ble his abilities; and for that purpose must use to diffemble those abilities which are notorious in him, to give colour that his true wants are but induftries and diffimulations. For Confidence, it is the last but fureft remedy; namely, to deprefs and feem to despise whatsoever a man cannot attain n; obferving the good principle of the Merchants, who endeavour to raise the price of their own commodities, and to beat down the price of others. But there is a confidence that paffeth this other; which is, to face out a man's own defects, in seeming to conceive that he is best in those things wherein he is failing; and, to help that again, to seem on the other fide that he hath least opinion of himself in those things wherein he is best: like as we shall see it commonly in Poets, that if they fhew their verses, and you except to any, they will fay, that that line coft them more labour than any of the reft; and presently will seem to disable and suspect rather fome other line, which they know well enough to be the best in the number. But above all, in this righting and helping of a man's self in his own carriage, he must take heed he shew not himself dif mantled, and exposed to scorn and injury, by too much dulceness, goodness, and facility of nature; but shew some sparkles of liberty, spirit, and edge : which kind of fortified carriage, with a ready refcuing of a man's felf from scorns, is sometimes of neceffity impofed upon men by fomewhat in their perfon or fortune; but it ever fucceedeth with good felicity.

Another precept of this knowledge is, by all poffible endeavour to frame the mind to be pliant and obedient to occafion; for nothing hindereth men's fortunes fo much as this: Idem manebat, neque idem decebat, men are where they were, when occafions turn: and therefore to Cato, whom Livy maketh fuch an Architect of fortune, he addeth, that he had Verfatile Ingenium. And thereof it cometh that these grave folemn wits, which must be like themselves, and cannot make departures, have more dignity than felicity. But in fome it is nature to be somewhat vicious and inwrapped, and not easy to turn; in some it is a conceit, that is almost a nature, which is, that men can hardly make themselves believe that they ought to change their course, when they have found good by it in former experience. For Machiavel noted wisely, how Fabius Maximus would have been temporizing ftill, according to his old bias, when the nature of the war was altered and required hot purfuit. In fome other it is want of point and penetration in their judgment, that they do not difcern when things have a period, but come in too late after the occafion; as Demofthenes compareth the people of Athens to country fellows, when they play in a fence school, that if they have a blow, then they remove their weapon to that ward, and not before. In fome other it is a lothness to lose labours paffed, and a conceit that they can bring about occafions to their ply; and yet in the end, when they fee no other remedy, then they

come to it with disadvantage; as Tarquinius, that gave for the third part of Sibylla's books the treble price, when he might at first have had all three for the fimple. But from whatsoever root or cause this Reftiveness of mind proceedeth, it is a thing moft prejudicial; and nothing is more politic than to make the wheels of our mind concentric and voluble with the wheels of fortune.

Another precept of this knowledge, which hath some affinity with that we last spake of, but with difference, is that which is well expreffed, Fatis accede Deifque, that men do not only turn with the occafions, but also run with the occafions, and not strain their credit or ftrength to over hard or extreme points; but choose in their actions that which is moft paffable: for this will preferve men from foil, not occupy them too much about one matter, win opinion of moderation, please the most, and make a fhew of a perpetual felicity in all they undertake; which cannot but mightily increase reputation.

Another part of this knowledge seemeth to have fome repugnancy with the former two, but not as I understand it; and it is that which Demofthenes uttereth in high terms; Et quemadmodum receptum eft, ut exercitum ducat Imperator, fic et a cordatis viris res ipfæ ducenda; ut quæ ipfis videntur, ea gerantur, et non ipfi eventus tantum perfequi cogantur. For, if we obferve, we fhall find two differing kinds of fufficiency in managing of business: some can make use of occafions aptly and dexter

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oufly, but plot little; fome can urge and pursue their own plots well, but cannot accommodate nor take in ; either of which is very imperfect without the other.

Another part of this knowledge is the obferving a good mediocrity in the declaring, or not declaring a man's felf: for although depth of fecrecy, and making way, qualis eft via navis in Mari, (which the French calleth Sourdes Menées, when men fet things in work without opening themselves at all,) be fometimes both profperous and admirable; yet many times Diffimulatio errores parit, qui dissimulatorem ipfum illaqueant; and therefore, we see the greatest politicians have in a natural and free manner profeffed their defires, rather than been referved and disguised in them: for fo we see that Lucius Sylla made a kind of profeffion, that he wifhed all men happy or unhappy, as they stood his friends or enemies. So Cæfar, when he went first into Gaul, made no fcruple to profefs that he had rather be first in a village, than fecond at Rome.. So again, as soon as he had begun the war, we see what Cicero faith of him, Alter (meaning of Cæfar) non recufat, fed quodammodo postulat, ut, ut est, sic appelletur Tyrannus. So we may see in a Letter of Cicero to Atticus, that Augustus Cæfar, in his very entrance into affairs, when he was a darling of the Senate, yet in his harangues to the people would fwear, Ita parentis honores confequi liceat, which was no lefs than the Tyranny; fave that, to help it, he would stretch forth his hand towards a

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Statue of Cæfar's that was erected in the place: whereat many men laughed, and wondered, and faid, Is it poffible? or, Did you ever hear the like to this and yet thought he meant no hurt; he did it fo handsomely and ingenuously. And all these were prosperous: whereas Pompey, who tended to the fame end, but in a more dark and diffembling manner, as Tacitus faith of him, Occultior, non melior, wherein Salluft concurreth, ore probo, animo inverecundo, made it his defign, by infinite fecret Engines, to cast the state into an absolute Anarchy and confufion, that the state might caft itself into his Arms for neceffity and protection, and so the fovereign power be put upon him, and he never seen in it and when he had brought it, as he thought, to that point, when he was chosen Conful alone, as never any was, yet he could make no great matter of it, because men understood him not; but was fain, in the end, to go the beaten track of getting Arms into his hands, by colour of the doubt of Cæfar's designs: fo tedious, casual, and unfortunate are these deep diffimulations: whereof, it feemeth, Tacitus made his judgment, that they were a cunning of an inferior form in regard of true policy; attributing the one to Auguftus, the other to Tiberius; where, speaking of Livia, he faith, Et cum artibus mariti fimulatione filii bene compofita: for furely the continual habit of diffimulation is but a weak and fluggish cunning, and not greatly politic.

Another precept of this Architecture of Fortune