The Holy State, Book 5 · Chapter 1
CHAP. 1. The Harlot
IS one that her self is both merchant and merchandise, which she selleth for profit, and hath pleasure given her into the bargain, and yet remains a great loser. To describe her is very difficult; it being hard to draw those to the life, who never sit still: she is so various in her humours, and mutable, 'tis almost impossible to character her in a fixed posture; yea indeed some cunning Harlots are not discernable from honest women. Solomon saith, she wipeth her mouth; and who can distinguish betwixt that which was never foul, and that which is cleanly wiped.
Her love is a blank, Maxime 1wherein she writeth the next man that tendreth his affection. Impudently the Harlot lied (Prov. 7.15.) Therefore came I forth to meet thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee: else understand her that she came forth to meet him, not qua talis, but qua primus, because he came first; for any other youngster in his place would have serv'd her turn: yet see how she makes his chance her courtesie, she affecting him as much above others, as the common road loves the next passenger best.
2As she sees, so her self is seen by her own eyes. Sometimes she stares on men with full fixed eyes; otherwhiles she squints forth glances, and contracts the beams in her burning glasses, to make them the hotter to inflame her objects; sometimes she dejects her eyes in a seeming civility, and many mistake in her a cunning for a modest look. But as those bullets which graze on the ground do most mischief to an army; so she hurts most with those glances which are shot from a down-cast eye.
3She writes characters of wantonnesse with her feet as she walks: And what Potiphars wife said with her tongue, she saith unto the passengers with her gesture and gate, Come lie with me; and nothing angrieth her so much, as when modest men affect a deafnesse and will not heare, or a dulnesse and will not understand the language of her behaviour. She counts her house a prison, and is never well till gadding abroad: sure 'tis true of women what is observed of elm, if lying within doores dry, no timber will last sound longer, but if without doores expos'd to weather, no wood sooner rots and corrupts.
4Yet some Harlots continue a kind of strange coynesse even to the very last: which coynesse differs from modesty as much as hemlock from parsely. They will deny common favours, because they are too small to be granted: They will part with all or none, refuse to be courteous, and reserve themselves to be dishonest; whereas women truly modest will willingly go to the bounds of free and harmlesse mirth, but will not be dragg'd any farther.
5She is commonly known by her whorish attire: As crisping and curling, (making her hair as winding and intricate as her heart) painting, wearing naked breasts. The face indeed ought to be bare, and the haft should lie out of the sheath; but where the back and edge of the knife are shown, 'tis to be feared they mean to cut the fingers of others. I must confesse some honest women may go thus, but no whit the honester for going thus. The ship may have Castor and Pollux for the badge, and notwithstanding have S. Paul for the lading: yet the modesty and discretion of honest Matrons were more to be commended, if they kept greater distance from the attire of Harlots.
Sometimes she ties her self in marriage to one, 6that she may the more freely stray to many: and cares not though her husband comes not within her bed, so be it he goeth not out beyond the Foure-seas. She useth her husband as an hood, whom she casts off in the fair weather of prosperity, but puts him on for a cover in adversity, if it chance she prove with child.
Yet commonly she is as barren as lustfull. 7Yea who can expect that malt should grow to bring new increase. Besides, by many wicked devices she seeks on purpose to make her self barren (a retrograde act to set Nature back) making many issues, that she may have no issue, and an hundred more damnable devices,
Which wicked projects first from hell did flow,
And thither let the same in silence go,
Best known of them who did them never know.
And yet for all her cunning, God sometimes meets with her (who varieth his wayes of dealing with wantons, that they may be at a losse in tracing him) and sometimes against her will she proves with child, which though unable to speak, yet tells at the birth a plain story to the mothers shame.
At last when her deeds grow most shamefull she grows most shamelesse. So impudent, that she her self sometimes proves both the poyson and the antidote, the temptation and the preservative; young men distasting and abhorring her boldnesse. And those wantons, who perchance would willingly have gathered the fruit fruit from the tree, will not feed on such fallings.
9Generally she dies very poore. The wealth she gets is like the houses some build in Gothland, made of *Olaus magnus de Rit. Gent. sept. lib. 1. c. 23.snow, no lasting fabrick; the rather, because she who took money of those who tasted the top of her wantonnesse, is fain to give it to such who will drink out the dregs of her lust.
10She dieth commonly of a lothsome disease. I mean that disease, unknown to Antiquity, created within some hundreds of years, which took the name from Naples. When hell invented new degrees in sinnes, it was time for heaven to invent new punishments. Yet is this new disease now grown so common and ordinary, as if they meant to put divine Justice to a second task to find out a newer. And now it is high time for our Harlot, being grown lothsome to her self, to runne out of her self by repentance.
Some conceive that when King Henry the eighth destroyed the publick Stews in this Land (which till his time stood on the banks side on Southwark next the Bear-garden, beasts and beastly women being very fit neighbours) he rather scattered then quenched the fire of lust in this kingdome, and by turning the flame out of the chimney where it had a vent, more endangered the burning of the Commonwealth. But they are deceived: for whilest the Laws of the Land tolerated open uncleannesse, God might justly have made the whole State do penance for whoredome; whereas now that sinne though committed, yet not permitted, and though (God knows) it be too generall, it is still but personall.