The history
567536But by degree
stand in authentique place:
568537Take but degree away, vntune that
string,
569538And harke what di
scord followes, each thing melts
570539In meere oppugnancie: the bounded waters
571540Should lift their bo
somes higher then the
shores,
572541And make a
sop of all this
solid globe:
573542Strength
should be Lord of imbecilitie,
574543And the rude
sonne
should
strike his father dead.
575544Force
should be right or rather right and wrong,
576545(
Betweene whose endlesse iarre Iustice recides) 577546Should loo
se their names, and
so
should Iu
stice to?
578547Then euery thing include it
selfe in power,
579548Power into will, will into appetite,
580549And appetite an vniuer
sall Woolfe,
581550(So doubly
seconded with will and power)
582551Mu
st make perforce an vniuer
sall prey,
583552And la
st eate vp him
selfe.
585554This
chaos when degree is
su
ffocate,
587556And this negle
ction of degree it is,
588557That by a pace goes backward with a purpo
se
589558It hath to clime. The generalls di
sdaind,
590559By him one
step below, he by the next,
591560That next by him beneath,
so euery
step,
592561Exampl'd by the
fir
st pace that is
sick
593562Of his
superior, growes to an enuious feauer
594563Of pale and bloudle
sse emulation,
595564And 'tis this feauer that keepes Troy on foote,
596565Not her owne
sinnews. To end a tale of length,
597566Troy in our weakne
sse
stands not in her
strength.
598567Nestor. Mo
st wi
sely hath
Vlisses here di
scouerd,
599568The feuer whereof all our power is
sick.
600569Agamem. The nature of the
sickne
sse found,
Vlisses 602571Ulisses. The great
Achilles whom opinion crownes,
603572The
sinnow and the fore-hand of our ho
ste,
604573Hauing his eare full of his ayrie fame,
Growes