Volume 1

The history and antiquities of the University of Oxford ... / by Anthony ä Wood. Now first published in English ... by John Gutch.

  • Anthony Wood
Date:
1792-1796
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The history and antiquities of the University of Oxford ... / by Anthony ä Wood. Now first published in English ... by John Gutch. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    714/768 (page 620)
    Scholars fcratching their heads and looking wiftly upon each other, repeated after a little refpite. thefe Verfes, which the Reader lhall have verbatim as I find them— , The firfi: thus : (i) * fitulae pendent dubias, nam dum vice verfa, Retrogradum fert una gradum, redit alter merfa.’ The fecond: ‘ Hae fitulas pendent bibulae, variant vice prima Ebria nam filrgit, fed fobria tendit ad ima.’ The third : ‘ Bina rotata per hauftra, pericula noftra notefcunt; Sunt fimul obvia, fronte ferocia, non requiefcunt.’ Thus they; and this was the way of begging, which the mofi: wor- thy Sir Thomas More after his furrender of the Chancellorfhip of the Kingdom of England, and when abilities of purfe failed, refolved before his children to follow * If (faith he to them) that exceed our abi- lity (meaning the fare of New Inn at London where he had part of his breeding) then will wee the next year after defcend to Oxford fare, where many great, learned and ancient fathers be continually converfant, which if our power ftretch not to maintain neither, then may wee yet like poor Scholars of Oxford go a begging with our baggs and wallets, and fing falve Regina at rich mens dores, &c.’ Though begging was ufual with divers of our Students in feveral generations, yet they were not fingular in it, neither were they the firfi; of Academians that took that courfe. The Scholars of Athens were fometimes very poor and begged their bread as Boetius v^ell delivereth. (2) The Parifians alfo were brought to that indi- gence that tlie Clerks thereof were forced to procure the Pope’s ^indulging Bulls (the former of which (3) I have feen) to obtain fubfidies from the faithful. And therefore if the Scholars of Oxford (accounted by fome the younger Siflcr to the faid Univerlities) did now do the like, it is no mar- vaile, feeing that Exhibitions failed, and that times were troublefome and corrupted. (1) In initio cujufdam MS. in Bib. Coll. Jefu, (3) In Summis Ricardi de Pophis fecundum Gxon. in 8°. ftilum Cur. Roman. MS. &c. [Vide Twyne in (2) In lib. 2° de Discipli N A Scholari- Turr. Schol. ^ 22, p. 165.] u M in Strutom. But .