170 Bacon 



the wisest sort of these relations which the Italians make 

 touching conclaves, the natures of the several cardinals 

 handsomely and lively painted forth: a man shall meet 

 with in every day s conference, the denominations of 

 sensitive, dry, formal, real, humorous, certain, huomo di prima 

 impressione, huomo di ultima impressione, and the like : and 

 yet nevertheless this kind of observation wandereth in 

 words, but is not fixed in inquiry. For the distinctions are 

 found, many of them, but we conclude no precepts upon 

 them: wherein our fault is the greater; because both 

 history, poesy, and daily experience are as goodly fields 

 where these observations grow; whereof we make a few 

 posies to hold in our hands, but no man bringeth them to 

 the confectionary, that receipts might be made of them for 

 use of life. 



Of much like kind are those impressions of nature, which 

 are imposed upon the mind by the sex, by the age, by the 

 region, by health and sickness, by beauty and deformity, 

 and the like, which are inherent and not extern ; and again, 

 those which are caused by extern fortune; as sovereignty, 

 nobility, obscure birth, riches, want, magistracy, private- 

 ness, prosperity, adversity, constant fortune, variable 

 fortune, rising per saltum, per gradus, and the like. And 

 therefore we see that Plautus maketh it a wonder to see an 

 old man beneficent, benignitas hujus ut adolescentuli estl 

 St. Paul concludeth that severity of discipline was to be 

 used to the Cretans, increpa eos dure, upon the disposition 

 of their country, Cretenses semper mendaces, mala bestia, 

 ventres pigri. 2 Sallust noteth that it is usual with kings 

 to desire contradictories: Sed plerumque regice voluntates, 

 ut vehementes sunt, sic mobiles, sapeque ipsce sibi adverse. 3 

 Tacitus observeth how rarely raising of the fortune mendeth 

 the disposition: solus Vespasianus mutatus in melius* 

 Pindarus maketh an observation, that great and sudden 

 fortune for the most part defeateth men qui magnam 

 felicitatem concoquere non possunt. 5 So the psalm showeth 

 it is more easy to keep a measure in the enjoying of fortune, 

 than in the increase of fortune: divitice si affluant, nolite 

 cor apponere* These observations, and the like, I deny not 



1 Plaut. Mil. Glor. iii. I, 39. 2 Tit. i. 12. 



3 Bell. Jug. 113. * Tac. Hist. i. 50. 



/utyav 8\fiov OVK tdvydff0r}. Olym. i. 55. G Ps. Ixii. IO 



