Whan the Quene whiche is accompanyed vnto the kynge begynneth to meue from her propre place/ She goth in dowble manere/ that is to wete as an Alphyn whan she is black/ fhe may goo on the ryght syde & come in to the poynt to fore the notarye And on the lifte syde in the black poynt and come to fore the gardees of the cyte And hit is to wete that me sortiseth in her self the nature in .iii. maners first on the ryght syde to fore the alphyn/ Secondly on the lifte syde where the knyght is/ And thirdly indirectly vnto the black poynt to fore the phisicyen And the rayson why. Is for as moche as she hath in her self by grace/ the auctrorite that the rooks haue by c[=o]myscion/ For she may gyue & graute many thynges to her subgetts graciously And thus also ought she to haue parfyt wisedom/ as the alphyns haue whiche ben Iuges/ as hit sayd aboue in the chapitre of the Quene/ And she hath not the nature of knyghtes/ And hit is not fittynge ne couenable thynge for a woman to goo to bataylle for the fragilite and feblenes of her/ And therfore holdeth she not the waye in her draught as the knyghtes doon/ And whan she is meuyd ones oute of her place she may not goo but fro oon poynt to an other and yet cornerly whether hit be foreward or backward takynge or to be taken/ And here may be axid why the quene goth to the bataylle wyth the kynge/ certainly it is for the solace of hym/ and ostencion of loue/ And also the peple desire to haue sucession of the kynge And therfore the tartaris haue their wyues in to the felde with hem/ yet hit is not good that men haue theyr wyuys with hem/ but that they abyde in the cytees or within their owne termes/ For whan they ben oute of theyr cytees and limytes they ben not sure/ but holden suspecte/ they shold be shamfast and hold alle men suspect/ For dyna Iacob's doughter as longe as she was in the hows of her brethern/ she kept her virginite/ But assone as she wente for to see the strange Regyons. Anone she was corrupt and defowled of the sone of sichem/ Seneca sayth that the women that haue euyll visages ben gladly not chaste/ but theyr corage desireth gladly the companye of men/ And Solynus saith that no bestes femellys desyre to be towched of theyr males whan they haue conceyuyd/ Exept woman whyche ought to be a best Raysonable/ And in thys caas she lefeth her rayson/ And Sidrac wythnesseth the same And therfore in the olde lawe/ the faders hadd dyuerce wyues and Ancellys to thende whan one was wyth childe/ they myght take another/ They ought to haue the visage enclyned for teschewe the fight of the men/ that by the fight they be not meuyd with Incontynence and diffame of other/ And Ouyde sayth that ther ben some That how well that they eschewe the dede/ yet haue they grete Joye whan they ben prayed/ And therfore ought the good women flee the curyositees and places wher they myght falle in blame and noyse of the peple.
[The fourth chapitre of the fourth book Is of the yssuynge of the Alphyn.]
The manere and nature of the draught of the Alphyn is suche/ that he that is black in his propre fiege is sette on the right side of the kynge/ And he that is whyt is sette on the lifte side/ And ben callyd and named black and white/ But for no cause that they be so in subftance of her propre colour/ But for the colour of the places in whiche they ben sette/ And alleway be they black or white/ whan they ben sette in theyr places/ the alphyn on the ryght syde/ goynge oute of his place to the ryght sydeward comyth to fore the labourer/ And hit is reson that the Iuge ought to deffende and kepe the labourers and possessions whiche ben in his Iurisdiction by alle right and lawe/ And also he may goo on the lyste syde to the wyde place to fore the phisicien/ For lyke as the phisiciens haue the charge to hele the Infirmites of a man/ In lyke wyse haue the Iuges charge to appese alle stryues and contencions and reduce vnto vnyte/ And to punyfshe and correcte causes crymynels/ The lyste alphyn hath also two wayes fro his owen place oon toward y'e right syde vnto the black space voyde to fore the marchant/ For the marchants nede ofte tymes counceylle and ben in debate of questions whiche muste be determyned by the Iuges/ And that other yssue is vnto the place to fore the rybauldis/ And that ys be caufe that ofte tymes amonge them. falle noyses discencions thefte and manslaghter/ wherfore they ought to be punysshid by the Iuges/ And y'e shall vnderstande that the alphyn goth alleway corner wyse fro the thirde poynt to the thirde poynt kepynge all way his owne fiege/ For yf he be black/ he goth all way black/ And yf he be whyte he goth alleway whyte. the yssue or goynge cornerly or angularly signefieth cautele or fubtylyte/ whiche Iuges ought to haue/ The .iii. poyntes betoken .iii. thynges that the Iuge ought to attende/ A Iuge ought to furder rightfull & trewe causes. secondly he ought to gyue trewe counceyll/ and thirdly he ought to gyue and Iuge rightfull sentences after tha legeances/ And neuer to goo fro the ryghtwisnes of the lawe/ And it is to wete that the Alphyn goth in fix drawhtes alle the tablier round aboute/ and that he cometh agayn in to his owen place/ And how be hit that alle rayson and good perfection shold be in a kynge/ yet ought hit also specially be in them that ben conceyllours of the kynge and the Quene And the kynge ought not to doo ony thynge doubtouse/ tyll he haue axid counceyll of his Iuges And of the sages of the royame And therfore ought the Iuge to be parfaytly wyse and sage as well in science as in good maners/ And that is signefied whan they meue from thre poynts in to thre/ For the fixt nombre by whiche they goo alle theschequer/ And brynge hem agayn in to her propre place in suche wyse that thende of her moeuynge is conioyned agayn to the begynnynge of the place frowhens they departed/ And therfore hit is callid a parfayt moeuynge.
