recreation as for thy health It is sayd that Demochares a phisitian hauing for his patient Considia a noble woman which refused all kind of sharpe medicines ministred vnto her the milke of goates which he caused to feed altogether vpon mastick So it is my purpose to impart now vnto thee some historicall and delectable matters but yet sauced with a secrete liquor of wisedome What matter is it which way wee attempt the curing of a sicke bodie so wee restore him to perfect health CAPT. XIX That publike euills are not so grieuous as they seeme to bee which firste is briefely proued by reason For moste commonly wee feare the circumstances and adiuncts of thinges more then the thinges themselues NOw march forwards mine own good legion And first of all that troupe which arte assigned to the vowe-ward prouing that these euills are not grieuous which we will conuince by a twofold argument of reason and comparison OF REASON because if thou haue due respecte there vnto truly all these things which do betide vs and hang ouer our heads are neither grieuous nor greate but do onely seeme so to be It is OPINION which doth augment amplify them and lifteth them vp as it were vppon a stage to bee seene But if thou be wise scatter abroade that thicke miste and behold the thinges in the cleere light For example fake Thou in this time of publike calamities fearest pouerty banishment and death If thou looke vpon these things with indifferent sound eies alas what trifles are they if thou poise them according to their weight how light be they This war or else the tirannie of gouernors through excessiue tributes will impouerish thee What then Thou shalt be a poore man Did not nature so mak thee and so shall take thee hence But if the odious and infamous name of tiranny offend thee change thy habitation so shalt thou free thy selfe Fortune if thou marke it hath holpen thee and prouided thee a place of more security No man shall pill and poll thee any more Thus y e thing which thou didst accompt as dammage shal be a remedy vnto thee But I shalbe a bannished man Nay rather a stranger if thou wilt If thou alter thy affection thou chaungest thy cuntry A wise man in whatsoeuer place he be is as a pilgrime And a foole wheresoeuer he goeth is an exile But thou wilt say death is dayly imminent to me by meanes of a tyrant As though it were not so euery daye by nature Yea but it is a shamefull matter to die by execution or strangling O foole neither that nor any other kinde of death is infamous except thy life bee such Recount vnto me y ◠best worthiest personnes that haue beene since the beginning of the world They ended their liues by violence This examination Lipsius whereof I do giue thee a tast only must be vsed in all those things which doe seeme terrible and wee must beholde them naked without any vestment or vizard of opinions But wee poore wretches doe turne our selues to these vaine and external matters not fearing the thinges themselues but the circumstances and adiuncts of them Beholde if thou saile on the sea and it beginne to swell mightely thy courage quaileth and thou tremblest with feare As though if the shippe were cast away thou shouldest swallow vp the whole sea whereas one quart or two thereof will suffice to drowne thee If an earth-quake bee sodenly raysed what crying out and quaking is there Thou imaginest that the whole towne or at leaste a hovse will fall vppon thee And dooest not consider that the dropping downe of one little stone is enough to knocke out thy braines Euen so is it in these greate common calamities in the which the noise and vaine imagination of thinges doth terryfie vs. See this troupe of soldiors See these shining swordes why what can these soldiors or these swordes doe They will kill me What is killing A bare and meere death onely And that the name may not terrifie thee it is but a departing of the soule from the body All which bandes of soldiors all which threatning swordes shall doe but that which one feuer one smal kernell of a grape or one litle worme may bring to passe But the other is more paineful Nay it is farre more easy for an ague which thou seemest rather to choose kepeth a man in paines commonly a whole yeare togither But heere the matter is ended with one blowe in a moment Therefore it was well spoken of Socrates who vsed to cal all these things no otherwise but GOBLINS or PAINTED VISARDS which if thou put on children runne from thee affrighted but so soone as thou puttest off the same and shewest thine owne face they will come about thee againe and embrace thee in their armes Euen so standeth the case in these matters that seeme so terrible which if thou behold without vaile or visard thou wilt confesse that all thy feare was but childish As hailstones though they beat vppon houses with a great noise yet themselues doo leape away and are dissolued So these thinges if they happen to light vppon a constant setled mind doo not cast downe it but vanish and come to naught themselues CHAPT XX. Now we come to comparison And first of all the miserie of the Low-countries and of this our age is exaggerated That opinion is generallie confuted And it is declared how that the natural disposition of men is prone to augment their owne griefes THis earnest graue cōmunication of Langius was nothing answerable to my hope or expectation Wherfore interrupting him whither now quoth I. Was this your promise to me I expected the sweet wine and hony-combes of histories But you serue me with such sower sauce as there is none more sharpe among all the store of philosophy What Doo you thinke that you haue to doo with some Thales No no Now you haue Lipsius in hand who as he is a man and of the Common sort of men So he desireth remedies somewhat more spiced with humanitie then these be Then said Langius with a milde voice and countenance I confesse indeed I am worthy of blame For in following the bright beames of reason I see my selfe to haue strayed out of the hign waie and declined vnwares into the path of wisedome againe But now I will amend the matter and returne to holde on my course in a more familiar knowne trade-way Dooth the sharpenesse of the wine y t I broached dislike thee I will sweeten it with the honie of examples Now therfore I come to COMPARISONS and wil prooue euidently that there is nothing grieuous or great in all these euils which doo nowe abound euery where if we compare them with those of olde time For in times past the same haue byn far more haynous and lamentable than now Hereat I once again more egerly than before replyed What Say
