George Herbert Meets the Obstetrician

There I was at my usual counter seat at Peet's, reading Herbert's A Priest to the Temple for Anglican Polity class. Two women arrived and took up a loud conversation about a recent doctor's appointment. So, my reading went this way:

"The parson is very exact in the governing of his house, making it a copy and model for his parish...his wife is either religious, or night and day he is winning her to it."

"So he said, 'I could prescribe something, but in the meantime, what have you learned from your behavior?"

"He keeps his servants between love and fear...to his children he shows more love than terror, to his servants more terror than love."

"I mean, he scared the living daylights outta me!"

"The parson exceeds not an hour in preaching..."

That appointment took forever! And he thinks I'm going to come back again next week!"