within it hot bathes cold many other wonderfull things which argueth the monstrous largenesse and sumptuousnesse of the house and the outragious minde of the maker whereof to avoyde profixitie I will surcease further to speake Besides the inestimable expence of this house and many other buildings hee was as sumptuous in his apparell and unmeasurably wastefull in all things wherein he tooke any delight When for his pastime hee would walke by the sea or rivers to see fish taken the threeds of his nets must bee of gold and the lines of excellent filke When he went out of Rome which was often besides an infinite number of followers he had never lesse than a thousand chariots of mules for his provision wonderfull costly furnished and those that drave them apparelled in cloth of silver and gold and silke in all extremitie of charge even to the shooes of the mules which were of silver His pastimes feastes and gifts which he bestowed upon the people were of such ineestimable charge that it surmounteth all imagination at such vanities the Poet might well cry out O curas hominum O quantum est in rebus inane Oh Mens vaine cares How great 's their vanitie Hee was in all things given to please his senses and above all the rest of his abominable vices extremely addicted to the pleasure of women and to lecherie which because it will abhorre all modest eares I will forbeare to recite and draw towards his end which was as miserable and shamefull as his life was dissolute and beastly His tyrannous and licentious life was become so odious to all men that divers of his Lievtenants in sundry Countreyes revolted against him at one time The Senate likewise by common consent determined to forsake him and to deny him their obedience Which things being known unto him hee beganne to despaire and to be utterly out of hope to be able to make head against them And as a guiltie conscience easily falleth into extreame feare and desperation so hee supposing the time was at hand in which hee must suffer condigne punishment for his lewd life like a man almost franticke rent his clothes beat his head against the walls and would receive no couasell nor comfort After some pawse that he was come to himselfe he tooke a boxe of gold wherein he had put poyson and walked into his gardens where hee deliberated with himselfe what course were best for him to take to escape from this imminent mischiefe But as Guiceiâ—…rdin saith Nibil difficilius viract pocest quam fatum adversus imminentia impendentia malanullum valet remedium There is nothing more difficult to be avoyded than fate and against imminent and impendent mischiefe there is no remedy Sometimes hee thought best to flie to some forraine Prince sometimes to yeeld himselfe to some of them that were comming against him and to desire mercy other-while to shew himselfe openly to the people arrayed in base apparell like an abject and to desire pardon for his wicked life past and if they would not suffer him any longer to bee Emperour yet that they would give him the governement of Egypt And to this purpose there was found among his writings after his death an excellent Oration Notwithstanding he durst not put this device in practice fearing to bee slaine of the people who were now all in an uproare Thus having passed that day and part of the night in this perplexitie and feare tossed up and downe betweene hope and despaire hee withdrew him into a Chamber though with very small rest determining the next day to follow that course which then should fall into his head And after a little sleepe about midnight newes was brought him that the bandes of souldiers that guarded his Palace had forsaken him This newes so much amazed him that hee sent presently for some of his best friends but as in such cases faithfull friends are no whereto be found neither did Nero deserve it so had hee no good answer from any of them And therefore with a few of his servants covered with the darkenesse of the night hee wear in person to divers of their houses but the doores would not bee opened nor any answer made him Thus hee that a little before was feared and adored of all the world returned with sorrow in contempt and feare of every man And when hee came to his Palace againe hee found it risted and all his goods stolen away even to his boxe of poyson which hee had reserved for his last refuge Which when he saw he despaimed altogether of life and was desirous of death and calling a gladiator prayed him to kill him which when hee and others also refused he cryed out saying Thus now he had no friend nor enemy and in a fury ready to cast himselfe into the River of Tiber he asked of some few that were with him where hee might hide himselfe untill he might bee advised who were best to doe whereupon a servant of his undertooke to convay him forth of the Citie in the night and with much feare and trauaile hee brought him to a house toure miles from Rome where he cast himselfe upon a simple bed and being hungry and thirsty there was nothing to bee had but a little browne bread and water The bread he refused the water he dranke in wonderfull sorrow and feare to see himselfe in that place Whilest Nero was thus occupied as soone as it was day the Senace caused his flight to hee published and by common consent hee was adjudged an enemy on his Countray and condenâ—…ed to death and men fem to seeke and to execute him Which heavie newes being brought him and perswaded by his followers to kill himselfe hee tooke two daggers in his hands and fâ—…lt whether the points were tharpe enough as though hee meant to doe the act but being timorous and reprehended of the standers by of cowardize hee desired one of them first to kill himselfe by whose example he might bee the better taught to follow But they refusing so to instruct him gave him leave to be his own carver and hearing the noyse of the horsemen that were sent by the Senate to kill him seeing no remedie hee thrust his dagger into his throate and so with the helpe of one of them that were present slew himselfe whose vgly countenance representing his monstrous conditions was terrible to the beholders This was the miserable end of this monster and enemie of mankinde in the flower of his youth whose felicitie was set upon all manner of pleasures and voluptuousnesse by whose example men may learne to follow the Poets counsell Non tibi quod liceat sed quid fecisse decebit Occurras mentemque domet respectus honesti Give not thy lawlesse will the reine but serve The decent meane and Vertue 's rules ne're swerve CHAP. II. The incomparable Ryots of Vitellins a Romane Emperour Of Peter de Ruere a Cardinall And of
ignominious a servitude who being in the field with his army there commeth to joyne with him a company of noble and gentlewomen excellently well armed that either had suffered or else feared they should suffer injury The battel grew very hote and a great slaughter on both sides when the women charged the Tyrant with such vertue and valour that they slue him and by all mens confession were the onely cause of the victory In the warres betweene the Succians Gothes and Danes there were two notable women expert and valiant souldiers in the army called Hâ—…tha and Vâ—…sna one being the chiefe Captaine the other being Standerd bearer whose right hand was stâ—…ken off in the â—…ght by the Valiant Champion starâ—… And in sea matters also women have beene nothing inferiour to men Alvilda a virgin gathered together certaine young maydes and exercised piracie in the North parts where she atchieved great matters for the which shee is registred in Chronicles to perpetuall memorie Many of these examples may bee produced out of histories of the excellencie of women and among the rest of Amalasuenta daughter to Theodoricus king of the Gothes whose vertues are exalted above the skies About three yeares past there was a Gentlewoman slaine at the siege of a Castle in Gelderland who had served the States in the warres as a souldier in the habit of a man many yeares When there was any going abroad to doe some exploit none was more forward than shee nor more valiant and hardy in fight She was not knowne to be a woman of those that were most familiar with her untill she was dead And if wee should cite examples of learning wee shall finde them in this also nothing inferiour to men Among which number was Leoâ—…cia a woman of such excellent learning that she wrote against Theophrastus the greatest Philosopher of his time reproving him of many faults in Philosophy And Corinna was of such excellent learning that she contended often with Pindarus at Thebes in veâ—…ying five times wan the victory Aretha was so excellent well learned that shee read openly in the Schooles of Athens naturall and morall Philosophy five and twenty yeares She made forty bookes Shee had an hundred Philosophers to her schollers semiramis Queene of Assyria after the death of Ninus her husband by whom she had a sonne not then at mans estate fearing how so many nations should bee governed by a boy and doubting also how shee should be obeyed if she should take upon her the government being a woman shee feyned her selfe to bee her sonne who in lincaments of face and stature of person did so resemble one another that hardly any difference could be perceived She apparelled him like a woman and her selfe like a man that the one might be taken for the other And in this sort she governed the Monarchy of the Assyrians not onely defending the countries left by her husband but increasing by conquest more nations to them the space of many yeares But Theodosia nothing fearing to shew her selfe as she was without counterfeiting another sex after the death of her husband and brother handled the matter with such prudence that she became Empresse governed with great fame in peace and prosperitie during her life Zenobia Queen of Palmarynes a woman endued with singular vertue after the death of her husband governed the East parts of the Romane Empire many yeares in despight of Galienus Claudius his successor Emperours of Rome making warre at some one time upon the Persians on the one side and defending her territories from the Romane Emperours on the other side But forasmuch as justice is the proper office of a Prince whose end after Socrates is to bring his people to felicitie and seeing authority and majâ—…stie in a Prince of all other things is chiefely to be respected as a singular gift of God which is gotten especially by these foure things by wisedome vertue felicitie and love of the people what need wee seeke for examples so farre off when wee have at this present a virgin Queene not onely equal to any of them but comparable also to the most renowned kings that have been in any age whether ye respect her rare gifts of nature multiplied by industrie or her honourable reputation gotten among forreine Princes and nations by her singular vertue and wisedome or the long continuance of her flourishing reigne and of the peaceable and happy estate with the dutifull love and obedience of her subjects who by her wise and politicke government in so perillous a time that the fire burning round about yet by Gods goodnesse in her providence feele not so much as the heat of the flame such a Queene I say as performeth not onely the part of a good Pilot in the governement of her owne ship but standeth as a lanterne in the high tower of Pharos by whose light the Princes and afflicted people round about her in this tempestuous time escape the dangerous rockes that dayly threaten their subversion and direct their course to a safe port That hath not taken occasion by her neighbours dissention and troubles after the usuall manner of Princes to enlarge her territories and dominion which she might have done to her great advantage But contrariwise to her great charge and expence and to their great benefit shee hath assisted and protected the oppressed in their just causes whose forces have daunted the pride of mighty Princes her enemies whose fame hath beene carried round about the world and will no doubt bee registred to perpetuall memorie in strange countries as trophees of her vertue O â—…mium dilecte Deo cui militat at her Et conâ—…rati veniunt adclassica venti Oh of the Gods thou over-lov'd For whom the Heavens doe warre And to whose fleete the conjur'd winds Prest and assistant are To what Prince in the world could these verses bee more aâ—…ly applyed than to her Majestie that were writen by Clandian the Poâ—…t in commendation of the felicity of Theodosius the Empetour But lest in going about to particulate the praises of this noble Queen paragon of Princes my gracious Soveraigne according to the worthinesse of her talent I should do as they that offer to shew the light of the Sunne with a candle the brightnesse of her worthy and heroicall acts and vertues shining more cleare to the world than I am able with words to set them forth I will conclude her commendations with this Danish verse Vincit opus famam â—…serma suppetit actis The worke doth much outgoe the fame Nor can weake words the act proclaime And what cause have wee to glory in the nobility of our bloud when we come by it by the vertue of our parents For the first nobility had his beginning for some vertuous act or service done to his country who for his worthinesse excelling other men was by the people ennoblized had in estimation above the rest Which title for his sake descend to his
seeme to you happy or vnhappy I know not because I was neuer conuersant with him but what if you had had his company would you then know him Can you take knowledge of his felicity by no other meanes No truly Then it seemeth ô Socrates that you will say likewise I cannot tell whether the great King of Persia bee happy or not and so it is true for I know not how he is instructed with learning or with iustice Doth all felicity consists in this Truly by mine opinion for I account that man or woman that is honest and good to be happy and him that is vniust and vnhonest vnhappy Then according to your words Archelaus is vnhappy Yea surely if he be vniust and vnhonest Thus much of Socrates Yet negligence is to be auoided and prouidence without ouermuch care and possession without feare is necessary and requisite It is a wise mans part to put aside dangerous things before they come to do hurt for the losse or harme a man receiueth by his own fault is more grieuous then that which happeneth to him by another man Thucidides saith It is no shame for a man to confesse his pouerty but it is a shame to fall into it by his owne fault He must haue all things premeditate that happeneth to men and thinke the same may fall vpon him for the things that are foreseene before pierce not so deepely as that which commeth suddenly and taketh a man vnwares He that will make his life pleasant must not take ouermuch care to prouide for it neither can any man take full pleasure of any thing except he haue a minde prepared for the losse of it One proâ—…steth by long study to haue learned this to contemne mortall things and not to bee ignorant of his ignorance Death is to all men by nature terrible but to a Christian that knoweth with how great an aduantage hee changeth his estate it ought to bee had in contempt whereof the heathens that knew not God nor what should become of them made little account who for friuolous causes would offer themselues voluntarily to die whose examples though they be not to be followed but auoyded as an vnlawfull and vnnaturall act yet they may serue to perswade men the rather to discharge themselues of all feare of death that haue an assured hope certaine knowledge to possesse the vnspeakable ioyes of heauen when the Infidels through a vaine hope of a better life wherein neuerthelesse they were deceiued would often make choise of a voluntary death CleoÌ„brotus hauing read Plato his booke of the immortality of the Soule wherein he disswadeth men from the ouermuch loue of this life thinking he had found the ready way to deliuer his soule out of prison cast himselfe downe headlong from a high wall and brake his necke They haue a custome in Narsinga that when the men die their wiues be buried aliue with them that with great solemnity and ioy when the king is dead there is a pile of wood of a most pleasant sauour set on fire the kings carkeise carried into it and then all his concubines whereof he hath great store and all his familiar friends and fauourites and such of his seruants as were in estimation with him are likewise carried into that pile of wood to which place they go with such haste ioy to be burnt that to accompany their king in that kind of death they seeme to esteeme it the greatest honour and felicity that can happen to them The Indians by custome doe marry many wiues and when the husband is dead there is great contention among his wiues which of them he loued best that she may be buried with him then she that hath iudgement with her with great ioy merry countenance is led by her friends to the place and casting her selfe into the fire vpon her husband is burnt with him as a most happy woman the rest remaining leading a sorrowfull life There hath been a people dwelling by the mountaines called Rifei who hold this for a custome when they come to the age of 50 They make great piles of wood and put fire to them there burne themselues aliue and sacrifice to their gods and the same day the kinsfolke children make a great feast and do eate their flesh halfe burnt and drinke with wine the dust of their bones How much lesse then should Christians feare death when it pleaseth God to send for them that hope for a crowne of glory after this life They make a good bargaine that with the death of the body seeke the saluation of their Soule Plato saith All the life of wise men is the meditation vpon death that men ought not to be carefull to liue long but to liue well For the honourable age saith Saâ—…mon is not that which is of long time neither that which is measured by the number of yeeres but wisedome is the gray haire an vndefiled life is the old age And Euripides saith This life is life by name but in very deed labour Death is not a torment but a rest and end of all mans miseries and labours And Seneca Before old age come a man should learne to liue well and in old age to die well But the day of our death saith Gregory our Creator would not haue knowne to vs that the same being alwayes vnknown may be alwayes thought to be at hand and that euery man should be so much the more feruent in operation by how much hee is vncertaine of his vocation that whilest we be vncertaine when we shall die wee may alwayes come prepared to death And because that is so certaine a thing that no man can escape it shall bee good alwayes to thinke vpon death especially in the time of prosperity â—…or the thinking often thereof will bridle and restraine all other cuill thoughts and desires of worldly vanities for in prosperity we forget humane srailty It is reported that the Emperour Charles the fift fiue yeeres before he died euen when he was occupied in his greatest affaires caused a sepulcher to be made with all things appertaining to it that was necessary for his buriall being dead and that secretly lest it might be taken for ostentation or hypocrisie which things he had closely carried with him whithersoeuer he went fiue yeeres together some thinking there had been some great treasure in it some other that there had been bookes of old stories some thought one thing some another but the Emperour smiling said that he carried it about with him for the vse of a thing to him aboue all others most precious In that sort he seemed to set death alwayes before his eyes that the coÌ„tinuall remeÌ„brance therof might driue from his heart the vaine pompe pride of this world Let vs imagine that we see a maÌ„ of mean estate whose mind is cleansed from all perturbations vnquietnes that hath
