And would not put my reputation now
In any ftaining act.

Hel. Nor would I wish you.

Firft, give me truft, the Count he is my

husband;

And what to your fworn counsel I have spoken,
Is fo, from word to word; and then you cannot,
By the good aid that I of you fhall borrow,
Err in beftowing it.

Wid. I fhould believe you,

For you have fhew'd me that, which well approves
Y'are great in fortune.

Hel. Take this purfe of gold,

And let me buy your friendly help thus far,
Which I will over-pay, and pay again

When I have found it. The Count wooes your daughter,
Lays down his wanton fiege before her beauty,

Refolves to carry her; let her confent,

As we'll direct her how 'tis beft to bear it.

Now his important blood will nought deny,
That she'll demand: a ring the Count does wear,
That downward hath fucceeded in his houfe
From fon to fon, fome four or five defcents,
Since the first father wore it. This ring he holds
In moft rich choice; yet in his idle fire,
To buy his will, it would not feem too dear,
Howe'er repented after.

Wid. Now I fee the bottom of your purpose.
Hel. You fee it lawful then. It is no more,
But that your daughter, ere fhe seems as won,
Defires this ring; appoints him an encounter ;
In fine, delivers me to fill the time,

Herself most chaftely abfent: after this,

To marry her, I'll add three thousand crowns
To what is paft already."

Wid. I have yielded :

Inftruct my daughter how fhe fhall perfevere,
That time and place, with this deceit fo lawful,
May prove coherent. Every night he comes
With mufick of all forts, and fongs compos'd
To her unworthiness: it nothing fteads us

Το

To chide him from our eaves,. for he perfifts,
As if his life lay on't.

Hel. Why then, to-night

Let us affay our plot; which if it fpeed,
Is wicked meaning in a lawful deed;
And lawful meaning in a lawful act,
Where both not fin, and yet a finful fact..
But let's about it.-

[Exeunt.

SCENE, part of the French Camp in Florence.

Enter one of the French Lords, with five or fix Soldiers in

H

ambush.

LORD.

E can come no other way but by this hedge-corner; when you fally upon him, speak what terrible language you will; though you understand it not yourselves, no matter; for we must not seem to underftand him, unless fome one amongst us, whom we muft produce for an interpreter.

Sol. Good Captain, let me be th' interpreter.

Lord. Art not acquainted with him? knows he not thy voice?

Sol. No, Sir, I warrant you.

Lord. But what linfy-woolfy haft thou to speak to us again?

Sol. Ev'n fuch as you speak to me.

Lord. He must think us fome band of strangers i'th adverfaries entertainment. Now he hath a mack of all neighbouring languages, therefore we must every one be a man of his own fancy; not to know what we fpeak one to another, fo we feem to know, is to know raight our purpofe: chough's language, gabble

enough,

enough, and good enough. As for you, interpreter, you must feem very politick, But couch, hoa! here he comes, to beguile two hours in a fleep, and then to return and fwear the lies he forges.

Enter Parolles.

Par. Ten a clock; within thefe three hours 'twill be time enough to go home. What shall I fay, I have done? it must be a very plaufive invention that carries it. They begin to fmoak me, and difgraces have of Iate knock'd too often at my door; I find, my tongue is too fool-hardy; but my heart hath the fear of Mars before it and of his creatures, not daring the reports of my tongue.

Lord. This is the firft truth that e'er thine own tongue was guilty of.

[Afide. Par. What the devil fhould move me to undertake the recovery of this drum, being not ignorant of the impoffibility, and knowing I had no fuch purpofe? I muft give myself fome hurts, and fay, I got them in exploit; yet flight ones will not carry it. They will fay, came you off with fo little? and great ones I dare not give; wherefore what's the inftance ? (31) Tongue,

(31) Tongue, I muft put you into a butter-woman's mouth, and buy myfelf another of Bajazet's mule, if you prattle me into these perils.}Why of Bajazet's mule, any more than any other mule? Is there any particular conceit, any fory on record, by which that Emperor's mule is fignaliz'd? If there be, I freely own my ignorance. Tho' I have * not alter'd the text, Mr. Warburton concurr'd with me in thinking that the Poet probably wrote;

and buy myself another of Bajazet's mute,

i. e. of a Turkish mute. So in Henry V.
Either our hiftory fhall with full mouth
Speak freely of our acts; or elfe our grave,

Like Turkifo mute, fhall have a tongueless mouth, &c.

