that he shoulde be good bycause I haue nourysshed hym well and fearynge that he shulde be ylle bycause his mother Faustine hath brought hym vppe wantonly and the yonge man is inclined to yll And as ye se a thynge made by artyfice peryshe and a naturall thynge laste I am in great feare that after my dethe he wyl tourne that waye that his mother hath chylded hym and not as I haue norished hym O how happy were I if I had neuer a childe to leue behinde me to be emperour Then a childe myght be chosen amonge children of good fathers and I shulde not haue ben troubled with him that the goddis haue gyuen me Panutius I demaunde one thynge of the whether thou callest moste fortunate Vaspasian the naturalle father of Domitian or els Nerua the father adoptiue of Traian Vaspasian was good and Nerua verye good Domitian was of all other mooste cruelle and Trayane the myrrour of all clemency Thā regard how Vaspasian in the fortune to haue chyldren was vnhappy and Nerua in the mysfortune to haue chyldren was happy I knowe not why these fathers desyre to haue children sith they ben the occasion of so moche trauayle O Panutius I wyll say one thynge to the as a frende to a frende as thou knowest wel we be in this worlde I haue lyued .lxii. yeres in whiche tyme I haue redde many thinges and haue hard sene desired atteyned possessed suffred and rested moch and nowe at this tyme I must dye and of al thing I shal beare nothing away bycause bothe it and I are nothyng Great besines the hart hath to serche for these goodes and great trauayle to come to them but without comparison the greattest dolour is at the houre of the dethe to depart and leaue them What greatter disease can be to the body than sodaynely to be surprised with ennemies What peryll of the see or losse of frendes can be egall to se a vertuous man drawe to his deathe to leaue the sweate of his face the auctoritie of the empire the honour of his persone the company of his frendes the remedye of his dettours the rewardynge of his seruantes and to leaue it to a chylde that hath not merited it nor hath not the power to wyll to merite it ¶ In the .ix. table of the lawes were these wordis written We cōmaunde and ordeyne that euery father who in the opinion of all men is good shall disheryte his sonne that is yll in euery mans opinion Also euery chylde what soo euer he be that disobeyeth his father or robbeth any temple or hurt any wydowe so that she blede flee fro the battayle or do any treason to a stranger who so euer is found in any of these fyue cases lette hym be banysshed for euer the habitation of Rome and caste out fro the herytage of his father ¶ In good soth this lawe was good and in the tyme of Quintus Cincinate hit was ordeyned and nowe by vs whiche be vnhappy it is cleane lefte and forgotten Panutius without doubte I am wery to speake and also I haue suche an impediment in my stomacke that I wante brethe or elles I coulde shewe the all by order if myne vnderstandynge fayled me not howe manye Parthiens Mediens Assiriens Caldiens Indiens Egypeyens Hebrewes Grekes and Romaynes haue lefte theyr chyldren poore and myght haue left them ryche and all was bycause they were vicious and other chyldren that were very poore were lefte ryche bycause they were good and vertuous I swere to the by the immortall goddes that whan I came fro the warres betwene the Parthiens and Rome and that the triumphe and glorye was gyuen to me and my sonne confirmed to be emperour I wolde the Senate hadde lefte me my sonne Commodus poore with all his vyces and that I hadde made the Senate heire and lorde to the empire and to haue chastised hym to the exaumple of all the worlde I wyll that thou knowe I shall carie fyue thynges with me out of this worlde intermedled the whiche is great sorowe to my harte The fyrste is that I haue not determyned and iudged the ple◠and processe of the noble wydowe Drusia with the Senate seinge that she is very poore and hath noo bodye to doo her Iustyce The seconde is bycause I doo not dye in Rome to the intente that I myghte cause to be cryed and proclaymed euery where in Rome er I dyed to wyte if any complayned on me the thyrde is that where as I dyd slee .xiiii. tyrantes that vndyd the countreye that I hadde not as well banyshed all the Pirates that kepte the sees ▪ the fourth is that I lefte my dere sonne Verissimus deed and the .v. that I haue lefte alyue as heire to the empire my sonne Commodus O Panutius the greattest happe that the goddis can giue to a man not couetous but vertuous is to gyue him renoume in his lyfe a good heire to conserue him after his deathe Fynally to conclude I pray to the goddes if I shall haue any parte with theym that if by my sonnes offences Rome be sclandred and my renoume minished and my hous lost by his life that they wyll take a way his lyfe yet or I dye ¶ What themperour sayde to the maysters of his sonne and to the rulers of thempire Cap. xliii I Se you aunciēt fathers and noble Romayns and ryght faythful seruantes take peyne and sorowe for that I must yelde me to dethe and leaue this lyfe and treate with my sepulchre Ye sorow for my sorowe ye are tourmented with myn anguyshe peyned for my peyne it is no meruaylle For the clere vnderstandynge of the pure blod of true and faythfull frendes is to double theyr trauayles and to wepe for other if one brute beast morne for an other moch more ought one humayne creature to so towe for an other And this I say bycause I know by the teares of your eyes the felynge of your hartes And sythe that the greattest rewarde for any benefite is to knowe it and thanke the patie therof as moche as I can I thanke you And if my weake thankes be not correspondente to your pitiefulle wepynge I require the goddis after they haue taken awaye my lyfe to rewarde you for my duetie It is greate pleasure for the familie to knowe their mayster go with the goddis and great peyne to hym to leaue them For company of many yeres is loth to leaue the life In my lyfe tyme I haue done with you as I ought to do and as nowe I must do as I may The goddis wyll take my sowle away Comodus my sonne the empire the sepulchre my bodye and ye my speciall frendes my harte And sothly it is reason that sith ye were in the lyfe my hartes that it be yours after my deth And in that I wyll speake more particular this nyght shall be our reasonnyng Now my harty frendes ye se that I am come to the ende of my laste
