She made grete abstynence, and wered the hayre ypon the wednesdayand vpon the fryday. And hou I knowe this I shalle telle it to yow. This good lady dyed in a Manoyr whiche she held in dowaye, the whiche was apperteynynge to my lord my fader, and I and my susters, whiche were but yonge of age, cam to duelle there. And the bedde wheron this good lady deyd was broken in pyeces, & vnder the strawe was founde a hayr, whiche a damoysell toke, and sayd to vs that it was the hayr of her lady, and that she wered it two or thre dayes in the weke, and also told and reherced to vs her good condycions and her good lyf, and how she Rose euery nyght thre tymes, and kneled doune to the ground by her bedde, and rendryd thankynges to god, and prayd for al Crysten sowles, and how she dyd grete almes to the poures. This good lady, that wel is worthy to be named and preysed, had to name, My lady Cecyle of balleuylle. And yet I haue herd save that her broder myghte spende yerely xviii m pound, but notwithstondynge that, she was the most humble and the most good and curtoys lady that euer I knewe or wyste in ony countrey, and that lasse was enuyous, and neuer she wold here say ony euyll of no body, but excused them & prayd to god that they myght amende them, and that none was that knewe what to hym shold happe. And thus she blamed them that spake euylle of other folk, and maade them abasshed of that she repreued them so as she dyd. And thus oughte to doo euery good woman and euery good man at thexample of this good lady. And knowe ye that hit is a noble vertu not to be enuyous, and not to be Ioyeful of the dommage or scathe of other. And for certayn this good lady sayd, that they whiche auaunced them of the euylle and dommage of other, and that mocked theyr neyghbours and other, and that god shold punysshe them or some of theyr nyghe frendes and parentes, wherof came to them grete shame. And that haue I sene ofte befalle, as the good lady sayd, for none oughte not to Iuge ne reproche the dammage or euylle of other.
