common-weale as he shewed anon after in the warres that he had against Silla But Agustus would rather haue priuiledged men from paying of subsidies discharged thē of tallages than to haue made thē free of the citty of Rome for he could not abide that the right of citizenship should be brought in smal estimation by becōming too common Neither ought the changing of lawes to be excused by this saying of Plato That at the first making of lawes there may be some things which the magistrats that succeede afterward may well amend vntill that by good aduisement and experience they see what is best to be allowed And in another place he saith againe it is not men but fortune and the enterchange of things that make lawes For either nessessitie or force and violence of war subuert states and alter lawes so likewise plagues tempests sicknesses and incōmodities of many years continuance do cause very great changes and alterations For no doubt but the thing which is set downe for a law is to be debated long time to be altered if ther by any incōuenience therin as the citisens of Locres did who admitted men to deuise new laws howbeit with halters about their necks to be hanged for their labour if their lawes were found to be euill But when a law is once alowed by long experience and custome it is not in any wife to be chaunged but vpon extreame necessitie which is aboue all law Also it is certaine that many new lawes are to be made vpon the alteration of a state But when the lawes are once stablished with the state they cannot be altered without iniurie to the state exept it be vpon very vrgent and needfull cause For the politik laws that are made for the mainteinance of a state tend not to any other end saith Plato than to rule and commaund and not to be subiect As for the lawes of nature they ought to be kept most streightly For as Iustinian saith forasmuch as the law of nature is giuen vs by the prouidence of God it ought to abide firme and vnmutable But the politicall law is to be chaunged oftentimes as we shall shew hereafter And because that among men there be some monsters that is to say men that sin against nature and make warre against it it is meet that the soueraigne magistrat which is set in that dignitie of purpose to encounter against monsters as Hercules did and to defend the poore from the violence of the greater sort should cause an equalitie of iustice to be obserued among his subiects For when the poore is oppressed by the rich it is wrong of the which wrong proceedeth discontentmēt which oftentimes breeds a hatred towards the prince and finally a rebelling against him Wisely therefore did Theopompus answer to one that demaunded of him by what meanes a prince might liue in suertie by suffering his friends quoth he to doe al things that are reasonable taking heed therewithall that his subiects be not misused nor wronged For many princes haue bin ouerthrowne for suffering their seruants to do all maner of wrongs and iniuries whereof we haue a notable example in Philip king of Macedonie who was slaine by Pausanias for refusing to heare his complaint and to doe him iustice against one that had committed a rape vpon him For the very dutie of a prince consisteth in doing iustice For as Cicero saith in his books of Duties the first chusing of kings was for the estimation which men had of them that they were good and iust men such as by defending the poore from the rich and the weake from the mightie would hold them both in concord and quietnes Plutarke in the life of Cato saith that folke giue greater credit and authoritie to good iusticers than to any others For they not only honour them as they doe the valeant ne haue them in admiration as they haue the sage and wise but they doe also loue them and put their trust and confidence in them whereas of them that be not such they distrust the one sort and feare the other Moreouer they be of opinion that valeantnesse and wisdome come rather of nature than of good will persuading themselues that the one is but a quicknes and finesse of wit and the other but a certaine stoutnesse of heart that commeth of nature wheras eueryman may be iust at leastwise if he will Wherefore they that will gouern well saith Cicero must obserue two precepts of Platos wherof the one is to haue good regard of the welfare of their subiects imploying all their deuises and doings to that end and leauing their owne peculiar profit in respect of that and the other is to haue such a care of the whole body of the common-weale that in defending any one part therof the residue be not neglected For like as a tutorship so the charge of a kingdome is to be administred to the benefit of those that are vnder the charge and not of them that haue the charge And they that are carefull of one part and carelesse of another doe bring sedition quarelling and discord into the kingdome or common-weale which is the ruine of realmes and common-weales Wherfore the dutie of a good king is not only to doe no wrong to his subiects himselfe but also to restrain others from doing them wrong and to straine himselfe to the vttermost of his power to do right either in his own person or by his substituts to such as seeke iustice at his hand For the greatest good that can be done to any people is to doe them right and to punish such as doe them wrong And in that case the king must be like vnto the law which accepteth no person ne punisheth for displeasure but iudgeth according to right euen so princes must not suffer themselues to be caried away with fauor hatred or anger but must minister iustice indifferently to al men But oftentimes they ouershoot themselues and step aside from the path of iustice to pleasure their courtiers not considering that their so doing breedeth to themselues great dishonor and in their people great discontentment Aristides would neuer make aliance with any man in administring the common-weale because he would not doe wrong vnto any man at the pleasure of those to whom he were alied nor yet greeue them by refusing any thing that they might require at his hand Cato of Vtica was so seuere a iusticer that he swarued not any way for any fauor or pitie insomuch that sometimes he would speake against Pompey as well as with him And when Pompey thanked him for that which he had done for him he told him that in any good cause he wold be his freind and not otherwise Philip was desired by one Harpalus one in greatest fauour with him to call before him a certaine case to the intent that his kinsman for whom he made the sute might not be diffamed To
of Athens that they might the sooner be famished and so it came to passe For whereas he was not able to ouercome them by force he suffered them to rest a while and afterward when he knew that vittails began to wax scant he besieged them so narrowly that they were faine to yeeld the citie to the Lacedemonians To attempt the taking of the rocke of Vandois which was impregnable the vicount of Meaus laid a stale of 1200 men in a caue neare the fort and sent others to skirmish with them at their bars charging them that if any came out of the towne against them they should retire softly vntill they came to the stale The Frenchmen failed not to make countenaÌ„ce but went slowly to the skirmish as if they had beene men vnwilling and smally trained which thing gaue courage to Guion du sel who had the gouernment of the fort in the absence of Amerigoll Marcell to sallie out with certaine of the garrison And he chased the Frenchmen so farre that he was inclosed betweene their ambush and their campe so as he could not saue himselfe nor any of his companie Whereupon the Frenchmen approched nearer the castell and told him that he and all his companions should die if the â—ortresse were not yeelded and that if it were yeelded they should all be saued They that were within perceiuing that they were like to lose the best men of all their companie yeelded themselues at his persuasion The earle of Arminak was discomfited almost after the same sort by Iaques of Berne before Alexandria which was the cause that the siege of Alexandria was broken vp CHAP. XX. Of the defending of Townes THere is not so great a mischief but there is a remedie for it And as the common saying is Well assailed well defended For when he that is within a towne knoweth that another would haue it then by good watch and carefull diligence he keepeth himselfe from being taken on the sudden And if he be aduertised of his enemies comming he doth what he can to keepe them from comming neere the ditches vntill the greatnesse of their number enforce him to retire The like is done when a citie is to be assailed by sea and by land For he that is within doth either by force or by policie impeach their landing as much as he can as did that gallant pyrat named Franday at Port Venerie The Arragonians intending to haue taken that place vpon the gate toward the sea approched with the prowes of their gallies to the hauen to haue set their soldiers a land But Franday had caused the great stones whereupon they were to leape in comming downe from their gallies to be besmeared with greace so as the most part of them fell downe through the slippernesse of their footing and the cumbersomnesse of their armor among the stones which were verie high Sometimes a citie is in hard case for that they cannot certifie their state by reason of the straitnesse of the siege In this case they must do as the Gothes did who being straitly besieged by Bellisariu and not able to giue intelligence of their distresse to Vitigis made a great noise one midnight whereat Belâ—â—sarius wondring and fearing some ambush or treason commanded that euery man should stand vpon his guard without remouing out of his place While Bellisarius was thus musing more to gard himselfe than to looke to the wals of his enemies the Goths sent out two men to giue knowledge to Vitigis in what state they stood But Bellisarius did yet much better when he himselfe was besieged in Rome For vvhen he vnderstood that succors were comming to him fearing least the Goths should set vpon them by the vvay he caused a certaine vvall vvherwith one of the gates of the citie vvas dammed vp to be beaten downe in the night and set a good number of men of vvar at it causing a thousand horsemen to issue out at one of the other gates whom he coÌ„manded to returne to the same gate againe vvhen they vvere charged by their enemies Now vvhile they vvere in hand vvith their enemies Bellisarius vvent out vvith a great power at the gate that vvas towards the sea vvhereof his enemies had no mistrust and easily putting those to flight that encountered him on that part he vvent on till he came right against the other gate vvhere he assailed his enemies behind as they vvere fighting vvith his men that had issued out first in vvhich conflict many of his enemies vvere slaine vvho being sufficiently occupied in defending themselues gaue leisure to the Greekes to ioine vvith the armie of Bellisarius vvithout any let Sometimes there is scarcetie of vittels in a towne so as it needeth to be vittelled And therfore he that hath the charge therof seeketh by all means to get some in vvithout the enemies priuitie Bellisarius intending to vittell the citie of Rome which was streitlie besieged by the Gothes vnder the leading of Totilas deuised this shift Totilas had made two towers of timber to be builded vpon a bridge ouer the riuer Tiber to keepe men from comming to Rome by water And without the ouerthrowing of these towers there was no way to passe To do it by plaine force it was not possible for him for he had too few men Wherfore he took two lighters and ioined them togither with rafters vpon the which he builded a tower of timber of equall heigth to the other two vpon the top wherof he had a little boate full of pitch and brimstone After this tower boat followed two hundred other boats couered ouer with boord and made full of loope holes that his men standing surely fenced in them might shoot at their enemies Within those boats he put great abundance of vittels garded by the choisest of his souldiers by whom vpon either banke of the riuer as neere as might be he sent of his souldiers both on horsebacke and on foot When he came at the towers of the bridge he cast vpon them the said little boat that was full of brimstone which immediatly burned vp the towers and the two hundred men that were within them In the meane while the Romans brake downe the bridge and made way for the litters that conueied the vittels the which had out of all doubt gone forth to the citie had it not ben for the fault of Isaces one of Bellisarius captains who by his rash going out of the hauen towne of Ostia contrarie to Bellisarius appointment was discomfited and taken prisoner by the Goths For Bellisarius being abashed therat and thinking that the towne it selfe had ben taken wherin was his wife and all his mouables returned suddainly back thither without accomplishing his enterprise Sometimes either men or monie be to be conueyed into a towne in whch behalfe example may be taken at the doings of Bellisarius who bearing that monie was brought him from Constantinople to the intent that the bringer thereof
vncorrupted as also by her most prouident motherly gouerning of hir people with all iustice clemencie to their greatest trāquilitie benefit and welfare Wherupon hath also ensued Gods most mightie and miraculous protection of her mastiesties most roiall person her realms dominions and subiects from exceeding great perils both forreine ciuil and domesticall such and so fitly contriued by the sleights of Satan satanicall practisers as but by the wonderfull and extraordinarie working of the diuine prouidence could not haue beene found out and much lesse preuented auoided or escaped an assured token of Gods speciall loue and fauor towards both soueraigne and subiects To be short so many and so great are the benefites which we haue receiued and still receiue by and from our most gracious soueraigue lady Queen Elizabeth that I know not how to conclude her Maiesties most iust deserued commendation more fitly than with the verses of a certaine auncient Poet written long since in commendation of that renowmed prince of Britaine the noble king Arthur the which verses I haue put into English with small alteration of some words but no alteration at all in matter and sense after this maner Hir deeds with mazeful wōderment shine euerywher so bright That both to heare and speak of thē men take as great delight As for to tast of honycombe or honie Looke vpon The doings of the noblest wights that heretofore be gone The Pellan Monarch fame cōmends the Romās highly praise The triumphs of their emperors Great glory diuerse waies Is yeelded vnto Hercules for killing with his hand The monsters that anoid the world or did against him stand But neither may the Hazel match the Pine nor stars the sun The ancient stories both of Greeks and Latins ouerrun And of our Queene Elizabeth ye shall not find the peere Ne age to come will any yeeld that shall to her come neere Alone all princes she surmounts in former ages past And better none the world shall yeeld so long as time doth last What remaineth then but that all we her natiue subiects knitting our selues togither in one dutifull mind do willingly and chearfully yeeld our obedience to her gratious maiestie with all submission faithfulnes and loialtie not grudging or repining when any things mislike vs but alwaies interpreting all things to the best not curiously inquisitiue of the causes of hir will but forward and diligent in executing her commandements euen as in the sight of God not for feare of punishment but of verie loue and conscience Which things if we doe vnfeinedlie then no doubt but God continuing his gracious goodnesse still towards vs will giue vs daily more cause of praise and thanksgiuing multiplying her maiesties yeares in health and peace and increasing the honour and prosperitie of her reigne so as our posteritie also may with ioy see and serue her manie yeares hence still reigning most blessedly which are the things that all faithfull subiects doe and ought to reioice in and desire more than their owne life and welfare and for the which we ought with all earnestnes to make continuall praier and supplication vnto God But while I am caried with the streame of my desire to encourage my selfe and my countreymen to the performance of our dutie towards her maiestie wherein neuerthelesse I haue ben much breefer than the matter requireth I feare least I become more long and tedious than may beseeme the tenour of an epistle dedicatorie And therefore most humbly submitting my selfe and this my present translation to your honourable censure and acceptation I here make an end beseeching God greatly to increase and long to continue the honor and prosperitie of your good Lordship and of your noble house Written the xxvii of Ianuary 1595. Your Honors most humble to commaund Arthur Golding To the King SIr forasmuch as it hath pleased your maiestie to command the states of your realme and to inioine all men without exception to shew vnto you whatsoeuer they thinke to be for the benefit and preseruation of your state and the comfort of your subiects And I see that euery man straineth himselfe to giue you the best aduice he can surely I alone ought not to be idle and negligent nor to forslow the duetie wherby I am naturally bound vnto you The which thing hath caused me to gather these matters of remembrance which should haue ben better polished ere they had ben presented to your maiestie if the state of your affairs and the time would haue permitted it You haue voutchsafed me the honour to be neer about your person and to do you seruice in such cases as it hath pleased your maiestie to imploy me and specially in following the warres where I haue the good hap to be a witnesse of the victories that you haue fortunatly obtained to the great reioycing of all christendome And surely sir this maketh me to hope that you will accept this mine attempt in good part as a testimonie of the good will and great desire which I haue alway had and will haue to spend my goods and life in the seruice of your most christen maiestie beseeching God to keepe mee euer in this commendable deuotion and dutifull good will and to giue vnto your highnesse a most happie long life From Paris the 28. of October 1588. Your most humble seruant and subiect Iames Hurault lord of Vieul and Marais The Contents of such Chapters as are contained in this Booke The first Part. OF Office or dutie and of Policie or Estate Pag. 1. 2 Of a Prince a King an Emperour and a soueraigne Lord. 4 3 Of the three sorts of gouernment and which of the three is the best 13 4 Whether the state of a kingdom or the state of a Publike weale be the antienter 24 5 Whether it be better to haue a king by succession or by election 26 6 Of the education or bringing vp of a Prince 30 7 Of the end whereat a good Prince ought to aime in this life 36 8 What is requisite in a Prince to make him happie 45 9 Of Vertue 56 10 Of the Passions of the mind 65 11 Whether Vertue and Honestie be to be separated from profit in matters of gouernment or state 76 12 That a prince ought not to falsifie his faith for the maintenance of his state 89 13 Of Truth 104 14 Of Religion and Superstition 107 15 That the prince which will be well obeyed must giue good example in himselfe to his subiects 138 The Contents of the second Part. 1 Of Wisdome and Discreetnesse 149 2 That the good gouernor must match learning and experience together 162 3 Of Iustice or Righteousnesse 170 4 That a Prince ought to be liberall and to shun nigardship and prodigalitie 212 5 That Gentlenesse and Courtesie be needfull in the orderering of affairs the contraries whereunto be slernenesse and roughnesse 236 6 That modestie or meeldnesse well beseemeth a Prince and that ouer statelinesse is hurtfull vnto him 259
not be all of one mind and moreouer there would alwaies be some one or other that would attempt to controle the rest which thing would breed dissention among them and finally the ruine of the State And therfore he was of opinion that of all the kinds of gouernment ther was not a better than the Monarchie The which aduise of his all the rest of the princes followed Of a verie truth we see that neither the State of Aristocracie nor the State of Democracie haue atteined to like greatnesse as kingdoms haue sauing onely Rome for the largenesse of empire and Venice for continuance of time For as for Lacedemon and Athens their dominions extended but a little way notwithstanding that the one of them made their power to be seene in the lesser Asia and the other became terrible to the Persians But aboue all other the popular gouernment is most vnweeldie because it is full of ignorance and confusednesse of people whose nature as said Bellifarius is to moue by rage rather than by reason and who as saith Guicciardine grounding themselues vpon deceitfull and vaine hopes being furious in their dealings when danger is far off and quite out of courage when peril doth approch are not in any wise to be ruled or restrained And as Philip of Nauar was wont to say there is not any certain stay in a coÌ„munaltie for that cause he would not trust the Parisians nor come within their citie what shew of good will soeuer they were able to make persuading himselfe that he could not be in sufficient suretie among so great a number of people of so diuers humors Which thing the Senat of Rome considering chose rather to giue their people Tribunes than to giue vnto them the reines of authoritie without a magistrat For although the power of the tribunes was ouer-great yet thought they it better than the ouer-vehement and boistrous power of the people who become more tractable when they haue a head than when they be without one For a head considereth the danger but the people cast no perill at all The popular gouernment is hard to be dealt with for it is a beast with many heads which doth good vnto them that would it euill and requite euill to them that doe it good As the Athenians did to Miltiades whom in recompence of the good which he had done them in deliuering them from a dangerous siege and in vanquishing ten hundred thousand Persians himselfe hauing but ten thousand men they amerced at a great fine keeping him in prison till he had fully paid it and finally banished him out of the country They did as much to Themistocles Aristides Alcibiades and other good captaines of their citie whereof anon after ensued their owne decay We know how Iames of Arteuill gouerned the people of Gaunt in his time and what power and authoritie he had ouer them and how he was beloued of all and yet neuerthelesse they put him to death vpon a small suspition and would not so much as heare his reasons They did as much to Iohn Boulle one of their captains because that without cause and without likelihood they had wrongfully surmised of him that he had brought them into an ambush vpon secret compact with the earle of Flaunders and he was not permitted to shew his reasons and excuses For without hearing him they drew him out of his lodging into the street and there hewed him into small peeces euerie man carying away a peece that could come by it Therefore Demosthenes who was banished Athens as others had been considering how Athens was dedicated to Minerua said O Pallas what meanest thou to enterteine so wicked and foule beasts as a night-owle a dragon and a popular gouernment for vnto Pallas were these things dedicated And Aristides the best man of life that euer was in Athens vpbraided the Athenians with their rashnesse who had condemned him for excecuting his charge faithfully in not suffering the common treasure to be robbed spoiled and had had him in great loue and estimation when he winked at the pilfries which he saw committed as though he had then worthily faithfully discharged his duty For a multitude is hard to be ruled and other counsel is there none with them than such as they bring of theÌ„selues misconceiued misvnderstood misiudged by passions neither is there any thing so vnequall in a common-weale as that is which they call equalitie of persons All is there equall and euen sauing their minds which are as farre at oddes as may be And yet notwithstanding because things goe by the number of voices without weighing them otherwise they passe alwaies with the most number that is to say with the foolishest opinion By reason whereof Anacharsus said that in the citie of Athens wise men propounded matters and fooles iudged of them And Phocion whâ—neuer agreed in opinion with the common people hauing in open assembly deliuered an opinion that was liked of the whole multitude insomuch that all the standers-by yeelded to his aduise turned himselfe to his friends and asked them whether some fond thing had not escaped him in his speech vnawares As touching the common-weale of Rome albeit that the Romanes had conquered the whole world by battell yetnotwithstanding they were oftentimes ill gouerned for all their good policie For after that the kings were once expulsed the citie was neuer without quarels some while against the ten coÌ„missioners another while the people against the Senat and the Senat against the people one while against the tribunes and another while against the consuls and nothing did euer vphold and maintaine the citie so much and so long as the forreigne wars which caused them to compound their quarrels at home without the doing wherof they could neuer haue continued for as soone as they had any vacation from forreigne warres by and by they lost their libertie and found from that time forth that the opinion of Scipio Nasica was grounded vpon great reason when he would not that Carthage should haue been destroyed that it might haue kept Rome stil in hir rigoâ—t wirs for in very deed their couetousnesse and ambition bred cruell dissentions among them which in the end did bring the ouerthrow of their State And therefore I will not say but that disagreements are often times necessarie in a house a kingdome or a coimmon-weale and that as Onomademus said after the rebellon of the Island Chios it is not behooffull to make cleane riddance of ell enemies for feare least there should be dissention among friends I am fully persuaded it is not amisse to suffer some enemies to spight one another as well for the reason aforementioned as also for that the enemies by their crossing one another doe discouer their owne lewdnesse couetousnesse and ambition to the benefit of the prince and of the common-weale and yet notwithstanding are afraid to doe euil least men should espie their doings and
