Gargantua and Pantagruel, Illustrated, Book 2 by François Rabelais
page 108 of 151 (71%)
page 108 of 151 (71%)
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In which place, waiting for a favourable wind, and caulking their ship,
he received from a lady of Paris, which I (he) had formerly kept and entertained a good long time, a letter directed on the outside thus, --To the best beloved of the fair women, and least loyal of the valiant men --P.N.T.G.R.L. Chapter 2.XXIV. A letter which a messenger brought to Pantagruel from a lady of Paris, together with the exposition of a posy written in a gold ring. When Pantagruel had read the superscription he was much amazed, and therefore demanded of the said messenger the name of her that had sent it. Then opened he the letter, and found nothing written in it, nor otherwise enclosed, but only a gold ring, with a square table diamond. Wondering at this, he called Panurge to him, and showed him the case. Whereupon Panurge told him that the leaf of paper was written upon, but with such cunning and artifice that no man could see the writing at the first sight. Therefore, to find it out, he set it by the fire to see if it was made with sal ammoniac soaked in water. Then put he it into the water, to see if the letter was written with the juice of tithymalle. After that he held it up against the candle, to see if it was written with the juice of white onions. Then he rubbed one part of it with oil of nuts, to see if it were not written with the lee of a fig-tree, and another part of it with the milk of a woman giving suck to her eldest daughter, to see if it was written with the blood of red toads or green earth-frogs. Afterwards he rubbed one |
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