upon her: Insomuch, that she was enforced to
speake to him in this manner: My friend Thrasillus,
if thou be so contented untill the whole yeare be
compleate and finished, behold here is my bodie, take
thy pleasure, but in such sort and so secret that
no servant of the house may perceive it. Then
Thrasillus trusting to the false promises of the woman,
and preferring his inordinate pleasure above all things
in the world, was joyfull in his heart and looked
for night, when as he might have his purpose.
But come thou about midnight (quoth Charites) disguised
without companie, and doe but hisse at my chamber
doore, and my nourse shall attend and let thee in.
This counsell pleased Thrasillus marveilously, who
(suspecting no harme) did alwaies looke for night,
and the houre assigned by Charites. The time
was scarce come, when as (according to her commandement)
he disguised himselfe, and went straight to the chamber,
where he found the nourse attending for him, who (by
the appointment of her Mistresse) fed him with flattering
talke, and gave him mingled and doled drinke in a
cup, excusing the absence of her Mistresse Charites,
by reason that she attended on her Father being sick,
untill such time, that with sweet talke and operation
of the wine, he fell in a sound sleepe: Now when
he lay prostrate on the ground readie to all adventure,
Charites (being called for) came in, and with manly
courage and bold force stood over the sleeping murderer,
saying: Behold the faithfull companion of my
husband, behold this valiant hunter; behold me deere
spouse, this is the hand which shed my bloud, this
is the heart which hath devised so many subtill meanes
to worke my destruction, these be the eies whom I
have ill pleased, behold now they foreshew their owne
destinie: sleepe carelesse, dreame that thou art
in the hands of the mercifull, for I will not hurt
thee with thy sword or any other weapon: God
forbid that I should slay thee as thou slewest my
husband, but thy eies shall faile thee, and thou shalt
see no more, then that whereof thou dreamest:
Thou shalt thinke the death of thine enemie more sweet
then thy life: Thou shalt see no light, thou shalt
lacke the aide of a leader, thou shalt not have me
as thou hopest, thou shalt have no delight of my marriage,
thou shalt not die, and yet living thou shalt have
no joy, but wander betweene light and darknesse as
an unsure Image: thou shalt seeke for the hand
that pricked out thine eies, yet shalt thou not know
of whom thou shouldest complaine: I will make
sacrifice with the bloud of thine eies upon the grave
of my husband. But what gainest thou through
my delay? Perhaps thou dreamest that thou embracest
me in thy armes: leave off the darknesse of sleepe
and awake thou to receive a penall deprivation of
thy sight, lift up thy face, regard thy vengeance
and evill fortune, reckon thy miserie; so pleaseth
thine eies to a chast woman, that thou shall have
blindnesse to thy companion, and an everlasting remorse