EXAMPLES

ILLUSTRATING

THE PROGRESS OF THE ENGLISH STYLE.

ROGER ASCHAM,

b. 1515, d. 1568.

I DOE gladly agree with al good scholemasters in these points: to haue children brought to good perfectnes in lerning; to all honesty in manners; to haue all faults rightly amended; to haue euery vice seuerely corrected; but for the order and way that leadeth rightly to these poynts, we somewhat differ. For commonly, many scholemasters, some, as I haue seene, mo, as I haue heard tell, be of so crooked a nature, as, when they meete with a hard witted scholler, they rather break him, then bow him, rather mar him, then mende him. For, when the scholemaster is angry with some other matter, then will he soonest fall to beate his scholler; and though he him selfe should be punished for his folly, yet must he beat some scholler for his pleasure, though there be no cause for him to do so, nor yet fault in the scholler to deserue so. These, ye will say, be fond scholemasters, and few they be that be found to be such. They be fond in deede, but surely ouer many such be found euery where. But this will I say, that euen the wisest of your great beaters do as oft punish nature as they doe correct faultes. Yea, many times the better nature is sorer punished: for if one, by quicknesse of wit, take his lesson readely, an other, by hardnes of wit, taketh it not so speedely, the first is alwayes commended, the other is commonly punished, when a wise scholemaster should rather discreetly consider the right disposition of both their natures, and not so much wey what either of them is able to do now, as what either of them is likely to doe hereafter. For this I know, not only by reading of bookes in my study, but also by experience of life abroad in the world, that those which be commonly the wisest, the best learned, and best men also, when they be old, were neuer commonly the quickest of wit when they were young. The causes why, amongest other, which be many, that moue me thus to thinke,

be these few, which I will recken. Quick wittes commonly be apt to take, vnapt to keepe; soone hote, and desirous of this and that, as colde and soon wery of the same again; more quick to enter speedely, then able to pearce far; euen like our sharp tooles, whose edges be very soone turned. Such wittes delight themselues in easie and pleasant studies, and neuer pas forward in high and hard scyences. And therefore the quickest wittes commonly may proue the best poets, but not the wisest orators; ready of tongue to speake boldly, not deep of iudgement, either for good counsell or wise writing. Also, for manner and life, quick wittes commonly be in desire newfangled, in purpose vnconstant; light to promise any thing, redy to forget euery thing, both benefite and iniury, and therby neither fast to frend, nor fearful to foe; inquisitiue of every trifle; not secret in greatest affaires; bold with any person; busy in euery matter; soothing such as be present; nipping any that is absent; of nature also, alwayes flattering their betters, enuying their equals, despysing their inferyors, and, by quicknes of wit, very quick and ready to like none so well as themselues.-(The Scholemaster.)

SIR WALTER RALEIGH,

b. 1552, d. 1613

If we seeke a reason of the succession and continuance of this boundlesse ambition in mortall men, we may adde to that which hath been alreadie said, that the kings and princes of the world have alwaies laid before them the actions; but not the ends of those great ones which preceded them. They are alwayes transported with the glorie of the one, but they never minde the miserie of the other, till they finde the experience in themselves. They neglect the advice of God, while they enjoy life, or hope it; but they follow the counsell of Death, upon his first approach. It is he, that puts into man all the wisedome of the world, without speaking a word; which God with all the words of his law, promises, or threats, doth infuse. Death, which hateth and destroyed man, is beleeved; God, which hath made him, and loves him, is alwaies deferred. "I have considered (saith Salomon) all the workes that are under the sunne, and behold, all is vanitie and vexation of spirit : " but who beleeves it till Death tels it us? It was Death which, opening the conscience of Charles the fift, made him enjoyne his sonne Philip to restore Navarre; and King Francis the first of France, to command that justice should be done upon the murderers of the Protestants in Merindol and Cabrieres, which till then he neglected. It is therefore Death alone that can suddenly make man to know himselfe. He tels the proud and insolent, that they are but abjects, and humbles them at the instant; makes them crie, complaine, and repent; yea, even to hate their forepassed happinesse. He takes the account of the rich, and proves him a beggar; a naked beggar, which hath interest in nothing, but in the gravell that fils his mouth. He holds a glasse before the

eyes of the most beautifull, and makes them see therein their deformitie and rottennesse; and they acknowledge it.

O eloquent, just, and mightie Death! whom none could advise, thou hast perswaded; what none hath dared, thou hast done; and whom all the world hath flattered, thou only hast cast out of the world and despised; thou hast drawne together all the farre stretched greatnesse all the pride, crueltie, and ambition of man, and covered it all over with these two narrow words, Hic jacet.-(The Historie of the World.)

