But I purpose not to write of spirites and visions appearing vnto men in their sléepe, least my Booke grow vnto an huge volume: but only of those which we sensibly sée when we are awake.
That there happen straunge wonders and prognostications, and that sodein noyses and cracks and such like, are heard before the death of men, before battaile, and before some notable alterations and chaunges.
It hapneth many times, that whē men lie sicke of some deadly disease, there is some thing heard going in the chamber, like as the sicke men were wont, when they were in good health: yea & the sicke parties themselues, do many times hear the same, and by and by gesse what will come to passe. Oftentimes a litle before they yéeld vp yͤ ghost, and sometime a litle after their death, or a good while after, either their own shapes, or som other shadowes of men, are apparantly séen. And diuers times it commeth to passe, that when some of our acquaintaunce or friends lie a dying, albeit they are many miles off, yet there are some great stirrings or noises heard. Sometimes we think yͤ house wil fal on our heads, or yͭ some massy & waightie thing falleth down throughout all yͤ house, rendring and making a disordered noise: and shortly within fewe moneths after, we vnderstand that those things happened, the very same house yͭ our friends departed in. There be some men, of whose stock none doth die, but that they obserue and marke some signes and tokens going before: as that they heare the doores and windowes open and shut, that some things runneth vp the staires, or walketh vp and downe the house, or doth some one or other such like thing.
But here I cannot passe this in silence: that there are many superstitious mē, which vainly persuade themselues that this cousin, and this or that friend of theirs will shortly die. For in the end, the falling out of the matter it selfe, sheweth it was a vaine and foolish persuasion, that they vnderstood such things by any signes.
=Cardanus= in his booke _De veritate rerum_, writeth, that there was a certaine noble Familie at _Parma_ in _Italy_, out of the which so often as any one died, there was séene an olde woman in the chimney corner. On a certaine time shée appeared, when a mayden of the same family laie very sick, and therfore they cleane dispaired of her life: but soone after she recouered again, and in the meane while, an other, which was then in good health, sodainly died.