not what it is to leese a father vnlesse thou haddest had a sonne Of the losse of a mother The xlvii Dialogue SOROWE I Haue lost my mother Reason Thou hast yet another mother whom thou canst not leese if thou wouldest from the first thou camest and vnto this thou shalt returne The first gaue thee houséromth the space of a few monethes the other shal giue thee lodging the space of many yeeres The one of these gaue thee thy body the other shal take it away Sorowe My most milde mother is dead Reason But a most hard mother remayneth who wyl keepe thee and thy mother whom thou bewailest in one besome in whose wombe she shal rest with thee and as we beleeue bryng you both foorth agayne at the last day Sorowe My good mother hath forsaken me Reason She made hast fearyng to be forsaken and likely it is that her death was acceptable vnto her because she would not see thine prouiding for her securitie in that whiche alwayes she most feared Sorowe My good mother is dead Reason She is happily dead thou being a lyue whiche beyng otherwyse such are the affections of women she would haue died in sorowful lamentation Sorowe My mother is dead Reason Shee must haue died and thou also neyther canst thou complaine of death nor of the order therof Of the losse of a sonne The xlviii Dialogue SOROW. BUt I haue lost my sonne Reason Say rather and better I haue sent hym before me for thou shalt folowe hym quickely and perhappes to day and howe know we whether this same houre There is no trust in lyfe since there is so great certentie in death shalt folowe hym sayde I Nay rather thou doest folowe hym I woulde haue sayde for thou folowest hym continually it is not permitted vnto a man at any tyme to stay his course in this lyfe but euermore he steppeth foorth one step vnto death a strange matter to be spoken whether he be bound or at libertie sicke or whole walkyng or sitting awake or sleepyng he is caryed foorth toward his ende much after the manner of them that sayle in a shyp or sitte and ride in a wagon and are carried foorth a pace Sorowe I am greeued with the lacke of my sonne whom I haue lost Reason Qiuet thy minde for thou shalt finde hym whom thou desirest ere it be long not to be able to suffer the want of a short tyme is the part of a childe or a woman for vnto a man there is no short thing difficult Thou knowest I thinke by what woordes Socrates in Plato and Cato and Lelius in Cicero do comfort suche desires and wantes Although men surpasse in vertue and glory yet in this hope do some farre surpasse other Thou knowest moreouer of what minde Paulus Emilius Cato hym selfe Pericles and Zenophon that was scholer vnto Socrates and scholefelowe with Plato and his equal and other innumerable were for the death of their chyldren neyther art thou ignorant howe he that was both a prophet and a king wept for his chylde whyle it was sicke but not when it was dead thinkyng that to lament and weepe for thinges vnrecouerable is rather a poynt of vayne madnesse then of true affection Among the number of whiche manly examples the Spartane woman shuffeleth her selfe whose name is not set downe by wryters nor her saying semblably commended who hearyng that her sonne was slayne in battayle therfore sayd she did I beare hym that he shoulde not be afrayd to dye for his countrey The vertue of Linia and the elder Cornelia is nothyng inferiour vnto this but their names muche more famous of whom the first layde downe her mournyng so soone as her sonne of most honourable byrth and that was lyke to haue aspired vnto the hyghest degree of Empire was once layd into the ground but neuer left of the remembrance of hym The other hauing lost many chyldren yea al that she had whereof some she behelde slayne by the people and lying abrode vnburyed when as other women accordyng to the manner of that sexe rued her state and pitifully weepyng bewaled her woful case she answeared that she was not infortunate but happie for that she had borne such sonnes A woorthy woman that was not surprised with the present miserie but counted her selfe happie for that whiche was past who contrary to the common opinion and custome of them that are in miserie comforted herselfe with her forepassed felicitie and the remembrance of her prosperitie wherin shee had somtime liued and tooke it indifferently although she had then lost it for that cause only was woorthie to haue bad good children Now she being a woman remained wholy not once touched with the greeuous and sharp woundes of fortune and thou beeyng a man art ouerthrowne by one only doest thou lament so childishly Sorow I haue lost my sonne Reason If he were a duetiful sonne there is no cause to feare his estate for he is well But yf he were wicked thou art rydde of one that counted vpon thy death and encreased the infirmities of thine olde age Sorowe I haue lost my sonne Reason If he were vertuous reioyce that thou haddest hym but yf he were vnthryfty be glad that thou hast lost hym and in eyther case acknowledge the benefite of nature eyther for geuing thee suche a one or for takyng hym a way Sorowe Death hath taken away my sonne before his tyme. Reason That is not done before due tyme whiche may be done at al tymes Death hath directe entrances into al ages but into youth innumerable Sorowe I haue remayned without a sonne Reason And without trouble and feare Now hast thou none for whose cause thou shalt spend the nyghtes without sleepe and the dayes in care for whose sake thou shalt enter into long and inextricable hope that shall thinke vpon thy hory heares and wryncles examine thy lyuing fynde fault with thine expences and blame the staying of thy death thou art in securitie and quietnesse on euery side both which are a great commoditie although it be made more bitter by the name of death Sorowe I am cast downe by the geeuous death of my sonne Reason Hast thou not hearde what Anaragoras sayth Hast thou forgotten that thou begattest a mortal creature Or doest thou perhappes lament that he is gone before that should haue folowed And although the lyfe of man in many other thinges be disordinate and out of course yet death keepeth his ordinarie custome crooked olde men stagger and young men make hast and chyldren runne headlong infantes at their first entrance into lyfe are drawen to their ende one man more slowly another more speedily one more ripely another more vntimely but euery man must die this is the conclusion of al. And in whatsoeuer age of this lyfe a man die be it gently or sharpely he hasteth vnto death Sorowe I weepe for the death of my sonne Reason If thou wouldest haue wept at his death thou shouldest also
haue wept at his birth for then he began to die but nowe he hath done But do not thou lament for thine owne and his most excellent estate he left behind him a perilous way to passe but thou hauing him alwayes before thine eyes who now is in securitie hast no farther regarde of thy sweete burden as Virgil speaketh or of any other Sorowe Al my delite to lyue is extinguished Reason A good sonne I confesse is a great comforte vnto his father but notwithstanding careful greeuous And many times the sweetest things do offend vs and the dearest do hinder vs and the most precious do oppresse vs And perhappes this thy sonne was some let vnto thy minde that would haue aspired vnto greater matters And now although thou art become more heauie yet since thou art at more libertie be of good cheare to gather good out of euyl is the part of a wise man. Sorowe The death of my lonne hath made me heauie Reason But spende the residue of thy lyfe that remayneth in iolitie thou diddest lyue for hym now lyue for thy selfe Of the miserable fal of a young child The .xlix. Dialogue SOROWE I Lament the miserable fal of my young child Reason A man ought to lament for nothing that may happen vnto mankinde al thinges should be premeditated before if they haue not hapned alredie lament not thy childes fal but thine owne vnskylfulnesse the forgetfulnesse of thine owne condition Sorow I complaine of the miserable death of my young childe Reason There is no death miserable which the death of the soule doth not folow from which daunger thy young child is free Sorowe My childe is dead by breaking his necke Reason What skylleth it after what sort a man dye so that he die not dishonourably he can not die dishonourably