true it semeth by diuers excellent barons well lerned in diuers sciences that flourished in his tyme Iulius Capitolin recounteth of them as foloweth Alexander a greke Trasion Polyon Euticius Anius Macrion Caninius Crodiaticus Fornius Cornelius Apolonius Nius Sextus Cheronense Iunius Rasticus Claudius Maximus Cina Catulus Claudius Seuerus and the renowmed Diogenitus paynter and the well lerned lawyer Volusius Mecianus All these were in this emperours palays and residente in his persence And yet for all that he had dyuers other wise presons in Rome and abrode in Italy It was no meruail to se in those dayes the multitude of men that flourisshed in wisedome There was no father but if he had two sonnes he wolde set one of them to study and the other accordyng to the Romayne lawe shuld be sette to the warres And if this emperour wyst of any wyse yong man aboue al other he wolde fauour hym ¶ Of the emperour Marcus sonne named Verissimus Cap. v. THis emperour Marcus Aurelius hadde only two sonnes as Herodian saythe The greattest and eldest was called Comode and the yōgest was named Verissimus He was a fayre childe of person and right vertuous of liuing With his beautie he drewe to hym the eies of many and with his good inclinations he robbed the hartes of all men He was the hope of the people and the glorie of his fathers age And though the eldest was prince yet themperour determyned that the laste borne for his vertues shulde inherite as the eldest And he that was fyrst borne for his demerites shulde be disherited And as good desyres in the best tyme fayle often by vnhappy chance this emperour being of .lii. yeres of age and the sonne of .xvi. the glorie of Rome and hope of the father the lyfe of the sonne toke an ende And as moche was the deathe bewayled as the lyfe desyred It was great pytie for the senate by reason therof sawe not themperour nor the olde emperour for sorowe sawe not the senate of a longe space Rome was ryght heuy and the senate withdrewe them to the heighte of the capitoll dyuers dayes And as the mystes and wyndes cause the leaues to falle that were grene in sommer and the dedes of honour constrayne vs to forget the myshappes of fortune as a man of high lynage and of stronge courage thoughe that sorowe remayne in his harte and abydethe locked therin determynethe to clense the braunches of sorowes that is outward fayning ioy and myrthe outwardely kepynge the sorowe within so this Marcus the emperour as a man whose vine freseth and dyethe wherin he had al his hope contented him with that was lefte behynde Whan his dere sonne Verissimus was deed he sente for the prince Comode his onely inheritour whiche sythe the chylde his brother was deed entred not in to the palays And the emperour seynge the proude and outragious porte of his sonne Comode bedewed his eien with salte teares remembrynge the shame of the one and the dethe of the other The whiche perceyued by Faustyne his mother which loued hym moste entierly commaunded to haue her sonne awaye fro the presence of his father ¶ What wyse and auncient men Marcus chose to instructe his sonne Cap. vi THoughe that the harte of this emperour was occupied with the death of his chylde yet for all that he reysed his vnderstandyng to haue the prince his heyre ryght well brought vppe For certaynely princis bene suche whan they come to mans estate as they be brought vp in their tender youth The father than knowynge the frayle inclinations of his chylde not correspondent to the good gouernaunce of the empire as a good emperour sent ouer all Italye for the moste wysest persones in lernynge the moste famous of renowme and the mooste vertuous in dedes And as in dyuers thynges the infamye is greatter in the yll doinge by malyce than the faute of the trespassour by weakenes so in dyuers other thynges the common voyce is more than the secrete vertue For the whyche occasyon after the assemblynge of these wyse menne the emperour commaunded to examyne them and to be informed of the bloude of their predecessours of the appoyntement in all their thynges and of the treatie of their busynes and of the credence amonge their neyghbours and of the purenes of their lyues and grauitie of theyr persones and finally of their sciences what they coulde do and this to be done in an order The astrologiens in astronomie the musitiens in musyke the oratours in their arte of rhetorike and some in other sciences And this not in one daye but in many and not onely by informacyon of other but he wolde knowe hit by his owne propre experience Thus they were all examyned soo that there was none lefte behynde And as for perfecte knowlege of thynges wherin we haue great affection it behoueth to haue straunge aduyse clere vnderstandynge and propre experience so the emperour commanded to chose out of dyuers a fewe and out of fewe the wysest and of the wysest the moste experte moste worthy and moste auncient And accordyng to the vii artes lyberall there was assigned to euery science two maysters so that the prince was one and the maysters xiiii This renowme that the Emperour sente ouer all to haue maysters for his sonne the prince caused to come to hym moo wyse men from straunge countreys than of the marches and neyghbours of Rome The good emperour considerynge that it was no reason