Part 13

{Humile. Oratorium in {Mediocre. {Sublime.

Examples of these three, in the Greke tong, be plentifull & perfite, as Lycias, Isocrates, and Demosthenes: and // Lisias. all three, in onelie Demosthenes, in diuerse orations // Isocrates. as contra Olimpiodorum, in leptinem, & pro Ctesi- // Demost. phonte. And trew it is, that Hermogines writeth of Demosthenes, that all formes of Eloquence be perfite in him. In Ciceroes Orations, Medium & sublime be most // Cicero. excellentlie handled, but Humile in his Orations, is seldome sene: yet neuerthelesse in other bookes, as in some part of his offices, & specially in Partitionibus, he is comparable in hoc humili & disciplinabili genere, euen with the best that euer

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wrote in Greke. But of Cicero more fullie in fitter place. And thus, the trew difference of stiles, in euerie Author, and euerie kinde of learnyng may easelie be knowne by this diuision.

{Poeticum. {Historicum. in Genus {Philosophicum. {Oratorium.

Which I thought in this place to touch onelie, not to prosecute at large, bicause, God willyng, in the Latin tong, I will fullie handle it, in my booke de Imitatione. Now, to touch more particularlie, which of those Authors, that be now most commonlie in mens handes, will sone affourd you some peece of Eloquence, and what maner a peece of eloquence, and what is to be liked and folowed, and what to be misliked and eschewed in them: and how some agayne will furnish you fully withall, rightly, and wisely considered, som- what I will write as I haue heard Syr Ihon Cheke many tymes say. The Latin tong, concerning any part of purenesse of it, from the spring, to the decay of the same, did not endure moch longer, than is the life of a well aged man, scarse one hundred yeares from the tyme of the last Scipio Africanus and Lælius, to the Empire of Augustus. And it is notable, that Velleius Pater- culus writeth of Tullie, how that the perfection of eloquence did so remayne onelie in him and in his time, as before him, were few, which might moch delight a man, or after him any, worthy admiration, but soch as Tullie might haue seene, and such as might haue seene Tullie. And good cause why: for no perfec- tion is durable. Encrease hath a time, & decay likewise, but all perfit ripenesse remaineth but a moment: as is plainly seen in fruits, plummes and cherries: but more sensibly in flowers, as Roses & such like, and yet as trewlie in all greater matters. For what naturallie, can go no hier, must naturallie yeld & stoup againe. Of this short tyme of any purenesse of the Latin tong, for the first fortie yeare of it, and all the tyme before, we haue no peece of learning left, saue Plautus and Terence, with a litle rude vnperfit pamflet of the elder Cato. And as for Plautus, except the scholemaster be able to make wise and ware choice,

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first in proprietie of wordes, than in framing of Phrases and sentences, and chieflie in choice of honestie of matter, your scholer were better to play, then learne all that is in him. But surelie, if iudgement for the tong, and direction for the maners, be wisely ioyned with the diligent reading of Plautus, than trewlie Plautus, for that purenesse of the Latin tong in Rome, whan Rome did most florish in wel doing, and so thereby, in well speaking also, is soch a plentifull storehouse, for common eloquence, in meane matters, and all priuate mens affaires, as the Latin tong, for that respect, hath not the like agayne. Whan I remember the worthy tyme of Rome, wherein Plautus did liue, I must nedes honor the talke of that tyme, which we see Plautus doth vse. Terence is also a storehouse of the same tong, for an other tyme, following soone after, & although he be not so full & plentiful as Plautus is, for multitude of matters, & diuersitie of wordes, yet his wordes, be chosen so purelie, placed so orderly, and all his stuffe so neetlie packed vp, and wittely compassed in euerie place, as, by all wise mens iudgement, he is counted the cunninger workeman, and to haue his shop, for the rowme that is in it, more finely appointed, and trimlier ordered, than Plautus is. Three thinges chiefly, both in Plautus and Terence, are to be specially considered. The matter, the vtterance, the words, the meter. The matter in both, is altogether within the compasse of the meanest mens maners, and doth not stretch to any thing of any great weight at all, but standeth chiefly in vtteryng the thoughtes and conditions of hard fathers, foolish mothers, vnthrifty yong men, craftie seruantes, sotle bawdes, and wilie harlots, and so, is moch spent, in finding out fine fetches, and packing vp pelting matters, soch as in London commonlie cum to the hearing of the Masters of Bridewell. Here is base stuffe for that scholer, that should becum hereafter, either a good minister in Religion, or a Ciuill Ientleman in seruice of his Prince and contrie: except the preacher do know soch matters to confute them, whan ignorance surelie in all soch thinges were better for a Ciuill Ientleman, than knowledge. And thus, for matter, both Plautus and Terence, be like meane painters, that worke by halfes, and be cunning onelie, in making the worst part of the picture, as if one were skilfull in painting

