The Decameron of Giovanni Boccaccio

by Giovanni Boccaccio

  THE SECOND STORY

  [Day the Third]

  A HORSEKEEPER LIETH WITH THE WIFE OF KING AGILULF, WHO, BECOMING AWARE THEREOF, WITHOUT WORD SAID, FINDETH HIM OUT AND POLLETH HIM; BUT THE POLLED MAN POLLETH ALL HIS FELLOWS ON LIKE WISE AND SO ESCAPETH ILL HAP

  The end of Filostrato's story, whereat whiles the ladies had somelittle blushed and other whiles laughed, being come, it pleased thequeen that Pampinea should follow on with a story, and sheaccordingly, beginning with a smiling countenance, said, "Some are solittle discreet in seeking at all hazards to show that they know andapprehend that which it concerneth them not to know, that whiles,rebuking to this end unperceived defects in others, they think tolessen their own shame, whereas they do infinitely augment it; andthat this is so I purpose, lovesome ladies, to prove to you by thecontrary thereof, showing you the astuteness of one who, in thejudgment of a king of worth and valour, was held belike of lessaccount than Masetto himself.

  Agilulf, King of the Lombards, as his predecessors had done, fixed theseat of his kingship at Pavia, a city of Lombardy, and took to wifeTheodolinda[155] the widow of Autari, likewise King of the Lombards, avery fair lady and exceeding discreet and virtuous, but ill fortunedin a lover.[156] The affairs of the Lombards having, thanks to thevalour and judgment of King Agilulf, been for some time prosperous andin quiet, it befell that one of the said queen's horse-keepers, a manof very low condition, in respect of birth, but otherwise of worth farabove so mean a station, and comely of person and tall as he were theking, became beyond measure enamoured of his mistress. His mean estatehindered him not from being sensible that this love of his was out ofall reason, wherefore, like a discreet man as he was, he discovered itunto none, nor dared he make it known to her even with his eyes. But,albeit he lived without any hope of ever winning her favour, yetinwardly he gloried in that he had bestowed his thoughts in such highplace, and being all aflame with amorous fire, he studied, beyondevery other of his fellows, to do whatsoever he deemed might pleasurethe queen; whereby it befell that, whenas she had occasion to rideabroad, she liefer mounted the palfrey of which he had charge than anyother; and when this happened, he reckoned it a passing great favourto himself nor ever stirred from her stirrup, accounting himself happywhat time he might but touch her clothes. But, as often enough we seeit happen that, even as hope groweth less, so love waxeth greater, sodid it betide this poor groom, insomuch that sore uneath it was to himto avail to brook his great desire, keeping it, as he did, hidden andbeing upheld by no hope; and many a time, unable to rid himself ofthat his love, he determined in himself to die. And consideringinwardly of the manner, he resolved to seek his death on such wisethat it should be manifest he died for the love he bore the queen, towhich end he bethought himself to try his fortune in an enterprise ofsuch a sort as should afford him a chance of having or all or part ofhis desire. He set not himself to seek to say aught to the queen norto make her sensible of his love by letters, knowing he should speakand write in vain, but chose rather to essay an he might by practiceavail to lie with her; nor was there any other shift for it but tofind a means how he might, in the person of the king, who, he knew,lay not with her continually, contrive to make his way to her andenter her bedchamber. Accordingly, that he might see on what wise andin what habit the king went, whenas he visited her, he hid himselfseveral times by night in a great saloon of the palace, which laybetween the king's bedchamber and that of the queen, and one night,amongst others, he saw the king come forth of his chamber, wrapped ina great mantle, with a lighted taper in one hand and a little wand inthe other, and making for the queen's chamber, strike once or twiceupon the door with the wand, without saying aught, whereupon it wasincontinent opened to him and the taper taken from his hand. Notingthis and having seen the king return after the same fashion, hebethought himself to do likewise. Accordingly, finding means to have acloak like that which he had seen the king wear, together with a taperand a wand, and having first well washed himself in a bagnio, lesthaply the smell of the muck should offend the queen or cause her smokethe cheat, he hid himself in the great saloon, as of wont. Whenas heknew that all were asleep and it seemed to him time either to giveeffect to his desire or to make his way by high emprise[157] to thewished-for death, he struck a light with a flint and steel he hadbrought with him and kindling the taper, wrapped himself fast in themantle, then, going up to the chamber-door, smote twice upon it withthe wand. The door was opened by a bedchamber-woman, all sleepy-eyed,who took the light and covered it; whereupon, without saying aught, hepassed within the curtain, put off his mantle and entered the bedwhere the queen slept. Then, taking her desirefully in his arms andfeigning himself troubled (for that he knew the king's wont to bethat, whenas he was troubled, he cared not to hear aught), withoutspeaking or being spoken to, he several times carnally knew the queen;after which, grievous as it seemed to him to depart, yet, fearing lesthis too long stay should be the occasion of turning the gotten delightinto dolour, he arose and taking up the mantle and the light,withdrew, without word said, and returned, as quickliest he might, tohis