Mucedorus
Prologue
Pro.Sp1Prologue
Exit.
Most sacred majesty, whose great deserts
Thy subject England—nay, the world—admires,
Which heaven grant still increase, O may your praise,
Multiplying with your hours, your fame still raise.
Embrace your council; love, with faith, them guide
,
,That both, as one, bench by each otherʼs side.
So may your life pass on, and run so even
That your firm zeal plant you a throne in heaven,
Where smiling angels shall your guardians be
From blemished traitors stained with perjury.
And as the night’s inferior to the day,
So be all earthly regions to your sway;
Be as the sun to day, the day to night,
For from your beams Europe shall borrow light.
Mirth drown your bosom, fair delight your mind,
And may our pastime your contentment find.
Induction
Enter Comedy joyfully, with a garland of bays on her head.Comedy
Enter Envy, his arms naked, besmeared with blood.
Why so? Thus do I hope to please!
Thus do I hope to please!Music revives, and mirth is tolerable.
Comedy, play thy part, and please.
Make merry them that come to joy with thee.
Joy, then, good gentles; I hope to make you laugh.
Sound forth Bellonaʼs silver-tunèd strings;
silver-tunèd strings;Time fits us well: the day and place is ours.
Envy
Nay, stay, minion! There lies a block.
What, all on mirth? Iʼll interrupt your tale,
And mix your music with a tragic end.
Comedy
What monstrous ugly hag is this,
That dares control the pleasures of our will?
Vaunt, churlish cur, besmeared with gory blood,
besmeared with gory blood,That seemst to check the blossom of delight,
And stifle the sound of sweet Bellonaʼs breath.
Blush, monster, blush, and post away with shame,
That seekʼst disturbance of a goddessʼ deeds.
Envy
Post hence thyself, thou counterchecking trull.
I will possess this habit spite of thee,
And gain the glory of thy wishèd port.
Iʼll thunder music shall appall the nymphs,
And make them shiver their clattering strings,
Flying for succour to their Danish caves.
Sound drums within and cry, "Stab! Stab!" caves.Hearken, thou shalt hear a noise
Shall fill the air with a shrilling sound,
And thunder music to the gods above.
Mars shall himself breathe down
A peerless crown upon brave Envyʼs head,
And raise his chival with a lasting fame.
In this brave music Envy takes delight,
Where I may see them wallow in their blood,
To spurn at arms and legs quite shivered off
And hear the cries of many thousands slain.
How lik’st thou this, my trull? This sport alone for me?
Comedy
Vaunt, bloody cur, nursed up with tigerʼs sap,
That so dost seek to quaile a womanʼs mind.
Comedy is mild, gentle, willing for to please,
And seeks to gain the love of all estates,
Delighting in mirth, mixed all with lovely tales,
And bringeth things with treble joy to pass.
Thou bloody, envious disdainer of menʼs joys,
Whose name is fraught with bloody stratagems,
Delights in nothing but in spoil and death,
Where thou mayst trample in their lukewarm blood,
And grasp their hearts within thy cursèd paws.
Yet vail thy mind; revenge thou not on me;
A silly woman begs it at thy hands.
Give me the leave to utter out my play.
Forbear this place, I humbly crave thee hence,
And mix not death ʼmongst pleasing comedies
That treats nought else but pleasure and delight.
If any spark of human rests in thee,
Forbear, be gone, tender the suit of me.
of me.Envy
Why, so I will; forbearance shall be such
As treble death shall cross thee with despite
thee with despiteAnd make thee mourn where most thou joyest,
Turning thy mirth into a deadly dole,
Whirling thy pleasures with a peal of death,
And drench thy methods in a sea of blood.
This will I do! Thus shall I bear with thee;
And more, to vex thee with a deeper spite,
I will with threats of blood begin thy play,
Favouring thee with envy and with hate.
Comedy
Then, ugly monster, do thy worst;
I will defend them in despite of thee.
And though thou thinkʼst with tragic fumes
To brave my play unto my deep disgrace,
I force it not; I scorne what thou canst do.