that dieth without offences Sorowe My chylde is peryshed by breakyng his necke Reason But Archemorus by the biting of a serpent other some by suckyng milke of a nurse being with child other by sickenesse the which for the more part happen more commonly then than in old age Sorowe My young child is perished by breaking his necke Reason Sodeyne death is to be wished of the innocent and to be feared of the guiltie Sorowe My chylde is dead of a fal from an hygh Reason Unto them that dye languishingly death often times seemeth the sharper the panges the longer for al paine the shorter it is the more tollerable it is Sorow My chylde is dead by breakyng his necke Reason To stumble and fal is proper to that age Thy chylde hath done that which al doo although al peryshe not by casualtie but do thou suffer hym to peryshe for he must needes peryshe one day and he is the more happily dealt withal for that he hath peryshed before he was intangled in the euylles of this lyfe whiche howe manyfold they be those that haue prooued and diligently obserued can tell There is none that prooueth not in part and they that obserue them not leade foorth their liues as it were in a dreame whiche so soone as they awake they haue forgotten Thyne infant died an innocent who perhappes if he had lyued had dyed a very hurtful person Lament not that he is safe he hath escaped al the threates of fortune and hath preuented death whiche being deferred would haue preuented hym Sorowe A woolfe hath deuoured my chylde Reason This nowe is the woormes complaynt Sorowe A woolfe hath carried away the body of my poore chylde into his denne Reason But the angels haue caryed vp his blessed soule into heauen Of a sonne that is found to be another mans The .l. Dialogue SOROWE ANd moreouer that whiche is more greeuous then death he whom I thought had been my sonne is another mans Reason If you had a respect to the common father then would you by the counsel of the Comical Poet thinke that there is no humane thing but may happen vnto you Sorowe I haue fostred another mans chylde a great while for mine owne Reason Nature wylleth a man to foster his owne and charitie to foster another mans so that thou repent thee not after the deede but delite in it Sorowe He that was counted my chylde appeareth to be another mans Reason There is opened vnto thee a way vnto a great and singuler merite if as thou hast hytherto done so thou continue hereafter to keepe hym as thyne owne Truely that were a very gracious and acceptable deede before god For chyldren are woont for the more parte to contemne the mayntenance of theyr parentes as a thyng due vnto them by ryght and moreouer it were a poynt of wickednesse to loue thy chylde that is borne of thee and not to loue man that is created of god Thus euery way both before God and men thou shalt purchase vnto thy selfe singuler commendation and vertue through another mans wickednesse Sorow I haue nooryshed one for my chylde that was not so Reason Thou nooryshedst hym as thy chylde and so nooryshe hym styll yf not as thy chylde yet as thy brother For of al the people that are or euer shal be or haue been heretofore there is one father and one gouernour Doo not dissemble through insolencie or through enuie and hatred breake of the sacred bond of nature for you be brethren one to another Sorowe He whom I thought to haue been as I heare is not my sonne Reason Take heede of whom thou hearest it and whom thou trustest For many beyng pricked foorth by wicked prouocations doo of set purpose deuise false rumors and other some by a certayne slypprynesse and vnbridled affection of the tongue doo aswell babble foorth the thynges that they knowe as that they knowe not and with lyke impudencie vtter whatsoeuer commeth in theyr mynde Howbeit to determine precisely of a mans chylde whether it be his owne or not is an harde case Sorowe I heare say that he that was called my sonne is another mans Reason Why dooest thou herein beleeue other rather then thyne owne wyfe since none knoweth it more certaynely then she Truely she hath geuen thee a chylde whom other goe about to take from thee Thou hast heard I thinke howe that within the remembrance of our fathers there was a certaine noble man who had to wyfe a gentlewoman of equall beautie and parentage but of whose honestie the report seemed some what to doubt By her he hadde one moste beautifull sonne whom when his mother vppon a tyme helde in her lappe and perceyuyng that her husbande syghed and was carefull she demaunded of hym what was the cause of his heauinesse Then he syghyng agayne I had rather sayde he then the one halfe of my landes that I were as sure that this boy were myne as thou art that he is thyne Whereunto she aunsweared neyther in countenance nor mynde any whit moued Truely sayde shee the matter shall not cost so great a price but geue me an hundred acres of pasture whereon I
thynges But as for them that goe downe into hel casting of al charitie it is to be entended that they hate both God and men and also al the workes of God and man. Of one that at his death is carefull of his fame and good report The Cxxx. Dialogue SOROWE WHAT wyll men speake of me when I am dead Reason An vnseasonable care thou shouldest haue prouided for this in thy youth for looke what a mans life is suche is his fame Sorowe What wyll they say of me Reason What shall I answeare thee other then that which the most learned and eloquent Marcus Cicero sayeth What other men shall speake of thee let them see to that them selues but they wyl speake notwithstanding howbeit all their talke is comprehended within the narrowe boundes of these regions which thou seest neyther was it euer continual of any but is extinguished by the death of men and forgetfulnesse of posteritie Sorow What wil they speake of me that shal be borne herafter Reason I would tel thee otherwyse then Cicero doeth yf I thought that any thing could be better vttered then is by him And what skilleth it sayth he if thou be spoken of by them that shal be borne hereafter seeing there nowe remayneth no fame of them that were borne before thee One thing he addeth moreouer which perhaps at that time was doubtful peraduenture false but now very sure most true without doubt Who sayth he were as many in number as you are now and truely better men to For who is he that doubteth but that there wyl neuer come so good men as there haue ben Thus al thinges waxe woorse woorse and tend euery day toward their final ruine A merueilous care then it is which thou hast to stande in feare of the speeches of those whom thou knowest not are thy youngers as not liuing in the same age with thee seeing thou now contemnest the iudgement and woordes of excellent men of thine owne time and acquaintance Sorow What fame shal there be of me when I am dead Reason Far better then while thou liuest when enuie once holdeth her peace For enuie and malice seldome last longer then a mans life and as vertue is the roote of glorie so is enuie the cutter downe of it and as the enuious hand being present hindreth the growth of it so when it is taken away it restoreth the encrease of true commendation And therfore vnto many as the entrance into their graues hath been a bar vnto enuie so hath it ben the beginning of great glorie Sorow Howe long wyl my fame continue Reason A long time perhaps as you call long But that all thinges may not only be long but also euerlasting vertue alone is able to bring that to passe and specially Iustice of which it is written The iust man shal be had in euerlasting memorie Which meaning also your countrey Poet expressed as wel as he could where he sayth But by mens deedes their fame to stretch that priuiledge vertue geues Sorow What fame shal I haue after my deceasse Reason What skilleth it what it be which shortly shal be forgotten or contemned What shall the breath of men apperteyne vnto thee when thou thy selfe shalt be without breath For one that breatheth to be nourished and delyghted with the winde and ayre it is no meruaill but for a dead man to be so it is a woonder Sorowe What shal be sayde of me when I am dead Reason No goodnesse be sure vnlesse thou haue deserued it but muche euyl peraduenture not merited and perhappes lytle or nothyng at all For in many thynges fame is a lyer but in the most a true reporter otherwyse it could