in thunder" Achilles, go to him.” Nes. O, this is well; he rubs the vein of him. [Aside. Dio. And how his silence drinks up this applause! [Aside. Ajax. If I go to him, with my armed fist I'll pash him O'er the face. Agam. O, no, you shall not go. Ulys. Thank the heavens, lord, thou art of Praise him that got thee, she that gave thee suck: Ajax. An he be proud with me, I'll pheeze his But he that disciplined thy arms to fight, pride: Let me go to him. Let Mars divide eternity in twain, And give him half: and, for thy vigor, Ulys. Not for the worth that hangs upon our Bull-bearing Milo his addition yield Ajax. He should not bear it so; He should eat swords first: shall pride carry it? Nes. An 't would, you'd carry half. [Aside. Ulys. He'd have ten shares. [Aside. Ajax. I'll knead him, I'll make him supple! Nes. He's not yet thorough warm: force him with praises: Pour in, pour in; his ambition is dry. [Aside. Nes. Our noble general, do not do so. Ajax. Shall I call you father? Nes. Ay, my good son. Dio. Be ruled by him, lord Ajax. Ulys. There is no tarrying here; the hart Keeps thicket. Please it our great general And cull their flower, Ajax shall cope the best, Agam. Go we to council. Let Achilles sleep: Light boats sail swift, though greater hulks draw deep. [Exeunt. ACT III. SCENE I.-Troy. A Room in PRIAM'S Palace. Enter PANDARUS and a SERVANT. Pan. It should seem, fellow, that thou hast not seen the lady Cressida. I come to speak with Paris from the prince Troilus: I will make a Pan. Friend! you! pray you, a word: do not complimental assault upon him, for my business you follow the young lord Paris? Serv. Ay, sir, when he goes before me. Pan. You do depend upon him, I mean? Serv. Sir, I do depend upon the lord. Pan. You do depend upon a noble gentleman; I must needs praise him. Serv. The lord be praised! Pan. You know me, do you not? Serv. 'Faith, sir, superficially. Pan. Friend, know me better; I am the lord Pandarus. Serv. I hope I shall know your honor better. Pan. I do desire it. Serv. You are in the state of grace. [Music within. Pan. Grace! not so, friend; honor and lordship are my titles. What music is this? Serv. I do but partly know, sir; it is music in seeths. Serv. Sodden business! there's a stewed phrase, indeed! Enter PARIS and HELEN, attended. Pan. Fair be to you, my lord, and to all this fair company! fair desires, in all fair measure, fairly guide them! especially to you, fair queen! fair thoughts be your fair pillow! Helen. Dear lord, you are full of fair words. Pan. You speak your fair pleasure, sweet queen. -Fair prince, here is good broken music. Par. You have broke it, cousin and, by my life, you shall make it whole again; you shall piece it out with a piece of your performance:Nell, he is full of harmony. Pan. Truly, lady, no. Helen. O, sir, Pun. Rude, in sooth; in good sooth, very rude. Par. Well said, my lord! well, you say so in fits. Pan. I have business to my lord, dear queen : -My lord, will you vouchsafe me a word? Helen. Nay, this shall not hedge us out: we'll Serv. At mine, sir, and theirs that love music. hear you sing, certainly. Serv. Who shall I command, sir? Pan. Friend, we understand not one another; I am too courtly, and thou art too cunning: at whose request do these men play? Serv. That's to 't, indeed, sir: marry, sir, at the request of Paris, my lord, who is there in person; with him, the mortal Venus, the heart-blood of beauty, love's invisible soul, Pan. Who, my cousin Cressida ? Serv. No, sir, Helen: could you not find out that by her attributes? Pan. Well, sweet queen, you are pleasant with me. But, marry, thus, my lord: my dear lord and most esteemed friend, your brother Troilus — Pan. Ay, good my lord. Why should you say and all the gallantry of Troy: I would fain have Cressida? no, your poor disposer's sick. Par. I spy. Pan. You spy! what do you spy?-Come, give me an instrument. Now, sweet queen. Helen. Why, this is kindly done. armed to-day, but my Nell would not have it so. How chance my brother Troilus went not? Helen. He hangs the lip at something;-you know all, lord Pandarus. Pan. Not I, honey-sweet queen. I long to Pan. My niece is horribly in love with a thing hear how they sped to-day. You'll remember you have, sweet queen. Helen. She shall have it, my lord, if it be not my ford Paris. Pan. He! no, she 'll none of him; they two are twain. Helen. Falling in, after falling out, may make them three. Pan. Come, come, I'll hear no more of this; I'll sing you a song now. Helen. Ay, ay, pr'y thee now. By my troth, sweet lord, thou hast a fine forehead. Pan. Ay, you may, you may. your brother's excuse? Par. To a hair. Pan. Farewell, sweet queen. [Exit. [A retreat sounded. Par. They are come from field: let us to Priam's hall, To greet the warriors. Sweet Helen, I must woo you To help unarm our Hector: his stubborn buckles, Helen. Let thy song be love: this love will Shall more obey than to the edge of steel, Enter PANDARUS and a Servant, meeting. Enter PANDARUS and CRESSIDA. Pan. Come, come, what need you blush? Pan. How now? where's thy master? at my shame 's a baby. Here she is now: swear the cousin