Write a special treatise to describe the movements of four-footed
animals, among which is man, who in his childhood also walks on four
feet.
[Sidenote: Fragment of a Letter]
120.
There is one who having promised me much less than his due, and being
disappointed of his presumptuous desire, has tried to deprive me of all
my friends; and finding them wise and not pliable to his will, he has
threatened me that he would bring accusations against me and alienate
my benefactors from me: hence I have informed Your Lordship of this, so
that this man, who wishes to sow the usual scandals, may not find a
soil fit for sowing the thoughts and deeds of his evil nature; and that
when he tries to make Your Lordship the tool of his infamous and
malicious nature he may be disappointed of his desire.
[Sidenote: Giacomo of Pupil of Leonardo]
121.
On the 23d of April, 1490, I began this book; and started again on the
horse. Giacomo came to live with me on Saint Mary Magdalen's day in
1490; {49} he was ten years old. He was a thief, a liar, obstinate,
and a glutton. On the second day I had two shirts made for him, a pair
of socks and a jerkin, and when I placed the money aside to pay for
these things, he stole it out of the purse and I could never force him
to confess the fact, though I was quite certain of it--4 lire. On the
following day I went to sup with Giacomo Andrea, and this same Giacomo
supped for two and did mischief for four, since he broke three bottles,
spilled the wine, and after this came to sup where I... Item: on the
7th of September he stole a silver point, worth twelve soldi, from
Marco, who was living with me, and took it from his studio; and when
Marco had looked for it for some time he found it hidden in Giacomo's
box--lire 1, soldi 2. Item: on the 26th of the following January,
being in the house of Messer Galeazzo di San Severino, in order to
arrange the festivity of his joust, and certain henchmen having
undressed to try on the costumes of rustics who were to take part in
the aforesaid festivity, Giacomo took the purse of one of them, which
was on the bed with other clothes, and stole the money he found in
it--2 lire, 4 soldi. Item: Maestro Agostino of Padua gave me while I
was in the same house a Turkish hide to have a pair of shoes made of
it, and Giacomo stole this from me within a month and sold it to a
cobbler for 20 soldi, with which money by his own confession he bought
sweets of aniseed. Item: {50} again, on the 2d of April, Giovanni
Antonio left a silver point on one of his drawings, and Giacomo stole
it; it was worth 24 soldi,--1 lire, 4 soldi. The first year a cloak, 2
lire; six shirts, 4 lire; three doublets, 6 lire: four pairs of socks,
7 lire, 8 soldi.
122.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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