_TALE XXVI_.
_By the counsel and sisterly affection of a virtuous lady, the Lord of Avannes was drawn from the wanton love that he entertained for a gentlewoman dwelling at Pampeluna_.
In the days of King Louis the Twelfth there lived a young lord calledMonsieur d'Avannes, (1) son of the Lord of Albret [and] brother toKing John of Navarre, with whom this aforesaid Lord of Avannes commonlyabode.
1 This is Gabriel d'Albret, Lord of Avesnes and Lesparre, fourth son of Alan the Great, Sire d'Albret, and brother of John d'Albret, King of Navarre, respecting whom see _post_, note 4 to Tale XXX. Queen Margaret is in error in dating this story from the reign of Louis XII. The incidents she relates must have occurred between 1485 and 1490, under the reign of Charles VIII., by whom Gabriel d'Albret, on reaching manhood, was successively appointed counsellor and chamberlain, Seneschal of Guyenne and Viceroy of Naples. Under Louis XII. he took a prominent part in the Italian campaigns of 1500-1503, in which latter year he is known to have made his will, bequeathing all he possessed to his brother, Cardinal d'Albret. He died a bachelor in 1504.--See Anselme's _Histoire Genealogique_, vol. vi. p. 214.--L. and Ed.
Now this young lord, who was fifteen years of age, was so handsome andso fully endowed with every excellent grace that he seemed to have beenmade solely to be loved and admired, as he was indeed by all who sawhim, and above all by a lady who dwelt in the town of Pampeluna (2) inNavarre. She was married to a very rich man, with whom she lived in allvirtue, inasmuch that, although her husband was nearly fifty years oldand she was only three and twenty, she dressed so plainly that she hadmore the appearance of a widow than of a married woman. Moreover, shewas never known to go to weddings or feasts unless accompanied by herhusband, whose worth and virtue she prized so highly that she set thembefore all the comeliness of other men. And her husband, finding her sodiscreet, trusted her and gave all the affairs of his household into herhands.
2 Pampeluna or Pamplona, the capital of Navarre, wrested from King John in 1512 by the troops of Ferdinand the Catholic.--Ed.
One day this rich man was invited with his wife to a wedding among theirkinsfolk; and among those who were present to do honour to the bridalwas the young Lord of Avannes, who was exceedingly fond of dancing, aswas natural in one who surpassed therein all others of his time. Whendinner was over and the dances were begun, the rich man begged the Lordof Avannes to do his part, whereupon the said lord asked him with whomhe would have him dance.
"My lord," replied the gentleman, "I can present to you no lady fairerand more completely at my disposal than my wife, and I therefore beg youto honour me so far as to lead her out."
This the young Prince did; and he was still so young that he took fargreater pleasure in frisking and dancing than in observing the beautyof the ladies. But his partner, on the contrary, gave more heed to hisgrace and beauty than to the dance, though in her prudence she took goodcare not to let this appear.
The supper hour being come, the Lord of Avannes bade the companyfarewell, and departed to the castle, (3) whither the rich manaccompanied him on his mule. And as they were going, the rich man saidto him--
"My lord, you have this day done so much honour to my kinsfolk and tome, that I should indeed be ungrateful if I did not place myself withall that belongs to me at your service. I know, sir, that lords likeyourself, who have stern and miserly fathers, are often in greater needof money than we, who, with small establishments and careful husbandry,seek only to save up wealth. Now, albeit God has given me a wife aftermy own heart, it has not pleased Him to give me all my Paradise in thisworld, for He has withheld from me the joy that fathers derive fromhaving children. I know, my lord, that it is not for me to adopt you asa son, but if you will accept me for your servant and make known to meyour little affairs, I will not fail to assist you in your need so faras a hundred thousand crowns may go."
3 Evidently the castle of Pampeluna, where Gabriel d'Albret resided with his brother the King.--Ed.
The Lord of Avannes was in great joy at this offer, for he had just sucha father as the other had described; accordingly he thanked him, andcalled him his adopted father.
