Enter MERCURY.

MERCURY.
Ye goddesses of this eternity,
To whom of right belongs each earthly thing,
The king of gods salutes ye both by me;
And (I beseech you) mark the news I bring.
My father Jupiter, perceiving well
What hath herein been[123] done by each of you,
And[124] how ye still endeavour to excel,
Maintaining that whereon the quarrel grew—
That is, the government of this estate,
And unto whom the sovereignty shall fall—
Here, therefore, to conclude your long debate,
Lest your contention may be counted general,
Desires ye both, and so commands by me,
Ye stand to his conclusion of the cause.
How say you, therefore? will you now agree,
That malice may no longer right delude?

VENUS.
Brother Mercury, as I have never been
So obstinate, or bent so frowardly,
But that I could some time relent the ill—
A woman must a little have her will;
So am I now resolved for to do
Whatso my father shall entreat me to.

FORTUNE.
And all the world by me perceiveth well
Of course my fancy, favour,[125] and my skill:
And when my cause a little course hath had,
I am well pleased, and no longer sad.

MERCURY.
Then thus our father Jupiter concludes,
To lay the stroke of your unceasing strife.
As heretofore betwixt these lovers twain
Ye have express'd your powers upon their life,
So now he wills you to withhold your hands.
Enough sufficeth to confirm your might;
And to conjoin ye both in friendly bands
Of faithful love, wherein the gods delight,
His pleasure is that, Lady Venus, you
Shall be content never to hinder them,
To whom Dame Fortune shall her[126] friendship show,
Of wretched to procure them happy men.
Ne shall you, Fortune, once presume to take
The credit of the honour in your hand:
If Lady Venus do them quite forsake,
You shall not seem in their[127] defence to stand;
But whomsoever one of you prefer,
The other shall be subject unto her;
For thus hath Jupiter determined now.

VENUS.
I must and will subscribe my will to you.

FORTUNE.
And I most gladly thereof do allow.

VENUS.
Whom Fortune favours I will not despise.

FORTUNE.
Whom Love rejects by me shall never rise.

MERCURY.
To this conclusion do you both agree?

VENUS.
For my part.

FORTUNE.
And I, most willingly.

MERCURY.
Then let your union be confirmed again
By proper course, each one in his descent
Over mortal men and worldly things to reign
By interchange, as Jupiter hath meant.
And[128] friendly Fortune, let me entreat, alone—
Sith by your means these lovers hind'red were,
And now ye two are reconcil'd in one,
You grant the[m] grace their honour up to rear.

FORTUNE.[129]
Sweet Mercury, I give thee my consent.
I will forthwith advance them to renown:
And their destruction better to prevent,
They shall relieve them, that did throw them down.

MERCURY.[130]
And I my gracious favour will bestow
Upon them all, according to desert;
And I will help his frenzy ere I go.
That bedlam up and down he[re] plays[131] his part.

Enter BOMELIO with HERMIONE and FIDELIA, with a cope and dagger.

BOMELIO. Cot's[132] wounds! ye whore, I am not for your diet. Hang, rascal, make a leg to me, [or,] by Gog's blood, I'll stab thee through. What the devil, the devil, and all my books be gone! O most accursed man Bomelio! Go hide thyself, go hide thyself! go hang thyself, go hang! I'll hang the whore out of hand; and as for you, villain,—stand, rascal! stand!

FIDELIA.
Good father, hear me. Come, take a little rest:
Yea, my sweet father, come, sleep upon my breast.

BOMELIO.
Hark the whore! See what an impudent whore it is. Sleep, you whore?
I'll sleep with you anon, Gog's blood, you whore, I'll hang you up!
[He threatens her.

FIDELIA.
Help, help, Hermione!

HERMIONE.
Good father, let her alone. Come, let us go.

[Enter MERCURY invisible.]

MERCURY. Now with my music I'll recure his woe. [Play.

BOMELIO. Hark, hark, my hearts! Pipes, fiddles! O brave! I shall have my books again. Dance about. Robin Hood is a good knave. Come, Bess, let's go sleep. Come, Bess; together, together.

MERCURY.
Now will I charm him, that he shall not wake,
Until he be relieved in this place.
Then take her blood, and cast it on this brake,
And therewithal besprinkle all his face,
And he shall be restored to his sense,
His health and memory, as heretofore.
Do this, for I must now depart from hence,
And so your sorrows shall increase no more.

HERMIONE.
Fidelia, what hast thou heard, my dear?
O comfortable words, were they but true!
If any god or goddess be so near,
Vouchsafe of pity on our pains to rue.
Delude not with a feigned fantasy
The wretched mind[s] of men in misery.

