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A15039 A mirour for magestrates of cyties Representing the ordinaunces, policies, and diligence, of the noble emperour, Alexander (surnamed) Seuerus, to suppresse and chastise the notorious vices noorished in Rome, by the superfluous nomber of dicing-houses, tauarns, and common stewes: suffred and cheerished, by his beastlye predecessour, Helyogabalus, vvith sundrie graue orations: by the said noble emperor, co[n]cerning reformation. And hereunto, is added, A touchstone for the time: containyng: many perillous mischiefes, bred in the bowels of the citie of London: by the infection of some of thease sanctuaries of iniquitie. By George Whetstones. Gent. Whetstone, George, 1544?-1587?; Severus Alexander, Emperor of Rome, 208-235. 1584 (1584) STC 25341; ESTC S119730 41,603 88

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them were as dissolute as common Soldiers A wise pollicie of Alexander And one especiall cautle hee vsed in the searche of mens behauiours hee woulde manye tymes in disguysed habyte with diuers others by hym especiallye elected take vpō him the Office of the Censors and in euery corner he had secretly suche faythfull Explorers as mens proper Houses were no Couerts for naughtie practises nor the Senat-house for partial Iudgementes And by this Pollycie he discouered many naughtie matters besides cōmon trespasses as the Treason of Oninius the false accusation of Geminus by his Lybertines or Copyholders as also of the mortall mallice of Duillius and Gotta towardes the said Geminus In so much as the people seyng nothyng that was euyl could escape his vengeāce al men indeuored to do well to purchase his fauour King Henry the seuenth Imitator of Alexanders gouernment THE most Noble and prudent Kynge Kynge HENRY the seuenth the Queenes most excellent Maiesties Graundfather and Roote of Englandes happinesse was a true imitator of this most worthy Emperours gouernmēt by whose singular wisdome England which at the beginning of his Raigne was a deformed and decreped Commonwealthe by reason of the longe tyme of the Cyuylwarres which durynge syx Kinges Raignes made barrayne feildes and fatt Churche-yardes before his deathe repossessed her Auncient Vertues renown and prosperytie So that it is a questiō whither this famous Realm is more bownd to eternize his glorious Memorie in regarde of his Prowesse or Pollycie when by the one he planted Peace in her bowelles and by the other banished warre frō the Terrytories He knew that to reforme so disordered an estate it was more needefull to execute then to make Lawes and therfore not trustyng the corruption of common Informers who for lucre or gain attemptyng many vexations against poore men and for feare seeke to please the ritche Inclynation of Common Informers he committed the execution of the Penall Lawes to the charge of these two worthie Coūsellers fir Richard Empson Knight and Richarde Dudley Esquier who so seuerely chastened the rich and great Offenders as they stirred the inconstant cōmunaltie after the death of the vertuous Henrie the seuenth to seeke their lyues who had their willes for feare of Commotion thease two worthie Maiestrates weare beheaded And vndoubtedly their deathes is a testimonie of as great vertue as their liues a Monument of Iustice for the multitude The lewde affections of Common people are the mortall Enemies of their owne welfare and frendes and followers of their owne confusion One said to Antisthenes The people speaketh much good of you Why saide he what hurt haue I done As who should say they seldome praise but suche as do euil No Ethnicke deserued to lyue better then Socrates yet the people would haue hym dead The Athenians had a Lawe euerie yeare by the most voyces of the people for ten yeares to banysh two of their principall Maiestrates On a tyme a poore man came with a white Paper in his hande to Aristides the iust and willed him to write Banish Aristides Why quoth he doest thou know Aristides No quoth the other Hath Aristides done thee or any of thy friendes hurte Neither quoth he but I wyll haue Aristides banished The worthy Scipio was banished by the people whome he oft had saued I omyt Themistocles Photion many mo whome Histories record to shewe the light Iudgementes of Cōmons Danté the Italian Poet saithful truely of them it is seldome seene that the people crye not Viua la mia morte innoia la mia vita Let liue my death let die my lyfe Yea those great estates that seek to please the people for the most parte haue had the endes of enemies to their Countrey When Cicero sawe that Caesar was in hye fauour with the people of Rome he cryed out It is great pitie that the affabilitie of Caesar should be the ouerthrow of the Weale-publique And truely Cicero prophesied rightly for by their fauour Caesar iudged the Iudgementes of the Senate and sent the good and graue Cato to Prison whose vertues obtayned reuerence of the woorst liuers