From that hour the rich man evinced so much love towards the Lord ofAvannes, that morning and evening he failed not to inquire whether hehad need of anything, nor did he conceal this devotion from his wife,who loved him for it twice as much as before. Thenceforward the Lord ofAvannes had no lack of anything that he desired. He often visited therich man, and ate and drank with him; and when he found the husbandabroad, the wife gave him all that he required, and further spoke tohim so sagely, exhorting him to live discreetly and virtuously, that hereverenced and loved her above all other women.
Having God and honour before her eyes, she remained content with thusseeing him and speaking to him, for these are sufficient for virtuousand honourable love; and she never gave any token whereby he might haveimagined that she felt aught but a sisterly and Christian affectiontowards him.
While this secret love continued, the Lord of Avannes, who, by theassistance that I have spoken of, was always well and splendidlyapparelled, came to the age of seventeen years, and began to frequentthe company of ladies more than had been his wont. And although he wouldfain have loved this virtuous lady rather than any other, yet his fearof losing her friendship should she hear any such discourse from him,led him to remain silent and to divert himself elsewhere.
He therefore addressed himself to a gentlewoman of the neighbourhood ofPampeluna, who had a house in the town, and was married to a young manwhose chief delight was in horses, hawks and hounds. For her sake, hebegan to set on foot a thousand diversions, such as tourneys, races,wrestlings, masquerades, banquets, and other pastimes, at all of whichthis young lady was present. But as her husband was very humorsome, andher parents, knowing her to be both fair and frolicsome, were jealous ofher honour, they kept such strict watch over her that my Lord of Avannescould obtain nothing from her save a word or two at the dance, although,from the little that had passed between them, he well knew that time andplace alone were wanting to crown their loves.
He therefore went to his good father, the rich man, and told him that hedeeply desired to make a pilgrimage to our Lady of Montferrat, (4) forwhich reason he begged him to house his followers, seeing that he wishedto go alone.
4 The famous monastery of Montserrate, at eight leagues from Barcelona, where is preserved the ebony statue of the Virgin carrying the Infant Jesus, which is traditionally said to have been carved by St. Luke, and to have been brought to Spain by St. Peter.--See _Libro de la historia y milagros hechos a invocation de Nuestra Seilora de Montserrate_, Barcelona, 1556, 8vo.--Ed.
To this the rich man agreed; but his wife, in whose heart was that greatsoothsayer, Love, forthwith suspected the true nature of the journey,and could not refrain from saying--
"My lord, my lord, the Lady you adore is not without the walls ofthis town, so I pray that you will have in all matters a care for yourhealth."
At this he, who both feared and loved her, blushed so deeply that,without speaking a word, he confessed the truth; and so he went away.
Having bought a couple of handsome Spanish horses, he dressed himselfas a groom, and disguised his face in such a manner that none could knowhim. The gentleman who was husband to the wanton lady, and who lovedhorses more than aught beside, saw the two that the Lord of Avanneswas leading, and forthwith offered to buy them. When he had done so, helooked at the groom, who was managing the horses excellently well, andasked whether he would enter his service. The Lord of Avannes repliedthat he would; saying that he was but a poor groom, who knew no tradeexcept the caring of horses, but in this he could do so well that hewould assuredly give satisfaction. At this the gentleman was pleased,and having given him the charge of all his horses, entered his house,and told his wife that he was leaving for the castle, and confided hishorses and groom
to her keeping.
The lady, as much to please her husband as for her own diversion, wentto see the horses, and looked at the new groom, who seemed to her to bewell favoured, though she did not at all recognise him. Seeing thathe was not recognised, he came up to do her reverence in the Spanishfashion and kissed her hand, and, in doing so, pressed it so closelythat she at once knew him, for he had often done the same at the dance.From that moment, the lady thought of nothing but how she might speakto him in private; and contrived to do so that very evening, for, beinginvited to a banquet, to which her husband wished to take her, shepretended that she was ill and unable to go.
