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| to that thou purposist þe First for to doo by thy counceyllours | |||
| yf reson accorde therto . 238 And eke yf thy myght may atteyne | |||
| therto . And yf the more parte & the better parte of thy coun | |||
| ceillours accorde therto or no . 239 Than shalt thou cōsidre what | |||
| thing shall folowe of that conceillyng as hate . pees . warre | |||
| grace . prouffyt . or domage & many other thinges / 240 And of | |||
| alle these thinges thou shalt considere 241 of what rote is engen | |||
| dryd the mater of thy counceyll And what fruyt it may | |||
| concerne & engendryn . 242 Thou shalt considere eke alle the cau | |||
| ses from whens they be sprongen 243 And whan ye haue examy | |||
| ned your counceill as I haue said & whiche parte is the better | |||
| and more prouffytable and haue approuyd by many wyse | |||
| folke and olde 244 Than shalt thou considere yf thou may per | |||
| fourme hit and make of hit a good ende 245 For reson wolde | |||
| not that ony man shold begynne a thing but yf he might | |||
| perfourme hit as hym oughte / 246 ne noman sholde take on hym | |||
| so heuy a charge that he myght not bere hit 247 For the prouerbe | |||
| saith he that to moche embracheth distreyueth lityll 248 And | |||
| Caton saith also Assaye to doo suche thinges as thou hast | |||
| power to doo / on lesse that the charge oppresse the to sore / and | |||
| that the behoueth to weyue that thynge that thou hast be- | |||
| gonne . 249 And yf that thou be in doubte whether thou may per | |||
| forme hyt or not / Chese rather to suffre than to begynne . | |||
| 250 and Peter alfons saith / yf thou hast might to do a thing | |||
| whiche thou muste repente / hit is better nay than ye / 251 this is | |||
| to saye that hit is better to holde thy tonge still than for to | |||
| speken / 252 Than maist thou vnderstonde by strenger resons | |||
| That yf thou hast power to performe a werke / the whiche thou | |||
| shalt repente / than it is better that thou suffre than begynne | |||