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the bodie of a naked person, from the nauell downward, but nothing else. For word and speach, Plautus is more plentifull, and Terence more pure and proper: And for one respect, Terence is to be embraced aboue all that euer wrote in hys kinde of argument: Bicause it is well known, by good recorde of learning, and that by Ciceroes owne witnes that some Comedies bearyng Terence name, were written by worthy Scipio, and wise Lælius, and namely Heauton: and Adelphi. And therefore as oft as I reade those Comedies, so oft doth sound in myne eare, the pure fine talke of Rome, which was vsed by the floure of the worthiest nobilitie that euer Rome bred. Let the wisest man, and best learned that liueth, read aduisedlie ouer, the first scene of Heauton, and the first scene of Adelphi, and let him consideratlie iudge, whether it is the talke of a seruile stranger borne, or rather euen that milde eloquent wise speach, which Cicero in Brutus doth so liuely expresse in Lælius. And yet neuerthelesse, in all this good proprietie of wordes, and purenesse of phrases which be in Terence, ye must not follow him alwayes in placing of them, bicause for the meter sake, some wordes in him, somtyme, be driuen awrie, which require a straighter placing in plaine prose, if ye will forme, as I would ye should do, your speach and writing, to that excellent perfitnesse, which was onely in Tullie, or onelie in Tullies tyme. The meter and verse of Plautus and Terence be verie meane, Meter in // and not to be followed: which is not their reproch, Plautus & // but the fault of the tyme, wherein they wrote, whan Terence. // no kinde of Poetrie, in the Latin tong, was brought to perfection, as doth well appeare in the fragmentes of Ennius, Cæcilius, and others, and euidentlie in Plautus & Terence, if thies in Latin be compared with right skil, with Homer, Euripides, Aristophanes, and other in Greeke of like sort. Cicero him selfe doth complaine of this vnperfitnes, but more plainly Quintilian, saying, in Comœdia maximè claudicamus, et vix leuem consequimur vmbram: and most earnestly of all Horace in Arte Poetica, which he doth namely propter carmen Iambicum, and referreth all good studentes herein to the Imitation of the Greeke tong, saying. Exemplaria Græca nocturna versate manu, versate diurna.

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This matter maketh me gladly remember, my sweete tyme spent at Cambrige, and the pleasant talke which I had oft with M. Cheke, and M. Watson, of this fault, not onely in the olde Latin Poets, but also in our new English Rymers at this day. They wished as Virgil and Horace were not wedded to follow the faultes of former fathers (a shrewd mariage in greater matters) but by right Imitation of the perfit Grecians, had brought Poetrie to perfitnesse also in the Latin tong, that we Englishmen likewise would acknowledge and vnderstand right- fully our rude beggerly ryming, brought first into Italie by Gothes and Hunnes, whan all good verses and all good learning to, were destroyd by them: and after caryed into France and Germanie: and at last, receyued into England by men of excellent wit in deede, but of small learning, and lesse iudge- ment in that behalfe. But now, when men know the difference, and haue the examples, both of the best, and of the worst, surelie, to follow rather the Gothes in Ryming, than the Greekes in trew versifiyng, were euen to eate ackornes with swyne, when we may freely eate wheate bread emonges men. In deede, Chauser, Th. Norton, of Bristow, my L. of Surrey, M. Wiat, Th. Phaer, and other Ientlemen, in translating Ouide, Palingenius, and Seneca, haue gonne as farre to their great praise, as the copie they followed could cary them, but, if soch good wittes, and forward diligence, had bene directed to follow the best examples, and not haue bene caryed by tyme and custome, to content themselues with that barbarous and rude Ryming, emonges their other worthy praises, which they haue iustly deserued, this had not bene the least, to be counted emonges men of learning and skill, more like vnto the Grecians, than vnto the Gothians, in handling of their verse. In deed, our English tong, hauing in vse chiefly, wordes of one syllable which commonly be long, doth not well receiue the nature of Carmen Heroicum, bicause dactylus, the aptest foote for that verse, conteining one long & two short, is seldom there- fore found in English: and doth also rather stumble than stand vpon Monosyllabis. Quintilian in hys learned Chapiter // hand.gif de Compositione, geueth this lesson de Monosyllabis, before me: and in the same place doth iustlie inuey against all Ryming, that if there be any, who be angrie with me, for

