am so well inform'd of your business, that it will but make worse for you, to go about to conceal or to deny it: you know very well such and such passages, (which were the most secret circumstances of his conspiracy) and therefore be sure, as you tender your own life, to confess to me the whole truth of your design." The poor man seeing himself thus trap'd, and convinc'd (for the whole business had been discovered to the queen by one of the complices) was in such a taking, he knew not what to do; but joyning his hands to beg and sue for mercy, he meant to throw himself at this prince's feet, who taking him up, proceeded to say, "Come on Sir, and tell me, have I at any time heretofore done you any injury? or have I, through my particular hatred or private malice, offended any kinsman or friend of yours? It is not above three weeks that I have known you; what inducement then could move you to attempt my death?" To which the gentleman, with a trembling voice, reply'd, "That it was no particular grudge he had to his person, but the general interest and concern of his party, and that he had been put upon it by some who had perswaded him it would be a meritorious act, by any means to extirpate so great and so powerful an enemy of their religion." "Well," said the prince, "I will now let you see, how much more charitable the religion is that I maintain, than that which you profess; yours has perswaded you to kill me, without hearing me to speak, and without ever having given you any cause of offence; and mine commands me to forgive you, convict as you are, by your own confession, of a design to murther me without reason. Get you gone, that I see you no more; and if you are wise, choose henceforward honester men for your councellors in your designs." The Emperour Augustus, being in Gaul, had certain information of a conspiracy L. Cinna was contriving against him, who thereupon resolv'd to make him an example; and to that end sent to summon his friends to meet the next morning in counsel; but the night between he past over, with unquietness of mind, considering that he was to put to death a young man, of an illustrious family, and nephew to the great Pompey, which made him break out into several ejaculations of passion: "What then, said he, shall it be said, that I shall live in perpetual anxiety, and continual alarm, and suffer my assassinates in the mean time to walk abroad at liberty? shall he go unpunished after having conspir'd against my life, a life that I have hitherto defended in so many civil wars, and so many battles both by land and sea? And after having settled the universal peace of the whole world, shall this man be pardoned, who has conspired not only to murther, but to sacrifice me?" For the conspiracy was to kill him at sacrifice. After which, remaining for some time silent, he re-begun louder, and straining his voice more than before to exclaim against himself, and say, "why liv'st thou? If it be for the good of many that thou should'st die? must there be no end of thy revenges and cruelties? Is thy life of so great value, that so many mischiefs must be done to preserve it?" His wife Livia, seeing him in this perplexity; "will you take a woman's counsel?" said she. "Do as the physicians do, who when the ordinary recipe's will do no good, make tryal of the contrary. By severity you have hitherto prevail'd nothing Lepidus has follow'd Savidienus, Murena Lepidus, Cæpio Murena, and Egnatius Cæpio. Begin now and try how sweetness and clemency

76

REPROOF OF AUGUSTUS TO CINNA THE TRAITOR.

will succeed. Cinna is convict, forgive him, he will never henceforth have the heart to hurt thee, and it will be an act of glory." Augustus was glad that he had met with an advocate of his own humour; wherefore, having thank'd his wife, and in the morning countermanded his friends he had before summon'd to council, he commanded Cinna all alone to be brought to him; who being accordingly come, and a chair by his appointment set him, having commanded every one out of the room, he spake to him after this manner: "In the first place, Cinna, I demand of thee patient audience; do not interrupt me in what I am about to say, and I will afterwards give thee time and leisure to answer Thou know'st, Cinna, that having taken thee prisoner in the enemies camp, and that an enemy not only made, but born so, I gave thee thy life, restor'd thee all thy goods, and finally put thee in so good a posture, by my bounty of living well and at thy ease, that the victorious envy'd the conquer'd. The sacerdotal office which thou mad'st suit to me for, I conferr'd upon thee, after having deny'd it to others, whose fathers have ever born arms in my service and after so many obligations thou hast undertaken to kill me." At which Cinna crying out, that be was very far from entertaining any so wicked a thought; "Thou dost not keep thy promise, Cinna, (continued Augustus) that thou would'st no interrupt me. Yes, thou hast undertaken to murther me in such a place, such a day, in such and such company, and in such a manner.” At which words seeing Cinna astonish'd and silent, not upon the account of his promise so to be, but interdict with the conscience of his crime; "Why," proceeded Augustus, "to what end would'st thou do it? Is it to be emperour? Believe me, the republic is in a very ill condition, if I am the only man betwixt thee and the empire. Thou art not able so much as to defend thy own house, and but t'other day wast baffled in a suit, by the oppos'd interest of a mean manumitted slave. What, hast thou neither means nor power in any other thing, but only to attempt against Cæsar? I quit claim to the empire, if there is no other but I to obstruct thy hopes. Canst thou believe, that Paulis, that Fabius, that the Cassians and Servilians, and so many noble Romans, not only so in title, but who by their virtue honour their nobility, would suffer or endure thee?" After this, and a great deal more that he said to him, (for he was two long hours in speaking) "Well, Cinna, go thy way," said he, "I again give thee that life in the quality of a traytor and a parricide, which I once before gave thee in the quality of an enemy. Let friendship from this time forward begin betwixt us, and let us try to make it appear whether I have given, or thou hast receiv'd thy life with the better faith ;" and so departed from him. Some time after, he preferr'd him to the consular dignity, complaining, that he had not the confidence to demand it; had him ever after for his very great friend, and was at last made by him sole heir to all his estate. Now from the time of this accident, which befel Augustus in the fortieth year of his age, he never had any conspiracy or attempt against him, and therein reap'd the due reward of this his so generous and exemplary clemency. But it did not so well succeed with our prince in the former story, his moderation and mercy not being sufficient so to secure him, that he did not afterwards fall into the toils of the like treason, so vain and frivolous a thing is human prudence; and in spite of all our projects, counsels,