that I shulde say but that one ought to haue enuy of his deth compassioÌ„ of my life bicause in dienge he lyueth in lyuinge I die In yl fortunes in case of lyfe in y e subtyl aduersities of fortune where as her gyles profiteth but lyttell and her strength lesse I thinke the beste remedy is to fele it as a man and dissimule it as discrete and wise If all thynges as they be felte at harte shulde be shewed outwarde with the tonge I thynke that the wyndes shoulde breake the harte with sighinges and water all the erthe with wepynge O if the corporall eies sawe the hurt of the hart with a true wound I swere to the there they shuld se more of a droppe of bloudde sweatynge within thanne all the wepynge that is made out warde There is no comparyson of the great dolours of the bodye to the leest peyne that the spirite feleth For all trauayle of the body menne may fynde some remedy but if the heuy harte speke it is not harde if it wepe it is not sene if it complayne hit is not beleued What shall the poore harte do Abhorre the lyfe wherwith it dieth and desire deth wherwith it liueth The high vertues amonge noble vertuous people consystethe not al only to suffre the passions of the body but also to dissimule them of the sowle They be suche that alter the humours and shewe hit not outwarde They brynge a feuer without alterynge the of poulce They alter the stomake They make vs to knele to the erthe to suffer the water vp to the mouth to take death with out leauynge of the lyfe And fynally they lengthe our lyfe to thentente that we shulde haue the more trauaylle and denyethe vs our sepulture to thentente that we shulde not reste vs. But consideringe If I be troubled with tribulations as well am I lette with consolations For euer I haue either desyre of the one or werynes of the other I take this remedye to dissimule with the tongue and to wepe with the eyes â–ª and to â—ele it with my harte I passe my lyfe as he that hopethe to lese all that he hathe and neuer to recouer that is lost I say this â–ª though ye se me not now make funerall wepynges and waylynges as I dyd at the deth of my sonne yet thynke not but it doth brenne my hart so that with the inwarde greatte heate is consumed the humyditie of the eies outwarde for it brennethe all my spyrites inwarde Thou mayste knowe what an honourable father suffrethe to lese a good chylde In all thynges the goddes be lyberall excepte in gyuynge vs vertuous chyldren Where there is aboundaunce of great estates there is greattest scarsitie of good inheritours It is a great hurte to here and greatter to see howe these fathers clyme to haue ryches and to see their chyldren discende to haue vycyousenes To se the fathers honour theyr chyldren and the chyldren to infame theyr fathers yea and the fathers to gyue rest to theyr chyldren and the children to gyue trouble to their olde fathers yea and sometyme the fathers dye for sorowe that theyr children dye so soone and we se the chyldren wepe bycause theyr fathers dye soo late What shulde I saye more but that the honour and riches that the fathers haue procured with great thought the chyldren lose with lyttell care I am certayne of one thynge that the fathers may gather ryches with strength and crafte to susteyne theyr chyldren but the goddis wyll not haue durable that that is begon with euyll intention and is founded to the preiudice of other and is possessed with an euyll heire And though the heuy destenies of the fader permit that the riches be left to their childreÌ„ to serue them in all their vyces for their pastyme at last according to their merites the goddis wyll that the heire heritage shulde peryshe Marke what I say I hadde two sonnes Comode the prince Verissimus the yonger is dead that was greatest in vertue Alway I imagined that while the good lyued I shuld be pore now that the yl remaineth I thynke to be ryche I shall shewe the why the goddis ar so pitieful that to a pore father they neuer giue yl chyld to a riche father they neuer giue a good child And as in al prosperite alway there falleth some sinister fortune either soone or late so therwith fortune doth arme apparel vs wherin she seeth we shal fal to our greattest hurt And therfore the goddis permit that the couetous faders in gaderyng with great trauayle shuld die with that hurt to leue their riches to their vicious childreÌ„ yll implied I wepe as moch for my child y t the goddis haue left me as for him y t they haue taken fro me For the small estimation of hym y t liueth maketh immortal memory of him y t is deed The yl rest coÌ„uersation of them that liue cause vs to sigh for the company of them that be deed The yll is alwaye desired for his ilnes to be deed the good alway meriteth to haue his deth bewailed I say my frend Catulus I thought to haue lost my wit whaÌ„ I saw my son Verissime