trust nor trueth at al and all this mischiefe happeneth on the one syde for that iniuries are offered to them that haue not deserued on the other for that benefites are bestowed vppon the vnwoorthy so that the whole course of thyngs beyng confounded through disorder enimies are made friendes and Citizens are made enimies Ioy. I am the Tyrant of my countrey Reason Couldest thou fynde in thy hart to be so yf thou remembredst that it were thyne owne countrey If the representation of your common mother came into thy mynde thou wouldest neuer in suche sort teare thy brethren with whom thou hast been brought vp in thy chyldehood and also in ryper yeeres hast enioyed the same ayre the same waters the same religion the same holydayes the same playes and delightes with what mynde canst thou insult and reignâ—â—ouer them and reioyce when they weepe Lastly with what impudencie â—â—ooest thou lyue in that Citie wherein thou knowest thy lyfe to he hated of all men thy death wyshed of all sortes where thou art assured there is none that woulde not haue thee destroyed as a most cruell Wolfe in a gentle flocke Ioy. I haue vndertaken a Tyrrannie Reason If thou compare the present tyme with the tyme past thou shalt perceyue howe miserable a clogge thou hast layd vpon thy shoulders thou lyuedst somtime a safe quiet life but now henceforward vnlesse thou ioyne madnesse to mischiefe thou shalt passe no day nor nyght without feare and trouble of minde eate no meate without suspition take no sleepe without dread whyle thou beholdest on euerie side the swoord hanging ouer thy head which Dionysius is reported not vnfitly to haue shewed vnto a certaine friend of his that wondred at his wealth and aucthoritie who was a tyrant in deede but a most graue considerer of the state of tyrranny Ioy. I haue purchased a tyranny by the swoorde Reason If thou haue gotten it by the swoorde thou must keepe it by the swoord and perhaps loose it by the swoord Thou hast wonne woorthy ryches in deede to be odious and fearefull vnto all men and that whiche foloweth therof to be continually a feareful burden to thy selfe But to admit there were no danger which in some Cities and countreys the nature of the people beareth sufficiently beyng apt to seruilitie and obedience yet when beyng out of feare and danger thou shalt call to mynde what Laberius a Knyght of Rome sayde vnto hym that was the fyrst founder of this whiche nowe hath the name of a iust Empire Needes sayth he must he feare many of whom many stande in feare The reason of which saying is that whiche Ouid aleageth For euerie man wisheth him dead whom he feareth which was first alleaged by Ennius where he sayth They hate whom they feare eche man wysheth hym dead whom he feareth But yf all feare and danger doo ceasse whiche hath happened vnto some Tyrantes theyr boldnesse beyng nooryshed by publique calamities or the experimented dastardes of theyr Citizens yet is it not a shame for thee to gouerne those vnto whom it were more meete thou were theyr vnderlyng besydes thy iniurious force which is the worst thyng of alâ—â— â–ª Ioy. I haue put on a tyrranny Reason Thou hast put of all humanitie and iustice and chosen a troublesome and blooddy lyfe or els truely a doubtful death Vnhappy man whose death only thy countrey which hare thee and brought thee vp dooeth continually hope for Is not he in sufficient wofull case whom al men would haue to be in woful case And is not he most wretched who cannot possible be so wretched but is worthy to be more wretched Ioy. I possesse the chiefest place among my Citizens Reason Thou possessest a tyrranny ouer thy Citizens thou hast placed thyne house vpon sande thy bed in the bryers thy seate vpon a downefal thy pouertie in rapynes and thyne enuie in miseries Of a Kyngdome and Empire The .xcvi. Dialogue IOY BEholde I am a Kyng by right Reason That cannot be long vnknowne for what the difference is betweene a Kyng and a Tirant I haue declared alredy And what auayleth it for thee to be called a Kyng yf thou be a Tirant The safetie of a King and kingdome consisteth not in a glorious name but in true iustice I deeme it lesse euyl for thee to refourme the gouernment that thou hast gotten and afterward so to behaue thy selfe that thou maiest appeare to be a true King then by tyrannical vexation to spoyle the kyngdome wherunto thou commest by right wherin thou lawfully succeedest thy father for there belongeth more true prayse vnto the proceedyng and end then to the begynning of thynges Ioy. I am a kyng Reason It were better and more quiet to lyue vnder a good King then to be a King thy selfe Ioy. I haue ascended into the Regal seate of the kyngdome Reason A conspicuous place and obiect vnto al mens eyes and therfore dangerous for slouthfulnes and paynful and difficult for vertue For a good Kyng is a publique seruant Ioy. I am aduaunced to the Regal throne of a kyngdome Reason To the end thou mayest seeme woorthy forget thy selfe and thyne owne affayres thynke vpon thy people and the commom wealth the day fyrst that thou wast made a Kyng thou beganst to dye to thy selfe and to lyue for other and which is the hardest case of al for vnthankful and vniust considerers of thy trauayle Ioy. I am come to a kyngdome Reason Perhaps thou mayest get there some transitorie glory but no quietnesse at all Ioy. I reigne vprightly Reason Thou doest well and a most acceptable thing vnto god And knowe this that thou seruest suche as are alwayes repynyng and ful of complayntes and that wyll scarce geue thee thankes before thy death There is seldome any Kyng so good but the people loue hym better that shall succeede who when he is come the other is wyshed for agayne These are the manners of the common people to hate the thynges that are present to desyre the thynges that are to come and to prayse the thynges that are past Howe then should complayntes ceasse yf euery good thyng that is present doo stynke and nothyng pleaseth but that whiche grieueth whether it be alredy past or hoped for Ioy. I haue gotten the Scepter and Diademe Reason Gloryous fetters and a noble miserie which yf all men throughly knewe trust me two woulde not so often stryue for one seate but there would be more kyngdomes then Kynges Ioy. I weare the princely robes Reason It is not the outward apparrel but the inwarde furniture and princely mynde that maketh a Kyng Alexander the Emperour of Rome was woont to say that Empyre and gouerment consisted in vertue and not in sumptuousnesse Ioy. I am aduaunced to a kyngdome Reason Now is the state of the subiectes vncertayne whether they be happie in that kind of happines which is imagined to be heare or in miserie For a vertuous king is the felicitie of a transitorie kingdome
to say as it was a poore people But Nero beyng drowned in lasciuiousnesse and reproches was not able to measure or reckon his goodes But Varius Heliogabalus the most effeminate and fylthy beast that euer lyued and the shame of your Empyre a shameful thyng to speake or heare woulde vouchsafe to haue the loathsome orduâ—â— and burden of his belly to be receyued into none other vessell then of golde a thyng not to be ouerslypped yf it were but to set foorth the irkesome and outragious desire of mortall men When as he well remembred that not only the meales and dayly dyet of suche men as the aboue named are but also the sacrifices of the Gods were woont to be serued and celebrated in earthen vesselles O miserable Citie in continuaunce of tyme by destiny fallen vnto so fylthy handes But rather O golde the extreame desire of couetousnesse O hope that art the last and ende of humane trauayles thou that art the woonder vnto eyes and the amazyng vnto myndes to what vses wast thou conuerted I woulde commend the deede or at leastwyse not reprooue it for that there is no mockerie more meete for so shameful errour of man yf so be it hadde proceeded from a man of sounde iudgement and perfect reason but now who dareth deny but that goodes are excellent and to be wished which men doo in suche sort seeke after with swoorde and wickednesse whyle neglectyng the best they abounde with the worst Sorow I passe foorth a poore life in trauel Reason Cleantes was constrayned by neede to drawe water to water hearbes in a garden withal and Plautus to lift vp sackes corne vpon a hand querne How great a Philosopher was the one and the other a Poet and againe how poore a gardiner was the first and the other a baker Who both after their woorke was doone the residue of the night wherein they should haue taken their rest suche was the courage of theyr mynde the one applyed his tyme vnto the studie of Philosophie the other to the wrytyng of Commedies that he myght sell them for money Lactancius Firmianus a man of great learning and rare eloquence among his compeeres beeyng also schoolemaister vnto the sonne of a great Prince led his lyfe in great pouertie of all thynges yea of common necessaries Horace was borne poore Pacunius lyued poorely Statius was poore both of them solde theyr Comedies and thereby gotte theyr lyuyng To be short Virgill also was sometyme a poore man vntyll contrary to the common custome ryches hapned vnto his wit. There be many such examples in al degrees of men and I omit these