INSTRUCTIONS For Young Gentlemen: OR, The Instructions of Cardinal SERMONETTO To his Cousin PETRO CAETANO, At his first going into Flanders to the Duke of PARMA, to serve PHILIP King of Spain.  
LONDON, Printed by T. N. for Fr. Bowman of Oxon. 1650.   

The Printer to the Reader.  
GOod Reader, I have Printed this little volume upon the advice and persuasion of some of eminent worth, and much experience. As well to spare the labour and trouble of writing out Copies, as also to prevent alterations and errors which are usually contracted, and multiplied by often transcribing; as water we see the farther it runs, and the more remote from the fountain, the more impure. Yet I dare not affirm, it is now presented to the world without all blemish or imperfection: for I am told it is somewhere a little suspected, not to be so fully and exactly rendered; which if it shall appear, I confidently promise all defects and deformities, (if it come to a second impression,) shall be taken away. For the matter itself, the only complaint is, that it is so short, which I suppose may be somewhat supplied by reading it often; nec satis est legisse semel.   

POSTSCRIPT  
Most of those places suspected are amended in the Errata.   

THE INSTRUCTIONS of Cardinal Sermonetta to his Cousin Petro Caetano at his going to serve the Duke of Parma.  
MOST noble Lord, your Lordship shall follow on your voyage with such Orders and Advertisements as you have already, and you shall write from every place as hither to you have done, to the end that by every Post that cometh to Rome, it may be known where you arrive from place to place; if between the day of your Lordship's Arrival at the Camp, or wheresoever the Prince is, and the dispatch of the next messenger for the parts of Italy, you can be more than once in the Company of the Paymaster of the Army, you shall endeavour to learn the state of this War, and what is done, and what is meant to be done for the King's service.  
For by these means in your first Letters you may give some Advertisements of matters that pass in that Province, you shall be a great Comfort to these most Honourable Lords, and your Allegiance shall breed great Honour to yourself. Howbeit your Lordship must beware that you writ not any thing which in case your Letters should miscarry, might hurt either you, or any other. And in this manner I pray you proceed, until such time as some Cipher be appointed between us.  
Let it not grieve your Lordship to write: for it will profit yourself, and serve and satisfy their turns, whom it doth concern: Note briefly in leaf of Paper such things as you shall learn, or come into your mind to write, or make a remembrance of them; when you writ set that lease before you, and when you have written your Letters, deface your note.  
Make also a List of their names, to whom you writ from time to time: For so you shall not incur the want of memory. In your Letters, which are to be showed unto others, insert no matter, or advise, or any other thing that may not be showed: Your Letters that contain divers matters, writ distinctly in several branches or heads, and do not make your writing a continued draught. Keep Copies of such Letters as seem to be of importance: Keep your Letters by you when they are written, and never close them, till the Post hath his dispatch: for so you shall not be cloyed with too much matter; and besides, you may add if need be.  
If you writ many Letters to one man, which are to be read in order, mark them in the Endorsment thus 1a, 2ª, 3ª, &c: and so let them be tied up orderly in the packet.  
Your Lordship must Answer Letters and satisfy every man; except no person, although he be a man of no account.  
Read and read again the Letters more than once which you shall receive; mark the words and such things as are to be noted in them; Lay them before you when you Answer them; Read them over again and trust not your memory.  
Keep Letters of importance, for at some time or other they may serve either for justification, or for a warning; Burn those that cannot be kept without danger.  
There shall be sent to your Lordship a cipher with the declarations thereof, and the points to be observed therein; to the end you may write ever with security.  
Get the familiarity and good will of the Postmaster by making much of him, & some times presenting him with somewhat: for you shall have great use of him & particularly you shall be partaker of divers Advertisements that come from many Countries, and shall be one of the first that shall know them; He will give you intelligence daily when there is any dispatch; His Packets will carry credit, and so your Letters shall have safe and speedy delivery.  
