14 DR. RAWLEY'S LIFE OF BACON. 



And as he was a good servant to his master, being never in 

 nineteen years* service (as himself averred) rebuked by the 

 king for anything relating to His Majesty, so he was a good 

 master to his servants, and rewarded their lonsr attendance with 



o 



good places freely l when they fell into his power ; which was 

 the cause that so many young gentlemen of blood and quality 

 sought to list themselves in his retinue. And if he were abused 

 by any of them in their places, it was only the error of the 

 goodness of his nature, but the badges of their indiscretions and 

 intemperances. 



This lord was religious : for though the world be apt to sus- 

 pect and prejudge great wits and politics to have somewhat of 

 the atheist, yet he was conversant with God, as appeareth by 

 several passages throughout the whole current of his writings. 

 Otherwise he should have crossed his own principles, which 

 were, That a little philosophy maketh men apt to forget God, as 

 attributing too much to second causes ; but depth of philosophy 

 bring eth a man back to God again. Now I am sure there is no 

 man that will deny him, or account otherwise of him, but to 

 have him been a deep philosopher. And not only so ; but he 

 was able to render a reason of the hope which was in him, which 

 that writing of his of the Confession of the faith doth abundantly 

 testify. He repaired frequently, when his health would permit 

 him, to the service of the church, to hear sermons, to the admi- 

 nistration of the sacrament of the blessed body and blood of 

 Christ; and died in the true faith, established in the church of 

 England. 



This is most true he was free from malice, which (as he 

 said himself) he never bred nor fed. 2 He was no revenger of 



their affections more in his power. The fear of every man that heard him was, lest he 

 should make an end." Discoveries : under title Dominus Verulamius. 



1 Gratis, in the Latin version ; i.e. without taking any money for them j an unusual 

 thing in Bacon's time, when the sale of offices was a principal source of all great men's 

 incomes. 



2 " He said he had breeding swans and feeding swans ; but for malice, he neither 

 bred it nor fed it." From a commonplace book of Dr. Rawley's in the Lambeth 

 Library. " Et posso dir," says Sir Tobie Matthew, in his dedication to Cosmo de' Medici 

 of an Italian translation of the Essays and Sapientia Veterum, 1618, ' et posso dir 

 con verita (per haver io havuto 1' honore di pratticarlo molti anni, et quando era in 

 minoribus, et hora quando sta in colmo et fiore della sua grandezza) di non haver mai 

 scoperto in lui animo di vendetta, per qualsivoglia aggravio che se gli fosse fatto ; ne 

 manco sentito uscirgli di bocca parola d' ingiuria contra veruno, che mi paresse venire 

 da passione contra la tal persona; ma solo (et questo ancora molto scarsamente) per 

 giudicio fattftne in sangue freddo. Non e gia la sua grandezza quel che io ammiro, ma 

 la sua virtu ; non sono li favori fattimi da lui (per infiniti che siano) che mi hanno 

 posto il cuore in questi ceppi et catene in che mi ritrovo ; ma si bene il suo procedere 

 in commune ; che se egli fosse di conditione inferiore, non potrei manco honorarlo, e 

 K mi fosse nemico io dovrei con tutto cio amar et procurar di servirlo." 



