escape the effect of thy misfortune the more those things please thée the more thou displeasest God and the greater pride thou takest in sinne the greater paine thou heapest to thy soule Examine thine own conscience and sée whether thou hast done as is required if thou haue thancke the Lorde and praye for encrease of grace if not desire God to giue thée a willyng minde to attâ—yne fayth and constancie to continue to the ende Euphues to Ferardo I Salute thée in the Lord c. Although I was not so wittie to follow thy graue aduice when I first knew thée yet doe I not lacke grace to giue thée thankes since I tryed thée And if I were as able to perswade thee to patience as thou wert desirous to exhort me to pietie or as wise to comfort thee in thine age as thou willyng to instruct me in my youthe thou shouldest nowe with lesse griefe endure thy late losse and with little care leade thy aged lyfe thou wéepest for the deathe of thy daughter I laugh at the folly of the father for greater vanitie is there in the minde of the mourner then bitternesse in the deathe of the deceased but she was amyable but yet sinful but she was young might haue lyued but she was mortall and must haue dyed I but hir youth made thée often merry I but thine age should once make thée wise I but hir gréene yeres wer vnfit for death I but thy hoary haires shoulde dispise lyfe Knowest thou not Ferardo that lyfe is the gifte of God deathe the due of nature as we receiue the one for a benefitte so must we abide the other of necessitie Wisemen haue found that by learning which olde men should know by experience that in lyfe there is nothing swéet in death nothing sowre The Philosophers accompted it the chiefest felycitie neuer to be borne the second soone to die And what hath death in it so hard that we should take it so heauily is it strange to sée the cutte off which by nature is made to be cut or that melten which is fit to be melted or that burnt which is apt to be burnt or man to passe that is borne to perish But thou grauntest that she shold haue dyed yet art thou grieued that she is dead Is the death y better if the lyfe be longer no truly For as neither he that singeth most or praieth longest or ruleth the sterne oftenest but he that doth it best deserueth greatest prayse so he not that hath most yeres but many vertues nor he that hath grayest haires but greatest goodnes lyueth longest The chiefe beautie of lyfe consisteth not in the numbring of many dayes but in the vsing of vertuous doings Amongst plants those be best esteemed that in shortest time bringe forth much frute Be not the fairest flowers gathered when they be freshest the youngest beasts killed for sacrifice bicause they be finest The measure of lyfe is not length but honestie neyther do we enter into lyfe to the ende we should set downe the day of our death but therefore do we lyue that we may obey him that made vs and be willyng to dye when he shal call vs But I wil aske thée this question whether thou wayle the losse of thy daughter for thine owne sake or hirs if for thine owne sake bicause thou didst hope in thine age to recouer coÌ„fort then is thy loue to hir but for thy commoditie and therein thou art but an vnkinde father if for hirs then dost thou mistrust hir saluation and therein thou shewest thy vnconstant fayth Thou shouldst not wéepe that she hath runne fast but that thou hast gone so slowe neyther ought it to grieue thée that she is gone to hir home with a few yeares but that thou art to goe with manye But why goe I about to vse a longe processe to a little purpose The budde is blasted as soone as the blowne Rose the winde shaketh off the blossome as well as the fruite Death spareth neyther the golden locks nor the hoary head I meane not to make a treatise in the prayse of death but to note the necessitie neyther to write what ioyes they receiue that dye but to show what paynes they endure the lyue And thou which art euen in the wane of thy life whom nature hath nourished so long that now she beginneth to nod maist well know what griefes what laboures what paynes are in age yet wouldest thou be eyther young to endure many or elder to byde more But thou thinkest it honourable to goe to the graue with a gray head but I déeme it more glorious to be burted with an honest name Age sayste thou is the blessing of God yet the messenger of death Descende therfore into thine owne conscience consider the goodnesse that commeth by the ende the badnesse which was by the beginning take the death of thy daughter patiently and looke for thine owne spéedely so shalt thou perfourme both the office of an honestâ— man and the honour of an aged father and so farewell Euphues to Philautus Touching the deathe of Lucilla I Haue receiued thy letters and thou hast deceiued mine expectation for thou séemest to take more thought for the losse of an harlot then the life of an honest woman Thou writest that she was shamefull in hir trade and shamelesse in hir ende I beléeue thée it is no meruayle that she which lyuing practised sinne should dying be voyde of shame neyther coulde there be any great hope of repentaunce at the houre of death where there was no regard of honestie in time of lyfe She was stricken sodaynely béeinge troubled with no sickenesse It may be for it is commonly séene that a sinfull lyfe is rewarded with a soddayne deathe and a sweete beginning with a sowre ende Thou addest moreouer that she being in great credite with the states died in great beggerie in the stréetes certes it is an olde saying that who so lyueth in the courte shall dye in the strawe she hoped there by delyghtes to gayne money and by hir deserts purchased misery they that séeke to clyme by priuie sinne shall fall with open shame and they that couet to swimme in vice shall sinke in vanitie to their owne perilles Thou sayest that for beautie she was the Helen of Greece and I durst sweare that for beastlines she might be the Monster of Italy In my minde greater is the shame to be accompted an harlot then the praise to be estéemed amiable But where thou arte in the courte there is more regard of beautie then honestie and more are they lamented that dye viciously then they loued that liue vertuously for thou giuest as it were a sigh with all thy companions in the courtâ— séeme by thée to sound also that Lucilla béeing one of so great perfection in all partes of the body and so littlâ— pietie in the soule should be as it were snatched out of the iawes of so many young gentlemen
