That the short and transitory pleasures which the strange woman affords us , are accompanied with the sharpest and most permanent evils .

And that , First , Because she 'l wound and stain our reputation . How full is the adulterer of fears and jealousies , scorching desires , and impatient waitings , tedious demurrs , sufferance of indignities , and amazements of discoveries , and his uncleanness is ever attended by shame which is its eldest daughter ; for let us consider how infamous it has ever been , to be noted for a common Pathick or a lustful Amoretto , how oppr●briously Adulterers have been used by most Nations . The Law of the Aegyptians was to cut off the Nose of an Adulterer ; the Locrians put out the Adulterers Eyes ; and ( the more notoriously to intimate his effeminacy ) others cloathed him with wool ; and Solons Law was this , If any man take an Adulterer in the fact , he may use him how he pleases : And in the Twelve Tables , m m Moechum in adulterio depreh●nsum impunè neca ▪ to . If you take a man in the act of Adultery , you may kill him without danger of punishment ; Impunity was intailed upon the murther of him . You may observe , that this sin of Adultery is in Scripture called a sin of darkness ; intimating to us , how the Adulterer , asham'd of the light , sneaks up and down in obscure recesses , and is onely active and vigilant when others are quiet and taking their repose . Other sinners iniquities are in Scripture numbred by the hairs of the head ; but we cannot number the Adulterers so , because as his sins increase his hairs do fall ; the Spring of his sins is his hairs Fall o' th' leaf . The second account upon which the Adulterer will conclude , That the transitory pleasures which the strange woman affords us are accompanied with the sharpest evils , is ,

2. Because hee 'l finde she will impair the health of his body ; for though her Lips drop as an Honey-comb , and she distil the Quintessence of Rhetorick in every expression ; though she does amorously caress and embrace him , yet 't is but as the encircling Ivie does the Oak , to make him rot , wither , and decay . Though he may think himself in Heaven , and imagine her curled Arms about him to be his Celestial Zodiack , yet hee 'l ( at length ) finde them but as chains and fetters to enslave and captivate him to her insatiable Lust ; the gratifications whereof whilest he endeavours to shew her , he must undergo as many gripes in his guilty Conscience , as Aches in his impure and vitious Body . She , it may be , will foment and cherish the flames of his Lust with these pleasing Blasts , by telling him that the Virgin Spring does not appear less chaste because many thirsts are there quenched ; and that those Waters stink soon that continue long in one place , but remain sweet and wholsome whilest they leave one bank and kiss another . But let us ( like a prudent Vlysses ) stop our ears to the fatal voice of this dangerous Siren , least , while we sail in the Ocean of this World , we suffer shipwrack of Grace and a good Conscience : Don't let us stand to dispute the case , and parley with her , but rather flie from her , and avoid her company : For , we must be extremely cold , not to be warmed by so fair a fire , and very strong , to make defence against so charming an Enemy . Nor can we touch Pitch with our hands , but a foul impress will be received from it : One rotten kernel of the Pomgranate infects the fellows ; and St. Paul made that Verse Canonical , Evil communication corrupts good manners . And it is noted of Joseph , that as soon as his Mistress had laid her impure hands upon his garment , he leaves it behinde him , that he might be sure to avoid the danger of her contagious touch . And we shall assuredly finde , that she who but now compared her self to a pleasant Spring , will at last serve us with the bitter Waters of Marah . For I appeal to the common Adulterer , Whether he be not a walking Hospital and Pest-house of Diseases ? Whether he is not alwayes possest with a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , a Devil that first tempts him to all Uncleanness , and afterwards terrifies and exanimates him with the greatest horrour imaginable ? and whether the violent and fervent heat of his lustfull appetite be not as unquenchable as Hell-flames ? Could we have Lynceus his eyes , and look through the decayed walls of his Body , what rottenness should we discover in his exhausted Bones ? how would the whole Fabrick of his Body appear invalid and unnerved , and represent it self to us as the Embleme of a Sack of dry Bones , whose every part , were it anatomized and opened , it would corrupt and infect the Air , and store the World with as many Diseases as the opening of Pandora's Box : insomuch that he who shall be besotted with so Lethargick a stupidity as to harbour and caress this strange woman , He ( like the Hyrcanians ) may be said to keep a Dog to devour himself , or ( like the mad Romans in Arrian ) court the Fever of his own Lust , that will soon consume him , and render him as meager and pellucid as the meerest Skeleton ; causing withal a no less decay in his Estate then in his Body ; and this I conceive induced Solomon to say , n n Prov 6. 26. That by means of a whorish woman a man is brought to a piece of bread , and the adulteress will hunt for the precious life . But if this be not sufficient to deter the Adulterer from this Prostitutes company , I le advance a step higher , and press him with a third Argument , to prove , That those transitory pleasures the strange Woman affords us are accompanied with the sharpest and most permanent evils : and that

