er to muche lovers of peace, or to much lovers of warre,
they shall make him to erre. I cannot in this my firste reasoning, and
according to my purpose saie more, and when this suffiseth you not, it
is mete, you seke of them that may satisfie you better. You maie now
verie well understand, how difficulte it is to bringe in use the
auncient maners in the presente warres, and what preparations are mete
for a wise man to make, and what occasions ought to be loked for, to be
able to execute it. But by and by, you shall know these things better,
if this reasoning make you not werie, conferring what so ever partes of
the auncient orders hath ben, to the maners nowe presente.

COSIMO. If we desired at the first to here your reason of these thinges,
truly thesame whiche hetherto you have spoken, hath doubled our desire:
wherefore we thanke you for that we have hard, and the rest, we crave of
you to here.

FABRICIO. Seyng that it is so your pleasure, I will begin to intreate of
this matter from the beginning, to the intent it maye be better
understode, being able by thesame meane, more largely to declare it. The
ende of him that wil make warre, is to be able to fight with every enemy
in the fielde and to be able to overcum an armie. To purpose to doe
this, it is convenient to ordeine an hoost. To ordein an hoost, their
must be found menne, armed, ordered, and as well in the small, as in the
great orders exercised, to knowe howe to kepe araie, and to incampe, so
that after bringing them unto the enemie, either standing or marching,
they maie know how to behave themselves valiantly. In this thing
consisteth all the industrie of the warre on the lande, whiche is the
most necessarie, and the most honorablest, for he that can wel order a
fielde against the enemie, the other faultes that he should make in the
affaires of warre, wilbe borne with: but he that lacketh this knowledge,
although that in other particulars he be verie good, he shal never bring
a warre to honor: for as muche as a fielde that thou winnest, lesing?
img 94 doeth cancell all other thy evill actes: so like wise lesing it,
all thinges well done of thee before, remaine vaine. Therfore, beyng
necessarie first to finde the menne, it is requiset to come to the
choise of them. They whiche unto the warre have given rule, will that
the menne be chosen out of temperate countries, to the intente they may
have hardines, and prudence, for as muche as the hote countrey, bredes