chaunt a sonet or hymne unto Apollo Pythius for the safetie of himselfe the ship and all those fellow passengers who were within it he stood upright on his feet in the poope close to the ship side and after he had founded a certaine invocation or praier to the sea-gods he chanted the canticle beforesaid and as he was in the mids of his song the sunne went downe and seemed to settle within the sea and with that they began to discover Peloponnesus Then the marriners who could no longer stay nor tarrie for the darke night came toward for to kill him when he saw their naked swords drawen and beheld the foresaid Pilot how he covered his face because he would not see so vilanous a spectacle he cast himselfe over ship-boord and leapt as farre into the sea from the ship as he could but before that his whole bodie was under the water the dolphins made haste and from beneath were readie to beare him up for sinking Full of feare and perturbation of spirit hee was at first insomuch as being astonied thereat hee wist not what it might be but within a while after perceiving that he was carried at ease and seeing a great flote of dolphins environing gently round about him and that they succeeded and seconded one another by turnes for to take the charge of carrying him as if it had beene a service imposed upon them all and whereunto they were necessarily obliged and seeing besides that the carrike was a good way behind by which he gathered that he went apace and was carried away with great celerity He was not quoth Gorgias so fearful of death or desirous otherwise to live as hee had an ambitious desire to arrive once at the haven of safetie to the ende that the world might know that he stood in the grace and favour of the gods and that he reposed an assured beliefe and firme affiance in them beholding as he did the skie full of starres the moone arising pure and cleere with exceeding brightnesse and the whole sea about him smooth and calme but that the course of these dolphins traced out a certaine way and path so that hee thought thus within himselfe that the divine justice had not one eie alone but as many eies as there were starres in the heaven and that God beheld all about whatsoever was done both by sea and land Which cogitations and thoughts of mind quoth he mightily strengthened and sustained my bodie which otherwise was readie to faint and yeeld with travell and wearinesse finally when the dolphins were come as farre as to the great promontorie of Tenarus so high and steepe they were verie warie and careful that they ran not upon it but turned gently at one side and swom behind it a long the coast as if they would have conducted a barke safe and sound to a sure bay and landing place whereby he perceived evidently that carried he was thus by the guidance of the divine providence After that Arion said Gorgias had made all this discourse unto us I inquired of him where he thought that the ship above said intēded to arrive At Corinth quoth he without all doubt but it will be very late first for it being toward evening when I leapt into the sea I suppose that I was carried upon the dolphins backs no lesse than a course of five hundred furlongs and no sooner was I from ship-boord but there insued presently a great calme at sea Moreover Gorgias said That he having learned the names aswell of the ship-master as the pilot and withall knowen what badge or ensigne the ship carried made out certaine pinnaces and those manned with souldiours for to observe what creeks commodious baies and landing places there were upon the said coast but as for Arion Gorgias conveied him secretly with him for feare lest if the mariners should have had any advertisement of his deliverie and safetie they might flie away and escape But as God would have it every thing fell out so as we might see quoth Gorgias the very immediat hand of the divine power for at one and the same instant that I arrived here I had intelligence also that the said ship was fallen into the hands of those souldiors whom I set out and so the mariners and passengers within it were taken all prisoners Hereupon Periander commanded Gorgias presently to arise to apprehend them and lay them up fast in close prison where no person might have accesse unto them or certifie them that Arion was alive and safe Then Aesope Mocke on now quoth he at my gaies and crowes that talke and tell tales when you see that dolphins also can in this wise play their youthfull parts and atchieve such prowesses Nay quoth I then we are able to report Aesope another narration like to this which hath benefer downe in writing and received for currant and good these thousand yeeres passed and more even from the daies of Ino and Athamas Then Solon taking occasion of speech by these words Yea but these matters ô 〈◊〉 quoth he concerne the gods more neerely and surpasse our puissance but as for that which befell to Hesiodus was a meere humane accident and not impertinent unto us for I suppose you have heard the historie tolde No I assure you quoth I But woorth it is the hearing quoth Solon againe And thus by report it was A certaine Milesian with whom as it should seeme Hesiodus had familiar acquaintance in so much as they lodged eat and drunke together ordinarily in the citie of Locres kept their hosts daughter secretly and abused her body so as in the end he