gers or currours ben enpesshid by ony taryenge/ That other currours
bere lettres contrarye to his/ And come to fore hym/ of which thinges
ofte tymes cometh many thinges discouenable of losse of frendes of
castellys & of lande & many other thinges as in the feet of marchandise
&c. And otherwhile hit happeth that a prynce for the faulte of suche
messangers lefeth to haue victorye vpon hys enemyes/ And also ther ben
some that whan they come in a cyte where they haue not ben to fore/ that
ben more besy to visyte the Cyte and the noble men that dwelle theryn/
Than they ben to doo theyr voyage/ whyche thynge they ought not to doo/
But yf they had specyall charge of them that sente hem forth so to doo.
And also whan they be sente forth of ony lordes or marchauntes they
ought to be well ware/ that they charge hem not wyth ouer moche mete on
morenynges ne with to moche wyn on euenynges/ wherby her synewis and
vaynes myght be greuy/ that they muste for faute of good rewle tarye But
they ought to goo and come hastely for to reporte to their maistres
answers as hit apperteyneth And this suffisen of the thynges aboue sayd.

BOOK IV.

[Illustration]

_The fourth tractate & the last of the progression and draughtes of the
forsayd playe of the chesse.

The first chapitre of the fourth tractate of the chesse borde in genere
how it is made._

Ze haue deuised aboue the thinges that apperteyne vnto the formes of the
chesse men and of theyr offices/ that is to wete as well of noble men as
of the comyn peple/ than hit apperteyneth that we shold deuyse shortly
how they yssue and goon oute of the places where they be sette/ And
first we ought to speke of the forme and of the facion of the chequer
after that hit representeth and was made after/ For hyt was made after
the forme of the cyte of Babyloyne/ In the whiche this same playe was
founden as hit is sayd afore/ And foure thinges The first is/ wher y'e
shal vnderstande that y'e ought to consydere here in fore that. lxiiii.
poyntes ben sette in the eschequer whiche ben alle square/ The seconde
is wherfore the bordeur aboute his hyher than the squarenes of the
poyntes/ The thirde is wherfore the comyn peple ben sette to fore the
nobles/ The fourthe wherfore the nobles and the peples ben sette in
their propre places Ther ben as many poyntes in y'e eschequer wyde as
full And y'e shall first vnderftande wherfore that ther ben. lxiiii.
poyntes in the eschequer/ For as the blessid