PHISICKE against Fortune aswell prosperous as aduerse conteyned in two Bookes Whereby men are instructed with lyke in differencie to remedie theyr affections aswell in tyme of the bryght shynyng sunne of prosperitie as also of the foule lowryng stormes of aduersitie Expedient for all men but most necessary for such as be subiect to any not able insult of eyther extremitie Written in Latine by Frauncis Petrarch a most famous Poet and Oratour And now first Englished by Thomas Twyne At London printed by Richard watkyns An. Dom. 1579. To the right woorshypful Maister Richard Bertie Esquier c. quietnesse of Conscience health of Body continuance of Lyfe with encrease of worldly VVoorshyp PEtrarches remedies agaynst both Fortunes in Latine Right woorshipful were as it appeareth dedicated vnto Azo an honourable Gentleman of Italy Azo had good cause to enterteyne them thankefully for that being strangely wounded with aduersitie and cast downe from the dignitie of a Lorde to the state of a wretched forlorne man he myght receaue thereby no small comfort in his sorowes The same woorke now called Physicke agaynst Fortune in Englishe and intituled vnto your Woorshypful name who are no meane personage of this our Realme of Englande but in this respect farre exceeding the degree of Azo in that you haue gained surpassing prefermentes at the handes of Fortune is semblably presented vnto your fauourable acceptation Not that it is doubted the infirmitie of your minde any way to be such that you stand in neede of these or the lyke Medicines to mittigate the sugered Bankettes or sower sauces of eyther Fortune that is to say prosperitie or aduersitie Although whoso lyst to examine your right worsbypfull estate shall well perceyue thereby that yf your minde coulde be caried away by any of these two affections the same by lykelyhood should be it which is quite contrarie to that which troubled Azo since it hath pleased Fortune or GOD rather to blesse you with suche valure of Minde Vertue Godlynesse Wysedome Grauitie and Learnyng generally in all Faculties Good letters and Tongues as fewe or none the lyke farre and wyde to be founde in this our age Adde herevnto moreouer the commendable cumlinesse of your person with integritie of health and good constitution of bodie And lastly the accesse of a noble Duchesse to your Wyfe of an honourable Countesse to your Daughter of a Lorde apparant to your Sonne and Heyre besides large Reuenues and fayre Houses and which maketh not smally to the accomplyshment of worldly felicitie the fauour of a most vertuous and louing QVEENE and a most flourishyng Commonwealth to lyue in These albeit I confesse they be very great yet are they not suche but that your wisedome of it selfe is able to beare them with sufficient moderation and as in deede they be so to esteeme of them But rather in respect of these your rare giftes and the loue that you beare vnto learnyng and the fauourers thereof I haue been induced to exhibite the medicines of Petrarch against Fortune vnto you that as many of our Countreimen as shall haue occasion hereafter to reade or vse them may the more freendly accept them for your Woorshypfull name sake In consyderation whereof and lykewyse yf it shall please you not discontentedly to accept them at my handes I shall not onely thynke my trauell well requited but also in regarde of other benefites receyued acknowledge my selfe muche bounden vnto you and to remaine your Woorships euermore readie at commaundemente Thomas Twyne ⧠The Epistolare Preface of Francis Petrarch a most famous Poet and Oratour written vnto Azo concerning the Phisicke and remedies of both Fortunes aswell aduerse as prosperous WHEN I thinke vpon the affayres and fortunes of men their vncertaine and sudden chaunces and changes truely I finde nothyng almost more fraile nothing more vnquiet then the lyfe of man For I perceiue howe nature hath prouided well for all other liuing creatures by a woonderful kind of remedie to wit a certaine ignorance of them selues but in vs only she hath conuerted our memorie vnderstanding prouidence and moreouer the diuine giftes of our minde vnto our owne toyle and destruction For being alwayes subiect not onely vnto vayne and superfluous but also hurtfull and pestiferous cares we are both greeued with the present time and also vexed with the time past and that is to come so that we seeme to feare nothyng so muche as not to seeme at all tymes to be in miserie Our studie is so great whereby we heape together causes of miseries and nouryshmentes of sorowes whereby we make our lyfe whiche yf it were wel gouerned were the most happie pleasaunt thyng that we possesse a wretched and wofull toyle whose entraunce is blindnesse going forwarde toyle ende sorowe and the whole course errour Whiche he shall fynde to be so whosoeuer with diligent eye consydereth the whole race of his owne lyfe What day doo we passe ouer in rest and quietnesse or rather doo we not finde more painefull and troublesome then other What mornyng haue we euer passed so merie and pleasaunt that hath not been surprised with sorowe and heauinesse before night Of whiche euyll although a great cause doo rest in the thinges them selues neuerthelesse vnlesse our selfe loue deceyue vs a greater cause or to confesse the trueth the whole cause consisteth in our selues and to let passe all other thinges whereby we are troubled on euery syde what war and how perpetuall is it which we maintayne agaynst Fortune wherein Vertue only can make vs conquerours But willingly wittingly we reuolt from her We only being weaklinges vnarmed encounter a most fierce foe in vnequall fight whom she againe as lightly as thinges of nought tosseth vs vp and throweth vs downe turneth vs round about and plaieth with vs so that it were better for vs to be quite ouercome then continually to be had in skorne And what is the cause hereof but only our owne lightnes daintines for we seeme to be good for nothing els but to be tossed hither thither like a Tennise bal being creatures of very short life of infinite carefulnesse yet ignorant vnto what shoare to fal with our shyp or vnto what resolution to apply our mindes whose determination is alwayes to hang in doubt and besides the present euil alwayes to haue somewhat to greeue vs behind our backe before our eyes to make vs afeard Which thing hapneth vnto no creature besides man for vnto all other it is most perfect securitie to haue escaped that which is present But we in respect of our wit and the vnderstanding of our minde are in continual wrastling strife with an enemie as it were a three headed Cerberus So that it had ben almost better for vs to haue wanted reason since we turne the force of our heauenly nature against our selues for it were now an hard matter to resist subdue this euil being so deepely rooted through age custome Notwithstanding we
wyshe and much more destitute of men then I woulde it were And therefore seeing there is nothing els to be expected at the handes of them that are nowe present but meare toyes and trifles yet yf there be any thyng alleaged by them whiche eyther they haue founde out them selues or borowed of the auncient wryters that may aswage thy greefe do not reiect it nor say as do the vnlearned this thou haddest out of the Philosophers For then wyl I answere thee with Cicero I thought thou wouldest haue sayde of whores and bawdes And to say the trueth where shoulde a man fishe or hunt but where fishes and wylde beastes are in the waters and wooddes Where is golde to be digged or precious stones to be gathered but where they growe For they are to be founde in the veines of the earth and vpon the shoares of the sea Where are marchandizes to be had but of merchantes Where pictures and images but of paynters and keruers And last of al where wylt thou expect Philosophical sawes but at the Philosophers handes Whiche although they lye hyd vp by them in their treasuries and were first founde out by them neuerthelesse the same are set open and expounded by other and that paraduenture more playnely or more pithily or more breefely or lastly disposed in some other order and methode promising lyke hope vnto al that heare them but bringing successe vnto fewe For such is the force of order and good ioyning as Horace very wel declareth in his Poeticalles that one matter being diuersly told representeth a greater grace vnto the mind of the hearer yea though it be a common thing that is told such noueltie may be added vnto that which is old and such light vnto that whiche is euident and suche beawtie vnto that whiche is fayre whiche I haue not nowe vttered as lackyng some other place more conuenient therevnto but because thou ministredst occasion at this present For I woulde not haue thee doo as it is the maner of blinde and ignorant pryde to disdayne vulgare and vsuall thynges whiche thou hast heard once and neuer vnderstoode Feare I yeelde vnto thee for I see that thou art very redie in these admonitions although far from effect to me wardes for I feare death yet neuerthelatter Reason There be certayne thynges in name and opinion of men greater then in effect certayne afarre of haue seemed terrible whiche at hande haue been ridiculous It were no wysedome to beleeue the vnexpert there is not one of these defamers of death that can speake any thyng to the purpose for being vnexpert he can learne nothing at all neyther can he be instructed in any matter by one that is vnexpert also Aske a question of a dead man he wyl answere nothyng and yet it is he that knoweth the trueth They wyl babble most that knowe death least and prophecie most vaynely of it wherein they haue least skyll Whereby it commeth to passe that by some death is made the most manifest thyng and of othersome the most hydden secret and this coniecturall case is diuersly tossed in suspition But in doubtfull matters it is good to cleaue to the best opinion and to holde that whiche shall make the minde rather merrie then dumpyshe Feare My soule feareth death Reason If in respect of it selfe that feare is vayne for that the soule is immortall But yf in respect of the bodye it is a thanklesse pittie to be careful of it enimie But if it feare to be dissolued it is to much in loue with it owne prison and bondes whiche were but a verie foolyshe affection Feare I am troubled with the feare of death Reason All fooles are afearde to dye and noe marueyle for all their felicitie is in theyr bodye whiche doubtlesse is by death extinguished And therefore not without cause good men are sorie to heare of theyr ende and heauie to beholde it For this is the nature of man that he can not lyue without desyre not to be vnhappie It becommeth a learned man who maketh no other accompt of his bodye then of a vyle Drudge and fylthie Carkasse whose dilligence and loue and hope and studie is wholy reposed vpon his minde to esteeme of the death of this bodye none otherwise then as of his departure in the morning out of some vnpleasant and noysome lodging Feare I can not choose but feare death Reason Thou mayest refuse to feare the departure out of this lyfe yf thou canst hope or wyshe for the entrance into an other For hereof it is that the same feare ryseth And although there be commonly diuers causes alleaged of the feare of this departure neuerthelesse they vanishe away when the hope of that other life is laide before the eyes Feare I dread death Reason The dread thereof is specially engendred by the lacke of meditating thereon and the sudden necessitie of dying whiche in a learned and wyse man is most shameful but specially in an olde man whose whole course and order of lyfe yf he be learned and wyse indeede ought to be a continuall meditation of death Whiche if it seemed so vnto the auntient Philosophie what may it nowe appeare vnto your new deuotion which is the hygh Philosophie and the true wisedome Consider the maner of them that are commaunded vpon a sudden to goe some far iourney how sadde and careful they are to make vp their carriage and how they complaine at their departure and in a maner repine that they had no longer warning before so that as soone as their backes are turned they thinke vpon necessaries which they haue forgotten and are discontented therewith Now there is no way longer then to dye none harder as they say none more noysome for Theeues none more obscure none more suspicious nor more vncertaine which though it wanted al these yet is it vnreturneable By meanes whereof ye ought to be the more diligent least haply ye forgette any thing for that when ye are once departed from hence ye can no longer doo as they that occupie other trades or vndertake whatsoeuer other iourney that is to say commit suche thynges by their letters or messengers vnto their freendes to see vnto as they them selues haue left forgotten For ye are not able to sende any message backe nor to stay in the place where ye were nor to returne agayne Ye must needes goe hence it is not possible for you to returne ye must needes goe thyther Souldiers from whence it is not needefull that ye come backe agayne Thus in Seneca sayde the Romane Captayne to his men and thus also sayth your Captayne to you And therefore seeyng ye must needes depart and come no more and that the necessitie of your iourney is very certayne but the houre of death vncertayne this is your onely remedie to be alwayes readie in mind to answere when ye are called and to obey when ye are commaunded and when all thinges are disposed in good order at your Captaines fyrst
