not to be a glutton, a drunkard, a sybarite, not to be given to
violence, to lying, covetous, and of evil life." The disciple: "At
the present time I do not believe there is any man of this kind."
After this long omission the Middle English version resumes the narrative.
Suche a Philosophre correctid his sone sayeng: "Beware of lesynges, for it is swetter than flessh of briddis." Quod another: "How light it is to bryng furth a lesyng; whi is trowth seen so hard and hevy?" [Another philosopher]: "If thow dredist trewth wherof forthynkith he, bettir it is ever to say so."[1] [Another]: "Shame it is to deny lest it brynge to the necessite of lesyng; forsoth more honest it is to denye a thyng than[2] to yeve long terme." Another: "To blame of blames to adde to the preyer is this tyme with warenes to deny."[3] Another philosopher: "If lesyng savith any, moche more with trowth he shalbe saved." Suche on accused was led and brought bifore the kyng, the juge denyeng the cryme to hym put and of the same convicte. To whom the kyng: "In duble wise thow shalt be punysshed (f. 122), oones for the cryme don, the secunde for the deede denyed." Another suche in likewise accused that he had don, nat denyed. Thei that stooden aboute saiden to the kyng, he to take jugement of the deede.[4] "Nat so," quod the kyng, "forwhi the philosopher saith: 'To hym that confessith the synne, reason it is to Reles the jugement.' So he departed from the kyng free."
Socrates saith: "So as a manlyer[5] is nat convenient in the felawship of a prince, so is he excluded from the kyngdom of hevenes". Forwhi the philosopher saide to his sone: "Say thow hym a lier whiche to overcom evil saith evil; forwhi as fier hurtith nat fier, so evil vnto evil ne fallith nat. Therfor as water quenchith fier, so goode thynges distroieth every evil." [Another]: "Ne yield thow nat evil, ne be thow nat like vnto evil. So yield thow goode as that thow be the better vnto evil."[6]
The Arabik saide to his sone: "If thov see oon bifore greved of evil werkis, ne entremete; who loosith the[7] doute, vpon hym shal the thretenynges be."
- ↑ Lat. (I, 11, l. 6.) Si dicere metuas unde paeniteas, melius est dicere: non! quam sic!
- ↑ Ms. 'that.'
- ↑ Lat. (I, 11, l. 9.) Terminum termino addere roganti est hoc tempore calliditas negandi.
- ↑ Lat. (I, 11, l. 13) Dixeruntque qui regi astiterunt; Decrimine confessio iudicium sumet.
- ↑ Lat. homo mendax.
- ↑ The M. E. omits the immediately following sentence, Alius: Ne confidas in malo si periculum evaseris, ut aliud ineas, quia illud non faciet u simile pertranseas (see I, 11, l. 22).
- ↑ Lat. quia qui pendulum solverit.
