In their own shapes; for it can never be, Boyet. They will, they will, heaven knows; And leap for joy, though they are lame with blows: Therefore, change favours; and, when they repair, Blow like sweet roses in this summer air. Prin. How blow? how blow? speak to be understood. Boyet. Fair ladies, mask'd, are roses in their bud: Dismask'd, their damask sweet commixture shown, Are angels vailing clouds, or roses blown. Prin. Avaunt, perplexity! What shall we do, If they return in their own shapes to woo? Ros. Good madam, if by me you'll be advis'd, Let's mock them still, as well known, as disguis'd: Let us complain to them what fools were here, Disguis'd like Muscovites, in shapeless gear; And wonder, what they were; and to what end Their shallow shows, and prologue vilely penn'd, And their rough carriage so ridiculous, Should be presented at our tent to us. Boyet. Ladies, withdraw; the gallants are at hand. Prin. Whip to our tents, as roes run over land. [Exeunt PRINCESS, Ros. KATH. and MARIA. Enter the KING, BIRON, LONGAVILLE, and DUMAIN in their proper habits. King. Fair sir, heaven save you! Where is the princess? Boyet. Gone to her tent: Please it your majesty, Command me any service to her thither? King. That she vouchsafe me audience for one word. Boyet. I will; and so will she, I know, my lord. [Exit. Biron. This fellow picks up wit, as pigeons peas; And utters it again when Jove doth please: He is wit's pedler; and retails his wares At wakes, and wassels, meetings, markets, fairs; He can carve too, and lisp: Why, this is he, That kiss'd away his hand in courtesy ; This is the ape of form, monsieur the nice, That, when he plays at tables, chides the dice In honourable terms; nay, he can sing A mean 6 most meanly; and, in ushering, Mend him who can: the ladies call him, sweet; The stairs, as he treads on them, kiss his feet: This is the flower that smiles on every one, To show his teeth as white as whales' bone 7: And consciences, that will not die in debt, Pay him the due of honey-tongued Boyet. King. A blister on his sweet tongue, with my heart, That put Armado's page out of his part! Enter the PRINCESS, ushered by BOYET; ROSALINE, Till this man show'd thee? and what art thou now? 5 Rustic merry-meetings. The tenor in musick. Prin. This field shall hold me; and so hold your VOW: Nor heaven, nor I, delight in perjur'd men. King Rebuke me not for that which you provoke; The virtue of your eye must break my oath. Prin. You nick-name virtue: vice you should have spoke; For virtue's office never breaks men's troth. Now by my maiden honour, yet as pure As the unsullied lily, I protest, A world of torments though I should endure, Prin. Ay, in truth, my lord; Trim gallants, full of courtship, and of state. Ros. Madam, speak true: It is not so, my lord; My lady, (to the manner of the days 8,) In courtesy, gives undeserving praise. We four indeed, confronted here with four In Russian habit: here they stay'd an hour, And talk'd apace; and in that hour, my lord, They did not bless us with one happy word. I dare not call them fools; but this I think, When they are thirsty, fools would fain have drink. Biron. This jest is dry to me Fair, gentle, And I will wish thee never more to dance, Nor never more in Russian habit wait. O! never will I trust to speeches penn'd, Nor to the motion of a school-boy's tongue; Nor never come in visor to my friend; Nor woo in rhyme, like a blind harper's song: Taffata phrases, silken terms precise, Three-pil'd hyperboles, spruce affectation, Figures pedantical; these summer-flies Have blown me full of maggot ostentation: I do forswear them: and I here protest, By this white glove, (how white the hand, Henceforth my wooing mind shall be express'd Biron. Yet I have a trick Of the old rage: - bear with me, I am sick; I'll leave it by degrees. Soft, let us see ; — Write, heaven have mercy on us, on those three; They are infected, in their hearts it lies; They have the plague, and caught it of your eyes: These lords are visited; you are not free, For the Lord's tokens on you do I see. Prin. No, they are free, that gave these tokens to us. Biron. Our states are forfeit, seek not to undo us. Ros. It is not so: For how can this be true, That you stand forfeit, being those that sue? Biron. Peace; for I will not have to do with you. Ros. Nor shall not, if I do as I intend. Biron. Speak for yourselves, my wit is at an end. King. Teach us, sweet madam, for our rude transgression Some fair excuse. King. Madam, I was. Prin. And were you well advis'd? King. Upon mine honour, no. Peace, peace, forbear; Your oath once broke, you force not to forswear. King. Despise me, when I break this oath of mine. Prin. I will; and therefore keep it : - Rosaline, What did the Russian whisper in your ear? Ros. Madam, he swore, that he did hold me dear As precious eye-sight; and did value me Above this world: adding thereto, moreover, That he would wed me, or else die my lover. Prin. Heaven give thee joy of him! the noble lord Most honourably doth uphold his word. King. What mean you, madam? by my life, my troth, I never swore this lady such an oath. Ros. By heaven you did; and to confirm it plain You gave me this: but take it, sir, again. King. My faith, and this, the princess I did give; I knew her by this jewel on her sleeve. Prin. Pardon me, sir, this jewel did she wear; And lord Birón, I thank him, is my dear: — What; will you have me, or your pearl again? Biron. Neither of either; I remit both twain.Make no difficulty. That smiles his cheek in years; and knows the trick Cost. O, sir, the parties themselves, the actors, sir, will show whereuntil it doth amount: for my