to be so famous in Gréece his liberality amongst nigardes hée onely counted liberall and all Athens besides couetous whereby he deserued renowne and glorie amongst so many nippers of money hée onely to shewe him selfe franke and liberall What caused Flaminius to bée so much spoken of amongst the Romanes his liberall giftes amongst so many gréedie takers his open benifites amongst theyr priuate wealth and hidden hatred What mooued the Agragentines to honour soo much that man Gillias to aduance his fame to extoll his name His liberalitie Such couetousnesse then was in Athens Rome and Agrigente that then worthie were these of admiration and prayse to auoyd the cankered state of auarice Thus from the golden worlde it came vnto the siluer worlde and then to that harde mettall Iron worlde for the couetous people can neuer be sufficed The gréedinesse of this age the restlesse estate of this time can neuer be satisfied The young Partriche by nature is readie to flee as soone as shée commeth out of the shell the wilde Duck to swim the Lion to go and man onely borne ready to séeke and trauell for money Where might a man finde out such a man as Aristides was in all Greece nowe who was so liberall that hauing all the state of Athens vnder hys gouernement gaue all to the poore Citizens saue that scant that brought him vnto the ground Where should one méete with such a one as Pelopidas in all Sparta being blamed of his friendes and councellers for hys large giftes and liberality exhorting him to make much of money considering howe necâ—ssarie money is to Princes yea sayde Pelopidas to such Princes as Nicomedes a lame man both dumbe and deafe Where shoulde a man séeke in Thebes for suche a man as Epaminondas who when he hearde that hée which caried his Target after him had taken money for the dimission of certaine prisoners taken in the warres giue me sayde hée my Target and go you to kéepe an Inne for if you loue monie you are not fit to cary Epaminondas Target Euery man is liberall in talke but fewe franke in giuing all men speake against enuie and malice and yet one hate another wée exclayme against tyranny and yet we are mercilesse wée despise pryde and yet we loue not humanitie wée abhorre gluttony and dronkennesse and yet we are alwaies feasting and bibbing wée disprayse Idlenesse and yet wée are slothfull wee thunder against slaunderous tongues and yet we can not speake well of no body in briefe we speake against all vices and yet we can not be acquainted with any vertue Euen as Diogines a Philosopher nipt a certaine Lacedemonian which vsed often to repeate in a place a Gréeke verse of Hesiodus the Poet that an Oxe or no beast else shoulde perish vnlesse euill neyghbours be the cause of it Diogines demaunded of him howe happened it that both the people of Messena and all their goodes and cattelles did miscarye and you béeyng their nigh neyghbours in Sparta So maye it be spoken to these glorious talkers how is it that men loue auarice so well and yet commende liberalitie so often ¶ Of age and the praise thereof BYon that wise man woulde say often that age was the Hauen of rest for that it was the ende of miserie the gate of life the perfourmaunce of all pilgrimages And sith age is wished of all men what folly is it to hit any man in the téeth with that which hée chéefly desireth Wherefore when King Archelaus had appoynted a great feast for his fréendes amongst other talkes then at the Table Euripides declared what great loue he bare vnto Agathon an olde tragicall Poet. Agesilaus demaundyng why shoulde an olde man bée so well estéemed of Euripides hée sayde Though the Spring time be pleasaunt yet the Haruest is fertile though flowres and hearbes grow gréene in the Spring yet waxe they ripe in Haruest The ages of man is compared vnto the foure seasons of the yere his growing time vnto the Spring his lusty time vnto the Sommer his witty time vnto the Haruest and his olde time vnto the Winter which doth make an ende of all thinges Frederike Emperour of Rome after he had appointed an olde man to rule the Cittie of Scadmenna was often mooued that hée for his age was not méete to gouerne such a Citie consyderyng the multitude and number of people that were within that Citie they thought that a young man shoulde better discharge the office But the wise Emperour perceauyng howe bent and prone were the youth of that Towne to haue a young man to rule ouer them aunswered them after this sort I had rather sayde hée commit the gouernaunce of the Citie vnto one olde man then the gouernaunce of so many young men vnto the Citie Better it is an olde man to rule the Citie than the Citie to rule the young menne meaning no otherwise then the aged men shoulde only be admitted rulers in Cities for that it belongeth vnto them experience of thinges and care of youth Suche was the homage and reuerence which was amongst the young Romanes towarde the Senators or olde men of the Citie as both heade and legge did acknowledge the same in doing duetie vnto age They hadde this confidence in age that no man might be chosen vnto the number of the Senatoures before he shoulde be thréescore yeares of age The like custome had the people of Chalcides that no man before he were fiftie yeres shoulde eyther beare office within their Cities or be sent Embassadour out of their countrie Amongst the Perseans no man coulde be admitted to be one of the sage rulers which they called Magi vnlesse perfite age had brought him thereto perforce Amongst the Indians their wise men which ruled their countrey which were named Gymnosofistae were aged and auncient for time giueth experience of gouernance Amongst the Egyptians the like credite was giuen vnto olde men that youth méeting them in the waye would go out of the way to giue place vnto age so that their Counsellours which were called prophetes were men of much time experience Euen so the Babylonians elected their sage Chaldeans the auncient French men there wise men called Druydes In fine noble Géekes did obserue the like order in choosing their Rulers and Councellers of aged men as before spoken The Lacedemonians youth were by the lawe of Licurgus no lesse charged to reuerence age than theyr owne parentes The Arabians in all places without respect of person honour dignitie or fortune preferred their olde men before The people called Tartesij had this lawe to honour age that the younger might beare no witnesse against the elder The reuerence sayde Chylon that shoulde be shewed vnto age by young men ought to be suche that they then being young doing obedience vnto age might clayme the like when they waxed olde of youth Agesilaus King of Sparta being
an olde man woulde often go in the colde weather very thinne in a torne cloake without a coate or doublet onely to shew the way vnto young men to be hardie in age by contemning of pleasure and gay apparell in youth Massinissa king of Numidia being more than thréescore yeares of age woulde liuely and valiauntly as Cicero sayth without cappe on heade or shooe on foote in the colde or frostye weather in the winter time trauayle and toyle with the souldiours onelye vnto thys purpose that young souldiours shoulde be hardened thereby in their youth and practise the same for the vse of others when they came to age them selues Ihero King of Sicilia the like example in his olde age being .lxxx. yeares shewed to trayne youth and to bring them vp so in young yeares that they might doe the lyke in their olde ages For this iudged these wise princes that all men couet to imitate Princes and Kinges in their doinges Gorgias the Philosopher and mayster vnto Isocrates the Oratour and to diuers more nobles of Gréece thought him selfe most happie that he being a hundred yeres and seauen was as well in his sences as at anyetime before made so much of age that being asked why hée so delighted in age made aunswere bycause he founde nothing in age that he might accuse age So sayde King Cirus a little before his death being a very olde man that hée neuer felt him selfe weaker than when he was young The like saying is reported of that learned Sophocles who being so olde that he was accused of his owne children of follie turned vnto the Iudges and sayde If I be Sophocles I am not a foole if I be a foole I am not Sophocles meaning that in wisemen the sences waxed better by vse and exercising the same vnto the vse of yong men for we prayse sayth Cicero the olde man that is somewhat young and we commend againe the young man that is somewhat aged The olde is commended that hath his young fresh witte at commaundement the young is praised that is sober sage in his doings When M Crassus a noble Capitaine of Rome béeing a verye olde man tooke in hande to warre against the Parthians strong and stout people being by Embassadours warned of his age and admonished to forsake warres hée aunswered stoutly the Embassadour of the Partheans and sayde when I come vnto Seleutia your Citie I will aunswere you One of the Embassadours named Agesis an aged man stretched forth his hande and shewed the palme of hys hand vnto Crassus saying Before thou shalt come within the Citie of Seleutia bristles shall growe out of thys hande The stoutnesse of Marcus Crassus was not so much but the magnanimitie of Agesis was as much and yet eyther were olde men What courage was in Scaeuola to withstande that firebrande of Rome Silla which after he had vrged the Senatours to pronounce Marius enimie vnto Italy hée béeing an olde aged man aunswered Silla in this sort Though diuers be at the commaundementes of the Senatours and that thou art so compassed with souldiours at thy becke yet thou nor all thy souldiours shall euer make Scaeuola being an olde man for feare of loosing some olde blood pronounce Marius by whom Rome was preserued and Italy saued to be enimie vnto these The like historie wée reade that when Iulius Caesar had by force of armes aspired vnto the offâ—ce of a Dictator and came vnto the Senate house where fewe Senatours were togither the Emperour Caesar desirous to know the cause of their absence Considius an aged father of Rome sayde that they feared Caesar and his souldiours Whereat the Emperour musing a while sayde Why did not you in likewise tarye at home fearing the same bicause sayde hée age and time taught me neyther to feare Caesar nor yet his souldiers For as Brusonius saith there are young mindes in olde men for though Milo the great wrestler in the games of Olimpia waxed olde and wept in spite of his deade limmes bruised bones yet he sayde his minde florished was as young as euer it was before Solon hath immortall praise in Gréece for his stoutnesse in his age for when Pisistratus had taken in hande to rule the people of Athens and that it was euident ynough that tyranny should procéede therby Solon in his latter daies hauing great care vnto his countrey when that no man durst refuse Pysistratus came before his doore in harnâ—sse and calde the citizens to withstand Pysistratus for age sayd he mooueth mée to be so valiaunt and stout that I had rather lose my life than my countrey should lose their libertie What vertue then wée sée to be in age what wisedome in time what corage in olde men The examples of these olde men stirre and prouoke many to imitate their steps insomuch diuers wished to be olde when they were yet young to haue the honour as age then had wherefore King Alexander the great spying a young man couloring his heares gray sayde It behooueth thée to put wittes in coulour and to alter thy minde The Lacedemonians people that past all nations in honouring age made lawes in their Cities that the aged men shoulde be so honored and estéemed of the young men euen as the parents were of the children that when a straunger came vnto Lacedemonia and sawe the obedience of youth towarde age he sayde In this countrie I wishe onely to be olde for happie is that man that waxeth olde in Lacedemonia for in the great games of Olimpia an olde man wanting a place went vp and downe to sit some where but no man receyued but the Lacedemonians which not onely there young men also their aged gaue place vnto his graye heares but then also the Embassaders of Lacedemonia being there present did reuerence him and toke him vnto their seate which when he came in hée spake a loude O you Athenians you knowe what is good and what is badde for that which you people of Athens sayde hée doe professe in knowledge the same doth the Lacedemonians put in practice Alexander being in his warres with a great army in Persea and méeting an old man by the way in the colde weather in ragged rent clothes lighted from his horse and sayde vnto him Mount vp into a princes saddle which in Persea is treason for a Persean to do but in Macedonia commendable letting to vnderstande how age is honored and olde men estéemed in Macedonia and howe of the contrarie wealth and pride is fostred in Persea for where men of experiences and aged yeares are sette naught by there cannot be that wisdome beareth rule Howe many in the Empire of Rome ruled the Citie gouerned the people of those that were very aged men as Fabius Maximus who was thréescore yeres and two in his last Consulship Valerius Corunnus which was sixe times a Consull in Rome a very olde man which
