Of Vicissitude of Things

Salomon saith; There is no New Thing upon the Earth. So that as Plato had an Imagination; That all Knowledge was but Remembrance: So Salomon giveth his Sentence; That all Noveltie is but Oblivion. Whereby you may see, that the River of Lethe, runneth as well above Ground, as below. There is an abstruse Astrologer that saith; If it were not, for two things, that are Constant; (The one is, that the Fixed Starres ever stand at like distance, one from another, and never come nearer together, nor goe further asunder; The other, that the Diurnall Motion perpetually keepeth Time:) No Individuall would last one Moment. Certain it is, that the Matter, is in a Perpetuall Flux, and never at a Stay. The great Winding-sheets, that burie all Things in Oblivion, are two; Deluges, and Earth-quakes. As for Conflagrations, and great Droughts, they doe not meerely dispeople, and destroy. Phaetons Carre went but a day. And the Three yeares Drought, in the time of Elias, was but Particular, and left People Alive. As for the great Burnings by Lightnings, which are often in the West Indies, they are but narrow. But in the other two Destructions, by Deluge, and Earth-quake, it is further to be noted, that the Remnant of People, which hap to be reserved, are commonly Ignorant and Mountanous People, that can give no Account, of the Time past: So that the Oblivion is all one, as if none had beene left. If you consider well, of the People of the West Indies, it is very probable, that they are a Newer, or a Younger People, then the People of the Old World. And it is much more likely, that the Destruction, that hath heretofore been there, was not by Earth-quakes, (As the Ægyptian Priest told Solon, concerning the Island of Atlantis; That it was swallowed by an Earth-quake;) But rather, that it was desolated, by a Particular Deluge. For Earth-quakes are seldome in those Parts. But on the other side, they have such Powring Rivers, as the Rivers of Asia, and Affrick, and Europe, are but Brookes to them. Their Andes likewise, or Mountaines, are farre higher, then those with us; Whereby it seemes, that the Remnants of Generation of Men, were, in such a Particular Deluge, saved. As for the Observation, that Macciavel hath, that the Jealousie of Sects, doth much extinguish the Memory of Things; Traducing Gregory the Great, that he did, what in him lay, to extinguish all Heathen Antiquities; I doe not finde, that those Zeales, doe any great Effects, nor last long: As it appeared in the Succession of Sabinian, who did revive the former Antiquities.

The Vicissitude or Mutations, in the Superiour Globe, are no fit Matter, for this present Argument. It may be, Plato's great Yeare, if the World should last so long, would have some Effect; Not in renewing the State of like Individuals (for that is the Fume of those, that conceive the Celestiall Bodies, have more accurate Influences, upon these Things below, then indeed they have) but in grosse. Comets, out of question, have likewise Power and Effect, over the Grosse and Masse of Things: But they are rather gazed upon, and waited upon in their Journey, then wisely observed in their Effects; Specially in their Respective Effects; That is, what Kinde of Comet, for Magnitude, Colour, Version of the Beames, Placing in the Region of Heaven, or Lasting, produceth what Kinde of Effects.

There is a Toy, which I have heard, and I would not have it given over, but waited upon a little. They say, it is observed, in the Low Countries (I know not in what Part) that Every Five and Thirtie years, The same Kinde and Sute of Years and Weathers, comes about againe: As Great Frosts, Great Wet, Great Droughts, Warme Winters, Summers with little Heat, and the like: And they call it the Prime. It is a Thing, I doe the rather mention, because computing backwards, I have found some Concurrence.

But to leave these Points of Nature, and to come to Men. The greatest Vicissitude of Things amongst Men, is the Vicissitude of Sects, and Religions. For those Orbs rule in Mens Minds most. The True Religion is built upon the Rocke; The Rest are tost upon the Waves of Time. To speake therefore, of the Causes of New Sects; And to give some Counsell concerning them; As farre, as the Weaknesse of Humane Judgement, can give stay to so great Revolutions.

When the Religion formerly received, is rent by Discords; And when the Holinesse of the Professours of Religion is decayed, and full of Scandall; And withall the Times be Stupid, Ignorant, and Barbarous; you may doubt the Springing up of a New Sect; If then also there should arise, any Extravagant and Strange Spirit, to make himselfe Authour thereof. All which Points held, when Mahomet published his Law. If a New Sect have not two Properties, feare it not: For it will not spread. The one is, the Supplanting, or the opposing, of Authority established: For Nothing is more Popular then that. The other is, the Giving Licence to Pleasures, and a Voluptuous Life. For as for Speculative Heresies (such as were in Ancient Times the Arrians, and now the Arminians) though they worke mightily upon Mens Wits, yet they doe not produce any great Alterations in States; except it be by the Helpe of Civill Occasions. There be three Manner of Plantations of New Sects. By the Power of Signes and Miracles: By the Eloquence and Wisedome of Speech and Perswasion: And by the Sword. For Martyrdomes, I reckon them amongst Miracles; Because they seeme to exceed, the Strength of Human Nature: And I may doe the like of Superlative and Admirable Holinesse of Life. Surely, there is no better Way, to stop the Rising of New Sects, and Schismes; then To reforme Abuses; To compound the smaller Differences; To proceed mildly, and not with Sanguinary Persecutions; And rather to take off the principall Authours, by Winning and Advancing them, then to enrage them by Violence and Bitternesse.

