Howe costely are the charges of delycious meates & drynkes, that be nowe most commonly vsed, ouer that it hath ben in tymes paste, and howe fer aboue measure? [Sidenote: [Fol. 68; _no fol. 67_.]] For I haue seen bokes of accompte of householde, 4 and brumentes vpon the same, & I doubte not, but [Sidenote: Men now spend four times as much upon feasts as they used to.] in delycyous meates, drinkes, and spyces, there is at this daye foure tymes so moche spent, as was at these dayes, to a lyke man in degree; and yet at that tyme 8 there was as moche befe and mutton spent as is nowe, and as many good housholdes kept, and as many yomenne wayters therin as be nowe. This began with loue and charytye whan a lorde, gentylman, or yoman 12 desyred or prayed an other to come to dyner or soupper, and bycause of his commynge he wolde haue a dysshe or two mo than he wolde haue had, if he had ben [Sidenote: This has come about gradually.] away. Than of very loue he, remembrynge howe louyngely 16 he was bydden to dynner, and howe well he fared, he thynketh of very kyndnes he muste nedes byd hym to dyner agayne, and soo ordeyneth for hym as manye maner of suche dysshes and meates, as the other man dyd, and 20 two or .iii. mo, & thus by lyttel and litell it is commen fer [Sidenote: Begun in kindness, it ends in pride.] aboue measure. And begon of loue and charyte, and endeth in pryde and glotony, wherof saynte Ierome [Sidenote: Jerome.] saythe: _Qui post carnem ambulant, in ventrem et libidine_m, 24 _proni sunt, quasi irrationabilia iumenta reputa_n_tur_. That is [Sidenote: [Fol. 68_b_.]] to say, They that walke, and be redy to fulfill the lust of the fleshe and the bely, are taken as vnreasonable beastes; [Sidenote: Gregory.] and sayncte Gregory sayth, _Domina_n_te vicio gulæ, omnes_ 28 _virtutes per luxuriam et vanam gloriam obruuntur_: That is to saye, where the vice of glotony hath domination, all vertues by luxury and vayne glory are cast vnder: the whiche sayinges wold in lykewise be remembred; and 32 this me semeth sufficient for the .ii. poynte of the thre. 153. ¶ Of outragious playe and game.