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2
Social Issues in Sport

Third Edition

Ronald B. Woods, PhD

University of Tampa

Human Kinetics

3
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Woods, Ron, 1943 November 6-

Social issues in sport / Ronald B. Woods. -- Third edition.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Sports--Social aspects. 2. Sports--Sociological aspects. I. Title.

GV706.5.W655 2015

306.4'83--dc23

2015002522

ISBN: 978-1-4504-9520-2 (print)

Copyright © 2016, 2011, 2007 by Ronald B. Woods

All rights reserved. Except for use in a review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying, and recording, and in any information storage and retrieval system, is forbidden without
the written permission of the publisher.

The web addresses cited in this text were current as of June 2015, unless otherwise noted.

Permission notices for photos reprinted in this book from other sources can be found on pages xii-xiv.

Acquisitions Editor: Myles Schrag

Developmental and Managing Editor: Amanda S. Ewing

Copyeditor: Tom Tiller

Proofreader: Jim Burns

Indexer: Andrea Hepner

Permissions Manager: Dalene Reeder

Senior Graphic Designer: Keri Evans

Cover Designer: Keith Blomberg

Photograph (cover): Gian Mattia D'Alberto/LaPresse/Icon Sportswire

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Illustrations: © Human Kinetics, unless otherwise noted

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Human Kinetics

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E6295

5
 Contents
Preface
Intended Audience
Text Organization
Updates in the Third Edition
Learning Tools
Instructor Resources
Closing Comments

Acknowledgments

Part I: Studying Sport in Society

Chapter 1: What Is Sport and Why Do We Study It?

Sport Through the Ages
Definition of Sport
Study of Sport
Chapter Summary

Chapter 2: How Do We Study Sport?

Research Methods
Social Theories
Current Status of Sport Sociology
Chapter Summary

Part II: Scope and Effect of Sport on Society

Chapter 3: Participants Versus Spectators

Sport Participants
Factors Affecting Sport Participation
Trends in Sport Participation
Sport Spectators
Trends in Spectator Sports
Marketing to Participants and Spectators
Chapter Summary

Chapter 4: Business of Sport

Sport and the Economy
Ownership in Professional Sport
Sport as Monopoly
Collegiate Sport as Moneymaker
Recreational Sport as a Business

6
 Chapter Summary

Chapter 5: Media and Sport

Evolution of Sport Media
Interplay of Sport and Media
How Sport Affects the Media
Ideology of Sport Through the Media
Careers in Sport Media
Chapter Summary

Part III: Sport as an Institution

Chapter 6: Youth Sport

History of Youth Sport
Sponsors of Youth Sport
Privatization of Youth Sport
Current Status of Youth Sport
Organized Youth Sport
Why Kids Participate—and Stop Participating—in Sport
Burnout in Youth Sport
Reforms for Youth Sport
Chapter Summary

Chapter 7: Coaching Sport

Influence of Coaches
Status of Coaching
Coaching at Different Levels of Sport
Coaching Personality
Challenges for the Future of Coaching
Chapter Summary

: Interscholastic and Intercollegiate Sport

Interscholastic Sport
Collegiate Sport
Chapter Summary

Chapter 9: International Sport

Globalization of Modern Sport
U.S. Influence on World Sport
Olympic Games
Media Effects on the Globalization of Sport
Nationalism Versus Economics
Athletes and Coaches as Migrant Workers
Using Sport for Better World Understanding
Chapter Summary

7
 Chapter 10: Olympic Movement
History of the Olympics
Effect of the Olympic Games
Nationalism and the Olympic Movement
United States Olympic Committee
Athlete Development
Chapter Summary

Part IV: Sport and Culture

Chapter 11: Sporting Behavior

Sporting Behavior at Different Levels of Sport
Youth Attitudes
Development of Moral Values
Moral Values Applied to Sport
Moral Values Taught Through Sport
Strategies for Good Sporting Behavior
Chapter Summary

Chapter 12: Race, Ethnicity, and Sport

Classifications of Race and Ethnicity
Sport Participation Among Racial and Ethnic Minorities
Sport and Promoting Equality
Minorities as Sport Leaders
Chapter Summary

Chapter 13: Women and Sport

Historical Role of Women
Women and Sport Before Title IX
Title IX
Women and Sport After Title IX
Social Issues in Women’s Sport
Global Status of Women in Sport
Barriers for Women in Sport
Media Coverage of Women’s Sport
Golden Age of Sport Reborn
Chapter Summary

Chapter 14: Social Class and Sport

Social Class
Social Class and Sport Activity
Control of Amateur and Professional Sport
Class Mobility in Sport
Chapter Summary

Chapter 15: Special Populations and Sport

8
Americans with Disabilities Act
American Association of People with Disabilities
Sport Participation for Athletes With a Physical Disability
Sport Participation for Athletes With a Mental Disability
Sport Participation for Older Athletes
Issues for Special Populations in Sport
Chapter Summary

Chapter 16: Religion and Sport

Religion and Sport in History
Christian Influence on Sport
Sport and Religions Other Than Christianity
Use of Religion in Sport by Athletes
Use of Sport by Athletes to Promote Religious Beliefs
Use of Religion by Coaches, Organizations, and Owners
Organizations Using Sport to Promote Religion
Using Sport to Promote Christian Colleges and Secondary Schools
Conflict Between Sport and Religion
Chapter Summary

Chapter 17: Politics and Sport

Government Promotion of Physical Activity and Health
Government in Sport
Government Promotion of Identity and Unity Among Citizens
Nationalism and Sport
Sport and the Promotion of Social Values
Politics Within Sport
Chapter Summary

Chapter 18: Development Through Sport

Benefits of Sport and Physical Activity
Benefits of Sport at Various Ages
Development Programs for Children and Youth
International Outreach Through Sport
Peace Initiatives Through Sport
Potential Funding Sources for Sport Development Programs
Chapter Summary

Chapter 19: Violence and Rule Breaking in Sport

Rule Breaking
Emotion and Sport
Aggression and Sport
Violence in Sport
Chapter Summary

Chapter 20: Deviance and Sport

9
 Performance Enhancement Through Drugs
Eating Disorders in Sport
Hazing in Sport
Gambling and Sport
Chapter Summary

Chapter 21: Future Trends in Sport

Social Trends
Conflict Between Performance Sport and Participation Sport
Effects of Social Changes
Effects of Spectatorship
Effects of Technology
Effects of the Electronic Media
Will Sport Change?
Who Will Lead the Way?
Who Will Fight for Change?
Chapter Summary

Glossary

References

About the Author

10
 Preface
This book examines contemporary sport both factually and critically, particularly in the
United States. As part of this project, the book situates the modern sport world in the context
of the historical development of sport. As you will see, sport participation and spectatorship
in the United States have changed considerably and now lean toward a corporate model.

In the past 50 years, major changes in U.S. society have spilled over into the world of sport.
Racial barriers have given way to dominance by African Americans in basketball and football,
and Latinos now account for a third of Major League Baseball players. Women and girls also
participate more in sport and advocate for equal opportunities as both participants and
spectators. In addition, the Special Olympics and the Paralympic Games have become major
sport events for people with intellectual or physical disability. Finally, consumer sport now
accommodates a surging population of older adults who look to sport to enhance their
personal fitness, quality of life, and social interaction. Each of these changes promotes new
sport outlooks and strategies and offers hope for the continued expansion of sport for every
person.

At the same time, sport sociology has advanced as a science and created more rigorous and
insightful methods of studying sport. The sociology of sport is explored in plentiful university
courses, and relevant issues are studied by hundreds of professors and researchers. For its part,
this book presents the controversies and the status of sport in a sociological context without
dwelling on theoretical constructs. More specifically, the text provides a look at sport by a
longtime sport participant, observer, fan, teacher, coach, administrator, and critic who has
tried to maintain a balanced approach to sport.

Intended Audience
This book is intended for people who are looking at sport objectively for the first time. It can
help you understand sport, its place in society, and possible changes that may be needed if
sport is to maintain a positive future. I hope you will become better acquainted with both the
historical and the current roles of sport in society. Regardless of your major course of study, if
you are a sport participant or fan, you will find the information illuminating—and in some
cases surprising.