Testament that Adam our first father liued nine hundred and thirtie yeres and Eua his wife as many Seth nine hundred and twelue yeres Seth his sonne called Enos nine hundred and fiue Cainan the sonne of Enos nine hundred and tenne Malalehell the sonne of Cainan right hundred fourscore and fiftéene So Enoch the son of Iared liued nine hundred théescore and fiue yeres Enoch his sonne named Mathusalem liued nine hundred thréescore and nine with diuers of the first age I meane vntill Noahs time which began the seconde world after the floode and liued as we reade nine hundred and fiue yeres His sonne Sem sixe hundred yeres and so lineally from father vnto son as from Sem vnto Arphaxad froÌ„ Arphaxad vnto Sala from Sala vnto Heber the least liued aboue thrée hundred yeres This I thought for better credite and greater proofe of olde age to drawe out of the olde testameÌ„t that other prophane autorities might be beléeued as Tithonius whom the Poetes faine that he was so oulde that he desired to become a Grashopper But bicause age hath no pleasure in the worlde frequenteth no banquets abhorreth lust loueth no wantonnes which sayth Plato is the only bayte that deceyue young men so much the happier age is that age doth loath that in tyme which young men neyther with knowledge with wit nor yet with councell can auoyde What harme hath happened from time to time by young men ouer whom lust so ruled that euersion of common wealthes treason of Princes friends betrayed countries ouerthrowne kingdomes vanquished all y e world almost through pleasure perished Therfore Cicero sayth in his booke entituled of olde age at what time he was in the citie of Tarâ—ntuÌ„ being a young man with F. Maximê° that hée bare one lesson from TarentuÌ„ vnto the youth of Rome where Architas the Tarentine saide that nature bestowed nothing vpon man so hurtfull vnto him selfe so dangerous vnto his countrie as luste or pleasure For when C. Fabritius was sent as an Embassador from Rome vnto Pirrhê° king of Epire being then the Gouerner of the citie Tarentum a certaine man named Cineas a ThessaliaÌ„ borne being in disputation with Fabritius about pleasure saying that he heard a Philosopher of Athens affirming that all which we doe is to be referred vnto pleasure which when M. Curius and Titus Coruncanus hearde they desired Cineas to perswade the King Pirrhus in that to yéelde vnto pleasure and make the Samnits beléeue that pleasure ought to be estéemed whereby they knew if that King Pirrhus or the Samnites being then great enimies vnto the Romanes were adicted vnto lust or pleasure that then soone they myght be subdued and destroyed For that nothing hindereth magnanimitie or resisteth vertuous enterprises so much as pleasure as in the treatise of pleasure it shall at large more appeare Why then how happie is olde age to dispise and contemne that which youth by no meanes can auoyde yea to loath and abhor that which is most hurtfull vnto it selfe For Cecellius contemned Caesar with all his force saying vnto the Emperour that two thinges made him nothing to estéeme the power of the Emperour Age and witte Castritius wayed nothing at al the threatning of C. Carbo being then Consull at Rome which though hée sayd hée had many friendes at commaundement yet Castritius aunswered and sayde that he had likewise many yeres which his friendes might not feare Therfore a wiseman sometime wept for that man dieth within fewe yeres and hauing but little experience in his olde age he is then depriued thereof For the Crowe liueth thrise as long as the man doth The Harte liueth foure times longer than the Crow The Rauen thrise againe liueth longer than the Hart. The Phaenix nine times longer than the Rauen And therefore bicause birdes doe liue longer time than man doth in whome there is no vnderstanding of their yeres But man vnto whom reason is ioyned before he commeth vnto any grounde of experience when hée beginneth to haue knowledge in thinges hée dieth and thus endeth hée his toyling pilgrimages and trauayle in fewer yeres than diuers beastes or birdes doe ¶ Of the maners of sundrie people and of their strange life THe sundrie fashion and varitie of maners the straunge lyfe of people euerye where through the worlde dispersed are so depainted and set foorth amongst the writers that in shewing the same by naming eche countrey and the people therof orderly their custome their maners their kinde of liuing something to signifie howe diuers the maners of men bée Therefore I thought briefely to touch and to note euery countrey in their due order of liuing and to beginne with the Egyptians people most auncient and most expert in all sciences that Macrobius the writer calleth the countrey of Egypt the nourse and mother of all Artes for all the learned Gréekes haue had their beginning from Egypt euen as Rome had from Gréece This people obserue their dayes by accouÌ„t of houres from midnight vnto midnight They honour the Sunne and the moone for theyr Goddes for they name the Sunne Osiris and the Moone Isis Their féeding was of fishe broyled in the heate of the Sunne with hearbes and with certaine foules of the ayre They lyue a thousande yeares but it is to be vnderstanded that they number their yeares by the Moone The men beare burthens vppon theyr heades and the women vpon their breastes and shoulders The men make water sitting the women standing The Crocodill is that beast which they moste estéeme that being deade they burie him A Sowe is that beast which they most detest that if anye part of their clothes touche a Sowe they straight will pull of their clothes and washe them ouer They are blacke people most commonly slender and very hastie Curtius call them sedicious vaine very subtill in inuention of thinges and much giuen to wine The Aethiopians people that liue without lawes and reason seruauntes and slaues vnto al men selling their children vnto merchauntes for corne their héere long with knottes and curled The Indians people of two muche libertie as Herodot sayth accompanying their women in open sight neyther sowe they nor builde neyther kill they any liuing beast but féede of barly breade and hearbes They hange at their eares small pearles and they decke their armes wrestes and neckes with golde Kinges of India are much honoured when they come abroade their wayes set and deckt with fresh flowers swéete odours and men in armes folowing their Chariots made of Margarits stones and men méeting with frankinsence And when their king goeth to bed their harlottes bring them with songues and mirth making their prayers vnto their Goddes of darckenesse for the good rising of their King Againe the children kill theyr parentes when they waxe olde Their maydes and young damoselles of India are brought abroade amongst the young men to choose them their husbandes When any man dieth his wife wil dresse hir selfe most brauest for
that he neuer went a liue vnto Rome againe for moste cruelly and falsely was he slaine by Haniball In this falshed and periurie was Haniball muche defamed not as muche corrupted by vilenesse of his owne nature which alwaies in this was not to bee trusted but by the falshode and corruption of the Countrey of whiche it is prouerbially spoken Poeni perfidi false Carthaginians for the people of Carthage delited in falshode â–ª practized periurie and vsed all kind of craftes as the people of Sarmatha were moste false in wordes moste deceiptfull in deedes and moste cruell one towardes an other The Scithians beyng muche molested with warres and driuen to leaue their wiues at home in the custodie of the slaues seruauntes thei hauyng occasion to bee absent iiij yeres whose wiues married the seruauntes brake their former Faithe with their owne housbandes vntill with force and power their seruauntes were slain and so recouered their countreis wiues again Apollonius the chief gouernour of Samâ—os whom the commons of the Countrey from lowe estate had exalted vnto dignitie vnto whom thei committed the gouernment and state of Samios was so false of his faithe towardes his subiectes that hauyng their goodes landes liuynges and liues in his owne hand he betraied theim vnto Philip king of Macedonia their moste mortall enemie That proude periurer Cocalus king of Sicilia slue kyng Minoes of Crete though vnder colour of frendshippe and pretence of talke he had sente for hym Cleomenes brake promise with the Argiues with whom he tooke truce for certaine daies craftely betraied them in the night slue them being sleping and emprisoned against his former faith and promise made before Euen so did the false Thracians with the Boetians brake promise violated faithe destroied their countries depopulated their cities and of professed frendes and vowed faithe became wicked foes and false traitors But of all false periurers and vnnaturall foes shal Zopirus emongest the Persians and Lasthenes emongest the Olinthians to their perpetuall slaunder and reproche bee mentioned of the one borne in the famous citie of Babilon deformed hym self in suche sort with suche dissimulation of forged faithe that hauyng the rule and gouernment in his hande he brought kyng Darius to enioye that through his periurie and falshode that with long warres in many yeres he might not vaÌ„quishe nor subdue The other as falsly I beyng y e onely trust of the citizeÌ„s deliuered Olinthus their citie vnto the handes of their long and greate enemie Philippe kyng of Macedonia What fraude hath been founde alwaies in frendship What falshode in faithe What deceipte in truste the murtheryng of Princes the betraiyng of kyngdomes the oppressyng of innocentes from tyme to tyme in al places can well witnesse the same When Romulus had appoincted Spu Tarpeius to be chief capitaine of the Capitoll the chamber of Rome where the substaunce wealth of Rome did remain Tarpeia Spurius doughter whiche in the night tyme as she wente for water out of the citie metyng Tatius kyng of y e Sabins though he was then mortall enemie vnto Rome in coÌ„tinual warres with Romulus yet by false Tarpeia brought to be lord of the Capitoll thus Tarpeia beyng as false vnto Rome as king Tatius was likewise false vnto Tarpeia for she loking to haue promise kept of Tatius fouÌ„d him as Rome founde her She was buried a liue of Tatius by the Capitoll whiche was called Saturnus mouÌ„t and by her death buriall there named Tarpeius rocke vntill Torquinus Superbus tyme whiche first named it the Capitoll by findyng a mans heade in that place There was neuer in Rome suche falshode shewed by any man as was of Sergius Galba whiche caused there famous cities of Lusitania to appere before him promising them great coÌ„modities and diuers pleasures concernyng the states and gouernment of their citie yeldyng his faith and truth for the accomplishment of the same whose professed faithe allured to y e noÌ„ber of ix M. yong menne piked and elected for some enterprises for the profite of their countrey whiche when false Galba had spoiled these thrée cities of al flowers of their youthes against all promise and faithe slue the moste parte of theim sould and enprisoned the rest whereby he most easely might conquire their Cities men are neuer certen nor trustie in doing when thei are fautie in faithâ— For as the Sunne lighteneth the Moone so faithe maketh man in all thinges perfect for prudence without faith is vaine glorie and pride Temperaunce without faithe and trueth is shamefastnes or sadnes Iustice without faith is turned vnto iniurie and fortitude vnto slouthfulnes The orders in diuers countreis for the obseruation of frendship and for maintenaunce of certen and sure loue one towarde an other were diuers othes The noble Romains at what tyme thei sweare had this order he or she to take a flint ston in his right hand saiyng these wordes If I be gilty or offende any man betraie my countrey or deceiue my frende willingly I wishe to be cast awaie out of Rome by great Iupiter as I cast this stoan out of my hand and withall threwe the stoan awaie The auncient Scithians to obserue amitie and loue had this law They powred a greate quantity of wine in a greate Boule or a Cup and with their kniues launced some parte of their bodies letting their bloud to runne likewise one after an other vnto that cup and then minglyng the wine and blood together tipt the ende of their Speares â–ª and ther Arrowes in the wine takyng the boule in hand drank one vnto another professing by that draught faith and loue The Arabians when they would become faithful to anie to maintaine loue thereby had this custome one should stande with a sharpe stoan in his hande betwixt two and let blood in the palme of their handes and takyng of either of theim a péece of their garment to receiue their blood anointyng and diyng seauen stones in the blood callyng Vrania and Dyonisius their Gods to witnesse and kéepyng the stoanes in memory of frendship would depart one from an other The like lawe amongest the Barctians goyng vnto a diche and standyng thereby saiyng as Herodotus affirmeth as long as that holowe place or diche were not of it selfe filde vp so long desired the Barcians amitie and loue In readyng of histories we finde more certentie to haue been in theim by prophane othes then trueth often in vs by Euangelist and Gospell othes lesse periurie in those Gentiles swearyng by Iupiter or Apollo then in Christians swearyng by the true and liuynge God more amitie and frendship amongest them with drinkyng either of others blood then in vs by acknowledgyng and professyng Chistes blood When Marcus Antonius had the gouernemeÌ„t of Rome after Caesar was murthered by Brutus and Cassius and hauyng put to death Lucullus for his consente therein Volumnius hearyng of his frende Lucullus death came
their answeares vnto diuers questions vnto them propounded Bias dwellyng in the Citie of Prienna after the citie by Nutinenses was destroied Bias escaped and went to Athens whose Poesie was Maximus improborum numerus he willed all yong men in their youth to trauaill for knowledge and commaundeth oulde men to embrase wisedome This Bias beeyng demaunded what was the difficulst thing in the worlde he saide to suffer stoutly the mutabilitie of fortune beyng demaunded what was the infamoust death that might happen vnto man to bee condempned saide he by lawe beyng asked what was the sweetest thyng vnto manne hope saide he what beast was most hurtfull amongest wild beastes a Tyraunt saide Bias and amongeste tame beastes a flatterer and beyng demaunded what thyng it was that feared nothyng in all the world good conscience saide he And againe in the second Olimpiad the Philosophers demaunded other Questions as who was most infortunate in the world the impacient man saide Bias What is moste harde to iudge debates betwéene frendes what is most harde to measure he answered tyme that hauyng fully answered to diuers other questions Bias was allowed one of the seauen wise men of Gréece Chilo the second of the Sages beyng borne in Myâ—tilena beyng asked what was the best thyng in all the world answered euery man to coÌ„sider his owne state And againe beyng demaunded what beast is most dangerous he saide of wilde beastes a Tyraunt of tame beastes a flatterer beyng asked what is most acceptable vnto manne he saide tyme and beyng asked of the Gréeke Myrsilas what was the greatest wonder that he sawe he saide an olde man to be a Tyraunte these with diuers other questions was he asked of the Greeke his Poesie was Nâ— quid nimis The thirde was Chilo the Lacedemonian beyng demaunded what was a difficult thing to man to dooe he answered either to keepe silence or so suffer iniuries what was most difficulst being asked of hym he saide for a man to knowe hym self and therfore he vsed this Poesie Nosce teipsum This Chilo beyng of Aesopus demaunded what did Iupiter in Heauen he saide he doth throwe doune loftie and proude thinges and hee doeth exalte humble and méeke thinges Solon the Athenian had this shorte Sentence in his mouthe Nosce teipsum knowe thy selfe for in knowyng and consideryng what we are how vile we are wee shall haue lesse occasion ministred vnto vs to thinke well of our selues for there is nothyng good nor bewtifull in man as Solon beyng asked of kyng Cressus sittyng on his Stoole of state with princely Robes bedect with Pearles and Precious stones whether euer he sawe a more bewtifull sight then Kynge Cirus sittyng in his maiestie at that tyme to whom Solon answered and saide that he sawe diuers birddes more gaie to beholde then Cirus and beyng demaunded of Cirus what birds were they Solon saide the little Cocke the Peacocke and the Feasaunt whiche are dect with naturall garmentes and bewtified with naturall colours This Solon was wonte to saie I waxe dailie olde learnyng muche hee noted nothyng so happie in manne as to liue well that the same might die well appliyng the cause vnto the affect as to liue well then to die well If I shoulde molest the reader with the sage saiynges of Cleobulus Thales Periander and others tending onely for the amendmente of life and readines of death I should seme tedious here were a place to induce diuers and sundrie examples of death HAd Greke Calisthenes silence kept had Neuius spared speache Had Theocritus busie braine offended not his leache Calesthenes had not loste his life nor Theocritus died Ne in Maetellus wrathe so long had