was taken with the manner Now was Hesiodus suspected to have beene privie to him of this vilannie from the verie beginning yea and to have kept the doore and assisted him in concealing the same whereas indeed he was in no fault at all nor culpable any way howbeit by means of false suspitions and sinister surmizes of people hee incurred much anger and was hardly thought of neither could he avoide the unjust imputations of the world for the brethren of the yoong damosell lay in ambush for him neere unto a wood about Locri set upon and slew him outright together with his servant or page Troilus who tended upon him After this murther committed and their bodies cast into the sea it chanced that the corps of Troilus being carried foorth into the river Daphnus rested upon a rocke environed and dashed round about with the water and the same not far from the sea which rocke thereupon tooke his name and is so called at this day But the dead bodie of Hesiodus immediately from the land was received by a float or troupe of Dolphins and by them carried as farre as to the capes Rhion and Molychria It fortuned at the verie same time that the citizens of Locri held a solemne assembly and celebrated festivall sacrifices called Rhia which they performe even at this daie also in the verie same place
this measure or proportion Epitritos may fit some grave and wise senatours sitting in parliament or the Archoures in the counsell chamber Prytaneum for to dispatch waightie affaires of great consequence and it may beseeme well enough some logicians that pull up their browes when they are busie in reducing unfolding and altering their Syllogismes for surely it is a mixture or temperature sober and weake enough as for the other twaine that medley which carieth the proportion of two for one bringeth in that turbulent tone of the Acrothoraces before said to wit of such as are somewhat cup-shotten and halfe drunke Which stirs the strings and cords of secret hart That mooved should not be but rest apart For it neither suffereth a man to bee fully sober nor yet to drench himselfe so deepe in wine that hee bee altogether witlesse and past his sense but the other standing upon the proportion of two to three is of all others the most musicall accord causing a man to sleepe peaceablie and to forget all cares resembling that good and fertile corne-field which Hesiodus speaketh of That doth from man all eares and curses drive And children cause to rest to feed and thrive It appeaseth and stilleth all proud violent and disordred passions within our heart inducing in the stead of them a peaceable calme and tranquillitie These speeches of Ariston no man there would crosse or contradict for that it was well knowen he spake merily but I willed him to take the cup in hand and as if he held the harpe or lute to tune and set the same to that accord and consonance which he so highly praised and thought so good Then came a boy close unto him and powred out strong wine which he refused saying and that with a laughter That his musicke consisted in reason and speculation and not in the practise of the instrument But my father added thus much to that which had beene said That as hee thought the auncient poets also had to great reason feigned that whereas Jupiter had two nurses to wit Ida and Adrastia Juno one namely Euboea Apollo likewise twaine that is to say Alethia and Corythalia Bacchus had many more for that he was suckled and nursed by many nymphes because this god forsooth had need of more measures of water signified by the nymphs to make him more tame gentle wittie and wise THE TENTH QUESTION What is the reason that any killed flesh will be naught and corrupt sooner under the raies of the moone than in the sunne Enthydemus of Sunium feasted us upon a time at his house and set before us a wilde bore of such bignesse that all wee at the table woondred thereat but he told us that there was another brought unto him farre greater mary naught it was and corrupted in the cariage by the beames of the moone-shine whereof he made great doubt and question how it should come to passe for that he could not conceive nor see any reason but that the sunne should rather corrupt flesh being as it was farre hotter than the moone Then Satyrus This is not the thing quoth he whereat a man should marvell much in this case but rather at that which hunters practise for when they have strucken downe either a wilde bore or a stagge and are to send it farre into the citie they use to drive a spike or great naile of brasse into the body as a preservative against putrefaction Now when supper was done Enthydemus calling to minde his former question was in hand withall againe and set it now on foot And then Moschion the physician shewed unto them that the putrefaction of flesh was a kinde of eliquation and running all to moisture for that corruption bringeth it unto a certeine humiditie so as whatsoever is sappie corrupted becommeth more moist than it was before Now it is well knowen quoth he that all heat which is mild and gentle doth stirre dilate and spred the humours in the flesh but contrariwise if the same be ardent fierie and burning it doth attenuate and restreine them by which appeereth evidently the cause of that which is in question for the moone gently warming bodies doth by consequence moisten the same whereas the sunne