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misliking of Ryming, may be angry for company to, with Quintilian also, for the same thing: And yet Quintilian had not so iust cause to mislike of it than, as men haue at this day. And although Carmen Exametrum doth rather trotte and hoble, than runne smothly in our English tong, yet I am sure, our English tong will receiue carmen Iambicum as naturallie, as either Greke or Latin. But for ignorance, men can not like, & for idlenes, men will not labor, to cum to any perfitenes at all. For, as the worthie Poetes in Athens and Rome, were more carefull to satisfie the iudgement of one learned, than rashe in pleasing the humor of a rude multitude, euen so if men in England now, had the like reuerend regard to learning skill and iudgement, and durst not presume to write, except they came with the like learnyng, and also did vse like diligence, in searchyng out, not onelie iust measure in euerie meter, as euerie ignorant person may easely do, but also trew quantitie in euery foote and sillable, as onelie the learned shalbe able to do, and as the Grekes and Romanes were wont to do, surelie than rash ignorant heads, which now can easely recken vp fourten sillables, and easelie stumble on euery Ryme, either durst not, for lacke of such learnyng: or els would not, in auoyding such labor, be hand.gif // so busie, as euerie where they be: and shoppes in London should not be so full of lewd and rude rymes, as commonlie they are. But now, the ripest of tong, be readiest to write: And many dayly in setting out bookes and balettes make great shew of blossomes and buddes, in whom is neither, roote of learning, nor frute of wisedome at all. Some that make Chaucer in English and Petrarch in Italian, their Gods in verses, and yet be not able to make trew difference, what is a fault, and what is a iust prayse, in those two worthie wittes, will moch mislike this my writyng. But such men be euen like followers of Chaucer and Petrarke, as one here in England did folow Syr Tho. More: who, being most vnlike vnto him, in wit and learnyng, neuertheles in wearing his gowne awrye vpon the one shoulder, as Syr Tho. More was wont to do, would nedes be counted lyke vnto him. This mislikyng of Ryming, beginneth not now of any newfangle singularitie, but hath bene long misliked of many, and that of men, of greatest learnyng, and deepest iudgement. And soch, that defend it, do so, either for lacke of knowledge

