Chapter 6

¶ He that played thys playe was a chylde borne to all myschiefe, whiche by other vngracious deedes afterwardes, made men beleue the other to be true that were done before. And he was nephewe by the systers syde to this mad docter: eu[en] then playing a part before to these thyngs whych souldiers are wont to do in bataile or robbynge. At an hostes house of his, he pulled oute the faucet, and let the wyne runne vpõ the ground, and as one to shew a pleasure, he sayde that he felt the sauour of the wyne: wyth an other of hys felowes he daylye played at the sworde, not in sporte, but in earnest, that euen then you myght wel perceyue he wolde be a thyefe or a murtherer, or whych is very lyke to them, that he wolde be an hyred souldier. Although the teacher fauored hym, yet fearynge leste they shulde one kyll an other, he sente awaye his cosen. For he had for that other a good rewarde: and he was of this sorte of gospellers, to whom nothing is more swete then monei. His godfather was made surely to beleue that the child was w^t a good and diligent master, when in deede he dwelte wyth a boucher, & was continually in company, and made drudge with a man that was halfe mad, and continually sicke. Thus fauoringe more his kynseman then hym by whom he had so much profite, the suspicion was layde vpon the harmeles, to whom they ascribed so muche malice that he wolde teare and defile his owne garmentes to auoide suspicion if any suche thyng had bene done. But the child commyng both of good father and mother, dyd neuer shewe any tok[en] of such a naughtie disposicion: and at thys daye there is nothing farther from all malice then are hys maners, whyche nowe free frome all feare telleth all the matter in order as it was donne.

¶ To suche tutors do honest citizens committe their chyldren whome they moste loue, and suche do complayne that they be not wel rewarded for their paynes. And this tormentour wolde not once knoweledge he had done amisse, but had rather playe the starke mad man, then confesse his faute: and yet agaynst such is not taken an accion of euyll handlyng, neither hath the rigoure of the lawe anye power agaynste suche huge crueltie. There is no anger worse to be pleased th[en] theirs that be lyke to haue the fallynge sycknes. Howe many things be crepte in, into the lyfe of christen men, not meete neither for the Phrigians nor y^e Scithians, of y^e which I wyl shew one much like this matter. The yong gentlemã is send in to y^e vniuersitie to lerne the liberall sciences. But w^t how vngentle despightes is he begun in them? Fyrst they rub his chyn, as though they wolde shaue his bearde: hereunto thei vse pisse, or if ther be any fouler thyng. This liquour is dashed into his mouth, & he may not spit it out. Wyth paynfull bobbes they make as though thei drewe hornes from him: sõtime he is cõpelled to drinke a great deale of vinegre or salte, or whatsoeuer it listeth y^e wyld cõpany of yong m[en] to geue him: for wh[en] they begin the play, thei make him swere y^t he shal obey al that they cõmaund him. At last they hoyse him vp, & dashe his backe against a post as oft[en] as they list. After these so rustical despightes s[um]time foloweth an ague or a paine of y^e backe y^t neuer cã be remedied. Certes this foolishe play endeth in a drõken bãket: w^t such beginninges enter they into y^e studies of liberal sciences. But it were mete that after this sorte ther shuld begin a boucher, a torm[en]tour a baud or a bõde slaue or a botemã, not a child appointed to y^e holy studies of lerning. It is a meruel that yong m[en] geuen to liberal studies be mad after this fashiõ, but it is more meruel y^t these things be alowed of suche as haue the rule of youth. To so foule & cruel folyshenes is pret[en]sed the name of custume, as though the custume of an euil thing wer any thing else th[en] an old errour, whiche ought so much the more dilig[en]tly to be pulled vp bicause it is crept among many. So cõtinueth amõg the diuines y^e maner of a vesper, for they note an euyl thynge w^t a like name, more mete for scoffers th[en] diuines. But thei y^t professe liberal sci[en]ces, shuld haue also liberal sports. But I come againe to