Or, that we women had men's privilege

Of fpeaking firft. Sweet, bid me hold my tongue;
For, in this rapture, I fhall furely speak

The thing I fhall repent. See, fee, your filence,
Cunning in dumbnefs, from my weakness draws
My very foul of counfel: Stop my mouth.

Tro. And fhall, albeit sweet mufick issues thence.
Pan. Pretty, i'’faith.

Cre. My lord, I do befeech you, pardon me; 'Twas not my purpose, thus to beg a kifs:

I am afham'd;-O heavens, what have I done!—
For this time will I take my leave, my lord.

Tro. Your leave, fair Creffid?

Pan. Leave! an you take leave 'till to-morrow morning,

Cre. Pray you, content you.
Tro. What offends you, lady?
Cre. Sir, mine own company.
Tro. You cannot fhun yourself.
Cre. Let me go try:

I have a kind of felf refides with you:
But an unkind felf; that itself will leave,
To be another's fool. I would be gone :-

Where is my wit? I know not what I speak.

[To Pan

Tro. Well know they what they speak, that fpeak fo wifely.

Cre. Perchance, my lord, I fhow more craft than love ;. And fell fo roundly to a large confeffion,

To angle for your thoughts: But you are wife;
And then you love not; for to be wife, and love,
Exceeds man's might; that dwells with gods above:
Tro. O, that I thought it could be in a woman,
(As, if it can, I will prefume in you)

To feed for aye her lamp and flames of love;
To keep her conftancy in plight and youth,
Out-living beauty's outward, with a mind
That doth renew swifter than blood decays!
Or, that perfuafion could but thus convince me,-
That my integrity and truth to you

Might be affronted with the match and weight
Of fuch a winnow'd purity in love;

How

How were I then uplifted! but, alas,.
I am as true as truth's fimplicity,
And fimpler than the infancy of truth..
"Cre. In that I'll war with you.
" Tro. O virtuous fight,

"When right with right wars who shall be most right!:
"True fwains in love fhall, in the world to come,
"Approve their truths by Troilus: when their rimes,
"Full of proteft, of oath, and big compare,
"Want fimilies, truth tir'd with iteration.-
As true as fteel, as plantage to the moon,
As fun to day, as turtle to her mate,
As iron to adamant, as earth to the center,-
Yet, after all comparifons of truth,
As truth's authentic author to be cited,
As true as Troilus fhall crown up the verse,,
And fanctify the numbers.

Cre. Prophet may you be !

If I be falfe, or fwerve a hair from truth,
When time is old and hath forgot itself,
When water-drops have worn the ftones of Troy
And blind oblivion swallow'd cities up,
And mighty ftates characterlefs are grated
To dufty nothing; yet let memory,

From falfe to falfe, among falfe maids in love,
Upbraid my falfehood! when they've faid-as falfe
As air, as water, wind, or fandy earth,

As fox to lamb, as wolf to heifer's calf,
Pard to the hind, or step-dame to her fon;
Yea, let them fay, to ftick the heart of falsehood,
As falfe as Crefid *.

Pan. Go to, a bargain made: feal it, feal it; I'll be the witness. Here I hold your hand; here, my cousin's; If ever you prove falfe one to another, fince I have taken fuch pains to bring you together, let all pitiful goersbetween be call'd to the world's end after my name, call them all-Pandars; let all inconftant men be Troilus's,

This fcene is rich with very fanciful feeling ideas, worthy of our author, but Pendarus is a very great difgrace to them, and the conclufion is rather fulfome; fome lines are therefore marked for emiffion.

all

all falfe women Creffids, and all brokers-between Pandars! fay, Amen.

Tro. Amen.

Cre. Amen.

"Pan. Amen. Whereupon I will fhew you a cham"ber, and a bed; which bed, because it shall not speak "of your pretty encounters, press it to death away. "[Exeunt Tro. and Cre.

"And Cupid grant all tongue-ty'd maidens here "Bed, chamber, Pandar to provide this geer! [Exit.

SCENE II. The Grecian Camp.

Inter Agamemnon, Menelaus, Ulyffes, Neftor, Diomed, Ajax, and Calchas.