not long continue For trueth is the foundation of continuance and as for a lye it is weake and transitorie Sorowe What fame shall I haue after my death Reason Suche as thy lyfe was before and at thy death Concernyng this matter therefore let the tyme to come but specially the tyme present looke to that And thus perswade thy selfe assuredly that what report and fame a man is woorthy to haue after his death it is no way better discerned then at his death when as in deede which is a strainge thyng to be spoken many that haue lyued all theyr tyme obscurely and without glorie death onely hath made famous Of one that dyeth without Children The Cxxxj. Dialogue SOROWE I Die without children Reason For that cause thou oughtest to die the more willingly and with the more expedition to goe foorth on thy iourney for that thou hast nothyng behinde thee to stay thee or cal thee backe The greatest greefe which they that lie a dying haue surceaseth in thee whiche riseth vpon the sorowe and compassion of leauing their children specially when they be young neede the asistance and counsel of their parentes being at those yeeres destitute of aduice subiect vnto iniuries many other casualties Sorow My children whom I wished hoped should haue liued after me are gone before me Reason Then hast thou some to whom thou art desirous to goe from whom thou art not willing to depart which is no smal comfort vnto thee Sorowe Bitter death constraineth me to dye without chyldren Reason If thou thinke this to be so miserable a matter what cause hast thou either to die now or heretofore to haue liued without children seeing there is such choise of young Gentlemen towardly youthes among whom thou maiest choose and adopt thee sonnes who perhaps wyl be more louing and obedient vnto thee then thine owne natural children descended of thy flesh blood for they come vnto thee by chaunce but these are elected out of many by exquisite iudgment The other were thy children before thou knewest them but these thou knewest chosest and louedst before thou madest them thy children And therefore the one sort of them wil wholy impute it to nature that they are thy children but the other to thy special good liking Whereby it hath hapned many times that the succession by adoption hath ben very fortunate vnto the heyres in which kind not only meane inheritances but also whole Empires haue ben committed in trust Thou knowest howe Iulius Caesar wanting issue adopted Augustus to be his sonne Augustus againe adopted Tyberius almost against his wyl And likewise afterward how Nerua adopted Vlpâ—us Traianus and he Elius Hadrianus be againe Antonius pius he likewise toke vnto him Marcus Aurelius to be his sonne which Marcus I would to God he had more happily adopted any other then vnluckely begotten his sonne Commodus commodious to none but discommodiouss to the whole world the only disgracing of so good a father one among a few of them that were no small shame reproch to the Romane Empire also a most apparent argument how much adoption is more fortunate then procreatioÌ„ For whereas the first princes had in order one after another raigned long time in happie
yeeres and there you appoynt the ende vnto whiche who so doth attayne theyr lyfe is but payne and trauayle vnlesse he aduaunce your hope a litle further who sayth The dayes of a mans lyfe are many tymes an hundred yeeres vnto which age how few do attayne we see but admit that it happened vnto al which happeneth but to fewe notwithstandyng I pray you howe muche is it Ioy. Very much truely For the lyfe of young men is more assured and farther of from olde age and so from death Reason Thou art deceiued for although there be nothing safe to a man notwithstandyng that is the most daungerous part of his lyfe whiche to muche carelesnesse maketh vnaduised There is nothyng neerer to other then death is to lyfe when they seeme to be farthest a sunder then are they neerest togeather alwayes the one passeth away and the other draweth nygh whyther soeuer ye flee away death is at hande and hangeth ouer your heades Ioy and Hope Wel at the leastwyse youth is now present and olde age is absent Reason Nothyng is more flytting then youth nothyng more deceyuable then olde age Youth stayeth not but in delightyng she slyppeth away olde age immediatly folowyng after softly in darkenesse and silence striketh men at vnwares and when she is thought to be farre of then standeth she at the doore Ioy. My age is in rysing Reason Thou trustest to a most deceitfull thing This rysing is a goyng downe this short lyfe this vnstable tyme stealeth away yea without makyng any noyse with the feete euen whyle we sleepe and make merie And O that this swiftnesse of tyme and shortnesse of lyfe were as well knowen in the beginning as it is in the ende whiche to those that enter seemeth infinite and nothyng when they goe out and are scarce so many minutes as they appeared to be hundredes of yeeres So then at length deceypt is knowen when it can not be auoyded whereby it commeth that many tymes counsell is geuen in vayne vnto those yeeres they are both vnbeleeuyng and vnskylfull disdainefull of anothers counsell and wantyng of their owne And therefore there is nothyng that discouereth the errours of youth although they be innumerable and greeuous and yet notwithstandyng hyd and vnknowen to those that committed them better then olde age doth and layeth them foorth before their eyes who sometyme dissembled them and winked at them Neither doo ye sooner perceyue what ye ought to be then ye be made that whiche ye woulde be and then ye can possibly be none other then ye be But yf there were any that coulde vnderstande these thynges in tyme or by hym selfe or beleeue when he is taught surely hym woulde I accompt a woorthy and happie youth among many thousandes he shoulde not passe his lyfe through so many difficulties whose onely course lyeth safe and straight through vertue Ioy. Myne age is nothyng spent Reason Howe is that vnspent whiche since the tyme it first beganne is euery day wasted and whyle it is geuen is also taken away by very small portions For Heauen turneth about with perpetuall motion minutes consume houres and houres the day That day thrusteth foorth another and that the next day folowyng and there is neuer any ceassyng So doo monethes passe away so yeeres and so dooth an whole age make hast and runne and as Cicero sayeth fleeth away And as Virgil sayth It neuer waggeth the swifte winges So lykewyse they that fare by Sea they are caried away in the shyppe and feele not howe and many tymes are at their viage ende before they be ware Ioy and Hope An age that beginneth is far from the ende Reason Within the space of a short lyfe nothyng is farre of Ioy and Hope But there is no part farther from the ende then is the beginnyng Reason None in deede but this shoulde be truely sayde yf all men lyued lyke space of time Howbeit euen the very fyrst age falleth sundrie wayes into death whereby it chaunceth many tymes that he that seemed farthest of is nearest his ende Ioy and Hope Truely I am of a most floorishing age Reason Although fewe do marke it yet there is some change wrought since we beganne to speake and in the drawyng foorth of euery sillable there is some part of lyfe passed away and some peece of transitorie flowre of youth decayed And I pray you what hath this deyntie and gallaunt young man more then that rough and riueled olde man besides this short and transitorie flowre whiche fadeth euery day wherein what shoulde be so pleasaunt and delectable I doo not finde since he knoweth that almost sooner then a man can speake it he shall hym selfe be suche an one as this olde man nowe is or els is mad yf he knowe it not vnlesse of twayne whiche are led togeto be put to death he is to be accompted the happier whiche is commaunded last to lay downe his necke vppon the blocke to be cut of who truely seemeth vnto me in a maner in the more miserable state for the deferryng of the death Howbeit the condition of these men and of the other of whom I spake before is not all one insomuche as this man may haue some entreatie or meanes made for hym in the meane whyle to escape his fellowes execution and to lyue Onely death can preuent a young man that he shall not lyue vnto olde age To be short there consisteth no great felicitie in a small