drinketh when he commeth vnto it and vnles he be compelled he doth nothing he taketh no care for the common welth for he neither knoweth how to folow reason nor yet how to resist sensualitie Therfore if a man at al times should eate when he desireth reuenge himselfe when he is moued commit adultrie when he is tempted drinke when he is thristie and slepe when he is drousey we might more properly cal such a one a beaste nourished in the mountaines than a man brought vp in the common wealth For him properly we maye cal a man that gouerneth him self like a man that is to say conformable vnto such things as reason willeth and not wher sensuality leadeth Let vs leaue these vaine men whyche are aliue and talke of them that be dead against whom we dare say that whyles they were in the world they folowed the world liued according to the same It is not to be marueiled at that sins they were lyuing in the worlde they were noted of some worldlye point But seing their vnhappy and wicked life is ended why wil they then smel of the vanities of the world in their graues It is a great shame and dishonor for men of noble stout harts to se in one minut thend of our life and neuer to see the end of our folye We neither read heare nor se any thing more common then suche men as be most vnprofitable in the comon wealth and of life most reprobate to take vpon them most honour whiles they liue and to leaue behind them the greatest memorye at their death What vanity can be greater in the world then to esteme the world whych estemeth no man and to make no compt of god who so greatly regardeth al men what a greater foly can ther be in man then by muche trauaile to encrease his goodes and with vaine pleasours to lose his soule It is an olde plague in mannes nature that many or the most parte of menne leaue the amendment of their life farre behind to set their honor the more before Suetonius Tranquillus in the first booke of the Emperours sayth that Iulius Cesar no further thenne in Spaine in the Citye of Cales nowe called Calis sawe in the temple the triumphes of Alexander the great paynted the whyche when he hadde wel vewed he sighed marueilous soore and beinge asked why he dyd so he aunswered What a wofull case am I in that am now of thage of .30 yeres and Alexander at the same yeres had subdued the whole worlde and rested him in Babilon And I being as I am a Romaine neuer dyd yet thyng woorthy of prayse in my lyfe nor shal leaue any renoume of me after my death Dion the Grecian in the second boke de Audacia saythe that the noble Drusius the Almayne vsed to visite the graues and tombes of the famous and renowmed which were buried in Italy and did this alwaies especially at his going to warfare and it was asked him why he did so he aunswered I vysite the sepulchers of Scipio and of diuers others which are dead before whom al the earth trembled when they were alyue For in beholdyng their prosperous successe I dyd recouer both strength and stoutnes He sayth furthermore that it encourageth a man to fight against hys enemies remembring he shal leaue of him a memory in time to come Cicero sayth in his Rhethorike and also Plynie maketh mencion of the same in an epistle that there came from Thebes in Egipt a knight to Rome for no other purpose but onelye to see whether it were true or no that was reported of the notable thinges of Rome Whom Mecenas demaunded what he perceyued of the Romaynes and what he thought of Rome He aunswered the memorye of the absente dooth more content me then the glory of the present doth satisfye me And the reason of this is The desire which men haue to extol the lyuing and to be equal vnto the dead maketh thinges so straunge in their lyfe that they deserue immortal fame after their death The Romaynes reioysed not a litle to heare such wordes of a straungers mouth wherby he praysed them whych were departed and exalted them that yet lyued O what a thing it is to consider the auncient heathens whych neyther feared hel not hoped for heauen yet by remembraunce of weakenes they toke vnto them strength ▪ by cowardnes they were boldened through feare they became hardy of daungers they toke encouragement of enemies they made frendes of pouertye they toke pacience of malyce they learned experience finally I say they denied their owne willes folowed thopinions of others only to leaue behind them a memory with the dead and to haue a lytle honor with the lyuing O how many are they that trust the vnconstauntnes of fortune only to leaue some notable memorye behind them Let vs cal to mynd some worthy examples wherby they may se that to be true which I haue spoken What made king Ninus to inuent such warres Quene Semiramis to make such buildings Vlisses the Grecian to sulke so many seas king Alexander to conquere so many landes Hercules the Thebane to set vp his pillers where he did Caius Cesar the Romayne to giue .52 battailes at his pleasure Cirus king of Persia to ouercome both the Asiaes Hannibal the Carthagian to make so cruel warres against the Romaines Pirrhus king of Epirotes to come downe into Italy Atila king of the Huns to defye al Europe truly they woulde not haue taken vppon them such daungerous enterprises only vppon the words of theym whych were in those dayes present but because we should so esteme them that should come after Seing then that we be men and the chyldren of men it is not a lytle to bee marueiled at to see the diuersity betwene the one and the other and what cowardnes ther is in the harts of some and contrarywise what courage in the stomakes of others For we se commonly now a daies that if there be 10. of stout courages whych are desirous with honour to dye there are 10. thousand cowards whiche throughe shamefull pleasurs seke to prolong their life The man that is ambitious thinketh him most happy who with much estimacion can kepe his renowme and with litle care regarde his lyfe And on the other side he that wil set by his lyfe shal haue but in small estimacion his renowme The Sirians the Assirians the Thebanes the Caldes the Grekes the Macedonians the Rodians the Romaines the Huns the Germaines and the Frenchmen if such noble men as among these were most famous had not aduentured their lyues by such daūgerous enterprises they had neuer got such immortal fame as they had don to leaue to their prosperity Sextus Cheronensis in his third boke of the valiaunt deedes of the Romaines saith that the famous captaine Marcus Marcellus which was the first of al men that sawe the backe of Hannibal in the fielde was demaunded of one how he durst enter into
but al that Marcus Aurelius sayd or dyd is worthy to be knowen necessary to be folowed I do not meane this prynce in his heathen law but in hys vertuous dedes Let vs not staye at hys belyef but let vs embrace the good that he did For compare many chrystians wyth some of the heathen loke howe farre we leaue them behynd in faith so farre they excel vs in vertuous works Al the old prynces in times past had som phylosophers to their familiars as Alexander Aristotle King Darius Herodotus Augustus Pisto Pompeius Plauto Titus Plinie Adrian Secundus Traian Plutarchus Anthonius Apolonius Theodotius Claudius Seuerus Fabatus Fynally I say that philosophers then had such authority in princes palaces that children acknowledged them for fathers and fathers reuerenced them as maysters These sage meÌ„ wer aliue in the coÌ„pany of princes but the good Marcus Aurelius whose doctrine is before your maiestie is not aliue but dead Yet therfore that is no cause why his doctrine shold not be admitted For it may be paraduenture that this shal profit vs more which he wrate with his hands then that which others spake with their tongues Plutarche sayth in the time of Alexander the great Aristotle was aliue and Homere was dead But let vs see how he loued the one reuerenced the other for of truth hee slept alway with Homers booke in his hands waking he red the same with hys eyes alwayes kept the doctrine therof in his memory layed when he rested the booke vnder his head The which priuiledge Aristotle had not who at al times cold not be heard much lesse at al seasons be beleued so that Alexander had Homere for his frend and Aristotle for a maister Other of these phylosophers wer but simple men but our Marcus Aurelius was both a wyse phylosopher and a valiaunt prynce and therfore reason would he should be credited before others For as a prince he wyl declare the troubles as a phylosopher he wil redresse them Take you therefore Puisaunt Prince this wise phylosopher and noble emperour for a teacher in your youth for a father in your gouernment for a captayne general in your warres for a guide in your iourneys for a frend in your affayres for an example in your vertues for a maister in your sciences for a pure whyte in your desyres and for equal matche in your deedes I wil declare vnto you the lyfe of an other beinge a heathen and not the lyfe of an other being a chrystian For how much glory this heathen prince had in this world being good and vertuous so much paynes your maiestie shal haue in the other if you shal be wicked and vycious Behold behold noble prince the lyfe of this Emperour you shal se how clere he was in his iudgement how vpright in hys iustyce howe circumspect in hys life how louing to his frends how pacient in his troubles how he dissembled with hys enemies how seuere agaynst Tyraunts how quyet among the quiet how great a frend to the sage and louer of the simple how aduenturous in his warres and amyable in peace and aboue al thinges how high in words and profound in sentences Many tymes I haue bene in doubt with my selfe whether the Eternal maiesty which gyueth vnto you princes the temporal maiestie to rule aboue al other in power and authorytie did exempt you that are princes more from humaine frayltye then he did vs that be but subiects and at the last I knew he did not For I see euen as you are chyldren of the world so you do lyue according to the world I see euen as you trauaile in the world so you can know nothing but things of the world I se because you liue in the fleshe that you are subiect to the myseryes of the fleshe I see though for a tyme you prolong your lyfe yet at the last you are brought to your graue I see your trauaile is great and that within your gates there dwelleth no rest I se you are cold in the wynter and hote in the sommer I se that hunger feeleth you and thirst troubleth you I se your frendes forsake you and your ennemyes assault you I se that you are sadde and lacke ioy I se you are sicke and be not wel serued I see you haue muche and yet that which you lacke is more What wil ye se more seyng that princeâ— die O noble princes great Lordes syns you must die and become wormes meat why do you not in your lyfe tyme serche for good counsayle If the prynces and noble men commit an â—rroure no man dare chastice them wherfore they stand in greater nede of aduyse counsaile For the trauailer who is out of his waye the more he goeth foreward the more he errethe If the people do amisse they ought to be punyshed but if the prince erre hee shoulde bee admonished And as the Prynce wyl the people shoulde at his handes haue punyshment so it is reason that he at their hands should receyue counsayle For as the wealthe of the one dependeth on the wealthe of the other soo trulye if the prince bee vycious the people can not be vertuous If youre maiestie wyl punyshe your people with words commaund them to prynt this present worke in their harts And if your people would serue your hyghnes with their aduise let them likewyse beseche you to reade ouer this booke For therin the subiectes shal fynd how they may amende and you Lordes shal se al that you ought to do wdether this presente worke be profytable or noo I wyll not that my penne shal declare but they whyche reede it shall iudge For we aucthours take paines to make and translate others for vs vse to giue iudgement and sentence From my tender yeres vntil this present I haue liued in the world occupieng my selfe in reading and studieng humaine deuyne bookes and although I confesse my debilitie to be such that I haue not reade so much as I might nor studied so much as I ought yet not withstandinge al that I haue red hath not caused me to muse so muche as the doctrine of Marcus Aurelius hath sith that in the mouth of an heathen god hath put such a great treasor The greatest part of al his workes were in Greke yet he wrote also many in latin I haue drawen this out of greke throughe the helpe of my frends afterwards out of latin into our vulgare tongue by the trauaile of my hands Let al men iudge what I haue suffred in drawing it out of Greke into latin out of the latin into the vulgar and out of a plaine vulgar into a swete and pleasaunt style For that banket is not counted sumptuous vnlesse ther be both pleasaunt meates and sauory sauces To cal sentences to mynd to place the wordes to examine languages to correct sillables what swette I haue suffred in the hote sommer what bytter cold in the sharpe wynter what
this good Emperour sucking her dugge but a while was constrained to passe all his lyfe in paine Thirdely Princesses great Ladies ought to know and vnderstand the complexion of their children to the end that accordyng to the same they myghte seke pitieful nources that is to wete if the child wer cholorycke flegmaticke sanguine or melancolye For looke what humour the child is of of the same qualitie the milke of the nource should be If vnto an old corrupted mā they ministre medecines conformable to hys diseases for to cure hym why then should not the mother seeke a holesome nource to the tender babe agreable to his complexion to nourish hym And if thou sayest it is iuste that the flesh old and corrupted be susteined I tel the likewise that it is much more necessary that the children should be curiously well nourished to multiplye the world For in the end we do not say it is time that the yong leaue the bread for the aged but contrarye it is time that the old leaue the bread for the yong Aristotle in the booke De secretis secretorum Iunius Rusticus in the .x. boke de gestis Persarum say that the vnfortunat king Darius who was ouercome by Alexander the great had a doughter of a merueilous beautie And they saye that the nource which gaue sucke to this doughter all the time that she did nourishe it did neither eate nor drinke any thing but poison and at the end of .iii yeares when the child was weyned plucked from the dugge she did eate nothing but Colubers and other venemous wormes I haue heard say many times that the Emperours had a custome to nourish their heires children with poysons when they were yong to the entent that they should not be hurt by poyson afterward whē they wer old And this errour commeth of those which presume much and know litel And therfore I say that I haue heard say without sayeng I haue read it For some declare histories more for that they haue heard say of others then for that they haue read them selues The truth in this case is that as we vse at this present to were Cheynes of gold about our necks or Iewels on our fingers so did the Gentils in times past a rynge on their fingers or some Iewel in their bosome replenished with poison And bycause the Panims did neither feare hel nor hope for heauen they had that custome for if at any times in battaile they should find them selues in distresse they had rather end their liues with poison then to receyue any iniury of their enemies Then if it were true that those Princes had bene nourished with the poison they would not haue caried it about thē to haue ended their lyues Further I saye that the princes of Persia did vse when they had any child borne to geue him milke to sucke agreable to the complectiō he had Since this doughter of Darius was of melancholye humour they determined to bring her vp with venim and poyson because all those which are pure malancolye do liue with sorow dye with pleasure Ingnacius the Venetian in the life of the .v. emperours Palleolus which wer valiaunt emperours in Constantinople saieth that the second of the name called Palleolles the hardie was after the .xl. yeares of his age so troubled with infirmities and diseases that alwayes of the .xii. monethes of the yeare he was in his bed sycke ix monethes and beyng so sicke as he was the affaires and busines of the empire were but slenderly done loked vnto For the prince can not haue so small a feuer but the people in the commen wealth must haue it double This Emperour Palleolus had a wyfe whose name was Huldouina the which after she had brought all the Phisitions of Asia vnto her husbande and that she had ministred vnto him all the medecins she could learne to healpe him and in the end seyng nothing auaile ther came by chaunce an olde woman a Gretian borne who presumed to haue great knowlege in herbes and sayd vnto the empresse noble Empresse Huldouina If thou wilt that the Emperour thy husband doe liue longe see that thou chafe angre and vexe him euerye weeke at the least twyse for he is of a pure malancoly humour and therfore he that doth him pleasure augmenteth his disease he that vexeth him shal prolong his life The empresse Huldouina folowed the counsel of this Greeke woman which was occasion that the emperour lyued afterwardes sounde and hole many yeres so that of the .ix. monethes which he was accustomed to be sicke euery yeare in .xx. yeares afterwardes he was not sicke .iii. monethes For wher as this Greke woman commaunded the empresse to angre her husbande but twise in the weeke she accustomeablye angred hym .iiii. times in the daye Fourthly the good mother ought to take hede that the nource be verye temperate in eatyng so that she should eate litell of diuerse meates and of those few dishes she should not eate to much To vnderstand that thyng ye must know that the white milke is no other then blod which is soden and that whiche causeth the good or euill bloud commeth oft tymes of no other thyng but that eyther the personne is temperate or els a glutton in eating and therfore it is a thyng both healthfull and necessary that the nource that nourisheth the child do eate good meates for among men and women it is a general rule that in litle eating ther is no daunger and of to much eating there is no profit As all the Philosophers saye the wolfe is one of the beastes that deuoureth most and is most gredyest and therfore he is most feared of al the sheppardes But Aristotle in his third booke de Animalibus sayeth that when the wolfe doth once feele her selfe great with yong in all her lyfe after she neuer suffereth her selfe to be couppled with the wolfe againe For otherwyse if the wolfe should yearely bryng forth .vii. or .viii. whealpes as commonly she doth and the shepe but one lambe there woulde be in shorte space more wolues then shepe Besides all this the wolfe hath an other propertie whyche is that though she be a beast most deuouryng and gredy yet when she hath whealped she eateth very temperately and it is to the end to nouryshe here whealpes and to haue good milke And besydes that she doth eate but once in the day the whych the dogge wolfe doth prouide both for the byche and her whealpes Truly it is a monsterous thyng to see and noysome to heare and no lesse sclaunderous to speake that a wolfe whyche geueth sucke to .viii. whealpes eateth but one onely kynde of meate and a woman whych geueth sucke but to one chylde alone will eate of eyght sortes of meates And the cause hereof is that the beast doth not eate but to susteine nature and the woman doth not eate but to satisfie her pleasure Princesses and great Ladies ought to
they are dyssended ▪ as for the wisedom and eloquence which they had Marcus Aurelius was natural of Rome borne in mount Celio he was poore in patrimony and of base lynage lytel in fauour lefte and forsaken of his parentes and besides al this only for beinge vertuous in his lyfe profound in doctrine and of so high eloquence the Emperour Anthonius called Pius gaue him his daughter Faustine for wife who being reproued of many bycause he gaue his doughter to so poore a philosopher aunswered I had rather haue a poore philosopher then a riche foole Pulio in his seuenth booke of the Romaine lawes sayth that in Rome ther was a law very wel kept obserued of the consulles by a custome brought in that the Dictatours Censors and Emperours of Rome entered into the Senate once in the weke at the least and in this place they should geue and render accompt in what state the common wealth remayned O would to God that at this present this law were so kept and obserued for ther is none who doth minister so good iustice as he which thinketh to giue accompt of his doings They say that Calligula the fourth Emperoure of Rome was not only deformed infamous and cruel in his lyfe but also was an Idiote in eloquence and of an euyl vtteraunce in his communycacion So that he among al the Romaine princes was constrayned to haue others to speake for him in the Senate This wickedman was so vnfortunate that after his cruel and infamous death they drew him throughout Rome and set vppon his graue this Epitaphe ¶ Calligula lyeth here in endles sleape That stretchte his raigne vpon the Empires heade Vnfytte for rule that could such folly heape And fytte for death wher vertue so was dead I Cannot tel why princes do prayse them selues to be strong and hardy to be wel disposed to be runners to iust wel and do not esteame to be eloquent sinse it is true that those giftes do profite them only for their life but the eloquēce profiteth them not only for to honour their life but also to augment their renowme For we do reade that by that many Princes dyd pacifye great sedycions in the common wealth and besides that they deserued immortall memorie Suetonius Trancquillus in the firste booke of Cesars sayth that the aduenturous Iulius Cesar being as yet but 16. yeares of age when there dyed in Rome an aunt of his called Cornelia at her buriall he made an oracion in the which he being so yong shewed marueilous great eloquence which was so accepted that day in al people that in the end euery man iudged him to be a valiaunt Romane captaine And as Appianus declareth they say that Silla spake these wordes That which I perceiue of this yong man Caius Cesar is that in the boldnes of his tongue he declareth how valiaunt he ought to be in his person Let therfore Princes and great Lords se how much it may profite them to know to speake wel and eloquently For we se no other thing dayly but that a man of base lynage by his eloquence commeth to be exalted and the other which of lynage is nobly borne for wante of speaking wel and being eloquent is the first that discendeth most vilest of al other Thentencion wherupon I wrate these things was for no other but to admonishe perswade and pray al princes and great lordes that whiles their children are yong they should put them to wise and learned men to the end they should teache them not only how they ought to liue but also how they ought to speake For to personnes of estate it is a great infamy to do or to inuent to do a thing and afterward not to know how to geue a reason therof Polidorus in the third booke of his commentaries sayth that when the Lacedemonians were put to flyght by the Athenians in Rota Millina it is called Millina bycause the battaile was in the riuer of Milline the Lacedemonians sent a phylosopher called Heuxinus to treate of peace with the Athenians who made such an eloquent oracion to the Senate of Athens that hee dyd not only obtaine the peace which he desired for his country but for himselfe also he wanne perpetual renowme At the phylosophers retourne the Athenians gaue him a letter which sayd in this sort ¶ Of a letter whiche the Athenians sente to the Lacedemonians Cap. xxvi THe Senate people and Sages of Athens wisheth healthe to the persons and peace to the common wealth of you of the senate and people of the Lacedemonians We take the immortal gods to recorde that in the laste battaile we had no lesse dyspleasure to se ye ouercome then on the contrary we had pleasure to se vs remaine victorious For in the end the daungers and inconueniences of the cruel warres are so great that the euill and daunger is certeine to them that are vanquished and the profite is doubtful to them that haue ouercommed We would gladly that that which now ye wil ye would haue willed soner that which now ye require demaund that before ye had requyred and demaunded But what shal we do sinse it was ordeined to your and our woful destenies that he should loose the battaile and that we of your losse can take no profite For it is a rule vnfallible that al that which the gods haue ordeyned no worldly wight can amende nor humaine power resist Ye demaund that warre may cease and leaue of and that we take truise for .iii. monethes and that during this time peace concord may be concluded To this we make aunswere That the senate of Athens hath not accustomed to graunt peace afterwards for to retourne to warre For amongest vs Athenians we haue an auncient law that freely we do accept the cruel warre and liberallye we doe graunt perpetual peace In our scoles and vniuersities we trauaile to haue Sages in time of peace for to helpe vs with their counsayles in the time of warre And they do counsaile vs that we neuer take vpon vs truse vpon suspect condicion And in dead they counsaile vs well For the fayned and dyssembled peace is muche more perrillous then is the manifest warre The philosopher Heuxinus your embassadour hath spoken to vs so highly and eloquentlye in this Senate that it semed to vs very vniust if we should deny him and gaine say that he requireth vs. For it is much more honestye to graunt him peace whiche by sweete and pleasaunt words doth demaund it then him which by force and sharpe sword doeth requyreth it Let the case therfore be that the Senate people and Sages of Athens haue ordeyned that warre do cease with the Lacedemonians and that al discordes contencions dissentions and debates do end that perpetual peace be graunted vnto them And this thing is done to the end al the world should know that Athens is of such courage wythe the hardy and so very a frend to the Sages that she knoweth