We repute

and precautions, fortune will still be mistress of events. physicians fortunate when they hit upon a lucky cure, as if there was no other art but theirs that could not stand upon its own legs, and whose foundations are too weak to support its self upon its own basis, and as if no other art stood in need of fortunes hand to assist in its operations. For my part, I think of physick as much good or ill as any one would have me: for, thanks be to God, we have no great traffick together. I am of a quite contrary humour to other men, for I always despise it; but when I am sick, instead of recanting, or entring into composition with it, I begin yet more to hate, nauseate, and fear it, telling them who importune me to enter into a course of physick, that they must give me time to recover my strength and health, that I may be the better able to support and encounter the violence and danger of the potion: so that I still let nature work, supposing her to be sufficiently arm'd with teeth and claws to defend her self from the assaults of infirmity, and to uphold that contexture, the dissolution of which she flies and abhors: for I am afraid, lest instead of assisting her when grappled, and strugling with the disease, I should assist her adversary, and procure new work, and new accidents to encounter. Now I say, that not in physick only, but in other more certain arts, fortune has a very great interest and share. The poetick raptures, and those prodigious flights of fancy, that ravish and transport the author out of himself, why should we not attribute them to his good fortune, since the poet himself confesses they exceed his sufficiency and force, and acknowledges them to proceed from something else than himself, and has them no more in his power than the orators say they have those extraordinary motions and agitations that sometimes push them beyond their design. It is the same in painting, where touches shall sometimes slip from the hand of the painter, so surpassing both his fancy and his art, as to beget his own admiration. But fortune does yet more accidentally manifest the share she has in all things of this kind, by the graces and elegancies are found out in them, not only beyond the intention, but even without the knowledge of the artist. A judicious reader does often find out in other men's writings, other kind of perfections, and finds in them a better sence and more quaint expression than the author himself either intended or perceiv'd. And, as to military enterprizes and executions, every one sees how great a hand fortune has in all those affairs; even in our very counsels and deliberations there must certainly be something of chance and good luck mix'd with human prudence, for all that our wisdom can do alone is no great matter; the more piercing, quick, and apprehensive it is, the weaker it finds itself, and is by so much m ore apt to mistrust its own vertue. I am of Sylla's opinion, and when I most strictly and nearer hand examine the most glorious exploits of war, I perceive, me thinks, that those who carry them on, make use of counsel and debate only for customs sake, and leave the best part of the enterprize to fortune, and relying upon her favour and assistance, transgress at every turn the bounds of military conduct, and the rules of war. There happen sometimes accidental alacrities and strange furies in their deliberations, that for the most part prompt them to follow the worst, and worst grounded counsels, and that swell their courages beyond the limits of reason: from whence it falls out, that