dye but I toke comfort ayen for either he of me or I of him must se the ende CoÌ„sidering that the goddis dyd but lend him to me gaue him not how they be inheriters I to haue y e vse of the fruit For al thing is mesured by the iust wyll of the goddes not by our disordinate wyls appetites I thinke whaÌ„ they toke away from me my chylde I restored hym to an other not that they haue taken myn But sith it is the wyll of the goddis to gyue rest to the good childe and hurte the father bycause he is yll I yelde thankes to them for the seasone that they haue suffered me to enioye his lyfe And for the pacyence that I haue taken for his deth I desire them to mytigate therwith the chastisement of their yre And I desyre syth they haue taken away the lyfe from this chylde to cause good customes to be in the prince myne other sonne I knowe what heuynesse thou haste take in Rome for my sorowe I pray to the goddis to sende the ioye of thy chylderne and that I maye rewarde the with some toye for that thou haste wept for my peyne My wife Faustine saluteth the and thou woldest haue coÌ„passyon to se her For she wepeth with her eies and sygheth with her harte and with her handes hurteth her selfe and curseth with her tonge She eateth nothynge on the daye nor slepeth in the nyght She loueth darkenes and abhorreth lyght and therof I haue no meruayle for it is reasone that for that was nourished in her entrayles she shulde fele sorowe in the same And the loue of the mother is soo stronge though her chylde be deed and layde in sepulture yet
to be to passe his lyfe with honour and to take his deth with great vertue Ryght dere lorde I demande of you what prouffyte is it to the maryner to knowe the carde of the see and after to peryshe in a tourment or tempeste What prouffytte is it to a capitayne to speake moche of warre and after knowe not howe to gyue battayle What profyteth it to a knyght to haue a good horse and to falle in the strete What profyteth it one to teache an other the playne waye and hym selfe to wander asyde I saye what profyted it the force of your lyfe that you estemed soo lyttelle manye tymes seekynge your deathe And at this present howre that you haue founde deathe you wepe bycause it wyll take away your lyfe What thynges haue I written with myn owne hande beinge your Secretarye dyuysed by your hyghe and profounde vnderstandynge towchynge the stroke of deathe What thynge was it to se the letter that you sent Claudine vpon the deathe of her husbande what wrote you to Anthygone whan your sonne Verissimus dyed Wherin your vertue dydde consolate his heuynesse What highe thinges dyd I write in the boke that you sent to the Senate in the yere of the great pestylence comfortynge them after the great mortalitie passed therein you dydde shewe theym howe lyttell men shulde sette by deth what profyte foloweth therby And I haue seene and harde you blason dethe in your lyfe and nowe you wepe as thoughe you shulde lyue here styll Syth that the goddis cōmande it and your age requireth it your syckenes is the cause and nature permytteth it and fortune consenteth to it and is the fatall destenie of vs all than you muste nedes dye The trauayles that come of necessitie ought with a good courage to be abyden For the couragious feeleth not soo sore the harde strokes as the weake that falleth or he be foughten with You are but one man and nat two and ye ought to haue oone deathe and nat two Therfore why wolde ye for one lyfe haue two dethes enterrynge the body and sleinge the spirite with syghes After so many perylles of longe lyfe to take a sure porte wyll ye lyfte vp the sayles and entre ageyne into the swolowe of the see for to engloutte you In the see you haue chased the bulle and scaped his woodnes and nowe ye refuse to entre into the parke where you may surely slee hym You make assaute with vyctorie of your life and wyl dye atteynyng the deth you haue foughte .lxii. yeres in the campe of myserie and nowe you feare to entre into your sepulchre you haue got out of the busshes and thornes wherin you were closed and nowe at this howre you stomble in the faire way you haue had in certayne the domage of your death and now ye put in double the profyte of your death you ar entred into the campe of defyenge of the worlde and nowe you wolde tourne your backe whan it is tyme to putte your handes to armes Lxii. yere you haue foughte agaynste fortune and nowe you cloose your eies bycause fortune wyl strike you I say it bycause that willyngly you refuse this present dethe the whiche wyll cause vs to haue your lyfe passed suspect What do you high and mighty prince Why wepe you like a chyld why sigh you as one in dyspaire if you wepe bicause ye shal die why dyd you laugh so moche in your lyfetyme For of moche laughynge in the lyfe tyme cometh moche wepyng at the deth Wyl you do that you can not do and not be content with that you may do The grounde and pasture that is common you wolde ioyne to your owne the renowme of the common welthe you applyed to your owne heritage Of a subsidy or lone you wolde make your perpetuall ryghte I wylle shewe you who be deed All be deed and shall dye And amonge all other you wolde all onely lyue Wyll ye haue that of the goddis that they be goddis for That is bycause you are mortall that they make you immortall And you to haue that by priuilege which they haue by nature I that am but symple demaunde one thynge of you my lorde that are auncient and wyse whiche is the greattest or least welthe to dye well or lyue yll To lyue welle noo man can attayne certainely for hungre thirst solitarines persecution yll fortune