posterity as it were by inheritance So as the praise and glory of nobility of bloud appertaineth to the parents and not to the children the memory of whose vertue and worthinesse many times are notes and markes of the degeneration of their posterity For seldome it happeneth that of a singular man commeth a singular sonne One sayth Nabilium liberi placulamund the children of the nobility are sacrifices of the world Cicero taking occasion to rcprchend Catiline by comparing the antiquitie of his bloud with the greatnesse of his vices sayth Hee was not more famous by the nobilitie of his parents than ignominious by his notorious vices Non census non clarum nomen avorum Sâ—…d probitas magnos ingeâ—…mque facit Not wealth nor birth but honesty Doth make thee great in dignitie Osorius reporteth of a strange custome they have in the Indies which sheweth the respect they have to nobilitie Marriage is forbidden their nobilitie because they shall have no let to follow the wars but Lemmans they may have as many as they list so they be likewise of the nobilitie The like libertie is given to the noble women But if any noble man or woman have any carnal knowledge of any other than of the nobilitie hee or shee is thrust thorow with the swords of other noble men He that desireth true nobilitie let him endeavour to ennoblize himself by his own vertues not by his parentage that he may answer as Anacharsis the Philosopher did to one that glorying because hee was borne in the famous Citie of Athens objected to Anacharsis in disgrace that he was a Scythian which was a barbarous Countrey in respect of Greece It is true quoth hee that I am a Scythian and thou a Grecian but thy countrey giveth honour to thee and I give honour to my countrey Or as Cicero answered a Romane that demanded why he that descended of rustical ploughmen would compare with him that was of the nobilitie of Rome I confesse said Cicero that thou art descended of noble Romane Magistrates and I come from poore ploughmen But thou canst not deny that together with this all thy linage is ended in thee and all mine beginneth in me The uncertainetie of Gentilitie was rightly espied by him that said once in an hundred yeares from the plough to the speare and from the speare to the plough againe A matter of small glory that is subject to such mutabilitie Which was well considered of Iob when hee wrote these words I said to my rottennesse thou art my father and unto wormes 〈◊〉 are my mother and sisters He that by his base conditions manners deserveth nothing may be rather ashamed to seeke credit by high titles of his ancestors than to accumulate glory to himselfe by their vertues and nobilitie and ought rather to be taken for a monster than a man that challengeth nobilitie by descent without vertue And by how much the more renowned is the fathers life so much the more ought to bee accused the childrens negligence as the Poet saith Sâ—…s licet ingenuus clarisque parentibus ortus Esse tamen vel sic besti a magna potes Say th' art borne nobly and with titles sweld Yet mayst thou be a great beast and so held Let the French King and Queene saith one bee thy parents if there be no vertue in thy mind I will esteeme thee no more than if thou hadst a husbandman to thy father a country woman to thy mother For so much the greater a man is in estate and dignitie so much the more apparent unseemely his vices are And though his ancestors leave him high titles great riches and possessions yet very little doth hee inherite that doth not inherit his ancestors vertues Cicero writing to his friend Atticus saith that the Romanes did never admit or consent to entitle them with the name of knight or gentleman that could gather much riches but such as had been at the victory of many battels Of these men God spake by the Prophet they are made abominable even as the things they love Their glory is from their nativitie from the belly and from the conception Christ utterly confounded this vanity when he descended himselfe of the greatest nobility that ever was in this world besides that being the sonne of God yet called he commonly himselfe the son of man that is to say of the virgin Mary for otherwise hee was no son of man He sought not for honourable titles of antiquitie as we use to do to furnish his stile but called himselfe a shepheard a base name and of contempt in the world And when he was to make a king first in Israel he sought not out the ancientest bloud but took Saul of the basest tribe in all Israel after him David the poorest shepheard of all his brethren And when hee came into the world he sought not out the noblest men to make his Apostles but took the poorest simplest therby as seemeth to some to confound the foolish vanity of this world that giveth such a preeminence to flesh bloud that must be eaten with worms fall to dust Maximilian to one that desired him to make him a noble man answered I can make you rich but vertue only giveth nobilitie But if nobility or gentility of bloud bee joined with vertue humility of mind it is a thing worthy to be had in estimation giveth a comely grace reputation may serve to put men in remembrance to be vertuous after the example of their first parents by whose vertue they are exalted to that title dignity One saith Nifi fundamenta ftirpis jact a sint probe Miseros necesse est esse deinceps posteros Unlesse thy stocks foundation be well layde Misery must thy posteritie invade Nobilitie is of another mans good but vertue depends of his own good And the man of vertue never wanteth nobility neither can his honour be taken from him seeing honour is joined to vertue as the briar is to the rose And though all other things hang upon fortune as wee use to speake yet true nobilitie dependeth upon vertue Nobilitie of parentage saith Herod an is nothing except nobilitie of manners and courtesie bee joyned with it When Demetrius Phalereus heard that the Athenians had defaced and cast down his images which they had set up But quoth hee they have not overthrowne my vertue for which they set them up before So that except nobilitie of bloud be joyned with nobilitie of vertue it is but vanitie and of none account For vertue is a noblenesse of the minde and not borrowed of parentage and therefore more excellent than nobilitie of bloud as the Poet rightly saith Felix quem virtus generosa exornat avorum Qui virtute suis adjicit ipse decus Happy is he whose Ancestors Of vertue made profession And of himselfe example leaves Of vertue to succession And what vanitie is it to glorie in the forme or
caused Prexaspes sonne to stand before him taking his bow in his hand Now quoth he if I strike thy sons heart it will then appeare that I am not drunk but that the Persians doe lye but if I misse his heart they may be beleeved And when he had shot at his son and found his arrow had pierced his heart he was very glad and told him that he had proved the Persians to be lyars Fliolmus king of the Gathes was so addicted to drinking that hee would sit a great part of the night quaffing and carowsing with his servants And as on a time he sate after his accustomed and beastly manner carowfing with them his servants being as drunke as he threw the king in sport into a great vessell full of drinke that was set in the middest of the hall for their quaffing where he ridiculously and miserably ended his life Ciness being Ambassador to Pyrrhus as he arrived in Egypt and saw the exceeding height of the vines of that country considering with himselfe how much evill that fruit brought forth to men sayd that such a mother deserved justly to be hanged so high seeing she did beare so dangerous a child as wine was Plato considering the hurt that wine did to men sayd that the gods sent wine downe hither partly for a punishment of their sinnes that when they are drunke one might kill another Paulus Diacrius reporteth a monstrous kinde of quaffing between foure old men at a banquet which they made of purpose Their challenge was two to two and he that dranke to his companion must drinke so many times as hee had yeares the yongest of the foure was eight and fiftie yeares old the second threescore and three the third fourescore and seven the fourth fourescore and twelve so that he which dranke least dranke eight and fifty bowles full of wine and so consequently according to their yeares whereof one dranke fourescore and twelve bowles The old Romanes when they were disposed to quaffe lustily would drinke so many carowses as there were letters in the names of their mistresses or lovers so easily were they overcome with this vice who by their vertue some other time became masters of the world But these devices are peradventure stale now there be finer devices to provoke drunkennesse Against such gluttons that make their belly their God the Prophet Esay crieth out Cursed bee yee that rise early in the morning to follow drunkennesse and to sit quaffing untill evening that the wine may heat you The Citie of boing sometime a famous and well governed Citie and head of Hetruria a country in Italy fell into such luxuriousnesse that they became subject to their own slaves who 〈◊〉 presuming onely to make themselves of the number of the Senatours shortly after possessed the whole common-wealth ordering all things at their pleasure they would marry their mistresses daughters against their will and made a law that all their ravishments of widowes and married women should goe unpunished and that no virgin should marry a free man except one of their number had first defloured her Into such a shameful servitude that which was before one of of the chiefest Cities in Italie by the just judgement of God through their voluptuous and delicious life was fallen and were commanded by their owne slaves and enforced continually to suffer all manner of villanies In the time of Antonius Pias the people of Rome being given to drinke without measure hee commanded that none should presume to sell wine but in Apothecaries shops for the sicke or diseased Cyrus of a contrary disposition to the gluttons and carowsers in his youth gave notable signes and afterward like examples of sobrietie and frugalitie when he was Monarch of the Persians For being demanded when hee was but a boy of his grandfather Astyages why he would drinke no wine Because said hee I observed yesterday when you celebrated the feast of your nativitie so strange a thing that it could not be but that som man had put poisoninto all the wine that ye drank for at the taking up of the table there was not one man in his right minde By this it appeareth how rare a matter it was then to drinke wine and a thing to be wondered at to see men drunke For when the use of wine was first found out it was taken for a thing medicinable and not used for a common drinke and was to be found rather in Apothecaries shops than in Tavernes What a great difference there was betweene the frugalitie of the former ages and the luxuriousnesse of these latter dayes these few examples will shew This Cyrus as hee maâ—…ched with his army one asking him what hee would have provided for his supper hee answered Bread for I hope sayth hee wee shall find a fountaine to serve us of drinke When Plato had beene in Sicilia being asked what new or strange thing hee had seene I have seene sayth hee a monster of nature that eateth twice a day For Dionysius whom he meant first brought that custome into that country For it was the use among the Hebrewes the Grecians the Romances and other nations to eat but once a day But now many would thinke they should in short time bee halfe famished if they should eat but twice a day nay rather whole dayes and nights bee seant sufficient for many to continue eating and quaffing Wee may say with the Poet Tempora mutantur nos 〈◊〉 in illis The times are changed and we are changed in them By the historie of the swine which by the permission of God were veked by the Divell we be secretly admonished that they which spend their lives in pleasures and deliciousnesse such belly-gods as the world hath many in these daies that live like swine shall one day be made a prey for the Divell for seeing they will not be the temple of God and the house of the holy Ghost they must of necessitie be the habitation of the Divell Such swine sayth one be they that make their paradise in this world and that dissemble their vices lest they should bee deprived of their worldly goods their offices benefices Prebends and dignities fearing lest they should lose their carnall pleasures Such swine be some flatterers that all their life time doe nothing but entertaine Princes and great States in their errors and pleasures and that hold for the first article of their fayth that their is no other God but their belly for all their religion is turned into carnall libertie As for the law of Iesus Christ they will none of it it is too ful of prickes too heavy and hard for them They will not drinke of this cuppe the drinke seemeth to them to be bitter they must have a Iesus Christ apparelled in velvet more soft sweet and delicate they will none of the austeritie of Iohn Baptist they seeke nothing but Kings Courts where all manner of
with charge to foresee that shee might come alive into his power meaning to preserve her for his triumph But after he had talked with Cleopatra and perceived that shee would not let him into her sepulchre hee caused ladders to bee set to to the window where Antonius came in to her and whilest another held her in talke he with two of his servants conveyed themselves secretly into the sepulchre Then one of the women crying out oh unhappy Cleopatra thou arttaken alive she turned about espying 〈◊〉 took a sword which she had ready and offering to kill her selfe he steppeth hastily to her and layd hold upon the sword told her that shee did wrong to her selfe to Casar that went about to take away the occasion from that milde and mercifull Prince to shew her favour When they had gotten her out of the sepulchre after a few daies Caesar came to see her of whom she obtained leave to celebrate the funerals of Antonius after her owne minde And when shee had prepared things ready to bury him with such pomp as the time then served she with some other of her favorites came to the sepulchre bowing down toward the ground O my friend Antonie quoth shee I buried thee not long sithence with free hands but now I do sacrifice to thee a captive under safe custodie lest this slaves body should perish by weeping and lamenting which is preserved to none other purpose but to triumph over thee Thou must look for none other sacrifice nor honours for these be the last thou must have of Cleopatra whilst wee lived no force was able to separate us but now that wee are dead it is to bee doubted lest wee shall change places that thou a Romane shalt lye in Egypt and I an Egyptian in Italie But if the Goddesse there be of any power or vertue suffer me not to be led away alive nor to triumph over thee but receive me to thee into this tombe For of an infinite number of miseries wherewith I wretched woman am oppressed there is none so great or grievous to me as this little time that I have lived without thee After she had thus bemoned her selfe with him and embraced the tombe with many teates shee went to her dinner that was provided for her very sumptuously After shee had dined and sent letters to Caesar shee avoyded all other from her and went into the sepulchre with the two women onely and shut fast the doore As Caesar was reading her letters wherein shee bewayling her estate made lamentable petition to him that she might be buried with Antonius he mistrusting as the truth was that shee had determined to destroy her selfe sent presently to stay it if it were possible The messengers hastening them to the sepulchre found the watchmen there mistrusting no such matter But when they had broken up the door they found Cleopatra dead laid in a bed of gold attired like a Queen one of the women lying dead at her feet the other halfe dead was putting the Crowne upon the Queenes head and being asked whether this were well done Yea said she very well done and as best becommeth the progenie of so many Kings and therwith fell downe dead The fame went diversly of the manner of her death Some said it was by a venemous worme called Aspis which was brought unto her among the leaves of a fig-tree The desire of the like fleshly pleasure was the destruction of Spain which the Paynims recovered from the Christians For in the Reigne of King Roderick there was a Prince in Spain called Iulian Earle of Cepta who had a daughter of excellent beautie wisedome called Caba this damsell being sent to the Court to attend upon the Queen the King fell so extremely in love with her that perceiving shee would not be enticed to agree to satisfie his inordinate desire he took her away by force and defloured her in his Palace The which when Count Iulian understood hee received thereof such griefe that hee determined to revenge so great an injurie upon the Kings owne person But dissembling the matter that hee might have the better opportunity when the King sent him with an armie to make warre upon the Moores who then invaded the borders of Spaine hee practised with the King of the Moores to send over an Armie promising to bring all Spaine under his obedience which being done the Moores with the Counts ayd joyned in battell with King Roderick and after great spoyle done to the country overthrew him with all his nobilitie and armie so as the King could never after bee found quicke or dead and the Moores not long after became masters of all Spaine CHAP. IIII. Lust the occasion of many mischiefes and unnaturall acts Instanced by Hyppolitus Cardinall of Este And Galeace a Gentleman of Mantua Of Pyramus and Thysbe Histories of men made ridiculous by dotage The miserable end of Abusahid King of Fez and others Stories of lascivious Friers and a Parish Priest Of the Tyrant Aristotimus The 〈◊〉 love of Antiochus sonne to King Seleucus Of Charles the sixth King of France Of the Emperour Commodus And that in voluptuousnesse no felicitie can consist WHen men let loose the reines of their affections and suffer themselves to bee overcome with amorous passions neither feare of God nor respect of men nor regard to their own safetie for the most part restraineth them from attempting all manner of impieties to effectuate their dissolute desires Such passions excited Hyppolitus Cardinall of Este to commit a most cruell and unnaturall act against his owne brother This Cardinall or rather carnall and his brother were both extremely in love with one woman and perceiving that shee affected his brother more than him hee asked her the cause she confessed that the beauty of his eyes allured her liking more than all the rest The Cardinall departing in a great fury watching for opportunitie found his brother on a time a hunting and compassing him about with his followers made him alight from his horse and caused his footmen to pluck his brothers eyes out of his head hee beholding the matter whilst it was doing contrary to all humanitie Nonbenecum sociis regna Venusque manent Kingdomes and Concubines brook no competitors That act was no more wicked than this was foolish Galeace a Gentleman of Mantua courting a damself with whom he was in love as they stood upon a bridge said that he would suffer a thousand deaths for her service if it were possible She in jest commanded him to cast himselfe into the River which hee presently did and was drowned The like fond love brought Pyramus and Thisbe a young man and maid to the like end These two young folkes were exceedingly in love together and perceiving that by the suspicion of their parents they could not satisfie their desires they agreed upon a certaine day to meete in a place afer off where Thisbe chancing first to come