otherwise whom thou must vnderstand to see much better in this case then thy selfe and to haue another end in punishing Thou arte prouoked with choller and caried away with desire of reuenge He being far from both these hath respect to the ensample and correction of others He also knoweth best to whom the same may do good when The moments of times are of great weight and the most wholesom medicine is often turned to the destruction of the diseased not being applyed in due season God cut off Caligula in the prime of his tyrannie He suffered Nero to run on farther And Tiberius farthest of all And doubte thou not but it was for the good of those that then murmured at it Our euill and disordered manners haue neede of a continuall scourge but we woulde haue it taken from vs at the firste and caste into the fier This is one cause of forbearance which respecteth vs. Another there is in respecte of God vnto whome it seemeth peculiar To proceed slowly in reuenge of himselfe and to quit that slacknesse with the grieuousnes of the punishment Well spake Sinesius The diuine nature proceedeth leisurely and orderly And the old Sages went not much awry who in this respect feined God to haue woollen feet So that albeit thou be a hasty man and geuen to reuenge thou oughtest not to be grieued at this forbearaÌ„ce which is such a delay of the punishment as it is withal an encreasing of the same Tell me in beholding a tragedy will it stomacke thee to see Atreus or Thiestes in the firste or second acte walking in state and maiestye vppon the scene To see them raigne threate and commaund I thinke not knowing their prosperitie to be of small continuance And when thou shalte see them shame fullie come to confusion in the laste Acte Nowe then in this Tragedy of the World why art not thou so fauourable towards God as to a poore Poet This wicked maÌ„ prospereth That Tyrant liueth Let be awhiles Remember it is but the first Act and conâ—ider aforehande in thy mind that sobs and sorrowes will ensue vppon their sollace This Scene will anon swimme in bloud then these purple and golden garments shalbe rowled therein For that Poet of ours is singular cunning in his art and will not lightly transgresse the lawes of his Tragedie In musicke doo we not allowe sometimes disagreeing soundes knowing that they will all close in consent But the parties iniured doo not alwaies see the punishment What maruell is that The tragedy commonly is tedious and they are not able to sit so long in the theater yet others doo see it and are worthily stricken with feare when they perceiue that some are repriued before this seuere throne of iustice but not pardoned And that the day of execution is prolonged not wholly taken away Wherefore Lipsius holde this for certaine That vngodly men are forborne awhiles but neuer forgiuen And that no man hath a sinne in his hart but the same man carieth Nemesis on his backe For that Furie followeth them alwaies and as I may say with Euripides Going silently and with a soft foot she will in due time violently pluck the wicked from off the earth CHAPT XIIII Then is it shewed that there be sundry kinds of punishmeÌ„ts And some of them hidden or inward alwaies accompanying the wicked facts themselues which vngodly men shall neuer escape And they bee more greeuous than any outward YEt to make thee conceiue these thinges the better and that I may lead thee at length into the chiefe bulwarke of this argument Thou must vnderstand y t there be 3 sundry sorts of Gods punishments Internal After this life External The first I call those that VEX THE MIND OR SOVLE YET COVPLED TO THE BODIE As sorrow repentance feare and a thousande gnawinges of conscience The second sort are such as TOVCH THE SAME SOVLE BEING FREE AND LOOSED FROM THE BODIE as bee those punishments which most of the olde heathen writers did not without reason coniecture were reserued for vngodlie men after this life The third WHICH TOVCH THE BODY OR ARE ABOVT THE SAME as pouertie banishment griefes diseases death And it commeth to passe oftentimes that all these by the iust iudgement of God doo fal vppon the wicked But certeinly the twoe former kinds doo alwaies followe them And to speake of INTERNALL punishments what man was there at any time so giuen ouer to worke wickednesse but that he felt in his minde sharpe scourges and as it were heauy strokes eyther in committing mischieuous deeds or else after the facts committed For Plato said trulie That punishment is the companion of iniustice Or as Hesiodus more plainly and forceably expresseth the matter It is coeternal and coequall with it The punishment of wickednesse is kin to euery wicked act yea bred in it neyther is any thing free and out of care in this life but innocencie As malefactors among the Romanes that were condemned to bee crucified dyd beare their crosse which soone after shoulde beare them So hath God laid this crosse of conscience vppon all vngodly men whereby they may suffer paines afore they come to execution Dooest thou thinke there is none other punishment but that which is obiected to our eies Or that which is inflicted vppon the bodie