upon her and them And when they saw no hope of favour in this cruell man they called upon the gods and men for help wherwith hee fell into such a rage seeing hee could not have his will that hee drew his sword and thrust it through the young woman as she held her fathers legges in her armes But this beastly fact so little offended the Tyrant that such as shewed any mislike to the matter hee eyther put to death or banished which purchased him such hatred of all men that certaine of his subjects not willing any longer to endure his tyranny conspired together and slue him His wife hearing of the tumult of the people shut her into her chamber and strangled her selfe The like death suffered two yong women his daughters marriage-able having libertie to make choice of their own death But the love of Antiochus sonne to King Seleucus was much more commendable and used with greater modestie For being extremely in love with his mother in law his fathers second wife yet shame fastnesse and modesty made him so dissemble his vehement passion that he made choice rather to die than to discover his affection suffring himselfe by little and little to pine away untill his body was almost dryed up And as hee lay languishing in manner like a dead body his father lamenting the pitifull estate of his onely sonne desired Erasistratus an excellent Physician to use all his skill to find out what his sons disease should be with large promises of reward This man sitting by the yong Prince observed that ever as the Queene came to visit him his bloud would rise in his face his pulse would beat with more force and all his body would seem to quicken revive and as she departed from him he would waxe pale his pulse would beat weakly and would returne to his former state againe which when he had diligently observed two or three times hee perceived that his discase was the passion of love And comming to the king who was desirous to heare whether hee had found the cause of his sonnes sicknesse he told him that his son was in love with a woman but such an one as hee could by no means have which was the only cause of his sicknesse Then he being glad it was no worse hoping that whosoever she was he would by some meanes obtaine her for him though it cost him a great part of his kingdome desired to know who it was that his sonne was in love with It is my wife quoth he And will you said the King whom I have favoured so greatly deny her to my onely sonne and lesser him to perish that is my only comfort and useth such modestie that he had rather dye than bewray his affection by which it appeareth he is violently carried against his will and then making carnest petition to him to save his sonnes life with promise of great reward Your request said the Physitian is not reasonable make the case your owne Would you be content if it were your wife he were in love with whom you affect so tenderly to leave her to him Yea quoth the King with all my heart I would it were in my power so to save his life It is even your wife said he with whom your sonne is in love Then the King greatly rejoycing that it was in him to restore his sonne to health married his wife to his son his fatherly affection prevailing more than the tender love of his wife Saint bernard lamenting the miserable estate and condition of men that gave themselves to the pleasures and delights of this world O man quoth he naked and blinde that art made of humane flesh and a reasonable soule be mindfull of thy miserable condition why departest thou from thy selfe and troublest thy selfe with externe things and art lulled asleepe in the vanities of the earth and drownest thy selfe in the transitorie pleasures of the world Doest thou not consider that the nearer thou approachest to it the farther thou departest from thy God the more thou thinkest to winne without the more thou losest within that is thy self which is or greater price the more careful thou art of temporall things the more want thou hast of spirituall things Thou settest all things in good order and makest none account of thy selfe There is not a beast but thou tamest and thy selfe remainest without a bridle thou art vigilant in all things but in thine owne matters thou art fast asleepe The desire of base things hoyleth in thy heart and in the meane while heavenly things lyeth quenched The nearer thou commest to thy death the sarther thou goest from thy salvation Wee should take heed lest that curse fall upon us that the Prophet Isay speaking of the carelesse nobilitie and gentrie of the Iewes that gave themselves to banquetting and pastimes without consideration of their duties towards God a matter usuall enough and too much in these dayes The lute and harpe saith hee and timbrell and shalme and good wine aboundeth in your banquets but the workes of God you respect not nor have any consideration of his dâ—…gs Then followeth Therefore hath Hell enlarged his soule and opened his mouth without all measure or limitation and the stout and high and glorious of this people shall goe down into it And that it may appeare how many that give their delight to pleasures and vaine pastimes through their owne vanitie and foolishnesse are brought strangely to their ends when they are in the midst of their jollitie The French King Charles the sixth his minde being distempered committed the governement of his Realme to others and gave himselfe to pastimes there chanced a marriage to bee solemnized in his Court where the King was disposed to make himselfe and others merrie he put off all his apparell and disguised his face like a Lion annointing his body with pitch and flatned staxe so artificially to it that he represented a monster rough and covered with haire When he was thus attired and five others as wise as himselfe they came into the chamber among the Lords and Ladies dauncing and singing in a strange tune all the Court beholding them The Duke of Orleance whether that hee might better see or for some other toy snatched a torch out of a mans hand held it so neare the king that a spark falling upon him set them all on a flaming fire two of the five companions were miserably burnt in the place crying and howling most pitifully without any remedie other two dyed in great torment two daies after the fifth running speedily into a place where was water and wine to wafh himselfe was saved the King having more helpe than the rest before the flame had compassed his body round about was saved by a Lady that cast her traine and gowne about him and quenched the fire The Emperour Commodus among other his vain toyes pleasures when he beheld the Goddesse Ifis painted with
together great abundance of riches being odious and in contempt with all men his sonnes as wicked and covetous as hee seazed upon all his treasure and set fire on his house and burnt their father and all his family One sayth Vpon whom God pleaseth not throughly to bestow good things hee giveth plenty of money and scarcitic of wisedome and so one being taken away hee bereaveth him of both At the sicge of Ierusalem under Vespasian there was gold found in the entrals of a Iew that was flaine which being knowne to the rest of Vespasians souldiers they supposing that the other Iewes had also hidden gold in their bellies slew in a moment above twentie thousand of them which they had taken prisoners and against all humanitie and the law of nations opened their bellies to seeke for gold CHAP. II. The desperate attempt of Captaine Damianus against Solyman the Grand-Seigniour Of Caesar Borgias sonne to Pope Alexander the sixth first Cardinall and after Duke Of Croesus and Candaules two kings of Lydia and rich Crassus the Romane Of strange Fride and insufferable Avarice in the Clergy Of Pope Sixtus the fourth and an Archbishop of Collen The rare Temperance of Origen with an excellent Oration made by him to Alexander Severus c. THere was a notable enterprise intended to bee attempted through the desire of riches chiefly and glory by the mountain-men upon Solyman the great Turke in our age if the successe had not beene interrupted by sinister fortune Solyman the Emperour of the Turkes intending to make warre upon the Venetians brought a great Armie to the Adriaticall sea coast where he encamped himselfe There were a kinde of rude people inhabiting the craggie mountaines adjoyning to his camp that lived upon theft and spoile without knowledge of God or lawes of men These fellowes living in great penurie want amoung those barren rockes and mountaines allured with the greatnesse of the spoile glory determined to kill the great Turk in his pavillion to take the spoile of all his treasure And though the attempt were ful of perill yet the hope of such a masse of treasure beingso neare them and the fame and glory of so notable an enterprise to kill the mightiest Monarch of the world in his pavillion in the midst of his campe made them lay aside all feare of a certaine and almost an inevitable death Vsque adeo solus ferrum mortemque tâ—…ere Auri nesâ—…it amor Onely the thirst of gold makes us not feele Or feare deaths terror nor the rage of steele And resolving in the dead of the night to steale secretly upon the watch Daâ—…anus their Captaine and chiefe authour of the enterprise stole forth secretly to view the situation of the campe and the maner of the watch And as he climbed up to a tree to looke into the campe a bough chanced to breake the noyse whereof discovered him and his intent to the Ianizaries that were the watch of that quarter So being espyed and taken by them and put to torment he confessed the pretended enterprise and by commandement of the Emperour he was like a wild beast torne in pecces and the rest so earnestly pursued that they were almost all destroyed Pope Alexander the sixth had a sonne called Casar Borgias made by his father first Cardinall and afterward weary of that estate as not agreeable with his ambitious head was deprived thereof and made Duke and commonly called Duke Valentine Machiavels paragon This Pope and his sonne as it was a common practice with them to procure the death of many for their riches so they conspired together to take away the life of divers of the Senators and nobilitie of Rome some for malice but chiefly that they might be masters of their goods They thought there was no better meanes to bring their purpose to passe than to invite them in friendly manner to a supper The place was appointed as the maner is in Italy under a vine to avoyd the bear Duke Valentine had poysoned two pots of wine which he prepared for his guests delivered them to his servant that knew nothing of the matter to be carried to the vine for supper with straight charge that he should give of that wine to no man untill his comming The Pope commeth to the place before his guests and being thirsty with the heat hee calleth for wine The Dukes servant supposing by the straight charge his master had given him that the wine he brought was especiall good wine and preserved for the Popes own mouth powred out of that wine and brought it to the Pope who had no sooner drunke but in commeth his southe Duke to whom he gave the cup to drinke He thinking nothing lesse than that it was the poysoned wine by meane of his commandement to his servant pledged his father The Pope presently was carried away halfe dead and languishing a little while in great torment dyed Sic percent qui â—…ri tâ—… a pergent So may they perish and all such as endevour the like The sonne by reason of his youth and strength after certaine moneths grievous sicknesse escaped The guests perceiâ—…ing this treachery absented themselves from the feast This was no doubt the just judgement of God Dum pestem parant alijs labuntâ—… in illam Whilest they digge pits for others they fal into them themselves The Epitaph that was set upon senâ—…cheribs tombe who was killed by his owne sonnes might aptly have served this Pope In me qui 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 pius effe he that looketh upon me let him leaâ—…e to live in the feare of God The â—…ther the sonne besides their other good conditions were so deepe dissemblers that there went a common proverbe of them One never spake what hee did the other never did what he spake Croesus king of the Lydians was an exceeding rich Prince presuming upon his riches prepared to make war upon Cyrus king of the Persians But to be more assured of the event hee sent to Delphos to aske counsell as the manner then was what the successe would be of that war answer was made him by the Oracle of Apollo that when Croesus should passe over the river of Halie which was the â—…termost confines of his realm he shold destroy a great kingdom Croesus supposing the meaning of the oracle had bin that he should destroy Cyrus kingdome proceeded in his enterprise with a more assured hope encountering with Cyrus he was overthrowne with his whole army And as a souldier was about to kil him his son that was born dumbe never spake word before the vehement love affection of his father prevailing more than the natural defect and impediment of his tongue cryed out to the souldier Hold thy hands it is king Croesus my father by meanes whereof he saved his life tooke him prisoner And when by Cyrus commandement he was brought to the stake to be burnt he cryed out with a loude and lamentable
the care they have to maintaine themselves and their credit in their estate is greater than the pleasure they take in possessing them For every small matter they thinke detracteth much from their reputation when they lye dying disposing their goods gotten with such toyle of their bodies and care to their minds danger to their lives and hazzard many times to their soules there is such gaping for that they have that they have more trouble to please all than they took pleasure to possesse all But improperly untruly are riches called goods when they bring with them so many evils For greater is the number without comparison of such as being good become evill by riches than of them that being wicked are by riches made good Alexander the Great sent Ambassadours to Phocion of Athens with a Present of an hundred talents being in value almost twentie thousand pounds Phocion demanding the cause of this great gift seeing there were so many Athenians besides him Because quoth they our master esteemeth you among all the rest for a vertuous and good man Then quoth he let him suffer me both to seeme and to bee so indeed and carry his Present backe to him againe Diogenes in the like sort refused Alexanders offers of worldly goods For being visited on a time by him as he was in his tub I see quoth Alexander to Diogenes that thou art poore and hast neede of many things aske what thou wilt and I will give it thee In the meane time quoth Diogenes stand out of the Sunne Some of his nobilitie standing by and supposing that hee studied what he might aske urged him to aske something Whether of us two said Diogenes to Alexander seemeth to thee to have most neede and therfore poorest I that desire nothing but my tub and a little bread or thou that art King of Macedon and doest hazzard thy selfe to so many dangers to enlarge thy dominions so as the whole world seemeth too little to satisfie thy ambitious and covetous minde Alexander had Diogenes in such admiration for the contempt of worldly goods that he said with alowd voice If I were not Alexander I would be Diogenes He said further that there was no other felicitie in this world than either to bee King Alexander that commandeth all or to be Dâ—…ogenes that commandeth Alexander The like boldness of speech Diomedes the Pirate used to Alexander being taken and brought before him for Piracie For the King demanding of him how he durst presume so to molest the seas without authoritie Because quoth he I rob but with one ship and thou doest the same with a great navie I am accused and called a Pirate and thou a King But if I had a navie and thou but one ship I should be called a King and thou a Pirate But the iniquitie of my fortune and poore estate and thy intolerable pride and unsatiable avarice hath made us both theeves If my bare estate were something amended peradventure I should become better but the more thou hast the worse thou wilt be The King pardoned him and his libertie of speech considering with himselfe that a great navie which is prepared with riches maketh not the right difference between a King and a poore Pirate that hath but one ship if the end of their enterprise be one that is to take by violence that which is none of theirs But the justice and equitie of the cause maketh the true difference and is appropriate to the dignitie qualitie of a King The same Diogenes before named being taken for a spie and brought to King Philip Alexanders father when hee made warre upon the Grecians and examined said I am indeed an espie of thy covetousnesse and madnesse that commest hither to hazzard thy selfe and thy Kingdome Iulius Casar passing by a little village said that hee had rather bee the first in that little towne than second at Rome By which sayings of these men it may be gathered that they esteemed him not poore that was not endued with worldly goods and possessions and contented himselfe with that he had but that he rather was poore that had much and yet desired more which is a thing common to all rich men Crescit amor nummi quantum ipsa pecunia crescit seth The love of mony grows as the mony it selfe increa He is happy not that hath what he desireth but he who desireth not that which he hath not And where the greedy desire of riches hath taken roote there is no prohibited meanes neither by the lawes of God nor by the ordinances of men that can restraine them if all other means faile to feck for help of the Divell to findeit out There was a Priest but few yeares past in the yeare one thousand five hundred thirtie to whom the divell had shewed treasure in a chrystall glasse at Norimberg And when the Priest taking one of his friends with him went to seeke for it without the towne he saw in the hole where he digged a chest and a blacke dog lying upon it And as he went down into the hole the earth fell upon him and killed him and filled up the hole againe Like wise there was one that sought for money by Magicke neare Paris and as hee would have taken up the coffer where it was a whirle-winde carried it away and a peece of the wall fell upon him and made him lame all his life A just reward and good example for men to beware how they trust to the Divels helpe And this was a strange thing that happened of late in the yeare of grace one thousand five hundred ninetie one there was one Mark Bragadin that professed himselfe to bee an excellent Alcumist but indeed a notable Magician This man came from Venice into Baviere and there practised to make gold in such abundance that he would give his friends whole lumps of gold making no more estimation of gold than of brasse or iron he lived stately like a Prince kept a bountifull house and had servants of great account and was saluted with a title of dignitie and drew many Princes into admiration of him insomuch as he was accounted another Paracelsus And after hee had long exercised his art made himselfe knowne to all the Princes was desired of them all hee came at length into the Duke of Bavieres Court who finding after a while his fraud illusions committed him to prison And when the Duke had commanded him to bee examined and put to the torture he desired he might suffer no such paine promising that he would confesse of his own accord all the wickedness that ever he had câ—…mitted and exhibited accordingly to the Duke in writing the whole course of his lewd life desiring neverthelesse that it might not be published Hee confessed that hee was worthy to dye but yet made humble sute that his concubine Signora Caura and his whole familie might returne untouched into Italie Not long after
