French fiction -- Translations into English; Italian fiction -- Translations into English
deuise of the gentle Phisition, in the presence of all his armie, the
mariage was celebrated betwene Stratonica and Antiochus. Afterwards he
crowned them both kinge and Queene of Asia, and with royall pompe and
triumphe, the desired mariage was consummate. The armye hearing and
seing these thinges, very highly commended the pietie of the father
towards his sonne. Antiochus then continued with his welbeloued wife in
ioy and quietnes, liuing together in great felicitie. This was not hee
that for matters of Ægipt did make warres with the Romaines: but he that
onely inferred warres vpon the Gallatians, which out of Europa passed
into Asia, out of which countrie hee chased them, and ouercame them. Of
this Antiochus came Seleucus, which was father of Antiochus surnamed the
great, that attempted very notable warres against the Romaines, and not
his great graundfather, that maried his mother in law. Finally this
Seleucus (of whom I recompt this historie) by giuing his wife to his
sonne, did accomplish a miraculous act, and worthy (in deede) of
sempiternall remembraunce, and greatlye to bee commended therefore, who
although he had achieued infinite victories ouer his enemies, yet there
was none of them all so great as the victorie of himselfe, and his
passions. For certainly Seleucus did vanquish his owne appetites, by
depriuing himselfe of his wife, whom hee loued and esteemed, aboue all
worldly thinges.
THE TWENTY-EIGHTH NOUELL.
_Of the straunge and beastlie nature of Timon of Athens, enemie to
mankinde, with his death, buriall, and Epitaphe._
Al the beastes of the worlde do applye theimselues to other beastes of
theyr kind, Timon of Athens onely excepted: of whose straunge nature
Plutarche is astonied, in the life of Marcus Antonius. Plato and
Aristophanes do report his marueylous nature, because hee was a man but
by shape onely, in qualities hee was the capitall enemie of mankinde,
which he confessed franckely vtterly to abhorre and hate. He dwelt alone
in a litle cabane in the fieldes not farre from Athenes, separated from
all neighbours and company: he neuer wente to the citie, or to any other
habitable place, except he were constrayned: he could not abide any mans
company and conuersation: he was neuer seen to goe, to any mannes house,
ne yet would suffer them to come to him. At the same time there was in
Athenes another of like qualitie, called Apemantus, of the very same
nature, differente from the naturall kinde of man, and lodged likewise
in the middes of the fields. On a day they two being alone together at
dinner, Apemantus said vnto him: “O Timon what a pleasant feast is this,
and what a merie companie are wee, being no more but thou and I.” “Naie
(quoth Timon) it would be a merie banquet in deede, if there were none
here but my selfe.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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