satisfied with exact and actuall punishment where to theyr proper iniuries or wronges done priuatelye against them selues their humilitye ouercame the moode of reuenge and they felt no inclination to furious indignitie But God being iniuried they helde them vnworthy seruaunts officers if they gaue not iustice to his wronges wherein they thought their life a swéete sacrifice being offred to death in his behalfe For this cause Moyses séeing the Idolatrye of the people after the Calfe made a maruailous Butcherye If hée knewe any blasphemer to bee in his Campe who was more readye to drawe him into iudgement yea he that had prophaned the Sabboth in fetching onely certayne wood to make a fire did not Moises forthwith cause him to be stoned But when Mary his sister and Aaron his Brother murmured against him despiting him with iniuries was hée not patient did hee not praye to God to pardon them What miserye happened to Ophine and Phineas for prophaning the sacrifices of God and to theyr father as hath béene sayde because hée did not iustice what slaughter did God to the blasphemye which Sennacherib by his Herraldes of Armes pronounced against him in the presence of Ezechias Did not God by his Aungell ouerthrow of them in one night a hundreth foure score and fiue thousand was not also Benadab because he sayed the God of Israel was a God of mountaines and not of valleyes ouerthrowen togeather with all the Kinges which hée led with him and fel into the hands of Achab Elias put to the edge of the sworde foure hundred false Prophetes of Baal so muche reuerenced in Israell and honoured of the Quéene Iezabel Surelye God so abhorreth the sinnes committed against the first table for so they are committed directlye against him that Hely iudged them irremysible saying If one man sinne against another God maye bée appeased But if the sinne stretche to the offence of God so farre forth as it concerneth his maiestie honour and holye ordinaunce what is hée that will praye to God for him as if hée should saye it is a sinne so greate that wée must confesse that if God will pardon it hée must vse a singular mercye muche lesse then is there power in men to pardon such crimes committed against the deuine maiestie Certaine holde opinion that the crimes against humane maiestie cannot haue remission of the Kinges against whome they are cōmitted as wel for that they bring intent of malice as for that they are done against him whom they represent in earth which is the liuing God and also against a whole nation or people whose heades they are Wée sée when the head is hurt all the members haue interest in the gréefe with him and demaunde altogeather reuenge against him that hath offended them neyther can the head heale the rest if first hée haue not full cure of his owne gréefe Howe is it then that crimes done against God should lightlye bée pardoned of men it was not without cause that in the first Churche hée that was guiltie in any such disordered Crime notwithstanding his penaunce of fiftye yéeres if hée liued so long after his sinne yet was hée not receyued into the holy Communion vntill the ende of his dayes which yet was holden an acte of great grace to the offendour whiche as I wishe might warne the gouernours of our pollecye not to suffer God to bée vnreuerentlye offended with such damnable crimes So for suche as haue prophaned holye places pilled and abused the sacred vesselles and yet thinke to eschewe the terrible iudgement of God let them resorte to the testimony of those miseries which happened to Balthasar Antiochus and Heliodorus ¶ Sinnes committed against the seconde table are worthy of death euen so deserue they eternall damnation Yet must vvee vnderstand vvhen they are done vvillingly and more vvhen they are done by pride and malice and the more that the obiect is noble and excellent so much are they more greeuous The .7 Chapter HAuing declared that in a common weale the transgressions of the commaundements of the first table deserue pains irremisible it is méete wée shewe wherin and how farre ought to stretche the punishmentes for the transgressors of the preceptes ordeined for instruction of due and honest conuersation of life in societye tranquilitye and mutuall loue to our neighbors Those commaundementes are seuen in number and written by Moyses in the second table which God gaue him with the other béeing both two of stone for the better obseruation of them and theyr perpetuall memory Like as also in the due kéeping of those statutes was eternall life comprehending faith in Iesus Christ and in transgressing them was condemnation to euerlasting death Séeing then that transgressours stande in suche estate of condemnacion by God in his iudgementes let it bée a rule to leade the magistrates pollitike to the conformetye of that iustice the rather for that they are as hath béene sayde before called in the scripture the commissionours of God to exercise his iudgements By the first commaundement of this table wée are bidden to honor our father and mother and so haue long life on earth And as this honor consistes not onely in reuerence but in loue feare obedience seruice office of nature so in the persons of Fathers mothers this precept is exhibited also to al Lordes Ladyes vniuersal Magistrates Pastours Doctours Maisters and al olde people yea al superiours being as publike and polletike fathers the one ouer the body and goodes the other ouer the soules If suche as onelye disobeye and vse conuersacion of rebellion speaking euill of theyr Fathers and Mothers are without remission condemned of God to bée stoned What punishment deserue others who pleade against them abandon them strike them suffer them to dye for hunger or laye violent handes vpon them And if there bée any dutye of reuerence to the Fathers of the bodye by greater reason doeth there belong a more higher estate of power to the Spirituall Parentes such as dispose norriture to the soules amongst whome as suche as are fierce and disobedient are subiecte to present punishment So euen they are within the power of the same sentence whiche gainesaye Magistrates being the Fathers of the common weale In this vice togeather with all others the causes and mouers of the same ought to bée punished as a proude hearte a hautye Spirite a malicious wyll and natures enclyning to arrogancye furye and disobedience Heare let Fathers also bée warned not to prouoke theyr children to wrath and by theyr straitenesse dryue them into contempt Touching the Seconde forbidding murder euen from the Lawe of nature GOD hath ordayned that not onelye man but euen the Beast that takes away the lyfe of a man shoulde suffer death wherein God him selfe séeming to geue the reason why hée dyd institute that payne sayeth That man being made to the Image of him selfe what other thing coulde it bée to kyll man then to rent the Image of
soule eternally in the worlde to come But good aduocates led by simplicitie of conscience as Aristotell sayth by his knife seruing to mani vses and therfore very profitable are men no lesse conuenient necessarie and honorable then any other sort in a comon weale and of whom perticular estates in a kingdom stand in nede so that if they pursue their estate according to the right office and dutie of the same they conteine men in order and bring infinit commodities to a whole countrie they supporte the right of the prince and valiantly resiste such as seeke to blaspheme against his maiestie blasphemye I call with the apostels outrage done against the maiestie of the prince representing God in earth and therfore the iniurie done against the prince turneth against God In causes of affairs concerning princes officers of all estates chauncelers presidents counselers noble men marchants riche pore widowes maides ther is necessitie of the aduocate who in causes of pleading is called and instructed in the cause yea in these dayes the dissembled vicar of Rome his cardinalls bishops curats pristes clarkes if there be question touching their office or authoritie must resorte to the aduocate to emplede the estate of the cause in what supreame courte soeuer it be he good aduocate seruing God and folowing integritie is the mediator betwéene quarilous people O reconcilar of ennmies the authore of peace and an example to a common weale Touching common proces he accordeth mo in one hower then a whole parciall court doth in thrée yeres he will make conscience to enterteyne a proces which he foreseith is like to continue longe and therfore giueth councell of agrement to the parties if he knowe any pore man ouermatched with a riche or captious aduersarie he doth what he can to drawe the matter to accorde wherby he deliuereth the person from encomber and his goodes from daunger to be loste by the hazard of the iudges yea one good aduocat doth more good seruice to the world then many iudges in whome is constraint to giue sentence according to their offices being not able to accorde the parties by arbitration it is not meete that an aduocate notwithstanding his excelencie of knowledge without longe experience of pleading aspire to the office of a iudge or president but eyther by constraint of the Prince or by compulsion of olde age being no more able to sustaine the labours due to the dutie of that profession not buying the dignitie which the Pagans estéemed the same vice which we call simonie but by election of other Iudges of the Court in whom may rest suretie for his vpright dealing procurers which are as publike soliciters and generall syndickes of all causes in place of the parties to solicit aduocates and Iudges and procure expedicion of Iustice to their clients and notaries appoynted to receiue faithfully truly the appoyntments of Iudges contenting them selues with their rate authorised by the court or ordained by their Prince ought without futtletie delaye or couetousnes exercise their estate wicked notaries in Esaie are subiect to malediction as also vnrighteous Law readers and Iudges because they write and pronounce vnrighteous Lawes ¶ The dutie of Marchants Chapter x. MArchants folowing an estate of iust commutacion are men no lesse profitable necessary and farre more honorable in their common weale thē many of the other perticuler sortes of calling mentioned in the other Chapters And albeit according to the consequence and order of the Booke I haue placed them after the other as I haue coopled clerkes with their Masters procurers with their aduocates other necessary officers with men of Iustice most necessary to serue them in that estate yet there is no cause of disgrace to the honest marchant in this preheminence of place for that only necessitie of order tied me thereunto which I haue obserued in the discourse of Apothicaries and Chirurgions following the Phisitions where I should haue placed them after the aduocates and many other of qualetie But as in this obseruation is no dishonour to the marchaunt so hee shall find no lesse instruction touching the office of his calling according to God then if his discourse had come afore the rest ouer many of whom I must confesse hee hath right of preheminence by common custome of nations and reason The Marchant then aboue al thinges in the exercise of common traffike betweene men is to consider déepely of the two generall lawes Thou shalt not doo to another that which thou wouldest not haue done to thy selfe and loue thy neighbour as thy selfe And as they vse the yard to measure their wares and the ballance to waigh it and that there is no cloth nor other wares measurable which they do not passe by the yard or elne nor any thing méete to be waighed which they cast not into the ballance vsing both the one and the other aswell in vile and base as riche and precious thinges applying also the helpe of nombers for the better diuision of perticularities if néede requireth So in all traffikes whither in grosse or in retaile the marchant is bound to the obseruation of those two commaundements by the which he is expressely enioyned that as he would not him self be deceiued so also he must not willingly administer deceite or wrong to an other neyther beare such loue to his proper profite as in it maye be bred the iniurie or harme of another but in all things of commutation bargaine to vse the same conuersation to straungers which he would others should vse to him Who in their common actions would rightly applie this lawe of nature grounded on true reason and the other of the Gospell deriued of charitie the perfect fulfilling of all lawes much lesse that they should néede instructions séeinge they should seldome finde occasions to erre And the cause why there remaine at these dayes so manye prescript constitutions and statutes is in no other respect but that men eyther could not or would not rule their actions by those two lawes and much lesse applie them from generalitie into speciall particulars I would to God that euen as the Marchant of cloth vseth his elne or yarde not to beguile him selfe or his chapman in the measure that also and aswell he would vse the lawe of nature and charitie in the price goodnes of his cloth euen such as he would the other should sell to him if there were exchaunge of qualitie if he would haue the price reasonable full measure not to be passed by the short yarde which ought to be solde by the longe and that the cloth be good substantiall and sufficient neyther corrupted in the making nor burnt in the dying Let him euen do the like to his chapman comming to buy of him where then shal be the common sayinge amongst them Let the marchant sell his wares as well as he can it is lawfull to euery one to make his best profit No man is bound to sell so iustely and
in which I am bolde to repose much for the protection of this my small labour and therwithall according to my long profession I humbly dedicate my selfe and seruice to your Honour on whom J doubt not but God will suffer still to attend that good Aungell which hee appointed to bee the guide of Tobias and to accomplishe all his vertuouse and iust desires At my chamber in the Blacke Friers this xvj of May. 1574. Your Honours in assured and faythfull seruice Geffray Fenton ¶ A Table of the particular Chapters thorow the whole treatise The first Booke WHat is first requisit in the well gouerning of a common weale how Ciuill pollecie ought to be conformable to the celestiall gouernement what good commeth of good pollecie what maner of gouernors and iudges ought to be chosen to direct publike estates Chap. 1. fol. 1. ¶ What gouernours God hath chosen and how he hath declared them by miracles they ought all to be instructed at the entrey of the tabernacle why the great benefite comming of good Iudges and why god doth ordeine some wicked Chap. 2. fol. 6. ¶ Gouernours chosen according to GOD make present profe of their election to the profit of the common weale Let them know how to commaund and subiects how to obey the better to make their common weale florish as inferior members obey the more worthy Magistrates ought to be as Fathers the lawe must be inuiolable but specially one true amitie betwene the gouernour and the subiect Chap. 3. fol. 11. ¶ There be two principalities or pollecies which ought to be knit together in vnitie of frendship as the soule and the bodie without difference they ought to aide one another with perpetuall succours Chap. 4. fol. 16 ¶ The faultes of the Clergie ought to bee corrected gouernours ought aboue al things to prouide good Preachers that the rude and plaine sort may be taught in familiar doctrine All sortes ought to be constrained to be at the sermon such constraint is authorised by the scripture is both profitable to the coÌ„mon weale and wholesome to such as are constrained Chap. 5. fol. 20. ¶ The wise worldlings now a dayes would not willingly haue sermoÌ„s as also certain pastors desire nothing lesse theÌ„ to preach laying the blame of the miserie of this time vppon Sermons Chap. 6. fol. 25 ¶ A refutation of such as hold that people are not bound to heare so many sermons wherefore are the Pastors if they feede not the flocke with the foode of the Scriptures Chap. 7. fol. 30 ¶ In how much good Phisitions are necessary to coÌ„mon weales by so much such as be euill are hurtfull and daungerous who ought to be chosen Phisitions in a towne Chap. 8. fol. 35 ¶ Abuses hapning in the world by the supposed name of Phisitions Apothicaries and Chirurgions Chap. 9. fol. 42 ¶ God hath erected Phisicke and willeth that the Phisition bee honored Chap. 10. fol. 48 The second Booke JVdges and gouernours haue of God many seuere commaundements in the Scripture to exhibit iustice by rightfull lawes Chapter 1. fol. 52 ¶ Iudges are warned not to be credulous nor to iudge by reports to take heede of affections and not to iudge by perticular opinion c. Chap. 2. 62 ¶ In humane things Magistrates ought to followe the lawe naturall and in causes diuine the doctrine of faith and the loue of god c. Chap. 3. fol. 68. ¶ Men may vse the morall lawes of the old testament but not the ceremoniall and iudiciall applied to the times and maners of the Iewes which Iesus Christ also S Paul doth confirme these were natural therfore ought to be eternall c Cha. 4. fol. 72 ¶ The law naturall grounded vppon reason was two thousand yeres in vse without other ordenances sauing the Sabaoth and Circumcision c. Chap. 5. fol. 78 ¶ Gouernours ought to punish by death such as God condemnes to eternall and temporall death c. Chap. 6. fol. 83 ¶ Sinnes coÌ„mitted against the second Table are worthy of death euen so deserue they eternall damnation c. Chap. 7. fol. 89 ¶ Diuerse punishments of whoredome according to the diuersitie of kyndes of the same sinne Chap. 8. fol 94 ¶ Continuance of the punishment of this sinne according to his other kindes Chap. 9. fol. 98 ¶ Theft was not punished in the law but by restitution of double treble and foure fold but now for iust causes it is punnished by death theft by necessitie in some sort excusable Chap. 10 fol. 102 ¶ There is a double lust or vrlawfull couetousnes forbidden vs c. Chap. 11. fol. 108 The third Booke ENumeration of sinnes wherof men make no conscience and are oftentimes in the condition of greeuous sinnes their qualitie and grauetie do vary c. Chap. 1. fol. 115 ¶ Flattery is declared very hurtful to commoÌ„ weales families it makes young people rise into great pride c. Chap. 2. fol. 119 ¶ Let none glorifie himselfe but in his pouertie necessitie and affliction c. Chap. 3. fol. 123 ¶ Scoffers men of pleasant conceit pretending none other end but to encrease pleasure are rebukeable but more if their testing torne to the reproch of any so do they offend god Chap. 4. fo 129 ¶ Plaies which of themselues beare no vice are not disalowable in respect of their ends and lawfull causes vnlawfull games at Dice are causes of much euill Chap. 5. fol. 133 ¶ Daunces with their wanton songs at this day are vaine and vnchast Chap. 6. fol. 137 ¶ Minstrels are vnworthy of the state and fellowship of townes men as also puppet players c. Chap. 7 fol. 141. ¶ Idlenes is a vice most common bringing with it most other offences yet no conscience made of it Chap. 8 fol 147 ¶ The ritch sort haue more to trauell then the poore and in what such as labour in mind trauell more then the painfull laborer Chap. 9. fol. 152 ¶ Gouernours ought not to suffer any idle men in their common weales c Chap. 10. fol 156 ¶ In all creatures is seene a perpetual labour whetâ—â—â— in heaueÌ„ in earth or in the sea c. Chap. 11. fol 161 ¶ There be diuers sortes of idle men some worke certain howers c. Chap 12. 1â—5 ¶ Loyâ—e eâ—s accustomed to begge wil be applied to no other trade c. Chap. 13. fol. 169 The fourth Booke THe simple impotent and true needie poore we ought to hold in singular and deare care Chap. 1. fol. 172 ¶ Many haue giuen all that they haue to the poore to follow Iesus Christ in hope to be happie c. Chap. 2. fol. 176 ¶ Compassion ought chiefly to be showed to poore maydes for the infirmitie of the kind c. Chap. 3. fol. 180 ¶ Hospitalitie and almes in all times haue ben in singular estimation c. Chap 4. fol. 183 ¶ We must not feare that by giuing Almes wee shal be poore for God c Chap. 5. fo
it meaning that when there is sufferaunce to any one to breake the Lawes and statutes it geues great perill of common ruine to al the common weale by an vnbridled libertye for that the multitude aspiring to maistership eyther the most strong or the most Ritche or the most subtile or the most bold wil get the principality where the wise man in the like sence resembleth the Lawes to a fountaine or waye of life hée speaketh vnder the construction that as the lawe administreth enterteyneth a life ciuill without debate deuerse or daunger so where the statutes are not wel enterteined and iustified there is layde the occasion of strife quarell grudge percialities questions murders and general licence to doe al euyll So that in the discipline of the Lawe is wrought the conuersation of quiet life ciuyll securitye and common conuersation neyther was it without reason that wee resembled the Lawes to the Soule of the common weale for euen as the Soule of man vniformelye rules his bodye guides it susteines it entertaines it in being instructes it in what is good for euery one of his members bringes prouision for his necessities teacheth it touching the function of his naturall office in all his members enterteyning and reteyning them togeather by such coniunction that muche lesse there is amongest them any passion of enuye hatered or debate seeing of the contrary shée makes the griefe of â—ne to bée felt of them all and to complaine it no lesse then if euerye one did perticipate in it as if the foote bée gréeued we sée the tongue speakes for it and expresseth sorrowe the eye is readye to looke to it the hande to touche it to bée short they communicate all in common with the good and euil that happeneth euery one imparting with another and all with one and one with all Euen so the law is a perfect vnion of all the partes estates of publike weales equall to all without exception of persons and instructing them in their general and particular duty defendes them all thinges contrary to the same comprehending vnder her aswell the great as the small the noble men as the paisaunt men of knowledge as the ignoraunt meane artificer Beside this it makes the magistrate féele as his owne the displeasure which happeneth euen to the meanest of the Citie as afore wee haue sayde the head hath his part in the hurt of the foote enclining to helpe it as if it were to him selfe And gréeuing thus in the euill of another with no lesse compassion then if it were proper to him selfe and seeing it common to all the body polletike which ought to complaine and demaund remedy of him being his head if hée giue that cure which is expedient much more the head being greeued wherin restes the vniuersall gouernment and prouidence of the whole body of the common weale is required a coÌ„mon and dutyfull diligence of all the members to do seuere iustice of him that had committed so daungerous a fault for the which all auncient common weales haue well prouided by good statutes and not forgot remedies for ciuill maladies supplying euerye of the same with conuenient cure according to the qualitye of the hurt wherin they obserued a forme of equall prouision both to heale the partye gréeued and preserue the rest of the bodye in his perfect integritie sometimes applying the colde and sharpedged yron and in an extreame remedye would cut of that part that would bée incurable least the other neare partes and consequentlye the whole bodye might fall into the infection of that contagious plague ¶ There be twoo principalities or pollecies which ought to bee knit together in vnitye of friendship as the soule and the body without difference they ought to ayde one another with mutuall and perpetuall succour for so shall not one of them passe an other The .4 Chap. AND as in Man bee twoo partes the one spiritual and the other corporall so in one coÌ„mon weale bée two principalityes that is to say the state Ecclesiasticall and ciuill they both notwithstanding vnited and conioyned as the minde and the body concurring in the perfite action of man And albeit they haue béene alwayes concordant for two endes yet as touching the Subiect they are different and vnlyke Priesthood temporal principalitye were conceyued at the first in the lawe of nature in the lawe written in two brethren Moyses and Aaron representing that they haue in al times consented in vnitye and brotherly concorde the one not vndertaking ouer the other but either one contented with his perticular charge and dutye The clergie directed speciallye the regiment of Soules by spirituall doctrines sacrifices Sacraments prayers and other actes and exercises of Diuine and Spirituall qualitye whose iurisdiction in like sort tended not but to spirituall endes without any medling or managing of temporal affaires as when they prescribed exercise of fasting penaunce and other disciplines to acknowledge sinnes or for Canonicall satisfaction of offences enioyned by penaunce with suertye and tranquilitye of conscience where the secular magistrate hath the wéelding of the sworde to geue correction to offendours rebelles mutinors and such as refusing the Spirituall Doctrine which the Church administreth doo contemne and persecute it and commit transgressions against the Lawes Ciuil deseruing punishment Aaron and the auncient sacrificatours medled onely with ceremonies sacrifices and interpretation of the Lawe Iesus Christ likewise and his Apostles made not but Spirituall profession as apeareth by the aunswere of our sauiour when hee was solicited to iudge a controuersie betwéene twoo Brethren touching the particion of their goodes what is hee sayth hée that hath instituted mée a Iudge or deuider of heritages betwéene you as who saye you are wrong ariued to mée for such a busines For I am come onely to preache and make spirituall exercise I wyll helpe you onely in that which I ought which is in Doctrine kéepe you from all Couetousnesse for by the abundaunce of Ritches which man possesseth his life is not susteyned and much lesse prolonged yea they can not make it any waye happy it is for that cause that Saint Paul willeth that hée that is militant to God and geuen whollye to his seruice shoulde haue no communitie with secular affaires eyther in traffike or any temporall profession The iudgement of this estate as we began to rehearse afore is not specially established but ouer consciences that is to absolue them when they are knowen to repent Sinne and whollye abandon it where if repentaunce bée not expressed they must stande restrained to theyr offences that is not to admit them to absolution And where the offences bée publike and no due penaunce done then to punishe them by excoÌ„municatioÌ„ which notwithstanding is rather a medicine then a payne and yet spiritual also as bée al the Ecclesiastical corrections theyr sworde is Gods worde their practises are Prayers Fastinges Teares Holye Meditacions continuall studie of the Scriptures and perpetuall
