and a space in þis caas to demen
¶ For þe comune prouerbe
saiþ þis ¶ he þat soone demeþ soone schal repente
65
¶ And eek mē
sayn þat þilke Iuge is wys þat soone vnderstondeþ a matier and
Iuggeþ by leysir .
For al be it so þat / alle taryinge is anoyful ;
algates it is no reproef in ȝeuynge of Iuggement . ne of vegaūce
takyng whan it is suffisaūt and resonable /
and þat schewed
oure lord ihū cist by ensample ¶ For whan þat þe wommā þat
was I take in aduoutrie was brouȝt in his persence / to knowen
what schulde be doon of hir persone Al be it þat he wist hīself
what þat he wolde answere ; ȝit wolde he not answere sodeyn-
ly . but he wolde haue deliberacioū~ and in þe ground hē wrot
twyes .
and by þese causes we axe deliberacioū . and we schul
þanne by þe grace of god counseile þe þing þat schal be profy-
table
¶ Vpstarten þenne þe ȝonge folkes anoon at oones ;
and þe moste part of þat companye han skorned þese olde
wise men and bygonne to make noyse and sayden
70
¶ Right
so as whil þat / Iren is hoot men scholden smyte ; Right so schul-
de wreke here wronges whil þat þay ben freische and
newe ¶ And with lowde vois þay cryde . werre . werre
¶ up-
roos þo oon of þese olde wise and with his hond made coū-
tenaunce þat men schulde holde hem stille and ȝiuen him au-
dience
¶ lordyngs quod he ther is ful many a mā þt crieth
werre werre wot ful litel what werre amounteth .
werre
at his bygȳnȳg haþ so greet and entre and so large þat euery
wigħt may entre whan him likeþ and lightly fynde werre
¶ But certes what ende schal falle þerof ; it is not lightly to knowe
75
For soþly whan þat werre is oones bygonne ; þer is ful many
a child vnbore of his mooder þat schal sterue ȝong by cause of
þilke werre or elles lyue in sorwe and deye in wrecchidnes
¶ &
þerfore er þat / eny werre be bygonne men moste haue gret coū-
seil and gret deliberacioū
¶ And whan þis olde man wende
to enforce his tale by resous~ wel neigħ aƚƚ at oones bygōne
þay to rise for to breke his tale and beden him fulofte his
wordes to abrigge .
For soþly he þat precheþ to hem that liste
not to heere his wordes his sermoū hem anoyeth
¶ For Ihc̃
Sirac saith þat wepyng in musik is a noyous þing . þis is to
say ¶ As moche auayleþ to speke tofore folk / to whiche his spe-
che annoyeþ ; as it is to synge byfore hem whiche þat wepith