RICHARD HOOKER,

b. 1554, d. 1600.

They of whome God is alltogether vnapprehended, are but few in number, and for grosnes of wit such, that they hardly and scarcely seeme to hold the place of humane being. These we should iudge to be of all others most miserable, but that a wretcheder sort there are, on whome whereas nature hath bestowed riper capacitie, their euill disposition seriouslie goeth about therewith to apprehend God as being not God. Whereby it commeth to passe, that of these two sorts of men, both godlesse, the one hauing vtterly no knowledge of God, the other studie how to perswade themselues that there is no such thing to be knowne. The fountaine and wellspring of which impietie is a resolued purpose of minde to reape in this world what sensuall profit or pleasure soeuer the world yeeldeth, and not to be barred from any whatsoeuer meanes auaileable thereunto. And that this is the very radicall cause of their atheisme, no man I thinke will doubt which considereth what paines they take to destroy those principall spurres and motiues vnto all vertue, the creation of the world, the prouidence of God, the resurrection of the dead, the ioyes of the kingdome of heauen, and the endlesse paines of the wicked, yea aboue all things the authoritie of Scripture, because on these points it euermore beateth, and the soules immortalitie, which graunted, draweth easily after it the rest, as a voluntarie traine. Is it not wonderfull that base desires should so extinguish in men the sense of their owne excellencie, as to make them willing that their soules should be like to the soules of beasts, mortall and corruptible with their bodies? Till some admirable or vnusuall accident happen (as it hath in some) to worke the beginning of a better alteration in their mindes, disputation about the knowledge of God with such kinde of persons commonly preuaileth little. For how should the brightnes of wisedome shine, where the windowes of the soule are of very set purpose closed? True religion hath many things in it, the onely mention whereof gauleth and troubleth their mindes. Being therefore loath that inquirie into such matters should breede a perswasion in the ende contrarie vnto that they embrace, it is their endeuor to banish, as much as in them lyeth, quite and cleane from their cogitation whatsoeuer may sound that way. But it

commeth many times to passe (which is their torment) that the thing they shunne doth follow them; truth as it were euen obtruding itselfe into their knowledge, and not permitting them to be so ignorant as they woulde be. Whereupon, in as much as the nature of man is vnwilling to continue doing that wherein it shall alwayes condemne it selfe, they continuing still obstinate to followe the course which they haue begunne, are driuen to deuise all the shifts that wit can inuent for the smoothering of this light, all that may but with any the least showe of possibilitie, stay their mindes from thinking that true, which they hartely wish were false, but cannot thinke it so, without some scruple and feare of the contrarie.—(Of the Lawes of Ecclesiasticall Politie.)

FRANCIS BACON,

LORD VERULAM, VISCOUNT ST. ALBANS,

b. 1561, d. 1626

Thus haue I concluded this portion of learning touching civill knowledge, and with civil knowledge haue concluded humane philosophy, and with humane philosophy, philosophy in generall; and being now at some pause, looking backe into that I haue passed through, this writing seemeth to mee (si nunquam fallit imago) as far as a man can judge of his owne worke, not much better then that noise or sound which musitians make while they are tuning their instruments, which is nothing pleasant to heare, but yet is a cause why the musique is sweeter afterwards. So haue I beene content to tune the instruments of the Muses, that they may play that haue better hands. And surely when I set before me the condition of these times, in which learning hath made her third visitation, or circuit, in all the qualities thereof; as the excellency and viuacity of the wits of this age; the noble helps and lights which we haue by the trauailes of ancient writers; the art of printing, which communicateth bookes to men of all fortunes; the opennes of the world by nauigation, which hath disclosed multitudes of experiments, and a masse of naturall history; the leasure wherewith these times abound, not imploying men so generally in civill bussinesse as the states of Græcia did, in respect of their popularity, and the state of Rome, in respect of the greatnesse of their monarchy; the present disposition of these times at this instant to peace; the consumption of all that ever can be said in controuersies of religion, which haue so much diuerted men from other sciences; the perfection of your Majesties learning, which as a Phoenix may call whole volies of wits to follow you; and the inseparable propriety of time, which is euer more and more to disclose truth; I cannot but be raised to this perswasion, that this third period of time will farre surpasse that of the Grecian and Romane learning: onely if men will know their owne strength, and their owne weaknesse both; and take, one from the other, light of invention, and not fire of contradiction, and