vnto the deathe tarry héere and watch and agayne father if it be possible lette this cuppe passe from mée Remember how he was crowned with thornes crucified with théeues scourged and hanged for thy saluation how hée swette water and bloude for thy remission how he endured euen the torments of the damned spirites for thy redemption how he ouercame death that thou shouldst not dye how he conquered the Diuell that thou mighâ—est not be damned When thou shalt record what he hath done to purchase thy fréedome how canst thou dreade bondage When thou shalt beholde the agonyes and anguish of minde that he suffered for thy sake how canst thou doubte of the release of thy soule When thy Sauiour shall be thy Iudge why shouldest thou tremble to heare of iudgement When thou hast a continuall Mediator with God the father howe canst thou distrust of his fauour Turne therefore vnto Christ with a willyng hearte a waylyng minde for thy offences who hath promised that at what time soeuer a sinner repenteth him of his sinnes he shal be forgiuen who â—alleth al those that are heauie laden that they might be refreshed who is the dore to them that knocke the waye to them that séeke the truthe the rocke the corner stone the fulnesse of time it is he that can will poure oyle into thy wounds Who absolued Marie Magdalene from hir sinnes but Christ Who forgaue the théefe his robbery and manslaughter but Christ Who made Mathew the Publycane and tollgatherer an Apostle and Preacher but Christ Who is that good shepehearde that fetcheth home the straye shéepe so louingly vppon his shoulders but Christ Who receiued home the lost sonne was it not Christ Who made of Saul a persecuter Paul an Apostle was it not Christ I passe ouer diuers other histories both of the olde and new Testament which do aboundantly declare what great comâ—orte the faithfull penitent sinners haue alwayes had in hearing the comfortable promises of Gods mercy Canst thou then Atheos distrust thy Christ who reioyceth at thy repentaunce Assure thy selfe that through his passion and bloudshedding death hath lost his sting the Diuill his victory and that the gates of hell shall not preuayle agaynst thée Lette not therefore the bloude of Christ be shed in vayne by thine obstinate and harde hearte Let this perswasion rest in thée that thou shalt receiue absolution fréely and then shalt thou féele thy soule euen as it were to hunger and thirst after rightuousnes Atheos Well Euphues séeing the Holy Ghost hath made thée the meane to make me a man for before the tast of the gospell I was worse then a beast I hope the same spirite wil also lyghten my conscience with his word confirme it to the ende in constancie that I may not only confesse my Christ faithfully but also preach him fréely that I may not only be a Minister of his word but also a Martir for it it be his pleasure O Euphues howe much am I bound to the goodneâ—â— almightie god which hath made me of an infidell a beléeuer of a castaway a Christian of an heathenly Pagan an heauenly Protestant O how comfortable is the féelyng tast of grace how ioyfull are the glad tidings of the Gospell the faithfull promises of saluation the frée redemption of the soule I will endeauour by all meanes to confute those damnable I know not by what names to terme them but blasphemers I am sure which if they be no more certeinly they can be no lesse I sée now the ods betwixt light darkenes faith frowardnes Christ Belial be thou Euphues a witnes of my faith séeing thou hast ben the instrument of my beliefe and I will pray that I shewe it in my lyfe As for thée I accompt my selfe so much in thy debt as I shal neuer be able with the losse of my life to reÌ„der thée thi due but god which rewardeth the zeale of al men wil I hope blesse thee I wil pray for thée Eu. O Atheos little is the debt thou owest me but great is the comfort that I haue receiued by thée Giue the praise to God whose goodnesse hath made thée a member of the mysticall body of Christe and not onely a brother with his sonne but also a coheriter with thy Sauiour There is no heart so hard no heathen so obstinate no miscreaunt or Infidell so impious that by grace is not made as supple as oyle as tractable as a shéepe as faithfull as any The Adamant though it be so harde that nothinge can bruse it yet if the warme bloude of a Goate be poured vpon it it bursteth euen so although the heart of the Atheist and vnbeléeuer be so hard that neither reward nor reuenge can mollyfie it so stout that no perswasion can breake it yet if the grace of God purchased by the bloude of Christe doe but once towch it it renteth in sunder and is enforced to acknowledge an omnipotent and euerlasting Iehoua Lette vs therefore both Atheos I will not nowe call thée but Theophilus fly vnto that Christ which hath through his mercy not our merits purchased for vs the enheritaunce of euerlasting lyfe ¶ Certeine Letters writ by Euphues to his friendes Euphues to Philautus IF the course of youth had any respect to the staffe of age or the liuing man any regarde to the dying moulde we would with greater â—are wheÌ„ we were young shunne those things which should griue vs when we be olde and wyth more seueritie direct the sequele of our lyfe for the feare of present death But such is eyther the vnhappinesse of mans condition or the vntowardnesse of his crolâ—ed nature or the wilfulnesse of his minde or the blindnesse of his heart that in youth he surfiteth wyth delightes preuenting age or if he liue continueth in dotage â—orgetting death It is a world to sée how in our flourishing tyme when we best may we be worst willing to thriue And howe in fadinge of our dayes when we moste shoulde we haue least desire to remember our ende Thou wilt muse Philaâ—tus to here Euphues to preach who of late had more minde to serue his Ladye then to worshippe his Lorde Ah Philantus thou art now a Courtier in Italy I a scholler in Athens and as hard it is for thée to follow good counsayle as for me to enforce thée séeing in thée there is little will to amend and in mée lesse authoritie to commaunde yet will I exhort thée as a friende I woulde I myght compell thée as a Father But I haue heard that it is peculier to an Italian to stande in hys owne conceite and to a courtier neuer to be controlde which causeth me to feare that in thée which I lament in others That is that either thou séeme to wise in thine owne opinion thinking scorne to be taught or to wilde in thine attempts in reiecting admonishmeÌ„t The one procéedeth of selfe loue and so thy name importeth the other of méere