life is lost As appeareth by Iulianus who living before in securitie wanting nothing that was necessarie for the happinesse of this life but rather had too much through ambition and desire of rule and honour fell into a sea of cares and troubles and within a few moneths ignominiously lost both his honour and his life Pertinax seemed to preferre a private life before high estate For before he was Emperour having borne the principall offices in the Romane Empire and governed many Provinces and Countries a very wise man and of great experience and one of the principall men among the Romanes misliking the governement in the Reign of the Emperour CoÌ„modus withdrew himselfe into the Country of Liguria to leade a private life in a poore village where his father in times past had lived and kept shop And when he had bought that poor dwelling where his father had sold oyle fish wine and such like he built about it a stately house suffering the old to remaine in the middest without adding or diminishing any thing of it Pertinax was greatly delighted to behold that Countrey wherein he had passed his life being but a child and from whence hee had departed so abject and was returned with great wealth and credit and being advertised that the foale of the asse was alive whereon hee was used to carry wood be bought it and cherished it as if it had beene some old acquaintance or servant of great desert He rejoyced so exceedingly to see himself so rich where he had bin so poore and to obtaine so great quietnesse after so much travell that he said wrote to his friends that if Princes had throughly known the taste and rellish of secure rest quietnesse they would of their own accord abandon Empires And if Pertinax could have kept himself in this private life hee had escaped that violent death which being afterward chosen Emperour hee could not avoyde If men could see how the minds of many Princes great estates are affected what cares and troubles overwhelme them what agonies and torments they suffer in what feare and suspicion they live we would not esteeme them to bee in the happiest estate but rather to pitie their case and yeelde them all the honoâ—…r and dutie we can give them than wish to be in their places As they by whose cares their subjects live securely by whose watching they sleepe quietly and by whose infelicitie they live happily For the subjects wealth in a great part dependeth upon the Princes vigilancie and providence which in a sort was given to understand by Philip of Macedon being in the warres when hee was asked how it came to passe that hee now slept so soundly so great perill being at hand whereas at other times in lesse dangers he used to be so watchfull It is no matter quoth the King though I sleep Antipater is 〈◊〉 meaning as before all the estate of his affaires and saâ—…etie of the people depended upon his vigilancie so for this one time he had committed them to Antipater whom he knew to bee as carefull as himselfe Philip de 〈◊〉 a man of great wisedome and experience and imployed in weightie affaires in the time of Lewes the eleventh King of France saith that if hee should write of all the Princes both men and women which he knew in his time that to the judgement of men seemed to live in great felicitie and yet to those that knew them familiarly lived in a miserable estate that matter alone would containe a reasonable Volume which agreeth with the Poet Miser at que infelix est etiam Rex Nec quenquam 〈◊〉 crede facit 〈◊〉 beatum Even Kings with miseries are oft opprest Nor is 't a crowne beleeve me makes them blest When Tigranes was newly become King of Armenia after hee had a while earnestly beheld the diademe which he had in his hand O noble rather than happy cloth quoth hee if men knew the cares and troubles thou bringest with thee no man would take thee up if he found thee lying on the ground But none expressed more aptly the unhappinesse of Princes that came by unlawfull meanes to their Principalities than Dionysius the Tyrant of Syracusa which was then a name of honour though now ignominious For being of Damocles commended for a happy man wilt thou quoth he 〈◊〉 make proofe one day of my happinesse When the other answered Nothing more willingly 〈◊〉 caused him to bee set alone at his table in a stately chamber richly hanged a cupboord of plate of great price his table furnished with great store of delicate meats pleasant wines of all sorts and attended upon with brave men and faire boyes in all points as if he had been there himselfe But directly over his head he caused to be hanged a naked sword by the haire of a horse taile which when Damocles espied his stomacke would no longer serve him to cate of those daintie meats neither could hee take any pleasure in the service of those faire boyes but being in continuall feare lest the sword would fall upon his head hee desired hee might have leave to depart he would be no longer happy Now thou seest quoth Dionysius how happy our estate is that not withstanding our guard of armed men hangeth but by a little threed Thus did 〈◊〉 lively and properly reprove the common errour of men that think felicity rather to consist in principalitie worldly wealth which is for the most part accompanied with feare and perill and unquietnesse of minde than in a meane estate that bringeth with it a secure and quiet life voyd of danger and timorous conceits And that which he shewed by example in Damocles was by action verified in himselfe in the course of his life For he was so extremely fearefull suspicious that hee durst trust no body He prepared a lodging for himselfe that had no accesse to it but over a draw-bridge which hee used himselfe to draw when he went to bed Hee durst trust no Barbor with the shaving his beard but his own daughters for feare of his throat And when they grew towards women hee tooke the razor from them and made them learne a device to burne off his haire And as he was on a time playing at tennis hee delivered his sword to his Page and as one of his familiars told him merily that now he committed his life to his boy hee caused them both presently to be slain the man because he shewed the way how he might be killed the boy because by smiling he seemed to allow of it As this Dionysius was walking one day after he was expelled from his Kingdome in the Citie of Corinth where hee lived as a private man Truly Dionysius â—…aid Diogenes the Sinopian thou art in an estate unworthy of thee The Tyrant supposing he had bewailed his case I am beholding to thee Diogenes quoth hee that hast compassion upon my miserable fortune What replieth the Philosopher
doest thou thinke I pitie thee it rather grieveth me to see such a slave as thou art who deservest to grow old and to dye like a Tyrant as thy father did than to live here among us so pleasantly and to passe thy time in securitie without feare Whereby the Philosophers meaning was that hee lived then more happily being a private man voyde of feare and perill than he did before in his kingdome which was full of feare and trouble The infelicitie which many times accompanieth great estates and frequenteth places of honour was well fore-scene of Tâ—…us the goâ—…d Emperour of Rome For as he made a feast one day to the contentment of everie man using a cheerefull countenance in the end of the banquet he strake himselfe upon the breast at the table and withall â—…tched a great sigh And when his favorites desired to know the cause I cannot quoth he refraine sighing when I call to minde that this great honour which I have dependeth upon the will of fortune that my estates and dignities are as it were in sequestration and my life as it were laide in pawne and pledge to me Words of like effect were uttered by 〈◊〉 to Nerva when hee was chosen Emperour For when all men came to doe reverence to him as their Lord and Emperour and to congratulate and rejoyce with him wishing him good successe and fortune as the manner is onely Arrius a very wise and grave man a faithfull friend to Nerva used another forme of speech considering with a more deepe meditation than the rest what a great charge and full of perill it was to reigne My friend Nerva sayd he that thou hast taken upon thee the governement of the Empire either it is some curse from thy predecessours or some vengeance that the gods will take of thee seeing they suffer thee to take the Empire and at the time thou hast most need of counsell they bereave thee of thy sound and good judgement And surely Nerva sayd Arrius that thou art exalted into this throne I attribute it to the good fortune of the Senate and the people of Rome and to all the Empire and not to thine For as thou hast through thy vertue and wisdome escaped with so great honour credit from the hands of so many evill Princes that went before thee so now the same hath made thee subject to an infinite number of cares and perills and above all the rest to the infamy and hatred of thine enemies and much more of thy friends For these thinking in their own judgement that they have deserved all things as due to them in respect of old friendship if any thing be denied them though unjust that they shall aske they will become more cruell enemies than those that have so disordered themselves And when Pertinax was to be elected Emperour and went up to the Capitoll he would in no wise sit in the chaire of estate but tooke the Consull Glabrion by the arme by strong hand would have placed him in the same as the worthier man But he refusing and perswading 〈◊〉 with all the Senate to accept the Empire which was so much against his wil and liking as appeared by the pitifull lamentation he made and abundance of teares hee shed that they placed him in a manner by force in the chaire And when hee saw no remedy nor resistance against their 〈◊〉 hee made an Oration to the Senate and amongst many other things spake thus When I began to hold offices in the Common-wealth I thought it most certaine that it was no humane matter but a divine dignitie to bee a Romane Emperour but after I had tasted of the travels of commandement and of authoritie and understood the peril to reigne I did cleerely see that amongst all the travels of men to bee an Emperour is the greatest Untill this day I have had some 〈◊〉 but from henceforth I shall bee constrained to live discontented because from the travell and 〈◊〉 of the â—…nce peace quietnesse proceedeth to the CoÌ„mon-wealth The office of a Prince is not to sleepe but to watch not to be idle but to travell for that every excessive recreation which his person taketh forthwith redoundeth to the prejudice of the Common-wealth Untill this day have I been well liked served and reverenced but from henceforth all men for the most part shall beare mee envie because the estate of Princes is so envied that thâ—…sea shall want sand to reckon his enemies but the number of his fingers of one hand shall exceed to point out his friends Hee used often to say that in all his life he never committed the like fault as when he accepted the Empire and many times hee moâ—…oned to leave the same and to returne unto his housâ—… and would thus recomfort 〈◊〉 That forasinuch as hee was of so great age he should not long live but bee delivered of this redious life Perâ—…nax had a son whom after he was Emperor he would not suffer to come to the Court nor yet to Rome but held him in his countrey following his owne affaires which moved the Consull to say to Pertinax that he seemed rather the sonne of a labourer than of an Emperour Whereupon he listup his eyes to heaven and with a great sigh sayd My mother Rome hath cause to be contented that I offer and put â—…y life in danger for her sake without venturing my sonne and house in like danger Whereby it appeareth he esteemed himselfe for most unhappy to be established in the Empire and his sonne to bee in great felicitie being free from the same CHAP. II. The Emperour Trajans opinion concerning Principalitie and Empire The like of Marcus Aurelius Emperour of the Empire Saturninus and his death The modesty of Sylla the Dictator and Carolus Martellus The History of Dioclesian The instabilitie of Fortune prâ—…ved by Iustinian the second The contention of Sergius and Formosus about the Pope-dome Of Pope Iohn the thirteenth and others Of Bajazet Emperour of the Turkes The historie of Darius and Alexander of Baltazar Cossa Pope and his miserable death Flattery rewarded by Antonius and Commodus Emperors The stories of divers Popes Of the Cardinal of Loreyne and of Martin Luther THe Emperour Trajane seemed to be of opinion that the greatest felicitie is not found in the greatest estate by a letter which hee wrote to the Senate of Rome being new chosen Emperour where among other things hee writeth thus Ye know that albeit I was nephew to our predecessor yet I never solicited him for the kingdome and much lesse occupied my thoughts to hope for it having learned of my master Plutarch that honour ought rather to bee deserved than purchased And as I will not denie but that a kingdome is a sweet prey that the present of so high and excellent dignity was welcome to mee with inward gladnesse so also I cannot but confesse that I find great difference between the travels of a kingdome and the
under the water a long time And as soone as he was under the water the sea began to worke in the place where he leapt in of a great height as though there had bin a tempest After he had staied under the water longer than he used to do the people cryed out Thou Cynops art the onely man of the world thinking he would shew himselfe to them againe as he did before But Saint Iohn prayed to God that hee might be no more seene among men which prayer tooke such effect that Cynops could be no more seene Which when the people perceived they turned their admiration to Saint Iohn who then sayd to the three spirits I command you in the name of Iesus Christ that was crucified that ye depart and be seene no more in this Island Which words were no sooner spoken but they forthwith vanished away The fame of this art being blown abroad was the cause that a great many bookes of Necromancie in divers places were burnt This desire of vaineglory through singularity of knowledge was not wrought in the minds only of Cynops and other Infidels by the instigation of the divel whose helpe they used in aâ—…ayning the same but in our Christian Prelates also who used the like means being overcome with the same desâ—…es to what perill of their soules I leave to the judgement of others Tâ—…itemius the Abbot an excellent learned man and worthy of fame if by adding Necromancy to the rest of his learning he had not made himselfe infamous by his owne confession burned with an execâ—…ive desire of vaineglorie For saith he as I went up and downe musing devising with my selfe how I might finde some thing that never any man knew before and that all men might wonder at and layd my selfe downe to sleepe in an evening with the same cogitations there came one to me in the night that I knew noâ—… and excited me to persever in my intended purpose promising me his helpe which he performed What kind of learning hee taught him he sayd was not meete for the common sort but to be knowne onely of Princes whereof hee sheweth some examples denying the same to be done by the divels helpe but by naturall meanes to which hee will hardly perswade any man of judgment And though he would cover some of his strange feates under the pretext of nature yet his familiaritie with the Divel in many things was apparent The Emperour Maximilian the first married with Marie the daughter of Charles Duke of Burgundy whose death loving her dearely he took gâ—…evously This Abbot perceiving his great love towards her told him that he would shew him his wife againe The Emperour desirous to see her went with the Abbot and one more into a chamber The Abbot forbad them for their lives to speake one word whilest the spirit was there Mary the Emperours wife commeth in and walketh up and downe by them very soberly so much resembling her when shee was alive in all points that there was no difference to be found The Emperour marvelling to see so lively a resemblance called to mind that his wife had a little blacke spot a Mole some call it behind in her necke which he determined to observe the next time shee passed by him and beholding her very earnestly hee found the Mole in the very same place of her necke Maximilian being much troubled in minde with this strange sight winked upon the Abbot that hee should avoyd the spirit Which being done hee commanded him to shew him no more of those pastimes protesting that hee was hardly able to forbeare speaking which if hee had done the spirit had killed them all The Divell was so ready at the Abbots commandement that as hee travelled on a time in the company of a man of account who reported this story they came into a house where was neither good meate nor drinke the Abbot knocked at the window sayd adfer fetch Not long after there was brought in at the window a sodden pickerell in a dish and a bottle of wine The Abbot fell to his meate but his companions stomacke would not serve him to eate of such a Caterers provision Albertus Magnus being a notable Necromancer besides his other learning that had beene Bishop of Regenspurg and after became a Monke at Collen at such time as William Grave of Holland was chosen Emperour and returned from his Coronation at Aquisgraven to Collen with many Princes and great estates where in the night was made him a sumptuous banquet Albertus being there also to shew the Emperour and the Princes some pastime after their journey by his skill caused the chamber where they were in their sight to be like a forest the floore seemed to be ground covered with greene grasse and beâ—…bes and flowers planted with trees of divers sorts the Larke singing in the ayre the Nightingale and the Cuckow singing in the trees and haw-thorne bushes as though it had been in the middest of May. In the which pastime the Emperour tooke such delight that hee rewarded the house whereof Albertus was Monke with land priviledges thinking that no sinnefull act which was done by so famous and holy a Monke in the presence also of so many Prelats But what their reward shall be at the day of judgement the Lord onely knoweth But to excell in these prohibited sciences is not sufficient glory to these kind of men except they also leave their knowledge in writing to the prejudice of posterity which argueth their desire of glory to bee agreeable with that of the Poet that sayth Vade â—…tur felix liber long ssâ—…ma vive Tempora quumque meos tellus obduxerit artus Tu varios populos diversaq regna superstes Quaere studeque meum late diffundere nomen Goe happy booke live long and when i' th dust My bones are layd as sure I am they must Be thou still safe and wander the world round With all thy care my name abroad to sound Among the rest Pope Gregorie the seventh an excellent Necromancer by the report of the Cardinall Benno would by shaking his sleeves make sparks of fire leape out of them to the judgement of men by which strangething he sought to win an opinion of great holinesse By these examples of Popes and Prelates with the rest it appeareth how ready the Divell is to stirre up mens mindes where he seeth any inclination to the desire of vaineglory whose helpe and service they never lacke untill he hath brought them to destruction of bodie or soule These kind of men be they it should seeme to whom Beelzebub is supposed to write an Epistle reported by an old author thus Beelzebub the prince of Divels and Duke of darknesse with his guard and all the potentates of hell To Archbishops Bishops Abbots and other Prelates rulers of Churches his welbeloved friends now and for ever Infernall salutations and a league of inviolable society which can never
