and, besides too, they learn and study the art of persuading: some of Geneva have confessed as much.

3. The presbyter with his elders about him is like a young tree fenced about with two or three or four stakes; the stakes defend it, and hold it up; but the tree only prospers and flourishes; it may be some willow stake may bear a leaf or two, but it comes to nothing. Lay-elders are stakes, the pres

byter the tree that flourishes.

4. When the queries were sent to the assembly concerning the jus divinum of Presbytery, their asking time to answer them, was a satire upon themselves. For if it were to be seen in the text, they might quickly turn to the place and show us it. Their delaying to answer makes us think there is no such thing there. They do just as you have seen a fellow do at a tavern reckoning, when he should come to pay his reckoning he puts his hands into his pockets, and keeps a grabbling and a fumbling, and shaking, at last tells you he has left his money at home; when all the company knew at first, he had no money there, for every man can quickly find his own moncy.

PRIESTS OF ROME.

1. THE reason of the statute against priests, was this: in the beginning of queen Elizabeth there was a statute made, that he that drew men from their civil obedience was a traitor. It happened this was done in privacies and confessions, when there could be no proof; therefore they made another act, that for a priest to be in England, was treason, because they presumed that was his business to fetch men off from their obedience.

2. When queen Elizabeth died, and king James came in, an Irish priest does thus express it: Elizabetha in orcum detrusa, successit Jacobus, alter hereticus. You will ask why they did use such language in their church. Answ. Why does the nurse tell the child of raw-head and bloody-bones, to keep it in awe?

3. The queen mother and Count Rosset, are to the priests and jesuits like the honeypot to the flies.

4. The priests of Rome aim but at two things, to get power from the king, and money from the subject.

5. When the priests come into a family,

they do as a man that would set fire on a house; he does not put fire to the brick wall, but thrusts it into the thatch. They work upon the women, and let the men alone.

6. For a priest to turn a man when he lies a dying, is just like one that hath a long time solicited a woman, and cannot obtain his end; at length makes her drunk, and so lies with her.

PROPHECIES.

DREAMS and prophecies do thus much good; they make a man go on with boldness and courage, upon a danger or a mistress. If he obtains, he attributes much to them; if he miscarries, he thinks no more of them, or is no more thought of himself.

PROVERBS.

THE proverbs of several nations were much studied by bishop Andrews, and the reason he gave, was, because by them he knew the minds of several nations; which is a brave thing; as we count him a wise man, that knows the minds and insides of men, which is done by knowing what is habitual to them.

Proverbs are habitual to a nation, being transmitted from father to son.

QUESTION.

WHEN a doubt is propounded, you must learn to distinguish, and show wherein a thing holds, and wherein it does not hold. Aye, or no, never answered any question. The not distinguishing where things should be distinguished, and the not confounding, where things should be confounded, is the cause of all the mistakes in the world.

REASON.

1. IN giving reasons, men commonly do with us as the woman does with her child; when she goes to market about her business, she tells it she goes to buy it a fine thing, to buy it a cake or some plums. They give us such reasons as they think we will be catched withal, but never let us know the truth.

2. When the schoolmen talk of recta ratio in morals, either they understand reason, as it is governed by a command from above; or else they say no more than a woman,

when

she says a thing is so, because it is so; that is her reason persuades her it is so. The other exception has sense in it. As, take a law of the land, I must not depopulate, my reason tells me so. Why? Because if I do, I incur the detriment.

3. The reason of a thing is not to be inquired after, till you are sure the thing itself be so. We commonly are at what is the reason of it? before we are sure of the thing. It was an excellent question of my lady Cotton, when Sir Robert Cotton was magnifying of a shoe, which was Moses's or Noah's, and wondering at the strange shape and fashion of it. But, Mr. Cotton, says she, are you sure it is a shoe?

RETALIATION.

AN eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. That does not mean, that if I put out another man's eye, therefore I must lose one of my own; for what is he the better for that? though this be commonly received; but it means, I shall give him what satisfaction an eye shall be judged to be worth.