me thynks he myght haue ben more worthyly reprehended yf he had sayde that it had been in deede greater or perfecter or hygher But nowe synce by saying it is more acceptable he respected not the thyng it selfe but the indigent of the beholders surely Virgil seemeth vnto me to be deceiued in so saying To conclude as the grace of beautie hath in it no soundnes nothing to be desyred so if it be wyllyngly added to vertue neyther the one be impayred by encrease of the other I wyl suffer that this be termed an ornament to the other or a thyng not vnpleasaunt to syght howbeit short and frayle But yf it be alone without vertue I wyll then cal it a burden to the mynde and an vnluckye signe of sorowful deceipt Of bodily health The thirde Dialogue IOY MY health is prosperous Reason Whatsoeuer I sayd erâ— while concernyng beautie imagine that it were now agayne repeated Ioy. My bodily health is strong Reason Behold howe olde age commeth against thee garded with a thousande kindes of sundrie diseases to inuade good health and in the meane whyle pleasure fighteth agaynst thee a familyar combat Ioy. The health of my body is ioyfull Reason An vnaduised ioyfulnesse which vseth to make the possessours thereof carelesse and necligent and many tymes to procure those diseases whiche the distrustful carelesnesse of the party hath feared as redie to impaire his good health Ioy. The health of my body is good Reason Vse it well els it is but a smal good Yea it is a great euyll yf as it is woont it minister cause of some offence Good health hath been dangerous and hurtfull to many that myght with more safetie haue been sicke in their beddes Ioy. I am in very good health of body Reason A very good thyng truely and muche profitable whether a man hath ought to doo with the body or with the minde But lyke as there resteth the force of poyson in the rootes of certayne hearbes whiche being corrected by minglyng of other thinges with them there is an holsome drinke made of many things togeather which before consistyng but of one thing woâ—â—â—e haue been hurtfull So lykewyse bodily health to the ende it be not harmefull to him that hath it ought to be tempered with none other thing then by adioynyng thereunto the good health of the minde A sicke mynde dwelleth in no place woorse then in an whole body Of restored health The fourth Dialogue IOY I IOY that I am deliuered of a long sickenesse Reason Restored health I confesse is more pleasant then reteined Most vnthankefull men ye scarce knowe your goodes otherwyse then by loosyng them and therefore when they be lost they greeue you and when ye recouer them they make you meery Ioy. A most sharpe feuer hath forsaken me Reason Phisitions cal those feuers most greeuous whiche frie with heate within the bones and marow Howe much more greeuous are they whiche lye hyd within the mynde whereof I would wysh thee specially to be delyuered Ioy. My sicknesse is gone Reason Present sicknesse hath oftentymes doone good while weakenyng the strength of the body it hath procured health to the mynde Consequently therefore when this is wantyng it hurteth and diminisheth the light of the mynde and augmenteth the pryde of the body albeit then sicknesse seeme to be naught yea very euyll notwithstandyng that euyl is to be embrased whiche bringeth remedie to a greater euyl Ioy. At length my long sicknesse hath an ende Reason Oh thou most foolyshe man doest thou thynke thou hast thus escaped death to whom thou runnest dayly Thou art now nearer vnto hym than then when thou thoughtest thou wast hard at hym your iourney is vnreturneable and ye stay in no part thereof ye haue no Inne to rest in ye cannot slow your pace your sleepe and watchyng your toyle and restyng your sycknesse and health are steppes a lyke vnto death Ioy. I am ryd of a perilous disease Reason Thou hast a creditour whom thou canst not deceyue thy day of payment is deferred but thou art not discharged of thy band for thou must needes be sicke agayne and dye Of bodyly strength The .v. Dialogue IOY THere hath happened vnto me strength yenough yea very much Reason Reade ouer that which is sayd touching beautie and good health Of lyke thyngs like is the doctrine Ioy. I haue much strength Reason Beware thou attempt nothing trusting in thine owne strength whereby thou mayest appeare weake Ioy. I haue great strength Reason This is a glorie as if it were for a Bul. Ioy. I haue plentie of strength Reason An Eliphant hath more Ioy. I haue much strength Reason I beleeue that wel to much turneth to starke naught or is it selfe a fault Ioy. I haue ouermuch strength Reason If this ouermuch be brought to a mediocritie it is wel But what yf it turne to a want what if this great force be conuerted into a notable weaknesse Beleeue me there was neuer yet any strength of body so great but that it was broken either with immoderate labour or sharpe sicknes or with olde age that consumeth al thyngs The force of the mynde only is vnfatigable and inuincible Ioy. The strength of my body is mightie Reason None was more strong then Milo but many more noble Ioy. My body is hugie and of great force Reason Vertue which is of all thyngs the most worthiest hath no neede of the bygnesse of the body but dwelleth in the mynde Ioy. There is nothyng hard to this strength Reason Yes there are many thynges impossible for thee to do and this one thyng especially that who so putteth his trust in his body should be avle to clymbe on high Ioy. My strength is aboue the strength of a man. Reason Whosoeuer in this behalfe surpassed al other men yet in the same he was inferiour to many lyuing creatures Ioy. There is nothyng that with this strength I can be afrayde of Reason Yes truely very much for agaynst so great confidence in a mans owne strength fortune armeth her selfe with great force and many tymes disdayning to encounter in equal fight to the entent she may shewe how weake a creature man is yea when he thynketh hym selfe most strong in slender conflict she hath ouerthrowne Giantlike personages Hercules whom none coulde ouercome the force of lurkyng poyson subdued Milo who was knowne and renowmed at al exercises of strength and valiencie one poore tree caught fast held him there to be torne in peeces by wyld beasts And so that valiant strength of his without example was found to be inferiour to the force of a clouen Oke And wilt thou trust to thy strength Ioy. I am of an hugie strength Reason Euery hugie thing is troubled with his owne mole bignes Ioy. My strength encreaseth Reason This is for the most part the nature of al thyngs that when they be come to the highest then they fal downe againe that not with lyke leysure as they gate vp
Contrariwise too muche sleepe is the matter of vice and infamie which driueth many and throweth them headlong into perpetual sleepe For it nourisheth lust maketh the body heauie weakeneth the minde dulleth the wit diminisheth knowledge extinguisheth the memorie and breedeth forgetfulnes It is not without cause that wakeful and industrious persons are commended As for the sleepie we see not them praysed but puffed And therfore as some vs tearme sleepe death so other cal wakefulnesse life Take heede then of lyfe and death which thou choose It is best to wake which the wise do commend that the life may be the longer Ioy. I enioy a long vn interrupted sleepe Reason It is wel if it be not broken by pinching cares by couetousnes by ambition by feare by sorowe and by wicked loue but euyl if a mans sleepe be disturâ—ed by some care of dishonest stâ—die Truely while the people sleepe the prince waketh while the armie resteth the captaynes be vigilant which both experience declareth and Homers Ilias proueth to be true Vpon noble mindes vigilant cares do depende but such as are sober and hotsome It is credibly reported that Augustus Caesar of al Princes the greatest and best vsed but short sleepe and that also often interrupted And thou gloriest in the contrary Ioy. I sleepe profoundly Reason So do gluttons letchers wrathful persons togeather with bruite beastes but lyuing notwithstanding slâ—ggish persons and they that sleepe are only compared to the dead and as touching that part of tyme that happie men doo nothyng differ thereby from men in miserie thou knowest it to be a position of Philosophie Wherefore as that part is diligently to be eschewed whiche leaueth so small a difference of dreames onely betweene men and beastes so is the contrary to be pursued whiche offereth no hardnesse to them that are willing For yf in respect of a simple glory or small gaine both Warriours Merchauntes and Mariners do watch whole nightes abroade in the open ayre the one among ambushmentes of their enimies the other among the surgies and rockes more fierce then any enimie art not thou able to watche some part of the nyghtes in makyng prayers to God and among thy bookes for the true glory and a large gayne Ioy. Being weerie when I was awake I haue now wholly geuen my selfe to sleepe Reason Thus it is yee change not your copie ye deale in all matters after one maner and looke what thing God himselfe or nature or any art hath geuen you for recreation that ye turne to your owne shame and discommoditie â–ª your drinke to drunkennes your meate to surfeityng your leysure to sleepinesse your good health to voluptuousnesse your beautie to lasciuiousnesse your strength to iniuries your wit to deceitfulnesse your knowledge to pride your eloquence to harmfulnesse the brauerie of your houses and the apparell of your backes to pompousnesse and vayne ostentation your ryches to couetousnesse and riot your wiues and chyldren to feare and perpetual carefulnesse Goe nowe be astonished complayne of your fortune and lament your wickednesse of good thinges ye make euil of heauenly giftes ye make fetters and snares and chaines for your soule Ioy. I am delighted in pleasaunt sleepe Reason Not only Kinges Captaynes and Princes Philosophers Poetes Householders do watch vp and rise in the night which Aristotle sayeth to be auaylable for health for good husbandrie and philosophie but theeues also and pilferers and whiche is also more marueylous mad men and louers whom the remembraunce desire they haue to their trulles doth styrre forwarde and wylt not thou for the loue of vertue hate sleepe that is freende to vices and as Horace sayth excellently Seeyng theeues ryse in the nyght to kill true menne wilt not thou awake to preserue thy selfe Ye may be ashamed that filthie causes can so muche preuayle with you and most souereine can doo nothyng Ioy. I sleepe all nyght and no man troubleth mee Reason Aristotle seemeth whiche I haue touched before in this maner to deuide a mans lyfe attributing halfe to sleepe and halfe to waking And as touching the one halfe thereof he sayth that a vertuous mans lyfe differeth not from a fooles lyfe in whiche place he wyll haue he night to be vnderstoode for sleepe and the day for wakyng This I confesse is a good and true diuision for it equally deuideth tyme into the partes But if it be thus taken that the partes be of equal space truely there is an other great difference betweene them For there is no cogitation or discourse more sharpe or more deepe then the nyghtly no tyme more conuenient for studentes If he say that sleepe is the one halfe of our tyme it is a strange saying to come out of the mouth of so studious and learned a man God forbyd that a minde whiche is well instructed and geuen to studie shoulde sleepe halfe her tyme seeyng to some the fourth part and to voluptuous persons also the thyrde part is sufficient I would counsell a man to ryse in the nyght in euery part of the yeere God forbyd but that they which haue any great exployt in hande sleepe both the whole Winter and Summer nyghtes Howbeit it is sufficient perhappes to haue broken it once and as muche sleepe as is broken by watching so muche may be quickly supplyed yf neede so require by takyng a nappe after noone But the houres of the winter nyghters are often to be broken in them it were expedient to syng to studie to reade to write to thynke to contemplate by wit some new thing is to be deuised that which is wonne by studie is to be repeated in memorie Hearken also to S. Ierome wryting to Eustochius We must ryse sayth he twice or thrice a nyght and we must meditate on some part of Scripture whiche we haue learned without booke And at length when your eyes are weerie with this studie ye must eftsoones refreshe them with sleepe and beyng then recomforted with a lytle rest they must agayne be weeried with exercise lest that by sleeping all the night long and lying styl vpon the pillowe ye appeare to be as it were buried carkases By the often and coomely styrring of your selues declare that ye are alyue and geuen to vertue Of pleasaunt smelles The xxii Dialogue IOY I Am delited with sweete odours Reason These serue eyther for foode or apparrel concerning which thou hast hearde myne opinion Ioy. My studie is vpon sweete smelles Reason Of smelles some prouoke the appetite and some wantonnesse The desire of these incurreth the note of incontinencie especially yf it be vehement Others are desired for theyr owne sake The greedinesse of them is not reprooued of dishonestie but of folly Whereby it commeth that the smel of womens oyntmentes and of iunkets is more discommodable then the odour of flowres or apples The same reason is also in those pleasures whiche are receyued by the eares and eyes If euer thou hast applyed thy