the merchants to Babylon When hee was foure and twenty yeares old he went into Egypt about his trade of merchandise where he stayed a long time and had familiar acquaintance and friendship with Christians and Iews with whom he was much coÌ„oversant but especially with a monke of Antioch called Iohn that was an obstinate hereticke enticed thereto by the Divel through a desire of vaineglory Of this Monke he learned to falsifie the Scriptures both the old new TestameÌ„t that he might be the better armed against the Iewes Christians It is reported that hee was also scholler to a Monke called Sergius an Arrian heretick expulsed from CoÌ„stantinople by his brethren fled into Arabia where he fell acquainted with Mahomet and holpe him to 〈◊〉 the Scriptures after their own fancies to hatch a new law out of the new old Testament About this time there were strange things seene in the ayre and monsters brought forth in divers parts of the world as children with foure feet two heads and comets and fire falling from heaven and such wonderfull lights and thunder-claps that the earth seemed to shake open whereof ensued extreame pestilence that consumed a great part of the earth so as 〈◊〉 thought that the last day had bin come which did presage the wrath and threatnings of God for the sins of men In his youth he used the trade of Merchandise went often with his camels into Egypt and Palestina And as he came on a time into the land of Canaa the Princesse of that Countrey called Tagida marvelling at his strange kinds of wares merchandise fell into great liking of him which when Mahomet perceived he omitted not that opportunity but entring into familiar communication with her he uttered all his skill and eloquence to seduce her When hee perceived her to wonder at his skill in both laws and to bee as it were rapt with his stately stile and glorious words My deare Lady quoth he I will hide nothing from you but tell you the truth I am the Messias sent from God which the Iewes look for to this day which he laboured to prove by miracles wrought by the help of the Divell himselfe being a Necromancer whereby he not only deceived this Lady but also divers Iewes Saracens who thought him to be the very Messias they looked for By meane whereof in short time he had a great many followers This Lady seeing the Iewes and Saracens thus reverence depend upon Mahomet supposed that there lay hidde in him some divine majesty and being a widdow married him Thus was Mahomet suddenly advanced to great riches dominion according to his desire he went afterward into Spaine where he preached at Corduba such doctrine that the Bishop sent to apprehend him but he being warned by the divell â—…d into Affrica where hee seduced infinite numbers as also in Arabia When he understood that hee was esteemed for a high Prophet of all the countries round about him greater matters began to enter into his conceipt devising how hee might become a great Monarch And seeing himself wel followed of the common pâ—…ople that resorted to him dayly in great multitudes he perswaded the people to cast off the yoke of their obedience to the Roman Emperour making himselfe strong with a sufficient army invaded the territories of the Empire and overthrowing the Emperours Lieutenants he won froÌ„ him that which belonged to the Empire in Affrica Egypt likewise Syria Mesopotamia and other of the East countries belonging to the Persians And when the Saracens the rest of his followers saw that he had overcome the Emperors power set them at liberty from the Romans they resorted to him out of all parts to Damasco where by a generall consent they chose him to be their king let the crown on his head And thus without respect of right or wrong he joyned kingdome to kingdome countrey to country of a base fellow became a great monarch using all manner of rigour and cruelty confounding divine and humane things and like a torrent did beare all things downe before him to the admiration of all men and to the great effusion of innocent bloud This holy prophet was as wicked in life as divellish in doctrine among the rest of his vices much given to whoredome though he had 4 wives perswading the people that God had given that prerogativeto him alone But when he perceived men began to murmure at him for his vicious life hee licenced every man to have foure wives And as one of his wives found him in a chamber secretly with one of his minions Are these quoth she the manners of a prophet where with Mahomet was so ashamed that he sware solemnly never to doe the like againe And as on a time he fell downe with the falling sickenesse before the queene his wife to which through Gods plague hee was much subject and fomed at the mouth after the manner of that disease perceiving her to take it grievously that shee had matched her selfe to such an unwholsome creature he told her that the Angell Gabriel was sent to him from God to enforme him of his mind the bright shining of whose countenance he could in no wise endure which was the cause of his falling to the ground And to confirme her the rather in this opinion he wrought some miracle by the Divels helpe which gave the more credit to his words His wicked sect began about the latter end of the reigne of Heraclius the Emperour from whose obedience taking opportunitie by a sedition amongst his souldiers by whom Mahomet was made their chiefe captaine had disswaded his subjects making them beleeve that Gods will was that all men shold be at liberty subject to no man By meane whereof the Saracens Arabians depended wholly upon him as hath bin sayd and made him their king When he had determined to publish his law which Sergius he together had seemed out of the Old New Testament he appointed a great assembly of people to repaire to a certaine place to heare him preach where by miracles they shold see that God had sent him his holy prophet for the soules health of his people to moderate the law of the Iews of the Christians which were too hard to be kept and to give them another which should be a meane betweene them both And as he was preaching of his law in the place appointed there commeth a Dove flying towards him and alighteth upon his shoulder and pidleth in his care looking for meate having used her before to feede in his care for the same purpose The simple people not mistrusting his subtill device thought it had beene the holy Ghost sent from God to inspite him what to say He had also used a bull to feede in his lap and made him know his voyce And as in his Sermon he spake aloud of his law the
enemies were all slaine saving the captaine and some thirty more which saved themselves for the time upon a little hil which they defended against the whole army But seeing that they were not able to prevaile the captaine chusing rather to die by his own hands than to suffer his enemies to have the honour of such a revenge tooke his two sons that were between fifteen eighteen yeare old slue first them in the sight of the army then himselfe The rest of the souldiours seeing the noble courage of their captaine charged their great peeces after they had 〈◊〉 the spoile rather than they would fall into their enemies hands suffer an ignominious death they staÌ„ding at the mouthes of the great peeces put fire to them and 〈◊〉 themselves the King all the army beholding the matter and highly commending the valour and noble minds of the Turkes By these examples it may appeare what estimation men ought to make of worldly honor and glory that is gotten by rule and principality when a poore Priest in a short time was able to dispossesse many kings of their kingdomes and to make himselfe a mighty Monarch of them all And when he was in the judgement of men in the highest degree of felicity a handfull of men of his owne guard could in his owne pavilion in the middest of his army and forces secure and free from all imagination of perill put him and his nobility with his principal Captaines to the sword and had escaped without any harme or let inriched with a great prey if they had passed on their journey all at their â—…ase and had notbin so carelesse to attend their enemies comming which they might easily have prevented Divers other Hermites of Mahomets sect about the same time both in Affrica and Asia excited with the like desire of glory attempted the like enterprises and attayned to great matters to their owne harme to others though not altogether with like successe This principality and rule made the Iewes the chosen people of God despise his helpe and favour that had done so many wonderfull things for them For a Iew having gathered together two hundred thousand men of that nation they trusted so much to their owne forces that every man did cut off one of his fingers and when they were to joyne in battell with their enemies their Generall pronounced these words Lord of the world helpe us not seeing thou hast rejected us And more than this there were divers of the same nation in the age wherein Christ was borne knowing by the 〈◊〉 Prophecies that the time was come in which the 〈◊〉 must shew himselfe to the world that 〈◊〉 themselves to be Christ but their lives and doctrine 〈◊〉 almost the memory of them vanished away like smoke notwithstanding they had many followers and were maintained by the authority of their principal doctors But these Infidels and Iewes are not so much to be â—…velled at that sought glory with so great hypocrisie if we behold the wicked mind of a Christian in our age that through an excessive desire of glory went about to perswade men that he was the very Messias This man was of Frizeland named George David he called himselfe a new prophet and the nephew of God he feined to have talke with wild beasts and birds in all manner of languages and that they brought him meat for his sustenaÌ„ce And among other his vanities and toyes he said that heaven was altogether empty and that he was sent to adopt men to be sonnes and inheritours of the kingdome of heaven That the Divell is the authour of these horrible and hainous offences committed by men to the dishonour of God and destruction of themselves by his instigation and stirring up their minds to the desire of vaineglorie may something appeare by this strange historie reported by Licosthenes in his Prodigâ—… By which men may be warned to beware of the subtill devices practices of that old Serpent that 〈◊〉 coÌ„tinually in weight whom he may devoure who if he can find no 〈◊〉 â—…ment among men to serve his purpose can by 〈◊〉 sufferance as it should seeme 〈◊〉 himselfe or possesse infants and doe wonderfull things by his false shews of counterfeit miracles and crafty illusions to 〈◊〉 the world In the kingdom of Babylon the vij day of March in the 〈◊〉 1532. a child was borne of a meaâ—… woman whose favour and forme was good and wel proportioned but his eyes and teeth shined contrary to nature At the houre of his birth not onely the elements but all the powers of the heavens were moved and shewod forth terrible and fearefull signes For at midnight the Sun was seene to shine bright as if it had bin day and after it was turned into darkenesse againe so as it was not seene in Babylon which is not noted for a miracle the space of a whole day the Sunne was seene againe with starres of strange figures and of divers kinds wandring up downe in the element Over the house where the child was born besides other signs fire was seene fall from the ayre that killed men The next day the Sunne was eclipsed the weather being very tempestuous it rained pearles The third day a firie Dragon was seene to flye about Babylon There appeared also a new hill exceeding in height other hills which was by and by divided into two parts in the middest whereof was found apillar wherein was written in Greeke The houre of the nativity is come the end of the world is at hand The xiij houre after his birth a voice was heard crying in the aire Prepare your hearts to receive and blessed are they that keepe his word After this child had lived two moneths hee brake out in speech like an old man and professed himselfe to be the son of God And being asked what these signes did preâ—… The pearles that fell from the element he said did 〈◊〉 the people that would beleeve his word the flying 〈◊〉 signified his adversaries He healed all 〈◊〉 he restored sight to the blind hee revived the 〈◊〉 with his word and professing himself to be a true interpreter of the holy Scripture secret mysteries he was through all Babylon contrary to the laws of their couâ—… adored and worshipped for a God Thus will Sathan never leave to use the helpe of men as instruments to oppose himselfe against God and to draw them from true obedience to the destruction both of their body soule For to beleeve that there be no Spirits as I heare there be such in these daies or that they shew not themselves to men in divers figures worke not things here in the earth among men and in the ayre above us contrary to the opinion of so many learned men of divers ages and to common experience of all times is meere ignorance and wilfull obstinacy and the next way to atheisme 〈◊〉 an excellent learned man was also
according to that time singular in Necromancy Wee have certaine knowledge saith hee that wicked spirits can doe very much in these parts of the world under the Moone and upon the earth But that it may in some part appeare and their ignorance and obstinacy be discovered that be of that opinion of an infinite number of histories both old and new we will recite one notable example let the credit of the matter remaine with the authors that happened of late yeares in France whereby wee may be warned to observe Gods secret judgements and to call continually upon God for his Grace and assistance against the old Serpent our common adversarie that worketh many strange and dreadfull things amongst us alwayes to some evill end and purpose if his platformes were not interrupted by Gods power and providence The history is reported by many credible authors as also by Cornelius GeÌ„ma in his Cosmocritices a learned man In the city of LandunuÌ„ there was a handsome yong womaÌ„ newly married called Nicholas Damâ—…rie in the judgement of men both vertuous and of good life who in the yere 1565. in the month of NoveÌ„ber was possessed with an evill spirit that in sight of thousands of people played wonderfull strange parts But first this spirit appeared to this woman in the likenesse of a dead man professing himself to be her grandfather but afterwards being compelled say my authors by the power of Gods word pronounced by a Priest using belike their ordinarie exorcismes he confessed himselfe to be the Divell and then he became blacke hairy of a much more vgly and terrible forme than at any time before He would violently take her up and caâ—…rie her from place to place and after he had shewed himselfe in divers formes especially of a cat or of a hornet or of a betle at last he entred into the woman possessed her At the first he would salute very curteously as wel those that were knowne to her as unknowne cal every one by their names And many that had not cleansed themselves by being at shrift confession of their sins after the Romish manner he would discover the faults sins they had committed until the priest had giveÌ„ her a consecrated host as it were putting a bridle in his mouth saith mine author he made him hold his peace yet neverthelesse he ceased not to worke strange things in her He would at one instant take away the use of her eyes eares mouth But when the hallowed bread was put into her shee was delivered of that torment It was thought good to place her openly in the coÌ„mon Theater that the people might see how shee was veâ—…ed Where the wicked spirit being exorcised by the priests would professe himselfe to be the second to Lucifer that he possessed her not alone but that there were xxx of them in the whole which appeared by manifest signes when she was carried to a Church where were 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 out of the woman 26. at one time like unto a black thin little cloud Not long after there went out of her three other spirits being in another Church making a great noise at their departure who professed themselves to be the third order from Lucifer There yet remained one spirit more the Prince of the rest as he sayd who told them by what signes they should know when the deliverance of the woman from him was at hand affirming neverthelesse that he would not leave her untill he were driven out by the Bishop of