His natural disposition, and the endowments of his mind. His qualifi- I HAVE finished the history of this eminent man, as to cations. Some learned men's characters of him. the external appearances and events of his life. There seems one thing yet wanting to be done, viz. to give the world a true idea of him in his inward qualifications, and the disposition of his mind: which may indeed in a great part be gathered from what hath been already said of him; yet, for the giving farther satisfaction in this matter, I shall add a few things more to all I have writ. We must then, in the first place, declare him to be one of the learnedest and best men of that age; and one of the most extraordinary wits: such as Providence raiseth up now and then, (but very sparingly,) for great ends, to be public documents and examples, and to do some extraordinary service in the world. A very learned man in those times, contemporary with Cheke, and one that knew him well, speaking of these singular men, particularly mentions him to be one; attributing unto him, "a wit quick Schoolmast. without lightness, sharp without brittleness, desirous of good things without newfangleness, diligent in painful "things without wearisomeness, and constant in good-will "to do all things well." And this, he said, he knew well was in Sir John Cheke. And another in those times, as lat. of De- great a judge of learning as he, sometime Secretary of most. Orat. State to Queen Elizabeth, styles Cheke, “that rare learned and singular ornament of this land.” Asch. Dr. Wyl son's trans 66 man, To make up the triumvirate to give their judgment of our excellent man; Nicolas Car, of Trinity college, Greek Professor after Cheke, one of the best scholars in Cam 66 I. bridge, styled him, ❝ a One that did not exceed many in SECT. age, but all in learning, and was esteemed the very top "of Cambridge men in every respect." He had a mind, even from his tender years, much dis- His early disposition posed to virtue and study. And as a great advantage and towards virspur to both, he was educated under pious and wise pa- tue and learning. rents; who perceiving the natural genius of the lad, spared for no care nor pains to cultivate his nature, and encourage his good inclinations. Therefore, if we may be- State Worthies,p.191. lieve one of our historians, they appointed a German scholar to take care of his younger studies, and a Frenchman of his behaviour; the godly matron his mother following him with good precepts; and this among the rest, that "he should take care of three things, his God, his soul, "and his company." He was earnestly inquisitive after truth, and sagacious Inquisitive to find it. And this appeared both in the choice of his after truth. religion and of his learning; both being then overrun with error and corruption: which his clear and searching reason and parts soon discovered to him. SECT. II. His learning. UNDER the topic of his learning, several things deserve His diliremark, as first, his diligence. He stood upon no pains gence. to inform his understanding, and improve his knowledge, and to find out errors, and overcome them, and to restore learning, and advance it higher than it ordinarily shewed itself in the Universities, and among such as went in those times for learned men. We are told, that King Ed-State Worward said to Cardan, the learned foreigner that came to thies. wait upon him," that he had two masters, Diligence and "Moderation;" meaning Cheke for the former, and Cox for the latter. He sat not down contented in the present learning of Studies Greek, and a Qui ætate non multis, doctrina antecellis omnibus, quique princeps no- why. strorum hominum in omni genere putaris. In Epist. ad Chæc. de mort. Bucer. VII. CHAP. the Schoolmen, but had a mind to know what learning was, when the Greeks and Romans flourished, so celebrated for their learning. And therefore to compass that, he sedulously applied himself to know the Greek language, that he might the more thoroughly read and understand the books of the learned Greek philosophers, historians, orators, and poets. Which was an hidden sort of learning then, and very rare. And herein he found a strain of learning and language far beyond the present, which was all barbarous and corrupt in comparison with it. A learning proper to instruct, and excite to live virtuously, and to love and do just and worthy actions; and also to enable men to speak properly and persuasively in any argument. Especially And of all the Greek writers, he was most a lover of Demosthenes. mosthenes, the Greek orator; whose writings were so noble, and his spirit and ratiocination so inimitable, that he thought it pity none should be able to read him, but such as could read Greek. This put him upon translating him (which he did many of his orations) into Latin, for the greater numbers to read, learn, and improve by. he loves De His judg. ment of