required his Eunuches to take the present and to putte it into a Cuppe of golde The kyng when he was lodged in his pauilion sente to the man a Persian robe a Cuppe of golde and a thousande Darices which was a coigne emōges the Persians whervpon was the Image of Darius willyng the messenger to saie vnto hym these woordes It hath pleased the kyng that thou shouldest delight thy self and make merie with this golde because thou diddest exhilarate his minde in not suffryng hym to passe without the honour of a present but as necessitie did serue thee diddeste humblie salute hym with water His pleasure is also that thou shalte drinke of that water in this cuppe of golde of whiche thou madest hym partaker Artaxerxes hereby expressed the true Image of a princely mynde that would not disdaine cherefully to beholde the homelie gifte in our estimacion rude and nothyng worthe at the handes of his poore subiecte and liberally to reward that ductifull zeale with thinges of greate price and valour To the same Artaxerxes ridyng in progresse through Persia was presented by one called Mises a verie greate Pomegranate in a Siue The kyng merueilyng at the bignesse thereof demaunded of hym out of what garden he had gathered the same He answered out of his owne Whereat the kyng greatly reioysyng recompenced hym with princely rewardes saiyng By the Sōne for that was the common othe of the Persian kynges this manne is able with suche trauell and diligence in my iudgement to make of a litle citie one that shal be large and greate Whiche wordes seme to declare that all thynges by care sufficiente paine and continuall labour maie against nature be made more excellent better The loue of Chariton and Menalippes ¶ The .x. Nouell I Will rehearse a facte of the tyrant Phalaris farre discrepante from his condictons For it fauoureth of greate kindnes and humanitie and seemeth not to bee dooen by him Chariton was an Agrigentine borne and a greate louer of beautie who with ardente affection loued one Menalippus whiche was also borne in the Citie of honeste condicions and excellent beautie This Tyrant Phalaris hindred Menalippus in a certaine sute For when he contended in iudgement with one of Phalaris frendes the tyraunte commaunded hym to giue ouer his suite wherevnto bicause he was not obediente he threatned to put hym to death except he would yelde But Menalippus ouer came hym in lawe and the noble men whiche wer the frendes of Phalaris would giue no sentence brought the same to a Nonesuite Whiche the yong manne takyng in ill parte saied he had receiued wronge and confessed to his frende Chariton the wronge he had susteined requiryng his aide to reuenge the same vpon the Tirant He made other yong menne priuie to that conspiracie suche as he knewe would be redie and apt for that enterprise Chariton perceiuyng the rage and furie of his frende knowyng that no man would take his parte for feare of the tyraunte began to disswade hym saiyng that he hymself went about the like attempt a litle before to deliuer his countrie into libertie out of presente seruitude but he was not able to sorte the same to any purpose without greate daunger Wherefore he praied hym to committe the consideracion thereof vnto him and to suffre hym to espie a tyme apt and conuenient Menalippus was contente Then Chariton reuoluyng with hymself that deuise would not make his dere frende a partaker of that fact lest it should be perceiued but he alone toke vpon hym to doe the deede that onely hymself might susteine the smarte Wherefore takyng a sworde in his hande as he was sekyng the waie to giue the assaulte vpon the Tiraunte his enterprise was disclosed and Chariton apprehended by the Guarde whiche for the Tirantes defence diligentlie attended about hym From thence he was sent to the Iaole and examined vpon interrogatories to bewraie the reste of the conspiratours For whiche he suffered the racke and the violence of other tormētes Afterwardes Menalippus remembryng the constancie of his frende and the crueltie by him stoutly suffered wente to Phalaris and confessed vnto hym that not onely he was priuie to that treason but also was the aucthour thereof Phalaris demaundyng for what cause he did it told hym the consideracion before rehersed whiche was the reuokyng of sentence and other iniuries doen vnto him The Tirant merueiling at the constante frendship of these twaine acquited thē bothe But vpon condicion that bothe should departe out of the citie and countrie of Scicilia Neuerthelesse he gaue them leaue to receiue the fructes and commodities of their reuenues In recorde and remembraūce of whose amitie Apollo sange these verses The Raisers vp of heauenly loue emonges the humaine kinde VVere good Chariton and Menalippe whose like vnneths we finde This Phalaris was a moste cruell Tyrant of the citie of Agrigentine in Scicilia who besides other instrumētes of newe deuised tormentes had a Bulle made of brasse by the arte and inuencion of one Perillus. Into whiche Bulle all suche as were condempned to death were put and by reason of extreme heate of fire made vnder the same those that were executed yelled forthe terrible soundes and noyses like to the lowyng of a Bulle For whiche ingine and deuise Perillus thinkyng to obteine greate reward was for his labour by commaundemente of the Tyrante throwen into the Bulle beyng the firste that shewed the proofe of