The Mystery of Francis Bacon

APPENDIX.

Sir Thomas Bodley left behind him a short history of his life which is of a fragmentary description. One-fourth of it is devoted to a record of how much he suffered in permitting Essex to urge his advancement in the State. The following is the passage:—

"Now here I can not choose but in making report of the principall accidents that have fallen unto me in the course of my life, but record among the rest, that from the very first day I had no man more to friend among the Lords of the Councell, than was the Lord Treasurer Burleigh: for when occasion had beene offered of declaring his conceit as touching my service, he would alwaies tell the Queen (which I received from her selfe and some other ear-witnesses) that there was not any man in England so meet as myselfe to undergoe the office of the Secretary. And sithence his sonne, the present Lord Treasurer, hath signified unto me in private conference, that when his father first intended to advance him to that place, his purpose was withall to make me his Colleague. But the case stood thus in my behalf: before such time as I returned from the Provinces united, which was in the yeare 1597, and likewise after my returne, the then Earle of Essex did use me so kindly both by letters and messages, and other great tokens of his inward favours to me, that although I had no meaning, but to settle in my mind my chiefest desire and dependance upon the Lord Burleigh, as one that I reputed to be both the best able, and therewithall the most willing to worke my advancement with the Queene, yet I know not how, the Earle, who fought by all devices to divert her love and liking both from the Father and the Son (but from the Sonne in speciall) to withdraw my affection from the one and the other, and to winne mee altogether to depend upon himselfe, did so often take occasion to entertaine the Queene with some prodigall speeches of my sufficiency for a Secretary, which were ever accompanied with words of disgrace against the present Lord Treasurer, as neither she her selfe, of whose favour before I was thoroughly assured, took any great pleasure to preferre me the sooner, (for she hated his ambition, and would give little countenance to any of his followers) and both the Lord Burleigh and his Sonne waxed jealous of my courses, as if under hand I had beene induced by the cunning and kindnesse of the Earle of Essex, to oppose my selfe against their dealings. And though in very truth they had no solid ground at all of the least alteration in my disposition towards either of them both, (for I did greatly respect their persons and places, with a settled resolution to doe them any service, as also in my heart I detested to be held of any faction whatsoever) yet the now Lord Treasurer, upon occasion of some talke, that I have since had with him, of the Earle and his actions, hath freely confessed of his owne accord unto me, that his daily provocations were so bitter and sharpe against him, and his comparisons so odious, when he put us in a ballance, as he thought thereupon he had very great reason to use his best meanes, to put any man out of hope of raising his fortune, whom the Earle with such violence, to his extreame prejudice, had endeavoured to dignifie. And this, as he affirmed, was all the motive he had to set himselfe against me, in whatsoever might redound to the bettering of my estate, or increasing of my credit and countenance with the Queene. When I hae thoroughly now bethought me, first in the Earle, of the slender hold-fast that he had in the favour of the Queene, of an endlesse opposition of the cheifest of our Statesmen like still to waite upon him, of his perillous, and feeble, and uncertain advice, as well in his owne, as in all the causes of his friends: and when moreover for my selfe I had fully considered how very untowardly these two Counsellours were affected unto me, (upon whom before in cogitation I had framed all the fabrique of my future prosperity) how ill it did concurre with my naturall disposition, to become, or to be counted either a stickler or partaker in any publique faction, how well I was able, by God's good blessing, to live of my selfe, if I could be content with a competent livelyhood; how short time of further life I was then to expect by the common course of nature: when I had, I say, in this manner represented to my thoughts my particular estate, together with the Earles, I resolved thereupon to possesse my soule in peace all the residue of my daies, to take my full farewell of State imployments, to satisfie my mind with that mediocrity of worldly living that I had of my owne, and so to retire me from the Court, which was the epilogue and end of all my actions and endeavours of any important note, till I came to the age of fifty-three."

The experience of Bodley and Bacon appears to have been identical. It certainly materially strengthens the case of those who contend that Bacon's conduct to Essex was not deserving of censure on the ground of ingratitude for favours received from him.

