Batman vppon Bartholome his booke De proprietatibus rerum, newly corrected, enlarged and amended: with such additions as are requisite, vnto euery seuerall booke: taken foorth of the most approued authors, the like heretofore not translated in English. Profitable for all estates, as well for the benefite of the mind as the bodie. 1582.

¶ Of the age. Cap. 1.

REmigius saith, That the age of man, is nought els but tenour and during of kindly vertues in conside∣ration, meane betwéene contrary mouing, or els meane betwéen quiet and rest: for héere∣by man passeth and moueth,* 1.1 and neuer abideth, in the same state. Or as Isi∣dore sayth, the age is the space of the life of a beast, & beginneth from y^e concepti∣on, and endeth and sayleth after age. Isi∣dore saith and Constantine also, That there are many diuers ages. The first is called Infancia, childhood without téeth, and lately got and borne, and dureth sea∣uen months, and is yet full tender & soft and quauie and clammy. Therefore in that age a childe néedeth alwaye tender and softe kéeping and féeding and nouri∣shing. And childhoode that bréedeth séeth endureth and stretcheth seauen yeares. And such a Childe is called Infans, that is to vnderstand, not speking, for he may not speake nor sound his words perfect∣ly: for y^e téeth be not yet perfectly grow∣en and set in order, as sayth Isid. After∣ward commeth y^e second age y^t is called Puericia, childhood: which dureth and lasteth other seuen yeare, that is to the ende of fourtéene yeare: and hath that name Puericia of Pubertas, or els of Pupilla, the black of y^e eye, for as yet the children are pure, as the blacke of y^e eye is, as Isidore sayth. And after that com∣meth the age that is called Adolescen∣tia, the age of a young striplyng, & dureth the thirde seauenth yeare, that is, to the ende of one and twentie yeares, as it is sayd in Viatico: but Isidore sayth, that it endureth to the fourth seauen yeares, that is to the ende of eight and twentie yeares. But Phisitions account this age to the ende of thirtie or fiue and thirtie yeares. This age is called Adolescen∣tia, for because it is full age to get chil∣dren, as saith Isidore: and able to bur∣nish and increase, and hath might and strength. Isidore saith, yet in this age the members are softe and tender, and able to stretch: and therfore they grow by vertue of heate that hath masterye in them, euen to the perfection of comple∣ment. After this Adolescentia age, com∣meth the age that is called Iuuentus, and this age is meane betwéene all ages: and therefore it is strongest, and lasteth as Isidore saith, to xlv. or .l. yeares, and there endeth. And Isidore saith, this age Iuuentus hath that name of Iu∣uare, that is to helpe: for in that age a man is set in his full increasing, & there∣fore he is strong to helpe at néede: & Isi∣dore saith, that after this age Iuuentus, commeth the age that is called Senecta: and is the middle age betwéene the age that is called Iuuentus, & the second age y^e Isid. calleth heuines or sadnesse. This age accordeth to old men & sad, for to cal Iuuentus young. In this age olde men drawe from youth to the second age: For such men be not in the second age, but their youth passeth, as saith Isidore. And vpon this age commeth the second age: & some men suppose, y^t this age endeth at ixx. yere, and some suppose that it endeth in no certaine nūber of yeares. But af∣ter these ages, all the other part of mans lyfe is accounted Senectus, or Senium, the second or the last age. Isidore sayth, that this age is called, Senectus, for pas∣sing and sayling of wit: for by reason of age, olde men doate. Isidore saith, that Philosophers tell, that men that haue colde bloud, be nice and fooles: as men in whom hot bloud hath masterie, are wise and readye. Therefore olde men whose bloud wareth colde, and in whom the bloud heateth not can but little good. Also for gréat age olde men doate and are mad: and for lust, lyking, lightnes, and play, children knowe not what they should doe, as sayth Isidore. The last part of age is called Senium, it is so cal∣led because it is the last end of age & of lyfe. This age bringeth with it manye domages, and also profits good and euill, as sayth Isidore. Good for it delyuereth vs out of the power of mightie men and tirants, and maketh an ende of bodilye

lust, and breaketh the braydes of fleshly lyking, and hath wit and wisedome, and giueth good counsaile, as many olde men doe. It is the ende of wretchednesse and of wor, and beginning of wealth, and of ioye: It is y^e passage out of perill, & com∣ming to the price: It is the perfectnesse of meedfull deedes, and disposition to bée perfect. And this age bringeth euilles with him, as saith Isidore. For it is wretched with feeblenesse and noye: For manye euilles come, and sicke∣nesse in age is noyous and sorrowfull, for two things there be, y^e destroy y^t strength of the bodie, sicknesse and age, as sayth Isidore. In these olde folke kinde heate is quenched, the vertue of gouernance & of ruling fayleth, and humour is dissol∣ued and wasted, might and strength pas∣seth and fayleth, flesh, fatnesse and fayre∣nesse is consumed and spent, the skinne riueleth, the sinewes shrinke, the bodye bendeth and crooketh, forme and shape is lost, and fairenesse of the body brought to nought, all these fayle in néed. All men despise the olde person, and are heauy and weary of him. The olde man is trauai∣led and grieued with coughing and spit∣ting, and with other griefes, vntill the ashes he resolued into the ashes, & pow∣der into powder. By this space & passing of time and of age Philosophers describe mans lyfe: in which passing of time & of age, man chaungeth and draweth al∣way towarde his ende, and to the gates of death. Huc vsque Isidorus.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Ioh. 19