2* 



A TREATISE 



foule ; fojWhen there is onely an apparent Identity ,but not a real! 

 one, it happeneth that the undeiftanding is quieted without evi- 

 dence \ and our foule is fraught with a wrong or flight belicfe, in- 

 ftead of certaine knowledge : As for example, it is for the meft 

 part true,that what wife men affirme, isfoas they fay ; but be- 

 caufe wife men are but men (and confequently not infallible) it 

 may happen that in fome one thing, the wifeft men that are may 

 miflejthough in moft and generally fpeaking,they hit right.Now 

 if any body in a particular occafion, fhould (without examining 

 the matter) take this propofition rigeroufly and peremptorily, 

 that what wife men affirme is trtte ; and fhould thereupon lubfutne 

 withevidence,f^w wife men fay fuck ap*rtict4ar thing,and (hould 

 thereupon proceed to belceve it ; in this cafe he may be deceived, 

 bccaufe the firft propofition is not verily, but onely feemingly 

 evident. 



And this is the manner how that kind of deeming, which is 

 eit her oppofed,orinferiour to knowledge, is bred in us: to wit, 

 when either through temerity,in iuch cafes where we may, and it 

 is juft we fhould examine all particulars fo carefully 3 that no eqai- 

 vocation or miftake in any part of them, be admitted to pafle up- 

 on us for a truth,and yet we doe not : or elfe,threugh the limited- 

 neffe and imperfection of our nature, when thr minutcneflfe and 

 variety of petty circumftances in a bufinefle is fuch as we cannot 

 enter into an exaft examination of all that belongeth to that mat- 

 ter, (for if we fhould exactly difcufle every flight particular, we 

 fhould never get through any thing of moment J we fettle our 

 underftanding upon grounds that are notfufficient to move and 

 determine it. Now in fome of thefe cafes, (and particularly in 

 the latter) it may happen, that the underftanding it felf is aware, 

 that it neither hath difcovered,nor can difcovcr evidence enough, 

 to fettle its aflent with abfolnte affurance : and then it judgeth 

 the belief e it aflfordeth unto fuch a propofition,to be but probable; 

 and inftead of knowledge,hathbut opinion concerning it. Which 

 opinion appearcth to it more or lefle probable, according as the 

 motives it rclyeth on,are ftronger or weaker. 



There remaincth ytt another kind of deeming for us to fpeakc 

 ofj which though it ever faile of evidence, yet fometimes it is 

 better then opinion, for fometimes it bringeth certitude with it. 

 This we call Frith; and it is bred in this fort: when we meet 



with 



