came vnto Athens with great plentie of golde where when he had intised many vnto him through his great gifts be sent also 70. talentes vnto Photion Who turning him about vnto the bringers away quoth he you naughtie-packes with this geare and tell Harpalus in my name that it shall be to his great gréefe and paine onlesse he abstaine his handes from corrupting the citie Diomedon Cizecenus promised Artaxerxes the great king of Persia that he woulde corrupte Epaminundas with money and so béeing well furnished therewith he repaired to Thebes where when he hadde corrupted Michitus a yong man he thoughte likewise to haue dealte with Epaminundas But he answeared Diomedon it was néedelesse for thée to bring me this money For if the kings pleasure tende to the weale publike I promisse thée I will doe it francke and fréely if not no worldlye wealthe shall cause me to accorde thereto And as for thée Diomedon bicause not knowing me thou déemedst me like thy selfe I forgiue thée but I charge thée gette thée hence leaste that when thou canste not preuaile with me thou corruptest others Héereat when Diomedon gan to feare that he shuld not escape Epaminundas willed him not to feare For I will quoth he dismisse thée safe not only for thy sake but also for my owne honestie least some suppose that whereas I would not take the mony of thée I should now take it from thée When Aetolis sawe earthen vessels on Q. Tuberius table at his retourning home he sente him plate of siluer but Tuberius neglecting suche pompe sente them vnto him againe The Ambassadors of king Alexander bringing vnto Xenocrites 50. talentes which in those days specially amōgst the Atheniens was coumpted a greate summe of money Xenocrites broughte them to supper into the colledge intertaining them homely and with his ordinarie fare On the morowe they asked him who shuld receiue the mony wherto he answeared why did you not perceiue by yesterdays supper that we lack no money At which woordes when he sawe them sory he tooke of them thirtie poundes to the intent they shoulde not thinke that he despised the kings liberalitie and so dismissed them When Alexander hadde taken king Darius wife captiue albeit shée wer the fairest Quene liuing yet he neuer medled with hir But shutting hir and hir daughters in the Temples he suffered them to liue vnséene of any and woulde say in iest that the Persian damsels were eyesores Xenocrates Plato his scholler was a man of wonderous continencie In somuche that whereas Phryne a passing faire strumpet had laide a wager with certain yongmen that shée would allure him vnto hir pleasure shée coulde by no whorishe trickes prouoke him thereto But when the yongmen required the wager shée answered that hir wager was laide of a man and not of an image Valentinus the Emperor at the houre of his death sayd that one conquest only reioyced him and being asked what that was He answered that nowe I haue subdued my fleshe the wickedst greatest enimie that euer I had S. Ierome telleth of a certaine yongman which by the commaundement of Decius Valerianus was laide in a pleasant garden and there brought vnto him a faire faced harlot who with hir dalying indeuored to prouoke him to sinne but such was his continencie that when shée went aboute to kisse him he bitte of his tong and spit it in hir face As Alexander trauailed by the way and thereby had gotten a great thirst it happened that one presented vnto him a helmet full of water who receiuing the helmet in his hande and beholding his horsemen aboute him he bowed downe his head beheld the drinke and restored the drinke not tasting thereof but sayde vnto his chéefe men if I alone shoulde drinke all these would be a thirst Remembring well the Ouidian verse Est virtus placitis abstinuisse bonis Great vertue t' is from present pray mans fansie to refrayne When Pompei was sicke and therby had no appetite vnto his meat his Phisitian commaunded them to dresse him a thrushe but such either was the time of the yere or else the scarcitie of things that for money none could be had only they tolde him that Lucullus had one in his cage but he would none of him saying and can I not liue onlesse I haue Lucullus his wanton toyes Of accusing and speaking euill of others A Certayne Sophist called Zoilus indyted many rayling commentaries which he presented to Ptolomie king of Egypt hoping to haue had some greate rewarde of the king for his paynes but when the kyng gaue him nothing he was so néedie that he procured some to demaunde the kinges liberalitye whereat the king had greate wonder that Homer so many yeares after his death could féed so many thousand men and Zoilus who professed him selfe better learned than Homer shoulde stande in so great néede And on that occasion caused him to be punyshed for hys labour Memnon a capitayne of