Melancholike persons, and mad men, imagine many things
which in verie deed are not.

T

Here haue bin very many in al ages, which haue vtterly denied that there bee any spirits or straunge sightes. The Philosophers of Epicurus] sect, did iest & laugh at all those things which were reported of them, and counted them as fained and counterfeyt, by the which only children and fooles, and plaine simple men were made afraide. When Cassius, who was an Epicurian, vnderstood by Brutus, that he had sÉene a certaine vision, he (as Plutarch doth testifie) indeuoured to attribute the matter vnto naturall causes. We read in the 23. chapter of the Act.23. Actes of the Apostles, that the Sadduces did not belÉeue there should be any Resurrection of the dead, and that they denied there were any spirites or angels: Yea and at this day, many good & godly men belÉeue those things to be but tales, which are talked of too and fro concerning those imagined visions: partly because in all their life, they neuer sawe any such, and partly or rather especially, because in time past men haue bin so often deceiued with apparitions, visions and false miracles done by Monkes and Priestes, that now they take things y? are true, to be as vtterly false. Whatsoeuer the cause is, it may be proued, by witnesse of many writers, and by daily experience also, that spirites and strange sightes do sometime appeare, and that in very dÉed many strange and maruellous things do happen. True it is, that many men do falsly perswade themselues that they sÉe or heare ghoasts: for that which they imagine they sÉe or heare, procÉedeth either of melancholie, madnesse, weakenesse of the senses, feare, or of some other perturbation: or else when they sÉe or heare beasts, vapors, or some other naturall thing, then they vainly suppose, they haue sÉene sightes I wotte not what, as hereafter I will shewe particularly by many and notable examples.

There is no doubt, but that almost al those things which the common people iudge to be wonderfull sightes, are nothing lesse than so. But in the meane season it cannot be denied, but that straunge sightes, and many other such lyke things, are sometimes heard and also sÉene.

And first it cannot be denied, but that some men which either by dispositions of nature, or for that they haue susteined great miserie, are now become heauie and full of melancholy, imagine many times with themselues being alone, miraculous and straunge things. Sometimes they affirme in great soothe, that they verily heare and sÉe this or that thing, whiche notwithstanding neither they, nor yet any other man did once sÉe or heare. Which thing we sometimes sÉe by experience to be true in those men, which be troubled with great headache, or subiect to other diseases of the bodie, or cannot take rest in the night, or are distraughted of their wittes. Those which dwell with suche kinde of men, when they here them tell such absurd tales, such straunge things, and such maruellous visions, albeit they pittie their vnfortunate estate, yet can they not many times containe themselues from laughing. Aristotle in his booke de rebus mirandis, writeth of a certaine man distraught of his wittes, who going into the Theatre of Abydos a Cittie of Asia, when no man was therein, and there sitting alone, by clapping of his hands, signified that he liked as well euery thing there, as if some Comedie or Tragedie had bin notably set foorth on a stage. The verie lyke Historie hath Horace, in his second booke of Epistles, of a certain man, who comming into the Theatrum a place to behold plaies and pastimes in. Theatre at Argos, behaued himselfe euen as the other man did: And when his kinsfolke through the helpe of good Phisitians, had restored him to his right wittes againe, he was very angry with them, saying, that he neuer liued more pleasantly than while he was beside himselfe. Atheneus lib. 12. writeth of one Tresilaus, whose braines were so distempered, that he verily supposed all the ships which arriued at Port PirÆus, to be his owne: he would number them, he commaunded the Mariners to launch from shore, and when they returned after their voyage home againe, he as much reioyced as if he had bene owner of all wherewith they were laden. The same man affirmed, that in all the time of his madnesse he liued a verie pleasant life, vntill the Phisitian had cured him of his disease. I myselfe haue sÉene Iohannes Sertorius. a man, Iohannes Leonardus Sertorius by name, whom very honest and graue men, which knew him well, would testifie to be a godly man, which was throughly perswaded with himselfe, that hÉe could prooue our Religion which we now professe, to be true and Catholike, euen by a miracle from heauen as sometime Helias did. He desired the Magistrates of certain Countries to call togither their Papists, and Protestants: for he was readie (he sayd) to shewe this miracle, and in case he did it not openly before them all, he refused not to sustain any kynd of punishment. The lyke reason is also of other men whiche are besides themselues: for they take on them maruellous things, either because they haue mused long time on some matter conceiued in their minds, as cunning Artificers oftentimes doo: or because they haue bin long weried with sicknesse, or else because they loue extremely. You shall finde some that imagine themself as it were armed with horns of Ste. Ludouic. CÆliu. li 17. ca.2 antiquitat. an Oxe: other appeare to themselues to be erthen vessels, and therfore they wil shun euery thing for feare they be broken.