And I saye that they doe not suffer them to be to light or vnconstant for of younge men inconstant and light commeth oftētimes an olde man fonde and vnthriftie I saie that they doe not suffer them to be to rashe for of to hardy young men commeth rebellious and seditious persones I say that they doe not consent they be shamelesse for of the vnshamefastnes commeth sclaunderous persones Princes and great lordes ought to haue much circumspection that their children be brought vp in shamefastnes with honestie For the crowne doth not geue so much glory to a kyng nor the head doth more set forth the man nor the iewell more adourne the breast nor yet the scepter more become the hande then shamefastnes with honestie beutifieth a younge man For a man of what estate so euer he be the honestie which he sheweth outwardly doth hide many secret vices wherewith he is endued inwardly In the time of the reigne of the emperour Helius Pertinax the nyntenthe Emperour of Rome two consulles gouerned the commō welth the one named Verus and the other Mamillus one daye they came to the Emperour and were humble suiters to his highnes besechinge him that it would please hym to receiue their two children into his seruice the eldest of the whiche passed not as yet twelue yeares of age the whiche request after the Emperour had graunted the fathers were not negligent to bryng them vnto hym and being come before his presence each of them made an oration the one in Latine and the other in Greke Wherewith the Emperour was greatly pleased and all the residue amased for at that time none serued the Romaine princes but that he were either very apte to cheualry or els toward in sciences As these two children in the presence of the Emperour made their orations the one of thē behelde the Emperour in suche sorte that his eies neuer went of him neither once moued his head to loke down to the earth and the other contrary behelde the earth alwayes neuer lift vp his head during his oration Wherewith the Emperour being a graue man was so highly pleased with the demeanours of this child that he did not onely admitte him to serue him at his table but also he suffred him to enter into his chambre and this was a preferment of great estimation For princes did not vse to be serued at their tables nor in their chambers with any vnlesse they were of his owne kynred or auncient seruauntes And concerning the other childe whiche was his compaignion the Emperoure retourned againe to his father saiynge that when hereafter he shoulde bee more shamefast he woulde receiue hym into his seruice And certainly the Emperoure had reason for good and graue princes ought not to be serued with light and shameles children I woulde nowe demaunde fathers whiche loue their children very well and woulde they shoulde be worthy what it auaileth their children to be faire of countenaunce well disposed of body liuely of sprighte whyte of skinne to haue yellowe heere 's to be eloquent in speache profounde in science if with all these graces that nature geueth them they be to bolde in that they doe and shamelesse in that they saye the authour hereof is Patritius Senesis in the firste booke De rege regno One of the moste fortunate princes was the great Theodosius the whiche amongest all other vertues had one moste singuler which was that he was neuer serued in his pallace with any young man that was vnshamefast or seditious nor with an olde man which was dishonest For he said oftetimes that princes shall neuer be well beloued if they haue about thē liers or sclaūderers This good emperour spake as a man of experience and very sage for if the counsellers and familiars of princes be euil taught and vnpacient they offende many and if they be liers they deceiue all and if they be dishonest they sclaunder the people And these offences be not so great vnto them that committe them as they be vnto the prince whiche suffreth them The emperour Theodose had in his pallace two knightes the one called Ruffinus and the other Stelliconus by whose prudence and wisdome the cōmon wealth was ruled and gouerned And as Ignacius Baptista saieth they twoo were the tutors gouernours of the children of Theodose whose names were Archadius and Honorius For as Seneca saieth when good princes do die they ought to be more carefull to procure maisters and tutors whiche shall teache their children then to procure realmes or kingdomes for to enriche them These twoo maisters Stelliconus and Ruffinus had in the pallace of Theodose eche of them a sonne the which were maruellous wel taught and very shamefast and for the contrary the two princes Honorius and Archadius were euill manered and not very honest And therfore the good emperour Theodose tooke these children oftetimes and set them at his table and contrary he woulde not once beholde his owne Let no man marueile though a prince of suche a grauitie did a thing of so smal importaunce for to say the truthe the shamefast children and wel taughte are but robbers of the hartes of other men Fourthly the tutors and maisters of princes oughte to take good heade that when the younge princes their schollers waxe great that they geue not them selues ouer to the wicked vice of the fleshe so that the sensualitie and euill inclination of the wanton childe ought to be remedied by the wisedom of the chaste maister For this cursed fleshe is of suche condition that if once by wantonnes the wicket be opened death shall soner approche then the gate shal be shut agayne The trees which budde and caste leaues before the time our hope is neuer to eate of their fruite in season I meane that when chyldren haunte the vice of the fleshe whyles they be young there is small hope of goodnes to be loked in them when they be olde And the elder we see them waxe the more we may be assured of their vices And where we see that vice encreaseth there we may affirme that vertue diminisheth Plato in his seconde booke of lawes ordeyneth and commaundeth that younge men shoulde not marye before they were .xxv. yeares of age and the younge maydens at .xx. because at that age their fathers abide lesse daungers in begetting them and geuing of them lyfe and the children also which are borne haue more strength against the assaultes of death Therefore if it be true as it is true in dede I aske nowe if to be maried and get children whiche is the ende of mariage the Philosophers doe not suffer vntill suche time as they be men then I say that maisters ought not to suffer their schollers to haunte the vices of the fleshe when they be chyldren In this case the good fathers oughte not alone to committe this matter to their tutors but also thereunto to haue an eye them selues For oftetimes they wyll saye they haue bene at their
sober in drinkynge softe in wordes wyse in counsaile and to conclude hee oughte to be very pacient in aduersytye and farre from vices which attempt him Worthye of prayse is the greate Seneca for these wordes but more worthye shall the olde men be if they will conforme their workes according to those wordes For if wee see them abandon vices and geue them selues to vertues we wyll both serue them and honour them ¶ That princes when they are aged should be temperate in eating sober in drinkynge modest in apparell and aboue all true in communicacion Cap. xviii IT is consonaunt to the counsayle of Seneca that the aged shoulde bee temperate in eating whych they ought to do not only for the reputacion of their persons but also for the preseruacion of their liues For the olde men which are drunk and amarous are persecuted with their owne diseases and are defamed by the tonges of other That whiche the auncient men shoulde eate I meane those whiche are noble and vertuous ought to be verye cleane well dressed and aboue all that theye take it in ceason and time for otherwise to muche eatinge of diuers thinges causeth the yonge to bee sicke and enforceth the olde to dye Yong men though they eate dishonestly very hastely and eate speakinge we can do no lesse but dissemble withe them but the olde mē whych eate much and hastelye of necessitie we oughte to reproue them For men of honour ought to eate at the table with a great grauitie as if they were in anye counsaile to determine causes It is not my intention to perswade the feble olde men not to eate but to admonishe them to eate no more then is necessarye We doe not prohibite them to eate delicate thinges but to beware of superfluous thinges We doe not counsale them to leaue eatinge hauinge nede but to withdrawe them selues from curiosyties For thoughe it bee lawefull for aged men to eate sufficiente it is not honeste for them to eate to ouercome their stomakes It is a shame to wryte it but more shame ought they to haue whiche doe it whiche is that the goodes whiche theye haue wonne and inheryted by their predecessours theye haue eaten and dronken so that theye haue neyther bought house vyne nor yet maried any doughter but they are naked and theire poore children goe to the Tauernes and Innes and the myserable fathers to the Hospitalles and churches When anye man commeth to pouertye for that his house is burned or his shyppe drowned or that theye haue taken all from hym by lawe or that he hath spent it in pleadyng against hys enemye or anye other inconuenience is come vnto hym mee thinketh wee all are bounde to succoure him and the harte hathe compassion to beeholde hym but hee that spendeth it in apparaile not requysyte to seeke delitious wynes and to eate delicate meates to such one I woulde saye that the pouertye hee suffreth is not sufficiente for his desertes For of all troubles there is none so greate as to see a man suffer the euill whereof he hymselfe hathe bene the occasion Also according to the counsaile of Seneca the auncients ought to be wel aduertised in that they should not onely be temperate in eatyng but also they shoolde be sober in drinking and this both for the preseruacion of their health and allso reputacion of theire honestye For if the olde Phisitions doe not deceiue vs humaine bodies doe drye and corrupte beecause theye drinke superfluously and eate more then nature requireth If I shoulde saye vnto the olde menne that theye shoulde drynke no wyne theye myghte tell mee that it is not the counsayle of a Christian But presuppose theye oughte to drynke and that for noe oppynyon theye shoulde leaue it yet I admonyshe exhorte and desire them that theye drynke lytle and that theye drynke verye temperate For the disordynate and immesurate drynkynge causeth yonge men to bee drunke and the olde men bothe drunke and foolishe O howe muche authoritye loste theye and what grauytye doe honourable and auncient menne lose whiche in drynkinge are not sober Whyche semeth to bee true for asmuche as the man beeinge loden wyth wyne thoughe hee were the wysest in the worlde hee shoulde bee a verye foole that woulde take counsayle of suche one in hys affaires Plutarche in a booke whiche hee made of the fortune of the Romains sayed that in the senate of Rome there was an auncient manne who made greate exclamacions that a yonge man hadde in suche sorte dishonoured him that for the iniuries he hadde spoken hee deserued deathe And when the yonge manne was called for to aunswere to that hee hadde sayde vnto hym he aunswered Fathers conscripte thoughe I seeme yonge vnto you yet I am not so yonge but that I knewe the father of this olde manne who was a vertuous and noble Romayne and somewhat a kynne to mee And I seeynge that his father hadde gotten muche goodes fightynge in the warres and also seeinge this olde manne spending them in eatynge and drinkynge I sayde vnto him one daye I am verye sorye my lorde and vncle for that I heare of thye honour in the market place and am the more sorye for that I see done in thy house wherein we sawe fyftye men armed before in one houre and we nowe see a hundreth knaues made drunke And worse then that as thye father shewed to all those that entered hys house the ensignes hee hadde wonne in the warres so nowe to those that enter into thy house thou shewest them dyuers sortes of wynes My vncle complayned of mee but in this case I make the plaintife iudge againste mee the defendaunt And I woolde by the immortall goddes hee deserued noe more payne for hys woorkes then I deserue by my woordes For yf he had bene wyse hee woulde haue accepted the correction which secretlye I gaue him and had not come openly to declare his faults in the Senate The complaynte of the olde manne beeinge hearde by the Senate and the excuse in lyke manner of the yonge man they gaue iudgement that theye shoolde take all the goods from the olde manne and prouyde hym of a tutour whyche shoulde gouerne hym and hys house And theye commaunded the tutoure that from hence forwarde hee shoolde not geeue him one cuppe of wyne since hee was noted of drunkennesse Of truth the sentence whiche the Senate gaue was verye iuste For the olde manne whiche geeueth him selfe to wyne hathe asmuche neede to haue a gouernoure as an infaunte or a foole Laettius made a booke of the feastes of Phylosophers and declarethe sundrye auncyente bankettes amonge the which he putteth one where were assēbled many greate philosophers And admit that the meats were meane simple yet the bidden gestes were sage And the cause why they did assemble was not to eat but to dispute of some graue doctrines whereof the philosophers did somewhat doubte For in those daies the greater the Stoikes the Peripatetikes were in nomber
meane that it is vnpossible that the grene flower of youthe be not one daye withered by age ¶ The Emperour followethe his letter perswadeth Claudins Claudinus beeing now olde to geue no more credit to the world nor to any of his deceytful flatteries Cap. xx THat whych I haue spoken now tendeth more to aduertyse the yong then to teache the olde For yow others haue now passed the pryme tyme of chyldehoode the sommer of youth and the haruest of adolescency and are in the wynter of age where it seemeth an vncomly thyng that those youerhoarye heares shoolde bee accompanyed wyth such vayne follyes Sythens yong men know not that they haue to ende theire youth it is no maruail that they follow the world but the olde men which see them selues fall into this gyle why will they runne after vices againe O world for that thou art the world so small is our force and so great our debylitie that thou wylling it and wee not resisting it thow doost swallow vs vp in the most perilous goulfe and in the thornes most sharpe thow dost pricke vs by the pryuiest waies thow leadest vs and by the most stony wayes thou caryest vs. I meane that thow bringest vs to the highest fauors to the end that afterwards wyth a push of thy pike thow myghtest ouerthrow vs. O world wherein all is worldly two and fyfty yeares haue passed since in thee I was fyrst borne duryng which tyme thou neuer toldest mee one trueth but I haue taken thee wyth tenne thousaund lies I neuer demaunded the thing but thow didst promyse it mee and yet it is nothyng at all that euer thou dydst performe I neuer put my trust in thee but euer thou begildst mee I neuer came to thee but thou dydst vndo mee fynally neuer saw I ought in thee whereby thow deseruest loue but allways hatred This presupposed I know not what is in thee O world or what wee worldlyngs want for if thow hatest vs wee cannot hate the if thow dost vs iniury wee can dyssemble it yf thow spurne vs wyth thy feete wee wyl suffer it if thou beatest vs with a staff wee will hold our peace also although thou ê‘secutest vs wee wil not coÌ„playn though thou take ours wee wil not demauÌ„d it of thee though thou doost beeguyle vs wee wyl not cal our selues beeguyled and the woorst of al is that thou doost chase vs from thy house yet wee wyl not depart from theÌ„ce I know not what this meaneth I know not from whence this commeth I wore not who ought to prayse this same that wee couet to follow the world which will none of vs hate the gods which loue vs oft tymes I make accouÌ„t of my yeares past somtimes also I turn tosse my booke to see what I haue read and another time I desyre my friends to geeue mee good counsel and for no other end I do it then to attain to that I haue spoken to know that I wil say I readyng Rethoryk in Rhodes Adrian my lord mainteynyng mee there knowyng that I was two and thyrty yeares of age it happened that in the spryng tyme I found my selfe solytaryly and solytarines wyth lyberty smelled the world and smelling it I knew it and knowyng it I followed it and followyng it I attayned vnto it and attaynyng vnto it thereunto I ioyned my selfe and ioyning my selfe therewith I prooued it and in prouyng it I tasted it and in tastyng it mee thought it bytter and in fyndyng it bitter I hated it and hatyng it I left it and leauyng it is returned and beeyng returned I receyued it again fynally the world inuytyng mee and I not resistyng it two and fyfty yeares wee did eat our bread togethers in one house wee haue alwaies remained wilt thou know after what sort the world I do liue in one house togethers or better to say in one hart remain harken theÌ„ in one woord I wil tel it thee When I sawe the worlde braue I serued him when hee sawe mee sadde hee flattered mee when I sawe him wealthy I asked him when he saw mee merye hee begiled me when I desired anye thinge he holpe mee to atteine to it afterwards when the same I best enioyed then he toke it froÌ„ mee wheÌ„ he saw me not pleased he vysited me wheÌ„ he saw me he forgot me when he saw me ouerthrowen he gaue me his haÌ„d to releue me wheÌ„ he saw me exalted he tripped me again to ouerthrow me Fynally when I think that I haue somwhat in the world I fynd that all that I haue is a burden Yf thys which I haue spoken of the world be anye thinge more is that a great deale which yet of my selfe I will saye whiche is that without doubte my follye is greater then his mallice since I am begiled so ofte and yet allwaies I followe the deceiuer O worlde worlde thou hast suche moodes and fashions in thy procedyng that thou leadest vs all to perdicion Of one thinge I maruaile muche whereof I cannot be satisfied Which is since that we may go vpon the bridge yet without any gaine we doe wade through the water where as the shallow is sure we seke to ronne into the golfe and where the way is drye wee go into the plashe where we may eate wholsome meates to norishe the lyfe wee receiue poyson to hasten deathe we seke to destroy oure selues where as we may bee without daunger Fynallye I say without profite we commit a fault thoughe wee see with our eyes the pain to follow Wise men ought circumspectly to see what they do to examine that they speake to proue that theye take in hande to beware whose company they vse and aboue all to knowe whom they trust For our iudgement is so corrupt that to begile vs one is ynough and to make vs not to be disceiued tenne thosande woolde not suffise They haue so greate care of vs I meane the worlde to beegile vs and the fleshe to flatter vs that the highe way beinge as it is narrowe the patheway daungerous and full of prickes the iorney is longe the lyfe shorte our bodies are neuer but loden with vices our hartes but full of cares I haue wondered at dyuers things in this worlde but that which astonieth me most is that those that be good we make theÌ„ beleue they are euill and those whiche are euel we perswade others to beleue that they are good So that wee shoote at the white of vertues hit the butte of vices I will confesse one thinge the whiche beinge disclosed I know that infamye will follow me but paraduenture some vertuous man will marueile at it that is that in those two and fiftye yeares of my lyfe I haue proued all the vices of this worlde for no other intent but for to proue if there bee anye thynge where in mannes mallice might be satisfyed And afterwardes all well considered al examined and all proued I
prince is neuer well obeied onelesse he hath good credēce among his people I say this Faustine because you do one thing in secrete say another openly herein faileth the credence of so high a lady putteth in suspect the auctority of so great an empire If you suppose my good desires be sinister in your hart for the wealth of your owne children how should we hope then in any of your good workes for the children of straungers It semeth to you better to giue your doughter to them that demaund her of the mother and refuse them that the father doth chose Certainly because you are a woman you desire pardon but in that you are a mother you augment your fault Do you not know that mariages are guyded some by fortune and some by vertues wisedome Such as demaund the doughters of the fathers beleue me theyr eyes be more vpon their owne proper vtility then vpon the wealth of another I know wel you bring forth the children but the goddes will mary them syth they haue endewed them with so marueilous beauty Do you not know that the beautye of women setteth straungers on desire and putteth neighbours in suspection to great men it geueth feare to meane men enuy to the parents infamy and peril to the persons them selues with great paine it is kepte that is desyred of many Of truth I say the beauty of women is nothing but a signe for idle folke an early waking for them that be light wheras of straung desires lieth the renowne of themselues and I denye not but that a lyght person sercheth soner a woman with a faire face then one of an honest lyfe But I say that a woman that is maried onely for her beauty maye hope in her age to haue an euyll life It is an infallyble rule that she that was maried for her fayrenesse shal be despised for her foulenesse O what trouble he offereth hymselfe vnto whych marieth a fayre woman It behoueth hym to suffer her pride for beauty folly alway go together Also he must suffer her expences for follye in the heade beauty in the face be two wormes which freate the lyfe and wast the goods Also he must suffer her riots for a faire woman wil that none but she haue her commaundements in the house Also he must suffer her nice minions for many faire women wil passe their lyues in pleasure Also he must suffer her presumption for euery faire woman wil haue prehemenence before al other Finally he that marieth with a faire woman putteth himselfe in great ieopardy And I shal tel you wherfore surely Carthage was neuer so enuyroned with Scipions as the house of a faire woman is with light persons O vnhappie husband when his spirite is at rest and the body sleping then those lyght persons ronne about the house sleying his body with ielosye casting their eyes at the windowes scalyng the walles with ladders singing swete songes playing on dyuerse instruments watching at the gates treatynge with bandes vncoueringe the house and waytinge at euerye corner therof Al these things in case they shoote at the pricke of womans beautie they leaue not to shoote at the butte of the sorowful husbands good name whether this be true or not let them aske my selfe that am maried with your beauty and let them wite of my renowne that go so about the cytie I say much but truly I fele more no man complayneth of the goddes for geuyng him a foule wife amonge his destinies whyte siluer is not wrought but in blacke pitche and the tender tree is not preserued but by the harde barke I saye a man that marieth a foule wife leadeth a sure lyfe let euerye man chose as he lysteth I say a man that marieth a faire wife casteth his good name at hasard and putteth his life in peril Al the infamy of our predecessours stode in exercising of deedes of armes and now al the pastime of the Romaine youthe is to serue Ladies When a woman is bruted to be fayre then euery man goeth thither taketh great payne to serue her the woman wil be sene I say Faustine you neuer saw a damosel Romaine greatly renowmed in beauty but eyther in dede or in suspicion there went some euyl report of her name In that lytle that I haue red I haue herd of diuers fayre women both of Grece Italy Parth Rome and they be not in memorye because they were faire but for the great perils and misaduentures whych through their beautyes chaunced in the world For by reason of their excellent beautyes they were vysited in their owne lands for their infamy shamed through al the world When the realme of Carthage flourished in riches and was fortunate in armes they ruled the common wealth by wyse phylosophers that they repulsed their enemyes by strong armes Arminius the phylosopher was as greatly esteamed among the Carthagians as Homere was amonge the Grekes or Cicero amonge the Romaines He lyued in this world .122 yeres .80 of the which good yeares he lyued most quyetly he was as much turned from women as geuen to his bookes Then the senate seing he had such experience in the affayres of the weale publyke so withdrawen from al natural recreations they desired him with great instaunce to be maried to thintent the memory might be had of so excellēt a wise man in time to come the more importune they were the more he resisted and said I wil not be maried for if she be foule I shal abhorre her Yf she be riche I must suffer her If she be poore I must mainteine her If she be faire I must take hede of her If she be a shrew I cannot suffer her And the lest pestilence of al those is sufficient to slea a M. men With such words this wise man excused himselfe But in the end through great study in his age he lost his sight wherby the solytarines of his swete lybertye constrayned him to take the company of a woman by whom he had a doughter of the whyche descended the noble Amilears of Carthage competitours of the Scipions of Rome The which shewed no lesse worthinesse in the defence of Carthage thē oures did courage in the amplifiyng of Rome Tel me Faustine may not such suspicion fal vpon your doughter though her vertue succour her in the peril and her honestie assure her person I wil discouer a secret thing to you Ther is nothing that can chaunce euyl to a woman if she be enuironed with feminine shamefastnes Greatly they desire and with much importunytie they procure those thinges which highly may be attayned There is nothing soo certaine as this that the wealth of an other is the cause of his owne euil And Faustine ye know that the most honest women by our malyce are most desired Certainly their shamefastnes and keping close be arrowes in defēce of our honestie We reade not that the bloud riches nor beauty of