that suche as came to his seruice shulde returne myscontented some with ioyfull wordes some vpon certayne hope and some with giftes and presentes were dispatched soo that they were all pleased And if this doinge was renowmed by the reporte of the wise men it was no lesse vertuous by the wisedome and worthynes of the emperour to sende them home soo well content For he sent them away as well satisfied that were ouercome as they were cōtented that ouercam them And certaynly they had all reason for some bare the swete wordes and satisfienge of the father and somme aboode there charged with the enterprise of the sonne Yet the good emperour not being contented with this commanded that these maysters shoulde be lodged in his palayes and eate in his presence and acconpany his personne to se if theyr lyfe were conformable to their science and whether their plesant and wel couched wordes agreed in effect with theyr warkes It was a meruaylous thinge to se the study and thought that the emperour had to regard them as well in goynge as fedynge ¶ Howe it chaunced to fyue wyse men wherfore they were put out of the emperours house Cap. vii IN the month of Septembre the .xi. day therof in halowyng the feast of the Emperours natiuitie in the same house where as he was borne in the place of moūt Celio As a trewande and foole dothe lyke hym selfe and semblably as he is accustomed to doo And lyke as oone dothe the semblable thynges and customes that he
Soo all these thynges tyme acheueth and burieth but onely trouthe the whiche of the tyme and of all thynge that is in the tyme triumpheth Neyther to be fauoured of the good nor to be persecuted of the yll may be but that somtyme trouth may be stopped and hydde but whan it is displeased and wyl displease than at the laste she commeth to a good porte and taketh londe The fruites in the spryngyng tyme haue not the vertue to gyue sustenaunce nor perfyte swetenesse to satisfie the taste of them that eatetth therof but thanne passeth the season of sommer and haruest comethe whiche tyme dothe better rype them and thanne that that we doo eate dothe profyte vs the profe therof is ryghte sauerynesse and gyuethe the more force and vertue and the greatter is the taste I wyll in these fyrste wordes saye that in the fyrste aeges menne were more estemed by theyr meke customes and delycatenes than they were after reproued by their grosse and rude vnderstandynges Certaynely somme of the aunciente philisophers I speake of the mooste aunciente as welle Caldees as Grekes who fyrste lyfted theym selues to regarde the sterres of the heuen and surmounted the hyghe mounte of Olympius there to contemplate and regarde the influences of the planettes in the heuen I dare well saye that they haue rather merited pardon by theyr ignoraunces than praysynge or grace by their wysedome These were the fyrste that wolde serch the trouthe of the elementes of the heuen and yet they were the fyrste that dyd so we errours in thinges natural of the erthe Homere in his Illiade said these wordes in speakynge of philosophers I prayse nothyng the knowlege of myn auncesters but I can them greatte thanke and prayse in that they desyred knowlege This was welle sayde of Homer For if amonge the aunciente men had not rayned suche ignoraunce there had not ben soo many sectes and parcialities in euery schole He that hath redde the auncient antiquities of the philosophers shall not denay me the presumption of the knowledge and ignorance of that they desired to knowe the whiche is chiefe cause that science is not all one There is greatte nombre of parcialities Cynitiens Catoniens Peripaticiens Academyens and Epicuriens who were as contrary in their opinions as dyuers in their naturalities I wil not that my penne be so dismeasured to reproue soo moche the auncient men that the glorie all onely shoulde abyde with them that be present Truely if he merite guardon and prayse that sheweth me the way wherby I thynke to passe yet no lesse meriteth he that sheweth and aduisethe me of the waye wherby I maye fayle The ignoraunce of the auncient men hath ben but as a guyde to aduyse and aduertise all other and bycause they erred we haue foūd sith the waye to their great prayse and to our gret shame I say that if we that be no we present had benne than wo had knowen lesse than they dydde And if they that were than were nowe at this houre they shoulde surmounte vs in knowlege And that this is trewe tt appereth wel For the auncient sages with their diligēce to know the trouth by their close and ferme made the wayes But we by our slouthe folowe not the open wayes Than to the purpose that I wyll saye we that be nowe present canne not complayne of them that haue bene but that the trouthe the which accordynge to Aule Gel. is doughter of the tyme In this tyme of the worlde declarethe to vs the errours that we oughte to flee and the trouthe of the doctrine that we ought to folowe But as nowe the humayne malyce is so experte and the vnderstandynge of mortall menne is so dulle that in tyme of nede in goodnes of wyt we fayle and in all yll we knowe more than we ought to knowe In suche wyse that some with one parte of the more and some with lesse al presume to wyn the game And though this be true yet it is but a smalle thynge to that we abyde fore