Mr. Wright gives another version, and adds that he is inclined to think that the story and verses had some connection with "a superstition not yet forgotten, which is thus told by Aubrey in his 'Remains of Gentilism'" (Thorn's "Anecdotes and Traditions," p. 84)--"The Holy Mawle, which they fancy was hung behind the church door, which when the father was seaventie, the sonne might fetch to knock his father in the head, as effete and of no more use."
[34]
Herodotus has attributed the same unfilial conduct to some Indian tribes.
The incident of St. Bernard playing at dice for a soul (p. 151), is in the "Gesta Romanorum." The anecdote how a son induced his father to become a monk (p. 81) which is quoted from the "Vitas Patrum" is also in the "Gesta Romanorum," and has so much of the Buddhist flavour as to give rise to the suspicion that it comes from an Oriental source.[35]The story of two merchants quoted from Petrus Alphonsus is also in the "Gesta Romanorum." It is the foundation of Lydgate's "Two Friends," and is beyond doubt an Eastern importation. In a MS. of the "Speculum Laicorum," described by Prof. Ingram, the writer has transformed one of the merchants into an Englishman.[36]
The story quoted from "Paul, the historiagraph of the Lombards" (p. 46), is also given in the "Gesta Romanorum." Mr. Herrtage says it is "evidently founded on the classical legend of Tarpeia." The narrative in the chess-book is taken from Paulus Diaconus.[37]
The stratagem by which deposited money was recovered from a dishonest trustee (p. 114) is told by Petrus Alphonsus, and is also in the "Gesta Romanorum."
The story of the danger of drunkenness (p. 129) was a favourite with our forefathers. It is given by John of Bromyard, and is the subject of a fabliau which is given by Meon.[38]
The somewhat violent remedy recorded as having been adopted by Demosthenes (p. 103) will remind some readers of a passage in the life of St. Francis of Assisi. "He had given up," says Mrs. Oliphant, "without hesitation, as would appear, all the indefinite sweetness of youthful hopes. But, nevertheless, he was still young, still a man, with human instincts and wishes, the tenderest nature, and an imagination full of all the warmth and grace of his age and his country. It does not appear that he ever put into words the musings which caught him unawares--the relics of old dreams or soft recollections which now and then would steal into his heart. But one night suddenly he rose from the earthen floor which was his bed, and rushed out into the night in an access of rage and passion and despair. A certain brother who was praying in his cell, peering, wondering, through his little window, saw him heap together seven masses of snow in the clear moonlight. 'Here is thy wife,' he said to himself; 'these four are thy sons and daughters, the other two are thy servant and thy handmaid; and for all these thou art bound to provide. Make haste, then, and provide clothing for them, lest they perish with cold. But if the care of so many trouble thee, be thou careful to serve our Lord alone.' Bonaventura, who tells the story, goes on, with the true spirit of a monkish historian, to state how, 'the tempter being vanquished, departed, and the holy man returned victorious to his cell.' The piteous human yearning that is underneath this wild tale, the sudden access of self-pity and anger, mixed with a strange attempt, not less piteous than the longing, at self-consolation--all the struggle and conflict of emotion which stilled themselves, at least for a moment, by that sudden plunge into the snow, and wild, violent, bodily exertion, are either lost upon the teller of the tale, or perhaps he fears to do his master injustice by revealing any consciousness of the possibility of such thoughts. But it is a very remarkable peculiarity of Francis's history, that whereas every saint in the Calendar, from Antony downwards, is sometimes troubled with visions of voluptuous delight, only Francis, in his pure dreams, is tempted by the modest joys of wife and children--the most legitimate and tenderest love."[39]
The reader must not expect any historical exactitude or critical spirit from our author. For his purpose a narrative was just as useful whether true or false, but it probably never occurred to him to question the exact truth of any statement that he found written in a book. The murder of Seneca (p. 9) is certainly not the least of the many crimes which stain the memory of Nero, but the circumstances of his death are not exactly described by the mediæval scribe. Whether the philosopher and former tutor was implicated in the conspiracy of Piso may be doubted, but some ambiguous phrases he had used were reported to the Emþeror, whose messenger demanded an explanation of their meaning. The reply of Seneca was either unsatisfactory or the tyrant had decided to be rid of his former guide. As in more recent times in Japan the condemned man was expected to be his own executioner, and Seneca opened his veins and allowed the life to ooze from them with a stoicism that was certainly heroic if not untainted by theatrical display. The character of Seneca will ever remain one of the puzzles of history, for the grave moralist was accessory to the murder of Agrippina, and not unsuspected of licentiousness, and of the accumulation of an enormous fortune of three hundred million sestertii by injustice and fraud. The statements of Dion Cassius as to the misdeeds of the philosopher must be weighed against the absence of any condemnation of his proceedings in the pages of Tacitus.