Cal. Now, princes, for the fervice I have done you, The advantage of the time prompts me aloud To call for recompence. Appear it to your mind, That, through the fight I bear in things to come, I have abandon'd Tray, left my poffeffions, Incurr'd a traitor's name; expos'd myself, From certain and poffeft conveniences, To doubtful fortunes; fequeft'ring from me all That time, acquaintance, cuftom, and condition, Made tame and most familiar to my nature; And here, to do you fervice, am become As new unto the world, ftrange, unacquainted: I do beseech you, as in way of taste,

To give me now a little benefit,

Out of thofe many register'd in promile,

Which, you fay, live to come in my behalf.

Aga. What would'st thou of us, Trojan? make demand.

Cal. You have a Trojan prifoner, call'd Antenor,

Yesterday took; Troy holds him very dear.

Oft have you (often have you thanks therefore)
Defir'd my Crefid in right great exchange,
Whom Troy hath ftill deny'd: But this Antenor,
I know, is such a wrest in their affairs,
That their negociations all muft flack,
Wanting his manage; and they will almost

Give us a prince of blood, a fon of Priam,
In change of him: let him be fent, great princes,
And he fhall buy my daughter; and her prefence
Shall quite ftrike off all fervice I have done,
In moit accepted pay.

Aga. Let Diomedes bear him,

And bring us Crefid hither; Calchas fhall have
What he requests of us.-Good Diomed,
Furnish you fairly for this interchange:
Withal, bring word-if He&tor will to-morrow
Be anfwer'd in his challenge; Ajax is ready.
Dio. This fhall I undertake; and 'tis a bu..hen
Which I am proud to bear. [Exeunt Dio. and Cal,

Enter, before their Tent, Achilles, and Patroclu..
Uly. Achilles ftands i'the entrance of his tent :-
Please it our general to pafs ftrangely by him,
As if he were forgot;-and, princes all,
Lay negligent and loofe regard upon him :-
I will come laft: 'Tis like, he'll question me,
Why fuch unplaufive eyes are bent, why turn'd on him:
If fo, I have decifion med'cinable,

To ufe between your ftrangeness and his pride,
Which his own will shall have defire to drink;
It may do good: Pride hath no other glafs
To fhow itfelf, but pride; for fupple knees
Feed arrogance, and are the proud man's fees.
Aga. We'll execute your purpose, and put on
A form of ftrangeness as we pafs along ;-
So do each lord; and either greet him not,
Or elfe difdainfully, which fhall shake him more
Than if not look'd on. I will lead the way.

[They pass forward. Ach. What, comes the general to speak with me? You know my mind, I'll fight no more 'gainst Troy. Aga. What fays Achilles would he ought with us? Nef. Would you, my lord, ought with the general?

Ach. No.

Nef. Nothing, my lord.

Ach. Good day, good day.

Aga. The better.

[Exeunt Aga. and Nel.

Max. How do you? how do you?

[Exit Men.

Ach. What, does the cuckold fcorn me?

Aja. How now, Patroclus?

Ach. Good morrow, Ajax.

Aja. Ha?

Ach. Good-morrow.

Aja. Ay, and good next day too.

[Exit Ajax.

Acb. What mean these fellows? know they not Achilles?

Pat. They pafs by ftrangely: they were us'd to bend, To fend their fmiles before them to Achilles ;

To come as humbly, as they us'd to creep

To holy altar.

Ach. What, am I poor of late?

'Tis certain, Greatnefs, once fall'n out with fortune,
Muft fall out with men too: What the declin'd is,
He fhall as foon read in the eyes of others,

As feel in his own fall: for men, like butterflies,
Shew not their mealy wings, but to the fummer;
And not a man, for being fimply man,

Hath any honour; but's honour'd for thofe honours
That are without him, as place, riches, favour,
Prizes of accident as oft as merit:

Which when they fall, as being flippery flanders,
The love that lean'd on them as flippery too,
Do one pluck down another, and together
Die in the fall. But 'tis not fo with me:
Fortune and I are friends; I do enjoy

At ample point all that I did poffefs,

Save thefe men's looks; who do, methinks, find out Something not worth in me fuch rich beholding

As they have often given. Here is Ulysses:

I'll interrupt his reading.

How now, Ulyffes?

Uly. Now, great Thetis' fon ?

Ach. What are you reading?

Uly. A ftrange fellow here

Writes me, That man-how dearly ever parted:

• Whoever has read cardinal Wolfey's admirable foliloquy upon the decline of fortune, would imagine our author had exhausted his ideas on the fubject; but the preceding lines, with many other fimilar paffages in his works, show he was inexhaustible.

How