bewreye not ȝoure conseyl to
no persone / but if so be that ȝe wenyn sekyrly / that
thorw ȝoure bewreyinge / ȝoure condycioū schal bē
to ȝow the moore profitable //
For Iħc Syrak seyth ney-
thir to thȳ fo ne to thȳ frend / discouere not thȳ secre
ne thȳ folye /
for they wele ȝeue ȝow audyence
& lokynge & supportacioū in ȝoure persence / & skorne
ȝow in ȝoure absence /
175
A nothir clerk seyth / that
skarsely schalt thow fyndyn ony persone / that may
kepe conseyl secrely /
the bok seyth / whil that thow
kepist thyn conseyl in thȳ herte thow kepist it
in thyn prysoū /
and whan thow bewreyist thȳ
conseyl to ony whit he holdyth the in his snare
And therfore ȝow is betere / to hyde ȝoure conseil
in ȝoure herte ; thā preyen hȳ to whō ȝe han be-
wreyed ȝoure conseyl ; that he wele kepe it clos
& stylle
¶ For Seneca seyth If so be that thow ne
mayst / not thȳ owene conseyl hyde ; how mayst
thow preye ony othir whit thȳ conseyl secrely
to kepyn /
180
But natheles ȝif thow wene sekyrly that
thyn bewreyinge of thȳ conseyl to a persone wele
make thȳ condyciou stondyn in the betere plyt
thāne schat thow telle hȳ tyn conseyl in this wyse
Fyrst thow schat make no semblaunt whethir the
were leuere pes or werre / or this or that / ne shew
hȳ nat thȳ wil ne thȳ entent /
for troste weel that
comoūly these / conseylourys been flatererys
name-
ly the conseylourys of greete lordis /
for they enfor-
se hem alwey rathere to speke plesaūte wordis en-
clynynge to othere lordys lust ; thā othere that
been trewe / & profitable /
185
And therfore men seyn /
that ryche men / han selde good conseyl / but if he
haue it of hȳ self /
and aftyr that thow schat cōside-
re thyne frendys & thȳne enemyis .
And as touchī~-
ge thyne frendys / thow schat considerȳ whiche are
most feythful / & most wys & oldeste & most aperuid
in conseylynge /
& of hem schalt thow axe thyne
conseyle ; as the caas requiryth /
I seyde that fyrst
ȝe schul clepyn to ȝoure conseyl ȝowre frendis that been tre-
we //