sicknesses and disfauours This can be called no lyfe but rather a deth If an ancient man wolde make a shewe and booste of his lyfe from the tyme of his birthe to the layinge in his graue and the bodye to shewe all that it hath suffred by dolours and the harte to discouer all the strokes of fortune I thynke that the goddis wolde haue maruayle therof and men wolde be abashed therof that the body coude suffre soo moche and the harte beare it I holde the grekes wisest whiche wepe whan theyr children are borne and they synge whan an olde man dyeth but the Romaynes synge at the byrthe of theyr chyldren and wepe whan they dye olde Certaynly to laughe at the deth of them that die olde sith they dye to laugh and to wepe at the birth of chyldren sithe they are borne to wepe and that the lyfe abydeth the sentence of yl proueth well that the deathe is good Wyll you that I saye one veritie to you I haue alwayes seene that coūsell in the wysest man sonest faileth him Such as wolde gouerne al thinges by theyr opiniōs of necessitie in some or in the moste parte they do erre and fayle O Marc my dere lorde weene you that haue caused to burye soo many that some shulde not burye you in lykewise As you haue seene the ende of theyr dayes so other shal se the ende of your yeres Therfore me semeth it were better for you to dye and to go your waye to atteyne soo moche welthe than to scape and to lyue in so moche mysery If you fele deathe I haue no meruayle sythe you be a man But I meruayle that you do not dissimule it sythe you are dyscrete They that haue clere vnderstandynge feele many thynges at theyr harte that putteth them to peyne which they shewe not outwarde for the presumption of honour If al the poyson that is in a heuy hart were spred abrode in the weake flesshe by smalle greynes noo walles shulde suffyse vs to rubbe nor our nayles to scratche For certainly the deathe is but a playe wherin the player if he be apt aduentureth but lyttell to wynne moche and they that play may se wel that this is a wyly play and not a strōg And that also as well they lese that haue but a smal card not fearyng dethe as they that with a greatte carde loue long lyfe What thinge is deth but a trappe dore wherin the tent is closed in the whiche is solde all the miseries of our life This the goddis do change vs fro an olde filthy house
Eyther I lye or I haue redde in the lawe of the Rodiens where as it is written We cōmaunde the father in marienge .x. sonnes to trauayle but one day but to mary oone vertuous doughter lette hym trauayle .x. yeres ye suffre the water come to the mouth sweate droppes of bloode trauayle the stomake disherite all his sonnes lose his goodis and aduenture his person These wordes in this law were pitieful for the doughters not lesse greuous to the sonnes For .x. sonnes by y e lawe of men ar bound to discouer to go ouer al the world but y e doughter by y e good law ought not to go out of y e hous I say more ouer that as thinges vnstable threte fallyng so lyke wise it chaunseth to yonge damselles whiche thinketh all theyr tyme loste and superfluous vnto the daye of their mariage Homere sayth it was the custome of ladies of Grece to count the yeres of theyr lyfe not fro the tyme of their byrth but from the tyme of theyr maryage As if one demaunded of a Grecian her age she wolde aunswere xx yeres if it were .xx. yeres sith she was maried though it were .lx. yeres sith she was borne Affirminge after they hadde a house to gouerne and to commande that daye she begynneth to lyue The Melon after it is rype and abydeth styll in the gardeyn can nat scape but eyther rotteth or elles must be gathered I say the mayden that taryethe longe tyll she be maried can not escape eyther to be taken or infamed I will saye no more As soone as the grapes be ripe it behouethe that they be gathered so it is necessary that the woman that is come to perfite age be maried and kept And the father that doth this casteth perill out of his house and bringeth him selfe out of thoughte and contenteth well his doughter ¶ Of a syckenes wherof themperour died of his age and where he dyed cap. xxxix MArcus the Emperour beinge olde not onely by age but by trauaile and great peines that he had taken and suffred in warres In the xviii yere of his empire and .lxii. yere of his age and of the foundation of Rome .vi. C. and .xl. as he was in Panony now called Hungarie with his hoste and Commode his sonne at a citie called Vendebone situate vpon a ryuer that had .iiii. M. fire housis and beinge in wynter and the waters great very weate wether he beinge in the fieldes about the .xxx. day of December sodainly vpon a nyghte as he wente with lanternes about his campe there toke hym a syckenes or palsey in one of his armes so that he coude not weld his speare nor yet drawe his swerde nor put on his owne clothes Than this good emperour charged with yeres and with noo lesse thoughtes and wynter increasynge with manye great snowes and fresynge of the erthe there felle on him an other malady called Lytarge the whiche put the Barbariens in great hardines and his hoste in greatte heuynes his person in peryll and his frendes in great suspect of his helthe There was done to hym all the experience that coude be founde by medicins as vnto great pryncis and lordes is accustomed And all dyd him no profite by reason the maladye was greuous and themperour charged with yeres and the ayre of the lande was contrarye to hym and the tyme helped hym nothynge and also he was not well intended And as men of worshyppe do sette more by theyr honour than by theyr lyues and had rather dye with