because there are very many who for the desire they hadde vnto heauenly ryches haue not only with indifferent myndes but gladly and wyllyngly chosen not only pouertie but also hunger thyrste nakednesse and all kyndes of miseries vppon the earth If that by these as it were humble and earthly examples thou art not mooued the Lorde of heauen hym selfe was here in poore estate that he myght teache by his example that this pouertie is the way whereby men attayne vnto great ryches He I say by whom Kynges doo reigne was borne in pouertie lyued in pouertie dyed naked whom in the meane whyle al the Elementes obeyed and thou sellie wretche doest grieuously beare the state of thy Lorde and maister and art not ashamed of thy foolyshe insolencie Certaynely who so thynkyng on hym shall arme hym selfe with vertue being very riche in pouertie and needyng nothyng wyll not desyre a Kynges riches Sorowe I haue no store of riches Reason As no riches are sufficient for a needie and base mynde so vnto a ryche and franke courage no pouertie commeth amisse as for the first he leaneth vnto that whiche is anothers but he of whom I spake last trusteth vnto his owne to builde vppon another mans grounde is a losse but to builde vppon his owne is a vantage Sorowe I am very poore Reason If thou obey necessities thou canst neuer be poore but if thou be subiect to lustes thou shalt neuer be riche Sorowe Hytherto I haue ben poore yea I am a very begger Reason Mens fortune and state dooth not continue for as from great riches vnto extreame pouertie so from extreame pouertie vnto great ryches there is often exchange I suppose thou hast read in Quintus Curtius the Historian how one called Abdolominus at the commaundement or rather permission of Kyng Alexander from a poore gardyner was aduaunced vnto the kingdome of Sidon and by contemning the kingdome is reputed greater then the kyngdome Truely whiche thou canst not choose but haue read Romulus from a shepheards cottage becomming the founder of so great a citie was the first that tooke vppon hym the Romane Crowne and the sixt Kyng ascended vnto the Kingly dignitie from a very base and as some haue thought from a seruyle degree neither more wealthie was the rising of Alexander sonne to King Priamus nor of Cyrus the most famous of al the Persian Kinges neyther were their beginnings much other then was that of Romulus Gaius Marius who had ben and shoulde haue been often Consull of Rome before he atteyned vnto any of these degrees of honour being an hyrelyng ploughman spent the first yeeres of his lyfe in the fieldes and at length after so many victories and triumphes and betweene those seuen times that he was Conâ—ul besides his hydyng of him selfe in the Fennes and his imprisonment he begged also a litle peece of bread Iulius Caesar that shoulde afterwarde be Lorde of all the worlde and by his Testament dispose it vnto his heyres that shoulde be Lordes of al the worlde after hym was poore when he was a young man Thou hauyng the company and felowship of suche woorthie men canst thou not eyther hope for ryches or contemne them Sorowe I am waxen poorer then I was Reason It is well thou shalt also be more humble light and at libertie then thou wast They that goe on a daungerous iourney loue to goe lyght Thou shalt want thine accustomed ryches and thy Myse and thy Theeues and thy stubberne Seruauntes and all other thynges that folowe wealth feygned friendes folowyng and catchyng Parasites and all the whole housholde flocke of those that wyll laugh with thee to thy face but wyll mocke and byte thee behynde thy backe To be short yf thou compare thy lost ryches with the troubles that thou hast lost also with them thou wylt call it agayne Surely to speake nothyng of securitie humilitie sobrietie quietnesse modestie whiche are the companions of pouertie yf she brought none other commoditie with her then that she deliuereth a man from the troupes of deceiptful flatterers and from the tyrranny of proude seruantes there were cause sufficient not only to suffer her but also to wyshe for her yea to seeke after pouertie But let this suffise thee for thou complaynest more then neede is whereat I woulde woonder in thee vnlesse I had obserued it of long tyme in
thou art dryuen from that from whiche thou must needes depart and that which wyllingly thou shouldest doo thou art enforced to do That force whiche should be wyshed is not to be lamented For who can eyther wyshe to be aboue men as a kyng or myslyke that he is made equal to others as a man If it be a goodly thing and to be wyshed to excell then to excell in the moste goodlye thyng of all is exceedingly to be desired Wherefore to be free from all lawes and controlment to excell in outwarde glory to haue abundance of golde and precious stones is to be a kyng but vertue is the thing whiche maketh the prince and this wyl any wordlyng easily confesse For who seeth not that among men superioritie is due vnto humanitie not vnto riches whiche onely make a ryche man they cannot make a man ciuile and so not better for vertue neyther hygher for aucthoritie But this among other of your errours aryseth from the desire of excellencie whiche being contented with it owne place ye seeke where it is not not beholdyng the true euent of thynges and causes For as among ryche men the rychest among strong men the strongest the fayrest among the fayre among orators the most eloquent so certaynely among men the most humane doth excel other Sorow I am fallen from the seate of royaltie Reason If thou dyddest fall without hurte it is very woonderful For commonly they whiche so fal leese kingdome and soule togeather But if thy soule be safe mislike not if thou be wise thine exchange For more quiet and plesaunt is thy life nowe then it was then And that knewe they full wel which not constrained but voluntarilie forsooke their Empire left their dignitie of Popedome which some haue supposed to be aboue all other earthly dignities among whom Diocletian is most famous who being called agayne to the Empire whiche of his owne accorde he had forsaken contemned the wealth of the world and the slippery place of principalitie so greedyly sought after and dearely bought with the blooddy murderyng of many he abhorred preferring his pryuate lyfe before the royaltie of prynces and the base fruite of his owne poore garden planted with his owne handes before the delicious fare of the courte Sorowe I am thrust out of my princely pallace Reason Contente thy selfe many secrete dangers thou hast escaped among whiche erewhyle thou were helde captyue with strong though golden and sure though glorious fetters and couldest not beholde thy miserie beyng blynded in mynde but nowe through lyght of wysedome mayest perceyue the subtile place of inconstant fortune And what couetous carle is he that would not choose a poore soundnes of the most noble sense rather then a rich blindenes But no lesse noble yea without comparison more noble is the sight of the minde then that of the bodie reioyce therefore that with a litle losse of a transitorie kyngdome thou hast attayned for a smal price a great thing yea not one thing onely for not onely blyndnesse is departed from thee with thy kyngdome but also thy libertie restoared and thou thy selfe discharged of thy publique function Sorowe I am put from my royaltie Reason Credite them whiche haue experience the royal robes crowne and scepter are most heauie thinges beyng lyghtened of so mightie and manifolde a burden ceasse to complayne Sorowe I haue lost my kyngdome Reason Nay thou hast escaped and swymming away naked hast saued thy selfe from drownyng suche men shoulde ceasse complaining and beyng restoared to the land ought to perfourme the vowes that they haue made Sorowe I haue lost the happynesse of a kyngdome Reason If thou call it eyther a miserable happinesse or an happie miserie a false felicitie or a true miserie I confesse thou hast done so Sorowe I haue lost my kyngdome my aucthoritie my welth and al togeather Reason Thou oughtest rather to reioyce thereat for they woulde haue bereaued thee of al â—oy and destroyed thee Sorowe I lacke princely aucthoritie Reason So doest thou the cares and troubles incident vnto kynges through the hatred and weerysomnes wherof some woulde haue departed from their thrones as Augustus though modestie and Nero through feare others dyd forsake them as euen nowe I sayde They whiche cannot wyllyngly as the affections of many are stiffe and wyl not be bridled when they must forceablie do so ought greatly to thanke both God and man bringing them to that estate whiche exceedingly they shoulde wyshe and desire The first wishe of a good minde shoulde be wyllyngly to embrace wyse counsell the seconde to doo so though constrainedly That full wel knewe the myghtie kyng of Siria Antiochus who beyng spoyled of al Asia beyonde the mountayne Taurus sent great thankes vnto the senate and people of Rome because they had vnburdened hym of an ouer great charge and brought hym to a meane estate Pleasantly truely though but from the teeth forward but yf from the hart prudently and grauely was it spoken Sorowe I am come downe from my kyngly throne Reason I sayde it was the poynt of a shamelesse pride I wyll now adde