“As long as I am with her,” said the husband to the holy man, “the devil scarcely torments her.  But sprinkle some holy water upon her as soon as I am gone, and you will soon see how the evil spirit does his work.”

The husband left them alone together, and waited at the door to see how they would behave.  When the lady saw no one with her but the good father, she began to cry out like a woman bereft of reason, calling him rascal, villain, murderer, betrayer.  At this, the good father, thinking that she was surely possessed by an evil spirit, tried to put his hands upon her head, in order to utter his prayers upon it; but she scratched and bit him in such a fashion, that he was obliged to speak at a greater distance, whence, throwing a great deal of holy water upon her, he pronounced many excellent prayers.

When the husband saw that the Friar had done his duty, he came into the room and thanked him for his trouble.  At his entrance his wife ceased her cursings and revilings, and meekly kissed the cross in the fear she had of him.  But the holy man, having seen her in so great a frenzy, firmly believed that Our Lord had cast out the devil in answer to his prayer, and he went away, praising God for this wonderful miracle.

The husband, seeing that his wife was well punished for her foolish fancy, did not tell her of what he had done.  He was content to have subdued her affection by his own prudence, and to have so dealt with her that she now hated mortally what she had formerly loved, and, loathing her folly, devoted herself to her husband and household more completely than she had ever done before.

“In this story, ladies, you see the good sense of a husband and the frailty of a woman of repute.  I think that if you look carefully into this mirror you will no longer trust to your own strength, but will learn to have recourse to Him who holds your honour in His hand.”

“I am well pleased,” said Parlamente, “to find you become a preacher to the ladies, and I should be even more so if you would make these fine sermons to all those with whom you speak.”

“Whenever you are willing to listen to me,” said Hircan, “I promise you that I will say as much.”

“In other words,” said Simontault, “when you are not present, he will speak in a different fashion.”

“He will do as he pleases,” said Parlamente, “but for my content I wish to believe that he always speaks in this way.  At all events, the example he has brought forward will be profitable to those who believe that spiritual love is not dangerous.  In my opinion it is more so than any other.”

“Yet,” said Oisille, “it seems to me that to love a worthy, virtuous and God-fearing man is in nowise a matter for scorn, and that one cannot but be the better for it.”

“Madam,” said Parlamente, “I pray you believe that no one can be more simple or more easily deceived than a woman who has never loved.  For in itself love is a passion that seizes upon the heart before one is aware of it, and so pleasing a passion is it that, if it can make use of virtue as a cloak, it will scarcely be recognised before some mischief has come of it.”