Landunum When the woman happened to bee present as the Priest was at Masse it was wonderfull to see her vgly countenance and such strange formes and figures of her body that it 〈◊〉 all imagination Her body would become three or foure times greater than it selfe her eyes would be 〈◊〉 backward firie and horrible to behold and would be thrust out of her head as great as an egge She would stretch out her tongue to her breast to her eares and to her temples Her force was so great that hardly eight or nine men were able to hold her And this was a 〈◊〉 toy not unworthy to be laughed at and also to be noted how artificially this subtill Serpent playd his part in this 〈◊〉 whereby it may bee conjectured that the drift and end of all this device was to this purpose which tooke effect not altogether contrary to his expectation When the spirit was asked why he turned away the face of the woman when the Priest was at Masse because quoth hee the image of white 〈◊〉 doth make me afrayd who neverthelesse though not willingly I now acknowledge to be my Lord and master And being asked why he so called him because sayd he I have taught the new professors of the Gospel so to call him Quanquam istic sit 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Though he be â—…hcro yet this â—…Inihar sort abruptly alluding to Hocestcorpus means This is my body c. But said the prelates locing thou art the author percot of all lyes who will beleeve thee though thou speake truth It is true sayd the spirit that of mine owne nature I speaâ—… not the truth but now being copelled I utter the truth as it were borrowed ware This toy sayth my author who was of them that call themselves Catholickes wrought much trouble to them that held the contrary opinion of the Sacrament Insomuch as multitudes of people being gathered together the matter was so hotly disputed upon that it was like to have growne to sedition And after many practices used by physicke and medicines and other devices her onely health sayth mine author came of the body of our Saviour For after she had received the Sacrament three dayes together by the hands of the Bishop of Landunum the spirit who called himselfe Beelzebub departed out of the woman the viij of February having first shewed the signe promised before with such terrible thunder howling smoke fire that the noise was heard a great space beyond the city The prince of Condy hearing of this matter sent for the woman of whom he understood the truth as it hath bin here recited And it is to be noted by the way of what force an opinion is that hath takeÌ„ deep root when so learned men could not or would not petceive the illusions and subtill devices of the divell to seduce or coÌ„firme theÌ„ in their error but rather were ready to receive his testimony or censure of the matter in cotroversic in religioÌ„ And this is recited with the history that the woman wrestled with her physitian and boxed him well with her sists sent him away with shame enough the divelin her confessing openly that the physition had secretly cast into the womeans mouth viâ—…grains of Amsimaniâ—… to the great danger of her life which because they were not made small enough shee vomited up againe which otherwise must have gone through her body 〈◊〉 mach of evil splries the rather because by their iostigation
attempt But of such force the desire of glory is as the 〈◊〉 â—…th Magnum â—…ter ascendâ—… sed das 〈◊〉 glâ—…ria vires I undertake a journey of great length But glory to or come it gives me strength A Gentleman of Burgundy called Balthasar Seracke after he understood that the king of Spaine had proclaimed the Prince of Orenge a traytor sought for opportunity to kill the Prince Who seeing his reputation to decay by reason of the Prince of Parma his prosperous successe and fearing the people that were 〈◊〉 of the warres he left Antwerpe and withdrew himselfe to Delfe About this time the Duke of Alenson died which the Queene Mother signified to the Prince by her letters and made choyce of this Balthasar to be the messenger because hee was well knowne to the Prince in whose Court he was seven yeares brought up This man having delivered his letters and message was conversant with the gentlemen of the Princes Court seeking continually for opportunity to put in execution that he had long before determined When he had received his dispatch and prepared speedily to 〈◊〉 into France as it was thought hee had provided a very good horse to stay for his comming without the 〈◊〉 of the towne ready for him whatsoever should 〈◊〉 About two of the 〈◊〉 in the afternone what time he thought the Prince would rise from 〈◊〉 he returned to the Court and faining that hee had 〈◊〉 something he was without suspition let in He 〈◊〉 the Princes comming forth of the place where he 〈◊〉 and offring to speake to him having a pistoll under his cloake charged with three bullets poysoned chained together he dischargeth it at the Prince and strake him so deadly that the Prince fell presently to the 〈◊〉 and without any further time but only to 〈◊〉 the Lords prayer moving a little his lips ended his life His guard hearing the clap of the pistoll perceiving by the cry and noise of his servants that the prince was slaine they sought for the man that did the act but he in the meane time escaped through a stable neare to the garden and was almost come to the gate of the towne to his horse when one of the Princes retinue that was present when he was slaine had overtaken him and wrestled with him untill others came and apprehended him and ledde him to prison And when hee saw that all meanes was taken from him to escape and no hope nor place left for pardon laying all feare aside he asked them whether the Prince was dead which when they affirmed hee told them that hee was assured to dye but hee rejoyced very greatly that he had done the thing which hee had many yeares wished might take effect And therefore that hee would take his death joyfully and willingly that hee had done the thing with so good successe whereof others before him had failed with the losse of their lives No torments could make him 〈◊〉 confesse who set him on to commit that murder But he constantly answered that he was moved thereto by the perswasion of no Prince or any other man but of his owne accord and free-will But sayd that divers causes excited him to doe that act The first cause hee sayd was that he beleeved it was done to the glory of God because the Prince was a professed enemie to the Romish Catholike faith The second was that to take away the life from a most cruell enemy of the low-countries he knew would be beneficiall profitable to his countrey to which he owed his life which all good men and lovers of peace would commend and allow And last of all that he should doe notable service to the King of Spaine his master of whom neverthelesse he denied to be hired or allured with any promises or rewards to commit the murder He protested that hee nothing repented him of the fact but greatly rejoyced that his enterprise had taken so good effect had successe according to his desire He suffered all manner of torments with a wonderfull patience so as he brake not out into howlings or cryings weeping or making moan and 〈◊〉 as the manner is nor gave any signe of a troubled or dismaied minde but constantly affirmed that it was much better and more profitable to the common-wealth that two men meaning the Prince and himselfe should suffer violent death than so many thousands that by his meanes were brought to their end The first night he was hanged up in a kind of torture and â—…ourged most grievously five times with rods besides other grievous paines and at last hee was put in a vanne his hands and feet being bound and â—…sed up down that he might not sleepe The dayes and nights following he was hanged up againe in the instrument made for torture an hundred and fifty pound weight hanging at his toes diversly tormâ—…ced which he tooke with such a stout and resolute mind that they which tormented him being drawne into admitation and asking him how it came to passe that he seemed not to be troubled with so great torments he answered that it was to be attributed to the praiers 〈◊〉 the 〈◊〉 After he had bin many times examined suffered many tortures and news brought him that hee was condemned and must dye he with a joyfull countenance and voice gave God thanks And when a Minister of the reformed religion was sent to comfort him hee would not heare him but answered that he knew wel enough in what favour he was with God When he was brought to the 〈◊〉 the 〈◊〉 puâ—…th vpon his feets 〈◊〉 of shoes tudely made of drâ—…e leather and presseth his feet betweene two iron plates burning hote so were his fâ—…t parched Then he plucked away the â—…ews of his hips and arms and aâ—…ms with a paire of â—…ngs fire-hote and beateth him upon the head with the pistoll that killed the Prince And last of all he opened his breast and being yet alive plucked out his heart and 〈◊〉 it 〈◊〉 his face and bowelled and quartered him as the manner is This was the end of this glorious enterprise the murder of a notable Prince to the great griefe and sorrow of all the people of whom hee was dearely loved and to the prejudice of the Low-Countries Common-wealth besides the losse of his life by cruell tormentâ—… that committed the fact with the hazard of his soule if God were not mercifull unto him And what was it as wee may conjecture but a desire of vaineglory that emboldened the poore Friar to 〈◊〉 great an enterprise to kill the late French king Henry the third a most notorious and execrable murder of his annoyâ—…ted Prince that was of his owne and theâ—… religion that set him on worke After the death of the Duke of Guise the Monkes and Friers and the rest of that rabble of Cloister-men were greatly incensed against the king and by all manner of meanes sought 〈◊〉 destruction And when they could find no man among
the temporaâ—… and lay men that would consent toâ—… vile an act to murder his Prince they searched diligâ—… in their cloysters religious houses for one of 〈◊〉 owne stampe to serve their turne And at last they 〈◊〉 a yong novice of their owne for their purpose called Iames Cleâ—… a Dominican Monke or Friar about 〈◊〉 and twentie yeare old who not past halfe a yeare before sung his first Masse This harebraind fellow they perceived was a fit instrument to commit this vile murder of their king him they perswade with many reasons and faire promises of great matters to undertake this enterprise and put him in hope that he should escape without danger But if the worst happened yet they assured him that hee should bee canonized for a Saint This yong man at length being overcome with their perswasions and subtill devices not considering sufficiently the great danger both of his body soule gave his consent and promise to kill the king But afterward being pricked in conscience and doubtfull whether the matter were good he desired to be satisfied by the Iesuits who in learning and vertue are in mens opinions preferred before al other orders that his conscience might bee assured of the goodnesse of this enterprise And when the Iesuits had put him out of doubt that the act was very honest and meritorious for his soule he was resolute His favourers are not ashamed to write that as this Frier was with great devotion praying to God for the good successe of this meritorious enterprise an Angell came to him and sayd Frier Iames â—…ise and prepare thy selfe to attaine a crown of Martyrdome Thou shalt defend the Catholicke religion in France against all the persecutors and shalt kill the king himself that laboreth to destroy the same religion And after a certaine time when he had praied fasted with great devotion no doubt he tooke his journy the twentieth day of Iuly in the year one thousand five hundred eighty nine from Paris to Clowes which is about two leagues where the king lay with his campe having for his companion another yong Frier like himselfe The next day in the morning the Frier having told the Kings servants that hee had letters and a Message to deliver to the King hee was presently without any suspicion brought into the Kings chamber for the King was better affected to the Dominicans than to any other order of Friers and suffered them at all times to have accesse to his presence and because of the secretnesse of his message all other were commanded forth Then this hypocrite with great humility and dutie delivered his counterfeit letters but this caytiffe with a knife that was double poysoned strake at the king thinking to have thrust him to the heart But the king perceiving the blow comming strake downe the Friers hand and received the wound in his belly about the wast where the knife was left sticking The king drew forth the knife out of his body and turning himselfe to the Frier thrust him into the face supposing his bodie had beene armed The Gentlemen without hearing the noyse within ran into the chamber and beholding what was done after the kings Councell had examined the Frier they fell upon him and slue him and cast the other Frier that stood without head-long into the river and drowned him The day following his carkesse was torne in peeces with wilde horses and the king died after midnight And that it may the better appeare what dangerous and horrible effects this ambitious humour desire to maintaine them the reputation of the high dignities and glorious estate that are possessed of them worketh it shall not bee impertinent to the matter to shew some part of the proceedings of Pope Sixtus after the French kings death whereof he was taken for the principall author Whereby we shall perceive how far they are deceived that thinke felicitie to consist in honourable and glorious estate when the same shall so blind and corrupt the minde of the principall Prelate that arrogateth to himselfe such high titles and holinesse and authoritie over all as to conspire with traytours to excite a Monke or Frier treacherously to lay violent hands upon his annoynted king and contrary to all humanity and Christianity to allow and exalt the fact above the skies wherein he forgot this good sentence 〈◊〉 peccato addit qui culpa quam fecit patrocinia defensionis adjungit When newes came to Rome of the kings murder whereas all men were amazed and astonied at so horrible a fact the like whereof was never heard before lamented of thousands by infinite streames of teares Pope Sixtus nothing dissembling his joy and gladnesse made all Rome triumph and rejoyce with him with all manner of pleasures and pastimes and the Pope himselfe assembleth the Cardinals and others of his retinew in the Consistorie to heare him preach The argument of his Sermon was that the wicked and traiterous Frier that murdered this king should be canonized a Saint and that his praise and commendations for so worthy an act ought to be exalted above the skies And because he was not ignorant that it was of great moment to the setting forth of a notable act if it were compared with such as were most worthy of commendation and finding none of all those heroicall and glorious acts of famous men that are registred in histories of antiquitie worthy to bee compared with this he bringeth his comparison from God himselfe Hee feared not which a man may tremble to report to compare the murder of this Christian king by the treason of a Monke or Frier with the worke of the creation of the world and also with the incarnation of Christ and with the other mysteries of our salvation In the second part of his Sermon he defameth and slandereth the king whom by his wicked counsell he had caused to be killed most shamefully and ignominiously pronouncing him damned whom not long before for his singular godlinesse he exalted with his praises up to Heaven calling him sonâ—…e the most Christian king And all this spoken and much more to the like effect with such bitternesse and rancor that it is easily seene what monstrous minds many of them carry that are overcome and blinded with passion of ambition and unsatiable desire to aspire and maintaine their estate in honour and glory The manners of these ambitious Popes bringeth to my remembrance a storie of a Spanish Priest that in the rebellion in Castile against the Emperour and King of Spaine Charles the fifth every Sunday for the space of three weekes recommended to the prayers of his Parishioners among other things the usurped king and captaine of the rebels called Iohn of Padilia the Queen his wife For of a truth said he these be the true kings all the rest before were tyrants It chanced shortly after that Iohn of Padilia passed that way with his army and the souldiers that lodged in the
