¶ To the reuerende father in god
& his singuler good lorde / the lorde Hugh
Faryngton Abbot of Redynge / his pore
client and perpetuall seruaunt Leonarde
Cockes desyreth longe & prosperouse lyfe
with encreace of honour.

C Onsiderynge my spe[-]
ciall good lorde how great[-]
ly and how many ways I
am bounden to your lord-
shyp / and among all other
that in so great a nombre
of counynge men whiche are now within
this region it hath pleased your goodnes
to accepte me as worthy for to haue the
charge of the instruction & bryngynge vp
of suche youth as resorteth to your gra-
mer schole / fouded by your antecessours in
this your towne of Redynge / I studied a
longe space what thyng I myght do next
the busy & diligent occupienge of my selfe
in your sayd seruyce / to the whiche bothe
conscience and your stipende doth straytly
bynde me / that myght be a significacion
of my faithfull and seruysable hart which
I owe to your lordeshyp / & agayne a long
memory bothe of your singuler and bene-
ficiall fauour towarde me: and of myn in-
dustry and diligence employed in your ser-
uyce to some profite: or at the leest way to
some delectacion of the inhabitauntes of
this noble realme now flouryshynge vn-
der the most excellent & victorious prynce
our souerain Lorde kyng Henry the .viii.

¶ And whan I had thus long prepensed
in my mynde what thynge I myght best
chose out: non offred it selfe more conue-
nyent to the profyte of yonge studentes
(which your good lordshyp hath alwayes
tenderly fauoured) and also meter to my
p[ro]fession: than to make som proper werke
of the right pleasaunt and persuadible art
of Rhetorique / whiche as it is very neces-
sary to all suche as wyll either be Aduoca[-]
tes and Proctours in the law: or els apte
to be sent in theyr Prynces Ambassades /
or to be techers of goddes worde in suche
maner as may be moost sensible & accepte
to theyr audience / and finally to all them
hauynge any thyng to purpose or to speke
afore any companye (what someuer they
be) So contraryly I se no science that is
lesse taught & declared to Scolers / which
ought chiefly after the knowlege of Gra-
mer ones had to be instructe in this facul[-]
tie / without the whiche oftentymes the
rude vtteraunce of the Aduocate greatly
hindereth and apeyreth his clietes cause.
Likewise the vnapt disposicion of the pre-
cher (in orderyng his mater) confoundeth
the memory of his herers / and briefly in
declarynge of maters: for lacke of inuen-
cion and order with due elocucion: great
tediousnes is engendred to the multitude
beyng present / by occasion wherof the spe[-]
ker is many tymes ere he haue ended his
tale: either left almost aloon to his no li-
tle confusio: or els (which is a lyke rebuke
to hym) the audience falleth for werynes
of his ineloquent language fast on slepe.

¶ Wyllynge therfore for my parte to help
suche as are desirouse of this Arte (as all
surely ought to be which entende to be re-
garded in any comynaltie) I haue parte-
ly translated out a werke of Rhetorique
wryten in the Latin tongue: and partely
compyled of myn owne: and so made a ly-
tle treatyse in maner of an Introductyon
into this aforesayd Science: and that in
our Englysshe tongue. Remembrynge
that euery good thyng (after the sayeng[e]s
of the Philosopher) the more comon it is:
the more better it is. And furthermore tru[-]
stynge therby to do som pleasure and ease
to suche as haue by negligence or els fals
persuacions be put to the lernyng of other
sciences or euer they haue attayned any
meane knowlege of the Latin tongue.

¶ whiche my sayd labour I humbly offre
to your good Lordeshyp / as to the chyefe
maintener & nouryssher of my study / be-
sechynge you / thoughe it be ferre within
your merites done to me / to accepte it as
the fyrst assay of my pore and simple wyt /
which yf it may fyrst please your Lord-
shyp / and nexte the reders / I trust by
the ayde of almyghty god to endyte
other werkes bothe in this facul-
ty and other to the laude of the
hygh godhed / of whome all
goodnes doth procede / and
to your Lordshyps plea-
sure / and to profyte
and delectacion of
the Reder.

WHo someuer desyreth to be
a good Oratour or to dys-
pute and commune of any
maner thynge / hym beho-
ueth to haue foure thinges.

¶ The fyrst is called In-
uencion / for he must fyrst of all imagin or
Inuent in his mynde what he shall say.

¶ The seconde is named Iugement. For
he must haue wyt to deserne & iuge whe-
ther tho thynges that he hath founde in
his mynde be conuenient to the purpose
or nat. For oftetymes yf a man lacke this
property / he may aswell tell that that is
against hym as with hym / as experience
doth dayly shew. ¶ The thyrde is Dispo-
sicion / wherby he may know how to order
and set euery thynge in his due place / leest
thoughe his inuencion and iugement be
neuer so good / he may happen to be coun-
ted (as the comon prouerbe sayth) to put
the carte afore the horse. ¶ The fourth
& last is suche thynges as he hath inuen-
ted: and by Iugement knowen apte to his
purpose whan they are set in theyr order
so to speke them that it may be pleasaunt
and delectable to the audience / so that it
may be sayd of hym that hystories make
mencion that an olde woman sayd ones
by Demosthenes / & syns hath ben a como
prouerbe amonge the Grekes ??t?s e??
which is as moche to say as (This is he)
And this last p[ro]perty is called among ler-
ned men ( Eloquence. ¶ Of these foure the
moost difficile or harde is to inuent what
thou must say / wherfore of this parte the
Rethoriciens whiche be maisters of this
Arte: haue writen very moche & diligetly.

¶ Inuencion is comprehended in certayn
places / as the Rhetoriciens call them / out
of whom he that knoweth ye faculty may
fetche easely suche thynges as be mete for
the mater that he shall speke of / which ma[-]
ter the Oratours calleth the Theme / and
in our vulgare tongue it is called impro-
perly the Anthethem. ¶ The theme pur-
posed: we must after the rules of Rheto-
rique go to our places that shall ano shew
vnto vs what shall be to our purpose.

¶ Example.

IN olde tyme there was greate enuy
betwene two noble men of Rome / of
who the one was called Milo / & the other
Clodius / which malice grew so ferre that
Clodius layd wayte for Milo on a season
whan he sholde ryde out of the Citie / and
in his iourney set vpon hym / and there as
it chaunced: Clodius was slayne / where
vpon this Clodius frendes accused Milo
to the Cenate of murder. Tully whiche in
tho days was a great Aduocate in Rome
sholde plede Miloes cause. Now it was
open that Milo had slayne Clodius / but
whether he had slayn hym laufully or nat
was the doubte. So than the Theme of
Tullies oracio or plee for Milo was this /
that he had slayne Clodius laufully / and
therfore he ought nat to be punisshed / for
the confirmacion wherof (as dothe appere
in Tullies oracion) he dyd brynge out of
places of Rhetoryque argumentes to p[ro]ue
his sayd Theme or purpose. And likewyse
must we do whan we haue any mater to
speke or comun of. As if I sholde make an
oracion to the laude & prayse of the Kyn-
ges highnes: I must for the Inuencyon
of suche thynges as be for my purpose go
to places of Rhetorique / where I shall
easely finde (after I know the rules) that
that I desyre. ¶ Here is to be noted that
there is no Theme but it is conteyned vn[-]
der one of the foure causes / or for the more
playnnes foure kyndes of Oracions.

