A woman laying in child birth they call commair.
Our curds and whey (which they make not so oft as we) they call caill botte.[241] Milk is a great delicat in France. I never hard it cried up and doune the streits, as its wt us, tho they have many cries we have not.
[241] Caillebotte, curds,
They report of their sorciers and sorciares victches that they have their assembles and dances wt the Dewill, especially the evening of Marde gras. They look on the corbique or raven as a bad prognostick of death; the pie tells that some strangers's to come.
The Jesuites whipes their scollers wery cruelly, yea they whipt on to death at Poictiers: yet the father could obtaine nothing against them. The greatest affront that can be done to a woman is to cut the tayle of hir goune from hir, or even to cast ink in her face, since that a lovely face is the principal thing that commends a woman, hence as the greatest reproach a man can be upraided wt is bougre or j'en foute; so the greatest of their railings against a woman is to say, vous avez eu la robe coupé au queue. It hath bein practicat on some.
A man would take good heed that he never desire a woman a drink in company, for the Frenchwomen take it in very il part, and some hath gotten on the cheak for it.
They think a man does them honour in making them go before him; so that a Frenchman wil never readily steep in before any woman of faschion, tho it be just contraire in our country.
The 11 of November is St. Martins day, a very merry day in France. They passe it in eating, drinking and singing excesivelie. Every one tasts his new wine that day, and in tasting it takes to much; their be wery few but they are full. The Suisses and Alemmands (who drink like fisches, as we know in Mr. le Baron and his creatures at Orleans, each man each night could not sleip wt out his broll[242] or pot, which the Frenches their L'abbé Flacour and Brittoil mockt at) findes only 3 good festes in France, Mr. St. Martin,[243] Mr. les trois Rois, and Mr. marde gras, because al drinkes bitch full thess dayes.
[242] I have not found this word elsewhere.
[243] It was customary to speak of saints as Monsieur St. Martin, Mme. Ste. Catherine, etc. Lauder extends the usage (whether correctly or not) to Mardi Gras.