The fables of Aesop by William Caxton (Jacobs)/Vol. II/Alfonce/Fable 7
¶ The vij fable is of a Rethorycian and of a crowk backed
Philosopher sayd ones to his sone /
that whan he were falle by fortune
in to somme dommage or perylle /
the sooner that he myght he shold
delyuere hym of hit / to thende /
that afterward he shold no more be vexed ne
greued of hit / As hit appiereth by this fable of a
rethoryque man or fayr speker / whiche ones
demaunded of a kynge / that of alle them whiche
shold entre in to the cyte / hauynge somme faulte
of . kynde on theyr bodyes / as crouked or counterfayted
/ he myght haue and take of them at
thentre of the yate a peny / the whiche demaunde
the kynge graunted to hym / and made his lettres
to be sealed and wreton vnder his sygnet / And
thus he kepte hym styll at the yate / And of
euery lame / scabbed / & of alle suche that had
ony counterfaytour on theyr bodyes / he tooke a
peny / ¶ It happed thene on a day that a
croukbacked and counterfayted man wold haue
entryd within the Cyte withoute gyuynge of ony
peny / and bethought hym self / that he shold take and put on hym a fayre mantel / and thus
arayed came to the yate / ¶ And thenne whan
the porter byheld hym / he perceyued that he
was goglyed / and sayd to hym pay me of my
dewte / And the goglyed wold paye nought /
whertore he toke from hym his mantel / And
thenne he sawe that he was crowkbacked and
sayd to hym / thow woldest not to fore paye a
peny / but now thou shalte paye tweyne / ¶ And
whyle that they stryued to gyder / the hat and
the bonet felle from his hede to the erthe / And
the porter whiche sawe his scabbed hede / sayd to
hym / Now shalt thou paye to me thre pens /
and thenne the porter yet ageyne setted his
handes on hym / and felte / that his body was al
scabbed / And as they were thus wrastlynge to
gyder / the crowkbacked fylle to the ground /
and hurted hym self sore on the legge / And the
porter sayd thenne to hym / Now shalt thow
paye v pens / For thy body is al counterfayted /
wherfore thow shalt leue here thy mantele / And
yf thou haddest payd a peny / thow haddest gone
on thy waye free and quyte / wherfore he is wyse
that payeth that / that he oweth of ryght / to
thende that therof come not to hym gretter
dommage