Your Father at your Lord (hips going into Flanders, did write to the King's Majesty, and his Letter was to this effect; That now it is thirteen years ago, since he dedicated his service to his Majesty with a purpose to purchase of him the name and desert of a Servant, for that till than he could not serve him but only in very small matters. That every day he did feel more and more the sting of devotion and duty. That to supply the defect of fit occasions, he did send Peter his eldest Son into Flanders, to the end, he should serve his Majesty in the war under the Order, and Obedience of the Prince, the governor of those Provinces. That above all things he desireth to his goodwill, and his Sons, there want no occasion to Fortune; Beseeching his Majesty to Vouchsafe the admittance of this his resolution, which though it never avail any other, yet it shall at the least make manifest, that in the services of his Majesty, he hath pawned the person of his Son as a gage of his Faith. To this effect your Lordship shall speak and write to the King's officers, to the end that both with his Majesty and them, there may be a Correspondence of speech and writing, and so they may be persuaded, that you are gone thither to serve and deserve.  
The Prince (as your Lordship knows) is his Catholic Majesty's Lieutenant in the Low Countries and Commandeth the King's forces, and hath Sovereign Authority in all things; and therefore it is to be presupposed that if you will serve the King, you must serve the Prince, and that serving his excellency you serve his Majesty.  
And for as much as to serve, and not satisfy is a kind of not serving; your Lordship must resolve with yourself, so to do, that the Prince may be served by you to his satisfaction; and think with yourself that he will then be satisfied with your service, when you shall serve him well, and well you cannot serve him, unless you make yourself active & of good capacity: In this point therefore it is necessary for you to bestow all your travel and industry, and to learn that which you do not yet know; which in my Opinion is of two sorts: One belonging to the exercise of war; the other to the honour, and particular manners of his Excellency.  
For it is not enough for a Captain to know the Art of warfare, but it behooveth him also to know how to use it according to the Honour and pleasure, and proper manner of his General.  
This being presupposed, your Lordship shall seek to have full information of the Province of Flanders, and to learn upon whom it boundeth, of what Compass it is, on what side it may be avoided or not, into how many parts it is divided, by what name or Title every part of it is called; what Sea, what Haven, what Mountains, what Rivers, what Lakes, what Marshes it hath, and such other places of mark or note. The things likewise wherewith it aboundeth, what it wanteth, to whom it yields any thing, and of whom it receiveth any thing, (I mean of such things as the Country breedeth or breedeth not, as Cattle, Fruits of the earth, and mines, and moreover their Trades, & Labourers; Also their Cities, and Especially their principals; how big they be, how well built, how strong, how populous, how rich, their noble Families, and their wealth; their Adherents; in what reputation and credit, and how affected one towards another, the natures and conditions of the men; to what they are most apt, and to what they are unapt; and to what things they apply themselves most and least; their Religion, their judgements, their Customs and the manner of their government. The King's revenue in what it consisteth; whether it may be augmented or no, and how, and how much;  
To the knowledge of these things your Lordship must Add the Original & cause of this War, the true causes, the pretended causes of it, the principal causes and the secundary, how Flanders was governed by the Duke D'alua, how by the great Commander of Castille, how by Don John of Austria, and how it is now governed by this Prince; The diversities and the likeness of their governments, their errors which they have committed, which are amended and which not; and how they were amended; the profitable provisions & consultations that have been put in execution, or not, with their good, or evil success; The forces of the Rebels, the aid and relief which they have, how sound, how durable it is; The expenses that run upon the King, and the War, whether it may be finished or not; if it may, why it is delayed; if not, what they expect, and what it is they fear;  
Your Lordship must use all diligence to know the situation of the Fortresses, that are of greatest name and importance, in all the Province; whether they be held by the King, or by his Rebels; understanding the wants of every one of them, how they may be won and kept, what number of Soldiers is necessary for offence & defence; what Artillery, what Munition, what Victuals, what Succours, & what impediments, and such other things besides, that may be Learned by men of practice & experience.  
These observations are to be noted either under your designment, or under the Situation of the fortresses, or else in some other convenient leaves.  
