Your tenants, friends, and neighbouring gen tlemen. Glend. A shorter time shall send me to you, Lords, And in my conduct shall your ladies come: From whom you now must steal, and take no leave; For there will be a world of water shod, In quantity equals not one of yours: It shall not wind with such a deep indent, Glend. Not wind? it shall, it must; you see, it doth. Mort. Yea, But mark, how he bears his course, and runs me up With like advantage on the other side; Wor. Yea, but a little charge will trench him here, And on this north side win this cape of land; And then he runs straight and even. Hot. I'll have it so; a little charge will do it. Glend. I will not have it alter'd. Hot. Will not you? Glend. No, nor you shall not. Hot. Who shall say me nay? Glend. Why, that will I. Hot. Let me not understand you then, Speak it in Welsh, Glend. I can speak English, Lord, as well as you; For I was train'd up in the English court. And gave the tongue a helpful ornament;. Hot. Marry, and I'm glad of't with all my heart; I had rather be a kitten, and cry mew, Than one of these same metre ballad-mongers: I had rather hear a brazen canstick turn'd, Or a dry wheel grate on the axle-tree; And that would set my teeth nothing on edge, Nothing so much as mincing poetry; 'Tis like the forc'd gait of a shuffling nag. Glend. Come, you shall have Trent turn'd. Hot. I do not care: I'll give thrice so much land To any well-deserving friend; But, in the way of bargain, mark ye me, Are the indentures drawn? shall we be gone? Glend. The moon shines fair, you may away by night: I'll haste the writer, and, withal, Break with your wives of your departure hence: [Exit. Mort. Fie, cousin Percy! how you cross my father! Hot. I cannot choose: sometimes he angers me,, With telling me of the moldwarp and the ant, A clip-wing'd griffin, and a moulten raven, But mark'd him not a word. O, he's as tedious As is a tired horse, a railing wife; Worse than a smoky house I had rather live With cheese and garlick, in a windmill, far, Than feed on cates, and have him talk to me, In any summerhouse in Christendom. Mort. In faith he is a worthy genleman; In strange concealments; valiant as a lion, As mines of India. Shall I tell you, cousin? Might so have tempted him as you have done, Wor. In faith, my Lord, you are too wilful- And since your coming hither, have done enough blood, (And that's the nearest grace it renders you,) Hot. Well, I am school'd; Good manners be your speed! Here come our wives, and let us take our leave. Re-enter GLENDOWER, with the Ladies. Mort. This is the deadly spite that angers me,My wife can speak no English, no Welsh Glend. My daughter weeps; she will not part with you, She'll be a soldier too, she'll to the wars. GLENDOWER speaks to his daughter in Welsh, and she answers him in the same. Glend. She's desperate here; a peevish selfwill'd harlotry, One no persuasion can do good upon. [Lady M. speaks to MORTIMER in Welsh. Mort. I understand thy looks! that pretty Welsh. Which thou pour'st down from these swelling heavens, I am too perfect in; and, but for shame, [Lady M. speaks. I understand thy kisses, and thou mine, And that's a feeling disputation: But I will never be a truant, love, Till I have learn'd thy language; for thy tongue Makes Welsh as sweet as ditties highly penn'd, Sung by a fair Queen in a summer's bower, With ravishing division to her lute, Glend. Nay, if you melt, then will she run mad. [Lady M. speaks again. Mort. O, I am ignorance itself in this. Glend. She bids you Upon the wanton rushes lay you down, Mort. With all my heart, I'll sit, and hear her sing: By that time will our book, I think, be drawn. Glend. Do so; And those musicians that shall play to you, Hang in the air a thousand leagues from hence; Yet straight they shall be here: sit, and attend. Hot. Come, Kate, thou art perfect in lying down! Come, quick, quick; that I may lay my head in thy lap. |