Iʼll grace it so thyself shall it confess
From tragic stuff to be a pleasant comedy.
Envy
Why then, Comedy, send thy actors forth,
And I will cross the first steps of their tread,
Making them fear the very dart of death.
Comedy
And Iʼll defend them maugre all thy spite.
all thy spite.So, ugly fiend, farewell, till time shall serve
That we may meet to parley for the best.
Envy
Exeunt.
Content, Comedy; Iʼll go spread my branch,
And scattered blossoms from mine envious tree,
Shall prove two monsters, spoiling of their joys.
Scene 1
Sound. Enter Mucedorus and Anselmo, his friend.1.Sp3Mucedorus
True, my Anselmo, both thy lord and friend,
Whose dear affections bosom with my heart
with my heartAnd keep their domination in one orb.
1.Sp4Anselmo
Whence neʼer disloyalty shall root it forth,
But faith plant firmer in your choice respect.
respect.1.Sp5Mucedorus
Much blame were mine if I should other deem,
Nor can coy fortune contrary allow.
But, my Anselmo, loath I am to say,
I must estrange that frendship.
Misconster not, ʼtis from the realm, not thee;
not, ʼtis from the realm, not thee;Though lands part bodies, hearts keep company.
Thou knowʼst that I imparted often have
Private relations with my royal sire,
Had as concerning beauteous Amadine,
Rich Aragonʼs bright jewel, whose face—some say—
That blooming lilies never shone so gay,
Excelling, not excelled. Yet, lest report
Does mangle verity, boasting of what is not,
Winged with desire, thither Iʼll straight repair,
And be my fortunes as my thoughts are, fair.
1.Sp6Anselmo
Will you forsake Valencia, leave the court,
Absent you from the eye of sovereignty?
Do not, sweet prince, adventure on that task.
Since danger lurks each where, be won from it.
be won from it.1.Sp7Mucedorus
Desist dissuasion;
My resolution brooks no battery.
Therefore, if thou retain thy wonted form,
Assist what I intend.
1.Sp8Anselmo
Your miss will breed a blemish in the court,
will breed a blemish in the court,And throw a frosty dew upon that beard
Whose front Valencia stoops to.
Valencia stoops to.1.Sp9Mucedorus
If thou my welfare tender, then no more;
Let loveʼs strong magic charm thy trivial phrase,
Wasted as vainly as to gripe the sun.
Augment not then more answers; lock thy lips,
Unless thy wisdom suit me with disguise
According to my purpose.
1.Sp10Anselmo
That action craves no counsel,
Since what you rightly are will more command
Than best usurpèd shape.
1.Sp11Mucedorus
Thou still art opposite in disposition.
A more obscure, servile habiliment
Beseems this enterprise.
1.Sp13Mucedorus
ʼTis much too tedious; I dislike thy judgement.
My mind is grafted on an humbler stock.
stock.1.Sp14Anselmo
Within my closet does there hang a cassock;
Though base the weed is, ʼtwas a shepherdʼs,
Which I presented in Lord Julioʼs masque.
1.Sp15Mucedorus
Exit.
That, my Anselmo, and none else but that,
Mask Mucedorus from the vulgar view.
That habit suits my mind; fetch me that weed.
Exit Anselmo.Better than kings have not disdained that state,
And much inferior, to obtain their mate.
Enter Anselmo with a shepherd’s coat.So let our respect command thy secrecy.
At once a brief farewell;
Delay to lovers is a second hell.
1.Sp16Anselmo
Exit.
Prosperity forerun thee; awkward chance
Never be neighbour to thy wishʼs venture.
Content and fame advance thee; ever thrive,
And glory thy mortality survive.
Scene 2
Enter Mouse with a bottle of hay.
2.Sp1Mouse
As he goes backwards, the bear comes in, and he tumbles over her, and runs away, and
leaves his bottle of hay behind him.
O, horrible, terrible! Was ever poor gentleman so scared out of his seven senses?
