The Tales Of The Heptameron Volume IV Part 7

"G.o.d has provided so wisely," said Oisille, "both for man and for woman, that I hold marriage, if it be not abused, to be the goodliest and securest condition imaginable, and I am sure that, whatever they may seem to do, all here present think the same. And if the man claims to be wiser than the woman, he will be the more severely blamed should the fault come from him. But enough of such talk. Let us now see to whom Dagoucin will give his vote."

"I give it," he said, "to Longarine."

"You do me a great pleasure," she replied, "for I have read a story that is worthy to follow yours. Since we are set upon praising the virtuous patience of ladies, I will show you one more worthy of praise than she of whom we have just been speaking. And she is the more deserving of esteem in that she was a city dame, and therefore one of those whose breeding is less virtuous than that of others."

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[Ill.u.s.tration: 083a.jpg The Lady of Tours questioning her Husband's Mistress]

[The Lady of Tours questioning her Husband's Mistress]

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_TALE x.x.xVIII_.

_A towns-woman of Tours returned so much good for all the evil treatment she had received from her husband, that the latter forsook the mistress whom he was quietly maintaining, and returned to his wife_. (1)

1 It is probable that the incidents related in this tale occurred between 1460 and 1470. They will be found recorded in the _Menagier de Paris_. (See Baron Pichon's edition, 1847, vol. i. p. 237). A similar narrative figures in some editions of Morlini's tales, notably the _Novello, Fabello, et Comedies, Neapoli_, 1520. We further find it in Gueudeville's translation of Erasmus's Colloquies (_Dialogue sur le mariage, collogues, &c., Leyden_, 1720, vol. i. p.

87), and Mr. Walter Keily has pointed out (the _Heptameron_, Bohn, 1864) that William Warner worked the same incidents into his poem _Albion's England_, his stanzas being reproduced in Percy's _Reliques_ under the t.i.tle of _The Patient Countess_.--L. and Ed.

In the city of Tours there dwelt a chaste and comely townswoman, who, by reason of her virtues, was not only loved but feared also and respected by her husband. Nevertheless, with all the fickleness of men who grow weary of ever eating good bread, he fell in love with a farm tenant (2) of his own, and would oft-time leave Tours to visit the farm, where he always remained two or three days; and when he came back to Tours he was always in so sorry a plight that his wife had much ado to cure him, yet, as soon as he was whole again, he never failed to return to the place where pleasure caused him to forget all his ills.

2 The French word here is _metayere_. The _metayer_ (fem.

metayere) was a farm tenant under the general control of his landlord, who supplied him with seed and took to himself a considerable portion of the produce. The system was done away with at the Revolution, but was revived here and there under the Restoration, when some of the n.o.bles came to "their own" again, and there may even nowadays be a few instances of the kind.--Ed.

When his wife, who was anxious above all things for his life and health, found him constantly return home in so evil a plight, she went to the farm and found there the young woman whom her husband loved. Then, without anger but with graceful courage, she told her that she knew her husband often went to see her, but that she was ill-pleased to find him always return home exhausted in consequence of her sorry treatment of him. The poor woman, influenced as much by respect for her mistress as by regard for the truth, was not able to deny the fact, and craved forgiveness.

The lady asked to see the room and bed in which her husband was wont to sleep, and found it so cold and dirty and ill-appointed that she was moved to pity. Forthwith she sent for a good bed furnished with sheets, blankets and counterpane such as her husband loved; she caused the room to be made clean and neat and hung with tapestries; provided suitable ware for his meat and drink, a pipe of good wine, sweetmeats and confections, and begged the woman to send him back no more in so miserable a state.

It was not long before the husband again went, as was his wont, to see his tenant, and he was greatly amazed to find his poor lodging in such excellent order. And still more was he surprised when the woman gave him to drink in a silver cup; and he asked her whence all these good things had come. The poor woman told him, weeping, that they were from his wife, who had taken such great pity on his sorry treatment that she had furnished the house in this way, and had charged her to be careful of his health.

When the gentleman saw the exceeding generosity of his wife in returning so much good for all the evil turns that he had done her, he looked upon his own wrongdoing as no less great than her kindness; and, after giving some money to his tenant, he begged her to live in future as an honest woman. Then he went back to his wife, acknowledged his wrongdoing, and told her that, but for her great gentleness and generosity, he could never have forsaken the life that he had been leading. And thenceforward, forgetting the past, they lived in all peacefulness together.

"You may be sure, ladies, that there are but few husbands whom a wife's love and patience cannot win at last, unless they be harder even than stone, which weak and yielding water will in time make hollow."

"That woman," said Parlamente, "had neither heart, gall nor liver."

"What would you have had her do?" said Longarine. "She practised what G.o.d commands, and returned good for evil." (3)

3 "Recompense to no man evil for evil."--_Rom_. xii. 17.

"Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing."--1 _Pet_. iii. 9.--Ed.

"I think," said Hircan, "she must have been in love with some Grey Friar, who had laid upon her the penance of having her husband well treated in the country, so that, meantime, she might be free to entertain herself well in the town."