11
As you come to understand more about the sport world and its interaction with society at
large, you will be better equipped to decide what role sport plays in your life and in the life of
your family. Whether you are a competitive athlete, an enthusiastic participant, or a spectator,
this book can help you enjoy sport more, appreciate the challenges faced by sport, and better
evaluate decisions made by sport leaders. Sport can either help unify or help divide society,
and it stands a better chance of being beneficial if more people understand both its value and
its limitations.

Although this book is based on research and reflects various social theories, it was not written
for academic colleagues, and it does not break new theoretical ground. Rather, it is intended
to encourage students to delve more deeply into the issues and contradictions that
characterize what for many of us can be a love–hate affair with sport.

Text Organization
Part I of the book presents a framework for studying sport in society. More specifically,
chapter 1 defines terms and establishes the purpose and importance of sport study. It also
addresses the overall field of sport science and how sport research contributes to knowledge
within sport.

Chapter 2 presents sociological methods for studying sport in order to help you understand
how knowledge is gathered and analyzed. It describes social theories and the ways in which
these theories aid the study of sport. To help you apply these theories, this edition of the
book includes sidebars that ask you to analyze a topic from the perspective of one of the social
theories presented. These sidebars enhance your understanding of the social theories and
pique your interest in applying them to current topics in sport.

Part II examines the scope of modern sport and how it affects society. For example, chapter 3
clarifies the parallels and differences between sport participants and sport spectators. It also
compares growth trends in various sports and distinguishes people who participate in
recreational sport from those who are devoted to high-performance sport. One critical aspect
of this work involves reviewing current research reports and analyzing recent trends in the
popularity of various sport and fitness activities.

Chapter 4 addresses the business side of sport at the professional and collegiate levels and
discusses the issues involved in spending public funds for private gain. It also considers how

12
finances affect athletes, coaches, owners, and participants, both individually and collectively.
These discussions help you appreciate the huge economic investments made in sport and the
influence of money on sport policies and programs.

Chapter 5 outlines the powerful symbiotic relationship between media and sport. It
acknowledges the influence of sport media personalities and journalism and the continuing
challenges of including minorities and females more often in sport media. This chapter also
recognizes the dramatic shift from print media to electronic media, thanks to technology
undreamed of just a generation ago, and its effect on how we consume both sport itself and
news about sport.

Part III looks at sport as an institution and how it functions in relation to other institutions,
such as colleges and the Olympics. More specifically, chapter 6 examines youth sport outside
of the school setting, which has largely become an adult-organized activity for kids that
permeates every community. Next, chapter 7 addresses coaching, a topic that appeared
elsewhere in earlier editions of the book but has been moved to this section because coaching
is such a key determinant of success for teams at various levels. Therefore, it makes sense to
integrate the study of coaching with the study of the institutions of youth, high school, and
college sport.

Chapter 8 addresses interscholastic and intercollegiate sport. Interscholastic teams continue

to grow and prosper, but they also face the challenges of integrating opportunities for girls in
accordance with Title IX and meeting the constant pressure to secure funding. Collegiate
teams also struggle to find their way amid the economic pressure to support programs for a
relatively few elite athletes who may or may not be comfortable in the academic setting.

Chapter 9 broadens the scope to consider the globalization of sport, which reflects our
increasingly connected world. On one hand, international competition has increased as
American sports have been exported around the world; meanwhile, soccer has finally begun
to take hold in North America. Chapter 10 focuses on the particular international sport
phenomenon known as the Olympic movement, which has propelled certain sports to
international prominence and taken on an originally unintended economic and political
significance. In particular, the inclusion of professional athletes has changed the nature of the
Olympic Games and increased attention in countries around the world on developing elite
athletes who can compete for gold medals.

13
Part IV focuses on the interaction between culture and sport and lays out the significance of
social issues in the sport world, including good sporting behavior (chapter 11), race and
ethnicity (chapter 12), women (chapter 13), and social class (chapter 14). The changing role
of women and African Americans in society has revolutionized sport, and ethnicity and social
class continue to be powerful factors in who plays and watches sports overall and in particular
sports.

Chapter 15 examines the relationship of sport to other particular populations, including those
who are aging and those who have a physical or cognitive disability. In particular, the chapter
recognizes the effects of major societal changes regarding these populations in the past 25
years. For instance, as baby boomers have aged and life expectancy has increased, population
demographics have changed, and more of the population consists of older adults who view
sport both as a form of recreation and as a tool for living more healthily. At the same time,
since the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, sport opportunities have
been greatly expanded for people with a physical or cognitive disability.

As has been the case for centuries, sport also interacts with religion (chapter 16) and politics
(chapter 17). Institutions and individuals in both arenas have affected the growth of sport and
used sport to their advantage. Athletes use religion in their sport, and religious organizations
use sport to promote their purposes. Governments use sport to promote identity, unity, social
values, and nationalism. And as citizens, we rely on government to provide reasonable
regulation of sport in order to help us stay safe, in good health, and free from exploitation by
unscrupulous promoters of entertainment sport.

Chapter 18 focuses on the use of sport to combat perplexing challenges faced by societies,
particularly those characterized by strong socioeconomic barriers. For example, the chapter
explores the increasing worldwide emphasis on using sport for the development of peace and
understanding among people of various countries. It also examines the use of youth sport
programs to help at-risk youngsters with academics, discipline issues, moral development,
socialization, and living in a law-abiding manner.

Chapter 19 is the first of two chapters in this edition devoted to deviant behavior. This
chapter looks at rule breaking by athletes at various levels of sport. It also examines violence
both on and off the field. More specifically, it addresses growing concerns about concussions
and debilitating injuries in collision-type sports, as well as off-field violence perpetrated by

14
professional athletes—a timely topic that deserves serious attention.

Chapter 20 explores deviant behaviors such as eating disorders, hazing practices, and sport
wagering with an eye toward current trends, education, and the development of strategies and
regulations to prevent or minimize the negative effects of these practices. Of course, deviant
behavior also includes the use of performance enhancers and doping, which can create
questions about whether a given performance was achieved with the help of an illegal aid.

Finally, chapter 21 anticipates future sport trends in North America, where performance
sport (played by professionals) continues to compete with participation sport (played by
amateurs). In addition, many youth have moved toward extreme sports that suit their needs
better than traditional, adult-organized sports do. Older adults, on the other hand, look to
sport to enhance their chances for a longer life of higher quality. More broadly, U.S. sport
continues to face issues related to finances, opportunities for women, growing minority
populations, and access to sport for families of all income levels. Meanwhile, the delivery of
sport events and programs continues to be influenced by the fact that spectators increasingly
rely on electronic implements in their consumption of sport.

Updates in the Third Edition

This new edition features updated statistics that allow us to freshly analyze sport trends
related to topics such as participation, popularity, gender, race, and class. Similarly, current
information is used to address the business side of sport, particularly in entertainment or
spectator sports. In addition, the discussion of media and sport has been updated to consider
the dramatic effects of the electronic media.

This edition also features updated sidebars that reflect key changes in the world of sport over
the past five years. These sidebars feature current athletes, trends, and experts in order to
bring alive the topics considered in each chapter. In addition, this edition features a new type
of sidebar—Applying Social Theory—to help readers grasp the essentials of each theory and
apply it to a current issue in sport.

As mentioned earlier, the chapter on coaching has been moved to part III to better integrate
it with the chapters on youth, high school, and college sport. Indeed, the success or failure of
an athletic team at any level can invariably be traced in large part to the philosophy, training,
and skill of the coach. Therefore, it is encouraging to see that the past 10 years have brought

15
significant progress in certification processes and continuing education for coaches; even so,
however, standards are still lacking at most levels of sport.

Learning Tools
To aid learning, each chapter begins with a list of key student outcomes and ends with a
summary of the chapter’s main topics. In addition, key terms are highlighted in boldface and
defined in a glossary for easy reference. Throughout the text, various types of sidebar
highlight diverse aspects of sport:

“In the Arena With . . . ” sidebars highlight key players in sociological change in sport.

“Pop Culture” sidebars discuss current trends in film, books, magazines, and other media
that highlight sociological issues in sport.

“Expert’s View” sidebars show how experts in sport sociology interpret sport issues; they
also raise discussion points for students.

