The Works of William Fowler :: :: University of Virginia Library

I culd no wayes returne my eyes from suche a famous sight,
nor yit conwert thame from these men of manhoode full of might,
When that I hard one say agane, “Looke on thyne other syde,
whair Fame and Praise and brawe renoun with other folk dois byde
By other meanes than vse of armes.” So turning to my left
I Plato first espyed thairin with honour first infeft,
Who in that cleir and cumelie band did nerrest marche these sings,
to whiche he narrest dois approche, to whome the heavinis these brings.
Than nixt to Plato thair did go, so godlie and dewyne,
great Aristotill, replenished with full and high ingyne,
And after him Pithagoras, that homelie first did name
Philosophye evin by the same so worthye of greit fame;
Than Socrates with Zenophon, nixt him that aged Man
To whome the Muses wer his freindis, as Troy and Argus can
With Micen yit resent his pen, who song the long astrayes
and errouris of Laertes sone and boulde Achilles praise;
In hand cam singing on that Mantuan poet brawe,
and strywing which of thame suld first the way and passage hawe;

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The one I spyed whose stepps the grass transformed in a flour,
Mark Cicero, who cleirlie shawes what fruit, what force and power
Hes eloquence and ornat speache, so that these two be thame,
which wer the eyes of Latine toung, hes lightned muche the same.

Than after cam Demosthenes, all in a flame he went,
disparing of the formest place and not with nixt content;
Nixt him was Æshines in preiss, who thair might weill hawe knowen
in what respect his voyce was hoarse and by the other ourthrowen.
I can not weill in ordour tell whome first I saw and when
to follow or yit go afore amangs these leirned men,
For windring at Ten thousand things of that fair trowpe and band,
my eyes and thoughts did both astray and wer not at command.

I Solon saw who of goode lawis establish[t] first the plant
that now soe will manwred Is, and dois hir fruit now want;
With him these other leirned Sax, the grecian sax and wyse,
of whome dois greik so noblye vaunt and yeildis thame first the pryse;
With these I also did behold him whome our countrye men
as chiften had for to conduct thame evin with other Ten,
I Varro meane, the thrid greit light of Romans high ingyne,
whome more that I in face beheld he semed more to shyne.
Crisp. Salust than appered nixt, with him I Liuius spyed,
who frowardlie did him regaird and greitlye him Inwyed.
Whills I thame than did sie, behoulde than quiklye did I sie
Greit Plinius his nighbour nixt and marrow for to be,

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Who tooke more cair to wryte his bookes than to forisee his death,
whom Somma hill with brinstone blasts did stopp his vitall breath.
Than after I Plotinus saw, one learnd of Platois sect,
who trusting secreitlie to liwe did for the same effect
With draw him quietlie apairt with no man to be sene;
bot him his fearse and cruell fates and desteneis did prevene,
Which he contraited in hir wombe from whense he first did come,
so not his foresight him awaild, this was his fatall dome.
Than Crassus, Galba I beheld, Calvus with Pollio,
Hortensius with Antonius, who so in pryde did go
To arme thair toungs and scharpe thair mouthes in Cicerois disgrace,
and searcheing for vnworthie fame did falslye thairs incress.
Thucicides I lykwyse saw that weill distings the place,
the tyme, togeather with the feates, the querrell, and the cace,
And trewlie tellis be whose mens bloode so feirslye shed in store
the barren feildis was fertill maid and fatter then before;
Herodotus I lykwyse saw of all Historiens greik
the father, that thair workis full wreitt and trewlie of thame spak.

And Euclide, geometrien, that dois depaint most sound
Triangls with the quadrat formes, the Circles, and the round;
And Porphir quho aganist the trewth became as hard as stone,
who with his Silogismes vntrew and fals he did compone
Assaild to shake the rockis of treuth, bot in Dialectik quick,
and fild the same with argumentis in number great and thick.
I also saw Hipocrates, both bred and borne in Co,
that more had maid his workis perfyte and far more better so
If that his subtill Aphorisms had weill bene vnderstand.
Appollo than with Æsculap I saw than neir at hand,

