The profession and vse of Poesie is most ancient from the beginning, and
not as manie erroniously suppose, after, but before any ciuil society was
among men. For if it was first that Poesie was th'originall cause and
occasion of their first assemblies; when before the people remained in the
woods and mountains, vagarant and dipersed like the wild beasts; lawlesse
and naked, or verie ill clad, and of all good and necessarie prouision for
harbour or sustenance vtterly vnfurnished: so as they litle diffred for
their maner of life, from the very brute beasts of the field. Whereupon it
is fayned that _Amphion_ and _Orpheus_, two Poets of the first ages, one
of them, to wit _Amphion_, builded vp cities, and reared walles with the
stones that came in heapes to the sound of his harpe, figuring thereby the
mollifying of hard and stonie hearts by his sweete and eloquent
perswasion. And _Orpheus_ assembled the wilde beasts to come in heards to
harken to his musicke and by that meanes made them tame, implying thereby,
how by his discreete and wholesome lessons vttered in harmonie and with
melodious instruments, he brought the rude and sauage people to a more
ciuill and orderly life, nothing as it seemeth, more preuailing or fit to
redresse and edifie the cruell and sturdie courage of man then it. And as
these two Poets and _Linus_ before them, and _Museus_ also and _Hesiodus_
in Greece and Archadia: so by all likelihood had mo Poets done in other
places and in other ages before them, though there be no remembrance left
of them, by reason of the Recordes by some accident of time perished and
failing. Poets therfore are of great antiquitie. Then forasmuch as they
were the first that entended to the obseruation of nature and her works,
and specially of the Celestiall courses, by reason of the continuall
motion of the heauens, searching after the first mouer, and from thence by
degrees comming to know and consider of the substances separate &
abstract, which we call the diuine intelligences or good Angels
_(Demones)_ they were the first that instituted sacrifices of placation,
with inuocations and worship to them, as to Gods; and inuented and