“Activity Time-Out” sidebars give students the opportunity to classify information,

engage in friendly debate, and obtain crucial information.

“Applying Social Theory” sidebars ask students to analyze a particular topic from the
perspective of one of the six social theories described in chapter 2.

Instructor Resources
Several instructor resources are available to help you use this text in your class. The instructor
guide has a sample syllabus and a list of supplemental resources. The test package provides
210 questions in multiple-choice and essay format. The chapter quizzes provides 10 questions
per chapter to test students’ knowledge of the most important chapter concepts. The
Microsoft PowerPoint presentation package has 455 slides outlining the text in a lecture-
friendly format. All of these resources are available at
www.HumanKinetics.com/SocialIssuesInSport.

Closing Comments
I have spent more than 40 years studying sport and applying that knowledge as a professor,

16
coach, and administrator. I spent nearly 20 of those years on a college campus. Later, I
worked in various administrative roles for the United States Tennis Association and spent 8
years on the coaching committee for the United States Olympic Committee, which took on
the challenge of improving coaching in all U.S. sports.

For the past 10 years, I have taught a course on sport and society at the University of Tampa.
Most of the material in this edition has been vetted by current or former students, who
invariably end the semester with a much different understanding of U.S. sport from the
opinions they had at the beginning of the course.

I have also been fortunate enough to experience extensive international travel (most recently
to China) and in the process have learned a great deal about sport in other countries. These
experiences have given me a unique perspective on sport. It is my hope that you will enjoy
this perspective while also understanding where it is limited.

17
 Acknowledgments
I express warm thanks to the hundreds of students who have sparked my interest in
evaluating the information available on the sociology of sport. They have challenged me to
make the information relevant to today’s world of sport. In particular, students at the
University of Tampa have provided consistent feedback and creative ideas and have clearly
articulated their interest in certain topics. My interactions with these students have taught me
a great deal about their perceptions of American sport and physical activity; these interactions
have also given me the opportunity to share with students my own career and life experiences.
Through this sharing process, we have all realized that sport plays a critical role in our lives
and in our society, and we hope that sport will similarly entertain future generations of
participants, performers, and consumers of sport and physical activity.

I’m indebted to Rainer Martens, who challenged me to accept this project and showed
confidence in me to produce a worthwhile product. Likewise, I appreciate the work of Myles
Schrag, acquisitions editor, for his guidance in the conception and shaping of the manuscript.
Later in the process, developmental editor Amanda Ewing offered insightful advice, helped
keep me on target, and made terrific suggestions for revision for this third edition. Both
Myles and Amanda have been loyal partners from the original conception of this work and
throughout each new edition of it.

I also acknowledge the assistance and friendship of Dr. Tian Ye and Dr. Tian Hui of Beijing,
China, who invited me to their country to speak to the China Institute of Sport Science and
other distinguished groups in their country. Their hospitality and keen interest in American
sport eventually led to their translating this text into Chinese to be used in their universities.

Finally, my wife, Kathy, has been a tireless supporter throughout the project and has
encouraged me every step of the way. Without her interest, patience, and personal
commitment to sport, it would have been a difficult undertaking.

18
 Part I
Studying Sport in Society
These opening chapters set the stage for studying sport from a sociological perspective by
pointing out the integral relationship between sport and society in North America. The first
chapter defines key words such as play, game, sport, and work in terms of purpose,
organization, and complexity. As sport moves from participation sport (played by amateurs) to
high-performance sport (played by professional athletes), it also moves away from recreation or
leisure-play activities and takes on the characteristics of work.

Chapter 1 examines why people study sport and reviews the sport sciences that enable us to
develop the scientific knowledge on which coaching and training are based. Chapter 2
presents typical methods of studying sport. It defines several social theories and gives
examples of how they might apply to sport research and interpretation. These social theories,
referred to throughout the book, provide a framework for understanding different points of
view relevant to the specific topics of each chapter. Therefore, it is critical that you
understand these theories so that you can respond effectively to their application in later
chapters.

Chapter 2 also describes the emerging field of sport sociology. Whereas sport psychology
tends to focus on one individual, sport sociology explores people in groups and how they
interact with and affect one another in relation to sport. The chapter also provides
information about sociological tools for learning more.

19
 Chapter 1
What Is Sport and Why Do We Study It?

Karin Lau/fotolia.com

Student Outcomes
After reading this chapter, you will know the following:

The definition of sport

The sport pyramid
Why you should study sport
The subdisciplines of sport science

Like many college students, you may feel that sport plays a significant role in your life.
Perhaps you even chose your university partly on the basis of its athletic success. In fact, in
the United States, many of us have heard of certain colleges simply because of their prowess
in athletics. Though sport plays a relatively minor role in an institution’s mission and
purpose, college sport teams typically enhance school spirit and serve as a focus of campus
social life.

However, if college sport merely produces more spectators—more people who watch other
people participating in sport—we might ask whether they really benefit students. More to the

20
point, perhaps the question should be this: How physically active are students in both sport
and other activities that contribute to their overall health and well-being?

On Thursday, April 15, 1954, I realized that baseball was important in the world. On that
day, Baltimore got its own Major League Baseball team, the Orioles, and opened the brand-
spanking-new Memorial Stadium. The formation of the Orioles, spawned from the lowly St.
Louis Browns franchise, marked the entry of my home city into the big leagues. Although I
was just a kid, I knew that day was special because city hall closed for half the day, most
businesses shut down, and, best of all, schools were closed so that everyone could enjoy the
citywide parade.

In fact, Baltimore was about to embark on its golden age of sport, which would coincide with
my childhood. At first, we rooted for moderately talented sport teams, but soon Hall of
Famer Brooks Robinson led the Orioles and the magical arm of Hall of Famer Johnny Unitas
guided our football team, the Colts. Having these two superstars in the same city was like
having a quarterback such as Peyton Manning or Tom Brady along with an infielder such as
Derek Jeter or Evan Longoria as your football and baseball heroes. I knew right then that I
was falling in love with sport.

You may have a similar childhood story of your own introduction to sport. Regardless of the
details, once we’re hooked, many of us never quite let go of our interest in and devotion to
our favorite sports and heroes. In fact, the word fan derives from fanatic—and that’s just what
many of us have been and continue to be. Furthermore, if you’re like me, studying sport is fun
and can also help you expand your understanding of the place that sport holds both in North
America and in the world. To get a quick sense of this significance, imagine that all sports
were banned, as indeed some have been in certain civilizations. Our lives would change,
immediately and dramatically, in terms of how we invest our discretionary time, our money,
and our emotions.

This scenario is jarring because sport affects our lives every day. Strangers on the street stop
to chat about their hometown sport successes—whether they involve a local high school, a
college, or a professional team. Entire cities wake up on the morning after an exhilarating win
by the home team and feel proud to live where they do—or wake up after a tough loss and
sink into mourning. Kids look up to sport heroes, memorize the lifetime statistics of favorite
athletes, and dream of making it someday to their own fame and fortune. They may even

21
copy the stance, mannerisms, and clothing of their heroes.

Sport also affects the cultures, traditions, and values of a society. Stories in the sport world
help us clarify our stances on a wide range of issues, such as race and gender relations, the
rights of senior citizens and persons with a disability, class mobility, youth development
through physical activity, and progress toward a better standard of health and fitness for
everyone. These issues and others are examined in the coming chapters. For now, let’s focus
on what sport is and how it differs from play and games.

Sport Through the Ages

Before we can analyze the effect of sport on society (and vice versa), we need to know what
sport is and why we should study it. The word sport is derived from the Latin root desporto,
which means “to carry away.” The term sport has been used through the ages to refer to
physical activities that are competitive and organized and that divert people from the everyday
business of sustaining life or producing economic gain.

Over the centuries, both sport and game playing have fulfilled various roles in societies. Early
Greek civilization used sport and game playing in celebrations, in rituals honoring their gods,
and in funeral ceremonies; in fact, as you may be aware, the great Greek poet Homer
described sport in his literary classics, the Iliad and the Odyssey. Typical contests of physical
prowess among the ancient Greeks included footraces, chariot races, wrestling, boxing,
leaping, and hunting. In the ancient city-state of Sparta, sport and game playing helped
young men refine the skills of war. In contrast, the city-state of Athens educated young men
in grammar, music, and gymnastics to fully develop their physical and mental capacities.
These two approaches established different parties as the beneficiary of sporting skill. In
Sparta, sport benefited the state; in Athens, it aided the perfection of the individual man.

