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
not the like among all which in a manner either pray or hatred breedeth contention Yea moreouer though these cease yet disagreement ceaseth not For let vs see what hartburning there is in loue what disagreement in marriage howe manie complaintes what suspicion among louers what sighes what paines what contention betweene maisters and seruantes who are nothing the lesse enimies one to another for that they are housholde foes betwene whom there is neuer anie peace to be hoped for but that which is procured either by death or pouertie I will not speake of contention betweene brethren whose agreement to be verie rare the trueth it selfe witnesseth by the mouth of that Famous Poet Ouid neither of the disagreement betweene parentes and their children whereof the Poeme of the same Poet maketh mention But as touching the loue of parents whose good will is most tender towardes their children yet how great their indignation is it is euident whilest they loue them that are good and lament their case that are euill and thus in a manner they hate while they loue hartilie And as touching the most neere and deare bande of the name of brother and father wee see it sometime to bee without loue and not seldome ioyned with hatred I will come to the holie name of friendshippe which being called in Latine Amicitia is deriued from the word Amo whiche signifieth to Loue so that it can neither consist neither bee vnderstoode without loue Nowe among friendes although there be agreement in the wordes and endes yet in the way and in their actes what disagreement and contrarietie of opinions and counsels is there so that Ciceroes diffinition can scarce stand vpright For admit there be good will and loue betweene friendes notwithstanding the consent of all diuine and humane thinges wherewith he maketh his diffinition complete is wanting What then shall a man hope for in hatred For there is hatred in loue and warre in peace and agreement in discention which I will proue to be so by those things which are daily before our eies Beholde the wilde beastes who being inuincible by the sword are tamed by almightie loue Encline thy minde and marke with what noyse and murmure the shee Lions Tygres and shee Beares do come vnto that which of them selues they doe most willinglie and thou wilt thinke that they do it not with desire but by compulsion Some wilde beastes while they engender do make a great noise and schritching and some keepe a sturre with their swift and sharpe talantes Nowe if we will giue credit vnto that which certein great men do write of the nature of the viper howe much contrarietie is there how great discord when as the male viper vpon an vnbridled howbeit naturall sweetnesse pleasure putteth his head into the femal vipers mouth then she being prouoked with a furious heat of lust biteth it of But when this widowe viper being by this meanes brought great with young approcheth vnto the time of her deliuerie by the multitude of her heauie yong ones which nowe make haste to come foorth as it were to reuenge their fathers death is by them torne in pieces Thus the first coupling of these two wormes aswell by their generation as bringing foorth of young is vnfortunate vnto the whole kinde and is founde to bee pestiferous and deadlie whilest the engendring slayeth the male vipers and the bringing foorth the female Consider the orders of Bees in their hiues what thronging together what noise what warres not onely with their neighboures but among themselues what domestical conflictes and discensions is there among them Beholde the neastes and houses of Pigeons that most simple birde and as some write that hath no gall with what battelles and disquietnesse with what clamour and outcries I pray you do they passe foorth their life thou wouldest thinke thou were in some barbarous and vninstructed campe thou shalt perceiue them to be so vnquiet both day and night I omitte their inuasions one of another yea that verie paire that haue seuerally coupled themselues in the bande of mutuall societie and pleasure and for that cause are dedicated vnto Venus with what complaintes are they carried foorth vnto their desire how often doth the cocke goe about the hen and oftentimes the louer forcibly persecuteth his louer with his winges and bill I will referre thee vnto the most safest kinde whereof as the matter is not lesse so is it also lesse notorious and lesse painfull to bee founde What craft and subtiltie then what wakefull diligence doth the spider vse in taking of simple and poore flies in her copwebbe what nettes doeth she set vp for her deceit and rapine what the Moath ouer the cloth what the rot ouer the poast what the litle wormes which daye and night not without weerisomnesse and with a certeine blunt and hollowe noise do fret through the bowelles of beames especiallie of those in felling whereof the diligent obseruation of the Moone and seasons hath not bene obserued Which common discommoditie as it reigneth our the smokie cottagies of the simple husbandmen so doth it also ouer the golden pendents of princes pallaces temples churches and altars neither spareth it also the sacred richesse of Philosophers the boordes of bookes parchementes and papers Wherevnto also I will adde this much that vnlesse there were prouision made by pitch and tarre and a litle burning withall manie times it is the cause of the daunger of shipwracke or of shipwracke it selfe yea they haue entred into the sea eaten through the plankes of shippes and haue procured great troubles to the vnaduised Againe what doeth the grassehopper vnto herbes the caterpiller vnto corne or the wilde geese to the ripe fruites and graine or the poore sparrowe or the crane that translateth his dwelling and other importunate kindes of foules Whereof commeth that saying of the Poet Virgil in his Georgikes whereat I was wont to meruel but nowe I wonder nothing at all howe foules are fraide by noyse making For nowe vnto him that shall happen to dwell in anie place in the countrie in Italie this one thing is begonne to be one of the manifold sommer anoyances For so am I my self continually troubled from morning to night with the falling of foules the ratling of stones and crying out of the husbandmen Moreouer what doeth the mildeawe to the vintage the blast to the herbes the canker to the leaues and the moule to the rootes To be short the weeuill to the barnes floores and the Emot which maketh prouision against old age come as the Poet saith what toyle and vnrest is there in that poore litle creature that whilest she prouideth for her owne winter shee troubleth our sommer I should be verie slowe to beleeue other herein but I my selfe know by experience with how much not only weerisomnesse but losse also that dustie swarme and which by their hastie marching doe euermore declare their feare do not onlie spoyle and forrey the fieldes but
