e the dancer
appears about to take leave of his partner--_i.e._, _prendre conge_.
See Hen. VIII., IV. ii. l. 82, stage direction, 'congee.']

3. ss. 1st bar, left foot forward; 2nd bar, bring right foot up to the
said left foot; 3rd bar, advance the right foot; 4th bar, join the
left foot to the said right foot; et ainsi sera parfaict le mouvement
des deux simples.

N.B.--Always suit the length of your steps to the size of the room,
and the convenience of the Damoiselle, who cannot with modesty take
such big steps as you can.

4. d. 1st bar, advance left foot; and, advance right foot; 3rd,
advance left foot; 4th, join right to left. For _two_ doubles (dd) do
it over again, but contrariwise, beginning with the Right foot. For
_three_ doubles (ddd), the form of the third will be, 1st bar, advance
left foot; 2nd, advance right foot; 3rd, advance left foot; 4th, 'puis
tumbera pieds joincts comme a este faict au premier double.' And thus
(he carefully adds) the three doubles are achieved in 12 'battements
et mesures du tabourin.'

5. The Reprise (r) is commonly found before the branle (b), and
sometimes before the double (d) [see the Memoires]. In it you have to
cultivate a certain movement of the knees, or feet, or 'les artoils
seullement,' as if your feet were shaking under you. 1st bar, 'les
artoils' of the right foot; 2nd bar, do.; 3rd bar, of the left foot;
4th, of the right foot again.

The _Memoire_ of the movements of the basse dance--_i.e._, its first
Part, is--

R b ss d r | d r b ss ddd r d r b | ss d r b C.

The C means the 'conge,' or 'leave' which you must take of the
Damoiselle, salute her, and keep hold of her hand, and lead her back
to where you began, in order to dance the Second Part--namely, the
Retour de la basse dance, the _Memoire_ for which is--

b | d r b ss ddd r d r b | C.

[The nine movements enclosed between the upright lines, are the same
in both parts].

Capriol now remarks that he has been counting up, and finds that the
music of the _basse dance_ proper (part 1) has 20 'fours' (vingt
quaternions), and the _retour_ (part 2) has 12 'fours.'

Arbeau then describes the Tordion, which is Part 3 of the basse dance.
He says it is still in triple time, but 'plus legiere et concitee,'
and does not consist of 'simples, doubles, reprises,' etc., like the
first and second parts, but is danced almost exactly as a Galliard,
except that it is _par terre_--_i.e._, without any capers,