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Difficult To Please
(*) There is no author's name to this story in any of th...

The Obedient Wife
By The Editor. _ Of a man who was married to a woman so la...

Three Very Minor Brothers
By Poncelet. _Of three women of Malines, who were acquaint...

The Devil's Share
By The Marquis De Rothelin. _Of one of his marshals who ma...

The Sleeveless Robe
By Alardin. _Of a gentleman of Flanders, who went to resid...

The Lawyer's Wife Who Passed The Line
By Monseigneur De Commesuram. _Of a clerk of whom his mist...

The Armed Cuckold
By Monseigneur _The fourth tale is of a Scotch archer who ...

Necessity Is The Mother Of Invention
By Monseigneur De Commensuram. _Of a gentleman of Picardy ...

On The Blind Side
By Monseigneur Le Duc. _Of a knight of Picardy who went to...

Bids And Biddings
By Monseigneur De Launoy. _Of a number of boon companions ...

Love In Arms
By Monseigneur De La Roche. _Of a knight who made his wife...

The Jade Despoiled
By Messire Chrestien De Dygoigne. _Of a married man who fo...

The Calf
By Monseigneur de la Roche _Of a Dutchman, who at all hour...

The Drunkard In Paradise
By Monseigneur de Lannoy _The sixth story is of a drunkard...

Indiscretion Reproved, But Not Punished
By The Provost Of Wastennes. _Of a woman who heard her hus...

From Belly To Back
By Monseigneur De La Roche. _Of a gentleman of Burgundy wh...

The Reverse Of The Medal
By Monseigneur Le Duc _The first story tells of how one fo...

A Husband In Hiding
By Alardin. _Of a poor, simple peasant married to a nice, ...

The Use Of Dirty Water
By Monseigneur De La Roche. _Of a jealous man who recorded...

The Cow And The Calf
By Monseigneur _Of a gentleman to whom--the first night th...



The Woman At The Bath








By Philippe De Laon.

_Of an inn-keeper at Saint Omer who put to his son a question for which
he was afterwards sorry when he heard the reply, at which his wife was
much ashamed, as you will hear, later._


Some time ago I was at Saint Omer with a number of noble companions,
some from the neighbourhood and Boulogne, and some from elsewhere, and
after a game of tennis, we went to sup at the inn of a tavern-keeper,
who is a well-to-do man and a good fellow, and who has a very pretty and
buxom wife, by whom he has a fine boy, of the age of six or seven years.

We were all seated at supper, the inn-keeper, his wife, and her son,
who stood near her, being with us, and some began to talk, others to
sing and make good cheer, and our host did his best to make himself
agreeable.

His wife had been that day to the warm baths, and her little son with
her. So our host thought, to make the company laugh, to ask his son
about the people who were at the baths with his mother, (*) and said;

"Come here, my son, and tell me truly which of all the women at the
baths had the finest and the biggest c----?"

(*) The public baths were then much frequented, especially
by the lower classes. Men, women, and children all bathed
together.

The child being questioned before his mother, whom he feared as children
usually do, looked at her, and did not speak.

The father, not expecting to find him so quiet, said again;

"Tell me, my son; who had the biggest c---- Speak boldly."

"I don't know, father," replied the child, still glancing at his mother.

"By God, you lie," said his father. "Tell me! I want to know."

"I dare not," said the boy, "my mother would beat me."

"No, she will not," said the father. "You need not mind. I will see she
does not hurt you."

Our hostess, the boy's mother, not thinking that her son would tell (as
he did) said to him.

"Answer boldly what your father asks you."

"You will beat me," he said.

"No, I will not," she replied.

The father, now that the boy had permission to speak, again asked;

"Well, my son, on your word, did you look at the c----s of all the women
who were at the baths?"

"By St. John, yes, father."

"Were there plenty of them? Speak, and don't lie."

"I never saw so many. It seemed a real warren of c----s."

"Well then; tell us now who had the finest and the biggest?"

"Truly," replied the boy, "mother had the finest and biggest--but _he_
had such a large nose."

"Such a large nose?" said the father. "Go along, go along! you are a
good boy."

We all began to laugh and to drink, and to talk about the boy who
chattered so well. But his mother did not know which way to look, she
was so ashamed, because her son had spoken about a nose, and I expect
that he was afterwards well beaten for having told tales out of school.
Our host was a good fellow, but he afterwards repented having put
a question the answer to which made him blush. That is all for the
present.


*****





Next: The Woman With Three Husbands
Previous: Indiscretion Reproved, But Not Punished


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