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fHE 
 
 Wi 
 
 R KS 
 
 OF THE 
 Moft illuftrious and Pious 
 
 Armand de Bourbon 
 
 Prince of Conti. 
 
 WITH 
 
 Afhort Account of his L IE E, 
 
 And a DISCOURSE of 
 Christian Perfection, 
 
 BY THE 
 
 Archbifhop of Cambray, 
 
 Never before Publiffied. 
 
 LONDON j 
 
PUBLISHER 
 
 TO THE 
 
 READER. 
 
 Dear Reader, 
 
 H E T)elufton of 
 Cbriflians in this Age 
 is very great , in 
 thinking to reconcile the Wior Id 
 and Keligion together ; two 
 things which the Author of their 
 Keligion has carefully dijlin- 
 gui(h > d. They believe they 
 may be Friends to the World 
 A 3 and 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 and to God, that they may love 
 the World and God together, 
 and that they can ferve both 
 thefe Majlers at the fame time . 
 Tut theje are two Things ir- 
 recpnfileable , and which ne- 
 cejjarily dejlroy one another , 
 as Light and Darknels, our 
 Lord telling us that we can¬ 
 not love thefe two different 
 Matters, but we mufi hate 
 the one and love the other. 
 St. James, That whofoever 
 will be a Friend of the 
 World, is the Enemy of 
 God ; and St. John, That 
 if any Man love the World, 
 the Love of the Father is 
 not in him. 
 
To the Reader. 1 ? 
 
 And whatever Chriftians im¬ 
 agine y y tis not that they do indeed 
 joyn them in their Fra&ice, hut 
 that they idolize the World, 
 while they would he thought and 
 make themfelves believe that they 
 worfhip God ; ’tis the World 
 they really ferve , and which 
 only Jills their Hearts , while 
 they are void of the Love of 
 God and ferve him not. For 
 when all their T bought x, Cares 
 and foys are about the Things 
 of the World, when they only 
 feel ^ after all the Things that 
 the Gentiles feekj and neg <■ 
 left to feek^ the Kingdom o£ 
 God, and his Righteouf- 
 ne{s in their Souls 5 are $ey 
 
 A m 
 
To the Reader; 
 
 not fain into a State of Hca* 
 thenifm worfe than that of for¬ 
 mer AgeSyhecaufe they thinhotkey 
 fee y when they are truly blind ;. 
 and if our Light be Dark- 
 nefs, how great is our 
 D.irkoels it fel£ ■ 
 
 ’Tis not to dijlurb the Men 
 of the IVorldj who loofifqr no 
 other Happ'inefs beyond this 
 Life , in their rejilej r purfuits of 
 the Honours , ‘Profits and 
 Lleajures of it , that this Col - 
 hUion is pubhjhedy hut to un¬ 
 deceive thefe who thip\ they 
 fierce God and expeB a future 
 Happensfs from him •. to help 
 them to. fee that the Spirit of 
 Chnifiy without which none 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 are his, and the Spirit of the 
 World are two contrary things , 
 and that his Hifciples mu/l not 
 he conformed to. the Faftlion 
 of this World, hut to the 
 Life of their Majler ; to con¬ 
 vince them of the NeceJJity of 
 denying their worldly Luffs, and 
 of deflroying the World in their 
 Hearts , that the Kingdom of 
 God in Rigbteoufnefs, Leace 
 and foy 9 may come into their 
 Souls here , if ever they would 
 enter iuto his Kingdom of Glo¬ 
 ry hereafter . 
 
 jfit be thought that we have 
 many Llooky already both of 
 pur own Growth and of a for- 
 - reign Soil, that g 
 
 ive us the [amp 
 Notions 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 Notions of Christianity , and 
 therefore this might now have 
 been /pared ? *Tis true, we 
 have Jo, thanks be to God for 
 it, who hath not left himjelf 
 even in the worB of 'Times 
 without Witnefs, but hath rati 
 fed up many, in thefe Iasi Days, 
 who/e Lives and JVritings are 
 both a Light to the IVorld, and 
 will one Day be its Condemna¬ 
 tion. Yet as the Number of 
 bad Dooks Bill exceeds the 
 good ; as the Devil is ever bu- 
 fy to deftroy Mens Souls by 
 employing his Servants in pub- 
 lifhing of bad Dooky, it may 
 be necejfary, as a Counterpoise 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 to them , now and then to help 
 a good Took^ into the IVor Id. 
 
 'There is this to he [aid her 
 Jldes in favour of the prefent 
 Tool^ that the Subjects are 
 fome thing fingular. The fir ft 
 of them, which refpeBs the 
 Duties and Obligations of 
 Great Men and Men in Tow¬ 
 er, has not , that I know of 
 been confiderd in this View by 
 any in our Language. God was 
 pleas’d to give the Author a 
 particular Light in this matter , 
 beyond what is Common. The 
 other main SubjeB of this Toof 
 has been treated of late Tears , 
 yet not fo as to fuperfede any 
 thing further on that Head ; and 
 
 the 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 the more Weapons we have the 
 better Jhall we be able to beat 
 down the ftrong Holds of Satan. 
 
 ‘But fuppofe the fame Sub - 
 jeBs had been as well and as 
 fully handled by others , that 
 would not render thefe Treati- 
 fes fuperfluom : For tho Truth 
 is indeed the fame from what¬ 
 ever Hand it comes, yet it has 
 not always the fame Effect up 
 on Mens Minds. The Cha¬ 
 racter g( the T erf on adds much 
 to the Weight of the Arguments 
 and Men } who for the moft 
 part , do not much regard what 
 is faid by thofe whofe Trofefjion 
 it is to preach the Gofpei\ pre¬ 
 tending it to be the Cant and 
 
 ‘Dialect 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 *Dialect of their Trade , mil 
 perhaps give fome Ear to Jr hat 
 is faid by another , whom they 
 cannot fufpect of any Inter eft in 
 what he fays . This Advan¬ 
 tage then this Boo^ has , that 
 the Author's "Birth , Station 
 and Character fet him above 
 all Sufpicion of Inter eft, Aiean- 
 nefs of Spirit , Cowardice , or Ig¬ 
 norance of the World : And 
 the Sentiments of a Berfon Jo 
 great in the World ought to 
 have fome weight with Berfons 
 of the World ; the more that 
 what he makes the Duty of o- 
 thers 0 he himfelffirft practis’d 
 he does not lay heavy Burdens 
 on others to lighten himfelf . 
 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 but he firft fet them an Exam- 
 pie to copy after . His Wri¬ 
 tings are the true Portrai¬ 
 ture of his Soul, and the 
 Rules he gives, he himfelj in¬ 
 violably obfervd. 
 
 How much more difficult ii 
 is for the Great and thofe in 
 Power, to workout their Sal¬ 
 vation than for the meaner 
 fort ; the many 'Temptations 
 and Snares their State involves 
 them in, the Great Duties 
 requird of them, which yet , 
 without an extraordinary 
 Grace of God, they cannot 
 perform, the Prince of Conti 
 jhews in his firft Treatife. 
 ’Tis by the Life and Writings 
 
 of 
 
 l 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 of this Prince that God of 
 his infinite Mercy to the Great, 
 would open their Eyes to fee the 
 Danger of their State, and 
 the Obligations that lie upon 
 them ; 1 hope therefore it may 
 be no /mail Service to thofe 
 whom God has rais’d above o- 
 thers, and to the People of 
 in general, on 
 whom the Lives and Exam¬ 
 ple of the Great have a 
 mighty Influence, either as to 
 Good or Evil, to publijh them 
 in our Language, as the only 
 End propos d in doing it, is the 
 Glory of God, and the Good 
 of Men. 
 
 If it be any 'Prejudice a - 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 gain ft this Book^ with fiome, that 
 the Author was of another 
 Communion ; I defire they 
 would confider what the Scri¬ 
 pture fays, Of a Truth, God 
 is no Refpedfer of Peifons, 
 but in every Nation, he 
 that feareth him and work- 
 eth Righteoufnefs is ac¬ 
 cepted with him. The ma> 
 nv and great Fruits worthy 
 of Repentance which this 
 Prince brought forth , are a 
 manifefi Broof of the true Fear 
 and Love of God in his 
 Heart, And his Righteous 
 Works can be no other than 
 the EffeB of the Grace of 
 God, and of his Spirit, which 
 
 is 
 
/ / 
 
 Td the Reader. 
 
 is free and unlimited to Se£t or 
 Party, and bloweth where 
 it lifteth, being ready to in¬ 
 flame the Hearts of all in whom 
 there is an earneft Defire of 
 Salvation. Matter, faid one 
 of the Difciples , we faW one 
 catting out Devils in thy 
 Name, and we forbad him, 
 becaule he followeth not 
 us. Forbid him not, fays 
 our Saviour , for there is no 
 Man which (hall do a Mi¬ 
 racle in my Name, that can 
 lightly fpeak evil of me. 
 
 Others are fujpicious , that 
 there is fome fecret Defign of 
 recommending the Romifh 
 Religion, when one gives them 
 
 a 4 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 a c Boo{ Writ by any of that 
 Communion. Our Saviour , 
 when he would give an Inflance 
 of true brotherly Love to the 
 Jews, brought that of the 
 Charitable Samaritan. T>id 
 he therefore recommend the 
 Samaritan Religion, by com¬ 
 mending the Charity of one of 
 its Brofeffors ? No, for Sal¬ 
 vation is of the Jews, but 
 the great C harity of the Sa¬ 
 maritan he recommended to the 
 Imitation of his Followers . 
 
 ‘But what can be good in a 
 Religion that is guilty of\- 
 dolatry, will fome fay , who 
 have a great Zeal againjl Ido¬ 
 latry, tho his to be fear’f 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 i 
 
 not according to Knowledge * 
 What Jaid God to Elijahs 
 who thought that he alone 
 was left of all the Children 
 of Ifrael who worjhipped the 
 true God ? I have yet 
 left me feven thoufand in 
 Ifrael) all the Knees that 
 have not bowed unto Haal$ 
 and the Mouths that have 
 not killed him, for God 
 feeth not as Man feeth. 
 Hut let him that is without 
 this Sin cajl the firjl Stone 
 here . Let him examine his own 
 Heart andfee if there he not a 
 more fubtle, fpiritual, and 
 dangerous Idolatry in it. If 
 there he no Love of Self^ 
 a % Love 
 
To the Reader, 
 
 Love o/Praife, Love o/Sin, 
 Love oj the Creatures, Love 
 e/Money or Covetoufnefs, 
 which is Idolatry, there ? 
 Thou, then, that abhorreft 
 Idols, doft thou commit 
 Sacrilege in robbing God of 
 that Love and Honour, 
 which is his true Worfhip, 
 and giving it to thy Self, thy 
 Reputation, thy Sins, or the 
 World ? Is not this both Sa- 
 criledge and Idolatry? Thou 
 Hypocrite, firftcaft out the 
 Beam out of thine own 
 Eye, and then fhalt thou 
 fee clearly to caft out the 
 Mote out of thy Brother's 
 Eye. 
 
 "But 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 Put the Reader will not 
 find any thing in this ‘Prince s 
 Life, or W orks that favours 
 of Idolatry or Superftition, 
 but an illuminated Faith, wcrff 
 ing by Love and keeping the 
 Commandments, an Obfer- 
 vance of all things that God 
 requir'd of him in his Station, 
 and a Care to preferve himfelf 
 from all Sin , and even from all 
 appearance of Evil, and in what 
 things he had offended, an En¬ 
 deavour to make Preparation 
 and Keflitution to the utmofi 
 of his Power ; a neceffary, 
 tho much neglected Part of 
 Repentance. 
 
 if any one Jhall be offended 
 a 5 at 
 
To the Reader.' 
 
 \ ■ t 
 
 at fame things that loo\ like 
 Kigour to the Pioteftants in 
 France, they will fee in his 
 Life from what Principle it 
 proceeded, and how far it went . 
 It may he confderd bejides y 
 that the Prince, who found 
 for himfelf the means of Sal- 
 tiqn in that Church , by which 
 he daily grew in Grace ; who 
 knew Jo many other Holy and 
 Virtuous ‘Terfons in that 
 Communion, which perhaps 
 he had not the opportunity of 
 doing among thofe who fepara- 
 ted from it; and thinking them 
 thereby in Peril of Salvation, 
 plight in Charity try all ways to 
 reunite them to the Church : 
 
 And 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 And the peeping them in their O 
 bedience and Fidelity to the 
 King, making them punctually 
 obferve his Aiajefiies Edi61s 
 and Orders, as he thought 
 himfelf in Confcience bound jo to 
 doy was in his Opinion the moft 
 effectual way to produce that U- 
 nion. ’His not to every one 
 of his Saints that God has 
 been pleas’d to give that parti¬ 
 cular Light, that tho there be 
 many more Helps or Hin¬ 
 drances to Salvation in fome 
 than in others , yet his Grace 
 is not confin’d to any Se<5b, or 
 Par$y, or particular Church, 
 but that He who willeth not 
 that any fhould perifh, is 
 a 4 . ready 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 ready to afiift every one that 
 truly calleth upon him,that 
 they may be fayed. 
 
 But if wefhinfthis Tlfage of 
 the F rench Prote Rantsfevere, 
 what Jhall we thin f of the 1J fage 
 our Sifter Church of Scot¬ 
 land has m$t with ? ‘The 
 Prince of Conti was fevere to 
 thofe whom he thought in the 
 Wrong , and whofe Trinciples he 
 condemnd, that is Joe kept them 
 in Obedience to the King, 
 and would fuffer them to build 
 no more Churches than the 
 Edi61s allow d them ; but there 
 none are allow'd to thofe whofe 
 Principles are the fame with 
 mrs 9 and whom we muB own 
 
 in 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 in the right, as to their Reli¬ 
 gion, unlefs we will confefs our 
 Jtelves in the wrong; and whe¬ 
 ther the Continuance and 
 Confirmation of the Oppref- 
 ilon that Church has thefe 
 many years lain underjyecaufe (he 
 is Epifcopal, andfo far Apo- 
 ftolical, and a found part of 
 the One Catholick Church, 
 he not indeed an eftablilbing 
 Iniquity by Law, deferves 
 to he condderd by thofe who 
 had a Hand in it. The Rules 
 of the Gofpel are a more Jure 
 and firm Foundation of Go¬ 
 vernment than all the Poli¬ 
 ticks of Men, for the Wif- 
 dom of the World is Folly 
 
 V? • V V . . I 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 with God the Supream Go- 
 vernour thereof.] who taketh 
 the Wife in their own Craf- 
 tinels, and fo orders it that 
 what they dejign d for their 
 \Trefervation . often proves the 
 Occafon of their T>efruBion. 
 King Charles I. his confenting 
 to the Abolition of Epifco- 
 pacy in Scotland, as it was 
 one Cafe of his own and the 
 Kingdom s Adferies 0 fo it be¬ 
 came the SubjcB of his Grief 
 and Penitential Gonfeffions, 
 in which he ackyiowledg d 0 that 
 He therein follow'd tfaePer- 
 fuafions of Worldly Wif- 
 dom, forfaking the Dilates 
 of a right informed Confci- 
 ence. But 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 But it is high time to give 
 the Reader Jome account of 
 this Book and of the Treati¬ 
 es contain d in it. ‘The De- 
 fign at firH was to publifio in 
 one Volume fuch of the 
 Prince of Conti** Bieces as 
 could be got together , and here 
 are all that upon diligent fearcb 
 could be found. But in a De¬ 
 fence of the Brinces Treatife 
 of Plays writ by the B erf on 
 who had the Care of the French 
 Edition, there is in/erted a 
 Treatife againft Plays and 
 Romances, formerly printed, 
 but then become very fcarce, 
 which being excellently well 
 done 3 was thought fit to be ad- 
 
 d*A 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 ded in this ColleBion to the 
 Trime's Treatife on that Sub¬ 
 ject. And to give a View of all 
 the Diverfions of the World 
 at once , out of the fame Book 
 is added the Opinion of St. 
 Francis de Sales concerning 
 Balls, Plays, Gaming, &c. 
 with that Author s judicious 
 Remarks upon it. The/e fe¬ 
 
 ver al Treatifes fhewing the 
 Neceffity of their renouncing 
 all thefe dangerous and un¬ 
 lawful Diverfionsj who would 
 in earnejl follow the Religion 
 of Jefus Chrift. If here is 
 added , lafl of all , to prevent 
 thofe Prejudices Men might 
 conceive againjl this Religion, 
 
To the Reader* 
 
 as if it depriv’d them of all 
 Pleafures, and to let them 
 fee at once what it requires of 
 them. The Difcourfe on 
 Chriitian Perfection, by 
 which it appears that the Chri- 
 ftian Religion only denies its 
 ProfdTors the vain 3 falfe and 
 pernicious Tleafures of the IV<.or Id 
 that it may give them true , real 
 and folid foys. The Author of 
 this Difcourfe is faid to be the 
 Archbifhop of Cambray > 
 and a Friend who had it in 
 Manufcript having likewife 
 tranflated it for the Trefs , was 
 willing to let it accompany this 
 Collection. It may perhaps 
 be thought that the Decrees 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 of the Councils and Senti¬ 
 ments of the Fathers con¬ 
 cerning Plays, which the 
 Prince of Conti colle&ed and 
 join’d to his 1 Treatife on that 
 Subject might have been omitted 
 here, fince they have been already 
 given us by a late Celebrated 
 Author ; but as he has drejs’d 
 up their Thoughts in a Stile 
 fomething peculiar, which in¬ 
 deed is not without its Beauty j 
 and may be very agreeable to 
 fome, yet others may be more 
 ajfetted by them in their own 
 plain fimple Drels, as they 
 are here given . 
 
 As for the Tranflation, ’tis 
 hop’d it will be found exact', the 
 
 Publisher 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 Publifher thinking fit to ac¬ 
 quaint the Readier that the 
 Furitlion he is engaged in not 
 allowing him Time fufficient for 
 fuch a IV 5 rf> he was willing to 
 devolve it upon another , who 
 he thinks has a better Talent 
 that way. ISlor was this his 
 onely Motive of employing that 
 Eerfon in it, but as the Prince 
 of Conti’s Treatife againft 
 Plays was a Satisfaction 
 which his former Faults in fome 
 fort required , and a kind of Re¬ 
 paration he was willing to make 
 to the Pub lick, for the great 
 Evil he had done and might 
 have caus’d by his Example; 
 fo that Eerfon having formerly 
 
 given 
 
To the Reader* 
 
 given fever al Plays to the Stage , 
 which tho perhaps as innocent 
 in themfelves as any that have 
 appeared there 0 yet as they help 
 to engage Perfons in a criminal 
 Diverlion, to the great hazard 
 of their Salvation , and contri¬ 
 buted to the Support of a Place 
 which is a main Injlrument of 
 the Devil for the infnaring of 
 Souls ; the Publisher was glad 
 of an Occafon of putting into 
 that Perfons hands the means 
 of making fome Reparation to 
 the Publick by the Tranllati- 
 on of thefe Treatifes againft 
 the Stage, for the Evil they 
 may have done in giving fome 
 Jjjijlancc to it. 
 
 It 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 It remains now to fay fome - 
 thingof the fhort Account of 
 the Prince’s Life prefix d to 
 his Works. The Publisher 
 was in hopes to hdve found the 
 Life ofa Herf on fo eminent both 
 for his Piety and his Rank, as 
 the Prince of Conti, writ by 
 fome able ^Perfon, and it were 
 to be wijhed that the Bifhop 
 of Alet, or L’ Abbe Ciron 
 his Spiritual Director had done 
 it, who were both no doubt well 
 acquainted with his Interiour 
 State as well as his Exteriour 
 Life and A&ions. 
 
 Hut all that could be met 
 with of this kind is an Abftradt 
 of his Life prefix 3 d to the De¬ 
 fence of his Treatife of 
 b Plays. 
 
To the Reader.' 
 
 Plays. It might have been 
 expeBed that Monf. Voifin, 
 the Author of it 0 who belong d 
 to the Prince more than twenty 
 years, and accompany d him in 
 all his Progrefies, and his 
 greater Employments,' would 
 have been full and particular 
 in his Relation of him. 
 
 Rut he tells us, He look’d 
 upon this as an Attempt 
 fuperiour to his Abilities, 
 and therefore contents himfelf 
 with giving a bare Abftradl; 
 from which and fome few other 
 Memoirs this Account of the 
 Prince’s Life is drawn , which 
 the Reader is here pre/ented 
 with. It does not indeed con- 
 
To the Reader, 
 
 tain many things ofthis G/eat 
 . Man, yet enough to give us 
 fome Idea of him 5 for as a< 
 Tree is known by his Fruit, 
 jo the few things there related 
 of him , ferve to (hew us what 
 his Interiour was, and difco- 
 ver the Principle and Root 
 from whence they /prang, and 
 there are fome Con/derations on 
 which we hope it may be of 
 Ufe to the Reader. 
 
 1 Therefore many, w>ho are 
 greatly prejudiced agdinft fuch 
 Books and Lives as are cal¬ 
 led Spiritual or Myltick, be- 
 caufe they thinly they tend to 
 carry Teople wholly to De¬ 
 votion and an Interiour way, 
 b z and 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 and thereby ma\e them unfit to 
 aB in the W\orld , and to dip 
 charge the Duties of their Sta¬ 
 tion. It cannot be denied but 
 that the falfe Devotion of 
 fome may be liable to this 'Blame, 
 but it is by no means the EffeB 
 of a true Devotion. Eho 
 the Convention of the Soul 
 with God be the great End 
 as well as the chief Delight 
 of a Chriftian Life, yet by 
 carrying Aden inward, it does 
 not unfit them for an outward 
 Life, but it cleanfes firjl the 
 Heart that the outward Acti¬ 
 ons may be clean alfo : And 
 they who have neglected this 
 Method, have reajon to fear 
 
 that 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 that how beautiful or great 
 foever their Actions may ap¬ 
 pear in the fight of Men, they 
 are in the fight of God hut 
 impure Streams of a pollu¬ 
 ted Fountain. 3< Tis in De¬ 
 votion that we receive Light, 
 and Strength, and Power to 
 acquit our /elves well of the 
 Duties of our Station and 
 Calling, ’ tis hy that we ac¬ 
 quire a Dexterity and Quick- 
 nefs in the Management and 
 ^Dfpatch of Affairs ; 3 tis that 
 which gives us an inward Peace 
 and Calmnefs in doing them , 
 which brings down a Bleffing 
 upon our Labours. 
 
 b 5 I'he 
 
 \' 
 
 ] 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 The Prince of Conti [pent 
 much Time in Meditation, 
 Prayer, and Reading, yet 
 no Man more inviolably oh- 
 ferv’d the Duties of his Rank 
 and Station, or more exadtly 
 perform’d all that thefe required 
 of him. He looked upon this 
 as an indifpenfable Obligation, 
 and tells us. That it is very 
 pofFible that one who has 
 been a moft devout private 
 Man may yet be damn'd 
 for not having perfor¬ 
 med the Duties of his Sta¬ 
 tion. 
 
 Some Terfons are mighty 
 Zealous for the Woifhip 
 of the Temple, as if all 
 
 Religion 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 Religion con filled in Exteri- 
 our Duties; lihyt the Jews of 
 old always crying } the Tem¬ 
 ple of the Lord, the Tem¬ 
 ple of the Lord, tho, likg 
 them, they neglect to prepare 
 for the Lord his true Tem¬ 
 ple their Hearts, in which he 
 delights to dwell . 'The Prince 
 of Conti was a mojl diligent 
 and exact Obferver of all the 
 Exteriour Duties of Religi¬ 
 on, but he made them ferve 
 to promote the Interiour Wor- 
 fhip of the Heart 5 and when 
 they do not advance this , fo 
 that we our felves become the 
 Temple of the Living God 
 and that the Spirit of God 
 b 4.. dwell 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 dwell in us, they are no ac¬ 
 ceptable Service unto him. 
 
 Others again , who are fen- 
 fible of the unprofitablenefs 
 of thefe. Exercifes when re fled 
 in , and not made ferviceable to 
 the Interiour Worthip of the 
 Heart, are apt to neglect the 
 Exteriour Duties o/"Religi¬ 
 on, becaufe Religion does not 
 confijl in them. his is but 
 lburning one Kocf to fplit on 
 another. The Prince of 
 Conti, who truly worfhip’d 
 God in the Heart, did not 
 yet neglect thefe Exteriour Du¬ 
 ties, but it was rather by means 
 of them that he attain d the o- 
 ther 0 3< Tis true we have the 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 Injlances oj many Artchorites 
 and Hermites in the firjl Jges 
 of the Church, and lately of 
 Gregory Lopez a Spanifh 
 Hermite in the Weft Indies, 
 who attain d to great Sandlity 
 without theje Exercifes which 
 they had not Opportunity of ob- 
 ferving* Eut there is a great 
 ‘Difference between thofe who 
 live in Solitude, who conti¬ 
 nually attend to God without 
 any Diverfion from without, 
 and thofe who live in the 
 World, who are furrounded 
 with innumerable Temptati¬ 
 ons, Jubject to a multitude of 
 Diftra<ftions, and to a DifFi- 
 pation of Mind by the Com¬ 
 merce 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 merce of the JVorld : Such have 
 need of all the Helps pojjible 
 to flrengthen them in the in¬ 
 ward Man, and to recollect 
 themjehes, that they may at¬ 
 tend to God without Dijlra- 
 ction. And while they live in 
 the JViorld 0 if they do not mal^e 
 ufe of all thofe Means God 
 has left in his Church (when 
 they can have ’em) efpecially 
 the keeping truly Holy that 
 Day which God has fancti- 
 Gen. 2 ffd f r0 m the beginning of 
 the World, ’tis to he fear’d 
 they may mifs the End they 
 aim at , hy neglecting the means, 
 or become liable to Delufi- 
 ons. The Wiles of Satan 
 
 are 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 are very fubtle , and bis Snares 
 baited with fpecious Pretences. 
 
 IVe may apply to the Interiour 
 Worfhip of the Heart and 
 the Exteriour Duties of Reli¬ 
 gion, what an ingenious Au¬ 
 thor fays of fraall and great 
 Virtues.* Small Virtues ar c*seeRe. 
 infignificant without th 
 Great; great Virtues are pre M- 
 impoflible without th e g amjt 
 lmall. What ought then toJjjSS 
 be the Condudf of a Chri-^*" 
 ftian withrefpedftt) the one Practice 
 and the other? That which Chap. 
 our Saviour himfelf pre^f^,-* 
 fcribes. To do the Great ff 
 
 1 bmps 
 
 and not to nesiedf the Lit- in the 
 
 tie. Thefe ought ye to SS/ 
 
 have Rdi & ioa - 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 have done and not to leave 
 the others undone. 
 
 I fnow not if there be any 
 thing in this Life, that may 
 ferve to convince Unbelievers 
 of the Truth of our Religion. 
 When the A pottles firtt 
 preach’d the Golpel to the 
 World, God wrought with 
 them , bearing them Wit- 
 nefs, both with Signs and 
 Wonders and with divers 
 Miracles, juch as catting 
 our of Devils, healing all 
 manner of Difeafes, fpeak- 
 ing with new Tongues, and 
 the like, by which Men were 
 
 convinced that the Power of 
 
 ! v ' 
 
 God was with them, and the 
 
 Truth 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 Truth of God preached by 
 them , which he thus attefied. 
 *But when all thefe are accom- 
 plifi) d in the Spiritual and more 
 perfed Senfe, fhould they 
 not be as convincing Arguments , 
 to Men of Keafon , of the 
 Power of God thro Faith in 
 Chrift ? When Unclean Spi- 
 _ rits are cafl out , and Spiritual 
 Wickednefs fubdued, when 
 the Soul is healed of all its 
 Difeafes, when it is cleanfed 
 and purified from the Lepro- 
 fy of Sin which defiled the 
 whole Man ; when all the 
 old filthy, vain or worldly 
 Converfation is laid afide^ 
 and the Mouth filled with the 
 
 Praifes- 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 Fraifes of God and with 
 things rnofi Divine, which is 
 to fpea{ with New Tongues 
 from a New Heart, is not the 
 Finger of God vifible there ? 
 Let thofe who disbelieve , re- 
 fleB on themfelves and fee if 
 they can account for this mighty 
 Cfiaoge otherwife than hy the 
 mighty Power of God ? 
 the great Infidelity of Men 
 in thefe lajl Limes, docs no 
 doubt proceed in great meafure 
 from the want of true Faith 
 in thofe who pretend to believe * 
 A Form of Godlinefs with¬ 
 out the Power of it, will never 
 convince Unbelievers that 
 there is any thing Divine in 
 
 that 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 that Religion, the Lives of 
 whofe ProfefTors differ little 
 or nothing from their own. 'But 
 if this Power did accompany 
 and enliven the Form, how 
 Beautiful would it he, and what 
 a powerful Argument to con¬ 
 vince thofe who believe not , 
 who would he fore d to confefs 
 that God is in us of a Truth. 
 Were there more real Chrifti- 
 ans there would he fewer Infi¬ 
 dels. If this Collection 
 fhall contribute any thing to the 
 j making Chriftians become in 
 reality what they are in Pro- 
 feflion, or ferve to convince 
 thofe who believe not that there 
 is fomething more in the Chri- 
 
 ftian 
 
To the Reader. 
 
 ftian Religion than they ima¬ 
 gin'd, the Tranllator and 
 Fublilher have their Wijh. 
 Judy Reader, if ,thou Jhalt reap 
 any Benefit by it, give the 
 Glory to God, and remem¬ 
 ber them in thy Idrayers . 
 
 | V 3m ' • 
 
 4 
 
 THE 
 
A 
 
 Short Account 
 
 OF THE 
 
 LIFE 
 
 O F T H E 
 
 Prince of Conti. 
 
 (ftJtfJND de 
 
 Prince of CONTI, was 
 Second Son to Henry IF, 
 Prince of CONTE , 
 firft Prince of the Blood Royal of 
 France. He was born in the Year 
 t dxp, and promifed great Things 
 c from 
 
si The Life of the 
 
 from his Infancy. Nature in him 
 did not oppofe it felf to Grace, fo 
 that what the Wife Man laid of his 
 own Infancy might be applied to 
 Wifd. 8. him, 1 was a witty Child and had a 
 1 9 - good Spirit. His Natural Inclinations 
 
 tended to Virtue, and befides the 
 Gifts of Grace, he had received from 
 Nature a Delicacy and Strength 
 of Wit very extraordinary ; he ex- 
 prefs’d his Thoughts in a manner fo 
 agreeable, fo clear and fo perfua- 
 five that the mod ingenious Per- 
 fons admired him. The Sweetnefs 
 of his Temper and the Fervour of 
 his Piety were not lefs engaging than 
 the Force of his Eloquence. And 
 it was Matter of juft Wonder to 
 find a Prince of the Blood at Six¬ 
 teen underftand Theology as perfectly 
 as thofe whofe Profeffion it is to 
 teach it. ’Twas perhaps from thefe 
 Advantages of Nature and Grace 
 that his Father defign’d him for 
 
 the 
 
(Prince of Conti. 
 
 the Church, and gave him an E- 
 ducation fuitable, keeping him clofe 
 to his Studies, and procuring for 
 him the Abbies of 5. Vents, Clurit , 
 Lerins and de Mokme. 
 
 But thefe great Hopes, which 
 were conceiv’d of him from his 
 early Piety, Parts and Education* 
 feem’d afterwards to vanifh. For 
 having the Misfortune to lofe his 
 Father and Mother in his Youth, 
 when he moft flood in need of them 
 for the fupport of his Virtue, and 
 in a Time, when the Kingdom was 
 involved in Troubles and Confufi- 
 onsj in fo general a Corruption and 
 Diforder, this young Prince was not 
 able to refill the Torrent of Vice, 
 nor the Violence of thofe Tem¬ 
 ptations which furrounded him, 
 but fell into the way of the World* 
 and gave himfelf up to the Irregu¬ 
 lar Defires of his Heart. He left 
 his Studies and betook himfelf to 
 c 2 the 
 
The Life of the 
 
 * 
 
 the Sword, and was engaged in the 
 Civil War which happen’d in the 
 Minority of this prefent King of 
 Trance, he joyning the other Prin¬ 
 ces of the Blood on the Side of 
 the Malecontents againft the King. 
 
 Amongft other irregular Affe- 
 i5tions, this young Prince conceiv’d 
 fo great a Paffion and Fondnefs 
 for Plays, that he entertain’d a long 
 time in his Service a Company of 
 Players, that he might with more 
 Eafe and Conveniency enjoy the 
 Pleafure of that Diverfion. He was 
 not contented with the Reprefenta- 
 tions of the Theatre alone, but 
 would often difcourle with the chief 
 of the Company (who was the 
 moll able Comedian of France) on 
 all that is moft Excellent and 
 Agreeable in their Are 5 and 
 reading often with him the moft 
 delicate and beautiful Paflages of 
 both Antient and Modern Plays, 
 
 took 
 
Prince of Gonti. y 
 
 took Delight to have him repeat 
 them afterwards with their proper 
 Adtion, fo that there were few Pei- 
 fons better able to j udge of a Dra- 
 matick Poem than the Prince of 
 Conti, 
 
 Thus fas * St. Ambrofe fays o HhApoh 
 David) He finned as Princes are accu- 
 flamed to do, but he repented which 
 <Princes are not ufed to do. So that 
 his Fall may be faid to have been 
 the occafion of his greater Praife, 
 fince it ferv’d to humble him more 
 profoundly in the Sight of God, and 
 to make him cleave with the greater 
 Earneftnefs and Diligence to Him. 
 
 It ferves likewife to teach the Peo¬ 
 ple, that they fhould not fludy to 
 imitate Princes in their Failings, 
 but on the contrary, that the Fall 
 of Princes fhould augment their 
 Fear and their Vigilance. ’Tis for 
 this reafon that God did not think 
 fit to conceal David's Sin, but 
 c i would 
 
The L 'tfe of the 
 
 would have it publifh’d in the 
 Church becaufe of his Repentance, 
 that thofe who have not yet fallen 
 may liften to it for fear of falling 5 
 and that thofe who have already 
 fallen, may be drawn by it to re¬ 
 pent and recover hemfelves. 
 
 But let us fee what Means the 
 Father of Mercies, made ufe of to 
 recover the Prince from his Fall. 
 God often abandons Men for a 
 time to the irregular Defires of 
 their Hearts, and fuffers them to 
 enter into a State to which they are 
 not called, that he may afterwards 
 make the Power of his Grace, and 
 the Greatnefs of his Mercy appear 
 in reclaiming them, to place them 
 in the way of their Vocation, and 
 to guide them according to his own 
 Heart, 
 
 ’T:s thus he dealt with this Prince. 
 In his early Years he was defign’d 
 by his Father for a fingle Life, and 
 
 engag’d 
 
Prince of Conti. vii 
 
 engag’d in the Ecclefiafiick State $ 
 and tho’ he was fenfible enough that 
 he was not called to it, he remain¬ 
 ed in it to the 24th Year of his 
 Age, when he enter’d into the State 
 of Marriage, to which God call’d 
 him $ chufing for him a wife and 
 vertuous * Companion to be a f * A Niece 
 Help to him in his Conduct. For^^*" 
 God himfelf declares to us by the zarine’s 
 Mouth of the Wife Man, that ? tis ch ‘ e f 
 from his Hand a vertuous and pru- 0 f 'stJe. 
 dent Wife is received. Houfe and tGenz. 
 (patches are the Inheritance of Fathers , l8 ' 
 but a prudent Wife is from the Lord. 
 
 And fo this Prince acknowledging 
 the Favour God had fhewn him, 
 faid often in his Heart with the 
 Royal Prophet, Lord thou haft holden Pfel.73- 
 me by the Hand , and haft guided me 
 by thy Counfel. Vulg. E- 
 
 After the Troubles of the King-^ 
 dom were compos’d, the Prince, 
 having been received into Favour, 
 c 4 was 
 
viii The Life of the 
 
 was made Governour of theProvince 
 of Languedoc^nd tome time after his 
 Marriage, was fent into Catalonia to 
 command the King’s Army in Qua¬ 
 lity of Vice-roy, where he gave 
 Proofs of the Greatnefs of his Cour¬ 
 age,and the Prudence of his Condudf 
 in the taking of feveral Towns and 
 ‘the Conqueft of feveral Provinces. 
 
 At his Return from his laftCam- 
 paign, being at ( Pe^enas, where he 
 conven’d the Eilates of Languedoc , 
 he had lome Conferences with the 
 See ,-Bifhop of * Akt j to which God 
 fhortCba -gave fo effectual a Bleffing, that the 
 lZ e grei ?imct took a fi rm Refolution from 
 Man i»that time of applying himfelf entire- 
 %-Bar.jy co t ] ie s erv i ce 0 f God. And 
 face 1 7 having long confulted with him- 
 the ufe[c\f during feveral Retirements, in 
 JkdeT^ w ' n ’ c ^ ke repris’d in the Bitternefs 
 of his Soul, all his former Life j 
 and having carefully examin’d , 
 whether the, Refolution he had ta¬ 
 ken 
 
Twice of Conti. 
 
 ken was flrong and firm enough to 
 produce an entire Change; he made 
 a general Confeifion of his Sins, 
 with fuch exceeding Sorrow, and 
 profound Humility, that the Fruits 
 which followed his Repentance, 
 were vifible Marks of a true Con- 
 verfion. 
 
 ’Tis from this Time the Legin¬ 
 ning of our Prince’s Life ought pro¬ 
 perly to be dated, fince he then be¬ 
 gan to live to God. And becaufe 
 there is great Danger of mifcarrying 
 in the way to Heaven, a way which 
 Sinners are altogether unacquainted 
 with, and great need at firft of the 
 Spiritual Advice and Conduct of a 
 faithful and experienc’d Guide, the 
 Prince fubmitted himfelf fully to 
 the Dire&ion of that Holy Prelate, 
 and to the Abbot Ciroii, whom the 
 Bilhop gave him for a Director in 
 his Abfence. And the Fear of the 
 Judgments of God, which is the 
 
 beginning 
 
X 
 
 The Life of 
 
 beginning of Wifdom, having ex¬ 
 cited in his Heart an ardent Defire 
 and a good Will to live according 
 to the Rules of the Gofpel, he found 
 no Difficulty to fubmit to the Con¬ 
 duit of thofe Perfons whom Pro¬ 
 vidence had chofen for him, but on 
 the contrary exprefs’d great Eager- 
 nels to obey their Directions. 
 
 He punctually perform’d all that 
 was prefcrib’d him for the Conduit 
 of his Life, and for the Regulation 
 of his Houfe. He moderated his 
 Expences and retrench’d all kind of 
 Superfluity. Balls, Plays and Ga¬ 
 ming were prohibited to all his 
 Domefticks. He took care to have 
 them inftruited in the Chriftian 
 Doitrine and Piety 5 but nothing 
 made fo much Impreffion on their 
 Minds, as the Example of their 
 Mafter, who required nothing of 
 them,which himfelf did not firfl: put 
 in Practice. They faw him always 
 
(Trince of Conti. xi 
 
 employ’d in Meditation, in Prayer, 
 in reading the Scriptures or the 
 Lives of Saints, and in pious and 
 charitable Works. 
 
 Prayer being the Means where¬ 
 by the Spiritual Life receives its 
 Food and Nourishment, it may 
 not be improper to take Notice of 
 the manner of his Prayer and Me¬ 
 ditation, which was this. He pre¬ 
 par’d himfelf for it by a great At¬ 
 tention to the Prefence of God, and 
 fought in it more the Aflfeition of the 
 Heart than the Aits of the Elnder- 
 ftanding. He recited the Office of 
 the Church, and retaining in his 
 Memory the moft moving Paffa- 
 ges of Scripture, He would often 
 in the Day meditate on them ; and 
 before Meals he took fome time for 
 Prayer and for the Examination of 
 his Confcience. When he would 
 take any Refolution, he firft care¬ 
 fully examin’d the Reafons on both 
 
xii The Life of the 
 
 fides, and never determin’d him- 
 felf, but according to the Lights 
 which he receiv’d in the Prayers he 
 put up to God for that end. 
 
 The good Examples of others 
 being a great Help to our Ad¬ 
 vancement in the Spiritual Life, the 
 Prince propofed to himfelf that of 
 St. Lewis IX. of whom he was de¬ 
 fended, whofe SanCtity he endea¬ 
 vour’d to imitate. There was no 
 f One of* Perfon recommendable for their 
 wfofe Vertue, whofe Friendfhip he did 
 Conwr- not feek, and by frequently con- 
 fation V gffj n g with them , he received 
 Tjl^was great Light for his Advancement 
 M-r. in Perfection, fo that he might fay 
 ok*”' R-oyal Prophet, Lord, 1 
 
 Gentle - am a Companion of all them that fear 
 
 Brkaif ^ ^ >rece P ts ‘ 1 1 9* 
 
 who of a 6 5. Some People delight much in 
 
 piofi fro- vifiting vertuous Perfons, but there 
 
 'and\m- are fo few who make thofe Vifit§ 
 
 fiom Ter. ufeful to the Amendment of their 
 
 Lives, 
 
Trince of Conti. xiii 
 
 Lives, that an ancient f Author/»» be- 
 could not forbear to complain of it. 
 
 But the Acquaintance of Perfons of/»/ Ex¬ 
 piety ought not to be fought for am f le . °f 
 the gratifying of our Curioiity or ca ti„„ 
 our Vanity, but to profit by their «nJSan- 
 Converfation in order to the Con-^£ ufi _ 
 dudt of our Life, as the Prince im- nus in 
 prov’d it for that End. 
 
 Thus the Prince of Conti being jEgy'p. 
 advanc’d in Virtue by Inftfudions (ii - 
 and by Examples, enter’d into a 
 maturer Age of the Spiritual Life, 
 of which one refts no more in the 
 "Bofom, and, as it were, in the 
 Arms of Humane Authority (as St. 
 
 * Juftitt fays) but advances by the * d c 
 Steps of purified Reafon towards 
 the Sovereign and Immutable Law. 2 
 Twas now the Prince began him- 
 felf to draw from the Holy Scri¬ 
 ptures, and from the Councils and 
 Fathers, Maxims apd Rules to ac¬ 
 quit himfelf pioufly of his Obliga¬ 
 tions 
 
XIV 
 
 The Life, of the 
 
 tions to God, to the Church, to his 
 King, to his Neighbour and to 
 himfelf. 
 
 In what refpe< 5 fcs his Duty to¬ 
 wards God, he look’d upon the 
 Love of God as the great Obliga¬ 
 tion of a Man and of a Chriftian j 
 and therefore endeavour’d to nou- 
 rifh that Heavenly Flame which the 
 Holy Spirit kindles in the Hearts of 
 true Believers, by theExercife of 
 frequent Adts of Love towards God. 
 The Firft and the Great Command¬ 
 ment, fays our Saviour, is to loye 
 God with all the Heart , and all the 
 Soul, and all the Strength, and all the 
 Hind. And the End of the Com¬ 
 mandment is Loye, fays St. <Paul, 
 i Tim. i. 5. 
 
 In what regards the Church, he 
 confider’d, that Princes being more 
 expos’d than others to Temptation 
 and to Sin, have likewife more 
 need than others to implore the Af- 
 
 fiftance 
 
prince of Conti. XV 
 
 fiftance and the Mercy of God * 
 and that therefore they ought to 
 love and honour his Church, to 
 which he has given the Power of ab- 
 folving them from their Sins. 
 
 He affifted at the Divine Offices 
 of the Church with great Devotion, 
 and took care that all who belong’d 
 to him fliould behave themfelves 
 with a refpedtful Gravity and At¬ 
 tention there. He exprefs’d a juft 
 Difpleafure againft that Irreverence 
 and Indevotion, which is fo com¬ 
 mon in Churches, and which St. 
 Chryfojlome complained of even in his 
 time, as a thing fo criminal and in¬ 
 jurious to God, that it could not 
 be too feverely punilhed. It tvould lnHomi ^ 
 he no wonder, fays he, if the Thunder 
 Jhould fall on fuch Terfons, and 
 even on us too, who fuffer thefe things 
 without reproving them. 
 
 He wilhed alfo that every one 
 could joyn in the Publick 
 
 Worfhip 
 
 of 
 
Jcvi The Life of the 
 
 of God with their Underftanding. 
 For tho’, with that Church in which 
 he was brought up, he believ’d that 
 thole who do not underftand what 
 is faid in the Divine Offices, did 
 however an Adt of Piety before 
 God, whilft they joyn their Inten¬ 
 tion with that of the Church 3 yet 
 he was fenfible that it was moll 
 Ufeful and moll Advantagious to 
 underftand what is faid in them, 
 according to that of Sr. Auftin (fin 
 whom he was much converfant) 
 
 in Ex 0 f We 0U ^ t t0 un ^ er f dn ^ tohat we fay , 
 2. inpj. that we may jing as (Rational Creatures , 
 1 9 - and not like thofe Birds who often learn 
 of Men to pronounce and to jing what they 
 do not underftand, for it belongs to Man 
 only to jing with the Under/landing. 
 
 ’Twas for this Reafon the Prince 
 made Offices of the Church be tran- 
 flated into French , that the People 
 might underftand what is faid in 
 them, and profit by the Inftrudti- 
 
 ons 
 
(Prince of Conti. xvii 
 
 ons they contain *: And for thefame*-^^*? 
 Reafon, he would have all who ^-^fchli- 
 long’d to him be prefent on Sun- fop of 
 days at the Parjfh-Church, to h'earP am ".. 
 the Explication which is made to his Eiu . 
 the People of what is done there, of 
 and receive from their Pallor the*^**^ 
 Spiritual Nourifhment of their vifes the, 
 
 Souls. tarn'll 
 
 This great Servant of God had tin, that 
 fo fenfible a Difpleafure to fee the^ e / , 
 Canons of the Church violated, ^ffond 
 that during the whole Courfe of the offi- 
 his Life he performed A&s of Peni- 
 
 c i iiir i-ri Church* 
 
 tence, lor having held leveral Be¬ 
 nefices contrary to what they ex¬ 
 prefly forbid. He has been often 
 heard to deplore the State of thofe 
 who have a Plurality of Benefices, 
 tho Sine Cures , when one of them is 
 fufficient to maintain them within 
 the Bounds of Ecclefiallical Tem¬ 
 perance. 
 
 And as to the Difperifations 
 d which 
 
xviii The Life of the 
 
 which are obtain’d for holding them, 
 he exhorted thofe who make ufe of 
 filch, to confute their Confcience, 
 whether they receiv’d them gratis, 
 upon a juft and prefling Caufe, 
 and for the greater Good of the 
 Church 5 otherwise their Difpenfa- 
 tions could only pafs for falfe and 
 ftirreptitious. Let every one know, 
 24'iA'ys the Council of Trent, that all 
 De Re- ought to obJerVe the Sacred Canons ex- 
 "Ss^iS. deify and without any DiftinElion, as 
 far as ispojjible, that if there is an Ob¬ 
 ligation fontetimes to grant Difpenfations 
 to fonie Ter fans, for a juft and urgent 
 Beajon, or for a greater Good 3 they fhall 
 not be granted but with a Knowledge of 
 the Caufe, with Very great Deliberation 
 and Gratis, other wife thofe Difpenfations 
 fhall be accounted ftirreptitious. He 
 reprefented to them befides thefe 
 %C„»- Wor ds of* St. (Bernard, When Ne- 
 fiJeratio- ceffity urges a Difpenfation is excufa- 
 ” e cf’ ble j when Advantage requires it, it is 
 jo. Comnmatdable j 
 
J 
 
 The , Life of the 
 
 Commendable 5 I mean, the Advantage 
 of the Church , not of (private Per Jons j 
 for when there is nothing of that, it is 
 not a faithful Vifpenfation, but a cru¬ 
 el DijJIpation. 
 
 But the Senfe he had of this Mat¬ 
 ter will be be ft known by his own 
 Words. In a Treatife he compos’d 
 on this Subjed, he fpeaks thus, 
 
 ‘ The fafeft Opinion and the on- 
 
 * ly true one is, that the Incum° ; 
 bent is not the Proprietor of the 
 Fruits of his Benefice, but only 
 the Adminiftrator and Difpenfer 
 of them, io that after having ta- 
 
 4 ken what is neceflary for his own 
 ‘ Subfiftance, he ought faithfully 
 4 to diftribute the reft for the Ne- 
 ‘ ceffities of the Poor and of the 
 Church. This Maxim is clear, 
 
 ‘ Firfl, from the Intention of the 
 
 * Founders, whofe Donations to the 
 Church were given only in this 
 
 4 View. Secondly, from the Inten- 
 d z ‘ tiori 
 
The Life of the 
 
 tion of the Church, which can* 
 not defign to lay a Snare in the 
 way to Clergymens Salvation, by 
 fomenting their Avarice and their 
 Lufts, but rather defigns that the 
 Revenues (he gives them, ftiould 
 be Helps to them for attaining 
 Heaven, by the Alms which fihe 
 obliges them to beftow. It is not 
 allowable to poffefs one Angle 
 Benefice merely for Temporal 
 Advantage,, or ot remove from 
 a lefs to a greater on this Motive, 
 ut lautius ViVat, as Thomas Aqui¬ 
 nas fays, who aflerts that the doing 
 fo renders the Pofleffion even of a 
 fingle Benefice, unlawful which 
 in it felf is allowable. 
 
 4 As to what regards Penfions, 
 it mud be granted that the Pen- 
 fion being what remains over 
 and above the Titulars Subfiftance 
 ought to be employed by him, 
 (if he enjoy’d it) in relieving and 
 
 • main- 
 
Prince of Conti. xxi 
 
 c taining the Poor, or in provi- 
 e ding for the Neceflicies of the 
 ‘ Church 5 fo that the Penfioner 
 ‘ deprives the Poor or the Church 
 ‘ of that Afliftance. It muft again 
 ‘ be granted, that the Canons al- 
 
 ■ low the Eftablifhment of Pen- 
 ‘ fions only for thofe who have 
 ‘ done confiderable Services to the 
 ‘ Church, and ftand in need of 
 
 * her Affiftance to maintain them, 
 
 ‘ or in favour of fuch as having 
 ‘ long ferv’d a Cure of Souls, are 
 ‘ difabled by Age or Sicknefs from 
 ‘ doing it any longer j for then it 
 £ isbutjuftice that thofe who have 
 ( worn themfelves out in the Service 
 
 * of the Church, fhould be fupport- 
 
 ■ ed in their Infirmities at the Ex- 
 
 * pence of the Church, efpecially if 
 £ they have not wherewith to main- 
 
 * tain themfelves otherwife. But for 
 ‘ thofe who keep Penfions out of A- 
 J varice, they rob the Poor of that 
 
 d 3 £ which 
 
%sdi The Life of the 
 
 1 which they have a right to, and 
 4 to them may be juftly applied 
 f De mo » 4 thefe terrible Words of* St. <Ber- 
 
 rihm & ( nar J The Toor cry after us, that 
 
 cffich * 
 pifccpi 
 
 E t y 0U /p en j f 0 j r igfo belongs to 
 
 Cap. 2. ‘ us 5 whatever is laid out on your Su- 
 e perfluity and Vanity, is cruelly /natch’d 
 4 from us. For if Lay-men are ob- 
 4 lig’d to give the Poor the Over- 
 ‘ plus of their Annual Incomes, 
 
 4 with how much greater Reafon 
 4 fhould Ecclefiafticks do it, who 
 4 ought to fet others an Example of 
 ‘ a truly Chriftian Difinterefted- 
 4 nefs. 
 
 ‘ I know that fome new Au« 
 
 4 thors may be found who hold a 
 4 contrary Dodlrine on Reafons 
 4 merely Philofophical, and which 
 4 only tend to, enervate the pure 
 4 jChrifiian Morality 5 but the beft 
 4 way to judge between thefe cor- 
 4 rupted Dodtrines and what is 
 
 . f here 
 
( .Prince of Conti. 
 
 4 here averted, is to conlider in the 
 ‘ Prefence of God, which of the 
 ‘ two Opinions we would be mod 
 ‘ pleas’d to have follow’d at the 
 ‘ Hour of Death, when we are juft 
 1 g°* n g to rer> der an Account to 
 ‘ God of all our A£tions, and that, 
 ‘ abandon ? d by our Riches, nothing 
 i will follow us but our good or 
 * evil Works. 
 
 Thefe are this Illuftrious Princes 
 own Words, by which he fhew§ 
 the Zeal he had againft the Difor- 
 ders of a corrupted Morality. 
 
 He confider’d his Duty to the 
 King and to the State as inseparable 
 from that which he ow’d to God, 
 fince the Holy Scripture joyns them 
 together, Fear God , and honour the 
 Jfing ; and he held it as an indubi¬ 
 table Maxim, that one cannot be 
 faithful to God without being faith¬ 
 ful to the King. ’Twas this which 
 engag’d him to execute his Maje- 
 d 4. fties 
 
 xxiii 
 
xxiv The Life of the 
 
 flies Orders with fo much Fidelity 
 and ready Obedience. And as he 
 read the Scriptures to learn his Du¬ 
 ty as a Chriftian, fo he read the 
 King’s Ordinances and Edicts to 
 acquit himfelf of his Obligations as 
 a Prince and as a Governour of a 
 Province. And by this he was per- 
 fuaded of the Neceifity of the Re- 
 fidence of the Governours in their 
 Provinces. 
 
 It was from thi$ Principle of Fi¬ 
 delity to the King, and not from 
 any falfe Zeal or perfecting SpU 
 rit, that he kept a ftriCfc Hand over 
 thofe of the Reformed Religion. 
 His great Care was to preferve them 
 in the Obedience and Fidelity which 
 they ow’d to the King, making 
 them obferve punctually all his 
 Majefties Orders, Declarations and 
 Edicts. He allow’d them all the 
 Privileges the King had confirm’d 
 to them by his EdiCts, but would 
 
 not 
 
 \ 
 
[Prince of Conti. 
 
 not fuffer them to exceed, and there¬ 
 fore, where they had built Church¬ 
 es in his Government contrary to 
 the Edidts, he caufed them to be 
 demolifiVd. And that it was pure¬ 
 ly upon this Principle he did thefe 
 things is clear from hence, that his 
 Obedience and Fidelity to the Ring 
 was univerfaj, impartial and equal 
 in all Cafes apd Refpedts$ for he 
 was as Careful and Vigilant to put 
 the King’s Edidts in Execution a- 
 gainft Duels, Blafphemy, Profane- 
 nefs and Immorality ; to fupprefs 
 Gaming, Ufury and Robberies, 
 and to deliver the Poor and Mean 
 from the Opprefiiqn and Violence 
 of the Great and the Rich. He 
 labour’d much likewife towards an 
 Union between the two Religions, 
 and in one of his Retirements he 
 drew up a Projedt for the more ef¬ 
 fectual re-uniting thofe of the Re¬ 
 formed Religion into the Bofom of 
 
 xxv 
 
XXVI 
 
 1*he Life of the 
 
 the Church, as he employ’d con- 
 fiderable Sums in this Work. ’T was 
 his Opinion, that thofe who did 
 return fhould be treated favourably 
 and with a great deal of Charity, 
 that by this good Ufage others might 
 be encourag'd to be converted. And 
 his Gentlenefs towards thofe who 
 might differ from him in their O- 
 pinion of fomc Things, further ap¬ 
 pears, that in a time when there 
 were great Heats and Divifions up¬ 
 on fome controverted Points of 
 Religion in France , and the con¬ 
 tending Parties were apt to brand 
 one another’s Opinion with the 
 Name of Herefy, it was one of his 
 Maxims, that Princes and Gover- 
 nours of Provinces ought not to 
 fuffer, that, under a falfe pretence 
 of Zeal, any fhould be perfecuted 
 as Heretkksy whom the Church has 
 not declared fuch. 
 
 ’Twas on the fame Principle I 
 
 have 
 
Prince of Conti. 
 
 have mention’d that he labour’d To 
 fuccefsfully to extinguish the Fury 
 of Duelling, having found no Ex¬ 
 pedient fo proper for that Effed, 
 as holding firmly to the Execution 
 o f his Majefty’s Orders, obliging all 
 the Gentlemen in his Government 
 to confirm under their Hands that 
 Promife which he drew from them 
 never more to engage/n any Duel. 
 
 In fine, this Prince was fo exad 
 in the Fidelity he ow’d the King, 
 that he never undertook any thing 
 in his Government, without being 
 before-hand aflur’d of his Majefty’s 
 Will and Intention. And indeed 
 the King had fuch an Opinion of 
 his Fidelity and his Prudence, that 
 he recommended to his Succeffor, in 
 the Government of Languedoc, to 
 follow the late Prince of Conti's Con- 
 dud in all things, which may ferve 
 for a Compleat Elogy of this illu- 
 
 ftrious Prince. 
 
 ■ - ■■ • \ ■ 
 
 As 
 
xxviii 
 
 The Life of 
 
 As to his Duty towards bis Neigh¬ 
 bour , he confider’d that God has e- 
 ftablifti’d Princes to lead their Sub¬ 
 jects to his Service, and therefore 
 look’d upon himfelf as highly ob¬ 
 lig’d to give a good Example to 
 the People, feeing that the Irregu¬ 
 larity ol the Great is the Ruin of 
 good Manners: Nor was he con¬ 
 tented with giving a good Exam¬ 
 ple only, but he expreft his Love 
 to his Neighbour by his Actions, 
 helping and comforting thofe un¬ 
 der his Government, endeavouring 
 to procure their Eafe and their Pro¬ 
 fit, and to preferve their Liberty 
 and their Privileges. 
 
 As to the Obligations which re- 
 fpeCted himfelf in particular, he was 
 firmly perfuaded that there is but 
 one and the fame Gofpel for Prin¬ 
 ces and for other Chriftians; be- 
 caufe they have all one Common 
 Mafter in Heaven, who will have 
 
 no 
 
<Prince of Conti. xxiX 
 
 no tegard to the Condition of Per- 
 fons. He will not refpeft the 
 Grandeur of any one, for he made 
 both the Mean and the Great, and 
 his Providence extends it felf equal¬ 
 ly to thofe of all Ranks. He 
 thought himfelf therefore as much 
 oblig'd to Self-Denyal, Mortificati¬ 
 on, Poverty of Spirit, Humility, Re- 
 fignation, and all the other Leffons 
 of the Gofpel as the meaneft Chrifti- 
 an. Nay, the Confideration of his 
 Dignity, far from difpenfing with 
 his observing the Rules of the Go¬ 
 fpel, did, in his Opinion, oblige 
 him the more ftri&ly to it, by the 
 Example he ought to give to others, 
 and by the Acknowledgment he 
 ought to make for that Grandeur 
 he had received from God. And 
 therefore he took care to regulate his 
 Time fo as to acquit himlelf of 
 his Duty both in his private and 
 publick Capacity. 
 
 Walking 
 
XXX 
 
 * Devc- 
 ra Rslig, 
 
 C. 2 6* 
 
 S. Au- 
 guft lb* 
 
 The Life of the 
 
 Walking by thefe Rules he en¬ 
 ter’d into the third Age of the Spi¬ 
 ritual Life 5 in which, according to 
 * St. Juflin, the inferior part uni¬ 
 ting with the ftiperiour, the Soul 
 takes fuch Delight in the practice 
 of Virtue, that far from needing 
 to have any Gonftraint put on her 
 to make her live well,, file would 
 not fin, tho’ all the Earth fhould 
 allow it her. 
 
 And the Grace of God leading 
 him on, he made fo great a Pro- 
 grefs, that he immediately advan¬ 
 ced into the fourth Age of the Spi¬ 
 ritual Life, in which one begins to 
 enter into the State of a Perfedt 
 Man, and in which one is capa¬ 
 ble of fuftaining the Violence of 
 Pcrfecutions that Men bring on us, 
 and of refilling all the Storms which 
 the World can raife againft us. He 
 had many Difficulties and Obfta- 
 eles to furmount, to bring thofe of 
 
 the 
 
XXXI 
 
 (Prince of Conti. 
 
 the Reformed Religion to conform 
 to the King’s Edicts; to put an 
 End to the Violence and Tyranny 
 which the Powerful exercis’d over 
 the Weak 5 To abolifli Duels, to 
 appeafe Quarrels and Differences $ 
 Toftop theCourfe ofUfury of Rob¬ 
 beries, of Gaming and of Debauch¬ 
 ery 5 and j;o reeftablifh Piety and 
 the Worfhip of God in his Go¬ 
 vernment. Certainly he needed 
 all his Wifdom, and all his Forti¬ 
 tude to Execute fuch great things. 
 
 Entring into the Fifth Age ofS. Aug. 
 the Spiritual Life, he enjoy’d that^’ 
 Peace and Tranquillity which the 
 Faithful Servants of God are ufed 
 to enjoy in this Life. This Peace 
 however and this Tranquillity of 
 theJuft, which confifts in the Tefti- 
 fhonies of their Confidence is not 
 exempt from Fear. For tho their 
 Confcience does not Accufe them of 
 any thing, neverthelefs they dare 
 
Xxxii The Life of the 
 
 not efteem themfelves innocent | 
 knowing well that it is God who 
 rauft judge them, He whofe Eye 
 penetrates into the Heart, and of¬ 
 ten difcovers Wounds there, which 
 themfelves do not feel. ’Tis there¬ 
 fore that the Juft accufe and con¬ 
 demn themfelves continually, that 
 by this voluntary Humiliation they 
 may efface their involuntary Faults. 
 For if we need not fear involuntary 
 and unknown Faults, which we com¬ 
 mit thro Ignorance, why ftiould 
 Pf. 2j. David fay, Lord remember not the 
 lund*'E-^ ms °f m y y° ut b> nor my Ignorances^ 
 Ht.Vulg. and in another place, ivhocan under - 
 ft and bis Errors ? Cleanfe thou me 
 from my Secret Faults. 
 
 But may we not well fear for 
 the Sins which we commit by Ig¬ 
 norance, when we have reafon to 
 fear for our good A&ions ? be¬ 
 ta ufe the Heart of Man often de¬ 
 ceives him and difguifes him to 
 
 himfelf: 
 
(prince of Conti, xxxiii 
 
 himfelf: and according to St. Ber¬ 
 nard, * We ought extremely to fear that Serm _ ^ 
 many of our Actions, which we take for Pontic. 
 Virtues , may appear to be Vices in fa 
 rigorous an Examination, as is that of 
 the Tribunal of God , where (Righteouf- 
 nefs itjelf fhall be judged. 1 have 
 learn d by my own Experience , fays that 
 Father in another place, * that thereSerm .^1 
 is nothing fo effectual for obtaining in Cam it 
 Grace, for the ConferVation Or the 
 : (Recovery of it, as never to exalt out 
 I felves before God 3 but to be always 
 in a fate of Fear and of Humiliation , 
 
 ‘ Happy the Man, fays Solomon ff cv ' z ®° 
 \ who feareth always. Fear then when ' 
 Grace is prefent, fear when it is with- 
 drawn, fear when it returns } and this 
 | is to live always in fear. When Grace 
 is prefent , be afraid of not correfpon- 
 ding worthily with it. 'Tis the Advice 
 which the Apoftle gives, when he fays Cor 
 Take heed that you receive not the 1. 
 
 | Grace of God in vain} and writing to 
 
 e his 
 
xxxiv The Life of the 
 
 i Tim. 4 Difciple Timothy, Negledt not, fays 
 I4 ' he , the Grace ( Gift ) that is in thee, 
 and fpeaking of bimfelf The Grace 
 i Cor i which was beftow’d on me was not 
 jo. in vain. This admirable Man mho 
 had the Mind of the Lord knew, that 
 neglecting the Gifts of God, and not 
 making ufe of them to the End for 
 which they were given, is a Contempt 
 and Affront to him who gave them, and 
 the Effect of an Jnfupportahle Pride. 
 
