Of the Top and scourge.
Hethat will deny the Top to be an exercise, indifferently capable of all distinctions in stirring, the verie boyes will beate him, and scourge him to, if they light on him about lent, when Tops be in time, as euerie exercise hath his season, both in daie and yeare, after the constitution of bodies, and quantities in measure. Of this kinde of Top, that we vse now a dayes, both for young and olde people, to warme them in cold weather, I finde nothing in writing, bycause hauing no yron ringes, nor pinnes, it can neither be the Greek κρῖκος nor τρόχος, though the running about be bold to borrow the last nametrochus. For they whirled about, and along, with a marueilous great, though a pretie noyse, and were pastimes for men euen in the midst of sommer, when our Tops be bestowed, and laid vp against the spring. It resembleth the LatinTurbomost, and the Greeke βέμβιξ. The place ofVirgilin the 7. of hisÆneis, where he comparethAmatathe Queene in her furie to thisTurbowhich the boyes scourged about the wide haule: declareth both whatTurbois, and whose play it was, and that it best resembleth our Top. Of βέμβιξ there was an old GreekEpigram, which maketh it either the like or the same with our Top.
Οἵδ’ ἄρ ὑπὸ σκυτάλῃσι θοὰς βέμβικας ἔχοντες,Ἒϛρεφον ἐυρείῃ παῖδες ἐνὶ τριόδῳ.
Οἵδ’ ἄρ ὑπὸ σκυτάλῃσι θοὰς βέμβικας ἔχοντες,Ἒϛρεφον ἐυρείῃ παῖδες ἐνὶ τριόδῳ.
Οἵδ’ ἄρ ὑπὸ σκυτάλῃσι θοὰς βέμβικας ἔχοντες,Ἒϛρεφον ἐυρείῃ παῖδες ἐνὶ τριόδῳ.
Οἵδ’ ἄρ ὑπὸ σκυτάλῃσι θοὰς βέμβικας ἔχοντες,
Ἒϛρεφον ἐυρείῃ παῖδες ἐνὶ τριόδῳ.
Which is to say, that children when they had their whirling gigges vnder the deuotion of their scourges, caused them to troule about the broad streates. The harme this exercise may bring must be to the head and eyes, thorough stouping to much forward, or to the backe and shoulders by bending to much downwardes, otherwise it warmeth the bodie, and worketh all the effectes, which those exercises do that either by mouing the legges or armes most, and with all the whole bodie in degree, enlarge and stirre the naturall heat either to prouoke appetite, or to expel superfluities. The more roome the Top hath to spinne in, the better for the legges and feete, the bigger it is, the better for the armes and handes. The vprighter one scourgeth,the better for all partes, whom neither bending doth crushe, nor moysture corrupt. It were to be wished, that it were whipt with both the handes, in play to traine both the armes, seing vse makes the difference, and no infirmitie in nature. As bothPlatowishing the same professeth it to be most true and our experience teacheth vs, both in left handed people, which vse but the left, and in double right handed which vse both the handes a like, and beare the name of the right hand as the more common in vse. But bycause the place ofPlatoconcerning the left hande is verie pithie to this purpose though I vse not to auouch much in the Greeke toungue, yet me thinke I maye not ouerpasse it. In the seuenth booke of his lawes, allowing the indifferent vse of our feete and legges, he complayneth of to much partialitie vsed towardes the armes and handes, in these wordes, τάγε περὶ πόδας τε καὶ τὰ κάτω τῶν μελῶν οὐδὲν διαφέροντα πρὸς τοὺς πόνους φαίνεται. Τὰ δὲ κατὰ χεῖρας ἀνοίᾳ τροφῶν καὶ μητέρων οἷον χωλοὶ γεγόναμεν ἕκαστοι. τῆς φύσεως γὰρ ἑκατέρων τῶν μελῶν σχεδὸν ἰσοῤῥοπούσης, αὐτοὶ διὰ τὰ ἤθη διάφορα αὐτὰ πεποιήκαμεν οὔκ ὀρθῶς χρώμενοι, &c. For the performance of any kinde of labour there is no difference, sayeth he, in the legges, and lower partes. But for our armes, thorough ignoraunt nurses and mothers, we be euery one of vs halfe lamed. For wheras naturally both the armes be almost of equall strength, thorough our owne default we make the difference. And so he passeth on still prouing the vnnaturall handling of the left hande, when it is left weaker then the right hande is.
These be the exercises which I terme within dores, bycause they may be practised at home vnder couert, when we cannot go abroad for the weather: though all may be vsed abroad, if the roome and the weather do serue abroad. Wherein I take it, that I haue keptGalenes24rule in chusing these exercises, and that they be all both pleasant, profitable and parable, the perfect circunstances of all good and generall exercises, not to be costly to compasse, nor vnpleasant to loth them, nor vnprofitable to leaue them. Those that require more libertie of roome, to raunge at will, or to forrage in the field, be these, which I noted before,walking,running,leaping,swimming,riding,hunting,shooting, andplaying at the ball.