as a lioun and light to wrath as a chield.' Another: (f. 136)
'Whiche saith evil of his king bifore the time of his deth'.[1] Another
saith: 'God suffrith lengger a synful kyng to Reigne in his persone
if he be goode and meke to his people than he doeth a iust kyng
in his persone if he be evil and cruel to his people.'[2]
Aristotil in his Epistel chasticed Alexander the kyng so saieng; 'Bettir it is with a fewe pesibly to Rule than to hold to grete chivalry'.[3] Also: 'Hold Rightwise justice bitwene men and they shuln love the; and array the nat[4] to yielde to any the borowed chaunge of goode or evil, forwhi a friend shal abide the long'."[5]
XX.[6] Concerning Marianus
"Plato the philosopher rehersith[7] that suche anold kyng was
in Grece cruel to his peple. This grew and encreised in grete
werre of many of his elders.[8] Of whiche that he myght knowe the
comyng and hap therof he sent for al the philosophres of the
Regioun. Whiche whan thei wern gadred he saide: 'See yee a
how moche and how grete batail is to yow and to me, that for my
synne I trowe it is come to vs. But if any thyng is in me that is
reprehensible sey yee, and I shal hast me in yowre jugement to be
corrected.' Than the philosophers saiden: 'Of any crymes in yowr
body we knowe non, neither what to vs and to yow so comen we
wote nat. But here nygh vs[9] dwellith suche an old man whos name
is Maryne[10] whiche spekith with the holigost. To hym therfor send
yee sum men[11] by whom to vs what in al our lif is to come
he shal declare.' Thiese thynges don, he sent vnto hym vii
philosophres; whiche Citee in which he bifore dwelled thei entred.
of the whiche thei fond the most part desert. But they seekyng
his house, that is to say of Maryne, it was saide and told that he and
many of the Citezeins wern gon in to [the] wildernes. The philosophers
heryng this went vnto hym; whiche and whom [when] the
wise man sawe he saide: 'Com yee. Com yee ambassatours and
legatis of the vnobedient kyng. Forsoth god hath yeven hym in to
- ↑ According to the Latin (I, 34, l. 18) this is: 'Who speaks evil of the king shall die before his time.'
- ↑ Then we go back to f. 132b of the Worc. Ms., near the top of the page.
- ↑ Lat. (I, 34, l. 22) magnam militiam tenere.
- ↑ Lat. nec properes.
- ↑ Lat (I, 34, ll. 23-24) quia diutius expectabit te amicus et diutius timebit te inimicus.
- ↑ No. XXV of the original, I, 34, l. 25.
- ↑ Lat. retulit in libro de prophetiis.
- ↑ Multis e partibus.
- ↑ Lat. Sed hic prope viam trium dierum.
- ↑ The four words beginning with 'whos' inserted on the margin of the Ms.
- ↑ Lat. de philosophis vestris aliquos.