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
blooddy vnlesse perhaps some man wyl say that the Theater were more honest wherein thou mayest see not only the people gaping but also the Senate and the Emperours of Rome the Lordes of al the worlde In lyke sort were they also delyghted in spectacles who were made spectacles to mankynde I wyl tel thee a straunge matter but wel knowen and common That same rage and folly of frequenting the Theater so inuaded the myndes of al men that it brought abroade into common assemblies not onely the wyues and daughters of the Emperours but also the Virgyns vestale whose chastitie was suche as nothyng was more perfect nothyng more tender then fame nothyng more reuerent to be preserued in so muche that in them al motion all trymming al wanton talke was reprehended and puâ—yshed and yet we reade that there was a place appoynted for these in the Theatre not by euery one but by the good and great Prince Augustus Caesar Notwithstanding the errour wherein great men are ouerseene is not therefore the lesse but rather the greater and more conspicable Ioy. I am very willing to see playes Reason A thyng whiche is neyther honestly playde nor honestly behelde neyther easily to be spoken whether the player or the looker on be more infamous or whether the Scene be more dishonest or the seueral place for the Senatours sauyng that pouertie many tymes draweth men to the one and vanitie alwayes plucketh them to the other For in euery offence it skylleth muche whether a man offende through pouertie lasciuiousnesse or pryde Ioy. I am delyghted with the syghtes of the Amphitheater Reason A very hurtful delyght euery way aswel publique as priuate whiche thou mayest easyly geather yf thou call vnto mynde out of the stories the begynnyng hereof and the encrease with what expences of common charge and with what care of Princes neare vnto madnesse and fynally with what studie and toyle of the people it was buylded Truely it is an harde matter to report the manyfolde vanities and superfluous to repeate so many common things a thousand couple of Fensars at once whiche were not only not sufficient for the play but for the fight with the flockes of Elephantes and Tigres and Lions and Leopardes and wylde Asses and couragious Horses and sundrie kyndes of straunge beastes sent from al partes of the world from their Desertes Parkes and Forestes to serue the Romane Theater Moreouer that the same sumptuousnesse of buyldyng had no patterne but not lyke to want imitation Pyllers of Marble brought by Sea and by lande for the vse of the playes cunnyngly carued by the great industrie of the woorkmen proudly polyshed on the toppes and the braunches glysteryng with golde Of whiche madnesse Scaurus was the chiefe and beginner he that was Edilis or Maister of the woorkes in buyldyng the Stage of the Theater within the space of a fewe dayes whiche was reared with a small deale of timber and a fewe roopes bringing in three hundred and threescore suche monstrous pillers to please the eyes of the people that reioyced in suche toyes and finished a woorke as thou knowest it is written the greatest that euer was made by mans hande not in respect of the temporall continuance thereof but by euerlastyng destinie whereby he deserued truly to be reported that as first by a greeuous proscription he sent the citizens so afterwarde in his most vaine Edileship he sent good maners into banishment as one that was both auctor and example of muche losse tyme to the foolyshe commons and of many great expenses to the common wealth But O strange case shortly after the madnesse of them that came afterward surpassed this outrage whereby it came to passe that what by the wonderfulnesse and number of the woorkes there was nothyng in all the whole world to be wondred at but Rome For thou seest also how it is written that the very bowels of the earth were perced the â—â—â—ntes digged vp the bidden rockes discouered riuers turned aside and conueâ—ghed away in pipes the frettyng sea shut in or out with great bankes toppes of mountaines hanging the secretes of the sea seatched and to be breefe a great and large scope of madding left to the posteritie and the expecâ—ation of your Grandfathers fulfylled in you to wit that your lasciuiousnesse would neuer leaue ye And that the mischiefe myght be the more â—eaped priuate calamitie was added to publike losse For the people being tyed with the desire to see and in the meane while forgetting theyr dayly gayne they neyther let one day escape them neyther perceyued howe armed penurie pinched them by the backe And thus enterchangably priuate destruction was turned into publique and publique into common Neyther is the losse of patrimonie more greeuous then of maners where lust is learned and humanitie forgotten And therefore what ye shoulde hope for by shewes from the verie begynnyng your fyrst kyng Romulus gaue a president who in them circuâ—â—ented the rough and seuere chastitie of the Sabine women And although the houour of matrimonie couered both the iniuries vnto howe many since that tyme hath this been a meane not to mariage but to whoordome and wandryng sensualitie To be shâ—rt beleeue this one thyng that we haue seene chastitie often ouerthrowen by playes but alwayes assaulted And to speake nothyng of those men who haue proceeded to suche outrage of wickednesse that they doo almost glory in theyr adulterie the good name and honestie of many women hath there peryshed many haue returned home vnchast moe doubted of and none the honester Moreouer to the ende there may want no kynde of mischiefe what bodyly slaughters not onely of priuate men but of whole multitudes doo there happen the effuse laughing turned into sodayne sorowe and the dead corpses caryed out of the Theater and the troupes of weepers mingled with the companies of reioycers doo declare Thou hast hearde howe that the same Curio whiche was slayne in the ciuile warre in Africa on Caesars syde went beyonde Scaurus in witte whom he coulde not matche in wealth how he I say deuisyng a Theater of wood but double and hanging by wonderfull art hung vp a loft aboue ground that conqueryng people beyng ouercome with the playes of the nations and reioycing in their owne perilles that laughing within and amazed without they myght be both laughed at and pitied of the beholders And do we wonder that he coulde turne the mynde of one great banished personage by laying before hym the hope of an Empyre who by proposing so light and short pleasure of the eyes coulde turne about so many thousande citizens in a moueable spectacle But some man wyll say vnto me there perished no body â—â—t there myght haue perished and thousandes also in another place perished And that I may not touch both newe and olde downefalles together by meanes whereof many haue found both their death and their graue vnder Tyberius the Emperour at a notable shewe at the citie Tidena thou remembrest how
