4 THE WISDOM OF THE ANCIENTS. 



allegory is this, that men s outcries upon the defects 

 of nature and art, proceed from an excellent disposi 

 tion of the mind, and turn to their good ; whereas 

 the silencing of them is hateful to the gods, and re 

 dounds not so much to their profit ; for they that 

 infinitely extol human nature, or the knowledge 

 they possess, breaking out into a prodigal admira 

 tion of that they have and enjoy, adoring also those 

 sciences they profess, would have them be accounted 

 perfect ; they do first of all shew little reverence to 

 the divine nature, by equalizing, in a manner, their 

 own defects with God s perfection. Again ; they are 

 wonderful injurious to men, by imagining they have 

 attained the highest step of knowledge, resting 

 themselves contented, seek no further. On the con 

 trary, such as bring nature and art to the bar with 

 accusations and bills of complaint against them, are 

 indeed of more true and moderate judgments ; for 

 they are ever in action, seeking always to find out 

 new inventions. Which makes me much to wonder 

 at the foolish and inconsiderate dispositions of some 

 men, who, making themselves bond slaves to the 

 arrogancy of a few, have the philosophy of the Peri 

 patetics, containing only a portion of Grecian wis 

 dom, and that but a small one neither, in so great 

 esteem, that they hold it not only an unprofitable, 

 but a suspicious and almost heinous thing, to lay 

 any imputation of imperfection upon it. I approve 

 rather of Empedocles opinion, who like a mad 

 man, and of Democritus judgment, who with 

 great moderation complained how that all things 

 were involved in a mist, that we knew nothing, 