processe of tyme and vnto loftie mindes there is nothyng that is short accompted acceptable Awake ye that sleepe it is now tyme open your dimme and slumbring eyes Accustome your selues at length to thynke vpon eternal thinges to loue them and to desire them and therewithal also to contemne transitorie thinges Learne to depart from them willingly which can not continue with you long and to forsake them in hart before by them ye be forsaken Ioy and Hope My yeers are stable and greene Reason They lye whiche say that there is some age I knowe not which stable There is nothyng more swift then tyme and tyme is the charret of al ages to carrie them away in And doest thou then imagine that it is permanent O vanitie there is nothyng durable for euen at this present thou art violently drawen away c. Of the goodly beautie of the body The seconde Dialogue Ioy. THE beautie of my body is goodly Reason It is no more permanent then the tyme that commeth with it with whiche also it flitteth away Stay the tyme if thou canst and so perhaps thou mayest stay beautie Ioy. The beautie of my body is singuler Reason Thou restest vpon a brittle foundation The body it selfe passeth away like a shadow and doest thou thinke that a transitorie accident of the body wyll continue Accidentes may perishe the subiect remaynyng but when the body perisheth they must needes decay And among all the qualities whiche passe away with this mortall body there is none swyfter then beautie whiche
the armes of his seruantes or vpon some other horse and carying his Physitions with hym he woulde goe visite his sicke horse twice or thrice euery day and sorowfully sighing woulde sit by hym and gently stroke him with his hand and comfort him with fayre speech To be short there was no kind of meanes by Physicke let passe vnassayed and nothing omitted that might relieue his sicke freend Perhaps posteritie wil cal this a tale howbeit it is true and knowen among a great people Thus this noble gentleman was as carefull for the good health of his horse as for his owne and lamented for his death as he had been his sonne Ioy. I delight to ride Reason It is profitable somtime and also an helpe to swiftnesse and a remedy for weerinesse and a token of nobilitie to ride vpon a goodly courser and to excel al theresidue not only by the head but also by the shoulders and to be higher then the other by the whole body Contrariwise a fierce horse is most troublesome many times hurtful to his maister If thou wouldest goe a iourney on foote thou hast no power nor space to rest thee therfore thou chosest rather to exchang the dustines on foote for the daunger on horsebacke And for this cause horses haue deliuered many from the middes of death and brought sundry also into extremitie of destruction or hurt them with falles or tumbled vpon them with their bodyes and so killed them Yea horses are not the least seede of warre Take away horses thou shalt take away forren inuasions of countreis and the greatest part of warlike destruction That as in natural Philosophie the question is mooued of windes and of Iulius Caesar in histories whether it were better the winde should blowe or not or that Caesar were borne or not The like question may also be demaunded concerning horses there are so many contrarie reasons on the contrary side And it was not without cause that Thessalia which first founde out the vse of horses and tamed them first coyned money of siluer and gold and first assayed to goe vpon the Sea in a shyp seemed to be the store house of Mars and for that also not once onely after so many hundred yeeres it was wette with plentie of valient blood Ioy. How much thinkest thou doth our poet delight me where he describeth the maners spirite and courage of a noble horse Reason And doeth not the saying of the Hebrue prophete make thee afrayd where he sayth At thy rebuke O God of Iacob haue they fallen asleepe that got vpon their horses Examine euery poinct not only that pleasant but also this rough saying Of hunting and hauking The .xxxii. Dialogue IOY BVT I am delighted in Dogges Reason Now I vnderstande the delight of a beardles youth who as Horace sayth Delighteth in horses and dogges and the pleasant greene feeldes But beware thou be not that which foloweth Apt to be plucked to vice and sharpe to them that tell thee thy fault A flowe prouider for profite lauishe of money proud couetous and redy to forsake that which thou hast loued I feare mee thou art suche an one since thou settest thy pleasure vpon such transitorie delightes Ioy. I am delighted with dogges and foules Reason This peece of madnesse was wantyng is it not sufficient for thee to gadde and wander abroade but meanest thou to flye also Ioy. Thou mockest me for I meane not to flye but I am delighted in the foules that flye Reason But they wyll flye away and contemne thy pleasure and not knowe thee and vnthankfully be deafe when thou callest them What shouldest thou do that wantest feathers seeyng thy pleasure is winged Imagine that they returned the taking of them would be hurtfull thou wouldest cal againe and forgetting thy more profitable affaires loose thy time Agayne looking backe and castyng thine eyes vp to the cloudes after thy foolyshe byrde perhappes thou wilt weepe as though there were no necessarie woorke to be doone in this lyfe by reason of the pleasure whiche you fynde by your idlenesse and slouth ye glorie in that ye are slaues to your byrdes Nature hath geuen you two handes with the one ye rule the bird the other you trouble with crooked talentes So being idle on al sides being come lame with desire to flie to the end ye may not seme to do any thing with great noyse ye ryse before day and sodeinly run out of the doores as though the enimies were at the threshold all the day after ye run about the pondes and waters wooddes and bushes filling the ayre with sundry outcries and euil fauoured houlinges And in this pastime ye spende your breath whiche is meete for some greater matter with whiche spirite your forefathers made their enimies afearde in battayle and in peace mainteyned iustice At nyght when ye come home as though ye had atchiued some great enterprice yet syt within doores declaryng howe well that byrde flue and how well this byrde hath endued his meate how many feathers of the trayne and how many of the winges are remaning or lost Is not this all your skyll is not this your loue is not this your felicitie and is not this al whiche ye requite to God your Creatour to your countrey that bredde you to your parentes that be gate you to your freendes that loue you to wit your Spathaukes or your Hernshawes skimming in the ayre and some peece of a torne foule and swet and dust and your nyghtly storie of your lost day Vnto this ye be alwayes valient and vnweeried and vnto earnest businesse weake and daintie Liuies stories and Tullies orations and the holy Scriptures ye condenme as ouerlong whereof ye may be ashamed Who can heare this with vnoffended eares Who wyll beare with you being borne to other thinges to lyue in these delites yf ye lyue in these doynges Ioy. I take pleasure in Spanyels and Haukes Reason We haue heard of many princes and noble men whereof some were wont to take delight in horses and many in dogges insomuche that Adrian the Emperour erected monumentes not for horses only as those of whom we made mention before but for dogges also And moreouer buylded a citie in the same place where in prosperous hunting he had slayne a shee Beare with his owne hand vsed many tyme to kyl a Lion but neuer that he made any tombe for a byrde or foule For which cause some say that Virgil mocked Marcillus that was nephue to Augustus in that he seemed to take pleasure in them when he was a young man. Ioy. I delight muche in huntyng Reason This exercise was peculiar sometime to the Latines but nowe to the Frenchmen whiche experience teacheth to be true and wherof some of theyr owne writers do boast Wherefore to speake nothyng of those kinges whose whole lyfe was perpetual huntyng the chiefest kyng of them all whensoeuer he had any rest from battayle excercysyng hym selfe in dayly huntyng at length when