and which the holsomer But nowe thou committest the iudgement of the sounde to a deaffe sense concernyng which perhaps hytherto may seeme vnto some to be a small matter notwithstandyng it hath troubled many excellent men Neyther was it without cause that Plato a man of a diuine wyt supposed that Musicke apperteyned to the state and corrections of manners in a common wealth Of Daunsing The .xxiiii. Dialogue IOY I Delyght in dauncing Reason I woulde haue marueyled the more yf the noise of Vyals and Recorders had not pricked thee foorth also to dauncing and after the auntient maner one vanitie had not folowed another howbeit a greater and much more deformed By singyng there is some sweetenesse conceyued which many tymes is profitable and holy by dauncing neuer any thyng but lasciuiousnesse and a vayne sight hateful to honest eyes and vnmeete for a man. Ioy. I desire much to be at dauncinges Reason The body couereth and discouereth the mynde the castyng of the handes the moouyng of the feete the rouling of the eies declare that there is some such lyke wantonnesse in the mynde whiche is not seene And therfore it behooueth suche as are louers of modestie to take heede that they do not speake any wanton thyng For the hydden affectes of the mynde and secretes of the hart are many tymes descried by small tokens moouyng syttyng lying gesture laughter going speache al these are bewrayers of the mynde Ioy. I receyue great pleasure in dauncing Reason Oh foolyshe pleasure Imagine that thy selfe leadest a daunce or beholdest other daunsing without hearyng any instrument and seest the foolysh women or men more effeminate then women without any noyse to turne about and to daunce forward and backward I pray thee dydst thou euer see any thyng more absurde or doatyng But now the sound of the instrument couereth the vncomely moouyng that is to say one madnesse hydeth an other Ioy. I am delyghted in dauncing Reason There is not in dauncyng so much a present delight as an hope of pleasure to come For it is the forerunner of Venus to leade about selly women that are astonished with the sounde of the instrumentes to court them to claspe them and vnder colour of curtesie to wynne them there the handes are free the eyes free and the speech free there is noyse of the feete the dissonant voyces of the singers the soundyng of the trumpets the meeting togeather the dust and that which is often added to playes and shewes mght it selfe enimie to honestie friend to vices these be the things which driue away feare shame fastnesse these are the prouocations of leacherie these are the laxations of libertie And that ye shall not thinke me to be easily deceiued this is that delight which simply and as it were innocently ye professe by the name of dauncinges vnder the couering of pastime ye clooke wickednesse And although many times this be done among men only or women only they doo then but seuerally exercise themselues learne what they shal do when they meete againe like as schollers do meditate while their maister is absent what they shal say when he returneth Plucke vp by the coote this craftie and wicked shewe take away lasciuiousnesse and thou shalt take away dauncinges Beleeue me no man wyll daunce before the Lord with King Dauid lest peraduenture his wife laugh him to skorne although no man be mocked for dauncing or wantonly demeaning himselfe before his Lady Ioy. Dauncing is delectable Reason Thou art iumpe of mine opinion If it delight it is in respect of some other matter for of it selfe it is an absurd thing and bringeth more weerinesse then pleasure For to turne round what is it other then to procure giddines of the head and to goe about without ende Among the local motions whiche Plato reckeneth to wit these forward backward on the right hand on the left vpward dounward and round about only the seuenth is infinite And therefore the thinges that are perpetual that is to say heauen and the planets doo continualy obserue the same and in earth the madnesse of men increase ably putteth it in practise almost in all their actions and deuises Neyther is there any Orpheus to stay the Isionian wheele but inuisible dauncinges where the volubilitie of the mindes carieth the bodies about with them And therefore when that which is written may be sayd of al then may it most properly be verified of these The wicked walke round about This sport hath been the cause of many shamefull deedes Many times an honest Matron hath by meanes hereof lost her long preserued honestie Oftentimes the vnfortunate young virgin hath hereby learned that vppon her wedding day which she had better neuer had knowen Ioy. I am willing to exercise my selfe in honest dauncing Reason I had rather thou haddest choosen some other kinde of exercise But I perceyue whereabout thou goest and what thou meanest Thou wouldest haue this generall restreinct taken away thou wouldest haue libertie to be geuen and an order therein to be prescribed Forasmuche as therefore thou art so minded and suche is thy maner and custome then whiche if it be naught there is nothing worse and if it be good there is nothing better let this be a rule vnto thee in al these thynges that suche as thou canst not altogether want thou vse them most modestly and seldome That thou behaue not thy selfe softly nor womanlyke in any matter but let thy manly rigour shewe it selfe yea somwhat beyonde it owne boundes and let thy dauncing or what other pastime soeuer thou frequent be a relaxation to the weeried spirites and an exercise to the body and not a pleasure to effeminate the minde I woulde gladly abstayne from examples for the imitation of excellent men is not safe for al to folowe Euery feathered foule is not able to folow the Eagle Of imitatours some imitate the contrary some one thyng and some another Fewe doo fully attaine to the perfection of that whiche they imitate The younger Cato when his minde was ouerpressed with cares of the Common wealth was wont to refreshe hym selfe with wine The lyke did Solon among the Greekes Now some man perhappes desirous to imitate these wyll alwayes doo one thyng onely whiche they dyd he wyll drynke and that whiche they vsed to doo seldome tymes and moderately this man wyll doo continually and immoderatly and that whiche they vsed for a remedie he wyll abuse vnto drunkennesse The lyke may be easily shewed in other thinges also but nowe thou vnderstandest as well as I what that is which I feare with thee Notwithstanding forasmuch as thou hast enforced me to vndertake the defence of a condemned matter I wyl set downe vnto thee the example of a notable personage whiche thou shalt not folowe or not chaunge whiche I wyll recite vnto thee in these woordes whiche Seneca vseth in that booke wherein he searcheth after the tranquillitie of the minde Scipio sayth he mooued that same his
the armes of his seruantes or vpon some other horse and carying his Physitions with hym he woulde goe visite his sicke horse twice or thrice euery day and sorowfully sighing woulde sit by hym and gently stroke him with his hand and comfort him with fayre speech To be short there was no kind of meanes by Physicke let passe vnassayed and nothing omitted that might relieue his sicke freend Perhaps posteritie wil cal this a tale howbeit it is true and knowen among a great people Thus this noble gentleman was as carefull for the good health of his horse as for his owne and lamented for his death as he had been his sonne Ioy. I delight to ride Reason It is profitable somtime and also an helpe to swiftnesse and a remedy for weerinesse and a token of nobilitie to ride vpon a goodly courser and to excel al theresidue not only by the head but also by the shoulders and to be higher then the other by the whole body Contrariwise a fierce horse is most troublesome many times hurtful to his maister If thou wouldest goe a iourney on foote thou hast no power nor space to rest thee therfore thou chosest rather to exchang the dustines on foote for the daunger on horsebacke And for this cause horses haue deliuered many from the middes of death and brought sundry also into extremitie of destruction or hurt them with falles or tumbled vpon them with their bodyes and so killed them Yea horses are not the least seede of warre Take away horses thou shalt take away forren inuasions of countreis and the greatest part of warlike destruction That as in natural Philosophie the question is mooued of windes and of Iulius Caesar in histories whether it were better the winde should blowe or not or that Caesar were borne or not The like question may also be demaunded concerning horses there are so many contrarie reasons on the contrary side And it was not without cause that Thessalia which first founde out the vse of horses and tamed them first coyned money of siluer and gold and first assayed to goe vpon the Sea in a shyp seemed to be the store house of Mars and for that also not once onely after so many hundred yeeres it was wette with plentie of valient blood Ioy. How much thinkest thou doth our poet delight me where he describeth the maners spirite and courage of a noble horse Reason And doeth not the saying of the Hebrue prophete make thee afrayd where he sayth At thy rebuke O God of Iacob haue they fallen asleepe that got vpon their horses Examine euery poinct not only that pleasant but also this rough saying Of hunting and hauking The .xxxii. Dialogue IOY BVT I am delighted in Dogges Reason Now I vnderstande the delight of a beardles youth who as Horace sayth Delighteth in horses and dogges and the pleasant greene feeldes But beware thou be not that which foloweth Apt to be plucked to vice and sharpe to them that tell thee thy fault A flowe prouider for profite lauishe of money proud couetous and redy to forsake that which thou hast loued I feare mee thou art suche an one since thou settest thy pleasure vpon such transitorie delightes Ioy. I am delighted with dogges and foules Reason This peece of madnesse was wantyng is it not sufficient for thee to gadde and wander abroade but meanest thou to flye also Ioy. Thou mockest me for I meane not to flye but I am delighted in the foules that flye Reason But they wyll flye away and contemne thy pleasure and not knowe thee and vnthankfully be deafe when thou callest them What shouldest thou do that wantest feathers seeyng thy pleasure is winged Imagine that they returned the taking of them would be hurtfull thou wouldest cal againe and forgetting thy more profitable affaires loose thy time Agayne looking backe and castyng thine eyes vp to the cloudes after thy foolyshe byrde perhappes thou wilt weepe as though there were no necessarie woorke to be doone in this lyfe by reason of the pleasure whiche you fynde by your idlenesse and slouth ye glorie in that ye are slaues to your byrdes Nature hath geuen you two handes with the one ye rule the bird the other you trouble with