Ber. Your brother he shall go along with me. you. [Exit. Ber. Now will I lead you to the house, and show you The lass I spoke of. First Lord. But you say she's honest. Ber. That's all the fault: I spoke with her but once And found her wondrous cold; but I sent to her, 130 By this same coxcomb that we have i' the wind, Florence. The Widow's house. Enter Helena and Widow. Hel. If you misdoubt me that I am not she, twigs that threaten them." To lime is to catch or entangle; and twigs was a common term for the trap or snare, whether it were made of twigs or of thoughts; of material or mental wickerwork.— H. N. H. 129. “¿ the wind"; this proverbial phrase is thus explained by Cotgrave: "Estre sur vent, To be in the wind, or to have the wind of. To get the wind, advantage, upper hand of; to have a man under his lee."-H. N. H. But I shall lose the grounds I work upon. Wid. Though my estate be fallen, I was well born, Nothing acquainted with these businesses; Hel. And would not put my reputation now Nor would I wish you. First, give me trust, the count he is my hus- And what to your sworn counsel I have spoken Wid. I should believe you; For you have show'd me that which well ap Hel. proves You 're great in fortune. Take this purse 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 he wooes Lays down his wanton siege before her beauty, 3. That is, by discovering herself to the count.—H. N. H. Howe'er repented after. Wid. Now I see The bottom of your purpose. Hel. You see it lawful, then: it is no more, But that your daughter, ere she seems as won, Desires this ring; appoints him an encounter; In fine, delivers me to fill the time, Herself most chastely absent: after this, To marry her, I 'll add three thousand crowns To what is past already. Wid. 30 I have yielded: Hel. Why then to-night [Exeunt. 45-47. The explanation of this riddle is, that Bertram was to do a lawful deed with a wicked intent; Helena, the same deed with a good intent; and that what was really to be on both sides a lawful embrace, was to seem in them both an act of adultery.-H. N. H. ACT FOURTH SCENE I Without the Florentine camp. Enter Second French Lord, with five or six Sec. Lord. He can come no other way but by First Sold. Good captain, let me be the interpreter. Sec. Lord. Art not acquainted with him? knows 10 he not thy voice? First Sold. No, sir, I warrant you. Sec. Lord. But what linsey-woolsey hast thou First Sold. E'en such as you speak to me. man of his own fancy, not to know what we 20 Enter Parolles. Par. Ten o'clock: within these three hours 'twill be time enough to go home. What shall I say I have done? It must be a very 30 plausive invention that carries it; they begin to smoke me; and disgraces have of late knocked too often at my door. I find my tongue is too foolhardy; but my heart hath the fear of Mars before it and of his creatures, not daring the reports of my tongue. Sec. Lord. This is the first truth that e'er thine own tongue was guilty of. Par. What the devil should move me to undertake the recovery of this drum, being not 40 ignorant of the impossibility, and knowing I had no such purpose? I must give myself some hurts, and say I got them in exploit: yet slight ones will not carry it; they will say, 'Came you off with so little?' and great ones I dare not give. Wherefore, what's appears to be: “We must each fancy a jargon for himself, without aiming to be understood by each other; for, provided we appear to understand, that will be sufficient." The "chough" is a bird of the jack-daw kind.—H. N. H. |