It is farre otherwise All such are externall and doo lightly for a short time only touch vs But those that bee inwarde doo torment vs. As wee iudge them to bee more sicke which pine awaie with a coÌ„sumption then they y t haue an inflamation or feuer and yet these last haue the greatest appearance Euen so be those wicked men in worste case which are ledde to euerlasting death with a lingring pace Caligula ruling with great Tyrannie would be so stricken on a sudden as though he shoulde die So fareth it with those wicked-linges when that butcher their owne minde pricketh and beateth continuallie with soft strokes Let not the gorgeous outward apparance beguile thee nor the puissant pompe wherewith they are enuironed or their aboundance of wealth For they are not the happier nor in any better case thereby no more then a sicke man whose ague or goute lyeth vppon a statelie featherbedde When thou seest a poore beggerly fellowe playing a kinges part on a stage adorned with golden robes thou enuyest him not knowing that vnder the same gorgeous attire are scabs filthe and vncleanenesse haue thou the very same opinion of all these great proud Tyrantes Whose mindes if they might be opened saith Tacitus wee should beholde rentinges and strokes Sith that euen as the bodie with stripes so is the mind torne in peeces with crueltie lust and euil cogitations I knowe they laugh sometimes but it is onely from the teeth outwarde They reioice but with no true ioy No more certeinely then they which being in a dungeon condemned to die doo seeke to beguile
afflictions and calamities are for our good in respect of Their beginning vvhich is of God Who being eternally and immutably good is the cause of any euill Cap. â— Their ende vvhich is alvvaies for our good although in some of our afflictions vvhen God vseth the instrument of euill men they of malice do intend our harme This ende is tvvofolde Manifest to men And that is three folde The exercising of Gods children â—â—ereby they be three vvaies benefitted namely strengthened tried made mirrours and examples to oâ—â—â—rs cap. 8. The milde chasticement of frayle â—nders cap. 9. The sharpe punishment of obstinate â—ughtie persons cap. 10. Hid from man And pertaineth to the preseruation or beautie of the vvhole vvorlde cap. 11. 1 Touching euill men noâ—â—unished vvhich is ansvvered first generallie cap. 12. Then more particularly by â—â—nying cap. 13. By distinguishing of punishmentes into internall and externall cap. â—4 And into temporall and eternall cap. 15. 2 Touching innocentes or â—armelesse men vvhich is ansvvered by proouing that all are offenders And vvho be moâ—â— or lesse guiltie man knovveth not cap. 16. 3 Touching translating of â—unishmentes from one person to an other vvhich is prooued to be iust and the cause shewed vvhy God doth so cap. 17. Where are ansvvered three old and common obiections against Gods iustice 4 A more plaine and familiar argument then the former standing chiefly vpon examples shevving that our miseries are Easie and not grieâ—ous vvhich is proued By reason cap. 15. By comparison vvith times past And that First touching vvarres Ievvisâ— cap. 21. Greekish and Romaine cap. 22. Secondly touching pestilence â—amine and tributes cap. 23. Thirdly touching cruelties anâ— but cherly slaughters cap. 24. Fourthly touching tyrannie cap. 25. Vsuall and common to all people countrie and ages cap. 26. A shutting vp of the vvhole Treatise and conference vvith a short conclusion and earnest exhortation to the often repeâ—ting and meditating vpon the same Cap. 27. of thy safetie First therefore wee must knowe what it is CONSTANCIE is a right and immoueable strength of the minde neither lifted vp nor pressed downe with externall or casuall accidentes By STRENGTH I vnderstande a stedfastnesse not from opinion but from iudgement and sound reason For I would in any case exclude OBSTINACIE or as I may more fitly tearme it FROWARDNES Which is a certaine hardnesse of a stubberne mind proceeding from pride or vaine glorie And this HARDNES is onely in one respect incident to the foward and obstinate For they can hardlie be pressed downe but are verie easily lifted vp not vnlike to a blown bladder which you cannot without much adoe thrust vnder water but is readie to leape vpwards of it selfe without helpe Euen such is the light hardines of those men springing of pride and too much estimation of themselues and therfore from OPINION But the true mother of Constancie is PATIENCE and lowlinesse of mind which is A voluntarie sufferance without grudging of all things whatsoeuer can happen to or in a man This being regulated by the rule of Right Reason is the verie roote whereuppon is setled the high and mighty bodie of that fair oake CONSTANCIE Beware here least OPINION beguile thee presenting vnto thee in steed of Patience A certaine abiection and basenesse of a dastardlie minde Being a foule vice proceeding from the vile vnworthinesse of a mans owne person But verue keepeth the meane not suffering any excesse or defect in her actions because it weigheth all things in the ballance of REASON making it the rule and squire of all her trials Therefore we define RIGHT REASON to be A true sense and iudgement of thinges humane and diuine So farre as the same appertaineth to vs. But OPINION being the contrarie to it is defined to be A false and friuolous coniecture of those thinges CHAPT V. From whence Reason and Opinion doe spring The force and effectes of them both That one leadeth vnto Constancie This other to Inconstancy NOw for asmuch as out of this two folde fountaine of OPINION and REASON floweth not only Hardinesse and Weaknesse of mind but all things that deserue either praise or dispraise in this life It seemeth to me that it wil be labour wel bestowed to discourse somewhat at large of the originall and nature of