take to their custody we are bouÌ„d to defend it is not lawfull for vs to diminish their credite Suppose that this my worke were not so profound as it might be of this matter nor with such eloqueÌ„ce set out as many other bokes are yet I dare be bolde to say that the prince shal take more profit by reading of this worke than Nero did by his loue Pompeia For in the end by reading and studieng good bookes men tourne become sage and wise and by keping il company they are counted fooles vitious My meaning is not nor I am not so importunat and vnreasonable to perswade princes that they should so fauour my doctrine the it should be in like estimacion now in these partes as the amber was there in Rome But that which only I require demaund is that the time which Nero speÌ„t in singing telling the héere 's of his loue Pompeia should now be employed to redresse the wrongs faultes of the common wealth For the noble worthy prince ought to employ the least part of the day in the recreation of his person After he hath giueÌ„ audience to his counsaylours to the embassadours to the great Lordes prelates to the riche and poore to his owne countrey men and straungers after that he be come into his priuy chamber then my desire is that he would reade this treatise or some other better than this for in princes chambers oftentimes those of the priuie chaÌ„ber and other their familiares loase great time in reciting vayne and trifling maters and of small profit the which might better be spent in reading some good booke In al worldly affaires that we do in al our bookes which we compile it is a greate matter to be fortunate For to a man that fortune doth not fauour diligence without doute can little auaile Admitte that fortune were against me in that this my worke should be acceptable vnto your maiestie without comparison it should be a great grief dishonor vnto me to tel you what should be good to reade for your pastime if on thother parte you woulde not profite by mine aduise For my mind was not only to make this booke to the end princes should reade it for a pastime but to that end in recreating theÌ„ selues somtimes they mought thereby also take profit Aulus Gellius in the. 12. chapter of his thirde booke entituled De nocte attica said that amongs al the schollers which the diuine Plato had one was named Demosthenes a man amongest the Gréekes moste highly estemed of the Romaynes greatly desired Because he was in his liuing seuere and in his tonge and doctrine a very saâ—ire If Demosthenes had come in the time of Phalaris the tiraunt whan Grecia was peopled with tirau tes and that he had not bene in Platoes tyme when it was replenished with Philosophers truelye Demosthenes had bene as cleare a lanterne in Asia as Cicero the greate was in Europe Greate good happe hath a notable man to be borne in one age more then in any other I meane that if a valiaunt Knight come in the tyme of a couragious and stout prince such one truly shal be estemed and set in great authoritie But if he come in the time of an other effeminate and couetous prince he shall not be regarded at al. For he wil rather esteme one that wil augment his treasour at home than him that can vanquishe his enemies in battayle abrode So likewise it chaunseth to wise and vertuous men which if they come in the time of vertuous and learned princes are estemed and honoured But if they come in tyme of vayne and vitious princes they make small accounte of them For it is an auncient custome amonge vanities children not to honor him which to the common wealth is most profitable but him whiche to the prince is most acceptable The ende why this is spoken Most pusant Prince is because the twoo renoumed philosophers were in Grece both at one time and because the diuine philosopher Plato was so much estemed and made of they did not greatly esteme the philosopher Demosthenes For the emineÌ„t and high renoume of one alone diminisheth the fame estimacion amoÌ„g the people of many Although Demosthenes was such a one in dede as we haue sayd that is to witte eloquent of tonge ready of memory sharpe and quicke of witte in liuing seuere sure and profitable in geuing of counsaile in renoume excellent in yeres very auncient and in philosophie a man right wel learned Yet he refused not to goe to the scholes of Plato to heare morall philosophie He that shall reade this thinge or heare it ought not to merueile but to folow it and to profit likewise in the same that is to vnderstande that one philosopher learned of an other and one wise maÌ„ suffered him selfe to be taught of an other For knowledge is of such a qualitie that the more a man knoweth dayly there encreaseth in him a desire to knowe more All thinges of this life after they haue bene tasted and possessed cloyeth a man wearieth and troubleth him true science onely excepted which neuer doth cloy weary nor troble them And if it happen we wery any it is but the eyes which are weried with lokinge and reading and not the spirite with féeling and tastinge Many Lordes and my familiar friendes doe aske me how it is possible I shoulde liue with so much study And I also demaunde of them how it is possible they should liue in such continuall idelnes For considering the prouocacion and assaultes of the flesh the daungers of the world the temptacions of the deuil the treasons of enemies importunities of friendes what hart can suffer so great and continual trauaile but onely in reading comforting him selfe in bookes Truely a man ought to haue more compassion of a simple ignoraunte man than of a poore man For there is no greater pouerty vnto a man than to lacke wisdome whereby he should know how to gouerne him selfe Therefore folowinge our matter the case was such one day Demosthenes going to the schole of Plato sawe in the market place of Athens a greate assembly of people which were hearing a philosopher newely come vnto that place he spake not this without a cause that there was a greate companye of people assembled For that naturallye the common people are desirous to heare new and straunge things Demosthenes asked what philosopher he was after whome so many people went and when it was aunswered him that it was Calistratus the philosopher a man which in eloquence was very swéete and pleasaunt he determined to staie and heare him to th ende he woulde knowe whither it were true or vayne that the people tolde hym For oftentymes it happeneth that amonge the people some gette them selues greate fame more by fauour than by good learninge The difference betwixte the diuine Philosopher Plato and Calistratus was in that Plato was exceadinglye well
were to full of deuises and blamed much the Grecians because they were to curious in speaking fine wordes aboue all other he greately prayseth the Romaynes for that they were very harde of belife that they scarcely alweyes credited the sayings of the Grekes and because they were discrete in admitting the inuencions of the Egyptians The author hath reason to prayse th one and disprayse thother For it procedeth of a light iudgement to credite al the thinges that a man heareth and to doe al thinges that he séeth Returninge therefore now to our matter Marcus Varro sayde there were .5 thinges in the worlde very harde to bringe in whereof none after they were commonly accepted were euer lost or forgottē for euen as things vainely begō are easely left of so things with great feare accepted with much diligence are obserued The first thing that chiefly thoroughout al the world was accepted was al men to liue togethers that is to say they should make places townes villages cities common wealthes For according to the saying of Plato the first best inuentours of the cōmon welth were the antes which according to thexperiēce we sée do liue togethers trauaile togethers do go togethers also for the winter thei make prouisiō togethers furthermore none of these antes do geue thē selues to any priuat thing but al theirs is brought into their cōmō welth It is a meruelous thing to behold the cōmō welth of the antes how netely they trim their hilles to beholde howe they swepe away the graine when it is wet and how they drye it whan they fele any moisture to beholde how they come from their worke and how the one doth not hurt the other And to behold also how they doe reioyce the one in the others trauaile and that which is to our greatest confusion is that if it come so to passe 50000. antes will liue in a little hillocke togethers and two men onely cannot liue in peace and concorde in a cōmon wealth Woulde to God the wisedome of men were so great to kepe them selues as the prudence of the antes is to liue Whan the world came to a certayne age mens wittes waxed more fine than tirantes sprange vp which oppressed the poore theues that robbed the riche rebelles that robbed the quiet murderers that slew the pacient the ydell that eate the swete of other mens browes all the which thinges considered by thē which were vertuous they agréed to assemble liue together that therby they might preserue the good and withstande the wicked Macrobius affirmeth this in the seconde booke of Scipions dreame saying that couetousnes and auarice was the greatest cause why men inuented the commō wealth Plinie in the seuenth booke .56 chap. sayth the first that made small assembles were the Atheniens and the first that builte great cities were the Aegyptians The seconde thinge that was accepted throughout all the worlde were the letters whiche we reade whereby we take profite in writinge Accordinge whereunto Marcus Varro saith the Aegyptians prayse them selues and say that they did inuente them and the Assyrians affirme the contrary and sweare that they were shewed firste of all amongst them Plinie in the seuenth booke saith that in the first age there was in the alphabet no more than 16. letters that greate Palamedes at the siege of Troye added other .4 and Aristotle saithe that immediatly after the beginninge there were founde .18 letters And that afterwardes Palamedes did adde but .2 and so there were 20. and that the Philosopher Epicarmus dyd adde other two which were .22 it is no great matter whether the Aegyptians or the Assyrians first founde the letters But I say and affirme that it was a thing necessary for a common wealth and also for thencrease of man knowledge For if we had wanted letters and writings we could haue had no knowledge of the tyme past nor yet our posteritie coulde haue ben aduertised what was done in our dayes Plutarche in the second booke entituled De viris illustribus and Plinie in the seuenth booke and .56 chapiter doe greately prayse Pirotas bycause he firste founde the fier in a flinte stone They greatly commended Protheus bicause he inuented harneis and they highly extolled Panthasuca bicause she inuented the hatchet They praysed Citheus because he inuented the bowe and the arrowes they greatelye praysed Pheniseus because he inuented the crosse bowe and the slinge They highly praysed the Lacedemonians because they inuented the helmet the spere and the sword They commende those of Thessalia bicause they inuented the combate on horseback and they commende those of Affrike because they inuented the fight by sea But I doe prayse and continually will magnifie not those which founde the arte of fightinge and inuented weapons to procure warre for to kill his neighbour but those which found letters for to learne science to make peace betwene two princes What difference there is to wet the penne with inke and to paynte the spere with bloud to be enuironned with bookes or to be laden with weapons To study how euery man ought to liue or els to goe priuely and robbe in the warres to lie in waight to kill his neighbour There is none of so vaine a iudgement but wil praise more the speculation of the sciences than the practise of the warre Because that in the end he that learneth sciences learneth nought els but how he and others ought to lyue And he that learneth warlike feates learneth none other thinge than howe to sley his neighbour and to destroye others The thirde thinge that equally of all was accepted were lawes For admit that al men now liued togethesr in common if they would not be subiect one to another there woulde contention arise amongest them for that accordinge to the sayinge of Plato there is no greater token of the distruction of a common weale than whan many rulers are chosen therein Plinie in his seuenth booke .56 chapter sayth that a Quéene called Ceres was the first that taught them to sowe in the fieldes to grinde in milles to paste and bake in ouens and also she was the first that taught the people to liue according to the lawe And by the meanes of all these thinges our forefathers called her a goddesse Since that time we neuer haue sene heard nor red of any realme or other nation aswell straunge as barbarous what so euer they were but haue had lawes whereby the good were fauoured and also institutions of greuous paynes wherewith the wicked were punished Although truely I had rather and it were better that the good shoulde loue reason than feare the lawe I speake of those which leaue to doe euill workes for feare onely of fallinge into the punishementes appointed for euill doers For although men approue that which they doe yet God condemneth that which they desire Seneca in an epistle he wrot to his friend Lucille sayde these wordes Thou writest vnto me Lucille that those of
the yle of Scicili haue caried a great quantitie of corne into Spaine and into Affrike the which thing was forbidden by a Romayne lawe and therefore they haue deserued greuous puniâ—â—ement Nowe because thou arte vertuous thou mayst teache me to do wel and I that am olde wil teach the to say wel this is because that amongest wyse and vertuous men it is enoughe to saye that the lawe commaundeth appointeth and suffereth this thing but in as much as it is agreing with reason For the crowne of the good is reason and the scourge of the wicked is the lawe The fourth thing that commonly through the worlde amongest all men was accepted was the barbars And let no man take this thing in mockery For if they doe reade Plinie in the .59 chapiter the seuenth booke they shal finde for a truth that the Romaines wer in Rome .454 yeres without pouling or shauing the hayres of the beard of any man Marcus Varro said that Publius Ticinius was the firste that brought the barbers from Scicili to Rome But admitte it were so or otherwise yet notwithstandinge there was a greate contention amonge the Romaynes For they sayde they thought it a rashe thinge for a man to committe his life to the courtesie of another Dionisius the Siracusan neuer trusted his beard with any barbor but whaÌ„ his doughters were very little they clipped his beard with sisers but after they became great he woulde not put his trust in them to trimme his bearde but he him selfe did burne it with the shales of nuttes This Dionisius Siracusan was demanded why he would not trust any barbours with his beard He answered because I know that ther be some which wil geue more to the barbor to take away my life than I wil giue to trimme my beard Plinie in the seuenth booke saith that the great Scipio called African and the Emperour Augustus wer the first that caused them in Rome to shaue their beards And I thinke thend why Plinie spake these things was to exalte these twoo princes which had as greate courage to suffer the raysours touche their throtes as th one for to fight against Hannibal in Afrike and thother against Sextus Pompeius in Scicili The fifte thing which coÌ„monly through the world was accepted were the dialles and clockes which the Romaines wanted a long tyme. For as Plinie and Marcus Varro say the Romaines were without clockes in Rome for the space of .595 yeres The curious hystoriographers declare thre maner of dialles that were in olde time that is to say dialles of the houres dialles of the sonne and dialls of the water The dialle of the son Aneximenides Millesius inuented who was great Animandras scholer The dialle of the water Scipio Nasica inuented and the Diall of houres one of the scholers of Thales the Phylosopher inuented Of all these antiquities whyche were brought into Rome none of them were so acceptable to the Romaines as the dialles were wherby they measured the daye by the houre For before they could not saye we wil ryse at .vii. of the clocke we will dine at .x. we will see one thother at .xii. at .i. we will doe that we oughte to doe But before they sayde after the sonne is vp we wil doe such a thinge and before it goe downe we wyll doe that we ought to doe Thoccasion of declaryng vnto you these .v. antiquities in this preamble was to no other intente but to call my booke the Dial of Prynces The name of the booke veing newe as it is maye make the learning that is therein greatly to be estemed God forbyd that I should be so bolde to saye they haue ben so longe time in Spayne without dialles of learning as they were in Rome without the diall of the sonne the water and of the houres For that in Spayne haue ben alwayes men well learned in sciences and very expert in the warres By great reason and of greater occasion the Princes oughte to be commended the knyghtes the people their wittes and the fertilitye of their countrey but yet to all these goodnes I haue sene manye vnlearned bookes in spayne which as broken dialles deserue to be cast into the fier to be forged anew I do not speake it without a cause that manye bookes deserue to be broken and burnte For there are so many that without shame and honestie doe set forthe bookes of loue of the worlde at this daye as boldely as if they taught theim to dispise and speake euil of the world It is pitye to see how many dayes and nightes be consumed in readyng vayne bookes that is to say as Orson and Valentine the Courte of Venus the .iiii. sonnes of Amon and diuerse other vaine bokes by whose doctrine I dare boldlye say they passe not the tyme but in perdicion for they learne not how they oughte to flye vice but rather what way they may with more pleasour embrace it This dial of princes is not of sande nor of the sonne nor of the houres nor of the water but it is the dial of lyfe For that other dialles serue to know what houre it is in the nyghte and what houre it is of the day but this sheweth and teacheth vs how we ought to occupye our mindes and how to order our lyfe The propertye of other dyalles is to order thinges publyke but the nature of this dyal of prynces is to teache vs how to occupye our selues euery houre and how to amende our lyfe euery momente It lytle auayleth to keape the dyalles well and to see thy subiectes dissolutely without any order to range in routes and dayly rayse debate and contention amonge them selues Jn this Prologue the Aucthour speaketh particularlye of the booke called Marcus Aurelius which he translated and dedicated to the Emperour Charles the fyfte THe greatest vanitye that I find in the world is that vayne men are not only conteÌ„t to be vaine in their life but also procure to leue a memory of their vanity after their death For it is so thought good vnto vaine and light men whyche serue the worlde in vaine workes that at the houre of death when they perceyue they can do no more that they can no lenger preuaile they offer them selues vnto death which now they see approche vpon them Manye of the world are so fleshed in the world that although it forsaketh them in déedes yet they wyl not forsake it in theyr desires And I durst sweare that if the world could graunt them perpetual life they woulde promyse it alwayes to remaine in their customable follye O what a nomber of vaine men are aliue whiche haue neither remembraunce of god to serue him nor of his glorye to obey him nor of their conscience to make it cleane but like brute beasts folow and ronne after their voluptuous pleasours The brute beast is angrye if a man kepe him to much in awe if he be wery he taketh his rest he slepeth when he lysteth he eateth and
abstinence from meates when I desired to eate what watching in the night whan I would haue slept what cares I haue suffred in steed of rest that I might haue enioyed let other proue if me they wyl not credite The intencion of my painful trauailes I offer to the deuine maiestie vpon my knees to youre highnesse noble prince I presente thys my worke and humbly beseche god that the doctrine of this booke may be as profitable vnto you and the common wealth in your lyfe as it hath ben to me tedious hinderaunce to my health I haue thought it good to offer to your maiestye the effect of my laboures thoughe you peraduenture wyl lytle regard my paines for the requyting of my trauayle and reward of my good wyl I requyre nought els of your highnes but that the rudenesse of my vnderstanding the basenes of my stile the smalnes of my eloquence the euil order of my sentences the vanitie of my words be no occasion why so excellent and goodly a worke shold be lytle regarded For it is not reason that a good horse should be the lesse estemed for that the ryder knoweth not how to make hym ronne hys carrier I haue done what I could doe doe you now that you ought to doe in gyuynge to this present worke grauytye and to me the interpretor thereof aucthority I saye no more but humbly besech god to mayntayne your estimacion and power in earth and that you maye afterwarde enioye the fruicion of hys deuyne presence in heauen The Argumente of the booke called the Diall of Princes VVherein the aucthour declareth hys intencion and maner of proceadinge ARchimenedes the great and famous philosopher to whom Marcus Marcellus for his knowledge sake graunted life and after vsing Nygromancie deserued death being demaunded what time was sayd that time was the inuentor of al noueltyes and a Regestre certaine of antiquities whiche seeth of it selfe the beginning the middest and the ending of al things And finally time is he that endeth al. No man can deny but the diffinition of thys Philosopher is true for if tyme could speake he would certifye vs of sundry things wherin we doubt and declare them as a witnes of sight Admyt al things perishe and haue an ende yet one thing is exempted and neuer hath end which is truth that amongest al things is priuileged in such wise that she triumpheth of time and not tyme of her For accordyng to the dyuine sayeng it shal be more easy to se heauen and earth to fal then once truth to perish There is nothing so entyer but may be diminished nothynge so healthful but may be diseased nothing so strong but may be broken neyther any thing so wel kept but may be corrupted And finally I say there is nothing but by time is ruled and gouerned saue only truth which is subiect to none The fruits of the spring time haue no force to giue sustenaunce nor perfait swetenes to giue any sauour but after that the sommer is past and haruest commeth they rype and then all that we eate nourisheth more and gyueth a better tast I meane by this when the world beganne to haue wyse men the more Philosophers were estemed for their good maners the more they deserued to be reproued for their euyl vnderstandyng Plato in his second booke of the comon wealthe sayd that the auncient Phylosophers aswell Grekes as Egiptians Caldees which firste beganne to beholde the starres of heauen and ascended to the toppe of the mount Olimpus to vew the influences and mocions of the planets on the earthe deserued rather pardon of their ignoraunce then prayse for their knowledge Plato sayde further that the Phylosophers which were before vs were the first that gaue themselues to searche out the truth of the Elements in the heauen and the first whych sowed errors in things natural of the earth Homere in his Iliade agreyng wyth Plato saith I condemne al that the auncient Phylosophers knew but I greatly commend theym for that they desired to know Certes Homere sayd wel and Plato sayd not amysse for if amongest the first Philosophers this ignoraunce had not raygned there had not bene such contrary sectes in euery schoole He that hath redde not the bookes which are lost but the opinions whych the auncient phylosophers had wyl graunt me thoughe the knowledge were one yet their sectes were dyuers that is to say Cinici Stoici Academici Platonici and Epicurei whych were as variable the one from the other in their opinions as they were repugnaunt in their condicions I wyll not neyther reason requireth that my penne should be so much dysmesured as to reproue those whyche are dead for to gyue the glory al onely to them that are alyue for the one of them knew not al neyther were the other ignoraunt of all Yf he deserueth thankes that sheweth me the way whereby I ought to go no lesse then meriteth he whiche warneth me of the place wherin we may erre The ignoraunce of our forefathers was but a gyde to kepe vs from â—rryng for the errour of them shewed vs the truth to theyr much prayse and to our great shame Therfore I dare boldly say if we that are now had bene then we had knowen lesse then they knew And if those were nowe whych were then they would haue knowen more then we know And that this is true it appeareth wel for that the auncyent phylosophers through the great desyre they had to know the trouth of small and bypathes haue made brode and large wayes the whych we now wil not sée nor yet walke therin Wherfore we haue not so muche cause to bewayle their ignoraunce as they had reason to complayne of our negligence For truth whych is as Aulus Gelius saith the doughter of time hath reueled vnto vs the errours which we ought to eschew and the true doctrine which we ought to folow What is ther to se but hath bene sene what to dyscouer but hath ben discouered what is there to reade but hath bene red what to write but hath bene writen what is ther to know but hath ben knowen now a dayes humaine malice is so expert men so we â—able and our wittes so subtyl that we want nothyng to vnderstand neither good nor euyl And we vndoe our selues by sekyng that vayne knowledge which is not necessary for our life No man vnder the pretence of ignoraunce can excuse his fault since al men know al men reade and al men learne the whych is euident in this case as it shal appeare Suppose the ploughe man and the learned man do go to the law and you shall perceyue the labourer vnder that simple garment to forge to his councellour halfe a dosen of malicious trickes to delude his aduersary as fynely as the other that is leerned shal be able to expound 2. or 3. chapters of this booke If men would employ their knowledge to honesty wisedome pacience and mercy it were wel but