lyghtnes make thée the bye word of the world O Lucilla Lucilla woulde thou wert lesse fayre or more fortunate eyther of lesse honour or greater honestie eyther better minded or soone buryed Shall thine olde father lyue to sée thée match with a younge foole shall my kinde hearte be rewarded with such vnkinde hate Ah Lucilla thou knowest not the care of a father nor the duetie of a childe and as farre art thou from pietie as I from crueltie Nature will not permitte me to disherit my daughter and yet it will suffer thée to dishonour thy father Affection causeth me to wishe thy life and shall it entice thée to procure my death It is mine onely comfort to sée thée florishe in thy youth and is it thine to see me fade in mine age to conclude I desire to liue to sée thee prosper thou to sée me perish But why cast I the effect of this vnnaturalnesse in thy téeth séeing I my selfe was the cause I made thée a wanton and thou hast made mée a foole I brought thee vpp lyke a cockney and thou hast handled mee lyke a cockescombe I speake it to mine owne shame I made more of thée then became a Father thou lesse of me then beséemed a childe And shal my louing care be cause of thy wicked crueltie yea yea I am not the first that hath bene too carefull nor the last that shall bée handled so vnkindely it is common to sée Fathers too fonde and children to frowarde Well Lucilla the teares which thou séest trickle downe my â—héekes and the droppes of bloude whiche thou canst not see that fall from my heart enforce me to make an ende of my talke and if thou haue any duetie of a childe or care of a friende or courtesie of a straunger or féelinge of a Christian or humanitie of a reasonable creature then release thy Father of gryefe and acquite thy selfe of vngratefulnesse otherwyse thou shalte but hasten my deathe and encrease thine owne defame which if thou doe the gaine is mine and the losse thine and both infinite Lucilla eyther so bewitched that shee coulde not relente or so wicked that shée woulde not yelde to hir Fathers request aunswered him on this manner Déere Father as you woulde haue mée to shewe the duetie of a childe so ought you to shewe the care of a parent and as the one standeth in obedience so the other is grounded vpon reason You would haue me as I owe duetie to you to leaue Curio and I desire you as you owe mée any loue that you suffer me to enioye him If you accuse mée of vnnaturalnesse in that I yelde not to your request I am also to condemne you of vnkindenesse in that you graunt not my petition You obiecte I knowe not what to Curio but it is the eye of the maister that fatteth the horse and the loue of the woman that maketh the man To giue reason for fancie were to weighe the fire and measure the winde If therefore my delight bée the caâ—se of your death I thincke my sorrowe would bée an occasion of your solace And if you be angrye bicause I am pleased certes I déeme you woulde be content if I were deceased which if it be so that my pleasure bréede your paine and mine annoy your ioye I may well say that you are an vnkinde Father and I an vnfortunate childe But good Father either content your selfe wyth my choice or let me stand to the maine chaunce otherwise the griefe will be mine and the fault yours and both vntollerable Ferardo séeinge his daughter to haue neither regarde of hir owne honour nor his requestâ— conceyued such an inwarde gryefe that in short space hée dyed leauing Lucilla the onely heire of his landes and Curio to possesse them but what ende came of hir séeing it is nothing incident to the history of Euphues it were superfluous to insert it and so incredible that all women would rather wonder at it thou beléeue it which euent being so strauÌ„ge I had rather leaue them in a muse what it should bee then in a maze in telling what it was Philautus hauing intelligence of Euphues his successe and the falshoode of Lucilla although he began to reioyce at the miserye of his fellowe yet séeinge hir ficklenesse coulde not but lamente hir follye and pittie his friendes misfortune Thinckinge that the lightnesse of Lucilla enticed Euphues to so great liking Euphues and Philaâ—tus hauing conference betwéene themselues castinge discourtesie in the téeth each of the other but chiefly noting disloyaltie in the demeanor of Lucilla after much talke renewed their olde friendship both abandoning Lucilla as most abhominable Philautus was earnest to haue Euphues â—arrie in Naples and Euphues desirous to haue Philautus to Athens but the one was so addicted to the court the other so wedded to the vniuersitie that each refused the offer of the other yet this they agréed betwéene themselues that though their bodyes were by distaunce of place seuered yet the coniunction of their mindes shoulde neither bée seperated by the length of time nor alienated by chaunge of soyle I for my parte sayde Euphues to confirme thys league gyue thée my hand and my heart and so likewise did Philautus and so shaking handes they bid each other farewell Euphues to the intent hée might bridell the ouerlashing affections of Philautus conuayed into his studye a certeyne pamphlet which hée termed a coolinge carde for Philautus yet generallye to be applyed to all louers which I haue inserted as followeth ¶ A cooling Carde for Philautus and all fond louers MUsing with my selfe béeing idle howe I myght be well unployed friend Philautus I could finde nothing either more fitte to continue our friendshippe or of greater force to dissolue our follye then to write a remedy for that which many iudge past cure for loue Philautus with that which I haue bene so tormented that I haue lost my time thou so troubled that thou hast forgot reason both so mangled with repulse inueigled by deceite and almost murthered by dysdain that I can neither remember our miseries without griefe nor redresse our mishaps without groanes How wantonly yea and howe willingly haue wee abused our golden time and mispent our gotten treasure How curious were we to please our Lady how carelesse to displease our Lord How deuoute in seruing our Goddesse howe desperate in forgetting our God Ah my Philautus if the wasting of our money might not dehort vs yet the wounding of our mindes should deterre vs if reason might nothing perswade vs to wisdome yet shame should prouoke vs to wyt If Lucilla reade this trifle she will straight proclaime Euphues for a traytour and seeing mée tourne my tippet will either shut mee out for a Wrangler or cast me off for a Wiredrawer either conuince mee of mallice in bewraying their sleightes or condemne me of mischiefe in arming younge men against fléetinge minions And what then Though Curio bée as hotte as a toast yet