own bed. He could scarce yet have been therein when the king aroseand repaired to the queen's chamber, whereat she marvelledexceedingly; and as he entered the bed and greeted her blithely, shetook courage by his cheerfulness and said, 'O my lord, what newfashion is this of to-night? You left me but now, after having takenpleasure of me beyond your wont, and do you return so soon? Have acare what you do.' The king, hearing these words, at once concludedthat the queen had been deceived by likeness of manners and person,but, like a wise man, bethought himself forthright, seeing thatneither she nor any else had perceived the cheat, not to make heraware thereof; which many simpletons would not have done, but wouldhave said, 'I have not been here, I. Who is it hath been here? How didit happen? Who came hither?' Whence many things might have arisen,whereby he would needlessly have afflicted the lady and given herground for desiring another time that which she had already tasted;more by token that, an he kept silence of the matter, no shame mightrevert to him, whereas, by speaking, he would have brought dishonourupon himself. The king, then, more troubled at heart than in looks orspeech, answered, saying, 'Wife, seem I not to you man enough to havebeen here a first time and to come yet again after that?' 'Ay, mylord,' answered she. 'Nevertheless, I beseech you have regard to yourhealth.' Quoth Agilulf, 'And it pleaseth me to follow your counsel,wherefore for the nonce I will get me gone again, without giving youmore annoy.' This said, taking up his mantle, he departed the chamber,with a heart full of wrath and despite for the affront that he saw hadbeen done him, and bethought himself quietly to seek to discover theculprit, concluding that he must be of the household and could not,whoever he might be, have issued forth of the palace. Accordingly,taking a very small light in a little lantern, he betook himself to avery long gallery that was over the stables of his palace and whereall his household slept in different beds, and judging that, whoeverhe might be that had done what the queen said, his pulse and thebeating of his heart for the swink endured could not yet have had timeto abate, he silently, beginning at one end of the gallery, fell tofeeling each one's breast, to know if his heart beat high. Althoughevery other slept fast, he who had been with the queen was not yetasleep, but, seeing the king come and guessing what he went seeking,fell into such a fright that to the beating of the heart caused by thelate-had fatigue, fear added yet a greater and he doubted not but theking, if he became aware of this, would put him to death withoutdelay, and many things passed through his thought that he should do.However, seeing him all unarmed, he resolved to feign sleep and awaitwhat he should do. Agilulf, then, having examined many and found nonewhom he judged to be he of whom he was in quest, came presently to thehorsekeeper and feeling his heart beat high, said in himself, 'This isthe man.' Nevertheless, an he would have nought be known of that whichhe purposed to do, he did nought to him but poll, with a pair ofscissors he had brought with him, somewhat on one side of his hair,which they then wore very long, so by that token he might k
now himagain on the morrow; and this done, he withdrew and returned to hisown chamber. The culprit, who had felt all this, like a shrewd fellowas he was, understood plainly enough why he had been thus marked;wherefore he arose without delay and finding a pair of shears, whereofit chanced there were several about the stables for the service of thehorses, went softly up to all who lay in the gallery and clipped eachone's hair on like wise over the ear; which having done without beingobserved, he returned to sleep. When the king arose in the morning, hecommanded that all his household should present themselves before him,or ever the palace-doors were opened; and it was done as he said.Then, as they all stood before him with uncovered heads, he began tolook that he might know him whom he had polled; but, seeing the mostpart of them with their hair clipped after one and the same fashion,he marvelled and said in himself, 'He whom I seek, for all he may beof mean estate, showeth right well he is of no mean wit.' Then, seeingthat he could not, without making a stir, avail to have him whom hesought, and having no mind to incur a great shame for the sake of apaltry revenge, it pleased him with one sole word to admonish theculprit and show him that he was ware of the matter; wherefore,turning to all who were present, he said, 'Let him who did it do it nomore and get you gone in peace.' Another would have been for givingthem the strappado, for torturing, examining and questioning, anddoing this, would have published that which every one should go aboutto conceal; and having thus discovered himself, though he should havetaken entire revenge for the affront suffered, his shame had not beenminished, nay, were rather much enhanced therefor and his lady'shonour sullied. Those who heard the king's words marvelled and longdebated amongst themselves what he meant by this speech; but noneunderstood it, save he whom it concerned, and he, like a wise man,never, during Agilulf's lifetime, discovered the matter nor ever againcommitted his life to the hazard of such a venture."

  [Footnote 155: Boccaccio calls her _Teudelinga_; but I know of noauthority for this form of the name of the famous Longobardian queen.]

  [Footnote 156: Referring apparently to the adventure related in thepresent story.]

  [Footnote 157: Lit. with high (_i.e._ worthy) cause (_con altacagione_).]