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
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
must endeuour to doo what we may vnto which purpose besides the industrie of a couragious minde to whom nothing is hard nothing inexpugnable it were most conuenient to adioyne the sundrie speeches of wyse men although this kinde be now also very rare and especially continual and diligent reading of the woorkes and monumentes of good auctours so that there want not in vs a willing minde to consent vnto their holsome instructions which I may boldly tearme in earth to be the only liuely fountaine of good and fruitfull aduice Wherfore since we know that meane writers somtime are commended for their bare affection or for that they haue seemed to haue broken the Ice vnto those that haue followed them howe greatly are we beholden vnto the great and famous writers who being conuersant many hundred yeeres before vs here vpon the earth in their diuine wittes and most godly ordinances doo yet lyue dwel and talke with vs And among the perpetuall surges of our mindes like so many bright shining Starres fixed in the firmament of Trueth like so many sweete and pleasant gales of winde like so many industrious and expert saylers do both point vs to the hauen and direct the flittering sayles of our barkes thither and guyde the sterne of our flitting minde vntyll such tyme as our consultations which haue ben tost and driuen to and fro by tempestes doo stay their course and qualifie their motions And this is the true Philosophie not which is lifted vp with deceiptfull winges and vainely casteth about most proudly boasting it selfe in vnprofitable disputations but that by assured and modest degrees leadeth the rediest way vnto safetie To exhort thee vnto this studie perhaps it were freendly done but truely it is not necessarie For Fortune hath made thee greedie to reade much and to knowe many thynges who as they say beareth a great stroke in the worlde exposing thee to be tossed in the troublesome and deepe sea of cares and troubles Howbeit as she hath taken from thee the leasure to reade so hath she not the desire to knowe but that beyng delighted alwayes in the frendshyppe and familiaritie of learned men and vpon the most busiest dayes as often as opportunitie shall serue to steale idle houres thou myghtest haue a wyll to be euery day better instructed and learned in most excellent matters wherein I am a witnesse that thou hast often vsed thy memorie wherein thou art inferiour to none in steede of bookes Wherevnto yf thou were prone enough in thyne youth thou art nowe to be deemed so muche the more proner as the wayfaryng man that settech foorth late may seeme to be fresher and redier to trauayle then he that set foorth in the mornyng forasmuche as this is a common complaint among them that the way waxeth longer and the day decreaseth the whiche thing hapneth vnto vs in this course of our lyfe whilest we trauayle towardes the euenyng and see that we haue yet a long way to walke I neede not therefore to exhorte thee to doo that whiche thou hast alwayes doone most greedily of thine owne accorde It shall suffice me to haue admonished thee that thou bende thy minde in such sort that no care of humane and worldly affayres remoue thee which in the very finishing of great and most excellent workes haue turned many away after their woorthie and commendable traueiles begun Adding this moreouer that seeing it is impossible for thee to reade or here or remember all thinges at once thou repose thy selfe vpon the most profitable and for that breuitie is freend to Memorie the most briefest of them Not that I perswade thee to neglect the more busie and great conclusions and resolutions of wisedome whereby thou mayst defende thy selfe in the ordinarie conflict with Fortune but that thou mightest be lightly furnished in the meane while with these short and precise sentences as it were with certaine light and continual armour against al assaultes and sudden inuasions hapning on any side whatsoeuer For we wage double war with Fortune and in both there is in a manner equal danger wherof there is but one part coÌ„monly knoweÌ„ by that name to wit that which is called Aduersitie The Philosophers although they knew both yet they iudged this to be the harder And therfore the saying of Aristotle in his boke of Ethikes is receiued as true wherein he thus defineth concerning this matter saying That it is an harder matter to endure aduersitie then to abstaine from pleasures Whom Seneca following and writing to Lucillus It is a greater matter sayth he to passe ouer difficult matters then to moderate the prosperous What shall I say May I presume to gaggle among such woorthie men It is an hard matter breedeth no smal suspition of rashnes for a new man to medle wiâ—h olde matters And therfore on the one side I am moued by auctoritie on the other by antiquitie But there commeth vnto my mind the auctoritie of an other great auncient man For it cannot be otherwise but that euery man conceiue an opinion of a thing according as it appeareth vnto him They are the woordes of Marcus Brutus writing vnto Atticus which I suppose to be so true that nothyng can be more true For what can I iudge of any thyng otherwyse then I thynke vnlesse perhappes I be constrayned to iudge by other mennes iudgementes whiche who so dooeth he iudgeth not of hym selfe but reporteth the iudgementes of other I therefore thus with reuerence passing ouer the iudgementes of suche notable men beyng in suche manner affectioned if I woulde say any thyng concernyng myne owne iudgement I knowe wel that some haue diuersly disputed otherwyse of the vertues and that the preheminence is not alwayes geuen to the most difficult neyther that it hapned by chaunce that modestie or whether thou had rather cal it temperance possessed the last place But as touchyng our purpose whereof we entreate I suppose it an harder matter to gouerne prosperitie then aduersitie and I playnely professe that in mine opinion and also in mine experience flatteryng fortune is more to be feared and farre more perilous then threatnyng fortune vnto whiche opinion it is not the fame of writers nor the subtiltie of woords nor the false sillogismes of sophisters but true experience it selfe and the dayly examples of this lyfe and the scarcitie whiche is a great argument of the difficultie whiche enforceth me For why I haue seene many that haue indifferently susteyned losses pouertie exile imprisonment punyshment death and great sickenesses that are more greeuous then death but that could wel beare ryches honoures and power I neuer yet sawe any For oftentymes euen in my sight those that haue stoode inuincible agaynst al violence of aduerse fortune prosperous fortune hath ouerthrowen with smal force and her flatteries haue ouercome that valiencie of mans minde whiche her threatnynges could not subdue It commeth to passe I wot not how that so soone as fortune waxeth more milde the
but the more knowen The begynnyng of all menne is all one There is but one Father of mankynde all flowe from one fountayne whiche passeth some tyme troubled and some tyme cleere vnto you all on this condition that that whiche a litle before was cleere anon be made obscure and that whiche was obscure be made cleere So that there is no doubt concernyng the fountayne but by meanes of what small channell the water of this your noble blood as â—â—â—crme it flowed vnto you Hereof it commeth that he that went to plough yesterday goeth a warfare to day and he that was woont proudly to ryde through the myddes of cities managing his fierce courser with a golden Brydle nowe dryueth his flowe Oxen vp and downe the flabbie fieldes with a simple Goade And I thinke that saying of Plato to be true That there is no king but he came of a lowe degree and none of lowe degree but he came of kinges This change and condition of mans state is so chaungable and inconstant that it is sundrye tymes altered from the one to the other so that thou canst not marueyl yf a Ploughman goe to warre or a Souldiour returne to the Plough Great is the wheele of mortall thynges And because the course thereof is long this short lyfe perceyueth it not Which vnlesse it were so both the spades of kinges and scepters of clownes myght be discerned But nowe tyme deceyueth mens memories whyle they be busyed about other matters And this is all your nobilitie wherefore ye swell and proudly aduaunce your selues lyke a vayne generation as ye be Ioy. The discent of myne auncestours is noble Reason Howe farre wylt thou wander We speake of thy selfe Thou goest about to substitute others I can not tell whom in thy steede who perhappes maye aunsweare somwhat for them selues but nothyng for thee vnlesse thou furnyshe out the cause with thyne owne witnesses But admitte that these thy Graundfathers and great Graundfathers were noble to wit when as they beganne by the wynges of vertue to lyfte them selues vp aboue the common multitude that is the farthest roote of nobilitie But goe then farther seeke out more narrowly thou shalt fynde theyr Grandfathers and great Grandfathers obscure and vnknowen men To be short this nobilitie of names and images is both short and howe muche soeuer it is truelly it is not thyne owne Leaue of therefore to colour thy name with other mens vertues lest if euery one require his owne thou be laughed at for thine owne nakednesse Ioy. I am noble Reason How muche a valiant clowne is more noble then a cowardly noble man thou shalt then knowe when thou hast considered how muche better it is to founde then to ouerthrowe nobilitie If thou want examples there be plentie at home and in the warres and are commonly founde in reading so that thou maiest by thy selfe be vmpire and iudge of the residue And among all it shal be sufficient to consider of two couple of men Into one skale of the Ballance put Marius and Tullie into the other set the aduersaries of these twayne Aulus and Clodius whiche way the beame wyll cast and howe muche Rome must geue place to Arpine who is so blynde that he seeth not Ioy. I am noble by byrth Reason I sayde euen nowe a true noble man is not so borne but made Ioy. A woonderfull nobilitie at leastwyse of this common sort is left vnto me by my parentes Reason This nobilitie commeth not by byrth but by lyuyng And heare also I see one good thyng Ye haue store of familiar examples and ye want not household leaders whose steppes it were a shame for you to forsake This if thou suffer to slyppe thy nobilitie is but a famous and difficult euyll It happeneth I knowe not how that it is a harder matter for a man to imitate his owne auncestours then strangers perhappes because vertue shoulde then seeme discende by inheritaunce I speake it not willingly but experience it selfe she weth it Seldome is it seene the sonne of an excellent man to be excellent Of a fortune beginning The .xvii. Dialogue IOY I Was borne in great fortune Reason Thou begannest thy lyfe with great vnquietnesse For Saylers not improperly cal a tempest fortune And a great fortune is a great tempest and a great tempest requireth both great counsayle and great strength Thou hast therefore rather cause of care then of myrth Ioy. I was borne in very great fortune Reason Doest thou thinke it better fortune to be borne in the wyde Sea then in a small Riuer Although no wyse man wyll graunt the same how muche then is it more fortunate to be borne in a Palace then in a Cotage Our mother the earth receyueth al men wheresoeuer they were borne Ioy. I was borne in great fortune Reason Thou hast wayed anker contrary to good lucke and if thou haue wasted the day in foule weather prouyde that when nyght commeth thou mayest be in the hauen Ioy. I was borne aloft Reason Thou art subiect to tempestes and whyrlewyndes and hope of lying hyd is taken from thee Pythie is the saying of the Lyrike Poet The mightie Pine tree is often shaken with windes and high towres fall with the greater force and the lyghtnyng striketh the hyghest Mountaines As I must confesse that it is noble to be borne aloft so is it neyther quiet nor safe All humane loftinesse of it selfe is vnquiet and continually troublesome So that I maruayle why that saying of Mecaenas in Seneca shoulde so muche be dislyked For the height it selfe thundreth at the loftie thinges Seeyng other haue vsed this woorde why is he only reprehended Moreouer there is nothyng so hygh that is not subiect both to trouble and care and sorow and enuie and griefe and in the ende obnoxius to death And truely it is death only that beateth downe al mortall pryde and eminencie Ioy. I was borne in hygh and great estate Reason They that fall from hygh are sore hurt and seldome is it calme vpon the wyde Sea so in the bottome thou needest not to feare fallyng neyther dread shypwracke vpon the drye lande Ioy. My begynnyng was fortunate Reason Marke the ende As other in theyr kyngdomes so can fortune also do much in hers The more fortunate the begynnyng is the more vncertayne is the ende Doest thou not perceyue howe all worldly thynges are tossed as it were with a whyrlewynde so that lyke as a troublesome tempest disquieth the calme Sea and after a fayre mornyng followeth a cloudie euenyng and as many tymes a playne way leadeth into a rough straight so sodayne calamitie foloweth the pryde of prosperitie and sorowfull death stoppeth the course of a most pleasaunt lyfe and most tymes the ende is vnlyke the begynnyng Ioy. I began an hygh Reason Take heede where thou leauest The lyfe is alwayes reported by the ende and thou shalt playnely feele the ende although thou perceyuedst not the beginnyng Ioy. I was borne in great felicitie
Contrariwise too muche sleepe is the matter of vice and infamie which driueth many and throweth them headlong into perpetual sleepe For it nourisheth lust maketh the body heauie weakeneth the minde dulleth the wit diminisheth knowledge extinguisheth the memorie and breedeth forgetfulnes It is not without cause that wakeful and industrious persons are commended As for the sleepie we see not them praysed but puffed And therfore as some vs tearme sleepe death so other cal wakefulnesse life Take heede then of lyfe and death which thou choose It is best to wake which the wise do commend that the life may be the longer Ioy. I enioy a long vn interrupted sleepe Reason It is wel if it be not broken by pinching cares by couetousnes by ambition by feare by sorowe and by wicked loue but euyl if a mans sleepe be disturâ—ed by some care of dishonest stâ—die Truely while the people sleepe the prince waketh while the armie resteth the captaynes be vigilant which both experience declareth and Homers Ilias proueth to be true Vpon noble mindes vigilant cares do depende but such as are sober and hotsome It is credibly reported that Augustus Caesar of al Princes the greatest and best vsed but short sleepe and that also often interrupted And thou gloriest in the contrary Ioy. I sleepe profoundly Reason So do gluttons letchers wrathful persons togeather with bruite beastes but lyuing notwithstanding slâ—ggish persons and they that sleepe are only compared to the dead and as touching that part of tyme that happie men doo nothyng differ thereby from men in miserie thou knowest it to be a position of Philosophie Wherefore as that part is diligently to be eschewed whiche leaueth so small a difference of dreames onely betweene men and beastes so is the contrary to be pursued whiche offereth no hardnesse to them that are willing For yf in respect of a simple glory or small gaine both Warriours Merchauntes and Mariners do watch whole nightes abroade in the open ayre the one among ambushmentes of their enimies the other among the surgies and rockes more fierce then any enimie art not thou able to watche some part of the nyghtes in makyng prayers to God and among thy bookes for the true glory and a large gayne Ioy. Being weerie when I was awake I haue now wholly geuen my selfe to sleepe Reason Thus it is yee change not your copie ye deale in all matters after one maner and looke what thing God himselfe or nature or any art hath geuen you for recreation that ye turne to your owne shame and discommoditie â–ª your drinke to drunkennes your meate to surfeityng your leysure to sleepinesse your good health to voluptuousnesse your beautie to lasciuiousnesse your strength to iniuries your wit to deceitfulnesse your knowledge to pride your eloquence to harmfulnesse the brauerie of your houses and the apparell of your backes to pompousnesse and vayne ostentation your ryches to couetousnesse and riot your wiues and chyldren to feare and perpetual carefulnesse Goe nowe be astonished complayne of your fortune and lament your wickednesse of good thinges ye make euil of heauenly