his deuise Within a while after also Phalaris hymself for that his greate crueltie could bee susteined no longer was by a generall assault made vpon hym by the people haled into the same Bull and burned And although this Tyrant farre excelled in beastlie crueltie yet there appered some sparke of humanitie in him by his mercie extended vpon Chariton and Menalippus the twoo true louers before remembred the same Phalaris wrote many proper and shorte Epistles full of vertuous instructions and holsome admonicions Kyng Cyrus perswaded by Araspas to dispose hymself to loue a ladie called Panthea entreth into a pretie disputacion and talke of loue and beautie Afterwardes Araspas hymself falleth in loue with the saied Ladie but she indued with greate chastitie auoydeth his earnest loue And when her husband was slaine in the seruice of Cyrus she killed her self ¶ The .xj. Nouell BEfore the beginnyng of this historic I haue thought good by waie of a Proeme to introduce the wordes of an excellent writer called Lodouicus Caelius Rhodoginus Saincte Hierome saieth he that moste holy and eloquent father affirmeth that vertues are not to bee pondered by the sexe or kynde by whom thei be doen but by the minde Wherewith if euer any woman was affected truly it was the faire ladie Panthea wherin I would no man should blame me of vngodlines or indiscrecion for that I doe remēber a woman mencioned in profane aucthours beyng not mynded at this presente to make a viewe of Christe his secretes whiche are his diuine scriptures wherein bee conteined the
monumente also accordyng to his worthinesse shal be erected vpon his graue Sacrifice shal be offred méete for a manne so valiaunt and puissaunt Thou likewise shalt not be left comfortles For in consideration of thy great chastitie and vertue I will honour thee and appoincte a garrison to conuey thee into what place thou art disposed to goe To whom Panthea saied Be of good chere Cyrus I will not hide from you the place wherin I am determined to bestowe my self Cyrus hearyng her saie so went awaie pitiyng the woman that was bereued of suche a housebande and lamentyng the manne that had lefte suche a wife behinde hym and was like no more to sée her againe But Panthea commaunded her Eunuches to goe out of the place till she had satisfied her self with teares and lamentacions for her housebande For the prepared to kill her self requiryng her Nursse to tarie by her cōmaundyng her that when she was deade she should shroude her and her husbande in one garment The Nursse perswaded the Ladie with humble wordes and supplicacions from her determinaciō But she could not preuaile and when she sawe that her maistres toke her wordes in ill parte she satte downe and wept But Panthea with a sworde which she had prepared a long tyme for that purpose killed her self and laiyng her heade vpon her husebandes breaste she yelded from her chaste bodie her innocente ghoste The Nursse seyng that cried out and couered them bothe as she was cōmaunded Cyrus vnderstandyng the womans facte was amazed and spedelie went to sée if she might be holpen The Eunuches beyng three in nomber seyng their maistres dead thei likewise drewe out their swordes killed themselues in the place where thei were cōmaunded to stand For memorie of which facte Cyrus created a noble monumēt to the perpetuall praise of chastitie honest loue Whiche as Xenophō reporteth remained to his daies with their names ingrauen in Syrian letters Abdolominus is from poore estate aduaunced by Alexander the greate through his honest life to be kyng of Sydone ¶ The .xij. Nouell ALexander the mightie and noble Emperour after he had subdued Darius the Persian kyng at length came to Sydone a famous citie by reason of the auncient fame of the first founders The same citie was vnder the gouernment of Strato and mainteined by the puissance of Darius who yelding more by force of the people then by free will was thought vnworthie to raigne and rule there Alexander at the request of his frende Ephestion willed him to appoinct one to be king whom the Citizens should thinke moste worthie of that state After profers of Ephestion to diuers of the yonge gentlemen of that citie and refusall made of their partes thei alledged that none ought to enioy the dignitie of their king but suche as were descended of the royall bloodde Thinking none to be more mete for that state then one Abdolominus who being of the roiall race for pouertie was inforced to inhabite a litle cotage without the citie His good life was the cause of his pouertie as it is to many other labouryng in his daiely trauell vnderstoode not the brute of the warre that troubled all Asia Ephestion and the yong gentlemen repaired to his garden with garmētes to garnish hym like a kyng and founde hym makyng cleane his garden whom thei saluted and saied You muste exchaunge your homelie clothes with these riche robes wherewith wée here presente you Washe your bodie that now is foule and vncleane take vpon yon the corage of a kyng and in this state whereof you be worthie expresse the same sobrietie and continencie you dooe presentlie vse And when you sitte in your regall seate vsyng the aucthoritie of life death of your subiectes Doe in no wise forgette the fortune wherin you were before you were made king ne yet for what purpose you did receiue it The matter semed to Abdolominus like a dreame and