Thyrdely to ioyne our dede with the expo-
sicion / & to shew that we onely dyd obserue
the very entent of the lawe. Than to refell
the exposicion of our aduersaries / & to shew
that their exposicion is contrary to reason
and equitie / and that no wyse man wyll so
take the law as they expounde it / and that
the exposicion is neither honest nor profy-
table / and to conster theyr exposicion with
oures / and to shew that oures conteyneth
the veritie / and theyrs is falce. Oures ho-
nest / reasonable / & profitable: Theyrs clene
contrarye. And than serche out lyke exam-
ples / either of greater maters or of lesse / or
els of egall maters / and to manifest by thē
that our mynde is the very truthe.
¶ Contrary lawes are where the tone se-
meth euidently to contrarye the other. As
yf a law were that he whō his father hath
forsaken for his sōne / shall in no wyse haue
any porcion of his fathers goodes. And an
other law / that who so euer in tyme of tem[-]
pest abydeth in the shyp: shall haue ye shyp
and goodes. Than pose that one whiche
was of his father so abiecte and denyed for
his chylde: was in a shyp of his fathers in
tyme of sore wether / & whan all other for
feare of lesynge them selfe forsoke the shyp
& gate them into the bote: he onely abode /
and by chaunce was safe brought into the
hauen / wherupon he chalengeth the vessell
for his / where as the party defendant wyll
lay against hym that he is abdicate or for-
saken of his father / and so can nat by the
law haue any parte of his goodes.
Here must he say agayn for hym that this
law alleged doth all only priuate frō theyr
fathers goodes suche as be abdicate & yet
wolde chalenge a part as his children / but
yt he doth nat so / but requireth to haue the
shyp / nat as a son to his father: but as any
other straunger myght / seyng the law gy-
ueth him the shyp yt abideth in her in time
of necessity. And so the handelynge of this
state / either to deny one of yt lawes & shew
that it hath ben afore anulled / or els to ex-
pounde it after the sence that is mete to
our purpose.
¶ Doubtfull writynge is where either the
mynde of the author semeth to be contrary
to that that is wryten / which som call wry[-]
tynge & sentence / or els it is whan the wor[-]
des may be expounded dyuers wayes.
¶ Example of the fyrst.
MEn say it is a law in Caleys that no
straunger may go vppon the towne
walles on payne of dethe. Now than pose
that in tyme of warre the towne beynge
harde besieged / an alien dwellynge in the
towne getteth hym to the walles amonge
the soudiers / & doeth more good than any
one man agayn. Now after the siege ended
he is accused for transgressyng of the law /
which in wordes is euidently against him.
But here the defendaunt must declare the
wryters mynde by circumstaunces / what
straunger he dyd forbyd / and what tyme /
and after what maner / and in what intent
he wolde nat haue any straunger to come
on the walles / & in what intent his mynde
might be vnderstanden to suffre an alien to
go vpon the walles. And here must the ef-
fect of the straūgers wyll be declared / that
he went vp to defend ye towne to put back
their enemies. And therto he must say that
the maker was nat so vndiscrete & vnreaso[-]
nable that he wolde haue no maner of ex-
cepcion which shuld be to the welth / p[ro]fite /
or preseruacion of the towne. For he that
wyll nat haue ye law to be vnderstandē ac[-]
cordyng to equitie / good maner / & nature /
entendeth to proue the maker therof either
an vniust man / or folyssh or enuiouse.
¶ The accuser contraryly shall praise the
maker of the law for his great wisdom / for
his playne writyng without any maner of
ambiguity / yt no straūger shulde p[re]sume to
go vpon the walles / & reherce ye law word
for worde / & thā shew som reasonable cause
that mouyd the maker of the law that he
wolde vtterly that no straunger shulde as-
cende the walles. &c. Exāple of the secōd.
A Man in his testamēt gyueth to two
yonge doughters that he hathe two
hūdred shepe / to be delyuered at the day of
theyr maryage / on this maner.
I wyll
that myne executoures shall gyue to my
doughters at the tyme of theyr maryage
euery of theym an hundred shepe / suche as
they wyll. At the tyme of maryage they de[-]
maunde theyr cattell / whiche the execu-
tours deliuer nat of suche sort as the may-
dēs wold / wherupō the cōtrouersy ariseth.
For the executours say they are bounde to
delyuer to euery of them an hundred shepe /
suche as they that be the executours will.
Now here standeth the dout / to whom we
shall referre this worde they / to the dought-
ters / or to the executours.