The Theodore Cerem named on p. 12, is Theodorus Cyrenaicus, who was probably a native of Cyrene, and a disciple of Aristippus. He was banished from the (supposed) place of his birth, and was shielded at Athens by Demetrius Phalerus, whose exile he is assumed to have shared. Whilst in the service of Egypt he was sent as an ambassador to Lysimachus, whom he offended by the directness and plainness of his speech. The offended monarch threatened him with crucifixion, and he replied in a phrase which became famous, "Threaten thus your courtiers, for it matters not to me whether I rot on the ground or in the air."[40]The king's threat was not executed, as Theodorus was afterwards at Corinth, and is believed to have died at Cyrene. That he was condemned to drink hemlock is a statement cited from Amphicrates by Diogenes Lærtius (Aristippus, xv.). The anecdote of his colloquy with Lysimachus would easily be perverted into a belief that he had been put to death for the freedom with which he exercised his biting wit.
The Democreon mentioned at pp. 12 and 16 is Democritus of Abdera, of whom the anecdote is told. He was a man whose knowledge and wisdom won even the respect of Timon, the universal scoffer. The tradition that he deprived himself of sight with a view to philosophic abstraction is mentioned by Cicero, Aulus Gellius, and others, but it is hardly necessary to account for a too uncommon calamity by a supposition so remarkable.
The transformations of some of the names are peculiar. At p. 12 we read of Defortes. The philosopher disguised under this strange name appears to be Socrates. The story is told in the Apology of Socrates attributed to Xenophon. The person to whom the saying was addressed was not Xanthippe, but was a disciple named Apollodorus, whose understanding was not equal to his admiration.
The statement that Didymus voluntarily blinded himself is made both by Jerome (Ep. 68) and in the Ecclesiastical History of Socrates (iv. 29). Didymus was born 309 or 314, and became blind at the age of four, as the result of disease. He learned the alphabet by wooden letters, and by application and force of character became learned in all the learning of his time. Is this a real anticipation of the use of raised letters for the blind? What would be the use of a knowledge of the alphabet so acquired in obtaining that skill in geometry, rhetoric, arithmetic, and music for which he was famous? He owed to Athanasius his position as head of the Catechetical School of Alexandria.
The readers of "Cymbeline" will remember the passage in the concluding scene:--
"The piece of tender air, thy virtuous daughter,Which we callmollis ær; andmollis ærWe term itmulier; which mulier, I divine,Is this most constant wife: who even now,Answering the letter of the oracle,Unknown to you unsought, were clipp'd aboutWith this most tender air."
This quaint piece of etymology will be found at p. 123 of the present volume.
There is an interesting personal reference in the following passage which has not, it is believed, been pointed out:--
"And also hit is to be supposyd that suche as haue theyr goodes comune & not propre is most acceptable to god/ For ellys wold not thise religious men as monkes freris chanons obseruantes & all other auowe hem & kepe the wilfull pouerte that they ben professid too/ For in trouth I haue my self ben conuersant in a religious hous of white freris at gaunt Which haue all thynge in comyn amonge them/ and not one richer than an other/ in so moche that yf a man gaf to a frere .iii.d or iiii.d to praye for hym in his masse/ as sone as the masse is doon he deliuerith hit to his ouerest or procuratour in whyche hows ben many vertuous and deuoute freris And yf that lyf were not the beste and the most holiest/ holy church wold neuer suffre hit in religion."
This description by the busy merchant of the "best life" might serve to point anew the distinction between the real and the ideal, and perhaps not to the advantage of the latter.
