760
mes and perils / that been in werre /
and seyde to hem / in a goodly ma-
nere /. hou that hem oughten / haue greet repentaūce /
of the Iniurie &
wrong that they hadden doon / to Melibee hir lord / and to hir / And to
hir dogħter
And whan they herden the goodliche wordes of Dame
Prudence /
they weren so supprised and rauysshed / and hadden so ~
greet ioye of hir / that wonder was to telle
765
¶ A lady quod they / ye
han shewed vn to vs / the blessynge of swetnesse / after the sawe of
Dauid the prophete /
for the reconsilynge / which we been nat worthy
to haue in no manere /
but we ogħte requeren it / with greet contri-
cioū and humylitee /
ye of youre grete goodnesse / haue persented vn-
to vs
¶ Now se we wel / that the science and the konnynge of Salo-
mon is ful trewe
770
¶ For he seith
That sweete wordes
/ multiplien
and encreescen freendes
/ and maken shrewes
/ to be debonaire and
meeke
¶ Certes quod they ./ we putten oure dede and al oure matere
and cause / al hoolly / in your goode wyl /
and been redy to obeye to
the speche and comandement of my lord Melibee
¶ And therfore
deere and benygne lady / we preien yow and biseke yow as mekely
as we konne and mowen /
that xxxxx it lyke vn to youre grete good-
nesse / to fulfillen in dede / youre goodliche wordes /
775
for we conside-
ren and knowelichen / that we han offended and greued my lord
Melibee out of mesure /.
so ferforth / that we be nat of power to
maken hise amendes /
and therfore
/ we oblige and bynden vs
and oure freendes
/ to doon al his wyl and hise comandementz
¶ but per auenture / he hath swich heuynesse / and swich wratthe
to vsward / by cause of oure offense /
that he wole enioyne vs
swich a peyne / as we mowe nat bere ne susteene /.
780
and ther-
fore noble lady / we biseke / to youre wōmanly pitee
to taken ~
swich auysement in this nede / that we / ne oure freendes / be
nat desherited ne destroyed / thurgħ oure folye
Certes quod
Prudence / it is an hard thyng and rigħt perilous /
that a man
putte hym al outrely / in the arbitracioū and Iuggement. and
in the mygħt and power of hise enemys
¶ For Salomon seith
leeueth me
/ and yeueth credence
/ to that I shal seyn
¶ I seye
quod he
¶ ye peple
/ folk
and gou
ernours of hooly chirche
785
¶ to thy sone / to thy
wyf / to thy freend ne to thy broother /
ne yeue thou neuere ~
mygħt ne maistrie of thy body / whil thou lyuest
¶ Now si-
then he deffendeth / that man shal nat yeuen to his broother /
ne to his freend / the mygħt of his body ;
by strenger resoū he
deffendeth / and forbedeth a man / to yeuen hym self to his ene-
my
¶ And nathelees I conseille you / that ye / mystruste nat
my lord /
790
for I woot wel / and knowe verraily / that he is / debo-
naire and meeke / large / curteys /
and no thyng desirous ne ~
coueitous of good ne richesse
¶ for ther nys no thyng in this ~
world that he desireth / saue oonly / worshipe and honor
¶ For-
ther moore / I knowe wel / and am rigħt seur that he shal no
thyng doon in this nede / with outen my conseil /
And I shal
so werken in this cause / that by grace of oure lord god / ye ~
shul been reconsiled vn to vs
795
Thanne seyden they / with o .