Sport and game playing also played a role in other ancient civilizations, as is evidenced in
paintings, carvings, and various historical documents. Indeed, every culture has included
running, swimming, and jumping competitions and has also had a place for combat-related
activities, such as boxing, wrestling, and other martial arts. Ball-oriented games have also
been popular in diverse civilizations, including those of the Egyptians and of American and
Canadian Indians; various forms of football can be traced to ancient China.

Of course, sport and game playing are still used today, both as forms of celebration and as

22
examples of athletic prowess. But what exactly is sport?

Definition of Sport
The sport pyramid (figure 1.1) provides a helpful way to think of sport. The pyramid
contains four elements of human activity—play, games, sport, and work. These activities are
often confused because of the interchange and overlap of ideas. Let’s look at each one
individually and then examine the interrelationships.

23
 Figure 1.1 The sport pyramid.

Play

Play forms the base of the pyramid since it is the physical activity of childhood and continues
throughout life in various forms. Play is free activity involving exploration, self-expression,
dreaming, and pretending. It follows no firm rules and can take place anywhere. Other than
giving pleasure, the outcome of play is unimportant. Over the years, theories of play have
been formulated by many people, including Dutch historian Johan Huizinga (1950), who
described play as being free of form, separate from ordinary life, and free of specific purpose.
He considered games and sport to be specialized forms of play, with more formal rules and
purposes and an emphasis on the outcome.

Games

A game is an aspect of play that possesses greater structure and is competitive. Specifically,
games pursue clear participation goals that can be either mental, physical, or a combination of
both; they are governed by either informal or formal rules; they involve competition; they
produce outcomes determined by luck, strategy, skill, or a combination thereof; and they
result in prestige or status.

Examples of inactive games include board games, such as Monopoly; card games, such as
hearts and Texas Hold’em (a kind of poker); and video games, such as Madden NFL and

24
Grand Theft Auto. In contrast, examples of active games include kickball, ultimate, paintball,
touch football, and street hockey. As these games have become more mainstream, some
people have moved to organize them by means of national rules and competitive events. As a
result, they have evolved beyond informal neighborhood or schoolyard games and activities
and taken on the characteristics of a sport (described in more detail in the next section).

25
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great wonder and astonishment of thousands, who from divers parts
came to see him.” Thus much of his cunning.
Yet notwithstanding, this most devillish and cunningly contrived
counterfeiting and dissimulation was discovered and fully detected
by the sagacity of that pious and learned person, Dr Thomas Morton
then Bishop of Coventry and Lichfield: To whose memory I cannot
but owe and make manifest all due respect, because he was well
known unto me, and by the imposition of whose hands I was
ordained Presbyter when he was Bishop of Durham, and also knew
his then Secretary, Mr Richard Baddeley, who was the Notary, and
writ the examination of this crafty Boy. The manner how such a
doubtful and intricate piece of Imposture was found out and
discovered, you may read at large in the Treatise called a Discourse
concerning Popish Exorcising. And his publick Confession we shall
give in the Authors own words: “He was finally brought again to the
Summer Assizes held at Stafford, the 26. of July, Anno 1621. where
before Sir Peter Warburton and Sir Humfrey Winch Knights, his
Majesties Justices of Assize, and the face of the County and Country
there assembled, the Boy craved pardon first of Almighty God, then
desired the Woman there also present to forgive him; and lastly,
requested the whole Country whom he had so notoriously and
wickedly scandalized, to admit of that his so hearty Confession for
their satisfaction.
“And thus it pleased God (he saith) to open the eyes of this Boy
(that I may so say) luto with the Clay of the Romish Priests lewd
Impostures, and sputo with the spittle of his own infamy, to see his
errors and to glorifie the God of truth. And though many such
Impostures as this have in several ages been hudled up in darkness
and recorded for true stories, by those that were Partisans to them
and Confederates with them, yet doubtless were but of the same
stamp with this, and might all as well have been discovered, if the
like care, skill and industry had been used.
5. No less Vid. The Hist. 5.
villanous, bloody arraignment and
and Diabolical, tryal of Witches at
Lancaster, 1612.
was the design of
Thompson alias Southworth, Priest or Jesuit, against Jennet Bierley,
Jane Southworth, and Ellen Bierly of Samesbury in the County of
Lancaster, in the year 1612. the sum of which is this. “The said
Jennet Bierley, Ellen Bierley, and Jane Southworth, were Indicted at
the Assizes holden at Lancaster upon Wednesday the nineteenth of
August, in the year abovesaid, for that they and every of them had
practised, exercised, and used divers devillish and wicked Arts, called
Witchcrafts, Inchantments, Charms and Sorceries, in and upon one
Grace Sowerbutts. And the chief witness to prove this was Grace
Sowerbutts her self, who said that they did draw her by the hair of
the head, and take her sense and memory from her, did throw her
upon the Hen-roost and Hay-mow; did appear to her sometimes in
their own likeness, sometimes like a black Dog with two feet, that
they carried her where they met black things like men that danced
with them, and did abuse their bodies; and that they brought her to
one Thomas Walsham’s House in the night, and there they killed his
Child by putting a nail into the Navil, and after took it forth of the
Grave, and did boil it, and eat some of it, and made Oyl of the bones,
and such like horrid lies.” But there appearing sufficient grounds of
suspicion that it was practised knavery, the said Grace Sowerbutts
was by the wisdom, and care of Sir Edward Bromley Knight, one of
his Majesties Justices of Assize at Lancaster, appointed to be
examined by William Leigh and Edward Chisnal Esquires, two of his
Majesties Justices of peace in the same County, and so thereupon
made this free confession. Being demanded “whether the accusation
she laid upon her Grandmother, Jennet Bierley, Ellen Bierley and
Jane Southworth, of Witchcraft, viz. of the killing of the child of
Thomas Walshman, with a nail in the Navil, the boyling, eating and
oyling, thereby to transform themselves into divers shapes, was true?
She doth utterly deny the same, or that ever she saw any such
practises done by them. She further saith, that one Mr. Thompson,
which she taketh to be Mr. Christopher Southworth, to whom she
was sent to say her prayers, did perswade, counsel and advise her, to
deal as formerly hath been said against her said Grandmother, Aunt
and Southworths Wife.
“And further she confesseth, and saith, that she never did know, or
saw any Devils, nor any other visions, as formerly hath been alledged
and informed.
“Also she confesseth, and saith, that she was not thrown, or cast
upon the Hen-roust, and Hay-mow in the Barn, but that she went up
upon the Mow by the wall side. Being further demanded whether she
ever was at the Church, she saith, she was not, but promised
hereafter to go to Church, and that very willingly; of which the
author of the relation gives this judgment.
“How well (he saith) this project, to take away the lives of three
innocent poor creatures by practice and villany, to induce a young
Scholar to commit perjury, to accuse her own Grandmother, Aunt,
&c. agrees either with the title of a Jesuit, or the duty of a religious
Priest who should rather profess sincerity and innocency, than
practise treachery! But this was lawful, for they are Hereticks
accursed, to leave the company of Priests, to frequent Churches, hear
the word of God preached, and profess religion sincerely.”
6. But we shall shut up the relating of Hist. 6.
these prodigious and hellish stories, of these
kind of couzening and cheating delusions and impostures, with one
instance more that is no less notorious than these that we have
rehearsed. About the year 1634 (for having lost our notes of the
same, we cannot be so exact as we should) there was a great
pretended meeting of many supposed Witches at a new house or
barn, in Pendle Forest in Lancashire, then not inhabited, where (as
the accusation pretended) some of them by pulling by a rope of Straw
or Hay, did bring Milk, Butter, Cheese, and the like, and were carried
away upon Dogs, Cats or Squirrels. The informer was one Edmund
Robinson (yet living at the writing hereof, and commonly known by
the name of Ned of Roughs) whose Father was by trade a Waller, and
but a poor Man, and they finding that they were believed and had
incouragement by the adjoyning Magistrates, and the persons being
committed to prison or bound over to the next Assizes, the boy, his
Father and some others besides did make a practice to go from
Church to Church that the Boy might reveal and discover Witches,
pretending that there was a great number at the pretended meeting,
whose faces he could know; and by that means they got a good living,
that in a short space the Father bought a Cow or two, when he had
none before. And it came to pass that this said Boy was brought into
the Church of Kildwick a large parish Church, where I (being then
Curate there) was preaching in the afternoon, and was set upon a
stall (he being but about ten or eleven years old) to look about him,
which moved some little disturbance in the Congregation for a while.
And after prayers I inquiring what the matter was, the people told
me that it was the Boy that discovered Witches, upon which I went to
the house where he was to stay all night, where I found him, and two
very unlikely persons that did conduct him, and manage the
business; I desired to have some discourse with the Boy in private,
but that they utterly refused; then in the presence of a great many
people, I took the Boy near me, and said: Good Boy tell me truly, and
in earnest, did thou see and hear such strange things of the meeting
of Witches; as is reported by many that thou dost relate, or did not
some person teach thee to say such things of thy self? But the two
men not giving the Boy leave to answer, did pluck him from me, and
said he had been examined by two able Justices of the Peace, and
they did never ask him such a question, to whom I replied, the
persons accused had therefore the more wrong. But the Assizes
following at Lancaster there were seventeen found guilty by the Jury,
yet by the prudent discretion of the Judge, who was not satisfied with
the evidence, they were reprieved, and his Majesty and his Council
being informed by the Judge of the matter, the Bishop of Chester was
appointed to examine them, and to certifie what he thought of them,
which he did; and thereupon four of them; to wit Margaret Johnson,
Francis Dicconson, Mary Spenser, and Hargrieves Wife, were sent
for up to London, and were viewed and examined by his Majesties
Physicians and Chirurgeons, and after by his Majesty and the
Council, and no cause of guilt appearing but great presumptions of
the boys being suborned to accuse them falsely. Therefore it was
resolved to separate the Boy from his Father, they having both
followed the women up to London, they were both taken and put into
several prisons asunder. Whereupon shortly after the Boy confessed
that he was taught and suborned to devise, and feign those things
against them, and had persevered in that wickedness by the counsel
of his Father, and some others, whom envy, revenge and hope of gain
had prompted on to that devillish design and villany; and he also
confessed, that upon that day when he said that they met at the
aforesaid house or barn, he was that very day a mile off, getting
Plums in his Neighbours Orchard. And that this is a most certain
truth, there are many persons yet living, of sufficient reputation and
integrity, that can avouch and testifie the same; and besides, what I
write is the most of it true, upon my own knowledge, and the whole I
have had from his own mouth more than once.
 Thus having brought these unquestionable Histories to manifest
the horrid cheats and impostures that are practised for base, wicked
and devillish ends, we must conclude in opposing that objection
proposed in the beginning of this Chapter, which is this: That though
some be discovered to be counterfeitings and impostures, yet all are
not so, to which we further answer.
1. That all those things that are now Reas. 1.
adayes supposed to be done by Demoniacks
or those that pretend possessions, as also all those strange feats
pretended to be brought to pass by Witches or Witchcraft, are all
either performed by meer natural causes (for it is granted upon all
sides that Devils in corporeal matter can perform nothing but by
applying fit actives to agreeable passives.) And miracles being long
since ceased, it must needs follow, that Devils do nothing but only
draw the minds of Men and Women unto sin and wickedness, and
thereby they become deceivers, cheats and notorious impostours: so
that we may rationally conclude that all other strange feats and
delusions, must of necessity be no better, or of any other kind, than
these we have recited, except they can shew that they are brought to
pass by natural means. Must not all persons that are of sound
understanding judge and believe that all those strange tricks related
by Mr. Glanvil of his Drummer at Mr. Mompessons house, whom he
calls the Demon of Tedworth, were abominable cheats and
impostures (as I am informed from persons of good quality they were
discovered to be) for I am sure Mr. Glanvil can shew no agents in
nature, that the Demon applying them to fit patients, could produce
any such effects by, and therefore we must conclude all such to be
impostures.
2. It is no sound way of reasoning, from Reas. 2.
the principles of knowing, either thereby to
prove the existence of things, or the modes of such existence, because
the principle of being is the cause of the principle of knowing, and
not on the contrary, and therefore our not discovering of all
Impostures that are or have been acted, doth not at all conclude the
rest that pass undiscovered, are diabolical or wrought by a
supernatural power; for it ought first to be demonstrated that there
are now in these days some things wrought by the power of Devils,
that are supernatural, in elementary and corporeal matter, which
never was nor can be, as from the testimonies of all the learned we
have shewed before. And therefore a man might as well argue that
there are no more thieves in a Nation, but those that are known, and
brought to condign punishment, when there may be, and doubtless
are many more; so likewise there are many hundreds of impostures,
that pass and are never discovered, but that will not at all rationally
conclude that those must be diabolical that are not made known.
 CHAP. XV.