3. Because by her means an irreparable and irrecoverable damage will accrue to his immortal Soul . And in this St. Paul shall be my President , who o o 1 Cor. 6. 9. bids us not be deceived , assuring us , That neither fornicators , nor adulterers , nor effeminate persons , shall enter into the Kingdome of God . p p Rouse in Archaeolog . Attic. It was not permitted to a Dog to enter into the Acropolis , because of his excessive heat in Venery ; and so neither will it be permitted to those that ( like the Dog ) indulge themselves in the excessive heat of Venery , to enter into Heaven , which may for its heighth be called an Acropolis , which ( being interpreted ) is , a City built upon a Hill . Let us consider how impossible it is that our Prayers and Oblations should be acceptable to God , when they are offered with impure hands , reeking in lust : How can we expect to look God in the face ( whose eyes are purer then to behold iniquity ) with our impure eyes ? How can we hope to be Eagle-ey'd enough to look up to God , whose eyes are ten thousand times brighter then the Sun , when we have so weakned our eyes by the Works of Darkness , that ( like Night-birds ) we dread to behold the Light ? How should Chamberings and Wantonness hope to get room in Heaven , whence all kind of Marriage is excluded ? When the two opposite Poles of the World meet together , and two Contradictions at the same time prove true , then , and not till then , will I believe that the Fornicator and Heaven can kiss each other . How can we call God Father , who utterly renounces those spurious off-springs of our sinful lusts , which have not their Original , nor derive their Pedegree from God , but the World and our depraved Natures ? Which S. John q q 1 Joh. 2. 16. intimates to us ; who making an Inventory of the Goods , or rather of the Evils of this World , besides the Lust of the Eye , and the Pride of Life , he tells us , that the Lust of the Flesh is not of God , but of the World .

It remains now that I should prescribe you some few Recipe's and Antidotes ; which if you 'l make use of , I 'le warrant to cure you of the Fever of Lust , into which the Strange Woman will endeavour to cast you : And my first is this .

First then , Let every one make a Covenant with his eyes , never to look upon any object with a lustfull and impure inclination . Job 31. 1. I have made a Covenant with my eyes , why then should I look upon a maid ? Shut your Eyes , those Windows of your Soul , through which you receive the Species from all sinful Objects ; for , through those windows a little sin ( like a little Boy ) may creep in , and open the Door of your Heart to the rest . An eminent Historian of our own Nation tells us , That whilest the Earl of Salisbury was at the Battel of Orleance , opening a little window of the Castle , where he was to view the Enemy , a little Lad killed him with a Cannon planted and discharg'd against the Windows . So , it may be , whilest thou openest thy Souls windows , thy Eyes , to look upon a beautiful Object , a small Lust may chance to shoot thee with a temptation , and leave thee dead in sin for ever . Scipio and Alexander both of them are reported to have taken fair Captives : Scipio would not suffer his to come into his sight , lest he himself might be captivated by their beauty ; but Alexander gave his Captives admittance into his presence : And though Alexanders was the greater continency , yet Scipio took the wisest course ; for , r r Periculosum est illud per quod quis aliquando captus sit videre ; propè se consequuntur proponi formam & exponi pudicitiam . Senec. 'T is dangerous to look upon that by which we may at length be ensnared ; the exposing of Beauty to be seen , and the loss of Modesty and Chastity follow one another . Let us therefore attend to our blessed Saviours words , who tells us , * * Matth. 5. 28. That whosoever looks upon a woman with an intention to lust after her , hath committed adultery with her already in his heart . When we come into the presence of moving Beauties , we must do as men usually do when the Summer Sun grows potent and vehement ; though we admire their Beauties greatness , yet we must shun it's heat ; each place can afford us a shadow to hide us from it . The Poets tell us , that when some young men had beheld the three equal beauty'd Gorgones , they were thereby deprived and divested of their human shape , and metamorphosed into stones : So , if we be not cautious how we too lasciviously gaze upon powerful Beauties , who knows how soon we may be so callous and obdurate , and our hearts be rendred so stony , that without the least regret or remorse we may first fall into the profound Abyss of Adultery , and thence to that bottomless one of Hell . We must not do by a beautiful Object as by the Crocodile , but quite contrary ; for we must be sure not to look first upon it , and then we shall remain secure from its killing glances : for , he who is still looking , and always gazing , acts like him who drinks Wine in the very heighth of a Fever . But if still men will look upon fair Objects , let the same use be made of them which the wiser sort of Catholicks do of Pictures ; let their beautiful features serve to raise our Devotion to God , and make us admire his curious workmanship . And since Women are of late grown so proud and licentious as to expose and prostitute themselves to the eyes of men in unseemly and immodest gestures , and they onely shew themselves true Britains in this , that , like the ancient Britains , they delight to paint their bodies , and ( like the Rain-bow ) display their transient and fading colours ; let us , when we see such as these , call to mind these Considerations to allay those inordinacies which may otherwise arise in our thoughts from the contemplation of so vicious objects . Let us consider , That they are but vain Dames , to bestow such curious cost on so woful and sordid a piece of dirt , which ( it may be ) would otherwise resemble the clay Prometheus us'd before it was inform'd and animated ; That 't is their folly to guild a clay Wall , and enamel a Bubble , when they can give no other then a Womans Reason for it . Let us consider , That Women have no beauty but what we are pleased to give them ; and that if we call them fair , 't is but in the way of Poetry or Complement : And that these dim Cynthia's would be very obscure , if they borrowed not that light they have from the Sun of mens favour . Or suppose we are so candid and ingenuous as to grant them beautiful , yet we may see by experience , that their Beauty is like a sweet and much coveted Banquet , which is no sooner tasted but its delicious Luxury is swallowed up by Oblivion . Let us think with our selves , That there 's no conformation of lineaments , no composition of features , no symmetry of parts so exactly combin'd and compacted in one person , but a critical eye may discover some imperfection : fairest Cynthia is not without her spots , nor beautiful Venus without her moles .