Samuel whose vniust behauior caused the Iews to demaund a King Here is a faire field offred me for the discoursing of this matter on either side but it shall suffice me to haue had this speech following at a glaunce CHAP. V. Whether it be better to haue a king by Succession or by Election SOme there are that demaund whether it be more behoofull and expedient for the welfare of a people to haue a king by Election or by Succession For if ye proceed by Election it is to be presumed that ye will choose the best namely such a one as hath made good proofe of himselfe and is knowne to be wise fortunat and valeant Or if ye let it goe by Succession it may be that the king shall be yoong of small experience and of little vnderstanding And therefore Alexander knowing the dutie of a king said He would leaue his kingdome to the worthiest Pirrhus being asked of his children to whom he would leaue his kingdome answered To him that of you all hath the sharpest sword as if he should say to him that is the most valeant Whosoeuer would maintaine this opinion should haue reasons enow to vphold and defend it Yet notwithstanding we ought to rest vpon the custome of the country and not to swarue from it Such as are wont to choose their king do well and worthily therein And yet the granting of a kingdome to goe by Succesion which also is a very generall custome in most countries is not to be misliked For oftentimes it falleth out that Elections are a cause of many warres as we haue seene in the Romane emperors On the other side when the kingdome goeth by succession there is no quarrell or ciull warre because it is knowne who ought to be king For that cause did Geâ—srike appoint by his will that his children should exceed one another in the kingdome so that after the death of his eldest sonne dying without issue the eldest next him should succeede And as long as that order was obserued among them the kingdome continued in the race of Gensrike as witnesseth Iordane in his historie of the Gothes Moreouer a father is desirous to leaue all things in best order to his children the which thing tendeth alwaies to the publike commoditie Contrariwise they that are chosen endeuor rather to diminish than to enlarge their kingdomes because they shall not leaue them to their heires and therefore they labor to draw all things to their owne peculiar profit that they may leaue to their familie some frute of the kingdome wherto they were come and therwithall they be bound to fauor and recompence their Electors which cannot be done without expenses and charges to the common-weale And it will not serue the purpose to say that oftentimes it falleth out that kings are yoong and vnder age and consequentlie without authoritie and without abilitie to gouerne themselues and much lesse their people or else that they be witlesse or out of their wits which is worse For it is well knowne that nothing is so well ordered in this world nor any law so well stablished which may not admit some inconuenience But in this case the incounenience is such as may easily be remedied For if a king be yoong he hath a Counsell by whom oftentimes he ruleth better than some old man that will needs do all things on his owne head as we read of Iosias who was crowned at seuen yeares of age and raigned forty yeares in which time he did not any thing which was not to be done so as the minoritie of his age made him not to be the lesse honored regarded Herof we haue record in little Europus king of Macedonia the presence of whom notwithstanding that he lay in his cradle caused his subiects to win the battell and the Macedonians said all with one voice That when they fled afore they wanted not corage but their king in whose presence they fought as manfully as if he had beene of discretion to haue marked them that did well And although we haue somtimes had warres by reason of the minoritie and debilitie of our kings as it happened in the times of S. Lewis of Charles the sixt and lastly of the late king Charles whom God pardon yet may we well avow that we neuer had so much harme therby as the Romans had by their wicked emperors that came in by Election yea euen by the best taught of them as Heliogabalus was who being trained vp in all duties of honor and godlinesse by Varia Mesa did neuerthelesse become one of the wickedst creatures vnder the sunne And therefore we may well say that it commeth of Gods will who according to his threatning of the Israelites in old time sendeth vs babes or fooles to be our gouernors when he listeth to punish vs and oftentimes princes well brought vp but yet abiding in their wicked and il-disposed nature such as were Tiberius Nero Caligula and infinit other mo Neuerthelesse there is this difference that the king which is of tender yeares or simple-witted hath his counsell which notwithstanding that they be oftentimes at ods among themselues omit not for all that to giue him good counsel in most things But as for the Prince that is of a froward nature he beleueth nothing but that which is of his own head neither giueth he himselfe to any thing else than to do mischeefe I know wel that the minoritie of a prince is oftentimes the cause of many dissentions partakings for the gouernmeÌ„t and that men stand not in so great awe of him as of an elder person that is well aduised But yet the state of the time and of affaires doth more in that behalfe than all other things For if they happen vnder a prince that is yong or simple-witted they procure great tragedies and yet for all that they faile not to step in also euen vnder a king that is man-growne and well aduised If Robert of Artois who was the cause of all the misfortune that we had in France by the Englishmen had beene in the time of a young prince men would haue said that the small regard which he had of the princes age had made him to despise him And yet neuerthelesse hauing to do with a king of full age and well experienced aforehand he forbare not for all that to make open warre vpon him and to cause the English men to come into France vpon a choler and despite for that Philip of Valois had adiudged the earledome of Artoys to his aunt The king of Nauar had to do with a king of sufficient years with such a one as had not then tasted of such misfortune as he felt afterward by experience and yet notwithstanding hee forbare not to giue many proud attempts against him to slea his constable and to refuse to be at his commaundement vntill the king had giuen him his sonne the earle of Aniou in hostage At such
affirme to consist in the sensitiue appetit And out of this vertue proceed Hardinesse and Temperance two cardinall principal vertues moreouer Magnanimitie Liberalitie Magnificence Soothfastnes Mildnes Meeknes Affabilitie Philo the Iew doth likewise diuide Vertue into three parts according to the three parts of our soule namely Reasonable Irefull and Lustfull The first Vertue is that which sheweth it selfe in the chiefe part of the soule that is to say in the reasonable part which Vertue we call wisdome The second is the force or strength that lodgeth in the second part of the soule namely in the Irefull The third is Temperance or Staiednesse which is imployed about the Lustfull power And when these three are of one accord then doth Iustice or Rightfulnesse shew it selfe For when the Irefull and the Lustfull obay the commaundement of the Reasonable then doth Rightfulnesse vtter the fruit of that accord harmonie Aristotle saith that Vertue is a meane as a white in the middest of a butte wherat all men ought to leuel and whoso euer swarueth neuer so little from it one way or other misseth his mark And as it is far more hard to hit the white than to goe round about it so is it more hard to be vertuous than to be vitious Vice is infinit and therfore hath not any meane Contrariwise Vertue hath hir bounds which cannot be passed but into vice Let vs for example take Hardines which is a meane betweene Fearfulnesse Ouer-boldnesse of which two this latter is the excesse of boldnesse in offering a mans selfe to danger and the other is the default or want of boldnesse in the same case when Boldnesse is requisit or expedient And therfore he that through ouer-great Boldnesse thrusteth himselfe into dangers vnaduisedly and rusheth into them like a wild Boare cannot be deemed hardie or valiant but rather rash and he that through Fearfulnesse dareth not shew his head before his enemie is accounted a Coward The measurable meane in giuing taking is called Liberalitie the excesse wherof in taking is Couetousnesse and the excesse in giuing is Prodigalitie the meane between them cannot be in the vice For too much or too little cannot make vice to be Vertue As for example a theefe or a murtherer faile not to sin for stealing or murthering too much or too little Whosoeuer is a theefe a murderer or an adulterer in what sort soeuer it be he doth alwaies sin and because a man may sin many waies it is easier to sin than to doe well Let vs ad that which Philo sayth in his Allegories that the thing which is good is rare and the things which are euill be riâ—e in so much that for one wise man you shall find an infinit multitude of fooles Furthermore to attain vnto Vertue there needeth but reason but to the compassing of vice men applie mind sence and body and we see that the way of vice is the larger and easier And in that respect doth Hesiodus say that the first enterance into the way whereby men ascend vnto vertue is rough combersom and steepe but very smooth and easie when a man hath ouerpast the little crabbednesse that was at the first entrie of the way But the hardnesse thereof must not discourage a man for it is a generall rule that as the Greeke Prouerbe sayth The attainment of all goodly things is painfull because as Epicharmus sayth God felleth his benefits vnto vs for pains and trauell according to the first curse that God gaue vnto man namely that he should eat his bread in the sweat of his browes And as Synesius saith It is peculiar to the Godhead to compasse any great matter without pains-taking But among men not only the vertues but also euery other excellent thing is gotten with the sweat of the body Truth it is that in all great things nature hath purposed a certaine difficultie so as the partie that will liue happily must needs take pains For as Sophocles sayth a man cannot haue the thing that is great and excellent without paine for without that the noble captains had neuer obtained the fame which is dispersed of them through the whole world To attaine vnto that Hannibal forwent an eye lay oft vpon the hard ground watched infinit times when others slept and endured hunger and thirst with great cheerefulnesse Pyrrhus Alexander Iulius Caesar Epaminondas Themistocles Alcibiades and all the noble captains that euer were haue done the like A Poet maketh not a good verse nor an Orator a good oration without paine And seeing it is so that God hath made all goodly things rare we should not spare our pains to acquire the thing which of all others is most beautifull Surely a prince ought most specially to doe it assuring himselfe that it is the thing wherein he most resembleth God For as touching a princes strength and power it is nothing in comparison of the power of fire or of the sea or of a streame against the which nothing is able to stand And although he haue all our liues in his hand yet doe we not esteeme him so much for that as for his righteousnes and goodnes after the maner of the men of old time which called God first most Gratious and secondly most High and most mightie For Gods gratious goodnesse is the cause that men loue him honor him and worship him and his power is the cause that men feare him and so they made vertue to goe alwaies before might and power And this word Good was in so great estimatioÌ„ with our Lord Iesus Christ that he would not haue so glorious a title vsurped of men affirming that there was none good but the one only God Plutarch saith in the life of Aristides that God surmounteth all other things chiefly in three points that is to wit immortalitie mightinesse and goodnesse of which three goodnesse or vertue is the most honorable and most peculiar to the Godhead For incorruption and immortalitie at least wise according to the opinion of the auntient Philosophers is as well in the elements and in the wast Chaos as in God and as for might or power there is very much and great in the winds in thunder and lightnings in streams and in water-flouds But as for iustice vprightnesse and equitie nothing can be partaker of them but that which is diuine by means of reason and vnderstanding And therefore that men deeme the Gods to be happie it is in respect of their goodnesse that they feare them it is because of their almightinesse and that they loue worship and reuerence them it is for their iustice sake And if we will beleeue Aristotle in the first booke of his Morals we shall say that what king soeuer will become worthie of immortalitie must inure himselfe as much as is possible vnto vertue because it is his charge to make his subiects honest and obedient vnto lawes For like as to him that will
And for the space of the first six hundred threescore and ten yeares they builded vp temples and chappels to their gods but there was not in them any image or figure of God as who would say they thought it sacriledge to haue the mind to resemble or liken the Godhead to earthly things considering that it is not in any wise possible to attaine to the knowledge of the Godhead otherwise than by means of the vnderstanding And that was agreeable to the doctrin of Pithagoras who was of opinion that the first cause was after a sort conceiuable in vnderstanding but yet vtterly inuisible and vncorruptible As touching an oth I haue alreadie shewed in what estimation it was among the infidels and how they abhorred periurie to our great shame For surely to take God to witnesse in a lie is a verie great wickednesse And as touching the taking of one day in the weeke to respit both men and beasts from worke and trauell Hesiodus the antient Poet commaundeth it in his booke of Workes and Daies and Plato saith in his booke of Lawes that the gods pittying men least they should ouer-worke themselues haue giuen-them a release of their labor by leauing them holi-daies ordained in their honor Thus ye see how many of the men of old time at the beginning of the law of nature did well enough practise the law of God had not the deuill thrown them into the wretched abhominable sin of idolatrie and that some certaine persons had not turned all vpside downe by the inuention of idols as is written in the xiij and xiiij chapters of the booke of Wisdome For that hath caused men to be wholly giuen to earthly things bearing themselues on hand that an image made by mans hand was their God and therefore worshipping it as God by offering sacrifices of beasts vnto it as though it tooke pleasure in the smokiâ— sent of the multitude of burnt offerings and had need of oxen goats and sheep But in the end God sending his owne son into the world hath made vs to know that which many prophets and especially Dauid in his fifteeth and three and fifteeth Psalms hath said namely That the true sacrifice is to praise the true and inuisible God to yeeld him thanks for all his benefits to lift vp our minds vnto him to pray vnto him with all deuotion and humilitie and to offer vnto him in sacrifice a pure and cleane heart adorned with feare and obedience according to this saying of S. Paul That we must offer vnto him a liuing host that is to say our bodies without blemish and as Philo saith Can there be found a goodlier sacrifice than the soule that is well minded towards God Who shall goe vp into the Lords hill but he that is of pure and cleane heart considering that not he which saith Lord Lord but he that doth the Lords will shal enter into the kingdome of heauen For as Persius saith When we bring vnto God from the closet of our soule holinesse and from the bottome of our heart a pure and obedient mind and a meeke affection seasoned with goodnesse vertue and honestie then may we boldly offer vp our praiers and sacrifices vnto him but otherwise it behoueth vs to be well ware that we presume not vnto him For the sacrifice of the wicked is lothsome vnto God saith Salomon And Plato in his fourth booke of Lawes saith That God accepteth not ne regardeth not the gifts of the wicked and that their pains in that behalfe are in vaine but that on the contrarie part he doth willinglie receiue the gifts of the holie And as Philo saith in his third booke of the life of Moses If the person that offereth be euill and vnrighteous his sacrifices are no sacrifices his halowed things are vnholie and his prayers turne to the contrarie procuring him misfortune in steed of good This honouring of God with heart and mind we call Godlines and Religion which is the meane betweene vngodlinesse wherof alonly we ought not to make mention and Superstition Of Religion and Superstition Cicero in his third booke of the Nature of the gods speaketh in this wise Our worshipping saith he with a pure cleane sound and vncorrupted mind and voice For not only the Philosophers but also our ancestors haue seperated religion from superstitioÌ„ For such as praied all the day that their children might ontliue them were called superstitious and they that were diligent in doing the things that pertaine vnto the worshipping of the gods were called Religious Of the word Religio which signifieth to bind-ouer because Religion bindeth men to the performance of their dutie towards God And so of the ij things betokened by the two words of Religion Superstition men haue made the one a vice and the other as vertue So then we call those superstitious which are ouer-religious and leauing the true vse of the praiers that are to be made vnto God doe busie themselues in babling and in requiring vaine things at his hand as those sillie soules did which ceassed not to be importunat vnto God that their children might â—uruiue them whose so doing hath giuen vnto their faultie religioÌ„ the name of Superstition whereto full many do giue themselues at this day pratling vncessantly vnto God not knowing what they aske notwithstanding that our Lord hath commaunded vs to seeke Gods kingdome and righteousnesse promising that all temporall things shal be added as an income to our praier and inioining vs as a pattern of praieng to say the praier that euery man hath in his mouth namely the Lords praier wherein our only speech is of the honoring of God and our praieng is for the forgiuenes of our sins for strength to withstand them and for our ordinarie food Generally we terme all those superstitious which of a misbeleefe are astonished at euery extraordinary thing that they see For as Plutarch sayth in the life of Alexâ—nder Superstition droppeth downe continually into the hearts of them that are cast down and ouerwhelmed of feare as for example those that are afrighted at the eclipse of the sun or the moone at the howling of woolues at the noise of the Scriech-oule or of the night-rauen or at the flying of certaine birds and such other like things In all the which the Romanes were too too superstitious as is to be seene by a procession of theirs wherin they caused the Reliks of their gods to bee borne vpon barrowes on horse-backe through the citie wherein because the Carter had taken the horse by the reine with his left hand they appointed the procession to be begun new againe And sometimes for one poore flie that is to say for a thing of nothing they made some one sacrifice to be begun twentie or thirtie times Some of the men of old time tearmed this maner of dealing an exact Righteousnesse and we call it a fond and foolish Superstitiousnesse howbeit that wee must needs confesse that