¶ The fyrste is called Logycall / whyche
kinde we call properly disputacio. ¶ The
seconde is called Demonstratiue. ¶ The
thyrde Deliberatiue. ¶ The fourth Iudi-
ciall / and these thre last be properly called
spices or kyndes of oracions / whose natu-
res shall be declared seperately hereafter
with the crafte that is required in euery of
them. All themes that perteine to Logike
either they be simple or compounde. As yf
a man desyre to know of me what Iustice
is. This onely thig Iustice is my theme.
Or if disputacion be had in company vpon
religion / and I wolde declare the very na-
ture of religion / my theme shulde be this
simple or one thynge religion. But yf it be
doubted whether Iustyce be a vertue or
nat / and I wolde proue the parte affyrma[-]
tyue / my theme were now compoude / that
is to say / Iustice is a vertue / for it is made
of two thynges knyt and vnied togither /
Iustice and vertue. ¶ Here must be noted
that Logike is a playn & a sure way to in-
struct a ma of the trouth of euery thynge /
& that in it the natures / causes / partes / &
effectes of thynges are by certayne rules
discussed & serched out / so that nothing can
be p[er]fectly & p[ro]perly knowe but by rules of
Logike / which is nothing but an obserua[-]
cyon / or a dylygent markynge of nature.
whereby in euery thynge mannes reason
dothe consyder what is fyrste / what last /
what proper / what improper.

¶ The places or instrumentes of a simple
theme are.

The diffinicion of the thynge.
The causes.
The partes.
The effectes.

¶ Exaple. If thou inquire what thig Iu[-]
stice is / whereof it cometh / what partes it
hath / & what is the office or effect of euery
parte / than hast thou diligetly serched out
the hole nature of Iustice / & handeled thy
simple theme accordyng to the precept[e]s of
Logicians / to whom our auctour leueth
suche mat[er]s to be discussed of the / how beit
somwhat ye Rhetoricias haue to do with
ye simple theme / & asmoche as shall be for
theyr entent he wyll shew hereafter. For
many tymes the oratour must vse bothe
diffinicions & diuisions. But as they be in
Logike playne and compendiouse / so are
they in Rhetorike exteded & paynted with
many figures & ornament[e]s belongyng to
the science. Neuertheles to satisfie the re-
ders mynde / & to alleuiate the tediousnes
of serchynge these places / I wyll open the
maner and facion of the handelyng of the
theme aforsayd as playnly as I can / after
the preceptes of Logike.

¶ First to serche out the perfite knowlege
of Iustice: I go to my fyrst place diffinici[-]
on / & fetche from Aristotle in his Ethik[e]s
the Diffinicion of Iustice / which is this.

¶ Iustice is a morall vertue / wherby men
be the werkers of rightfull thynges (that
is to saye) whereby they bothe loue & also
do suche thynges as be iust. This done: I
serche the causes of Iustice (that is to say)
from whens it toke the fyrst begynnyng /
and by cause that it is a morall vertue: and
Plato in the ende of his Dialogue Meno
concludeth that all vertue cometh of god:
I am assured that god is the chief cause of
Iustice: declaryng it to the worlde by his
Instrument manes wyt / whiche the same
Plato affyrmeth in the begynnyng of his
lawes. The Diffinicion and cause had: I
come to the thyrde place called partes to
knowe whether there be but one kynde of
Iustice or els many. And for this purpose
I fynde that Arystotle in the fyfte of his
Ethikes deuideth Iustice in two speces or
kyndes. One yt he calleth Iustice legiti-
me or legal / an other that he called Equi-
te. ¶ Iustice legall is that that consysteth
in the superiours whiche haue power for
to make or statute lawes to the iferiours.
And the office or ende of this Iustice is to
make suche lawes as be bothe good and
accordynge to right and conscience / & tha
to declare them / & whan they are made &
publisshed as they ought to be / to se that
they be put in vre / for what auaileth it to
make neuer so good lawes: yf they be nat
obserued and kept. ¶ And finally that the
maker of the lawe applye his hole studie &
mynde to the welthe of his subiectes and
to the comon profyte of them. The other
kynde of Iustice whiche men call Equitie
is whereby a man neyther taketh nor gy-
ueth lesse nor more than he ought / but in
gyuynge taketh good hede that euery ma
haue accordynge as he deserueth. This
Equitie is agayne deuyded into Equitie
distributyue of comon thynges & Equitie
Commutatiue. By Equitie distributyue
is distributyd and giuen of comon goodes
to euery ma accordyng to his deseruyng[e]s
and as he is worthy to haue. As to deuide
amonge suche as longe to the Chyrche of
the Chyrche goodes after the qualitie of
theyr merytes: and to them beynge Ciuil
persones of the comon treasour of the Ci-
tie accordynge as they are worthy.

¶ In this parte is comprehended the pu-
nyshment of mysdoers and trangressours
of the lawe / to whome correccion must be
distributed for the comon welth according
to theyr demerites / after the prescripcions
of the lawes of the contrey / made & deter-
mined for the punisshment of any maner
of transgressour. ¶ Equity comutatiue is
a iust maner in the chaungynge of thyng[e]s
from one to another / whose offyce or effect
is to kepe iust dealynge in equytie / as by-
enge / sellynge / & all other bargaynes law-
full. And so are herewith the spices of Iu-
stice declared theyr offices / which was the
fourth & last place.

¶ Our auctour also in a great worke that
he hath made vpon Rhetorike / declareth
the handelynge of a theme symple by the
same example of Iustice / addynge two pla[-]
ces mo / whiche are called affines and con-
traries on this maner.

¶ What is Iustice? A vertue whereby to
euery thynge is gyuen that that to it be-
longeth.

¶ What is the cause thereof? Mannes
wyll consentynge with lawes & maners.

¶ How many kyndes? Two.

¶ Whiche? Commutatiue & Distributiue /
for in two maners is our medlynge with
other men / eyther in thynges of our sub-
staunce & wares / or in gentyll and cyuyle
conuersacion.

¶ what thynge is Iustice commutatiue?
Right and equitie in all contractes.

¶ what is Iustice distributiue? Iustice of
ciuile lyuynge.

¶ How manyfolde is Iustyce dystrybu-
tyue? Either it is comon or priuate. The
comon is called in latin Pietas / but in en-
glysshe it may be moost properly named
good order / which is the crowne of all ver[-]
tues conceruynge honest and ciuile con-
uersacyon of men togither / as the hedes
with the meane comonalty in good vnity
and concorde. ¶ Pryuate or seuerall Iu-
stice dystrybutyue is honest and amyable
frendeshyp & conuersacion of neighbours.

¶ What are the offyces? To do for euery
man / ryche or pore / of what estate so euer
he be / and for our contrey / for our wyues /
chyldren / and frendes / that that ought to
be done for euery of them.

¶ Affynes or vertues nigh to Iustice are
constancy / lyberalytie / temperaunce.

Thynges contrary are fere / couetyse / pro-
dygalytie.

¶ And this is the maner of handelynge
of a symple Theme dialectycall. But yet
let nat the reder deceyue hym selfe / and
thynke that the very perfyte knowlege is
shewyd hym all here. And that whiche
hath be shewed now: is somwhat general
and briefe. ¶ More sure and exact know-
lege is conteined in Logike / to whome I
wyll aduise the that be studiouse to resorte
& to fetche euery thynge in his owne pro-
per facultie.

¶ Of a Theme compounde.

