wne meate for two or three daies, with a mattocke: When
coulde I make theim to digge, or keepe theim every daie manie howers
armed, in fained exercises, for to bee able after in the verie thyng in
deede to prevaile? When woulde thei abstaine from plaie, from
laciviousnesse, from swearynge, from the insolence, whiche everie daie
they committe? when would they be reduced into so muche dissepline, into
so much obedience and reverence, that a tree full of appels in the
middest of their Campe, shoulde be founde there and lefte untouched? As
is redde, that in the auncient armies manie times hapned. What thynge
maye I promis them, by meane wherof thei may have me in reverence to
love, or to feare, when the warre beyng ended, they have not anie more
to doe with me? wher of maie I make them ashamed, whiche be borne and
brought up without shame? whie shoulde thei be ruled by me who knowe me
not? By what God or by what sainctes may I make them to sweare? By those
that thei worship, or by those that they blaspheme? Who they worship I
knowe not anie: but I knowe well they blaspheme all. How shoulde I
beleeve that thei will keepe their promise to them, whome everie hower
they dispise? How can they, that dispise God, reverence men? Then what
good fashion shoulde that be, whiche might be impressed in this matter?
And if you should aledge unto me that Suyzzers and Spaniardes bee good
souldiours, I woulde confesse unto you, how they be farre better then
the Italians: but if you note my reasonynge, and the maner of procedyng
of bothe, you shall see, howe they lacke many thynges to joygne to the
perfection of the antiquetie. And how the Suyzzers be made good of one
of their naturall uses caused of that, whiche to daie I tolde you: those
other are made good by mean of a necessitie: for that servyng in a
straunge countrie, and seemyng unto them to be constrained either to
die, or to overcome, thei perceivynge to have no place to flie, doe
become good: but it is a goodnesse in manie partes fawtie: for that in
the same there is no other good, but that they bee accustomed to tarie
the enemie at the Pike and sweardes poincte: nor that, which thei lacke,
no man should be meete to teache them, and so much the lesse, he that
coulde not speake their language.

[Sidenote: The Auctor excuseth the people of Italie to the great
reproche of their prynces for their ignorance in the affaires of warre.]

But let us turne to the Italians, who for havynge not