knew that body He answered that he knew him wel to be the body of his most deare brother and Lord with whom he wished presently to be in the same world he was Assure your selfe said the king I will bring it to passe that you shall have your desire and that shortly The next day the king caused the Cardinall to bee brought into the place where his brother lay and to be slaine When the death of the Duke his brother was knowne the Duchesse their mother and the late wife of the Duke made sute to the king for the bodies of the two brethren W th being denied the mother expostulates bitterly with the King accusing him of infidelitie chargeth him with the breach of his oath of his promise of his agreement pucceth him in minde of the benefits which hee and his realme had received of the Duke and also of his father for which so great ingratitude and barbarous crueltie shee asketh vengeance of God upon him and his The king being moved with her bold speech commandeth her to prison And as shee was going away Madame quoth he be of good comfort the same kinde of death is happened to your sonne the Duke that chanced in times past to Iulius Casar who was killed in the Senate But when the wife or widow of the Duke saw that shee could not obtaine her sute of the king shee lifting up her eyes and hands to heaven shedding abundance of reares complaineth with a lamentable voyce upon the uncertaintie and unconstancie of humane matters that nothing was to be found any where certaine but onely with God who I hope saith she as a most just Iudge will not suffer mee to dye though nothing would bee more pleasant to mee than to dye and to enjoy the company of my most deare husband untill I see so barbarous and beastly a butchery of my Lord and husband revenged the like example whereof was never heard before And when she had reckoned up his vertue and valour and the great service he had done to the king and his countrey Is this O king sayd she the crowne of Lawrell which is due to them that regard not the danger of their estate and of their life for the safetie of their king Is this the 〈◊〉 that ought to be granted to him who hath not only defended France from strangers but also hath often overthrown and destroyed whosoever were enemies to his country Then turning to her husband O my Lord sayd shee how happy and fortunate had I beene if after thy prayeâ—… offered to God thou haddest been slaine giving charge upon thine enemies thy death in that sort taken would have beene to me much more tolerable nor would have wounded my mind so greatly so should you also have taken away all emulation from them that envie that honour And after shee had reprehended his emulâ—…tors and set forth his merits yea sayth she he had so great confidence in the king but I would to God hee had not done so that he feared not to come unarmed to him being armed of whom in steede of reward he was slaine Oh how great a wickednesse is this that he who hath so often defended the kings life shold by the kings commandement have his life taken from himâ—… That he who with so great perill of his life all his goods 〈◊〉 possessions hath kept the crowne upon the kings 〈◊〉 should be falsly suspected to affect the crowne himâ—… and without any kind of law or justice without 〈◊〉 of the cause so great a Prince should be so cruelly murdered O how great an injury is this to him that hath bestowed all his care for the preservation of his countrey safety of the kingâ—… But why doe I call him king ought hee to bee called a king who commanded him to be murdered in whom all his felicity and safety consisted O my God the most just revenger of wicked acts I â—…ye unto thee it is thy part to judge justly 〈◊〉 not the wicked slanders devised of his enemies to darken the perpetuall glory of my husband nor let not that villanous act committed upon him remaine 〈◊〉 Then she speaketh to her kinsfolkes and friends will ye behold with equall eyes minds the glory and fame of so great a chiefetaine and an invincible souldiour to be extinguished so quickly Will ye that I as it were alwayes for saken dye at last without any hope of revenge will ye that the revenge of so foule an act be deferred untill these my children yet voyd of reason come to be men O my little sons and daughters how happy had ye been if so soone as ye had been borne ye had presently changed life with death O king do you thinke that they be slaine that be yet alive You have taken the bread out of the hands of the little ones you would have buried the remembrance of an excellent Prince in oblivion for ever ye have in some sort your desire but the vengeance of God you shall not escape neither shall so barbarous an act go unpunished which your enemies do detest your friends bewaile O king who will hereafter beleeve you who will put his trust in you to whom will not your fidelity be suspected Do you thinke that your friends do commend you for this your fact especially seeing they see your mouth speaketh one thing and your heart thinketh another As for my selfe O King I will not hereafter call you my King but ye shall be in that place with me as they upon whom the judgement of God will assuredly fall that whereas yâ—…e ought to have protected widowes and orphanes ye have made me a widow and my children orphanes by taking away the life of my most dearely beloved husband In this mourning lamentation of this sorrowfull Duchesse in place of two brethren that were slaine shee was delivered of two sonnes To these extreme passions and miserable estate ambition and desire of dominion brought the Duke of Guise and his friends which not long after cost the king also his life and great trouble to the kingdome of France These be the fruits of worldly glory Vaine glorious men are not only hurtfull to themselves but also to others Solon saith To name a vaine glorious man in right termeâ—… is to call him a foole Whosoever escapeth best that is desirous of honour and glory he is sure not to strike the 〈◊〉 he shooteth at any thing the rather by that meanes that is felicitie or Summum bonum or soveraigne good 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of Genua by treason or cowardlinesse let Mahâ—…met the great Turke enter into Constantinople upon his promise to make him king And when Mahomet was gotten into the towne he made him king according to his promise and after three dayes he put him to death A short reigne with no long glory yet worthy of such a wretch by whose meanes the Emperour the Pâ—…triark and almost all the Christians in the towne were cruelly
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
being left alive worthy of that name Such search must bee made in these dayes for such a man under the ground among the dead being hardly to be found above among the living We are not to say with him Our civill warres and pestilence have consumed all our good men but the iniquity of this time having turned the vertue and simplicity of former ages into vice and dissimulation and the traducing and counterfeiting of strangers manners and fashions hath as a pestilence infected and corrupted our manners left to us of our forefathers that hardly a faithfull friend or an honest man is any where to bee found but Seneca saith It is very good to follow the steppes of our forefathers if they have led the way well for lands and riches and other vanities have gotten away the reputation vertue and honesty is out of request whatsoever is had in reputation encreaseth but that which is had in contempt and not regarded diminisheth In pretio pretium nunc est dat census honores Census amicitias paâ—…per ubique jacet Price is held precious wealth doth honour buy Wealth begets friends the poor doth each where ly If a man unknowne be named the question is by and by whether hee be rich what living or lands he hath and thereafter he is had in reputation or in contempt no man asketh whether he be honest whether hee hath vertue learning or knowledge as though they were things of none account not worth the inquiring for which maketh men so carefull to get the one and so negligent to come by the other Riches and possessions have afflicted the manners of the world and so overwhelmed the common wealth that is 〈◊〉 in her vices as it werein a sinke Vertue is supplanted and vice sowne in her place the name of vertue and honesty is of many desired but of very few deserved and they that bee worthy of that name except they have great store of goods and land they have no grace among men Callimachus the Poet said that riches without vertue doth never give reputation to a man but vertue without riches giveth him some credit but now wee see it fall out cleane contrary for riches without vertue giveth great reputation and vertue without riches giveth none at all Et genus formam regina pecunia donat Queen mony gives both birth and beauty And again quidvis nummis presentibus opta Et venâ—…et Wish what thou wilt present mony wil purchaseâ—… In no time it could be more truly said thaâ—… in these dayes Virtus post 〈◊〉 Vertue after money For he that is of great lands or riches though he have no vertue nor learning yet hee is wondred at as if hee were some Heroes or divine thing and yet in time past among the ancient Romanes povertie was a sound prayse and true vertue Riches and possessions are preferred to honorable places and are set at the upper end of the table but vertue and learning is thrust downe behind the screene ubi multum de intellectu ibi parum de fortuna as if he should say They that be most rich in the goods and gifts of the minde are commonly most poore in the goods of the world to no time the Poets saying could be more aptly applyed Non facile emergunt quâ—…rum virtutibus obstat Res augusta domi They doe not easily rise that have small meanes Our manners are so contrary to those of former ages that the world seemeth to bee turned upside downe which wil easily be perceived by comparing some few examples of other ages with our time A Lacedaemoniâ—… was sent Ambassadour to make league with the king of Persia and finding his great estates playing at dice he returned home leaving his ambassage undone and being asked at his returne why he had left those things â—…done which were given him in charge by the common-wealth he answered that he thought it would be ignominious to his countrey to enter into league with dice-players And this is no lesse to be noted that a Censor of the Romanes put a Senator of Rome out of the Senate because he kissed his wife in the sight of his daughter But where is this modesty become among Christians that was looked for of this Heathen The severity of such a Magistrate was never more necessary than now who should finde plenty of other maner of matters to reprehend In China at this day if any man bring into their country any new fashions of garments or manner of â—…tire other than hath been used of antiquitie he suffereth death In the countrey of Licaonia none might weare but one garment in one whole yeare and if any need a new garment hee must not only have leave but also shew wherewith he would buy the same In that countrey there must bee no new inventions if any devised any new fashions that differed from the ancient manner of their countrey the deviser was banished and the device abolished neither would they suffer any perfumes among them affirming it to be no lesse in famie to a man to be perfumed than to a woman to bee manifestly â—…chast of her body As there was wont to bee contention of vertue and modesty so now is it of quaffing of pride of vaine attires and gestures When Agesilam king of Sparta sometime the most flourishing common-wealth of the world went into Asia saw their timber square that was in their buildings he asked whether their 〈◊〉 did grow square and when answer was made that dry grow round but were made square by art And would yee quoth hee make them round if they grew squareâ—… noting their superfluous curiositie What would these men say if they lived in these dayes not to see the excessive sumptuousnesse of buildings onely and houses which should not bee decked and set foorth with stones and pictures and such like toyes but with the 〈◊〉 of the inhabitants but also the pride and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 varietie of fashions in attires and maners not 〈◊〉 some round things square but rather by their vaine â—…riosity and nicenesse bringing all things out of squareâ—… The Thebaâ—…es had a Law that no man should make a house for himselfe to dwell in but he should first make his grave If they saw the quaffing and carowsing commonly used untill they be ready to rumble under the table the licentious covetousnesse blasphemica and all manner of luxuriousnesse all allowed for good as things commendable that beget a reputation to those that exceede the rest The Emperour Adrian would say that there is not any thing that more doth offend a Common-wealth than to infect the same same with strange and unaccustomed manners which occasioned him to make a law of reformation both for eating superfluous meats and also for wearing of garments eyther too many or too costly The Reâ—…sians had a law that whosoever brought into their country any strange or new manners and fashions hee should lose his head
Rome sounded of songs and in Pope Iulius time with the drumme and the fife Every one imitating the manners of his Prince Because the Emperour Charles the fift and Henry the eight our noble king and Francis the French king favoured learning and gave countenance and credit to learned men in all parts of their dominions learned men in their times beganne greatly to encrease And when the same king Francis was polled for the better healing of a wound in his head all his Courtiers presently and others by their example out off their haire which before they did weare long as a beauty Alexander the great by nature did hold his head aside whereupon his Courtiers to bee like him would hold their heades aside also And what earthly creature representeth so much the image of God as a good King For by how much the greater a man is in power and useth the same well according to Gods appointment by so much hee draweth nearer to God and therefore so much the nearer to felicity Hee giveth good lawes to his people and governeth with equitie administreth justice indifferently hee punisheth the wicked maintaineth the good protecteth the innocent hee sheweth mercie to divers and giveth life to many Hee onely among men doth all things as hee will yet alwayes respecting justice and remembring from whence hee hath his authoritie And Ecphautes the Philosopher saith that hee which beareth rule over others must not bee ignorant who rules him For as Marcus A◅relius saith The Magistrate is iudge of private men Princes of Magistrates and God of Princes By mee Kings reigne and Princes decree justice for iustice is the end of the law the law the worke of the Prince the Prince the image of God One saith that a Prince is custas boni aequi quasi animatum ius And therefore they that come to the Prince seeme not to come to him as to a man but as to iustice and equitie it selfe Artaxerxes to one that demaunded of him an u◅iust thing said that the office of a good King is above all things to esteeme iustice and equitie And Philip King of Macedon answered Arpalus that importuned him to favour a cause of his Cosins It were better that your Cosin should be defamed in the state bee is in for his outrage than I that am a King and command over so great a country should give occasion to my subjects to speake evill of mee for doing this injustice in fauour of him or of you The Emperor Galba would often say that a Prince should foresee that they of his Court should do no man wrong but he that did it should be punished with rigour Plinie the younger speaketh thus of the good Emperour Trajane Vtenim felicitatis est posse quantumvelis velis sic m◅tudinis velle quantum possis For as it belongeth to felicity to be able to doe what thou wilt so doth it belong to mightinesse to will what thou art able to do As if he should say that the felicity of a Prince consisteth in commaunding and governing according to iustice Alexander the great was used to say that all the felicitie of a Prince consisteth in well governing of the common-wealth for as the subiect oweth to the Prince obedience ayd and honour so the Prince oweth to his subiects iustice defence and protection The end of all lawes and government saith Plato is that the people be happy love one another and follow vertue As it belongeth to the eye to see to the eare to heare to the nose to smell so doth it to the Prince to provide for the matters of his people a kingdom being no other thing than a care of others safety Antigonus said to his sonne that their kingdome was a noble servitude In shew saith a king we live in greatnes but in effect we serve our people For a king is chosen not to live deliciously but that they who chuse him should live well and happily A good king is a publike servant a distributer of the goods of fortune a protector of the good and a whip of the wicked a minister of mercy and iustice example of life to his inferiours Plinie said to his master Trajan the life of a Prince is a censure that is to say the rule the square the line and the forme of an honest life according to which their subiects direct their maner of life and governe their families of the life of Princes the subjects take their patterne and example more than of their lawes In maxima fortuna minima licentia est for in a true Prince publike piety doth alwayes restraine private affection A King is Lord of all but then especially when he over-ruleth himselfe and becommeth master over the lusts that bring all the world in subjection That Prince sayth one that hath his mouth full of truth his hands open to give rewards his eares stopped to lyes and his heart open to mercy is happy the people that hath him fortunate Alphonsus king of Spaine sayd that the fimple word of a Prince ought to be of as great weight as the oath of private persons And Princes oftentimes commit faults not because they have no desire to do well but because no man dare or will admonish them Vices sayth one are nourished in Princes palaces because pleasures abound and counsell wanteth Neither do they become evill so much by their owne disposition as by the evill example and shamelesse flattery of their parasites One sayth Principum aula mendacii adulationis gymnasium est Wilt thou know saith Seneca what thing is very scarce with them that be advanced to high dignities what is wanting to them that possesse all things a man that will speake truth The administration saith one of the affaires of a common-wealth by experience onely without learning doth often deceive as learning onely without experience doth the like but when both are joyned together it maketh a happy common-wealth It is a goodly thing sayth the Emperor Theodosine for a Prince to have stout captaines for the wars but without comparison it is better to keepe have wisemen in his palace It is very hard to find a man that is a very valiant soldier a very good coūseller The counsellers officers of Princes ought to be so just that sherers cannotfind what to cut away in their lives nor that there needeth any needle or thread to amend their fame It is an unseemly thing for a man that is in an honourable place to live delicately loosely or incontinently The Emperour Alexander Severus would often say that good Princes ought to esteeme them for greater enemies that deceive them with flattering and lyes than such as doe intrude upon their countries for the one taketh not but of his goods but the other robbeth him of his fame Flattery hath more often overthrowne the riches of Kings than his enemies Miser est imperator
of their pleasant instruments their sweet wine the mony also which they have in their purses commeth from thence And that they may have the fruition of these pleasures at the full they make themselves Prelates of Churches This is not sayth he to adorne the spouse of Iesus Christ but this is to risle her this is not to preserve her but to destroy her this is not to defend her but to give her to theeves for a prey The magnificence of these men was farre differing from the poore estate of Saint Peter and Saint Iohn that had not a penny to give to the lame man that asked their almes at the Church dore Which putt◅th me in minde of a pretty taunt given to a Pope by a Frier that glorying in his riches exalted himselfe above Saint Peter Pope Sixtus the fourth being exalted from a poore Franciscane Frier to that dignitie brought a Frier of the same order into his Treasurie and shewing to him his great wealth and riches sayd Looke Frier I cannot say as Saint Peter did Gold and silver have I none No truely quoth the Frier no more can you say as Saint Peter sayd to the lame and sicke of the palsey Arise up and walke The like taunt the Archbishop of Cullen received for the like pride of a poore husbandmā who as he was at plough in the fields seeing a great troupe of horse-men well armed after the manner of the Princes of Germany passing by asked of the formost company who it was that came after being answered that it was the Archbishop of Cullen this countrie fellow fell into a great laughing and being asked why hee laughed Because quoth he Saint Peter the Prince of Prelates lived poorely to leave his successours rich Word being brought to the Archbishop what this fellow had sayd hee meaning to excuse justifie himselfe Doest thou not know quoth he that I am both a Bishop and a Duke and have both the jurisdictions Thē the fellow laughed more than he did before and being demanded the cause I pray you Sir quoth hee let mee aske you this question If the Duke shall happen to be in hell where shall the Bishop be One reporteth of a Priest that used to have a net spread upon his table where he dined that he might the rather by that meanes resemble Saint Peter that was a Fisherman to whom Christ sayd when hee followed him that he should take men This Priest by his diligent preaching which hee used so long as he was kept bare was at last advanced to a Bishopricke and when he came home to dinner being a Bishop finding the net spread upon his table after his usuall manner Now take away the net quoth hee to his servant I have taken that which I fished for The world hath too many such fishers But where hath beene found in these latter ages among Prelates that contempt of worldly pompe and pride that was in that great Clerke Origen the fame of whose excellent learning and singlenesse of life being brought to the ◅ares of Alexander Severus the Roman Emperour he sent for him to come to Rome and commanded the Proyost of Egypt to furnish him with all things necessary for his journey When this Provost had provided him a ship and all things necessary and beheld him but simply apparelled he prepared for him divers garments in the most honest and comely sort that Philosophers then used But Origen would receive no part thereof not so much as hose or shooes but like as hee used alwayes to goe from his child-hood that was in a single garment of cloath and bare-foot so went he to Rome And when at his arrivall there were brought to him a Mule and a Chariot to use which hee best liked he answered That he was much lesse than his master Christ who rode but one day in all his life and that was upon a silly asse◅mare And therefore he would not ride unlesse he were sicke or decrepit so as his legges might not serve him to goe And when hee was brought into the presence of the Emperour and his mother the Emperour with most gentle countenance embraced him as he kneeled and enforced him to stand upon his feet His mother also saluted him with the like courtesie and rejoyced much to see him The Emperour beholding his native gravitie and sterne countenance judged him in his heart to bee a reverent personage Then demanded he of him what he professed And when hee answered Veritie the Emperour asked him what he meant thereby It is the word quoth he of the living God which is infallible The Emperour asked which is the living God and why hee so called him Origen answered that hee did put that distinction for a difference from them whom men being long drowned in errour did call their gods whom they confesse to be mortall once and to have died But the God whom he preached was ever living and never died and is the life of all things that bee like as hee was the creatour of them And when the Emperour had required him to declare the unitie of God the creatour hee devoutly lifting up his eyes after a short meditation with an incomparable and compendious eloquence forthwith opened that mystery in such wise that as well to the Emperor his mother as to all the standers by it seemed they were brought out of a long sleepe and then began to see things as they were indeed and that which before they honoured and esteemed were but vaine dreames and imaginations The Emperour after a little pawse sayd to Origen that hee much marvelled why men of such great and wonderfull knowledge should honour for God a man that was crucified being but of a poore estate and condition O noble Emperour sayd Origen consider what honour the wise Athenians at this present doe to the name and image of Codrus their last King for that when they had warres with their enemies who had answer made by the Oracle of Apollo that if they slew not the King of Athens they should have the victorie Codrus hearing thereof preferring the safeguard of his people before his owne life tooke to him the garments of a slave and bearing upon his shoulder a burden of stickes he went to his enemies campe and there quarelling of purpose with some of them and in the prease hurting one with his knife he was by him that was hurt striken through the body and slain which being known to the enemies they being confused raised their campe and departed And for this cause the Athenians have ever since had the name of Codrus in reverence worthily and not without cause Now then consider most excellent Prince how much more worthily with what greater reason and bounden dutie ought wee and all men to honour Christ being the Sonne of God and God who not only to preserve mankind from danger of the Divell his ancient enemy but also to deliver man out of his darke and stinking dungeon