Nothing has yet been said as to the place of this book in the history of chess, and, indeed, it must be confessed that it has very little practical bearing on the game. The learned dreams by which the chess of to-day was connected with thelatrunculiand with the amusement said to have been invented by Palamedes, have been dissipated by the cool air of modern criticism. The student of the history of chess may now follow its fortunes under the safe guidance of Dr. van der Linde, who rejects unhesitatingly the claim made for it, and admitted even by Forbes, of an antiquity of 5,000 years.[41]The game of chess, which, whilst remaining an amusement, has acquired the dignity of a science, is one that Europe owes to India, where it was probably invented not earlier than five centuries before Christ; the triumphant progress of Islam aided in the extension of this oriental pastime. It was known at the courts of Nicephorus at Conftantinople and his contemporary Haroun-al-Rashid at Bagdad. One would like to add that Charlemagne also was acquainted with it, but there is no good evidence for that legend. It was known in Spain in the tenth century, since the library of the learned caliph Hakam II. of Cordova contained some Arabic MSS. on the game. By the middle of the eleventh century it was common in the western world. In 1061 a Florentine bishop is said to have been ordered by Cardinal Damiani to expiate the offence of playing chess in public by three recitations of the Psalter, by washing the feet of twelve poor persons, and by giving them liberal alms. The gradual developments of the game in Europe are illustrated in detail by Dr. van der Linde. Chess in its prefent form is comparatively modern, and refults from the enlargement of the powers of the Queen (originally the Vizier or minister) and of the Bishop (formerly the Alfil or Elephant). The greater powers of these pieces came into play between 1450 and 1500, but the period of transition was prolonged to a much later date in some cafes, and the Portuguese Damiano may be regarded as the founder of the modern school. The player of to-day on consulting the elementary directions given in this book (p. 159,et seq.), will see how greatly the present play exceeds in complexity and scientific interest the moves that excited the enthusiasm of Jacobus de Cessoles, and led him to the composition of the book of the chess which has had such long and widespread popularity.
Incidentally his book is a monument in the history of chess, but it was never intended to make its primary object that of teaching the game. The author's aim was almost exclusively ethical. It was to win men to a sober life and to the due performance of individual and social duties, that the preacher exhausted his stores of learning, and invoked alike the reproofs of the fathers of the Church, the history and legend of chroniclers, pagan and Christian, and the words of prophets and poets. As a memorial of the literature and learning of the middle ages, it must always possess a permanent value. From it we may learn, and always with interest, what was the literary taste and social ideal of the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth centuries. There is, doubtless, ample room for dissatisfaction with that ideal, but it is not without some bright aspects. Possibly there are modern realms that are not any happier now than they would be if governed in strict accordance with the rules laid down by the earnest author of the game and play of the chess.
It only remains for the editor to thank the friends who have interested themselves in his work. Mr. J.E. Bailey, F.S.A., has shown his usual scholarly courtesy and liberality in the communication of books and references. To Mr. R.C. Christie, the Chancellor of the Diocese of Manchester, a similar acknowledgment is due. Mr. C.W. Sutton, and Mr. W.R. Credland, of the Manchester Free Library, on this, as on many other occasions, have not only given the editor many facilities for his work, but some suggestions by which he trusts he has profited. The index is chiefly the work of the editor's eldest daughter.
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To the right noble/ right excellent & vertuous prince George duc of Clarence Erle of warwyck and of salifburye/ grete chamberlayn of Englond & leutenant of Irelond oldest broder of kynge Edward by the grace of god kynge of England and of france/ your most humble servant william Caxton amonge other of your seruantes sendes unto yow peas. helthe. Joye and victorye upon your Enemyes/ Right highe puyssant and redoubted prynce/. For as moche as I haue understand and knowe/ that y'e are enclined unto the comyn wele of the kynge our sayd saueryn lord. his nobles lordes and comyn peple of his noble royame of Englond/ and that y'e sawe gladly the Inhabitants of y'e same enformed in good. vertuous. prouffitable and honeste maners. In whiche your noble persone wyth guydyng of your hows haboundeth/ gyuyng light and ensample unto all other/ Therfore I haue put me in deuour to translate a lityll book late comen in to myn handes out of frensh in to englisshe/ In which I fynde thauctorites. dictees. and stories of auncient Doctours philosophes poetes and of other wyse men whiche been recounted & applied unto the moralite of the publique wele as well of the nobles as of the comyn peple after the game and playe of the chesse/ whiche booke right puyssant and redoubtid lord I haue made in the name and under the shadewe of your noble protection/ not presumyng to correcte or enpoigne ony thynge ayenst your noblesse/. For god be thankyd your excellent renome shyneth as well in strange regions as with in the royame of england gloriously unto your honour and lande/ which god multeplye and encrece But to thentent that other of what estate or degre he or they stande in may see in this sayd lityll book/ yf they gouerned themself as they ought to doo/ wherfor my right dere redoubted lord I requyre & supplye your good grace not to desdaygne to resseyue this lityll sayd book in gree and thanke/ as well of me your humble and unknowen seruant as of a better and gretter man than I am/. For the right good wylle that I haue had to make this lityll werk in the best wyse I can/ ought to be reputed for the fayte and dede/ And for more clerely to procede in this sayd book I haue ordeyned that the chapitres ben sette in the begynnynge to thende that y'e may see more playnly the mater wherof the book treteth &c.