but weake and thou mayest also sing to thy selfe this verse of Virgil The destinies shall onely shewe hym to the earth but not suffer hym to liue longer Ioy. I reioyce in my young Chyld Reason Reioyce so as yf thou shouldest be sory eyther for that as I haue said it may chaunce he may die or which is much more greeuous and hapneth very often of a most pleasant chylde become a most vnthankefull and disobedient young man. Ioy. I ioy much in my young chylde Reason There is no husband man so foolysh that wyl reioyce much in the flowre the fruite is to be looked for and then he ought to reioyce moderatly In the mean while tempestes hayle and blastinges are to be feared and the ioy must be moderated with dreade Of the excellent fauour of Chyldren The Lxxii Dialogue IOY MY Children fauour is excellent Reason If thou haue learned by mine instruction not to regarde thine owne fauour then thou knowest how much thou hast to esteeme of anothers Ioy. The fauour of my children is great Reason A thing verie dangerous for the male kinde but much more for the female For beautie and chastitie dwel seldome togeather they wyl not and againe if they would they can not seeing al humane thinges especially honestie can yf or kept in safetie now adayes chiefely if it be ioyned with an excellent beautie There be some whose beautie is enuied at but that enuie keepeth it selfe within it owne boundes some are sory some angry with their beautie as much as may be possible many haue waxed olde continuing vndefiled among the hatred of many some haue shewed perpetual and vnquenchable tyrannie How many saylers do passe euery day vpon the calme sea how many Merchantes do trauayle through the desartes with their wares safe neither Pyrate meeteth with the one nor the Theefe with the other But what beautiful woman canst thou name vnto me that hath not been assayed Although she be chast she shal be tempted and ouercome What womans minde is able to resist so many corrupters The scaling ladders of sugred woordes are set to the walles the engines of giftes are planted and the secret moynes of deceites are cast vp vnder the grounde If these meanes wyll not serue then force is violently offered If thou require proofe call to thy remembraunce the most famous rauishmentes Beautie hath tempted many and caused many to be tempted some it hath ouerthrowen and driuen them into wickednesse or to death Among the Hebrues Ioseph was an example of vehement temptation but the prouidence of God turned the danger into glory Among the Grecians Hippolytus and Bellerophon and among you Spurina to the ende she woulde not be tempted defaced her selfe with her owne hands Among the fyrst was no Thamar among the seconde was not the Greekish Penelope among the thyrde was not the Romane Lucretia safe Finally among all sortes the most part haue been commonly eyther tempted or ouerthrowen These be the fruites of this transitorie and brittle beautie whiche many tymes haue not onely ouerthrowen whole houses but great Cities and mightie Kyngdomes Thou knowest histories Truely yf Helen had not been so beautifull Troy had stoode safe yf Lucretia had not been so fayre the Romane kingdome had not ben so soone ouerthrowen yf Virginea had not ben so beautiful the auctoritie of the ten men had not so soone fayled neyther Appius Claudius beyng so great a law maker among the Romanes beyng vanquished with lust had lost his fame at the barre and his lyfe in prison Finally there haue been innumerable who if they had not been so fayre as they were there shoulde not haue been so many that beyng forced and deceyued haue fallen out of the castle of chastitie into so great reproches and ruine of their soules and therefore vtter what good effectes thou hast founde in beautie that they may be compared with their contraries Ioy. My Chylde is passing beautifull Reason This beautie hauing enflamed the lust of one called Messalina choose whiche thou haddest rather of these twayne eyther to deny and so to be slayne at the louers commaundement eyther to agree and to perysh by Claudius swoorde Thus at one side by chastitie death is purchased by adulterie there is nothing but only a litle deferring of death procured and this is the effect of this noble and excellent beautie In this therefore as in al other thinges the mediocritie is commendable and if any of the extremities were to be wished beautie is more delectable but deformitie is more safe Ioy. I haue a most beautifull Daughter Reason Be careful of treason and beware of force Doest thou thinke that there is but one Iason or one Theseus or one Paris Yes there be a thousand To haue a Daughter is a care and trouble if she haue beautie there is feare which thou canst not auoyde but by death or olde age for by marrying her into another house thou shalt but translate thy feare and not extinguishe it Ioy. I triumphe and reioyce in the singular heautie of my Children Reason For young folke to glorie and reioyce in theyr beautie it is a vayne thyng but common but for an olde man to reioyce in the beautie of his Chyldren whiche vnlesse he doated he woulde perceyue to be full of vanitie or subiecte to daungers it is more follie and next coosen to madnesse Ioy. My Chyld hath an heauenly beautie Reason Thou hast read I thinke the foure and twentie booke of Homers Iliades where Priamus speaking of his sonne Hector He seemed not sayeth he to haue ben the sonne of a mortal man but of a god This sayd Priamus but Achilles shewed that he was the sonne of a mortall man and not of a God and remember thou likewise that this heauenly beautie of thy chylde whereof thou speakest may be taken away and blemished and so long as it continueth whatsoeuer accompt be made of it it is but an vncertayne thyng Howbeit the immoderate loue of fathers whiche is enimie to vpryght iudgement bringeth foorth these errours and trifles Ioy. I haue a passyng fayre Daughter Reason If nothyng els chaunce thy house must be most sumptuous Of the valiencie and magnanimitie of a Sonne The Lxxiii Dialogue IOY I Haue a valient Sonne Reason The more valient he is the more it behoueth thee to be fearefull For Fortune layeth more dangers vpon none then those that contemne her that is to say Valient men And not without good cause for other men hyde them selues and seeke to auoyde her force but these lay themselues open to her furie Recall forepassed ages to memorie and thou shalt perceyue in a maner all the most valient men consumed by violent death Ioy. My Sonnes valiencie is exceedyng great Reason Fortitude is a most excellent vertue but accompanied with sundry chaunces and therefore see thou haue alwayes teares and a coffin in a redinesse Death is at hande to all men but nearest to the valient Ioy. My Sonne is a most