at last to Solon who sent it to Apollo as the wisest of all other and most worthy of so great a gift But in what countrey would the like modestie and contempt of gold bee found in these later daies In Vtopia only and in no other common-wealth of the world Who is he that thinketh so simply of himselfe that being once possessed of such a thing would yeeld over his interest to any other as the worthier man A cleane contrary course would be taken the one to keep the possession the other to recover it from him would never leave contention in law untill their Advocates by a certaine sympathie and attractive vertue as the load stone draweth iron have drawn to themselves the gold leaving peradventure to the other a Table of lighter substance A matter grown too common in many countries which made Ferdinando King of Spaine when he first made conquest of the West Indies expresly to forbid that no Lawyers should passe into those countries lest they should sow seed ofcontention among those simple people whereof they were then free which hee perceived by their meanes was overmuch used in his own and other Countries Agatbocles King of Sicilia used great modestie in the middest of his riches and prosperous estate which contrariwise puffeth up the most part of men with pride and maketh them to forget themselves This man being a poore Potters sonne by his vertue was advanced to the Kingdome of Sicilia but nothing ashamed of his base parentage after the common custome of men in such cases hee would bee served ordinarily at his table with earthen vessels intermingled with his cups of gold using these words to those that came to visit him thereby to excite them to vertue Behold what it is to persever in travell and paines-taking to become men of vertue and courage Heretofore wee made these pots of earth and now we make these of gold Philip that good King of Macedon reprehended very aptly Covetousnesse and greedy desire of worldly wealth and possessions for falling by chance flat to the ground in a place where men used to wrestle and beholding the fashion of his body printed in the dust Good Lord quoth he how little ground must we have by nature and yet we desire all the habitable world 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is Queene of the Assyrians made an apt device to reprehend 〈◊〉 shee had made a sepulchre for her selfe over the gates of the goodly citie of Babylon whereon shee had caused to bee engraven these words If any King of Babylon that shall succeed mee shall want money let him open this monument and take what â—…ee liâ—… but if hee have no neede let him not open it for it will not be best for him Dâ—…rius after the succession of many Kings none of which durst touch the tombe being allured with the hope of great riches opened it and found no money but these words written in a Table If thou wert not a very covetous man and vnsatiably desirous of Riches thou wouldest never have opened the sepulchre of the dead Pontanus and others report of a Cardinall at Rome called Angelot that was prettily punished for his Covetousnesse This Cardinall was so much overcome with this vice that having a trap-doore out of his garnour where his corne lay into his stable hee used to come downe that way secretly in the night without a candle and to steale away the oates which were appointed for his horses Hee used this so long that one of his horse-keepers marvelling how the oaâ—…es should be stolne the stable-doore being fast locked hid himselfe secretly under the straw and watched if any man would come for the oates The Cardinall according to his custome came in the darke for his oates whom when the horse-keeper espied not knowing who it was ranne to him with a staffe and did so beate his master the Cardinall that hee was faine to bee carryed away with foure men halfe dead Sufficient penance for such a fault But Iohn Maria Duke of Millane punished with more severitie a Priest that through covetousnesse denied a poore widow the execution of his office in burying her husband because she had not wherewith to defray the charges of the buriall For the Duke going in person to the funerall of the dead bodie caused the Priest that would have sold and made merchandise of the gifts of God to bee fast bound to the corps and so cast them both into the pit together But the covetous man was never more hardly matched nor cunninglier over-taken than by the envious man in the Poeticall figment which aptly setteth forth the conditions of envions and covetous men both which vices are enemies to felicitie The Poets fained that Iupiter being disposed to understand the estate of the world sent downe one of his Angels in the forme of a man whom hee appointed to fall into the company of two Travellers whereof the one was a covetous man the other an envious man After they had travelled certaine daies journeyes together in which time the Angel had learned many things of them and was throughly satisfied of the things he desired to know hee discovered himselfe whose messenger he was and having power from Iupiter to bestow his liberalitie upon them he offered to recompence them presently for their good companie Hee willed them to aske what they would and he that made the first demand should be fully satisfied of that he asked and the other should have double so much This liberall offer bred much contention betweene the Travellers The covetous man whose desire of gaine is alwaies unsatiable observing the Promises of the Angel to bee double so much to the second as the first â—…ould have would not make the first demand The envious man whose propertie is to wish no good to any other used silence determining rather to lose the benefit of the first demand than his fellow should have double so much After much courtesie betweene them who should first aske the envious man perceiving that a demand must of necessitie bee made to the end by suffring a simple harme in himselfe hee might bring double so much to his companion hee desired of the Angel that one of his eyes might bee put out which being done his companion was made blinde of both his eyes Chilon saith that losse is to bee preferred before unhonest gaine Amasis King of Egypt made a Law that the Praeâ—…or should examine every mans manner of living and if hee found any that lived by unhonest gaine hee was punished as a wicked man And in the time of Alexander Severus there were many persons that lived by usurie which brought many to extreme povertie and lacke The Emperour commanded great diligence to be used to search out those contracts and a memoriall of the most notable griefes to bee given him Which when he had considered hee punished the Usurers and gave libertie to the poore men that were oppressed A covetous man saith Seneca doth nothing well but
scumme of the sea men without fathers and restlesse men that could stay no where to labor for their living Though the pretence of the Spaniards travell into these new found lands were to plant Christianitie among these rude people and to reduce them to the knowledge of God yet the infinit number of thousands of people which through their cruelty and covetousnesse they have there destroied in eight and forty yeere twentie millions as appeareth by their owne histories argueth plainely and is confirmed by this example following that the greedy unsatiable desire of gold and riches was the cause that drew them to undertake those painefull and dangerous travailes Which covetousnesse crueltie of theirs was a great hinderance to the planting of Religion there â—…Ferdinando Sotos a Spaniard went to Florida to seeke gold but being in a great rage and griefe because he could not there find that hee looked for he exercised great cruelty among those barbarous people It chanced that a Prince of that country came to see him presented him with two Parrots and plumes of feathers after their first salutations ended the Prince asked the Spaniard who he was and from whence he came and what he sought in these countries committing dayly so many and so great cruelties and wicked acts Sotos answered him by an interpreter that hee was a Christian the sonne of God the creatour of heaven and earth that his comming thither was to instruct those people in the knowledge of his law If thy God sayd the Prince command thâ—… to run over other mens countries robbing burning killing and omitting no kind of wickednesse we tell you in few words that we can neither beleeve in him nor in his lawes Of these greedy covetous men the Prophet Esay speaketh thus Wâ—…e be to you that joyne house to house and field to field till there be no more ground Will you dwell upon the earth alone The love of money made the French king 〈◊〉 the eleventh subject to obloquie by his niggardly sparing unseemely for a Prince without respect to his estate For having driven almost all the Gentlemen out of his Court hee was served with his taylor for all his Horaulds of armes his Barbor was his Ambassador his Physician was his Chancellour and for a mockerie of other kings he would weare a greazy cap of very course cloth and in his accounts were found twenty soâ—…s for two new sleeves to his old doublet and fifteene deniers for grease to greaze his bootes Horace reporteth of a man at Rome called Ovid so rich in money that hee might measure his gold by the bushell and yet he went almost starke naked for niggardlinesse never would fill himselfe halfe full of meat Insomuch that he lived poorely to dye rich Of such the Poet cryeth out not without cause Sed quò divitias tbt per torment a coactâ—… Cum furor haud dubius cum sit manifesta phrenesis Vt locuples moriare egenti vivere viverefato What meane these Riches by such torments got And infinite paines A madnesse is 't not A phrensey manifest it doth implye Penuriously to live richly to dye By this which hath bin sayd it is manifest that mans felicitie and his summoâ—… bonum or greatest good consisteth not in riches For who if hee be not senselesse desireth riches for it selfe but for some other thing Some for lascivious some for sumptuous others for profitable and necessary expences Which things if they might bee had without money no man would desire or care for riches Neither can riches be the common end of men seeing some have great plenty and others extreme want and poverty which have also their estimation by opinion Some calling gold and silver others pearles and precious stones others trifling things riches like little children that set their riches in pinnes and puppets But he that putteth not mans felicitie in himselfe and â—…nis nis owne matters doth like unto him that estimatethâ—… sword by his scabbard or a horse by his saddle and furniture Neither can we call that Summum bonum or the greatest good which is no good at all and is common both to good men and wicked which also make more men worse than better And how can riches be the principall end of man that withdraweth men for the most part from the true end of all things which is God For we see plainly that there is not a more compendious way to alienate a mans minde from God than to wallow in worldly wealth So that mans felicitie or Summum bonum must bee sought in some other thing than in riches For God placed not man in this world to seeke after earthly things neither that he should find the end of his desires in the scurfe of the earth Which one remembreth thus Memento rebus vanidis diffidere Opes genus formâ—… decor caduca sunt Ad ossa nuda mors reducit omnia Coelo repostus optimus thesaurus est In vaine things see no confidence thou hast For neither wealth nor birth nor shape can last To strippe us to the bone Death followes fast 'T is the best treasure that in Heaven is plac't THE FELICITIE OF MAN OR HIS SUMMUM BONUM THE THIRD BOOKâ—… CHAP. I. Of Cineas the Philosopher and King Pyrrhus Ambition the subversion of Kingdomes and Empires It engenders Parricides Instanced by Adolphus Duke of Geldria Selim the great Turke Henry the first Emperour and Solyman The ambition of Snio King of Denmarke Semiramis Iane Queene of Naples The Empresse Irene Bassianns the sonnes of Pope Alexander the sixth with sundry Histories both domestical and forreigne to that purpose The death of Pertinax Emperour And Didius Iulianus who bought the Romane Empire Dâ—…uers chances and changes in warre Histories of others unmilling to undergâ—…e the Empire HOnour and glory is another thing which men labour to aâ—…taine as though felicitie or the greatest good should consist therein But this is an erronious opinion and they greatly deceived that hold it For men desire honour and glory because they would seeme to bee â—…cndued with vertue by which they confesse that vertue is to be preferred before glory honour And honour is given as we see by dayly experience by man many times taken away againe by them that gave it But that wherein felicitie consisteth is a thing more stedfast and not so easily removed nor subject to the variable accidents of fortune Honour is gotten with much labour maintained with great exponces and lost with intolerable griefe and sorrow It is likened to a mans shadow which the more hee runneth after the more it flieth away and when he flieth from his shadow it followeth him againe as one saith Qui fugit honorem eum sequitur honos Honour followeth him that flieth from it Who is more honoured now than Christs Apostles Saint Peter Saint Paul and the like that despised honour when they lived Of all the disordered passions where with mens minds
are vexed there is no one that troubleth and disquieteth them more than ambition and desire of honour They never content themselves with that which they have gotten but their minds are alwayes imployed in devising how to get more It is a hard thing saith Saint Augustine for him that is placed in high estate not to desire great matters Alexander the Great when hee heard a Philosopher disputing of many worlds besides this fell into a weeping as though some great cause of griefe had happened to him and being asked why he wept Because quoth he I heare of many worlds and I have not yet conquered one whole world But he that hath felicity is content with that he hath and desireth no more He is free from all perturbations and unquietnesse of mind and thinketh no man in better estate than himselfe otherwise he cannot bee accounted happie Which thing was by Cineas a verie wise man aptly given to understand to King Pyrrhus that intended great warres to enâ—…ge his dominâ—… For considering with himselfe how peaceably and happily Pyrrhus might live if he could be content with his owne kingdome as they had conference 〈◊〉 about his intended enterprise to 〈◊〉 waâ—… upon Iâ—…ly If Sir quoth Cineas the gods shew us this favour to conquer Italy what good shall wee reape by the victorie Wee may afterward sayd Byâ—… with 〈◊〉 great difficultie subdue the Greciaâ—… and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that border upon that countrie When this quoth the other is done what shall we doe then Sâ—…ilia quoth Pyrrhus will not then stand against us Shall that be the end of our waâ—…res sayd 〈◊〉 Whâ—… will stay 〈◊〉 â—…ter quoth this Monarke from passing into Afriâ—… and Carthage and from the recovery of the Kingdome of Macedon that so we may command at 〈◊〉 pleasure all Greece 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 When 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 brought all this to passe what 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Pyrrhus beginning to smile We will quoth hâ—… my friend give our selves to rest and live as pleatâ—…ntly and merrily as 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 where he desired And what Sir quoth he letâ—… 〈◊〉 from rest at this present and from living in joy pleasure seeing wee have all things requiâ—… oâ—… seâ—…king it with so much effusion of bloud and an insâ—…ire number of perâ—… and dangers and 〈◊〉 in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 where it is uncertaine whether we shall find it These speeches rather offended Pyrrhus that was carried away with the vehement passion of ambition than any thing diffwaded him from his violâ—…t purâ—…â—…d 〈◊〉 which in the end 〈◊〉 his own 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by feeding of his ambitious humout in â—…ing 〈◊〉 hee was at last laine with a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 his head by a woman and so lost his life and his kingdome which hee might quietly have possessed And this is the common course of the world not onely among Princes and Potentates but also among men of meane estate alwayes to aspire and desire more according to the Emperour Charles the fifths word Plus ultra to whom sometime it happeneth as it did to Esops dogge that snatching at the shadow lost the peece of meat which he had in his mouth The ambitious humour of this King that aspired to a Monarchie of many countries and kingdomes putteth mee in mind of a pretty taunt given of late yeares to the Spaniards for the like ambition A Germane writeth a booke to his countrey-men wherein hee doth perswade them to beware they bee not entrapped by the Spaniards alledging many reasons that they aspire to the Monarchy of Germanie and that they let not openly to speake that the Monarchy of the world is due to them from God and by right One writeth in the margent Hispanis monarchia divinitâ—…s sed in Vtopia debetur A monarchy is due to the Spaniâ—…ds from above but in Vtopia There is not a more dangerous passion or affection nor that hath beene the cause of greater mischiefe than ambition and desire of honour which hath beene the utter ruine and subversion of many Kingdomes and Common-wealths and the destruction of them in whom this humour hath raigned And yet many times the worthiest men and those that are â—…ndued with excellent gifts are most subject to this passion For loftie mindes naturally have an earnest desire to excell others and to bring that to passe they forbeare not to attempt any thing whether it bee right or wrong for hee is easily â—…raen to unjust things that is deâ—…ous of glory As 〈◊〉 Casar had usually in his mouth this saying of To attâ—…ne to rule and principalitie which is as it were the subject of honour glorie there is no dutie respected nor naturall affection can beare any sway or restraine or bridle the unruly and violent passions neither betweene parents and their children betweene husband and wife nor betweene â—…thren or kinsfolke They that have suffered themselves to be overcome with this passion have made shipwrack of all godlinesse of modestie of honestie and of humanitie it selfe But meere madnesse it is to desire that honour and glory that neither contenteth the 〈◊〉 nor continueth with the possessor nor is voyd of great dangers both in this life and in the life to come and is thus threatned in the Scripture most severe judgement shal be used upon those over others The meane man shall obtaine mercie but the great and strong shall suffer torments strongly Adolphus Duke of Geldria did leade his father in the night when he was going to sleep five of their miles in the deep of Winter without shoes to a most vile prison where he kept him halfe a yeare in the end whereof for feare of the Emperour and the Pope hee let him forth And when reasonable conditions were offered by the Arbitrators which had the hearing of their cause he sayd rather than he would yeeld to those conditions hee would cast his father headlong into a well and throw himselfe after An undutifull saying of an unnatural sonne Selym the great Turke and first of that name usurped the Empire by favour of the â—…zaries upon his father Bajazet and caused him to bee poysoned and slue Aâ—…mat and Corcâ—…the his two elder brothers with all his Nephewes and others of Ottemans race saying that nothing was more pleasant than to raigne when all seare of kindred was taken away Henry the fifth deprived his father by force from the Empire and caused him to dye miserably in prison Frederiche the third after he had raigned thirty yeares was miâ—…rably slaine by Manfroy his bastard sonne who after he had committed this parricide he poysoned his brother Câ—… lawfull inheritour to â—…redericke that hee might make himselfe King of Naples salyâ—… King of the Turkes hearing the acclamations and cryes which the army made to Sultan 〈◊〉 his eldest son for joy of his 〈◊〉 from Persia jealous of his owne estate caused him to be strangled in his utter chamber and cast out to the army with these words to bee cryed aloud
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