honour thanne lyue dishonoured to assure their honour they aduenture euery houre their lyues and had leauer haue one houre of honour than a. C. yeres of lyfe So thus this sicke emperour caused him selfe to be borne all about his campe and went to see the scarmyshes and wold slepe in the feldes the which was not without great peryll of his lyfe nor without great trauaylle of his person Thus on a day the emperour beinge in a great feuer and letten bloudde harde a great clamour or noyse in the fielde made by his men that had brought home great quātitie of forage and theyr ennemies sette on theym to rescue it there was medlynge on bothe parties the one to beare away and the other to defende The Romaynes for hungre dyd what they coulde to beare it a waye And the Hungaryens fro whense it came made resystence They medled so one with an other and their debate was soo cruell that there was slayne .v. capitaynes of the Romayns the worst of them was more worthe than all the fourage that they had won And of the Hungariens were so many slayne that all the fourrage that they had loste was not so moche worth Certainly considering the crueltie that was there done the profyte that came therby was very smalle to the Romayns so that there went but a fewe away with the fourage of the Hungariens fewer was lefte to make resistence The emperour seinge the yll order and that by the reason of his bloudde lettynge and feuer he was not present at that acte he toke suche a heuynes at his harte wherby he fell into suche a traunce that it was thought he had ben deade and so he lay .iii. nyghtes and two dayes that he coude se no lyght of the skye nor speake to any persone The heate of his syckenes was greatte and his peynes greatter he dranke moche and eate lyttelle he cowlde not slepe his face was yelowe and his mouthe blacke Somtyme he lyfted vp his eies oftentymes ioyned his handes togyther He spake nothynge and syghed many tymes His throte was soo drie that he coulde not spytte his eies were verye soore with sobbynge and wepynge It was greatte compassion to see his deathe and a greate plage of confusion to his howse and also the very greate losse of his warre There durste no manne looke vppon hym and fewer speake to hym Panutius his Secretarye sorowynge at his harte to see his mayster so nere his dethe on a nyght in the presence of dyuers other that were there he sayd to hym ¶ The wordes of Panutius his secretary to themperour at the houre of his deathe Cap. xl O Marcus mi lorde there is no tongue that can be styll nor any hart suffre nor eies dissimule nor wytte that can permytte it My bloudde congeleth and my sinewes dry the stones openethe and my sowle wolde passe forthe the ioyntes vnioyne asonder and mi spirites are troubled bicause you take not the wyse and sage counsell the whiche ye gaue to other that were symple I see you my lord dye and I oughte for to be soore displeased therwith The sorowe that I fele at my hart is how you haue lyued lyke a wyse persone and at this howre you do lyke a simple man Tenne yere a knight gyueth meate to his hors to thentēt that he shulde kepe him from peryll and all that the wyse man studyeth for a longe season oughte
iourney and to the begynnynge of my firste iourney with the goddis It is reason that syth I haue loued you in time past that ye beleue me nowe For the time is come that ye can demande nothyng of me nor I haue nothing to offre you nor myn eares as now can not here flatteries nor my harte suffre importunities if ye neuer knewe me knowe me now I haue ben he that I am and am he that hath ben in tymes paste lyke vnto you some what nowe ye se I am but lyttell and within a lyttell whyle I shalbe nothynge This daye shall ende the lyfe of Marke your frende this day shall ende the lyfe of Marc your parente this day shal ende the fatal destenies of Marc your lorde this day shal ende the seignory of Marke your emperour and this day shall ende his empire I haue vanquysshed many and nowe I am ouercome with deth I am he that hath caused many to dye and I can not as now gyue my selfe one day of lyfe I am he that hathe entred into chariottes of golde and this day I shall be layde on a biere of wodde I am he for whome many haue songe meryly and this day they wepe I am he that hath had company in all exercites and this day I shall be gyuen to hungrye wormes I am Marcus greatly renoumed that with famous triumph mounted into the high capytolle and this day with forgetfulnes I shall discende into the sepulchre I see nigh with myn eies that was farre hyd in my harte And as the goddis be fauourable to you in this worlde equalle and fauourable to me in an nother worlde as my fleshe neuer toke pleasure to passe this lyfe but my harte was sodaynly taken with the feare of death than take no peyne for me for eyther I muste see the ende of you or you of me I yelde great thankes to the goddis that they take away this olde persone to rest with theym and leaue you yonge for to serue in thempire For there is no comparyson for to speake of dethe to the lyfe nor to eschewe the deathe at the houre therof And yet I wylle not denye but I do feare dethe as a mortal man Whan the lyfe passeth there is no prudence in a prudente nor vertue in a vertuous nor lordshyp in a lorde that can take away the feare of the spirite nor peyne of the flesshe Atte this tyme the sowle and the fleshe are so combyned and so conglutinate togyther and the spirite with the bloude are soo annexed that the separation of the one from the other is the mooste terrible and the last terrible of all terriblenes Certaynly it accordeth vnto good reason that