A bear? Nay, sure it cannot be a bear, but some devil in a bearʼs doublet, for a bear
could never have had that agility to have frighted me. Well, Iʼll see my father hanged
before Iʼll serve his horse anymore. Well, Iʼll carry home my bottle of hay, and for
once make my fatherʼs horse turn puritan and observe fasting days, for he gets not
a bit. But soft! This way she followed me; therefore Iʼll take the other path, and
because Iʼll be sure to have an eye on her, I will take hands with some foolish creditor and make every step backward.
Scene 3
Enter Segasto running and Amadine after him, being pursued with a bear. Segasto runs away. Enter Mucedorus, like a shepherd, with a sword drawn and a bearʼs head in his hand.3.Sp5Mucedorus
Stay, Lady, stay, and be no more dismayed!
That cruel beast, most merciless and fell,
Which hath bereaved thousands of their lives,
Affrighted many with his hard pursues,
Prying from place to place to find his prey,
Prolonging thus his life by otherʼs death,
His carcass now lies headless, void of breath.
3.Sp7Mucedorus
Assure yourself thereof; behold his head,
Which, if it please you, lady, to accept,
With willing heart I yield it to your majesty.
3.Sp8Amadine
Thanks, worthy shepherd, thanks a thousand times.
This gift, assure thyself, contents me more
Than greatest bounty of a mighty prince,
Although he were the monarch of the world.
3.Sp9Mucedorus
Most gracious goddess, more than mortal wight—
Your heavenly hue of right imports no less—
Most glad am I, in that it was my chance
To undertake this enterprise in hand,
Which doth so greatly glad your princely mind.
3.Sp10Amadine
No goddess, shepherd, but a mortal wight;
A mortal wight distressèd, as thou seeʼst.
My father here is King of Aragon.
I, Amadine, his only daughter am,
And after him, sole heir unto the crown.
Now whereas it is my fatherʼs will
To marry me unto Segasto, one
Whose wealth, through fatherʼs former usury,
Is known to be no less than wonderful,
We both of custom often times did use—
Leaving the court—to walk within the fields
For recreation, especially the spring,
In that it yields great store of rare delights;
And, passing further than our wonted walks,
Scarce entered were within these luckless woods,
But right before us, down a steep-fall hill,
A monstrous, ugly bear did hie him fast
To meet us both. I faint to tell the rest,
Good shepherd, but suppose the ghastly looks,
The hideous fears, the thousand hundred woes,
Which at this instant Amadine sustained.
3.Sp11Mucedorus
Yet, worthy princess, let thy sorrow cease,
And let this sight your former joys revive.
3.Sp13Mucedorus
Long may they last unto your heartʼs content.
But tell me, lady, what is become of him?
Segasto called? What is become of him?
3.Sp14Amadine
I know not, I; that know the powers divine.
But God grant this, that sweet Segasto live.
3.Sp15Mucedorus
Yet hard-hearted he in such a case,
So cowardly to save himself by flight
And leave so brave a princess to the spoil.
3.Sp16Amadine
Exeunt.
Well, shepherd, for thy worthy valour tried,
Endangering thyself to set me free,
Unrecompensèd sure thou shalt not be.
In court thy courage shall be plainly known;
Throughout the kingdom will I spread thy name,
To thy renown and never-dying fame.
And, that thy courage may be better known,
Bear thou the head of this most monstrous beast
In open sight to every courtierʼs view;
So will the king my father thee reward.
Come, letʼs away, and guard me to the court.
Scene 4
Enter Segasto solus.4.Sp1Segasto
Enter Mouse running, crying “Clubs!”
When heaps of harms do hover overhead,
ʼTis time as then, some say, to look about,
And of ensuing harms to choose the least.
But hard, yea hapless, is that wretchʼs chance,
Luckless his lot and caitiff-like accursed,
At whose proceedings fortune ever frowns:
Myself I mean, most subject unto thrall,
For I, the more I seek to shun the worst,
The more by proof I find myself accursed.