by his extreme heat catcheth up and consumeth rather that humiditie which was in them unto which Archilocus the poet alludeth like a naturall philosopher when he said I hope the dogge starre Sirius In firie heat so furious With raies most ardent will them smite And numbers of them dry up quite And Homer more plainly spake of Hector over whose body lying along dead Apollo quoth he displaied and spred a darke and shadowy cloud For feare lest that the scorching beames of sunne aloft in skie Should on his corps have power the flesh andnerves to parch and dry Contrariwise that the moone casteth weaker and more feebler raies the poet 〈◊〉 sheweth saying The grapes doe finde no helpe by thee to ripen on the vine And never change their colour blacke that they might make good wine These words thus passed And then all the rest quoth I is very well said I approove thereof but that al the matter should lie in the quantity of heat more or lesse cōsidering the season I see not how it should stand for this we find that the sunne doth heat lesse in winter corrupteth more in summer whereas we should see contrary effects if putrefactions were occasioned by the imbecillity of heat but now it is far otherwise for the more that the suns heat is augmented the sooner doth it putrifie corrupt any flesh killed and therefore we may as wel inferre that it is not for default of heat nor by any imbecillitie thereof that the moone causeth dead bodies to putrifie but we are to referre that effect to some secret propertie of the influence proceeding from her for that all kinds of heat have but one qualitie and the same differing onely in degree according to more or lesse that the very fire also hath many divers faculties and those not resembling one another appeareth by daily ordinary experiences for gold-smiths melt and worke their gold with the flame of light straw and chaffe physicians doe gently warme as it were in Balneo those drougues and medicines which they are to boile together most all with a fire made of vine cuttings for the melting working blowing and forming of glasse it seemeth that a fire made of Tamarix is more meet than of any other matter whatsoever the heat caused by olive-tree wood serveth well in drie stouphs or hot houses and disposeth mens bodies to sweat but the same is most hurtfull to baines and baths for if it bee burned under a furnace it hurteth the boord-floores and seelings it marreth also the verie foundations and ground-workes whereupon it commeth that Aediles for the State such as have any skill and understanding when they let to ferme the publicke baines unto Publicans and Fermers except ordinarily olive-tree wood forbidding expresly
hapneth it that you never told me of it the woman being a simple chaste harmlesse dame Sir saith she I had thought all mens breath had smelled so Thus it is plaine that such faults as be object and evident to the senses grosse and corporall or otherwise notorious to the world we know by our enemies sooner than by out friends and familiars Over and besides as touching the continence and holding of the tongue which is not the least point of vertue it is not possible for a man to rule it alwaies and bring it within the compasse and obedience of reason unlesse by use and exercise by long custome and painfull labour be have tamed and mastered the woorst passions of the soule such as anger is for a word that hath escaped us against our willes which we would gladly have kept in of which Homer saith thus Out of the mouth a word did fly For all the range of teeth fast-by And a speech that we let fall at aventure a thing hapning often-times and especially unto those whose spirits are not well exercised and who want experience who runne out as it were and breake forth into passions this I say is ordinary with such as be hastie and cholerike whose judgement is not setled and staied or who are given to a licentious course of life for such a word being as divine Plato saith the lightest thing in the world both gods and men have many a time paied a most grievous and heavie penalty whereas Silence is not only as Hippocrates saith good against thirst but also is never called to account nor amerced to pay any fine and that which more is in the bearing and putting up of taunts and reproches there is observed in it a kinde of gravitie beseeming the person of Socrates or rather the maghanimity of Hercules if it be true that the Poet said of him Of bitter words he lesse account did make Than dath the flie which no regard doth take Neither verily is there a thing of greater gravitie or simply better than to heare a malicious enemie to revile and yet not to be moved nor grow into passions therewith But to passe-by a man that loves to raile Asrocke in sea by which we swimme or saile Moreover a greater effect will ensue upon this exercise of patience if thou canst accustome thy selfe to heare with silence thine enemie whiles he doth revile for being acquainted therewith thou shalt the better endure the violent fits of a curst and shrewd wife chiding at home to heare also without trouble the sharpe words of friend or brother and if it chance that father or mother let flie bitter rebukes at thee or beat thee thou wilt suffer all and never shew thy selfe displeased and angrie with them For Socrates was woont to abide at home Xanthippe his wife aperillous