Emblems Ancient and Modern, Guide to dedications – To the reader
A WRIT OF PREVENTION Concerning the AVTHORS Dedication of the foure following BOOKES, to thoſe Royall, Princely, and Illuſtrious PERSONAGES, whoſe Names are mentioned in this Leafe.
I Have not often us'd, with Epigrames,
Or, with Inſcriptions unto many NAMES,
To charge my Bookes: Nor, had I done it, now,
If I, to pay the Duties which I owe,
Had other meanes; Or, any better Wayes
To honour them, whoſe Vertue merits praiſe.
In ARCHITECT, it giveth good content,
(And paſſeth for a praiſefull Ornament)
If, to adorne the FORE-FRONTS, Builders reare
The Statues of their Soveraigne-Princes, there;
And, trimme the Outſides, of the other SQVARES
With Portraitures of ſome Heroicke PEERES.
If, therefore, I (the more to beautifie
This Portion of my MVSES Gallerie)
Doe, here, preſume to place, the NAMES of thoſe
To whoſe Deſerts, my LOVE remembrance owes,
I hope 'twill none offend. For, moſt, who ſee
Their worthy mention, in this BOOKE, to bee,
Will thinke them honor'd: And, perhaps, it may
(To their high praiſe) be found, another day,
That, in theſe LEAVES their Names wil ſtand unrac'd,
When many fairer STRVCTVRFS, are defac'd.
Jn this Hope, I have placed on the FOREFRONT (or before the Firſt Booke of theſe EMBLEMS) a Ioint-Inſcription to the KING and QVEENES moſt excellent MAIESTIE.
Ʋpon the Right-Side-Front of this Building (or before the Second Booke) One Inſcription to the moſt hopefull Prince, CHARLES, Prince of Wales; And, another to his deere Brother, IAMES, Duke of Yorke, &c.
On the other Side-Front, (or before the Third Booke) One Inſcription to the gratious Princeſſe, FRANCES Dutcheſſe-Dowager of RICHMOND and LENOX; And, another to her moſt noble Nephew, IAMES Duke of Lenox, &c.
On the Fourth Front of our Square, (Or before the Fourth Booke) One Inſcription to the right Honourable PHILIP Earle of Pembrooke and Montgomery, &c. And another to the right Honourable, HENRY Earle of Holland, &c.
TO THE READER.
IF there had not beene ſome Bookes conceitedly compoſed, and ſutable to meane capacities, I am doubtfull, whether I had ever beene ſo delighted in reading, as thereby to attaine to the little Knowledge I have: For, I doe yet remember, that, things honeſtly pleaſant, brought mee by degrees, to love that which is truely profitable. And as David ſaid, His Heart ſhewed him the wickedneſſe of the Vngodly; (meaning perhaps, that hee felt in himſelfe, ſome Experiments, of the ſame naturall Corruption, by which they are overcome, who reſiſt not evill ſuggeſtions at their firſt motions:) Even-ſo, I may truly acknowledge, that mine owne Experience hath ſhowne mee ſo much of the common Ignorance and Infirmitie in mine owne perſon, that it hath taught mee, how thoſe things may be wrought upon in others, to their beſt advantage.
Therefore, though I can ſay no more to diſſwade from Vice, or to incourage men to Ver…ue, than hath already beene ſaid in many learned Authors; yet I may be an occaſion by theſe Endeavours, to bring that, the oftner into remembrance, which they have, more learnedly, expreſſed· and perhaps, by ſuch circumſtances, as they would not deſcend unto, may inſinuate further alſo with ſome Capacities, than more applauded Meanes. Viniger, Salt, or common Water, (which are very meane Ingredients) make Sawces more pleaſing to ſome taſtes, than Sugar, and Spices. In like manner, plaine and vulgar notions, ſeaſoned with a little Pleaſantneſſe, and reliſhed with a moderate Sharpneſſe, worke that, otherwhile, which the moſt admired Compoſitions could never effect in many Readers; yea, wee have had frequent proofes, that a blunt Ieſt hath moved to more conſideration, than a judicious Diſcourſe.
I take little pleaſures in Rymes, Fictions, or conceited Compoſitions, for their owne ſakes; neither could I ever take ſo much paines, as to ſpend time to put my meanings into other words than ſuch as flowed ſorth, without Studie; partly becauſe I delight more in Matter, than in Wordy Flouriſhes, But, chiefely, becauſe thoſe Verball Conceites, which by ſome, are accounted moſt Elegant, are not onelyonly (for the greater part) Emptie Sounds, and Impertinent Clinches, in themſelves; but, ſuch Inventions, as do ſometime, alſo, obſcure the Senſe, to common Re…ders; and, ſerve to little other purpoſe, but for Wittie men to ſhew Tricks one to another: For, the Ignorant underſtand them not; and the Wiſe need them not.
So much of them, as (without darkning the matter, to them who moſt need inſtruction) may be made uſe of, to ſtirre up the Affections, winne Attention, or help the Memory, I approve and make uſe of, to thoſe good purpoſes, according as my leiſure, and the meaſure of my Facultie will permit; that, Vanitie might not, to worſe ends, get them wholly into her Poſſeſſion. For, I know that the meaneſt of ſuch conceites are as pertinent to ſome, as Rattles, and Hobby-horſes to Children; or as the A.B.C. and Spelling, were at firſt to thoſe Readers, who are now paſt them. And, indeed, to deſp…ſe Meane Inventions, Pleaſant Compoſitions, and Verball Elegancies, (being qualified as is aforeſaid) or to baniſh them out of the world, becauſe there be other things of more excellencie, were as abſurd, as to neglect and root out all Herbes▪ which will not make Pottage; Or, to deſtroy all Flowers wh…ch are leſſe beautifull than the Tulip, or leſſe ſweet than the Roſe.