crooked talentes So being idle on al sides being come lame with desire to flie to the end ye may not seme to do any thing with great noyse ye ryse before day and sodeinly run out of the doores as though the enimies were at the threshold all the day after ye run about the pondes and waters wooddes and bushes filling the ayre with sundry outcries and euil fauoured houlinges And in this pastime ye spende your breath whiche is meete for some greater matter with whiche spirite your forefathers made their enimies afearde in battayle and in peace mainteyned iustice At nyght when ye come home as though ye had atchiued some great enterprice yet syt within doores declaryng howe well that byrde flue and how well this byrde hath endued his meate how many feathers of the trayne and how many of the winges are remaning or lost Is not this all your skyll is not this your loue is not this your felicitie and is not this al whiche ye requite to God your Creatour to your countrey that bredde you to your parentes that be gate you to your freendes that loue you to wit your Spathaukes or your Hernshawes skimming in the ayre and some peece of a torne foule and swet and dust and your nyghtly storie of your lost day Vnto this ye be alwayes valient and vnweeried and vnto earnest businesse weake and daintie Liuies stories and Tullies orations and the holy Scriptures ye condenme as ouerlong whereof ye may be ashamed Who can heare this with vnoffended eares Who wyll beare with you being borne to other thinges to lyue in these delites yf ye lyue in these doynges Ioy. I take pleasure in Spanyels and Haukes Reason We haue heard of many princes and noble men whereof some were wont to take delight in horses and many in dogges insomuche that Adrian the Emperour erected monumentes not for horses only as those of whom we made mention before but for dogges also And moreouer buylded a citie in the same place where in prosperous hunting he had slayne a shee Beare with his owne hand vsed many tyme to kyl a Lion but neuer that he made any tombe for a byrde or foule For which cause some say that Virgil mocked Marcillus that was nephue to Augustus in that he seemed to take pleasure in them when he was a young man. Ioy. I delight muche in huntyng Reason This exercise was peculiar sometime to the Latines but nowe to the Frenchmen whiche experience teacheth to be true and wherof some of theyr owne writers do boast Wherefore to speake nothyng of those kinges whose whole lyfe was perpetual huntyng the chiefest kyng of them all whensoeuer he had any rest from battayle excercysyng hym selfe in dayly huntyng at length when
But you weltring heauily vpon the ground stouping and as it were fastened to the earth dare not looke vpwardes towardes heauen and forgettyng the chiefe woorkeman with marueilous pleasure ye beholde the slender pictures of the Sunne and Moone and determine where the passage is to the highest places but there ye ende the boundes of your vnderstanding Ioy. I am specially delyghted with painted tables and Pictures Reason Thou conceiuest delight in the pencill and colours wherein the price and cunning and varietie and curious dispersing doth please thine eye euen so likewyse the liuely gestures of lyuelesse pictures and the vnmoueable motions of dead images and countenaunces comming out of poastes and liuely portraitures of faces doo bryng thee into woondring insomâ—ch as thou wilt almost thynke they would speake vnto thee and this is the onely danger in this behalfe in that many great wittes haue been ouertaken by these meanes So that whereas the clowne and vnskylfull person wyl with small woondryng passe them ouer the wyser wyll repose hym selfe with sighing and woondring A cunning matter truly howbeit it is not possible from the beginning to vnfold the fyrst originall and encrease of this art and the wonderfulnesse of the woorkes and the industrie of the woorkemen the madnesse of princes and the vnreasonable prices wherewith these haue been bought and brought from beyonde the seas and placed at Rome eyther in the Temples of the Goddes or in the bed chambers of the Emperours or in the common streetes or publique porches and galleries Neyther was this sufficient but that they must also apply their owne right handes which of duety ought to haue been busied about greater affayres vnto the exercise of this art which the most noble Philosophers of all Greece had doone before Whereby it came to passe that among you the art of paintyng was esteemed aboue all handie craftes as a thyng more neere to the woorke of nature And among the Grecians yf ye wyll beleeue Plinie it was accompted among the chiefee of the Liberal Artes. But I let passe these thinges for that they are in a maner contrary to mine entended breuitie and present purpose and may seeme rather to minister infected humours to the sicknesse whose cure I promised to vndertake and by the excellencie of the thinges to excuse the madnesse of the woonderers at them Howbeit I sayde yer whyle that the greatnesse of them that dyd erre made not the errour the lesse but I touched that poynt the rather to this intent that it myght appeare how great the force of that folly was with whiche so many and so great wittes haue conspired vnto whiche also the prince of errour the common multitude and long continuance whiche is the engenderer of customes and acutoritie whiche is a great heape of all mischiefes are ioyned so that the pleasure and admiration thereof is able priuily to remooue and withdrawe the minde from contemplation of higher matters But yf these thynges that are counterfeited and shadowed with vayne colours doo so muche delyght thee cast vp thyne eyes vppon hym that hath adorned mans face with senses his minde with vnderstandyng the heauen with starres the earth with flowres and so shalt thou contemne those woorkemen whom thou woondredst at Of Statues and Images The .xli. Dialogue IOY BUt I take great pleasure in Images Reason These be sundrie artes but the madnesse is one there is but one beginning of them both one ende but diuers matter Ioy. I delyght in statues Reason These come in shew more neere vnto nature then pictures For they doo but appeare only but these are felt to be sounde and substantiall and there theyr bodyes are more durable Whiche is the cause that there remayne to this day in no place any pictures of men of auncient times but statues innumerable Whereby this age in this point as in many thynges els erronious woulde seeme to haue been the fyrst inuenter of pictures or whether that because it alleageth that it hath deuised somwhat whiche commeth neare to the fyrst inuention thereof beyng perfect and excellent in it and in all kindes of engrauing and dare boldly and impudently affirme though falsly that it is not inferiour to any in grauing and caruing all sortes of seales statues seeing in very dtede they be almost al one art or if they be diuers they sprang both from one fountayne to wit the art of drawing doubtlesse are of one antiquitie flourished at one tyme For why Apelles and Pyrgoteles and Lysippus lyued at one tyme whiche may by this meanes be prooued in that the great pride of Alexander of Macedonie chose these three together aboue the rest whereof the one should paint him the other engraue him and the thyrde carue him strayghtly forbiddyng all other vppon whatsoeuer cunnyng or assuraunce of skyll presumyng to meddle with expressyng the kynges face any maner of way and yet was not this madnesse lesse then the residue But euery disease is so muche the more daungerous howe muche more stable and fixed the matter is whereof it proceedeth Ioy. But I am delyghted in Images Reason Thynke not that thou errest alone or that thou hast no fellowes but the common people For in tymes past howe great the dignitie hath been of statues and images and howe feruent the studie and desire of men was reposed in suche pleasures the most diligent enquirie of Augustus and Vaspasian and other Emperours and Kynges of whom it were impertinent and too long to intreate also of other noble personages of the second degree industrious keepyng of them when they had founde them and theyr sundrie dedicatyng and bestowing them may sufficiently declare Hereunto also may be added the great fame of the workemen not rashly spread abroade by the common people or reported vpon dumbe workes but celebrated in the soundyng bookes of learned and approoued writers whiche beyng so great seemeth in no wyse to be able to spryng from a smal roote A great name commeth not of nothing it must be great in deede or seeme to be so whereof great men doo seriously intreate But all these thinges I haue answeared before and tende to this purpose that thou mayest vnderstande with what force so auncient and stout an errour must be resisted Ioy. I conceyue pleasure in sundry statues images Reason There is one of these artes whiche by the handy woorke doth imitate nature men commonly call it framyng and fashionyng This art woorketh with waxe playster of Paris and cleauing claye whiche although among all the other artes that haue affinitie with it it be more freendly and come neerest to vertue or is lesse enimie to modestie and thriftinesse whiche two vertues doo more allowe of imagies and statues of Goddes and men to be made of earth and suche lyke matter then of golde and precious stone Yet what delyght there is to be conceyued in looking vppon faces made of waxe or earth I doo not vnderstand Ioy. I take delyght in
this saying of Seneca is well knowen Eloquence sayth he is a great and manifolde matter and was neuer so fauourable to any that it hapned wholly vnto hym he is happie enough that hath atteined to some one part therof This by what men and what maner witnesses he prooueth it to be true thou hast hearde whiche beyng so let these numbers of professours whiche are almost matche to the common multitude both in rudenesse and multitude consyder with them selues what they doo and whereabout they goe whiche are not contented with one part nor with one Art but without discretion inuade them all O woonderfull confidence and presumption but it is now common Ioy. What wyll you nowe say concernyng the professions of Phisicke and Lawe Reason Let thy patientes and clientes make aunsweare to this What dyd euer these titles auayle them to the health of their body or gaining of their causes Perhappes they haue procured thy profite for this cause ye hunt after artes and the titles of artes to the intent that what is wanting in learnyng may be supplied in degrees and apparell and that the saying of the Satyrical Poet may beverified The Scarlet and the Iewelles beset with Amethistes doo sell the Lawyer Which thyng woulde appeare to be true yea yf the auncient Rethoricians returned agayne into the worlde for no man woulde geue vnto Cicero two hundred crownes vnlesse he woare on his fynger a great ryng of golde To be short let this he vnto thee the summe of all that hath been spoken of to wyt that there be some men of rare disposition whose studies are sound and honest the endes whereof are trueth and vertue This is the knowledge of thynges and the amendment of manners and either the ornament of this mortall lyfe or the entrance to the eternall As for the rablement of the residue whereof the number is great some of them hunt after glorie some a glittering but a vaine rewarde but to the greater sort the onely respect of money is their ende which is not onely a smal reward but also a filthy and not woorthie the trauaile nor match to the toyle of a gentle minde in al these respectes as I haue sayde the title and apparel is not to be contemned for it is effectuall vnto that whereunto it is appoynted for why the mindes and iudgementes almost of al mortal men specially of the common multitude whiche are destitute of this meane are deluded with shadowes Most matters are gouerned by opinion But for them that are geuen to vertue to glory in titles is not only strange and dissonant but also as Iiudge impossible Ioy. I professe many thynges Reason It were better to doo one good deede then to promyse many And men were in good case yf so be they were suche as they professe them selues to be Of the Tytles of businesse and affayres The .xlvii. Dialogue IOY I AM the Kynges Procurer Reason Then art thou the peoples enimie Ioy. I am the Procurer of the Exchequer Reason Then art thou the common wealthes enimie Ioy. I folow the Kyngs busynesse Reason It is painful for a man to folowe his owne busynesse What is it then thynkest thou for hym to folow another mans specially theyrs that are of myght whom to please is perpetual seruitude to displease