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Bot thay war plaist abowe my sight, with tyme war worne away,
so nather by thair face nor name I culd thame know, I say.
Than Galene great of Pergame toun did follow nixt that band,
of whome did hinge that noble art on which our helth dois stand,
That now amangs ws lyis abused, so clene corrupt and waist,
vyle, abiect, and prophaned now, by euerie one disgraist;
Bot in his dayes it wes not so, thought dark it was and short,
Yit furslie he declared of It, and largelie did report.
I feirles Anaxarches saw, of manly port and mynde,
with him Zenocrates the chaist, that nowayes him Inclynde
Vnto infamous vyld attemps, bot thame withstoode eache one,
So that in euerye point he did resemble a solide stone.
Thair followed Archimedes nixt with visage baise on ground,
and Democrit that pansiwe walkt thair in that trowpe was found,
Who with his will and but constraint did with his sight inlake
the light, the gold, the Riches great, whiche he did all forsake;
And Hippia I saw lykwyse, with him ould Gorgeas,
that bouldlye vanted that he knew all thingis that ever was;
And after him Archesilaus of all thingis for to doubt,
and Heraclite within his sworde more planer spokken owt.

Diogenes I also spyed, so doggish in his wordis,
and planer than more plesanter a scuffer in his bwrdis;
And Anaxagoras I beheld who blythelie did regaird
his feildis to ly desert and wyld of which he litill caird,
Whiche he did deme to bring Envye, so that he thame forsooke,
and charged with raches and with skill his raches he did brooke.
Thair Curius Dicearchus was, nixt him wer other thrie,
in discipline most different, and distant in degree,
Quintilianus, Seneca, Plutarchus maist renound,
that so in learning muche exceld as dois thair work resound.

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I saw a rowt of clattering men the seis of Treuthe to storme
with contrare windye argumentis, not to the treuthe conforme,
Who through thair erring vaginge thoughts wer famous maid and cleir,
yit rather by contentioun than wisdome they did leir;
They shuldringlie rusht other owt, togeather they did raill,
as Lyonis two togeather knitt, and Serpentis taill by Taill.
O now quhat bedlem men be these, quhat madlyke fools indeid,
that are content with trifling toyes and further not proceid!
And then I saw Carneades, who was of suche a witt,
and in his studeis so expert, so reddie, prompe, and fitt,
And in his speaches and brawe discourse his toung he had at will,
that skairsly suld one be him knowen the right almost from Ill;
His lyfe so long, his high ingyne, and greit abundant vane
Did mak him than to vndertak with trawell greit and pane
For to accorde these contrare sects that then war at great Iarrs,
whom literall furour did conduct vnto such lasting warrs;
Bot this he culd not weill performe, for evin as arts did grow,
so lykwyse did enwy and stryfe and discord with thame flow,
And with thair knawlege and thair skill, and with thair learned artis,
arayse lykwyse that poysned spark within thair bowdned hartis.
And Epiceur, who wold him self aganis that gratious man,
who raising wpp mans mortall hope, I thair espyed than,
Did prowe his soule Immortall be, that so yit epiceur
that bouldlye spak aganis that man dois now greit shame indeur;
Bot gif he preiss to challenge fame, what can it ellis more be
than borrowing it from Platois stryfe with whome he culd not grie?

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And Lippus thair lykwyse I saw, with him two wer at hand
that to his maister equall war that progrest in that band,
I Methradore with Aristipp do meane, for thease be thay
that in the Epicurien sect wer iudged best that day.

Than did I spye Chrysippus so evin with a woundrous spindill
and with a large and brodest roll his threid & webbs to windill,
Who by greit tyme and high Ingyne did glorious works compose,
and in the same much learned skill did learnedlie disclose.
Than after thair I Zeno spyed, the father of his sect,
and for his ornat clerest speache abowe the rest erect,
Who for to gif more proofe of It this sing and show did giwe,
was opning wpp his hand and palme and falding than his Niwe.
I saw Cleantes, who to stay and stable his intent
did gentlye Weawe his brawest webbs on which he was most bent,
And curiouslye, with earnist cair, to cairfullye prowyid
To mak thair fals opinionis with Verite to byid:
Bot I him leawe heir with the rest who did by fame surmont,
that I more grawe and better things heirafter may recount.

Finis Triumphi famȩ.