or to say better so enuyous that when the aucthour laboreth in his study they playe in the streates when he waketh they slepe When he fasteth they eate when he sitteth turninge the leaues of the booke they go huntyng after vices abrode yet for al that they wyl presume to iudge depraue and condeme an other mans doctrine as if they had the aucthoritye that Plato had in grece or the eloquence that Cicero had in Rome When I find a man in the latyn tongue well sene his vulgar tongue wel polished in histories wel grounded in Greke letters very expert and desirous to spend his tyme wyth good bookes this so heroical and noble a parsonage I would desire him to put my doctrine vnder his fete For it is no shame for a vertuous and wise man to be corrected of an other wyse man Yet I would gladly know what pacience can suffer or hart dissemble when two or thre be assembled togithers at meate and after at the table or otherwyse one of them taketh a booke at aduenture in his handes against the whiche another will say it is to longe and another wyll saye it speaketh not to the purpose another it is obscure and another the wordes are not well couched another wyll say all that that is spoken is fained one will say he speaketh nothing of profite another he is to curious and the other he is to malicious So that in speaking thus the doctrine remaineth suspicious and the authour scapeth not scotte fre Suppose them to be therfore suche that speake it as I haue spoken of that at the table doe finde suche faultes suer they deserue pardon for they speake not according to the bookes whiche they haue redde but accordâ—nge to the cuppes of wyne whiche they haue drunke For he that taketh not that in geste whiche is spoken at the table knoweth not what gesting meaneth It is an olde custome to murmure at vertuous dedes and into this rule entreth not onely those that make them but also those whiche wryt them afterwardes Which thing semeth to be true for that Socrates was reproued of Plato â–ª Plato of Aristotle Aristotle of Auerois Sicilius of Vulpitius Lelius of Varro Marinus of Ptolomens Ennius of Horace Seneca of Aulus Gellius Crastonestes of Strabo Thessale of Gallian Hermagoras of Cicero Cicero of Salust Origines of saint Hierome Hierome of Rufinus Rufinus of Donatus Donatus of Prosper and Prosper of Lupus Then sithe that in these men and in their workes hath bene suche neade of correction whiche were men of great knowledge and Lanternes of the worlde it is no maruayle at all that I haue suche fortune since I knowe so litle as I doe He may worthely be counted vaine and light whiche at the first sight as for onely once reading wil rashely iudge that whiche a wyse man with muche diligence and studie hath wrytten The authours and wryters are ofttimes reproued not of them whiche can translate and compile workes but of those whiche can not reade and yet lesse vnderstande them to thintent simple folkes shold count them wise take their partes in condemning this worke and esteme him for a great wyse man I take God to witnes who can iudge whether my intention were good or ill to compile this worke and also I say this my doctrine at the feete of wyse and vertuous men to the ende they may be protectours defendours of the same For I truste in God though some would come to blame as dyuers doe the simple wordes whiche I spake yet others would not faile to relate the good intention that I ment And to declare further I say that diuers haue wrytten of the tyme of the said Marcus Aurelius as Herodian wrote litle Eutropius lesse Lampridius not so much and Iulius capitolinus somewhat more Likewyse ye ought to know that the maisters whiche taught Marcus Aurelius sciences were Iunius Rusticus Cinna Catullus Sextus Cheronensis whiche was nephewe to the great Plutarque These three were those that principally as witnesses of sight wrate the most parte of his life and doctrine Many may marueile to heare tell of the doctrine of Marcus Aurelius saying it hath ben kept hid and secret a great whyle and that of myne owne head I haue inuented it And that there neuer was any Marcus Aurelius in the worlde I know not what to saye nowe vnto them for it is euident to all those whiche haue red any thyng that Marcus Aurelius was husbande to Faustine father to Comodus brother to Annius Verus and sonne in lawe to Antonius Pius the seuenth of Rome Emperour Those which say I onely haue made this doctrine truly I thanke them for so saying but not for their so meaning For truly the Romaines would haue set my Image in Rome for perpetuall renowne if so graue sentences should haue proceaded from my head We see that in our tyme which was neuer sene before and heare that we neuer heard before We practise not in a newe worlde and yet we marueyle that there is at this present a newe booke Not for that I was curious to discouer Marcus Aurelius or studious to translate him For truly it is worthy he be noted of wyse personnes and not accused of equious tongues For it chaunceth oftentimes in hunting that the moste simplest man killeth the deare The last thing which the Romaines conquered in Spaine was Cantabria whiche was a citie in Nauarra ouer against Lagrogne and situated in a highe countrey where there is nowe a vaine of vynes And the Emperour Augustus whiche destroyed it made tenne bookes De bello Cantabrico where are thinges worthy of notinge and no lesse pleasaunt in reading which happened vnto him in the same conquest As Marcus Aurelius was brought me from Florence so was this other booke of the warres of Cantabrie brought me from Colleine If perhappes I tooke paynes to translate this booke as fewe haue done whyche haue sene it they woulde speake the lyke of it that they dyd of Marcus Aurelius Bycause menne are so long in speakyng and so briefe in studienge that without anye let or shame they will a vowe no booke to be in the worlde this daye but that they haue redde or seen it I haue as muche profited in this writynge whyche is humaine as other doctours haue done in matters whyche are deuine It is not translated worde for worde but sentence for sentence For we other interpreters are not bounde to gyue wordes by measure but it suffiseth vs to gyue sentencis by wayghte I began to studye this woorke in the yeare a thousande fiue hundred and eyghtene and vntill the yeare a thousande fiue hundred twentie and foure I coulde neyther vnderstand nor knowe wherein I was occupied and albeit I kept it secreat .vi. yeres yet it was knowen abroade whervpon the Emperour his maiestie being with the feauer diseased sent to me for it to passe the tyme away And I according to his commaundement shewed him Marcus Aurelius that
here engraued rest That only was Camillus daughter deere Twyse twentie yeres and fixe she hath possest A couert lyfe vn touchte of any feere The king of Trinacry could not her moue To tast the swete delight of wedlockes bande Nor trayne by sute her sacred mind to loue â—nclosde in breest so deepe did chastnes stand But oh greate wrong the crawling wormes her do To gnawe on that vnspotted senceles corse That rage of youth spent vndefiled so VVyth sober life in spite of Cupides force And this was written in heroycal verse in the Greeke tongue with a maruelouse haughtie stile But to our mater ye shal vnderstand that the Romaynes kepte a certayne Lawe in the 12. tables the woordes wherof were these We ordeyne and commaund that al the Romaynes shal for euer haue specyall priuiledge in euery such place where theyr auncestoures haue done to the Romayne people any notable seruice For it is reason that where the citizen aduentureth hys lyfe there the citie should do him some honor after hys death By vertue of this lawe all the familie of Camilli euer enioyed the keping of the hyghe Capitoll for that by hys force and pollicye he chased the french men from the siege Truely it is not vnknoweÌ„ that this noble knight and valyant captayne Camille dyd other thynges as great and greater than this but because it was done within the circuite of Rome it was estemed aboue all hys other actes and prowes And herein the Romaynes swarued not farre from reason for that amongest all princelye vertues is estemed to be the chiefest and worthyest whych is employed to the profyt of the comon wealth The Romayne Croniclers wyth teares cease not to lameÌ„t the ruine of their countrye seynge that varietie of tyme the multytude of tyrauntes the crueltye of cyuill warres were occasion that the aunciente state of the Romayn gouernment came to vtter destruction and in steede therof a new and euyl trade of lyfe to be placed And hereof no man ought to maruaile for it chaunseth throughout al realmes and nacions by oft chaunging gouernours that among the people dayly spryngeth sondry new vices Pulio sayth that for no alteracion whych befell to the common weale for no calamitye that euer Rome suffred that priuiledge was taken away from the Image of Camilli I meane the gouernment of the high Capitol except it were in the time of Silla the consul when this familye was soore persecuted for none other cause but for that they fauoured the consull Marius Thys cruel Silla beinge deade and the piteful Iulius Cesar preuailinge al the banyshed men frome Rome returned home agayne to the commonne wealthe As touchinge the auncestours of the Emperoure Marcus Aurelius what hath bene their trade of lyfe estate pouertye or riches standinge infauour or displeasoure what prosperitie or aduersitie they haue had or suffred we fynde not in wrytinges thoughe with greate dilygence they haue bene serched for And the cause hereof was for that the auncient writers of the Romaine histories touched the lyues of the emperours fathers specially when they were made princes more for the good merites that were in the children then for the great estimacioÌ„ that came from the fathers Iulius Capitolinus saith that Annius Verus father of Marcus Aurelius was Pretor of the Rhodian armies and also wardein in other frontiers in the time of Traian the good Adrian the wyse and Antonye the mercifull Whiche Emperours trusted none with theyr armies but discrete and valiaunt men For good princes chose alway suche captaines as can with wisedome guide the armye and with valiauntnes giue the battaile Thoughe the Romaynes had sondrye warres in diuerse places yet chefelye they kept great garrisons alwayes in foure partes of the world That is to saye in Bizance which now is Constantinople to resist the Parthiens in Gades whiche now is called Galiz to withstand the Portugales in the riuer of Rein to defend them selues from the Germaines and at Colosses whiche now is called the I le of Rhodes for to subdue the Barbariens In the moneth of Ianuary when the Senate distributed their offices the dictatoure being appointed for 6. monethes and the. 2. Consulles chosen for one yere incontinently in the .3 place they chose 4. of the most renowmed personnes to defende the sayd 4 daungerous froÌ„tiers For the Romaynes neither feared the paynes of hell nor trusted for reward in heauen but sought by all occasions possible in their life to leaue some notable memory of them after their deathe And that Romaine was counted most valiante of the Senate best fauoured to whom they committed the charge of the moste cruell and daungerous warres For their strife was not to beare rule and to be in office to get mony but to be in the frontiers to ouercome their enemies In what estimacion these 4. frontiers wer we may easely perceiue by that we see the most noble Romaines haue passed som part of their youth in those places as captaines vntill such time that for more weyghtie affaires they were appointed from thense to some other places For at that time there was no worde so greauous and iniurious to a citezin as to saye go thou hast neuer ben brought vp in the warres and to proue the same by examples the great Pompey passed the winter season in Constantinople the aduenturous Scipio in Colonges the couragious Caesar in Gades and the renowmed Marius in Rhodes And these 4. wer not only in the frontiers afore sayde in their youthe but ther they dyd such valiaunt actes that the memory of them remayned euermore after their death These thynges I haue spoken to proue sythe wee fynde that Marcus Aurelius father was captaine of one of those .4 frontiers it followeth that he was a man of singuler wisedome and prowesse For as Scipio sayde to his frende Masinissa in affrike it is not possible for a Romaine captayne to want eyther wisedome or courage for thereunto they were predestined at their birthe We haue no autentike authorities that showeth vs from whence when or howe in what countreis and with what personnes this captaine passed his youth And the cause is for that the Romain Croniclers wer not accustomed to write the thynges done by their prince before they were created but only the actes of yonge men whiche from their youth had their hartes stoutlye bent to great aduenturs And in my opinion it is wel done For it is greater honor to obteine an empire by policie wisedom then to haue it by discent so that ther be no tirannie Suetonius Tranquillus in his first boke of Emperours counteth at large the aduenturous enterprises taken in hand by Iulius Caesar in his yong age how farre vnlikely they wer from thought that he should euer obtayne the Roman Empiree writing this to shew vnto princes how earnestlye Iulius Cesars harte was bent to winne the Romayne Monarchie and likewise how wisdom fayled him in behauing him selfe therein A philosopher of Rome wrote to Phalaris
there captaine But that could not be for Adrian my lord sent for me to returne to Rome which pleased me not a lytle albeit as I haue said they vsed me as if I had ben borne in that Iland for in theend although the eyes be fedde with delyght to see straunge thinges yet therefore the hart is not satisfyed And this is al that toucheth the Rhodians I will now tel the also how before my going thether I was borne and brought vp in mount Celio in Rome with my father from mine infancie In the common wealthe of Rome ther was a law vsed by custome wel obserued that no citizē which enioyed any lybertie of Rome after their sonnes had accomplyshed .10 yeares should be so bold or hardy to suffer them to walke the streates like vacabondes For it was a custome in Rome that the chyldren of the senatours should sucke til two yeres of age til 4. they should liue at theyr own wylles tyl 6. they should reede tyl 8 they should wryte tyll 10. they should study gramer 10. yeares accomplished they should then take some craft or occupacion or gyue them selues to study or go to the warres so that throughout Rome no man was idell In one of the lawes of the 12 tables weare written these wordes We ordeine and commaund that euery cytizen that dwelleth wythin the circuite of Rome or lybertyes of the same from 10 yeres vpwardes to kepe hys sonne well ordered And if perchaunce the chyld being ydel or that no man teacheth hym any craft or scyence should therby peraduenture fal to vyce or commyt some wycked offence that then the father no lesse then the sonne should be punyshed For ther is nothing so much breadeth vyce amongest the people as when the fathers are to neclygent and the chyldren to bold And furthermore another law sayd We ordeine and commaunde that after 10. yeares be past for the fyrst offence that the chyld shal commyt in Rome that the father shal be bound to send hym forth some where els or to be bound suertye for the good demeanour of hys son For it is not reason that the fonde loue of the father to the sonne should be an occasion why the multytude shuld be sclaundered because al the wealth of the Empyre consisteth in kepyng and mayntaynyng quyet men and in banishyng and expellyng sedycious personnes I wyll tell the one thyng my Pulyo and I am sure thou wylt meruell at it and it is thys When Rome tryumphed and by good wysedom gouerned all the worlde the inhabitantes in the same surmounted the nomber of two hundreth thousand parsonnes which was a maruelouse matter Amongeste whom as a man maye iudge ther was aboue a hundreth thousand chyldren But they whych had the charge of them kept them in such awe and doctryne that they banyshed from Rome one of the sonnes of Cato vticensis for breakyng an erthen pot in a maydens handes whych went to fetche water In lyke manner they banyshed the sonne of good Cinna onlye for entrynge into a garden to gather fruyte And none of these two were as yet fyftyne yeares olde For at that tyme they chastised them more for the offences done in gest then they doo now for those which are don in good earnest Our Cicero saith in his booke De legibus that the Romaynes neuer toke in any thing more paynes then to restreine the chyldren aswel old as young from ydlenes And so long endured the feare of their lawe and honour of theyr common wealthe as they suffered not their children lyke vacabondes idelly to wander the streates For that countrey may aboue all other be counted happye where eche one enioyeth hys owne laboure and no man lyueth by the swette of another I let the know my Pulio that when I was a chylde althoughe I am not yet very olde none durste be so hardy to go commonly throughe Rome wythout a token about hym of the crafte and occupacion he exercysed and whereby he lyued And if anye man had bene taken contrary the chyldren dyd not onlye crie out of hym in the streates as of a foole but also the Censour afterwardes condemned hym to trauayle wyth the captynes in common workes For in Rome they estemed it no lesse shame to the child which was idle then they dyd in Grece to the phylosopher whych was ignorant And to th ende thou mayest se thys I write vnto the to be no new thynge thou oughtest to know that the Emperour caused to be borne afore hym a brenning brand and the counsel an axe of armes the priestes a hat in maner of a coyfe The Senatours a crusible on their armes the Iudges a lytle balance the Tribunes Maces the gouernours a scepter the Byshoppes hattes of floures The Oratours a booke the cutlers a swerd the goldsmithes a pot to melt gold and so forth of al other offices strangers excepted which went al marked after one sort in Rome For they woulde not agree that a stranger shoulde be apparailed marked according to the childrē of Rome O my frend Pulio it was suche a ioye then to beholde the discipline and prosperitie of Rome and it is now at this present suche a grefe to see the calamitie thereof that by the immortall gods I sweare to the and so the god Mars guyde my hande in warres that the man which now is best ordered is not worthe so much as the most dissolute person was then For then amongest a thousande they could not finde one man vicious in Rome and nowe amonges twentie thousande they cannot finde one vertuous in all Italye I know not why the gods are so cruel againste me and fortune so contrary that this 40. yeares I haue done nothynge but wepe and lamente to see the good men die and immediatly to be forgotten and on the other side to see the wicked liue and to be alwayes in prosperitye Vniuersallye the noble harte maye endure al the troubles of mans life vnlesse it be to see a good man decay and the wicked to prosper which my harte cannot abyde nor yet my tonge dissemble And touchynge this matter my frende Pulio I will write vnto the one thynge whiche I founde in the bookes of the highe Capitoll where he treateth of the time of Marius and Sylla whiche trulye is worthy of memorye and that is this There was at Rome a custome and a lawe inuiolable sith the time of Cinna that a Censour expressely commaunded by the senate should goe and visite the prouinces whyche were subiecte vnto it throughe out all Italye and the cause of those visitacions was for three thinges The firste to see if any complained of iustice the second to see in what case the common wealthe stode The thirde to th ende that yearelye they should render obedience to Rome O my frende Pulio how thinkest thou if they visited Italye at this presente as at that time they surueyed Rome how ful of errous should they fynd it And what decaye
after their death were changed into gods the wycked into deuils whych thing the Auctoure proueth by soundry examples Cap. x. ALthough the common opinion of the simple people was that ther were many gods yet not withstandinge al the Phylosophers affyrmed that ther was but one God who of some was named Iupiter the whiche was chiefe aboue al other gods Others called him the first intelligence for that he had created al the world Others called him the first cause because he was the beginner of all things It semeth that Aristotle vnderstode this thinge and was of this opinion forasmuch as he sayth in his .12 booke of his metaphisickes All superiour and inferiour thinges wold be well ordered and many thinges muche better by tharbitrement of one then by the aduice of many Marcus Varro in hys booke De theologia mistica Tullius in hys booke De natura Deorum although these were gentyles and curious enoughe of the Temples yet they do mocke the gentiles whych beleued ther were manye gods that Mars Mâ—rcury and lykewyse Iupiter the whole flocke of gods which the gentyles set vp wer al mortal men as we are But because they knew not that ther wer good nor bad angels nor knew not that ther was any paradise to reward the good nor hel to torment the euil They held thys opinion that the good men after their death wer gods and the euyl men deuils And not contented with these folysh abuses the deuil brought them into such an errour that they thought it consisted in the Senates power to make some gods and other deuils For when ther dyed at Rome any Emperour if he had bene wel willed of the Senate immediatly he was honoured for a god and if he died in dyspleasure of the Senate he was condemned for a deuyl And to the end we do not speake by fauour but by writting Herodian sayth that Faustine was the doughter of Antonius Pius wife of Marcus Aurelius which wer Emperours the one after the other And truly ther wer few eyther of their predecessours or of their successours which wer so good as they wer and in myne opinion more better therfore was she made a goddesse and her father a god An Emperour that coueteth perpetual memory must note 5. thinges which he should haue in his life That is to saye pure in lyfe vpright in iustice aduenturous in feates of armes excellent in knowledge and welbeloued in his prouinces which vertues were in these 2. excellente Emperors This Empresse Faustine was passing fayre and the wrytters praise her beauty in such sorte that they sayde it was vnpossible for her to be so beautiful but that the gods had placed som deuine thing in her Yet not with standing this added therunto it is doubtful whether the beauty of her face was more praysed then the dishonestie of her lyfe discommended For her beauty maruelously amazed those that saw her her dishonesty offended them moch that knew her Yet after the Emperour Marcus Aurèlius had triumphed ouer the Parthians as he went visitinge the prouinces of Asia the goodlye Faustine in 4. daies dyed in the mounte Taurus by occasion of a burnynge feuer and so annealed was caried to Rome And since she was the daughter of so good a father and wife of so dearely beloued an Emperour amonges the Gods she was canonyzed but consideringe her vnconstant or rather incontinent lief it was neuer thought that the Romaines would haue done her so much honor Wherfore the Emperour reioysed so much that he neuer ceased to render thankes vnto the Senate For truely the benefite ought to be acceptable to him that receiueth it especially whan it commeth vnloked for The contrary came to the death of Tiberius third Emperour of Rome which was not only killed and drawen throughe the streates by the Romans but also the priestes of all the Temples assembled together and openly prayed vnto the gods that they would not receiue him to them and prayed to the infernal furyes that greauously they would torment him sayinge it is iustly required that the Tirant which dispraiseth the life of the good in his life should haue no place amoÌ„gest the good after his death Leauing the common opinion of the rude people whiche in the olde time had no knowledge of the true god declaring the opinion of Aristole which called god the first cause the opinion of the Stoickes which called him the firste intelligeÌ„ce and the opinion of Cicero which vnder the colour of Iupiter putteth none other god but him I saye and confesse according to the religion of christian faith there is but one only God which is the creatour of heauen and earth whose excellency and puissaunt maiestie is litle to that our tong can speake For our vnderstaÌ„ding can not vnderstand nor our iudgemeÌ„t can determine neither our memory can comprehende and much lesse our tonge can declare it That which princes and other faithful ought to beleue of god is that they ought to know god to be almighty and incomparable a god immortall incorruptible immouable great omnipotent a perfite and sempiternall God for all mans power is nothing in respecte of his diuine maiesty I saye that our lord god is the onely hyghe god that if the creature hath any good it is but a meane good For a man comparing wel the good which he possesseth to the misery and calamitie whiche persecute him with out doubte the euill which foloweth him is greater then the good which accompanieth him Also our god is immortall and eternall which like as he had no beginning so shall he neuer haue ending And the contrarye is to the miserable man which if some see him borne others see him dye For the byrth of the children is but a memory of the graue to the aged Also God onely is vncorruptible the which in his beyng hath nother corruption nor diminution but al mortall men suffer corruption in their soules throughe vyce and in their bodyes through wormes for in the end no man is priuileged but that hys bodye is subiecte to corruption and hys soule to be saued or damned Also God is no chaungelyng and in this case thoughe he chaungeth his worke yet he chaungeth not his eternall counsayle But in men it is all contrarye for they oftetimes beginne their busynes with grauitye and afterward chaung theyr counseill at a better tyme and leaue it lyghtlye I haue now shewed you that God only is incomprehensible the maiestie of whom can not be attained nor his wisedome vnderstanded which thing is aboue mans intelligence For there is no man so sage nor profound but that an other in an other tyme is as sage and profound as he Also God onely is omnipotent for that he hath power not only ouer the lyuinge but also ouer the dead not onely ouer the good but also ouer the euill For the man which doth not feele his mercy to giue him glory he wil make him feele his
which they call Bacchanales withoute the citie in the waye of Salaria by the Aulters of the Goddesse Februa and it was bilte by the Gaules when they besieged Rome in the time of Camillus Februa was a goddesse for the feuers and they vsed in Rome when any was taken with the feauer immediatelye to sende some sacrifice vnto her This Goddesse hadde no temple at al but her Image was in Pautheon whiche was a temple wherein al the goddes were and in this place they sacrificed vnto her Pauor was the God of feare who hadd the charge to take feare from the Romaines hartes and to gyue them stoute courage against their enemies The Temple of this god Pauor was in Rome in the sixte warde in the place of Mamuria nere the olde Capitoll and euer when they had any enemyes the Romaynes forthewith offred in this place sacrifices and there was in the same temple a statue of Scipio the Affricane all of siluer which he offred there when he triumphed ouer the Carthagians Meretrix was the goddesse of dishonest women and as Publius Victor saieth there was in Rome fourty streates of cōmen women in the myddest wherof the temple of this Meretrix was It chaunsed in the time of Ancus Martius the forthe kynge of the seuen Romayne Kynges that there was in Rome a courtizan natiue of Laurento whiche was so fayre that with her bodye she gayned greate ryches whereof she made all the Romayne people partakers Wherefore in memorye of her the Romaynes bilt ther a temple and made her Goddesse of all the common women in Rome Cloatina was Goddesse of the stoole and to this goddesse all those commended them selues whiche were troubled with the Collycke to th end she would healpe them to purge their bealies Quies was the goddesse of rest and to her the Romaynes did great sacrifices because she should gyue them pleasour and rest especiallye one that day when there was any triumphe in Rome they gaue in this Temple many gyftes because she should preserue the glorye and ioye of the triumphes Nunia Pompilius seconde Kyng of the Romaynes builte the temple of this Goddesse and it was without the citie for to note that durynge the lyfe of man in this worlde he coulde neyther haue pleasoure nor reste Theatrica was a goddesse that had the charge to kepe the Theatres Stagyes when the Romaynes celebrated their playes and thoccasion of inuenting of this Goddesse was because when the Romaynes woulde set forthe their tragedies they made so solempne theatres that there myghte wel stand xx thousand men aboue as manye vnderneth for to beholde the spectacle And sometime it happened that for the greate wayghte of them aboue the wode of the theatres and stages brake killed all those which were vnderneth so after this sorte all their pastime turned into sorrow The Romaynes which wer prouided in al thinges agred to do sacrifice vnto the Goddesse Theatrica to th ende she should preserue them from the daungers of the Theaters and built her a temple in the nynth ward in the Market place of Cornelia neare to the house of Fabij Domitian the xii Emperour of Rome dystroyed this Temple because in his presence one of the Theaters brake and killed many men And for that the goddesse Theatrica dyd not preserue them he made the Temple to be beaten downe Peraduenture those that haue red lytle shal find these things new inoughe but let theym reade Cicero in his booke De natura Deorum Iohn Bocchas of the genealogie of gods and Pulio of the aunciente Gods and Saint Augustine in the firste xi and the xviii booke of the cytie of God and they shall fynd a great nomber more then is spoken of ¶ How Tiberius the knyghte was chosen gouernour of the empire and afterwardes created Emperoure only for being a good Christian And how God depriued Iustinian the yonger both of his empire and sences for being an heretike Cap. xiii THe fiftye Emperour of Rome was Tiberius Constantinus who succeded Iustinian the younger which was a cruell Emperoure And Paulus Diaconus sayeth that he was an enemye to the poore a thefe to the rich a great louer of riches and an enemy to him selfe in spending them For the propertie of a couetous man is to liue like a begger all the dayes of his lyfe and to be founde riche at the houre of his deathe This Iustinian was so couetous that hee commaunded coffers and chestes of iron to bee made and brought into his palayce to kepe the treasours whiche he hadde robbed And of this you ought not to meruel for Seneca sayth that couetous Prynces doo not onely suspect their subiectes but also theym selues In those dayes the church was greatly defyled by the heresye of the Pelagians and the maynteyner of that sect was this wicked Prince Iustinian so that for him selfe he procured riches and for the Deuill he cheapned soules For those that are once forsaken of the hande of God do not only become seruantes of the deuil but also labour to allure others to hell Wherfore sith the sinnes of men are dyuerse and the iudgements of God kept secrete and that yet the lyuing God is so merciful that not with standing his mercy would saue the soules he wil also with iustyce chastise the bodies And therfore seing the obstinacye of this Emperour to be such that the lenger he lyued the more he augmented his damnacion the wrathe of God lighted vpon him and sodainly with out any grudge or tokē of sicknes this Emperour Iustinian was derriued of his sences became a foole because the matter was so sodaine it caused in Rome great feare and admiracion for that the Prince was a foole and all the Empire chaunged And in dede This Emperour was so stryken that his life and follye ended both in one day For the dyseases which God sendethe to Princes commeth not through faulte of humours but through the corrupcion of maners Also ther is no medicyne that can resist it nor yet anye other thing that can remedye it The people perceiuyng howe the Emperour through hys synnes was according to the diuine pleasoure become a foole agreed sythe there was no remedye for his dyssease to chuse some good person to whom the charge of the publyke weale myght be gyuen For trulye a man needeth greater pacience and wysedome to gouerne another mans then for that whiche is his owne proper The lotte befell to a Knyghte Tiberius so called a man for a truthe bothe chaste iuste profitable sage vertuous hardy merciful charitable in feates of armes aduenturous and aboue all a good Christian And let not this thynge be lytle regarded that the Prince be a good Christian For there is no state so happy as that whiche is gouerned by a Prince of a good and faitheful conscience and because he wanted no vertues to adorne a Prince he was both feared of manye and beloued of all Which thinge oughte not lyghtlye to