danger heauy lookes and punyshment redy for a small offence Ioy. I folow the kyngs busynesse Reason Thou hast an accompt to yeelde to an hard iudge which thou shalt scarce be able to make euen with the spoyle of al thy goodes with hate of thy selfe and greeuous offence Ioy. I solicite the kynges busines Reason Take heede least while thy solliciting is difficult thyne accompt be yet harder and so inextricable that as we haue seene it chaunce in many it entrap thy patrimonie fame and lyfe Ioy. I am the kynges Procurer Reason Thou must needes displease many and last of all thine owne Lord and Maister and whiche is most dangerous GOD hym selfe and for the kynges small commoditie the great discommodities of the Realme and exceedyng damages of the people must be dissembled or procured Ioy. I am made the Kynges Procurer Reason So soone as euer this odious office began to touche the thresholde of thyne house euen that day thou beganst to leaue to lyue for thy selfe from thencefoorth thy libertie thy quietnesse and pleasure are departed In steede of these are seruitude payne businesse feare sorowe trouble and bytyng cares come in place nowe art thou not a lyue although thou breath for the lyfe of such as are busie is death who beyng al of them in misery yet are they in most miserable case whiche are busied in other mens matters specially in the affayres of Kynges Tyrantes and great personages Ioy. I am a Iudge Reason Iudge so as though thou shouldest foorthwith be iudged by another There is one iudge of all men and one incorrupt iudgement seate Before this shal all ye mortall men appeare what neede ye then to haue the skyn of the false iudge nayled vppon the iudgement seate or to haue any barbarous admonition to doo iustice Euery Iudge sytteth in that seate where if false iudgement shal be geuen neyther money nor fauour nor false wytnesses nor sinister entreatynges nor vayne threates nor eloquent Patrones shall auayle hym Ioy. I am one of the Consuls of my countrey Reason A very difficult glory It is a rare matter so to geue counsayle that thou mayest at once both profite and please that there may be trueth in woorde fayth in counsel scilence in that whiche is committed sweetnesse in speache fortune shall gouerne the euent and the euent shall purchase credite to the counsayle Ioy. I am gouernour of a Citie Reason Thou leadest an vnbridled beast and as Horace tearmeth it that hath many heades with a small twyne and gouernest a great shyppe alone that is tossed with hugie waues A litle house is hardly guyded how difficult therefore it is to gouerne a whole Citie see thou Hadst thou so great neede of trouble or so litle at home that thou hast vndertaken the publique Yea moreouer it is not only an office of difficultie but also a vyle function insomuche as the Satyrycal Poet tearmeth the gouernour of a Citie a Stewarde or Baylyffe notyng therby the state of these tymes If then he were a Baylife or Husbandman what is he now other then a Woodryfe or Woodman At that tyme Rome began to be a vyllage and nowe it is a Wood. Ioy. I am a President of a Prouince Reason Beyng condempned vnto an honorable exile thou hast exchaunged priuate quietnesse for forraigne carefulnesse looke for no rest or pleasure The state of Presidentes is bytter and troublesome they are forbydden playes and feastes vppon holy dayes theyr doores are shut agaynst gyftes and open to contentions theyr houses are voyde of pastymes and ful of complayntes and chydynges what so euer is a mysse whatsoeuer out of order or out of square throughout the whole Prouince there
it must be handled and amended an harde case for how difficult a matter it is to amend many in this appeareth that very fewe doo amende them selues Of titles of warres warfare and Cheifteinship The xlviii Dialogue IOY I HAVE receyued the honour of the warlyke Gyrdle Reason Seemed it vnto thee that thy lyfe had in it to fewe discommodities alredy vnlesse thou hadst learned also the Art of warfare by meanes wherof thou myghtest alwayes remayne eyther vnquiet or without honour or open to dangers or subiect to contempt Ioy. I professe warfare Reason Ye professe that when ye are borne and therefore what neede you otherwise to professe it One armeth his body with harnesse another his mynde with deceits another his tongue with eloqueÌ„ce There is not one of you vnarmed one soweth another buildeth another declaimeth another pleadeth causes one goeth on foote another rideth on horsback or in a Couch one runneth another saileth one commaundeth another obeyeth There is neuer an one of you ydle what strange kynde of warfare is this One man lyueth in the Campe another in the iudicial Court one in the schooles another in the wooddes one in the fieldes another vpon the Sea one in the Palace another at home one spendeth his lyfe abrode in trauayle al are at warfare and not men only but Horace sayth that the Whelpe also is at warfare in the wooddes And truely of them that goe to warfare there be many sortes but the warfare it selfe is but of one kynde to wyt mans lyfe vppon the earth whiche he that defyned to be warfare truely seemeth vnto me to haue weyghed with deepe and vpryght iudgement yf so be that he had added battaile to this warfare Ioy. I am prest to goo armed into the warres Reason Why dooest thou arme thy selfe outwardly The warre is within the mynde that is whiche the vyces do besiege and ouerthrowe What neede weapons in this case vnlesse they 〈◊〉 worne for the ornament of the body and not for defence of the mynde There be some that say that there is no sight more gallant then to see an armed man but what brauery there is in an armed mans brest and head more then in that whiche is peaceable and vnarmed I cannot perceyue But forasmuch as thou art carryed away with this delyght goo to gyrde thy body with armour receyue the shewres and Sun vpon thy Helmet take vnto thee thy weapons couer thy selfe with thy shielde and whyle thou art sleepyng at home thou shalt be alwaked by Alarme and thynkest thou hast wonne some great presâ—â—ment but thou wast deceyued and hast chosen to thy selfe a dangerous and blooddy trade of lyuing Hope hath many deceiptes and there be I confesse many cheynes whiche drawe the myndes of those into destruction whiche with greedynesse haue vnaduysedly sought after that good whiche all doo desyre and couet Neyther doo I deny but that some haue by seruice in the warres atteyned vnto very great ryches and been aduaunced to great Empires but beleeue me more haue fallen into pouertie come to imprisonment seruitude violent sodaine death by meanes thereof Thou since thou art so disposed to professe thy selfe a souldyer vnlesse thou wylt disgrace thy profession make alwayes accompt of thy lyfe as yf thou were continually in dying and let that Emperial voyce euermore thunder in thyne eares Learne to strike Learne to dye One syllable long or short shall varie thy deedes and alter that case with thee for either thou shalt kyl or be kylled and therefore it behooueth thee at al tymes and in al places to make thy selfe redy These Artes are thy delyte Hearken vnto the Satyricall Poet where he speaketh and reciteth the rewardes of warfare where hauyng rehearsed an innumerable fort he geathereth notwithstandyng verie fewe among which the fyrst and chiefe is Libertie to offende A rewarde truely not so much to be desyred of good men as to be accepted by the armed lawes whiche among armour and weapons are put to scilence Ioy. I haue sent my sonne foorth to the warres Reason It is almost commonly seene that the sonne of a souldyer is hym selfe a souldier also For the father can leaue none other inheritance to his sonne then he hath to wyt his Bowe and Arrowes his Peece his Shielde his Swoorde and Warre and that also which maketh vp the game his gylden spurres And this whiche we haue sayde to the father the sonne may thynke it spoken to hym selfe Ioy. Beyng a Captayne in the warres I am become â—â—â—â—â—s with victories Reason Howe muche better were it that beyng a gouernour in peace thou becamest famous in vertues Ioy. I haue susteyned many warres Reason Thou hast bereeued thy selfe and many others of rest and quietnesse a woorthye woorke Ioy. I am famous for victories and triumphes Reason Many tymes euyll is more knowne then good and a darke tempest more spoken of then a fayre Sunshyne day To conclude thou hast prouided titles for thy Tumbe talke for the people and nothyng for thy selfe Of the friendshyppe of Kynges The xlix Dialogue IOY I Haue wonne the friendshyp of Kynges Reason True friendshyp among men is rare and thou fanciest to thy selfe that thou hast wonne the friendshyp of Kynges whom the excellencie of their estate the loftinesse of theyr minde maketh them coÌ„monly the contemners of theyr inferiors Ioy. I am beloued of kynges Reason I perceyue then that thou carest not for thy soule vertue fame quietnesse rest securitie for the fashion of most kyngs is wel knowne they scarcely loue any but suche as settyng al other thynges apart wyll make them selues the bondslaues and ministers of theyr crueltie lust and auarice And therefore yf thou be beloued of Kynges there is no enquyryng farther of thee thou litle carest for thy selfe Ioy. It is by meanes of my goodnesse and vertue that I am beloued of Kynges Reason What answerest thou then to Salust For Kynges sayth he are more suspitious of good men then of euyll and alwayes they stand in feare of other mens vertues Ioy. In respect of good qualities I am beloued of my Prince Reason Of what qualities I pray you Haukyng or Huntyng Concernyng these I reprooued thee in a certayne discourse not long since of warfare whereof we disputed last Which vnlesse it be commended by large bloodshed and great daungers it deserueth not the name of warfare but of warlie cowardice not onely in the iudgment of kynges but also of the common people Ioy. The kyng loueth me for my conditions sake Reason It is for thy vanitie or daunger or perhaps for some crimes that are in thee murder poysonyng vauderie treason flatterie lying comman plagues whiche dayly custome in thee excuseth and vrbanitie commendeth For these be the most fyttest meanes to wyn the good wyl of some kynges to whom there is nothyng more hateful then vertue learning By these therfore there is no hope to purchase theyr fauour which are rather the cause of their hatred thus is
generally most briefly S. Hierome thinketh of this matter where he sayth that there is neither Fortune nor destinie so that the common sort shall acknowledge and perceiue here their manner of speaking as for the learned which are but scarce they will vnderstand what I meane and shall not bee troubled with the vsuall woord Of the one part of this twoofold woorke concerning passions and fortune wee haue saide alredie what wee thought good of the other we will now speake what wee shall see conuenient Of deformitie of the bodie The first Dialogue Sorowe and Reason Sorowe I Complaine that Nature hath dealt verie hardlie with mee in making me euill fauoured Reason O howe manie fire brandes hath she quenched howe manie flames hath she repressed Sorowe Nature hath made mee deformed Reason She hath not giuen thee that which might delite thee if shee haue giuen thee that which may profit thee it is sufficient and therefore leaue thy complaintes Sorowe Nature hath not giueÌ„ me the grace of good fauour Reason Shee hath giuen thee nothing that sicknes might deface old age take away perhaps she hath giuen thee that which death it selfe dareth not touche Sorowe Nature hath denied me the fauour of the bodie Reason If she haue giueÌ„ thee the good fauour of the minde thou art much beholden to her contemne that repulse with a valiant minde and comfort the offence of the looking glasse with the vprightnesse of thy conscience Sorowe Nature hath enuied me the fauour of the bodie Reason She hath not enuied it thee but she is ashamed to giue thee that which is dailie diminished and wasted True liberalitie is perceiued by a coÌ„tinuing gift Rotten and transitorie giftes couetous persons do giue good fauour which is a fraile and transitorie gift of Nature is giuen vnto fewe for their profit vnto manie to their destruction but vnto none to their safetie and true glorie Sorowe Bodily fauour is denied vnto me Reason Excellent fauour of the bodie and honestie do verie seldome dwell together vnder one roofe It is wel with thee if the worse being excluded thou retein the better geast with thee Sorowe I haue no part of the comelinesse of good fauour Reason Why art thou sorie for that or what holie or godly matter doest thou reuolue in thy