shrewd woman and hard to be pleased to the end that he might with more ease converse with others being used to endure her curstnesse But much better it were for a man to come with a minde prepared and exercised before-hand with hearing the scoffes railing language angrie taunts outragious and foule words of enemies and strangers and that without anger and shew of disquietnesse than of his domesticall people within his owne house Thus you see how a man may shew his meeknesse and patience in enmities and as for simplicity magnanimitie and a good nature in deed it is more seene here than in friendship for it is not so honest and commendable to do good unto a friend as dishonest not to succout him when he standeth in need and requesteth it Moreover to forbeare to be revenged of an enemie if opportunitie and occasion is offered and to let him goe when he is in thy hands is a point of great humanitie and courtesie but him that hath compassion of him whē he is fallen into adversity succoreth him in distresse at his request is ready for to shew good will to his children and an affection to susteine the state of his house and familie being in affliction whosoever doth not love for this kindnesse nor praise the goodnesse of his nature Of colour blacke no doubt and tincture sweart Wrought of stiffe steele or yron he hath an heart Or rather forg'd out of the Diament Which will not stirre hereat nor once relent Casar commanded that the statues erected in the honour of Pompeius which had bene beaten downe and overthrowen should be set up againe for which act Cicero said thus unto him In rearing the images of Pompeius ô Caesar thou hast pitched and erected thine owne And therefore we ought not to be sparie of praise and honour in the behalfe of an enemie especially when he deserveth the same for by this meanes the partie that praiseth shall winne the greater praise himselfe and besides if it happen againe that he blame the said enemie his accusation shall be the better taken and carie the more credit for that he shall be thought not so much to hate the person as disallow and mislike his action But the most profitable and goodliest matter of all is this That he who is accustomed to praise his enemies and neither to grieve or envie at their well-fare shall the better abide the prosperitie of his friend and be furthest off from envying his familiars in any good successe or honour that by well-doing they have atchieved And is there any other exercise in the world that can bring greater profit unto our soules or worke a better disposition and habit in them than that which riddeth us of emulation and the humour of envie For like as in a city wherein there be many things necessarie though otherwise simply evill after they have once taken sure sooting and are by custome established in maner of a law men shall hardly remove and abolish although they have bene hurt and endammaged thereby even so enmity together with hatred and malice bringeth in envie jealousie contentment and pleasure in the harme of an enemie remembrance of wrongs received and offences passed which it leaveth behinde in the soule when it selfe is gone over and besides cunning practises fraud guile deceit and secret forlayings or ambushes which seeme against our enemies nothing ill at all nor unjustly used after they be once setled and have taken root in our hearts remaine there fast and hardly or unneth are removed insomuch as if men take not heed how they use them against enemies they shall be so inured to them that they will be ready afterwards to practise the same with their verie friends If therfore Pythagoras did well wisely in acquainting his scholars to forbeare cruelty and injustice even as farre as to dumb and brute beasts whereupon he misliked fowlers and would request them to let those birdes flie agine which they had caught yea and buy of fishers whole draughts of fishes and give order unto his disciples to put them alive into the water againe insomuch as hee expressely forbad the killing of any
tame beast whatsoever certes it is much more grave and decent that in quarrels debates and contentions among men an enemie that is of a generous minde just true and nothing treacherous should represse keepe downe and hold underfoot the wicked malicious cautelous 〈◊〉 and ungentleman-like passions to the end that afterwards in all contracts and dealings with his friend they breake not out but that his heart being cleere of them he may absteine from all mischievous practises Scaurus was a professed enemie and an accuser of Domitius judicially now there was a domesticall servant belonging to the said Domitius who before the day of triall and judgement came unto Scaurus saying That he would discover unto him a thing that he knew not of the which might serve him in good steed when he should plead against his master but Scaurus would not so much as give him the hearing nay he laid hold on the party and sent him away bound unto his lord and master Cato the younger charged Muraena and indited him in open court for popularitie and ambition and declaring against him that he sought indirectly to gaine the peoples favour and their voices to be chosen Consull now as he went up and downe to collect arguments and proofes thereof and according to the maner and custome of the Romanes was attended upon by certeine persons who