all his enterprises found the means to haue a white Hynd the which hee affirmed to haue bene sent vnto him from Diana to giue him notice of many things to come the which Hynd he had so wel taught and inured to the noise of battell that shee followed him wheresoeuer he went and was not a whit afraid to see so great a multitude Which thing made his souldiers the more pliable to order because they beleeued that all that euer he did came of the counsell of Diana and not of his owne good gouernment Eumenes perceiuing that Antigonus and Teutamus captains of Alexanders old bands that were called Siluer-shields in respect of the shields of siluer that they carried would not in any wise giue place to him though they had commaundement from Olimpias the mother of Alexander to obey him nor come at him to consult of the affairs of the realme thinking it no reason that he for his part shuld go to their lodging found the means to win them by this superstition he made theÌ„ beleeue that Alexander had appeared vnto him in his sleepe and had shewed him a stately Pauilion wherin was a roiall throne and had told him that if they would hold their consultation there he would be there present with them aid theÌ„ both in their counsel in the managing of al their affairs coÌ„ditionally that they alwaies began at him vnto this Eumenes easily persuaded theÌ„ so as with one coÌ„mon consent they caused a beautiful and sumptuous pauilion to be set vp which they called the Pauilion of Alexander where they made their meetings for counsell The emperour Charles the fift being at Tunes whether it were that he would by some means remoue all heart-burning from among the lords of his armie whom he vvas to coÌ„maund in his absence or that he vvould giue the more courage to his souldiers shew to them all that there was a head aboue him tooke the crucifix in his own hands and shewing it to them all told them that our Lord Iesus Christ should be the chiefe of that host Themistocles perceiuing that neither reason nor intreatance could persuade the people of Athens to goe to the sea to encounter the Medes fell to beating them with heauenly signes oracles and answers of the gods For he tooke occasion to serue his turne as with a signe from heauen by the dragon of Minerua which by good hap appeared not in hir temple as it had bin wont to doe And the priests found the oblations to lie whole vnminished and vntouched which the people offered dailie vnto hir By reason whereof being intrapped by Themistocles they sowed a brute among the people that the goddesse Pallas the defender of the citie had forsaken it pointing them the way to the sea And on the other side he won them also by means of a certaine prophesie which commaunded them to saue themselues in wodden walles saying that those wodden wals betokened nothing els but ships Christopher Columb perceiuing he could get no victuals of the Indians neither for loue nor by force went neer vnto a little citie of theirs and calling out certaine of the citizens vnto him did them to vnderstand that if they furnished him not with victuals God would send them such a scourge from heauen that they should die euery one in token wherof he assured them that within two daies next comming they should see the Moone full of blood if they would take heed of it They beholding the thing come to passe the verie same day that he told them of which was nothing els but the eclips of the moone were so affraid of it that they went and prouided him victuals and furnished him of as much as he needed Lysander being desirous to further Agesilaus in making him king whereunto the oracle of Apollo was an impediment which had forbidden the Lacedemonians to chuse a king that did halt told them the oracle meant it not of the halting of a leg but of the halting in linage and parentage after which sort Leotichides halted which was the person whome some would haue preferred to be their king whome the wife of king Agis had conceiued in adulterie by Alcibiades Marius led with him a woman of Syria named Martha whom he had euermore present at all his sacrifices and without her he did not any thing It is not wel known whether he beleeâ—ed verily that she had the gift of prophesie or whether he did wittingly pretend to beleeue it for the better furtherance of his deuices Vpon a time when Sylla was readie to giue battell he openly kissed a little image of Apollo which he had taken out of the temple of Delphos praying it to keep promise with him Thus ye see how the braue captains do easily make their hand of the superstition of the people so long as they themselues fal not into the same vice as Nicias did who being dismaid at an eclipse of the moon delaied his departure out of Sicilie wheÌ„ it stood him most on hand to haue bin gon vpon an opinion that it was a token of very great misfortune notwithstanding that Anaxagoras in his bookes had shewed the reason of such eclipse which doing of Nicias was cause of the vtter ouerthrow of his armie and of his own destruction to Likewise when Antigonus was minded to haue war with the Romans he committed a great fault in that hee beleeued not the counsel of Hannibal but had rather to stand gaping superstitiously vpon the inwards of brute beasts and to herken to a sort of cosening birdgazers thaÌ„ to an old well experienced captaine that knew the forces of the Romans where they were to be assailed The superstitiousnes of the Almanes was their vndoing for the woman-wizards that were in the camp forbad them to go to battell against the Romanes afore the new of the moone Wherof Iulius Caesar getting intelligence and perceiuing that for that cause the Almanes stirred not went and assailed them in their own campe while they were out of courage by reason of their superstition he prouoked them so far that in the end hee made them to come foorth into the field in a rage where they were all discomfited But the best and wisest captains neuer troubled their heads with such doteries As for example Lucullus spared not to incounter with Tigranes vpon the sixt day of October though there were that would haue dissuaded him because the Romanes esteemed it an vnlucky day forsomuch as Scipio was discoÌ„fited by the Cimbrians as on that day wherto Lucullus answered That of a day of sorrow misfortune he would make it aday of good fortune and ioy and so it came to passe indeed Alexander leading his armie against the Persians in the moneth of Iune was desired not to stirre all that moneth because the Macedonians esteemed it an vnluckie moneth But yet hee letted not to proceed for all that and to turne away the superstition hee
win the fauor of the people who had such men in estimation he had of them ordinarily with him For it is better that a prince should be an hipocrit than a despiser of good and vertuous things because such maner of counterfaiting and countenancing of good things doth secretly bring with it in time an affection of louing them and a willingnesse to accustome himselfe to them in earnest The emperor Adrian had vertuous and wise men and learned Philosophers alwaies about his person as well in time of peace as of warre because the wise men taught to liue well and the Philosophers to gouerne well For as Alexander Seuerus said of trusting too much to a mans owne wit commeth commonly labour and losse but of taking other mens aduise followeth ordinarilie verie great fruit Insomuch that whensoeuer hee had any matter to set in order concerning the common-weale hee consulted of it aforehand with men of skill and experience afore he did put it in execution and such maner of men did alwaies follow him among whom was one Vlpian a Lawier Yea and when he went a walking or a hunting he would neuer bee without three or foure of the greatest personages and best experienced of his house to the intent he would not be without counsell if any matter of importance should come suddenly vpon him and that the sight of such men neere about him might keepe him from presuming to doe any vnhonourable fact Antigonus the second was woont to say when Zeno the Philosopher was dead That he was bereft of the Theatre and stage of his honourable deeds because hee was woont to referre all his actions to the iudgement of that good man And if wee will descend into our owne histories we shall see what profit redounded to S. Lois by being conuersant with men of Religion For in so much as his mother had accompanied him with such folke from his infancie he ceassed not to hold on afterward in the same trade and maner of life wherein he had bin trained vp insomuch that all his whole life was nothing else but a mirrour of holinesse CHAP. XV. That the Prince which will be well obayed must shew good example in him selfe to his subiects THat which I haue spoken of Religion and Superstition is inough notwithstanding that it be too little as in respect of the things themselues Now remaineth the winding vp of the matter and to end this booke withall I am to shew in few words what it is that vpholdeth both the prince and his subiects in all honour and honestie especially in the case of Religion namely the good Example which the prince giueth vnto his subiects For it serueth him aboue all things in the world to make him to be obayed and therewithal accustometh him to the loue of all honest things though at the beginning he had no such will as I haue said afore And it prouoketh the subiects to follow their princes example whom they see to be giuen to all vertuous things and chiefly when he is giuen to religion For a prince cannot raigne if his subiects be without religion considering that in taking away religion ye take away obedience to the prince Therefore to hold the people in religion there is nothing like vnto Example And as a certaine Poet saith Lawes and proclamations haue not so great force to procure obedience as hath the life of the gouernour because the people being subiect to alteration doe chaunge with the prince If the prince be deuout and religious the people will be deuout also if he be superstitious they become superstitious too if he be giuen to vice so will they be also if he be good they abide good likewise because there is not any thing that doth so much induce vs to doe well as the innocencie and goodnesse of the prince or iudge as saith Cassiodorus For who will be afraid to doe wickedlie when he seeth his lord doe as himselfe dooth In vaine doth that prince foad himselfe with suretie of state who is couetous ambitious and vniust For men are then afraid to doe amisse when they thinke that it displeaseth their iudge And as Cicero saith in his third booke of Lawes A prince doth not so much harme in the very sinning although it be a great harme in deed as he doth in making others to follow the example of his vices And we see commonly that looke what alteration soeuer happens in the prince the same ensueth also in his people For the change of conuersation of life in great personages is wont to worke a change in the maners of the people for that they keepe not their vices alonly to themselues but doe shead them out vpon their subiects so as the hurt which they doe is not only in that they corrupt themselues but also in that they corrupt others doing more euill by their example than by their bare sinne For as much therefore as the well-aduised prince is as a cresset vpon a bushell or rather vpon a high towre to giue light to all parts hee ought to shine among his subiects and to excell them in all deeds of vertue and godlinesse For as saith Cicero in his Inuectiues he is to applie himselfe not only to their minds but also to their eies And like as a small blemish in a mans face disgraceth him more than a great scarre in all the rest of his body euen so a small fault sheweth it selfe great in a prince whose life men behold in the open light And as Saluian Bishop of Marsels saith The offence is the greater where there is the greater prerogatiue That is the cause why Dauid was punished by the death of his sonne after that God had taken away his sinne namely as the text saith For that he caused the enemies to blaspheme the name of the Lord. So great is an offence in a publike person For he that doth euill without giuing cause of offence vnto others damneth but himselfe but he that giueth euill example vnto others and causeth mo for to sinne must beare their penaltie because he is the cause of their euill Plato in his Lawes saith That nothing doth more easily change laws than the example of princes so that a tyrant may in short time alter the lawes For whether he intend to lead to vertue or to vice he himselfe must first trace the way vnto others by allowing the one and disallowing the other and by dispising such as obay him not And therefore he said in another place That such as kings and gouernors are such are their people Wherein he agreeth with Ecclesiasticus who saith That such as the iudge of a people is such are his ministers and such as the ruler of a citie is such are his citizens Varia Mesa writing to Heliogabalus admonished him after this maner To reforme others it behooueth you first to reforme your selfe and to chastise others you must first chastise your selfe For euerie person be he
of such vnderstanding thereof in steed of being wise and wel aduised and in steed of chusing the good way wee follow the woorser and as Dauid saith Become like the horse and mule for not considering what God hath bestowed vpon man Therefore it standeth vs on hand to consider from whence we be and to what end we be created that by beholding the excellencie which we haue receiued of God we may submit our selues wholy vnto him and to his wisedome which inuiteth vs thereunto as is to bee seene in fiue hundred places of the booke of Wisdome Those then which refer al their actions to the said first cause we call Wise men according to the writings both of the Bible and also of the Heathen authors specially of the great Mercurie Plato and Cicero who affirme That the first point of wisedome is to know a mans selfe And by this knowledge a man shall perceiue wherat he ought to leuell himselfe and so he shall foresee the impediments that may hinder annoy him He then which hath not wisdome cannot discerne what is his or what is well or ill done neither can we know what is ours vnlesse we know our selues And he that knoweth not what is his is also ignorant what is another mans and consequently he is ignorant what belongeth to the commonweale and so shal he neuer be good housholder or good common-weales man because he knoweth not what he doth By reason wherof he shall walke on in error wandering and mistaking his marke so as he shall not atchieue any thing of value or if he doe yet shall he be but a wretch For no man can be happie or gouerne happily vnlesse he be good and wise because it is only he that discerneth good from euill Now if this saying may be verefied of al mē much more without comparison doth it agree to princes than to other men because they haue authoritie aboue all and to execute authoritie well it behoueth to haue Discretion and Wisedome For reason would that the wise should commaund the ignorant according to the saying of Ecclesiasticus That the free-borne shall serue the bondmen that are wise And as Dennis of Halicarnassus saith It is a law common to all that the better sort should commaund the worser It is they therefore to whom the said goodly precept is chiefly appointed to the end they should know the being and state of their soule the force and power wherof consisteth in wisdome whose ground is truth For it is the propertie of wisdome to discerne the truth of all things whereby the darknesse of ignorance is driuen out of our mind and light is giuen vnto vs. In this respect Iacob hauing gotten wisdome by trauel is said in Genesis to haue had the sight of God because that to the actiue life he had also ioyned the contemplatiue In so much that we may say that the wise man is the cleeresighted and hath iudgement reason to discerne good from euil that he may keepe himselfe from being deceiued For nothing is more contrarie to the grauitie of a wise man than error lightnes and rashnesse And although Wisdome and Discreetnesse doe well beseeme all men because it is the propertie of man to search the truth as who being partaker of reason gathereth the cōsequencies of things by considering their principall causes and proceedings yet notwithstanding Wisdome is an essentiall thing in princes and gouernors For nothing doth so firmly stablish a principalitie as a wise man who as saith Ecclesiasticus instructeth his people and the faithfull are the fruits of his vnderstanding The wise man shal be replenished with blessednesse and as many as see him shall commend him And in the third chapter of Salomons Prouerbs it is said That the purchace of Wisdome is more worth than all that euer a man can gaine by the trafficke of gold and siluer and all that euer man can wish is not comparable vnto hir For that very cause there was a writing in the foresaid temple of Delphos which commaunded men to honor Wisdome and iustice whom Hesiodus and Pindarus faigned to sit at Iupiters side Wherefore we may well say That Wisdomes is the mother of all good things and the tree of life that was in the earthlie Paradise as saith S. Austine in his thirteenth booke of the citie of God And to shew the excellencie therof yet more Ecclesiasticus saith That Wisdome is a greater aid and strength to a wise man than ten gouernors are to a country And therefore in the 16 of the Prouerbs it is said That Prophesie is in the lips of a king which thing is meant of a wise king After which maner he saith in another place that the delight of a king is in a wise seruant which is to be vnderstood of a good and wise king For commonly els such men are not welcome to princes But as Aesop saith either a man must please a king or els he must not come at him Bion was wont to say That Wisdome goeth before the other vertues as the sight goeth before the other sences and that without wisdome there is no vertue at all For how were it possible for the iust man to yeeld vnto euery man that which belongs to him if Wisdome had not taught him what is due to euery man Therfore afore wee enter into the morall vertues it is requisite by the way to speake a word of the contemplatiues namely of Wisdome and Discreation because that without contemplation ioyned with skill a man can doe nothing that is beautifull and good The Stoiks make no difference betweene these two vertues sauing that Wisdome consisteth in the knowledge of things belonging both to God and man and Discreetnesse consisteth only in things belonging to man For both of them be contemplatiue vertues proceeding from the mind and vnderstanding But yet one of them is meerely contemplatiue that is to wit Wisdome which after the opinion of antient Philosophers is occupied but in contemplation of the heauen the earth and the stars respecting nothing but such things as are euerlasting and vnchanged and because they be not subiect to any alteration man needeth not to scan of them And as Aristotle saith in his sixt booke of Morals It behooueth a wise man not only to vnderstand whatsoeuer may be gathered of principles but also to vnderstand the principles themselues truly and to speake truly of them And as a Geometrician scanneth not whether a triangle haue three angles made by the meeting and closing together of three right lines but holdeth it for an vndoubted certaintie so the contemplatiue vnderstanding doth not so much as dreame of any thing that admitteth any alteration neither is it subiect to consulting and deliberating But Discreetnesse which is cumbered with things vntrue erronious and troublesome and is to deale with casuall aduentures is driuen to consult of things doubtfull and after consultation to put it selfe in
thing which is not rightfull and I commaund not any thing which redoundeth not more to the benefit of the commonweale than to mine own profit To conclude Wisdome is a shield against all misfortune Men in old time were wont to say that a wise man might shape his fortune as he listed supposing that misfortune be it neuer so ouerthwart is wonderfully well ouer ruled by the discreation of a wise and sage person And as Plutarch saith in the life of Fabius The Gods doe send men good lucke and prosperitie by means of vertue and discreation notwithstanding that the euents of fortune be not all in our power as said Siramnes who being demaunded why his so goodly so wise discourses had not euents answerable to their deserts because quoth he to say and to doe what I list is in mine owne power but the sequele and successe thereof is altogether in fortune and in the king Therefore when Phocion the Athenian had resisted Leosthenes in a certaine case wherof notwithstanding the euent was prosperous and saw that the Athenians gloried of the victorie which Leosthenes had gotten I am well contented quoth he that this is done but yet would I not but that the other had bin councelled Iulius Caesar gloried in his good fortune but yet his bringing of his great enterprises to passe was by his good gouernment and experience in feats of warre To be short the wise and discreet man findeth nothing strange neither feareth he any thing no not though the whole frame of the world as Horace saith should fall vpon him The reason wherof is that he had minded it long time aforehand and had fore-considered what might happen vnto him and had prouided remedie for all by his foresight and discreation For as Salomon saith The mind of the wise shall not be attainted no not euen with feare Such folke are not subiect neither too great greefe nor too excessiue ioy they neuer waÌ„t hope neither do they quaile for any misfortâ—ne so that they be hard to be ouercome because they be fully resolued of all things that may betide them and do take order for all things aforehand by their wisedome For wisedome saith Salomon is to his ownour as a liuely fountaine as a deepe water and as a flowing streame And as a ioint of timber closed together in the foundation of a building cannot be disioined so also cannot the heart that is stablished in the thoughts of discretion And as S. Austin sayth Wisdome teacheth vs to continue at one stay both in prosperitie and aduersitie like vnto the hand which changeth not his name but is alwaies one whether it be held out or gathered vp together And albeit that wisdome be a gift of God and come of a well disposed mind and of a good vnderstanding yea and of a body that is well tempered as witnesseth Galen in his first booke of Temperatures where he sayth That the first action of a man of good temperature is Discretion yet is it gotten by learning and discipline For the true desire of discipline is the beginning of wisdome Also it is gotten by long experience and knowledge of things past and by continuall exercise in dealing with sundrie affairs For as Afranius sayd by report of Aulus Gellius Wisedome is begotten by vse and conceiued by memorie meaning thereby that it consisteth in bookes which put vs in remembrance of things past and in experience which is the vse and practise of wisedome In so much that neither he that hath but only learning nor he that hath but only experience is able to attain vnto wisdome but he that will deale perticularly and vniuersally in all affairs must haue them both as well the one as the other And as Aristotle saith there are three things needfull to the obtainment of Wisdome namely Nature Learning and Exercise For it is in vaine to striue against Nature Learning must be had at learned mens hands and Exercise is the perfection of learning And therefore it will not be amisse to treat of Learning and Experience CHAP. II. That the good gouernour must match Learning and Experience together AS the body is made the more strong and better disposed by moderat exercise so mans vnderstanding groweth and encreaseth by learning and becommeth the stronger and better disposed to the managing of affairs In which respect Demetrius Phalareus counselled Ptolomie king of Aegypt to make diligent search for such bookes as treated of kingdoms and declared the qualities that are requisit for the well and due executing of the office of a king And Alexander Seuerus neuer sat in counsell vpon any case of importance or vpon any matter of state and war but he called such to counsell as bare the name to be well seene in histories Bias would not haue any man chosen a gouernour in his common-wealth but such as were of skill saieng that the want of skill is the cause of great inconueniences Philip commaunded Alexander to obey Aristotle and to be a good student to the intent quoth he that ye do not many things whereof ye shal repent you afterward Adrian as well in peace as in warre had of the skilfullest Philosophers alwaies about his person and among others he had two great lawyers Saluius and Neratius Plutarke in the life of Coriolan sayth that the greatest fruit that men reape of the knowledge of good learning is that therby they tame and meeken their nature that afore was wild and fâ—erce so that by vse of reason they find the Meane and leaue the Extream When one asked Alfons king of Arragon wherfore he did so greatly loue learning Because qd he by reading I haue learned war and the law of arms acknowledging therein that no wit be it neuer so good can fashion it selfe wel and become worthie of the charge which it shall vndertake without learning and doctrine Like as the fattest ground in the world can beare no corne except it be well tilled so nature of it selfe draweth and prouoketh vs by giuing vs a desire of knowledge and skill as Cicero saith in his books of Duties but Ignorance which wee find fault with as with the thing that darkeneth and defaceth mans vnderstanding cannot be done away but by learning My meaning is not to make a prince perfectly skilful in all sciences but only in that kind of learning which concerneth histories and precepts of good life according to the counsell of Demetrius and Isocrates who said that the wisdome which is proper to kings consisteth in Learning and Experience of which two Learning teacheth the way to doe well and Experience teacheth the meane how to vse Learning well And albeit that Traian who was one of the best princes of the world gaue not himselfe to learning for any commendation therof that Plutarke made vnto him saieng that the gods immortall had not made him to turne ouer the leaues of bookes but to deale with martiall affairs yet was he not