him. his translat. of Demos thenes. And here I will set down his judgment of that orator, and what skill he had in him, and why he judged him so fit to be read and studied. And all this in the words of a learned man in those days contemporary with him, viz. Dr. Thomas Wilson, the learned civilian before-menPreface to tioned. "The enterprise," saith he," of translating De66 mosthenes into English, if any might have been bold to "have taken upon him, Sir John Cheke was the man of "all that ever I knew, or do yet know in England: such "acquaintance had he with this notable orator; so gladly "did he read him, and so often, that I think there was "never old priest more perfect in his porteise, nor super"stitious monk in our Lady's Psalter, as they call it, nor yet good preacher in the Bible and Testament, than this "man was in Demosthenes. And great cause moved him "so to be. For that he saw him to be the perfectest "orator that ever wrote for this two thousand years al"most by-past, (for so long it was since he was,) and also II. "for that he perceived him to have before his eyes in all SECT. "his orations the advancement of virtue, as a thing chiefly "to be sought for, together with the honour and welfare of "his country.-Moreover, he was moved greatly to "like Demosthenes above all other, for that he saw him "so familiarly applying himself to the sense and under"standing of the common people, that he sticked not to 66 say, that' none ever was more fit to make an English66 man tell his tale, praiseworthily in an open hearing, "either in Parliament or pulpit, or otherwise, than this 66 only orator was.' These were the things Cheke looked for from learning, that it might become truly useful to human life, and this was the reason he so valued this Greek author. tion. Another branch of his diligence, was his ingenuous His emulaemulation to be as learned as the best. A good quality in a scholar, when the great proficiency of others beyond him provokes him to follow hard after, to arrive unto the same perfections. Cheke's first application of himself to good learning was occasioned by John Redman of St. John's college, (afterwards Dr. Redman, and Dean of Westminster,) who had lived and studied in the University of Paris, and came over very accomplished in the two learned languages: and by conversing much in the books of Tully, became both an excellent philosopher and orator. Redman's learning made him admired and much esteemed by all: which Cheke and his fellow Smith well observed; and being themselves truly addicted to their studies, took occasion hence to pursue that sort of learning which Redman was become so eminent for. And thenceforth forsook the common course of studies in the Universities then used, which consisted in the barbarous terms and idle disputations of the modern schools and schoolmen, and betook themselves to the reading of good Latin and Greek Life of Sir authors, as I have observed elsewhere. Thomas Smith. CHAP. ment of Sallust. Schoolmast. p. 646. SECT. III. Cheke considered as a critic. NOW to look farther, and more closely into Cheke's learning, we may consider him both as a critic and an author. 66 First, he was a good critic, and judge of learning, and particularly of classic authors. To give you his judgment His judg- of two or three of them. Being asked his opinion of Sallust, the Latin historian, he shewed his piercing judgment of him by this censure: for after he had said, “ that he was not very fit for young men to learn out of him the purity of the Latin tongue, he gave these reasons, viz. "because he was not the purest in propriety of words, nor "choicest in aptness of phrases, nor the best in framing of "sentences. And therefore, that his writing was neither "plain for the matter, nor sensible for men's understand"ing." And when Ascham, to whom he spoke this, asked him what was the cause thereof, " Verily," said he, “be And Xenophon. And De 66 cause Sallust's writing is more art than nature, and "more labour than art. And in his labour also too much "toil, as it were with an uncontented care to write better "than he could: a fault common to very many men. And "therefore that he did not express the matter lively and "naturally with common speech, as Xenophon did in "Greek, but it was carried and driven forth artificially, "after too learned a sort.” Hence also we may see his approbation of that Greek historian before mentioned; and upon what reason, viz. because his style is so natural, and flowing with easy language, accommodated without any great labour to every reader, and whatever art he wrote with, concealing it. He was a great admirer of Demosthenes, another Greek mosthenes. author, esteeming him the perfectest orator that ever wrote; and that for this reason among others, that he applied himself so closely to the understanding of the common people, and could so raise their affections; and that |