admen make sport among themselves, while one laughs
at another; he that is more mad many times jeering him that is less
so. But indeed the greater each man's madness is, the greater is his
happiness, if it be but such a sort as proceeds from an excess of folly,
which is so epidemical a distemper that it is hard to find any one man
so uninfected as not to have sometimes a fit or two of some sort of
frenzy. There is only this difference between the several patients, he
that shall take a broom-stick for a strait-bodied woman is without more
ado sentenced for a madman, because this is so strange a blunder as very
seldom happens; whereas he whose wife is a common jilt, that keeps a
warehouse free for all customers, and yet swears she is as chaste as an
untouched virgin, and hugs himself in his contented mistake, is scarce
taken notice of, because he fares no worse than a great many more of his
good-natured neighbours. Among these are to be ranked such as take an
immoderate delight in hunting, and think no music comparable to the
sounding of horns and the yelping of beagles; and were they to take
physic, would not question to think the most sovereign virtues to be
in the _album Graecum_ of a dog's, turd. When they have run down their
game, what strange pleasure they take in cutting of it up! Cows and
sheep may be slaughtered by common butchers, but what is killed in
hunting must be broke up by none under a gentleman, who shall throw down
his hat, fall devoutly on his knees, and drawing out a slashing hanger
(for a common knife is not good enough), after several ceremonies shall
dissect all the parts as artificially as the best skilled anatomist,
while all that stand round shall look very intently, and seem to be
mightily surprised with the novelty, though they have seen the same an
hundred times before; and he that can but dip his finger, and taste of
the blood, shall think his own bettered by it: and though the constant
feeding on such diet does but assimilate them to the nature of those
beasts they eat of, yet they will swear that venison is meat for
princes, and that their living upon it makes them as great as emperors.

[Illustration: 178]

Near a kin to these are such as take a great fancy for building: they
raise up, pull down, begin anew, alter the model, and never rest till
they run themselves out of their whole estate, taking up such a compass
for buildings, till they leave themselves not one foot of land to live
up