ruine by it But Agrippa pacified the whole matter by his eloquence and brought the people backe to obedience when they had alreadie banded themselues in companies Pisistratus handled the Athenians so cunningly with the finesse of his toung that he made himself king of Athens Such as were sent by Cinna to haue slaine Antonie the Orator were so surprised with his eloquence that when they heard him speake they had no mind at all to kill him The eloquence of Cicero caused the disanulling of the law for the diuiding of lands whereof the people of Rome had conceiued so great liking and which had bene so often propounded in so much that when they had heard him speake they vtterly abolished it for euer whereof Plinie maketh a wonder The like grace of speech enforced Iulius Caesar to pardon Ligarius whome he was resolutly determined to haue put to death To be short it is a thing of so great power that a prince who hath many vnder his charge can in no wise forbeare it And if he fortune not to be eloquent inough of himselfe it would behoue him to haue some good orator about him as Moses tooke Aaron to persuade the people and to preach vnto them because he found himselfe vnfit for that purpose For it is to no purpose for a man to haue goodly conceits vnlesse he put them forth For according to the saieng of Themistocles Eloquence is like a peece of tapistrie wrought with figures and imagerie which shew themselues when the cloth is vnfoldâ—d and are hidden when it is lapped vp together and euen so a man cannot shew the goodly conceits of his mind vnlesse hee haue eloquence to vtter them Cicero saiih in his Orator that by the eloquence and persuasion of such as could handle their toungs well the people that were scattered abroad in the wild fields and forrests were first brought into cities and townes It is of such force that it maketh the things to be beleeued that were incredible and smootheth things that were vnpolished And as the mind is the beautie of a man so is Eloquence the beautifier of the mind The same author in the second booke of the Nature of gods saith thus A beautiful and diuine thing soothly is Eloquence for it maketh vs to learne the things we know not and to teach the things we know by it we persuade and comfort the sorrowfull by it we encourage them that bee dismaied by it we strike them dead that are too lustie by it we pacifie the angrie and kill folks lusts that is it that hath drawne vs into fellowship into societie into cities to liue according to equitie and law Yet is it not inough to haue learning and eloquence vnlesse they bee also matched with experience Bias in his lawes would haue a Prince to be chosen of the age of fortie yeares to the end he should gouerne well by good discretion and experience For it is well known that neither Phisitions nor Generals of war be they neuer so well instructed with precepts can well discharge their duties without experience And as the emperor Adrian was wont to say in the generall ordering and managing of matters of State One yeares experience is better woorth than ten yeares learning And for that cause he preferred Antonie to the Empire before Marcus Aurelius as making more account of Antonies experience than of Marks lerning Agamemnon desired not so much to haue learned and eloquent men of his counsell as to haue such as Nestor was that is to say men of great experience Plutarke saieth that the wise and valeant captaine Philopemen presuming that his skill which he had in ordering a battel vpon the land would also serue him alike vpon the sea learned to his cost what sway experience beareth in matters of chiualrie and how great aduantage they haue in all things which are well experienced The skill how to gard and defend a mans selfe is not learned saieth Thucidides by talking but accustoming himselfe to pains-taking and to handling of his weapon One asked Zeuxidamus why the Lacedemonians had no lawes written because quoth he they should rather enure themselues to the doing of noble and honorable things than to read of them Panthoidas said the same to the Anthenians that asked him what he thought of the Philosophers which had disputed before him assuring them that they had spoken goodly things but to themselues vnprofitable whereby he meant to doe the Athenians to vnderstand that they had vertue in their mouths but not in their deeds The knowledge that is gotten serueth to the ordering of mens affairs but if it be without practise it is like a body without a soule Very vnwise therfore was he which by his sophistrie would haue made Iphicrates beleeue that the Philosopher is the onely good captaine And we may well say with Anaxippus that such discoursers doe shew themselues wise in words but in effect are starke fooles Now therefore we conclude with Aristotle that such as will deale in matters of state must aboue all things haue experience and this experience is gotten by practise and exercise which is the perfecter of Learning For we see that by exercise a weake man becommeth strong and doth better away with trauell than he that being strong doth not vse exercise as Socrates sayth in Xenophon Againe they that bee practised in all things deeme truly of duties and vnderstandeth what belongeth to euery man And as saith Musonius Vertue is a science that consisteth not only in vnderstanding but also in action For euen as in Phisicke or Musicke it is not sufficient to be skilfull of the art but there must also be a practise of the actions that depend vpon the art and science so in the science of Gouernment a prince must be practised in that which concerneth action rather than in that which concerneth contemplation Can he thinke himselfe to be of good skil which when he is to go in hand with his worke findeth it cleane contrarie to his imagination Surely as Terence sayth there was neuer yet any man so well aduised afore-hand in his determinations whome age experience haue not crossed with some strange encounter so as he hath found himselfe to seeke in the things wherein he thought himselfe most skilfull and when he came to the execution hath reiected that which he thought to bee best afore he began to go in hand with it And that is allegorically the very tree of the knowledge of good and euill after the opinion of S. Austen in his thirteenth booke of the citie of God For in matter of State it is very dangerous to take white for blacke and to thinke a mans selfe to know that which hee knoweth not Therefore it behooueth a prince to be a dealer in his owne affairs and to exercise his mind at times in reading of bookes without forgetting to exercise his body He must so counterpeise his mind and his body as
them and not any other mens that are done against the common-weale as king Lewis the twelfth answered both Christianly and vertuously vnto one that whetted him to be reuenged of a certain wrong that had bin done vnto him when he was duke of Orleans It besemeth not a king of France quoth he to be auenged of iniuries done to a duke of Orleance Infinitly was Iulius Caesar commended for his clemency and that of good right For he did easily forgiue the offences that were committed against himselfe And Antonine was woont to say That there was not any thing which procured greater estimation to an emperour among strangers than clemencie did And as saith Statius it is an honourable thing to giue life to him that craueth it Neuerthelesse there is great difference between the pardoning of offences done to a mans own selfe and the pardoning of offences done to other men For it is not in you to forgiue the offences which are done against other men neither ought they to be forgiuen by any other than by such as are hurt by them neither can they also doe it to the preiudice of the common weale And therfore a prince cannot with a safe conscience giue pardon to murderers nor forgiue the offences of wicked persons to purchase himselfe the renowne of gracious and merciful For fauor and mercy graunted to naughty-packs is nought else but crueltie towards good men as Arcâ—idamidas was wont to say And therefore Cato said that those also which restrained not the wicked from euill doing if they might were to be punished because he accounted it as a prouocatioÌ„ to do euill Wherfore whatsoeuer is done against the law ought to be punished by the law the which hath no respect of seruant friend or kinsman Of which law the prince is the executor and is nothing else but a liuing law or rather the deputie or lieutenant of God the iust iudge Now it is not lawful for the deputie or vnder-agent of God to be lauish at his pleasure of that which belongeth to God because he hath not receiued it of him otherwise than in custody and vpon account and therfore he is not to bestow it vpon any man for friendships sake or for pitie Therupon it came that the Thebans to shew what iustice is did paint in their courts the images of iudges without haÌ„ds and the images of princes without eyes to shew that in Iudgment kings ought not to be surprised with any affection nor iudges carried with any couetousnes And although it be not lawfull for a Prince to be iudge in his owne cause for the auoiding of all passions yet is he not forfended to punnish the wrong that is offred him in cases of treason and rebellion but rather on the contrarie part it is a point of iustice to punish rebels as procurers of trouble to the state The emperor Maximilian espieng in a certaine vprore that was in his campe how a souldier strake vp a drum without commaundement of his captaine slew him with his own hand because the danger of his host being on a rore required the remedie of speedie and present crueltie Neuerthelesse such manner of dealing is to be done with great discretion for sometimes things may happen to bee in such case that dissimulation shall auaile more than punishmeÌ„t as it did with Pompey after the death of Sertorius For when Perpenna had sent him a cofer full of letters of Romanes that had written to Sertorius and had held on his side hee would not looke vpon any of them but cast them all into a fire for doubt least for one Sertorius then dead there should step vp twentie others at Rome when they perceiued themselues to be discouered because it falleth often out that when a man thinketh to ouerthrow one faction he multiplieth the number of his enemies And as Fabius Maximus was woont to say It is better to hold such folke in suspence by gentle and kind dealing than seuerely by rigor to seeke our all suspicions or to deale too sharpely towards such as are to be suspected In the citie of Athens there happened a conspiracie of certaine noble men against the state who had determined that if they could not compasse their purpose of themselues they would cal in the Persians to their helpe As these things were a brewing in the campe and many mo besides were guiltie of the conspiracie Aristides feeling the sent thereof stood in great feare by reason of the time For the matter was of too great importance to be passed ouer without care and there was no lesse danger in ripping vp the matter to the quicke for as much as he knew not how many might be found guiltie of the crime Therefore of a very great number he caused but only eight to be apprehended and of those eight two that were to be most deepely charged fled out of the campe and the other six he set againe at libertie Whereby he gaue occasion to such as thought not themselues to bee discouered to assure themselues of safetie and to repent them of their wicked purpose saieng that for iudgement they should haue battell whereby they might iustifie themselues At such time as Epaminondas came to besiege Lacedemon there were about two hundred of a conspiracie within the citie which had taken one of the quarters of the towne very strongly scituated wherein was the temple of Diana The Lacedemonians would haue run vpoÌ„ them out of hand in a rage But Agesilaus fearing least it might be a cause of some further great alteration commaunded all his company to keepe their places and hee himselfe vnarmed went vnto the rebels and cried vnto them Sirs ye haue mistaken my commaundment for this is not the place where I appointed you to meet in but my meaning was that some of you should haue gone to yonder place and othersome to other places pointing to diuers places with his hand The seditious persons hearing him say so were well apaid because they thought their euill purpose to haue bene vndiscouered whereupon leauing that place they departed by and by to the places hee had pointed them Then Agesilaus seizing that Fort into his hands the name whereof was Isorium caused fifteene of the Rebels to be apprehended whom he caused to bee all executed the next night One Badius hauing valeantly encountered the Carthaginenses at the battel of Cannas and being taken prisoner to requite the courtesie of Hannibal that had saued his life and giuen him his ransome as soone as he came home to his owne house to Nola made almost all his countrimen to rebell against the Romans Yet for all this Marcellus considering that the time required then to mollifie things rather than to corzie them sought not by any means to punish him but onely sayd vnto him Sith there bee in you so euident and honourable marks of your good will towards the Romans meaning the wounds that he had receiued in the
sayd battel of Cannas how happeneth it that you come not to the Romans still Thinke you that wee be so leawd and so vnthankfull that we vvill not reward the vertue of our good friends according to their vvorthinesse vvhich is honoured euen of our enemies And after hee had imbraced him in his armes he presented him vvith a goodly horse of seruice for the wars and gaue him fiue hundred dragmaes Whereupon from that day foorth he neuer forsooke Marcellus but became very loiall and a most earnest discouerer of such as tooke part against the Romans Frederike the emperour and king of Naples minding to punish the rebels of Samimato made countenance as though he had not espied their conspiracie terming them euerywhere good and loiall subiects to the end that despaire should not cause them to enter into arms against him openly as the lords of Naples that followed the part of Conradine had done against Charles duke of Aniou For when they saw that Conradine was ouercome and that there was no hope for them to obtaine pardon at the hands of Charles of Aniou they fel to rebelling and fortified themselues in diuers places Likewise when people are to far inraged it is no time to punnish but rather to reconcile and appease When the Parisians rebelled for the aids to put them in feare men began to throw some of the rebels into the water But in steed of dismaieng them they burst out into greater furie than afore in so much that the executioners were faine to giue ouer their punishment for feare of increasing the commotion in steed of appeasing it Agesilaus hauing discouered a very dangerous conspiracie did put some of the traitors to death secretly without arraignment or indictment contrarie to the lawes of Lacedemon For vnto people that are set vpon mischiefe not onely ouer-rigorous iustice but also biting words are dangerfull considering that in time of trouble and in time of commotion one word or one letter may doe more harme than a notable iniutie shall doe another time And euen so besell it to Macrinus for a letter which hee wrate vnto Mesa wherein he told him that he had bought the emperorship of a sort of couetous souldiers that had no consideration of deserts but onely who would most giue With which words the men of warre being chafed did all sweare that it should cost Macrinus his head in recompence of the wrong that he had done them And so it came to passe indeed We haue spoken sufficiently of the discretion meeldnesse and vprightnesse which a prince ought to haue in cases of iustice for the well and worthie executing thereof But for as much as it is vnpossible for a prince to attend at al times to the doing of iustice he must needs do iustice by deputies and set men of good and honest reputation in his place to do right betweene partie and partie when coÌ„trouersies rise betwixt them as Moses did by the counsell of his father in law Iethro In the chusing of whome a prince may as far ouershoot himselfe as if he iudged all causes without any foreconsideration For he that maketh not choise of good iudges dooth great wrong to the common-weale No importunat sute no earnest intreatance no gifts that could be giuen no fauour no familiaritie could euer cause Alexander Scuerus to bestow any office of iustice vpon any man whome he deemed not fit â—or it and vertuous in the administration of it Such therefore should be chosen as are of skill and of good life and they ought to haue good wages and not to take any other thing than their ordinarie stipend allowed them by the prince Traian vsed that kind of dealing of whom it is written that he could not abide that iudges should take any thing for their hire but that they should be recoÌ„pensed at his hand according to their seruice and good dealing Adrian likewise enquired of the life conuersation of the senators and when he had in truth found any that was vertuous poore he increased his intertainment and gaue him rewards of his owne priuat goods Contrariwise when he found any to be giuen to vice he neuer left vntill he had driuen him out of the senat Now then the prince that will haue good iudges yea and good officers of all sorts must either honor them and reward them or else punish them according to their deserts As touching the honoring of them Augustus hath shewed vs an example therof who at his entering into the senat-house saluted all the senators and at his going out would not suffer any of them to rise vp to him Alexander Seuerus did greatly honour the presidents of the prouinces causing theÌ„ to sit with him in his chariot that men might see the honour that he yeelded to the ministers of iustice and that he might the more conueniently talke with them concerning the rule and gouernment wherof they had the charge He neither made nor punished any senator without the aduice of the whole senat And vpon a time when he saw a freeman of his walking betweene two senators he sent one to buffet him saieng it was vnseemly that he should presume to meddle among senators which might well haue bin their seruant Likewise the Emperour Claudius neuer dealt in any affaire of importance but in the senat Euen Tiberius himselfe had great regard of them and saluted them whensoeuer he passed by them And as touching the rewarding of them the foresaid Alexander may serue for an example to good princes For he did great good to iudges and rewarded them bountifully And being asked on a time why he did so As a prince quoth he neither ought nor in reason can be truly called a prince except he minister iustice so be ye sure that when I find an officer which doth his dutie in that behalfe I cannot pay or recompence him sufficiently That is the cause why I doe them so many courtesies besides that in making them rich I bereaue them of al cause to impouerish other men But like as a good iudge cannot be too much recoÌ„pensed so an euill iudge cannot be too much punished We haue a notable example knowne to all men concerning the punishment of the iudge whom Cambyses made to be flaine quick and with his skin curried caused the seat of iudgement to bee couered and made the same iudges son to sit as iudge on it that in ministring iustice he should bethinke him of his fathers punishment Albeit that Antonine was very pittifull yet was he very rigorous to iudges that did not their dutie insomuch that wheras in other cases he pardoned eueÌ„ the greeuousest offences in this case he punnished euen the lightest There was also another thing in him right worthie of commeÌ„dation in the execuâ—ion of iustice namely that to auoid confusion he caused al such to be dispatched out of hand as had any sute in the court And when any office was void he would
too soft nor too rigorous inpunishing but as the cause deserueth For he must not affect the glorie of meeldnesse or of seueritie but when he hath wel considered the case he must doe iustice as the case requireth vsing mercie and gentlenesse in small matters and shewing seueritie of law in great crimes howbeit alwaies with some temperance of gentlenesse For as Theodorike was woont to say It is the propertie of a good and gracious prince not to be desirous to punish offences but to take them away least by punishing them too eagerly or by ouerpassing them too meeldly he be deemed vnaduised and carelesse of the execution of iustice S. Iohn Chrysostome saith That iustice without mercie is not iustice but crueltie and that mercie without iustice is not mercie but folly And to my seeming Suetonius hath no great likelihood of reason to commend Augustus for mercifull in that to saue a manifest parricide from casting into the water in a sacke as was wont to be done to such as had confessed themselues guiltie of that fault he asked him after this maner I beleeue thou hast not murthered thy father For he that iustifieth the wicked and hee that condemneth the guiltlesse are both of them abhominable to the Lord saith Salomon in his Prouerbs And aboue all things as saith Cicero in his booke of Duties he must beware that the punishment be not too great for the offence and that where many bee partakers of one crime one be not sore punished and another sleightly passed ouer CHAP. IIII. That a prince ought to be liberall and to shun niggardship and prodigalitie THus much in few words concerning iustice the which Cicero diuideth into two namely into that which is tearmed by the generall name of Righteousnesse into that which is tearmed Liberalitie accordingly as the holy scripture doth ordinarily take righteousnesse for the liberalitie that is vsed towards the needie the which we call Alms or Charitie He hath dispersed giuen vnto the poore saith the Psalmist and his righteousnesse endureth for euer that is to say He will continue still to shew himselfe righteous and he shall haue wherin to execute his liberalitie all the daies of his life And S. Paule in his second Epistle to the Corinthians prayeth God to encrease the reuenues of their righteousnesse that is to say of their liberalitie or bounteousnesse And in the one and twentith of the Prouerbs He that followeth righteousnesse and mercie saith Salomon He that is kind-hearted and pitifull to the poore shall find life righteousnesse and glorie And in the same place The righteous giueth saith he and spareth not Now therfore I must speake more particularly of the distributiue righteousnesse which is called Liberalitie and is as it were the meane betwixt niggardlinesse and prodigalitie a vertue well-beseeming a rich man For as saith Plato He that hath store of goods if he make others partakers with him is to be honoured as a great man but specially it most beseemeth a prince as who is better able to put it in vse than any priuat persons For Liberalitie vndoeth liberalitie because that the more a man vseth it the more he abateth his abilitie of vsing it towards many A king who hath great reuenues may honourably vse it in his life without abating the meane to doe good to such as deserue it Therefore Plutarch in his booke of the Fortunatnesse and vertue of Alexander saith That as the fruits of the earth grow faire by the temperatnesse of the aire euen so good wits are furthered by the liberalitie honourable countenaunce and courtesie of a king and that on the contrarie part they droope and decay through his niggardship displeasure and hard-dealing For the very dutie of a king said Agesilaus is to doe good vnto many Ptolomaeus Lagus said It was a more goodly and princely thing to enrich other men than to enrich himselfe according to S. Paules saying That it is better to giue than to take And Fabricius had leuer to haue at commaundement men that were well monied than the monie it selfe Dennis the tyrant of Siracuse offered presents to the ambassadours of Corinth the which they refused saying That the law of their countrie forbad them to take ought of any prince whatsoeuer Wherevnto hee answered Surelie yee doe amisse O yee Corinthians in that yee bereaue princes of the best thing that they haue For there is not any other meane to take away the misliking of so great a power than by courtesie and liberalitie Alexander was woont to say That there was not a better hoording vp of treasure than in the purses of his friends because they will yeeld it him againe whensoeuer hee needeth it Now then this vertue doth maruellously well beseeme a prince because he hath wherwith to put it in vre and yet neuerthelesse it ceasseth not to be in the mind of a poore man also For a man is not to be deemed liberall for his great gifts but for the will that he hath to do good For a poore man may be more liberall than a rich although he giue far lesse without comparison than the rich because liberalitie like as all other vertues proceedeth chiefly from the disposition or inclination that a man hath to giue As for example the poore widow that did put the two mites into the offering box was esteemed to haue giuen more than al the rich men though the thing she gaue was nothing in cōparison of the gifts of other men For liberalitie consisteth not in the greatnes of the gifts but in the maner of the giuing And he is liberall which giueth according to his abilitie vnto good men and vpon good causes This vertue represseth nigardship and moderateth prodigalitie causing a man to vse his goods and his money aright The meane to vse these well consisteth in three points The first is in taking a mans owne money where he ought to take it and hereunto maketh the good husbanding of him that spareth his reuenue to spend it to good purpose For he that hath not wherewith to maintain his expenses doth amisse in making large expenses at other mens cost and he that hath it doth amisse if he spend it not because there is not any thing that winneth a prince so much the fauor of his people as liberalitie doth Dennis the tyrant intēding to try his son furnished him with much costly stuffe iewels and vessell both of gold and siluer of great price And when long time after he had espied that the plate remained with him still he taunted him saieng that he had not a princely hart sith he had not made him friends with his plate hauing such abundāce for he was of opinion that such gifts would haue gotten his son good will at all mens hands For as Salomon saith in the xix of the prouerbs euery man is a friend to the man that giueth And in the chapter going afore he saith That a mans