 ’Twas with reafon then that the 
 (prince of Conti liv’d always in Fear, 
 miftrufting even his beft Actions. 
 He was far from the Prefumption 
 of thofe, who make no fcruple of 
 doing unlawful things under pretext 
 of the Uprightneis of their Intenti¬ 
 ons, and think themfelves fufficient-* 
 ly juftified by faying, they did not 
 think they did Ill. 
 
 He was likewife far from the Sen¬ 
 timents of thofe Perfons who make 
 no fcrupk of doing Actions which 
 
The Life of the xxXv 
 
 they take for Good only upon a 
 probable Opinion; and which by 
 Confequence, being but probably 
 Good, have fomeappearance of Evil. 
 
 For he confider’d, that if our moft 
 righteous Actions fliall be judged, 
 how ranch more reafon have we to 
 apprehend the rigorous Judgment 
 of God for Actions which are but 
 probably Good. He knows that 
 we ought, according to the ApofHe, 
 to prove all things and hold fajl that 
 which is good , and to ah/lain from 
 all Appearance of Evil. 
 
 It was by this prudent and pious 
 Condudt that the Prince advanced 
 to the Sixth Age of the Spiritual 
 Life, in which, according to ^St. An- De Vera 
 Jim , the Perfon being renewed and Relig. 
 wholly changed, forgets all this tern- hi.c.z 6 , 
 poral World, and thinks of nothing 
 but Eternity. The * Rules he drew *s ee Go - 
 up for his Council, fhew how much " J f r ” tme * 
 he was difengag’d from all Earth- 1 t Jr_ 
 e t lv hold p. IA 
 
XXxvi The Life of the 
 
 ly Poffeffions: The Immenfe Sums 
 he employ’d in Works of Juftice, 
 of Piety and of Charity, are ftill 
 greater Proofs of his Difengagment 
 and Poverty of Spirit. It would take 
 a large Volume to give a particu¬ 
 lar Account of all the Sums he be¬ 
 llow'd for the Relief of the Poor, 
 for Supplying the Wants of Hofpi- 
 tals, for the Maintenance of Con¬ 
 verts, for the Reparation of Church¬ 
 es, for the Entertainment of Mifli- 
 onaries, both in his own Lands and 
 almofl all the Provinces of the 
 Kingdom, as well as in Foreign 
 Countries. 
 
 But as Charity ought to be well 
 regulated, becaufe it is not enough 
 that we do good works, unlefs they 
 are done in their order, do not ima¬ 
 gine that in performing fo many 
 and fo great Works of Charity, the 
 Prince omitted to pay his Debts, 
 ,and to acquit himfelf of his other 
 
 Obligations. 
 
Trinee of Conti. xxxvii 
 
 Obligations. He was too difeern- 
 ing to be guilty of fuch a Fault - 
 he knew that it is better to give no¬ 
 thing, than to give that which be¬ 
 longs to others, and that fuch Alms 
 and Offerings, as make thofe to 
 weep at whofe Expences they are 
 made, are no ways agreeable to 
 God, who has forbid us to cover bis Ma!ach 
 Altar with Tears. Therefore he begun 2 1 ’ 
 with paying his Debts and the 
 Wages of his Domefticks, and with 
 repairing the Damages the People 
 had fuffer'd by his Troops in the 
 Civil War. 
 
 I cannot here omit one remark¬ 
 able Inftance of his Juftice, he 
 had formerly obtain’d a Difpen- 
 fation to appropriate to himfelf the 
 Revenues of thofe Benefices he held 
 in his youth on Condition to di- 
 flribute an inconfiderable Sum to the 
 Poor. But he would not make ufe 
 pf this Qifpenfation, and relerved 
 e 3 nothing 
 
sxxyiii The Life of the 
 
 nothing to him felt of chofe great 
 Incomes, the Pofleffion of which 
 was no fmall pain unco him. But 
 as, according to the Rules of the 
 Ecclefiaftical Canons, the Revenues 
 of Benefices ought to be employ’d 
 in the Reparation of the Churches, 
 and the Relief of the Poor of the 
 Place where they are ficuated, he 
 procur’d a new Difpenfation, that 
 after he had difcharg’d thefe Obli¬ 
 gations, he might employ the Re¬ 
 mainder in other Charitable Works. 
 
 Th is Prince was fo much difen- 
 gag’d in Affection from all Worldly 
 Poffeffions that he inftantly be- 
 fought my Lord Bifhop of Alet to 
 approve of his quitting all his Efface, 
 and paifing the reft of his days 
 with one Servant. But that Holy 
 Prelate made him anfwer, that 
 'God did not require this of him and 
 therefore he wou'd not advife him 
 ■io quit all his poffeffions, but to 
 
 i 
 
(prince of Conti. xxxix, 
 
 jhare them with the (poor, expett¬ 
 ing for himfelf only what was ab- 
 folutely neceffary. The Prince fub- 
 mitcing to the Advice of this wife 
 Prelate, defir’d him to regulate what 
 he judg’d was abfolutely neceflary 
 for him, which he did : And the 
 Prince employ’d all the Reft of his 
 Pofleffions, as long as he liv’d, to 
 repair the Damages which the Peo¬ 
 ple had fuffer’d by his Troops du¬ 
 ring the Civil Wars, by which both 
 Provinces and particular Perfons 
 were in impoverifh’d and made 
 miferable. 
 
 While the Prince made this Pious 
 ufe of hisEftate thePrincefs of Conti, 
 feconding the Zeal of her Husband, 
 fold all her Jewels, and diftributeft 
 the Money amongft the poor Peo¬ 
 ple thar were ready to perifh with 
 Hunger. St. Chryfojlome faid that it 
 was rare to find a Woman that 
 y/ould fell a gold Chain, or one of 
 e 4 he I 
 
The Life of the 
 
 her jewels to give to the Poor, what 
 would he have faid, had he feen in 
 his Time a Princefs fell all her 
 Jewels to fupply the Neceffities of 
 an infinite Number of miferabie 
 People f 
 
 But what is wonderful. That 
 Natural Affection which generally 
 makes Parents ftrive to increafe 
 their Eftate to enrich their Children, 
 made this Prince on the contrary 
 to abound more in Alms-deeds and 
 Works of Charity ; knowing that 
 he could not put his Riches in better 
 hands than thofe of Almighty God. 
 A Father lefs Pious would have been 
 afraid of impoverifliinghis Children 
 by his Charity, but the Prince had 
 more exalted and more Chriftian 
 Sentiments. In diftributing his 
 Poffeffions to the Poor, he repre- 
 fented to himfelf what the Uluftious 
 S. Taul a reply d to thofe who told 
 her, that flje would impoverish her 
 
 Children 
 
(prince of Conti. jdi 
 
 Children by her great Charity to 
 the Poor, That (Ik fhould thereby, 
 leave them a much greater Inheritance 
 than her own, which was the Mercy 
 of God. ( 
 
 The Prince of Conti was perfua- 
 ded, that the greateft Treaiure be 
 could leave his Children, was a 
 good Education 3 therefore as foon 
 as his Eldeft Son came to be three 
 Years old, he and the Princefs ap¬ 
 plied themfelves to Teach him the 
 Principles and the Summary of the 
 Chriftian Religion, with the Hifto- 
 ry of the old and new Teftamenc, 
 which the Young Prince learnt as 
 a Diversion with a wonderful Faci¬ 
 lity and extraordinary Pleafure, 
 and gave Marks of a Wit, and Judg¬ 
 ment furpaffing his Age. This 
 put the Prince of Conti upon think¬ 
 ing of fuch Inftru&ions as would 
 be neceflary for him in his riper 
 Years 3 and for this find hf com¬ 
 pos'd 
 
xlii 
 
 The Life of the 
 
 pos’d the Treadfe of the Duties of the 
 Great , to which he defign’d to have 
 added the Sentiments of the Fathers 
 concerning the * Education of 
 * 72 cr<r//Children. And as he was convin- 
 'knt' cec * b y bis own Experience, that 
 Book in there is nothing fo dangerous, nor 
 Pre ”^ which gives more pernicious Im- 
 Sub/eB, preflions to young People than 
 intitul'd Plays, he compos d ati excellent 
 cation 1 *' Difcourfe againft Plays, and join- 
 Chreti- ed to it the moft conhderable 
 
 d’s* En ^ a ^ a S es out the Councils and 
 fans fe- Writings of the Fathers on that 
 ion ies Subjeif. He had alfo another Mo- 
 ^! a £™ s tive to engage him in this Work 5 
 criture he greatly lamented the Time he 
 Sainte, formerly fpent in thefe crimi*- 
 Inftruc- nal Diverfions, and to repair the 
 tions de Evil which he had done, and 
 f Eglffe m! gbt have caus’d by his Example, 
 he thought himfelf oblig’d to make 
 all the Reparation he could for 
 this Fault, and to let the Word know 
 
 the 
 
<p> 'ince of Conti 
 
 ! the Danger to which they expofe 
 themielves by frequenting Piays. 
 He compos’d thefe two Treatifes 
 at a Country Houfe of his near 
 (parts, whither he had retir’d for Air 
 after a Sicknefs that had extremely 
 w aken’d him ; and the laft of them 
 was finifh’d a Year before his 
 Death, and Publifh’d fome time 
 after it, according to his exprefs or- 
 ; der fome Months before his Deceafe. 
 
 Moft Men commonly think of 
 i nothing in their Sicknefs but of 
 giving eafe to the Body, and avoid 
 I nothing with more Care than a too 
 great Application of Mind, as be¬ 
 ing prejudicial to their Health; on 
 the contrary the Prince made this 
 his Diverfion, applying his Mind 
 Prayer, Meditation and Reading of 
 the Fathers, particularly St. Augu - 
 fttne aud St. Bernard, in imitation 
 of St.-Lewis. And as that Pious 
 ; King ufed to turn into French what 
 
Tl)e Life of 
 
 he had read out of the Fathers for 
 the Benefit of thofe prefent, fo the 
 Prince employ’d himfelf in Tranf- 
 lating feveral Pieces of St. Auguftine 
 and other Fathers, making choice of 
 fuch as incline Men to humble them- 
 felves in the fight of God, and not 
 to attribute to themfelves, by a fa- 
 crilegious Ingratitude, what they 
 have received from his Bounty, nor 
 by a wretched Prefumption to he* 
 lieve, that they can give themfelves, 
 what they can receive from God a« 
 lone. 
 
 The Advantage he receiv’d by 
 thefe Pious Occupations made hint 
 often fay, that there is nothing bet¬ 
 ter enables us to bear Aff?i<5fcions 
 with Patience, or is a Stronger guard 
 of our Virtue, than the Knowledge of 
 the Chriftian Do&rine. He thank’d 
 God for that Light and Knowledge 
 pf it he had given him, apd was for 
 
(Prince of Conti. 
 
 this Reafon refolved throughly to 
 inftruft his Children in it. 
 
 He was us’d to fay, that it was 
 'a great Error to think that it is e- 
 nough for Princes, to have a fuper- 
 ificial Tindture of Learning: For 
 fince they are eftablifh’d by God 
 for the Government of the People, 
 they are oblig’d to learn perfectly 
 everything that is neceffary for that 
 End, that they may be capable of 
 I Judging of things by their own 
 'Knowledge and not depend on the 
 Information of others. That it is 
 better to be altogether ignorant 
 than half-learned, becaufe Ignorance 
 makes one diftrufthimfelf, and take 
 Counfel of others, whereas an im¬ 
 perfect and fuperficial Knowledge 
 fills a Man with a vain Prefumption, 
 which is the Caufe that thinking he 
 knows what he is ignorant of, he 
 is perpetually falling into Miftakes. 
 
 Another Advantage the Prince 
 
 drew 
 
 xlv 
 
The Life of the 
 
 drew from his Knowledge of the 
 Chriftian DoCtrine, was to receive 
 his Sickneis in a Spirit of Penitence, 
 looking upon this Opportunity of 
 bearing his Crofs ( and thereby par¬ 
 taking in fome meafure of the Suffe¬ 
 rings of Jefus Chrift , as fent him by 
 the Divine Mercy for the Purifica¬ 
 tion of his Soul from Sin, and the 
 perfecting it in Virtue. 
 
 He Comforted himfelf in his 
 Sicknefs befides with this other 
 Confideration, that it help’d him to 
 difengage his AffeCtions from all 
 Defires of a long Life, and he foon 
 gave a great Proof of it. Having 
 not been able to go into his Govern¬ 
 ment the Year preceeding, he 
 would now no longer defer it, 
 whatever Danger there was of in¬ 
 creasing his Diftemper, and tho the 
 Air of Lanquedoc was at that time 
 infedlious 5 he refolved to fet out for 
 that Province, not fearing to hazard 
 
prince of Conti. 
 
 his Life, that he might omit no¬ 
 thing which could contribute to the 
 Good of the People committed to 
 his Care. He faid, with St. fW, 
 None of thefe things move me, neither 
 count I my Life dear unto my felf, fo 
 that 1 might fnifb my Courfe with Joy 
 and the Mint ft ry which I haVe received. 
 He arrived then at Beziers, where he 
 conveen’d the Eftates. Soon after 
 the exceffive Fatigue he had been at 
 in fo weak a Condition, and his 
 Application to Bufinefs, caus’d an 
 Inflammation in his Lungs, fo that 
 he fell into a violent Fever, that 
 brought him to the laft Extremity". 
 It was thought that a Change of 
 Air and Repofe might give him 
 fome Relief, but he was fo punctu¬ 
 al in what concern’d the Service of 
 the King, that he would not leave 
 the Convention of the Eftates with¬ 
 out an exprefs order of his Majefty. 
 As foon as he had receiv’d it, he was 
 
 remov’d 
 
xlvlH The Life of the 
 
 remov’d to the Grange , a Houfe h6 
 had near Telenets, where he begun 
 to grow better for a few days. 
 This little Amendment made him 
 reiolve to go to Tar is, to refign his 
 Government into the King’s hands, 
 and to retire into the Country 5 wher$ 
 being deliver’d from the Noife and 
 the Incumbrance of Worldly Af¬ 
 fairs, he might better talte the Sweet- 
 nefs oi Heavenly things. For this 
 End he had given orders to buy him 
 a Country Houle near Taris, to 
 make the Purchale of which they 
 were oblig’d to fell feme of his 
 Lands on which there was no 
 Eioufe Handing; becaule he would 
 not fuffer any Money to be bor-* 
 row’d for it, which mull after¬ 
 wards have been repaid out of his 
 Revenues; that there might be no 
 Diminution made of the Funds he 
 had appointed for Works of Juftice 
 and Charity. But when he under- 
 
 ftood 
 
(Prince of Conti. xli 
 
 flood they had bought him a very 
 Fine Houfe, he was apprehen five 
 that it was too magnificent for one 
 that was to pals his Life in Peni¬ 
 tence, and he was not fatisfied till 
 he had the Ad vice of feveial Lear¬ 
 ned and Pious Doctors upon it 5 
 which fhews how much this Prince’s 
 Mind was taken off from the Va¬ 
 nities of the World, and fix’d upon 
 his Duty. 
 
 As he was on the point of return¬ 
 ing to 'Pdm, my, Lord Bsfhop 
 of Alet came to vifit him, by whofe 
 Convention he received much 
 Confolation. Monfieur Ciron, who 
 had been his Spiritual Dire&or 
 from his firft Converfion, arrived 
 prefently after the Bilhop’s Depar¬ 
 ture. His Arrival gave his High- 
 nefs a great deal of Joy, and the 
 Night following (being the i6tb 
 of February 1 666 .) finding him- 
 felf extremely ill of a great Oppref- 
 f fion 
 
1 
 
 Tbs Life of the 
 
 fion at his Heart, he fent for Mon- 
 ficur Cron, and told him he was 
 fenfible that the Hour of his Death 
 drew near, and thank’d God who 
 had fent him to his A Alliance in 
 that lad Hour, that he might finifli 
 what he had begun. He made his 
 Confeffion to him with the Difpo- 
 fition of a righteous and penitent 
 Soul, that prepares to go out of 
 this Life. He delir’d the Holy 
 Sacrament, but the fame thing hap-* 
 ned to him as to Francis de Sales * 
 he was depriv’d of the Power to 
 receive it. Upon which we may 
 apply to the Prince, what is faid in 
 the Life of that Holy Prelate, that 
 he ador’d the Judgment of God 
 towards him, and receiv’d this 
 Privation as a kind of Defertion by 
 his Judge, who by withdrawing 
 from him in his Holy Sacrament 
 would humble and purify him by 
 a Participation of chat Derelidion, 
 
/ 
 
 (Prince of Conti. 
 
 which he fuffer’d on the Crofs, 
 when he cry’d to his Father, My 
 Cod , tny God } why haft thou for fa hen 
 Me * 
 
 We may fay too, that as the 
 Prince had an extreme Defire of 
 ruffering Penance, God was pleas’d 
 to treat him, as the moft notorious 
 Sinners were treated in the Firft 
 Ages of the Church, who were de¬ 
 nied the Sacrament at the Hour of 
 Death. Therefore he took this 
 Privation as a Punifhment he had 
 deferved, and in this State he de¬ 
 manded and receiv d the Extreme 
 Unction, as a Seal of the Reconci¬ 
 liation of Sinners to the Church. 
 
 In taking his laft leave of the 
 Princefs, he recommended his 
 Children to her Care, and it was 
 the greatefi: Confolation he could 
 receive, to think he left them under 
 the Conduit of a Pious and Virtu¬ 
 
 ous Mother, who was Capable of 
 f t giving 
 
 li 
 
 o 
 
lii 
 
 The Life of the 
 
 giving them a good Education. 
 God, who is the Protestor of Or¬ 
 phans and Widows, does fo blefs 
 the Care they take of the Education 
 of their Children, that he has 
 thought good that the Inftru&ion 
 which the wifeft of Men received 
 from his Mother, fhould be put in 
 the Rank of the Oracles of Holy 
 Scripture and that at the fame time 
 that Prince declares that God was 
 his Mailer, he acknowledges that he 
 ow’d his Inflruction to his Mother 
 ^™ V ‘ t The words of Kjng Lemuel, i. e. of 
 Solomon taught of God, the Pro¬ 
 phecy, i. e. The Inftru&ion that his 
 Mother taught him. 
 
 The Prince of Conti had no fear 
 of Death, for which he had been 
 long preparing himfelf. His Mind 
 was full of that Thought which St. 
 De Pra> j u g u f{irie relates of S t. CyprianWhy 
 San£to- fi'Ouid not we, who are to be with Jefus 
 turn. Cbrift, who firmly believe the Truth of 
 
 kis 
 
!"Prince of Conti. liii 
 
 his Promifes, be Joyful when he calls 
 us to him, and is going to place us in 
 perfeB Security from ever falling into 
 the Power of the Devil ? Why do we not 
 run ? Why do we not prefs forward to 
 our Heavenly Country ? Till our Souls 
 are feparated from our Bodies, we have 
 always reafon to fear Temptations and 
 the Dangers of Sin, hut after Death we 
 are fecurd from thefe Fears. He re¬ 
 flected alfo on what he had Tranf-j) e( j 0 Ro 
 lated out of another * Book of St.Perfeve- 
 Augufline, that he who ends his days j« rantl3e * 
 a State of continual Advancement in 
 Virtue, dies with this Jffurance, that 
 he goes to prefent himjelf before the 
 Tribunal of God , to receive the Ac - 
 complement and Perfection of what 
 remain’d for him to do. 
 
 ’Twas in this Holy Place, which 
 flows from the Teftimony of a 
 good Confcience, that the Prince 
 being ready to depart this Life, 
 look’d upon Death as the End of 
 f 3 the 
 
The Life of the 
 
 the Old Man, and rendred his Soul 
 to God fo calmly that it could hard¬ 
 ly be perceived. 
 
 Is there any thing more fweec 
 than a Death which follows a good 
 Life, and leads to Eternity . ? Is there 
 any thing more fvveet than to die, 
 to receive the Recompence of ones 
 Labours ? As the Prince had made 
 hafte during his Life to advance in 
 Virtue, and to bring forth Fruits 
 worthy of Repentance and Righte- 
 oufnefs, the Goodnefs of God did 
 like wife haften to give him his 
 Recompence. If we reckon the 
 Prince’s Age by the number of his 
 Years, we fliall think his Death to 
 have been early, fince he died at 5 6 
 Years of Age, but if we confider it 
 by theProgrefs he made in Virtue, 
 we fhall find he liv’d to a Maturity 
 of old Age: For as Solomon informs 
 us, Honourable Age is not that which 
 9- ftandsth in length of Time, nor that is 
 
 rncajur\l 
 
[Prince of Conti. lv 
 
 meafurd by number of Tears-. !But 
 Wifdom is the Grey Hair unto Men, 
 and an unfpotted Life is old Age. 
 
 “ Death is the Term of the Life 
 “ of all Men, fays S. Augufline, 
 
 “ whether it be long or whether ic 
 “ be fhortj It cannot therefore be 
 “ faid, that what is now no more, 
 
 (c is either,-long or fhortj The 
 great matter then is not to die foon 
 or late, but to die well 5 and to die 
 well, one rauft have lived well. 
 
 He being made perfect in a (bort 
 time , fulfilled a long time, for his Soul 
 pleafed the Lord: thereforehafied he to 
 take him away from among the Wicked ^ 
 
 T bus the (Righteous that is dead, fhall 
 condemn the Ungodly which are livings 
 and Youth that is foonperfected , the ma¬ 
 ny years and old Age of the Unrighte¬ 
 ous. 
 
 f 4 AP- 
 
—-—- 
 
 APPROBATIONS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 Duties of the Great. 
 
 / 
 
 The dpprobation of my Lord Bijhop 
 of Comen ge. 
 
 T HE Veneration which all vir¬ 
 tuous Perfons had for the late 
 Prince of Conti during his Life, and 
 which they ftill preferve fince his 
 Death, fhould ferve for a general Ap¬ 
 probation of this Book entitled The 
 .Duties of the Great-, fince it contains 
 nothing but the Rules which that Great 
 Prince had preferved himfelf for his 
 own Condufl, and which he pra- 
 ffis’d with an Exa&nefs almoft incre¬ 
 dible. We heartily wifh that it would 
 pleafe God to infpire into all the 
 Great the Purity of this Morality, and 
 to engrave the Love of it in their 
 
 Hearts, 
 
lvii 
 
 Duties of the Great. 
 
 Hearts, fince they are the Univerfal 
 Caufes which Influence their Inferiours 
 to Goodnefs, who commonly ftudy to 
 refemble thofe on whom they depend. 
 
 Gilbert^ 
 
 Bifliop of Gomenge. 
 
 . .. t 
 
 The Approbation of the Doctors of 
 Sorbon. 
 
 '' if ^ H E Divine Providence, which 
 ^ places Men in an Elevated Sta¬ 
 tion, commonly permits them in the 
 midft of their abundance, to want 
 faithful Counfellors, of whom they 
 may learn their Obligations without 
 difguife. Never was there a more 
 powerful one feen nor one who flatter'd 
 lefs, than the Ill uftrious Author of the 
 Book Entitled The Duties of the Great. 
 It is difficult to find together fuch great 
 Qualities as were eminent in him; and 
 ’tis enough to be convinc’d of the worth 
 of this Treatife, to know that it was 
 compos’d by the Prince of Conti. The 
 
 Grace 
 
1 Approbations of the 
 
 Grace of Jefas Chriji had joyn’d to his 
 Uluftrious Birth a more folid Piety; and 
 that Piety was truly according to 
 Knowledg, fince it was illuminated 
 by that Divine Light which he had 
 drawn from the holy Scriptures, the 
 Councils and Fathers. The Example 
 of his Life and the Remembrance of 
 his Virtues, ought to induce not only 
 the Great of the world, but likewife 
 thofe who are below their condition, 
 to follow the fame Maxims which this 
 Prince prefcribed himfelf for his own 
 Conduft. It is therefore our opinion 
 that this Treatife is not only confor¬ 
 mable to the Rules of the Catholick 
 and Apoftolick Church, but that it 
 will be fo much the more ufeful, that 
 it teaches a moft pure and moft holy 
 Morality, which may ferve for the In- 
 ftrucfion of all forts of Perfons. 
 
 At Sorbon , 
 September ifi 
 
 5 666 * 
 
 De Breda Boileau , 
 Ribejran Malet y 
 De Graville Drubec < 
 
Duties of the Great. 
 
 The Approbation of Monfieur le Tel- 
 lier, DoSlor in Theology of the Fa - 
 culty of Paris, of the Houfe and 
 Society of Sorbon, Abbot of St. 
 Benigne de Dijon, and Grand 
 Mafler of the Chappel (Royal, Or. 
 
 i Have read and examin’d the Book 
 entitled, The Duties of tbs Great ; 
 compofed by the late Prince of Conti. 
 The Illuftrious Birth and the extraordi¬ 
 nary Merit of that Great Prince , places 
 [this Book above all the Elogies that I 
 |couid give it. It is molt conformable 
 to the Rules of the Holy Apoftolick 
 Catholick Religion, and may lerve for 
 the Inftruftion of the Faithful of all 
 Ranks. In Teftimony whereof, I 
 have figned this prefent Approbation, 
 at Paris , the yd. of September 1666. 
 
 Le Teliier. 
 
THE 
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 _ S... 
 
 Several T rads. 
 
 Note , The Capital Letter denotes 
 the Signature ot the Sheet, and 
 the Figure the Page of the fame. 
 
 Tradt I. 
 
 1 
 
 jn he 
 
 Duties of the Great. B. 
 
 p. I 
 
 Trad II. 
 
 Memoirs concerning the Obligations of 
 a GoVernour of a Trovince. E. 
 p. i lnjlruttions 
 
The Contents. 
 
 InflruBious for Gentlemen Commiffiond 
 by Meffitnrs the Marefchals of 
 France , in the Extent of each 
 Government. E, p. 15 
 
 InjlruBions for the Captain of the 
 Guards. G. p. 
 
 InjlruBions for the Officers appointed 
 to fee to the Execution of the Or¬ 
 ders of jujlice upon fifing the 
 Gabelle. H. p. 50 
 
 InjlruBions for the Guards on their 
 March. H. p. 5 6 
 
 InflruBions for the Confuls. H. p. 6 z 
 InflruBions for the Commiffiomr who is 
 fent to the Synods of the (Reform’d 
 Religion. h p. 7© 
 
 Trad HI 
 
 Memoirs concerning the Government of 
 his fAoufe. I. p. 1 
 
 Orders for the Council, during his Ah* 
 fence. \ K. p. 14 
 
 Inftru- 
 
The Contents. 
 
 inJlruEiions for the Stewards and Offi¬ 
 cers of his Lands. K. p. 17 
 
 General (Rules to be obferVd in his 
 Houfe. L. p. 23. 
 
 Rules for the Rages. L. p. 
 
 (Rules for the Stewards. L. p. 27 
 
 (Rules for the Footmen. L. p. 29 
 
 (Rules for the Coachmen, (PoJiiJiotis and 
 Grooms. L. p. 31 
 
 Trad IV. 
 
 His La/l Will and Tejlament , with a 
 Preface. M. p. 1 
 
 Trad V. 
 
 A Treatife again[l Hays and Shews. 
 
 N. p. t 
 
 Ta a VI. 
 
 A Second Treatife againjl (Plays and 
 Shews , with a Preface. P. p. 1 
 
 Tradt 
 
The Contents 
 Trad VII. 
 
 Decrees of the Councils concerning Plays 
 and Bublick. Shews, with a Preface. 
 
 S p. i 
 
 Trad VIII. 
 
 The Sentiments of the Fathers, rela¬ 
 ting to Plays and Publicly Shews, 
 with a Preface. Colleded by the 
 
 Prince. 11 . p. i 
 
 Trad IX, 
 
 The Opinion of Sr. Francis de Sales 
 concerning Balls,Plays, Games, &c. 
 with (Remarks upon it. B b. p. t 
 
 Trad X. 
 
 A Difcourfe of Chriftian PerfeElion, 
 written to a Per Jon of great Note. 
 By the Archbijhop of Cambray. 
 
 C c. p • i 
 THE 
 
V 
 
 THE 
 
 DUTIES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 GREAT. 
 
THE 
 
 DUTIES 
 
 OF THE 
 
 C R E A T. 
 
 I. 
 
 RE ATNESS is an Ex¬ 
 terior Favour which God 
 beftows on fome Perfons, 
 whom he raifes above 
 others, in order to Go¬ 
 vern them. 
 
 This Greatnejs is not given for their 
 fakes who are polfefs’d of it, but is en¬ 
 tirely on the account of others, being 
 Only a Means which God makes ufe of, 
 to draw the People to that Refpeft 
 and Submiffion for the Great , which is 
 neceffary, that they may execute with 
 more Facility and Authority the Fun- 
 15 2 £Vions 
 
4 
 
 The Duties of the Greati 
 
 ftions of their Miniftry ; which is, to 
 Govern thofe that are under them with 
 Juftice and Piety ; and God will de¬ 
 mand a fevere Account from them of 
 the U fe they have made of this Advan¬ 
 tage* 
 
 IL 
 
 I N the State of Innocence if there had 
 been an Inequality among Men, this 
 Greatnefs wou’d have been a moft Ea- 
 fy Mean for acquiring San&ity; for 
 Man having then an abfolute Empire 
 oyer himfelf, would readily have made 
 a good Ufeofit, by Employing that,as 
 lie would have done Health, Riches, 
 Beauty, and the other Advantages of 
 Nature, folely to the End for which it 
 was given him. 
 
 III. 
 
 BUT after the Fall of Man, tho 
 Greatnefs is not become Evil in it felf, 
 it is yet become a Snare almoft inevi¬ 
 table ; becaufe it leads to Pride* w T hich 
 is what Jesus Christ chiefly came to 
 Combat* 
 
 ’IV. 
 
The Duties of the Great, 
 
 5 
 
 IV. 
 
 A true Chriftian ought to be fincere- 
 ly affli&ed and profoundly humbled, 
 when he fees himfelf Great and Ho¬ 
 nourable in the World, becaufe the 
 Grace of Jesus Christ, the Reftorerof 
 our Natures, commonly feeks thofe 
 who are meaneft and moft contempti¬ 
 ble in the Eyes of the World • and 
 he fhould fear that God may have 
 made him a Prince or a Great Man in 
 his Indignation and the Severity of his r Cor 
 Juftice: For ye fee your Calling , Brethren 169 
 (faith St. Paul) how that not many Migh¬ 
 ty , not many Noble are called ; But God 
 hath chofen the weak things of the World, 
 to confound the things which are Mighty : 
 and things which are defpifed hath God 
 chofen , yea and things that are not , to 
 brtng to nought things that are , that nq 
 flejh jhould glory in his Prefence . 
 
 V. 
 
 THE Obftacles to the Pra£tice of the 
 Gofpel which attend Greatnefs , areal- 
 moft Infinite: But of thefe there are 
 four Principal ones. 
 
 B 1 The 
 
6 The 'Duties of the Great. 
 
 TheGo r pel recommends nothing fo 
 much as Humility 9 but Greatnejs dif- 
 pofes to Pride. 
 
 The Gofpel requires a continual Pe¬ 
 nitence ; but this State is full of Softnefs 
 and Delicacy. 
 
 The Gofpel teaches us that it is ab- 
 folutel) neceffary to love our Neighbour , 
 to be compaffionate of his Sufferings and 
 to apply our felves to his Relief; but 
 Greatne/s is apt to give us a Contempt of 
 our Neighbour, an Infenfibility or 
 tJnconceimednefs for his Condition. 
 
 The Gofpel and the whole Scriptures 
 tea^h and reprefent to us Sinful Man, 
 condemn’d to Labour and Sufferings ■ 
 bur this S ate incites a Man to nothing 
 but Pie ajar e 9 Idlenefs and Sloth. 
 
 VL 
 
 A Great Man then feeing himfelf 
 environ’d with fo many Obftacles to his 
 Salvation, inftead of being perfwaded 
 that lie is happier than other Men, 
 ought firmly to believe that he is more 
 mtfer able ; and to implore the Mercy of 
 God to grant him that Grace, which 
 expels the Poyfon of Greatnefs , and 
 is able to vanquifh all its Malignity. 
 
 f 
 
The Vuties of the Great. 
 
 He fhould be fenfible how very rare 
 that Grace is, feeing there have been fuch 
 yaft Numbers of Saints, and yet fo few 
 Princes or Great Perfons among them. 
 
 He fhould all his Life love thofe who 
 would tell him the Truths of which we 
 have been fpeaking; and fhould avoid 
 and dread as Death, thofe who would 
 fortify his Defeats by their Flatteries. 
 
 He fhould employ his Greatnejs to 
 make the Greatnejs of God be honour’d 
 every where; Firfi , in himfelf; Secondly , 
 in his Family ; Thirdly , in his Lands; 
 and in fine through all his Government; 
 and how Pious foever he may beo- 
 therwife, he may be allured that if 
 he omits any one of thefe Duties, he 
 is wanting to his Vocation. 
 
 It is not then fufficient for the Sal¬ 
 vation of a Great Man , that he do fuch 
 things as are common, and commanded 
 to Private Perfons; and it is very pofTI- 
 ble that having been a moft Devout 
 Private Man, he may yet be damn’d 
 for not having perform’d the Duties 
 of his Station ; fo that his Condition 
 renders Salvation difficult, not only by 
 the Obftacles which it brings with it, 
 but alfo by the innumerable Obliga¬ 
 tions which he has to acquit himfelf 
 
 B 4 of, 
 
 I 
 
8 
 
 WifiUi 
 
 The Duties of the Great. 
 
 of, and by the Nature of the things 
 he is to undertake; which are almoffc 
 all of them Great, and require an in¬ 
 vincible Fortitude; as every where to 
 oppofe Injuftice, Violence, andOppref- 
 fion. Hence it is, that a Private Per- 
 fon may be faved with an Ordinary 
 Virtue, and that a Great Man cannot 
 without an Heroick Virtue. 
 
 VII, 
 
 THIS difference is pointed at by 
 Solomon in the Sentence he pronoun¬ 
 ces againft the Great , who have not 
 madeufeof their Power for the prote¬ 
 ction of Juftice, Hear therefore , 0 ye 
 Kjngs , learn ye that be Judges of the 
 ' ends of the Earth . Give Ear you that 
 rule the People } and glory in the multi¬ 
 tude of Nations . For Power is given you 
 of the Lord, and Sovereignty of the 
 Highefl , who jhall try your Works and 
 fearch out your Counfels. Becaufe being 
 Minifters -of his Kjngdom , you have not 
 judged aright , nor kept the Law , nor walk'd 
 after the Counfel of God. Horribly and 
 fpeedily jhall he come upon you : for a 
 /harp Judgment jhall be to them that are 
 m High Places , For Mercy will foon par - 
 
The 'Duties of the Great. 
 
 don the Meanejl, hut Mighty Men ft all he 
 mightily tormented . For he which is 
 Lord over all jhall fear no Mari's Per* 
 Jon, neither jhall he (land in ' awe of any 
 Mari's Greatnefs : For he hath made the 
 fmall and great , and careth for[all alike . 
 But a fore Tryal (Jjall come upon the 
 Mighty , 
 
 VIII. 
 
 ALL the Virtues therefore are ne- 
 ceffary for a Great Man to work out 
 his Salvation, and it is even neceffary 
 that he have them in a High degree; 
 But he ought chiefly to have them 
 with refpeft to his Station ; that is, to 
 oppofe them to the Irregularities 
 which his Rank may occafion in his 
 Underftanding or his Will, 
 
 IX. 
 
 v i " 
 
 Firjl, H E ought to have a Strong 
 Faith , firmly to believe that the Glo¬ 
 ries which are not feen, are highly 
 preferable to thole which are leen; 
 that the things which feem Great in 
 the Eyes of Men, are often an Abomi¬ 
 nation in the Sight of God ; that one 
 
1 o 
 
 The 'Duties of the Great. 
 
 ought to be fincerely prepar’d in 
 Heart, to abandon the Good things of 
 this Life, when occafion fhall offer for 
 it, rather than hazard the Lofs of thofe 
 of a future Life ; That it profits a Man 
 nothing to be Mafter of the whole World , if 
 he lofe his own Soul ; and fo of all the 
 other Maxims of the Gofpel: Of which 
 if he is not convinced in an effectual 
 manner, and fuch as makes him aft con¬ 
 formably to his Perfwafion founded on 
 thefe unchangeable Principles. He may 
 indeed do fome Good Works, either by 
 the Fervour of fenfible Devotion, or out 
 of fome Tendernefs of Confcience, at 
 leaft when thofe Good Works are not 
 contrary to his Natural Inclinations j 
 But when it is neceffary to overcome his 
 Nature in any difficult thing, to obey 
 the Law of God to the prejudice of 
 fome great Xntereft, to prefer his Con¬ 
 fcience to his Credit, to his Reputation, 
 to his Friends,to the Court, to his nea- 
 reft Relations, the ftrongeft fenfible 
 Devotion will be too weak for that, 
 and nothing but the unchangeable Prin¬ 
 ciples of Faith and of the Gofpel, deep¬ 
 ly engraven in his Heart, can work in 
 him a Chriftian Fortitude to vanquish 
 himfelf and the World. If he continue in 
 
 the 
 
The 'Duties of the Great. * \ 
 
 the Faith , grounded and fettled , ^ Col. i.*$. 
 
 moved away from the Hope of the Gofpel. 
 
 For This is the Viffory that overcometh 
 
 the World , even our Faith , ijoh. 5. a. 
 
 Some of the Chief Rulers of the Sy¬ 
 nagogue believ’d in Jesus Christ, but 
 they never durft confefs him openly, 
 becaufe they had not the Firmnefs of 
 this Faith. Neverthelefs among the 
 Chief Rulers alfo many believed on himfloh. xit 
 but becaufe of the Pharifees they did not* z '^' 
 confefs him , left they fhould be put out of 
 the Synagogue . For they loved the praift 
 of Men more than thepraife of God. 
 
 X. 
 
 HE ought to have a firm Hope, to 
 fupport him amidft the aimoft invin¬ 
 cible Difficulties of his Station, know¬ 
 ing that nothing is impoffible to Go d, that 
 He is Faithful , and hath not expos’d 
 him to fo Great and Violent Combats, 
 to let him be overwhelm’d by the 
 power of the Enemies which environ 
 him, but only that he may give him 
 the Viftory : as it is faid by the Wife 
 Man, He put him in a fore conflict that 
 he might give him the Victory. He ought 
 iiot to murmur, as the Ifraelites did in 
 
 the 
 
 V 
 
12 The Duties of the Great, 
 
 the Defart, faying That God had brought 
 them thither to Jlay them : but wait in 
 his greateft Needs for the Heavenly 
 Mama of Grace, which will make him 
 to mil and to do, which will make him 
 begin and finifh, which will make him 
 combat ^nd overcome. 
 
 XL 
 
 BUT above all he ought to have an 
 Ardent Charity , and all his Thoughts, 
 all his Actions, all his Words, all his 
 Motions fhould aim at nothing but 
 the fulfilling this great and Divine 
 Command of Loving God above alt 
 things ; which cannot be done but in la. 
 bouring continually by inward Sacri¬ 
 fices , entirely to deftroy all Love of the 
 World, and of all the things in the 
 World, anticipating daily in his Heart 
 that General DeftruQdon, which God 
 will make of them at the Laft Day. 
 
 He ought to cleave to God alone s 
 and to be always ready, when Obedi¬ 
 ence to his Commands requires it, to 
 facrifice to him all that he holds molt 
 dear, his Fortune, his Polfeffions, his. 
 Places, his Family, his Honour, and e. 
 yen Life it felf, when he cannot keep 
 
The Duties of the Great." ig 
 
 them without lofing God; hearkning 
 to and obeying the Lord, who on thefe 
 occafions fays to him, as he did to 
 Abraham, facrifice to me thy Son , thyonely 
 Son Ifaac , whom thou loveft. 
 
 His Love to God ought on thefe oc¬ 
 cafions, not only to confume great and 
 important* but even the fmalleft 
 things. For it is the property of Fire 
 to confume all; and our God (who is 
 the Effential Charity,) is aconfuming 
 Fire. 
 
 A Great Man cannot love God pro- 
 portiojiably to what his State and his 
 Vocation requires, if this Love does 
 not almoft equal that of the Martyrs; 
 becaufe his conftant Occupations, his 
 Affairs and Employment, furnifh him 
 everyday with occafions of finding his 
 greateft Interefl: interfere with the 
 Obfervation of the Law of God, and 
 that it is certain he cannot be faved, 
 but by giving, on thofe occafions (fo 
 to exprefs it) profufely up to Gob, 
 all that is deareft to him. 
 
 XII* 
 
f 4 The Duties of the Great. 
 
 xm 
 
 HIS Love for his Neighbour ought to 
 be no lefs, it ought to be as great as 
 his Faith, it ought to be Catholick as 
 well as that; he is not truly a Chrifti- 
 an, if one is not as uniyerfal as the o- 
 then Faith ought to embrace all the 
 Dodrines of Chriftianity without ex¬ 
 cepting one, and the Love of our 
 Neighbour ought to embrace all Per- 
 Ions without any exception, Herefie 
 being no more oppofite to the Church 
 in Attacking the Truth, than Schiim, 
 Divifion and Hatred, in attacking its 
 Unity. 
 
 A Great Man ought to think himfelf 
 even more obliged to this Love of his 
 Neighbour than any other Chnitian, 
 iince by his Vocation he is chiefly a 
 Man for his Neighbour, being made 
 duly for him ; to relieve him in his 
 "Wants, to comfort him in his Afflidi- 
 bns, to correct him in his Failings, to 
 do him Juftice, to avenge and pro¬ 
 tect him irom Violence, and to deliver 
 him from Oppreflion. 
 
 . If Greatnejs were not wholly for our 
 Neighbour, but that the Poffeflor of it 
 
 might 
 
The Duties of the Great- 
 
 might look on it as a thing that apper¬ 
 tains to himfelf, it would be the greateft 
 of all Evils; fince there would then be 
 no other Ufe, no other Bufinefs for it, 
 but to be the Nourifhment of Pride 
 and Self-dove. 
 
 A Great Man ought then to be fully 
 perfwaded that he fubverts the Order 
 which God has eftablifhd in the World, 
 and efpecially in the Chriftian World, 
 When he thinks that his Inferiors are 
 made for him, in the Senfe of which 
 we nowfpeak, fo that he may difpofe 
 of them as he pleafes, and without a 
 reafonable Caufe, that truly iefpe£ts 
 the advantage of thofe Inferiors. It is 
 rather he that belongs to them, and 
 who ought to be all things to all. 
 Jesus Christ {hews us Lins Truth, 
 and the Subverfion of this Order, in 
 the Example of the Gentiles, with the 
 true Order of things in his own 
 Example. The Kjngs of the Gentiles ex - 
 ircife Lordfhip over them , and they who 1 
 exercife Authority upon ihem y are called 
 JBenefadlors, But ye [ball not he fo^ hut he 
 that is greatejl among you , let him be as 
 the youngei , and he that is chiefs as he 
 that doth Jerve . For whether is greater 
 he that fitteth at Meat or he that Jer - 
 
 veth ? 
 
6 
 
 The Duties of the Great - . 
 
 veth ? is not he that fitteth at Meat ? but 
 I am among you as he that ferveth . 
 
 He ought to know that all his Super* 
 jluity is the Patrimony of his Indigent 
 Neighbour, and that he owes him e- 
 vena part of his Neceffaries, when his 
 Wants are Extream ; That thofe Ne¬ 
 ceffaries ought not to be meafur’d by 
 Luft or Avarice, which has no Bounds, 
 nor by the Example of his Equals, 
 who commonly account their Plea- 
 fures, and the Luxury of their Table, 
 of their Furniture, their Equipage and 
 Buildings, among the moft neceffary 
 things; but by Reafon guided by a tru¬ 
 ly Chriftian Modefty f which knows 
 how to find that juft Temperament, 
 that, far from abafing him below his 
 Rank, renders him much more wor¬ 
 thy of RefpeQ: and Veneration ; and 
 leaves him the Means of affording his 
 Neighbour that Relief he is oblig’d to 
 give him. 
 
The “Duties of the Great. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 : H E has need of Great Prudence to 
 direft him in difficult Conjunftures ; 
 but he ought to avoid that Carnal 
 Prudence which is the Enerhy of God ; 
 confidering that Men are fo blind, that 
 their Defigns, which in appearance 
 are the beft concerted, commonly fail 
 them, notwithftanding all their Appli¬ 
 cation, by ways the leaft forefeen, or 
 even by thofe very Means on which 
 they moft depended for their Succefs .* 
 and in fine, That God is always pleas’d 
 to confound the Wifdom of the World , 
 and to difappoint the Projects form’d 
 by the Greateft Politicians, whether for 
 their o\vn Prefervation, or for the Efta- 
 blifhment of their Succelfors, or even 
 for the moft important Conquefts. 
 
 His Prudence ought to be regulated 
 by more certain Maxims; he ought to 
 believe the Rules of the Gofpel furer 
 than all the Politicks of Men; and when 
 he follows thofe Rules, he ought to go 
 on in hope againft hope ; he ought never 
 to be more in hope than when Humane 
 Means fail him, and when all feems 
 defperate ; fince he prefers in his Con- 
 
 C duel 
 
The ^Duties of the Great; 
 
 dud the Rules which God has prefcri- 
 bed him, to thofe which the World 
 propofes; he ought to expert the Ef¬ 
 fects of the Divine Promifes, even 
 when he fees Second Caufes leaf!: dif- 
 pos’d to produce them knowing that 
 Sarah tho’ Barren fail’d not to conceive 
 Ifaac, that Abraham doubted not but 
 the Obedience by which he was ready 
 to facriffcehisSon, wou’d be the moft 
 proper and the moft certain Means to 
 render him the Father of Nations; that 
 God has chiefly made tffeof Martyr¬ 
 dom and of Death, (which is a thing 
 the moft contrary to Multiplication^ 
 for the Multiplying of Chriftians ; and 
 that in fine, even the f)eath of Jesus 
 Chkist, the Sovereign Legiflator of 
 the Law of Grace, which in the inten¬ 
 tion of the Jews was to have abolifhM 
 and extinguifh'd the Chrifiian Church y 
 has eftabiifh’d its Duration to the End 
 of the World, fo that the Gates of Hell 
 can never prevail againjl it. 
 
 He fhould not however always fol¬ 
 low the Ardour of his Zeal, which ought 
 to be regulated by Difcretion, other-, 
 wife it wou’d be to tempt God, and not 
 to follow the Rules of the Gofpd Pru¬ 
 dence, to abandon himfelf every Mo¬ 
 ment 
 
The Duties of the Gre^t. iy 
 
 roent to his Ardours, without Confi- 
 deration and without Meafure. But 
 he ought to know that Cbrifiian Virtues, 
 far from deftroying,. mutually affift 
 each other, and wonderfully agree to¬ 
 gether ; that the Morality of the holy 
 Scripture gives him certain Rules for 
 all the different occafions of his Life* 
 that the Application of thefe Rules may 
 be feen throughout the Hiftory of the 
 fame Scripture, but particularly, and 
 in a manner wholly Divine in the Life 
 of our Lord Jesus Christ ; who at 
 one time ,drives out the Buyers .and 
 Sellers from the Temple, by the Zeal, 
 (when he knows that Zeal to be for the 
 Glory of his Father,) of which h? 
 is fullAt another time fuppreffes by 
 Prudence; the Truth which thofe to 
 whom he fpoke cou’d not yet bear; and 
 with Humility is altogether filent be¬ 
 fore thofe who were jo judge him, 
 (when their Obftinacy was too great 
 to profit by his words;) fothat on thefe 
 Occafions, he may fay to himfelf Look 
 unto Jesus the Author and. Finijher of the 
 Faith. . 
 
 , He ought never to do any thing with 
 
 S recipitation, whatever Appearance of 
 lood the thing may have that is pro- 
 C i pofed 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 pofed to him ; but deliberately id 
 think of it in the Prefence of God, ear- 
 neftly to pray to him to obtain Light, 
 and then to take CounfeL But above 
 all he fhould be moft Circumfpefl: in 
 the Choice of thofe with whom he will 
 confult; He ought in the firft place ear- 
 heftfy to beg them of God, after which 
 he fhould confider their Talents, their 
 Senfe and Experience, but efpecially 
 the Uprightnefs of their Intentions, 
 their Dilimereftednefs and their Max¬ 
 ims; looking upon thofe Perfons as 
 blind Leaders of the Blind , who inftead 
 of railing Men to the Purity of the 
 Gofpel, wou d bring down the Gofpel 
 to the Corruption of Man, by falfe 
 and accommodating Interpretations: 
 he ought to avoid Inch with Care, and 
 to be fenfible that it wou’d be a Judg¬ 
 ment of God upon him that ought to 
 make him tremble, if he fhould per¬ 
 mit him, for the Punifhment of his 
 Sins, not to apply himfelf to thofe who 
 endeavour to regulate Men's Manners 
 by the Strict Maxims of Jesus Christ ; 
 but becaufe he cannot endure the holy 
 Severity of Sound Doftrine, fhould Jet 
 him make choice of thofe New Doftors, 
 who fo eafily give to Souls a falfe Peace , 
 
 upcn 
 
The Duties of the Great. 2 1 
 
 ppon ridiculous Reafons, either of their 
 own Invention, or which they find in 
 Modern Authors, as corrupt as them- 
 felves; whofe whole Endeavours have 
 been to enervate all the Principles 
 of the Gofpel by their corrupt Morality* 
 founded not upon the Truth , which is 
 certain, but upon Probabilities , which 
 even are not Probable. 
 
 Let him fear to be of the Number of 
 thofe of whom St. Paul fpcaks, when 
 he fays, The time will come when they % T j m# jj # 
 will not endure Sound Dofirine, hut after 4. 
 their own Lujls {hall they heap, to, them - 
 felves TeacberSy having itching Ears. 
 
 St. Bernard excellently well defcribessr.Ber.Lih, 
 the Perfons whom a Great Man ought 4 deCoq- 
 to draw near him and to confide in/ lder * 14 
 Make no Choice ( fays he ) of thofe who 
 feek to be chofen and eagerly purfue it y but 
 of thofe who decline and refuje it ; even 
 compel fuch to be with you , Place not 
 
 your Trufi in them who are over-confident f 
 hut in thofe who are modeH and difereety 
 who fear none but God y and hope for nothing 
 but from* him ; who have m refpetl to the 
 Prefents of thofe who apply to themy but 
 confider their Neceffities ; who generoufly 
 undertake the Caufe of the Afflitfedy and 
 judge not in favour of the Goody but accor - 
 
 C ? ding 
 
 * 7 ^ 
 
The Duties of the Great^ 
 
 ting to Equity ; who are of a grave and^ 
 compos'd Behaviour y of an approved SanCli- 
 ty , and always ready to obey ; who are meek 
 and patient y fubmij]ive to Difcipline , fevere 
 in their Corrections y orthodox in the Faith y 
 faithful in their Adminijlration y Lovers 
 of Peace y and difpos’d to ‘Union and Chari¬ 
 ty with all Men ; who are upright in their 
 fudgment, prudent in their Counfels , dij- 
 tireet in their Commands , and dextrous in 
 their Management') who are in delibera¬ 
 ting cautious , in their Actions refolute , mo¬ 
 de fl in their Words y calm in Adverfity y hum¬ 
 ble in Profpenty • who can moderate their 
 Zjal y and are not flack and remifs in their 
 Charity• whofe Let jure time is not fpent 
 in Tdlenefs , who uje Hofpitality without fal¬ 
 ling into Intemperance y and are fober in their 
 Feajls ; who manage their Domefick Affairs 
 without Confufion"and Perplexity , who co¬ 
 vet not other Mens Goods , nor prodigally 
 fpend their ovn\ and who are circumjpeCi 
 in all their Actions y &c. ' 
 
 Who to Kjngs are injiead of John the 
 Baptift, to the Egyptians of a Mofes; a- 
 gainfl Whoremongers are a Phine^s y agdinjl 
 Idolaters an Elijah, to the Covetous an 
 Elifha, to Lyars a St. Peter, to Blafphe- 
 fners a St. Paul, to Buyers and Sellers are as 
 Christ Who do not defpife the People[ y but 
 Cd ; - inflruCl - 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 infer uci them ; who flatter 'not the Rich ? 
 hut put them in fear ; who opprefs not the 
 Poor, hut relieve them • who fear not the 
 threat pings of Princes, hut cdutemn them ; 
 who enter into Affemhlies without Confu¬ 
 sion or Difeurhance, and come out of 'em 
 without Paffion\ who do not drain the 
 Peoples Purfes, but comfort their Hearts 
 and chaftife their Crimes • whofe Love 
 to Prayer makes them affiduous and devout 
 in it, and who in all forts of Affairs have 
 Recourfe to God and put more Confidence 
 in their Prayers than in their own Labour 
 and Industry . 
 
 He ought not to judg of the Goodnefs 
 of his Undertakings by their Succefs, 
 but only by their Fidelity, with which 
 he has obferv’d thofe' holy Rules; 
 knowing that Events are in the hand 
 of God, that a Hair of our Heads does 
 not fall to the ground without his leave, 
 and that the only End a Chriftian ought 
 to propofe to himfelf being to do the 
 Will of God, whatever Temporal MiF 
 fortune, or whatever 'teeming Difap- 
 pointment of his Defigns, may happen 
 to him, he attains notwithstanding 
 his true End, by the Means which 
 God himfelf has taught him, and that 
 therefore he is truly Prudent. 
 
 C 4 XIV, 
 
 •• ° ’ * • % 
 
24 
 
 The 'Buttes of the Great 
 XiV. 
 
 JUSTICE is a confiant and perpe- 
 tual Will to render to every one his due . 
 One eafily fees that this ought to be 
 the principal Virtue of the Great , and 
 there is no need of proving it; But 
 it is moil neceffary to confider where¬ 
 in the Practice of this Virtue confifts, 
 and what are the Obftacles which 
 muft be overcome or avoided. The 
 Principal ones are Ignorance , Precipita¬ 
 tion , Pre-occupation , Sloth , and Interejl . 
 Thefe are the Enemies which a Great 
 Man muft combat, that his Will of 
 rendering to every one their Due may 
 be conftant and perpetual, without 
 which the Name of Juft can never be¬ 
 long to him. Now, to render to every 
 one what belongs to them, a Great 
 Man is oblig’d, under pain of Damna¬ 
 tion, either to inform himfelf through¬ 
 ly of his General Duties, or to renounce 
 his Greatnefs, and his Employments, 
 he ought perfectly to know the Max¬ 
 ims of the Chriftian Religion, which 
 muft fupply what is wanting in Hu¬ 
 man Laws, and reCfifie the Defeats of 
 them/ 
 
 He 
 
The Duties of the Great. 25 
 
 He ought to know the Laws and 
 Ordinances, efpecially thofe which re- 
 fpeft the Governours of Provinces, Mi¬ 
 litary Ordinances, the Regulations and 
 Privileges of the Provinces and Cities 
 oyer which he is plac’d; and he ought 
 to Prefer this Study to all other Acti¬ 
 ons which might have a greater fhew 
 of Piety, believing firmly that he lhall 
 be judg’d with refpeft to thofe, when 
 be appears at the Tribunal of God, 
 and that Ignorance of them will not 
 be receiv’d for an Excufe, but the Caufe 
 pf a more Severe Condemnation. He 
 ought himfelf to be acquainted with 
 the ftateofhisown Affairs, to do juftice 
 to his Creditors, not to be rigorous to 
 his Debtors, to make Reftitution if he 
 finds himfelf poffeft of any thing which 
 in right belongs to others, to be exact 
 in paying his Domefticks, to feek no¬ 
 thing but Juftice in any Law-fuit he is 
 oblig’d to have, and to be as well fa- 
 tisfied when the lofes as when he gains 
 them; becaufe his A.im is not to have 
 Wealth at any rate by right or wrong, 
 but to have nothing but his own; to 
 demand only what he has a lawful Ti¬ 
 tle to; all which require him to be 
 throughly inftru&ed in every Circum- 
 
 ftance 
 
6 
 
 The Duties of the Great - . 
 
 fiance that relates to the Affairs of his 
 Eftate and Family. 
 
 XV. 
 
 PRECIPITATION is the Se¬ 
 cond Enemy which he ought to com¬ 
 bat, and for this End he ought ne¬ 
 ver to do Bufinefs carelefly or haftily, 
 but to give all his Application to it, 
 and to moderate the Natural Activity 
 of his Mind, which may fometimes be 
 impatient to fee the End of a Bufinefs 
 fooner than is poffible, or feek to abate 
 the Trouble and Uneafinefs that Affairs 
 give him, by multiplying them and 
 palling from one to another, hoping to 
 find by this means a Divertifement in 
 that Variety, which fupplies in fome 
 manner the Want of thofe Diverfions 
 which his Bufinefs hinders him from 
 taking He ought to examine the 
 fmalleft Circumltances of things, to 
 hear, to read himfelf all that relates to 
 them, and as it were to anatomize 
 them; to feek on each Affair for the 
 moft able and the moil difinterefted 
 Perfons to inform him throughly of 
 the Fait and of the Lmv y and never to 
 decide them on the Spot, how juft foe- 
 
The Duties of the Great. 27 
 
 ver they may appear, but to take time 
 to communicate them to all the Par¬ 
 ties concern’d. 
 
 XVI 
 
 PRE-OCCUPATION springs 
 from many Sources'. Firft from the 
 friame of certain Minds which are ea- 
 fily prepoffeft, either through a natural 
 Facility which they have to receive Itn- 
 preffions from the firft who fpeak to 
 them, or thro’ a too great Fondnefs 
 which their Self-love gives them for 
 their firft Thoughts, from which they 
 do not eafily recede. Thefe two kinds of 
 Pre-occupation are to be deftroy’d by very 
 contrary Remedies. For that great Fa¬ 
 cility muft be combatted by a certain 
 Firmnefs of Mind, which keeps the 
 Judgment in an Entire Sufpenfion, not- 
 withftanding all the efforts of thofe 
 who wou’d 'prepoiTefs them, till he 
 clearly difeoverthe Truth by the ufu- 
 al means which Wife Men take to 
 knowi t, whether with refped to Right , 
 which ought to be founded on unquefh- 
 onable Principles, from which one can- 
 hot recede when he has maturely confi- 
 der’d them ; or w^th refped t<p the parti. 
 
8 
 
 The “Duties of the Great. 
 
 cular Application of thofe Principles to 
 matter of Faft, in which he mull look 
 into himfelf as much as he can, and 
 not rely on the Faith of others. 
 
 On the contrary, that Fondnefs for 
 his own Opinion, being a Vicious Ex- 
 tream of this Firmnefs , rightly called 
 Opiniatrety , ought to be combatted by a 
 juft and reafonable Diftruft of ones felf,, 
 by which one fuppofes he may eafily 
 be miftaken, efpeciallywhen he has not 
 allow’d himfelf time to examine things 
 according to the Rules which Wife 
 Men have eftablifh’d in all Ages tQ 
 prevent being deceiv’d. 
 
 XVII. 
 
 THE other Sources of Pre-occupation 
 are Love and Hatred, to which may 
 alfo be refer’d Inclination, Averfion and 
 Anger: For by ene of thefe Palfions a 
 Man is perfwaded that the Perfon he 
 loves is never in the wrong; which 
 hinders the Mind from admitting any 
 Reafons to the contrary ; And by the 
 other he is perfwaded that the Perfon 
 he Hates is never in the right. He 
 ought to combat thefe Enemies of 
 Jultice, by labouring ferioufly and vi- 
 
 goroufly 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 goroufly to get the Mattery of his 
 Paffions,fo that they may have no fhare 
 either in the ways he takes to be in¬ 
 form’d of the Affairs on which he is to 
 give Sentence, or in the Sentence he 
 gives. And therefore he mutt avoid 
 giving any, whilft he feels himfelf 
 mov’d by any Paflion, efpecially that 
 of Anger. 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 ’TIS eafy to fee how Sloth is an E- 
 nemy to Juftice, fince it not only oc- 
 cafions Ignorance of the General Duties 
 and Maxims, which mutt neceffarily 
 be known that they may be put in 
 praftice; but likewife caufes an Inap¬ 
 plication to the particular Fafts on 
 which one is to aft. And by this means a 
 Great Man trailing Affairs entirely to 
 his Minifters or his Confidents, is Guilty 
 of all the Injuftice which they do under 
 his Name, and by his Authority, and 
 of all that is done in any Manner what 
 foever, which he could have hindred by 
 a little Application.From hence it comes 
 that the Diverfions of a Great Man, 
 tho not otherwife forbidden by the Law 
 of God, are almoft alwaysgmtf Crimes , 
 
3 o Tte Duties of the Great 
 
 arid great Injuftices, if they take him 
 from his Duties, and he makes them 
 his chief Bufinefs; fo that he is not 
 allow’d to take any Diverfions, but fo 
 fat as is precifely necelTary to keep Na¬ 
 ture from finking under the, weight of 
 Affairs, becaufe he owes his Time to the 
 Publick, which he robs it of when he 
 gives that Time to his Pleafures, 
 
 XIX. 
 
 BUT the greateft of all Crimes is to 
 facrifice Jt/ftice to Interejl. There are 
 few Perfons plac’d in any Dignity ca¬ 
 pable of committing Injuftice for petty 
 interefts * but in truth there are very 
 few alfo whom a great Intereji will not 
 prevail upon to do it; and indeed the 
 Spirit of Human Jujlice rarely fur- 
 mounts thole occafions where one muft 
 hazard his Fortune, his FofTefllons, or 
 his Life; not to be unjuft. It. is Chrifii * 
 an JuJtice only that is not to be fhakeri 
 in thefe Rencounters, and that can rer 
 fift all the Enemies which attack it. 
 For as this partakes of the juftice of 
 Jefus Chnjt , it has no acception of Per-* 
 Ions, it is perpetual, in all Times, in all 
 
 Places, 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 ■places, with refpect to all, and at the 
 hazard of all. 
 
 XX. 
 
 ■ : . i , > 
 
 AND therefore that it may be tru¬ 
 ly a Chriflitw Ju/lice, it muft be fup- 
 ported by Fortitude, which is a Virtue lb 
 necelfary to a Great Man that one may 
 fay it is that which preferves all the 
 reft; fince without Firmnefs and Refo- 
 lution, how Prudent foever he may be, 
 he will never execute what he judges 
 to be reafonable, and how Juft foever 
 he may be, he will yet never do Ju- 
 ftiee, if he finds any oppofition to the 
 Practice of thefe two Virtues; as we fee 
 in all Hiftories that Weak Princes have 
 done all the Injuftice in the Worlds 
 without being Unjuft, and have exer- 
 cifed all imaginable Cruelties, without 
 being Cruel, either through Weaknefs 
 of Mind, when they have let them- 
 felves be Govern’d by others; or out of 
 Faint-heartednefs, when their Natural 
 Timidity, or the Fear of fome prefent 
 Peril has (o polfeft them, that they cou’d 
 find no other way to free themfelves 
 from thofe imaginary or real Dangers 
 with which they thought themfelves 
 
 threatned. 
 
I % The Duties of the Great. 
 
 threatned, but by yielding againft their 
 Confcience to the Unjuft things whicfi 
 others requir’d of them. Thus Filate 
 out of Fear of the People, who threatned 
 him with the Difpleafure of Co-Jar, con- 
 fented to the Death of j fefus Chrijl, 
 John xix. If thoa let this Mango, thou art not C&far's 
 a- Friend. 
 