Of such an one writeth Galene, De locis affectis lib.3.cap.6. and also lib.4.cap.1. Other suppose themselues dead, other thinke themselues great Princes, other to be learned men, other to be Prophets & Apostles, & therfore they wil foretel things to come. The same he writeth of them y? are taken with frenzie * and namely, of one Theophilus a Phisitian, who in other things was wise, and coulde dispute wel and perfectly knowe euery man: yet notwithstanding, hee thought there were certain minstrels did haunt that corner of his house where he vsed to lye, and that they tuned their pypes and played on them euery daye: And hÉe verily thoughte, that he sawe them, some sitting, and some standing, and in such sorte continually pyping without intermission, that they ceased at no time, neither in the day, nor in the night. And therfore he neuer ceased to crie, and to commaunde his seruants to driue them out of his doores. When he was throughly recouered of his sicknesse, then he tolde all other things which euery one of them had sayd or done: and also he called to mind the imaginations which he conceiued of the tediousnesse of the minstrels.

Paulus Aegineta writeth in his thirde booke and xv. chap. that those that are taken with Licanthropia (which is a kynde of madnesse) leape out of their houses in the night, in all things imitating the nature of wolues, and that vntill it waxe day, they kÉep about the graues of dead men. Moreouer, somtimes the diuel (enemie to mankinde) so deceiueth men, that they sÉeme vnto them selues to bÉe beastes. Whereof Augustin writeth In Genesin ad litteram lib.7.cap.11. they which are bitten with madde Dogges are Hidrophobia. afraide of water. This disease they call Hidrophobiam: out of which Aegineta lib.5.cap.3. reporteth, that they which are troubled with this disease, looking on the water, and bÉeing broughte vnto it, flÉe from them soone: other vtterly refuse all kind of moisture: and that there are some Rufus. which barke like Dogges, and bite them that come vnto them. Rufus shewing the cause of their feare, saith that they suppose they sÉe in the water the shadowe of the Dog which bitte them.

Ephialtes, which the Phisitions call the Maare, is a disease of the stomacke, concerning which, reade Paulus Aegineta li.3.cap.6. Many which are taken with this disease, imagine that a man of monstrous stature sitteth on them, which with his hands violently stoppeth their mouth, that they can by no meanes cry out, and they striue with their armes and hands to driue him away, but all in vain. Some led with vaine fantasie, thinke him who oppresseth them, to crÉepe vp by little and little on the bed, as it were to deceiue them, and anon to runne downe. They sÉeme also to themselues to heare him. This disease is called by an other name p???a???? and p??????.

Madde men which haue vtterly lost the vse of reason, or are vexed by Gods permission, with a Diuell, whome the Gospell calleth da???????????, doo maruellous thinges, talke of many visions and diuers other matters. Their sight deceiueth them, in so much as they mistake one man for another: which thing we sÉe by experience, in Bedleme houses where madde and frantike men are kept. We read that Aiax tooke the matter so grÉeuously, when Achilles armour was adiudged vnto Vlisses, that becomming mad through griefe, and drawing out his sworde, he set vpon herds of swine, supposing that he fought with the whole army of the Grecians. Afterwards hanging vp two of the greatest of them on postes, with rayling words he whipped them, thinking one of them to be Agamemnon, the other Vlisses, of whom with the first he was angry as an euil iudge, with the other bicause he was by him vanquished in iudgement. But afterwards when he came againe to himselfe, for very shame he slew himselfe. It hath many times chaunced in battaile, that the souldiers falling into great fury, their captaines haue bene forced to take away their armour, because by rage they tooke their own felowes for enemies, and began to set on them violently.

Tertullianus saith thus: Those which are mad sÉe one man in an other, as Orestes sawe his mother in his sister, Aiax beheld Vlisses in an heard of swine, Athamas and Agaue wilde beastes in their owne children, &c.