But notwithstandyng the Affections of the multitude coueiteth their owne vndoynges yet their incouragement proceedeth of greater capacyties And therfore the redy way to keepe them in awe is seuerely to punysh their Chief-taynes In all tumultes it is euidently seene that if their Captaynes yelde they ronne away if their Incouragers be dismayde they sing Peccaui do Iustice vpon the great Offenders and the meaner wyll soone amend Alexander in his Gouernment found it true who in the Execution of the Lawes made no difference of persons saue that to the inferiour people he was euermore most mercifull FINIS AN ADDITION OR TOVCHSTONE for the Time exposyng the daingerous Mischiefes that the Dicyng Howses cōmonly called Ordinarie Tables and other like Sanctuaries of Iniquitie do dayly breede Within the Bovvelles of the famous-CITIE of LONDON By George Wherstones Gent. Imprinted at London by Richarde Iones MAIESTRATES OF CITIES The dangerous Mischiefes that the DICING-HOVSES and other lyke Sanctuaries of iniquitie do breede in the Cittie of LONDON IT is sufficiently expressed that by the vertue diligence and wisdom of the right Noble Emperour Alexander Rome the most ouglye and monsterous Common-wealth of the world so was she deformed with horrible beastly vices fostered by Heliogabalus other wicked Emperours was brought vnto such perfection as she might lawfullye bee intituled The Temple of the Goddes The Fowntayne of Vertue and The Nurce of Learnyng so free was the Exercise of Pietie The woundes of a Comon wealth Iustice Temperance and all other Deuine Morall and Heroycall vertues In curyng of which daungerous Infirmyties of the Cōmon-wealth Alexander perfourmed the Offices of a skylfull Phisition and Surgion he did not ignorantly apply Medicine to the outwarde sore vntyll he had searched the inward cause He founde the outwarde woundes of the Weale-publique was Pride Prodigalytie Dicynge Drunkennesse Lecherie Vsurie Coueitousnes c. The suppressing of which Passions consisted not alone in chastisment of Offenders He prudently foresawe that the Boatman lost much labor that with a Dish stoode all day ladyng out of water when a quarter of an howres worke wold mende the breache of his Boate whiche was the cause althoughe the water were the annoyance he knew that euery Ryuer had a Spryng euery Disease a nooryshing Humour and euery vice a special succour Reason instructed him that no Thiefe wold be so bould as to rob by the hye waye if he had no Couert to shrowd hym If there were no Brothell Houses Shame wold delay Lechery But for Tauerns and tiplyng Boothes Drunkardes should be sober against their wils But for Ordinarie tables Dicers should many times be idle or better occupied then in swearyng and consumyng their Patrimonie These causes beynge stopped the vicious perforce must change their course And therfore the good Emperour as the best remedie for the
maladies of the Cōmon-wealth purged Rome of thease Sanctuaries of lewd and dishonest persons as the perfect meane to cure their vile and naughtie dispositions And certaynly his Gouernment Order and Discipline may be A Myrrour for Magistrates of all Citties who are lyke to finde no lacke of Disorders to exercise his Politique Orders for in the heart of the best gouerned Citties Vice hath her Mansion as a Core in the inward substance of the sowndest Quince But leauyng the Discouerie of the Infyrmities of Forreigne Citties London the Capitol Cittie of Englande and at this day the Paragon of Christendome prowdely beareth many a daungerous Infyrmytie whiche the Wisdome of the Maistrates must speedely heale or els ouershortely the wickednesse of her people wyll abate her prosperytie A Remembrance of the Disordered State of the Common-wealth at the Queenes Maiesties commyng to the Crowne THE Queenes most Excellent Maiestie euen our Gratious Queene Elizabeth by Gods grace Soueraigne Ladye of this famous Cittie and of Englande Fraunce and Irelande in aduauntage sole Princesse of Peace and second to no annoincted kyng in the exercise of all the Capitol Vertues let Gods blessinges bee my Testimonie plentifullie heaped vpō her Exellencie and for her Holinesse sake vpon her true Subiectes and many a hungrye Nation besides Her sacred Maiestie I saye at suche time as she was crowned with the Soueraigntie of these Realmes fownd ENGLANDE and speciallie LONDON farre out of temper besides Cardinall Superstition with carnall and vnchaste infections of Rome as also puffed or half poysoned with the pryde of Spayne For the saluynge of which and all other Infirmyties of the Common-wealth her Godly wisdome with the Publique assent of her Subiectes established many Medicinable Lawes whereby all the priuye Maladies of the Cōmon-wealth might receiue perfect cure if the Penall Lawes were as seuerely punished as they be prudētly established Negligence in Maiestrates causeth bouldenes in euill lyuers But the onely lacke of this Admynistration is the Maiestrate