Euphues is as colde as a clock though he be a Cocke of the game yet Euphues is content to bée crauen and crye creeke though Curio bée olde huddle and twange ipse hée yet Euphues had rather shrinke in the weeting then wast in the wearing I knowe Curio to be stéele to the backe standerd bearer in Venus campe sworne to the crewe true to the crowne knight marshall to Cupid and heire apparaunt to his kingdome But by that time that he hath eaten but one bushell of salt wyth Lucilla he shall taste tenne quarters of sorrow in his loue then shall he finde for euerye pynte of honnye a gallon of gall for euerye dramme of pleasure an ounce of payne for euery inche of mirth an ell of moane And yet Philautus if there be any man in despayre to obtayne his purpose or so obstinate in his opinion that hauing lost his fredome by solly would also lose his lyfe for loue lette him repaire hether and hée shall reape suche profite as will eyther quenche his flames or asswage his furye eyther cause him to renounce his Ladye as most pernicious or redéeme his lybertie as most pretious Come therefore to me all ye louers that haue bene deceiued by fancie the glasse of pestilence or deluded by woemen the gate to perdition be as earnest to séeke a medicine as you wer eager to runne into a mischiefe the earth bringeth forth as well Endyue to delyght the people as Hâ—mlocke to endaunger the patient as well the Rose to distill as the Nettle to sting as well the Bée to giue honny as the Spider to yéeld poyson If my lewde lyfe Gentlemen haue giuen you offence lette my good counsayle make amendes if by my folly any be alluâ—ed to lust let them by my repentaunce be drawne to continencie Achilles speare could as well heale as hurte the Scorpion though he sting yet hée stints the paine though the hearb Nerius poyson the Sheepe yet is a remedie to man agaynst poyson though I haue infected some by example yet I hope I shall comforte many by repentaunce Whatsoeuer I speake to men the same also I speke to women I meane not to runne with the Hare and holde with the Hounde to carrye fire in the one hande and water in the other neyther to flatter men as altogether faultlesse neyther to fall out with woemen as altogether guyltie for as I am not minded to picke a thancke with the one so am I not determined to picke a quarrell with the other if women be not peruerse they shall reape profite by remedye of pleasure If Phillis were now to take counsayle shée would not be so foolish to hang hir selfe neyther Dido so fonde to dye for Aeneas neyther Pasiphae so monstrous to loue a Bull nor Phedra so vnnaturall to be enamoured of hir sonne This is therefore to admonish all young Impes and nouises in loue not to blow the coales of fancie wyth desire but to quench them with disdayne When loue tickleth thee decline it lest it stiâ—fle thée rather fast then surfette rather starue then striue to excéede Though the beginning of loue bring delyght the ende bringeth destruction For as the first draught of wine doth comfort the stomacke the seconde inflame the lyuer the thirde fume into the heade so the first sippe of loue is pleasaunt the seconde perilous the thirde pestilent If thou perceiue thy selfe to be entised with their wanton glaunces or allured with their wicked guyles eyther enchauÌ„ted with their beautie or enamoured with their brauerie enter with thy selfe into this meditation What shall I gayne if I obtayne my purpose nay rather what shall I loose in winning my pleasure If my Lady yeelde to be my louer is it not lykely she will bée an others lemman and if she be a modest matrone my labour is lost This therfore remayneth that eyther I must pine in cares or perish with curses If she be chaste then is she coy if lyght then is shée impudent if a graue Matrone who can woe hir if a lewde minion who woulde wedde hir if one of the Uestall Uirgins they haue vowed virginitie if one of Venus courte they haue vowed dishonestie If I loue one that is fayre it will kindle gelousie if one that is fowle it will conuerte me into phrensie If fertile to beare children my care is increased if barren my curse is augmented If honest I shall feare hir death if immodest I shall be weary of hir lyfe To what ende then shall I lyue in loue séeing alwayes it is a lyfe more to be feared then death for all my time wasted in sighes and worne in sobbes for all my treasure spente on Iewells and spilte in iollyâ—â—e what recompence shall I reape besides repentaunce What other rewarde shall I haue then reproch What other solace then endles shame But happely thou wilt say if I refuse their courtesie I shal be accoÌ„pted a Mecocke a Milkesoppe taunted and retaunted with check and checkemate flowted and reflowted with intollerable glée Alas fonde foole arte thou so pinned to theire sléeues that thou regardest more their babble then thine owne blisse more their fruÌ„pes then thine own welfare Wilt thou resemble the kinde Spaniell which the more he is beaten the fonder he is or the foolish Eiesse which will neuer away Dost thou not knowe that woemen déeme none valyaunt vnlesse he be too venturous That they accompte one a bastarde if he be not desperate a pinche penny if he be not prodigall if silente a sotte if full of wordes a foole Peruersly do they alwayes thinck of their louers and talke of them scornfully iudging all to be clownes which be no courtiers and all to be pinglers that be not coursers Seing therefore the very blossome of loue is sower the budde cannot be swéete In time preuent daunger least vntimelye thou runne into a thousande perrills Searche the wounde while it is gréene to late commeth the salue when the sore fesâ—ereth and the medicine bringeth dubble care when the maladye is past cure Beware of delayes What lesse then the grayne of Mustarde séede in time almost what thing is greater then the stalke thereoff The slender twigge groweth to a stately tree and that which with the hand might easely haue bene pulled vpp will hardly with the are be hewen downe The least sparke if it bee not quenched will burst into a flame the least Moth in time rateth the thickest clothe and I haue reade that in a shorte space there was a Towne in Spayne vndermiâ—ed with Câ—nuyes in Theslalâ—â— with Mowles with Fregges in Fraunce in Africa with Flyes If these silly Wormes in tracte of time ouerthrowe so statelye Townes how much more will loue which creepeth secretly into the minde as the rust doth into the yron and is not perceiued consume the body yea and consound the soule Defer not from houre to day from day to month from month to yeare and alwayes remayne in misery He that to day is not willyng will to
