46 JEROME CARDAN. 



from cruelty 1 ; but his age had faith in the rod, and his 

 reason succumbed to the opinions of Solomon. Fear, he 

 knew to be wholesome, and hunger useful to a boy, by 

 keeping down his passions and begetting sober ways ; con- 

 finement, also, is good, but not unless coupled with low 

 diet 2 . All these constraints were to be put upon a son in 

 love, for he must be watched over with anxious tenderness ; 

 and, " whenever doubts arise," says the father, "we must 

 risk all wealth, though it were of a hundred thousand 

 Spanish crowns, rather than risk the safety of our chil- 

 dren 3 ." 



When the son has attained the age of twenty comes the 

 fifth joy of his parents, for then they may see him go- 

 verning his own actions while he remains obedient to 

 themselves. After the age of twenty, but not sooner, 

 give daughters in marriage. When a child marries, the 

 sixth joy of the parents is complete, and dear to them is 

 the hope that they will see their race continued. Such 

 thoughts disclose to us the vulnerable spot in the strong 

 heart of the philosopher. 



. With these fatherly reflections some astute sayings are 

 mingled. His own children he meant to train as students, 

 but he advised fathers, who had sons to put out in the 



1 " A crudelitate fui semper alienus." Geniturarum Exemplar (ed. 

 1555), p. 87. 



2 Proxenata, p. 696. 3 Ibid. p. 691. 