 ’Tis on thefe occafions that one ought 
 to do all, and to hazard all, rather than 
 yield to Iniquity; and this was the Prin¬ 
 cipal Virtue of the Martyrs, Who are 
 properly the Heroes oftheGofpel, and 
 who fuffered nbt only the Lofs of their 
 Life,but inconceivable Torments rather 
 than deny the Faith; not is any Chrifti- 
 an Perfect, who is not in a difpofition to 
 fuffer for the Obfervation of the Law of 
 God in all its Parts, and for each Com¬ 
 mand in particular, all that theMartyrs 
 have fuffer’d for the Faith: fo that a 
 Great Man ought to hazard his Poifef- 
 fions, his Fortune, his Places, and Life 
 it felf, rather than have any fhare in 
 the leaft Injuftice, rather than omit the 
 leaft part of his Duty, rather than be 
 jfilent when he is oblig’d to fpeak, ra¬ 
 ther than fpeak when he is oblig’d to 
 be filent, rather than aft when he is 
 oblig’d not to aft, rather than not 
 
 to 
 
The Duties of the Great, j 3 
 
 to aft, when there is an Obligation 
 to aft. This is a Leffon utterly un¬ 
 known to Corrupt Nature ; Thefe gre 
 Truths far above Flefh and Blood ; 
 
 Thefe are Maxims highly contrary to 
 Self-love, and fuch as attack it in its 
 Root. Man has nothing himfelf where¬ 
 with to fuftain fuch hard Tryals; nor 
 is it in himfelf he fhould feek for Sup¬ 
 port; To obtain fo great a Gift, he 
 muft have recourfe to him who would 
 be call’d even in his Infancy, The Migh-ikusl* 9] 
 tj God ; who, notwithftanding all the 
 Infirmities of his Nature, notwith- 
 Handing all the Repugnances of Carnal 
 Policy, can give him that Valour 
 which is the true Charafter of a Chri- 
 ftian, and which one is never more in a 
 condition of Exercifing heroickly, than 
 when he is moft fenfible that he can¬ 
 not have it of himfelf. And therefore 
 when he does not rely on his own 
 Strength, But abandons himfelf to the 
 Spirit of Fortitude , which is no other 
 than the Holy Spirit himfelf, faying 
 in faith, I will go in the frength of the pfai.ixxi. 
 Lord, he then experiences the Truth of 
 thofe words of the Apoftle, When I am 
 Weak then I am firong . 
 
 I> XXX* 
 
.The Duties of the Great. 
 
 XXI. 
 
 Temperance being a vir- 
 
 tue which regulates the Ufe of lawful 
 Enjoyments, by reducing them to a 
 fuft Moderation, is peculiarly the Vir¬ 
 tue of the Great; for thefe Enjoyments 
 being faanifhM from the Condition of 
 the Poor, which is a State of Want, that 
 State does not furnifh any matter up¬ 
 on which Temperance can be exercifed; 
 and as the middle Rank of People do 
 not abound with thefe Enjoyments, 
 that State is in it felfa State of Tem¬ 
 perance, fxrrce by the Necedity of its 
 Condition it has in it felf that Medi¬ 
 ocrity, which the Virtue of Tempe¬ 
 rance would embrace by Choice. It 
 is then properly the Great, who have an 
 abundance of all Sorts ofPIeafures and 
 Conveniences, that are oblig’d by the 
 Virtue of Temperance to retrench the 
 excedive and immoderate Ufe of them. 
 And this a Great Man ought faithfully 
 co do on many moft preding Motives. 
 
 Th sfirjl is, that tho there are Law¬ 
 ful Pleafiires-, yet the Excefs of thofe 
 Pleafures, which 'it is the bufinefs of 
 Temperance to retrench, is always 
 forbidden- The 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 The fecond is,that thePleafures which 
 are allow’d, and thofe that are forbid¬ 
 den, approach fo near to one another, 
 that it is morally ; impoflible to aban¬ 
 don ones felf to the full Extent of thofe 
 which are allow’d, without tranfgref- 
 fing the Bounds that feparate them 
 from tire other, which are alnioft al¬ 
 ways imperceptible. 
 
 The third is, that even the Nature 
 of Lawful Pleafures is not commonly 
 well underftood, being often meafurd 
 by Concttpifcence which is Blind, or by 
 looje Maxims , which wholly enervate 
 the Stri&nefs of the Gofpel, eftablifh- 
 ing thofe Pleafures as Innocent, which 
 are really altogether Criminal. 
 
 XXII. 
 
 ■ . i ■ ■ 
 
 BUT a Great Man, who has the 
 true Spirit of Chriftianity, ought to 
 go yet much farther, fince he is oblig’d 
 to Enter eflettually into the Spirit of 
 Penitence and Mortification. 
 
 ’Tis an Error fo much the more per¬ 
 nicious , as ’tis almofl: univerfally e- 
 ftablifh’d, that Penitence and Mortify 
 cation are only for thofe who are fhut 
 up in Cloifters; That the Great, and 
 D 2 fuch 
 
The i)uties of the Great. 
 
 fuch as live in the Commerce of the 
 World, are to look on them only as 
 matters of Coilnfel, and of greater Per¬ 
 fection,, and that they may attain Sal¬ 
 vation by ways lefs harfh and difficult. 
 This Damnable Maxim has not only 
 pofieft the Hearts of the Men of the 
 World, but is likewife maintain’d by 
 Numbers of Confiejfors and Cafiuifis ; to 
 whom may be apply’d thofe words 
 which Jesus Christ fpoke of the 
 Pharifees, Thefe are blind Leaders of the 
 blind . 
 
 ? Tis true thefe Do&Ors do not treat 
 of Penitence and Mortification altogether 
 in the fame manner ; for they openly 
 avow and declare that none can be 
 fav’d without the firft ; but then they 
 retain nothing of it but the Name , 
 and that which they fubftitute in its 
 Head, is' no more the Penitence com¬ 
 manded by our Lord, authorifed by his 
 Example, appointed by his Church, 
 and Practiced by all who fincerely 
 defire their Salvation, and who would 
 not be flatter’d in their Search of 
 the true Means to attain it, than the 
 Waters which make the Rivers now, 
 are the fame that made them an hun¬ 
 dred years ago, tho they retain the fame 
 
 Name, 
 
T he Duties of the Great. 3 7 
 
 Name. As for Mortification, they ba- 
 nifh and confine it abfolutely to Mo- 
 naileries, or at moft they look on it 
 only as a Virtue which every Chriftian 
 is at liberty to have or to let alone as 
 he pleafes; enlarging thus, by a fatal 
 condefcenfion, the way which our Sa¬ 
 viour has defcrib’d to us as a ftrait, 
 rugged and difficult way. This is an 
 an Error which a Great Man ought 
 to deteft with all his heart, to look 
 on as the Ruine of all his good In¬ 
 clinations, and to root it out of his 
 Mind by eilablifhing the contrary 
 Truths, which are founded on undeni¬ 
 able Principles. 
 
 Since the fall of Adam^ Man cannot 
 confider himfelf but in one of thefe 
 three States, either charged with the 
 Obligations which he lyes under by 0 - 
 riginal Sin at his Birth ; or in the State 
 of Baptifmal Innocence ; or after the Lofs 
 of that Innocence ; now it is certain 
 that in all thefe States he is oblig'd to 
 Penitence, and to all the Confequences 
 of it. 
 
 In th tfirft of thefe States he is com¬ 
 prehended in that General Condemna¬ 
 tion of Mankind, which God pronoun¬ 
 ced to Adam, and in him to all his Po- 
 D 3 fterity. 
 
| B The 'Duties of the Great.' 
 
 fterity. Thou {bait eat thy Bread in the 
 Sweat of thy Face . He contracts by 
 this fuch an Obligation to Labour and 
 Toil,that laborious Works become even 
 neceffary for him, that he may acquire 
 a juft Right to thofe things without 
 which Lite cannot be preferv’d. Thefe 
 words are a Prohibition of Idlenefs , 
 which is one of the Appendages of 
 Greatnefs ; for the Great commonly 
 avoid Labour, and as they may eafily 
 exempt themfelves from it, by laying 
 ' it on others, they are apt to think that 
 Means lawful, which they have fo 
 much in their Power. 
 
 In the Second ftate, which is that of 
 Regeneration by Baptifm, he is ftill o- 
 bligkl to Penitence; becaufe as a Chri- 
 ftian he ought to be conform’d to Jesus 
 Christ. For whom he did foreknow, them 
 he did predejlinate to he conform'd unto 
 the Image of his Son . Now Jesus 
 Christ led a Life of extream Labour 
 and Penitence, and therefore a Great 
 Man cannot hope for that Portion of 
 the Kingdom of Jesus Chr ist, which 
 is only to be acquir’d by a Conformity 
 with him, whilft following the Vices 
 of his Rank, he leads a Life of Softneft 
 andEafe*. It is afhaml (faith St. Bernard) 
 
 ' for 
 
3? 
 
 The Duties of the Great. 
 
 for a Chriftian to be delicate , being a Mem- 
 her of an Head crown d with Thorns . 
 
 Bat the Third ftate, which is that of 
 Innocence loft after Baptifm, is a ftate to 
 which Penitence is effentially neceffa- 
 ry; and this does notconfift ("as fome 
 imagine) in a bare Confeftion of Sins, 
 with fome Sorrow for having commit¬ 
 ted them, which often is either not 
 fincere, or fo fuperficial that it has not 
 fhe Force to hinder them from Relap- 
 fing: The Sorrow of true Penitence is 
 more Solid, it produces a fincere Return 
 to God, an entire Change of Life and 
 Manners, and a Revenge againftones 
 felf proportion’d to the greatnefs of his 
 Sins; If it has not thefe Marks it is but 
 a Counterfeit Penitence, S. Paul defcribes 
 to us its Nature and Effects in this 
 manner, Godly Sorrow worketh Repentance a c 
 to Salvation not to be repented of. For io,°^ a 
 this Sorrowing after a Godly manner, be¬ 
 hold what Carefulnefs it wrought in you, 
 yea what Watchfulnefs, yea what Indigna¬ 
 tion , yea what Fear , yea what vehement Df- 
 fire, yea what TLeal , yea what Revenge . 
 
 This'ftate of Penitence then is a labo¬ 
 rious ftate, and we cannot be reftor’d 
 to the Grace of God, from which we are 
 fallen by our Sins, without great La- 
 D 4 bour^ 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 hours, and abundance of Tears. And 
 if Sudden Death prevents, or fome great 
 Infirmities difable us from making this 
 Satisfa&ion, that does not hinder it 
 from being Effential to Penitence, to 
 have a fincere' and effectual Will of 
 doing it; fo that if the Execution of it 
 is hindred, it be only by Caufes wholly 
 out of the Power of Man, and not from 
 the Weaknefs and Coldnefs of his Re¬ 
 pentance. 
 
 xxnr. 
 
 BUT befides that a Great Man is 
 oblig’d, as a Man^ as a Chriflian 9 and a^ 
 a Sinner, to lead a laborious and peni- : 
 tent Life, he is alfo oblig’d as a Great 
 Man , to the Mortification of his Spirit, 
 of his Heart and ofhisSenfes, and he 
 is even more oblig’d to this than Mona- 
 picks are, if he defires at all to fecure his 
 Salvation. To underhand this Truth 
 aright, we muft take it from its Source. 
 God had created the firft Man in a ftate 
 of Righteoufhefs and Integrity, and fub- 
 jefted all things to him, both within 
 him and without him ; fo that there 
 was not any Creature the ufe of which 
 did not lead him to God, and contribute 
 
The Duties of the Greats 
 
 to the Increafe of his Sanctity. But 
 when Man by his Difobedience would 
 needs throw off the Yoke of Subordina¬ 
 tion and Dependance, which he ought 
 to have on his Creator, and yielding to 
 the Counfel of the Serpent, who (aid 
 to the Woman ye fhall be as Gods , would 
 imitate in fome manner the Rebellious 
 Angel, and make himfelf like unto the 
 mofi High ; God permitted that not on¬ 
 ly all the other Creatures which before 
 were Helps to his Salvation, fhould be¬ 
 come mod dangerous Snares to him, 
 but that even his own Flefh fhould re¬ 
 volt againft his Spirit; fo that it be¬ 
 came needful for him, that God fhould 
 Eftablifh for his Recovery,an Order quite 
 oppofite to that which he had eftablifh’d 
 to fave him in the State of Innocence ; 
 and therefore it is, that inftead of the 
 firft order ofPoffeflion, of Ufe, and of 
 Quiet, God has fubftituted an order 
 of Privation, Abnegation and Combat. 
 No Man can now be fav’d but by 
 this way; yet there is this difference, 
 that all are not oblig’d to an aftual 
 forfaking of alljthings, tho all are oblig’d 
 to renounce them in heart, and to uft 
 them as not ufmg them . 
 
 It is, without queftion incomparably 
 • - more 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 more Eafy to bear this ftate of Priva¬ 
 tion by voluntarily avoiding, and fepa- 
 rating ones felf for ever from the Ob- 
 jedls that lead to Evil, which Mona- 
 fhcks do, than to be continually in the 
 midft of ones Enemies, to be as it were 
 almoft always in danger of being over¬ 
 power’d by their Number, to hear a- 
 bout a Body which always turns to 
 their fide, and to live continually in the 
 Commerce of thofe who glory in yield¬ 
 ing to their Power. Now how can 
 it be conceiv’d that a Great Man fhould 
 not be overcome in fo many occafions, 
 if by continual Mortification he does 
 not fubjedt the Pride of his Spirit to the 
 Humility of Faith ; if he does not fti- 
 fie the irregular Defires of his Heart, and 
 If he does not fubjedt his Body to the 
 holy Law of the Mind, as did St. Paul, 
 who with all the Fulnefs of Apoftolick 
 Grace found no other means to fecure 
 himfelf. Can one imagine, without be¬ 
 ing willing to deceive ones felf, that 
 there is any other way to refill: all that 
 will attack a Great Man but that of con- 
 ftant Mortification,and that he is not ob¬ 
 lig’d to practice it with fo much the more 
 fervour, as he is the more expos’d by 
 l)is Station,, If he wou’d belong to 
 
 : CHRIST^' 
 
43 
 
 The Duties of the Great. 
 
 Christ, he mil ft with him crucifie 
 the Flefll ; They who are Chriffs, bave Qal#v<1 ^ 
 crucified the flefh with the Affections and 
 Lujls a Now how can he ever hope 
 to vanquifh it, if be lets it attain all 
 its Force, if when looking on it with 
 reafon as his moft cruel Enemy, he 
 does not ftrive to weaken it as fincere- 
 ly and as carefully as the General of 
 an Army endeavours to lelfen the 
 Power of an Enemy. 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 BUT the Victories which are ob¬ 
 tain’d over fo great and fo formidable 
 Enemies, do not ftnifh the War, which 
 mull be maintain’d during the whole 
 courfe of Life; a more dangerous Ad- 
 verfary arifes againft Man, and efpe- 
 cially againft thofe who are in the high- 
 eft Stations: It arifes even from the 
 Deftruction of all Vices, it is nou- 
 rifh’d by the moft rigorous Penitence, 
 and acquires all its Strength amidft 
 the moft confummated Virtue. This 
 is that Pafiion which the Apoftle St. 
 
 John calls the Pride of IJfe , which fays 
 to Man in the bottom of his heart, after 
 he has vanquifh’d all his other Paftions, 
 fu . ( 4 Why 
 
44 T/>e ©#**« 0/ Great. 
 
 Why dofl thou triumph ? I am ftill alive, 
 and I live hecaufe thou triumphefl . ’Tis 
 this which appropriates to it felf all 
 Virtues and all Good Works^ that 
 fnatches them from God , to make it felf 
 the Caufe and Principle of them, and 
 by this means to empoyfon them. 
 Pride , faith St. Augujline , lays Snares a- 
 gain ft Good works , to render the?n un¬ 
 profitable . ’Tisthis Pride that would have 
 all things depend on it felf, and that 
 will depend on nothing ; that would 
 rob God , if it were poffible, of the So¬ 
 vereign Power which he has over all 
 Beings; that demands the Sacrifices of 
 all the Creatures, and which is fo fub- 
 tile, fo delicate and fo imperceptible 
 in a Great Man that it is the Soul of 
 all his A&ions and of all his Motions 
 without his perceiving it. ’Tis this 
 that kindles the moft bloody Wars, 
 and that under Specious Pretences, fa- 
 crifices the Lives of Millions to the 
 leaft of its Interests. ’ Tis this that im- 
 poverifhes Provinces and Kingdoms to 
 gratify it felf, that is pleas'd to fee 
 Mankind at its feet; ’tis this in fine 
 which refers all to it felf, and thinks 
 all the Creatures put to their moft pro¬ 
 per ufe 3 when they are deftroy’d for 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 its Honour and Glory ; Eftablifhing as 
 it were, to it felf a Worfhip, of which 
 it believes it felf worthy, and requi¬ 
 ring of thofe whom it fubjeHs, Refpefls 
 that come little fliort of Religion. 
 ’Twas this P ride that ruin’d the Chief 
 Angel, ’twas this Defire of Indepen- 
 dance which ruin’d the whole Human 
 Nature, with our firft Parent; and 
 ’tis the fame which ftill exercifes a Ty- 
 rannick Empire over the Great , and 
 which daily makes ufe of their Greatefl: 
 Qualities to undo them. 
 
 There is nothing but a Knowledge of 
 the Truth that is capable of Stifling 
 this Monfter, for Chrtjlian Humility is 
 no other thing but a juft and reafonabte 
 Sentiment which follows Upon a Know¬ 
 ledge of the Truth: Man, when illumi¬ 
 nated with this holy Light, perceiv¬ 
 ing the Greatnefs of God, and feeing 
 at the fame time his own Nothingnefs, 
 defires to keep himfelf in the place 
 which belongs to him, and very far 
 from affecting Independartce, he could 
 wifh to be fubjefted to all the Crea¬ 
 tures, that he might in feme manner 
 avenge God for that Rebellion againff 
 him, to which his Pride has carried him: 
 He confiders himfelf, even in the molt 
 
 confummate' 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 confurfimate SanQity, asaScourceof 
 Evil which would ruijie all the Work 
 of God^ if Grace did not triumph over 
 his Corruption. He looks on all Hu¬ 
 man Grandeurs, when they no longer 
 ferve the Ends for which God has efta- 
 blifhed them, as Trophies of Vanity, 
 which vanifh with it, and can never fe~ 
 cure themfelves againft Time, Misfor¬ 
 tune, or Death. So that Humility is 
 nothing but a fincere and reafonable 
 Aquiefcence in the known Truth, a Ju- 
 ftice which one renders himfelf, in ta¬ 
 king the Place which belongs to him, 
 and a Revenge which one exercifes a- 
 gainft himfelf in abafing ones felf even 
 below all the other Creatures, to repair 
 as much as may be the Injury done to 
 God by afifeQdng Independance. Thefe 
 Sentiments ought to be fincere, lolid, 
 and durable in the Heart of a Great Man^ 
 if he would not have his Greatnefs draw 
 him into Eternal Mifery; and what 
 ever Virtue he may otherwife have ac¬ 
 quir’d, 7 tis a Treafure which he poffeffes ; 
 i n Earthen Vejfels , which he will never 
 preferve but by acknowledging with 
 a profound Humility, that \is God alone 
 who can be the Guardian and Prefervef 
 of his own Gifts, We have this Tred - 
 
The Duties of the Great. 
 
 fare in Earthen Veffels (faith St. Paul ) 
 that the Excellency of the Power may he of 
 God , and not of as. But if Exterior A- 
 bafements are not always fit for a Great 
 Man , becaufe the Service he ought to 
 render God in his ftation does not per¬ 
 mit it; he ought however when he does 
 not make uft of them by his own 
 Choice, to be prepared for receiving 
 with Joy,all thole which may happen to 
 him by the Choice of God ; to frame him- 
 felf to the fame Difpofition with Holy 
 fob , abandoning himfelf entirely into 
 the hands of God , that he may difpofe of 
 his Honour as well as of his Fortune and 
 Dignities ; joining to this a Spirit of 
 true Religion, and of Interior and Ex¬ 
 terior Worfhip, not only in himfelf* 
 but with refpeft to all who are fubjeft 
 to him ; defpifing this Earth which is 
 but a place of Exile for Chriftians, long¬ 
 ing for the Coming of the Kingdom of 
 Jefus Chrijl; and deeply Engraving in 
 his Heart thefe Words, which alone 
 ought to regulate all the Actions of his 
 Life; Fear God and keep his Command 
 ments , for this is the whole of Man , becaufe 
 all things pafs away, and nothing but 
 God and his'Truth endure for Ever. 
 
 Inftrutfioqy 
 
i 
 
 MEMOIRS 
 
 Concerning the 
 
 OBLIGATIONS 
 
 O F A 
 
 Governour of a Province. 
 
 i 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 Concerning the 
 
 OBLIGATIONS 
 
 O FA 
 
 Governour of a Province, 
 
 It mufl be obferVd that there are fe¬ 
 deral Articles which are peculiar to 
 Languedoc, a T ravine e where the 
 GoVernour s haVe a ight of infpeEl- 
 ing the Collelling of the Ring’s 
 
 LL the Obligations of a 
 Governour ofa Province 
 ought to regard the Glory 
 of God, the Service' of the 
 King, the Eafe of the Peo- 
 ivn Advancement in Vir¬ 
 tue: And on thefe Foundations and 
 E 2 With 
 
4 The Obligations of a 
 
 with thefe Views, they may be reduc’d 5 
 to the following Heads. 
 
 L 
 
 To keep the People in theFearof God 
 and in Loyalty to the King ; Therefore 
 he ought never to fyffer them to fail 
 in'it, out carefully to prevent what e- 
 ver Defign might be form’d againfl: his 
 Service. 
 
 if: 
 
 To take care that Juftice be admi- 
 nifterM; and therefore he fbould di* 
 ligently inform himfelf of the Manners 
 and Capacity of the Chief Juflices ,and of 
 the King’s Attorneys ; fo that if there be 
 any thing amifs in theirCondufthe may 
 advertife them of it, and procure a Re¬ 
 medy by the King’s Authority, or by 
 the Parliaments to which they are Sub¬ 
 jected* 
 
 Hi 
 
 To take care that the King’sTaxes be 
 levy’dwithout anyCouzenage ; that no 
 more be impos’d in the Affeffrnenr of 
 die Land Taxes than is laid on by the* 
 
 General 
 
Goyemour of a province 
 
 General States ; that the Officers of the 
 Diocefes be elefted for their Worthy- 
 nefs, and not by CabaL 
 
 IV. 
 
 To retrench as much as is poffible for 
 him the Ab.ufes which are committed 
 in the States. To hinder all intriguing 
 for Places, the Venality of Deputations, 
 and other Knaveries; fo that if poffible, 
 there may be no Perfons in thofe Em¬ 
 ployments capable of being corrupted; 
 and that thus the Province may be the 
 more eas’d and the King the more faith¬ 
 fully ferv’d. 
 
 V. 
 
 To procure as much as may be a Re¬ 
 trenchment of the Expences which do 
 not go directly into the King’s Coffers, 
 or to a clear and manifeft Advantage of 
 the Province. 
 
 VI. 
 
 To fee that the Revenues of the Pro¬ 
 vince be employ’d to the defraying the 
 Publick Expences, and that they be not 
 pillag’d or diverted to other Ufes; that 
 the Accounts be made in due time, and 
 E ? before 
 
 v 
 
<!> 
 
 The Obligations of a 
 
 before Auditors of known Integrity? 
 and even that they be review’d by the 
 Chamber of Accompts, if there is occafion. 
 
 VII. 
 
 To take care to reprefent to the 
 Court, the State and the Necellities of 
 the Province, that fo they may be the 
 better inform’d what Burdens it can 
 bear. 
 
 VII f. 
 
 To extirpate by all manner of ways 
 the accurfed Cuftom of Duels, in ma¬ 
 king the Kings Edi&s be executed, and 
 favouring the Execution of the Orders 
 of Juftice, by all the Authority of his 
 Station : and for preventing or fuppref- 
 fing the Quarrels among Gentlemen, to 
 appoint Perfons in diverfe Diftrifts of 
 the Province to acommodate them. 
 
 IX. 
 
 To pacific as much as he can the 
 Publick Divifions which arealmoftin 
 all Cities; and fee that the Confufhips be 
 not given by Cabal, or for Money, 
 
 (which 
 
GoVernour of a Province. 7 
 
 ( which is the common Source of thofe 
 Divifions) but that the Cities chufe the 
 moll: deferving. 
 
 X. 
 
 To hinder all the Enterprifes of the 
 Huguenots , reftraining them within 
 the bounds of the King ? s Edi£h ; not 
 fuffering them to make a publick 
 Exercife of their Religion, and to 
 have no Schools or Hofpitals , except in 
 thofe places where they are allow’d by 
 the Edicts to have them ; and taking 
 care to fupprefs thofe which they may 
 have fet up without a Lawful Title. 
 
 XL 
 
 To make the Bifhops of the Province 
 be refpe&ed, to procure that the Ma? 
 giftrates live well with them, and that 
 their Ordinances and thofe of their 
 Grand Vicars be executed. To take 
 care that the Church be not oppreft by 
 the Gentlemen, and that her Revenues 
 he not ufurpM 
 
 E 4 
 
 XIII. 
 
8 
 
 S. : Leon 
 $erm. de 
 Jejunio 
 decimi 
 menQs. 
 
 The Obligations of a 
 XIL 
 
 To fee that the Royal Ordinances for 
 the Obfervation ofEeftivals, thePunifh- 
 ment of Blafphemers, the Banifhment 
 of Gypfies and other Vagabonds, be' put 
 in execution; and in fine to reprefs all 
 forts of Scandals prohibited by the faid 
 Ordinances. - 
 
 XIII. 
 
 To procure that all the Charitable 
 Societies, as that call’d the Society of 
 Mercy, and others, which employ 
 themfelves for the Eafe of the Poor and 
 of the Publick, be eftablifh’d in thofe 
 places that have need of them ; to fup- 
 port thofe which are alreadyEftablifh’d, 
 and to obferve what St. Leon recom¬ 
 mends in a Sermon, Let us employ our 
 felves in the Protection of Widows', the 
 Inf ruction of Pupils , in the Confolation of 
 the Afflicted, and the Reconciliation of thofe 
 who are at variance: let us exercife Hof pi- 
 tality towards Strangers, let us protect 
 thofe who are oppre/l, let us cloth thofe who 
 have not, wherewith to cover themfelves , let 
 us afflfl thofe who are Sick , 
 
 XIV, 
 
9 
 
 GoVernottr of a 'Province. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 To hinder the Diforders of the Sol¬ 
 diery when they march through or quar¬ 
 ter in the Province. To fee that the 
 Officers appointed to give the Soldiers 
 their Allowance on a March do nor 
 confederate with them to reckon 
 to the States more Companies or Re' 
 giments than have pafs’d ; and for this 
 End to give every Year (whilft the 
 States fit) to thofe who takean account 
 of the Soldiers Allowance, a Regifter of 
 all the Troops which have been in the 
 Province, and of all the Orders which 
 havfe been given by the Governour, that 
 it may be confronted with the laid 
 Officer’s Memoii s; and to exhort the 
 King’s Lieutenants to do the fame in his 
 abfence. 
 
 » 4 r i v i 
 
 XV. 
 
 If it happens that any Troops are 
 fent to ’ havb their 1 Winter ’Quarters 
 in the Province, he fhould make 
 the following things be obferv'd.* 
 
 That the Troops be quarter’d in 
 Great Cities, where it is not in- their 
 power to commit Diforders. That 
 
| o The Obligations of a 
 
 That if they cannot all be placed in 
 fuch, the reft fhoud be quarter’d by fmall 
 Numbers in the Villages, and not in 
 entire Troops; for befides that in this 
 manner the Troopers or Soldiersare not 
 Mafters there, or in a condition of com¬ 
 mitting any Diforders, there is this far¬ 
 ther advantage drawn from it, that the 
 whole are the better fupply’d when the 
 Troops are difpers’d every where, 
 without which there would be fome 
 places over-burden d, whilft others 
 would be too much exempted. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 If the King leaves to the Governour 
 the particular appointment of the Win¬ 
 ter Quarters, he ought to do it with 
 as much Exattnefs and Equality as can 
 be, all things confiderd; But after 
 that he ought not to make any Change, 
 but upon prefling Reafons, taken from 
 the Advantage of the Publick, or the 
 better Subfiftanceof the Trbops; hav¬ 
 ing no refpe£t to any Recommendations, 
 which are commonly made to draw 
 Gratifications from thofe places, for 
 winch a Removal is obtain’d ; which is 
 the caufe that the Troops doing nothing 
 
GoVernour of a province. 
 
 but run through the Province, pillage 
 it both by frequent Marches, and by 
 Change of Quarters. 
 
 XVII. 
 
 Not to fuffer the Officers to make 
 particular Agreements for not commit¬ 
 ting Diforders, or to live better with 
 the Inhabitants ; and if the Officers 
 have taken any thing on that account, 
 he ought to make them reftore it. 
 
 But as it is likewife juft that the 
 | laid Troops fhould have a reafonable 
 Competency to fubfift on, if the Go- 
 iivernour fees that what is allow d by 
 the King’s Order is not fufficient for 
 that, he ought to write to have them 
 better treated. 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 If the Orders for regulating the Win¬ 
 ter Quarters, come from the Court, he 
 mult execute them as they are, 
 without refpeft to Recommendations 
 for exchanging Places. But if any of 
 the Places are unable, he muft endea¬ 
 vour to get an Exchange for them 
 'rom Court, or even an entire Exemp- 
 ion if it be neceflary. XIX. 
 
The Obligations of 4 
 
 XIX. 
 
 i 2 
 
 To oblige the Troops to pay exa&ly 
 what they are provided with by the 
 King’s Order ; and if the Corporations 
 are oblig d to advance them the Win¬ 
 ter Quarters, Care ought to be tajceq 
 to deduct it from their Taxes. 
 
 XX. 
 
 To hinder Quarrels between the Sol¬ 
 diers and the Inhabitants, and to punifh 
 thofe who are guilty of fuch Diforders, 
 or of debauching young Women to car¬ 
 ry them away with their Regiments ; 
 and in fine, to fee that the Reviews be 
 very exactly made. 
 
 XXL 
 
 To take care that the Money which 
 the King gives in the Province, to rer 
 compence the Opprellions that have 
 been fufier’d during the Year, be equal¬ 
 ly difpos’d of; that it be not given by 
 way of Gratification for fuppos’d Op- 
 prelfions, either to fome topping Man 
 of a Parifh.} or to fome particular Gen¬ 
 tlemen, 
 
GoVlrnoUr of a Province. 13 
 
 ilemen, in prejudice of the Poor who 
 have fuffer’d moft by the Soldiers Quar¬ 
 tering : And for this End, he muft pro¬ 
 cure, that the Sums on which the Com- 
 miffaries Refident for the King to the 
 States have agreed, be put into the 
 Hands of Perfons of Probity appointed 
 by the Governour’s Orders, to be after¬ 
 wards diftributed according to the moft 
 urgent Neceflities of that Community 
 which is to be reimburfed. 
 
 XXII. 
 
 To oblige as many Perfons as he can 
 in his Province, that he may be the 
 more able to do Good, and to ferve the 
 King the better in it. For this it is 
 nccelfary that the Favours which the 
 Court HiaU beftow in his Province, pafs 
 as much as can be through his Hands. 
 
 XXIII 
 
 To live in good Terms with the Par¬ 
 liament and the other Courts of the 
 Province; in filch fort that enterprizing 
 nothing on their Fun&ions, he neither 
 Puffers them to enterprize on his. 
 
 XXIV. 
 
t 
 
 14 
 
 The Obligations of a 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 He fhou’d chufe in each City and 
 eachDiocefe, fome Perfons of Probity 
 and Underftanding, who may advertife 
 him of all the things which he ought 
 to be inform’d of, for the Service of the 
 King and of the Publick ; and fhould 
 endeavour to have feveral in each Di- 
 ftritt, that he may not fubjeQ: himfelf 
 to the Intelligence of one alone, who 
 by that wou’d take too much Authori¬ 
 ty, and who might be deceiv’d in many 
 Affairs, or judge by Paflion or Preju¬ 
 dice in feme. 
 
G oVernour of a Province. 
 
 Inftru&ions for the GentlemenCom- 
 mifllon’d bv Meflieurs the Maref- 
 chals of France, in the Extent of 
 each Government, 
 
 To loof to the Execution of his Ma¬ 
 yflies EdiEis and Declarations j and 
 of the Regulations of Meflieurs the 
 Marefchals of France. 
 
 HE Gentlemen commiflron’d to 
 
 | prevent Duels, and to terminate 
 Differences, ought to inform themfelves 
 Of all that is contain’d in his Majefties 
 Edi£ts and Declarations on the point of 
 Duelling, and in the Regulations of 
 the Marefchals of France , to acquaint 
 themfelves exactly with all the Rules 
 in point of Honour, which areobferv’d 
 among the Nobility, Whether as to 
 Rank, Precedency, Rights of Vaffa- 
 lage, Hunting, Fifhing, and of all 
 Maxims eftabiifhed among Gentle¬ 
 men ior-all that touches or concerns 
 the Point of Honour. 
 
 They 
 
1 6 The Obligations of a 
 
 They ought to make a publick Pro- 
 feffion of never taking either fide in any 
 Quarrels that may happen, and only to 
 declare themfelves for Peace; that they 
 may not give either Party occafion td 
 hediflrultful of them, and to have the 
 left Confidence in their Mediation. 
 
 They ought to apply themfelves to 
 Reconciliations with Sweetnds and 
 Gentlenefs, and put themfelves into 
 filch a State, that neither Friendfhip 
 nor Paflion may hinder them from ta¬ 
 king the Knowledge which they ought 
 to have, of the Circumftances of the 
 Fad, which areextreamly Nice in thefe 
 Matters. 
 
 As foon as they fhall have received 
 the Com million of Mefjieurs the Ma- 
 refchals of France , it would be well to 
 have it regifter’d in the Rolls belong¬ 
 ing to the Marefchals, and even in the 
 Regifter of the Bailjwicks , which are in 
 their Neighbourhood, that it may be 
 made Publick, by being read in a fuU 
 Auditory. 
 
 When they have had advice of any 
 Quarrel, they fhall fpeedily interpofe, 
 arid do all they can on their part, 
 either by the Governour and the King’s 
 Lieutenant,or by the Marfhalsof France, 
 
 to 
 
GoVehibur of a TrbVinc f. l 
 
 to prevent and hinder the Confequences 
 of it; and this with fo much the more 
 Vigilance as it has been experienc’d, 
 that delaying to fend the Orders of 
 Meffieurs the Marefchals df France irt 
 the Provinces, gives the Parties time to 
 come to Blows, from whence other Cir- 
 cumftartces proceed which render Ac¬ 
 commodations more difficult: befides 
 that the Noife of the Quarrel coming 
 by this means to be fpread among the 
 Neighbouring Gentry, the Friends in- 
 terefs and divide themfelves for one 
 or other of the Parties, from whence 
 follow grievous Inconveniences and 
 Diforders inevitable in thofe fort of Af- 
 femblies. 
 
 This fuppos’d, the firft thing to be 
 done by the Gentleman in Commiffion, 
 as foon as he is inform’d of the Quarrel, 
 is to caufe Prohibitions to be fignify’d to 
 the Parties, by an Order which may be 
 conceiv’d in the following Terms, and 
 which he fhall caufe to be fignify'd to 
 them with Diligence by the neareft Pro- 
 voft Marefchal , his Lieutenant, Exempt 
 or Attendant , unlefs he judges it more 
 effeftual to aft by a Civil way without 
 lifing this Formality. 
 
 F Order 
 
 / 
 
The Obligations of & 
 
 Order of Prohibition. 
 
 The Sieur N - - - Commiffion’cl 
 
 by Mejfieurs the Marefchals of 
 France. 
 
 POM the Advice we have had 
 
 of the Quarrel which hah 
 
 “ happen’d between the Sieur .... or 
 “ the Sieurs .... on one part, and the 
 £ ‘ Sieurs. ... on the other, of the Pro- 
 “ vince of .... and in virtue of the 
 “ Power given to us by Mejfieurs the 
 < £ Marefchals of France, by Commillion 
 a bearing Date .../We exprefly for- 
 u bid them, to demand SatisfaSion of 
 a one another by way of Duelling, dl- 
 w re£ily or iridire&ly, under the Pe- 
 “ nalties exprefs’d in the King’s laft E- 
 “ di£ts, and Declarations againft Duels 1 
 “ and Rencounters; and we charge 
 “ them to appear before us in our Ca- 
 ** file, in the time of.... Days, count- 
 *• ing from the Day wherein this Or- 
 (i der fball be fignified to them by the 
 w Pro'Pof Refldent of fuch a Place, his 5 
 
 “ Lieutenant , 
 
 a 
 
GoVernour of a Province. i 
 
 ge Lieutenant , Exempt or Attendant , who 
 “ fhall immediately certifie us of their 
 ‘‘ Diligence, and fhall bring back to us 
 f‘ the Original of this Prefent, and the 
 « Signification at the Bottom of it. Gi- 
 “ ven at our Caftle of.... this Month 
 “ and Year. 
 
 If the Order bears a Citation to ap- . 
 pear before the Governour or the King’s 
 Lieutenant; the Gentleman in Com- Appearance 
 million mull: give them Advice of it, ^ ou l ldb f r t 
 and fend them a Copy of the Prohi- tMiflaJe 
 bition. »f eUctt - 
 
 Letter of Information to the Gover¬ 
 nour of the Province , from the Gen¬ 
 tleman in Commijjion. 
 
 Mr Lokd, or S i r, if it he « 
 
 “ T T PON the Advice which I have the v - hg > s 
 
 “ \_ } had of a Quarrel that has hap- Ueutt- 
 
 “ pen’d betwixt A 7 , and N. of N... on 
 “ fuch a Subjeft, I have caus’d to 
 “ be fignify’d to them a Prohibition of 
 “ proceeding to any Violence, to pre- 
 “ vent the unhappy Confequences that 
 F 2 “ might 
 
to The Obligations of a 
 
 a might follow from it, I have gi- 
 u ven them a Citation to appear be- 
 fore you in fuch time, that their Dif- 
 u ference may be decided. I fend 
 u you a Copy of the faid Prohibitions, 
 46 with the Verbal Procejs of the Provojl 
 u of fuch a Place, as they were fignified 
 a to them. 
 
 If the Parties do not fubmit to th6 
 Prohibitions duly fignified, and that 
 there is reafon to apprehend, that not- 
 withftanding thefe Prohibitions, they 
 will proceed to Violence, he fhall fend 
 them a Guard ; the Order for that may 
 be thus conceived* 
 
 Order for fending a Guard. 
 
 The Sieur Commijjion d> &c. 
 
 fit is to he a T T PON our being advertis’d that 
 U i m TT 1 J notwithftandinn the Prohibit 
 jams order tions which we have caus d to be 
 Rearing a a fignify’d to the Sieurs N. and N. to 
 “ hinder their fighting, they are fo 
 ing to via- u incens’d againft one another, that it 
 
 tense j a. 46 IS 
 
GoVernour of a T roVtnce. 11 
 
 « is to be fear’d, their Refentment may 
 ££ tranfport them to the la ft Extremi- /tffwte. 
 w ties. We ordain the Provojl ... that tbertbtGt- 
 “ at the Inftant he receives this prefent 
 “ Order, he fend them immediately Lieutenant 
 cc and without Delay,to the fir RExempts P re l e t nt 
 
 ^ or Attendants which are near him, t i )ere „ 
 u to be with the faid Sieurs -—and hin- Vanger in 
 “ der them from coming to Violence, f/ err { t ng is 
 cc and not to leave them till it be other- liliervife to 
 16 wife order’d by the Governour or the b t e ^ arlii 
 “ King’s Lieutenant, or in their Ab- 
 tc fepce by Meffieurs the Marefchals of Quality , 
 ic France. Given at our Caftle of — 
 
 « the Day and Year, Exempt™ 
 
 ought to kt 
 
 The Gentleman in Commiffion ha- 
 ving fent this Order to appoint a Guard, 
 he ought likewife to give Advice of it 
 to the Governour,or to the Kings Lieu¬ 
 tenant of the Province, if they are 
 prefent, or in their Abfence to Meffieurs 
 the Marefchals of France ; together 
 with all that has pafs’d on the Quarrel: 
 
 And if the Gentlemen in Commiffion, 
 or one of them cannot on good Confide- 
 rations come to the Governour or the 
 King ? s Lieutenant, they fhall advertife 
 them of it, that one or the other may 
 let them know how they fhould pro- 
 F 3 ceetl 
 
The Obligations of a 
 
 ceed in it, and whether thy fhould 
 fummon the Parties before them, or 
 ftill continue their own Interpofition 
 to put an Bnd to the Bufinefs by fome 
 Accommodation. 
 
 Letter of Advertifement to the Go- 
 Vermur, or the Icing s Lieutenant , 
 concerning the Setting a Guard otter 
 the Gentlemen who have quarrel'd. 
 
 My Lord, 
 
 M Effieurs N... and N.. having 
 “ quarrel’d upon fuch a matter, 
 “ I have caus’d to be fignify’d to them 
 “ a Prohibition of Enterprizing any 
 “ thing againft one another by way of 
 “ Duelling; and as I have been in- 
 “ form’d that this would not fuffice tq 
 t( hinder them from it, but that they 
 “ defign to fall on one another where- 
 “ ever they meet, I have fent a Guard 
 u for each of them to be near their 
 “ Perfons till I could give you advice 
 u ofit, and I have fummon’d them to 
 “ come before you on fuch a day, to 
 
 “ have 
 
GoVernour of a P rohince. 
 
 P have their Difference decided, I fend 
 “ you the two Orders which have been 
 “ fignify’d to them by the Provofi 
 
 refident in fuch a place, as you wyljl 
 “ fee by his verbal Procefs here annex’d, 
 “ &c. 
 
 If there be any Inconvenience in re¬ 
 ferring them to the Governour or the 
 King’s Lieutenant, he {hall give them 
 advice qfit by the fame Difpatch, and 
 propofe to them whether they will be 
 pleas’d that he fhoud continue his Inter- 
 pofition to reconcile them, that is to 
 fay, if the Parties confent to it, for if 
 they will be judg’d by the Governour, 
 the Gentleman^ Office ceafes. 
 
 After rhe Gentleman in Commiffion. 
 has caus’d Prohibitions to be fignify’d 
 and fent a Guard to the Parties, if the 
 Governour and the King’s Lieutenant 
 are abfent , he may be Judge of the Diffe« 
 rence in that cafe. 
 
 Firjl, Either the Partiesappear before 
 him and confent to refer themfelves to 
 his Judgment. 
 
 Or Secondly 5 They will neither of 
 them fubmit to his Orders nor obey. 
 
 Or Thirdly , One of the Parties appears 
 and will fubmit to his Judgment and 
 ' ‘ F4 ' the 
 
The Obligations of a 
 
 the other fails and will not yield to it. 
 
 As to the Firft Cafe, if both the Par¬ 
 ties will fubmit to his Decifion, he fhall 
 oblige them to come before him on 
 fhe appointed day, and fhall hear 
 them one after another, without Paf- 
 fion. And after having confider’d the 
 Caufe, if the Affair be difficult and of 
 importance, having call’d their com¬ 
 mon Friends to it, he fhall draw up the 
 terms of Reconciliation in Writing. 
 
 A Form of Reconciliation. 
 
 U \ 71 7 E AT. N. appointed by Mef- 
 u \ \ fieurs the Marefchals of 
 u France by Commiffion bearing date — 
 4< after having heard the Sieurs.. ? on 
 one Side, and the Sieurs ... on the 
 ic other by .word of Mouth, having 
 u maturely deliberated upon all their 
 Conteftations with the Sieurs N. and 
 <fc N. common Friends to both Parties, 
 6 ■ whom we call’d for that End ; and 
 ^ having examin’d all the Circumftan- 
 • !c ces of it, we have decided, that as to 
 ^ what regards the Point of Honour 
 
 “ Sieur 
 
GoFernottr of a TroYmce. 25 
 
 ff Sieur fuch a one fhall do fo and fo 
 f l with regard to Such a one ; and that 
 • ‘ as to what concerns the point of In- 
 u tereft which relates to the point of 
 “ Honour, fuch a one fhall do fo and fo, 
 
 “ (Note that the Parties ought to make 
 “ reciprocal Articled) We have next ex- 
 “ horted them to forget what has pafs’d 
 “ between them, after having made 
 “ them embrace one another, and pro- 
 <c mifed reciprocally never to demand 
 “ any thing of one another by way of 
 “ Duelling,direftly or indirectly. Done 
 “ at our Caftle day and Year 
 “ Signed 
 
 If after this Decifion one of the Par¬ 
 ties or both do not acquiefce in it, but 
 defire to be refer’d to Meilieurs the 
 Marefchals of France ; in that Cafe the 
 Gentleman in Commiflion fhall caufe 
 an Order to be fignify’d to them to ap¬ 
 pear at fuch a time ( allowing them 
 lufficient delay ) before Meflieurs the 
 Marefchals of France , to whom he 
 fhall fend both the Agreement and all 
 the Orders which he has caus’d to be 
 fignify’d to the Parties to bring them to 
 it. And he fhall advertife them by an 
 Exprefs of all that he has done, of the 
 
 principal 
 
z 6 
 
 The Obligations of 4 
 
 principal Motives which he had to ter¬ 
 minate the Agreement on fuch and fuch 
 Conditions, and fhall fend the whole to 
 the Senior Marefchal of France , or to 
 the Secretary of the Marefchals when 
 there is one Eftablifh’d. And this is as 
 far as the Gentleman in Commillion 
 ought to proceed, unlefs it happens 
 that Meffieurs the Marefchals of France 
 remit the Affair back again to him. 
 
 If both the Parties do not fuhmit to 
 the two firft Orders and Prohibitions, 
 and do not make their Appearance, ei¬ 
 ther they have a Latvful Excufe for it, 
 or they have not. In the firft Cafe, if 
 they defire a farther Delay, that they 
 may appear upon the Summons, it 
 ought not to be refus’d them if it be 
 Juft. ' 
 
 But if they have no Excufe , the 
 Gentleman in Commillion fhall give 
 immediate Advice of it to the Maref¬ 
 chals of France , to make them obey on 
 pain of the Penalties enjoyn’d by the 
 Eighth Article of the Ediftof 1651,and 
 by Article Sixteenth of the Regulati¬ 
 ons of Meffieurs the Marefchals of 
 France . 
 
 ORDER. 
 
CoVemour of a Province. 
 
 r ■. -' ; 7 ■ ■ 
 
 Order. 
 
 ■* y i -■ 
 
 The Sieur N- Commiffion d by 
 
 Meffieurs the Marefchals of France. 
 
 “ /'"'VN the Account which has been 
 
 “ \_/ tranfmitted to us of the Verbal 
 
 “ Proeefs drawn up by the Provo [l of 
 
 “- of his Diligence in fignifying 
 
 “ our Prohibitions to the Sieurs N- and 
 “ N-, and fummoning them to ap- 
 “ pear before us on fuch a Day to be re- 
 “ concil’d upon their Difference, nei- 
 ther one nor the other having com- 
 “ ply’d with the faid Order, the Provojl 
 “ of fuch a place, that fummons them 
 “ for the fecond time, or for the third 
 “ (if there are two freceedirsg Orders) to 
 “ appear before us on fuch a Day, 
 “ and fhall fignifie to them, that on 
 “ Default of fubmitting to our Order 
 “ on the appointed Day, we fhall 
 “ caule them to be proceeded againfl: 
 “ by Meffieurs the Marefchals of France, 
 “ according to the utmoft Rigour ex- 
 “ prefs’d in Article VIII. of the Ed id 
 
 “of 
 
28 
 
 The Obligations of a 
 
 44 of 16^1, and of Article XVI, of the 
 44 Regulations of Meffieurs the Mare-P- 
 44 chals of France. And the faid Pro- 
 44 voft fhall certifie us of his Diligence 
 44 and return us his Verbal ProceJ's well 
 44 attefted. Given at our Caftle of 
 44 —-this —Day and Year— fign’d. 
 
 If one of the Parties made his Ap¬ 
 pearance, mention fhould be made of it 
 in the abovefaid Order, and he only be 
 fummon'd who did not appear, which 
 is the third Cafe before remark’d. 
 
 But if the Gentlemen continue in 
 their Difobedience, the following Or¬ 
 der muft be made. 
 
 ORDER. 
 
 TheSieur N. Commijfiond , &c. 
 
 171 / HERE AS notwithftanding 
 44 V V °ur Orders of fuch and fuch 
 44 a Day, with the Verbal Procefs of the 
 44 Provojls of N- — as they have been 
 44 fignify’d to the Sieurs N— M-- the 
 f fold Sieijrs cpntinuing in their Dif- 
 
 “ obedience 
 
GoVernour of a 'Province. %p 
 
 “ obedience. (Jt would be well to remark if 
 i6 there is any aggravating Circumjlance y 
 u as if they have enterprise any thing con- 
 u trary to the Prohibitions , or have broke 
 a from their Guards .) We command 
 u them to appear before Meffieurs the 
 “ Marefchals of France in fuch a time, 
 u that Procefs may be made againft 
 them, as well for the Reconciliation 
 a of their Quarrel, as for the Punifh- 
 “ mentdue to their Difobedience, ac- 
 u cording to Article the VIII. of the 
 u Edift of 1651, and the XVI. of the 
 a Regulations of the faid Marefchals : 
 u And the Provofl of fuch a Place, his 
 u Lieutenant^ Exempts or Attendants, 
 u filaH fignifie the prefent Order to 
 “ to them* or at the Place of their A- 
 “ bode, and fhall bring back to us their 
 u Verbal Procejs to be immediately fent 
 “ to Meffieurs the Marefchals of France, 
 
 “ Given at our Houfe of — on — Day 
 “ and Year. 
 
 If there has been any Violation of 
 the Guards, the Archer s y Verbal Procejs 
 ofitmuftbe fent with the Order join’d 
 to it, and a Certificate from the Gentle¬ 
 man in Commilfion, of the Day on 
 which he made the Guard be plac’d, to 
 
 which 
 
 F or the 
 
 Payment of 
 the Guard , 
 the Gentle¬ 
 man in 
 Commiffton 
 muji fend 
 his Order 
 for placing 
 the Guard 
 
30 The Obligations of a 
 
 whb hh which he muff join a Difpatch to give 
 cfT^ C D% Advice of the whole td Mejfieurs the 
 mnhuh it Marcfchals of Francs. 
 
 was plac'd, 
 
 to jend the ■ ; 
 
 whole to the ' ———— 
 
 Ring's At¬ 
 torney of the 
 Harefchals 
 Court that 
 
 LETTER 
 
 he may fix 
 
 the rm of To Ivk (Fieurs the Marefcbals of France, 
 
 to be rais’d to R/VC them AdYlCC of what is 4» 
 
 on their - * - • . 1 
 
 Effettt on 
 whom they 
 ispere plac'd. 
 
 boVe faid. 
 My Lords, 
 
 “ r ~¥~'0 difcharge the Commiffion 
 “ J which you did me the Honour 
 “ to fend me on fuch a Day and Year, 
 a I have usd all my Endeavours to 
 “ prevent and hinder the Confequen- 
 “ ces of a Quarrel, which has happen’d 
 “ between fuch and fuch a one, and 
 u you will fee by the Order here annex- 
 u ed, by the Verbal Procefs, and the Cer- 
 u tificates , that I have omitted nothing 
 u to hinder them from fighting, and 
 “ to oblige them to appear before you 
 “ to be determin’d on their Difference: 
 “ But as all this Diligence has been 
 “ to no purpofe by their Difobedience, 
 “ which if it fhould remain unpu- 
 
 nifh’d 
 
GoVernour of a Province. 
 
 nifh’d would give a great Scandal to 
 « all the Province, we have caus’d them 
 « to be fummon’d to appear byfuch 
 “ a time before you, to be Judg’d as 1 
 “ well on the faid Quarrels, as on the 
 “ Punilhment due to their Difobedi- 
 
 ence. This is what I thought my 
 “ felf Oblig’d by the Duty of my Com- 
 ‘‘ million to give you advice of, that 
 “ you may interpofe your Authority to 
 t( make them obey. Alluring you 
 u that I flja.ll always continue to aft 
 “ with the fameDependance, and with 
 u the Refpeft due to you, from &ci 
 
 The faid Commilfion’d Gentlemen 
 fhallgivean Account every Month by 
 a Letter adrefs’d to the Governour of 
 the Province, of all the Quarrels which 
 they have reconcil’d, and of thofe which 
 they could not reconcile, and which they 
 have refer’d to the faid Governour, or 
 in his Abfence to the King’s Lieutenant. 
 
 A nd if it haippens that any of the Com- 
 mfiion’d Gentlemen are abfent or fick, 
 they fhall advertife him who is Com- 
 raiflion’d in the fame Diocefs with them, 
 that he may take care of their Diftrift. 
 
 And as his Majefty has newly Com¬ 
 manded, by an Aft of his Council, 
 
 that 
 
The Obligations of d 
 
 that the Marefchals Provofts of the 
 Province fhall not henceforward be 
 paid, but on the Certificates of the 
 Governour of the Province, the faid 
 Commiffion’d Gentlemen fhall take 
 care to employ them on all the Occafi- 
 ons in which they fhall have need of 
 them, and they fhall not grant them 
 the laid Certificates of Service, which 
 are neceffary for their obtaining that of 
 the faid Governour of the Province, if 
 the faid Pro*votts have not actually ferv d 
 and done the Duty of their Charge oh 
 the occafions that have offer'd. 
 
 The Gbvernour’s Letter 
 
 To the Commiffion’d Gentleman , to 
 accompany the Coramijjion of Mef- 
 iieurs the Marefchals of France, 
 with his Appendix. 
 
 a 
 6 6 
 U 
 
 S I Fj 
 
 Y OU will fee, by the Com million 
 of Meffieurs the Marefchals of 
 France, and by my Appendix, that 
 
 ‘‘ you 
 
GbVernour of a Tro^bice. 
 
 ie you have been chofen to take care 
 “ of reconciling and putting a flop to 
 “ the Quarrels which may happen a- 
 ic mong the Gentlemen of your Dio- 
 “ cefe; I defire you to execute it pufir 
 “ ftually, conformably to the Inftru- 
 “ ftion which I fend you, and to the 
 ‘ ‘ £di£ts and Regulations of the 
 “ Marefchals of France , which you 
 “ will find hereto annexed : and ih. 
 ‘‘ cafe your Affairs fhould oblige you to 
 “ leave your DiftriQ, you fhall give 
 “ Advice of it to- the neareft of the 
 “ Commiffion’d Gentlemen, that 
 “ they may take care bf it in your 
 “ Abfence and fiipply your Failure. 
 
 “ I alfure my felf th&t on this Oc- 
 “ cafion you will give Proofs to his Ma- 
 “ jefty, of your Zeal for his Service* 
 “ in caufing his Edi£fs to be pun&u- 
 “ ally executed. To which I exhort 
 you, and to believe that I am, &c. 
 
 6 
 
 \ 
 
 JPPElt- 
 

 The Obligations of a 
 
 APPENDIX 
 
 Of the GoVernour of the (Province to the 
 Commijfion of the Marefchals of France. 
 
 f The Name and Quality of the Go - 
 vernour of the Province mujl he 
 fet down , and afterwards .] 
 
 U 1 ^ ^ w ^° fee thefe pre- 
 
 iC fent Letters, Greeting. We 
 
 having feen the Commiffion of 
 u the Marefchals of France , Sign’d 
 64 ✓ and lower ... and Seal’d ... 
 iC .... by which and for the Caufes 
 44 therein contain’d the faid Marefchals 
 u appoint Monfieur A", in the Diocefe 
 <c of.,to receive Information of the 
 u Quarrels which may happen among 
 a the Gentlemen or others ofhisMa- 
 H jeffiesSubjectsprofeffingArms; and 
 a after having receiv’d them^ to fend 
 H them exprefsProhibitionsof demand- 
 w ing Satisfa&ion of one another by 
 u way of Duelling, dire&ly orindireft- 
 H ly, under the Penalties mention’d in- 
 a the laftEditts,and even to order them 
 6< a Guard to hinder the faid Duelling: 
 H And in the Abfence of the Marefchals 
 u of France , of us, and of the King’s 
 f Lieutenants General of the Province, 
 
 “ to 
 
Go'oernour of a TroYmce. 3 j 
 
 tl to fummon before him thofe who 
 “ have any Quarrels touching the 
 “ point of Honour, to hear them and 
 M to judge them with full Power, con- 
 “ formably to his Majefties Edi£ts and 
 ‘ ‘ to the Regulations made by the faid 
 “ Marefchals the 21th of Auguft 1653, 
 
 “ upon the feveral Injuries and Satif- 
 “ factions of Gentlemen; the faid Mef. 
 
 “ fieurs Commanding all ProvoftSj 
 u Sub-Bailiffs, Vice-Senefchals, Crimi- 
 “ nal Judges of the Short Robe, to 
 “ obey him readily and faithfully, on 
 “ Pain of being fufpended from their 
 “ Employments, and depriv’d of their 
 “ Salaries, as is more amply fpecifi’d 
 u by the faid Commiflxon. We^ defiring 
 “ to contribute with all our Power to- 
 “ ward repreffing theDilorder of Duel- 
 “ ling, have as far as lies in us, Com- 
 “ mifiion’d, and do Commiflion the 
 “ faid Sieur N. in the Diocefe of... to 
 “ take and receive Informations of the 
 Quarrels which may happen among 
 “ the Gentlemen and others profefiing 
 “ Arms, and after having receiv’d 
 “ them, to fend them Prohibitions of 
 “ requiring any thing from one an- 
 “ other in the way of Duelling ; and 
 ‘‘ afterwards, in the abfence ot the 
 G 2 ‘‘ Marefchals 
 
 I 
 
 1 
 
3 <5 The Obligations of a 
 
 “ Mafefchals of France, of us, and 6f 
 “ the Lieutenants for the King in the 
 “ faid Province, to bring before him 
 u thofe who have a Quarrel touching 
 <4 the Point of Honour, to hear 
 “ and to judge, them with full Power, 
 “ according to the King’s Edi£ts, and 
 “ the Regulations made by the faid 
 “ Marefchals on the 21th of Jugufi 
 “ 1 6^. And to look to the Execution 
 “ of our Order for hindring fuch Per- 
 “ fons to bear Arms who are not of the 
 44 Quality requir’d, or who have not 
 “ a Permiflion for it from us, or from 
 “ the King’s Lieutenants in our Ab- 
 “ fence. Enjoyning all Gentlemen 
 44 and others Profelling Arms, to ac- 
 knowledge the faid Sieur N. . in this 
 “ Quality, and to obey him touching 
 “ and concerning the above faid Cafes, 
 44 on pain of the Punifhments exprefs’d 
 44 in the King’s Edifts ; commanding 
 44 all Provo (Is, Bailiffs , their Lieute~ 
 64 nants. Exempts, Greffiers and Archers 
 44 pun£f ually to Execute all the Orders 
 “ of which the faid Sieur N... flnall 
 44 give, to hinder the Confequences of 
 thofe Quarrels which happen irt his 
 “ Diftrift; and to make all the re- 
 quir’d and necelTary Significations 
 
 “ to 
 
GoVernour of a Province. 
 
 u to feize on thofe who difobey the 
 “ King’s Edifts,when they are order’d 
 “ fo to do by the faid Sieur N .. for the 
 “ Execution of our faid Order, and of 
 ** that againft bearing Arms; and in 
 f* general, to do all necelfary AQs for 
 “ the Execution of the faid Commif- 
 “ fion; which we command the Sene- 
 “ fchal or Bailiff of., or his Lieutenant 
 “ in the faid Court to regifter, 
 v that they may have recourfe to it 
 u in Cafe of need. Given at.... the 
 “ .... day and year. 
 
3 g The Obligations of a 
 
 INSTRUCTION 
 
 For the Captain of the Guards. 
 
 I. 
 
 T~ T E ought to look on his Emplov- 
 _£~X I P en,: ^ a Chriftian Spirit, and 
 confider upon this, that it is the chief 
 Means which God will make ufe of for 
 his Saunification; and that to workout 
 his Salvation, he ought likewife to la¬ 
 bour for that of thofe Perfons who are 
 fubjecled to him. To this; he ought to 
 give all his Application, and not to con¬ 
 tent himfelf with prefcribing good Or¬ 
 ders for his Company, but he muft alfo 
 make them be put in Execution ; and 
 an Acount be given to him from Week 
 to Week, and even from Day to Day, 
 on Occafions where it may be necelfary; 
 tor otherwife all Regulations ferve on¬ 
 ly to the Condemnation of thofe who 
 make them, if they .negleft to have 
 them executed. 
 
 II. 
 
GoVernour of a Province. 
 
 19 
 
 II. 
 
 HE muft not receive any Trooper 
 who is not a Catholick, for any Confi- 
 deration whatfoever; and before he 
 gives the Bandoleer to thofe who are 
 prefented to him, he muft inform him¬ 
 felf as well as he can of their Manners, 
 that he may not receive any notorioufly 
 Vicious. But efpecially he muft never 
 receive any one of thofe who defire to 
 enter themfelves in the Troop only to 
 efcape Juftice, and Ihun the Punifhment 
 of their Crimes. For this he ought to 
 inform himfelf before he takes a new 
 Trooper, whether there is any Judg¬ 
 ment or Decree againft him, in which 
 Cafe he fhall not receive him, unlefs it 
 firft appear that he has clear’d himfelf. 
 And if he difcovers that the faid Troo- 
 j per has not told him the Truth, he 
 fhall immediately cafhier him. Neither 
 fhould he receive any of thofe Knaves 
 who only feek the Refuge of the Troop, 
 that they may not be forc’d to pay their 
 , Creditors, 
 
 G 4 
 
 m. 
 
4? 
 
 The Obligations of 4 
 
 III. 
 
 H E fhall not fuffer any Swearer^, 
 or Blafphemers, or any Perfons con¬ 
 victed of Debauchery with Women, or 
 any who are given to Quarrelling oy 
 Fighting ; fo that thofe who after their 
 Reception are convicted of having 
 any Commerce of Impurity, or of ha¬ 
 ving fought a Duel, fhall be Calhier’d 
 without Remiffion; and as to Swear¬ 
 ers and Drunkards, he fhall chaftife 
 them with fome Punifhment for the 
 farft time fas retrenching fome part of 
 their Pay, which he fhall bellow on the 
 Poorj but when he perceives they 
 make a a Habit of it, he fhall cafhier 
 them. 
 
 IV. 
 
 H E fhall carefully take heed that 
 every one live upon his Pay, and that 
 they do no Violence either in executing 
 their Orders, or at their Inns ; and if 
 anyone is convicted of it, he fhall im¬ 
 mediately oblige him to make Refli- 
 tO ti'on of what he has taken, and then 
 he fhall cafhier him. 
 
 V. 
 
 / 
 
(joVernour of a 'Province. 
 
 V. 
 
 IN the Favours which he may have 
 Power to do for thofe of his Compa¬ 
 ny, he fhall always prefer the moft 
 Virtuous. 
 
 VI. 
 
 HE fhould particularly recommend 
 to them to execute their Orders with 
 an entire Fidelity, not yielding to the 
 Prayers and Promifes that may be made 
 by any Perfon to defer, enlarge or di- 
 minifh what is contain’d in the Orders 
 of which they have the Execution. A- 
 bove all, he fhould charge them always 
 to make exact and faithful Verbal Pro- 
 oeffes of what has pafs'd in the Executi¬ 
 on of their faid Orders without favour¬ 
 ing any one; and if they are found 
 Faulty on this Point, they fhall be put 
 in Prifon for fome time, and then ca- 
 fhier’d. 
 
 VII. 
 
 H E fhall charge the Exempts, Bri¬ 
 gadiers, and other Officers of the Troop, 
 
42 The Obligations of a 
 
 to caufe the Sundays and Holy-days, 
 and the Fafts commanded by the 
 Church to be obferv’d by thofe whq 
 are under their Charge. 
 
 VII F. 
 
