the Sun at Noon
And this method of circumstantiating Matters of Fact into Truth or Falshood , suited to occasion , is found admirably useful to the solving the most difficult Phanomena of State , for by this Art the Solunarian Church made Persecution be against their Principles at one time , and reducible to Practice at another . They made taking up Arms , and calling in Foreign Power to depose their Prince , consistent with Non-Resistance , and Passive Obedience ; nay they went farther , they distinguisht between a Crolian 's taking Arms , and a Solunarians , and fairly prov 'd this to be Rebellion and that to be Non-Resistance . Nay , and which exceeded all the Power of human Art in the highest degrees of Attainment that ever it arriv 'd to on our side the Moon ; they turn 'd the Tables so dexterously , as to argument upon one sort of Crolians , call 'd Prestarians ; that tho ' they repented of the War they had rais 'd in former Times , and protested against the violence offer 'd their Prince ; and after another Party had in spight of them Beheaded him , took Arms against the other Party , and never left contriving their Ruin , till they had brought in his Son , and set him upon the Throne again . Yet by this most dextrous way of Twisting , Extending , Contracting , and Distinguishing of Phrases and Reasoning , they presently made it as plain as the Sun at Noon Day ; that these Prestarians were King-killers , Common-wealths Men , Rebels , Traytors , and Enemies to Monarchy ; that they restor 'd the Monarchy only in order to Destroy it , and that they Preach 'd up Sedition , Rebellion and the like : This was prov 'd so plain by these sublime Distinctions , that they convinc 'd themselves and their Posterity of it , by a rare and newly acquir 'd Art , found out by extraordinary Study , which proves the wonderful power of Custom , insomuch , that let any Man by this method , tell a Lye over a certain number of times , he shall arrive to a Satisfaction of its certainty , tho ' he knew it to be a Fiction before , and shall freely tell it for a Truth all his life after . Thus the Prestarians were call 'd the Murtherers of the Father , tho ' they restor 'd the Son , and all the Testimonials of their Sufferings , Protests and Insurrections to prevent his Death , signify 'd nothing , for this method of Distinguishing has that powerful Charm in it , that all those Trifles we call Proofs and Demonstration were of no use in that Case . Custom brought the Story up to a Truth , and in an instant all the Crolians were hookt in under the general Name of Prestarians , at the same time to hook all Parties in the Crime . Now as it happen 'd at last that these Solunarian Gentlemen found it necessary to do the same thing themselves , viz. To lay aside their Loyalty , Depose , Fight against , shoot Bullets at , and throw Bombs at their King till they frighted him away , and sent him abroad to beg his Bread .