The Garden of Wisdom Book 2, Part 23
¶ Demosthenes.
DEmosthenes ye moste famouse and excellent Dratour amonges the Atheniās, of whō in my former boke I hauehave made mention, on a certayne tyme whyle he was makynge an oration in the parlyament house amonges the commons of Athens, of moste weyghtye thynges belongyng to the common welth & perceyued that the people gaue no eare vntounto him, but rather murmured ayenst him to make him hold his peax he stynted of his oration and sayd he wold brefely telle thē a newe pleasaūt and pratie tale. The people nowe begynnynge to lyfte vp theyr eares attentifely vntounto hym: There was, ꝙ he a certaine yong mā, which had hyred an asse, vponupon whose backe he myght carye certayne stuffe from Athens to Megara. In hys iourney the heate of the daye beyng very feruent (for it was in the middes of somer) bycause he could fynd no shade vnderunder whyche he might defende hym selfe frome the breunynge heate of the sonne, he toke the fardelle downe of the asses backe and sittynge vnderunder the Asse, by thys meanes couered hymselfe wyth the shadow. Which thyng when the Hakeney man whyche did lette hym hys Asse, espyed, (for he went wyth him to brynge home hys asse agayne) he wold in no wyse suffre hym, but pusshed hym awey from vnderunder the shadowe, sayng he hyred not of hym hys asses shadow, but hys asse only. The other contented on the contrary syde, that forasmoche as the shadowe is a thynge so annext & knyt to the bodye that it can not be seuered frome it, he ought by hys bargayne to hauehave also the shadow. Thus betwen these two arose a very sharpe and bytter stryfe, in so moche that at lenght the mater came to strokes gyuing, ye one stiffely affirming that the asses shadow was not hyred, the other as styffely aunswerynge that the shadow also was hyred. At laste they go to lawe togither. When Demosthenes had spoke thys and had perceyued that the people nowe gaue good eare vntounto hym, sodenly he beganne to departe out of the parliamēt house. The Athenians holdyng hym styl and desyering hym to tel vp the rest of hys tale, he smiled and maketh thē thys aunswere. And are ye so desyerouse to heare of an asses shadow, and when I speake of ernest maters ye woll gyue no eare? Cruly I wold wysihe that Christen men myghte not be lykened to these Atheniās. The tales of Robyn hode, of Beues of Hampton, of syre Guy of warwyke wyth suche other fables are gredily redde and red agayne. But the holy Byble of God, whyche treateth of ernest maters, that is to wyt, of our belief in Chryste, of true repentaunce, of the worthy frutes of the same, of the difference betwene Gods lawe, and mans tradition, and of suche other thynges touchyng our gostly helth and saluaciō, we set lytle by, yea we discouragemen and wemē from readinge of it. If we begynne a lytle to talke of scripture, anone we be heretiques. But …long as we cō mon De as…i vmbra, of Robin good felowe, or of the Fayrye we be good Chrystians.
Whē it was laied to his charge that he studied eloquēce vnmeasurably, he thus auoyded thē. In yt I study eloquence I declare yt I am vnderunder awe & law, & yt I wol vse no extort power Contrariwyse they yt despice ye studie of eloquēce be cōmonly suche as loke to rule ye people perforce, & which go about not to persuade mē wt wordes but to cōpelle thē with swordes. Assuredly, I am afrayed, lest amonges Christen men there be not a few whiche in Councelles & assembles seke rather to inforce wt threttes and power thā with approued reasons to parsuade other to agree vntounto them.
The commons of Athens on a tyme requyred Demosthenes that he wolde accuse a certayne person, whyche thynge to do when he refused, the people beganne to crye out (as theyr custome is) ayenste hym as thoughe they wolde hauehave kylled hym. Then Demosthenes rysynge vp, thus began to speake vntounto them. A counsailour ye shall hauehave of me (o ye men of Athens) whether ye woll or not, but a sklaunderour ye shall not make me, though ye wolde. Here is to be noted the excedyng great stomake & honest hart of Demosthenes whom the Commens of Athens (for in them at that tyme was the gouernaunce) could not bowe frō the path of iustice for all theyr manacies. And shall Chrysten mens mouthes then be stopped frō professyng the trouthe or be inforced to speake vntrouthes for heuy lokes?
When Kyng Alexander of Macedonye offered peax vnderunder thys condition vntounto the Athenians, yf they wolde yeld vntounto hym. viij. cititens, amonges whom was Demosthenes, Demosthenes began to tell them a fable of the wolfe, whyche vponupon this condition offered peax to the shepe, yf they wold yelde vp the dogges, by the wolfe he vnderstode Alexander, by the dogges those that then hadde charge of the peoples maters, by the shepe the commons of Athens. This tale of Demosthenes very witty steyed the Athenians to delyuer vp from them theyr wisest coūsailours, which wyth theyr vigilaūcye and prudence might chase away their enemies. Let this fable monysh comonalties what so euer they be, to kepe euer amonges thē some witty & sage Counsaylours agaynst all cyaunces and stormes.
Thys moste eloquent Dratour in his youthe, when he fyrste shulde begynne to exercise the offyce of a common counsaylour, was wonte to say to hys familiares, that knowynge wythin hym selfe howe great enuye, grudge, feare, sdaunder and daūger hangeth ouer hys hedde now approchynge to the ministracion of the cō mon wealth, yf it were in his election to chuse the one of the two, he wolde rather runne to hys death, then go to speake in the parliament house or in iudiciall matters.
Demosthenes for hys hygh eloquence and wyte was I sayd, chosen of the people to be one of theyr Coū saylours, whyche offyce, consydering the nature of the people, he sayde he had leuer forbeare then beare. The respecte of God, the louelove of a mannes countrey maye worke muche. But surely elles, this regard taken away, what man onles he were worse then mad, wold be a Counsaylour to a cō monaltye or chiefe ruler, yf he myght chuse? Yf he beare hym selfe a good man and vpryght in al thynges, hys counsaylle and proceadynge can not please the blynde & ignoraunt multytude, whose iudgemente is euer ouerthwart and croked. Yf he be an euell dysposed man and careth neyther for god nor man (as many be) he shalbe hated & abhorred both of god & man And truly it is very harde to please a multitude, eyther wyth godlynes or wyth worldly policie & wytte, which thynge they knowe wel ynough that hauehave had thexperience. I speake not thys to dyscourage Christen officers and rulers from doynge theyr mynistration, whyche is both godlye and gods owne ordinaunce, as Paule testifyeth, but rather to comforte them in theyr callynge, remembrynge, that the more troublesom a charge it is & subiecte to dyspleasures, enuyes, and grudgynges of the people, the more thanke it deserueth of hym that at length rewardeth all thynges done wyth a symple and pure eye.