giftes ye make fetters and snares and chaines for your soule Ioy. I am delighted in pleasaunt sleepe Reason Not only Kinges Captaynes and Princes Philosophers Poetes Householders do watch vp and rise in the night which Aristotle sayeth to be auaylable for health for good husbandrie and philosophie but theeues also and pilferers and whiche is also more marueylous mad men and louers whom the remembraunce desire they haue to their trulles doth styrre forwarde and wylt not thou for the loue of vertue hate sleepe that is freende to vices and as Horace sayth excellently Seeyng theeues ryse in the nyght to kill true menne wilt not thou awake to preserue thy selfe Ye may be ashamed that filthie causes can so muche preuayle with you and most souereine can doo nothyng Ioy. I sleepe all nyght and no man troubleth mee Reason Aristotle seemeth whiche I haue touched before in this maner to deuide a mans lyfe attributing halfe to sleepe and halfe to waking And as touching the one halfe thereof he sayth that a vertuous mans lyfe differeth not from a fooles lyfe in whiche place he wyll haue he night to be vnderstoode for sleepe and the day for wakyng This I confesse is a good and true diuision for it equally deuideth tyme into the partes But if it be thus taken that the partes be of equal space truely there is an other great difference betweene them For there is no cogitation or discourse more sharpe or more deepe then the nyghtly no tyme more conuenient for studentes If he say that sleepe is the one halfe of our tyme it is a strange saying to come out of the mouth of so studious and learned a man God forbyd that a minde whiche is well instructed and geuen to studie shoulde sleepe halfe her tyme seeyng to some the fourth part and to voluptuous persons also the thyrde part is sufficient I would counsell a man to ryse in the nyght in euery part of the yeere God forbyd but that they which haue any great exployt in hande sleepe both the whole Winter and Summer nyghtes Howbeit it is sufficient perhappes to haue broken it once and as muche sleepe as is broken by watching so muche may be quickly supplyed yf neede so require by takyng a nappe after noone But the houres of the winter nyghters are often to be broken in them it were expedient to syng to studie to reade to write to thynke to contemplate by wit some new thing is to be deuised that which is wonne by studie is to be repeated in memorie Hearken also to S. Ierome wryting to Eustochius We must ryse sayth he twice or thrice a nyght and we must meditate on some part of Scripture whiche we haue learned without booke And at length when your eyes are weerie with this studie ye must eftsoones refreshe them with sleepe and beyng then recomforted with a lytle rest they must agayne be weeried with exercise lest that by sleeping all the night long and lying styl vpon the pillowe ye appeare to be as it were buried carkases By the often and coomely styrring of your selues declare that ye are alyue and geuen to vertue Of pleasaunt smelles The xxii Dialogue IOY I Am delited with sweete odours Reason These serue eyther for foode or apparrel concerning which thou hast hearde myne opinion Ioy. My studie is vpon sweete smelles Reason Of smelles some prouoke the appetite and some wantonnesse The desire of these incurreth the note of incontinencie especially yf it be vehement Others are desired for theyr owne sake The greedinesse of them is not reprooued of dishonestie but of folly Whereby it commeth that the smel of womens oyntmentes and of iunkets is more discommodable then the odour of flowres or apples The same reason is also in those pleasures whiche are receyued by the eares and eyes If euer thou hast applyed thy
by the fall of the Amphitheater twentie thousand men were slayne This is the commoditie and ende that the lookers on doo get Ioy. I beholde shewes with great pleasure Reason Eyther of faygned loue or true hatred The fyrst is not for a man to beholde the seconde not for a reasonable creature Who wyll wyllyngly receyue a dagger to his hart Who wyll powre more blood vpon an hotte wounde Who can waxe pale sooner then when he seeth death What delyght haue ye to goe to the schoole of crueltie Ye neede no scholemaisters ye learne euyll too fast of your selues Ye learne more of your selues at home then is needefull What if the maisters of mischiefe and the mystresse of errour the common multitude shoulde ioyne vnto this with redy wittes Many whom nature framed gentle haue learned crueltie by meanes of shewes and spectacles Mans minde whiche of it selfe is prone to vice is not to be pricked forward but brydled yf it be left to it selfe it hardly standeth yf it be dryuen foorth it runneth headlong There commeth in muche euyll at the eares but muche more at the eyes by those two open windowes death breaketh into the soule nothyng entreth more effectually into the memorie then that whiche commeth by seeyng thinges hearde doo lyghtly passe by the images of thynges which we haue seene sticke fast in vs whether we wyl or not and yet they enter not vnlesse we be wylling but verie seldome and they depart soone Whyther goest thou then What violence caryeth thee a way To be mery an houre and alwayes afterwarde to be sorie To see that once that thou wylt repent a thousande tymes â—hat euer thou sawest it To see a man slayne with a weapon or to be torne by the teeth and nayles of wylde beastes or some suche other syght as may trouble a man that is awake and terrifie hym when he is a sleepe I can not perceyue what pleasure is in it or rather what bitternesse and greefe is no in it and I can not discerne any greater argument of madnesse in you then in that bitter sweetenesse and vnpleasaunt delyght thrust you dayly forwarde to death enticyng you by miserable flatteries drowned as it were in a Stygian sleepe Ye obserue one order almost in al thynges Whatsoeuer ye desire whatsoeuer ye goe about whatsoeuer ye doo it is agaynst you Of Horses The .xxxi. Dialogue IOY I Take pleasure in a nimble Horse Reason A most fierce and vnquiet beast which sleepeth not and is neuer satisfied Ioy. I am destrous to ryde Horses Reason It is not muche more daungerous to sayle vppon the raging Sea then to ride vpon a fierce prauncer There is no beast more proude toward his maister neyther is this improperly gone for a prouerbe among horse breakers That an horse doeth twice euyll although be be at one tyme humble and at another proude Who beyng of suche strength and swiftnesse wyll suffer hym selfe for a lytle bile meate to be subiect to another to be tamed to be hampred to be haltred to be linked in chaines to be brydled to be shâ—oed with iron to haue nayles driuen through his hoofes to be spurred to beare an armed rider to abyde slauishe imprisonment and fiâ—thie seruitude On the other syde as though he were vntamed he behaueth hymselfe as yf he were free and doeâ—h euery thyng as yf he were his maisters enimie When he shoulde runne he regardeth not the spurre When he shoulde stay he taketh the bridle betweene his teeth When he should snort he is asleepe When he shoulde lye in secrete he snorteth This is that plyant beaste whiche some tearme trustie and faythfull whereof fables doo report so many goodly matters callyng hym commonly a noble a princely an excellent an honourable beast woorthie to be bought at a great price and kept with great diligence Nay rather it is a beast whose weerisomnesse yf it be compared with his seruiceablenesse no wyse man wyll buye hym no good husbande wyll feede hym a beast that is impacient both of rest and labour with the one he is proude with the other he is tyred with the one a fierce beast with the other a dull iade at one tyme bolde at another tyme fearefull at one tyme flying at another tyme fallyng at one tyme startlyng at a flie or a shadowe at another tyme dispising his maister and dyuers wayes drawing hym into daunger Who can sufficiently discribe his stubbernnesse the daunger of his teeth and his heeles his neighing and his impaciencie of his sitter and rider For truely looke howe many conditions there be of horses so many dangers are there of the horsemen Ioy. I haue great delight in horses Reason I shoulde wonder the more at thee vnlesse I remembred some great men bent also to the lyke studie to to folyshly Who hath not heard that Alexander king of Macedonie erected a tombe for his horse which he loued and named a citie after his horses name But the coutage and heate of minde wrought no woonderfull thyng in hym whyle he liued There was more stomacke in Augustus although lesse follie for he buylded not a tombe for his horse but he made a graue whiche thing notwithstanding was vnmeete for his wit and grauitie For whether Iulius Caesars monstrous horse were by him or any other consecrated with a statue of marble before the temple of Venus it may be doubted Antonius Verus who came after in yeeres and glory but in riches and imperiall name was but litle inferiour that I may omit to tell what fare and what furniture he ordeined for his horse which he loued immoderately truely he caused a statue of gold to be made lyke hym whyle he was alyue and when he was dead a sepulture to be buylded that we might be the more greeued at it in Vaticanum among so many holy bones as were there buried to be buried This is scarce credible but true notwithstanding The Poet thinkyng on this and suche lyke thinges maketh the soules of such men to be delighted with horses in hell And yet this vanitie is neuer awhit the lesse but the greater whiche is able to allure so great mindes vnto it But that no man shall thynke that this was some auncient folly only and not at this day raigning let him call to minde one dwelling not far of and not long since who is yet lyuing and not very olde and dwelling here in Italy among you whose name it shall not be needefull for me to vtter a man highly in fortunes fauour and of no small wit and iudgement a man otherwise of great courage and policie whensoeuer he hath occasion to vtter himselfe or hath any weightie affaires in hande who notwithstanding when his horse whiche he loued was sicke layde him vpon a bed of silke and a golden pillowe vnder his head and while he hym selfe being bound and not able to stirre by appoyntment of his Phisitions for the gout was gouerned by their orders neuerthelesse being either borne in
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
valient man. Reason Then hast thou one that perhaps may purchase vnto his countrey libertie to his enimies slaughter to him selfe honour and one day vnto thee teares but feare continually Ioy. My Sonne is valient and of great courage Reason What other thyng dyd Creon bewayle in his sonne that was slayne then his couragious desire of martial prayse What Enander in his sonne Pallas then his newe glory in armes and the sweete honour of his first encounter Whereof dyd feareful Priamus admonish his sonne Hector then that he should not alone expect Achilles What doth the careful mother entreat her sonne other then to shun that warlike champion Finally what dyd Hectors wyfe beyng ignorant of the heauie chaunce that alreadie was hapned say that she feared other then her husbandes well meanyng and the heate of his minde that was not able to stay hym out of the fyrst aray of the Souldiours but woulde rather runne before them all Whiche thyng also she feared at the beginning when as she spake vnto hym as he was going into the warres in this maner Doeth thy valiencie so deuilishy be witche thee that thou takest compassion neyther vpon thy Sonne nor mee his Mother who shall shortly be thy Wydowe Lastly what other dyd Achilles mother say beyng fearefull for her Sonne Now must I seeke for my sonne Achilles by Lande and Sea and I woulde he woulde folowe mee Whilst in wayne she tooke hym being feeble out of the garboyle of the hotte warres and carrying hym into the pallace of the calme olde man hyd hym vp in her virgins secrete closets All these lamentations and feares were by nothyng els procured then Martial force and valient courage Ioy. My sonne is exceeding couragious Reason A great courage without great power is great follie True valiencie and magnanimitie apparteine but to fewe men although they that seeme most mighty strong how weake they be in deede many things besides death do declare but specially death it selfe so that it may be sayde shortly and truely There is nothyng more weake nor more proude then man. Ioy. I haue a couragious sonne Reason Reioyce therefore for thy house shal be full of great attemptes and emptie of rest and quietnesse and thou shalt often wishe that thy sonne were not so couragious To conclude fortitude is a noble vertue and magnanimitie beautifull but both are painefull and troublesome and modestie is safe and quiet Of the Daughters chastitie The Lxxiiii Dialogue IOY I Haue a chaste Daughter Reason A great ioy but a careful For the greater her chastity is the more watching is lust ouer her For there is nothyng more ardently inuaded then that which is defended with chaste watch and womanly shamefastnesse When the corruptor hath won the path he goeth foorth then more slowly and permitted thynges are more coldly desired a thyng that is muche coueted is hardly preserued Ioy. My Daughters beautie is excellent Reason There it is then where a very good thing ministreth matter to the most vilest The beautie of Lucretia was great but nothing in respect of her honestie so that the chastitie of this noble Matrone violently pricked foorth the hot young man to adulterie Thus the wickednesse of the reprobate abuseth the ornamentes of the vertuous Ioy. My Daughters chastitie is knowen Reason Pray that it may continue Thou readest in the Poet A woman is alwayes diuers and changeable Which although Virgil sayd it not were it therefore lesse true How many haue we seene that haue been honest whyle they were young and haue afterward prooued wanton in their age And so striuing with their present vices against their forepassed honestie doo seeme in a maner to repent them of their tyme honestly spent a more foule reproche then whiche there can chaunce in no sexe and age Ioy. I haue a most chaste Daughter Reason If she knewe her selfe and vnderstoode whose gift chastitie is and geuing thankes vnto hym coulde apply all her studie to preserue the same wouâ—d continue vndefiled in safetie thou shalt then haue great cause I confesse to thanke God and reioyce with her more then yf thou haddest married her to a Kyng and yet beleeue me some tyme to feare also For since constancie is rare in al thinges be sure there is none at al in women Of a good sonne in Lawe The Lxxv. Dialogue IOY I Haue a very good Sonne in law Reason Thou oughtest to loue him more deere then thine owne sonne for thine owne sonne commeth to thee by chaunce but thy sonne in lawe by choyce Thanke therfore thy Daughter who owing vnto thee Nephewes hath now brought thee a sonne Ioy. Fortune hath brought vnto me a very good sonne in lawe Reason In this kinde of affinitie there be examples of notable fayth and treason Seldome or neuer hath any Sonne been so faythfull to his father as way Marcus Agrippa to Augustus Caesar as Marcus Aurelius to Antonius Pius vnto whom euen vnto his liues ende whiche was the space of three and twentie yeeres he so behaued hym selfe that not onely he deserued his loue and his Daughter but also the succession in his Empire as his Sonne through his continuall fayth and diligence But Nero was no suche sonne in lawe vnto Claudius although he not by his desartes but by his mothers policie obtayned the Emperours daughter and Empire Ioy. I haue founde a courteous and agreeable Sonne in lawe Reason Beware least eyther the hope of succession or the seekyng after goodes doo infringe this agreement Who wyll not wyshe that he may lyue whose lyfe he seeth to be profitable vnto hym selfe But yf he once begynne to attempt any thyng so that perhappes he suppose thy lyfe to be an hynderaunce or thy death begynne or seeme to be profitable vnto hym then the affections of the mynde are changed and secret hatred wyll soone breake foorth And of what force the discorde is betweene the Father and the Daughters husbande to say nothyng of the auncient Fable of Danaus and Nummianus who was slayne by the wycked treason of Aprimus his Father in lawe and likewyse Stilico who through the desyre to reigne forgat his Father in lawe that was dead and his Sonne in lawe that was lyuing the most memorable example of Caesar and Pompei doth sufficiently declare Of seconde Marriage The Lxxvi Dialogue IOY I Meane to be married agayne Reason If thou knewest throughly what a woman were or what excellent auctours doo write of her thou wouldest not haue married at the first Ioy. I entend to marrie againe Reason If thy first mariage haue not tamed thee then marrie againe if the tame thee not then thou mayst also marrie the third time Ioy. I am about to marrie againe Reason Who so hauyng chyldren by his fyrst marriage bringeth a Stepmother among them he setteth his house afyre with is owne handes If youth pricke thee or letcherous olde age styrre thee to lust then whiche there is nothing more filthie perhaps to speake now more
