are the sacred favours of truth, the due latitudes of love, the faire compartiments of Christian fraternity. But irregular dispensations, dealt forth by the facilities of men, are the frontiers of errour, the redoubts of schisme, the perillous irritaments of carnall and spirituall enmity. My heart hath naturally detested foure things: the standing of the 10 Apocrypha in the Bible; forrainers dwelling in my countrey, to crowd out native subjects into the corners of the earth; alchymized coines; tolerations of divers religions, or of one religion in segregant shapes. He that willingly assents to the last, if he examines his heart by day-light, his conscience will tell him he is either an atheist, or an heretique, or an hypocrite, or at best a 20 captive to some lust. Poly-piety is the greatest impiety in the world. True religion is Ignis probationis, which doth congregare homogenea et segregare heterogenia. Not to tolerate things meerly indifferent to weak consciences, argues a conscience too strong; pressed uniformity in these, causes much disunity. To tolerate more than indifferents, is 30 not to deale indifferently with God; he that doth it, takes his scepter out of his hand, and bids him stand by. Who hath to doe to institute religion but God? The power of all religion and ordinances lies in their purity. Their purity in their simplicity; then are mixtures pernicious. I lived in a city, where a Papist preached in one church, a Lutheran in another, a Calvinist in 40 a third; a Lutheran one part of the day, a Calvinist the other, in the same pulpit. The religion of that place was but motly and meagre, their affections leopard-like. If the whole creature should conspire to doe the Creator a mischiefe, or offer him an insolency, it would be in nothing more than in erecting untruths against his truth, or by sophisticating 50 his truths with humane medleyes. The removing of some one iota in Scripture may draw out all the life, and traverse 2 unimportant things 1 irritants 3 all the truth of the whole Bible; but to authorise an untruth by a toleration of state, is to build a sconce against the walls of heaven, to batter God out of his chaire. To tell a practicall lye, is a great sin, but yet transient; but to set up a Theoricall untruth, is to warrant every lye that lyes from its root to the top of every branch it hath, which are not a few.. . Concerning Tolerations I may further assert: That persecution of true religion, and toleration of false, are the Jannes and Jambres to the Kingdome of Christ, whereof the last is farre the worst. Augustine's tongue had not owed his. mouth one penny-rent though it had never spake word more in it but this: Nullum malum pejus libertate errandi. Frederick Duke of Saxon spake not one foote beyond the mark when he said he had rather the earth should swallow him up quick, then he should give a toleration to any opinion against any truth of God. He that is willing to tolerate any religion, or discrepant way of religion, besides his own, unlesse it be in matters meerly indifferent, either doubts of his own, or is not sincere in it. He that is willing to tolerate any unsound opinion, that his own may also be tolerated, though never so sound, will for a need hang God's Bible at the Devil's girdle. Every toleration of false religions or opinions hath as many errours and sins in it, as all the false religions and opinions it tolerates, and one sound one more. That State that will give liberty of conscience in matters of religion, must give liberty of conscience and conversation in their morall laws, or else the fiddle will be out of tune, and some of the strings cracke. [ON FASHIONS] Should I not keep promise in speaking a little to women's fashions, they would take it unkindly. I was loath to pester better matter with such stuffe; I rather thought it meet to let them stand by themselves, like the Quæ genus in the grammer, being deficients, or redundants, not to be brought under any rule. I shall therefore make bold for this once to borrow a little of their loose tongued liberty, and mispend a word or two upon their long-wasted, but short-skirted patience; 10 a little use of my stirrup will doe no harme. Ridentem dicere verum, quid prohibit? Gray gravity it selfe can well beteame, 2 It is known more then enough, that I am neither nigard, nor cinick,1 to the 20 due bravery of the true gentry; if any man mislikes a bully mong drossock more then I, let him take her for all mee. I honour the woman that can honour her self with her attire; a good text 3 alwayes deserves a fair margent. I am not much offended if I see a trimme far trimmer than she that wears it. In a word, whatever Christianity or civility will allow, I can 30 afford with London measure. But when I heare a nugiperous gentledame inquire what dresse the Queen is in this week, what the nudiustertian fashion of the Court, I meane the very newest; with egge to be in it in all hast, what ever it be; I look at her as the very gizzard of a trifle, the product of a quarter of a cypher, the epitome of nothing, fitter to be kickt, if shee were 40 of a kickable substance, than either honoured or humoured. 