Michel de Montaigne

“ Ignatius, the Father and the Sonne, both banished by proscription by the Triumvirs of Rome, resolved on this generous act, to yeeld their lives one into anothers hands, and therebi frustrate the tyrants cruelty. They furiously, with their keene rapiers drawne, ran one against another: Fortune so directed their points that each received his mortall stroke ”

“ The Pope comming thither before his sonne, and calling for some drinke, the butler supposing the wine had beene so carefully commended unto him for the goodnesse of it, immediately presented some unto the Pope, who whilest he was drinking his sonne came in, and never imagining his bottles had beene toucht, tooke the cup and pledged his father, so that the Pope died presently; and the sonne, after he had long time been tormented with sicknesse, recovered to another worse fortune. It somtimes seemeth that when we least think on her, shee is pleased to sport with us. ”

“ Seemeth she not to be a right artist? Constantine, the sonne of Helen, founded the Empire of Constantinople, and so, many ages after, Constantine the sonne of Helen ended the same. She is sometimes pleased to envie our miracles: we hold an opinion, that King Clovis besieging Angoulesme, the wals by a divine favour fell of themselves. ”