Of divers Creatures that have a real existence in Nature, and yet

by reason of their wonderous properties, or seldom being seen,
have been taken for Spirits, and Devils.

Before we come to speak of Apparitions in Hist. 1.

general, we shall premise some few things
by way of caution, because there is not one subject (that we know of)
in the World that is liable to so many mistakes, by reason of the
prepossessed fancies of men, in adhering to those fictions of Spirits,
Fairies, Hobgoblins, and many such like, which are continually
heightned by ignorant education, and vain melancholy fears. We
shall not mention those many apparitions that are frequently
practised by forgery and confederacy, for base ends and interests, as
have been commonly used in the time of Popery, and attempted in
our dayes, though with little success. As also by other persons for
base lucre or worse intents, of which we have known some notorious
ones that have been discovered. Neither shall we speak of those
feigned ones that have been practised to hide thievery and roguery,
as we once knew that certain persons who stole mens sheep in the
night, did carry them away upon a thing made like a Bier covered
with a white sheet, by which means those that saw them took it to be
an apparition, and so durst not come near them, and so the most
part of the people of 3 or 4 Villages were terrified, and the report was
far spred that it was a walking spirit, and yet at last discovered to be
a cunning piece of knavery to hide their theft withal. Neither shall we
say any thing of those ludicrous apparitions that are often practised
to terrifie, abuse, and affright others. But we shall here give the
relation of some strange creatures, that seldom being seen or found,
have induced more ignorant persons to take them for Demons, and
these we shall enumerate in this order.
1. It hath been, Centur. 1. Hist. 9. p. Hist. 2.
and still is a strong 18.
opinion amongst the vulgars and Witchmongers also, that Witches
transforming themselves into diverse shapes, did in the night time
enter into peoples houses, and then and there suck the breasts or
navils of infants in their Beds or Cradles, that thereby they were
weakned or consumed away; which inveterate opinion was the more
firmly believed, because children that at night were very well, in the
morning were found to be very ill, and to have been sucked in the
places aforesaid. To clear which point take this Observation from the
learned pen of Thomas Bartholinus that was Physician to Frederick
King of Denmark, in English thus. “Three infants (he saith) of the
Pastor Fionens at Lyckisholm, which is a noble Mannor belonging to
the very illustrious Lord Christian Thomæus Sehsted, the Kings
Chancellor, Eques Auratus, and a most renowned Senator of
Denmark, my Mecænas, that were sleeping in their accustomed
Chamber, were not long after troubled with an unwonted bewailing
and inquietude, that they felt themselves to be sucked or milked of
something. The nipples of their breasts being diligently handled by
the Parents did confirm the Childrens suspicion, because they did
hang out like a Womans that did give suck. And to prevent this
fascination, the nipples of the breasts were anointed with
preservatives against poyson and other bitter things. Hereupon their
Navils were so worn with vehement suction, that not only they were
prominent or did hang out, but also did as it were shew the greatness
of the mouth that had sucked by the impression remaining. But the
Infants being carried forth of the Chamber, did from thenceforth rest
free from any suction, especially being carried in peoples arms. And
this Caprimulgus or Goat-milker, is by Bellonius said to be in Crete
of the bigness of a Cuckow, being very hurtful to the Goats, insomuch
that it sucketh milk from their dugs on the nights.” By which we may
plainly understand, how Creatures that are but seldom seen, or
whose properties are unknown, may easily effect those things that
ignorant heads may impute unto Witchcraft.
2. It is no less Isai. 34. 14. De quadr. l. 1. p.
believed by many, Isai. 13. 21. 862.
that those kind of Deut. 32. 17. Levit. 17. 7.
Creatures which 2 Chron. 11. 15. Psal. 106. 37.
are called Satyres
are but a kind of Demons; for learned Gesner reckoning them to be a
kind of Apes, doth tell us this: “Even as (he saith) the Apes
Cynocephali, or with Dogs-heads, have given the occasion of the
Fable, that some have thought such to be men: So Satyrs being also a
rare kind of Apes, and of greater admiration, some have believed
them to be Devils: also of some men deluded by the Poets and
Painters, as also Statuaries, who have feigned that they had Goats
feet and horns, the more to augment the admiration and
superstition, they have been thought Devils: when in Ape-Satyres
there is no such thing to be seen.” And this opinion hath been the
more strengthened because the most of the Translators have in the
Old Testament rendered the word ‫( ָׂש ִע יר‬which properly signifieth an
happy man or beast) a Goat, a Satyre, (as Gen. 27. ver. 11. Esau my
Brother is a hairy man; where the very same word is used) Demon,
or Devil. But it is plain that it did and doth signifie no more but only
Satyrs, as will appear by these reasons. 1. First, as our English
Translators have truly rendred it in that of Isaiah, And the Satyre
shall cry unto his fellow: for it is certainly related, both by ancient
and modern Navigators, that in those desolate Islands where there
are store of them, they will upon the nights make great shouting and
crying, and calling one unto another. And in another place of the
same Prophet it is said by the same Translators, and Satyres shall
dance there; dancing being one of the properties of that hairy
Creature, as a thing it is much delighted with, and so are but Satyres
that are natural Creatures and not Devils. 2. And though the same
Translators have rendred the plural of the same word, by the name
Devils, yet it there properly signifieth also Satyres; for though in
another place it be said; they sacrificed to devils, not to God, and so
again by the Psalmist, for they sacrificed their sons and daughters
unto devils; where in both places the word is ‫ ֵש ִד ים‬vastatoribus, to
the destroyers or to Devils; because in those Idols the Devils were
worshipped, and thereby destroyed the souls of men: 3. Yet it is
manifest that their Idols were formed in the shape of Satyres, in a
most terrible manner; for the late and most credible travellers that
have been in those parts of Asia, where those Idolatries are still
upholden, do unanimously relate that they make their Images or
Idols that they worship, as terrible and frightful as they can devise, as
may be seen in the relations of the Travels of Vincent le Blanc,
Mandelslo, and Ferdinand Mendez Pinto, and Mr Herbert our
Countryman gives us the Idol of the Bannyans in the ugly shape of a
monstrous Satyre. 4. So that though this worshipping and sacrificing,
in respect of its abominableness, filthiness and Idolatrousness, was
yielded to Devils, which spiritually and invisibly ruled in these
Children of disobedience, and was the Author of all those delusions
and impostures; yet it doth no where appear, that it was Demons in
the corporeal shape of Satyres (as many have erroneously supposed)
no more than the golden Calves that Jeroboam made, were real
Devils: but these Idols were made in the figure or shape of Satyrs or
hairy Creatures, as saith the Text: And he ordained him Priests for
the high places, and for the hairy Idols or Satyres, and for the Calves
that he had made. It is the same Hebrew word here that our English
Translators render Devils, that in the two former places of Isaiah
they translate Satyres; and as the Calves are not rendred Devils, why
should the Images that were like Satyres be translated so? Surely the
Devil was as much in the Calves, and as much worshipped in those
dumb Idols as he was in the dumb and dead Idols or Images of the
Satyres, and so no more reason to call the one Devils than the other.
But that which totally overthrows the conceit that they should be real
Devils in corporeal shapes and figures, is this, that both the Calves
and the Images of these Satyres were made by Jeroboam: now it is
manifest that he could not make a real Devil, but only Images of
Calves and Satyres, wherein and whereby the Devils might be
worshipped in those Idolatrous ways.
So that it is most Observ. Medic. lib. Hist. 3.
apparent, that 3. c. 56. p. 283.
these Satyres being seldom seen and of strange qualities, have made
many to believe that they were Demons; nay it seems their Images
and Pictures have been taken for Devils, and yet are but meer natural
Creatures, and by learned men accounted a kind of Apes, which we
shall now prove by an undeniable instance or two; and first this from
the pen of that learned Physician Nicholaus Tulpius, who saith thus:
“In our remembrance (he saith) there was an Indian Satyre brought
from Angola; and presented as a gift to Frederick Henry Prince of
Aurange. This Satyre was four-footed and from the humane shape