The Changes and Vicissitude in Warres are many: But chiefly in three Things; In the Seats or Stages of the Warre; In the Weapons; And in the Manner of the Conduct. Warres in ancient Time, seemed more to move from East to West: For the Persians, Assyrians, Arabians, Tartars, (which were the Invaders) were all Easterne People. It is true, the Gaules were Westerne; But we reade but of two Incursions of theirs; The one to Gallo-Grecia, the other to Rome. But East and West have no certaine Points of Heaven: And no more have the Warres, either from the East, or West, any Certainty of Observation. But North and South are fixed: And it hath seldome or never been seene, that the farre Southern People have invaded the Northern, but contrariwise. Whereby it is manifest, that the Northern Tract of the World, is in Nature the more Martiall Region: Be it, in respect of the Stars of that Hemisphere; Or of the great Continents that are upon the North, whereas the South Part, for ought that is knowne, is almost all Sea; Or (which is most apparent) of the Cold of the Northern Parts, which is that, which without Aid of Discipline, doth make the Bodies hardest, and the Courages warmest.

Upon the Breaking and Shivering of a great State and Empire, you may be sure to have Warres. For great Empires, while they stand, doe enervate and destroy the Forces of the Natives, which they have subdued, resting upon their owne Protecting Forces: And then when they faile also, all goes to ruine, and they become a Prey. So was it, in the Decay of the Roman Empire; And likewise, in the Empire of Almaigne, after Charles the Great, every Bird taking a Fether; And were not unlike to befall to Spaine, if it should break The great Accessions and Unions of Kingdomes, doe likewise stirre up Warres. For when a State growes to an Over-power, it is like a great Floud, that will be sure to overflow. As it hath been seene, in the States of Rome, Turky, Spaine, and others. Looke when the World hath fewest Barbarous Peoples, but such as commonly will not marry or generate, except they know meanes to live; (As it is almost every where at this day, except Tartary) there is no Danger of Inundations of People: But when there be great Shoales of People, which goe on to populate, without foreseeing Meanes of Life and Sustentation, it is of Necessity, that once in an Age or two, they discharge a Portion of their People upon other Nations: Which the ancient Northern People, were wont to doe by Lot: Casting Lots, what Part should stay at home, and what should seeke their Fortunes. When a Warre-like State growes Soft and Effeminate, they may be sure of a Warre. For commonly such States are growne rich, in the time of their Degenerating; And so the Prey inviteth, and their Decay in Valour encourageth a Warre.

As for the Weapons, it hardly falleth under Rule and Observation: yet we see, even they have Returnes and Vicissitudes. For certain it is, that Ordnance was known in the Citty of the Oxidrakes in India; And was that, which the Macedonians called Thunder and Lightning, and Magicke. And it is well knowne, that the use of Ordnance hath been in China, above 2000. yeares. The Conditions of Weapons, & their Improvement are; First, The Fetching a farre off: For that outruns the Danger: As it is seene in Ordnance and Muskets. Secondly, the Strength of the Percussion; wherin likewise Ordnance doe exceed all Arietations, and ancient Inventions. The third is, the commodious use of them: As that they may serve in all Wethers; That the Carriage may be Light and Manageable; and the like.

For the Conduct of the Warre: At the first, Men rested extremely upon Number: They did put the Warres likewise upon Maine Force, and Valour; Pointing Dayes for Pitched Fields, and so trying it out, upon an even Match: And they were more ignorant in Ranging and Arraying their Battailes. After they grew to rest upon Number, rather Competent, then Vast: They grew to Advantages, of Place, Cunning Diversions, and the like: And they grew more skilful in the Ordering of their Battailes.

In the Youth of a State, Armes doe flourish: In the Middle Age of a State, Learning; And then both of them together for a time: In the Declining Age of a State, Mechanicall Arts and Merchandize. Learning hath his Infancy, when it is but beginning, and almost Childish: Then his Youth, when it is Luxuriant and Juvenile: Then his Strength of yeares, when it is Solide and Reduced: And lastly, his old Age, when it waxeth Dry and Exhaust. But it is not good, to looke too long, upon these turning Wheeles of Vicissitude, lest we become Giddy. As for the Philology of them, that is but a Circle of Tales, and therefore not fit for this Writing.

FINIS.