the sowle departe dolorously leauyng the fleshe vnto wormes and the bodye as enuious to se the sowle go and sporte with the goddis O what lyttell thoughte we take in this lyfe vntylle we falle grouelynge with oure eies vppon deathe Beleue me Sythe I haue passed from whens ye be and haue experimented that ye doo se that is the vanities of vs that are vayne is so agreable to vs that whanne we begynne to lyue we ymagyne that our lyfe wylle endure a holle worlde and whanne it is ended it seemeth vs to be but a puffe or a blaste of wynde And bycause than sensualitie peyneth for sensibilitie and the flesshe for the flesshe reason guyded with them that be mortall tellethe me that it peyneth not with the departynge If I haue lyued as a bruetbeast it is reason that I dye as a discrete man ought to do I dyenge this day shal dye all my sickenes hungre shal dye colde shal dye al my peynes shal die my thought shall dye my displeasure shall dye and euery thynge that gyueth peyne and sorowe This day the nyght shall be taken away and the sonne shyne bryghte in the skye This daye the ruste shall be takem from myne eies and I shall see the sonne clerely This daye the waye shall be made smothe for to goo righte this is the daye shall ende the iourney wherin I shall not drede the stayes of Fortune I thanke the goddes immortall that haue suffered me to lyue so clerely and soo longe a tyme. This daye I shall haue an ende of al vnhappy destenes of enuyous fortune and not they of me Of trouthe if the goddis haue commaunded my flesshe to be hydden in the sepulchre and to be as mortalle yet if they be iuste and doo well they wyll make my renoume to be immortall bycause I haue lyued well Than sith I change this wery lyfe and company of menne for the swetenes of the goddis and the doubtes of fortune for this sure lyfe and greate and continuall feare for perpetuall peace and this ylle and naughty corrupte lyfe for good renoume and glorye I thynke veryly this shuld be none yll change ¶ It is nowe thre score and two yeres sythe the erthe hath susteyned and fedde the erthe of my bodye It is nowe tyme that the erthe knowledge me for her sonne and I wyl also take her for my mother Verely it is a pitiful mother that wylle nowe take me in to her entrayles for euer sythe that I haue soo longe space troden her vnder my feete And yet thoughe that I were as I am for to be as she is I am in certayne that she wolde kepe me surer amonge her wormes than Rome amonge the Senatours And all though it be peynefulle to you if it plese the goddes to haue it thus no mā can excuse nor scape it I shuld be right well eased if this webbe were broken and my possession taken in the Sepulcre Than shulde I haue the fyrst thyng propre of myn owne and perpetuall without any feare of lesynge therof All thynges mortal that mortalle folkes haue and the enuye of them that be enuious maye be broken except the deth and the sepulcre the whiche are priuileged from enraged hongre of enuy I se you wel shedynge teres from your eies and reise heuy sighes frome the depenes of your hartes Wylle ye not that I shulde desyre deathe sith the phisitions gyue me but thre houres of lyfe and there are conteyned in me .iii. M. yeres of peynes the length wherof is a cyronisme of deathe And all though our debilite be weake yet for all that our honour is so sensible that at the houre of deathe the more that the bones dischargeth them of the fleshe the more is the hart charged with thoughtes In manner that whan the sinewes vntie them from the bones of the bodye than newely they tye agayne a soore knotte to the herte Nowe let vs leaue speakyng of that that to wchethe particularly my selfe and speake we in generall of it that is conuenyente to a yonge Prynce and to you that are his tutours and maysters ¶ Ye se here my sonne Comodus only prince and heire abydynge for the heritage of thempire neyther for beynge good that he meriteth praise nor for being
I haue done in my lyfe For otherwise their conuersation shulde be fekyll to the people and importunate to the. Also I cōmit to the Lipula thy sister that is amōge the virgins Vestales Thinke that she is doughter of thy mother Faustin whiche I haue greatly loued in my lyfe vnto the houre of my death I haue lamented hers Euery yere I gaue to thy sister .ii. M. sexters for her necessities she had ben as well maried as the other yf she had not be brent in the vysage whiche was estemed of euery man an yl aduenture and specially of her moder that wept alway for her But I esteme that yll aduenture a good fortune For if she had not ben brent in the face with fire she had in the worlde as touchyng her renome be brent with diuers tonges Son I swere to the that for the seruice of the goddes the fame of men she is more surer with the virgins in the temple than though she were in the senate with the senatours I deme that at the ende of the iourney she shal finde her self better at ease closed and locked in than thou with all thy libertie In the prouynce of Lucany I haue lefte for her the .ii. M. sexters I wyll not that thou take them fro her Also I cōmytte Drusia the wyddowe to the which hath layd a great proces against the senate bycause y t by motions afore passed her husbande was banished I haue great compassion of her for it is thre monthes sythe she put in her demande and bycause of my great warres I coude not declare her iustyce Sonne thou shalte fynde it trewe that in .xxxv. yere that I haue gouerned Rome there was neuer wydow that helde her processe before me passynge .viii. dayes Take compassion of suche For womennes necessities are right peryllous