[6-text p 206] þat they been fresshe and newe / and with loud voys / they criden werre / werre
[2227] ¶ Vp roos tho / oon of thise olde wise / and with his hand made contenaunce / that men sholde holden hem stille and yeuen hym Audience [2228] ¶ Lordynges quod he / ther is ful many a man / that crieth werre werre / that woot ful litel what werre amounteth [2229] ¶ werre at his bigynnyng hath so greet an entryng and so large / that euery wight may entre whan hym liketh / and lightly fynde werre / [2230] but certes / what ende that shal ther-of bifalle / it is nat light to knowe ‖ [2231] ffor soothly / whan þat werre is ones bigonne / ther is ful many a child vnborn of his mooder / that shal sterue yong by cause of that ilke werre / or elles lyue in sorwe / and dye in wrecchednesse ‖. [2232] And ther fore / er þat any werre bigynne / men moste haue greet conseil and greet deliberacion [2233] ¶ And whan this olde man / wende / to enforcen his tale by resons / wel ny alle atones / bigonne they to rise for to breken his tale / and beden hym ful ofte / hise wordes for to abregge / [2234] ffor soothly / he that precheth to hem / that listen nat heeren hise wordes / his sermon hem anoieth [2235] ¶ ffor Ihesus Syrak seith / that Musik in wepynge is [¶ Ihesus Syrak/] anoyous thyng‖. this is to seyn ‖ As muche auailleth to speken bifore folk / to whiche his speche anoyeth / as it is to synge / biforn hym that wepeth ‖. [2236] And this wise man / saugh that hym wanted audience / and al shamefast he sette hym doun agayn [2237] ¶ ffor Salomon seith ‖ ther [¶ Salomon] as thou ne mayst haue noon Audience / enforce thee nat to speke [2238] ¶ I see wel quod this wise man / þat the commune prouerbe is sooth ‖ That good conseil wanteth / whan it is moost [nede]
[2239] ¶ Yet hadde this Melibeus in his conseil / many folk that priuely in his eere conseilled hym certeyn thyng. and conseilled hym the contrarie in general Audience
[2240] Whan Melibeus hadde herd / that the gretteste [¶ Melibeus]