Every art or profession that a man learneth, is nothing else but a collection of Lessons and rules, serving to some Certain end, which are found out and drawn forth of practice and discourse; And therefore if your Lordship will learn the Art of warfare, you must learn it of them that have it, and mark how they put it in execution, noting their Precepts and observing their Actions;  
It shall be good for your Lordship at all times to be talking of it, and yet not with every body, but only with such as are cunning and expert, endeavouring yourself to be eapable and resolved in such things as they shall tell you, and in such other things as you shall hear of daily in your ordinary discourses which shall happen: For it is very likely that you shall oftentimes hear such matters; but it will not be any profit to you to hear and conceive them; if when you have heard and conceived them, you should not dispose them in some order and make a remembrance of them.  
And therefore, I would greatly Commend your Lordship, if you would herein use your pen, and write the Cases & rules which you shall have heard; And so by little and little you shall make yourself a rich Treasure-house of Military propositions;  
The manner that I would observe herein, should be to have my leaves and every one of them noted with a word, signifiing either a person, or an instrument or an Action, or some other thing concerning war; Under which word as under a general term, or head, I would write all the Maxims, the Say, the Opinions, the judgements, and Conceits, that I 2hould learn belonging to such things, Actions, Instruments, Persons.  
As for Example. If I should understand that the Pike should be Sixteen foot long, and that it was invented to keep out horses, I would refer this saying to the leaf that is noted with the word, Pike. And if I should hear that in fight the Arquibusier after he hath discharged his piece, must give place to the shouldier that standeth next behind him, and so retire himself to the tail of that row, I would place this saying in the leaf that is noted with the word Arquibusier. The like I would do generally in all other matters that I should happen to hear, appertaining to a Captain, a Searjant, a Standerd-bearer, a General of the Army; & others; also to Artillery, to Arquibusiers, to Pikes, and other weapons of defence and offence.  
Likewise for Victuals, for Munition, for Baggage, and such like; for Lodging, for marching, for fight, and other actions of warfare; and also for the siege of a city; for the relieving of it, for Trenching, for Undermining, for Baterie, and such other works: To which heads and general Terms, many others may be added;  
Notwithstanding all this it will not be sufficient to learn and write, and make a remembrance of these things, unless your Lordship take a delight also to see them put in practice, and to exercise yourself in them.  
And therefore you may not omit to be at every muster, and at every Action, and you must endeavour yourself to be always one of the first at them, that you may see the beginning, the middle, and the end of all still demanding a reason of all that you 2hall see done; and wh it is rather thus done then otherwise, and whether it be always so done or not, together witht he differences of places, and times:  
You shall also endeavour yourself to yield your aid and help to the Officers, so that you have leave so to do, in matters that do not slacken, or hinder the Action of the Officers, or engender a confusion or disorder; but above all, that you do not trouble the minds of the said Officers, and that you have the good will and leave of the Prince to do what you do.  
I did put your Lordship in mind here at Rome to keep a Diary. I do now again put you in mind of it; for your own benefit: you may make a book to write such things in, as happen from day to day; wherein you shall write not only the Successes, but also the manner and causes of them; For (as you know) every Action hath its original vupon some advice, and he that putteh in execution, keepeth or at least ought to keep within certain bounds. And thus may your Lordship by all this your pains and travails with speed obtain the Hability & Valour, which yet you want.  
Touching the manner how you are to serve the Prince, in matters of war, I can say no more unto you, but that you must endeavour to learn it, and use all the diligence you can to learn it of those that have notice thereof, and so put it in execution.  
Your Lordship must not only serve the Prince well in those things that concern the King's service, but in your proceed with him you must please him, and apply yourself to the humour and fashion of his Excellency; thereby to get his love and favour. The report is, that the Prince standeth upon terms & keepeth a great Majesty, so that it is likely (as some think) that he will use with your Lordship terms of great gravity; But because I am of a contrary opinion from them, I must tell you that in this your beginning, the Prince will either make much of you, and talk familiarly with you, and so favour you, and bestow some charge upon you, or he will do clean contrary, or else he will keep mean between both.  
In the first case I must put your Lordship in mind, that in all your Actions you constantly observe one perpetual cause of obedience, and reverence, and the more you shall be honoured, and favoured by the Prince, so much the more must you show yourself reverend and modest towards him; not foreslowing in any sort throughly to perform your duty; nor in any case taking to yourself too much liberty, or licence by it.  
