THe Jarring strings made so unpleasant a noise, whil’st the Instrument was tuning, that I wonder not at the Story that goes of a Grand Signior, who being invited by a Christian Embassadour to hear some of our Musick, commanded the Fidlers to be thrust out of his Seraglia, upon a mis-apprehension that they were playing, when they were but tuning. But this rare Artist had no sooner put an end to the short exercise he gave our Patience, than he put us to the Exercise of another Virtue: For his nimble and skilful Fingers make one of the innocentest Pleasures of the Senses to be one of the greatest, and this Charming melody (for which Orpheus or Orion themselves might envy him) do’s not so properly delight as ravish us, and render it difficult to moderate the Transports of our Passions, but impossible to restrain the praises that express our satisfaction: So that if this Musitian had been discourag’d by the unpleasant Sounds that were not to be avoided, whil’st he was putting his Lute in Tune, from proceeding in his work, he had been very much wanting to himself, and to save a little pains, had lost a great deal of Pleasure and Applause.
Thus, when the faculties and passions of the Mind, either through a native unruliness, or the remisness of Reason and Conscience are discompos’d, he that attempts to bring them into order, must expect to meet at first but an uneasie Task, and find the beginning of a Reformation more troublesome, for the time, than the past disorders were: But he is very little his own Friend, if he suffers these short-liv’d difficulties to make him leave his Endeavours unprosecuted: For when once they have reduc’d the untun’d Faculties and Affections of the Soul to that pass· which Reason and Religion would have them brought to, the tun’d or compos’d Mind affords a satisfaction, whose greatness do’s ev’n at present abundantly recompence the Trouble of procuring it, and which is yet but a praelude to that more ravishing Melody, wherein the Soul (already Harmonious within it self) shall hereafter bear a part, where the Harps of the Saints accompany the glad Voices that sing the Song of the Lamb, and the Hallelujahs of the rest of the Caelestial Quire.
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