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616 THREE PROPER AND WITTIE
when by the fauourable, and gratious aspect of
some blessed Planet, and specially our Mercury,
or your Venus, it is our good Fortune, to lighte
on such good fnendes, as you, and some other
good Gentlewoomen be, that take pleasure, and
comfort in such good things Wherat Mistresse
lnqumtiua, laughing right out, and beginning
to demaunde I know not uhat, (me thought,
shee made, as if it shoulde haue been some
goodly plausible Jest, wherat shee is, and takes
her selfe prettily good ) Well, vtell, Master H
quoth the Gentleman of the house, now you
Master H s short, bu
Iudgement of
TRuely Syr, vnder correction, and in my
fancie The Earthquakes themselues I
would saye are Naturall as I veryIy beleeue the
Intemall Causes thereof,are I meane those two
Causes, which the Logicians call, the Material!,
and the Formall Marry, the Externall Causes,
which are the Efficient and Finall, I take rather
of the two, to be supernaturall I must craue
a little leaue to la\e open the matter
The Matenall Cause of Earthquakes, (as was
superficially touched in the beginning of our
speache, and is sufficiently prooued by Arts
totle m the seconde Booke of his Meteors) is no
doubt great aboundance of wyndc, or stoare of
grosse and drye \apors, and spintes, fast shut
vp, and as a man would say e, emprysoned in the
Caues, and Dungeons of the Earth which
winde, or vapors, seeking to be set at libertie,
and to get them home to their Naturall lodgings,
in a great fume, violently rush out, and
as it were, breake prison, which forcible Eruption,and
strong breath,causeth an Earthquake
As is excel'ently, and very huely expressed of
Outd, as I remember, thus
Vts fera veniorum cœcis inclusa cauerms,
Exspirare aliqub cupiens, luclataque frusira
Ltberiore frut coelo, cum car cere Rtma
Nullaforet, toto nee peruia flattbus esset,
Fxlentam tutnefeat humum, ceu spirilus oris,
Tendere vesicant solet, and so foorth
The formall Cause, is nothing but the very
manner of this same Motion, and shaking of
the Earth without and the violent kmde of
stnuing, and wrasthng of the windes, and
Exhalations within which is, and must needes
be done in this, or that sort, after one fashion,
or other Nowe syr, touching the other two
haue plavde your part so cunningly with the
Gentlewoomen, (as I warrant you shall be re
membred of Inqutsttiua, when you are gone,
and may happely forget her which I hope,
Mistresse lncredula will do sometyme too, by
hir leaue ) I pray you in earnest, let vs men
learne some thing of you too and especially
I would gladlv heare your Iudgement, and
! resolution, whether you counte of Earthquakes,
as Naturall, or Supernaturall motions But the
shorter, all the better To whom I made
answere, in effect, as followeth
: sharpe, and learned
Earthquakes.
Causes, which I named Externall The first
immediate Efficient, out of all Question, is
God himselfe, the Creatour, and Contmuer, and
Corrector of Nature, and therefore Supernaturall
whose onely voyce carneth such a
reuerend and terrible Maiestie with it, that the
very Earth againe, and highest Mountames
quake and tremble at the sounde and noyse
thereof the text is rife in euery mans mouth
Locutus est Dominus et contremutt Terra how
beit, it is not to be gamesayd, that is holden of
all the auncient Naturall Philosophers, and
Astronomers, for the principall, or rather sole
Efficient, that the Influence, and hcate of the
Sunne, and Starres, and specially of the three
superior Planets, Saturnc, luptter, and Mars,
is a secondane Instrumentall Efficient of such
motions
The finall, not onely that the wynde shoulde
recouer his Naturall place, than nhich a
naturall reasonable man goeth no farther, no
not our excellentest profoundest Philosophers
themselues but sometime also, I graunt, to
testifie and denounce the secrete wrathe, and
indignation of God, or his sensible punishment
vppon notorious malefactours, or, a threat
ning Caueat, and forewarning for the inhabi
tantes, or the like, depending vppon a super
naturall Efficient Cause, and tending to a
supernaturall Morall End
Winch End, (for that I knowe is the very
poynt, whereon you stande) albeit it be ac
knowledged Supernaturall and purposed, as I
sayd, of a supernaturall Cause, to whom
nothing at all is impossible, and that can worke
supernaturally, and myraculously without
ordinane meanes, and infenour causes yet
neuerthelesse is, we see, commonly performed,