of FOIX who as many thinke was brought vp in magick tooke vpon him to play the person of MARTIN GVERRE furthered therein aswell with his long absence as also that in the lineaments of his face hee some-what resembled him Presenting himselfe vnto the woman at the first shee would not acknowledge him for her hus-band but besides the conformity of bodie hee discouered so many secretts vnto her that had past betweene them two especially in the night after their marriage yea euen to the very apparell hee had left behinde him in a Chest at the time of his departure Things which could not bee knowne but by the right husband that at length not onely she but the most part of his kins-folkes and friends acknowledged him for MARTIN GVERRE in this opinion 4. years past without any contradiction At the end whereof a soldier trauelling that way told that MARTIN GVERRE had lost a leg Not long before this woman was entred into some suspition of her supposed husband by means wherof she tooke wittnesse vnder hand before two Notaries of the soldiers report Which to say truly was but onely vpon heare-say neuertheles it was the first foundation of this wretched TILLIERS misfortune For as it is hard for a lier not to vary so the woman gathered diuers speeches froÌ„ him that made her to misdoubt him and indeed solly cited by PETER GVERRE MARTINS Vnckle she not onely abandoned him but sued him extraordinarily before the Seneschall of Rieux where hee was condemned to death by sentence from the which he appealed to the Parliament of Tholouse which was infinitely trobled about the strangnesse of the case For on the one side TILLIER discouered all the particularities from point to point that had past betweene him BERTRAND before his going away and the talke they had had the first night they lay togither As also how after they had beene married some 7. or 8. years going into the CouÌ„try to one of their kins-folkes wedding because they lacked roome that therfore his wife was to lie with another womaÌ„ it was deuised betweene them that when the rest were a sleepe he shold come lie with his wife likewise howe they had had a Child naming the Priest that baptized it the God-fathers that were 〈◊〉 to it at the Font all with such a resolution and boldnesse that the woman could not tel what to say adding the motiues of his departure the trauells he had sustained both in Spaine and France Which perticularities were fouÌ„d afterward to be true by the report of MARTIN GVERRE himselfe That which makes this History more meruaylous was that this supposed hus-band had neuer conuersed with the other The presumptions that yet made for him were a double tooth a naile growing into the flesh on the right hand certaine moles and a red spot in one eye euen as MARTIN GVERRE had further in that he some-what resembled his sisters who were so besotted that they auouched him for their brother On the other side that which made against him was that a soldier hauing called him ARNOLD by his name hee praied him in his eare not to cal him so but MARTIN GVERRE Besides the which she brought proofe of an Vnckle of his who seeing him in the way of perdition came lamenting vnto him desiring him not to cast himself vtterly away But these proofes were not sufficient to disannull the former for to all obiections that were made against him he answered confidently laying all the cause plotting of his troble on PETER GVERRE his Vnckle whoÌ„ he had threatned a little before to make him yeeld an account of the gardianship that he had sometimes had of him And for to giue some collour to his saying hee desired that his wife might bee sworne to see whither shee would acknowledge him for her right husband or no declaring that he would put his life or death vpon her oth Which so amazed her that she would not accept it These circumstances so mooued the Iudges that they coÌ„mitted the Vnckle and the Niepce to seuerall prisons to the end one should not prompt the other Thinking the woman was drawne to make this accusation by the Vnckle who was in danger of his person As the Iudges were in this suspence it fortuned that the right MARTIN GVERRE came home where at the first sight al his neighbors knew him therewithall being aduertised of the pranke the other had playd him he went directly to Tholousa where he made petitioÌ„ to be admitted as a party in the cause Then were the Iudges more amazed then before because that ARNOLD with an impudent boldnes maintained that this was a CoÌ„nicatching knaue suborned by his aduersaries In this difference the Iudges for to be assured of the truth sent for the Vnckle out of prison set MAR. GVERRE among a great many others apparelled in the same apparel as the counterfet was to see whither he would know him or no but presently he went and picked him out from the rest and with great tokens of ioy gladnesse welcomed him home The like did BERTRAN crauing pardon for the wrong she had vnwittingly done him Neuertheles her husband not taking her words in good paiment with a frouning countenaÌ„ce began to accuse her How is it possible sayd hee that thou shouldst lend consent to this abuse for in mine Vnckle sisters there may be some excuse But none in the priuity that is betweene the man his wife And in this anger hee perseuered a long time notwithstanding any perswasion could be vsed to the contrary Which drewe the Iudges to thinke