University of Virginia Library

A. Diplomatic Edition of the Emmanuel College Fragment

[Far] lenger place to my reasons, seyng that euen so as ye cō ║ playne of vs, ye also cōplayne of your owne honours, ║ gyuyng occasyon that your fawtes may be manyfest ║ to all the worlde / whiche as yet are vnknowen to mo= ║ che people. This sayd by Affranio, Hortensia in this ║ wyse as foloweth dyde begyn. ║

I(5) Perceyue you Affranio so very cruell, & vnto ║ vs so coniured an hole enmy, that yf ye were ║ assured yt trouth shold be dryuen out of ye worl ║ de / & faythe loste & dystroyed / & the chyrches ║ defoyled / moche sooner wolde ye consent to ye ║ ruyne of heuen & erthe, than ye wolde [a]bsteyne your ║ odyo[u]s purpose of say[i]ng euyll by women. yet by as ║ moche as though your subtyl speche doth surmoūt me ║ in dysputaciō, your euydent coleryke enuy is sufficiēt ║ to abate the weyght of your wordes / & to ma[ke them] ║ lyght & wtout credence. And yet if yt women durst deny ║ without shame that men are ye purchasers in louyng, ║ I am sure yt your secrete conscyence within you repro= ║ ueth you, & maketh you to thynke all the contrary / ad ║ monysshing you of the manyfolde gracious requestes ║ that ye can make, that whyther we wyll or not it be= ║ houeth vs to yelde as ouercome. wherfore yf in flate= ║ ryng vs thus ye can fynde wordes to deceyue vs, it is ║ no wonder yf in dyspreysynge vs, ye be inuentyf by ║ your reasons for to confoūde vs. But for all that these ║ your audacyous facyons be not gretely to be alowed, ║ in that our ferefull dulnesse and your extreme knowle ║

ge doth make a lesyng seme to be true. And yet though ║ I dyde nothyng but holde my peas, wtout doubt sym= ║ plenesse whiche is subgect to many wronges & outra= ║ [F2v] ge oughte to be worthy of supportacion, for bycaus[e] ║ that who that hath leest knowlege & vnderstandyng, ║ sholde take councell of them yt be more dyscrete and pru ║ dent. The whiche we do whan we ygnourauntly fay ║ lyng, beleue the coūcell of you yt ought to be ye wysest, ║ in suche wise that ye of all the ygnoraunt errour be vn ║ to thē the cause, which as dishonest you do disdayne. |[ By this reason vnto you of whome all the euyll pro= ║ cedeth double blame ought to be imposed / & nat with= ║ standynge your counsell, yet happeneth it often vnto ║ them that insueth it, that before the parfyte agremēt ║ they fele a meruaylous difference betwene the reason ║ and the affecc[y]on / but for what purpose shuld it serue ║ me to brynge forth reasōs and [t]o argue agaynst them ║ that for them and in theyr fauoure hathe approued & ║ made the lawes and all the ordynaunces. what con= ║ [stitucyon may I allege] vnto vnreasonable [p]sons whi ║ che wyll nat receyue reason, & the whiche hath made ║ the statutes vnto their owne aduauntage, contrarye ║ vnto vs theyr mortall enemyes. And therfore nat so ║ as ye ought you wold haue it, but euen so as it semeth ║ best vnto youre pleasure wt thinfamye of your fautes ║ you do vs blame & sclaūder, and yet more wolde ye do | hauynge none that wolde withsaye you / in asmoche | as we nat beynge of auctoryte to ordayne, nor can nat ║ alege ye lawe accordyng vnto our ryght, nor we haue ║ none that in our fauer wyll wryte, but you that haue ║ the penne in the hande as it pleaseth you so do you dis= ║ pose and wryte. wherfore who that suffereth nat, ║ beynge of power to do any other thing than to suffre, ║ is more rather strengthed than vaynquesshed / and it ║ foloweth nat for all that that in the malyce of youre