Agathon, he whose counsel wise To princes weal extended, By good advice unto a prince Three things he hath commended First is, that he hath government, And ruleth over men; Secondly, to rule with laws, Eke justice (saith he) then; Thirdly, that he must well conceive, He may not always reign: Lo, thus the rule unto a prince Agathon squared plain. Tully the wise, whose sapience In volumes great doth tell, Who in wisdom in that time Did many men excel, A prince (saith he) is of himself A plain and speaking law, The law, a schoolmaster divine, This by his rule I draw. The sage and witty Seneca His words thereto did frame; The honest exercise of kings, Men will ensue the same. But contrary-wise, if that a king Abuse his kingly seat, His ignomy and bitter shame In fine shall be more great. In Persia there reign’d a king, Who Cyrus hight by name, Who did deserve, as I do read, The lasting blast of fame: But he, when sisters three had wrought To shear his vital thread, As heir due to take the crown, Cambyses did proceed; He in his youth was trained up By trace of virtue’s lore, Yet (being king) did clean forget His perfect race before. Then cleaving more unto his will, Such vice did imitate, As one of Icarus his kind, Forewarning then did hate; Thinking that none could him dismay Ne none his facts could see; Yet at the last a fall he took, Like Icarus to be. Else as the fish, which oft had take The pleasant bait from hook, In safe did spring, and pierce the streams, When fisher fast did look, To hoist up from the wat’ry waves Unto the dried land, Then scap’d, at last by subtle bait Come to the fisher’s hand: Even so this king Cambyses here, When he had wrought his will, Taking delight the innocent His guiltless blood to spill; Then mighty Jove would not permit To prosecute offence, But what measure the king did meet, The same did Jove commence. To bring to end with shame his race, Two years he did not reign: His cruelty we will dilate, And make the matter plain; Craving that this may suffice now, Your patience to win: I take my way; behold, I see The players coming in. FINIS. A COMEDY OF KING CAMBYSES. _First enter_ CAMBYSES _the king_, KNIGHT, _and_ COUNCILLOR. CAMBYSES.