EXTRACT. CHAPTER XVI. "Of Margaret the Wife of Herman, Earle of Henne berge. THIS Ladie lived in the time of Henrie the 3d. Emperor, who brought forth at one birth 365 children, the just number of daies in the yeare; in memory whereof, not far from Leiden in Holland, in a village called Lansdunen, there is yet a faire table of marble, which containeth the whole historie of this stupendious accident; which, as it there standeth ingraven upon the marble, I will truly relate: for I my self have twice or thrice, when I lived in Holland, seen the same: these two verses are ingraven uppermost, En tibi monstrosum nimis, et memorabile factum, Margaret the wife of Herman, Earle of Henneberge, and daughter of Florence the 4th Earle of Holland and Zeland, sister of William, King of the Romanes, and after Cæsar, or Governor of the empire, and of Alithea, Countesse of Henault, whose uncle was the Bishop of Utrecht, and cousin to the Duke of Brabant, and the Earle of Thuringia, &c. This noble Countesse being about forty yeares of age, upon Easter day, and aboute nine of the clocke in the yeare of our Lord, 1276, was brought to bed of three hundred sixtie and five children, all which were baptized in two brazen basons, by Guido the Suffragane of Utrecht; the males, how many soever there were of them, were christened by the name of John; the daughters were al named Elizabeth, who all together with their mother dyed the same day, and with their mother lie buried in this church of Losdunen. This happened by the meanes of a poore woman, who carried in her armes two children, who were twinnes, and both of them males, which the Countesse admiring, said, That she could not have them by one father, and so shooke her off in contempt and scorn. Whereupon this poore woman, being much perplexed in her mind, presently prayed to God to send her as many children as there were dayes in the whole yeare: which thing beside the course of nature, in a stupendious, and wonderfull manner came to passe, as it is briefly set downe and declared in this table for a perpetuall memorie, testified as well by ancient manuscripts, as by many printed chronicles. The Almightie and great God of Heaven hereupon bee feared, honoured, and praysed, from this time forth evermore. Amen." Spare-Minutes; or resolved Meditations, and Premeditations and premeditated Resolutions. Written by Arthur Warwick. Ego cur acquirere pauca Si possim invidear? The fift Edition. "London, printed by G. M. for Walter Hammond, and are to be sold by Michael Sparke, in. Greene Ar bour, 1636." Small 12mo. pp. 92. 2d. Part, pp. 99; DEDICATION. "To the Right Worshipful, my much honoured Friend, Sir William Dodington, Knight, all health and happiness. "RIGHT WORSHIPFUL, I WILL not make an over large gate to my little city a short epistle best suits with so small a volume; and both fitly resemble your knowledge of me, and mine acquaintance with you, short and small. But a mite freely given makes a poor widow liberal; and in this present, poor, like my abilities, is a thankfulness, infinite like your deservings. To speak much might be thought flattery; to say nothing, would be known ingratitude: I must therefore be short; I may not be silent. The happy fortune of my tongue hath encouraged my pen: And I humbly crave in the one, what I favourably found in the other, a courteous acceptance. Which if you please to add to your former favours and my happiness, I shall have just cause to rest Your Worship's truly devoted ARTHUR WARWICK." RESOLVED MEDITATIONS, ETC. I. It is the over-curious ambition of many, to be best or to be none: if they may not do well as they would, they will not do so well as they may. I will do my best to do the best; and what I want in power, supply in will. Thus whiles I pay in part, I shall not be a debtor for all. He owes most that pays nothing. II. 1 "Pride is the greatest enemy to reason, and discretion the greatest opposite to pride. For whiles wisdom makes art the ape of nature, pride makes nature the ape of art. The wise man shapes his apparel to his body; the proud man shapes his body by his apparel. 'Tis no marvel then, if he know not himself, when he is not to day, like him he was yesterday; and less marvel, if good men will not know him, when he forgets himself, and all goodness. I should fear, whiles I thus change my shape, lest my Maker should change his opinion and finding me not like him he made me, reject me, as none of his making. I would any day put off the old cause of my apparel, but not every day put on new fashioned apparel. I see great reason to be ashamed of my pride; but no reason to be proud of my shame." III. "The reason that many men want their desires is, because their desires want reason. He may do what he will, that will do what he may." XXII. "Abundance is a trouble; want a misery; honour a burden; baseness a scorn; advancements dangerous; disgrace odious. Only a competent estate yields the quiet of content. I will not climb, lest I fall; nor lie on the ground, lest I am trod on. I am safest whiles my legs bear me. A competent heat is most healthful for my body; I would desire neither to freeze nor burn." XXXII. "When I see leaves drop from their trees, in the beginning of Autumn, just such, think I, is the friendship of the world. Whiles the sap of maintenance lasts, my friends swarm in abundance; but in the winter of my need, they leave me naked. He is an happy man that hath a true friend at his need: but he is more truly happy that hath no need of his friend.” L. "It is one, not of the least evils, not to avoid the appearance of evil, which oft makes the innocent justly punished with undeserved suspicion. I would desire to be thought good; yet I had rather be so. It is no small happiness to be free from suspicion; but a greater to be void of offence. I would willingly be neither evil, nor suspected: but of the two, I had rather be suspected, and not deserve it, than deserve evil, and not be suspected." PART II. (POSTHUMOUS.) An engraved Frontispiece by T. Clarke. "A brief Elogium upon this Author, and his pious Meditations, with an allusion to this emblematical Frontispiece. BY GEORGE WITHER. "Inflam'd with love, and winged with desire, This pious heart, in life-time, did aspire |