sinneth is of the Dyuell the rewarde of sinne is death thou shalte not suffer the wicked to lyue take all the Princes of the people and hange them vp agaynst the Sunne on Iybbets that my anger maye bée tourned from Israell these sayinges of holy Scripture cause mée to tremble and shake in euery sinnewe Agayne this saith the holy Byble nowe shall the scowrge fall vppon thée for thou hast sinned beholde I set a curse before you to daye if you shall not harken to the commaundementes of the Lorde all they that haue forsaken the Lorde shall be confounded Furthermore where threates are poured out agaynst sinners my heart bléedeth in my bellye to remember them I wyll come vnto you in iudgement sayth the Lorde and I wyll be a swifte and a seuere witnesse offenders adulterers and those that haue committed periurie and retained the duetie of the hirelinges oppressed the widowes misused the straunger and those that haue not feared me the Lord of hoasts Out of his mouth shall come a two edged swoorde Beholde I come quickly and bringe my rewarde with me which is to yelde euery one according to his desertes Great is the day of the Lord and terrible and who is he that may abide him What shall I then doe when the Lord shall arise to iudge and when hée shall demaund what shal I answere Besides this the names that in holy scripture are attributed to God bring a terrour to my guiltie conscience He is said to be a terrible God a God of reuenge whose voice is like the thūder whose breath maketh al the corners of the earth to shake tremble These things Euphues testifie vnto my conscience that if there be a God he is the God of the righteous one that wil confound the wicked Whether therefore shal I goe or how may I auoide the day of vengeance to come if I goe to heauen that is his seate if into the earth that is his footstoole if into the depth he is there also Who can shrowde himself from the face of the Lord or where can one hide him that the Lord cannot finde him his wordes are like fire and the people lyke drye woode and shal be consumed Euphues Although I cannot but reioyce to heare thée acknowledge a God yet must I néedes lament to sée thée so much distrust him The Diuell that roaring Lyon seing his pray to be taken out of his iawes alledgeth al Scripture that may condemne the sinner leauing al out that should comfort the sorrowful Much like vnto the deceitfull Phisition which recounteth all things that may endomage his patient neuer telling any thing that may recure him Let not thy conscience be agrieued but with a patiēt heart renounce all thy former iniquities and thou shalt receiue eternall life Assure thy selfe that as God is a Lord so he is a father as Christ is a Iudge so he is a Sauiour as ther is a lawe so there is a Gospel Though God haue leaden handes whiche when they strike paye home yet hath he leaden féet which are as slow to ouertake a sinner Heare therfore the great comfort flowing in euery leafe line of the Scripture if thou be patient I my selfe am euen hée which doth blotte out thy transgressions and that for mine owne sake and I will not be mindefull of thy sinnes Beholde the Lordes hande is not shortned that it cannot saue neither his eare heauy that it cannot heare If your sinnes were as Crimosin they shall be made whiter then Snow though they were as red as Scarlet they shall be made like white Woll If we confesse our offences hée is faythfull and iuste so that he will forgiue vs our sinnes God hathe not appointed vs vnto wrath but vnto saluation by the meanes of our Lorde Iesus Christe the earthe is filled with the mercye of the Lorde It is not the will of your Father which is in heauen that any one of the little ones should perishe God is riche in mercye I will not the death of a sinner sayth the Lord God retourne and lyue The sonne of man came not to destroye but to saue God hath mercy on all bycause hée can doe all God is mercifull longe sufferinge and of much mercy If the wicked man shall repent of hys wickednesse which hée hath committed and kéepe my commaundementes doinge Iustice and iudgement hée shall lyue the lyfe and shall not dye If I shall saye vnto the sinner thou shalt dye the death yet if hée repent and doe Iustice he shall not dye Call to thy minde the great goodnesse of God in creating thée his singuler loue in giuing his sonne for thée So God loued the worlde that he gaue his onely begotten sonne that whosoeur beléeued in him myght not perish but haue euerlasting life God hath not sent his sonne to iudge the world but that the worlde might be saued by him Can the Mother sayth the Prophet forget the chylde of hir wombe though she be so vnnaturall yet will I not be vnmindefull of thée There shal be more ioye in heauen for the repentaunce of one sinner thē for nintie nine iust persons I came not saith Christ to cal the righteous but sinners to repentāce If any mā sin we haue an aduocate with the father Iesus Christe the righteous hée is the propitiation for our sinnes and not for our sinnes onely but for the sinnes of the whole worlde I write vnto you little children bicause your sinnes be forgiuen for his names sake Doth not Christ saye that whatsoeuer wée shall aske the Father in his name wée shall obtayne Doth not God saye this is my beloued sonne in whome I am well pleased heare him I haue reade of Themistocles which hauing offended Philip the king of Macedonia could no way apease his anger méeting his young sonne Alexander tooke him in his armes met Philip in the face Philip séeing the smilyng countenaunce of the childe was well pleased with Themistocles Euen so if through thy manifolde sinnes and haynous offences thou prouoke the heauye displeasure of thy God insomuch as thou shalt tremble for horror take his onelye begotten and welbeloued sonne Iesus in thine armes and then he neyther can nor will bée angry with thée If thou haue denyed thy God yet if thou goe out with Peter and wéepe bitterly God will not deny thée Though with the prodigall sonne thou wallow in thine owne wilfulnesse yet if thou retourne agayne sorrowfull thou shalt be receiued If thou bée a grieuous offender yet if thou come vnto Christ with the woman in Luke and wash his féete with thy teares thou shalt obteyne remission Consider with thy selfe the great loue of Christ and the bitter torments that he endured for thy sake which was enforced through the horror of death to crye with a loude voyce Eloi Eloi Lamasabathani My God my God why hast thou forsaken mée and with a groning spirite to say my soule is heauie euen
