The arte of English poesie Contriued into three bookes: the first of poets and poesie, the second of proportion, the third of ornament.

CHAP. IIII.

Of Language.

SPeach is not naturall to man sauing for his onely habilitie to speake, and that he is by kinde apt to vtter all his conceits with sounds and voyces diuersified many maner of wayes, by meanes of the many & fit instruments he hath by nature to that purpose, as a broad and voluble tong, thinne and mouable lippes, teeth euē and not shagged, thick ranged, a round vaulted pallate, and a long throte, besides an excellent capacitie of wit that maketh him more disciplinable and imitatiue then any other creature: then as to the

forme and action of his speach, it commeth to him by arte & tea∣ching, and by vse or exercise. But after a speach is fully fashioned to the common vnderstanding, & accepted by consent of a whole countrey & natiō, it is called a language, & receaueth none allow∣ed alteration, but by extraordinary occasions by little & little, as it were insensibly bringing in of many corruptiōs that creepe along with the time: of all which matters, we haue more largely spoken in our bookes of the originals and pedigree of the English tong. Then when I say language, I meane the speach wherein the Poet or maker writeth be it Greek or Latine, or as our case is the vulgar English, & when it is peculiar vnto a countrey it is called the mo∣ther speach of that people: the Greekes terme it Idioma: so is ours at this day the Norman English. Before the Conquest of the Nor∣mans it was the Anglesaxon, and before that the British, which as some will, is at this day, the Walsh, or as others affirme the Cor∣nish: I for my part thinke neither of both, as they be now spoken and ponounced. This part in our maker or Poet must be heedy∣ly looked vnto, that it be naturall, pure, and the most vsuall of all his countrey: and for the same purpose rather that which is spo∣ken in the kings Court, or in the good townes and Cities within the land, then in the marches and frontiers, or in port townes, where straungers haunt for traffike sake, or yet in Vniuersities where Schollers vse much peeuish affectation of words out of the primatiue languages, or finally, in any vplandish village or cor∣ner of a Realme, where is no resort but of poore rusticall or vnci∣uill people: neither shall he follow the speach of a craftes man or carter, or other of the inferiour sort, though he be inhabitant or bred in the best towne and Citie in this Realme, for such persons doe abuse good speaches by strange accents or ill shapen soundes, and false ortographie. But he shall follow generally the better brought vp sort, such as the Greekes call [charientes] men ciuill and graciously behauoured and bred. Our maker therfore at these dayes shall not follow Piers plowman nor Gower nor Lydgate nor yet Chaucer, for their language is now out of vse with vs: neither shall he take the termes of Northern-men, such as they vse in day∣ly talke, whether they be noble men or gentlemen, or of their best clarkes all is a matter: nor in effect any speach vsed beyond the

riuer of Trent, though no man can deny but that theirs is the pu∣rer English Saxon at this day, yet it is not so Courtly nor so cur∣rant as our Southerne English is, no more is the far Westerne mās speach: ye shall therfore take the vsuall speach of the Court, and that of London and the shires lying about London within lx. myles, and not much aboue. I say not this but that in euery shyre of England there be gentlemen and others that speake but special∣ly write as good Southerne as we of Middlesex or Surrey do, but not the common people of euery shire, to whom the gentlemen, and also their learned clarkes do for the most part condescend, but herein we are already ruled by th'English Dictionaries and other bookes written by learned men, and therefore it needeth none o∣ther direction in that behalfe. Albeit peraduenture some small ad∣monition be not impertinent, for we finde in our English wri∣ters many wordes and speaches amendable, & ye shall see in some many inkhorne termes so ill affected brought in by men of lear∣ning as preachers and schoolemasters: and many straunge termes of other languages by Secretaries and Marchaunts and trauai∣lours, and many darke wordes and not vsuall nor well sounding, though they be dayly spoken in Court. Wherefore great heed must be taken by our maker in this point that his choise be good. And peraduenture the writer hereof be in that behalfe no lesse faultie then any other, vsing many straunge and vnaccusto∣med wordes and borrowed from other languages: and in that respect him selfe no meete Magistrate to reforme the same errours in any other person, but since he is not vnwilling to acknowledge his owne fault, and can the better tell how to amend it, he may seeme a more excusable correctour of other mens: he intendeth therefore for an indifferent way and vni∣uersall benefite to taxe him selfe first and before any others.

