Chaucer's Translation of Boethius's "De Consolatione Philosophiae" · Boethius
QUID AUTE{M} DE DIGNITATIB{US} {ET} C{ETERA}.
Also musyk makeþ musiciens. {and} fysik makeþ phisiciens. {and} rethorik rethoriens. ¶ For whi þe nature of euery þing makiþ his p{ro}pretee. ne it is nat ent{er}medled wiþ þe effect{is} of co{n}trarious þinges. ¶ And as of wil it chaseþ oute þinges þat to it ben contrarie ¶ But certys rycchesse may nat restreyne auarice vnstaunched ¶ Ne power [ne] makeþ nat a ma{n} myȝty ouer hym self. whiche þat vicious lustis holden destreined wiþ cheins þat ne mowen nat ben vnbounden. {and} dignitees þat ben ȝeuen to shrewed[e] folk nat oonly ne makiþ hem nat digne. but it sheweþ raþer al openly þat þei ben vnworþi {and} vndigne. ¶ And whi is it þ{us}. ¶ Certis for ȝe han ioye to clepen þinges wiþ fals[e] names. þat beren hem al in þe co{n}t{ra}rie. þe whiche names ben ful ofte reproued by þe effect of þe same þinges. so þat þise ilke rycchesse ne auȝten nat by ryȝt to ben cleped rycchesse. ne whiche power ne auȝt[e] not ben cleped power. ne whiche dignitee ne auȝt[e] nat ben cleped dignitee. ¶ And at þe laste I may conclude þe same þinge of al þe ȝiftes of fortune in whiche þer nis no þing to ben desired. ne þat haþ in hym self naturel bounte. ¶ as it is ful wel sene. for neyþer þei ne ioygne{n} hem nat alwey to goode men. ne maken hem alwey goode to who{m} þei be{n} y-ioigned.
Text from Project Gutenberg, public domain in the United States.