advised him against it, but as he persists, I do not like to do more.  For the last six months he has been with Frederic Mormann at Munster, and has made some progress:  but now Mormann who was one of the Brethren of the Common Life has been sent as Rector to a house at Marburg, and Henry has come home.  If you can have him, I should like him to come to you.  He will bring with him the usual furniture,[3] money will be sent to him from time to time, and he will find himself a lodging[4] wherever you advise.  I should be glad to know whether there are any teachers who give lessons out of school hours, as Mormann does; and whether any one may go to them on payment of a fee, whether candidates for orders[5] or not.  I should like him to get over the elements as quickly as possible; for if boys are kept at them too long, they take a dislike to the whole thing.  The Pliny that you ask for shall come to you soon.  I use it a great deal; but nevertheless you shall have it.’

[3] victui necessaria, vt solent nostrates.  Victus is commonly
used in the technical sense of ‘board’; but here the meaning
probably is ‘the usual outfit for a schoolboy’.  Gebwiler, in
1530, required a boy coming to his school at Hagenau to be
provided with ‘a bed, sheets, pillow, and other necessaries’.
[4] diuersorium.
[5] capitiati.

In answer to a question from Hegius, Agricola goes on to distinguish the words mimus, histrio, persona, scurra, nebulo; with quotations from Juvenal and Gellius.  ‘Leccator’, he says, ’is a German word; like several others that we have turned into bad Latin, reisa, burgimagister, scultetus, or like the French passagium for a military expedition, guerra for war, treuga for truce.’

He then proceeds to more derivations in answer to Hegius. [Greek:  Anthropos] he considers a fundamental word, which, like homo, defies analysis:  but nevertheless he suggests [Greek:  ana] and [Greek:  trepo], or [Greek:  terpo], or [Greek:  trepho].  To explain vesper he cites Sallust, Catullus, Ovid, Pliny’s Letters, Caesar’s Civil War, Persius and Suetonius. (We must remember that in those days a man’s quotations were culled from his memory, not from a dictionary or concordance.) He goes on:  ’About forming words by analogy, I rarely allow myself to invent words which are not in the best authors, but still perhaps I might use Socratitas, Platonitas, entitas, though Valla I am sure would object.  After all one must be free, when there is necessity.  Cicero, without any need, used Pietas and Lentulitas; and Pollio talks of Livy’s Patauinitas.’  Other words explained are tignum, asser, [Greek:  dioikesis]; and then Agricola proceeds to correct a number of mistakes in Hegius’ letter.  Rather delicate work it might seem; but there is such good humour between them that, though the corrections extend to some length, it all ends pleasantly.

4.  HEGIUS TO AGRICOLA; from Deventer, 17 Dec. 1484.