Erewhiles assaulted with an ugly bear,
Fair Amadine in company all alone,
Forthwith by flight I thought to save myself,
Leaving my Amadine unto her shifts;
For death it was for to resist the bear,
And death no less of Amadineʼs harms to hear.
Accursèd I, in lingʼring life thus long!
In living thus, each minute of an hour
Doth pierce my heart with darts of thousand deaths.
If she by flight her fury do escape,
What will she think?
Will she not say, yea, flatly to my face,
Accusing me of mere disloyalty,
“A trusty friend is tried in time of need”?
But I, when she in danger was of death,
And needed me, and cried, "Segasto, help!"
I turned my back and quickly ran away.
Unworthy I to bear this vital breath!
But what, what needs these plaints?
If Amadine do live, then happy I;
She will in time forgive, and so forget.
Amadine is merciful, not Juno-like
In harmful heart to harbour hatred long.
4.Sp5Segasto
Thou talkʼst of wonders to tell me of white bears. But, sirrah, didst thou ever see
any such?
4.Sp6Mouse
No, faith, I never saw any such, but I remember my fatherʼs words: he bade me take
heed I was not caught with a white bear.
4.Sp8Mouse
I tell you what, sir, as I was going afield to serve my fatherʼs great horse, and
carried a bottle of hay upon my head—now, do you see, sir—I fast hoodwinked that I
could see nothing, I—perceiving the bear coming—I threw my hay into the hedge and ran away.
4.Sp10Mouse
I warrant you, yes, I saw something, for there was two load of thorns besides my bottle
of hay, and that made three.
4.Sp11Segasto
But tell me, sirrah, the bear that thou didst see, did she not bear a bucket on her
arm?
4.Sp12Mouse
Ha, ha, ha! I never saw bear go a-milking in all my life. But hark you, sir, I did
not look so high as her arm. I saw nothing but her white head and her white belly.
4.Sp16Mouse
Why, then you know nobody, and you know not me. I tell you, sir, I am the Goodman Ratʼs son of the next parish over
the hill.
you know not me. I tell you, sir, I am the Goodman Ratʼs son of the next parish over
the hill.4.Sp22Mouse
Aye, plain Mouse without either welt or guard. But do you hear, sir, I am but a very young Mouse, for my tail is scarce grown out
yet; look you here else.
But do you hear, sir, I am but a very young Mouse, for my tail is scarce grown out
yet; look you here else.4.Sp24Mouse
Faith, sir, I know not that, but if you would fain know, ask my fatherʼs great horse,
for he hath been half a year longer with my father than I have.
4.Sp25Segasto
Aside This seems to be a merry fellow;
I care not if I take him home with me.
if I take him home with me.Mirth is a comfort to a troubled mind;
A merry man, a merry master makes.
(To Mouse) How sayʼst thou, sirrah, wilt thou dwell with me?
4.Sp28Mouse
Your lands? Away, you are no master for me! Why, do you think that I am so mad to go seek my living in the lands amongst the stones, briars,
and bushes, and tear my holiday apparel? Not I, by your leave.
4.Sp36Mouse
As I am? Hark you, sir, pray you, what kin is he to Goodman King of our parish, the
churchwarden?
4.Sp40Mouse
Shall I go home again to be torn in pieces with bears? No, not I. I will go home and
put on a clean shirt, and then go drown myself.
4.Sp42Mouse
Shall I not? Then hereʼs my hand, Iʼll dwell with you. And hark you, sir, now you
have entertained me, I will tell you what I can do: I can keep my tongue from picking
and stealing and my hands from lying and slandering, I warrant you, as well as ever
you had man in all your life.
4.Sp43Segasto
Exeunt.
(Aside) Now will I to court with sorrowful heart rounded with doubts.
If Amadine do live, then happy I;
Yea, happy I, if Amadine do live.
Scene 5
Enter the King of Aragon with a young prince prisoner, Amadine, Tremelio, Segasto, Mouse, Collin, and counsellors.5.Sp1Aragon
Now, brave lords, our wars are brought to end,
Our foes the foil, and we in safety rest.