There is so moche that we oughte to knowe For the moste that we knowe is the least parte of that we be ignorant of as the thynges natural accordyng to the varietie of the tyme lyke maner dothe the operations of the elementes In semblable wise in thynges mortall as the ages hath succeded so are discouered the sciences For certayne all the fruites cometh not together Whan one fayleth an other begynneth to entre in reason I wylle saye that neyther all doctours amonge christen menne nor all the philosophers amonge the gentylles were concurrante in one tyme but after the deathe of one good an other came better The hygh and supreme wysedome the whiche all meane thynges gouerneth by Iustice and departeth it accordynge to his bountie wyll not that at oone tyme the worlde shulde want or be destitute of sage men nor at an other tyme want of symple personnes some desyringe the fruite and some the leaues In such sort that they shulde haue enuy of that other were impeched This auncient world that ranne in Saturnus dayes the whiche other wyse was called the golden worlde the whiche was so estemed of them that sawe it and soo moche praysed of theym that harde the writynge therof and soo moche desired of them that felt no parte therof was not gold by the sages that dyd gylte it but bycause that there was none yll that did vngylt it This our age nowe is of iron yet it is not called of yron for faute of sages but bycause the malycious people surmounte I confesse one thynge and I thynke I shall haue manye wyll fauour me in the same that there was neuer in the worlde so moche people teachynge vertue and soo fewe folowynge the same Aul. Gele sayth in his boke that the ancient sages were holden in reputation bycause there were fewe teachers and many lerners at this houre it is contrary there be but fewe lerners and many teachers The small esteme that the sages be in at this tyme maye be sene by greatte veneration that the philosophers were holden in as than the whiche thynge was trewe Homer among the grekes Salomom amonge the Hebrewes Lygurge amonge the Lacedemonyens Lyuie amonge the Romayns Cicero amonge the Latines Apolonius Thianeus amonge all the barbarike nations I desyre to haue ben in all these ages whan the worlde was so ryche of sage persons and so poore of symple persons whan they assembled out of ferre countreys and of dyuers realmes and strange nations not all onely to haue hard their doctrines but also to haue sene their persones I thynke I am not begyled in the histories for whan Rome in his moste prosperitie was hyghest in tryumphe Titus Liuius dothe write it in his histories and the glorious saynt Ierome affirmethe it in the prologe of the byble that mo people came to Rome to se the eloquences of the bokes more than to ioy any Romayne trumph Whan Olympias was delyuered of her
it shalbe said it is by reason of the ignoraunce of hym selfe or by yll counsell of such as be about hym if goodnes succede to hym it shall not be attrybuted by reason of his good gouernaunce but that fortune hath suffered it and not by the circumspecte wysedome that he hath hadde in the meane seasone but that it was of the pitie that the goddis had of hym Than sithe it is thus a vertuous and a worthy prince in his ydell tymes ought secretely to rede is bokes and openly to common and counsell with wyse men And in case yll fortune wyll not permyt hym to take their counselles yet at the least he shal recouer credence among his subiectes I wil say no more to you but I estem the knowlege of a wise persō so moch that if I knewe that there were shops of sciēces as there is of other marchaundise I wold giue al y t I haue only to lerne that a wise mā lerneth in one day Finally I say that I wil not giue that litel that I haue lerned in one houre for al the gold in the worlde And more glory haue I of the bokes that I haue red and of such workes as I haue writtē thā of al the victories that I haue had or of y e realmes that I haue won ¶ What a vilayne sayde to the senatours of Rome in the presence of the emperour Cap. xxxi THis emperour being sicke as it is aforesaid on a day as there were with hym diuers phisitiōs and oratours there was a purpose moued amonge them howe greately Rome was chaunged not all onely in edifices but also in customes and was full of flaterers and vnpepled of mē that durste say the trouthe Than the emperour sayd The fyrste yere that I was consul there came a poore vilayne from the riuer of Danubie to aske iustice of the senate ayenste a censure who dydde dyuers extortions to the people and he hadde a small face and great lyppes and holowe eyes his heare curled bare heeded his shoes of a porkepes skyn his cote of gotis heare his gyldell of bulle rushes and a wyld eglantine in his hand It was a strāge thinge to se him so monstruous and meruayl to here his purpose Certainly whan I saw him com into the senate I wende it had bene some beaste in the figure of a manne And after I had harde hym I iuged hym one of the goddes if there be goddes amonge men And as the custome in the senate was that the complayntes of the poore persons were hard before the requestis of the ryche this villayne had lycence to speake and so beganne his purpose wherin he shewed him selfe as bolde in wordes as extreme and base in his aray and sayd