that it was a very pregnant presuÌ„ption to approue him for the right husband But yet that which held theÌ„ in some doubt was that they of the court examyning MAR. GVERRE whither euer he had receiued the Sacrament of CoÌ„firmation he answered that he had in the towne of Pamieres named the time the Bishop his God-fathers and God-mothers Whervnto ARNOLD seperately made the like answere Notwithstanding the which at last by sentence in the month of September 1560. he was declared attainted conuicted of the matter wherof he was was accused and therfore condemned to do penance in his shirte with a torch in his hand first in open Court afterward before the dore of the chiefest Church in Artiguls and lastly to be hanged and then his body to bee burned til it were consumed to ashes This Iudgement was giuen at Tholouse in the middest of September and afterward executed this wretched man hauing before he died acknowledged the truth of this history which was written since and published by M. IOHN CORRAS a great lawier with certaine Commentaries for to adorne and beautifie it with points of Lawe E. PASQVIER in the 5. booke des Recherches de la France Chap. 19. The yeare 1560. M AVRIAN TVRNEâ—…VS then Greeke reader at Paris Impostor a Comedy of ARISTOPHANES intituled the Waspes where mention is made of Euricles
him to assist at his funeralls yea hee made an instant sute vnto this Prince who went to see him when â—…ee was drawing on that his seruants might bee commanded to accompany him alledging many examples and reasons to proue that it was a thing which belonged to a man of his sort hee seemed to depart content hauing obteined this promisse disposing according to his owne minde of the order of his shew I haue not often seene a vanitie more permanent It is an other contrary curiositie whereof I want no familiar examples which seeme cousin-germaine vnto this to goe studying with passion of this last act to dispose of his funeralls after a priuate and vnaccustomed kinde of thrift with one seruant and a Lanthorne Montaigne in his Essaies Chap. 3. A meruaylous Apparition A Personage worthy of credit that had trauailed in diuers parts of Asia and Egipt affirmed to many that hee had seene more then once in a certaine place neere vnto Caire whether a number of people resort on a certaine day in the moneth of March for to be spectators of the resurrection of the flesh as they say of bodyes deceased shewing and thrusting themselues as it were by little and little out of the ground not that they see them altogether but now the hand then the feete sometimes halfe the body which done they in like manner hide themselues by little and little againe in the ground The rest not giuing credit to such a meruaile and I for my part desiring to vnderstand the truth of it enquired of a Kins-man and singular friend of mine a Gentleman as thoroughly accomplished in all vertues as may be one that hath beene brought vp in great honours and that is almost ignorant of nothing Hee hauing trauailed in the aforesaid countries with another Gentleman a great and familiar friend also of mine named the Lord ALEXANDER of Schullembourg tolde mee hee had heard of many that this apparition was most certaine and that in Cairo and other places of Egipt there was no question made of it And the more to assure mee hee shewed mee an Italian booke Imprinted at Venice contayning diuers descriptions of voyages made by the Embassadors of Venice into many parts of Asia and Affrica among the which one is entituled Viaggio de Messer Aluigi di Giouanni di Alessandria nelle Indie Towards the ende whereof I haue extracted certaine lines Translated out of Italian into Latin and now into English as hereafter followeth On the 25. of March in the yeare 1540. diuers Christians accompanyed with certaine Ianissaries went from Cairo to a little barren mountaine some halfe a mile off designed in times past for buriall of the dead in the which place euery yeare there vsually assembles an incredible multitude of people for to see the dead bodyes there interred as it were issuing out of their Graues and Sepulchers This begins on Thursday and continues till Satterday when they vanish all away Then may you see bodyes wound in their sheetes after the ancient manner but they are not seene standing vpright nor going but onely the armes or thighes or some other part of the body which you may touch If you go a little way off and come by and by againe you shall finde that those armes or other members appeare farther out of the ground And the more you change place the more do those motions appeare diuers and greater At that time there are a number of pauilions pitched about the mountaine for both sick and whole which repaire thither in great troupes firmely beleeue that whosoeuer washeth himselfe on the Thursday night with a certaine water that runnes in a marish hard by it is a sure remedy to recouer and maintaine health But I haue not seene that miracle It is the report of the Venetian Besides the which we haue a Iacobin of Vlmes named FELIX who hath trauailed in those parts of the Leuant and hath published a Booke in Dutch touching all that hee hath seene in Palestina and Egipt He makes the very same recitall As I haue not vndertaken to maintaine this apparition to be miraculous for to confound these superstitious idolaters of Egipt and to shew them that there is