eyther goe into Regulus Barrell or Phalaris Bull or goe vp vppon Theodorus Cyrenensis Gallowes and no body let them Thus whiche way foeuer thou turnest thy selfe the blame of loosyng thy tyme shall be returned vppon thy selfe Howbeit you accordyng to your custome accusing nature for makyng the tyme transitorie although heere be nothyng eternall acquite your selues of euery thyng when as in deede ye be gyltie of all For all of you for the most part doo loose your tyme or rather cast it away and contemne it as a vile thyng and nothyng woorth whiche I woulde God you woulde bestowe in seekyng after vertue and glorie and not alwayes in infamie and euerlasting reproche although to speake truely whatsoeuer is not conuerted to the vse that it was ordeyned for may be sayde to be lost To this ende it is euident that man was borne and had the benefice of tyme geuen hym that he myght honour and loue his Creator and thynke vppon hym and whatsoeuer is doone besyde this is doubtlesse lost and cast away Of vnfortunate playing at Tables The xvi Dialogue SOROWE I Haue lost at Table playing Reason Dyd I not tell thee when thou wonnest that it was but vzurie and not gayne Sorowe I am drawne dry with gamyng Reason This game is of the same qualitie that Phisitions be by ministring of a lule to drawe foorth a great deale but beleeue mee thou hast more cause now to reioyce then when thou triumphedst with false ioy Better is sharpe chasticement then deceitfull flatterie The lytle vantage which thou gottest then dyd bryng thee vnto the whirlepoole of gaming now and this losse wyll reclayme thee thence agayne It is better to goe the right way with a foule brydle then to be dryuen into a pyt out of the way with a golden payre of reignes Sorowe I haue lost at tables Reason But thou hast wonne at the game of manners yf what thou hast doone thou marke diligently otherwyse good medicines were in vayne geathered togeather for an incurable disease yf neyther losse nor shame coulde reuoke thee from this bottomlesse pyt of destruction for when as experience bryngeth no profite there is it in vayne to seeke to doo good with woordes Of her vnto whom one was assured iudged vnto another The .xvii. Dialogue SOROWE THe Iudges sentence haue taken from me her to whom I was assured Reason Sentences of Iudges haue been against some deceyptful agaynst some playnely wrongful Sorowe I haue lost her to whom I was assured by a verdict of Court. Reason Some by craft and some by swoorde and whiche is a meanes of all other most shameful some haue lost their wiues by golde A man hath nothyng that is his owne at the one side is theft on the other deceypt then rapine next prayers then money and last of all death By this wheele the gouernement of temporall goodes is turned vp and downe and that whiche was ones becommeth anothers and anon shall passe to the thyrde which yf it be to be borne withal in profitable thynges in hurtfull and noysome thynges it is to be reioyced at And what marueyle is it yf humane thynges be turned vp and downe seeyng man hym selfe is turned and standeth not styll but as it is written Commeth foorth as a Flower and is troden downe and flieth away lyke a shadowe and neuer continueth in one state Thou complaynest that thou hast lost her to whom thou wast assured who in passing away euery day decreasyng dooest continually loose thy selfe Sorowe I haue lost in iudgement her to whom I was assured Reason Some contende in the fielde but it is safer to contende in lawe then in warre with sedules then with swoordes Thou hast read in Virgil what stryfe and contention there was betweene Lauiniaès suiters and what was the ende of the warre The wyfe followeth the conquerour and death followeth hym that is conquered thou hast lost thy spouse and saued thy lyfe Sorowe The Iudge hath berefte me of my spouse Reason An Adulter or a Theefe perhaps woulde haue taken her away It is a lyghter matter to loose her whom a man is assured vnto then to loose his true wyfe For in the one hope onely is lost in the other a thyng certaine Lesse is the losse of a thyng hoped for then a thyng in possession and to speake the same otherwyse of hope then of an effect Sorowe In iudgement haue I lost my beloued spouse Reason Thou hast not lost her but hast learned that she was not thyne Sorowe I haue lost her vnto whom I was betrothed Reason He that looseth his wyfe is delyuered of many cares but he that looseth his spouse is preserued both of these are good but the seconde is the better And why shoulde it not be the better forasmuche as it is the next thyng eyther not to haue any wounde at all or to haue a present remedie to cure it But you beyng carried foorth by the force of your minde and ledde along by great and blynde desyre doo wyshe for marriage whiche when you be entred into then doo your vexe you selues with continuall griefe and complaintes and then repent you of the deede when it can not be vndoone and when your repentance is vnprofitable and commeth too late Sorowe I haue lost her vnto whom I was assured and the hope whiche I had of chyldren Reason Myngle not togeather lamentations of sundrie kyndes for that whereof thou spakest last is another part of the rashe desyre of mortall men For this it is ye desyre to be married and to haue issue by your wyues but the goddes doo not graunt alwayes vnto men that whiche shall please them but that whiche shall profite them Thou remembrest in Apuleius Madaurensis how that the poore Mayden that was fallen into the Theeues handes with the raignes of her brydle turned the miserable Asse vpon whiche she roade into that part of the three wayes in whiche there was most danger but he forced to goe the contrary whereas it was the safest way and couertly reprooued the foolyshe wench that hasted forwarde to her owne hinderance But in the meane whyle that they were thus stryuyng the Theeues whom they thought they had escaped came rushyng vpon them by whom the Mayden who so carefully contended for her owne destruction was carried away into wofull captiuitie Not muche vnlyke to this is the contention betweene the prouidence of GOD and the follie of man concernyng the iourneyng and passyng foorth of this lyfe For the prouidence of GOD whiche is of thynges that are to come dryueth you thyther where all thynges are pleasaunt and without danger agaynst whiche striueth your blynde foolyshnesse whiche fauoureth her owne wretchednesse in obeying and geuyng credite vnto suche mischiefes as myght well be auoyded vntyll suddayne miseries catch you by the backes Sorowe I am ouerthrowen in the Lawe and haue lost her vnto whom I was made sure Reason Thou art woorthie to haue wonne for when two stryue for one
