In a former number we noticed a work on Natural Magic, in which the word
Magic is applied to those phenomena which appear remarkable at first,
but which can be satisfactorily explained. The first meaning of the word
supposed a commerce with evil spirits; when this ceased to be believed
by philosophers, some of them applied the term to everything wonderful
in nature, or which they were not able to explain. In this sense is the
word used in the ‘Natural Magic’ of Baptista Porta, from which we shall
make a few extracts, that our readers may know how much the world has
gained in the last two centuries. Let any man reflect for a moment on
the fact, that the generation which swallowed the absurdities here
quoted, considered itself so wise, that it made an erroneous opinion a
capital offence.
John Baptista Porta was a Neapolitan philosopher of the sixteenth
century, and died in 1615. He was a diligent inquirer into all the works
of nature, and wrote treatises on various subjects. In his day it must
not be supposed that natural philosophy was altogether such as it is in
ours, in the manner of cultivating it. Hard words, with an extract from
a Greek author, were considered as sufficient for the explanation of any
fact. Baptista Porta’s celebrated work, Natural Magic, was written in
Latin; but for the convenience of our readers, we take our extracts from
an English translation, published in the year 1658. We give the spelling
just as we find it, in order that many who have never read an old book
may see how little their language has changed its orthography in nearly
two centuries. By magic the author does not mean dealing with evil
spirits; in his own words, “There are two sorts of magick; the one is
infamous and unhappie, because it hath to do with foul spirits and
consists of inchantments and wicked curiosity; and this is called
Sorcery; an art which all learned and good men detest; neither is it
able to yield any truth of reason or nature, but stands merely upon
fancies and imaginations, such as vanish presently away, and leave
nothing behinde them--the other magic is natural, which all excellent
wise men do admit and embrace, and worship with great applause.” A
magician must be “an exact and a very perfect philosopher”--a physician,
a botanist, a mineralogist, a distiller, (we should now say a chemist,)
a mathematician, and an astrologer (or astronomer.) “Lastly, the
professor of this science must also be rich: for if we lack money, we
shall hardly work in these cases: for it is not philosophy that can make
us rich; we must first be rich that we may play the philosophers.” We
shall now see how our author plays the philosopher. Many of his notions
are borrowed from Pliny, Aristotle, Pythagoras, and others of the
ancients.
“There is a wonderful enmity between cane and fern, so that, one of them
destroyes the other. Hence it is, that a fern root powned, doth loose
and shake out the darts from a wounded body, that were shot or cast out
of canes.” “The ape of all other things cannot abide a snail: now the
ape is a drunken beast, for they are wont to take an ape by making him
drunk; and a snail well washed is a remedy against drunkennesse.” “The
wolf is afraid of the urchin” or hedge-hog; “_thence_, if we wash our
mouth and throats with urchines blood, it will make our voice shrill,
though before it were hoarse and dull like a wolves voice.” “The hart
and the serpent are at continual enmity: the serpent, as soon as he
seeth the hart, gets him into his hole, but the hart draws him out again
with the breath of his nostrils, and devours him: hence it is that the
fat and the blood of harts, and the stones that grow in their eyes, are
ministred as fit remedies against the stinging and biting of serpents.”
“There is an antipathy between sheep and wolves, and it remains in all
their parts; so that an instrument strung with sheep strings, mingled
with strings made of a wolf’s guts, will make no musick, but jar and
make all discords.” “The pomegranite will bring forth fruit just so many
years, as many daies as the moon is old when you plant it.” “If we cut
our hair, or pair our nailes before the new moon, they will grow again
but slowly; if at or about the new moon, they will grow again quickly.”
“Bears’ eyes are oft times dimned; and for that cause they desire
honeycombs above all things, that the bees stinging their mouths, may
thereby draw forth together with the blood, that dull and grosse humour;
whence physicians learned to use letting blood, to cure the dimnesse of
the eyes.” “If you would have a man become bold or impudent, let him
carry about him the skin or eyes of a lion or a cock, and he will be
fearlesse of his enemies; nay, he will be very terrible unto them. If
you would have a man talkative, give him tongues, and seek out for him
water frogs, wilde-geese and ducks, and other such creatures, notorious
for their continual noisemaking.”
It must not, however, be presumed that our author believed every thing
which he found in a book; he sometimes exercises a judicious discretion.
Thus of one good story he says, “this was a kind of moon-calf,” and of
the well-known story of the basilisk killing all who look upon him, he
says boldly, “this is a stark lie.” The following is his account of the
loadstone: “I think the loadstone is a mixture of stone and iron, as an
iron stone, or a stone of iron. Yet do not think the stone is so changed
into iron as to lose its own nature, nor that the iron is so drowned in
the stone, but it preserves it self; and whilst one labours to get the
victory of the other, the attraction is made by the combat between them.
In that body there is more of the stone, then of iron; and therefore the
iron, that it may not be subdued by the stone, desires the force and
company of iron; that not being able to resist alone, it may be able by
more help to defend itself. For all creatures defend their being;
wherefore that it may enjoy friendly help, and not lose its own
perfection, it willingly draws iron to it, or iron comes willingly to
that.”
With this most ingenious explanation, we take our leave of Baptista
Porta.
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