ciuilly then vertuously it were more profitable were it not the cause of sinne or forbyd by the lawe of God to remedie the matter by keepyng a Concubine then that a quiet house be disturbed by Stepmothers tempests and hatred Ioy. I entende to marrie againe Reason Thou maiest do so by the lawe of man the lawe of God rather suffryng it then praysing it All men knowe what Sainct Paul sayth concernyng that matter And truely we may easily perceiue how that among the Gentiles who in that respect lyued in more libertie this was more suffred then lyked of For your Forefathers dyd alwayes repute the experiment of many mariages to be a token of a certayne lawfull intemperauncie whiche opinion Sainct Ierome embracing how muche he writeth agaynst seconde marriages and how sharply our promised breuitie wil not suffer vs to declare whiche although it seeme al to be spoken agaynst women and not against men doubtles that sexe ought to be the greater preseruer of chastitie honestie notwithstandyng there is more wisedome and constancie required of men Ioy. I haue neede of seconde mariage Reason I should wonder vnlesse I knew your conditions for you make not only vayne but hurtful thynges also necessarie for you And as for thee thou hast a very hard mouth yf thou haue neede of another wife to brydle thee Ioy. I make hast to be married agayne Reason Too it then apace whyle thou art hotte and when thou art cold thou wylt repent thee Hast thou not noted how pleasaunt sleepe is in an emptie chamber Thy minde is only bent vpon that filthie and miserable act which passeth away and woundeth Of the marriage of Chyldren The Lxxvii Dialogue IOY MY ofspring is encreased by the marriage of my children Reason This care is somwhat more coÌ„mendable then the last was and yet notwithstanding the encrease of the hines hath often been more profitable then the bodyly issue The one filleth the caske with pleasant wine the other annoyeth the friende with bytter cares Ioy. I haue bestowed my daughter in mariage Reason If thou haue so doone circumspectly and happily thou hast both preserued thy daughter and founde a sonne or as I haue sayde erewhyle one better then a sonne but yf thou haue doone otherwyse then hast thou both cast away her and purchased to thy selfe an enimie and to thy daughter a Tyrant Ioy. I haue bestowed my daughter in mariage Reason If she were a good daughter thou hast bereft thy selfe of a sweete and pleasant iewell and transported it into an other mans house If she were an euyl daughter thou hast eased thy selfe of an heauy burden and laden therewith another man. Ioy. I haue married my daughter Reason Reioyce not to muche at it Maryage hath been vnto many the begynnyng of a careful and vnfortunate lyfe and admit that al thynges fall out happyly a wyfe is a trouble some thyng and thou hast sent foorth her whom thou louest about an harde labour and a payneful businesse Chyldren wyl come at home and thereof wyll spryng vp a peculiar fountayne of cares But yf there come nonâ— then that is a miserie and griefe Thus fruitefulnesse shal make her burdensome and barrennesse shall make her odious and perhaps she wyll wyshe she had taryed at home with thee and wyll haue this thy ouerhastie loue in bestowyng her Ioy. I haue gotten an husbande for my daughter Reason The ende of an idle lyfe and the begynnyng of a payneful an heauie burden of household cares the knowledge of the worlde and the triâ—â— or hersâ—â—â—e Ioy. My daughter is married Reason But she â—oth 〈◊〉 her libertie her virginitie her quietnesse whiche is nâ— indifferent change Ioy. I haue prouided a wyfe for my sonne Reason The bringing home of a daughter in law is worse then the sending â—ooth of thine owne daughter forasmuch as ciuil war is alwayes more dangerous then forraigne Thou hast set open thy Castle gates perhaps to an enimie or truely to a partner for nowe thou art not Lord and maister alone of thyne owne goodes and therfore it skylleth to know what maner one thou lettest in Ioy. I haue prouyded for my sonne a noble ryche and a fayre wyfe Reason Why dooest thou conceale that whiche followeth to wyt a proude and an importunate one who is enuious of her husbande and of thy lyfe There is auncient war betweene the husbandes father and the sonnes wyfe and neyther of them hath the greater vauntage but equal feare for they be both in one state and condition There is no lyuyng thyng that so much affecteth the hygher place as dooeth a woman For in case she perceyue her selfe by meanes of your lyfe debarred thereof what she imagineth then in her mynde and what she wysheth it were an harde matter to coniecture Ioy. I haue marryed my sonne to a wife Reason What knowest thou whether thou haue procured an euerlastyng weerysomnesse to hym thy selfe or perhaps secrete danger to you both Many daughters in law haue consumed theyr fathers in law and husbandes with continual pryde and doggednesse some haue made them away with poyson and some haue shortened theyr dayes with a weapon Howe many sonnes had Egisthus before he had euer a daughter in lawe Yea there hath ben founde suche a daughter in lawe who beyng carryed away with desyre to raigne and impaciencie of the seconde roomth to the ende she myght the sooner see her husband and her selfe possesse the gouernment hauyng procured the death of her owne father caused her Chariot to be driuen ouer his stayne carkasse If this be the rewarde of fathers at their owne chyldrens handes what shal the sonnes father looke for at his sonnes wiues hands Ioy. I am glad that I haue celebrated my daughters maryage Reason How many tymes hath an vnlucky euent disturbed this celebration and teares tumultes folowed songs and banquettes and dauncinges All immoderate ioy is foolish specially in these thynges whereout sorow may and woonteth to aryse Ioy. I haue both prouided a wyfe for my sonne and an husband for my daughter Reason Thou hast chaunged burdens thou hast layde a strange care vpon thyne owne shoulders and carryest thyne owne care vpon other mens shoulders Of Nephues The .lxxviii. Dialogue IOY I Haue a younge Nephue borne of my sonne Reason A great loue of thy sonnes and a continuall care notwithstandyng it hath a certeine ende but if it passe any further there is no ende of carefulnesse and both he that is borne of thy sonne and he likewyse that shal be borne of him finally all of them are borne to thy payne whose number how farre it proceedeth or may proceede thou knowest He that was the father of the people of Israel yf he beyng affected as thou art had in suche sort lyued duryng the lyfe cyme of our fyrst fathers howe great a burden of cares should there haue rested vpon the weeryed olde mens shoulders For besides Priestes and women and chyldren and other vnhable
part of them through the fault of the geuers or receyuers are lost and cast away and that way vnto loue is more easie short and streight whiche I shewed thee before to wit to attayne vnto loue by leuyng in whiche while thou goest forwarde yf thou win the true name of a beneficiall person it shall make thee famous and beloued aboue expectation Ioy. I haue bestowed many and great benefites Reason Not what but how and with what minde thynges be doone both God and man doo respect great thinges are many tymes odious and meane thynges acceptable but aboue all the very naked hart only is accepted in the sacrifice and gyft of the poore Of loue of the people The .xciiii. Dialogue IOY THE people loue me Reason Stay awhyle and anone they wyll hate thee Ioy. The people loue me Reason Make no great hast the ende is not yet come for as one day so is the whole lyfe described by the ende Ioy. I am beloued of the people Reason Who was of them better beloued then the Scipioes then Camillus then Rutilius and Metellus What shall I speake of Themistocles or Milciades or of his sonne Cymon or Aristides What of Theseus of Solon of Hannibal or of Lycurgus These Citizens I say although they were neuer so dearely and neuer so short tyme beloued of their people notwithstandyng their endes are all knowen and this loue turned eyther into contempt or into hatred and requitall vnwoorthy of their desartes trauell at home and abroade accusation death exile imprisonment Ioy. Most part of the people loue me Reason The woorser sort then for there are but fewe good and it is knowen that the loue of euyll men is purchased by euyll meanes For yf a certayne similitude and lykenesse procure friendshyp as the wyse holde opinion thynke of thy selfe what thou art in that most of the people doo loue thee Ioy. The people loue me Reason A fayre Wynters weather Sommers ayre calmenesse of the Sea the Moones state and loue of the people yf all these were compared togeather for inconstancie the last shal beare the bell Ioy. The people honour me Reason With theyr lyps I thynke but theyr hart is far from thee for it is not more true vnto thee then to god The people doth seldome any thyng wyllyngly but raise tumultes and vprores Ioy. The people feare me Reason They wyl not doo so long For it soone decayeth that is not grounded vpon assured iudgement Ioy. The peoples good wyll is feruent towardes mee Reason Of an hot beginning many times commeth a warme middle and a cold end which may be seene in nothing sooner then in the good wil of the people Ioy. The people prayse me Reason The prayse of fooles is counted infamie among the learned Ioy. The people haue me in admiration Reason After some smal alteration they wyll despise thee for alwayes they holde one of the extremities but neuer the meane as fearyng hym whom they so account of for an enimie Ioy. The people doo reuerence Reason I woulde marueyle yf thou couldest prosper vnder so attendyng attenders Ioy. The people haue a good opinion of me Reason They vse to iudge on both sydes without discretion and therfore the verdict of the common people among true iudges is an argument of the contrary Ioy. The people esteeme wel of me Reason The estimation and iudgement of mad men is suspected of sounde wyttes I had rather the people knew thee not then so lyked of thee Ioy. The people speake much of me Reason And thou therfore art ouer credulus and carryed away with the populare ayre which although thou knowest to haue happened sometyme vnto great men yet is the vanitie neuer awhyt the lesse to reioyce in a slender and vncertayne state Ioy. The people haue me in admiration Reason And I also woonder at thee that thou ascribest this any deale to thy glory Ioy. The people loue me Reason This is no prayse to thee but thy fortune it is the peoples manner oftentymes to loue the vnworthy but from them many tymes they receyue a most woorthy reward of theyr vnworthy loue Of inuadyng a Tirranny The xcv Dialogue IOY I Haue inuaded a Tyrranny ouer my countrey men Reason Thou hast wel requited thy foolysh louers They aduaunced thee more then reason required and thou hast throwne them downe vnder the yoke of vniust seruitude Ioy. I haue taken vpon me a Tyrrannie Reason Thou hast depriued others of theyr libertie thy selfe of securitie and both of your rest Ioy. I haue obteyned a Tyrranny Reason A state of vndoubted trauayle of an vncertaine euent but for the most part infortunate I wyl not refer thee vnto auncient and forreine Histories What was the end of Alexander Phaeraeus what of Dionysius of Syracusae what of Phalaris of Agrigentum what of Anno the Carthagien what of Elearchus of Heraclea what of Aristotinus Ephirensis what of Nabis the Lacedemonian and lastly of Hipparchus the Athenian whose death purchased immortal fame to his murtherers Neyther wyl I send thee to new and domestical examples Cassius and Melius Manlius Citizens of Rome Catuline also and the Gracchi Apuleius not Tyrantes but affectyng a tirranny who were espied in theyr wycked attempts hyndred of theyr purpose and suppressed And lastly not vnto those who beyng greater not better cloked theyr cruel and vniust tyrrannie with the colour of a iust Empire namely Caius and Nero Domitianus and Commodus Bassianus and the residue of that crue who were Princes only in name and had both Tirantes mindes and Tirantes endes but I wyl rather refer thee vnto other whom in the remembrance of your fathers and grandfathers yea also of this present age this your region hath seene These that I may not weery thee with them that are farre of I would haue thee to consyder and behold and thou shalt see that the common and vsual ende of Tyrantes is eyther by swoorde or poyson and thou wylt confesse that the saying of the Saterical Poet is true Fewe Kinges and Tirants dye without murder and woundes or of a drye death without bloodshed Ioy. I possesse a tyrranny ouer my Citizens Reason A booty and slaughter house to fyl thy selfe with gold and with blood to gither with the gold lyke an hungry Crow and like the greedy Horsleach which wyll not let go the skyn tyll he be full of blood But with what countenance or what conscience doest thou either shead that blood which to preserue yf thou were a man thou shouldest wyllingly shed thine owne blood or extortest gold from thy Citizens to geue it vnto thy cruel tormentors spoiling them whom thou shouldest feede with thy ryches and enryching those from whom as thou readest thou shouldest by al meanes extort so smally are the examples and preceptes of your Elders regarded But this is one most vyle discommoditie in the lyfe of Tyrantes that they stand alwayes in feare of them whom they shoulde trust trust them that haue no
vse it to vse it I say not as Maharbal gaue counsayle to Hanibal but as Hanno that was a better man gaue counsayle to his Common wealth For truely Peace is the best vse and fruite of victorie neyther are iust warres taken in hande for any other ende then for peace Ioy. Victorie is on my syde Reason Beware she flee not away for she hath winges Of the death of an Enimie The Ciiii. Dialogue IOY I AM glad of myne Enimies death Reason To hope for any thing by the death of an enimie and to reioyce in any mans death perhaps is permitted to hym that is immortal yf any suche may be founde but to hope for the death of another man whiche may fyrst happen to thy selfe or to reioyce that that is befallen to thyne Enimie whiche needes must happen to thy selfe is a foolyshe hope and a vayne ioy Ioy. I reioyce in myne Enimies death Reason Some other ere it be long wyll reioyce in thine Ioy. I am glad that mine Enimie is dead Reason If ye were mindful of your owne estate one man would neuer reioyce in the death of another When I pray thee was it euer seene that when two went togeather to execution the one conceiued any pleasure in the others death knowing that himselfe must goe to the same pot but doth not rather lament beholding his owne death in his fellowe Ioy. I haue conceyued delyght in mine Enimies death Reason How often thinkest thou haue mens deathes that haue been desired greeued the desirers and they haue in vayne begun to wishe for their liues who before wyshed not in vayne for their deathes when as they begin once to vnderstand that they haue wished to their owne destructioÌ„ But your affections are hastie Whatsoeuer ye wishe to haue ye wish it vehemently as it is written Iulius Caesar sayde of Marcus Brutus Yea rather ye wyshe it too muche and your earnest desyre can suffer no tariaunce And therefore whatsoeuer ye woulde haue ye wyll haue it presently whereof proceede not onely vngodly wyshes but also poysonynges and murthers and whatsoeuer one man can imagine against another beyng the most hurtfull creature towarde his owne kinde â–ª Ye wysh for many thynges whiche yf ye tooke aduise of reason ye would stand in feare of when they are accomplished and the varieue of your wishes is an argument of your euyl choyce neyther doeth your rashnesse returne to that whiche is right vntyll your â—â—olythe affections are checked with haplesse successe Ioy. I am glad of mine enimies death Reason If thine enimie were but of smal fame and reputation to reioyce in his death is shameful and to be sorie superfluous but yf he were noble and famous it is meete and decent to be sorie though not for the man yet for vertues sake whiche euery day hath fewer places to harbour in Sodyd Metellus Macedonicus bewayle the death of the younger Scipio Africane and Caesar the death of Pompeâ— and Alexander the death of Darius Ioy. I recioyce in the death of my Foe Reason How canst