the comming in of riches doth the more sharpen the desire of hoording vp and of coueting stil to haue The Scithians on a time said thus to Alexander What need hast thou of riches which do enforce thee to couet euer more and more Thou art the first that of abundance hast made penury insomuch that the more thou possessest the more eagerly doest thou couet that which thou hast not Plutarch in his booke of Couetousnes saith that all other lusts doe helpe toward the assuaging of thēselues but this vice doth euer withstand it For there was neuer any glutton that through gluttony forbare the pleasant morsels that hee liked nor drunkard that through drunkennesse forbare the good wine but the couetous mā through couetousnes forbeareth to touch his monie which is as strange a thing as if we should see a man refuse to put on a good gowne because he quaketh for cold or to refuse meat because he is ready to die for hunger Couetousnes cōpelleth men to get and forbiddeth them to enioy that they haue gotten it stirreth vp the appetite and bereaueth the pleasure In so much that the couetous person wanteth as well that which he hath as that which he hath not And he likeneth them to mules which though they carrie great store of gold and siluer on their backs yet they themselues doe feed vpon hay Yet dooth not this import that a man should not make account of money and prouide therwith for his necessities but that it ought to be done after a reasonable maner and of purpose to bestow it wel in due time and place And herevnto relieth the answer of Simonides of whome when one demaunded why he hoorded vp money towards the end of his old age Because quoth he I had leauer to leaue my goods to mine enemies when I am dead than to haue need of the reliefe of my friends while I am aliue To the same purpose Bion the Boristhenit said that riches are the sinews of mens deeds and that as it is said in the prouerbe Without goods goodnesse is maimed that is to say it cannot well shew it selfe But yet must a man beware that he set not his heart too much vpon them ne vse them too basely in banishing the pleasure of them to indure all the miserie For it is the vse that maketh riches If you take your part of them they be yours if you reserue them for your heirs vntill that time they be none of yours For he that is a slaue to his money can haue no good of his riches But a man of vnderstanding taketh the present vse of his goods and hee that will not vse them is needie of all things And as Plutarch saith in his booke of the Desire of riches Richnesse consisteth in the not hauing of superfluous things For niggardlinesse commeth of an inordinat coueting to haue and we see how such as somtime had neither bread nor drinke nor house nor home as soone as they came to bee rich haue occupied their minds about gold and siluer horsses and hounds changing the desire of things needfull into the desire of things dangerfull rare hard to be gotten and vnaccustomed Therefore whosoeuer possesseth more than is be hooffull for him and is still desirous of more it is neither gold nor cattell nor horses that can cure his disease but he hath need of a vomit and a purgation For his disease commeth not of penurie but of vnsatiable loue of riches proceeding of a corrupt iudgement Of this vice proceedeth robberie a foule and filthie sin expresly forbidden of God in the ten commaundements howbeit that Licurgus permitted it to the Lacedemonians to the intent they should be the warier in keeping their things but yet they were punished for it if they were taken with the fact There are that excuse their couetuousnesse by the multitude of their children And soothly it is a sufficient cause to restraine ouer-great expenses and to hold a mans hand from selling for feare he should leaue them poore But to pine a mans selfe for their sakes and to hoord vp heape vpon heape to make them rich I count it neither husbandrie nor thriftinesse but the very desire of hauing which we call Couetousnesse And for that cause doth Plutarch in the same treatise of the Desire of riches say thus Why desire we so great riches for our children Surely to the end that they also should conuey them ouer to their children after the maner of conduit-pipes which keepe not any liquor resting in them but conuey it foorth from pipe to pipe vntill some backbiter or some tyrant come that cutteth off this good keeper and breaking his conduit-pipe conueieth the water-course of his riches another way vntill the veriest vnthrift and naughtipacke of all his race come and deuour all those goods alone For as the emperor Constantine said All the treasures that are hoorded vp by the couetous shall be spent by the hands of the prodigall But for as much as of couetousnesse commeth the desire of riches and there is no man but he esteemeth it a great happinesse to be rich it were for our behalfe to know what richnesse is and what is the meane to become rich This question is not now first of all demaunded for it was demaunded on a time of Socrate◠Whom he esteemed to be the richest man Euen that man quoth he that needeth fewest things meaning that richnesse is to be measured by the vse of riches And he said That a man was thē rich whē he had sufficient wherwith to liue honestly accounting those to be most poore which hauing store of goods wanted wit and will to vse them For pouertie consisteth not in the small quantitie of goods but in the vnsatiablenesse of the mind Cicero saith in his Paradoxes That the fruit of riches is in the aboundance of them and that sufficednesse sheweth that there is aboundance and that to be contented with the goods a man hath is the surest richnesse One demaunded of Alcamenes What means a prince should vse to keepe well his realme The best quoth he is not to set his mind vpon mony nor to make his reuenue ouer-great Plutarch in the life of Marcus Cato saith There is not a more needfull prouision for them that intend to deale with the gouernment of a common-weale than riches but yet there is a sufficiency which being contented with it selfe without desiring particularly things superfluous doth by that means neuer distract the partie that hath it from minding and intending the publike affairs Anacharsis said That the couetous person and the nigard is vnable either to conceiue any good doctrine or to giue any good and wise counsell Lucrece said It is great riches when a man liueth trimlie of the little that he hath because that of that little there is not any want Horace in his twelfth Ode saith That a man may liue well and merrily of a little without breaking
Plutarch in his Protagoras there is a difference betweene prowesse and boldnes For ordinarily euery man of prowesse is bold but euery bold man is not valeant and ful of prowesse For boldnesse may come by art by furie or by choler but prowesse commeth of good education and of a certaine inworking secret force and goodnes of nature Cato seeing his sword salne among his enemies tooke it vp againe as boldly and constantly as if his enemies had not ben there We call this a Boldnes howbeit not simply a boldnes but rather a prowesse because it had ben a shaine for him to haue lest his sword to his enemie So then there was a cause of this boldnes otherwise it had ben but rashnes Likewise the deed that Robert de la March did at the iournie of Nouara was full of vertuous Boldnes accompanied with prowesse and naturall kindnes for his fatherly affection made him to enter bareheaded but with one squadron of horsemen into the thickest or the Suitzers that had 〈◊〉 die gotten the victorie to saue his two sonnes Florange and Iamais captains of the Lanceknights who lay sore wounded vpon the ground where he fought with such furie that the Suitzers themselues maruelled greatly that hee could recouer them aliue out of so great danger Iulius Caesar perceiuing the Neruians that is to say the people of Turney to haue the better hand caught a buckler out of a souldiers hand that began to quaile and taking his place did such feats of arms that all his armie tooke courage againe and got the victorie The same Caesar seeing his standard-bearer readie to flie caught him by the throte and shewed him the enemies saieng Whether wilt thou Behold these bee the enemies with whome we haue to deale And he did so well by his Boldnesse valeantnesse and words that he woon the victorie And in that case boldnesse was needfull When Cirus the yoonger was about to giue battell Clearchus counselled him to hold himselfe behind the Macedonians What say you Clearchus qd Cyrus would you haue me to seeke a kingdome and to make my selfe vnworthie of it To put a mans selfe in perill to no purpose is rash boldnesse but if need require a man must not be afraid and he that is not so afraid is deemed both bold and valiant And as Plato sayd in his defence of Socrates the man that is valeant and full of prowesse is without feare So that they are in an error which say that prowesse is a moderating of feare As for Magnanimitie it is the selfe same valiantnesse which hath respect to nothing but vertue as shall be declared hereafter As touching Confidence it is annexed to valeantnes and victorie doth often depend theron For the beginning of conquest is an assuring of a mans selfe that he shal conquer as Plutarch saith in the life of Themistocles Wee haue seene with what confidence Alexander went to make war against Darius hauing but a handfull of men in comparison of him Agesilaus hauing but ten thousand men nor only defended the Lacedemonians but also willingly made war vpon the king of Persia. As Hanniball stood looking vpon the great and braue armie of the Romanes at the battell of Cannas one Gisco said vnto him That it was a wonderous thing to see so many men It is yet much more woonderfull answered Hanniball that in all that great host there is not one like vnto thee This confidentnesse made the Carthaginenses the more assured when they saw their Generall take so great skorne and so little regard of the Romane armie Therefore it is neither rashnesse to bee confident nor prowesse to thrust a mans selfe into perill without cause after the manner of that Lacedemonian which had leuer to ouerthrow his armie through his rash boldnesse and vain-glorie than to shun the battell not considering that in loosing himselfe he lost a great number of his countrimen whom Scipio would haue held so deere that hee would rather haue saued one of them than haue discomfited a thousand enemies Paulus Emilius being readie to giue battell to Perseus retired his people without doing any thing and lodged them in his campe the which he had fortified And when Scipio Nasica and other yoong noble men of Rome desired him to make no delay I would make none quoth he if I were of your age but the victories that I haue gotten in time past by deliberation haue taught me the faults that are committed by such as are vanquished and doe forbid me to goe so hotly to assaile an host readie ranged and set in order of battell afore I haue rested my people that are but newly arriued Pericles neuer hazarded armie where he saw great doubt or apparent likelihod of danger And he thought them no good capteins which had gotten great victories by aduenturing ouer-far but was wont to say That if none other than he did lead them to the slaughter they should abide immortall Vpon a time when he saw the Athenians desirous to fight with the Lacedemonians whatsoeuer perill came of it for wasting their territorie When trees quoth he be cropped or cut downe they grow again within a while after but when men are once lost it is vnpossible to recouer them Also in prowesse there is Sufferance and as Epaminondas said To beare with things in matters of state is a spice of prowesse For it behoueth oftentimes to put vp iniuries and to heare mis-speeches of himselfe without making account of them which is the propertie of Magnanimitie as I shall declare hereafter Insomuch that the goodly precept of Epictetus which commaundeth to beare and forbeare is to be vnderstood of nothing else than Valiantnesse meaning that men must beare aduersities with a constant mind and princely courage not suffering themselues to be dismaied by them or to be corrupted by prosperitie And for as much as this vertue doth ordinarily follow difficult things because great things will not bee had without great danger as saith Herodotus and the daunger of war is greatest we attribute Valiantnesse chiefly to chiualrie and warre as wherin the conceit of death is greatest For commonly we conceiue not death so much when we be sick because the mischiefe is hidden nor when we be in peril on the sea because by the touching of the water we feele not the inconuenience that commeth by the touch of the sword in the maiming of our members which causeth vs to conceiue the violentnesse of death so much the more as it lieth in vs to auoid it by flight Werevpon it commeth to passe that few men resolue themselues to die the death that lieth in them to eschew But such as resolue themselues to it do get themselues great honor and reputation among men When one dâ—maunded of Agesilaus What was the way to atchieue honour hee answered To make no reckoning of death For he that is afraid to die can doe nothing worthie of praise This vertue is the
magnanimitie in the world and surely no man is ignorant but that a man of magnanimitie may die at the sea without feare not after the maner of marinets The fourth is called Furious when a man fighteth vpon hatred choler or passion In so doing he seemeth couragious because as Aristotle saith Choller is a great spurre to pricke one foorth to danger yet notwithstanding he is not so for as soone as his rage is ouer he beginneth to wexlasie and is willing to be gone at the least intreatance that can be Now then it is no valiancie to put a mans selfe into danger when he is spurred with sorrow or anger Likewise the foole-hardie seemeth of great courage though he be not so because hee putteth himselfe foorth to danger without cause But men ought in all things to deale by reason for that which done with reason is wel-beseeming and commended of all men and that which is done otherwise is blamed Such as discerne not good from euill thinke a man to be of great courage because he seemeth so whereas indeed it is either rashnes follie or rage that maketh him to seeme so as we read of Coriolan who when he was cōdemned of the people shewed not any greefe and that as saith Plutarch was not through any drift or persuasion of reason or through any calmenesse of disposition that made him to beare his mis-fortune patiently and meeldly but through a vehement despight and desire or reuenge which carried him so forciblie away that he seemed not tofeele his owne miserie the which the common people suppose not to be sorrow though it be so in deed For when such griefe is set on fire then turneth it into despight and then forgoeth it the basenesse lasinesse and faintnesse which is naturall vnto it And therfore as he that hath a feuer seemeth full of heat so hee that is chollericke seemeth as though a mans mind were puft out and made greater and larger by his being in such disposition The fifth kind is called Customarie which is when a man hath alwaies bin woont to ouer-come and neuer bin foiled such customablenesse maketh him to goe the more boldly to the encounter But if he found resistance then would he flie as well as other men for want of resolute purpose in valiantnesse The sixt sort is called Beastlie which is when a man goeth like a beast to find his enemie not thinking him to be couragious and that he will make resistance against him whereby it may befall him as I haue said of the other The seuenth sort is called Vertuous which is the true and only kind of Prowesse as when a man warreth or putteth himselfe in danger not by constraint nor vpon choller experience or ignorance but because it is expedient and behoofful in reason to be done As for example a prince must not make warre vnlesse it bee iust and for the benefit of his realme or for the tuition and defence thereof and of his subiects and not vpon ignorance or for Ambition or desire of reuenge CHAP. VIII of Magnanimitie MAgnanimitie approcheth vnto Prowesse and Valiantnesse but yet it hath some thing greater And like as magnificence being nothing else than liberalitie is notwithstanding counted a greater thing euen so is it with Magnanimitie which ought to bee proper peculiar to princes who set their minds or at least wise ought to set their minds on none but great matters For as Demosthenes saith it is a hard matter for them that set their minds vpon base things to haue a high and bold spirit or for them that haue the managing of great affaires to mind the small things For such as the state of a man is such is his mind Alexander by reason of his valiant and hardie courage thought nothing to be impregnable nor any thing too strong for a firme and resolute mind Wherfore being about to assaile a place that was impregnable hee demaunded what courage the captaine was of that was within it And when he vnderstood that he was the veriest coward of the world that is well for vs quoth he for that place is alwais to be woon which is held by a faint-hearted coward And in verie deed he woon the place by putting the keeper therof in feare Now then Magnanimitie is a certaine excellencie of courage which aiming at honour directeth all his doings thervnto and specially vnto vertue as the thing that is esteemed the efficient cause of honour in respect wherof it doth all things that are vertuous and honourable with a braue and excellent courage and differeth from valiantnesse of prowesse in that prowesse respecteth chiefly the perils of warre and magnanimitie respecteth honour Insomuch that Magnanimitie is an ornament vnto all vertues because the deeds of vertue be worthie of honour the which are put in exceution by Magnanimitie As for example when it is said That it belongeth not to a man of Magnanimitie to doe wrong this is a vertuous and iust deed which bringeth honour to the man of Magnanimitie and therfore we say That Magnanimitie is an ornament to all vertues because it maketh them the greater in that the honor wheron the nobleminded man setteth his eye surmounteth all things But yet in this do Magnanimitie and prowesse agree that both of thē are void of feare despise death greefe peril and danger not suffering themselues to be ouer-weighed by prosperitie or aduersitie Cicero in the fift of his Tusculane questions saith That if a man bend himselfe to despise the things that are commonly had in estimation as strength beautie health riches and honor regardeth not their contraries he may go with his head vpright make his boast that neither the frowardnes of fortune nor the opinion of the cōmon people nor sorrow nor pouertie shall be able to put him in feare but all things are in his hand and nothing is out of his power And in his first booke of Duties We deeme it saith he the part of a noble courage and a constant mind to be so firme and stable through the working of reason as to make no reckoning of the things which other men esteeme to be goodlie and excellent and to beare the things in such sort which seeme hard and bitter as he swarue not from the state of nature and from the dignitie which a wise man ought to haue and that it is the point of a nobleminded constant man not to be dismaied with aduersitie nor to shrinke a whit from the place where he standeth nor to step aside from reason For it is a token of lightnesse not to be able to beare aduersitie as well as prosperitie On the cōtrarie part it is a goodly thing to keepe one selfe-same maner of dealing in all a mans life yea and euen one selfe-same countenance The magnanimitie and constancie of Aristides was so great that for all the honor that was done vnto him he was neuer high-minded nor for any
