Roger Ascham Toxophilus 1545

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panions which loue fhotinge, hearde you, they wolde
thinke you made it but a triflyng and fabling matter,
rather then any other man that loueth not Ihotinge
coulde be perfuaded by this reafon to loue it.

&OX0. Euen as I am not fo fonde but I knowe that
thefe be fables, fo I am fure you be not fo ignoraunt,
but you knowe what fuche noble wittes as the Poetes
had, ment by fuch matters: which oftentymes vnder
the couering of a fable, do hyde and wrappe in goodlie
preceptes of philofophie, with the true iudgement of
thinges. Whiche to be true fpeciallye in Homer and
Euripides, Plato, Ariflotle, and Galene playnelye do
fhewe: when through all their workes (in a maner)
they determine all controuerfies, by thefe. ii. Poetes
and fuche lyke authorities. Therfore if in this matter
I feme to fable, and nothynge proue, I am content
you iudge fo on me : feinge the fame iudgement mall
condemne with me Plato, Ariflotle, and Galene, whom
in that errour I am wel content to folowe. If thefe
oulde examples proue nothing for fhoting, what faye
you to this ? that the befl learned and fageft men in this
Realme, which be nowe alyue, both loue fhoting and
vfe fhoting, as the befl learnedbiffhoppes that be:
amonges whome Philologe^ you your felfe knowe. iiii.
or. v. which as in all good learning, vertue and fage-
neffe they gyue other men example what thing they
fhoulde do, euen fo by their fhoting, they playnely
fhewe what honeft paflime, other men giuen to learning,
may honeflly vfe. That erneft ftudie mufl be recreated
with honeft paflime fufficientlye I haue proue'd afore,
both by reafon and authorise of the befl learned men
that euer wrote. Then feing paftymes be lefull, the
mo oft fittefl for learning, is to be fought Tor. A
paflyme, faith Ariflotle, mufl be lyke a ^^
medicine. Medicines ftande by contra- S-P<M.
ries, therfore the nature of ftudying confidered, the
fittefl paflyme ftial foone appeare. In ftudie euery
parte of the body is ydle, which thing caufeth groffe
aud cglde humours, to gather togyther and vexe