In the second case your Lordship must not take any offence, neither yet distrust him, nor disdain him; Serve him as you ought to do, and in your service show your good will and constancy, and be not dismayed at any accident, that may peradventure breed your dislike. Consider with yourself, that the Haughtiness of the Prince, is either in him by nature, and so it is the more excusable, or else it proceedeth from his own will, his Excellency thinking with himself that it is necessary for him so to do, both in respect of the quality of his business, and of the Government which he hath; and also because he sustaineth the Authority and person of the King there in Flanders: from whom we may well say also, that he hath received order and commandment so to do: these two advertisements may declare to your Lordship what course you should keep in the third case.  
The Prince is Courageous, and some think, that he is more venturous than is requisite for a person, that hath upon him such a charge as he hath; Considering that the King's reputation leaneth upon him, and the safety also of so much as his Majesty possesseth in Flanders; And therefore he was reproved by the King, when he was wounded at Tornay, for that (Like a Private Soldier) He would venture himself to win the ditch of the fortress, with such danger as every man knoweth. In this respect the Prince loveth resolute men, regardeth them much, and maketh great account of them;  
His Excellency playeth neither at cards nordice, and it is likely that such as are like him should consequently be the more in his favour.  
The Prince loveth one Lady of good quality, and taketh great pleasure, that she should be Courted & served by those which esteem his favour. It will become your Lordship also to do your best to that end, lest otherwise you displease the Prince; And for the same respect you must likewise abstain from doing too much, and always remember that a woman is a frail Creature & a very dangerous thing.  
Other matters that touch the mind and honours of the Prince, you must learn of those that use his company, wherein your Lordship must employ your diligence. And although it shall be your office and duty to serve and attend the Person of a Prince, yet you must understand, that too much continuance in so doing, will hurt, and engender a loathing; for it maketh the superior to be a servant as it were, & breedeth him much hindrance and inconvenience. And therefore inform yourself well, how the Prince disposeth of his time, at what hour he is busy, when he would be alone, and when he desireth Company to pass away the time, and with whom; to the end, that while you study to please him, you do not importune him, or molest him;  
In the presence of the Prince speak but little, and speak only what you know, and that upon good occasion. Premeditate before hand, what you mean to speak to his Excellency. And do it resolutely, and in good order  
To such discourse as shall pass in the presence of the Prince, or when his Excellency doth discourse himself, show yourself to be very attentive, otherwise it will be thought that you regard neither who speaketh nor what he speaketh.  
Show yourself also capable of such things as are discoursed upon, that thereby you may breed a good opinion of your sharpness and wit. Likewise give some token of your opinion and affection touching that which you shall hear, to the end that it may be seen, that you either like, or dislike that which in truth is to be liked, or disliked.  
In all these shows, you must be fare from all shadow of Cunning, but do it in silence.  
In the presence of the Prince do not show yourself Melancholy, nor thoughtful; for sadness, and musing offend great Personages, who do attribute it to the little reverence that is borne to them, when a man is present in body, and absent from them in mind.  
Such things as the Prince shall tell you, keep to yourself, and if you chance to hear them of any other, make you as though they were news to you, and be you always the last man that shall talk of them.  
There will not want some, that either for their own private interest, or for their friends sake will request your Lordship's intercession for them to the Prince: I must here put you in mind, it will be no easy matter for you to please them herein; For if you obtain the grant of his Excellency, he will keep a reckoning of it; if you do not obtain it, he will think your Lordship is discontented with the repulse. And in truth every day to be a requesting for other men, may breed a great trouble. And therefore it shall behoove you in mild to answer those, for whom you deny to make intercession, and to use some reasonable excuse, that they may go from you with good contentment.  
If you do make intercession for others, (which by my advice you shall take upon you but seldom) let the things which your Lordship shall desire, be just and fit for you, and convenient for the time, not unusual to be granted; and if it be possible; let them be a agreeable to the Service of his Majesty, and the honour of the Prince.  
