I say this,
my lord, in reference to a certain gentleman" (naming her enemy) "who,
though reared by your own hand and treated more like a son than a
servant, has made a cruel and base attempt to ruin the honour of your
wife, in which is also bound up the honour of your house and your
children. Although for a long time he showed me such looks as pointed to
his wicked purpose, yet my heart, which only cares for you, understood
nothing of them; and so at last he declared himself in words to which
I returned a reply such as beseemed my condition and my chastity.
Nevertheless, I now so hate him that I cannot endure to look at him,
and for this cause I have continued in my own apartment and lost the
happiness of fellowship with you. I entreat you, my lord, keep not this
pestilence near your person; for, after such a crime, he might fear lest
I should tell you of it, and so attempt worse. This, my lord, is the
cause of my sorrow, and methinks it were right and fitting that you
should deal with it forthwith."
The Duke, who on the one hand loved his wife and felt himself grievously
affronted, and on the other loved his servant, whose faithfulness he had
so fully tried that he could scarce believe this falsehood against him,
was in great distress and filled with anger.
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