a substanciall sorte, and of of him in wri- pall best doers. And to the iustices he signified ting but after his pleasure, that thei should not suffre any poinct of vilanie to come vnto his name, by the metynges and comyng together of iesters, or of common plaiers of entreludes. the best dooers Atore in the 34 Apophthegme of Alexander. 65. named a little Isle liyng nigh to the Isle of ¶ In deede in this behalf cousin to Alexander. And certes meete it is for the auctoritee of a Prince, euerywhere to bee mainteined in his roiall estate, without any maner spotte or touche of derogacion. An other certaine Isle, liyng nigh vnto the Isle How Augustus of Capres (into the whiche soche of Cæsars courte were wonte to departe for a season, as were desirous to seoiourne and repose theim selues) he commonly vsed to call in Greke, åπрayóжоλ as if ye should saie in Englishe, the Citee of dooe little. Capres. ¶ For the Greke worde åπpuyía souneth in Englishe vacacion or resting from all buisinesse. * Capreae, arum, is a litle Isle beyond the toune of Surrentum in the realme of Naples, which realme of Naples is in latin called Campania. 66. demaunded of his frendes a When he perceiued and feled his diyng houre What Augustus to approche, he enquired of his familiares, beyng let into his chamber to come and see him, whelitle before his ther it semed to them, that he had any thing handsomely enough played his parte in passyng his life. death. ¶ Meanyng of the trade and course of this presente üife, which many writers doen resemble and compare vnto plaiyng a parte in an Enterlude. And then pronounced he this Greke verse folowing, customablie vsed to be soungen at the last ende of Comedies, exhibited and plaied to an ende. δότε κρότον καὶ πάντες ἡμῖν μετὰ χαρᾶς κτυπήσατε. That is, Clappe handes, in signe of contentacion, The ¶ The saiynges of Iulius 1. 293 Sylla a sena tour of Rome, and a man of great power, who made ciuile battaille with Marius, and vanquished, and afterward wexed a cruel tiran. Vlius Cæsar, when he fled from Sylla, being yet but euen a stripleyng vnder mannes state, came by chaunce into the handes of pirates, beyng Cilicians. And at the first when thesame pirates had named the somme, whiche thei would require of hym for his raunsome, he laughed the thieues to scorne, as fooles that knewe not what maner feloe thei had taken priesoner, and promised of his own offre to geue them double their asking. So, the time goyng on, wheras he was safely kept & watched, while the money was in fetchyng, he would charge theim to kepe silence, and to make no noise that might trouble him, while he was slepyng. Unto thesame Pirates he would euer read soche oracions and verses as he wrote being there, which his makinges, if thei did not The hault in the best maner allow, he would call them asses and barbarous fooles, and with laughter would threaten to hang theim one daie on Ieobettes, whiche thing he did in deede to. For beyng let Cilicians, the people of Cilia region in Asia the lesse ioining vnto Syria, a goodlie champian cia, whiche is countree. stomacke of Iulius Caesar, beyng but a yong man. go, immediatly vpon the bringyng of the money, Caesar hanged had been taken which the pirates patished for his raunsome, men vp the pirates, and shippes gotten together out of the countrie by whom he of Asia, he caught the self sam robbers, and hanged them vp, but first hedded, that the seueritee might not be vntempred with mercie. ¶ Doe ye not here euen at the first chop se and knowe of old, the nature and facions of Alexander the great, to whom no meane thing could be enough? Because the woordes of Plutarchus in the life of Iulius Caesar, seeme to geue no small light to the vnderstanding of this present place. I haue thought it worthy the doing, to annexe the same prisoner. Iulius Caesar moste like in facions vnto Alexander the greate. same at large. Sylla rulyng the roste, & bearyng all the stroke in Rome (saieth Plutarchus) was in minde and wille to take awaie from Caesar, Cornelia the doughter of Cinna the dictator (that is to saie, the lord great maister, or the lorde commaunder.) Whiche thing when he could neither for fear ne for hope, that is to sale, neither by foule meanes, nor by faire meanes bryng to passe, he stopped her dourie as forfaicted to the chamber