which it seems to bear, it is called of the Indians Orang antang,
homo silvestris, a wild man, and of the Africans Quoias morron,
expressing in longitude a Child of three years old, and in crassitude,
one of six years. It was of body neither fat nor lean, but square, most
able and very swift. And of its joints so firm, and the Muscles so
large, that it durst undertake and could do any thing; on the
foreparts altogether smooth, and rough behind, and covered with
black hairs. Its face did resemble a man, but the nose broad and
crooked downwards, rugged and a toothless female. But the ears
were not different from humane shape. As neither the breast,
adorned on both sides with a swelling dug (for it was of the feminine
Sex) the belly had a very deep navil; and the joints, both those above
and those below, had such an exact similitude with man, that one egg
doth not seem more like another. Neither was there awanting a
requisite commissure to the arm, nor the order of fingers to the
hands, nor an humane shape to the thumb, or a prop of the legs to
the thighs, or of the heel to the foot. Which fit and decent form of the
members, was the cause that for most part it did go upright: neither
did it lift up any kind of weight less heavily than remove it easily.
When it was about to drink it would hold the handle of the Kan
with the one hand, and put the other under the bottom of the Cup,
then would it wipe off the moysture left upon its lips, not less neatly
than thou shouldest see the most delicate Courtier. Which same
dexterity it did observe when it went to bed. For lying her head upon
the Pillow, and fitly covering her body with the Cloaths, it did hide it
self no otherwise, than if the most delicate person had laid there.
Moreover the King of Samback (he saith) Hist. 4.
did one time tell our Kinsman Samuel
Blomart, that these kind of Satyres, especially the Males in the Iland
of Borneo, have so great boldness of mind and such a strong
compaction of Muscles, that they have often forceably set upon
armed men; and not only upon the weak sex of Women and Girls;
with the flagrant desire of which they are so inflamed, that catching
them often they abuse them. For they are highly prone to lust (which
is common to these, with the lustful Satyres of the ancients) yea
sometimes so keen and salacious, that therefore the Indian Women
do eschew the Woods and Groves as worse than a Dog or a Snake; in
which these impudent animals do lie hid. And that this lascivious
animal is found in the Eastern Mountains of India; as also in Africa,
between Sierra, Liona, and the Promontory of the Mountain, where
(perhaps) were those places where Plinius lib. 5. cap. 5. affirmeth
that upon the nights there was seen to shine frequent Fires of the
Ægipanes, and to abound with the lasciviousness of the Satyres, who
do love craggy Dens and Caves, and shun the society of mankind,
being a salacious, hairy, four-footed Creature, with human shape and
a crooked nose. But that the foot of this Creature neither hath hoofs
nor the body every where hairs, but only the head, shoulders and
back. The rest of the parts are smooth, and the Ears are not sharp.”
So that from hence it is undeniably true, Enq. into vulg. err.
that there are such Creatures existent in l. 5. p. 271.
nature, and have been either taken for Devils or the Apparitions of
Demons in this shape of Satyres, as Doctor Brown hath well
observed in these words: “A conceit there is (he saith) that the Devil
commonly appeareth with a cloven foot or hoof, wherein although it
seem excessively ridiculous, there may be somewhat of truth; and the
ground thereof at first might be his frequent appearing in the shape
of a Goat, which answers that description. This was the opinion of
ancient Christians concerning the Apparitions of Pans, Fauns and
Satyres, and in this form we read of one that appeared unto Antony
in the Wilderness. The same is also confirmed from expositions of
holy Scripture; for whereas it is said; Thou shalt not offer unto
Devils, the original word is Sehhirim, that is rough and hairy Goats,
because in that shape the Devil most often appeared, as is expounded
by the Rabbins, as Tremellius hath also explained.”
But saving the reputation of learned Saint Hierome and Dr Brown,
it is but a supposition unproved that ever the Devil appeared in the
shape of a Goat, the rise of the opinion was only because the Devil
was worshipped in an Idol made in the shape of a Goat.
3. In a few ages Mund. Subter. l. 8 Enquir. into vulg.
past when Popish Sect. 4. c. 4. p. 101. errors. l. 4. c. 11. p.
ignorance did Idea Idear. operatr. 207.
abound, there was c. 6.
no discourse more Demonstr. Thes. p. Hist. 5.
common (which 679.
yet is continued amongst the vulgar people) than of the apparition of
certain Creatures which they called Fayries, that were of very little
stature, and being seen would soon vanish and disappear. And these
were generally believed to be some kind of Spirits or Demons, and
Paracelsus held them to be a kind of middle Creatures, and called
them non-Adamicks, as not being of the race of Adam; but there are
Authors of great credit and veracity, that affirm, there have been
Nations of such people called Pygmies. And though Doctor Brown
hath learnedly and elegantly handled the question, “Whether there
have been or are any such dwarfish race of mankind, as but of three
spans, not considering them singly but nationally, or not, and hath
brought the most probable arguments that well can be, to prove that
there are not nor have been any such race of people called Pygmies,
yet doth he moderately conclude in these words. There being thus
(he saith) no sufficient confirmation of their verity, some doubt may
arise concerning their possibility; wherein, since it is not defined in
what dimensions the soul may exercise her faculties, we shall not
conclude impossibility, or that there might not be a race of Pygmies,
as there is sometimes of Giants, and so may take in the opinion of
Austine, and his Commentator Ludovicus Vives. And though
Kircherus with his wonted impudence do conclude in these words:”
Fabulosa itaq; sunt omnia, quæ de hujusmodi Pygmæis veteres
Geographi à simplici populo sola relatione descripta tradiderunt:
Yet (I say) notwithstanding these negative arguments, I give the
relation of others (that are of as great or greater credit) in the
affirmative. And thus much is affirmed by that most sagacious and
learned person Marcus Marci, a late Physician of no mean judgment,
who saith thus: Quicquid tamen sit de his, Pygmæos & olim fuisse, &
nunc esse affirmamus. And besides the testimony of Aristotle,
Solinus, Pomponius Mela, and Ælian, he relateth these. “But those
(he saith) that have in our age viewed the World, the same do testifie
also, that there are yet Pygmies in the Island of Aruchet, one of the
Moluccas, and in the Isle Cophi, and such Pigasetta affirmeth that he
saw.” And though Doctor Brown seem to sleight it, yet (according to
the Proverb) one eye-witness is more to be credited than ten that
have it but by the ear. Odericus in his History of India doth report
also, “that there are such people of about three spans high,” which
also is confirmed by the later Odericus. And to these affirmative
proofs we shall add that of the learned Philosopher and Physician
Baptista Van Helmont, in English thus. “A Wine Merchant (he saith)
of our Country, a very honest man, sailing sometimes to the Canaries
or Fortunate Islands, being asked of me his serious opinion and
judgment upon certain Creatures, which there the Children as oft as
they would did bring home, and did name them Tudesquillos, or
Germanulos, that is little men; (the Germans call them Eard-
Manlins) for they were dead Carkases dried almost three foot long,
which any one of the Boys did easily carry in one hand, and were of
an human shape: But the whole dead Carkase was transparent like
Parchment, and the bones were flexible as grisles. Also the bowels
and intestines were to be seen, holden against the sun, which, when
after I knew to be a certain truth, from the Spaniards born there, I
considered, that in these days the off-spring of the Pygmies were
there destroyed.”
From whence all understanding and unpartial judgments may
clearly perceive, that these kind of Creatures have been really
existent in the World and are and may be so still in Islands and
Mountains that are uninhabited, and that they are no real Demons,
or non-Adamick Creatures, that can appear and become invisible
when they please, as Paracelsus thinketh. But that either they were
truly of human race endowed with the use of reason and speech
(which is most probable) or at least that they were some little kind of
Apes or Satyres, that having their secret recesses and holes in the
Mountains, could by their agility and nimbleness soon be in or out
like Conies, Weazels, Squirrels, and the like.
4. It hath been Histor. 11. 169. Centur. 2.
no less a mistake Hist. 6.
about those Fishes that are called Tritones,
Syrenes, Meirmaids, or Marine, and Sea-Men, and Women, which
