Francis Bacon and his secret society - Grand Lodge of Colorado

AND HIS SECRET SOCIETY. 205
from which some portions have been already quoted, in order to
perceive how striking is the general resemblance in aim, how
early the aspirations of Bacon formed themselves into a project,
and with what rapidity the project became a great fact.
"Assuming, then," concludes the biographer, "that a deep
interest in these three causes—the cause of reformed religion, of
his native country, and of the human race through all their generations
— was thus early implanted in that vigorous and virgin soil,
we must leave it to struggle up as it may, according to the accidents
of time and weather. ... Of Bacon's life I am persuaded
that no man will ever form a correct idea, unless he bear in
mind that from very early youth his heart was divided by these
three objects, distinct, but not discordant.
Bacon, as we have seen, was not fifteen years old when he conceived
the thought of founding a new system for the advancement
of knowledge, and for the benefit of humanity. The Rosicrucian
manifestoes inform us that thefounder ofthe society, and
the writer of one of the most important documents, The
Chymical Marriage, was a boy offifteen.
Mr. Waite observes, naturally enough, that the knowledge
evinced by the writer of the paper in question, of the practices
and purposes of alchemy, must be impossible to the most precocious
boy. But in mind Francis Bacon never was a boy.
Some men, he said, were always boys, their minds never grew
with their bodies, but he reflected, evidently thinking of himself
in relation to others, that " All is not in yeares, somewhat
also is in houres well spent. " i
Never had he been " idle truant,
omitting the sweet benefit of time, " but rather had, like Proteus,
" for that's his name,"
"Made use and fair advantage of his days,
His years but young, but his experience old;
His head unmellowed, but his judgment ripe ! "2
Wonderful as it is, improbable as it would appear, did we not
know it to be the case, the fact remains, that at the age of fif-
1 Promus.
2 Two Gentlemen of Yerona, ii. 4.