FIDELIA.
Alas! Hermione, let us not feed
And flatter ourselves with any[133] good surmise:
We are too much accursed so to speed,
Or any hope thereof for to devise.
Resolve yourself, dear friend, another way,
And let us never look for happy day.

Enter PHIZANTIES, ARMENIO, PENULO, and LENTULO.

PHIZANTIES.
When thirst of hot revenge inflameth high desire:
When malice kindleth so the minds of them that would aspire,
That to enlarge their names they reck not his despite,
That overseeth all their work, their doings to requite:
Mark, then, what followeth, when princes ye provoke:
The deeper and the larger wound, when longest is the stroke!
And this hath moved me to leave my court awhile,
To be content in sweat of brows, in trouble, pain and toil,
To seek out wretches, them that have abus'd me so,
And to reward their villainy according, ere we go.

PENULO.
May it please your honour, it is excellent done.
Gog's blood! and I were a prince, and had such a noble son,
That should be so highly abused as he hath been,
Would I put it up? no; by his wounds, I would never lin,
Till I had made such a mingle-mangle upon their nose,
That their skin should serve to make me a doublet and a pair of hose.

LENTULO.
What, you would not? i'faith, you look not with the face:
When you have the skin, sir, what will you do with the case?
But, master prince, since you are come to this travailation,
I'll bring you to my old master's convoculation,
Where he hides himself, when I ran away:
It's not far within these woods. How think you, sir, I pray?

PHIZANTIES.
Lead on the way, and I will follow thee.

LENTULO.
Why, then, come on, my valiant hearts, march on and follow me.
But I'll make this bargain first: hear you me what I say?
When I come home, you shall not let my master beat me for running away.

PHIZANTIES.
He shall not, I warrant thee.

LENTULO.
Why, then, my noble youths of oak, pluck up your hearts with me.
Will you come, sir I come on, i'faith: keep in order you thereby.
We shall find her i'faith, master prince, anon, I know,
And then I'll trounce him for running away with another man's wife,
I trow.

PENULO.
Stand, sir. Who lives a-sunning yonder? can you tell?

LENTULO.
It's a beggar with a rogue.

PHIZANTIES.
It is my daughter, I see full well.

HERMIONE.
Fidelia, be content: shrink not at all.

PHIZANTIES.
Strike not a stroke, my son.

PENULO.
For help I shall go run and call.

PHIZANTIES.
And art thou found, false traitor and untrue,
Traitor to him that dealt so well with thee?
Did I devise to stop that would ensue,
And found my cares such issue as I see?
I see I am abused too-too much,
And too much sufferance is cause of this abuse:
This high abuse of yours, as being such,
Affords no cloak nor colour of excuse.
O, where is thankfulness and love become?
Where is the fear of princes' wrath exil'd?
Even this is the unhappiness of some,
To be of them they trusted most beguil'd;
But sometime pardon breeds a second ill.
Thou shameless wench, and thou false-hearted knight,
By your unhappy deeds I learn this skill;
But yet I list not kill thee, as I might.
Her will I have, and keep her as I may.
On pain of death I charge thee, hence away!

HERMIONE.
O prince, this sentence hath his force and strength,
And dead I am that here appear to live;
For how, alas! can this my life have length
When she is hence, that life and sense doth give?
But since, alas! I must be only he,
Whom Fortune vows to make a common game,
Armenio, my foe, do this for me—
With my revenge to end my open shame.
To help thee to digest thine injury,
Appease thee with Hermione's tragedy.

FIDELIA.
Far be the thought of that accursed deed,
O sweet Hermione, my sweet Hermione!
Foul be his fall that makes thy body bleed,
O sweet Hermione, my sweet Hermione!
And, father, this I vow: forgive it me,
1 will be sacrifice for this offence,
And or I will have my Hermione,
My chosen love, or never part from hence.
Him hath the destinies ordained mine,
Most worthy me, your daughter, every way;
Nor he to any will his choice resign—
No more my troubled thoughts will let me say.

PHIZANTIES.
What wilt thou, foolish girl and obstinate?
Say'st thou this treason is devis'd by fate?
That shall we try. Despatch her hence away.
Let's see who dares our princely will gainsay.

PENULO.
Sir, and you'll have us carry her, here be them come of the carriers.

LENTULO.
And you'll have us marry her, here be them come of the marriers.

PENULO.
Lord! I marvel to whose share this lady will fall:
I am sure my part in her will be least of all.

VENUS and FORTUNE show themselves, and speak to
PHIZANTIES, while HERMIONE standeth in amaze.