declared that Asa being king of Iudea and prophecieng in Hierusalem at that time Omri was king of Israel and after him succeded Ahab his sonne beyng of the age of .xxii. yeares This Ahab was not only young of yeares but yonger of vnderstanding and was nombred among the wicked kings not onely euil but to euil for the scriptures vse to cal them by names infamed whose liues deserued no memorie The vices of this kyng Ahab were sondry and diuerse whereof I wyll declare some as hereafter foloweth First of all he followed altogether the life and steppes of the kyng Iheroboam who was the first that entised the children of Israel to committe Idolatrie whiche thing turned to his great reproche and infamie For the Prince erreth not in immitinge the pathes of the good but offendeth in folowyng the wayes of the euyll Secondarily this kyng Ahab maried the daughter of the kynge of the Idumeans whose name was Iesabel whiche was of the stocke of the Gentyls and he of the Hebrues And for a trouth the mariage was vnaduisedly considered For sage Princes shoulde take wifes conformable to their lawes and condicions vnlesse they wyll repent them selues afterwardes Thirdly he buylt againe the citie of Hierico whiche by the commaundement of God was destroyed and commaunded that vppon greauous paynes it should not be reedified againe because the offences that were therein committed were so great that the inhabitantes did not onely deserue to loase their lyues but also that in Hierico there should not one stone remayne vpon an other Fourthly kyng Ahab buylte a sumptuous temple to the Idol Baall in the citie of Samaria and consecrate a wood vnto him whiche he had very pleasaunt and set in the temple his image of fyne gold so that in the reigne of this cursed kynge Baal the wicked Idoll was so highly estemed that not onely secretly but also openly they blasphemed the true and lyuing God The case was suche That one daye Ahab going against the kyng of Siria to take him and his citie called Ramoth Galaath being in battayle was shot into the breaste with an arrowe wherewith he not onely loste his lyfe but also the dogges did lappe vp his bloud that fell to the earth O Princes and great Lordes if you wyll geue credite vnto me you shal haue nothing more in recommendation then to be good Christians Syth ye see that as this Prince in his life did serue straunge Idols so it was reason that after his death his bloud should be buried in the intrelles of rauenous dogges ¶ Why kyng Manasses was punished THE king Manasses was the sonne of Ezechias and father of Amon which were all kynges And truly they differed so muche in maners that a man could scarcely iudge whether the vertues and prowesses of the father were more to be desired or the vice and wickednes of the children to be abhorred This Manasses was a wicked Prince for as muche as he builte new temples to Baal and in the cities made heremitages for the Idols and in the mountaines repayred all the aulters that heretofore were consecrated to the deuyll He consecrated many forestes and woodes to the Idols he honoured the starres as the gods and did sacrifice to the planets elementes For the man that is abandoned by the hand of God there is no wickednes that his obstinate harte doth not enterprise So that he had in his Palace al maner of false prophetes as southsaiers prophesiers witches sorcerers enchaunters coniurers the which daily he caused to giue sacrifice to the idols gaue such credit to sorcerers enchaunters that his seruauntes were all for the most part sorcerers and in them was his chiefe delight and pleasure And lykewise he was skilful in all kinde of mischiefe and ignoraunte in all vertues He was so cruel spilt somuch innocent bloud that if it had bene water put together and the bodyes of them that he slewe layde on heapes it would both haue couered their carcases and also haue drowned the liuing Yet he not contented with that I haue spoken of set in the Temple of oure Lorde an old idoll that stode in the woode for the punishmente of whiche facte God suffred his seruauntes to kill his eldest sonne Afterwarde God would not suffer these such sondrye myscheues of mans malice but of hys deuine iustice caused these wordes to be proclamed in Hierusalem Sithe the king Manasses hath bene so bold to contemne me himselfe alone to commit thoffences of al I wil chastice him alone withe the same correction that he hath shewed vnto others By these wordes let Princes note here howe the deuine vengeaunce extendeth no further then our offences deserue soo that if our fault be lytle the punishment which he giueth vs is very temperate but if the prince be stubburne and obstinate in his wyckednes let hym be sure that the punishment shal be extreme ¶ Why Iulyus Pompeius Xerxes Catilina Germanicus and Brennus were punyshed WHen pompeius the great passed into the Orrient with all the hoste of the Romaine people and after he had subdued al Sirie Mesopotamia Damasco Arabia he passed into the realme of Palestin which otherwise was called Iudea wher he committed diuerse and sondrye euilles so that many of the Romaines and Hebrues dyed ther. Finally by force of armes he toke the puisant citye of Hierusalem whych as Plynie sayth was the best of al Asia And Strabo saith of the situacion of the world that Rome was the chiefe of al Italy of Affrike the principal was Carthage of Spaine Numantia of Germanie Argentine of Caldea Babilone of Egipt Thebes of Grece Athens of Phenice Tira of Cappadocea Cesarea of Thrace Constantinople and of palestine Hierusalem Pompeius therfore not contented to kil al the auncientes in that warre to impryson the youth to behead the elders to force the mothers to defile the virgines to teare in peces the children to beate downe buildinges and to robbe the tresours but encreasing euyl vpon euyll and putting all the people to destruction he made of the Temple a stable for hys horses which before god was abhominable that wher alwayes heretofore he had bene a conqueroure had triumphed ouer 22. kynges euer after he was vnluckye and ouercome in battayle The famous rebell Catilina as Saluste affirmeth had neuer bene ouercome if it had not bene for the robbing destroying of the Temples which were consecrated to the gods The noble Marcus Marcellus to whom no Romaine is to be compared in vertues the same day that he caused the Temple of the goddesse Februa to be burnt was himselfe slaine in battayle The noble Romaine captaine Drusius Germanicus that was so wel wylled and beloued because he gaue a calfe meat to eate which was the god of the Caldeans being prohybited forbidden within a moneth after dyed whose death was greatlye lamented in Rome Suetonius saythe that after Iulius Cesar had robbed the Temple of the Gawles the gods alwaies made
was euerlasting but that all are mortal in the ende both high lowe haue an end for many are layde to nighte into their graue which the next day following thought to be aliue Leaue aside the deuine iudgment in that he spake he said highly and like a Philosopher for it semeth to be a pleasaunt thing to see how men gouerne the world Therfore now to the matter it is but reason we know the cause of this so auncient a noueltye whiche is that God wylleth and ordeinethe that one onlye commaunde all and that all together obey one For there is nothing that God doth thoughe the cause therof be vnknowen to vs that wanteth reason in his eternall wisedome In this case speakyng like a Christian I saye that if our father Adam had obeyed one onlye commaundemente of God whiche was forbydden him in the terrestial Paradise we had remayned in lybertie vpon the earth and should haue bene Lordes and maisters ouer al. But sith he would not then obey the Lord we are nowe become the slaues of so many Lords O wicked sine cursed be thou sith by the onely the world is broughte into suche a bondage without teares I cannot speake that which I would that through our first fathers which submitted them selues to sinne we their children haue lost the sygnorye of the world For sithe they were prisoners to synne in their hartes lytle auaileth the lybertie of their bodyes There was great dyuersitie betwixt the opynions of Pythagoras and the opinyons of Socrates for somuch as those of Socrates scoole saide that it were better all thinges should be common and all men equall Thother of Pythagoras scoole sayde the contrarie and that the common wealthe were better wherin eche one had his owne proper and all should obey one so that the one of them dyd admit and graunte the name of seruantes and thothers dyd despise the name of Lordes As Laertius in his first booke of the life of Philosophers sayth that the Philosopher Demostenes was also of the same opinyon that to the end the people should be well gouerned he would two names should be vtterly abbolished and taken a way that is to wete Lords and subiectes masters and seruaunts for the one desirous to rule â–ª by fyersnes and thothers not willyng to obeye by tyranny would shedde the bloud of the innocent and would be vyolent agaynst the poore they would destroy the renowmed famous people and tyrannes would waxe stout the which thyngs should be taken away if there were no sygnorye nor seruytude in the world But notwithstanding these thinges the Phylosopher in his first booke of his pollitiques sayth that by fower natural reasons we may proue it to be very necessarie that Princes do commaund and the people obey The first reason is of the partes of the Elements symple and mixt For we se by experience that the Elementes do suffer to th ende they wold be ioyned together the one to haue more power then al the whyche is shewed by experyence forasmuch as the Element of the fyer the Element of the ayer and the Element of the water do obey the Element of the earth doth commaund For against their nature he bryngeth them all to the earth But if all the noble and chiefest Elements were obedyente to the most vile Element onely to forme a body myxt it is a greater reason that al obeye to one vertuous person that the common wealth mighte therby the better be gouerned The second reason is of the bodye the soule in the armony wherof the soule is the mistresse which commaundeth and the body the seruaunt which obeyeth fo the body neither seeth heareth nor vnderstandeth without the body The sage Philosopher by this wil infer that the sage men should naturally be lords ouer others For in the world ther is nothing more mâ—nstrous then that fooles should coÌ„maund wise men obey The third reason taketh his ground on beastes for we se by experience that diuers beastes by thonely knowledge of men are gouerned therfore it is but mete that many men which are more lyker beastes then the beastes theym selues do suffer them selues to be gouerned and ruled by wise men For the common weale is more profited by a brute beast then it is by a witlesse man The fourth reason proceadeth of women for we se that they being created to the image of God god commaundeth and ordayneth that they should be subiect to man presupposing their knowledge not to be so great as the knowledge of men Therfore if this thing be thus why could not diuerse mortal men who with out comparison know lesse then women take theym selues for happie that one alone would commaund gouerne them so that such one were a sage vertuous parson Sithe man is naturally pollytike which is to be a frend of company the company engendreth enuy afterwards discord norisheth warre warre bringeth in tiranny tiranny destroyeth the comon wealth the common wealth being lost all men thinke their liues in peryl Therfore it is very necessarie that in the common wealth many be gouerned by one alone for to conclude ther is no common wealth wel gouerned but by one alone The great trauayles and inconuenyences which the auncientes found in tymes past were the occasion that it was ordeyned in the publyke weale that all should obey one Sythe that in a campe one onely Captaine is obeyed and in the sea one Pilot followed in the monasterye all obeye one prelate and in the Churche all obeye one byshoppe and syns in a hyue of bees one bee onely leadeth all the rest it were not reason that men should be without one king nor the common wealth without a gouernour Those men that will not haue a king in a common wealth are lyke vnto drones waspes which without trauaile eate the swete of others And mine opinion in this case should be that euery man that will not be commaunded as an abiect of the common weale should be expulsed and cast out therof For in a common wealthe ther can be no greater enemye then he that desireth that many should rule therin In that publike weale where one alone hath care for al al obey the commaundement of one onely there God shal be serued the people shal profit the good shal be estemed the euil dispised and besides that tirannes shal be suppressed For a gouernaunce of many is not profitable onlesse they referre theym selues to the iudgemente of a fewe and to the arbitermente of one alone Oh howe manâ—e people and Realmes because they woulde not obey their princes by iustice haue since by cruell tirannes bene gouerned with tyrannye For it is euen a iuste plage that they which disire the scepters of righteous Princes shoulde feale and proue the scourge of cruell tirauntes Alwayes it was and shal be that in the worlde there was one to commaunde another to obeye one to gouerne and another to bee gouerned
that now a daies the vicious and vices reigneth so as they doe ¶ Of the Philosopher Eschilus ARtabanus being the sixte king of Persians and Quintus Cincinatus the husbandman being onely dictatour of the Romaines in the prouince of Tharse there was a philosopher named Aeschylus who was euil fauoured of countenaunce defourmed of body fierce in his lookes and of a verye grosse vnderstandinge but he was fortunate of credite for he had no lesse credite amongest the Tharses then Homere had amonge the Greekes They saye that though this philosopher was of a rude knowledge yet otherwyse he had a very good natural wytte and was very diligent in harde thinges and very paciente with those that dyd hym wrong he was exceading couragious in aduersities and moderate in prosperities And the thyng that I moste delighted in hym was that he was curteous and gentyll in his conuersation and bothe pithie and eloquente in his communication For that man onely is happie where all men prayse his lyfe and no man reproueth his tongue The auncient Greekes declare in their histories that this phylosopher Aeschylus was the first that inuented Tragedies and that gotte money to represente them and sythe the inuention was newe and pleasaunt many dyd not onely folowe hym but they gaue hym muche of their goods And marueyle not thereat my frende Pulio for the lightnes of the common people is suche that to see vayne thinges all wyll ronne and to heare the excellencie of vertues there is not one that wyll goe After this phylosopher Aeschylus had wrytten many bookes specially of tragedies and that he had afterwarde trauayled through many countreys and realmes at the last he ended the residue of his lyfe nere the Iles whiche are adioyning to the lake of Meatis For as the deuine Plato saieth when the auncient philosophers were younge they studied when they came to be men they traueyled and then when they were olde they retyred home In myne opinion this phylosopher was wyse to doe as he did and no lesse shall men nowe a dayes be that wyll imitate hym For the fathers of wysedome are science and experience and in this consisteth true knowledge when the man at the laste returneth home from the troubles of the worlde Tell me my frende Pulio I praye thee what doth it profite hym that hath learned much that hath heard muche that hath knowen much that hath seene muche that hath bene farre that hath bought much that hath suffred much that hath proued much that had much if after great trauaile he doth not retire to repose him selfe a litle truly he can not be counted wyse but a foole that willingly offreth him selfe to trauaile and hath not the witte to procure him selfe reste For in myne opinion the lyfe withoute reste is a longe death By chaunce as this auncient phylosopher was sleaping by the lake Meotis a hunter had a hare with him in a cage of woode to take other hares by wheron the egle seased which toke the cage with the hare on hig and seing that he could not eate it he cast it downe againe which fell on the head of this phylosopher and killed him This phylosopher Aeschylus was demaunded in his life tyme wherin the felicitie of this life consisted whereunto he aunswered that in his opinion it consisted in steaping and his reason was this that when we sleape the entisementes of the fleshe doe not prouoke vs nor the enemy persecute vs neither the frendes doe importune vs nor the colde wynter oppresse vs nor the heate of the longe Sommer doth annoye vs ne yet we are not angry for any thing we see nor we take any care for any thing we heare Finally when we sleape we fele not the anguishes of the body neyther suffer the passion of the mynd to come To this end ye must vnderstande that when they were troubled he gaue them drinkes which caused them immediatly to sleape so that so sone as the man did drinke it so sone he was a slepe Finally al the study wherin the Epicurians exercised thē selues was in eating seking meates and the chiefe study of this Aeschilus was in sleaping hauing softe beddes ¶ Of the philosopher Pindarus IN the yeare of the foundation of Rome .262 Darius the seconde of that name kinge of Persia who was the sonne of Histapsie and in the image of kinges the fourth king of Persia Iunius Brutus and Lucius Collatinus being cōsulles in Rome which were the firste consulles that were in Rome There was in the great citie of Thebes in Egipt a philosopher named Pindarus who was prince of that realme They write of this philosopher that in philosophy he excelled al those of his time and also in touching singing and plaiyng of musike he was more excellent then any of all his predecessours for the Thebanes affirmed that there was neuer any sene of suche aptenes in speaking so excellent deliuering of his fingers in playing as Pindarus was and more ouer he was a great moral philosopher but not so excellent in naturall philosophie For he was a quiet and vertuous man and could better worke than teache which thing is contrary now a daies in our sages of Rome For they know litle and speake much and worst of all in their wordes they are circumspect and in their deedes very negligent The deuine Plato in his booke that he made of lawes mencioneth this philosopher Iunius Rusticus in his Thebaide shewed one thing of him and that is that an Embassadour of Lides being in Thebes seing Pindarus to be of a vertuous life very disagreable in his wordes he spake vnto him such wordes O Pindarus if thy wordes were so limed before men as thy workes are pure before the gods I sweare vnto thee by those gods thē selues that are immortal that thou shouldest be as much estemed in life as Promotheus was shouldest leaue as much memory of thee after thy death in Egipt as the great Homere left of his life in Grece They demaunded of this Pindarus wherin felicitie consisted he answered in such sorte ye ought to knowe that the in warde soule foloweth in many thinges for the moste parte the outward body the which thing presupposed I say that he that feleth no griefe in his body may well be called happy For truly if the flesh be not wel the harte can haue no rest Therefore according to the counsaile of Pindarus the Thebanes were aboue all other nations and people moste diligent to cure the diseases of their bodyes Annius Seuerus sayth that they were let bloude euery moneth for the great aboundance of bloude in their bodyes They vsed euery weeke vomitacions for the full stomackes They continued the bathes for to auoide opilacions They caried swete sauours aboute them against the euyll and infected ayres And finally they studied nought els in Thebes but to preserue and kepe their bodyes as diliciously as they could inuent Of the philosopher Zeno. IN the Olimpiade .133 Cneus
merite The contrary ought and may be saied of those whych are euill maried whom we wil not cal a compaigny of sayntes but rather a house of deuylles For the wife that hath an euil husbande may say she hath a deuyl in her house and the husband that hath an euil wife let him make accompt that he hath hel it selfe in his house For the euyl wyues are worse then the infernal furyes Because in hel ther are none tormented but the euil only but the euil woman tormeÌ„teth both the good and the euyl Concluding therfore this matter I say also and affirme that betwixt the busband and the wife which are wel maryed is the true and very loue and they only and no others may be called perfite and perpetuall frendes The other parentes and frendes if they do loue and praise vs in our presence they hate vs and dispise vs in our absence Yf they giue vs faire wordes they beare vs euill hartes finally they loue vs in our prosperitye and forsake vs in our aduersity but it is not so amongest the noble and vertuous maried personnes For they loue both within and without the house in prosperity and in aduersitie in pouertie and in riches in absence and in presence seing them selues mery and perceiuing them selues sad and if they do it not trulye they ought to doo it for when the husband is troubled in his foote the wyfe ought to be greued at her hart The fourth commodity of mariage is that the men and women maryed haue more aucthority and grauity then the others The lawes whych were made in old time in the fauour of mariage were many and diuerse For Chapharoneus in the lawes that he gaue to the Egiptians commaunded and ordeyned vpon greuous paynes that the man that was not maried should not haue any office of gouernment in the common wealth And he sayd furder that he that hath not learned to gouerne his house can euil gouerne a commoÌ„ wealth Accordyng to the lawes that he gaue to the Athenians he perswaded al those of the comon wealth to marie themselues voluntarily but to the heddes and captaines which gouerne the affaires of warre he commaunded to marye of necessity sayeng that to men which are lecherous God seldome giueth victories Licurgus the renowmed gouernour and geuer of the lawes of the Lacedemonians commaunded that al captaines of the armyes and the priestes of the Temples should be maried sayeng that the sacrifyces of maried men were more acceptable to the gods then those of any other As Plynie sayth in an epistle that he sent to Falconius his frende rebuking him for that he was not maried where he declareth that the Romaynes in old time had a law that the dictatoure and the Pretor the Censour and the Questor and al the knightes should of necessity be maried for the man that hath not a wife and children legittymate in his house cannot haue nor hold greate aucthority in the common wealth Plutarche in the booke that he made of the prayse of mariage sayth that the priestes of the Romaynes dyd not agre to them that were vnmaried to come and sytte downe in the Temples so that the yong maydens prayed without at the church dore and the yonge men prayed on their knees in the temple only the maried men were permitted to sitte or stande Plynie in an epistle that he wrote to Fabatus hys father in law sayth that the Emperour Augustus had a custome that he neuer suffered any yonge man in his presence to sitte nor permitted any man maried to tel his tale on foote Plutarche in the booke that he made in the prayse of women sayth that since the realme of Corinthe was peopled more with Bachelours then with maried men they ordeyned amongest theym that the man or woman that had not bene maried and also that had not kept chyldren and house if they lyued after a certaine age after their death shoulde not be buried ¶ The aucthoure folowing his purpose declareth that by meanes of maryage many mortal enemyes haue bene made good and parfite frendes Cap. iii. BY the sundry examples that we haue declared and by al that whych remayneth to declare a man may know wel enoughe of what excellency matrimony is not only for the charge of conscience but also for the thinges touching honour for to say the truth the men that in the common wealth are maried giue smal occasion to be sclaundered haue more cause to be honored We cannot denay but that matrimony is troublesome chargeable to them that be maried for two causes The one is in bringing vp their children and the other in suffering the importunityes of their mothers Yet in fiâ—e we caÌ„not deny but that the good vertuous wife is she that setteth a stay in the house and kepeth her husband in estimacion in the common wealth for in the publike affaires they giue more faith and credit vnto those that are charged with children then vnto others that are loden with yeres The fifth commodity that ensueth matrimony is the peace and reconciliacions that are made betwene the enemyes by meanes of mariage MeÌ„ in this age are so couetous so importune and malicious that there are very few but haue enemyes wherby groweth contencion and debate for by our weaknes we fall dayly into a thousande occasions of enimities and scarcely we can find one to bring vs againe into frendship CoÌ„sidering what men desire what thinges they procure and wherunto they aspire I meruaile not that they haue so few frendes but I much muse that they haue no moe enemyes For in thinges of weight they marke not who haue bene their frendes they consider not they are their neighbours neyther they regard that they are christians but their conscience layd a part and honesty set a side euery man seketh for himselfe and his owne affaires though it be to the preiudice of all his neighbours What frendship can ther be amongest proud men since the one wil go before and the other disdayneth to come behind What frendship can ther be amongest enuyous men â–ª since the one purchasseth and the other possesseth what loue can there be betwene two couetous men since the one dare not spend and the other is neuer satisfyed to hourd and heape vp For al that we can reade se go and trauaile and for al that we may do we shall neuer se nor here tell of men that haue lacked enemyes for eyther they be vycious or vertuous Yf they be euil and vycious they are alwayes hated of the good and if they be good and vertuous they are continually persecuted of the euill Many of the auncient philosophers spent a great part of their time lost much of their goodes to serche for remedies and meanes to reconcile them that were at debate contencion to make them by gentlenes good frends and louers Some said that it was good and profitable to forget the enimities for a time for many things
