_Of Monsters and Monstrous Births; and the several reasons thereof,
according to the opinions of the Ancients. Also, whether the
Monsters are endowed with reasonable Souls; and whether the Devils
can engender; is here briefly discussed._


By the ancients, monsters are ascribed to depraved conceptions, and are
designated as being excursions of nature, which are vicious in one of
these four ways: either in figure, magnitude, situation, or number.

In figure, when a man bears the character of a beast, as did the beast
in Saxony. In magnitude, when one part does not equalise with another;
as when one part is too big or too little for the other parts of the
body. But this is so common among us that I need not produce a
testimony.

[Illustration: There was a Monster at Ravenna in Italy of this kind, in
the year 1512.]

I now proceed to explain the cause of their generation, which is either
divine or natural. The divine cause proceeds from God's permissive will,
suffering parents to bring forth abominations for their filthy and
corrupt affections, which are let loose unto wickedness like brute
beasts which have no understanding. Wherefore it was enacted among the
ancient Romans that those who were in any way deformed, should not be
admitted into religious houses. And St. Jerome was grieved in his time
to see the lame and the deformed offering up spiritual sacrifices to God
in religious houses. And Keckerman, by way of inference, excludes all
that are ill-shapen from this presbyterian function in the church. And