them both For as woolle before it bee endued with the perfect collours of dying is first prepared thereunto with some other kind of liquors Euen so am I to deale with thy mind Lipsius before I aduenture to die it with this perfect purple in graine of Constancy First you are not ignorant that man consisteth of two parts Soule and Body That being the nobler part resembleth the nature of a spirit and fire This more base is compared to the earth These two are ioyned together but yet with a iarring concord as I may say neither doe they easily agree especially when controuersie ariseth about souerainty subiection For either of them would bear sway and chiefly that part which ought not The earth aduanceth it selfe aboue the fire and the dirty nature aboue that which is diuine Herehence arise in man dissentions stirs a coÌ„tinual conflict of these parts warring together The captains are REASON and OPINION That fighteth for the soule being in the soule This for and in the body Reason hath her ofspring from heauen yea from God and Seneca gaue it a singular commendation saying That there was hidden in man parte of the diuine spirit This reason is an excellent power or faculty of vnderstanding and iudgment which is the perfection of the soule euen as the soule is of man The Grecians cal it Noun the Latines mentem and as we may say ioyntly The mind of the soule For you are deceiued if you think al the soul to be Right reason but that only which is vniforme simple without mixture seperate from al filth or corruption and in one word as much as is pure heauenlie For albeit the soul be infected and a litle corrupted with the filth of the bodie and contagion of the senses yet it retayneth some reliks of his first ofspring and is not without certaine cleare sparks of that pure fiery nature from whence it proceeded Here hence come those stings of Conscience in wicked men Here hence those inward gnawings scourges here hence also commeth it that the wicked euen against their wils approoue vertuous liuing and commend it For this good part in man may somtimes be pressed down but neuer oppressed these fiery sparks may be couered but not wholly extinguished Those little coales doe alwayes shine and shew forth themselues lightening our darknesse purging our vncleannes directing our doubtfulnes guiding vs at the last to Constancy and vertue As the Marigold and other flowers are by nature alwayes enclined towards the sunne so hath Reason a respect vnto God and to the fountaine from whence it sprang It is resolute
and immoueable in a good purpose not variable in iudgment euer shunning or seeking one and the selfe same thing the fountaine liuely spring of wholsome counsell sound iudgement To obey it is to beare rule and to bee subiect thereunto is to haue the soueraintie in al humane affaires Whoso obeyeth her is lord of al lusts rebellious affections whoso hath this thred of Theseus may passe without straying through all the laborinths of this life God by this image of his commeth vnto vs yea which more is euen into vs. And well said one who soeuer he were That there is no good mind without God But the other part I meane OPINION hath his ofspring of the bodie that is of the earth And therefore sauoreth nothing but of it For though the bodie be sencelesse and immooueable of it selfe yet it taketh life and motion from the soule And on the other side it representeth to the soule the shapes and formes of thinges thorough the windowes of the senses Thus there groweth a communion and societie betwixt the soule and the bodie but a societie if you respect the ende not good for the soule For she is therby by litle and little depriued of her dignity addicted and coupled vnto the senses and of this impure commixtion OPINION is ingendred in vs Which is nought els but a vaine image and shadow of reason whose seat is the Sences whose birth is the earth Therefore being vile and base it tendeth downwards and sauoreth nothing of high and heauenly matters It is vaine vncertaine deceitfull euill in counsell euill in iudgement It depriueth the mind of Constancie and veritie To day it desireth a thing to morrowe it defieth the same It commendeth this it condemneth that It hath no respect to sound iudgment but to please the bodie and content the senses And as the eye that beholdeth a thing thorough water or thorough a myst mistaketh it So doth the minde which discerneth by the cloudes of opinions This is vnto men the mother of mischieues the authour of a confused and troublesome life By the meanes of it wee are troubled with cares distracted with perturbations ouer-ruled by vices Therefore as they which would bannish tyranny out of a cittie do aboue all thinges ouerthrowe castles and fortes therein So if we beare an earnest desire to haue a good mind we must cast downe euen by the foundation this castle of opinions For they will cause vs to be continuallie floting on the waues of doubtfulnes without any certain resolution murmuring troublesome iniurious to God men As an emptie ship without balasse is tossed and tumbled on the sea with the least blast of winde Euen so is it with a light wandring minde not kept steddie and poised with the balasse of reason CHAPT VI. The praise of Constancie And an earnest exhortation thereunto THou seest then Lipsius that INCONSTANCY is the companion of OPINION that the propertie of it is to bee soone chaunged and to wish that vndone which a litle before it caused to be done But CONSTANCIE is a mate alwayes matched with reason Vnto this therefore I do earnestlie exhort thee Why flyest thou to these vaine outward things This is onelie that faire beautifull Helena which will present vnto thee a wholesome cup of counterpoyson wherewith thou shalt expell the memorie of all cares and sorrowes and whereof when thou hast once taken a taste being firmelie setled against all