Prolicionycion [sic]

¶ Capitulum 27

THe grete Alysaunder whan his fader was dede· bygan to regne after his fader in macedonia in his xx. yere of age & regned but xij yere and sex monethes / He was gretter than his fader both in vyces and in vertues / Netheles his fader was the wyser man of counseylle / but the sonne was the gretter man of herte ¶ The fader wold ofte kepe secrete and ouercome his owne wrath· the sonne vsed not to seche loue nowther the maner of wreche / eyther loued wel wine and were both good deynkers The fader wold slee but his enemyes and the sonne wold slee both his enemyes and his frendes ¶ The fader wold be loued but the sonne had leuer be drad. they were of one byleue / the fa∣der yaue him to skylful largenes of yeftes / and the sonne yaue him to lechery Vynceū libro quinto The yere of othus kynge of pers xv of philip kyng of macedoine xij and of nectanabus kyng of egypt xvij. othus occupyed egypte and put oute nec∣tanabus· If this nectanabus drad werre and bataylle he wold not araye and gadre his hoost· neyther ordeyne gynnes of wer∣re but he wold go secretely in to a pryuate place and take with him a basine of clere water and make shippes and men of wax to the lykenesse of a shippe in the see soo that it shold seme that all tho meoued and were alyue Also he wold take a yerde of fyrre holowe / within as a pype and he wold speke in the holow∣nesse of that yerde and clepe goddes aboue and bynethe and soo he wold founde to drowne his ship of waxe in the basen / And soo it shold byfalle that by drenchyng of the wax and of the ta∣pres that were brennynge his enemyes sholde drenche in the see / He herde telle on a tyme that Indes perthes medes Arabes and other nacions also had conspyred to ryse ayenst him and he bra∣ke on laughyng and went to doo his craft that he vsed / and he knew by that that he shold be ouercome but yf flyght might helpe him· Anone he bade shaue his heed. and toke alle the precious

riches that he had and cam in to macedonia and sayd that he was a astronomer / and philip the kyng was thoo oute of countray / & occupyed in werre and nectanabus by his enchauntement and his fantastick feynyng gate suche loue of the Quene Olimpias. that he laye by hir in lykenesse of Iupiter horned and bygate the grete alysander / Than whan the quene. was with childe ma∣ny foules flowe about philip that was tho occupyed in werre But amonge other fowles an henne leyde an egge in philippes lap and whan that egge was smyten of his lap to the grounde a dragon lepte oute of the shelle and crept all aboute and while he wold haue cropen in to the shelle that he came oute of. he dyed anone / Than Antiphon a noble dyuynoure was demaunded what that shold signefye & he answerd & sayde that philip shold haue a sone borne that shold goo about all the world but he shold dye er he came ayene For a dragon is a ryall beest and an egge hath the shap of the world ¶Afterward whan Olimpias was trauelyng of child were herde and seene erth quakynge lyght∣nyng and thonder Quintus curcius Al t••at day sate twey egles vpon the coppe of the hows that boded & sygnefyed twey grete empyres of europa and asia Vyncen̄ The child is born and named Alysaundre with fayre heier and fayr eyen one yelo∣we another black ¶ Ieronimus epistola 85 ¶ Alysaundre might not leue the maners and the vyces and the lechery of his mayster leonydes. in the whiche he was enfe••t while he was a childe and vsed hem whan he was lorde of theworld / ¶ And therfor his fader philip put away leonydes and made Aristotle to be Alysaundres mayster ¶ Seneca ¶Alysaunder put that leonydes afterward to lyons to be deuouted

¶Vincen̄ ¶ Whan Alysaunder was twellif yere old he hadde grete lykynge and ioye to be in hooste amonge men of Armes / and to lepe on hors and vsed hym self right knyghtly On a day whan Philip was absente. Alysaundre prayd Necta∣nabus that he wold teche hym his crafte and he graunted / and whā they cam to geder to a depe water pytte· alysander threw the witche in the same pytte And whan he was dede wounded he ax∣ed of Alysaundre why he dide soo ¶ Thy craft sayd Alysaun¦der is to blame for it warned not the this chaunge. there thou lyeste neuelyng and sholdest telle after these thynges o•• heuen / and he answerd and sayde / ¶ No man maye flee his ow∣ne desteny / ¶ Treuisa / ¶ Nectabanus sayde this

sawe & was a wytche & therfor he is neuir the better̄ to be byleuid But it were a vyle shame / for a cristen man to byleue this fals sawe of a wytche. For from euery myshap that man is shape / in this world to falle yn / god may him saue yf it be his wylle Than it foloweth in the story nectanabus sayde I know well by this craft that myne owne sonne shold slee me / what sayde Aly∣saunder art thou my fader & he told alysandre al thyng by ordre as it stode & dyed anon after / than alisander ordeyned hym a gra¦ue & told his moder of al this / that tyme philip toke gret thought who shold be his heyre and kyng after hym & had answer of appo¦lyn delphicus that who that euer myght ryde his hors withoute falle or hurtynge sholde be his heyre and lord of the world / Alysander herde telle herof of philippes hors called Bucyfall right perillous and bytyng· and alwey kept in cloos and neyed as it were in the roryng of lyons. netheles alysaunder toke the hors by the mane & ledde hym out & lept on his bak & rode hym without hurting / Philip herde therof & worshipped alysandre as lord of the world / therfor alisander in his xvj yere faught in cha¦riottes & had the vyctorye & wan the cyte mathona that his fa∣der had loste / and whan he cam hoome ageyne he sawe messagers of pers in his fader hows chalenge trybute that they were wont to haue for land and for water / what seid alisaunder chalengith the kynge of pers / the Elementes that be commune to al men & beestes / than he bade darius leue of & cesse of vnskylful doing Gir in top· In an homely & special company & myrthe alisandre herd a swete harp and he kytte the strenges & sayde is is better to kytte strenges than hertes / he conceyued that by the swete melo∣dye his herte shold be moor torned to likyng than to hardynesse. to ease than to cheualrye / to lechery than to vertu / to bestly liking than to manhode / netheles historyes saiē that antigonus brake the harp that alysander toke grete delyte to here. & saith it befalleth to thine age now to regne. be than ashamed to suffre womens liking to regne in a kynges body Tullius ¶While alysaunder gate fauoure of men by yeftes of moneye / his fader wroote to hym in this manere / What erroure hath broughte the in to that hope that thou troweste to haue hem true to the / that thou haste ouercome with money. he that receyueth is the wors and also moore redy to wayte after yeftes thereby he taketh heede to the as to a seruāt and a yeuer of yeftes and not as to a kyng