24 The Advancement of Learning 



phrase or word. And again, because the great labour that * 

 then was with the people (of whom the Pharisees were wont 

 to say, Execrahlis ista turba, quce non novit legem) ^ for the 

 winning and persuading of them, there grew of necessity in 

 chief price and request eloquence and variety of discourse, 

 as the fittest and forciblest access into the capacity of 

 the vulgar sort : so that these four causes concurring, the 

 admiration of ancient authors, the hate of the schoolmen, 

 the exact study of languages, and the efficacy of preaching, 

 did bring in an affectionate study of eloquence and copie of 

 speech, which then began to flourish. This grew speedily 

 to an excess ; for men began to hunt more after words than 

 matter; more after the choiceness of the phrase, and the 

 round and clean composition of the sentence, and the sweet 

 falling of the clauses, and the varying and illustration of 

 their works with tropes and figures, than after the weight 

 of matter, worth of subject, soundness of argument, life of 

 invention or depth of judgment. Then grew the flowing 

 and watery vein of Osorius ® the Portugal bishop, to be in 

 price. Then did Sturmius spend such infinite and curious 

 pains upon Cicero the Orator, and Hermogenes the Rhetori- 

 cian, besides his own books of Periods and Imitation, and 

 the like. Then did Car of Cambridge, and Ascham with 

 their lectures and writings almost deify Cicero and Demos- 

 thenes, and allure all young men that were studious, unto 

 that delicate and polished kind of learning. Then did 

 Erasmus take occasion to make the scoffing Echo : Decern 

 annos consumpsi in legendo Cicerone ; and the Echo answered 

 in Greek, &v^, asine.^ Then grew the learning of the 

 schoolmen to be utterly despised as barbarous. In sum, 

 the whole inclination and bent of those times was rather 

 towards copie than weight. 

 3. Here, therefore, is the first distemper of learning, when 

 men study words and not matter; whereof, though I have 

 represented an example of late times, yet it hath been and 

 will be secundum majus et minus in all time. And how is 

 it possible but this should have an operation to discredit 

 learning, even with vulgar capacities, when they see learned 

 men's works like the first letter of a patent, or limned book; 



» Editions 1629 and 1633 omit that : but because heres^because of. 

 « John vii. 10. • Bishop of Silves, died 1580. 



• Colloq. between Juvenis and Echo. 