a resurrection and life to come neither will I refute it nor maintaine it to be a Satanicall illusion as many thinke but will also leaue it to the iudgement of the Reader for to determine thereof as he shall thinke good PH. CAMERARIVS Councellor of the Common-wealth of Nuremberg in the 73. Chap. of his Historicall Meditations I will adde somewhat herevnto for the content of the Reader STEVEN DVPLAIS a cunning Goldsmith and a man of an honest and pleasing conuersation being now some 45. yeares old or thereabout hauing trauailed diuers Countries of Turkey and Aegipt made me an ample discourse of the apparition before mentioned some fifteene yeares since affyrming hee had beene spectator of it with CLAVDE ROCARD an Apothecary of Chably in Champagne and twelue other Christians hauing for their truchman and guvde a gold-smith of Ottranto in Apulia called ALEXANDER MANIOTTI He told mee moreouer that he as the rest had touched diuers members of those ressâ—…stitants And as hee was taking hold on the heare of a Childes head a man of Cairo cryed out Kali Kali antè matarasdè that is to say let it alone let it alone thou knowest not what thou doest Now for-asmuch as I could not well perswade my selfe that there was any such matter as he told me of though in diuers other reports conferred with that which is to be read in our moderne Authors I had alwaies found him simple and true wee continued a long time in this opposition of my eares to his eyes vntill the yeare 1591. that hauing shewed him the aboue-sayd obseruations of Doctor CAMERARIVS Now you may see sayd he that I haue told you no fables And many times since we haue talked of it with wonder and reuerence of the diuyne wisdome Furthermore he told mee therevpon that a Christian dwelling in Aegipt had diuers times recouted vnto him vpon talke of this apparitioÌ„ or resurrection that he had learned of his grand-father Father which their ancestors had reported hauing receiued it from hand to hand time out of minde that certayne hundreth yeares agoe diuers Christians Men women and Children being assembled in that mountayne for to do some exercise of their Religion were enuironned and compassed about by a great number of their enemies the little Mountaines being but of a small circuite who cut them all in peeces and hauing couered their bodies with earth returned to Cairo Euer since the which this resurrection hath appeared the space of certaine dayes before and after that of the massacre Behold a summary of STEVEN DVPLAIS discoursâ—… by him confirmed and renewed in the end of Aprill 1600. when I wrote this History where-vnto that can be nothing preiudiciall which is recited by MARTIN BAVMGARTEN in his voyage to Egipt made the yeare 1507. published
in the houses In this horrible confusion ALFONSO d' AVALOS Marquis of Pescara Colonell of the Imperiall footemen running vp and downe the streetes to preuent the wrong which they went about to offer to the honour of Women A Gentleman of Genoa taking him for some Captaine begā to intreate him to suppresse the insolency of two Spanish soldiars that would rauish his Wife a vertuous honorable Gentlewomā which cried for helpe Sodenly the Marquis lights from his horse goes vp to the Chamber and thrusts through one of these wretches who held the poore Gentle-woman by the haire and striued to ouerthrowe her One being slaine he followes the other who fled downe the staires and gaue him such a blowe as he cleft his head in two Then hauing caused their dead bodies to bee cast out at the Chamber windowe into the streete hee made a proclamation vpon paine of death that no man should presume to wrong either in worde or deede any honest maide or Wife This execution restrayned the loosenesse of the Soldiars and the Maquis for this worthie act was honored of all good men P. IOVIVS Booke 3. of his Historie of our time Recompenses of nature THE prouidence and care which the Creator of all things hath giuen to nature is admirable for by a dailie custome shee doth furnish creatures with such force and dexterity which haue the members crooked defectiue or weake or that haue none at all or hauing do more then is prescribed them as we may wel say that the perfection of a Creature consists not in the distinction of members but in the continuall vse thereof I haue often considered thereon When we were at Cobourg in the Lodging of ERASMVS NEVSTETER a wise vertuous Gentleman of Germanie hauing giuen vs the best entertainement hee could deuise hee sent to a certaine place not farre of for a yong man about thirtie yeares old the which was borne without armes who could do as much with his feete as a very able man could do with his hands so as he him-selfe did afferme that nature had recompenced one guift with an other Being set vpon a seate equalling the heigth of the table whereon they set the meate hee tooke a knife with his feete and began to cut both bread and meate carrying it vnto his mouth and a goblet also as easilie with his feete as an other doth with his handes After dinner hee beganne to write both Italien hand and Dutch so right and so well as euerie one of vs desired to haue of it to keepe for a singularity At my request hee tooke a pen-knife and made good pennes to write and presented them to mee and to others Beeing thus busied I did carefully consider the fashion of his feete and did finde this toes were sum-thing