and that way howling most pittifully sometime toward the king beholding him earnestly as though he demanded justice which made the king and all the company suspect that these men committed the murder whereupon they were examined and tormented and upon their confession of the fact put to death The like happened in France one Gentleman having killed another and the dog of him that was slaine would not depart from the body untill he was by the kings commandement taken away the murderer could in no wise be knowne untill the king by some occasion tooke view of his men and as the murtherer passed by the dog waiting upon the king ran furiously upon him and returning againe to the king looked up earnestly to his face as though he required justice and thus ran too and fro barking and howling so often that the king and the rest suspected the Gentleman to have committed the murther And being examined and denying the matter the king thought good to make triall what the dogge would do he gave leave to the Gentleman to use his sword for his defence and armed the dogge with leather and turned them together the dogge assayled the Gentleman with such fury and violence that perceiving himselfe like to bee torne in peeces and unable to defend himselfe from the dogge he desired to bee delivered from him and confessed the fact The manner of this fight was by the kings commandement painted in a table for a memoriall and kept in the kings Court to bee seene many yeares after King Lysimachus had a dog which had long waited upon him in the wars when he was on hunting or any otherwhere and when hee saw the king his master dead and layd upon a pile of wood as the manner was to be burnt the dog with great howling and sorrow in the sight of all men leapt into the fire was burnt with his master When Titus Sabinus and his family were put to death as Rome one of their dogges would never be driven from his master and when one of the Romanes did cast meat to the dog he tooke 〈◊〉 up and carried it to the mouth of his master that lay upon the ground dead and when the carâ—… was cast into Tyber the dog swam after labored by all the meanâ—… he could to liâ—…t up his master out of the water all the people wondring at the love of the dog Nicomedes king of Bithynia had a horse which he used a long time in the warres and when Nicomedes was â—…ine the horse would never cate meate after but wasting daily with sorrow and emptinesse dyed And this was a strange thing that happened at Constantinople when the Turks for their pastime had cut off divers Christians whom they had taken prisoners in the midst with their swords so as their bodies were divided into two parts besides a great many other in the same sort most cruelly â—…aine at this time there were five hundred captives brought into the 〈◊〉 and so divided with their swords in the midst and after these dead bodies had lyen upon the ground a while where they were slaine there commeth an oxe roaring and finding his masters câ—…kasse among them hee lifted one part of him upon his hornes and carried it away to another place and returneth fetcheth the other part likewise and joyneth both parts together which thing being greatly wondred at and brought to the 〈◊〉 of Mahomet the great Turke hee caused the parts of the dead body to bee separated againe and brought to the former place the oxe followeth roaring as before and finding out his master among the rest of the dead bodies taketh him up and carrieth him away againe the great Turke being much amazed with this strange fight commanded the dead bodies to be buried and the oxe to be kept among his caâ—… during the rest of his life And if we shall descend from these that be domesticall to wilde and salvage beasts wee shall finde them in this matter nothing inferiour to the others A Gentleman of a noble house called Andrâ—…cles being taken prisoner and made a slave taking occasion by his masters hard dealing ran away from him and fled into certaine desert woods in Aâ—…frica adventuring himselfe rather among wilde beasts than to endure the tyranny of his cruell master and after he had wandred a long time in the desert â—…ee espied a cave under the ground into which he goeth to repose himselfe the night following which unknowne to him was the den of a Lyon hee had not beene long there but a little before night in commeth a great and terrible Lyon roaring and halting which had beene a hunting for his prey to rest himselfe that night in his accustomed lodging the poore slave looking for no other but that the Lyons belly should be his sepulchre the Lyon espying the man lay downe by him and stretched forth his fore-foot that was lame making mone as though he desired helpe the slave perceiving the Lyons meaning began to plucke up his heart and looking into the Lions foot he found a thorne sticking fast in it and the wound festred which caused his foot to swell hee lanced the wound and let forth the corruption and tooke out the thorne which though it were wonderfull painefull to the Lyon as appeared by grinding his teeth and wrying his mouth yet he endured it with great patience when he had washed the wound with his urine and lapt up his foot as well as he could they remained together in the den all that night so soone as it was day the Lyon goeth forth to hunt for his prey and after he had beene abroad a certaine time he returneth to the den again with part of the wilde beast in his mouth which hee layd downe before the man for his dinner and went forth againe to hunt for more The slave having eaten nothing in two or three dayes before went forth of the cave and layd the flesh in the Sunne to be rosted and before it was throughly rosted he eat it very hungerly when the evening was come the Lyon returneth with more meat and thus hee continued fed by the Lyons provision certaine dayes But at length waxing wearie of his dict and of his solitarie life he stale forth of the den in the absence of the Lyon and hid himselfe not far from the place but when the Lyon was returned after his accustomed manner with meat for his guests dinner and found him not there he made pitifull lamentation and mone which declared his great sorrow for the mans absence when the Lyon was layd to rest the slave departeth and wandering to seeke some place of refuge he fell by chance into the hands of them whom his master had sent to seeke him and being taken and sent to Rome his master layd him in prison to be devoured of wilde beasts for the Romanes had a manner when the Emperors or principal men were disposed to celebrate some
festivall time to make some pastime to the people in their Theatres among which this was one to cast slave and condemned men to wilde beasts to be devoured And as for this purpose they used to cause wilde beasts to be taken in the deserts so it chanced that this Lyon amongst others was taken by hunters and sent to Rome about that time that Titus the Emperour returned from the warres and had determined to shew some of these pastimes to the people of Rome and as the Emperour and the people sate beholding these matters in the Theatre this Lyon was brought in place and after he had cruelly rent in peeces certaine prisoners that were cast in to him this poore slave was also throwne into the place to be dismembred and devoured as the rest were but as the Lyon ran towards him to teare him in peeces he knew the man and laid downe his â—…ares and wagged his taile fawning upon him like a dog with all the kindnesâ—…e he could use Then the poor slave that looked to bee devoured and was almost dead for very feare at the fight of the Lyon gathered his spirits to him knowing him to be the same Lyon with whom he lived in the cave and renuing old acquaintance stroked the Lyon gently with his hand upon the backe and made as much of him as hee could After the slave and the Lyon had thus courteously entertained each other to the great admiration of the Emperor and all the people whose minds were diversly drawne to see so strange a thing some saying the Lyon was enchanted others alledging other causes according to the inclination of their conceits the Emperour called the man to him whom the Lyon followed like a dog asked him how this strange matter should come to passe the slave told him all the manner of it as hath been said whereupon 〈◊〉 the petition of all the people the Emperour pardoned him and gave him the Lyon who waited upon him whithersoever he went CHAP. IIII. The gratitude of an Eagle and of a Dolphin of a Roman Censâ—…r and his Host. The rare modesty of Cato sent to governe Spaine of Collatinus of Regulus of Cincinnatus the Dictator c. Pride derided in Teribarus the Peâ—…sian The Contemplative life preferred before the Civill Illustrated both by the authority of 〈◊〉 astiâ—…ns Philosophers and other later examples THe like examples of love and friendship hath beene found in fowles of the aire and that which is more strange in fishes of the sea Philarchus reporteth a historie of a boy that had a great pleasure in birds among the rest he tooke a singular delight in a young Eagle that was given him which he fed and cherished very carefully and cured him also being sicke and when the Eagle was fully growne and had lived a good time with this boy he shewed many signes of mutuall love to him for when the boy happened to fall sick the Eagle would continually sit by him when he slept the Eagle would also sleepe when he waked the Eagle would wake and when he would not â—…ate the Eagle would abstaine from meat And afterward when the boy was dead and carried forth upon a hearse the Eagle followed and when he was burned the Eagle flew into the fire Aelian writeth of a singular love of a Dolphin towards a boy this boy being very faire used with his companions to play by the sea side and to wash themselves in the water and practise to swim A Dolphin fell into great liking with this boy above the rest used very familiarly to swim by him side by side the boy though at the first he feared the Dolphin grew by custome so familiar with him that they would contend together in swimming each by other and sometimes the boy would get upon his backe and ride upon the fish as though hee had beene a horse insomuch that the Dolphin would carry him a great way into the sea and bring him to land againe in the sight of all the people of the citie adjoyning wherin they took great pleasure it chanced at last that the boy lying with his belly close to the Dolphins backe the sharpe pricke which those fishes have rising out of the middest of his backe ran into the boyes belly and killed him The Dolphin perceiving by the weight of the boy and by the bloud which stained the water that he was dead swam speedily with all his force to land and there laid down the dead boy and for sorrow died presently by him These examples may make many men seeme more brute than beasts that performe things appertaining to vertue more effectually by the instinct of nature onely than they do by nature and reason joyned together Many will use honesty so long as it serveth their turne to be honest but when to be honest will no longer serve their turne then farewell honesty In this generall confusion of things and depravation of manners wee may say with the wise man Quos fugiam scâ—…d quos sequar non video whom to avoyd I know but whom to follow I see not Examples of vertue in these corrupt dayes are so rare that he which will seeke for a faithfull friend or a man endued with vertue and honesty must bee dâ—…iven to seeke for him as one sought a good man by the report of Marcus Aurelius The Emperour Marcus Aurelius maketh report of a custome among the ancient Romans to send once or twice every yeare their Censors into the countries under their dominions to see how the lawes were executed and how justice was done One of these Censors comming to a towne in Italy commanded his host of the Inne where hee lodged to call the good men of the towne unto him that he might understand by them how justice was ministred This man being wiser peradventure than the Censor goeth with his message into the Churches to the graves and sepulchers of such as in their life time were of most estimation among the people for their vertue and were dead many yeares before and calling every man aloud by his name het old them the Censor commanded them to come to him and returned home againe The Censor looking long for their comming asked his hoste whether he had done as he commanded him who answering him that hee had done it the Censor willed him to goe againe and hasten them away and to shew them of his tarrying The hoste goeth againe to the Churches and to the tombes and graves and with a loud voyce calleth them as hee did before and returneth to his house againe the Censor waxing angry for their long tarrying sent for his hoste and enquired of him the cause and who they were to whom hee had spoken You commanded me saith he to warne the good men of the towneto come to you the pestilence and civill wars hath consumed long since all our good men so that I was driven to goe to the graves and sepulchers of the dead none
perfection So wee say that the operation or worke of the sight is more perfect than the operations of all other senses because it commeth from a power more perfect and is more pure and subtill And the art of a blacke Smith is lesse perfect than that of a gold Smith because the matter whereupon he worketh as his subject which is iron is lesse perfect than the matter which is gold upon which the gold smith worketh so the operations of the understanding proceeding from the most perfect power of al other working upon an object most perfect which is substances abstract and divine must needes bee the most perfect operation which is nothing else but the contemplation of divine substances But the operations of the senses are not pure but are mixt with paine or lacke as to eate endureth no longer than we suffer the paine of hunger or have neede of meate so that the pleasure of eating is joyned with the paine of hunger and likewise of all the other senses The operations also of a civill life are not pure and simple as are the operations of the understanding which is a power voyde of all matter but they are full of perturbations troubles and affections farre from the delight and quietnesse of a contemplative life For all our operations and actions and likewise the exercise of morall vertues are full of travell and wearinesse the troubles and unquietnesse of the warres wherein men exercise fortitude is known to all men likewise the endlesse labours both of body and minde that is in governement in a common-wealth by exercising justice liberalitie prudence temperance and other vertues is apparent and all our travels and labours whether it be in warres or peace is to enjoy quietnesse As one said every motion is to rest and if we see a man withdraw himself from publike affaires and from medling with worldly matters to a private and quiet life all say with one voice that man is happy that leadeth a secure and quiet life free from worldly cares and troublous affaires of the Common-wealth by which we confesse that we judge a peaceable and quiet life to be the end of all our travels so that the felicity of man seemeth in our owne judgement to consist in a quiet life free from worldly cares and troubles and forasmuch then as such quietnesse is in no kind of life to be found but in a contemplative life then in must rest the felicity of man after the Philosophers The contemplative or studious life also is not onely to be preferred before the active and civill life by the excellency of the subject whereupon it worketh that is divine things the vacancie of worldly cares troubles but also that it is of such condition that fortune hath no power over it as it hath over other states of life A small provision serveth his necessitie hee is free from all feare of losse of goods and from any great care of keeping that he hath because his riches is in his minde he carrieth all his goods about with him and is content with himselfe And therefore say they a wise man that giveth himselfe to contemplation though he be placed in a most solitarie place or wildernesse yet hee is happy by reason of the excellencie of his minde which is occupied in despising humane matters as base things and in beholding divine things as the Poet saith Felices animâ—… quibus bac cognascere primum Inque domus super as scandere cura fuit Blest they who these things did both know love Whoselove was with the gods to dwell above But because a civill life requireth continuall action mans felicitie cannot consist in contemplation except there should be one felicity of a private man and another of a Common-wealth And therefore after Varrâ—… mans felicitie so long as he liveth in this world doth neither consist in rest nor in action but rather in a mixture of both together if there must bee one felicitie of a common-wealth and of a private man for the minde cannot throughly have the fruition of perfect contemplation untill it be separated from the body And Aristotle saith that as a horse is borne to runne an oxe to till the ground and a dogge to hunt so a man is borne to two things to understand to do For that nothing might bee wanting to the excellencie of the minde of man by which we resemble God the great Creator of all things he placed man as the end of the whole frame of the world in this goodly great Theatre not only as an inhabitour of the lower part of the world under the Moone to make one entire Common-wealth with the rest of his kind like to that heavenly principality above but as a certaine spectator also of divine things who by comparing things past with things present might foresee things to come and know and love by his word and worke the glorie of his parent And when he should ascend up to him hee should joyne himselfe to God and conforme all the harmonie of his gifts to his goodnesse and glory which by two manner of wayes is brought to passe when he helpeth and maintaineth his fellows and brethren according to his calling by the rule of Gods laws and magnifieth God in continuall contemplation by prayers and thanks-giving Therfore that the minde being fallen into the prison of the body might raise it selfe up againe as it were by certaine degrees to perpetuall light In man there is from the body a continual ascending by the spirit to the inward soule In the world where with we are environed from the elements and compound things by the Aethereall substance to heaven In mans common-wealth from kingdomes and cities to the due order of the whole course of nature from hence to the incorporate world and God himself as the first example and patterne of all justice and truth For besides the incorporate world that is above all the rest of which all the others depend there are three bodily worlds coupled together one with another as it were with a chaine of gold the greater the lesse and mans common-wealth betweene them both and the contemplative life is to bee preferred before the active life in this that it resembleth God more neare than the other because it is occupied in the operations of the minde and understanding God being understanding it selfe Now if the contemplation or studious life of the Philosophers which they bestowed in the knowledge of God by his workes and by their reason and understanding were imployed to the knowledge of God by the testimony of his holy Scripture and by faith then may it more rightly bee said that the contemplative life is more perfect than the active life But Christian contemplation properly isto be exercised in afflictions and to feele motions of the spirit and not to be studious only that resembleth rather an active life which afflictions and spirituall motions may as wel be in him