VENUS.
High time it is that now we did appear,
If we desire to end their misery.

FORTUNE.
Phizanties, stay, and unto us give ear.
What thou determin'st performed cannot be.

PHIZANTIES.
Dread goddess whatsoever of this place,
If I herein have disobeyed thy grace,
Of favour grant for to remit the same:
Let me not suffer undeserved blame.

VENUS.
Phizanties, stand up; be of good cheer.
None but thy friends are met together here—
Thy friends, though goddesses in other things—
Yet interchange an alteration brings.
And now, whereas you seek in what you can
To let your child to marry with this man,
Know that it is the pleasure of our will,
That they together be conjoined still.
For 'tis not so—he is not born so base
As you esteem, but of a noble race.
His father is the good Bomelio,
That sleepeth here oppress'd with woe,
Whom Phalaris thy father, on a false report,
In wrath and anger banished his court:
But this is he, to whom thou wishest oft good,
And this his son, born of a noble blood.
Think it no scorn to thee or thine hereafter
To have his son espoused to thy daughter.

PHIZANTIES.
Right gracious goddess, if this be true indeed,
As I believe, because from you it doth proceed,
Then pardon me, for had I known it so,
His son had never tasted of this woe.
Unwitting of his lineage till this time,
Not,[134] presumed, sprung of a noble line.
Put[135] hence, and please your deities, my grief,
Because my son is dumb without relief.

PENULO.
I'faith, sirrah, thou and I may hold our peace, with their leave,
For none but wise men speak here, I perceive.

LENTULO.
In some respects so, in some respects not;
For a fool's bolt is soon enough shot.

FORTUNE.
Phizanties, fear no longer his distress;
The gracious gods provide for his redress.
The shedding of thy daughter's dearest blood
Shall both to him and to this man do good;
For let this fern be dipp'd in many a place,
And, as he sleepeth, cast it in his face,
And let his tongue be washed therewithal,
And both of them relieved see you shall.

PHIZANTIES.
How say you, daughter, will you grant thereto?

FIDELIA.
Most willing, sir, if you vouchsafe to do
But this request, which I most humbly pray—
Then I may be Hermione's for aye.

PHIZANTIES.
With all my heart: hereon I give my hand.

FIDELIA.
I take it, sir; and to your word I stand.
And for thy sake, Hermione, my dear,
See what I do, although it touch me near.
Now take thy fill, and for his madness prove.
[Bares her breast.]

HERMIONE.
O sweet and fearful sight, the sign of love!

LENTULO.
If it be any sweeter, masters, that runs from you so,
I pray you give me some of your blessings, ere you go.

ARMENIO.
I strive to speak, and glad to find my speech.
Forgive, Hermione, forgive me, I beseech.
And you, good sister; pardon, my friends, too;
Too rash in all I ventured to do.
See what proceedeth from unstable youth!
Shame to himself, and to his friends a cause of ruth.

HERMIONE.
Armenio, long hath my mind[136] desired
To hear the proffer of this pleasant peace,
Which sith the gods do grant as we require,
Henceforth let rancour and contention cease,
And in our breast be knit for ever sure
The links of love, perpetual to endure.

BOMELIO [waking].
What have I heard? what is it that they say?
Amazed quite! confounded every way!
My son Hermione, I know that is the same!
And that's my prince: now comes grief and shame!

PHIZANTIES.
My Lord Bomelio, shun not; I know you now.
Forgive the fact my father did to you;
And what he did, impute it not to me.
Thy former place I will restore to thee.
In token of our faithful amity,
We will be joined in near affinity.

BOMELIO.
Long live Phizanties, long live in happy ease;
The gods be bless'd I live this day to see!
What please the one, shall never me displease:
Thrice happy now for all my misery.

PENULO.
Why then, sir, sith everything is come to so good an end,
I hope, my good master, you'll stand-by my good friend,
And give me but two or three thousand pound a year to live on.

LENTULO.
Much in my nock, Nichols:[137] you and I shall slave it anon.

ARMENIO.
Assure thee, Penulo, thou shalt not want as long as I live.

LENTULO.
Why then, master, mine old master, I pray you forgive
Your old runaway. 'Twas for fashion-sake: I'll do so no more.

BOMELIO.
Look you do not, sirrah, and then I pardon you therefore.

[Enter VENUS and FORTUNE.]

VENUS.
Thus everything united is by Love.
Now gods and men are reconcil'd again;
On whom, because I did my pleasure prove,
I will reward you for your former pain.
Receive the favours of our deity,
And sing the praise of Venus' sovereignty.

