Thus it is, I haue a flux with a continuall feuer, the nature whereof is,The cardinall affirmeth by his owne ex|perience in physicke that he can not liue. that if there be no alteration of the same within eight daies, either must insue ex|coriation of the intrailes, or fransie, or else present death, and the best of them is death, and (as I suppose) this is the eight daie, & if yée sée no alteration in me, there is no remedie, saue (though I may liue a daie or twaine after) but death must insue. Sir (quoth maister Kingston) you be in much pensiuenes, doub|ting that thing, that in good faith yée néed not. Well, well, master Kingston (quoth the cardinall) I sée the matter how it is framed:The cardinall ascribeth his fall to the iust iudgement of God. but if I had serued God as diligentlie as I haue doone the king, he would not haue giuen me ouer in my greie haires: but it is the iust reward that I must receiue for the diligent paines and studie that I haue had to doo him seruice, not regarding my seruice to God, but onelie to sa|tisfie his pleasure.

I praie you haue me most humblie commended vnto his roiall maiestie, & beseech him in my behalfe to call to his princelie remembrance all matters procéeding betwéene him & me from the beginning of the world, and the progresse of the same, &c. Master Kingston farewell, I can no more saie, but I wish all things to haue good successe, my time draweth on fast.Manifest in|dication of death in the cardinall. And euen with that he began to draw his spéech at length, & his toong to faile, his eies being set, whose sight failed him. Then they did put him in remem|brance of Christ his passion, & caused the yeomen of the gard to stand by to sée him die, and to witnesse of his words at his departure: & incontinent the clocke stroke eight, and then he gaue vp the ghost, and de|parted this present life: which caused some to call to remembrance how he said the daie before, that at eight of the clocke they should loose their master.

Example of pride and ar|rogancie.Here is the end and fall of pride and arrogancie of men exalted by fortune to dignitie: for in his time he was the hautiest man in all his procéedings a|liue, hauing more respect to the honor of his person, than he had to his spirituall profession, wherin should be shewed all meekenes, humilitie, and charitie. Guicc. pag. 1139. [An example (saith Guicciardin, who handleth this storie effectuallie, and sheweth the cause of this cardinals ruine) in our daies woorthie of memorie, touching the power which fortune and enuie hath in the courts of princes.] He died in Leicester abbeie, & in the church of the same abbeie was buried. Such is the suertie of mans brittle state, doubtfull in birth, & no lesse fée|ble in life, which is as vncerteine, as death most cer|teine, and the meanes thereof manifold, which as in number they excéed so in strangenesse they passe: all degrees of ages & diuersities of sexes being subiect to the same. In consideration whereof, it was nota|blie said by one that wrote a whole volume of infir|mities, diseases, and passions incident to children:

A primo vitae diuersos stamine morbos

Perpetimur, diris affi [...]imúrque malis:Sebast. Aust [...]|rius.

Donec in occasum redeat qui vixit ab ortu,

Antea quàm discat viuere, vita cadit.