And therefore Pompeius the great who deuised not only Weares but Empires also not improperly termed this Lucullus the Romane Xerxes that is to say a dygger away of hilles What shal I say of others The first that made Weares for Lampreis was one Curus I know not what he was for notwithstandyng al his Lampreys he is scarse yet knowen whereof he had such plentie that with sixe thousande of them he furnished Iulius Caesars triumphant supper This man had also his imitatours namely Hortentius the oratour of whom we spake before a man that neuer failed in folowyng an example of wantonnes and therefore it falleth out many tymes that your learnyng nothing abateth your madnesse but it neuer bringeth any thyng that a man may woonder at whylest they that haue attayned vnto learnyng thynke that it is lawful for them to doo euery thyng and arrogate muche vnto them selues whiche they durst not if they had not learnyng It is reported therefore that this man had a Weare at the shore of the Baiane coast whereas among other fyshes whiche he had he loued so dearely one certayne Lamprey that he mourned for him when he was dead Beholde a woorthy loue and meete to prouoke so graue a man to teares He that as it is read neyther bewayled the ciuil warres of his tyme nor the proscriptions and slaughter of the Citizens neyther yet woulde haue lamented the ouerthrowe at Cannas yf it had happened in his tyme dyd he weepe for the death of a Lamprey This lightnesse is so great that that whiche is of later dayes must needes be pardoned The age and sexe of Antonia maketh her follie more excusable who is reported not to haue wept for her Lamprey but while he was liuyng to haue decked him foorth with ringes and iewels of golde insomuche that the strangenesse of the sight caused many folkes to repaire to Paulos â–ª for that was the name of the vyllage lying in the Baiane confines There were also Weares of Wylkes and Perewincles and other vanities concernyng fyshes and specially the Pyke of Tibur whiche was taken betweene the two brydges But I haue spoken yenough of other mens errours in whiche the moe thou seest enwrapped the more diligent take thou heede least thou be snared in the lyke neyther doo I nowe forbydde thee the vse of fyshes but only the ouer muche care of vyle and vnnoble thynges Of Cages of byrdes and of speaking and singing byrdes The .lxiiii. Dialogue IOY I Haue shut vp sundry byrdes in a Cage Reason I leaue nowe to woonder at the prysons for fyshes There be some also prouided for byrdes whose dwellyng is the open ayre a more large and wyde countrey Gluttonie hath founde out huntyng it hath founde out fyshing it hath founde out haukyng and it is not sufficient to take them whom nature created free but they be also kept in prysons How muche more seemely and honest were it to enforce the belly to be contented with meates that may be easily gotten and to leaue the wylde beastes to the wooddes and the fyshes to the Sea and the foules to the ayre then to bestowe so much trauel vpon them that yf it were bestowed to catch vertues in this tyme by good studie hauing obteyned them for they wyl not flie away ye might haue planted them within the closet of your myndes from whence they could neyther escape away nor be purloyned Ioy. I haue fylled my Cage with byrdes Reason A thyng nothyng at al necessary and no lesse harde to be founde then difficult to be preserued auncient notwithstandyng whiche aboue a thousand and foure hundred yeeres since one Lelius surnamed Strabo fyrst deuised not that Lelius that was counted the wyse who yf he had founde out byrd cages had lost the tytle of wysedome There be some inuentions that seeme to be profitable and pleasant whiche notwithstandyng become not noble wyttes they that fyrst found out fyshpondes and hyrde Cages what other thyng dyd they respect then theyr bellyes whiche is farre from those that are studious in vertue Ioy. I haue fat Chrushes and Turtle dooâ—â—s in my Cage Reason But not slowe tormentours since thyne appetite beyng prouoked by so many enticements requireth the punyshment of a sicke stomacke Hast thou not hearde the saying of the Satyrical Poet This notwithstanding is a present Punishment when thou puttest of thy clothes being swelling full and cariest thy vndigested Peacocke with thee into the baine He speaketh there of a Peacocke It is a beautiful a famous foule but it is not he alone that pincheth the ouergreedfe panche The delyght of thy belly is but of short tast which in short tyme wil also turne to loathyng vnlesse it be moderated Rawnesse that is not easily disgested is a sicknesse that bryngeth long payne and many tymes death Goe thy wayes nowe and bragge of thy fat Thrushes Turtledooues Ioy. I haue speaking Choughes and Pyes Parrats Reason The Emperour Augustus takyng pleasure in the lyke gaue great summes of money for them that saluted hym conquerous and trimphant Caesar And when afterward there were many other such presented vnto him answered that he had yenough such saluters at home alredy laying there a measure to that vanitie sauyng that the last Crowe with his strange pastyme caused hym selfe to be bought more deare thou were the residue These histories are read in the Saturnalia But what in the naturall Historie of our neighbour of Verona This Crowe that was so docible vsyng to flie out of the Coblers shop where he was most diligently fedde and commyng abrode into the open streete woulde salute Tiberius Caesar and Drusus and Germanicus by name and the whole people of Rome with such admiration and loue of them all that when as a neighbour mooued eyther with enuie or anger had killed hym with great sorowe and griefe of almen the killer was first driuen out of those quarters and afterward stayne by the people and the Crowe with diligent exequies and solemne funeral was taken vp and buried O alwayes vnspeakable madnesse of the people In that citie there was a Crow wept for and buryed and he that kylled him beyng a Citizen of Rome was put to death in whiche Citie neyther Africane the greater had a Sepulchre neyther the lesse a reuenger for that on Gods name this Crowe as I haue sayde saluted the people but these men of whom I speake dyd not salute but procured safetie and glory to the people Thus the speach of Crowes is more acceptable then the vertue of valiant men Let any man nowe deny that it is safe for hym to agree to the peoples iudgement although who so is an vpryght considerer of thinges he wyl not marueyle at the publique contempt wherein worthy men are had since of these woonderers at Crowes and other pratling byrdes diuine voyces and heauenly Oracles are despised Ioy. I haue a faire Parrat Reason This bird forsooth aboue al the residue is notable for his golden chayne vnlesse
vse it to vse it I say not as Maharbal gaue counsayle to Hanibal but as Hanno that was a better man gaue counsayle to his Common wealth For truely Peace is the best vse and fruite of victorie neyther are iust warres taken in hande for any other ende then for peace Ioy. Victorie is on my syde Reason Beware she flee not away for she hath winges Of the death of an Enimie The Ciiii. Dialogue IOY I AM glad of myne Enimies death Reason To hope for any thing by the death of an enimie and to reioyce in any mans death perhaps is permitted to hym that is immortal yf any suche may be founde but to hope for the death of another man whiche may fyrst happen to thy selfe or to reioyce that that is befallen to thyne Enimie whiche needes must happen to thy selfe is a foolyshe hope and a vayne ioy Ioy. I reioyce in myne Enimies death Reason Some other ere it be long wyll reioyce in thine Ioy. I am glad that mine Enimie is dead Reason If ye were mindful of your owne estate one man would neuer reioyce in the death of another When I pray thee was it euer seene that when two went togeather to execution the one conceiued any pleasure in the others death knowing that himselfe must goe to the same pot but doth not rather lament beholding his owne death in his fellowe Ioy. I haue conceyued delyght in mine Enimies death Reason How often thinkest thou haue mens deathes that haue been desired greeued the desirers and they haue in vayne begun to wishe for their liues who before wyshed not in vayne for their deathes when as they begin once to vnderstand that they haue wished to their owne destructioÌ„ But your affections are hastie Whatsoeuer ye wishe to haue ye wish it vehemently as it is written Iulius Caesar sayde of Marcus Brutus Yea rather ye wyshe it too muche and your