their greatness, are ever bemoaning themselves what a life they lead, chanting a quanta patimur: not that they feel it so, but only to abate the edge of envy. But this is to be understood of business that is laid upon men, and not such as they call unto themselves. For nothing increaseth envy more, than an unnecessary and ambitious engrossing of business and nothing doth extinguish envy more, than for a great person to preserve all other inferior officers in their full rights and pre-eminences of their places: for, by that means, there be so many screens between him and envy.

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Above all, those are most subject to envy which carry the greatness of their fortunes in an insolent and proud manner: being never well but while they are showing how great they are, either by outward pomp, or by triumphing over all opposition or competition; whereas wise men will rather do sacrifice to envy, in suffering themselves, sometimes of purpose, to be crossed and overborne in things that do not much concern them. Notwithstanding, so much is true: that the carriage of greatness in a plain and open manner (so it be without arrogancy and vain-glory), doth draw less envy than if it be in a more crafty and cunning fashion. For in that course a man doth but disavow fortune, and seemeth to be conscious of his own want in worth, and doth but teach others to envy him.

Lastly, to conclude this part: As we said in the beginning, that the act of envy had somewhat in it of witchcraft; so there is no other cure of envy but the cure of witchcraft:

'Quanta patimur] How great our troubles are.

To bate,

2 Abate the edge] Blunt the edge, Lat. aciem retundant. or rebate, Fr. battre, to beat down, often signifies, in old authors, to make blunt the edge or point of a weapon. Compare Shakspeare, Ham. iv. 7, 'You may choose a sword unbated;' Love's Lab. Lost, i. I, 'Honour which shall bate his scythe's keen edge;' and Meas. for Meas. i. 4, 'Rebate and blunt his natural edge.'

and that is, to remove the lot1 (as they call it), and to lay it upon another. For which purpose, the wiser sort of great persons bring in ever upon the stage2 somebody upon whom to derive the envy that would come upon themselves: sometimes upon ministers and servants, sometimes upon colleagues and associates, and the like: and, for that turn, there are never wanting some persons of violent and undertaking natures, who, so they may have power and business, will take it at any cost.

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Now, to speak of public envy: There is yet some good in public envy, whereas in private there is none. For public envy is as an ostracism, that eclipseth men when they grow too great; and therefore it is a bridle also to great ones to keep them within bounds.

This envy, being in the Latin word invidia, goeth in the modern languages by the name of discontentment; of which we shall speak in handling sedition. It is a disease in a State like to infection; for as infection spreadeth upon that which is sound, and tainteth it, so, when envy is gotten once into a State, it traduceth even the best actions thereof, and turneth them into an ill odour. And therefore there is little won by intermingling of plausible actions: 5 for that doth argue but a weakness and fear of envy, which hurteth so much the more; as it is likewise usual in infections, which, if you fear them, you call them upon you.

This public envy seemeth to beat chiefly upon principal officers or ministers, rather than upon Kings and Estates themselves. But this is a sure rule, that if the envy upon

To remove the lot] An allusion to crossing spells, by which the doom allotted by witchcraft to one person was transferred to another. 2 Upon the stage] Into public view.

3 For that turn] To serve that turn.

• Undertaking] Venturesome. Lat. temeraria.

• Intermingling, &c.] Intermingling of pleasing and popular actions with those which have excited envy.

the minister be great, when the cause of it in him is small; or if the envy be general, in a manner, upon all the ministers of an Estate; then the envy (though hidden) is truly upon the State itself. And so much of public envy or discontentment, and the difference thereof from private envy, which was handled in the first place.

We will add this in general, touching the affection of envy : that of all other affections it is the most importune1 and continual. For of other affections there is occasion given but now and then; and therefore it was well said, Invidia festos dies non agit,2 for it is ever working upon some or other. And it is also noted, that love and envy do make a man pine, which other affections do not, because they are not so continual. It is also the vilest affection, and the most depraved; for which cause it is the proper attribute of the devil, who is called the envious man, that soweth tares amongst the wheat by night: as it always cometh to pass, that envy worketh subtilly, and in the dark, and to the prejudice of good things, such as is the wheat.

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man.

X. OF LOVE.

The stage is more beholding to love than the life of For as to the stage, love is ever matter of comedies, and now and then of tragedies; but in life it doth much mischief; sometimes like a siren, sometimes like a fury.