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The holy appostle and doctour of the peple saynt Poule sayth in his epystle. Alle that is wryten is wryten unto our doctryne and for our lernyng. Wherfore many noble clerkes haue endeuoyred them to wryte and compyle many notable werkys and historyes to the ende that it myght come to the knowlege and vnderstondyng of suche as ben ygnoraunt. Of which the nombre is infenyte/ And accordyng to the same saith Salamon. that the nombre of foles. is infenyte/ And emong alle other good werkys. It is a werke of ryght special recomendacion to enforme and to late vnderstonde wysedom and vertue vnto them that be not lernyd ne can not dyscerne wysedom fro folye. Th[=e]ne emonge whom there was an excellent doctour of dyuynyte in the royame of fraunce of the ordre of thospytal of Saynt Johns of Jherusalem which entended the fame and hath made a book of the chesse moralysed. which at suche tyme as J was resident in brudgys in the counte of Flaundres cam in to my handes/ which whan J had redde and ouerseen/ ne semed ful necessarye for to be had in englisshe/ And in eschewyng of ydlenes And to thende that s[=o]me which haue not seen it/ ne understonde frenssh ne latyn I delybered in my self to translate it in to our maternal tongue/ And whan I so had achyeued the sayd translacion/ I dyde doo sette in enprynte a certeyn nombre of theym/ Whiche anone were depesshed and folde. wherfore by cause thys sayd book is ful of holsom wysedom and requysyte unto every astate and degree/ J haue purposed to enprynte it/ shewyng therin the figures of suche persons as longen to the playe. Jn whom al astates and degrees ben comprysed/ besechyng al them that this litel werke shal see/ here/ or rede to have me for excused for the rude & symple makyng and reducyn in to our englisshe/ And where as is defaute to correcte and amende/ and in so doyng they shal deserve meryte and thanke/ and I shal pray for them/ that god of his grete mercy shal rewarde them in his everlastyng blisse in heven/ to the whiche he brynge us/ that wyth his precious blood redemed us Amen
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This booke conteyneth .iiii. traytees/
The first traytee is of the Invencion of this playe of the chesse,/ and conteyneth .iii. chapitres
The first chapitre is under what kynge this play was founden
The .ii. chapitre/ who fonde this playe
The .iii. chapitre/ treteth of .iii. causes why hit was made and founden
The second traytee treteth of the chesse men/ and conteyneth .v. chapitres
The first chapitre treteth of the form of a kynge and of suche thinges as apperteyn to a kynge
The .ii. chapitre treteth of y'e quene & her forme & maners
The .iii. chapitre of the forme of the alphins and her offices and maners
The .iiii. chapitre is of the knyght and of his offices
The .v. is of the rooks and of their maners and offices
The thirde traytee is of the offices of the comyn peple And hath .viii. chapitres
The first chapitre is of the labourers & tilinge of the erthe
The .ii. of fmythis and other werkes in yron & metall
[43]The .iii. is of drapers and makers of cloth & notaries
The .iiii. is of marchantes and chaungers
[44]The .v. is of phisicyens and cirugiens and apotecaries
[45]The .vi. is of tauerners and hostelers
[46]The .vii. is of y'e gardes of the citees & tollers & cuftomers
[47]The .viii. is of ribauldes disepleyars and currours The .iiii. traytee is of the meuyng and yssue of them And hath .viii. chapitres
The first is of the eschequer
The seconde of the yssue and progression of the kynge
The thirde of the yssue of the quene
The fourth is of the yssue of the alphyns
The fifth is of the yssue of the knyghtes
The sixty chapitre of the yssue of the rooks
The seuenth is of the meuynge & yssue of the comyn peple
And the eyght and laste chapitre is of the epilegacion.