earnest desyre can suffer no tariaunce And therefore whatsoeuer ye woulde haue ye wyll haue it presently whereof proceede not onely vngodly wyshes but also poysonynges and murthers and whatsoeuer one man can imagine against another beyng the most hurtfull creature towarde his owne kinde â–ª Ye wysh for many thynges whiche yf ye tooke aduise of reason ye would stand in feare of when they are accomplished and the varieue of your wishes is an argument of your euyl choyce neyther doeth your rashnesse returne to that whiche is right vntyll your â—â—olythe affections are checked with haplesse successe Ioy. I am glad of mine enimies death Reason If thine enimie were but of smal fame and reputation to reioyce in his death is shameful and to be sorie superfluous but yf he were noble and famous it is meete and decent to be sorie though not for the man yet for vertues sake whiche euery day hath fewer places to harbour in Sodyd Metellus Macedonicus bewayle the death of the younger Scipio Africane and Caesar the death of Pompeâ— and Alexander the death of Darius Ioy. I recioyce in the death of my Foe Reason How canst thou reioyce in his death whom thou art commaunded to loue not as thine enimie but as thy neighboure being the worke of the same woorkeman Ioy. I am gladde of myne enimies death Reason Perhaps thou hearest not or regardest not the most holsome and knowen counsel of the Wyse man Reioyce not sayth he in the death of thine enimie knowyng that we shall all dye And wyl we notwithstandyng be glad Doubtlesse this counsayle or precept is holsome Of hope of Peace The Cv. Dialogue HOPE I Hope for Peace Reason It is better to keepe peace then to hope for it It is the part of a foole to neglect thynges certayne and to embrace doubtfull hope Hope I hope for peace Reason Thou shouldest haue kept her more narrowly neyther suffered her to depart whom thou now hopest for What yf thine impatience haue brought thee vnto this Hope that thou myghtest choose to be vexed with hoping for that whiche thou myghtest haue vsed by enioying Hope I hope for peace Reason Hope of peace hath destroyed many and calamitie vnlooked for followyng hoped peace hath ouercome and oppressed the vnskilfull sleepy whom it could not haue harmed if it had found expert Hope I hope for peace Reason Why doest thou hope so long for that whiche is in thy hand to attayne vnto It is seldome seene but they do finde peace that are in deede willing effectually to seeke it but those to whom the name of peace is sweete peace it selfe is sowre and therefore they that seeke for peace withstand peace Peace hath foure enimies dwelling among you to wit couetousnesse enuie anger pride these if you sende away into euerlasting exile your peace shal be euerlasting Hope I am in assured hope of peace Reason Betweene hope of peace peace it selfe many thinges do happen a light worde and a smal gesture hath many times disturbed compounded peace yea the very treaties and parlees of peace are often broken of by dent of swoord and hope of peace sharpneth the mindes and aggrauateth warres euen so may a man tearme the treatie of friendship which commeth to none effect the whetstone and sharpning of hatred Hope There is talke of peace there shal be peace Reason There is often talke of peace to no purpose many times dangerously haue the captaines of the Frenchmen and Carthagiens entreated of peace when as Camillus surprised the one and Scipio the other Hope After warre is ended peace shal be confirmed Reason How muche better were it that it were confirmed before the beginning of war how many mischiefes and losse of mens liues might be by seasonable peace preuented But you like wilful and truently children can neuer learne wisedome without whipping In peace ye seeke after warre and in warre ye seeke after peace and neuer begin to know or loue peace but when ye are afflicted with warre then as ye lament that ye haue lost peace so anon when it is restored vnto you with like lightnesse ye contemne it vntyll that hauing lost it once or twice ye are taught not to contemne your owne commodities and to couet your owne harmes finally not to be mad nor foolysh whereof ye may be ashamed before ye haue obtayned it Ye must haue one thing tolde you often and it suffiseth not to haue heard but ye must often see and trye I wyll speake more playnely ye must be beaten often before you can learne any thing Hope Peace wil follow warre Reason It had ben better it had gone before and stopped the course of warre there is no such madnesse as in hope of remedy willingly to receyue a wounde Formentations are helpes and not causes of woundes It is naturall for hym that is sicke to wyshe for health but for one that is whole to wysh for sicknes in hope of health is madnesse Hope We shal haue peace Reason Peace many times procureth hurtful alterations to Cities Countreis which although of
also cheastes chambers and storehouses And therefore I will nowe begin to beleeue that in the Pisane cōfines there is a castle which vnto them that saile vpon the sea seemeth to be not farre of that is become desolate by meanes of swarmes and aboundance of Emotes The like hereof also is reported to haue happened in the Vincentine confines And I am of opinion that it may be true in anie of them both or in anie other place whatsoeuer it hath so hapned a late that they haue not onelie driuen me out of my countrie house but well nigh out of my house in the citie insomuch that I was faine to vse the meane of fire and lime and at last to runne away And now I verie well beleeue Apuleius where he saith that there was a man eaten by them although there want of honie Neither doe I denie but that I do wonder what should be the cause that some haue proposed the Emote to be the patterne of carefulnesse concerning which matter some haue made long discourses cōmending their sparingnes and industrie Wel then if all carefulnes bee commendable perhappes this were a meete example for theeues and not for such as are willing to liue vpon their own without doing iniurie to an other It is a carefull creature in deed no man can denie it but wicked but vniust liuing by rapine industrious in nothing but that which is euill seruing to no good vse but bringing manifold discommodities and wearisomues why therefore they haue proposed this example and why they haue commended this litle beast Againe I say I maruel especiallie when they might haue vsed the exāple of the Bee which is a most industrious and prouident beast a creature that hurteth none but is profitable vnto many succouring it selfe others by it owne natural art and most noble trauell What should I nowe speake of the hurtful plentie and ranck increase of branches leaues of trees against which the wakeful husbandman giueth his diligent attendance lieth in waite being armed with his sharpe nailes the hedge brusher with his crooked hooke what of the burres briars and the yeerely returne of plants rootes which minister perpetual matter of strife and toyle what of the furious rage of shewres of raine and heapes of snowe and biting of frostes and the sharpnesse and violence of yce and the suddein violence of flooddes the vncertein encreases of streames which many times shake whole regions great peoples but especially the hedges and fences of the husbandmen who among so many mischiefes can scarse passe forth this earthlie life wherein they are euermore bending downe to the ground And to say somewhat concerning the discommodities and toyles of the delicate rich sort who hath not endured the mightie conflictes of birdes Also the crying of owles and schritches and the bootlesse watching of dogges all night barking against the Moone and cattes making their meetings vpon the tyles toppes of houses and the quiet silence disturbed with horrible outcries and troubling men with their hellishe clamour and whatsoeuer else maketh anie grieuous noyse in the darke Wherevnto may be added the croaking of frogges and toades in the night and the lamenting and threatenings of the swallowes in the morning so that a mā would thinke that Itys and Tereus him selfe were present For as touching the quietnes of birdes by day the squeeking grasshoppers the arrogant crowes and braying asses doe disturbe it and the bleating of cattell and the bellowing of Oxen and the vnwitten cackling of hennes without