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
good faculties in bandes but thou learnest to forget pacience Sorowe I am kept fast in pryson Reason Some within caues and dennes and some haue enclosed them selues within the circuit of walles choosing vnto them selues voluntarie imprisonment eyther for the loue of God or for hatred of the worlde or for loathsomnesse of the common multitude as dyd many holy fathers in the primitiue Churche Thou yf thou be not disposed that way desirest an end of thyne imprysonmēt stay a while eyther man wyl discharge thee or els death whiche caryeth a key of the pryson doore There is one manner of entrance but sundry sortes of departyng Some haue been let goe vpon pitie some by the course of lawe some through their owne innocencie some by negligence of the keepers some for money some by craft some by breaking prison or vndermining the walles and some haue escaped out of pryson by the freendly darkenesse of the nyght and also since the memory of your fathers some haue been set at libertie by earthquakes and ouerthrowing of the pryson and last of al they that coulde finde none other meanes haue been released from imprisonment by death And lykewyse no lesse dyuers haue been the euentes of them that haue escaped Marius delyuerie from pryson brought hym to the Consulshyp Iulius Caesars imprisonment among the pyrates transported hym to the Empire of the worlde In this age certayne haue passed from pryson to lordshyps and the cheynes whiche they haue shaken from them selues they haue layde vpon other Finally Regulus and Socrates and many moe were not extinguished in prison as it was thaught but rather by an honorable ende discharged out of pryson To conclude the pryson hath sent some vnto great glory some vnto notable fortune some to a kyngdome and many to heauen but al to the graue for it neuer receyued any whom it hath not agayne restored Of Tormentes The .lxv. Dialogue SOROW. I Am vniustly tormented Reason What wouldest thou nowe say if it were iustly For there is no torment greater then the torment of the conscience If this be vpryght contemne these outwarde thinges for thou hast a comforter within thee Sorowe I am tormented very vnwoorthily Reason Take compassion vpon thy tormentour he is more sharpely tormented then thou for although the world crye out agaynst thee yet know this that it is a lesse euil to suffer then to offer an imurie Sorowe I am tormented Reason A newe lamentation for an olde greefe wast thou neuer tormented before Among tormentes thou wast borne among tormentes thou hast lyued among tormentes thou shalt dye tell me now what newe thing is befallen thee The kindes of tormentes are changed but the tormentes them selues do not surceasse Examine the whole course of thy forepassed life recount what euer day thou passedst ouer without torment Perhaps thou mayst finde somthinges shadowed with false ioyes but al thinges full of true tormentes wherof if thou iudge exactly thou wilt confesse that there is no part of this life voyde Wherby it commeth to passe that some not without iust cause haue supposed this whole life to be a continual punishment But you neuerthelesse so demeane your selues as though these Philosophical speeches concerned you not they sticke in the enterance of your eares they pearce not into the closet of your mindes So that ye lament for euery small griefe of the bodie but as for the euerlastyng and deadly punishment of the minde ye do not feele it in the first ye are impacient but in the other without sense Sorow I am layde vpon the wheele Reason What skilleth it whether thou goe vp to the wheele or to the bed to be tormented The tormentours knot shal wring thee and put thee to payne but heare now one with the ague another with the gout another with a shrewysh wyfe another with his sonne another with his louer another with his ryches another with pouertie another by the Phisitions hand another with the schoolemaisters ferula another with a naughtie seruaunt another with a proude lorde another is vexed with an infinite hope and couetous desire another with feare that is more greeuous then any tormentour Search through the whole state of mankynde and thou shalt scarse finde one man that lyeth not vpon the wheele and beyng a thousand sundry sortes of tortures doo you feare none but those that are made of wood Sorowe I am tormented Reason In the middest of thy tormentes comfort thy selfe eyther with thyne innocencie or with iustice for if thou be vniustly tormented thou hast a cause to reioyce whereby thou hast purchased experience to thy selfe and others and also a certayne bryghtnesse is added vnto thy vertue the fame of handled and aduaunced thynges is more renowmed and spices the longer they be beaten the sweeter they smell and most excellent wares are set a loft to the viewe that they may be seene the better But yf thou be tormented deseruedly thou hast thy remedye in thy handes but clottered fylth is purged by fyre and difficultie and a desperate sicknesse muste haue a sharpe cure who so is weery of his disease wyl not refuse any bytter thyng and he that is sory for his synnes wyll not eschewe any punishment Sorow I am laide on the racke Reason If without desart thou hast a meane to despise the crueltie of another from an hygh But yf deseruedly when thou art plucked from the earth thou mayst the more euidently beholde thyne offence and that which thou art now sorowful for the committyng thou shalt not be grieued for the sufferyng of the punyshment Sorow I am tormented Reason Eyther thy vertue is tryed or thy vyce punyshed the one is often profitable the other alwayes expedient It is a good tryall for the ryghteous to suffer punyshment but there is nothyng woorse then to suffer the gyltie to escape vnpunished Sorowe I am tormented Reason Learne the way vnto patience and death Of vniust iudgement The Lxvj. Dialogue SOROWE I AM condemned by vniust iudgement Reason There haue been some ere nowe condemned by the sentence of one iudge or by the testimonie of a fewe witnesses who haue ben often tymes acquitted eyther by the voice of the common people or by theyr secrete iudgement or whiche is better by theyr owne conscience or whiche is best of al by Gods owne iudgement For the best appealyng is vnto the eternall iudgement seate of the most iust and hygh iudge and he it is that vseth to reuerse the false iudgementes of other by a wrytte of errour Sorowe I am condemned vniustly Reason As the vnryghteous are ouerthrowen by iustice so are the ryghteous by iniurie Then whereas is vniust condempnation there the partie condempned is innocent and there is no man so foolysh vnlesse he were starke mad that would haue this be contrarie and had rather be condemned iustly then vniustly There is none so feareful vnlesse he be too bad but had rather be condemned by an vnrighteous doome then acquitted