and at the laste yf their besynes be longe in hande they recouer not so moche of theyr goodes as they lese in their renowme Also haue compassyon of poore men and the goddis shall rewarde the with great ryches Also I commytte to the my auncient seruantes to whom my longe yeres and cruel warres my often necessities the displeasure of my bodye and my longe syckenesses hath ben right paynefull For they as true seruantes to gyue me lyfe haue taken peyn vnto the deth It is reason that syth I haue taken their deth that they inherite parte of my lyfe One thing I holde for certayne In case that my bodye abyde in the sepulchre with wormes yet I shall alwayes before the goddis haue remembraunce of them In this doinge thou shalt do as a good chylde to satisfie them that haue serued thy father Take hede my son euery prince doinge Iustice acquireth ennemies in the execution therof And this is done by thē that are mooste nere to hym For the more priuie they are with the prince the more hatefull they are to the people And though euery mā loueth Iustice in generall yet they all hate the execution therof in particular Whan a iuste prince is deade the people take vengeance of the vniuste seruantes Whan thou were a chylde my seruantis noryshed the to the entent that thou shuldest susteyne them in their age Surely it were great shame to the empire an offence to the goddis an iniurie to me and an vngentylnes of the ▪ that thou hast foūde them .xviii. yeres with their armes abrode to halse the that they shulde finde one day thy gates shet ageinst them These thinges I cōmit to the particularly kepe them alway in memory And sith I remembre them at my deth cōsider how I loued them in my life ¶ Of the last wordes that themperour spake to his sonne and of a table that he gaue hym Cap. xlviii WHan the emperour had ended his said recommendations the daye began to sprynge and his eye stringes began to breke and his tonge faultred and his handes shoke Than the said happy emperour felynge that weakenes began sore to drawe aboute his harte he commaunded Panutius to go into his study and to brynge to hym a coffre that was there And whan it was brought to his presence he opened it and toke out a table of thre fote broode and two fote longe it was of wood Lybanus rounde about garnished with vnycorne It was closed with two leaues subtylly wroughte of a red wood that some sayde was of the tree that the Phenyx bredeth in and is called Rasyn And as there is but one byrde Phenix bredyng in Arabie so lykewise there is no mo trees in the worlde of the same kynde On one of the outwarde parties of the table was pyctured grauen the god Iupiter on the other the goddesse Venus In the inwarde partyes of the Table that shette was pictured god Mars and the goddesse Ceres In the principall of the sayd table was pyctured a Bulle subtylly wrought to the quycke and vnder that a kynge was pyctured The whiche payntures were sayde to be of the handy warke of the expert Appelles an ancient worke man in payntynge Than the emperour toke the table in his hande and with great peyne he sayd Thou seest my sonne Comodus how I am al redy scaped from the trappes of fortune and am enterynge into the heuy aduentures of dethe I wote not why the goddis haue created vs syth there is so great annoyance in our lyfe so great perylle at our deathe I vnderstande not why the goddis haue and vse so great crueltie to the creatures Lxii. yere I haue sayled with great trauayle through the great perylles of this lyfe and at this howre I am commaunded to take lande and discharge me of my flesshe and to take erthe in the sepulchre Nowe vntyeth the lyuely thredes nowe vndothe the spyndel nowe ryueth the webbe nowe endeth my lyfe Nowe am I awaked from the slepynge euyll remembrynge howe I haue passed my lyfe I haue no more desyre to lyue And in that I knowe not whyche way to go I refuse dethe What shall I do I am determyned to put me into the handes of the goddis wyllyngly sythe I muste do so of necessitie Whome I require yf they haue created me for any goodnes not to depriue me fro them for my demerytes I am nowe in the laste gate and to this howre I haue kepte the greattest and most excellent iewell that I coude fynde in all my lyfe In the .x. yere of myn empire there arose a warre agaynst the Parthes wherfore I determyned in myne own person to giue theym battayle After that warre I came by the auncient citie of Thebes for to see somme antiquitie Amonge the whiche in a pristes howse I founde this table the whiche as a kynge was reysed in Egypte incontynente it was euer hanged at his beddes heed and this priest shewed me that it was made by a kynge in Egipte named Ptholome Arsacides that was a vertuous prince And in the memorie of him and example of other the priestes kepte it