of the citee. As for the cause of enmitee betwene Caesar and Sylla, was the alliaunce of Marius and Caesar. For Marius the elder had to wife Iulia the aunte of Caesar, of whom was born Marius the younger, Caesars cousin germain (thei twoo beyng sisters children.) When (Sylla settyng and bestowyng his minde, care, and studie about other matters, after the doyng to death and slaughter of many a persone, in the tyme while he reigned) Caesar sawe hymself to bee nothyng at all regarded of hym, yet did not the same Caesar shrinke, ne spare, being euen a very child of age, to steppe to the people, and to entre suite with them for the obteinyng of a rome, dignitee, or promocion, in the ordre or college of priestes, whiche dignitee he was put besides, and could not obteine, by reason that Sylla was not his friende, but against hym in his suite, Sylla continually from that tyme forthward, deuisyng and consultyng how to destroie Caesar, and to rid hym out of the waie, where certain persones auouched to be contrarie to all reason and conscience, to doe soche a yong boie to death. Sylla affirmed them all to bee more then madde, if thei did not in that one boie alone, espie many soche as Marius. When this saiyng came to Caesars eare, he went for a space about from place to place, and laie hidden emong the Gabines (a people in Italie not fer from Rome) afterward, while he nightely remoued from one lodgyng to an other, though he wer verie sickely, it chaunced hym to come into the handes of Sylla his soldiours, then scouring the countree, to take all soche persones as laie lurking there in any place, and at the hande of Cornelius the capitain of the saied Launceknightes, he raunsomed hymself for two talentes. Upon this, taking his waie to the sea, he tooke passage ouer into Bithynia (a region of Asia the lesser, buttyng fore right ayenst Thracia) vnto Nicomedes the king there, with whom no long tyme hauyng made abode, as he wente doune from thens, he was taken about Pharmacusa (a little Isle in the sea of Salamin, not ferre from the region of Attica) by a sort of pirates, whiche at that present season, with greate shippes of warre, and with whole nauies out of nomber, helde and kepte the possession of all the seas about. By whom when at the first wer demaunded of him .xx. talentes for his raunsome, he mocked them, for that thei knewe not what maner a man thei had taken, and therefore of hymself he promised to geue them .1. talentes. Then sendyng his folkes abrode, some to one citee and some to an other, for spedie leuiyng of thesaid money, hymself remainyng prisoner emong the moste vncourteous Cilicians, with one and no mo of his familiare frendes, and twoo seruauntes. But as for the saied Cilicians he had in so vile reputacion, that as often as he was disposed to laie hym doune to slepe, he would sende one streightly to charge and commaunde theim to kepe silence, and to make no noise. And makyng demourre there emonges them with greate suffraunce .xl. daies lackyng lackyng twoo, and vsying them not as kepers, but as seruauntes, and garders of his bodie, he would prouoke theim now at gamyng, now with prouyng one or other maisterie, otherwhiles writyng verses and oracions, he would desire them to geue hym the hearyng of thesame, and if thei did not highlie esteme his doinges he would plainly without any courtesie call theim fooles or loutes, and barbarous feloes, threatening theim vnder the cloke of laughyng and sporting, to hang them euery one on the galoes. In whiche thinges thei like fooles tooke greate ioye and pleasure, as attributyng all that plain and franke speaking vnto iesting and simplicitee. And immediatlie vpon the bringing of the money for his raunsome, from the toune of Miletum, and the deliueraunce of the same, beyng set again at his libertee, a nauie of shippes euen with a trice furnished & set out from the hauen of the Milesians, he made vpon these Pirates, whom liyng yet still at rode with their nauie all at reste and quiete about thesaid Isle, he toke and subdued almoste euery one. And so all their goodes and money taken from theim, he laied the feloes faste and suere in irons at Pergamus (a toune in Asia, & a prouince of the Romaines) and went vnto Iulius the chief iustice, hauing at that time the ordring of the prouince of Asia, vnto