folly and that thy nature sheweth thou lookest I should craue pardon for speaking so boldly no Philautus I meane not to flatter thee for then shoulde I incurre the suspition of â—rawde neither am I determined to fall out with thée for theÌ„ might the wise conuince me of folly But thou art in great credite in the court what then shall thy credit with the Emperour abate my courage to my God or thy hauty lookes quench my kindled loue or the gallant shew aslake my good wil hath the courtier any prerogatiue aboue the clowne why hée should not be reprehended doth his highe callinge not onely gyue hym a commision to sinne but remission also if he offend doth his preheminence in the court warrant him to oppresse the poore by might and acquite him of punishment No Philantus By how much the more thou excellest others in honors by so muche the more thou oughtest to excéede them in honestie the higher thy calling is the better ought thy conscience to bée and as farre it beséemeth a gentleman to be from pryde as hée is from pouertie and as néere to gentlenesse in condition as hée is in bloude but I will descende wyth thee to perticulers It is reported héere for a troth that Philautus hath giuen ouer himselfe to all deliciousnesse desiringe rather to be dandled in the laps of Ladyes then busied in the studye of good letters And I woulde thys were all which is to much or the rest a lye which is to monstrous It is nowe in euerye mans mouth that thou yea thou Philautus art so voyde of curtesie that thou hast almost forgotten common sence and humanitie hauinge neither care of religion a thing to common in a courtier neither regarde of honestie or any vertuous behauiour Oh Philautus dost thou lyue as thou shouldest neuer dye and laugh as thou shouldest neuer mourne art thou so simple that thou doste not know from whence thou camest or so sinfull that thou carest not whether thou goest what is in thée that shoulde make thée so secure or what can there be in any that may cause him to glorye Milo that great wrastler beganne to wéepe when he sawe his armes brawnefallen and weake saying strength strength is but vanitie Helen in hir newe glasse viewing hir olde face with a smyling countenaunce cryed Beautie where is thy blaze Craesus with all his wealth Aristotle with all his wit all men with all their wisdome haue and shall perish and tourne to dust But thou delightest to haue the newe fashion the Spanish felte the French ruffe thy crewe of ruâ—sians all thine attire misshapen to make thée a monster and all thy time mispent to shewe thée vnhappy what should I goe about to decipher thy life séeinge the beginning sheweth the ende to bée naught Art not thou one of those Philautus which sekest to win credite with thy superiors by flatterye and wring out wealth from thy inferiors by force vndermine thy equals by frawde dost thou not make the court not onely a couer to defend thy selfe froÌ„ wrong but a colour also to commit iniurie Art not thou one of those that hauing gotten on their sléeue the cognisaunce of a courtier haue shaken from thy skirtes the regard of curtesie I cannot but lament I would I might remedy the great abuses that raigne in the eies of the Emperour I feare me the Poet say to truely Exeat aula qui vult esse pius virtus summa potestas non coeunt Is not pietie tourned all to pollicie faith to foresight rigor to Iustice doth not he best thriue the worst deserueth he rule al the country that hath no conscience Doth not the Emperours court grow to this insolent blindnesse that all y sée not their folly they accompt fooles all that speake against it precise laughing at the simplicitie of the one threatning the boldenes of the other Philautus if thou woldest with due consideration way how farre a courtiers lyfe is from a sound beliefe thou wouldest either frame thy selfe to a new trade or els amend thine old mannors yea thou wouldest with Câ—ates leaue all thy possessions taking thy books and trudge to Athens and with Anaxagoras dispise wealth to attaine wisdome if thou haddest as great respect to dye well as thou hast care to liue wantonly thou wouldest with Socrates séeke how thou mightest yelde to death rather then wyth Aristippus search howe to prolonge thy lyfe Dost thou not know that where the trée falleth there it lyeth and euery ones deathes daye is his domes day that the whole course of lyfe is but a meditation of dâ—ath a pilgrimage a warfare Hast thou not read or dost thou not regards what is written that wée shall all bée cyted before the Tribunall seate of God to render a straight accompt of our stewardshyp if then the rewarde bée to be measured by thy merites what boote canst thou looke for but eternall paine whiche héere lyuest in continuall pleasure So shouldest thou lyue as thou mayst dye and then shalt thou dye to lyue Wert thou as strong as Sampson as wise as Salomon as holy as Dauid as faythfull as Abraham as zealous as Moses as good as any that euer lyued yet shalt thou dye as they haue done but not rise againe to lyfe with them vnlesse thou liue as they did But thou wilt say that no man ought to iudge thy conscience but thy selfe séeinge thou knowest it better then any O Philautus if thou search thy selfe and sée not sinne then is thy case almost curelesse The patient if Phisitions are to be credited coÌ„moÌ„ eâ—perieÌ„ce estemed is the néerest death wheÌ„ he thinketh himselfe past his disease the lesse griefe he féeleth the greater fits he endureth y wouÌ„d that is not searched bicause it a lyttle smarteth is fullest of dead flesh and the sooner it skinneth the sorer it festereth It is sayde that Thunder bruseth the trée but breaketh not the barke and pearceth the blade and neuer hurteth the scabberd Euen so doth sinne wounde the hearte but neuer hurte the eyes and infect the soule though outwardely it nothing afflict the body Descende therfore into thine owne conscience confesse thy sinnes reforme thy manners contemne the worlde embrace Christ leaue the courte follow thy study prefer holynesse before honour honestie before promotion relygion and vprightnesse of lyfe before the ouerlashinge desires of the flesh Resemble the Bée which out of the dryest and bitterest Time sucketh moyst swéet Honny and if thou canst out of the courte a place of more pompe then pietie sucke out the true iuice of perfection but if thou sée in thy selfe a will rather to goe forward in thy losenesse then any meane to goe backewarde if the glystering faces of fayre Ladies or the glittering shew of lustie gallaunts or courtly fare or any delycate thing séeme to entice thée to farther lewdenesse come from the court to Athens and so in shunning the causes of euill thou shalt soone