chyldren, to whome nothyng is more vnprofitable, then to be vsed to stripes, whiche enormittie causeth that the g[en]tle nature is intractable, and the viler driuen to desperacion: and cõtinuaunce of th[em] maketh that both the bodye is hardened to stripes, & the mynd to wordes. Nay we may not oftentymes chyde th[em] to sharplye. A medicine naughtelye vsed, maketh the sickenes worse, helpeth it not, and if it be layde to continuallye, by litle and litle, it ceaseth to be a medicine, and dothe nothinge else then dothe stinkynge and vnwholesome meate. But here some man wyl laye vnto vs the godlye sayings of the Hebrues. He that spareth the rod hateth hys chylde and he that loueth hys sonne, beateth hym muche. Agayne: Bowe downe the necke of thy chylde in youth, and beate hys sydes whyle he is an infante very yonge. Suche chastisemente peraduenture was meete in tyme paste for the Iewes. Nowe must the sayinge be expounded more ciuilely. And if a man wil be hard to vs wyth letters and sillables, what is more cruell then to bend the necke of a chyld, & to beat the sides of an infant? woldest thou not beleue that a bull were taught to y^e plowgh, or an asse to bear paniars, and not a mã to vertue? And what rewarde doth he promise vs? That he grope not after other m[en]nes dores. He is afeard lest his son shulde be poore, as the greateste of all mischiefe. What is more coldly spoken then thys sentence? Let gentle admonicion be oure rodde, and sometyme chydyng also, but sauced wyth mekenes, not bitternes. Let vs vse thys whyp continuallye in our chyldren, y^t beyng wel brought vp, they maye haue at home a meanes to lyue well, and not be cõpelled to beg counsell at their neighbours how to do their busines. Licon the philosopher hath shewed .ii. sharpe spurres to quicken vp chyldrens wyttes, shame, and prayse: shame is the feare of a iust reproch, prayse is the norysher of all verteous actes: wyth these prickes lette vs quicken our chyldrens wyttes. Also if you wyl, I wyl shewe you a club to beate their sides wythall. Continuall labour vanquysheth all thynges sayth the best of al poetes. Let vs wake, let vs prycke th[em] forwardes, & styl call vpon them, by requiringe, repetynge, and often teachyng: Wyth this club let vs beate the sydes of our infantes. Fyrst let them lerne to loue, and maruell at vertue and lernyng, to abhor sinne and ignorance. Let them hear some praysed for theyr well doinges, and some rebuked for their euyl. Let examples be brought in of those men to whom lernyng hath gott[en] hygh glorye, ryches, dignitie, and authoritie. And againe of them to whom their euyll condicions & wyt wythout all lernyng hath brought infamie, contempt, pouertye and myschiefe. These verely be the clubbes meete for christians, that make disciples of Iesu. [Sidenote: Emulacion is an enuye wythout malice, for desire to be as good as an other, & to be as much praysed.] And if we cã not profite by monicions, nor prayers, neyther by emulacion, nor shame, nor prayse, nor by other meanes, euen the chastenyng w^t the rod, if it so require, ought to be gentle & honeste. For euen thys that the bodies of g[en]tle children shulde be made bare, is a kind of despice. Howbeit Fabius vtterly cõdemneth al y^e custume to beate gentle chyldr[en]. Some mã wil saye, what shall be done to them if they can not be driuen to study but by stripes? I answer ro[un]dly, what wold ye do to asses or to oxen if thei went to schole? Woldest thou not driue them in to the contrey, & put the one to the backhouse, the other to the plowe. For there be men as well borne to the plowe and to the backehouse, as oxen and asses be. But they wyll saye: then decreseth my flocke. What then? Yea and myne aduauntage to. Thys is an harde matter: thys maketh them to weepe. They set more money then by the profite of the chyldren. But suche are all the cõmon sorte of folyshe teachers. I graunte. As the philosophers describe a wyse mã, y^e rethoricians an oratour, such one as scarse maye be fo[un]d in anye place: So muche more easye it is to prescribe what manner of man a scholmaster shuld be, th[en] to find many y^t wil be as you wold haue th[em]. [Sidenote: Ciuile officers and prelates shuld