aboundantly good but he that is euyll is also a foole and vnlearned although in booke learnyng he be the most skylfull vnder the Sunne Sorow My hearing fayleth Reason It is well that this chaunced not vnto thee before thou receauedst thy fayth whiche is gotten specially by hearyng whiche fayth nowe thou possessest Whereof complaynest thou nowe or what seekest thou more If thou hearest not the singyng of men nor of byrdes then encline thyne harte vnto heauenly songues and applye thyne inwarde eare to GOD wardes Sorowe I heare not Reason Then thynke and speake to thy selfe If I heare not what men say eyther to me or of me I shall heare what the Lorde GOD sayth vnto me They oft tymes talke of discorde but he euer speaketh of peace Sorowe I heare nothyng at all Reason Many beyng very desirous of silence haue been weeried with long iourneys and trauayle to the entent that in some secret places and bye wayes they myght finde that whiche they sought for That whiche is paynefully sought for by others thou hast it with thee in euery place wheresoeuer thou goest Nowe learne to vse thyne owne commoditie and remembring the noyses and tumultes that are past begynne at the last to be delyghted with silence Of the lothsomnesse of lyfe The XCviij Dialogue SOROWE I Am wonderfull weery of my lyfe Reason A mischiefe sprynging out of the premisses then whiche I know not whether there be any othermore daungerous for it is most greeuous of it selfe and the next neyghbour and redie way to desperation Agaynst whiche mischiefe by name there hath been order taken in your Churches to pray for assistaunce vnto the blessed Sainctes of heauen who beyng discharged of this earthly weerisomnesse and bandes of the bodye doo now rest in the ioyes of heauen in euerlastyng felicitie I doubt not truely but that some of them are at rest in deede but as for those your prayers vnto them I compt them vayne and foolyshe Sorowe I am compassed about with muche lothsomnesse of lyfe Reason All thynges that are lothsome ought to be abandoned with gladsome thoughtes with good hope with the comfort of freendes with readyng of bookes with varietie of honest delyghtes and pleasaunt exercises and expellyng of sluggishnesse but especially bâ— pacience in all thynges and long sufferyng whiche is inuincible Ye ought not to preuent the naturall ende of your lyfe eyther for the hatred of the present state or the desire of the future neither to be breefe for any feare or hope whatsoeuer whiche certayne fooles and miserable wretches haue doone who whyle they haue sought meanes to auoyde pouertie the troubles of this lyfe and paynes temporall haue fallen into eternall Let our countreyman Cicero speake what he lyft who in his booke of Offices excuseth the death of the latter Cato Let Seneca say what he wil who woonderfully extolleth and commendeth the same and also disputeth in many places howe that in certayne cases a man may violently destroy hym selfe But the other opinion of Cicero is muche more true and commendable wherein he sayth That both thou and all godly men ought to retayne theyr soules within the prison of theyr bodyes neyther to depart out of this humane lyfe without his commaundement by whom it was geuen least haply ye shoulde seeme to refuse the callyng whereunto he hath assigned you Yea moreouer thynke that this was spoken vnto thee from heauen to witte that vnlesse God whose temple is all this whiche thou beholdest shall discharge thee out of the wardes of this bodye thou canst haue no entraunce hyther And to conclude take heede lest that through any weerisomnesse of this lyfe thou so thynke of death at any tyme that thou suppose it lawfull to thee to hasten it or so esteeme of any ioye that it be able at any tyme to ouerthrowe thy heedelesse mynde vppon a sodden Of heauinesse of the bodye The XCix. Dialogue SOROWE I AM heauie of bodye Reason Thou mightest complaine hereof yf thou haddest been borne to flye lyke a byrde and not rather as a man vnto manhood Sorowe My body is heauie and vnwyldie Reason Leaue this complaynte to Roscius and Aesope Thou yf thou canst neyther bende thy selfe rounde in a lytle compasse or slyde downe out of the toppe of the ayre by a rope what matter is it Walke thou soberly with honest men contemne gesticulation and dauncyng whiche belongeth to players As grauitie becommeth a wyse man in all his deedes and woordes so also is it conuenient that he vse it in his gate with great modestie Sorowe I haue a heauie body Reason This heauinesse was wont to be one of the companions of olde age lest haply he that had lost the fyrst shoulde exclude the seconde although many tymes this heauinesse be founde not to be so muche the companion of olde age as of nature whereof it commeth that we see young men dull and heauie and olde men quicke and nimble But oftentymes vnder a heauie bodye is contayned a lyght minde and vnder a lyght bodye abydeth a heauie minde but yf a certayne proportion and equalitie both of bodye and minde doo meete together that is not to be despised Sorowe The weyght of my bodye is exceedyng great Reason Though inuisible yet no lesse is the weyght of the mynde and firmenesse thereof set the one agaynst the other and there shal be nothing heauie Sorowe I am drowned with the weyght of my bodye Reason Fleete then agayne by the lyghtnesse of thy mynde and dryue it away and in laboryng studie takyng in hande many and harde matters both to the exercise of thy mynde and bodye and the banishyng of all pleasures Dryue away idlenesse procure thy selfe businesse despise lustes bate slouthfulnesse loue carefulnesse caste away tendernesse followe hardnes haue a delyght in difficult thynges and with continuall persistaunce vse thy selfe to moderate diet in meate and drynke and to short and carefull sleepe litle sittyng and seldome lying Sorowe I am payned with the weyght and greatnesse of my body Reason Another is troubled with the contrary some with one thing and some with another No man leadeth his lyfe without traueyle but euery man knoweth his owne and eyther despiseth or is ignorant of an others griefe Sorow My body is much growen vnto mole Reason If mans name for that he is a mortal creature be deriued from the woord Elumus which signifieth the earth the must man needes be oppressed with muche earth Notwithstandyng his earthly nature cannot so ouerwhelme the heauenly but that it wyll aryse vnlesse it shewe it selfe deafe to vertue and quicke of beleefe vnto euyl perswadyng pleasure Sorowe A heauie bodye oppresseth my soule Reason Plucke vp thy mynde and with great endeuoure sustayne this greeuous burden and thynke with thy selfe that heauenly myndes doo oftentymes breake foorth out of the burden of the bodyly mole and attayne vnto woonderfull hyghnesse Sorowe I am ouerborne with the burden of my bodye Reason Although nature cannot be ouercome
