"Had your worship told me at the beginning of your story that the Lady

Luscinda was fond of books of chivalry, no other laudation would have

been requisite to impress upon me the superiority of her understanding,

for it could not have been of the excellence you describe had a taste for

such delightful reading been wanting; so, as far as I am concerned, you

need waste no more words in describing her beauty, worth, and

intelligence; for, on merely hearing what her taste was, I declare her to

be the most beautiful and the most intelligent woman in the world; and I

wish your worship had, along with Amadis of Gaul, sent her the worthy Don

Rugel of Greece, for I know the Lady Luscinda would greatly relish

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Daraida and Garaya, and the shrewd sayings of the shepherd Darinel, and

the admirable verses of his bucolics, sung and delivered by him with such

sprightliness, wit, and ease; but a time may come when this omission can

be remedied, and to rectify it nothing more is needed than for your

worship to be so good as to come with me to my village, for there I can

give you more than three hundred books which are the delight of my soul

and the entertainment of my life;--though it occurs to me that I have not

got one of them now, thanks to the spite of wicked and envious

enchanters;--but pardon me for having broken the promise we made not to

interrupt your discourse; for when I hear chivalry or knights-errant

mentioned, I can no more help talking about them than the rays of the sun

can help giving heat, or those of the moon moisture; pardon me,

therefore, and proceed, for that is more to the purpose now."

While Don Quixote was saying this, Cardenio allowed his head to fall upon

his breast, and seemed plunged in deep thought; and though twice Don

Quixote bade him go on with his story, he neither looked up nor uttered a

word in reply; but after some time he raised his head and said, "I cannot

get rid of the idea, nor will anyone in the world remove it, or make me

think otherwise--and he would be a blockhead who would hold or believe

anything else than that that arrant knave Master Elisabad made free with

Queen Madasima."

"That is not true, by all that's good," said Don Quixote in high wrath,

turning upon him angrily, as his way was; "and it is a very great

slander, or rather villainy. Queen Madasima was a very illustrious lady,

and it is not to be supposed that so exalted a princess would have made

free with a quack; and whoever maintains the contrary lies like a great

scoundrel, and I will give him to know it, on foot or on horseback, armed

or unarmed, by night or by day, or as he likes best."




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