surceasing who sell their small egges for a great price But aboue al things is either the crying of swine or the commō clamour and laughter of fooles than which foolish thing there is nothing more foolish as saieth Catullus and the singing and merimentes of drunkardes than which nothing is more grieuous and the complaintes of such as are at variance and the iangling and scoulding of olde wiues and sometime the battailles some time the lamentation of children and of weddings either their vnquiet feastes or their daunsings and the merrie mournings of wiues who by craft do seeme to lament the death of their husbands and the vnfeigned howlings of parentes at the decease of their children adde herevnto the thronging and noise of the court of iudgement the altercations of Marchants and such as buie and sell at one side the small regard on the other side the oathes of the sellers Adioine herevnto the sorrowful singing of the workmen to aswage their painfull trauel at the on side the vnpleasant Musick of such as beate toose wooll breake it smal with the teeth of the cardes on the other side the hollowe breathing of the smithes bellowes the sharpe sound of their hāmers whervnto may be added the winter night which with these trauels is deuided into equall partes so that there is no time free from vnquietnesse strife And to touche some deale the kinde of things insensible what hath the loadstone to do with iron or the diamond with the loadstone the cause of whose disagreement though it be secret yet is their disagreement manifest For the loadstone draweth iron but lay a Diamond by it and it will leaue to drawe or let go hold if it drewe before The vertue in them both is wonderfull either in that Nature hath giuen as it were hands and hooked nailes vnto an heauie and euilfauoured stone against a rough and stubburne mettal or whether she take them away vnto her selfe by meanes of the other stone that lyeth by which is not the end of the first strife but rather a newe strife Howbeit manie denie this last thing to be true and as for me hetherto I haue wanted occasion will to make experiment or proofe thereof and therefore I can affirme nothing But as for the first it is so well knowen that there is no neede to proue or auow it Howbeit hauing vndertaken a great work with a mightie courage in to short a time and to narrowe a space I doe nowe easilie perceiue that I carrie a greater desire than strength to the accomplishing therof Neither were it an easie matter for me or anie man else that should take this matter in hande sufficiently to discourse vpon euery point whereby it may appeare that al things cōsist by disagreement which whether they be great or small are verie wonderfull and strange although I haue not yet touched that which is greatest and to be accompted the most maruellous from the highest to the lowest of all Natures miracles but I will nowe touche it in fewe wordes The Echinus beeing but a small fishe of halfe a foote long stayeth a shippe bee it neuer so great when it is vnder sayle vppon the Sea or driuen foorth by oares being onelie able of all fisshes to quaile the force of the elementes and men by none other meanes than by cleauing to the timber of the shippe by none endeuour or strength in the worlde but
vnchaungeable necessitie of the law of your nature that you can neuer be other then suche as muste oye whiche necessitie muste continually remayne with you but you dying euery day turne away your senses from the thynges that are present and your mynde from the ende that wyll ensue This is a common mischiefe whiche what is it other then wyllyngly to shut your eyes that they beholde not the beames of the Sunne as though it were hurtful aswel to the lyght as it is to the eyes not to beholde it and that that were as euident whiche you see not and that as true whiche you knowe not Who is so blynde that seeth not this or so blockyshe that vnderstandeth it not The infyrmitie of the senses or vnderstanding withdraweth nothyng at all from the trueth of thinges As for you yee are neyther weake nor dull but wherein you cannot be excused egregius dissemblers and very wyse to deceyue your selues who with so great diligence learne vnprofitable thynges and endeuour to be ignorant of necessarie matters but all in vayne for they steale vpon you though your eyes be shut and inuade your myndes that are desyrous to be ignorant and disquiet your memories that are wyllyng to forget and many thynges aryse dayly in the lyfe of man whiche constrayne you to thynke vppon them when you woulde not and whiche doo awake your dissimulations eyther by your priuate or forreigne argumentes but I confesse that death only at full confuteth all the follies of mortall creatures Sorowe I knewe that my brother was mortall and shoulde dye neuerthelesse I weepe for his death Reason The greater part of humane actions is superfluous Why weepest thou for his death What doeth this weepyng auayle hym or thy selfe or any other Admit death be euyll whiche the learned denye truely no man wyl denie but that weepyng is in vayne for that whiche cannot be recouered And veryly yf any thyng myght be tearmed wretched besyde the vyce of the mynde yf there be any thyng in all the worlde to be wept for it ought rather be lamented whyle it is commyng at hande then when it is past whiche that Kyng conceyned ryght well of whom I spake not long before Sorowe I am grieued for the death of my good brother Reason There is no affection more tender then a fathers and therefore that whiche is sayde of the death of a sonne applie it thou to the death of thy brother and that whiche may be sayde of them both is proficable in the death of a mans friende whiche losse although it be matcht with the greatest it muste be abydden as of al other thynges for all suche thynges as appeare vnto vs grieuous are to be suffered by one and lyke courage of mynde although a man woulde thynke that they woulde quite oppresse hym Sorowe I haue lost a moste louyng brother Reason It had been woorse yf thou hadst loste a most hatefull brother For the loue of the one and the remembraunce of the other is very pleasant Sorowe I haue loste a companion most pleasaunt vnto me euen from his tender youth I am nowe left aloue Reason He is not a lone with whom vertue and honestie doo remayne betweene whiche twayne death hath not forbydden the Image of thy brother to be fastened harde vnto thy hart-stringes so neyther thy brother is lost nor thou alone Of the death of a freende The Lij Dialogue SOROWE I Haue lost a freende Reason If thou hast loued vertue in thy freende as thou oughtest truely she is not loste nor dead and therefore it is sayde that true freend shyppe is immortal for that it is neuer broken eyther by the fallyng out of freendes or els by death it selfe and thus vertue ouercommeth discorde and all vyce but she her selfe is neuer ouercome by any thyng Sorowe I haue lost a freende Reason All other thinges when thou hast lost them thou hast them not but when thou thynkest thou hast lost thy freendes and thy best beloued then hast thou them most assuredly For thynges whiche are present be delicate I wyll not say weerysome yea and many tymes arrogant and offended with very small trifles but the remembrance of freendes is pleasant and sweete hauyng in it nothyng that is bytter or contrary to delyght Sorow I haue lost a very good freende by death Reason If thou complayne of the losse of commodities thou makest accounte of profite and not of freendshyp If thou complayne of thy dayly conuersation with hym remember howe short tyme freendes remayne togeather and howe muche tyme we spende in cares howe muche in syckenesse howe muche in sleepe and pleasure howe muche is spent in entercourse with straungers how many heapes of cares Finally what businesse what studies what leasure and what troubles sometymes of another mans and sometymes of a mans owne and also the continuall and inuincible necessitie of manyfolde matters from whiche no prosperitie is exempt doo withdrawe some thyng from our desired conuersation how many seldome meetynges howe short and carefull abydynges howe sorowfull departynges howe late returnynges what stayes what impedimentes what deceiptes With this and suche lyke difficulties of lyfe fetters of freendshyp whiche may easily be brought into a mans remembrance