himselfe, and to keepe a bountifull and liberall house. His
table and port was very delicate and Sumptuous, and hys Stable
stored wyth many fayre Horsse, in all poynctes sheewinge
himselfe very Noble and rich: by which sodayne chaunge of state,
the whole Citty beleeued that he had brought that wealth from
Rome. And bicause it is the common opinion of the vulgar sort,
that where there is no riches, there is no nobility, and that
they alone make men noble and gentle (a foolyshe Opinion in
deede proceedinge from heads that be rash and light) the people
markynge that porte and charge kept by the Souldiour, conceyued
that he was of some noble house. And throughout the whole Citty
great and solemne honour was done vnto him: whereupon the young
Gentleman, with whom Elisa was in loue, began to bee ashamed of
himselfe, that he had disdayned the mayden. Whych mayden seeing
hir Father's house to be in sutch reputation, made sute to her
father, that he would procure the Gentleman to bee hir husband.
But hir father wylled hir in any wyse to keepe secret hir
desire, and not to seeme her selfe to bee in loue, and wysely
tolde hir, that more meete it was that she should bee solicited
by him, than shee to make sute or request for mariage:
alleaginge that the lesse desirous the gentleman had bene of
hir, the more deare and better beloued shee shoulde be to hym.
And many tymes when hys Daughter was demaunded to Wyfe, he made
aunswere that matrimony was a state of no litle importance, as
enduring the whole course of Lyfe, and therefore ought well to
bee considered and wayed, before any conclusion were made. But
for all these demaundes and aunswers, and all these stops and
stayes, the mayden was indowed with an honest dowry, and in the
end her louer and she were maried, with so great pleasure and
satisfaction of them both, as they deemed themselues happy. In
the meane time while these things were done at Carthage, Philene
in Scicilia toke thought how she might recouer her goods geuen
to her by her mother, desirous by their meanes also to sort hir
earnest and ardent loue to happy successe. And debatinge with
her selfe (as we haue sayd before) howe she might obtayne them,
because the house was in possession of an other, thought it to
bee agaynst reason and order, that although she had lost hir
house, yet hir goods ought to be restored vnto hir, which were
hir onely mayntenance and reputation, and the fittest instrument
that should conduct h