Cressida's? oaths now to her, that you have sworn to me. Serv. No, sir; he stays for you to conduct him What, are you gone again? you must be watched thither. Enter TROILUS. How now, how now? [Exit Servant. Pan. O, here he comes. Tro. Sirrah, walk off. Pan. Have you seen my cousin? Tro. No, Pandarus: I stalk about her door, Like a strange soul upon the Stygian banks, Staying for waftage. O, be thou my Charon, And give me swift transportance to those fields, Where I may wallow in the lily beds Proposed for the deserver! O, gentle Pandarus, From Cupid's shoulder pluck his painted wings, And fly with me to Cressid! Pan. Walk here i' the orchard; I'll bring her straight, [Exit. Tro. I am giddy; expectation whirls me round. The imaginary relish is so sweet, That it enchants my sense: what will it be, I fear it much; and I do fear besides, That I shall lose distinction in my joys; Re-enter PANDARUS. Pan. She's making her ready, she 'H come straight you must be witty now. She does so blush, and fetches her wind so short, as if she were frayed with a sprite: I'll fetch her. It is the prettiest villain: :- she fetches her breath as short as a new ta'en sparrow. [Exit. Tro. Even such a passion doth embrace my bosom: My heart beats thicker than a feverous pulse; ere you be made tame, must you? Come your ways, come your ways; an you draw backward, we'll put you i' the fills. Why do you not speak to her? Come, draw this curtain, and let's see your picture. Alas the day, how loath you are to offend daylight! an 't were dark, you'd close sooner. So, so; rub on, and kiss the mistress. How now, a kiss in fee-farm! build there, carpenter; the air is sweet. Nay, you shall fight your hearts out, ere I part you. The falcon as the tercel, for all the ducks i' the river: go to, go to. Tro. You have bereft me of all words, lady. Pan. Words pay no debts: give her deeds: but she 'll bereave you of the deeds too, if she call your activity in question. What, billing again? here's "In witness whereof the parties interchangeably." Come in, come in; I'll go get a fire. [Exit. Cres. Will you walk in, my lord? Tro. O, Cressida, how often have I wished me thus! Cres. Wished, my lord? - The gods grant! O, my lord! Tro. What should they grant? what makes this pretty abruption? What too curious dreg espies my sweet lady in the fountain of our love? Cres. More dregs than water, if my fears have eyes! Tro. Fears make devils of cherubim; they never see truly. Cres. Blind fear, that seeing reason leads, finds safer footing than blind reason stumbling without fear: to fear the worst, oft cures the worst. Tro. O, let my lady apprehend no fear in all Cupid's pageant, there is presented no monster. Cres. Nor nothing monstrous neither? Tro. Nothing, but our undertakings; when we vow to weep seas, live in fire, eat rocks, tame tigers; thinking it harder for our mistress to devise imposition enough, than for us to undergo any difficulty imposed. This is the monstruosity in love, lady, that the will is infinite, and the execution confined; that the desire is boundless, and the act a slave to limit. Cres. They say, all lovers swear more performance than they are able, and yet reserve an ability that they never perform; vowing more than the perfection of ten, and discharging less than the tenth part of one. They that have the voice of lions, and the act of hares, are they not monsters? Tro. Are there such? such are not we. Praise us as we are tasted, allow us as we prove; our head shall go bare till merit crown it: no perfection in reverison shall have a praise in present: we will not name desert before his birth; and, being born, his addition shall be humble. Few words to fair faith: Troilus shall be such to Cressid, as what envy can say worst, shall be a mock for his truth; and what truth can speak truest, not truer than Troilus. Too headstrong for their mother. See, we fools! Tro. And shall, albeit sweet music issues thence. Cres. My lord, I do beseech you, pardon me; 'T was not my purpose thus to beg a kiss: I am ashamed; - O, heavens! what have I done? Pan. Leave! an you take leave till to-morrow morning, Cres. Pray you, content you. Cres. Well, uncle, what folly I commit, I dedi- I have a kind of self resides with you: cate to you. Pan. I thank you for that; if my lord get a boy of you, you'll give him me. Be true to my lord: if he flinch, chide me for it. Tro. You know now your hostages; your uncle's word and my firm faith. Pan. Nay, I'll give my word for her too; our kindred, though they be long ere they are wooed, they are constant, being won: they are burs, I can tell you; they'll stick where they are thrown. Cres. Boldness comes to me now, and brings me heart: Prince Troilus, I have loved you night and day For many weary months. Tro. Why was my Cressid, then, so hard to win? Cres. Hard to seem won; but I was won, my lord, With the first glance that ever- - Pardon But an unkind self, that itself will leave, Cres. Perchance, my lord, I shew more craft than love; And fell so roundly to a large confession, Tro. O, that I thought it could be in a woman How were I then uplifted! but, alas! |