of Storie adds an Ornament to his Book 〈◊〉 is botâ—… 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 The same may be said of some other Essays and Resolves Therefore its 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to Point â—…ery briefly â—…or verbum â—…apienti sat est at 〈◊〉 Historicall Illustrations of these 〈◊〉 which I beâ—…eve the Author would have done both more 〈◊〉 and elegantly if either his Leasure or 〈◊〉 haâ—… 〈◊〉 him For that Effect I shall 〈◊〉 the 〈◊〉 with the numericall Figure of the â—…logue yet first a word or two concerning the 〈◊〉 of 〈◊〉 as it 's delivered by the Commentator Page 5. It 's said there is a 〈◊〉 on the Chronologie of the Storie 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 alledged a Passage out of 〈◊〉 which famous Greek Poet was not born when Aesop was murdered but in my weak 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 may be easily answered by saying that it was a common Proverb among the Greeks in Aesop's timeâ—… tho' afterwards adopted by Euripides in his Poems Pag. 6. He passeth over and not without reason seaverall 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and Gests which were fathered upon Aesop But I wonder he forgot that storie concerning the eating of his masters Figs by his fellow slaves and then charging the fact upon Aesop alone who begged this favour of his new Master that all of them might be ordered to drink a large draught of hot water as himself should do before them which brought up the new eaten green Figs from all their stomachs except Aesâ—…p alone who indeed had eaten none of them by which wittie conceit he manifested himself some what versed in the art of Medicine over and above his naturall and Moral Philosophy Lukewarm Water vvith Oyl being one of the gentle vomitors prescribed by Physicians But the recent Figs being naturally oleaginous did serve instead of Oyl Likewise the Author hath 〈◊〉 to narrate that Circumstance concerning the Murder of Aesop which Pluâ—…arch declares at length viz. That those vile Assasinâ—…s were ordered by the Oracle to seek for some living Relative of the Desunct that his Remission in the name of Aesop might consummat that Expiâ—…tion and having enquired long in vain at last they found a poor Tradesman in Athens who made it appear that he was a Cusine of wittie Aesop tho very remote him they addressed with humble 〈◊〉 and caressed with many Gifts whereby he was perswaded to pronâ—…nce an Absolution for that most treacherous 〈◊〉 and thus we have an end of that 〈◊〉 Tragedie Let us now come to the brief 〈◊〉 upon his Fables THE PUBLISHER TO THE READER THe Occasion of the 〈…〉 Scotland his writing these 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈…〉 sent him â—…he firâ—…t 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Roger 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 â—…ly after 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in England upon 〈…〉 some Hiâ—…orical Observations thereon 〈…〉 that they should become publiâ—…i Juris for then 〈…〉 â—… 〈◊〉 English Garb and made them much faâ—…er 〈…〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Reader is to look upon them only as the Result of some few 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and that for the particular Satisfaction of his Friend I receaved a writen copy of them from an acquaintance of the Reverend 〈◊〉 who procured the same â—…om him with a Design to 〈◊〉 them which accordingly I have done The Author dwells above 〈◊〉 〈…〉 〈◊〉 and did not see one line of the Print till the whole impresion was wroâ—… 〈◊〉 which was done before 〈◊〉 could hardly imagine that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 begun and 〈◊〉 tho the critical reader 〈◊〉 pretend to esâ—…y any material saults Yet â—…e ougâ—… not to impute them to the Author who no doubt â—…f any such â—…ad been would have espâ—…ed and amended them himself if â—…e had â—…ad the Oportunity to have attended the Press and perused his Observations when printed sheet by sheet I doubt not but the caâ—…did Reader may reap both Pleasure and Profit by them But upon both these Accounts the Advantage will be the greater if together with them He peruse also the Fables on which they are â—…ounded as they are set down by the truly learned Sir Roger L'Estrange in the first Edition of his â—…ook to which they only relate As for the Typographical Errata the judicious â—…eader is desired to pardon the same and to correct the more material ones thus ERRATA CORRIGENDA Page 13. Line 30. for left read lost p. 23. l 28. for Calbinus r. Albinâ—… p. 27. l. 34. for inconsiderable r. inconsiderat l. 36. for thereof r. whereof p. 30. l. 29. r. which so overmatched p. 34. l. 32. for Figellinus r. â—…gillinus l. 43. for Thais r. Lais. p. 40. l. 27. for Creumâ—…ius