sometimes in the prediction of witches, that pretended conference with the dead: which is called necromancy, conjuring, and witchcraft; and is but juggling and confederate knavery: sometimes in the casual flight or feeding of birds; called augury: sometimes in the entrails of a sacrificed beast; which was “aruspicina”: sometimes in dreams; sometimes in croaking of ravens, or chattering of birds: sometimes in the lineaments of the face; which was called metoposcopy; or by palmistry in the lines of the hand; in casual words, called “omina”: sometimes in monsters, or unusual accidents; as eclipses, comets, rare meteors, earthquakes, inundations, uncouth births, and the like, which they called “portenta,” and “ostenta,” because they thought them to portend or foreshow some great calamity to come; sometimes, in mere lottery, as cross and pile, counting holes in a sieve; dipping of verses in Homer, and Virgil; and innumerable other such vain conceits. So easy are men to be drawn to believe anything, from such men as have gotten credit with them; and can with gentleness and dexterity take hold of their fear and ignorance.