2. If you would be cured of the Fever of Lust , into which the Strange Woman will endeavour to cast you , use a moderate , slender and ascetick Diet : Be content with that with which Nature her self wil be contented , and then s s Natura p●ucis contenta . Sen. a little will suffice you ; and if you do this , t t Nunquam aliud natura aliad sapientia dicit . Hor. you will act according to the Rules of Discretion and Prudence . Use Fasting and severe Abstinence , which are the proper Abscissions of the instruments and temptations of lust . And to this is reducible a restraint from all morose delectation , and looser banquetting : You must not desire to be fed at Vitellius his board ; you must not desire Nero's effeminate baths , nor Tiberius his naked Pictures to incite your lust ; you must not hunt all grounds , draw all seas , search every brook and bush , or dispeople the four Elements to please your wanton lusts , and try experiments upon your judicious palates ; but as you must abstain from u u Vt s●mper abstineas ab illicitis aliquando etiam a licitis . Sen. things unlawful , so also from lawful too : You must not onely take care you transcend not the Bounds of Temperance and Moderation , but you must sometimes abridge your selves of your necessary repast ; assuring your selves , That the more x x Quanto quisque sibi plura neg averit a diis plura feret . Horat. you deny your selves , the more you shall receive from God . 'T is storied of Richard Nevil Earl of Warwick , ( stiled also Make-King , ) that in the great Battel at Ferrybrigg between Henry the Sixth and Edward the Fourth , when he perceived his side almost worsted by Henry the Sixth , he slew his Horse with his own Sword , and then uttered these Heroick expressions , Let all that will fight stay with me ; and then ( according to the Ceremony of those times ) kissing the Cross upon his Sword , he fought with singular courage and prowess : So in the conflict between our Lusts and us , let us kill and mortifie our Bodies , which ( in the language of Socrates ) are our Soul's Horses , and then excite every Faculty of our Souls with these words , Let all that will fight stay with me ; and when we have done thus , let us kiss and take up our Cross , and fight stoutly under Christ the Captain of our Salvation against our Lusts ; it being impossible to keep the Spirit pure , whilest 't is overburdened with too much Flesh , and exposed to all entertainments of Enemies by fomentations and pamperings ; remembring the divine counsel of the y y 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . Hierocl . Philosopher , That we must not take care for the Body simply as the Body , but as subservient to the Soul . And that you may be the better induced to do this , remember ( as the fore-cited Author z z 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . has well said , That your Soul is your self , but your Body yours ; for 't is the Soul which uses , but that which is used by it is the Body : And by this separation of the Soul from the Body , you will preserve your nature from confusion , nor think that things 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which are without concern you , nor contend for those as for your self , and so consequently avoid too much care of your body ; not resembling those , that , so that Sumpter-horse the Body be hung with gaudy Trappings , and pamper'd , care not with what rags they cloath the Soul . We may also consider that these high pamperings and feasting our selves have no real pleasure in them ; and this I am sure was the Orators judgment , when he said , a a Nolim mihi fingere asotos , qui in mensam vomant , & qui de conviviis auferantur , crudi● se postridiè rursús ingurgitent , qui Solem ( ut ajunt ) n●● Occidentem unquam viderint nec Orient●m , qui consumptis patrimoniis egent , nemo nostrum istius generis asotas jucundè putat vivere . Tull. de Finibus Bonor . & Malor . I would not fancy or imagine with my self as if luxurious gluttons lived pleasantly , and such who vomit upon the table again what but now they took off , and with their crude stomacks , carried from Feasts , the next day ingurgitate themselves into them again ; who , by reason of their laziness and surfeiting , see the Sun neither rise nor set , and are in indigency of those Estates which they have profusely expended : none of us ( saith he ) ever thought such gluttons as these live a pleasant life . And the same Author tells us , b b In tenuissimo ego victu , i. e. escis contemptissimis & potionibus non minorem voluptatem percipi arbitror quam rebus exquisitissimis ad epulandu● . Tull. ibid. That there is no less pleasure to be taken in a slender and spare diet , then in the most exquisite dainties ; there being no less delight in the Persian Nasturtium , then in the richly furnished Syracusan Tables , so much cry'd down and discommended by Plato . Put this shall suffice for the second Recipe : and my third is this .