Neuius poet abide The soundst reward the surest gifte should Memmius haue in th ende Had he to Caesar nothyng saied that Caesar might offende But as I feare Chirilus stripes and dreade Aristos draught So with Antilochus to write I am to some Lisander taught Some carpyng Crete some peuishe Pan and some of Colax kinde Some of Gnatho schoole will scanne some flaâ—trie here to finde I will not haulte with Clisophus I loue not Curiâ— stile I hate Philoxenus forged faithe Aristippus phraise to file But with Sinaetes persean poore with Cirus water craue Her princely pardone on my knee with Cirill Poete haue Who to auoide Charibdis gulfe I fall in Scillas bande To seeke to shunne Semphlagades I sinke in Sirtes sande With wearied winges of Icarus with Phaoetons charge in hande Moste like Actaeon bounde before her noble grace I stande No Momus maie Minerua saile no Phaaeton Phebus charge No wilfull winges of Icarus maie Dedalus flight discharge Therefore yea Goddes that guide the globes the glisteryng glaryng skie The whirlyng spheares the firmamente and poales of heauens hie You starrie states and imps of Ioue your graces thre attende Approche in place Pierides my vaine in verse to bende Eche pilgrime Prince in prose is paste eche Quene must now in vearse Haue honour due and fame deserude the heauens hie to pearce Whose praise shall pearce the clusteryng cloudes and skale the empire skie Whose thunderyng clanges of bruted fame on yearth shall neuer die Eche passyng pearles Prince in place from stooles of states redounde Whom birdes abrode on brakes doe bragge their praise in skies to sounde WhoÌ„ whirlyng windes and whispering woods whoÌ„ brauling brokâ— aduauÌ„ce Whose ecchos shrill of fliyng fame through surging seas doe launce Who ruled people proude and fierce and nations stoute subdued That widdowes were and virginâ— Quenes with wisedome greate endued Who readeth not Zinobias fame who doeth not Mesa knowe Who heareth not of Sabas name that any where doeth goe What worthie actes what famous feactes what vertues rare were sene When noble Kyng Mausolus died in Artemesia Queen The noble Quene Semiramis Kyng Ninus famous wife Did rule Assiria saffe and sounde when Ninus loste his life When Constant Emperour died â–ª his wife no lesse ther loue did lâ—ue Then pearle Penelope had in Grece or Romaine Lucrece haue Emongest the Illireans to Teuca then suche worthie name did chaunce â–ª As in Arcadia Atlanta did her noble fame aduaunce Quene Dido ruled Carthage coste Helerna Tibur braue As sometyme did Cloelia the Romaine scepter saue Why seeke I thus to shunne the snares and shifte with verses ofte Sithe praise of force must presse the place where wisedome rules a lofte A Prince of porte in silence kepte that doeth expecte the ende Whose rule and roiall race by course nedes not in bookes be pende In whom the Muses builde their bowres the graces make their forte With whom Sibilles sages sitte and sacred Nimphes resorte Who Iudith like with threatnyng swearde Holofernus mates to spoile A seconde Susan sure she is all Iudges false to foile An other faithfull Sara sadde with Aesters mace in hande In prinsely place Rebecca like to rule her natiue lande She in triumphant seate doeth sitte with Laurell leaues bee decte With Oliue braunches braue on heade that doo his fame detect This
briefly that magnanimitie was in Hercules that hée neuer offended iuste men hée neuer hurted innocent men hée preserued diuers kinges and countreys he neuer spoyled good countrey nor subdued a iust king therefore wholy addicted to merite fame In destroying the Serpent Hydra the Dâ—agon Priapus the Lion the wild Bore and terrible Bull. In conqueryng Gereon Cerberus and Diomedes cruell Tyrauntes In takyng the gylted Hart in vanquishing the Centaures and the rauenyng Birdes named Stymphalides was there any tyranny or cruel attempts in this his .xij. enterprices Well let Hercules passe who was as they say more ayded of the gods then helped of man With these princely actes renowmed feates of Hercules was noble Thesius much enamored insomuch he aemulated the vertuous life of Hercules that he tamed wylde beastes slue monsters ouercame cruell Creonâ— tyraunt of Thebes went downe as the Poet saith vnto hell to imitate Hercules feates to resemble Hercules magnanimitie to augment Theseus fame creating alters appointyng sacrifice in memorie of Hercules hoping that others woulde doe vnto Theseus as Theseus dyd vnto Hercules Next vnto Theseus for antiquitie of time that valiaunte and renowmed Gréeke Achilles the onely stay and comfort of his countrey the verye hope of all Gréece whose magnanimitie valiaunt courage worthy actes and famous life is at large set foorth in Homers Iliades which Homer Alexander the great by the reading of the manhood of Achilles being yet in his fathers dayes brought vp in schoole with that learned Philosopher Aristotle so estéemed that hée neuer went to bed but that he had Homer vnder his pillowe and there fell in loue with the prowesse of Achilles honoured his life and magnified his death in so much hée went vnto Ilion in Phrygia where that famous Citie of Troy sometime stoode to sée the graue of Achilles where when hée came and sawe the worthye monumentes his marshall chiualrie his famous feates and renowmed lyfe depaynted aboute the Temple enuironed and compassed about his sumptuous tombe he brake out in gushing teares beholding the tombe saying O happie Achilles to happen on suche a Homer that so well coulde aduaunce thy fame And thus Alexander being mooued by Homer to imitate Achilles wayed nothing else but magnanimitie and courage of minde as Curtius and Diodorus Siculus can well testifie whose lyfe though it was but short was a mirrour vnto all the world that being but twentie yeares when he began to enuie the actes feates of Achilles that in twelue yeres more which were his whole time of life he became King ouer Kings a conquerour ouer conquerours that he was named an other Hercules for his prosperous successe in his enterprises insomuch that Iulius Caesar the first and most valiaunt Emperor that euer was in Rome at his great coÌ„quests entering into the Temple of Hercules in Gades reading the lyfe of Alexander printed rounde about the Temple hys worthie fame depainted his noble déedes set foorth hys victories and conquestes in euery place described suche monumentes and myrrours in memorye of his noble life that Caesar fell vnto the like teares for Alexander as Alexander did for Achilles Thus one in loue with the other for magnanimitie sake eche one desirous of others fame as Caesar thought him selfe happie if he might bee counted Alexander Alexander iudged himselfe renowmed if he might be named Achilles Achilles sought no greater fame then Theseus Theseus euer desired the name of Hercules Therefore Agesilaus King of the Lacedemonians wondering muche at the singuler magnanimitie and force of Epaminondas Prince sometime of Thebes who with one little City coulde subdue all Gréece This Epaminondas hauing warres with the Lacedemonians people no lesse renowmed by warre then iustlye feared by Epaminondas after great victories and triumphes had by this Prince was after this sort preuented by Agesilaus in the wars of Mantinia that al the people of Sparta were counceled eyther to kill Epaminondas or to be kilde by Epaminondas whereby the whole force and power of Lacedemonia were fully bent by commaundement gyuen by Agesilaus their King to fall vpon Epaminondas where that valiaunt and noble Prince by to much pollicy was wounded to death to the spoyle and murther of all the people of Thebes and yet a liue caried vnto his tent demaunded of his souldiours the state of the fielde whether Thebes or Sparta was conquered being certified that the Lacedemonians fledde and that he had the victorye he foorthwith charged the ende of the speare to be taken out of his side and wounde saying Nowe your Prince Epaminondas beginneth to liue for that he dyeth a Conquerour wée reade not skant of Epaminondas mate which being compared vnto Agamemnon for his magnanimitie was angrie therewith saying Agamemnon with all Gréece with him was .x. yeres about one towne the Citie of Troye Epaminondas with little Thebes in one yeare conquered all Gréece This order was amongst the Lacedemonians before they shoulde go vnto warres they were by lawe charged to make solemne sacrifice vnto the Muses and being demaunded why they so did sith Mars hath no societie with the Muses Eudamidas then their King aunswered for that we might attaine aswell of the Muses how to vse victorie gently as of Mars to become victors manfully These Lacedemonians were so valiant that hauing banished their King Cleonimus for his passing pride and great violence making Areus to raigne as a King This Areus being in Créete ayding the people of Corcyra in warres with the most part of the Citizens of Sparta this Cleonimus their exiled King consulted with Pirrhus King of Epyre perswading then or neuer to conquere Sparta considering Areus was in Créete that Sparta was not populus to defende any strength came both and pitcht thir fielde in open face of Sparta assuring themselues both to be at supper in Cleonimus house The Citizens perceyuing the great army of Pirrhus thought good by night to sende their women vnto Créete to Areus making themselues ready to die manfully in resisting the hoast of the enimie and being thus in the Senate agréeing that the womankinde shoulde passe awaye that night least theyr nation at that time shoulde be quite destroyed by Pirrhus then rushed a great number of women in harnesse of the which Archidamia made an Oration to the menne of Sparta much blaming their entent and quite confounded their purpose saying Thinke you O Citizens of Sparta that your wiues and daughters woulde liue if they might after the death of their husbandes and destruction of Sparta beholde howe readye we are howe willing the women of Sparta will die and liue with theyr husbandes Pirrhus shall well féele it and knowe this daye No maruayle that the broode of these women shoulde be valiaunt and stoute If Demosthenes who so muche was estéemed in Athens had sayde in Sparta that which he wrote in Athens that they which sometime ranne awaye shoulde fight againe he shoulde haue the like rewarde
oute of the towne came and offred his schollers vnto Camillus saying by this meanes you maye doe what you will vnto Philiscus for here be theyr children whome I know to redéeme they wyll yéelde vp the towne Camillus hauing regarde to the fame of Rome and loathing much to shewe villanye rewarded the Schoolemayster after this sort hée did set him naked before his schollers fast bounde with his handes on his backe and euery one of the schollers with a rodde in his hand saying vnto the boyes bring him home to your parentes and tell your friendes of his falshoode and the poore boyes hauing a good time to requite olde beatings were as gladde as he was sorrowfull laying on loade girckt him with so manye stripes as loytering Treuauntes maye best be boulde to number vntill they came vnto the Citie where they toulde their parents the cause thereof which wayde the clemeccie and humanitie of Camillus to be such that they gladlye and â–ª willingly yéelded themselues and theyr Citie vnto the handes of Camillus knowing well that he that woulde vse them so being hys enimies and foes coulde not vse them yll by yéelding all vnto his courtesie who might haue had all by tiranny Nowe sith this vertue was often séene in diuers Quéenes Ladies Gentlewomen and others I may not omitte the pilgrimage of their liues We reade of two Quéenes of the Amahones a countrye of Scythia Penthesilaea the first and Hippolite the second the one so valiaunt against the Gréekes at the destruction of the noble Citie of Troy that in open fielde she feared not to encounter face to face with that valiaunt Gréeke Achilles the other so hardye that shée shrinkt not at the force and stoutnesse of that renowmed Champion Theseus which being conuicted by Theseus for hir singuler stoutnesse and courage maried hir whiche certainelye had happened vnto Penthesilia had shée not béene conuicted by Achilles Camilla likewise Quéene of the Volskans beside hir princely profession of sacred virginitie which she vowed vnto Diana was so famous for hir magnanimitie that when Turnus and Aeneas were in wars for the mariage of Lauinia King Latinus daughter she came bellona lyke vnto the fielde resisting the violence and puissaunce of Troyans with the Rutiles as an ayde vnto Turnus That noble Zenobia the famous Quéene of the Palmireians a Princes of rare learning of excelent vertues of most valiaunt enterprises after that hir husbande named Odenatus had died tooke the empire of Syria and attempted the magnanimitie of Romanes that a long time shée withstoode in warres that noble and renowmed Emperour Aurelian by whome the Emperour was woont to saye when it was obiected vnto him that it was no commendacions for a prince to subdue a woman that it is more valiaunt to conquer a woman being so stout as Zenobia than to vanquishe a King being so fearefull as Zerxes The auncient Gréekes as Herodotus doth witnesse were much amazed at the magnanimitie of Artimesia Quéene of Caria after that the king hir husbande died did shewe such fortitude against the inhabitauntes of Rhodes that being but a woman she subdued their stoutenesse shée burned their Nauies wasted theyr wealth vanquished and destroyed the whole I le entered into the Citie of Rhodes caused hyr ymage to be made and set vp for a monument of hir chiualrie and pertuall memorie of hir victorie O renowmed Ladies O worthye women that with feaminine feates merited manlye fame Howe famous Teuca Quéene of the Illiryans gouerned hir subiectes after the death of hir husbande king Argon which being warred on diuers times by the Romanes infringed theyr force broke theyr bonds discomfited their armies to hir perpetuall fame commendacion shée gouerned the people of Illeria no lesse wisely then she defended the puissaunt force of the Romanes stoutly shée liued as histories report as soberly and chastly without the company of man as shée gouerned hir countrie wisly and stoutelye without the councell of man it were sufficient to repeate the auncient histories of two women to prooue fullye an euerlasting prayse and commendacion vnto all women the one written by Herotus in his first booke of Queene Tomyris of Scythia the other mencioned by Valerius and Iustine of Cleopatra quéene sometime of Aegipt The first after that Cirus had trespassed muche in hir kingdome of Scithia killing destroying and burning without regarde to princely clemencie or respect vnto a womans gouernement yet vnsufficed though hée slue the Quéenes owne sonne named Margapites thirsted more and more for bloude that then the valiaunt Quéene being muche moued to reuenge Margapites death waying the gréedie rage of Cirus came Lion lyke to fielde eyther to loose hyr owne life or else to reuenge hir sonnes death prest vnto Cirus more lyke at that time to a grimme Gorgon than to a sillie Scythian slue him in the fielde haled him vp and downe the field cutte of his heade and bathed it in a great Tunne full of bloudde appoynted for that purpose saying Nowe Cirus drinke thy belly full of that which thou couldest neuer haue ynough this valiaunt Tomyris reuenged tyranny requited the death of one Scythian Margapites with the death of two hundred thousand Persians The other Quéene Cleopatra after that Iulius Caesar was murthered by Brutus and Cassius and that Marcus Antonius being by Augustus warred on for his periurie fasâ—oode shewed vnto his Uncle Caesar shée I saie Cleopatra hauing the most part of Arabia and Siria confederated with hir friende and louer Antonius against Augustus being then the seconde Emperour of Rome that shee ayded him a long time vntill that she perceyued that Augustus preuayled and that Antonius was vanquished then least shée shoulde be conquered by Augustus shée conquered hir selfe yéelding rather hyr bodye a praye vnto Serpentes than a subiect vnto Augustus Hanniball could no more but to poyson himselfe rather then to yéelde to Scipio Well let Semiramis with hir valiaunt force and stoutnesse be commended at Babilon where shée raigned fortie yeares a wydowe after King Ninus hir husbandes death Let noble and famous Atalanta with hir Bowes and Speares and feates of armes be praysed in Archadia â–ª Let Hipsicratea that followed hir husbande Kinge Mithridates vnto warres as a Lackie vnknowne be extolled in Pontus Let Helerna Ianus daughter with all hir fortitude be spoken of in Latine And let Delbora be famous amongst the Isralites These women were no lesse famous for theyr pilgrimage then the worthye Conquerours and Champions of the world they were in no point inferiour vnto men in diuers poyntes farre excelling Princes and Kinges eyther the worlde then was very weake or slender or else women then were valiant and stoute And to omitte perticulerly to touch women I will open and declare the nature of Countries the women of Lacena woulde togither with their husbandes go vnto the fielde yea they went souldiour lyke vnto Missenios to fight in
