down there to sleep, and so they recover.”  It is an ordinary thing in those parts, to send all their madmen to St. Hilary’s cradle.  They say the like of St. Tubery in [2830] another place.  Giraldus Cambrensis Itin.  Camb. c. 1. tells strange stories of St. Ciricius’ staff, that would cure this and all other diseases.  Others say as much (as [2831]Hospinian observes) of the three kings of Cologne; their names written in parchment, and hung about a patient’s neck, with the sign of the cross, will produce like effects.  Read Lippomanus, or that golden legend of Jacobus de Voragine, you shall have infinite stories, or those new relations of our [2832]Jesuits in Japan and China, of Mat.  Riccius, Acosta, Loyola, Xaverius’s life, &c.  Jasper Belga, a Jesuit, cured a mad woman by hanging St. John’s gospel about her neck, and many such.  Holy water did as much in Japan, &c.  Nothing so familiar in their works, as such examples.

But we on the other side seek to God alone.  We say with David, Psal. xlvi. 1.  “God is our hope and strength, and help in trouble, ready to be found.”  For their catalogue of examples, we make no other answer, but that they are false fictions, or diabolical illusions, counterfeit miracles.  We cannot deny but that it is an ordinary thing on St. Anthony’s day in Padua, to bring diverse madmen and demoniacal persons to be cured:  yet we make a doubt whether such parties be so affected indeed, but prepared by their priests, by certain ointments and drams, to cozen the commonalty, as [2833] Hildesheim well saith; the like is commonly practised in Bohemia as Mathiolus gives us to understand in his preface to his comment upon Dioscorides.  But we need not run so far for examples in this kind, we have a just volume published at home to this purpose. [2834]"A declaration of egregious popish impostures, to withdraw the hearts of religious men under the pretence of casting out of devils, practised by Father Edmunds, alias Weston, a Jesuit, and divers Romish priests, his wicked associates,” with the several parties’ names, confessions, examinations, &c. which were pretended to be possessed.  But these are ordinary tricks only to get opinion and money, mere impostures.  Aesculapius of old, that counterfeit God, did as many famous cures; his temple (as [2835]Strabo relates) was daily full of patients, and as many several tables, inscriptions, pendants, donories, &c. to be seen in his church, as at this day our Lady of Loretto’s in Italy.  It was a custom long since,

------“suspendisse potenti
Vestimenta maris deo."[2836] Hor.  Od. 1. lib. 5.  Od.

To do the like, in former times they were seduced and deluded as they are now.  ’Tis the same devil still, called heretofore Apollo, Mars, Neptune, Venus, Aesculapius, &c. as [2837]Lactantius lib. 2. de orig. erroris, c. 17. observes.  The same Jupiter and those bad angels are now worshipped and adored by the name of St. Sebastian, Barbara, &c.  Christopher and George are come in their