felves cheap, they will grow into contempt; as the horrid vices of Tiberius the Emperor made him to be hated even of his greatest flatterers..

A good heart knows not how to reverence, and put an high efteem upon any thing it observes in man, befides God's image; and when that appears not, but the contrary, men's tongues and pens will make bold with the greatest.

But why do I spend so much time, and ink and paper, in fuch a feeming impertinent, unplausible, and unprofitable reproof? For though that which I have named be such a fault in this nation as no language can ever excufe, and no time, I fear, will reform; (because the people of this land, by a long custom and continuance, do challenge fuch a propriety in new fashions, and are fo habituated to them, that in all probability nothing which can fall either from the tongues or pens of men fhall ever be able to reform it) yet before I leave this just reproof, I shall add a few words more for thofe that invent, and urge arguments in the defence thereof; as first, some say that these new invented things, which multiply fashions, ferve to keep and maintain many poor people in work: To these I answer, as it was fpoken of Judas, when he grumbled at the expence of that ointment beftowed on our bleffed Saviour, John xii. 5. faying, "this might have been fold for three hundred pence, and given to the poor," but

P 4

6.

this

this he said (faith the text)" not that he cared for the poor, &c." So, this fome speak, not that they love the poor, but the fashion; which poor might doubtlefs find as comfortable fubfiftence, if they were not thus employed. And fecondly, whereas others pretend, and say, that their hearts may be good and humble, whatfoever their habits be; I dare conclude, that it is as impoffible for a good, humble, and modeft heart, to dwell under a vain and fantastical habit, as for evil to be good.

9.

I know that is a very ftrange cafe which can find no advocate; a poifoned pill may be gilded over, as well as that which is wholfome. Favorinus long ago wrote in the commendation of a quartan ague. That foul and filthy disease hath not wanted a pen to excufe and commend it. "Fools (faith Solomon) make a mock at fin." Prov. xiv. Others have made a very bad wife the subject of their commendation, because (they fay) fhe brings a man to repentance. What is it not that the luxuriancy and rankness of wit cannot put a varnish on? when men, like the filly fly, play with fire 'till they finge their wings, and fall into it. Let me fpeak therefore, as a Divine, to all those which plead for new fashions, and therefore think they may be, because they are generally taken up and followed; that fins are by fo much the greater, by how much they are more general and univerfal; and that fin is fo far from being extenuated, by the multitude of offend

ers

ers which live under the guilt thereof, that nothing can more aggravate it.

With men, commonnefs pleads for favour; with God, it pleads for judgment; the leprofy of the whole body being by far more loathfome than that which appears but in a part thereof. And fo much of this. I will now proceed to take notice of other particulars, which follow in this relation; as,

SECTION XII.

1

Of their Language, their Books, their
Learning, &c.

TH

HE language of this empire, I mean the vulgar, bears the name of it, and is called Indoftan; it hath much affinity with the Perfian and Arabian tongues, but the Indoftan is a smoother language, and more easy to be pronounced than the other; a language which is very fignificant, and speaks much in few words; they write it (as we) to the right hand. It is expreffed by letters, which are very much different from thofe alphabets by which the Perfian and Arabian tongues are formed. The Perfian there is fpoken as their moft quaint and court tongue. The Arabian is their learned language. Both written backward to the left hand like the Hebrew, from whence they borrow many words, which come

fo

fo near it, that he who is a good critick in the Hebrew may very well guess at the meaning of much in both those languages. The Perfian is a language, as if it confifted all of guttural letters (as fome in the Hebrew alphabet are called) filling the mouth in the pronunciation of them; for as the words in that language are full of fenfe, fo in their speaking they are full of found.

For the Latin and Greek, by which there hath been fo much knowledge conveyed into the world, they are as ignorant of them both, as if they had never been; and this may be one great reason why there is fo little learning amongst them. But for the people themselves, they are men of very strong reason, and will ince & Dis overy speak ex re nata, upon any offered occafion, Stan is tolanguagery exceeding well; and doubtless they are a people of fuch ftrong capacities, that were there literature amongst them, they might be Brigh mp the authors of many excellent works; but as quities the cafe ftands with them, all that is there attainable towards learning, is but to read and

-man Knowled has

me to Light

been pueblut write.

And here by the way let me infert this ; that mary of I never faw any idiot, or natural fool, nor any 00 Saib taken deformed perfon amongst them, in any of those parts.

For logic and rhetoric, which are fo inftrumental, the first to enlarge, and the second to polish difcourfes, they have none but what is natural. They fay, that they write fome

witty poems, and compofe many handsome annals and stories of their own and other ad+ jacent countries,

They delight much in mufic, and have fome ftringed, but many more wind inftruments; they have the use of timbrils likewise; but for want of pleafing airs, their music in my ears never seemed to be any thing but discord. Their books are not many, and thofe are manuscripts. That rare and happy invention of printing, which hath been the advance ment of fo much learning within Chriftendom, is not known without it.

They have heard of Ariftotle, whom they call Aplis, and have fome of his books, as they fay, in the Arabian tongue, in which lan guage (they further fay) they have many books written by Avicenna, that ancient phyfician, who was born in Samarchandia, one of the most fam'd places within the Tartarian empire, the country (as they believe) where Tamerlane, the Mogul's great ancestor, drew his first breath.

Some parts or fragments they have of the Old Teftament; of which more, when I fhall come to speak of their religion.

Many amongst them profefs themfelves to have great skill in judicial astrology, that great cheat, which hath been very anciently and often put upon (as the facred story witneffeth) the people inhabiting the eaft and fouth parts of the world. I call it a cheat, because there