E Uery Theme compounde: ey-
ther it is proued trewe or fals.
Now whether thou wylt p[ro]ue
or improue any thyng: it must
be done by argument. And yf
any Theme compounde: be it Logicall or
Rhetorycall / it must be referred to the
rules of Logike by the to be proued trew
or fals. For this is the dyfference that is
betwene these two sciences / that the Lo-
gician in dysputynge obserueth certayne
rules for the settynge of his wordes being
solicitous that there be spoke no more nor
no lesse than the thynge requyreth / & that
it be euin as plaily spoke as it is thought.
But the Rhethorician seketh about & bo-
roweth where he can asmoche as he may
for to make the symple and playne Logi-
call argumentes gaye & delectable to the
eare. So than the sure iugement of argu-
mentes or reasons must be lerned of the
logician / but the crafte to set the out with
pleasaunt figures and to delate the mater
belongeth to the Rhetorician. As in Mi-
loes cause / of whome was made mencion
afore. ¶ A logician wolde briefly argue /
who so euer violently wyll slee an other /
may lawfully of the other be slayne in his
defence. Clodius wolde vyolently haue
slain Milo / wherfore Clodius might lau-
fully be slayne of Milo in Miloes owne
defence. And this argument the logicians
call a Sillogisme in Darii / whiche Tully
in his oracion extendeth that in foure or
fyue leues it is scant made an ende of / nor
no man can haue knowlege whether Tul-
lies argument that he maketh in his ora-
cyon for Milo / be a good argumente or
nat / and howe it holdeth / excepte he can
by Logyke reduce it to the perfecte and
briefe forme of a Sillogisme / takynge in
the meane season of the Rhetorycyans
what ornamentes haue ben cast to for to
lyght and augment the oracyon / and to
gyue it a maiestie.

¶ The places out of whome are founde
argumentes for the prouynge or impro-
uynge of compounde Themes / are these
folowynge.

O F the places of argumen-
tes shall be spoken hereaf-
ter. For as touchynge the
in all thynges the Rheto-
rician & Logician do agre.
But as concernynge the
crafte to fourme argumentes whan thou
hast foude them in theyr places / that must
be lerned of the Logician / where he trea-
teth of the fourme of sillogismes / enthime[-]
mes and inductions.

¶ Of an oracion demonstratiue.

THe vse of an oracion demon-
stratiue is i praise or dispraise /
whiche kynde or maner of ora-
cion was greatly vsed somtyme in comon
accions / as dothe declare the oracions of
Demosthenes / and also many of Thucidi-
des oracions. And there ben thre maners
of oracions demonstratiue.

¶ The fyrst conteyneth the prayse or dys-
prayse of persones. As yf a man wolde
prayse the kynges hyghnes / or dysprayse
some yll persone / it must be done by an ora[-]
cion demonstratiue. The seconde kynde of
an oracion demonstratiue is: where in is
praysed or dyspraysed / nat the persone but
the dede. As if a thefe put hym selfe in ieo-
p[ar]dy for the safegarde of a true ma / against
other theues and murderers / the p[er]son can
nat be praysed for his vicious lyuyng / but
yet the dede is worthy to be commended.
Or if one shulde speake of Peters denyeng
of Christ / he hath nothyng to disprayse ye
person saue onely for this dede. The thyrd
kynde is: wherin is lauded or blamed no-
ther person nor dede / but some other thing
as vertue / vice / iustice / iniurie / charite / en-
uie / pacience / wrathe / and suche lyke.

¶ Partes of an Oracion.

¶ The partes of an oracion prescribed of
Rhetoriciens are these.

¶ The Preamble or exorden.
¶ The tale or narracion.
¶ The prouynge of the matter or conten-
cion.
¶ The conclusion.

¶ Of the whiche partes mencyon shall be
made herafter in euery kynde of oracions /
for they are nat founde generally in euery
oracion / but some haue moo partes / and
some lesse.

¶ Of the Preamble.

GEnerally the Preamble nat alonly
in an oracion demonstratiue / but al-
so in the other two is conteyned and
must be fetched out of thre places / that is
to say of beneuolence / attencion / & to make
the mater easy to be knowen / whiche the
Rhetoricians call Docilite.

¶ Beneuolence is the place whereby the
herer is made willyng to here vs / and it is
conteyned in the thynge that we speke of /
in them whom we speke to / & in our owne
persone. The easyest and moost vsed place
of beneuolence consysteth in the offyce or
duety of the person / whan we shew that it
is our duety to do that we be about.

¶ Out of this place is fet ye p[re]able of sait
Gregory Nazazene / made to the praise of
saynt Basyll / where he saith that it is his
his duety to prayse saynt Basyll for thre
causes. For the great loue and frendeshyp
that hath ben always betwene them / and
agayne for the remembrauce of the moost
fayre and excellent vertues that were in
hym / and thyrdely that the chyrch myght
haue an example of a good and holy Bys-
shop. ¶ Trewly by our authours lycence
me thynketh that in the preamble Naza-
zen doth nat only take beneuolence out of
the place of his owne persone / but also out
of the other two / wha he sheweth the cause
of his duetye / for in praysynge his frende
he dyd but his duetye. In praysynge his
vertues / he cam to the place of beneuolece
of hym that he spake of / as touchyng the
example that the chyrche shulde haue / it
was for theyr profite / and concernyng the
place of beneuolence / taken of them that
he spake to. But our authour regarded
chiefly the principall proposicion / whiche
was that saynt Gregory Nazazene was
bounde to praise saint Basyll.

¶ A lyke example of beneuolence taken
out of the place of office or dutie / is in the
oracyon that Tully made for the Poete
Archias / whiche begynneth thus.

MY lordes that be here iuges / yf there
be in me any wyt / whiche I knowe
is but small / or yf I haue any crafty vse of
makynge an oracion / wherein I denie nat
but yt I haue metely excercysed my selfe /
or yf any helpe to that science cometh out
of other lyberall artes / in whome I haue
occupied al my lyfe / surely I am boude to
no man more for them than to Archias /
whiche may lawfully if I may do any ma
any profite by them / chalenge a chiefe por[-]
cion for hym therin.

¶ Out of this place dyd this same Tully
fetche the begynnyng of his fyrste epistle /
in whome he wrytethe to one Lentule on
this maner: I do so my deutie in al poyn-
tes towarde you / and so great is the loue
and reuerence that I bere vnto you that
all other men say that I can do no more /
and yet me semeth that I haue neuer don
that that I am bounde to do / eyther to
you or in your cause.

¶ We may also get beneuolence by reason
of them / whome we make our oracion of:
As yf we saye that we can neuer prayse
hym to hyghly / but yt he is worthy moch
more laude and prayse. And so taketh sait
Nazianzene beneuolence in his sayd ora-
cion for sainct Basile.

¶ Also of them afore whome we speke / as
if we say / it is for theyr profyte to laude or
prayse the p[er]son. And that we knowe very
wel howe moche they haue alwayes loued
hym / and that he ought therfore to be prai[-]
sed the more for theyr sakes. The maner
is also to get vs beneuolence in the preface
of our oracion / by pynchyng and blamyng
of our aduersarie. As doth Tullie in the o-
racion that he made for one Aulus Cecin-
na / wherin he begynneth his proeme thus
If temerite and lake of shame coulde as
moche preuayle in plees afore the iustices /
as doth audacite and temerarious bolde-
nesse in the feldes and deserte places / there
were no remedie but euen so muste Aulus
Cecinna be ouercome in this matter by
Sextus Ebucius impudence / as he was
in the felde ouercome by his insidious au-
dacite. And these be the comune formes of
beneuolence.

