After a solemne supper made to al the court, and chief princes, king
Darius sleeping: 4. three esquires of the bodie keeping watch, proposed
the question: 10. VVhether wine, or a King, or wemen, or the truth doth
excel? 17. The first prayseth wine.
KING Darius made a great supper to al his domestical seruantes, and to al
the magistrates of Media and Persia, 2 and to al that were purple, and to
the praetors, and counsuls, and liuetenantes vnder him from India vnto
AEthiopia, an hundred twentie seuen prouinces. 3 And when they had eaten
and drunken, and returned ful, then Darius went vp into his chamber, and
slept, and awaked. 4 Then those three youngmen kepers of his bodie,
which garded the kings bodie, sayd one to an other; 5 Let euerie one of
vs say a word that may excel: & whose word soeuer shal appeare wiser
then the others, to him wil king Darius geue great giftes, 6 to be
couered with purple, & to drinke in gold, and to sleepe vpon gold, & a
chariote with a bridle of gold, & a bonet of silke, and a cheyne about
his necke: 7 and he shal sit in the second place next Darius for his
wisdome. And he shal be called the cosin of Darius. 8 Then euerie one
writing his word signed it, and they put it vnder the pillow of Darius
the king, 9 and they sayd. When the king shal rise, we wil geue him our
writinges: and which soeuer of the three the king shal iudge, and the
magistrates of Persia, that his word is the wiser, to him shal the
victorie be geuen as is writen. 10 One wrote: Wine is strong. 11 An
other wrote, a King is stronger. 12 The third wrote, Wemen are more
strong: but aboue al thinges truth ouercometh. 13 And when the king was
risen, they tooke their writinges, and gaue him, and he read. 14 And
sending he called al the Magistrates of Persians, and the Medes, and them
that weare purple, and the pretors, and the ouerseers; 15 and they sate
in the councel: and the writinges were read before them. 16 And he
sayd: Cal the youngmen, and they shal declare their owne wordes. And
they were called, and went in. 17 And he sayd to them: Declare vnto vs
concerning these thinges which are writen. And the first began, he that
had spoken of the strength of wine, 18 and sayd: O ye men, how doth wine
preuaile ouer al men that drinke! it seduceth the minde. 19 And also
the mind of king and orphane it maketh vaine. Also of the bondman and
the free, of the rich man and the poore, 20 and euerie mind it turneth
into securitie and pleasantnes, and it remembreth not any sorow and
dewtie, 21 and al hartes it maketh honest, and it remembreth not king,
nor magistrate, and it maketh a man speake al thinges by talentes.
22 And when they haue drunke, they remember not frendship, nor
brotherhood: yea and not long after they take swordes. 23 And when they
are recouered and risen from the wine, they remember not what they haue
done. 24 O ye men, doth not wine excel? who thinketh to doe so? And
hauing sayd this, he held his peace.