and a brest of mutton raised the siege of the Englishmen before Orleans and recouered the whole realme of France from them Antonie and Cleopatra who spent three or foure hundred thousand French crownes at a banquet in one day were vanquished by Octauius who was sober and contented himselfe with common meats eating and drinking but little Also Iulius Caesar was sober and a small drinker and it was said of him That he was the onely sober man that went about to ouerthrow the state as who would say the subuerting of states belonged rather to drunkards and giddi-headed persons than to men that are sober and discreet Romulus was sober and a small drinker And when it was said of him That if all men did as he did wine would be good cheape Nay quoth he it would rather be deare if euerie man should drinke as much as I do who do drinke as much as I list Tiberius as if he had beene a very thriuing and sparing man would be serued the next day with the meats that had been dressed for his supper the night afore with a pretence of nigardship but to say the truth it was but to mocke and deceiue the world for at the last he would drinke well By meanes whereof when he was yet a yong man long afore he was emperour being in the campe in stead of Tiberius he gate himselfe the name of Biberius and in stead of Claudius he gate himselfe the name of Caldius and in stead of Nero he gat himselfe the name of Mero And good cause why for he bestowed two dayes and one night together in nothing else but eating and drinking with Pomponius Flaccus and Lucius Piso to whom he gaue great presents and committed vnto them the managing of great affaires in recompence of their gluttonie calling them men for all hours To eschue this vice we must follow the counsell of Socrates who would haue men to forbeare all meats and drinks that allure the appetite more than is behooffull for the staunching of hunger and thirst For dilicat meats prouoke feeding and make men tender and subiect to manie diseases Contrariwise they that vse no daintie meats are more strong and lustie than the other sort as we see in men of the countrie seruants and poore men who without comparison are stronger than citizens maisters and rich men Democritus said There is not any man which doth not pray and make vowes to God for his owne health and yet we do the contrarie to that which we sue for For by our vnrulinesse we bereaue our selues of the health which we might obtaine by Sobrietie If we see a countrie infected with any daungerous disease we flee from it a hundred leagues off and as much as we can we shun all contagious aires There is no man but he shunneth blowes and dreadeth death vnlesse that prowesse put him forward And yet all men run into intâ—mperance which causeth death and which as Hesiodus saith betraieth vs into a cruell old age that is to say to a swift hastie vntimely and vnripe old age CHAP. XII Of Continencie and Incontinencie THe second sort of Temperance concerneth women which we may call Continencie and Chastitie and the contrarie we may call Incontinencie or lecherousnesse Tertullian calleth Chastitie the flower of maners the honour of the bodie and the ground of holinesse Saint Cyprian calleth it the ornament of maners the holinesse of fathers and the crowne of concord How great this vertue is and how acceptable to God those holie persons that haue vowed themselues vnto it do witnesse vnto vs and also the excellentest Philosophers the most part of whom eschewed both mariage and women to the intent they might haue their minds more attentiue lifted vp to heauenly things because that such are meetest for contemplation and beloued of God Which thing Saint Iohn intending to shew vnto vs saith in the fourteenth of the Apocalips That he saw a hundred and foure and fortie thousand men which sung a new song before the throne of God and that none other but those hundred and foure and fortie thousand could sing that song And these saith he are those which haue not defiled themselues with women because they be virgins follow the lambe whether soeuer he goeth He magnifieth the martyrs other holy coÌ„fessors but of these only he saith That they follow the lambe whersoeuer he becom giuing honor prerogatiue to virgins And such as cannot be so haue mariage for their remedie wherein a man may liue chastly when the man keepeth himselfe to his wife and the wife to her husband according to the precept of Saint Paule and of Salomon who saith Let thy welbeloued seruant keepe companie with thee meaning his wife And let vs drinke of the water of our owne cup of our owne pit or of our owne well to the intent to debarre the vice of adulterie which oftentimes causeth the ruine of realmes and common-weals Nero being wicked and incestuous said There was not a chast and continent person in the world but onely that most men cloked the vice by subtiltie and hypocrisie And because he was so much giuen to that vice himselfe he thought it vnpossible for any man to be cleare Yet notwithstanding it is said of Laelius That in all his life he neuer had to do with anie other than his owne wife and that after her death he neuer knew anie other Iulian the Emperour liued in continuall continencie after the death of his wife notwithstanding that he was a yong man There are manie men and women both Greeks Romans to be found which haue beene maruellous chast and well staid Porcia the sister of Cato said That the chast woman neuer marrieth more than once Men attribute the continencie of Xenocrates to a certaine insensibilitie But he was too wise and too great a personage to be without any feeling for he was a Philosopher of great renowme temperat and well staid in all things such a one as passed little for monie women and other pleasures but continued alwaies as sad and graue as was possible whom Plato counselled to offer sacrifice to the graces that he might become more courteous and gracious In his time there was the most beautifull and gentle courtisan of the world named Phrynee Now certaine yong men laid a wager with this Phrynee that they would lay a man by her that should not be moued by her beautie nor by all her daliances When the wager was made they made the said Xenocrates to be laid in a faire bed and the curtisan taried not long after ere she came into the bed vnto him where she forgate not any thing that might serue to kindle a mans courage though he had bin of marble finally after many kissings touchings and wanton daliances all that euershe could win of him that night was that she was faine to leaue him as she found him The next morning hir paramours came to know whether
he will not haue vs to vse abundance of words as Ecclesiasticus saith in the fifth chapter that it is the property of fooles to vse manie words vnto God and that the multitude of words without reason betoken a foolish praier And our Lord will not haue vs to pray after the maner of the Heathen who thinke they shall be heard for the multitude of their words For as S. Paul saith in the second to the Corinthians The kingdome of God consisteth not in words As touching the maner of speaking Cicero shews it vs briefly in his Duties saying That in talking a man must not be too stiffe of opinion but must suffer euery man to speake in his turne and consider whereof he speaketh so as if it be a matter of earnest it be done with grauitie or if it be a matter of mirth it be done cheerfully and in any wise a man must not speake without the bounds of reason For as saith Euripides In the end euery vnbridled toung shall find it selfe vnfortunate and the great talker hath this inconuenience that he is not euer beleeued and yet our speaking is to the end that we would haue our sayings beleeued Plutarch speaking of a babler in his treatise of too much speaking saith That as corne shut vp in a moist vessell increaseth in measure but impaireth in goodnes euen so doth a babler For he increaceth much his words by putting them forth but his so doing bereaueth them of all power to persuade And as it is held for a truth that the seed of such as companie with women too much is not of strength to beget children so the words of great talkers is barreine and fruitlesse And like as in our bodies the parts that are infected and diseased do alwaies draw to them the corrupt humors of the parts next vnto them so the tongue of a great babler being as it were in the whot fit of a burning feuer doth alwaies gather togither and draw vnto it some secret lurking euill He that will see the mischiefes that haue happened to many men by too much speaking and the meane to remedie the same let him reade the treatise of Plutarch concerning too much speaking where he treateth of it so largely that nothing can be added vnto it and also Erasmus booke of the Tongue Neuerthelesse I may say in generall that to keepe a mans selfe from the vice of the tongue he must eschue curiositie lying flatterie mockerie slaundering and tale bearing I call curiositie or inquisitiuenes a discouering of things that are to be kept secret For commonly it commeth to passe that he which is desirous to know too much is a great babler And that is the cause why a certaine great Poet counselleth vs to shun inquisitiue folke because he is a great babler and the property of a great babler is io bewray secrets to sow discord to make quarrels to offend freinds and to make enemies The fashion of inquisitiue folks is to learne mens pedegrees the vices of their races the doings of their houses the faults that befall in mens families what the neighbour oweth and how he gouerneth his wife also to silch letters to stand listening by mens wals to herken what they say to marke diligently what seruants and chambermaids do or say if he see a woman passe through the streets to enquire whēce she coms if he see men talke in secret to learne wherof they speake To be short as Plutarch saith in his booke of Inquisitiuenes they be like to pullerie which as long as they haue a graine to eat do neuer leaue scraping in the dunghill to haue one little graine of corne more so the inquisitiue folke in stead of setting their minds vpon histories and good doings and other needfull things the which are not forbidden to be enquired of do fall to gathering and hoording vp the euill of some house In this case the Athenians shewed themselues to be good men to Philip and little inquisitiue of houshold secrets For hauing intercepted his courriers they opened all his letters and read them sauing those that were written vnto him by his wife Olimpias the which they sent vnto him closed and vnbroken vp as they were Lisimachus demanded of Philippides what he would haue of him ask what you wil sir qd he so it be no secret because that commonly men conceale not any thing but that which is euil and that is the thing that the vnderminer is inquisitiue of And like as the spondgie places of leather do draw into them the worst of the leather so the inquisitiue eares do draw all the matters that are to be had Therefore the law of the Locrians was good which amerced the partie at a good fine that enquired after newes And like as cookes to stirre coles well in their kitchins desire but good store of flesh meates and fisshermen good store of fish so the inquisitiue sort desire abundance of mischieues great numbers of dealings store of nouelties and great chaunges that they may haue wherewith to hunt and kill The remedy of inquisitiuenes is neither to here nor to see the things that belong not vnto vs. For the eie is one of the hands of curiositie is matched with blabbing that is to wit with babling out againe as sayth Plutarch in his treatise of the Fruit of foes As for the Lier he hath no need of eies for he forgeth what he listeth of whome Horace speaking sayth That he that can forget that which he neuer saw and hath no skill to conceale things committed to him in secret is a naughtie fellow and to be taken heed of Lying is a vice detested of God and man as I will declare anon after I haue treated of the seueral sorts of lying For this vice should seeme to be common to all men considering how Dauid saith that all men are liers And so it might seeme that this vice were in some sort excusable vntill we consider that the word Lie is taken in diuers significations Mercurie in his chap. of vnderstanding saith that lying is the foundation and substance of all vice and therefore sinne is termed nothing and leasing or lying because it consisteth of not-being or of bereauing and all not being or bereauing is out of the truth which truth is God and whatsoeuet is out of the truth is leasing And therfore saint Austen in his fourteenth booke of the Citie of God saith That the man which liueth after himselfe that is to say after his owne imagination and not according to Gods ordinance which is the truth doth surely liue in leasing because he liueth according to himselfe and not in such sort as he was created to liue And although a man liue well yet do we say that he is subiect to leasing by way of priuation of the truth which priuation he is runne into by the sinne of Adam For there is not one that doth good no
emperor was entered into Italie And this slacknesse of his saued the citie Padoa and a good part of the state of Venice And had the Venetians beene warriers and well prouided they had put king Lois to a plunge For they had as then no mo but him to deale with so that his league did him small seruice The duke of Burgoine should haue ioyned with the king of England to inuade the countrie of king Lois the eleuenth but he lingred so long at the siege of Nuis that the king of England was faine to returne and make peace as I haue said alreadie The league of the Spanish king and the Venetians against the Turke turned by and by into smoke by reason of distrust that rose betwixt them notwithstanding that the Turke was ouercome vpon the sea by the confederats at Lepanto Many times did the Italians and Spaniards ioyntly conspire to driue the Frenchmen out of Italie But one while the Spaniards departed from the confederacie another while the Pope shrunke backe and another while the Venetians fell in with vs which was a cause that we held our footing stil notwithstanding their leagues These examples with a hundred others which I leaue for briefnesse sake may warne vs that a puissant and well aduised prince shall neuer want means to disseuer such as confederat themselues against him CHAP. II. Of Gouernors sent into the frontiers of countries and whether they should be changed or suffered to continue still WHen a prince hath associated himselfe with his friends and neighbors to defend himselfe or to assaile his enemies It behoueth him to take order for his frontiers and to prouide himselfe of a good wise and valiant chieftaine to lie ordinarilie with a good number of souldiers in the prouince that is most subiect to the inuasion of enemies But here some man might demaund whether such a Gouernour or chieftaine ought neuer to be chaunged or whether he ought to be chaunged as the pretors proconsuls and presidents of prouinces were among the Romans I haue declared in the title of Iustice that the emperour Alexander Seuerus chaunged his officers oft and that Augustus altered not the custome of the Romans in sending senators into prouinces for a certaine time Aristotle in his bookes of Common-weale matters reproued the Candiots for suffering one of their magistrats whom they called Consuls to be perpetuall whereas they should haue beene shifted from time to time And it is not to be doubted but that that maner of dealing was verie behooffull in a Common-weale where euerie man lookes to beare office of honour which few should haue enioyed if the charge of gouernment should haue beene tied to one alone to occupie the place of many good citizens who could haue discharged the office as well as he And thereof would haue ensued a great inconuenience namely that an armie being gouerned ouerlong by one citizen would haue growne partiall in his behalfe and not haue acknowledged any other for their head than him vnder whom they had so long serued Moreouer the Generall or chiefe captaine of an armie that shall haue continued so long together in office would become so rich and increased in honour that he could not find in his heart to liue as meane citizen afterward Whervpon it would follow of necessitie that the citizens should fall to warre among themselues That was the cause that Silla and Marius found men at their deuotion whch durst maintaine their ambition against the welfare of the common-weale The prorogation of the fiue yeares which was giuen to Iulius Caesar for the gouerning of the Gauls and the ouer-great number of offices of honour that were bestowed vpon Pompey were the cause of the ruine of Rome For there was not in his time any goodly enterprise whereof he was not the executor And although there was great reason that the Senate should prorogue the consull Philoes authoritie before Palepolis and likewise of Lucullus Metellus without sending Pompey to be successor to the one and Marius to be successor to the other Yet had it beene better for the common-weale to haue forborne that gaine and to haue left the warre vnfinished than to haue suffered the seed of tyrannie to grow vp to the ouerthrow of the publike-weale And I maruell not that Epaminâ—ndas was put to his necke-verse for executing the Pretorship contrarie to the law but onely three moneths beyond his appointed tearme though in that while he finished the war that had bin begun and deliuered the Thebans from bondage For as on the one side the greatnesse of the benefit encountered the law so on the other side there was as an apparant breach of the law which might procure great preiudice in time to come Now in a free citie this ouer-great mightines is to be feared and therefore it is no wonder though Publicola was in good time redoubted of the Romans and compelled to shew that he ment to make himselfe equall with the meanest And in mine opinion the Ostracisme of Athens which afterward was mocked at for banishing a fellow that was nought worth was not without great reason For had not the excellent citizens beene brideled by exile they would at length haue growne so proud that they would haue made themselues kings and maisters of the citie as Pericles might well haue done if he had beene of an ambitious mind and as others did afterward that were meaner than he And therefore I make no doubt of it but that in common-weals there ought to be no such thing But in Monarchies where one alone commaundeth it is better to set a gouernor or viceroy that shall continue there all his life After that maner haue our kings done in Piemont with happie successe But if the people of the prouinces make any complaints of the couetousnesse of their Gouernour or of his extortion and great crueltie or if the prince doubt of his loyaltie in such cases the prince must reuoke him and send a new in his roome Consaluo was called home from Naples by the king of Aragon who was so iealous of him that he feared least he should abuse his authoritie and defeat him of the realme But if a Gouernour be not too full of vice it is much better that he continue still For he shall learne how to behaue himselfe towards the men of his prouince by acquainting himselfe long time with their humors And for his knowledge of the countrie he shall do goodlier exploits than a new lieutenant could do besids that he shall be more loued and regarded of the Souldiers with whom he shall haue spent his yong yeares CHAP. III. Of a Lieutenant-generall and that there behoueth no mo but one to commaund an armie FOrasmuch as a prince cannot be alway with his armie it behoueth him to choose some excellent captaine to haue the commaunding thereof Now it may be demanded whether it were better to appoint two or three to that charge or to be contented with
vpon Hanniball yet notwithstanding had not the foresight of Fabius ben the valeancy of Marcellus had serued the Romans to small purpose But Hanniball hauing two valeant captains vpon him at once of two diuerse humours was sore incumbered how to deale with them For when Marcellus had lost a battell Fabius was readie at hand to stop Hanniball from passing any further And in this case seeing the Romans were able to maintaine two armies and it stoode them on hand to conquer or at leastwise to recouer that which they had lost at the iourny of Cannas they were not misaduised in their counsell to chuse these two braue captains of so differing humors to the intent that the continuall fighting of the one might wearie Hanniball and the lingering of Fabius might ouerthrow him But this is not easie for all men to do and specially for theÌ„ that haue not their people trained to the wars as the Romans had who sent them out of Rome as it were by swarms After whose example the prince that is able to leuie store of men and well trained needeth not to be afraid to giue battell to vncumber himselfe of a noisome enemie that cannot be driuen away but by fight The Romans did so against the Gaules and Germaines against Pyrrhus and against Hanniball So did Charles Martell against the Sarzins and Philip of Valois against king Eâ—ward But when a prince sees that fortune is against him then must he alter his manner of dealing as Charles the fifth did against the Englishmen For the former victories that they had obtained against the Frenchmen had taught him to seeke the oportunitie of time For sith the former way auailed him not it behoued him to try another The Gaules were valeant and furious in fight and therfore Cneus Sulpicius did well to protract time with them Hanniball was inuincible in Italie and therefore Fabius did wisely in trying another way and Scipio did boldly and valeantly in making warre in Affricke to turne him away from Italie If Manfred had taken the aduauntage of time at Naples he had done wel for he had cut the combes of the Fenchmen who are furious and almost vnpregnable at the first brunt and had in short time brought Charles to vtter want of vittels and monie Contrariwise it stood Conradine on hand to giue battell to Charles duke of Aniou as he did For he was to reconquer the countrie And Charles of Aniou being but a new conquerour and as yet scarce well assured of his kingdome was not to haue refused him neither did he For there are times and seasons which permit not delay but require of necessitie the hazarding of a battel In our ciuill warres we haue seene two captains that haue vsed means cleane contrarie one to another and yet the purpose and resolution of either of them was commendable and had come afterward to a good end if it had been ripe The duke of Guise a braue and valeant captaine if euer any were sought battell by all the means he couâ—d and could not away with lingering delaies the which he did not without great reason For first he ment to alay the fire which he saw increasing in such sort as it would be hard to quench if it were once throughly kindled in all parts Againe he feared least the prolonging of time would increase the contrary side and that many would incline that way if it were not preuented by destroying the chiefe leaders of that part by a bloody battel And as for winning therof he thought himselfe sure of it For although the contrary party had the choise of the souldiers of the old bands yet had he not such a number of horsmen as the duke of Guise led the which alone might be a cause of victorie for the footmen do nothing without horsmen Moreouer he had a great number of Suislers and a goodly bâ—nd of French harquebuzers store of ordnance seeld peeces and whatsoeuer else is requisit in an army roiall whereas the other side was but an army patched vp howbeit that there were some good and well practised captains and valiant souldiers Contrariwise Monsieur de Tauanes perceiuing that there behoued many battels to be giuen for the vtter defeating of the contrary side though it be better to delay the time and that the king should by length of time bereaue them of the countrie that they had conquered forasmuch as he had sufficient wherewith to hold out the war at length which abilitie they had not who oftentimes wanted monie and men of war to be at commandement of the ring leader because the most part serued of good will and could not enforce vs to hazard a battell but to their owne great disaduantage And if that maner had continued any longer than it did they had ben brought to a great afterdeale CHAP. IX Whether it be possible for two armies lodged one neere another to keepe themselues from being inforced to fight whether they will or no. WE haue seene the profit that commeth of waiting to take the oportunity of time and of ouermatching the enemy by long delay and protracting of time but yet there remaineth a doubt concerning the possibilitie thereof whether it lie in a mans power to refuse to come to battell when he is neere his enemie and marcheth side by side with him They that hold the opinion that a man cannot be enforced to battell alledge the examples of Cneus Sulpicius against the Gaules of Fabius Maximus against Hannibal of Pericles against the Lacedemonians of Charles the fifth against Edward king of England of the constable of France at Auignion of the duke of Alua at Naples against the duke of Guise and of diuers others who by delay of time brought the enterprises of their enemies to nothing and were neuer enforced to come to handstrokes On the contrarie part they that haue hazarded a battell in their owne countrie haue found themselues ill apaid as Craesus against Cyrus Darius against Alexander Philip of Valois against king Edward and many others aforealledged whom we forbeare to speake of to auoid tediousnes But these examples are not able to proue that a captaine cannot be compelled to fight whether he will or no. For when a conquering enemie commeth strongly into a countrie he may compell you to come to battell or else to flee or else to shut vp your selfe in some citie which are dishonourable points and of dangerous consequence The duke of Saxonie meant to haue wone time of the emperour Charles the fifth after that maner vpon trust of the great riuer Albis that was betweene the two camps but the emperour found a foord the which was shewed him by a miller whereat he passed some of the troops of his horsmen and the residue did so much by swimming and by boats that they got land on the side where their enemies lay Philip king of Macedonie the father and Perses his son encamped themselues vpon a mountaine wherunto there