I (that was never ſo ſullenly wiſe) have alwaies intermingled Sports with Seriouſneſſe in my Inventions; and, taken in Verball-conceites, as they came to hand, without Affectation; But, having, ever aymed, rather to profit my Readers, than to gaine their praiſe, I never pumpe for thoſe things; and am, otherwhile, contented to ſeeme Fooliſh, (yea, and perhaps, more fool…ſh than I am) to the Overweening-Wiſe; that, I may make others Wiſer than they were: And, (as I now doe) am not aſhamed to ſet forth a Game at Lots, or (as it were) a Puppet-play in Pictures, to allure men to the more ſerious obſervation of the profitable Morals, couched in theſe Emblems. Nevertheleſſe, (if ſome have ſayd, and thought truly) my Poems have inſtructed, and rectified many People in the Courſe of Honeſt-living, (which is the beſt Wiſedome) much more than the Auſterer Volumes of ſome criticall Authors; who, are by the Common-ſort, therefore onelyonly, judged Wiſe, becauſe they compoſed Books, which few underſtand, ſave they who need them not.
In theſe Lots and Emblems, I have the ſame ayme which I had in my other Writings: and though I have not dreſſed them ſutably to curious Fancies, yet, they yield wholſome nouriſhment to ſtrengthen the conſtitution of a Good-life; and, have ſolidity enough for a Play-game, which was but accidentally compoſed; and, by this Occaſion.
Theſe Emblems, graven in Copper by Criſpinus Paſſaeus (with a Motto in Greeke, Latine, or Italian, round about every Figure; and with two Lines (or Verſes) in one of the ſame Languages, periphraſing thoſe Motto's) came to my hands, almoſt twentie yeares paſt. The Verſes were ſo meane, that, they were afterward cut off from the Plates; And, the Collector of the ſaid Emblems, (whether hee were the Verſifier or the Graver, was neither ſo well adviſed in the Choice of them, nor ſo exact in obſerving the true Proprieties belonging to every Figure, as hee might have beene.
Yet, the Workman-ſhip being judged very good, for the moſt part; and the reſt excuſable; ſome of my Friends were ſo much delighted in the Gravers art, and, in thoſe Illuſtrations which for mine owne pleaſure, I had made upon ſome few of them, that, they requeſted mee to Moralize the reſt. Which I condiſcended unto: And, they had beene brought to view many yeares agoe, but that the Copper Prints (which are now gotten) could not be procured out of Holland, upon any reaſonable Conditions.
If they were worthy of the Gravers and Printers coſt, being onelyonly dumbe Figures, little uſefull to any but to young Gravers or Painters; and as little delightfull, except, to Children, and Childiſh-gazers: they may now be much more worthy; ſeeing the life of Speach being added unto them, may make them Teachers, and Remembrancers of profitable things.
I doe not arrogate ſo much unto my Illuſtrations, as to thinke, they will be able to teach any thing to the Learned; yet if they caſt their eyes upon them, perhaps, theſe Emblems, and their Morals, may remember them, either of ſome Dutie, which they might elſe forget, or minde them to beware of ſome Danger, which they might otherwiſe be unheedfull to prevent. But, ſure I am, the Vulgar Capacities, may from them, be many waies both Inſtructed, and Remembred; yea, they that have moſt need to be Inſtructed, and Remembred, (and they who are moſt backward to liſten to Inſtructions, and Remembrances, by the common Courſe of Teaching, and Admoniſhing) ſhall be, hereby, informed of their Dangers, or Duties, by the way of an honeſt Recreation before they be aware.
For, when levitie, or a childiſh delight in trifl…ng Objects, hath allured them to looke on the Pictures; Curioſitie may urge them to peepe further, that they might ſeeke out alſo their Meanings, in our annexed Illuſtrations; In which, may lurke ſome Sentence, or Expreſſion, ſo evidently pertinent to t…eir Eſtates, Perſons, or Affections, as w…ll (at that inſtant or afterward) make way for thoſe Conſiderations, which will, at laſt, wholly change them, or much better them, in their Converſation.
To ſeeke out the Author of every particular Emblem, were a labour without profit; and, I have beene ſo far from endeavouring it, that, I have not ſo much as cared to find out their meanings in any of theſe Figures; but, applied them, rather, to ſuch purpoſes, as I could thinke of, at first ſight; which, upon a ſecond view, I found might have beene much betterd, if I could have ſpared time from other imployments. Something, alſo, I was Confined, by obliging my ſelfe to obſerve the ſame number of lines in every Illuſtration; and, otherwhile, I was thereby conſtrained to conclude, when my beſt Meditations were but new begunne: which (though it hath pleaſed Some, by the more comely Vn…formitie, in the Pages) yet, it hath much injured the libertie of my Muſe.
There be, no doubt, ſome faults committed by the Printer, both Literall and Materiall, and ſome Errors of the Gravers in the Figures, (as in the Tetragrammaton; in the Figure of Arion; and in the Proprieties due to ſome other Hieroglyphicks; but, for the moſt part, they are ſuch, as Common-Readers will never perceive; and I thinke, that they who are Judicious, will ſo plainly finde them to be no faults of mine; that, leaving them to be amended by thoſe, to whom they appertaine; and, You, to accept of theſe Play-games as you pleaſe: I bid you Farewell.