and the house wherein she dwelleth euell combred For suche one doeth importune the lorde trobleth the ladye putteth in hazard the childe and aboue all is not contented with her selfe Finallye fathers for geuynge to much libertie to their nources oftetimes are the cause of many practises which they do wherwith in the end they are greued with the death of their children which foloweth Amongest all these which I haue red I saye that of the auncient Romaine princes of so good a father as Drusius Ge manicus was neuer came so wycked a sonne as Caligula was beyng the fourth Emperour of Rome for the historiographers were not satisfyed to enryche and prayse the excellencies of hys father neither ceased they to blame and reprehende the infamyes of his sonne And they say that hys naughtines proceadeth not of the mother which bare hym but of the nource which gaue hym sucke For oftimes it chaunceth that the tree is grene and good when it is planted and afterwardes it becommeth drye and wythered only for beyng caryed into another place Dion the greke in the second boke of Cesars sayeth that a cursed woman of Campania called Pressilla nouryshed and gaue sucke vnto thys wycked childe She had agaynst al nature of women her breastes as heary as the berdes of men and besides that in runnyng a horse handelyng her staffe shoting in the Crosbowe fewe yong men in rome were to be compared vnto her It chaunced on a time that as she was geuyng sucke to Caligula for that she was angry she tore in peces a yong child with the bludde there of annoynted her breastes and so she made Caligula the yong childe to sucke together both blud and milke The sayed Dion in hys booke of the lyfe of this Emperour Caligula sayeth that the women of Campania whereof the sayed Prescilla was had this custome that when they would geue their teat to the childe firste they dyd anoynte the nipple with the bludde of a hedge hogge to the end their children myght be more fyerce and cruell And so was this Caligula for he was not contented to kyll a man onely but also he sucked the bludde that remayned on his swerde and lyked it of with his tong The excellent Poet Homer meanyng to speake playnely of the crueltyes of Pirrus sayed in his Odisse of him suche wordes Pirrus was borne in Grece nourished in Archadye and brought vp with tigers milke whiche is a cruel beast As if more plainelye he had sayed Pirrus for beyng borne in Grece was Sage for that he was brought vp in Archadie he was strong and couragyous and for to haue sucked Tigars milke he was veray proude and câ—uell Hereof maye be gathered that the great Gretian Pirrus for wantinge of good milke was ouercome with euell condicions The selfe same historian Dion sayeth in the lyfe of Tiberius that he was a great dronckarde And the cause herof was that the nource dyd not onelye drynke wyne but also she weined the child with soppes dypped in wyne And wythout doubte the cursed woman had done lesse euill if in the steade of milke she had geueÌ„ the child poison wythout teachinge it to drinke wine wherfore afterwardes he lost his renowme For truly the Romayne Empire had lost lytell if Tiberius had died beyng a child and it had wonne muche if he had neauer knowen what drinkyng of wyne had mente I haue declared all that whyche before is mencioned to thentente that Princesses and great Ladyes myghte be aduertised that sinse in not nouryshyng their children they shewe them selues crewel yet at the least in prouidyng for them good nourses they should shew them selues pitifull For the children oftetymes folow more the condicion of the milke which they sucke then the condicion of their mothers whyche broughte them forth or of thâ—ir fathers whych begot them Therfore they oughte to vse much circumspectioÌ„ herin for in them consisteth the fame of the wyues the honoure of the husbande and the wealth of the children Of the disputations before Alexander the great concernyng the time of the suckyng of babes Chap. xxii QVintus Curtius sayeth that after the great Alexander whych was the last kyng of the Macedonians and first Emperour of the grekes hadde ouercome kynge Darius and that he sawe hym selfe onely lorde of all Asia he went to rest in babylon for among menne of warre there was a custome that after they had ben long in the warres euery on should retire to his owne house King Philip whych was father of kyng Alexander always councelled his sonne that he should lead with him to the warres valiaunt captaines to conquere the world and that out of his realmes and dominioÌ„s he should take chose the wysest men and best experimented to gouerne the empire He had reason in such wyse to councell hys sonne for by the councell of Sages that is kept and mainteined whych by the strengthe of valiaunt men is gotten and wonne Alexander the great therefore beyng in Babilon after he had conquered all the countrye since all the citye was vitious and hys armye so long without warres some of his owne men began to robbe one another others to playe their owne some to force women and others to make banquettes and feastes and when some were droncke others raysed quarels striffes and dyscentions so that a man could not tell whether was greater the ruste in their armours or the corruptions in their customes For the property of mans malice is that when the gate is open to idlenes infynite vyces enter into the house Alexander the great seing the dyssolution which was in his armye and the losse which myght ensewe hereof vnto his great empire commaunded streightly that they should make a shew and iuste thoroughe Babilon to the end that the men of warre should excersise their forces thereby And as Aristotle sayethe in the booke of the questions of Babylon the turney was so muche vsed amongest them that sometimes they caryed awaye more dead and wounded men then of a bloudy battaile of the enemy Speaking accordyng to the law of the gentiles whiche loked not glorie for their vertues nor feared hell to dye at the torney the commendemant of Alexander was veray iuste for that doyng as he dyd to the armye he defaced the vyce whych dyd wast it and for him selfe he got perpetuall memorye and also it was cause of muche suretye in the common weale This good Prince not contented to excersise his armye so but ordeined that daily in his presence the philosophers should dispute and the question wherin they shold dyspute Alexander him selfe would propounde â–ª wherof folowed that the great Alexander was made certayne of that wherin he doubted and so by his wisedom all men exercysed their craftes and wittes For in this tyme of idlenes the bokes wer no lesse marred with dust because they were not opened then the weapons were with rust which were not occupied There is a booke of Aristotle intituled the
as he sayd that the tongue is moued by the mocions of the soule that he whiche had no tongue had no soule And he which hath no soule is but a brute beast and he that is a beast deserueth to serue in the fields among brute beasts It is a good thing not to be domme as bruyte beastes are and it is a greater thing to speake as the reasonable men do but it is muche more worthye to speake wel as the eloquent philosophers do For otherwise if he which speaketh doth not wey the sentences more then the wordes ofte tymes the popingayes shal content them more which are in the cage then the men which do read in scooles Iosephus in the booke De bello Iudaico saith that king Herode not onely with his personne and goodes but also with all his frendes and parentes folowed and gaue ayde to Marcus Anthonius and to his louer Cleopatra howbeit in the end Octauian had the vyctorie For the man which for the loue of a woman doth enterprise conquestes it is impossible that eyther he loose not his lyfe or els that he lyue not in infamy Herode seing that Marcus Anthonius was dead determyned to go towardes the Emperour Octauian at whose feete he layd his crowne and made a notable oration wherein he spake so pleasaunt wordes and so hyghe sentences that the Emperour Octauian did not only pardon him for that he was so cruell an enemye but also he confirmed him againe into his Realme and toke him for his deare and special frend For among the good men and noble hartes many euil workes are amended by a few good words If Blundus in the booke intituled Roma triumphante do not deceiue me Pirrus the great king of the Epirotes was stout and hardy valiaunt in armes liberal in benefites pacient in aduersityes and aboue al renowmed to be very swete in wordes and sage in his aunswers They sayd that this Pirrus was so eloquent that the man with whom once he had spoken remayned so much his that from that time foreward in his absence he toke his part and declared his life and state in presence The aboue named Blundus saied and Titus Liuius declareth the same that as the Romaynes were of al things prouided seing that king Pirrus was so eloquent they prouided in the senate that no Romaine Embassadour shold speake vnto him but by a third person for otherwise he would haue perswaded them through his sweate woordes that they shoulde haue retourned againe to Rome as his procurers Soliciters Albeit Marcus Tullius Cicero was Senatour in the Senate consul in the Empire rich amongest the rich and hardy amongest men of warre yet truly none of these qualyties caused him eternal memorie but only his excellent eloquēce This Tullius was so estemed in Rome for the eloquence of his tongue only that oft times they hard hym talke in the Senate iii. houres togethers without any man speakinge one word And let not this be lytle estemed nor lightly passed ouer for worldlye malyce is of such condicion that some man may more easely speake 4. howers then another man shal haue pacience to heare him one minute Anthonius Sabellicus declareth that in the time of Amilcares the Affricans a Philosopher named Afronio florished in great Carthage who being of the yeres of 81. dyed in the first yeare of the warres of Punica They demaunded this Phylosopher what it was that he knew he aunswered He knew nothing but to speake wel They demaunded him againe what he learned he aunswered He did learne nothinge but to speake wel Another time they demaunded him what he taught he aunswered He taught nothing but to speake wel Me thinketh that this good phylosopher in 80. yeres and one said that he learned nothing but to speake wel he knew nothing but to speake wel that he taught nothing but to speake wel And truly he had reasō for the thing which most adorneth mans life is the sweate pleasaunte tongue to speake wel What is it to see ii men in one councel the one talking to the other the one of them hath an euyll grace in propounding and thother excellent in speaking Of such there are some that in hearing theym talke .iii. houres we would neither be trobled nor weryed and of the contrarie part there are others so tedyous and rude in their speache that as sone as men perceiue they beginne to speake they auoyde the place And therfore in mine opinyon ther is no greater trouble thenne to herken one quarter of an houre a rude man to speake and to be contrarye ther is no greater pleasure thenne to heare a dyscreate man though it were a whole weke The deuyne Plato in the Booke of Lawes sayd that there is nothynge whereby a manne is knowen more thenne by the woordes he speaketh for of the woordes whyche we heare hym speake we iudge his intention eyther to be good or euil Laertius in the lyfe of the Phylosophers sayeth that a yong child borne at Athens was brought vnto Socrates the great phylosopher being in Athens to the end he shold receiue him into his company teach him in his scoole The yong chyld was straunge and shamefaste and durst not speake before his maister wherfore the philosopher Socrates said vnto him speake frend if thou wilt that I know the. This sentence of Socrates was very profound and I pray him that shal reade this wryting to pause a while therat For Socrates wil not that a man be knowen by the gesture he hath but by the good or euyl wordes which he speaketh Though eloquence and speaking wel to euery man is a cause of augmenting their honour and no dimynissher of their goodes yet withoute comparison it shineth muche more and is most necessarie in the pallaces of Prynces and great Lordes For men which haue common offices ought of necessity harken to his naturall contrymen also to speake with straungers Speking therfore more plainly I say that the Prince ought not to trauaile only to haue eloquence for the honour of his person but also it behoueth him for the comon wealth For as the prince is but one and is serued of all so it is vnpossible that he haue so much as wil satisfye and content them al. And therfore it is necessarie that he requyte some mith money that he content others with good wordes For the noble hart loueth better a gentle worde then a reward or gift with the tongue of a rude man Plato Liuius Herodotus Vulpicius Eutropius Diorus Plynie and many other innumerable auncient historyographers do not cease to prayse the eloquence of greeke princes and latynes in their workes O how blessed were those tymes when ther were sage princes and discrete lords truly they haue reason to exalt them For many haue obteyned and wonne the royal crounes and septures of the Empire not so much for the great battailes they haue conquered nor for the highe bloud and generacion from whence
say the tongue of our mother to the end we shold take it of the mother which bringeth vs forth of the nource whiche giueth vs sucke And in this case we haue lesse neade of the mother then of the nourse For the children before they knowe their mothers which brought them into the world do cal the nourse mother which gaue them sucke Plutarche in the second booke of the regiment of princes saith that one of the greatest thinges the Romaynes had in their comon weale was that of al the languages maners which they spake throughout the hole earth they had Collegies and Scholes in Rome so that were he neuer so Barbarous that entred into Rome immedyatly he founde that vnderstoode him The Romaynes vsed that craft and subtiltie to the end that when Rome sent Embassages into straunge countries or that some straunge countries came to Rome they would that the interpretours and brokers should be of theyr owne nacion and not of a straunge tongue or countrey And the Romaynes truly had reasonne for the affaires of greate importaunce are oftentymes craftely compassed by a straunge tongue A manne wil maruaile greately to reade or heare this that I speake whyche is that the women whyche nourishe the children of Prynces be eloquente And truly he that at this doth meruaile hath sene lytle and read lesse For I cannot tel which was greater the glory that the auncientes had to enioy so excellent women or the infamy of them that are present to suffer dishonest harlottes I wil not deny when I drew neere this matter that my spirite weare not in great perplexitie First to se in this my wrytinge of what women my penne shoulde write that is to wete the dissolute vyces of women which I haue sene or els the prowesses and vertues of women wherof I haue reade Finally I am determined to entreate of our graine and corne and to leaue the rotten straw on the earth as without profite For the tongue which is noble ought to publyshe the goodnes of the good and honest women to the end that al know it for the contrary the frailenes of the wicked ought to be dissembled and kept secret to the end that no man folow it Men which are sage and noble treating of women are bounde to serue them to vysite them to preserue them to defend them but in no wise they haue licence to sclaunder them For the man which speaketh of the fraylenes of women is like vnto him that taketh a sword to kil a flye Therfore touching the matter Princesses and great Ladyes ought not to cease to teache their yong children al that they can sonnes or doughters And they oughte not to deceiue them selues saying that forasmuch as their doughters are women they are vnable to learne sciences For it is not a general rule that al mē children are of cleane vnderstanding nor that al the doughters are of rude spirite and witte For if they and the others did learne togethers I thinke there would be as many wise women as there are foolishe men Thoughe the world in times past did enioy excellent women ther was neuer any nacion had such as the Grekes had For though the Romaynes were glorious in weapons the Grekes were of immortal memorie of letters I wil not denay that in the common wealth of Rome ther hath not bene nourished taught manye women of greate scyence but that the difference of the one and the others was that the Grecian women were learned in Philosophy and the Romaine women in Rethoricke and Poetrie And hereof came that in Athens they esteamed to know howe to teache well and in Rome they vaunted how to speake wel Euphronius in the thirde booke of the Romaine gestes sayth that in the third yere of the Consulshipe of Lelius Sylla by chaunce a Greke Embassadour and an embassadour of Rome were at words in the Senate of the Rhodians and the Greke Embassadour sayd to the Romaine Embassadour It is true that amongest ye other Romaynes ye are aduenturous in armes but for al that ye are vnable in scyences For truly the women of Grece know more in letters then the men of Rome in weapons As sone as the Senate of Rome vnderstode these words immediatlye hereupon grew the cruel warres betwene Rome and Carthage about the posession of Scicil. And no man ought hereat to meruaile for in the end we se moe warres aryse by iniurious wordes then for to recouer the good that is lost The Romaynes and the Grecians therfore being ready the one to defye the other the Rhodians came in the myddest and kept them from such debate and in the end appointed them in this sort That is to wete that as this iniurye should by weapons haue bene determined they ordeyned that by the disputacions of women it shoulde be argued And truly the Romaines were counsayled well for it was greater shame to the Greekes to be ouercome with the tongues of women then with the swordes of men The case therof was such that by appointmente assembled at Rhodes tenne Romaine women and tenne Greke women All women very wel learned the which in their chayres reade certaine lessons euery one after other and afterwardes the one disputed againste the other of sundry and diuers maters And finally there was betwene theym great difference for the Grekes spake very high thinges not so profounde but with an excellent style We ought not to marueile that such giftes were in those women For we dayly se it by experience that profound science and high eloquence seldome meeteth in one personage The Grekes were verye wel pleased to heare the Romaine women the Romaines remained astonied to heare the Grekes And vpon this occasion the Rhodians iudged in this sort that euery one of them should be crowned with a crowne of Laurel as vanquisshers And they iudged that in graue sentences the Grecians had the best and in eloquent speache the Romaines had the victorie As the aboue named Euphronius saythe these disputacions being ended the Romaine women returned to Rome and the Greke women to Grece wher they were receyued with such triumphe and glorie as if they had wonne a battaile The senate of the Rhodians for the memorye of those women in the place of the disputacions caused to be set vp twenty mighty pyllers in euery one of the which were the names of the women Which was so sumptuous a building that in Rhodes there were none vnto it saue only the great Collyseo Those pillers stoode vntil the time of Heliogabalus Emperour who was so euyll that he inuented new vyces and destroyed the auncient memories The writers which wrote in that time declare yet an other thing wherin the women of Grece were differente from the women of Rome That is to wete that the Greke women were found more fayrer then the Romaine women but the Romaines had a better grace and more riche in apparel then the Grekes They sayd also that the Grekes
and that whereby he should profyte as I thynke is that he should eate Beares Lyons in his lyfe as now he shal be eatē of wormes after his death All the Poets that inuented fictions all the Oratours which made Orations al the Philosophers which wrote bookes al the sages which left vs their doctrynes and all the Princes which instituted lawes ment nothing els but to perswade vs to think how briefe vnprofitable this lyfe ys howe necessary a thing iustice is therein For the filth corrupcion which the body hath without the soule the selfe same hath the common welth wythout iustice We cannot deny but that the Romaynes haue bene proude enuyous aduouterers shamelesse ambicious but yet with all these faultes they haue bene great obseruers of iustice So that if god gaue the so many tryumphes beyng loden and enuironned with so manye vices it was not for the vertues they had but for the great iustice which they did administer Plinie in hys second booke saieth that Democritus affirmed there were two gods which gouerned the vniuersall worlde that is to wete Rewarde and Punishement Whereby we may gather that nothing is more necessary then true and right iustice For the one rewardeth the good the other leaueth not vnpunished the euill Saint Austyne in the fyrst booke De ciuitare dei sayeth these words Iustyce taken awaye what are realmes but dennes of theues truely he had great reason For if there were no whips for vacabondes gags for blasphemers fynes for periury fyre for heretiques sworde for murderers galouse for theues nor prison for rebelles we may boldly affirme that there woulde not be so manye beastes on the mountaines as there woulde be theues in the cōmon wealth In many thinges or in the greatest parte of the common welth we see that bread wyne corne fyshe woll and other thinges necessary for the lyfe of the people wanteth but we neuer sawe but malicious menne in euerye place dyd abounde Therefore I sweare vnto you that it were a good bargayne to chaunge all the wycked menne in the common wealth for one onlye poore sheepe in the sylde In the comon wealth we see naught els but whippyng dayly beheddyng slayinge drownyng and hanginge but notwithstandyng this the wicked whiche remayne styll are so many in nomber that if all those shoulde be hanged that deserue it by iustyce a man could not fynd hangmen sufficient nor gallowses to hange them vppon Admitte according to the varietie of realmes prouinces that dyuers lawes and customes haue bene instituted therein Yet for a truth there was neuer nor neuer shal be found any nation or common wealthe in the worlde so barbarous but hath bene founded of iustice For to affirme that menne can bee preserued wythout iustice is as muche as to saye the fishe can liue wythout water Howe is it possible that a common wealth may liue without iustice sith without her cannot bee ruled one onelye personae Plinie in an epistle saieth that he him selfe hauinge the charge of a prouince in Affrike demaunded an olde man and in gouernement experte what he myght doe to administer iustice well the aged manne aunswered Doe iustice of thy selfe yf thou wilt be a minister thereof For the good iudge wyth the ryght yarde of hys owne lyfe ought to measure the whole state of the common wealth And he sayde further if thou wylt be right wyth menne and clean before god beware of presumpcion in thyne offyce For the proude and presumptuous iudges often tymes doe contrary in their wordes and also exceade in theire deedes Plinie also saieth that he profited more with the counsayle thys olde man gaue hym then wyth all that euer he had reade in his bookes O to howe muche is he bounde that hath taken vppon him to administer iustice For if such one be an vpright man hee accomplisheth that whereunto he is bounde but if suche one of hym selfe bee vniuste iustlye of god he ought to bee punished and lykewyse of menne to bee accused When prynces commaund their seruaunts or subiectes any thing that they cannot accomplish them in such sorte as they had charge to do then he ought to haue them excused those excepted whiche gouerne realmes prouinces For no man leaueth to administer iustice but for want of knowledge or experience or els through aboundaunce of affection or malice If a captaine lose a battaile he may excuse hym self saying his men were fled when they shoulde haue assaulted their enemies A poast may excuse hi self for that the waters we◠so high A hunter may say the beast is escaped another way others such like but a gouernour of a common wealth what excuse can he haue that he dothe not iustice Conscience ought to burden hym also he ought to be ashamed to take vpon him the charge of any thing if he doute to bring it to effecte for the shamefast faces haute courages either ought to put that in execution which they take vpon them or els they ought to shew a lawful cause why it tooke no effect Let vs know first what iustice is then we shall knowe what is mete for the administracion therof The office of a good iudge is to defend the common welth to help the innocent to ayde the simple to correcte the offender to honour the vertuous to help the orphanes to do forthe poore to bridel the ambicious finallye by iustice he ought to geue eche one his owne to dispossesse those which hold any thing wrongfully of others When a prince commaundeth any man to take the charge of iustice such one doth not seeke it of him selfe if perchaunce afterwardes he did not in all points vprightly in the administracion therof he might haue some excuse saying that though he hath accepted it it was not with minde because he woulde erre but because with good will he would obey What shall we saye of manye which without shame without knowlege without experience without conscience do procure the office of iustice O if princes knew what they geue whē they geue the charge to any to gouerne the common wealth I sweare vnto you that they were better to giue them goods to fynd them for .20 yeres then for to trust them wyth the charge of iustice .20 daies What a thing is it to see some men shamelesse dishonest great talkers gluttons ambitious couetous the whiche wythout anye reasonable cause aucthority or knowledge demaunde of prynces an office of iustice as if by iustice they dyd demaund their own Would to god the geuer would haue an eye to those whych in this wyse do demaunde But what shal we say of those that doe sollicite thē procure thē importune them beseche them more then that euen as wythout shame they do demaund it so wythout conscience lykewyse they buy it There remayneth in this case more as yet that is that if those cursed men do not attayne to that whych they demaunde