 H E fhall take care that they go to 
 ConfeJJion, and to the Communion at Ea- 
 fier , and fhall even have them exhort¬ 
 ed to do it oftner, according to the 
 Facility which the Place where they fo- 
 journ, or their Employments may give 
 them for it. He fhall endeavour like- 
 wife to procure them Inftru&iqns and 
 Inftru&ors, whether by addreffing him- 
 felf for this to the Grand Vicars of the 
 Places where they are, or to the Cu~ 
 rates, or in their Abfence, to fome Re¬ 
 ligious Order ; that thofe of his Troop 
 may not only know what they ought 
 to believe, but alfo what they ought to 
 do, and what they ought to avoid. He 
 fhall procure the fame Inftruftion for 
 their Servants, and charge the Ma¬ 
 tters not to take any that are Vicious, 
 and to turn away thofe who are found 
 to be fo. 
 
 IX. 
 
 \ 
 
 X 
 
 X 
 
4 1 
 
 GoVernour of a TroVince. 
 
 IX. 
 
 H E fhall reconcile Quarrels and En¬ 
 mities among them, and not content 
 himfelf with putting an end to them, 
 but likewife endeavour to make a Re¬ 
 conciliation truly Chriftian. 
 
 i X. 
 
 In fine, he fhall do them Juftice in 
 all things, not favouring one in preju¬ 
 dice of the other, but having refpeft 
 Firft to Virtue, Secondly to natural Ta¬ 
 lents, to Merit, to Service, and to their 
 Seniority in the Troop. 
 
 XI. 
 
 H E fhall take care that in his Ab- 
 fence, the Lieutenant , the Enfign, the 
 Exempts, and the Brigadiers , practife 
 thefe Maxims and thefe Regulations 
 With Exaftnefs. 
 
 XII. 
 
 HE fhall endeavour to have fome 
 trufty Perfon in the Troop to obferve 
 
 and / 
 
44 
 
 The Obligations of a 
 
 and adyertife him faithfully if the Sub¬ 
 altern Officers acquit themfelves of 
 their Duty. 
 
 RULES for a Regiment of Foot: 
 
 I. 
 
 HE Colonel, Lieutenant Colonel, or 
 other Officer who commands 
 
 the Regiment in their Abfence, ought 
 nqt to make ufe of the Command he 
 has over the Regiment, tQ draw any 
 Advantages from the Places through 
 which they pafs on a Rout, under pre¬ 
 tence of the Right of a Commander, 
 or for any other Confideration whatfo- 
 ever; nor to quarter in any other Pla¬ 
 ces but what are mark’d out and de- 
 termin’d by the King’s Qrder; and 
 ought ftridly to fee that the Soldiers 
 of the Regiment do not go out of the 
 way on their Rout to pillage the adja¬ 
 cent Places. 
 
 II. 
 
&oVernout of a Province. 45 
 
 ii. 
 
 LET him chaftife, in an Exemplary 
 manner, all thofe who have thus gone 
 out of the way during the March, and 
 thofe who have exa&ed any thing of 
 their Landlords but what is determin’d 
 for them by the King’s Order, and let 
 him put into the Hands of the Intendant 
 of Juftice for the Province thofe who are 
 found conviffed of having robb’d and 
 pillag’d, that he may caufe Juftice to 
 be done for it. 
 
 Ilf. 
 
 LET him never fuffer any Women 
 to be with the Regiment, under pre¬ 
 tence of being Sutlers, or Wafhers, or 
 Servants ; and let him cafhier the Ser¬ 
 jeant , Corporal , or Soldier , who would 
 not part with or turn them off, when 
 they have been duly advertis’d of it by 
 their Officers. 
 
 IV. 
 
 LET him inform himfelf exa£lly,as 
 foDn as he comes to the place where 
 
 the 
 
The Obligations of a 
 
 the Regiment is quarter’d, if there are 
 any Quarrels among the Subaltern 
 Officers, and let him imrriediately re¬ 
 concile them, declaring from theGo- 
 yernour of the Province to thofe who 
 fall again into thefe Faults, that he fhall 
 be oblig’d to inform him of them, and 
 that he will infallibly break them ifthey 
 do not alter their Conduct. Let him 
 reconcile thofe which are among the 
 Soldiers of the Regiment, and let him 
 punilh, with all the Severity requir’d 
 by the King’s Orders, thofe who have 
 fought with one another. 
 
 V. 
 
 LET hint not make any Agreement 
 for the Regiment in one or more Places 
 Where he is in Garrifon. Let him ex- 
 aft nothing beyond what is imply’d in 
 the King’s Order, neither let him fulfer 
 any of the other Officers to do it for his 
 Company in particular on pain of 
 making Reftitution himfelf of what 
 fhall have been taken or exafted, in 
 cafe he does not advertife the Gover- 
 nour of the Province of it. 
 
GoVemour of a TroYtnce. 
 
 VI. 
 
 LET him take care that the Officers 
 follow the King’s Regulations for the 
 Duty and the Refidence of the Cap¬ 
 tains, as they fhall be prefcrib’d by the 
 Orders which are fent to the Regiment 
 for that End. And that the Soldiers 
 may not commit any Violence at their 
 Landlords, and do not mifufe them ei¬ 
 ther by beating them, or hind ring them 
 from Attending their Work or their 
 Bufinefs, Every one of the Captains are 
 order’d to leave at leaft one Subaltern 
 Officer in each Company to anfwer in 
 his own Name for the Diforders which 
 are done in it, and by Deduftion and 
 Retrenchment of his Allowance for 
 Winter Quarters, if he has not taken 
 care of it asfoon as the Diforder hap¬ 
 pen’d. 
 
 VII. 
 
 LET the fame Commander give 
 order that no Soldier go out of his 
 Quarters without leave from his Officer, 
 which may eafily be done, whether the 
 Reigment is Quarter’d in one place or 
 
 in 
 
 47 
 
The Obligations of a 
 
 In feveral ; fince there is always an Offi¬ 
 cer who commands, them. Let him al- 
 fo make the Taptow be beat every Night 
 betwixt eight and nine a Clock, and let 
 him make known to the Soldiers r that 
 thofe who are found rambling about 
 the Streets alter the Taptow is beat, fhall 
 be Punifh’d 
 
 vni. 
 
 IF the Company is Diftributed by 
 fmall Numbers into Divers Places, he 
 fhall give order that the Officer who 
 Commands the Company go and inform 
 himfelf from time to time of the Man¬ 
 ner in which the Soldiers of his Com¬ 
 pany li're, and whether they pay at 
 their Landlords for the Provifions they 
 have there, that he may oblige them to 
 do it if they have fail’d in it. In default 
 of doing which he muft anfwer for it 
 in his own Name. 
 
 IX. 
 
 6 N any Change of Quarters which 
 happen by Order from the King, of the 
 Lieutenants Generator of the Intendants 
 of the Province, each Commander of 
 
 the 
 
GoVernour of a ’Province. 
 
 the faid Quarters fhall be oblig’d to 
 write to the Governour of the Province, 
 the Place where he is, the Strength and 
 Condition of the faid Place, in what 
 Diltrift it is, and how far from fome 
 known and confiderable Town ; toge¬ 
 ther with the Regulations which have 
 been given him by the King, by thd 
 Governour, or by the Intendant, for 
 the Subfiftance and Maintenance of hi^ 
 Soldiers. 
 
 X. 
 
 EACH of the faid Commanders 
 fhall fend every two Months an act 
 count of the Review of the Companies 
 under his Command, and fhall let hint 
 know if the Soldiers behave themfelves 
 conformably to his M a jellies Orders, if 
 there is no Diforder in their Quarters, if 
 there has happen’d no Murders, Duelsj' 
 Alfaflinations or Violences,fince the laft 
 news he fent of them, and in Cafe any 
 have happen’d, and that the Governour 
 hear of it from other hands than froftt 
 the faid Commanders, they fhall an- 
 fwer for it in their own Namet 
 
V 
 
 j© The Obligations of d 
 
 XL 
 
 IN fine let the faid Commander 
 and the other Officers do in general all 
 that they can to prevent any Diforder, 
 and let them follow exactly the King’s 
 Orders, not doing any thing contrary 
 to them. 
 
 ORDER 
 
 Tor the Officers appointed to fee to the 
 Execution of the Orders of Jufliee 
 ■upon fifing the Gabelle, and to 
 oppofe any Tricking or Fraud. 
 
 I 
 
 | H E Officer fhall take care that 
 | the Brigadiers and Troopers who 
 are under his Conduct do not lead a 
 loofe and fcandalous Life, that they 
 do not Swear and Blafpheme they Holy 
 Name of God , and that they do not 
 commit any Diforder in the Places 
 
 where 
 
 ( 
 
GoVernour of a (province. 
 
 where they are fent by the faid Offi¬ 
 cer to affift in the Executing, the Or¬ 
 ders of Jultice on the Gabelle of the 
 Province. 
 
 ir. 
 
 H E fhall take a molt particular care 
 to inform himfelf if the Brigadiers and 
 Troopers pay exactly for all the Pro- 
 vifions and Provender they take for 
 themfelves and their Horfes, in the 
 Places whither they are detach’d by 
 him; and particularly in the Villa T 
 ges where they are Quarter’d* and 
 where by the greatnefs of their Num¬ 
 bers they be Mailers.- and in cafe he finds 
 any of them have not paid all they 
 have taken for Subfillance, in all the 
 places where they fojourn, or where 
 they have pafs’d, he fhall not fail to 
 Hop their Months Pay* to difcharge out 
 of it what is due to the Landlord who 
 furnifh’d them, and in fine he fhall 
 ftriflly fee that the Troopers do not 
 commit the leaft Diforders, it not being 
 juft or reafonable that even for any 
 Confideration whatfoever he lhould 
 fuffer the faid Troopers to oblige the 
 Community where they are Quarter'd* 
 H * to 
 
5 2 
 
 The Obligations of a 
 
 to alter the Rates of Provifions for 
 them, to exaft any thing of the Com¬ 
 munity by way of gratification to get 
 themfelvesExempted from being Quar¬ 
 ter’d upon , or on pretence of free Quar¬ 
 ters, or for good maintenance: the faid 
 Officer being very ftri&ly oblig’d to 
 take a moft particular care of itj on 
 pain of anfwering for it in his own 
 Name, and of paying himfelf what has 
 not been paid by the Troopers he 
 Commands. 
 
 III. 
 
 HE fhall likewife hinder the faid 
 Troopers from making ufe of the Go- 
 vernour’s Livery to affift in any Vio^ 
 lenceor to do Wrong or Difpleafure to 
 anyPerfon. He fhall moft tXpreily forbid 
 them to meddle directly or indireftly 
 with any other affairs than thofe of the 
 Farm of the Gdelle , according to the 
 particular Order and Inftruftion which 
 fhall be given them for it by him, that 
 they may not extend their Commiffion 
 to things that dojjnot belong to it, and 
 that the Livery be not expos’d*- 
 
 IV. 
 
5 
 
 GoVernour of a TroVince. 
 
 HE fhall befides particularly forbid 
 them to concern themfelves in Accom¬ 
 panying any Bailiffs or Serjeants in the 
 Execution of Judgments, Sentences or 
 Decrees, which they may be Charg’d 
 with by the Court of Juftice, unlefs they 
 have particular Orders for it ; and in 
 cafe the faid Troopers fail of Execu¬ 
 ting what is abovefaid he fhall cha- 
 ftife them, and advertife his Captain of 
 it, that it may be taken care of by him, 
 
 y. 
 
 A S the intention of his Majefty is 
 that by the faid Detachment of the 
 Troops the unlicens’d Selling of Salt, 
 which was heretofore Cuftomary in 
 the Provinces, may be hinder’d, and 
 that they fee to the Execution of the 
 Sentences of the Council of the Courts 
 of Aids , and of the other Orders of Ju¬ 
 ftice given by thofe who are appointed 
 to overlook that affair; the Governour 
 fhall exprefsly enjoyn the faid Officer 
 toufe his utmoft care for Preventing the 
 faid unlicens’d Selling of Salt, and for 
 H j this 
 
14 
 
 The Obligations of a 
 
 this End to detach fuch a Number of 
 his Troopers as he fhaM judg fit, into 
 the paffages of Tranfport, according to 
 the Advice and the Memoir which 
 fhall be fent him by the Farmer Gene¬ 
 ral of the Gabelle s or by thofe appointed 
 by him, to apprehend and feize the 
 unlicens’d Sellers of Salt, to be deli¬ 
 ver’d afterwards into the hands of the 
 Ordinary Judges Eftablifh’d by his 
 Majefty upon this matter, to be judg’d 
 according to the rigour of the Ordi¬ 
 nances and Regulations of the Gabelle • 
 and likewife to fee the Execution of the 
 Decrees and Judgments which are 
 made by his Majefties Council and by 
 the Courts of Aids on that Subjeft, 
 and all others of that nature: with 
 this order however always to make 
 the la it Decrees of his JViajefty’s faid 
 Council and the laft Decrees of the 
 faid Courts of Aids to be put in Ex¬ 
 ecution, whenever they have not been 
 interdicted by his Majefty, and parti¬ 
 cularly thofe which have been peremp¬ 
 torily given. 
 
 VJ. 
 
CoVernour of a Province. fj 5 
 
 VI. 
 
 V W 
 
 AND in cafe any Conteft fliould 
 happen upon the laft Decrees which 
 may have been obtain’d at the Council, 
 or at the Courts of Aids on the Affairs 
 of the faid Farm of the Gube'de ; and 
 that the faid Officer forefees fome Per¬ 
 plexity in the Execution by the Con¬ 
 trariety of Decrees, he fhall not fail to 
 repair immediately to the Intendant of 
 the faid Province wherever he is, to 
 know how he ought to behave him- 
 felf in the Affairs that may happen, of 
 which he fhall not fail alfo afterwards 
 to inform the Governour of the Pro- 
 yince, whofe Orders he fhall expe£t, 
 and in the mean time he fhall execute 
 by Provifion what the faid Intendant 
 fhall have prefcrib’d, it being above 
 all things forbidden him to oppofe by 
 any Violence the Execution of any De¬ 
 cree, even tho’ it fhould be contrary to 
 thofe which himfelf has caus’d to be 
 executed. 
 
 II 4 VII, 
 
f <5 The Obligations of a 
 
 VII. 
 
 r fine ’, he Ihall take care to make 
 no ill ufe of his Livery, not to yield iii 
 any manner to the Farmers of the Ga 
 Me , when they would exafl any 
 thing ot him againft the Order of Tu- 
 ltice ; and not to fufl'er the leaft Vio¬ 
 lence to be committed under the Name 
 and Authority of the Governour of the 
 Province in all the Extent of his Go 
 vernment, particularly by the Guards 
 under his Command, for which he 
 lhall be accountable to him in his own 
 rerlon, Given at, &c. 
 
 For 
 
Go’vernovr of a Province. 
 
 For the Guards 
 
 Who are commanded to march to the 
 Entrance of the Line of the Maga¬ 
 zines upon the poad, by which fe¬ 
 ver al Companies of Foot are to pafs 
 in or out to relieve thofe who march 
 QHt of the Garrifons of the Pro¬ 
 vince, or who pafs by the faid pla¬ 
 ces where Magazines are kept, to 
 go elfewhere as they are commanded 
 by bis Majefly. 
 
 I. 
 
 T hat Officer of the Guards who 
 ihall be commanded to be at the 
 Entrance of the Line which begins with 
 
 -- ffiall oblige the Companies who 
 
 enter into the Province by the faid Line, 
 to mutter before him, in cafe there be 
 no CommitTary of War fent by his Ma- 
 jefty to make the faid Mufter, or to ao 
 
 company the faid Troops. 
 
 And 
 
5 ? 
 
 The Obligations of a 
 
 And after having made an exa& Re¬ 
 view of the Officers and Soldiers pre* 
 fent and effective, he fhall give a Cer¬ 
 tificate of it to the Officer who com¬ 
 mands the faid Company, and fhall 
 take care to oblige the Confuls to fur- 
 nifh. them their Allowance in Specie, 
 conformably to what is exprefs’d in the 
 Order of the Intendant of the Province, 
 of which a Copy mull be given him to 
 ferve him for a Rule. 
 
 H E lhall fend by a fure Hand on the 
 fame Day, or the Day after having 
 made the Review to the Confuls of the 
 four following Eflappes, Certificates of 
 the Review he has made, in which 
 lhall be exaftly comprehended the 
 number of Officers and Soldiers prefent 
 and effective which have been mufter’d, 
 that they may furnilh them their Al¬ 
 lowance, as it is commonly appointed 
 by the abovefaid Order of the faid In¬ 
 tendant ; without augmenting or di- 
 minifhing their Number. 
 
 III. 
 
 P 
 
GoVevnour of a Trounce. 
 
 ! > . ;■ : J 
 
 III. 
 
 IF it fhould happen that any parti¬ 
 cular Inhabitants of the Province which 
 the faid Companies go out of, before 
 they go into another, fhould follow 
 them, to retrieve what may have been 
 taken from them by the Soldiers in 
 their March, hefhall endeavour to make 
 them reftore it, after being certified as 
 far as may, whether their Complaints 
 are true or not; and in cafe the Soldiers 
 or their Officers fhould make a Diffi¬ 
 culty of doing Juftice to the Plaintiffs, 
 he lhall tell them to go forward and 
 complain to the Governour of the Pro* 
 vince, who fhall oblige them to do Ju- 
 llice before the faid Companies go out 
 ofhis Government. 
 
 I IV. 
 
 AS it is almoft certain that the Com¬ 
 panies which are to take the fame Rout , 
 will not pafs but at fome Diftance of 
 time from one another, the Guard that 
 is at the Head of the Line muff: accom¬ 
 pany them to the fourth Eftappe of the 
 he laid Line, and from Day to Day 
 
eo The Obligations of a 
 
 take care to make them be receiv’d and 
 lodg’d conformably to the King’s Or¬ 
 der and to that of the Governour of 
 the Province. He muft fee that they 
 be exactly fupply’d with the Provifions 
 and Forage enjoyn’d by the Order of 
 the faid attendant , and likewife oblige 
 them to pay the Confuls of the faid 
 City in proportion to the faid Billets 
 which they have receiv’d from them, as 
 they have been regulated by the faid 
 Order. 
 
 V. 
 
 AND if it fhouid happen that the 
 Officers or Commanders of the faid 
 Companies make any Difficulty of pay¬ 
 ing what is determin'd by the above- 
 faid Order, or that they commit any 
 Diforder whether in the Town-Houfe 
 Market Places, or at their Landlords 
 in thofe Parts where they are lodg’d, 
 the faid Officer fhall draw up his Yer- 
 bal Procefs of it, and fend it immedi¬ 
 ately to the Governour of the Province, 
 that it may be taken care of as fhall be 
 found reafonable. 
 
 VI. 
 
GbVernouir of a Province. & 
 
 VI. 
 
 IF the faid Officer doth not find one 
 bf his Companions at the fourth Ejtappe , 
 whither he has Orders to go to con¬ 
 duct the abovefaid Company out of 
 the Province; he fhall fend to the Con- 
 ftils of the remaining Ejldppe within the 
 Bounds of that Province, the State of 
 the Review of the faid Company, that 
 they may be advertiz’d of it; after 
 which he fhall return to the Entrance 
 of the Line, till the Companies coil- 
 tain’d in his Regifter are pafs’d or re- 
 pa fs’d. 
 
 VII. 
 
 THE faid Officer fhall fend every 
 Week to the Secretary of the Go- 
 vernour of the Province an account of 
 the Mufters which he has taken of the 
 Companies, of the Strength and Con¬ 
 dition of the Soldiers, if they are able 
 Men, and he fhall inform him of what 
 has pafs’d in the Paffage of the faid 
 Companies that the Governour may 
 be inform d of it by him. Given at 
 *'« &c. 
 
 For 
 
The Obligations of a 
 
 T HEY fhall hinder any Perlon 
 convifted of a Crime from fet¬ 
 tling in the City, and in cafe there are 
 any fuch, he fhall fee to the Execution 
 of the Decrees of Juftice which have 
 been given againft them. 
 
 II. 
 
 They fhall take care to make the 
 Sundays and Holy-days be obferv’d in 
 their City, and to hinder the Shops 
 from being open’d on thofe Days, and 
 in cafe there are any Perfons who refufe 
 to obey, they fhall make Information 
 be given of their Trefpafs, that they 
 thay be criminally profecuted at Law. 
 
GoVernour of a Province. 
 
 III. 
 
 THEY fhall oblige thofe of the 
 pretended Reform’d Religion to take off 
 their Hats when the Sacrament is car¬ 
 ried to the Sick, and in cafe of Contra¬ 
 vention they fhall give Information of 
 it, and immediately profecute the Guil¬ 
 ty whether for theMatter above-nam’d, 
 or any Irreverence or injurious Words 
 which they may fpeak againft the Ce¬ 
 remonies of the Church. 
 
 THEY fhall take care to hinder 
 thofe of the pretended Reform’d Reli¬ 
 gion from doing any violence to fuch 
 as are converted; and fhall oppofe all 
 Menaces and ill treatment which they 
 would give to thofe who are on the 
 point of abjuring their Religion, and 
 if it fhould happen to be any of the 
 chief of the faid pretended Reform’d 
 Religion who countenance it, they 
 fhall immediately give notice of it to 
 the Governour of the Province, that he 
 : may Support them with his Authority*; 
 t And that thofe things which refpefl; 
 
 the 
 
 I 
 
The Obligations of a 
 
 the Glory of God and his Service may 
 be done in the City with the greater 
 facility, they fball likewife carefully 
 fee to the Execution of the Ecclefiafti- 
 eal OrdiMfiOes of the Afchbifhops and 
 Bifhops; and when they cannot make 
 them be Executed by their own Au¬ 
 thority they fhall Advertife him of it, 
 that he may ufe his power in fuch a cafe. 
 
 V. 
 
 BESIDES the opening of Shops 
 and Trardefmens working on Sundays 
 or Holy-days, which they are to hinder, 
 they fhall likewife take care that there 
 be no labouring in the Fields, no dri¬ 
 ving of Carts, and that no Commodities 
 be publickly expos’d to Sale. 
 
 VI 
 
 ABOVE all they fhall take care that 
 no new Impofitions be made without 
 exprefs Orders from his Maiefty, and 
 that the Publick Money be Etnploy’d, 
 to thofe Ends for which it is defign’d 
 Without fuffering it to be otherwife 
 diverted. 
 
GoVernour of a 'Province. 
 
 VII. 
 
 THEY ought to be very Severe 
 in Suppreiling fcandalous Places, and 
 in Punilhing Perfons of an ill Life. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 AS in all good and well govern’d 
 ! Cities, it is cuftomary to nominate a 
 fufficient Number of Perfons of Probi¬ 
 ty to aflift them in the Functions of 
 their Charge, they lhall ehufe fuch 
 Perfons as they judge to have the molt 
 Probity, and whom they think molt 
 inclin’d for the Good of the Commu¬ 
 nity, that by this means they may all 
 together re-eftablifh good Orders in 
 the City, by reforming all the Abufes 
 which they know to be Prejudicial to 
 the Publick Good, as well againft Ba¬ 
 kers, Butchers, Huckfters and Artifans, 
 as againft other Perfons fubje&ed to 
 their Government. 
 
66 
 
 The Obligations of d 
 
 IX. 
 
 LET the faid Confuls chufe fuck 
 procurators of Hofpitals, as are Zealous 
 for the Service of G o d, who fhall take 
 care that the Hofpitaler Monks and 
 Nuns perform reciprocally the Articles 
 fpecify’d in the Contracts of Eftablifh- 
 raerit, that are confirm’d by the Gene¬ 
 ral Council of the Cities, requiring them 
 to give a Yearly Account of their Ad- 
 minillration to the Auditors nominated 
 by the Committee. 
 
 X. 
 
 LET them be careful to remedy 
 the Diforders Which are committed in 
 the night by thofe Who ramble about 
 the Streets, forbidding any one to walk 
 about the Streets- at that time, after 
 the Taptorv is beat, at a certain bout* 
 that fhall be fixd; after which they 
 fhall caufe all thofe to be Punifh’d, 
 who are found there without a Flam¬ 
 beau, Lanthorn or other Light. 
 
 XI. 
 
GoVernour of a (province. 
 
 XL 
 
 LET them be careful to Eftablifli 
 For a Guard of the City Gates faithful 
 and honeft Porters , who may hinder 
 Ramblers, Rogues and Vagabonds 
 from coming into it. Let them forbid 
 them to give Cards to play there on 
 Sundays and Holidays during Divine 
 Service, and in cafe of Contravening, 
 let them take care to Punifh them fe- 
 verely.Let them likewife hinder any one 
 from playing in the Markets and Pub* 
 lick places on the faid Sundays and 
 Holydays in the time of Divine Service 
 
 XII. 
 
 A N D as upon the Feftivals of thofe 
 Saints which the feveral Trades have 
 taken for their Patrons, Debauches are 
 committed which give great Scandal 
 to the Publick, and tend to the great 
 Difhonour of God , contrary to the true 
 End of the Inftitution of Feftivals, they 
 are exprelly commanded to hinder fuch 
 Debauches and Scandals. 
 
The Obligations of a 
 
 XIII. 
 
 THEY fhall carefully fee to the 
 Execution of the King’s Ordinance a- 
 gainft the Captains of the Youth, and 
 fhall hinder them from chufing any 
 more. And in cafe the Youth of the 
 faid City Ihould contravene, they ought 
 to be feverely Punilh’d. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 WHEN the Levying of the Taille 
 has been adjudg’d, they fhall hinder the 
 Overplus requifite to make up the 
 twenty-pence per Liv-re , from being 
 impos’d, but let it remain for the ad¬ 
 vantage of the Publick. 
 
 XV. 
 
 WHEN the Troops pafs thro or 
 fojourn in the City, they fhall order 
 their Quarters more exactly than their 
 Predecelfors have hitherto done; fo 
 that the Troopers may not remain in 
 the Streets great part of the Night, as 
 it has often happen’d, and that there 
 may be no Diforders betwixt them and 
 the Inhabitants, XVI, 
 
GoVernour of a (Province. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 THEY fhall take care likewife not 
 to burden the Poor in quartering the 
 Soldiers, but to diftribute them to every 
 one with Equality, fo that each may 
 have his Share of the Inconvenience in 
 his Turn, excepting thofe who are ex¬ 
 empted by their Character, or by their 
 Office; and they fhall carefully look to 
 the Regiftring of the Billets which they 
 give. 
 
 XVII. 
 
 ABOVE all things, they fhall caufe 
 the Blafphemers of the Holy Name of 
 God, to be punifhed according to the 
 Rigour of the Ordinances, 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 AND in fine, they (hall take care in 
 general to remedy all the Faults and 
 Abufes which they know to be already 
 eftablifh’d, or to be daily gaining 
 ground in the City; and fhall oppctfe 
 them with all their Authority, Given 
 -' &t. 
 
The Obligations of a 
 
 go 
 
 For the Commijfioner who is fent to the 
 Synods of the Reform d (Religion. 
 
 I. 
 
 ' | "HE Commiflioner fhall come to— 
 £ on the Day affign’d, and he fhall 
 give thofe who compofe the Synod to 
 pnderftand,thatas it is the King's Inten¬ 
 tion, that his Subjects of the pretended 
 Reform’d Religion fhould livein Peace 
 and Quietnefs conformably to the Edicts 
 which have been granted them, fo he 
 does not intend that they fhould at¬ 
 tempt to make any Innovation ; but 
 that they fhould fubmit with refpecl to 
 the Orders which fhall be given them 
 from his Majefty,, 
 
 ir. 
 
 IT is his Majefty’s Defire, that he 
 fhould fee that the Synod laft but eight 
 Days,' not fuffering it after the faid 
 time is pafs’d, to remain aflembled with¬ 
 out having a particular Permiflion for it 
 from his Majefty, or from the Gover- 
 nour of the Province. Ill, 
 
GoVemour of a (province. 7 
 
 IN. 
 
 N O Perfon of the Province can be 
 fent nor have Entrance to the faid Sy¬ 
 nod who is not a&ually of the; Confi- 
 ftory of the Plice which has deputed 
 him, and who does not actually re T 
 fide in the faid Place ; and in cafe any 
 one comes th'ither on pretence of giv¬ 
 ing an Account there of fome Com- 
 miflion, he cannot remain in the Synod 
 to have any Vote there. 
 
 IV. 
 
 HE cannot hold any Conferences 
 but in the Synods, and during their 
 Seflion, according to the Decree of the 
 Council of State of the Fifteenth of 
 December , 1660. and the General Aft 
 of Regulation made the Fifth of Octo¬ 
 ber, 1 66]. 
 
 H E muft not fuffer any Propofition 
 to be made contrary to his Majefties 
 Service, nor any Doftrine or Maxim 
 to be eftablifh’d but in conformity to 
 I 4 what 
 
The Obligations of a 
 
 what has been allow’d to thofe of the 
 Reform’d Religion, in confequence of 
 their Confefhon of Faith. 
 
 vr. 
 
 FOR this 6hd he mull regulate with 
 thofe of the Reform’d Religion, the 
 time of holding their Synods, and Con¬ 
 ferences at different Hours, that he 
 may be prefent at all the Alfemblies 
 that are made, not fuffering any to be 
 held but in his Prefence. 
 
 VII. 
 
 IF it fhould happen that any Propo- 
 fition be made there, contrary to the 
 Ediftsand Declarations of his Majefty, 
 to the A&s of his Council, and to this 
 prefent Inftruction, he fhall forbid them 
 in the King’s Name to go any farther, 
 and in cafe they do not yield to him, he 
 fhall draw up his Verbal Procefs ofit, 
 in which he fhall mention thofe Perfons 
 that were Authors of the Difobediepce, 
 that they may be refponlible, for it iri 
 their own Nam.es. 
 
GoVernour of a TroVmce. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 HE muft not fuffer them to have 
 any Communication from Province to 
 Province ; and let him make known 
 to the Synod that his Majefty expe&s 
 that the Prohibitions made by the Com- 
 miflion fent by him to prefide in tlx; 
 Synod fhould be fubmitted to, ?tnd in 
 cafe of refufal, that he has Orders to 
 make the Moderator, the Alfiftant, 
 and others who compofe the Table re- 
 fponfiblefor it. 
 
 IX- 
 
 ■. i . * +» • a i k i ■ » e ), • • . ■ ■ i I \ 
 
 HE muft take care that the Afts 
 made October the 5 th 1 663, for the Re¬ 
 gulation of the Synods, be read in his 
 Prefence, that the Execution of them 
 may be conform’d to in what concerns 
 General Matters. 
 
 ' \ 
 
 x. 
 
 H E fhall take care that the Synod 
 do not order any Place to be ferv d by 
 Minifters not belonging to it ; Tut that 
 they afftgn to, each of the "laid Mini¬ 
 fters 
 
 7 ? 
 
74 
 
 The Obligations of a 
 
 fters the Place of his Refidence, where 
 he may perform his Functions in Con¬ 
 formity to the Edicts, not fuffering 
 him to go preach in other Places, as it 
 is enjoyn’d by the A£t of Regulation. 
 
 XI. 
 
 H E fhali draw up a Verbal Procefs 
 of all that paffes in the fa id Synod, he 
 fhali bring with him a Copy of all the 
 Deliberations which have been taken 
 here; and in fine he fhali do all that i| 
 necefiary to imprint in them a refpeQ:- 
 ful Obedience to all the Orders they 
 fhali receive from the King, or from 
 the Commanders for his Majefty in the 
 laid Province, Given —, &c. 
 
 ME- 
 
 \ 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 Concerning the 
 
 GOYERNMENT 
 
 OF HIS 
 
 HOUSE- 
 
MEMOIRS 
 
 Concerning the things which he defied 
 jkould be ob/erVd in his Family , and 
 about his Eftate, both with (RefpeEl 
 to (Religious , and to Temporal 
 /iffairs. 
 
 r. 
 
 O take eare that all my Do - 
 mejlicks live Religioufly: 
 not to receive anv into my 
 Houfe who lead a fcan- 
 dalous Life; and to turn 
 out thofe whom there is no hopes of 
 amending. 
 
 II. 
 
 To obferve an exa& Juftice towards 
 my DumejHcks 9 paying them regularly 
 what is due to them, and recompenfing 
 them according to their Services* 
 
 iil 
 
0} the Government 
 
 nr. 
 
 « t " ? r - ■ * 
 
 To take care to have: them Catechis’d 
 by my Chaplains once a Week, and to 
 have them exaftly inftru&ed in the 
 Law of God, being mindful to have 
 thofe taught in private, who are of too 
 dull a Capacity to profit by publick In- 
 ftru&ions. 
 
 IV. 
 
 To make them be prefent at Divine 
 Service every Day, bi t indifpenfibly ori 
 Sundays and Holy-days : and if it can be, 
 to fend them in Companies to the Parifh 
 Church, appointing each Sunday one 
 of the mod Pious to lead thofe who are 
 to go thither; as alfo to make them 
 obferve exaflrly all the Fafts of the 
 Church,excepting thofe who are known 
 not to be oblig’d to it on the account 
 of their Infirmities. 
 
 V. 
 
 To provide that befides their Inftru- 
 ction in the general Things which they 
 Ought to know, they be particularly 
 
 inftru£led 
 
of bis Houjbold. 
 
 inrtrufled in the Obligations of their 
 Station. 
 
 VI. 
 
 To make them be prefent every Day 
 at the Prayers and the Examination of 
 Confcience, even whilft they are 
 On a Journey, and if they are lodg’d 
 very far from one another, to make 
 Prayers be faid at the Principal Lodg¬ 
 ing, where thofe who lie nearelt may 
 be prefent, and to have them likewife 
 at the Place appointed for the Stables* 
 that the Livery-Men may be prefent at 
 them. 
 
 yir. 
 
 When they are Sick, to make therri 
 be a flirted Bodily and Spiritually with 
 all poffible Care. 
 
 vnr. 
 
 't O hinder all Enmities and Quar¬ 
 rels amongft them, and to pacifie therri 
 with great Care. And that Jealoufie 
 may not bring Hatred among them, to 
 eonfider and advance them, not by Fa¬ 
 vour 
 
Of the Government 
 
 your, but in Proportion to their Virtue 
 and their Services. 
 
 IX. 
 
 To make the Pages, and Footmen 
 lie in feparate Beds; and to have, if it 
 can be, fome Difcreet Perfon to lie in 
 the Pages Chamber. 
 
 X. 
 
 To take as much Care as is poflibie, 
 when any Foot-men are put to Trades, 
 that it be with Religious Perfons. 
 
 NOT to be content with giving good 
 Orders, but to watch over their Exe¬ 
 cution, or Non-Execution; to enter in¬ 
 to the particular Examination of this 
 with Care, and to have often an Ac¬ 
 count given me by thofe who are fet 
 over the Domefticks, of the Behaviour 
 of thofe who are under them. 
 
# 1 
 
 of bis Houjhotd. 5 
 
 Xir. 
 
 BEFORE the taking any Dome,- 
 flicks this Order muft be obferv’d; fir ft, 
 to beg them From God, during fome 
 Time more or lefs according to the 
 Importance of their Employments. 
 Secondly s to enquire of their Manners, 
 not flightly but throughly. Thirdly , to 
 let them know the Rules of the Houfe 
 before they enter, with their parties 
 lar Obligations, and give them Leifure 
 to think of them. 
 
 I 1 
 
 XIII. 
 
 t ; • • - 1 * mt - X 
 
 NEVER to keep any Man in my 
 Family who has fought a Duel, who 
 has been convi&ed of Impurity, of 
 Blafphemy, of Violence, or of Theft, 
 or given to Drunkennefs. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 TO To think of employing the Do- 
 mefticks , the greateft part of the Day, 
 that t,hey may be kept from Idlenefs, 
 \thichis the Mother of all Vices. 
 
 K 
 
 XV; 
 
& Of the Government 
 
 XV. 
 
 T O make them go to Confeffion, 
 and Communicate at Eajler, and ex¬ 
 hort them to render themfelves Worthy 
 by a truly Chriftian Life to come oft- 
 ner to the Sacraments. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 -IT 0 pay my Debts exa&ly, and ef- 
 pecially Tradefmen and Day-Labour¬ 
 ers, who are ruined with waiting long. 
 In order to this, the Affairs of my 
 Houfe muff be kept in fo good a State, 
 by retrenching not only what ferves 
 to Luxury and Vanity, but even all 
 Superfluity, that I may pay them every 
 Month; remembring thefe Words of 
 St. Bernard^ The Poor and our Creditors 
 cry after us, that which you expend belongs 
 to US}, from tts you fnatch with Cruelty all 
 that you vainly employ in things Superflu¬ 
 ous, 
 
 XVII. 
 
 T O look over my Affairs with my 
 Steward at leaft once a Week. 
 
 XVIIL 
 
 t 
 
of his Houfhold. 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 TO be prefent at my Council as 
 much as I can, for fear thofe who com- 
 pofeit fhould, out of too much Zeal 
 for my Intereft, do Jnjuftice to any 
 one. 
 
 / ■ - t I 
 
 XIX. 
 
 \ 
 
 T O take cafe that my Intendants, 
 my Stewards, the Farmers of my 
 Rents, and the Perfons who have the 
 Care of my Eftate, do not vex and op- 
 prefs thofe who are under them ; ef- 
 pecially the Poor and my Debtors, by 
 holding them to the utmoft Rigour ; 
 but to charge them to require what is 
 due with Charity and Juftiee, and not 
 to make Ufe of the Right of Commit- 
 timm for little Sums, or againfl poor 
 People. 
 
 XX. 
 
 I mult from Time to Time order my 
 Lands to be vifited, and an exad Ac¬ 
 count to be given me by faithful Per- 
 fcjns of the Spiritual and Temporal 
 
 K a State 
 
0 Of the GoVernfnent 
 
 State of thofe who are in them ; the 
 Capacity of the Re£tors, and of their 
 Curates, their Piety, and the Care 
 they take in inftru&ing their Parifh, 
 that fo if there be any Diforder in their 
 Manners, or that they are Negligent 
 or Incapable, Information may be gi¬ 
 ven of it to the Bifhop or to his Vi¬ 
 car,- 
 
 XXI. 
 
 THE State and Ruine of Churches 
 muft likevvile be obferved; whether 
 they have any Ornaments, Pixes, Cha¬ 
 lices, and wherewith to maintain the 
 Priefts decently, that we may adver¬ 
 tize thofe of it who are oblig’d to con¬ 
 tribute to it, and even profecute them, 
 that they may be compell’d to it by 
 Law ; or that the Lord of the Mannor 
 may do'it himfelf in the Places where 
 he polfeffes the Impropriations. 
 
 XX. 
 
 If there be any Turbulent Huguenots 
 who have done things contrary to the 
 Publick Edicts, we muft hinder them, 
 and take in Hand the Proceffes which 
 
 .are 
 
9 
 
 of his HouJJwlJ. 
 
 are begun againll them to that Pur- 
 pofe. 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 T O take Care that there be good 
 Magiftrates in my Lands, make them 
 be diligently examined, that I may be 
 allur’d of their Capacity, chufing al¬ 
 ways the beft Men, and being morally 
 certain of this after an exa£t and not 
 fuperficial Perquifition of their Man¬ 
 ners, without having any refpeft to 
 Recommendations. 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 N E V E R to fell any Offices, for be-? 
 fides that the Exercife of Juftice cannot 
 be efteem’d at a Price ; when once the 
 felling of Places is introduc’d, the Con- 
 fideration of Merit or of Capacity is en¬ 
 tirely banifh’d. ' ' 1 
 
 XXV. 
 
 T O chaftife them when thy com¬ 
 mit Injuftice, or are wanting in their 
 Duty, and to difpoifefs them when I 
 forelee that they wiU not be amended. 
 
 K 3 XXVI, 
 
o Of the Government 
 
 XXVI. 
 
 TO be careful that the Farmers 
 do not exa£t what is Unlawful; and 
 that Captains, Keepers of my Caftles, 
 and other Officers, do not grieve and 
 opprefs thofe who are under them, 
 and that they do not lay the Taxes on 
 the Poor to eafe themfelves, 
 
 XXVII. 
 
 T O take care that the Taxes be e- 
 qually proportioned, and to write about 
 it to the Intendants and others, whole 
 Bufinefs it is, that Parifhes as well as 
 particular Perfons may not be too 
 much Burdened. 
 
 XX VIII. 
 
 T O fend through all my Lands the 
 King’s Edifts againft Blafphemy and 
 Swearing, and to make them be pun- 
 ftually obferv’d by having the Tranf- 
 grelforsof them chaftisd. 
 
 XXIX, 
 
of his HoufholJ. 
 
 XXIX. 
 
 TO profecute Crimes at my own Ex¬ 
 pence where their is no Plaintiff . This 
 is a ftrift Duty, and it mult not be 
 negle&ed for any Caufe whatfoever. 
 
 XXX. 
 
 T O make the Sundays and Holy- 
 days be obferved, by hindering all Ser¬ 
 vile Works, making the Tavern Doors 
 to be fhut, at leaft during the Divine 
 Service, and having Fairs and Mar¬ 
 kets transferred to other Days than 
 thofe above-nam’d. 
 
 xxxr. 
 
 TO have loofe Women chaftis’d and 
 driven out, and to fupprefs Mounte¬ 
 bank Stages and Publick Gaming 
 Houfes. 
 
 XXXII. 
 
 TO procure Miffionaries from Time 
 to Time for thofe Places which have 
 need of them. 
 
 K 4 XXXII*, 
 
Of the Government^ 
 
 XXXIII. 
 
 IN thofe Places where the Nomina¬ 
 tion of a Rector belongs to me, to be 
 careful always to put in the moll Wor¬ 
 thy, wittiopt Acceptation of Perfons, 
 or Confideration of any Requell, Look¬ 
 ing on myfelf, in this Right,as charg’d 
 with the Salvation of all the Souls in 
 thatParifh, for which I amtoanfwer 
 to God, on the good or ill bellowing 
 of the Benefice. But if it does not de¬ 
 pend on me, I mull write to the Bi- 
 fhop or to the Patron, to defire hiirt 
 in general to provide it with a good 
 Pajtor. 
 
 XXXIV. 
 
 T O endeavour gently to engage the 
 Pallors, before or after their Inducti¬ 
 on, to pafs fopne time in the Seminaries.. 
 
 XXXV. 
 
 NOT to content my felf with giv¬ 
 ing good Orders, but to be careful of 
 having phem Executed, and apply my 
 felf Serioully to it, 
 
 * XXXVI, 
 

 of bis HouflioU. 13 
 
 XXXVI. ' 
 
 T O have inftruftions drawn up of 
 the Duties of the (Officers in my Lands, 
 giving each of them a Copy ; and fen¬ 
 ding Perfons from time' to time to 
 know their Behaviour. 
 
 * ? f 
 
 xxxvir. 
 
 T O inform my felf exa£lly if there 
 is any thing belonging to the Church 
 ufurp’d by my Predeceffors of which 
 I am in poffeflion; and in cafe it be fo, 
 to make Reftitution of the Fund, and 
 all the Arrears which have been undu¬ 
 ly poffeft. ' ■ 1 
 
 ' 1 - :- ' .r. 1 
 
 ORDERS 
 
Of the Government 
 
 ORDERS 
 
 For the Council during my Abfence. 
 
 A S I know they examine all Affairs 
 in a Spirit of true Judges, I 
 have nothing to recommend to them 
 thereupon, but fhall only obferve to 
 them in particular that which follows. 
 
 I. 
 
 T O take care always to judge on 
 affairs by the right of the thing, and 
 not by my Intereft or Authority. 
 
 II. 
 
 ALWAYS readily to accept any 
 good Overtures of Accommodation ; 
 and in doubtful Cafes to incline rather 
 to others than to me, efpecially when 
 they are poor People. 
 
of bis HoujloU. 
 
 III. 
 
 SEVERELY toChaftifeanyE- 
 vil Proceedings of the Officers of ray 
 Lands. 
 
 IV. 
 
 T O grant reafonable Abatement to 
 ruin’d Tenants, upon due Examination 
 of their Caufe. 
 
 ■ 3 ' ■ ' i ■ 
 
 V. 
 
 T O be extreamly Shy in granting 
 Interventions, and in permitting the 
 Farmers to make ufe of the Commit- 
 timus againft Perfons at a difiance, or 
 in Affairs of little confequence. 
 
 vr. 
 
 ZEALOUSLY to take the part 
 and the Caufe in hand of the Oppreflr. 
 
 . ? - .t 
 
Of the Government 
 
 vn. 
 
 ABOVE all things to avoid enter- 
 prizing on the Rights of the Church, 
 and readily to favour them when they 
 are clear, or even if they are but doubt¬ 
 ful. 
 
 VIII. 
 
 NOT to take advantage of Pre- 
 fcriptions againft any one andefpeci- 
 ally againft the Church, when the 
 Right is well grounded and Evident. 
 
 IX. 
 
 CAREFULLY to Examine 
 thofe who prefen t themfelves for Offi¬ 
 ces, their Probity, Life, and Manners, 
 and their Capacity, not only by a bare 
 Information, but likewife by allured 
 Teftimonies; and in cafe of Compe¬ 
 titors, to give always the Preference to. 
 Merit without regard to Recommen¬ 
 dations. 
 
of his Houfhold. 
 
 T O difpatch with the greateft Spee* 
 dynefs poffible thofe who come, and 
 efpecially the moft diftant. 
 
 THEY fhall alfo take the care to 
 fend me every Fortnight the Refults of 
 the Council. Written at Paris the .... 
 day c^f. 
 
 InJlruElions for the Stewards and Of¬ 
 ficers of my Lands. 
 
 A S I haverefolv’d to give all the 
 Offices of Judicature in my 
 Lands gratis , I defire my Officers to 
 Exercife them with fo great Exa&nefs 
 that there may be nothing to cenfure 
 either in their Conduct or in their 
 Manners ; and they ought to look on 
 themfelves not only as Officers Efta- 
 blifli d to adminifter Juftice impartially 
 
 without 
 
Of the Government 
 
 without acception ofPerfons, but like- 
 wife as Men chofen and appointed to 
 watch that nothing pafs in my Lands 
 which is contrary to the Glory of God 
 Or to good Manners. Let them in fine 
 be perfwaded that I charge their Con¬ 
 fidences with all the Duties which are 
 affix’d to the Quality of a Superior 
 Lord of a Land. 
 
 I. 
 
 I ordain them as Officers of Juftice 
 carefully to obferve the Ordinances for 
 fan&ifyirig Sundays and Holy-days. 
 
 II. 
 
 NOT to fiuffer any Dancing ori 
 Publick Gaming, or going into Ta¬ 
 verns during Divine Service. 
 
 III. 
 
 T O obferve alfo with great Care the 
 Ordinances which are made for the A- 
 bridgmentof Law-Suits, 
 
of his JHouJhold. 
 
 IV. 
 
 TO keep actual Refidence in the 
 Places where they are oblig’d to render 
 Juftice, and never to fail being there 
 on the ufual Days. 
 
 V. 
 
 T O inform themfelves diligently of 
 Crimes and Defaults, both in the Accu- 
 fation and Defence. 
 
 Vf. 
 
 TO difpatch fuccinftly Criminal 
 Caufes, preferably to other Bufinefs. 
 
 VII. 
 
 TO be likewife very Diligent in 
 making good and faithful Inventories 
 or the PolTeflions of Minor and to pro¬ 
 vide them with Truftees and Guar- 
 dians who are manifeftly Refponfible, 
 and Perfons of known Probity. 
 
Of the Government 
 
 VIII. 
 
 TO be always inclin’d to proteft 
 the Poor and the Weak, againft the 
 Rich and the Powerful. 
 
 IX. 
 
 SEVERELY to punifh Blafphemers 
 according td the Laws. 
 
 XI. 
 
 NOT to have any Enmities, and 
 to take Pains to reconcile thofe who 
 llave contracted any gaihft one another. 
 
 xir. 
 
 TO be exceeding careful that the 
 Farmers and Peffons employ’d in my 
 Affairs enterprife nothing to the pre¬ 
 judice of the Church ; and if they difco- 
 ver any Ufurpation which had former¬ 
 ly been made on Ecclefiaftical Rights 
 or Poffeffions, immediately to inforifi 
 me of it, without conniving at or put¬ 
 ting it off from one to another. 
 
t 
 
 bf bis Houfhold. 1 
 
 XI. 
 
 t N 
 
 NEVER, to give Sentence in my Fa¬ 
 vour in doubtful Cafes, without firfl 
 making known to me or my Council 
 the Reafons of their Doubt,, and to 
 blear very plainly the Juftice of thofe 
 Affairs which are under my Name, 
 
 XU. 
 
 TO take care to examine, and fearch 
 Into the Caufes of the Abatements 
 which fhall beat any time ask d by the 
 Farmers and Under-Farmers of my 
 Lands, to inform my Council of them. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 T O give Information to my faid 
 Council of the Reparations which are 
 neceffary to prevent Houfesfrom falling 
 to mine. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 NOT to fuffer my Name to be made 
 ufe of to prejudice any Perfon, 
 
 StV* 
 
 L 
 
zi Of the Government 
 
 XV. 
 
 AND in quality of Perfans appoin¬ 
 ted to watch over all that refpe£ts my 
 particular Obligations, I defire them to 
 take care; ' 
 
 xvr. 
 
 T O inform me of thofe things which 
 they cannot do of themfelves, and 
 which they think may be done by me, 
 whether to avert any Evil or to pro¬ 
 cure anv Good. 
 
 J 
 
 xvir. 
 
 To inform me if the Refltors and Cu¬ 
 rates are faithful in difcharging the 
 Obligations of their Miniftry. 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 IF thofe who manage my Affairs 
 afe given to drinking, if they have any 
 Part or Interefts in my Farms, and if 
 they do any Wrong either to me, or to 
 thofe under my Jurifdiction. 
 
 XIX, 
 
# "Y 
 
 of bis Houfbold. 
 
 I r 
 
 XIX. 
 
 • 1 » f » 
 
 IF there are any Quarrels or Enmi¬ 
 ties, that cannot be pacified butbymv 
 Authority. J 
 
 General Rules which I will haVe oh - 
 ferVd in my Houfe. 
 
 A 'LL my Domefticks are to know 
 that I will not fuffer any Swear- 
 
 wm ?hemy ’ Im P iet y> Ming on 
 Houfe ThmSS ’ 0r an y Impurity in my 
 
 I forbid them, upon Pain of being 
 turnd away, all Ill Houfes, Drunken- 
 nefs, gmng to Plays, gaming at Cards 
 _r Dice, reading Romances and ill 
 cooks, Quarrels either within or with¬ 
 out the Houfe, Duels and preceding 
 
 fadoi- unng in my Houfe an y Male - 
 
 fent^l^ 6 a S my D °mefticks pre- 
 
 and H^l Dl a ine Service ever y Sunday, 
 and Hdy.day, without f ail under any 
 
 Pretence whatfoever; that every one 
 L 2 confefs 
 
24 Of the Government 
 
 confefs and communicate at Eafier irt 
 the Parifh, and that they ftriflly ob- 
 ferve the Lent and other Fafts of the 
 Church. 
 
 I exhort them all to employ Sundays 
 and the Holy Feftivals in being pre- 
 fent at the Divine Offices in the Parifh, 
 at Sermons, Catechizing, and other 
 Pious Works, and to frequent the Ho¬ 
 ly Sacrament. 
 
 All fhall be at Prayers at the Cha¬ 
 pel in'the Morning, and at the Brief 
 Inftru£tion which will be made there, 
 as aifo at Prayers in the Evening, and 
 on Saturdays at Catechizing ; and in 
 order to this,all fhall return homebefore 
 Six a Clock at Night in Winter, and 
 Eight in Summer, and fhall not go out 
 in the Morning till after Prayers are 
 over, except thofe who are oblig’d to 
 go to the Markets. 
 
 The Porters fhall fhut the Gates at 
 Six a Clock in Winter, and fhall give 
 the Keys to the Keeper of the Palate at 
 Ten, which they fhall take again when 
 it is Day, and one of them fhall always 
 be at the Gate. In the Summer they 
 fhall fhut it at Eight at Night, and 
 give up the Keys at Eleven. If any 
 on® lies abroad, except thofe who are 
 
 married, 
 
of bis HoufhoU . 
 
 married, he fhall be turn’d off with¬ 
 out Pardon. 
 
 THE Servants who belong to any 
 of my Gentlemen or other Domed icks 
 fhall obferve thefe Regulations, other- 
 wife they fhall not be kept. 
 
 Be it known to all my Domefticks 
 that if they commit any Tnfolencies or 
 Injuries abroad they fhall find no Pro¬ 
 tection, and Juftice fhall be done to 
 thofe who come to complain. 
 
 The Pages, the Footmen, the Coach¬ 
 men, and the Grooms, for whom part 
 ticular Rules are drawn up, fhall pun r 
 dually obferve them. 
 
 And that all may be certain that I 
 Will have thofe Orders obferv’d, the 
 Rules fhall be read in Publick on the 
 firft day of every Month after Evening 
 Prayer. 
 
 Rules for the Pages. 
 
 T HEY fhall rife from Eafler to Ad 
 Saints-day at Six a Clock, and 
 from all Saints to Eajfer at half an 
 hour after Six. 
 
 L 3 They 
 
6 Of the Government 
 
 They fhall drefs themfelves with 
 Modefty, Diligence and Recolle&ion, 
 £hat they may be early in the Chapel 
 to hear the Beginning of the Inftrufti- 
 on, which will be made there before 
 Prayers, to which they fhall hearken 
 with great Reverence, Silence and At¬ 
 tention^ well on Working-days as Ho¬ 
 ly-days, and no one fhall fail of being 
 prefent, unlefs by fome lawful Impedi¬ 
 ment or exprefs Leave. if1 
 
 Divine Service being ended they 
 fhall go to Breakfaft, after which they 
 fhall exercife themfelves in Fencing, 
 and three by three alternately they 
 fhall go to the Academy. 
 
 As for the remaining time till Din¬ 
 ner, they fhall employ it in Reading, 
 or in Studying the Mathematicks. 
 
 After Dinner they Fhall have two 
 hours for Recreation, they fhall ab- 
 ftain from Playing at Cards, from 
 Dice, from reading Romances, from 
 Injurious and Indecent Words, from 
 Quarrelling and Swearing. 
 
 They fhall not go abroad without 
 leave, they fhall not go to Plays, Balls, 
 Taverns, or to the Tennis Court, and 
 mail: not go to Play out of the Houfe. 
 
 The Afternoons Recreation being 
 
 ended 
 
17 
 
 of his Houjholl 
 
 ended, they fhall employ themfelves 
 in Reading, Writing, and in the Mathe- 
 maticks. 
 
 On Solemn Feftivals they fhall be 
 prefent at High-Mafs, and at Vefpers ; 
 after Supper they fhall recreate them¬ 
 felves till Prayer-time, and they fhall 
 commonly be in Bed at Ten a Clock, 
 
 I forbid them to go out of the Palace 
 into the City, without their Gover- 
 nours leave, and without being atten-. 
 ded by one of their Footmen, whom 
 he fhall name; even tho they are going 
 to fee their Father, Relations &c. 
 
 And if the iaid Footman is examin’d 
 where the Page has been, and does not 
 tell the Truth, he fhall be immediate¬ 
 ly turn’d away as foon as the Truth is 
 known, and the Page Chaftis’d. 
 
 They fhall not be allow’d to Dine 
 or Sup abroad, without having leave 
 from their Governour. 
 
 For the Stewards. 
 
 I Will have my Stewards, as well as 
 the Comptrollers of my Houfe be 
 prefent at the Exercifes of Piety, as the 
 L 4 * Divine 
 
 \ 
 
Of the Government 
 
 Divine Service, the Exhortation, and 
 the Catechizing; to be at Evening 
 Prayers, and to make all the Servants 
 be there who are under their Care. 
 
 Let them advertife thofe who aQ: 
 contrary to my Orders, that if they 
 do not obey they fhall be turn’d out, 
 the Wages being paid that is due to 
 them, ; 
 
 Let them take a particular care that 
 there be given to every one what is 
 fuitable to him, conformably to the 
 appointed State of my Houfe-keeping, 
 ^ndthat the whole be good and fit to 
 be receiv’d, otherwife I fhall lay the 
 blame on them when any complaint 
 is made of it. 
 
 Let all the Officers of my Houfhold 
 know, that thofe who go away for any 
 notorious Fault, fhall have no Gratifi¬ 
 cation, but only- what is precilely due 
 
 to them, ■ 
 
29 
 
 of bis Houjhold. 
 
 ORDER 
 
 Which my Gentlman of the Horfe 
 fhall make my Footmen ohferVe. 
 
 M Y Gentleman of the Horfe 
 mtift have an Eye over them, 
 and be exact in Chaftifing them when 
 they commit any Faults I will not have 
 them go out of the Houfe unlefs they 
 have leave, and that it be known where 
 they go. 
 
 They fhall return by Seven a Clock 
 at fartheft, and Care muft be taken 
 that none of them lye abroad ; one 
 fhall go every Night into the Cham¬ 
 bers to fee if they are all there. 
 
 I will have always two of them in 
 my Antichamber. 
 
 If any of them are Thieves, Drun¬ 
 kards, Blafphemers, or Haunters of ill 
 Houfes, they fhall be turn’d away 
 without Pardon. 
 
 They fhall be order’d to follow my 
 Coach, becaufe they get out of the 
 way all day, fo that there is never any 
 
 but 
 

 o Of the Government 
 
 but two or three of them with me ; 
 and my Gentleman of the Horfe-fhall 
 charge the firft of them to give him an 
 Account of thofe who fail to attend me. 
 
 They mu ft have them taught to 
 read, and to write in the Morning, 
 and make them be at Prayers. 
 
 My Gentleman of the Horfe fhall for¬ 
 bid the Porters, on pain of being turn’d 
 away, not to open the Gate at Night 
 for any one of what Condition foever, 
 after a Eleven a clock, unlefs it were 
 for fick Perfons, or for my Affairsand 
 he fhall order likewife that in the Day 
 time there fhould be always one of 
 them at leaft at the Gate. 
 
 And that no Footman fhall take any 
 Money in Gift from any Perfon what; 
 foever, on pain of being turn'd away. 
 
 My Gentlemen of the Horfe fhall alfo 
 take care to have them go every Even¬ 
 ing to Prayers in the Chapel, and to 
 the Morning Prayer, before which he 
 fhall not give them leave to go out. 
 
 When there are Instructions made in 
 the Chapel, they fhall be oblig’d to 
 be prefen t. 
 
 When any new Footmen are taken, 
 they fhall be fhew’d thefe Rules, that 
 they may not pretend Ignorance of 
 them, RULES, 
 
3 * 
 
 of bis Houfbold. 
 
 RULES for the Coach-men, Po- 
 ftilions, and Groom. 
 
 jit ,io.i f b 7i;!j i i 
 
 'T" , HERE fhall be given to each of 
 
 J them a Form of Prayer, which 
 they fhall ufe in Private every Morn¬ 
 ing. 
 
 They muft be exhorted to hear 
 Prayers every Day, but care mull 
 be taken that they do fo without fail 
 every Sunday and Holy-day, in the 
 Chapel or in the Parifh ; of which my 
 Gentleman of the Horfe fhall take the 
 care. 
 
 They fhall rife early in the Morning 
 to look after their Horfes, that they 
 may be prefent at the Prayers which 
 are faid every Morning in the Cha¬ 
 pel ; and at Evening Prayer, and the 
 Catechizing when there is any. 
 
 They fhall be made to go to Con- 
 fellion, and to Communicate at Eajter , 
 
 Let them be advertis’d alfo to be at 
 home every Evening at Six in Winter, 
 and at Eight in Summer, and never to 
 lie abroad, unlefs thofe who ate mar¬ 
 ried. Let 
 

 2 Of the Government , &c. 
 
 Let them know that if they haunt 
 ill Houfes, if they are .Drunkards or 
 Swearers, they fhall be turn’d out with- 
 oi|t Pardon. 
 
 I will have the Comptroller of the Sta¬ 
 bles to fee whether they obferve thefe 
 Rules, and in cafe they do not, he 
 fhall inform my Gentleman of the 
 Horfe of it. 
 
 Care fhall be taken to have thofe 
 xnftru&ed in particular, who do not 
 fu.tficiently know the Duties of a Chri- 
 ftian, and Endeavours fhall be ufed to 
 difpofe them to communicate on the 
 great Holy-days. 
 
 My Gentleman of the Horfe fhall 
 be careful to employ them in fome 
 Work all the Day, that they may fhun 
 Idlenefs. 
 
Laft WILL 
 
 AND 
 
 TESTAMENT, 
 
</ 
 
1 
 
 THE 
 
 PREFACE 
 
 ; 
 
 TO THE 
 
 French Edition. 
 
 vV,; > >'■ x\ y Vs•*, f . ■ *, /. * - . . 
 
 A LL Perfons of Virtue , 
 have feen the 
 ‘Prince of Conti's 
 Will, have found it fo full of 
 ( P iety, that it was thought for 
 the Public ^ good to expofe it 
 to the view of all the World 9 
 that not only the Great, but 
 even Private P J erfons might 
 
 profit 
 
> ^ \ .. 
 
 The Preface. 
 
 profit hy fo lllujlrious an Ex¬ 
 ample. The VJe which he 
 would have his Ejlate put to 
 after his ‘Death, as he had done 
 during his Life, for making 
 Reparation to the People who 
 who had Suffer’d in the Violence 
 of the Civil War, is fo folid a 
 Proof of the Stedfaflnefs and 
 inviolable Fidelity which all the 
 Kings SubjeBs ought to have 
 for his Service, that it would be 
 a hind of Prevarication to Sup * 
 prefs this Piece : fo that tho in 
 rendering it Publicly we leave 
 marky to Pojlerity of the 
 Faults of this Great Prince, the 
 continual and mofi fevere Pe¬ 
 nitence which he exercis’d fot 
 
 ten 
 
The Preface 
 
 ten Tears before his ‘Death, 
 and that lajl Satisfaction which 
 he ordain d by his Will to be 
 made, fo fully repairs it, that 
 } tis difficult to judge whether 
 France would have been more 
 Edify d by a Life of thirty 
 Seven Tears led in an even un¬ 
 interrupted Innocence, than it 
 ought to be by the Courage and 
 the Kefolution which thisTrince 
 has fhewn in his voluntary Hu¬ 
 miliation. 
 
 M 
 
 HIS 
 

 
 rvty i uA 
 
 
 
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 £>• • * i 
 
H I S 
 
 Laft WILL 
 
 AND 
 
 TESTAMENT. 
 
 His Day being the 24th 
 of May 1664. I Armani 
 de Bourbon Prince of Conti ^ 
 being at Paris in my 
 Houle, Sound in Body 
 and Mind, and not being willing to be 
 furpriz’d by Death without having 
 made my Laft Will, I make this pre- 
 fent Teftament. 
 
 Hr/, after having recommended my 
 Soul to the Holy Trinity, through the in* 
 finite Merits of J esus Ch rist, our Lord, 
 and by the Interceffion of his Holy Mo¬ 
 ther, and all Saints,I declare that I am in 
 the Communion of the Holy Catholick 
 and Apoftolick Church, out of which 
 M a there 
 
His Lajl Will 
 
 there is no Salvation. I defire that 
 my Body may be buried in the place 
 where my Wife fhall appoint, and I 
 pofitively forbid to make any funeral 
 Ceremonies or Expences, beyond what 
 fhall be abfolutely neceflary •, whatever 
 is more being entirely diftant from the 
 Spirit of ChrifKanity, and- Expences of 
 that Nature being a Superfluity of 
 which the Poor is robbM; with which I 
 charge the Confciences of my Executors. 
 
