Lives of Fair and Gallant Ladies. Vol 1Brantôme, Pierre de Bourdeille
History
Lives of Fair and Gallant Ladies. Vol 1
Brantôme, Pierre de Bourdeille
Erotic literature
Then other aged dames will be feeble of foot, and cannot follow up
their ladies at a round pace, so that by the time they do reach the
extremity of a walk or a wood or a room, the young ones have whipped
their little present into their pocket, without the old duenna having
observed what was a-doing, or seen aught whatever, being slow of foot
and dim of sight. Again there be yet other dames of the sort which,
themselves having plied the trade of old, do think it pity to see the
young fast, and are so good-natured to them, they will of their own
accord open the way for their charges, yea! and provoke them to follow
in the same, and help them all they can. Thus Aretino saith how the
greatest of pleasures for a woman that hath travelled that road, and
her highest satisfaction, is ever to make another do likewise.
And this is why, when a man doth crave the aid of a good minister for
his amours, he will alway apply and address himself to an old procuress
rather than to a young woman. So I do remember a certain very gallant
gentleman, which did mislike sorely, and did forbid it expressly, that
his wife should ever frequent the company of old women, as being much
too dangerous society,—but with younger women she might go as much
as she pleased. And for this course he would adduce many excellent
reasons, the which I will leave to men of apter discourse than I to
detail in full.
And this is why a certain Lord of the great world I know of did entrust
his wife, of whom he was very jealous, to a lady, a cousin of his own,
but unmarried, to be her _surveillante_. This office she did zealously
perform, albeit for her own part she did copy the half only of the
character of the gardener’s dog, seeing he doth never eat the cabbage
out of his master’s garden, nor yet will suffer other to do so; but
this lady would eat readily enough, but would never suffer her cousin.
Yet was the other forever filching some dainty bit, without her noting
it, cunning as she was,—or mayhap she did but make pretence not to see.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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