These be words vsed by th'author in this present treatise, sciēti∣ficke, but with some reason, for it answereth the word mechanicall, which no other word could haue done so properly, for when hee spake of all artificers which rest either in science or in handy craft, it followed necessarilie that scientifique should be coupled with mechanicall: or els neither of both to haue bene allowed, but in their places: a man of science liberall, and a handicrafts man, which

had not bene so cleanly a speech as the other Maior-domo: in truth this word is borrowed of the Spaniard and Italian, and therefore new and not vsuall, but to them that are acquainted with the af∣faires of Court: and so for his iolly magnificence (as this case is) may be accepted among Courtiers, for whom this is specially writ∣ten. A man might haue said in steade of Maior-domo, the French word (maistre d'hostell) but ilfauouredly, or the right English word (Lord Steward.) But me thinks for my owne opinion this word Maior-domo though he be borrowed, is more acceptable thā any of the rest, other men may iudge otherwise. Politien, this word also is receiued from the Frenchmen, but at this day vsuall in Court and with all good Secretaries: and cannot finde an English word to match him, for to haue said a man politique, had not bene so wel: bicause in trueth that had bene no more than to haue said a ciuil person. Politien is rather a surueyour of ciuilitie than ciuil, & a publique minister or Counseller in the state. Ye haue also this worde Conduict, a French word, but well allowed of vs, and long since vsuall, it soundes somewhat more than this word (leading) for it is applied onely to the leading of a Captaine, and not as a lit∣tle boy should leade a blinde man, therefore more proper to the case when he saide, conduict of whole armies: ye finde also this word Idiome, taken from the Greekes, yet seruing aptly, when a man wanteth to expresse so much vnles it be in two words, which surplussage to auoide, we are allowed to draw in other words sin∣gle, and asmuch significatiue: this word significatiue is borrowed of the Latine and French, but to vs brought in first by some No∣ble-mans Secretarie, as I thinke, yet doth so well serue the turne, as it could not now be spared: and many more like vsurped Latine and French words: as, Methode, methodicall, placation, function, as∣subtiling, refining, compendious, prolixe, figuratiue, inueigle. A terme borrowed of our common Lawyers▪ impression, also a new terme, but well expressing the matter, and more than our English word. These words, Numerous, numerositee, metricall, harmonicall, but they cannot be refused, specially in this place for description of the arte. Also ye finde these words, penetrate, penetrable, indignitie, which I cannot see how we may spare them, whatsoeuer fault wee finde with Ink-horne termes: for our speach wanteth wordes to

such sence so well to be vsed: yet in steade of indignitie, yee haue vnworthinesse: and for penetrate, we may say peerce, and that a French terme also, or broche, or enter into with violence, but not so well sounding as penetrate. Item, sauage, for wilde: obscure, for darke. Item these words, declination, delineation, dimention, are scho∣lasticall termes in deede, and yet very proper. But peraduenture (& I could bring a reason for it) many other like words borrowed out of the Latin and French, were not so well to be allowed by vs, as these words, audacious, for bold: facunditie, for eloquence: egregi∣ous, for great or notable: implete, for replenished: attemptat, for at∣tempt: compatible, for agreeable in nature, and many more. But herein the noble Poet Horace hath said inough to satisfie vs all in these few verses.

Multa renascentur quae iam cecidere cadent{que} Quae nunc sunt in honore vocabula si volet vsus Quem penes arbitrium est & vis & norma loquendi.

Which I haue thus englished, but nothing with so good grace, nor so briefly as the Poet wrote.

Many a word yfalne shall eft arise And such as now bene held in hiest prise Will fall as fast, when vse and custome will Onely vmpiers of speach, for force and skill.