perpetuall memory after his death these men lead a very painefull and dangerous life not onely by their enemies but by an infinite number of diseases that follow the campe they must suffer hunger thirst heate and cold winde and weather frost and snow they watch and ward and wake almost continually and when they sleepe they must take vp their lodging in the plaine fields at the signe of the Moone And this paines they take to embrue their hands in the blood of them for whose preservation Christ was contented to shead his own blood Lyons Beares Wolves and all other kinde of wilde beasts spare to exercise their fury vpon their owne kinde but these vse extreme cruelty and utter all their rage upon men that Christ dyed for as wel as for them not vpon the Heathens onely which were more tolerable And what be the fruits of these mens profession Beside their owne miseries which are many as the effusion of their owne blood and that of infinite numbers of innocents men women and children burning and sacking of goodly cities and townes spoyling and 〈◊〉 mens goods wasting territories and fields rapes upon matrones and virgins prophaning Temples and sacred places making men captives and slaues and to end in one word all manner of impieties and outrages that men can commit which is confirmed by the Poet Nulla fidesx pietasque viris qui castra sequuntur Venalesque manus ibi fas vbi maxima merces No faith no piety's in those That are of Mars his traine Their servile hands hold all as iust Where they can rub to gaine And when they returne from the warres many of the common sort that liued honestly before by want of discipline and good example get such licentiousnesse and dissolutenesse of manners that they become beggers or theeues and so lead end their liues in myserie of whom the Italian hath a prouerb Warres make theeues and Peace hangeth them vp The better souldier saith one the worse man but that wee may the better see what fruits spring out of this profession let vs produce some examples of the miseries and calamities that men haue suffered by the warres yet not of the great number of thousands of men that haue beene slaine in the field with the sword at one battayle or the goodly cities that have beene vtterly destroyed and made desolate for those examples be infinite but of some few that be more strange and not so common Iosephus reporteth that when Ierusalem was besieged by the Emperour Titus besides wonderfull things that the people suffred by the extremitie of famine as the eating of the leather of their girdles shooes targets and also of their old hay There was a rich woman had gathered together her goods into a house within the Citie and lived sparingly upon that she had left but the souldiers in short time tooke all away and she could no sooner begge a morsell of meat to helpe to relieue her but they would take it from her and deuoure it themselues at last seeing her selfe ready to famish she committed a horrible Act against nature shee tooke her childe that she had sucking vpon her brests O vnhappie child quoth shee but much more vnhappie is thy mother what shall I doe with thee in this Warre in this famine and among these seditious people If I should save thy life thou shalt live in perpetuall servitude with the Romanes come hither therefore my little wretch and serve thy mother for meat to relieue her and for a terrour to the Souldiers that haue left me nothing and for a perpetuall memorie of the miseries of mans life which onely wanteth to the calamities of the Iewes after shee had spoken these words shee killed the poore infant and put him vpon the broach and roasted him and ate the one halfe and laid vp the rest which was no sooner done but the Souldiers came into the house againe who smelling the sauour of the roasted meat threatned to kill her except shee brought it foorth Content your selves my friends quoth shee I have dealt well with you looke how I haue reserved the one moitie for you and therewith shee set the rest of her childe vpon the table before them The souldiers being amazed with the horrour of this lothsome spectacle stood silent unable to speake a word but the woman contrariwise beholding them with a sterne and sturdie countenance What now my friends quoth she this is my fruit this is my childe this is my fact why eate yee not I have eaten before you are ye more daintie or scrupulous then the mother that brought him foorth doe yee disdaine the meate that I have tasted before you and will eate the rest if yee leave it The souldiers were not able any longer to endure this lamentable sight but went trembling away leaving her alone with the rest of her childe In the time of Traiane the Emperour the Iewes rebelled in which Warres the Iewes not content to have slaine the Romanes but brought also their dead bodies to the shambles and there quartered cut them in pieces and sold them by weight and ate them with as good appetite as if they had beene Hens or Feasants and further adding one crueltie to another they brought foorth certaine Romanes which they had in prison and made wagers one with another a denier or a point to strike off the head of a Romane at a blow They would flay the Romanes quicke and tanne their skinnes for leather and further to disgrace them they would cut off their privie members and tosse them as a ball in the market place The Greekes and Romanes that were in all places slaine in these Warres were reported to bee fiue hundred thousand which cost the Iewes so deare that if the dead had beene living they would have thought themselves sufficiently revenged After the Emperour 〈◊〉 had killed his brother Geta and was in possession of the Empire the Praetorian souldiers finding themselves rich by the rewards of Bassianus and their enemies subdued went into Rome and entering into the houses slew all persons with whom they had any vnkindnesse and vpon wagers would kill a whole kindred vntill they had left no person in whom any remembrance might remaine The people of Numantia in Spaine were driven to such extremitie when Scipio besieged the Citie that they would hunt after the Romanes as men doe use to hunt after a Hare or Deare and eate their flesh and drinke their blood as hungerly as if it had beene Beefe or Mutton they would vowe to their Gods not to breake their fast but with the flesh of a Romane nor to drinke wine or water untill they had tasted of the blood of their enemies which they should kill so that none of the Romanes were taken prisoners but when they had killed any of them they would flay him quarter him wey him in the shambles and sell him more deare being dead then his ransome would yeeld being alive When
necessary members for our corrupt nature by whose skill mens malicious contentious humors are many times especially in these daies so artificially fed maintained that they who at the first were ordained as instruments to defend men from injury seeme now to be imployed as whips to the punishment of mens sins The elder Cato was wont to say that pleading Courts were strawed with Caltrops Pope Pius the 2d. compareth the Sutors to Birds the place of pleading to the Field the Iudge to a Net the Atturneys and Lawyers to Fowlers Pope Nicholas the third a man well learned banished out of Rome Advocates Proctors Notaries the rest of that Society saying that they lived by poore mens blood But Pope Martin his successor caused them to return againe saying they were good men to draw water to his mill One reporteth that if Lewes the eleventh had lived a few yeers more he had reformed in France the abuses of the Law Lawyers Of these meÌ„ one speaketh thus Dicere sepeforo turpique inhiare lucello Gaudet hoc studio vitam solatur inertem Vaenali celebrans commissa negotia lingua To plead of gaping for dishonest gaine Fattens the Lawyer studying to maintaine A slothfull life And be they right or wrong Opening mens Causes with a servile tongue Thus much of this estate as it is used in other couÌ„tries written by their owne Authors much more which I forbeare to recite because I take this sufficient to prove that felicitie is as hard to be found in this estate as in others though some countries be free from these faults for the generalâ—…y maketh the matter the use or abuse of every state of life bringeth to their professors felicity or infelicity For the law is necessary in euery CoÌ„mon-wealth Plato saith principatus sine lege grave molestus subjectâ—…s another calleth it prasiaem bonu malis and that in the lawes consisteth the safegard of a Common-wealth And how great infelicitie happeneth to the ludges who when they are old and should reape the fruit of all their travell in their youth that is rest and quietnesse then must they begin to travell about their Circuits in heate and cold durt and dust frost snow wind and raine as it were a penance for their life past which they must continue untill they be ready to fall into their graves Alexander Alexandrins an excellent Doctor and Advocate when hee had lost at Rome against all right and reason a matter of great importance gave over his practice and betooke himselfe to the studie of humanity saying That the greatest part of them that in these dayes sit in judgement either as ignorant mâ—…n doe not understand the lawes or as naughtie men doe corrupt the lawes And Augustine saith That the ignorance of the Iudge is often the calamitie of the innocent Onâ—… said These five things bring chiefely the Common wealth farre out of square A 〈◊〉 Iudge in the Consistorie a deceitfull merchant in the market a coverous Priest in the Church a faire whoore in the Stewes and 〈◊〉 in Princes Courts One likeneth the law to the web of a Spyder that taketh little Flies but gâ—…eater things breake their way thorow which seemeth to point at some thing that maketh nothing for the felicitie of Iudges and Magistrates CHAP. II. The estate of Iudges and Magistrates Of Bellizarius A Villaine reprehends the Senate of Rome An excellent Oration of a Iew A Dialogue betwixt a Philosopher and Iustice The estate of a Courtier A Courtiers description The manner of the Court The Courtiers life The estate of Princes The Hystory of Cleander and of plantianns LET vs leaue these men pleading their Clients causes and looke further into the estate of Iudges and other Magistrates which is an honourable estate and necessary for our humane nature And though these men command and iudge and are honoured aboue the rest yet haue they their part in those troubles and vnquietnesse whereunto other men are subiect Their charge is great and care without end to preserue the people committed to their gouernment in peace and concord at home and to defend them from their enemies abroad They must wake when others sleepe and howsoeuer they behaue themselues yet are they in danger of their Princes displeasure or the peoples obloquy whereof ensueth many times their vtter ouerthrowe A great number of examples may bee produced of good Magistrates and honourable Personages that by the ingratitude of the Prince or people in recompence of their good seruice haue beene bereaued of their liues and goods pellizarians a noble Gentleman and Generall vnder the Emperour Iustinian ouercame the Vandals triumphed ouer the Persians deliuered Italy many times of the Barbares in recompence of so notable seruice the Emperour through enuie and suspition caused his eyes to be plucked out of his head insomuch that he was driuen to get his liuing by begging And standing in a little cottage that was placed in one of the most frequented streetes in Rome asked almes in this sort Yee that passe by giue poore Bellizarians a farthing for Gods sake who for his vertue was famous and through enuie is made blind so that it is truly said A great good turne is often rewarded with great ingratitude and the vncertainty of the peoples fauour Petrarke taxeth thus Faire weather of the Spring the mornings sweet winde of Summer calmes of the Sea the estate of the Moone the loue of the people if they be compared together the palme and price of mutabilitie shall be giuen to the last But of Magistrates that bee euill after the corruption of our flesh grieuous curses be threatned vpon them Cursed bee ye that be corrupted with money and by prayers by hate or loue iudge euill to be good and good euill making of light darkenesse and of darkenesse light Cursed bee ye that haue not regard to the goodnesse of the cause but to the fauour of the person that haue not regard to equity but to the Presents that are giuen you that regard not iustice but money that haue not regard to that which reason sheweth you but to that onely which your affection or desire leadeth you yee are diligent in rich mens causes but yee delay poore mens suites to them ye are sterne and rigorous but to the rich pleasant and affable which agreeeth with this saying of Aristotle Amor odium proprium commodum 〈◊〉 faciunt indicem non cognoscere verum Loue and hate and his owne commodity oftentimes maketh a ludge not to know the truth The wise man pursuing this matter saith The poore man cryeth out and no man harkneth to him but they aske what he is the rich man speaketh and every man clappeth his hands and exalteth his words with admiration above the skies yet this sufficeth them not that are advanced to honourable estate there is another worme that gnaweth upon them they doe by their children as did the mother
solueris quaqua ligatus cris Intus quis tu quis ego sum quid qâ—…ris vt intrem Fers aliquid non sta foris fero quod satis intra The Court must haue money It Exhausts both purses and coffers If thou shewest thy purse thou must neither haue To deale with Popes nor Patriarchs But if thou wilt giue money and supply their coffers Thou shalt bee absolued of what crime soeuer Who 's within what art thou t is I. what wouldst thou I would enter Bringst thou any thing no stay without then I bring what is sufficient come neere then And Mantuan noting likewise their vnmeasurable covetousnesse singeth thus Venalia Romae Templa sacerdotes altaria sacra coronae Ignis thura preces calum est venale Deúsque Temples are to be sold in Rome Inquire The Priests the holy Altars crowne and fire The Incense and their prayers are to be sold There thou maist buy both heauen and God for gold But now that they find the want of that which was wont to feede their vnsatiable humours of covetousnes and ambition by meane that the better halfe of Europe being reuolted from them both their credit and treasury is greatly decayed The Popes rage of late yeeres like as the Asses of Thuscia are reported to doe when they haue fed vpon hemlockes which as Matheolus writeth casteth them into such a sound sleepe that they seeme to be dead in so much as the countrey men goe oftentimes to take off the skinne and haue halfe flayed him before the Asse will awake And when they haue taken off the skinne to the middest of his backe the asse riseth vp suddenly vpon his feete and halfe his skinne hanging downe breaketh out into such a roaring that he putteth the husbandman many times into a great seare The like is vsed by the latter Popes who haue beene a long time in a sound sleepe untill they hauing felt the one halfe of reuenewes reuenewes and dominion taken away from them fearing the rest will follow they fall into such a roaring and thundring with their Bulles arming subiects against their Princes and Kings against their subiects and one of them against another that they put all Christendome many times in a great feare which in these dayes in many places worketh effect like vnto that which Chaucer if I forget not speaketh of when he describeth a great feare that hapned in the breake of the day the dogges barkt the duckes quackt the cockes crowed and the Bees ranne out of the hyue Iohn Peter of Ferrara a learned man taxing the Popes ambition and covetousnesse after many other things writeth thus above one hundred and fifty yeeres since The Pope laboureth to have superiority of the Emperour which is ridiculous to speake and abominable to heare And note how and by how many meanes the Clergie men lay snares for the Lay men and enlarge their jurisdiction But alas ye vnhappie Emperours and secular Princes that suffer these and the like things and make your selues servants unto the Popes and see the world abused by them infinite waies And yet ye thinke not vpon reformation because yee give not your mindes to Wisedome and Knowledge And Saint Hierome saith Italy will never be at quiet vntill the Church of Rome doe not possesse all the Cities and Castles and that the gift of Constantine be by some good and mightie Emperour utterly revoked because saith hee non benè câ—…eniat Psalterium cum Cythera neither was it granted of Christ to Peter that they should possesse such things but that which is Caesars should be given to Caesar and that which is Gods to God Now if the Popes bee the Antichrist spoken of in the Scripture after the opinion of learned Divines or if hee set foorth vaine and wicked fables and horrible blasphemies in place of true Christian Religion as the miracles done by Fryer Dominicke and Francis to bee more and greater then those done by Christ and his Apostles and the rest of the Fables written by them by their owne Authors also their imagined purgatory worshipping of images invocation of the dead their daily renewing of the sacrifice of Christ in their Masse Christening of Bels absolution for him that hath killed his father or mother and many other such like things this cannot bee a happie estate that opposeth it selfe so directly and apparantly against Christ and his doctrine whereby besides the danger of their destruction they draw infinite numbers of soules to the danger of eternall damnation except Gods mercie bee the greater Gregory the Great doth testifie plainely that the Pope is described vnder the person of Nabâ—…chodonozor For Kings and Princes in hell that are damned are brought in as though they came to meete the Pope after his death comming to them to salute him who mocke him thus Hell was in great feare of you when it heard of your comming all the dead Princes of the earth rise up to you all Kings of Nations rise out of their thrones and speake to you after this sort Art thou made subject to the same infirmities as wee are and art thou become like unto us Thy pride hath brought thee downe to hell When diddest thou fall Lucifer from heaven thou sonne of the morning and art come into the earth that wert terrible to all Nations But thou saidst in thy heart I will goe up to heaven I will lift up my seat above the Starres of heaven I will ascend above the height of the clouds and will be made like the highest They that shall see thee will say Is this he that troubleth the earth and ouerthrew kingdomes Thus they deceiue the world who at last are deceiued themselues Liuie saith There is nothing more deceiueable in shew then false religion when the power of God is made a cloke for wickednesse And if the Popes were of that holinesse and vertue they would be taken it could not be but by their example instruction and discipline their Imperiall Seat and Citie whereof they are Head would not deserue for their abominable vice and wickednesse so infamous speech by the learned Italians themselues Petrarke Mantuan and many other call Rome the shop of all wickednesse Babylon Sodom the Schoole of errors the Church of heresies an Harlot with a shamelesse face Mantuan thus noteth the vice there vsed I pudor in villas si non patiuntur easdem Et villae vomicas Roma est iam tota Lupanar Goe shame vnto the villages If they as yet be free From the same filth for now all Rome Is nought saue brothelry And Pasquil confirmeth the same when one hauing beene at Rome at his departure taketh his leaue thus Roma vale vidi satis est vidisse reuertar Cum leno aut meretrix scurra cynedus ero Rome farewell I haue seene and now Am glutted with thy sight I will returne when I am Bawd Whoore Iester Catamite Thus much of the ambition and manners of the Popes whereunto I