demaunded of theim if their wittes were founde that did deride hym in that sorte But when he sawe them binde by othe their doynges to be of trouth he washed himsef and takyng the garment whiche was purple and golde went with them into the palace The fame was diuerslie bruted of this facte Some fauoured the cause and some did froune against it But suche as were riche did reproue his pouertie and base estate to those that were nere about Alexander whiche made the kyng to sende for him And when he had long be holden his maner and order said Your personage doeth not degenerate from the fame of your progenitors But I would faine knowe how paciēt you were in the time of your pouertie I would to God q Abdolominus I could beare my prosperitie in like case now I am kyng These handes did get that I desired And hauyng nothing I lacked nothing Whiche wordes made Alexander conceiue a good opinion of hym To whom he restored the riches of the kyng before and diuers other thynges taken awaie by the Persians The oracion of the Scythian Ambassadours to Alexander the greate reprouyng his ambicion and desire of Empire ¶ The .xiij. Nouell TVllie in the first booke of his Offices saieth that verie miserable is ambicion and desire of honour and that moste men whiche be giuen to cupidite of gouernement honor and glorie be forgetfull of Iustice. The truthe of whiche graue woordes vttred by a Prince of eloquence the rude and barbarous Ambassadours of Scythia in plain and homelie talke boldlie did pronounce to kyng Alexander surnamed Magnus when he was aboute to inuade their countrie For when he hadde within three daies finished twelue thousande boates to transport his armie ouer the famous riuer of Tanais whiche deuideth Asia from Europa against the poore Scythians twentie Ambassadors of the Scythians came to Alexanders cāpe to speake with him to proue if thei could by wordes withdrawe his entended purpose Before whom when thei were placed the eldest of them spake these woordes If the goddes had giuen thee a bodie accordyng to the immoderate desire of thy minde the whole worlde could not be able to hold thée With one of thy handes thou wouldest touche the Oriente and with thy other hande the Occident And when thou haste gotten that thou wilte desire to knowe where the brightnesse of the Diuine Maiestie is placed Thus thou couetest after the thing thou art not able to receiue Out of Europa thou marchest into Asia and out of Asia thou passest into Europa Afterwardes if thou doest vanquishe all mankinde thou must make warre with wooddes and snowes with riuers and wilde beastes What Doest thou not knowe that greate trees growe long and yet be rooted out of the grounde in a moment He is a foole that looketh after the fruict and doeth not measure the height of the Tree whereon it groweth Take hede lest while thou doest contende to clim to the toppe thou fallest downe with the bowes whiche thou doest imbrace The Lion also somtyme is made the
it happē that she giue her self fully to the conductiōs of loue and the superplusage of her said excuse ought to consist in that she hath chosen her a sage and vertuous frende if she that loueth hath doen so in deede Whiche twoo thinges as thei should be I suppose are in me and many other also whiche ought to induce me to loue accordynglie as my youth requireth and the great space that is betwene my husbande and me It behoueth now then that thei should aduaunce themselfes in your presence for the defence of my burnyng loue and if the same doe raigne in you whiche haue power in the wise then I beseche you to giue me counsaile and aide in the thing whiche I shall demaunde True it is that for the long absence of my husbande not able to resist the prickes of the fleshe and the force of loue whiche be of suche greate effecte that thei haue many times past and yet daily doe vāquishe and ouercome not onely feble and weake women but also the strongest men I liuyng in ease and idlenes as you sée and forced to folowe the pleasures of loue and to become amourous as I doe knowe well that such thynges if thei were knowen should not bee reputes honest Neuerthelesse the same beyng kepte secrete I thinke shall not be muche dishonest Notwithstanding dame Loue is so fauourable vnto me that not onelie she hath giuen me true iudgement in choise of a frende but hath reueiled vnto me that it is you which is worthie to be beloued of suche a ladie as I am For if I bée not greatlie deceiued I do make accompt that you be the fairest personage the semeliest the most curteous and wisest gentleman in all the Realme of Fraunce And as I maie saie by reason of his absence that I am without a husbande so maie you affirme that you bee without a wife wherfore I beseche you for the loue that I beare vnto you that you wil not denie me your loue and frendship that you wil haue pitie vpon my yong yeres whiche doubtles dooe consume for you as Ice against the fierie flames At whiche worde the teares ran doune in suche abundance that where she thought to make further supplicacion and praiers she had no more power to speake But holdyng doune her heade like one that was ouercome she threwe her self doune into the Erles lappe who like a faithfull knighte began to blame with sharpe rebukes her fonde and foolishe loue pushyng her from hym as she was about to clepe hym aboute the necke and swore greate othes that rather he would