the part of wretchlesse madnesse to forget our estate to loath that we are to long to be suche as we can neuer be All men cannot be Kinges let it suffise that we are men They that greedyly embrace their kingdomes doo loath their owne humane estate and woulde be counted as they are not as it shoulde seeme whiche so desyre their earthly kingdomes Quiet your selues ye wretches let them thynke them selues in good case whiche haue lefte of to be Kinges For as the state of all men is hard so most miserable is the condition of Kinges their innocent life to labour their wicked to infamie ech to daunger is subiect turne they how they wyll they shall fynde extremities to ouerwhelme them and shypwrackes of theyr substaunce To escape these thynges thou iudgest it a misfortune but sure neuer came suche good lucke vnto thee as when thou wast most vnluckie in thyne owne iudgement Sorowe It greeneth mee that another hath my kyngdome Reason It was not thyne truely but Gods and yf he gaue it why eyther may he not yf he wyl take it away or can he not yf he please geue it vnto another But besydes the wyl of the bestower whiche alone may suffise consyder whether in thy selfe there were not causes why thou were berefte thereof as those whiche a certayne wyse man doth expresse saying A Kingdome is transported from one nation to another through vniust dealyng and iniuryng and reprochfull woordes and diuers double dealynges Sorowe I am no more a King. Reason Nowe art thou a man For suche is the pride of Princes that they blush to be called men whiche our Sauiour was not ashamed of Of Treason The Lxxx. Dialogue SOROWE MY freendes haue betrayed me Reason Nay thyne enimies I trowe For if they had been freendes they had neuer betrayed thee Sorow My very familiers haue betrayed me Reason The name of
swelleth the people are astunned his kinsfolk and friendes reioyce at hym He beyng wylled getteth vp into the pulpit ouerloking al from an high confusedly murmureth I can not tel what Then the elder sort of Strines extol him with praise to heauen as one that hath spoken like a god In the meane whyle the belles iangle the trumpets rattle rings flye about kysses are geuen and a peece of a blacke round cloath is hung on his shoulders When this is done the wise man commeth downe that went vp a foole A straunge Metamorphosis which Ouid neuer knew Thus are wyse men made now a dayes but a wise man in deede is made otherwyse Ioy. I am wyse Reason They that thynke very magnificently of themselues boldly do attempt thynges aboue theyr power and faylyng in the myddes of theyr indeuour do learne by their owne peryl or shame howe partial iudges they haue ben in theyr owne causes It were better beleeue me to reiect false opinions to behold a mans owne insolencie to wishe that thou neuer haue occasion to trie thy wisdome which may declare how that thou hast gloryed in nothyng This is a more direct safe meanes to seeke wisedome Ioy. I thinke that I haue atteyned to wisedome Reason But if thou wilt hearken vnto me thou shalt sooner atteyne therunto by rysing vp indeuouryng then by beleeuyng There is nothyng that ryseth higher then painful humilitie Of Religion The .xiii. Dialogue IOY I Glory in my perfect religion Reason There is but one most excellent and perfect religion whiche is established vpon the name of Christ and vpon that most assured rocke al other are vayne superstitions and goinges out of the right way and errours whiche â—eade vnto hel and death not this which is transitorie but the euerlastyng Howe many and what notable men thynkest thou haue suffered this miserable want of true religion who in al other thynges haue excelled the residue They haue cause to lament eternally and thou wheâ—â—â—â— to glory and reioyce not in thy selfe but in hym who hath vouchsafed to preferre thee in so great a matter before those that were far greater then thou then whiche thyng there can no greater nor better be geuen vnto thee in this lyfe Of whiche I would not sticke to speake somewhat more at large vnlesse it were now by heauenly illumination almost knowne to al. Ioy. I am entred into holy religion Reason Holy orders and ceremonies belong only to this religion and of all other they are madnesse and sacrilegious superstitions neyther is it sufficient to be entred Perhaps it is a greater matter then thou thynkest for although it be a pleasant trauayle to a deuout mynd neyther is it yenough to know God which the deuyls doo that hate hym Loue and worshypping are required whiche consist of those thynges whiche I woulde were by men sâ— well fulfylled as they are knowne Ioy. I please my selfe in my true religion Reason To please a mans selfe is to be proude As for this true religion which tyeth thee vnto God GOD vnto thee it engraffeth humilitie in godly mynds and rooteth out pryde In this maner therfore it is lawful for thee to reioyce that by how much the more mery and religious thou art by so much the better thou art more abounding in good workes geuing thanks vnto him who sheweth thee a direct path from this mortal life vnto the life euerlasting Ioy. I thanke God for it I haue obteyned true religion Reason Thou hast said wel god be thanked keepeâ— wel then froÌ„ erroâ—â—s from negligence from sinnes And perswade thy selfe thus if thou haue obteined it and exercise thy selfe therein as it behooueth thee to do then shal the controuersie cease wherof we contended erewhile forasmuch as it is written in holy scripture Godlynesse is true wysedome and by an other also The feare of God is the begynning of wysedome neyther is the same ouer past with scilence by prophane wryters Of which matter Lactantius maketh mention in the seconde booke of his institutions Hermes affirmeth sayth he that they that knowe God are not only safe from incursions of Deuyls but also that they are not tyed by destinie Only godlinesse sayth he is their keeper and defence For a godly man is neyther subiect to the wicked deuyl nor to destinie God delyuereth the godly from all euyll For godlynesse is the only good and felicitie of man And what godlynesse is he sheweth in an other place by these woordes Godlinesse is the science and knowledge of God. He affirmeth also that Asclepius dyd expounde at large the same saying in a certayne princely Oration Thus thou seest howe two most obstinate Paganes doo grope about your trueth Such is the force of trueth that oftentymes it draweth the tongues of the enimies vnto it Of Freedome The .xiiii. Dialogue IOY I Was borne in freedome Reason He is not free that is borne but he that dyeth fortune hath great power ouer hym that is commyng into the worlde but none ouer hym that is dead She ouerthroweth strong Cities She vanquysheth valya nt armyes She subuerteth mightie kyngdomes The graue is an impregnable castle there the wormes beare rule and not fortune Who so therefore haue stept into that lybertie of al men they are free from the insultes of this lyfe Thou boastest thy selfe to be free and knowest not whether thou shalt enter this bay a free man I say not into thy graue but into thy chamber Your libertie whiche hangeth by a weake threede as all your thynges els doo wherein ye trust is always waueryng and bryttle Ioy. I am a free man. Reason For this cause I suppose thou callest thy selfe a free man because thou hast no maister but heare what Annaeus Seneca sayeth Thyne age is prosperous sayth he perhaps it wyll so continue knowest thou not at what age Hecuba and Craesus and the mother of Darius and Plato and Diogenes came into bondage By these examples he admonishyth thee There be many other examples of Seneca eyther concealed or not knowne Dooest thou not remember how Attilius Regulus though vnworthy yet susteyned this reproche Hast thou forgotten Valerianus that was of latter yeeres whereof the one of whom I spake last was a captayne and the other a prynce of the people of Rome and anon the one made slaue to the Carthagians the other to the Persians and this man cruelly put to death the other consumed with long and miserable seruitude What shall I say of the kynges of Macedonia and Numidia Perses on the one side and Siphan on the other who both fell downe from the top of theyr kyngdomes into the Romanes fetters I omit the auncient fall of kynges and princes Thyne age hath seene some thrust out of the court into pryson and the same man also both first a kyng and last a bondslaue For euery one is by so muche the more miserable in bondage by howe much he was the more happy in freedome Be not proude therefore