The husband, being unwilling to disappoint his friends, thereupon saidto her--
"Since you will not come, my love, I pray you take good care of myhorses and hounds, so that they may want for nothing."
The lady deemed this charge a very agreeable one, but, without showingit, she replied that since he had nothing better for her to do, shewould show him even in these trifling matters how much she desired toplease him.
And scarcely was her husband outside the door than she went down to thestable, where she found that something was amiss, and to set it rightgave so many orders to the serving-men on this side and the other, thatat last she was left alone with the chief groom, when, fearing that someone might come upon them, she said to him--
"Go into the garden, and wait for me in a summer house that stands atthe end of the alley."
This he did, and with such speed that he stayed not even to thank her.
When she had set the whole stable in order, she went to see the dogs,and was so careful to have them properly treated, that from mistress sheseemed to have become a serving-woman. Afterwards she withdrew to herown apartment, where she lay down weariedly upon the bed, saying thatshe wished to rest. All her women left her excepting one whom shetrusted, and to whom she said--
"Go into the garden, and bring here the man whom you will find at theend of the alley."
The maid went and found the groom, whom she forthwith brought to thelady, and the latter then sent her outside to watch for her husband'sreturn. When the Lord of Avannes found himself alone with the lady, hedoffed his groom's dress, took off his false nose and beard, and, notlike a timorous groom, but like the handsome lord he was, boldly gotinto bed with her without so much as asking her leave; and he wasreceived as the handsomest youth of his time deserved to be by thehandsomest and gayest lady in the land, and remained with her until herhusband returned. Then he again took his mask and left the place whichhis craft and artifice had usurped.
On entering the courtyard the gentleman heard of the diligence that hiswife had shown in obeying him, and he thanked her heartily for it.
"Sweetheart," said the lady, "I did but my duty. Tis true that if we didnot keep watch upon these rogues of servants you would not have a dogwithout the mange or a horse in good condition; but, now that I knowtheir slothfulness and your wishes, you shall be better served than everyou were before."
The gentleman, who thought that he had chosen the best groom in theworld, asked her what she thought of him.
"I will own, sir," she replied, "that he does his work as well asany you could have chosen, but he needs to be urged on, for he is thesleepiest knave I ever saw."
So the lord and his lady lived together more lovingly than before, andhe lost all the suspicion and jealousy with which he had regarded her,seeing that she was now as careful of her house hold as she had formerlybeen devoted to banquets, dances and assemblies. Whereas, also, she hadformerly been wont to spend four hours in attiring herself, she was nowoften content to wear nothing but a dressing-gown over her chemise; andfor this she was praised by her husband and by every one else, for theydid not understand that a stronger devil had entered her and thrust outa weaker one.
Thus did this young lady, under the guise of a virtuous woman, likethe hypocrite she was, live in such wantonness that reason, conscience,order and moderation found no place within her. The youth and tenderconstitution of the Lord of Avannes could not long endure this, and hebegan to grow so pale and lean that even without his mask he might wellhave passed unrecognised; yet the mad love that he had for this woman soblunted his understanding that he imagined he had strength to accomplishfeats that even Hercules had tried in vain. However, being at lastconstrained by sickness and advised thereto by his lady, who was not sofond of him sick as sound, he asked his master's leave to return home,and this his master gave him with much regret, making him promise tocome back to service when he was well again.
In this wise did the Lord of Avannes go away, and all on foot, for hehad only the length of a street to travel. On arriving at the houseof his good father, the rich man, he there found only his wife, whosehonourable love for him had been in no whit lessened by his journey.But when she saw him so colourless and thin, she could not refrain fromsaying to him--
"I do not know, my lord, how your conscience may be, but your body hascertainly not been bettered by your pilgrimage. I fear me that yourjourneyings by night have done you more harm than your journeyings byday, for had you gone to Jerusalem on foot you would have come back moresunburnt, indeed, but not so thin and weak. Pay good heed to this one,and worship no longer such images as those, which, instead of revivingthe dead, cause the living to die. I would say more, but if your bodyhas sinned it has been well punished, and I feel too much pity for youto add any further distress."