The words which Robert Cecil addressed to Bodley, namely, that "he had very great reason to use his best meanes, to put any man out of hope of raising his fortune whom the Earle with such violence, to his extreame prejudice had endeavoured to dignifie," would with equal force have been applied to Bacon's case. The drift of Bodley's account of the matter points to his feeling that Essex's conduct had not been of a disinterested character, and suggests that he felt the Earle had been making a tool of him.

The effect of this was that Bodley adopted the course which Bacon threatened to adopt when refused the office of Attorney-General, solicited for him by Essex—he took a farewell of State employments and retired from the Court to devote himself to the service of his "Reverend Mother, the University of Oxford," and to the advancement of her good. To this end he became a collector of books, whereas Bacon would have become "some sorry book-maker or a true pioner in that mine of truth which Anaxagoras said lay so deep."

ROBERT BANKS AND SON, RACQUET COURT, FLEET STREET.

Figure VI. Figure VI.

Figure VII. Figure VII.

Figure VIII. Figure VIII.

Figure IX. Figure IX.

Figure XX. Figure XX.

THE XXXVIII. BOOKE. THE XXXVIII. BOOKE.

Figure X. Figure X.

Figure XV. Figure XV.

Figure XI. Figure XI.

Figure XII. Figure XII.

Figure XXI. Figure XXI.

Figure XVI. Figure XVI.

Figure XVII. Figure XVII.

Figure XVIII. Figure XVIII.

Figure XIX. Figure XIX.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Attention is drawn to one of the inaccuracies in "An Introduction to Mathematics," by A. W. Whithead, Sc.D., F.R.S., published in the Home University Library of Modern Knowledge. The author says: "Macaulay in his essay on Bacon contrasts the certainty of mathematics with the uncertainty of philosophy, and by way of a rhetorical example he says, 'There has been no re-action against Taylor's theorem.' He could not have chosen a worse example. For, without having made an examination of English text-books on mathematics contemporary with the publication of this essay, the assumption is a fairly safe one that Taylor's theorem was enunciated and proved wrongly in every one of them."

[2] There are copies of this work bearing date 1626, the year in which Bacon died.

[3] The concluding paragraph of the Epistle to the Reader is as follows: "It's easily imaginable how unconcerned I am as to the fate of this Book either in the History, or the Observations, since I have been so faithful in the first, that it is not my own, but the Historians; and so careful in the second that they are not mine, but the Histories."

[4] "Life and Letters," Vol. VII., page 552.

[5] Lloyd states that this occurred when he was seven years of age.

[6] "The Lives of Statesmen and Favourites of Elizabeth."

[7] Dr. Whitgift was a man of strong moral rectitude, yet in 1593 he became one of its sponsors on the publication of "Venus and Adonis."

[8] It was to Sir Amias that the custody of Mary Queen of Scots was committed.

[9] In the "Gesta Grayorum" one of the articles which the Knights of the Helmet were required to vow to keep, each kissing his helmet as he took his vow, was "Item—every Knight of this Order shall endeavour to add conference and experiment to reading; and therefore shall not only read and peruse 'Guizo,' 'The French Academy,' 'Galiatto the Courtier,' 'Plutarch,' 'The Arcadia,' and the Neoterical writers from time to time," etc. The "Gesta Grayorum," which was written in 1594, was not published until 1687. The manuscript was probably incorrectly read as to the titles of the books. "Galiatto," apparently, should be "Galateo," described in a letter of Gabriel Harvey as "The Italian Archbishop brave Galateo." The "Courtier" is the Italian work by Castiglione which was Englished by Sir Thomas Hoby. "Guizo" should be "Guazzo." Stefano Guazzo's "Civil Conversation"—four books—was Englished by G. Pettie and Young.

[10] "Hit" is used by Chaucer as the past participle of "Hide." The name thus yields a suggestive anagram, "Bacohit."

[11] 1618 Edition, page 712.

