[Here begynneth the table of a book entytled the book of good maners.]

¶How the wym̄en ought to gouerne them self cap^o. vj

A woman ought to haue resonably two condicōns. that is to wyte / shame of repreef / and drede of disobeyeng of her partye. For thenne a woman is loste. & dissolute whan she hath in her neyther drede ne shame / And it is a thyng mo¦che to be repreued to see wym̄en hardy / dissolute / and redy to doo many euyllis. Snche ben they the whyche by theyr maners foule and dissolute. and by theyr lechero•• beholdynges drawe men to doo euyll of whome speketh seynt Ierome in his epyst¦le Cviij / And sayth that many wym̄en ben lyke to thydolles the whiche drawen the people of the world to the fende. Sem∣••lably ben they that poppe them self & make them to seme fayr for to brynge other to synne / And it is grete merueylle how they presume to deffeate and altere that whiche god hath ma∣de / & moche lewde is the woman the whiche weneth to make ••er more fair than god hath made her. And it is a grete pre∣sumpcōn to defface the paynture of god / for to make the payn∣ture / as saith seynt Ambrose in his exameron / & to this pur∣poos. Guyllem in the boke of his boke of the vnyuersal world recyteth how two wym̄en somtyme were riyht c••ryou se for to make them soo fayr. and to kembe them soo it happed that the one deyde / the whyche after apperyd to her felaw. whā she arayed and kembed her self and sayd to her / my frende ad∣uyse the / For I am dampned for my curiosytees the whyche I used and mayntened whan I was with the. And me semeth that suche curiosytees ben by cause of lecherye & of dissolucō•• ••arnall / Thenne onght alle wym̄en take example of the good ••lde and aūcyent wym̄en / of whome recōunteth valere in his ••ij boke the vj chapytre. how many wym̄en had leuer to haue ••yed than to be deffouled / and he reherceth how the marōners ••ke a woman a greke by cause to synne wyth her / And 〈◊〉〈◊〉 ••eyng that. sprange in to the see & drowned her self. And ther∣••••r she was moche preysed of the grekes & reputed for a sayn••••

More ouer he recyteth of a woman that slewe her doughter / bycause that Apy•• wold haue deffouled her. and sayd that she had leuer haue her doughter slayn than she shold lyue & be disso¦lute. Semblably seynt Ambrose in his boke of vyrgynyte the in chapytre recyteth how a mayde called Pelage in thaage of xv yere was ••auysshed in the contre of Anthyoche / the whi∣che seeyng she myght not escape / sprange in to a Ryuer / For she had leuer deye a vyrgyne than to lyne corrupt. By the whiche hystoryes it apperith that thauncyent wymmen were moche chaste and contynente. Trouthe it is that they ought not to slee ne to drowne thhem self bnt yf it were by the com∣mandement and Inspiracion of god / lyke as seynt Austyn sayth in his fyrst boke of the cyte of god the xxv chapytre. For she synne lyeth not in the body but in the wyll / And how be it that they myght not kepe the body agaynst them. Neuertheles they had power not to consente. And kepe theyr wyl f••o cor∣rupcy••n. lyke as he witnessith in the boke aforsayd the xvj cha¦pytre. A••d not withstondyng all these theynges aforsayd •••• is it trouthe that they deserued honour And grete preysyng •••• so moche that they loued contynence and chastyte / And •• this purpoos feynt Ierome in his boke ayenst Ionynya•• recyteth how the wyf of Actilius was so chaste. that ne••∣man touched her sauf her husbond onely / And on a tyme •• happed that a man sayd to hyr husbonde that his mouth sta••∣••e And whan he cam home he blamed his wyf by cau¦se she had not warned hym therof / for to haue founde re¦medye therfore / The whiche ansuerde / that she had suppo¦sed That euery man had be of that condycion / By whi¦che it apperid that she neuer had kyssed ony other man But for to come to haue chastyte. it suffyseth not to •••• ••hewe the touchynges. But also sobrenesse is gretely requ¦red in wymmen /