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very few would have thought fit to have printed all; and if it had once come to a contraction or abridgement, it may be much less then this must have served: It is free for all men to think as they please; for my part all things considered, I finde no great want of the rest; and if I were put to it, I cannot tell whether I can say, that I wish more were extant: yet it gives me great content, (and I hope there is no Blasphemy or Superstition in it, if I ascribe it to providence) that after that long intermission, or hiatus, we have yet the last Actions of all, whereby it might appear, after many goodly shews and promises, so much hope and expectation; so many Prayers, so many Thanksgivings and Humiliations, what the end is of dealing with Divels, and using means that are not lawful, to compass ambitious unwarrantable desires. Besides, be it more or less that is wanting, yet I am confident we have the chiefest parts here preserved; as particularly an exact account of his addresses and dealings with the Emperor, and other great men and Princes, in the vii. and some following Divisions; and that sad story of their promiscuous Copulation, under the perswasion of obedience to God, very particularly related in the twelfth Division; wherein as the cunning and malice of evil Spirits, to lead away from God, when they most pretend to God and godliness; so the danger of affected singularity and eminency, (the first ground of all this mischief) of Spiritual pride and self-conceit, is eminently set out to every mans observation, that is not already far engaged (as in these times too to many) in such Principles.

But yet nevertheless I must acknowledge, that there is one part of the story wanting, which I believe by most will be much desired: For whereas at the very beginning, mention is made of a Stone, and that Stone not onely there mentioned, but afterwards in every action almost, and apparition, throughout the whole Book to the very end, still occurring and commemorated as a principal thing; what it was, and how he came by it yea and what became of it, would be known, if by any means it might: All that we are able to say of it is th is, It was a stone in which, and out of which, by persons that were qualified for it, and admitted to the sight of it; all Shapes and Figures mentioned in every Action were seen, and voices heard: The form of it was round, as appeareth by some course representations of it in the Margins, as pag. 395. 399. b. 413 b. and it seems to have been of a pretty bigness: It seems it was most like unto Crystal, as it is called sometimes, as pag 80 Inspecto Chrystallo, and page 177. b. nihil visibile apparuit in Chrystallo Sacrato, præter ipsius crystalli visibili formam. Every body knows by common experience, that smooth things are fittest for representations, as Glasses and the like; but ordinarily such things onely are reprefented, as stand opposite and are visible in their substance. But it is a secret of Magick (which happily may be grounded, in part at least, upon some natural reason, not known unto us) to represent Objects externally not visible) in smooth things: And Roger Bacon alias Bacun) in a Manuscript inscribed, De dictis & factis falsorum Mathematicorum & Dæmonum communicated unto me by my Learned and much esteemed Friend, Dr. Windett Professor of Physick in London, hath an Observation to that purpose, in these words, Hiis Mathematicis in malitia fuâ completis apparent Dæmones sencibilitur in formâ humanâ & aliis formis variis, & dicunt & faciunt multa eis mirabilia secundumquod