the comfits that are eaten,or the value of the wines that are drunk. Nor, my pumpkin o' wit, would Ihave you suppose that, when we are there, we wear our common clothes,such as you now see me wear; nay, there is none there so humble but heshews as an emperor, so sumptuous are our garments, so splendid ourtrappings. But among all the delights of the place none may compare withthe fair ladies, who, so one do but wish, are brought thither from everypart of the world. Why, you might see there My Lady of the Barbanichs,the Queen of the Basques, the Consort of the Soldan, the Empress ofOsbech, the Ciancianfera of Nornieca, the Semistante of Berlinzone, andthe Scalpedra of Narsia. But why seek to enumerate them all? They includeall the queens in the world, ay, even to the Schinchimurra of PresterJohn, who has the horns sprouting out of her nether end: so there's foryou. Now when these ladies have done with the wine and the comfits, theytread a measure or two, each with the man at whose behest she is come,and then all go with their gallants to their chambers. And know that eachof these chambers shews as a very Paradise, so fair is it, ay, and noless fragrant than the cases of aromatics in your shop when you arepounding the cumin: and therein are beds that you would find more goodlythan that of the Doge of Venice, and 'tis in them we take our rest; andhow busily they ply the treadle, and how lustily they tug at the frame tomake the stuff close and compact, I leave you to imagine. However, amongthe luckiest of all I reckon Buffalmacco and myself; for that Buffalmaccofor the most part fetches him the Queen of France, and I do the like withthe Queen of England, who are just the finest women in the world, and wehave known how to carry it with them so that we are the very eyes oftheir heads. So I leave it to your own judgment to determine whether wehave not good cause to live and bear ourselves with a lighter heart thanothers, seeing that we are beloved of two such great queens, to saynothing of the thousand or two thousand florins that we have of themwhenever we are so minded. Now this in the vulgar we call going thecourse, because, as the corsairs prey upon all the world, so do we;albeit with this difference, that, whereas they never restore theirspoil, we do so as soon as we have done with it. So now, my worthyMaster, you understand what we mean by going the course; but how close itbehoves you to keep such a secret, you may see for yourself; so I spareyou any further exhortations."
The Master, whose skill did not reach, perhaps, beyond the treatment ofchildren for the scurf, took all that Bruno said for gospel, and burnedwith so vehement a desire to be admitted into this company, that he couldnot have longed for the summum bonum itself with more ardour. So, aftertelling Bruno that indeed 'twas no wonder they bore them lightheartedly,he could scarce refrain from asking him there and then to have himenrolled, albeit he deemed it more prudent to defer his suit, until bylavishing honour upon him he had gained a right to urge it with moreconfidence. He therefore made more and more of him, had him to breakfastand sup with him, and treated him with extraordinary respect. In short,such and so constant was their intercourse that it seemed as though theMaster wist not how to live without Bruno. As it went so well with him,Bruno, to mark his sense of the honour done him by the doctor, painted inhis saloon a picture symbolical of Lent, and an Agnus Dei at the entranceof his chamber, and an alembic over his front door, that those who wouldfain consult him might know him from other physicians, besides a battleof rats and mice in his little gallery, which the doctor thought anextremely fine piece. And from time to time, when he had not supped withthe Master, he would say to him:--"Last night I was with the company, andbeing a little tired of the Queen of England, I fetched me the Gumedra ofthe great Can of Tarisi." "Gumedra," quoth the Master; "what is she? Iknow not the meaning of these words." "Thereat, Master," replied Bruno,"I marvel not; for I have heard tell that neither Porcograsso norVannacena say aught thereof." "Thou wouldst say Ippocrasso and Avicenna,"returned the Master. "I'faith I know not," quoth Bruno. "I as ill knowthe meaning of your words as you of mine. But Gumedra in the speech ofthe great Can signifies the same as Empress in ours. Ah! a fine woman youwould find her, and plenty of her! I warrant she would make you forgetyour drugs and prescriptions and plasters." And so, Bruno from time totime whetting the Master's appetite, and the Master at length thinkingthat by his honourable entreatment of him he had fairly made a conquestof Bruno, it befell that one evening, while he held the light for Bruno,who was at work on the battle of rats and mice, he