force The Romanes were not in those dayes contented that any of their Captaynes shoulde vse vicious dealyng or shewe any fraude or guile in warres vnto their enimies but at last as warres grewe common in all countreyes so deceit and craft was thereby augmented and triumph exiled then the Assyrians warred on the Perseans the Perseans on the Argineans the Argineans on y e Athenians the Athenians on the Lacedemonians the Lacedemonians on the Sydonians the Sydonians on the Rhodians and the Rhodians on the Scithians with all kinde of pollicie right or wrong forced they not so that victorie might be gotten so that triumph then is turned vnto captiuitie nowe magnanimitie then vnto craft and deceit nowe In fine victorie then vnto tyranny nowe And so with Caesar I ende Ex bonis principijs mala orivnter Such is the state of life the pilgrimage of man that dayly worse and worse it waxeth to the ende for in the beginning renowme and honour was the cause that all men attempted daungers and great peryls and nowe in the ende gaine and profite mooueth warres Then was their desire to ouercome Lions Beares Elephantes Tygers Panthers Rinocherons with such wylde and sauage beasts that might honour their victorie ¶ Of the first finding out of Lawes and orders and of all inuention of thinges generall and of time AFter in sundrye places diuers men haue found means to sette thinges which at the beginning were rude and barbarous in Ciuill orders as amongst the Athenians Draco amongst the Aegiptians Mercurie amongst the Argiues Phoroneus In Arcadia Apollo In Tire Charandes in Italie Pithagoras other things no lesse necessarie for the maners ciuilitie of men then for the life and foode of men were founde And for that time is the beginning and the ende of all thinges terestriall I thinke it well for the purpose to declare howe then at all places time was counted for with Aegiptians at the first they counted their yeres by the Moone attributing vnto euery yere thirtie dayes as both Herodotus and Macrobius doe agrée The Arcadians as Plutarch in the life of Numa doth write had thrée monethes in euery yere appoynted The people of Caria finished and ended their yere euery sixt moneth The Gréekes did number thrée hundred fiftie and foure daies in their yeares which want of our yeres a eleuen dayes and sixe houres The Romanes at the beginning in the time of Romulus whiche was their firste king hadde their yere in ten monethes compted counting theyr first moneth March and giuing that name vnto it after his fathers name Mars April was named of Aphros in gréeke which is Fome whence Venus was borne May was called a Maioribus of the elders Iune of the youth called Iuniores these foure was of Romulus named The fift moneth was then called of Romulus Quintill which Iulius Caesar in his time named Iulij and August Augustus Caesar did name and so orderly by number Sextill September October Nouember and December vntill Numa Pompilius who succéeded Romulus who added Ianuarij and Februarij and so named them according to the name of Ianus which was the first king of the Latenes and Februus which was supposed to be the inuentor of Lustrum For as the Gréekes did count all thinges by their Olimpiades so did the Romanes number their time by that LustruÌ„ Then was the vse of the Clockes vnsought and vnknowne insomuch Authors herein doe much varye and seeme to be ignoraunt of the inuentors herof First some thinke that Hermes in Aegipt founde out by a beast sacrificed vnto Serapis some againe vnto Anaximines in Lacedemon founde out by a shade some vnto Scipio surnamed Nasica in Rome by water the clockes were founde but howe vncertayne it is by whome and by what meanes Clockes first were founde writers do witnesse the same Some againe do count their dayes which is foure and twentie houres from Sunne rising vnto Sunne rising as the Babilonians vse some from Sunne setting vnto Sunne setting as the Athenians some from midnight vnto midnight as the Egyptians some againe from middaye vnto noone againe as the Vmbrians doe Thus diuersely they count their houres and dayes Nowe after lawes were inuented and orders made and time deuided men as yet rude and rawe leading their liues beastly and brutishly for want of ciuilitie hauing neither houses townes or Cities to enhabite but some in caues of the grounde had their chiefe mantions some of gréene bowes and braunches of trées had their best garmentes made some couering themselues with shadowes of woddes some againe in dennes lyke wilde beastes vntill nature first by reason inuented awaye and a meane vnto further ciuilitie Then howses were made and Cities builded hie towers raysed strong walles inuented as Kâ—ng Cicrops made Athens Phoroneus builded Argos Diospolin in Egypt which Thrason made Likewise by Nemroth the first Towre after the deluge of Noah was made Then Temples were builded as Pythias in Prerenna made a temple vnto Minerua Romulus in Rome builded a temple vnto Iupiter and thus diuers men in sundrie countries haue bene the doers and trauellers of things â–ª By this meanes came Pallas vnto great fame for that she was supposed to be the first that inuented science amongst the Grecians in Athens for this purpose was Ceres in Sicilia renowmed for y t shée was thought to be the first that sowed corne and taught husbandrye for this onely were Typhis and Iason so worthyly commended that they amongst the Gréekes were the first that sayled the seas Then was money founde in mount Pangaeum quoyned of Aegineta which as Plini sayth had béene better vnknowne then founde Then money being founde warres ensued by Ninus which was the first that euer warred after the deluge Then Idolatrie sprung vp by Melissus King of Creete Images and pictures were first made by Epimitheus Tribute was appoynted first by Darius Fighting on horsebacke by the Centaures was first practized Immediatly thinges were founde apt and necessarie vnto warres after that Mars first inueÌ„ted the way therevnto Then the Lacedemonians people of great antiquitie founde first the Helmet a sworde and a speare The Scithians founde first the vse of bowes and arrowes The Thrasians most auncient in this for that Mars as they supposed was borne with them being honored as the God of warres founde and sought diuers thinges necessarie for the warres Happy was that man that might then inuent some thing or other to profite his countrey insomuch the wit of man sought so deepe studied so painefully that from a rude lumpish Chaos the worlde waxed beautifull men waxed Ciuile and all things became ripe and perfect by the industry of man After that the worlde grewe vnto such ripenesse that liberall sciences were founde and vsed in all places as things necessary vnto man and that there was nothing vnsought as might induce profite both hearbes stones trées and all thinges within the compasse of the earth were searched to what ende
kingdomes and countries in life The greatest Prince in his time Cirus the first king that brought the Monarchy vnto Persea slayne by Tomyris hadde on his graue an Epitaph made being buried in Scithia in no gorgeous Temble hauing no sumptuous tombe but in an open fielde and a stone vpon his graue with this Epitaph Here lyeth Cirus the great King of Persea contented nowe with seauen foote which coulde not be satisfied some time with seauen kingdomes what Kesar King or Prince so euer thou art spare this place vnto Cirus Which when Alexander the great passing with his armie vnto Scithia and India had read this Epitaph and perceyuing the slipperie state of Princes the vncertaintie of lyfe and mutabilitie of fortune he muche doubted the state of his owne life howbeit at that voyage he quite forgat by meanes of Mars the Epitaph of King Cirus vntill he returned from India from hys warres vnto Babilon where he maried Statyra King Darius daughter whome before he conquered where such liberallitie was shewed such magnificencie done such giftes giuen such banquettes kept that Alexander vpon his owne charges maried the most part of the nobles of Macedonia vnto the Ladies of Persea the feastes during fiue dayes surmounted vnto the some of thrée and twentie thousande Talentes euery Talent valued at fourescore poundes repeating oft the Epitaph of Cirus woulde suffer none though diuers Princes were present to bée at any charges but him selfe onely saying that which fortune giueth vnto Alexander the same will Alexander giue vnto his friendes for Cirus graue is appoynted vnto Alexander in this Alexander passed all Princes in taking all and giuing all Priuate faultes may not depriue open vertues euery man hath a fault Alexander was knoweÌ„ to be a drunkard Iulius Caesar was noted to be ambicious Antiochus the great King of Siria blamed for lecherie Alcibiades of pride Pirrhus of incredulitie Hanniball of falshoode Dionisius of tyranny and so of infinite Princes which for one vice maye not be forgotten for their diuers vertues Uertue must not be hidden for that vice is manifest Phrine a Courtezaune sometime of Gréece though of hir slaunderous lyfe worthie reprehention yet for her liberalitye ought she well to be remembred for after Alexander the great had subdued that famous Citie of Thebes and made the walles thereof euen with the grounde shée offered to redifie the same vpon this condicion that vpon euery gate of the Cittie this sentence shoulde be sette This Citie Alexander the great threvve dovvne and this Citie Phrine the Curteizaune builded vp againe The like of Quéene Rhodope sometime a Curtezaune and a lewd woman made vp a braue and sumteous worke called Piramides in Egypt where such liberalitie she vsed suche franke and frée dealing of money that for hir noble liberalitie she was well worthy to be commended though for vicious liuing otherwaies shée was to be blamed Men and women were desirous then to be liberall Then Princes were as liberall and benefitiall with suche lenitie and humanitie vnto the poore as they grewe afterwarde to be harde and couetous with seuerity and cruelnesse Therefore Anaxilaus a liberall Prince was often woont to saye that the chiefest commendacions and noblest vertue coulde be in a Prince was not to be ouercommed in beneficiall doings Attalus King of Asia languishing in sicknesse and readie to die bequeathed his Kingdome and Scepture of Asia vnto the noble Romanes by testament for that they were so liberall and benefitiall somtime towardes him while yet fortune fauoured hym not fully and fréely to bestowe to whome hée woulde A liberall Prince can not be voyde of loue Antigonus was wont to aunswere Aristodemus one of his councel brought vp of a boye in his Kitchine when he spake any thing against princely giftes and found faulte with Antigonus liberalitie that his talke did smell of the Kitchin a méete reprehension for suche a sawsie seruaunt who lette Kinges to doe good and moue Princes to doe euill I woulde suche Sycophantes shoulde be so aunswered of Princes as Aristodemus was of King Antigonus Worthy of perpetuall memorie was Artaxerxes for his passing liberalitie towardes the poore souldiours that came from Lacedemonia to warre with him he made them that came a foote vnto him to goe home a horsebacke he that came a horsebacke he did sende him home in a Chariot and he that had a village before hée came vnto him hée gaue a Cittie at his going away from him A Prince worthie of subiectes and a Capitaine most fitte for fitte Souldiours What made Iulius Caesar beloued of his souldiours What caused Alexander to be honored of all men magnificencie and liberalitie The one in the great warres at Pharsalia at what time hée conquered Pompeius the great hauing all the treasures and substaunce of Pompeius brought before him tooke nothing from the souldiers but Pompeius letters The other after he had vanquished King Darius hauing a great chest full of treasure where hee founde in present coyne two hundred thousande pound beside other inestimable treasures and iuels tooke nothing from his souldiours but a little booke named the Iliades of Homer wherin hée delighted more in reading the noble actes of Gréekes the worthy feates of Troianes than in all the wealthes of Persea This liberalitie maintayned their fame Thus their magnificente benefites spredde forth their noble names that happie was he that coulde be a souldiour vnto Caesar or to Alexander I remember me of a certaine King in Siracusa named Ihero vnderstanding the liberalitie of the Romanes and perceyuing the penurye of victuales which then the Romanes sustayned in the warres of Thrasimenos did sende thrée hundred thousand bushels of wheate two hundred thousande of barly with great sommes of golde and siluer to ease the Romane souldidours and fearing that his giftes woulde not be taken nor his presentes receyued considering the nature and liberalitie of the Romanes hée willed the Embassaders to saye that it was an homage and seruice of good wyll sent to honor the Romanes from Ihero King of Siracuâ—a O passing pollicie to practice beneficence with manifest examples of a liberall heart O Rome howe happy hast thou béene that through thy liberalitie haste wonne the heartes and good will of all kingdomes and countries Untyll Ninus time all thinges were common no diuision of grounde no hurding of money no couetousnesse knowne no gréedinesse of kingdomes no desire of welthes in fine for the space of two hundred and fifty yeres for the simplicitie innocencie true dealing of people worthily called the goulden worlde and then a man coulde not find a couetous person and now a man can not finde a liberall friende then no manne knâ—we to doe euill and nowe no man knoweth to doe good then no man did take and nowe no manne doth giue in fine then one for another nowe all for themselues What made Cimon a liberall gentleman of Athens