When my Lord of Avannes heard these words, he was as sorry as he wasashamed.
"Madam," he replied, "I have heard that repentance follows upon sin, andnow I have proved it to my cost. But I pray you pardon my youth, whichcould not have been punished save by the evil in which it would notbelieve."
Thereupon changing her discourse, the lady made him lie down in ahandsome bed, where he remained for a fortnight, taking nothing butrestoratives; and the lady and her husband constantly kept him company,so that he always had one or the other beside him. And although he hadacted foolishly, as you have heard, contrary to the desire and counselof the virtuous lady, she, nevertheless, lost nought of the virtuouslove that she felt towards him, for she still hoped that, after spendinghis early youth in follies, he would throw them off and bring himself tolove virtuously, and so be all her own.
During the fortnight that he was in her house, she held to him suchexcellent discourse, all tending to the love of virtue, that he began toloathe the folly that he had committed. Observing, moreover, the lady'sbeauty, which surpassed that of the wanton one, and becoming more andmore aware of the graces and virtues that were in her, he one day, whenit was rather dark, could not longer hold from speaking, but, puttingaway all fear, said to her--
"I see no better means, madam, for becoming a virtuous man such as youurge me and desire me to be, than by being heart and soul in love withvirtue. I therefore pray you, madam, to tell me whether you will give mein this matter all the assistance and favour that you can."
The lady rejoiced to find him speaking in this way, and replied--
"I promise you, my lord, that if you are in love with virtue as itbeseems a lord like yourself to be, I will assist your efforts with allthe strength that God has given me."
"Now, madam," said my Lord of Avannes, "remember your promise, andconsider also that God, whom man knows by faith alone, deigned to takea fleshly nature like that of the sinner upon Himself, in order that, bydrawing our flesh to the love of His humanity, He might at the same timedraw our spirits to the love of His divinity, thus making use of visiblemeans to make us in all faith love the things which are invisible. Inlike manner this virtue, which I would fain love all my life long, isa thing invisible except in so far as it produces outward effects, forwhich reason it must take some bodily shape in order to become knownamong men. And this it has done by clothing itself in your form, themost perfect it could find. I therefore recognise and own that you arenot only virtuous but virtue itself; and now, finding it shine beneaththe veil of the most perfect person that was ever known, I would
fainserve it and honour it all my life, renouncing for its sake every othervain and vicious love."
The lady, who was no less pleased than surprised to hear these words,concealed her happiness and said--
"My lord, I will not undertake to answer your theology, but since I ammore ready to apprehend evil than to believe in good, I will entreat youto address to me no more such words as lead you to esteem but lightlythose who are wont to believe them. I very well know that I am a womanlike any other and imperfect, and that virtue would do a greater thingby transforming me into itself than by assuming my form--unless, indeed,it would fain pass unrecognised through the world, for in such a garb asmine its real nature could never be known. Nevertheless, my lord, withall my imperfections, I have ever borne to you all such affection asis right and possible in a woman who reverences God and her honour. Butthis affection shall not be declared until your heart is capable of thatpatience which a virtuous love enjoins. At that time, my lord, I shallknow what to say, but meanwhile be assured that you do not love your ownwelfare, person and honour as I myself love them."
The Lord of Avannes timorously and with tears in his eyes entreated herearnestly to seal her words with a kiss, but she refused, saying thatshe would not break for him the custom of her country.
While this discussion was going on the husband came in, and my Lord ofAvannes said to him--
"I am greatly indebted, father, both to you and to your wife, and I prayyou ever to look upon me as your son."
This the worthy man readily promised.
"And to seal your love," said the Lord of Avannes, "I pray you let mekiss you." This he did, after which the Lord of Avannes said--:
"If I were not afraid of offending against the law, I would do the sameto your wife and my mother."