minde For what cause doest thou thinke the good fauour of the bodie to be necessarie for thee or not rather altogether burdensome and hindering Good fauour hath made manie adulterers but none chast Manie hath it ledde through the slipperinesse of pleasures vnto an infamous death who if they had been euill fauoured might haue liued without shame and danger What say I manie Yea it hath brought innumerable into trouble but all welnigh into blame Sorowe Why hath nature made me deformed Reason To the ende thou shouldest adorne and make thy selfe well fauoured with that fauour which may remaine with thee in thine old age in thy bedde â–ª in thy beere in thy graue and that which may be thine own commendation not the prayse of nature nor of thy parentes It is more beautifull to be made beautifull than so to be borne For the one commeth by chaunce the other by studie Sorowe Much deformitie of bodie oppresseth me Reason This deformitie of some is counted a part of vnhappinesse and miserie Beleeue thou me the minde is not defiled by deformitie of the bodie but the bodie adorned by the beautie and fauour of the mind Then it is not this that oppresseth or dishonesteth thee but it openeth the way and layeth foorth the matter and meane to honest the minde and to rise aloft through vertue Sorowe Nature hath brought mee foorth deformed into the world Reason If she had brought forth Helen euill fauoured or to speake of Men if Paris had been borne without good fauour perhappes Troy had stoode to this day Sorowe I complaine that I was borne euill fauoured Reason But fewe good men haue loued the comelinesse of the bodie none haue desired it manie haue reiected it for doing of which that Tuscane youth is commended who of his owne accorde mangled and defourmed the excellent beautie of his well fauoured face which he perceiued to be suspected of manie and enimie to his owne good name and hurtfull to the honestie of other farre vnlike vnto thee who wishest for that whereof he dispoiled him selfe and which fewe did euer enioye without hurt Sorowe I want good fauour Reason It is more safe to want that by meanes whereof thou mayest often fall into a doubtfull and painfull experiment of thy selfe Comelinesse beautie hath hurt manie it â—â—th troubled all manie aâ—â—â—r sundrie conflictes it hath made effeminate and made them easie to be ouercome and thrust them ouerthwartlie into blame and reproofe Sorowe My stature is deformed and to lowe Reason This discommoditie is not as thou supposest to bee complained of the lowe stature is more comelie light and nimble Sorowe My stature is verie short Reason Who can gainesay that as a bigge man dwelleth in a litle house so may a valiant courage in a small bodie Sorowe My bodie is small Reason Thou lamentest for that thou art not a burden vnto thy selfe but light and dapper and actiue vnto all things Sorowe My bodie is verie small Reason Who euer complained of a small burden Thou hast a iust cause truelie to be sorie for that thou art not oppressed with the greatnes of the bodie but onelie hast a bodie neither art a burden to thy selfe but an vsuall necessarie Sorowe I am of a contemptible stature Reason As nothing is glorious but vertue so nothing is contemptible but vice Vertue respecteth no stature Sorow The stature of my bodie is smal Reason Vertue requireth not the stature of the bodie but of the minde If this be long right large magnifical or comelie whatsoeuer the other be it skilleth not not only not at home but not so much as in the field at warfare vnlesse it seeme to be more hurtful Thou knowest how the most noble captaine Marius chose tough stroÌ„g not tall souldiers Which thing how wiselie and with howe fortunate successe he attempted his often and great conquestes do testifie As for the heigth tallenesse of the bodie it carieth more maiestie with it but lesse force Sorowe My stature is short Reason The same hindreth thee not but that thou mayest notwithstanding be a good and valiant man yea if neede were and fortune so serued a King or an Emperour For although that Scipio Africane were tall of bodie and Iulius Caesar of a loftie stature notwithstanding Alexander King of Macedonia and Augustus Caesar â—ere but lowe neither did their shortnessed 〈◊〉 bodie hinder their greatnesse of minde nor deâ—â—act anie thing from their fame â—â—â—owe I woul◠〈◊〉 â—â—â—r and greater Reason Arise 〈…〉 â—â—â—e and thou shalt bee greater and â—aâ—â—er 〈…〉 more profitable and easie encrease Sorowe I deâ—â—e to bee well fauoured Reason Learne to loue and wishe for that
eyther of these one Citie shall gene thee an example to wit Menenius Agrippa and Portius Cato euen the same that was the last Sorowe The Citizens are together by the eares in implacable ciuile warre Reason If thou canst doo nothyng thereto of thy selfe labour others reprooue them entreate them withstande them chastice them speake them faire beate into their heades the vtter ouerthrowe of the Common wealth whiche conteyneth in it the ruine of euery priuate person and seemyng proper to none appertayneth to all To be short seeke to appease theyr mindes at the one syde with duetie on the other with terrour But yf thou profite nothyng that way make thy prayers vnto Almightie GOD and wyshe the witte and amendment of thy Citizens and the safetie of thy Countrey and in all poyntes fulfyl the duetie of a good Citizen Sorow The Common wealth is come to great extremitie by ciuile warre Reason To the ende that neither by ciuile nor external warres any thyng happen vnto thee vnlooked for nor any chaunce oppresse thee vpon a sudden alwayes recount this one thyng in thy minde that not men only but al worldly thynges also are mortal the soule of man onely excepted And as in men so lykewyse in Cities and great Empires there be sundry diseases and maladies some in the outwarde partes and some rysing within the bodye among which are mutinies and fallinges away and brawles and discordes and ciuile warres and moreouer that euery one hath a tyme prefixed whiche he can not passe whiche euery day draweth nearer then other and although it be deferred for a time yet most sure it is that it wyll come Where there stand now most famous Cities there sometyme haue stoode rough and wilde wooddes and so perhaps shall doo agayne It is a great follie for any Citie to hope for that of it selfe whiche Rome the Lady and Queene of all Cities coulde not attayne This is the difference betweene the endes and decayes of men and of Cities in that the ende of men by reason of their innumerable and infinite multitude and shortnes of lyfe is dayly seene with the eyes but of Cities because of the rarenesse of them and theyr longer continuance it is scarce beholden once in many hundred yeeres and then with great wonder and admiration This meditation shall make thee more strong agaynst all chaunces as well publique as priuate And to conclude the same shall lay foorth vnto thee though not a pleasant yet an indifferent way vnto pouertie vnto exile and vnto death it selfe and teach thee how that this mischiefe is peculier to thy Countrey which is common vnto you all that be Citizens Of the disagreement of a waueryng minde The Lxxv. Dialogue SOROWE I AM troubled with the disagreeyng of my minde Reason There is no warre woorse then this no not ciuile warre For that is betweene Citizens but this with a mans owne selfe That is betweene factions of Citizens in the streetes of the Cities but this is fought within in the minde betweene the partes of the soule And therefore forasmuche as there is a kynde of warre which is counted more then ciuyll warre where not Citizens onely but kinsmen also fyght among them selues as was betweene Caesar and Pompei of whiche it was sayde Heere brethren stoode and there was shedde the parentes blood Muche more truely may that be so called where not the father agaynst the sonne nor brother agaynst brother but man agaynst hym selfe doth contende duryng whiche stryfe the minde hath neyther quietnesse nor securitie Sorowe My minde is at variance and distracted with diuers affections Reason Away with that variance begynne to minde one thyng For tyll those contrary affections lyke seditious Citizens minde one and the same thyng neuer shall the minde be quiete and at peace with it selfe But as the Ague of bodyes commeth through contrarie and corrupt humours so contrarie affections engender the Ague of mindes the whiche by so muche is the more dangerous by how muche the minde is more noble then the body and eternall death more terrible then the temporall in eche yf a meane be obserued health may notably be maynteyned Sorowe My minde is at debate and chooseth not what it woulde Reason Thou nowe tyest the cause of euyll and euyll it selfe together supposing the same to be at debate because it chooseth not But let it once begyn to choose the stryfe wyll quicklie ceasse I say let it choose to wyll that good is not euyll for els it wyl be so far from finding quietnesse that more and more it shal be disquieted For vices can neuer agree together but where vertues are there is peace and concorde Sorow My minde is at dissension being deuided into partes Reason Philosophers haue destinguished the mind into three partes the fyrst wherof as the gouernour of mans lyfe heauenly blessed next vnto GOD they haue placed in the head as it were in a Towre where quiet and honest cogitations and willes doo dwell the second in the brest where anger and malice boyleth the thyrd in the neather partes from whence proceedeth lust and concupiscence the tempest of this sea is double so thou seest now what thou hast to doo Doo as Menenius dyd of whom euen now I spake he perswaded the common people to come vnder the gouernement of the Senatours whose profitable counsayle they followyng were brought from dissension to amitie so he counsayled them but yf counsayle wyl not serue doo thou compell thyne abiect and base partes to obeye the noble For tyl that be brought about neuer looke to be quiet in minde And lacking quietnesse surely mans lyfe is vnsetled and foolyshe and tossed about and vncertaine and blinde yea altogether miserable Many in all theyr lyfe tyme knowe not what they woulde haue Sorow I am troubled in minde and knowe not what I woulde Reason Thou hast moe companions troubled not once or twyse but as last of all I sayde all theyr lyfe tyme And truely among all that thou hast sayde thou hast not and saye what thou wylt thou canst not almoste shewe a greater miserie Sorowe I am tossed and diuersly enclined Reason To be in suche a case is a notable argument that the minde is not wel For as a sicke body tumbleth on the bedde so a sicke minde knoweth not what to stycke vnto Suche are in a most miserable case For better doo I conceyue of hym which stoutly persisteth in wickednesse for if he repent happily he wyl be as constant in well doyng as he was impudent in naughtinesse then of a lyght brayne which carelesly neglecteth al counsayle for yf he at any tyme begyn to doo well he is soone weerie and wyll not persiste but remayneth altogeather ignorant so that we may well apply that obscure saying of Seneca vnto hym They which doo not that they shoulde consume the tyme without profite for dooyng nowe that nowe this and neuer continue in one may well be sayde to doo that they should not