thou reioyce in his death whom thou art commaunded to loue not as thine enimie but as thy neighboure being the worke of the same woorkeman Ioy. I am gladde of myne enimies death Reason Perhaps thou hearest not or regardest not the most holsome and knowen counsel of the Wyse man Reioyce not sayth he in the death of thine enimie knowyng that we shall all dye And wyl we notwithstandyng be glad Doubtlesse this counsayle or precept is holsome Of hope of Peace The Cv. Dialogue HOPE I Hope for Peace Reason It is better to keepe peace then to hope for it It is the part of a foole to neglect thynges certayne and to embrace doubtfull hope Hope I hope for peace Reason Thou shouldest haue kept her more narrowly neyther suffered her to depart whom thou now hopest for What yf thine impatience haue brought thee vnto this Hope that thou myghtest choose to be vexed with hoping for that whiche thou myghtest haue vsed by enioying Hope I hope for peace Reason Hope of peace hath destroyed many and calamitie vnlooked for followyng hoped peace hath ouercome and oppressed the vnskilfull sleepy whom it could not haue harmed if it had found expert Hope I hope for peace Reason Why doest thou hope so long for that whiche is in thy hand to attayne vnto It is seldome seene but they do finde peace that are in deede willing effectually to seeke it but those to whom the name of peace is sweete peace it selfe is sowre and therefore they that seeke for peace withstand peace Peace hath foure enimies dwelling among you to wit couetousnesse enuie anger pride these if you sende away into euerlasting exile your peace shal be euerlasting Hope I am in assured hope of peace Reason Betweene hope of peace peace it selfe many thinges do happen a light worde and a smal gesture hath many times disturbed compounded peace yea the very treaties and parlees of peace are often broken of by dent of swoord and hope of peace sharpneth the mindes and aggrauateth warres euen so may a man tearme the treatie of friendship which commeth to none effect the whetstone and sharpning of hatred Hope There is talke of peace there shal be peace Reason There is often talke of peace to no purpose many times dangerously haue the captaines of the Frenchmen and Carthagiens entreated of peace when as Camillus surprised the one and Scipio the other Hope After warre is ended peace shal be confirmed Reason How muche better were it that it were confirmed before the beginning of war how many mischiefes and losse of mens liues might be by seasonable peace preuented But you like wilful and truently children can neuer learne wisedome without whipping In peace ye seeke after warre and in warre ye seeke after peace and neuer begin to know or loue peace but when ye are afflicted with warre then as ye lament that ye haue lost peace so anon when it is restored vnto you with like lightnesse ye contemne it vntyll that hauing lost it once or twice ye are taught not to contemne your owne commodities and to couet your owne harmes finally not to be mad nor foolysh whereof ye may be ashamed before ye haue obtayned it Ye must haue one thing tolde you often and it suffiseth not to haue heard but ye must often see and trye I wyll speake more playnely ye must be beaten often before you can learne any thing Hope Peace wil follow warre Reason It had ben better it had gone before and stopped the course of warre there is no such madnesse as in hope of remedy willingly to receyue a wounde Formentations are helpes and not causes of woundes It is naturall for hym that is sicke to wyshe for health but for one that is whole to wysh for sicknes in hope of health is madnesse Hope We shal haue peace Reason Peace many times procureth hurtful alterations to Cities Countreis which although of
tidinges when thou art awake Hope I saw good hap in sleepe Reason But thou shalt finde il hap when thou awakest Hope I was an happy man in my rest Reason But thou shalt be wretched in thy trauayle For many tymes â—reames signifie nothing and many tymes the contrary Hope True thynges are often seene in dreames Reason But how more often false The lyke iudgement is to he geuen of this and all such other kyndes of vanities one thyng happenyng true by chaunce purchaseth credite to a great many of false and mens myndes gapyng after that whiche is to come taketh no regarde of that whiche is past Hope The Diuinours promyse me many thyngs Reason I do not much wonder at these impostours and deceyuers who accordyng to theyr maner do lyue by theyr practise but I marueyle more at you that you subiect your lyues soules and wittes vnto theyr bellies and therfore take hede what perswasion thou holdest â—â—r yf thou wylt folowe mine aduyce thou shalt expect with a quiet and vpryght mynde not what the Starres but what the Creatour and gouernour of the Starres hath determined concernyng thee feruently woorkyng somethyng euery day whereby thou mayst be founde the more woorthy of his loue Concernyng the euentes let it not once enter into thy mynde to mooue any of them vnto whom the trueth is lesse knowne then to thy selfe Finally thus perswade thy selfe that it is an harde matter for men to knowe what it is to come and that it is not lawful for them yf it were expedient nor expedient yf it were lawfull Of glad tidings The. Cxiii Dialogue HOPE I Haue heard glad tydyngs Reason Beleeue not fame she is a lyar Hope Many tel me glad newes Reason It is better sometyme to beleeue one then many Hope That cannot be altogeather false which so many messengers doo report Reason The maner of common report is wel knowne which is to mingle lies with trueth A great many of lyes are seasoned with a few true tales for no body wyl beleeue hym that which al lyes Hope The first aucthour of the rumor is a credâ—â—le person Reason But there is no man contented to report only as much as he hath hearde or seene it is nothyng worth vnlesse that euery one adde some thyng of his owne to that which he hath heard or seene which when many haue done a man shal perceiue how one lye hath been heaped vpon another so that this mischiefe going from hande to hande hath encreased in mens handes as it was going and which the most excellent poet sayeth It floorisheth by moouyng and getteth strength by going Hope Hytherto the report is very ioyful Reason What yf it flatter thee that it may strike thee Many times after ioyful rumors folow woful massacres this for the more part is the manner of fortune to promyse hope that she may wound the deeper and she annoynteth her cruel weapon with the sweetnesse of some glad tidynges wherewith she purposeth to cut the throate of hym that reioyceth Which thyng forasmuche as the learned and wyse do vnderstande they are nothyng mooued with flatteryng reportes but remayne vnmooueable recountyng with them selues either that it is contrary or that this rumour that semeth so acceptable may be chaunged into the contrary Hope I am delighted in a ioyful rumour Reason Stay a whyle tyl thou knowe whether it be certayne and if it so fall out yet is it a shame for a manly courage to be moued with euery smal rumour though they be true but most shameful with those that are false Many haue ben ashamed that they haue reioyced and the remembrance of theyr false ioy hath augmented theyr true griefe Of expecting a mans sonne or Farmer or wyfe The Cxiiii Dialogue Hope I Hope for my sonnes returne Reason Thou hopest for a careful ioy and a neare sorow Hope I hope to see my friend agayne Reason Thou hopest for a sweete thyng but deceiueable mens affayres tremble vpon a brittle foundation perhaps he whom thou now lookest for is dead which thou maist proue yf thou liue There are a thousand kindes of impedimens one that is common to al that is death Hope I trust to enioy the desired sight of my friend Reason These two are almost alwayes ioyned togeather to wyshe and to hope but by sundry casualties they be dayly separated Howe many may we thynke were there in Rome that with very desirous myndes expected the returne of the last Marcus Marcellus But contrarywyse his most cruel foe attended his commyng in the myddes of the way whose furious sauagenesse was more mightie then was the mercyfulnesse of the conquerour that reuoked his aduersarie from exyle And therfore Caesar at the request of the Senate coulde pardon Marcellus but Marcellus Client coulde not sustayne any greater griefe then that he shoulde enioy that benefite from Caesar Hope I hope to see my friende and I expect him hauyng no enimie to hinder his commyng Reason What man is he that hath not an enimie and albeit he haue no priuate enimie yet is there any without publique fooes I meane theeues and murderers who mooued with couetousnesse haue proclaymed open war agaynst mankynde But imagine there chaunced some such good constellation that this mischiefe were banyshed out of the worlde notwithstandyng who shal defend Wagons and Horses from ouerthrowyng ryuers and streames from ouerflowyng brydges and houses from fallyng tempestes on Sea and lande from rysyng Adde moreouer the incursion of fierce and wylde beastes and venomous vermyne by meanes of whiche Dicaearchus a most curious searcher of such matters sheweth that not only certaine particuler men but also whole generations of men haue ben destroyed And in summe looke how many chaunces there be in humane affaires wherof there is no certaine number so many enimies are there of mankinde which may I say not slacke thy hope but extinguysh it And though nothyng els doo happen yet death of whom I spake erwhile whether men go or stande is alwaies at their elbowe and perhaps more neere to them that ryde and traueile vppon the way by howe muche theyr iourney and riding and changyng of place seemeth to be subiect to more kindes of casualties Hope I hope for my friendes returne after the prosperous dispatching of his businesse Reason How gloriously prosperously Drusus Nero that was sonne in law to Augustus behaued him self and accomplished his affaires that he was beloued of his enimies that he had vanquyshed so that they dyd almost adore hym as a God whose wonderfull affection towards the memoriall of hym euen to this present day I suppose thou mightest perceiue yf euer thou were conuersant among the states of Germanie Truely he atchiued such exploites wherof he might woorthily vaunt him the whiche appeareth yet remayning to this day ingrauen in certayne Romane stones wherof some of the first sillables are defaced and throwen downe by misfortune in these verses At the departing of the Rhine I inuaded the land and wasted
hurtfull vnto dread and reuerend names it hath not spared also the most holy vertuous persons whose Lorde and maister was voyde of all maner of crime notwithstandyng in that he was slaundered and defamed by the wicked it is an argument that men muste not hope to escape from that whiche hapned vnto God hym selfe Sorowe I am molested with sharpe infamie Reason For vertue not to be assaulted with enuie it is almost impossible it is sufficient yf she be not therewith ouerthrowne and yf glory be beaten agaynst slaunder if so be it be pure and sounde glory it waxeth the brighter for the rubbyng Sorowe I am vexed with bitter slaunder Reason Common report beyng driuen with the whirlewyndes of blinde ignorance striketh the very tops of the highest things but if it shaketh not them or if it shake them it ouerthroweth them not Take this for a certayne token of excellencie in thee in that thou art fallen among the tongues of the common people as yf it were among so many dangerous rockes For base names and suche as in a maner creepe lowe by the grounde doo neyther receyue the lyght of notable prayse nor yet the darkenes of great infamie moste commonly that whiche is contemned is at quiet Sorowe The common people geue me an yl report Reason It is well that thou art so ryfe in theyr tongues and not in theyr pennes the speeche of the common people is sharpe but not permanent thyngs that ryse vpon smal or false causes muste needes be short and when men haue barked yenough they wyll then holde theyr peace they that begyn so fiercely are commonly the sooner weeryed Sorowe I am troubled with the tongues of the common people Reason Howe yf thou haddest hapned to lyght vpon the style of some notable Oratour or Poet as many haue doone in tymes past whom we see to be left infamous vnto posteritie through the eloquence of theyr enimie as the noble sygh of kyng Alexander who enuied at Achilles that he hapned vpon so noble a Poet as Homer was so feareful was this most excellent prince to incur the displeasure of learned eloquent men least haply they should wryte any thyng sharply agaynst hym although a man ought not to be quayled at the speeches of slaunderous writers but rather theyr slaunder is to be refelled eyther with lyke sharpenesse of style as dyd Cicero agaynst Salust and Demosthenes agaynst Aeschines and Cato agaynst innumerable or els to be resisted with notable boldnesse and courage of mynde more then euer Actor expressed vppon the Theater and the lyke muste be sayde vnto that which Vatinius aunsweared vnto Caluus when he hadde fynished his pleadyng I am not condemned because he is eloquent Howbeit nowe there is no danger synce that the common people for the more part doo continually prattle of some one matter or other but long it is not ere they leaue of beyng thereunto mooued eyther by wyll or constraint For a day wyll come that shall put to silence these charmyng and chyrpyng Grashoppers and make them gladde to lyue at rest Sorowe I am diffamed among the common people Reason Endeuour that thou mayest retayne a good name with thy selfe and a perpetuall and true good fame among the better sort As for this whereof thou nowe complaynest it wyll vanyshe away You vayne and fearefull generation of mortall men what dooth this short and blynde murmure of flatterers and slaunderers touche you There shall come some hereafter that wyll iudge more freely and indifferently And who are those iudges perhappes thou wylt aske me Yee can not knowe them but they shall knowe you I meane them that shal be borne after you who shall neyther be mooued with hate or malice towardes thee nor be borne away with loue or hope or feare of thee If you woulde haue vpryght iudgement geuen vpon your dooynges then tary and expect those iudges The tyme of theyr staying wyll not be long they come a pace and loe they wyll be heere anone Sorowe I haue incurred infamie by my notable deedes and vertue Reason There is a tyme wherein the loue of losse is nooryshed and encreaseth by trauayle and whiche is a strange matter to be spoken geathereth deepe rootes in a bytter and mischeuous soyle wherby it commeth to passe that a man shall see those to be moste desyrous of factions who haue some tyme been most greeuously punyshed for the lyke and this is a matter to to common and vsuall in your cities And therefore there is none that more loueth iustice or trueth then he that hath offered hym selfe vnto tormentes and death for the same Doo thou therefore loue vertue also and embrace it more and more for whiche thou hast lost thy good name then whiche there is nothyng more beautiful and precious for the whiche also thou susteynest infamie which is no small punyshment and contemnyng and refusyng all other thynges see thou embrace vertue only whiche no man is euer able to take from thee and saye thus vnto her All these thynges O Queene doo I wyllyngly susteyne for thy sake thou shalt restore me agayne into my perfect estate or truely at leastwyse thou only shalt be vnto me in steede of al thinges thou only noorishe me in thy sacred bosome so shal I not only not feele the losse of my good name but not so much as the discommodities of my life Sorow I am commonly euyl spoken of yea in euery corner Reason Take it well a worth The common multitude wyll make thee knowen thy vertue wyll make thee famous and thy conscience carelesse Of shame procured by meanes of vnwoorthy commendation The xxvi Dialogue SOROWE I Am reprooued for praysing an vnworthie person Reason That whiche is euyl many times springeth from a good roter and good and innocent persons iudge others to be suche as they are them selues Hereof then it proceedeth that they are more redy to prayse other then reason requireth and although I confesse it be euyll to prayse an vnwoorthie person yet to disprayse a vertuous man is farre more woorse Sorowe I haue praysed one that was vnwoorthie Reason If thou diddest it wittyngly thou art blame woorthie but yf through ignorance thou art to be excused It is not so euyl to be deceyued as to deceyue for to be deceyued belongeth to a man but to deceyue is the peculiar fault of the deceiuer Sorowe Another mans prayse redoundeth to myne infamie Reason Nay rather it was eyther thy fault or thyne ignorance For as there commeth no prayse so commeth there also no infamie from another Sorowe I am very sory that I commended an vnwoorthie person Reason Take heede also that thou be not sory for this often Be not ouerhastie to set thy selfe foorth to prayse or disprayse rashly for men are commonly greedie vnto both and to speake properly this is a disease and a certayne ticklyng of the tongue whiche is alwayes clackyng and canne neuer stande styll the brydelyng and refraynyng wherof