O ye auncient fathers and happy people I Myles dwellynge in a citie on the ryuer of Danubie doo salute you Senatours that are here assembled in the sacred senate The dedes do permytte and the goddis suffre that the capytayns of Rome with theyr great pride haue redused vnder subiection the vnhappy people of Germany Great is the glory of you Romayns for your battayles that ye haue wonne throughout all the worlde But if writers say true more greater shalbe your infamy in time to come for the cruelties that ye haue done to the innocentes My predecessours had people nyghe to the flode of Danubie and bycause they dyd ylle the erthe wared drie and they drewe to the frseshe water than the water was noyful to them and they returned to the main lande What shal I say than your couetise is so great to haue steangers goodes and your pryde soo renoumed to commaunde all strange landes that the see maye not profite vs in the depenes therof nor the erthe to assure vs in the caues therof Therfore I hope in the iust goddes that as ye without reason haue cast vs out of our houses and possessions so other shal com that by reason shal cast you out of Italy and Rome And infallible rule it is that he that taketh wrongfully an other mans good shall lese the right of his owne Regard ye Romains though I be a villain yet I knowe who is iust rightwise in holding his owne and who a tyrant in possessynge others There is a rule that what so euer they that be yl haue gathered in many dayes the goddes taketh fro them in one day and contrarie wise all that euer the good haue loste in manye days the goddis restoreth to them agayne in one day Beleue me in one thynge and haue no doute therin that of the vnlaufull wynning of the fathers there foloweth the iuste losse to theyr chyldren And if the goddes toke from them that be yll euery thyng that they haue wonne as soone as it is wonne it were but reasone but in lettynge them alone therby they assemble by lyttel and lytel diuers thynges and than whan they thynke least theron is taken from them all at ones This is a iuste iugement of the goddis that sithe they haue done yll to dyuerse that some shulde do yll to them Certaynely it is not possible to any vertuous man if he be vertuous that he take any taste in an other mans good And I am sore abashed how a man kepynge an other mans good can lyue one houre Syth he seeth that he hath don iniure to the goddis sclādred his neibours plesed his enmies lost his frendes greued them that he hath robbed and aboue all hath put his owne person in peryll This is a shamefull thynge amonge menne and culpable before the goddis the man that hath the desyre of his harte and the brydelle of his warkes at suche lybertie that the lyttel that he taketh and robbeth fro the poore semeth moche to hym but a great dele of his owne semeth to hym but lyttel O what an vnhappy man is he whether he be Greke or latin that without consideration wyll change his good fame into shame iustice into wrōg ryght into tyranny or trouth into lesynge the certayne into vncertayne hauynge annoyaunce of his owne goodes and dye for other mens He that hath his principall intention to gather goodes for his chyldren and seke not for a good name amonge them that be good it is a iuste cause that he lese all his goodes and so without good name to to be shamefull amonge them that be yl Let all couetous and auaricious people knowe that neuer amonge noble men was gotten good renoume with spredynge abrode of yll gotten goodes It can not endure many dayes nor yet be hydden vnder couert many yeres a man to be holden ryche amonge them that be ryche and an honorable man amonge them that be honorable for he shal be infamed of that he hath gathered his ryches with greate couetyse or kepeth it with extreme auarice O if these couetous people were as couetous of theyr owne honour as they be of other mens goodes I swere to you that the lyttel worme or mothe that eateth
confused for by her introduction the matter was moued And howe this mariage failed the historiens write not whom we haue folowed in this werke How Marke themperour fauored al noble exercyses and hated trewandes and fooles ca. xiiii THe vertues of this good emperour and the knowlege of sciēces the worthines in armes and the purenes of his liuinge caused hym to be named amonge the famous men of Rome The gentel conuersatiō that he had with euery man made him to be renowmed amonge the worthyest of al the worlde The thinge most agreable without reprehencion of the greattest meane and least is that a lord and prynce of many be communicable and conuersaunt with many All the good werkes of good men may be condemned with the yll intentions of theym that be ylle But the good condicions haue such a priuilege that of yl the good is praysed and the good approueth the yll In a mans lyuynge there is none so great a vyce but by good cōuersation it is couered and hid And contrary wise no crime is secrete but with ylle conuersation at the tyme that it hurteth it is more openly knowen Of two extremities hit is not so greuous to the common welthe a man to be weake and faynt in secretenes of gentyll conuersation abrode as it is of hym that is secrete and is rude of yll conuersation openly Dyuers not being of good order and policie we haue sene cōuersant a