| MT. to the Reader. | Thou ha∫t heare, gentle Reader, the hi∫torie of Treba- | tio an Emperour in Greece: whether a true ∫torie of | him in deede, or a famed fable, I wot not, neither dyd I | greatly seeke after it in y^e tran∫lation… | … The authors purpo∫e appeareth to be this, | to animate thereby, and to ∫et on fire the lu∫tie courages | of yoũg gentlemen, to the aduancement of their line, | by en∫uing ∫uch like ∫teps. The fir∫t tongue wherein it was | penned was the Spani∫h, in which nation by common | report, the inheritance of all warlike commendation hath | to this day re∫ted…. | … For I take the grace thereoff to be rather in | the reporters deuice then in the truth of this report, as I | would that I could ∫o well impart with thee y^e delight | which my ∫elfe findeth in reading the Spani∫h: but ∫eldome | is the tale carried cleane from an others mouth. Such de= | liuery as I haue made I hope thou wilt friendly accept, | y^e rather for that it is a womans woork, though in a ∫tory | prophane, and a matter more manlike then becõmeth my | ∫exe. But as for y^e manline∫∫e of the matter, thou knowe∫t | y^t it is not nece∫∫ary for euery trumpettour or drum∫lare | in the warre to be a good fighter. They take wage onely | to incite others though themselues haue priuy maimes, | and are thereby recurele∫∫e…. | … as the auncient Ama- | zons did, and in this ∫tory Claridiana doth, & in other ∫to= | ries not a fewe, yet to report of armes is not ∫o odious | but y^t may be borne withal, not onely in you men which | your ∫elues are fighters, but in vs women, to whom the | benefit in equal part apperteineth of your victories… | … The inuenti= | on, di∫po∫itiõ, trimming, & what els in this ∫tory, is who= | ly an other mans, my part non therein but the tran∫la= | tion, as it were onely in giuing entertainment to a ∫tran= | ger, before this time vnacquainted with our coũtry gui∫e. | Mary the wor∫t perhappes is this, that amonge ∫o many | ∫traungers as dayly come ouer, ∫ome more auncient, and | ∫ome but new ∫et foorth, ∫ome penning matters of great | weight and ∫adne∫∫e in diuinitie or other ∫tudies, the pro= | fe∫∫ion whereof more neerely be∫eemeth my yeares. other | ∫ome di∫cour∫ing of matters more ea∫y & ordinary in com= | mon talke, wherein a gentlewoman may hone∫tly employ | hir trauaile… | … wherin I alledge for my selfe y^t matters | of le∫∫e worthyne∫∫e by aged year haue bene taken in | hand, & that dayly new deui∫es are publi∫hed, in ∫ongs, ∫o= | nets, enterludes, & other di∫cour∫es, and yet are borne out | without reproch… | …. And if | men may & do be∫tow ∫uch of their trauailes vpon gentle= | women, then may we womē read ∫uch of their workes as | they dedicate vnto vs, and if we may read them, why not | farther wade in thē to y^e ∫erch of a truth. And then much | more why not deale by tran∫latiõ in ∫uch argumēts, e∫pe= | cially this kinde of exerci∫e being a matter of more heede | then of deep inuention or exqui∫ite learning… | … my per∫wa∫ion | hath bene thus, that it is all one for a woman to pen a | ∫tory, as for a man to addre∫∫e his ∫tory to a woman… | … but I per= | ceiue ∫ome may be rather angry to ∫ee their Spani∫h de= | light tourned to an Engli∫h pa∫time, they could wel alow | the ∫tory in Spani∫h, but they may not afford it ∫o chepe, | or they would haue it proper to them∫elues… | thus much as concerning this pre∫ent ∫tory, that it is nei= | ther vn∫eemly for a woman to deale in, neither greatly re= | quiring a le∫∫e staied age then mine is. But of the∫e two | points gentle reader I thought to giue thee warning lea∫t | perhaps under∫tanding of my name & yeares, thou migh= | te∫t be carried into a wrong ∫u∫pect of my boldne∫∫e and | ra∫hne∫∫e, frõ which I would gladly free my ∫elfe by this | plaine excu∫e, & if I may de∫erue thy good fauour by lyke | labour, when the choice is mine owne I will haue a ∫pe= | ciall regard of thy liking. | So I wi∫h thee well. | Thine to v∫e. M. T. |