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
may feede my cattayle and I my selfe wyll resolue thee in this matter Then he answeared that it was impossible But she sendyng for such Noble men and Gentlemen as dwelt neere hande and causyng hym to geue his woorde for the perfourmance of his promyse helde vppe her young sonne in her armes and Is this my chylde in deede myne sayde she And when they all answeared yea she stretched foorth her armes and delyuered hym vnto her husbande and heere sayde she take hym I geue hym thee freely and nowe be assured that he is thyne Then al that stoode by brake foorth in laughter and gaue iudgemente on the womans syde and condemned the husbande by all theyr verdictes Such contentions and lamentations are thereto often among men they be hastie to marriage yea slipperie and headlong you thynke you shall neuer see the day wherein you shal be husbandes that is to say men as though otherwyse you shoulde neuer be men Then beyng resolued in ioyes or to speake more truely in madnesse the fyrst dayes of your marriage you spende in reuel route feastyng and daunsing among your weddyng solemnities with pastimes and songes and minstrelles and the residue of your lyfe you spende in suspition and braulyng In both you are to blame For neyther ought you in suche sorte to loue so doubtful a thyng neyther to abhorre so inseparable a thyng nor to hate so louely a thyng and by deceiptfull coniectures so to confounde the moste sacred lawes of the diuine and humane house and dissolue the moste entyre bondes of this lyfe Sorowe Yea my wyfe her selfe hath confessed that he is none of myne Reason Thou tellest me this as yf it were some syngular matter but it is common some confesse so muche whyle they are lyuing and some when they lye a dying among whom some haue wylled to haue it imparted vnto theyr husbandes after theyr departure Sorowe Myne owne wyfe hath conâ—essed vnto me that he is 〈…〉 my sonne Reason Olimpias that was wyfe vnto the renowmed kyng Phillip of Macedonie confessed as muche vnto her husbande whiche myght haue tended vnto the destruction of her valiant sonne and yet we reade neyther of teares nor sighes nor complayntes among them all Nowe hearken to a meery tale but not vnfyt for our purpose Not far from the Ocean Sea shore whiche lyeth right ouer agaynst Britaine not very many yeeres agoe report goeth that there was a certayne poore woman fayre and well fauoured but a notable Harlot who had twelue small chyldren by as many seuerall men one of them but a yeere elder then other But beyng sicke when she perceyued that the houre of her death was come she caused her husband to be called vnto her and this is no tyme sayde she nowe to dissemble any longer there is none of all these chyldren thyne but the eldest only for the first yeere that we were married I lyued honestly It chaunced that at the same time al the children sate on the ground about the fire eating according to the maner of the countrey At which woordes the good man was amazed and the children also that hearde their mothers communication whose fathers she reckoned al by name as they were in order of yeeres Which thyng the youngest of them all hearyng who was then but three yeeres olde immediatly layde downe his bread which was in his ryght hande and the Rape roote whiche he had in his left vppon the grounde besyde hym and tremblyng with feare and holdyng vp his handes after the maner of them that pray Now good mother quoth he geue me a good father And when in the ende of her speache she had tolde who was father to the youngest to wit a certayne famous ryche man takyng vp his bread and meate agayne in his hand That is well sayde he I haue a good father Of the losse of a brother The Lj. Dialogue SOROWE I Haue loste my brother Reason Yet I heare no cause why thou shouldest be very sory For Ouid sayth to true that there is seldome agreement betweene brethren Sorowe I haue lost my brother Reason It may be that thou hast at once lost both a brother and an housholde enimie Loe see then what thou hast lost an yll thyng couered with a good name Sorowe I haue lost a brother Reason Perhappes thou hast lost hym that hath wyshed thee lost and that alwayes resisted thyne attemptes Brothers hatred hath hyndred many from the entraunce vnto great commendation Sorowe I haue lost a brother Reason Thou hast lost peraduenture an heauie yoke as oftentymes we haue seene it fal out vnto the tender yeeres of thy chyldren thou hast lost also the enuier of thy lyfe the hynderer of thy glory and also which is euident the partner of thy patrimonie Sorow But I haue lost a vertuous and louyng brother Reason But a mortall one Vertue is no defence to the body but an ornament to the mynde and a procurer of immortall glory but as for the body she cannot exempt it from the power of death but rather thrusteth it forwarde many tymes thereunto before due tyme but yf he be left vnto nature good and had doo perysh a lyke and most commonly we see the best men weakest and the woorst long lyued but none immortall Sorowe I haue lost a good and gloryous brother Reason If thy brother be dead the glory vertue soule remaineth in safetie which only excepted death consumeth and destroyeth all other worldly thinges with lyke violence These therfore embrace thou as yf they were so many sonnes of thy brother with these immortal good things requite the mortal euil but if he haue sonnes liuing vnfeigned duetifulnes shal make them thine Sorowe I haue lost a good brother Reason Thou shouldest haue employed hym diligently which if thou diddest necligently his death is not to be blamed but thyne owne slouthfulnes Death hath exercised his power but thou hast slacked thyne oportunitie Sorow Death hath deceiued me for I thought not that he woulde haue died so soone Reason All thinges that happen vnto them that are vnwillyng seeme to come quickly but if they be wished for they come but slowly Sorowe I scarce thought that he could haue died Reason Vehement loue beareth with it selfe in al things and promiseth it selfe euery thyng vnpleasant thoughtes whatsoeuer is noysome vnto cast it escheweth insomuche as whosoeuer is in loue imagineth vnto hym selfe that his pleasures are in a maner euerlastyng thou since thou knewest that thy brother was borne oughtest also to knowe that he was mortall and therefore yf thou bewayle his tymely death as some sodaine matter thou art much deceyued but if as it were vntymely thou wast in a wrong opinion Sorowe I knewe that he was mortall but I thought not vpon his death Reason Vnwysely doone but this is your dissimulation beyng mortall ye thynke neuer to dye when as you may chaunce to dye euery day and needes you muste dye one day Yea rather it is the
very fewe among many are able to say so for of so many thousand thousandes as are borne howe many are there that atteyne to olde age And of them that do howe many lyue out the lawful tyme that they may be called old Sorowe I am very olde Reason It is a myracle to meete with a verie old man specially if a man thinke with hym selfe with how many dangers on steppes he hath passed to that age The great rarenesse of olde folke is a great argument of the manyfolde chaunces of this mortal lyfe Sorowe I am olde Reason Thou hast runne an hard and daungerous race it were marueyle but that by this tyme beyng weerie and desirous to rest thou were glad to see the ende so nigh Sorowe I am soone waxen olde Reason The course of your lyfe is sometyme short sometyme very short neuer long alwayes hard rough and vncertayne the last part whereof is olde age and the ende death what cause hast thou here to complayne alone Art thou waxen old By this time then thou oughtest to haue fulfilled the dueties of life and now rest thy self seing thou art come to the end thereof That traueiler were worse then mad that being weerie and weakened with his long iourney woulde be content to goe backe agayne There is nothyng more acceptable to them that are weerie then their Inne Sorowe I am aged Reason The toyles of thy lyfe haue been pleasant vnto thee belike if thou be sorie thou hast passed them Sorowe I am an olde man. Reason If thou haddest a delyte to lyue loe thou hast lyued what needes thou must do thou hast fulfilled And who is so mad that wylbe sorie for the doing of that whiche he wyshed vnlesse he perceyue that he wyshed a misse or reioyceth not that that is done alredy that might not be left vndone nor be done without great trauayle And therefore on euery side thou hast cause to reioyce whether thou hast obteyned thy wyshed desire or accomplyshed thy necessarie and payneful duetie Sorow I am in yeeres and olde age hath chased away the delites of the body Reason Enioy the pleasures of the minde which are as many and truely more permanent and do neuer depart but when the soule departeth to her they cleaue her they folowe But bodilye pleasures when they come they bring offence and when they depart they leaue behinde them cause of repentance shame and sorowe Reioyce that thou art discharged and free from them and geue thankes to thy deliuerer for bringing thee out of the handes of thine enimies and causing thee do folowe thy duetie which thou haddest deferred and neglected Sorow I am olde and want mine accustomed pleasures Reason Accustome thy selfe then to new for olde age hath it proper pleasures whiche when thou hast tasted thou wylt loath those whiche thou hast lost if thou mightest euen rufe to returne vnto them Sorow I am olde and gray headed Reason The reuerende hoarie heares of a vertuous olde man carie with them not onely more aucthoritie but also honest delite then al the filthy pleasures of young men neyther be thou greeued at the changyng of their colour For whose senses are so corrupted or iudgment blynded that he woulde not rather beholde baskets ful of white Lilies then hutches full of blacke coales And yf he were to be transfourmed had not rather be made a whyte swanne then a blacke crowe Sorowe I am olde and the filthy wrincles haue furrowed my face Reason The forrowed lande bryngeth foorth the ranker corne and the lyfe that hath been wel instructed yeeldeth the ryper and pleasanter fruite in olde age If the wrincles of thy face offende thee frame the countenance of thy minde vnto more comlinesse whiche wyll neuer be deformed with wrincles nor altered with yeeres but rather encrease by continuance and to be short wyl do thee more honour if thou neglect it not Sorowe I am olde and become so wrincled and euyl fauoured that I scarce knowe my selfe Reason I tolde thee at the begynning of this Nowe thou wylt haue lesse desire to looke in a glasse lesse please thine owne perhaps but much lesse the eyes of wanton women whom to haue a desire to delite I cannot easily determine whether it tast of greater vanitie then lasciuiousnesse But they that séeke for trustinesse for constancie for grauitie for wysedome do hope more assuredly to fynde them among these wrincles then where the forehead and cheekes be playne and smoath and soft Sorow I am aged and the sweetest part of my lyfe haue I left behynd me Reason Nay surely the sowrest for those thynges that are most wyshed for are not alwayes best Many haue desired their owne hurte which they would not do were not the saying of the Satirike Poet true There are but fewe that can discerne the true goodes Sorowe I am olde and my pleasant dayes are past Reason The dayes in al tymes are muche one and lyke but mens mindes do varie yea one minde disagreeth from it selfe Hereof it commeth that the madnesse of youth on the one side and the impaciencie of olde age on the other haue in such sort disturbed the iudgement of this lyfe that that is counted good whiche is euyl and that most excellent whiche is woorst of al. As for the dayes they are of them selues al good for asmuch as the kyng and creatour of al worldes is good And although some dayes be hotte and some cold some drye and some moyst some cloudy and some cleare some troublesome and some calme yet yf thou haue a respect vnto the beautie of the whole worlde and the course of nature they be al good But yf they be referred vnto you and your iudgement they are almost al of them euyl sorowful doubtful heauie troublesome careful bitter plaintile lamentable ful of aduersitie Among these thou tellest me a tale of certayne pleasant ones I knowe not what whiche whiles they were present were heauie and not without their complaintes and nothing maketh them now seem pleasant but that they are past and the desire thou hast that they shoulde returne maketh them deare vnto thee and the rather for that perhaps they haue caried away with them some thynges whereby thou settest no small store A foole commonly loueth nothyng but that he hath lost Sorowe I am waren old but O that my young dayes woulde returne agayne Reason O no lesse foolyshe then vayne wyshe as thou meanest but yf thy vnderstandyng were of hygher matters then were it not voyde for it wyl surely come agayne one day and according as it is written Thyne youth shal be renewed as is were the youth of an Eagle Sorowe I am olde and my good tyme is past Reason As euery age is good to the good so is it euyl to the euyll liuers vnto both sure it is but short and very neare to the ende when as the godly shal be rewarded for their vertue and the wycked punished for their sinnes Which is then
Alas I am now an agâ—d wyght Reason Lament not for it thou hast fulfilled an hard charge thou hast passed through a rough and ragged iourney and finished an vnpleasant Comedie And therefore now after the maner of such actions thou shouldest clap thy handes and crie plaudite Sorowe I am an olde man. Reason Hast thou forgotten how that of late dayes one that was very familiar with thee expressed the effect hereof ex tempore not as a new saying but as comparable vnto any in tymes past For when a certaine freende of his sayde vnto hym I am sory for thee for I perceiue thou waxest olde I woulde thou were in as good estate as when I knewe thee fyrst he answered suddenly Seeme I not vnto thee foolysh enough but that thou must wysh me more foole then I am Take no care for me I pray thee for that I am olde but rather be sorie for me that euer I was young O how much vnderstanding is there conteined in this short answere whiche none can conceiue but he that hath tasteth the commodities of this age and remembreth the miseries of the other Reioyce therefore in thine owne felicitie although it be also true that often tymes good hapneth vnto men against their wylles and euyll vnwished for Doubtlesse vnto a good man that loueth veriue hateth fond affections one whole day of this age which thou mislikest of is more acceptable then an whole yeere of retchlesse youth Sorow Alas I am aged Reason If thou continue in this mind it may be truly sayd of thee which is verified of the common people that thou art not so much wretched now thou art old as that thou liuedst miserable that so fondly thou complaynest thereof now at the very ende of thy life Leaue of your complaints now at length you whining generation and willingly yeelde to the necessitie of nature since there is nothing to be lamented that her immoueable lawe hath determined For what is more natural for a man that is borne then to lyue vntyl he be old and when he is olde to dye But you being forgetfull of your estate doo eschew them both and yet of necessitie you must taste of the one or of the both And yf ye woulde escape them both then must you haue abstained from the third and beleeue me not haue ben borne at all As soone as your bodyes are growen into yeeres let your mindes waxe olde also and let not the old Prouerbe be euermore verified in you to wit That one minde is able to consume many bodyes Suffer without grudging your body and your mind to continue together to the ende as they came in so let them depart out of the worlde together and when the one draweth forwarde let not the other drawe backwarde Your dallying is but in vayne you must needes depart and not tarrie heere and returne no more whiche may seeme vnto you but a small matter in consideration of the immortalitie of your soules and resurrection of your bodyes whiche you looke for aboue suche as eyther looke for but the one or for neyther In vayne I say ye stryue agaynst