his owne wife but with shamefastnes of that filthy act The candles might not bée lyghted in that house where the man was when that hée woulde go vnto his wife When the King woulde go vnto warres before he shoulde go vnto the fielde to encounter with the enimies he offred two solemne sacrifices the one vnto Minerua otherwise named Bellona to kindle flames of stoutnesse in his suldiours manfully to fight the other vnto the Muses to moderate their doinges in victorie as might bée commendable and prayse worthie therein They passed al men in pacience for as before they brought their children in such hardinesse that their parentes woulde haue them whipt scourged and wounded vnto the flesh to hardeÌ„ them in their young yeres They suffred theft to be vnpunished for that the exercise thereof doth represent a kinde of boldenesse in warres The natures of the Lydians was to delight in superstitious diuinations in inuention of playes and in theft for the Arte of dicing and playing diuers kinde of games vpon tables the Lidians first inuented the same They also were much inflamed by luxurious life and filthy venerye which they neyther spared day nor night Plini writeth of a certen nation called Esseni which abstaine from all kinde of pleasure in so much that they neuer-accompany with women neuer eate fleshe nor drinke wine And thus by custome of fasting they became naturall chaste For custome and vse sayth Aristotle is an other nature In that countrie no manne possesseth any thing of his owne all thinges are indifferent betwéene them and liue as companions one with an other For in these their vertues they excell all men in vehement and most ardent loue towarde God Uertue most diligent with great care and study wayed their neyghbours woonderfull beloued and made of so that by this their precept of life they haue great fame and commendations Cities fewe they haue neither Townes and for that they take the earth as a common mother they haue all one respect vnto all kinde of men The Getes haue no diuision of landes no limittes of grounde nor any particions of their good they drinke blood mingled with mylke they eate no fleshe and they reioyce much when any of their fréendes dye euen as the people called Trauses in Thracia do when any is borne into the worlde they mourne and lament with wéeping eyes that the little childe then borne shoulde know the misery and state of this wretched worlde and when any of their fréendes are dead they reioyce and be glad with melody and all kinde of mirth for that he hath past this toyling life The Thracians people of great antiquitie famous warriours bragging muche that Mars the God of warre was borne in their countrey much addicted vnto dronkennesse selling their children in the market and theyr maydes and daughters common to lie with euery man they iudge and count it most commendation to liue onelye by spoyle theft and warres they bragge if any haue a wounde they thinke it a fame vnto the person And of the contrarie if they haue no marke in the forehead no wound in the bodie they will iudge those ydle men and cowwardes The common people worship Mars and Diana for their gods Their King only doth worship Mercurie by whome the King vseth to sweare Psilli people of so great follye that when the southerne winde bloweth so long and strong that their landes perishe their water drie that they arme themselues with common councell to sight against the wind euen like as the people of Celta doe vse to drawe their swordes and shake their speares at the waues of the seas to reuenge the iniuries and wronges done by the seas vnto them Bithini were muche of this follye that they woulde assende and climbe vp vnto the top of hie mountaines eyther to thanke Iupiter for his furtheraunce towardes them or else to â—urse Iupiter for his cruelnes towards them The Pygmeians being sore troubled and molested with Cranes doe ride on Rammes and Goates backes with their bowes and arrowes a whole bande in the spring time towardes the sea banckes to breake their Egges to destroy their neastes and to fight with the cranes euery thirde moneth they take this iourney in hand else woulde the Cranes destroye them for that they are little dwarfes of a cuâ—itte long â–ª Their houses are made of dirt feathers most like vnto birds neasts so that they are somewhat more and bigger I knowe not vnto what purpose I doe recite these countries sith the more I write the more I haue to write What shoulde I recite the people that eate the flesh of Lions and Panthers called Agriophagi or recite those that eate Lice in Scithia called Budini Or them that eate Serpentes called Ophiophagi or those that féede on mens bodies called Anthropophagi yea of those that eate their owne parentes as the Caspians did Unto what purpose should I name Asâ—omi a nacion in India without mouthes which onely lyue with the ayre that commeth vnto their nâ—sthrels where they receyue breath they can neyther eaâ—e nor drinke as Plini sayth in his seuenth booke thei liue the longer with the swéete smell and odours of flowers Unto what ende likewise should I speake of those blind Andabates that fight without eyes or of those great eared people that Fanesij whose eares shadowed and couered their whole body or of the Monopods which in like maner shadow their whole bodie with one foote or of Arimaspi people in Scithia hauing but one eie in the middest of their forehead like the great Ciclope Poliphenê° which Vlisses destroyed Yea of millians more whose deformitie to depaint whose ouglinesse to write were to much a charge vnto the writer and to much tediousnesse vnto the reader I might speake of people in some part of India which liue two hundred yeres and more whose heare vpon their heades in their young age is white and in their olde age blacke called Pandorae I might likewise recite a people in Libia whose horses may not be guided nor gouerned with bridles bée the bittes neuer so strong but with roddes most gently are they tamed be the roddes neuer so simple Herodotus a famous Gréeke writer is not ashamed to shewe how the women Selenetidae brought foorth egges whence men were borne of such heigth length and stature that I am partelye abashed to aleadge his authoritie therein Againe the people called Sorbotae of Aethiope are spoken to be eight Cubittes long To speake of the Troglodites which liue in caues of the grounde féeding of Serpentes people of woonderfull swiftnesse which out runne any horse in Aethiope which cannot speake but hisse To speake of Massagettes of the people Nasomones I will according vnto promise omitt the proilixity thereof touching all countries by the way or some of the chiefe as Egypt which bragges and vaunts of their antiquitie The Aethiopians and the people of Caria
with simplicitie and slauerye The Carthaginean false and deceitfull The Babilonian wicked and corrupted The Persean a drunkarde and a glutton The Sycilian warye and trustye so the cruelnesse of the Caspians the filthinesse of the Lesbians the dronkennesse of the Scythians the fornication of the Corinthians the rudenesse of the Boetians the ignoraunce of the Symmerians the beastlinesse of the Sybarites the hardinesse of y e Lacedemonians the delicacie of the AtheniaÌ„s and y e pride glory of the Romanes Thus we reade that the Spaniards be the greatest trauellers the greatest despisers The Italian prowde and desirous to reuenge The Frenchman pollitike and rashe The Germain a warriour The Saxon a dissembler The Sweuian a light talkatiue person The Brytaine a busie bodie The Cimbrian sedicious and horrible The Boemian vngentle and desirous of newes The Vandall a mutable wrangler The Bauarian a flouter and a scoffer Thus much are incident vnto the aforesayd nations by nature But bicause in this place it were somewhat vnto the purpose to delare the glorie and state of Româ— which of al the world we estéemed feared And for that Rome had more enimies than all the whole worlde beside to shewe briefely how they florished how theyr fame spreade and their glorie grew I thinke it expedient not medling with the antiquitie thereof in the time of Ianus and Cameses but touching their fame by doing of wars in the time of Romulus which being begotten of Mars of Rhea a Uestall Uirgin was the first builder of that Citie also King thereof This king Romulus warred on the Sabins after he had elected a hundred Senatours to discerne and iudge causes of the Citie to defende Iustice and practise the same and to punish vice wronges according to the law of Plato who willed euery common welth to be gouerned with reward vnto the vertuous and punishement vnto the vicious Againe he appoynted certaine souldiers vnto the number of one M. to be in a redinesse alwaies to defend the Citie After Romulus succéeded Numa Pompilius the seconde King a man very religious and pitifull hée in his time made lawes to obserue rites sacrifices and ceremonies to worship their gods He made Bishops and Priestes he appointed the Uestal Uirgines and all that belong thervnto Thirdly came Tullius Hostilius to bée king in Rome whose felicitie was onely to teache the youth of Rome the discipline of warfare stirred them woonderfully to exercise and practise the same Then fourthly succéeded An. Martius with the like industry and care for the further and surer state of the City in raising the hie walles of Rome in a Bridge vpon the riuer Tiber in amending and beautifiyng all the stréetes in Rome The fift King was Torquinius Priscus which though hée was a straunger borne of Corinth yet hée encreased the pollicy of the Romanes with the wit of Gréece hée triumphed ouer the people of Tusk and enlarged the fame of Rome much more then it was To this came next Seruius Tullius which was the sixt and Torquinius superbus the seuenth and last King of Rome who for his misgouernment and lust in the Citie against the chaste matrones for the pride and infringement of the libertie hauing withall rauished Lucrecia Collatinus wife was at length after long rule and gouernment banished Rome The first alteration and chaunge of state was then after these seauen Kinges gouerned Rome two hundred yeres and a halfe which was the first infancie of Rome Then Collatinê° and Brutus after these kings were exiled a iust reuengement of their libertie and honest life were the first Consuls in Rome they I say altering the gouernment of the Citie from a Monarchy vnto a kinde of gouernment called Aristocratia which continued in Rome from the time of Brutus and Collatinus vntyll the time of Appius Claudius and Quintus Fuluius which was two hundred yeres In this season during this two hundred yeres was Rome most assailed of all kinde of enimies stirred vnto wars of all nations for the space of two hundred yeres and a halfe Then Appius Claudius forgetting the law that he him selfe made in Rome against fornication forgetting the rauishment of Lucrecia and the banishment of Torquinius for breaking of the same against all right and reason willyngly and wilfully rauished Virginia the daughter of Virginius which after that hir owne father slue hir in the open sight of Rome the cause being knowen vnto all the Citie the power of Virginius and the populer state which alwayes had the gouernment of Rome vnder them with straight in armes to reuenge the wronges and iniuries against lawes committed and to defende likewise the lawes Euen as the Kinges before named were exiled and banished Rome for the rauishment of Lucretia so now the tenne Commissioners called Decemviri were likewise excluded and reiected for the rauishement of Virginia ¶ Of the straunge natures of vvaters earth and fire IN diuers learned Histories wée reade and specially in Plini of the woonders of waters and of the secrete and vnknowen nature of fire which for the rare sight therof and for that it doth degenerate from things knowen therein are noted thinges to bée marueyled at as certen water in the countrey of Campania where if any mankinde wyll enter therein it is written that he shall incontinent bée reft of his sences And if any womankinde happen to go vnto that water she shall alwayes afterwarde bée barren In the same countrey of Campania there is a lake called Auernus where all fléeing Fowles of the ayre that flée ouer that lake fall presentlye therein and die A Well there is in Caria called Salmacis whose water if any man drinke therof he becommeth chaste and neuer desireth the company of a woman The riuer Maeander doth bréede such a kinde of stone that being put cloase vnto a mans heart it doth straight make him mad There are two ryuers in Boetia the one named Melas whose water causeth staight any beast that drinketh therof if it be white to alter colour vnto blacke the other Cephisus whiche doth change the black beast vnto a white beast by drinking of the water Againe there is in India a standing water where nothing may swimme beast birde man or any liuing creature else drowneth this water is called Silia In Affrica on the contrary part there is the water named Apustidamus where nothing bée it neuer so heauy or vnapt to swimme that drowneth but all kinde of thinges doth swimme leade or any heauy mettall doth swimme in that lake as it is in the Well of Phinitia in Sicilia Infinite waters shoulde I recite if I in this woulde be tedious in repeating their names whose strange natures whose secrete and hidden operation whose force and vertue were such as healed diuers diseases as in the Isle of Auaria there was a water that healed the collicke and the stone By Rome there was
