incomparable sisters of Arcadia) and that which made her fairness much the fairer was, that it was but a fair ambassador of a most fair mind; full of wit, and a wit which delighted more to judge itself than to shew itself: her speech being as rare, as precious; her silence without fullness; her modesty without affectation; her shamefacedness without ignorance: in sum, one that to praise well, one must first set down with himself what it is to be excellent: for so she is. “I think you think that these perfections meeting could not choose but find one another, and delight in what they found; for likeness {23} of manners is likely in reason to draw liking with affection; men’s actions do not always cross with reason: to be short, it did so indeed. They loved, although for a while the fire thereof (hope’s wings being cut off) were blown by the bellows of despair upon this occasion. “There had been a good while before, and so continued, a suitor to this same lady, a great noble man, though of Laconia, yet near neighbour to Parthenia’s mother, named Demagoras; a man mighty in riches and power, and proud thereof, stubbornly stout, loving nobody but himself, and, for his own delight’s sake, Parthenia: and pursuing vehemently his desire, his riches had so gilded over all his other imperfections that the old lady (though contrary to my lord her brother’s mind) had given her consent; and using a mother’s authority upon her fair daughter had made her yield thereunto, not because she liked her choice, but because her obedient mind had not yet taken upon it to make choice. And the day of their assurance drew near, when my young lord Clitophon brought this noble Argalus, perchance principally to see so rare a sight, as Parthenia by all well-judging eyes was judged.