The Multitext Edition > Aberystwyth, National Library of Wales MS. Peniarth 392 D
The Tale of Melibeus
Folio 218r
1 of 38 folios
þt eu
ery wight
may entre whan hym liketh
/ & lightly fyn
- de werre
But certes what ende
/ þt ther of shal falle ; it
is noght light to knowe
75
for soothly / whan þt werre is ones
bigonne ; / ther is ful many a child / vnborn of his moder /
þt shal sterue yong by cause of thilke werre / or ellis lyue in
sorwe / & dye in wrecchednesse
and ther fore / er þt any werre
be bigonne / men moste haue gret conseil / & gret deliberacioū
¶ And whan this olde man / wende to enforcen his tale by resons ~
wel neigh aƚƚ atones / bigonne they to rise / for to breken his ta-
le / and beden hym ful ofte / hise wordes for to abregge /
for soth-
ly
/ he
þt p
ercheth to hem
/ þt listen nat heren hise wordes
/ hys
sarmon
/ hem anoyeth
For Ih
c̃ Syrak
seith
/ . That Musyk
in
wepynge
/ is a noyous thyng
This is to seyn
/ As muche auai-
leth
/ to speken biforn folk
to whiche his speche anoyeth
/ as it
is
/ to synge biforn hym
þt wepeth
80
And whan this wise man
say
þt hym wanted audience
/ al shamefast
he sette hym doun
agayn
For Salomon seith / ther as thow / ne mayst haue non
audience / enforce thee nat to speke
¶ I se wel quod this wise
man
/ þt the c
ōe
prou
erbe is sooth
that good conseil wanteth
/whan it is moost nede
/ /
yet hadde this Melibeus / in his con-
seil many folk / þt piuely in his ere / conseiled hym certeyn
thyng. and conseiled hym the contarie / in general audience
¶ Whan Melibeus hadde herd / þt the gretteste party of his con-
seil / were acorded / þt he sholde maxx werre / anon he consen-
ted / to hir conseilyng & fully axxermed hir sentence ~
85
¶ Thanne dame Prudence / whan þt she say / how þt hyr
housbonde / shoope hym / for to wreke hym on his foos / & to
bigynne werre / she in ful humble wise / whan she say hir
tyme / seyde hym thise wordes
¶ My lord quod she
/ I you
biseche
/ as hertely as I dar
& kan
/ ne haste yow nat to
faste
/ and for alle gerdons
/ as yif me audience
For Piers
Alfonce seith
/ . who so
þt dooth to thee
/ outher good
/ or
harm
/ haste thee nat
to quiten it
/ for in this wise
/ thy
~freend wol abyde
/ and thyn enemy
/ shal the lenger lyue
in drede
The prouerbe seith / he hasteth wel / þt wysly kan
abide / and in wikked haste / is no profit
¶ This Melibe
/ an-
swerde vn to his wyf Prudence
I p
rpose nat quod he
/to werken by thy conseil
/ for many causes and resons
/ for certes euery wight
wolde holde me thanne a fool
~
90
this is to seyn / If I for thy conseilyng wolde chaunge