her slaves and servants attending her. On their arrival
Carrizales harangued all his domestics, enjoining them to keep careful
watch over Leonora, and by no means, on any pretence whatsoever, to
allow anybody to enter within the second gate, not even the black
eunuch. But the person whom above all others he charged with the safe
keeping and due entertainment of his wife was a duena of much prudence
and gravity, whom he had taken to be Leonora's monitress, and
superintendent of the whole house, and to command the slaves and two
other maidens of Leonora's age whom he had also added to his family,
that his wife might not be without companions of her own years. He
promised them all that he would treat them so well, and take such care
for their comfort and gratification, that they should not feel their
confinement, and that on holidays they should every one of them without
exception be allowed to go to mass; but so early in the morning that
daylight itself should scarcely have a chance of seeing them. The
servant maids and the slaves promised to obey all his orders cheerfully
and with prompt alacrity and the bride, with a timid shrinking of her
shoulders, bowed her head, and said that she had no other will than that
of her lord and spouse, to whom she always owed obedience.

Having thus laid down the law for the government of his household, the
worthy Estramaduran began to enjoy, as well as he could, the fruits of
matrimony, which, to Leonora's inexperienced taste, were neither
sweet-flavoured nor insipid. Her days were spent with her duena, her
damsels, and her slaves, who, to make the time pass more agreeably, took
to pampering their palates, and few days passed in which they did not
make lots of things in which they consumed a great deal of honey and
sugar. Their master gladly supplied them with all they could wish for in
that way without stint, for by that means he expected to keep them
occupied and amused, so that they should have no time to think of their
confinement and seclusion. Leonora lived on a footing of equality with
her domestics, amused herself as they did, and even in her simplicity
took pleasure in dressing dolls and other childish pastime. All this
afforded infinite satisfaction to the jealous husband; it seemed to him
that he had chosen the best way of life imaginable, and that it was not
within the compass of human art or malice to trouble his repose:
accordingly his whole care was devoted to anticipating