"Touching all that was said before of Phul Belosus, for the proving that Phul and Belosus were not sundry Kings, Joseph Scaliger pities their ignorance that have spent their labour to little purpose. Honest and painefull men he confesseth that they were, who by their diligence might have won the good liking of their Readers had they not by mentioning Annius his Authors given such offence that men refused thereupon to reade their Bookes and Chronologies. A short answere. "For mine owne part, howsoever, I believe nothing that Annius his Berosus, Metasthenes, and others of that stampe affirme, in respect of their bare authority; yet am I not so squeamish, but that I can well enough digest a good Booke, though I finde the wordes of one or two of these good fellows alleaged in it: I have (somewhat peradventure too often) already spoken my mind of Annius, his Authors.... Neither indeed are those honest and painfull men (as Scaliger tearmes them, meaning if I mistake him not; good silly fellowes) who set down the Assyrian Kings from Pul forwards as Lords also of Babylon, taking Pul for Belosus and Salmanassar for Nabonassar, such writers as a man should be ashamed or unwilling to reade." In such a passage even a student of Ralegh can see not only his lips smile, but his eyes twinkle with humour, which is a characteristic of their solemn historian. And he ends the paragraph by recounting a singularly pertinent and amusing jest. "Therefore the fictions (or let them be called conjectures) painted in Maps doe serve only to mislead such discoverers as rashly beleeve them; drawing upon the publishers eyther some angry curses or well deserved scorne.... To which purpose I remember a pretie jest of Don Pedro de Sarmiento, a worthy Spanish Gentleman who had been employed by his King in planting a Colonie upon the Streights of Magellan; for when I asked him being then my Prisoner, some question about an Island in those Streights which me thought, might have done eyther benefit or displeasure to his enterprise, he told me merrily that it was to be called the Painters Wives Island; saying That whilest the fellow drew that Map, his Wife sitting by, desired to put in one Countrey for her; that she, in imagination might have an island of her owne. But in filling up the blankes of old Histories, wee need not be so scrupulous. For it is not to be feared that time should runne backward, and by restoring the things themselves to knowledge, make our conjectures appeare ridiculous...."