Chronicles (1 of 6): The Historie of England (4 of 8) - The Fovrth Booke Of The Historie Of England by Raphael Holinshed
page 41 of 176 (23%)
page 41 of 176 (23%)
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yours: if you regard their strength, they are no stronger than you:
and all this dooth easilie appéere by the bassinets, habergeons, & greiues wherewith you be armed; and also by the walls, ditches and trenches that you haue made for your own defense, to kéepe off their excursions, who had rather fight with vs a farre off, than cope & deale with vs at hand strokes, as our custome of the warres and martiall discipline dooth require. Wherefore we doo so farre exceed them in force, that in mine opinion, our armie is more strong than stone walls, and one of our targets woorth all the armour that they doo beare vpon them: by meanes whereof, if the victorie be ours, we shall soone make them captiues: or if we lose the field, we shall easilie escape the danger. "Furthermore, if after the flight we shall indeuour to méet anie where, we haue the marishes héere beneath to hide vs in, and the hils round about to kéepe them off, so that by no meanes they shall haue their purpose of vs, whereas they being ouercharged with heavie armour, shall neither be able to follow, if we flée; nor escape out of our danger, if they be put to flight: if they happen to breake out at anie time as desirous to make a rode, they returne by and by to their appointed places, where we maie take them as birds alreadie in cage. In all which things, as they are farre inferior to vs, so most of all in this, that they can not indure hunger, thirst, cold, heat, and sunneshine, as we can doo. "In their houses also and tents, they make much account of their baked meates, wine, oile, and abroad of the shadow, that if anie of these doo faile them, they either die foorthwith, or else in time they languish and consume: whereas to vs euerie hearbe and root is meat, euerie iuice an oile, all water pleasant wine, and euerie trée an |
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