It us behooves to use such clemency
In peace, as valour in the wars. It is
As great honour to be bountiful at home
As to be conquerors in the field.
Therefore, my lords, the more to my content,
Your liking, and our countryʼs safeguard,
We are disposed in marriage for to give
Our daughter to Lord Segasto here,
Who shall succeed the diadem after me
And reign hereafter as I tofore have done,
have done,Your sole and lawful King of Aragon.
What say you, lordings, like you of my advice?
5.Sp2Collin
An’t please your majesty, we do not only allow of your highnessʼ pleasure, but also vow faithfully
in what we may to further it.
5.Sp3Aragon
Thanks, good my lords; if long Adrastus live,
He will at full requite your courtesies.
Tremelio, in recompense of thy late valour done,
Take unto thee the Catalone, a prince
Lately our prisoner taken in the wars.
Be thou his keeper, his ransom shall be thine;
Weʼll think of it when leisure shall afford.
Meanwhile, do use him well; his father is a king.
5.Sp4Tremelio
Thanks to your majesty; his usage shall be such
As he thereat shall think no cause to grutch.
5.Sp5Aragon
Exeunt.
Then march we on to court, and rest our wearied limbs.
Exeunt Segasto, Mouse, Amadine, Tremelio, counsellors, and prince.But, Collin,
I have a tale in secret kept for thee:
When thou shalt hear a watchword from thy king,
Think then some weighty matter is at hand
That highly shall concern our state.
Then, Collin, look thou be not far from me;
And for thy service thou tofore hast done,
Thy truth and valour proved in every point,
I shall with bounties thee enlarge therefore.
So, guard us to the court.
Scene 6
Enter Segasto, and Mouse with weapons about him.6.Sp4Mouse
How, keep the dogs from my shins? I would scorn but my shins should keep the dogs from them.
6.Sp11Segasto
But dost thou remember the captain that was here with the king even now, that brought the young prince prisoner?
6.Sp13Segasto
Go unto him, and bid him come unto me. Tell him I have a matter in secret to impart to him.
6.Sp16Mouse
Oh, the mealman! I know him very well, he brings meal every Saturday. But hark you,
master, must I bid him come to you, or must you come to him?
6.Sp26Mouse
Yes, marry, will I. Oh, ʼtis come to my head; and a be not within, Iʼll bring his chamber to you.
be not within, Iʼll bring his chamber to you.6.Sp28Mouse
Enter Tremelio.
Nay, by Lady, Iʼll know the price of it first. Master, it is such a hard name, I have
forgotten it again. I pray you, tell me his name?
6.Sp37Mouse
Marry, then, I can. Straight to the kitchen-dresser to John the cook, and get me a
good piece of beef and brewis, and then to the buttery-hatch to Thomas the butler for a jack of beer, and there for an hour Iʼll so belabour myself. And therefore I pray you,
call me not till you think I have done, I pray you, good master.
and then to the buttery-hatch to Thomas the butler for a jack of beer, and there for an hour Iʼll so belabour myself. And therefore I pray you,
call me not till you think I have done, I pray you, good master.6.Sp38Segasto
Well, sir, away.
Exit Mouse.Tremelio, this it is:
Thou knowest the valour of Segasto,
Spread through all the kingdom of Aragon,
And such as hath found triumph and favours,
Neuer daunted at any time. But now,
A shepherd admirèd at in court for
Worthiness, and Segasto’s honour laid
Aside. My will therefore is this, that thou
Dost find some means to work the shepherdʼs death.
I know thy strength sufficient to perform
My desire, and thy love no otherwise
Than to revenge my injuries.
6.Sp39Tremelio
It is not the frowns of a shepherd that Tremelio fears. Therefore, account it accomplished
what I take in hand.
6.Sp41Tremelio
Thanks, good my lord, and in good time
See where he cometh. Stand by a while,
And you shall see me put in practice your
Intended drift— Enter Mucedorus.
