What Hippocrates, the defender and propugnator of PhysitiansPhysicians, affirms of hu=
mors, that they are different and many in man, and not one onelyonly, otherwise
various diseases could not arise, that weewe perceive to be true of the elements
of the world: for if there was but one onelyonly element, there could be noeno -
mutation of it into another, noeno generation nor corruption, yea all things
would be one immutable thing, and noeno meteors, minerallsminerals, plants, and
animallsanimals could be naturally from thence produced. For this reason the su=
preme Creator composed the whole systemesystem of this world of diversdiverse and -
contrary natures, namely of light and heavy, hotthot and cold, moist and dry -
that one might by affinity passepass into the other, and soeso a composition be
made of bodyesbodies, which might be very different one from another in essence,
qualityesqualities, virtues, and effects: for in things perfectly mixed are the light Ele=
ments, as fire and aireair, and allsoalso the heavy, as earth and water, which are soeso
æquallyequally tempered together, that one recedes not from the other, but suffers itselfeitself
to be easily taken and held by the other as neighbourneighbor by neighbourneighbor: Earth and aireair
are contrary one to the other, soeso fire and water, yet notwithstanding fire main=
tainesmaintains freindshipfriendship with aireair by heat coḿoncommon to both, with earth by siccity: soeso
aireair with water, and water with earth: by which means they are all joynedjoined
by bonds of affinity or rather consanguinity, and doedo remayneremain together in
one composition, which, if it abound with the light Elements, elevates the -
heavy with it, if with the heavy, weighs downedown the light with it: This is decla=
red by the two Eagles, one with wings, the other without, of which that -
which endeavouredendeavored to fly is restrained by the other an example hereof is evident
in the fight of the Falcon and Heron, for the Falcon soaring higher in -
the aireair by his Speedy flying, takes and tears the Heron with his Talons, by
whose weight both fall to the ground: The contrary appeared in the -
artificiallartificial dove or Automa of Archytas, where heavy things were lifted up
by light, that is, the wooden body of it caryedcarried into the aireair by the -
Spirit included within: In the PhilosophicallPhilosophical subject the light things doedo
first prædominatepredominate the heavy, as to plenty, but they are overcome by vir=
tue of the heavy things, and in processe of time the Eagles wings are cut -
ofoff, and one very great bird (namely an Ostrich) is made of two, which
can consume iron, and which being impeded by weight runnsruns more upon
the earth,

than flyesflys in the aireair, though it hathhas goodly wings: Concerning
this or the like Hermes (as the Author of Aurora chapt. 5. affirms) writes thus:
I have considered a bird worthy to be had in estimation by the wise, which
flyesflys when it is in Aries, Cancer, Libra, or CapricorneCapricorn, and you will never
faylefail of it in pure mynesmines, and rocky mountains: Concerning the same Se=
nior in Tabula, where two are seen, one volatile the other without wings,
whereof one holds the others tayletail by its beakebeak, that they cannot easily be
seperated: For this is the device and machination of universalluniversal nature,
allwayesalways to rayseraise heavy things by light, and likewise to depressedepress light
things by heavy, as the Author of the perfect Magistery declarethdeclares, who
constitutes seven minerallmineral spirits, as it were erratickeerratic StarrsStars, and -
soeso many metallickemetallic bodyesbodies, as fixed StarrsStars, and enjoynsenjoins these to be
wedded to those: from thence allsoalso Aristotle the Chymist, the Spirit, saythsays heehe,
having dissolved the body and SouleSoul, soeso as to exist in their formeform, dothdoes not
remaineremain a fixed thing, unlesseunless you operate upon it: now operation is to joynejoin -
it with the body, from which you præparedprepared it at first: because the Spirit is -
thereby prevented from flight being mixed with the supersistences of the -
body: the light Elements, namely aireair and fire, as a learned man declares,
doedo in CamphoreCamphor oversway the heavy; and therefore it is saydsaid wholywholly to ex=
hale and evaporate into aireair. In Argent vive, the flowers of Sulphur, Anti=
mony, the Salt of Harts blood, Sal ArmoniackeAmmoniac, and such others, the earth -
flyesflys with the aireair into the AlembickeAlembic, and is not seperated from it. In Gold,
glasseglass, Diamond, the Stone Smyris, GranatsGranites, and the like, the Elements -
doedo notwithstanding fire remayneremain alonga long time joynedjoined without detriment, -
and the earth retainesretains those things which are left in itselfeitself. In other com=
bustibles division and separation of one thing from another is effected, soeso
that the ashes are left in the bottomebottom, the water, aireair, and fire fly up=
wards: weewe must not therefore have respect to the unæquallunequal composition of
these last, being not soeso strongly mixdmixed, nor to the coḿixtioncommixtion of the first,
though more durable, yet volatile, but to the solidity, constancy, and fixity
of the midlemiddle: for soeso the bird without wings will detainedetain that which hathhas, -
and the fixed substance will fix the volatile, which must necessarily be
done . . . . . . . . . .