DR. RAWLEY'S LIFE OF BACON. 13 



apparel than they had before; so that the author should find his 

 own speech much amended, and yet the substance of it still 

 retained 1 ; as if it had been natural to him to use good forms, 

 as Ovid spake of his faculty of versifying, 



"Et quod tentabam scribere, versus erat." 



When his office called him, as he was of the king's council 

 learned, to charge any offenders, either in criminals or capitals, 

 he was never of an insulting and domineering nature over them, 

 but always tender-hear ted, and carrying himself decently towards 

 the parties (though it was his duty to charge them home), but 

 yet as one that looked upon the example with the eye of severity, 

 but upon the person with the eye of pity and compassion. And 

 in civil business, as he was counsellor of estate, he had the best 

 way of advising, not engaging his master in any precipitate or 

 grievous courses, but in moderate and fair proceedings : the 

 king whom he served giving him this testimony, That he ever 

 dealt in business suavibus modis ; which was the way that was 

 most according to his own heart. 



Neither was he in his time less gracious with the subject than 

 with his sovereign. He was ever acceptable to the House 

 of Commons 2 when he was a member thereof. Being the king's 

 attorney, and chosen to a place in parliament, he was allowed 

 and dispensed with to sit in the House; which was not permitted 

 to other attorneys. 



1 This is probably the true explanation of a habit of Bacon's which seems at first 

 sight a fault, and perhaps sometimes is ; and of which a great many instances have 

 been pointed out by Mr. Ellis; a habit of inaccurate quotation. In quoting an 

 author's words, especially where he quotes them merely by way of voucher for his 

 own remark, or in acknowledgment of the source whence he derived it, or to suggest 

 an allusion which may give a better effect to it, he very often quotes inaccurately. 

 Sometimes, no doubt, this was unintentional, the fault of his memory ; but more 

 frequently, I suspect, it was done deliberately, for the sake of presenting the substance 

 in a better form, or a form better suited to the particular occasion. In citing the 

 evidence of witnesses, on the contrary, in support of a narrative statement or an argu- 

 ment upon matter of fact, he is always very careful. 



8 The Latin version adds, in quo s<zpe peroravit, non sine magno applausu ; a state- 

 ment of the truth of which abundant evidence may be found in all the records which 

 remain of the proceedings of the House of Commons. The first parliament in which 

 he sate was that of 1584 : after which he sate in every parliament that was summoned 

 up to the time of his fall. 



As an edition of Bacon would hardly be complete unless it contained Ben Jonson's 

 famous description of his mariner of speaking, I shall insert it here: " Yet there 

 happened in my time one noble speaker, who was full of gravity in his speaking. His 

 language (where he could spare or pass by a jest) was nobly censorious. No man ever 

 spake more neatly, more pressly, more weightily, or suffered less emptiness, less idle- 

 ness, in what he uttered. No member of his speech but consisted of his own gi'aces. 

 His hearers could not cough, or look aside from him, without loss. He commanded 

 where he spoke j and had his judges angry and pleased at his devotion. No man had 