Upon this, the husband commanded his wife to kiss him, which shedid without appearing either to like or to dislike what her husbandcommanded her. But the fire that words had already kindled in the poorlord's heart, grew fiercer at this kiss which had been so earnestlysought for and so cruelly denied.
After this the Lord of Avannes betook himself to the castle to see hisbrother, the King, to whom he told fine stories about his journey toMontferrat. He found that the King was going to Oly and Taffares, (5)and, reflecting that the journey would be a long one, he fell into deepsadness, and resolved before going away to try whether the virtuous ladywere not better disposed towards him than she appeared to be.
5 Evidently Olite and Tafalla, the former at thirty and the latter at twenty-seven miles from Pamplona. The two towns were commonly called _la flor de Navarra_. King John doubtless intended sojourning at the summer palaces which his predecessor Carlos the Noble had built at either locality, and which were connected, it is said, by a gallery a league in length. Some ruins of these palaces still exist. --Ed.
He therefore went to lodge in the street in which she lived, where hehired an old house, badly built of timber. About midnight he set fire toit, and the alarm, which spread through the whole town, reached the richman's house. He asked from the window where the fire was, and hearingthat it was in the house of the Lord of Avannes, immediately hastenedthither with all his servants. He found the young lord in the street,clad in nothing but his shirt, whereat in his deep compassion he tookhim in his arms, and, covering him with his own robe, brought him homeas quickly as possible, where he said to his wife, who was in bed--
"Here, sweetheart, I give this prisoner into your charge. Treat him asyou would treat myself."
As soon as he was gone, the Lord of Avannes, who would gladly have beentreated like a husband, sprang lightly into the bed, hoping that placeand opportunity would bring this discreet lady to a different mind; buthe found the contrary to be the case, for as he leaped into the bed onone side, she got out at the other. Then, putting on her dressing-gown,she came up to the head of the bed and spoke as follows--
"Did you think, my lord, that opportunity could influence a chasteheart? Nay, just as gold is tried in the furnace, so a chaste heartbecomes stronger and more virtuous in the midst of temptation, andgrows colder the more it is assailed by its opposite. You may be sure,therefore, that had I been otherwise minded than I professed myself tobe, I should not have wanted means, to which I have paid no heed solelybecause I desire not to use them. So I beg of you, if you would have mepreserve my affection for you, put away not merely the desire but eventhe thought that you can by any means whatever make me other than I am."
While she was speaking, her women came in, and she commanded a collationof all kinds of sweetmeats to be brought; but the young lord couldneither eat nor drink, in such despair was he at having failed in hisenterprise, and in such fear lest this manifestation of his passionshould cost him the familiar intercourse that he had been wont to havewith her.
Having dealt with the fire, the husband came back again, and begged theLord of Avannes to remain at his house for the night. This he did,but in such wise that his eyes were more exercised in weeping than insleeping. Early in the morning he went to bid them farewell, while theywere still in bed; and in kissing the lady he perceived that she feltmore pity for the offence than anger against the offender, and thus wasanother brand added to the fire of his love. After dinner, he set outfor Taffares with the King; but before leaving he went again to takeyet another farewell of his good father and the lady who, after herhusband's first command, made no difficulty in kissing him as her son.
But you may be sure that the more virtue prevented her eyes and featuresfrom testifying to the hidden flame, the fiercer and more intolerabledid that flame become. And so, being unable to endure the war betweenlove and honour, which was waging in her heart, but which she hadnevertheless resolved should never be made apparent, and no longerhaving the comfort of seeing and speaking to him for whose sake aloneshe cared to live, she fell at last into a continuous fever, caused by amelancholic humour which so wrought upon her that the extremities of herbody became quite cold, while her inward parts burned without ceasing.The doctors, who have not the health of men in their power, began togrow very doubtful concerning her recovery, by reason of an obstructionthat affected the extremities, and advised her husband to admonish herto think of her conscience and remember that she was in God's hands--asthough indeed the healthy were not in them also.