Well Philautus thou takest not so much care for the losse of hir as I griefe for thy lewdnesse neither canst thou sorrowe more to sée hir dye sodeinely then I to heare thée lyue shamefullye If thou meane to keepe mee as a friende shake off those vaine toyes and dalyaunces wyth women beléeue mée Philautus I speake it wyth salt tears trickling downe my chéekes the lyfe thou liuest in court is no lesse abhorred then the wicked death of Lucilla deâ—ested more art thou scorned for thy folly then she hated for hir filthinesse The euill ende of Lucilla should moue thée to begin a good lyfe I haue often warned thée to shunne thy wonted trade if thou loue me as thou profestest in thy letters then leaue all thy vices shewe it in thy lyfe If thou meane not to amend thy manners I desire thée to write no more to me for I will neither answere thée nor read them The Iennet is brokeÌ„ as soone with a waÌ„d as with the spurre a genâ—â—eman as well allured with a word as with a swoord Thou concludest in the end that Liuia is sick truely I am sory for shée is a madyen of no lesse comlinesse then modesty hard it is to iudge whether she deserues more praise for hir beauty with the amorous or admiration for hir honestie of vertues if thou loue me embrace hir for she is able both to satisfy thine eye for choice instruct thy heart with learning CommeÌ„d me vnto hir as I praise hir to thée so wil I pray for hir to God that either she may haue paâ—ience to endure hir trouble or deliuerance to scape hir peril Thou desirest me to send thée the Sermons which were preached of late in Athens I haue fulfilled thy request but I feare me thou wilt vse them as S. George doth his horse who is euer on his backe but neuer rideth but if thou wert as willing to read them as I was to send them or as ready to follow them as desirous to haue them it shall not repent thée of thy labour nor me of my cost And thus farewell ¶ Euphues to Botonio to take his exile patiently IF I were as wise to giue thée counsaile as I am willing to do thée good or as able to set thée at libertie as desirous to haue thée frée thou shouldest neither want good aduice to guyde thée nor sufficient helpe to restore thée Thou takest it heauylye that thou shouldest bée accused without colour and exiled wythout cause and I thincke thée happy â—o be so well rydde of the courte and to bee so voyde of crime Thou sayest banishment is bitter to the frée borne and I déeme it the better if thou bée wythout blame There bée manye meates which are sowre in the mouth and sharpe in the mawe but if thou mingle them wyth swéete sawces they yeelde both a pleasaunt taste and holesome nourishment Diuers colours offende the eyes yet hauinge gréene amonge them whet the sight I speake this to this enâ—e that though thy exile seeme grieuous to thee yet guiding thy selfe with the rules of Philosophye it shall bee more tollerable hée that is colde doth not couer himselfe wyth care but with clothes he that is washed in the rayne dryeth himselfe by the fire not by his fancie and thou which art bannished oughtest not with teares to bewaile thy hap but with wisedome to heale thy hurt Nature hath giuen no man a country no more then she hath a house or laÌ„ds or liuings Socrates would neither call himselfe an Athenian neither a Grecian but a CitizeÌ„ of the world Plato would neuer accompt him banished that had the Sunne Fire Aire Water Earth that he had before where he felt the Winters blast and the Summers blaze wher y same Sunne the same Moone shined whereby he noted that euery place was a countrey to a wise man and all partes a pallaice to a quiet minde But thou art driuen out of Naples that is nothing All the Athenians dwell not in Colliton nor euery Corinthian in Graecia nor all the Lacedemonians in Pitania How can any part of the world bée distant farre from the other when as the Mathematicians set downe that the earth is but a pointe being compared to the heauens Learne of the Bée as wel to gather Honny of the wéede as the flowre and out of farre countries to liue as wel as in thine owne He is to be laughed at which thincketh the Moone better at Athens then at Corinth or the Honnye of the Bée swéeter that is gathered in Hybla then that which is made in Mantua when it was cast in Diogenes téeth that the Synoponetes had banished hym Pontus yea sayde hee I them of Diogenes I maye saye to thée as Straconicus sayde to his guest who demaunded what faulte was punished wyth exile and hée aunsweringe falshoode why then sayde Straconicus dâ—st not thou practise deceite to the ende thou maist auoyde the myschiefes that followe in thy countrey And surely if conscience be the cause thou art banished tho court I accompt thée wise in being so precise that by the vsing of vertue thou maist be exiled the place of vice Better it is for thée to liue with honesty in the country then with honour in the court greater wil thy praise be by flying vanitie then thy pleasure in followinge traines Choose that place for thy palaice which is most quiet custome will make it thy countrey and an honest life will cause it a pleasaunt liuinge Philip falling in the dust and séeing the figure of his shape perfect in shewe Good God sayd he we desire the whole earth and sée how little serueth Zeno hearing that this onely barke wherein all his wealth was shipped to haue perished cryed out thou hast done well Fortune to thrust me into my gowne agayne to embrace Philosophy thou hast therefore in my minde great cause to reioyce that God by punishment hath compelled thée to strickâ—nesse of lyfe which by lybertie might haue ben growen to lewdnesse When thou hast not one place assigned thée wherein to liue but one forbidden thée which thou must leaue then thou béeing denied but one that excepted thou maist choose any Moreouer this dispute with thy selfe I beare no office whereby I shoulde eyther for feare please the noble or for gaine oppresse the néedy I am no Arbiter in doubtfull cases whereby I should eyther peruerte Iustice or incurre displeasure I am frée from the iniuries of the stronge and mallice of the weake I am out of the broiles of the sedytious and haue escaped the threates of the ambitious But as hée that hauinge a fayre Orcharde séeing one trée blasted recompteth the discommodity of that passeth ouer in silence the fruytfulnesse of the other So hée that is banished doth alwayes lament the losse of his house the shame of his exile not reioysing at the liberty quyetnesse pleasure that he enioyeth by the swéet punishment The kinges of