but weake and thou mayest also sing to thy selfe this verse of Virgil The destinies shall onely shewe hym to the earth but not suffer hym to liue longer Ioy. I reioyce in my young Chyld Reason Reioyce so as yf thou shouldest be sory eyther for that as I haue said it may chaunce he may die or which is much more greeuous and hapneth very often of a most pleasant chylde become a most vnthankefull and disobedient young man. Ioy. I ioy much in my young chylde Reason There is no husband man so foolysh that wyl reioyce much in the flowre the fruite is to be looked for and then he ought to reioyce moderatly In the mean while tempestes hayle and blastinges are to be feared and the ioy must be moderated with dreade Of the excellent fauour of Chyldren The Lxxii Dialogue IOY MY Children fauour is excellent Reason If thou haue learned by mine instruction not to regarde thine owne fauour then thou knowest how much thou hast to esteeme of anothers Ioy. The fauour of my children is great Reason A thing verie dangerous for the male kinde but much more for the female For beautie and chastitie dwel seldome togeather they wyl not and againe if they would they can not seeing al humane thinges especially honestie can yf or kept in safetie now adayes chiefely if it be ioyned with an excellent beautie There be some whose beautie is enuied at but that enuie keepeth it selfe within it owne boundes some are sory some angry with their beautie as much as may be possible many haue waxed olde continuing vndefiled among the hatred of many some haue shewed perpetual and vnquenchable tyrannie How many saylers do passe euery day vpon the calme sea how many Merchantes do trauayle through the desartes with their wares safe neither Pyrate meeteth with the one nor the Theefe with the other But what beautiful woman canst thou name vnto me that hath not been assayed Although she be chast she shal be tempted and ouercome What womans minde is able to resist so many corrupters The scaling ladders of sugred woordes are set to the walles the engines of giftes are planted and the secret moynes of deceites are cast vp vnder the grounde If these meanes wyll not serue then force is violently offered If thou require proofe call to thy remembraunce the most famous rauishmentes Beautie hath tempted many and caused many to be tempted some it hath ouerthrowen and driuen them into wickednesse or to death Among the Hebrues Ioseph was an example of vehement temptation but the prouidence of God turned the danger into glory Among the Grecians Hippolytus and Bellerophon and among you Spurina to the ende she woulde not be tempted defaced her selfe with her owne hands Among the fyrst was no Thamar among the seconde was not the Greekish Penelope among the thyrde was not the Romane Lucretia safe Finally among all sortes the most part haue been commonly eyther tempted or ouerthrowen These be the fruites of this transitorie and brittle beautie whiche many tymes haue not onely ouerthrowen whole houses but great Cities and mightie Kyngdomes Thou knowest histories Truely yf Helen had not been so beautifull Troy had stoode safe yf Lucretia had not been so fayre the Romane kingdome had not ben so soone ouerthrowen yf Virginea had not ben so beautiful the auctoritie of the ten men had not so soone fayled neyther Appius Claudius beyng so great a law maker among the Romanes beyng vanquished with lust had lost his fame at the barre and his lyfe in prison Finally there haue been innumerable who if they had not been so fayre as they were there shoulde not haue been so many that beyng forced and deceyued haue fallen out of the castle of chastitie into so great reproches and ruine of their soules and therefore vtter what good effectes thou hast founde in beautie that they may be compared with their contraries Ioy. My Chylde is passing beautifull Reason This beautie hauing enflamed the lust of one called Messalina choose whiche thou haddest rather of these twayne eyther to deny and so to be slayne at the louers commaundement eyther to agree and to perysh by Claudius swoorde Thus at one side by chastitie death is purchased by adulterie there is nothing but only a litle deferring of death procured and this is the effect of this noble and excellent beautie In this therefore as in al other thinges the mediocritie is commendable and if any of the extremities were to be wished beautie is more delectable but deformitie is more safe Ioy. I haue a most beautifull Daughter Reason Be careful of treason and beware of force Doest thou thinke that there is but one Iason or one Theseus or one Paris Yes there be a thousand To haue a Daughter is a care and trouble if she haue beautie there is feare which thou canst not auoyde but by death or olde age for by marrying her into another house thou shalt but translate thy feare and not extinguishe it Ioy. I triumphe and reioyce in the singular heautie of my Children Reason For young folke to glorie and reioyce in theyr beautie it is a vayne thyng but common but for an olde man to reioyce in the beautie of his Chyldren whiche vnlesse he doated he woulde perceyue to be full of vanitie or subiecte to daungers it is more follie and next coosen to madnesse Ioy. My Chyld hath an heauenly beautie Reason Thou hast read I thinke the foure and twentie booke of Homers Iliades where Priamus speaking of his sonne Hector He seemed not sayeth he to haue ben the sonne of a mortal man but of a god This sayd Priamus but Achilles shewed that he was the sonne of a mortall man and not of a God and remember thou likewise that this heauenly beautie of thy chylde whereof thou speakest may be taken away and blemished and so long as it continueth whatsoeuer accompt be made of it it is but an vncertayne thyng Howbeit the immoderate loue of fathers whiche is enimie to vpryght iudgement bringeth foorth these errours and trifles Ioy. I haue a passyng fayre Daughter Reason If nothyng els chaunce thy house must be most sumptuous Of the valiencie and magnanimitie of a Sonne The Lxxiii Dialogue IOY I Haue a valient Sonne Reason The more valient he is the more it behoueth thee to be fearefull For Fortune layeth more dangers vpon none then those that contemne her that is to say Valient men And not without good cause for other men hyde them selues and seeke to auoyde her force but these lay themselues open to her furie Recall forepassed ages to memorie and thou shalt perceyue in a maner all the most valient men consumed by violent death Ioy. My Sonnes valiencie is exceedyng great Reason Fortitude is a most excellent vertue but accompanied with sundry chaunces and therefore see thou haue alwayes teares and a coffin in a redinesse Death is at hande to all men but nearest to the valient Ioy. My Sonne is a most
but vnto thee remaineth doubtful trauaile and weightie businesse Ioy. I am a Kyng and a Kyng may doo what he lyst Reason No man lesse yea that which in olde tyme was lawful is not so nowe And yf perhaps thou looke for licentiousnesse by meanes of thy kyngdome know that thou art no Kyng but a Tirant Ioy. I am a Kyng and I may doo what I wyll Reason Nothing but what becommeth a King who as I said hath lesse libertie then a priuate person If in followyng this path thou seeke for pleasure thou art deceiued and as the prouerbe sayth thou goest quite beside the Cushyn Pleasure is far behinde but this way leadeth vnto payne glory Ioy. I am a king and I shal now lyue in assured tranquilitie Reason Nay rather if thou were in any heretofore it is now lost he is but a foolish marryner who seeketh for calmnesse tranquilitie in forsakyng the Hauen making saile into the wyde sea Ioy. But I am made Emperour of Rome Reason A very honourable name but a very hard office To keepe great thinges is an harde matter but what is it to build vp that which is fallen downe to gather togeather that which is dispersed to recouer that whiche is lost to reforme that which is defaced thou hast taken in hand the tyllyng of a forlorne Farme which many of long tyme haue neglected hard land requyreth many spades and drye medowes much water thou must abyde heate and cold and if thy trauayle finde semblable successe thou shalt reape the commendation thy successour the residue thou shalt sow for hym and for thy selfe the Haruest wyl come to late for it requireth many sommers Ioy. I am aduanced to the Empire I wyl take my rest lyue in securitie Reason Thou art in a false persuasion thou couldest neuer do it lesse hast thou clymbed vp to the top of an hygh hyl to auoyde windes and lyghtnyng Hast thou not read the saying of Horace The hougie Pine tree is most often shaken with windes high towres when they are ouerthrowne haue the greater fall and lightenyng striketh the loftiest mountaines How much otherwyse dyd the expert wyse princes Augustus Diocletian iudge of the excellencie of this state wherof the one as we reade thought of geuing ouer the Empire the other gaue it ouer in deede and being called vnto it againe would not graunt therunto Howe much otherwise did Marcus Aurelius Pertinax wherof the first being by adoption called to the hope of thempire is reported to haue disputed much of the discommodities of th empyre the other being made Emperour to haue abhorred th empyre Great is the aduauncement to the Empyre great are the toyles in the Empire when a man is once risen aloft the greater and more greeuous is his fal If thou wilt not beleeue me aske Iulius Caesar Caius Caligula Claudius Nero Galba Otho and Vitellius Domitianus Commodus Pertinax of whom I spake last Moreouer Bassianus Macrinus with his sonne Diadumenus and of al other the most filthy Heliogabalus and far vnlyke vnto hym in manners Alexander and the more that thou mayest maruayle the mother of them both with her sonne Also the Maximi and the Maximiniani and the Maximi and Gordiani Moreouer the Philippes and Decius and Gallus and Volusianus and Valerius famous for his notable calamitie Galienus the contemner of his fathers misery To