I will not name, for the honor I beare them, so without
measure misordered, that I thinke my selfe in hell, till tyme
cum, that I must go to _M. Elmer_, who teacheth me so ientlie,
so pleasantlie, with soch faire allurementes to learning, that I
thinke all the tyme nothing, whiles I am with him. And
when I am called from him, I fall on weeping, because, what
soeuer I do els, but learning, is ful of grief, trouble, feare, and
whole misliking vnto me: And thus my booke, hath bene so
moch my pleasure, & bringeth dayly to me more pleasure &
more, that in respect of it, all other pleasures, in very deede, be
but trifles and troubles vnto me. I remember this talke gladly,
both bicause it is so worthy of memorie, & bicause also, it was
the last talke that euer I had, and the last tyme, that euer I
saw that noble and worthie Ladie.
I could be ouer long, both in shewinge iust causes, and in
recitinge trewe examples, why learning shold be taught, rather
by loue than feare. He that wold see a perfite discourse of it,
_Sturmius_ // let him read that learned treatese, which my frende
de Inst. // _Ioan. Sturmius_ wrote _de institutione Principis_, to
Princ. // the Duke of _Cleues_.
The godlie counsels of _Salomon_ and _Iesus_ the sonne of
Qui par- // _Sirach_, for sharpe kepinge in, and bridleinge of
cit virgæ, // youth, are ment rather, for fatherlie correction,
odit filium. // then masterlie beating, rather for maners, than for
learninge: for other places, than for scholes. For God forbid,
but all euill touches, wantonnes, lyinge, pickinge, slouthe, will,
stubburnnesse, and disobedience, shold be with sharpe chastise-
ment, daily cut away.
This discipline was well knowen, and diligentlie vsed,
among the _Græcians_, and old _Romanes_, as doth appeare in
_Aristophanes, Isocrates_, and _Plato_, and also in the Comedies of
_Plautus_: where we see that children were vnder the rule of
three persones: _Præceptore, Pædagogo, Parente_: the scholemaster
1. Schole- // taught him learnyng with all ientlenes: the
master. // Gouernour corrected his maners, with moch
2. Gouer- // sharpenesse: The father, held the sterne of his
nour. // whole obedience: And so, he that vsed to teache,
3. Father. // did not commonlie vse to beate, but remitted that
ouer to an other mans charge. But what shall we saie, whan
now in our dayes, the scholemaster is vsed, both for _Præceptor_
_the brynging vp of youth._ 203
in learnyng, and _Pædagogus_ in maners. Surelie, I wold he
shold not confound their offices, but discretelie vse the dewtie
of both so, that neither ill touches shold be left vnpunished, nor
ientlesse in teaching anie wise omitted. And he shall well do
both, if wiselie he do appointe diuersitie of tyme, & separate
place, for either purpose: vsing alwaise soch discrete modera-
tion as the scholehouse should be counted a
sanctuarie against feare: and verie well learning, a // The schole
common perdon for ill doing, if the fault, of it // house.
selfe be not ouer heinous.
And thus the children, kept vp in Gods feare, and preserued
by his grace, finding paine in ill doing, and pleasure in well
studiyng, shold easelie be brought to honestie of life, and
perfitenes of learning, the onelie marke, that good and wise
fathers do wishe and labour, that their children, shold most
buselie, and carefullie shot at.
There is an other discommoditie, besides crueltie in schole-
masters in beating away the loue of learning from // Youth of
children, which hindreth learning and vertue, and // England
good bringing vp of youth, and namelie yong // brought vp
ientlemen, verie moch in England. This fault // with to
is cleane contrary to the first. I wished before, // much li-
to haue loue of learning bred vp in children: // bertie.
I wishe as moch now, to haue yong men brought vp in good
order of liuing, and in some more seuere discipline, then
commonlie they be. We haue lacke in England of soch good
order, as the old noble _Persians_ so carefullie vsed: // _Xen._ 7.
whose children, to the age of xxi. yeare, were // _Cyri Ped._
brought vp in learnyng, and exercises of labor,
and that in soch place, where they should, neither see that was
vncumlie, nor heare that was vnhonest. Yea, a yong ientleman
was neuer free, to go where he would, and do what he liste him
self, but vnder the kepe, and by the counsell, of some graue
gouernour, vntill he was, either maryed, or cald to beare some
office in the common wealth.
And see the great obedience, that was vsed in old tyme to
fathers and gouernours. No sonne, were he neuer so old of
yeares, neuer so great of birth, though he were a kynges sonne,
might not mary, but by his father and mothers also consent.
_Cyrus_ the great, after he had conquered _Babylon_, and subdewed