NEW ATLANTIS. 



383 



have some parts of his works which with you are lost ; 

 namely, that Natural History which he wrote, of all 

 plants, from the cedar, of Libanus to the moss that grow- 

 eth out of the watt, and of all things that have life and 

 motion. This maketh me think that our king, findino- 

 himself to symbolize in many things with that king of 

 the Hebrews (which lived many years before him), 

 honoured him with the title of this foundation. 1 And 

 I am the rather induced to be of this opinion, for that 

 I find in ancient records this Order or Society is some 

 times called Salomon s House, and sometimes the Col 

 lege of the Six Days Works ; whereby I am satisfied 

 that our excellent king had learned from the Hebrews 

 that God had created the world and all that therein is 

 within six days ; and therefore he instituting that House 

 for the finding out of the true nature of all things, 2 

 (whereby Qodjnight have the .more^lorj in the work 

 manship of tbftm T and i-r^n tko more fr u j t j n t fr e USQ 

 ofjthemj did give it also that second name! But now 

 to come to our present purpose. When the king had 

 forbidden to all his people navigation into any part that 

 was not under his crown, he made nevertheless this 

 ordinance ; That every twelve years there should be 

 set forth out of this kingdom two ships, appointed to 



1 Bacon in speaking of this king who symbolizes with Solomon seems 

 to allude to James I. R. L. E. [If the New Atlantis had been written 

 in the earlier part of James s reign, Bacon might have been suspected 

 perhaps of some such allusion. He might have hoped to encourage James 

 to justify the parallel by going and doing likewise. But since James had 

 now reigned above twenty years without doing or attempting to do anything 

 for the furtherance of Natural Philosophy; without showing any interest 

 in it or any taste or capacity for it; I cannot understand what the allusion 

 can be or where the resemblance. Nor does it seem necessary to suppose 

 anything of the kind in order to explain why a model-king for wisdom 

 and knowledge should be likened to Solomon. J. S.] 



2 ad inquisitionem et invenlionem natures verce et interioris rerum omnium. 