FORTUNE.
And for I play'd my part with Lady Love,
While each did strive for chief authority,
Your good deserts Dame Fortune so doth move
To give these signs of liberality.
Thus for amends of this your late unrest,
By Love and Fortune you shall all be blest.
And thus hereof this inward care I have,
That Wisdom ruleth Love, and Fortune both:
Though riches fail, and beauty seem to save,
Yet wisdom forward still unconquered go'th.
This, we beseech you, take friendly in worth;
And sith by Love and Fortune our troubles all do cease,
God save her majesty, that keeps us all in peace.
Now they and we do all triumph in joy,
And Love and Fortune are linked sure friends:
All grief is fled; for your annoy
Fortune and Love makes all amends.
Let us rejoice, then, in the same,
And sing high praises of their name.

FINIS.

THE THREE LADIES OF LONDON.

EDITION.

[A right excellent and famous Comoedy called the Three Ladies of London. Wherein is Notablie declared and set foorth, how by the meanes of Lucar, Loue and Conscience is so corrupted, that the one is married to Dissimulation, the other fraught with all abhomination. A Perfect Patterne for All Estates to looke into, and a worke right worthie to be marked. Written by R.W. as it hath been publiquely played. At London, Printed by Roger Warde, dwelling neere Holburne Conduit, at the signs of the Talbot. 1584.[138] 4º. Black letter.]

THE PROLOGUE.

To sit on honour's seat it is a lofty reach:
To seek for praise by making brags ofttimes doth get a breach.
We list not ride the rolling racks that dims the crystal skies,
We mean to set no glimmering glance before your courteous eyes:
We search not Pluto's pensive pit, nor taste of Limbo lake;
We do not show of warlike fight, as sword and shield to shake:
We speak not of the powers divine, ne yet of furious sprites;
We do not seek high hills to climb, nor talk of love's delights.
We do not here present to you the thresher with his flail,
Ne do we here present to you the milkmaid with her pail:
We show not you of country toil, as hedger with his bill;
We do not bring the husbandman to lop and top with skill:
We play not here the gardener's part, to plant, to set and sow:
You marvel, then, what stuff[139] we have to furnish out our show.
Your patience yet we crave a while, till we have trimm'd our stall;
Then, young and old, come and behold our wares, and buy them all.
Then, if our wares shall seem to you well-woven, good and fine,
We hope we shall your custom have again another time.

THE THREE LADIES OF LONDON.

THE FIRST ACT.

Enter FAME, sounding before LOVE and CONSCIENCE.

LOVE.
Lady Conscience, what shall we say to our estates? to whom shall
we complain?
Or how shall we abridge such fates as heapeth up our pain?
'Tis Lucre now that rules the rout: 'tis she is all in all:
'Tis she that holds her head so stout; in fine, 'tis she that works
our fall.
O Conscience! I fear, I fear a day,
That we by her and Usury shall quite be cast away.

CONSCIENCE.
Indeed, I fear the worst, for every man doth sue,
And comes from countries strange and far of her to have a view.
Although they ought to seek true Love and Conscience clear;
But Love and Conscience few do like that lean on Lucre's chair.
Men ought be rul'd by us; we ought in them bear sway,
So should each neighbour live by other in good estate alway.

LOVE.
For Lucre men come from Italy, Barbary, Turkey,
From Jewry; nay, the Pagan himself
Endangers his body to gape for her pelf.
They forsake mother, prince, country, religion, kiff and kin;
Nay, men care not what they forsake, so Lady Lucre they win;
That we poor ladies may sigh to see our states thus turned and tost,
And worse and worse is like to be, where Lucre rules the roost.

CONSCIENCE.
You say the truth, yet God, I trust, will not admit it so,
That Love and Conscience by Lucre's lust shall catch an overthrow.

FAME.
Good ladies, rest content, and you, no doubt, shall see
Them plagued with painful punishment for such their cruelty:
And if true Love and Conscience live from Lucre's lust lascivious,
Then Fame a triple crown will give, which lasteth aye victorious.

CONSCIENCE.
God grant that Conscience keep within the bounds of right,
And that vile Lucre do not haunt her heart with deadly spite.

LOVE.
And grant, O God, that Love be found in city, town, and country,
Which causeth wealth and peace abound, and pleaseth God Almighty.

FAME.
But, ladies, is't your pleasure to walk abroad a while,
And recreate yourselves with measure, your sorrows to beguile?

CONSCIENCE.
Pass on, good Fame; your steps do frame; on you we will attend,
And pray to God, that holds the rod, our states for to defend.

[Exeunt.