passeth in my thoughte than the shorte clothe doothe in a false weuers handes Ye haue strayned it on the tentours and drawen it on the perche for to to lengthen the lyfe If ye were made faire and clere cordwainers waxe and swete of sauour that ye myghte be drawen out at lengthe hit were welle doone but ye are but as fruyte of almondes semynge drie without and worme eaten within For the loue that I haue to you and for neyghbourheed that ye haue had with me I desire styll frendshyppe of you that lyke as I knewe you yonge and very yonge so to knowe you olde and very olde I say not that ye surmoūt in age but your wytte fayleth you O Claudius and Claudine I wylle ye knowe that to susteyne youthe and to deface age to length the lyfe and driue awaye dethe it is not in mennes handes that desyre hit it is the goddis that doo gyue it whiche accordinge to iustyce and our couetyse giueth vs lyfe by weighte and deathe without measure Ye may know that our nature is corruption of our body and our bodye is putrifaction of our wytte and our wytte is guyde to our soule and our soule is mother of our desyres and our desires are sleers of our youthe our youth token of our age and our age spye of our dethe and dethe the house of our lyfe wherinto youthe gothe on fote and from age we canne not flee on hors backe I wolde wyte a thinge of you what fynde ye in this lyfe wherfore dothe lyfe content you after .lxxx. yeres of age eyther ye haue ben good or yl if ye haue bene good and vertuous ye shal not reioyce you with yll goddis if ye haue benne yll ▪ than as well desire dethe to thentente ye shulde be no more yll orels iustly ye might be slayn by iustice For he y t hath ben yll tyll .lx. yeres of age in him there is no hope of amendmente Whan the couragious great Pompeie and Caius Cesar were ennemies and beinge in cruell ciuil battailes Rome was infamed and them self lost The annales shew that suche as came in fauour of Iulius Cesar cam out of the west and the succours of Pompeie out of the easte among other there came certayne people out of Barbarie dwellyng amonge the mountayns Riffees toward Inde Their custome was whan they came to thage of .l. yeres to make great fyres and brenne them selfe quicke in sacrifyce to theyr goddis and the same daye the parentes and chyldren wolde make great feastes and eate of the flesshe halfe brente and drynke wyne with the ashes of the bones This was sene with the eies of Pompei bicause that som accomplyshed the yeres of fyftye in the campe O golden worlde wherin were suche men O happy people that in all the worldes to come hath left such a memorie of them They dispised the worlde and forgatte them selfe What strokes gaue they to fortune What delytes for the fleshe and howe lyttell sette they by theyr lyues and yet more to set so small store by deathe O what bridel was this for the vicious and what hope for the vertuous what confusion for them that loued this lyfe and what ensaumple not to feare dethe haue they left vs And sith they dispised their owne propre lyfe it is then to be thoughte that they dyed not to thentent to take other mens goodes to thynke that our lyfe neuer shall haue ende therfore our couetyse neuer hath ende O glorious people and .x. M. tymes blessed that lefte theyr sensualitie and vanquyshed theyr natural wyll beleue not that ye se but gyue faythe to that ye neuer sawe as they that se nothyng go agaynst the fatal destenies who goethe agaynste the waye of fortune gyue a wrynche to the lyfe robbe the body at the dethe wynne honour of the goddis not that they shulde length your lyfe but to take the reste of the lyfe Archagatus surgien and Anthonius the phisitien and Esculapius the father of medicines I thynke wanne but lyttell in that lande Who commaunded these Barbariens to take sirope in the mornyng and to take pylles at night and to refreshe them with mylke to take clere barly to annoynt theyr lyuers to daye to be lette blode and to morowe to take a purgation to eate one thing and to absteyn fro many thinges Than me thinke that they beynge of .l. yere of aege and you of lxxx at the leaste shulde be egall with them in wysedome And if ye wyll not take deth in good worth yet at the leest amende the yll lyfe I remembre well of a long tyme that Fabricius our neybour wylled vs to beware of a mockerie the whiche if it be not broken there shall folowe great dysshonour And sith he shewed me soo good a lesson I wyll paye you with the same money I wyll shewe it you if ye poore aged folkes doo not knowe it ye be suche that your eyes are bleared your noses droppynge your heares whyte your herynge dulle your tongue faulterynge your tethe waggynge your face wrincled your fete swollen your shuldres croked and your stomake distempered finally if the graues coude speake they myght ryghtfully calle for you to come and inhabite in them Of trouthe it is great compassion to beholde yonge ignoraunce that open theyr eies to knowe the infortunes of this lyfe whan it is tyme to close them and to entre into the graue And therof cometh that it is in vayne to giue counsaile to vain yong peple For youth is without experiēce of that it doth is suspect of that it hereth wyl not beleue that is said and disprayseth other mens coūsel is ryght pore of their owne And therfore I saye Claudius and Claudyne my frendes I fynde without comparison none so ylle an ignorance of goodnes that holdethe these yonge personnes as is the obstinacy of these aged personnes in yll The diffinition of yll is a manne not to knowe that he oughte to knowe yet it is wors to haue the knowlege of wysedome and to lyue lyke a brute beaste O ye olde goutye people ye forgette your selfe and renne in poste after the lyfe and ye neuer regarde whatte shall falle tyll ye be suche as ye wolde not and without power to retourne backe herof cometh that ye lacke of lyfe ye wyll supplye it with foly Than awake ye that be slombringe haue no force to slepe open your slepy eies and accustome you to do well Take that is nedeful for you and fynally appoynt you betimes with dethe or he make execution of your lyfe Lii yeres I haue knowen them of the worlde yet I could neuer know none so olde nor so putrifyed in their membres but that their hartes were hole to thynke vnhappynesse and their tongues hole to make lyes Take hede ye poore olde persons me thynke syth somer is paste ye haste forward with the tyme and if ye tary a small season yet ye make haaste to take lodgynge