have been by many supposed and taken to be Spirits, or Demons,
and commonly Nymphs, when indeed and truth they are reall
creatures, as these examples do make manifest. The first of which we
shall recite from the faithful pen of that learned Anatomist Thomas
Bartholinus, who was Physician to Frederick the third King of
Denmark, in these Englished words: “Various things (he saith) of
Meirmaids are extant delivered in the monuments of the Ancients,
that are partly false, partly true. It is not far from a Fable that they
held, that they did imitate the voices of Men and Women. But that
there are beasts found in the Sea, with humane faces (he saith) I shall
not deny. But I will not (he saith) sum up the accounts of the
ancients. For they are full of the stories of Meirmaids. Amongst the
later Authors, these have here and there handled this argument,
Scaliger (in lib. 2. Histor. Anim. t. 108.) Rondoletius, Licetus (de
Spont. vin. ort.), Marcus Marci (de Ideis) P. Boistuan (Histor. Gall.
prod. T. 1. c. 18.) At Enchuysen in Holland (he saith) the shape of a
certain Meirmaid is to be seen painted, that formerly had been cast
upon the shore, by the force of the waters. It is (he saith) in the
mouth of our common people, that a Meirmaid was taken in
Denmark, that did speak, foretel things to come, and spin. A Father
of the Society of Jesus returning forth of India to Rome, had seen a
Sea-Man there adorned with an Episcopal Mitre, who did seem to
have in the next corner, hardly born his captivity; but being let loose,
and turned into the Sea, did seem to render thanks for his liberty, by
bowing of his body before he went under water, which (he saith) the
Jesuit was wont to tell to Corvinus the elder, as his Son (he saith)
told me at Rome.” But this being but a story told to Bartholinus at
the second hand, and but primarily from the mouth of a Jesuit (who
doubtless had some design in it) I leave it to the judgment of the
Wise and Prudent. But he proceeds thus. “It is (he saith) most certain
that fishes are to be found in the Ocean, that represent Terrestrial
Animals in shape: As the Sea-Fox, the Wolf, the Sea-Calf, the Dog,
the Horse, &c. Therefore why should we deny humane shape to Sea-
monsters? Certainly also in the earth there are Apes, which wanting
reason, do express the external shape and gestures of Man. All Sea-
monsters of this sort we referr (he saith) to the kind of Phocæ or Sea-
Calves. There was (he saith) in the age we live in a Sea-Man taken by
the Merchants of the West-India Company, and dissected at Leiden
by Peter Pavius, John de Laet being present my friend (he saith) and
while he lived, a great and most knowing person of the things of
America and of Nature. The head and the breast even as far as the
navil was of an humane shape, but from the navil even unto the
extremities, it was deformed flesh, without the sign of a tail. But that
I may not (he saith) seem to impose upon the Reader, the hands and
ribs are to be found in my Study or Closet, which I owe to the
kindness of the praised Latius. We have (he saith) annexed the
Picture of both, as well of the Meirmaid erect, as of the image of it
swimming, that we might satisfie the dubitation of all men. The hand
doth consist of five fingers, as ours do, with as many articulations as
ours, but that only is singular, that all the bones of the fingers are
broader and compressed, and a membrane doth joyn them together
in course, as in volatiles, as Geese, Ducks, &c. which do help to
stretch forth the foot in the water. The extremity of the two middle
fingers are broader, the extremities of the other two sharp. The
radius and cubit are very short, for the commodiousness of
swimming, scarce the length of four fingers breadth. Neither is the
draught of the shoulder more ample. The ribs are long and thick,
almost exceeding common humane ribs a third part.
“Of the ribs (he saith) are beads turned or thrown, a present
remedy for the pain of the Hemorrhoides, which the praised Latius
hath observed by experience. Also (he saith) that Bracelets being
made of the bones of this kind of Phocas carried to Rome, applied to
the wrist do appease the Hemicrany, and swimming of the head,
which comes again, if they be laid away, as (he saith) the most
illustrious Nobleman Cassianus à Puteo, (most worthy of Roman
Purple) hath told me. The same Noble Puteus (he saith) hath shewed
me the picture of a Meirmaid in his Closet, which not many years
before, was driven to the shore of Malta. A certain Spaniard (he
saith) told me, that Meirmaids were seen in India having the Genital
members of Women, like those of humane kind, so that the Fishers
do bind themselves with an Oath to the Magistrate, that they have no
copulation with them. Bernardinus Ginnarus (lib. 1. c. 9. de Indico
itinere, edit. Neap. 1641.) doth relate that Meirmaids are seen, in the
vast River Cuama, near the head of Good-hope, which in the middle
superior part are like to the form of men, that is, with round head,
but immediately joyned to the breast, without a neck, with ears
altogether like ours, and so their eyes, lips and teeth. And that their
dugs being pressed do send forth most white milk.”
Therefore he concludeth: “There is (he saith) so great difference of
the form of Meirmaids, with the Ancients and Moderns, that it is no
wonder, that some do account them figments. We have (he saith) the
hands to be seen with eyes, and we shew the Meirmaids to be such,
as in truth they are seen to be. Neither do the hands and ribs deceive,
whose Pictures we have given framed according to the truth of
nature.”
5. But besides Genial. dier. l. 3. c. Hist. 7.
these there are 8. p. 134.
other Fishes or Sea-monsters, that in all parts resembled Men and
Women, as these examples make manifest. Alexander ab Alexandro,
a person of great learning and experience, relateth: “That in Epirus a
Triton or Sea-Man was found, who forth of the Sea did ravish
Women being alone upon the shore: But being taken by cunning, he
did resemble a Man with all his members, but did refuse meat being
offered, so that he died with hunger and wasting, as being in a
strange element.
6. Also Lib. de verit. fid. Hist. 8.
Ludovicus Vives Christ. l. 2.
doth tell us this story: “in our age (he saith) with the Hollanders, a
Sea-Man was seen of many, who also was kept there above two years,
he was mute, and then begun to speak: But being twice smitten with
the Plague, he is let loose to the Sea rejoicing and leaping.”
7. In the year of Vid. Ideam Idear. Hist. 9.
our Lord 1403. operat. c. 6.
there was taken a Sea-woman in a lake of Holland, thrown thither
forth of the Sea, and was carried into the City of Haerlem; she
suffered her self to have garments put upon her, and admitted the
use of bread, milk and such like things: Also she learned to spin, and
to do many other things after the manner of Women, also she did
devoutly bend her knees to the image of Christ crucified, being
docible to all things, which she was commanded by her Master, but
living there many years, she alwayes remained mute.
8. To these we Stows Annal. p. 157. Hist. 10.
shall conclusively Britan. p. 412.
add one story of sufficient credit from our
own English Annals, which is this: “In the year 1187. being the 33th
year of the Reign of Henry the second, near unto Oreford in Suffolk,
certain Fishers of the Sea took in their nets a fish having the shape of
a man in all points, which fish was kept by Bartholomew de Glanvile,
Custos of the Castle of Oreford, in the same Castle, by the space of
six months and more for a wonder; he spake not a word. All manner
of meats he did gladly eat, but most greedily raw fish after he had
crushed out all the moisture. Oftentimes he was brought to the
Church where he shewed no tokens of adoration. At length when he
was not well looked to, he stole away to the Sea, and never after
appeared.” The learned Antiquary Mr. Camden tells this same story
from Radulphus Coggeshall, an ancient writer, and that “Capillos
habebat, barbam prolixam & pineatam, circa pectus nimium
pilosus erat, & hispidus: and concludeth: Quicquid nascatur in parte
naturæ ulla, & in mari esse, & non omnino commentitium est.”
By all which examples we may be Lib. de Spectr.
rationally satisfied, that though these prim. part. c. 11. p.
creatures have a real existence in nature, yet 61.
because of their strange natures, shapes and properties, or by reason
of their being rarely seen, they have been and often are not only by
the common people but even by the learned taken to be Devils,
Spirits or the effects of Inchantment and Witchcraft. And therefore
men that would judge aright must take heed that they be not
deceived and imposed upon by relations of this nature, and also of all
such things as may be acted by Imposture and confederacy, and
those other Physical things that are brought to pass by natural
causes, divers sorts of which are recited by Ludovicus Lavaterus very
largely, to which I recommend those that desire further satisfaction
in those particulars.
 CHAP. XVI.