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what is best, or els of verie enuie, that any should performe that in learnyng, whereunto they, as I sayd before, either for ignorance, can not, or for idlenes will not, labor to attaine vnto. And you that prayse this Ryming, bicause ye neither haue reason, why to like it, nor can shew learning to defend it, yet I will helpe you, with the authoritie of the oldest and learnedst tyme. In Grece, whan Poetrie was euen at the hiest pitch of per- fitnes, one Simmias Rhodius of a certaine singularitie wrote a booke in ryming Greke verses, naming it oon, conteyning the fable, how Iupiter in likenes of a swan, gat that egge vpon Leda, whereof came Castor, Pollux and faire Elena. This booke was so liked, that it had few to read it, but none to folow it: But was presentlie contemned: and sone after, both Author and booke, so forgotten by men, and consumed by tyme, as scarse the name of either is kept in memorie of learnyng: And the like folie was neuer folowed of any, many hondred yeares after vntill y^e Hunnes and Gothians, and other barbarous nations, of ignorance and rude singularitie, did reuiue the same folie agayne. The noble Lord Th. Earle of Surrey, first of all English men, in translating the fourth booke of Virgill: // The Earle of and Gonsaluo Periz that excellent learned man, // Surrey. and Secretarie to kyng Philip of Spaine, in // Gonsaluo translating the Vlisses of Homer out of Greke into // Periz. Spanish, haue both, by good iudgement, auoyded the fault of Ryming, yet neither of them hath fullie hite perfite and trew versifiyng. In deede, they obserue iust number, and euen feete: but here is the fault, that their feete: be feete without ioyntes, that is to say, not distinct by trew quantitie of sillables: And so, soch feete, be but numme feete: and be, euen as vnfitte for a verse to turne and runne roundly withall, as feete of brasse or wood be vnweeldie to go well withall. And as a foote of wood, is a plaine shew of a manifest maime, euen so feete, in our English versifiing, without quantitie and ioyntes, be sure signes, that the verse is either, borne deformed, vnnaturall and lame, and so verie vnseemlie to looke vpon, except to men that be gogle eyed them selues. The spying of this fault now is not the curiositie of English eyes, but euen the good iudgement also of the best // Senese that write in these dayes in Italie: and namelie of // Felice that worthie Senese Felice Figliucci, who, writyng // Figliucci.

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vpon Aristotles Ethickes so excellentlie in Italian, as neuer did yet any one in myne opinion either in Greke or Latin, amongest other thynges doth most earnestlie inuey agaynst the rude ryming of verses in that tong: And whan soeuer he expresseth Aristotles preceptes, with any example, out of Homer or Euripides, he translateth them, not after the Rymes of Petrarke, but into soch kinde of perfite verse, with like feete and quantitie of sillables, as he found them before in the Greke tonge: ex- hortyng earnestlie all the Italian nation, to leaue of their rude barbariousnesse in ryming, and folow diligently the excellent Greke and Latin examples, in trew versifiyng. And you, that be able to vnderstand no more, then ye finde in the Italian tong: and neuer went farder than the schole of Petrarke and Ariostus abroad, or els of Chaucer at home though you haue pleasure to wander blindlie still in your foule wrong way, enuie not others, that seeke, as wise men haue done before them, the fairest and rightest way: or els, beside the iust reproch of malice, wisemen shall trewlie iudge, that you do so, as I haue sayd and say yet agayne vnto you, bicause, either, for idlenes ye will not, or for ignorance ye can not, cum by no better your selfe. And therfore euen as Virgill and Horace deserue most worthie prayse, that they spying the vnperfitnes in Ennius and Plautus, by trew Imitation of Homer and Euripides, brought Poetrie to the same perfitnes in Latin, as it was in Greke, euen so those, that by the same way would benefite their tong and contrey, deserue rather thankes than disprayse in that behalfe. And I rejoyce, that euen poore England preuented Italie, first in spying out, than in seekyng to amend this fault in learnyng. And here, for my pleasure I purpose a litle, by the way, to play and sporte with my Master Tully: from whom commonlie I am neuer wont to dissent. He him selfe, for this point of learnyng, in his verses doth halt a litle by his leaue. He could not denie it, if he were aliue, nor those defend hym now that Tullies // loue him best. This fault I lay to his charge: saying a- // bicause once it pleased him, though somwhat gainst Eng- // merelie, yet oueruncurteslie, to rayle vpon poore land. // England, obiecting both, extreme beggerie, and

