The Interlude of the Four Elements; An Early Moral Play (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: AN INTERLUDE THE FOUR ELEMENTS. A new Interlude and a mery, of the nature of the iiij. Elementes, declarynge many proper poyntes of Phy- losophy Naturall, and of Dyvers Straunge Landys, and of Dyvers Straunge Effectes and Causis; whiche Interlude, yf the hole matter be playd, wyl conteyne the space of an hour and a halfe, but, yf ye lyst, ye may leve out muche of the sad mater, as the Messengers parte, and some of Naturys parte, and some of Experyens parte, and yet the matter wyl depend convenyently, and than it wyll not lie paste thre quarters of an hour of length. Herefolow the namys of the Pleyers. The Messengere, Nature Naturae, Humanyte, Stu- dyous Desire, Sensuall Appetyte, the Taverner, Experyence, Yngnoraunce: also, yf ye lyst, ye may brynge in a Dysgysynge. Here folow dyvers matters whiche be in this Interlude conteynyd. Of the sytuacyon of the iiij. elementes, that is to sey, the Yerth, the Water, the Ayre, and Fyre, and of their qualytese and propertese, and of the generacyon and corrupcyon of thynges made of the commyxton of them. Of certeyn conclusions provynge that the yerth must nedes be rounde, and that it hengyth in the myddes of the fyrmament, and that it is in circumference above xxj.m. myle. Of certeyn conclusions provynge that the see lyeth rounde uppon the yerth. Of certeyne poyntes of cosmography, as how and where the see coveryth the yerth, and of dyvers straunge regyons and landys, and whiche wey they lye, and of the new founde landys, and the maner of the people. Of the generacyon and cause of stone and metall, and of plantis and herbys. Of the generacyon and cause of well sprynges, and ryvers; and of the cause of hote fumys that come out of the yerth; and of the cause of the bathys of water in the yerth whiche be perpe...