The enimie of idlenesse teaching the maner and stile how to endite, compose and write all sorts of epistles and letters: as well by answer, as otherwise. Deuided into foure bokes, no lesse plesaunt than profitable. Set forth in English by William Fulwood marchant, &c. The contentes hereof appere in the table at the latter ende of the booke.

An Epistle of Angelus Politianus to Laurencius de Medicis his Vncle.

BAptista Leo Florentius of the most clere and noble family of the Alber∣tins, a man of excellent sprite, of good and depe iudgement, & of exquisite Doctrine, hauing left vnto his posteritie many no∣ble déedes, acts and monuments, conse∣quently & in fine thought good to report vpon .x. bookes speaking of Architecture, or the Scyence of Buylding: the which being amended, corrected and polished, intending to set them forth to light, and to dedicate them vnto thy name, was by fatall ordinance preuented by death and so deceassed. His brother Bernarde, a pru∣dent

man, always myndefull of thée a∣mongst y^e chiefest, to the ende to aduance the memory of so worthy a man, and to render thankes for thy merites on him bestowed: the foresayd bookes written ac∣cording to their true paterns and exam∣ples, and reduced into one volume, doeth offer and present them vnto thee, my good Laurentius: and in very deede he desired that I should commend and adorne with woords the same gift towards thée, & also towardes the authour thereof, Baptista Leo. The which I haue not thought good to doe in any case, to the ende y^t through the defaulte of my vnderstanding, I di∣minishe not the praises of a man so ex∣cellent, and of a worke so well brought to passe and finished: for vnto that wor∣thy worke shall come more honour and renowne by the learning and reading of it, than by any woordes wherewith I am able to set forth the prayses thereof, fea∣ring and douting the difficulties of the Epistle, and douting also the imbecillitie and weakenesse of our Oration: for vn∣to any man not ignorant of the perfecti∣on

and integritie of the remoued Let∣ters, and of the secrete and hidde dis∣cipline, it myght bée doubted whether his speache and stile doeth more touch the Arte of Oratorie, or of Poetrie, whether it bée more graue or Ciuill. In this order he hath folowed the true trace of the Antiquitie, in such sorte that hée hath by sense comprehended and reduced into example, not onely the reasons of the auncyent Buyl∣ders, their engyns and instrumentes to woorke withall, but also hath won∣derfully excogitated and published the formes and styles of Buildings: yea and besydes this, hée was also a good Paynter, and a cunning Caruer. How∣beit it in the meane tyme hee ordred all thinges according to true proportion and mesure, in such sorte that all people myght report of him singular and wor∣thy things, so that I iudge and sup∣pose, that I were better to bée silent than to speake to little, euen as Saluste sayed of Carthage. To this booke there∣fore,

O Laurentius) thou shalt attri∣bute most principall and chiefest place in thy Lybrarie, and shalt reade it di∣ligently: and shalte take care to publishe it commonly: for it is worthy to passe often by the mouthes of expert and lear∣ned men, yea it is a fauorer and a ve∣ry patrone of learning, amongst all men lyuing now falne vnto thy lorte. Fare∣wel.