¶ A man may also fetche his proeme out
of the nature of the place wher he speketh /
as Tullie dothe in the oracion made for
Pompeius for the sendynge of hym into
Asie agaynst kynge Mithridates of Pon-
tus / and kynge Tigraues of Armenie on
this maner: howe be it my lordes and mai[-]
sters of this noble citie of Rome / I haue al
tymes thought it a synguler reioyse to me
if I myght ones se you gadred to gyther
in a copany / to here some publique oracion
of myne / and agayne I iuged no place to
be so ample and so honourable to speke in
as this is. &c[etera].

¶ Or he may begyn at the nature of the
tyme that is than / or at som other cyrcum[-]
staunce of his mater / as Tully taketh the
begynnynge of his oracion for Celius at
the tyme / this wise.

¶ If so be it my lordes iuges any ma be
now present here that is ignorat of your
lawes / of your processe in iugement[e]s / and
of your customes / surely he may well mar[-]
uell what so heynous a mater this shulde
be / that it onely shulde be syt vppon in an
hygh feest daye / whan all the comonaltye
after theyr olde custome are gyuen to the
sight of playes / ordeined after a perpetual
vsage for the nones for them / all maters
of the law laid for the tyme vtterly a part.

¶ He began also an other oracion for one
Sext[us] Roscius / out of the daunger of the
season that he spake in.

¶ One may besyde these vse other maner
of prohemes / whiche by cause they are nat
set out of the very mater it selfe / or els the
circumstaunces / as in these aforsayd they
are called peregrine or strauge prohemes.
And they be taken out of setences / solepne
peticions / maners or customes / lawes / sta[-]
tutes of nacyons & contreys. And on this
maner dothe Aristides begyn his oracion
made to the praise of Rome.

¶ Demosthenes in his oracyon made a-
gainst Eschines / toke his preface out of a
solempne peticion / besechynge the goddes
that he might haue as good fauour in yt
cause / as he had foude in all other maters
yt he had done afore for the comon welth.

¶ In like maner beginneth Tully the ora[-]
cion that he made for one Murena / & also
the oracyon that he made vnto the Ro-
maynes after his retourne from exyle.

¶ He begynneth also an other oracyon /
whiche he made as touchynge a lawe de-
creed for the diuision of feldes amonge the
comunes out of a custome amonge them /
on this wyse.

¶ The maner and custome of our olde fa-
ders of Rome hath ben. &c. And this is the
maner of prefaces in any oracion / whiche
is also obserued in the making of epistles /
how beit there is farre lesse crafte in them
than is in an oracyon.

¶ There is yet an other fourme & maner
to begyn by insinuacion / wherfore it beho[-]
ueth to know that insinuacion is / wha in
the begynnyng / yf the mater seme nat lau[-]
dable or honest / we find an excuse therfore.

¶ Example / Homere in his Iliade des-
cribeth one Thersites / that he was moost
foule and euyll fauored of all the Grekes
that came to the batayle of Troye / for he
was both gogle eyed / and lame on the one
legge / with croked and pynched shulders /
and a longe pyked hede / balde in very ma-
ny places. And besyde these fautes he was
a great folysshe babler / and ryght foule
mouthed / and ful of debate and stryfe / car-
rynge alwayes agaynste the heddes and
wyse men of the armye.

¶ Nowe if one wolde take vpon hym to
make an oracio to the prayse of this losel /
whiche mater is of litle honesty in it selfe /
he must vse in stede of a preface an insinu-
acion. That what thynge poetes or com-
mune fame doth eyther prayse or dispraise
ought nat to be gyuen credence to / but ra-
ther to be suspecte. For ones it is the na-
ture of poetes to fayne and lye / as bothe
Homere and Virgile / which are the prin-
ces and heddes of al poetes to witnesse the
selfe. Of whome Homere sayth / that poe-
tes make many lies / and Virgile he saith:
The moost part of the sene is but deceyte.
Poetes haue sene blake soules vnder the
erthe / poetes haue fayned and made many
lyes of the pale kyngdome of Plato / and
of the water of Stigie / and of dogges in
hell. And agayne comune rumours howe
often they ben vayne / it is so open that it
nede nat to be declared. Wherfore his trust
is that the hearers wyll more regarde his
saynge than fayned fables of poetes / and
fleyng tales of lyght folkes / whiche ar for
the more parte the grounders of fame &
rumours.

¶ An example may be fet out of the decla-
macion that Erasmus made to the prayse
of folysshenes.

¶ An other example hath the same Eras-
mus in his second booke of Copia / which
is this: Plato in the fyfte dialogue of his
communaltie wyllethe that no man shall
haue no wyfe of his owne / but that euery
woman shalbe commune to euery man. If
any man than wolde eyther prayse or de-
fende this mynde of Plato / which is both
contrarie to Christes religion and to the
commune lyuynge of me / he myght as E-
rasmus teacheth / begynne thus.

¶ I knowe very well that this mater
whiche I haue determyned to speke of /
wyll seme vnto you at the fyrste herynge /
nat onely very straunge / but also right ab-
hominable. But that nat withstandynge /
yf it wyll please you a litle while to deferre
you iugement tyll ye haue herde the sume
of suche reasons as I wyll brynge forthe
in the cause / I doubte nothynge but that
I shall make the trouthe so euydent that
you all will with one assent approue it / &
knowlege that ye haue ben hitherto mar-
uelously deceyued in your oppynyon / and
somdele to alleuiate your myndes / ye shall
vnderstande that I am nat my selfe au-
thour of the thynge / but it is the mynde &
saynge of the excellent & moost highly na-
med philosopher Plato / whiche was vn-
doubted so famouse a clerke / so discrete a
man / and soo vertuouse in all his dedes /
that ye may be sure he wold speke nothig
but it were on a right perfyte ground / and
that the thynge were of it selfe very expe-
dient / thoughe peraduenture it shewe ferre
otherwise at the fyrst herynge.

¶ In all prefaces of preambles must be
good heed taken that they be nat to ferre
fet / nor to longe.

¶ These affectuouse wordes / I reioyce / I
am sorye / I meruaile / I am glad for your
sake / I desire / I fere / I pray god / and such
other lyke / be very apte for a preface.

¶ Of the seconde place of a
preface / called Attencion.

T He herers shall be made
attent or diligent to giue
audience / yf the oratour
make promyse yt he will
shew them new thynges /
or els necessary or profita[-]
ble / or yf he say yt it is an
harde mater that he hath in handelynge /
or els obscure & nat easy to be vnderstad /
except they gyue right good attendaunce.

¶ wherfore it is expedyent that yf they
wyll haue the percepcion of it / that they
gyue a good eare. But as concernyng the
newnesse or profyte of the mater / it ma-
keth nat all onely ye herer to gyue a good
ere (which thynge is called attencion) but
also maketh hym well wyllynge for to be
present / whiche is beneuolence.

¶ Docilite.

D Ocilite whereby we make the
mater playne & easy to be per-
ceyued / is nat greatly required
in this kynde of oracion / for it
is belonging properly to derke
and obscure causes / in whiche we must p[ro]-
myse that we wyl nat vse great ambages /
or to go (as me say) roude about the bussh /
but to be short and playne.

¶ Of narracion whiche is the se-
conde p[ar]te of an oracion.

¶ The Narracion or tale wherin p[er]sones
are praysed / is the declaryng of theyr lyfe
& doynges after the fasshion of an historie.
The places out of the whiche it is sought
are: The persones byrthe. His chyldhode.
His adolescencie. His mannes state. His
old age. His dethe and what
foloweth after.