The Persons for whom you shall make suit, let them not be odious, nor of ill name.  
Before you resolve with yourself to entreat any grace or favour for other men, first see, and learn throughly, whether the Person that desireth your Mediation, hath any competitour or no; and who it is; And if his competitour be supported either by any great person, or by some servant that is favoured of the King, or of his Excellency;  
In case your Lordship obtain his suit, you must show that you make great account of it; but in case you do not obtain, yet you must show yourself to be contented, and make the Prince believe also, that it is so.  
If the Prince shall commit any service to your Lordship, take your commission plain & distinct; read it and read it again to his excellency, and depart not from him with any doubt. If it be long, or if there be many, or if any importance, take their declarations, and Interpretations in writing, and resolve with yourself rather to importune his Excellency, then to run into any danger of committing any error.  
In public Actions have no regard of degree, or precedency, and Venture upon every thing; Account every place honourable, & every Action worthy of you, and put things in execution in the presence of the Prince, as though it were in the presence of the King himself; and in the absence of the Prince, as though it were in the Eye of his Excellency.  
If any man come to complain himself of his griefs to your Lordship, give him the hearing for once; and make as though you were moved with compassion towards him: put him in good comfort and extenuate the Injury that he pretendeth, but ever excuse the Prince, and exhort the party to hold his peace, and be patiented; especially and above all, be very wary in offering or Ministering any Counsel to such Persons; For such kind of men do not use always to speak the truth, and oftentimes are very full of infirmities, and commonly we do not know who is their Adversary, nor what they report of us in secret.  
If your Lordship be advised to use but little Speech in the presence of the Prince, I do reply and add that your Lordship shall observe that advice in the presence of every man; For silence is above all virtues, and saveth a man from infinite errors, But yet I would wish your Lordship so to keep silence that it may be known it is wisdom for the most part you shall utter.  
In your demands and answers be modest; In all your questions observe opportunity, and in your answers be brief and sensible.  
Question with those that know more than yourself, for so you shall put in execution those advertisements that serve for your learning.  
Tell no Tales; Use no discourses, oppose not yourself against others; Give your judgement or sentence against no man; Speak well of every body, Especially of those which are in favour with his Excellency.  
Find fault with no man, unless it be more than necessary so to do; Blame the Action not the Person: Speak Honourably of all Nations, and learn what is proper and peculiar to every one, and what every one seeketh and desireth.  
Give charge to your servants that they keep their tongues to themselves; and prattle not too much of any body; For oftentimes it is attributed to the master which is spoken by his family;  
Of the Pope and his fellows give good speeches, show your good contentment & reverence towards him. Persuade yourself that you shall be marked and noted in all things whatsoever you say, or do; and doubt not but that Camps are full of Spies, and the Prince himself hath some towards him for that purpose; and therefore he will accept in good part that which they shall tell him, as his good and loving servants. And will encourage them to advertise him of such matters as are for his Service.  
Be familiar with every man, but especially with such as are of virtue and Valour; for they will not only instruct you, but also they will breed your credit: with others keep familiarity: for so you shall not offend them, nor have any enemies;  
You shall be accounted wise by fitting yourself to every man's humour, and practising with the Italians after the Italian manner, with the Spaniards after the Spanish, and with the Flemings after the Flemish manner.  
You must be advised that the people of that Nation are very credulous, suspicious, given to Novelties, and unthankful They speak & drink liberally, & do hardly bridle the infirmities of the body, much less the passions of the mind.  
Give courteous entertainment to all but especially to the Prince's servants; Above all, procure the friendship of his Favourites, & of all his servants and officers both public, and private, that are in the favour and good grace with his Excellency;  
Disdain no man though he be never so base, remembering with yourself, that in time and place one man may be worth a thousand, especially in occurrents of war;  
Give no ear to such as report other men's actions, and make a profession of it; nor to such as by that means seek to purchase your favour; Especially if they be reporters of naughty matters, and of such as shall touch great Lords or the person of a Prince; In which case your Lordship must not only be loath to hear them, but also reject them and cause them to avoid your presence.  
