Acetaria: A Discourse of Sallets

Excerpt

Royal-Society having been firГ…Вїt conceiv'd and delineated by a Great and Learned Chancellor, which High Office your LordГ…Вїhip deservedly bears; not as an AcquiГ…Вїition of Fortune, but your Intellectual Endowments; [pg] ConГ…Вїpicuous (among other Excellencies) by the Inclination Your LordГ…Вїhip diГ…Вїcovers to promote Natural Knowledge: As it juГ…Вїtifies the DiГ…Вїcernment of that AГ…ВїГ…Вїembly, to pitch upon Your LordГ…Вїhip for their PreГ…Вїident, Г…Вїo does it no leГ…Вїs diГ…Вїcover the Candor, yea, I preГ…Вїume to Г…Вїay, the Sublimity of your Mind, in Г…Вїo generouГ…Вїly honoring them with your Acceptance of the Choice they have made.

A Chancellor, and a very Learned Lord, was the FirГ…Вїt who honoured the Chair; and a no leГ…Вїs Honorable and Learned Chancellor, reГ…Вїigns it to Your LordГ…Вїhip: So as after all the Difficulties and HardГ…Вїhips the Society [pg] has hitherto gone through; it has thro' the Favour and Protection of its PreГ…Вїidents, not only preГ…Вїerv'd its Reputation from the Malevolence of Enemies and Detracters, but gone on Culminating, and now Triumphantly in Your LordГ…Вїhip: Under whoГ…Вїe propitious Influence, I am perГ…Вїwaded, it may promiГ…Вїe it Г…Вїelf That, which indeed has hitherto been wanting, to juГ…Вїtifie the Glorious Title it bears of a ROYAL SOCIETY. The Emancipating it from Г…Вїome Remaining and DiГ…Вїcouraging CircumГ…Вїtances, which it as yet labours under; among which, that of a Precarious and unГ…Вїteady Abode, is not the leaГ…Вїt.

This Honor was reГ…Вїerv'd for Your LordГ…Вїhip; and an Honor, permit me [pg] to call it, not at all unworthy the Owning of the GreateГ…Вїt Person living: Namely, the EГ…ВїtabliГ…Вїhing and Promoting Real Knowledge; and (next to what is Divine) truly Г…Вїo called; as far, at leaГ…Вїt, as Humane Nature extends towards the Knowledge of Nature, by enlarging her Empire beyond the Land of Spectres, Forms, Intentional Species, Vacuum, Occult Qualities, and other Inadequate Notions; which, by their ObГ…Вїtreperous and NoiГ…Вїy DiГ…Вїputes, affrighting, and (till of late) deterring Men from adventuring on further DiГ…Вїcoveries, confin'd them in a lazy AcquieГ…Вїcence, and to be fed with FantaГ…Вїms and fruitleГ…Вїs Speculations, which Г…Вїignifie nothing to the Г…Вїpecifick Nature of Things, [pg] solid and uГ…Вїeful knowledge; by the InveГ…Вїtigation of CauГ…Вїes, Principles, Energies, Powers, and Effects of Bodies, and Things ViГ…Вїible; and to improve them for the Good and Benefit of Mankind.

My Lord, That which the Royal Society needs to accompliГ…Вїh an entire Freedom, and (by rendring their CircumГ…Вїtances more eaГ…Вїie) capable to Г…ВїubГ…ВїiГ…Вїt with Honor, and to reach indeed the Glorious Ends of its InГ…Вїtitution, is an EГ…ВїtabliГ…Вїhment in a more Settl'd, Appropriate, and Commodious Place; having hitherto (like the Tabernacle in the WilderneГ…Вїs) been only Ambulatory for almoГ…Вїt Forty Years: But Solomon built the FirГ…Вїt Temple; and what forbids us to hope, [pg] that as Great a Prince may build Solomon's HouГ…Вїe, as that Great Chancellor (one of Your LordГ…Вїhip's Learned PredeceГ…ВїГ…Вїors) had deГ…Вїign'd the Plan; there being nothing in that AuguГ…Вїt and Noble Model impoГ…ВїГ…Вїible, or beyond the Power of Nature and Learned InduГ…Вїtry....