fights are men's business, not women's, and it is not maidenly to
think or speak of them."

"But if they are so rudely enacted in our presence," said Catharine,
"it is a little hard to expect us to think or speak of anything
else. I will grant you, my father, that this valiant burgess of
Perth is one of the best hearted men that draws breath within its
walls: that he would walk a hundred yards out of the way rather
than step upon a worm; that he would be as loth, in wantonness,
to kill a spider as if he were a kinsman to King Robert, of happy
memory; that in the last quarrel before his departure he fought
with four butchers, to prevent their killing a poor mastiff that
had misbehaved in the bull ring, and narrowly escaped the fate of
the cur that he was protecting. I will grant you also, that the poor
never pass the house of the wealthy armourer but they are relieved
with food and alms. But what avails all this, when his sword makes
as many starving orphans and mourning widows as his purse relieves?"

"Nay, but, Catharine, hear me but a word before going on with a
string of reproaches against my friend, that sound something like
sense, while they are, in truth, inconsistent with all we hear
and see around us. What," continued the glover, "do our King and
our court, our knights and ladies, our abbots, monks, and priests
themselves, so earnestly crowd to see? Is it not to behold the
display of chivalry, to witness the gallant actions of brave knights
in the tilt and tourney ground, to look upon deeds of honour
and glory achieved by arms and bloodshed? What is it these proud
knights do, that differs from what our good Henry Gow works out in
his sphere? Who ever heard of his abusing his skill and strength
to do evil or forward oppression, and who knows not how often it