gret whyle in Rome only for beinge well condicioned And many mo we haue sene that in a short whyle after they were put in office haue ben soo proude and hasty in theyr condicions that they haue ben depriued from theyr offyces And this we say bicause this good emperour was so ioyous of vysage soo amyable in his customes so louynge in his conuersation that lyghtly he wolde caste his armes aboute the necke and on the shulders of them and take them by the handes that had any thynge to do with hym The porters shoulde not lette them that wolde accompany hym in the palays nor his garde was not so hardy to put abacke such as wold speke with hym in the fieldes In all his ages he applyed to that that euery age gaue hym by nature He was a childe amonge children yonge amonge yonge folkes worldely with them that were worldly good felowe with good felowes a baron amonge barons hardy with hardy men and finally olde with olde menne He was wonte to saye whan any in his presence that were yonge and not welle taught in their language iested at the debilitie of age or olde men at the foly of youth Leaue them sith they leaue you Many tymes of wyse yonge men cometh olde foles And of yonge fooles customably cometh wise olde men Naturalyte at the laste maketh all thynge in kynde As of greatte debilitie we canne drawe but smalle strengthe by our naturalitie we may for a tyme resiste it but not vtterly mayster it I am sore abashed that somme wyll be soo lordely and valiant in vertues and so hygh mynded and yet wyll make vs beleue that they lyuinge in the flesshe and being of fleshe onely fele not the fleshe I can not tel if nature hath made other of an other nature than I am of or me of an other nature thanne other be For I beynge neuer so faste inclosed in the swete conuersation of philosophy yea in the beste tyme this false flesshe wolle calleatte the gate with his noughtye fleshe The more that we reyse and exalte vs with science and gette lyberties the more lower we doo putte the flesshe with her myseries Beleue me one thynge that if a tree beareth not in Prymetyme his flowers we hope not to haue the fruite in harueste type and a yonge man that hathe not passed his youthe with yonge people we haue noo hope that he shulde passe his age with olde men And as we may resyste our naturalitie and not cleane to for do it so those fathers erre that are so extremely affectioned to haue theyr chyldren to begynne as olde men whervpon it foloweth that they ende as yonge This emperour was soo wyse in all thynges that amonge them that were mery he was of great myrthe And in verities he was very veritable In his pastimes he was greattely temperate and a louer of musike specially in good voyce and instrumentes and soore displeased if he harde any discorde therin He passed moste of his youthe in lernynge of sciences Whan he came to mannes state he exercised feates of knyghthode he loued disciplyne and not of adulation He was apt and happye in armes but yet in rydinge of horses he hadde ofte tymes yll happe In his yonge age he delyted to play at the tennys and at the chesse in his aege He loued not these counterfaytyng players of farces and mummeries and yet lesse trewandes that bene natural fooles iuglers and gesters for pleasure The players and gesters suffred great varietie in the empire accordynge to the diuersitie of emperours Iulius Cesar susteyned theym Octauian his neuewe droue theym away Caligula called theym agayne Cruell Nero banyshed them Nerua made theym come agayne Good Traian banyshed them out of al Italy Anthony Pius brought theym in ageyne And by the handes of this good emperour Marcus Aurelius they ended And the occasion was the Romayns dyd celebrate with great ioye the .iiii. day of May the great feaste of the mother Berecynte mother of all the goddis The sacred priestes flamines diales wold haue brought thyther these mynstrelles iugglers and gesters for to reioyce the feaste and contrarye wyse the holy nunnes vestales wolde haue done the same so that variance felle betwene theym some with force and somme with resistence and some ranne thider in fauourynge of bothe parties and not a fewe to departe theym The cruell and greate noyse of slaughter amonge them was suche that it tourned the feaste to wepynges the pleasures into sorowes and theyr songes into waylynges This good emperour laboured to pease this furie of the people and to sette peace among the neybours of Rome Whan all was done he made curious diligence to serche out all the players iuglers and iestours of Rome and in all the circuite of Italy that they might be chastised and Rome delyuered of them And for example of all the worlde he sente theym to the gate of Hostie and commaunded to sette them in Galies and to banyshe them for euer into the yles of Hellispont whiche was accomplyshed as the emperour commaunded And fro that daye was neuer sene at Rome iugler nor iester as longe as the emperour lyued But it passed not two yeres after his deathe but they retourned whan his sonne hadde the rule And excepte the bokes doo lye there was in Rome greatter nombre of fooles than of wyse men ¶ Of the good conuersation of this emperour Marcus Aurelius Cap. xv WE haue sayd of the hatred that this emperour had to trewandes reuelers getters iuglers gesters and suche other