r. Cremutius p. 43. l. 10. for triffled r. trysted ADDENDA Page 5. Line 7. after Materials add The same being done by the â—…pitomator of Trogus Pompeâ—…us as many suppose p. 8. l. 16. add afterwards Knights of the Rhodes and now of Malta p. 9. l. 22. after besides the Scots add Sâ—…ro sapiâ—… Phryges being a true Satyr long before our Nation had a Beeing tho' the oldâ—…st in Europe To the last line of this page add St. Paul having observed the same of those who are unequally yoaked in maters of Religion the many Inconveniences of such fatal Conjugations especially among Soveraign Princes being so obvious that VVe need not insist upon them p. 15. l. 27. add Whereas Nicias by a superstitious Dread of the Eclypse of the Moon ruined both the Athenian Army and Navy in the Haven of Syracuse p. 24. l. 17. add Not considering that there they need 100 00 Gondalo's to â—…erry them from one Isle to another p. 27. l. 43. after Paregoric add for in lieu of six Grains which is the mosâ—… should be given at once even to a frantick person of her Sex he had given her no less than thirty six p. 41. l. 3â—… after hang'd thereon ad Thus Diogenes the Cynick
Valentinian II. Thus We find at last the Mysterie of the purple Dream unriddled and to conclude if Constantius had considered and believed that Maxime of an old Philosopher That it 's simply impossible for any Man to Kill his Successor He would not in all probability have endeavoured by such inhumane Means to interrupt the current of that stream which may easily over-flow the greatest but cannot be stopped by any FAB CX Page 103. Here He might have taken occasion to narrate that story of the Golden Tripos which some fishermen haled to land in their Net instead of a fish in the Time of the seven wise men of Greece which being successively refused by them all it was at last dedicated to the Priestess of Apollo at Delphi to be set upon that Chasma of the earth from whence they had their Oracular Evaporations FAB CXIII Page 106. It was an usual expression of Aristotle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the Truth thereof is verified by the far greatest part of the World who are mightily afraid of Death especially voluptuous Persons who make their Bellies their Gods are most unwilling to have that sensual Idol torn from them when they are in full possession of all its endearing Circumstances O Death saith Syracides How bitter is thy Remembrance to him who is sitting at Ease in his own house and enjoyes the World at Will But it 's much more admirable to find a Man that 's surrounded with Misery to be unwilling to go to that Place where the weary be at Rest Yet I my self knew one who was as miserable as any man in this World can be supposed to be for he was in the further side of LXXX and besides the usual Infirmities of a decrepit Age He was most pitifully tormented with Nephritical pains yea with such frequent and violent Fits of the Gravel that He hath been heard crying at a great Distance as for his external Condition in the World He was a most indigent Beggar who would undoubtedly have starved many a Time if charitable Neighbours had not succoured Him I did visit Him on his Death-Bed and well knowing all his deplorable Circumstances I doubted not in the least but that He was very glad of the Approach of Death to rescue Him out of the Jaws of extreme misery and having demanded the same of him I heard Him with great Admiration say That if it were the Will of God he could be content to live yet a while longer for all his misery which I could not possibly impute to any other Principle than the Natural Horror of Death and that more Spiritual one of a bad Conscience Yet I judge the Conclusion of the Commentator too general as to all those who improve the lawfull means in order to their Recovery as if they were most unwilling to die who call for Physicians Apothecaries and Surgeons He fancies them to resemble for all the World Lewis XI of France who had such an infinit Dread of Death that if We believe Philip de Comines there was nothing that sounded so terribly to his evil Conscience as the very mention of that Fatal word But he should have considered that they Sin against Nature who spurn at the Means when they are in a Capacity to use them it being a true Maxime of the Casuists That the means are ours but the event is Gods for I have known some good Christians that were so weary of the Fable of this World as Epiphanius usually said and had so little Kindness for this natural Life yea were so desirous To be dissolved and to be with Christ that if their Consciences had not commanded them to use the Means they would have rather chosen to have dyed more than once if it had been possible than to have endured the Fatigue of medicinal Applications which minds Me of the