man, - e'en one poor man; Pompion the great, sir. own part, I am, as they say, but to parfect one Biron. Art thou one of the worthies? Cost. It pleased them, to think me worthy of Pompion the great for mine own part, I know not the degree of the worthy: but I am to stand for him. Biron. Go, bid them prepare, Where zeal strives to content, and the contents Enter ARMADO. Arm. Anointed, I implore so much expence of thy royal sweet breath, as will utter a brace of words. [ARMADO converses with the King, and de livers him a paper. That's all one, my fair, sweet, honey monarch: for, I protest, the schoolmaster is exceeding fantastical; too, too vain; too, too vain: But we will put it, as they say, to fortuna della guerra. I wish you the peace of mind, most royal couplement ! [Exit ARMADO. King. Here is like to be a good presence of worthies: He presents Hector of Troy; the swain, Pompey the great; the parish curate, Alexander; Armado's page, Hercules; the pedant, Judas Ma chabæus. Biron. There is five in the first show. King. You are deceiv'd, 'tis not so. Biron. The pedant, the braggart, the hedgepriest, the fool, and the boy : Abate a throw at novum 4; and the whole world again, Cannot pick out five such, take each one in his vein. King. The ship is under sail, and here she comes amain. [Seats brought for the King, Princess, &c. Pageant of the Nine Worthies. Enter COSTARD arm'd for Pompey. Cost. I Pompey am, Boyet. Yu lie, you are not he. My 'scutcheon plain declares, that I am Alisander. Boyet. Your nose says, no, you are not; for it stands too right. Prin. The conqueror is dismay'd. Proceed, good Alexander. Nath. When in the world I liv'd, I was the world's commander;· - Boyet. Most true, 'tis right; you were so, Ali sander. Biron. Pompey the great, Cost. Your servant, and Costárd. Biron. Take away the conqueror, take away Alisander. Cost. O, sir, [To NATH.] you have overthrown Alisander the conqueror! You will be scraped out of the painted cloth for this. A conqueror, and afeard to speak! run away for shame, Alisander. [NATH. retires.] There, an't shall please you; a foolish mild man ; an honest man, look you, and soon dash'd! He is a marvellous good neighbour, insooth; and a very good bowler: but, for Alisander, alas, you see, how 'tis ; — a little o'erparted : But there are worthies a coming will speak their mind in some other sort. Prin. Stand aside, good Pompey. Enter HOLOFERNES arm'd, and MоTH arm'd, for Hercules. Hol. Great Hercules is presented by this imp, Whose club kill'd Cerberus, that three-headed canus ; And when he was a babe, a child, a shrimp, Thus did he strangle serpents in his manus [Exit MOTH. Hol. Judas I am, yeleped Machabæus. Hol. You have put me out of countenance. Enter ARMADO arm'd, for Hector. Dum. Though my mocks come home by me, I will now be merry. King. Hector was but a Trojan in respect of this. Boyet. But is this Hector? Dum. I think, Hector was not so clean-timber'd Long. His leg is too big for Hector. The armipotent Mars, of lances the mighty, A man so breath'd, that certain he would fight, yea I am that flower, Dum. Long. That mint. That columbine. Arm. Sweet lord Longaville, rein thy tongue. Long. I must rather give it the rein; for it runs against Hector. Dum. Ay, and Hector's a greyhound. Arm. The sweet war-man is dead; sweet chucks, beat not the bones of the buried: when he breath'd, he was a man. But I will forward with my device: Sweet royalty, [To the Princess.] bestow on me the sense of hearing. [BIRON whispers COSTARD. Prin. Speak, brave Hector; we are much de lighted. Arm. I do adore thy sweet grace's slipper. Arm. This Hector far surmounted Hannibal, Cost. Then shall Hector be hanged, for Pompey that is dead by him. Dum. Most rare Pompey! Boyet. Renowned Pompey! King. The extreme parts of time extremely form All causes to the purpose of his speed; And often, at his very loose, decides That which long process could not arbitrate: Prin. I understand you not; my griefs are double. And by these badges understand the king. All wanton as a child, skipping, and vain ; Biron. Greater than great, great, great, great To every varied object in his glance: More Ates, more Dum. Hector trembles. Arm. By the north pole, I do challenge thee. Cost. I will not fight with a pole, like a northern man; I'll slash; I'll do it by the sword: - I pray you, let me borrow my arms again. Dum. Room for the incensed worthies. Which party-coated presence of loose love Ros. We did not quote 7 them so. King. Now, at the latest minute of the hour, Grant us your loves. Prin. A time, methinks, too short Full of dear guiltiness; and therefore this, - Change not your offer made in heat of blood; If frosts, and fasts, hard lodging, and thin weeds, Come challenge, challenge me by these deserts, For the remembrance of my father's death. King. If this, or more than this, I would deny, Ros. You must be purged too, your sins are rank; You are attaint with faults and perjury; Therefore, if you my favour mean to get, A twelvemonth shall you spend, and never rest, But seek the weary beds of people sick. Dum. But what to me, my love? but what to me? Kath. A wife! A beard, fair health, and honesty; With three-fold love I wish you all these three. Mar. At the twelvemonth's end, Ros. Oft have I heard of you, my lord Birón, To weed this wormwood from your fruitful brain; Biron. To move wild laughter in the throat of death? 8 Clothing. Will hear your idle scorns, continue then, Biron. A twelvemonth? well, befal what will befal, I'll jest a twelvemonth in an hospital. Prin. Ay, sweet my lord: and so I take my leave. [To the KING. King. No, madam: we will bring you on your |