The Manciple's Tale
Folio 205v
6 of 6 folios
Techetħ a man / to kepen his tonge weel
But as I seyde / I am nogħt textueel
But nathelees / thus taughte me my dame
My sone / thenk / on the Crowe on goddes name
215
My sone / keepe wel thy tonge / & keepe thy freend
A wikked tonge / is worse than a feend
My sone / from a feend / men may hem blesse
My sone / god of his endelees goodnesse
Walled a tonge / wt teeth & lippes eke
220
For man sholde hym auyse / what he speeke
My sone / ful ofte / for to muche speche
Hath many a man been spilt as clerkes teche
But for litel speche / auysely
Is no man shent. to speke generally
225
My sone / thy tonge sholdestow restreyne
At alle tymes / but whan thou doost thy peyne
To speke of god / in honour and preyere
The firste vertu sone / if thou wolt leere
Is to restreyne / and kepe wel thy tonge
230
Thus lerne children / whan þt they been yonge
My sone / of muchel spekyng / yuele auysed
Ther lasse spekyng / hadde ynougħ suffised
Comth muchel harm / thus was me toold & taugħt
In muchel speche / synne wanteth naught
235
Wostow / wher of a rakel tonge seruetħ
Rigħt as a swerd / forkutteth and forkeruetħ
An arm atwo / my deere sone rigħt so
A tonge / kutteth freendshipe al atwo
A Iangler / is to god abhomynable
240
Reed Salomon / so wys and honurable
Reed Dauid in hise psalmes / reed Senekke
My sone spek nat but wt thyn heed thou bekke
Dissimule as thou were deef / if that thou heere
A Iangler /. speke of perilous mateere
245
The flemyng seith / and lerne it if thee leste
That litel Ianglyng causeth muchel reste
My sone / if thou no wikked word hast seyd
Thee thar nat drede / for to be biwreyd
But he þt hath mysseyd / I dar wel sayn
250
He may by no wey / clepe his word agayn
Thyng that is seyd is seyd / and forth it gooth
Thougħ hym repente / or be hym leef / or looth
He is his thral / to whom þt he hath sayd
A tale / of which he is now yuele apayd
255
My sone be war / and be noon Auctour newe
Of tidynges / wheither they been false or trewe
Wher so thou come / amonges hye or lowe
Kepe wel thy tonge / and thenk vp on the Crowe
¶ Heere is ended / the Maūciples tale of the Crowe ~