se that ther wer good schole masters.] ¶ But this oughte to be a publyque care and charge, and belongeth to the ciuyle officer, and chyef prelats of the churches that as ther be men appointed to serue in war, to singe in churches, so muche more there shulde be ordeined that shuld teach citizens chyldren well and gently. [Sidenote: Vespasian.] Vespasianus oute of hys owne cofers gaue yerely sixe h[un]dred po[un]de to Latine and Greke rethoricians. [Sidenote: Plinie.] Plinie the nephew of his owne liberalitie bestowed a great s[um]me of money to the same purpose. And if the com[en]ty in thys poynt be slacke, certenly euerye man ought to take hede at home for his owne house. ¶ Thou wylt saye: what shall poore men do which can scarse fynd their chyldren, muche lesse hyre a master to teache them? Here I haue nothynge to saye, but thys out of the comedie: We muste do as we maye do, when we can not as we wolde. We do shewe the beste waye of teachynge, we be not able to geue fortune: Saue that here also the liberalitie of ryche men ought to helpe good wyttes, whych can not shewe forthe the strength of naturall inclinacion because of pouertye. [Sidenote: Pouertie hurteth good wittes.] I wyll that the gentlenes of the master shulde be so tempered, that familiaritie, the companion of contempte, put not away honeste reuerence, suche one as men say Sarpedo was, tutour to Cato of Vtica, which thorowe hys gentle maners gat greate loue, and by hys vertue as lyke authoritie, causynge the chylde to haue a greate reuerence, and to set much by him wythout anye feare of roddes. But these y^t can do nothynge elles but beate, what wolde they do if they had taken vpon them to teache Emperoures or kynges chyldren, whome it were not lefull to beate? They wyll saye that greate mens sonnes muste be excepted from thys fashion. What is that? Be not the chyldren of citizens, men as well as kynges chyldren be? Shulde not euerye manne as wel loue hys chylde as if he wer a kynges sonne? If his estate be s[um]what base, so much the more neede hath he to be taught, and holpen by lernynge, that he maye come vp, from his pore case. But if he be of hye degre, philosophy & lernyng is necessary to gouerne hys matters well. Further not a fewe be called frome lowe degre to hye estate, yea sometyme to be great byshops. All men come not to thys, yet oughte al men to be brought vp to come to it. I wil braule no more with these greate beaters, after I haue tolde you this one thing: How that those lawes & officers be condemned of wyse men, whych can no more but feare men wyth punyshement, & do not also entyse men by rewardes: and the whych punyshe fautes, and prouide not also y^t nothyng be done worthy punishm[en]t. The same must be thought of the cõmon sort of teachers, whych only beate for fautes, and do not also teache y^e mynd that it do not amysse. They straitlie require their lesson of them: if the chylde fayle, he is beaten: and wh[en] this is done daily because the child shuld be more accustumed to it, thei thinke they haue plaied the part of a gaye scholemaster. But the chyld shulde fyrste haue ben encoraged to loue lernyng, and to be afeared to displease hys teacher. But of these thynges peraduenture some man wyl thynke I haue spoke to much & so myght I worthely be thought, except that almoste all men dyd in this poynte so greatly offende, that hereof a mã cã neuer speke inough. Furthermore it wyll helpe verye muche, if he that hathe taken vpon hym to teache a chylde, so sette hys mynd vpon hym, that he bear a fatherly loue vnto hym. By thys it shall come to passe, y^t both the child wil lerne more gladly, & he shal fele lesse tediousnes of his laboure. [Sidenote: A sentence to be marked.] For in euery busines loue taketh away y^e greatest part of hardnes. And because after the olde prouerbe: Lyke reioyseth in lyke, y^e master muste in maner play the childe againe, that he may be loued of the chylde. Yet this lyketh me not, y^t men set theyr children to be taught their fyrst beginnings of letters vnto those that be of extreme and dotyng olde age, for they be chyldren in verye deede, they fayne not, they co[un]terfait not, stuttinge, but stutte in deede.