not worthy of the eternall glory which he hopes for in Heauen wherof hée assureth him selfe for that by how much hée endureth afflictions heare in earth by so much is his glory layd vp the greater and he made more happy in heauen in which consideration onely S. Paul toke comfort in perplexityes Torments Extreme miseryes and in the Crosse wherin hée reioysed more spiritually as al the other Saints did then the fleshly men in all theyr banquets pleasures and idle delights of the world Let therfore the Christian pacient after the due action of penaunce submission for his faultes reioyce him selfe in his sicknes with singing of psalmes and holye himnes hauing also instruments of musicke whervnto hée maye sing deuout Notes or haue them song in his presence to raise his heart and spirite into spirituall ioye in the Lord in which sort S. Paul willeth men to dispose theyr pastimes of the worlde as also S. Iames in all euents and dollerous accidents counselles men to relieue theyr hearts with the solace of Psalmes vsing in cases of sicknes and times of aduersity with the example of S. Augustine when hée was sicke the conference of Bookes of consolation and spiritual Doctrines vsing the company of Learned men for his better assistaunce in so holy discourse sparing to ouercharge his minde with doutes and difficulties but rather to recreate it with familiar textes by the which his faith maye bee entertained and his loue to God increased with desire to bée ioyned to him and hope to enioye his euerlasting glorye But the sickeman whose conscience testifyeth against him as hauing his life embrued with dissolutiō in place of this musicke and comfortable ioye which hée can not haue because it is onely to holye men let him washe the remembrance of his life past with penitent teares and recorde his sinnes to God with vehemencye of prayer for mercye and pardon and taking his sicknes as an officer or messenger to sommon him to appeare afore the eternall iudgement let him prepare to sue for grace afore he bée presented afore the burning Throane sith afterwarde there is no remission Wherin the better to acknowledge his offence to God let him vse satisfaction to his neyghbour and doo the dutye of a true penitent Christian But now to knit vp eftsones with the matter of the Phisitions who in many partes of Christendome are worse disposed then those whome wée named before as being readye ministers eyther for hate or couetousnes fauour or hyre to murder and sell the liues of theyr miserable pacients by horrible meanes too familiar in the world now a dayes to whose vnnaturall treasons I account the tormentes of hell to bée but a due iustice O lamentable corruption of our time whē euen there where wée laye vp the confidence of our lyues wée finde murder with infidelyty and where with the breath of hope of comfort and securitye wée drinke vp the sirope of poyson prepared by the handes of the creator to the kinde of man There is an other sort in whome is litle difference of sinne from the others who geuing counsell to deuide the bodye into straunge fleshe to cure a disease do nothing els then with the title of wretched bawdrye damne many soules in the filthye suddes of the fleshe where there is prouidence by infinite remeedyes to pourge all suche vicious humours Thus they abuse the arte which being a gift of God they become vnfaithfull and vnthankefull ministers against his honour will and commaundement offending God more then they who by theyr counsell commit suche wicked actes Suche also as kéepe patientes long on theyr handes and Surgeons who for gaine and practise nourishe long time Vlcers Woundes and Apostumes as in theyr doing is expressed an imitacion of Théeues so what can they deserue lesse then the reward of that crime Lastly I wishe bothe the one and the other to treade in the steppes of certaine deuoute and good Phisitions who will not medle with the cure of the body afore they haue first prepared a purgation to the soule and muche lesse will minister any thing to the pleasure of the body against the health of the Soule but both the one and the other in sociable vnitye of frendship making alwayes the seruaunt obey his Ladye and Mistresse in humble and reasonable subiection ¶ The Second booke ¶ Iudges and gouernours of common VVeales haue of God many seuere commaundements in the Scriptures to exhibite iustice by rightful lavves vvherin as they are threatened of God if they faile so because they shall not erre the fourme hovve to Iudge is prescribed them God so being set afore them in imitacion of Judgements vvhich he doeth vvhich by reason they ought to doe because as he is of him selfe iust and his iudgementes righteous yea iustice it selfe so they are his liefetenauntes ordeyned of him to administer his iustice vvherein because they shal not be fearefull to exercise theyr estate he promiseth them his asistaunce Jf they be fearefull they deserue not to be Judges because in suche a seruice of his hee vvill haue no faint hearted ministers The .1 Chapter FOr that in Regiment of common Weales according to God the christiā Magistrates neyther may nor can erre in the executiō of their charges they haue in the scripture the cōmaundements of the Lord whose lieftenants they are yea often Reiterated with straite seuere charge faithfully to Gouerne his people with Lawful and righteous iudgements wherof as hee geueth them a forme by such as hee exerciseth vppon his people so if they proceede by imitacion of so perfect an example they ought not nor cannot bring forth faulte or errour of good iustice speciallye if they obserue those Lawes by the which hée declareth his true and vpright iudgement in iustifying the innocentes correcting and condemning the guiltie exhorting the yll liuer to reformation in teaching the Doctrines of vertue to the ignoraunte and lastly in distributing to euery one according to the rate and measure of his desert The lawes which hée will haue vs to follow bée first ordinaunces of him selfe which hee expresseth to vs in the scripture I meane as well morall as diuine and eternall whereof wée will speake heareafter the others are they which wée call natural and humaine grounded vppon the same conteyning honesty or Publike profit or altogeather By these foundacions and causes wée maye affirme the humaine lawes to bee Lawfull and directly cōmaunded by Iesus Christ by the declaration of Saint Peter and S. Paul. in the obedience to Caesar and other Magistrates to the whiche obedience wée must necessarylye ioyne the Lawes by them ordeyned And for the more vpright direction of gouernors I wil recite the expresse commaundement of God concerning their Estate of Iudging and by the scripture laye afore them in what sort they ought to kepe them from corruption of iustice and how many miseries ensue the tract of false iudgements beséeching them in the name of God whose Delegates they
reserued for them in the fornace of hell ¶ In humane thinges Magistrates ought to follow the lawe naturall and in causes deuine the Doctrine of faith and the loue of God It vvas necessary that God by his Scripture reneued the lavve naturall for it vvas darkened by sinne and the lavve of faith and of loue deuine vvas altogeather vnknovven vvithout the doctrine of God according to both the one and other lavve the Magistrate maye make ordinaunces so that they tende to the confirmacion of the same or haue a likenes vvith them The .3 Chapter GOuernors of common weales thus raysed to a state of diuine honor by the which they haue the title of Gods as hath béene recited in the former Booke the better to enhable them to this deuine office peculiar and proper to God which is to iudge rather in wisedome discrecion and perfection let them imitate God who iudgeth perfectly without errour then folowe man in whose nature is propertye of errour and with his perticular reason oftentimes bringes forthe actes contrarye to reason Let them also at all times folowe one rule deuine certaine and infallible which shall leade them in a deuine course and exercise of theyr estate Let them haue alwayes in theyr hande for the managing of humane and ciuill affaires the lawe natuturall I meane the lawe general proponed by the scripture making it their Loadestone to direct infallibly the state of all their doinges That is the lawe wherunto euen Iesus Christ sendes vs in all common and humane actions meaning wée shall not doo to others that which wée would not haue done to vs as withall Let vs doo to others what wée woulde haue done to our selues whereof the Gospel geueth this interpretation Thou shalt loue thy neighbor as thy selfe Vpon this foundacion al Lawes customes and constitucions ciuill and humane so farre forth as they bée good and iust are grounded But if there bee any ordinaunce wherin is not conteyned this precept of the Lawe naturall or agréeing therewith I meane in affayres concerning onely the profit and benefite of men it can not but holde of iniquitye So that it behoueth that it comprehende something necessarye to the socyetye of man profitable and honest lyke as the Lawe ought not to bée made to geue fauour to pleasure or bring hurt to any one and muche lesse to suffer dishonour or villanye to bée done Thus the Lawe naturall in her generall foundation being in this sort aucthorised by the holye Scripture standes to vs as a rule for al ordinaunces in causes concerning humane gouernement But touching the faith the loue and seruice whiche wée owe to God in thinges deuine and spiritual wée haue an other lawe the foundacion of al holy deuine ordinances I am thy God c. which is thou shalt loue thy God with al thy hart with all thy vnderstanding with al thy soule and with al thy strength which commaundement Saint Paul includes in the natural loue towardes our neyghbour as in déede a man can neuer loue well his neighbour but that it is for the loue of God as the cause formal and effectual of the other friendship And this law was no lesse natural then the other imprinted in the hearts of the fyrst men But the corruption of nature vaine opinions and wicked manners haue so strongly peruerted the iudgement of men that God sawe a necessitye being indused by his mercy to reueale to man this lawe yea reuealed him selfe for men knew him not and muche lesse loued him Thus this first lawe was cleane defaced whiche was easely séene touching the lawe to our neighbour for that there were not many men in the world in whome was desire to doo pleasure to others without recompence of asmuch or more benefite but natures for the most part bearing inclinations to enemities vsuries quarelles pertialityes factions warres with other infinite cōspiracies raised mutually of one man against another And consernyng faith knowledge loue of God all men had declined and erred by extreame transgression wherfore God gaue eftsones these preceptes and the explication of the same by diuers documentes for theyr better vnderstanding and according to the same hath erected many lawes and ordinaunces tending to those twoo endes I meane to vnderstand and kéepe those twoo commaundementes Touching faith hée hath reuealed it to vs expounded and caused it to bée expounded by his prophetes and Apostles and according to the same wée haue also statutes and Lawes reduced into twelfe Articles of the Creede euen as the workes whiche wée ought to doo in charitye and loue of God are comprehended in the ten commaundementes So that sith gouernours ought neuer to erre in iudgement it is méete that they iudge according to these twoo lawes And séeing there can be no others but eyther they haue affinitye with the Pagans or are replenished with iniustice and impietie there is great necessity that these bée thorowlye studied And so loking with déepe iudgement into the lawe of nature they may erect ordinaunces tending to the sayd thrée endes necessity vtility and honestye being all concluded in one generall whiche is the common wealth they maye also ordaine paines for the transgressors by the conformety of those which they sée conteined in the lawes receiued and accustomed in al Christendome euen so in the lawe of the loue of God they maye also make statutes to induce men and leade them to that loue and if any haue lost it A thing happening by sinne they maye make ordinaunces of reconcilement according to the precedent of the auncients by the exhortacion of the Prophetes as to fast and assemble at Prayers which was vsed in the time of the Iudges of Hester the Niniuites and Machabees without expresse commaundement of God. ¶ Men may vse the morral Lawes of the olde Testament but not the Ceremoniall and Iudiciall applied to the times and maners of the Jevves vvhich Iesus Christ and also Saint Paul doeth confyrme These vvere natural and therefore ought to bee eternall notvvithstanding for charitye to our neyghbour and loue of God and for aduauncement of faith that lavve sometimes is not to bee vsed at the time vvhen men do greatest seruice to God vvhich then is an acte of perfection The vvise man can not faile to Judge vell according to the lavve of nature The .4 Chapter BVT because it maye bee asked of some whether magistrates may iudge according to the deuine Lawes of the olde Testament séeing the Lawe of Moyses was abolished by Iesus Christ The lawe saith Saint Luke and the Prophetes led man no further then vntill the time of Saint Iohn Baptist And as the lawe of nature before Moyses conteynes not but certaine examples of Iustice so the lawe of the Gospell medling not with Pollitike ordinaunces entreates onelye of mercye as is séene in the grace which Iesus Christ shewed to the adulterour Go thy wayes sayeth hee and sinne no more And touching humaine lawes it séemes that men ought not
aduising vs by this rather to loase both the hoode and the cloake as the prouerbe is then to bée reuenged of them and endure death rather then to geue one blowe But in cases not touching faith wée maye vse iustice as did Saint Paul who when reproches and false crimes by malice were layde vpon him and Christian faith not touched hée defended him selfe against his false accusers and in extréeme reméedye hée appealeth to Caesar at Rome Touching the Lawes of the Gentiles if according to our opinion before they bée founded in vniuersal reason without errour or infidelitye they ought as braunches springing out of the law naturall to be receiued and obserued as was the marriage of Infidelles But where they suffer errour let them with their idolatries bée abhominable abhorred To answere the obiection which some deriue from S. Paul that the wise christian ought to iudge differences amongest the faithfull where there is no mencion of lawes Saint Paul in saying that the wise man may Iudge meaneth that he bée wise in the vnderstanding of the lawes for in this is the true propertye of wisedome to bée well séene and wise in God concerning thinges deuine and humane so shall his singular wisedome kéepe him from errour in iudgement hauing in him as the teacher of wisedom saith the feare of God knowledge and wisedome and being truly spiritual which by the spirite of God makes exact iudgement in all thinges and can not bée reproued of that whereof hée hath geuen sentence Yet when he ought to Iudge I will not saye but that it is méete that hee haue the lawes of the world in his head yea let him haue a good spirite a sound ripe iudgement and vnderstand wel the cause in present question so laying aside al affection let him recōmend him selfe to God whose iudgement hée exerciseth Let him confer in difficult maters with other sages which with remembrance of Gods holy feare will leade him in integrity of iudgement And knowing that the ende of al lawe is vtility necessity honesty let him prefer honesty before profite publike profit before the perticular gaine of any man that rather certaine priuate persons lose in obseruing the Lawe then the multitude to suffer distresse But aboue all let that honestye which consistes in vertue bée alwayes entertayned doing no euill whereupon to hope for good ¶ The lawe naturall grounded vpon reason vvas two thousand yeres in vse vvithout other ordinaunces sauing the Sabboth and Circumsition and God hath geuen fevve lavves concerning this naturall and ciuill right nor the auncient vvise gouernors of cōmon vveales for iust causes the people of God according to reason haue made iudgementes and follovved the interpretacion of their moral lavves by the instinct of reason by the vvhich God did institute them and therefore vvhen the Scribes and Pharisies peruerted that reason they vvere condemned Gouernours asvvell in theyr ordinaunces as constitucion of paines to punishe offences ought alvvaies to follovve those lavves vvhich God hath ordeyned according to that reason ¶ The .5 Chapter THus vve haue seene that gouernours maye Iudge according to Lawes naturall deuine and humane both in what sort they ought to iudge and that it is not necessarye alwayes to consult with the written Lawe in all Iudgementes for that as there bée more matters then words more causes then lawes So the actions of men as Aristotle saith being infinite can not bée conteyned all by memoryes as also by reason of the dissimilitude varieties they can not be comprehended in generall constitucions such as be the Lawes this was the cause that the Lacedemonians made no great vse of writtē lawes leauing to the discretion of wise Iudges and graue men the iudgement of that whiche was not written God him selfe the Image of all wisedome for the same reason caused no Lawe to bée written in twoo thousand yeeres but that of the Sabboth circumsicion nor in the Gospel we see none expresly instituted by Iesus Christ for a cōmon weale but al was referred to the arbitracion and wise iudgement of gouernours yea when God emploied Moyses to bée the Lawmaker of the Iewes hée erected but fewe lawes and they onelye in principall matters for the preseruation of societye and polletike quiet referring the iudgemēt of other affaires not contained in the same generall Lawes to the discretion of such Iudges as hée had ordained willing for that it was impossible to write lawes to all affaires that in those newe causes theyr iudgement should hold perentory aucthority as wel as in other matters to bée decided by the written Lawes yea hée commaunded that the wise men should interprete his lawes by theyr wisdome as in the interpretacion of the ordinaunce of circumcision that the eyght day men should bée Circumcised they reserued forty yéeres that they were in the desert without being Circumcised In lyke sort of the Phascal or feast of Easter for the seconde moneth to suche as had not done it in the fyrst and so in infinite others by verye good and iuste reasons approued and receaued in the Lawe wherein he gaue them aucthoritye not onely to iudge according to discresion and good aduise and to interprete all Lawes but also gaue them power to make newe as the necessitye of the affaires required whereof for a more assured proofe of others erected according to reason wee sée twoo approued in the Gospell as on the Sabboth day not to goo further then halfe a league to celebrate the feast dedicatory in the moneth of Decēber which Iesus Christ did assist preache there forbearing to speake of many other as in the time of Easter which the Seniors general Iudges and gouernors of the people had ordeyned So that as their aucthoritye is greate to iudge and interprete lawes alwaies erect according to the circumstance of time matter So notwithstanding this must be considered that in a monarchie gouernors neyther haue power nor office to create ordinances but vnder the approbation of the Prince with this regarde further that they hold conformety with the law deuine to prefer Gods honor common profit wherin let gouernors in the constitucion of their statutes haue a perpetual respect to the wil iudgement of God which they ought to preserue interprete and not peruert them as did the scribes pharisies certaine of the Seniors geuing value to their proper inuentions ordinances contrary to the law of god as oftentimes to wash their hādes enritche the treasour of the temple by defrauding the poore fathers mothers of their naturall right touching the norriture which they ought to their children Chiefly let Magistrates obserue cause to bée exactly obserued the lawes of God and afterward the ordinances of man such as they create tending to those endes and others agreeing with the time and nature of places and persons conforming all with the Lawes of God So that when they sée in the Scripture that
corporall death is decréed in the Lawe of nature and other seuere iudgement of God inferred to the wicked as to Cayn for kyllyng his brother by the tremblyng of his bodye to the murtherers by the sworde to the worlde for his delightes glorie and whordome by the flood to them of Sodome and Gomorrhe for sinnes against nature by the fire of heauen to the adulterers and rauishers of women by terrible vengeaunce and to the chidren of Iudas who had done abhominable actes by paynes of suddaine deathes which they sawe euen by a naturall iudgement pronounced or inflicted as to Thamar for committing whordome and to the Sichimites for the Rape of Dina the daughter of Iacob If gouernours punishe not suche faultes by like paynes at the least let them ordaine others either conformable or neare approching them alwayes considering that corporall paines in the lawe bée figures and foreshowes of the eternall death which sinne deserueth In like sort where they sée in the Lawe of Moises certaine sinnes to bée punished by the body let them iudge them right sore displeasing and hateful to God who loueth his creature so dearelye as hée hath geuen him his owne image and likenesse and for whome he hath made the inferiour heauens the earth and the Elements with all thinges conteyned in the same and for whose cause hée sent his proper sonne vpon the earth to suffer all miseries yea most cruel and sclaunderous death And therfore being thus instructed bothe by the lawe whiche punisheth certaine sinnes with death specially suche as bée against the ten coÌ„maundements of the Moral Lawe or directly against Gods honour our neighbour or a wholâ— common weale and also by the Gospell to whom certeine sinnes are so abhominable as it condemnes them to eternall death and perpetual tormentes where is gnashing of téeth and lamentable sighinges they maye conclude suche offences to bée worthy of death specially where a whole common weale is iniured or offended For touching secréete sinnes wherein is no meane of proofe let them refer them to the iudgement of God and to the repentaunt Men sayeth the Scripture haue no power nor facultie to iudge but in matters apparant to the eye God séeing into the heart discernes the secréet things wherof hée defendes the iudgement to al others But where God is offended the coÌ„mon weaâ—e iniured there let theÌ„ follow the iudgement of god which we know to be thundred vpon sinners committing such faultes Therefore let Iudges bee well aduised and geue no libertye of life to suche whom God hath already condemned in heauen both to corporal and eternall death Let them acknowledge that they are here erected as imitatours executours of his iudgement Let them remember Saul who pardoned Agag whom God had condemned to death and Saul for his indulgencye was reproued depriued of his kingdom Let them not also forget the grace which Helias shewed to his dissolute children who for that they were abhorred of god were the cause of his death I meddle not with the reproches which God gaue to the gouernours of Israell because they suffered sinne with impunitye suffering suche to liue who had defiled the earth with theyr wickednes people abhominable to God and worthy so many deathes as they had committed horrible vices And therefore hee condemneth those Iudges euen so often to eternal death as they gaue sufferaunce to others to commit suche faultes without inflicting vpon them corporall death To this let them adioyne this aduertisement that as one member corruptes the rest so the rotten part disposing continuall infection into the rest of the body deserues to bée cut of euen as the good Surgeon not suffering a Canker to encrease cuttes it of so soone as it beginnes to appeare Let them not doubt but that according to the Gospel al euil wicked men which the Law of nature and Moises condemne yea the humane lawe also according to reason do adiudge to death ought to die For as the Gospel so aloweth al those lawes as is before prooued S. Paul aduiseth the Corinthians by them all others to take awaye the wicked man who being corrupt in maners corruptes others for which cause he compares them to the leuine aduising notwithstanding that the punishmeÌ„t come from the magistrate who hauing the sworde is a iust terror to the offeÌ„dor for that he carieth it not in vain being the minister of god executour of his law which euen in the gospel condemneth the man that hath done euil Wherefore al men disposed into the action of wickednes must be punished by the magistrate otherwaies he should bring abuse to his estate Is it not the magistrate by whom S. Paul willeth that all such in a coÌ„mon weale should be cut of by death which vexe the church and are mutinus sedicious iniurious false prophetes wherin because it may be douted to what vices the scripture appointeth punishment specially by death I meane to declare by order the paines of such as the law coÌ„demneth to the ende the magistrate leaue theÌ„ not vnpunished in his coÌ„mon weale nor iustifie such by which he should draw malediction as god hath already condemned by the scripture Heare we must not winke at an error of our time receiued almost thorow al christeÌ„dom which is that we obserue no better the imitacion so often recoÌ„mended to vs of the iudgements of God to leade vs being also commaunded in the scripture according to the same in the punishment of sinnes which is a kinde of infidelitye and ignorance of God or presumptuous boldnes or at least an inseÌ„sible dulnes This error deriueth partly from the humane lawes made by the Pagans whose gouernment being led for the most part by fleshly reason suffred impunity for many sinnes which God by his law condemneth to death as diuinations sorceries diuers sorts of magike with whoredomes sauing women whoremongers for men that made the lawes were exempted the virgins vestal or incestuous women with their adulterors condemning no more coÌ„mon vseries excessiue interestes with like sinnes which God abhorreth Gouernors of common weales ought in no wise to hold conformety with these Pagan iudgemeÌ„ts But reforme them making felt the grauitye of such sinnes by the rigour of worthy punishmeÌ„t Men were wont to haue regard only to punishe such sinnes as séemed to beare preiudice to a coÌ„mon weale and therfore sinnes common against god or which of their owne nature be common or Publike wherin the world delights without contradiction are left vnpunished the same being an occasion to prouoke the wrath of God vpon a whole nation destroye whole kingdomes If the auncient canons of the Church bée wel searched it wil be found that al such offences are punished by long straite penance as are also al othes yea the most execrable that men tooke in vaine of god or of the gods diuers opinions of religion although they were absurde wicked and lastly inuocation to the