to giue a certaine rule thereof it is vnpossible neither is it my intent but onely to put in practise the auncient histories and to put in writing the policies that haue beene vsed by men of old time Hanniball that captain of singular experience ordered his battell in such wise at Cannas that he set the best men of their hands on the two sides and filled vp the middest with the worser The which two wings he caused to shoot themselues forth in a point inioyning them that as soone as the Romans had broken the forefront and pursued them as they retired backe so as the middle of the battell came shrinking in and bowing in compasse like a new moone and that the Romans were come within it then they should fall vpon them on either side and inclose theÌ„ in behind Insomuch that the battel which at the beginning was informe of a wedge was at length in forme of a Cressant which was a cause of the great slaughter The constable of Clisson vsed almost the same fashion at the battell of Rosebecke He led his host diuided in three parts a vauntgard a maine-battell and a rereward and all three neere one another But when they began to approch they stepped forth into wings so as the middleward was somwhat shrunke in and drawne backer but the men of armes that were in the wings fell to it so furiously that the Flemmings were not able to follow them that were in the battell insomuch that it set it selfe in strength againe and the Flemmings being cooped in betweene the three battels lost almost fiue and twentie thousand of their men Amurâ—t did the like at Nicopolis For he caused his two wings to aduance forward wherein hee had almost threescore thousand men and set himselfe well closed in the bulcke of the battell sending eight thousand men afore to skirmish and to keepe his armie from being discouered whom he commaunded that when they were assailed by the Christians they should tetire to the bodie of the battell The which thing they did so fitly that the Frenchmen which were in the vaward were inclosed on all sides and the most part of them slaine or taken and the rest were driuen to flee to their great losse But he that doth this must haue a great number of men For it is a daungerous matter to enlarge the ranks when a man hath but few men because that thereby he maketh them the thinner and consequently the easier to be broken For there is no force like to the force of them that fight close set for they giue the lesse scope to enter into their ranks Paulus Emylius woon the battel against Perseus by this policie He saw it was not possible for him to worke any thing against the maine battel of the Macedonians In this despaire he fell to viewing wistly the seat of the enemies campe And perceiuing that the field where they fought was not plaine ne lay whole togither he considered that the battell which was lodged formost could not alwaies maintaine that hedge of piâ—es and of targets ioyning together but that by fine force they should be compelled â—o open in many places as it falleth out in all great battels according to the inforcement of them that fight against them so as in one place they thrust themselues forward and in another they be driuen backe Wherefore Emylius taking suddenly this occasion diuided his men into small troopes appointing them to take vp the places which they found emptie at the front of the battel of their enemies and so to ioine themselues vnto theÌ„ not by maintaining a continual charge vpon theÌ„ but by setting vpon them here and there in diuers places at once by diuers companies According to this commaundement deliuered to the captains from hand to hand the Romans slipped immediatly into places which they found emptie or ill garded and being entered in assailed the Macedonians some vpon the sides where they were naked and bare and othersome behind in such sort that the strength of the whole bodie of their battell which consisted in holding themselues close togither was by and by defeated by being opened after that maner But to come backe againe to our purpose When a generall hath but few men he must choose narrow places that he may be able to resist many and not be inclosed about by a great number For to do so with a great number of men is vnauailable yea and sometimes noysome It was the first mischiefe that Darius receaued at the hand of Alexander His wisest men councelled him to tarrie for Alexander in a plaine and open countrie seeing he had a desire to fight with him and not to go seeke him in Cilicia in strait and narrow places where if he tooke him in the straits his armie would stand him in no stead to fight so pent vp But he not crediting that wholesome counsell found too late that a great armie ought alwayes to choose a large place where a man may with his great number enclose his enemie which he cannot do in a narrow roome And so shall the horsemen fight at their ease whereas in a narrow countrie full of hedges they can do no good at all This was a lesson that Xantippus a captaine of the Lacedemonians taught to the Carthagenenses Although the Carthagenenses had a goodly great armie good footmen great store of horsemen yet were they euer vanquished by the Romans At length they tooke this Xantippus to be their generall that had the report to be a good captaine Who hauing considered their warlike furniture maruelled that they encamped in the mountains hauing so many elephants and horsemen and that they did not rather keepe the plaines which without comparison was most for their aduauntage seeing that the force of the Romans consisted in footmen and not in horsmen Therefore he made them to come downe into the plaines where he fought with the Romans and ouercame them vnder their consull Attilius Regulus who was there taken A battell oft times is so well ordered on all sides that there is no way to enter into it In such case a man must seeke the weakest places as I haue said alreadie or else vse the policie of captaine Pelinian who to make his men the forwarder in assailing the Macedonians tooke the Antsigne of his band and threw it into the thickest of his enemies whereupon his men pressed with great violence after it because they esteemed it a great dishonour to abandon and forsake their Antsigne But yet notwithstanding all was in vaine and to their losse because the Macedonians were so fast linked togither and held their piâ—es so steddie that it was vnpossible to remoue them When an armie goeth by the worse or is readie to breake their array the presence of the generall is maruellously behooffull to make them returne to the fight againe by his encouragement or by fighting afore them in his own person For when they
them against their enemies But anon returned the foreriders vvho made report that there was no means to force Menander to fight Whereat Eumenes pretended to be sore displeased and so passed on Themistocles vsed the like policie towards Xerxes vvhen he caused him to be secretly aduertised to get him out of Greece vvith all the hast he could that he might auoid the hazard of battell as I haue said elsewhere Hermocrates being aduertised of the intent of Nicias in breaking vp his siege before Siracuse in going his way perceiuing that as that day because it was a festiuall day and they were occupied in doing sacrifice to their gods he could not cause his men to march to take the passages that he might vanquish the Athenians at his more ease sent a familiar friend of his to Nicias with instructio◠〈◊〉 tell him that he came from such as gaue him secret aduertisements vvithin the citie vvho sent him warning to beware that he vvent not on his vvay that night vnlesse he vvould fall inâ—o the ambushes that the Siracusanes had laid for him Nicias being bleared vvith those vvords taried all that night so as the next morning the Siracusans tooke all the passages by meanes vvherof the Athenians vvere vnfortunatly ouercome Eumenes perceiuing that the rest of the princes enuied him and sought means to kill him to the intent to preuent them bare them on hand that he wanted money and borrowed a good round sum of euery of them chiefly of those vvhom he knew to hate him to the intent that thenceforth they should trust vnto him and desist to lie in wait for him for feare of loosing the monie that they had lent him By meane whereof it came to passe that other mens monie was his safegard and the assurance of his life And whereas other men are vvoont to giue monie to saue and assure themselues this man did set his life in safetie by taking There was not a greater cause of the bringing in againe of king Edward the fourth into the realme of England when he was driuen out than the marchants and other men to vvhom he vvas indebted and the vvomen that were in loue vvith him because he vvas voluptuous vvho to the vttermost of their power persuaded their husbands to be a meane of his returne Sometimes it is needfull to set neighbours at oddes but that must be done couertly and cunningly least it be perceiued The Athenians fearing the power of the Lacedemonians had forsakeÌ„ the league which they had made with the Thebans and in stead of holding with them had shewed themselues to be against them which was a meane to ouerthrow the Thebans vpside downe But Pelopidas and Gorgidas captains generall of Beotia espying a way how to set the Athenians againe in a iealousie and heart-burning against the Lacedemonians found out such a practise as this There was a captaine named Sphodrias a verie valiant man of his person but therewithall light-headed and fond conceyted such a one as easily conceiued vaine hopes in his head vpon a foolish vaine glorie to haue done some goodly feate in his life Pelopidas linked to him a merchant of his familiar acquaintance who tolled him on to attempt great things and to go and surprise the hauen of Pyrey while the Athenians mistrusted no such thing and therefore kept it not with any sure guard assuring him that the lords of Lacedemon would lâ—ke of nothing so well as to hold the citie of Athens vnder their obeysance and that the Thebanes who wished them euill to the death for their forsaking and betraying them at their need would not in anie wise succour them Sphodrias being mooued with his persuasions tooke those men of warre with him that he had and departing by night went into the countrie of Attica euen to the citie Eleusine But when he came there his men were afraied and would go no further And so being discouered hee was faine to returne from whence he came Whereby he procured to the Lacedemonians a warre of no small importance nor easie to bee vndone againe For thence-foorth the Athenians sought the alliance of the Thebanes againe and succoured them verie earnestly Coriolanus vsed the like practise For when he saw he could not cause the peace to be broken that was betweene the Romans and the Volses he procured a man to go tell the Magistrates of Rome that the Volses had conspired to runne vpon the Romans as they were looking vpon their playes and gaming 's and to set fire vpon the citie Whereupon the Volses were commaunded to depart out of the citie of Rome afore the Sunne going downe Wherewith the Volses being displeased proclaimed warre against the Romans Alcibiades vsed the like tricke For the Lacedemonians were come to treat of peace with the Athenians and had for their patrone one Nicias a man of peace and well renowmed among the Athenians Alcibiades went vnto them aforehand and warned them in any wise to beware that they told not that they had commission to conclude a full agreement least the people compelled them of authoritie to graunt them whatsoeuer they would haue counselling them but onely to set downe certaine conditions as in way of conference The next morning Alcibiades asked them verie smoothly what they came to do They aunswered that they came to make some profers of peace but had no commission to determin anie thing Then fell Alcibiades to crying out vpon them calling them vntrustie and variable telling them that they were not come to do anie thing that was of value And so the ambassadours were sent home without doing any thing and Alcibiades was chosen captaine to make warre against them Coriolanus to encrease the dissention which he knew to be betwixt the nobilitie and commons of Rome caused the lands of the noble men to be with all care preserued harmles causing the peoples in the meane time to be wasted and spoiled which thing caused them to enter into further quarrell and disagreement one against another than euer they had done afore The noblemen vpbraided the common people with their iniurious banishing of so mightie a man and the people charged the nobilitie that they had procured him to make warre against them in their reuenge Hanniball to bring Fabius in suspition whom he feared aboue all the Romans caused his lands of purpose to be kept harmelesse when he wasted all other mens to the end it might be thought that he had some secret conference with him and that that was the cause why he would not fight with him howbeit that in verie deed his refusing to encounter was of great wisedome to make his enemie consume away without putting any thing in hazard Timoleon practised another notable policie to shift himselfe from the hands of the Carthaginenses Whereas he was sent by the Corinthians to deliuer the citie of Siracuse from the tyrannie of Dennis as soone as he was arriued at Rhegium Icetes whom the Siracusanes imploied to the same
this celler or warehouse whatsoeuer he listeth to choose For it is farre easier to take in one place the wares that come from diuerse parts of the world than to go seeke them a farre off and in places dispersed And yet is it to no purpose to seeke them all in one place vnlesse they be sorted out aforehand so as a man may put his hand to whatsoeuer he requireth For that cause it behoued me to vse a method in referring euery hystorie to his proper place There are many other points of warre to be found in hystories the which my hast to make an end of this my discourse causeth me to let alone and to content my selfe for this present to haue declared vnto you the things that I haue drawn out of Plutarch Thucidides and some other authours that came to my remembrance Also I haue left many which you may see in the Mounsieur de Langies Discipline of warre Of others I will say as an euil painter That they lie hid behind the Cipres cloth As touching the feats of warre of our dayes I will not presume to speake of them because they which are yet aliue haue seene the practising of a great part of them and can better and more particularly report them than they be written And to say the truth when I considered the feats of warre of these times I find them so honorable that they be nothing inferior to those of old time But it is better to leaue the reporting of them to those that were at the doing of them than to speake of them like a clearke of armes for feare least it be said vnto me That the things were not so done as they be written The which I doubt not but men will thinke euen of those also which I haue here alledged But they be drawne out of such authors as for their antiquitie and authoritie haue purchased prescription against all reproches FINIS †Alexander the great Arist. lib. 9. of matters of gouernment Isocrates in his Panathe What Policie is Cicero in his booke of the ends of good and euill Our life cannot be without Dutie Cicero in the ends of good and euil men The definition of Dutie Two sortes of Duetie Men are beholders of heauenlie thinges Cicero in his second booke of the nature of the Gods The louing of our neighbor is the fulfilling of the law â—n his 13 book of the citie of God Histories â—erue for good instruction The definition of a Prince Plutarch in the life of Pelopidas The prince is as a God among men A prince should not be bare of treasure What an emperour is The qualities of a good emperour Kings are heardmen and sheepheards of their people What a king is A king must commaund his subiects as a father doth his children * The iust coÌ„maundement of the prince and the iust obedience of the subiects are answerable either to other cannot be separated The marke of a tyrant A Kingdome Tyrannie The way to winne loue Vniustice is the cause of the alteration of states The kingdome that is maintained by friendly dealing is stronger than that which is vpheld by force No castle so strong as good will The best Bulwarke is the peoples loue The praise of Aristâ—cracie Kings do not so easily resâ—st their lusts as priuat persons doe The coÌ„mendation of the state of a kingdome Sole gouernment maketh men insolent Kingdomes haue passed al other states of gouernment both in largenesse of dominion in length of time A commendation of the popular state People are more tractable hauing a head than being without a head The reward of such as serue in popular state In the citie of Athens wise men propouÌ„d and fooles iudge Whether dissention be requisite in a common weale or no. The friendship of Caesar and Pompey was the ouerthrow of the common-weale Great dissention between ouer-great personages is dangerous to a state The absolute gouernment is best and most certain The Athenians had many Captains Kingdomes haue been of longer continuance and made greater conquests than any other state of gouernment Of a Tyrant A Tyrant sildome leaueth his kingdom to his posteritie Why Tyrants are murthered rather than priuat householdâ—rs being both of them wicked Nembroth the first King Elections are causes of great warres In the kingdome that goes by inheritance there is no cause of warre A King that is vnder age ruleth by his counsell Wicked kings are sent of God for the sins of the people The state of the time and of affaires causeth ciuill warres Priuat quarrels caused the wars vnder Charles the sixt The hearts of kings are in the hand of God Princes cannot be vertuous vnlesse they be learned Good bringing vp moderateth mens affections Good Education altereth a mans euill disposition Wild horses become good by well handling Good Education in youth is the root of all goodensse A young prince of neuer so good a nature shall hardly doe any great thing being not trained vp in vertue By what means a yong prince is to be drawne to learning and vertue The rod and correction giue wisdome Why many princes begin well and end ill Children are to be kept from the company of flatterers The hating of lies The best way to learne rule is first to obay Euery man is desirous to be the chiefe of his profession The pains that Demosthenes tooke to become an Orator The way to learning is to descend into a mans selfe A prince ought to consider his owne abilitie A prince must be affable retaining the maiestie of his person and state A prince ought to be a Warriour The enemies of peace are ouercome by warre Warre must not be made but for to establish peace Kings haue lost their states for want of applying themselues to the warres Captains despise them that loue not chiluarie It is no reason that the man that is well armed should yeeld to him that is vnarmed The things that are to be done in war are to be learned afore haÌ„d at leisure Princes must inure themselues their subiects to the exercise of arms Whether the common people be to bee trained to the wars or no. A profitable discourse concerning Philopoemen What the souereigne good is Wherin the happinesse of princes may consist To become happy we must seeke perfection Felicitie lieth in all vertuous actions Riches without vertue be like a feast without any man to eat it Which are the true riches Of profit Of Pleasure Pleasure is to be considered by hir going away The pleasure that commeth of the beholding of the things that are done in a Common-weale A good name is a sweet sent or sauor The wise saying of king Ferdinand All princes are iealous of their honor Men must be such as they would seeme to be A doer of good to others is esteemed as a God The pleasure of princes consisteth in honor A definition of Vertue A diuision of Vertue Vertue is the Art of al our whole life
