Great care must be taken to avoid those base traits which cause one party [to the shidduch] to be demeaned before the second party for completely insubstantial things. So that [for example] if the [prospective] groom were an innocent person, who was not so sharp as to understand the subtleties of men and their deceits, or who did not want to engage in levity like the other youths of his age, he is immediately publicized in the city as a fool and a simpleton, so that sometimes this will be a reason for others not to want to make a match with him, or to break the match that they have already made, and many other such wrongs (May the L–rd cut off such "slippery lips" for this!) For it does not suffice them that they are in the category of "men of lashon hara" because of this — for in these words of vanity and their like there is not found even one particular of those mentioned in Principle IX, section 2 — but the Torah even calls them "spreaders of false reports" because what they say is false, as we have written in Part One, Principle I, and in Principle V on this subject. And even if what they said were the absolute truth, it would require all of the aforementioned conditions.
מְאֹד צָּרִיךְ לִזָּהֵר מִמִּדּוֹת הַגְּרוּעוֹת, שֶׁרְגִילִים לְגַנּוֹת צַּד אֶחָד לְעֵינֵי צַּד הָאַחֵר עַל עִנְיָנִים שֶׁאֵין בָּהֶם מַמָּשׁ, דְּהַיְנוּ, אִם הֶחָתָן הוּא אִישׁ תַּם, שֶׁאֵינוֹ חָרִיף כָּל כָּךְ לְהָבִין עַרְמוּמִיּוּת שֶׁל בְּנֵי אָדָם וְרַמָּאֻיּוֹתֵיהֶם, אוֹ שֶׁאֵינוֹ רוֹצֶה לְהִתְלוֹצֵּץ כִּשְׁאָר הַבַּחוּרִים אֲשֶׁר כְּגִילוֹ, הֵם מְפַרְסְמִים אוֹתוֹ בָּעִיר עֲבוּר זֶה לְאִישׁ שׁוֹטֶה וּפֶתִי, עַד שֶׁלִּפְעָמִיֹם יִהְיֶה דָּבָר זֶה סִבָּה, שֶׁלֹּא יִרְצוּ לְהִשְׁתַּדֵּךְ עִמּוֹ עֲבוּר זֶה, אוֹ לְבַטֵּל הַשִּׁדּוּךְ שֶׁעָשָׂה כְּבָר, וְכַיּוֹצֵא בָּזֶה רָעוֹת רַבּוֹת, יַכְרֵת ה' כָּל שִׂפְתֵי חֲלָקוֹת עֲבוּר זֶה. כִּי לֹא דַּי שֶׁהֵם בִּכְלַל בַּעֲלֵי לָשׁוֹן הָרָע מֵחֲמַת זֶה, כִּי בְּדִבְרֵי הֲבָלִים הָאֵלּוּ וְכַדּוֹמֶה לָזֶה אֵין מָצוּי אַף פְּרָט אֶחָד מֵהַנַּל בִּכְלָל ט' סָעִיף ב', כִּי גַּם נִקְרָאִים מִן הַתּוֹרָה בְּשֵׁם בַּעֲלֵי מוֹצִיאֵי שֵׁם רָע, מִכֵּיוָן שֶׁהוּא שֶׁקֶר, כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתַבְנוּ בְּחֵלֶק א' בִּכְלָל א' וּבִכְלָל ה' מֵעִנְיָן זֶה, וַאֲפִלּוּ אִם הָיָה דָּבָר זֶה אֱמֶת גְּמוּרָה הָיָה צָרִיךְ לָזֶה (ה) כָּל הַפְּרָטִים הַנַּל.
Great care must be taken to avoid those base traits which cause one party [to the shidduch] to be demeaned before the second party for completely insubstantial things. So that [for example] if the [prospective] groom were an innocent person, who was not so sharp as to understand the subtleties of men and their deceits, or who did not want to engage in levity like the other youths of his age, he is immediately publicized in the city as a fool and a simpleton, so that sometimes this will be a reason for others not to want to make a match with him, or to break the match that they have already made, and many other such wrongs (May the L–rd cut off such "slippery lips" for this!) For it does not suffice them that they are in the category of "men of lashon hara" because of this — for in these words of vanity and their like there is not found even one particular of those mentioned in Principle IX, section 2 — but the Torah even calls them "spreaders of false reports" because what they say is false, as we have written in Part One, Principle I, and in Principle V on this subject. And even if what they said were the absolute truth, it would require all of the aforementioned conditions.