bee drawen in fower peces then consent to suche a thyng to be doen by hym or any other against the honor of his lorde maister Whiche wordes the Ladie hearyng sodainly forgatte her loue and in greate rage saied vnto hym Shall I then bee frustrate thou arrant villaine in this wise of my desired ioye But sithens thou goest about to seke my distruction I will cause thee to be put to death or els to be banished the worlde When she had saied so by and by she caught her self by the heare of the head and almoste tare it of cleane and then laied handes vpon her garmentes rentyng the same in peces and afterwardes cried out aloude Helpe helpe The Erle of Angiers wil rauishe me by force The Erle seyng that and farre more doubtyng of the enuie and malice of the Courte then his owne conscience for any committed facte fearyng also that more credite would bee giuen to the wickednesse of the Ladie then to his innocencie conueied hymself from that place and so sone as he could he went out of the palace and fledde home to his owne house where without any further aduise he placed his children on horsebacke and so well as he could caried them to Callice At the brute and noyse of the Ladie many people assembled Who seyng and hearyng thoccasion of her crie not onely beleued her wordes but also affirmed that the pompouse state of the Erle was vsed by hym to bryng to passe the effecte of his desire Then thei ranne to the houses of the Erle in greate furie to arreste his persone but not findyng him there thei first sacked his houses and afterwardes ouerthrewe them to the grounde The newes hereof so wicked as might bee deuised arriued at the Kyng and Dolphins Campe whereat thei were so troubled and offended that thei condempned the Erle and all his progenie to perpetuall exile promisyng greate giftes and rewardes to them that would presente them quicke or deade The Erle beyng offended in his conscience for that he was fledde innocente of the facte made hymself culpable thereof and arriued at Callice with his children dissemblyng what he was and sodainly passed ouer into Englande and in poore apparell traueiled vp to London And before he entred the citie he gaue his children diuers admonicions but specially of two thinges First that thei should beare paciently the pouertie whervnto Fortune without their offence had brought them Afterwardes that wisely thei should take héede at no time to manifest declare to any man from whence thei came and whose childrē thei were as thei loued the price of their owne liues The soonne was named Lewes almoste of the age of ix yeres and the doughter called Violēta was about the age of .vij. bothe whiche childrē as their age could suffer them did well obserue their fathers lesson as afterwardes it did right well appere And bicause that this might the better be brought to passe it semed good vnto hym to alter their names namyng the soonne Perotto and the doughter Gianetta And when thei were arriued at Lōdon in maner of beggers thei craued their almose and beyng by Fortune for that purpose one mornyng at a churche doore it came to passe that a greate ladie whiche was one of the Marshalles of Englandes wiues in goyng out of the Churche sawe the Erle and his two litle childrē beggyng their almose of whom she demaunded what countrie man he was and whether those children were his owne or not To whom the Erle answered that he was a Picarde and by reason of a wicked facte dooen by his eldest soonne that was an vnhappie boie he was forced to departe his countrie with those his twoo children The Ladie whiche was pitifull fixed her eyes vpō the girle who pleased her verie muche bicause she was beautifull gentill and pleasaunt saiyng Good man if thou be contēt to leaue vnto me this thy litle doughter whiche hath a good face I will willingly take her and if she become a duetifull maiden when she is mariageable I will marie her in honeste wise This demaunde greatly pleased the Erle who redely answered that he was contented and with teares trickeling doune his eyes he deliuered and commended his pretie doughter vnto her And whē he had thus wel bestowed her he determined to tarrie no lōger there but in beggyng his almose traueiled through the countrie with his
in his shirt fel downe at the Presidents fete crauing pardon his wife on the other side began to wéepe To whome the President sayde For so much as the thing which thou hast done is suche as thou maist well consider that I cannot abide my house for thée in this sort to be dishonored the daughters which I haue had by thée to be disaduaūced and abased Therfore sayd he leaue of thy wéeping and marke what I shall doe And thou Nicolas for that was his Clarks name hide thy self here in my closet and in any wise make no noyse when he had so done he opened the dore and called in his olde seruant and said vnto him Diddest not thou warrant and assure me that thou wouldest let me sée my Clark and wife in bedde together And vpon thy wordes I am come hither thinking to haue killed my wife and haue found nothing to be true of that which thou diddest tell me For I haue searched the chamber in euery place ◠I will shew thée And with that he caused his seruant to loke vnder the beddes and in euery corner And when the seruant founde him not throughly astonned he sayd to his maister Sir I saw him goe into the chamber and out he is not gone at the dore And so farre