Darius fighting agaynst Alexander and hearing one of his souldiers rayling agaynst the king his enimie stroke him with his speare and sayde I kéepe thée to fight agaynst Alexander and not to rayle on him When Antigonus his souldiers reuiled hym not thynking that he was present he opening his tente with hys rodde sayde go further to rayle on vs or else it shall be to your payne But Seneca in his third booke of Ire sayth that he sayde Stande further sirs least the king heare you Also the same king Antigonus hearing his souldiers curse him bicause that in a darke nighte he had broughte them into suche a mierie place that they could hardly go out he came him selfe they not knowing him and holps them euery one out And now quoth he curse Antigonus which broughte you into the mire but pray for him which pulled you out When a certaine drunken gest had railed on the crueltie of Pesistratus king of Athens and his frends willed the king to punishe him therefore he answered that he was no more offended with him therefore than he woulde be if a blindefolde man shoulde vnawares runne against him Pirrhus the king hearing that some wihtoute cause had railed on him he caused the parties accused to be sent for demaunding them whether they had saide of him as the reporte wente they did Wherto one of them answeared yea O king and should haue said muche more had we had more wine to haue prouoked vs thereto Whereat king Pirrhus laughing suffred thē to depart in peace It was tolde Augustus that Aemilius spake euill of him who turning him aboute vnto the accusers as thoughe he were in a great chafe sayd I would you could proue it on him Aemilius shoulde then knowe that I haue a tong too For I would say as muche of him Philip king of Macedome being railed on by one Nicander beganne to bestowe many giftes on him after this Nicander changing his note began now as faste to praise him Wherefore Philip turning
him ere long he answered that he dyd more estéeme their lyues than the conquest of a hundred suche cities A notable acte and worthy perpetuall memorie And afterwardes the citie which with fortie thousand men of armes he coulde not subdue by that kindenesse without any effusion of bloud yéelded vnto him Ex Panor li. 1. de rebus geftis Alphonsi Iohannes Scotus a right godly deuine and learned Philosopher comming to Fraunce out of his owne countrey of Scotland by reason of the gret tumults of war was worthily intertained had in great estimation of Carolus Caluus the Frenche king whom he commonly and familiarly vsed to haue about him both at bed at borde Vpon a time the king sitting at meate and séeing belike in this Iohn Scotus somewhat which séemed not very courtly cast forth a mery word asking him what differeÌ„ce there was betwene a Scot and a Sot Whervnto the Scot sitting ouer against the king somewhat lower replyed agayne sodenly rather than aduisedly yet merily saying Mensa tantum that is the table onely importing himselfe to be the Scot and so by crafte calling the king a Sot. Which thing the king tooke in good parte and laughed it out Xerxes séeing Grecian spyes come to viewe his armie dyd them no harme but ledde them about shewing them all his armie and let them go vnhurt Laurentius Palatine of Hungarie said that Sigismunde the Emperoure dyd foolishly who not onely forgaue his enimies their liues but also intreated them as his friends and bestowed much liberalitie vpon them to whom Sigismunde answered thou thinkest it profitable to kill thy enimies bicause they shal make warre agaynst thée no more But I kill my enimie with sparing him and with my liberalitie I make him my friende Ex Aenea Siluio l. 3. commentarij de rebus geâ—â—is Alphon. Of Innocencie or a good conscience WHen Anaxandridas sawe one heauie bicause he should be banished the citie he said be not afraid good felow to leaue the citie but be afraid to forsake iustice equitie Meaning that they wer not miserable which were vnworthily punished but them to be most miserable which of their owne accorde forsake iustice and depart from honestie albeit no punishment ensue therfore Pirrhus leading an armie agaynst the Lacedemonians heard Cyrcilidas a Lacedemonian Senatour manace the armie But Pirrhus saide vnto them Be of good comforte sirs for if Cyrcilidas be a God we haue done nothing wherewith he may be displeased But if he be but a man he shall well perceiue that we are men to whome he thus threatneth and not women Whose meaning was that the innoceÌ„t are always in hope of Gods fauour and assistaunce Who although he be sometimes displeased yet will he always he iust and righteous in visiting the vniust and letting the innocent and guiltlesse escape When Vespasian had a long time ben sicke of an ague and was remoued in his bedde from the place where he lay vnto some other chamber he