seconde for that it is more tollerable to excuse an errour then to commende it But I reiecte them both because as for to answere when a man is called to obey with reuerence is prayse woorthie euen so without licence of the General to depart from the watch keeping of the body is to be counted hygh treason woorthie to be punished eyther with cruel banishment or with extreame torment Of purpose I repeate some thynges againe and agayne to the ende they may take the deeper roote for all these matters as I suppose are sufficiently discoursed in our communication going immediatly before Sorowe I dye Reason Rather thou payest tribute of thy fleshe and yeeldest thy duetie vnto Nature and anon thou shalt be a free man and therefore doo that willingly which of force thou art constrayned to doo and as one that is a verie good exhorter vnto death sayth Haue a desire to doo that which thou must needes doo There is no counsayle more profitable yea there is none other counsayle at all in tyme of necessitie Whatsoeuer a man doeth wyllyngly is made the more easie and tollerable and yf a wyll be adioyned it surceasseth longer to be a necessitie Sorowe Loe I dye Reason Loe the Lorde tarrieth for thee Make hast vnto hym doo neyther stumble nor stay lay away all dread suspition thou art not more deere to thy selfe then thou art to him and who wyl distrust when he is called by his freende and louer Perhappes hereafter thou wylt merueyle why thou fearest that whiche rather thou oughtest to haue wyshed for Now when thou art at libertie thou shalt knowe many thynges which when thou wast in prison thou couldest learne by no studie Insomuche that vnto them that are desirous to knowe the secretes and misteries of thynges whereunto your eyesyght can not pearce by meanes of the mortall vayle wherewith you are compassed round about for such verily is the naturall desyre of man but woorking most feruently in the studious and learned sort there is nothing as I iudge better then death nor that bryngeth a man more compendiously vnto his wyshed purpose Sorowe I dye Reason Nay rather thou sleepest and beyng wearie of this lyfe as I suppose thou takest now thy rest Sorow I dye Reason Depart into euerlasting rest for now thou beginnest to lyue A good death is the beginning of lyfe Of Death before a mans tyme The Cxx. Dialogue SOROWE BUT what sayest thou vnto it that I dye before my tyme Reason None dyeth before his tyme but all haue not one tyme limitted them alyke but rather as the noble Poet writeth Eche mans day stands prefixt vnto which when he is come then hath he attayned to the ende And because men can neither returne agayne nor stay where they are they must needes passe away Sorow I dye before my time Reason That myght be true yf thou dyddest owe a death agaynst a certayne day but the good and pure detter oweth it euery day and therefore let hym looke euery day for his creditours callyng vpon hym and alwayes haue that in a redinesse which he oweth For he is continually in det as long as he hath a mortal bodye he neede not to borowe nor to take vpon vsurie he hath that at home whiche he must pay Yea whyther so euer he goeth he carrieth with hym and hath that as it were in his hande wherwith to discharge hym selfe whiche when he hath payde he is then no longer indetted to Nature nor to any of the heauenly bodyes as the Poet Virgil sayeth Therefore leaue of this complaynte that can not be required before the day which is due euery day but rather geue thankes for that for the payment of this det thou needest neyther intreating nor yet to haue great riches of thine owne nor pawne nor vsurie which were the last woordes that euer that valiant vnknowen Spartane is reported to haue spoken most woorthie in deede to haue been knowen euen at that time when he was led to execution wherevnto he went without feare and couragiously by the losse of his lyfe to satisfie Lycurgus lawes Sorowe I dye before my tyme. Reason I vnderstand not what it is to dye before your time vnlesse it be ment as the common speech is before it be lyght or before the day breake which is a time most fit for the exercises of the minde soule which now thou art geuing ouer But in any other signification who is he that dyeth before his time when as in deede that is euery mans day wherein he dyeth and none other Sorowe I dye before my tyme. Reason Neyther before thy tyme nor after thy tyme but euen in thy very tyme shalt thou dye vnlesse thou take that for thy tyme which thou thy selfe not Nature nor Fortune hath prescribed But in trueth as thou canst not dye before thy tyme so canst thou not lyue after it Sorowe I dye before my tyme. Reason Who is he vnlesse he were madde that wyll complayne that he is loosed from his fetters and discharged out of prison before his tyme Truely he had more cause to reioyce in mine opinion yf this hapned sooner then his expectation but certaynely it hapneth not nor it can not happen so for euery thyng hath it owne tyme This was the appoynted tyme of thyne ende there dyd he constitute thy boundes who brought thee into the race of this lyfe If thou complayne of this ende thou mayest lykewyse as well complayne of any other Sorowe I dye soone Reason Thou wast soone borne he dyeth not soone that hath lyued tyll he is olde And yf thou haddest not lyued vntyll thou wast olde then remayned there another part of complaint Howbeit yf olde age be the last portion of a mans lyfe he must needes be fyrst olde whosoeuer dyeth But when I speake of olde age I meane it as the common people vsually take it for an heapyng vp of many yeeres together whiche not as other ages hath no ende but death onely Concernyng the beginnyng whereof there is great varietie of opinions but in consideration of the strength of those that growe olde and in respect of their bodyly health and the abilitie of their mindes easie enough to be reconciled To be short this is the conclusion of all that eyther thou surceasse to fynde fault with the hastinesse of death or to mislyke the troubles of a long lyfe whiche come by the deferryng of death But you beyng at contention within your selues are neyther willing to dye nor to waxe olde when as ye must needes doo both of them or at the leastwyse one of them Sorowe I myght haue lyued longer Reason Nay truely thou couldest not for yf thou myghtest verily thou haddest lyued longer but thou wouldest say I woulde fayne or I hoped to haue lyued longer for the mindes of mortall men are so desirous of lyfe and so readie to hope that in eyther I easily agree with thee But if thou wylt say I shoulde or
