The Scholemaster

by Roger Ascham

learning is gotten in a sommer heat, and washed away, with
a Christmas snow againe: who neuerthelesse, are lesse to be
blamed, than those blind bussardes, who in late yeares, of
wilfull maliciousnes, would neyther learne themselues, nor
could teach others, any thing at all.
Paraphrasis hath done lesse hurt to learning, than Epitome:
for no Paraphrasis, though there be many, shall neuer take
away Dauids Psalter. Erasmus Paraphrasis being neuer so
good, shall neuer banishe the new Testament. And in an
other schole, the Paraphrasis of Brocardus, or Sambucus, shal
neuer take Aristotles Rhetoricke, nor Horace de Arte Poetica, out
of learned mens handes.
But, as concerning a schole Epitome, he that wold haue an
example of it, let him read Lucian peri kallous which is the
verie Epitome of Isocrates oration de laudibus Helenæ,
whereby
he may learne, at the least, this wise lesson, that a man ought
to beware, to be ouer bold, in altering an excellent mans
worke.
Neuertheles, some kinde of Epitome may be vsed, by men
of skilful iudgement, to the great proffet also of others. As if
a wise man would take Halles Cronicle, where moch good
matter is quite marde with Indenture Englishe, and first change,
strange and inkhorne tearmes into proper, and commonlie vsed
wordes: next, specially to wede out that, that is superfluous
and idle, not onelie where wordes be vainlie heaped one vpon
an other, but also where many sentences, of one meaning, be
clowted vp together as though M. Hall had bene, not writing
the storie of England, but varying a sentence in Hitching
schole: surelie a wise learned man, by this way of Epitome, in
cutting away wordes and sentences, and diminishing nothing at
all of the matter, shold leaue to mens vse, a storie, halfe as
moch as it was in quantitie, but twise as good as it was, both
for pleasure and also commoditie.
An other kinde of Epitome may be vsed likewise very well,
to moch proffet. Som man either by lustines of nature, or
brought by ill teaching, to a wrong iudgement, is ouer full of
words, sentences, & matter, & yet all his words be proper, apt
& well chosen: all his sentences be rownd and trimlie framed:
his whole matter grownded vpon good reason, & stuffed with
full arguments, for his intent & purpose. Yet when his talke

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shalbe heard, or his writing be red, of soch one, as is, either of my two dearest frendes, M. Haddon at home, or Iohn Sturmius in Germanie, that Nimium in him, which fooles and vnlearned will most commend, shall eyther of thies two, bite his lippe, or shake his heade at it. This fulnes as it is not to be misliked in a yong man, so in farder aige, in greater skill, and weightier affaires, it is to be temperated, or else discretion and iudgement shall seeme to be wanting in him. But if his stile be still ouer rancke and lustie, as some men being neuer so old and spent by yeares, will still be full of youthfull conditions as was Syr F. Bryan, and euer- more wold haue bene: soch a rancke and full writer, must vse, if he will do wiselie the exercise of a verie good kinde of Epitome, and do, as certaine wise men do, that be ouer fat and fleshie: who leauing their owne full and plentifull table, go to soiorne abrode from home for a while, at the temperate diet of some sober man: and so by litle and litle, cut away the grosnesse that is in them. As for an example: If Osorius would leaue of his lustines in striuing against S. Austen, and his ouer rancke rayling against poore Luther, and the troth of Gods doctrine, and giue his whole studie, not to write any thing of his owne for a while, but to translate Demosthenes, with so straite, fast, & temperate a style in latine, as he is in Greeke, he would becume so perfit & pure a writer, I beleue, as hath bene fewe or none sence Ciceroes dayes: And so, by doing himself and all learned moch good, do others lesse harme, & Christes doctrine lesse iniury, than he doth: & with all, wyn vnto himselfe many worthy frends, who agreing with him gladly, in y^e loue & liking of excellent learning, are sorie to see so worthie a witte, so rare eloquence, wholie spent and consumed, in striuing with God and good men. Emonges the rest, no man doth lament him more than I, not onelie for the excellent learning that I see in him, but also bicause there hath passed priuatelie betwixt him and me, sure tokens of moch good will, and frendlie opinion, the one toward the other. And surelie the distance betwixt London and Lysbon, should not stoppe, any kinde of frendlie dewtie, that I could, eyther shew to him, or do to his, if the greatest matter of all did not in certeyne pointes, separate our myndes. And yet for my parte, both toward him, and diuerse others