I N his byrthe is consydered of
what stocke he came / what chau[-]
sed at the tyme of his natiuite or
nighe vpon / as in the natiuite of
Christe shepeherdes hard angelles synge.

¶ In his chyldhode are marked his
bryngynge vp and tokens of wysdome co-
mynge: As Horace in his fourthe Satire
sheweth / how in his chyldhode his father
taught hym by examples of suche as were
than lyuynge to flee from vice and to gyue
hym selfe to vertue.

¶ In adolescencie is considered where to
he than gyuethe hym selfe; As in the
fyrst comedie of Terece one Simo telleth
his seruaut Sosia / that though all yonge
men for the more parte gyue them selfe to
some peculiare thynge / wherin they sette
theyr chiefe delyght / as some to haue goo-
dely horses / some to cherysshe houndes for
huntyng / & some are gyuen onely to theyr
bookes / his sone Paphilus loued none of
these more one tha an other / and yet in al
these he exercised hym selfe mesurably.

¶ In mannes state and olde age is noted
what office or rule he bare among his citi-
sens / or in his cotrey / what actes he dyd /
how he gouerned suche as were vnd[er] him /
howe he p[ro]spered / & what fortune he had in
suche thyng[e]s as he went about. Example
here of is in Saluste / whiche copareth to[-]
gether Cato and Cesar / sayng that both
theyr stocke / age & eloquece / were almoost
lyke & egall / theyr excellecie & greatnes of
spirite & wytte was also lyke & egal / & lyke
fame & worshyppe had they both attayned
howe be it nat by a lyke waye. Cesar was
had i great estimacion for his benefites &
& liberalite. Cato had gotte hi a name for
his p[er]fight & vpright lyuynge. Cesar was
praysed for his gentilnes and pitie. Cato
was honored for his ernestnes and surete.

¶ The tother wanne moche bruyt by gy[-]
uynge large gyftes / by helpynge suche as
were in dystresse / and by forgyuyng of tres[-]
passes done agaynste hym. Catons fame
dyd sprede because he wold neither be for-
gyuen of none offence / neither forgiue non
other / but as any man had deserued / so to
cause him to be delt with. In the one was
great refuge to suche as were in mysery:
In the other was sore punisshment & per-
nicion to mysdoers & euyll transgressours
of the law. Briefly to conclude it was all
Ceazars mynde and pleasure to labour di-
ligently night and day in his frendes cau[-]
ses / to care lesse for his owne busynes tha
for theyrs / to deny nothing that was wor[-]
thy to be asked / his desyre was euermore
to be in warre / to haue a great hoost of me
vnder his gouernaunce / that by his noble
and hardy faictes his valyantnes myght
be the more knowen and spred abrood.

Cotraryly all Catons study was on tem[-]
perauce / and to do in no maner otherwyse
than was conuenient & fyttynge for suche
a man as he was / and chiefly he sette his
mynde to seueryty / he neuer made no com[-]
parison with the riche man in richesse / nor
with the myghty man in power. But yf
nede required / with the hardy ma in bold-
nes / with the temperate in moderacion /
with the good man in innocency & iust dea[-]
ling. He cared not for the name / it was suf-
ficiet to hym to haue the dede / & so / the lesse
he cared for glorye / the more alwayes he
opteyned. Many suche comparisons ve-
ry profitable for this intet / are also in Plu[-]
tarche in his boke of noble mennes lyues.

¶ A goodly ensaple of this place is in the
oracion that Hermola[us] Barbarus made
to the emperour Frederike and Maximi-
lian his son / which for bicause it is so long
I let it passe. ¶ A like ensample is in Tul-
lies oracion / that he made to the people of
Rome for Pompeyus / to be sente agaynst
Mithridates.

¶ Some there be that deuide the landes
of persones into thre kindes of goodes / be-
gynnynge the narracion at them / whiche
thynge our author doth nat greatly com-
mende / but rather in rehersyng of any per[-]
sones dedes / yf there can nat be kept an or-
der of historie / and many thynges must be
spoken. It were after his mynde best to
touche fyrst his actes done by prudence / &
next by iustice / thirdely by fortitude of the
mynde / and last by temperaunce / and so to
gather the narracion out of this foure car-
dinall vertues. As if one shuld praise saint
Austen / after that he hath spoken of his pa[-]
rentele and bryngynge vp in youthe / and
is come to the rehersale of his actes / they
may be conueniently distributed into the
places of vertues. On this maner did Tul[-]
ly prayse Pompey.

¶ I suppose (sayeth he) that in hym that
shulde be a hed capitayne ouer a great ar-
my / ought to be foure thynges. Knowlege
of werre / valiantnes / auctoritie / & felicitie.

¶ Here is to be noted that in rehersynge
any persons actes / we may haue our chief
respecte to some peculiare and principall
vertue in hym / enlargynge and exaltynge
it by amplificacio in maner of a digressio.

¶ Our author in this worke maketh no
mencyon of the last place that is dethe
and suche thynges as folowe after / but in
an other greater work he declareth it thus
briefly. ¶ The dethe of the persone hathe
also his praises / as of suche whiche haue
ben slayne for the defence of theyr contrey
or prince.

¶ A very goodly ensample for the hande-
lynge of this place is in an epistle that An[-]
gele Policiane writeth in his fourth boke
of epistels to Iames Antiquarie of Lau-
rence Medices / howe wysely and deuout-
ly he dysposed hym selfe in his dethe bed /
and of his departynge / and what chann[-]
ced at that tyme.

¶ And so to conclude an oracion Demon-
stratiue / wherein persones are lauded / is
an historycall exposicion of all his lyfe in
order. And there is no difference betwene
this kynde and an history / saue that in hi-
stories we be more briefe and vse lesse curi-
ositie. Here all thynges be augmeted and
coloured with as moche ornamentes of
eloquence as can be had.

¶ Confirmacion of our purpose / and con-
futynge or reprouynge of the contrarye /
whiche are the partes of contencion / are
nat requisite in this kynde of oracion / for
here are nat treated any doubtefull ma-
ters / to whome contencion perteineth.

Neuer the lesse / somtyme it happeneth
(how beit it is seldome) that a doubte may
come / which must be either defended / or at
the leest excused.

¶ Example.

THe frenche men in olde tyme
made myghty warre agaynste
the Romaynes / and so sore be-
sieged theym that they were by compul-
cion constrayned to fall to composicion
with the frenche men for an huge summe
of golde / to be payed to theym for the bre-
kynge of the siege / but beynge in this ex-
treme misery / they sent for one Camillus /
whome nat very longe afore they had ba-
nisshed out of the citie / and in his absence
made hym dictatour / which was the chie-
fest dignitie amonge the Romaynes / and
of so greate auctoritie / that for the space of
thre monethes / for so long dured the office
moost coueniently / he might do all thyng
at his pleasure / whether it concerned deth
or no / nor no ma so hardy ones to say nay
against any thyng that he dyd / so that for
the space he was as a kynge / hauynge all
in his owne mere power. Now it chauced
that while this summe was in payenge / &
nat fully wayed / Camillus of whome I
said afore / that being in exile he was made
dictatour / came with an army / and anone
bad cease of the payment / & that eche par-
ty shulde make redy to bataile / and so he
vainquisshed the frenche men.