the streame and goe about to shake of the yoake of mans frayltie whiche ye vndertooke when ye were borne Sorowe I am olde and the strength of my body is decayed Reason If the force of thy minde be encreased it is well and thou hast made a good exchange For there is no man ignorant vnlesse he lacke a minde that greater better exploites may be atchieued by the strength of the minde then of the body But yf the strength of the minde as oftentymes it hapneth be deminished through slouthfulnesse then hast thou I confesse lyued vnprofitably whiche is thine owne fault and not thine ages Sorowe I am olde and I cannot follow my businesse Reason Yf there be any thing to be done by the minde by so muche the better an olde man may doo it by howe muche he hath the more experience and knowledge in thynges and is lesse subiect to passions and his minde more free from all mischiefes and imperfections as for other matters olde men can not deale in them neyther becommeth it them to busie them selues that way who haue alredie layd all bodyly labour asyde But yf they continue in it and wyl not be withdrawen then doo they renue the auncient rid culus example of a Romane olde man who beyng commaunded by the Prince to surceasse from labour for that his impotent olde age at the one syde and his great ryches on the other requyred the same he was as heauie and sorowfull as yf he had mourned for some freende that was dead and caused all his housholde semblably to mourne A strange old man that abhorred rest as a certaine resemblance of death when as in deede there is nothyng more conuenient for an olde man then rest and nothyng more vnseemely then a labouryng and carkyng olde man whose lyfe ought to be a patterne of all quietnesse and tranquilitie Thou mayest learne moreouer of the Philosophers what and howe pleasaunt a thyng it is for vertuous olde men to lyue as they tearme it in the course of theyr forepassed lyfe whiche notwithstandyng the greatest number neuer accomplisheâ—h but dyeth before Sorowe My yeeres are quickly gone and I am become old Reason Your beautie health swiftnesse strength yea all that euer ye haue passeth away but vertue remayneth neuer geuyng place to olde age nor death In this most assured good ye ought at the beginning to haue stayed your selues whiche at the ende to doo I confesse is more difficult but there is no age that refuseth the studie of vertue whiche the harder it is so muche the more it is glorious Many haue scarce learnâ—d of long tyme in their olde age to be wyse and knowe them selues and yet better late then neuer whiche although it be but smally profitable now at the last cast of the lyfe and at the very poynt of death yet doo I iudge it well bestowed vppon that one houre to be passed without horrour and fearefulnesse yf so be it were not exerc sed in all the whole lyfe tyme before For neyther was he borne in vayne that dyeth wel nor liued vnprofitably that ended his lyfe blessedly Sorowe I am olde and at deathes doore Reason Death is at hand alike vnto all men and manie tymes nearest there where he seemeth furthest of There is none so young but he may dye to day none so olde but he may lyue another yeere yf nothing els happen vnto him but old age Sorowe I am throughly olde Reason Thou art rather throughly rype If Apples coulde feele and speake woulde they complayne of theyr ripenesse or rather woulde they not reioyce that they are come to the perfection for whiche they were made As in al other thinges so likewise in age there is a certayne ripenesse whiche is tearmed olde age the same that thou mayest see truely to be so the age and death of
far from the vttermost confines of Spaine vnto the cytie of Rome Lastly hast thou not heard howe that the holy fathers were resorted vnto as farre as the innermost and feareful dennes of the wyldernesse by the Romane Emperours I speake nothyng of Solomon but rather demaund what visitations any famous man euer wanted Freendes and acquaintance are delighted with mutuall communication and talke togeather and strangers are recreated only with the sight and beholdyng one another For the presence of noble and renowmed men is a pleasant and delectable thyng the whiche none tasteth but he that enioyeth it this do not thou call payneful but I graunt it to be difficult marie therewithal to be also glorious Sorow I am worne and consumed away with renowme Reason If thou wylt cast away this fame vertue also is forsaken from whose roote it spryngeth But yt thou wylt not do so then is it needfull that thou beare this burthen with a patient mind vnto the which many could neuer aspire with al their study cost and charges al their life long And thou peraduenture hast attayued thervnto Suffer therfore thy selfe to be seene of those that would not desire to see thee vnlesse they did loue thee thy good name Sorowe Many bring me into renowme euery where euen vnto my greefe and loathsomnes Reason What then haddest thou rather to be despised and counted an abiect Sorow Innumerable men do honour me euen vnto my great payne and greefe Reason Acknowledge then the gyft of God he doth honour thee to the ende he might both prouoke thee to honour hym and also that it myght repent thee that at any tyme thou dishonouredst hym For al honour and euery good thyng what soeuer is done of man to man is of God. Sorow Immoderate honour and continual visitation is a very troublesome thyng Reason I graunt this also but loue and reuerence whiche are the rootes of this trouble are very sweete and pleasant yf thou wylt apply the tast of thy minde vnto these they wyl beginne to sauour wel whiche nowe do thus disquiete thee Temper therefore the bitter with the sweete and not in this only but in al thynges whatsoeuer this present lyfe bryngeth wherein thou shalt not easily fynde honye wherewith gal is not myngled and more often the bitter exceedeth the sweete in quantitie Sorowe I am weeried with to muche renowme Reason That truely often tymes hapneth whereof we haue also knowen that woorthy and diuine Vespasian triumphing to haue complayned when as he was greeued with the solemnitie of the glorious shewes blaming hym selfe whiche had so baynely desired a triumph in his olde age whiche was neyther due to hym nor of his auncetours hoped for And although renowme it selfe be not to be wyshed for of it owne nature yet it is to be borne withal and loued the causes whereof are vertue and industry neyther are those to be forsaken at any tyme to the ende thou mayest want this for honest labour is a thyng muche more glorious then sluggysh rest and quietnesse Sorow I am muche offended with those that salute me by the way Reason Thou hast the Philisopher Crispus a partaker also of this greefe Nay rather whom canst thou finde at al besides those that take pleasure and delight in the common blastes and flatteries of the people as the Poet Maro speaketh Yet that noble man hath complayned hereof I beleue for that he sawe how the common and sudden salutation of the peopâ—â— did trouble his mynde beyng alwayes most earnestly geuen to studie for suche a one he is reported to haue been and as he hym selfe saith was therwith welnigh brought to his death But there is nothing whereof thou shouldest now complayne that whiche thou diddest wysh for hath hapned vnto thee that is that thou mightest be knowen vnto the common people otherwyse thou shouldest not lye so open to the meetinges of those that salute thee Thou mightest haue hydden thy selfe thou mightest haue taken thy rest thou mightest haue reioyced and delighted thy selfe in thyne owne bosome as they say the which some do define to be the best kinde of lyfe But you would faine be knowen famous in great cities and therwithal be both idel free quiet which is nothyng els then to wiâ—h that ye might remayne vnmooueable in a ship in the greate tempest waues of the sea Lastly it is the part of a proud arrogant person not to be able to suffer paciently the speech of his freendes that reuerence obey him seeing that the reproches of your enimies are to be suffered paciently Of sorowe conceyued for the euyl maners of men The .lxxxix. Dialogue SOROWE I Am sorie for the euâ—l maners and conditions of men Reason If tâ—â—u be moued with loue towâ—rdes them I prayse thee but yf with anger and indignation I prayse thee not For what apparteyneth it vnto thee what other men manners are so that thou thy selfe be good Doest thou nowe first of all perceyue the conditions of the common people Or els doest thou thinke that thy lyfe hath prouided to lytle businesse for thee vnlâ—sse thou haue a care ouer the lyues of other men and so thou take that in hande whiche neyther art nor nature hath been able at any tyme to bryng to passe wherein thou mayest hope for nothyng but paynes and greefes Yet these haue been the studies cares of certaine philosophers of whom one going foorth into the common assemblyes dyd alwayes weepe and the other on the contrarie part euermore laughed at mens manners and neyther of them without a cause howbeit that whiche the one dyd tasted of compassion and godlynesse and that whiche the other dyd of pryde and insolencie Sorow Who can abyde these vnruly and deceitfull dispositions and qualities of men Reason I had rather that thou shouldest be dishonested by force thou wouldest then abyde them if it were necessary Thou that canst not suffer others to be deformed and out of order yet suffer them to be apparelled as it pleaseth them and be thou apparelled as it liketh thee best and so thou shalt well reuenge thy selfe For honest qualâ—tyes do no lesse offend wanton eyes then vnhonest behauiour the sober and modest beholders Let them therefore ioyne pleasure with their affayres but mingle thou honestie with thy matters The lyght is no where more acceptable then in darkenesse and vertue in no place bryghter then amongst vices Why therefore doest thou complayne seeing other mens filthinesse shal increase thy coomlinesse Sorowe Who can endure paciently these diseases of mans minde and cheefely these that are enuious Reason Leaue the enuious men to them selues thou needest require none other formentor for them for they sufficiently afflict them selues both with theyr owne aduersitie and are consumed away with others prosperitie Men ought not therefore to pittie those that faynt and languyshe of theyr owne free wyll seeyng the diseases of the mynde are not so infectious as those of the bodye for
whereof is extant eyther in the bookes of histories or yet ryfe in the mindes of men that sawe them when as long sence vpon one and the selfe same day both the citie of Rhodes was shaken with an horrible earthquake and also newe Ilandes rose vp from the bottom of the sea and moreouer twelue auncient cities in Asia were ouerthrowen and some also swallowed vp into the earth After that the same mischiefe raged also in Achaia and Macedonia and last of all in Campania the most bewtiful part I say not of Italy only but also of al the world much about Senecas time who maketh mention therof among his naturall questions when as by the same most cruell outrage Herculaneum and the Pompeâ—j which are most famous cities of those quarters yea and Naples it selfe was not a litle molested as thou mayest reade Shall I prosecute all examples touching this matter Truely that were an infinite woorke Of late dayes thou mightest haue seene the Alpes which reach vnto the cloudes and deuide Italy from Garmanie who as Virgil saith do neuer mooue to stirre and quake and in many places to be ouerthrowne and immediatly after the queene of al cities greeuously shaken euen to the vtter subuerting of the towers and churches therof and also some layde flat with the ground And not long after this as it were for a continuance of the miserie it is wel knowne how that the best and most fertile part of al Germany namely the whole valley of the Rhine was shaken and vpon the shoare therof standing the citie of Basile and also castles and fortresses to the number of foure score and vpwarde vtterly ouerthrowen Truely an horrible matter were it not that death were the most terrible of al terrible thynges Who so hath learned not to feare that wyll feare nothyng as the Poet Horace sayeth excellently well If al the worlde shoulde fall though the peeces thereof strake hym he woulde not be a fearde For what skilleth it whether a litle stone fall vpon thee and brayne thee or the most mightie mountayne Apeninus crushe thee to death so thou be slayne by any of them or the whole worlde breake and fall vpon thee seeing there is but death in neyther Vnlesse perhaps some wyl count that death to be the more honorable whiche is procured by the greater instrument Wherefore to conclude this is the summe of myne aduice forasmuch as we haue also set downe some remedies agaynst lyghtnyng and all other mischeefes are releeued eyther by resistyng or geuing place vnto them and it falleth out contrariwyse in this that neyther flyght auayleth neyther wyt nor force can preuayle it were good aboue al thynges to lay away the feare of death whiche onely maketh al thynges dreadeful whiche thyng to do I confesse is very harde in deede to speake but yet not impossible to doo And forasmuch as there is no tyme nor place free from this heauie chaunce men ought to prepare and arme their myndes with al patience agaynst whatsoeuer may happen eyther by course of nature or by fortune at al tymes and places whiche cannot possibly be done vnlesse there be also adioyned the loue of vertue and feare of vice To conclude seeing that not only the heauens are in continuall motion and the elementes threaten you round about but also the earth vppon which you treade which also was hoped to be without al danger and a most assured rampire is sometime shaken deceiueth and putteth in feare her inhabitantes I exhort you to flee with your mindes vp to heauen and among al these shakinges and quakinges of thinges and men to repose al your hope in him who looketh downe vpon the earth and maketh it to quake of whom it is writen I am the Lorde and I am not changed Whosoeuer fasteneth vpon him the footestepes of a deuout minde is safe and sound and shal neuer be moued himselfe nor stand in feare of any earthquake Feare I cannot choose but be mooued and feared with earthquakes Reason Canst thou remoone al thy hope and mynde from the earth Do so and thou shalt lyue out of feare and stand vpryght whether that shake or fal For to repose assured trust in a quaking and vnconstant thyng is a great follie Of the plague farre and wide raging The .xcii. Dialogue FEARE I Am afrayde of the plague which rageth farre and wyde Reason In this also is nothyng els but the feare of death whiche being cast of thou hast purchased perfect securitie whiche feare ought not onely to be layde downe of valiant mindes but also neuer be admitted for what is lesse the part of a man then to feare common thynges Feare I am afeard of the plague Reason Forasmuch as thou must needes dye what shalt thou loose or gayne by dying of the plague but that thou shalt dye with more company but if thou escape that thy life be the sweeter vnto thee since that thou art deliuered out of so great a danger if so be it be danger and not nature to dye for the plague sweepeth not away al whiche if it had been so there should none haue escaped this last great plague a more sorer then which there was neuer any since the begynnyng of the worlde But many escaped who it had been better they had dyed whereof it commeth that as thou now seest the worlde is pestred with these kyndes of dregges as it was woont to be whiche neuer any plague nor death is able to consume they are so clodded and baken Feare I feare the plague Reason Say rather as the trueth is thou fearest death wherof for that I see thee so prone vnto complaintes I purpose to entreate before I make an ende of this booke For this only exepted wherefore shouldest thou abhor the name of the plague seeing as I haue sayd it is rather a kinde of comfort to die with many Feare I stand in dread of the plague Reason If it be a certayne kynde of loue and charitie towardes mankynde that draweth thee hereunto I haue cause to commend thee for there is nothing more besettyng a man then to take compassion vpon the miseries of men But if it be for thine owne sake onely I may iustly blame thee for wherein can the plague hurt thee that art a mortal man but to bryng thee to that whereunto thou must needes come vnlesse perhaps thou count this among the discommodities thereof not to be solemly mourned for whiche hapneth vnto them that dye so and thou count them more happie who are recited by Virgil to assend most bewayled of their freendes vp into heauen Of sadnesse and miserie The .xciii. Dialogue SOROW. I Am sad Reason A man must consider for what cause he is sad or merie These as many thynges els may be tearmed indifferent matters whiche vpon smal occasion may be made good or bad For sadnesse for sinne is good so that it ioyne not handes priuily with desperation and ioy for vertue and the remembrance of
