ve the enemies backe? I beleve that the
Pikes maie withstande the horses, as you saie, but in a grosse and
thicke maine battaile, as the Suizzers make: but you in your army, have
for the hedde five rankes of Pikes, and for the flancke seven, so that I
cannot tell how thei maie bee able to withstande them.

[Sidenote: A Battaile how greate so ever it bee, cannot atones occupy
above v. rankes of Pikes.]

FABRICIO. Yet I have told you, how sixe rankes of pikes wer occupied at
ones, in the Macedonicall Falangi, albeit you ought to understande, that
a maine battaile of Suizzers, if it were made of a thousande rankes, it
cannot occupie more then fower, or at the most five: bicause the Pikes
be sixe yardes and three quarters longe, one yarde and halfe a quarter,
is occupied of the handes, wherefore to the firste ranke, there
remaineth free five yardes and a half, and a halfe quarter of Pike: the
seconde ranke besides that whiche is occupied with the hande, consumeth
a yarde and half a quarter in the space, whiche remaineth betwene the
one ranke and thother: so that there is not left of pike profitable,
more then fower yardes and a halfe: to the thirde ranke, by this verie
same reason, there remaineth three yardes and a quarter and a halfe: to
the fowerth, twoo yardes and a quarter: to the fift one yard and halfe a
quarter: the other rankes, for to hurte, be unprofitable, but thei serve
to restore these firste rankes, as we have declared, and to bee a
fortificacion to those v. Then if five of their rankes can withstande
the horse, why cannot five of ours withstande theim? to the whiche also
there lacketh not rankes behinde, that doeth sustain and make them the
very same staie, although thei have no pikes as the other. And when the
rankes of thextraordinarie pikes, which are placed on the flanckes,
should seme unto you thinne, thei maie bee brought into a quadrante, and
put on the flancke nere the twoo battailes, whiche I set in the laste
companie of the armie: From the whiche place, thei maie easely
altogether succour the fronte, and the backe of the armie, and minister
helpe to the horses, accordyng as nede shall require.

LUIGI. Would you alwaies use this forme of order, when you would pitche
a fielde.

[Sidenote: An advertiement concernyng the pitchying of a field.]

FABRICIO. No in no wise: for that you ought to varie the facion of the
armie, according to the qualitie of the situacion, and the condicion and
quantitie o