To those that shall converse with you, do not impart the evil speeches, that other men shall utter to you of them; or at least conceal the Author's name, to the end that through your default there arise no hatred, where none is; or if there be any, that it be no farther enkindled; and so your Lordship shall not be noted for lightness.  
If any jealous or envious Person seek to slander or prejudice your Lordship privily, know him throughly, and be not deceived, Observe his demeanour, & make as though you did not heed him; Especially beware you behave yourself well, and go beyond him in that point; Entertain him with all honour, be often in his company, overcome him in courtesy, and comfort him. To such as he is a friend unto, do all the service and favour you can; yea even unto such as know it, and peradventure set forward his evil conceits. To be brief, avoid all occasion of breach with him, and if there must needs be a breach, let it be seen, that your Lordship doth it of necessity and justice, and that the fault and default is in him.  
With such like Persons and every body else, though it be your open enemy, keep good intelligence always when there is any matter in hand touching the service of the King, or of the Prince: and for the service of his Majesty, or of his Excellency, lay down all private passion or rancour; and in case such a Person either for want of knowledge, or of power, or for any other cause what soever should run into danger to commit some error, to the prejudice of the King, or the Prince; your Lordship may not suffer the error to be committed by any means, although your Adversary thereby might fall into the displeasure of his M tie or of his Excellency; but lend your hand unto it, although it were a common danger.  
Dissimulation is necessary for every man, specially in Arms and in Courts; yet is not every Dissimulation good and honourable; but that only which tendeth to a good and honest end, and which with the observations of due circumstances, denieth not the truth nor goeth against that which is right: Such kind of Dissimulation is a part and kind of prudence and consisteth for the most part in silence or holding your peace, and that for these causes following:  
Videlicet, not to publish that which another man hath committed to our trust, not to bring any thing to light, upon knowledge whereof some scandal may ensue; not to discover any designment, which being discovered should not attain to his purpose; not to let others see that we know the defects of other men, or any evil deeds of others. For men of evil imperfections & guilty of any defaults, when they are known to be such Persons, do commonly hate them that know them to be so; Not to make known that we know the thoughts of other men; or the hard conceits which other men have against us, or against such as we love; or the good affection which other men bear towards those which are our enemies; Not to give any notice that we know an offence committed against us, or that we do make so great account of it; nor to put ourselves in any necessity, danger, or destruction by contending to answer, when neither the matter, nor the Person, nor the Place, nor the time doth require it.  
Lastly not to bring any hurt or shame upon ourselves or others, but to the benefit and honour of ourselves and others.  
In all these causes to dissemble with silence is thought to be good, and is not reprovable: And although it seemeth to be a very hard matter to deal thus with our friends in not telling them such things, as being told them would do them pleasure and service; yet in the cases presupposed, reason would that the greater respect should not be neglected, and so we do ourselves the more wrong.  
But sometimes it falleth out, that we must also dissemble with speech: and that falleth out, when we are driven of necessity to answer: And if a man demand of us whether a matter be so, or not so; and what is purposed or conceived, It is not fit to dissemble with silence, but we must dissemble with answer; and this dissimulation requireth more Art. For in such cases speech cannot be avoided, and we are commonly as desirous to keep ourselves from danger in telling a lie, as from danger in telling a truth;  
Some there are, that in such a case do use to dissemble by cutting of their speech, and leaping into another matter; but this doth not always sort to good effect, or at least will not serve the turn.  
Others there are, which answer they cannot tell; and this is a fault, because they deny the truth, and say that which is not; And therefore the answer must be like to the retreat, which is both without flying, and also without fight, goods and persons saved;  
In making answer three things are wont tobe observed: first not to deny the truth, secondly not to tell that which we should not; thirdly not to leave the mind of him that maketh the demand, in the same terms, wherein we found him. And the answer is so much the more commendable, if it be restrained within these limits;  
Although sometimes it is also lawful to note the demander for his impertinent demands; which may be done either covertly or openly, according to the degrees of the persons, and the qualities of the circumstances.  
