At night he caused many candles to be lighted that he might see the ghost more clearly, and, after watching for a long time without hearing anything, he fell asleep; but immediately afterwards he was awaked by a buffet upon the cheek, and heard a voice crying, “Brenigne, Brenigne,” which had been the name of his grandmother. (3) Then he called to the serving-woman, who lay near them, (4) to light the candle, for all were now extinguished, but she durst not rise.  And at the same time the Lord of Grig-naulx felt the covering pulled from off him, and heard a great noise of tables, trestles and stools falling about the room; and this lasted until morning.  However, the Lord of Grignaulx was more displeased at losing his rest than afraid of the ghost, for indeed he never believed it to be any such thing.

1 This is John de Talleyrand, knight, lord of Grignols and Fouquerolles, Prince of Chalais, Viscount of Fronsac, mayor and captain of Bordeaux, chamberlain of Charles VIII., first majordomo and gentleman of honour in turn to two French Queens, Anne of Brittany and Mary of England.  His wife was Margaret de la Tour, daughter of Anne de la Tour, Viscount of Turenne, and Mary de Beaufort.  She bore him several children.  It was John de Talleyrand who warned Louise of Savoy that her son Francis, then Count of Angouleme, was paying court to the young Queen, Mary of England, wife to Louis XII.  Apprehensive lest this intrigue should destroy her son’s prospects, Louise prevailed on him to relinquish it (Brantome’s Dames Illustres).—­L. 4 89

2 The house haunted by the ghost would probably be Talleyrand’s chateau at Grignols, in the department of the Gironde.  His lordship of Fouquerolles was only a few miles distant, in the Dordogne, and this would be the estate to which his wife had retired.—­Ed.

3 Talleyrand’s grandmother on the paternal side was Mary of Brabant; the reference may be to his maternal grandmother, whose Christian name was possibly “Benigne.”  On the other hand, Boaistuau gives the name as Revigne, and among the old French noblesse were the Revigne and Revigny families.—­ Ed.

     4 See ante, note 2 to Tale XXXVII.

On the following night he resolved to capture this ghost, and so, when he had been in bed a little while, he pretended to snore very loudly, and placed his open hand close to his face.  Whilst he was in this wise waiting for the ghost, he felt that something was coming near him, and accordingly snored yet louder than before, whereat the ghost was so encouraged as to deal him a mighty blow.  Forthwith, the Lord of Grignaulx caught the ghost’s hand as it rested on his face, and cried out to his wife—­

“I have the ghost!”