famous Consul Marius who being both pained and deformed in his legs with that Distemper that Physicians term Varices He having to all outward Appearance suffered most patiently the Lanceing and Cutting of one of them when the Surgeon addressed to the other He told Him that these Incisions and Amputations were not worth the while and since Death was the worst of it He would choose rather to die than undergo so much Trouble again Yea more than so if all true Christians were not convinced that the Lord of Life hath fixed Us here away as a Sentinel at a post who must not remove without his Captains Order I am fully persuaded that some of them for any Dread they have of Death would not be shy to imitate that Roman Senator who being informed that the monster of Nature named Nero had determined to put Him to a tormenting death He resolved to anticipat the Tyrant's Malice by starving Himself to death and having intirely abstained from all Kind of Food the space of five or six Days one of his Friends came and told Him that he was misinformed For the Emperour had no bad Design upon Him therefore subjoined he all your Friends are resolved to come and sup with you this Night and we will make a merry Night of it for your escapeing so great a Misfortune He answered that his Friends should be allways welcome to him but when they were assembled all their Oratory could not persuade Him to take one Morsel of Bread nor one Dram of Wine tho' some of them urged him with that Aphorism of Hippocrates Famem Vini Potus solvit and for His Pertinacy he gave them this Reason That He was now within the Confines of Death and had already a full Vieu of that King of Terrors and since He knew infallibly that He behooved once to pay that last Debt to Nature He would not be at the pains again to begin his passage thro' that dark Trance of Death but hoped within 2 or 3 Days to grapple with his Adversary tho' He knew before hand what the Event would be even to be laid flat upon the Ground by his invincible Enemy FAB CXV Page 103. They who are curious may find many other pertinent little Stories to this purpose in Plutarch his Treatise of Brutes having some Use of Reason whose general Topic is very plausible it may appear says He to be the general Sentiment of Mankind in calling Dogs Horse c. mad which undoubtedly in Man imports the Privation of the Use of Reason FAB CXVI Page 108. In my weak Judgement this Fable militats as much if not more against the unhappiness of Successive as of Elective Kingdoms it being very rare to find Electors so infatuated as to make choise of an Infant of a Female of a deformed Creature of a mere Simpleton who is deform'd both in body and mind or of a notorious Coward or finaly of one that is odicus in the Eyes of the World for brutish Sensuality and Excess Germany once stumbled upon such a disastrous Election When Wenceslaus K. of Bohemia was chosen their Emperour to the mighty Prejudice of the Empire
that it would please GOD in his own good time either to take the burthen away from us or to take us away from the burthen There was a good and a learned man one of our own Country who being pitifully tormented with the torturing sits of the Gravell whereof he at last died it was His ordinary Petition in every Paroxism of that formidable Distemper LORD take out this silly Life of mine that the better Life of GOD may enter in Whereat all good Christians were so farr from taking Scandal that they firmly beleeved He dyed in the Fear and Favour of GOD. FAB CCCXVII Page 277. That bad Event of the discontented wish of the foolish Ass was justly applyed by Cyneas that wise and faithfull counselour of Pyrrhus K. of the Epirots to the restles Spirit of his master for Cyneas being against his attempt upon the Romans when he saw the King would not be disswaded because he thought it a work of charity to assist the oppressed Tarentines Then said the servant if the Gods prosper you I hope you will then be at rest no replyed the master if it be my good fortune to overcome the valiant Romans I will easily become master of all Italy and cannot fail to subdue the adjacent Isle I mean Sicily which hath been always famous for its fertility but never for produceing men of courage well said Cyneas what next Then said he I will make an attempt on the rich Carthaginians who already command much more of Africa than doth exceed by manie Millions the dimension of their old Ox Hyde and from thence I will turn towards the East take possession of that plentifull countrey of Aegypt which had never yet anie great plenty of martiall Spirits Then I will turn my conquering Armes against the luxurious 〈◊〉 and I hope also to make all the Nations of the Greeks have as great deference for me and dependence upon me as ever they had on Philip of Maâ—…don or