and vnited in one boddy polliticke by Iesus Christ and in him also made one body and one spirite if they be surmounted by these little beastes in society in vnity and perfect amity Their King and mayster Bée that puttes them in order and by his humming voyce calles them to trauayle is so obeyed honored and loued of the rest that if he go out of the Hiue they all follow him when he can no more flie they beare him which may stād as instruction to gouernors what they ought to be to inferios for the office of their seruice obeing honoring seruing their magistrates with redy humility affection will seruice ⧠Gouernors ought not to suffer any ydle men in their commonweales vvho as they be vnprofitable and a charge to the vvorlde so in the ende they bring ruine to their commonvveales therefore it is necessary that fathers put their children to some trade and masters their seruants and so all others The magistrat and Churchman ought to shevv example of trauell to others according to their profession ⧠The .10 Chapter SIth idlenesse as hath been proued is not onely a vice horrible of it selfe but the seminary and bréeder of many other sinnes miseries it belongs to the Magistrate according to all Lawe both natural and deuine common reason to geue no more sufferaunce to slouthfull and idle people in their common weales then the good father of a family wyll endure in his priuate house either to son or seruaunt or other hande of ability to worke without doing something The good Husbandman wyll not suffer Rats and Wesels to eate his Corne in the Garners nor Moathes to deuour his Garments Caterpyllers to spoyle his Trées the Foxe to eate his Pultry the Woolfe to pray vpon his Shéepe nor the Théefe to steale Corne out of his Barne much lesse ought to be suffred in a common weale idle and slouthfull people whose example deuouring first the maners qualities of the multitude wyll at last endaunger the state of the whole euen as the other vermine by continuaunce bring to destruction the profite of a priuate house Let therefore the Magistrates suffer none in their common weale without arte without occupacion or some honest or profitable meane to liue by erectyng Lawes to compell fathers to prouide good instructions for their children specially in the doctrine and feare of God and if any cary inclination will to searche out learning let him according to his power geue encouragement to so good a desire And so apply euery one of the rest to the Art whereunto he findes nature to geue her redyest consent Let there be neuer a Maister who kepes not his seruaunt in seruice and restraining all libertie to vaine idlenesse let him ioyne compulsion to his negligence force him to such Arte or faculty as his capacity wyll best agrée withall yea such ought to be the diligence prouidence of the magistrates that there be not séene in the time of worke any man or woman which doth not his duety according to his profession In the Bible the woman as well as the man hath her labour prescribed specially in the last chapter of Salomons Prouerbs much lesse then the man ought she to be séene idle for by her idlenesse as hath béen sayd the first woman marred all her office shal be more amply set out in the sixt booke S. Paul woulde not that widdowes runne or gad from house to house as idle babbling gossops either learners or caryers of newes And much lesse is it tollerable that men of estate replenish the stréetes I meane walking vp and down for their pastime vnlesse they bée called by occasion of businesse There ought the Magistrate to be often scommyng as did Epaminondas searching the stréetes to sée how euery one followe their estate and so reforme the disordred and heare the complaintes of such as haue suffred wrong in their absence to apply their deputies and Sergeantes to this charge by which prouidence they shall kéepe all their Citie in dutie Touching straungers passengers soiourning in their Towne it is very necessary to vnderstande what maner people they are specially the suspition and daunger of the season requiring If they remaine there aboue one night it ministreth matter of inquiry and therfore let the hoast infourme the gouernours If they be men of occupation let them search worke and auoyde idlenesse And if they be people of estate the regarde to their calling geues them such knowledge and care of their duetie that they wyl not loose time in vnprofitable rest The Burgesses of a Citie ought not to come in the rebuke of the Athenians whose maner was to kepe the stréetes publike places for vaine pleasure and to heare newes Aboue all other it is farre from the office of Churchmen to be séene in stréetes or shoppes or before the Churches to gaze on passengers and much lesse to walke vp and downe in Churches contrary to the commaundement of God whose house is a house of prayer wherein as many haue a fonde custome eyther to spend the time in mumbling their darck Pater nosters as olde Priestes were wont to doe or else to chatte with such as they méete whom they ought to instruct and reforme So being in the church it belongeth to them to expresse an example of good ministers as eyther to mount into the pulpet and preache or withdraw into some secret place where they maye pray in truth without fiction and hipocrisie and in great reuerence vpon their knées meditate in spirituall contemplation that which belongs vnto them both to thinke and doe aswell for themselues as for the people for whome they ought to be intercessours to God assoone as they haue perfourmed their dutie in the Church let them withdraw themselues to their priuate studies of the scripturs if after their studie they will practise any facultie secretly eyther to auoyde ydlenesse or to giue sustenance to their poore estate the custome is tollerable and agréeing with the auncient fathers wherin as S Paul stands an example who trauelled with his hands to auoyd slaunder to the Gospel not to be chargful to any So Iesus Christ before he preached as Saint Marke writeth was called Myller and Carpenter as one that wrought at those sciences with Ioseph asmuch to reléeue the necessities of his lyfe as to obey the cōmaundements of god who made all men subiect to labor But after he tooke vpon him the state of preaching he coulde not trauayle in those scienses more neyther ought he to doe so for that he was come to doe all spirituall dutie so was he occupied in continuall prayer to teache heale the sicke do the office of a sauiour He spent sometimes thrée dayes in instructing and healing the sicke for which two causes as S. Marke sayth he had no leysure to refreshe his bodye with foode and hauing no oportunitie on the dayes to pray
statutes by all the Courtes of their prouince in inuiolable stabilitie For as the lawes diuine and humaine are as it were the strength and walles of common weales euen so are the statutes of a Colledge the fortresse and bulwarke of the same without the which it can not bée long kept from disorder and vtter ruine Let the benefactors and Citizens honour their Colledge with often visitacion and contemplation of the principall and Regentes to whom for their learning sake belonges that merit of honor but specially if they be come farre off to doe seruice to their Citie leauing their proper Countreis and priuat commodities By this visitacion it will come to passe that the principall and Regents shall be better obeyed and feared of their schollers and they which with their tutors and altogyther better moued with common readinesse to doe the duetie of their Colledge and in cases of wrong iniurie and vexation offered by any let them ioyne with them in ayde and councell to aduaunce exemplarie iustice wherein in applying fauor and protection to those that represent them all aswell Magistrates as general parentes of a whole prouince in the institution of their youth to whom then if iniurie be offered the Magistrate and whole cōmon weale haue interest therein and therefore with common affection ought to pursue the offender to publike iustice they doe honor to their cōmon weales in those learned men who resorting to Vniuersities or other publike or priuat places will giue honorable opinion rapport touching the pollicie and order of that Citie To be short there can not be to great honor reuerence and affection borne to those persones by whose industrie in the institution and education of youth so many benefites grow as by them whole common weales become happie so that if men loue and honor vertue science honor dignities ritches reste and publike felicitie much more ought they to honor and cherishe those men by whom all those benefites are brought to whole countreys If Fathers and mothers beare so deare loue to their children with desire to sée them rise into manners and qualities of ciuill men ought they not with great affection to embrace and cherishe suche by whom in their places and with no lesse Fatherly zeale their children are instructed taught corrected and trained euen to their desires yea if their Disciples were their proper children by kind and bloud they could vse no more affectiō to make them learned and vertuouse In déed suche deserue not the name of maisters who bearing no frank care and loue to their schollers séeme as marcenary men and but to regarde the present gayne holding their Schollers in negligence and their parentes in hipocrisie touching their paines diligēce Touching the principal he ought to loue his regents as his bretherne who as he is the auncient and first in authoritie ouer them so by the scripture to the eldest is ascribed the preheminence and supreame rule in a familie and acknowledging him selfe as a brother in the aduauncement and protection of his bretherne giuing them aide and fauour to his vttermost power and credit in an other consideration he is called the head of the regents and schollers the regents being the chiefe and principall members of the body vnder the head and the schollers the inferior So that as he being a brother must behaue himselfe to his brothers in brotherly office and as the head gouerne his most principall and excellent members with a chiefest care and dutie and so sée the rest beare mutuall amitie one to another In like sort ought the Regents to acknowledge all loue feare and franke obedience as they are warned by the law of God to their eldest and most auncient brother forbearing as neare as they can to grieue their head or giue him any occasion of offence the same being altogether against the law of nature God and man as in a naturall bodie by how much the members are neare to the head by so much doo they trauell to giue aide and pleasure to their naturall head as retayning of it more prouidence or influxion euen so schollers according to all law and reason ought to beare loue reuerence feare and obedience in all subiection to their head and principall first and next to their Regents yea the same loue honour feare and obedience which they owe to their parents and duties to the Magistrates ought they to performe substancially to their principall and Regents being as Lieftenants to their Fathers Mothers and Magistrate and whom the Principall Regents loue with the affection of Fathers no lesse then if they were their proper children For recompēce therfore let them honour them with equall loue and dutie and with reuerence as to the formers of their wittes and Fathers of their learning alwayes considering that if their had not ben instructed their ignorāce and vice had taken from them all dignitie and honour in their life and as blind men they had walked in perpetuall darknes falling into errors and neuer confessed God and in the end had ben perpetually wretched In which respects as they well deserue to be loued and honoured as their Masters so yet they are bound to it most of all when they are risen into knowledge by which they receiue the honorable fruit of their studies how often so euer they sée themselues honored for their learning how often they gaine by it when they take most pleasure in their Science and sée themselues raised into dignitie and felicitie aboue others bycause of their learning and vertue euen so often let them honour the remembrance of their Masters and embrace them with perfect loue as who were their originall happy meanes to raise them to those estates and without whom they had ben contemnible to the world with out any honorable ornament of nature forbearinge the rudenes of some vnthankfull disciples who being once highly mounted make no more reckoning of the stirop that raised them to their high seat wherin much lesse that they deserue that they haue but with vnthākfull children not acknowledging to their parents their due honour nor the aide and dutie which they owe thē are not worthy of common life Let such and all other vnthankfull people remember that it is a sinne which S. Paule findes condemned of Christ to eternall perdicion and a signe of reprobation with God. Refutation of the false iudgements of some proude worldlings touching the profession of schoolemasters with a praise of that profession Chapter xiij MAny there be of too fleshly and reprobate iudgement who eyther ignorant in the dignitie of learning or sworne enemies against it despise the state of schoolemasters calling them by many scornefull and ridiculous names But according to my former opinion I hold it afore God a calling most honorable and acceptable and in a common weale the most profitable and necessary profession For if knowledge be commendable vertue deserue honour much more merite of reuerence belonges to such as teach
poore for want of capacitie and industrie herein the iudgements of the Lacedemonians were righteous against certaine rich Lordes demaunding the daughters of their Kyng Lyander in hope of great credite by that alliance But the king being dead they would haue refused the contractes if they had not bene constrained by publike authoritie of the Court such also deserue like condemnation who by fearefull distrust dare not enter mariadge without great porcions fearing in chusing poore maydes to suffer continuall necessitie which of all other ought least to be feared for that if to their trade or industrie to liue be ioyned a will to trauell calling vppon God fearing him the Lord will so blesse their laboures that in the end they shal be rich aboue their hope At the least if they liue iustly and in the conuersation of honest men they haue promises not to be abandoned in their necessities nor their children to liue by almes for that god wil prouide for their necessary wantes which promises are confirmed by many miracles in the old and new testament as of the Israelites whom he nourished in the desert fortie yeres and of Helias and Eliseus Likewise such as followed Iesus Christ in the mountaines and desertes wée read what prouidence hée raised to féede them Besides in this we are confounded euen by the birdes of the aire in whom being no reason of care God prouides foode for them by his prouidence Much more then is his care ouer vs if we trauell in our vocation with feare prayer seruice and thankesgiuing we read how Iesus Christ approued the societie of such poore when with the virgin Mary and his disciples he assisted the mariadges of such people For as when the wine failed and no more to be had there it is to be concluded that their want was great so if enough had remayned the virgin Mary had not prayed for them and Christ had not done his miracle if it had not bene in time of necessitie if then Iesus Christ beare such fauour to mariadges of the poore that he turnes their water into wine in signe that he will aide them Let those of little faith whose disposition of mariadge is drawne by a desire of wealth and being afrayed to suffer hunger refuse to enter wedlocke Let such be assured that God will defend his poore from famine and want whē they shall fall into actes of infamous life And let not good Christians albeit they haue not such plentie of wealth make difficultie to marry in sort as I haue prescribed and much lesse distrust the increase of goods séeing as labour and time make men ritche so where Iesus Christ is called to the mariadge although the wine fayle at the length he will turne all those malencholly waters into comfortable wines and euen so all their small necessities into great aboundance of wealth Where I spake of the poore sort I meane such as are industrious as for others that wyll not trauell nor learne a trade to liue by ought to be constrayned to labour rather then suffred to marry séeing God assistes not the assembly of such people but from pouertie suffreth them to fall into extréeme miserie wherein is wrought a common burden to common weales ¶ A continuance of the matter of marriage and the dutie of the husband to his wife as also of hir office to her good man Chapter ij A Man hauing determined in himself with the iudgement and good will of his néerest Parentes to ioyne to a wife such one as he hath long knowen to be worthie of him and shée also with the consent of such to whō she appertaines agéeeth with liberall will to such marriage ought afore all other things to obserue the publique Banes for auoyding of slaunder and after to procéede to the rest by the hande of the minister in the word of God and that faith one to another which publikely he shal minister to them addinge the blissing which he shall giue and the prayer whiche he makes with all the assistantes for them to GOD to knit them togither in holy vnitie inuiolable loue and societie and giue them happie dayes in their marriage with plentifull multiplication of children such as they may institute bring vp to his seruice without which obseruations the auncient fathers iudged such societie of man and wife no lawfull marriage but rather a bed of concubines and pagan coniunction This man béeing thus married ought first with the consideration of his perfection of nature and common graces of GOD which he hath more then the woman to employe them all chiefly to the instruction guyde and gouernement of his wyfe and then to the direction of his affaires he is bound to communicate such lawes as he would haue his wyfe to kéepe with louing instruction exhortinge her to the partes of her dutie friendly without anye force protesting also to performe what belonges to his office being both bound thereunto by the expresse statutes of god Touching his parte besides the first consideration of his more perfect creation he ought to consider that as he is the head of his wife so in that he resembleth the purtreite of Iesus Christe so to leade hys wife as our Lord gouerneth his church The head gouernes his body by the vnderstanding mouing sense euen so Iesus Christ inspireth his church and infuseth his graces into her the better to knowe and doe that which concernes God and her owne sauetie The head hath the eye to sée the eare to heare the tong to speake and taste and all to the profit and benefit of the whole bodye taking perpetuall care of it féeling the gréeues of euery member as his own euen the like doth Iesus Christ for his Church spiritually séeing and foreséeing what so euer is necessary for it he heareth her plaintes and necessities and gyues her succour with perpetuall ayde what then ought the man to doe to his wife to what care and prouidence is he bound ouer her yea to what rate of ayde and succour is he tyed if he will worthely expresse the example of his patron if he do it not what greater wrong can he offer to God or manifest iniurie to the holy institution of mariage makes hée not solemne profession to follow that diuine Spouse of the Church by his mariage as also the womā protestes for her parte to follow the church Besides as the head naturally loues the body as vnited with it by nature in indiuisible vnitie he workes for it he takes thought for it and defendes it so Iesus Christ conioyned to his church loueth it dearely watcheth for it kepes and protectes it against the assaultes of all visible and inuisible enemies What belonges then to the husbande the image of this spirituall spouse of Iesus Christ who redéemed his church with his bloud when shée was thrall to sathan washed her with his proper bloud when shée was vncleane dyed to reuiue her being dead iustifieth her and blisseth her afterwardes
mother as weaknes want of milke or necessitie of other extréeme sicknes she ought not to commit so deare a Iewell to the fashioning of a straunger wherein besides that it is an act expressely againe nature yet she sheweth hir self to be but halfe a mother and more corrupt in kind then Tigresses or Lionesses who hauing passed the panges of bringing forth their young ones thinke the greatest part of their zeale doth yet remaine and therfore they giue them sucke couer them licke them delite in them and till they be great thee defend them to the daunger of their owne liues from the violence of such as would take them The mother refusing the nursing of hir proper child giues suspicion of hir loue to the Father and great signes of corrupt zeale and nature toward hir children and nurses for the most part being but mercenarie beare no other loue and care to their nurse children then for the time for money whereby the poore infants sucking the seedes of diseases become impotent all the dayes of their life féele the vnnatural vnkindnes of their mothers who with their wretched nurses stand in great hazerd of iudgement afore GOD and no lesse to their Fathers suffring this vnnaturall disorder if there bée not lawfull excuse if to take the rest of the night at their pleasure and to eschew the disquiets of the daye they banish their little children into the hands of straūge nurses wherefore are they Fathers Mothers Why shoulde they desire children if they haue not delite to nurse them If God haue replenished the dugges of the Mother with milke to serue for a noriture to hir child is it not to impugne the lawe of nature ordeined of GOD and slaunder all humane reason to restrayne gods benefit plentifully intended to little infants The straunge nurse perhappes is compounded of other cōplexion and humor then the mother and the childe accustomed to a natural noriture which hée receiued in the belly of his mother what may be feared by this mutation but either change of nature or at the least a miserable subiection to sicknesses which bring more perill of death then any other disease If the nurse by necessitie vse a spare diet what shal be the strength of the child If she be giuen to gluttony what indigestion to the weak stomacke of the infant Who with the milke of hir pap will sucke the intemperance of the nurse séeing the maners and customes of the mind followe the complexions noritures and outward temperatures if the nurse be chollerike melancholy or furious what hope of good composition in the child If they saye such things may be holpen reformed afterwardes it may be answered that it is hard to correct nature Let therfore mothers according to God nature and reason nurse their proper children if they be not excusable by the causes aforesayde wherein they shall but followe the vertues of auncient Ladies yea Empresses and Quéenes to whom it was not irkesome to giue the dugge to their owne children and hauing not sufficiēt milke of thēselues they supplied it by the aide of some other good nurses but not in full noriture for feare of daunger and rather then they would vse two nurses because the diuersitie of milkes can not but be hurtful they obserued the order of the Saxons to norish the child with meat chawed in their owne mouthes by which remaynes yet a common opinion that the Saxons are more strong then the other Almaines Touching their other foode in any wise wyne must be auoyded for that it inflames the bloud and their generall diet ministred rather in sobrietie then in fulnes of delicacie For too great abundance of deyntie meates quencheth natural heat euen as too much doung or fatnesse rancketh the earth and cloyeth the corne it is conuenient euen to children of great houses risen into strēgth and age not to liue in choyse of their meates but to accustome their stomackes to all sortes of diet indifferently to drinke such liccour as is most common the better to enhable them against necessities and extremities of countreys warres and barbarous places where perhaps in place of delicate wynes they shal be glad of puddle watter their fyne fare tourned into foule and vncoath meats and yet in no plentie How heauely and hardly will such penury bee borne Yea what perill of life comes with this straunge suddaine mutation If they haue neuer endured cold and after come into snow and yce and want their wrapping what passion more intollerable yea they will thinke they haue death betwéene their teeth if they be straungers to paynes and trauell how vnapt are they to endure the perplexities of warre If they haue no exercise how hardly are they fashioned to the vse of weapons And being neuer accustomed to marche they are with great difficultie trained and prepared to the field And therfore let no youth be norished in ease but specially none that are dedicated to great affaires and martiall actions In such sort were fashioned the youth of Rome and Lacedemonie who in those two estates of people was most valiant and industrious after Lacedemonie the youth of Germany florished most by this education which ioyned with custome made them hable bodies against hunger thirst colde heate and all intollerable labours and necessities But so sone as they changed this excellēt course of exercise and suffred their youth to slide languish in pleasures their cōmon weale became weake and their florishing triumphes turned into tauerne playes whereby Lacedemonie was made a slaue to those straungers ouer whom she had commaunded Rome the triumphant Lady of the whole world become but to the coūtenāce of a handmayd and Germany by this corruption of the youth of great houses is now a place of good cheare and beares no other renoume then for banquets and feast makinge the same giuinge a daungerous argument that the destinie of the Empire aspireth to his ende But in the meane while the youth of the Turkes nourished in great sobrietie is accustomed to drink water is careles of fleshe and fine meates delites more in labor then in rest takes pleasure in perpetual exercises of the fielde the better to prepare them to the warre whereunto their vse bringes great dexteritie as appereth by their many enterprises against the Christians to the dishonour of holy religion In the tyme of Aristotle the Lacedemonians vsed their children to goe bare-headed naked on their féet the better to ouercome heat and colde and as soone as they were wayned from the dugge they were caried out of the citie as not to be corrupted by the swéete and softe pampering of their mothers and brought vp in the countrey and fieldes their bodies being made acquainted with sweat and labors when they had desire to meat they wonne it by killing some wild beast or foule which they brought to their maister and being but of small age there was hanged by a thréed in a high place some
