CARDAN'S ANSWER TO THE LETTER. 85 



was John Hamilton, Archbishop of St. Andrew's, called 

 in Cardan's Latin Amultho ; Hamilton who was hung. 

 Cassanate 1 was the son of a Spaniard, settled at Besangon 

 in Burgundy. He was fourteen years younger than 

 Jerome, having been born at six o'clock in the morning 

 of the 5th of October, 1515, one is exact in dates 

 when there is a horoscope to draw upon for information. 

 Concerning this Cassanate, who has left behind him 

 nothing by which he is retained, however slightly, in the 

 memory of scholars or physicians, it would, indeed, be 

 difficult to give any particulars, if Cardan had not dis- 

 cussed his character in calculating his nativity 3 . He was 

 the only survivor of six brothers ; a man very careful of 

 his own interests, time-serving, and most happy in the 

 atmosphere of courts. He could change opinions as the 

 exigencies of the day required, and profit by political 

 confusion. He had a decided taste for the admixture of 

 court business, as a meddler or negotiator, with his pro- 

 fessional cares, and in that way may have rendered him- 

 self, by the use of a little tact, very agreeable to the 

 archbishop. He was fond of the external good things 



1 Cardan spells the name Casanate, but the usual spelling is adopted 

 in the text. There have been several obscure scholars of this name. 



* His is one of the twelve horoscopes which illustrated Cardan's 

 commentaries on Ptolemy. It is included in a little book entitled 

 "Hier. Card. Medic. Mediol. Geniturarum Exemplar. Prseterea et 

 multa quse ad Interrogationes et electiones pertinent superaddita. Et 

 examplum eclipsis quam consecuta est gravissima pestis. Lugduni. 

 Apud Theobaldum Paganum " (who has a Pagan or Saracen on horse- 

 back for his emblem), " 1555." 