looked vp into heauen and complayned that his life should without cause be taken from him And sayde that he was sory for no déede that euer he did but for one what that was he tolde not him selfe neither can any contecture what it should be Ex Suetonio WheÌ„ one blamed Anthonius Pius the Emperor saying that he was ouer gentle vnto his enimies suche as had conspired his death asking him what should become of him if they had preuayled agaynst him he answered I doo not so serue God neither is my life suche that I should be giuen into my enimies handes Ex Brus li. 5. cap. 26. Alphonsus King of Arragon béeing demaunded why he went somtimes without his gard answered that he went accompanied with innoceÌ„cie Wherby the wise prince meaned that he was well garded from sustayning any iniurie that had a cleare conscience of his owne and that they wer neuer in safetie who bere about them a corrupt conscience but as the Psalmist sayth they are afrayde of daunger where no daunger is Of Iudges and Iudgement PHilip king of Macedonie sitting in iudgemeÌ„t in a certen cause of one Macheta slumbring and not tending the cause vnaduisedly condemned Macheta But he cried out and said I appeale Appeale quod the king vnto whoÌ„ dost thou appeale Vnto thée O king quod he if thou wilt awake heare me WhervpoÌ„ the king began to awake be more atteÌ„tiue in his cause perceiuing that he had done him wrong he did not reuoke hys former iudgement but payed him selfe the summe wherein Macheta was condemned Bruso li. 3. cap. 10. Alexander Seuerus did beare such stomacke agaynst corrupt iudges that wheÌ„ he chaunced to méete with any of theÌ„ by coÌ„motion of his minde he would cast vp choler béeing so moued with them that he could not speake and was ready with his two fingers to putte out their eyes Bruso li. 3. cap. 10. When Cambises king of Persia vnderstoode that one of his iudges had pronounced false iudgement he coÌ„maunded that his skin should be flayne of set on the chaire where he sat in iudgemeÌ„t and where his sonne after him should sit to giue sentence Brus li 3. cap. 10. Marcus Antonius the wyse Philosopher and mightie Emperour was wont to say that priuate persons had many iudges but Princes and Magistrates haue onely God to be their iudge As by this example folowing may appeare Anno domini 1105. two famous Archebishops of Mentz béeing right vertuous and wel disposed prelates were cruelly and tirannously delt withal intreated by the bishoppe of Rome Their names were Henrie and Christian This Henry hauing intelligence that he was complayned of to the Pope sent a learned man an especiall friend of his named Arnolde to excuse him But this honest man Arnolde in steade of an excuser became an accuser brybing the chiefe Cardinalles with good golde by which meanes he obtayned of the Pope those two Cardinalles to be sente as inquisitours and onely doers in that present case The which comming to Germanie summoned the sayde Henry and deposed him of his Archbishopricke for all that he could doo either by iustice or lawe substituting in his place the sayde Arnolde â–ª vppon hope no doubte of the Ecclesiasticall golde Wherevpon that vertuous and honorable Henry spake vnto those peruerse iudges on this wise If I shoulde appeale vnto the Apostolike see for your vniust processe had agaynst me perhappes the Pope would attempte nothing more herein than you haue neither shoulde I winne any thing by it but onely toyle of body losse of good affliction of minde care of heart and missing of his fauor Wherfore I do appeale vnto the Lord Iesu Christ as to the most highest and iust iudge and cite you before his iudgement there to answere before the high iudge For neither iustly nor godly but by corruption as it pleased you ye haue iudged me Wherto they scoffingly answered go you first
so pitiful coÌ„plaintes that in fine the moued him to mercy Insomuch that he sent one vnto hir who willed hir in the kings name to chose the deliuerie of one captiue whom she would wherfore she amoÌ„gst the rest desired that hir brother might be deliuered The king wondering that she did thus prefer hir brother before hir husband and children she answered him an other husband other children if it please God I may haue but an other brother now my parents be dead I shall neuer haue Of Children SEruilius Geminus supping with Lucius Manlius who was counted the best paynter in Rome séeing his children harde fauoured he saide vnto him I sée Manlius thou canst not make a childe so wel as thou canst paint him No quoth Manlius manerly answering for I paint them in the lighte but I make them in the darke Cyriades the first of the. 30. Roman tiraÌ„ts for that Cyriades his father was iustly displeased w him toke a great pece of money and fled vnto Persia where ioyning with Sapores he made war against Rome