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The
Lives
of
those eminent Antiquaries
Elias
Ashmole Esq.
and
Mr.
William Lilly
Written by
themselves
containing
first
I. William Lilly’s History of his life & times
with notes by Elias Ashmole.
II.
Secondly,
Lilly’s Life and Death of King Charles I.
Lastly,
Elias Ashmole’s Life of himself by way of diary with
an appendix
By Charles
Burman Esq.
A New Edition corrected with a
new Preface, a new & copious Index and
go over
[Hone’s
1, MS 2]
the Editor of this new Edition of the Lives of old
William Lilly the Astrologer & his friend & partner in mystification the
great celebrated Elias Ashmole finds little occasion to add to the remarks in
the preceding Advertisement of by his honest Tom Davies, as Johnson called him,
the Bookseller who published the last Edition of these pieces.
The present Editor however dissents from his
predecessor’s remark that History cannot
[Hone’s 2, MS
3]
stoop to the meanness of examining materials of which
memoirs are generally composed: on the contrary the faithful historian derives
from Memoirs Lives & Diaries information of the highest importance
to his purposes. He who is satisfied with registering the facts which he gathers from
State Papers, & Records, Acts of Parliament, Patents & Chartularies, is
little more than an annalist. The outline ought to be filled up must be
diligently supplied by the Historian
[Hone’s 3, MS
4]
from every source that can seems likely to furnish fact
or repay inquiry; and He he will be more likely to find the real causes &
springs secret springs of human actions & events in amongst private papers
& the Memoirs of Individuals than the in official documents prepared for
general inspection.
In this view a republication of the Lives of Lilly &
Ashmole & Lilly’s Account of the Life & Death of King Charles the
First has been desirable whatever difference of Opinion may exist between those
who have
[Hone’s 4, MS
5]
inquired into the Charles’s character & conduct
of
that monarch both parties are interested in obtaining a correct knowledge of the
Facts respecting his reign. Lilly’s mode of explaining explanation of
the King’s numerous his numerous failures; his relation of the circumstances
which induced him to reject the parliament’s proposition for peace sent to him
at the Isle of Wight; his dep development of the real personage who
supplied the place of the executioner & cut off the King’s unhappy
monarch’s head on the Scaffold at Whitehall are not amongst the least curious
& highly remarkable portions of (?????) his account of Charles. His veracity
has never
[Hone’s 5, MS
6]
been questioned & his narrative has been esteemed
one of the most amusing & valuable of the numerous Memoirs that
contribute to the British History. of that period.
The Lives of the two worthies themselves abound with
fireside anecdotes & gossiping tales most agreeably delineative of the
natural features, form & pressures of the times which in which they lived
(??? belonged) Though not the darkest, yet theirs was a dark age of superstition
& under the persuasion of the reality of Day – fatality, omens,
Impulses, & the influence of the Stars they tell ??? erected their
astrological Schemes & tell us talked of their talismans, visions
[Hone’s 6, MS
7]
in precious stones, Communications by soft voices from
the other World, & a host of self deceiving tricks which frightened
the mind from its propriety with every Day familiarity. Hence if the reader have
a taste for humour & scruple not to indulge it at the expence of “those
eminent Antiquaries” he will find a fund of pleasantry in their Lives &
Diaries. But Perhaps the chief value of the book work is constituted by its many
anecdotes & frequent mention of persons respecting whom we have otherwise
very slender information & of whom we have
[Hone’s 7, MS
8]
and desired to know more; or of others whose eminence
has rendered every thing respecting them worthy of regard. But whether
considered therefore as a book of occasional amusement, of biographical Anecdote
or of historical fact it is equally diverting instructive and authentic.
No In this Edition no other liberty has been taken with
the authors’ text than to correct a few glaring grammatical &
typographical errors & the typographical errors mistakes of the former
edition. For further illustration the
[Hone’s 8, MS
9]
present editor has introduced some various additional
ad
notes; which a liberty for which on account of the motive he may perhaps be
pardoned: they are enclosed between crotchets [thus] and has added marked with
x
x For convenient reference to such (??????) of multifarious fact he has
added a copious Index of proper names etc.
[Hone inserts small design made of x's]
Janaury 1815
X
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