 I will that they proceed immediately 
 to the Execution of my Matrimonial 
 Contract relating to my Wife, and to 
 the Payment of my other Debts; and 
 that they may be the more fpeedily ac¬ 
 quitted, I entreat my Executors to fell 
 fo much of ray Lands as will anfwer 
 them, and to look on this Obligation 
 as a matter of Confcience. 
 
 I will that they pay to all my Do- 
 tnejlicks the Wages and Penfions which 
 filial] be found due to them at the time 
 of my Deceafe, even the Year in which 
 my Deceafe fhall happen, tho’ it fhould 
 not be ended. 
 
 I appoint for each of my Footmen 
 four hundred Livres, to put them to a 
 Trade, and as much to my Chamber- 
 boy. 
 
 I 
 
and Teft ament. 
 
 I am deeply griev’d for having been 
 fo Unhappy, as to be engag’d in my 
 Youth into a War againft my Duty, 
 during which I permitted, command¬ 
 ed, and authorised innumerable Vio¬ 
 lences and Diforders: And tho the 
 King has had the Goodnefs toforget 
 this Fault, I am ftill notwithftanding 
 before God, indebted for the whole to 
 the Communities and particular Per- 
 fons who fuffer'd during that time, 
 whether in Guienne , Xaintonge , Berry , la, 
 Marche , Champagne , or in the Neigh¬ 
 bourhood of Dampvilliers : Therefore I 
 have made Reftjtution of fome Sums in 
 Guienne and in Berry , of which the Sieur 
 JaJfe, my Treafurer, has a particular 
 Knowledge ; and I have moft earneftly 
 wifh’d that I could fell all my Eftate to 
 make a fuller Satisfa&ion, but having 
 fubmitted in this to many moft learned 
 and moft pious Prelates and Do&ors, 
 they judg’d that I ought not to reduce 
 my felf to a Private Life, but that I 
 ought to ferve God in my Station ; 
 in which notwithftanding I have re¬ 
 trench’d as much as I could all the Ex- 
 pences of my Houfe, that I might 
 make Reftitution during my Life, Irom 
 what I could fpare every Year of my 
 llevenues. M 3 And 
 
 Uj 
 
His baft Wiir 
 
 And I charge my Heirs hereafter 
 nam'd to do the fame, til] all the Da¬ 
 mages which I have caus'd be entirely 
 repair'd, according to the Memorials 
 which (hall be found in the Hands of 
 the Sieur Jajfe- or among my Papers. To 
 this end I entreat the Executors of my 
 Will, and the Tutrix of my Children, 
 to reduce and moderate as much as is 
 poffible the Expences of my faid Chil¬ 
 dren, that they may continue every 
 Year to make the forefaid Reftitutions, 
 according to the faid Memorials. 
 
 And if it happen that my faid Heirs 
 and their Defcendants have other Means 
 of fubfiiting decently, whether by the 
 King’s Bounty, or otherwife, I will and 
 ordain that they fell all the Eftate 
 which they have by Succeflion to me, 
 and that they diftribute the Price of it 
 in the Provinces and Places which have 
 fuffer'd by the forefaid Wars, accord, 
 mg to the Order contain'd in the faid 
 Memorials, uniefs thofe Places or Per¬ 
 mits have already had fufficient Repa^ 
 ration made them by me or by others. 
 
 Eut if my Children fhould deceafe 
 without Children, fo that my Line is 
 extind, I order in like manner that my 
 m Eftate. be fold, and entirely em- 
 
and Teftament. 
 
 ploy’d in the faid Recitations, my 
 Collateral Heirs being otherwife fuffi- 
 ciently provided. 
 
 I defire that the Memorials which 
 (hall be found Written or Sign’d by my 
 hand, of Matters on which I doubted 
 whether I was oblidg’d in Confid¬ 
 ence to make Reftitution, or otherwife, 
 be carefully examin’d to the rigour. 
 And this I beg of my Executors. 
 
 Or if it fhall be found by Memori¬ 
 als Written or Sign’d with my hand, 
 that I have verified and acknowledged 
 my felf oblig’d to any Reftitution, or 
 other Satisfaction, I defire that they 
 may be executed as if every thing con¬ 
 tain’d in them were exprefsly ordain’d 
 by this prefent Will. 
 
 I recommend to my Wife the good 
 Education of my Children, and I will 
 that the faid Children who fhall be 
 living at my Deceafe be my Heirs, to 
 fhare among them all my Pofleflions 
 according to the Cuftoms of the Place 
 where they are Seated 5 but always 
 with the Burdens above-mention’d. 
 
 I know that all Guardianfihips arc 
 Dative in this Kingdom, and particu¬ 
 larly within the Jurifdittion of the 
 Parliament of Fam , but I know like 
 
 wife 
 
6 Bis 14 Will 
 
 wife that their Juftice has always had 
 refpect to the Nominations which Fa¬ 
 thers have made of thofe whom they 
 thought capable of Managing their 
 Childrens Affairs with Affection; and 
 therefore 1 beg MeJJieurs of the Parlia¬ 
 ment, and MeJJieurs my Relations, that 
 if pay Deceafe happen before that of my 
 Wife, they may pleafe that fhe be and 
 remain Tutrix of our Children during 
 their Minority, 
 
 I beg of my Wife, of Madam the 
 Dutchefs of Longueville my Sifter, and 
 Moniieur de Lamoignon firft Prefidentof 
 the Parliament of Paris to be Executors 
 of this Will; To this End I will that 
 frotp the Day of my Deceafe they be 
 poffeft of ail my Eftate till the entire 
 Execution of it. And I nominate and 
 chufe the Sieur Jaffe my Treafurer to 
 attend the faid .Execution under their 
 Orders; begging my Wife to employ 
 him in my Children's Affairs, having 
 experienc’d him to be a Man of Probi¬ 
 ty, and of an uncommon Fidelity. 
 
 And having feveral times read over 
 this Will, I perfift to Will the things as 
 they are here contain’d in two Entire 
 Pages, and in the third which is alrnoft 
 full,--Written and Sign’d with my o>vn 
 M ^ hand 
 
and Tejiament. 
 
 band at the foot of each Page, at Paris 
 May the 24th. 1664. 
 
 ' i t I 
 
 Sign’d 
 
 M i.1 l i / ij. i ! 1 , f * !• * • • • ■ * -/ < i J v-' .< *• * v 
 
 Armayd de Bourbon* 
 
 r-—---■ 
 
 * r / r,- r ' ] r f 4 - ‘ ^ V • 1 : * ' 
 
 The Order which 1 dejire may he kept 
 in the (Reftitutions which I am oblig'd 
 to make in Guienne, Xaingtonge, 
 la Marche, Berry, Champagne, 
 and Dampvilliers, &c. 
 
 I N the firft place the Oppreffions 
 and Damages which were done by 
 my Orders or by my Trrops, ought to 
 be preferably repair’d, as being my 
 pwn Aft. 
 
 In the Second place, I am wholly 
 anfwerable for all the Evils which the 
 general Diforders of the War have 
 caus’d, tho they were done without my 
 partaking in them, but this after I 
 have made Satisfaction for the firft. 
 
 I 
 
8 
 
 His Lajl Will 
 
 I owe no Reparation to thofe who 
 were of our Party, unlefs they can 
 make it appear that I fought them and 
 drew them in : and even in that cafe 
 it would be juft firft to make Reftitu- 
 tion to the Innocent, who had no fhare 
 in my Faults, before any thing can 
 be given to others who were our Ac¬ 
 complices. 
 
 That Diftributive Juftice may be 
 obferv’d, I defire that my Reftitutions 
 be made in fuch manner that they 
 may be every where diffus’d, fo that 
 among many which have Suffer’d, it 
 may not happen that fome be Satisfi¬ 
 ed, and others have nothing. 
 
 But as I have have not Eftate enough 
 to make Reftitution at the fame time 
 to all the Communities, and Private 
 Perfons which have fuffer’d, I defire 
 them to begin with thofe Places 
 whofe Ruines have been greateft and 
 raoft Pu'olick, as the Cities which were 
 Befieg’d and Pillag’d, or which fuffer’d 
 by Fire, or were confiderably demo- 
 lifh’d. 
 
 After this I will that every year they 
 take a whole DiftriQ:, beginning with 
 that which is the Pooreft, and that the 
 Fund they have be Diftributed at a 
 
 penny 
 
9 
 
 and Teftament. 
 
 penny in the Pound, among the Com¬ 
 munities and particular Perfons of that 
 Diftri£fc who have fufter’d ; making 
 Reftitution to fome more, to others 
 lefs, according as their LolTes have been 
 greater or lefs, with all polTible Ju- 
 itice and Equality, 
 
 Nevertheless Reftitution may be 
 made a little more largely to thofe 
 Communities and Particular Perfons, 
 whom they Shall find to be more ne- 
 ceflitous and under the moft prelling 
 wants, 
 
 Thofe who Shall be Employ’d to 
 diftribute the Funds of my Reftitution, 
 may chufe in a Parifh a certain Num¬ 
 ber of thofe who have been moft op- 
 preft, and are found to be the pooreft, 
 and pay their Taxes for them to free 
 them from the Perfecution of the Ser¬ 
 jeants, taking the moft Secret ways for 
 this; and leaving to others who are 
 better provided to difp^fe themfelves 
 of that little which will tome to their 
 Share at a penny the Pound. 
 
 And as in keeping this Order Re¬ 
 stitution cannot be made to every 
 one of all that they have loft, they 
 muft go back again after having gone 
 through all the Diftrifts, and begin the 
 * fame 
 
His Laft Witt 
 
 fame round again' till they have made 
 full Satisfaction : unlefs that cafe hap¬ 
 pen in which I have appointed all my 
 Pofleflions to be fold, that the whole 
 Price of them may be Employ’d in the 
 faid Reftitutions; for in that Cafe it 
 muft be diftributed at the fame time 
 in all the Provinces, and through all 
 the Diftri&s, to fome more, to^fome 
 lefs, refpeCt being had to their Loffes, 
 and to their Poverty; and Care muft 
 be taken that the Fund which is ap¬ 
 pointed for each Diftrid be diftributed 
 to all the Communities and all the par¬ 
 ticular Perfons within the Bounds of 
 it, according to the Order, and the 
 Rules contain’d in the prefent Me- 
 orial. 
 
 Signed 
 
 Armrnd de Bourbon. 
 
and Tejhmert. 
 
 A Memorial 
 
 of things which 1 defire may be exa+ 
 tnind and cleard by the Executors 
 of my Will in Cafe they find it has 
 not been done before my Veatb. 
 
 I Acknowledge my felf oblig’d in 
 Confcience to pay, for the Dif- 
 charges of theCommunity of Pezenas the 
 Tax of the Lands held in Soccage which 
 I poffefs at the Grange , according to the 
 Sentence which fhall intervene upon 
 the Nature of the Holding ; and I de¬ 
 fire that all that the Community has 
 paid of the Tax which the faid Lands 
 held in Soccage ought to bear, accor¬ 
 ding to the faid Sentence which fhall in¬ 
 tervene in the Court of Aydes at Montpel¬ 
 lier where the Caufe is depending, may 
 be reftor’d to the faid Community, rec¬ 
 koning from the day of the Acquifitiori 
 of thole Lands by my Predeceffors with¬ 
 out alledging Prefcription in my favour, 
 which ought not to have place in the 
 
 Inward 
 
His Lafi Will 
 
 imvdird Court of Confcience for a Lord 
 againft his ValTals, who in all proba- 
 biiity had not the liberty that was ne- | 
 ceflary to make them venture on doing 
 thefe things which might have hinder’d 
 the faid Prefcription. 
 
 The Widow and the Heirs of Dubac 
 judge of Bdgnols pretend that I have 
 wrong'd them, by refuting my Confent 
 for many years to thofe who would 
 have treated about that Office, which 
 1 acknowledge to have done during 
 feme time in favour of him who was 
 Viguier at that time : I defire that the 
 thing may be examin’d and Judg’d in 
 Confcience by able Do&ors, who are 
 not lax in their Principles, and that 
 accordingly it be repair’d. 
 
 I defire that it may be examin’d whe- 
 the I am Obiidg’d to make Reititution 
 of an exceiiive Expence which was 
 made at Bdgnols , when I went thither 
 the firft time in the year 1655. 
 
 In cafe the Sovereign Court of Ju¬ 
 dicature at Rhodes is not fuppreft, 
 that of Villa Branca pretends that I 
 Ought to make Reftitution to it of the 
 Sum of thirty thoufand Livres, making 
 part of the Supply granted to the King, 
 for the SupprefTion of rhc faid Court of 
 
 judicature 
 
and Teflament. 
 
 Judicature at Rhodes : this Affair muff: 
 iikewife be examin’d, and if I am oblig’d 
 to make Reftitution, I entreat my Ex¬ 
 ecutors to do it for the Difcharge of my 
 Confcience. 
 
 If at .the time of my Deceafe my 
 Lord the Bifhop of Met is ftill alive, 
 I defire my Executors to confult him 
 on the points of Confcience which re- 
 fpe£t the Execution of the faid Memo¬ 
 rials, and of all others that I may here¬ 
 after leave; and if he is Dead, I beg 
 them to chufe the ablefl: among the 
 Doctors, and fuch as have the Repu¬ 
 tation of following the Stri£left Max¬ 
 ims. Written at Parts this 18 th of May 
 166 4. 
 
 Signed 
 
 Armand de Bourbon, 
 
 And lelow is written , 
 
 T Here is moreover a Merchant of 
 Thou/oafe call’d Rougieri , from 
 whom, in the year 1651, five hundred 
 Crowns were taken at Montrond , when 
 
 I 
 
His La(l Will 
 
 1 was therein the beginning of the Civil 
 Wars-, Reftitution muft be made of 
 this to him if it is not done before my 
 Deceafe. 
 
 Signed 
 
 Arm and. de Bourbom 
 
TREATISE 
 
 O F 
 
 Flays and Shews. 
 
'\ 
 
 
 
A 
 
 TREATISE 
 
 O F 
 
 Plays and Shews. 
 
 T H E common Criticifm of Plays 
 is founded on an Application of 
 the Poetick Rules to thofe particular 1 
 Works of which it intends to difcover 
 the Beauties or Defefts, It confiders 
 the Choice of the Subject, whether it 
 be Hiftorical, Fabulous, or a Mixture 
 of both ; It confiders the Beginning, 
 the Progrefs and the Catajirophe , ir the 
 Pailions are deferib’d with Delicacy, 
 or with Force and Vehemence, accord¬ 
 ing to their Nature, or to their Degree; 
 if the Charafters and Manners of Na¬ 
 tions, of Ages, of Conditions, of Sexes, 
 and of Perfons are preferv'd; if the A- 
 ftion, Time, and Place, are conform d 
 to thofe Rules which the Poets have 
 N 2 preferib’d 
 
2 A Treatife of 
 
 prefcrib’d themfelves, that the Atten¬ 
 tion of the Audience being not divided 
 they may be the more fufceptible of 
 that Pleafure or Infixu£tion which is 
 intended to be given them; if the Ver¬ 
 ification is fine and correct ; if the 
 Words by their Turn, by their Juftnefs, 
 by their Sound, by their Gravity, by 
 their Sweetnefs, by their Richnefs and 
 their Magnificence, by their Pleafing- 
 uefs,by their Languifbment, or by their 
 Vivacity contribute to the Exa£tnefs 
 of the Picture which the Thoughts they 
 exprefs are to raife in the Mind, or to 
 that Emotion of the Heart which is to 
 be excited by the Sentiments they re- 
 prefent. According as thefe things are 
 found or are wanting in the Compofi- 
 tion of a Dramatick Poem it is receiv’d 
 \njith Applaufe or with Contempt. 
 
 The Criticifm which I now under¬ 
 take is not of this Nature, it leaves to 
 Poefy all her Jurifdi&ion, but it is like- 
 wife much Superiour to her ; it has a 
 Right to correct even what is confor¬ 
 mable to the moll ftri£t and fevere 
 Laws of that Art, As it is guided by 
 the Religion of Jesus Christ, it fol¬ 
 lows infallible Rules, and provided that 
 it applies them with Juftnefs and Fide- 
 
(Plays anti Shews, 
 
 iky it cannot be deceiv’d in Judgment. 
 
 I do not write here for thofe who not 
 believing the Chriftian Religion, tho 
 they outwardly profefs it, are only to 
 be looked on as Baptiz’d Heathens, 
 who difa vow by their Impiety and Irre- 
 Jigion, the Offer which their Parents 
 have made of them to the Church, and 
 retraQ: the moft Solemn Promifes of 
 their Baptifm. Their profound and 
 miferable Blindnels makes them re- 
 jeft with Contempt the moft certain 
 Truths of Chriftianity ; and as thele 
 are the Principles and Foundations of 
 this Difcourfe, they will be unhappy 
 enough not to receive any Fruit from it, 
 
 Tis only defign’d then for thofe 
 Chriftians who partake in fome man¬ 
 ner of the Gofpel } acknowledging its 
 J Vlyfieries becaufe thole do not make 
 them uneafy; but not acknowledging 
 its Maxims ( at leaft not in their Pra¬ 
 ctice j becaufe thefe condemn their Life 
 and Libertinifm ; as they refolve to a- 
 bandon themfelves to the Defires of 
 their Heart, they corrupt the moft 
 Solid Truths, they feek to find that 
 Innocent which they will not ceafe to 
 do, they oblcure their Minds by a vo¬ 
 luntary Darknefs, that they may fol- 
 N 5 ’ low' 
 
A Treatife of 
 
 low that Cuftom without Remorfe 
 which they will not overcome; and 
 the Fear they are in of difcovering fuch 
 Truths as would hinder them froth fin¬ 
 ning at Eafe, makes them continue in 
 Common Errors without ever examin¬ 
 ing whether they are Errors or not. 
 They are befides fortified in them be- 
 caufethey fee them Authoriz’d by the 
 Example or the Approbation of many 
 Perfons who have either a pretended 
 or a very ignorant Piety, and who ac¬ 
 commodate the Maxims of the Gofpel 
 to the Remifnefs of their Manners, in- 
 ftead of forming as they ought their 
 Manners on the Truths of the Gofpel. 
 
 As thefe Perfons cannot deny the 
 Principles of our Religion,’tis to them 
 1 particularly addrefs this Work; I hope 
 to prove to them that Plays in the ftate 
 they are in at this time are not an in* 
 nocent Diverfiori as they imagine, and 
 that a Chriftian is oblig’d to look on 
 them as Evil . Provided one will be 
 Sincere one will eafily be convinc’d of 
 this, if we examine the Nature of 
 Plays, their Origine, their Circum- 
 ftances, and their Effefts • and if we in¬ 
 form our felves of the Univerfal Tra¬ 
 dition of the Church on this Subjeft, 
 
1 _ . _ 
 
 tPlays and Shews'. 
 
 | by the Sentiments of the Fathers who 
 I have fpoken of it, and by thofe of the 
 Church aifembled in a great Number 
 of Councils. This feems to me the beft 
 and fureil way to find out the Truth, 
 and this Order the moil natural and the 
 moil regular that I can obferve. 
 
 The General Idea that may be 
 form’d of a Play, that is to fay, of a 
 Dramatick Poem, is nothing elfe but 
 a Natural Reprefentation ofan AiElion, 
 or rather of an Event, in its Subilance 
 and in its Circumilances. ’Tis a real 
 Painting,the Words paint theThoughts, 
 and the Acting paints Adlions and 
 Things; and if this Definition may be 
 apply’d in fome manner to Hiilory 
 and Fable, a Dramatick Poem is in 
 this different from them, that befides 
 that they only furnifh it with Matter, 
 it makes us fee things as Prefeut, which 
 Hiilory and Fable recounts to us as/><*/, 
 and that it reprefents them in a lively, 
 animated, and as it were perfonal man¬ 
 ner, whereas Hiilory and Fable only re¬ 
 late them in a manner Lifelefs and 
 without Action. By Hiilory we recal 
 things pail to us, and by Dramatick Po¬ 
 etry, Things do as it were make us go 
 back to them. 
 
 N 4 In 
 
6 
 
 A Treati/e of 
 
 In this General Idea it is neither 
 Good, nor Evil, it is fufceptible of all 
 forts of Subje&s, and of all forts of Cir- 
 cumftances; and whilft it remains in 
 this Indetermination (which has no Be¬ 
 ing but in the Mind of Man, and in 
 Books which treat of the Poetick Art) 
 it is neither worthy of Blame nor of 
 Praife. Nor is it in this veiw that 
 I intend to examine Plays, the Dif- 
 courfe I have undertaken belongs to 
 Morality, and not to Metaphyficks, I 
 fhall fpeak of Plays as they are A£ted, 
 and not at all as they are not Afted. 
 For this it is neceffary tocometoa more 
 particular Defcription,and after having 
 ipoke of what is common to all Plays, 
 and which compofes as it were their 
 Genius, we muff conlider what is pe¬ 
 culiar to each Species , and difcourfe on 
 its Nature, and Origins, on its Circum- 
 ftances and Effects as I have propos’d 
 to my felf. 
 
 The particular Species of Drama- 
 tick Poetry, are Tragedy, Tragi-comedy 
 and Comedy, This laft has again its 
 Subdivifions; if it reprefents Perfons 
 of an Ordinary Rank, it retains Amply 
 the Name of Comedy, and if the Sub¬ 
 ject of it is the Adventures of Shepherds 
 
7 
 
 (plays and Shews . 
 
 and Shepherdelfes, it is call’d Paftoral. 
 
 I leave the Derivation of their Names 
 to thofe who have treated of Poefy; they 
 who have occafion to be inform’d of it, 
 may find it in Julius Caifar Scaliger. But 
 the Nature of it may be known by the 
 Idea which Men have affix’d to it; for 
 that which is underftood by the word 
 Comedy , is nothing elfe but the Repre- 
 fentation of a Gay and agreeable Ad¬ 
 venture, between Perfons of an Ordi¬ 
 nary Rank. By the term Tragedy is 
 iinderftood the Serious Reprefentation 
 of a Fatal Aftion, and Confiderable by 
 the real Imitation of the Misfortunes of 
 fome Perfons of great Quality or of 
 great Merit, and that of Tragi-comedy 
 fignifies the Reprefentation of an Ad¬ 
 venture in which the Principal Perfons 
 are threatned mith fome great Misfor¬ 
 tunes, from which they are deliver’d in 
 the End by a happy Event. 
 
 For * Tragi-comedy , it was unknown Tbitwbkk 
 to the Grecians, ’tis to the Romans ^ 
 and to thofe who follow’d them, that Tragi-co- 
 both the Invention and the Progrefs of 
 it mull be attributed. Tie^orl'l 
 
 We are Ignorant of the Origine of tberacom- 
 Tragedy ; It is only known that ’twas the p ™ d c [ ni 
 Poet Thefpis who begun to put it in a h* been m 
 
 more wbire in 
 
S A Treatife of 
 
 Pfe but x. 
 Amg m. 
 
 more regular Order; tho the manner 
 in which his Aftors disfigur’d their 
 Faces to ferve them inftead of Mafques, 
 of which they had not yet the Inventi¬ 
 on, thews us that the Jge ? t he Poets y and 
 the Spectators were very Ruftick. 
 
 As to Comedy y Scdiger gives an ample 
 Accou nt of its Origine in the firft Book 
 of his Poeticks , and we there fee that 
 it begun by the Debauchery of young 
 People. 
 
 ^uventus ergo vacui temporis otio atque- 
 licentia, noctis ahufa y fecura imperiorum 
 vel heri y vel pdtroni , vel parentum y per 
 pagos ( nondum enun in urbes convene - 
 flint ) difcurrere : legimm enim apud Li - 
 vium comejjationes y qui mos cum ipfo no - 
 mine fimul ad nos deducts eH y unde hi lu - 
 jus quos vicatim exercerent y <&&& P uSi/xt ^ 
 T&KutJMC' apte Comcedixm dixere. 
 
 a The idle Youth making an ill ufe 
 u of their Leifure and nightly Liberties, 
 ^ when they were got free from the 
 • u Government of their Matters, Guar- 
 u dians, or Parents, ufed to rake about 
 “ the Villages ffor they had not yet 
 u met in Cities.) Livy makes mention 
 “ of thefe Riotous Sports, which be- 
 “ ing firft play’d in Streets and Pub- 
 a lick Ways, were from the Greek De- 
 f rivation call’d Comedies c Pa~ 
 
Way's and Shews. 
 
 Vafiomls begun by the Amours of 
 Shepherds and Shepherdefles, of which 
 we have an Account in the fame 
 Scaliger, in a manner not very decent t 
 ? Tis certain that the Satyrs which play 
 a part in them ahnoft neceffary, do nor 
 contribute to render them more Modeflr. 
 Taffo, who is Author of the fined: and 
 moft curious Paftoral that ever was, 
 did not think he-could difpenfe with 
 himfelf from introducing a Satyr in his 
 Jminta, making on this occafion a kind 
 of Duty of his Immodefty. 
 
 If we confider Comedy in its Progrels, 
 and in its Perfeftion, either as to the 
 Matter and Circumdances of it,or as to 
 its Effects, is it not true that it almoft al¬ 
 ways treats of Subjeas either Indecent, 
 or accompanied with Scandalous In¬ 
 trigues ? Are not even the Expreffions 
 of it obfcene or at lead immoded ? Can 
 thefe Truths be deny’d of the bed Co- 
 medies of Arijlophanes, and ofthofe of 
 Plautus and Terence ? 
 
 ^ Do not the Italians , who are the bed 
 Comedians in the world, fluff their Pie- 
 , ces with fuch things ? are the French 
 farces fill’d with any thing elfe? and 
 even inour days do we not fee the fame 
 Faults in fome of the newed Comedies’ ? 
 
 Do 
 
A Treati/e of 
 
 Po not the Spaniards add in them the 
 Application of Sacred things to ridicu¬ 
 lous Cuftoms? and if the Comedies 
 which have been ACted in France for 
 the laft thirty years are exempt from 
 thefe Vices, do they not deferve the 
 fame Blame with our Tragedies and 
 Tragi-comedies by their manner of 
 treating our Paflions ? 
 
 What Effects can thefe Expreflions 
 accompained with a lively Reprefen- 
 tation produce, but to corrupt the I- 
 magination, to fill the Memory, and 
 afterwards to glide into the Under- 
 ftanding, into the Will, and at laft in¬ 
 to the Manners ? 
 
 There will be many Perfons here 
 ready to aflert that they have never re¬ 
 ceiv’d any ill Imprelfion from Comedy; 
 But I maintain either that they are 
 very few in Number, or that they are 
 not fincere, or that they have not refle¬ 
 cted enough on themfelves to perceive 
 it, or elfe that the only Reafon why 
 Comedy has not corrupted their Man¬ 
 agers, is becaufe it'found them alrea¬ 
 dy corrupted, and that they had left 
 it nothing to do in this Matter. 
 
 There is nothing in the Nature of 
 Tragedy or of Tragi-comedy that can 
 
 make 
 
Tlays and Shews. 
 
 make us difapprove them; and it is e- 
 ven apparent that the Defign of the 
 firft Tragick Poets was good, that they 
 aim’d at inftrufting the People in a 
 manner that was capable of Striking 
 them more than a bare Expofition of 
 the things they defired to inlinuate 
 could have done. Tragedy confider’d 
 thus, feems no more condemnable than 
 Emblems, than the Parables of the 
 Hebrews, or the Hieroglyphicks of 
 the Egyptians ; the Tragedies indeed 
 of the firft Poets are entirely Moral, 
 and full of Sentences; and if fome of 
 them are contrary to Truth, thatmuft 
 be imputed to the Morality of the 
 Heathens, and not to their Tragedy 
 which reprefents as vertuous whatpafs’d 
 j for vertuous at that time tho it had the 
 common Vice of all the Heathen Vir¬ 
 tues. The Ancients then being defi- 
 | rous to inftruft the People, and the 
 Manner of their Worfhip admitting 
 only of Sacrifices and Ceremonies with¬ 
 out any Expofition or Interpretation of 
 their Religion, which had no certain 
 Dogma’s; they aflembled the People 
 in open Places ( for they had yet no 
 Theatres , which even were not invented 
 till after they had for fome time made 
 
A Tnatife of 
 
 ufeof Garts that the Aflors might be 
 feen at the greater diftance ) and they in- 
 fpir’d into them by the means of Specta¬ 
 cles, the Sentiments they intended to 
 give them, thinking with reafon that 
 they were more fufceptible of a ftrong 
 Xmpreffion by the Reprefentation of a 
 confiderable Perfon, than by all the In- 
 flruftions they could have receiv’d in 
 a more fimple and lefs lively manner. 
 Moll of the Tragedies of Sophocles and. 
 Euripides , are of this Nature ; and if 
 the following Ages had not ming¬ 
 led more Corruption in their choice of 
 the Subject, and in their manner of 
 treating it, we could not well condemn 
 Tragedies in the Heathens, tho they 
 were always extreamly blarheable in 
 Chriftians, whofe Vocation is fo Holy 
 and of fuch Dignity, that as the Fa¬ 
 thers tell us, Prophane Spectacles were 
 always prohibited them. 
 
 But befides this, it is moft certain 
 that ’tis unrfeafonable to pretend to ju- 
 ftifie thofe of our time by the Example 
 of the Ancients, nothing .being more 
 unlike than they are. Love is now the 
 Paflion that muff be chiefly treated of* 
 and how fine foever a Dramatick 
 Piece may be, if Love is not defcrib’d 
 
(plays and Shews. i 
 
 in it with Delicacy, Tendernefs, and 
 Paflion, it would have no other Suc- 
 cefs but that of Difgufting the Specta¬ 
 tors, and ruining the Players. The 
 different Beauties of Plays confift now 
 in the feveral ways of Treating Love, 
 whether it is made fubfervient to fome 
 other Paflion, or reprefented as the 
 Predominant Paflion of the Heart. ’Tis 
 true that He/nfiut'sT ragedy o fHerod is an 
 accomplilhd Piece, and that there is 
 no Love in it; but it is likewife certain 
 that the Reprefentation of it would be 
 very tirefome: For it muff be own’d 
 that the Corruption of Man fince the 
 Fall, is fitch, that thofe things which 
 inftruCt him find nothing in him that 
 favours their Entrance into his Heart, 
 they feem to him dry and infipid, 
 whereas he prevents and as it were 
 runs to meet thofe which footh his 
 Paflions and favour his Defires : ’Tis 
 no longer then but in the Books which 
 treat of that Art that InftruCtion is the 
 End of a Dramatick Poem; this is not 
 now true either in the Intention of 
 the Poet or in that of the Spectator; a 
 defire of Pleating is what the firftPro- 
 pofes, and the fecond is drawn by the 
 Pleafure of Seeing Paflions like his 
 
 own 
 
 
A Treatife of 
 
 own reprefented : for our Self-Love is 
 fo delicate, that We delight to have the 
 Pi&ures of our Paffions as well as 
 thofe of our Perfons; and it is even fo 
 incomprehenfible that by a ftrange turn 
 it often makes thofe Pi&ures become 
 our Models, makes Plays, in painting 
 the Paffions of another, affe&our Souls 
 in fuch a manner that they give birth to 
 our own, that they nourifh them When 
 produc’d, that they polifh and enflame 
 them , that they infpire them with 
 Delicacy, awaken them when they are 
 afleep, and that revive them even wheii 
 they are extinguifh’d; ’Tis true that 
 Plays do not produce thefe Effe&s in all 
 forts of Perfons, but it is likewife true 
 that they do in a great Number, that 
 they may de it in all, and that indeed 
 they mu ft produce them moft com¬ 
 monly, confidering the Power which 
 a lively F eprefentation joyn’d with pal- 
 fionate Expreffions naturally has over 
 the Mind of Man. He is daily ifiov’d 
 by the Eloquence of Orators, much 
 more muft he be fo by the Reprefenta- 
 tion of Players* who add to this all that 
 can affift them in that Defign, their 
 Declamation, their Port,their Geftures 
 and their Drefs . their Women negle& 
 
 nothing 
 
(plays and Shews. 
 
 Nothing to appear handfome, in which 
 they often fucceed, and if fome of 
 them are not fo, that is not the fault of 
 the Play, nothing being more contrary 
 to the Defign of it* fince fhe here 
 bears the Character of a Perfon who is 
 the Objeft of a violent Paffion, which a 
 Comedian without Beamy does but ill 
 reprefent: But that which is moft de¬ 
 plorable is, that tho the Poets are 
 Matters of the Paffions they defcribe, 
 they are not fo of thole which they have 
 rais’d by this means ; they are allur’d 
 of putting an end to thofe of their He¬ 
 roes and Heroines with the fifth Afr,> 
 and that the Players will fay nothing 
 but what is in their Part, becaufe their 
 Memory alone is engag’d in it. But a 
 Heart affefted by this Reprefentation, 
 cannot be bounded thus, it does not 
 aQ: by Rules, when it finds it felf at¬ 
 tracted by its Object, it abandons it 
 felf to all the Extent of its Inclination, 
 and often after having refolv’d not to 
 carry a Paffion farther than the Heroes 
 of a Play, it finds it felf very far from 
 its Account; the Mind accuftomed to 
 entertain it felf with all the ways of de- 
 fcribing Gallantry, being full of nothing 
 but agreeable and furprizing Adven- 
 
 O tures, 
 
i 6 A Treat i/e of 
 
 til res, tender, delicate and pafllonate 
 Verfes make the Heart, which enga¬ 
 ges in all thefe Sentiments, no longer 
 capable of any Referve ; buttho* thofe 
 EffeQ:?, which I dare not bring in View-, 
 fhould not follow, is not that Idolatry 
 which the Heart of Man commits in a 
 vio!entPafTion,and a moil: dreadfulEvil? 
 is it not in fome Senfe the greateft Sin 
 that can be committed ? The Crea¬ 
 ture in this Cafe drives God from the 
 Heart of Man to reign there in his 
 Read , there to receive Sacrifices and 
 Adorations, to regulate its Motion,- 
 its Conduft and its Interefts, and 
 to perform there all the Afts of a 
 Sovereign, which belong only to God, 
 whofe Will it is to reign in the Heart 
 by Love, which is the End and Accom- 
 plifhment of all the Chriftian Law. 
 Do we not fee Love treated in this fo 
 impious a manner in the beft Trage¬ 
 dies and Tragi-Comedies of our Time ? 
 Is it not in this Sentiment, that Alcim 
 dying by his own Hand, fays to Lydia , 
 
 Tou gave Command to Vanquijh, and 1 
 Vanqui/ffd, 
 
 Tou gave Command to Live y and 1 have 
 Liv'd • 
 
 Tour 
 
 r 
 
fplays and Shews. i ? 
 
 Tour Rigour now requires of we my Life , 
 
 Blindly my Hand has given it to your wiffj K 
 Happy and Jatisfed in all my Sufferings, 
 
 To have even to my Tomb obeyed your. Will * 
 
 Does not Rodriguez fpeak in the fame 
 manner to Chimena, when he is going 
 to fight with Don Sancho . 
 
 Now that myjnterefls are alone Concern'd y 
 Ton will my Death, and I accept my Doom, 
 
 I've not deferv^d to fall by your Own Hand+ 
 
 Tour high Refentment has another cbofe y 
 Nor jhall I offer to rejifi his Blow . 
 
 More I refpeff the Man who fights your Caufe^ 
 Raviftfd to think that ''tis fromyou he comes± 
 
 Since 5 tis your Honour that his Sword 
 maintains y 
 
 J go to offer him my naked Breafl, 
 
 Adoring in his Hand,yours that dejiroys tnei 
 
 I I In reality can one carry Prophanation 
 
 higher, and at the fame time do it in st 
 ihanner more pleafing, and more dan¬ 
 gerous ? 
 
 Tho it will be faid, that our Thea¬ 
 tre admits nothing now but what is 
 Chaft, and that the Paffions are there 
 represented in the moft decent mannet 
 O 2 imagina- 
 
18 
 
 A Treatife of 
 
 imaginable, I yet maintain that if is 
 not the lefs contrary to the Chriftian 
 Religion. And I dare even affirm that 
 this ^appearance of Decency and the 
 Retrenchment of immodeft Things ren¬ 
 ders it much the more Dangerous. 
 None but Libertines could fee indecent 
 Pieces, the Women of Quality and 
 Virtue would have a Horror of them, 
 whereas the prefent State of Plays do¬ 
 ing no Violence to the Modefty natural 
 to their Sex, they do not defend them- 
 felves from a Poifon more Secret, and 
 equally Dangerous with the other, 
 they fwallow it without knowing it, 
 and love it even whilft it kills them. 
 Bat to carry this Matter yet farther, 
 without going however beyond the 
 Bounds of Truth, can thofe Pieces be 
 call’d altogether Decent, in which we 
 fee the moftfevere Virgins hearken to 
 the Declarations of their Lovers, be 
 pleas’d with their Love, receive their 
 Letters and their Vifits, and even give 
 them Affignations. I confefs , that 
 notwithftanding all this they are 
 entirely Vertuous , becaufe the Poet 
 is pleas’d to make them fo : But in re¬ 
 ality, is there any Perfon of all thofe 
 who are the moft zealous Defenders cf 
 
 fo 
 
\ 9 
 
 <Plays and Shews . 
 
 febadaCaufe : Who would have Ills 
 Wife or his Daughter vercuous like Chi- 
 menn , or like any of the mod: vertuous 
 Princeffes of the Theatre ? I believe he 
 would fuffer impatiently enough in 
 them, what he fo much refpeCts in the 
 other, and that when he fhould fee this 
 fo much boafted Severity in a Perfon 
 whom he had fome Concern in , he 
 would foon acknowledge thofe falfe 
 Vertuesfor what they are, that is, for 
 real Vices. 
 
 But before I proceed to fhew more 
 throughly what Oppofition there is be¬ 
 twixt Plays, and the moft folid Foun¬ 
 dations of Chriftian Morality, I ought 
 to anfwer two Objections which the 
 Advocates of Plays commonly make, 
 and I fhall do it both with Exa&nefs 
 and with Order. They fay that it is 
 true that Plays are a Reprefentation 
 of Vices as well as Virtues, becaufe a 
 juft PiCture muft reprefent its Model 
 fuch as it is, and that the A&ions of 
 Men being mingled with Good and E- 
 vil, it is by Confquence the Duty of a 
 Dramatick Poem to reprefent them in 
 that manner; but that this is fo far from 
 having any ill Effeft, that it is quite the 
 contrary, fince Vice is there reprehend- 
 0 i ed 
 
2o A Treatife of 
 
 ed and Virtue prais’d, and even often 
 recompens’d. I cannot better fhow 
 the Weaknefs of thisGbjeTion, than by 
 anfwering with a learned Prelate of 
 our Age, 
 
 The Remedy lefs pleafes than the Poifon , 
 
 Such is the Corruption of the Heart 
 pf Man ; but fuch is that likewife of 
 the Poet, who after having Hied his Ve¬ 
 nom through the whole Piece, in a de^ 
 Jicate and agreeable manner, fuited to 
 our Nature and Conftitution, thinks to 
 be quit for fome Moral Difcourfe put 
 into the Mouth of an old King, who i$ 
 commonly reprefented by a very ill 
 Actor, whofe Parr is difagreeable, the 
 Verfesdry and languifhing, often bad, 
 but always negligent at leaft, becaufe 
 it is on thefe Qccafions that the Poet 
 unbends himfelf from thofe Efforts of 
 the Mind which he has juft been making 
 in defcribing the Paftxons, Is there any 
 Per Ion who in feeing Cinna afted, does 
 not rather think of delighting them- 
 iefves with all the tender and paflion? 
 ftte Things which he and Emilia fay to 
 one another, than with the Clemency 
 pf which is little minded, and 
 
 which 
 
1 Plays and Shews. 1t 
 
 which not one of the Speftators ever 
 thought of Extolling in going from the 
 Play. 
 
 The Second thing which they obje£l, 
 is that there are Plays on Religious 
 Subje&s which notwithftanding are ve¬ 
 ry fine, and for this they never fail to 
 cite * PoHeucie, for it would be difficult * a Trsge- 
 Name many others. dj loctii’d. 
 
 But in reality is there any thing 
 more dry and lefs agreeable than what 
 there is of holy in that Work? is there 
 any thing more delicate and more paf* 
 fionate than what there is of prophane 
 in it ? Is there any Perfon who is not a 
 thoufand times more touch'd with the 
 Affliction of Sever/**, when he finds 
 Paulina Marry’d, than with the Maiv 
 tyrdom of Polieucte, There needs but 
 a little Sincerity to agree with me in 
 this; and indeed God has not chofea 
 
 I the Theatre to make the Glory of his 
 Martyrs fhine, or to give Inftrudtion to 
 thqfe whom he calls to the Participation 
 of his Heritage. But as that great Bi- 
 fhop fays whom I before cited. 
 
 To change their Manners and. their Rea- 
 fon guide 
 
 Chriftians have Churches not the Theatre. 
 
 O 4 Love 
 
A Trcati/e of 
 
 Love is not the only fault of Plays, 
 they defcribe' Ambition and Revenge 
 in no lefs dangerous a Manner. As 
 thefe two Paffions are look’d on by 
 thofe who do not guide themfelves by 
 the Rules of the Gofpel, only as Noble 
 Diftempers of the Soul, efpecially when 
 no other Means are made ufe of to gra- 
 tifie them, but fuch as the World e- 
 fteems honourable; thePoets Enflaving 
 themfelves to thefe pernicious Maxims 
 of them, compofe all the Merit of their 
 Heroes. Rodriguez, would not hold the 
 Rank he has in Tragedy, if he had not 
 merited it hv two Duels, in killing the 
 Count , and Difarming Don Sancho and 
 if Hiftory confiders him moft by the 
 Name of Cid, and for hisExploits againft 
 the Moors , the Drama efteems him 
 much more for his Paflionate Love of 
 Chimena , and for his two Private 
 Combats: nay the Recital of the Defeat 
 of the Moors is even extreamly tirefome 
 in it, and little neceffary to the Work. It 
 being certain that there was no Severi¬ 
 ty at that time againft Duels , and it is 
 not at all probable that the King of 
 Cafiile fhould have been fo rigorous 
 in that matter contrary to the Cuftom 
 of the Age he liv’d in, that he might not 
 
(plays and Shews . 
 
 well have pardon’d two a day, even 
 without the pretence of fo important a 
 Viftory as that. Is not Revenge again 
 rep refen ted in Cornelia as an Effect of 
 Piety, and Conjugal Fidelity, joyn’d 
 with the Roman Conftancy and Cou¬ 
 rage? when fhe fays to Cafiar y in the 
 third Aft, of the Death of Pompeyi, 
 
 9 Tis there that thou Jhalt find on Earth and 
 Seas , 
 
 Pharfalias Ruines arm anotherWorld , 
 Thither Pllgo to hafien they Undoing, 
 Rearing from Rank to Rank thefie Ajhes 
 and my Tears ; 
 
 I mil that from my Hate they take their 
 Orders^ 
 
 Following in Fight an Vrn infiead of 
 Eagle s^ 
 
 That this fad Object may their Xytal incite , 
 To punifh thee , and to avenge my Lofis . 
 
 It cannot be faid that the Poet in 
 ! this place defign’d to give a Horror of 
 Revenge, as he defign’d to do of Cleo r 
 pxtrc?s \w Rodogune ; on the contrary’tis 
 by this Vengeance chat he intends to 
 recommend Cornelia and to raife her 
 Character above other Women, ma¬ 
 king a Duty and even a kind of Piety of 
 
A Treatife of 
 
 her Hatred for C<efar, which draws.. 
 Refpeft and makes her pafs for an 
 Heroick Perfon. But he does not 
 think her Vertue high enough unlefs 
 he makes her Piety to Pompey rife 
 even to Impiety and Blafphemy againft 
 the Gods of Antiquity ; for thus he makes 
 her fpeak in the firfi: Scene of the fifth 
 A&y to the Allies of her Husband ; 
 
 By ad the Powr of Sovereign Gods , I fwear y 
 And what's yet more I fwpar ev'n by thy Jelf ,‘ 
 For thou haft greater Pow’r o'er this fad 
 Heart , 
 
 Than the Refpetf of Gods who ill proteU 
 me y 
 
 And at the End of the fourth Scene, 
 
 At my Departure doubt it not I go 
 To raife again[l thee both the Gods and Meny 
 Thofe Gods who've flatter’d thee and cheat¬ 
 ed me 9 
 
 Thofe Gods who in Pharfalia could behold, 
 With Thunder in their hands Great Pom- 
 pey flain, 
 
 Theyll now perceive their Crime and wifi 
 avenge him ; 
 
 If not y my T^eal urg'd by his Memory , 
 
 Shall without themfnatfn Victory from thee> 
 
 ’T would 
 
Tlays and Shews. 
 
 ’Twould be a very ill Excufe for this 
 horrible Impiety to fay that Cornelia 
 was a Heathen, for that only proves 
 that fhe was deceiv’d in Attributing 
 Divinity to things that have it not, 
 but does not hinder that fuppofing her 
 to afcribe Divinity to them, fhe ought 
 not to have had Sentiments fo dreadful 
 impious. That Efteem which the Poet 
 defign’d in this place to raife in the 
 Spectators for Cornelia , after having 
 conceiv’d it himfelf, fprings from the 
 fame Corruption which makes the 
 World look on thofeas difhonourable 
 and withont Merit, who do not re¬ 
 venge the Death of their Father, or 
 of their Relations, that the Publick of¬ 
 ten makes Mens Honour depend on 
 fighting with the Murderers of their 
 Kindred; they are bred up in thefe hor¬ 
 rible Difpofitions, and their Merit 
 is meafur’d by the Correfpondence 
 i which is found in them to thofe Senti¬ 
 ments that are intended to be given 
 them, which thefe fort of Reprefen- 
 tations favour befides in a Pathetic!? 
 manner, and which infinuates it felf 
 I more eafily than all that could be other- 
 1 wife faid to them. 
 
i6 
 
 A Treati/e of 
 
 As for Ambition, which is properly 
 the Daughter of Pride, it is too much 
 honour’d in the World not to be fo in 
 Plays: It would fill a Volume to fet 
 down all the Examples that might be 
 given of this in almoft every Piece, 
 as it would another to Combat that 
 Paffion fo much as it deferves. 
 
 It is then true that the Defign of 
 Plays is to move the Paflions, as thofe 
 who have treated of Poeticks do agree : 
 and on the contrary all the Defign of 
 the Chriftian Religion is to calm them, 
 to weaken and to deftroy them as 
 much as is pofiible in this Life. ’Tis 
 therefore that the Scripture teaches us 
 that the Life of Man upon Earth is a 
 continual Combat, becaufe he has no 
 fooner thrown down one Enemy, than 
 this Defeat gives Birth to another with¬ 
 in himfelf, fo that his Victory is not 
 lefs dangerous to him than his Loffes; 
 ’tis with thefe Arms that the Flefh 
 makes that Cruel War againft the Spi¬ 
 rit, which cannot live but by mortify¬ 
 ing the Lulls of the Flefh : they belong 
 to that Law of Death which continu ¬ 
 ally oppofes it felf to the Law of 
 the Spirit, and ’tis therefore that 
 one cannot be a perfect Chriftian, 
 
 Hnlef§ 
 
(plays and Shews. 27 
 
 linlefs this Body of SJn be deftroy’d, 
 unlefs the Old Man be crucified and 
 the Celeftial Man reign in us. This 
 is the Chriftian Religion , this is 
 what ought to be the Bufinefs of thofe 
 who profefs it, this is the Doctrine of 
 | St. Paul, or rather that of the Holy 
 [ Ghofi. And as Examples have a great 
 Power over Men, at the fame time the 
 Stage ptopofes to us its Heroes aban¬ 
 don’d to their Paffions: Religion pro- 
 pofes to us Jesus Christ Suffering, to 
 deliver us from our Paffions. Thofe 
 who run after the firft, look on Chrift 
 crucified as Foolifhnefs, and an Occa- 
 fion of Scandal; but thofe whom he 
 calls to the Participation of his Glory, 
 by renouncing their Defires and their 
 Concupifcence, look on him as the Pow¬ 
 er of God , and the Wifdom of God. 
 
 If then Plays, in the State wherein 
 they are at prelent, are fo oppofite to 
 the Maxims of Chriftianity, is it not 
 adding Crime to Crime to chufe the 
 Holy Day of Sabbath to reprefent them 
 on ? ’tis the Day of the Lord, it be¬ 
 longs wholly to him, and if the Weak- 
 nefs of Man does not permit us to give 
 him abfolutely all of it by an aftual 
 Application, at leaft we ought not to 
 
 take 
 
 \ 
 
 
18 
 
 A Treaty e of 
 
 take any but neceffary Diverfions, and 
 to be careful that thofe are neither con¬ 
 trary to the Samftity of the Day, nor t<J 
 that which Chriftians are always ob¬ 
 lig’d to. 
 
 But Players make all thefe Confide- 
 rations yield to their Avarice, and evil 
 Cihriftians facrifice them to their Plea- 
 fure. St. Aufiin allures us, that he who 
 dances on a Sunday commits a greater 
 Sin than he who tills the Ground; 
 and I do believe that according to this 
 Rule, thofe who go to Plays, or thofe 
 who a£t them, cannot be juftified. He 
 lamented as a great Irregularity that 
 he had wept for the Death of Dido, and 
 not for that of his own Soul; and 
 Chxifiians inftead of employing Holy- 
 days in atoning for their Sins , by 
 Fruits worthy of Repentance, give them 
 to unlawful Diverfions ; can there be 
 any Blindnefs equal to this ? 
 
 If this Difcourfe may open the Eyes 
 of any one, I fhall have attain’d the 
 End I propos’d to my felf: For thofe 
 who are full of the Maxims of the 
 World, and of the Flefh, and whom 
 God by a juft, but terrible Judgment 
 has abandon’d to their own Hearts De¬ 
 fires ; I fhall not wonder if they find 
 
 Weaknefs 
 
J 
 
 (Plays and Shews. 
 
 Weaknefs in my Reafonings, they find 
 the fame in theGofpelj they are not 
 accuftomed to examine things b'y the 
 Rules which I have follow’d': For as 
 the Apoftle fays^ The Carnal JMan does 
 not receive the Things that are taught by 
 the Spirit of God, they feem Foolijhnefs to 
 him, and he cannot comprehend them , be- 
 cauje tis by a Spiritual Light that they 
 are to be judg'd. 
 
 2 9 
 
f 
 
 
 € 
 
A Second 
 
 TREATISE 
 
 AGAINST 
 
 Plays and Shews. 
 
 Publifh’d at firft in the Year 1667, and 
 afterwards Reprinted with the De¬ 
 fence of the Prince of Conti's Trea- 
 tife of Plays and Shews. 
 

 J 
 
 THE 
 
 PREFACE 
 
 O NE of the great Marly 
 of the Corruption of 
 this Age , is the Care 
 which has been taken to juflifie 
 Elays, and to make them pafs 
 for a Diverfon that might be 
 joynd with ‘Devotion. Other 
 
 Ages had more Simplicity in 
 Good and Evil ; ‘Thofe who 
 profefs’d ( Piety, Jhew'd by their 
 Words and ABions the Horror 
 they had of thefe prophane Di- 
 verfiohs ; thofe who were fond 
 P 2- of 
 
 A 
 
7 
 
 The Preface. 
 
 of the Theatre , acknowledg’d 
 at leajl that they did not in this 
 follow the Rules of the Chriflian 
 Religion ; but the Char after of 
 this Jge is to pretend to joyn 
 Tiety and the Spirit of the 
 World together ; they are not 
 content to follow Vice , they will 
 hefdes have it honour’d , and 
 not difgrac d with the fhameful 
 ISJame of Vice , which always 
 dijlurbs a littU the Tleafure 
 one tables in it, hy the Horror 
 with which it is accompany d. 
 Aden endeavour then to accom¬ 
 modate their Confcience to their 
 Inclinations, that it may not 
 come to dijlurh them hy its im¬ 
 portunate Remorfes. This is 
 
 what 
 
The Preface 
 
 what much Tains has been ta J 
 ken about 0 on the occafion of 
 Plays. For ax there is fcarce 
 any Diverf on more agreeable to 
 Ferfons of the World than this, 
 it was of great Importance to 
 them to fecure to themfelves a 
 quiet, calm, and con/cientious 
 Enjoyment of it, which is what 
 they mojl defire. The Means 
 which thofe who are the moH 
 Subtile make ufe of for this, is 
 to form a certain Metaphyfcal 
 Idea of Flays, and to purge this 
 Idea of all Sin ' 0 Flays, fay they, 
 are a Keprefentation of Words 
 and Aftions as if they were pre * 
 fent, what Evil is there in 
 this ? and after having thus 
 P 3 jujlifed 
 
P'he Preface. 
 
 fuflifed their general Idea o 
 Plays , ^0/ thinly they have 
 provd that there is no Sin in 
 ‘Plays as they are aBed, and fo 
 go to them without Scruple. 
 Put the way to guard onesjelf 
 from this Illufon, is on the con¬ 
 trary to conjider Plays not by 
 a Chimerical Speculation, but 
 by the common and ufual Pra¬ 
 ctice of which we are Witnejfes. 
 We mutt conjider what the Life 
 of a Player is, what is the 
 SubjeU and the End of our 
 Plays, what EjfeBs they pro- 
 duce in the Minds of thofe who 
 reprefent them, or who fee them, 
 reprefented; and what Impref 
 [ions they leave in them ; and 
 
The Preface. 
 
 afterwards examine if all this 
 has any Relation to the Life, 
 the Sentiments and the Duties 
 of a real Chrijlian ; which is 
 what is defignd to be done in 
 this Treatife. 
 
' 
 
T 
 
 A Second 
 
 TREATISE 
 
 AGAINST 
 
 Plays and Shews. 
 
 i. 
 
 T isimpoflible toconlider 
 the Bufinefs of a Player, 
 and to compare it with the 
 Chriftian Profeflion, with¬ 
 out being fenfible that 
 there is nothing more unworthy of a 
 Child ot God, and of a Member of 
 Jesus Christ than this Employment, 
 I do not fpeak of the grofs Irregula¬ 
 rities only, and the diffolute manner 
 in which the Women appear on the 
 Stage, becaufe thole who jultifie Plays, 
 always feparate thofe fort of Diforders 
 from them in their Imagination, tho’ 
 
| A Second Treatife 
 
 they are never feparated in Effe£t, I 
 fpeak only of that which is abfolutely 
 infeparable from them. ’Tis an Em¬ 
 ployment the end of which is the Di- 
 verfion of others; where Men and 
 Women appear on a Theatre to repre- 
 fent the Pallions of Hatred , Anger, 
 Ambition, Revenge, and chiefly that 
 of Love. They muft exprels them as 
 lively and as, naturally as is poflible 
 for them ; and they cannot do fo, if 
 they do not in fome manner excite them 
 in themfelves, and if their Souls do 
 not take all the Changes which we fee 
 in their Faces. Thole then who re- 
 prefent a Paffion of Love, muft be in 
 fome meafure touch’d with it, whilh 
 they reprefen t it, and it is not to be 
 imagin’d that they can prefently efface 
 from their Minds that Impreflion 
 which they have voluntarily excited 
 in it, and that it does not leave a great 
 Difpofition to that fame Paffion which 
 they have been fo willingly fenfible of. 
 Thus Plays are even in their Nature a 
 School and an Exercife of Vice, fince 
 it is an Art in which one muft necefla- 
 rily excite in themfelves vicious Pallions 
 And if we confider that the whole 
 Life of Players is employ’d in this Ex- 
 
 ercife, 
 
3 
 
 againjl ^Plays and Shews. 
 
 Grcife, that they pafs it entirely either 
 in learning by themfelves, or rehear- 
 fing among one another, or in repre- 
 fenting to Spectators the Image of fome 
 Vice; and that they have fcarce any 
 thing in their Minds butthefe Follies ; 
 we (hall eafily fee that it is impoflible 
 to joyn this Employment with the Pu¬ 
 rity of our Religion, And thus it muft 
 be own’d that it is a prophane Employ¬ 
 ment, and unworthy of a Chriftian ; 
 that thofe who exercife it are oblig’d 
 to leave it, as all the Councils com¬ 
 mand them: and that by confequence 
 it is not allowable for others to con¬ 
 tribute to maintain them in a Profeili- 
 on contrary to Chriftianity, or to au~ 
 thorife it by their Prefence, 
 
 II. 
 
 AS the Paflton of Loye is the iirong- 
 eft Impreffion that Sin has made in 
 our Souls, which fufficiently appears 
 by the horrible Biforders it produces 
 in the World ; there is nothing more 
 Dangerous than to excite it, to nourifh 
 if, and to deftroy that which reftrains 
 it. Now the chief Bridle which ferves 
 to check it, is a, certain Horror of it, 
 
 which 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 which Cuftom and a good Education 
 imprints; and nothing more diminifhes 
 this Horror than Plays, becaufe that 
 Paflion appears in them with Honour, 
 and in a manner which inftead of ren- 
 tiring it horrible, is capable on the con¬ 
 trary of rendring it amiable. It ap f 
 pears there without Shame and with¬ 
 out Infamy ; they glory there in being 
 touch’d with it. Thus the Mind by 
 little and little grows familiar with it; 
 we learn to fuffer it, and to fpeak of it, 
 and then the Soul lets it felf gently 
 Aide into it, following the bent of Na¬ 
 ture. 
 
 m. 
 
 ’TIS to no purpofe to urge for the 
 J uftification ofPlays and Romances,that 
 none but lawful Paflionsare reprefented 
 in them; for tho Marriage makes a good 
 ufe of Concupifcence, it is neverthelefs 
 always evil and irregular in it felf, and 
 it is not allowable to excite it in ones 
 felf or in others. We ought always 
 to look on it as the fhameful Effect of 
 Sin, as a Sourfe of Poylon capable to 
 infe£t us every Moment, if Gob did 
 not reftrain the ill Confequences of it. 
 

 agdinjl Tlays and Shews. 
 
 Tt cannot then be deny’d that Plays 
 and Romances are contrary to good 
 Mahners, fince they imprint a lovely 
 Idea of a vicious Paffion, and make an 
 Heroick Quality of it, there being none 
 which appears more in thefe Heroes of 
 Romances and of the Theatre. 
 
 IV. 
 
 MARRIAGE regulates Concupis¬ 
 cence, but does not render it regular, it is 
 always irregular in itfelfand it is only by 
 Force that it contains it felf within the 
 Bounds that Reafon prefcribes* Now 
 Plays, in exciting this Paffion, do not 
 at the fame time imprint a Love of that 
 which regulates it; the Spe&ators re¬ 
 ceive only an Impreffion of the Paffion, 
 and little or nothing of the Regulation 
 of the Paffion : The Author by a touch 
 of his Pen flops it where he pleafes in 
 his Heroes, but he cannot flop it thus 
 in thofe in whom he excites it. The 
 Reprefentation of a Lawful and that of 
 an Unlawful Love , have almoft the 
 fame Effeft, and excite but one and the 
 fame Movement, which afterwards o- 
 perates diverfly according to the diffe¬ 
 rent Difpofitions with which it meets; 
 
 and 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 and even often the Reprefentation of i 
 PafTion cover’d with this Veil of Ho¬ 
 nour is the more dangerous, becaufe the 
 Mind looks on it with more Security, 
 It is receiv d witti lels Horror, and the 
 Heart lets it felf fall into it with left 
 Refiftance. 
 
 V. 
 
 That which renders the Hanger of 
 Plays the greater, is that they keep 
 off all the Remedies which might hinder 
 the ill Iropreffion they make. The 
 Heart is foftned there by Pleafure ; the 
 Mind is wholly employed on exterior 
 Qbjedb, and entirely fill’d with the 
 Follies it fees there reprefented, and 
 by Confequence is out of that State of 
 Chriftian Vigilance, which is neceffary 
 to avoid Temptations, and like a Reed 
 liable to be carried away with every 
 Wind. It is very probable that no bo¬ 
 dy ever thought of preparing them- 
 felves to fee a Plaj by Prayer, fince 
 the Spirit of God would much fooner 
 lead one to fhun this dangerous Diver- 
 lion, than to ask his Grace to be pre- 
 ferv’d from the Corruption which is 
 there met with. If thofe who live in 
 
 Retirement 
 
against <PIays and Shews. 
 
 Retirement from the World, do yet find 
 great Difficulties in the Chriftian Life, 
 even in the Solitude of Monalleries, 
 if they are infe&ed by the Commerce 
 of the World, even when ’tis Charity 
 and Neceffity that engages them in it, 
 and that they Hand on their Guard as 
 much as they can to refill it; what 
 mull be the Falls and the Wounds of 
 thofe who, leading a Life entirely Sen- 
 fual, expofe themfelves to Temptati¬ 
 ons which the fttongeft could not refill ? 
 fhould it not be faid of them, in com¬ 
 paring them with the Spiritual Pet- 
 fons in the Church, as Job fays of Men, 
 in comparing them with the Angels, 
 
 Ecce qui ferviunt ei non funt ftabtles i 
 & in Angela fait re per it pravitatem: 
 quanto magis hi qui habitant domos 
 lute as conjumentur velut a tinea ? Be¬ 
 hold thoje who fetve him are not fable^^g t0 ' t $ 
 and even in his Angels he finds Defects : Vulg&r li J 
 how much more jhall they that dwell in tm ' 
 Hou/es of Clay be fubjeffi to Corrup¬ 
 tion and to Sin . Or that which Jfaiah 
 fays. Super humum populi mei fpina & 
 vepres afcenderunt, quanto magis fuper 
 omnem domumgaudii civ it at is exult ant isf 
 * If on the Land of my People , faith the 
 Lord, there comes up Thorns and Briars , 
 
 that! 
 
 * Accorft- 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 that is, if the Souls which figh after 
 their Celeftial Country are fometimes 
 wounded by the Darts of Sin, to what 
 Diforder will not thofe be tranfported 
 who live in Pleafures , and whofe 
 Hearts are full of all the vain Delights 
 of the World? Quanto magis fuper omnent 
 domum gaudii civ it at is exult antis ? 
 
 VI. 
 
 IT ought to beconfider’d that Plays" 
 are a Temptation voluntarily fought, 
 which much more keeps off the Grace 
 of God, and inclines him to abandon 
 us to our own Corruption than thofe in¬ 
 to which we fall without , forefeeing 
 them. It is Temerity, Pride and Im¬ 
 piety to think our felves capable to re¬ 
 fill the Temptations we meet with in 
 Plays, without Grace; and it is Pre- 
 fumption and Folly to think that God 
 will always deliver us by his Grace, 
 from a Danger to which we expOfe our 
 felves willingly, and without Neeeflx- 
 
ngainfl Tiays and Shewr. 
 
 % 
 
 VII. 
 
 THOSE deceive themfelves extrearrU 
 ly who think that Plays make no ill 
 Impreflion on them, becaufe they do 
 not find them excite any form’d evil 
 Defire. There are many Degrees be¬ 
 fore one comes to an entire Corruption 
 of Mind, ahd ’tis always extreamly 
 hurtful to the Soul to deftroy the Ram¬ 
 parts which fecur’d it from Temptati¬ 
 ons. ’Tis injuring it much to accuftoni 
 it to look on thofe fort of Objects with' 
 out Horror, and with fome fort of 
 Complacency, and to make it think 
 that there is a Plea-lute in loving and 
 in being belov’d. The Averfioti which 
 it had for it, was as an Out-guard that 
 hinder’d the Devil’s entrance, and when 
 that is deliroy’d by Plays, he eafily en¬ 
 ters afterwards. One does not begin td 
 fall when the Fall becomes fenfible; the 
 Fallings of the Soul are (low, they have 
 Progreffions and Preparations; and it 
 often happens that one is overcome by 
 a^Temptation only by our having weak- 
 ned ourfelves inOccafions which feem’d 
 of no Importance; it being certain that 
 lie who defpfes little things Jhall fall by 
 
 little 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 little and little . This is one ofithe Sen- 
 fes of that faying of Job, Qui habitant 
 domos lute as confumentur velat a tinea , 
 which fhews that thofe who live a Sen- 
 faal Life, and in the Pleafures of the 
 World, are often confum’d by Paffions, 
 the Effect of which was infenfible at 
 the beginning, as that of the Moth is 
 on Cloaths, and that they draw, as a 
 Prophet fays, Iniquity into their Hearts 
 by thefe vain Amufeftients : Wo unto 
 them that draw Iniquity with Cords of Va* 
 nity» 
 
 VIII. 
 
