DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.30698#0239
WILLIAM CAXTON.
211
1^77.]
copies. The reader, however, may be pleased with a few specimens
of a work, rendered into English by one of our most distinguished
Noble authors, of early repute, and in itself rather of an instructive and
interesting character. Never was a string of moral sentences more
elaborately put together, or more singularly extended. We shall first
commence our extracts with an account of Akistotle—who cuts a
conspicuous figure in the work, and from whose moutli many of these
wise * Dictes and Sayinges ’ proceed.
‘ Aristotle by interptacion in grekes toge, is fulfilled or complete of
goodnesse. And he was sone to Nichomacus the whiclie has right
connyng in fisike and a good fisicien, & was boren in the Towne of
Slagre and he was of the kinred both by liis fadirs syde, and by his
moders syde of Esculapius of the whiche here byfor hath be made
mencion for he was in his tyme the moost excellent And the best of
all the grekes, and whan the sayde aristotle was, viij. yeres of age his
fader putted him in the cite cf Athenes that than was called the Cyte
of Wysdom. and there he lerned Gramare Retorike and other bookes
of poetrie. And therin he studyed, the space of .iv. yei’es prouffyting
gretely therin, And in thoos dayes men sette moclie store by the
foresayde scienees and was their opynion that it was the laddre to go
vp into alle other scieriees, A nd certayn other wyse men at the same
tyme as Pytagoras and pytoras and dyuers other reputed and held the
sayd scienees for no sciences & did but moke and scorne theim that
lerned them, Saying that suche scyence as Gramare Retorik and
poetrye, were not, couenable to come to any v/ysdom, And that Gramare
is not but for to teche the childeren, Poetrye but for to tell fables
and to make lesynges, Retorike for to speke faire and in termes.
And whan Aristotle harde this wordes he had grete merueyle therof,
and was gretely agreued with suche as helde the sarne opynyon. And
strength him after his power to susteyne alle manere of Gramaryens
the poetes and also the Retoriciens’ Fol. 3S-9.
We proceed in our account of the Stagirite, with the following
rather singular extract:
‘ and after he [Aristotle] deyde in the age of .lxiij. yeris. they of
Stagire tooke his bonys and right worshipfully put hem in a shryne
wher they held their counscile for his grete witte, and also for the grete
and feruent loue that they hadde to him. and as often tymes that they
hadde ado eny grete matere for to haue the declaradon therof. the men
whiche were of counscile wolde go and stande as nigh the saide shryne
211
1^77.]
copies. The reader, however, may be pleased with a few specimens
of a work, rendered into English by one of our most distinguished
Noble authors, of early repute, and in itself rather of an instructive and
interesting character. Never was a string of moral sentences more
elaborately put together, or more singularly extended. We shall first
commence our extracts with an account of Akistotle—who cuts a
conspicuous figure in the work, and from whose moutli many of these
wise * Dictes and Sayinges ’ proceed.
‘ Aristotle by interptacion in grekes toge, is fulfilled or complete of
goodnesse. And he was sone to Nichomacus the whiclie has right
connyng in fisike and a good fisicien, & was boren in the Towne of
Slagre and he was of the kinred both by liis fadirs syde, and by his
moders syde of Esculapius of the whiche here byfor hath be made
mencion for he was in his tyme the moost excellent And the best of
all the grekes, and whan the sayde aristotle was, viij. yeres of age his
fader putted him in the cite cf Athenes that than was called the Cyte
of Wysdom. and there he lerned Gramare Retorike and other bookes
of poetrie. And therin he studyed, the space of .iv. yei’es prouffyting
gretely therin, And in thoos dayes men sette moclie store by the
foresayde scienees and was their opynion that it was the laddre to go
vp into alle other scieriees, A nd certayn other wyse men at the same
tyme as Pytagoras and pytoras and dyuers other reputed and held the
sayd scienees for no sciences & did but moke and scorne theim that
lerned them, Saying that suche scyence as Gramare Retorik and
poetrye, were not, couenable to come to any v/ysdom, And that Gramare
is not but for to teche the childeren, Poetrye but for to tell fables
and to make lesynges, Retorike for to speke faire and in termes.
And whan Aristotle harde this wordes he had grete merueyle therof,
and was gretely agreued with suche as helde the sarne opynyon. And
strength him after his power to susteyne alle manere of Gramaryens
the poetes and also the Retoriciens’ Fol. 3S-9.
We proceed in our account of the Stagirite, with the following
rather singular extract:
‘ and after he [Aristotle] deyde in the age of .lxiij. yeris. they of
Stagire tooke his bonys and right worshipfully put hem in a shryne
wher they held their counscile for his grete witte, and also for the grete
and feruent loue that they hadde to him. and as often tymes that they
hadde ado eny grete matere for to haue the declaradon therof. the men
whiche were of counscile wolde go and stande as nigh the saide shryne