thou mayst vnderstande howe great a matter it is whiche death hath taken from thee For if thou may this alone in freendshyp which is the only perpetuall and stable foundation thereof truely death could there take nothing away Thou hast hearde in Marcus Tullie of Lelius comforting him selfe howe his freende Scipio lyueth yet to him how fresh he is in his minde that neyther the fame nor the vertue of his freend any time dieth What forbiddeth but that thy freend Scipio liueth now vnto thee But you because ye cannot be Scipioes or Lelies ye be not men neyther for that ye cannot atteyne to the highest ye dispaire of the meane or contemne it as though as in Poetrie so in vertue neither men nor the gods could aspire vnto a mediocritie Sorowe Death hath taken away my friende from me Reason Death is able to take away thy friendes body but as for friendshyp and friend he is not able For they are of the kynde of thinges that are not subiect to death nor fortune but to vertue the whiche among humane thynges is free only is able to geue freedome vnto whatsoeuer is subiect vnto her and as for a friende he should not be of so great price yf he coulde be so easily lost Sorowe I haue remayned without a friende Reason If thou do ryghtly honour friendshyp thou shalt neuer lacke olde friendes nor be destitute of newe yea suche is the opinion hereof that it wyl purchase thee friendes of thyne enimies There was nothyng that more recōciled Augustus the Emperour vnto Herode then for that he professed that he was moste friendly affected vnto Augustus enimie and that by meanes of hym he hated Augustus most extreamely for whiche cause Augustus iudged hym woorthy of
as soone as he is borne he weepeth by and by and laugheth not before fourtie dayes are expired that thing especially this wise creature doth proue which is skylful of thynges to come not the end whiche I accompt happie through the gouernance of vertue but rather difficult for that he is entred into trauel and the garboyle of present paynes To conclude whatsoeuer strength is in all other creatures whatsoeuer swiftnesse whatsoeuer oportunitie whatsoeuer commoditie it wholly serueth to the vse of man He bringeth the wilde headed Oxen to the yoke forceth the fierce Horse to be bridled The Beares that are to be feared for their clawes Boares for their tuskes and Hartes for their hornes he hath made them to garnyshe mans Table The Linx the Foxe and an infinite number moe creatures of that sort because they were not to be eaten he hath reserued for the vse of their skins and hide He searcheth the seas with nettes the wooddes with Dogges and the skies with foules and with whom hath man nothing to doo He hath taught such beastes to vnderstand mans voyce to be obedient vnto hym Thus of euery naturall thyng there is some commodity gotten Thou hast not the strength of an Oxe yet thou makest hym to drawe Thou hast not the swyftnesse of an Horse and yet thou makest hym runne Thou canst not flye so well as a Gosehauke and yet thou makest hym flye for thee Thou art not so bygge as an Elephant or a Camell yet thou makest the one of them to beare a Turret and the other a burden Thou hast not the skynne of a Bucke nor the pelt of a Lambe nor the case of a Foxe yet these haue them for thee Is this answeare then of a certayne Romane Captaine improper vnto them that say you are destitute of these thynges to witte That a man would not haue these thinges but had rather gouerne them that haue them And thus muche haue I spoken breefely partly like a Philosopher and partly like a Catholike Touching the greefe of the minde for so the Philosophers doo tearme it the better to expell it and purchase tranquilitie thereunto it auayleth to knowe what Tullie hath disputed of the fyrst in his disputations vppon the thyrde daye in his Tusculans and of the seconde Seneca in his booke whiche he wrote of the tranquilitie of the minde For whilest I make haste vnto other matters and drawe towardes an ende I shall not haue tyme to comprehende all thynges that I woulde For the present it is sufficient that I haue bounde vp the wounde and shewed thee the Phisitions of the minde whose helpe thou mayest vse yf these thynges be not sufficient Nowe as touchyng those three thynges whereof thou complaynedst laste I haue not thought them woorthie the answearyng for as muche as of the roughnesse of Fortune wherein the greater part of this our seconde booke of talke hath been and shal be spent both the very shortnesse thereof ought to mollifie and diminishe the sharpenesse it selfe and nature also doth appoynt an vncertayne ende of lyfe that it may seeme alwayes to be at hande or not verie farre of Of the Toothache The XCiiij Dialogue SOROWE I Am tormented with the Toothach Reason Thou mayst see what trust there is to thy intrayles when as thy bones doo fayle thee Sorowe My teeth beginne to be loose Reason What hope is there in the softe since that thy harde and strong limmes doo quaile Sorowe I am sicke in my teethe Reason Man is a feeble and frayle creature in whom suche thynges as seemed to be most strong are weake Sorow I am troubled with a great payne in my teeth Reason And those thynges whiche are appoynted for the ornament and cheefe strength of the mouth thou seest them to be turned into a cause of greefe that thou mayest perceyue howe long the conioynyng of this mortall frame wyll remayne Sorowe I haue nowe loste a toothe or twayne Reason Now mayest thou then consyder howe muche thou art bounde vnto GOD for so many great good gyftes since to lacke the fewest or the least thereof thou wouldest thynke it a great greefe and a lamentable losse a right woorthy punishment for thine ingratiude A seruant that hath refused his maisters present lyberalitie when the tyme is once past he is sorowful and that whiche he would not perceyue for his gayne it is meete he vnderstand to his losse Sorowe I am quite vnarmed of my teeth Reason Beyng nowe vnarmed thou shalt wrestle with pleasure thou shalt eate lesse thou shalt laugh lesse thou shalt byte more bluntly at an other mans good name The closure of the teeth beyng broken wyl cause thee to brydle thy tongue being redy to speake And if chastitie cause not thy olde wanton affection to restrayne from vnlawful kisses then let shame restrayne it Sorowe Nowe hath olde age broken my teeth Reason She hath vsed her libertie geue now thankes vnto nature who hath suffered thee to vse that her gift tyl thou were olde for that she taketh it away many tymes from them that are young as from one amongst you of late dayes the myghtiest of al kynges who euen in his lustye youthful yeeres lacked almost al his teeth but though he suffred this great infirmitie of youth yet afterward as he reported hym selfe he was comforted with a notable sharpenesse of sight in his olde age and also whereof he maketh no mencion with a wonderful quickenesse of wyt and courage whiche is a profitable example vnto al men that are affected with any discommoditie eyther of nature or age that they lament not al thynges or terme euery slackenesse of gods lyberalitie an iniury but aswage the greefe of benefites lost with them that art saued sharpe thynges with the gentle sower with the sweete Sorowe Olde age hath taken away my teeth Reason If age should not take them away death would Looke into the graues ful of dead bones where thou shalt see teeth sticking in drye rotten skulles whiche at the first do shewe terrible pale gryn fearefully but yf thou plucke them a litle thou shalt finde them loose and easie to fal out and in this case neyther the number nor the strength nor comlinesse of them auayleth any whit at al. We reade that the daughter of Mithridates king of Pontus had double rowes of teeth aboue beneath Prusias sonne to the king of Bithinia in steede of the rowe of his vpper teeth had only one tooth that is to say one bone that was matche with his neither teeth reachyng from the one side of his iawe vnto the other which strange thing was neither vncomly nor vnprofitable But Zenobia the queene of the East amongst al other commendations of her beautie is commended exceedingly for the surpassing comlinesse of her teeth for that when she eyther spake or laughed it seemed that her mouth was ful rather of bright pearles then of white teeth But yf thou searche nowe the graues of these also thou shalt