And of the recapitulacion of all these forsaid chapitres.
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BOOK I.
BOOK I.
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monge all the euyll condicions and signes that may be in a man the first and y'e grettest is whan he feereth not/ ne dredeth to displese and make wroth god by synne/ and the peple by lyuyng disordynatly/ whan he reccheth not/ ner taketh hede unto them that repreue hym and his vices/ but fleeth them/ In suche wyse as dide the emperour Nero/ whiche dide do slee his maister seneque For as moche as he might not suffre to be repreuid and taught of hym In lyke wyse was somtyme a kynge in babiloine that was named Evilmerodach a Jolye man with oute Justice and so cruell that he dyde do hewe his faders body in thre honderd pieces/ And gaf hit to ete and deuour to thre honderd birdes that men calle wultres And was of suche condicion as was Nero/ And right well resemblid and was lyke unto his fader Nabogodonosor/ whiche on a tyme wold do flee alle the sage and wyse men of babylonye/ For as moche as they coude not telle hym his dreme that he had dremed on a nyght and had forgoten hit lyke as it is wreton in the bible in the book of danyell/ Under this kynge than Evilmerodach was this game and playe of the chesse founden/ Trewe it is that some men wene/ that this playe was founden in the tyme of the bataylles & siege of troye But that is not soo For this playe cam to the playes of the caldees as dyomedes the greek sayth and reherceth That amonge the philosophrs was the most renomed playe amonge all other playes/ And after that/ cam this playe in the tyme of Alixandre the grete in to Egipte And so unto alle the parties toward the south/ And the cause wherfore thys playe was so renomed shall be sayd in the thirde chapitre.
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Thys playe fonde a phylosopher of Thoryent whiche was named in Caldee Exerses or in greke philometor/ which is as moche to saye in english as he that loveth Justice and mesure/ And this philosopher was renomed gretly amonge the grekes and them of Athenes whiche were good clerkys and philosophers also renomed of theyr connynge. This philosopher was so Juste and trewe that he had leuyr dye/ than to lyue longe and be a fals flaterer wyth the sayd kynge. For whan he behelde the foull and synfull lyf of the kynge/ And that no man durst blame hym. For by his grete cruelte he putte them alle to deth that displesid hym/ he put hym self in paryll of deth/ And louyd and chees rather to dye than lenger to lyue: The euyll lyf and diffamed of a kynge is the lyf of a cruell beste/ And ought not longe to be susteyned/ For he destroyeth hym that displesith hym/ And therfore reherceth valerius/ that ther was a wise man named theodore cerem whom his kynge dyde do hange on the crosse for as moche as he repreuyd hym of his euyll & fowll lyf And all way as he was in the torment he said to y'e kynge/ upon thy counceyllours & them that ben cladd in thy clothynge & robes were more reson that this torment shold come/ For as moche as they dar not saye to the The trouthe for to do Justice right wysly/ of my self I make no force whether I dye on the lande or on the water or otherwyse &c as who sayth he recched not to dye for Justice/ In lyke wyse as democreon the philosophre put out his owen eyen be cause he wold not see that no good myght come to the euyll and vicyous peple wyth out right And also defortes the philosophre as he went toward his deth/ his wyf that folowed after hym saide that he was dampned to deth wrongfully/ than he answerd and sayd to her/ holde thy peas and be styll/ hit is better and more merytorye to dye by a wronge and unrightfull Jugement/ than that I had deseruyd to dye.