the prosperitie of life but to suffer all miseries since he is offensiue to these by whome hee liues in the worlde yea he is worthy to be throwne in a hollowe ditche without burial where carion vermine may deâ—ower his carcase as they do other dead beastes For which consideration the child is bound to this dutie to his parentes and not to refuse death to sustayne them in what so euer concerneth them in honour health and life For hauing receiued all his wealth and benefites of them what more worthy or iust recompense can he retorne then a frank and thankfull prostitution of all that he hath to their vses if he take pleasure to liue doubts not that of all other things of the world life is most excellent if he thinke that the pleasure of life is one of the moste singuler benefites that maye bee demaunded if lastly commodities riches or common goods and honours do please him What reuerence loue honour and obedience is hee bound to beare to his Father and mother by whom or at the least without whom he had not enioyed them but if he make no recompence to his power and lesse thankefull at all to his parents is not his ingratitude intollerable and by iust right him selfe deserue to be depriued of all the same goods The same also being the cause why God by his law takes away without appeale the life of him that offendes his father and mother But if the vnthankfull and disobedient child be flattered with some prosperitie let him thinke it hath no long continuaunce no more then the itch of an olde man is pleasaunt longer then it is clawed but being scratched it falles of smarting For it is written that who curseth or doth euill to his Father and mother his light shal be put out in the middest of darknes that is hée shall loose his prosperitie good hap in the middest of aduersities and darke miseries which shall fall vppon him euen when hee thinkes to sléepe most soundly in the delites pleasures and eases of this world Besides the better to drawe children to obedience God promiseth them long life honour saith he thy father and Mother so shalt thou liue long vpon the earth to which promise aboue all other Saint Paule sayth is added suretie of recompence as in the promise of long life is ment commoditie rest and necessary furnitures of life as plentie of wealth and humane felicities For which cause it is sayd in another place that the blessing of fathers and mothers giueÌ„ to their children confirmeth and continueth in happy succession the houses and families of their children as of the contrary their curse helpeth much to the ruine subuersion of the same Touching the honour they get by obeying their father and mother it is written listen my sonne to the discipline of thy father and let not the law of thy mother be forgotten of thée to the end grace might be ioyned to thy head and collers about thy necke if thou do thy dutie of a good sonne to them God wil giue thée this fauour and credite to be honored of all men raise thée into that estate where thou shalt beare the honorable enseignes of thy high dignitie euen as wée sée kynges beare their diademes vppon their heads and Knights of the order their precious collers of golde about their neckes in signe of their dignitie honour and authority due to them for their vertues by which they haue worthely aspired to such estates Seing then God reserueth for childreÌ„ such ample promises of long life such worldly prosperities and such high honours which thrée béeing the very effect of all that may bee desired to make this life happye in earth comprehend also what else may be attributed to worldly felicitie How much are they bound besids the reasons earst rehearsed to beare humilitie obedience reuerent dutie to their parents whom if they disobey they haue their condemnation to miseries dishononours and to death yea and by their sinne of disobedience they stand in hazerd of the eternall curse The oblation of this duty of children to their parents is indispensible to all purposes but in cases of infidelitie as if the father being an Idolater séekes to seduce his sonne to that impietie in which this straite bond of dutie ceaseth For God is to be preferred and man abuseth his authoritie according to the vnderstanding of the gospell Who hateth not father mother brother sister and leaueth them with all that he hath can not haue the kyngdome of God yea they must leaue the dead to bury the dead to follow the Euangelicall vocation For touching the Apostolicall profession which may be alledged for that they forsooke father mother to follow Iesus Christ and to preach the Gospel it is a vocation perticuler priuileged as when Helizeus abaÌ„doned father mother to go with Helias as for this purpose may be disputed touching the life monasticall But that vocation ought not to bée alleadged to the execution of this commaundement for hée that calles such as he pleaseth reserueth such prouidence ouer the necessities of their parentes that they stande no néed of the peculiar seruice of their children whom their parentes of their proper will ought to exempt from that office of personall and temporal seruice since God calleth them to him selfe to doe to him a seruice spirituall and of more greater perfection and fruite then any function wherein they could employe them yet touching the vocation Monasticall Saint Augustin holdes good that in necessitie of the parentes the child being a Monke is bound to leaue his Monasterie to succoure them for as the law of God derogates not the right of nature but rather confirmes then restraines it so by greater reason in the humane and positiue statutes specially such as be in Monasteries there caÌ„ be no preiudice Therefore did the Scribes and Phariseis vnder colour of religion ordeyne that the childe giuinge all his goods to the temple was not bound to ayde hys father and mother yea by that meane he held him self no more bound to serue them according to that constitution by the which they expressed that such honour to God grounded vpon that deuotion abrogated all honor and naturall dutie which the childe ought to showe to his father But Iesus Christe gyueth them to vnderstand that by such tradicions they commit great impietie resisting the first ordinance of God natural and diuine also and inuiolable by his Scripture We sée that euen the most perfect and Apostolike life was not exempted from this subiection as Christe him selfe was subiect to Joseph and the virgin Marie and exercisinge xxx yeares after his diuine vocation he reiected not froÌ„ his trayne his mother his Auntes and cousines but called them and entertayned them with him I meane the poore of the reuenues which men presented him withall no lesse did the Apostles to their parentes and kinred of whom the greatest part which were
185 ¶ Still touchinge the recommendation of hospitalitie and almes Chap. 6. fo 187 ¶ Generall and speciall recommendation for prisoners and that for debtes we ought not lightly to emprison one an other fo 189 The fifth Booke OF the institution of youth with a prayse of free schooles c. Chap. 1. fol. 191 ¶ What Principall and Regents ought to bee called to institute a Colledge c. Chap. 2 fol. 190 ¶ A continuance of the discourse of Colledges by other comparisons Chap. 3. fol. 193 ¶ Wisedom science vertue diligence and feruent zeale to their disciples are very necessary for scholemaisters Chap. 4. fol. 197 ¶ Instructions to know by the way of contrary oppositions by the comparisons of the other chapters the miseries hapning by lewde scholemaisters Chap. 5. fol. 202 ¶ Amplifications of the said comparisons touching wicked maisters c. Chap. 6. fol 206 ¶ Continuance of the sayd comparisons Chap. 7. fol. 211 ¶ Maisters ought to instruct their disciples c. Chap. 8. 214 ¶ A continuance of the prayse of science c. Chap. 9. fo 219 ¶ Examples of commodities which science bringeth to the learned c. Chap. 10. fol. 223 ¶ It is necessarie for many reasons that all schollers remayne in one Colledge Chap. 11. folio 227 ¶ In a Colledge or schoole there ought to be statutes authorised by the Vniuersities c. Chap. 12. fo 215 ¶ Refutation of the false iudgements of some proude worldlings touching the profession of schoole maisters Chap. 13. fol. 235 ¶ An exhortation to young children to studie Chap. 14. fol. 241 The sixt Booke OF the office of euery estate and first of the dutie of the husband to his wife Chap. 1. 247 ¶ A continuance of the matter of mariage and the dutie of c. Chap. 2. fo 255 ¶ Still touching the dutie of the wife Chap. 3. fol. 263 ¶ The office of fathers and mothers and the dutie of children Chapter 4 folio 273 Still touching the education of young children Chap. 5. fo 280 ¶ In what dutie children are bound to their fathers and mothers Chap. 6. fol. 289 ¶ The dutie of maisters towardes their seruaunts Cha. 7. 398 ¶ How men haue ben made noble and of their dutie towardes their subieetes or tenantes Chap. 8. fol. 307 ¶ The dutie of Aduocates or Councellors at law Cha. 9. 315 ¶ The dutie of Marchants Chap. 10. fo 321 ¶ How the Marchant may performe his lawfull trades gayne iustly his estate Chap. 11. fol. 328 The seuenth Booke AL other estates are comprehended in those that haue bene alreadie debated the explication of the qualities of personnes Chap. 1. fo 339 ¶ Still touching the qualities of persons Chap. 2. fol. 345 ¶ Of Christian amitie and how many sortes of friendship there be Chap. fo 350 ¶ How a common weale is gouerned and wherein it erreth Chap. 4. fol. 359 ¶ Councell of the remedies to cure and preserue common weales from miserie Chap. 5. fol. 366 ¶ How God some times punisheth a whole people for a secret sin c. Chapter 6. fol. 375 ¶ To remedie all euils the causes must be taken away the discretion and wisedome requisite thereunto Chapter 8. fol 440 ¶ Confutation of humaine philosophie touchinge the affaires of faith wherein and in things serious men ought not to decyde but according to the scripture Chap. 9. folio 345 FINIS ¶ What is first requisite in the well gouerning of a common weale howe Cyuil pollicie ought to be conformable to the celestiall gouernement what good commeth of good pollicie what maner of gouernours and Iudges ought to be chosen to direct publique states ⧠The first Chapter TO dyrect a true and Christian pollicie it is necessarie in the first consyderation that suche as are chéefe disposers of the same bée chosen accordyng to the wil and ordinaunce of God of whom in respect of their institution they are to bée fauoured assisted in their Counsels actions and gouernements as also for that all power rule belonging to him the administration therof dependeth likewise vpō him wherein he hath ordayned for vs in earth a forme to rule guide and gouerne this inferiour Hierarchie by the example of that supreme and celestiall estate of Angels and happy soules aboue in all good order and perfect pollecie So that by thimitation of the same it is requisite that we be directed by wise Magistrates who hauing power to commaunde may vse simplicitie in the measure and rate of their Aucthoritie and wée in our common life expressing an immoueable zeale to obedience may concurre with them and agrée altogether in one lawe and doctrine one wyll and iudgement And to be short the better to exercise one vniuersall and holy conuersation standing vppon puretie of affection and wyll with one true religion in God we must obserue one vnitie in Iustice one integritie of life and maners fulfillyng alwayes our duetie to our neighbour the better to prepare vs with communitie of heart voyce and example to loue and feare God and with one mouth to praise honour and serue him with redie obedience and humilitie to his commaundements together with sincere and mutuall Loue one to another expressed in Actes of perfect charitie And this as it is the marke and ende of the Lawe the Magistrate and Christian gouernement being directed according to the forme celestiall and example aboue So in it wée declare our selues to bee common members of one bodye for a common Weale is a bodye Ciuil so knit together with indissoluble vnitye in friendship that wée suffer one selfe zeale and affection and geue one common ayde and succour to all our affayres reléeuing euery perticular necessitye with one constant and perpetuall rate and measure of compassion in this sorte are wée reduced into one body pollitike and by this pollicie drawne into one Spirite as being but one in God led and guided by his Spirite inwardly and outwardly by wise gouernours euen as God hath planted in our naturall body members more soueraigne and perfect in nature to gouerne the others more inferiour the same being more deuinelye resembled in the celestiall Hierarchy where the Spirites indued with more grace and greater perfection haue by heauenly election power ouer the others To this ought to bée referred the example of electing gouernours to publike states as both cōcurring with the order of nature with whom things of most perfection beare most rule and also resembling the Supreame gouernement from whence Moyses had commaundement to drawe the plot of his terrestriall pollecie calling vnto him such as were most wise and perfect aboue others wherein God geueth him aduertisement by Iethro his Father in-law to prouide such gouernours by the counsell which hée giueth him in this sort Prouide saieth hée to bée Iudges ouer others wise men whom thou shalt chose amongst the people fearing God true and louers of trueth and such as hate Couetousnes of them make some Tribunes who may stand as generall Iudges ouer
albeit it is no maruaile if suche as aspire to regimentes by indirect meanes bring forth wicked and imperfect gouernment seeing that al endes depend consequently vpon theyr beginninges and buildinges hauing no firme foundation can hold no long continuance yet when any such attaine to the direction of pollicie there is no occasion to condemne them rashelie for that it may bée that such scourges are due to the offences of the people neither do they them selues thinke them condemned in the ertreame iudgement seeing they follow not their beginning but recompense all faultes by theyr vertue and wisedome as did young Scipio who contrarye to the iudgement of Cato and diuers graue Romaines being called to bée Captaine generall of the armye which had béene long in Spaine expressed in his behauiour suche heroicall vertues that his election descending to him by fauour was approued for lawfull euen by those wise men who beholding more the follies of his youth passed then hoping in his toward vertues impugned his aduauncement at the first The Scripture sayth that as it is one speciall signe of Gods loue to a Nation when hee indueth them with good gouernours so when hée restraines them to rulers inclined to impietye it is then that hee geues warning of his furie and that hée is entred into displeasure for theyr offences as is sayd in Iob Esaie and Osie which god hath also oftentimes confirmed by examples but speciallye in the booke of Iudges which I bring in but by the waye the better to make vs enter into our selues when wée are not blessed with such gouernours as wee wishe ¶ Gouernours chosen according to God do make present proofe of their election to the profite of the common vveale Let them knovve hovv to commaund and subiectes hovve to obeye the better to make their common vveale florishe as inferiour members obeye the more vvorthy Magistrates ought to be as Fathers Let the lavve be inuiolable and speciallye one true amitie betvveene the gouernour and the subiect ⧠The .3 Chapter GOuernours being thus chosen by the rule of the Scripture knowe that it belongeth to their christian duetye to consecrate them selues whollye to the benefite profite honor quiet of that publike state wherein they are instituted And not sparing any labour care expenses or perplexitie of minde or bodye no not the sacrifice of their lyfe to rayse theyr common weale into florishing felicitye they geue alwayes more readye furtherance to common affayres then ordinary fauour to their own not sparing to restraine them selues from all priuate pleasure profite to consult in all necessarye meanes to raise t'haduauncement of the Publike weale And as in good magistrates doth worke a continual care to erect execute a sounde aucthority so in all Citizens subiectes publike multitudes is great necessitye of resolute obedience duty Amongst whom if there be any in whome is no suretye of allegeaunce but suspition of rebellious practise or sedicious behauiour let al the rest ioyne in common ayde to commit him to the censure of ciuill iustice For it is sayde of auncient wise men and iustified in common experience that by well commaunding and ready obeying a common weale is happely gouerned as who saye where the Magistrate erectes wholsome lawes the subiect yeldes duty in simplicity it hapneth that to such regimentes belongeth happy successe and long continuance euen as in a natural body is figured a forme of perfect gouernement because the inferiour members obey such as bée more principal which is the head heart A priuate house is replenished with good order when seruantes yéeld obedience to their maisters children humilitie to their parents as also a ship is well guided when the marriners acknowledge power in the maister that mooueth the Helme euen so is it in a common weale which being a body pollitike as is sayd ought according to God to holde comformetie with the quality mistical of the natural body It is also as a generall familie or houshold wherin good gouernours do put on the same carefull affection to the aduauncement of theyr subiectes which wise and deare fathers vse to their entierely beloued Children And being lastly as a true Spiritual shippe seated in the middest of the stormes of this waspishe moueable world the two preseruatiues to kéepe it from perishing are the wholsome commaundementes of the gouernour and willing obedience of the inferiour Let then the wisedome loue and zeale of magistrates to the common weale surmount theyr aucthoritye in commaunding And let humilitye franke obedience and perfect loue bée greater in the subiectes thē theyr ciuyl subiection For if Fathers geue to theyr children doctrines and good lessons to eschewe vice learne to aspire to vertue and by good examples aswell of them selues as other their parentes and predecessours true pattornes of vertue doo sturre them vp to t'himitacion of goodnesse and in respect of zeale doo studye to enritche and aduaunce them muche more belonges it to magistrates as Fathers pollitike of the people to expresse a zeale and fatherlye dutie in erecting good statutes orders and Customes hollye happy and profitable whervnto they must geue the first honourable obedience seruing as reuerent examples to the rest to obserue the Lawes without violence eyther for fauour frendship parentage respecte of Person or feare of corruption suche good Lawes and iust iudgementes sayeth Salomon are the strong Barres and boltes to the Gates of Cities and inuinsible Trenches and Walles to the Vines of Esau yea they are the wayes of life and the verye Soules of common weales For euen as to the Gates of Cities and Townes great and massiue Barres of yron are as defences to withstande Violence and iniurye which else myght happen with the perryll of Sacking if also there were no countergarde by gouernours euen so where wholsome and holye Constitutions bée seuerelye obserued there is the Gate closed against al vices sclaunders sedicions and factions to enter into Cities and Kingdomes But where is a negligent or partiall countenaunce geuen to the lawes and aucthority as enclining sinisterly eyther for gossop kinred friend feare or gaine or that they be but as spider webbes wherein the small flies are taken and sucke the blood and great waspes do pearse and passe thorow at pleasure of such a vaine and weake iustice there can bée no other expectation but an vniuersall reuersement of all pollecye euen as when as vineyarde or garden being strongly fensed with hedge or ditche there is great seueritye that neyther the night théefe nor the hungrye beast can haue power to enter and commit it to praye where if there bee neyther wall nor closure the negligence of the owner offereth occasion to the théefe or Beast to inuade his ground to the spoile of his commoditye and fruictes The same resembling the complaint of Dauid al passingers sayeth hée at theyr pleasure haue power to hauocke the Vine and the wilde Boore launsing out of the Forest is entered to waste