Have at thee, swain, if that I hit thee right!
6.Sp42Mucedorus
Mucedorus killeth him.
Vild coward, so without cause to strike a man!
coward, so without cause to strike a man!Turn, coward, turn; now strike and do thy worst!
6.Sp43Segasto
Hold, shepherd, hold! Spare him, kill him not!
Accursed villain, tell me, what hast thou done?
Ah, Tremelio, trusty Tremelio,
I sorrow for thy death. And since that thou
Living didst prove faithful to Segasto,
So Segasto, now living, will honour
The dead corpse of Tremelio with revenge.
Bloodthirsty villain, born and bred
In merciless murder, tell me, how durst thou be
murder, tell me, how durst thou beSo bold as once to lay thy hands upon
The least of mine? Assure thyself,
Thou shalt be used according to the law!
6.Sp44Mucedorus
Segasto, cease; these threats are needless.
Accuse me not of murder, that have done
Nothing but in mine own defence.
6.Sp45Segasto
Enter Mouse.
Nay, shepherd, reason not with me.
Iʼll manifest thy fact unto the king,
Whose doom will be thy death, as thou deservʼst.
What ho, Mouse, come away!
6.Sp56Mouse
Exeunt Segasto and Mouse with Tremelio’s body.
Come, then, I will help. Mass, master, I think his mother sung “looby” to him, he is so heavy.
to him, he is so heavy.6.Sp57Mucedorus
Exit.
Behold the fickle state of man: always mutable, never at one.
Sometimes we feed our fancies with the sweet of our desires;
Sometimes again we feel the heat of extreme misery.
Now am I in favour about the court and country,
Tomorrow those favours will turn to frowns.
Today I live, revengèd on my foe;
Tomorrow I die, my foe revenged on me.
Scene 7
Enter Bremo, a wild man.7.Sp1Bremo
Exit.
No passengers this morning? What, not one?
this morning? What, not one?A chance that seldom doth befall.
What, not one? Then lie thou there,
And rest thyself till I have further need.
Lays down his club.Now, Bremo, sith thy leisure so affords
An endless thing— Who knows not Bremoʼs strength,
Who, like a king, commands within these woods?
The bear, the boar, dare not abide my sight,
But haste away to save themselves by flight.
The crystal waters in the bubbling brooks,
When I come by, doth swiftly slide away,
And clap themselves in closets under banks,
Afraid to look bold Bremo in the face.
The agèd oaks at Bremoʼs breath doth bow,
And all things else are still at my command.
Else what would I?
Rend them in pieces and pluck them from the earth,
And each way else I would revenge myself.
Why, who comes here with whom I dare not fight?
Who fights with me and doth not die the death? Not one.
What favour shows this sturdy stick to those
That here within these woods are combatants with me?
Why, death, and nothing else but present death.
With restless rage I wander through these woods;
No creature here but feareth Bremoʼs force,
Man, woman, child, beast, and bird,
And everything that doth approach my sight,
Are forced to fall if Bremo once do frown.
Come, cudgel, come, my partner in my spoils,
Picks up his club.For here I see this day it will not be;
But, when it falls that I encounter any,
One pat sufficeth for to work my will.
What, comes not one? Then letʼs begone;
A time will serve when we shall better speed.
Scene 8
Enter the King of Aragon, Segasto, Mucedorus, and Mouse, with others.8.Sp1Aragon
Shepherd, thou hast heard thine accusers;
Murder is laid to thy charge.
What canst thou say? Thou hast deservèd death.
8.Sp2Mucedorus
Dread sovereign, I must needs confess,
I slew this captain in mine own defence,
Not of any malice, but by chance;
But mine accuser hath a further meaning.
8.Sp4Aragon
Shepherd, thine own confession hath condemnèd thee.
Sirrah, take him away, and do him to execution straight.
8.Sp5Mouse
Enter Amadine, and a boy with a bearʼs head.