whom it belonged to punish soche as wer taken for any trespace. But the saied Iulius rather hauing iye vnto the money (for it was no smal somme) saied that he would at leasure, se what was to be doen with the persons whom he had taken. Wherfore Caesar, when he sawe his tyme, biddyng him farewel, toke his iourney vnto Pergamus, and hanged me all thesaid thieues on ieobettees, from the first to the last, accordinglie as he had ofte times made promise vnto theim, while he abode in the Isle, &c. Caesar saied when he stode When he made suite and labour to haue the 2. dignitee of high prelate or ordinarie at Roome What Iulius (Quintus Catulus, a manne of right high dignitee to his mother, and power emong the Romaines, standyng in eleccion with hym for thesame office) vnto his mother bryngyng him going to the gate: Mother (said he) this daie shall ye haue your sonne, either the high prelate, or els a banished man. for the dignitee of highe bishop in Rome. Iulius Caesar a man of a An hault courage toward, and that could in no wonderous sauce a bide to be put backe. haulte courage *There was in Rome of old antiquitee a certain college, that is to say a compaignie or feloship of magistrates, to whom apperteined the ordering, ministering, executing and judging of all sacres, of all holy rites, ceremonies, funeralle obsequies, & of all other causes that in any point concerned religion. And thei wer called Pontifices. And there were of them twoo orders, that is to wete, inferiours and superiours, as if ye should saie (at lestwise in case the terme maie serue) bishoppes and archbishops. And emong them was one hedde, that was called summus Pontifex, the highest prelate, and as ye would saie: the chief ordinarie, to whose power and aucthoritee belonged to make constitucions, concernyng al the saied saied rites, ceremonies, and all poinctes of their religion, and to see reformacion of all inferiour magistrates, encurryng any contumacie, contempte, or disobedience. This magistrate was firste instituted by Numa Pompilius the seconde kyng of Roome. 3. *Iulius Caesar forsooke and put awaie his wife Pompera. This Pompeia was Caesars * His wife Pompeia, because she was in greate slaunder (as one that had misused hirself with Clodius) in deede he forsoke & put awaie from him. But yet when Clodius was vexed in the law, and arrained for thesame matter, Cæsar being called forth for a witnesse, reported no euill worde by his wife. And when the accuser his firste wife saied, Why then hast thou made a diuorce with Forsothe (quoth he againe) because the of Cinna afore wife of Cæsar ought to be pure and cleare from mencioned, by all slaunder too. .iii. wife, as witnesseth Plutarchus, was Cornelia the doughter whom he had a doughter called Iulia, whiche was afterward maried vnto Pompeius the greate. Caesar, when he reade the 4. her? as well as from the crime. ¶ Besides the witnesse of the aunswere, his ciuilitee also maie well be praised, that he spared to defame his wife whom he had abandoned. When he read the chronicle of Alexander the greate, he could not forbeare to water his plantes. And to his frendes he said: At thissame age actes of Alex- (quoth he) that I am of now, Alexander had subdued Darius, and I haue not yet vnto this daie, dooen so moche as any one valiaunte acte of prowesse. ander, could not hold wepyng. The ambicion * After that the cite of Suetonius writeth this thing to haue chaunced, at of Iulius Caesar what time Caesar beyng lorde * president in Spain, & ridyng his circuite, to holde the graunde iuries or lawe Rome had sub- daies, in tounes appoincted for sises and sessions to dued many be kept, had seen the Image of Alexander in the temcountrees, thei did from yere ple of Hercules within the Isle of Gades. But would to yere, create God soche a nature as this, would rather haue vsed and sende into his forwardnesse and quicke spirite, in taking after a prouince, that prince of a sober sort, then after one that would be thei had a seu perelesse, & alone aboue all others. euery seuerall eralle magis. trat, who was called Praetor, a lorde presidente. To whose aucthoritee apperteined the determinacion of causes, and the redresse of all matters, concerning iustice and lawe. A magistrate of moche like sort, as is here in Englande the lorde president |