78 HE THAT DESPISES HIS LIFE IS MASTER OF HIS NEIGHBOURS.

many great captains, to justify those temerarious deliberations, have been forc'd to tell their souldiers, that they were by some inspiration and good omen encourag'd and invited to such attempts. Wherefore, in this doubt and uncertainty that the short-sightedness of human wisdom to see and choose the best, (by reason of the difficulties that the various accidents and circumstances of things bring along with them) does perplex us withall, the surest way in my opinion, did no other consideration invite us to it, were to pitch upon that wherein is the greatest appearance of honesty and justice, and not being certain of the shortest, to go the straightest and most direct way; as in these two examples I have before laid down; there is no question to be made but it was more noble and generous in him who had receiv'd the offence, to pardon it, as they both did, than to do otherwise; and if the former miscarried in it, he is not nevertheless to be blam'd for his good intention: neither does any one know if he had proceeded otherwise, whether by that means he had avoided the end his destiny had appointed for him; and he had however lost the glory of so generous an act. You will find in history, many who have been in this apprehension, that the most part have taken the course to meet, and prevent conspiracies by punishment and revenge; but I find but very few who have reap'd any advantage by this proceeding; witness so many Roman emperours: and whoever finds himself in this danger, ought not to expect much either from his vigilancy or power; for how hard a thing is it for a man to secure himself from an enemy, who lies conceal'd under the countenance of the most officious friend we have, and to discover and know the wills and inward thoughts of those who are continually doing us service? 'Tis to much purpose to have a guard of strangers about a man's person, and to be always fenced about with a pale of armed men ; whosoever despises his own life, is always master of that of another man. And moreover, this continual suspicion, that makes a prince jealous of all the world, must of necessity be a strange torment to him, and therefore it was, that Dion, being advertis'd that Calippus watch'd all opportunities to take away his life, had never the heart to enquire more particularly into it, saying, "that he had rather die, than live in that misery that he must continually stand upon his guard, not only against his enemies, but his friends also;" which Alexander much more lively manifested in effect, when having notice by a letter from Parmenio, that Philip, his most beloved physician, was by Darius his money corrupted to poyson him, at the same time that he gave the letter to Philip to read, sup'd of the potion he had brought him. Was not this by such a resolution to express, that if his friends had a mind to dispatch him out of the world, he was willing to give them opportunity to do it? This prince is indeed the sovereign president of all hazardous actions; but I do not know whether there be another passage in his life wherein there is so much steadiness and constancy as in this, nor so illustrious an image of the greatness of his mind. Those who preach to princes so circumspect and vigilant a jealousie and distrust, under colour of security, preach to them ruine and dishonour. Nothing noble can ever be perform'd without danger. I know a person, naturally of a very great daring and enterprizing courage, whose good fortune is continually prevented, and forestall'd by

such perswasions, that he must retire into the gross of his own body, and keep those he knows are his friends continually about him, that he must not hearken to any reconciliation with his ancient enemies, that he must stand off, and not trust his person in hands stronger than his own, what promises or offers soever they may make him, or what advantages soever he may see before him. And I know another, who has unexpectedly made his fortune by following a contrary advice. Courage, the reputation and glory of which men seek with so greedy an appetite, represents and sets it self out when need requires, as magnificently in querpo, as in the neatest arms, in a closet, as well as a camp; and this overcircumspect and wary prudence is a mortal enemy to all high and generous exploits. Scipio, to sound Syphax his intention, leaving his army, and abandoning Spain, not yet secure, nor well settled in his new conquest, could pass over into Africk in two contemptible bottoms, to commit himself, in an enemies country, to the power of a barbarian king, to a faith untry'd and unknown, without precaution, without hostage, under the sole security of the greatness of his own courage, his good fortune, and the promise of his elevated hopes. "Habita fides ipsam plerumque fidem obligat.”—Livius. Trust oftentimes obliges fidelity. On the contrary, fear and diffidence invite and draw on injury and offence. The most mistrustful of all our kings settled his affairs principally by voluntarily giving up his life and liberty into his enemies hands, by that action manifesting that he had an absolute confidence in them, to the end they might repose as great an assurance in him. Cæsar did only oppose the authority of his countenance, and the sharpness of his rebukes to his mutinous legions, and rebellious army.

But it is true withall, that this undaunted assurance is not to be represented in its true and lively form, but by such whom the apprehension of death, and the worst that can happen, does no way terrifie and affright; for to represent a pretended resolution with a pale and doubtful countenance, and trembling limbs for the forc'd service of an important reconciliation, will effect nothing to purpose. 'Tis an excellent way to gain the heart, and conquer the will of another, to go submit, and intrust a man's person to him, provided it appeared to be frankly done, and without the constraint of necessity, and in such a condition, that a man manifestly does it out of a pure and entire confidence in the party, at least with a countenance clear from any cloud of suspicion. I saw when I was a boy, a gentleman, who was governour of a great city, upon occasion of a popular commotion and fury, not knowing what other course to take, go out of a place of very great strength and security, and commit himself to the mercy of the seditious rabble, in hopes by that means to appease the tumult before it grew to a more formidable head: but it was ill for him that he did so, for he was there miserably slain. But I am not nevertheless of opinion, that he committed so great an errour in going out, as men commonly reproach this memory withal, as he did in choosing a gentle and submissive way for the effecting his purpose, and in endeavouring to quiet this storm, rather by obeying than commanding, and by entreaty rather than remonstrance; and am inclin❜d to believe, that a gracious severity, with a souldier-like way of commanding, full of security, and confidence suitable to the quality of his person; and the dignity of his command,