3. Secure your Heart so well that no ill thought creeps into it , and proves an incentive to lust ; let not the smallest ventricle of your heart conceive an evil thought , lest at last it bring forth sin . One little Flie will taint and corrupt a great quantity of flesh ; and so one little thought hovering about thy heart ( like a little Flie ) will quickly taint it . Be sure therefore ( like the Emperour Domitian c c Sueton. in vit Domitian . alwayes to be catching and killing these Flies . Consider , that if you indulge your selves in wicked thoughts and lustings , there wants nothing to the consummation of the act but some convenient circumstances , which because they are not then attainable , the act is for a time impeded , but the malice nothing abated : For d d Lex non concupiscendi , origines d●lictorum , i. e. concupiscentias & voluntates non minùs quàm facta cond●mnat . Tertull. de Pudicit . the Law of Not coveting no less forbids sinful desires and concupiscences then sinful actions ; for no man desires of lusts after any thing but what pleases him : But every complacency or delight in an unlawful matter , although short and transient , nay , although at last repulsed and cohibited from breaking out into an external act , hath contracted by that very motion the blemish and spot of an internal sin . And hence S. Augustin , following the Doctrine of S. Paul , affirms , e e Peccatum est , quia illi inest inobedientia contrà dominatum mentis . Aug. lib. 5. c. 3. contrà Julian . That the concupiscence of the flesh is sin in a good man , Because he has in him a disobedience and reluctancy against the government of the rational faculty . Again , He sins that inwardly lusteth or desires , although he follow not those desires by a consequent act , Because such motions are not pure passions , but involve negations of due acts which ought to have been in lieu thereof : A man may be incestuous * * Incesta est sin● stupro anima quae stup●um quae ▪ rit. Sen. that never bodily commits the act ; and from these impure fires , which men kindle and cherish within them , they are usually in love with their deformed lusts , as Alcaeus was with the warts f f Naevus in vul●u delectat Alcaeum , erat deformitas , at illi placebat . Cic. in his Boys face , though they are deformed marks . When Brutus and Cassius assaulted Caesar with a design and resolution to murther him , we read ▪ that as soon as he saw Brutus he cryed out , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ; And art thou here my Son , my Darling ? and opened his breast to him . So when any Lust comes to assault us with a design to make us dead in sin , we court and caress it in Caesars words , Art thou here , my Darling ? and open our hearts and breasts unto it ; whereas we should alwayes be prepared with preservatories against it .