as I can sée he is not here Therefore I thinke the Diuell muste néedes carrie him away Then his maister sayde vnto him Thou art a very villaine to set suche diuision betwene my wife and me wherefore I doe discharge thée from my seruice for that which thou hast done me I will pay thée thy duty with the aduantage Therefore get thée hence and take hede that thou doest not tarrye in this towne past .xxiiij. houres The President for that he knewe him to be an honeste and faythfull seruant gaue him fiue or six yeares wages and purposed otherwise to preferre him When the seruant with ill will and weping teares was departed the President caused his Clarke to come out of his Closet And after he had declared to his wife and him what he thought of their yll behauiour he forbad them to shewe no likelyhode of any such matter and commaunded his wife to attire and dresse her selfe in more gorgeous apparel than she was wont to weare and to haunt and resorte to company and feastes willing the Clarke to make a better countenaunce of the matter than he did before but whensoeuer he rounded him in the eare bad him to departe he charged him after the cōmaūdement not to tarry .iiij. houres in the town And when he had thus done he retourned to the pallace as though there had no such thing chaunced And the space of .xv. dayes contrarie to his custome he feasted his friendes and neighbours and after the banket he caused the ministrels to play to make the Gentlewomen daunce One daye seing that his wife did not daunce he commaunded his Clarke to take her by the hande and to leade her forth to daunce who thinking the President had forgotten the trespasse paste very ioyfully daunced with her But when the daunce was ended the President fayning as though he would haue commaunded him to doe some thing in his house badde him in his eare to get him away and neuer to returne Now was the Clarke very sorowful to leaue his Ladye but yet no lesse ioyfull he was that his lyfe was saued Afterwardes when the President had made all his friendes and kinsefolkes and all the coūtrie beleue what great loue he bare to his wife Upon a fayre day in the moneth of May he went to gather a sallade in his garden of such herbes that so sone as she had eaten of them she liued not past .xxiiij. houres after whereof he counterfayted such sorrow as no man could suspect the occasion of her death And by that meanes he was reuenged of his enemy and saued the honor of his house I wyll not by this Nouell sayd Emarsuitte prayse the conscience of the President but herein I haue declared the light behauior of a woman and the gret pacience prudence of a man Praying you good Ladies all not to be offended at the truth If al women quod Parlamente that loue their Clarkes or seruauntes were forced to eate such sallades I beleue they would not loue their gardens so wel as they doe but would teare and pluck vp all the herbes both roote and rinde to auoyd those things that by death might aduaunce the honor of their stocke and ligneage If sallades be so costly q Hircan and so daungerous in May I will prouoke appetite with other sawses or else hunger shal be my chiefest Of a Ialous Gentleman A Gentleman of Perche suspecting iniurie done vnto him by his frende prouaked him to execute and put in proufe the cause of his suspicion ¶ The Lviij Nouell BEsides the cuntry of Perche there where two Gentlemen which from the tyme of their youth liued in such great and perfecte amitie that there was betwéene them but one heart one bed one house one table and on purse Long time continued this perfecte friendship betwéene whome there was but one will and one worde no difference in eyther of them In so much as they not only semed to be two brethren but also they appeared in al semblances to be but one man One of them chaunced to marry Notwithstanding they gaue not ouer their friendship but perseuered in their vsual amitie as they were wont to doe And whē they happened to be strayned to straight lodging the married gentleman would not sticke to suffer his friende to lye with him and his wife But yet you ought for friendship sake to consider that the married man lay in the middes Their goodes were common betwene them that for al the mariage no cause did hinder their assured amitie But in processe of tyme the felicitie of this world which carieth with it a certayne mutabilitie could no continue in the house which was before right pleasaunt and happie For the married man forgetting of the faithfull fidelitie of his friend without any occasion conceyued a great suspicion betwéene him and his wife from whō he could not dissemble the case but sharpely tolde her his mynde She therewithall was wonderfully amazed Howbeit he commaunded her to doe all thinges one thing excepted and to make so muche of his companion as of himselfe Neuerthelesse he for bad her to speake vnto him except it were in the presence of many All which she gaue her husbandes companion to vnderstand who woulde not beleue her knowing that he had neyther by thought or déede done any thing whereof his companion had cause to be offended And likewise bicause he vsed to kepe nothing secrete from him he told him what he had sayd praying him to tell him the truth of the matter bicause he purposed neyther in that ne yet in any other thing to giue occasion of breach of the amitie which of lōg time they had imbraced The maried