¶ Now yf one shulde praise hym of his no[-]
ble faites / it shuld seme that this was done
contrary to the law of armes / to defait the
frenche men of the raumsom due to them /
syns the compacte was made afore / wher-
fore it is necessary for the oratour to defede
this dede / & to proue that he did nothynge
contrary to equitie. For the whiche pur-
pose he hathe two places. One apparent /
whiche is a comon sayenge vsurped of the
poete. Dolus au virtus quis in hoste requirat.
That is to say / who will serche whether ye
dede of enemy against enemy be either gile
or pure valiantnes? But for that in warre
law is as well to be kept as in other thin-
ges. This sayeng is but of a feble groude.
The other is of a more stronge assurauce /
whiche Titus Liuius writeth in his fyfte
boke from the buildynge of Rome / where
he reherceth this history now mencioned /
and that answere is this / that the copacte
was made to paye the foresayd raunsome
after that Camillus was created dicta-
tour / at what time it was nat lawfull that
they whiche were of ferre lesse auctoritie /
ye & had put them selfe holy in his hande /
shuld entermedle them with any maner of
treatise without his licence / & that he was
nat bounde to stande to theyr bargayne.
The whiche argumente is deducte out of
two circumstaunces / whereof one is the
tyme of the makynge of the compacte / and
the other / the persons that made it / which
two circumstaunces may briefly be called
whan / and who. ¶ Likewise yf an oracion
shulde be made to the laude of saint Pe-
ter / it behoueth to excuse his denyenge of
christe / that it was rather of diuine power
and wyll: than otherwise / for a confortable
example to synners of grace yf they repet.

¶ This is the maner of handelynge of an
oracion demonstratiue / in whiche the per-
son is praised.

¶ The author in his greater worke decla[-]
reth the facion by this example.

¶ If one wolde praise kynge Charles / he
shulde kepe in his oracion this order.

Fyrst in declarynge his parentele / that he
was kynge Pipines sone / whiche was the
fyrste of all kynges of Frannce named the
moost christen kynge / and by whom all af-
ter hym had the same name / and Nephien
to Martell / the moost valiauntest prynce
that euer was. Nexte / his bryngynge vp
vnder one Peter Pisane / of whom he was
instructe bothe in Greke and Latin. Tha
his adolessencie / whiche he passed in excer-
cise of armes vnder in his fader in ye war-
res of Acquitaine / where he lerned also the
Sarazynes tongue.

¶ Beynge come to mannes state / & now
kyuge of Fraunce / he subdued Aquitayn /
Italye / Swauelande / and the Saxones.
And these warres were so fortunate / that
he ouercam his aduersaries more by aucto[-]
ritie and wisdom than by effusion of blode.

¶ Also many other notable examples of
vertue were in hym in that age / specially
that he edified the vniuersitie of Paris.

¶ Here may by digressio be declared how
goodly a thynge lernynge is in Prynces.
Chiefly suche condicion apperteyneth to
vertue and good lyuynge.

¶ Here may be also made comparison of
his vertues in warre / and of other agre-
ynge with peace / in the whiche (as his hi-
story maketh mencyon) he was more ex-
cellent. For his chiefe delyte was to haue
peace / and agayne he was so gentyll and
so mercyfull / that he wolde rather saue
euyn suche as had don hym great offence:
and had deserued very well for to dye / tha
to dystroye theym / thoughe he might do it
conueniently.

¶ Besyde this / he was so greatly enfla-
med in the loue of god and his holy chirch /
that one Alcuine a noble clerk of England
was continually with hym / in whose prea[-]
chynge and other gostely communicacion
he had a chiefe pleasure. His olde age he
passed in rest and quyetenes fortunately /
saue for one thyng / that his sonnes agreed
euyll betwene them.

¶ After his decease reigned his son / holy
saint Lewes / and so the folowynges of his
dethe were suche that they could be no bet-
ter / and a very great token of his good and
vertuouse lyuynge. For yf an yll tree can
brynge furthe no good fruite / what shall
we suppose of this noble kynge Charles /
of whome cam so vertuouse and so holy a
son? Truely me thynketh that hither may
be nat incoueniently applied the sayenges
of the gospell / by theyr fruites you shall
know them.

¶ Of an oracion Demonstratiue /
wherein an acte is praysed.

WHan we wyll prayse any maner of
dede / the moost apte preamble for
that purpose shall be to say that the
mater perteyneth to the commodities of
them whiche here vs.

¶ Example.

WHan the Romaynes had expelled
theyr kynge / whome the historiciens
call Tarquine the proude / out of the
citie / and fully enacted that they wolde ne[-]
uer haue kynge to reigne more ouer them.
This Tarquin[us] went for aide and socour
to the kynge of Tuscaye / whiche whan he
could by no menes entreat the Romains
to receiue agayn theyr kyng / he cam with
all his puissaunce against the citie / & there
long space besieged the Romaynes / by rea[-]
son wherof / great penury of whete was in
the citie / & the kynge of Tuscay had great
trust / that continuynge the siege / he shulde
within a litle lenger space compell the Ro[-]
maynes thrugh famine to yelde theselfe.

¶ In the meane season a yong man of the
citie named Gaius Mucius / came to the
Senatours and shewed them that he was
purposed yf they wolde gyue hym licence
to go furthe of the citie to do an acte that
shuld be for theyr great profite and welth /
whereupon whan he had obteined licence /
priuely / with weapo hyd vnder his vesture
he cam to the Tuscans campe / & gate hym
among the thickest / nigh to the tent where
as the kyng sat with his chaunceller / pay-
enge the sowdiers the wages. And bicause
that they were almoost of lyke apparell / &
also the chaunceler spake many thynges
as a man beynge in auctoritie / he coulde
nat tell whether of theym was the kynge /
nor he durst nat aske / leest his demaunde
wolde haue bewrayed hym / for as for lan-
guage they had one / & nothyng was diffe-
rent / for bothe Tuscains & Romains were
all of Italye / as in tymes past / Englande
hathe had many kynges / though the lan-
guage & people were on. And thus beynge
in doubt whether of them he myght steppe
vnto / by chaunce he strake the chaunceller
in stede of the kynge / and slew hym / wher-
fore whan he was taken and brought be-
fore the kynge / for to punysshe his hande
that had failed in takyng one for an other /
and agayn to shew the kynge how litle he
cared for his menaces / he thrast his hande
into the fire / which at that time was there
prepared for sacrifyce / & there in the flame
let it brenne / nat ones mouynge it. The
kynge greatly marueylynge at his audaci[-]
tie & hardy nature / comended hym greatly
thereof / and bad hym go his way free: For
the whiche (as though he wolde make the
kyng a great amendes) he fayned that .iii.
C. of the noblest yonge men of Rome had
conspyred to gyther in lyke maner euery
one after another vnwar[e]s to slee hym / and
all to put theyr bodies and liues in hasard
tyll tyme shulde chaunce that one myght
acheue theyr entent. For fere whereof the
kynge furthwith fell at a pointement with
the Romaines / and departed. The yonge
man afterwarde was named Sceuola /
whiche is as moche to say in Englyssh as
lefte haded. For as I haue reherced afore /
he brente his right hande / so that he had
lost the vse therof.

¶ IF any oratour wolde in an oracyon
commende this dede / he myght conueni-
ently make the preface on this facion.

THere is no doubte my lordes
& maysters of Rome: but that
the remebraunce of Sceuolaes
name is very pleasant vnto your audiece /
whiche with one act that he dyd / endewed
your citie with many and greate commo-
dytees. &c[etera].

¶ This maner of preface is moost conue[-]
nyent and best annexyd to suche maner of
oracyons demonstratiues.

