unting out late miseries,
and, passing by everything that I can well omit, I shall only observe
that, when the city was almost depopulated, seven beautiful young
ladies, in deep mourning, met one Tuesday evening in Saint Mary's
Church, where indeed they composed the whole of the congregation. They
were all related to each other, either by the ties of birth, or by the
more generous bonds of friendship. Pampinea, the eldest, was
twenty-eight years of age; Fiammetta was a little younger; Filomena,
Emilia, Lauretta, and Neifile were still more youthful; and Elisa was
only eighteen years old.

After the service was over, they got into a corner of the church, and
began to devise what they should do, for they were now alone in the
world.

"I would advise," said Pampinea, "that we should leave Florence, for the
city is now dangerous to live in, not merely by reason of the plague,
but because of the lawless men that prowl about the streets and break
into our houses. Let us retire together into the country, where the air
is pleasanter, and the green hills and the waving corn-fields afford a
much more agreeable prospect than these desolate walls."

"I doubt," said Filomena, "if we could do this unless we got some man to
help us."

"But how can we?" exclaimed Elisa. "Nearly all the men of our circle are
dead, and the rest have gone away."

While they were talking, three handsome young cavaliers--Pamfilo,
Filostrato, and Dioneo--came into the church, looking for their
sweethearts, who by chance were Neifile, Pampinea, and Filomena.

"See," said Pampinea with a smile, "fortune is on our side. She has
thrown in our way three worthy gentlemen, who, I am sure, will come with
us if we care to invite them."

She then acquainted the cavaliers with her design, and begged them to
help her to carry it out. At first they took it all for a jest; but when
they found that the ladies were in earnest, they made arrangements to
accompany them. So the next morning, at the break of day, the ladies and
their maids, and the cavaliers and their men-servants, set out from
Florence, and after travelling for two miles they came to the appointed
place. It was a little wooded hill, remote from the highway, on the top
of which was a stately palace with a beautiful court, and fine
galleries, and splendid rooms adorned with excellent paintings. And
around it were fair green meadows, a delightful garden, fountains of
water, and pleasant trees.

Finding