Cardan de rerum varietate, l. 17. c. 96. findes fault with the sight of those rich, and most populous Cities in the Low-Countries, as Bruges, Gant, Amsterdam, Leyden, Utrick, &c. the air is bad; and so at Stockholm in Sweden; Regium in Italy, Salisbury with us, Hull and Lin: They may be commodious for navigation, this new kinde of fortification, and many other good necessary uses; but are they so wholsom?

Old Rome hath descended from the hills, to the valley, ’tis the site of most of our new Cities, and held best to build in Plains, to take the opportunity of Rivers. Leander Albertus pleads hard for the air, and site of Venice, though the black Moorish Lands appear at every low water, the Sea, Fire, and Smoke (as he thinks) qualifie the air: And some suppose, that a thick foggy air helps the memory, as in them of Pisa in Italy; and our Cambden out of Plato, commends the site of Cambridg, because it is so neer the Fens.

But let the site of such places be as it may, how can they be excused that have a delicious seat, a pleasant air, and all that nature can afford, and yet through their own nastiness, and sluttishness, immund, and sordid maner of life, suffer their air to putrifie, and themselves to be choked up? Many Cities in Turky do malè audire in this kinde: Constantinople it self, where commonly Carrion lies in the street. Some finde the same fault in Spain, even in Madrit, the Kings seat, a most excellent air, a pleasant site; but the inhabitants are slovens, and the streets uncleanly kept.

A troublesom tempestuous air, is as bad as impure, rough and foul weather, impetuous winds, cloudy dark days, as it is commonly with us, Cœlum visu fœdum, Polydor calls it a filthy sky, & in quo facile generantur nubes; as Tullies brother Quintus wrote to him in Rome, being then Questor in Britain.

In a thick and cloudy air (saith Lemnius) men are tetrick, sad, and peevish: And if the Western winds blow, and that there be a calm, or a fair sunshine day, there is a kinde of alacrity in mens mindes; it chears up men and beasts: but if it be a turbulent, rough, cloudy, stormy weather, men are sad, lumpish, and much dejected, angry, waspish, dull, and melancholy. This was Virgils experiment of old,

Verum ubi tempestas, & cœli mobilis humor Mutavere vices, & Jupiter humidus Austro, Vertuntur species animorum, & pectore motus Concipiunt alios——

But when the face of Heaven changed is To tempests, rain, from season fair: Our mindes are altered, and in our brests Forthwith some new conceipts appear.

And who is not weather-wise against such and such conjunctions of Planets, moved in foul weather, dull and heavy in such tempestuous seasons? Gelidum contristat Aquarius annum: The time requires, and the Autumn breeds it; Winter is like unto it, ugly, foul, squalid, the Air works on all men, more or less, but especially on such as are melancholy, or inclined to it, as Lemnius holds, They are most moved with it, and those which are already mad, rave downright, either in, or against a tempest.

Besides, the devil many times takes his opportunity of such storms, and when the humors by the air be stirred, he goes in with them, exagitates our spirits, and vexeth our souls: as the Sea waves, so are the spirits and humors in our bodies, tossed with tempestuous winds and storms.

To such as are melancholy therefore, Montanus, consil. 24. will have tempestuous and rough air to be avoided, and consil. 27. all night air, and would not have them to walk abroad, but in a pleasant day. Lemnius, l. 3. c. 3. discommends the South and Eastern winds, commends the North. Montanus, consil. 31. Will not any windows to be opened in the night. Consil. 229. & consil. 230. he discommends especially the South wind, and nocturnal air:

So doth Plutarch, The night and darkness makes men sad, the like do all subterranean vaults, dark houses in caves and rocks, desert places cause melancholy in an instant, especially such as have not been used to it, or otherwise accustomed. Read more of air in Hippocrates, Ætius, l. 3. à c. 171. ad 175. Oribasius, à c. 1. ad 22. Avicen. l. 1. can. Fen. 2. doc. 2. Fen. 1. c. 123. to the 12, &c.