I. Ed. Wolôwski, p. XGIII

Bridrey

The First chapitre *

Wkerfor and whi money ought to be.

Whan the highest God divide.d folkes, whan he departed the sons of Adam, he ordei- ^ned termes of peoplis, Therof bien men multiplied upon the

1 . Contresens évident : le traducteur n*a point rattaché l'adjectif omni à scrupulo, efil rend comme s'il y avait omnibus kominibus.

a. Ms. f» VU r».

APPENDICES

sessiones proot expediebat divisîe sunt. Ex hoc autem contigfit» quod unus habuit de una re ultra suam nccessitatcm, alius vero de eadem re habuit parum aut nihil, et de alia re e contrario fuit. Sicut pastor * quis habundavit ovibus, et pane indig'uit, et agricola e con verso. Cœpcrunt ergo homines mercari sine moneta. et dabat unus alteri ovem pro frumento, et alius de labore suo pro pane vel lana, et sic de aliis rébus, quod adhuc longt) tempore postea fuit in quibusdam civitatibus institutum, prout narrât Justinus. Sed tamen in hujusmodi permutatione et transportatione rerum , mult» difficullates acciderunt ; subtilisati sunt ergo homines usum invenire monctai, qu* esset instrumentum permutandi ad invicem naturales divitias, quibus de per se subvenitur naturaliter humanae necessitati. Nam ipsae pecuniae dicuntur artificiales divitiae, conting-it enim his abundantein mori famé, sicut exemplificat Aristoteles dereg'c cupido, qui oravit ut quidquid ipse tang-eret, aurum esset ; quod Dii annuerunt, et sic famé periit, ut dicunt poelae ;

I, Wol : forsan.

erth and possessions as it expédient ther bien divided. Of this forsoth it happith and failith that oon hath more of oothjng than hjm needith, Another forsoth of the same hath litil or noug-ht, and of another thyng even the contrarv. So as a strongt3 shepherd habundith plentivously oFsheepe and nedith or lakkith brede, and the plowghman or cathtilier the contrary. Therfor men tooke and big-an to marchaundise and chaunge without money and yaf oon to another a sheepe for wheete and another of his labour for brede or wul, and so of other thynges, that long tyme after hiderto yit in su m citées was ordeig'ned so as tellith Justius. But as in this maner pcrmutacioun and transportacioun or beryng over of thynges many difficultés fillen, subtile men ther wern to fynde thuse of money, the whiche was an instrument of permutacioun and chaunge to itself is natural Richessis» of whiche and bi itsilf undirgœth and helpith to mannes nécessite. For whi theo moneys they seyen to be artiticial Richessis, forsoth of thiese happith and failith that su m plentivous and

APPENDICE8

qaoniam per pecnuiam non immédiate succuritur indig-entifp vitae,sed est instrumentum artificialiter adinventum pro naturalibus divitiis levius permutandis. Et absque alia probatione clare potest apparere, quod numisma est valde bonum communitati civili, et Reipublicae usibus opportuiium, imo necessarium, ut probat Aristoteles V Ethicorum, quanquam de hoc dicat Ovidius ; Effodiuntur opes irritamenta malorum, Inque nocens ferrum fer roque nocentius aurnni, Prodierai.

Hoc enim facit perversa malor rum cupiditas, non ipsa pecunia, quae est humano convictui multum accommoda, et cujus usiLs per se bonus est. Inde ait Cassiodoras : Pecnniœ ipsœ quamvis usa ceteberrirno viles esse oideantar, animadvertendum est quanta tamen a veteribus ratione collertœ sunt. Et alio loco dicit, quod constat monetarios in usuni publicum specialiter esse inoentos.

habundaunt of Richesse to die for hunger, so as Aristotil exemplifieth of a cov'etouskyng* whichepraied as whatsumever he towched was gold, that the Goddis told and warned hym and so with hung-er he perisshed,as poetis seyn.f^For whi bi money not inmediatly socourith indig-ence of lif, but is an Instrument artificiaal to the help for natural and kyndely Richessis the more lig^htly of permutacioun and chaung-e.

And without any other proef clierely may be shewed that money is a wounder grete profite toa comune civile, and to thyng- publique to covenable uses, therfor the more necessary, as provith Aristotil in his V booke of Etikes, an das Ovide saith * of this Tournes shed out with warthfui thyug-es of evil men and shrevves differith, etc, C For soth this doeth the froward covetise of men nat the money it silf whiche is to mannes felowship Rig-ht g-rete and comodious and of whos vse bi it silf is g-oode. Therof spekith Cassiodorus that money in itsilf to what holsum use thow wilt use itsumseemeit vile and foule, It is to be advertised in