this great Work, must he not firft necessarily confider the refpective Gradations of the four grand Qualities, hom they stand in their Government, whether equal or the contrary, and which of them have the Dominion and Afcendency? Thefe, I say, are the Texts, whereby he must defcribe the Natures, Virtues and Vices of them all, and within the Limits and Operations of thefe four Qualities, he is bound and incircled, and he • that has obtained this Spring-head of Bleffing, to know God, bimself, and the Nature and Operation of things, cannot fail at fight to defcribe any Animal, Vegetable, or the like, and to show their inward Virtues, Vices and Complexions, according to his Gift, Circle or Orb he moves in. But, notwithstanding the Objection made concerning the Repetitions that are difper fed here and there in thefe my Letters, the reafon and neceffity whereof I have fully fet forth in the Premiffes, which are fufficient to fatisfy the Scruples of the understanding Reader, and which is all I care for, yet I am to take notice, that there are a great many things contained therein, that are perfectly Novel, for tho there is nothing new under the Sun, and that most of the Subjects have at one time or another been handled after a fort, yet I dare avow it has been quite after a different Method and Form, and no fuch Super-structure erected from fundamental Principles are herein fet down all along: It cannot be expeEted, and it will be too tedious to enter now upon Particulars, they will beft appear in the Perufal of the Work it felf, and therefore as I cannot fee any thing farther to be Objected against me, than that I have been Prolx, and have not confined my felf within the juft Limits of an Epistolary Method, all that I fay, is, that upon my Refolution to publish them, as aforesaid, I found it neceffary, in the Revifing them, to alter fome to enlarge and exemplify others, and to add divers things in divers parts of them, by way of Illustration, which made made them fpin out to fuch a length, as His highly Oblig'd and you fee them, Bom fit and #fato fall th apor Pardon, Very humble Servant, Thomas Tryon. THE CONTENTS. L' Etter 1. Of the noble Senfe of Hearing, with the Letter 3. Of the Senfe of Tafting, and wherein alfa Letter 4. Of the Senfe of Seeing, and of its various Letters. Of the Senfe of Feeling, with its univerfal 2 Letter 5. Of Fires, and the best way to make Grates, Common Fires. Letter 7. Of the best Methods for Tempering of Clay, Letter 8. Of Religion, with the Nature and Practice 57. thereof, and that the Knowledge of God and a Man's Self, is the first step to all true and undefiled Religion. Letter 9. Of Dropfies and the Nature of them, with 57 Some Account of what Diet and Exercifes fuch 61 Letter 10. Of various Opinions in Religion, and the Original Caufe of thofe great Differences, Oppreffi- ons and Violences proceeding therefrom, with Reme- dies propofed for prevention thereof. 64 Letter 11. Of the Humanity of Chrift, fhewing the Grounds from whence the great Differences concern- ing it do arife, how it is to be underfood, and the great Benefits that accrew unto Mankind from it. by Letter 12. Of an Afflicted Mind, and shewing how it may be prevented, with fome other Remarks. Letter 13. Of Faith, Hope and Charity, with the Excellency and Benefit of each, and how Mankind, by practising the laft, imitates his Creator, and ren- der's himself capable of being United to all that is Letter 14. Of that part of Scripture, wherein God commanded, or rather permitted Beafts to be Killed and Eaten, with the great Error of Mankind in mif- interpreting the fame, and how they are rightly to Letter 15. Of a Soldier's Life, fhewing from what Letter 16. Of the Fountain of Darkness, with the A- Letter 18. Of Cleanness, with the Benefits thereof, Letter 20. Of the Right and Left Hands, with the Letter 21. Of the Corpulency of the Body, with the Letter 23. Of Education, wherein is fet forth the right, Letter 24. Of the Nature of Smells, and what Scents in their Original are Clean, Good and Beneficial, or Letter 25. Of Predeftination, and how it ought to be Letter 26. Of Death, and why all Creatures, efpeci- Letter 27. Of the Science of Aftrology, wherein are fhewed the Caufes in Nature, why Perfons Born at one and the fame minute, and under the like Conftel- lations, are of different Shapes and Forms, and of Letter 28. Of the Perpetual Motion, wherein is fhew- Letter 29. Of the noble Science of Mufick, with the Defects of the best Teachers of it, pofed for the fpeediest and certainest way to attain to the higheft Perfection therein; to which is added Jomewhat concerning the Art of right Speaking and |