Chapter 3

IOhan Picus of the faders syde descended of the worthy lynage of themperoure Constantyne by a neuew of the sayd Emperour called Picus by whom all the Auncestres of this Iohn̄ Picus vndoubtedly bere that name. But we shal let his auncestres passe to whome (though they were ryght excellent) he gaue agayne as moche honour as he receyued. And we shal speke of hym selfe rehersynge in parte his lernynge and his vertue. For these be the thynges whiche maye accompte for our owne / of whiche euery man is more proprely to be cōmēded then of ye noblenes of his auncestres: whose honoure maketh vs not honorable. For eyther they were them selfe vertuouse or not: yf not / then had they none honour them selfe had they neuer so grete possessyons: for honoure is the rewarde of vertue. And how may they clayme the rewarde yt proprely longeth to vertue: yf they lak the vertue that ye rewarde longeth to. Then yf them selfe had none honour: how myght they leue to theyr heyres y• thynge whiche they had not them selfe / on y• other syde yf they be vertuous & so cōsequently honorable / yet maye they not leue theyr honoure to vs as enheretaunce: no more then the vertue that them self were honourable for. For neuer the more noble be we for theyr noblenes: yf our selfe lak those thynges for which they were noble. But rather the more worshipful that our auncestres were / the more vile and shamfull be we: yf we declyne from ye steppes of theyr worshypfull lyuynge: y• clere beauty of whose vertue makith the darke spotte of our vyce the more euydently to appere & to be ye more marked. But Picꝰ of whom we speke was him selfe so honorable / for ye grete plentuouse habundaūce of all suche vertues / ye possessyon wherof very honoure foloweth (as a shadowe folowith a body) y• he was to all them y• aspyre to honour a very spectacle in whose cōdycyons as in a clere pullished myrrour they myght beholde in what poyntes very honour stondeth: whose merueylous connynge & excellente vertue though my rude lernynge be ferre vnable suffyciently to expresse: yet for as moche as yf no mā sholde do hit but he yt might sufficiently do hit: no man sholde do hit / & better it were to be vnsufficiētly done then vtterly vndone. I shal therfore as I can brefely reherse you his hole lyfe: at the leest wyse to gyue some other man here after (yt can do hit better) occasyon to take hit in hande when hit shall happely greue hym to se the lyfe of suche an excellent connyng man so ferre vnkonnyngly wryten