Part I.

THALES.
r i
Lansbergius.,0lympl2id. 48. 3. the 1^3 year of Nabo/iajfar^ the 12th day of Tybi., which is May 28, digits Eclipled 12. 20“* in Hellefpont:
I o 1 2n>‘ in Alexandria.
Kepler.^ Scaliger.^ Buntingus.^ and Salianus., follow Pliny: digits Eclipled(according to Bun- tingus) ii.
Neither is it eafie to determine whether this variety arifes from the incertainty of the Aftro- nomers, or of the Chronologers.
Se£l. 4. Of the lean.
LAertius laith, that he dijiinguified the fea- Jons of the year., that, he firji called the lafi day of every Month t? the thirtieth day, that he divided the year into three hundred fixty a?id five days.
This Calculation of the year he feemed to have learned in oEgypt., where it was in ufe, thus explained and commended by ^ Herodo¬ tus. The iEgyptians were of allAlen the firft that found out the year., difinguijhing it into t welve Months ; this they gathered from the Stars, and more judicioufly (inmy Opinionythan the Gre¬ cians, for as much as the Grecians every third ■ year, intercalate a Month to make up the time but the iEgyptians to the number oj ^60 days, which twelve Months make, add yearly five days, whereby the account of the Circle of Time retu7"n- ing into it felj is made good.
This was called in latter times, the iEgyptian year ( perhaps becaufe ufed by Ptolomy, who lived in AEgypt) in diftinftion from the Julian year, which was then ufed in all the Weftern parts, and hath the addition of fix hours : the moft perfe8; is the Gregorian, confifting of three hundred fixty five days, five hours, forty nine minutes, twelve feconds.
Seff. 5. His Aft ro logical Pr editions,
T Hales being earneftly addi8:ed to Aftrology, became obnoxious to the Cenlure of fome Perfons. As he was led abroad one night by an t Plat. old Woman, his Maid, ( a “ Thracian) to look upon the Stars, he fell into a Ditch (wherein file purpofely led him) to whom as he complained, Thales, fhe,do you think, when you cannot fee thofe things that are at your feet, that you can undefiandthe Heavens ?
He was alfo for preferring this Study before Wealth, reproved by fome Friends, not without Reproach to the Science, as conferring no advan¬ tage on its profelfors •, whereupon he thus vin¬ dicated himfelf and the Art from that Afperfi- on. When they upbraided him, faith b Arifto-
canviv.
b Pd. I. 7.
tie, with his Povei'ty,as if Philofophy were unpro¬ fitable, it is /aid, that he by Aftrology, forefeeing the plenty of Olives that would be that year,before the Winter was gone antequam florere coepfifent, c De divim.i (faith c Ciceio) gave earnefl, and bought up all the places for Oyl at Miletus and C]\\os,which he did loith little Money, there being no other chap- manat that time to raife the price-, and when the time came that many zvere fought for in Imjl, he fetiing zohat rates on them he pleafed, by this means got together much Alony, and then jhew’d, that it zvas eafie for Philofophers to be Rich, if they would themfelves, but that Wealth was not their
am. To this Plutarch alludes,when he fays, that Thales as reported to have praQifedMerchandrze.
C H A P. IX. . '
His Alaral Sentences.
I
OF his Moral Sentences thofe are firft to be
remembrrd which ^ Plutarch mentions Seh\ (at; upon this occafion.
, _ Amafis King of JEgypt entring into contefia- tion with the King of AEihiopia concerning Wif dom, propounded thefe quelfions to be relblved by him ^ what is oldeft cf all things, what fair ej}, zohat great eft, lohat wife]}, what moft common, what moji profitable, what moft hurtful, zvhat moft pow¬ erful, what moft eafie ?
The anfwers of the JEthiopian were thefe, the oldeft of things is Time, the wifeft. Truth, the faireft Light, the moft common Death, the. moft profitable God, the moft hurtful the Devil, the moft powerful Fortune, the moft eafie that ■' _
which plcafeth. T/Wifx demanded of Kiloxe- nils whether Amafis approved thefe folutipns?
Niloxenus, who w'as fent by Amafis mo Greece with thefe other queftions to be refolved by the Sages, anfwered that with fome he was Luis-* fied, with others not *, replies Thales,
there is not one but is erroneous and betrays Igno¬ rance. As for the fijfo, how can it be d f ended that Time Is the oldeft of Things, when one part ^
of it ispaft, the other prefont, the third yet to come, for that which is to come tnuft in reafon ks eftcemed younger than allM£n or Things ? 'Next to affirm that Truth is Wijdom, is as much as if we Jloould fay, that the Tightand Seeing is all one'.
Again, if he eft eem Tight Pair, why doth he forget the Sun ? His anfwers concerning God and the De^ vil are Bold and Dangerous, but that of Torlune mojt impi'obable, for if foe be fo Pouoerful, how comes it that foe is fo eajily change di Nor is Death the moft common, for it is not common to the Li¬ ving. 'The moft ancient of Things is God, for he never had Beginning or. Birth, the great eft place of th eWorld containeth all other things, place con¬ tains the World-, the fairejt the World, for what- foever is orderly difpofed is part there ffi. The wi¬ feft is Time, for it hath found out all things alrea¬ dy dev'ifed, and will find out, all that Jhall be the moft Common, Hope, for that remains with fuch us have nothing elfe -, the moft Profit able, Virtue, for it maketh all things ufeful and commodious -fob the ^ moft hurtful. Vice, for it dejtroyeth all good things-, 'fern,
the moft Powerful,NeceJ]tty, for that only is In- 109. vincible the moft Eafie, that zvhich agreeth with Ltium apud Nature, for even Pleaufres are many tiriies given 46;
over and cloy us.
To which Apothegms thefe are added by La¬ ertius, The fw'ifteft of things is the ALmd, for it over-runs alLHe affirm'' d that there isnodifference hetzvixt Life and Death -, being thereupon, asked why he did not die-, becaufe, faith he, ih'epe s no dif¬ ference -, to one who asK' a which was elde ft, night or day-, he anftioer’d,night by a day-, another enquiring ^ ^
whether a man might do ill am conceal 'it from the “ >'
Gods-, nor think it faid he. To an Adulter er,queft'i- on'ing him if he might clear himfelf by Oath * Per- compelling tbs jury, fays heps worfc than Adultery. Being demari-lfte) fot repn- ded what was difficult, be anfwered, to know one'' sfofof’ felf, what eafie, to be ruPd by another -, whatfiweet, 5.^ '
C a to ' ‘
TTTy^ L E S.