and killed his owne father but after wardes was by his owne crafte slaine him selfe Absalon king Dauids sonne desiring his fathers kingdome and therfore making war agaynst him was as he fled hanged by the haire on a bushe and so flayne whose death his moste godly father bewayled with many teares Ariaster Triganis sonne hearing that Pompeâ— was inuading his fathers kingdom fled to aid hym agaynst his father wherof Triganis hearing came huÌ„bly submitted himself at Pompeis féete who curteously receyued him and placed him on the right hand and his sonne Ariaster on his left hand deuiding the kingdome betwéene them But Ariaster béeing offended herewith when as PoÌ„pei sent for him to to supper he wold not come sending him this manacing answer the he had no néed of him but wold ioine with some other Roman who shold better estéeme him With which words he so offended Pompei that he caste him in prison and kept him for a spectacle at the triumph Herodes father to Parcorus hearing of of the death of Parcorus his sonne the discoÌ„fiture of his host was so greued that he fel mad for sorrowe but after he had bene a great while in this care at laste comming to himselfe he was so greatly trobled whoÌ„ of his 30. sons which he had begotteÌ„ of his coÌ„cubines he might make king for euery of these coÌ„cubines desired the regimeÌ„t of the kingdome for their sonne but in fine he determined to prefer Phrahates therto who immediatly killed his father destroied his brethren wheÌ„ his owne son came to age put him to death It was by an oracle declared vnto Altamenes the he should be the death of his father Cartareus king of Crete nowe called Candie which destinie he desirous to eschue departed and dwelt at Camiros in Rhodes But after a season his father desirous to sée him departed from Candie and by night ariued at Camiros But his men and the inhabitantes falling at debate Altamenes comming amongste them vnawares siue his father Which thing when he vnderstoode being ashamed to looke any man in the face he departed into the wildernesse and there died for sorowe Spartianus wryting of the life of Seuerus saythe that there was almoste no good or noble man which left any sonne good or profitable for the coÌ„mon wealth but either they died withoute issue or lefte suche as it had bene good if they neuer had bene borne And to begin with Romulus he lefte no childe Numa Pompilius none to doe the common wealthe good What did Camillus lefte he any childe like himselfe What did Scipio or the Catoes who were noble men And what should I speake of Homer Demosthenes Virgill Crispus Terence Plautus or the rest Or what of Caesar or Cicero Who aboue all others had bene happie if he had died without issue And finally who had bene more happie than Marcus Aurelius if he hadde not lefte his sonne Comodus to succéede him in the Empire or who more fortunate than Seuerus Septimius if Bassianus had neuer bene begotten Reade more in the title of education Of Concord and vnitie VVHen Pisistratus king of the Atheniens giuing his children good couÌ„sell coulde not be heard of them he was iustly displeased with them for it Which thing his enimies perceiuing were very glad hoping that by this discorde in his house some alteration woulde followe Wherof when the king had intelligeÌ„ce he assembled the Citie before him telling them that bicause his sonnes would not obey his fatherly pleasure he was offended with them but yet now it séemed good to his fatherly pitie that remitting their disobedience to forgiue them and consent vnto them Wherefore willed it to be published in the Citie that the king and his sonnes were nowe at one Demetrius a very louing and obedient sonne to Antigonus his father chauncing to come from hunting whilest certaine Embassadoures were doing theyr legacie vnto him in theyr presence entred all armed as he was and kissed his Father Wherefore when the Embassadoures shoulde departe Antigonus sayde vnto them Remember sirs to declare the loue and hartie affection which you haue séene betwéene my sonne and me Héereby declaring that agréement betwéene the father and the sonne is the greatest token of a Princes power that may be Licurgus vnto the Citizens whiche wrote to knowe howe they mighte best resist theyr ennimies force Answered if you shal be content to liue poore as you are and abstaine from mutuall dissention and discorde That Concorde is a thing very pleasante before God Homer in his Fâ—â—ades declareth Where hee felleth howe Mars the God of warre came vnto Iupiter to complaine of Diomedes who had wounded him but Iupiter with sterne countenaunce answered I woulde thou knewest that of all the celestiall coÌ„panie thou art one that I worst can away withal whose only delite is in brauling fighting and making of warre In Salust Mycippa at his death warned his