4. Let your discourse be alwayes chast and pure : Decline with great care all undecent obscenity in your language , chastening and confining your tongue , and restraining it with Grace ; for , as St. James tells us , Jam. 3. 2. If any man offend not in word ( tongue ) the same is a perfect man , and able also to bridle the whole body . Either be silent , or speak those things which are better then silence , is a good Rule here . Every bad tree is known by its bad fruit , and an unclean man may be trac'd by his unclean discourse ; it being a shrewd symptom the Will is depraved , when our Discourse is unchaste and obscence . And in this g g 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . Hierocl . Hierocles concurrs with me ; The Will of man ( saith he ) adhering long neither to Virtue nor Vice , utters forth expressions inclining to both , as resembling the contrary affections in it . This advice therefore of Tyrius Maximus is very soveraign ; h h 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . Tyr Max●m . I require such a pleasure in words which Virtue may not disdain to make her Waiting-woman and attend upon her . St. James calls the Tongue a fire , Jam. 3. 6. And the School-men call the Lusts of the Flesh ( Fomes ) Tinder . Let us therefore be careful that the Fire of our Tongue light not upon this Tinder , and kindle it . Modesty and a becoming Blush is the Fence of all Virtue ; and when this is broken down by obscene talk , the Banks will over flow with impure Streams . A Rose , when it hath lost its blush , and begins to look pale , by those symptoms you may conclude that 't is a dying . It hath ever been accounted a true Rule , Qualis Vir , talis Oratio . We know the Bird by the Tune , the Beagle by his Mouth , and a Man by his Words . We cannot expect that he that hath lost his voice with his Chastity should sing Praises to God so melodiously as another that is chaste , virtuous , and continent . A stinking breath is not a more sure symptom of putrid Lungs , then an obscene Tongue of an unclean Heart . 'T were better that this Clapper stood still , except it could give a purer sound ; it were better this Clock never struck , except it were for other ends then to awaken our Lusts , and put them in motion . And I look upon obscene discourse but as an impure Breath coming out of the mouth , which is fit for nothing but to make an Exhalation or Ignis fatuus , which ( if we follow it ) will lead us into Bogs and precipices of Uncleanness ; but if we fall down , and prostrate our selves before God in Prayer , it will quickly be dissolved : Wherefore ,

5. Let us use frequent and earnest Prayers to God , to give us the assistance of his holy Spirit ; for this Devil of Lust sometimes cannot be cast out but by Prayer . When the Romans were in great distress , & surprized with a sudden assault of their Enemies , they ran to the Temple to get Arms , which were laid there against an extraordinary occasion : So , if we shall be at any time assaulted by our Lusts , let us have recourse to the Temple of God , and take up the Arms of the Church , which are Prayers and Tears . We must not ( as Nero did at the burning of Rome ) sing Paeans and rejoyce , when our Bodies ( those Temples of the Holy Ghost ) are burning with the flames of Lust . Numa Pompilius , when news was brought him that his Enemies were ready to surprize him , put off the Messenger with this ready memorable speech , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , I am offering a sacrifice to God : So , when we have any news of being surprized by our Lusts , we may return the same answer ; 'T is enough if we are at our Prayers , which will secure and guard us from them . Plutarch reports of a Boy , who though he was burnt with a coal that fell from the Altar , yet continued his oblation of Sacrifice without intermission : So let us ( though we are sometimes burned with the fire of Lust ) be so fervent in our Prayers to God , that the fervency of them may exceed and draw away the heat of our Lusts , as a great Fire does the heat which was caused by a less .

6. Avoid Idleness , and be sure alwayes to be well employed . I may give an idle man that character one i i Simul ac se remiserat , nec causa suberat quare laborem ferret luxuriosus , dissolutus , libidinosus , ac intemperans reperiebatur . gives of Themistocles when out of imployment , That he will be luxurious , dissolute , lustful , and intemperate . Mans heart is a Mill ever grinding some grist or other ; and I may add , If there be no grain for it to work upon , it sets it self on fire with lust . Let us consider , that whilest we are idle , and not imployed , we can expect no assistance from God , if we should be assaulted by Lust : according to that of the Historian , k k Ubi socordiae atque ignaviae te dederis , nequicquam Deos implores , irati atque in festi sunt . Salust . When we once give our selves over to idleness , we shall in vain implore the aid and assistance of God , for then he is angry and offended at us . No , no , let us rather be in continual action and imployment , and be diligently conversant in our several lawful vocations : For ( as the same Author tells us ) l l Non votis neque supplicationibus muliebribus auxilia Deorum parantur , vigiland● , agendo , bene consulendo , prosperè omnia cedent . Sal. de Bel. Lat. We cannot by a few weak Prayers only and faint Supplications obtain aid and assistance from God ; but by watching , and being in continual action and consultation , all things will succeed prosperously unto us . It was a saying of Appius Clodius , m m Negotium meliùs populo Romano qu●m otium committi quòd imperia praepotentia agitatione rerum ad virtutem capessendam excitarentur . Flor. l●b 3. That it were better for the Romans to be busied and imployed , then remiss and idle ; Because great Empires by agitation and motion are excited to Vertue . And it was anothers complaint , n n Res disciplinae inimicissima otium mil●tes corrupit . Pater● lib. 2. That Idleness ( that great enemy to Discipline ) corrupted and spoiled the Roman Souldiers . And so may we complain , that Idleness hinders us in our Spiritual Warfare against our Lusts . Whilest Atalanta was imployed in hunting with Diana , she kept her Virginity pure and immaculate ; but when she fell into Idleness , she indulg'd her self in the gratification of her insatiable Lusts : So , whilest our Souls are employed in hunting after knowledge , and other things which are commendable and praise-worthy , they may preserve themselves from Lust and Uncleanness . It was a saying of a Latine Poet , o o Otia si tollas periere Cupidinis arcus . Ovid. de Remed. Amor . Take away Idleness , and you break Cupids Bow : And I may say , with more then Poetical Authority , Take away Idleness , and you break the Devils Bow : for Idleness is the Bow out of which the Devil shoots the fiery Darts of his Temptations at us . And if , after all these Means used , you cannot contain your selves within the bounds of Chastity , then

