SALOMON'S HOUSE 255 



lanimity and fear. But this restraint of ours hath one 

 only exception, which is admirable ; preserving the good 

 which Cometh by communicating with strangers, and 

 avoiding the hurt : and I will now open it to you. 

 And here I shall seem a little to digress, but you will 

 by and by find it pertinent. 



' Ye shall understand, my dear friends, that amongst 

 the excellent acts of that king, one above all hath the 

 pre-eminence. It was the erection and institution of 

 an order, or society, which we call Salomon's House ; 

 the- noblest foundation, as we think, that ever was upon 

 the earth, and the lantern of this kingdom. It is dedi- 

 cated to the study of the works and creatures of God. 

 Some think it beareth the founder's name a little cor- 

 rupted, as if it should be Solamona's House. But the 

 records write it as it is spoken. So as I take it to be 

 denominate of the king of the Hebrews, which is famous 

 with you, and no stranger to us ; for we have some 

 parts of his works which with you are lost ; namely, 

 that Natural History which he wrote of all plants, from 

 the cedar of Libanus to the moss that groweth out of 

 the wall ; and of all things that have life and motion. 

 This maketh me think that our king finding himself to 

 symbolize, in many things, with that king of the He- 

 brews (which lived many years before him) honoured 

 him with the title of this foundation. And I am the 

 rather induced to be of this opinion, for that I find in 

 ancient records, this order or society is sometimes called 

 Salomon's House, and sometimes the College of the Six 

 Days' Works ; whereby I am satisfied that our excellent 

 king had learned from the Hebrews that God had created 

 the world, and all that therein is, within six days : and 

 therefore he instituting that house, for the finding out 

 of the true nature of all things (whereby God mought 

 have the more glory in the workmanship of them, and 

 men the more fruit in the use of them), did give it also 

 that second name. 



But now to come to our present purpose. When the 

 king had forbidden to all his people navigation into any 

 part that was not under his crown, he made nevertheless 



