In the middest of so many earnest matters, I may be allowed to entermingle one, which hath a relice of mirth, for in praysing of _Archerie_, as a principall exercise, to the preseruing of health, how can I but prayse them, who professe it throughly, and maintaine it nobly, the friendly and franke fellowship of prince _Arthurs_ knightes in and about the citie of _London_, which of late yeares haue so reuiued the exercise, so countenaunced the artificers, so enflamed emulation, as in themselues for friendly meting, in workemen for good gayning, in companies for earnest comparing, it is almost growne to an orderly discipline, to cherishe louing society, to enrich labouring pouertie, to maintaine honest actiuity, which their so encouraging the vnder trauellours, and so encreasing the healthfull traine, if I had sacred to silence, would not my good friend in the citie maister _Hewgh Offly_, and the same my noble fellow in that order Syr _Launcelot_, at our next meeting, haue giuen me a sowre nodde, being the chiefe furtherer of the fact, which I commend, and the famosest knight, of the fellowship, which I am of? Nay would not euen prince _Arthur_ himselfe maister _Thomas Smith_, and the whole table, of those wel known knights, and most actiue _Archers_ haue layd in their chaleng against their fellow knight, if speaking of their pastime, I should haue spared their names? whereunto I am easily led, bycause the exercise deseruing such praise, they that loue so praiseworthie a thing neither can of them selues, neither ought at my hand to be hudled vp in silence.
The play at the _Ball_ seemeth compound, bycause it may be vsed, both within dores, and without. Wherof good writers haue deliuered vs thus much: that in the olde time there were diuers kindes of _balles_ and diuers kindes of exercise therwith, according to the diuers vse of the _ball_ either small or great: both amongst the _Romaines_ and _Greekes_, whose names I vse so much, bycause they were best acquainted both with the thinges, and with the right vse therof. _Galene_ in his first booke of maintaining health, speaking of the _Germains_, who vsed then to dippe their new borne children into extreme cold water ouer head and eares, to trie their courage and to harden their skinne, sayeth that he wrate those lessons of health and exercise, no more to the _Dutch_ and such rude people as we also were then, then to beares, boares and lyons: but to _Greekes_ and such people, as though barbarous in nature, yet by traine and learning, were become greekish as we now are, and the _Romains_ then were. So that our examples be fetcht from these two nations, which either vsed the thinges most, and handled them best: or else enriched their owne tongues with all that was best, and when they had so done set them ouer vnto vs. But of all their exercises with the _Ball_, we haue not any so farre as I can gesse, by their notes, though we retaine the name: and yet our playing with the _Ball_ worketh the same effectes, which theirs did, as it appeareth by their descriptions. Wherfore seeing they be so farre different from ours, and almost worne out of knowledge euen to curious coniectures, which seeke to sift them out, I will neither trouble my selfe with studying to set downe their names: nor my reader with reading to gesse what they were, and how they were vsed.