propped up the lid, they fell into dispute of who
should go in, and none was willing to do it. However, after long
parley, a priest said, 'What fear ye? Think you he will eat you? The
dead eat not men. I will go in myself.' So saying, he set his breast
to the marge of the tomb and turning his head outward, put in his
legs, thinking to let himself drop. Andreuccio, seeing this, started
up and catching the priest by one of his legs, made a show of offering
to pull him down into the tomb. The other, feeling this, gave a
terrible screech and flung precipitately out of the tomb; whereupon
all the others fled in terror, as they were pursued by an hundred
thousand devils, leaving the tomb open.

Andreuccio, seeing this, scrambled hastily out of the tomb, rejoiced
beyond all hope, and made off out of the church by the way he had
entered in. The day now drawing near, he fared on at a venture, with
the ring on his finger, till he came to the sea-shore and thence made
his way back to his inn, where he found his comrades and the host, who
had been in concern for him all that night. He told them what had
betided him and themseemed, by the host's counsel, that he were best
depart Naples incontinent. Accordingly, he set out forthright and
returned to Perugia, having invested his money in a ring, whereas he
came to buy horses."

THE SIXTH STORY

[Day the Second]

MADAM BERITOLA, HAVING LOST HER TWO SONS, IS FOUND ON A
DESERT ISLAND WITH TWO KIDS AND GOETH THENCE INTO LUNIGIANA,
WHERE ONE OF HER SONS, TAKING SERVICE WITH THE LORD OF THE
COUNTRY, LIETH WITH HIS DAUGHTER AND IS CAST INTO PRISON.
SICILY AFTER REBELLING AGAINST KING CHARLES AND THE YOUTH
BEING RECOGNIZED BY HIS MOTHER, HE ESPOUSETH HIS LORD'S
DAUGHTER, AND HIS BROTHER BEING LIKEWISE FOUND, THEY ARE ALL
THREE RESTORED TO HIGH ESTATE

Ladies and young men alike laughed heartily at Andreuccio's
adventures, as related by Fiammetta, and Emilia, seeing the story
ended, began, by the queen's commandment, to speak thus: "Grievous
things and woeful are the various shifts of Fortune, whereof,--for
that, whenassoever it is discoursed of them, it is an awakenment for
our minds, which lightly fall asleep under her blandishments,--methinketh
it should never be irksome either to the happy or the unhappy to hear
tell, inasmuch as it rendereth the former wary and consoleth the
latter. Wherefore, albeit great things have already been re