followed him in the behalfe of the defendant to observe what was done for his better instruction in the processe suit commenced these fellowes would oftentimes be in hand with him and aske whether he would to day search for ought or negotiate any thing in the matter and cause concerning Muraena If he said No such credite and trust they reposed in the man that they would rest in that answere and go their waies a singular argument this was of all other to proove his reputation and what opinion men conceived of him for his justice but sure a farre greater testimonie is this and that passeth al the rest to proove that if we be accustomed to deale justly by our very enemies we shal never shew our selves unjust cautelous and deceitfull with our friends But forasmuch as every larke as Simonides was wont to say must needs have a cop or crest growing upon her head and so likewise all men by nature do carie in their head I wot not what jealousie emulation and envie which is if I may use the words of Pindarus A mate and fellow to be plaine Of brain sicke fooles and persons vaine A man should not reape a small benefit commoditie by discharging these passions upon his enemies to purge clense himselfe quite thereof as it were by certeine gutters or chanels to derive and drein them as farre as possibly he can from his friends and familiar acquaintance whereof I suppose Onomademus a great politician wise States-man in the Isle Chios was well advised who in a civile dissention being sided to that faction which was superior had gotten the head of the other coūselled the rest of his part not to chase banish out of the city al their adversaries but to leave some of them still behind For feare quoth he least having no enemies to quarrel withall we our selves begin to fall out and go together by the eares semblably if we spend these vitious passiōs of ours upon our enemies the lesse are they like to trouble molest our friends for it ought not thus to be as Hesiodus saith That the potter should envy the potter or one minstrell or musician spite another neither is it necessarie that one neighbor should be in jealousie of another or cousens and brethren be concurrents have emulation one at another either striving to be rich or speeding better in their affaires for if there be no other way or meanes to be delivered wholy from contentions envies jealousies emulations acquaint thy selfe at leastwise to be stung and bitten at the good successe of thine enemies whet the edge sharpen the point as it were of thy quarrellous contentious humour turne it upon them and spare not for like as the most skilfull and best gardiners are of this opinion that they shall have the sweeter roses and more pleasant violets if they set garlicke or sow onions neere unto them for that all the strong and stinking savour in the juice that feedeth and nourish the saide flowers is purged away and goeth to the said garlick and onions even so an enimie drawing unto himselfe and receiving all our envie and malice will cause us to be better affected to our friends in their prosperitie and lesse offended if they out go us in their estate and therefore in this regard we must contend and strive with our enimies about honour dignities government and lawfull meanes of advancing our owne estates and not onely to be greeved and vexed to see them have the better and the vantage of us but also to marke and observe everie thing whereby they become our superiors and so to straine and endevour by carefull diligence by labour and travell by parsimonie temperance and looking neerely to our selves to surpasse and go beyond them like as Themistocles was wont to say That the victorie which Miltiades atchieved in the plaine of Marathon brake his sleepes and would not let him take his nights rest for he who thinketh that his enemie surmounteth him in dignities in patronage of high matters and pleading of great causes in management of state affaires or in credit and authoritie with mightie men and grand Segniors and in stead of striving to enterprise and do some great matter by way of emulation betaketh himselfe to envie onely and so sits still doing nothing and looseth all his courage surely he bewraieth that he is possessed with naught else but an idle vaine enervat kind of envy But he that is not blinded with the regard sight of him whom he hateth but with a right just eie doth behold consider al his life his maners deseigns words and deeds shall soone perceive find that the most part of those things which he envieth were atchieved and gotten by such as have them which their diligence wisedom forecast vertuous deeds he thereupon bending all his spirits whole mind therto wil exercise I trow sharpen his own desire of honor glory honesty yea cut off contrariwise that yawning drowsines idle sloth that is in his hart Set case moreover that our enemies by flattery by cautelous shifts cunning practises by pleading of cases at the bar or by their mercenarie and illiberall service in unhonest foule matters seem to have gotten some power ether with princes in courts or with the people in States cities let the same never trouble us but contrariwise cheere up our harts and make us glad in regard of our owne libertie the purenesse of our life and innocencie unreprochable which we may oppose against those indirect courses and unlawfull meanes For