The Booke of Thenseygnementes and Techynge that the Knyght of the Towre made to his Doughters/Chapter 89
HOW CATHONET TOLD THEMPEROUR OF THE LORE OF HIS FADER, AND OF HIS ESCAPE.
HE fyrst enseygnement that he taught me was thys: that if euer god gaf me chaunce and good ynough, that I shold thanke hym moche of hit, and haue in me suffysaunce, and not coueyte ne aske more of god. And by cause I shold haue suffysaunce, he commaunded and charged me that neuer I shold put my self in subiection of none offyce vnde my souerayne lord, for yf I dyd so by couetyse of more good, somme enuyous, by somme fals repporte, shold make me to lese my good and my self also; and that hit was a peryllous thynge to serue ony prynce or grete lord of lyght and hasty wylle, for many one ther ben whiche enquereth them not yf the repporte to them made is trewe or not, wherfor the commaundements of suche hasty lordes ben straunge and peryllous, as ye now haue sene how this ensample is to me, whiche al most hath be shamefulle & greuable. And yf I had byleued the counceyll of my fader, I had neuer falle in suche perylle. For thanked be god, I had of erthely goodes ynough, and more than I haue deseruyd to god, and myght wel haue deported my self of takynge of thoffyce. The second enseygnement was, that I neuer shold respyte ne saue to no man his lyf, whiche had deserued to deye, and in especiall a theef or an homycyde, whiche were custommed to theftes and murdre of folke; and that yf i dyd, I shold euer be partener of alle suche ewylle dedes that they myght doo afterward. And this commaundement I haue enfrayned and broken, for this daye haue I sene hym whiche I haue respyted hym fro the shamefulle dethe, that offred and presented hym self for to be the hangman of my body. Lytell reward he offred to me. The thyrd enseygneiment was, that I shold essaye my wyf or euer I shold discouere to her ony grete counceylle, for therin is to grete paryll. Neuertheles ther ben some that can wel kepe secretely what men saye to them, and in the whiche men fynd good counceylle and comforte, and other also whiche that can no thynge kepe in secrete. And thenne as I me bethought how I had broken and done ageynst the ii enseygnementes of my fader, I thought and sayd in my self that I shold preue and essaye the thyrd. Wher fore that other daye as I was a bedde wyth my wyf, I awaked her, and for to essaye her wylle, I sayd to her that I had slayne the sone of themperour, and that his herte confyted in spyeces I had made themperour and his wyf to ete hit, and that for the loue of whiche she loued me she shold kepe this in secrete soo that none myght neuer knowe no thynge of hit. Now have I proued and essayed how she hath kepte secretely my counceylle, as euery one maye now see and knowe. But I gyue me not to grete merueylle therof, for hit is not of newe how that a woman can not kepe secretely that whiche men sayen to her in counceylle.