casualties bearing thy selfe vpright in all misfortunes neither puffed vp nor pressed downe with either fortune thou maist challenge to thy selfe that great title the neerest that man can haue to God To be immooueable Hast thou not seene in the armes and targets of some men of our time that lofty poesie Neither with hope nor with feare It shal agree to thee Thou shalt be a king indeed free indeed only subiect vnto â—od enfranchized from the seruile yoke of Fortune and affections As some riuers are said to runne through the sea and yet keepe their streame fresh So shalt thou passe thorough the confused tumultes of this world and not be infected with any brynish saltnes of this Sea of sorrowes Art thou like to bee cast downe CONSTANCY wil lift thee vp Doest thou stagger in doubtfulnesse She holdeth thee fast Art thou in daunger of fire or water She will comfort thee and bring thee backe from the pits brinke onely take vnto thee a good courage steere thy ship into this porte where is securitie and quietnesse a refuge and sanctuarie against all turmoyles and troubles where if thou hast once mored thy ship let thy country not onely be troubled but euen shaken at the foundation thou shalt remaine vnmooued let showres thunders lighteninges and tempestes fall round about thee thou shalt crie boldlie with a loude voyce I lie at rest amid the waues CHAPT VII What and howe manie thinges doe disturbe Constancie That outward good and euill thinges doe it Euils are of two sortes Publike and Priuate t Of these two Publike euils seeme most greeuous and dangerous LAngius hauing vttered these wordes with a more earnest voyce and countenance than accustomed I was somewhat enflamed with a sparke of this good fire And then my Father said I let me rightly without dissimulation call you so leade me and learne me as you list Direct and correct me I am your patient prepared to admit any kinde of curing be it by razor or fire to cut or seare I must vse both those meanes said Langius for that one while the stubble of false opinions is to be burned away and another while the tender slippes of affections to be cut of by the root But tel me whether had you rather walke or sit Sitting would please mee best quoth I for I beginne to be hote So then Langius commaunded stooles to bee brought into the portch and I sitting close by him hee turned himselfe towardes mee and began his talke in this maner Hitherto Lipsius haue I laide the foundation whervpon I might erect the building of my future communication Now if it please you I will come neerer the matter and enquire the causes of your sorrowe for I must touch the sore with my hande There bee two thinges that doe assault this castle of Constancie in vs FALSE GOODS and FALSE EVILS I define them both to bee Such thinges as are not in vs but about vs And which properlie doe not helpe nor hurte the inner man that is the minde Wherefore I may not call those thinges good or euill simplie in subiect and in definition But I confesse they are such in opinion and by the iudgement of the common people In the firste ranke I place Riches Honour Authoritie Health long life In the second Pouertie Infamie lacke of promotion Sicknesse death And to comprehende all in one word whatsoeuer els is accidentall and happeneth outwardlie From these two rootes doe spâ—ing foure principall
drawn away by that Idol Lucre How many Italians forsaking Italie the Queen of countries only for greedinesse of gaine haue remooued their dwellings into France Gerusanie yea euen into Sarmatia Howe many thousande Spaniards doth ambition draw daylie into another worlde from vs These arguments prooue inuinciblie that the band whereby we are linked thus to our countrie is but external and accidentall in that it is so easilie broken by one inordinate lust Moreouer Lipsius you are greatlie deceiued in describing this countrie of ours For you tye it verie narrowlie to that natiue soyle where we were borne and had our education with other like friuolous allegations from whence you labour in vaine to picke out naturall causes of our affection towards her And if it be the natiue soyle where wee were borne that deserueth this title of our countrie then were Brusseilles only my countrey and Isscanum yours and to some other man a poore cottage or cell yea vnto many not so much as a cottage but a wood or els the open field what theÌ„ Shal my good wil affection bee shut vp within those narrow wals Shal I settle my disposition loue vpoÌ„ one town or house as my country what folly were that You see also that by your description none are happier than those that are borne in the woodsand open fields which are alwaies flourishing seldome or neuer be subiect to desolation or wasting No no our country is not as you take it But it is Some one state or as it were one common Ship vnder the regiment of one prince or one lawe which I confesse we ought to loue to defend and to die for it yet must it not driue vs to lament waile and dispaire Well said the Poet. A happie quarrell is it and a good For Countries cause to spend our dearest blood He saith not that we should weep and lament but die for our countrie For we must so far foorth bee good common-wealths-men that we also retaine the person of good and honest men which we loose if we betake vs to childish and womanlike lamentations Last of all Lipsius I woulde haue thee learne this one hidden and deep mysterie that if we respect the whole nature of man all these earthlie countries are vaine and falsly so tearmed except only in respect of the body and not of the minde or soule which descending downe from that highest habitation deemeth all the whole earth as a gaole or prison but heauen is our true and rightfull countrey whether let vs aduance all our cogitations that wee may freelie say with Anaxagoras to such as foolishlie aske vs whether we