for sorowe of you deye, the pitè of your false herte is flowe
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out of towne. Alas! therfore, that ever any woman wolde take
any wight in her grace, til she knowe, at the ful, on whom she
might at al assayes truste! Women con no more craft in queynt
knowinge, to understande the false disceyvable conjectementes
of mannes begylinges. Lo! how it fareth; though ye men
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gronen and cryen, certes, it is but disceyt; and that preveth wel
by th'endes in your werkinge. How many women have ben
lorn, and with shame foule shent by long-lastinge tyme, whiche
thorow mennes gyle have ben disceyved? Ever their fame shal
dure, and their dedes [ben] rad and songe in many londes; that
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they han don, recoveren shal they never; but alway ben demed
lightly, in suche plyte a-yen shulde they falle. Of whiche slaunders
and tenes ye false men and wicked ben the verey causes; on you
by right ought these shames and these reproves al hoolly discende.
Thus arn ye al nighe untrewe; for al your fayre speche, your
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herte is ful fickel. What cause han ye women to dispyse? Better
fruite than they ben, ne swetter spyces to your behove, mowe ye
not fynde, as far as worldly bodyes strecchen. Loke to their
forminge, at the making of their persones by god in joye of
paradyce! For goodnesse, of mans propre body were they
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maked, after the sawes of the bible, rehersing goddes wordes in
this wyse: "It is good to mankynde that we make to him an
helper." Lo! in paradyse, for your helpe, was this tree graffed,
out of whiche al linage of man discendeth. If a man be noble
frute, of noble frute it is sprongen; the blisse of paradyse, to
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mennes sory hertes, yet in this tree abydeth. O! noble helpes
ben these trees, and gentil jewel to ben worshipped of every
good creature! He that hem anoyeth doth his owne shame; it is
a comfortable perle ayenst al tenes. Every company is mirthed
by their present being. Trewly, I wiste never vertue, but a woman
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were therof the rote. What is heven the worse though Sarazins
on it lyen? Is your fayth untrewe, though †renegates maken
theron lesinges? If the fyr doth any wight brenne, blame his
owne wit that put him-selfe so far in the hete. Is not fyr gentillest
and most comfortable element amonges al other? Fyr
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is cheef werker in fortheringe sustenaunce to mankynde. Shal
fyr ben blamed for it brende a foole naturelly, by his own stulty
witte in steringe? Ah! wicked folkes! For your propre malice
and shreudnesse of your-selfe, ye blame and dispyse the precious[es]t
thing of your kynde, and whiche thinges among other
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moste ye desyren! Trewly, Nero and his children ben shrewes,
that dispysen so their dames. The wickednesse and gyling of
men, in disclaundring of thilke that most hath hem glad[d]ed
and plesed, were impossible to wryte or to nempne. Never-the-later
yet I say, he that knoweth a way may it lightly passe; eke
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an herbe proved may safely to smertande sores ben layd. So
I say, in him that is proved is nothing suche yvels to gesse.
But these thinges have I rehersed, to warne you women al at
ones, that to lightly, without good assaye, ye assenten not to
mannes speche. The sonne in the day-light is to knowen from
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the moone that shyneth in the night. Now to thee thy-selfe
(quod she) as I have ofte sayd, I knowe wel thyne herte; thou
art noon of al the tofore-nempned people. For I knowe wel the
continuaunce of thy service, that never sithen I sette thee
a-werke, might thy Margaryte for plesaunce, frendship, ne fayrhede
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of none other, be in poynte moved from thyne herte; wherfore
in-to myne housholde hastely I wol that thou entre, and al the
parfit privitè of my werking, make it be knowe in thy understonding,
as oon of my privy familiers. Thou desyrest (quod she)
fayn to here of tho thinges there I lefte?'
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'Ye, forsothe,' quod I, 'that were to me a greet blisse.'
'Now,' quod she, 'for thou shalt not wene that womans condicions
for fayre speche suche thing belongeth:—
Ch. III. 2. ganne. 5. beforne. 6. thynge. menne. 9. thynge. whose.
10. lignes (sic). 11. whose lykenesse. 12. halte. 15. facultie. 17. forthe. 18. borne. 19. comforte. 20. dethe. 23. buxome. beautie. 27. parfyte. 32. wotte. 38. graunt. 40. toforne.
48. golde. 51. worthe. on; read of. 53. -warde. 54. birde.