[12] In addition to this and to the "Gesta Grayorum" (1692) I have only been able to find two references to "The French Academy" in the works of English writers.

J. Payne Collier, in his "Poetical Decameron," Vol. II., page 271, draws attention to the epistle "to the Christian reader" prefixed to the second part, and suggests that the initials T.B. which occur at the end of the dedicatory epistle stand for Thomas Beard, the author of "Theatre of God's Judgments." Collier does not appear to have read "The French Academy." Dibdin, in "Notes on More's Utopia," says, "But I entreat the reader to examine (if he be fortunate enough to possess the book) "The French Academy of Primaudaye," a work written in a style of peculiarly impressive eloquence, and which, not very improbably, was the foundation of Derham's and Paley's "Natural Theology."

[13] "It being now forty years as I remember, since I composed a juvenile work on this subject which with great confidence and a magnificent title I named "The greatest birth of Time."

[14] The block was used on page 626 of the 1594 quarto edition of William Camden's "Britannia," published in London by George Bishop, who was the publisher of the 1586, 1589, and 1594 editions of "The French Academy." There is a marginal note at the foot of the imprint of the block commencing "R. Bacons." Francis Bacon is known to have assisted Camden in the preparation of this work. The manuscript bears evidence of the fact in his handwriting.

[15] One copy of this edition bears the date 1628.

[16] Probably Owen Felltham, author of "Felltham's Resolves."

[17] Sir Thomas Smith (1512-1577) was Secretary of State under Edward VI. and Elizabeth—a good scholar and philosopher. He, when Greek lecturer and orator at Cambridge, with John Cheke, introduced, in spite of strong opposition, the correct way of speaking Greek, restoring the pronunciation of the ancients.

[18] State Paper Office; French Correspondence.

[19] Spedding prints this in small type, being doubtful as to the authorship.

[20] That is, never held a brief.

[21] I am indebted to Mr. Harold Hardy for this interesting information. There is an entry in the State Papers, 1608, Jan. 31: Grant at the suit of Sir Francis Bacon to Sir William Cooke, Sir John Constable, and three others, of the King's reversion of the estates in Herts above referred to. Sir Nicholas, to whom it had descended from the Lord Keeper, conveyed the remainder to Queen Elizabeth her heirs and successors "with the condition that if he paid £100 the grant should be void, which was apparently done to prevent the said Sir Francis to dispose of the same land which otherwise by law he might have done." When Lady Anne conveyed the Markes estate to Francis it was subject to a similar condition, namely, that the grant was to be null and void on Lady Ann paying ten shillings to Francis. This condition made it impossible for Francis to dispose of his interest in the estate, hence Anthony's request in the letter above referred to. It is obvious that his relatives considered that Francis was not to be trusted with property which he could turn into money. There was evidently some heavy strain on his resources which caused him to convert everything he could into cash.

[22] "Story of Lord Bacon's Life." Hepworth Dixon, p. 28.

[23] The two letters of 16th September, 1580, and that of 15th October, 1580, are taken from copies in the Lansdowne collection. That of the 6th May, 1586, is in the same collection, and is an original in Bacon's handwriting. The letter of 25th August, 1585, is also in his handwriting, and is in the State Papers, Domestic. The letter without date, written to Burghley presumably in 1591, is from the supplement to the "Resuscitatio," 1657.

[24] "Life and Letters," Vol. I. p. 57.

[25] This was Sir Christopher Hatton.

[26] "Life and Letters," Vol I. p. 59.

[27] Cott. MSS. Tit. CX. 93.

[28] "Life and Letters," Vol. I., p. 110.

[29] "Life and Letters," Vol. I., page 16.

[30] There is a copy bearing date 1626.

[31] "John Dee," by Charlotte Fell Smith, 1909. Constable and Co., Ltd.

[32] See page 31.

[33] "Of the Advancement of Learning," 1640, page 312.

[34] "Of the Advancement of Learning," 1640, pages 115, 116.