ought to haue lyued longer for that perhappes thou seest some that haue lyued longer in deede as though of duetie thou myghtest claime longer continuance also I can not yeelde vnto thee For some dye late and many moe soone but none at all that dye neuer betweene these there is no meane appoynted but all men are generally subiect vnto one lawe and all owe obeysaunce to the soueraingtie of death albeit some are taken away by one meanes and some by another and that at diuerse tymes and ages thus of one thyng there are manyfolde meanes and sundrie tymes And therefore let euery one with indifferencie attende his owne kinde of death and dying day and not through the greedinesse or lothsomnesse of lyfe doo as the vnskylfull and ingratefull sort are woont complayne and be disquieted about the lawes of Nature Sorowe I haue lyued but a smal time Reason There was neuer any lyued so long that thought not that he lyued but a small tyme and truely it is but a short tyme in deede that men lyue heere And therefore yf ye be desirous to lyue long seeke after that lyfe wherein ye may lyue for euer which although it be not heere yet is it purchased heere Sorowe I haue lyued but a short tyme. Reason Admit thou haddest lyued longer haddest thou then lyued any more then a short tyme The tearmes of this lyfe are vnequall and vncertaine but this one thyng is common to them all that they be al short Put case a man haue lyued eyghtie yeeres what hath he more I pray thee then he that hath liued but eyght yeeres Examme thy selfe diligently and looke into thine owne estate and let not the madnesse of the common multitude deceiue thee what more I say hath he that hath lyued longer vnlesse perhappes ye account cares and troubles paynes and sorowes weerisomnesse for a vantage Or what more should he haue yf he lyued eyght hundred yeeres There is somewhat more in deede I confesse in hope and expectation but when both tymes are expited beleeue mee thou shalt fynde nothyng whereby thou mightest make account that thou hast lyued more happily Sorowe I dye when as I thought to haue done good Reason What dydst thou thinke to haue done somethyng which thou hast not done So perhappes thou wouldest alwayes haue thought haddest thou liued neuer so long There be some that alwayes thinke to doo well but they neuer begin But yf thou haue begun once to doo well doubt not to goe forward although death preuent thy woorke before it be brought to a wished ende which although peraduenture in the blinde iudgement of men it may seeme to be some preiudice vnto thee neuerthelesse it is to be despised for that in the syght of the vnfallible surueyer of all thynges thou loosest nothyng but thy reward shal be full and whole as well of thy deedes as of thy thoughtes Sorowe In the middes of all my preparation I dye Reason This fault is not in death but in them that dye who then begyn to weaue the most short web of their lyfe when it is a cutting of which vnlesse it were so men should not so often be preuented by death not hauing fyrst accomplished the dueties of lyfe but rather when they had fulfylled and accomplished them woulde then begin to liue than which truely there were no lyfe more sweete Which sweetenesse notwithstanding not so much the shortnesse of lyfe as the slouthfulnesse of them that lyue taketh away from men who therefore count no lyfe long because how long soeuer the tyme be they neuer lyue but are euermore about to lyue And when they be once come to be olde men wauering among newe deuices how to lyue with a swift ende they preuent their slow beginning Sorowe I dye euen whyle I am preparing great matters Reason This hapned vnto many greatmen and almost to all Men are deceyued in many thinges specially in death which there is none but knoweth that it wyll come but they hope of the deferring of it and imagine that to be farre of which God knoweth is hard by them which both the shortnesse of lyfe and swyftnesse of tyme and the power of fortune and the varietie of humane chaunces wherewith they are beset round about needily constrayneth to be so And O most woonderfull blindnesse for that what ye ought to hope of your selues at leastwyse ye learne at length by others But thus the case standeth your mindes hardly can enter into bitter cogitations and therefore while euery one promiseth him selfe very long lyfe and either the age of Nestor or as Cicero sayth the fortune of Metellus and finally whyle euery one supposeth him selfe to be dame Natures whyte sonne whyle they be busie about the beginning the end commeth vpon them and while they are in consultation of many thinges death setteth vpon them at vnwares and cutteth them of in the middes of their endeuours Sorowe I dye in my greene age Reason If there be none other commoditie herein at leastwise there is prouision made hereby that thou shalt not languish in thine old yeeres For although that old age be not greeuous as Lelius sayth in Cicero and we also haue disputed before neuerthelesse it taketh away that greenesse wherein he sayth that Scipio flourished at that time and thou likewise reportest now the like of thy selfe Hereafter perhaps many shal wish for thee but none shal be weery of thee which thing in a long life although it be gouerned by vertue is an hard matter to be found Sorowe I die a young man. Reason Thou knowest what thou hast suffred alredy in thy life time but what thou were like to suffer hereafter thou knowest not and beleeue me whoso in this so variable and rough kingdome of Fortune dyeth first deceiueth his companion Sorow I am hyndered by death so that I can not ende the thynges that I beganne Reason And tustly in deede For ye be euermore a dooyng the thynges that ye ought to haue doone and yet there is nothyng finished this is the cheefest thyng that maketh your death greeuous and miserable vnto you but yf the thynges that thou begannest were suche that without any negligence in thee thou couldest not finishe them it suffiseth thee that thou hadest a good wylt hervnto But if through slouthfulnes thou hast put them of from time to time let it displease thee that thou hast neglected them If this peraduenture be the pretended cause of thy lamentation yet in trueth there is nothyng but a vayne lengthening of lyfe and a deferryng of death wyshed for thereby although it wyll not be long but at length though late thou wylt be ashamed of this vulgare wyshe But O ye mortall men how greedie soeuer ye be of lyfe hearken vnto mee I demaunde of you the exercise of Vertue beyng layde asyde what is this lyfe other then a slack and vnprofitable tariance which how long so euer it is can not be other then very short Wherefore I