worldly wealth reputation all other vanities for which men are called happy in coÌ„tempt that is resolute void of all feare euen of death it selfe that esteemeth nothing to be greatly regarded or cared for but a vertuous mind that taketh all things that happen to him either as Gods blessing or his crosse and all for his good whose mind is alwaies quiet cleere that holdeth this opinion as the sentence of an Oracle That no man can be hurt except he be hurt of himself who would not reuerence that maÌ„ in his heart think him equall with the Emperour Nay who if he be of a right iudgement would not preferre him before all Emperours and Kings in the World as more happie then them all He is accounted a great estate that hath dominion and power ouer others but he is a great estate indeede that hath himselfe in his owne power And therefore if thou desire to be great and to make all things subiect to thee make thy selfe subiect to reason thou shalt rule much if reason rule thee But if such a man as we speak of be not or hardly to be found that is able among so many assaults and afflictions to which men are subiect to make sufficient resistance as without Gods especiall grace ioyned to his endeuour it is not possible yet let vs set such a man before our eyes in our conceit to giue vs aime the better to direct our leuell and though we strike not the marke yet let vs labour to shoot as neere it as we can And if we cannot attaine to that which is answerable to the name of felicity yet we shall the rather by that means auoid many parts of infelicity For he that laboureth not to erre saith Plato misseth narrowly We are troublous many times to our selues by desiring and coueting those things that bee not worth the hauing as abundance of riches reputation such like But Plato saith not the rich but the wise and prudent auoid misery We are often vnquieted with feare of the losse of those things the lacke whereof if wee looke thorowly into the matter is not hurtfull to vs but an opinion of harme We feare many things that haue in them nothing that is dreadfull but the feare it selfe Put away ioyes feare hope be not sorrowfull the mind is cloudy and bridled where these things raigne Demetrius said that he accounted none more vnhappy then he that neuer tasted of aduersity which to a vertuous man is an exercise of his vertue which otherwise would wither lose his force brightnâ—… as iron with rest gathereth rust but with vse and occupying it shineth bright The best thing in worldly things is to contemne the things of this world A man by nature is subiect to sickenesse and by losse of his goods may fall into pouerty and by the displeasure of the Prince or people may lose his reputation but to make him vicious that is vertuous wicked that is honest a coward that is valiant base minded that is of noble courage is neither in the power of nature of men nor of fortune therefore to a man endued with vertue nothing can happen that can greatly distemper him who only triumpheth ouer all those things that make other men happy Ille sapit solus volitant alij vclut vmbrâ—… He is only wise whilest others fly like shaddowes When vertue is present men take example thereat saith Salomon and if it go away yet they desire it it is alwayes crowned triuÌ„pheth and winneth the battell and the vndefiled rewards He standeth as a tree well rooted which though it be shaken with diuers winds yet none caÌ„ make it fall He knoweth his body his lands and goods be subiect to the power of men but so long as his mind is free to himselfe at liberty he maketh no great account of the rest he can moderate prosperity beare stoutly and asswage the sharp stings of aduersity and despise those things which other men wonder at It is the property of a great mind to contemne great things to desire rather mean matters then ouergreat If there be any happy man in this world said Socrates it is he that hath a cleane vndefiled soule a cleare conscience stained with nothing for in him onely the misteries of â—…od may bebeheld seen The most pleasant and sweet thing in mans life said he is learning vertue the history of vnknowne things and quietnes of life free from worldly affaires and troubles void of cupidities desires which distemper the traÌ„quillity of the mind he preferreth before all that a man can possesse for he is happy that hath no need and desireth no more TraÌ„quillity of conscience security of innocency maketh a happy life for nothing bringeth more labor trouble to this life then to boyle with earthly desires and nothing causeth more quietnes then to desire nothing of these worldly matters Seneca affiâ—…meth this by his owne experience Rebus paruis alta prastaâ—… quies The wise Emperour Marcus Aurelius seemeth to be of the same opinioÌ„ when he taxeth the folly of mâ—…n that forsake a quiet life they might finde at home to seek with trouble for aduancement and credit abroad here be saith he many men wise but more fooles and the greatest foole of all is he who being at râ—…st in his house searcheth with diligence elsewhere troubles trauels peâ—…plexities for that for the most part he 〈◊〉 no other fruit of the offices and â—…states for which he searcheth abroad then to suffer coÌ„tinual paine care and griefe at home If men inferiour to this noble Empâ—…rour in wisdom and knowledge would rely vpon his â—…dgement counsell and learne to fly opinion grounded vpon a common custome of the multitude they should find better means to attaine to a happy life with loâ—…e quietnes then by hunting so earnestly after credit reputation to make them enuied and hated of others with trauell vexation both of body and mind to themselues And though officers functioÌ„s must of necessity be in cueâ—…y coÌ„monwealth cueâ—…y one must feâ—…ue employ his trauel in the same yet they should expect â—…he time of their calling not preuent it by intruding themselues before their vocation The Venetians haue Magistrates called Pragadi of the word because in the first foundation of their city men were prayed to take the office and to helpe to gouerne the estate But in these dayes there is no need to pray men to take offices of gouernment but men themselues will pray and with great labour and other meanes sue with shame enough for offices of rule though meane and themselues insufficient and of little worth Euery man now will bee a Magistrate and beare rule ouer others though he cannot well gouerne himselfe which hath brought things that were heretofore had in regard almost in contempt as Saint Hierome saith Things of
conversation as neere as thou mayst and let them goe under the name of welwillers rather than of friends except thou bee assured of their fidelity So shall not honestie bind thee to performe more to them to whom a common custome and the malignity of this time hath given a Supersedeas to discharge the duty of friendship then thou shalt see cause or they will performe to thee for in so great pennury of friends corruption of manners thy fortune must bee very good if thou chance upon a faithfull friend for in these daies men hold friendship by indenture And that thou maist bee better instructed in thy choice hearken to Guevarra his counsell to one that asked how one man may know another to the end he may be either accepted or eschewed First obserue what affaires he taketh in hand what works he doth what words he speaketh and what company he keepeth for the man that by nature is proud in his businesse negligent in his word a lyer and maketh choice of evill men for his companions deserves not to be embraced much lesse to be trusted for that in men in whom is laid no foundaton of vertue is no expectation of faith or honesty And one of the things saith he that men thinke they haue when they have them not is many friends yea say I one faithfull friend For by my experience if thou wilt beleeve me I know not any thing wherein thou maist sooner bee deceived Fortie yeares and more I may with some judgement remember the world in which little time I have found such a metamorphosis and alteration in mens minds and manners that if they should decline so fast from evill to worse after forty yeares more it will bee a hard matter any where to finde out a faithfull friend or an honest man For as the same Authour further saith that which one friend doth for another in these dayes is eyther to excuse or hide himselfe when there is neede of him being more ready to lend him his conscience than his money And hee that will compare the number that professe friendship unto him with them that have performed the true office and part of friends for one faithfull hee shall discover an hundred dissemblers Of such friends as they are most common so we may esteem it no smal felicity to be divided from them being more prodigall of their conscience than liberall of their goods or ready to performe any other duety of friendship Isocrates counselleth us to chuse that friend which hath beene faithfull to his former friends for he is like to prove constant in friendship and if thou wilt follow mine advice enter not into friendship with a covetous man for his mind is so possessed and overcome with the love of money and greedy desire to encrease his riches and possessions that there is no hope of performance eyther of friendship or honesty at his hands Plautus saith Vt cuique homini res parata est firmi anuci sunt Si res lassae labant itidem amici collabascunt As our substance is so are our friends if that faile they fall from us The minds and manners of men in these latter daies are much like to the manners used by the old Romanes when they triumphed the Romanes as they were very politike in all their government so did they well consider that there was no better meanes to excite their young men to vertue than by rewarding their noble acts with honour Therfore they had a custome when any Generall of their Armies had wonne any notable victorie to suffer him at his return to Rome to triumph which was done with very great pompe and solemnity and when the triumph was ended the triumpher had prepared a sumptuous feast and invited the chiefe men of the citie to supper and among the rest the Consuls also which were the principal Magistrates of Rome yet meaning nothing lesse than to have their company for they were no sooner returned to their houses but the Triumpher would send a messenger presently to desire the Consuls not to come to supper that there might be no man to whom he might give place So many invite men to their friendship with faire words and friendly offers when they meane nothing lesse that they may seeme to give place to none in humanity and courtesie but his back is no sooner turned but they revoke within themselves their friendly offers and are ready if they thinke he look for performance to forbid him to make triall of their friendship being done for forme and not with plaine meaning as the triumphers maner was This time seemeth to resemble that whereof Galen complaineth that he happened into a most wicked age in which hee thought them onely wise and of a sincere mind that having espyed the generall infidelity subtiltie dissimulation and dishonestie of men withdrew themselves speedily from the assemblies and companie of people as from a vehement storme and tempest into the safe port of a solitarie life which agreeth with the Poet Benê qui latuit benè vixit Hee lives well that lives warily There have bin times when he that knew most was esteemed best but now reputation growes not by knowledge nor is measured by the worthinesse of vertue but by the abundance of riches and possessions Heu Romae nunc sola pecunia regnat Alas now onely money reignes in Rome One of the things that Ecclesiasticus said grieved his heart was That men of understanding are not set by In time past learned men were sent for out of farre countries but now if they knocke at our doores we will not let them in Vnfruitfull pastimes and vaine toyes draweth our delights None was advanced to honour but such as deserved it but now none climbe so fast to high dignities as those that bee least worthy In that golden age no Senate or Councell was established but there was resident some excellent Philosopher but now in stead of them and of learned Divines who should supply their roomes among Christians are brought in some excellent Machiavellians as the meetest counsellers for this corrupt time Kings and Emperours were wont to be singularly learned and thought learning a great ornament to their dignitie Alexander the great and Iulius Caesar were wel learned and also the Emperour Adrian which Iulius in the middest of his campe would have his speare in his left hand and his pen in his right hand hee never unarmed himselfe but hee would presently fall to his booke The title of Philosopher was given to the Emperour Marcus Aurelius for his excellent learning who would say that hee would not leave the knowledge hee might learn in one houre for all the gold he possessed and I saith he receive more glorie of the bookes I have read and written than of the battels I have wonne and of the kingdomes which I have conquered Ptolomy King of Egypt and Hermes before him and of latter yeares Alphonsus
fall our knowledge being turned into ignoâ—…nce though wee have some fight of our end and beatitude yet we are notable about selves to attaine to it And as the cause of our misery is our separation from God so our felicity is to be joyned with God againe And seeing the same which was the soveraigne good of the firstman is also 〈◊〉 which by his revolt from God he lost from himselfe and from his posterity and the way to recover the same is to reâ—… to God â—…ine Let us see whether God of his great meâ—…y hath not left us some meanes by which we may be 〈◊〉 the right way to him againe whether 〈◊〉 doth â—…each forth his fatherly hand to us thorough the clouds and 〈◊〉 to call and draw us to him though like bastards and rebels we be altogether unworthy of his favour and mercy All men acknowledge one God the parent and Creator of mankind that hee made the world for man of nothing and that he governeth both the world man by his providence Then must it needs follow that obedience is due to the Father faith and invocation and all manner of duty belongeth to so bountifull a Lord and governour And seeing man is by nature immortall hee ought with all his mind to aspire to immortall things And because by sinne he is fallen from God and from himselfe he ought to aske pardon that hee may pacifie the wrath of God which he purchased by his pride and love of himselfe It is requisite therefore that hee acknowledge his frailty and misery that hee may with all humility submit himselfe to God And what betoken all these things but that there is one God one man one religion that is a duty of man toward God a reconciliation of the degenerate children to their father of the rebellious subjects to their Lord whose favour we lost by our fall For all the exercises of religion proceed hereof that men know God made and ruleth the world that man is immortall that he fell by transgression out of Gods favour that created him to worship and glorifie God which is his end and soveragne good And 〈◊〉 commeth all our sacrifices our adorations our ceremonies our singing of Psalmes and â—…hankesgiving and such like So that religion which is a reconciliation to God is the way that 〈◊〉 us to out felicity and Summum bonum or sovâ—…raigne good But not every religion but the true religion by which God is rightly served as he himselfe hath appointed and not as is grounded upon the inventions and phantasticall devices of men For the Heathens and 〈◊〉 and barbarous people have their severall religion of their owne invention some adoring the Sunne some the Moone others the first thing they meet in the morning some a red cloth hanging at the end of a long staffe others images of men and other creatures For there is no people so brutish or voide of humanity but by instinct of nature he knoweth there is a divine power above man whereupon he grooâ—…deth some religion The ancient wise men and Philosophers highly exalted religion above all things as the onely way to lead them to the soveraigne good which is God Plato saith the beatitude of man is to be made like God that is if hee bee just and holy which must come by godlinesse and the love of God which is the greatest vertue among men And Aristotle saith that in godlinesse all our felicity consisteth And 〈◊〉 saith If wee be of any judgement what shall wee doe but continually worship God sing Psalmes and give thankes unto him whether we digge or plough the ground whether wee labour or rest Simplicius saith He can doe nothing diligently how necessary soever it bee that is â—…othfull and negligent in the service of God Religion saith Hierâ—…cles is the chiefe and leader of all vertues which is referred to Gods cause to which all other vertues have relation as to their end For vertues are not vertues if they swerve from religion and godlinesse Fortitude referred to any other thing than to godlinesse falleth into temerity or rashnesse prudence into fraud and subtilty and so like wise of the rest But all other religions saving the true religion doe lead men to the brinke of hell or at least shew them Paradise afarre off but betweene them and it is a great deepe gulfe over which no man is able to passe nor all the world is able to fill it up yet there must needs be a passage over somwhere for the end of man is certaine to bee joyned with God And that he may be joyned with him in heaven it is requisite that he be reconciled to him in earth And the onely way to be reconciled is that God pay our debts and untill they be payd he doth not absolve us That therefore is the onely true religion that leadeth us directly to that passage by whose conduction we find out the right way over it which onely leadeth us to the end of religion that is mans salvation for true religion is the right way to reconcile us to God whereof ensueth the salvation of man And that the true religion may be discerned from those that bee the inventions of men it hath three markes by which it is made apparent But first this foundation must be taken for certaine and immoveable as laid upon a rocke that true religion is a rule of the worshipping of God by which man is reconciled and tyed to God for his owne salvation This salvation of man is his beatitude his beatitude is to be joyned with God For neither the world nor any thing in it maketh a man happy or blessed but God onely that made man maketh him happy And seeing it is manifest that he and no other must bee worshipped in the earth that will make us happy or blessed in heaven what religion soever though it shew to be very singular and very holy diverteth and draweth our minds and prayers from the Creator to the creature is idolatry and wickednesse And what religion shall perswade us to seeke our soveraigne good and beatitude any other where than with him that is onely good and the only author of good is not only vanity and erroneous but it leadeth out of the way to kill and throweth down head long to destroy And though they have offerings and thankesgiving sacrifices prayers and other observances they are vaine and blasphemous if we attribute that to a creature how excellent soever he be which we received of God and desire pardon of creatures for the sinnes and offences wee commit against the Creator Let this therefore be the first marke of true religion that it doth direct us and our prayers and advocations to one God the Creator of heaven and earth who only searcheth mens hearts with which hee will bee chiefly worshipped But this is not sufficient to worship the true God but he must bee rightly worshipped But who is so