determined to discoverto him his desire; and as they were alone, thus he spoke:--"God knows,Bruno, that there lives not the man, for whom I would do as much as forthee: why, if thou wast to bid me go all the way from here toPeretola,(3) I almost think I would do so; wherefore I trust thou wiltnot deem it strange if I talk to thee as an intimate friend and inconfidence. Thou knowest 'tis not long since thou didst enlarge with meon thy gay company and their doings, which has engendered in me such adesire as never was to know more thereof. Nor without reason, as thouwilt discover, should I ever become a member of the said company, for Istraightway give thee leave to make game of me, should I not then fetchme the fairest maid thou hast seen this many a day, whom I saw last yearat Cacavincigli, and to whom I am entirely devoted; and by the body ofChrist I offered her ten Bolognese groats, that she should pleasure me,and she would not. Wherefore I do most earnestly entreat thee to instructme what I must do to fit myself for membership in the company; and neverdoubt that in me you will have a true and loyal comrade, and one thatwill do you honour. And above all thou seest how goodly I am of myperson, and how well furnished with legs, and of face as fresh as a rose;and therewithal I am a doctor of medicine, and I scarce think you haveany such among you; and not a little excellent lore I have, and many agood song by heart, of which I will sing thee one;" and forthwith he fella singing.
Bruno had such a mind to laugh, that he could scarce contain himself; butstill he kept a grave countenance; and, when the Master had ended hissong, and said:--"How likes it thee?" he answered:--"Verily, no lyre ofstraw could vie with you, so artargutically(4) you refine your strain.""I warrant thee," returned the Master, "thou hadst never believed it,hadst thou not heard me." "Ay, indeed, sooth sayst thou," quoth Bruno."And I have other songs to boot," said the Master; "but enough of this atpresent. Thou must know that I, such as thou seest me, am a gentleman'sson, albeit my father lived in the contado; and on my mother's side Icome of the Vallecchio family. And as thou mayst have observed I havequite the finest library and wardrobe of all the physicians in Florence.God's faith! I have a robe that cost, all told, close upon a hundredpounds in bagattines(5) more than ten years ago. Wherefore I make mostinstant suit to thee that thou get me enrolled, which if thou do, God'sfaith! be thou never so ill, thou shalt pay me not a stiver for mytendance of thee." Whereupon Bruno, repeating to himself, as he had donemany a time before, that the doctor was a very numskull:--"Master," quothhe, "shew a little more light here, and have patience until I have putthe finishing touches to the tails of these rats, and then I will answeryou." So he finished the tails, and then, putting on an air as if he werenot a little embarrassed by the request:--"Master mine," quoth he, "Ishould have great things to expect from you; that I know: but yet whatyou ask of me, albeit to your great mind it seems but a little thing, isa weighty matter indeed for me; nor know I a soul in the world, to whom,though well able, I would grant such a request, save to you alone: andthis I say not for friendship's sake alone, albeit I love you as I ought,but for that your discourse is so fraught with wisdom, that 'tis enoughto make a beguine start out of her boots, much more, then, to incline meto change my purpose; and the more I have of your company, the wiser Irepute you. Whereto I may add, that, if for no other cause, I shouldstill be well disposed towards you for the love I see you bear to thatfair piece of flesh of which you spoke but now. But this I must tell you:'tis not in my power to do as you would have me in this matter; but,though I cannot myself do the needful in your behalf, if you will pledgeyour faith, whole and solid as may be, to keep my secret, I will shew youhow to go about it for yourself, and I make no doubt that, having thisfine library and the other matters you spoke of a while ago, you willcompass your
end." Quoth then the Master:--"Nay, but speak freely; I seethou dost yet scarce know me, and how well I can keep a secret. Therewere few things that Messer Guasparruolo da Saliceto did, when he wasPodesta of Forlinpopoli, that he did not confide to me, so safe he knewthey would be in my keeping: and wouldst thou be satisfied that I saysooth? I assure you I was the first man whom he told that he was about tomarry Bergamina: so there's for thee." "Well and good," said Bruno, "ifsuch as he confided in you, well indeed may I do the like. Know, then,that you will have to proceed on this wise:--Our company is governed by acaptain and a council of two, who are changed every six months: and onthe calends