p. 156, 1. 19.

Some of the Philosophers, and namely, Diagoras of the Isle of Melos, Theodorus the Cyrenæan, and Euemerus of Tegea, held resolutely, that there were no gods. — HOLLAND'S Plutarch's Morals, p. 664, ed. 1657.

ESSAY XVII.

p. 169, 1. 17. "civil." "civility," p. 442, 1. 5. Literally, citizen-like: hence orderly, refined, and, as applied to actions, becoming. Essay XLVIII. p. 466, 1. 3.

This is like to be a night of as civil business as I have known a great while. — OTWAY's Friendship in Fashion, IV. 1, vol. II. p. 63, ed. Thornton.

A civil opinion, i.e. received. "Adv. of Learning," bk. II. Works, III. 381. A civil estate, i.e. condition as member of a "civitas." "Adv. of Learning," bk. I. Works, III. 262. A civil man once was one who fulfilled all the duties and obligations flowing from his position as a "civis," and his relations to the other members of that "civitas" to which he belonged, and civility the condition in which those were recognized and observed. The highest use of the word is now almost, if not entirely, gone. TRENCH. Glossary.

As for the Scythian wandering Nomades, temples sorted not with their condition, as wanting both civility and settledness. - FULLER. The Holy State, bk. III. ch. 24, p. 211, ed. London, 1841.

A man would think that civility, wholesome laws, learning and eloquence, synods, and Churchmaintenance, (that we speak of no more things of this kind) should be as safe as a sanctuary, and out of shot, as they say, that no man would lift up his heel, no, nor dog move his tongue against the motioners of them. For by the first [civility] we are distinguished from brute beasts led with sensuality. BIBLE. 1611. The Translators to the Reader.

p. 169, 1. 25. "engines." Ingine or engine was used by our old writers to designate a skilful contrivance, whether in the form of an artifice or stratagem, or of a weapon, instrument, or piece of machinery. In the former sense it is used in the text, i.e. devices. WALKER. Crit. Exam., &c. I. 102.

p. 194, 1. 3.

ESSAY XVIII.

Get the language (in part) without which key thou shalt unlock little of moment. - FULLER. The Holy State, III. 4, § 2.

p. 195, l. 14. “adamant." In Marston's "What you Will," one of the pages, in describing the nature of his master, says,

Hee keepes mee as his adamant to draw mettell. - Act III. sc. 1, E 4, ed. 1607.

ESSAY XIX.

p. 200, 1. 25.

It is reported that King Alexander the Great, hearing Anaxarchus the Philosopher discoursing and maintaining this Position: That there were worlds innumerable, fell a weeping, and when his friends and familiars about him asked what he ailed. Have I not (quoth he) good cause to weep, that being as there are an infinite number of worlds, I am not yet the Lord of one. - HOLLAND'S Plutarch's Morals, p. 121, ed. 1657.

p. 201, l. 17.—Not Tacitus, but Sallust. Bell. Jug. c. 113. The passage is rightly referred to Sallust in "Adv. of Learning," II. 22, § 5:

Sallust noteth that it is usual for kings to desire contradictories.

p. 202, 1. 11. "precedent." Preceding, previous. But in Bacon's time this word had the meaning of "original."

If

you ask what they [the Translators] had before them; truly it was the Hebrew text of the Old Testament, the Greek of the New. These are the two golden pipes, or rather conduits, wherethrough the olivebranches empty themselves into the gold. St. Augustine calleth them precedent, or original tongues; St. Hierome, fountains. Bible. 1611. The Translators to the Reader.

p. 203, 1. 25. "my History of King Henry VII.," etc.

He kept a strait hand on his nobility, and chose rather to advance clergymen and lawyers, which were more obsequious to him, but had less interest in the people; which made for his absoluteness, but not for his safety. Insomuch as I am persuaded it was one of the causes of his troublesome reign. For that his nobles, though they were loyal and obedient, yet did not cooperate with him, but let every man go his own way. - History of King Henry VII. Works, VI.

242.

p. 204, 1. 3. "For their merchants, they are vena porta." Upon this phrase, writes Mr. Spedding (Works, VI. 422, note) which occurs two or three times in Bacon (see for instance the "History of King Henry VII.," Works, VI. 172, “being a king that loved wealth and treasure, he could not endure to have trade sick, nor any obstruction to continue in the gate-vein which disperseth that blood") I am indebted to Mr. Ellis for the following characteristic note:

"The metaphor," he writes, "is historically curious; for no one would have used it since the discovery of the circulation of the blood and of the lacteals. But in Bacon's time it was supposed that the chyle was taken up by the veins which converge to the vena porta. The latter immediately divides into branches, and ultimately into four ramifications, which are distributed throughout the substance of the liver, so that it has been compared to the trunk of a tree giving off roots at one extremity and branches at the other. Bacon's meaning therefore is, that commerce concentrates the resources of a country in order to their redistribution. The heart which receives blood from all parts of the body and brings it into contact with the external air, and then redistributes it everywhere, would I think have taken the place of the vena porta, after Harvey's discovery had become known; especially as the latter is a mere conduit, and not a source of motion."

p. 210, 1. 20.

