112 CHARGE AGAINST DUELS. 



sion and apparition of honour against religion, against 

 law, against moral virtue, and against the precedents 

 and examples of the best times and valiantest nations ; 

 as I shall tell you by and by, when I shall shew you 

 the law of England is not alone in this point. 



But then the seed of this mischief being such, it 

 is nourished by vain discourses, and green and unripe 

 conceits, which nevertheless have so prevailed, as 

 though a man were staid and sober-minded, and a 

 right believer touching the vanity and unlawfulness 

 of these duels ; yet the stream of vulgar opinion is 

 such, as it imposeth a necessity upon men of value 

 to conform themselves, or else there is no living or 

 looking upon men s faces : so that we have not to 

 do, in this case, so much with particular persons, as 

 with unsound and depraved opinions, like the domi 

 nations and spirits of the air which the Scripture 

 speaketh of. 



Hereunto may be added, that men have almost 

 lost the true notion and understanding of fortitude 

 and valour. For fortitude distinguished of the 

 grounds of quarrels whether they be just ; and not 

 only so, but whether they be worthy ; and setteth a 

 better price upon men s lives than to bestow them 

 idly : nay, it is weakness and dis-ebteem of a man s 

 self, to put a man s life upon such liedger perform 

 ances : a man s life is not to be trifled away ; it is to 

 be offered up and sacrificed to honourable services, 

 public merits, good causes, and noble adventures. 

 It is in expense of blood as it is in expense of money ; 

 it is no liberality to make a profusion of money 



