The Legges of this
Ymage
Capitulo xxxvi
`The legges of this ymage
shold be made of yren. The legges owen for to
suffren peyne & besynesse
to susteyne alle the body. They ben as it were
pylers berynge al the byrthyn
of the edefyce. The knees
ben the capitals, and the feete the bases that beren
euerydele, by the whiche
thynges thou myghte skylfully
see and vnderstande that good knyghtes and good
squyers, burgeyses and marchaunts, they ben the
capitalles and knees of this ymage, by gouernaunce
of the whiche the reaume is mayntened in honoure and
prosperyte. The legges bynethen ben the good peple,
bolde and defensable
in armes, and [84r] also good archers & balysterers, whiche is the
stuffe and strengthe of the reame, to saue them fro
assautes of theyr enemyes.
`These mowe wel be cleped pylers of yren, for in
yren and steele lyeth pryncipally the defence of
euery reame or countre. The honour and worshyp of
this maner of peple oweth not to ben acounted of
richesse of worldly catel, of
fresshe array of clothynge, of syluer harneys, ne
wantonesse of his owne persone. But the honour of
suche peple is clene forbed
harneys, nayles to bea
borste, sheldes to beb sheuered, speres to >bec broken,
helme and palet
to bed beten
and forbruysed, and many markes of woundes on his
owne persone.
`This is wel more apperteynent
to worshyp of a worthy knyght or squyer than is a
thycke chosen garnement, a
traylyng gowne of twelue yerdes wyde, solempnly dagged
with huge bagge sleues, for
sith suche maner array come first a place, worshyp
is aleyde, and neuer shal
retourne till that suche lewdnesse be left, as
worship be acounted as was in old tyme, as is before
said, in manfulnes of dedes.
`For soothly, suche manere of peple ben no legges of
yren, but rather they mowe be cleped legges of cloutes, as childeren maken popetis
for to pleyen with whyle they ben yongee. And
sikerly it is a fowle inconuenyent
to a reame, and a sory goouernaunce, when the peple
of the land shall be cherisshed to wantonnesse and nicete of suche childes lustes, tylle that they ben so
tendre that they mowe nought sustene nother cold ne
hete, honger ne thurst, ne they ben nothynge worthy
tille the bely be ful; and thenne they moote slepe.
`And in defaute
of suche fooles men muste sende in to straunge
landes for soudiours to
kepen the countre, for
they shall neuer put them self in perille for the
land so wel as they that ben naturell born and
norysshed vpon the same erth. For they ben but staues and potences,
taken for to sustene the body by cause of feble
legges. And in such potentes
is ful litil trist at the tyme
of nede, for they comen thyder only for to robbe,
wasten, and destroyen the goodes, and no thyng for
loue of the contref.
`Therfor these yren legges shold be cherysshed in
that wyse, that they myght ben able myghtely to bere
and sustene the byrthen of the
body. The lesse they conne lyue by, and the more
they conne suffren of hard, preyse them the better
and hald the more worthy.