ESSAY XX.

-The MS. adds " which hath tourned Metis the wife to Metis the mistresse, that is Councells of State to which Princes are [solemly] marryed, to Councells of gracious persons recommended chiefly by [flattery and] affection." Mr. Spedding, in his note (Works, VI. p. 555), remarks:

The word "solemly " has a line drawn through it, and the words flattery and" are inserted between the lines in Bacon's hand. p. 211, 1. 5.

About this time the King called unto his Privy Counsel John Morton and Richard Foxe, the one Bishop of Ely, the other Bishop of Exeter; vigilant men and secret, and such as kept watch with him almost upon all men else. - History of King Henry VII. Works, VI. 40.

——

p. 212, 1. 12. "Apophthegms," 105:

Alonso of Aragon was wont to say of himself, That he was a

great necromancer, for that he used to ask counsel of the dead: meaning of books.

p. 212, l. 13. “Books will speak plain when counsellors blanch,” i.e. flinch. This word is used in the sense to avoid or evade in Essay XXVI. p. 274, 1. 2, and also in the "History of King Henry VII.”:—

It seemeth the judges of that time thought it was a dangerous thing to admit Ifs and Ands to qualify words of treason; whereby every man might express his malice, and blanch his danger. — Works, VI. 151.

And in the Second Book of the "Adv. of Learning," Works,
III. 414:

The second is concerning the exposition and explication of authors, which resteth in annotations and commentaries: wherein it is over usual to blanch the obscure places, and discourse upon the plain.

The word occurs in Chapman's "Homer":

Hector, you know, applause

Of humour hath bene farre from me; nor fits it, or in warre,
Or in affaires of Court, a man imploid in publicke care,
To blanch things further then the truth, or flatter any powre.
Iliad, XII. 220, p. 164, ed. 1611 or 1612.

Also blench in "Measure for Measure,” IV. 5

Though sometimes you do blench from this to that,
As cause doth minister.

p. 212, 1. 26. "Hoc agere." The phrase is explained in Plutarch:

But hereby appeareth plainely, how king Numa did wisely or daine all other ceremonies concerning devotion to the gods, and specially this custome which he established, to bring the people to religion. For when the magistrates, bishops, priestes, or other religious ministers goe about any divine service, or matter of religion, an herauld ever goeth before them, crying out aloud, Hoc age : as to say, do this, or mind this. - NORTH'S Transl. Coriolanus, p. 234, ed. 1631.

p. 213, 1. 17. “will sing him a song of placebo:" the Vesper hymn for the dead.

Pope Sixtus's Breviary says, "Ad vesperas, absolutè incipitur ab Antiphonâ, placebo Domino in regione vivorum."— NARES. Glos

sary.

ESSAY XXI.

p. 218, 1. 3. "Sibylla's offer." Compare "Adv. of Learning," II. 23,

§ 28.

ESSAY XXII.

p. 224, 1. 1. "cunning."

The fact, writes Trench ("Glossary"), that so many words implying knowledge, art, skill, obtain in course of time a secondary meaning of crooked knowledge, art which has degenerated into artifice, skill used only to circumvent, which meanings partially or altogether put out of use their primary, is a mournful witness to the way in which intellectual gifts are too commonly misapplied. Thus, there was a time when the Latin "dolus " required the epithet "malus," as often as it signified a treacherous or fraudful device; but it was soon able to drop this as superfluous, and to stand by itself. The word cunning" has gone the same downward course: indeed, as early as Lord Bacon, who says, "We take cunning for a sinister, or crooked . wisdom,” it had acquired what is now its only acceptation; but not then, nor till long after, to the exclusion of its more honorable use. How honorable that use sometimes was, the following quotation will testify:

I believe that all these Persons [in the Godhead] are even in power and in cunning and in might, full of grace and of all goodness." -FoXE. The Book of Martyrs. Confession of Faith, by William Thorpe.

This Booke entituled a Collection of Entrees, contayneth the forme and maner of good pleading, which is a great part of the cunning of the Law of England.-RASTELL. Entries. To the Reader, ed. 1596.

p. 224, 1. 8.—In the "Promus of Formularies and Elegancies ” (Works, VII. 197) is this note, descriptive of the characters of

some men:

Cunning in the humours of persons, and not in the conditions of actions.

p. 224, 1. 11. "they are good but in their own alley." Under “BowlAlley," or "Bowling-Alley," Nares ("Glossary") gives "A covered space for the game of bowls, instead of a bowlinggreen." He quotes "Whether it be in open wide places, or in close allies, the chusing of the bowle is the greatest cunning." – G. MARKHAM. Country Contentments, p. 58.