I must put you into a butter-woman's mouth, and buy myself another of Bajacer's mule, if you prattle me into these perils..

Lord. Is it poffible, he should know what he is, and be that he is?

[Afide. Par. I would, the cutting of my garments would ferve 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.

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

Lord. Hardly serve.

Afide..

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.

[Afide.

Par. A drum now of the enemies! [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 Muskos 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 hall undo the Florentine.

Inter. Bofkos 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, d

Lord

3

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't 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 speak 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.

[Abort 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 fafely lockt.

[Exeunt.

SCENE changes to the Widow's Houfe.

Ber.

Enter Bertram, and Diana.

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

THey

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 fhould be as your mother was,
When your fweet felf was got.

Dia. She then was honest,

Bet

Ber. So fhould you be.

Dia. No.

My mother did but duty; fuch, my Lord,
As you owe to your wife.

Ber. No more o' that!

I pr'ythee, do not strive against my vows:
I was compell'd to her, but I love thee
By love's own fweet conftraint, and will for ever
Do thee all rights of fervice.

Dia. Ay, fo you ferve us,

'Till we ferve you: but when you have our rofes, You barely leave our thorns to prick ourselves, And mock us with our bareness.

Ber. How have I fworn!

Dia. 'Tis not the many oaths, that make the truth; But the plain fingle vow, that is vow'd true; What is not holy, that we fwear not by,

But take the High'ft to witness: then, pray tell me,
If I fhould fwear by Jove's great attributes

I lov'd you dearly, would you believe my oaths,
When I did love you ill? this has no holding,

To fwear by him whom I protest to love,

That I will work against him. Therefore your oaths
Are words, and poor conditions but unfeal'd;
At least, in my opinion.

Ber. Change it, change it:

Be not fo holy-cruel. Love is holy,

And my integrity ne'er knew the crafts,

That you do charge men with: ftand no more off,
But give thyfelf unto my fick defires,

Which then recover. Say, thou art mine; and ever
My love, as it begins, fhall fo perfevere.

Dia. I fee, that men make hope in fuch affairs That we'll forfake ourselves. Give me that ring. Ber. I'll lend it thee, my dear, but have no power To give it from me.

Dia. Will you not, my Lord ?

Ber. It is an honour 'longing to our house, Bequeathed down from many ancestors; Which were the greatest obloquy i'th' world

In me to lofe.

Dia. Mine honour's fuch a ring;
My chastity's the jewel of our houfe,
Bequeathed down from many ancestors;
Which were the greateft obloquy i'th' world.
In me to lofe. Thus your own proper wisdom
Brings in the champion honour on my part,
Against your vain affault.

Ber. Here, take my ring.

My houfe, my honour, yea, my life be thine,
And I'll be bid by thee.

[windows Dia. When midnight comes, knock at my chamber 'I'll order take, my mother shall not hear.

Now will I charge you in the band of truth,
When you have conquer'd my yet maiden bed,
Remain there but an hour, nor speak to me:
My reafons are moft ftrong, and you fhall know them,
When back again this ring fhall be deliver'd;
And on your finger, in the night, I'll put
Another ring, that, what in time proceeds,
May token to the future our paft deeds.
Adieu, 'till then; then, fail not: you have won
A wife of me, tho' there my hope be done.

Ber. A heav'n on earth I've won by wooing thee.

4

[Exit. Dia. For which live long to thank both heav'n and me. You may fo in the end..

My mother told me just how he would woo,
As if the fate in's heart; fhe fays, all men

Have the like oaths: he had fworn to marry me,
When his wife's dead: therefore I'll lie with him,
When I am buried. (32) Since Frenchmen are so braid,
Marry 'em that will, I'd live and die a maid;

(32)

-Since Frenchmen are so braid,

Only,

Marry that will, I'll live and die a maid.] This is certainly the most cruel refolution, that ever poor wench made. What! becaufe Frenchmen were falfe, fhe, that was an Italian, would marry nobody. But it is plain, as refin'd as this reafoning is, her motherdid not understand the delicacy of the conclufion; for afterwards

Only, in this disguise, I think't no fin

To cozen him, that would unjustly win.

[Exit.

SCENE changes to the French Camp in
Florence.

Enter the two French Lords, and two or three foldiers.

́OU have not given him his mother's letter?

1 Lord. You

2 Lord. I have deliver'd it an hour fince; there is famething in't, that ftings his nature; for, on the reading it, he chang'd almoft into another man.

I Lord. He has much worthy blame laid upon him for fhaking off fo good a wife, and fo fweet a Lady. 2 Lord. Efpecially, he hath incurr'd the everlasting displeasure of the King, who had even tun'd his bounty to fing happiness to him. I will tell you a thing, but you fhall let it dwell darkly with you.

1 Lord. When you have fpoken it, 'tis dead, and I am the grave of it.

1

2 Lord. He hath perverted a young gentlewoman here in Florence, of a moft chafte renown; and this: night he fleshes his will in the spoil of her honour; he hath given her his monumental ring, and thinks himself made in the unchafte compofition.

A Lord. Now God delay our rebellion; as we are ourselves, what things are we!

2 Lord. Merely our own traitors; as in the common

The comes into Helen's project, on the promise of a good round dow'ry of 3000 crowns, to help her daughter to a husband. In fhort, the text is, without all queftion, corrupted: and we should read it thus.

Since Frenchmen are fo braid,

Marry 'em that will, I'd love and die a maid.

i. e. fince Frenchmen prove fo.crooked and perverfe in their manners, let who will marry them, I had rather live and die a maid than venture upon them. This the fays with a view to Helen, who appear'd fo fond of her husband, and went through fo many difficulties to obtain him. I dare fay, the fair fex will think this emendation moft agreeable to the rules of logic, as well as to the less erring dictates of nature. Mr. Warburton.

courfe