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416 MONTAIGNE'S ESSAYES
hominum:¹ ' In favor beautiful above the sonnes of
men.' And Plato wisheth beautie to be joyned unto
temperance and fortitude in the preservers of his
Commonwealth. Is it not a great spite, if being
amongst your owne servants, a stranger commeth to
yourselfe to ask you where your Lord or Master is?
And that you have nothing but the remainder of a
capping, which is as well put off to your Barber, or
to your Secretarie? As it happened to poore Philopoemen,
who having left his company oehind, and
comming alone into a house where he was expresly
looked for, his hostess, who knew hira not, and saw
him to be so il-favored a fellow, employed him to
help her maides draw water, and to mend the lire for
the service of Philopopmen. The gentlemen of his
traine being come and finding him so busily at work
{for he failed not to fulfil his hostesses commandement),
enquired of him what he did, who answered,
' I pay the penaltie of my unhandsomnesse.' Other
beauties are for women. The beautie of a handsome
comely tallnesse is the only beautie of men. Where
lownesse and littlenesse is, neither the largenesse nor
rounduesse of a forehead, nor the whitenesse nor lovelinesse
of the eyes, nor the pretty fashion of a nose,
nor the slendemes of the eare, littlenesse of the mouth,
order and whitenesse of teeth, smooth thicknesse of a
beard, browne like a chesse-nut, well-curled and upstanding
haire, just proportion of the head, freshnes
of colour, the cheereful aspect of a pleasing face, the
sweet-smelling of a body, nor the well decorated
composition of all limmes, can make a handsome beauteous
man. As for me, I am of a strong and well
compacted stature, my face is not fat but full, my
complexion betweene joviall and melancholy, indifferently
sanguine and hot.
Vnde rigent setis mihi crura, et pectora villi*:²
Whereby my legs and brest,
With rough haire are opprest.
¹ Ps. xlv. 3. ² MART. 1. vi. Epig. lvi. 1.