And fell fo roundly to a large confeffion,
To angle for your thoughts: but you are wife,
Or else you love not: To be wife and love,

Exceeds man's might, and dwells with Gods above.
Troi. O, that I thought it could be in a woman,
(As, if it can, I will prefume in you,)

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

Might be affronted with the match and weight
Of such a winnow'd purity in love:
How were I then up lifted! but alas,
I am as true as Truth's fimplicity,
And simpler than the infancy of truth.
Cre. In that I'll war with you.

Troi. O virtuous fight!

When Right with Right wars who fhall be most right.

True fwains in love fhall in the world to come
Approve their truths by Troilus; when their rhymes,
Full of proteft, of oath, and big compare,

Want fimilies: truth, tired with iteration,
As true as fteel, as Plantage to the Moon,
As Sun to day, as turtle to her mate,
As iron to adamant, as earth to th' center:
Yet after all comparisons of truth,

As truth authentic, ever 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 itfelf,

* As truth's authentic author to be cited] This Line should be

read,

As Truth authentic, ever to be cited.
D 2

When

When water-drops have worn the ftones of Troy,
And blind Oblivion swallow'd Cities up,
And mighty States characterlefs are grated
To dufty Nothing; yet let Memory,

From falfe to false, among falfe maids in love,
Upbraid my falfhood! when they've said, as falfe
As air, as water, as wind, as fandy earth;
As fox to lamb, as wolf to heifer's calf ;
Pard to the hind, or ftep-dame to her fon;
Yea, let them fay, to flick the heart of falfhood,
As falfe as Creffid.-

Pan. Go to, a bargain made: feal it, feal it, I'll be the witness. Here I hold your hand; here my coufin's; if ever you prove false to one another, fince I have taken fuch pains to bring you together, let all pitiful Goers-between be call'd to the world's end after my name; call them all Pandars: let all inconstant men be Troilus's, all falfe women Creffida's, and all brokers between Pandars: say, Amen.

Troi. Amen!

Cre. Amen!

Pan. Amen. Whereupon I will fhew you a bedchamber; which bed, because it fhall not fpeak of your pretty encounters, prefs it to death: away. And Cupid grant all tongue-ty'd maidens here, Bed, chamber, and Pandar to provide this Geer!

Exeunt.

Enter Agamemnon, Ulyffes, Diomedes, Neftor, Ajax, Menelaus, and Calchas.

Cal.

NOW, Princes, for the fervice I have done

you,

Th' advantage of the time prompts me aloud
To call for recompenfe: appear it to you,

That,

That, through the fight I bear in things to come,
I have abandon'd Troy, left my poffeffion,
Incurr'd a traitor's name, expos'd myself,
From certain and poffeft conveniencies,
To doubtful fortunes; fequeftered from all
That time, acquaintance, custom, and condition,
Made tame and most familiar to my nature:
And here, to do you fervice, am become
As new into the world, ftrange, unacquainted.
I do beseech you, as in way of taste,
To give me now a little benefit,

Out of those many registred in promife,
Which, you fay, live to come in my

behalf.

Aga. What wouldft thou of us, Trojan? make demand.

Cal. You have a Trojan prisoner, call'd Antenor, Yesterday took: Troy holds him very dear. Oft have you (often have you thanks therefore ;) Defir'd my Creffid in right-great exchange, Whom Troy hath ftill deny'd: but this Antenor, I know, is fuch a wreft in their affairs, That their negotiations all must slack, Wanting his Manage; and they will almost Give us a Prince o'th' blood, a fon of Priam, In change of him. Let him be fent, great Princes, And he shall buy my daughter: and her presence Shall quite ftrike off all fervice I have done, In most accepted pay.

Aga. Let Diomedes bear him,

And bring us Creffid hither: Calchas fhall have
What he requefts of us. Good Diomede,

Furnish you fairly for this enterchange;

Withal, bring word, if Hector will to-morrow
Be answer'd in his challenge. Ajax is ready.
Dio. This fhall I undertake, and 'tis a burden
Which I am proud to bear.

Enter Achilles and Patroclus, before their Tent. Uly. ACHILLES ftands i'th entrance of his

Please it our General to pafs ftrangely by him,
As if he were forgot; and, Princes all,
Lay negligent and loose regard upon him:
I will come laft; 'tis like, he'll queftion me,
Why fuch unplaufive eyes are bent on him:
If fo, I have decifion medicinable

To ufe between your ftrangeness and his pride,
Which his own will fhall have defire to drink.
It may do good: Pride hath no other glass
To fhew itself, 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 ftrangenefs as we pafs along;
So do each lord; and either greet him not,
Or else disdainfully, which shall shake him more
Than if not look'd on. I will lead the way..

Achil. What, comes the General to speak with me?" You know my mind. I'll fight no more 'gainft Troy. Aga. What fays Achilles? would he aught with us? Neft. Would you, my lord, aught with the General? Achil. No.

Neft. Nothing, my lord.

Aga. The better.

Achil. Good day, good day.

Men. How do you? how do

you

?

Achil. What, does the cuckold scorn me?

Ajax. How now, Patroclus?

Achil. Good-morrow, Ajax.

Achil. Good-morrow.

Ajax, Ha?

Ajax. Ay, and good next day too.

[Exeunt.

Achil. What mean these fellows? know they not

Achilles?

Pat.

Pat. They pass by ftrangely: they were us'd to bend,

To send their fmiles before them to Achilles,

To come as humbly as they us'd to creep
To holy altars.

Achil. 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 honour, but is honour'd by those honours
That are without him; as place, riches, favour,
Prizes of accident as oft as merit:

Which, when they fall, (as being flipp'ry standers)
The love that lean'd on them, as flipp'ry too,
Doth 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 these men's looks; who do, methinks, find out Something in me not worth that rich beholding,

As they have often giv'n.

I'll interrupt his reading.-
Uly. Now, Thetis' fon!

Here is Ulyffes.
-Now, Ulyffes?

Achil. What are you reading?
Uly. A ftrange fellow here

Writes me, that man, how dearly ever parted,
How much in Having, or without, or in,
Cannot make boaft to have that which he hath,
Nor feels not what he owes, but by reflection;
As when his virtues fhining upon others
Heat them, and they retort that heat again
To the first giver.

Achil. This is not ftrange, Ulyffes.

The beauty that is borne here in the face
The bearer knows not, but commends itself.