long fit to laie hold of anything and a farre off they resembled the fingers of a mans hand as for his legges hee kept them couered with his cloake PH. CAMERARIVS a Germaine Lawier in his learned Historicall Meditations Chap. 37. I haue seene at my house a little man borne at Nantes without armes who hath so well fashioned his feete to the seruice which his handes doe owe him as in truth they haue halfe forgotten their owne naturall dutie Finally hee calls them his handes hee cuttes hee chargeth a pistoll and dischargeth it hee threads a needle hee sowes hee writes hee pulles of his hat hee combes his head hee plaies at Cardes and Dice and shakes them with as great dexteritie as any other the money which I gaue him hee carried away in his foote as wee doe in our hand I did see an other when I was a Childe who handled a two-hand sword and a halberd helping him selfe with the bending of his necke for want of hands he would cast them vp in the aire and catch them againe throwe a dagger and make a whippe lash as well as any Carter in France MONTAIGNE liber 1. of his Essaies Chap. 22. Of this last in my opinion or of an other no lesse admirable Maister AMB. PARE makes mention in these tearmes Not long since there was a man seene at Paris without armes beeing fortie yeares olde stronge and lustie who did in a manner all the actions that an other might doe with his hands with the stumpe of his shoulder and his head hee would strike a hatchet as strongely as an other man could do with his armes More-ouer hee would lash a Carters whippe and did manie other actions with his feete hee did eate drinke plaied at cardes and dice in the ende hee was a theefe and a murtherer and was put to death in Gelderland Booke 24. treating of monsters Chap. 8. Of late daies wee haue seene at Paris a woman without armes which did cut sowe and doe manie other actions The same Author I haue often-times spoken with the Brother of one called N. MADAME who hauing both handes eaten of with hogges lying in the Cradle beeing but a yeare and halfe olde or there aboutes did helpe her selfe as well with the stumpes beeing growne great as wee do with our fingers Shee did worke excellently well in tapistrie did threed her needle very arteficially and did sowe well in lynnen Memorials of our time Wee haue at Nuremberg a young man and a young maide borne of one Father and Mother of a honest house which are dombe and deafe by nature yet both of them Reade verie well Write Cifer and cast an account The yong man conceiues at the first by the signes that are made him what they demand of him and if hee wants a penne by his countenance hee deliuers his thoughtes beeing the cunningest player at all games of cardes and d◅ce that is to bee found among the Germaines His Sister exceedes all other maides in working with the needle in all workes of Linnen Tapistry imbroydrie c. But amongest the wonderfull recompences of Nature this is remarkable that commonlie seeing anie to mooue their lippes they seeme to vnderstand what is sayd They doe verie often assist at Sermons and you would saie that they vnderstand with their eyes what the Preacher saies as others are accustomed to doe by hearing for as often as they will and without anie teaching or examples they write the Lordes prayer and other Holie praiers they can repeate the Texts of the Gospells that are Preacht on Hollie daies and write them readelie When as the Preacher in his Sermon makes mention of our Sauiour IESVS CHRIST the young man before anie other puts his hand to his hat and bends his knee with great reuerence Inthetime of our Fathers there was seene in Flanders IOHN FERDINAND who was borne starke blinde and poore surmounting these two difficulties which are great enemies to learned men in such sort as hee became a learned Poet and Phylosopher as besides hee was so good a musitien as hee plaied verie excelentlie well of diuers sortes of Instrumentes to the great content of them that heard him and besides did
were still importunate they were put in prison and the racke was offred vnto them but they did constantly maintaine their first wordes Therevpon the Dukes Councell was in doubt what they should doe with these letters not knowing what to answere they were so much amazed one of them called the Viconte GALEAS takes these letters written in a paper folded like vnto the breefes that come from Rome the contents whereof were LODOVVIK LODOVVIK looke to thy selfe the Venetians and the French will allie themselues togither to ruine thee and to ouerthrowe thine estate but if thou doest furnish mee with three thousand Crownes I will giue order that their heartes shal be mollefied and that the mischiefe which doth threaten thee shal be auoyded hoping to preuaile if thou wilt trust mee Happinesse come to thee And beneath the spirit of thy Brother GALEAS Some were amazed at this strange accident and others mocking at it yet manie aduised him to consigne three thousand Crownes as neere as hee could to GALEAS intention But GALEAS thinking they would laugh at him if hee should disburse the money and deliuer it into strangers handes would not doe anie thing but sent the Merchantes euerie one home to their owne houses But a little while after hee was cast out from his Duchie of Milan and carried awaie prisoner ARLVNO in the first section of the Historie of Milan A certaine Italian