haue no regarde to our countrie yes verelie but yonder is our countrie lifting our finger and mind vp towards heauen CHAPT XII The third affection bridled which is Commiseration or pittying being a vice It is distinguished from Mercie Howe and how far forth we ought to vse it LAngius with this conference hauing scattered abroade some darke mystes from my mind I bespake him thus My Father what by admonitions and what by instructions you haue done mee great good so that it seemeth I am now able to moderate my affection towardes the natiue soyle or common-wealth wherein I was borne But not towards the persons of my fellow-citizens and countrymen For how should I not bee touched and tormented with the calamities of my countrey for my countreymens sake who are tossed in this sea of aduersities and doe perish by sundry misfortunes Langius taking my tale by the end This is not quoth he properlie sorrowe but rather commiseration or pittying which must be despised of him that is wise and constant whom nothing so much beseemeth as steddinesse and stedfastnes of courage which he cannot retaine if he be cast downe not only with his owne mishaps but also at other mens What Stoyical â—ubtilties are these said I. Wil you not haue me to pittie an other mans case Surelie it is a vertue among good men and such as haue anie religion in them I denie that said Langius and I trust no good man will be offended with me if I purge the mind of this maladie for it is a verie daungerous contagion and I iudge him not far from a pitiful state that is subiect to pittying of others As it is a token of naughtie eyes to waxe watry when they behold other blear eyes so is it of the mind that mourneth at euerie other mans mourning It is defined to be The fault of an abiect and base mind cast downe at the shew of anothers mishap What then are we so vnkind and voyd of humanitie that we would haue no man to be moued at anothers miserie Yes I allowe that we be mooued to help them not to bewaile or waile with them I permit MERCY but not pittying I call MERCY An inclination of the minde to succour the necessitie or miserie of another This is that vertue Lipsius which thou seest through a cloud and in steed whereof PITTY intrudeth her selfe vnto thee But thou wilt say it is incident to mans nature to bee mooued with affection and pittie Be it so yet certainlie it is not decent and right Thinkest thou that anie vertue consisteth in softnesse and abiection of the minde In sorrowing In sighing in sobbing together wish such as weep It cannot be so For I wil shew thee some greedy old wiues and couetous misers from whose eyes thou maist sooner wring a thousand teares than one small pennie out of their purses But he that is trulie mercifull in deed wil not bemone or pittie the condition of distressed persons but yet wil do more to helpe and succour them than the other He vvil beholde mens miseries with the eye of compassion yet ruled and guided by reason He will speake vnto them with a sad countenance but not mourning or prostrate He will comfort hartelie and help liberally He vvill performe more in vvorkes than in words and will stretch out vnto the poore and needy his hand rather than his tongue All this will he doe with discretion and care that he infect not himselfe with other mens contagion and that as Fencers vse to say hee beare not others blowes vppon his owne ribbes What is here sauouring of inhumanitie or churlishnesse Euen so all vvisdome seemeth austere and rigorous at the first view But if you consider thoroughlie of it you shall finde the same to be meeke gentle yea more milde and amiable than Venus her selfe Let this suffice touching the three fore rehearsed affections vvhome if I haue in part expelled from thee it will greatly auaile me to get the victorie in the battell that shall ensue CHAPT XIII The former impedimentes or lettes being remooued wee come in good earnest to the extenuating or taking away of publike euils which is assayed by foure principall arguments Firste here is spoken of Prouidence which is prooued to be in and ouer all
things but excludeth it from those that are in vs. By whose harmes Lipsius I being warned will keepe the snore and not launch out too farre into this deepe sea Euclides being demanded many thinges touching God answered fitly Other things I know not but of this I am assured y t he hateth curious persons Euen so I thinke of destiny which must belooked vnto not into and be credited nor perfectly known I suppose that saying of Bias Touching God beleeue that he is may better be applyed to destiny whereof I admonish thee this much that it suffiseth to know that it is If thou bee ignorant in other things thereto belonging it is no offence This is sufficient to our purpose for I now return from wandring into the right way againe that thou beleeue necessitie to be naturallie borne together with publicke euils and therehence seeke some sollace of thy sorrowe What appertaineth it vnto thee to enquire curiouslie of the libertie or thraldome of our will Whether it be enforced or perswaded Alasse poore soule Thy towne is sacked by the enemie and thou sittest drawing circles in the dust Warre tyrannie slaughter and death hang ouer thy head which things truly are sent from aboue and doe not in any wise appertaine to thy will or pleasure Thou maist feare but not preuent flie but not auoyde them Arme thy selfe against them and take this fatal weapon in thy hand which will not only pricke but panch all these sorrowes not lighten thee but wholly vnlode thee of them As a nettle if you touch it softlie stingeth but looseth his force if you handle it roughlie So this griefe groweth greater by applying soft mollifying plaisters but is soone cured with sharp corrasiues Nowe there is nothing more forcible than NECESSITIE which vvith one assault ouerthroweth and putteth