Of Apparitions in general, and of some unquestionable stories

that seem to prove some such things. Of those apparitions
pretended to be made in Beryls and Crystals, and of the Astral
or Sydereal Spirit.

In this Treatise we have before sufficiently proved that the denying of

the existence of such a Witch as doth make a visible contract with the
Devil, or upon whose body he sucketh, or that hath carnal copulation
with a Demon, and that is transubstantiated into a Cat or a Dog, or
that flyeth in the air; doth not inferr the denial of Spirits either good
or bad, nor utterly overthrow the truth of apparitions, or of such
things as seem to manifest some supernatural operations. And
therefore here we shall fully handle the question of Apparitions, and
things that seem to be of that nature, and that in this order.
1. We shall not meddle with Apparitions in the large extent of the
word, for so it may comprehend the appearing of new Stars, Comets,
Meteors and other Portents, and Prodigies, which (though unusual
and wonderous) have yet their production from natural causes. But
only here we shall treat of such apparitions as are taken to be
performed by supernatural creatures, or in such a way and by such
creatures as we commonly account to be different from (if not above)
the power of ordinary and visible nature, as of Angels good or bad,
the Souls of men departed, or their Astral Spirits, or of some other
creatures that are, or may be of a middle nature.
2. As for the Luke 2. 26. to 39. Judg. 13.
apparitions of Math. 2. 12, 13, 19. Math. 1. 20.
good Angels sent
by God in times past, both in sleep and otherwise, the Scriptures do
give us most full and ample assurance, as these few instances may
undeniably demonstrate. 1. That an Angel of the Lord (that is a good
Angel) did appear visibly unto Manoah and his wife, and did vocally
and audibly talk and discourse with them both, and did after in both
their sights openly and visibly ascend in the flame that did arise
from the altar. Now a more plain and indubitable apparition visibly
seen and audibly heard than this cannot be found nor read of, having
the unquestionable authority of sacred writ to avouch it. 2. Another
parallel unto it, and of equal authority, verity and perspicuity, is the
sending of the Angel Gabriel unto the Virgin Mary, her seeing of
him, hearing of his salutation, having discourse with him, and seeing
his departure, both which are undoubted testimonies of the true, and
real appearance of good Angels even to sight and hearing. 3. That
sometimes the good Angels have been sent to the servants of God,
and have appeared and spoken unto them in dreams; as that the
Angel of the Lord appeared unto Joseph in a dream, and bade him
to take unto him Mary his wife, which was a blessed, and clear
apparition, though in a dream in his sleep. And likewise by the
appearing of an Angel unto him in a dream, he was warned to take
the child, and his mother, and to flee into Ægypt, and also again was
commanded by an Angel, after the death of Herod, that appeared in
a dream, and bade him to take the young child and his mother, and
to go into the land of Israel.
3. Of the visible apparition of evil Angels Luk. 8 .26. to 37.
we scarce have any evidence at all in the
Scriptures, except we should take supposals for proofs, or disputable
places to be certain demonstrations, or wrest and hale the word of
God to make it serve our preconceived opinions. For I do not find
any one place in all the Scriptures, where plainly and positively any
apparition of evil spirits is recorded, or that by any rational and
necessary consequence such a visible appearance can be deduced or
proved: For we have clearly proved that the tempting of Evah by the
Serpent doth not necessarily inferr, that it was by a visible
apparition, but by a mental delusion; and that that of Saul and the
Woman of Endor, or the Mistriss of the bottle, was neither Samuel in
Soul and Body, nor his Soul alone, neither the Devil in his shape we
suppose we have evinced past answer; and that the tempting of our
blessed Saviour by Satan was internal or at least the greatest part of
it; so that there doth remain but little of certain proof of the