TO THE NOBLE BY BIRTH,

DISTINGUISHED BY ERUDITION

AND VIRTUE, THE MOST HONORABLE

MR. THOMAS SECKFORD, MOST WORTHY

Master of Requests to the Most Serene

Queen of England,

GREETINGS.

A decorative initial letter D contains floral and foliate motifs.

I have always considered two things, most distinguished man, to be necessary for the preservation of the life I enjoy with dignity by the grace of God: the knowledge of jurisprudence, and the goodwill of men. The former is gained by intense labor and diligent study, the latter through the probity of one’s character and the sanctity of one’s life. For it is an undoubted truth that just as the minds we have received from God, the Best and Greatest—already adorned with a certain natural propensity toward virtue—languish and lose their beauty unless they are illuminated by many virtues, so too our bodies, whose weaknesses are infinite in number and admirable in variety, require many diverse supports; they cannot long remain in the state they desire unless they are sustained by the goodwill and mutual services of many. Now, since both sense and reason flourish in man, it would be less shameful to follow the former than to depart even a hair’s breadth from the latter, as beasts do. Yet I believe we stray as far from the straight path of reason as we are distant from the friendship of those who excel in virtue, grace, and authority. Therefore, from an early age, I have bent all the efforts of my mind toward making myself worthy of the goodwill of those whose friendship I deemed would be an honor to me. Although this has not yet come to pass, I feel I have gained a great step toward the achievement of such an honorable goal, in that...