sonnes to agrée amongste themselues saying by Concorde and vnitie smal things are increased made great but by discorde the greatest things that euer were will be decayed and brought to naughte Of the Court and Courtyers life CAlisthenes the Philosopher going to dwel with king Alexander was warned of Aristotle either seldome to speake vnto him or else to frame his speache pleasant and merie But he reprouing the king for taking pleasure to be saluted of the Persians and indeuoring to induce him in the Macedonian customes was cast in prison there as some say he died of the gout others say he was crucified which Trogus denyeth saying he had his handes and his eares cut off also his nose and his lippes deformed and so was made a spectacle for men to behold Praexaspes one of Cambyses his secrete counsell being asked what the people saide of him he answered that all men praised him greatly but that they saye he was toomuche giuen to Wine
Wherewith Cambyses being angrie sayde thou shalte perceiue whether the Persian people be deceiued or no. For if I strike not thy sonne which standeth in thy entrie in the middest of the hearte with this my shafte then is the reporte true whiche the Persians speake of me but if I strike him then doe the Persians belie my sobrietie and at this woorde he drew his bowe and strooke the childe full in the heart and thereat laughing he sayd nowe maist thou sée Praexaspes that not I but the Persian people are beside themselues and I pray thee tell me if euer thou sawest any aime righter wherat Praexaspes searing leaste he shoulde haue bene slaine himselfe said Nay surely I thincke euen God himselfe coulde not haue shotten righter When Agrippa the king had bestowed a Bishopricke vpon Mathias Ionas his brother one Sylas his chéefe ruler which neuer had failed him in his affaires enuying the preferment of Mathias began continually to cast his good seruice in the kings téethe requiring that he also might be rewarded for his diligence but thereby he so displeased the king that he tooke from him his former dignitie and caste him into prison Alexander Seuerus the Emperoure hearing that Veronius Turinus made the people beléeue that he was in greate authoritie with the Emperoure and thereby gotte greate bribes He caused one to sue to himself openly for a certaine sute but willed him to go secretly to Turinus to request his fauoure which being accordingly accomplished Turinus promised his furtherance héerein and shortly after tolde him that he had greatly laboured vnto the king in his case whereas in déede he had sayde neuer a woorde The matter thus suspending he was againe called for where his Aduocate Turinus likewise appeared who hearing the case begā to becken but said nothing yet in fine he obtaining his sute Turinus required a great rewarde for his laboure which he receiuing being accused hereof vnto the Emperoure was bounde to a stake in the markette place and stifeled with smoke The crier standing by and cried smoke he solde and with smoke he is punished Lampridius in the lyfe of Seuerus which he wrote vnto Constantine saythe your godlinesse knoweth what you redde in Marius Maximus howe that the common wealthe is in better case and more in safetie where the Prince is euill and his frendes be good than that common wealthe where the Prince is good and hathe euill fréendes For one be he neuer so hadde may be amended by many good wheras a multitude euil can neuer be amēded by one though he be neuer so good And he saith further that Courtiers oughte to be holy worshipfull agréeing they were séeking and he couering this theft bitte and tore his side pitifully All which pain he constantly abode vntil the séekers were gone whereof when one of his companions mocked him saying that he had bene better to haue deliuered the Fore than so to be bitten to death he answered no but it is better to die with pain than to be apprehended with theft Aristides hauing married one of his daughters to Dionisius the yonger and after repenting that he had so done said that he hadde rather wishe his daughter shortly to die than long to continue with suche a husbande wherof Dionisius hearing commaunded that he should immediatly he put to death but first he demaūded of him whether nowe he thought his daughter any better bestowed thā of late he professed No quoth Aristides I repēt me greatly of that I haue done but nothing at all of that I sayde When Decius Brutus making warre into Spaine had subdued all Luscitania only one Citie called Cynania excepted which stoutly tooke armor againste him he sent Embassadors vnto them to trie whether they wold giue any money to be at peare But they answered the Ambassadors that their ancestors had left them swordes to defend their country but neither siluer nor golde to redéeme it of so couetous a