185
haue it of hiō self /
And after þat / þu shalt considre þine frendes / &
thyne enemys /
And as touchyng thy frendes / þu shalt considre
whicħ of hem ben most feitħful / & most wyse / & eldest & most
appreued in coūseillyng /
And of hē shalt þu axe thy coūseil /
as the cas requiretħ
¶ I seye
/ þt first
ȝe shuln clepe to
ȝoure
co
ūseil
/ ȝoure frendes that ben trewe
/ Cross in dry point in the left margin.ODR
190
For Salamon seit
ħ / þt for rig
ħt as the herte of a man
/ delitet
ħ in sauour
þt is swo-
te
/ rig
ħt so the co
ūseil of trewe frendes
/ ȝeuet
ħ swetnesse to
the soule
//
¶ Nota
he seitħ also / there may no thyng / be likned to þe
trewe frend /
for certes / gold ne siluer ben nat so meche wortħ
as the good wil / of a trewe frend / /
And eke he seitħ / that a tr-
ewe frend / is a stong defence / who so þt it fyndetħ / certes he fyn-
detħ a gret tresor
¶ Thāne shuln ȝe eke considre / if þt ȝour tre-
we frendes / ben discrete & wyse / for the book seitħ / Axe alwey
thy coūseil of hem / þt ben wyse /
195
& by this same reson / shuln ȝe
clepen to ȝoure coūseil of ȝoure frendes þt ben of age / swicħ as han
seyn / & ben expert in manye thynges / & ben appreued ī coūseil-
lynges
¶ For the book seith / in olde men is al the sapience / & ī
longe tyme the pudence
¶ And Tullyus seitħ / þt grete þinges
ne ben ay acomplissed by strengthe / ne be delyuernesse of body /
but by good coūseil / by auctorite of persones & by Science // The
whicħ thre thynges / ne ben nat fieble by age / but certes þei en-
forcen / & encresen day by day /
& thāne shuln ȝe kepe this / for
a general reule / / First ȝe shuln clepe to ȝoure coūseil / a fewe of
ȝoure frendes þt ben especiale
¶ For Salamon seitħ / many fren-
des haue þu / but a mong a thousand / chese the oon / to be thy
coūseillor /
200
for al it so be / þt þu first ne telle thy coūseil / but to
a fewe / þu maist afterward / telle it to moo folk / if it be nede /
but
loke alwey / þt þine coūseillors haue thilke thre condicioūs / þt
I haue seid bifore / þt is to seye ; þt they be trewe / wyse / & olde
experience /
and werk nat alwey in euery nede / by oo coūseillor allone /
for somtyme bihouetħ it to be coūseiled by manye / //
For Sala-
mon seitħ / Saluacioū of thynges / is where as þere ben many
coūseillors
¶ Now sithe þt I haue told ȝow / of whicħ folk / ȝe shul-
de be coūseilled / now wol I teche ȝow / whicħ coūseil ȝe ougħte
eschue
205
¶ First ȝe shuln eschue / þe coūseil of fooles ¶ For Sala-
mon seitħ / take no coūseil of a fool / for he ne can nat coū-
seille / but after his owen lust / & his affeccōn /
the book seitħ / the
proprete of a fool / is this ; he trowetħ ligħtly harm / of euery wigħt
& ligħtly trowetħ al bounte / in hī self /
¶ Thow shalt eke eschue
the coūseillyng of alle flatereres / swicħ as enforcen he rathere
to preysen ȝoure persone / by flat erye / than for to telle ȝow / the soth-
fastnesse of thynges /
wherfore Tullyus seitħ / A mong alle þe