Selected quad for the lemma: england_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
england_n	alexander_n	king_n	year_n	2,489	5	5.6153	4	false

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
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

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

the Son of Q. Fabius Vale. Max. li 3. Cha. 5. the great surnamed Allobrogique for the riotous dispending of his Patrimonie was indited by this law cōmitted vnto the gouernment of a Tutor Were this law executed in England we shuld haue more Wardes of .xxxv. then .xv. yeares of Age. The Gretians had a law that whosoeuer had vnthriftily cōsumed his patrimony shuld not be buried in the sepulchre of his Auncestors for that he was held vnworthie the Honor of his Auncestors that dishonoreth himselfe robbeth his posterytie The ancient graue politique Cōmō-wealth mē thus seuerely chastned Prodigalytie though prodigal men had no care of thē-selues they tendered the posterytie of their posterytie they like vnto careful Phisitions that prouide preseruatiues because the infection of the Plague is daungerous sought the meanes that Prodigalytie might not be nooryshed fore-seeyng that prodigall men neyther reuerenced good Counsayle nor feared Disciplyne And surely it is a worke of greater Iustice mercifullie to find a way to preserue men from offending then seuerely to punish euery offence Suppresse these vnthriftie Houses and you shall keepe many a mans Landes from sellyng many a mans neck from the Halter the Cōmon-wealth perhaps from a more daungerous mischiefe I haue but yet begun to anatomize the Head of this villanous Sanctuarie of Iniquitie a heape of euilles followe The deceipt of Dice the charge of Lecherie Cosonage and Brocage is all that I haue yet layde vpon our vnhappy Gentlman These onely pray vpon Gould Siluer and suche light carraidge These be but suckyng Flies the bityng Scorpions come after A Byrde that hath but one feather limed by striuing fetreth her whole body Euen so the vnfortunate Gentleman thrust behinde the hande by the hazard of Dice through a vaine hope to redeeme himselfe followeth his mischiefe to the spendynge of the last payment of his Lande And to helpe him forwarde some one Spie or Pettifogger of the Lawe the reuerence done vnto the Law and good Lawiers reuerenced A Petifogger a most daungerous brother I may iustly saye the Scum of all villanie is euer-more sneakyng in these Ordinarie Houses This notable Companion keepeth an Alphabet of all the rich Gentlemens names that frequenteth the Ordinaries Exercyse of ordinarie Table pety-foggers his eyes are settled vpon their dispositions and his exercise is dayly to search the Rolles and the Office of the Statutes to learn what Recognizances Morguages and Statutes do charge their Landes This is the most pernitious Broaker the other helped the needie gentleman to money at fiftie in the hundred losse but he helpeth him to sell free land at fiue yeres purchase I must here digresse from the prodigalitie of the gentleman vnto the couetousnesse and vsurie I can not properly say of the Citizen although he dwelleth in the Citie for the true Citizen wherof London hath plentie liueth vpon his trade be he an aduenturer abroade or a mecanicall crafts man at home Couetous Citizens hunt ordinarie tables to vndoe Gentlemen But these shames of good Citizens tradeth but to a dycing house or at the furthest trauaileth to a bowling alley and with ease safetie getteth wealth as fast as the other doe with great hazard and trauell They come not to play the vnthrifts but to pray vpon vnthrifts and yet for companie and to auoide suspition they wil sometime play the good fellowes All the rest are but instruments for these daungerous catchers These neede not too greedily seeke for purchases the necessitie of the gentlemen maketh them faire offers and their spies the petifogger and others giueth them knowledge where there is sound dealing Among them there is such deceit coloured with such cleanly shifts as many gentlemen are for a trifle shifted out of their liuings without hope of remedie The extreme dealing of couetous Citizens haue setled a deadly enuie betweene Gentlemen and merchaunts The extremitie of these mens dealings hath beene and is so cruell as there is a natural malice generally impressed in the hearts of the gentlemen of England towards the citizens of London insomuch as if they odiously name a man they foorthwith call him A trimme merchaunt In like despight the Citizen calleth euery rascall A ioly Gentleman And truely this mortall enuie betweene these two woorthie estates was first engendred of the cruell vsage of couetous merchaunts in hard bargaines gotten of Gentlemen and nourished with malitious words and reuenges taken of both parties Tim. 1. cap. 6. The 〈◊〉 of couetousnesse S. Paul by good warrant saith That couetousnesse is the roote of all mischiefe S. Augustine saith that the couetous man is subiect to all euils for that all euils come of couetousnesse He moreouer saith that wilde beasts haue measure for being hungrie they pursue their praies and being full are satisfied but the couetous man is neuer satisfied He neither feareth God nor reuerenceth man pardoneth not his father nor acknowledgeth his mother maketh merchandize of his children regardeth not his brother nor yet keepeth faith with his friend beareth false witnesse offendeth the widow destroyeth the Infant O how great is the follie of our vnderstanding to lose life to seeke death to banish ourselues from heauen Foure wheeles of the chariot of couetousnesse The two horses The waggoner The two whippes S. Bernard saith that the accursed chariot of couetousnesse is drawen with foure disloyall wheeles of vices vz. Pusalanimite Crueltie misprising of God and forgetfulnesse of certaine death The two horses are named Theft Hardnesse The waggoner is Earnest desire to haue who vseth two sharpe whippes the one called Disordered appetite to get the other Feare to loose The opinion of Apuleius in his first booke of Magicke is woorthy to be read who writeth thus The Philosopher Socrates had not so much riches as Lelius nor Lelius somuch as Scipio nor Scipio so much as the rich Crassus nor Crassus so much riches as he desired The Emperour Pertinax was so couetous Pertinax Emperour as he would inuite his friends vnto two small slyces of meate and a dish of apples and when he would seeme most sumptuous and magnificent he added the two genitories of a cocke Iouian Pontanus saith that Pope Martin was so couetous Pope Martin as he would steale euerie night the burning tapers in S. Peters Church The same Pontanus saith that a Cardinal named Angel Cardinall Angell euerie night would steale away from his own horses bottels of hay and sel them to other ostlers vntill his horsekeeper one night taking of him tardy swinged him currantly Couetousnes a dangerous enemie to the common wealth To conclude the euils of couetousnesse with the daungers it bringeth the common wealth vnto Men that haue licentiously spent their substance and finde no liberalitie to supplie their wants wish straight wayes an alteration of the estate and what in them lieth practiseth the sam They fawne vpon ambitious men which are in authority betweene