42S NOVUM ORGANUM. [iJOOiv I. 



in the second school of Plato (that of Proclus and others) 1 which 

 ought rather to terminate natural philosophy than to generate 

 or create it. &quot;We may, therefore, hope for better results from 

 pure and unmixed natural philosophy. 



XCVII. No one has yet been found possessed of sufficient 

 firmness and severity to resolve upon and undertake the task of 

 entirely abolishing common theories and notions, and applying 

 the mind afresh, when thus cleared and levelled, to particular 

 researches ; hence our human reasoning is a mere farrago and 

 crude mass made up of a great deal of credulity and accident, 

 and the puerile notions it originally contracted. 



But if a man of mature age, unprejudiced senses, and clear 

 mind, would betake himself anew to experience and particulars, 

 we might hope much more from such a one ; in which respect 

 we promise ourselves the fortune of Alexander the Great, and 

 let none accuse us of vanity till they have heard the tale, which 

 is intended to check vanity. 



For ^schines spoke thus of Alexander and his exploits : &quot; We 

 live not the life of mortals, but are born at such a period that 

 posterity will relate and declare our prodigies ;&quot; as if he consi 

 dered the exploits of Alexander to be miraculous. 



But in succeeding ages m Livy took a better view of the fact, 

 and has made some such observation as this upon Alexander : 

 &quot; That he did no more than dare to despise insignificance.&quot; So 

 in our opinion posterity will judge of us, that we have achieved 

 no great matters, but only set less account upon what is consi 

 dered important ; for the meantime (as we have before observed) 



system in detail. Bacon, however, is hardly consistent in one part of his 

 censure, for he also talks about the spirit and appetites of inanimate 

 substances, and that so frequently, as to preclude the supposition that 

 he is employing metaphor. Ed. 



1 Proclus flourished about the beginning of the fifth century, and 

 was the successor of Plotinus, Porphyry, and lamblicus, who, in the 

 two preceding centuries, had revived the doctrines of Plato, and assailed 

 the Christian religion. The allusion in the text must be assigned to 

 lamblicus, who, in the fourth century, had republished the Pythagorean 

 theology of numbers, and endeavoured to construct the world out of 

 arithmetic, thinking everything could be solved by the aid of proportions 

 and geometry. Bacon must not be understood in the text to censure the 

 use but the abuse of mathematics and physical investigations, as in the 

 &quot; De Augmentis&quot; (lib. iv. c. 6), he enumerates the multiplicity of 

 demonstration scientific facts admit of, from this source. Ed. 



m See Livy, Jib. x. c. 17, where, in a digress 1 ^n on the probable 

 effect of c. contest between Rome and Alexander the Great, he says : 

 Non cum Dario rem esse dixisset : quern mulierum ac spadonura 

 agmen trahentem inter purpuram atque aurum, oneratum fortuna 

 apparatibus, praedam verius quam hostem, nihil aliud (juani aufjug 

 coiitemnere, incruentua devicit,&quot; 