hauing caused a friend of his that was dead to bee honestly interred and as hee returned to Rome beeing surprized by the night hee was forced to staie in an Inne vpon the waie where beeing wearie of his bodie and afflicted in minde he went to his bedde to rest himselfe Beeing alone and awake hee thought that his dead friende pale and without flesh appeered vnto him as hee was in his last sicknesse and came neere vnto him who lifting vp his head to behold him and shaking with feare hee demanded of him what hee was The dead bodie answering nothing vndrest him-selfe goes to bedde and approched neere to him that was lyuing as hee imagined The other not knowing which waie to turne him lies closse to the beddes-side and as the dead man approched still hee thrust him backe Seeing him-selfe thus repulst hee frowned on him that was liuing then hee riseth out of the bedde and clothes him-selfe puttes on his shooes and goes out of the Chamber and appeeres no more The lyuing man was so affrighted with this courtesie as hee had almost dyed Hee sayed that when the dead man approched neere vnto him in the bedde hee toucht one of his feete the which he found so cold as no Ice was colder in comparison thereof ALEXANDER of Alexandria Booke 2. of his Genial daies Chapter 9. TIRAQVELL in his Annotations vpon this Chapter puttes all such visions amongst dreames But I will neither maintaine the one nor the other at this present A friend of mine called GORDIAN a man worthie of credit hath reported vnto mee that going towardes Arezzo with an other of his acquaintance beeing straied out of the way they entred into a forest where they did see nothing but snowe inaccessible places and a fearefull sollitarinesse The Sonne beeing lowe they set downe vpon the ground all tired Herevpon they imagined to heare a mans voice nere vnto them They approch and see vnder the earth there lay three Giantlike and fearefull figures of men attired in long blacke gownes like moorners with long haire beards which did call them As the two passengers came neerer the three visions shewed farre greater then at the first and one of them appeering naked danced and shewed very dishonest motions and countenances These two being much amazed at this spectacle beganne to flie away as fast as they could and hauing runne ouer hills and dales with much toile they came to a Country-mans Cottage where they spent the night In the same booke and Chap. I will adde that which I haue of mine owne knowledge and whereof I am well assured Beeing sicke at Rome and in bedde where I laie awake there appeered vnto mee a vision of a faire woman the which I did long behold being very pensiue and not speaking a worde discoursing with my selfe whether I did dreame or were awake And knowing that all my sinces were in their full vigour and that this fantosme was still before mee I asked what she was She laughing repeated the same verie wordes as it were in mocking wise and hauing long behelde mee shee went her waie In the same Booke and Chapter A Monke called THOMAS a man worthie of credit and whose wisdome and iudgement I haue tried in manie affaires hath reported vnto mee for truth confirming it with an oth that there had past some bitter wordes betwixt certaine other monkes and him and after they had one iniured an other in wordes he went all boyling with choller from among them and walking alone in a great Wood hee mette with an ill fauoured Man and of a terrible aspect hauing a blacke beard and a long gowne THOMAS asked him whether hee went I haue lost answered hee my horse and go to seeke him in these neere fields Here-vpon they goe together to finde this beast and come neere vnto a little Riuer that was deepe The Monke begins to put off his hoase to wade through but the other doth presse him to hang vpon his shoulders promising to passe him easily THOMAS beleeues him and being vpon his backe he imbraceth him about the necke but casting downe his eyes to see the passage hee found that his Porter had strange and monsterous feete where-with beeing much amazed hee began to call vpon GOD for ayde At that voyce the enemie being confounded cast downe his burthen and grombling after a horrible manner vanished away with such a noyse and so extraordinary a violence as he pulled vp a great Oake that was neere and brake all the bowes ALEXANDER of Alexandria lib. 4. Chap. 19. The Lord of a little Towne in the Principalitie of Sulmona in the Realme of Naples shewed himselfe couetous and proud in his gouernement so as his poore subiects could not subsist but were strangely opprest by him An honest man but very poore and contemned did for some occasion hurt a Hound belonging to this Lord very sore Who greatly mooued for the death of his Dogge caused this poore Man to bee layde holde on and imprisoned in a hoale After some dayes the garde which kept all the doores carefully shutte comming to open them according to their custome to giue him a little bread they found not their prisoner in his hoale Hauing sought all places for him and found no markes nor shew of his escape in the end they acquainted their Lord with this wonder who at the first mockt and threatned them but vnderstanding the trueth after-wards hee was no lesse amazed then the rest Three dayes after this Alarum all the doores of the prison and of the Dungeon beeing shutte as before the same Prisoner with-out