that should bee my guard and defence I begin to feare and to stand in doubt of them that keepe mee company I eate my meat now with no good taste nor without suspition I goe no where in safetie nor without feare But if I were assured from all these things yet it is unpossible for an Emp to please his subjects For if hee bee old they will say hee is unable and insufficient if hee bee yong that he is furious and wanteth wisedome to command So as there will never faile defects to bee found in him Beleeve me my friends you that make mee Emperour doe tye mee to death yet one thing comforteth me that I shall not dye alone deale with mee as you list I beseech the gods that ye repent not one day that you have done as I repent it now And as hee seemed to prophesie of himselfe so it happened to him For Probus being Emperour also encountering with him wonne the field and Saturninus being fled into a Castle was there slaine against the will of Probus who seemed willing to have pardoned him And although the troubles and perils of these high dignities and honourable places were foreseene and duly considered of some wise grave men yet few there have beene who refused them being offered and more few that have yeelded them over without some urgent cause and necessitie when they have possessed them Sylla after he had vanquished all his enemies being dictator the highest dignitie then in the Romane common-wealth and in mens judgement might have possessed it quietly gave it over voluntarily without any compulsion and led a private life Carolus Martellus shewed great magnanimitie in refusing principalitie when after many noble victories he was offered by the Princes and Nobilitie the kingdom of France he refused it and contented himselfe with the estate his father left him For which hee had this Epitaph Dux dominusq Ducum regum quoqueâ—…ex fore speâ—…it Non vult regnare sed regibus imperat ipse To be a Duke or Lord o're Dukes Or King mongst Kings he did despise But thought it greater than himselfe To reigne 'ore Kings to emperize Some others did the like But none hath shewed a more rare example in this kinde of matter than Dioclesian This Dioclesian was a man of base parentage in Dalmacia and served as a poore souldier in France under divers Romane Emperours for the Romanes had then a custome not to suffer their Emperours long to live as on a time hee reckoned with a woman in the house where he was lodged that was a Soothsayer of them which were called Druides for the charges of some time past this woman finding fault with hisstraight reckoning unfit as shee thought for a souldier Content thy selfe good woman quoth Dioclesian I am yet a poore souldier as thou seest but when I am an Emperour I will be more liberall Forasmuch as thou hast spoken quoth she more truely than thou art aware of when thou hast killed an Aper which signifieth a Bore thou shalt be Emperor DioclesiaÌ„ although he took her words in jest as a thing unlikely to come to passe yet carrying a lotâ—…e minde he thought sometimes upon her words and as occasion served hee used to kill Bores And through his vertue and valour being advanced by degrees from one office to another hee became in time one of the principall mâ—… in the army And as he saw three or foure Emperors in his time one succeeding another he calling to remembrance the womans words I kill the Bores quoth he but others eat the flesh It chanced at last that one whose name was Aper trayterously killed 〈◊〉 the Emperour notwithstanding hee married his daughter hoping to succeede him in the Empire But the same being known to the souldiers they apprehended this Aper brought him before the tribunall seat of the Emperour And devising upon a man that might see this treason punished none seemed so meete as Dâ—…oclesian Whereupon the whole army chose him Emperour And heto fulfill the prophecie though the thing was unseemely thrust his sword through Aper and slue him And after hee had reigned twenty yeares and atchieved great matters and now come to live in great prosperitie his Empire being so strongly fortified all things in such peaceable estate that in the judgement of men he neede feare nothing by a rare president never seene before he gave over the Empire went to the citie of Solona in Dalmatia his native countrey to lead a private life where he occupied himselfe in planting trees and making orchards and gardens and would never after be brought to entermeddle with any kinde of governement of what qualitie soever Which private liâ—…e liked him so wel that by his owne confession he then began to live and to see the cleere light of the Sunne And when afterward in processe of time the States of Rome sent Ambassadours to desire him that hee would returne againe to be their Emperour and take upon him the governement which they sayd would bee profitable 〈◊〉 the common-wealth hee would in no wife be 〈◊〉 to accept it but answered them that 〈◊〉 they â—…aw and could enjoy awhile his quiet life the pleasure of the herbes and trees which he had sowed planted in his countrey they would never send him any such embassage that he had heretofore bestowed great travell for the common-wealth that now God had given him time to travel live to himselfe And that he could not account any part of his time for life but this which he 〈◊〉 quietly spent sithence his returne to his countrey And when the Embassadours replyed that hee should have respect to the great matters which hee had done and not to suffer his victories to receive disgrace in his time hee answered them that having set his felicite in the goods and riches of the minde it could not bee accounted for an unhonest thing in him to contemne worldly wealth and dominion and to professe honest poverty and that for confirmation of his opinioÌ„ there neither wanted precepts nor examples of the wise ancient Philosophers Among all the heathen histories that are written there is not in mine opinion a more notable example nor of more efficacy to perswade men that feliâ—…iry consisteth not in temporall and worldly goods and dominions than this of Diâ—…lefian For beginning the course of his life in the estate of a poore souldier and ascending through the favour of Fortune and his owne vertue and wisedome from one degree to another untill hee was mounted to the highest dignities among men to bee Emperour of Rome and commander of the world and considering with himselfe like a wise man the uncertainty and mutability of the things of this life iâ—… which nothing hath long continuance but as it hâ—…th 〈◊〉 time to increase so being at the highest naturally doth diminish againe proponing also to himselfe the examples of divers great estates whom Fortune had set upon the top of
strange to all men and that they might procced orderly with her she was committed to prison and examined where shee confessed all that had happened But this EthiopiaÌ„ Divell would not so leave her societie for as she was kept close in prison whilest her cause was examining when the Nuns after midnight used their ordinarie service in the quire the Divel would transforme himselfe into her likenesse and sit in her place and kneele upon his knees as though he prayed they all thinking it had beene Magdalen and that shee had that liberty given for her repentance But the next day when they understood that shee was kept in prison and the night following seeing her againe in the quire they told the visitors who examining the matter found that shee went not forth of the prison And when the cause was known to the Pope through her repentance he pardoned her and gave her absolution But Sathan never found so fit an instrument to serve his purpose with such effect as was that false Prophet Mahomet who through ambition and an unsatiable desire of glory wherein his life shewed him to put his felicity not content to become of a base fellow a Monarch of divers goodly kingdomes but must also take upon him to be a holy Prophet sent from God to give laws to his people whereby he hath not onely damned his owne soule but also sendeth dayly infinite numbers of soules to the bottomlesse pit of hell to whom the Poets saying may be aptly applyed Alsquid tamdudum invadere magnum Mens agitat miht nec placida contenta quiete est My mind hath in long labour bin nor yet In quiet is some great thing to beget And that it may the better appeare what pernicious effects the desire of vaineglory hath wrought and therefore contrary to that Summâ—… bonum or felicitie wee seeke after it will not be impertinent to the matter to make a briefe narration of the course of Mahomets life whereby we shall see how by the helpe of the Divell his owne subtil wit by Gods sufferance for our sins hee was advaÌ„ced froÌ„ a poore wretch to a mighty Monarch and reputed Prophet and law-maker This Mahomets father was an Arabian called Abdalla his mother an Ismaelite called Enyma he was borne in a little village not far from Mecha called Itrarip about sixe hundred yeares after Christs incarnation The Turks say that the same day he was borne there fell downe to the ground of their own accord a thousand Churches one which was a signe that in his time there should bee a great decay of Christianity Being in his youth brought up by his parents in two religions every of them desirous to draw him to his opinion when he came to be a man he was of no religion He was sent no doubt by the Divel to the shame of mankind who cannot endure the sincerity of Christs Gospell but finding so apt an instrumeÌ„t to worke the dishonor of God and the destruction of men and knowing the disposition of the world to embrace new things he practised by his meanes to plant a new religion having fit opportunity therto by the wavering minds of the Arabians and Affricans who were at that time he was borne in doubt whether they might follow the religion of the Christians or of the Iewes or Arrians There was great fâ—…iendship about this time betweene Mahomets father and a Iew that was an Astronomer well learned in the old law in the Christian religion It chanced that Mahomet was borne when his father was gone to Ierusalem and at his returne this Iew having calculated his sonnes nativitie told him that he should be mighty in dominion law Not long after the birth of this apostle of Sathan Abdalla the father died When Mahomet was 4 yeres old this Iew devised a notorious and most shamefull lye He said that he saw two Angels take Mahomets hart out of his bodie divided it in the middest and tooke out of it a drop of bloud and afterward washed it cleane with faire water put it in a paire of ballance weighed it with ten other hearts because his heart weighed them downe all Then one of the Angels said to the other if his heart were set against all the hearts in Arabia it would over weigh them all This said the Iew the Angell Gabriell shewed him When Mahomet was viijyeares old his mother died and committed him to his uncle by the fathers side who delivered him to the Iew to be brought up in learning The Iew instructed him in naturall Philosophy but especially in the Iewish and ChristiaÌ„ religion wherin he proved so good a scholler that it holpe to work the destruction of his own soule many others Some write that when Mahomet was thirteen yeare old as he wandred abroad he met with merchants that were going into Egypt desirous to be of their company they tooke him with them to helpe to keepe their camels horses and wheresoever he went there was many times seene a blacke fellow standing by him And when they came to a village in Egypt where at that time were divers Christians the Parson of the towne invited theÌ„ to his house they followed the Parson left Mahomet to keep their camels The Parson enquiring whether all their coÌ„pany were come into his house they are all here said they saving a boy that stayeth without with our camels As the Parson went forth he saw a black fellow 〈◊〉 by the boy which put him in mind of a prophecie that he had read of one that should descend of pareÌ„ts of two sundry natioÌ„s who shold establish a religion against the christian faith by whom for a signe should many times stand a black fellow The parsoÌ„ desired the merchaÌ„ts to cal in the boy understanding his name to be Mahomet he remeÌ„bred him so to be called in the prophecie that he should be a mighty man a great trouble to Christendome that his religion should not continue above 1000. yeers then it should vanish away When the Parson had considered of his name of the black fellow staÌ„ding by him he perceived that it was he the prophecie spake of and set him at his table above the merchants and did him great reverence After they had eaten the Priest asked the merchants whether they knew the boy who told him the manner how they came by him The parson enformed theÌ„ of the prophecy he ha 〈◊〉 read who affirmed that they had seene such a blacke fellow stand by him Then sayd the Parson to the boy Thou shalt be a great learned maÌ„ and shalt establish a new religion among the Heathens and with they power thou shalt bee great annoyance to the Christians and thy successors shall be mighty men Now I desire thee that thou wilt suffer my country men the Armenians to live in peace Mahomet promised that he would so doe and went forwards with
bull being placed not far off hearing his voyce came running to him through the presse of peoply overthrowing divers of them and layd his head in Mahomets lap having the book tyed between his horns wherein the law was written called Alcoran the people beleeving the rather by Sergius perswaâ—… that God had sent the bull with the booke of the law because about the pigeoÌ„s necke they had fastned a little schedule wherein was written in golden letters he that can put a yoke upon the buls neck let him be king Sergius fetched a yoke and delivered it to Mahomet who put it â—…fily upon the buls nocke and was of the foolish people called King and sergius a Prophet By these kind of devices hee seduced the people and after hee had reigned tenne yeare being about foure or fiâ—… and thirtie yeares old it happened that one of his 〈◊〉 proofe whether or not whether he would 〈◊〉 againe the third day after his death and 〈◊〉 up to heaven as he had ofâ—…old told them he would doe after he had reigned ten yeares he 〈◊〉 gave him poyson to 〈◊〉 which when Mahomet had drunke his colour began to change and the poyson went presently to his heart and dispatched him as hee had well deserved A just judgement of God to punish the wicked by the wicked His body was diligently watched by his disciples looking for his reâ—…rre the third day as he had said But when the third day was past and that they saw he would not rise againe that his body began to stinke they let him lye 〈◊〉 and departed And the eleventh day after his death 〈◊〉 that poysoned him came againe to see how he lay and as one Lucas reporteth hee found his body eaten with dogges And gathering his bones together he tooke them with him and buryed them in a towne called Madinaraziell When the Arabians and others perceived how he had deceived them and that he rose not againe according to his promise many of them fell from him and would no longer hold of his religion But in his life annexed to his Alcoran some of his disciples 〈◊〉 strange things of his death and resurrection and 〈◊〉 that his body of himselfe after a miraculous fort hangeth on high under a vault of the Church at 〈◊〉 where indeed it is done by art a Load-stone 〈◊〉 up the Iron Coffen wherein his body or bones 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 though it did hang in the ayre But the Turkes and â—…hough of his sect beleeving that he hangeth there by â—…vine power goe thither yearely in pilgrimage as Christians doe to Ierusalem to the Sepulcher This was 〈◊〉 beginning and end of this glorious Apostle of 〈◊〉 whose holinesse was in his youth such that the Citiâ—… of Mecha condemned him to death for these whom now they adore for a high Prophet of God Such fruits the desire of glory wherein he put his felicity brought forth to the perpetuall torments of his owne soule and of infinite thousands besides But such an Epitaph had bin more meete for him than to be so exalted as was engraven upon the tombe of a Vice-roy of Sicilia by the people of that countrey in revenge of his tyrrannous governement Qâ—…i propter nos homines Et propter nostram salutem Descendit adinferos That is Who for us men And for our salvation Is gone downe into hell Salmoxes device to perswade the Gothes that the soule was immortall was more tolerable being done with better meaning Hee taught those people that neither himselfe nor any that lived nor they which were to be borne should dye for ever if they lived vertuously but they should goe into such a place where they should alwayes live and enjoy all good things and leade for ever a most happy life And when he had thus perswaded his followers he conveyed him secretly out of their sight into a building under the ground which he had before prepared for the purpose where hee remained three yeares leaving his followers lamenting sorrowing as if he had bin dead the fourth yere he returned to them againe they being sufficiently satisfied of the eternitie of the soule and the perpetuall reward of vertue By which device hee wan to himselfe such reputation and glory that he was accounted equall with the king who made him his companion in the governement of his kingdome But the death of Mahomet was not the end of much troubles and mischiefe that arose through his false doctrine in divers parts of the world For thereof ensued sundry sects according to the severall inclinations of the fantasticall heads of his disciples and followers in whom the Divell stirred up such a desire of glory that imitating their masters example and treading in his path some of them became little inferiour to him in riches and dominion Among the rest in our age Affrica that according to the old proverbe is accustomed alwayes to bring forth some new and strange thing raised up one of Mahomets disciples from a poore Hermit to be a Monarch of many goodly kingdomes and countries This man was borne among the famous mountaines of Atlas of very base poore parentage and became an Hermit which the Affricans call Morabuth that is a holy man This fellow began to preach his vaine doctrine in the yeare of Grace one thousand five hundred fourteene and would admit no glosse or interpreter of the Alcoran but followed simply the text He playd the hypocrite so kindly that by a counterfeit shew of holinesse and simplicity and austerity of life he was greatly esteemed and honoured And when hee saw himselfe well followed of the people of Fez Maroque where he made himselfe strong and that the multitude depended upon his word hee told them whom he best favoured that he had a desire to visit the King of Taphilletta because hee lived not according to the sinceritie of their law The cause 〈◊〉 he desired this kingdome was that if his deviâ—… tooke not that effect hee looked for it might serve him for a place of retreyt As hee travelled towards Taphilletta there was no village that hee passed by but he preached his doctrine into the great townes they would not suffer him to enter because of his 〈◊〉 and for feare of some tumult His travell was alwayes by the sea coast because that countrey was well peopled insomuch that within short time his traine resembled a huge army of above threescore thousand men strong The simple king of Taphistetta would needs heare this Hermit and talke with him of matter touching his conscience who was not so intentive in his Sermon as he was circumspect in viewing the kings forces and the meanes he had to defend himself At length he told his followers God had revealed to him that he must expell this king out of his kingdome as unworthy to reigne For confirmation whereof hee shewed them certaine false miracles By meane whereof they slue the king and made the Hermit
of vice or images of vertue The old Romanes desirous to excite their yong men to vertuous acts and considering how men are inclined to the love of honour they built two temples the one of which they dedicated to vertue the other to honour joyned them so artificially together that no man could come into that of honor but he must first come through vertue By which apt device they would have it knowne to all nations that the right way to honour is by vertue But in these latter ages the temple of vertue is so little frequented that the path which was wont to leade to it and be well troden is growne greene and another way found to that of honour by some backe doore not so well knowne in the elder time And if any chance to seeke to come the right and old accustomed way to honour through vertue the doore is kept so fast shut by a porter called envy and his servant detraction that hardly one among thousands can come to honour that way which is a great discouragement to those that would come to honour through vertue and maketh their devotion cold and slow to freqâ—…ent that temple One saith Virtute ambire opoâ—… non â—…bus but if hee have no other helpe in these dayes to prefer him but his vertue he is like to have but a cold sute Wee may wish it were in use that Plaâ—…us sayth Sat 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 But the case is much altered For in stead of favourers he shall have deracters secret enemies alwayes to vertue Which made Plato commend the law of the Lydians that punished detracters with the like punishment as they did murderers For as one taketh away the life of a man so the other taketh away his reputation and good fame which after Saloman is more worth than worldly goods The Poets saying could to no age be more aptly applied than to these latter dayes Virtus 〈◊〉 alget Vertue is praised but not cherisht Which confirmeth Seneca his saying That men allow better of honesty than follow it Medea sayth video 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I see allow of the things that be better but I follow the worse Vertue is a medicine to the minde and healeth the diseases thereof as drugs are medicinable to the body restore it to health For the minde hath his diseases as the body hath For when the body is distempâ—…d and not in his perfect estate he is sayd to be sicke of this or that disease as of an ague of a pleuâ—…sie or such like and needeth Physicke So the mind that is distempered with this or that passion or perturbation as with pride covetousnesse vaineglory voluptuousnesse or such like is not in his perfect estate but needeth vertue as a medicine to restore him to health or his perfect estate againe Which was well signified by Agesilâ—… king of Sparta to Menelaâ—… a vaineglorious Physitian who being puffed up with pride through a reputation he had gotten by his skill in physicke called himselfe Iupiter and having occasion to write to the king his superscription was in Latin and English signification thus Menelâ—… Iupiter Agesilao Regi salute 〈◊〉 Iupiter wisheth to king Agesilaus health He answereth him with this superscription Agesilaus rex Menelao 〈◊〉 king Agesilaus wisheth to Menelaus health of minde reprehending his vanitie with one word by which he signified that want of health and perfection in his mind which hee wished to his body Moral vertue therfore is to be embraced of all men as a necessary and excellent thing and a speciall gift in our carnall nature by which mens mindes are purged and purified of all vehement passions and perturbations with which whosoever is oppressed can not enjoy the happinesse of this life and by which they are continued or restored to their perfect estate and health The good are by this vertue excited and maintained in honest conversation and civillity the bad are reformed and reduced to good life Yet for all that it is not eternall Iustice by which wee are justified before God for that Iustice free-will or reason cannot bring forth But morall vertue maketh men live civilly and honestly which God looketh for even of the heathens or infidels themselves It is better sayth one to live so as thine enemies may bee amazed at thy vertues than that thy friends should have cause to excuse thy vices The Poets faine that as Hercules in his youth sate musing alone what course of life were best for him to take there appeared to him two virgins the one representing vertue the other vice She that represented vertue told him that if hee would follow her hee must climbe over mountaines and craggie rockes and take great paines and labours But the other to allure him to follow her promised him a plaine and pleasant way downe the hill all at his case without any paine or labour Hercules after hee had considered of the matter refused the faire ossers and promises of the virgin that represented vice made choice with labour and paines to follow vertue by which he became the most famous man of the world The heathens were diligent observers of morall vertues through which many of them in all ages became excellent men By them they learned to know their duties to their countrey in generall and to private men in particular to moderate their affections to estimate things as they are and not as they are commonly reputed to contemne the vanities of this world to preferre an honest death before a shamefull life Regâ—…s a man endued with great vertue was sent by the Romanes into Affrica with an army to make warre upon the people of Carthage who after divers victories and overthrowes given to them of Carthage was himselfe at last taken prisoner and sent by them to Rome to treat of peace upon his oath that if that could not be obtained not the exchange of prisoners for himselfe hee should returne to them againe When he came to Rome and had delivered his embassage hee disswaded the Senate from peace and told them that either Carthage must be subject to Rome or Rome to Carthage and advised theÌ„ to make no change of lusty yong Gentlemen that were able to doe their country great service against the Romans for him that was but one man and old and unable to doe his countrey any great good and though the Romans were loth that the old man who had done them such service should returne againe to them that would put him to some unworthy death yet he was so affected to the love of his countrey and to the keeping his promise with his enemies that hee refusing to be stayd by the Romanes told them he would rather chuse to dye any cruell death than that it should be said he had broken his faith And so returning to Carthage with the other Ambassadours for the hatred they conceived against him for disswading the Romanes from their petition they cut off his