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mere barbariousnes vnto it, writyng thus vnto his frend Atticus: There is not one scruple of siluer in that whole // Ad Att. Isle, or any one that knoweth either learnyng or // Lib. iv. Ep. letter. // 16. But now master Cicero, blessed be God, and his sonne Iesu Christ, whom you neuer knew, except it were as it pleased him to lighten you by some shadow, as couertlie in one place ye confesse saying: Veritatis tantum vmbram consectamur, // Offic. as your Master Plato did before you: blessed be God, I say, that sixten hundred yeare after you were dead and gone, it may trewly be sayd, that for siluer, there is more cumlie plate, in one Citie of England, than is in foure of the proudest Cities in all Italie, and take Rome for one of them. And for learnyng, beside the knowledge of all learned tongs and liberall sciences, euen your owne bookes Cicero, be as well read, and your excellent eloquence is as well liked and loued, and as trewlie folowed in England at this day, as it is now, or euer was, sence your owne tyme, in any place of Italie, either at Arpinum, where ye were borne, or els at Rome where ye were brought vp. And a litle to brag with you Cicero, where you your selfe, by your leaue, halted in some point of learnyng in your owne tong, many in England at this day go streight vp, both in trewe skill, and right doing therein. This I write, not to reprehend Tullie, whom, aboue all other, I like and loue best, but to excuse Terence, because in his tyme, and a good while after, Poetrie was neuer perfited in Latin vntill by trew Imitation of the Grecians, it was at length brought to perfection: And also thereby to exhorte the goodlie wittes of England, which apte by nature, & willing by desire, geue them selues to Poetrie, that they, rightly vnderstanding the barbarous bringing in of Rymes, would labor, as Virgil and Horace did in Latin, to make perfit also this point of learning, in our English tong. And thus much for Plautus and Terence, for matter, tong, and meter, what is to be followed, and what to be exchewed in them. After Plautus and Terence, no writing remayneth vntill Tullies tyme, except a fewe short fragmentes of L. Crassus excellent wit, here and there recited of Cicero for example sake, whereby the louers of learnyng may the more lament the losse of soch a worthie witte.

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And although the Latin tong did faire blome and blossome in L. Crassus, and M. Antonius, yet in Tullies tyme onely, and in Tullie himselfe chieflie, was the Latin tong fullie ripe, and growne to the hiest pitch of all perfection. And yet in the same tyme, it began to fade and stoupe, as Tullie him selfe, in Brutus de Claris Oratoribus, with weeping wordes doth witnesse. And bicause, emongs them of that tyme, there was some difference, good reason is, that of them of that tyme, should be made right choice also. And yet let the best Ciceronian in Italie read Tullies familiar epistles aduisedly ouer, and I beleue he shall finde small difference, for the Latin tong, either in propriety of wordes or framing of the stile, betwixt Tullie, and those that write vnto him. As ser. Sulpitius, A. Cecinna, M. Cælius, M. et D. Bruti, A. Pollio, L. Plancus, and diuerse Epi. Planci // other: read the epistles of L. Plancus in x. Lib. x. lib. Epist. // and for an assay, that Epistle namely to the Coss. 8. // and whole Senate, the eight Epistle in number, and what could be, eyther more eloquentlie, or more wiselie written, yea by Tullie himselfe, a man may iustly doubt. Thies men and Tullie, liued all in one tyme, were like in authoritie, not vnlike in learning and studie, which might be iust causes of this their equalitie in writing: And yet surely, they neyther were in deed, nor yet were counted in mens opinions, equall with Tullie in that facultie. And how is the difference hid in his Epistles? verelie, as the cunning of an expert Sea man, in a faire calme fresh Ryuer, doth litle differ from the doing of a meaner workman therein, euen so, in the short cut of a priuate letter, where, matter is common, wordes easie, and order not moch diuerse, small shew of difference can appeare. But where Tullie doth set vp his saile of eloquence, in some broad deep Argument, caried with full tyde and winde, of his witte and learnyng, all other may rather stand and looke after him, than hope to ouertake him, what course so euer he hold, either in faire or foule. Foure men onely whan the Latin tong was full ripe, be left vnto vs, who in that tyme did florish, and did leaue to posteritie, the fruite of their witte and learning: Varro, Salust, Cæsar, and Cicero. Whan I say, these foure onely, I am not ignorant, that euen in the same tyme, most excellent Poetes, deseruing well of the Latin tong, as Lucretius,

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Cattullus, Virgill and Horace, did write: But, bicause, in this litle booke, I purpose to teach a yong scholer, to go, not to daunce: to speake, not to sing, whan Poetes in deed, namelie Epici and Lyrici, as these be, are fine dauncers, and trime singers, but Oratores and Historici be those cumlie goers, and faire and wise speakers, of whom I wishe my scholer to wayte vpon first, and after in good order, & dew tyme, to be brought forth, to the singing and dauncing schole: And for this consi- deration, do I name these foure, to be the onelie writers of that tyme.

