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joining the knowledge of paft times,left us in the 

 writings of thofe that are gone before, with the 

 difcoveries and experience of the prefent times, 

 fo even the knowledge of nature itfelf hath been 

 multiplied by the various degrees of conception, 

 and different powers of penetration that have 

 been given by God through paft ages to man- 

 kind, whicli have been handed down through 

 the records of time to us. Without this know- 

 ledge of other men joined to our own, our know- 

 ledge would be like that of favage people who 

 live together in fmall tribes or families, and have 

 nothing but mere mother wit and pure natural 

 capacity, chiefly derived from the fenfes, to di- 

 red: them, they not knowing what any of their 

 anceftors faid or thought before them for want 

 of charaders to exprefs words ; fo that each 

 man's knowledge is his own, or has little aflift- 

 ance from others : I do not mean, that, while 

 we are fearching into nature's works, we Hiould 

 negled the curious arts and inventions of men ; 

 for by being well fl<:illed in arts we are enabled 

 the better to make difcoveries in nature. Be- 

 fides, a fine art loft may never be recovered ; but 



nature, 