and ende of the battayle of the Philistines It is read in Lucan the Poet of a Witch named Erictho dwelling in Thessalia that reuiued and restored to life a late souldiour dead at the request of Sextus Pompeius to know the ende of the warres at Pharsalia One History I must repeat which Plutarch reciteth in the life of Cimon that one Pausanias after hée had taken the Citie of Bizance being in loue with a fayre damosell named Cleonices a mayde of noble parentage he commaundyng her father whiche durst not resist him to sende his daughter vnto him to vse at his pleasure which when the mayde came hée being fast a sléepe in his bed the Uirgin being shamefast and fearefull putting out the candle commyng in the darcke towarde Pausanias stumbled at the stoole which with the fall sodenly waked Pausanias from sléepe thinking some foe or mortall enemie of his to bée there hauing his sword harde by slue the Uirgine but she being so slaine woulde neuer after suffer Pausanias to take any quiet rest but appearing vnto him alwayes saying Recompence the iniurie and wrong thou diddest vnto me by equity and iustice folowing him as he fled from place to place from Bizance vnto Thracia from Thracia againe vnto Heraclea from Heraclea vnto Sparta where he famished for hunger Matthaewe in his seuentéene Chapt. beareth recorde that Moyses and Elias after they were dead many hundred yeres before Christes incarnation yet appeared bodyly and ghostly in mount Tabor vnto Christe where they spake and communed with our Lorde and Sauiour The soule of Lazarus did not onely appeare as Iohn saith in his second chap. but came againe both body and soule in a true token of our sure resurrection but as the appearing of those sightes at Gods appointment were most true so it is most horrible to geue credite that the soules of men after death do either by visions or by bodyly apparaunce but the deuyll is well beaten in experience of thinges knoweth best how he may deceaue the wisest sometime for he is subtill and crafty If the Mariner know when stormes and tempest arise if the Phisition iudge of one by the Urine the state daunger of the patient if the skilfull Astronomer can many yeres before exactly foretel the Eclipse of the Sunne moone if in fine the practized souldiour knoweth straight where the victory shall happen No maruaile it is that the deuill an olde souldiour can forshew things to come And make thinges apparant of nothing What made Theodoricus to espie the terible and threatning countenance of Symmachus which hée slue before in a fishes heade being brought before him on the table at supper at the which sight he fell for feare in a grieuous sickenesse and so died the Diuell What caused one Bessus of whome Plutarch maketh mention in his booke de sera muminis vindicta after that he had kild his owne father and a long while hyding himselfe as a murtherer at last being by the Deuill mooued to throw downe a swallowes neast with his speare and killing the young swallowes hée was of the company about him misliked for his cruelnesse vnto poore birdes and taunted of his companions for his tyranny therein but he aunswered and excused himsefe saying why shoulde I not kill those that accused me of my fathers death and cryed out vppon me a long while that I shoulde kill my father They which were present being amazed at his taulke toulde the king thereof which caused him to be apprehended and examined by that euidence he confessed the murther These are the driftes of diuelles the shiftes of Satan at all times and in all countries Paulina the chast wife of Saturnius a Romane was of such excellent beautie of such noble parentage and of such godlye life that when Decius Mundus a young knight of Rome who being so enamored with hir beautie with diuers compassions a long time to none effect for neyther golde nor treasure coulde alure this sober and chast Paulina to consent to sinne he perceauing how shée was bent to temperancye and to renounce all filthy lust gaue him selfe willing to die in the meane time the deuill practised a feat with Ide a mayde which dwelt in house with Mundus father to bring this purpose to passe this mayde knowing well the constancie and honest life of Paulina and how religious shée was to serue the Goddesse Isis inuented this fraude shée went and talkt with some of Isis Priestes opening the whole matter in secret vnto them promising a great rewarde to faine that their God Anubis had sent for Paulina to lie and to accomplishe loue with him This being done by the elder Priestes hir husbande Saturnius was verye ioyfull that the great God Anubis had vouchsafed to sende for his wife shee being as glad boasted and bragged of the same amongest her neighbours vnto the temple of Isis where likewise Anubis was worshipped Paulina was sent by hir husbande very braue and gorgeous where the young and lustie knight Mundus by the aduice of the Priestes hidde himselfe vntill Paulina came which embrasing hir in the darcke accompanied with hir till hee had satisfied lust all the night Then in the morning the matter being knowne she rent hir heares and clothes and tolde hir husband Saturnius how shée was delt withall hir husbande then declareth the whole matter vnto the Emperor Tiberiê° who hauing through knowledge by diligent examination did hang the Priestes the mother of y e mischiefe Ide coÌ„maunded the ymage of Isis to be â—unke in the riuer of Tiber and banished Mundus out of Rome so that vnder the couler and pretence of holinesse diuers Matrones and maydes were deâ—â—owred mens wiues and daughters as Ruffinus testifieth of a certaine Priest in Alexandria in Egypt named Tirannus who vsed such shiftes and practised such feats to haue his desire accomplished his lust satisfied with such women and maidens as he thought good saying that the great God Saturne whose Priest he was sent for them to come vnto the temple to Saturnus and there vntill his wickednesse was knowne he vsed vnder pretence of the great Saturne which was honoured in that Citie his filthy lust horible life Wée read the like almost of Numa Pompilius that he bare the people of Rome in hand that he had familiar company with y e Goddesse Aegeria bicause he might purchase y e more credite auctority vnto his lawes orders These are the workes and shiftes of wicked men which deceaued alwayes the rude people with vaine religion and superstitious holinesse which the deuyll the father of lyes did bewitch and allure them to beléeue fantasticall visions to be the soules of dead men the deuyls appearing them selues like men letting them to vnderstand that they were the soules of such men as they appeared like vnto as Romulus the first King and founder of Rome appeared after his death walkyng vp and downe by Atticus house
inuented in Créete for the souldiours to exercise them selues in armes wherein hée taught diuers iestures and sundry shiftes in moouings whence first procéeded much the vse of warres this was a kinde of dauncyng in armes as Dionisâ— Hali. in his seuenth booke saith which was of the people called Curetes mainteyned in the memory of Pirrhus Licaon likewise inuented other kinde of playes where naked men contrarye vnto Pirrhus games did vse feates Diuers others were had in great estimation in Gréece made and inuented by seuerall men but the first inuentour of mirth was as Diodorus saith Mercurius which onely was inuented to recreate the people and to practize agilitie and feates of bodyes Others there were of lesse name but of as great mirth as diuers kindes of playing at the Ball which is an auncient game as it seemeth in Vergil it was much vsed sometime amongst the Troyans for when Aeneas incontinent after the destruction of the Cittie of Troye came vnto Italy where hée first taught skipping and frisking at the Ball before hée maryed Lauinia King Latinus daughter the youth of Troy had playing at the Ball for their chéefe mirth and recreation and at this day much vsed in diuers countreys Againe for further recreation they vsed sundrye kindes of Dice playes Herodotus doth witnesse that the olde and auncient Lidians did first finde out the Dice and Ball though Plini doth report that one named Pythus first founde the play at the Ball but for the certainetie thereof sith so many kinde of Balles bée and the playing likewise so variable both Plini and Herodotus may well agrée for the people of Lydia at a certaine time being oppressed with great dearth and sore plagued with hunger they inuented then diuers kindes of diceplay as Herodotus sayde to passe the time in playing and to forget hunger for they fed one day they came togither the second daye to playe thus eating a little one daye to satisfie nature they played the seconde daye to auoyde hunger Againe there was amongst the ancient Gréekes a play muche like vnto our Cheasse play which one Zerxes a wiseman first inuented to warne a tyrannous Prince which he then serued to auoyde his tyranny to let him vnderstande by his playe that a Prince ought to watch and to vse his subiectes as his force and strength euen as the playe is in moouing the Pawnes the Knightes the Bishops for the defence and bulwarkes of the king that as the player I meane Zerxes did shew his maister the King the effect of the play howe the king was preserued by playing wisely of the men lest they bée lost so the tiraunt him selfe vnderstoode by the play of Zerxes how daungerous that Prince is that vseth not well his subiects that will not discréetly sée and watche for their commodities whiche is the Princes safetie Another play was vsed then in Gréece either vpon the Dice or els closelye in hande called euen and odde This playe came from Gréece vnto Rome in the time of Augustus Caesar the seconde Emperour of Rome as Suetonius doth write in the life of Augustus where the Emperour Augustus wrote a letter vnto his daughter in Rome after this sort Daughter I sende thée two hundred fiftye pence which I geue amongst thy ghestes to play after Supper the Gréeke play called euen and not euen whether they will at Dice or cloase in hande Lottes likewise were much vsed for recreation and mirth with diuers other sundry games and playes to recreate the minde of man which both the Gréekes and Gentiles did practize then aswell to trye their wittes as also to vse pastime and mirth to drawe company togither to be mery I leaue the Gréekes a while and wyll something speake of the Romane pastimes and sportes which in nothing were inferiour to the Gréekes but rather excelled Gréece all the worlde in all qualities And lest I shoulde séeme tedious I will speake of no more but of foure principall games correspondent vnto the Gréekes and coequall vnto their number The first called Lupercalia brought out of Arcadia by Euander sacrificed vnto Pan vpon mount Palentine And as Siluanus doth write the sacrifices were made in the Moneth of February after this sort by Euander the first inuentor thereof The youngmen of Rome shoulde gather together euery one bearing in his hande a scurge or a whip made of Goates skinnes running one vnto another and hée that was most swift of foote escaped stripes for euery one should runne vnto another in order euery one his length before the other and thus they made them swifter in running by reason of his stripes for hée that was ouertaken by the way was sure to spéede Euery man ranne naked to this ende that they might vse to be swift The women likewise thinkyng thereby to become more fruitfull and fertill offered them selues wyllyngly to receaue stripes These scurges and whippes that they had in their handes made such ratling noyse by reason they were made of drie skinnes that it made him that ran before to straine him selfe hearing the noyse and fearing the stripes The seconde game that the Romanes vsed was called Circenses as some say sprong vp first amongst the Romanes them selues a place appointed by Rome enuironed about with huge strong walles Here all kindes of pastime and sportes were vsed running with Horses and fighting on Horsebacke in the one ende in the middest the champions were placed in armes a foote to fight in the other ende wrastlers leapers runners and such like games were appointed so that the place was framed accordingly long and large that they might haue roome enough in both endes and in the middest This was the chiefe and the auncientest play amongst the Romanes sauyng Saturnalia this sport did Ianus which then did raigne togither with Saturnus as Macrobius saith inuent and frame in memory and monumentes of Saturnus his fellowe This play was celebrated in the moneth of december with such mirth pleasure and pastime that it far surmounted all other In this moneth of December euery man saluted his friende with rewardes tokens presentes or with anye treasure that they had to pleasure one another And because all things were common in Saturnus time and called the golden worlde there was such mirth vsed as woulde make some men of this time iâ—lous to sée it I beléeue none of this age would bée content to sée his seruaunt in bedde with his wife which in Saturnus time was tollerable Some say this play sprong first among the Pelagians some againe affirme that it began amongst the Athenians but how and where it began first in other countreys it is no matter but in Rome it was first framed and inuented by Ianus The fourth play amongst the Romanes was then called Gladiatoria where the youth of Rome came to learne how to behaue them selues among the enemies In this play shoulde they fight one with another
Marcus Antonius was conuicted by Augustus Caesar the Emperour she had rather to bee ouercomed with Serpentes then subdued by Caesar. With this death was Opheltes Lycurgus sonne kyng of Menea vanquished Again some of wilde Bores and ragyng Lions perished as Anceus kyng of Sâ—mos and Paphages kyng of Ambracia perished in the like miserie the one by a Boore the other by a Lion Some by Dogges as Linus Apollos sonne Plini in his seuenth booke maketh mention of a Quéene in Bythinia named Cosinges kyng Nicomedes wife whom her owne dogges slue and tare in péeces Euripides that learned Greeke commyng in the nighte tyme from Archelaus kyng of Macedonia with whom he had béen at supper was by an ill willer of his mette named Promerus whiche set his dogges to mangle hym vnto death EueÌ„ so were Heraclitus and Diogines bothe Philosophers by dogges likewise deade I maie not forget so greate a Prince as Basilius the Emperour of Macedon which in huntyng emongest his lordes and nobles yea emoÌ„gest thousandes of his Commons he onely meetyng a Harte in the chase was prickt in the legge and so died As for Seleucus kyng of Siriae soone vnto Antiocus surnamed the GOD and Bela kyng of Pannonia thei were bothe throwen by their horses and so died If these mischaunces happen vnto princes in the middest of their glorie and state what is it then but miserie of mortalitie and pilgrimages of Princes sithe nothyng expelleth fate nor can auoide death Some so wearie of life some so fearfull of death that thei threwe them self vnto waters to be drouned others for all diligente feare watchyng for death were moste shamfully notwithstandyng by death preuented Fredericke the Emperour marchyng towardes Ierusalem after that he had taken Cities and Tounes in Armenia in passyng through a little riuer he was drouned Decius that noble and stoute Kyng enforced to take his flighte from the Gothes with whom he then was in warres was drouned in the Marishe grounde Marcus Marcellus after that he had been a Consull in Rome three tymes before the thirde warres betwixte the Romains and the Carthagians was likewise by a shipwracke cast awaie Howe many noble Princes were drouned with Pharo kyng of Aegypte in the redde sea we rede in the sacred scriptures How many again that seas and waters spoiled from life wee reade of whiche altered the names of the seas and waters when thei were drouned with their owne names As by Aegeus kyng of Athens death the sea Aegeum was called By Tirrhenus death king of Lidia the sea was called Tirrhen And so kyng Tyberinus altered the riuer named Aelbula by his death to be the Riuer of Tiber. Againe the Sea HellespoÌ„t by a woman named Helle. The sea Hesperides by the maides called Hesperides So by Icarus and Myrtilus the sea of Icarus and the Sea Myrton were spoken To many wer by waters spoiled as we se daily by experience As for honger diuers Princes againe died yea compelled to eate their owne fleshe as Erisicthon and Neocles a Tyraunt of Scycioma whiche for his cruell tyrannie vnto Athens he tasted of the same feaste hym self It is written in Curtius that Queene SysigaÌ„bis kyng Darius mother died of honger Who so readeth Chronicles shall finde diuers mischauÌ„ces happen vnto