Ho so doeth maruaile at the beautée and good-
ly colour of the redde Rose, he must consider the
blood, that came out of Uenus the Goddes foot.
The Goddes Uenus, as foolishe Poetes dooe
feigne, beyng the aucthour of Loue: loued Ado-
nis the soonne of Cynara kyng of Cypres. But Mars called
the God of battaile, loued Uenus, beyng nothyng loued of
Uenus: but Mars loued Uenus as feruently, as Uenus lo-
ued Adonis. Mars beyng a God, loued Uenus a goddes, but
Uenus onely was inflamed with the loue of Adonis, a mor-
tall man. Their loue was feruent, and exremely set on fire
in bothe, but their kinde and nature were contrary, wherev-
pon Mars beyng in gelousie, sought meanes to destroie, faire
amiable, and beautifull Adonis, thinkyng by his death, the
loue of Uenus to be slaked: Adonis and Mars fell to fighting
Uenus as a louer, ranne to helpe Adonis her louer, and by
chaunce she fell into a Rose bushe, and pricked with it her
foote, the blood then ran out of her tender foote, did colour the
Rose redde: wherevpon the Rose beyng white before, is v-
pon that cause chaunged into redde.
[¶] Chria.
Hria, this profitable exercise of Rhetorike, is for the
[porfite] of it so called: it is a rehersall in fewe wordes,
of any ones fact, or of the saiyng of any man, vpō the
whiche an oracion maie be made. As for example, Isocrates
did say, that the roote of [learnng] was bitter, but the fruictes
pleasaunt: and vpon this one sentence, you maie dilate a am-
ple and great oracion, obseruyng these notes folowyng. The
saiyng dooeth containe so greate matter, and minister soche
plentie of argumente.
Aucthors intreatyng of this exercise, doe note three sortes
to bee of theim, one of theim a Chria verball, that is to saie, a
profitable exercise, vpon the saiyng of any man, onely con-
teinyng the wordes of the aucthour, as the sentence before.
The seconde is, conteinyng the facte or deede of the per-
sone: As Diogines beyng asked of Alexander the Greate, if
he lacked any thyng, that he was able to giue hym, thinkyng
his demaūde vnder his power, for Diogenes was at thesame
tyme warmyng hymself in the beames of the Sunne: Dio-
genes aunswered, ye take awaie that, that ye are not able to
giue, meanyng that Alexander by his bodie, shadowed hym,
and tooke awaie that, whiche was not in his power to giue,
Alexander tourned hymself to his men, and saied, if I were
not Alexander, I would be Diogenes.
The thirde is a Chria mixt, bothe verball and notyng the
facte, as Diogenes seyng a boie wanton & dissolute, did strike
his teacher with a staffe, vtteryng these woordes: why dooest
thou teache thy scholer so dissolutlie.
You shall learne to make this exercise, obseruyng these
notes.
Firste, you shall praise the aucthour, who wrote the sen-
tence, waighing his life, if his life be vnknowen, and not easie
to finde his sentence or sentences: for godlie preceptes will
minister matter of praise, as if these saiynges bee recited, thei
are sufficient of them selues, to praise the aucthour.