OCR Text |
Show T HISE TH ward the fyght of the better colours yeves to *he moie joye for the firft leudenefle. So fothly thi lrude clowdy occupacyon is not to prayfe, but b ‘the leude, for comenly leude leudenefie commend OF 1 KN R ¥ Animalibus, faith to naturell philofophers : it js grete likynge in love of knowinge ther cretoure and alfo in knowinge of caufes in kindelye thynges confidrid forfothe the formes of kindelye thynge eth Eke it fhal yeve fight that other precyous and the fhap, a gret kyndelye love we fhulde hav thynges fhall be the more in reverence the werkman that 'hem made. The crafte of In Lati and French hath maoy foveraine wittes had grete werkman is thewed in the werk, Herefore truli delyte to endite, .and kave many noble thinges ful- the philofophers with a lyvely ftudie manie nobl filde, but certes there .ben fome that fpeken th‘er thinges, righte precious, and worthy to memorye -poilye mater in .Frenche, of whiche fpeche the writen, and by a gret {wet and travaille to us lefte Frenche men have as gode .a fantafye as we _of caufes the properties in natures of thinges, t have in heryng of Frenche mens Englifhe. An whiche therfore philofophers it was more joy, mor many termes there ben in Englylhe, which lykinge, more herty luft in kindely vertues an wnneth we Englithe men .connen declare -the matters of refon the perfeccion by bufy ftudy t knowleginge: howe fhould than a Fienche man knowe, than to have had all the trefour, al th borne¢ foche termes connejumpere in his matter, richefle, al the vaine glory, that the paficd embut as the jay chatereth Englifre Right fo truel perours, princes, or kinges hadden T herfore th the underftandyn of Englifhmen woll not ftretch to the privic termes in Frenche, what fo ever w boften of ftraungelangage Let then clerkes en dicen in Latin, for they have the propertie o {cience, and the knowinge in that facultie: an lette Frenche men in ther Frenche alfo enditen the ‘queint termes, for it is kyndely to ther mouthes and let us fhewe our fantafies in fuch wordes as w lerneden of our dame's tonge. And although thi ‘boke be lytel thank worthy for the leudenefie i travaile, - yer foch writing exiten men to thilk ‘thinges that ben neceflarie; for every man therb may as by a perpetual myrrour fene the vices or ver tues of other, in whyche thynge lightly may b -conceved to efchue perils, and neceffaries to catch -after as aventures have fallen to other peple o -perfons ‘Certes the foverainft thinge of defire and mof creture refonable, have or els fhuld have full appetit t ther perfeccyon: unrefonable befte ‘Tmowen not fithe refon hath in *he no workinge than refonable that wol not, is comparifoned to unrefonable, and made lyke *hem. Forfothe the mof foveraine and finall perfeccion of man is in knowynge of a fothe, withouten any entent decevable -and In love of one very God, that is inchaungeable that is to knowe and love his creatour MNowe principally the méne to brynge in knowleging and lovynge his creatour, is the confidera cyon of thynges made by the creatour, wher throug by thylke thinges that ‘ben made, underftandyng here to our wyttes, arne the unfene pryvities o God made to us fyghtfull and knowinge, i ou contemplacion and underflondinge. Thef thinge than forlothe moche bringen us to the fu know leginge fothe, and to the parfyte love of th make of hevenly thinges L.o! Davi faith: thoy haft delited me in'makinge, as who faith, to have delit in the tune how God hat lent me in confideracio of thy makinge. Wherof Ariftotle in th boke d names of 'hem in the boke o perpetuall memori in vertue and pece arne writen; and in the contrarie, that is to faine, in Sryxe the foule pitte o helle arne thilke preffed that foch godenes hated And bicavfe this boke fhall be of love, and th prime caufes of ftering in that doinge with paf fions and dilefes for wanting of defire this boke be cleped the teftament of love I wil tha But nowe thou reder, who is thilke that will no in {corne laughe, to here a dwarfe or els halfe man, fay he will rende out the fwerde of Hercule handes an alf h fhuld mile yet ferther, and ove fet Hercules Gades tha he ha power o ftrength to pull up the fpere, that Alifander th noble might never wagge, and that paflinge a thinge to ben mayfter of Fraunce by might, ther as the noble gracious Edwarde the thirde for al hi grete prowefle in victories ne might al yet conquere Certe I wot well, the thal be mad mor fcorne and jape of me, that I fo unworthely clothe altogither in the cloudie cloude of unconning, wi putten me in prees to {peke of love, or els of th caufes i that matter fithen al the oretteft clerke han had ynough to don, and as who faith gathere up clene toforne *hem, and with-ther fharp fitheso conning al mowen and made therof grete rekes an noble, ful of al plenties to fede me and many a other. Envye forfothe commendeth novghte hi refon tha he hath in hain b it neve fo trufty And although thefe noble repers, as gode work- men and worthy ther hier, han al draw and bound up in the fheves, and made many fhockes, yet have Lenfample to ga¥er the fimale crommes, and fulli ma Wwalct of tho that fallen from the bourde amon the fmalte houndes notwi-thfianding the travaile o the almoigner, that hath draw up in the cloth a th remiffailes a trenchours bere to the almefle an th relef t Yet alfo heve I leve of th noble hufbande Boece, although I be a ftraunger of conninge to come after his doctrine, and thef gret . |