The Tale of Melibeus Folio 171v 7 of 40 folios
swerd / for I sey it is no foly to chaunge conseil whan the thing is
chaunged / or elles whan the thing semeth ootherweyes than it was
biforn
hight to performe your emprise and nathales ye weyne to par-
forme thilk same emprise bi Iuste cause Men shold nat seyn ther
fore that ye were a lyer ne forsworn
wiseman maketh no lesyng
the bettre
deyned bi gret multitude of folk yit thar ye not accomplice thilk
profit ben rather founde in few folk that ben wise and ful of
reson than bi gret multitude of folk ther eu
clatereth what that him liketh sothely swich multitude it
is nat honeste
alle wommen ben wikke saue your grace certes ye despise alle
wommen in this wise and he that alle despiseth alle despiseth
as seith the book
ence
science that he can with out p
thinges as he naght ne can / he shal nat ben a shamed to lerne
hem and enquere of lasse folk than himself
hath be ful many a good womman / may lightly be proued
be born of a womman if alle wommen had be wikke
after that for the grete bountee that is in wommen our lord
I
to a womman than to his apostolis
seith that he ne fonde neuer womman good it foloweth nat
therfore that alle wommen be wikke
founde no good womman certes many another man hath fond
many a womman ful good and trewe
thentente of Salamon was this that as a souereigne bounte
he fond no womman
bounte saue god allone as he him self recordeth in his Euan-
gelye
som what of the perfeccioun of god that is his maker
thrid reson is this ye seyn that yif ye gou
it shold seme that ye had yeue me the Maistrie and the lord
shipe ouer your persone