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he causes wherfore this playe was founden ben thre/ the first was for to correcte and repreue the kynge .For whan this kynge Evilmerodach sawe this playe And the barons knyghtes and gentillmen of his court playe wyth the philosopher/ he meruaylled gretly of the beaulte and nouelte of the playe/ And desired to playe agaynst y'e philosopher/ The philosopher answerd and sayd to hym that hit myght not be doon. But yf he first lerned the playe/ The kynge said hit was reson and that he wold put him to the payne to lerne hit Than the philosopher began to teche hym and to shewe hym the maner of the table of the chesse borde and the chesse meyne/ And also the maners and condicions of a kynge of the nobles and of the comun peple and of theyr offices and how they shold be touchid and drawen. And how he shold amende hymself & become vertuous And whan this kynge herde that he repreuyd hym/ He demanded hym upon payne of deth to tell hym wherfore he had founden and made this playe/ And he answerd my ryght dere lord and kynge/ the grettest and most thinge that I desire is that thou haue in thy self a gloryous and vertuous lyf And that may I not see/ but yf thou be endoctrined and well manerd and that had/ so mayst thou be belouyd of thy peple Thus than I desire y't thou haue other gouernement than thou hast had/ And that thou haue upon thy self first seygnorye and maistrye suche as thou hast upon other by force and not by right Certaynly hit is not ryght that a man be mayster ouer other and comandour/ whan he can not rewle ner may rewle himself and that his vertues domyne aboue his vices/. For seygnourye by force and wylle may not longe endure/ Than thus may thou see oon of the causes why and wherfore I haue founden and maad thys playe/ whyche is for to correcte and repent the of thy tyrannye and vicyous lyuynge/ .For alle kynges specyally ought to here her corrygeours or correctours and her corrections to hold and kepe in mynde/ In lyke wyse as Valerius reherceth that the kynge Alixandre had a noble and renomed knyght that sayd in repreuynge of Alixandre that he was to moche couetous and in especyall of the honours of the world/ And sayd to hym yf the goddes had maad thy body as greet as is thy herte Alle the world coude not holde the/. For thou holdest in thy right hand alle the Oryent/ And in thy lyfte hande the occident/ syn than hit is so/ or thou art a god or a man or nought/ yf thou be god doo than well and good to the peple as god doth/ And take not from them that they ought to haue and is theyres. yf thou be a man/ thinke that thou shalt dye/ And than thou shalt doo noon euyll/ yf thou be nought forgete thy self/ ther is no thynge so stronge and ferme/ but that somtyme a feble thinge casteth doun and ouerthrowe hit How well that the lyon be the strengest beste/ yet somtyme a lityll birde eteth hym/ The seconde cause wherfore this playe was founden and maad/ was for to kepe hym from ydlenesse/ whereof senecque saith unto lucylle ydlenes wyth oute ony ocupacion is sepulture of a man lyuyng/ and varro saith in his sentences that in lyke wise as men goo not for to goo/ the same wyse the lyf is not gyuen for to lyue but for to doo well and good/ And therfore secondly the philosopher fonde this playe for to kepe the peple from ydlenes/. For there is moche peple. Whan so is that they be fortunat in worldly goodes that they drawe them to ease and ydlenes wherof cometh ofte tymes many euyllys and grete synnes And by this ydlenes the herte is quenchid wherof cometh desperacion/ The thirde cause is that euery man naturelly desireth to knowe and to here noueltees and tydynges. For this cause they of atthenes studyed as we rede/ and for as the corporall or bodyly fight enpessheth and letteth otherwhyle the knowleche of subtyll thinges/ therfore we rede that
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democrion the phylosopher put oute his owen eyen/ for as moche as he myght haue the better entendement and understondynge/ Many haue ben made blynde that were grete clerkis in lyke wyse as was dydymus bisshop of Alixandrye/ that how well that he sawe not yet he was so grete a clerk/ that gregore nazan & saynt Ierome that were clerkes and maystres to other/ came for to be his scolers & lerned of hym And saynt Anthonie The grete heremyte cam for to see hym on a tyme/ and amonge all other thynges/ he demanded hym yf he were not gretly displesid that he was blynde and sawe not. And he answerd that he was gretly abasshid for that he supposid not that he was not displesid in that he had lost his sight/ And saynt Anthonye answerd to hym I meruayle moche that hit displesith the that thou hast lost that thynge whiche is comyn betwene the and bestes. And thou knowest well that thou hast not loste that thynge that is comyn bitwene the and the angellis And for thise causes forsayd the philosopher entended to put away alle pensisnes and thoughtes/ and to thinke only on this playe as shall be said & appere in this book after.