to flight all these vveake troupes What meanest thou Sorrowe It is no boote to vse thee when a thing of necessitie must or reason ought to come to passe VVhat wilt thou querulous complaint doe Thou maist shake this celestiall yoake but not shake it of Leaue off to thinke that Gods fatall decree By thy repining may altered bee There is no other refuge from necessity but to wish that that she willeth Wel was it said by an excellent wise man Thou art â—ure to be conquerour if thou enter into no conflict but such as is in thy power to ouercome The combate with necessitie is not such wherewith whosoeuer contendeth shall bee ouercome yea which more may be maruelled at he is already vanquished before he begin to enter the lists with it CHAPT XXII Some doe seeke a cloake for their laizinesse in destiny But that is taken away Fate worketh by secondarie causes therefore they must be applyed How farre it behooueth vs to aide our countrie and how not The end of this first conference book HEre Langius pausing a little I became the readier to speake my mind and told him that if this wind blew a sterne thus a whiles I should thinke my selfe verie neer the hauen For I haue now a bold resolution to follow God and obey necessity Me thinkes I can say with Euripides I had rather do sacrifice vnto him then incensed vvith ire to kicke against the prickes or that I being a mortal man should contend with God immortall Yet there is one tempestuous waue of a troubled imagination that tosseth mee Asswage it Langius if you may For if all publike euills come by Destinie vvhich cannot bee constrayned nor controlled why then shall wee take anie care at all for our counrrie Why doo vvee not leaue all to that greate masterlesse Lorde and sit still our selues vvith our handes in our bosomes For you say that all aduise and ayde is of no force if DESTINIE bee against it LANGIVS replying Alasse young man saide hee by wilfull frowardnesse thou errest from the trueth Is this the way to obey Destinie and not rather to resist and contemn it Thou wilt sit still with thy handes in thy bosome Wel I would thy tongue had bene tyed now Who tolde thee that Destiny worketh alone without coâ—dinuant and meane causes It is Destiny thou shouldest haue children yet first thou must sowe the seede in thy wiues garden To be cured of thy disease but so as thou vse the Physitian and good nourishment So likewise if it bee Destiny that this weather-beaten shippe of thy countrey shall bee saued from drowning it is destinie withall that she be ayded and defended If thou wilt attain to the hauen thou must ply the oares and hoyse thy sayles and not idly expect winde at will from heauen Contrarily if it be destiny that thy countrie shall bee brought to confusion such things shall come to passe by destiny as will bring her to desolation by humaine meanes The princes and people shall bee at variance among themselues none shal be willing to obey none able to command All shall speake proudly and doe cowardly Finally the Chieftaines themselues shall haue neither counsell nor fidelitie Velleius saide trulie The force of Fates is ineuitable whose estate they determine to confound his counsels they corrupt And againe The matter is so that God when hee will change a mans good estate taketh away his vnderstanding And which is most wretched of all he causeth that the miserie which befalleth is reputed to happen most deseruedlie Yet thou must not bee so driuen into dispaire as though at the first assault thy countrey were in hazard of vtter destruction Howe knowest thou that What canst thou tell whether this be onelie a light fit of a feuer or a deeper disease vnto death Therefore put to thy helping hand and as the prouerbe is hope still whiles breath is in the sicke bodie But if thou see by certain and infallible tokens that the fatall alteration of the State is come with mee this saying shall preuaile Not to fight against God And in such a case I would alleadge the example of Solon for when Pisistratus had brought the citie of Athens vnder his obedience Solon seeing that all his labour for defence of the common libertie was in vaine came and laide downe his sword and Target before the Senate doores crying out O my countrâ—e I haue by word and deede defended thee whiles I could And so going home he was quiet afterwards So do thou yeeld to God and giue place to the time And if thou be a good citizen or common-wealths-man preserue thy selfe to a better and happier end The liberty which now is lost may be recouered againe hereafter and thy decayed country may flourish in another age why doest thou loose al courage fal into dispair Of those two Consuls at the battel of Cannes I account Varro a more excellent citizen who escaped than Paulus that was slain so did the Senate people of Rome iudge giuing him thanks publikely for that he had not lost all hope nor despaired wholly
is a meane between hantines and baâ—enes of mind What Reason it what Opinion A more curious and copious tractation of them both Man consisteth of two parts The minde lofty and fiery the bodie base earthy Strife betweene them Reason striâ—eth for the soule OpinioÌ„ for the body (a) If you take the vvordâ— precisely this is noâ— true yet is the remaining in man the imagâ— of God (a) Nâ—â— Mens is properlie that part of the soule which is partaker of reason What right reason is Which yet in some sort is remayning in man Right reason is alwaies constant and a ready path-way to Constancie The praise worthines of it The original of OPINION is of the earth and the body How it springeth of them The definition of it OPINION is fraile and a path-way to â—â—constancie The dispraise thereof An exhortâ—tion to Constancie The fruit force theâ—â— (a) Nec spe 〈◊〉 metu Especiallie against sorrow trouble (a) Mediis tranquillus in â—â—dis Two enemies of ConstaÌ„cie Fals