captaine Agis a man of Sparta being by Leonida cast into a prison called Dechas wher the prisonners were strangled to death séeing the hangman wéepe and stagger in doing on the rope fréende quoth he wéepe not for me For I dying thus vnjustly and contrary to the lawe am in better case than they which condemned me héereto And at this woorde he helde downe his head whilest the executor tied the knot to strangle him Pomponius a Romane captaine after many woundes was taken captiue of Methridates who asked him whether he woulde héereafter become his fréende if he caused him to be healed to whome he answered if thou wilte be a fréende unto the Romanes I will be thy fréende 〈◊〉 not I will surely be thy ennimie When Socrates was appointed to die he séemed as thoughe he cared not for his life wherefore Hermogenes his familiar fréende sayde vnto him O Socrates it were good that you had some respect vnto your owne safegarde why doe not I séeke my safegarde fréende Hermogenes quoth he whilest I bethincke me of my life passed An other called Appollodorus who also loued him intirely sayde D fréende Socrates I am very sory to sée thée thus vniustly condemned Why Appolodorus quoth he haddest thou rather sée me iustly condemned than vniustly and so fell a laughing After that Pompei was conquered by Caesar Cato the yonger fearing least he shoulde come into the handes of Caesar first reading Plato his booke de anima of the immortalitie of the soule caste him selfe on his swearde but when his housholde ranne aboute him and his sonne with a Phisitian came and bound vp his woundes he inwardly blamed him selfe for not making the wound déepe inough then thancking the Phisitian for sauing his life he sayde that he woulde a while take his rest and so the companie supposing that he woulde haue slept departed when as he renting the wounde wider tore out his guttes and died This Cato in his childhood comming to Sylla his house and séeing many noble mennes heades broughte thither asked Sarpedon his maister why no man slue Sylla Who answered bicause they feare him more than they hate him Why thē quoth Cato diddest not thou giue me a sweard that I might haue deliuered my country of so cruel a tirant When the sayde Sylla had fully obtained the regiment of the commō wealth and none durste gainesay him in oughte he tooke in hande he desired the Senate to giue sentence and pronounce Marius an ennimie to the common wealthe Whereto only Sceuola would in no wise consent But when Sylla began cruelly to threaten him Scenola answered albeit thou wouldest straightwayes shewe me thy hande of souldiers where with thou didst assault this court yet couldest thou neuer for shedding this little olde bloude of mine cause me to call him an enimie who so manfully hathe saued this Citie and all Italie by his prowesse When Aristides who for his vertue of the Atheniens was surnamed Iustus was leading towards execution all that met him call
séeke his life he couloe by no meanes be persuaded to condemne hym to death But saide I had rather be dead than not only to stande in feare of my ennimies but also to mistruste my friendes Ex Plutarcho in regum Apotheg Antigonus dreamed that he was walking in a faire fielde and there sowed golden crummes whereof incontinente sprang vp golden Corne. The interpretation whereof was applyed to Methridates king of Pontus whome they sayde at Ponthus to haue great store of Golde Wherevpon Antigonus fully purposing to destroy Methridates opened his minde to Demetrius hys son binding him with an othe to tell it to no man but Demetrius béeing Methridates verie friende bycause for his othe he coulde not open it in woordes watched a tyme vntyll Methridates and he were alone and then he toke hys Speare and wyth the poynte thereof wrote Flee Methridates and so delyuered hys friende from presente perill Luc us béeing Brutus verie friende and séeing the Souldiours verie desirous to take Brutus he made as thoughe he hadde béene Brutus and so was taken and with all spéede brought before Antonius the Emperour in whose presence he sayde O Anthonie no man hath taken Brutus and God forbid that he shoulde euer come into his ennimies handes At which wordes of his when Anthonie sawe his Souldioures greatly abashed he sayde thus vnto them I beléeue syrs that you are greatly grieued and verie sorie to sée that you are thus deceyued and also thinke that you were verie muche mocked herein But know of a troth that you haue brought me a better pray than you are aware of for I knowe not I protest what to haue done with Brutus if I hadde him a liue But such a friende as this is I had rather haue than all my foes And so louingly entertayned embraced and kyssed Lucius Plutarchus Orestes and Pilades so entirely loued eache other that whereas Orestes fell madde for slaying his mother