¶ Neuer the lesse it is lawfull for vs to
take our preface (yf it be our pleasure) oute
of some circumstaunce / as out of the place
that our oracion is made in / or out of the
tyme that we speke in / or els otherwyse /
accordynge as we shall haue occasyon /
As Tullie / in the oracyon that he made
for the restitucyon of Marcus Marcel-
lus / in the whiche he praiseth Cezare for
the callyng home of the sayd Marc[us] mar-
cellus out of exyle / he taketh his pream-
ble out of the tyme and Cezares persone /
begynnynge thus.

THis daye my lordes Senatoures
hath made an ende of the longe sci-
lence that I haue kepte a great while / nat
for any fere that I had / but part for great
sorow that was in me / & partly for shame /
this day as I sayd hath taken away that
longe scilence / ye / and besyde that of newe
brought to me lust & mynde to speke what
I wolde / and what I thought moost expe[-]
dient / like as I was afore wont to do. For
I can nat in no maner of wyse refrayne /
but I must nedes speke of the great meke-
nes of Cezare / of the graciousnes that is
in hym / so habudant and so great withall /
that neuer afore any suche hath ben wont
to be sene or herde of / and also of the excel-
lent good moderacio of all thynges which
is in hym that hathe all in his owne mere
power. Nor I can nat let passe his excellet
incredible / and diuine wisdome vnspoken
of / afore you at this tyme.

¶ Of the Narracion.

IN this kynde we vse but selden hole
narracions / oneles we make our ora[-]
cion afore them that know nat the history
of the acte or dede whiche we be aboute to
prayse. But in stede of a narracion we vse a
proposicion / on this maner.

AMonge all the noble deedes Cezare
that ye haue done / there is non that
is more worthy to be praysed than this re[-]
stitucion of Marke Marcell.

¶ Of Confirmacion / whiche is
the fyrst parte of Contencion.

THe places of confirmacion are
honesty / p[er]fite / lightnes / or har-
dines of the dede. For after the
proheme of the oracion and the narracion /
than go we to the prouynge of our mater.
Fyrst shewynge that it was a very honest
dede. And next / that it was nat all only ho[-]
nesty: but also profitable. Thirdely as con[-]
cernyng the easines or difficulty / the praise
therof must be considered / parte in the do-
er / part in the dede. An easy dede deserueth
no great praise / but an harde and a ieoper[-]
douse thynge / the soner and the lightlier it
is acheued / the more it is to be lauded.

¶ The honesty of the cause is fet from the
nature of the thynge yt is spoken of / which
place lieth in the wytte of the oratour / and
may also be fet out of the philosophers bo[-]
kes. It is also copiosely declared of Rhe-
toriciens / and very compediously handled
of Erasmus in his boke / entituled of the
maner and crafte to make epistels / in the
chapitre of a persuadyng epistle. The pro-
fyte of the dede / or the commoditie may be
fet at the circumstaunce of it. Circumstau[-]
ces are these / what was done / who dyd it /
whan / where it was done / among whom /
by whose helpe.

¶ As if one wolde praise Sceuolaes acte /
of the whiche mencion was made afore /
he may.

¶ Whan he cometh to the places of con-
tencion / shew fyrst how honest a dede it is
for any man to put his lyfe in ieopardy for
the defence of his countrey / whiche is so
moche the more to be commended that it
cam of his owne minde / and nat by the in-
stigacion of any other / and how profitable
it was to the citie to remoue so strong and
puissaunt an enemy by so good and crafty
policy / what tyme the citie was nat well
assured of all mennes myndes that were
within the walles / considerynge that but
a lytle afore many noble yonge men were
detecte of treason in the same busines. And
than also the citie was almoost destitute of
vitailes / & all other commodities necessa-
ry for the defence.

¶ Likewise easynes or difficultie are con-
teyned in the circumstaunces of the cause.
As in the example now spoken of / what an
harde enterprise it is for one man to entre
into a kynges armye / and to come to the
kynges pauilion in the face of his souldi-
ers to aduenture to slee hym.

¶ Of the seconde parte of con-
tencion / called confutacion.

COnfutacio is the soilyng of suche
argumentes as maye be induced
agaynst our purpose / which part
is but lytle vsed in an oracion demonstra-
tiue. Neuer the lesse / somtyme may chauce
a thyng that must be either defended or els
at the leest excused. As yf any man wolde
speke of Camillus dede / wherby he recoue-
red his contrey / and delyuered it from the
handes of the Frenche men. ¶ Here must
be declared that the bargayne made afore
was nat by Camillus violate.

¶ The places of confutacion be contrary
to the places of confirmacion.

¶ Of the conclusion.

THe coclusion is made of a brief
enumeracion of suche thynges
that we haue spoken of afore in
the oracion / & in mouynge of affections.

¶ In delectable thinges or suche thinges
that haue ben well done / we moue our au-
dience to reioice thereat / and to do lyke.

¶ In sad thynges and heuy / to be sory for
them. In yll and peruerse act[e]s / to beware
that they folowe nat them to theyr great
shame and confusion.

¶ Of an oracion demonstratiue / wherein
are praised neither persones nor actes /
but some other thynges / as religion /
matrimony / or suche other.

THe best begynnyng wyll be if it
be taken out of some high praise
of the thynge. But a man may
also begyn otherwyse / eyther at his owne
perso or at theyrs afore whom he speketh /
or at the place in the whiche he speketh / or
at the season present / or otherwise / as hath
afore ben specified / and here must we take
good hede that yf we take vpo vs to praise
any thynge that is no praise worthy / than
must we vse insinuacion / & excuse the turpi[-]
tude / either by examples or by argumet[e]s /
as Erasmus doth in his epistle prefixed a-
fore his oracion made to the prayse of fo-
lisshnes / of the whiche I haue let passe the
traslacio bicause ye epistle is sowhat long.

¶ The narracion.

IN this maner of oracio is no nar[-]
racion / but in stede therof the Rhe[-]
toriciens all only propose the ma[-]
ter. And this proposicion is in the stede of
the narracion.

¶ A very elegat example is in the oracion
that Angele Policiane made to the laude
of histories / whiche is this. Among all ma[-]
ner of wryters by whom either the Greke
tongue or the latine hath ben in floure and
excellence / without doubte me semeth that
they dyd moost profyte to mankynde / by
whom the excellent dedes of nacions / prin-
ces / or valiant men haue ben truely descri-
ued and put in cronicles.

¶ Likewise yf a man praise peace / & shewe
what a commodiouse thynge it is / he may
make suche a proposicion.

AMonge all the thynges whiche per[-]
teine to manes commoditie / of what
someuer condicion or nature so euer they
be / non is so excellent and so worthy to be
had in honour and loue / as is peace.

¶ The confirmacion.

THe places of confirmacion be in
this oracion. The same yt were
in the other ( of whome mencion
was made afore / honesty / profite / easynes /
or difficulty. Honesty is considered in the
nature of the thynge / also in the persones
that haue excercysed it / and the inuenters
thereof. And in the auctour of it. As in the
laude of matrimony be considered the auc[-]
tour thereof / whiche was god hym selfe /
the antiquite that it was made in the fyrst
begynnynge of the worlde / and continued
(as reason is) to this hour in great honour
and reuerece. The persones that haue vsed
it / were bothe patriarches / as Abraham.
Prophetes / as Dauyd. Apostels / as saynt
Peter. Martyrs / saynt Eustache. And co-
fessours / as saynt Edwarde. And (whiche
thyng was fyrst proposed) the nature ther-
of is suche / that without it: man shulde be
like vnto beest / oneles all generacion shuld
be put aparte. And the commaudement of
almighty god nat regarded / who bad man
and woman shulde engender & multiply.