 Let not thofe then who do not fine! 
 that Romances and Plays excite in their 
 Minds any of thofe Paffions which are 
 commonly apprehended from them, 
 think themfelves therefore in Safety, 
 and let them not imagine that thefe 
 Books and Sights have done them no 
 hurt. The Word of Goo which is the 
 Seed of Life, and the Word of the De¬ 
 vil which is the Seed of Death, have this 
 in common, that they often remain a 
 long time hidden in the Heart without 
 producing any fenfibie Effect. God 
 fometimes brings about the Salvation 
 
againft Inlays and Shews. 
 
 of Men by certain Words of Truth 
 which he had fown in their Hearts 
 twenty Years before, and which he re¬ 
 vives when he pleafes to make them 
 produce the Fruit of Life : and the De¬ 
 vil in like manner fometimes contents 
 himfelf to fill the Memory with his I- 
 mages without going farther, and with¬ 
 out forming yet any fenfible Tempta¬ 
 tion from them ; and then a long time 
 after he excites and revives them, even 
 without our remembring how they 
 came there, to make them bring forth 
 the Fruits of Death, which is the only 
 end that he propofes to himfelf in all 
 that he does with refpeft to Men. We 
 may fay then to thofe who boaft that 
 Plays and Romances do not excite in 
 them theleaft ill Thought,that they muft 
 ftay a little, that the Devil will know 
 very well how to take his Time when 
 he finds a favourable Occafion. It may 
 be that holding them to himfelf by o- 
 ther Tyes, he neglefts at prefent to 
 make ufe of thofe which are more vi- 
 fible; but if he has need of them for 
 their Definition, he will not fail to 
 employ them. 
 
i z A Second Treatije 
 
 IX. 
 
 BUT fuppofing it true, that Plays 
 have no ill Effeft upon feme Perfons, 
 they could not however take them for 
 an innocent Diverfion, or think them- 
 felves not Guilty in being prefent at 
 them. Plays are not a tied for one Per- 
 fon alone, they are expos d to all forts, 
 of which the greater part are weak and 
 corrupted, and to whom by confe- 
 quence they are extreamly Dangerous. 
 *'Tis their Fault, you’ll fay, to go to 
 them in that State. That’s true, but 
 you authorife them by your Example; 
 you contribute to make them look on 
 Plays as a thing indifferent; the more 
 Regular you are in your other Actions, 
 the Bolder they are to imitate you in 
 this. Why, fay they, fhould we make a 
 Scruple of going to Plays, fince thofe 
 who profefs Piety go to them freely? 
 you are accelfary then to their Sin; 
 and if Plays give you no Wounds of 
 themfelves, you wound your felf by 
 thofe which others receive from your 
 Example, and thus you are the molt 
 gui 1 ty of all. The Perfons of the W orld 
 letting no Example are fcarce guilty 
 
 ( 
 
againfl Tlays and Shews. 
 
 of any bur their own Sins : but tliofe 
 who would pafs for Vertuous, and 
 who really pradife fome good Works, 
 are guilty both of their own Sins, 
 and of thofe of others ; and they 
 not only lofe the Merit of their good 
 .A&ions, but do in a manner empoyfon 
 them by making them ferve to engage 
 others into Sin. 
 
 GOD requires nothing properly of 
 Man but his Love ; but he demands 
 that entire. He will have no Sharers 
 in it; and as he is our Sovereign Good, 
 he will not have us engage our Affecti¬ 
 ons elfewhere, or find our Repofe in 
 any Creature, becaufe no Creature is 
 our End. The Plenitude of Love which 
 we owe to God, faith St. Aujlin , does 
 not allow us to Puffer any Rivulet to run 
 out of it. And therefore whatever Ver- 
 tue we may imagine there is in the 
 Love of a Mortal Creature, this Love 
 is always vicious and unlawful, when 
 it does not fpring from the Love of 
 God, and it cannot have its Rife from 
 thence when it is a Love of Paffion and 
 of Application, which makes us find 
 Q.$ our 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 our Joy and our Pleafure in that Crea¬ 
 ture. A Chriftian, who knows what 
 he owes to God, ought not to fuffer 
 any Pafiion or Inclination of that kind 
 in his Heart, without condemning it, 
 without lamenting it, and without 
 begging of God to be delivered from 
 it: and he ought to have an extream 
 Horror of being himfelf an Objeft of 
 the Pafiion of any other Perfon, whofe 
 Idol in fome manner he becomes by that 
 means, fince Love is aWorfhip which 
 is only due to God, as he can only be 
 honour’d by Love. Nec colitur mfi a- 
 mando . This fhews that there is an 
 infinity of Women who think them- 
 felves Innocent, becaufe they have in¬ 
 deed fome Abhorrence of grofs Vices, 
 who are notwithstanding extreamly 
 Criminal in the Sight of Ggd, becaufe 
 they are glad to maintain in the Hearts 
 of Men a Rank which belongs to God 
 alone, in taking Pleafure to be the Ob¬ 
 ject of their Faffions. They are pleas’d 
 that Men fhould have an Inclination 
 for them, fhould look on them with 
 Sentiments not only of Efteem, but of 
 Tendernefs, and they willingly fuffer 
 them to exprefs it by that prophane 
 Language which is call’d Gallantry^ 
 
 w hich 
 
againJl Plays and Shews. 
 
 which is the Interpreter of the Pa (lions, 
 and which in truth is a Sacrilegious I- 
 dolatry. ’Tis therefore that whatever 
 Care is taken to feparate from Plays 
 and Romances the Images of (hameful 
 Irregularities, they will never take a- 
 way the Danger of them, fince we al¬ 
 ways fee in them a lively Reprefentati- 
 on of that paffionate Love of Men to¬ 
 wards Women, which cannot be In¬ 
 nocent; and fince they can never hinder 
 Women from filling their Thoughts 
 with the Pleafure there is in being be- 
 lov’d and ador’d by a Man, which is 
 not lefs dangerous, and lefs contagious 
 to them, than the Images of Diforders 
 vifibly criminal. 
 
 XL 
 
 PLAYS and Romances do not only 
 excite the Paflions, but they likewife 
 teach the Language of the Pa (lions, that 
 is to fay, the Art of exprefiing them, 
 and of fhewing them in. an agreeable 
 and ingenious manner, which is no 
 fmall Evil. Many Perfons ftifle ill De- 
 figns becaufe they want Addrefs to dif- 
 cover them. And it happens too fome- 
 tirpes that Men defiring only to (hew 
 
 Q» 4 their 
 
• id t J Second Tredtife 
 
 their Wit, without being touch’d with 
 any Paffion, find themfelyes afterwards 
 dniynfibjy engaged, 
 
 <JV " • l 'O’-i. ' ' f ? v, ' " - > 
 
 xrr. 
 
 1 THE Pleafure of Plays is an evil 
 Pleafure, becatife it commonly fprings 
 _p-nly from a Source of Corruption, 
 which is excited in us by what we there 
 fee ; and to. be convinced of this, one 
 needs only confider that when we have 
 .an extrearri Horror of an Aftion, we 
 take no pleafure in feeingfr reprefented; 
 f this i§ what obliges the Poets to conceal 
 , from the Eyes of the Spe&ators all that 
 may give them that difagreeable Hor¬ 
 ror* When we do not feel then the 
 fame Averfion for the foolifli Paflions 
 and thofe other Irregularities which 
 are reprefented in Plays, and that we 
 .take plea fine in beholding them, ’tis a 
 ..Sign that we do not hate them, and 
 that they excite in us I know not what 
 Inclination for thofe Vices, which 
 fpring from the Corruptions of our 
 Hearts, If we had an Idea of Vice ac¬ 
 cording to its natural Deformity, we 
 boil Id not bear the Image of it, and 
 fhwrcfore orje of the greateft Poets of 
 
 this 
 
againft (plays and Shews. 
 
 this Age obferves, that one of his bed 
 Pieces was not agreeable on the Stage, 
 becaufe it druck the Minds of the Spe/- 
 Hators with the horrible Idea of a Prd- 
 ditution, to which a Holy Martyr had 
 been condemned. But that which he 
 draws from thence for the Judilication 
 of Plays, which is, that the Theatre 
 is now fo Chait that indecent Objects 
 cannot be differed there, is that which 
 manifedly condemns them. For one 
 may learn by this Example, that we ap¬ 
 prove in fome manner of all that we 
 differ, and which we fee with Pleafure 
 on the Stage, fince we cannot differ 
 what w r e have in Horror. And by 
 confequence there being dill fo much 
 Corruption and vicious Padions in thofe 
 Plays which feem the mod Innocent , 
 ? tis a Sign that we do not ha^e thofe 
 Irregularities, fince we take pleafure 
 in feeing them reprefented. 
 
 XIII. 
 
 9 TIS befides a very great Error, 
 and which deceives many, not to 
 condder any other ill Effect of thefe 
 Reprefentations but that of raiding 
 Thoughts contrary to Purity, and thus 
 
 |Q 
 
 *7 
 
1 8 A Second Treatife 
 
 to think that they do not hurt us at all? 
 when they do not hurt us in that man¬ 
 ner ; as if there were no other Vices 
 but that, and that we were not as fuf- 
 ceptible of them. In the mean time, 
 if we confider the Plays of thofe who 
 have mo If affected this Teeming Decen¬ 
 cy, we jfhall find that they have fhun’d 
 representing Objects abfolutely Inde¬ 
 cent, only to take others as Criminal, 
 and which are nolefs contagious. All 
 Monfieur de Corneilles Pieces fwho is 
 without queffion the moft Chaff of any 
 that have writ for the Stage) are only 
 lively Reprefentations ol the Paflions 
 of Pride, Ambition, of Jealoufie, Re¬ 
 venge, and chiefly of that B^omm Virtue 
 which is nothing elfe but a violeut Self- 
 love. The more they colour thefe Vices 
 with an Imageof Greatnefsand of Gene- 
 rofity, the more they render them Dan¬ 
 gerous and capable of entering the beft 
 dilpos’d Souls; and the Imitation of 
 thefe Paflions pleafes \xs only be- 
 caufe our Corruption excites at the 
 fame time a refembling Agitation , 
 which in feme manner transforms us, 
 and makes us enter into the Paffion 
 which is reprefented tons. 
 
 XIV, 
 
1 9 
 
 agahtjl 'Plays and Shews. 
 
 XIV. 
 
 IT is fo true, that Plays are almoit 
 always a Reprefentation of vicious 
 Pallions, that the greateft part of Chri- 
 ftian Vertues are incapable of appear¬ 
 ing on the Stage. Silence, Patience, 
 Moderation, Divine Wifdom, Poverty 
 of Spirit, and Penitence, are not Ver¬ 
 tues the Reprefentation of which can 
 divert Spe&ators, and efpecially one 
 never hears any mention there of Hu¬ 
 mility or bearing of Injuries. What a 
 poor Heroe of a Play would an hum¬ 
 ble and patient religious Perfon make ? 
 There mult be fomething Great and E- 
 levated in the Elteem of Men, or at 
 lealt lomething Lively and Animated, 
 which is not to be met with in the 
 Chriftian Wifdom and Gravity. And 
 therefore thofe who have introduc'd 
 Any Saints on the Stage, have been 
 forc’d to make them appear Proud, and 
 to put Words into their Mouths fitter 
 for the Heroes of ancient Rome , than 
 for Saints and Martyrs,. The Devo¬ 
 tion too of thefe Stage Saints muft be 
 always a little Gallant, and therefore a 
 Difpofition to Martyrdom does not hin- 
 
to 
 
 A Second Treatife 
 
 der Mr. Corneille's Theodora from fpealT 
 ing in thefe Terms. 
 
 ]f I my Soul abandon'd to my Senfes , 
 Suffering it to be led by thofe Impreffions 
 Which at their Birth the tender PaJJions 
 form . 
 
 And die Humility of the Stage fuffers 
 her to anfwer after this manner in an¬ 
 other Place. 
 
 That mighty Power given to his Virtues f 
 Equals him almofi to the Race of KJngsi 
 Trom whom I am defended • and tho Time 
 And Rome, have now depriv'd me of the 
 Rank, 
 
 / fill retain the Courage and the Blood . 
 
 In my low State 1 know to live a Princefs y 
 Ifly Ambition 9 but 1 Meannefs hate . 
 
 XV. 
 
 EVEN common Affections are not 
 fit to give the Pleafure which is fought 
 for in Plays, and there would be no¬ 
 thing duller than a Chriftian Marriage 
 on each fide free from Paffion. There 
 muff be always Tranfport in thern^ 
 Jealoufy muft mingle it felf, the Will of 
 
 Parent^ 
 
agdmfl (Plays and Shews. 
 
 Parents muft be contrary, and Intrigues 
 muft be us’d to make them fucceed.Thus 
 they teach the way to thofe who are 
 poffefs'd of the fame Paffion to make 
 ufe of the like Addreffes to arrive at 
 the fame End. 
 
 XVI. 
 
 EVEN the Defign of Plays obliges 
 the Poets to reprefent none but vicious 
 Pafllons, For the End they propofe is 
 topleafe the Speftators, and they can¬ 
 not do fo, but by putting into the 
 Mouths of the Aftors fuch Words and 
 Sentiments as are fuitable to the Per- 
 fons whom they fuppofe to fpeak, and 
 of thofe before whom they fpeak. Now 
 they rarely reprefent any but ill Per- 
 fons, and they fpeak only before Per- 
 fons of the World, whofe Hearts and 
 Minds are corrupted by evil Pallions 
 and evil Maxims. 
 
 XVII. 
 
 THE Perfons of the World who 
 are the common Spectators of Plays, 
 have three principal Difpolitions. They 
 are full otConcupifcence, full of Pride, 
 
 and 
 
22 
 
 A Second Treatife of 
 
 and of an Efteem of Human Generofi- 
 ty, which is nothing elfe but a difguis’d 
 Pride. So that the Poets, who in order to 
 pleafe muft accommodate rhemfelves 
 to thefe Inclinations, are oblig’d fo to 
 contrive that their Plays may always 
 turn on thefe three Paffions; and to 
 fill them with Love, with Sentiments 
 of Pride, and the Maxims of Human 
 Honour. This isthereafon that there 
 is nothing more Pernicious than the Po- 
 etick and Romantick Morality, be¬ 
 came it is only a Heap of Falfe Opini¬ 
 ons which ha^e their Birth from thofe 
 three Sources, and which are only a- 
 greeable in that they footh the corrupt 
 Inclinations of the Readers or of the 
 Audience. This is the Source of that 
 Pleafure which is receiv’d from thefe 
 Verfes that Mr. de Corneille has put in 
 the Mouth ofa Lord, who had kill d in 
 a Duel one that had ftruck his Father. 
 
 Do not expect in fine from my Affection, 
 
 A weak Repentance of a virtuous Action, 
 Thou know'ft how much a Blow affects the 
 Brave 7 
 
 I fhaAd tip. Affront , I fought the Author 
 of it , 
 
 And have aveng d my jplonour and my Fa* 
 tfar ' 7 
 
again ft 'Plays and Shews. 
 
 Again Pd do it, were it yet to do. 
 
 3 Tis from the fame Corruption of 
 Mind that People hear without Pain 
 thefe horrible Sentiments of one who 
 is refolv’d to fight with his Friend, be- 
 caufe he was thought to be guilty of a 
 thing of which himfelf believ’d him 
 Innocent. 
 
 *Tis little to neglecl jo jrong a Duty 
 That my own Heart declares thee Innocent , 
 *Tis little which it gives to Publik Error ; 
 Thou art a Criminal jmce thou art accus'd* 
 My wounded Honour knows too well its Due > 
 Not to revenge on thee what Men believe , 
 Such is tF impitiable Law of Honour,x 
 When injur'd by a Friend, to mmd it felf 
 alone ; 
 
 In its own Caufe ever inexorable. 
 
 It asks the dearejl Blood if but thought 
 Guilty. 
 
 Nor was ever any Perfon fhock’d at 
 thefe barbarous Words of a Father to 
 a Son, whom he charges to avenge 
 him. 
 
 Againfl his Arrogance go try thy Courage 
 In Blood alone fuch Outrages are wafh'd 
 Or kill, or die. And 
 
2% 
 
 A Second Treatife 
 
 And yet in confidering them accord¬ 
 ing to Reafon, there is nothing more 
 deteflable ; but his thought that Poets 
 are allow'd to aflert the moll Damnable 
 Maxims, provided they are conform¬ 
 able to the Characters they reprefent. 
 
 XVISL 
 
 It muft not be imagin’d that thefe 
 wicked Maxims, of which Plays ard 
 full, are not Hurtful, becaufe People do 
 not go there to form their Sentiments, 
 but to divert themfelves; for they do 
 not fail of making Impreffions notwith- 
 ftanding without being perceiv’d ; and 
 a Gentleman will more fenfibly refent 
 an Affront, and be the more eafily 
 tranfported to avenge it in the Criminal 
 * But is manner which is * common in France, 
 mm »«er-when he has heard fuch fort of Ydrfes 
 lyaboiilk'l rec ited ; the reafon of which is that our 
 Paffions are excited by the Objects, and 
 the falfe Opinions with which the Mind 
 is prepolfeif. The Opinion that that Chi¬ 
 mera of Honour is fo great a Good^ 
 that it muli be prefervM even at the 
 Expence of Life, is what produces the 
 Brutal Rage of the Gentlemen of France, 
 
 If 
 
againft (Plays and Shews. 
 
 If thofe who fight a Duel were never 
 fpoke of but as Fools and Mad-men, 
 as indeed they are ; if that Phantom 
 of Honour , which is their Idol, was ne¬ 
 ver reprefented but as a Chimera and 
 a Folly ; if care was taken never to form 
 any Image of Revenge, biit as of a 
 mean and cowardly Affion ; the Re- 
 fentment which Men feel upon an Af¬ 
 front would be infinitely weaker: But 
 that which exafperates and renders it 
 the more lively, is the falfe Imprefli- 
 cn that there is Cowardice in bearing 
 an Affront. Now it cannot be deny ’d 
 •that Plays which are full of thefe evil 
 Maxims, do greatly contribute to for- 
 tifie that Impreflion, becaufethe Mind 
 being by them tranfported, and entire¬ 
 ly out of it felf, inftead of correfling 
 thofe Sentiments, abandons it felf to 
 them without Refiftance, and delights 
 to feel the Motions they infpire, which 
 difpofes it to produce the like upon oc- 
 c&fion. 
 
 XIX. 
 
 That which renders the Image of 
 the Paflions which Plays reprefent to 
 us the more Dangerous* is that the 
 R Poets 
 
26 
 
 A Second Treatife 
 
 Poets to make them agreeable, are ob¬ 
 lig’d not only toreprefent them in a very 
 lively manner, but likewife to take 
 from them what they have of moft hor¬ 
 rible, and to paint them in fuch a mari¬ 
 ner by their Ingenuity, that inftead of 
 railing the Hatred and Averfion of the 
 Spectators, they engage on the contrary 
 their Affeffion ; infomuch that a Paf- 
 fion which could only give Horror if it 
 were reprefented fuch as it is, becomes 
 Lovely by the ingenious manner in 
 Which it is exprefsM This may be 
 feenin the Verfes w'here Mr. de Corne¬ 
 ille reprefents the Rage of Horati^s 
 Sifter, for thus he makes her talk in 
 fpeaking of her Father ; 
 
 Tes I will make him fee by Proofs infallible 
 That real Love can even brave the Fates , 
 And takes no Laws from thoje inhuman Ty~ 
 
 rants 
 
 Which harfh injurious Stars have made 
 our Parents : 
 
 Thou blam*ft my Sorrow , darft to call it 
 Weaknefs ; 
 
 But barbarous Father! fo much more 1 
 love it) 
 
 The more it angers thee *- 
 
 And 
 
 ;• / ‘ ‘ ft' 
 
(plays and Shews. 
 
 And afterwards in Fpeaking to her 
 Brother, fhe makes this horrid Impre¬ 
 cation againft her Country. 
 
 Rome the foie Objetl of my high Refent - 
 ment^ 
 
 To which thou now haft facrific'd my Lover; 
 Rome,, which thy Heart adores ? which gave 
 thee Birth ; 
 
 Rome, which in fine I hate for honouring 
 thee . 
 
 May all her Neighbours joyn’d in one Alii - 
 ance ? 
 
 Sap her Foundations , yet but ill e(lablifpd * 
 Her felf, upon her felf throw down her 
 Walls , 
 
 And with her cruel Hands tear her own 
 Bowels ; 
 
 May Heaven s Anger kindled by my Vows 
 Four down upon her a confuming Fire, 
 
 May I even with thefe Eyes behold her burn, 
 Behold thy Laurels Du ft, thy Houfe in 
 
 es i 
 
 See the laft Roman breathing his laft Sigh, 
 1 only be the Caufe , and die with Pleafure 0 
 
 If we diveft the Image of this Paf- 
 fion from all the Ornament the Poet 
 gives it^ and confider it only by Rea- 
 R % fon, 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 fon, there can be nothing more dete- 
 ftable imagin’d than the Fury of this 
 enrag’d Maid, who for a foolilh Paffion 
 violates all the Laws of Nature. And 
 yet this Difpofition of Mind,fo criminal 
 in it felf, has nothing Horrible in it, 
 when cloath’d with all thefe Orna¬ 
 ments ; the Spectators are more in¬ 
 clin’d to love this Fury than to hate 
 her. I have made ufe on purpofe of 
 thefe Examples, becaufe they are leaft 
 dangerous to produce. But indeed the 
 Poets pra&ife this Artifice of painting 
 Vices, in Subjects much more pernici¬ 
 ous than this; and if we examine al- 
 moft all Plays and Romances, we fhall 
 fcarce find any thing in them but vici¬ 
 ous Paffions adorn’d and colour’d with 
 a certain Paint, which renders them 
 agreeable to Perfons of the World. 
 But if it is not allowable to love Vice, 
 may we take Pleafure in diverting our 
 felves with fuch things as teach us te 
 love it? 
 
 XX. 
 
 A Chriftian having renounc’d the 
 World, its Pomp and Pleafures, can¬ 
 not feek Pleafure for it felf, nor Diver* 
 
 fion 
 
again ft (Plays and Shews - 
 
 fion for the fake of Diverfion. It muft 
 (that he may.life it without Sin) be in 
 fome manner neceffary for him ; and 
 that it may be truly faid that he takes 
 it with the Moderation of one that u- 
 fes it, and not with the Paffion of one 
 that loves it. Now as theTole Ufeful- 
 nefs of Diverfion is to repair the Forces 
 of the Mind and Body, when they are 
 weakned by Labour, it is clear that we 
 are at moft only allow’d to divert our 
 felves, as we are allow’d to eat, 
 
 ’Tis eafy to conclude from hence, 
 that it is not the Life of a Chriftian, but 
 a Heathenifh and Brutal Life, to pafs 
 the greateft part of ones Time in Diver- 
 fions, fince they are not allow’d for 
 themfelves, but only to render the 
 Mind more capable of Labour. For if 
 no body doubts that it would be a very 
 criminal Life to do nothing but eat and 
 fit at Table from Morning to Night, 
 which the Prophet condemns in thefe 
 Words, Woe unto them that rife up ear¬ 
 ly in the Morning to follow Strong Drink , 
 and continue until Night till Wine inflame 
 them . It is eafy to fee that ’tis no lefs 
 an Abufe of Life (which God hath 
 given us for his Service) to pafs it en¬ 
 tirely in what is call’d Diverfion , fince 
 R 5 the 
 
A Second Trealife 
 
 the Word it felf advertifes us that it 
 ought only to be fought to divert and 
 unbend us from laborious Studies and 
 Occupations, which caufe in the Soul 
 a kind of Wearinefs that needs to be 
 repair’d. 
 
 This fuffices to condemn the greater 
 part of thofe who frequent Plays : for 
 it is vfible that they do not go thither 
 to unbend their Minds from ferious 
 Occupations, fince thofe Perfons, and 
 particularly the Women of the World 
 fcarce ever employ themfelves ferioufly. 
 Their Life is nothing but a Viciffitudeof 
 Diversions, they pafs it all in Vifits, in 
 Gaming,in Balls, in Walks, in Feafting, 
 and at Plays. If notwithstanding this 
 they grow tir’d, as they often are, ’tis 
 becaufe they have too much Diverfion, 
 and too little of ferious Occupations, 
 their Wearinefs is a Difguft occafion’d 
 by Satiety like that of thole who have 
 eat too much; and it ought to be cur’d 
 by Abftinence, and not by the Change 
 pf Pleafures. They fhould divert them¬ 
 felves by fome Employment, fince La- 
 zinefs and Idlenefs is the principal 
 Caule of their being weary. 
 
againjl flays and Shews. 
 
 XXL 
 
 It follows from hence, that all thofe 
 who have no need of Diverfion, that 
 is to fay, the greater part of thofe 
 who go to Plays, cannot do it without 
 Sin, tho’ there was no other reafon to 
 make Plays unlawful. But it does not 
 follow from hence that thofe who really 
 need to unbend their Mind, may go 
 thither without Sin, becaufe a Play 
 cannot pafs for a Diverfion, fince it 
 cannot have the Effect which we are 
 allow’d to aim at in a Divertifement ; 
 for a Chriftian muft only feek in it a 
 bare unbending of the Mind, which 
 may render it more capable of afting 
 Chriftianly, and with a Chriftian Dif- 
 pofition. Now fo far are Plays from 
 ferving to this End, that there is no¬ 
 thing which more indifpofes the Soul, 
 not only for the principal Chriftian 
 Aftions, fuch as Prayer, but even for 
 the moft common Actions when one 
 would do them in a Chriftian Spirit; 
 that is to fay, with a Recolle&ion and 
 Attention to God, which we muft en¬ 
 deavour as much as is pofflble to pre* 
 ferve in exteripr A&ions, So that as 
 
the Neceflity which we have of eating, 
 does not make it allowable for us to 
 eat fuch Meats as only weaken the Bo¬ 
 dy, in like mannner the Need which 
 we have of Diverfion cannot excufe 
 thofe who feek fuch Diverfions as only 
 render the Mind lefs fit to aft Chrifti- 
 anly. 
 
 XXII. 
 
 PLAYS and Romances not only in- 
 drfpofe the Soul for all Afts of Religion 
 and Piety ; but they give it a Difguft in 
 Ibme meafure of all ferious and ordi¬ 
 nary Aftions. As nothing is repre¬ 
 fen ted in them but Gallantries or ex¬ 
 traordinary Adventures, and that the 
 Dilcourfes are far enough diftant from 
 fuch as are us'd in ferious Affairs, onq 
 infenfibly takes from them a Romantick 
 Difpfition of Mind, the Head is fill’d 
 with Heroes and Heroines, and Women 
 chiefly feeing the Adorations which in 
 them are given to their Sex fof which 
 they find the Image and Praftice in 
 Companies of Diverfion, where young 
 Men talk to them what they havelearnt 
 in Romances, treating them as Nymphs 
 ted Godddfes) imprint that fort of 
 
dgalnft Plays and Shews. ^ \ 
 
 Life fo much in their Fancy, that the 
 Jittle Affairs of their Family and Houfe : 
 wifry become infupportable to them ; 
 and when they return to their Houfes 
 with Minds thus evaporated, and fill’d 
 with thefe Follies, they find every thing 
 there difagreeable, and efpecially their 
 Husbands, who being taken up with 
 their Affairs,are not always in a Humour 
 of paying them thofe ridiculous Com- 
 plaifances, which are given to Women 
 in Plays, in Romances,, and in the Ro- 
 mantick Life. 
 
 XXIII. 
 
 THE Neceffity which we are in of 
 repairing the Decays of the Body by 
 Nourifhment, cannot ferve thofe for 
 an Excufe who Should willingly eat fuch 
 Meats as leave a venomous Quality, 
 difturb the Humours, and caufe an ill 
 Habit of Body ; becaufe that fort of 
 Food would be contrary to the End of 
 eating, which is to preferve the Life of 
 the Body. In like manner the need 
 which we have of recreatiiig our felves 
 Sometimes, cannot excufe thofe who 
 take Plays for their Diverfion, fince a? 
 we have laid they leave Yenomous Qua- 
 
 4 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 lities in the Mind, excite the Paffions 
 and diforder the whole Soul. 
 
 XXIV. 
 
 BUT the Need which Men have of 
 Diverfion is not bv far fo great as is 
 thought, and it confifts more in Ima¬ 
 gination, or in Cuftom, than in a real 
 Neceffity. Thofe who are employ'd in 
 Bodily Labour, have only need of a 
 bare Ceffation from it. Thofe who 
 are employ’d in Affairs tollfome to the 
 Mind, and but little laborious to the 
 Body, have need to recoiled themfelves 
 from that Difpofition which thofe fort 
 of Employments'naturally caufe, and 
 not to diffipate themfelves yet more by 
 Diverfions which extreamly engage the 
 Mind. *Tis a Jeff to fancy that one 
 has need to pafs three ’Hours in filling 
 the Mind with Follies at a Play. The 
 Men of this Age have not their Minds 
 of another make than thofe of St. Lowis* s 
 time, who could well be without them, 
 iince lie drove the Players out of his 
 Kingdom. Thofe who find in them¬ 
 felves this Need, ought to look on it, 
 not as a natural Weaknefs, but as a 
 Vice of Cuftom, which they muft cure 
 
againfl Ways and Shews . y y 
 
 f)y ferious Employments, A Man who 
 has labour'd hard, is fatisfied when he 
 ceafes from Labour, apd diverts himfelf 
 by laying afide his Bufinefs. Plays are 
 only neceffary to thofe who are always 
 in Diverfion, and who endeavour to 
 remedy that Difguft which naturally 
 accompanies an Excefs of Pleafures ; 
 and as this Neceflity proceeds only 
 from an evil Difpofition which they are 
 oblig’d to correft, we may fay that they 
 are Neceffary for no body, and that 
 they are Dangerous to all. 
 
 XXV. 
 
 BUT nothing better fhews the Dan¬ 
 ger of Plays, and how much they are 
 forbidden to Chriftians, than their Op- 
 pofition to the principal Difpofitions in 
 which we ought to endeavour to efta- 
 blifh our felves, andjto which we ought 
 to tend, if the VVeaknefs of ourVertue 
 lead us from them. The firft is the Spi¬ 
 rit of Prayer^ of which the Apoftle gives 
 an exprefs Commandment in thefe 
 Words, Pray without ceafing , and our Sa¬ 
 viour in thefe, Watch and Pray left you 
 enter into Temptation* For Temptations 
 being in fome fort continual, Prayer 
 
 which 
 
16 A Second Treatife 
 
 which is the Remedy againft them 
 ought to be fo too. 
 
 ’Tis true that this Continuity of 
 Prayer can only confift in a perpetual 
 Attention of the Mind to God, and 
 that it fuffices if it fometimes remain in 
 a Ample Defire which God knows to 
 be in it. But it is certain that this De¬ 
 fire is eafilv extinguifh’d, if care is not 
 taken to nourifh it by actual Prayer, 
 and by meditating on Divine Things. 
 
 ’Tis therefore that Chriftians being 
 unable to pafs their whole Life in the 
 ad' of Prayer, are oblig’d at lcaft to in¬ 
 vigorate them (elves from time to time 
 before God: and as it is by thefe adual 
 Prayers they maintain that which ought 
 to be always in the bottom of their 
 Heart, they ought to fhun with great 
 Care all that may render their Prayers 
 unworthy to be prefented before the 
 Divine Majefty ; which obliges them 
 not only to fhun the Diftradions which 
 come upon them in Prayer, but much 
 more the Sources of thofe Diftradi¬ 
 ons, which filling the Soul with idle 
 Thoughts, makes it incapable of apply¬ 
 ing itfelfto God. 
 
 This is fulBcient to oblige all thofe 
 
 who 
 
againfl Tlays and Shews . 
 
 who have any care of their Salvation to 
 avoid Plays, Balls, and Romances, 
 there being nothing in the World which 
 draws the Soul more out of it felf, which 
 renders it more incapable of Applicati¬ 
 on to God, and which fills it more with 
 vain Phantafms. They are ftrange 
 Prayers which are made juft as one 
 comes from thofe Spectacles with a 
 Head full of all the Follies one has feen 
 there. One cannot raife in himfelf 
 the Spirit of Prayer, nor that holy Ar¬ 
 dour which is excited by Meditation 
 when God pleafes. But the leaft we 3. 
 can do is not to put any ©bftacle and 
 Hindrance to it, by doing voluntarily 
 what is direCtly contrary to that Spi¬ 
 rit. 
 
 XXVI. 
 
 GOD eafily pardons the Diffractions 
 which fpring from the Frailty of Na¬ 
 ture, but he does not fo with thofe that 
 are voluntary in their Source, as thofe 
 are which Plays produce; and there¬ 
 fore there is reafon to fear that all the 
 Prayers of Worldly Perfons, which are 
 full of thefe fort of Diftra&ions, are 
 more capable of irritating God, than 
 
38 A Second Treati/e 
 
 of appealing him, and that they are of 
 the number of thofe of which the Pro- 
 Pfal 109. phet fays, And let bis Prayer become Sin* 
 Prov. 28. And if Prayer,! which fhould draw 
 j>. down the Spirit of God on all our 
 Works, be it lelf defiled, what muft 
 be judg’d of all the other Aftions. If 
 the Light which is in thee be Darknefs, 
 how great is that Darknefs ? 
 
 XXVIL 
 
 ONE of the principal parts of Piety; 
 and the chief means of preferving it, 
 is to love the Word of God, and td 
 find our Confolation in it. ’Tis by a 
 Sentiment of the Sweetnefs <vhich the 
 Prophet had experienc’d in this Spiri¬ 
 tual Nourifhment, that he fays to God* 
 jer. 13 .1 have found thy Words , and have nourifh- 
 16 . ed my feIf with them , and they have f IPd 
 my Heart with Joy and Gladnefs . ? Ti£ 
 this Divine Confolation, according to 
 St. Paul, which entertains our Hope* 
 and which fupports us in the Sufferings 
 of this Life. *Tis thefe holy Delights 
 which raife Chriftian Souls from the 
 Defart of this World unto God, accord¬ 
 ing to that Saying in the Canticles, Qua 
 eft ijta cjt4a afcendit de deferto deliciis 
 
 affluent i 
 
againfl Tlays and Shews . 3 9 
 
 affine ns , JT&0 is fhe that cometh up from 
 . the Defart abounding with Delights . 
 
 Now Experience may make all the 
 World know, that nothing more ex¬ 
 tinguishes that Spiritual Joy which one 
 feels in reading the Word of God, than 
 Secular and Senfual Delights, especi¬ 
 ally that of Plays. Thefe two Plea¬ 
 sures are entirely incompatible, thofe 
 who are delighted with Plays cannot 
 be pleas’d with Truth, and thofe who 
 are pleas’d with Truth, have a Difgull 
 for thefe fort of Pleafures. And there¬ 
 fore that fame Prophet to whom God 
 had given this Spiritual Relilh of his 
 Word, Shews immediately after that 
 he could not bear the Alfemblies of 
 Gaming aud Diverfion, and that he 
 plac’d all his Glory and all his Joy in 
 considering the Wonders of the Works 
 of God. Non fedi cum concilio ludentium % 
 
 &gloriatus fum a facie manus tua. And 
 the holy King David , who had alfo ta¬ 
 iled the Sweetnefs of the Divine Law, 
 
 Shews in like manner the Contempt 
 which it makes him conceive for all the 
 vain Difcourfes and all the vain Amufe- 
 ments of this World. Nar raver tint mihi . 
 iniqui fabulationes fuas , fed non ut lex ls9 
 tut* This is the Sentiment with which 
 
 the 
 
40 A Second Treatlfe 
 
 the Holy Ghoft infpires all thofe to 
 whom he gives a Love for his holy 
 Word. All the Diverfions which are fo 
 agreeable to Perfons of the World, are 
 to them an infipid Food;, of which they 
 cannot tafte, becaufe they find nothing 
 in them but Emptynefs, Vanity, and 
 Folly ; and not the Salt of Truth and of 
 Wifdom ; which makes them fay with 
 Job, that they cannot relifih them. Who 
 can eat oj this Meat which ha6 no Salt ? 
 
 But if the Soul oh the contrary aban¬ 
 dons it felf to thefe falle Pleafures, file 
 immediately lofes the relifh of Spiritu¬ 
 al ones, and finds nothing but Difguft 
 for the Word of God. Thefe are thofe 
 Sowre Grapes of which the Prophet 
 fays, they benum and fet the Teeth on 
 Jer.30. 3 j. Edge of thofe who edt them . That is 
 to fay, according to St. Gregorf s Ex¬ 
 plication, that when one feeds him- 
 felf with the vain Pleafures of the 
 World, the Spiritual Senfes become 
 ftupify'd, and incapable of the relifihing 
 or underftanding the Things of Goto. 
 Now among the Pleafures of the 
 World which extinguifh the Love of the 
 Word of God, it may be faid that Plays- 
 and Romances hold the firft rank, be- 
 caufe there is nothing more oppos’d to 
 
 Truth 
 
again/} Ways and Shews. 
 
 Truth, and that the Spirit of God, as 
 lays St. Bernard, being a Spirit of Truth 
 can have no part with the Vanities of 
 the World. 
 
 XVIII. 
 
 GOD does not impute to us the 
 Coldnefs which proceeds from the with¬ 
 drawing of his Light, or merely from 
 the Heavynefs of this Body; but no 
 doubt he imputes to us that,to which we 
 have contributed by ourNegligence and 
 our vain Diverfions. ’Tis his Will that 
 we fhould efteem nothing fo much as 
 the precious Gift which he has made 
 us of his Love, and that we fhould be 
 careful to preferve it by giving it Nou- 
 rifhment. This Command he has made 
 to all Chriftians in the Perfons of the 
 Priefts of the Ancient Law, whom he 
 ordains always to maintain the Fire on 
 the Altar, and to take care to put Wood 
 upon it every day in the Morning. 
 This Altar is the Heart of Man, and e- 
 very Chriftian is the Prieft w-ho ought 
 to be careful to nounfh the Fire of Cha¬ 
 rity on the Altar of his Heart, by put¬ 
 ting Wood everyday upon it, that is to 
 fay, maintaining it by the Meditation 
 S ‘ of 
 
4 » A Second Treatife 
 
 6f Divine things and by Exercifes of 
 Piety. Now if thofe who go to Plays 
 have yet any fenfe of Piety, they can¬ 
 not difown that Plays deaden and en¬ 
 tirely extinguifh Devotion; fo that they 
 fhould notdoubt that God judges them 
 extreamly guilty for having made fo 
 little account of his Love, that inftead 
 of nourifhing and endeavouring to aug¬ 
 ment it, they have not fear’d to extin¬ 
 guifh it by their vain Diverfions; and 
 that he will impute to them as a great 
 Sin the Abatement orthe Lofs of their 
 Love to him. For if a Diflipation of 
 the Goods of the World and of Earthly 
 Riches by Luxury and Gaming is no lit¬ 
 tle Sin, what muft be judg’d of a Dif¬ 
 lipation of the Goods of Grace and of 
 that precious Treafure the Scripture 
 fpeaks of, which we ought to purchafe 
 by the Lofs of all the Goods and all the 
 Pleafures of this Life. 
 
 XXiX. 
 
 T H E Fathers blame as a dange¬ 
 rous Temerity the Condud of thofe 
 who not being yet fufficiently confirm’d 
 in the Love of God, employ themfelves 
 
 with 
 
dgdinjl Ways and Skews. 
 
 Until too much Ardour in Exterior 
 Good Works on pretext of Charity, be' 
 caufe it is difficult for the Mind not to 
 diffipate it felf extreamly in thefe Exer- 
 cifes. If the Soul , faith St. Gregory , is 
 not eftablijbed And fortified in the Interior 
 Life by Grace , it cools extreamly in Earthly 
 and Secular Employments. What Judg¬ 
 ment would he then have made of 
 thofe who being yet weak, make ne- 
 verthelefs no difficulty of going to 
 Plays, which diffipate the Mind more 
 than the greateft Occupations, and 
 which cannot be excus’d either by Zeal 
 Or Charity* fince nothing but PleafurO 
 is fought in them ? 
 
 XXX. 
 
 N O body without doubt would api 
 prove of a Monaftick's going to the Play* 
 becaufe all the World fees w r ell enough 
 the extream Difproportion between 
 this Diverfion and the Holy Life which 
 he profefles; but they are not fhock’d 
 in the fame manner at many Chrifti- 
 ans making no difficulty to go thither \ 
 becaufe they do not know the Sanffity 
 to which they are oblig’d by their Bap» 
 tifmal Vow, They do not confider 
 
 S 2 that 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 that (as St. Paul fays) by the Gracd 
 of this Sacrament they have been bu- 
 ry’d with Jesus Christ; that they 
 have vow’d to embrace his Crofs, not 
 to live any longer to themfelves, or to 
 the World, but to have Christ live 
 in them. They do not confider that 
 the Chriftian Life ought to be not only 
 an Imitation but a Continuation of the 
 Life of Jesus.Christ, fince ’tis his 
 Spirit that ought to a£t in them and 
 by them, and to imprint in their Hearts 
 the fame Sentiments which it imprinted 
 in the Heart of Jesus Christ. If 
 they look’d on the Chriftian Life with 
 this veiw, they would immediately be 
 fenfible how much Plays are oppos’d 
 to it y and there needed no Arguments 
 to convince thofe of it who were per- 
 fuaded of thefe Capital Truths of our 
 Religion, as there needs none to con* 
 vince a Monaftick who knows his 
 Rule, that Prophane Diveffions are for* 
 bidden to him. 
 
 XXXI. 
 
 ALL our Aftions are due to Jesus 
 Christ, not only as to our God, but 
 as to him who has redeem’d us with 
 
agamjl *Plays and Shews. 45 
 
 a great Price, to oblige us to glorifie 
 him in all our Works, according to St. 
 
 Faul. All our Aftions then muft be re- 
 fer’d to his Glory, and teftifie that we 
 are Lovers of C h r i s t Crucified,that 
 we love what he lov’d and hate what 
 he hated. They muft in fine be fuch 
 as that we may truly fay we do them 
 fqr him and for his Love. Now would 
 it not be mocking both God and Man 
 to fay that one goes to a Play for Love 
 of Jesus Christ? and if this Dif- 
 pofition is Effential to Chriftianity, as 
 cannot be doubted, it is Plain that 
 thofe who frequent Plays are not, and 
 do nqtlive in the Spirit of Chriftianity. 
 
 xxxir. 
 
 IFaChriftian confiders himfelf as a 
 Sinner, he muft be fenfible that there 
 is nothing more contrary to that ftate 
 which obliges him to Penitence, to 
 Tears, and to Shunning ufelefs Plea- 
 lures, than the Search of a Diverfion 
 fo vain and dangerous as that of Plays: 
 and ifhe confiders himfelf as a Child 
 of God, as a Member of Jesus Christ, 
 illuminated by his Truth, enrich’d 
 with his Grace, nourifh d by his Body, 
 
 S 5 and 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 and Heir of his Kingdom,, he muff 
 conclude that there is nothing more 
 unworthy of fo high a Dignity, than 
 to fhare in the foolifh Pleafures of the 
 Children of the World. 
 
 XXX UL 
 
 TRUE Piety cannot fubfift without 
 a falutary Fear, which the Soul con¬ 
 ceives at a View of the Dangers with 
 which fhe is environ’d. She cannot be 
 ignorant of the Power and the Malice 
 of her Enemies, who are round about 
 to devour her, as the Scripture fpeaks* 
 She knows, as St Paulinm fays, that 
 all theFafhion of the World paffesaway, 
 and that all Corporeal Creatures which 
 attract our Hearts by our Eyes, are fo 
 many Snares which the Devil makes 
 ufe of to catch us, fo many Swords 
 with which he endeavours to pierce 
 our Hearts. She knows that fhe walks 
 in the midft of a thoufand Enemies, 
 and a thoufand Snares* and that fhe is 
 among them without Light, and with¬ 
 out Strength, fince fhe finds nothing 
 but Darknefs in her Underftanding, 
 Weaknefs in her Will, and revolting 
 in her 8cnfe§. The Experience of To 
 
 many 
 
agatnft Tlays and Shews. 
 
 many Souls that are loft in her Sight, 
 •and thegeneralCorruption which reigns 
 every where, makes her know that 
 there is nothing more rare than Chri- 
 ftian Virtue, nothing more eafy than 
 to perifh, nothing more Difficult than 
 to be fav’d. How then can fhe joyn 
 with fo juft a Fear of the dreadful Evils 
 which threaten her, the vain Diverfi- 
 ons of the World, and entertain her 
 Mind with the vain Fancies with 
 which Plays do fill it ? Is it not vifible 
 that as the natural Effeft of Plays is to 
 ftifle this fo ufeful a Fear; the Effect 
 of this Fear ought likewife to be to ftifle 
 the Defire of ufelefs Diverfions; and to 
 make the Soul conclude that fhe has 
 many other Things to think of, and to 
 do in this World, than to go to Plays, 
 that the Time which God gives her 
 is too precious to be miferably loft in 
 thefe vain Amufements ? fo that when 
 fhe abandons her felf to them, it muft 
 be by blinding her felf, by lofing the 
 Remembrance of her Dangers, and by 
 fluffing alfo that Difpofition by which 
 the holy Spirit enters the Heart, and 
 which he maintains in it as long as he 
 remains there. 
 
 47 
 
 XXXIV, 
 
A Second Treatife 
 
 XXXIV. 
 
 ONE of the firft EffeGs of the Light 
 of Grace is to difcover to the Soul the 
 Emptynefs, theNothingnefs, arid Infta- 
 bility ofall Worldly Things, which pafs 
 and vanifli away like Phantafms, and 
 to make it fee at the fame time the 
 Greatnefs and Solidity of Things Eter¬ 
 nal. And this Difpofition produces in 
 all Chriftian Souls a particular Averfion 
 for Plays, becaufe they fee a peculiar 
 Emptynefs and Nothingnefs in them. 
 For if all Temporal Things are only 
 Figures and Shadows, thefe are but 
 the Figures of Figures, fince they are 
 nothing but the vain Images of Tem¬ 
 po rai Things, and often of Things that 
 are falfe* 
 
 xxxv ? 
 
 SIN has open’d Mens Eyes to make 
 them behold the Vanities of the World 
 with Pleafure ; and the Grace of the 
 Gofpel, by opening the Eyes of the 
 Soul for Divine Things, fhuts them to 
 Worldly Things by a much more hap¬ 
 py Blindnefs than that miferable Sight 
 
 which 
 
againjl 'Plays and Shews. 
 
 which Sin has procur’d us. ’Tis this 
 advantagious Blindnefs, faith St. Pauli- 
 nut, which the Prophet begd of God, 
 when he faid, Kjep my Eyes from behold¬ 
 ing Vanity, and which our Saviour pre¬ 
 fers to the clearfightednefs of the Jews, 
 when he fays to them, If you were blind 
 you would have no Sin. 
 
 If then we are oblig’d as Chriftians 
 to beg of God that he would take away 
 our Sight from all the Follies of the 
 World, of which Plays are an Abridge 
 ment; and that hewould imprint in our 
 Hearts an Hatred and Averfion for them. 
 How can we think that we may feed 
 our Eyes with thofe vain Spectacles, and 
 place our Delight in what ought to be 
 the Objett of our Averfion and of our 
 Horror ? 
 
 
 THE 
 

 THE 
 
 DECREES 
 
 O F T H F 
 
 C O UNCILS 
 
 CONCERNING 
 
 Plays and Publick Shews, 
 
! 
 
 I 
 
 s 
 
 ■' \v 
 
 A- 
 
 / 
 
 
 v 
 
THE 
 
 L . ■ H JHHgMp 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 T Here are three things 
 to he renured in read¬ 
 ing the Canons of the 
 Councils concerning Plays. 
 
 The Firft is the Severity 
 of the Church againft Players, 
 and against thofe who were 
 prefent at fuch Spectacles, with 
 the great Care (he has taken to 
 hinder Chrijlians from being con- 
 fir aind to go to them , or to he 
 ACtors in them ; which may let 
 us fee that (he did not look^ on 
 it as a (mall Crime. CL'he 
 
 i 
 
 I 
 
Advertifement 
 
 The Second is, that thofe 
 Canon? which are againjl 
 Shews in general, are Iffewife 
 againjl Plays, Jince they com- 
 prebend all Spectacles, and that 
 Plays was one of them among 
 the Antients , and even the mojl 
 diverting of them toTolite Ter' 
 Jons ; jo that it cannot he /aid 
 that tho/e Canons are only a- 
 gainjl other Shews. For if 
 that were true the Church would 
 have made fame Difference he• 
 tween 'em, by difiwgujbmgto her 
 Children which are the Specta¬ 
 cles that are allow’d them$ and 
 which they are forbidden. Tut 
 that which /hews yet more clear¬ 
 ly that thofe Canons which 
 
 are 
 
Advertifement. 
 
 are againfi Spectacles in gene¬ 
 ral , do li(ewife comprehend 
 Plays, is, that there are Ca¬ 
 nons which condemn Plays in 
 particular, the Church talking 
 care to explain more exprefly at 
 certain Times, thofe Things 
 which (he contents her felf only 
 to ordain in general on other 
 Occafions. 
 
 The Third Thing to he re¬ 
 mar If d is, that tho 3 an Afri¬ 
 can Council held in the Year 
 defied no more of the 
 Emperors, than to prohibit all 
 Shews on certain T)ays more 
 particularly dedicated to the 
 ITorJhip o f God and to Exerci- 
 fes of Piety 5 that does not im- 
 
 port 
 
Advertisement. 
 
 port that the Council intend j 
 ed to approve or to allow them 
 on other Days ; of which the 
 Keafon that induced them to 
 defire that ^Prohibition of the 
 Emperors is a manifefl Dr oof 
 the Council expreffing that it 
 is becaufe thofe Spe&acles are 
 contrary to the Commandments 
 of God. Dut as in that time 
 there remain d flill a great num¬ 
 ber of Pagans, over whom the 
 Church had no f urifdi&ion, and 
 that befides the Deople had fo 
 great a Fondnefs for thofe Spe¬ 
 ctacle.s, that it would have been 
 almofl impoffible for the Empe¬ 
 rors themfelves to have aboliflo d 
 them ; the Church by an ex - 
 
 tream 
 
Advertifement* 
 
 tream ^Prudence contents her 
 felf with doing three Things : 
 Firft, to defire 9 that out of 
 that Refpect which was due to 
 the true Religion (which at 
 that time was lif^ewi/e the Re¬ 
 ligion of the Emper6ri) all 
 Shews fhould abfolutely ceafe 
 whilst the Church was employ d 
 in honouring God during the 
 great Solemnities : Secondly, 
 to delire that Christians might 
 not he conjlraind either to be 
 Actors or Spectators of thofe 
 forbidden Sports : And Laftly, 
 to denounce Excommunication to 
 thoje of her Children who fhould 
 he Tifobedient to her Orders 
 and to her ‘Difcipline ; fo that 
 T far 
 
 H 
 
m 
 
 Advertifement 
 
 far from drawing any Conclu~ 
 fton from this Council in fa~ 
 vour of Plays, *tis from the 
 Kefolutions of that celebrated 
 Jjfembly we draw our Jlrongef 
 Arguments againtt them . 
 
 THE 
 
 i 
 
v'i r.i——— 
 
 i 
 
 THE 
 
 OF THE 
 
 COUNCILS 
 
 CONCERNING 
 
 Plays and Publick Shews* 
 
 Canon lxii, 
 
 , 
 
 Of the Cornell of Illiberis^ 
 held in the Year 305. 
 
 F any Players will embrace 
 the Chriftian Faith, we 
 ordain, That they firfE 
 renounce their Employ¬ 
 ment , and that after¬ 
 wards they be admitted, on Condition 
 they no more exercife their former 
 Trade. But if they a£t contrary to 
 T 2 this 
 
 1 
 
2 “Decrees of the Councils 
 
 this Decree, that they be driven out, 
 and cut off from the Church. 
 
 Gan. Ixvii, 
 
 ~ Of the fame Council 
 
 I T isforbidden that any Women who 
 are of the Faithful or Catechu¬ 
 mens fhould marry with Players, and 
 if there are any who do marry them y 
 let them be Excommunicated. 
 
 ~. Can. v. 
 
 Of the first Council of Arles, 
 held in the Year 314.. 
 
 A S to Players, we ordain that they 
 be excommunicated as long ( as 
 they oontinue that Employment. 
 
 C a m 
 
againji Plays and Shews. 
 
 Can. ii* 
 
 Of the third Council of Car- 
 thage, held in the Year 397. 
 
 I T is forbidden that any of the Laity 
 be prefent at Publiek Shews: for 
 Chriftians have always been pro¬ 
 hibited going to Places prophan’d by 
 Blafphemy ; that is to fay, according 
 to the Interpretation of Z^paras, that 
 Chriftians have always been forbidden 
 to go to Places where there is nothing 
 done but unlawful and fhameful A£ti- 
 ons; and where by confequence thofe 
 Chriftians who are prefent, caufe the 
 Name of God to be blafphem’d by 
 Infidels, feeing the little Regard that 
 Chriftians have to Temperance and 
 Decency, 
 
 rr 
 
 
 Can- 
 
4 Decrees of the Councils 
 
 Canon, lxxxviii. 
 
 Of the fourth Council of Car¬ 
 thage, held in the Year 398, 
 
 L ET him who on Holy-days leaves 
 the Solemn Aflembly of the 
 Church to go to Shews, bp Excommu¬ 
 nicated. 
 
 Council of Africf held in 
 the Year 4.24 
 
 Canon 28 or 6 1, according to the 
 Code of the Canons of the African 
 Church. 
 
 I T muft be requefted of the molt 
 Pious Emperours Theodofus and 
 Valentinian, that they will prohibit 
 Theatrical Shews and other Sports on 
 Sundays and the other Feftivals which 
 the Chriftian Religion folemnizes ; 
 chiefly becaufe that during the Octave 
 $fEaJler 3 the People run to the Circles 
 
 inftead 
 
againft Tlays and Shews. 
 
 inftead of going to Church; If the Re- 
 prefentation of the Shews, which are 
 accuftom’d to be given to the People 
 happen on thofe Holy-days, fuch Sports 
 ought to be remitted to another time. 
 
 It muft befides be reprefented to the 
 moft Pious Emperors, that Chriftians 
 ought not to be conftrain’d to be pre- 
 fent at the Shews , or to be A&ors in 
 them ; for no Perfon ought to be forc’d 
 by Perfecution to do things that are 
 contrary to the Commandments of 
 God, but every mne fhould be left in 
 the Liberty he has receiv’d from God, 
 to make ufe of it as he ought; Efpeci- 
 ally it fhould be confider’d in what dan¬ 
 ger thole are who being of that Num¬ 
 ber of Perfons that are charg’d with the 
 care of the Publick Sports, are forc’d 
 by the Terror of Punilhments to be pre- 
 fent at the Shews, contrary to the Com- 
 inandments of God. 
 
, 
 
 'Decrees of the Councils, 
 
 The Emperors Theodofius and Va- 
 lendnian having a Regard to the 
 (Remon[trances of the Fathers of this 
 Council, publiflied, in the Tear fol¬ 
 lowing, 4x5, this Law which is fet 
 down in the Code of Theodofius, 
 Libf. 1 5. Tic. 5. De Spe&aculis. 
 
 H \ J\fE forbid the People in all 
 “ V V the Cities of our Empire 
 “ the Diverfions of the Theatres and 
 “ of the Circus , on Sunday, which is 
 “ the firft day of the Week, on the day 
 “ of our Saviour Christ’s Nativity, on 
 “ the Epiphany, all the days of Eafter 
 “ and of Whit font ide , as long as the 
 “ white Robes are worn, (which by 
 -f their Whitenefs figure that new 
 “ Light which is receiv’d in Baptifrti ) 
 “ as likewife on the days on which is 
 “ celebrated with great reafon the 
 “ Memory oftheApoftles Martyrdom, 
 “ who are the Mahers of all Chriftikns. 
 “ And if there are hill any Perfons who 
 “ follow the Impiety of the Jews, or 
 the Error and Folly of the Heathens, 
 let them know that the time of Prayer 
 is very different from the time of 
 
 1 “ Plea hires 
 
againjl <Plays and Shews. 
 
 6 ‘ Pleafures and Diverfions. And that 
 “ none may think themfelves oblig’d 
 to be prefent at the Shews , or to a£t 
 “ in them in honour of us, or by thp 
 f f Refpeft and Veneration which they 
 “ owe to the Imperial Majefty, with- 
 “ out having regard even to the Wor- 
 “ fhipthat is due to God, for fear of 
 “ offending us by fhewing lef$ AfFe- 
 “ Orion towards us than they were ac- 
 “ cuftom'd to do; We will, that all the 
 “ World be perfwaded that the greateft 
 Honour we can receive from Men is 
 “ that all the Earth render to Almighty 
 f‘ (jod the Submiffion and Service 
 tc which is due to his Greatnefs. 
 
 Council of Africa , held in 
 the Year 424. 
 
 Canon 50 or 63, according to the 
 Code of the Canons of the African 
 Church. 
 
 I T muft be alfo requefted of the Em¬ 
 perors, that if any of the A Hors of 
 the Publick Shews will receive the 
 grace of Chriftianity, and come out of 
 that infamous State in which he was, 
 
 that 
 
g Decrees of the Councils 
 
 that no Perfon may oblige or conftraia 
 him to return tp his fqrmer Employ¬ 
 ment. 
 
 The Fathers of this Council demand the 
 Execution of a Law which the Em- 
 per or s Valens, Gratian and Valen- 
 dnian, had fent to Her >fius Fro- 
 conful of Africa, in the Tear 381, 
 to pubhjh it. 
 
 TF the Women who are of the infa- 
 “ J[ mous Race of Players, refufe to go 
 44 on the Theatre, let them be forc’d 
 44 to it, provided they have not yet 
 44 made profeffionof the Law and Faith 
 “ of the moft holy and venerable Reli- 
 ‘ c gion of Chriftians, to keep it always 
 44 inviolable. We ordain alfo that 
 44 thofe Women to whom we have 
 44 granted by fpecial favour that they 
 44 fhould not exercife that fhameful 
 44 Trade, fhall enjoy that Exemption 
 “ all their Lives, fo that they may not 
 44 be forc'd to return into the Company 
 f of Players. 
 
 Can. 
 
againft Plays and Shews. 
 
 9 
 
 Can. cxxix, 
 
 Of the Code of the Canons of 
 the African Church. 
 
 I ‘ .. ‘ 
 
 T HAT infamousPerfons, fuchas 
 are the Comedians, be not recei¬ 
 ved to form Accufations. 
 
 C ..j• ; r. r \ .. ' . fM ,,r * «... 
 
 " i \! • • V ' . ri 'T - f-, r j ..f. . 
 
 Can. xx, 
 
 Of the fecond Council of Arles 
 held in the Year 4.52. 
 
 A S for thofe Comedians who are 
 oftheNumberof theFaithful, we 
 ordain that they be Excommunicated 
 as long as they continue that Employ¬ 
 ment. 
 
 CAN, 
 
 1 
 
Decrees of the Councils 
 
 Can. li, 
 
 Of the Sixth General Council 
 ■ held in the Tear 680. 
 
 T H I S holy General Council con* 
 demns thofe who are call’d 
 Comedians, andabiolutely forbids their 
 Shews , as likewife the Dances which are 
 perform’d on the Theatre. If any one 
 in contempt of this Decree {hall com¬ 
 mit any of thofe Crimes which are here 
 forbidden, if he is an Ecclefiaftick let 
 him be depos’d, and if a Laick let him 
 be Excommunicated. 
 
 Upon which Z^n&ras makes this 
 Refleftion : The Rules of the Evan¬ 
 gelical Difcipline, far from permitting 
 the Faithful to abandon themfelves to 
 Libertinifin and Diffolutenefs, obliges 
 them to behave themfelves vertuoufly 
 and without Reproach , to anfwer 
 the Sanftity of that Religion which 
 they profefs; therefore the Decree of 
 this Canon forbids all that relaxes the 
 Mind, and diffipates the Attention by 
 a ufelefs Diverfion which Caufes excef- 
 five and dilfolute Laughter, THE* 
 
dgatnjl flays and Shews. 
 
 Can. ix, 
 
 Of the third Council of Cha¬ 
 lons held in the ’Year 813. 
 
 T HE Priefts ought to abftaia 
 from all thofe Objects which on¬ 
 ly charm the Ears, and ftrrprize the 
 Eyes by Appearances vain and pernici¬ 
 ous, and they not only ought themfelves 
 to fejeft and avoid Comedies, Farces 
 and Indecent Sports, but they ought 
 befides to reprefent to the Faithful, the 
 Obligation they are under to rejed and 
 avoid them. 
 
 
t 
 
 f HE 
 
 REGULATION 
 
 Of the in oft Pious 
 
 Charles or omens Bifhop of 
 Milan ; drawn from the 
 fecond Diocefan Synod 
 held at Milan , in the 
 Year 1568. 
 
 In the Second part of that Chapter where 
 he treats of the Obligations of 
 1 Treachers to reprehend continually 
 thofe pernicious Cuftoms which are 
 the Source of Sin, and perfuades to 
 haVe them aboltfb’d, ’tis as follows $ 
 
 L ET the Preachers continually re¬ 
 prehend the Pleafures that lead to 
 Sin, to which thofe Perfons who follow 
 the Irregularity of a deprav’d Cuftom 
 let themfelves fo eafily be carry’d ; 
 let the Preachers labour to render thefe 
 
 things 
 
again(l Plays and Shops. 
 
 things odious, let them reprefent to the 
 People how great is the Offence and In¬ 
 jury done to God by them, that ’tis 
 from thence fo many Evils proceed* 
 that’tis this which caufes the Publick 
 Miferies and Calamities, and innume¬ 
 rable Misfortunes. 
 
 Let them inceffantly reprefent how 
 much the Shews, the Sports and other 
 little Diverfions ( which are the Re¬ 
 mains of Paganifm) are contrary to 
 the Chriftian Difcipline; how execrable 
 and deteftable they are; how many 
 publick Evils and Affli&ions they 
 draw down on the Chriftian People; 
 and to convince their Hearers of this 
 they fhall employ the Reafons which 
 thefe Great lyfen Tertullian, St. Cyprian, 
 the Martyr Satvianus, and St. Chryfoftom 
 make ufe of; let them omit nothing 
 that may contribute entirely to deftroy 
 thefe Irregularities and Debauches. 
 
 They fhall often Preach with Earned:-' 
 nefs againft Balls and Dances, by which 
 the moft dangerous Paflions are excited. 
 In fine they fhall employ all their Care 
 to reprefent with a pious Zeal, and with 
 as much Vehemence as is poftible for 
 them, how much the Plays, which are 
 the Source and Bafis of almoft all Evils 
 
 and 
 
Decrees of the Councils 
 
 and all Crimes, are oppofite to the 
 jbuties of the Chriftian Difcipline, and 
 how conformably, they are to the Irre¬ 
 gularities of the Heathens; and that as 
 they are a pure Invention of the Malice 
 of the Devil,ChriftianS ought abfolute- 
 ty to aboliffi them. 
 
