Thomas More to Peter Giles sēdeth gretynge

I Am almoste ashamed, right welbeloued Peter Giles, to sēde vnto you this boke of y• vtopian commen wealth, welnigh after a yeares space, which I am suer you loked forwithin a moneth & a half. And no marueil. For you knewe welenough, that I was already disbourdened of all y• labour & study belō ging to the inuention in this work, and that I had no nede at all to trouble my braynes about the dispositiō, or cōueyaunce of the matter: & therfore had her in nothing els to do, but only to rehearse those thinges, which you a[…]d I togethers hard maister Raphaell tel and declare. Wherefore there was no cause whie I shold study to setforth y• matter with eloquēce: for asmuch as his talke cold not be fine & eloquent, being firste not studied for, but sodein and vnpremeditate, and then, as you know, of a m[…] ̄ better sene in the greke language, then in the latine tong. And my writing, the nigher it shold approche to his homely playne, and simple speche, somuch the […]igher shold it go to the trueth: whiche is the only marke, wherunto I do and ought to direct all my trauail and study herin. I graunt and confesse, frende Peter, meself discharged of somuch labour hauing all thies thinges, redy done to my hand, that almoost there was nothing lefte for me to do. Elles other the inuention, or the disposition of this matter might haue requyred of a witte nother base, nother at all vnlearned bothe some time & leasure, and also some studye. But yf yt were requysyte, and necessary, that the matter shoulde also haue bene wryten eloquentelye, and not alone truelye: of a suerty that thynge coulde I haue perfourmed by no tyme nor studye. But nowe seynge all thyes cares, stayes, and lettes were taken awaye, wherin elles somuche laboure and studye shoulde haue bene employed, and that there remayned no other thynge for me to doo, but onelye to wryte playnlye the matter as I hard it spoken: that in dede was a thynge lyghte and easye to be done. Howe beit to the dyspatchynge of thys so lytell b[…] synes my other cares and troubles did leaue almooste lesse, then no leasure.

Whyles I doo daylye bestowe my tyme abowte lawe matters: some to pleade, some to heare, some as an arbytratour wyth myne awarde to determyne▪ some as an vmpier or a iudge with my sentence finallye to discusse. Whiles I go one way to see and visite my frend: an other way about mine owne priuat affaires. Whiles I spend almost al the day abrode emonges other, and the residue at home among mine own: I leaue to meselfe, I meane to my boke no time. For when I am come home, I muste commen with my wife, chatte with my chyldren, and talke wyth my seruauntes. All the whyche thynges I reke[…] and accompte emonge busynes, forasmuche as they muste of necessytye be done: and done muste they nedes be, oneles a man wyll be a straunger in hys owne howse. And in any wyse a man muste so fassyon and order hys condytyons, and so appoynte and dyspose hym selfe, that he be merye, iocunde, and pleasaunte amonge them, whome eyther nature hath prouyded, or chaunce hathe made, or he hymselfe hathe chosen to be the fellowes, and companyons of hys lyfe: so▪ that wyth to muche gentle be hauyoure and famylyaryte he doo not marre them, and by tomuche sufferaunce of hys seruauntes make them hys maysters. Emonge thyes thinges nowe rehearsed stealethe awaye the daye, the moneth, the yeare. Whe[…] doo I wryte then? And all thys whyle haue I spoken no woorde of slepe, nother yet of meate, whyche emonge a greate number doth waste no lesse tyme, then dothe slepe, wherin almooste halfe the lyfe tyme of ma[…] crepethe awaye. I therefore doo wynne and gette onelye that tyme, whyche I steale from slepe and meate. Whyche tyme bycause yt ys verye littell, and yet somwhat it is, therfore haue I ones at the last, thoughe it be longe first, finished Vtopia, and haue sent it to you frende Peter to reade and peruse: to the intent that if anye thynge haue escaped me, you might putte me in remembraunce of it. For though in this behalf I do not greatly mistruste meself (whiche woulde God I were somewhat in witte and learnyng, as I am not all of the wor[…]e and dullest memory) yet haue I not so great trust and confidence in it, that I thinke nothing could fall out of my mynde. For Iohn Clement my boye, who as you knowe was there present with vs, whome I suffer to be awaye from no talke, wherin may be anye profit or goodnes (for out of this yong bladed & newe shotte vp corne, whiche hath alredy begonne to sprynge vp bothe in Latine & Greke learnynge, I looke for plentiful increase at length of goodly rype grayne) he I saye hath brought me into a greate doubte. For wheras Hythlodaye (oneles my memory fayle me) sayde that the bridge of Amaurote, whiche goeth ouer the riuer of Anyder is fyue hu[…] dreth paseis, that is to saye, half a […]yle in lengthe: my Ihon sayeth that […]. hundred of those paseis must be plucked awaye▪ for that the ryuer conteyneth there not aboue thre hundreth paseis in bredthe. I p[…]ye yow hartely calle the matter to youre remembraū ce. For if you agree with hym, I also wyll saye as you saye, and confesse me selfe deceaued. But if you cannot remember the thynge, then suerly I wyl write as I haue done, and as myne owne remembraunce serueth me. For as I will take good hede that there be in my booke nothyng fal[…]e, so if there […]e any thynge in doubte▪ I wyll rather tell a lye then make a lye: bicause I had be good thē wise rather. Howbeit this matter maye easely be remedied, if you wyll take the paynes▪ to aske the question of Raphaell himselfe by worde of mouthe, if he be nowe with you, or els […] youre letters. Which you must nedes▪ do for an other doubte also, whiche hath chaunced, throughe whoes faulte I cannot tell▪ whether through[…] […]yne or youres or Raphaels. For neither we remembred to enquire of hym, nor he to tell vs in what parte of that […]we worlde Vtopia is situate. The whiche thinge, I had rather haue spent no small somme of money, then that it should thus haue escaped vs: aswell for that I am ashamed to be ignoraunt in what sea that Ilande stādeth, wherof I write so longe a treatyse, as also because there be with vs certayne men, a[…]d especially one deuoute and godly man▪ a[…]d a professour of diuinitie, who is excedynge desierous to go vnto Vtopia: not for a vayne and curious desiere to see newes, but to the intent he may[…] further and increase oure religion whiche is there already luckely bego[…]e. And that he may the better accomplyshe and perfourme this his good intent, he is mynded to procure that he maye be sent thether of the byshoppe, yea and that he hymselfe may be ma[…]e bishop of Vtopia: beynge nothynge scrupulous: herein, that he must obteyne this byshopricke with suete. For he counteth that a godly […], whiche procedeth not of the desiere of honour or lucre, but only of a godly zeale. Wherfore I moste earnestly desyere you, frende Peter, to talke with Hythlodaye, if you can, face to face, or els to wryte youre letters to hym, and so to worke in this matter, that in this my booke there maye neyther any thynge be founde whiche is vntrue, neither any thinge be lacking, whiche is true. And I thinke verely it shalbe well done that you shewe vnto hym the booke it selfe. For if I haue myssed or fayled in any poynte, or if any faulte haue escaped me, no man can so well correcte and amende it, as he can: and yet that can he not do, oneles he peruse and reade ouer my booke writtē. Moreouer by this meanes shal you perceaue, whether he be well wyllynge and contente that I should vndertake to put thys worke in wryting. For if he be mynded to publyshe and putforth his owne labours and trauayles hymselfe, perchaunce he would be lothe, and so would I also, that i[…] publyshynge the Vtopiane weale publyque, I shoulde preuente, and take from hym the flower and grace of the noueltie of this his historie. Howbeit, to saye the verie truthe, I am not yet fully determined with meselfe, whether I wyll put forth my booke or no. For the nat[…]res of men be so diuers, the phantasies of some so wayewarde, theire myndes so vnkynde, theire iudgementes so corrupte, that they which leade a merie and a iocounde lyfe, followinge theire owne sensuall pleasures and carnal lustes, maye se[…]e to be in a muche better state or case, thē they that vexe and vnquiete thēselfes with cares and studie for the putty[…]ge forth and publyshynge of some thynge, that maye be either profett or pleasure to other: whiche neuertheles wyl disdaynfully, scornefully, & vnkyndly accepte thesame. The moste parte of al be vnlearned. And a great numbre hath learnynge in contempte. The rude & barbarous alloweth nothynge but that which is verie barbarous in dede. If it be one that hath a lytell smacke of learnynge, he reiecteth as homely and commen ware whatsoeuer is not […] full of olde […]oughteate[…] wordes, and that be worne out of vse. Some there be that haue pleasure onely in olde rustie antiquities. And some onely in theire owne doinges▪ One is so sowre, so crabbed, and so vnpleasaunt, that he can awaye with no myrthe nor sporte. An other is so narrow in y• sholders, that he can beare no iestes nor […]awntes. Some […] poore soules be so aferd that at euery s[…]appishe worde theire nose shalbe bitten of, that they stande in no lesse drede of euerye quicke and sharpe worde, then he that is bytten of a madde dogge feareth water. Some be so mutable and waueryng, that euery houre they be in a newe mynde, sainge one thynge syttynge, and an other thynge standy[…]ge. An other sorte sytteth vpon theire allebencheis, & there amonge theire cuppes they geue iudgement of the wittes of wryters, & with greate aucthoritie they condemne eue[…] as pleaseth the[…] euery wryter accordyng to his writinge: in moste spiteful maner mockynge, lowtynge, and […]l[…]wtynge them: beynge themselfes in the […] […]eason […]a[…]ffe, and as sayth the prouerbe, out of all daunger of go[…]neshotte. For whye they be so […] & smoethe, that they haue not somuch as […]ne heare of an honest man, whereby one may take holde of them. There be moreouer some so vnkynde and vngen […]ell, that thoughe they take great pleasure and delectation in the worke, yet for al that they can not fynde in theire hartes to lo[…]e the authour therof, nor to aforde hym a good worde: beynge muche lyke vncosrteis, vnthankefull, and chourlishe guestes. Whiche whē they haue with good and deyutie mea […]es well filled theire bellyes, departe home geuynge no thankes to the feaste maker. Go youre wayes nowe & make a costly feaste at youre owne charge is for guestes so dep[…]tie mouthed, so dy […]ers in taste, and bisydes that of so vnkynde and vnthankefull natures. But neuertheles frende Peter do I praye you with Hythlodaye as I willed you before. And as for this matter, I shalbe at my lybertie afterwardes to take newe aduisement. Howebeit, seynge I haue taken great pay[…]es and laboure in wrytynge the matter, if it may stande with hys mynde & pleasure, I wyll as touchinge the edition or publishing of the booke, followe the counsell and aduise of my frendes, and specially yours. Thus fare you well ryght hartely beloued frende Peter, with youre gentell wyfe: and loue me as you haue euer done, for I loue you better then euer I dyd.