eye-lyddes and put him into an engine that was sticked round about full of verie sharpe nailes and suffered him there with continuall watch and paine to dye a most grievous death Decius another noble Romane and one of the Consols being in the field with the Romanes forces against the Latins and perceiving his men to shrinke and give place to their enemies hee by the advice of their Priests made his prayers to their false gods for their helpe and offering himselfe to a voluntary death for his countrey put the spurres to his horse and thrust himselfe into the middest of his enemies by whom after hee had slaine many of them he was himselfe at last overthrowne and slaine But the courage of Decius so daunted them and emboldened his owne men that they carried away the victorie with the destruction of the greater part of their enemies The like love to his countrey to which men owe the greatest dutie next unto God wrought the like effect in Codsus king of Athens For as the Docrians came with their forces to besiege Athens Codsus having intelligence that his enemies had sent to Delphos to aske counsel of Apollo what would be the event of their warres and that answer was made them by the Oracle that the Docrians should have the victory except they killed the king of the Athenians Codsus apparelled himselfe like a common souldier left if he should bee like a noble man hee might be taken prisoner and liveâ—… and went out of the City with a burden of wood upon his shoulders into his enemies campe and quarselling of purpose with a common souldier wounded him and was slain himselfe The Docrians hearing that the King of the Athenians was slaine raised their siege and returned home againe As Tubero was sitting in judgement in Rome a Pye alighted upon his head and iâ—…te so still that hee tooke her with his hand And when the Soothsayers answered that if the Pye were let go it bâ—…tokened destruction to the Empue if she were killed then the same would fallupon himselfe hee pretening the good of his countrey before his own life killed the Pye and not long after fulfilled the propheci with his death There want not some such like examples 〈◊〉 Christians of later yeares When Callâ—… had been besieged eleven months by King I dwâ—…d he third and the inhabitants driven to that extrmine that they must yeeld to the Kings mercie or peâ—… hee refusir 〈◊〉 offers would accept no other conditions out that 〈◊〉 the best of the towne should suffer death the 〈◊〉 depart When the matter was had in consolation in the Councell house among the pune pall men at the towne who considering that â—…yther sixe of 〈◊〉 must dye or else the whole must beedest reved hee that sate in the first seat â—…ole up and said that he would offer himselfe to the wrath of the enemy and give his life to his country which example wrought such emulation of piety to their countrey in the rest that the second riseth likewise and then the third and so the rest one after another untill they had made up the number of six required by the King who all willingly suffered death for their Countrey There happened at Rome in the middest of the market place by meanes of an earthquake and other causes the earth to open and a very deepe hole to bee made which would not bee filled with all the earth that could bee throwne into it the Romanes caused their Priests to use their accustomed ceremonies to their Gods to understand their pleasure about this matter when they had finished their sacrifices answer was made them that if they would have their Common-wealth perpetuall they must sacrifice into this hole something wherein the Romanes power did most consist And as this matter was published and consultations daily had what manner of thing this should bee Marcus Curtius a Noble young Gentleman and a valiant souldier meditating upon the interpretation of this answer told them that the thing wherein the power of the Romanes most rested was the vertue and valour and armes of the Gentlemen and offered himselfe willingly for the benefit and prosperitie of his Countrey to cast himselfe alive into that hole And when he had armed himselfe and attired his horse very richly hee putteth his spurres to him and kapeth into the midst of the hole which immediately closed together Xerxes King of Sparta having intelligence that Xerxes King of Persia who brought into Greece an army of a 1000000. men after some writers besides his navie had found out a way to assaile him and the rest of the Grecians armie at their backs that were desending his passage through a straight hee perswaded the Grecians to retire and preserve themselves for a better time and when they were departed to their owne Cities he with five hundred men who were all resolute to dye with him for the honour of their Countrey in the night assayled Xerxes campe such an enterprise as never before nor since hath beene heard of The enemies being dismayed with their bold and furious charge an accident unlooked for and terrified by the darkenesse of the night suspecting that all the force of Greece had beene assembled together flâ—…d to save themselves and gave Lconidas and his company leave to kill them at their pleasure without any great resistance And as Lconidas having promised before to kill the king with his owne hand if fortune favoured him pressed into the Kings pavillion killing all that guarded the place and made search for him in every corner hee understood that Xerxes had convayed himselfe away in the beginning of the tumult who otherwise was like to have drunke of the same cup as the other did And when they had wearied themselves with killing their enemies and the day beganne to shew the Persians that were fled up to the toppe of an hill looking backe and perceiving the small number that pursued them turned againe and put them all to the sword Thus Leonidas and his company for the love of their Countrey sacrificed themselves to a voluntary death without any hope or meaning to escape whose courage and valiant enterprise made such an impression of feare in the hearts of the Persians that Xerxes left his Lieutenant to prosecute the warres and returned backe againe into his countrey an enterprise worthy of perp suâ—…ll memory five hundred men to put to slighean 〈◊〉 that dranke the rivers drie as they passed CHAP. II. Of Law-maker the Law-maker And of Charondas A remarkeable Iustice in Solyman Strange Iustice amongst the Sw ZZers I he Iustice of the Emperors Frajan Antoninus Plus and Alexander Severus Of Antonius Valentinian Theodosius Augustus Marcus Aurelius c. Of Sâ—…s Lewis the French king Of Favourites to Princes Constantine the Great Of Alexander Severus his commendable Iustice upon Vetorius Turinus Belon c. Of their great vices observed by Historians Impietie Injustice and Luxurie c.
THe respect the Heathens had to the observation not of one or two but of all morall vertues may make Christians blush to thinke what observers they would have beene of Christian vertues if they had knowne God as we doe Zeleucus made a law among the Locrians that whosoever committed adultery should lose both his eyes it chanced that his sonne was condemned for that crime and determining that the penalty of the law should with severity be inst upon him yet being intreated by the earnest petitioÌ„ of the whole city who in as much as in them was for the honor and reverence of the father forgave the necessity of the punishment of the yong man first caused one of his own eyes and after one of his sonues eyes to be plucked out leaving sight to them both Thus though the rigour of the law was in a sort qualified yet the penalty thereof was by a wonderfull moderation of equitie sufficiently fulfilled dividing himselfe indifferently betweene a mercifull father and a just law-maker Charondas having pacified the seditious assemblies of the people and meaning to provide for the like in time to come made a law that whosoever did enter into the Senate with any weapon should presently bee slaine in processe of time it chauned him to returne to his house from a farre journey out of the countrey having his sword by his side and in the same sort as hee then was forgetting the law upon some present occasion hee went into the Senate and being admonished by one that stood next him that he had broken his owne law not so quoth hee but I will confirme it and immediately drawing his sword and turning the point to his brest hee fell downe upon it and slew himselfe I note not this example because I allow of the fact but that men may see how carefully the heathens observed justice and morall vertues which they preferred before their owne life for when he might easily have excused himselfe by haste and forgetfulnesse yet lest that might bee an occasion to some other with an evill intent to offend the law hee chose rather to warne others by his owne example Iulius Casar caused one of his Captaines to be beheaded because he had dishocoured the mistreste of the house where he lodged without staying for one to accuse him or for her husbands complaint Solyman Emperour of the Turks sent his Bassa into Valona to passe into Italy this man landed at the haven of Castro which so dismayed the inhabitants that they yeelded themselves to him upon his oath and promise that they should depart with bagge and baggage but contrary to his faith he caused them all to be slaine except such as were thought fit to serve for slaves After his returne to Constantinople the great being advertised of his breach of faith caused him to be strangled and sent back all his prisoners with their goods into Italy Among the rare examples of the Heathens we will recite a strange kind of severitie used by Christians out of the Histories of the Switzers The Switzers have a free common-wealth wherof they are very jealous There was a yong man among them that went about to usurpe the government and alter the state whom when they had condemned to death judgment was given that the execution should be done by his father as the cause of his evill education that hee might receive his death by the author of his life and that the father in some sort might be punished for his negligence used in the education of his child And these were notable examples of Iustice and policie used by the Emperours Trajan Antoninus Pius Alexander Severus and others worthie of consideration because the felicitie of Princes is said to bee in well governing their people For that common-wealth saith one cannot decay where the poore have justice and the wicked rich men punishment and especially if there bee good doctrine for the young and little covetousnesse in the olde In the daies of Trajan none that had charge of justice might augment his goods but in that estate of riches or poverty wherein hee beganne to governe in the same hee was to containe himselfe and to looke for reward at the Princes hand according to his merit Hoc deterius habet respublica quo magis res privatae slorent Hee also confidering the great impoverishing and tediousnesse that long suites brought to his people ordained that all suites of Italy should continue but one yeare and the suites of other countryes but halfe a yeare The Emperour Antoninus never sent any pretor to governe any Province that was wise and valiant onely but hee also must be without any infection of pride and covetousnesse For he thought that no man could well governe a common wealth that is subject to pride or covetousnesse Vnto Pretors Censors and Questors before he gave them any country to governe hee caused them first to give up an Inventory of their owne proper goods to the end that when their charge was finished the increase of their wealth should be considered And joyntly therewith he did both say and warne them that he sent them to minister justice and not by fraud to robbe his people The Emperours Valentiman and Theodosius tooke this order with Iudges governours of Provinces that they should sweare at the entring into their charge that they had not given nor promised any thing and that they would not give nor cause to be given any thing and also that they would take nothing but their fee. And if it were proved that they had taken any thing being lawfull for every man to accuse them they should pay foure times so much besides the infamie and perjurie and the like penaltie was against him that gave the present The Emperour Iustiman would say that all Iudges ought to contemne riches and to shew their hands cleane to God to the Emperour or King and to the law which is also to be understood of all Magistrates and governours It is unpossible saith one but the same day that riches treasures begin to increase in the houses of Magistrates and Iudges that the selfe same day the administration of Iustice should not decay And though he were ready to pardon all other offences yet in the executioÌ„ of justice he that did offend though the matter were not great he would with great severity punish him grievoasly Institia 〈◊〉 maxime reddunt dâ—…turnum 〈◊〉 When Augudus Casar sent a Governour into Affrica with the change of Iustice My friend quoth he I pat you not in trust with mine honour nor commit to you my justice to the end you should bee envious of innocents and an executioner of transgressours but that with one hand you should helpe to maintain the good and with the other hand helpe to amend the evill and if you will know what mine intent is I send you to bee a grandfather for orphants an advocate
the Cities and Countries were overwhelmed with murders and robberies unpunished that there was no order in governement neither respect to the law nor love to vertue and that a licentiousnesse addicted to all evill is spread throughout all the realme Now said they if you will turne from you the ruines that are prepared you must degrade and discharge a number aswell of your Prelates as of your civill Magistrates that are now established in your high Courts and punish them severely that have abused themselves in their callings and offices otherwise you cannot preserve your estate Then make inquirie in all parts where good and honest men doe dwell and replenish your counsell with them and God will bee there among them God is alwaies at hand with the just man and will rather bring to effect your enterprises by their hands whom he blesseth than by the subtill devices of prophane wise men whose labour he curseth it is very true that good men are not seene to walke in troopes by great companies yet let the torrent of corrupt manners bee never so violent the world was never nor will bee without some number of men of excellent vertue How many heroicall courages replenished with a holy magnanimitie and with an incredible valour be in the state of the Nobilitie and Gentilitie not these villanous blasphemous Nobilitie and Gentilitie but that which loves and feares God that never saw your Court but remaine in their houses without being imployed which kinde of men if they were imployed in your service would in a few moneths reforme all the ruines and disorders of the state But these men are not knowne but of God and of some good men King Boccas presented to the Senate of Rome these verses among others in reprehension of some disorders that were dangerous to a Common-wealth Wo be to that Kingdome where all be such that neither the good are knowne among the evill nor the evill among the good Woe be to that Realme where the poore be suffered to be proud and the rich to be tyrants Woe be to that Realme where so great vices be committed openly which in some other Countries they would feare to commit secretly But to returne to the Heathens And what an example of continencie or rather temperance for Plutarch saith Continencie is no vertue but the way to vertue that is temperance was shewed by Scipio being Generall of the Romanes Armie in Spaine when in the slower of his youth certaine beautifull young women of the Nobilitie were taken Prisoners and brought to him among the which there was a young virgin that was contract unto a Prince of the Countrey of Luccio of such a singular beautie and favour that whither soever shee went she drew all mens eyes to behold her Scipio committed her and the rest to safe custody with straight charge that no dishonour should bee offered them and sent for the parents and husband of this young virgin and after some comfortable words used to them hee restored the virgin to her husband undefiled in the same sort hee received her for the which he told him he would looke for none other satisfaction but that hee would bee a friend to the people of Rome And when her parents offered him a great summe of money in gold which they had brought for her ransome desiring him earnestly to accept it and affirming that they should take the receiving of that money for as great a pleasure as the restoring of their daughter Scipio seeing their importunacie told them hee would accept it and commanded them to lay downe the gold at his feete and calling the young Prince hee gave him this gold with his wife for her dower over and besides that which her parents had promised to give him The young man returned into his Countrey with his wife and gold in great joy and published every where as he went that there was a yong man come into Spain like unto the gods that overcame all with Armes with Courtesie and Liberalitie and within few dayes after to shew himselfe gratefull hee returned to Scipio with one thousand foure hundred horse Alexander the Great when hee had taken Darius mother and his wife prisoners a woman of singular beautie with divers other faire young virgins attending upon them was of that continency that he would not be allured by their beauties though in the flourishing time of his youth to offer them any dishonour but caused them to be kept safe from all violence and honourably used according to their estate The same Alexander having appointed on a time some woman to be brought to him after hee had looked long for her when she came to his bed side hee asked her why shee had tarried so long because quoth she I could no sooner steale from my husband when Alexander heard that shee was a married woman hee sent her presently away untouched because hee would not commit adultery Where shall we find such scrupulosity of conscience or respect of honestie among Christians that know the greatnesse of that sin and perill thereof as was in that heathen Monarch that commanded almost all the world and was subject to the controlment of no man and did forbeare onely for vertues sake It is true that the Poet saith Non facile invenies multis è millibus unum Virtutem pretium qui putet esse sui Mongst many thousands to finde one t is hard Who vertue makes the price of his reward Dionysius the elder hearing that his sonne who was to succeed him in his kingdome had committed adultery with a mans wife rebuked him sharply askt whether ever hee heard of any such act done by him No marvell quoth hee for you had not a king to your father No more wilt thou said Dionysius have a King to thy son if thou leave not these maners The tyrant thought his sonne worthy to be dis-inherited for committing adultery which now is an ordinary matter and accounted a pastime and play of the better sort Agapete said to Iustinian you are now rightly a King seeing that you can rule and governe your delights by wearing on your head the Diademe of temperance for it is a very great and princely vertue to rule himselfe and to beware of his affections the enticements of pleasures of fraud and of flatteries And where is there to bee found that faith and perfection of friendship a necessarie vertue and to bee imbraced of all men among us Christians in whom charity and love ought to abound as was betweene Damon and Pythias and divers other heathens Damon and Pythias were joyned together in such perfect friendship that when Dionysius the tyrant had determined to put one of them to death yet having obtained of Disnysius licence to go home for a time to set his things in order before hee should dye upon condition that his fellow should remaine with him to dye the death appointed to him if hee brake his day the