wyshe and much more destitute of men then I woulde it were And therefore seeing there is nothing els to be expected at the handes of them that are nowe present but meare toyes and trifles yet yf there be any thyng alleaged by them whiche eyther they haue founde out them selues or borowed of the auncient wryters that may aswage thy greefe do not reiect it nor say as do the vnlearned this thou haddest out of the Philosophers For then wyl I answere thee with Cicero I thought thou wouldest haue sayde of whores and bawdes And to say the trueth where shoulde a man fishe or hunt but where fishes and wylde beastes are in the waters and wooddes Where is golde to be digged or precious stones to be gathered but where they growe For they are to be founde in the veines of the earth and vpon the shoares of the sea Where are marchandizes to be had but of merchantes Where pictures and images but of paynters and keruers And last of al where wylt thou expect Philosophical sawes but at the Philosophers handes Whiche although they lye hyd vp by them in their treasuries and were first founde out by them neuerthelesse the same are set open and expounded by other and that paraduenture more playnely or more pithily or more breefely or lastly disposed in some other order and methode promising lyke hope vnto al that heare them but bringing successe vnto fewe For such is the force of order and good ioyning as Horace very wel declareth in his Poeticalles that one matter being diuersly told representeth a greater grace vnto the mind of the hearer yea though it be a common thing that is told such noueltie may be added vnto that which is old and such light vnto that whiche is euident and suche beawtie vnto that whiche is fayre whiche I haue not nowe vttered as lackyng some other place more conuenient therevnto but because thou ministredst occasion at this present For I woulde not haue thee doo as it is the maner of blinde and ignorant pryde to disdayne vulgare and vsuall thynges whiche thou hast heard once and neuer vnderstoode Feare I yeelde vnto thee for I see that thou art very redie in these admonitions although far from effect to me wardes for I feare death yet neuerthelatter Reason There be certayne thynges in name and opinion of men greater then in effect certayne afarre of haue seemed terrible whiche at hande haue been ridiculous It were no wysedome to beleeue the vnexpert there is not one of these defamers of death that can speake any thyng to the purpose for being vnexpert he can learne nothing at all neyther can he be instructed in any matter by one that is vnexpert also Aske a question of a dead man he wyl answere nothyng and yet it is he that knoweth the trueth They wyl babble most that knowe death least and prophecie most vaynely of it wherein they haue least skyll Whereby it commeth to passe that by some death is made the most manifest thyng and of othersome the most hydden secret and this coniecturall case is diuersly tossed in suspition But in doubtfull matters it is good to cleaue to the best opinion and to holde that whiche shall make the minde rather merrie then dumpyshe Feare My soule feareth death Reason If in respect of it selfe that feare is vayne for that the soule is immortall But yf in respect of the bodye it is a thanklesse pittie to be careful of it enimie But if it feare to be dissolued it is to much in loue with it owne prison and bondes whiche were but a verie foolyshe affection Feare I am troubled with the feare of death Reason All fooles are afearde to dye and noe marueyle for all their felicitie is in theyr bodye whiche doubtlesse is by death extinguished And therefore not without cause good men are sorie to heare of theyr ende and heauie to beholde it For this is the nature of man that he can not lyue without desyre not to be vnhappie It becommeth a learned man who maketh no other accompt of his bodye then of a vyle Drudge and fylthie Carkasse whose dilligence and loue and hope and studie is wholy reposed vpon his minde to esteeme of the death of this bodye none otherwise then as of his departure in the morning out of some vnpleasant and noysome lodging Feare I can not choose but feare death Reason Thou mayest refuse to feare the departure out of this lyfe yf thou canst hope or wyshe for the entrance into an other For hereof it is that the same feare ryseth And although there be commonly diuers causes alleaged of the feare of this departure neuerthelesse they vanishe away when the hope of that other life is laide before the eyes Feare I dread death Reason The dread thereof is specially engendred by the lacke of meditating thereon and the sudden necessitie of dying whiche in a learned and wyse man is most shameful but specially in an olde man whose whole course and order of lyfe yf he be learned and wyse indeede ought to be a continuall meditation of death Whiche if it seemed so vnto the auntient Philosophie what may it nowe appeare vnto your new deuotion which is the hygh Philosophie and the true wisedome Consider the maner of them that are commaunded vpon a sudden to goe some far iourney how sadde and careful they are to make vp their carriage and how they complaine at their departure and in a maner repine that they had no longer warning before so that as soone as their backes are turned they thinke vpon necessaries which they haue forgotten and are discontented therewith Now there is no way longer then to dye none harder as they say none more noysome for Theeues none more obscure none more suspicious nor more vncertaine which though it wanted al these yet is it vnreturneable By meanes whereof ye ought to be the more diligent least haply ye forgette any thing for that when ye are once departed from hence ye can no longer doo as they that occupie other trades or vndertake whatsoeuer other iourney that is to say commit suche thynges by their letters or messengers vnto their freendes to see vnto as they them selues haue left forgotten For ye are not able to sende any message backe nor to stay in the place where ye were nor to returne agayne Ye must needes goe hence it is not possible for you to returne ye must needes goe thyther Souldiers from whence it is not needefull that ye come backe agayne Thus in Seneca sayde the Romane Captayne to his men and thus also sayth your Captayne to you And therefore seeyng ye must needes depart and come no more and that the necessitie of your iourney is very certayne but the houre of death vncertayne this is your onely remedie to be alwayes readie in mind to answere when ye are called and to obey when ye are commaunded and when all thinges are disposed in good order at your Captaines fyrst
commaundement to goe foorth on you iourney couragiously which ye must needes take in hand eyther willingly or in spite of your beardes This mee thinketh should very muche abate your feare and payne of death and make you not onely carelesse but also desyrous to depart hence Otherwyse yf ye be vnprouided and take no regarde the same may befall vnto you whiche Cicero once truely in his Epistles prophecied vnto his freende Brutus Ye shal be suddenly oppressed beleeue me freende Brutus quoth he vnlesse ye foresee and make prouision And so truely it hapneth in deede I say vnto all that vse no forecast in that which is lyke to happen vnto them hereafter And seeyng prouidence in all thinges is very necessarie yet is it specially to be regarded in those thynges whiche can be done no more but once wherein one errour sufficeth for wheresoeuer the foote slyppeth there is an ende Sorowe Now doo I verie muche abhorre death Reason Thynges deepely rooted are not easily plucked vp I knowe well as I sayde that the feare of death is engraffed within the mindes and senses of men specially of the vulgar sort As for the Philosophers they account death neyther good nor bad for that they recken it a thyng of it selfe neyther to be wyshed nor feared but number it among thynges indifferent whiche in respect of those that enioy them some tyme they tearme good and some tyme euyll Which thyng I perceyue well to be lyked of one of your religion who sayde that the death of sinners was euyll but of the Saintes and vertuous men most precious Sorowe I feare death I hate death Reason From whence this feare and hatred of death commeth vnto men verily I shoulde muche merueyle were it not that I knewe the daintinesse of your mindes whereby ye nouryshe and encrease this and suche lyke degenerate kindes of feare Dooest thou not perceyue howe that the greater part of men are afearde of the very name of death Whiche what is it other then to abhorre your owne nature and to hate that whiche ye are borne to be then whiche there is nothyng more vayne among men nor more vnthankefull towardes god Howe many are there whiche with greefe doo heare that name whiche ought alwayes to beate vppon the inner eare Without the whiche there is no man that can thinke vppon him selfe for what should he thinke him selfe to be other then a mortal creature As often as a man turneth backe into the consideration of him selfe doth not the name of death presently come into his minde But ye abhor that as though death would force in at the eare and ye turne away your mindes striue to forget that which wyl by and by compel the most vnwilling of you al to haue it in remembrance For loe ye refuse to thinke vpon death which not long after ye must of necessitie both thinke vpon also suffer the insult whereof would a great deale the more easely be borne yf it were thought vpon before but now that both of them are brought to a narrowe poynt together the one of them exasperateth the other For euery thing that is vnthought on sudden shaketh the soule It is as much follie to couet a thing in vaine as to be desirous to auoyde that which thou canst not they are both of them the more foolish by how much it had ben the more hurtful that thou haddest obteyned that which thou desirest But there is nothing more hurtful amongst al the mischiefes of this worlde then to forget GOD a mans owne selfe and death which three thynges are so vnited and knytte together that they may hardly be plucked asunder but ye wyll seeme to be mindfull of your selues and vnmindfull both of your begynnyng and ending Thou mayest marke them that vpon some occasion set all thinges in order in theyr houses howe there is scarce any that dare say when I am dead but yf I dye as though that were in doubt then the which there is nothyng more certayne Neyther is this saying If I dye plainely pronounced but rather yf any thyng happen vnto me otherwyse then well whiche what I pray thee can it other be then the selfe same thyng that hath hapned vnto all men or shall happen both vnto them that are nowe alyue or that shall be borne hereafter Vnto whom as there hath hapned sundrie kindes of lyfe so shall there lykwyse befall diuers kindes of death but one necessitie of dying The same doest thou couet to escape whiche neyther thy Fathers neyther the Kinges of nations coulde euer escape nor euer shal Deceiue your selues as much as ye lyst euen so shall it happen vnto you as it doth vnto them that winke against the stroke of their enimies weapon as though they should not feele the danger which they see not ye shal be stroken ye shal dye ye shall feele it but whether it shal happen vnto you eyther blinde or seeing it lyeth in your handes Therefore desire to dye well which thing also vnlesse ye doo lyue well is in vaine Wysh therefore I say and endeuour your selues and doo what lyeth in you commit that whiche remayneth vnto him who vnto those whom he brought into this lyfe of his owne accorde not being therevnto required wyll not stretch foorth his handes when they depart out of it agayne vnlesse he be called on and desyred Wyshe not not to dye for it is not onely an impudent and an arrogant but also an vnfruitfull and a vayne desyre Accustome your selues O ye mortall men vnto the lawes of nature and yeelde your neckes to that yoke which can not be auoyded And yf ye loue your selues loue that whiche ye are borne not because ye woulde that ye had not been borne for it is not meete that Nature shoulde obey you but you her Feare I haue long assayed in vayne to cast away the feare of death Reason I muse thou shouldest so long assay a matter wherevnto thyne owne voluntarie thinking ought to bring thee To thinke so much vpon so small a danger is a great shame if so be it may be called a danger or not rather an ende of all dangers to dye a great shame I say it is for a man so long to continue in the feare of so small and peeuishe a peryll and so many yeeres to lyue in feare and suspense for the euent of breathing one poore houre But wouldest thou haue the most present remedie agaynst this euyll and be delyuered from the perpetuall feare of death Then lyue well a vertuous lyfe despiseth death and many tymes desireth it and to be short it is the ende of all terrible thynges For labour payne sorowe aduersitie infamie imprisonment exile losse warre bondage lacke of chyldren pouertie oldeage sicknesse death all these vnto men of valure are nothyng els then the schoole of Experience and the feelde of Repentaunce and the exercise place of Glorie Of Voluntarie murthering a mans owne selfe The Cxviij Dialogue FEARE I AM
they possessed the kyngdome of heauen Sorowe I must needes dye out of my Countrey Reason What shall I speake of men of a meaner degree One that was remooued fyrst from Stridon Bethleem and afterwarde Rome receyued Fraunce another from Pannonia and Parris another from Athens and Rome another from Greece and Spayne and Millaine another from Rome lyuing and the same when he was dead Sardinia from Africa and shortly after Ticinum from Sardinia two most bryght shining streames of the East march in merites and ioyned in minde and neere in bodye Who they be that I speake of thou knowest and therefore in makyng hast I ouerpasse many thynges But that thou mayest not want also an example of the thyrde sorte Cyprus receyued one from the land of Palestine and Campania another from Nursia Spaine this one and Italie that other and Bononie one and Padua another Sorowe I vnderstande well all that euer thon meanest notwithstandyng vnwillingly doo I dye farre from my Countrey Reason And truely I vnderstande the very cause hereof to wit for that the most sacred spirites and mindes which alwayes haue their affections fixed in heauen haue no care at all of their earthly Countrey which care thou hast not yet layd aside but truely beleeue mee yf thou hope after heauen thou must needes lay it asyde indeede Neuerthelesse I wyll entreate of others that were louers of vertue and mindfull of heauen and yet not through their loue of heauen altogether forgetful of the earth The boanes of Pythagoras of Samos Metapontus dyd couer Cicero whom Arpine brought foorth and Rome dyd nourysh the bay of Caieta sawe dead Plinie whom the riuer Athesis washed when he was an infant the ashes of the mount Veseuus couered when he was olde Mantua brought Virgil into the worlde Brundusium or as other some write Tarentum plucked hym away and now Naples holdeth hym Sulmo framed the Poet Ouid but his exile in Pontus disolued him Carthage as it is reported brought forth Terence the Comike Poet but Rome taught him and Arcadia buried him Apulia sent foorth Horace the Poet and Calabria Ennius and the Prouince of Narbona Statius and Vasconia Ausonius Corduba the three Annei or as some say foure to wit the two Senecaes and Gallio and the Poet Lucan And al these ouer besides Plautus of Arpine and Lucillus of Arunca and Pacuuius of Brundusium Iuuenal of Aquinum and Propertius of Vmbria Valerius of Antium and Catullus of Verona and Varrus of Cremona and Gallus of Forli and Actius of Pisaurum Cassius of Parma Claudianus of Florence Persius of Volaterrae a thousand moe hath Rome receiued and for the most part buried only Titus Liuius of Padua with muche adoo was restored vnto his Countrey to be enterred and so contrariwise Rome hath bread many that haue dyed and ben buried in other places The whole world is in manner of a narrow house fouresquare wherein men passe from one extremitie to another and in the one is life and in the other death Men of valiant courage esteeme of it for none other cause then for the varietie of the vse thereof as it were to goe out of a cold bath into a stone or to chaing out of a winter chamber into a summer lodging This chaing and varietie namely to be borne in one place and buried in another is common among al men specially the more noble for t Sorowe