Phisicke against fortune, aswell prosperous, as aduerse conteyned in two bookes. Whereby men are instructed, with lyke indifferencie to remedie theyr affections, aswell in tyme of the bryght shynyng sunne of prosperitie, as also of the foule lowryng stormes of aduersitie. Expedient for all men, but most necessary for such as be subiect to any notable insult of eyther extremitie. Written in Latine by Frauncis Petrarch, a most famous poet, and oratour. And now first Englished by Thomas Twyne.

Of Nephues. The .lxxviii. Dialogue.

IOY.

I Haue a younge Nephue, borne of my sonne.

Reason.

A great loue of thy sonnes, and a continuall care, notwith∣standyng it hath a certeine ende: but if it passe any further, there is no ende of carefulnesse, and both he that is borne of thy sonne, and he likewyse that shalbe borne of him, finally, all of them, are borne to thy payne, whose number, how farre it procee∣deth, or may proceede, thou knowest. He that was the father of the people of Israel, yf he, beyng affected as thou art, had in suche sort lyued duryng the lyfe cyme of our fyrst fathers, howe great a burden of cares should there haue rested vpon the weeryed olde mens shoulders: For besides Priestes, and women, and chyl∣dren, and other vnhable persons, there sprang of his lyne in fewe yeeres aboue sixe hundred thousande fyghtyng men. Goe thy wayes nowe, and boast thee in the armies of thy Nephues, a∣mong whom yf perhaps there be any happy, there must needes be wretched of them innumerable. What then? ye must neuer∣thelesse not only loue your sonnes and Nephues, but al men al∣so: Ye must loue them, I say, in hym in whom ye be all brethren: notwithstandyng, thou must not be careful, nor to immoderately glad, least presently thou be vexed with contrary affections, and it repeathee sometyme to haue reioyced, and thou be ashamed that thou art constrained to hate hym, being a man, whom thou loue••st dearely somtime when he was a chylde, as it many times happeneth.

Ioy.

I haue a Nephue borne.

Reason.

It may chaunce so to fal out, that either through the wickednesse of thy Nephue, or perhaps the force of fortune, thou wylt cal that an vnhappy day, which now thou thinkest to be fortunate. Yea, per∣aduenture the childe may dye shortly, & so purchase thee as much sorrow, as euer he procured thee ioy. There be many, & diuers, and suddyne, and vnlooked for chaunces, that happen vnto men, but 〈…〉〈…〉 innumerable. If all shoulde lyue that are borne, the 〈…〉〈…〉 not holde mankinde, no though they liued not

continually, for if they should liue continually they were not men, but euen vntyl they came to olde age, or vnto ripe & lawful yeres. Wherfore, it is a follie to conceiue great ioy of a very short thing, and vncertayne to what ende it wyll come, which is found to be true in chyldren and nephues, but specially in nephues, and most especially now in nephues chyldren, the further they be distant from the roote.

Ioy.

I haue nephues borne of my mother, my daughter, and my sister.

Reason.

These appar∣teyne lesse vnto thee, commit this ioy and care vnto their fathers.

Ioy.

I haue a nephue borne of my brother.

Reason.

So was Luca••e nephue vnto Anneus Seneca, who proued to be no smal part of the Spanyshe eloquence, and likewyse Iugurtha vnto Mycipsa kyng of Numidia, who was not the last exam∣ple of the Libyan treacherie, the destroier of his countrey, & mur∣therer of his brethren.

Ioy.

I haue a nepheue borne of my si∣ster.

Reason.

So was Psensipus Nephue vnto Plato on the sisters syde, and in a maner his heire in Philosophie: lyke∣wyse Alcibiades suche a Nephue to Pericles, the disturber of his countrey, and the rayser of the warres in Greece: and Bru∣tus also to Targinius the proude, who threw hym downe from his kingly dignitie, & was a great man, & profitable to his coun∣trey, but vtter enimie to his Vncle.

Ioy.

I haue a Nephue borne of my daughter.

Reason.

Innius, beyng a modest and graue man, was Nephue by the daughter vnto Pacunius, and succeeded hym in Poetrie, and so was Commodus vnto Antonius pius, a most shamelesse and lyght person.

Ioy.

I haue a Nephue borne of my daughter.

Reason.

Romulus and Remus, beyng nephues vnto Numito•• of his daughter, re∣stored theyr grandfather to his kyngdome of Alba. Aucus Martius, beyng Nephue vnto Numa by his daughter, possessed his grandfathers kyngdome at Rome with great honour: But Cyrus that was Nephue vnto Astiages of his daughter, expul∣sed his grandfather out of the kyngdome of the Medes. These Histories are aleaged to this purpose, that concernyng the byrth of nephues, howe muche may be hoped, so muche also may be feared.