it hath received many great blessings from God as no people in the world more both in proportion and agilitie of body and in valour and noblenesse of minde with divers other singular gifts yet we are by a certaine naturall inclination and a worse custome too apt to counterfeit strangers maners we imitate the Spaniards in their pride the Italians in their dissembling and other vices the Frenchmen in their rashnesse and inconstancie the Fleming we beginne to follow in their quaffing and drunkennesse and all these we counterfeit or rather exceede in their vanitie of attyres and gestures Pride and excesse were two of the finnes for which Sedom was punished For many of our travellers bring us the worst of their manners leaving the best behinde as the Spider draweth poyson from the same flower the Bee sucketh honey as though they made a conscience to bring any good thing from them Nothing is more odious and contemptuous to us than the simplicity of manners and habits of our forefathers and yet Histories are full of examples of famous men and Nations that so long as they continued in the simplicitie of habits and manners and singlenesse of life of their â—…fathers so long also they kept their vertue and fame gotten by the same but as soone as they drew to them the manners of other countries they brought also their vices with them and thereby lost that reputation which before they had gotten by their vertue So long as the Lacedaemonians observed Lycurgus ordinances and singlenesse of life and manners they were one of the most flourishing Common-wealths in the world and when they changed them with strangers manners their reputation was soone decayed Princes should foresee that the corruption of an evill custome creepe not into their Realme for it bringeth in vices and driveth out all vertues Alexander the great was conquered by the luxuriousnesse of Asia of which by his vertue before he had made conquest The Romanes likewise so long as they used the simplicity and singlenesse of life of their forefathers encreased their estate untill they became masters of the world but afterward when they brought into their country the luxuriousnesse and delicatesse of Asia they lost all and themselves also and were so drowned in voluptuousnesse that they got not so much fame reputation by their vertue as they lost by their vice and vanity The care of antiquity was to adorne their minds with vertueland knowledge not regarding the ornaments of the body Epaminondas was a famous Captaine among the Grecians and wanne many victories who had but one onely garment and if it chanced him to send it to the Fuller hee was driven to tarry at home for lacke of another and yet being of so small substance when the King of Persia had sent him gold of great value for a gift he would not take it Paulus Aemilius a Romanc when hee was made the second time Consull was sent to make warre upon the Macedons where he wanne a notable victory with wonderfull store of riches and treasure which not withstanding he lived in such poore estate that after his death his wife could hardly have any dower But the Italians since that time have changed their manners from vertue to vice turned matter into forme with divers frivolous inventions The Emperour Marcus Aurelius saith that by the prowesse of our forefathers are honoured those that now live and by the little that is in them that live now our posteritie shall be infamous for they that are now have turned the acts and labours of antiquitie into foolish toyes and vanitie Guevarra seemed to be of the opinion that Travellers into Italie brought no great good home with them into their own Countries for writing a letter to an Embassadour of the Emperour Charles the fifth among other things wisheth that hee come from Italie so sound of body and so perfect of soule as when hee departed from Spaine for in new Countryes alwaies there are learned new fashions for to speake the truth saith hee I have seene few come from Italie that came not only absolute but also dissolute The property of Bels is to call men to service and never enter into the Church themselves in my judgment such is the condition of Italy where bee a great many Sanctuaries that provoke to prayer but the people therof have no devotion but seeing you come from Rome I would not have you boast of that place for the fashions of Italy are more pleasant to be declared than sure to bee followed Rome is not now in the power of Christians as it was in the time of the Heathens for then being the mother of all vertues shee is now turned to bee the schoole of all vices O how much and how much is betweene the customes of Italy and the law of a good Christian and when he had reckoned up many vices there usuall he concludeth that if he desire with those conditions to bee a Romane much good may it doe you quoth hee for upon the day of account you would rather have beene a labourer in Spaine than an Embassadour at Rome which agreeth with Mantnan Vivere qui sanctè cupitis discedite Romà Omniacum liceant non licet esse pium From Rome depart you that would holy be Religion lives not with such libertie And yet this is the Country and people that we havein such admiration and desire to see and imitate Heare also what the Emperour Marcus Aurelius saith of the vices of Rome Italy in his time brought from other Countries and how much they are degenerate from the ancient Romanes which hee often repeateth in his writings and bewayleth with teares hee calleth Rome the head of vices O Rome without Rome which now hast nought but the wals and art a common stewes of vices not without teares quoth he I say that there was never any Romane Captaine that did kill tenne thousand Asians with the weapons he brought into Asia but that he lost an hundred thousand Romanes with the vices they brought to Rome At the same time when the warre was kindled in the East tenne valiant Captaines brought these vices to Rome whose names my penne shall forbeare to tell because their vile offences should not obscure their valiant deeds Before that Rome conquered Asia wee were rich wee were patient wee were sober wee were wise we were honest and above all we lived contented but now all vices may be learned in Rome as all sciences may bee heard in Greece O unhappy Rome that hast now nothing but the name of Rome because there is in thee such scarcity of vertue and such plenty of vice the wals of Rome are carried of a great height but her vertues be very low Rome braggeth of the great number of her inhabitants but Rome may weep that her vices be many more without comparison In one month a man may number all the stones of her stately buildings but in many yeares a
man cannot comprehend the lewd and wicked manners and customes that be in Rome ô cursed Rome cursed thou hast been cursed thou art and cursed thou wilt be as thou hast with tyranny made thy selfe Lady of Lords so the time will come when thou with justice shalt returne to be the servant of servants In the time of our forefathers all the youth did exercise themselves in armes now all their pastime is in courting yong women In times past when thou wert peopled with true Romanes and not as thou art now with bastards the armies that went out of Rome were as well disciplined as the Academies of Philosophers that were in Greece if the gods would raise up our forefathers againe either they would not know us for their children or else they would bind us for madmen A yong man told the Senatours that hee came out of strange countries onely to see Rome and now hee found Rome without Rome if my judgment saith he deceive me not either ye be not Romans of Rome or else this is not Rome of the Romans ô Rome if thou knewest truly the vertue of our forefathers and didst consider the lightnesse of us the day that they ended their life the same day not one stone in thee should have bin left upon another and so the fields should have savoured of the bones of the vertuous which now stinke of the bodies of the vicious that which our forefathers did fly from our vaine people in these daies run after Thus may yee see what accouâ—… wise men have do make of Italy the country manners which our Nation hath so great a desire to see and imitate for the Italians have drawne their viocs and evill manners from the Romanes being one natin as the Romanes brought them from other countreyes might not our forefathers have truely prophesied that when our nation became travellers into Italy our manners and conditions would be made worser might they not have said we shal then learn to speak much and performe little to know how to dissemble injuries and never to forgive them to bee very constant in hatred and very changeable in love friendship and out of other countries also other conditions worse than our owne is there a more unseemely thing for a man than quaffing and carowsing even to drunkennesse and to death which happeneth often Antiquity did so much detest luxuriousnesse gay clothes that at Thebes there was a pillar set up in the Church wherin was contained cruell curses against the king Menin that first invented a more delicate life And wil you see how odious this vice of quaffing drunkennes was to the old Romanes Plutarch reporteth that in the Senate of Rome there was an ancient man who made great exclamations that a yong man had so dishonoured him that hee deserved death when the yong man was called to his answer Fathers conscript quoth he though I seeme yong yet I am not so yong but that I knew the father of this old man who was a vertuous and noble Romane and kinne to mee And I seeing that his father had gotten much goods fighting in the warres and this old man spending them in eating and drinking I said to him one day I am very sorry my Lord and uncle for that I heare of thy honor in the market place for that I see done in thy house wherein we have seene fifty armed men here before in onehouse and now wee see an hundred knaves made drunke and as thy father shewed to all those that came into his house the enfignes he had wonne in the warres thou shewest them diverse forts of wines when the Senate had hear dihâ—… both speake they gave judgement that all the goods should bee taken from the old man a tutor provided to governe him and his house who should not give him one cup of wine because hee was noted of drunkennesse The old Romances so much detested this vice of quaffing and drunkennesse that when the Consull Lucius Pius was sent to make war upon the Sarmatians after a season a truce was made in which time the Consull made them a banquet and filled them so full with wine a thing which the Sarmatians above all things most desired that their Captaines yeelde themselves and their countrey into subjection of the Romanes After the wars were ended the Consull returning to Rome required the accustomed triumph which was not only denied him by the Senate but also by decree in recompence of his service his head was striken off and all his acts defaced and the Sarmatians set at libertie againe and freed from the subjection of the Romanes who would not winne kingdomes and countries by quaffing and drunkennesse but by vertue and valor The people of Brasill make a feast when they kill their prisoners and sit drinking three dayes three nights never leave quaffing untill they have emptied all their vessels every draught they drinke is of execeding great quantity and hee that holdeth not out to the end is accounted infamous and effeminate And seeing wee with so great liking imitate the Italians because we thinke their manners agree better with civilky them ours then contrariwise we should reject and concenâ—… the manners which are usuall among those barbarous Heathens that disagree with civility humanity Christianity Mens minds and desires are growne very variable and therefore their resolutions and labours very uncertaine but will yee see what the things be whereabout mens minds are most occupied in these dayes In getting of riches they care not how encreasing their possissions untill they know not when In setting out their bodies with they cannot tel what Carried away with pleasure they wot not whither Hunting after reputation they know not fro whence Seeking happinesse they cannot tell where Luxuriousnesse saith one and the intemperanese of meat and drinke is a flattering evill creepeth sweetly into mens minds but with these vices vertue is destroied the glory that hath bin gotten is turned into insamie the strength of the body and mind is weakned the laws of honesty are overcome neither can there bee any thing invented that is more lothsome hurtfull And as Valerius sayth it is hard for a man to know whether it bee more hurtfullto bee taken of his enemies or of those vices A poore table is the mother of health and a rich table the mother of diseases Ense caduns multi crapula sed perimit plures Many fall by the sword but more by surfet Sophecles said to one I esteeme thee greatly happy for thy life but the best is if thou hast never bin in a strange country The happy man indeed sayth hee will stay at home When I thinke upon Lycurgus laws I cannot but have the má in admiration that could so providently foresee the corruption of good simple maners by the intercourse with strangers for which cause hee did forbid trassique out of the kingdome or suffer strangers
whether it bee of poverty of heate of cold of whippes of stripes even before he can utter his conceit what other messenger or better t◅ouchman can he have of his miseries then his weepings cryings and sighes when hee hath disgested so many evils and come to bee seven yeeres old hee must presently have tutors and masters to instruct him in learning when hee is further growne and become a young man hee must haue reformers and masters more severe and sterne the better to tame and accustome the heate of these young folkes to labours that being done haire beginneth to cover his face and then he is come to be a man and yet this is the time that hee entreth into his trouble and vnquietnesse of minde Then he must frequent publike places he must haunt companies that be as touch-stones to know both good and euill If he be honourably descended from any Noble house he must take vpon him a thousand enterprises in the warres offer himselfe to an infinite number of perils hazard his life shead his blood to die in the bed of honour otherwise hee shall be accounted a carpet knight an effeminate man and had in contempt If he be of base condition and called to the exercise of handicraft hee must then also runne into a thousand labours trauels and perturbations both of bodie and minde hee must labour day and night to get wherewith to liue with the sweate of his browes and for the most part howsoeuer he imploy his labour and diligence hee can hardly provide for his necessitie But let us runne over briefely some of the principall estates or trades of life and see what opinion is holden of them and proue whether we can find any that are content with their estate but rather hath sometime or other found fault with it and hath beene weary thereof and wished for some other which is so farre from felicity that it ought rather to be accounted miserie Let vs beginne with sea-faring men who be in continuall perill both day and night their habitation is as a prison their manner of life is not much vnlike to the same they are alwaies as vagarants in continual exile for the most part without rest tossed vp and down with the wind and weather in danger of ◅ockes and to bee buried in fishes bellies Byas one of the sages of Greece doubted whether he should account these kinde of men among the dead or among the hu◅g and Anacharsis said that there was but two or three fingers breadth betweene them and their death meaning the thicknesse of the boords And though some become Masters of many shippes and are accounted happy by reason of their riches that way gotten yet that happinesse is not much to be regarded that hangeth vpon ropes And if we looke into the life of husbandmen which at the first sight seemeth pleasant quiet simple without guile and happy and such as Patriarkes and Prophets have made choise of as that which hath in it least fraud deceit and also great Emperours have forsaken their stately Palaces their Pompe and Dominion to give themselves to the planting of gardens and orchards yet he that will looke throughly into the matter shall find that among these roses there be many thornes for whē God cast man out of Paradise hee sent him abroad as an exile saying The earth shall be cursed for thy sake thou shalt eate thereof with travell all the dayes of thy life for it shall bring forth thornes and thistles and thou shalt eate the hearbes of the earth with the sweat of thy browes thou shalt eate thy bread vntill thou returne to the earth againe from whence thou camest and who hath more experience of that the Lord spake then those poore soules who after they have laboured in the fields day after day tilled sowed their ground endured the rigour of the heat and cold and sweat as it were water and blood in the middest of their hope to gather the fruites of their travell there happeneth vnseasonable weather ouermuch plentie or want of raine frost and snowe mildewes and such like Some lose their cattell other suffer spoile of their corne and all that they have long travelled for in a moment by men of warre even as they are labouring in the fields so that in place of comfort and rest he returneth home sorrowing where he findeth his wife and children weeping and lamenting for feare of famine so that this kind of life is full of trouble and vnquietnes alwaies in feare of some thing or other But let vs leaue the husbandmen in their labours and see what goodnes is in the trafficke of merchandize this trade of life if we looke into it superficially will seeme to bee exempt from all manner of miserie and vnhappinesse and to promise quietnesse and ease because of riches wherein it aboundeth a trade invented for the necessity of our life which many wise men as Thales Solon Hippocrates and others haue exercised and which nourisheth amitie and loue betweene Princes transporting their commodities from one countrey to another yet notwithstanding that trade cānot so be disguised with faire shewes but it will easily appeare to him that will enter further into the view of the matter how full of vnquietnesse and troubles their life is as the Poet saith Impiger extremos currit mercator ad Indos Per mare pauperiem fugiens per saxa per ignes To how many dangers they are continually subiect either in their own persons or in the losse of their goods both by sea and by land by tempests by pyrates and theeues and how great a part of their life many of them spend in strange countries differing nothing from exiles sauing that their banishments are voluntary and all this through an excessive desire of gaine which maketh them leave the pleasure and comfort of their wives and children of their friends and native countrey and what craft an epytheton peculiar to them in time past but now growne more generall and deceit is vsed of many of that trade their owne countrey proverbe seemeth to discover That there needeth nothing but to turne their backe to God a fewe yeeres and a little to inlarge the entrie into their conscience to make themselves rich and to overcome fortune But we will passe over many things that bee written and may bee said of them conclude with the words of Saint Augustine and Saint Augustine That it is hard for them to please God or duly and rightly to repent them of their sinnes But let us leave the Marchants in their accounts and see what happinesse is in the men of Warre who thinke themselves to exceede all others in worthinesse and honourable estate and therefore have this epytheton aptly given them Gloriosi milites glorious souldiers and yet not he saith one which leadeth his life in the warres but he that endeth his life well in peace winneth both honour in this life and also
