not believe it, however, on account of the many notable tokens of love
that were shown him by his wife.

Nevertheless, he one day determined to put the matter to the test, and
to take revenge, if he were able, on the woman who had put him to such
shame. For this purpose he pretended to go away to a place a short
distance off for the space of two or three days.

As soon as he was gone, his wife sent for her lover, but he had not been
with her for half-an-hour when the husband arrived and knocked loudly at
the door. The wife well knew who it was and told her lover, who was so
greatly confounded that he would fain have been in his mother's womb,
and cursed both his mistress and the love that had brought him into such
peril. However, she bade him fear nothing, for she would devise a means
to get him away without harm or shame to him, and she told him to dress
himself as quickly as he could. All this time the husband was knocking
at the door and calling to his wife at the top of his voice; but she
feigned not to recognise him, and cried out to the people of the house--

"Why do you not get up and silence those who are making such a clamour
at the door? Is this an hour to come to the houses of honest folk? If my
husband were here he would soon make them desist."

On hearing his wife's voice the husband called to her as loudly as he
could--

"Wife, open the door. Are you going to keep me waiting here till
morning?"

Then, when she saw that her lover was ready to set forth, she opened the
door.

"Oh, husband!" she began, "how glad I am that you are come. I have just
had a wonderful dream, and was so pleased that I never before knew such
delight, for it seemed to me that you had recovered the sight of your
eye." (1)

1 This is taken from No. xvi. of the _Cent Nouvelles
Nouvelles_, in which the wife exclaims: "Verily, at the very
moment when you knocked, my lord, I was greatly occupied
with a dream about you."--"And what was it, sweetheart?"
asks the husband.--"By my faith, my lord," replies the wife,
"it really seemed to me that you were come back, that you
were speaking to me, and that you saw as clearly with one
eye as with the other."--Ed.

Then, embracing and kissing him, she took him by the head and covering
his good eye with one hand, she asked him--

"Do you not see better than you did before?"

At that moment, whilst he saw not a whit, she made her lover sally
for