[3293]  ------“puncto mobilis horae
Permutat dominos, et cedit in altera jura.”

They labour most part not to pass their time in honest disport, but for filthy lucre, and covetousness of money. In foedissimum lucrum et avaritiam hominum convertitur, as Daneus observes. Fons fraudum et maleficiorum, ’tis the fountain of cozenage and villainy. [3294]"A thing so common all over Europe at this day, and so generally abused, that many men are utterly undone by it,” their means spent, patrimonies consumed, they and their posterity beggared; besides swearing, wrangling, drinking, loss of time, and such inconveniences, which are ordinary concomitants:  [3295]"for when once they have got a haunt of such companies, and habit of gaming, they can hardly be drawn from it, but as an itch it will tickle them, and as it is with whoremasters, once entered, they cannot easily leave it off:”  Vexat mentes insania cupido, they are mad upon their sport.  And in conclusion (which Charles the Seventh, that good French king, published in an edict against gamesters) unde piae et hilaris vitae, suffugium sibi suisque liberis, totique familiae, &c.  “That which was once their livelihood, should have maintained wife, children, family, is now spent and gone;” maeror et egestas, &c., sorrow and beggary succeeds.  So good things may be abused, and that which was first invented to [3296] refresh men’s weary spirits, when they come from other labours and studies to exhilarate the mind, to entertain time and company, tedious otherwise in those long solitary winter nights, and keep them from worse matters, an honest exercise is contrarily perverted.

Chess-play is a good and witty exercise of the mind for some kind of men, and fit for such melancholy, Rhasis holds, as are idle, and have extravagant impertinent thoughts, or troubled with cares, nothing better to distract their mind, and alter their meditations:  invented (some say) by the [3297]general of an army in a famine, to keep soldiers from mutiny:  but if it proceed from overmuch study, in such a case it may do more harm than good; it is a game too troublesome for some men’s brains, too full of anxiety, all out as bad as study; besides it is a testy choleric game, and very offensive to him that loseth the mate. [3298]William the Conqueror, in his younger years, playing at chess with the Prince of France (Dauphine was not annexed to that crown in those days) losing a mate, knocked the chess-board about his pate, which was a cause afterward of much enmity between them.  For some such reason it is belike, that Patritius, in his 3. book, tit. 12. de reg. instit. forbids his prince to play at chess; hawking and hunting, riding, &c. he will allow; and this to other men, but by no means to him.  In Muscovy, where they live in stoves and hot houses all winter long, come seldom or little abroad, it is again very necessary, and therefore in those parts, (saith [3299]Herbastein)