150 THE ADVANCEMENT OF LEARNING. 



marvel that this part of knowledge, touching the several 

 characters of natures and dispositions, should be omitted both 

 in morality and policy, considering it is of so great ministry 

 and suppeditation to them both. A man shall find in the 

 traditions of astrology some pretty and apt divisions of men s 

 natures, according to the predominances of the planets : lovers 

 of quiet, lovers of action, lovers of victory, lovers of honour, 

 lovers of pleasure, lovers of arts, lovers of change, and so forth. 

 A man shall find in 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 ot 

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

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

 yet nevertheless, this kind of observations 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 observa 

 tions 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. 



(5) 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, privateness, 

 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 est. Saint 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, malce bestice, venires pigri. Sallust noteth 

 that it is usual with kings to desire contradictories : Sed 

 plerumque regies voluntates, ut vehementcs sunt, sic mobiles, 

 scepeque ipsce sibi adverscc, 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 

 aui magnam felicitatem concoquere non possunt. So the Psalm 

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

 fortune, than in the increase of fortune ; Divitia si affluent, 

 iiolite cor apponere. These observations and the like I deny 