Befides, as my friend obferved to me, the antithefis between a butterwoman and a mute is tolerably well. If there be any difficulty re

mute.

mains, it is to know, why the Poet has chofen to fay, Bajazet's To this it may be answered, that Bajazet the Great, (who was at last overthrown by Tamerlane;) by his prodigious exploits becoming very famous, for a long time after, amongst us Europeans, his fucceffors were called by his name, when they were spoke of.

I must put you into a butter-woman's mouth, and buy myfelf another of Bajacet's mule, if you prattle me into thefe perils.

Lord. Is it poffible, he fhould know what he is, and

be that he is?

[Afide. Par. I would, the cutting of my garments would serve the turn, or the breaking of my Spanish fword. Lord. We cannot afford you fo.

[Afide.

Par. Or the baring of my beard, and to fay, it was

in ftratagem.
Lord. Twould not do.

[Afide.

[Afide.

Par. Or to drown my cloaths, and fay, I was ftript.

Lord. Hardly serve.

Par. Though I fwore, I leap'd from the window of

the citadel

Lord. How deep?

Par. Thirty fathom.

[Afide.

Lord. Three great oaths would fcarce make that be believed.

[Afide.

Par. I would I had any drum of the enemies ; I

would fwear, I recover'd it.

Lord. You fhall hear one anon.

Par. A drum now of the enemies!

[Afide.

[Alarm within.

Lord. Throco movoufus, cargo, cargo, cargo.

All. Cargo, cargo, valliando par corbo, cargo.

Par. O ranfom, ranfom :-do not hide mine eyes. [They feize him and blindfold him

Inter. Bofkos thromuldo bofkos.

Par. I know, you are the Mafkos regiment, And I fhall lofe my life for want of language.. If there be here German, or Dane, low Dutch, Italian, or French, let him fpeak to me,

I'll discover that which fhall undo the Florentine.

Inter. Bokos vouvado; I understand thee, and can fpeak thy tongue; Kerelybonto,Sir, betake thee to thy faith, for feventeen poniards are at thy bofom. Par. Oh!

Int. Oh, pray, pray, pray, Mancha ravancha dulche..

Lord,

Lord. Ofceoribi dulchos volivorco,

Int. The General is content to fpare thee yet,
And, hood-winkt as thou art, will lead thee on
To gather from thee. Haply, thou may'st inform
Something to fave thy life.

Par. Oh let me live,

And all the fecrets of our camp I'll fhew;
Their force, their purposes: nay, I'll fpeak that
Which you will wonder at.

Int. But wilt thou faithfully?

Par. If I do not, damn me.
Int. Acordo linta.

Come on, thou art granted space.

Exit.

[A fhort alarm within. Lord. Go, tell the Count Rouillon and my brother, We've caught the woodcock, and will keep him mufled 'Till we do hear from them.

Sol. Captain, I will.

Lord. He will betray us all unto ourselves,

Inform 'em that.

Sol. So I will, Sir.

Lord. 'Till then I'll keep him dark and safely lockt.

[Exeunt.

SCENE changes to the Widow's House.

Ber.

TH

Enter Bertram, and Diana.

Hey told me, that your name was Fontibell.
Dia. No, my good Lord, Diana.

Ber. Titled Goddefs,

And worth it with addition! but, fair foul,
In your fine frame hath love no quality?

If the quick fire of youth light not your mind,
You are no maiden, but a monument:

When you are dead, you should be fuch a one
As you are now, for you are cold and ftern;
And now you should be as your mother was,
When your fweet felf was got.

Dia. She then was honeft.

Ben.