very fewe among many are able to say so for of so many thousand thousandes as are borne howe many are there that atteyne to olde age And of them that do howe many lyue out the lawful tyme that they may be called old Sorowe I am very olde Reason It is a myracle to meete with a verie old man specially if a man thinke with hym selfe with how many dangers on steppes he hath passed to that age The great rarenesse of olde folke is a great argument of the manyfolde chaunces of this mortal lyfe Sorowe I am olde Reason Thou hast runne an hard and daungerous race it were marueyle but that by this tyme beyng weerie and desirous to rest thou were glad to see the ende so nigh Sorowe I am soone waxen olde Reason The course of your lyfe is sometyme short sometyme very short neuer long alwayes hard rough and vncertayne the last part whereof is olde age and the ende death what cause hast thou here to complayne alone Art thou waxen old By this time then thou oughtest to haue fulfilled the dueties of life and now rest thy self seing thou art come to the end thereof That traueiler were worse then mad that being weerie and weakened with his long iourney woulde be content to goe backe agayne There is nothyng more acceptable to them that are weerie then their Inne Sorowe I am aged Reason The toyles of thy lyfe haue been pleasant vnto thee belike if thou be sorie thou hast passed them Sorowe I am an olde man. Reason If thou haddest a delyte to lyue loe thou hast lyued what needes thou must do thou hast fulfilled And who is so mad that wylbe sorie for the doing of that whiche he wyshed vnlesse he perceyue that he wyshed a misse or reioyceth not that that is done alredy that might not be left vndone nor be done without great trauayle And therefore on euery side thou hast cause to reioyce whether thou hast obteyned thy wyshed desire or accomplyshed thy necessarie and payneful duetie Sorow I am in yeeres and olde age hath chased away the delites of the body Reason Enioy the pleasures of the minde which are as many and truely more permanent and do neuer depart but when the soule departeth to her they cleaue her they folowe But bodilye pleasures when they come they bring offence and when they depart they leaue behinde them cause of repentance shame and sorowe Reioyce that thou art discharged and free from them and geue thankes to thy deliuerer for bringing thee out of the handes of thine enimies and causing thee do folowe thy duetie which thou haddest deferred and neglected Sorow I am olde and want mine accustomed pleasures Reason Accustome thy selfe then to new for olde age hath it proper pleasures whiche when thou hast tasted thou wylt loath those whiche thou hast lost if thou mightest euen rufe to returne vnto them Sorow I am olde and gray headed Reason The reuerende hoarie heares of a vertuous olde man carie with them not onely more aucthoritie but also honest delite then al the filthy pleasures of young men neyther be thou greeued at the changyng of their colour For whose senses are so corrupted or iudgment blynded that he woulde not rather beholde baskets ful of white Lilies then hutches full of blacke coales And yf he were to be transfourmed had not rather be made a whyte swanne then a blacke crowe Sorowe I am olde and the filthy wrincles haue furrowed my face Reason The forrowed lande bryngeth foorth the ranker corne and the lyfe that hath been wel instructed yeeldeth the ryper and pleasanter fruite in olde age If the wrincles of thy face offende thee frame the countenance of thy minde vnto more comlinesse whiche wyll neuer be deformed with wrincles nor altered with yeeres but rather encrease by continuance and to be short wyl do thee more honour if thou neglect it not Sorowe I am olde and become so wrincled and euyl fauoured that I scarce knowe my selfe Reason I tolde thee at the begynning of this Nowe thou wylt haue lesse desire to looke in a glasse lesse please thine owne perhaps but much lesse the eyes of wanton women whom to haue a desire to delite I cannot easily determine whether it tast of greater vanitie then lasciuiousnesse But they that séeke for trustinesse for constancie for grauitie for wysedome do hope more assuredly to fynde them among these wrincles then where the forehead and cheekes be playne and smoath and soft Sorow I am aged and the sweetest part of my lyfe haue I left behynd me Reason Nay surely the sowrest for those thynges that are most wyshed for are not alwayes best Many haue desired their owne hurte which they would not do were not the saying of the Satirike Poet true There are but fewe that can discerne the true goodes Sorowe I am olde and my pleasant dayes are past Reason The dayes in al tymes are muche one and lyke but mens mindes do varie yea one minde disagreeth from it selfe Hereof it commeth that the madnesse of youth on the one side and the impaciencie of olde age on the other haue in such sort disturbed the iudgement of this lyfe that that is counted good whiche is euyl and that most excellent whiche is woorst of al. As for the dayes they are of them selues al good for asmuch as the kyng and creatour of al worldes is good And although some dayes be hotte and some cold some drye and some moyst some cloudy and some cleare some troublesome and some calme yet yf thou haue a respect vnto the beautie of the whole worlde and the course of nature they be al good But yf they be referred vnto you and your iudgement they are almost al of them euyl sorowful doubtful heauie troublesome careful bitter plaintile lamentable ful of aduersitie Among these thou tellest me a tale of certayne pleasant ones I knowe not what whiche whiles they were present were heauie and not without their complaintes and nothing maketh them now seem pleasant but that they are past and the desire thou hast that they shoulde returne maketh them deare vnto thee and the rather for that perhaps they haue caried away with them some thynges whereby thou settest no small store A foole commonly loueth nothyng but that he hath lost Sorowe I am waren old but O that my young dayes woulde returne agayne Reason O no lesse foolyshe then vayne wyshe as thou meanest but yf thy vnderstandyng were of hygher matters then were it not voyde for it wyl surely come agayne one day and according as it is written Thyne youth shal be renewed as is were the youth of an Eagle Sorowe I am olde and my good tyme is past Reason As euery age is good to the good so is it euyl to the euyll liuers vnto both sure it is but short and very neare to the ende when as the godly shal be rewarded for their vertue and the wycked punished for their sinnes Which is then
then a labour to speake and a quietnesse to holde a mans peace Sorow I can speake to no purpose Reason Those thynges which I sayde in the lacke of eloquence may more aptly be repeated in the losse of the tongue Then since thou canst not speake hold thy peace and that whiche necessitie byddeth thee to do do it wyllyngly Whiche thyng they that can speake myght do many tymes more profitably and repeate them often that they haue not donne so Holde thy peace I say and thinke not that thou sustaynest any losse thinke with thy lelfe secretly and speake with thy selfe in priuitie whiche to be better then to speake in open assembly they that are eloquent cannot deny Sorowe I am fallen dumbe Reason If Cicero and Demosthenes had been dumbe they had lyued longer and dyed a more gentle death Sorow I haue quite lost the vse of my tongue Reason And the custome of lying and the artes of deceyuing and the instrument of purchasing enmitie and infamie for many are become more infamous for their tongue then for their deedes There is no part of the body reedier to hurt and harder to bridle Therefore not without cause as some great and rare matter vttered he those woordes who sayde I wyl looke vnto my wayes that I offende not with my tongue Whiche when a certayne holy man who came to the studie of diuinitie had hearde is reported to haue departed away and that he would heare no more thereof And when as after a long season his maister marueylyng demaunded of hym why he had been so long absent from his studie whiche he had begun he ausweared that the very first worde had geuen hym enough to do and that he could not fulfyl that one poynt by any his labour or traueyl whatsoeuer See thou despise not this gouernment nor bridle whiche is offered vnto thee eyther by nature or fortune but wyllyngly yelde thy selfe to be ruled and spurne not agaynst thine owne destinie Sorow I haue lost my tongue Reason Nowe kepe thou with al diligence that which the wyse man wylleth thee to wyt thyne hart and beyng called from two careful watchynges vnto one and discharged from the one moitie of thy labour thou mayest the more easily keepe a fewe and more warely guard precious thynges Sorow I haue lost my tongue Reason In a certayne fewe men this is a noble and excellent member but in the greater sort of the people very pestilent and noysome and a great deale better that many had wanted it Whiche is not only seene to be true in a seruant in that the Satirike Poet sayth The tongue is the worst part of an euyl seruant but also in many free persons vnto whom nature hath geuen nothing woorse then their tongue Warres deceites adulteries and al kynde of abuses for the most part should surceasse dyd not the tongue cast abrode and nouryshe their euyl seedes Sorow I haue lost my tongue Reason If an euyll one thou hast gayned much For it is great ryches to be poore in wyckednesse Who so hath not these is borne ryche but who so looseth them is made ryche and his lyuing beyng encreased with a newe reuenewe hath founde that by loosing whiche he had lost by findyng But yf thou haue lost a good tongue I say agayne keepe thy hart Thou hast lost that wherewith thou mightest please men keepe that wherewith thou mayest please God vnto whom yf thou canst not speake with thy tongue yet talke vnto hym with thy hart For yf it be written of the wycked Lying lyppes are in their hart and with their hart they haue spoken why are not godly lyppes in the hart of the ryghteous that they also may speake in their hart whereas are the eares of God And that is true whiche the same man wrytech in an other place My mouth is not hydden from thee whiche thou madest in secret For there is no thought be it neuer so secrete that is hidden from God neyther heareth he lesse them that speake softly then those that crye aloude yea he heareth no clamour be it more or lesse before the clamour and crying out of the hart for he harkeneth vnto none but that and he is delited with silence This clamour dyd he that was first a keeper of sheepe and afterwarde a most famous shepheard of the people of God restrayne within the closure of his lyppes who deserued to heare the voyce of God saying vnto hym Why cryest thou vnto me He spake not but he cryed yea he spake but it was with the hart And lyke as he that heareth God is not deafe so he whom God heareth is not dumbe Of want of vertue The .ciiii. Dialogue SOROW. BVt I am without vertue Reason An hurt in deede a iust sorowe sauing that al other wantes may happen to be eyther natural or casual or violent but this doubtlesse is voluntarie For other are eyther in the body or in the wyt or in the memory or in the speech or in some outwarde thyng one or other al which happen not accordyng as a man woulde wyshe but as euery mans fortune chaunceth but this onely consisteth in will whiche euery one guydeth and disposeth at his owne pleasure For a man can require none other good wyll of another man then he is disposed to shewe whose wyll it is wherby he wylleth this thing or that thyng Otherwyse as defectes happen vnto men of strength or of speeche or of ryches agaynst their willes so shoulde of their wylles also neyther shoulde vertue deserue rewarde nor vice merite punishment But nowe not a wyl vnto you to do this or that but a libertie to chose this or that was geuen you at your byrth whiche beyng applyed vnto that whiche is good maketh you good but conuerted vnto euill maketh you euyll The same may you vse as you lust and yf you lust ye may vse it well whiche doubtlesse is the gyft of God as yf ye abuse it it is a great peruersitie of the wyller but it cannot be otherwyse chosen but that a good wyll is the roote of vertue as an euyl wyll is the roote of vice And thus there is none that suffereth a want of vertue but he that wyl for that the greatest cheefest part of vertue consisteth in the wil. Sorow Yea I would haue vertue but I cannot get it Reason Many there be that thinke they woulde haue that whiche they wyl not and that they woulde that whiche they wyl thus euery one deceiueth hym selfe and endeuoureth to perswade not onely hym selfe but others that he is desirous of good neyther perswadeth any more easily how delectable true vertue is since that the false opinion of vertue so muche deliteth that it is pleasant vnto hym to deceyue the people and his freendes and moreouer by them to be deceyued Sorow I knowe that I would fayne but I cannot be good Reason Admit it be so it sufficeth not to haue a will vnlesse thou haue also a desire and that