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here at home, for like cause of excellent learning, great wisdome, and gentle humanitie, which I haue seene in them, and felt at their handes my selfe, where the matter of indifference is mere conscience in a quiet minde inwardlie, and not contentious malice with spitefull rayling openlie, I can be content to followe this rewle, in misliking some one thing, not to hate for anie thing els. But as for all the bloodie beastes, as that fat Boore of the Psal. 80. // wood: or those brauling Bulles of Basan: or any lurking Dormus, blinde, not by nature, but by malice, & as may be gathered of their owne testimonie, giuen ouer to blindnes, for giuing ouer God & his word; or soch as be so lustie runnegates, as first, runne from God & his trew doctrine, than, from their Lordes, Masters, & all dewtie, next, from them selues & out of their wittes, lastly from their Prince, contrey, & all dew allegeance, whether they ought rather to be pitied of good men, for their miserie, or contemned of wise men, for their malicious folie, let good and wise men deter- mine. And to returne to Epitome agayne, some will iudge moch boldnes in me, thus to iudge of Osorius style: but wise men do know, that meane lookers on, may trewelie say, for a well made Picture: This face had bene more cumlie, if that hie redde in the cheeke, were somwhat more pure sanguin than it is: and yet the stander by, can not amend it himselfe by any way. And this is not written to the dispraise but to the great commendation of Osorius, because Tullie himselfe had the same fulnes in him: and therefore went to Rodes to cut it away: and saith himselfe, recepi me domum prope mutatus, nam quasi referuerat iam oratio. Which was brought to passe I beleue, not onelie by the teaching of Molo Appollonius but also by a good way of Epitome, in binding him selfe to translate meros Atticos Oratores, and so to bring his style, from all lowse grosnesse, to soch firme fastnes in latin, as is in Demosthenes in Greeke. And this to be most trew, may easelie be gathered, not onelie of L. Crassus talke in 1. de Or. but speciallie of Ciceroes owne deede in translating Demosthenes and æschines orations peri steph. to that verie ende and purpose. And although a man growndlie learned all readie, may take moch proffet him selfe in vsing, by Epitome, to draw other mens

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workes for his owne memorie sake, into shorter rowme, as Conterus hath done verie well the whole Metamorphosis of Ouid, & Dauid Cythræus a great deale better, the ix. Muses of Hero- dotus, and Melanchthon in myne opinion, far best of all, the whole storie of Time, not onelie to his own vse, but to other mens proffet and hys great prayse, yet, Epitome is most necessarie of all in a mans owne writing, as we learne of that noble Poet Virgill, who, if Donatus say trewe, in writing that perfite worke of the Georgickes, vsed dailie, when he had written 40. or 50. verses, not to cease cutting, paring, and pollishing of them, till he had brought them to the nomber of x. or xij. And this exercise, is not more nedefullie done in a great worke, than wiselie done, in your common dailie writing, either of letter, or other thing else, that is to say, to peruse diligentlie, and see and spie wiselie, what is alwaies more than nedeth: For, twenty to one, offend more, in writing to moch, than to litle: euen as twentie to one, fall into sicknesse, rather by ouer moch fulnes, than by anie lacke or emptinesse. And therefore is he alwaies the best English Physition, that best can geue a purgation, that is, by way of Epitome, to cut all ouer much away. And surelie mens bodies, be not more full of ill humors, than commonlie mens myndes (if they be yong, lustie, proude, like and loue them selues well, as most men do) be full of fansies, opinions, errors, and faultes, not onelie in inward inuention, but also in all their vtterance, either by pen or taulke. And of all other men, euen those that haue y^e inuentiuest heades, for all purposes, and roundest tonges in all matters and places (except they learne and vse this good lesson of Epitome) commit commonlie greater faultes, than dull, staying silent men do. For, quicke inuentors, and faire readie speakers, being boldned with their present habilitie to say more, and perchance better to, at the soden for that present, than any other can do, vse lesse helpe of diligence and studie than they ought to do: and so haue in them commonlie, lesse learning, and weaker iudgement, for all deepe considerations, than some duller heades, and slower tonges haue. And therefore, readie speakers, generallie be not the best, playnest, and wisest writers, nor yet the deepest iudgers in weightie affaires, bicause they do not tarry to weye and iudge all thinges, as they should: but hauing their heades ouer full of

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matter, be like pennes ouer full of incke, which will soner blotte, than make any faire letter at all. Tyme was, whan I had experience of two Ambassadors in one place, the one of a hote head to inuent, and of a hastie hand to write, the other, colde and stayd in both: but what difference of their doinges was made by wise men, is not vnknowne to some persons. The Bishop of Winchester Steph: Gardiner had a quicke head, and a readie tong, and yet was not the best writer in England. Cicero in Brutus doth wiselie note the same in Serg: Galbo, and Q. Hortentius, who were both, hote, lustie, and plaine speakers, but colde, lowse, and rough writers: And Tullie telleth the cause why, saying, whan they spake, their tong was naturally caried with full tyde & wynde of their witte: whan they wrote their head was solitarie, dull, and caulme, and so their style was blonte, and their writing colde: Quod vitium, sayth Cicero, peringeniosis hominibus neque satis doctis plerumque accidit. And therfore all quick inuentors, & readie faire speakers, must be carefull, that, to their goodnes of nature, they adde also in any wise, studie, labor, leasure, learning, and iudgement, and than they shall in deede, passe all other, as I know some do, in whome all those qualities are fullie planted, or else if they giue ouer moch to their witte, and ouer litle to their labor and learning, they will sonest ouer reach in taulke, and fardest cum behinde in writing whatsoeuer they take in hand. The methode of Epitome is most necessarie for soch kinde of men. And thus much concerning the vse or misuse of all kinde of Epitomes in matters of learning.

[dingbat omitted] Imitatio.