¶ Profite and easines is considered in the
circumstaunces. Examples may be taken
out of Policians oracio / made to the laude
of histories—And two oracions of Erasm[us] /
one to the laude of phisike / and an other to
the laude of matrimony.

¶ Of confutacion.

Confutacion hath contrary places to con-
firmacion.

¶ Of the conclusion.

THe periode or conclusion stan-
deth in the briefe enumeracion
of thinges spoken afore / and in
mouyng the affections / as hath ben aboue
expressed.

¶ Of an oracion deliberatiue.

AN oracio deliberatiue is by the
which we persuade or dissaude
any thyng / & by the whiche we
aske / or whereby we exhort any man to do
a thynge / or els to forsake it / and this kyn-
de of oracion is moche in vse / nat onely
in ciuil ematers: but also in epistels.

¶ Of the preamble.

WE may begynne our oracion in this
kynde / euyn lyke as we dyd in an ora[-]
cion demonstratiue / but moost aptly
at our office or duety / leest some men wolde
thynke that we dyd it more of a priuate af-
fection for our owne commoditie and plea[-]
sure: than for any other mannes profyte.

¶ And in this maner Salust in his boke
of Catheline bringeth in Cezare / beginnyng
an oracion. But let vs here now what Ce[-]
zar sayeth.

ALl men my lord[e]s Senatours which
syt concellynge vpon any doubtfull
mater / must be voyde of hatred / frendshyp /
anger / pitye / or mercye. For where any of
these thynges bere a rule / mannes mynde
can nat lightely perceyue the truthe. &c[etera].

¶ Or els we may begyn at the greatenes
of the mater / or daunger of the thyng that
we speke of / as in the fyfte boke of Liuius.
Camillus maketh the preamble of his ora[-]
cion thus.

MY maysters of this Citie of Ardea /
which haue ben alwayes myne olde
frendes / and now (by reason of myne exyle
out of Rome) my new neighbours and ci-
tizens. For I thank you of your goodnes
you haue promysed that it shuld so be / and
on the other side my fortune hath constray[-]
ned me to seke som new dwellynge out of
the citie where I was brought vp & enha-
bited. I wolde nat that any of you shulde
thynke that I am now come amonge you
nat remembrynge my condicion and state /
but the como ieopardy that we be all now
in / wyll compell euery man to open and
shew the best remedy that he knoweth for
our socoure in this greate fere & necessity.

¶ Nat withstandynge this / a man may
take his begynnynge otherwyse / after any
of the facions afore recited / if he lyst.

¶ Tully in the oracion / wherin he aduised
the Romaynes to make Pompey theyr
chiefe capitaine against Mithridates and
Tigranes / kynges of Ponthus & Arme-
ny / taketh in the preface beneuolence from
his owne persone / shewynge by what oc-
casion he myght laufully gyue councell to
the Romaines / bycause was electe Pretor
of the citie. we may also touche our aduer-
saries in the preface / or els we may touche
the maners / either of som seuerall persons /
or of the commons in generall. As in the
oracion that Porci[us] Chato made agaynst
the sumptuousnes of the women of Rome /
thus begynnynge.

IF euery man my lordes and maisters
of this citie wolde obserue and kepe
the ryght and maiestye of a man agaynst
his owne wife / we shuld haue ferre lesse en-
combrance now with the hole thronge tha
we haue. But now our fredome and lyber-
tie is ouercome within our owne dores by
the importunatnes of our wyues / & so au-
dacitie taken therof here troden vnder the
fete / and oppressed in the parliamet house:
And bycause we wold nat displease no ma
his owne wyfe at home: here are we now
combred with all / gathered to gyder on a
hepe / and brought in that takynge that
we dare nat ones open our lyppes against
them. &c[etera].

¶ We may also begyn at the nature of the
tyme that we speke in / or at the nature of
the place / or at any other circumstaunce or
thynge incident. As Liuius in the .ix. boke
of his fourthe decade agaynste the feestes
that the Romaynes kept in the honour of
the ydolyssh god Bacchus / begynneth his
oracion at prayenge on this wyse.

THe solempne makynge of prayers
vnto the goddes was neuer so apte
nor yet so necessary in any oracion as it is
in this / whiche shall shew and admonysshe
you that they be very and ryght goddes /
whom our elders haue ordeyned to be wor[-]
shypped / adoured / and prayed vnto.

¶ Briefly in all prefaces belongynge to
oracions deliberatiues the office of the per[-]
sone: and the necessytye or commodytye
of the matter that we treate of are consy-
dered.

¶ The narracion.

IN oracios deliberatiues we vse very
seldome narracions / but for the more
parte in stede of them we make a brief pro[-]
posicion coteinyng the sume of our entent.
As now adayes nothing is so necessary as
to labour to brynge these dissencions that
be in the chyrche to a perfecte vnity & con-
corde / that accordyng to Christes sayng[e]s /
there be but one shepeherde and one folde.
Neuertheles we vse somtyme briefe narra[-]
ciions / wha yt som thyng hath ben don all
redy of yt that we giue our coucell vpo / as
in the abouesayd oracion yt Tuli made for
Popey / where he maketh this narracion.

GReat & very perillous warre is made
bothe agaynst your tributours / and
also the that bothe cofederate with you: &
by you called your felowes / whiche warre
is moued by two ryght myghty kynges /
Mithridates & Tigranes. &c. ¶ After this
maner is a narracion in the oracio yt Ha-
niball made to Scipio / & is coteined in the
x. boke of ye .iii. decade of Liui[us] / right pro-
per & elegant / without any preface begyn-
nyng his narracion thus. hand ¶ If it hath
ben ordeyned by my fortune and desteny
that I whiche first of all ye Carthaginors
began warre with the Romayns / & which
haue almoost had the victory so often in
myne hades / shuld now com of myne owne
mynde to aske peace. I am glad that for-
tune hathe prepared that I shulde aske it
of you specially. And amonge all your no-
ble landes this shall nat be one of the leest
that Haniball gaue ouer to you / to whom
the goddes had gyuen afore the vyctorye
ouer so many capitains of the Romayns /
& that it was your lucke to make an ende
of this warre / in the which the Romayns
haue had farre mo euyll chaunces tha we
of Carthagene. And whether it were my
desteny or chauce yt ought me this skorn-
full shame. I which began the warre wha
your father was Consull / and after ioyned
bataile with hym whan he was made Ca-
pitayne of the Romayns army / must now
come vnarmed to his son to aske peace of
hym. It had ben best for bothe parties yf
it had pleased the goddes to haue sent our
fore faders that mynde / that you of Rome
wolde haue ben content with the Empyre
of Italy / and we Carthaginoys with Af-
frike. For neither Sicil nor Sardinia can
be any sufficet amendes to either of vs for
so many naueis / so many armies / so many
and so excellent capitaines lost in our war-
res betwene vs / but thynges passed / may
soner be blamed than mended. We of Car-
thagene (as touchynge our parte) haue so
couetyd other dominions / that at lengthe
we had busines ynough to defende our pos[-]
sessions. Nor the warre hath nat ben only
with you in Italy or with vs onely in Af-
fryke: but at the pleasure of fortune / som-
tyme here and som there / in so moche that
you my maisters of Rome haue sene ye sta[-]
derdes and armes of your enemies harde
at your walles and gates of the citie. And
we on the other syde haue herde the noyse
out of your campe into our citie.