Clitimnestra Pilades tooke him and brought hym to Tauritia to the temple of Diana wher Iphigenia his Sister was abyding And there afterwards when Orestes and his Sister went about to steale the Image of Diana he was therefore apprehended and brought before the king And when he was adiudged to die Pilades made as though he had bene Orestes ▪ and Orestes as the truth was offred himselfe as the partie guiltie And so contended whether of them should die Ex Plutarcho Suche friendship likewise there was betwixt Damon and Pythias that wheras Dionisius the tirante had condemned one of them to die and he desired leaue to goe to bid his friendes their vltimum val and to set his goodes in a staye the other became his suertie promising that if he came not at his daye he would dye in his steade But when he was so faithfull that he came at the time prefixed Dionisius maruelling at their fidelitie forgaue the partie guiltie desired them to make him the thirde in this saythfull and friendly fellowship Cicero off li. 3. But bycause this friendshippe is a blacke Swanne in these oure dayes Esope in his fables warneth vs that the things whiche we nowe doe our selues we neuer loke for our friendes to do for vs The Fable whereof is thys On a tyme the Larke hauing yongones in a corne fielde which began to waxe ripe when she shoulde flee abreade to séeke meat she warned them to herken what news they could hear and at hir cōming home to certifie hir thereof It happend in the meane season that the owner of the fielde came thether with hys sonne to see his corne saying this géere is ripe and it is tyme that it were nowe cutte downe wherefore to morrow morning betimes goe vnto my friendes and desire them that I maye haue their helpe to dispatche this businesse whyche thing the sonne accordingly dyd and they no doubt promysed their ayde Wherefore at nyghte when the Larke came home all hir birdes beganne to flutter aboute hir telling hir what they hadde hearde and desiring that shée woulde incontinent carrie them to some other place but she willed them be contente and bad them hearken the next day what newes they coulde heare The nexte daye the goodman and hys Sonne came a fielde wayting when his friendes woulde appeare but there came nobodie Wherefore he sayde agayne vnto hys Sonne goe to my Cosens and Kinsfolke and desire them to morrowe morning to come and helpe me reaps my corne The yongbirdes hearing thys were nowe more earnest wyth theyr damme to transporte them thence but she was as earnest to persuade them not to be afraide For no Cosens quothe she will be so seruiceable that they wyll strayghte-wayes come and helpe their kinred But to morrowe abyde and hearken what other newes you can heare and then if néede bée I will prouide for you The nexte daye the Cosens came not wherfore the goodman sayde farewell friends and kinsfolke let vs truste to our selues goe thou my Sonne and prouide two hookes one for thy selfe and an other for me and we two to morrowe will reape it our selues When the Larke hearde of this nay now quoth she it is time to get vs packing and so she immediately bare away hir youg ones Ex Aesopo Zopirus caused his nose and his eares to be cutte off and making as though he were some other of the Persian princes he wente vnto Babylon and there complayned that Darius hadde so cruelly delte wyth him desiring them to take vengeāce on him And so preuailed with them that they leuied a power and made him chiefe ruler of their Armie and so by this meanes betrayed Babylon vnto Darius his friende But afterwardes Darius woulde often say that he hadde rather haue Zopirus whole agayne than the cōquest of a hundred Babilons Much vnlike such Princes whiche make more of a disarde a horse or a dogge than of an honest faythfull and learned friende Also Darius finding faulte with the crueltie of Zopirus towards himself would say that by a foule facte he hadde gotten himself a fair name Ex Plutarcho lustino in Lib. 1. Scipio the yonger following the aduise of Polibius endeuored neuer to returne out of the market before he hadde made some of them whom he met there to become his verie friend Plurarchus in Reg. Apoth When Nicocles and Photion being perfite friendes were condemned to die of poyson Nicocles desired Photion to suffer him firste to taste of this deadely drinke who answered Albeit friende Nicocles this request of thyne is hard yet must I néedes graunt it thée to whō in all my life hetherto I neuer denyed ought So great a griefe it is where true friendshippe is to sée the deathe of his friend Plutarch in Grae. Apoth Of Gluttonie and Ryot WHen it was tolde Augustus that Curotes his steward of Aegipt had boughte a tame Quayle whiche was compted the passingst fighting birde in all the Countrie and after he had boughte him dyd roste and eate him