5 into French flurts of the pastery, which a proper English woman should scorne with her heeles. It is no marvell they weare drailes on the hinder part of their heads, having nothing as it seems. in the fore-part, but a few squirrills' braines, to help them frisk from one ill-favor'd fashion to another. These whimm-crown'd shees, these fashionfansying wits, Are empty thin brain'd shells and fidling kits, the very troublers and impovirishers of mankind. I can hardly forbear to commend to the world a saying of a lady living sometime with the queen of Bohemiah, I know not where she found it, but it is pitty it should be lost: The world is full of care, much like unto a bubble; and Women and care, and care and women, women and care and trouble. 6 The verses are even enough for such odde pegma's. I can make my selfe sick at any time, with comparing the dazzeling splender wherwith our gentlewomen were embellished in some former habits, with the gut-foundred goosdom, wherewith they are now surcingled and debauched. We have about five or six of them in our colony; if I see any of them accidentally, I cannot cleanse my phansie of them for a moneth after. I have been a solitary widdower almost twelve years, purposed lately to make a step over to my native country for a yoke-fellow; but when I consider how women there have tripe-wifted themselves with their cladments, I have no heart to the voyage, lest their nauseous shapes and the sea should work too sorely upon my stomach. I speak sadly, me thinkes it should break the hearts of Englishmen to see so many goodly Englishwomen imprisoned in French cages, peering out of their hood-holes for some men of mercy to help them with a little wit, and no body relieves them. inscriptions 7 "tripe-wigged;" i.e., made ridiculous 8 seriously It is a more common then convenient saying, that nine taylers make a man. It were well if nineteene could make a woman to her mind. If taylors were men indeed, well furnished but with meer morall principles, they would disdain to be led about like apes, by such mymick marmosets. It is a most unworthy thing, for men that have bones in them, to spend their lives in 10 making fidle-cases for futilous women's phansies; which are the very pettitoes of infirmity, the gyblits of perquisquilian toyes. I am so charitable to think that most of that mistery 1 would worke the cheerfuller while they live, if they might be well discharged of the tyring slavery of mis-tyring women. It is no labour to be continually putting up English-women into out-landish 20 caskes; who if they be not shifted anew, once in a few moneths, grow too sowre for their husbands. What this trade will answer for themselves when God shall take measure of taylors' consciences is beyond my skill to imagine. There was a time when 1 The joyning of the red rose with the white, But now our roses are turned to flore de lices, our carnations to tulips, our gilliflowers to pansies, our citydames, to an indenominable quæmalry of overturcas'd things. Hee that makes coates for the moone, had need take measure every noone; and he that makes for women, every moone, to keepe them from lunacy. worne Commons, who I beleeve had much rather passe one such bill, than pay so many taylors' bills as they are forced to doe. 3 Most deare and unparallel'd ladyes, be pleased to attempt it. As you have the precellency 2 of the women of the world for beauty and feature, so assume the honour to give, and not take law from any, in matter of attire. If ye can transact so faire a motion among your selves unanimously, I dare say they that most renite, will least repent. What greater honour can your honors desire, then to build a promontory president to all foraigne ladies, to deserve so eminently at the hands of all the English gentry present and to come, and to confute the opinion of all the wise men in the world, who never thought it possible for women to doe so good a work? If any man think I have spoken rather merrily than seriously he is much mistaken. I have written what I write with all the indignation I can, and no more then I ought. I confesse I veer'd my tongue to this kinde of language de industria though unwill30 ingly, supposing those I speak to are uncapable of grave and rationall arguments. I desire all ladies and gentlewomen to understand that all this while I intend not such as through necessary modesty to avoyd morose singularity, follow fashions slowly, a flight shot or two off, shewing by their moderation that they rather draw contentment examples. I have often heard divers ladies vent 40 with their hearts then put on by their loud feminine complaints of the wearisome varieties and chargable changes. of fashions. I marvell themselves preferre not a bill of redresse. I would Essex ladies would lead the chore, for the honour of their county and persons; or rather the thrice honourable ladies of the court, whom it best beseems; who may wel presume of a Le Roy le I point my pen only against the light-heel'd beagles that lead that chase so fast, that they run all civility out of breath; against these ape-headed pullets, which invent antique foolefangles, meerly for fashion and novelty sake. In a word, if I begin once to deveult from our sober King, a Les 50 claime against fashions, let men and Seigneurs ont assentus from our prudent Peers, and the like Assentus, from our considerate, I dare not say wife 1 trade |