be short Aurelianus Probus Iulianus Licinius Constantius and Valens Gratianus and Valentinianus and that I may not weery thee with rehearsing all demaunde the question of that whole race and succession of Tirants and Princes and they wyl answere thee all alyke that looke by what way they arose to the Empyre by the same way they ran to ruine And dooest thou then imagine that thou shalt finde rest there and lyue insecuritie where all haue founde danger and trouble and many a most miserable end of theyr lyues This dyd not those foure imagine to them selues whom I named in the begynning Not he that was grandfather on the mothers side to the Emperour Antonius Pius Arius Antonius an holy vertuous man as Histories terme hym but as I confesse of hym a wyse man who picied Neruas state in that he had taken the Empyre vpon hym For truely it is iniuriously doone to enuy at Princes when as in deede they ought rather to be pitied Ioy. I am an Emperour and I am able to reuenge Reason Against the enemies of the common wealth perhaps but not thine owne For these if thou be a true Prince in deede by thine aduauncement securitie is purchased thy publique duetie and godlines must bridle thy priuate affections Thou canst not be enemie to this man and that man since thou hast deserued to be father vnto all men For a Prince hath that care and auctoritie ouer his subiectes that a father hath ouer his children A good Prince is the father of his countrey there was none of all his titles whiche that woorthy Emperour Augustus accepted more thankefully then this who repressyng the motions of his youth determined to fulfyll that name of a father and therfore they which were somtime thine enimies are nowe thy chyldren Ioy. I am an Emperour I may be reuenged Reason Thou oughtest not to vse thy power that way but perswade thy selfe thus that when the power of a great Empyre falleth vpon excellent minds and that are equal to their calling it is the occasion of pardon and not of reuenge wherof the more vile weake a mans mynde and strength is the more he is greedy In which matter it were expedient for thee to remember the saying of Hadriane the Emrour who as it is written of him whē he was made Emperour said vnto one that was his enimie thou hast now escaped my hands A princely and magnifical saying and fit for an Emperour Ioy. I am an Emperour I shal haue treasure answerable to my charges Reason This saying tendeth to rapine and as of other thinges so also of charges and expenses there is a continuall streame and bottomlesse pit which can neuer be satisfied It would require a long time to set downe in as large maner the follies and madnesse of men but specially of the Emperours of Rome in this behalfe Notwithstanding among al I wil touch a few of them a few thinges among many Most notorious was the madnesse of Caius who made a bridge betweene Baiae and Puteoli which raging crooke of the sea he first passed ouer on horsebacke after-terward triumphantly in a charret What shal I speake of pearles of great price dissolued in Vineger golden loaues and golden seruices of meate set before the guestes at the table whereby the meaning was not according to the common custome of feastes to stake the guestes hunger but to consume the wealth of the Empire and to prouoke their auarice Adde hereunto moreouer casting of money among the people great
not onely vnderstande howe to hope for prosperous times but how to deeme of the sorowfull if thou looke vpon thine owne age whiche euery day waxeth more heauie then other as it is described by the Poet and founde in most olde men And truely yf thou cast thyne eyes backwarde and begyn to recount and consyder thine owne yeeres thou wylt also therewithal begin to despayre of that whiche thou hopest There is no cause why thou shouldest hope for alteration of the course of the world The tymes that folowe are not better but I feare me rather the worse And what is the cause I pray thee but onely because men waxe woorse and woorse whiche certayne notable men haue foretolde should be so and the effect plainly declareth but that you men vppon good hope do euermore conceiue some great opinion of your noble and modest youth from whiche opinion I am farre of for my minde can not prognosticate nor foresee any good to ensue at al euery thing is so prone vnto vice and vntowardnesse Hope The times are euyl but better shal ensue Reason Euery age hath complained of the maners that haue been then sayth Seneca And I adde that euery age had cause in deede whereof to complayne shal haue hereafter to the worldes end Hope I hope for a better time Reason There is one way vnto that wherby yf thou attaine to a better state thou wylt then hope for no farther matter Frame vnto thy selfe a merier mind which thou canst not do without vertue when thou hast so done al things shal be merrie fortunate and nothing vnprosperous or sorowful Hope I looke for a better tyme. Reason If it chaunce to come which is doubtfull verily as that approcheth thou drawest away How muche were it better to vse well the tyme present rather then carefully to expect that whiche perchaunce eyther wyll not come at all or thou shalt neuer lyue to see Of the hoped commyng of a Prince The Cxvi Dialogue HOPE I Hope for a Princes comming Reason As many things are feared which were rather to be wished so many are wished whiche were rather to be feared on both sides there is great want of iudgement Hope I hope for the Princes commyng Reason How much more seemely were it to hope for libertie for truely he that hopeth for a Lord or a Maister hopeth for his owne seruitude Hope I hope that the Prince wyll come Reason Thou hopest also for the common mischiefe whiche commeth with him But the tyme hath been when Princes haue hoped for their kingdomes and the people haue hoped for their Prince but now the kingdome is a burden to the Prince and the Prince a plague to the people Hope I and the common wealth doo hope that the Prince wyll come Reason What thou alone dooest hope for thou knowest best thy selfe wherein also thou mayest easily be deceyued but as for the hope of the Common wealth it is but foolyshe For what man vnlesse he were mad woulde hope for or desire that whiche he hath so often times experimented to be hurtful Hope I hope that the Prince wyll come Reason And he wyll bryng with hym sundry stirres and tumultes alterations of Cities hurtfull nouelties famine pestilence warres discorde al these at once or euery one of them seuerally vse commonly to come with Princes now a dayes If thou lyke of these thynges then hope for the Princes commyng but yf none of these be fearefull notwithstandyng the very name of an Empire is ful of reporâ—es and rumours deuoyde of al goodnesse and only founded vpon the shadowe of antiquitie Hope I hope that the Prince wyll come Reason But I woulde haue thee wyse and circumspect that as often as thou hearest of his comming thou imagine that thou hearest the voyce of some thunder that goeth before lyghtnyng nor begynne not to hope but rather to feare yf so be one of them must needes fayle For to feare aduersitie although it be repugnant to vertue yet is it agreeable to nature but to hope for euyll is contrary to nature and vertue Hope I hope that the prince wyll be heere shortly Reason When thou seest hym present imagine that thou beholdest an vnfortunate starre to the Common wealth and concernyng this matter take aduice of thyne owne memorie or demaunde of thy Parentes or of thy Grandfathers or great Grandfathers and thou shalt finde it to be so as I say whiche thyng declare thou also to thy chyldren posteritie least they also lyke fooles hope for the Princes commyng I pray thee tel mee when dyd euer the small Beastes hope for the Lyons comming or the lesser Foules for the Eagles Pardon me if I tel that trueth Man is a most foolyshe creature and alwayes most desirous of his owne harme other haue neede of a bayte to take them withall and man is caught onely with rumour of fame Of hope of Fame after death The Cxvii Dialogue HOPE I Hope for Fame after my death for my desartes Reason Many hope that they deserue fame when they rather deserue infamie and lyke traueylers that wander out of their way when they thynke they goe ryght foorth then goe they backewarde Hope I am famous in my lyfe tyme and I hope to be more famous after my death Reason This is true I confesse in some insomuche as Anneus Seneca in a certaine Epistle profecieth that he shoulde he beloued of posteritie and Statius Papinius sayth that he hath prepared a redie path for the present fame vnto his woorke among posteritie and lykewyse the Poet Ouid foretold of the eternitie of his name to come and that he shoulde be read by the mouth of the people and lyue by fame throughout all ages and truely none of these are deceyued But how many thynkest thou haue there been that haue hoped the lyke but their hope hath fayled them Many perhappes haue thought as much and haue written but haue not found that which they promised to them selues Hope If I be famous whyle I lyue why should I not be more famous after my death Reason For that it is an accustomable and common experience that many that haue been famous and noble in their life time after their death haue become obscure and vnknowen Dooest thou wonder at it The cause is manifest which is a certaine affabilitie neate pleasant speach a fawning countenance a friendly looke gentle greeting benefites bestowed vpon neighbours defending of clientes hospitalitie towardes strangers courtesie towardes al men These and suche lyke do purchase fâ—me to them that are lyuing but so sone as they are dead they continue no longer vnlesse perhaps as long as they remaine that knewe them whiche how short a time it is thou seest for how should thinges continue that are not grounded vpon a sure foundation It is the course of nature that the thinges that are weakely established and slenderly encreased do soone decay And therefore that thy fame may be durable it must proceede