apud quem vera reticentur Miserable is that Emperour from whom truth is concealed Dionysius would bewaile the state of Princes specially in this that men will not speake freely before them and that the truth is hidden from them The Emperour Gordian would say that all things were disguised to them and their flatterers would cast dust in their eyes Trajan was a great enemy to lyers and detracters and would say that it were more safe for Princes to have patience to heare their owne errors than to give eare to such as report other mens defects And this is no small infelicity to those Princes that have none that wil speak the truth to them and that are not willing to heare it that they must beleeve well or evill of every one by the mouth of another The French king Lewis the eleventh would say that he had plenty of all things but of one being asked what that was Truth quoth he If truth be so scant in Princes Courts it is no marvell though in time past they used such severe meanes to reforme that vice In some countries lying was grievously punished with imprisonment with deprivation of all dignities and with more severity in some only he that had told a lye to another mans harme should carry a stone in his mouth a month after The wise king said that to give no place to flatterers and to give honour to good and vertuous men were very great ornaments to a princely power King Antiochus being iu hunting lost his companie and was driven to lodge in a poore mans house who not knowing the king told him all the faults which he and his favorites had committed To whom at his returne he said that he never understood the truth untill the last night and carried himselfe more vertuously ever after The Persians were wonderfull carefull in bringing up the children of their Princes for which purpose they would make choice of foure excellent men and singularly given to vertue The first of which should be very famous for his justice the second for his wisedome the third shold be of rare marvellous constancie courage the fourth of like modesty continēcie To these should be given the charge of the education of the kings children of the Persians who should be called up every morning by some of his chamber in due season and admonished to rise and provide for the affaires which the great God hath committed to his government for Princes be the ministers of God for the charge welfare of men And Cyrus saith that none ought to reigne that is not better than them over whom he doth command It is a much more beautiful thing more princely to shew forth a mind garnished with knowledge and framed to vertue than a body attired with gorgeous apparell Alexander Severus would weare no gold nor precious stones saying that a Prince ought not to measure himselfe by the things that cover the body but by the goodnesse vertue of his minde But all the difficultie is to become good among so many allurements and temptations to evill which must come of Gods speciall grace whereto hee must joyne his owne endevour to make himselfe capable of it A good Princes Court is a schoole of vertue and wisedome for where should wisemen be sought for if they cannot be found in good Princes Courts It is expedient for a Prince to admit some both to his Councell and company that are given to a very quiet life that have not intermedled with any affaires of the common-wealth for their same will make greatly with his fame O that Princes would withhold their grace and favour from them whose mindes are stained with covetousnesse immoderate love of riches or any other notorious vice and give it to them that follow vertue which would worke greater effect than Lycurgus lawes that banished gold and silver as enemies to his countrey or any other penall statutes that were made to reforme misdemeanours offensive to the weale publike Such a Prince that would give countenance and grace to men of vertue and reject the others that are of a contrary disposition should bee better served at home and all manner functions better executed abroad to the great benefit and contentment of his people to his own immortall fame and glorie who should by that meanes in short time see a most flourishing common-wealth as if it were reduced if not into that golden age so greatly celebrated by the old Poets and antient Writers yet at least into that of silver which is next to it For such men and manners as the Prince graceth of the same condition every man will frame himselfe to be Facere rectè cives suos Princeps optimus faciendo docet cumque sit imperio maximus exemplo major est By wel doing the best Prince teacheth his subjects to do well when he is greatest in Empire he is the greater in example A Prince can shew no greater signe of a good minde than to admit to his presence and familiaritie men knowne to bee vertuous and of good fame Aristotle remembreth a saying of Theognis the Poet that it is a certaine exercise of vertue to converse with good men A Prince sayth one should make choice of such as for their vertue he thinketh worthy of his favor and presence and should not use them with whose company he is delighted for their pleasant talke and courtly behaviour but them by whose labour and counsell he may best atchieve great matters And therfore he should be very circumspect what choice he maketh and search out their manners with whom he meaneth to converse and communicate his mind that he may discover what spots and staines they have to the end hee may commit so much to every one as he shall find in him cause of trust and honesty The good Emperour Antoninus used every yere to have his house visited what disorders were there committed and among other things whether there were any in his house notably vicious and if any such were found what order the Visitor would set downe for reformation was presently performed Marcus Aurelius sayth hee observed one thing during the time he governed Rome that he never tooke into his house a man that was hated of the common-wealth He was also greatly commended for that hee would never have in his house any vicious man He would often say that those Princes lived in more security that had gotten into their Court treasures of good men than into their chests treasures of evill money For unhappy said he is that Prince that liketh to have his chests full of treasure and his Court full of evill men The Emperour Adrian with great diligence secrecy used to enquire what life the Senators or Coūsellors did lead and what exercise they used And such as he found poore vertuous he augmented their patrimony and such as he found rich vicious he would deprive them
part immortall all other creatures of the earth live according to their nature and kinde man only is seene to degenerate but if we lay aside the consideration from whence our corruption commeth by the fall of our first parent and account of our selves according to our present state among so many millions as replenisheth all the corners of the earth how many use their endeavours to live as they ought If things bee layd before us that differ in value every man will make choyce of the best But in our selves that are composed of a bodie which participateth with brute beasts and of a soule that is of an Angelicall nature and resembleth God himself who maketh choyce of the best that is to live after his best part which is immortall how many thousands live like brute beasts pleasing their senses feeding their belly and following the lusts of the flesh without any respect to the excellencie of their minde as though they would incorporate their soule to their body with an indivisible bond of brutish nature and how few hundreds contemne their mortall part which is the body to joyne their better part which is their immortall soule with the Angels and heavenly creatures whom they in that part resemble A third sort there are far exceeding born the other in number that neither give themselves wholly to live after the flesh with the one nor after the mind with the other but in a sort participating with them both imploy their greatest care labour to the attaining of the things that are in most estimation of the world They labour and aspire to excell others not in dignitie of vertue and knowledge but in estate and reputation and to the attaining of the things which leade to that end every one willingly bestoweth his labour and diligence for no man is content with his estate Hinc illa lachryme hereof ariseth all our complaints and griefe and the greatest part of the calamities and miseries that happen to men for mens desires be so unsatiable and their mindes so uncertaine and variable thâ—… no estate of life alwayes pleaseth any man because they seeme to want some things that bee incident to the estates opposite to theirs For they that bee in principilatie and honourable estate desire to have joyned to their rule and reputation the securitie and tranquility of a private life which they seeme to lacke And the private man affecteth to have joyned to those things which hee enjoyeth the dignity and authority to command of honourable estates The rich man wisheth to have added to his abundance of wealth the poore mans quietnesse of minde and freedome of worldly cares and safety of person and goods The poore man would have added to those things of his the rich mans plenty and credit The Citizen would have joyned to his civill and easie life the pleasures and delights of the fields and countrey The Couutrey man would have the civility and company and good fellowship of the towne joyned to the wholesome ayre of the Countrey and pleasant gathering of the fruits of the earth The souldier wisheth to his glorious title the safety of a peaceable life Hee that liveth in peace desireth to the security and safety of his estate the honourable reputation of a man of warre which he hath gotten by the continuall hazzard and perill of his person And so of all other estates of life some things are desired that seeme to be wanting to the fulnesse of their happinesse which are as unpossible to be joyned together as for heate and cold to be at one time both together in one subject being diametrally contrary in quality So hat the greatest hinderance to our attaining of felicity or happinesse of life proceedeth from our evill affected minds that desire unpossible things which also diverteth us from our proper action and true end or beatitude We passe our time in vaine hope of things never like to come to passe as Petrarke saith Bene sperando male habendo transit vita mortalium In hoping well and having evill the life of man passeth away Every good thing wee possesse is lesse the things hoped for seeme great And such is also the infirmitie of our common nature seldome or never so sully to enjoy prosperitie as in no respect to finde cause of complaint of the qualitie of our estate For many are raysed to great wealth that beare shame of their base linage some ennobled by birth and parentage and yet live in povertie many blessed with riches and nobilitie that want the delight of children and some made glad with procreation that feele great sorrow and discomfort by their childrens untowardlinesse No man is wont to be long and every way happy a worse fortune ever followeth the former But what estate or course of life soever thou follow have alwaies a speciall regard to these two things to live in the feare of God and to observe the rules of honesty among men from which what soever happen let nothing divert thee To God thou owest a good conscience and to thy neighbour a good example All things will happen well to thee if thou place God the beginning and the end For in this life thou shalt not finde greater comfort than by that which proceedeth of a good conscience of honest counsels of upright actions of contempt of casuall things and of a quiet and peaceable life But in these dayes many feare their fame but few their conscience and yet there is not saith Saint Augustine a more happy thing than the quietnesse of conscience And if any afflictions or crosses happen that thou canst not avoyde yet thou mayst overcome them with patience Fly unto God for succour he will give it thee that is the only way to make thee safe secure and happy Friendship was wont to bee accounted a helpe to happinesse of life but wee may now rightly say with the Poet Illud amicitia quondam venerabile nomen Prostat in questu pro meretrice sedet That name of friendship venerable of yore Is prostrate now complaining like a whore The time is so changed and mens manners with them so corrupted that the precepts heretofore given by wise men for the commoditie of life grounded upon vertue and honesty will not now serve the turne Friendshippe is growne cold faith is foolishnesse honesty is in exile and dissimulation hath gotten the upper hand That is effectually done which is commonly spoken he that cannot dissemble cannot live Machiavels rules are better followed in these dayes than those of Plato Aristotle or Cicero whose schollars have so well profited under him that many are able to teach their master Professe saith hee love and friendshippe to thine enemie and if hee fall into the water up to the knees give him thine hand to helpe him out And if he fall in up to the waste helpe him likewise but if hee fall into the water up to the chinne then
he offered us his grace so plentifully and yet will we not receive it He that standeth in a high place letteth down a rope to help him up that standeth beneath so God hath let downe his grace to us to lift us up to him but wee will not take hold of it and therefore it may bee feared if we bee not more circumspect lest our common adversary entangle us with his rope that hee may plucke us downe to him Wee may be wondred at not without cause as the Emperour Constantius marvelled at his people that were newly become Christians I marvell said hee how it commeth to passe that many of my people are worse now than before they were Christians The best we can hope for if we amend not our maners is that God will chastise us and the most we can desire at his hands is that if he punish us by some of his ordinary meanes he will use a fatherly correction upon us and when hee hath beaten his children cast the rod in the fire Wee have beheld these many yeares in great tranquility under the flourishing reigne of a most happy Prince the troubles and afflictions of our neighbours by which we have beene warned to reforme our lives and to be thankfull but with how small effect is too apparent and therefore it may be feared lest the time will come that wee shall have cause to say to our neighbours Vivite felices quibus est fortuna per◅cta I am sua nos alia ex al◅is in fata vocamur Live happy you whose fortunes are full grown We have no fate to looke to but our owne Petrarks saying could to no time bee more aptly applyed that hunters and fowlers used not their endevour with greater diligence to lay nets and snares for wilde beasts birds than crafty men layd for the simple and plaine meaning And therefore said he if thou wilt not be deceived either dye or deale not with men which agreeth with Pionano his countrey man Con arte con inganno Si vive mezzo l'anno Con inganno con arte Si vive l'altraparte Hee therefore that would enjoy that happinesse which may be found in this life must live in the feare and service of God and alwayes lift up his minde to the true felicity which cannot be injoyed in this world but in the life to come He must desire God to bestow his benefits and graces upon him by which he may eschew and be free from those things that are hindrance to felicity and that he will blesse his labours and indeavours that are taken in hand and leadeth the right way to the attaining of happinesse Hee must arme himselfe with patience quietly to receive such afflictions and crosses as it shall please God to send and lay upon him and perswade himselfe he doth all for his good to draw his love from these worldly vanities to the contemplation and desire of God and his heavenly kingdome which is our end and sovereigne good and beatitude He must purge and cleanse his mind from those impure motions and affections that intice and allure men to the deceivable lusts and brutish pleasures of the flesh than which pleasure after Demosthenes there is not a more capitall enemie given of nature to man and after Demosthenes no evill can happen to that man which hath layd temperance and continency for a foundation of wisedom He must also beware and be very circumspect that he bee not overcom with inordinate desire of riches nor with ambition and desire of honor and glory whereunto for want of due consideration the most part of men are commonly carried headlong by a false and flattering shew of happinesse And if it shall please God to blesse him with worldly wealth honourable estate for they are his blessings to them that come rightly and justly to them he must use them to that purpose for which they were ordained and given him for the estimation of things and their use and abuse maketh them helpefull or hurtful to happinesse of life He that knoweth how to esteem and use riches honourable estate as he ought neither will desire them if he have them not nor feare their losse if he possesse them knowing that he may live well and happily without them as things not necessary to felicity For the greedy desire of riches possessions the ambitious passions common almost to all men in aspiring to honorable estate the cōtinual fear of their losse doth so torment and unquiet our mindes that whereas by the due estimation of riches and honour and such like delights of men with an upright judgement we might leade a pleasant and happy life wee contrariwise by a sinister opinion heape upon our selves grievous torments manifold cares and vexations so as wee seeme to seeke of purpose for the causes and meanes how to bring our selves into an unhappie and miserable estate for all the troubles and perplexities that travell our fraile bodies our selves are the cause of them and for the most part we goe out to seeke them For thus fares it with men of all estates first to desire one thing and then another without end or measure never satisfied or contented and therefore never happy He must estimate these things that will live happily not after the common custome and opinion of men but by a right and reasonable censure and content himselfe with his estate to which God hath called him whereunto he shall the more easily bee perswaded that will compare the dangers and troubles of high dignities and honourable estate with the security and quietnesse of meane callings and bestow some time in reading the monuments of wise and learned authors whose counsell he shall find to contemne the things wherein by an erroneous opinion men set their felicity as meere vanities and the frumpes of fortune and that a little is sufficient to the happinesse of life Yet providence is to bee used by a wise and ◅rugall man after Isocrates counsell To remember things past to doe things present and to beware of things to come For he is no lesse worthy of blame that provideth not that which is necessary than he that never ceaseth to get more than is sufficient And though no estate of life be excluded from felicity for that the chiefe part cause therof proceeds from the minde yet abundance of riches honorable estate hie dignities are more subject to those things that are hinderance to happinesse than the meane and inferiour estates are which whosoever will attentively observe will be the more readily induced to beleeve with Saint Paul that Godlinesse is great riches and sufficient to lead us to the felicity happinesse we seeke for For that bringeth with it a contempt of worldly vanities so much esteemed of the multitude peace of conscience and a contentation of mind wherein felicity consisteth Which was rightly espied by the Poet that the vanities of this world as riches pleasures
we consider onely the workes of nature which if wee consider the power of God are not only possible but also very easie by him to be done All these things concurre together in Christ Iesus only Hee is the seede of the woman that crusheth the Serpents head Hee it is that â—…filleth the promise made to Abraham All nations shall be blessed in thy seed He is the Mediator that pacifieth his father and 〈◊〉 himself between his justice and our injustice that reconcâ—… us to God againe He is the very 〈◊〉 promised to be the Saviour of mankind and his Redeemer from spirituall servitude not only by the mouth of the Prophets and testimony of holy Scripture but also by the confession of the devils whose mouthes hee stopped that had long before seduced the world For at his comming all Oracles ceased through the whole world their Temples with their Idols in some places fell down together Apollo being asked the cause answered That place must be given to the more mighty And the same Spirit being demanded in the time of the Emperour Augustus in whose reigne Christ was borne who should succeede him answered that an Hebrew boy which had power over the godds commanded him to leave that house and to goe into hell But quoth he to the Priest depart thou with silence from our altars plutarch reciteth a notable history of this matter I remember saith he I have heard upon the death of the Spirits of Emilian the Orator a wise and a milde man knowne to some of you that his father comming on a time toward Italie by sea and passing in the night by an Iland not inhabited called 〈◊〉 as all they 〈◊〉 the shippe were quiet and at rest they heard a great and terrible voice which came from the Iland that is called 〈◊〉 or 〈◊〉 which was the name of the Pilot of the ship an Egyptian born And although hee and some others heard the voyce once or twice yet they durst not answer untill the third time when Tamus said Who is hee that calleth mee What will yee Then the voyce pronounceth more loud than before these words Ataman I will that when thou commest before the Gulfe called Laguna thou cry out aloud and say that the great god 〈◊〉 is dead When they within the ship heard these things they were in a great feare and consulting upon the matter they determined to proceed and not to say as the Pilot was commanded When the morning was come they had a merry wind sayled pleasantly untill they came before the Gulfe where he was appointed to speak the words by the voice and suddenly the wind ceased and the sea became calme so as they could go no further by meane whereof they all agreed that Tamus should do his message for which purpose he 〈◊〉 up to the top of the ship and cried as loud as he could I give you to understand that the great God Pan is dead Which words were no sooner out of his mouth but they heard such a number of voyces cry out and such wonderfull lamentation that the sea rang withall which continued a long space the men being greatly amazed and having presently a merry wind againe went on 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and reported this history at Rome which being come to the 〈◊〉 of Tiberâ—…s the Emperour in whose time Christ was crucified he examined the matter and found it to bee true This Pan was one of the principall Spirits among the Gentiles and had in great reputation It is reported that Tiberins having some intelligence of Christ by the Christians upon the occasion of this matter consulted with the Senatours of Rome to erect a Temple to Christ but they disswaded him and said that then Christ would take away all the credit and 〈◊〉 from their goddes And because the Gentiles held Pan for a God it is evident that the death of this Pan was the spirituall death of the devill or Prince of devils for the destruction of his kingdome and the ruine of his errours by the which hee hath kept captive all mankinde who were redeemed out of that thraldome by the merits and passion of Christ Iesus The same Authour affirmeth that about the same time one 〈◊〉 passing by Ilands called Orcades neare England was told that not long 〈◊〉 there was heard great whispering and howlings in the 〈◊〉 and many fearefull things seene the wisemen of those Ilands construing those prodigious things to the death of some great God Iosephus writeth that about the same time there was in the Temple of Hiresalem where was then no living creature a voyce heard saying Let us forsake and avoyd this Country quickly These and a great many more were the confessions of the divels that knew by Christs comming their reigne was at an end their power by which they had long abused the world was abrogated and their mouthes stopped For these strange sights and significations in divers parts of the world are the very true testimonies of the strangenesse of the death of our Saviour Iesus Christ and of the victories which hee hath obtained together with his triumphant glory Seeing then the Iustice of God and the wickednesse of men by our owne reason hath brought us to the necessitie of a Mediator betweene God and man who by his owne strength is able with God to deliver man from the bonds of eternall death and purchase to man felicity and 〈◊〉 and that the way to the fame is true religion by which wee know God and how to worshippe him and our Mediatour and Saviour Iesus 〈◊〉 by whom we must be reconciled to God and attaine to our soveraigne good Letus frame our selves to come before God after Saint Pauls counsell with such feare and holiness as wee may be like poore offenders with halters about their neckes so as wee should go to hell if he plucked us not back of his infinite goodnesse and to live like true Christians by whose Helpe if wee call upon him as wee ought wee shall obtaine Gods grace to our indeavours that we may bee able to make resistance to those intemperate motions that allure us to the desire of those things that divert us from our felicity and beatitude and to withstand the temptations and subtill practices of the old Serpent our common adversary who 〈◊〉 continually for opportunity to draw us from the true worshippe and service of God which is the way to our soveraigne good to the inventions and traditions of men that is to superstition and idolatry which casteth us downe headlong to extreame infelicitie and misery Hee is not borne in vaine saith one that dyeth well nor he hath lived unprofitably that hath ended his race happily And though wee finde our selves prone to sinne through the frailty of the flesh and every houre ready to fall yet wee must indevour to lift our selves up againe and call for Gods grace and not despaire though our sinnes be great and many following Saint Augustines counsell let no