"Therein," said Oisille, "you clearly show the wickedness of your own heart, judging ill of a good deed. I rather believe her to have been so subdued by the love of G.o.d that she cared for naught save the salvation of her husband's soul."

"It seems to me," said Simontault, "that he had more reason to return to his wife when he was so cold at the farm than afterwards when he was treated so well."

"From what I can see," said Saffredent, "you are not of the same opinion as the rich man of Paris who, when he lay with his wife, could not put off his gear without being chilled, but who never felt the worse when he went without cap or shoes, in the depth of winter, to see his servant-maid in the cellar. Yet his wife was very beautiful and the maid very ugly."

"Have you not heard," said Geburon, "that G.o.d always aids lunatics, lovers and sots? Perhaps he was all three in one."

"Do you thence conclude," said Pariamente, "that G.o.d recks not of the wise, the chaste and the temperate? Help is not needed by those who can help themselves. He who said that He had come for the sick and not for the whole, (4) came by the law of His mercy to succour our infirmities, thereby annulling the decrees of His rigorous justice; and he that deems himself wise is a fool in the sight of G.o.d. But, to end the sermon, to whom will Longarine give her vote?"

4 "They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick."--_St. Mark_ ii. 17. See also _St.

Luke_ v. 31.--Ed.

"I give it," she said, "to Saffredent."

"Then I hope," said Saffredent, "to prove to you that G.o.d does not favour lovers. For although it has already been said, ladies, that vice is common to men and women alike, yet will a subtle artifice be more readily and adroitly devised by a woman than by a man Of this I am now about to give you an instance."

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[Ill.u.s.tration: 089a.jpg The Lord of Grignaulx catching the Pretended Ghost]

[The Lord of Grignaulx catching the Pretended Ghost]

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_TALE x.x.xIX_.

_The Lord of Grignaulx freed his house from a ghost which had so tormented his wife that for the s.p.a.ce of two years she had dwelt elsewhere_.

A certain Lord of Grignaulx (1) who was gentleman of honour to the Queen of France, Anne, d.u.c.h.ess of Brittany, on returning to his house whence he had been absent during more than two years, found his wife at another estate, near by, and when he inquired the reason of this, she told him that a ghost was wont to haunt the house, and tormented them so much that none could dwell there. (2) Monsieur de Grig-naulx, who had no belief in such absurdities, replied that were it the devil himself he was not afraid of him, and so brought his wife home again.

At night he caused many candles to be lighted that he might see the ghost more clearly, and, after watching for a long time without hearing anything, he fell asleep; but immediately afterwards he was awaked by a buffet upon the cheek, and heard a voice crying, "Brenigne, Brenigne,"

which had been the name of his grandmother. (3) Then he called to the serving-woman, who lay near them, (4) to light the candle, for all were now extinguished, but she durst not rise. And at the same time the Lord of Grig-naulx felt the covering pulled from off him, and heard a great noise of tables, trestles and stools falling about the room; and this lasted until morning. However, the Lord of Grignaulx was more displeased at losing his rest than afraid of the ghost, for indeed he never believed it to be any such thing.

1 This is John de Talleyrand, knight, lord of Grignols and Fouquerolles, Prince of Chalais, Viscount of Fronsac, mayor and captain of Bordeaux, chamberlain of Charles VIII., first majordomo and gentleman of honour in turn to two French Queens, Anne of Brittany and Mary of England. His wife was Margaret de la Tour, daughter of Anne de la Tour, Viscount of Turenne, and Mary de Beaufort. She bore him several children. It was John de Talleyrand who warned Louise of Savoy that her son Francis, then Count of Angouleme, was paying court to the young Queen, Mary of England, wife to Louis XII. Apprehensive lest this intrigue should destroy her son's prospects, Louise prevailed on him to relinquish it (Brantome's _Dames Ill.u.s.tres_).--L. 4 89

2 The house haunted by the ghost would probably be Talleyrand's chateau at Grignols, in the department of the Gironde. His lords.h.i.+p of Fouquerolles was only a few miles distant, in the Dordogne, and this would be the estate to which his wife had retired.--Ed.

3 Talleyrand's grandmother on the paternal side was Mary of Brabant; the reference may be to his maternal grandmother, whose Christian name was possibly "Benigne." On the other hand, Boaistuau gives the name as Revigne, and among the old French _n.o.blesse_ were the Revigne and Revigny families.-- Ed.

4 See _ante_, note 2 to Tale x.x.xVII.

On the following night he resolved to capture this ghost, and so, when he had been in bed a little while, he pretended to snore very loudly, and placed his open hand close to his face. Whilst he was in this wise waiting for the ghost, he felt that something was coming near him, and accordingly snored yet louder than before, whereat the ghost was so encouraged as to deal him a mighty blow. Forthwith, the Lord of Grignaulx caught the ghost's hand as it rested on his face, and cried out to his wife--

"I have the ghost!"