for to speke and sayde in þis wise
¶ My lord quod sche as to ȝoure
firste resoū certes it may lightly be answered . For I say it is no
foly to chaunge counsel whan þe þing is chaungid . For elles whā
þe þing semeþ oþerwise þan it was biforn
And more ouer I say þough
þat ȝe han sworn and I higħt to parforme ȝoure emprise And na-
þeles ȝe wayne to parforme þilke same emprise by iuste cause men
schulde not say þerfore þat / ȝe were a lyere ne forsworn
For þe
book seiþ þat þe wise man makeþ no lesyng whan he torneth his
corrage to þe better
100
¶ And al be it so þat ȝoure empise be establid
and ordeyned by gret multitude of poeple ; ȝit thar ȝe not accom-
plise þilke same ordinaūce but ȝou like /
For þe trouþe of þing and
þe profyt ben rather founde in fewe folk þat ben wise and ful of
resoū þan by gret multitude of folk þat euery mā crieth and
clatereþ what þat him likeþ soþely such multitude is not honest
¶ An to þe secoūde resoū wher as ȝe sayn þat aƚƚ womē ben wik-
ke ; Saue ȝoure gace . Certis ȝe despise aƚƚ wommē in þis wise and
þat aƚƚ despysith saiþ þe book
And senec saith who so wil haue
Sapience schal no man desprayse but he schal gladly teche þe sci-
ence þat he can wiþoute persumpcioū of pryde
and suche þinges
as he nougħt can he schal not ben aschamed to lerne hem and en-
quere of lasse folk þan himself
105
¶ And sire þer haþ be ful many a
good wommā
if aƚƚ wōmen hadde ben wikke
after þat for þe gre-
te bounte þat is in wōmen ; Oure lord iIhū cist whan he was risen
fro deþ to lyue apperede raþer to a wommā þan to his apostles .
¶ And þough þat Salamō say he fond neuer good wōman It folwith
nouȝt þerfore þat alle wōmen ben wikke .
For þough þat he fonde
noone goode wōmen certes many a noþer man haþ founden many
a wommā ful goode and trewe
110
¶ Or elles perauenture þentent of
Salamon was þis as in souereyn bounte . he fond no wommā
þis
is to say þat þer is no wigħt þat haþ souerein boūte saue god aloone
as he himself recordeþ in his euangelie
For þer nys no creature
so good þat him wantith som what of þe parfeccioū of god þat is
his makere
¶ ȝoure þridde resoū is þis . ȝe seyn . þat if ȝe gouerned
ȝow by counsel of me it schulde seme þat ȝe hadde yeue me the
maystry and þe lordschipe ouer ȝoure persone .
sire saue ȝoure grace
it is not so . For if so were þat no mā schulde be coūseiled but
by hem þat hadde maystrie and lordschipe of his persone ; mē wol-
de nought be counseiled so ofte
115
¶ For soþly þilke man þat axeþ
coūseil of a purpos . ȝet haþ he fre chois wheþer he wil werke by
þat prpos or noon