NOVUM ORGANUM 49 



which is light and inflated, and sinks that which is heavy 

 and solid. Nor were even these more ancient philosophers 

 free from the national defect, but inclined too much to the 

 ambition and vanity of forming a sect, and captivating 

 public opinion, and we must despair of any inquiry after 

 truth when it condescends to such trifles. Nor must we 

 omit the opinion, or rather prophecy, of an Egyptian priest 

 with regard to the Greeks, that they would forever remain 

 children, without any antiquity of knowledge or knowledge 

 of antiquity; for they certainly have this in common with 

 children, that they are prone to talking, and incapable of 

 generation, their wisdom being loquacious and unproduc 

 tive of effects. Hence the external signs derived from the 

 origin and birthplace of our present philosophy are not 

 favorable. 



LXXII. Nor are those much better which can be de 

 duced from the character of the time and age, than the 

 former from that of the country and nation ; for in that age 

 the knowledge both of time and of the world was confined 

 and meagre, which is one of the worst evils for those who 

 rely entirely on experience they had not a thousand years 

 of history worthy of that name, but mere fables and ancient 

 traditions; they were acquainted with but a small portion 

 of the regions and countries of the world, for they indis 

 criminately called all nations situated far toward the north 

 Scythians, all those to the west Celts; they knew nothing 

 of Africa but the nearest part of Ethiopia, or of Asia be- 



float on a stream, and the levity which is synonymous with worthlessness, have 

 nothing beside the name in common ; and to show how little value there is in 

 the figure, we need only change the word into buoyancy, to turn the semblance 

 of Bacon s argument against himself Ed. 