Sodom and Gomorre to see if the desolution of the people aunswered the horrible brute that went of them his wordes were I will discend and see if it be so Hée that knoweth whatsoeuer is done euen in the déepest bottomes and from whome no secréete can bée hid declares by this familiar manner and phrase of Speache applyed to our infirmitye that it belonges to Iudges afore they enter into sentence or pronounce against such as are accused to bée assured of the trueth of the fact least by theyr lightnes or soure passion they committe errour in iudgement In the lawe when the affaires stoode vpon any harde or obscure doubte this was the custome to referre it to the iudgement of God as in the punishment of the blasphemour and what right daughters had to the goods of theyr Fathers in whiche cases there was no resolution set downe in the Law the same seruing as matter of aduertisement to examine exactlye such controuersies and harde causes as the lawes haue no habilitye to decide beséeching God according to the aduise of the scripture so to lighten their inward reason that they may bring forth true and perfect Iudgement But when Iudges will not beginne by this aduertisement nor conforme them selues to this iustice of God his iudgements let them looke for that terrible seuerytie which hee hath thundered vpon those Iudges countries where he found negligence in punishment to those sortes of crimes Hely the great gouernour and Iudge of Israel because hée did not iustice vppon his children brake his necke his children were kylled and all the countrey brought to desolacion The sonnes of Samuel were deposed because they tooke presentes Saul was reprooued for geuing grace to such as hée ought to haue punished after whose death famine came ouer all the land of Palestin for that hée gaue wicked iudgementes in the landes of the Gabaonites whom hée afflicted and made certaine of them passe by vniust death to satisfye which iniquity Seuen of the race of Saule were hanged vpon Gibbertes The Captiuitie of the Israelites and ruine of Ierusalem of the Temple and their Townes happened for the transgression of the Priestes and Kinges done in Iustice corrupting it by presents condemning the iust and iustifying the wicked for Bribes Whereof Esay speaketh thy Princes that is thy gouernours as well in Pollecye Ecclesiasticall as Ciuill are vnfaithfull and haue forsworne them selues yea euen they that haue taken othe to doo good Iustice and haue not obserued it but are become companions of Robbers and haue share in their praye They all loue Bribes and folowe recompenses because they haue done pleasure in iudgement to the ritche But euen those as they were the chiefe in honour and superioritye so also were they first taken Captiues murdered their houses and goodes suffered spoile and they more then others defaced with ignominie contempt and all sortes of wretchednes These bée the miseryes whiche happen to wicked Iudges and theyr Children and for theyr abuses to Tounes Countreyes and Kingdomes So that with good cause I maye recommende as a laste aduertisement to al Iudges to remember the saying of Dauid in this sorte God assistes the assembly of the Gods who are the Iudges and gouernours of his people vnder whome they exercise the iudgement which is proper to God the true and eternall Iudge and therefore are they as partakers of a deuine aucthoritye by enterteining ruling his people by that iustice and souerainty So that as God is in the Courtes of his Iudges and in the middest of them so hée iudgeth them whereby is meant that hée condemneth them if they iudge not according to God. Dauid also pursues them crying in this sort How long O ye peruerse Iudges wil you Iudge so wickedly wyll you not acknowledge your selues in your false iudgementes wyll you alwayes haue regarde to the faces of offendours geuing them support and absolution of their wickednes and liberty to sinne with impunity deliuer the poore man Orphane and iustifie the simple and néedye suffer no wrong to bée done to such as haue no maintenance in the world are without fauourers in courtes Take the poore and néedy out of the hand of the transgressor But what much lesse that these worldlie lordings haue cōmunity with this great pitie seeing as Dauid sayeth they neuer knewe nor vnderstoode what they were bound to doo according to God so greatlye were they inuironed with wretched darkenes and whollye possessed with ignorance of God and his lawes whereby it happeneth that the foundation of the earth shal be moued whiche is that by that occasion exceding great euilles and intollerable aduersityes shall fall vppon the nations of the earth Therfore where I sayd you were gods so greatlye honoured of God by the state which hée geues you representing him in case of iudgemēt I forgat not your infidelity meaning that you shal fal into no lesse miserye wretchednes then any of the auncient wicked Iudges to whose iniquitye was apointed a miserable conclusiō of their vnhappy daies Wherin Dauid considering the lamentable infelicities ouerwhelming the world for the false corrupt iudgemēt of Iudges cries out to God saying Raise thy selfe O Lord God and Iudge the Earth condemne the abuses and faultes of suche people as haue corrupted the earth with impietye by their vnrighteous Iudgementes so shalt thou raigne ouer all nations and bée honoured as a true and iust Lorde and Iudge of the earth doing iustice vpon so many iniquities By this psalme Iudges are instructed to iudge well as well for the reuerence of the great Lord sitting in the middest of them in theyr Iudgements to approue them if they bée righteous and reproue them yea dissolue them if they hold of iniquity condemning the persons to horrible misteries yea euen to shake the foundations of the maine earth so gréeuous to God is a false and vnrighteous Iudge as of the con-contrary hee delites in him who according to conscience acquites his charge duty as also for that they haue the honour estate reuerence of Iudges to distribute right to euery one remembring that lord in their iudgement who hath this perpetuall property to iudge without affection they ought also to haue such exquisite knowledge with exact iudgemēt of reason that according to cōmon naturall sence they iudge to estéeme it a horrible sinne to iudge against their conscience séeing that as infinite Pagans with this iudgement of reason haue established their perpetual glory for the true deciding of causes so the errour of our Iudges being layde vp in the memory of God wil bring them to receyue sētence afore his seate of iudgement to their assured confusion And so let all Iudges knowe that if by their sinister sentences any one is depriued of his goodes honour or life by whiche it can not bée chosen but many calamities wyll happen euen so many eternal damnations do they deserue with no lesse horrible paines
to stay altogeather vpon them for that the most part were erected of Infidelles whose reason was darkned with infidelitye and certaine of them expresly against our faith séeme to deserue no more aucthoritye or credite and lesse to bée receyued then theyr Idolatries that is to saye oblations done to their Gods In this we haue to answere twoo obiectes very harde to resolue if wée consider the simple reasōs of some who séeking to absolue christians from al lawes say that they are not subiect therunto by Iesus Christ and that the spirite of God is our Father who if wée doubte will instruct vs and reueale all that shal be necessary to our saluation Besides S. Paul willeth that the wise christian bée iudge without hauing regarde to lawe I confesse that the lawe of Moyses touching Ceremonies and sacrifices signifying the state of the new Testament for Christ in that is the ende of the lawe yea touching the statutes of the law applied to the times and maners of the Iewishe nation is abolished as the libell repudiatorye of the wyfe But touching commaundements moral conteining instruction of good maners correcting sinne with punishment much lesse that the lawe is abolished but it is confirmed by the Gospel Christ saith Al such as haue taken vp the sworde to strike and kill shall perishe with the sworde which the lawe doeth also teache wée know the lawe is good but let vs vnderstande and apply it to lawful vse Saint Paul sayeth that the lawe that punisheth is not ordained for the Iust but to bridle the rebell vniust wicked sedicious murderers of parentes whether hée meane of Moyses Lawe which punisheth all these sinnes or comprehend al the lawe in generall grounded vpon the foundacions whiche we haue recyted before it is inough that wée declare that all doctrine of vertue whether it bée in the lawe of Moyses or in Philosophie is good and holye so farre forth as it raiseth and recompenseth vertue detesteth sinne and condemneth al vice for which cause the Philosopher sayth that reward and paine be the forces and strengthes of the lawe In déede this doctrine is not simplye deriued of Moyses lawe but it is natural and therfore Saint Paul saith that the Gentiles people without all vnderstanding of Moyses Lawe but liued by theyr reason wel instructed albeit they had no law yet did they naturally the things conteyned in the lawe whose examples as they doo well declare that the worke of the lawe was written in their hearts by the accusations defences of their cōsciences So in this S. Paul expresseth aptly that al doctrines moral pollitike contained in the Law of Moyses bée connaturall to man engraued in him euen from his first birth by that deuine creation wherein the soule receyuing the figure similitude of god hath taken this excellent grace to knowe that which is of her exemplary patrone from whom shée is portrated by exercise of the spirite in the studie of learning with a continual heauēlye inspiration assisting ioyned with integritye of good life hath béen and is remaining in such as were not vnder the Lawe of Moyses such wée maye saye as were Iethro Iob and many great Philosophers who knewe God spake deuinelie of him and of vertues and vices Therfore as that Doctrine is in some sorte deuine by his originall as procéeding from that deuine caract imprinted by God in man which is the spirite reason and iudgement So the holy scripture yea the scripture of the Gospel hath aucthorised it to bée perfectly deuine so by the same scripture where it was darkned before by corruptions happening by ignorance of God and dissolutiō of life it is made perfect in that wherein it had imperfection and so it is not onely restored by Iesus Christ reformed by his spirite which hée hath geuen vs But with abundance of grace science augmented yea euen vnto such knowledge as now we behold the glory light of the Lord with open face and be transformed from light to light that is from perfect knowledge such as may bée had in the world into the selfe image yea euen to be made one in God by a deuine transformation the same being wrought by the spirit of this good soueraigne lord Therfore al the moral doctrines of the olde Testament be acknowledged reputed by man from the first and eternal obseruacion according to the which lawes haue béene wil be alwayes ordeined obserued of the faithful people And where Iesus Christ sent backe the adulterer without punishment of the Lawe wee confesse that albeit he came to preache penaunce geue grace to penitent sinners yet for al that he hath not abolished pollitike Lawes which wickedlye was layd against him by Iulian the Apostate But hath conserued them by his doctrine and examples willing to giue to Caesar that which belonged to him wherein him selfe shewed obedience to the Ciuil Lawes in paying tribute to Caesar although he was not subiect therunto Hée which was the supreame lawmaker and sonne of God his Apostles also taught that men must obey Kinges Princes gouernours which obedience is necessarily ioyned with the lawes for how farre shal I obey them if I know not the rate state of theyr commaundement nor what they prescribe me to do So that my obedience must encline to the limit prescript of their Lawes which I ought not resist so farforth as they are established vpon such foundations as we haue laid before Iesus christ in asking where were those that condemned the adulterer did not hinder or defend that he should not be stooned But he being not come to take vpon him the state of a Ciuil Iudge condemneth not according to the sentence of ciuil lawes tendring caring alwaies for the principal which was to saue soules and touching body goodes he leaueth the gouernment pollecie therof to Kings temporal Princes theyr iudges to whom he geues aucthority to debate execute punishments in that he saith He that hath murdred or killed shal die the trée that bringeth forth no fruit deserues to be cut down cast in the fire and who doth wrong sclander to the litleones ought to be cast into the sea with a milstone about his necke Approuing with paines he approueth also the Iudges executours of the same hée chaseth out of the temple marchauntes buiers and sellers hée biddes excōmunicate the rebellious wrong doers and by S. Paul condemnes many pernicious Christians to the deuill hée willed Saint Peter to execute a maruailous sentence against Saphirus and Ananias who fell dead at his feete for doubling with the holy ghost promising to geue all theyr goodes to the poore and distributed but a part reseruing the other by an vnfaithfull feare to suffer necessitye It is true that being afore Infidels hee woulde not haue vs to vse or appeale to iustice in cases to suffer for the faith
teacheth and naturall iudgement that we ought to bee instructed euen from our youth For as the mind as Aristotle saieth is as a table wherevpon nothing is written nor painted and so of our owne nature we can doe nothing but thinke euill speake and doe euill so reason is none other thing in vs then a little sparke of light yet so darkned in our obscure nature that it cā no more guide vs to marche in the darknes of this worlde then a little snoffe of a candell showing darkly in a lanterne dymmed with durt or other filthines is able to giue vs light to passe in suretie through darke and daungerous places it may be aptly resembled to a flashe of lightening in the night which when it showeth vppon the earth gyues a certayne glymse of light but very short leauing afterward the traueling man in greater darknesse not knowing which way to take euen so when our reason hath aduertised vs of that which is good being presently occupied with the affections and dark passions in vs striues not valiauntly to repulse and dissolue them by her naturall light being of her selfe of too great infirmities but yéeldes to them as soone as shée is surprised leauing vs in greater perplexities of oure obscure mynd then we felt afore Whereupon as wée may cōclude that reason without doctrine is as a spark quickly quenched hauing no more power in a man to do well then a body hath meane to trauell without a minde So to the end we stomble not vppon error and vice it is necessary we haue a perpetuall cleare burning lighte of mynde which is doctrine and holy erudition For the same difference that we finde betwéene light and darknes doth Salomon set betwéene the wiseman and the foole or the ignorant Chryste calles the ignorant blind who if they vndertake to leade others fall altogither in the ditch wherein is signified the extremitie of errors whereunto do runne headlong all such as haue not true science It is sayd in the law that for the infirmitie of this reason and naturall deprauation men ought not to do what séemed good to their iudgement and mind but must raise their regarde to that which God commaundeth specially in matters concerning Religion for in things naturall and ciuill there was more libertie Then seeing children are corrupte as Quintilianus saith before they can goe being norisshed in delites rather then vnderstand them and loue the vices which they learne in the pallaices of their parents afore they haue ability to iudge of them such is their infection euen from their first education and norture thei stand need of rate and measure and to be corrected euen from their cradle We sayed before that doctrine chaungeth the mind and makes it fructifie for which cause the scripture compares it to the good séede which as with good tylthe bringes foorth good fruite so without it the best groundes would rather yéelde thistles and thornes then graine of profit as happeneth in often experience by the best kinde of corne which diligently sowne but in common grounde tournes oftentymes into poppel and light graine either by the fault of the ground the tyme or the laborer So there is great néede that with the doctrine and good institution of youth there be suffered no corruption of manners We sée the grounde without tilling and séede bringes forth of it selfe naturally and without art ill hearbes wéedes much more would our nature produce vices and néedeth no instructor to doe euill where vertues come by force of instruction and labor aswell of the maisters as disciples For hauing in our selues but certain seminaries or as litle matches which we must kindle by force of blowing applying matter to entertayne the fire if we will make any So we must suffer this nature of ours to be qualified and fashioned by doctrine and labor as we sée fyer striken out of the flinte by the instrument of stéele ¶ Continuance of the said comparisons Chapter vij THE Philosophers estéemed a man without learning as a slaue that doth all his actions by force where the learned hath a liberall agilitie to all vertuous doings they compared the man without Science to a beast accompting him not worthy to be called a man reasonable of whom one of the greatest glories is to vse reason which he can not do if he haue not Science For which cause Solō the Law reader of Athens iudged not the naturall father worthy of honour and obedience of his child if he instructed not his youth in learning and exercised his tender yeares in vertuous conuersation which opinion albeit is condemned of the Scripture which enioynes to children straite charge of dutie loue reuerence and seruice to their parents Yet so great faultes of Fathers and Mothers by the iust iudgement of God deserue no dutie at all in their children hauing onely receiued of them generation fleshly noriture without goo◠struction for which end God specially blessed them with children And often doth it happen that such children without discipline dishonour their houses destroy great families and by displeasure procure death to their parents to hasten their succession yea they are troublous sedicious and ruines of good cōmon weales And when they come to the scaffolde the last pause to the gibbot they dissemble not but crie with mayne voyce that if their Fathers had made them familiar with correction and discipline they had ben farre from those miseries Truth and dicipline sayth Salomon bee two thinges that giue correction to a young man and the child that is left to his will bringes his Mother to shame and confusion meaning that a yoūg man without instruction can giue no delite nor honour to his parents and to his friendes he cannot but bring rebuke and infamie So that if hée be not reformed by good doctrine and induced to good by the spirite of God with a true faith and charitie he can not by his owne nature but dreame vppon all euill no more thē the thornie brier can of himselfe shake of his prickes or the wild trée bring forth swéete fruit if he be not oftsones gryffed And therfore it can not be iustified to say that it were better to leaue a child to liue at his owne nature wherein as S. Paule sayth is found nothing but deprauation No let him tast of good doctrine which wil be to him as a regeneration and reformation of nature And because it may be asked in what age is best to put children to learning it may be aunswered euen so soone as in the childe is expressed a minde capable of doctrine as to some at fiue yeres to some rather and toothers later beginning with them easely or as it were by pleasure without threates the rod feare or constraint For as science of it selfe is liberall so it requires in such as séeke it libertie and fréedome of wit But if there be cause or place of correction let it be for euill doing and wicked
respect he held all other treasures in perpetuall contempt euē as who is riche in gold and siluer holdes not reckoning of leade and tynne And therfore when his towne was taken by assault of warre that his enemy gaue him libertie to depart with all the goods he could carry with him he would not vouchsafe to take any riches But being asked why he caried not away the goods of the towne as golde siluer and other precious mouables he aunswered I carie all my goods with me meaning that science and vertue were his goods What honour had Plato by his learning when it wrought him grace euen with the greatest tirants who contrary to their condicion thought him worthy of high reuerence yea the enemies of Athens taking him vppon the sea gaue such honour to his science and vertue that they saued his life notwithstanding they were sworne to the slaughter of all the Athenians falling into their handes if hée had desired riches he might haue excéeded all the mightie men of his time and so might also all the other Philosophers the same being expressed by Thales Melisien who beeing reproched of his pouertie called begger made such prouidence for wealth by his excellent learning that in short time he caried no occasions to be called poore wherewith when he had choked the slaunderer he declared immediatly the base estimation hée made of worldly goods departing all his treasure amōgest his friends the more fréely to follow Philosophie Thus these Philosophers tooke such contentment in their spirituall riches that they estéemed the goods of the world not worthy so much as of a simple care for that being corruptible and transitory they bring to mē more burden then benefite They held also in like contempt all worldly honours and naturall pleasures contrary to the spirituall felicities For which eternall riches Anaxagoras contemned with great constancie euen from his first youth all the fraile possessions and delites of the earth For being discended of a great rich house he left all to go to studie at Athens and being become learned he sayd he had lost himselfe if he had not lost and left the riches pleasures and honours to the which he stood possible by the amplitude of his house But for all this who séekes to heape masses of earthly goods and commodities of a plentifull life may haue easie meanes thereunto by learning by the which euen naughtie and corrupt men haue bene entertained in honour and estimation as we read of Dennis the Siracusian tirant who chased out of his kyngdome yet by his learning had continuance of honour and kept a schoole at Corinth from whence for the fauour only of his science he was readopted to his principalitie when cruel Nero was threatned to be cast out of his Empire for his tiranny he aunswered it was not that could make him carefull for his liuing for that all regions nourished learned men and who had a trade was sure of mayntenaunce by it Great are the benefits that grow by the men learned in the lawes through their counselles and good iudgements in the decision of differences controuersies and warres and in distributing to euery one his perticuler and due right what seruice do they to God What excellent profite comes by learned Phisitions in the cure of diseases What pleasure is sweeter to the sickeman then to be eased of his paine Many are the benefites in a common weale growing by well experienced gouernours wise in polletike Philosophie and learned in the lawes but much more by the deuines Yea learned men béeing vertuous and honest do in the world the same which the soule doth in the body without whose action subsisting the bodye would fall dead and become a carcase of earth yea that which the sonne doth vppon the earth without the which as men would wander in vniuersal confusion so thers would be no more delite in this life and vpon the earth nothing but darke miserie it is not to be doubted but as the shadow followeth the bodie so riches and honors are due companiōs of vertuous science to what estate of honour are raised wise counsellors Presidents and Chauncelloures whom God séemes to honour by titles diuine by reason of their estates whereunto they are called by their excellent learning And Kinges and Princes giue this honour to learned men that they receiue counsell of them are gouerned by them wholly tourned into their direction and for recompēce indue them with the highest estates of their Realmes and giue them the vse of their princely and proper authoritie Touching the Phisitions the wise man sayth they haue honour of Kynges and Emperours and reuerēce in all regions and common weales But for learned Deuines and Preachers and for the honour of their learning I say that if they teach sincerely and expresse their doctrine in their conuersation they are called of Iesus Christ the greatest in the kyngdome of God by Dauid resembled to the firmament and starres of heauē for they shall shine in perpetuall eternitie Touching the profite which they do to the whole world not speaking of riches and dignities which they ought to despise in their hartes by the meane of their doctrine it appeares plentifully aswell by their Bookes and sermons as by their examples of life whereby they are called the light of the world the salt of the earth the eye of the bodie polletike For looke how many tēporall commodities the light bringes to the world or the salt to preserue meat in season or the eye serues to man for his necessary vses euen so profitable and necessary are learned men in the church And therfore for conclusion there is nothing of more deare care and recommendatiō to gouernours of countreys nor that bringes more honour and profite to all and any whatsoeuer then a Colledge or schoole from whom al those honours estates riches and dignities do drawe their beginnings wherein I may compare it to a fountaine of a paradise terrestriall watred by foure goodly riuers issuing out of it For so out of this colledge or schoole the cleare fountaine of all learning do issue the artes liberall lawe phisicke and sacred diuinitie of the doctrine of which the Church the true terrestrial and spiritual paradise is plentifully liccored to make it euery where fructefie in all profitable and delitefull fruites if there were no fountaine in this paradise all woulde become barreine no lesse would happen if it were dried vp by which occasion in the end the world would beare no flower of honestie nor fruite of vertue the little plant which I resemble to youth being become drie without any humor in the roote that is doctrine by the which it ought to florish and fructefie ¶ It is necessary for many reasons that all schollers remaine in one colleadge Chapter xj THer resteth no more but to debate whether it be not good that scholers remain al together In the gretest and best iudgment of learned men it