¶ Varro.

Varro, in his bookes de lingua Latina, et Analogia as these be left mangled and patched vnto vs, doth not enter // Varro. there in to any great depth of eloquence, but as one caried in a small low vessell him selfe verie nie the common shore, not much vnlike the fisher men of Rye, and Hering men of Yarmouth. Who deserue by common mens opinion, small commendacion, for any cunning saling at all, yet neuertheles in those bookes of Varro good and necessarie stuffe, for that meane kinde of Argument, be verie well and learnedlie gathered togither. His bookes of Husbandrie, are moch to be regarded, and diligentlie to be read, not onelie for the proprietie, // De Rep. but also for the plentie of good wordes, in all // Rustica. contrey and husbandmens affaires: which can not be had, by so good authoritie, out of any other Author, either of so good a tyme, or of so great learnyng, as out of Varro. And yet bicause, he was fourescore yeare old, whan he wrote those bookes, the forme of his style there compared with Tullies writyng, is but euen the talke of a spent old man: whose wordes commonlie fall out of his mouth, though verie wiselie, yet hardly and coldie, and more heauelie also, than some eares can well beare, except onelie for age, and authorities sake. And perchance, in a rude contrey argument, of purpose and iudge- ment, he rather vsed, the speach of the contrey, than talke of the Citie. And so, for matter sake, his wordes sometyme, be somewhat rude: and by the imitation of the elder Cato, old and out of vse:

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And beyng depe stept in age, by negligence some wordes do so scape & fall from him in those bookes, as be not worth the Lib. 3. // taking vp, by him, that is carefull to speake or Cap. 1. // write trew Latin, as that sentence in him, Romani, in pace à rusticis alebantur, et in bello ab his tuebantur. A good student must be therfore carefull and diligent, to read with iudgement ouer euen those Authors, which did write in the most perfite tyme: and let him not be affrayd to trie them, both in proprietie of wordes, and forme of style, by the touch stone of Cæsar and Cicero, whose puritie was neuer soiled, no not by the sentence of those, that loued them worst. All louers of learnyng may sore lament the losse of those The loue // bookes of Varro, which he wrote in his yong and of Var- // lustie yeares, with good leysure, and great learnyng roes // of all partes of Philosophie: of the goodliest argu- bookes. // mentes, perteyning both to the common wealth, and priuate life of man, as, de Ratione studij, et educandis liberis, which booke, is oft recited, and moch praysed, in the fragmentes of Nonius, euen for authoritie sake. He wrote most diligentlie and largelie, also the whole historie of the state of Rome: the mysteries of their whole Religion: their lawes, customes, and gouernement in peace: their maners, and whole discipline in warre: And this is not my gessing, as one in deed that neuer saw those bookes, but euen, the verie iudgement, & playne testimonie of Tullie him selfe, who knew & read those bookes, in these wordes: Tu ætatem Patriæ: Tu descriptiones temporum: In Acad. // Tu sacrorum, tu sacerdotum Iura: Tu domesticam, Quest. // tu bellicam disciplinam: Tu sedem Regionum, locorum, tu omnium diuinarum humanarumque rerum nomina, genera, officia, causas aperuisti. &c. But this great losse of Varro, is a litle recompensed by the happy comming of Dionysius Halicarnassæus to Rome in Augustus dayes: who getting the possession of Varros librarie, out of that treasure house of learning, did leaue vnto vs some frute of Varros witte and diligence, I meane, his goodlie bookes de Antiquitatibus Romanorum. Varro was so estemed for his excellent learnyng, as Tullie him selfe had a reuerence to his Cic. ad // iudgement in all doutes of learnyng. And Att. // Antonius Triumuir_, his enemie, and of a contrarie faction, who had power to kill and bannish whom