[35] 33 is the numerical value of the name "Bacon." The stop preceding it denotes cypher.

[36] Vautrollier was a scholar and printer who came to England from Paris or Roan about the beginning of Elizabeth's reign, and first commenced business in Blackfriars. In 1584 he printed Jordanus Brunus, for which he was compelled to fly. In the next year he was in Edinburgh, where, by his help, Scottish printing was greatly improved. Eventually his pardon was procured by powerful friends, amongst whom was Thomas Randolph. In 1588 Richard Field, who was apprenticed to Vautrollier, married Jakin, his daughter, and on his death in 1589 succeeded to the business.

[37] Harl. MSS., 537, pp. 26 and 71; additional MSS., 4,263, p. 144; Harl. MSS., 6,401; Harl. MSS., 6,854, p. 203; Cambridge Univ. Lib., Mm. V. 5; Cotton MSS., Tit., Chap. VII., p. 50 b; Harl. MSS., 859, p. 40; Cotton MSS., Jul., F. VI., p. 158.

[38] See page 72.

[39] See pages 70, 72.

[40] See Appendix.

[41]

If you, O Mildred, will take care to send back to me him whom I desire,
You will be my good, my more than good, my only sister;
But if, unfortunately, by doing nothing you keep him back and send him across the sea,
You will be bad, more than bad, nay no sister at all of mine.
If he comes to Cornwall, peace and all joys be with you,
But if he goes by sea to Sicily I declare war. Farewell.

[42] One note on this book contains an interesting historical fact hitherto unknown. On page 279 the text states: "Among the Conspirators was Nicholo Fedini whom they employed as Chauncellor, he persuaded with a hope more certaine, revealed to Piero, all the practice argreed by his enemies, and delivered him a note of all their names." Bacon has made the following note in the margin: "Ex (i.e., Essex) did the like in England which he burnt at Shirfr Smiths house in fenchurch Street."

[43] "A Life of Shakespeare," 1589, 2nd Edition, p. 308.

[44] Plates Nos. VI. to XXI. will be found after the Appendix.

[45] In the "Advancement of Learning" Bacon says that Demosthenes went so far in regard to the great force that the entrance and access into a cause had to make a good impression that he kept in readiness a stock of prefaces.

[46] Bernard Quaritch, 1905.

[47] See page 105.

[48] Sonnet No. 2.

[49] 'Tis thee myselfe, Sonnet 62.

[50] See Rawley's Introduction to "Manes Verulamiana."

[51] The expression "sugr'd Sonnets" refers to verses which were written with coloured ink to which sugar had been added. When dry the writing shone brightly.

[52] Edwin A. Abbot, in his work, "Francis Bacon," p. 447, writes, "Bacon's style (as a writer) varied almost as much as his handwriting."

[53] "Advancement of Learning," II. "De Augment. Scient.," VII. 3.

[54] "Advancement of Learning," II. For the whole passage compare "De Augment. Scient.," VII. 3.

[55] A Translation by Spedding, "Works," Vol. IV., p. 23.

[56] The knowledge touching the affections and perturbations which are the diseases of the mind.

[57] TabulÆ inveniendi.

TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES

1. Long "s" has been modernized.

2. Images have been moved from the middle of a paragraph to the closest paragraph break.

3. Footnotes have been renumbered and moved to the end of the text in this HTML version.

4. The following misprints have been corrected:
"obain" corrected to "obtain" (page 27)
"Shakespere" corrected to "Shakespeare" (page 39)
"Bodly" corrected to "Bodley" (page 85)
"Shakepeare's" corrected to "Shakespeare's" (page 107)
"commenceed" corrected to "commenced" (page 108)
"Proecepta" corrected to "PrÆcepta" (page 135)
"deficiences" corrected to "deficiencies" (page 191)
"numercial" corrected to "numerical" (footnote 35)

5. Other than the corrections listed above, printer's inconsistencies in spelling, hyphenation, and ligature usage have been retained.

Clyx.com