goodâ— False euils Foure chiefe affections opposite among themselues to which al the rest are referred How they â—rouble Conâ—tancie False goods â—y desire and â—oy False euils with fear and sorrow Two sorts of euils publike and priuate The distinction prooued and applyed to the matter The griefe that groweth of publike â—iserie is â—ost heauy â—nd happeneth often Because it assaulteth with violence Because it beguileth vs with a shew of honestie Because also it is manifold Which is proued by example (a) Or Flaunders Three affectious enemies to Constancie First faming or dissimulation Which holdeth manie men for vain glorie (a) Quâ—â—e nunc coquit â—erâ—at sub pectore fixa Because they bewaile their owne priuate miseries and not publike Therfore we must search the inward causes of thes sorrowes We bewaile publike euils not as they are publike But because our priuate losses are ioined thereto or at least the fear thereof Flaunders An obiection preuented touchâ—ng our country Which stretcheth farther than the common people do take it And it is Opinion only that closeth it in such a straight But it is shewed that we sorrow not for the loue of this narrow countrie of ours Our malice at the harmes of others proueth it to beâ— true (a) Pindarus hath this saying Our ovvne priuat misfortune is alvvaies a like grieuous vnto vs but an innocent and harmelesse harâ— tovvard others is a cleane or pure vessell The sharpe speâ—ch of a wise man tendeth to wholsomnes not delightfulnes By occasion be passeth to treat of the second affection The praise oâ— our countrie in particular And our coniunction with it by nature Likewise in other Creatures as well as men The former allegations disprooued (a) Antonius surnamed Piâ—us is meant This affection is verie vnfitly tearmed by the name of Pietie What Pietie is (b) For there are reckoned kinds of pietie Tovvards God our country parents Our country deserueth not the title of mother We ow piety to God and to our parents But loue to our country Which also must be tempered From wheÌ„ce that loue springeth From custom not from nature â—ea the cause â—hy we loue â—ur countrie 〈◊〉 for that we â—aue in it â—omewhat of our owne And so the original thereof is loue of our selues Strengthened and increased by custome and law And that for the better societie of men Euident arguments that it is of custoÌ„ noâ— of nature first in that all men are not equallie touched therwith Secondlie in that it is easilie diminished yea wholly extinguished The opinion touching ouâ— particular countâ—y is confuted It is noâ— our natiue soyle What our country properly truly is â— must be â—efended manfullie And not esteminately bewailed The decree of all wise men touching our country A passage to the affection of commiseration or pittying Which is not incident to a wise man Neither is it agreeable to a Christian if it be rightlie considered What pitty is Mercy must be shewed what it is The differeÌ„ce betwene both The effectes of them both Manie of the Stoicks paradoxes are no impossibilities The maine battel in the behalfe of Constancie The diuision and order of the fower principal reasons Of all griefs that is the fondest which is takeÌ„ for publike calamities Because it is done to no end and is without hope â—t is also wicked because it contendeth against God Fortune banished out of all humane affaires Gods prouidence confirmed Whose greatnes quicknes and power are infinite (a) Aristotle in his book of the world A description of Gods prouidence An argument to the present matter from Gods prouidence For from it destructions and calamities are sent Pindarus Homer Euripides Man is vnworthy to lift vp himself against it For all other creatures besides are obedient Likewise it is folly to striue for all is in vaine Because the heauenly mind draweth and directeth all thinges wil they â—il they Therefore we must willingly obey A golden sentence of Seneca (a) He alludeth to the ancient legion that vvas cognominated Pia Foelix Another argument takeÌ„ from necessitie whose force is generallie shewed (b) In this place it fitteth best to translate the word plurallie as in the latin vvhich in other places I do purposely auoid (c) Plato 5 7. lib. de legib What necessitie is It is two fold as concerning our preâ—ent purpose First natural to the things themselues In that al things are created to alteration and decay Which is declared by examples of thinges aboue and beneath Sophocles Beginning with the examples of the firmameÌ„t and the aire Anno Dom. â—572 all the â—est Mathematicians agreed that it vvas aboue the elementarie regions From the waters and sea From the earth (b) Therefore vvas the earth called in Latine Vesta id est vi sua stans To this ende and purpose is there such strife and discord between the elements (c) The first in Achaia the other by the gulf of Corinth (d) In the parties of Zeland If the elements perish how much more thinges compounded of them The decay subuersion of great citties a) Rome is meant b) For it is novv in Campo Martio and not amid the 7. hilles vvhere it vvas first founded c) Novv called Constantinople hauing bene the seat of tvvo Empires the Romane and Turkish Of Assyria Historians write Of Iewrie the holie scriptures And of the magnificent power of the Egyptians besides others Tacitus who maketh it equal with the Parthians and Romans 11. Annal. (a) The vvest Indies and all those nevv found countries commonly calthe new world The conclusion by heaping together examples of alterations mutability b) vvho vvere the daintiest in the vvorld (a) I respect thâ— Turkes vvho came of them A passage to the other kind of necessitie in respect of destinie (b) It is here taken for an engâ—nâ— of vvar Whereof the disputation is doubtful for â—abbed curiâ—sity of mens wits (a) They are called Parcae and Poets haue fained three of them First