punissheth but what is presented and the Iniured in many wronges sustayne their losses without complaynt Thus lacke of diligence bouldneth the euyll lyuers to offende with Halters about their neckes The godly Diuines in publique Sermons and others in printed Bookes haue of late very sharply inuayed against Stage playes vnproperly called ●nvaying against stage playes Tragedies Cōmedies and Moralles as the Sprynges of many vices and the stumblyng-blockes of Godlynesse and Vertue Truely the vse of them vpon the Saboth day and the abuse of them at al times with scurilytie and vnchaste cōueiance ministred matter sufficient for them to blame and the Maiestrate to reforme Playinge at dice invented by the deuill But there are in the Bowels of this famous Citie farre more daungerous Playes and little reprehended that wicked Playes of the Dice first inuented by the Deuyll as Cornelius Agrippa wryteth and frequented by vnhappy men The detestable Roote vpon which a thousand villanies growe Ordinarie Tables Nurses of Iniquitie The Nurses of thease worse then Heathnysh Hellish exercise are Places called Ordinary-tables Of which there are in London more in nomber to honor the Deuyll then Churches to serue the liuing God neither are they improperly named for in verye trueth Difference of ordinarie Tables they are the Ordinarie Intertayners of naughtie persons and the Sinckes of all abhomynation But some wyll holde it conuenient that I make a Difference of Ordinarie Tables because of the ciuill vsage Orders of some of the keepers as in respect of the Honourable and worshipfull repayre vnto them In very trueth in some of these places Vice is so modestly quallyfied as they may well be called tollerable euylles And although Socyetie be a pleasing Affection I hope as occasion will fall out to satisfie the better sorte of Gentlemen that the refraynynge of the best of these badde Houses wyll be more profitable Honorable pleasant then the frequentyng of them The namyng of the ciuiller sort of these Houses I omyt because in reportyng of the viler sort and horrible vices that they foster is farre from my intent either in name or figure to discipher any persō that keepeth them or eny Guest that haunteth them This worke is not made particulerly to blame any person but generally to blason abuse protestyng before God and man that my labour searcheth the roote of this fowle ympostume which vomiteth a nomber of seuerall filthy coloured Corruptions onely to admonish the greener sort of Gentlemen who are aptest to receiue the Infection and to laye before the Magistrate the Poyson of thease Vlcers to whose wisdomes the cure belōgeth and in this trauell I suppose I deserue wel of the worst liuers in that I charitably admonysh them to reforme the euylles that Time may discouer by their vndoyng And so to my purpose THere are within the Subvrbes of London diuers worthie Houses Innes of the Court places of much reuerence called Innes of the Court and of the Chaūcerie Places where the Lawes of this Realme are publiquely read studied and learned Places of much Honour and Reputation aswell in respect of the Reuerentnesse of the Personages whiche gouerne them as also for the exercise of the Lawes whiche are the strength and Ornamentes of euery wel gouerned Cōmon-wealth euery Gentleman and almost Yeman of Abylitie sendeth the ripest witted of his Children vnto some one of thease Houses to study the common Lawes of Englande And truely the good Father in this charge dischargeth the loue of a Father towardes his Sonne and the duetie of a frende towardes his Countrey for by suche as are learned in the Lawes if they abuse not their knowledge besides an especial benefit reputation which they priuatly reape vnto them-selues the Ignorance of their Neighbours where they dwell ●●●●●ng houses in a hinderāce to the stud e of the lawe is profitably instructed But by reason of Dicyng-howses and other Alectiues too vnthriftinesse the good Father which is at charge to make his Sonne a Lawier to do his Countrey seruice throughe the loosenesse of the Sonne many times spendeth his money to the vndooyng of his posterytie One scabbed sheepe infecteth a hole flocke The swarme of Vnthriftes whiche lyue vpon Shiftes in and within the Cittie of London first seaze vpon these Yonglynges by their lewde conuersation they drawe them from Studdie and doo acquaint them with these wicked Ordinaries Wheare the Brauerie of the Companie the glee and Reuell that they keepe Dye ing houses causes of pride were able to brynge a stayde man vnto their Societie but are sure to inchaunt a light yongman which cōmeth rawly out of the coūrey What foloweth Pride straightwayes infecteth him with desire to be as braue as the best Well if he haue liuyng either in possession or possybilitie he shall finde sweete Baites to choake him Moste of these wicked places Three dangerous gwestes belonging to ordinarie tables noorish three Guestes that will soundly bowrd this