¶ The solucion.
Fortunne herein is to bee blamed, and not mariage, if a-
ny misfortune happeneth to manne therein, the felicitée and
Eleccion in
Mariage. quiet state that any man enioieth thereby. The discrete elec-
cion is therein approued, in the state it self, nothyng can bee
founde worthie reprehension, if a man will impute the bit-
ter stormes of life to mariage: [whatseouer] happeneth, our
owne reason maie iudge contrary. Place before thy iyes all
the affaires, and occupacions of this life, bee all tymes plea-
saunte to the housebande man, many a colde storme perceth
his bodie, and many a mightie tempeste, dooeth molest hym
and greue hym. Sommer is not the tyme, to caste his seede in
the grounde, or implowyng to occupie hymself: shall he ther-
fore leaue his housebandrie, or doeth he rather neclecte it, his
diligence therein is the more, and labour more industrious.
From whence commeth the tempeste, the stormes and bitter
seasons? From his house, from his wife, from his art and oc-
cupacion, all those thynges by violence are expelled from the
aire. No state of life is able to giue riches, healthe, or securitée
Emperours. to his state. There hath been princes and Emperours, nedie,
full of infirmitées and sickenes, in daungerous state, oppres-
sed with many calamitées: was their dignitie and office, the
cause of their calamitées? No, God tempreth the state of eue-
ry one, how, and after what sorte to possesse thesame. Some
Mariage. are fulle fortunate in Mariage, if Mariage were of necessitée
the cause, then all should be onely fortunate, or onely vnfor-
tunate: then in mariage is not the cause, if in marige the ma-
ners doe disagrée, and loue is extinguished, blame thyn own
The Mari-
ners. maners, thy choise, and thy eleccion. The Mariner that pas-
seth the daungerous Seas, and by dreadfull tempestes, and
huffyng waues is alwaies in perille, and many often tymes
The Mar-
chauntes. drouned. The Marchaunt lesyng his marchaundise by ship-
wrack, shall thei impute the daunger and losse, to their wife
at home? Or doe the Mariners leaue for all these tempestes,
their arte of Nauigacion? Or the owner breake his shippe?
Or the Marchaunt proue no aduentures, because of his losse,
and many haue been of this sort drouned. No. But more ear-
Warre. nestlie thei dooe assaie theim selues thereto. Because warre
spoileth many a man of his life, doe Princes therefore, leaue
to moue armour againste the enemie, but because, who so in
the defence of his countrée, dieth manfullie, is worthelie ad-
uaunced, and in perpetuall memorie, no daunger is refused,
because euill thynges happeneth in life, is the state of good
thynges to be auoided and eschued. Were it not vnsemelie,
if housebande men, for no storme or tempeste, doe leaue their
state, their laborious and rough cōdicion of life, nor the ship-
man his arte of Nauigacion, because he seeth many drouned
venteryng thesame, and he hymself often tymes in daunger,
nor the soldiour or capitain, their perilous condicion of life,
doe leaue for daunger. Should Mariage bée lesse sette by, be-
cause alwaies riches and quietnes happeneth not.
¶ The obieccion.
The losse of a good wife and children, is a greate grefe to
any man, and a cause to blame mariage.
¶ The aunswere.
The lawe of
Nature. You your self are borne to dye, thei also by death obaye
likewise Nature, this is the Lawe of Nature ones to dye,
whiche you séeme to blame. Then the death of thy wife and
childrē, is not the blame in Mariage. What is the cause that
you dye? Natures imbecillitée and weakenes, then in theim[.]
Mariage is not the cause: Nature in her firste molde hath so
framed all, wherefore doe you ascribe that to mariage, that
is founde faultée in Nature. Thei die that marie not, what
infirmitie, daunger or peril happeneth to any in mariage, as
sharpe and perilous, doe molest and torment the other. If any
manne by death, leaseth a right honeste wife, clothed with all
chastitée, demurenesse, sobrietée, and also with all singulari-
tée of vertue adorned: he hath loste a rare treasure, a iewell of
A chaste wo-
man. price, not in all to bee founde. Did you loue your wife, that
was so goodlie, so honeste and vertuous: there was greate
cause saie you, for her vertuous sake, God hath chosen her frō
a mortall creature, to immortalitée, with her it can not bée
better. There is no cause why you should blame mariage,
for the losse of her, or of thy children, or for the losse of thee,
she to blame mariage. If for thy owne sake, this sorowe bee,
Est seipsum amantis non amici, it is then of a self loue, to thy
self, not for her cause: for I muste aunswere as Lelius did to
Affricanus, Cum ea optime esseactū quis neget, quid est quod
nō assecuta est immortalitatem. Who can deny saieth he, but
that with her it can not bee better? What is it that she hath
not attained. Immortalitée. She was vertuous, chaiste, so-
ber, descrete, of behauiour womanlie: for her vertues belo-
ued. Well, now she hath immortalitee and blesse, are you so-
rie thereat, that were enuious. Did you loue her liuyng, loue
her also departed, her vertuous shewed vnto vs, her immor-
talitée.
¶ The obieccion.
There is a care for the wife and children, if the housband
dye before theim.
¶ The aunswere.
A wretched
executour. If thou leaue them riches, hope not that thy riches shalbe
a staie to theim, though thei bee innumerable: a wretched, a
miserable executour, wasteth and destroieth oftentymes, the
fruictes of thy trauaile, who reioyseth more of thy death, then
of thy life. Or thy childrens father in Lawe, shall spoile and
Gods pro-
uidence. spende with a merie harte, that whiche thou haste long [tera-
uailed] for. Staie thy self and thyne vpon Gods prouidence,
for it hath been seen, many a riche widowe, with infinite
treasure lefte, to her children also like porcions descendyng:
afterwarde bothe wife and children, haue been brought to
miserie and beggerlie state. Otherwise, poore children com-
mitted to the prouidence of God, and vertuouslie brought vp,
and the wife in like state, yet thei haue so passed their daies,
that thei haue rose to a goodlie state. See that thy richesse bée
not iniuriouslie gotten by falshode, by liyng, by Usurie, if it
so be, then Male parta male [dilabuntnr]. That is this, gooddes
euill gotte, euill spente, soche riches neuer giue déepe roote
to their ofspryng. That is an euill care, by a iniurious care,
to purchase thynges and gooddes wickedlie.