very vile life. Now in refpect it is in the fields, it pleaseth me well; but in refpect it is not in the Court, it is tedious. As it is a fpare life, look you, it fits my humour well; but as there is no more plenty in it, it goes much against my stomach. Haft any philofophy in thee, shepherd ? Cor. No more, but that I know, the more one fickens, the worse at ease he is: and that he, that wants money, means, and content, is without three good friends. That the property of rain is to wet, and fire to burn: that good pafture makes fat fheep; and that a great cause of the night, is lack of the · Sun and that he that hath learned no wit by nature nor art, may complain of grofs breeding, or comes of a very dull kindred. : Clo. Such a one is a natural philofopher. Waft ever in Court, fhepherd? Cor. No, truly. Clo. Then thou art damn'd. Cor. Nay, I hope Clo. Truly, thou art damn'd, like an ill-roafted egg, all on one fide. Cor. For not being at Court? reafon. your Clo. Why, if thou never waft at Court, thou never faw'ft good manners; if thou never faw'ft good manners, then thy manners must be wicked; and wickedness is fin, and fin is damnation: thou art in a parlous ftate, fhepherd. Cor. Not a whit, Touchstone: thofe, that are good manners at the Court, are as ridiculous in the Country, as the behaviour of the Country is moft mockable at the Court. You told me, you falute not at the Court, but you kifs your hands; that courtesy would be uncleanly, if Courtiers were fhepherds. *He that hath learned no wit by nature or art, may complain of good breeding, or comes of a very dull kindred.] Common Sense requires us Q read, way complain of gross breeding. Clo. Clo. Inftance, briefly; come, inftance. Cor. Why, we are ftill handling our ewes; and their fels, you know, are greasy. Clo. Why, do not your Courtiers hands fweat? and is not the grease of a mutton as wholfome as the fweat of a man? fhallow, fhallow;-a better inftance, I fay: come. Cor. Befides, our hands are hard. Clo. Your lips will feel them the fooner. Shallow again:- a more founder inftance, come. Cor. And they are often tarr'd over with the furgery of our fheep; and would you have us kifs tarr? the Courtier's hands are perfumed with civet. Clo. Moft fhallow man! thou worms-meat, in refpect of a good piece of flesh, indeed! learn of the wife and perpend; civet is of a baser birth than tarr ; the very uncleanly flux of a cat. Mend the inftance, fhepherd. Cor. You have too courtly a wit for me; I'll reft. Clo. Wilt thou reft damn'd? God help thee, fhallow man; God make incifion in thee, thou art raw. Cor. Sir, I am a true labourer, I earn that I eat; get that I wear; owe no man hate, envy no man's happinefs; glad of other men's good, content with my harm; and the greateft of my pride is, to fee my ewes graze, and my lambs fuck. Clo. That is another fimple fin in you, to bring the ewes and the rams together; and to offer to get your living by the copulation of cattle; to be a bawd to a bell-weather; and to betray a fhe-lamb of a twelve-month to a crooked-pated old cuckoldly ram, out of all reasonable match. If thou be'ft not damn'd for this, the devil himself will have no fhepherds; I cannot fee elfe how thou should'st scape. Cor. Here comes young Mr. Ganimed, my new miftrefs's brother. Enter Rofalind, with a paper. Rof. FROM the east to western Inde. Her worth, being mounted on the wind, Clo. I'll rhime you fo, eight years together; dinners, and fuppers, and fleeping hours excepted: it is the right butter-women's rank to market. Rof. Out, fool! Clo. For a taste. If a hart doth lack a hind, They, that reap, must sheaf and bind.; He that fweetest rofe will find, Muft find love's prick, and Rofalind. This is the very false gallop of verses; why do you infect yourself with them? Rof. Peace, you dull fool, I found them on a tree. Clo. Truly, the tree yields bad fruit. Rof. I'll graff it with you, and then I shall graff it with a medler; then it will be the earlieft fruit i' th' country for you'll be rotten ere you be half ripe, and that's the right virtue of the medler. Clo. You have faid; but whether wifely or no, * let the Forefter judge. SCENE V. Enter Celia, with a writing. Rof. PEACE, here comes my Sifter reading; ftand afide. Cel. Why should this a Defart be, 'Twixt the fouls of friend and friend; Or at every fentence end, Teaching all, that read, to know, Cleopatra's majeßy; Atalanta's better part; Sad Lucretia's modefty. Let the Foreft judge.] We fhould read Forefter, i. c. the Shep herd who was there prefent. Thus Thus Rofalind of many parts * Rof. O moft gentle Juniper!—what tedious homily of love have you wearied your Parishioners withal, and never cry'd, have patience, good people? Cel. How now? back-friends! fhepherd, go off a little go with him, firrah. Clo. Come, fhepherd, let us make an honourable retreat; tho' not with bag and baggage, yet with fcrip and fcrippage. [Exeunt Cor. and Clown. Cel. D SCENE VI. IDST thou hear these verscs ? Rof. O yes, I heard them all, and more too; for fome of them had in them more feet than the verfes would bear. Cel. That's no matter; the feet might bear the verses. Rof. Ay, but the feet were lame, and could not bear themselves without the verse, and therefore ftood lamely in the verse. Cel. But didft thou hear without wondring, how thy name fhould be hang'd and carv'd upon thefe trees? Rof. I was feven of the nine days out of wonder, before you came: for, look here, what I found on a palm-tree; I was never fo be-rhimed fince Pythagoras's time, that I was an Irish rat, which I can hardly remember. Omoft gentle Jupiter!] We fhould read Juniper, as the following Words thew, alluding to the proverbial Term of a Juniper Lecture: A harp or unpleafing one; Juniper being a rough prickly Plant. Cel. |