Lanval had left his house early to discuss the present trouble with his priests. Passing through the Place d’Armes, his attention was drawn to the public water pump where a man exchanged words with a woman who began to cry, the sound resonating around the empty square. Although he did not recognise her, he felt obliged to assist, if he could. The man berating the distressed woman towered above her – a brute holding a wineskin in one hand and a cudgel in the other. His words were slurred,
“Have you not heard – it’s the law!”
She had not heard. Taking a drink, he explained,
“You pray at Saint Sauveur church, don’t you?”
“Yes, I do.”
“Then you’re only allowed to draw half a pail any day and I can see yours is already half-full. If you’re a Catholic, that’s your ration – half a pail – it’