but be reprochful and ignominious for that it is contrarie to the commaundement of the most hygh Lorde agaynst whiche nothyng can be wel done Sorowe I had rather dye then to see the thynges that are lyke to happen shortly Reason It is not the part of a man not to be able with open eyes to behold both faces of fortune it is the part of a woman to turne away the eyes in feare What is the thyng that troubleth thee so muche that nothyng can helpe thee but death only Is it thine owne or thy freendes or perhaps the aduersitie of thine afflicted countrye As for the first two they are but gentle for fortune is not so strong but vertue is able to withstand it the thirde is godly but the loue thereof is fainte and slouthful For the bondage and captiuitie of a mans countrey and the gouernement thereof in manner of a Tirannie is rather to be repelled by death then auoyded by steppyng a side For the first is the part of a man but this tastest of womanyshe imbecillitie Whiche thyng notwithstandyng the same Seneca doth woonderfully extol in the death of Cato in that same his peculiar opinion whereof I spake erewhyle But Cicero thinkyng it sufficient to excuse him only abstaineth from commending him For he sayth that vnto Cato that was a man of such wonderful grauitie and perpetual constancie of nature it was better to dye then to looke the Tyrant in the face whom Brutus notwithstandyng behelde and thought it better to make hym away by kyllyng hym then by kyllyng hym selfe Whiche how wel or ill it was done I do not now dispute But so in deede he did As for Cicero whyle he excuseth Cato he forgetteth his owne more commendable opinion whiche long before he had set downe in his sixth booke De republica of a common-wealth whiche is after this manner folowyng whiles that he bringeth in Publius Scipio Affricanus the younger dreaming howe that he talked in heauen with his father and graundfather and hearyng them speake of the immortalitie of the soule and the felicitie of the other lyfe made hym desirous to dye and brought in his father by and by reprouing the same his fonde and vnprofitable desyre in these woordes It may not be so quoth he for vnlesse God whose churche al this is which thou beholdest doo loose thee out of these bondes of thy bodye thou canst haue none entrance hyther For men were created for this cause that they shoulde beholde the globe whiche thou seest in the middest of this temple whiche is called the earth Wherefore good sonne Publius both thou and also al vertuous men ought to keepe your selues within the custodie of this your bodye and not to depart out of the lyfe of man contrarie vnto his commaundement by whom that lyfe was geuen vnto you least happely ye seeme to forsake the vocation whereunto God hath called you Doo not these woordes of Cicero sufficiently reprooue Cato that is excused And truely yf thou were appoynted by some earthly Prynce or Captayne to keepe a place by defence of armes thou wouldest not dare to depart from thy charge without his lycence whiche yf thou shouldest doo doubtlesse he woulde take it in ill part Howe then woulde the heauenly Emperour take it thynkest thou vnto whom so muche the more obedience ought to be geuen by howe muche God is greater then man There was of late dayes one Stephanus Columnensis a gentleman of auncient vertue who yf lie had lyued had not onely been famous in this age but also in remembrance of al posteritie The same Stephanus beyng besieged by a mightie enimie of his vnto whom he was in power far vnequal committed the defence of one turret wherein there seemed to be most danger vnto one of his captaynes of whose trust he was assured This turret being vndermined and secretly shaken by the enimies so that it was in danger of fallyng when as the residue of the garison perceyuing so much forsooke it and perswaded hym also to come downe and prouide for his safety since it was bootelesse to tarrie but vnto him selfe very dangerous or rather present death I wyl not come downe sayde he vnlesse he cal me away who set me here Which being reported vnto Stephanus who also was very careful for the gentleman came running in bast to cal hym away the turret beyng shaken at the very foundation fel downe immediatly with great noyse Thus that trustie defendant was miserably slayne whom his lord and maister beyng scarcely able to finde out among the rubbishe and ruynes of the turret buryed hym with great sorowe and lamentation and whyle he lyued had a dutiful care ouer hym and in his common speeche alwayes aduaunced his fayth with worthy commendation What I meane by these wordes I thinke thou knowest Suche a keeper oughtest thou to be of thy body whiche is committed vnto thy keepyng by God as he was of his turret which was commended to his charge by his lorde and maister Notwithstandyng I am not ignorant howe that the death of Cato was muche commended by many of that age wherein he lyued and very glorious in the common opinion of men And that saying of Iulius Caesar is wel knowen who beyng conquerour and making hast vnto Vtica where Cato had slayne hym selfe and hearyng report of his death Cato quoth he enuyed my glory and I enuie his death Doubtlesse it seemed some excellent thyng whiche so great and glorious a personage enuied at Sorow Then what shoulde let me to folow the death of a wyse man that was enuied at by so great a person and excused and commended of the wyse and to eschewe the innumerable distresses of lyfe by a voluntarie death Truely I had rather dye Reason Beware that thou be not caryed away with the vayne hope of hynges For there be some inferiour in eloquence but superiour in sense whiche neyther commend nor excuse this death of Cato but sharpely reprehende it Among whom Sainct Augustine a most sharpe searcher after the truth disputeth that this was not the cause of the hastenyng of his owne death because he woulde not lyne vnder the empire of Caesar togeather with his sonne forasmuche as he hym selfe was the cause that his sonne fledde to Caesar and in hope of safetie submitted hymselfe to his mercy wherein he was not deceyued Whiche yf he had thought to haue been a shameful thyng would he not haue delyuered his sonne from it as wel as hym selfe eyther by poyson or by sword or by some other kynde of death whatsoeuer Seeing that Manlius Torquatus is commended for killyng his owne sonne for that he had geuen battel to his enimies and vanquished them but contrarie to his fathers commaundement Neyther can it be sayde that it is a more shameful thing to be conquerour ouer a proude enimie then to be subiect to an arrogant conquerour Why then dyd he thinke Caesar woorthy to graunt lyfe to his sonne who thought hym vnworthie
they possessed the kyngdome of heauen Sorowe I must needes dye out of my Countrey Reason What shall I speake of men of a meaner degree One that was remooued fyrst from Stridon Bethleem and afterwarde Rome receyued Fraunce another from Pannonia and Parris another from Athens and Rome another from Greece and Spayne and Millaine another from Rome lyuing and the same when he was dead Sardinia from Africa and shortly after Ticinum from Sardinia two most bryght shining streames of the East march in merites and ioyned in minde and neere in bodye Who they be that I speake of thou knowest and therefore in makyng hast I ouerpasse many thynges But that thou mayest not want also an example of the thyrde sorte Cyprus receyued one from the land of Palestine and Campania another from Nursia Spaine this one and Italie that other and Bononie one and Padua another Sorowe I vnderstande well all that euer thon meanest notwithstandyng vnwillingly doo I dye farre from my Countrey Reason And truely I vnderstande the very cause hereof to wit for that the most sacred spirites and mindes which alwayes haue their affections fixed in heauen haue no care at all of their earthly Countrey which care thou hast not yet layd aside but truely beleeue mee yf thou hope after heauen thou must needes lay it asyde indeede Neuerthelesse I wyll entreate of others that were louers of vertue and mindfull of heauen and yet not through their loue of heauen altogether forgetful of the earth The boanes of Pythagoras of Samos Metapontus dyd couer Cicero whom Arpine brought foorth and Rome dyd nourysh the bay of Caieta sawe dead Plinie whom the riuer Athesis washed when he was an infant the ashes of the mount Veseuus couered when he was olde Mantua brought Virgil into the worlde Brundusium or as other some write Tarentum plucked hym away and now Naples holdeth hym Sulmo framed the Poet Ouid but his exile in Pontus disolued him Carthage as it is reported brought forth Terence the Comike Poet but Rome taught him and Arcadia buried him Apulia sent foorth Horace the Poet and Calabria Ennius and the Prouince of Narbona Statius and Vasconia Ausonius Corduba the three Annei or as some say foure to wit the two Senecaes and Gallio and the Poet Lucan And al these ouer besides Plautus of Arpine and Lucillus of Arunca and Pacuuius of Brundusium Iuuenal of Aquinum and Propertius of Vmbria Valerius of Antium and Catullus of Verona and Varrus of Cremona and Gallus of Forli and Actius of Pisaurum Cassius of Parma Claudianus of Florence Persius of Volaterrae a thousand moe hath Rome receiued and for the most part buried only Titus Liuius of Padua with muche adoo was restored vnto his Countrey to be enterred and so contrariwise Rome hath bread many that haue dyed and ben buried in other places The whole world is in manner of a narrow house fouresquare wherein men passe from one extremitie to another and in the one is life and in the other death Men of valiant courage esteeme of it for none other cause then for the varietie of the vse thereof as it were to goe out of a cold bath into a stone or to chaing out of a winter chamber into a summer lodging This chaing and varietie namely to be borne in one place and buried in another is common among al men specially the more noble for t Sorowe I knowe it is so yet I dye sorowfully out of myne owne Countrey Reason Thou shouldest dye no more merily in that Countrey which thou callest thyne but ye geue your selues ouer to teares and seeke causes to lament and be sorie as yf ye tooke pleasure in them But yf the examples of holy learned and discrete pouertie can not discharge thy minde hereof which is infected with the errours of the vulgare multitude I wyll alleage them that haue been more fortunate in proouing that this which troubleth thee hath hapned to the most famous Captaynes Dukes Kynges and Emperours so that I wyll see whether thou wylt refuse that fortune which may befal to a man. Sorowe Whom thou wylt speake of and alleage I knowe well enough but what neede many woordes I am sorie to dye out of my Countrey the place encreaseth the greefe of my death Reason I perceiue thou refusest to be cured yet wyll I proceede but with how good effect that looke thou vnto as for me it shall suffice to vtter the trueth and geue thee faythfull warnyng Alexander was borne at Pella slayne at Babylon and his ashes buried at Alexandria a Citie called after the name of the founder The other Alexander was brought vp in the Princes Palace of Epirus and drowned in the Riuer Lucanus Kyng Cyrus was borne in his Kyngdome of Persis and slayine and mangled in Scythia Rome and the whole Romane Empire had in admiracion Marcus Crassus and Pompeius the great which as it was able to beare the greatnesse of them whyle they lyued so yf Fortune had so suffered it had been sufficient to haue receyued theyr ashes but the one was couered with earth in Assyria beyonde Euphrates the other ouerwhelmed in the Channell of the Aegyptian streame Vnto the latter Cato the Citie of Rome gaue both begynnyng and name but Vtica brought both ende and surname The Cornelii Scipioes Rome procreated most noble and profitable members of the Common-wealth by whom it had been often saued and adorned whom notwithstanding their destinies so dispersed that those two which are called the great were entombed both in Spanish moulde and the elder Africane at Linternum and Nasica at Pergamus and Lentulus within Scicil dwelling al in seuerall and disioyned graues Of all this number only Asiaticus and Africanus the younger lye buried at Rome who perhaps had lyen better in any banishment whatsoeuer for the fyrst was punyshed by imprisonment the other by death And thus many tymes it happeneth that a man may lyue better and dye better in any other place then in his owne Countrey and lye nowhere harder then at home The three Deci although the common report make mention but of twayne dyed valiantly out of theyr owne Countrey the Father fyghting with the Latines the Sonne with the Hetrurians and the Nephew as Cicero addeth with Pyrrhus To what purpose shoulde I nowe rehearse in order as they come to my minde woorthie Captaynes and Princes whiche were all borne at Rome and dyed elsewhere Africa behelde Attilius Regulus howe muche the more cruelly so muche the more gloriously dying both for the preseruyng of his Countrey and also of his fayth and credite with his enimie and in the next war followyng Cortona sawe Caius Flaminius and Cumae Paulus Aemilius and Venusia Claudius Marcellus and Lucania Tiberius Gracchus lying dead it was the fortune of none of these to dye at Rome Two noble Gentlemen of great hope and expectation in the Romane Commonwealth were cut of in the very floure of their youth Drusus and Marcellinus