amyable companye and trewe/ honest contenance/ And trouthe in their wordes/ And hit is to wete that the notaries ben right prouffitable and ought to be good & trewe for the comyn And they ought to kepe them fro appropriynge to themself that thynge y't apperteyneth to the comyn And yf they be good to them self/ they ben good to other. And yf they be euyll for themself/ they ben euyll for other And the processes that ben made to fore the Iuges ought to ben wreton & passid by them/ and hit is to wete that by their writynge in the processis may come moche prouffit And also yf they wryte otherwyse than they ought to doo/ may ensewe moche harme and domage to the comyn Therfore ought they to take good heede that they change not ne corrumpe in no wyse the content of the sentence. For than ben they first forsworn And ben bounden to make amendes to them that by theyr tricherye they haue endomaged/ And also ought they to rede visite and to knowe the statutes. ordenances and the lawes of the cytees of the contre/ where they dwelle and enhabite/ And they ought to considere yf ther be ony thynge therein conteyned ayenst right and reson/ and yf they fynde ony thinge contraire/ they ought to admoneste and warne them that gouerne/ that suche thynges may be chauged into better astate/ For custome establisshid ayenst good maners and agaynst the fayth/ ought not to be holden by right. For as hit is sayd in the decree in the chapitre to fore/ alle ordenance made ayenst ryght ought to be holden for nought Alas who is now that aduocate or notaire that hath charge to wryte and kepe sentence that putteth his entente to kepe more the comyn prouffit or as moche as his owen/ But alle drede of god is put a back/ and they deceyue the symple men And drawen them to the courtes disordinatly and constrayned them to swere and make othes not couenable/ And in assemblyng the peple thus to gyder they make moo traysons in the cytees than they make good alyances And otherwhile they deceyue their souerayns/ whan they may doo hit couertly For ther is no thynge at this day that so moche greueth rome and Italye as doth the college of notaries and aduocates publicque For they ben not of oon a corde/ Alas and in Engeland what hurte doon the aduocats. men of lawe. And attorneyes of court to the comyn peple of y'e royame as well in the spirituell lawe as in the temporall/ how torne they the lawe and statutes at their pleasir/ how ete they the peple/ how enpouere they the comynte/ I suppose that in alle Cristendom ar not so many pletars attorneys and men of the lawe as ben in englond onely/ for yf they were nombrid all that lange to the courtes of the channcery kinges benche. comyn place. cheker. ressayt and helle And the bagge berars of the same/ hit shold amounte to a grete multitude And how alle thyse lyue & of whome. yf hit shold be vttrid & told/ hit shold not be beleuyd. For they entende to theyr synguler wele and prouffyt and not to the comyn/ how