 Council of Bourges held in the 
 
 Can. ^ 
 
 T HIS Council exhorts all Chri- 
 ftians to behave themlelves in 
 f'uch a manner that their Life may an- 
 fwer the Dignity and Honour of the 
 Name of Jesus Christ ; and to avoid 
 as much as is pofThble the Publick 
 Sports, Dancings, Plays, Mafquerades, 
 and Games of Chance, 
 
THE 
 
 SENTIMENTS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 FATHERS 
 
 ) I 
 
 Relating to 
 
 Plays and Publick Shews. 
 
, -A .... .. . —— . —.... - 
 
 *———*- 
 
 i J r ; ’ \ < 
 
 THE 
 
 Advertifement. 
 
 * ' ' 
 
 P I S HE Taffages out of the 
 J Fathers which are 
 made ufe of in this 
 T reatife to fhew that Plays 
 are a ‘Diverfon forbidden to 
 thofe who profefs the Chrijlian 
 Religion, are of three forts . 
 Either they are againjl Pub- 
 lick Shews in general , in 
 which Plays are comprehended\ 
 or they enter into a particular 
 Detail of the different forts of 
 Shews, in which they never 
 
 U % J or Z e t 
 
 N 
 
Advertifemenf. 
 
 forget Plays; or elfe they are 
 particularly againH Plays , 
 without fpeakin? of other 
 Shews. 
 
 Thofe who forbid the Pub- 
 lick Shews in general , con¬ 
 demn the Theatre as well as 
 the Amphitheatre, and the 
 Circus, jinee they comprehend 
 all forts of Shews; Thofe who 
 enter into a Detail of them, 
 make little Difference between 
 the Vanity of the Circus , 
 the Cruelties of the Amphi¬ 
 theatre, and the Diforders of 
 the Theatre ; and thofe who 
 attacf the Theatre in particu- 
 lar, are in fo great Number, 
 fo Exprefs and fo Full\ that 
 
 they 
 
Advertifement. 
 
 they leave nothing to fay or 
 thinly on the Subject, jincethey 
 exhaujl the Matter* 
 
 ’Tis certain that there is no¬ 
 thing in Morality which the 
 Fathers have treated more 
 throughly, nor in which they 
 have better precaution d a- 
 gainfl all the Falfe Keafon- 
 ings which might be made uje 
 of in following Ages, to juttifie 
 Plays ; fo that they have left 
 no room for thoje who defend 
 them to interpret what they 
 have writ after their own Fa- 
 (hion, nor any Fretence for 
 thofe to doubt of their Senti¬ 
 ments, who feel{ for fruth in 
 the DoBrine of the Church . 
 
 C 3 ' No 
 
Advertifement. 
 
 No body denies that the DiJ- 
 order of Plays, against which 
 the Fathers have employ’d 
 their Zeal and their Eloquence, 
 was a real Evil. Eut many 
 pretend that there is nothing Jo 
 different as the Plays of pafl 
 Ages Qwhich was the ObjeU 
 of their Anger and Indignation ) 
 ^/Modern Plays ; that the 
 former were full of Idolatry , 
 Superjlition and Impurity ; and 
 that the latter are exempt from 
 all thofe Eicesi again/l which 
 the Fathers have chiefly en¬ 
 larged. lEe mufl indeed allow 
 that Modern Plays are ex¬ 
 empt from Superjlition and Ido¬ 
 latry , but it mufl likpwife he con- 
 
 / 
 
Advertifement. 
 
 fefs'd that they are not exempt 
 from Impurity; that on the con' 
 trary that apparent Decency , 
 which for fome Tears had been a 
 pretence for thofe ill grounded 
 Approbations that were given to 
 Plays, begins now to yield to 
 an open and undifguis > d Immo- 
 dejly ; and that there is nothing 
 for Example more fcandalous 
 than the fifth Scene of the fe- 
 cond Att of The School of 
 Women, which is one of the 
 the newefl Comedies . 
 
 It mutt befdes be confefs’d, 
 that if Idolatry and Superfliti- 
 on are banifdd from them, they 
 have been fucceeded by Impiety ; 
 is there a more open School of 
 U 4, Atheifm 
 
From 
 which 
 our Zi- 
 bertine 
 Jefiroy'd 
 
 is taken. 
 
 Advertifment. 
 
 Atheifm than the Feaft of 
 Peter, in which after having 
 put the most horrible Impieties 
 into the A/Louth of an Atheift 
 who has a great deal of Wit, 
 the Author commits the Caufe 
 of God to a Servant ; whom , to 
 fupport it, he makes, to fay all 
 the Impertinences in the Worlds 
 and he pretends at the end to 
 jujlife his Tlay fo full of Hlaf 
 phemy , by the help of a Squib, 
 which he makes the ridiculous 
 AAinitter of the 'Divine Venge¬ 
 ance ; and even, the better to 
 accompany that {hong Imprejjion 
 of Honor which a ‘Thundring 
 fo faithfully reprefented mutt 
 make on the Adincjs of the Spo¬ 
 liators , 
 
Advertifement. 
 
 Batorsfe at the fame time makes 
 the Servant fay all the Fooleries 
 imaginable on this Adventure . 
 
 2hit as thefe Things are flx 
 clear and fo evident that they 
 need no Froof, and that the 
 <r Defign of this Wor \ is chiefly 
 to fhevp, that Modern Plays, 
 even cloath’d with all their pre¬ 
 tended Decency^ are evil , and 
 that the Fathers have con¬ 
 demn’d them for thofe Things 
 which feem the moll Innocent , 
 to fuch as do not enough know 
 the SanBity of the Chriltian 
 Morality, it may not be a- 
 mifs , in this Advertifement, 
 to produce the Sentiments of 
 thofe great Men on this SubjeB , 
 
 coh 
 
 / I * * 
 
 I 
 
Advertifement. 
 
 collected into few Words, that 
 thofe who read the following 
 'fir anfiat ions, may with more 
 Bafe remark^ them when they 
 find them Jcatterd in their 
 Worky, 
 
 Tatian forbids Chriftians 
 the going to Flays, hecaufethey 
 are full of fihings 'Vfelefs and 
 Frivolous. 
 
 Tertul. Tercullian forbids it, be- 
 gy P ,°ch caufe Chriftians are Stangers 
 3 s - to all forts of ordly Bleafures. 
 
 Tertui.oi He argues that the Holy 
 0?.' 14.Scripture condemns all forts 
 of Concupijcence and Voluptu- 
 Ch. ij. oufnefs : fib at the Mind of 
 Mian is not injenfible enough not 
 to be agitated by fome fecret 
 
 Taffion 
 
Advertifement. 
 
 Taffion even in the Vfe of the 
 bejl and mojl regular Diverfons. 
 
 That even if one jhould be 
 prefent at Plays without Jffe- th f f 
 Bion and without Tleafure, one theyre- 
 would neverthelefs be guilty oflf™ 
 the Sin of Vanity : That Vanif°g m 
 ty and being employ’d in ufelefs them 
 
 (-j-i . ■ c . ^ and that 
 
 A bings , is a Sin. they do 
 
 That the IVor Id is the Work^ ™ e *j! 
 man [hip of God, but that the 
 tVorfs of the IVorld are the 
 Workfianjhip of the Devil; and 
 that Plays ought to be put in 
 the Number of the Works of the 
 World: That Plays in them - ch • 2 s- 
 felves ejlrange us from God, 
 and from the Chrijlian Spirit : 
 
 That even in the beB State into ch. 27. 
 
 which 
 
 1 U 5 ' -J 
 
Advertifement. 
 
 his 
 
 which they can be put , 
 a Voluptuoufnefs forbidden to 
 Chriftians ; but efpecially in 
 the 28, 29, and 30th Chap¬ 
 ters of his Wreatife againfl Pub- 
 lick Shews, he wonderfully 
 ejlabli/hes what ought to be the 
 Tleafures of Chriftians, in 
 Oppoftion to thofe of which he 
 forbids them the Vfe. 
 ch „ Clemens Alexandrinus 
 pw ia i-i$ not more favourable to Plays 
 on the fame Keafons, and efpe¬ 
 cially on account of the Danger 
 into which Men and Women 
 put themfelves who go to thofe 
 Jjfembhes to ga%e on one ano¬ 
 ther, and on account of the Vfe- 
 lefnefs and Vanity of that Di- 
 
Advertifement 
 
 Minucius Felix compares 
 the Fury of the Amphitheatre 
 to the Pajjions which a Come¬ 
 dian excites, when he feigns to 
 he mov’d by them himfelj . 
 
 St. Cyprian fays, that in ?'•' ff 
 reprefentinz ‘Parricides, they E P iftle 
 
 * , . ® , , to Donat} 
 
 teach what may be done by the 
 Example of what has been ; 
 that Comedians move the 
 SenfeSy footh the Pajjions, and 
 weaken the HrongeH Vertue * 
 
 Phat how innocent foever Plays 
 might be in them/elves, they 
 would fill he a Vanity unbe¬ 
 coming tho/e who profefs Chri- 
 ftianity. 
 
 Ladantius Firmianus con¬ 
 demns in them the Change of 
 
 Ha - 
 
In Trac , 
 de fuga 
 Saeculi. 
 and in 
 Ver. 37, 
 
 Tfalm 
 
 118 
 
 Advertifement. 
 
 Habit from one Sex to another , 
 he hkewifes advert ifes us that 
 the Senfe of Hearing is giver} 
 us to hearken to the InjlruBions 
 of Gop, and to hear his Prdi - 
 fes fung. 
 
 St. Ambrofe in many ‘Pla¬ 
 ces condemns Plays meerly fot 
 their Vmity. 
 
 St. John Chryfoftome 
 would have us confult our felves 9 
 and ohferve the diference of the 
 State in which we find our felves 
 when we come from Churchy 
 and of that in which one is when 
 one comes from the ‘Play. 
 
 St. Auitin, who better knew 
 the Corruption of the Heart 
 of Man than any Father of 
 
 the 
 
Advertifement 
 
 the Church, deplores , in his 
 Confejjions, the Love he had for 
 Plays before his Converfion , 
 and the Lleafure he felt in be¬ 
 ing mov’d by them to Grief; 
 he fays that this Lleafure pro¬ 
 ceeds from a slrange Dijeafe of 
 the Mind , and that one is fo 
 much the more affeBed with 
 thefe Poetical Adventures 
 as one is le/s curd of their 
 ‘Pajfions : He acknowledges be¬ 
 fore God as a great Evil 7 
 the Hifpoftion which led him , 
 when he Jaw Lovers reprefent- 
 ed who were conjlraind to fepa- 
 rate , to be affliBed with them . 
 I Jhould mak^e a Volume and 
 not an Advertifement, if I 
 
 
Advertifement 
 
 would produce the Sentiments 
 of all the Fathers of other 
 Ages ; they may be feen in the 
 following Tranflations, and 
 will be found conformable to 
 thofe of the firH Ages ; they 
 all dijapprove of Plays, for all 
 the fame ’Things which are to 
 be found in thofe of this Time$ 
 in a more delicate , and by con - 
 fequence a more dangerous 
 manner , than in the Antient 
 Plays. 
 
 If any one perfjls after this 
 to prefer his private Judg¬ 
 ment to that of the Church, 
 (which has always follow’d the 
 unanimous Confeut of the Fa- 
 thers, as one of her moH im¬ 
 portant 
 
Advertifement, 
 
 portant Rules,) and will conti¬ 
 nue to approve a ‘Diverfon 
 which they condemn ; we mujl 
 not endeavour any more to prove 
 to him a 'Truth fo certain $ it 
 fujjices to fay to him what St, 
 Athanafius faid to a ‘Bifhop 
 of Corinth ; Your Senti¬ 
 ments are not thofe of the 
 Orthodox Church , and 
 our Anceftors had them 
 not. 
 
 4. 
 
 X 
 
 THE 
 
<t ' i ■■ ‘ ■ “■ ■■ >’ ■ <V. 1‘:. 'J, l. 
 
1 
 
 THE 
 
 SENTIMENTS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 FATHERS, 
 
 Relating to 
 
 Plays and Publick Shews* 
 
 . . v '• <•' . )' ■ 1 'j ■ - ' - '< >■ 
 
 Firft Century. 
 
 In the Eighth !Boof of the dpoftolical 
 Confiimions i Chap. 3 2. 
 
 E T him who is given up 
 to the Spe£facles of the 
 Theatre quit that Affection, 
 or let him not be admit¬ 
 ted to receive Baptifm. 
 
 X z Second 
 

 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 Second Century. 
 
 Theophilus Patriarch of Antioch, 
 in the third Book, to Autolychus a- 
 gainjl the Calumniators of the Chri - 
 Jiian (Religion. 
 
 I T is forbidden ns to be Spectators 
 of Duels, for fear we fhould becorcie 
 Accomplices of the Murders commit¬ 
 ted in them. We dare not be prefent 
 at other Spectacles, for fear our Eyes 
 fhould be defiled by them, and our Ears 
 fill’d with the prophane Yerfes recited 
 there; as when they defcribe the 
 Crimes and Tragick Actions of Thy- 
 eftus y and reprelent Tereus eating his 
 own Children; and it is not allowable 
 for us to hear the Adulteries of the 
 Gods and Men related, which the 
 Comedians, inerted by the hopes of 
 Gain, celebrate in the molt agreeable 
 manner that is poflible for them: But 
 God preferve us, we who are Chrifti- 
 ans, in whom Modefty, Temperance 
 and Continence ought to fbine, who 
 look on Marriage with one Woman 
 
 alone 
 
againjl 'Plays and Shews. 
 
 alone as only lawful, we by whom 
 Chaftity is honour’d, who fly Injuftice, 
 who banifh Sin, in whom the Law of 
 God reigns, who praflrice the true Re¬ 
 ligion, whom Truth governs, whom 
 Grace guards, whom Peace protects, 
 whom the Divine Word conducts, 
 whom Wifdom teaches, whom Jesus 
 Christ who is the true Life directs, 
 and whom God alone rules by the Em¬ 
 pire he has over us; God preferve us, 
 I fay far from committing, even from 
 thinking of fuch Crimes. 
 
 Tacian in the Treatife which he com* 
 pos’d againjl the Grecians. 
 
 O F what ufe is a furious Orejles to 
 to me, as he is reprefented by 
 Euripides, or another who comes to 
 entertain us with Alcmeons having 
 murder’d his Mother, or he who wears 
 a Mask, or who makes Grimaces, or 
 huffs with a Sword by his Side, or he 
 who drelfes himfelf in a manner un¬ 
 worthy of a Man; Let us leave the 
 Fables of Hegefilaus and of the Poet 
 Menander ; why fhould I lofe my Time 
 to admire a Player on the Flute ? and 
 X i why 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 why fhould I ftay to confider a TMm 
 Antigentdes Difciple oiPhiloxenus who 
 was of that Trade ? We leaye to you 
 thefe Frivolous and ufelefs things ; but 
 rather believe the Truths of our Reli¬ 
 gion, and quit thefe Fooleries by out 
 Example. 
 
 Ter cull ian in bis dpology, 
 CHAP. 38. 
 
 W E renounce your Publiqk 
 Shews, as we condemn their 
 feveral Origines, knowing them to be 
 the Effe&s of Superftition and Idolatry. 
 In fine wedefpife all that paffes in them? 
 We have no Commerce with the Fren¬ 
 zies of the Circus , with the Immodefty 
 of the Theatre , the vain Exercifesof the 
 Wreftlers, or with the Cruelties of the 
 Amphitheatre. The Epicureans were al~ 
 low’d to frame a Pleafure for them* 
 felves,in which they eftablifh’d the Rea¬ 
 lity of the Supream God ; In what then 
 do we offend you, if we take other Plea- 
 fures than you ? But if we will know 
 no fort of Pleafure, methinks it is no 
 goncernof yours, and if in this there is 
 
againfi Plays and Shewsl 
 
 any Lofs, it falls wholly upon us. We 
 reject, you lay, the things which pleafe 
 you: we have a Right l'o to do, fince 
 our Pleafures are not yours. 
 
 Tertullian in his Treati/e of Public £ 
 Shews , 
 
 CHAP, i; 
 
 Y E who are ready to enter into 
 the Service of the Divine Majefty, 
 and ye who are already enter’d by 
 Confeffion and the Declaration you 
 have made of it in Baptifm, know and 
 acknowledge that the Nature of the 
 Faith, the Order of Truth, and the Law 
 of the Chriftian Difcipline abfolutely 
 condemns the Diverfion of the Publick 
 Shews, with the other Irregularities of 
 the World; that none of you may fin 
 out of Ignorance or Diflimulation. For 
 Pleafure has fo great a Power over 
 Men that it makes them embrace Oc- 
 cafions of Sin out of Ignorance, to be¬ 
 tray their Confcience by Diflimlation. 
 
 X4 
 
 CHAP, 
 
6 
 
 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 CHAP. 3, 
 
 T HERE are fome Chriftians 
 who out of Simplicity, or for 
 want of Docility, can hardly believe 
 that they are oblig’d to deprive them- 
 felves of the Diverfion of the Publick 
 Shews; becaufe fay they it does not 
 appear in the Holy Scriptures that 
 this is forbidden to the Servants of 
 God. ^Tis true \ve do not find this 
 Prohibition in exprefs terms in Holy 
 Scripture, you fhal'l not go to the L'/>- 
 cus , you Hiall not be prefent at Plays y 
 you fliall not be Spectator of the Com¬ 
 bats of the Wreftlers, or of the Gladi¬ 
 ators ; as it is faid in formal Terms, 
 you [ball not kill , you [ball not worjhip Idols , 
 you [ball not commit Adultery y you Jhall not 
 St€al y you [ball not injure your Neighbour. 
 But the Condemnation of Shews is not- 
 withftanding clearly enough exprefs’d 
 by thefe firft words of the Pfalms of 
 David, B/ejfed is the Man who has not 
 walked in the Council of the ungodly , nor 
 flood in the way of Sinners , and has riot 
 in the Chair of PeftHence # 
 
 CHAD 
 
7 
 
 againjl 'Plays and Shews. 
 
 CHAP. 14. 
 
 C AN it be faid that Shews are not 
 fqrbidden by the Holy Scripture, 
 fince it condemns all forts of Concupi- 
 fcence ? For as Concupifcence compre¬ 
 hends Avarice, Ambition, Gluttony 
 and Luxury, it likewife comprehends 
 Voluptuoufnefs: Now Shews are one 
 kind of Voluptuoufnefs. 
 
 CHAP. 10. 
 
 A S to Plays, if we confider the O. 
 
 riginal of the Theatre, Which is 
 the place where they are reprefented, 
 we fhall find that it is the Temple of 
 Venus ; ’Twas under this Title that it 
 waseftablifh'din the World; for before, 
 as foon as Theatres were fet up, the 
 Cenfors often made them be thrown 
 down, to preferve that Purity of Man¬ 
 ners, of which they forefaw the Corrup¬ 
 tion and inevitable Ruine, if the Liber¬ 
 ty of Shews were permitted. So that 
 the Sentiments of Heathens, which are 
 likewife ours in this point, are a Tefti- 
 mony to them of the Impiety of Plays, 
 as the Regulations even of Human Dif- 
 
 cipline 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 cipline ferves to prejudice us again# 
 them. Pompey the Great , who fur- 
 mounted himfelf by the Magnificence 
 of his Theatre, having built that Re¬ 
 fuge of all forts of Impurity, fearing he 
 might be one day branded for it by the 
 Cenfprs, and by that means a blemifh 
 be caft on his Memory, built a Temple 
 over it to the honour of Venus-, and 
 in the Edi£t which he publifh’d to con¬ 
 vene the People to the Confeeration of 
 that Edifice, he did not give it the 
 Name of Theatre , but of the Temple of 
 Venus, under which, fays he, we have 
 put Seats for thofe who will be prefent 
 at the Diverfions: Thus under the Ti¬ 
 tle of a Temple he rais’d that deteftable 
 Building, making pfe of Superftition to 
 Raffle Difcipline. 
 
 CHAP. 15. 
 
 A N D if the Modefty and Probity 
 of fome are fecur’d at Plays by 
 their Dignity, their Age, or even by 
 their natural Temper; yet their 
 Minds are not fo infenfible as not to 
 b,e mov’d by fome Secret Paffion; 
 None receive Pleafure without Senfible 
 Impreffions, and fuch Imprefflons are 
 
9 
 
 againfi (Plays and Shews. 
 
 always accompany’d with the Circum¬ 
 stances which excite them. But if any 
 one is prefent at Plays without Pleafure, 
 and withqut receiving any Impreflion, 
 He is then guilty of the Sin of fpend- 
 ing his Time very vainly, in going to a 
 place that is of no ufe to him; and 
 Employing our felves to no purpofe is 
 certainly a Sin, which a Christian ought 
 to avoid. But befides, does not one 
 who is prefent at Plays condemn hitn- 
 felf, Since in that he would not be like 
 thofe Aftors, he confelTes that he de- 
 telts them? Now it is not fu.r&cient 
 for iis to do nothing like, bat we are 
 befides oblig’d not to favour by our 
 Confent and our Approbation thofe who 
 commit tliefe Crimes. If thou JeeJl a. 
 Thief , fays the Pfdmift, thou Confent eft 
 unto him , Pf. ^o.v, 18. would to God 
 it were poffible for us not to live in the 
 World amidA thefe People, but at 
 leaft we ought to keep our felves from 
 fhe Deeds of the World, becaufe the 
 World, is the Workmanfhip of God, 
 but the Deeds of the World are the 
 Works of the Devil. 
 
 CHAP* 
 
 ^ 4 t r 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 CHAP. 18 . 
 
 I F Tragedies and Comedies are Re- 
 prefentations of Crimes, and of 
 irregular Paffions, they are Bloody, 
 Lafcivious and Impious ; for the Repre- 
 fentation of an Enormous Crime, or of 
 a Shameful thing, is not better than 
 what it reprefents. And as we are 
 not allow’d to approve of a Crime in 
 the Aft ion which commits it, neither 
 are we allow’d to approve of it in the 
 Reprefentation. 
 
 CHAP. n. 
 
 T HOSE very Perfons who au- 
 thprife the Stage, do as much a- 
 bafe the Players as they exalt the Plays; 
 they declare them Infamous by their 
 Edi£ts, they deprive them of all Privi¬ 
 leges, excluding them the Court, the 
 Bar, the Senate, the Order of Knight¬ 
 hood, and from all other Honours and 
 Dignities whatfoever. What Incorifift- 
 ency is this ? to love thofe [they punifh, 
 to defpife thofe they approve, to magni- 
 fie the Art,and to note with Infamy thole 
 who ekercife it. Is it not a ftrange 
 
againjl 'Plays and Shews. 11 
 
 piece of Juftice to blacken a Man for 
 that very thing which renders him wor¬ 
 thy of Praife ? or rather is it not a plain 
 Confeffion that a thing is evil, when 
 thofe who perform it, how agreeable 
 foever they be, ate noted with Infa¬ 
 my ? 
 
 CHAP. 23. 
 
 S INCE then how favourable fo¬ 
 ever Men are to the Diverlions of 
 the Stage, they judge thofe who are 
 Aftors of them to be unworthy of Ad¬ 
 mittance to Dignities, and note them 
 with Infamy, how much more fevere 
 will the Judgment be, which the Juftice 
 of God will exercife againft them? 
 
 CHAP. 25. 
 
 ( '"i A N a Man think of God in thofe 
 _j Places where there is nothing of 
 God ? Can he learn to be Chafte when 
 he finds himfelf tranfported and as it 
 were enebriated with the Pleafure he 
 takes at a Play ? But there is nothing 
 more Scandalous at all Publick Diver- 
 fions, than to fee with what Care and 
 Allurement Men and "Women are a- 
 
 dorn’d; 
 
i Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 dom’d ; the Expreffion of their Senti¬ 
 ments to each other, whether agreeing 
 or different, to approve or difapprove 
 the things they are entertain’d with, 
 ferves only to excite in their Hearts ir¬ 
 regular Paflions : In fine, no body goes 
 to Plays blit with defign to fee and to 
 be feen. How can a Man reflect on the 
 Exclamations of a Prophet, when his 
 Ears are ftruck With thofe of a Trage¬ 
 dian ? How can he meditate on any 
 part of the Pfalms* when his Mind is 
 attentive to the Verfes recited by a 
 Comedian? God forbid that his Ser¬ 
 vants fhould have fbch a Fondnels for 
 fo pernicious a Pleafure; for what Blind- 
 nefs is it to leave the Church of God to 
 pm to that of the Devil, to fall from 
 Heaven into a Sink of Mire ? how un¬ 
 becoming is it to honour Players with 
 your Approbations and Applaufes, by 
 clapping thofe Hands which you have 
 been lifting up to invoke the Name of 
 God ? 
 
 CHAP. 2<5. 
 
 *' | TS not ftrange then that fucli 
 J People fhould be poffefs’d by the 
 t)evil; God is Witnefs that we have 
 
 had 
 
againjl Plays and Sheris. 
 
 had an Example of this in a certain Wo¬ 
 man, Who having been at the Play- 
 houfe, return’d from thence with the 
 Devil in her Body ; and when the Un¬ 
 clean Spirit was prefs’d in the Exorcifm, 
 and ask’d how he durft attack a Chri- 
 ftian, he anfwer’d boldly, I have done 
 nothing but what I had a Right to do, 
 for I found her in a Place that belongs 
 to me. Indeed how many Examples 
 have we of others, who communicating, 
 With the Devil by going to Plays, have 
 fallen from God ? for no Man can ferve 
 two Matters; what Communion is 
 there betwixt Light and Darknefs, be¬ 
 twixt Life and Death ? 
 
 CHAP. 27. 
 
 / 
 
 W ILL you not then avoid this 
 Seat of the Enemy of Jesus 
 Christ, that Chair of Peftilence, 
 Where the very Air is infetted by thofe 
 execrable Voices ? What tho the Plays 
 have fomething Sweet, Agreeable, In¬ 
 nocent, and even Vertuous in them ? 
 they are not the Iefs Dangerous for that; 
 ’tis not ufual to mingle Poyfon with 
 Gall or Wormwood, but with things 
 well relilh’d and agreeable to the 
 
 Tafte j 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 Tafte; fo the Devil mingles his Venom 
 with the beft and moft agreeable 
 Things ; look on all you meet with 
 in Plays ofGenerous, Vertuous, Refin’d 
 and Engaging, look on it as a Draught 
 of Honey in a poilon’d Cup, and con- 
 fider that there is much more Danger 
 than Pleafure in it. 
 
 CHAP. 28. 
 
 YT/HelJl the World, rejoices , fays our 
 Lord, ye (ball rveep and lament. Let 
 us be Sorrowful then, whilft the Hea¬ 
 then and the Men of the World rejoyce; 
 that when they fall into that dreadful 
 State of Sorrow which the Jultice of 
 God referves for them, we may enter 
 into that Joy which our Lord prepares 
 for the Eleft. For if we rejoyce with 
 them in this World, we fhall be eter¬ 
 nally afflicted with them in the other. 
 ’Tis a great Senfuality in Chriftians 
 to feek their Pleafures in this World, 
 or rather ’tis a ftrange Folly to efteem 
 fuch Things as real Pleafures. Some 
 Philofophers have given that Name 
 to Quiet and Tranquility; this was 
 all they aim’d at, this their Joy 
 and Glory; but you Chriftians can- 
 
againft Ways and Shews. 
 
 pot be fatisfied without Plays. W.e 
 cannot indeed be without Pleafure, but 
 Death fhould be that Pleafure, for 
 are not our Defires the fame with the 
 Apoftle’s, to be dijfolv'd and to be with 
 Christ, and ought not our Pleafure to 
 be in the Accomplifhment of our De¬ 
 fires ? 
 
 CHAP. 29 . 
 
 B UT you would pafs. all your Life 
 in Delights; why will you not then 
 elteem as you ought, why will you not 
 fo much as know the abundant and 
 precious Delights which God has pre¬ 
 par'd for you ? What is there more de¬ 
 lightful than to be reconcil’d to God, 
 to be enlightned with his Truth, to 
 know the Errors that are oppos’d to it* 
 apd to be affur’d of the Pardon of our 
 Sins ? What greater Pleafures than that 
 which gives us a Difguft of afl other 
 Pleafures, which makes us defpife the 
 World, gives us true Liberty, preferves 
 the Purity of our Confcience, makes us 
 content with Life, and to have no Fear 
 of Death ? What Pleafure to tread un¬ 
 der foot the Heathen Gods, to be vi¬ 
 ctorious over Devils, and to live only 
 
 Y to? 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 to God ? Thefe are the Delights of 
 Chriftians, thefe their Entertainments 
 Holy, Eternal, and which are given'em 
 gratis. They reprefent to us the 
 Games of the Circus in a myfterious 
 manner ; inftead of the Race of Chari¬ 
 ots, confider the Courfe of Time and 
 the Race of Life which paffes ; inftead 
 of the Term and End of the Carreer, 
 look on the End of the World ; inftead 
 of Siding with the Contenders of the' 
 Circus , defend the Caufe of the Church, 
 attend the Signal of God to appear 
 before him, hearken to the Angel found¬ 
 ing the Trumpet, look on the Viftory 
 and the'Crown of Martyrs asthe Ofajeffe 
 of your Glory * 
 
 CHAP. 30. 
 
 B U T what will be that Sight 
 (which approaches) of the Corri- 
 ing of the Lord, then when his Ma- 
 jefty fhall fhine forth, when he ffiaU 
 appear all glittering with Glory in the 
 Pomp of a Magnificent Triumph? 
 What will be the Joy of Angels ? what 
 will be the Glory of the Saints which 
 fhall arife ? how Magnificent will the 
 Kingdom be which is prepared for the 
 
again ft 'Piaysand Shews. 
 
 . t 
 
 Juft ? how glorious will be the City of 
 the New ferujalem ? But ’twill be far ano¬ 
 ther Sight when the Day of the laft Judg- 
 mentfball come,thatDay which theGen- 
 tilesexpeft not, that Day which they de¬ 
 ride, then when the old World and all 
 that has been produc’d in it, fhall be 
 confirm'd in one Common Conflagra¬ 
 tion. Then the Players will be better 
 heard, lamenting with a lowder Voice 
 their own real Mifery. 
 
 Clemens Alexandrinus in the third 
 of his Tutor. Anno. 204. 
 
 CHAP. u. 
 
 J ESUS CHRIST who is our 
 Maftet will not lead us to Shews ; 
 the Circus andTheatre mayjuftly be call’d 
 the Chair of Pejiiles/ce, for all that is done 
 in thofe Places is full of Confufion and 
 Iniquity, and abundant Occafions of 
 Impurity are furnifh’d in thefe Affem- 
 blies, where Men and Women mingle 
 together and gaze on one another: 
 there Wicked DefignS are form’d, 
 whilft lafcivious Looks excite Evil De- 
 firesj and the Eyes accuftom’d to be- 
 Y 2 hold 
 
18 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 hold immodeftly the Objects which are 
 rr ar it, make ufe of the occafion that 
 offers to gratifie their Concupifcence. 
 Thefe Shews ought therefore to be 
 prohibited, where every thing is wic¬ 
 ked, obfcene, or at leaft vain and un¬ 
 profitable ; what is there fo fhameful 
 that is not reprefented on the Stage ? 
 what Words fo impudent that the Corn- 
 medians flick at to move Laughter ? 
 So that thofe whofe Inclinations fuit- 
 ing with thefe things makes 'them take 
 delight in them, muff carry away with 
 them lively Impreflions of them ; and 
 for thofe who are not affefted with 
 them, are they not guilty at leaft of 
 giving themfelves up to vain and ufe- 
 lefs Pleafures ? If they fay they only 
 make ufe of thofe Diverfions to recre¬ 
 ate and unbend the Mind. We an- 
 fwer that nothing ought to be made 
 a Diverfion which is vain and ufelefs ; 
 for no Wife Man will prefer that 
 which is agreeable to what is more 
 vertuous and profitable. 
 
 Minutius 
 
 / 
 
againfl Plays and Shews. 
 
 Minucius Felix, Ann 20 6, inhisPook. 
 calld O&avius. 
 
 5 ^|"TS with Reafon that we, who 
 J| profefs Modefty and a good 
 Life, abftainfrom your Pleafures, your 
 Pomps and your Shews, as things evil, 
 not only in their Original, being confe- 
 crated to falfe Deities, but we condemn 
 them as in themfelves pernicious P.lea r 
 lures. For how can we but abhor the 
 Quarrels and Diforders at the Races, 
 and the Art of Murder profefs’d by the 
 Gladiators: the Madnefs is not lefs on 
 the Theatre, and the Obfcenity is great¬ 
 er ; there Adulteries are reprefented, 
 or fulfomely recited, and an enfriaring 
 Aftor raifes thofe Paffions in others, 
 which he feigns to have himlelf. 
 
 
 Y 5 Third 
 
JO 
 
 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 Third Century. 
 
 St. Cyprian Ann. 250, in his Epifih 
 to Donacius. 
 
 Y OU will fee on the Stage fuel] 
 things as may give you both 
 Grief and Shame; ? tis the Bufinefs of 
 Tragedy Poetically to deferibe the 
 Crimes of Antiquity ; the execrable 
 Parricides a?nd Xncefts of paft Ages are 
 there fo lively reprefented (for fear 
 Time fhould deface the Memory of 
 what was formerly done) that it feems 
 to the Spectators as if they faw thole 
 Criminal Aftions really again commit¬ 
 ted ; and Perfons of what Age or Sex 
 foever, hearing what has been done, 
 learn that the fame things may be done 
 again : thus Sins never die, Time does 
 not cover them, and the Remem¬ 
 brance of wicked A ft ions is never loft; 
 they have ceas’d to be Crimes and are 
 become Examples. People take Plea- 
 fure in feeing what they have done at 
 home reprefented in a Comedy , or 
 hearing what they may do there ; A- 
 dultery is learnt in feeing it rqprefent- 
 
 ed* 
 
 \ 
 
againft Tlays and Shews. 
 
 ed, and Wickednefs publickly autho- 
 rifed is fo infe&ious, that Women 
 who perhaps were Chafte when they 
 went to the Plays, have come Wanton 
 out of them. Do not the Comedians 
 corrupt the Manners by their fhameful 
 Geftures ? do they not footh Vice, and 
 incline to Debauchery ? they draw 
 their Applaufes from their Crime, the 
 more Immodeft they are, the more 
 Artful and Ingenious they are efteem’d; 
 and what is moft Shameful, is look’d 
 on with Pleafure. In fuch Difpofiti- 
 ons, is there any thing which thele 
 People may not perfuade ? they pleafe 
 the Senfes, they footh the Paffxons, they 
 weaken the ftrongeft Vertue; and Au¬ 
 thority is not wanting to thefe agree¬ 
 able Corrupters, which helps them to 
 infinuate their Poyfon the more effeftu- 
 ally in the Hearts of thofe who hear 
 them. 
 
 In his $oo 4 of Shews. 
 
 W HAT tho’ the Holy Scriptures 
 do not exprefly forbid Chri- 
 ftians to go to Shews, mere Modefty 
 ought to hinder them from it; when 
 the Scripture commands any thing it 
 1, ; Y 4 exprelfes 
 
* i Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 expreffes what it commands; but when 
 it forbids, there are fome things fo 
 Shameful, that it is thought fitter only 
 to forbid them in general, than to men¬ 
 tion them in particular. If God, who 
 is the Sovereign Wifdom, had defend¬ 
 ed to Particulars in this Cafe, he muft 
 have ill known the Nature of his Peo¬ 
 ple ; for Experience fhews us, that it 
 is often better not to exprefs in parti¬ 
 cular what we would not have done, 
 for fear of giving ah bccafion of doing 
 it ; fince Men are commonly moft bent 
 on thofe Things which are forbidden 
 them. But tho’ he does not exprefs 
 thofe Crimes in Scripture, he does not 
 thelefs forbid them, iince the Severity 
 heufesin punifbing all forts of Crimes, 
 fufficiently fhews it, and Reafon makes 
 it evidently known. Let every one 
 only confult his own Thoughts, and 
 confider within himlelf the Nature df 
 his Proleflion, and that will guard him 
 from committing any Indecency ; for 
 Men ufually obferve thofe Rules mofc 
 exaifily which they have prefcribed to 
 tftemfelves: But what then have the 
 Scriptures forbidden ? they forbid us to 
 look on what we are not allow’d to do ; 
 they have, I fay, condemn’d all forts of 
 ' Shews 
 
againjl Plays and Shews. 
 
 Shews in condemning Idolatry, which 
 is the Mother from whom all thefe 
 Monfters of Vanity and Levity have 
 proceeded. 
 
 What fhould a Chriftiando then at 
 thefe Shews if he flies Idolatry ? What 
 can he (ay ? Can he who is already 
 fan&ified, take Pleafure in criminal 
 *1 hings ? Will he approve, contrary to 
 the Commandment of'Gon, tflofe Su- 
 perftitions he takes Delight in when he 
 is Spedator of them ? He ought to 
 know that ’tis the Devil, and not 
 God who has invented all thefe Things. 
 Can he have the Impudence to exorcife 
 in the Church thofe Dsemons, whofe 
 Pieafures he praifes at the Shews ? ha¬ 
 ving renounc'd the Devil at his Bap- 
 tifm, he has renounc’d all that belongs 
 to him, but if after being united to Je¬ 
 sus Christ he goes to the Devil’s 
 Shews, he renounces Jesus Christ 
 as he had before renounced the Devil. 
 Idolatry, as I have already Laid, is the 
 Mother of all Shews, and to draw 
 faithful Chriftians to her felf, (he fooths 
 and charms them by the Pieafures of 
 the Eyes and Ears. The Devil know¬ 
 ing that Naked Idolatry would give 
 j Horror, has cover’d it with the Plea- 
 
 fure 
 
24 
 
 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 fure of Shews to render it Lovely* isfe- 
 verthelefs all the World goes to Shews, 
 they delight themfelves at this publick 
 Wickednefs, either to fee their own 
 Vices, or to learn them there ; they 
 run to this infamous Place, to this 
 School of Impurity, that they may pra- 
 ftife thofe Evils in Secret which they 
 have learnt in Publick, and in view, as 
 we may fay^ of the Laws, they com¬ 
 mit all the Crimes which are forbidden 
 by the Laws. What does a faithful 
 Chriftian do there? he is not allow’d 
 to have even an impure Thought; how 
 then can he take Pleafure in Reprefen- 
 tations of Impurity ? what does he but 
 expofe himfelf to lofe all Modefty at 
 thefe Shews, that he may fin after¬ 
 wards with the more Boldnefs ? Inac- 
 cuftoming ones felf to fee Crimes repre¬ 
 fen ted, one learns to commit them ; 
 and fo much Men delight in all that is 
 Forbidden them, that they fet before 
 their Eyes even what Time had cover’d. 
 The Diforder is fo great, that they 
 are not content to be charg’d with their 
 own Vices, they will befides load them¬ 
 felves at thefe Shews with the Crimes 
 of all paft Ages. In truth, it is by no 
 means allowable for Chriftians to be 
 prefent at thefe Affemblies. What 
 
 l '1 , " ' ; ;v 
 
againfl f lays and Shews. 
 
 What (hall I fay of the vain and 
 ufelefs Diyerfions of Comedy, and the 
 Extravagancies of Tragedy. Tho thefe 
 things were not Confecrated to Idols, 
 Chriftians \vould however not be al¬ 
 low’d to be Aftors or Spectators of 
 them, for tho they were innocent in 
 all other refpe&s, they would ftill be a 
 vain Entertainment unbecoming a 
 Chriftian. 
 
 A faithful Chriftian then ought to a- 
 void thefe Shews ; which are, as I have 
 ! often faid, fo vain, fo pernicious, fo fa- 
 crilegious : we are carefully to guard 
 our Eyes and our Ears, the Crimes we 
 hear often fpoke of we eaffty accuftom 
 our felves to ; the Mind of Man having 
 ! a bent to Evil, what will he do if he is 
 | befides invited to it by Examples of 
 | the Vices of the Fleflh ? When one is 
 I ready to fall of himfelf, what will he 
 do when he is thruft ? We muft then 
 ! withdraw our Inclinations from thefe 
 i Fooleries; a true Chriftian hasfejobler 
 Diverfions than thefe, if he would re- 
 ^ fleft on real and ufeful Pleafures, Let 
 him apply himfelf to read the Holy 
 ! Scriptures, he will there find Entertain¬ 
 ments worthy of the Faith he profeifes; 
 how Noble, my Brethren, how agree- 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 able, how profitable fa Pleafure is it, 
 continually to contemplate the Objeft 
 of our Hopes, the Joys of Heaven ? 
 
 In his Epi [lie to Eucratius. 
 
 A S we have an AfFeQrion and Defe? 
 
 rence one for the other, it has 
 pleas’d you, my Dear Brother, to ask my 
 opinion concerning a Player whether 
 he ought to be receiv’d into our Com? 
 munion ? This Perfon continuing ftill 
 in that Occupation, inftrutting Youth 
 not to govern themfelves well, but to 
 undo themfelves, it is my thoughts, that 
 the Refpe£t we owe to the Majefty of 
 God, and the Order of the Evengelical 
 Difcipline, cannot fuffer the Purity and 
 Honour of the Church to be fullied by 
 fo dangerous a Cantagion. 
 
 Ladlan tius Firmianus, In thefixth 
 [Bool\ of his Divine lnjlitutions. 
 
 CHAP, zo 
 
 ¥ 0 U ought to rejefl the Publick 
 Shews , becaufe being Occafions of 
 yice, and ferving only to corrupt the 
 
 '' ' 1 ,l e < Manners, 
 
. againjl Plays and Shews. 
 
 Manners, they are not only ufelefs to 
 condu£t us to Eternal Life, but even 
 . extreamly hurtful to it. 
 
 Nor do I think the Diverfions of the 
 Stage lefs pernicious than the other 
 Shews ; for in Comedy they reprefent 
 the Debauching of Virgins, and the 
 Intrigues of Strumpets, and the more 
 eloquent the Authors of thefe infamous 
 Representations are, the more mifchief 
 they do, they engage the more thofe 
 who hearken to them by the Politenefs 
 of their Sentiments, and the Harmony 
 and Beauty of their Verfe makes the 
 Memory the mere eafily retain them. 
 In Tragedy Parricides, Incefts, and all 
 forts of Crimes are Pompoufly fet in 
 veiw, and for the Actors of Farce , what 
 do they by their immodeft Motions but 
 teach and infpire Impurity ? thofe effa- 
 minate Wretches bely what they are, 
 and Study to appear Women in their 
 Habit, their Gait, and their Lafcivious 
 Geftures. What fhall 1 fay of thefe 
 Buffoons who keep a School of De¬ 
 bauchery, and by feign’d Adulteries 
 teach to commit real ones? What can 
 young Men and Women do feeing fuch 
 Wickednefs committed without fhame? 
 whilft all the World beholds them with 
 
 Delight, 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 Delight, they learn by that what they 
 themfelves may do : Every one accor¬ 
 ding to their Sex reprefeht themfelves 
 in their Imagination at thefe Shews, 
 .thofe Ohjefts kindling in their Hearts 
 the Fire of Impurity (which is enflam’d 
 by the Sight,) by laughing at thefe Re- 
 prefentations they approve rherri, and 
 not only Children (who certainly 
 fhould not be made to have a relim 
 of Evil, even before they are capable 
 of knowing it ) but likewife old Per- 
 fens (inwhom it is fhameful to com¬ 
 mit thofe Sins which by their Age they 
 fhould be paft ) carrying away with 
 them the Yices of the Stage, return 
 home more corrupted than they were,. 
 Let us then avoid thefe Pleafures not 
 only that Vice may not make an im- 
 preffion on our Minds which difturbs the 
 Peace and Tranquillity of our Hearts, 
 but that we may not luffer our lelves^ 
 in complyance with the Cuftom of the 
 World, to be tranfported by the At¬ 
 tractions of Pleafure, which takes us off 
 from Gob, and from the Good Works 
 Which we ought to do. 
 
sixain[l Tlays and Shews . ! J 
 
 CHAP. 21. 
 
 S HOULD we not think a Man a 
 Scandalous Libertine who fhould 
 keep a fet of Players in his Hcufe ? now 
 if one cannot be Spectator of a Play at 
 home without Indecency, can the feeing 
 it reprefented on the Stage before a Mul¬ 
 titude of People make it more Decent ? 
 
 Fine Verfes and agreeable Difccurfes 
 gain the Mind and carry it whither 
 they will: therefore he who Peeks Truth 
 and would not deceive himfelf, ought 
 to reje£t thefe pernicious Pleafures to 
 which the Soul abandons it felf, as the 
 Body to delicious food however De- 
 ftru&ive to it. We muff prefer Real 
 things to Appearances, the Ufeful to 
 the Agreeable, and Eternal things to 
 thofe which pafs away. Take no plea- 
 fure in looking on any other Aftions 
 but what are juft and pious, or in hear¬ 
 ing any thing but what nourifhes the 
 Soul and may render you better; take 
 care not to make an ill ufe of that Senfe 
 which was given us to hearken to the 
 Inftruftions of God : If then you de¬ 
 light in Verfes and Songs, let your Plea- 
 fure be to fing or hear others fing the 
 
 Praifes 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 • v 
 
 Praifes of Goo : True PJeafure is that 
 which is accompany’d with Vertue, a 
 Pleafure that is not Tranfitory and 
 Perifhable, as thofe others are whicl^ 
 are fought by fuch as like the Beafts 
 follow the Inclinations of the Body,; 
 but it is perpetual and always fatisfa- 
 ctory. He who pafles this Bound, and 
 Peeks Pleafure merely for its own Sake, 
 procures Heath to himfelf; for as Ver¬ 
 tue leads to Eternal Life, fo does Plea¬ 
 fure lead to Death : for he that fixes 
 himfelf to Temporal Things, muff: 
 Iofe the Eternal; he that places his 
 Affeftion on Earthly Things, can have 
 no Part in the Delights Of Heavenly. 
 
 CHAP. 22 . 
 
 A S it is by Vertue, by Labour and 
 / \ Sufferings that God calls us to 
 Life; fo by Pleafure the Devil leads us* 
 to Death; as real Happinefs is acquir’d 
 by feeming Evils, fo real,. Mifery is 
 procur’d by apparent Goods. Let us 
 then fhun Pleafures as Snares and Nets, 
 left by engaging our felves in Softnefs 
 ajid Luxury, and becoming Slaves to 
 the Body, we fall with it under the 
 Power of Death, 
 
 Fourth 
 
agamfl Plays and. Shews. 3 1 
 
 Fourth Century. 
 
 Saint Murcarius Senior, in his i/th 
 Homily. 
 
 I F by Hearing alone, one could enter 
 into the Kingdom of Heaven and 
 feternal Life, without Sufferings and 
 without Labours ; thofe who divert 
 themfelves at a Play-houfe, and thofe 
 vldid lead a licentious Life, would have 
 a good Intereft in it. But there is no 
 going to Heaven but by Labours and 
 Combats, becaufe the Way that leads 
 to it is (freight and full of Dangers; ’tis 
 thro’ this rugged Way we muff walk, 
 and fuffer many Pains and Afflictions 
 to enter into Eternal Life. 
 
 Saint Cyril Archbtfhop of Jerufalem, 
 in his Myftagogical Catechifrri 
 for the newly Baptifed. 
 
 Y OU have faid at your Baptifm, 1 
 renounce thee Satan , 1 renounce ad 
 thy Works and all thy Pomps. The Pomps 
 'of the Devil are the Diverfions of the 
 Z Jhcatre* 
 
 \ 
 
j z Sentiments fo the Fathers 
 
 Theatre, and all other the like Vann 
 ties; frorn which holy David begs 
 of God to be deliver’d ; Turn away 
 mine Eyes, fays he, that they behold not 
 Vanity ; Do not then fuller your felfto 
 be led away by a Fondnefs tor the En* 
 tertainments of the Stage, to behold 
 there the Extravagancies of Plays full 
 of Wantonnefs and Impurity* 
 
 Saint Ambrofe Archhifhop of Milan* 
 in his Treatife of the Tranjitorinefs 
 of the World . 
 
 CAP. i. 
 
 A DJM had never been driven out 
 of Paradife if he had not been fe<* 
 duc’d by Pleafure ; and therefore David , 
 who had experienc’d how dangerous 
 it is to indulge the Eyes, fays with 
 Reafon, that Man is Happy when his Hope 
 is only in the Name of the Lord, and that 
 he has no regard to the Vanities and de¬ 
 ceitful Follies of the World „ He who con. 
 fiders that God is always prefent to 
 him, and has always the interior Eye# 
 of his Soul fix’d on Jasus Christ, has 
 no regard to the Vanities and deceitful 
 
 Idealures 
 
I 
 
 again ft f PIays amt Sheiv*. 
 
 Plcafures of the World. Thus that ho¬ 
 ly Prophet turning towards him, makes 
 this Prayer ; Tarn Away mine Eyes that 
 they behold not Vanity . The Circus is 
 but Vanity, fince it is ufeful for no¬ 
 thing. The Horfe Races are Vanity 
 being' of no ufe to Salvation. The 
 Theatre and all other Shews are nothing 
 elfe but Vanity. 
 
 On the 3 yth Verfe of 1 1 8 th Pfalm. 
 
 H E who is in the way of God will 
 not behold Vanity; Jesus 
 Christ is the Perfeft way, how 
 then can he that belongs to Christ 
 behold Vanity? Since Christ has 
 Crucified in his flefil all the vain Plea- 
 furesof the World. Let us therefore 
 turn away our Eyes from Vanity, left 
 the Sight of fuch Follies inprint Defires 
 in our Souls, and not to fpeak of the 
 Myftick Senle of this Paffage, God 
 grant that this interpretation of it may 
 have the Power to withdraw thofe from 
 the Spectacles of the Circus and the 
 Theatre who run after them. Thofe 
 Sports which you behold are nothing 
 but Vanity; lift up your Eyes tojE.us 
 Christ, and turn them away from 
 Z z bhervs 
 
34 
 
 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 Shews and from all the Pomps of the 
 World. 
 
 Sc. Chryfoftome in his i 5 th Homi¬ 
 ly to the (People of Antioch. 
 
 M ANY imagine that it is not 
 certain that there is any Sin in 
 going to the Theatre; but whatever 
 they think of it, Plays do certainly 
 caufe an Infinity of Evils: for the 
 Pleafure that is taken in them produ¬ 
 ces all forts of Debauchery. Befides 
 that we are not only oblig’d to avoid 
 Sin, but we ought alfo to fhun thofe 
 things which, tho they feem indifferent 
 to us, do infenfibly lead to Sin. For 
 as he who walks on the brink of a Pre¬ 
 cipice, tho he does not fall, is however 
 always in fear, and with good reafon, 
 fince he is always in danger of falling; 
 fo he who does not keep from the Ap. 
 proaches of Sin, ought to live in con¬ 
 tinual apprehenfion, fince he is in con¬ 
 tinual Danger of Sinning. 
 
 in 
 
 * ; : - ’ : A 
 
againfl TUys and Shews. 
 
 In his third Homily of David and 
 Saul. 
 
 I Believe that many of thofe who a- 
 bandon’d us yefterday, to go to 
 the Speftacles of Iniquity, are prefent 
 here to day. I wifh I could know them 
 in particular that I might forbid them 
 the Entrance of this facred Place, nor 
 to leave them always without, but to 
 recal them after their amendment. As 
 Fathers when their Children are De¬ 
 bauch’d, often caft them from their 
 Tables and their Houfes, not that they 
 may be banilh'd thence for ever, but 
 that becoming better by that Correcti¬ 
 on, they may return with Praife and 
 Honour to their Father’s Houfe and 
 Prefence; fo do the Paftors Aft when 
 they feparate the Scabby Sheep from 
 the reft, to the end that being cur’d of 
 their Difeafe they may again without 
 danger mingle with thofe that are 
 well; for otherwife if they Ihould leave 
 them together, they would infeft all 
 the Flock. ’Tis for this reafon that I 
 wifh to know thofe Perfons. But tho 
 they are unknown to us they cannot 
 Z j however 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 however hide themfelves from the E- 
 ternal Word^ which is the Son of God, 
 I hope he will touch their Hearts, and 
 perfuade them to go voluntarily out, 
 making them know, that none but. 
 thofe who fubmii themfelves to per¬ 
 form this Penitence are truly in the 
 Church : on the contrary, thofe who 
 living Diforderly do yet continue in 
 our Communion, however their Bo¬ 
 dies may be prefent here, are yet more 
 really fepa rated from it, than thofe 
 who have been fo caft out, that it is 
 not yet allowable for them to partake 
 of the holy Fable ; tor luch as accord¬ 
 ing to the Divine Laws have been dri¬ 
 ven from the Church and remain with¬ 
 out, give ibme good Hopes by their 
 Conduct, that after having amended 
 thofe Sins for which they were call out 
 of the Church,, they will re-enter with 
 a pure Conscience ; but thofe who de¬ 
 file themfelves, and who being adver¬ 
 tis’d to punfie; themfelves from thofe 
 Spots which they have cOntrafted by 
 their Crimes, behave themfelves with 
 Impudence; thefe inflame the Ulcer 
 of their Souls and render the Evil great¬ 
 er. For there is much lei's Evil in fin¬ 
 ding than in adding Impudence to the 
 
 Crime 
 
 j 
 
again ft Plays and Shews. 37 
 
 Crime one has committed, and refufing 
 to obey the Orders of the Paftors. 
 
 Some will fay to me, But is the Sin 
 thefe Perfons have committed fo great, 
 that they deferve to be interdi&ed 
 the Entrance of thefe Sacred Places ? 
 
 Can any Crime be more Enormous 
 than theirs ? they have defil'd them- 
 felves with the Guilt of Adultery, and 
 then they throw themfelves impudent¬ 
 ly, like mad Dogs, on the Holy Table. 
 
 If you would know how they are guil¬ 
 ty of Adultery, I fhall not declare it 
 to you by my own Reafon, but in the 
 very Words of him who is to judge the 
 Actions of all Men. He that looketh 
 (fays our Lord) on a Woman to lujl af¬ 
 ter her } hath committed, Adultery with her 
 already in his Heart. If a Woman neg¬ 
 ligently drefs’d, palling by Chance, 
 often wounds only by the fight of her 
 Face thofe who behold her with too 
 much Curiofity : Can thofe who go to 
 Plays, not by Chance but of delibe¬ 
 rate Purpofe, and with fo much Ar¬ 
 dour, that by an infupportable Con¬ 
 tempt they abandon the Church to go 
 thither, where they pafs all the Day 
 in beholding thofe infamous Women : 
 will they haye the Impudence to fay, 
 
 Z 4 they 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 they do not look on them with Defire, 
 'when their lafcivious and dilfolutq 
 Words, their Voices and immodefl: 
 Songs alldifpofe to Voluptuoufnefs?e£x 
 For if in this Place, where nothing 
 but Pfaims are fung, where the Word 
 of God is explain’d, and where we 
 fear and reverence the Divine Majefty, 
 Concupifcence notwithftanding, like a 
 iubtle Thief, glides fecretly into the 
 Heart; how can thofe who frequent 
 the Play-houfe, where they fee or hear 
 nothing that’s Good, where all is full 
 of Filth and Iniquity, with which their 
 Eyes and Ears are inyefted on all fides, 
 how can they overcome Concupif¬ 
 cence ? and if they cannot overcome it, 
 how can they be exempt from the 
 Guilt of Adultery? and being defil’d 
 with that Guilt, how can they enter 
 the Church and be receiv'd into the 
 Communion of this holy Afiembly, 
 without having repented of it ? I 
 entreat therefore and conjure thofe 
 Perfons to purifie themfelves, by Con- 
 feffion, Penitence, and all other faluta- 
 ry Remedies, from a|l the Sins they have 
 contracted at Plays, that they may be 
 admitted to hear the word of God; 
 for thofe Sins are not fmall ones. 
 
 ‘ Doft 
 
19 
 
 againjl (plays and Shews. 
 
 Doft thou not dread, O Man! to look 
 on this Holy Table (where the won¬ 
 derful Myfteries are celebrated) with 
 the fame Eyes with which thou be- 
 hoideft the deteftable Fictions of Adul¬ 
 tery ? Haft thou not a Horror to hear 
 the immodeft Words of a Comedian, 
 with the fame Ears with which thou 
 heareft a Prophet, who introduces thee 
 into the Myfteries of Scripture ? Art 
 thou not afraid to receive into the 
 fame Heart a mortal Poifon, and this 
 facred Bread Holy and Terrible ? Is it 
 not from hence proceed the Irregula¬ 
 rities of Life, the Diforders in Mar¬ 
 riage, Wars, Confufions, and Dome- 
 flick Quarrels ? 
 
 Wherefore I befeech you all not to 
 be prefent at thefe vile Reprefentations, 
 and to withdraw others from them, 
 for all that is done in them, far from 
 being a Divertifement, is a pernicious 
 Diforder, which produces nothing but 
 Sin and Punifhment. 
 
 What does it fignifiefor Man to en¬ 
 joy a tranfitory Pleafure, that is fol¬ 
 lowed by an eternal Pain , and if he is 
 a Night and a Day tormented by Con- 
 cupifcence ? Reflect on your felves, and 
 cpnfider the difference there is betwixt 
 
 the . 
 
4° 
 
 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 the State you are in when you return 
 from Church, and that in which you 
 find vour felf when you come from the 
 Play-houfe, If you compare thefe two 
 States one with the other, you will 
 have no need of my Advertilements ; 
 that Comparifon will fuffice to make 
 you know how Ufeful and Advanragi- 
 ous the one is to you, and how Per* 
 nicious the other. 
 
 f S' , ♦ i 1 ' ’ <* "’v/* v 
 
 In the Eighth Homily on Chap 2. of 
 S. Matthew. 
 
 I T is not for us to pafs our Time in 
 Jollity, in Diverfion and Delights; 
 that is only fit for Players and Para- 
 fites; ’tis by no means the Spirit of 
 thofe who are call d to an Eternal King* 
 dom, whofe Names are already written 
 in that Celeftial City, and profefs a 
 Spiritual Warfare, but ’tis the Spirit of 
 thofe who fight under the Enligns of 
 the Devil. 
 
 Yes, my Brethren, ’tis the Devil who 
 has made an Art of thefe Diverfions, 
 to draw away the Soldiers of Jesus 
 Christ to himfelf, and to relax the 
 Vigour of their Virtue: tis for this End 
 
again ft (plays and Shews • 
 
 that he has made Theatres be let up in 
 Publick Places, and that forming and 
 exercifing himfelf thofe Buffoons, he 
 makes ufe of them to infeft (as with 
 a Plague) the whole City. 
 
 St. Paul has forbidden us jefting 
 Words, and fuch as tend only to a vain 
 Divertifement, tho’ the Devil perfuades 
 us to love both the one and the other. 
 But that which makes thofe immode¬ 
 rate Laughters the more pernicious, is 
 the Subjeft on which they are rais’d ; 
 for no fooner have thefe ridiculous 
 Buffoons thrown out a Blafphemous 
 or Indecent Expreffion, than the great- 
 eft Fools of the Company are tranfport- 
 ed with Joy, and break out into loud 
 Laughing, applauding them for thofe 
 j things for which they ought to ftone 
 I them, and thus by this fatal Plealure, 
 
 : they draw on themfelves the Punifh- 
 i ment of an Eternal Fire; for in praifing 
 them in thefe Follies, they engage them 
 to commit them, and render themfelves 
 I yet more worthy than the Performers, 
 
 I of that Condemnation they have de- 
 ferv’d, If ail the World were agreed 
 not to behold their Fooleries, they 
 I would foon ceafe to afl: them; but 
 when they fee you every Day quit your 
 
 Bufinefs 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 Bufinefs ; your Labours, and the Mo- 
 ny you gain by them : in a Word, a- 
 bandoning all things to be prefent at 
 thefe Sights, they redouble their Ar¬ 
 dour, and apply themfelves much the 
 more to thefe. 
 
 I fay not this toexcufe them, but to 
 let you fee, that ’tis chiefly you who 
 are the Source of all thefe Diforders, by 
 being prefent at their Plays, and fpend- 
 ing fo much of your Time in them. For 
 he who reprefents thefe wicked Perfons, 
 is lei's guilty than you who make them 
 be reprefented, than you who animate 
 him more and more by your Eagernefs, 
 by your Tranfports, by your Praifes 
 and Applaufes; and who endeavour by 
 all means to embellifh and improve this 
 Work of the Devil. 
 
 Don’t tell me that all that is done 
 there is nothing but Fiftion ; that Fi¬ 
 ction has made many real Adulteries, 
 and overthrown many Families ; and 
 that which grieves me mod, is, that 
 this being fo great an Evil, is yet not 
 look’d on as any Evil at all, and that 
 when a Crime fo heinous as that of A- 
 dultery is reprefented, nothing is heard 
 but Applaufes and Exclamations of De¬ 
 light, thus prophaning the Holy State 
 oi Marriage, • ’Tis 
 
’Tis but a Fi&ion, fay you, ’tis for 
 that very Reafon that thofe Perfons de- 
 ferve a thoufand Deaths for daring to 
 a£t before all the World fuch Diforders 
 as are forbidden by all Laws. If Adul¬ 
 tery is an Evil, ’tis an Evil alfo to re- 
 prefent it. 
 
 Who can tell how many Perfons 
 thefe Fi&ions have drawn into Adul¬ 
 tery, and how much they infpire all 
 thofe who behold them with Impu¬ 
 dence and Impurity ? For can there 
 be any thing more Immodeft than that 
 Eye which can endure to behold fuch 
 Filth. 
 
 In the 3 8'th Homily of St. Mat¬ 
 thew, on Chap. 1 1. 
 
 EWD Songs and Verfes are much 
 
 more Abominable than the moil 
 
 filthy Scents; and yet when the Players 
 recite them before you, you are not 
 only without Uneafinefs at it, but you 
 laugh, you are diverted inftead of ha¬ 
 ving a Horror and Averfion for them. 
 
 Why don’t you mount the Stage as 
 well as thofe Buffoons with whom you 
 are fo much diverted ? if what they 
 
 do 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 do is not Bafe and Vile, why don't 
 you imitate what you praife ? or only 
 appear in Publick with thofe fort 
 of Perfons ? That would make me 
 blufh, fay you. Why then do you fa 
 much eileetn what you would be a- 
 fham’d to do ? Players are accounted 
 Infamous even by the Heathen Laws, 
 and yet you crowd to behold them on 
 the Theatre, as if they wereAmbaffa- 
 dors or Generals of an Army, and 
 would draw all the World thither with 
 you to fill your Ears with that Vilenefs 
 and Filth which comes from the 
 Mouths of thofe Buffoons. You punifii 
 your Servants feverely if they talk im- 
 modeftly at home; you cannot fuffer 
 in your Wife or your Children the 
 leaft obfcene or indecent Word: but 
 when the out-caft of Men invite you to 
 hear publickly the fame vile Things, 
 which you fo much deteft in your Hou- 
 fes, fo far are you from being difpleas’d 
 with them, that you are delighted and 
 applaud thofe who exprefs them • is 
 not this the heighth of Madnefs ? 
 
 You will anfwer me perhaps, that 
 you neither fing nor fay any of thefe 
 vile Things : if you do not, you are 
 pleas’d at leaft with thofe that do. But 
 
 how 
 
again[l <Plays and Shews. 
 
 how ill you prove that you do rot 
 fpeak fuch Things? if you did not like 
 to repeat them, you would not have 
 fo much Pleafure in hearing them, or 
 run with fo much Ardour to thefe 
 Follies. 
 
 When you hear any Perfbn blaf- 
 pheme, you are not delighted w th 
 what he fays, on the contrary you 
 tremble and flop your Ears that you 
 may not hear him. Whence comes this 
 but becaufe you ire not a Blafphemer? 
 Behave your felf then in the lame man¬ 
 ner with refpefl to thofe vile Things, 
 and if you would not have us believe 
 that you delight to fpeak them, take 
 no Delight in hearing them ? 
 