Persia were déemed happy that they kepte their Winter in Babilon in Media their Summer and their Spring in Susis and certeynly the Exile may in this be as happy as any king in Persia for he may at his leasure béeing at his owne pleasure lead his Winter in Athens his Summer in Naples his Spring at Argos But if hée haue anye businesse in hande he may studie without trouble sléepe without care and wake at his will without controlment Aristotle must dine when it pleaseth Philip Diogenes when it lysteth Diogenes the courtier suppeth when the king is satisfied but Botonio may now eate when Botonio is an hungred But thou sayst that banishment is shamefull No truly no more then pouertie to the content or graye haires to the aged It is the cause that maketh thée shame If thou wert banished vpon choller greater is thy credite in sustayninge wronge then thy enuyes in committinge iniurie and lesse shame is it to thée to be oppressed by might then theirs that wrought it for mallyce But thou fearest thou shalt not thriue in a straunge nation certeynly thou art more afrayde then hurte the Pine trée groweth as soone in Pharo as in Ida the Nightingale singeth as swéetly in the desarts as in the woodes of Crete the wiseman lyueth as well in a farre country as in his owne home It is not the nature of the place but the disposition of the person that maketh the lyfe pleasaunt Séeing therefore Botonio that all the Sea is apte for anye fishe that it is a hadde grounde where no flower will growe that to a wise man all landes are as fertile as his owne enherytaunce I desire thée to temper the sharpenesse of thy banishment with the swéetenesse of the cause and to measure the clearenesse of thine owne conscience with the spite of thy enemyes quarrell so shalt thou reuenge their mallyce with patience and endure thy banishment with pleasure ¶ Euphues to a young gentleman in Athens named Alcius who leauing his studie followed all lyghtnes and lyued both shamefully and sinfully to the griefe of his friends and discredite of the Vniuersitie IF I should talke in words of those things which I haue to conferre with thée in writinges certes thou wouldest blush for shame and I wéepe for sorrow neyther could my tongue vtter that with patiēce which my hand can scarce write with modestie neyther could thy eares heare that without glowing which thine eyes can hardly view without griefe Ah Alcius I can not tell whether I should most lament in thée thy want of learning or thy wanton lyuinge in the one thou arte inferiour to all men in the other superiour to all beasts Insomuch as who séeth thy dull wit marketh thy froward will may well say that he neuer saw smacke of learning in thy doings nor sparke of relygion in thy lyfe Thou onely vauntest of thy gentry truely thou wast made a gentleman before thou knewest what honestie ment no more hast thou to bost of thy stock thē he who béeing left rich by his father dyeth a begger by his folly Nobilytie began in thy auncestours and endeth in thée and the Generositie that they gayned by vertue thou hast blotted with vice If thou clayme gentry by petegree practise gentlenesse by thine honestie that as thou challengest to be noble in blood thou maist also proue noble by knowledge otherwise shalt thou hang lyke a blast among the faire blossoms and lyke a stayne in a péece of white lawne The Rose that is eaten with the Canker is not gathered bicause it groweth on that stalke that the swéet doth neyther was Helen made a Starre bicause shée came of that Egge with Castor nor thou a gentleman in that thy ancestours were of nobilytie It is not the descent of birth but the consent of conditions that maketh gentlemen neyther great mannors but good manners that expresse the true Image of dignitie There is copper coine of the stampe that gold is yet is it not currant there commeth poyson of the fish as well as good oyle yet is it not wholesome and of man may procéede an euill childe and yet no gentleman For as the Wine that runneth on the lées is not therefore to be accompted neate bicause it was drawne of the same péece Or as the water that springeth from the fountaines head and floweth into the filthye channell is not to be called cléere bicause it came of the same streame so neyther is he that discendeth of noble parentage if he desist from noble déedes to be estéemed a gentleman in that he issued from the loynes of a noble sire for that he obscureth the parentes he came off and discrediteth his owne estate There is no gentleman in Athens but soroweth to sée thy behauiour so farre to disagrée from thy birth for this say they all which is the chiefest note of a gentleman that thou shouldest as well desire honestie in thy lyfe as honour by thy lynage that thy nature should not swerue from thy name that as thou by duetie woldest be regarded for thy progeny so thou wouldest endeauour by deserts to be reuerenced for thy pietie The pure Corall is chosen as well by his vertue as his colour a king is knowne better by his courage then his crowne a righte gentleman is sooner séene by the tryall of his vertue then blasing of his armes But I lette passe thy birthe wishing thée rather with Vlysses to shew it in workes then with Aiax to boast of it with wordes thy stocke shall not be the lesse but thy modesty the greater Thou liuest in Athens as the Waspe doth among Bées rather to sting thē to gather Honny and thou dealest with most of thy acquaintaunce as the Dogge doth in the maunger who neyther suffereth the Horse to eate haye nor will himselfe for thou béeing idle wilt not permitte any as farre as in thée lyeth to be well employed Thou art an heyre to fayre lyuing that is nothing if thou be disherited of learning for better were it to thée to enherit righteousnesse then riches and farre more séemely were it for thée to haue thy studdye full of bookes then thy purse full of money to gette goodes is the benefite of Fortune to kéepe them the gifte of Wisedome As therefore thou art to possesse them by thy fathers will so arte thou to encrease them by thine owne witte But alas why desirest thou to haue the reuenewes of thy parent nothing regardest to haue his vertues séekest thou by succession to enioye thy patrimony and by vyce to obscure his pietie wilt thou haue the tytle of his honour and no touch of his honestie Ah Alcius remember that thou arte borne not to lyue after thin◠owne luste but to learne to dye whereby thou mayste lyue after thy death I haue often hearde thy father saye and that with a déepe sighe the teares tricklinge downe his graye haires that thy mother neuer longed more to haue thée borne when she was in