hiâ—… son Alexander the great The sage Councellour heard this vain Braggadocio with great patience then he said to him You will have extraordinarie good luck iâ—… all those great designes of yours take effect as you have projected for I perceive you grasp no less in your imagination than the slaverie of all the civilized and barbarous nations in the world yet the Gods alone know whither your projections shall be prosperous or disastrous But let Us suppose You such a Favourite of Heaven as that good Fortune shall still accompany You till You have obtained a speedy Accomplishment of all your Desires and Designs What will You do then Then said Pyrrhus We 'll eat and drink and make merry with our Friends Alace good Sir rejoined Cyneas why may You not do that just now without troubling Your â—…elf and the World so much as You purpose to do for your ancient Kingdom of Epirus may furnish you aboundantly with all delicacies for your Table and I will assure You of Friends enough to share with You in that Aboundance and to bear You constant Company in all your jovial Humors But little was this vain ambitious Soul dreaming that not long afterwards He should see even before He had fully conquered any of these Nations a Bull and a Wolf fighting together which was given as a prognostick of his approaching death by the Oracle for when â—…e saw the Effigieâ—… of those Animalls I mean their Staâ—…es in Brass in a fighting posture upon the market place of Argâ—…s this great soul utterly disponded yea the prediction was so nigh the fulfilling that thiâ—… Masculiâ—… spirit was killed that verie day by the feeble handâ—… of a Woman FAB CCCXXI. Page 281. There is an old Maxime Hell is full of the Ingrate and no doubt â—…o is this sublunary World but all such whether in Hell or upon Earth are judged Devils clâ—…athed with Flesh it being the part of a God to render Good for Evil Of a Man to render Good for Good Of a Beast to render Evil for Evil But of a Devil to render Evil for Good I have known some Men very charitably disposed both by Nature and Grâ—…ce who have been tempted to forbear the doing of good Works not only by the uncharitable Construction which hide-bound Souls put upon it as if it had flowed meerly from a Principle of Pharisaical Ostentation but mostly in regard of the prodigious Ingratitude of his Beneficiaries who were so basely unthankfull as to render their benefactor evill for good yet there were two considerations which persuaded him to persevere 1. the most wise GOD permits it to â—…e so that mâ—…n may learn to expect the reward of wel doing from Heaven and not from Earth for if but once the Holy spirit intimate that word of comfort to the conscience of a benefactor Gratia mea sufficit he hath but litle Faith who doeth not firmly hope for a superabundant reward from that inexhaustable treasure The other Consideration is briefly this Let Us suppose a Man to have 20. Beneficiaries and that nineteen prove ingrate yet GOD can easily put the twentieth person in a willing Capacity to compense aboundantly yea even to Excess for the defects of all the rest so that the Benefactor shall at last have aboundant reason to say with the famous Themistocles Periissem nisâ—… Periissem FAB CCCXXVII Page 285. If a good moral Pagan viz. Sâ—…ipio Africanus had reason to say Nunquaâ—… 〈◊〉 solus quam cum solus sure a devout Christian Student may with much more reason speak so for his solitariness cannot â—…e better imployed than in making frequent oblations of spirituall Sacrifices to the Lord paraâ—…ount of heaven and earth and in perusing the extant works of manie Spirits of just men made perfect so that I am fully perswaded that the conversation of naughty companie for the space of a Naturall Day is more tedious to a truly contemplative Soul than to converse with the dead I mean to be immured in His study among his books for a twelve month upon end so that when there is an indispensable obligation lying upon such students to triffle away so much precious time as a whole day upon such an unedifying companie in their evening reflection they are not only â—…eady to say Mâ—…ltum inâ—…ola fuit Animâ—… 〈◊〉 hâ—…die but also with Cato the Censor and Titus Vespasian Hèu perdidi 〈◊〉 and to mind that of the excellent Senea Non panum temporis habemus sed 〈◊〉 pâ—…rdinius aut nihil agenda aut aliud agendo aut malâ—… agendo 〈◊〉 Hâ—… 〈◊〉 â—…ollocando It 's sâ—…ill iudged a wittie repartee and a deserved 〈◊〉 which S. Augustine gave to the blasphemous enquirie of a too cuâ—…ious person who urged him to tell if it be true that the world had a beginning what could GOD be doing so many millions of ages before the creation of the world That great soule instantly answered him He was making Hell for such curious hâ—…ads as yours but the proper resolution of