princes from tyme to tyme for that thei bee enuied at for Vlixes the Greke leste any ofspryng of Hector should rise in Phrigia to reuenge the falle of Troye and his countrey caste Hectors sonne Astianax ouer the walles a liue EueÌ„ as somtime Lycurgus king of Thracia was of his owne Subiectes throwen headlong vnto the sea for that he first mingled water with wine How many famous and noble princes were stoned and by stones deade as valiaunte Pyrrhus kyng of the Epirotes beyng in warres with Antigonus was slaine by an olde woman with a Tile stone at Argos PyraÌ„der at what tyme the Athenians warred against Eumolpus for that he feared famine hidden the wheat from his souldiours was therefore of theim stoned to death Euen so was Cinna the Romain at the warres betwixte the FreÌ„chemen and Rome for the like thing stoned vnto death stoute Cebrion king Priamus sonne was slaine by a stone of Patroclus at the siege of Troy so was Cignus of Achilles at the same time O vnstedfaste Fortune that little stones should ende so many famous liues of Princes O vnprudente Princes that knowe not how nigh alwaies ye are vnto death How many did God punishe and plague with sodaine death for their offences and misliuyng as Mythridates kyng of Pontus Nicanor the soonne of Parmenio kyng of Macedonia as Curtius in his v. booke dooe write died sodainly Sertorius was slaine sodainly at a banquette by Vpenna The Emperour Heliogabalus was killed vpon his stoole at his easemente and throwen vnto Tiber Carbo a noble Romaine after that sorte while he was easyng hym self vpon his stall was commaunded to bee murthered by Pompeius That renowmed and famous Conquerour Iulius Caesar was in the middest of the Citie of Rome where he was Emperour yea in the Senate house murthered and maÌ„gled of Brutus and Cassius Diuers Consuls in Rome died this death as Fabius Maximus Gurges the Senatour and Manlius Torquatus eueÌ„ at his supper died presently Thus some with Thunderboltes did God likewise punishe as Prince Capaneus slaine at the warres of Thebes Tullius Hostilus kyng of Rome was with a Thunderbolt for his insolencie and pride â—laine Zoroastes king of the Bactrians the firste inuentour of Magique was likewise by that kinde of death ouer taken Pride in princes was the onely cause of their falles in so muche the Poetes faine that the greate monstrous and huge Giaunt named Euceladus for his proude enterprise againste Iuppiter was throwen with a Thunderbolte vnto the bottome of Aetna a fierie and flamyng Mountaine The vncertaine state of Princes the flattrie before and the enuie behinde is seen and tried by their death Who liueth so shorte a tyme as a Prince Who dieth so straunge a death as a prince Who liueth in care Who dieth liuyng but a prince was not Sergius Galba and Commodus the sonne of Marcus surnamed Anbilius twoo Emperours of Rome the one by Otho strangled in the Markette place of Rome the other by Marcia his owne Concubine after he ruled Rome xiij yeres Was not I saie Lentulus beeyng taken in conspiracie with that wicked Cateline slaine and mangled at the commaundement of Cicero who then was CoÌ„sull at Rome Likewise Cethegus Gabinius Ceparius and Stabilius for that thei rebelled with Catelin were appoincted by the Senatours to bée strangled in prison Nothyng so vncertaine as the state of princes nothing more deceiptfull then princes again as well proued by histories For Minoes kyng of Crete trauailyng after Daedalus vnto Sicilia was there of his great freÌ„de kyng Cocalus as
he supposed slaine through deceipt euen so was Alebas chief gouernour of Larissa a citie in Thessalie murthered of his owne souldiors The desire that men beare vnto honour and dignitie is suche that accompaneth with death as Spu Cassius and Spu Melus for the gredines vnto the Empire of Rome wer bothe worthely beheaded God hath shewed iuste vengeance vpon princes for their iniquitie with plagues Pestilences whiche spoiled the Emperor Constantine the Empresse his wife Zoae and by this was Marcus Antonius Alphonsius and Domitius iustly and worthely punished God hath wonderfully punished the pride of princes euen with shamefull and horrible death that Lice and Uermine consumed their bodies a liue As Maximilian the Emperoure Arnulphus Honorificus kyng of the Vandoles and Herode kyng of Iewrie wer eaten vp a liue with vermines and wormes Plini and Plutarche saieth that proude Silla whiche sore plagued Rome and Italie was conuerted all his fleshe vnto lice and so died Herodotus dooeth like wise reporte of one Pheretrina a Quéene of Barcaeans that of this filthie and horrible death died GOD gaue theim ouer in the middeste of their pleasure euen eatyng and drinkyng as Septimus and Valentianus twoo famous Emperours died of surfette for wante of disgestion Archesilaus died presently with one draught of wine What is the life of Princes but an vncertaine Pilgrimages whiche scante seeth his daies fully by nature graunted as we see how and after what sort thei die daiely euery where There was greate difference betwene the Pilgrimage of Vlixes and his felowes whiche Cirses the Witche did chaunge theim vnto diuers kindes of beastes for that thei knewe not what Pilgrimage meante and Vlixes hym self kepte his naturatl shape and frame And for that in his pilgrimage he was wise and painfull in his life he did learne of Aeolus Phisick of Cirses Magicke of Calipso Astronomie and that vnder couler of fables That pilgrimage is onely appointed vnto manne to knowe hym self and to serue his God diuers learned Philosophers as Pithagoras Democritus Anaxogaras trauailed from Grece vnto Aegypte vnto Persia vnto Caldea and to diuers other countries for knowledge sake Anachassis from colde Scythia made his voiage to Athens for learnyng Appolonius from Rome went ouer Caucasus vnto India vnto Assiria to knowe more Philosophie Yea womeÌ„ are famous for their pilgrimage therein as Saba came from Aethiope the farthest part of the worlde to heare Salamons witte and to learne wisedome Cornelia froÌ„ Rome beyng a noble woman wente vnto Palaestina to heare saincte Hierome teache Christians The Pilgrimage that Solon made for AtheÌ„s that Lycurgus made for the Lacedemonians that Architas made for Tarentum are commended The trauaile that Pittacus tooke for the people of Myâ—tilaena that that Cleobulus tooke for the Rhodians that Bias and Thales tooke for the people of Ionia are praised Wee are borne not for our selues but for our countrey and frendes for them wee ought to trauaile For this cause became Plato from a famous oratour in Athens to bée a renoumed souldior at the besiegyng of Corinth and Tenagra For this wente Socrates Platoes maister to Amphipolis and Potidaea a twoo greate cities in Delos to fight for their Countrey Philosophers were not alwaies occupied with bookes but when tyme serued thei were seen in armes as Architas was sixe tymes generall emongest the Tarentines Tyrtaeus elected gyaunde Capitaine emongest the Lacedemonians Xenophon whiche Thucidides highly aduaunce one of the chief Souldiours of kyng Cirus What caused the Philosopher Zeno to resist the princely power of king Antigonus What moued Bias to withstande the force of kyng Aliates In fine what made Phocion Aristides Themistocles and others to become souldiours to stand in armes against their enemies the loue of Athens The pilgrimage of this our life is nothing els but a continuall trauaill vntill we come to our last iourney whiche is death then is the ende of all pilgrimage and iuste accoumpt to bee made for the same ¶ Of Dissimulation and Crafte of Subtiltie and Deceipte DIogenes that Cinike Philosopher makyng hym self ignoraunt somtyme in that which he knewe beste was wont in banquettes and feastes to say if any manne had demaunded what kind of meate wer ther I can not name but I caÌ„ eate it and so would passe to aunswer any thing truely with dissimulatioÌ„s in so muche that Sigismonde the Emperour would saie that he that could not dissemble could not rule At what tyme Galba a Citizein of Rome had bidden a gentleman named Mecaenas vnto Supper perceiuyng the gentleman to bee in loue with his wife fained hym a sleepe for that Mecaenas might shewe some part of his will and loue in the meane season while his wife and Mecaena were in talke and he hym self in dissemblyng slept came one of his seruauntes to take some thinges awaie from the table supposyng his maister had been a sleepe vnto whom his maister saied well you varlet though I see not Mercaenas yet I see to you I sleepe vnto hym and not vnto you The like dissimulation was betwene Demosthenes and Archias at what tyme he fledde Athens for feare of Antipaters displeasure and went vnto the Isle Calauria where in the Temple of Neptune he hid hym self vntill Archias came and promised hym what honour and dignitie he should haue if he could come vnto Antipater and with faire wordes he dissembled with Demosthenes that he came for the purpose from the kyng vnto him Demosthenes perceiuyng his dissimulations and craftie meanes answered plainly to moue hym vnto anger where truthe is oftentimes opened and saied Thou of all men couldest neuer play vpoÌ„ the stages plaiyng thy parte then and now at this tyme thou canst not bee an Oratour to perswade me whereat Archias waxed angrie and threatned to hale him out of the Temple vnto whom Demosthenes answered Nowe perforce thy dissimulation is chaunsed vnto truthe I might hereon staie to note the greate dissimulations betwene Metellus and Scipio whiche was so greate that Metellus faigned that Rome was happie that Scipio was borne therin and yet his mortall enemie all the daies of his life and therefore Fredericke an Emperour sometyme of Rome at what tyme the Senatours would goe sitte aboute the state of the citie would saie before you go vnto the Senate house caste awaie from you twoo thynges that you cary with you and beeyng demaunded of the Senatours what twoo thynges were thei he saied Simulations and Dissimulations In this Philippe of Macedon did differ muche from his soonne Alexander in so muche that Alexander would consente to nothyng but to magnimitie and truthe and his father to all kinde of falshood as seen by subduyng of the Sarunsians and the Cities of Thracia who vnder coulour of peace commaunded his Souldiours to bryng vnder their clokes euery one a coarde that at what tyme kyng Philippe
Greate is the force of famine as by histories we read that when kyng Cambises marchyng towardes the Aethiopians had fallen vnto scarcenesse of victualles and vnto suche penurie and wante of foode vnto the souldiors that thei agréed within them selfes to kille the tenthe throughout all the hoste to asswage honger in so muche that it continued so long that Cambises the king was in greate feare lest the lotte should at length happen vpon hym and so to bee eaten of his souldiours Saguntus a Citie in Spaine sometyme as Eutropius dooeth witnesse in greate amitie with the Romaines and being besieged of the Carthagineans so long that all the citie was brought vnto suche famine that the lords the captaines of the citie made a great fire in the Markette place and there brought all their wealth and substaunce and threwe it into the fire and after made their wiues and then their children to bee burned and laste of all the chief lordes and capitaines ended their liues in flamyng fire lest thei should come vnto the enemies hande so greate was that famine that it was before Prognosticated by a womā brought to bedde whose childe as sone as he was borne entred vnto his mothers wombe againe The like calamitie happened in Caligurium a Citie where Quintilian was borne who beyng likewise long besieged of Cn. Pompeius to bryng them in subiectiō and to kepe promise with the Emperour Sertorius that thei lacke victuall and waxed so hongrie after that all kinde of beastes were slain thei were enforced to eate their owne wiues and children It was seen in Ierusalem when that it was destroied by Vespasian the Emperoure of Rome by the Romaine souldiors howe that the mothers were compelled to eate their owne children for verie honger for their small and tender bones were lefte as a shewe of their miserie Plini in his eighte of naturall histories that when Hanibal laied siege vnto the Citie Casilinum the Romaines souldiours were in such honger that one Mouse was sold for two hundred peeces of siluer and he that solde the Mouse died hym self for honger The Athenians likewise wer brought vnto suche honger by Silla whiche afterwarde was Dictatour in Rome that one Bushell of wheate was solde emongst the souldiors for a thousande Drachmis the common souldiors being poore for want of money one waie and sore plagued with honger an other waie were compelled to eate the gréene grasse of the fieldes aboute the Citie of Athens and to gather the Mosse of the walles of the Citie and eate it This Citie of Athens was often tymes brought vnto that miserie as by kyng Demetrius kyng Philippe and his sonne Alexander the greate So muche was famine feared emōgest the aunciente Greekes that thei vsed in the tyme of aboundancie to scourge famine with roddes out of their houses saiyng For as famen intro diuitias awaie penurie come in plētie We reade in Q. Curtius that Alexander was driuen by honger to eate his Cameller Elephantes and other huge beastes that caried the traines for the warres Suche honger and famine did happen emong the Lacedemonians that the Citizeins of Sparta were so hongrie that thei eate the verie Serpentes that were dead a long while whiche mutitude of Serpentes whiche before wer drouned did presage this greate calamitie to come of whom the people of Sparta though thei were deade a long tyme yet moste hongerly fedde them self and mitigated the rage of famine Doda king of Siria besieging a great famous city in Iewrie called Iora where the miserable mothers were of meere honger enforced to feede of the bowels of their owne children Not muche vnlike vnto that horrible and cruell famine in the countrey of Apulea beyng driuen of the Frenchemen then their enemies in warres that the souldiours were compelled to take the skinnes from their Bucklardes and to warme and boile the harde hornes and to eate them To entreate of the woūderfull calamities miserie and plague that happened through honger it were to much the charge thereof too many aucthorities are manifest in this behalfe Antonius whom Augustus Caesar could neuer vanquishe with force of armes he was driuen to yelde in Etruria in a Citie called Perusia by honger and famine Wherfore that noble Athenian Nicias alwaies thought the easieste waie the spidiest cause of yeldyng vnto the enemies was Famine whiche he shewed at Melos a Citie of Thessalie whereby he made the Citizeins to yelde by honger O ragyng force of Famine O terrible miserie of man whiche compell the parentes to eate the children the children to kill their parētes what beast was spared euer when this happened The people named Hymmi through hōger were constrained to eate their owne Dogges as the Macedonians sometime fedde them selues with Camelles Elephantes Horses and suche like What hearbe was vnsought what roote was not founde to féede this cruell monster As Sabellicus dooeth witnesse of dearthe that chaunced in his tyme that in some partes of the coūtrey of Flaminia and about the fieldes called Piceni the common people did liue by grasse and hearbes and by suche like that proceded from the yearth This was the worlde euer plagued with Famine as with that monster that spoileth and deuoureth it self as we read of diuers that did eate their owne armes and fleshe Againe in the sacred scripture diuers examples we haue of the like sent from God to plague man But because honger one waie is moste excellent if meate maie bee had so hounger an other is moste terrible if the same faile Therfore Stratonicus neuer went to bedde without a Cuppe of drinke by hym not for that he thrusted when he went vnto bedde but leste he thursted in the bedde whiche should compell to doe some iniurie with one or other for that he wanted drinke So did Alphōsus kyng of Arragon when he sawe the poore countrey man gréedily féedyng on Grapes said for that he could not be hongrie O would the goddes had framed me to bee suche one as this is So that hounger is good vnto those that wante the same For Gnefactus kyng of Aegypt hauyng his men of armes in the desertes of Arabia wantyng victuales waxed so hongrie that the poore fare and simple cheare that he got emongest the countrey men was so acceptable vnto hym that he caused a table for a monumente of the same in the temple of Iupiter in Thebes Of diuers famine we reade in scripture that Abraham fledde from the land of Chananea vnto Egypte and Isaac driuen by famine vnto Abimelech kyng of the Palestines and all the soonnes of Iacob were enforced to goe to kyng Pharao where their owne brother Ioseph ruled as chilef officer Famine is appoincted for a iuste scourge to synne ▪ as appereth by the filthy synne of kyng Dauid towarde Urias wife he had to chuse either plague famine or warres which are the instrumentes to punishe offendours ¶ Of warinesse WE leaue
