[6-text p 213]
[2328] whan ye han taken conseil of youre self / and han deemed by good deliberacion swich thyng/ as you list best/ [2329] ¶ Thanne rede I yow / that ye kepe it/ [folio 161a] secree / [2330] biwrey nat youre conseil to no persone / but if so be that ye wenen sikerly / that thurgh youre biwreyyng youre condicion / shal be to yow the moore profitable [2331] ¶ ffor Ihesus Syrak seith / Neither to thy [¶ Ihesus Syrak/] foo ne to thy frend discouere nat thy secree ne thy folie / [2332] for they wol yeue yow Audience and lookynge / to supportacion in thy presence / and scorne thee in thyn Absence [2333] ¶ Another clerk seith / That scarsly shaltou fynden any persone / that may kepe conseil sikerly [2334] ¶ The book seith / whil þat thou kepest thy conseil in thyn herte / thou kepest it in thy prison / [2335] and whan thou biwreyest thy conseil to any wight / he holdeth thee in his snare [2336] ¶ And therfore yow is bettre to hyde youre conseil in youre herte / than praye hem / to whom ye han biwreyed youre conseil / that he wole kepen it cloos and stille [2337] ¶ ffor Seneca seith ¶ If so be / [¶ Seneca] þat thou ne mayst nat thyn owene conseil hyde? how darstou prayen any oother wight thy conseil sikerly to kepe [2338] ¶ But nathelees / If thou wene sikerly / þat the biwreiyng of thy conseil to a persone / wol make thy condicion to stonden in the bettre plyt/ . thanne shaltou tellen hym thy conseil in this wise [2339] ¶ ffirst thou [¶ How a man shall tellen his conseil] shalt make no semblant wheither thee were leuere pees or werre / or this / or that . ne shewe hym nat thy wille and thyn entente / [2340] ffor trust wel / þat comenli thise conseillours been flatereres / [2341] namely the conseillours of grete lordes / [2342] for they enforcen hem alwey / rather to speken plesante wordes / enclynynge to the lordes lust . than wordes þat been trewe or profitable [2343] ¶ And therfore / men seyn / þat the riche man hath seeld good con|seil but if he haue it of hym self [2344] ¶ And after that thou shalt considere thy freendes and thyne enemys ‖ [2345] And as touchynge thy freendes thou shalt con|sidere