like losse to that where a man loseth hym whom entierlye he loueth and of whom also he is derelye beloued The fatal destenies oughte to content them selues to haue annoyed mye house with so manye mysfortunes But after all this and aboue all this theye haue lefte me a wicked nephewe whiche shall bee myne heire and theye haue lefte vnto mee that all mye life I shall lament O Cato for that thou owest to the common wealthe I doe desire thee and by the immortall goddes I doe coniure thee that since thou arte a vertuous Romaine and censor of the people that thou prouyde for one of these two thinges that is to wete that this mye Nephewe doe serue mee or els ordeine that I dye forthewith For it is a greate crueltye that those doe pursue me whiche are aliue since it is nowe 40. yeares that I ceased not to bewaile the deade Cato beinge well enfourmed of that the olde man had tolde him and since he founde al that true whiche he spake he called vnto his presence the yonge Nephew and sayde vnto him these wordes If thou were suche a childe as thou oughtest to bee thou shouldest excuse mee of payne and thy selfe of trauaile But since it is not so I praye thee take that pacientlye that I shall commaunde thee and be thou assured that I will not commaund thee any thing that shal bee againste iustice For the vicious yonglinges as thou art ought to be more ashamed of the youthefullnes theye haue commytted then for the punishement whiche is geeuen vnto them Firste I commaunde thow bee whipte beecause thou arte dysobedyent and troublesome to thy graundefather Secondlye I commaunde that thou bee banished the limittes of Rome because thou arte a vicious yonge man Thyrdly I commaund that of all the goodes thou hast enherited thou shalt be disenherited because thou doest not obey thy graundfather And the cause why I geue suche seuere sentence is to the end that from heÌ„sforthe the yong shal not disobey the aged and also that those which haue enheryted great treasours shall not think that men shall permit them to bee more vicious then others Phalaris the tiraunt wryting to a frend of his which was very aged said these wordes the which rather semed spoken of a Philosopher then of a tirant I haue meruailed at thee am offeÌ„ded with the my friend Vetto to know as I do that in yeares thou arte verye aged and in workes verye yonge and also it greeueth mee that thou hast lost the credite of knoweledge in the schooles It greeueth mee more that through thee the priuilege shoold be lost which the old men haue accustomed to haue in Grece that is to wete that all the theeues all the periured and all the murderers were more sure when by white heares theye semed to be olde when they reteyred to the aulters of the temples O what goodnesse O what wisedome what valyauntnes and what innocencye oughte the aged men to haue in the auncient tyme since in Rome theye honoured them as goddes and in Grece theye priuileged those white heares as the temples Plinie in an epistle hee wrote to Fabatus sayeth that Pirrus king of the Epirotes demaunded a philosopher which was the best cytye of the worlde who aunswered The best cytye of the worlde is Molerda a place of three hundreth fyers in Achaia beecause all the walles are of blacke stones and all those whiche gouerne it haue hoarye heades And further hee sayde Woe bee vnto thee Rome Woe bee vnto thee Carthage woe bee vnto thee Numancia woe bee vnto thee Egypte and woe bee vnto thee Athens fyue cytyes whiche count them selues for the beste of the worlde whereof I am of a contrarye oppynion For theye auaunte them selues to haue whyte walles and are not ashamed to haue yonge Senatoures Thys phylosopher sayde verye well and I thynke noe manne wyll saye lesse then I haue sayde Of thys woorde Senex is deryued the name of a Senatoure for so were the gouernoures of Rome named because the fyrste Kynge that was Romulus chosé a hundred aged men to gouerne the common wealth and commaunded that all the other Romayne youthe shoold employe them selues to the warres Since wee haue spoken of the honour whyche in the olde tyme was geeuen to the auncient men it is reason wee knowe now from what yeare they counted men aged to the ende they shoolde bee honoured as aged men For the makers of lawes when they hadde established the honours whych ought to bee done to the aged dydde aswell ordeyne from what daye and yeare theye shoolde beeginne Dyuers auncyent Philosophers dyd put syx ages from the tyme of the byrthe of man till the houre of deathe That is to wete chyldehood which lasteth till seuen yeares Infancy whiche endureth vntill seuentene yeares Youth which continueth till thirty yeares Mannes estate which remayneth till fyftye and fyue yeares Age whyche endureth till three score and eyghtene yeares Croked age which remaineth till death And so after man had passed fiue and fyftye yeares they called hym aged Aulus Gelius in his tenth booke in the xxvii Chapter saieth that Tullius Hostillius who was kynge of the Romaines determined to count all the old and yonge whiche were amongest the people and also to know whych shoold bee called infaunts whych yong and whych olde And there was noe lytle dyfference amongest the Romayne Phylosophers and in the end it was decreed by the kyng and the Senate that men tyll seuenteene yeares shoold bee called infaunts and tyll syx and forty shoold bee called yong and from syx and forty vpwardes they shoold bee called olde If wee wyl obserue the lawe of the Romaynes wee know from what tyme wee are bound to call and honor the aged men But addyng hereunto it is reason that the olde men know to what prowesses and vertues they are bound to the ende that wyth reason and not wyth faynyng they bee serued For speakyng the trueth yf wee compare duty to duty they old men are more bound to vertue then the yong to seruice Wee can not denay but that all states of natyons great small yong and olde are bound to bee vertuous but in this case the one is more to bee blamed then the other For oftentimes if the yong do offend it is for that hee wanteth experience but if the olde man offend it is for the abundaunce of mallice Seneca in an Epystle sayde these woordes I let thee weete my friend Lucillus that I am very much offended and I do complayne not of any friend or foe but of my selfe and â—â—â—â—e other And the reason why I thynk thus is that I see my selfe olde in yeares and yong in vices so that lytle is that wherein I haue serued the gods much lesse is that I haue profyted meÌ„ And Seneca saith further he whiche praysethe hym selfe moste to be aged and that woulde be honoured for beinge aged oughte to be temperate in eatinge honest in apparayle
the prince all their goods but also they must them selues in parson hazard their lyues If they tell vs that that they keepe is to geeue and dispose for their soules at their dying day I say it is not only want of wisdome but extream folly For at the hour of death princes ought more to reioyce for that they haue geeuen then for that at that time hee geeueth O how princes and great lords are euyll counsailed since they suffer them selues to bee slaundered for beeing couetous only to heap a lyttle cursed treasure For experience teacheth vs no man can bee couetous of goods but needs hee must bee prodigal of honor and abandon liberty Plutarche in the booke which hee made of the fortune of Alexander sayth that Alexander the great had a priuat seruaunt called Perdyca the which seeyng that Alexander liberally gaue all that which by great trauel hee attayned on a day hee said vnto him Tell mee most noble prince sithens thou geeuest all that thou hast to others what wilt thou haue for thy self Alexander aunswered The glory remaineth vnto mee of that I haue wonne gotten the hope of that which I wil geeue winne And further he said vnto him I wil tel thee true Perdyca If I knew that men thought that all that which I take were for couetousnes I swere vnto thee by the god Mars that I woold not beat down one corner in a town and to winne all the world I woold not go one days iourney My intention is to take the glory to my self and to deuyde the goods amongst others These woords so high were woorthy of a valyant and vertuous prince as of Alexander which spake thē If that which I haue read in books do not begyle mee that which with these eies I haue seene to become rych it is necessary that a man geeue for the princes and great lords which naturally are geeuen to bee liberall are alwaies fortunat to haue It chaunceth oft tymes that some man geeuing a little is counted liberall an other geeuing much is counted a nigard The which proceedeth of this that they know not that liberality nigardnes consisteth not in geeuing much or lytle but to know well how to geeue For the rewards and recompences which out of tyme are distributed do nother profit them which receiue them neither agree to him which geeueth them A couetous man geeueth more at one tyme then a noble and free hart doth in .20 thus saieth the common prouerb it is good comming to a niggards feast The difference beetwene the liberality of the one and the mysery of thother is that the noble and vertuous doth geeue that hee geeueth to many but the nigard geeueth that hee geeueth to one onely Of the which vnaduisement princes ought greatly to beware For if in such case one man alone shoold bee found which woold commēd his liberality there are ten thousand which woold condemne his couetousnes It happeneth oft times to princes and great lords that in deed they are free to recompence but in geeuing they are very vnfortunat And the cause is that they geeue it not to vertuous persons and well cōdicioned but to those which are vnthankfull and do not acknowledge the benefit receyued So that in geeuing to some they haue not made them their frends and in not geeuing to others they haue made them their enemies It suffyseth not to princes great lords to haue great desire to geeue but to know when how or where to whom they ought to geeue For if they bee accused otherwise to heap vp treasures they ought also to bee condemned for that they do geeue When a man hath lost all that hee hath in play in whoors in bankets and other semblable vyces it is but reason they bee ashamed but when they haue spent it like noble stout and liberal men they ought not to bee discontented for the wise man ought to take no displesure for that hee loseth but for that hee euil spendeth and hee ought to take no pleasure for that hee geeueth but for that hee geeueth not well Dion the grecian in the lyfe of the Emperor Seuerus saith that one day in the feast of the God Ianus when hee had geeuen dyuers rewards and sundry gifts as well to his own seruaunts as to strangers and that hee was greatly commended of all the Romains hee said vnto them Do you think now Romains that I am very glad for the gifts rewards and recompenses which I haue bestowed and that I am very glorious for the praises you haue geeuen mee by the god Mars I swere vnto ye and let the god Ianus bee so mercifull vnto vs all this yere that the pleasure I haue is not so great for the I haue geeuen as the grief is for that I haue no more to geeue ¶ The auctour foloweth his intencion and perswadeth gentlemen and those that professe armes not to abase them selues for gaines sake to take vpon them any vyle function or office Cap. xix PLutarche in his Apothemes declareth that king Ptolomeus the first was a prince of so good a nature and so gentle in conuersation that oft times hee went to supper to the houses of his familiar frinds and many nights hee remayned there to sleap And truly in this case hee shewed him self to bee welbeeloued of his For speaking according to the trueth a prynce on whose lyfe dependeth the hole state of the common wealth ought to credit few was the table and allso fewer in the bed Another thing this Ptolomeus did whych was when hee inuited his frends to dinner or supper or other straungers of soome hee desired to borow stooles of thothers napkins of others cups and so of other things for hee was a prodygall prince For all that his seruaunts in the morning had bought beefore the night folowing hee gaue it away One day al the nobles of his realm of Egipt assembled togethers and desired him very earnestly that hee woold be more moderat in geeuing for they said through his prodygality the hole realm was impouerished The king aunswered You others of Egipt are marueylously deceiued to think that the poore and needy prince is troubled In this case I dare say vnto you that the poore and needy prince ought to think him self happy for good princes ought more to seeke to enrich others then to heap vp treasures for them selues O happy is the common wealth whych deserueth to haue such a prince and happy is that tongue which coold pronounce such a sentence Certainly this prince to all princes gaue good example and counsel that is to weete that for thē it was more honor and also more profit to make others rich thē to bee rich them selues For if they haue much they shal want no crauers and if they haue lytle they shal neuer want seruaunts to serue them Suetonius Tranquillus in the booke of Cesars sayeth that Titus the Emperour one night after supper
and cold of the ayre that is whot and moyst of fyre that is dry and whot So that taking the world in this sort there is no reason why wee shoold complayn and lament of it since that without him wee cannot lyue corporally When the paynter of the world came into the world it is not to bee beeleeued that hee reproued the water which bare hym when hee went vppon it nor the ayre that ceased to blow in the sea nor the earth that trembled at his death nor the light which seased to lyght nor the stones which brake in sonder nor the fish whych suffred them selues to bee taken nor the trees which suffered them selues to bee drye nor the monuments that suffered them selues to bee opened For the creature knowledged in his creator omnipotency and the creator founded in the creature due obedience Oftentymes and of many parsons wee heere say o wofull world o miserable world o subtyl world o world vnstable and vnconstant And therfore it is reason wee know what the world is whereof the world is from whence this world is wherof this world is made and who is lord of thys world since in it all things are vnstable all things are miserable all disceitfull and all things are malicious which can not bee vnderstanded of this materiall world For in the fyre in the ayre in the earth and in the water in the lyght in the planets in the stones and in the trees there are no sorows there are no miseries there are no disceit nor yet any malyce The world wherein wee are born where wee lyue where wee dye differeth much from the world wherof wee doo complayn for the world agaynst whom wee fight suffreth vs not to bee in quiet one hour in the day To declare therfore my entencion this wicked world is no other thing but the euill lyfe of the worldlings where the earth is the desire the fire the couetice the water the inconstancy the ayre the folly the stones are the pride the flowers of the trees the thoughts the deepe sea the hart Fynally I say that the sonne of this world is the prosperity and the moone is the continuall chaunge The prince of this so euill a world is the deuill of whom Iesus Christ sayd The prince of this world shall now bee cast out and thys the redeemer of the world sayeth For hee called the worldlings and their worldly lyues the world For since they bee seruaunts of sinne of necessity they must bee subiects of the deuyll The pryde the auaryce the enuy the blasphemy the pleasures the lechery the neglygence the glottony the yre the malyce the vanity and the folly This is the world agaynst whych wee fight al our lyfe and where the good are princes of vyces and the vyces are lords of the vicious Let vs compare the trauels which wee suffer of the elements wyth those whych wee endure of the vyces and wee shall see that lyttle is the perill wee haue on the sea and the land in respect of that which encreaseth of our euyll lyfe Is not hee in more daunger that falleth through malyce into pryde then hee which by chaunce falleth from a high rock Is not hee who wyth enuy is persecuted in more daunger than hee that with a stone is wounded Are not they in more perill that liue among vicious men than others that liue among bruit and cruell beasts Doo not those which are tormented with the fire of couetousnes suffer greater daunger then those which lyue vnder the mount Ethna Fynally I say that they bee in greater perils whych with hygh immaginations are blynded then the trees which with the importunat wyndes are shaken And afterwards this world is our cruell enemy it is a deceitfull frend it is that which always keepeth vs in trauell it is that which taketh from vs our rest it is that that robbeth vs of our treasor it is that which maketh him self to bee feared of the good that which is greatly beeloued of the euill It is that which of the goods of other is prodigall and of his own very miserable Hee is the inuenter of all vyces and the scourge of all vertues It is hee which entertaineth al his in flattery and fair speech This is hee which bringeth men to dissention that robbeth the renowm of those that bee dead and putteth to sack the good name of those that bee aliue Fynally I say that this cursed world is hee which to all ought to render accompt and of whom none dare ask accompt O vanity of vanity where all walk in vanity where all think vanity where all cleue to vanity where all seemeth vanity and yet this is lyttle to seeme vanity but that in dede it is vanity For as false witnes shoold hee bere that woold say that in this world ther is any thing assured healthfull and true as hee that woold say that in heauen there is any vnconstant variable or false thing Let therfore vayn princes see how vayn their thoughts bee and let vs desire a vayn prince to tell vs how hee hath gouerned him wyth the vanities of the world For if hee beeleeue not that whych my penne wryteth let him beeleeue that whych hys parson prooueth The woords written in the book of Ecclesiastes are such I Dauids sonne that swaies the kingly seat with hungry thurst haue throwen amid my brest A vayn desire to proue what pleasures great In flying life haue stable foot to rest To tast the sweet that might suffise my will with rayned course to shunne the deeper way whose streams of his delight shoold so distill as might content my restles though to stay For lo queene follies imps through vayn beelief So proudly shape their serch of tickle retch that though desert auailes the waue of grief to science toppe their claimming will doth stretch And so to draw some nice delighting end Of fansies toyl that feasted thus my thought I largely wayed my wasted bounds to bend to swelling realms as wisedoms dyall wrought I ryall courts haue reached from the soyl to serue lodge my huge attending trayn Ech pleasant house that might bee heapt with toy◠I reared vp to weeld my wanton rayn I causd to plant the long vnused vynes to smooth my tast with treasure of the grape I sipped haue the sweete in flaming wynes old rust of care by hidd delight to skape Fresh arbors I had closed to the skies A shrouded space to vse my fickle feete rich gardeins I had dasing still myne eyes A pleasant plot when dainty food was meet High shaking trees by art I stroue to sett to fraight desire with fruit of leeking tast VVhen broyling flame of sommers sunne did hett the blossomd bows his shooting beams did wast From rocky hills I forced to bee brought Cold siluer springs to bayne my fruitful ground Large thrown out ponds I labord to bee wrought where nūbers huge of swimming fish were found Great compast parkes I gloried long to plant
sorrow Thou demaundest to bee his hee hath geeuen thee his hand Thou demaūdest life hee hath geeuen thee death Therefore if it bee true that the world hath handled thee in this wise why doost thou weepe to return again to hys wicked house O fylthy world how farre art thou frō iust how farre ought they to bee from thee which desire to bee iust For naturally thou art a frend of nouelties enemy of vertues One of the lessons which the world readeth to his children is this that to bee true worldlings they shoold not bee very true The which experience plainly sheweth vs for the man which medleth much wyth the world leaueth always suspicion of hym that hee is not trew The world is an imbassadour of the euill a scourge of the good cheefest of vyces a tyraunt of the verteous a breaker of peace a frend of warre a sweete water of vices the gawle of the vertuous a defender of lyes an inuenter of nouelties a trauailer of the ignoraunt a hammer for the malicious a table of gluttons and a furnace of concupyscence fynally it is the peryll of Charibde where the harts doo perish and the daunger of Scilla where the thoughts doo wast Presuppose that these bee the condicions of the world The trouth is that if there bee any worldlyng who complaineth to bee euil content with the world shall hee therefore chaunge his stile Truely no and the reason is that if perchaunce one worldling shoold goe out of the house of the world there are ten thousand vanities at his gate I know not what wyse man will lyue in the world with such condicions since the vices wherewith wee doo reioyce our selues are very few in respect of the torments which wee suffer I say not that wee doo heare it by heare say and read them in bookes but wee see with our own eyes the one to consume and wast the goods others by mysfortune to fall and lose their credyt others to fall and lose their honor and others to lose their lyfe and all these myseries seene yet neuerthelesse euery man thynketh to bee free by priuiledge where there is none priuileged O my frend Torquatus of one thing I assure thee which is that the men whych are borne of women are so euill a generacion and so cruel is the world where in wee liue and fortune so empoysoned with whom wee frequent that wee cannot escape without beeing spurned with his feete bytten with his teeth torne wyth his nayles or impoysoned with hys venym Peraduenture thou mayst say vnto mee that thow hast seene some in Rome whych haue lyued long tyme fortune neuer beeyng against hym To this I aunswer thee that thow oughtst rather to haue pyty vppon hym then enuy for it is not for his profyt but for his great hynderaunce For the world is so malycious that when it seemeth to bee most our frend then it woorketh vs most dyspleasure The healthfull men dye rather of a short disease in few dayes then the dry and feeble men doo with a disease of many yeares By this comparison I mean that since man cannot escape nor liue without trauaile it is much better that by litle and lytle hee tasteth them then they enter all at one time into his house O how much ought the man to bee hated of the immortall gods who knoweth not what trauaile meaneth in this world For hee onely ought to feare fortune who knoweth not fortunes force Since the gods woold permyt and thy myshap hath beene such that thow hast found more daunger where thow thoughtst most surety as a man euill fortuned it is reason that wee apply vnto thee some new ware to the end thow lose not thy good renowme synce thow hast lost thy euill goods Tell mee I praye thee Torquatus why doost thow complayn as a man sick why cryest thow as a foole why syghest thow as a man in dyspayre and why doost thow weepe as a chyld Thow art come out of the way And thow complainest to haue lost thy way Thou sailest by the broiling seas thou wonderest that the waues doo assault thee Thou hast ascended the steepe and craggy mountayns and thow complaynest that thow art weary Thow walkest by the thornes and wylt not that thy gown bee torne Dydst thow thynk in the top of the hygh mountayn to lyue most sure By that I haue spoken I wyll ask what dyligent seruice thow hast doone to the world that thow wooldst the gods of heauen shoold recompence thee Wooldest thow of fortune a safe conduct shee beeing as shee is enemy of many nature beeyng not able to geeue it the which is mother of all O my frend Torquatus that whych the pytyfull nature cannot promyse thee dydst thow thynk that fortune which is the iust stepmother should geeue It is vnpossyble that the Sea should always promise vs suerty and the heauen clerenesse the sommer dews and the wynter frosts Mark well mark my frend Torquatus that all naturall thyngs are subiect to chaunge euery yeare but all the worldlyngs ought to endure to eclypse euery moment Synce the naturall goods cannot always bee in one mans custody beeing necessary it is iust that the goods of fortune perysh since they are superfluous Vniust shoold the Gods bee if that whych is to the domage of so many they had made perpetuall and that which is to the profyt of all they had made mortall I will no more reduce to thy memory the prosperyty which thow hast had in times past beefore that wee treat how fortune handleth thee at thys present The deceytfull fortune when at thy gate shee sold her marchaundyse knowyng that shee sold vnto thee and thow beeyng ignoraunt of that thow boughtst shee gaue thee frutefull ground and afterward made it vnto thee paynfull Shee hath geeuen thee sower for sweete and the sweete shee hath returned to the sower Shee hath geeuen thee the euill for the good and where that thow hast sold her good shee retourned vnto thee euyl Fynally shee hath beeguyled thee in the iust pryse thow not supposyng that thow hadst receiued any domage Wee can doo no lesse in this case but to haue compassyon vppon thee yet though they condempne malicyous fortune for sellyng they wyll note thee symple in buying For in the shop of fortune all marchaundyse are suspycious O vnhappy that wee are I say those whych meddle with the world for in his market they see nought but lyes and wee doo not trust but in the ouerthrows of our renowne whych are not payd but with the cost of our lyfe And the factours of that faire geeue vs nothyng by weight or measure for they are a sort of vacabounds and the woorst of all is knowyng that they ought to lose wyth fortune all seeke to buy at her shop Geeue thy self to the world loue the world much serue the world well follow the world well and feele the world well for in the end of the iourney the world