prince is a mirror to all his subiects Such as the prince is such will bee his houshold his court and his kingdome There is not a better way to reforme others than to doe the same things which a man would say in that behalfe Emperours that were warriors beloued of their souldiers for behauing themselues fellow-like towards them Notable examples of Alexander Cato Dauid and Alfons Souldiers set not so much by them that reward them as by them that take pain with them as they doe The emperors that haue not set their hands to good works haue bene disdained of their souldiers Of the presence of a Prince Whether wars are to bee made by Lieutenants The presence of the prince seruerh greatly to the getting of the victorie The presence of Eumenes causeth Antigonus to retire Ferdinand king of Naples doth by his presence cause his subiects to return vnder his obedience What it is to know ones selfe To know God it behooueth a man to know himselfe The first point of wisedome is to know ones selfe The better sort ought to rule the worser Cicero in his Academiks Cicero in his books of Duties The excellencie of Wisdome Wisdome the mother of all good things Wisdome goeth before all other vertues Of Wisdome Plutarch in his treatise of Morall vertue Wisdome is not subiect to doubting All vertue consisteth in action A man must not vphold things vnknown for knowne Plutarch in the life of Timoleon Of Discreetnesse Discreetnesse is not gotten but by aduised deliberation The definition of Discreetnesse The difference betweene a discreet man and a wel-aduised man Cicero in his Duties Cicero in his Cato The Lacedemonians made more account of an exploit done by policie than of an exploit done by force of arms VVilfull ignorance Cicero in his booke of Lawes Therence in his Adelphis The effects of Discreation The praises of Wisdome The wise stand not vpon lawes but line by the rule of vertue S. Paul to Timothie The commaundement of the prince and the obedience of the subiect are answerable either to other Plutarch in the life of Licurgus He that well guideth is wel followed Wisdome is a shield against all misfortune Prosperitie commeth of wisdome The first actioÌ„ of a man of good temperature is Discretion The want of skil is cause of great mischiefe The wisedome of a king consisteth in learning and experience The praise of Learning The mind receiueth light from learning For the life of man learning is better than riches Of Eloquence Cyneas the orator woon mo cities by his eloquence thâ— is Pirrus did by the sword A man cannot vtter the excellent coÌ„ceitâ— of his mind if he want Eloquence Of ExperieÌ„ce Cicero in his Duties Experience better than Learning in matters of State Knowledge without Practise is a body without a soule The skill of gouerning consisteth more in practise than in speculation It is dangerous in matters of state to take white for blacke Nothing doth beter acquaint men with seâ—ts of war than the often practise of them It is more to doe a thing discreetly thâ— to forecast it wisely Nothâ—ng doth better beseem a prince than to do iustice Righteousnes containeth all vertues Valeantnesse serueth to no purpose where Righteousnes wanteth Definitions of Righteousnes Gâ—d is the first author and beginner of righteousnesse Righteousnes sinneth not Vnrighteounes is the soul 〈◊〉 sinne Righteousnes and holinesse are both one The duties of Righteousnes The righteous stranger is to be preferred before the vnrighteous kinsman Kingdoms shal continue so long as Righteousnes reigneth in them A Prince is a liuing law Iustice is needfull for all sorts of men Iustice maketh a happie Common-weale A subdiuision of Righteousnesse Another diuision of Righteousnes The maiestie of a kingdom dependeth vpon lawes The law ought to rule the magistrats Lawes must not be broken The inconuenience that insueth of doing wrong Augustus made great Augustus made account of the Priuiledge of Freedeniship In what cases lawes may be corrected Lawes once stablished ought not to be altâ—red Law must coÌ„maund and not obay How to raign in safety Princes oueâ—throwne for suffering their subiects to be wronged Folke giue greater credit and authoritie to good Iusticers than to any others Two precepts for gouernors The prince ought to minister iustice vnto all men indifferently The notable answer of king Agis The answer of Themistocles The answer of Alexander The saieng of Phocion The iudgemeÌ„t of Marius The iust dealing of king Totilas The conuersation of life carrieth the fortune of sight The princely dealing of kâ—ng Artaxeâ—xes The coueâ—â—â—snâ—sse of Vespasâ—an OffeÌ„ces must not be left vnpunished Priuat harms are daÌ„gerous to the publik state Impunitie of vice is dangerfull to a whole state To let sin goe vnpunished is a consenting vnto it It is no mercy to pardon the faults that are committed against other men In what sort a prince should be gracious Mercy to the wicked is cruelâ—ie to the good Princes may not at their pleasure make laâ—ish of that which belonged tâ— God Philo in his treatise concerning Iudges Of iustice in cases of treason and rebellion The want of discretion in extinguishing one faction may breed many mâ— The policie of Agesilaus The maner of Marcellus dealing in a certaine sedition Biting words are dangerous Princes ought to make chois of good iudges Officers are to be recompenced according to their deseruings The rewarding of iudges and officers Of the punishing of wicked iudges The Iustice of warâ—e The Law of Arms. The vertue of obedience dependeth vpon the gentlenes of nature It is a lesse matter to ouercome the enemie than to vphold one country by good discipline Of the lawes of arms The seuerity of the Romanes Seueritie in war is whâ—lsome The crueltie of Auidius Cassius How a souldier is to be delt with that hee may be good The keeping of equalitie among men of war Soldiers haue most neede of discipline in time of peace The natious least delicat haue bin best warriors Of the rewarding of men of war Of houshold iustice or houshold righteousnesse The rewarding of good 〈◊〉 sheweth the iustice oâ— hâ—m that 〈◊〉 Of the recompenâ—es that are 〈◊〉 in honour The mounting to dignity by degrees What a prince is to doe that he forget not those that doe him seruice Two offices or mo be not to be giuen to one man Power breedeth Pride Whether a prince ought to shift officers or no. Treasurers and officers of account Precepts of Iustice. Punishment must not â—asse the offence Liberalitie beseemeth a prince It is the dutie of a king to doe good vnto many The misliking of great power is taken away by Liberalitie Liberalitie 〈◊〉 not to bee measuâ—â—d by the gift but by the will Three waies of vâ—ing a mans goods well Gifts get fâ—iendship at al mens haÌ„dâ— What it is to vse monie wel A poore prince is neither well 〈◊〉 ued of his subiects 〈◊〉 feared of sâ—rangers A prince must moderate his ordinarie
countries To beare and forbeare The vntemperat man is vniust After what maner pleasure is to be â—ought The difference of the fiue sences Concupiscence the cause of verie great sins Temperance consisteth most in eating and drinking and in vse of women The lust of women is within vs and therfore hard to oueâ—come Coâ—â—tousnes an ordinary fault in princes Wherin Temperance consisteth Voluptuousnes like to a dog Temperance increaseth pleasure A notable precept for Temperance What pleasure is to be sought Voluptuousnes maketh men nice and effeminat Lacedemonians trained vp from the shell in TemperaÌ„ce Quintius won mo cities by Temperance than by the sword Demetrius expâ—lâ—ed for 〈…〉 The sober maÌ„ hath his wit the more at will Cicero in his Tuscâ—lan questions A man of moderat diet prolongeth his life A poore table is the mother of health Of feasts and baâ—quets The Sobrietie of the Lacedemonians A spare diet is the Schoolmistâ—es of wiâ—e counsell The sawces of the Lacedemonians The pampering of the body sâ—arueth the soule A fat belly afordeth not a good wit A Glutton A Drunkard The drunkard is vnmâ—et to beget childreÌ„ Wine is the milk of Venuâ— Wine dimmeth and ouercommeth wisdome The inconueniences of drinking too much Drunkennesse is a peti-madnesse A mans disposition is bewrayed by wine A remedie for drunkennesse Of the sobrietie of diuerse princes The way to eschew gluttonie Through disorder of diet we depriue our selues of the health which we pray for The greatest personages haue eschued mariage and women The continencie of Xenocrates The continencie of Ioseph The prodigious lechery of a certaine Spaniaâ—d The profit of chastitie and the harme of vnchastitie Women shorten mens liues The lawes of Solon and Licurgus concerning mariage Incontinencie maketh men to grow out of kind The Continencie of Scipio The Continency of Alexander Many examples of the chastitie of princes The good turne that Alexander the sonne of Amintas did The punishment of adulterie The means to remedie Incontinencie Cicero in his Cato Of the veiling of maidens and maried women Sight is an intisement to adulterie Speeches is an other inticement By a mans speech is his disposition knowne Law makers ought to banish all filthie talke out of their coÌ„mon-weals The ornaments of a good woman A woman in stripping her selfe out of her clothes strippeth her selfe of all shamefastnes The greatest speakers be not the greatest doers Secrecie a most behooffull thing to a frato An orator is known by his speaking and a philosopher by his silence in due time He that giueth a man eare inuiteth him to speake The man that speaketh little shall be honoured Many words are not without fault The vices of the toung punished aboue all vices amoÌ„g the Persians He cannot wel speake that cannot skill to hold his peace Euill words corrupt good maners Of the maner of speaking The vnbridled toung findeth euer misâ—ortune The words of great talkers are vnfruitfull Of curiositie The property of a babler Men conceale not any thing but that which is euill The law of the Locrians The remedy of curiositie The lier Lying is the foundation and substance of all vice The first sort of lies The second sort of lying The third sort of leasing The maners of liers are without honor A theefe is better than a her The benefit of suffeâ—ing 〈◊〉 in princes courts Lying lips become nor a prince All good men hate lying He that is mutable in words deludeth princes Why the Persians hate 〈◊〉 debters We must not eat with the slaunderer The man that accustometh himself to euil speaking shall receiue no instruction The tale bâ—â—â—er setteth princes at variance Railing and slandering do bring foorth vnrecoÌ„cilable enmitie A backbiter cannot be reclaimed Wrong returneth to him that telleth it A wicked life draweth wroÌ„gs vnto it Princes must not haue tickle toungs not ticklish eares Of mockers and scornets Scornfulnesse procureth a prince the ill will of his people Admonishâ—ments must be tempered with some sweetnesse 〈◊〉 â—asting Ieaâ—â—iâ—g doth ill beseeme a great lord Of the flatterer The allurements of flatterers are more daungâ—rous than the wounds of foes The prince that loueth flatterie loueth not the truth Two sorts of flatterers The flatterer seeketh but credit The description of a flatterer The talebearer or backbiter Talebearers were first brought vp by euill princes Anger vnseparably matched with rashnes Impatiency Meeldnesse and clemeÌ„cy and the difference betwixt them What anger is The leauing of wicked men vnpunished is cruelty against good men Of clemency or mercy Examples of clemency or mercy It is in our owne power to haue good or ill report He that most can least should in seeking reuenge The meeldnes of Dauid Meeldnes wel beseemeth kings and great states The benefit of meeldnes Two sorts of cholerik persons An argument of the cholericke Câ—olericke pursons aptest for learning Cholâ—ricknes is a token of a readie wit Arguments against choler That which is done through perturbation cannot be don steadily Anger is the mother of hatred Cholericknes procedeth of weaknes of the mind To subdue anger is a point of a noble and valiant corage Irefulnes likened to the crampe Cholerick persons vnfit for gouernment That man is vnworthie of authoritie which cannot beare iniuries The vnpatient are forsaken or else haue few followres The cholerick are vnmeete to teach children Anger is a medly of all the passions of the mind Anger a furor of short continuance The inconuenience that insueth of cholerickneâ— The praise of meeknesse Anger dangerous in a prince Among princes men are oft condemned afore ought be prooued against them Remedies against anger The first remedie Naturally we couet reuenge and esteeme wrongs to be greater than they be Reason must be applied to anger The troubled mind heareth not what is said without The second remediâ—â— The third remedie The fourth remedie The fift remedie The sixt remedie The seuenth remedie Of manslaughter Bloudie men shall not liue out halfe their dayes Anger causeth the ouerthrow of cities The eight remedie A prince is pacified with patience A mild toung breaketh all hardnesse The choleâ—iknes of Marius and Syllâ— A man may command anger seeing it harbereth within him Anger impaireth the health both of bodie and soule Reason staieth the first brunts The prince that is valiant is esteemed and had in feare The art of war vpholdeth the coÌ„mon-weale Nothing is done which had not ben 〈…〉 In maâ—ters of 〈…〉 hours 〈…〉 The way to disiâ—ine leagues Leaguers respect their owne peculiar profit Leagues broken by diuers means The drawing backe of one leaguer disappointeth the whole leâ—gue The danger of suffering one gouernor continually in a prouince Too great a mightinesse is daungerous in a coÌ„monweale In monarchies needeth no chaunge of gouernors It is not good to haue many commaunders in an armie It is hard for two generals to agree in one armie There must be no equals to the generall in an armie For gentlenes and courtesie For rigor and crueltie Nothing
are tickled with some pleasure therof which being entered in at the eies or the eares taketh such root in the heart that it is hard to put it away againe For that cause when Sophocles beheld a faire yoong boy and commended his beautie one told him That it became him to haue not onely chast hands but also chast eies Candaules king of Lidia hauing a ladie of most excellēt beautie to his wife shewed her naked to a friend of his named Gyges but the sight of hir so inflamed the heart of Gyges that he murthered the king to marrie hir The people of Bisance being besieged of Philip sent Ambassadors vnto him to know what iniurie he pretended to be done by them And he sent them back againe without any good answer saying that they were great fools like to one that hauing a faire wife demanded of them that resorted often to hir wherfore they came thither meaning that the beautie of their town made him desirous to win it And for that cause doth our Lord and lawgiuer say that he which lusteth after a woman sinneth as much as if he had to do with hir by reason of the consent which he hath giuen to the sinne the performance wherof ingendereth death For when lust is once entred in it is hard to keepe the rest from following after or at leastwise to forbeare to giue attempt to obtaine the rest as the iudges did to Susan Dauid to Bersabee and Tarquin to Lucreece Well may we hear see and smel a far off but we cannot touch or tast but the things that are neere at hand And that is the cause that we haue most delectation by those feelings Moreouer nature hath conueied into them all the pleasantnes that she could to the intent that that pleasure should maintaine al liuing wights which cannot liue but by eating and drinking nor be increased and continued without the act of copulation specially the brute beasts which would neither feede nor ingender if they were not prouoked therto by nature And as touching hounds which follow freshly vpon the sent of things it is not for any pleasure that they haue in the hunting but for the pleasure which they haue to eat it The lion taketh no delight in the lowing of a bugle or an oxe nor in the sight of a goodlie stagge otherwise than by accident that is to say for that he hopeth that it is meat prepared for him to dine vpon Therfore I say that temperance consisteth chiefly and most peculiarly in eating and drinking and in vse of women And as Plato saith Al things seeme to depend cheifly vpon three necessities and inward desires of the which being well ordered springeth the vertue of temperance or contrariwise the vice of intemperance if they be vnrulie Two of them be in al liuing wights as soone as they be borne namely the desire to eat and to drink and because euery liuing creature hath a naturall appetite euen from his very birth therefore is hee carried vnto it euen with a violent and forcible desire and cannot abide to heare him that shall tell him he must doe otherwise But the third necessitie lust or pregnant desire which serueth for propagation and generation commeth a certaine time after and yet it burneth men with a hote furie and carrieth them with a wonderfull loosenesse These three diseases enforcing vs after that maner to the things that we most like of must be turned to the better by feare by law and by true reason S. Ierome writing to Furia sayth That this lust is harder to subdue that the others because it is within vs whereas other sinnes are without vs. As for example Niggardlinesse may be laid downe by casting vp a mans purse a farre of the railer is corrected if he be commanded to hold his peace a man may in lesse than an houre change rich aparell into meane only the desire which God hath endued vs withall for procreation doth by a certaine constraint of nature run to carnall copulation Wherefore great diligence is to be vsed for the vanquishing of nature that in the flesh a man may not liue fleshly Some haue taken Temperance more largely as Anaoharsis the Scythian who said that a man ought to haue stay of his toung of his bellie and of the priuie parts Which thing Plato hath declared more largely in his Phoedon saying of the inordinat appetits of Intemperance that there be diuerse sorts of names of them according as they themselues are diuers For the lust of things aboue the nauell concerning foode is called gluttony and he that is possessed of that vice is called a glutton he that is ouermaistered with drinking is called a drunkard that which forceth a man to the pleasute and ouerliking of a beautifull visage and surmounteth reason in the desire thereof is called loue and the like may we say of all lust that ouermaistreth the opinion which tendeth to well doing Pythagoras said that we must chiefly moderat these things namely the belly sleepe the desire of the flesh and choler wherof I will speake particularly hereafter after that I haue exhorted princes to Temperance generally as to the vertue which is most necessarie For the desire of honour may lead a prince to prowesse and withdraw him from cowardlines but it is hard to reclaime him from couetousnes For the desire of hauing more is the ordinarie vice of princes and great lords so that if they desire women banquets or feasts no man pulleth them back but rather flatterers allure them thereunto Wherfore it standeth them on hand to withdraw themselues from them and to beare in mind that a man may be temperat without danger but he cannot attaine to prowesse without putting himselfe in perill of warre And the cause why valeantnes is preferred before Temperance is that valeantnes is the harder to attaine vnto But to haue the traine of vertues which consist in the sensitiue appetit Temperance will obtaine more than valeantnes which is peculiar to those that are hardie and is hard by reason of the perill wherwith it is matched But this vertue of Temperance is easie and void of all perill and consisteth but in the contempt of voluptuousnes the which as S. Iohn Chrisostome saith in his xxij Homilie Is like a dog if you driue him away he is gone if yee make much of him he will abide with you Democritus saith that Temperance increaseth the pleasure of things Which thing Epicurus considering who placed all mans pleasure in voluptuousnes dranke nothing but water ne ate other than crible bread saying that he did it according to his profession because it liked him better to eat little and to vse meats that were least delicat And yet neuerthelesse he gaue himselfe to Temperance granting the thing in effect which he denied in his words namly that vertue was the chief cause of pleasure Also it is most commonly said that ther is not a better
sauce than appetit And to haue grear pleasure of any thing whatsoeuer it be a man must taste of his contraie as of hunger to find meat sweet and of thirst to feele drinke pleasant after the example of Darius who drinking vp a glasse of water good God quoth he from how great a pleasure haue I bin barred heretofore Ptolomy in making a rode through the countrie of Aegypt happened to want wherewith to dine because his vittels followed him not insomuch that for the hunger that pinched him he was faine to eat a morsel of bread in a poor mans cottage saying he neuer ate better bread nor with better appetite Diogenes said It was a strange thing that wrestlers and singing-men despised their bellie and their pleasures the one to haue a good voice and the other to haue the stronger bodie and that for temperance sake no man regarded so to doe Isocrates in the exhortation which he giueth to Demonicus giueth this precept for temperance worthy to be noted Bethinke your selfe saith he to become temperat and staied in the things which you would esteeme vile and shameful if your mind were hild down in them as lucre wrath sensuality sorrow Now it wil be easie for you to haue stay of your selfe if you set your mind to the obtainment of the things that may increase your renowne and not your reuenues As touching anger you must vse no greater towards others than you would that others should vse towards you In the things that bring pleasure you shall easily temper your selfe if you consider what a shame it is for you to command your slaues and in the meane while your selfe to be a slaue vnto voluptuousnes Your sorrowes you shall be able to moderat by beholding the miseries of other men and by considering that you be a mortal man And aboue all you shall be stirred vp to do good if you consider that vpon that point dependeth pleasure For in the idle life which seeketh nothing but feasting and cheering the pleasantnes endeth forthwith togither with the pleasure but when a man intendeth to vertue and purposeth vpon a sobriety in al his life it giueth him a true ioy and a longlasting Therefore none other pleasure is to be fought than such as bringeth honor for the pleasure is noughtworth that is not matched with honor Alexander Seuerus said T hat an ill conditioned prince doth often spend his treasures in superfluity of apparrell curiosity of feasts which he needs for the maintenance of wars Againe he ware no gold nor precious stones saying that a prince ought not to measure himselfe by the things which couer the bodie but by the goodnesse and vertue of his mind Plutarch in the life of Philopemen saith that by superfluitie and sumptuousnesse in houshold-stuffe apparell and fare manie haue beene brought to seeke the delights that make nice and effeminate the courages of such as vse them because the tickling of the outward sense that is delighted with them doth by and by soften and loosen the stoutnes strength of the mind I say quoth Agapete to Iustinian that you are now rightly a king seeing that you can rule and gouerne your delights by wearing on your head the diadem of Temperance A king is lord of al but then specially when he ouerruleth himselfe and is not subiect to euil lusts but by help of reason wherthrough he ouerruleth the vnreasonable affections maketh himselfe lord and master by meanes of Temperance ouer the lusts that bring all the world in subiection which thing those could well skill to do which haue had most estimation in the world Scipio was so temperat that in foure and fiftie yeeres which he liued he neither sold nor purchased nor builded and hauing rased two great cities namely Numance and Carthage yet he enriched not himselfe with the spoils of them insomuch that at his death he left behind him no more but three and thirtie pound of siluer and two pound of gold Paulus Aemilius had such stay of himself that he neuer tooke one penie of the treasure of Perseuâ— ne died richer than did Aristides Lysander and infinit other Greeks and Romans famous in histories and specially the Lacedemonians were trained vp in Temperance from their youth and taught to keepe themselues from being corrupted with monie as Herodotus reporteth of one Gorgo a little daughter of Cleomenes of the age of eight or nine yeeres In the presence of this little wench one Aristagoras intreated Cleomenes to do so much with the Lacedemonians as to cause them to send an armie into Asia promising to giue him ten talents for his labour when Cleomenes refused he offered him fiftie The pretie wench hearing that tooke her father aside and said vnto him My father if you get you not hence this guest will corrupt you Whereat Cleomenes departed presently without hearkning to Aristagoras any more The Temperance and staidnesse of Titus Quintius gate mo countries to the Romans than all their forces had done First of all after that he had woon the battell although his vittels followed him not yet made he his men of warre to march on still in such sort as they tooke not any thing in the countrie where they went notwithstanding that they found great abundance of goods the which his forbearing he found anon after how greatly it auailed him for as soon as he was come into Thessalie the cities yeelded themselues willingly vnto him and all the rest of the Greeks required nothing but to giue theÌ„selues vnto him Demetrius was subiect to his belly to women and yet in the time of warre he was as sober and chast as they that be naturally giuen thereunto rightly deeming that he could not ouercome his enemies vnlesse he were temperate But yet at length when he let himselfe loose to his pleasures the Macâ—doâ—â—â—ns draue him out saying that they were wearie of bearing armes and of fighting for his pleasures CHAP. XI That he that will dispatch his affaires well must be Sober I Said afore that Temperance is chiefly ouer the bellie and the priuie parts the tongue and choler Now must I speake in order of these foure sorts of Temperance and first of all I will speake of that which concerneth the bellie that is to say which concerneth eating and drinking the which we call Abstinence or Sobrietie the contrarie wherâ—of we call Gluttonie a foule and filthie vice specially in a Prince For as saith Mercurie Trismegistus It bereaâ—eth a man of all goodnesse whereas Sobrietie doth maruellouslie become him For Sobrietie withdraweth him not from his affaires for chearing and therewith it exempteth him from al diseases that often come of fulnesse through too much eating and drinking It preserueth a mans wit the clearer to iudge soundly of the matters that come afore him whereas he that hath vapours in his braine through too much meat that is cast into the stomacke cannot be so fit for the