The prouerbes of the noble and woorthy souldier Sir Iames Lopez de Mendoza Marques of Santillana with the paraphrase of D. Peter Diaz of Toledo: wherin is contained whatsoeuer is necessarie to the leading of an honest and vertuous life. Translated out of Spanishe by Barnabe Googe.

The Paraphrase.

TO forgeue, and shew mercie to such as offend, we are stirred vp both by the lawe of nature, the holie Scriptures, and the gracious admonition of our Sauiour. The lawe of nature doeth moue vs to bee mercifull, as Seneca in his firste booke of Mercie writeth, and hereof we haue a natu∣rall example in the king of Bees, whom nature hath framed without a sting, hauing taken away his weapon, to the ende hee shoulde be neither fierre, nor cruell, nor a re∣uenger of iniuries, and that men might take examples of these little poore crea∣tures. The Scripture mooueth vs to mer∣cie, as it appeareth in the Epistle of Saint Iames, where he saith, that iudgement shal•• be geuen without mercie, to such as shewe no mercie. Our Sauiour exhorteth vs to mercie, where hee saieth: Blessed are all those that are mercifull, for they shal ob∣teine mercie. The Prouerbe saith, That the punishment of the sword is misliked for if it bee once done, it is past all re∣dresse. And therefore Salust in the Con∣spiracie of Catiline sayeth, that wee ough•• to trie euery way, that may be, before we

come to the sworde, euen as the Phisitions doe, who vseth all the medicines that may be, before they cut of the member. And if so be that Princes may geue sufficient cor∣rection without the death of the offendour, they ought to doe it. For if it be once done, it is to late to say, I woulde it were not.