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The kynge must be thus maad. For he must sitte in a chayer clothed in purpure/ crowned on his heed in his ryght hand a ceptre and in the lyfte hande an apple of gold/. For he is the most grettest and hyest in dignyte aboue alle other and most worthy. And that is signefyed by the corone/. For the glorye of the peple is the dignite of the kynge/ And aboue all other the kynge ought to be replenysshid with vertues and of grace/ and thys signefieth the purpure. For in lyke wyse as the robes of purpure maketh fayr & enbelysshith the body/ the same wise vertues maketh the sowle/ he ought alleway thenke on the gouernement of the Royame and who hath thadmynystracion of Justice/ And thys shuld be by hym self pryncipally. This signefieth the appell of gold that he holdeth in his lyfte honde/ And for as moche as hit apperteyneth unto hym to punysshe the rebelles hath he y'e sceptre in his right hand And for as moche as mysericorde and trouthe conserue and kepe the kynge in his trone/ Therfore ought a kynge to be mercyfull and debonayr For whan a kynge or prynce desired or will be belouyd of his peple late hym be gouerned by debonarite And valerius saith that debonairte percyth the hertes of straungers and amolisshith and maketh softe the hertes of his enemyes/ wherof he reherceth that philostratus that was due of athenes had a doughter/ whom a man louyd so ardantly/ that on a tyme as he sawe her wyth her moder/ sodaynly he cam and kyssed her/ wherof the moder was so angry and soroufull that she wente and requyred of her lord the duc/ that his heed myght be smyten of/ The prynce answerd to her and sayde/ yf we shold slee them that loue us/ what shall we doo to our enemyes that hate us/ Certaynly this was thanswer of a noble & debonair prynce That suffred that villonye don to his doughter and to hymself yet more This prince had also a frende that was named Arispe that sayd on a tyme as moche villonye unto the prynce as ony man miht saye And that might not suffise hym/ but he scracchid hym in the visage/ The prynce suffryd hym paciently in suche wyse as thowh he had doon to hym no vilonye but curtoysye And whan his sones wold haue auengid this vilonye/ he comanded them that they shold not be so hardy so to do The next day folowyng arispe remembrid of the right grete vilonye that he had don to his frende and lord wythoute cause. He fyll in dispayr and wold haue slayn hym self/ whan the duc knewe and understode that/ he cam to hym and sayd ne doubte the nothynge And swore to hym by his fayth/ that also well he was and shold be his frende fro than forthon as euery he had ben to fore yf he wold And thus he respited hym of his deth by his debonairte. And in lyke wyse rede we of the kynge pirre to whom was reported that they of tarente had said grete vilonye of hym. For whiche cause he maad alle them to come to fore hym And demanded of them yf they had so sayd. Than oon of them answerd and sayd/ yf the wyn and the candellys had not fayllyd/ thys langage had ben but a Iape/ In regarde of that we had thought to haue doon/ Than the kynge began to lawhe/ for they had confessid that suche langage as was sayd and spoken was by dronkenship/ And for this cause of debonairte the peple of tarante toke for a custome that the dronken men shold be puuysshyd/ And the sobre men preyfed. The kynge than thus ought to loue humylyte and hate falsite after the holy scripture that speketh of euery man generally/ For the kynge in his royame representeth god/ And god is verite/ And therfore hym ought to saye no thynge but yf hit were veritable and stable. Valerius reherceth that Alixandre wyth alle his ooste rood for to destroye a cyte whyche was named lapsare/ whan than a phylosophre whiche had to name Anaximenes which had ben to fore maistre & gouernour of Alixandre herd and understood of his comyng Cam agayn Alixandre for to desire and requyre of hym. And whan he sawe Alixandre he supposid to haue axid his requefte/ Alixandre brake his demande to fore and swore to hym to fore he axid ony thynge by his goddes. That suche thynge as he axid or requyryd of hym/ he wold in no wyse doon/ Than the philosopher requyred hym to destroye the cyte/ whan Alixandre understood his desire/ and the oth that he had maad/ he suffrid the cyte to stande and not to be destroyed For he had leuer doo his wyll than to be periured and forsworn and doo agaynst his oth/ Quyntilian saith that no grete man ne lord shold not swere/ but where as is grete nede/ And that the symple parole or worde of a prynce ought to be more stable than the oth of a marcha[=u]t/ Alas how kepe the prynces their promisses in thise dayes/ not only her promises but their othes her fealis and wrytynges & signes of their propre handes/ alle faylleth god amende hit &c. A kynge also ought to hate alle cruelte/ For we rede that neuer yet dyed ony pietous persone of euyll deth ne