more often reproches yea being euen as little martyrs so there is no profession wherein are lesse faultes For the Masters séeking but to comunicate their learning with their disciplrs neuer endure their vices if they speake euill they correct them if they do euill they are punished they neuer giue them libertie of idlenes though they allow times of necessary recreation In this estate is nothing but chastitie for which cause they are called Pallas and the Muses being Mayds by which occasion not without cause the Poets fained Pallas the Goddes of wisedome and mayde with hir nine mayden sisters the Muses who also as they signifie the exercise of sciences contayning in it virginitie and perpetuall honestie so they are called sisters as being all of one mutuall societie and indiuidible coniunction There is no thing but vertue and godlines in a schoole and therfore it deserues well to be called a religion if in any bookes of the pagans there be wordes vnciuill bearing to vnchast loue or expressing nombers of Goddes the schollers are aduertised by their tutors that they are spéeches of infidelles which knew not God and therfore in taking the rose they may leaue the thornes and being taught the good they are also warned from that which is euill What resteth now more to be alleadged of these detractors and scoffers of the estate of schoolemasters so noble and happie and almost the generall cause of all the benefites that are done in the worlde where they being men of vaine and light spirites are also a people vnprofitable and a burden and charge to the earth Rattes and deuowring vermin of the garnors of good men bycause they haue not passed by good schooles where with ciuilitie in spéech and life they might haue learned some Art profitable to their countrey and honorable to themselues when they die they cannot leaue any testimonie that they liued vppon the earth for that to them posteritie can prescribe no memorie of god These scoffers by contempt call schoolemasters Magisters and Dominos which turnes as a glory to them for that they haue those names common with Iesus Christ saying to his Disciples you call me Magister and Domine sum etenim so schoolemasters are Magistri by the state of their teaching and Domini for that they commaund their disciples and giue lawes to their affections and lustes where those dispisers of good men for whom according to Salomon the terrible iudgements of God are prepared are thralles and slaues to their passions yea it is to be feared that they are euen the bondmen of Sathan whom they obey and are the executors of his commaundements whereof the greatest and most pernicious is to contemne the good sort and vex with violence and wrong men of learning and vertue being an estate that most batter the kingdome of Sathan bring ruine to his tirannie But notwithstanding their scoffes and vaine impediments they are both Lords and Masters as exercising both authoritie and discipline in their iurisdiction of their small common weale aswell as the greatest Magistrate of the earth and to scoffe with those scoffers we may say they haue their scepture in hand with distribucion of high inferior Iustice for they condemne iustefie and absolue when they condemne there is no appeale yea there is such direct pollecie in their coÌ„mon weale that it suffreth neither disorder nor confusion where it is hard to these inciuill iesters to put order in their small families compounded perhaps but vppon two or thrée persons but crying some times as the blind man wheÌ„ he hath lost his staffe strike sometimes without measure or reason reaping by their disorder a gréeuous curse to themselues and families whereuppon is no great cause of merueile for that being not hable to gouerne themselues for want of discipline they haue lesse capacitie to rule others For end let them remember the sentence of Seneca that euill doth he merit to commaunde others which hath not himselfe liued long vnder the discipline of good Masters and learned to obey their commaundements So that with Salomon I may aunswere them at full that a wicked man can not but leade his toung in wickednes and who abhorres good men are detested of God. An exhortation to young children to studie Chapter xiiij MOreouer waighing with the comon benefitts comming to comonweals the sweet profitts that growe to singuler men by learning I exhorte all young men to the studie of the same their nature speciallie inclining and their abillitie consenting making coÌ„scieÌ„ce to lose one only minute of time according to the examples and counsel of Theophrastus and Plinie Whereof as the on in saying time was a most precius expense signified the no more ought men to consume vainly the least parte of time then to make prodigall expenses or wast of a most delicat meate so the other held all times lost which were not imployed in studie the same being the cause that he would not suffer his reader to repeat to him one word twise alleging that it hindred his time to passe further and learn that which yet he knew not where â—he consented with the moste part of all wise men whose opinions were that in all things ought we to be liberal sauing of our honor time in which two things being so precious we ought to be so sparing as not to be prodigall in eyther of them not to our very frinds But to come to knowledg and vertu they must first demaund them of God who is the only disposer of theÌ„ the lord sayeth Salomon giues wisdom and knowleg and discresion comes from his mouth who hath néed of wisdome let him aske it of God sayeth S. James who giues it abundauntly and reprocheth none of that he giues them but enioyneth them to humilitie for on the humble and méek he bestowes his grace secondly it is necesarie to take suche masters as we haue described good learned diligent and discret Thirdly ther must be aplied great labors and seruis trauell which abeit séem heuy and painfull at the beginning yet after the first taste be past they shall féele a most swéet iuyce or likquor in the frute of lerning for which cause Jsocrates resembled learning to a trée whose root is sower and the barke bitter but in the frutes is a most pleasant delightfull tast Plutarch wills men not to stick at the labor that brings any great or excellent benefitt for with the infinitt and glorius recompence afore God and the whole worlde of suche labor the custome of those paines makes the burthen easie which was right aptly aduised of Cato that vertu hath hir exercise in hard trauells which passe away but the frute ther of remaines eternall being a perpetuall inward delight of the mind of man Therfore muche less that labor ought to terifie or with draw young witts from studie but in the consideration of knowledg accompanied with profitt pleasure glorie and immortall name ther is great cause to
any feason reserue of the hollydays from their spirituall duties let it be performed in some playes or exercise of paine and trauell by the which both the mind shall be discontinued from idle thoughtes and the bodye taken out of the care of beastly desiers But seing the intent of mariage is the hope of procreation such as ar colde of nature defectiue and impotent ought not to marrie yea if they be married by faulse perswasion the mariage may be dissolued Such also as be vnclean and diseased ought not to entermedle mariage as well for the respect of their comon weale to the which their children should not only be vnprofitable hurtfull and burdenous but also in consideration of them selues but more for their issue whom they know are by their occasiones to remaine always misserable for they are not ignorant that such as them selues are such shal be the effect of their seede and generation So that what other thing can it be to them but a perpetuall infelicitie to sée their stock and children languish in wretchidnes afore their eyes Yea their whole howse borne to this misserie not to on suffered good day in all their life with out sorowe and sighing and bear as it weare a death vppon their backes euen from their first birth In this the woman disposed to marie ought as well as the man not to make fielthy luste the principall end of hir marriage for that were to enter wedding with infidells and an intention reproued in the scriptures as in Tobyas it is sayd that a deuill caulled Asmodeas killed seuen husbandes of Sara the first night of their marriges who for the only lust of the fleash and desier of hir beautie had maried her one after another So did the children of god marie afore the floud I mean the sonnes of Seth which had learned to serue God who seing the daughters of men that is descended of the race of Cain worldly faier and brauely attired maried with them For which carnall affection for they torned afterwardes from the feare of God the Lord roase in to such ire togteher also for other vices of that world that he sent a generall slud And Iesus Christ giues to vnderstand that that lust disordred pleasure are the causes that maried folkes called to the spirituall banquet of God make no rekconing of of it excusing themselues by the hinderance their mariadges which ought rather to bee aydes and common meanes for the man and woman to animat one an other to search God in whose name they are assembled to pray to prosper them in their mariadge giue them children whom they may instruct in his law acknowledging that they are mortall and if they offend God and liue not in him he can and will punnish them with some miserie I say not but beautie is requisite in mariage as wee read Jacob was more desirous to haue Rachell to wife because she was fairer then Lia And albeit in many places wiues are praysed in the Scripture for their beautie which is a gift of God in nature yet it is with this lesson that men take héede that it be not the only cause associated with lust to entise the minde to mariage For such societies of wedlocke as they are not of the Israelites and Christians who haue commaundements to renounce the affections and lustes and to put on a new man So they can not but stand in daunger to be prophaned by such affection as not diffring much from those fleshly mariages for that which partly the generall flood was sent to drown the creatures of the earth Touching wealth or riches for the which many do marry and in that onely consideration not marying wiues but their wealth many enter wedlocke with their Mistresses and chuse sometimes wiues whom they know to be barreine old and counterfet In whom hauing no hope of procreation what other thing doo such husbands but abuse mariage through couetousnes prophane it no lesse then others by vnbrideled and whorish lustes The poore ought to be maried with the riche according to the custome of the Lacedemonians And in the Scripture we find that men bought their wiues as Jacob redéemed his wherein as it is a great reproch to a man to take charge of a wife if he haue not abilitie and meane to mayntaine hir So in such societies I meane by vnlawful means in persons vnlike in qualitie and contrary in manners and nature it happneth that seldome is found true friendship betwene man and wife but dissembled loue perpetual dissention ielosies and dissolute whoredoms and in the end desperate diuorce But touching the man meaning to marrie séeing he ought to vnderstand that the good wife as Salomon sayth is giuen of God as inheritances are naturally left of parents to their children and according to the text of Iesus Christ God is hee that from heauen conioynes mariages inseperable Let him I say recommend himselfe altogether to God with peticion to bestow vpon him such one for his wife whom he séeth fit to assemble with him in mutuall amitie and to liue happely according to his holy will in raising children and them to teach in his feare in sort that afterwardes they may become instruments to his seruice and honour Wherein it is not to be doubted seing it is aduouched by many textes that importunitie of praier preuailes with God but his demaund shall find grace by this we read the Patriarkes Jsaac and Iacob were happy in their mariadges In this request and peticion to God the woman hath no lesse interest then the man for the obtayning of a good faithfull husband And so let there be no mariadge but in the Lord that is with yokefellowes of one faith and religion obseruing in their choise his inspiration and will and not induced by dishonest affectiōs couetousnes or pleasures which things much lesse that they are of God séeing of the cōtrary where any of them remaine he is not present at the coniunction of persons onely there his presence assisteth where is true amitie in conformetie of will manners and honestie in his feare and holy affectiōs In this sort the tiche shall chuse the poore assone as the wealthy to whom for charitie he ought to do as Booz taking to wife poore Ruth and the straunger as his neighbour so that he know hir for seldome we loue hartely that we know not well and lastly the Orphane before a mayde endowed yea and that rather for the honour of God For so shall they loue vertue better then beautie and the humilitie of the poore handmayd better thē the proud and fierce stomacke of a riche Lady against such mariadges was Themistocles who held it better to marry his daughter to a man néeding money albeit poore in wealth yet ritch in industrie and meanes to wealth then to money hauing néede of a man to vse it meaning that a richman weak in the vse and disposing of his wealth becomes
péece of breade or other foode which they shot at out of a little cros bowe and if they brought it downe with their arrow it was the rewarde of their paynes so did they learne to forme their mindes in ciuill manners and fashion their bodies to painefull exercise for the warre wherein they became fierce executioners in their age of abilitie The oldest and of most auncient courage and vertue were instituted masters ouer the youth in whom if euery fault and error were not reprehended the maister was condemned to a fyne In this institution all the communaltie of Citizens specially the auncients wer bound to esteme all the youth as their proper children and therefore had authoritie of correction councell and perswasion no lesse then if they had naturall interest in them they had no libertie of conuersation with straungers for feare of corruption by their dissolute manners they had no handling of money nor other pleasure whiche might bring abuse so that they knew not what delites were Touching their reast they slept alwayes in the fieldes vpon straw waddes forbearing fether beddes as not to effeminate their bodies for intemperance or whordome much lesse that it was familiar amongest them but of the contrarie during the tyme of their auncient discipline there was none of their youth knewe what vice it was There was seldome Citizen of Lacedemonie accused for any quarrell and lesse to haue hurte or wrōged any mā by which seuere pollicie they brought such reputacion to their common weale that farre and straunge Regions sought their alliance yea the Jewes thought them selues assured against their enemies as is saied in the Machabees if they had confederation with the Lacedemonians much more then belonges to Christian common weales and specially to Noble houses touching the education and guiding of their youth séeing our law is infinitly more perfect expressing many commaundements with promises of fauour and eternall felicitie if we institute our youth as wee ought where amongest the others was but onely a regarde to ciuill honestie and glorie to haue raised such an institution to their youth great wrong and dishonour doe we to God who sendes vs children to the ende wee frame them méete for his seruice whereby his glorie may shine if we abandon them to the world sathan the prince thereof to the common and eternall destruction aswell of them as of their posteritie ¶ Still touching the education of young children Chapter v. LEt vs eftsones retorne to the institucion ciuile of children suche as fathers and mothers ought to procure more then is conteined in the discourse of the other chapter they must first be entred in the knowledg of God and elementarie groundes of faith the commaundementes sacraments and principall pointes of saluation the same to be ministred in their first age and according to the mesure of their capacities expressing with all good example which as an eye of doctrine cōfirmes the other herein Agiselaus aunswered wisely to a father asking him how he ought to teache his children put into them sayth he at the beginning the best and most necessary doctrines such as may serue thy children for the grounde of their life Which foundation of pietie and religion ought to be first layed remaine in the building which is made of all the other doctrines Let fathers consider with wise masters by whome their children are instructed in these groundes where vnto they are most drawen by nature which if it carie them not to the zeale studie of learninge let them pushe them forward whether God séemes to call them for other wais with the vaine spending of their money they should be guiltie of the losse of time to their children if they should striue to chaunge their vocation naturall or rather deuine and bestowe them else where by their owne opiniō ioyned with some affection to some peculier trade perhappes more to their proper profite but lesse to the commoditie of their children wherein they shoulld séeme to resiste God and nature and attempte euen against the suggestion and ordenance of god who as he hath placed in a body naturall diuers members and apointed them to diuers functions with out chaunging their order and office so hath he bestowed in his church and comonweals sundrie sortes of people all members of both the one and the other body whether misticall or ciuill inspiring to euery one of them a will instinct as well of nature as of speciall grace to defier to followe some one certain profession for the seruice of his bodie as to the eye he hath giuen the facultie of sight to the eare propertie to heare to the nose the qualitie of smelling to the toung habyllitie to speake and taste to the hand power to dispose actions and to the feete agillitie to go and to runne euen so hath he yet done more which turnes to his glorie as hauing endued euery one with a peculiare affection to followe an estate most conducible to his proper sauluation and where in he shal be most seruiceable to his Lord God for the cause S. Paule puts vs often in remembrance that euerie one ought to followe his vocation with perseuerance and constancie wherin Aristotell séemed not to be ignorant saying that ther are some men whoe of nature are frée and as Lords borne to learning and to the welding of great affaiers and some others bond men and slaues and by their seruile and grosse condicion without all facultie either to rule or commaund amongest the Philosophers it was an opinion to doe nothing against nature as not to commaund the hand to go in place of the foote which if it were done by force could haue no continuance as also the foote hath no facilitie to do that belongs to the function of the hand By these we sée that in vaine do Fathers and Mothers put their children to religion if they haue no deuocion but haue rather the inclination of souldiers such becomes euill the habite and profession of Religion whose affections and hartes aspire to the office of valiant Captaines From which if they be restrayned they are not drawne too any other exercise but by force where in they haue neither thankes nor fauour of God but which worse is suffred to commit infinite offences which are like to be layd against them by whose couetousnes or supersticion they are intruded into suche profession great is the euill also in forcing maydes to be religious whose inclination had made them more méete for matrons of housholdes in whom for recompence are found many legerdemaines and pleasaunt partes played in their monasteries on the otherside many are the children now a dayes that professe studie to please their Fathers but they do euen as much as if they beat the water of the riuer aduauncing nothing to the common profite nor their honour Of that sort many in place to studie followe their pastimes to auoyde as they say melancholly And yet it is for such commōly as
obseruatiō amongst the Lacedemonians who vsed not only the lawe of perfect pietie to their proper and fleshly parents but also euen to all old people whome they honored as their fathers and gaue succor to all their affaiers as if they had bene their naturall children They estemed them happie if they were called to do seruice to olde men tacking it for the greatest prayse that coulde be ascribed to the actions of their life to pushe forward the affires of auncient men wherby it was sayde in comon prouerbe that happie was he that became olde in Lacedemonia as hauing so many childrē readily disposed to honor serue and support him as there was young people in the towne ¶ The dutie of Maisters towards their Seruauntes Chapter vij THe third ground of a cōmon weale and order of pollecie conteineth the authoritie of Maisters ouer Seruauntes and obedience of seruants to maisters wherein the maister mai be considered in two manners either as Lord buying with his money his seruaunt which they call bondman or slaue or conquering him in warre by victorie as his enemie or else he is maister not as Lord proper or owner but as trying and vsing the seruaunt only for a time as in England we haue no others So that this second sorte of seruaunt is no bond man but rather in the nature of a hyreling or marcenarie reteyned for a season when the scripture speakes in the Hebrew woorde of this name aued and the auncient Latines of seruus as also the Gréekes of their Donlos thei meane no other commonly then the perpetuall bondman This maister called Lord hath borne afore time supreme power ouer hys seruauntes putting them to death by his discretion without lawe of reprehension For so we reade Metellus a Citizen of Rome handled so many bond men as brake him cuppes of Crystall and was not called to punishement for it which comming to the knowledge of Augustus an Emperour pitifull he entred the house of the said Romane and to take away the occasion of a second crueltie to his poore bond men passhed in péeces al the vesselles of Crystall and glasses that hée founde in the house Olde Cato otherwayes reputed very wise was so tyrannous ouer his bondmen that whē by extréeme age they had no further abilitie to serue hym hée caused some to be committed to slaughter and suffered others to dye of hūger which cōmō humanitie denieth euen to a dogge or horse that had ben long vsed in seruice but that libertie or rather imperious and vnnatural authoritie of Maisters was afterwardes bridled and limited by many lawes as is written in Exodus who strikes his bond man or bond woman with a rod and they dye presently vppon the blow is guiltie of capitall crime but if they liue a daye or two after he shal not be punished for he hath bought them with his money as if the law had saied he thought not to kil them and so loose the money which they had cost him And albeit God often times recommendes vnto maisters to handle their bond men gentlie wherein to drawe them to more pitie hée puttes them in remembrance of the miserable seruitude which they endured in Egypte yet the hautie couetous and malicious nature of manye maisters draw them often tymes into actes of great tyrannie towardes their bond men vsinge them more cruelly then their necessary and trauelling cattell yea in no other estimacion nor vse then as brute beastes For the which God by his prophete declares howe angrie he is and sending ruine spoyle to their townes he suffereth some of them to be murdered and others made slaues to straunge and barbarous nations The Jewes had commaundement to giue libertie to the bond men of their nation the vii yeare which was as a sabboth sanctified to god But because aboue their prescript limite thei retayned their poore bondmen in hard subiection and if they complayned redoubled the straynesse of their bondage eyther not suffered them to appeare in the court to demaund iustice or else corrupted the Iudges and so choak the way of their remedie the Lord partly for this transgression sent desolation vpon Juda and transmigration into Babylon Let vs nowe sée the office of a maister to his bonde seruauntes wherein we shall finde that by reason hée ought with much more lenitie to behaue him selfe towards those which are not to him but as temporall seruauntes First séeing their slaues are men as well as they they ought to loue them as their neighbours for all men are our neighbours and if he were a Pagan or ennemie should a man doe wrong to him whom he loueth would hée enioyne him to thinges vnrighteous hurtfull hard and too full of labour If euery one by the law of nature be bounde to doe to an other as hee would be done vnto him selfe would he in the state of such subiection be commaunded to things aboue his abilitie to execute Secondly if the bond men or slaues be Christians religion much more then the law of nature ought to draw vs to affection towardes them If they be young we ought to hold them in the reputacion of our brethren if they be auncient let vs giue them reuerence as to Fathers I meane touchinge loue for concerning the bond ciuill and seruile it is not cancelled by the law of the gospell why should wée then with so arrogant proud and angrie hart commaund such rigorously whom we ought to loue and cherish with Christian humanitie If we be al vnited by one IESVS Christe as are the members of one bodye vnder this Lord which is made our head should it bée possible that the maister who in this body is as the eye or hand and the bond seruaunt to him is as the foote or least toa of his foote to obey and serue him should commaund or enioyne to this bond man any thing which should not bée reasonable honest and profitable the same agréeinge with the commaundement of Saint Paule not to doe any displeasure damage or wrong to that low part being so conioyned to him by naturall harmonie no rather if it suffer necessitie grief or anguish the superior parte is bound to trauell for it and yéeld compassion to his sorrow The Maister not touched with this spirituall iudgement and lesse féeling of this inwarde sence touching his office to his seruaunt doth not rightly acknowledge him selfe to be a man but much lesse a true Christian and faithfull member of the mysticall body of this Lord The same being the cause why many Christian nations in the consideration of suche loue according to nature and grace will not vse that imperious authoritie in their house ouer any bond man But taking certayne infidelles prisoners in lawfull warres as soone as they become Christians they giue them libertie and receyue them into their houses with wages and hyers for their labours obseruinge the vertues of the auncient Nations who after long proofe of their bond mē in
