Francis Bacon and his secret society - Grand Lodge of Colorado

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AND HIS SECRET SOCIETY. 237
... They cause whirlwinds on a sudden, and tempestuous
storms, which, though our meteorologists generally refer
to natural causes, yet I am of Bodine's mind (lheat. Nat. 1.3
then are more often caused by those aerial devds?for Tempestahbus
se inqerunt, saith Rich. Argentine, as when a desperate man
makes away with himself, which by hanging or drowning they
fVeauentlv do.3 . . . These can corrupt the air and cause
plagues, sickness, storms, shipwrecks, fires, inundations"
Such devils or aerial spirits can " sell winds to manners* and
cause tempests; they consort with witches and serve magicians*
. . . Cardan's father had one of them (as he is not ashamed to
relate), an aerial devil, bound to him for twenty-eight years.
Many other instances are
familiar spirits ;
given of men who employed such
Paracelsus being suppose! to have one confined
to his sword pummel, others who wore them in rings.
" Water-devils are those naiads or water-nymphs conversant
with waters and rivers. 6 The water (as Paracelsus thinks) is
their chaos, wherein tbey live; some call them fairies, and say
that Habundia is their queen; these cause inundations, many
times shipwrecks, and deceive men divers ways, as succuba, or
otherwise, appearing most part (saith Tritemius) in women s
shape.? Paracelsus bath several stories of them that have lived
and been married to mortal men, and so continued for certain
years with them; and after, upon some dislike, have forsaken
tbem.s such a one as iEgaria, . . . Diana, Ceres, etc. Olaus
Magnus hath a narration of a King of Sweden, that, having
iost his company one day, as he was hunting, met with these
water-nymphs, or fairies, and was feasted by them; and Hector
Boethms tells of Macbeth and Banquo, two Scottish lords, that,
1 See of the portents before the murdar of Caesar. " The noise of battle
hurtled in the air."— Jul. Cas. ii. 2.
2 " Awav ! the foal fiend follows me ! . . . Who gives anything to poor Torn 1
whom the foul fiend hath led through fire and through flame, through ford and
whirlpool, 'over bog and quagmire. . . . Bless thee from whirlwinds, star-blastmg,
and taking." Lear, iii. 4.
3 See how the murder of Macbeth is accompanied and foreshadowed by
tempests (Macb. i. 1). This has been well accentuated in Mr. Irving s reproduction
of the play.
4 Note the witches and the mariners (Macb. i. 3), and especially the giving
5
of a wind.
Ariel and Prospero.
6 Prospero summons them, through Ariel, the most perfect impersonation of
a Paracelsian nymph. Tempest, v. 1.
7 lb. i. 2. Macb. i. 3.
8 Such is Undine in the lovely story of La Motte-Fouque.