great beginning Sorowe I am borne of a base beginning Reason Studie then that thine ende may be noble About the beginnings is trauell and in the ende commeth the fruite whiche if it be gathered before it be ripe it cannot long continue Sorowe Vnnoblenesse hath cut of the roote of my glorie Reason Nay it hath not cut it of but it hath digged it deeper about that it may rise more stronglie though more lately Howbeit I can recite vnto thee out of all sortes of men some not vnnoble onelie but vnknowne also who through vertue and diligence became most noble And truelie if vertue make a man noble in deede I do not perceiue what should lette anie man that is willing to be made noble or what thing is so easie to make other noble as to make a mans selfe so Sorow I descend from vnnoble parentes Reason What sayst thou to Socrates Euripides Demosthenes Whereof the first had a Marbler to his father the second a midwife to his Mother the last was not only borne of base parentes but also of vncertein As for your countreiman Virgill he descended of rude and homely parentes of the Countrie neither was Horace ashamed that his father had bin sometime a bondman and was made free and also a common crier notwithstanding they came both vnto great glorie and obteined the fauour of a great Emperour in such sorte that he vnto whom all Kinges had submitted them selues at whose handes all great thinges were sued for and from whom the hope of all men in a manner throughout the whole world but specially of the nobilitie did depend and finally whose familiare acquaintance was reputed a great matter yea among the greatest men euen he I say would require in sweet and flattring Epistles as if it had bin some great matter the friendeship and companie of these two vnnoble persons whom the Mantuan Venusine Countries had sent to Rome And howe manie noble men were there as we may iudge at that time in the Palace as for the most part there were plentie that were vnprofitable vnlearned vnto whom the nobilitie of these noble men did not seeme woorthily vnnoble and to bee enuied at Sorow I come of obscure parentes Reason These examples mooue not thy minde I will therefore vse higher Marcus Cicero as it is written of him being borne of the familie and race of knightes from a lowe beginning by notable actes and honest degrees came to the Consulship theÌ„ whose time of Consulship I can not tell whether there were euer any more profitable to the common wealth Sorow I come of a rustike and vnknowne race of ancestours Reason These are little worth I perceiue thou aspirest now higher Truly Marius was also a rusticane of the countrey but a man in deede as sayth his countrieman Cicero had bin of long time an husbandman among the people called Marsi who was afterward seuen times Consul of Rome with so great glorie that his saide countrieman although hee were his friende said truelie That hee twise deliuered Italie from besieging and feare of seruitude And Marcus Cato a man of meane beginning beeing long time an obscuâ—e inhabitant of a small Towne and afterwarde a most famous stranger in the greatest Citie shortly after of an excellent citizen was made Consull and Censor But if this bee not ynough and perhappes thou hopest for a kingdome truelie neither doeth the basenesse of a mans beginning forbidde him to hope for the same by sentence of desert Herein call to remembrance the thirde and the fift and the sixt of the Romane Kinges Tullus Hostilius as approoued authours doe write although other some doe report no such matter of him beeing an infant was brought vppe in a poore cotrage and in his youth was a sheephearde Tarquinius Priscus had to father a stranger Merchant neither came of anie Italian familie Seruius Tullus was borne of a seruile or bonde woman although as some say shee was a captiue and as other affirme a noble woman and by meanes of his vertue deserued the kingdome of Rome Neither wilt thou maruell if thou vnderstoodest the saying of Plato That there is no King but hee came of bonde men and no bondemen but hee descended of kinges Thus the affaires of men and thus long continuance and Fortune hath confounded all thinges I say nothing of the kinges of other Nations and of those who from the flockes of cattell and the exercise of most vile actes haue ben aduaunced sode inlie vnto a kingdome Alexander the king of Macedonie made a gardener a king in Asia and this was not one of the least commendable actes which he did And on the other side I say nothing of them that haue fallen from the toppe of a kingdome vnto the bottome of seruitude Thus Fortune gouerneth her affaires notwithstanding vertue may do much for by her men rise safelie vnto the highest degrees whose pathes being forsaken let princes know that they stand in tickle state and that not onelie their decaye is at hande but also their ruine What calamitie then that I may returne againe vnto thee of birth is this from which neither hope of reigning neither the effect is taken away Sorowe I am sprung from a base roote Reason Euerie roote is obscure and euill fauoured from which neuerthelesse faire and flourishing branches doe spring forth it is not so much demaunded from whence a thing commeth as what manner of thing it is Sorowe I am descended of base parentes Reason I perceiue that thou reuokest my style vnto the highest empire Septimus Seuerus of whom I spake before sprong from the degree of knightes Helius Pertinax being also the sonne of a bondman made free and a base traficquer in the trade of buying selling of wood did both of them gouerne the Romane Empire as also did Philip the father and the sonne being Arabians of verie base condition and birth and Maximinius and Maximus likewise whereof the first was borne of most obscure and barbarous parentage and were both ashamed when they had taken vppon them the gouernement of the Empire and for the latter whether his father were a smith or a carpenter it is vncerteine Verilie Vespasian who is reckoned among the good Emperours from no noble stocke becomming most noble both gouerned the common wealth worthily and also left two sonnes behinde him one succeeding another to be his successours in the Empire and the one of his vertue howbeit what doe I stay vpon these small matters since there is much ambiguitie about the original and birth of Augustus Caesar him selfe To be brief certein it is that the course of Mans fortune is not preuented by birth a man may rise by anie meanes whether Fortune reache him her hande or vertue Sorowe My stocke is to lowe and base Reason As much as concerneth the degree of humane power wee haue set downe examples aboue which we cannot possiblie go higher yet there resteth one not for kingdome or Empire but in respect
couetousnes before that they were drenched in the surgies of the sea For desire commeth seldome without headlong hastinesse and that which it wil haue it wil haue it presently al tariance and the companions therof costlinesse it hateth the same is the redie way vnto destruction and the first cause of often shypwracke Sorowe I am discomforted by a great shypwracke Reason Thou hast learned to pray vnto God to make vowes and promise many thynges of whiche although feare was the cause yet since thou art arryued agayne on the lande acknowledge thou that fayth was the cause God is not mocked skot free he hateth the breakers of their faithful promises Sorowe I haue suffered a foule shypwracke Reason None complayne of shypwracke but they that haue escaped it Reioyce therefore that thou art safe and more expert The remembrance of dangers past is commonly delectable as contrariwyse the memory of forepassed prosperitie is greeuous But howe muche wouldst thou haue esteemed in foretymes to haue seene the Triton goddes of the sea and the mountaines of water foming the waues vp to heauen swelling the monsters of the sea swimming Thou hast now some feareful tales to tel in the winter nightes by the fire side to make folke a fearde withall and to holde thyne amazed family in admiration Nowe therefore thou knowest what is a poetical tempest and that feare whiche thou wouldest scarce beleeue is certaynely knowen vnto thee whiche thou hast now wel gained eyther by the feare of death or losse of goodes Sorow I haue been in a dangerous shypwracke Reason There is nothyng learned without trauayle this if thou be wyse shal be a perpetual lesson vnto thee that heareafter thou neuer perswade thy selfe to commit thy lyfe vnto the windes Sorowe