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Enter
King, Are. Gal. Meg. Cle. Dion, Thra. Bellario, [5.5]
and Attendants.
King.
Is it appeas'd?
Di.
Sir, all is quiet as this dead of night,
As peaceable as sleep, my Lord
Philaster
Brings on the Prince himself.
King. Kind
Gentlemen!
I will not break the least word
I have given
In promise to him, I have heap'd
a world
Of grief upon his head, which
yet I hope
To wash away.
Enter
Philaster and Pharamond.
Cle.
My Lord is come. King.
My Son!
Blest be the time that I have
leave to call
Such vertue mine; now thou art
in mine arms,
Me thinks I have a salve unto
my breast
For all the stings that dwell
there, streams of grief
That I have wrought thee, and
as much of joy
That I repent it, issue from
mine eyes:
Let them appease thee, take
thy right; take her,
She is thy right too, and forget
to urge
My vexed soul with that I did
before.
Phi.
Sir, is it blotted from my memory,
Past and forgotten: For you
Prince of Spain,
Whom I have thus redeem'd, you
have full leave
To make an honourable voyage
home.
And if you would go furnish'd
to your Realm
With fair provision, I do see
a Lady
Me thinks would gladly bear
you company:
How like you this piece?
Meg.
Sir, he likes it well,
For he hath tried it, and found
it worth
His princely liking; we were
ta'ne a bed,
I know your meaning, I am not
the first
That Nature taught to seek a
fellow forth:
Can shame remain perpetually
in me,
And not in others? or have Princes
salves
To cure ill names that meaner
people want?
Phi.
What mean you?
Meg.
You must get another ship
To clear the Princess and the
boy together.
Di.
How now!
Meg.
Others took me, and I took her and him
At that all women may be ta'ne
sometimes:
Ship us all four my Lord, we
can endure
Weather and wind alike.
King.
Clear thou thy self, or know not me for Father.
Are.
This earth, How false it is? what means is left for me
To clear my self? It lies in
your belief,
My Lords believe me, and let
all things else
Struggle together to dishonour
me.
Bell.
O stop your ears great King, that I may speak
[end page 38, signature [F3v], catchword: As]
As freedom would, then I will
call this Lady
As base as be her actions, hear
me Sir,
Believe your hated bloud when
it rebels
Against your reason sooner than
this Lady.
Meg.
By this good light he bears it hansomely.
Phi.
This Lady? I will sooner trust the wind
With Feathers, or the troubled
Sea with Pearl,
Than her with any thing; believe
her not!
Why think you, if I did believe
her words;
I would outlive 'em: honour
cannot take
Revenge on you, then what were
to be known
But death?
King. Forget her Sir, since all is
knit
Between us: but I must request
of you
One favour, and will sadly be
denied.
Phi.
Command what ere it be.
King.
Swear to be true to what you promise.
Phi.
By the powers above,
Let it not be the death of her
or him,
And it is granted.
King. Bear away the boy
To Torture, I will have her
clear'd or buried.
Phi.
O let me call my words back, worthy Sir,
Ask something else, bury my
life and right (once.
In one poor grave, but do not
take away my life and fame at
King.
Away with him, it stands irrevocable.
Phi.
Turn all your eyes on me, here stands a man
The falsest and the basest of
this world:
Set swords against this breast
some honest man,
For I have liv'd 'till I am
pitied,
My former deeds are hateful,
but this last
Is pitifull, for I unwillingly
Have given the dear preserver
of my life
Unto his Torture: is it in the
power [Offers to kill himself.
Of flesh and blood, to carry
this and live?
Are.
Dear Sir be patient yet, or stay that hand.
King.
Sirs, strip that boy.
Di.
Come Sir, your tender flesh will try your constancie.
Bell.
O kill me gentlemen. Di.
No, help Sirs.
Bell.
Will you Torture me?
King.
Hast there, why stay you?
Bell.
Then I shall not break my vow,
You know just gods, though I
discover all.
King.
How's that? Will he confess?
Di.
Sir, so he says. King.
Speak then.
Bell.
Great King if you command
This Lord to talk with me alone,
my tongue
Urg'd by my heart, shall utter
all the thoughts
My youth hath known, and stranger
things than these
You hear not often.
King. Walk aside with him.
Di.
Why speak'st thou not?
Bell.
Know you this face my Lord?
Di.
No. Bell.
Have you not seen it, nor the like?
Di.
Yes, I have seen the like, but readily
I know not where.
Bell. I have been often told
In Court, of one Euphrasia,
a Lady
And Daughter to you; betwixt
whom and me
(They that would flatter my
bad face would swear)
There was such strange resemblance,
that we two
Could not be known asunder,
drest alike.
Di.
By Heaven and so there is.
Bell.
For her fair sake,
Who now doth spend the spring
time of her life
In holy Pilgrimage, move to
the King,
That I may scape this Torture.
Di. But thou
speak'st
As like Euphrasia as
thou dost look,
How came it to thy knowledge
that she lives in Pilgrimage?
Bell.
I know it not my Lord,
But I have heard it, and do
scarce believe it.
Di.
Oh my shame, is't possible? Draw near,
That I may gaze upon thee, art
thou she?