so straunge and so maruailous was it to heare or to see any idle man in Athens The people called MassilieÌ„ses would suffer no trauailers neither Pilgrime nor Sacrificer nor any other straunger to come within their Citie lest vnder colour of religion or of pilgrime thei might corrupte the youthe of the citie with the sight thereof to be idle The Indians had a lawe made by their wisemen named Gimnosophist that after their meate was set on the table the youth should be examined what thei had doen for their meat what pain what labour vsed thei that whole mornyng before if thei could make accoumpte of their trauaill thei should goe to dinner but if thei had béen idle thei should haue no meate without thei deserued the same with some kind of exercise either of bodie or of minde The like did the young men of Argis made accoumpte vnto their Magistrates of their occupations and workes of their trauaill and paine Euen the Areopagites as Valerius affirmeth did imitate the Athenias in makyng decrees in settyng of orders in commaundyng their youthe to auoide Idlenesse and exercise trauaile then moste necessarie vnto any common wealth the other moste daungerous So that some Countreis are naturally giuen to trauaill as the Lidians Phrigians Frenche men with others Some againe giuen to Idlenesse as the Persians Corinthians Englishemen with others Some by lawe forced to flie idlenes some by punishemente feared some by death enforced to labour for their liuyng Thus this Monster Idlenesse is beaten euery where and yet embraced in moste places euery man speake against idlenesse and yet a nomber is in loue with it magistrates and officers appoincted to punishe it but yet thei after fauour it ¶ Of wrath and anger and the hurts thereof THe famous and noble Philosopher Plato did charge his Scholers alwaies beyng in anger or wrathe to beholde them selues in a glasse wher they might see suche alteration of countenaunce pale in colour tremblyng handes foltred tongues staring eies In fine voide of witte depriued of reason and beyng before reasonable men now brutishe beastes Wherfore that greate Philosopher perceiuyng the furious and hastie nature of Alexander wrote from Athens vnto India where this noble conquerour was at warres with kyng Poâ—us to take hede of wrath and anger saiyng Anger ought not to be in any Prince towarde his inferiour for that may be mended with correction nor towarde his equall for it maie bee redressed with power so that anger ought not to be but against superiours but Alexander hat no coequales yet in vaine was Aristotles doctrine vnto Alexander in that point for beyng in a banquet when Clitus his deere frende and foster brother commended his father kyng Philip of Macedone to bee the worthiest and most renoumed prince then liuyng Alexander waxed vpon a sudden so angrie to preferre anie man before hym though Philip was his owne brother which was commended and Clitus his especiall frende that did commende hym thinkyng rather to deserue praise at Alexander hand then to spead of death was thrust vnto the harte with a Speare So hastie was this prince that Calisthenes and Lismachus the one his philospher and councelour the other his companion and frende for fewe wordes spoken either of theim slain Silence saith Aristotle is the surest reward vnto a prince And beyng sory afterward angrie withall y t he had likewise kild himself had not Anaxarchus y e philosopher staied perswaded hym We reade that king Tigranes of Armenia whom Pompeius the greate did conquere after waxed so angrie by a fall from his horse bicause his sonne was present and could not preuent his fathers fall thrust hym in his anger with his Dagger vnto the hearte Anger in a prince saieth Salamon is death terrible is the couÌ„tenaunce of a kyng when he is oppressed with wrath hurtfull vnto many odious vnto all is the anger therof Nero was so furious in anger that he neuer hearde any thyng if it were not to his liking but he would requite one waie or other with death in so muche in his rage and anger he would often throwe doune Tables beyng at dinner cuppes of Golde wrought with pearles againste the walles dasht fling meate and drinke awaie more like vnto a furious Gorgone of hell then a sober Emperour in Rome Suche furie raigneth in anger that Orestes Agamemnons soonne slue his mother sodenly in his wrath Clitemnestra Such madnes raigneth in anger that Aiax Thelamonius that famous and valiaunte Gréeke after that Achilles was slaine in the Temple of Pallas by Paris at the destruction of Troie waxed so madde and angrie bicause he might not haue Achilles harnes which was geuen before to Vlixes that he beate Stones blockes fought with dead trées killed beastes thinkyng to méete with Vlixes amongest them If anger make men murtherers if wrath make meÌ„ mad without wit or reason to know themselues or others let theim imitate Plato in his anger which being angrie with any of his scholers or seruantes would geue the rod to Xenocrates to correcte theim for that he was angrie the learned Philosopher misdoupted himself that he coulde not vse modest correction euen so Architas would alwaies speak vnto his seruauntes whiche had offended hym Happie art thou that Architas is angrie lettyng his man vnderstande howe dangerous wrath is for as Aristotle saieth the angrie man seeth not the thyng which lieth vnder his féete â–ª Agustus Caesar Emperour of Rome desired Athenedorus a philosopher of Gréece whiche a long time accompanied Augustus in Rome and nowe readie to departe vnto Athens his natiue zoile of some sentence that the emperour might thinke of him The philosopher tooke a penne and wrote in a little Table this sentence Caesar when thou arte moued to anger speake nothyng vntill thou haste recited the Gréekes Alphabets a worthy lesson and a famous senteÌ„ce well worthie to be learned of all men There is nothyng or what can bee more vgglie to beholde more terrible to looke vnto then mans face when he is angrie and the more to be feared for that he hath no rule ouer him self All the painters of Persea had much to do to drawe in colours the terrible countenaunce and firie face of Queene Semiramis who like Maegera or Medusa grime Gorgons and frettyng furies of hell when she hearde that her Citie of Babilon was besiedged of the enemies beyng then dressyng of her head came with heares hangyng and fléeyng in the winde half amazed of the newes vnto babilon whose vglie and fearefull image most like vnto hir at that time stoode as long as Babilon continued as a monument and a terrible mirrour to maruaile at Wee reade of the like historie of Olimpias whose anger was suche when she thought of hir sonne Alexander she streight waies like a ragyng Lion or a cruell Tiger digged vp the bodie of Iola Alexanders taster who was thought to be
Fulgosius of that noble Vitellius who after he had vanquished and slaine diuers nobles and shewed greate wronges vnto the Emperour Otho and vnto Sabinus brother vnto Vespasian the Emperour beyng in feare of his life by Vespasian and being taken by the souldiors he besought leste he should die presently he might bee kepte saufe in prison vntill he might sée and speake with Vespasian the Emperour Suche was his feare that he did hide hym self in a chest like a wretch leste vpon a sodaine he should die So fearfull was Caligula and Caesar of death euery where that he would neuer goe abroade at any Lightenynges or Thonder but with his heade couered with all kinde of thynges whiche mighte resiste the violence of Thounders and Lightenynges Misa kyng of the Moabites and Ioram kyng of Iewrie beyng besieged by the enemies and in daunger of death thei inuented all giles all policies and inuentions right or wronge to saue life thei sacrificed their children to mitigate the rage of the Goddes leste thei should die The loue that diuers had vnto life and the feare the same self had vnto death were to bee noted worthily consideryng howe sore men are vexed with the fear of death ▪ Antemō was so desirous to liue and so fearfull to die that skante would he trauaill out of his house abrode any where and if he wer compelled to goe abrode he would haue twoo of his seruauntes to beare ouer his heade a greate brasen Targatte to defende hym from any thyng whiche mighte happen to doe hym hurte Theagenes in like sorte would not goe out of his house without he had consulted with the Image of Hecates to knowe what should happen to him that daie and to vnderstande whether he might escape death or no Commodus the Emperoure would neuer truste any Barbour to shaue his bearde lest his throte should bee cutte of Masinissa kyng of Numidia would rather committe his state and life vnto Dogges then vnto men as his garde to keepe and defende hym from death To speake of Bion of Domitianus of Dionisius of Pisander of thousandes more whiche so feared death that their chief care and studie was how thei might auoide the same The feare of death causeth the soonne to forsake the father the mother to renoūce the doughter the one brother to deny an other and one frende to forsake the other In so muche Christ himself was forsaken of his Disciples for feare of death Peter denied him and all the reste fledde from hym and all for feare of death Behold therefore how fearfull some are how ioyfull others are How lothsome some how willyng others haue been to die Some desperately die beyng wearie of life As Sabinus Iuba Cleomenes some hangyng thē self some burnyng them selues some drouning thē selues thus with one desperat ende or other thei died But fith euery man muste die it were reason that euerie man should prepare to die for to die wel is nothing els but to liue again Wherfore certen Philosophers of India called Gymnosophistae beyng of Alexander the great cōmaunded to certain hard questiōs whiche if thei could absolue they should liue otherwise thei should die the eldeste of their cōpanie was made a iudge in that matter by the said Alexander The first question was demaunded to know whether there wer more liuing or dead to the whiche the first philosopher saied that the quicke are more in nomber for that the dead haue no being no place no nōber The second question was whether the lande engendered more or the Sea to this answered the second philosopher and said the Land did engender more for that the Sea was but a portion of the Lande The thirde question was to knowe what beast was most subtill that beast answered the thirde Philosopher that man can not discerne Fourthly it was demaunded why they beeyng Philosophers were so induced to perswade the Sabians to rebellion bicause saide the Philosopher it is better to die manfully then to liue miserablie The fifte question was whether the daie was made before the night or the night before the day to the which it was answered the daie The sixte was to vnderstande howe Alexander the greate hym selfe might get good will of the people in shewyng saied the sixte Philosopher thy self not terrible vnto the people The seuenth to aske was whether life or death wer stronger and it was answered life The eight was to knowe howe longe a manne should liue vntill saied the eight Philosopher a manne thinketh death better then life The last question was proposed of Alexander to knowe how might a mortall man be accompted in the nomber of the Gods In dooyng greater thynges saide all the Philosophers then man is able to dooe For that they knewe this proude Prince would be a GOD and that he would learne of the sage Philosophers how he might voide mortalitie he was answered sharpely for that hee should knowe hym to be a man and beyng a manne he should make himself readie to die for death is the rewarde of sinne and death is the beginnyng of life againe vnto the good as Aulus Posthumius in an Oration whiche he made vnto his Souldiours said It is geuen both to good and bad to die but to die Godly and gloriously is onely geuen vnto good men For so Hector speaking in Homer said vnto his wife Andromacha that she should not be sory for his death sith all men must die Though some with the Galathians dooe contempne death that thei fighte naked and are perswaded with the Pythagoreans that they shall neuer die but passyng from one bodie vnto another yet some die ioyfully as the brethren of Policrita beyng taken captiue by Diognitus ▪ Emperour of Milesia she beyng vsed verie ill at the Emperours hands did sende Letters to Naxus vnto hir brethren at what tyme the people of Milesia were Feastyng Drinkyng and Banquetyng at their greate solemne feast Then the brethren of Policrita came and found the Emperour drinkyng and all his people ouer charged with wine slue the most parte of theim prisoned a nomber and brought their sister home to Naxus where assone as they came home died for Ioye of the victorie Euen as Philarchus somtime in his great triūphe criyng out O happie howres and ioifull daies was taken in suche a Feuer that brake his vaines at that verie instaunt for gladnes He is coumpted moste wise that knoweth hymself To ioye to muche in prosperitie to be aduaunced and extolled when fortune fauours without all feare of ill happes to come is follie To be vanquished and subdued in aduersite without hope of solace and goodnes to come is méere madnesse Therefore the Sages and Wisemen knowyng that death was the last line of life did endeuour in their liues how they might die well briefly for examples of liues I meanes to note fewe sentences of these wisemen whiche they vsed as their Poesies and thought good to shewe