haue no other way to descend but to fall is much lyke to that of the famyliars of Princes And therefore my lord I woold wysh you woold procure you such faythfulll frends about you that they hauyng regard and care of your person shoold always hold you by the gown for fallyng And not such as after they had let you fall woold then lend you their hands to help you vp agayn 6 All bee it the thyngs of the sowl shoold bee preferred beefore all others of thys worldly lyfe yet neuerthelesse I wyll bee content so that you haue as great care and consideration of your conscience as you haue of your honor All whych I was willyng to tell you syr to the end you may better vnderstand that those that are in estimation with the prince though they may benefit by tyme in takyng their tyme yet tyme dooth neuer benefyt by them at all 7 You must euer doo good to your vttermost power and neuer doo dyspleasure to any though it lye in your power and that you haue iust cause For the tears of the poore that are iniuryed and the lamentable cryes and playnts of the oppressed may possibly one day ascend to the presence of the tribunall seat where god shall sitt in his maiesty demaundyng iustyce and vengeaunce agaynst you and also come to the ears of the prince to cause you to bee hated of hym for euer 8 Touching the fauor you will shew to any eyther in offices or other benefits you will beestow on any man take heede you always rather preferre honest and true Christians then your own neere kynsmen or frends For a man may lawfully make his frend partaker of hys goods but not of hys conscience 9 In your councels you geeue in any wise bee not to much affectioned in them neither scorne with those that contrary your oppinion Bee not proud and seuere to those you doo commaund neither doo any thing wythout good aduyce and consideration For al beeit in princes courts euery mā dooth admire and beehold the excellency and woorthynes of the person yet are those always that are most in fauor of the Prince more noted regarded and sooner accused then others 10 Yf you wyll not erre in the counseils you shall geeue nor fayl in those things you enterprise Imbrace those that tell you the truth and reiect and hate those whom you know to bee flatterers and dissemblers For you shoold rather desire to bee admonished of the thing present then counselled after the dammage receiued Although wee suppose assuredly all these things aboue written are not lykely to happen nor come euen so to passe as I haue spoken yet may yt please you syr to remember they are not therefore impossible For spitefull fortune permitteth oft tymes that the sayles which the lyghtnyng and boysterous tempests could not break and teare in peeces are afterwards vpō a soden euen in the sweete of the mornings sleepe eche man taking his rest leauing the seas beefore in quiet calme all to shyuered and torn a sunder Hee that meaneth to geeue another a blow allso the more hee draweth back hys arme with greater force hee striketh And euen so neyther more nor lesse saieth fortune with those on whom for a time shee smyleth For the lenger a mā remaineth in her loue and fauor the more cruel and bitter shee sheweth her self to him in the end And therefore I woold aduise euery wise and sage person that when fortune seemes best of all to fauor him and to doo most for him that then hee should stand most in feare of her and least trust her deceipts Therefore Sir make no small accompt of this my booke litle though it bee For you know that doubtles as experience teacheth vs of greater price value is a litle spark of a Dyamond then a greater ballasse It forceth lyttle that the booke bee of small or great volume syth thexcellency thereof consysteth not in the number of leaues more or lesse but only in the good and graue sentences that are amplie writen therein For euery author that writeth to make his booke of great price and shew ought to bee brief in his woords and sweete and pleasant in his matter hee treateth of the better to satisfy the mynd of the reader and also not to bee tedious to the hearer And Sir I speak not without cause that you shoold not a lytle esteeme this small treatise of myne since you are most assured that with tyme al your things shall haue end your frends shall leaue you your goods shal bee deuided your self shall dye your fauor and credyt shall dimynish and those that succeede you shal forget you you not knowing to whom your goods and patrimony shall come and aboue all you shall not know what condicions your heires and children shall bee of But for this I write in your Royall history and Chronicle of your lawdable vertues and perfections and for that also I serue you as I doo with this my present woork the memory of you shall remain eternized to your Successors for euer Chilo the philosopher beeyng demaunded whether there were any thing in the world that fortune had not power to bring to nought aunswered in this sort Two things onely there are which neyther tyme can consume nor fortune distroy and that is the renowne of man wrytten in bookes and the veritie that is hidden For allthough troth for a tyme lye interred yet yt resurgeth agayn and receyueth lyfe appearing manyfestly to all And euen so in like case the vertues wee fynd wryten of a man doo cause vs at this present to haue him in as great veneration as those had in his tyme that best knew him Read therefore Sir at times I beeseech you these wrytyngs of myne allbeeit I feare mee you can scant borrow a moment of tyme with leysure once to looke vppon yt beeing as I know you are allways occupyed in affaires of great importaunce wherein mee thinketh you shoold not so surcharge your self but that you myght for your commodyty and recreacion of your spirits reserue some pryuat howers to your self For sage and wise men should not so burden them selues with care of others toyle that they should not spend one hower of the day at the least at their pleasure to looke on their estate and condicion As recoūteth Suctonius Tranquillus of Iulius Cesar who notwythstandyng his quotydian warres hee had neuer let slypt one day but that hee read or wrote some thing So that beeing in his Pauyllyon in the camp in the one hand hee held his launce to assault his enemy and in the other the penne to wryte with all with which hee wrote his woorthy comentaries The reasonable man therefore calling to mynd the streight account that hee must render of him self and of the time hee hath lost shal always bee more careful that hee lose not his time then hee shal bee to keepe his treasure For the wel imployed time is a mean help to his
vain and dishonest thoughts from him they will teach him to subdue and resyst all sodein passions and motions moued of choller by them they shal winne good frends and learn also neuer to bee troublesome or enemy to any they will make him forsake all sinne and vice declaring to him what good woorks hee shall follow and what hee shal most fly and eschew they will let him vnderstand how hee shall humble and beehaue him self in prosperity and they will also comfort him in his aduersity to keepe him from all sorow and dispayre For though a man bee neuer so carefull and circumspect yet hath hee always neede of the councell of an other in his affaires if therefore such person haue not about him good vertuous sage men how can it otherways bee but that hee must stumble oft and fall down right on his face hauing no man to ayd or help him Paulus Diaconus sayeth that albeeit the Affricans were wylde and brutish people yet had they withstandyng a law amongst them that the senators amongst them coold choose no other senator if at the electiō there were not present a philosopher So it happened one day amongst the rest that of many philosophers they had in Carthage amongst them was one named Apolonius Who ruled for the space of three score and two years all their senat with great quyet and to the contentacion of all the senators which to shew them selues thankfull to him erected in the market place so many images of him as he had gouerned their common weale years to the end the fame and memory of hym should bee immortall and yet they dyd dedycate to their famous Anniball but onely one image and to this philosopher they set vp aboue three score Alexander the great when hee was most bent to bluddy warres went to see and speak with Diogenes the philosoper offring him great presents and discoursyng with him of dyuers matters So that wee may iustly say this good prince of hym self tooke payns to seek out wise men to accompany him electing by others choise and aduise all such as hee made his captayns to serue him in the warres It is manyfest to all that Dionisius the Siracusan was the greatest tyraunt in the world and yet notwithstanding his tyranny it is a wonder to see the sage and wise men hee had continually in his court with him that that makes vs yet more to wonder of him is that hee had them not about him to serue him or to profyt one iot by their doctrine and councell but onely for his honor and their profyt which enforceth mee to say concurring with this example that syth tyrants dyd glory to haue about them wise woorthy men much more shoold those reioyce that in their woorks and deedes are noble and free harted And this they ought to doo not onely to bee honored with them openly but also to bee holpen with their doctrine councels secretly And if to some this shoold seeme a hard thyng to follow wee will say that woorthy men not beeing of ability and power to mainteyn such wise men ought yet at least to vse to read at tymes good and vertuous bookes For by readyng of bookes they reap infynyt profyt as for example by readyng as I say these good authors the desire is satisfyed their iugement is quickned idlenes is put away the hart is disburdened the time is well imployed and they lead their lyfe vertuously not beeing bound to render account of so many faults as in that tyme they myght haue committed And to conclude it is so good an exercise as it geeueth good examples to the neyghbor profyt to hym self and health to the soule Wee see by experience after a man taketh vppon hym once the study of holy scriptures and that hee frameth hym self to bee a diuyne hee will neuer wyllyngly thencefoorth deale in other studies and all beecause hee will not forgoe the great pleasure hee receyueth to read those holly sayyngs And that causeth that wee see so many learned and wise men for the more part subiect to dyuers diseases and full of melancoly humors For so sweete is the delight they take in their bookes that they forget and leaue al other bodely pleasure And therefore Plutarke wryteth that certayn Phylosophers beeing one day met at the lodgyng of Plato to see hym and demaūdyng him what exercise hee had at that tyme Plato aunswered them thus Truely my brethern I let you know that euen now my onely exercise was to see what the great poet Homer sayd And this hee told them beecause they tooke hym euen then readyng of some of Homers bookes and to say truly hys aunswer was such as they shoold all looke for of hym For to read a good booke in effect is nothyng els but to heare a wyse man speak And yf this our iudgement and aduise seeme good vnto you wee would yet say more that you shoold profyt more to read one of these bookes then yow should to heare speak or to haue conference wyth the autor hym self that made yt For it is wythout doubt that all wryters haue more care and respect in that their penne dooth wryte then they haue in that their tongue dooth vtter And to the end you should not thynk wee can not proue that trew that wee haue spoken I doo you to wytte that euery autor that wyll wryte to publysh hys dooyng in prynt to lay yt to the shew and iudgement of the world and that desyreth thereby to acquire honor and fame and to eternyse the memory of hym turneth many bookes conferreth wyth other wyse and learned men addycteth hym self wholly to hys booke indeuoureth to vnderstand well oft refuseth sleepe meat and drynk quyckneth hys spyrits dooyng that hee putteth in wrytyng exactly with long aduise and consideracion whych hee dooth not when hee dooth but only speak and vtter them though oft in deede by reason of his great knowledge in speach vnwares there falleth out of hys mouth many goodly and wise sentences And therefore god hath geeuen hym a goodly gift that can read and hym much more that hath a desyre to studdy knowyng how to choose the good bookes from the euill For to say the troth there is not in this world any state or exercyse more honorable and profytable then the study of good bookes And wee are much bound to those that read more to those that study and much more to those that wryte any thing but mostly doubtles to those that make compile goodly bookes those of great and hye doctrine For there are many vayn and fond bookes that rather deserue to bee throwen in the fyer then once to bee read or looked on For they doo not onely shew vs the way to mock thē but also the ready mean to offend vs to see them occupy their brayns best wyttes they haue to write foolish and vayn thyngs of no good subiect or erudicion And that that is woorst of al yet
them wyth hys tongue And beecause it happeneth many times that in some noble mans house there is not lyke fare and entertainment that an other hath the cyuill courtier shoold not bee so dishonest as to make report hee leaueth that noble mans table to goe to an others that is better serued For the woorthy courtier shoold not haunt that table where hee fareth best but where hee fyndeth him self best welcome and esteemed Ah how many noble men and knyghts sonnes are there that spare not to goe to any mans boord for his meat and drink yea though it fall out they bee their fathers enemies and they do it not in respect to reconcile them and their fathers togeethers but rather for a good meales meat or more aptly to say to fill their bellyes with dainties ¶ What company the courtier shoold keepe and how hee shoold apparell him self Cap. viij THe wise Courtier both in court and out of court in all places where hee cometh must take great regard hee accōpany with none but with wise and vertuous men For if hee doo not hee can not winne nor acquire such honor by his well dooing as hee shall lose his credit by keeping yl company And therefore hee shall inforce him self always to bee in the presens and company of vertuous and noble men and shall conferre with the most graue wise and honest gentlemen of the court For vsing this way hee shall bynd them to him by reason of his daily accesse to them and hee shall purchase him self a good oppinion of them besides the good example hee shal leaue to others to tread his steps and follow his coorse For what is more true then when a yong gentleman commeth newly to the court you shal see immediatly a company of other yong fooles a company of amarous squires light and ydle persons a company of troublesom iesters and couetous praters besides other yong fry in court that when they know a new come courtier namely beeing of great lyuing They will seeke to attend vpon him and trayn him to the luer of their affects and maner bringing him to like of their qualities and condicions Wherefore conningly to shake of the rout of these needy greedy retayners hee must altogether feede them with fair woords shew them good countenaunce yet notwithstanding seeke by al policy hee can to fly their felowship company Noble mens sonnes knights sonnes gentlemēs sonnes may not think their frends sendeth thē to the court to learn new vyces and wicked practises but to winne them new frēds and obtayne the acquaintance of noble men whose credit and estimation with the prince may honor and countenance them and by theyr vertues and meanes may after a tyme bee brought into the princes fauor also and dayly to ryse in credit and reputation amongst others Therfor such fathers as will send their children to the court onles they doo fyrst admonish them wel how they ought to beehaue them selues ere that they recomend them to to the charge and ouersight of some deare and especiall frend of theirs that will reproue them of their faults when they doo amisse I say they were better to lay irons on there feete and send them to Bedlem or such other like house where madd men bee kept For if they bee bound there in irons it is but to bring them to their wits agayne and to make them wise but to send them to the court lose and at lyberty without guyde it is the next way to make them fooles and worse then mad men assuring you no greater danger nor iniury can bee doon to a yong man thē to bee sent to the court and not comitted to the charge of some one that should take care of him and looke straightly to him For otherwise it were impossible hee should bee there many dayes but hee must needs runne into exces and foul disorder by meanes wherof hee should vtterly cast him selfe away and heape vpon their parents heads continuall curses and greefes during their liues And therfor theire fathers supposing after they haue once placed their sonnes in the court that they should no more carke nor care for them nor recken to instruct them to bee wise and vrrtuous fynd when they come home to them againe that they are laden with vices ill complexioned worse aparelled theire clothes al tottered and torne hauing vainly and fondly spent and plaied away their mony and worst of al forsaken their masters leauing them displeasid with their saruice And of these I would admonish the yong courtier beecause hee must of necessity accompaigny with other yong men that in no case hee acquaynte him selfe with vitious and ill disposed persons but with the honest wise and curteous amongst whome hee shall put vpon him a certaine graue and stayed modesty fitting him selfe only to ther companies beeing also apt and disposed to all honest and vertuous exercices decent for a right gentilman and vertuous courtier shunning with his best pollicy the light foolish and vayne toyes of others And yet notwithstanding these my intent and meaning is not to seeme to perswade or teach him to beecome an hippocrite but only to bee courteous honest and wel beeloued of other yonge gentlemen winning this reputation withall to bee esteemed for the most vertuous and honestist among them gallant and lyuely in his disportes and pastimes of few woords and small conuersation amongst bosters and backbyters or other wicked and naughty persons not to bee sad among those that are mery nor dumme among those that talke wisely of graue matters nor to beleeue hee should bee accounted a trimme courtier to take his booke in his hands to pray when others will take the ball to play or go about some other honest recreation or pastime for exercise of the body For so dooing they would rather take him for a foole and an Ippocrite then for a vertuous and honest yonge man Beeing good reason the child should vse the pleasures and pastimes of a child yong men disportes and actes of youth and old men also graue and wise recreacions fyt for them For in the end doo the best wee can wee can not fly the motiōs of the flesh wherin wee are borne into this world These yong gentilmen courtiers must take heede that they become not troblesome importunate nor quarelers that they bee no filchers liers vacabonds and sclaunderers nor any way geeuen to vice As for other things I would not seeme to take from them their pastyme and pleasure but that they may vse them at their owne pleasure And in all other things lawfull and irreprouable obseruing tyme and howers conuenient and therewithall to accompaigny them selues with their fellows and compaignions Also the yong courtier that cometh newly to the court must of necessity bee very well apparelled according to his degree and callyng and his seruants that follow him well appoynted For in court men regarde not only the house and family hee cometh of but marke
Prince a house should abounde for his pleasours and to the immortall God there should wante a temple for his relickes The daye therefore appointed when they should carie the relicke of Gibeah to Bethleem there mette thirty thousand Israelites with a great nombre of noble men which came with the king besyds a greater nombre of straungers For in such a case those are no which come of their owne pleasure then those which are commaunded Besides al the people they say that all the nobilitie of the realme was there to thend the relicke should be more honoured his persone better accompanied It chaunced that as the lordes and people wēt singing and the king in persone dauncing the whele of the chariot began to fall and goe out of the waye the whiche prince Oza seing by chaunce set to his hand and his shoulder against it because the Arcke wher the relick was should not fall nor breake yet notwithstanding that sodainly and before thē all he fell downe dead Therfore let this punishmēt be noted for truly it was fearfull and ye ought to thinke that since god for putting his hande to the chariot to holde it vp stroke him with death that a prince shoulde not hope seking the destruction and decaye of the churche that god will prolong his life O princes great lordes and prelates sith Oza with suche diligence loste his life what do ye hope or loke for sith with such negligence ye destroy and suffer the churche to fall Yet once againe I doe retourne to exclaime vpon you O princes and great lordes syth prince Oza deserued such punishement because without reuerence he aduaunced him selfe to staye the Arke which fell what punishement ought ye to haue whiche through malice helpe the churche to fall ¶ Why kyng Balthasar was punished DArius kyng of the Perses and Medes besieged the auncient citie of Babilon in Chaldea wherof Balthasar sonne of Nabuchodonosor the great was kinge and lorde Who was so wicked a childe that his father being dead he caused him to be cut in .300 pieces gaue him to .300 haukes to be eaten because he should not reuiue againe to take the goodes and riches from him which he had left him I knowe not what father is so folishe that letteth his sonne liue in pleasures afterwardes the intrelles of the hauke wherewith the sonne hauked should be the wofull graue of the father which so many men lamented This Balthasar then being so besieged determined one night to make a great feast and banket to the lordes of his realme that came to ayde him and in this he did like a valiaunt and stoute prince to th ende the Perses and Medes might see that he litle estemed their power The noble and high hartes do vse when they are enuironed with many trauayles to seeke occasions to inuent pleasours because to their men they may giue greater courage and to their enemies greater feare He declareth of Pirrus kynge of the Epirotes when he was besieged very streightly in the citie of Tharenta of the Romain captaine Quintus Dentatus that then he spake vnto his captaines in this sort Lordes frendes be ye nothing at al abashed since I neuer here before sawe ye afraide though the Romaines haue compassed our bodies yet we haue besieged their hartes For I let you to wete that I am of such a cōplexion that the streighter they kepe my body the more my hart is at large And further I say though the Romains beate down the walles yet our harts shall remaine inuincible And though there be no wall betwene vs yet we wyll make them knowe that the hartes of Greekes are harder to ouercome then the stones of Tarentine are to be beaten downe But retourninge to king Balthasar The banket then being ended and the greatest parte of the night spent Balthasar the kyng being very well pleased that the banket was made to his cōtentation though he was not the sobrest in drynking wyne commaunded all the cuppes of golde and siluer with the treasour he had to be brought and set on the table because all the bidden gestes shoulde drinke therin King Balthasar did this to that ende the princes and lordes with all his captaines shoulde manfully helpe him to defende the siege and also to shewe that he had muche treasour to pay them for their paynes For to saye the truthe there is nothing that encourageth men of warre more than to see their rewarde before their eies As they were drinking merily at the banket of these cups which Nabuchodonosor had robbed from the temple of Hierusalem sodenly by the power of God and the deserte of his offences there appeared a hand in the wal without a body or arme which with his fingers wrote these wordes Mane Thetel Phares which signifieth O kinge Balthasar god hath sene thy life and findeth that thy malice is nowe accomplished He hath commaunded that thou and thy realme shoulde be wayed and hath found that ther lacketh a great deale of iust weight wherfore he comaundeth that thy life for thine offences be taken from thee and that thy realme bee put into the handes of the Perses and Medes whiche are thine enemies The vision was not frustrate for the same night without any lenger delay the execution of the sentence was put in effect by the enemies The king Balthasar died the realme was lost the treasours were robbed the noble men takē and al the Chaldeans captiues I would nowe knowe sith Balthasar was so extreamely punished only for geuing his concubines and frindes drinke in the sacred cuppes what payne deserueth princes and prelates then which robbe the churches for prophane thinges How wicked so euer Balthasar was yet he neuer chaunged gaue sold nor engaged the treasours of the Sinagoge but wat shall we say speake of prelates whiche without any shame wast chaunge sell and spende the churche goodes I take it to be lesser offence to giue drinke in a chalice as king Balthasar did to one of his concubines then to enter into the churche by symony as many do nowe a daies This tyraunt was ouercome more by folie than by couetousnes but these others are vanquished with foly couetousnes and simony What meaneth this also that for the offence of Nabuchodonosor in Hierusalem his sonne Balthasar shoulde come and be punished For this truly me thinke not consonaunt to reason nor agreable to mans lawe that the father should commit the theft and the sonne should requite it with seuen double To this I can aunswere that the good child is bounde to restore all the good that his father hath lefte him euill gotten For he that enioyeth the thefte deserueth no lesse punishement then he that committeth the theft For in th end both are theues and deserue to be hanged on the galowes of the deuine iustice ¶ Why Kyng Ahab was punished IN the first booke of Malachie that is to wete in the third booke of kinges the .viii. chap. It is