calling them villains peasantes and varlettes who notwithstāding are their norsses that put the bread into their hande wherewith they liue they make readie the meat and wine wherwith they are fedde they prepare the garmentes that cloth their bodies the horses whereupon they are moūted and put into their pursses the money that supplieth their common vses and for recompence they are beaten if they whyne as the saying is when they iustly complayne Such Gentlemen also whose delite is laid vp in dronkenes and whoredome to the dishonour of God and slaunder of the people such whose couetousnes is not satisfied but with the spoyle of their people yea drawing the skinne quicke from the carkasse taking the pullettes from the widow and the best shéepe from the farmor and from the poore husband man the haye and oates wherwith his traueling cattell should liue such as promise and performe not borrowe and paye not againe follow their hawking and huntinge oftentymes to the hurt of the countrey as when corne and grasse are in their encreasing season suche as are serued with the labors of their tenantes without recōpense and straine their horse their oxe and cariadge to their proper worke without satisfaction To be short who so euer wrongeth in any sort the meanest that is can not in any equitie merit the name of Gentlemen and much lesse enterprise vpon a title so honorable in whose life are expressed suche apparant effectes of dishonour and publique infamie can they in actes of villainy and vices worthely displaye the honourable enseignes of vertue and nobilitie will they make noblenes the cloake to oppressions and wronges which by vertuouse actes is raised the beautie excellencie and dignitie of houses he is not gentle in whom is founde violence or tyrannie and farre from the name of a Gentleman whose conuersation expresseth dissolute deformed dispositiō no he is a villain in equitie whose lyfe is stayned with actes of villainy as of the contrary vertue doth rayse and enoble villains of blud and race yea vertue only is as the soule of noble families without the which they were but as vaine and dead By which reason as to our place and estate of nobilitie is tyed higher and greater pretences of vertue so also by reasonable congruence the more higher wee stande in title and dignitie the more notable are our vices and faultes as a skar or deformitie in the face showes more then if it were in the hand or foote because those partes be more inferior and lesse apparant yea one small vice in a Gentleman is more reprocheable to the world and damnable afore God then many faultes in manye meaner people as in the law a prince ouer a whole nation offered as much sacrifice to God for his sinnes as the whole multitude for their common offences for the in place where hée should expresse to his people exāples of vertue and leade them in conuersation of ciuill lyfe he giues publike occasion to doe euill for that his errors being knowen draw the multitude to imitacion If a Gentleman so often as he falleth vnderstood the grauitie of his damnation where as his lightnes leades him some times to glorifye or vaunt his nobilitie to shake his sword to manage his great horses and to muster in gorgious garmentes and armour as pompes of his nobilitie he would euen so often common with his carefull thoughts how to discharge and acquite that dutie of a good and Christian Gentleman such one according to our prescription I denie not but touchinge his generall estimation with the world he must maintayne place and countenance according to his house and race both for the honor of the vertues of his auncestors and to expresse in him selfe fruits resembling and worthie of such trées Let him haue castels horses armour and ornamentes aunswering the estate and maiestie of his house and withall let him to that honorable prerogatiue expressed in those visible fignes ioyne the consideration of his office which is to leade his people whose nature is to beare reuerēce and loue to suche as are worthie of them in equitie obedience order and feare as in déed it hath ben a perpetuall custome in all ages and Countreys that as in Kings Princes Noble men and Magistrates haue ben more perfecte exāples of ciuill and christian order so to such hath ben alwayes moste due and decent all stately pompes whether in ritch iewelles apparell horses or costly houses wherin this care is carefully and continually to bee applied not as preposterous men to make of the accessary the principall of the shadow the body and of the accidence the substance but alwayes to entertain the autētike first causes of the nobilitie of the house which ar religiō Iustice and zeale to Gods honour and the defense of his Countrey accompanied with wisedome aduise sobrietie temperance and inuincible magnanimitie by whiche vertues Josua Othoniel Sampson Jeptha and Dauid haue wonne honour to them selues and perpetual noblenes to their houses ¶ The dutie of Aduocats or Councellours at law Chapter ix ADuocates or Councellours at law are not as coadiutors to Iudges and Gentlemen Presidents and chiefe Iustices to decyde and determine but onely with their aduise by opinions and reasons alleadginge customes ordinances statutes and lawes they serue to explayne causes of their clyentes leauing the iudgement to the Iudges called and constituted To euery one of those the wise man speaketh open thy mouth to the dombe meaning speake for the ignorant man and vnderstand the causes of al persons consider well that which is iuste and take vppon thée the cause of the poore and néedie as if he had saied thou which art Aduocat receyue the causes of all suche as come vnto thée and their complaintes for that thou art bound to all by thine estate speake liberally for the poore in whom being no knowledge to deduce their case they haue lesse meane to informe the Iudge such instructe both what they shall saye and doe be no partie eyther in councell or mayntenance to a wicked cause nor suffer any to doe wronge to the poore to whom the wise man séemes to perswade moste compassion for that to such is seldome showed fauour or credite of men for God hath giuen thée grace to speake and opened to thée the vnderstanding of the Lawes to the ende to minister helpe to others as to the toong hée hath gyuen the facultie of spéech to speake for the whole bodie and for euery perticuler member chiefly when any of them is grieued and in cases of wrong euen so the Lawyer which is the toūg and interpretor to the body polletike and of all men being in affaires and busines ought to spare no compassion to the cause of the poore disposing his office to iustefie right and bring all wrong to punnishment wherein besides that he satisfieth at the full the office of his vocation yet in soliciting for the poore he doth a seruice of greatest merit with God in seeing iustice to
be kept one of the first actes of vertue and in iustifying the innocent he defendes him from violent oppression and preseruing his smal porcion of goods kéepes him from the hospitall and his wife and familie from perishing by hunger In sustayning the cause of the poore and procuring condemnation to the wicked he doth double worke of mercie obserueth that which so often God recommendes in the Scripture wherein the Iudge executing the good aduise and exhortacion of the aduocate accomplisheth the iudgement of God doing an act of high praise and worthy of eternall felicitie The aduocate thus being the mouth of the people and chiefe enformer of the Iudge ought not to bee ignorant in the written lawe customes statutes and ordenances of the land helping his wit with the art of reasoning and his iudgement with general experience in all affaires wherein the science of Logicke morall discourse and specially the studie of polletike reasoning may bring great helpe to him for if by ignorance hée giue wicked counsel and leade the partie in a vaine expence of money to pursue an vniust cause or if by indirect or suttle dealing hee cause an other to loose his righteous sute though the lawes of ages and countreis appoynt him no punishment yet being guiltie both to the one and other losse I doubt not but by the lawes of heauen and conscience he ought to refine to the parties the full damage hapned by his corrupt counsell No lesse punishment but greater shame is due to the ignorant iudge giuing corrupt sentence by the perswasion of the aduocate as to whom it belonges to be more wise and resolute not deseruing to sit in the seate of a Iudge afore he haue thorowly passed the office of an aduocate and practised lawes in publike court which hée had read in priuate studies But if the aduocate entertaine by couert sleightes and suttleties vniust causes procuring cauillations by delayes to weary the man whose sute is good and enforce him to a hurtfull accord and so by his shiftes peruert iustice into iniquitie besides that he is bound to satisfaction of the losse yet he is not out of the perill of Gods curse Aduocates and procurers who by entertayning processes in delayes empouerish good men and become riche them selues and such the very instruments of Sathan as eyther bréede or norish quarell betwéene parties are condemned to all wretchednes by Iesus Christ For if such as be peaceworkers be happy of common congruence thē who hindreth confoundeth or delayeth peaceable causes are ordayned to misery as by whom is set abroche among neighbours the vessell of grudge malice hatred sorowe heauines and vtter vndoing and also losse of time in their established trades and vocations wherevnto they are called by God and if they be not the causes directly that their clients offend God in many sorts at least they kéepe them from seruing him restrayning al their hart thoughts and industrie to the furthering of their proces which cannot bée but a kind of impietie yea oftentimes it hapneth that by the dilatorie shiftes of solicitors and attorneys many rich clients sée no end of their cause in many yeres whereby it hapneth that he that preuaileth reapes not so much as he hath spent and he that is ouerthrowne is sent to the bagge wallet being afore the beginning of the sute of good estate of habilitie To such as be the occasions of this euill I aske this question if they be not iudged by their owne lawe which sayth such as giue the occasion of euill séeme to do the euill it selfe if the sinne bee as great to him that holdeth as to the other that cuts the throte of the iust mā is there any grace or distinction in the sentence touching the Iudge specially if he may apply remedie and abuse his meane Let no man erre by couertures of writtes or wrested titles of the expounders of the law or orders of courtes for in what sort so euer they do wrong to any man according to iudgement and conscience which with great aduise ought to be considered more then the opinion and comments of writers hid vnder the shadowe of the lawe and yet against the lawe which of it selfe is iust and good so that it be not abused they worke their owne depriuation of the life eternall The vnrighteous sath Saint Paule shall neuer possesse the kingdome of God And who are more vnrighteous thē such as worke against the iudgement and intencion of the lawe and contrary to the secret aduise of reason and sense of conscience which is not blinded through affections and custome of euill Would those smooth and coosening Lawyers if they were in the state of their simple clyents attribute it to wel doing to haue with them their best bloud drawne from them without féeling and that which remaines become too corrupt for horseleaches Let them thinke vnhappie is the gaine wherein vnhappely is wrought the destruction of poore soules What other thing doe counsellors and attorneys committing to their Clerks Bookes of length and many lines and consequently of more gaine to them selues but draw by suteltie money out of the poore mans purse What other thing is it then to impugne God hurt their conscience seduce the Prince the Court and the world and vnder cooller of that iust and lawful gaine to commit manifest theft whereof they stand condemned in the iudgement of God where all suttletie shal be reuealed which Saint Paule calleth darknes and all iniquitie examined not according to the vaine fancie of couetous fleshly men which think there is no other iniquitie but that which is séene and palpable to the hand but euen the most suttle craft that may be imagined shal be by the euerlasting eye so clearely spied and descerned that it shal be iudged worthy of death one of the offēces that most displeaseth God is the sinne of the Deuill as to be a deceiuer a Traytor a dissembler malicious author of quarrelles suttle and polletike to do euill it is said the Deuill that appeared to Eue hid vnder the visible serpēt was of all other creatures most craftie suttle Then if our aduocates and attorneis being instructed in the deuils sutteltie sticke not to glorifie themseiues to haue so good a teacher and master to learne them by good reason as they practise his instruction and example they are also to receiue with him a common rewarde and recompence yea let them be assured that the suttle are taken in their owne snares and that no councell cunning nor reason stande a fore God who being able to confound all will call into terible iudgment al such masquid and disguised suttelties is it not a vaine and foolish sutteltie to beguile a poore man of a halfpeny and for it to be condemned to lose a crowne what folly more then for the gaining of certaine transitorie drosse here on earth by suttle means to be condemned to the losse of all goodes body and
alwayes gaine For some times aswell in affaires on sea as lande GOD sendes afflictions for proofe and trial but he deliuereth the iust man in the ende to his greater comfort But if in his voyages and trafykes he had no other intent theÌ„ to aduaunce his own priuate gayne I sée not howe the common weale hath interest in his restitution séeinge as he traded for him selfe without respect of publique benefite to the countrey so there can be no reason of restitution where is no cause of merit No let such as restraine their wares to a dearth in hope to enhauÌ„ce the price and in the meane eyther the season groweth plentifull or their wares corrupt let such I saye sucke the iuyce of their couetousnes with the broth of rigorous punishment togither also with that cankared sorte of marchants who by reason of loane or credit passe their wares to poore chapmen of the countrey eyther for better then they are or at more price then they are worth Such also as making store of their corne and neuer appeare in the market but when the price beginnes to abate by the great supplie that the countrey bringes in and to restraine or forstall it will not stick to send twoo or thrée leagues about in the couÌ„trey to all the vittellers corne men with threates or false brutes not to bring in their corne as yit What other reward doe such marchants merit of their common weales but publike infamie exemplairye iustice yea they are bound to restore the damage that is sustained by it wherein it belonges to the officers of the towne and other special ministers vnder the Prince not to wink at this great iniustice done by these cormorantes to a whole common weale least by their coniuringe and dissimulation thei stand no lesse guiltie afore God and their countrey theÌ„ those that are the special dooers if they alleadge which is ordinarie with them that they made the prouision for the towne and therefore ought not to sustaine losse how false that is appeareth by this argument of their dooing for if their store had ben reserued to the reliefe of their towne they might haue giuen plentifull succours not onely to the towne but to the couÌ„trey about at the beginning when corne drew to a scarcetie and high price in the market but as by their extréeme couetousnes suffering it to mount to extréeme rate they brought lamentable preiudice to their common weale so much lesse that there is any colour of excuse séeinge by the apparance of their dooings the common people findes good cause to accurse them with infinit outcries which being retained in heauen can not but bréede effectes of their ruyne on earth for God according to the scripture drawing vp the cryes of the poore vseth to reuenge their iniuries with all lamentable miseries thondred vpon the proper dooers and their posteritie to the extreeme rooting out of their houses Let the magistrat also looke to it least God wrappe him in the common paynes with such as doo the wrong Let him not dissemble iustice by any merit or estimation of the person for that the greater they are the quicker Iustice their offence deserueth as being vnthankfull children and bretherne to their common weale which is their mother albeit in them be respect of parentage neighbourhead gossupship or other consideration of friendship yet they ought al to passe vnder equall punishmeÌ„t for that as the law is equall so with God whose lieftenantes they are is no acception of persones who wheÌ„ there is a fault committed in his house eueÌ„ by his dearest children there beginnes he his correction afore hée procéede to iustice of others So did he to Moyses who spake to him face to face that is priuatly reuealinge him selfe to him more then to any other as soone as hée erred he is first condemned for certayne infidelitie neyther could he at any time retract the sentence but that he dyed in the desert and could not enter into the land of promisse Ananias and Saphira were in the Catalogue of the first Church but as soone as they lyed to the holy Ghost with an vnfaithfull but weake fraile distrust are executed to death by diuine vengeance it is written that Chylon wheÌ„ he was created soueraigne magistrat in Athens sent for his friends saying that froÌ„ the time forward he renounced all frendship meaning that in causes of trespasse he would vse parents frinds kindred in on rate and equitie of iustice with others Ther be that in the traffike of marchandice and corne speciaâ—ly do forestall the time as when they buye corn yet in the blade and frutes not resolued but in their blossome with many other helps in bargeyning where of I leaue the resolution to the lawes for that my profession here is to medle with none but such as concerne concience and Christian dutie And so because the time is not yet ceraine to make by common iudgment a certaine measure of corne and frute no man ought to buye as they saye the pigge in the bagge nor the corne in the blade for that the market is the place apoynted for the trafficke of such thinges Such forerunners of time and forestallers of markets neuer buye in that sort but at too plentifull a peniworth as the seller seldome obserueth those seasons to sell in but by some great necessitie which as a matter of force constraint is also impertinent to the bargaine making it is sayd that feare and force make vnprofitable accordes as in which two passions is neyther full libertie nor perfect iudgment And therfore in common reason the buyer can not but offend in conscience if he enforce the necessitie of the pore seller to his priuate gaine and the vndoing of him selfe and desolat familye speciallye buyinge his corne in the blade and other his goods which are not yet in nature touching rent corne of fermers if their Lordes deale not with them somtimes more in conscience and consideration of the yeare then according to the straight equitie and rigor of their couenaunts they may to their dishonor flea them quicke as the huntsman caseth a fox to haue his skin and leaue their wiues and children to pouertie to their perpetuall confusion afore God the land lord ought to deale with his tenant as the herdsman with his flocke who is contented only with his fléece and feding him still to th end he may estsons encrease he defends him from the woulfe and sucoreth him in time of his pouertie Great also is the gredines of marchants in their other perticuler trades and no lesse damnable their sheftes and subtelties enforced with a custome of lying and swering vices for the most part familiar with inferior bargeinars and retaylers aspiring to be rich by those abominable helpes But to coÌ„demn this couetousnes the very norsse and feeder of all other vices this were only sufficient if marchants had no other purpose or pretence in their contractes and trades but to
angrie with the Jsraelites in sending them dearth of corne for not paying their tenthes yea if the husbandmen forget their tithes to the poore Leuits and left not in haruest time for the other poore to gleane and distributed almes at other seasons according to their dutie they were thretned with barrennes and dearth ouer the land wherin Christians haue to consider touching all those texts standing vppon the law of God and authorised by the Gospell being more iustly bound then the Hebrewes to whom the causes were nothing so reasonable as also for that the ministery without comparison is of more value more honorable in the Gospell then in the law and lastly for that the Gospell recommends the poore dearely to vs and with more riche promises of recompence then the law The third vice may be in the paiment of their rents to their Lordes and creditors to whom as they may vse subtletie and eyther defeate or delay them of their duty so in bargaining for corne and wyne they may sell corrupt wares in diuerse sorts for the which it hapneth by the iustice of God that in the end pouertie is the reward of those people ioyned with recompence of euery fatall and miserable calamitie eyther vppon them or their houses Pastors and heards men are bound with diligence faith and care to cherish their flocke and with that affection that they defend them from al peril of rauine for the which they are to giue accompt to their Masters as if they were their owne And therefore to the sicke they ought to applie remedie and giuing strength to the weake not to abandon the worst from their eye perpetual care to the end they may vaunt with Jacob to haue ben good heardes men wherein pastors Ecclesiasticall are here aduertised spiritually touching their pastorall office for whose cause I haue adioyned this little addicion and so leaue them to the consideration of their high fuÌ„ction in the lesson giuen to good common heards men ¶ All other estates are comprehended in those that haue bene already debated the explication of the qualeties of persons Chapter j. AL other vocations are contayned vnder those that haue bene already debated So that if any other estate seperate as Embassadour Orator or other of infinit profession as messengers intelligencers interpretors or spies with others of that rate woulde know how farre their offices stretch according to the Scripture they shall find them comprehended in the former estates aboue all other things the Embassadour being the faithfull substitute of his Prince or coÌ„mon weale ought not to reueale the secrets of his legation whereby eyther the affaires of his Prince maye be hindred or aduauntage giuen to the forreine Magistrate he ought not for his glory profite or pleasure to practise any extraordinary innouatioÌ„ or be inuested in any estate to the disaduauÌ„tage of them from whom he is sent For which act Hermolaus Barbarus a man of great knowledge Embassadour for the Venetians with the Pope taking the patriarchship of Aquilea was publikely condemned by the Senat in the losse and depriuation of the priuilege and Burgeship of Venice and had it not ben for the credit merit of his former seruice ioyned with the diligent intercession of the Pope he had bene in dauÌ„ger of capitall sentence By this as it were by the waye may be warned our preachers the Embassadors of the liuing God neither to say or doe any thing in Gods name further then the coÌ„mission of his word will beare nor to hope for or take any presents of spirituall promocion eyther to corrupt or tempt theÌ„ to disguise the truth couering the apparant vices of their benefactors against whom God commaundes them to speake boldly vppon paine of his iudgements not to hold their peace as doth the dogge which forbeareth to barke when his mouth is filled with meate Touching the Orator I maye send him to the office of the aduocate for the conueniencie that is in those two estates Betwene whom this is onely the difference that the aduocate alleageth onely the lawes for such affaires as may be decided by them the Christian Orator decks his matter with eloquent phrase prosecutes it by popular reasons by arguments sometimes very likely and most often necessary iustefieth his proofes by histories aswell holy as prophane to perswade his purpose and enforce his causes of coniecture whereof in the law can be raised no certaine proofe The aduocate and he reason both to one end as to defend the iust and accuse condemne the euill doer perswading in thinges honest profitable and necessary whither touching the Church or temporall estate The spie is as a faithfull and wise seruant of his Prince or Captaine that vseth him of which estate he ought to make no conscience being assured that the war wherin hee is employed is iust as being proclaimed thorow the kyngdome as a matter of consent by the Prince his counsell and graue estates and signified to the enemy So are Josua Caleb and others sent to espie the land of Canaan authorised by Moyses of whom if the rest had bene of the like fayth and courage as were Josua and Caleb so many miseries had not falne vppon the Israelites There resteth now to treat vppon only the qualities or diuers fortunes as the saying is of men that is to saye riche and poore ouer and be sides that we haue alredy touched of them in the Chapter of hospitalls reléeuing the pore togither with the qualities of the learned and ignorant men that be good and such as are of worsse sort these qualities we finde in all estats trades and vocations some riche and some pore or partâ—y rich if they be conferred w such as are extreamly pore or halfe pore if they be measured with them that excéede in wealth so may we iudge of the other qualities wherin afore we discend to discribe amplie the dutie of the riche and pore we may note three thinges by the waye the first is the riches is no honorable preheminence nor makes not an estate of dignitie therfore let not the riche man by any credite or reputation of his wealth aspier to honor or dignitie aboue others nor others attribute more to him then to the simple honest pore in regard of his aboundance wherin certayne Christians euen in the primatiue Churche reteining yet the error which they had being Pagans bearing more honor to the riche then to the pore the common fault of the world were greuously rebuked by Saint James charging them in the crime of acception of persones with vnrighteous doing wrong to God and to the pore for God sayeth he estemes asmuche the iuste pore man as the riche yea he séemes to beare more fauour to the pore adopting them the heirs of his Kingdome which he giueth to such as loue him Saint James also rebukes the honor that is giuen to richemen in great assemblies for the only respect and name of