 How can you apply your felves to 
 good Things being accuftomed to fuch 
 fort of Difcourfes ? how can you under- 
 ! go the Labour that is necelfary to pre- 
 ferve ones felf in Continence, when 
 you relax your felves fo far as to take 
 ; Pleafure in hearing obfcene Songs and 
 Difcourfes ? For if even when one is 
 at the greateft Diftancefrom fuch vile 
 ij Things, we have fo much Difficulty 
 to preferve our felves in that Purity 
 Uvhich God requires, how can we 
 continue Chafte, when we delight to 
 hear fuch dangerous Things? Do 
 
 45 
 
Sentitnhits of the Fathers 
 
 Do you not know how ftrong a Bent 
 we have to Evil ? if then to this Incli¬ 
 nation we add Art and Study, how 
 fhould we avoid falling into HelJ, fince 
 we take Pains to throw our felves into 
 it? Have you not heard that St. Paul 
 fays, Rejoice in the Lord ; He does not 
 not fay, Rejoice in the Devil: But how 
 fhould you hearken to this holy Apo- 
 ffle ? how fhould you be touch’d with 
 a Senfe of your Sins, being always as it 
 were intoxicated and out of your felves, 
 by frequenting thefe unhappy Diver- 
 lions ? tfou run to them with an infa. 
 tiable Ardour and Greedinefs, of which 
 the fatal Efleftsarebut too much feen 
 when you return home; thither every 
 one of you carries all that Filth, that 
 Impurity, With which immodeft Songs, 
 licentious Difcourfes, and dilfolute 
 Laughter have fill’d your Souls. All 
 thole fhameful Images remain in your 
 Thoughts and in your Heart, and ’tis 
 from thence it comes that you have an 
 Averfion lor what you ought to love, 
 and that* you love what you ought to 
 abhor. There we fee Women who 
 have loft all Shame, appearing boldly 
 on a Stage before a multitude of Peo¬ 
 ple, Women who have made an Art of 
 
 Impudence, 
 
againjl *Plays and Shews. 
 
 Impudence, who by their Looks and 
 Words inftil Lafcivioufnefs into the 
 Eyes and Ears of all that fee and hear 
 them, and who feem to confpire, by all 
 the Allurements that furround them, 
 to root out Modefty, to difhonour their 
 Sex, and to fill the Mind with perni¬ 
 cious Pleafure. For every part of thele 
 Reprefentations are raoft impure; the 
 Words, the Drefs, the Gefture, the 
 Voices, the Songs, the Motions of the 
 Eyes and of the Body, the Sound of 
 Inftruments, and even the Subject of 
 the Plays themfelves, all are full of 
 Filth, all infpire Impurity. 
 
 How then can you hope to continue 
 Chafte, after the Devil has made you 
 drink of this Cup of Lafcivioufnefs ? 
 has intoxicated your Soul with it, and 
 by his black Vapours clouded andob- 
 fcur’d your Reafon ? for there he en¬ 
 tertains you with all the moft Shame¬ 
 ful Vices, Fornication, Adultery, the 
 Debauches of Women, of Men, and 
 of young Perfons ; in fine, the Reign 
 of Abomination and Wickednefs. All 
 thefe Things then ought to incite thofe 
 who fee them rather to weep than to 
 laugh. 
 
 Imitate at leaf!: the Barb*rains f who 
 A a are 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 are very well contented without any 
 of thefe Diverfions. What Excufe will 
 be left for us, if being Chriftians, that 
 is to fay, Citizens of Heaven, and af- 
 fociated with Angels and Cherubims ; 
 we are notwithstanding lefs Regular in 
 this Point, than Heathens and Infidels ? 
 
 If you are fofond of diverting your 
 felves, there are many other Diverfi¬ 
 ons lefs dangerous and more agreeable 
 than thofe. 
 
 The Barbarians once faid a Thing, 
 worthy of the wifeft ol the Philofo- 
 phers ; for hearing the Fooleries of the 
 Theatre talk’d of, and the Shameful 
 Diverfions which People flockt thither' 
 to ; It feems, faid they, the Romans 
 have neither Wives nor Children , and 
 that therefore they have been forc'd to go 
 from home to divert themfelves ; intend¬ 
 ing by this to infinuate that there is 
 no Pleafure more agreeable to a wife 
 and fober Man, than that which he 
 receives from the Society of a virtuous 
 Wife and from that of his Children. 
 
 But you will fay, I can inftance in 
 ieveral Perfons to whom thefe Diver- 
 iions have done no Hurt; you are mi- 
 firaken if you think there is not a great 
 deal of Hurt in employing fo much 
 
 Time 
 
again ft Tlays and Shews. 
 
 'i'ime ufelefsly, and in giving occafion 
 bf Scandal to others. Sdppofe your 
 Own Vertue Proof againft thefe vicious 
 Reprefentations, is it no Evil to have 
 drawn others thither by your Exam¬ 
 ple ? How then can you be Innocent 
 when you are guilty of the Crimes of 
 others ? all that Wickednefs which is 
 caus’d among the People by thofe vici¬ 
 ous Men, thofe proftituted Women, 
 and all that Diabolical Troop which 
 tread the Stage, all that Wickednefs, 
 I fay, will be laid to their Charge ; for 
 if there were no Spectators, there would 
 be neither Plays nor Players ; fo that 
 thofe who go to fee them, as well as 
 thofe who a£t them, expofe themfelves 
 to Eternal Fire. Therefore even tho’ 
 you fhould be Chafte enough your felf 
 not to be infeded by the Contagion of 
 thefe Places, which I believe itnpoffi- 
 ble, you would neverthelefs be fevere- 
 ly punifh’d by God, as being guilty 
 of the Ruine of thofe others who fre¬ 
 quent thefe Fooleries, and of thofe who 
 reprefent them on the Theatre. And 
 if it is true that you are fo pure that 
 thefe dangerous Affemblies do not hurt 
 you, you would be much more fo if 
 you were careful to avoid them. 
 
 A a 2 Away 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 Away then with thefe viin Excufer, 
 and let us feek no more fuch wretched 
 Pretences: The belt way to juftifie 
 our felves, is to fly from this Furnace 
 of Babylon, to avoid the Allurements 
 of this Tempter, and, if it is neceflary, 
 with j fofeph rather to leave our Mantle 
 behind us, than not to efcape from the 
 Hands of this Proftitute. ’Tis thus we 
 fhall rejoice in Spirit with an heavenly 
 and ineffable Joy that will not be di- 
 ffurb’d by any Remorfe of Confcience ; 
 and thus having led a Chaff Life here 
 below, we fball be crown’d in Heaven 
 by the Grace and Mercy of our Lord 
 j esus Christ. 
 
 hi the (Preface to his Commentary on 
 St. John’* Gofpel. 
 
 W HAT need I defcribe to you in 
 particular all the Evil of thefe 
 Diverfions, where there are nothing but 
 fhameful Reprefentations, obfceneDif- 
 courfes, Slanders, Buffoonry, and dif- 
 lolute Laughter; every thing there is 
 evil, every thing pernicious. I fpeak 
 to all of you, let not one of you who 
 partake of this Hoiy Table, diforder 
 
 and 
 
againjl Plays and Shews. 
 
 and deftroy his Soul by thefe fatal Di- 
 verfions. All that is done in them is 
 full of the Pomps of Satan, and breaths 
 nothing but Impurity. You know, you 
 who are baptis’d, by what Compaft you 
 are engag’d to us, or rather to Jesus 
 Christ. When he inftrufted you to 
 Baptifm, what did you fay to him 
 touching the Pomps of the Devil ? how 
 did you renounce that wicked Spirit and 
 his Angels ? Did you not promife ne¬ 
 ver to acquiefce in his Maxims or his 
 Works ? How careful then ought we 
 to be that we may not be unfaithful in 
 the Accomplifhment of our Promifes, 
 and render our felves unworthy of thefe 
 facred Myfteries. 
 
 Fifth Century, 
 
 St. Auguftine, in Chap. 2. Book 
 Of his Confeffions. 
 
 I had at that time a violent Paflion 
 for the Diverfions of the Theatre, 
 which were full of the Images of my 
 Mifery, and fomented the Fire with 
 which I burnt. But on what Motive 
 js it that Men run to them with fo much 
 A a | Ardoup 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 Ardour, and defire to be mov’d with 
 Sadnefs in beholding difmal and tragi¬ 
 cal Things, which notwithftanding they 
 would be very unwilling to fuffer f for 
 the Spectators defire to be touch’d with 
 Sorrow, and that Sorrow is their De¬ 
 light : From whence comes this but 
 from a ftrange Difeafe of the Mind ? 
 for a Man is fo much the more affect¬ 
 ed with thefe Poetical Adventures as 
 he is lefs freed from his Paflions. But 
 fince all Men naturally defire to be 
 Joyful, how can they like to be affeCted 
 with Sorrow evpn to Tears? Is it not 
 that tho 5 Man does not take Pieafure 
 in being Miferable himfelf, he takes 
 Pieafure notwithftanding in being 
 mov’d with Pity for others ; and be- 
 caufe he cannot be thu§ movd without 
 a fenfible Sorrow, he by confequence 
 cherifhes and delights in that Sor¬ 
 row. 
 
 The Source of thefe Tears then, is 
 that natural Love which we bear to 
 one another. But whither do the Wa¬ 
 ters run from this Source ? they diffolve 
 and flow into a Torrent of black and 
 filthy Pleafures; for tis into vicious 
 Adions that this natural Love is con¬ 
 verted and changed by its own Mq- 
 
again ft Ways and Shews. 5 5 
 
 <tion, when it wanders and is eftrang’d 
 from the Celeftial Purity of Divine 
 Love. Ought we then to reject the 
 Senfations of Pity and Compaffion ? 
 by no means, nay it muft be own’d 
 that there are fome rencounters in 
 which we may delight in Sorrow. But, 
 
 Q my Soul, guard thy felf from Impu- 
 rity (put thy felf into the Protection, 
 of thy God, who ought to be prais’d 
 and glorify’d to all Eternity) guard 
 thy felf, my Soul, from the Impurity of* 
 a foolife Pity, for there is a wife and 
 reafonable one with which I can even 
 flow be mov’d. But at that time I fear’d 
 in the Joy of thofe Lovers on the Stage, 
 when by their Artifices they fucceeded 
 in their lafcivious Defires, tho’ there 
 was nothing but FiCtion in thofe Re- 
 prefentations, and when thofe Lovers 
 were conftrain’d to feparate, I was 
 afflided with them, as if I had really 
 been mov’d to Pity, and I found no 
 lefs Pleafure in one than the other. 
 
 But now I have more Pity for one 
 who rejoices in his Excefles and his 
 Vices, than for one who is afflicted for 
 !ofs of a pernicious Pleafure, a mifera- 
 ble Felicity. This is what may be 
 A a 4- call’d 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 call’d a true Pity; but in this the 
 Sorrow which we feel for the Mifery 
 of others does not give us Pleafure; 
 for tho’ he who is griev’d at the Mifery 
 of his Neighbour, pays him a Duty of 
 Charity which is commendable; yet 
 he who is truly Companion ate, would 
 much rather not have any Caufe for 
 this Grief: and ’tis as little pollible for 
 him to defire that there fhould be mife- 
 rable Perfons, that he may have an 
 occafion of exercifing his Pity, as ’tis 
 poffible that Goodnefs it felf fhould be 
 malicious, or that Benevolence for our 
 Neighbour fhould induce us to wifh 
 Evil to him. 
 
 So that there may indeed be fome 
 Sorrow allowable, but none that we 
 ought to delight in. This thou fu.rfici- 
 ently fheweft us, O my Lord and God, 
 fince thou who loveft Souls incompa¬ 
 rably better and with more Purity 
 than we love them, exercifeft Mercies 
 on them fo much the greater and more 
 perfed that thou can’ll not be mov’d 
 with any Sorrow. But what Man is 
 capable of fo high a Perfection ? I on 
 the contrary was then fuch a Wretch, 
 that I lov’d to be mov'd with fome 
 Sorrow, and fought Occafions of it, 
 
 there 
 
againjl (plays and Shews. 
 
 there being no A&ions of the Players 
 which charm’d me more, or pleas’d 
 me fo much as when they drew Tears 
 from my Eyes by the Reprefentation 
 of fome Fabulous Misfortunes; and is it 
 to be wonder’d at, fince being then an 
 unhappy Sheep that had wander’d out 
 of the way by leaving the Fold, be- 
 caufe I would not endure to be led by 
 thee, I became as it were all over co¬ 
 ver’d with Scabs. 
 
 Behold from whence proceeded that 
 Delight which I took in grieving, which 
 however was not fuch that I would 
 have wifli’d it to fink deeper into mv 
 Heart, for I fhould not have lik’d to 
 fuffer the Things which I delighted to 
 behold ; but I was glad that the Re¬ 
 cital and Reprefentation of them fhould, 
 as I may fay, fcratch my Skin a little, 
 tho’ afterwards (as it happens to thofe 
 who fcratch themfelves with their 
 Nails) that fhort Satisfa&ion brought 
 a Swelling and Inflammation upon me, 
 from whence corrupted Blood and 
 filthy Matter broke' out. Such was 
 my Life at that time, but, Oh my 
 God ! could that be call d to live. 
 
 V 
 
 t 
 
 hi 
 
 / 
 
5 6 
 
 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 In the Fifth Epifile to Marcel 1 inns. 
 
 N othing is more Unhappy than the 
 Happinefs of Sinners, their Im¬ 
 punity being in effect a Punifhment, 
 ftrengthning a Corrupt Will which is 
 as an Enemy within. But/the Hearts of 
 Men are fo perverfe and blind, that 
 they imagine the World to be in full 
 Felicity, when theln habitants of it think 
 of nothing but adorning and embellifh- 
 ing their Houfes, whilft they take no 
 notice of the mine of their Souls; when 
 magnificent Theatres are built, and 
 the Foundations of Vertue thrown 
 down; when the Cruelty of Gla¬ 
 diators is applauded, and Works of 
 Mercy are derided ; when the abun¬ 
 dance of the Rich maintains the Lux¬ 
 ury of Players, whilft the Poor want 
 what is necelfary for their Subfiftence: 
 when the Impious run down by their 
 Blafphemies the DqQxine of God, who 
 by the Voice of his Preachers exclaims 
 againft this Publick Wickednefs, whilft 
 by the Diverfions of the Theatre which 
 difhonour and corrupt both Soul and 
 Body, they do honour to the Devil. If 
 God permits thele Diforders to pre- 
 
again ft Blays and Shews. 
 
 vail, ’tis then he is raoft angry; if he 
 leaves thefe Crimes unpunifh’d, ’tis 
 then he may be faid to punifb them mod- 
 feverely. But when he takes from 
 Men the means of fupporting their 
 Vices, and by Poverty prevents the 
 Increafe andExcefs ofVoluptuoufnefs 
 this Treatment, however contrary to 
 their Defires, is an effect of his Mer- 
 
 cy. 
 
 In the Firfl Boof of the Harmony of 
 
 the EVangeliJls. 
 
 CHAP. 3! . 
 
 S to the Complaint of the Hea¬ 
 
 thens, that Chriftianity has di- 
 
 minifh’d the Happinefs of the World ; 
 if they will read their own Philofophers, 
 who condemn thofe Things which they 
 are now againfl: their Wills deprived 
 of, they will find that what they com¬ 
 plain of is much to the Commendation 
 of the Chriftian Religion : for what 
 Diminution of their Felicity do they 
 Puffer, unlefs in things which they 
 made a very ill Ufe of to the Difhonour 
 of their Creator ? perhaps they think 
 
 the 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 the Times are Evilbecaufe the Theatres 
 (thofe vile Places where Impurity is 
 openly countenanc’d) are falling to Ru- 
 ine almoft in every City. From whence 
 comes this ? but from that Reforma¬ 
 tion Chriftianity has made in the 
 World, which will not allow thofe 
 Places to be repair’d which were for¬ 
 merly built with a fhameful and facri- 
 legious Profufenefs. Let them confider 
 their own Cicero’s Commendation of a 
 certain Player call’d Rofcius : He was 
 (fays he) fo excellent in his Art, that 
 none but himfelf was worthy to tread 
 the Stage; but on the other fide, he 
 was fo good a Man, that he was the 
 molt unfit Perfon among them to come 
 there. Is not this a plain Affertion, 
 that the Theatre is fo vile a Place, 
 that the more Vertuous a Man is, the 
 more he is oblig’d to keep away from 
 
Agmft Plays and Shews* 
 
 59 
 
 In the Second IBooks of the City of 
 God. 
 
 CHAP. 29. 
 
 5 “g 'IS with Reafon, O Romans, that 
 : you have excluded the Players 
 
 from the Privilege of being Citizens; 
 but awake yet a little more, and you 
 will be fenfible that one cannot render 
 himfelf agreeable to the Majefty of 
 God, by thofe Practices which disho¬ 
 nour the Dignity of Men. How then 
 can you place in the Rank of the Hea-i 
 venly Powers, thofe Gods who are 
 pleas’d with a Worfhip which ren¬ 
 ders thofe who pay it unworthy to be 
 put in the Number of the Roman Citi¬ 
 zens. The Celeftial City is incompa¬ 
 rably more illuftrious, where Dignity 
 is infeparable from Sanctity, where 
 Truth is always Vi&orious, where there 
 j is perpetual Peace and Felicity, and 
 ' where Life is Eternal. If you have 
 i been afham’d to admit fuch Perfonsin- 
 1 to your City to be Fellow-Citizens 
 ! with you, with much greater Reafon 
 ; that holy City will not admit fuch 
 
 fort 
 
6o Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 fort of Gods. If therefore you defire to 
 have a Share in the Felicity of that 
 Bleffed City, fly from the Company of 
 Demons. *Tis a fhameful thing for 
 vertuous Perfons to adore Gods who 
 look with a favourable Eye on the dif- 
 honeft Worfhip which is paid them by 
 vile Perlons. 
 
 Embrace the Chriftian Purity, and 
 put far from you thofe proph&ne Divi¬ 
 nities, as the Cenfors have excluded the 
 Players from your Honours and Dig¬ 
 nities, noting them with Infamy. 
 
 In the Freatife of his Expofition of 
 St. John’s Gofpel. 
 
 CHAP. 16 
 
 G iving your Money to Players is 
 fo far from being a Vertue, that 
 ’tis an enormous Vice. You know$ as 
 well as I, what the Scripture fays of 
 thofe fort of Perfons to whom the World 
 commonly gives Praife and Applaufe: 
 V[dm io. The Sinner is prais’d for the Defires of his 
 3. Hearty and the Wicked is blejl for his 
 Wickednefs . 
 
 tn 
 
again ft (plays and Shews. 6 
 
 in the fecond Pook^concernmg the Creed 
 to the Catechumens. 
 
 CHAP, i, and i. 
 
 K NOW, my Beloved, that our E- 
 nemy the Devil feduces and 
 gains more People by Pleafure than by 
 Fear, for wherefore does he every day 
 fpread the Snare of Shews ? why does 
 he prefent fo much Vanity and vile Di- 
 verfions, which are nothing but Folly 
 and Illufion, unlefs it be to trap thole 
 who had abandon'd him, and to re¬ 
 joice in having found thofe which he 
 had loft? It is not neceffary to enlarge 
 any more upon this Subject, 'twill fuf- 
 fice to reprefent to you in few Words 
 what you ought to rejeft, and in what 
 you ought to delight. Fly from the 
 Publick Shews my Beloved, fly from 
 thofe vile Theatres of the Devil, that 
 you may not be engag’d in the Chains 
 of that wicked Spirit. But if you muft 
 relax your Minds, if you delight in 
 Shews, the Church our venerable Mo¬ 
 ther furnifhes you with fuch as are 
 more excellent and more agreeable than 
 
 thofe# 
 
61 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 s \ r” * ^ * / "* 
 
 thole. Thefe are profitable SpeCtaclel 
 which fill the Soul with Joy. 
 
 In the Eighteenth Sermon of the 
 Words of our Lord* 
 
 \ GOOD Chriftian will not go to 
 J~\. t ^ ie Shews, and by curbing his 
 Defires, and not going to the Theatres, 
 he cries after Jesus Christ, and begs 1 
 to be heal’d. However there are others 
 who flock thither, but perhaps they 
 are Heathens or Jews ; Oh my Breth¬ 
 ren ! if no Chrittians went, the Num¬ 
 ber of Spectators would be fo few, that 
 Shame and Confufion would make 
 them forbear going ; there are Chri- 
 ftians then who are fo unhappy as to go ; 
 to Plays, to carry fo holy a Name thi¬ 
 ther for their Condemnation. But you 
 who do not go there, cry without cea- 
 fing unto Jesus Christ, to implore 
 bis Affiftance. 
 
 Saint 
 
againjt Plays and Shews. 
 
 St. Ifidore, (Presbyter of Damiata, in 
 his Epijlle 336. ©oo 4 3 • 
 
 T H E chief Study of Players is t© 
 corrupt the People and not to 
 render them better ; for ’tis by the De¬ 
 bauchery of their Auditors they have 
 their Gain; fo that if the People were 
 reform’d, the Players Trade would im¬ 
 mediately be ruin’d. ’Tis therefore they 
 have never thought of correcting the 
 Vices of Men, tho if they would endea¬ 
 vour it, they could not bring it about, 
 becaufe Plays in themfelves and of" 
 their own nature cannot but be hurt¬ 
 ful and pernicious. 
 
 In his Bpiftle t8dk Book 5. 
 
 I F it is certain, as without doubt it 
 is, that there will be a future Judg¬ 
 ment ; ’tis certain we muft live ver- 
 tuoufly, But if this appears trouble- 
 fome and difficult to fome, it would 
 become eafy for them if they would 
 avoid the Theatres and Circus , thofo 
 Pefis of the World ; or rather avoid the 
 Cities where thofe Diverfions are,at leaft 
 the Perfons who are addi&ed to them, 
 
 B b In 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 In his Epijlle 465. of the fame Book. 
 
 H E who isextreamly fond of the 
 Diverfions of the Theatre will 
 not have lefs Inclination for vicious 
 Love; avoid then that firft Diforder, 
 that you may not fall into the other ; 
 for it is eafier to deftroy Vice before it 
 has taken root, than to pluck it up af¬ 
 ter it is deeply rooted, which is very 
 difficult, and fome think it even impoD 
 hole. 
 
 IX. Century., 
 
 Fhotius, (Patriarch of Conftantino* 
 pie, in his Nomocanon, Tic. 9. 
 Chap. 27. 
 
 I E a Bifhop or a Clergyman be pre- 
 fent at the Diverfions of the The¬ 
 atre, let them be fufpended from the 
 Fun&ion of their Mini (fry, and be fhut 
 up in a Monaftery during three years: 
 hut if they give Marks of a Sincere 
 Repentance, the Prelates may abridge 
 that time, 
 
 XI. 
 
againft Plays and Shews. 
 
 6 $ 
 
 XI. Century. 
 
 Olympiodoras on Ecclefiaftes,Chap.' 
 
 4. Verfe 17. 
 
 T7E E P thy foot when thou goefi to the Ver f e 
 Houje of God, and draw near to hear .Cow- s- 
 Regulate thy felf, fays the wife Man, 
 in fuch manner, that thou mayft not 
 employ the fame Members to do Evil, 
 which thou makeft ufe of to do good; as 
 if he had faid, Let not thofe Feet which 
 you make ufe of to go to the Temple of 
 God, be employ’d in going to the ob- 
 fcene Diverfions of the Theatre. Learn 
 from hence that you ought to have 
 the fame Care, with refpeft to the other 
 parts of your Body; and certainly thofe 
 who enter the Church of God with 
 clean Feet, ought to take care not to 
 defile them by going to impure and 
 prophane Places which are difpleafing- 
 to God. 
 
 Bb 2 
 
 XIL 
 
 I 
 
66 
 
 Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 XIL Century. 
 
 St. Bernard, in his Treatife of the 
 Change of Manners. 
 
 CHAP. n. 
 
 A S to feeing vain Shews, what Ule 
 are they of to the Body, or what 
 Good do they bring to the Soul ? Cer¬ 
 tainly you will not find that Man reaps 
 any Advantage frontCuriofity. Their 
 Diverfions are meer Fooleries, and I 
 dont know what greater Evil I could 
 wifh them, than the Continuance of 
 thofe vain Amufements, which they 
 feek, and of that curious Inquietude 
 which charms them, and makes them 
 hate the Sweetnefs and Peace of a happy 
 Repofe. ’Tis plain that there is nothing 
 folid in all thefe Pleasures, fince they 
 do not delight in their Continuance and 
 Duration, but in a tranfitory Motion 
 by which they fucceed one another. * If 
 thefe Vanities then are nothing but 
 vain things, as their Name alone fuffi- 
 ciently fhews, the Labour that is em¬ 
 ploy’d about vain things, muft needs 
 
againft 'Plays and Shews. 6y 
 
 be as vain as they. O Glory Glory, 
 lays a Wife Man* what art thou among 
 the greateft part of Men, but a vain 
 Tumour which the Heart conceives 
 through the Ears ? and yet how many 
 Misfortunes does this happy Vanity, or 
 rather this vain Felicity, produce P 
 From thence comes Blindnefs of 
 Heart, according as it is written, Omy^j 
 People , they that call thee happy deceive thee. 
 Certainly ’tis not fo much a Folly, as an 
 Infidelity to delight in things fo mean, 
 or rather things of nothing, and to fet 
 fo little value on that Glory which Eye 
 hath not feen , nor Ear heard , nor hath 
 the Heart of Man conceiv'd the things which 
 God has prepar'd for thofe who love him . 
 
 Johannes Sarisberienfis, Bijhop of 
 Chartres, in his fir/l ‘Bool[ of the 
 Vanities of xhe Court. 
 
 CHAP. 8. 
 
 T HIS Age, by applying it felf to 
 Fables and vain Amufements , 
 does not only proftitute the Eyes and 
 Heart to Vanity, but likewife indul¬ 
 ges its Idlenefj hy the Pleafures of the 
 B b 3 Eyes 
 
Sentiments of the Fathers 
 
 Eyes and Ears, and kindles the Fire of 
 Impurity, feeking on all Tides what is 
 proper to fupport Vice. 
 
 Idlenefs is an Enemy of the Soul, 
 which ftrips it of all its vertuous Incli¬ 
 nations, and therefore a very wife Man 
 gives this Counlel, Let the grand Ene¬ 
 my of Mankind, fays he, find you al¬ 
 ways employ’d, that with as much 
 happinefs as Prudence you may defend 
 your fdf with your Occupations as with 
 a fliield againft all Temptations ; we 
 ought to avoid Idlenefs as a dangerous 
 Sjren^ and, yet the Players draw us to it. 
 Wearinefs eafily flips into an empty 
 Mind, which cannot bear it felf unlefs 
 it has fame Pleafure to divert it; for 
 this reafon Shews have been introduc’d, 
 and all that Train of Vanity, in which 
 thofe who cannot live without Amufe- 
 ments employ themfelves. But this is 
 a pernicious Diforder,- for even Idlenefs 
 would be more adyantagious for them 
 than fo fhamefulan Employment. 
 
 Can you efteem a Man wife, who 
 takes delight in feeing and hearing fuch 
 Fooleries? I do not deny that a good 
 Man may innocently give himfelf fome 
 moderate Pleafure. But it is a fhame- 
 ful thing for a ferious Eerfon todebafo 
 
again ft Tlays and Shews. 69 
 
 and defile himfelf by tbofe fort of vile 
 Diverfions. A Mart of Probity ought 
 not to' look on Shews efpecially on filch 
 as are indecent, left the Incontinence 
 of his Eyes be a Teftimony of the Im¬ 
 purity ofhis Soul. ’Twas with reafon 
 that Pericles being Prator reprehended 
 Sophocles his Colleague in thefe Terms, 
 a Magiftrate ought not only to have 
 his hands pure but even his Eyes. For 
 this reafon a Man to whom Royal 
 Power had given a great Licenfe, makes 
 this Prayer to God, Turn away mine Eyes pf a i. 1 
 that they behold not vanity, for he well 7 - 
 knew that the Sight caufes an infinity 
 of Evils, which the Prophet Jeremiah 
 deplores in his Lamentations, Mine 
 Eyes, fays he, have made a Prey of my Soul. 
 
 You make no doubt that the Authori¬ 
 ty of the Fathers of the Church has ex¬ 
 cluded Players from the holy Commu¬ 
 nion, from whence you may judge what 
 Punifhment thofe who favour them 
 deferve, if you confider that thofe who 
 commit Crimes and thofe who are their 
 Accomplices, ought to be equally pu- 
 nifh’d. For what reafon, fays St. Auftin, 
 do thofe who beftow their Mony upon 
 Tlayers give it to them, but becaufe 
 they delight in the Evil which thofe 
 J5 b 4 infamous 
 
7P Sentiments of the Fathers See. 
 
 infamous Perfons commit. Now can 
 he who is delighted with Evil, and 
 who fupports it, be a Good Man ? 
 
THE 
 
 OPINION 
 
 O F 
 
 St. Franck de Sales , 
 
 Concerning 
 
 Balls, Plays* Games, &c. 
 With Remarks upon it. 
 
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 THE 
 
 OPINION 
 
 0 F 
 
 St. Franck de Sales 5 
 
 Concerning 
 
 Balls, Plays, Games, 
 
 With Remarks upon it. 
 
 CHAP. XXIII, 
 
 Of the firfk (part of the Introduction to 
 a DeVout Life. 
 
 AMES, Balls, Feafts, 
 Plays, and Pompous 
 Drefs are not in them- 
 felves Evil, but indiffer¬ 
 ent, and may be well or 
 f iU us’d; yet notwithftanding thefe 
 
 ‘ things 
 
St. Francis de Sales ’r Opinion 
 
 ‘ things are dangerous, and to be fend 
 ‘ of them is yet more dangerous. I 
 
 * fay then, Philothew , that tho it is 
 
 * lawful to game, to dance, to adorn 
 ‘ ones felf, to banquet, to hear vertu- 
 *• ous Plays; yet to have an Affedion 
 ‘ for thele Things is entirely contrary 
 
 * to Devotion, and extreamly Hurtful 
 
 * and Dangerous. There is no Evil in 
 
 * doing fuch things, but very much in 
 ‘ having an Affedion for them. 
 
 ‘ 'Tis pity to fow fuch vain and fool- 
 ‘ ifh Affedions in the Field of our 
 ‘ Heart ; they take up the room of 
 ‘ vertuous Impreffions, and hinder the 
 ‘ Soul from nourilhing good Inclina- 
 
 * tions. 
 
 ‘ The ancient Nazar it es abfrain’d 
 4 not only from all that might inebri- 
 ‘ ate or make them drunk, but from 
 ‘ Grapes and from Verjuice likewife: 
 4 not that Grapes or Verjuice could in- 
 1 ebriate, but becaufe it was to be 
 ‘ fear’d, that tafting the Verjuice might 
 ‘ tempt them to eat the Grapes, and 
 ‘ that eating Grapes might raife an 
 
 * Appetite of drinking VV me. 
 
 ‘ I deny not but that we may ufe 
 ‘ thefe dangerous Things, but I aflert 
 f abfolutely that we can never have an 
 
 ‘ Affeftion 
 
concerning Balls, Blays, Or. 
 
 * Affection for them without Prejudice 
 ‘ to Devotion. The Stags, when they 
 ‘ find themfelves over Fat, retire to 
 ‘ the Bufhes and Thickets of the Fo- 
 ‘ reft; becaufe they know that being 
 ‘ loaded with their own Weight, they 
 ‘ could not run with Swiftnels, if they 
 ‘ fhould chance to be attack’d. In 
 ‘ like manner the Heart of Man being 
 
 * loaded with thefe fuperfluous, unpro- 
 ‘ Stable and dangerous Affections, 
 ‘ doubtlefs cannot eafily, fwiftly and 
 ‘ readily run after his God, which is 
 ‘ the true Point of Devotion. 
 
 ‘ Little Children run eagerly and 
 ‘ fondly after Butterflies, and no body 
 ‘ thinks it ill in them, becaufe they 
 ‘ are Children: But is it not a ridicu- 
 
 * Ious or rather a lamentable thing, to 
 ‘ fee Men of Underftanding with 
 ‘ Eagernefs and Fondnefs purfuing 
 ‘ Trifles fo unworthy of them, as the 
 4 Things I have nam’d ; which befides 
 ‘ their being altogether Ufelefs, put 
 ‘ us in danger of being difordered and 
 4 corrupted in following them. 
 
 ‘ Therefore, my dear philotheus , I 
 4 fay, that we muft purifie our felves 
 ‘ from thefe Affeftions; for tho’ the 
 
 * Afts themfelves are not always con- 
 
 * trary 
 
St. Francis de Sales j Opinion 
 
 * trary to Devotion, an Affedion to 
 4 them is always prejudicial to it. 
 
 In Chap. 31 of the firft Part. This 
 holy Prelate explains what it is to fet 
 the Heart and the Affedions on thefe 
 Things. Horv innocent joever a Recre¬ 
 ation may be (fays he) 1 tis a Vice to fet 
 the Heart and, defections on it ; I do not 
 fay, that we miifi not take Pleafure in a 
 Recreation whiljt rve are at it, for then 
 it would be no Recreation ; hut I fay, that 
 rve. mujl not Jet our Affection on them to 
 deftne them^ to have the Mind taken up 
 with them, and to be eager at thenr. 
 
 --- ; - i i. 
 
 C H A P. XXXIII. 
 
 Of the Third Tart of the IntroduElion 
 to a T)e>out Life, 
 
 4 T) ALLS and Dancing are Things 
 4 ' !l indifferent in their owmNature, 
 
 ‘ but according to the common way of 
 ‘ ufmg that Exercife, it inclines and 
 4 leans much on the fide of Evil; and 
 4 by confequence is full of Danger and* 
 4 Peril. 
 
 4 It is 
 
 always us’d by Night, and in 
 
concerning Balls, Plays, 6cc. 
 
 4 that time of Darknefs and Obfcuri- 
 4 ty, it is very eafy for many Works 
 ‘ of Darknefs to flip into a Subject, 
 4 which is of it felf extreamly fufcepti- 
 4 ble of Evil. The greateft part, or 
 4 perhaps the whole Night is fpent in it, 
 4 after which the next Morning is flept 
 4 away, and by confequence the Op- 
 4 portunity loft of ferving God in it. 
 4 In a word, ’tis always Folly to turn 
 
 * Day into Night, Light into Dark- 
 4 nefs, and Good Works into Fooleries. 
 4 Every one that goes to Balls, carries 
 4 as much Vanity as he can with him, 
 4 and Vanity is fo great a Difpofition 
 4 to vicious Affections, and to dange- 
 4 rous and unlawful Loves, that thel'e 
 4 things are eafily engender’d at Dan* 
 4 cings. 
 
 4 I fay to you of Dancings, Philo- 
 4 them, what the Phyficians fay of 
 4 Mulhrooms; the belt of them, fay 
 4 they, are nothing worth; and I fay 
 4 likewife, the belt Balls are not good. 
 4 If notwiftanding you muft eat Mufli- 
 
 * rooms, take care, fay they, to have 
 i 4 them well dreft; and if on any Occa- 
 
 4 fion thou canft not well excufe thy felf 
 4 from going to a Ball, take care that 
 4 thv D4nce be well prepar’d. But how 
 1 -' 4 muft 
 
St. Francis de Sales’* Opinion 
 
 4 muff it be prepar’d ? With Modefly, 
 
 * Gravity and a good Intention: Eat but 
 4 feldom, and a little of them at a time, 
 4 faythePhyficiansofMulhrooms, for 
 4 let them beever fo f well dreft,thequan- 
 4 tity makes them poifonous; Dance but 
 4 feldom; and little at a time, Philotheus , 
 4 for other wife you put your felf in dan- 
 ‘ ger ofgrowing fond of them, which as I 
 ‘ have faid,makes them very Pernicious. 
 
 * MufliroomS) according to Pliny, being 
 4 fpongy and full of Pores, eafily attraft 
 ‘ all the Infection round about them; fo 
 4 that if they are near Serpents they re- 
 ‘ ceive Venom from them. Balls, Dan- 
 4 cings,and fuchNightAffembliescom- 
 4 monly attraft all the Vices and Sins 
 ‘ which reign in the Place, Quarrel- 
 4 lings, Envyings, Cenfuring and wan- 
 ‘ ton Loves. And as thefe Exercifes 
 ‘ open the Pores of their Bodies who ufe 
 ‘ them, fo do they open the Pores of the 
 
 * Heart; by means of which, if any 
 ‘ Serpent takes this Opportunity to 
 4 breath into their Ears fome wanton 
 4 Word, fome Gallantry or Love-Toy; 
 ‘ if any Bafilisk call an amorous Glance 
 4 or an unchafi: Look, the Heart eafily 
 4 receives the Infection. 
 
 01 Philotheus , thefe impertinent Re- 
 
 4 creations 
 
concerning Balls, Tlays , See. 
 
 i creations are generally dangerous, 
 ‘ they diifi pate the Spirit of Devotion, 
 ‘ weaken the Forces,diminifh the Love 
 
 * of Gop, and ftir up in the Soul a thou- 
 ‘ fand forts of evil Affettions. There- 
 ‘ fore they are to be us d with great 
 ‘ Prudence* 
 
 ‘ But above all, Phyficians order 
 ( that after Mulhrooms we Ihould 
 ‘ drinkgood Wipe; and I fay, that after 
 ‘ Dancings we fhould ufe good and ho- 
 ‘ ly Confiderations, to prevent thofe 
 ‘ dangerous Imprelfions which the vain 
 ‘ Pleafure taken in Dancing may leave 
 ‘ in our Mindsi But what Confidera- 
 ‘ tions ? Some fuch as thefe; 
 
 ‘ i. At the fame tirne that thou 
 ‘ wert dancing, many Souls burn’d in 
 ‘ Hell Fire for Sins committed on fuch 
 ‘ Occafions. 
 
 ‘ 2. Many religious and devout Per* 
 1 fons were at the fame Hour in the 
 ‘ Prefence of God, finging his Praifes 
 ‘ and contemplating his Perfections. O 
 ‘ how much more happily was their 
 < Time employ’d than thine / 
 
 ‘ 3. Whilft thou wert dancing, ma- 
 
 * ny Souls left this World in great An- 
 ‘ guifh ; thoufands of Men and Wo- 
 
 * men fufl'er’d great Dolors in their 
 
 C c 1 Beds, 
 
B 
 
 St. Francis de Sales** Opinion 
 
 4 Beds, in Hofpitals and in the Streets, 
 
 4 Gout, the Gravel, and Burning Fe- 
 ‘ vers ; alas ! they had then no Reft, 
 4 and thou hadft no Compaftion for 
 4 them; doft thou not think that thou 
 ‘ may ft one Day figh whilft others 
 4 dance, as thou haft now danced whilft 
 4 others figh’d. 
 
 4 4. Our Lord, the Angels and 
 ‘ Saints, beheld thee whilft thou wert 
 4 dancing ; ah ! how did they pity 
 4 thee, feeing thy Heart amus’d ana 
 4 attentive to fo foolifh, fo unprofita- 
 4 ble a thing. 
 
 4 5. Alas! whilft thou wert there, 
 4 Time pafs’d away and Death drew 
 4 nigh; behold him rriocking thee as it 
 4 were, and inviting thee to his Dance, 
 4 in which the fight of thy Friends will 
 4 ferve inftead of Violins, and where 
 4 thou fhalt make but one turn from 
 4 Life to Death. This Dance is the 
 4 true Paftime of Mortals, fince in it 
 4 we pafsin a Moment from Time to 
 4 an Eternity either of Happinefs or 
 4 Mifery. I intimate to you thefe few 
 4 Confiderations, but if you truly fear 
 4 God, he will fuggeft to you many 
 4 others to the fame effect. 
 
 The 
 
concerning Balls, (plays, &C. 
 
 The Kemar^s. 
 
 T HIS is what that holy Bifliop lays 
 of Balls and Plays : fome of thofe 
 who read Authors without that Atten¬ 
 tion and RefleQion which they ought, 
 or who are prepoffeft with their Fond- 
 nefs for Plays and Balls, imagine, that 
 the Opinion of St. Francis of Sales is, 
 that thefe fort of DiverfionS are abfo- 
 lutely indifferent, and that therefore 
 they may make ule of them without 
 any Scruple. 
 
 But if we confider as we fhould, all 
 that this holy Prelate fays, we flhall 
 find that there is nothing farther from 
 his true Opinion. For firjl he does not 
 fay abfolutely that thefe Diverfions are 
 indifferent, but he fays that of them- 
 felves and in their own Nature they 
 are indifferent, and may be well or ill 
 us’d ; but that according to the com¬ 
 mon way of ufing them, they incline to 
 the worfl: Side and are very Dangerous. 
 
 It is evident that this can only be 
 meant of Balls and Plays as confider’d in 
 a Metaphyfical Speculation, and by 
 Mental Abftra&ion feparating them 
 from all their Circumftances. From 
 C ^ whence 
 
Sc. f rauds de Salts’r Opinion 
 
 1 A 
 
 whence it follows, that it cannot be fai 
 of Plays and Balls as they are common¬ 
 ly us'd, that they are things indifferent, 
 and St. Ivdncts of Sties. fhews this iff 
 exprefs terms, when he fays, That 
 according to the commnn: way ofufing 
 thefe Things they learn and .incline 
 much on s th^ .fide of Eyii, , and by 
 Qfi,@&cyft?Oc:c;«flre,f«lf of Petit and- Dan¬ 
 ger, and that notwithfianding thofe 
 things are always Dangerous*, f 
 /(Whenjthisdhdy. BifbppiTays after¬ 
 wards that it. is, allow able to Game, 
 Dance, Adorn ones felf, hear vertu- 
 0us Play s, h,e does not. fpeah of thefe 
 Diverfions as they , jare- commonly 
 fffied, finee he declares in the fame place 
 that thefe, things, according to the or¬ 
 dinary way, of ufing them, incline cn 
 the .fide of Eyi!,, and therefore it is not 
 allowable tp pijaGife themaccording 
 to thefe-Wpfds pf the, Apofile, ab[lain 
 prom all appearance of Evil. ■ ■ , 
 
 Pie fpeaks theff of thefe Diyerfioris 
 only upon Suppofition, that is, Sup- 
 pofmg there w as nothing in them con¬ 
 trary, t.Oi Decency and Virtue, andeven 
 fuppofing there were Balls and Plays 
 Which were in no fefped injurious to 
 Virtue, Decency, or the Precepts of 
 x ;> Chriftianity 
 
concerning LBalls ., Ways, See. 
 
 Chriftianity, he fays, that nqtwith- 
 ftandi’ng tliefe things Wbu'd ftiil be 
 Dangeroiis ; r that } tis the fame with 
 them as with Mufhrooms, the'B^ft are 
 good for nothing. So that, apeordin^ 
 to St, Francis of Sales, that it jfVay be 
 allowable to go to Balls and Plays, ! ji: 
 is reejuifite, firft, that the Ball or Play 
 be vertuous. Secondly thkp we ,'niu/t 
 have no affection Or defire of, theml 
 Thirdly , that we mult bhiy go wh^n 
 we cannot avoid it, without offending 
 againft Charity: the Property of 
 which is, fays lie, to take away 
 Venom from Poyfonbus t;hir|gs, and to 
 
 render thofe aljbvilable Which are. fojh 
 
 An bAAilnl* flxcn n TlnnA-oH i 
 
 Perfons may go to a ; Ball or a 
 without ariy affeQhon to' them., eithe 
 becaufe an abfolute Authority, w’hicli 
 thejf cannot refift (as that pfa Mo¬ 
 ther over her Daughter, or a Husband 
 over his Wife) may engage them, to 
 it contrary to ihbir Inclination;! or bq T 
 caufe they may be in a Stifion which 
 obliges them to be there, to prevent 
 the Difturbance and Quarrels which 
 generally Accompany thofe Alliens. 
 Fourthly, We mull have a Virtue ltrong 
 C c 3 enough 
 
 IG 
 
St. Francis de Sales’* Opinion 
 
 enough to overcome the Temptations 
 and Dangers of Balls and Plays. Fifthly , 
 We muft praCiife the Advice which 
 this Prelate gives thereupon. 
 
 ’Tis delighting to blind and deceive 
 ones felf, to draw, from what this Holy 
 Bifhop fays, Licence for every body in¬ 
 differently to go to Balls and Plays, 
 tho he only gives it on fuppofition, 
 that there are virtuous Balls and Plays, 
 that is, inw’hich there is nothing con¬ 
 trary to good Manners and to the Pu¬ 
 rity of our Religion, and tho he grants 
 it to thofe only who cannot refill- an 
 abfolute Authority which carries them 
 thither, tho he makes this condefcenfi- 
 pn, only to Devout Perfons, who like 
 well lighted Torches, the Flame of 
 Which is increas’d by the Winds, do in 
 the midft of Temptations redouble the 
 Ardour of that Divine Love, with 
 which their Hearts are enflam’d, and 
 tho in fine he gives his Confent only to 
 thofe who exactly follow the Inftr uni¬ 
 ons he prefcribes in his Introduction, 
 which are fuch as cannot be practis’d 
 without producing in the Soul a great 
 Difguft to all thofe Diverfions, and ren- 
 dring them extreamly uneafy to thofe 
 who are oblig’d to go to them. There 
 
concerning I 'Balls , Tlays, See. 
 
 is noreafonable Perfon, who confidering 
 with attention all that we have been 
 faying, will not own, that no other thing 
 caij be concluded from St. brands of 
 Sales Difcourfe, with refpeft to Balls 
 and Plays, as they are now in ufe, but 
 that we ought to avoid them. 
 
 A 
 
 C c 4 
 
J 
 
 
 
 I 
 
 K 
 
 
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 DISCOURSE 
 
 0 N 
 
 Chriftian Perfection, 
 
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 DISCOURSE 
 
 OF THE 
 
 Archbifhop of Cambrays, 
 
 O N 
 
 Chriftian Perfection. 
 
 Hriftian Perfection has not 
 at all thofe Severities, 
 that Irkfomenefs, nor 
 thofe Reftraints in it, that 
 are commonly imagin’d. 
 It requires indeed that we give up our 
 felves wholly, 2nd from the bottom of 
 our Hearts to God ; but then every 
 thing we do for his fake becomes eafy. 
 Thofe who have entirely and without 
 Referve given themfelves up to God, 
 are always contented ; whatever he 
 
 wills, 
 
a. Of CbriJHan Terfe&ion. 
 
 wills, they will, and are ready to do 
 for his Sake. They renounce all, and 
 find the Hundred-fold in thus empty¬ 
 ing themfelves, Peace of Confidence, 
 Freedom of Spirit, Pleafure in being 
 plac’d within the Arms of their God, 
 Joy in perceiving Light daily fpring- 
 ing up in their Souls, Liberty from, 
 the Fears and Tyrannical Defires of 
 the World. Such is the Hundred-fold 
 ofBlifs, which the Children of Go® 
 polfefs even in this Life , if they but 
 continue faithful to him. They make 
 an entire Sacrifice of themfelves, but 
 it is to him they love; they ftrip 
 themfelves, but ’tis of what they no 
 longer love; they fuffer, but it is their 
 Choice to fuffer, and they prefer pro¬ 
 fitable Sufferings to fa He. Delights : 
 Their Bodies endure fharp Afflifti- 
 ons; polfibly their Imaginations may 
 be disordered, and their Spirits may 
 fail, but their Wills continue calm, and 
 inceifantly fay Amen to all thofe Stripes 
 with which God chaftifes them for 
 their Sandification. 
 
 God requires of us^only, a Will that 
 is not divided between himfelf and the 
 Creatures, a Will that is pliant in his 
 Hands, which neither defires nor refufes 
 
 any 
 
3 
 
 Of Chriflian TetfeSlion. 
 
 any thing, which wills without Excep¬ 
 tion every thing that He wills, and upon 
 no Pretence whatfoever wills what he 
 wills not. When once one is brought 
 to this Difpofition, every thing becomes 
 Profitable to him, and even the moft 
 ufelefs Amufements are converted into 
 good Works. Happy is he who gives 
 himfelf up to God, he is fet free from 
 his own Paflions, and from the Opini¬ 
 ons of Men, from their Malice, and 
 from the Tyranny of their Cufioms, 
 from their poor and wretched Raillery, 
 from the Misfortunes which the World 
 aferibes to Chance, from the Uncon- 
 ftancy and Unfaithfulnefs of Friends, 
 from the Artifices and Snares of Ene¬ 
 mies, from his own WeaknefTes,from the 
 Miieries and Inftability of Life, from 
 the Horrors of an Irreligious Death, 
 from the cruelRemorfe that attendsCri- 
 minal Pleafures, and finally from the 
 Eternal Condemnation of God. How 
 can he but be delivered from that in¬ 
 finite number of Miferies, feeing he 
 has placed his Will in the Hands of 
 God, and willing nothing but what he 
 wills, finds amidft all his Sufferings, 
 his whole Confolation in his Faith and 
 in his Hope? 
 
 What 
 
Of Cbrljlidk ^perfection. 
 
 What Weaknefs is it, to be afraid 
 of gjving up ones felf to God, or of 
 engaging too far in a State fo much 
 to be coveted ? Thrice happy thofe 
 who throw themfelves without Re- 
 ferve into the Arms of the Father of 
 Mercies^ and the God of all Confolation ; 
 as St. Faul fpeaks. Then wifi they de¬ 
 fire nothing but to know their Duty, 
 and fear nothing fo much, as not to 
 perceive what he requires; and when 
 they difeover fonte new Light in Di¬ 
 vine Things, they are tranfported with 
 Joy like a Mifer when he has found a 
 Hidden Treafure. A true Chriftian in 
 every Misfortune which Providence 
 lays upon him, wifbes juft that which 
 happens to him, and nothing of that 
 which he wants; for the more he loves 
 God, the more contented he is^ and 
 the moft fublime Perfe&ion, inftead of 
 making his Yoke more weighty, ren¬ 
 ders it light. 
 
 What Madnels is it to be afraid of 
 giving up ones felf too much to God ? 
 that is, to be afraid of being too hap¬ 
 py, to be afraid of having too much 
 Fortitude in the unavoidable Miferies 
 of Life, too much Confolation in the 
 Courfe of Virtue, of being fet too free 
 
 from 
 
Of dm Jilin (perfeBto}}. 
 
 from the Tyranny of our Paflions, which 
 make us miferable. 
 
 Let us then defpife the Things of 
 this World togive up our felves entire- 
 to God. I fay not that we are abfo- 
 lutely to throw them all up. When 
 one is already engag’d in an honeft 
 Calling, let him but change the Prin¬ 
 ciple of his afting, and he will do much 
 the fame Things out of Love to God 
 which he did before. God never over¬ 
 turns the Ranks and Conditions ofMen, 
 nor deftroys the Funftions he himfelf 
 has ordain’d. We then fhould do for the 
 Service of God what we now do, to 
 pleafe Men and to content our felves: 
 there would then be this happy Differ¬ 
 ence only, that inftead of our being de¬ 
 vour’d by our Pride, our Paflions,ana the 
 malicious Cenfures of the World, we 
 fhould aft with Freedom, with Cou¬ 
 rage, and with Hope in God; we fhould 
 then be enlivened with a generous 
 Confidence; and we fhould be fupport- 
 ed by the Expeftation of thofe good 
 Things which fhall never perifh, which 
 are advancing toward us, while the 
 Things of this World are continually 
 Aiding from us. The Love of God, 
 which would make us feel the Love he 
 
 bears 
 
Of Cbn[Uatt TerfeHioff. 
 
 tears to us, would give us Wings to 
 foar in the Regions of Joy and Delight,- 
 and carry us on high above all our Mi- 
 feries. If we have any Difficulty to 
 believe this, our Experience will foon 
 convince us of it. Come , fee and tajle, 
 fays David , how Gracious the Lord is. 
 When Piety is built on its Fundamen¬ 
 tal Principle, the Will of God, with¬ 
 out confulting the Tafte, the Conftitu- 
 tion, or the Sallies of an ungovernable 
 Zeal: Oh/ how Simple, Sweet, Eafy, 
 Lovely, Difcreet, and Free it is in all 
 its Steps; one lives then much as others 
 do, without Affe&ation, without any 
 fhew of Aufterity, with Complaifance 
 and good Manners, but in a conftant 
 Obfervanceof all his Duty, renouncing 
 continually every thing that does not 
 from Time to Time tall in with the 
 Order of God, to whom he facrifices 
 all the irregular Motions of Nature. 
 And this is that Wor{hippwg in Spirit and 
 in Truth , which Jesus Ch RisTfays his 
 Father requires. Every thing elfe is a 
 Religion of Ceremony , and a mere 
 Shadow rather than the Truth. 
 
 JeSus Christ tells us in general, 
 That rve mufi take up his Crofs to be his 
 l)ifciples. and to follow him ) that we 
 1 muft 
 
 / 
 
7 
 
 Of Cbriftian (perfection. 
 
 muft enter in At the ftrait Gate ; that rve 
 muft do Violence to our [elves to gain the 
 Kjngdom of Heaven • that rve muft be born 
 again, that rve muft deny our [elves, lute 
 our [elves • that rve muft not be conform’d 
 to this World, which is accurfed, becaufe of 
 Offences. 
 
 Thefe Truths frighten a great many, 
 becaufe they only know what this Re¬ 
 ligion obliges them to do, without 
 knowing what it makes them love; they 
 fee the Crofs it prefents, but are alto¬ 
 gether ignorant of that Love it infpires 
 them with which makes it light, and 
 know not that it brings Men to the 
 higheft Perfection, by Senfations which 
 iweeten the moil toilfome Labours. 
 
 Miferable are thofe flothful and irre- 
 folute Souls, who are divided betwixt 
 God and the World; they are rent in 
 Pieces at once by their PalEons and by 
 their Remorfe; they dread both the 
 Judgments of God and the Opinions of 
 Men ; they abhor Evil, and yet are a- 
 fham’d of Good; they fuffer all the Pains 
 of Virtue, without tailing of the Plea- 
 fures: Oh ! w’hat Peace would they 
 not enjoy in the Bofom of their God, 
 had they but fo much Courage as to de- 
 fpife the Opinions of Men. 
 
 D d Oh ! 
 
Of Chriflian Terfeftion. 
 
 Oh! how dangerous it is for our Salva¬ 
 tion, how unworthy cf Rational Crea¬ 
 tures, how deftru&ive of our Peace, to 
 dwell within our own felves for ever. 
 Our whole Life was given us for no o- 
 ther end, but that we might advance 
 apace to our Heavenly Country. The 
 World flies away like a treacherous 
 Shadow, Eternity already advances to 
 receive us, why linger we to march, 
 while the Day of Mercy fhines on us 
 let us haften to arrive at the Kingdom 
 of Heaven. 
 
 The firft Commandment of the Law 
 Is fufficient alone to overthrow in a Mo¬ 
 ment all the Pretences that can be made, 
 for receiving any thing from God; 
 Thou fljalt love the Lord thy God with all 
 thy Hearty with all thy Souly with all thy 
 Mindy and with all thy Might. Obferve 
 how many Words the Holy Spirit joins 
 together, to prevent any Referve which 
 Man would make in prejudice of that 
 Love, which requires every thing to 
 be facrificed to it: Behold a Love jea¬ 
 lous and commanding ; all is not too 
 much for it ; there is but one onely 
 way of loving God fincerely, which is 
 to make no Conditions with him, but 
 with a generous Refolution to follow 
 whitherfoever he leads. A11 
 
Of Chrijlian tyerfeElion. 
 
 All thofe who are cautious and re- 
 ferv’d in their AfFe&ions, who would 
 love God for fear of Punifhment, but 
 are willing to be a little deaf, when he 
 fpeaks to them of renouncing the World 
 and thenifelves, run a great Hazard of 
 being of thofe Luke-warm ones, whom 
 jefus Chrift fays he will fpue Out. 
 
 We are not truly reafonable but in 
 as far as we confult the Will of God, 
 in order to conform Our Wills to it. 
 This is the Light we ought to follow, 
 all other Lights are Deceitful. Blind 
 are they then who think themfelves 
 wife, and have not the Wifdom of Je¬ 
 fus Chrift : They run after Phantoms 
 in a profound Darknefs ; they ate like 
 thofe who in a Dream think themfelves 
 awake, and imagine all the Obje&s in 
 their Dream to be real. Thus all the 
 Great ones of the Earth, all the wife 
 Men of the World, all thofe who are 
 bewitched with falfe Pleafures, are de¬ 
 luded. There are none but the Chil¬ 
 dren of God who walk in the Light of 
 pure Truth. What is it that attends 
 Men of ambitious and vain Imaginati¬ 
 ons ? often Difgrace, always Death, 
 the Judgment of God and a miferable 
 Eternity. Thefe are the great and 
 D d 2 terrible 
 
Of Chrif ictn (perfection . 
 
 terrible Scenes which advance and open 
 to the View of irreligious Men, yet 
 they perceive them not; their Policy 
 can forefee every thing except the in¬ 
 evitable Deftruftion of every thing they 
 purfue. O ye Blind, when will ye o- 
 pen your Eyes to the Light of Jefus 
 Chrift, which would difcover to you 
 the Nothingnefs of all Humane Great- 
 nefs ? They feel they are not truly Hap¬ 
 py, and yet they ftill entertain Hopes 
 of becoming fo, by thofe very Things 
 which render them Miferable. That 
 which they want, torments them, that 
 which they poflefs does not fatifie them; 
 their Sorrows are real, their Joys fliort, 
 vain and pernicious, and coft them 
 more than they are worth. Their whole 
 Life is a conftant fenfible Experience of 
 their Error ; the Eternal Judgment is* 
 already hanging over their Heads; 
 their Fantaftick Joys are juft changing 
 into everlafting Weeping and Howl¬ 
 ing ; their Life is a Shadow juft difap- 
 .pearing : or at moft, like a Flower, 
 which in the Morning blows and flou- 
 fifties, but in the Evening, fades, wi¬ 
 thers, and falls to the Ground. 
 
 What is become of thofe foolifh 
 Worldlings? ye might have feenthem 
 
Of Cbriftian (perfection. 
 
 at the Hour of their Death caff down, 
 trembling and confounded; they ac¬ 
 knowledge their having been miferably 
 deceiv’d,they deplore their fatalMiftake, 
 and even run from one Extream to ano¬ 
 ther ; for after having lived without any 
 Regard to Religion, they become Su¬ 
 perstitious and Cowardly at their Death,, 
 
 Is it not deplorable, that Men will 
 rather hazzard their All forever, than 
 reftrain their irregular Inclinations, and 
 yet nothing is more common. Remon- 
 ftrate to them as much as you pleafe, 
 the Vanity and Nothingnefs of their 
 Expectations, from the Infiifficiency 
 of all created Things. Obferve to them 
 the Shortnefs of Life, the Inconftancy 
 of Friends, the Deceitfulnefs of Great 
 Offices, the unavoidable Difquiets that 
 attend them, the Difappointments of 
 their molt refin’d Projects, the Empty- 
 nefs of all the Things they poffefs, the 
 Reallity of all the Miferies they fuffer. 
 How real and lenfible foever all thefe 
 Obfervations may be, they only glance 
 on the Heart, they never pafs the Sur¬ 
 face, the Man is not inwardly chang’d. 
 He groans to feel himfelf a Slave to Va¬ 
 nity,and yet does not fbake offtheSlavery. 
 
 Vfhat muff he do then to be fet free 
 D d 3 from 
 
 1 1 
 
Of Chriflian fterfeclion. 
 
 from fuch a deplorable Eftate ? he mull 
 pray to be inwardly enlighten’d, and 
 then he will perceive the Abyfsof Good- 
 nefs that is in God, and the Abyfs and 
 Nothingnefs of Evil, which is in the 
 Corrupted Creatures ? then he will de- 
 fpife himfelf, hate himfelf, diftruft him- 
 felf, forfake himfelf, and lofe himfelf 
 in the Abyfs of the Divine Mercy. What 
 a happy Lofs will this be, when he 
 fhall find himfelf without feeking him¬ 
 felf in contemplating God ; one per¬ 
 ceives the Vanity of the World, which 
 in a fhort time will vanifh like Smoak. 
 All its Grandeur and Pageantry fhall 
 fiie away ; every High Thing lhall be 
 brought Low, all Dominions crufh’d, 
 and every Haughty Head humbled 
 under the weight of the Eternal Maje- 
 fty of God, in that Day when he fhall 
 come to give Judgment on Mankind. 
 With one Look only fhall he extinguifh 
 every thing that glitters in this our 
 Night, as the Rifing Sun extinguifhes 
 the Stars; we fhall then behold nothing 
 bur God every where, fo Glorious will 
 he appear; it will be needlels to feek 
 him, tor we fhall fee nothing but him, 
 whofe Boundlefs Nature fills all things. 
 Where are now, fhall they then fay, 
 
Of Chrifiian (Perfection. I 5 
 
 thofe fine Obje&s that once fo bewitch’d 
 our Hearts ? where are the Marks of 
 them? where was it we faw them? 
 alas! there is not remaining the leaft 
 Footftep of the Place where they once 
 had been, they are gone like a Shadow 
 which the Sun chafes away, fcarcely is 
 it true that they once have been, fo 
 true it is, that now they are not. 
 
 But fuppofe that this World was ne¬ 
 ver to have an end, it will in a fhort 
 time abandon and entirely forget you, 
 do whatever you can J } a little fooner, or 
 a little later, in a frnall number of 
 Years, which will run like a Viper, and 
 difappear like a Dream; your younger 
 Days will quickly pafs over, the World 
 will flhift to the other fide, and leave 
 nothing behind but Contempt and Difi- 
 guft for thofe who have not learn d in 
 time to defpife it. The Time is juft 
 at hand, it is already come, here it is; 
 let us hafte to prevent it, let us love E- 
 ternal Beauty which never grows Old, 
 nor fuffer thofe to grow Old who love 
 nothing but it. Let us defpife this ac- 
 curfed World which already onallfides 
 is falling to Ruine. Have we not feen, 
 fince ever we could make any Obferva- 
 tion, that all Perfons of the highefi: and 
 D d 4 moft 
 
 v_ 
 
} 4 Of Chriflian TerfeSlion . 
 
 mod eminent Ranks, have been fur- 
 prifed by Death. All have been (wal¬ 
 low'd up by the devouring Gulph of 
 Eternity. There has rifen up as it 
 were a new World out of the Grave of 
 that which was in being when we firft 
 faw the Light. As fhort as our Life 
 is, we muft look out for new Friends, 
 having loft all our old ones. Here’s 
 no longer the fame Family, fome other 
 unknown Relations have come up in 
 its Place. We fee even a whole Court 
 difappear at once, others are now in the 
 room of thofe we formerly admired, 
 and come to dazzle us awhile in their 
 turn. What is become of all thofe 
 mighty Aclors who crowded the Stage 
 30 Years ago ? is this then that World 
 that fo attracts us ? where all our Act¬ 
 ing is juft but to pafs over the Stage, 
 and then make our Exit. It is nothing 
 but Mifery, Vanity, and Madnefs; 
 or as St. Paul exprefles it, It is but the 
 Shadow of a Figure that pafjes away . O 
 fleeting and foolifh World ! doft thou 
 think tec maintain thy Credit with us 
 for ever? what Impudence is it in thee^ 
 to think to cheat tts with fuch vain and 
 empty Phantoms ? thou art nothing 
 but a Dream, and ytet wouldft have us 
 
Of Chriftian (Perfection, 1 5 
 
 rely on thee : we feel, even whilft we 
 enjoy thee, that thou haft nothing real 
 to fatisfy our Defires. How dareft thou 
 give Magnificent Names to Glorious 
 Miferies, and offer them to us with 
 fuch a finding Countenancewhy doft 
 thou amufe us with fo many agreeable 
 Vanities? thou art juft this Moment 
 to difappear, and yet dareft undertake 
 to make us Happy. 
 
 FINIS. 
 
ERRATA. 
 
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