Shakespeare's First Folio - LightNovelsOnl.com
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King. Art thou so confident? Within what s.p.a.ce Hop'st thou my cure?
Hel. The greatest grace lending grace, Ere twice the horses of the sunne shall bring Their fiery torcher his diurnall ring, Ere twice in murke and occidentall dampe Moist Hesperus hath quench'd her sleepy Lampe: Or foure and twenty times the Pylots gla.s.se Hath told the theeuish minutes, how they pa.s.se: What is infirme, from your sound parts shall flie, Health shall liue free, and sickenesse freely dye
King. Vpon thy certainty and confidence, What dar'st thou venter?
h.e.l.l. Taxe of impudence, A strumpets boldnesse, a divulged shame Traduc'd by odious ballads: my maidens name Seard otherwise, ne worse of worst extended With vildest torture, let my life be ended
Kin. Methinks in thee some blessed spirit doth speak His powerfull sound, within an organ weake: And what impossibility would slay In common sence, sence saues another way: Thy life is deere, for all that life can rate Worth name of life, in thee hath estimate: Youth, beauty, wisedome, courage, all That happines and prime, can happy call: Thou this to hazard, needs must intimate Skill infinite, or monstrous desperate, Sweet practiser, thy Physicke I will try, That ministers thine owne death if I die
Hel. If I breake time, or flinch in property Of what I spoke, vnpittied let me die, And well deseru'd: not helping, death's my fee, But if I helpe, what doe you promise me
Kin. Make thy demand
Hel. But will you make it euen?
Kin. I by my Scepter, and my hopes of helpe
Hel. Then shalt thou giue me with thy kingly hand What husband in thy power I will command: Exempted be from me the arrogance To choose from forth the royall bloud of France, My low and humble name to propagate With any branch or image of thy state: But such a one thy va.s.sall, whom I know Is free for me to aske, thee to bestow
Kin. Heere is my hand, the premises obseru'd, Thy will by my performance shall be seru'd: So make the choice of thy owne time, for I Thy resolv'd Patient, on thee still relye: More should I question thee, and more I must, Though more to know, could not be more to trust: From whence thou cam'st, how tended on, but rest Vnquestion'd welcome, and vndoubted blest.
Giue me some helpe heere hoa, if thou proceed, As high as word, my deed shall match thy deed.
Florish. Exit.
Enter Countesse and Clowne.
Lady. Come on sir, I shall now put you to the height of your breeding
Clown. I will shew my selfe highly fed, and lowly taught, I know my businesse is but to the Court
Lady. To the Court, why what place make you speciall, when you put off that with such contempt, but to the Court?
Clo. Truly Madam, if G.o.d haue lent a man any manners, hee may easilie put it off at Court: hee that cannot make a legge, put off's cap, kisse his hand, and say nothing, has neither legge, hands, lippe, nor cap; and indeed such a fellow, to say precisely, were not for the Court, but for me, I haue an answere will serue all men
Lady. Marry that's a bountifull answere that fits all questions
Clo. It is like a Barbers chaire that fits all b.u.t.tockes, the pin b.u.t.tocke, the quatch-b.u.t.tocke, the brawn b.u.t.tocke, or any b.u.t.tocke
Lady. Will your answere serue fit to all questions?
Clo. As fit as ten groats is for the hand of an Atturney, as your French Crowne for your taffety punke, as Tibs rush for Toms fore-finger, as a pancake for Shroue-tuesday, a Morris for May-day, as the naile to his hole, the Cuckold to his horne, as a scolding queane to a wrangling knaue, as the Nuns lip to the Friers mouth, nay as the pudding to his skin
Lady. Haue you, I say, an answere of such fitnesse for all questions?
Clo. From below your Duke, to beneath your Constable, it will fit any question
Lady. It must be an answere of most monstrous size, that must fit all demands
Clo. But a triflle neither in good faith, if the learned should speake truth of it: heere it is, and all that belongs to't. Aske mee if I am a Courtier, it shall doe you no harme to learne
Lady. To be young againe if we could: I will bee a foole in question, hoping to bee the wiser by your answer
La. I pray you sir, are you a Courtier?
Clo. O Lord sir theres a simple putting off: more, more, a hundred of them
La. Sir I am a poore freind of yours, that loues you
Clo. O Lord sir, thicke, thicke, spare not me
La. I thinke sir, you can eate none of this homely meate
Clo. O Lord sir; nay put me too't, I warrant you
La. You were lately whipt sir as I thinke
Clo. O Lord sir, spare not me
La. Doe you crie O Lord sir at your whipping, and spare not me? Indeed your O Lord sir, is very sequent to your whipping: you would answere very well to a whipping if you were but bound too't
Clo. I nere had worse lucke in my life in my O Lord sir: I see things may serue long, but not serue euer
La. I play the n.o.ble huswife with the time, to entertaine it so merrily with a foole
Clo. O Lord sir, why there't serues well agen
La. And end sir to your businesse: giue h.e.l.len this, And vrge her to a present answer backe, Commend me to my kinsmen, and my sonne, This is not much
Clo. Not much commendation to them
La. Not much imployement for you, you vnderstand me
Clo. Most fruitfully, I am there, before my legges
La. Hast you agen.
Exeunt.
Enter Count, Lafew, and Parolles.
Ol.Laf. They say miracles are past, and we haue our Philosophicall persons, to make moderne and familiar things supernaturall and causelesse. Hence is it, that we make trifles of terrours, ensconcing our selues into seeming knowledge, when we should submit our selues to an vnknowne feare
Par. Why 'tis the rarest argument of wonder, that hath shot out in our latter times
Ros. And so 'tis
Ol.Laf. To be relinquisht of the Artists
Par. So I say both of Galen and Paracelsus
Ol.Laf. Of all the learned and authenticke fellowes
Par. Right so I say
Ol.Laf. That gaue him out incureable