1 Of all other affections, &c.] See p. 10 note 4. Importune = importunate; common in Spenser ; see F. Q. II. x. 15, and xi. 7.

2 Invidia festos, &c.] Envy keeps no holidays.

3 The envious man, &c.] Matth. xiii. 25, 'While men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat.'

* Beholding] Held in obligation; indebted. We now say beholden. This is no part of our present verb to behold, but a corrupted form of gehealden, participle of the Anglo-Saxon verb healdan, to hold. form beholding, for beholden, occurs very often in our old literature.

The

You may observe, that amongst all the great and worthy persons whereof the memory remaineth, either ancient or recent, there is not one that hath been transported to the mad degree of love: which shows that great spirits and great business do keep out this weak passion. You must except, nevertheless, Marcus Antonius, the half-partner of the empire of Rome;1 and Appius Claudius, the decemvir and law-giver ; whereof the former was indeed a voluptuous man, and inordinate; but the latter was an austere and wise man and therefore it seems (though rarely) that love can find entrance, not only into an open heart, but also into a heart well fortified, if watch be not well kept. It is a poor saying of Epicurus, Satis magnum alter alteri theatrum sumus: 3 as if man, made for the contemplation of heaven, and all noble objects, should do nothing but kneel before a little idol, and make himself subject, though not of the mouth (as beasts are), yet of the eye, which was given him for higher purposes. It is a strange thing to note the excess of this passion; and how it braves the nature and value of things; by this, that the speaking in a perpetual

The half-partner, &c.] After the death of Julius Cæsar, a triumvirate was formed by Antony, Octavianus, and Lepidus, which was soon reduced to a duumvirate by the retirement of Lepidus. Antony's passion for Cleopatra made him negligent of his most important duties, and ruined his fortunes. He died by suicide in Egypt.

2 Appius Claudius, &c.] Virginius, it is said, killed his own daughter Virginia, to prevent her being dishonoured by Claudius. This is the alleged cause of the downfall of the Decemvirs, who had been employed in framing the code of laws afterwards called 'The Laws of the Twelve Tables.'

3 Satis magnum, &c.] We are to each other a large enough sphere of contemplation. (Seneca, Epist. Moral. i. 7.) Bacon in the Advancement, Bk. I., calls this 'a speech for a lover, and not for a wise man.'

Of the mouth] To be led or governed by the mouth. • Braves] Sets at nought; triumphs over.

6 By this] Lat. Vel hoc ipso. Even in this; insomuch.

hyperbole is comely in nothing but in love. Neither is it merely in the phrase; for whereas it hath been well said, that the arch-flatterer, with whom all the petty flatterers have intelligence,1 is a man's self, certainly the lover is more. For there was never proud man thought so absurdly well of himself as the lover doth of the person loved; and therefore it was well said, that it is impossible to love and be wise. Neither doth this weakness appear to others only, and not to the party loved, but to the loved most of all: except the love be reciproque. For it is a true rule, that love is ever rewarded, either with the reciproque, or with an inward and secret contempt. By how much the more men ought to beware of this passion, which loseth not only other things, but itself. As for the other losses, the poet's relation doth well figure them: that he that preferred Helena, quitted the gifts of Funo and Pallas:4 for whosoever esteemeth too much of amorous affection quitteth both riches and wisdom. This passion hath his floods in the very times of

Lat. conspirant.

'Have intelligence] Are in concert. 2 Is a man's self] It was Plutarch who said, 'Every man is himself the first and greatest flatterer of himself.' So in the 27th Essay, 'There is no such flatterer as is a man's self;' and again in the 53rd Essay, 'He will follow the arch-flatterer, which is a man's self.'

It is impossible, &c.] Amare et sapere vix deo conceditur,' is one of the apophthegms of Publius Syrus. In the Advancement, Bk. II., Bacon says, 'My hope is that, if my extreme love to learning carry me too far, I may obtain the excuse of affection; for that it is not granted to man to love and to be wise.' So Shakspeare, Troil. & Cress. iii. 2—

'For to be wise, and love,

Exceeds man's might; that dwells with gods above.'

He that preferred, &c.] He refers to the judgment of Paris. Ovid, Heroid. xvi. The son of Priam, being chosen arbiter in a dispute as to which of the goddesses, Juno, Minerva, and Venus, was the most beautiful, decided in favour of Venus.

5 His] Its. His is the old neuter possessive. In the Bible its occurs only once (Levit. xxv. 5), and that by a misprint.