7. Enter the sacred Bonds of Matrimony : 'T is far better thou shouldest marry then burn . Take St. Pauls counsel , who , p p 1 Cor. 7. 2. to avoid fornication , bids every man have his own Wife , and every woman have her own Husband . And though I cannot but esteem a single life and holy Caelibate ( which was consecrated by the holy Jesus in his proper person ) to be an excellent Virtue ; yet since every one hath not that gift of continence which our Saviour had , and God hath instituted Matrimony as an Ordinance , and the holy Jesus hallowed it and made it honourable with the expence of the first Miracle ( we read ) he ever performed on Earth , and made it more sublimate by making it a Representation of the Union betwixt Him and his Spouse the Church ; it is a thing highly commendable in it self , and to be made use of as a great Preservative against inordinacies in our Affections and unruly Passions : And a Learned Author puts it in the Catalogue of such Arts q q Sine quibus vita commodè duci nequit . Grot. de Jur. Bel. & Pac. without which a man cannot live well and happily ; and says , That although to live a single life is not totally repugnant to Humane Nature , yet it is repugnant to the Nature of most Men ; Because a single life and caelibate are onely fitted for the most excellent Minds , and such as are refined from the dross of impure concupiscence . And another Author brings in Romulus speaking to his neighbouring Nations , r r Ne graventur homines cum hominibus genus & sanguinem miscere . L●v Decad. lib. 1. That they would not grudge to mix themselves together in a joynt Allyance and Consanguinity . And though the Roman State seemed to countenance a single life , because they afforded Dignities to certain Vestal Virgins , yet the number of those Vestals was but small ; and then the Dignities and Priviledges which they had were no other but that they were made equal in State to married Wives ; they were preferred before all that lived unmarried , but not before married persons .

But whilest I am speaking of this Order of Vestal Nuns , I cannot but endeavour to excite in you an abhorrency of those destructive Nunneries into which the Papists cast their Virgins in their infancy , and before they come to maturity of years , or are ( which they can never be ) able to judge of the strength of their own continency . Into what Stews have these Nunneries been frequently converted , by reason of restraining those from the sacred Ligament of Marriage who have not so absolute a command over themselves as to abstain from unlawful carnality ? How is that sacred Fire , which among the Romans of old was preserved by their Vestal Virgins , by these changed into Flames of Lust , which all their Holy-Water will never allay or extinguish ? Oh! that these sottish abusers of the Holy Ordinance of God called Marriage would but call to minde how the blessed and immaculate Virgin ( our Saviours Mother ) was betrothed to Joseph , lest honourable Marriage might be disreputed , and seem inglorious , by a positive rejection from any participation of that transcendent honour ! I could heartily wish that these our Romanists would but imitate the brave example of the old Romans , who thought none eligible to be Jupiters Priests but such as were Married ; and ( as Tacitus and Suetonius tell us ) set a Fine upon their heads who refused to be united in the holy Bonds of Matrimony . It was out of respect to this , that the Emperour Augustus sent for Germanicus his Children , and hugging and caressing them in his Royal breast , signified by his countenance , and other signes of his hand , that others ought to imitate Germanicus in marrying with joy and alacrity .