ony disordinate ensignees or tokens/ Titus liuyus
reherceth that the philosopher democreon dyde do put
oute his eyen for as moche as he myght not beholde
the women wyth oute flesshely desire/ And how well
hit is said before that he dide hit for other certayn
cause yet was this one of the pryncipall causes/ And
Valerian telleth that ther was a yonge man of rome
of ryght excellent beaute/ And how well that he was
ryght chaste/ For as moche as his beaute meuyd many
women to desyre hym/ in so moche that he vnderstode
that the parents and frendes of them had suspecion
in hym/ he dyde his visage to be cutte wyth a knyf
and lancettis endlonge and ouerthwart for to deforme
his visage/ And had leuer haue a fowle visage and disformed/
than the beaute of hys visage shold meue other to synne/
And also we rede that ther was a Nonne a virgyne dyde
do put oute bothe her eyen For as moche as the beaute
of her eyen meuyd a kynge to loue her/ whyche eyen
she sente to the kynge in a presente/ And also we rede
that plato the ryght ryche and wyse phylosophre lefte
hys owne lande and Contre. And cheese his mansion
and dwellynge in achadomye a town/ whiche was not
only destroyed but also was full of pestelence/ so
that by the cure and charge and customance of sorowe
that be there suffrid/ myght eschewe the heetes and
occasions of lecherye/ And many of his disciples dyde
in lyke wyse/ Helemand reherceth that demostenes the
philosopher lay ones by a right noble woman for his
disporte/ and playnge with her he demanded of her
what he shold gyue to haue to doo wyth her/ And she
answerd to hym/ a thousand pens/ and he sayd agayn
to her I shold repente me to bye hit so dere/ And
whan he aduysed hym that he was so sore chauffid to
speke to her for tacc[=o]plissh his flesshely defire/
he dispoyled hym alle naked and wente and putte hym
in the middes of the snowe And ouide reherceth that
this thynge is the leste that maye helpe and moste
greue the louers And therfore saynt Augustyn reherceth
in his book de Ciuitate dei that ther was a ryght
noble romayne named merculian that wan and toke the
noble cyte of siracuse And to fore er he dyde do assaylle
hit or befyghte hit/ and er he had do be shedde ony
blood/ he wepte and shedde many teeris to fore the
cyte And that was for the cause that he doubted that
his peple shold defoyle and corrumpe to moche dishonestly
the chastyte of the toun And ordeyned vpon payne of
deth that no man shold be so hardy to take and defoylle
ony woman by force what that euer she were/ After
this the craftymen ought to vnderstond for to be trewe/
and to haue trouthe in her mouthes And that theyr dedes
folowe theyr wordes For he that sayth one thynge and
doth another/ he condempneth hymself by his word Also
they ought to see well to that they be of one Acorde
in good, by entente, by word, and by dede/ so that
they ben not discordant in no caas/ But euery man
haue pure veryte and trouth in hym self/ For god hym
self is pure verite/ And men say comynly that trouthe