The husband, who loved his wife devotedly, was so saddened by theirwords that for his comfort he wrote to the Lord of Avannes entreatinghim to take the trouble to come and see them, in the hope that the sightof him might be of advantage to the patient. On receiving the letter,the Lord of Avannes did not tarry, but started off post-haste to thehouse of his worthy father, where he found the servants, both men andwomen, assembled at the door, making such lament for their mistress asshe deserved.
So greatly amazed was he at the sight, that he remained on the thresholdlike one paralysed, until he beheld his good father, who embraced him,weeping the while so bitterly that he could not utter a word. Then heled the Lord of Avannes to the chamber of the sick lady, who, turningher languid eyes upon him, put out her hand and drew him to her withall the strength she had. She kissed and embraced him, and made wondrouslamentation, saying--
"O my lord, the hour has come when all dissimulation must cease, and Imust confess the truth which I have been at such pains to hide from you.If your affection for me was great, know that mine for you has been noless; but my grief has been greater than yours, because I have had theanguish of concealing it contrary to the wish of my heart. God and myhonour have never, my lord, suffered me to make it known to you, lestI should increase in you that which I sought to diminish; but you mustlearn that the 'no' I so often said to you pained me so greatly in theutterance that it has indeed proved the cause of my death.
"Nevertheless, I am glad it should be so, and that God in His graceshould have caused me to die before the vehemence of my love has stainedmy conscience and my fair fame; for smaller fires have ere now destroyedgreater and stronger structures. And I am glad that befo
re dying I havebeen able to make known to you that my affection is equal to your own,save only that men's honour and women's are not the same thing. AndI pray you, my lord, fear not henceforward to address yourself to thegreatest and most virtuous of ladies; for in such hearts do the deepestand discreetest passions dwell, and moreover, your own grace and beautyand worth will not suffer your love to toil without reward.
"I will not beg you, my lord, to pray God for me, because I know fullwell that the gate of Paradise is never closed against true lovers, andthat the fire of love punishes lovers so severely in this life herethat they are forgiven the sharp torment of Purgatory. And now, my lord,farewell; I commend to you your good father, my husband. Tell him thetruth as you have heard it from me, that he may know how I have lovedGod and him. And come no more before my eyes, for I now desire to thinkonly of obtaining those promises made to me by God before the creationof the world."
With these words she kissed him and embraced him with all the strengthof her feeble arms. The young lord, whose heart was as nearly deadthrough pity as hers was through pain, was unable to say a single word.He withdrew from her sight to a bed that was in the room, and thereseveral times swooned away.
Then the lady called her husband, and, after giving him much virtuouscounsel, commended the Lord of Avannes to him, declaring that next tohimself she had loved him more than any one upon earth, and so, kissingher husband, she bade him farewell. Then, after the extreme unction, theHoly Sacrament was brought to her from the altar, and this she receivedwith the joy of one who is assured of her salvation. And finding thather sight was growing dim and her strength failing her, she began toutter the "In manus" aloud.
Hearing this cry, the Lord of Avannes raised himself up on the bed wherehe was lying, and gazing piteously upon her, beheld her with a gentlesigh surrender her glorious soul to Him from whom it had come. When heperceived that she was dead, he ran to the body, which when alive he hadever approached with fear, and kissed and embraced it in such wise thathe could hardly be separated from it, whereat the husband was greatlyastonished, for he had never believed he bore her so much affection; andwith the words, "Tis too much, my lord," he led him away.
After he had lamented for a great while, the Lord of Avannes related allthe converse they had had together during their love, and how, until herdeath, she had never given him sign of aught save severity. This, whileit gave the husband exceeding joy, also increased his grief and sorrowat the loss he had sustained, and for the remainder of his days herendered service to the Lord of Avannes.
But from that time forward my Lord of Avannes, who was then onlyeighteen years old, went to reside at Court, where he lived for manyyears without wishing to see or to speak with any living woman by reasonof his grief for the lady he had lost; and he wore mourning for her sakeduring more than ten years. (6)
6 Some extracts from Brantome bearing on this story will be found in the Appendix, C.
"You here see, ladies, what a difference there is between a wanton ladyand a discreet one. The effects of love are also different in each case;for the one came by a glorious and praiseworthy death, while the otherlived only too long with the reputation of a vile and shameless woman.Just as the death of a saint is precious in the sight of God, so is thedeath of a sinner abhorrent."