cruell persone of good deth Therfore recounteth valerius that ther was a man named theryle a werke-man in metall/ that made a boole of coppre and a lityll wyket on the side/ wherby men myght put in them that shuld be brent therin/ And hit was maad in suche manere/ that they that shold be put and enclosid therin shold crye nothinge lyke to the wys of a man but of an oxe. And this made he be cause men shold haue the lasse pite of them. Whan he had made this hole of copper/ he presented hit unto a kynge which was callyd philarde that was so cruell a tyrant that he delited in no thinge but in cruelte And he told hym the condicion of the bole/ Whan philarde herde and understode this/ he alowed and preysed moche the werke/ And after sayde to hym/ thou that art more cruell than I am/ thou shalt assaye & prove first thy þsente and yeft/ And so made hym to goo in to the boole and dye an euyll deth/ Therfore faith Ouide ther is no thinge more raisonable than that a man dye of suche deth as he purchaseth unto other Also the kynge ought souerainly kepe Iustice/ who maketh or kepeth a royame with oute Iustice/ of verray force ther muste be grete robberye and thefte Therfor reherceth saint Augustyn in a book which is intituled the cyte of god/ that there was a theef of the see named diomedes that was a grete rouar and dide so moche harme that the complaintes cam to fore Alixander whiche dide hym to be taken & brought to fore hym/ and he demanded hym wherfore he was so noyous & cruell in the see And he answerd to hym agayn/ for as moche as thou art oon a lande in the world/ so am I another in y'e see/ but for as moche as the euyll y't I doo is in oon galeye or tweyne therfore I am callyd a theef/ but for as moche as thou dost in many shippis and with grete puyssance and power/ therfore art thou callyd an emperour/ but yf fortune were for me in suche wyse/ I wold be come a good man and better than I now am/ but thou/ the more richer and fortunat that thou art/ the more worse art thou/ Alixander sayd to hym I shall change thy fortune in suche wyse as thou ne saye/ that thou shalt doo hit by pouerte/ but for euyll and mauaiste/ And so he made hym ryche/ And thys was he that afterward was a good prynce and a good Iusticyer/ The kynge ought to be soueraynly chaste/ And this signefyeth a quene that is only on his ryght syde For hit is to be beleuyd and credible that whan the kynge is a good man Iuste. trewe & of good maners and condicions/ that his children shall folowe gladly the same/ for a good sone & a trewe ought not to forsake & goo fro y'e good condicions of his fader. For certes hit is agaynst god and nature in partie whan a man taketh other than his propre wyf/ And that see we by birdes/ of whom the male and female haue to gyder the charge in kepynge and norisshinge of their yonge fowlis and birdis/. For some maner of fowlis kepen them to theyr femeles only/ As hit appereth by storkes dowues and turtils/ But tho fowles that norisshith not their birdes haue many wyues and femelles/ As the cock that no thynge norisshith his chekens/ And therfore amonge alle the bestes that been/ Man and woman putteth most theyr entente and haue moste cure & charge in norisshyng of their children/ And therfore doon they agaynst nature in partye whan they leue theyr wyues for other women/ Of this chastete reherceth valerius an example and faith that ther was a man of rome which was named scipio affrican. For as moche as he had conquerd affricque how well that he was of rome born. Whan he was of .xxxiiii. yer of age he conquerd cartage And toke moche peple in Ostage/ Amonge whom he was presented wyth a right fair mayde for his solas and playsir whiche was assurid and handfast unto a noble yong gentillman of cartage whiche was named Indiuicible/ And anon as this gentill scipio knewe that Notwythstandyng that he was a prynce noble & lusty Dyde do calle anon the parents and kynnesmen of them And deliuerid to them their doughter wyth oute doyng of ony vilonye to her/ and y'e rænsom or gold that they had ordeyned for their doughter/ gaf hit euery dele In dowaire to her And the yong man that was her husbonde sawe the fraunchise and gentilnes of hym/ torned hymself and the hertes of the noble peple unto the loue & alliance of the romayns/ And this suffiseth as towchynge the kynge &c.
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King & Queen
King & Queen
King & Queen
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Thus ought the Quene be maad/ she ought to be a fair lady sittynge in a chayer and crowned wyth a corone on her heed and cladd wyth a cloth of gold & a mantyll aboue furrid wyth ermynes And she shold sytte on the lyfte syde of the kinge for the amplections and enbrasynge of her husbonde/ lyke as it is sayd in scripture in the canticles/ her lyfte arme shall be under my heed And her ryght arme fhall
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