I haue suffered a woful shypwracke Reason If this be the first take heede thou fal not into the seconde if it be the second then holde thy peace For proper is the saying of Publius the wryter of scoffes He wickedly accuseth Neptune that committeth shipwracke the seconde tyme. Sorow I haue scarse escaped in a terrible shypwracke Reason I can not see why it shoulde be more terrible to dye in the sea then vpon the lande seeing men must needes dye vpon the one of them or why it were better to feede wormes then to be baite for fyshes but forasmuche as thou hast escaped beware that thou commit not agayne thy lyfe to a broken oare or a rotten boorde Since thou art an earthly creature learne to keepe the earth and rather to affect heauen then the sea Of Burnyng The .lv. Dialogue SOROW. I Haue scarce escaped out of a burning fire Reason Doest thou then drawe it vnto the iniurie of fortune that thou hast escaped Let Alcibiades be moued who could not escape out of the hot burning of his enimies howbeit although thou haue preuented the earthly yet who is able to gainestād the burninges that come from heauen Let the Romane kyng Tullus Hostilius and the Romane Emprour Charus answeare me whereof the one was consumed with fyre from heauen in the pallace at Rome and the other in his tentes neare vnto the ryuer Tigris if we may credite common histories Sorowe Hauing lost al my goodes I haue escaped naked out of the fyre Reason Whom I pray thee would eyther Kias as al men say or Stilbon as Seneca wyl haue it haue spoken suche a woorde who when his countrey was on fyre being demaunded or rather reprooued for that he conueighed none of his goods out of the flame as other of his neighbours did answeared in this manner Al my goodes sayd he I carrie with me Woorthily truely whether it were the one or both of them that spake it although suche kinde of speeches do alwayes sound most excellently out of the mouth of the first aucthour of them but omitting the aucthour the trueth of the saying is commonly perceiued For the true goodes in deede remayne within and cannot be taken from the owner whyle he lyueth neyther when he is dead For they cleaue fast to the soule whyther as neyther the ryght hand of fortune nor of death is able to reache Thou being safe and sounde lamentest that thou hast lost certayne thynges whiche if they had been thine in deede out of doubt they had been safe with thee this day For beleeue me true goods doo not peryshe Golde is not more precious then vertue nor so good as it although it be not consumed but purged by the fyre Sorowe A great fire hath blasted me Reason There was one Caeculus I knowe not who that sought the fame of diuinitie by fyre In Virgil a flame of fire taking hold of Iulus haire gaue the first hope to their doubtful health And for that Seruius head burned light with fire it was no poetical but an historical abodyng of a kingdome It is wel knowen that the founders of the Empire of Rome escaped out of the flame of troy To be short the scriptures declare that Helias dyed by fyre and that the Lorde hym selfe appeared in a flame of fyre so that it is not for nought that bonefires are a token of myrth and reioycing in your cities whiche now is a cause of thy heauinesse Sorowe My house is suddenly consumed with fyre Reason Yea the temple of Diana at Ephesus was in olde tyme set on fyre a goodlier peece of woorke then whiche that age neuer sawe And also the temple of Hierusalem that was dedicated vnto the lorde of heauen was burnt the verie enemies pitiyng it that set it on fire likewise in this our age the laterane castel for beautie the flowre of the world was twice consumed with fire an euident plaine token of Gods wrath in my iudgment no strange matter I confesse but terryble And last of al to say nothing of litle cities fire hath often touched Saguntum and Numantia and Corinth and other innumerable yea and Rome it selfe was brought almost vnto vtter destruction And Carthage once and Troy was twice destroyed with fire Cities haue been burned and we beleeue that the whole worlde shal be one day brought to nought by fire And doest thou then complaine that it dare take hold on thy house that shal consume both heauen and earth Sorowe I had much a doo to escape out of the fyre Reason Thou hast escaped then and art thou sorie for it vnlesse thou haddest escaped thou haddest helde thy peace but now being a lyue and ashes thou lamentest that ashes is extinguished Of great laboure and traueyle The .lvi Dialogue SOROWE I Am weeried with great labour Reason There is no glorie without difficultie Al vertue dwelleth on hygh not easily to be atteyned the passage thereunto is cragged rough and ful of stones Sorowe I am ouerweerie with traueyle Reason Traueyle is the ground of vertue and rest of pleasures there is nothing commendable nothing excellent without traueyle and therefore laboure was the foundation of Hercules prayse By nothing is Vlisses better knowen
there is no minde be it neuer so swyfte that is able to measure it and also the surpassyng beautie of vertue whiche is so louelie that yf it coulde be seene with the bodily eyes as Plato sayth it woulde rauyshe men woonderfully with the loue thereof Therefore let loue on the one syde and feare on the other styrre thee vp for both of them are very effectuall for neyther he that loueth neyther he that hateth can commonly be dull and sluggyshe and yet notwithstandyng ye ryse in the nyght tyme vnto diuine seruice wherein ye pray that hurtfull sleepe and sluggyshnes oppresse you not there is no place for sleepe nor sluggyshuesse when as death frayeth you on the one syde and vertue on the other For who coulde euer be slouthfull and carelesse in great dangers or great aduauncementes Whensoeuer thou haft respect vnto these courage wyll resort to the minde and sleepe wyll flye from the eyes when ye thynke with your selues howe muche imperfection remayneth within you and howe muche tyme ye haue spent in idlenesse whereof when men haue no consyderation we see howe they spende long ages vnprofitably and heare olde men wonderyng and amazed to say What haue we doone heere these many yeeres We haue eaten drunken and slept and nowe at last we are awaked too late The cheefe cause whereof is this sluggyshnesse whereof thou complaynest whiche in tyme ought to be dryuen away by the prickes of industrie and the brydle of foresyght least that by ouerlong staying thou be caried away with the multitude vnto a dishonourable ende Of Letcherie The Cx. Dialogue SOROWE I AM shaken with the vehemencie of Letcherie Reason Letcherie is begotten by slouthfulnesse and brought foorth by gluttonie what maruell is it then yf the daughter followe her parentes As for gluttonie and letcherie they are common vnto you with beastes and that they make your lyfe more beastly then any other thyng wyse men haue so iudged and therefore although there be many mischiefes more greeuous yet is there none more vyle Sorowe I am carryed away with Letcherie Reason Whyther I pray thee but vnto death both of the bodye and soule and infamous ignominie and too late and perhappes vnprofitable repentance Goe thy wayes nowe and followe her that carrieth thee away vnto suche endes Thynke vppon the miserable and notorious chaunces of innumerable not onely priuate men but also Cities and Kyngdomes whiche partly by syght and partly by heare-say but specially by readyng ought to be very well knowen and then I suppose thou wylt not geue thy hande vnto this vice to followe it Heare what the best learned haue iudged and written concernyng this matter Pleasures sayth Cicero beyng most flatteryng Ladyes doo wreast the greater partes of the mynde from vertue To this ende sayth Seneca they embrace vs that they may strangle vs whiche none otherwyse then Theeues that lay wayte for traueylers vppon the way and leade them aside to murther them ought to be auoyded Wherein it shall muche auayle yf whosoeuer shall feele hym selfe infected with this mischeefe doo imagine that most excellent sayeing of Scipio Africane in Liuie whiche he spake vnto king Masinissa to be spoken vnto hym selfe Vanquishe thy minde quoth he and take heede thou doo not deforme many good giftes with one vice and corrupt the beautie of so many desartes with a greater faulte then the cause of the faulte is The whiche shal be doone the more easily yf a man doo thynke earnestly vppon the vilenesse fylthinesse shortnesse and ende of the thyng and also the long reproche and the short time and howe perhappes the pleasure of one breefe moment shal be punished with the repentaunce of many yeeres and peraduenture with euerlastyng damnation Of Pryde The Cxj. Dialogue SOROWE I AM lyfted vp with pryde Reason Earth and ashes why art thou proude Canst thou that art oppressed with the burden of so many mischiefes be lyfted vp with pride Who yf thou were free from them al and were lyfted vp by the wynges of al vertues yet were al thy good gyftes defiled with this vyce only For there is nothing more hateful vnto God then pryde By this fel he that was created in most excellent estate by which thou beyng a sinner thinkest to aryse If it hapned so vnto hym for this one thing what doest thou thinke wyl befall vnto thee in whom this wickednesse