"In truth, Saffredent," said Oisille, "you have told us the finest taleimaginable, and any one who knew the hero would deem it better still.I have never seen a handsomer or more graceful gentleman than was thisLord of Avannes."
"She was indeed a very virtuous woman," said Saffredent. "So as toappear outwardly more virtuous than she was in her heart, and to concealher love for this worthy lord which reason and nature had inspired,she must needs die rather than take the pleasure which she secretlydesired."
"If she had felt such a desire," said Parlamente, "she would have lackedneither place nor opportunity to make it known; but the greatness of hervirtue prevented her desire from exceeding the bounds of reason."
"You may paint her as you will," said Hircan, "but I know very well thata stronger devil always thrusts out the weaker, and that the pride ofladies seeks pleasure rather than the fear and love of God. Their robesare long and well woven with dissimulation, so that we cannot tell whatis beneath, for if their honour were not more easily stained than ours,(7) you would find that Nature's work is as complete in them as inourselves. But not daring to take the pleasure they desire, they haveexchanged that vice for a greater, which they deem more honourable, Imean a self-sufficient cruelty, whereby they look to obtain everlastingrenown.
7 This reading is borrowed from MS. No. 1520. In the MS. mainly followed for this translation, the passage runs as follows-"if their honour were not more easily stained than their hearts."--L.
By thus glorying in their resistance to the vice of Nature's law--if,indeed, anything natural be vicious--they become not only like inhumanand cruel beasts, but even like the devils whose pride and subtilitythey borrow." (8)
8 This reading is borrowed from MS. No. 1520. In our MS. the passage runs--"like the devils whose semblance and subtility they borrow."--L.
"Tis a pity," said Nomerfide, "that you should have an honourable wife,for you not only think lightly of virtue, but are even fain to provethat it is vice."
"I am very glad," said Hircan, "to have a wife of good repute, justas I, myself, would be of good repute. But as for chastity of heart, Ibelieve that we are both children of Adam and Eve; wherefore, when weexamine ourselves, we have no need to cover our nakedness with leaves,but should rather confess our frailty."
"I know," said Parlamente, "that we all have need of God's grace, beingall steeped in sin; but, for all that, our temptations are not similarto yours, and if we sin through pride, no one is injured by it, nordo our bodies and hands receive a stain. But your pleasure consists indishonouring women, and your honour in slaying men in war--two thingsexpressly contrary to the law of God." (9)
"I admit what you say," said Geburon, "but God has said, 'Whosoeverlooketh with lust, hath already committed adultery in his heart,' andfurther, 'Whosoever hateth his neighbour is a murderer.' (10) Do youthink that women offend less against these texts than we?"
9 This sentence, defective in our MS., is taken from No. 1520.--L.
10 1 St. John iii. 15.--M.
"God, who judges the heart," said Longarine, "must decide that. But itis an important thing that men should not be able to accuse us, for thegoodness of God is so great, that He will not judge us unless therebe an accuser. And so well, moreover, does He know the frailty of ourhearts, that He will even love us for not having put our thoughts intoexecution."
"I pray you," said Saffredent, "let us leave this dispute, for itsavours more of a sermon than of a tale. I give my vote to Ennasuite,and beg that she will bear in mind to make us laugh."
"Indeed," said she, "I will not fail to do so; for I would have you knowthat whilst coming hither, resolved upon relating a fine story to youto-day, I was told so merry a tale about two servants of a Princess,that, in laughing at it, I quite forgot the melancholy story which I hadprepared, and which I will put off until to-morrow; for, with the merryface I now have, you would scarce find it to your liking."
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[The Secretary imploring the Lady not To Tell Of His Wickedness]
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