There is a dissimulation likewise permitted by exterior shows and by deeds; and that is, when for the reasons and ends aforesaid, we abstain from showing either gladness, or sorrow, or hope, or fear, or any other affection that is in us; and also from making men to think that we do see those things which we do see, & perceive those things which we do perceive, and finally that we do know, deal in, and desire, that which indeed we do know, deal in and desire.  
And be it known unto your Lordship that in the whole life of man, and all his actions and business, dissimulation is no less profitable than Counter-poisons; and true preservatives are in Physic: for even as things do preserve and keep us from poison, and many other evils; so doth dissimulation save us from many deceits, and errors, and from infinite other hurtful things:  
You must know also, that dissimulation being not well used, doth discover yourself, & bringeth forth an effect quite contrary to your meaning, and the present business: And therefore your Lordship must take heed, that when you keep silence with your tongue, you do not speak by the motions of your countenance, nor by other gestures of your body.  
Secondly, that when you dissemble by speaking, you do not discover yourself by such means touching the matter you should leave in doubt; And lastly, that if you dissemble by action or outward appearance, you do it covertly and with great wariness, and that you do not run into any extremity.  
But for as much as in matters which we handle, Fortune hath a great stroke, and in war especially hath her principal dominion, your Lordship must watch opportunity, which indeed is the matter and conveniency of your actions, & maketh those things possible, which before could not be brought to pass, & those things easy, which before were hard, and those things safe, which before were dangerous, and thosethings good and profitable, which before were hurtful & naught. And therefore keep these things in your mind always, that you entertain occasion and opportunity, and wait for them, and not prevent them, And do not as others do who being impatient in their desires, do, snatch before their time, and being desirous to prevent opportunity, do venture their evil fortune and overthrow themselves.  
And in case opportunity not offering itself, your Lordship be disposed to seek it, than you must seek it wisely, and with good means, because such opportunities as are forced, and as it were begged, are for the most part neither happy nor commodious, But if opportunity be offered, your Lordship must take knowledge of it. And because it is a hard matter to know it, for that it is a hard thing which is not seen, and hath no shape when it doth come, it is comprehended by your mind, if you mark all accidents, and be attentive to the end.  
And for as much as all occasions that are offered are not always to purpose; your Lordship must use great judgement, which will measure and compare things together, and will discern and, determine upon the conveniency there of: use all your judgement herein, and take hold of opportunity, & be always ready to take hold of it. For fortune cometh and goeth according to the motions of time, and that offer which is made now, (if it be not accepted of us) a little while after it will prove nothing.  
In the execution of any thing, your Lordship must be, both considerate, and also hardy: for he that feareth, performeth less; and he that useth no consideration, performeth more than is convenient; which is the original of all danger:  
In execution two things among others are especially reproved; one is, to execute unperfectly by not bringing your action to end, and then you shall not with profit finish the opportunity you took hold of; The other is, that oftentimes an occasion well taken and well executed engendereth another occasion which is better; And he that either knoweth not this second, or hath no judgement of it, or taketh no hold of it, defraudeth the public interest of a good service, and himself of great glory.  
The last and chiefest Advertisement, which I have to give your Lordship, is this; That when you shall come to any towns, or countries, either of friends or enemies, where Arms and violence shall have supreme authority, for the reverence of God take care that your people abstain from Churches and Monasteries; that they have great respect to Ecclesiastical Persons; and that they lay no hands upon sacred things. In all wars it must needs be a great fault not to do so; much more in this, wherein the cause of religion is handled, and the justice of the Catholic King. And this to do beseemeth you fare more than any other, because you are a subject of the Holy Church, and of an house that hath many Cardinals and Prelates; and because you have not only deserved well of the See Apostolic, but also you have received and acknowledged many benefits and honours for the same.  
The Lord God bless you, and grant unto you so much of his grace, as you shall fear and honour him, and show it in your Actions.  
Amen   

ERRATA  
Page 15. line 7. in the war read in that war p. 22. l. 9 avoided r. annoyed p. 49. l. 5. keep mean r. keep a mean p. 66. l. 12. breed a great r. breed great p. 80. l. 5. Pope & his fellows r. Pope & his followers p. 93. l. 1. although r. as though p. 97. l. 11. destruction r. distraction.