Читать книгу Tales of Humour, Gallantry & Romance, Selected and Translated from the Italian - Various Authors - Страница 5

When Bacciuolo saw her, he eagerly asked how matters had gone with her—“Bad enough,” said she, “I never was in such a fright. However, the case is, she will neither see nor hear you; and had I not been pretty quick in making off, I should have had a sound beating. For my part, I will not go near her again, and I advise you to have nothing more to do with her.”

Bacciuolo was quite broken-hearted at this intelligence, and went to report it to the professor, and related the whole transaction. “Be not alarmed, Bacciuolo, because the oak does not fall at the first stroke of the axe. There—go past the house this evening, and observe with what sort of an eye she views thee; find out, by the kind of glance she casts upon thee, whether she be angry or no; then come and tell me.” Bacciuolo went forth towards the lady’s house. When she saw him, she instantly called her maid, and said to her, “Go after that young man, and tell him to come to speak to me this evening, and not to fail.” So the maid went to him, and told him that the Lady Giovanna desired he would come that evening to her, as she wished to speak to him. Bacciuolo was in a strange surprize, but answered that he would most willingly do so; and then immediately returned to the professor, and informed him of what had happened. The professor was a little staggered, for somehow or other a suspicion struck him that it might be his own wife, and he thought to himself, if it should!—> And so it was in fact. “Well,” said he, “wilt thou go?”—“Certainly,” said Bacciuolo. “Well,” said the professor, “when you do go, go straight from here.”

“Very well, so I will,” said Bacciuolo.

This lady was the wife of the professor, but Bacciuolo did not know that. The professor, however, began to feel uneasy; for, in the winter, he used to sleep at the college to lecture the students late in an evening, and his wife lived alone with her maid. “I would not,” said the professor, “that this fellow should learn to make love at my expense—but I will know further.”

Evening coming on, Bacciuolo came to him, saying, “Good Sir, I am going.”—“Well,” said the professor, “speed be with you, but be wise.” Bacciuolo said, “leave me alone for that, you have not taught me for nothing,” and went away. He had put on a good cuirass, and provided himself with a stout rapier, and a stiletto in his girdle. When Bacciuolo was gone, the professor followed close at his heels, Bacciuolo little thinking whom he had got behind him. When arrived at the door, he tapped gently, and the lady herself instantly let him in, and the professor saw, to his astonishment, that it really was his wife. “Oh! oh! I see,” said he, “the fellow has made his progress at my cost and he began to think of killing him.” He went back to the college, bought a sword and a stiletto, returned furiously to the house, fully determined to make Signor Bacciuolo pay for his instructions, and reaching the door, he began to knock loudly. The lady was seated by the fire with Bacciuolo, and hearing the knocking, she immediately apprehended it might be her husband, and therefore concealed her lover under a heap of damp unironed linen which had been bundled up in a comer near the window. She then ran to the door, and demanded who was there. “Open the door, thou wicked woman,” cried the professor from without, “and thou wilt soon know it.” The lady opened the door, and, seeing him with a sword in his hand, exclaimed, “good heavens! what means this, my dear Sir?”—“Thou well knowest whom thou hast in the house,” he said. “Good heavens,” cried the lady, “what is it you mean, are you mad? Look over the house,” she said, “and if you find any one, I give you leave to execute your threats. How should I think of conducting myself otherwise than I always have done; beware, Sir, lest the evil spirit take possession of you, and lead you to destruction.”

The husband, having got a candle, went looking about all over the house; in the cellar, behind and under all the casks, butts, and indeed in every corner: then ran up stairs like a madman; searched every part ‘of the room, but the right one; under the bed; thrust his sword into every square inch of the bedding, yet could he not find any thing. The lady, who stuck close to him with a light in her hand, often repeated to him, “good master! cross yourself, for assuredly the evil spirit is in you, and has tempted you to seek after what does not exist, for if I had the most distant thought of such wickedness, I would be the death of myself. Therefore, I do entreat you not to suffer yourself to be seduced by such wicked thoughts.” Upon which the professor, unable to find the object of his search, and hearing what the lady had said, began to think he was mistaken in his suspicions, and so put out the light, and returned to the college.

The lady immediately brought out Bacciuolo from under the clothes, and lighted a large fire; put on it a famous fine capon to boil, and they pledged each other merrily, the lady often saying, “You see, my good little man has not found us out;” and so they cheerfully spent some hours together. In the morning Bacciuolo went to the professor, and said, “Oh, my good sir! I will make you laugh.”

“How is that?” said the professor. “Last night, after I had been a short time at the lady’s house, in came the husband, and though he hunted every where in search of me, he could not find me, for she had hidden me under a heap of damp linen, that were going to be dried; and the lady talked the poor fellow over so, that he soon went away; when we had a large capon for supper, drank some excellent wine, and had the best fun you can imagine, and I have promised to return again to night.”

“Be sure,” said the professor, “when you go this evening, to let me know.” Bacciuolo answered he would, and left the professor.

The professor meanwhile was in the utmost rage, and actually beside himself—so much so that he was not able to attend at the classes, he was so broken hearted. However, he consoled himself with the idea that he should catch him at night. So he purchased a breast plate, a light armour, and with his cuirass, rapier, and stiletto, cut quite a martial figure. When the time came, Bacciuolo innocently went to the professor, and said, “I am going.”

“Well,” said the professor, “go, and return to-morrow, and relate to me what may have happened.”

“I will,” said Bacciuolo, and marched off to the lady’s house. The professor put on his armour, and followed Bacciuolo close at his heels, and thought of overtaking him at the door. The lady, who was upon the watch, opened the door quickly, let in her lover, and shut it again like lightning. When the professor reached the house he began to knock with all his might, making a tremendous noise. The lady in an instant put out the light, and made Bacciuolo slide behind her, opened the door, and clasping her arms on the neck of her husband, whirled him round and gave Bacciuolo an opportunity of slipping out; at the same time crying, “help! help! the man is mad, the man is mad;” still holding the poor gentleman tight round the waist.