without estate in the life to come to be joyned with God and to have the â—…uition of the joyes of heaven which is our beatitude and soveraigne good That wee may attaine to the same it behooveth us daily to pray to him that hee will give us his grace to do the things that are pleasing acceptable in his sight that as the only means we have to be restored to our felicity and soveraigne good is to returne to God againe from whom by the disobedience of our first parent we are fallen by the way of true Religion which teacheth us our duty towards God and assureth â—…s of his favour by the mediation and merits of his only Sonne Christ Iesus our Saviour and Redeemer so he will not suffer us to be drawne and led astray from him by the deceitfull allurements and unbridled lusts after volpruousnesâ—…e and worldly pleasures which like a violent torrent carrieth us away from our true felicity and beatitude into the bottomlesse pit and gulfe of miseries and that heâ—… will not suffer us to be overcome with the intemperare and inordinate desire of riches and possessions which puffeth us up in pride and vaine glory a grievous sinne and odious in his sight chaseth out of us his humility meeknesse in spirit for which his son Iesus pronounceth men blessed and which diverteth us from the love of him and our Saviour to the love and desire of earthly things which riches prepare for us But if it please him to blesse our labors or estate with plenty of riches and possessions that it wil also please him so plentifully to endue us with his grace that wee abuse not his liberalitie and blessings to the hurt of our selves or prejudice of any other but rather that we imploy them to the uses for which they were ordained to our owne necessity and to the benefit and profit of our neighbour And if it please God not to blesse us with riches as except they come by his blessing it were better to bee without them then that he will vouchsafe to grant us a contented minde with tolerable povertie without grudge or disdaine seeing much quietnesse and security alwayes attendeth upon that estate which is also free from many evils that commonly accompany riches and especially seeing it pleased our Saviour Christ to make choyce to walke upon the earth in a poore estate that was master of the whole world And also that it will please him by his grace to extinguish or suppresse in us the furious passion of ambition and inordinate desire of honour and vaine glory which was the originall cause of all our woe and misery that wee may bee coâ—…tented with our calling and estate to which hee hath appointed us and the same to performe according to the talent he hath given us That he will endue us with vertues both Morall and Christian that by the one we may be the better able to bridle and moderate the intemperate affections and violent motions of our corrupt minds which throweth us downe headlong from the quietnesse and happinesse of this life into a sea of troubles and calamities and in a civill life the better to know how to performe the duty of a man and by the other to live in the love and feare of God and in the faith of Christ to use patience in adversitie and afflictions if they happen and to bee humble in prosperity to worship and glorifie God in this life that we may bee joyned with him in the life to come which is our beatitude and summum bonnm or soveraigne good and all this for his Son Iesus Christ his saâ—…e our only Saviour and Redeemer to whom be all honour and glory Amen Thus have I ended God be thanked this Discourse of the felicity of man which I trust will be hurtfull to no man except there be any that will take that with the left hand which I deliver with the right hand The Bee and the Spider goe both to one flower the one gathereth honey the other poyson Evill mindes through their corrupt disposition may turne that good thing to their owne harme which the vertuous and well disposed receive simply to their benefit Many precepts and good lessons I have gathered our of the Philosophers and Divines medicinable to qualifie the corruption of our nature and to moderate the rigour of unruly affections which draw the minde to worldly desires and subjecteth it unto peftilent passions that are great hinderances unto happinesse And it is truly said that which way soever wee doe turne our eyes whether unto divine or prophane Histories to 〈◊〉 of our owne Countrey or those of other Nations wee shall finde all full of â—…ours wicked acts deceries lyes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 by which we may not only be taught advisedly to beware that wee be not intrapped by them but also that wee leave to wonder at honours riches pleasures and the vanities of a delicate life which the common sort doth most marvell at For seeing for the most part they are bestowed upon those that are unworthy and have never any certaine place nor sure ground they ought to bee called very cares and painefull labours and the frumps of fortune rather than the instruments of felicitie And if it be true as Cicero saith That Philosophie healeth mens mindes driveth away carefulnesse delivereth from cupidities or desires expelleth fearfulnesse then of much more force is divine Philosiphie joyned with it to bring these things to passe But saith he this power of Philosophy is not of like validitie with all men yet it prevaileth greatly where it hath gotten an ant nature Our mindes have their diseases as the 〈◊〉 hath which must be cured with 〈◊〉 and appropriate medicines They that are circumvented and seduced by a common and inveterate custome grounded upon false opinions estimation of things and fallen to the ground where they 〈◊〉 muzzling like swine in the earth must by true sentences and perswasions with examples of life be raised again reduced to the right path that leadeth to felicitie And thought the inordinate desires of pleasures riches honour and pompe of the world hath taken so deepe roote in the multitude or greater part of men that it will be as hard a matter and great a labour to purge them of those evill humors as it was for Hercules to draw Cerberâ—… out of hell yet as some bodies are of such constitution that medicines wil more easily work in them than in 〈◊〉 so some minds are so tractable and apt by a naturall inclination to receive and embrace reasonable and fruitfull perswasions that they digest them into a good nutriment and habit and reape thereby many times great comfort and profit And if the counsels or sayings of the ancient Philosophers and other learned men seeme to any in some part too severe or hard to be observed let them consider that a staffe that is warpt and grown crooked must be bent as much
Priests house enticed away his woman dranke up his wine killed his hens and eat up his bacoÌ„ The Sunday following the Priest being angry with his losse said in the same church It is not unknown unto you my brethren how Iohn of Padilia passed this way and how his souldiers have left me never a hen have eaten me a 〈◊〉 of bacon have drunke out my wine I say that hence forth ye shall not pray to God for him but for king Charles and for our Lady Queen Iane for they be the true Princes and let these strange kings goe to the Divell The like manners the Popes have a long time used one day to establish kings another day to depose them not because they did take away their bacon but their usurped authority nor for that they 〈◊〉 away their women but because they 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 men to leave them their vaine traditions to follow Christ his Gospell many times for causes of much lesse importance as appeared by this lamentable example of this late French king and others and when they intend to persecute any king by their Buls or by the sword or by some treachery their pretence should be zeale and love to the common-wealth which they would bewaile with fighes and sorrowfull 〈◊〉 like the Lady Mary de 〈◊〉 that 〈◊〉 forth the plate of the Church of Toledo This Lady in the 〈◊〉 of Castile against the 〈◊〉 Charles the sift whereof she was one of the principall authors lacking money to pay the souldiers rebels entred into the Church 〈◊〉 holding up her haÌ„ds covered with blacke knocking her breast weeping and sobbing with two burning torches before her And after this manner 〈◊〉 a sorrow devotioÌ„ committed a notable 〈◊〉 did take away the plate out of the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Even so did Pope Sixtus the rest of them that have undertaken the like enterprise first bewaile with great sorrow the state of France and then excited 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 people treacherously to murder their 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 A most happy man was the French king that 〈◊〉 to be murdered with so great zeale and 〈◊〉 When men intend a mischiefe they goe willingly to commit a murder and lament when they goe to be hanged but the Pope contrariwise did lament when he was about to kil and peradventure would have gone merrily to execution No man could give a better censure upon the vaniâ—… of this world than Salomon not onely by his singular wisedome where with God had endued him but also by his experience who was the richâ—…st king of the world and abounded so exceedingly in glory and prosperity and in all those things that giveth delight and pleasure which men so greatly desire and esteeme for happinesse in this life that all the kings of the earth desired to see his face for his wisedome and renowned felicity I have beene sayth he king of Israel in Ierusalem and purposed with my selfe to seeke out by wisedome all things and I have seene that all things under the Sunne are meere vanities and aâ—…ctions of spirit I sayd in my heart I will go and abound in delights in every pleasure that may be had and I saw that this was also vanitie I tooke great workes in hand builded houses to my selfe planted vinâ—…yards made orchards and gardens and beset them with all kinde of trees I made me fish-ponds to water my trees I possessed servants and handmaids and had a great family with heards of cattell above any that ever were before mee in Ierusalem I gathered together gold and silver the riches of kings and provinces I appointed to my selfe singers both men and women which are the delights of the children of men fine cups also to drinke wine withall and what soever mine eyes did desire I denied it not unto them Neither did I let my heart from using any pleasure to delight it selfe in these things which I prepared And when I turned my selfe to all that my hands had made to all the labours wherin I had taken such paines and sweat I saw in them all vanity and aâ—…iction of the mind This was the judgement of 〈◊〉 which he had gathered not onely out of his owne wisedome and out of the observation of the course of other mens lives but by his owne experience that so fully did injoy and possesse these goodly things which men have in such admiration as never any man more And when he had the fruition use of all these things to the full and many more whereof the Scripture maketh mention he pronounced neverthelesse at last this sentence of them all Vanitas vanitatum omnia vanâ—…tas Vanitie of vanities and all is vanity What reason have men then to have worldly wealth and pleasures in such estimation when this wise and mighty Prince having tasted of them fully and seene and perceived what goodnesse was in them accounted them nothing but vanity It is truely sayd that ambition is the beastly nourse of covetousnesse and both they in these dayes creepe in under a forme and manner of severity so that the man which desireth power must needs be an evill maintainer of justice and he that thirsteth after glory runneth speedily into actions of injury and oppression And therefore who aspireth to glory and hunts after praise of wicked men must of necessitie be like them Honourable honour consisteth not in the dignities wee possesse but rather in the good workes by which wee deserve them More honourable is he that deserveth honour and hath it not than he that possesseth it and deserveth it not But such is the vanity of men to hunt after glory in vaine things If they want worldly wealth and honorable estate to glory in they will finde out some other thing they will take occasion to glory either in the nobility of their bloud or in the forme and beautie of the body or else in gorgeous apparell and new fangled fashions or if all these faile they will not let to glory in the delights they have taken in the vaine pleasures of the flesh And what caâ—…e is there to glory so much in honourable estate as though it were due to Nobilitie of bloud when the basest men of the world have attained to the highest dignities Vâ—…at a Portingall was the sonne of an Heardman and in his youth holpe his father to keepe sheep and after that was a plough-man but carrying a lofty mind hee left that base trade and became a hunter of wild beasts And when the Romans came into that countrey he assembled his companions together and would often skirmish with them and at last he grew so valiant and expert in armes and had gotten such ateputation that he gathered together a sufficient army and became the principall man of his country which hee defended from the Romanes foureteene or fifteene yeares in which time he wan many notable victories The great Tamâ—…ne was a peasants sonne and kept caâ—…ell who perswading five hundered
sheepheards his companions to sell their cattell and betake them to aâ—…mes they watched the high-wayes and robbed the Merchants of that countrey which when the King of Persia understood he sent a thousand â—…orsemen to 〈◊〉 them But Tâ—…ane so handled the mattâ—… that of enemies he made them his friends and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 forces together they did notable feats 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And taking occasion by the civill warres between the king of Persia and his brother he subdued that countrey and made warre against Bajazet Emperour of the Turkes whom he overcame in battell and tooke him prisoner He wan also great victories upon the Soldan of Egypt and upon the king of Arabia And â—…o became one of the most famous and mightie Princes of the world 〈◊〉 king of the Parthians was of so base a stock that his parents could not be knowne Yet he got such aâ—… putation by his vertue that his succeâ—…ours were called 〈◊〉 as the Emperours of Rome were called 〈◊〉 of 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the 〈◊〉 of Rome was the sonne of an artificer whose grandfather was a gardiners sonne 〈◊〉 the Emperour was also the sonne of a crafts man The Emperour Probus was a gardiners sonne 〈◊〉 the third king of the Lombards was the sonne of a poore common strumpet who being delivered of two sonnes like an unnaturall mother cast them into a great ditch where was a little water The king Agelmond passing by chance that way 〈◊〉 this child in the water touched it gently with the end of his speare which he had in his hand to see what it was The childe feeling himselfe touched as young as he was catched the 〈◊〉 by the end with his hand and held it fast The king 〈◊〉 to see 〈◊〉 young a creature to hold the 〈◊〉 with 〈◊〉 force 〈◊〉 it to be taken up and to bee 〈◊〉 with great care and the place being named Lama where it lay hee 〈◊〉 the child 〈◊〉 Who afterwards found fortune 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 that he became king of the Lombards In 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 two brethren borne in an 〈◊〉 in the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of base estate and 〈◊〉 of Pirates first in one galley and after joyning more with them became kings of Algier In the same age also Dragut of like condition being a Pirat became king of Tripoly The Soldan of Caire was chosen out of the Mamalukes to which dignitle none could ascend except first he had beene a slave and a renegate Christian so that afterward he commanded absolutely in Egypt and Syria Divers other Emperours and kings and men of honourable estate were descended of the like basenesse of parentage which for brevities sake â—…omit And if we should examine spirituall dignities we shall finde the like accidents in the Church Pope Nâ—…cholas the first was descended of so base parentage that his father and mother were faine to go up down to sell â—…ullets and egges Pope Iohn the two and twentieth Gregorie the seventh divers other Popes which I will passe over were very basely descended Which examples seeme to confirme Platoes opinion that every king commeth of a slave and every slave of a king And this was a strange thing which happened not long sithence in Munster a principall towne in Westphalia where a Butcher being retired from his countrey as an exile called Iohn of Leydon was proclaimed king and was served and obeyed of all the people untill the town was taken which was defended for the space of three yeares But why should men glory so much in high dignities and honourable estate whether they have attalned the same by their owne vertue or by their parents as a matter in their opinion proper to their sex when there hath not beene so high a dignitie or honorable estate how great soever that hath beene gotten by the vertue and valour of any man but by the same vertue the like hath beene gotten and kept by women whom we seeme to have in contempt as insufficient and unworthy to aâ—…chieve so great matters in respect of the opinion we have of our selves Out of a great many examples we will draw forth a few The Scithians were a warlike people by the report of many histories and were sometime governed by two kings But as the manner of men is not to â—…dure a copartner in supreme governement these two kings fell into dissention and after civill watres had continued a certaine time the party vanquâ—… with his adherents were inforced to forsake theâ—… owne countrey and to plant themselves neere the frontiers of Cappadocia upon the river called Thermodon which countrey they possessed certaine yeares in despight of the inhabitants But in processe of time the people of that country finding themselves grieved with their governement conspired secretly against the Scithians and put them all to the sword This newes was so grievous to their wives that were left behind in their owne countrey that they determined to arme themselves like men and to revenge their husbands death And that the fortune of them all might be equall and the sorrow common they siue the husbands of them that remained behind when the others departed out of their countrey They chose two Queenes among them to whose government they submitted themselves and assembling themselves together they forsooke their owne habitations like men of waâ—…re marched toward their enemies countrey who understanding that they were women made of them little account By meane whereof being unprovided to make such resistance as was necessarie they were all put to the sword and their country possessed and inhabited by these women which were called Amazones because they had a custome to cut off their right papps that it might not bee any impediment to their shooting being much given to archery a principall weapon among them These Amazones made conquest of many countries and for their valour and prowesse in armes they became the most famous people of the world And that then name miâ—…ht not perish for want of â—…sue they agreed to marry wâ—…th certaine of their neighbours upon this condition that they should come to a certain place and 〈◊〉 appointed and there stay with them certaiâ—…e dâ—…yes unâ—…ll they found themselves with child and then to râ—…e hâ—…me to their houses againe and the daughters thâ—…t they brought forth should be brought up with them in feats of aâ—…mes and other mâ—…nly exercises the boyes should be sent to their fathers And if they chanced to detaine any of them they would so maâ—…gle and maime them that they should bee altogether unâ—…t for warres and serve to no oâ—…her use but to 〈◊〉 and to doe the worke of women 〈◊〉 â—…king of Suâ—…ia made warre upon the king of Norwey and overcame him and tooke from him his kingdome and laying â—…de all modesty let loose the â—…eynes of his intemperat lust and deflowred all the noble women of the kings that hee had taken The yong king of Denmarke raised a power to ayde the Norwegians and to deliver them from so