Telescope, ^c. ivere Jirst known 'm England. 251 



great artillerie, in such perfection as hitherto hath not bene 

 in any language imparted with any nation of Europe. — Fi- 

 rescit vulvere virtus*." 



10. I have transcribed the greater part of this curious pas- 

 sage, because the " miserable labyrinth" of " la-.v-brables" 

 in which the poor author was " snared," may very ratio- 

 nally account for the amazing assertion, that his father, "by 

 reflection of glasses, lired pouder and discharged ordinance 

 many miles distant." It is evident that when Digges wrote 

 the above passage his mind was ill at ease. It is probable 

 his work was carelessly printed, without being revised by 

 himself, and that for miles we should read poles, or some 

 other denomination inferior to miles ; for it is not to be 

 credited that Digges, supposing him in his senses, would 

 have inserted in his Stratioticos in 1590, that his father, 

 *' by reflection of glasses, fired pouder and discharged ordi- 

 nance many miles distant ;" and in the Pantometria in 1591, 

 that his father produced the same effect only " halfe a mile and 

 vwre distant ;" appealing in both instances to eye-witnesses, 

 and to all appearance meaning precisely the same fact. It 

 may further be observed, that in our second quotation he 

 has not asserted that either he or his father had so ** aug- 

 mented and multiplied the unitie of beames, that the 

 farder it is carried the more violently it shall pearse and 

 burne." No : he only mentions the extreme difficulty of 

 such an attempt, and rather obscurely talks of imparting 

 something on that head on a future occasion. 

 . 1 1 . This letter would exceed all reasonable bounds, and 

 would consume more time than I can bestow upon it, were 

 I to trouble you with every observation which these passages 

 would fairly bear. Many such will so readily occur to your 

 intelligent readers, that it would be superfluous, if not offi- 

 cious, m me to suggest them. I must therefore content my- 

 self with settling the dates of other prelensions to discoveries 

 which seem to have been previously known to the Diggeses, 

 and thus hastening, not however without all the circum- 

 spection my time will allow, to the general conclusion 

 which I have in view. And here I should be sorry to have 

 it supposed that the proofs I shall adduce in support of those 

 w ho appear to have just claims of priority, imply any censure 

 on other claimants. Far from every liberal inquirer be the 

 baseness of vilifying departed men of talents, whom genius, or 

 even what is called good fortune, may have conducted, clear 

 of all plagiarism, to discoveries. previously made by others! 



• Virtue flourishes in adversity. 



12. To 