well the care dutie of their office and that by the direction of the Gouernours to whom belonges the first example of behauior as a head and the principall member of a body naturall do first their proper and generall offices for the better regimēt of euery common and particular part of the said bodye A body pollitike vnder these obseruations can not erre nor much faile to liue togither in happie conuersation and consent to peace concord amitie and euery other good conuersation And as we see the naturall bodye of man compleate with his due organes and instruments disposed and sound to doe his perfect actions thoroughe all his partes not suffering any faulte or negligence in any one to whom belonges office or function So they doe all agrée and consent albeit by trauels and operations vnlike or differing as is difference amongest the members yet conspiring and tending all to vnitie vnder the will and iudgement of the head euery one employeth his force to doe that belonges to his natural facultie wherein if there be any that fayleth in his proper action his infirmitie is immediatly discerned eyther that he is sicke or other waies restrained by dolour and grief that he can not performe his office as when the eye refuseth to ayde the body and euery outwarde part with his visible facultie it is seene that he is troubled with some corrupt humor falling out of the braine or being vexed with some other accident he cānot serue his body for the which as he remaines in sorrowe and grief so euery member in particular and all togyther in common do ioyne to his succours Firste the braine beginnes to debate and iudge what the disease is and how to prouide the remedie commaundes the toung to declare the grief and demaund meanes to cure it the eare heareth the foote trauelleth the hand is diligent to applie the medcine wherein all the rest haue common interest and that with generall care compassion and busie trauell as if the passion were proper to euery of them euen so and by this resemblance we sée thys body pollitike to be then in his best estate when it suffereth none of any condicion or calling what soeuer to liue voyd of function and trauell according to his dutie where if there be any eyther by superfluitie of euill humor or by nature corrupt or of discipline peruersed which leaueth his function he is not onely vnprofitable to him selfe and others but also a trouble to the reste of the partes but specially to the moste neare and noble partes which are his neighbours parentes and néerest familiars euen so in a body pollitike the greatest in office or credit ought to aduertise the magistrate which is the head to the ende to consider howe the infirmitie may be holpen to whom all the reste of the partes are bound to be assistant for the cure of the parte infected which least it growe to encrease of euill they ought to purge by some sharp discipline And that dooing no good in his simple application they are bound to redouble it to the vttermost wherein if it proue incurable let thē applie the searing yron and as an extréeme remedie cut it of to kéepe the other partes from corruption and the whole body sound And this albeit can not be done without extréeme sorrow to our whole common weale but specially to the next parentes neighbours and familiars yet being driuen thereunto for the health and sauetie of the whole the necessitie makes the cōstraint neyther hatefull nor intollerable The magistrat only as being the head of this body hath the iudgement and execution of this busines as he onely hath the eye to sée the eare to heare and the imagination and iudgement to determine to the sauetie of him that fayleth in his dutie and to the benefit and profit of the whole body pollitike wherein is not to be forgottē that naturally the head of man findes out spéedely the griefe or disease of the member to giue succours to it the same being an aduertisement that the chief ruler or head of a common weale ought also to know the euill that is happened in any place of his gouernement whereunto he is bounde with his eyes his eares his vnderstanding and all his other sensible synowes I meane officers inferiour to whom belonges the information of euery thing to the end reasonable remedie may be applied But this were a great euill if the head should become diseased by vices and peruersed affections for being so he would make to languish all his poore body and leade the members into disorder yea worse would happen if any grosse or corrupt humour hindered or stopped the naturall conduites by the which the liuely spirites procéeding from the braine could not pearce and passe thorough all the partes of the body whereby it might fall by apoplexie as dead without spéeche without mouing of breath and séeme to haue no sence In this we signifie that if the law which is as the soule of the body ciuill be in the head of the magistrat restrayned or hindred by corruption or aboundance of humores infected as couetousenesse hate feare loue and false opinion touching religion to performe her frée functions through all the saied body pollitike in motions and senses which are gouernements by wyse prouidence equitie and iustice The poore common weale can not but fall quickly to the ground euen as a house hath no meane to stand when his proppes are taken from vnder him This we reade happened in the time of Sedechias king of Jsraell when the great Sacrificator Phassur and all his vnder sacrificators and Prophetes except Jeremie EZechiell Daniel and a few others togither with their king and his officers were occupied in actes of couetousnes rapines iniustice and pagan superstitions and forhearing the exercise of the law of God all those as they were the first that declined to sinne so they were the firste that were committed to spoile captiuitie and murther and afterwardes the rest of the whole body slaughtered with al that miserable common weale defaced whiche afore stood in florishing prosperitie so long as hir heades performed their office and iustly exercised the lawe And where the soule of the common weale which is the law were not but by certayne smal humors corrupte with certaine vices hindred to do hir action whereby one only member should be distressed all the body could not but be in payne and not able fréely to doo his general office So the default of execution of iustice in one particular man is the error of the magistrate and the cause by the which the whole cōmon weale is put to trouble Therefore O you Magistrates in whose handes standes the direction of the soule and body of this Christian common weale and also of whom depend the successe rest and happynes of the same by your graue gouernement as of the contrary if there bée default in you what wretchednes and miserie it suffereth is attributed to you
prouide so that this soule I meane the diuine law entertayning with it the lawe naturall and politike as the reasonable soule in man compreheÌ„des vnder her regiment the spirit sensitiue and vegatiue be Lady and mistres chiefly ouer your selues as gouerning your dooings according to hir direction to the ende that by your guyde she gouerne and entertayne all the rest of the body politike without being hindered by you in fauours or other corruptions ciuill yea let her fréely stretche out her selfe in vigour and vertue equally to euery generall and particular parte for the better abilitie of his proper and naturall action I meane let euery one exercise the particular vocation whereunto he is called for the better regiment of the whole in one equall faith without acception of persones euery one with franke readines enclining to the prescript of that law according to the limite of his particular charge by which obseruation there can not happen eyther to the whole or any peculiar proporcion of the body any disorder disagréement contencion or confusion And euen as when the humane body of man is gouerned and ruled by phisicke it seldome falles into disease for that in that Science is prescription of all thinges necessarie to conserue health euen so by this lawe the true Phisicke medcine of mindes so long as they obserue the rules of it common weales are not onely entertained in plausible and constant prosperitie but withall armed against the assaultes of al casuall inconuenieÌ„ces eyther by suttletie malicious force or pollecie But as the body then slides into infirmities and diseases when it giues ouer the counsell and iudgement of phisicke so the body ciuill neglecting the rule of the law prepares to it self occasions of many passions as warre famine with such miseries as God vseth to sende for the transgression of his law God in many places in his law but specially in Deuteronomie forespeakes blissinges and happy successe to the good obseruers of his lawe that aswell in their houses as their Cities Countreys and whole affaires as of the contrary his threates be terrible to the traÌ„sgressors prophesying all miseries to their families their goods their cattell yea to their owne bodies with these miseries the Prophetes often tymes threaten the Israelites for their transgression as also other straunge nations for that they had ben cruel to the desolate people of Jsraell There are none more imediat causes of the miseries afflicting men in priuate or common weales in generall then the transgression of the lawe and obstinate constancie in wickednes For we find that in all times miserie hath followed sinne as the smoke doth the fier aswell to perticular men as in Cayn Lamech Agar Iâ—maell Esau Hei Onan with many such from the beginning of the world as to whole commoÌ„ weales suffring impunitie of sinne as in Josua it is sayed that for Acham who contrary to Gods commaundement tooke a wedge of gold and for the sacrileage of Hiericho all the Armie of Jsraell to whom was promised victory was put to flight so grieuous to God is sinne how secret so euer it be who will haue it punished for that cause Salomon sayth that sinnes makes people and nations vnhappy which then appeareth most when it is knowne and the common weale makes no care to do iustice of it as we sée hapned in Gabaon of the Beniamits in which Citie for the vnchast violacion of a woman dying of the violence almost all the sayd Beniamites were ouerthrowen by the other Jsraelites God ordeyning this iudgement for the reuenge of the womans dishonour oftentimes the man that hath done euill is not punished only but also the affliction stretcheth to his house as hapned to Cham for mocking his Father with whom his sonne Canaan with all his Chananites were scourged The sinne of Loth and his daughters is not punnished only with the penance of the good Patriarch but also vppon his children The Moabites and Ammonites who were reiected froÌ„ the alliaÌ„ce with the Jsraelites for their reproued generatioÌ„ yea forbideÌ„ to enter into the temple albeit thei were coÌ„uerted to god much more grieuously is punished the sin of the Prince the Magistrate not vppoÌ„ themselues only but what they loue is touched their whole people visited as is manifest in Dauid who notwithstanding he did penaÌ„ce for his adultery murder yet his sonne died for the punishmeÌ„t or satisfaction of those two sinnes as also for the adultery he did to an other maÌ„s wife his owne coÌ„cubines in the meane while were polluted And for that he rose into pride he was striken with plague by the death of three score and ten thousaÌ„d persons who consenting with their Prince in his vain glory and vices had their share in his iudgement and punishment when all the world was resolued into sin God spared not a generall punnishment by the great flood which had power ouer all flesh sauing eight persons preserued in the Arke In Sodome and Gomorrhe the fier of heauen consumed all but Loth his wife his two daughters And in the first sacking of Ierusalem but much more in the last and generall spoyle of Titus Vespatian to the ruine of all Iuda according to the prophesie of Iesus Christ For all the world had erred eyther actually or by manifest consent or secretly and to come yea euen the little-children who albeit had yet done none euill yet if they had had then iudgement or ripe age they had had the same will with their pareÌ„ts as with all children in some sort are the substance and principall goods of their parents So that their fathers offending and deseruing to be grieuously punished the scourge falles also vpon their goods children I meane touching temporall paines for concerning the soule the sinne followeth the author according to the iudgement of God who as a iust and soueraigne Lord punisheth the man for his proper vice and euery vice in the man as we sée hee did in the first ruine of the worlde when he drowned fathers mothers children seruants with all sortes of beastes sauing such as he reserued for propagation and sacrifice ¶ Counsell of the remedies to cure and preserue common weales from miserie Chapter v. IT belongs then to gouernours of a common weale as to good Phisitions by the doctrine of the law both deuine and humaine the true medecine and preseruatiue of Christian soules to kéepe and conteyne their people and gouerning them both in generall and perticular by this law that they fall into no daungerous sinnes and mortal diseases of the soule they are restrained to no lesse care art and dutie to preserue them then the Phisitions corporall are bound to defend the bodies from sicknesses by iudgement rule of good regiment And not confounding the two estates Ecclesiastical and pollitike or secular from doing their perticular functions albeit in profession diffring yet teÌ„ding to one generall end to erect Gods kyngdome
let them labour to kéepe their common weale whole and sound that neyther in maners nor discipline nor touching the lawes customes statutes and ordenances there bee no error by superfluitie or want receyuing succours by doctrine sermons and perticular lessons touching Religion of the Churchmen to whome they are bound to stretche and leade their hand according to GOD as we sée the bodie serueth the soule in that is necessary for the vse and conseruatioÌ„ of man And if in the said bodye politike there bee hapned any euill of what side soeuer it be eyther of them selues or others eyther within or without whether of one or many or all together they ought presently to discend to the remedie to the rooting vp of the euill if it be possible in the beginning and not suffer it to encrease by conueniencie or dissimulation Let them not doubt but God as he is of nature mercifull so he is greatly prouoked when he punisheth man for vice but more angrie when he scourgeth a whole family afflictes a towne and visites a whole countrie but extremly and most of all is he stirred when he distroyeth a kingdom and generall nation let them not thinke that then the cause of the sinne is small or simple but in diuers sorts multiplied touching the nomber of haynous importaÌ„ce concerning the qualitie quantitie yea encreased with the nomber complet euen to an incensible grauitie for often times God attends the fulnes of our sinnes specialy afore he strike a nation or whole people according to the text of Genesis that he would not punishe the Channites till their iniquities were accomplished The best preseruatiue against all these euils is diligent prouidence of the gouernour and magistrat who then may best restrain vices when they prouid that the lawe may be vnderstand of all with such commandement to kéepe it vnder paine of such due ponishment that euen in the first that transgresseth against him that made it there may be actuall iustice to the common instruction and example of others wherein for their better helpe and effect of this verteous pollicy they must begin to institute the litelones to teach the ignorant blaming both sorts if they do not learne and obserue and so to others instructtng euerie one in the office and dutie of their estate and in what sort they ought to serue the common weale vsing herein specially for their first foundation the doctrine of fayth then the groundes of good conditions and lastly the rules of policie which doctrine in these thrée partes we haue declared before In this sort the magistrate may preserue his common weale from infinit euills as we read Iosua and Samuell standing vppon these reasons of gouernment neuer were trobled with sedicious nor any miseries hapened to them after they had purged them by penance of former offences There hapened in the gouernment of Josua but one defalt by Achan but imediatly after inquisition was made he passed by ponishment by whose example let gouernours bring into correction what vice soeuer they find done against god with out regard to qualifie it eyther by persone parentage place or other partiall or corupt circomstance for it is most cerraine that as that vice being suffered will be the cause of the damnation of the doer so the impunitie and example will drawe many oâ—hers to do euill wherby the ire of God will kindle against a whole kingdome For which cause Abraham assone as he vnderstode that Ismaell went forth to playe with Isaac or as some in terperet to prouoke him to Idolatrie he expulsed him his howse with his mother Moses when he founde any fault done in his campe specially bearing offeÌ„ce to God exercised present and sharp punishment what iustice thundredhe vppon those that worshipped the golden Calfe and no lesse vppon the blaspheamor and transgressor of the Sabaoth with other offences which he foresawe might prouoke god to sentence against the doers and to destroy him first being gouernour for negligence of iustice and so consequently all others consenting to the vices he was aduertised of the iudgemeÌ„t of God aswell by his expresse lawe as by examples past and such as stood in present experience as in the case of whoredome he had séene 24 thousand ouerthrowne by the hands of God with commaundement to him to xecute the Princes captaines of the people by whose wicked example the multitude ronne to their sinne of vncleanes he knew also that for the zeale of iustice God appeaseth his fury as appeareth by that which Phineas the sonne of Eleazer did vppon two fornicators thrusting them both thorow with his sword for the which it is writteÌ„ that God ceased to make the people die he knew by many other examples that the furie of God was terrible vpon a whole world if he fouÌ„d not exercise of good iustice by correctioÌ„ which the Israelites sought to eschew in punishing the offences done in Gabaa as hath ben sayd And Saule being yet a man of grace and fearing God when he vnderstood the people had eaten flesh with his bloud against the lawe cried out saying roole vppon me some great stone and put me to death Oh what sinne haue the people commitied against the Lord séeing God hath ben offended he will punish vs all iustly by some miserable accident if we resort not all to penance therefore he commauÌ„ds to make ready sacrifices to confesse their sinnes detest them and aske pardon of God by prayer whose example if the Magistrates of the world afore the flood had obserued and after in many places of the world if gouernours had applied such quicke Iustice and discipline in the first beginning of vices neyther had the vniuersall ruine hapned nor such common miserie to many generall nations if Helie had chastised his sonnes and kept the people from corruption of Idolatrie he nor his children had not died nor the people suffred slaughter and destruction If Jonathas had not transgressed the Edict of Kyng Saule his father the oracle of God had not ceased he not runne vnder iudgement of death which he had suffred had it not ben for the intercession of the people if Saule had not done wrong to the Gabonites he had not ben the cause of the famine which hapned in the time of Dauid for the appeasing whereof there was commaundement to execute seuen of the race of Saule By these exemplary aduertisements let Magistrates of the present time foresee that in their gouernements there be no vice done or being done that it be pursued with present punishment other wayes let them be assured that with the example of a disease in the body entertained and norished and neither preuenting it afore it happen nor being hapned is carefull to purge and heale it wil breede by continuance a feuer disquieting the head so much vex the whole body that in the end he shal not be able to haue any vse of his meÌ„bers wherby death doth
that the lawe bindes to no restitution though the wares bée solde at double prise all these spéeches and the effectes that followe of them are of the very inuencion of Pagans wretchedly vpholden and entertayned by pagan christians whose eyes of vnderstandinge couetousnes hath closed vp and restrained them from the cleare light of reason infused into vs from heauen euen by IESVS Christ the self light But all men what so euer not hauing these two lawes of conscience ready to serue thē in contracting bargayning selling buying choppinge chaunging and in the traffike of euery particular marchandise I saye if he doe not all in conscience as a brother ought to doe to a brother and one friende to an other abandoning deceyte in euery dealing for in case of desire to gayne by deceite bloud and brotherhoode friendship also will swell against it he ought not to aspire to the reputacion of a christian as hauing no place there séeing he hath not obserued those two lawes as the first letters of his christian Alphabet But here the Marchantes alleadge that it is so with all the worlde and if they should goe so stricktly and iustly to work the principall and necessarie charges would not be gained Little doe they remember in this that it is forbidden to conforme our dooings with the worlde but to reforme our selues in spirit to take vp a new life conuersation truely Christian not louing the worlde nor any thing therein as vnworthie of loue nor to followe the errours of the world springing of glorie couetousenesse and pleasure Let vs rather estéeme this worlde wretched as to the which Iesus Christ would not once vouchsafe to imparte one onely prayer but hath prophesied vpon it malediction in respect of the miseries who followeth then the guide of this diring cursed and blind world is it not directly to suffer him selfe to bée ledde into the bottomes of hell Touching the other point that by selling iustly is no great gaine let them behold the persuasion of Dauid that a little is better with the feare of God then all the ritches of sinners what doth it profit to gayne a whole world for certain daies and loose a paradise for euer Oh you Marchantes of little faith fearing to féele necessitie if you liue in the state of honest men beholde the man following his vocation in the feare of God and liuing accordinge to his lawes is assured by the word of GOD not to fall into want but that God will ayde him and giue blessing to his labours where of the contrary it hapneth that the deceyuer is beguyled and who doth wrong to an other findes recompense of wrong and what he feareth hapneth often tymes vnto him yea albeit God suffer him to become ritch by vnrighteouse meanes his wealth taryeth euen no longer then we sée a landflud fallings in great aboundaunce and presently passeth away and the place become drie And as we see in dayly experiēce that the second or third heires of suche marchantes vniustly enriched sell their houses shoppes liuinges and become bankerout leauing no other remembrance then that which a foule smoak leaues to a new whited wall So the small stocke of a good and vpright marchant takes his encrease by little and litle as the corne and grasse multiplieth into plentie yea his succession becomes an infinit generation There bée marchantes of honest pollicie but of couetous intenciō who selling at reasonable rate do often times gayne more then others for setting reasonable prices of their wares they draw more buyers and by consequence more vse of money whereby it happeneth that gayning but a groate in a yarde hée findes his encrease more in the yeares end then an other that with a slow vent gaines a testor in euerie yarde who to auoyde the hazarde of his wares by long kéeping and because he would rayse a great gaine selles his wares of credit to chapmen in the countrey but at his owne price some tymes double or treble aboue their proper worth thus selleth he time which is none of his and beguiles simple people who eyther not knowing the value of his wares or at least constrayned to take them by necessitie whereby the marchant bound by Gods lawe to reléeue and fauour the necessities of the néedie leaues thē not in this but committes them to raunsome and afterwardes when payment comes layeth them vpon the racke distreyning their corne their haruest and for a small matter leades away the substance that should nourishe them their poore families all the yeare There be also that vse a worse trade encreasing their money by monthly loane which they call honest interest but because aswel monthly vsurie as the lewd dealings of many marchāts their broakers being as the deuil his disciples are sufficiently detected punished by wholesome lawes of many christian nations I wil not here touche any person in perticular much lesse discourse vpō the whole abuses of interest men hauing now to do with publike trafficke of marchauntes who to the other lawes aforesayde séeme to haue one more concurring with thē which is the rate of markets the state of times and the consideration of places whereby as they may as lawefully gain at on time as they casuallie loase at an other which is the common fortune of marchaunts so let them take héede that in the meane and pollicie to make their profite they be not founde the causes of the euill season or to abuse the market or the place as for example there are in on citie an hundreth or more of the most principall marchaunts who doubting the dearth of corne with in the yeare or at least hope to gaine much by bargaines of corne go from market to market to restraine corne in the season that they sée it good cheape and somtimes make it rise higher to enforce pore men to sell to them By which intolerable trafficke all the corne of a countrie is drawen into their handes and yet will sell none during the store of the countrie But when it falleth wherby the necessitie of the market redobleth the price then those corne marchaunts or more properlie cormorantes begin by litle and litle by mutuall intelligence eyther to sell one after an other or euerye one to féede the market with his proportion or else sell in their priuate garners by their discreation raising at wonderfully and extorted gaine here if they saye they sell according to the rate of the market and are ruled by the estate of the time and place they may be aunswered that in taking the benefit of their owne lawe which is but concurringe they transgresse the two first lawes seeming to do pleasure to others with the common ruyne and miserie of a whole countrie and so by their vnlawfull gaine abuse their vocation they only are the imediate causes of the dearth of corne for if they had suffered eueri one to sell his corne according to his necessitie and forborn to