Or else her Murderer? where
wert thou born?
Bell.
In Siracusa. Di.
What's thy name?
Bell.
Euphrasia.
(hadst died
Di.
O 'tis just, 'tis she now, I do know thee, Oh that thou
And I had never seen thee nor
my shame,
[end column one, page 39]
How shall I own thee? shall
this tongue of mine
E're call thee Daughter more?
Bell.
Would I had died indeed, I wish it too,
And so I must have done by vow,
e're published
What I have told, but that there
was no means
To hide it longer, yet I joy
in this,
The Princess is all clear.
King.
What have you done?
Di.
All is discovered. Phi.
Why then hold you me?
Di.
All is discovered, pray you let me go. He
offers to
King.
Stay him. Are.
What is discovered? stab
himself.
Di.
Why my shame, it is a woman, let her speak the rest.
Phi.
How! that again. Di.
It is a woman.
Phi.
Blest be you powers that favour innocence.
King.
Lay hold upon that Lady.
Phi.
It is a woman Sir, hark Gentlemen!
It is a woman. Arethusa
take
My soul into thy breast, that
would be gone
With joy: it is a woman, thou
art fair,
And vertuous still to ages,
in despight of malice.
King.
Speak you, where lies his shame?
Bell.
I am his Daughter. Phi.
The Gods are just.
Di.
I dare accuse none, but before you two
The vertue of our age, I bend
my knee
For mercy.
Phi. Take it freely; for I know,
Though what thou didst were
undiscreetly done,
'Twas meant well.
Are. And for me,
I have a power to pardon sins
as oft
As any man has power to wrong
me.
Cle.
Noble and worthy. Phi.
But Bellario,
(For I must call thee still
so) tell me why
Thou didst conceal thy Sex,
it was a fault,
A fault Bellario, though
thy other deeds
Of truth outweigh'd it: All
these Jealousies
Had flown to nothing, if thou
hadst discovered,
What now we know.
Bell.
My Father would oft speak
Your worth and vertue, and as
I did grow
More and more apprehensive,
I did thirst
To see the man so rais'd, but
yet all this
Was but a Maiden longing to
be lost
As soon as sound, till sitting
in my window,
Printing my thoughts in Lawne,
I saw a God
I thought (but it was you) enter
our Gates,
My bloud flew out, and back
again as fast
As I had pust it sorth, and
suck't it in
Like breath, then was I call'd
away in hast
To entertain you. Never was
a man
Heav'd from a Sheep-coat to
a Scepter rais'd
So high in thoughts as I, you
left a kiss
Upon these lips then, which
I mean to keep
From you for ever, I did hear
you talk
Far above singing; after you
were gone,
I grew acquainted with my heart,
and search'd
What stir'd it so, Alas I found
it love,
Yet far from lust, for could
I have but liv'd
["lust" is crossed out in MS and "ills" written
in it's place]
In presence of you, I had had
my end,
For this I did delude my noble
Father
With a feign'd Pilgrimage, and
drest my self
In habit of a boy, and, for
I knew
My birth no match for you, I
was past hope
Of having you. And understanding
well
That when I made discovery of
my Sex,
I could not stay with you, I
made a vow
By all the most religious things
a Maid
Could call together, never to
be known,
Whilst there was hope to hide
me from mens eyes,
For other than I seem'd; that
I might ever
Abide with you, then sate I
by the Fount
Where first you took me up.
King.
Search out a match
Within our Kingdom where and
when thou wilt,
And I will pay thy Dowry, and
thy self
Wilt well deserve him.
[end page 39, signature [F4], catchword: Bell.]
Bell.
Never Sir will I
Marry, it is a thing within
my vow,
But if I may have leave to serve
the Princess,
To see the vertues of her Lord
and her,
I shall have hope to live.
Are. I Philaster,
Cannot be jealous, though you
had a Lady
Drest like a Page to serve you,
nor will I
Suspect her living here: come
live with me,
Live free, as I do, she that
loves my Lord,
Curst be the wife that hates
her.
Phi.
I grieve such vertues should be laid in earth
Without an Heir: hear me my
Royal Father,
Wrong not the freedom of our
souls so much,
To think to take revenge of
that base woman,
Her malice cannot hurt us: set
her free
As she was born, saving from
shame and sin.
[end column one, page 40]
King.
Set her at liberty, but leave the Court,
This is no place for such: you
Pharamond
Shall have free passage, and
a conduct home
Worthy so great a Prince, when
you come there,
Remember 'twas your faults that
lost you her,
And not my purpos'd will.
Pha. I do confess,
Renowned Sir.
King.
Last joyn your hands in one, enjoy Philaster
This Kingdom which is yours,
and after me
What ever I call mine, my blessing
on you,
All happy hours be at your Marriage
joyes,
That you may grow your selves
over all Lands,
And live to see your plenteous
branches spring
Where ever there is Sun. Let
Princes learn
By this to rule the passions
of their blood,
For what Heaven wills, can never
be withstood.
[Exeunt Omnes
[end column two, page 40, signature [F4v], |
| © Twilight
Pictures, March
2001. This text is freely available for
educational, non-profit uses only. Please report any errors or suggestions
to Drew Whitehead.
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