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340 MONTAIGNE'S ESSAYES
our rivers: follow them upward into their source, and
you shall find them hat a bubble of water, scarce to
be discerned, which in gliding on swelleth so proud
and gathers so much strength Behold the ancient
considerations which have given the first motion to
this famous torrent, so full of dignitie, of honour and
reverence, you shall finde them so light and weake
that these men which will weigh all and complaine
of reason, and who receive nothing upon trust and
authoritie, it is no wonder if their judgments are often
far distant from common judgement. Men that take
Natures first image for a patterne it is no marvaile if
in most of their opinions they miss the common-beaten
path. As for example few amongst them would have
approved the false conditions of our marriages, and
most of them would have had women in community
and without any private respect. They refused our
ceremonies: Chrysippus said that some Philosophers
would in open view of all men shew a dozen of
tumbling-tricks, yea, without any slops or breeches,
for a dozen of olives. He would hardly have perswaded
Calisthenes to refuse his faire daughter Agarista
to Hippoclides, because he had seen him graft the
forked tree in her upon a table. Metrocles somewhat
indiscreetly, as he was disputing in his Schole, in
presence of his auditory, let a fart, for shame whereof
he afterwards kept his house and could not be drawen
abroad untill such time as Crates went to visit him,
who to his perswasions and reasons, adding the example
of his liberty, began to fart a vie with him and to
remove this scruple from off his conscience; and moreover
won him to his Stoicall (the more free) Sect, from
the Peripateticall (and more civill) one, which thetherunto
he had followed. That which we call civilitie
not to dare to doe that openly, which amongst us is
both lawfull and honest, being done in secret, they
termed folly : And to play the wilie Foxe in concealing
and disclaiming what nature, custome, and
our desire publish and proclaime of our actions, they
deemed to be a vice. And thought it a suppressing