is ioyned with other vices Thou hast heaped a naughtie weight vpon thy burden Sorow I am carried with pryde Reason Why shouldest thou be so I pray thee Doest thou not remember that thou art mortal that thou wearest away euery day that thou art a sinner that thou art subiect to a thousand chaunces and in danger euery day to vncertayne death and finally that thou art in wretched case And hast thou not also heard the most famous saying of Homer The earth nourisheth nothyng more wretched then man I woulde fayne knowe whiche of these doth most cheefely pricke thee foorth vnto pryde whether the imbecilitie of the body or the whole armie of sickenesses or the shortnesse of lyfe or the blyndenesse of the minde whiche continually wauereth betweene most vayne hope and perpetual feare or the forgetfulnesse of that whiche is past or the ignorance of that whiche is to come and present or the treacherie of enimies or the death of freendes or continuing aduersitie or flytting prosperitie By these and none other ladders ye ascend vnto pryde by these ye ryse to ruine All other dangers wherein men do walter haue some excuse although it be vniust but pryde and enuie haue no coloure at al. Sorow I am sorie that I am proud Reason To be sorie for sinne is the first degree to saluation And as it is the nature of pryde to lyft vp so is it of humilitie to be sorie and submit it selfe whiche thou shalt do the more easye so soone as thou turnest thyne eyes earnestly vpon thy selfe whiche being so I am not mynded neyther ought I to heape vp vnto theeaucthorities wrytten in bookes agaynst vices This only shal be sufficient that thou knowe that so soone as euer thou be disposed vnfeignedly al these matters wyl surceasse immediatly and whensoeuer as they say thou shalt blowe the retreate retire to thyne ensignes as touchyng this present mischeefe This one thyng I wyl say moreouer that pryde is a sickenesse of wretches and fooles for doubtlesse they be suche that be proud otherwyse I am sure they woulde neuer be proud neyther is it written without cause in the booke of Wisedome That al that are foolysh vnfortunate are proud about the measure of their soule And truely yf they were wyse for their soules health their meane were to abase their estate knowyng their owne imbecilitie For so thou readest it written in the same booke He that is a king to day shal dye to morow And when a man dyeth he shal haue serpentes and beastes and woormes for his inheritance The begynning of pryde is to
they possessed the kyngdome of heauen Sorowe I must needes dye out of my Countrey Reason What shall I speake of men of a meaner degree One that was remooued fyrst from Stridon Bethleem and afterwarde Rome receyued Fraunce another from Pannonia and Parris another from Athens and Rome another from Greece and Spayne and Millaine another from Rome lyuing and the same when he was dead Sardinia from Africa and shortly after Ticinum from Sardinia two most bryght shining streames of the East march in merites and ioyned in minde and neere in bodye Who they be that I speake of thou knowest and therefore in makyng hast I ouerpasse many thynges But that thou mayest not want also an example of the thyrde sorte Cyprus receyued one from the land of Palestine and Campania another from Nursia Spaine this one and Italie that other and Bononie one and Padua another Sorowe I vnderstande well all that euer thon meanest notwithstandyng vnwillingly doo I dye farre from my Countrey Reason And truely I vnderstande the very cause hereof to wit for that the most sacred spirites and mindes which alwayes haue their affections fixed in heauen haue no care at all of their earthly Countrey which care thou hast not yet layd aside but truely beleeue mee yf thou hope after heauen thou must needes lay it asyde indeede Neuerthelesse I wyll entreate of others that were louers of vertue and mindfull of heauen and yet not through their loue of heauen altogether forgetful of the earth The boanes of Pythagoras of Samos Metapontus dyd couer Cicero whom Arpine brought foorth and Rome dyd nourysh the bay of Caieta sawe dead Plinie whom the riuer Athesis washed when he was an infant the ashes of the mount Veseuus couered when he was olde Mantua brought Virgil into the worlde Brundusium or as other some write Tarentum plucked hym away and now Naples holdeth hym Sulmo framed the Poet Ouid but his exile in Pontus disolued him Carthage as it is reported brought forth Terence the Comike Poet but Rome taught him and Arcadia buried him Apulia sent foorth Horace the Poet and Calabria Ennius and the Prouince of Narbona Statius and Vasconia Ausonius Corduba the three Annei or as some say foure to wit the two Senecaes and Gallio and the Poet Lucan And al these ouer besides Plautus of Arpine and Lucillus of Arunca and Pacuuius of Brundusium Iuuenal of Aquinum and Propertius of Vmbria Valerius of Antium and Catullus of Verona and Varrus of Cremona and Gallus of Forli and Actius of Pisaurum Cassius of Parma Claudianus of Florence Persius of Volaterrae a thousand moe hath Rome receiued and for the most part buried only Titus Liuius of Padua with muche adoo was restored vnto his Countrey to be enterred and so contrariwise Rome hath bread many that haue dyed and ben buried in other places The whole world is in manner of a narrow house fouresquare wherein men passe from one extremitie to another and in the one is life and in the other death Men of valiant courage esteeme of it for none other cause then for the varietie of the vse thereof as it were to goe out of a cold bath into a stone or to chaing out of a winter chamber into a summer lodging This chaing and varietie namely to be borne in one place and buried in another is common among al men specially the more noble for t Sorowe I knowe it is so yet I dye sorowfully out of myne owne Countrey Reason Thou shouldest dye no more merily in that Countrey which thou callest thyne but ye geue your selues ouer to teares and seeke causes to lament and be sorie as yf ye tooke pleasure in them But yf the examples of holy learned and discrete pouertie can not discharge thy minde hereof which is infected with the errours of the vulgare multitude I wyll alleage them that haue been more fortunate in proouing that this which troubleth thee hath hapned to the most famous Captaynes Dukes Kynges and Emperours so that I wyll see whether thou wylt refuse that fortune which may befal to a man. Sorowe Whom thou wylt speake of and alleage I knowe well enough but what neede many woordes I am sorie to dye out of my Countrey the place encreaseth the greefe of my death Reason I perceiue thou refusest to be cured yet wyll I proceede but with how good effect that looke thou vnto as for me it shall suffice to vtter the trueth and geue thee faythfull warnyng Alexander was borne at Pella slayne at Babylon and his ashes buried at Alexandria a Citie called after the name of the founder The other Alexander was brought vp in the Princes Palace of Epirus and drowned in the Riuer Lucanus Kyng Cyrus was borne in his Kyngdome of Persis and slayine and mangled in Scythia Rome and the whole Romane Empire had in admiracion Marcus Crassus and Pompeius the great which as it was able to beare the greatnesse of them whyle they lyued so yf Fortune had so suffered it had been sufficient to haue receyued theyr ashes but the one was couered with earth in Assyria beyonde Euphrates the other ouerwhelmed in the Channell of the Aegyptian streame Vnto the latter Cato the Citie of Rome gaue both begynnyng and name but Vtica brought both ende and surname The Cornelii Scipioes Rome procreated most noble and profitable members of the Common-wealth by whom it had been often saued and adorned whom notwithstanding their destinies so dispersed that those two which are called the great were entombed both in Spanish moulde and the elder Africane at Linternum and Nasica at Pergamus and Lentulus within Scicil dwelling al in seuerall and disioyned graues Of all this number only Asiaticus and Africanus the younger lye buried at Rome who perhaps had lyen better in any banishment whatsoeuer for the fyrst was punyshed by imprisonment the other by death And thus many tymes it happeneth that a man may lyue better and dye better in any other place then in his owne Countrey and lye nowhere harder then at home The three Deci although the common report make mention but of twayne dyed valiantly out of theyr owne Countrey the Father fyghting with the Latines the Sonne with the Hetrurians and the Nephew as Cicero addeth with Pyrrhus To what purpose shoulde I nowe rehearse in order as they come to my minde woorthie Captaynes and Princes whiche were all borne at Rome and dyed elsewhere Africa behelde Attilius Regulus howe muche the more cruelly so muche the more gloriously dying both for the preseruyng of his Countrey and also of his fayth and credite with his enimie and in the next war followyng Cortona sawe Caius Flaminius and Cumae Paulus Aemilius and Venusia Claudius Marcellus and Lucania Tiberius Gracchus lying dead it was the fortune of none of these to dye at Rome Two noble Gentlemen of great hope and expectation in the Romane Commonwealth were cut of in the very floure of their youth Drusus and Marcellinus