I knowe it is so yet I dye sorowfully out of myne owne Countrey Reason Thou shouldest dye no more merily in that Countrey which thou callest thyne but ye geue your selues ouer to teares and seeke causes to lament and be sorie as yf ye tooke pleasure in them But yf the examples of holy learned and discrete pouertie can not discharge thy minde hereof which is infected with the errours of the vulgare multitude I wyll alleage them that haue been more fortunate in proouing that this which troubleth thee hath hapned to the most famous Captaynes Dukes Kynges and Emperours so that I wyll see whether thou wylt refuse that fortune which may befal to a man. Sorowe Whom thou wylt speake of and alleage I knowe well enough but what neede many woordes I am sorie to dye out of my Countrey the place encreaseth the greefe of my death Reason I perceiue thou refusest to be cured yet wyll I proceede but with how good effect that looke thou vnto as for me it shall suffice to vtter the trueth and geue thee faythfull warnyng Alexander was borne at Pella slayne at Babylon and his ashes buried at Alexandria a Citie called after the name of the founder The other Alexander was brought vp in the Princes Palace of Epirus and drowned in the Riuer Lucanus Kyng Cyrus was borne in his Kyngdome of Persis and slayine and mangled in Scythia Rome and the whole Romane Empire had in admiracion Marcus Crassus and Pompeius the great which as it was able to beare the greatnesse of them whyle they lyued so yf Fortune had so suffered it had been sufficient to haue receyued theyr ashes but the one was couered with earth in Assyria beyonde Euphrates the other ouerwhelmed in the Channell of the Aegyptian streame Vnto the latter Cato the Citie of Rome gaue both begynnyng and name but Vtica brought both ende and surname The Cornelii Scipioes Rome procreated most noble and profitable members of the Common-wealth by whom it had been often saued and adorned whom notwithstanding their destinies so dispersed that those two which are called the great were entombed both in Spanish moulde and the elder Africane at Linternum and Nasica at Pergamus and Lentulus within Scicil dwelling al in seuerall and disioyned graues Of all this number only Asiaticus and Africanus the younger lye buried at Rome who perhaps had lyen better in any banishment whatsoeuer for the fyrst was punyshed by imprisonment the other by death And thus many tymes it happeneth that a man may lyue better and dye better in any other place then in his owne Countrey and lye nowhere harder then at home The three Deci although the common report make mention but of twayne dyed valiantly out of theyr owne Countrey the Father fyghting with the Latines the Sonne with the Hetrurians and the Nephew as Cicero addeth with Pyrrhus To what purpose shoulde I nowe rehearse in order as they come to my minde woorthie Captaynes and Princes whiche were all borne at Rome and dyed elsewhere Africa behelde Attilius Regulus howe muche the more cruelly so muche the more gloriously dying both for the preseruyng of his Countrey and also of his fayth and credite with his enimie and in the next war followyng Cortona sawe Caius Flaminius and Cumae Paulus Aemilius and Venusia Claudius Marcellus and Lucania Tiberius Gracchus lying dead it was the fortune of none of these to dye at Rome Two noble Gentlemen of great hope and expectation in the Romane Commonwealth were cut of in the very floure of their youth Drusus and Marcellinus
who although they returned both into their Countrey yet dyed they both farre from their Countrey Drusus in Germanie and Marcellinus in Baion And tell me nowe are thou prouder then Tarquinius or myghtier then Sylla Yet the fyrst of these dyed a bannished man at Cumae the other beyng a great Lorde gaue vp the ghost at Puteoli What shall I speake of men of meaner degree Augustus Caesar who was called Father of his Countrey dyed out of his Countrey at Nola in Campania Tyberius that was vnlyke in Manners but equall in Empire deceassed at Misenum in Campania Vespasian and Titus two most excellent Princes as it well became the father and the sonne dyed in one Village yet without of the Citie of Rome â–ª though not farre But â—raian being borne in the West part of the worlde dyed in the East Septimus Seuerus came but of a base parentage in Africa and had a proude Empire at Rome â–ª and was buried at Yorke in Englande Theodosius that was borne in Spayne and dyed at Millain Constantinople receyued whiche Citie also had in it before the founder thereof beyng of the same name but borne in another place What shall I neede to recite others Lycurgus who fledde from Sparta Creta receyued which long before had seene Kyng Saturne bannished out of his Kyngdome and flying from his sonne and hearde howe he hyd hym selfe in the confines of Italie and was there buried A poore graue of Bithynia couereth Hannibal the lyght of all Africa Theseus Themistocles and Solon the three Diamondes of all Athens were so scattered by Fortune that the fyrst was buried in Syria the seconde in Persis and the thyrde in Cyprus in farre vnfitte Graues for so woorthie Carcasses The day woulde sooner fayle mee then matter yf I shoulde stande to reporte euery example But my purpose was not to weerie thee with Histories but onely to instructe thee Sorowe I vnderstande thy meanyng and I confesse that all these and as many moe as thou canst recken dyed out of theyr Countreyes in deede but I denie that it was with their wylles but rather I suppose to theyr great greefe Reason Whereby speakest thou this but onely for that all fooles iudge other lyke them selues and thynke that to be impossible for others to doo which they them selues can not attayne to And perhappes thou hast hearkened to the olde prouerbe It is good to lyue abrode in strange Countries but yll to dye there when as in deede they are both good so that they be orderly doone with patient forbearyng and comlinesse but both euyl yf they be yll handled lamentably and without discretion I wyll tell thee that which thou wylt marueyll at and is quite repugnant to the olde prouerbe If there be any iust occasion to complayne of the cause I had rather impute the same to the lyuyng whom perhaps in some respect it may concerne then hym that lyeth a dying who hath now no regarde of any place seeyng that he is vpon departyng from all places Sorowe Somewhat thou moouest my minde neuerthelesse I am yet desirous to dye in my Countrey Reason The wyll of man vnlesse it be bridled by vertue and wysedome of it selfe is wylde and vnreclaymed And yf thou consider of the matter deepely thou wylt confesse that none of all this appertayneth vnto thee seeyng that thou thy selfe canst remayne heere no longer nor thy boanes retayne any sense after thy deceasse to discerne where thou myghtest haue lyen harder or softer and also vnto that place whyther thou departest which had been the shorter or easier way When Anaxagoras lay a dying in a farre forraine Countrey and his freendes demaunded of hym whether after his death he woulde be carried home into his owne natiue soyle he answeared very finely saying that it shoulde not neede and he added the cause why for that the way to Heauen is of lyke distaunce from all places Whiche answeare serueth as well for them that goe downe to Hell as for those that goe vp to Heauen Sorowe I woulde GOD I myght dye at home Reason If thou were there perhappes thou wouldest wyshe thy selfe in another place perswade thy selfe so Learne to doo that dying whiche thou oughtest to haue doone lyuyng An hard matter it is for you O ye mortall men to beare your selues vpryghtly ye are so dayntie and faultfyndyng euermore makyng none account of that whiche ye haue and alwayes iudging best of that whiche ye want Sorowe O that I myght dye at home Reason Peraduenture thou shouldest see many thynges there that woulde make thy death more greeuous vnto thee for whiche cause thynke that thou art remooued to the intent that all other cares beyng set apart thou myghtest onely thynke vpon GOD and thyne owne soule Of one that dyeth in Sinne. The Cxxvj. Dialogue SOROWE I Oye in sinne Reason This is neyther Natures nor Fortunes but thyne owne fault Sorowe I dye in sinne Reason Fyrst who enforced thee to commit sinne And next who forbydde thee to bewayle it when it was committed And last of all who letteth thee from repentyng though it be late fyrst For vnto the last gaspe the spirite and minde is free Sorowe Whyles I am dying I carrie my sinnes with mee Reason Beware thou doo not so lay downe that venemous and deadly carriage whyle thou hast tyme and there is one that wyll take it away and blotte it out accordyng as it is written and wyll cast it behynde his backe into the bottome of the Sea and wyll abandon it as farre from thee as the East is distant from the West If thou neglect this houre when it is once past it wyll neuer returne agayne Whith qualitie although it be common to all houres that alwayes they passe away and neuer returne yet many tymes that which hath been omitted in one houre may be perhappes recouered in another but yet the neglectyng of the last houre of a mans lyfe is irrecurable And therefore as some report it to be found in the secret disputations of the soule the errours of this lyfe are as it were softe falles vpon the playne grounde after which a man may soone ryse vp agayne but the sinne vnto death is compared vnto a greeuous fall from some hygh and craggie place after which it is not possible to aryse any more the hurt therein taken is so great that it can not be salued Wherefore helpe thy selfe nowe whyle thou mayest and call to remembraunce not onely what your owne writers say but also what Cicero counselleth who in his woorke de Diuinatione of Diuination disputing of those that are dying Doo thou cheefely quod he studie to winne commendation and thynke that they which haue lyued otherwyse then they ought doo most bitterly repent them of their sinnes What I pray thee coulde be vttered by any man more religiously or profitably yf so be that be followed which is commaunded and thou repent thee though it be late fyrst A difficult and dangerous matter it is truely to
shewe themselues willing to learne and not forsake them vnto their olde yeeres and crooked age no not to their death and graue God is the hope vnto man when he is borne and not his father though he were a king It is not good buylding vpon the sand but vpon the rocke for al hope in man is short and transitorie And therefore thy children being deceiued by the hope which they reposed in thee wil put their trust in God only sing with the Prophet Dauid My father my mother haue forsaken me but the Lord hath taken me vp The seedes sparkes of good nature vertue that haue appeared in many children haue been quite extinguished by their parentes to muche cockling lyke as on the contrary side losse of parentes and pouertie haue oftentimes driuen away the childrens deintinesse Feare What wyl become of my ryches Reason They wyl returne from whence they came that is to say vnto fortunes handes and from thence they shal be dispersed from one to another and neuer tarrie long with any For they are of a flitting nature and cannot abyde in one place And that not without a mysterie For some haue thought that mony cannot tarrie in a place because of the roundensse the rollyng forme of the coyne whiche some merily haue sayd to be a token of the slipperinesse thereof whiche partly I cannot deny But I am of opinion that if it were three or foure square it woulde tunne away as fast I meane concernyng the continuall passing of ryches whose nature is alwayes to slyp and flye away to hate coffers that haue but one locke to be delited with sundry and often possessours eyther to the intent to auoyd rust or els by their currantnesse and runnyng about to circumuent very many or lastly to contend with their owners in vnconstancie Seeyng therefore tha thou lyest nowe a dying cast of that care whiche vnto the lyuing is superfluous But rather yf thou dye ryche acknowledge howe that there is seldome any rust founde in fortune and nowe that thou art departyng out of this lyfe flye ryches whiche are not profitable for thee nor necessarie for any But yf thou be poore depart foorth vpon thy iourney lyght without burden whether thy ryches be very great or indifferent or very small or none at al heretofore they belonged very litle vnto thee but hencefoorth they shall apperteine vnto thee nothyng at al but this much onely that thou mayest perceyue that he that was poorer then thou lyued in more quietnesse then thou seeing that these troublesome and paynefull helpes of lyfe or whether thou list rather to terme them tormentes doo make thy death more carefull Feare What shal become of my children Reason Thy name shall lyue in them if they be good and if that be any comfort in death thou shalt not seeme wholy to be dead For in their countenances actions gesture thy freendes wyl thinke and also reioyce that thou art restoared vnto them But if they be euyl thou hast cause willingly to forsake them those whom thou thyselfe couldest not correct nor tame thou shalt deliuer them ouer vnto the worlde and fortune to be corrected and tamed And do not thou nowe dying lament for them that wyl nothyng at al be grieued at thy death and perhaps are sorie that thou diedst not sooner Sorowe But what shal become of my goodes Reason Fearest thou that when thou hast left them they shal fynde no owner They are looked for they are wyshed for they are valewed alreadie neyther oughtest thou to be afeard so muche for the neglecting of them as for the striuing for them But this is one thyng they shal nowe surceasse to be thy goodes any longer but whose they shal be next why doest thou looke vpon thy chyldren It cannot possibly be knowen nor it must not it suffiseth thee to knowe that they were once thine yf euer they were thyne indeede and not rather hers that is the lady and mistresse of goodes that passe away and generally of al wordly thynges whose name is Fortune But hauing been thine so long that is to say beyng but a short tyme in thy disposition it is nowe hygh tyme for thee to depart and to leaue them to others Let them nowe learne to be at others commaundement awhile and to keepe their accustomed chainge vnlesse thou wylt dye so ambitiously as some fooles haue also done the lyke and haue thy monie buried with thee in thy graue whiche may one day redownd to the commoditie of them that dig graues hereafter But rather nowe at length cast from thee al care of the earth and metalles and repose thy cogitations vpon heauen and thine owne estate Feare My goodes flye from me Reason Diddest thou thinke that they woulde tarie when thy lyfe passed away and when thou thyselfe wast continually carried hence Feare What shal become of my goodes when they leaue of to be myne Reason What dyd they before they were thyne Feare Leauing behynde me so great ryches as I doo I depart naked Reason Naked thou camest into the worlde and naked thou must depart agayne whereof thou hast no cause to complayne but rather to geue thankes In the meane tyme thou hast had the vse and occupiyng of an others goodes there is nothyng taken from thee that was thine owne but only the goodes of another required agayne at thy handes when thou mayest occupie them no longer For honest guestes when they are departyng away doe willingly restoare the vessel and stuffe whiche they borowed of their host Feare Alas of al my ryches I carie not thus muche away with me Reason Carie away as much as thou broughtest or yf thou lust as muche as any kyng doth Feare What wyl my young chyldren do Reason If they lyue they wyl growe vp and wax olde and walke their owne wayes and trye their owne fortune and passe through their owne troubles in the meane tyme they shal abide in Gods protection and perhaps when thou wast young thou liuedst lykewyse without a father Of one dying that is careful what his wyfe wil do when he is dead The .cxxviii. Dialogue FEARE WHat wyl my welbeloued wyfe do when I am dead Reason Perhaps she wyl marrie agayne what is that to thee Feare What wyl my deere wife do Reason Beyng discharged from thy yoake eyther she wyl yeelde her necke to another or liue at large or els rest herselfe after her wearinesse seeke only how to passe foorth her lyfe quietly Feare What wyl my most louing wyfe do Reason Doest thou aske what she wyl do when she hath escaped from thee and knowest not what she dyd when she was vnder thy subiection The greater sort of mortal men beyng ignorant what is done at home in their owne houses hearken what is a dooing in heauen and the farthest partes of the world Truely what shall become of thy wyfe after thy departure let her selfe or her next husbande looke to that