So he shall, I warrant him. But, do you hear, Master King, he is kin to a monkey, his neck is bigger than his head.
he is kin to a monkey, his neck is bigger than his head.8.Sp8Amadine
Dread sovereign and well-belovèd sire,
and well-belovèd sire,On bended knees I crave the life of this
Condemnèd shepherd, which heretofore preserved
The life of thy sometime distressèd daughter.
8.Sp9Aragon
Preserved the life of my sometime distressèd daughter?
How can that be? I never knew the time
Wherein thou wast distressed; I never knew the day
But that I have maintainèd thy estate
As best beseemed the daughter of a king.
I never saw the shepherd until now.
How comes it then that he preserved thy life?
8.Sp10Amadine
Once walking with Segasto in the woods,
Further than our accustomed manner was,
Right before us, down a steep-fall hill,
A monstrous, ugly bear did hie him fast
To meet us both. Now, whether this be true,
I refer it to the credit of Segasto.
8.Sp13Amadine
The bear, being eager to obtain his prey,
Made forward to us with an open mouth
As if he meant to swallow us both at once,
The sight whereof did make us both to dread,
But ʼspecially your daughter Amadine,
Who—for I saw no succour incident
But in Segastoʼs valour—I grew desperate,
And he most cowardlike began to fly,
Left me distressed to be devoured of him.
How say you, Segasto? Is it not true?
8.Sp15Amadine
Then I, amazed, distressèd, all alone,
Did hie me fast to ʼscape that ugly bear;
But all in vain, forwhy he reachèd after me,
he reachèd after me,And hardly I did oft escape his paws,
Till at the length this shepherd came
And brought to me his head.
Come hither, boy; lo, here it is,
Which I present unto your majesty.
8.Sp27Aragon
Segasto, cease to accuse the shepherd.
His worthiness deserves a recompence;
All we are bound to do the shepherd good.
Shepherd, whereas it was my sentence thou shouldst die,
So shall my sentence stand, for thou shalt die.
8.Sp29Aragon
But soft, Segasto, not for this offence.
To Mucedorus Long mayst thou live. To Segasto And when the Sisters shall decree
shall decreeTo cut in twain the twisted thread of life,
Then let him die. To Mucedorus For this, I set thee free,
And for thy valour I will honour thee.
8.Sp31Aragon
Exeunt King of Aragon, Amadine, Mucedorus, and others.
Come, daughter, let us now depart to honour the worthy valour of the shepherd with
our rewards.
8.Sp32Mouse
O master, hear you! You have made a fresh hand now, I thought you would, beshrew you! What will you do now? You have lost me a good occupation by the means. Faith, master,
now I cannot hang the shepherd, I pray you, let me take the pains to hang you; it
is but half an hourʼs exercise.
8.Sp33Segasto
Exeunt.
You are still in your knavery. But, sith I cannot have his life, I will procure his banishment forever. Come on, sirrah.
I cannot have his life, I will procure his banishment forever. Come on, sirrah.Scene 9
Enter Mucedorus solus.9.Sp1Mucedorus
Enter a messenger and Mouse.
From Amadine and from her fatherʼs court,
With gold and silver and with rich rewards,
Flowing from the banks of golden treasures—
More may I boast and say, but I
Was never shepherd in such dignity.
9.Sp5Messenger
The king and Amadine greet thee well, and after greeting done, bids thee depart the
court. Shepherd, begone.
9.Sp10Mucedorus
Ah, luckless fortune, worse than Phaethonʼs tale!
My former bliss is now become my bale.
9.Sp22Messenger
Exit.
Well, you are always interrupting of me, but you were best to look to him lest you
hang for him when he is gone.
9.Sp23Mouse
Exit.
Singing And you shall hang for company,
For leaving me alone.
(Speaking) Shepherd, stand forth and hear my sentence. Shepherd, begone within three days in pain of my displeasure.
Singing Shepherd begone, shepherd begone,
Begone, begone, begone,
Shepherd, shepherd, shepherd.
9.Sp24Mucedorus
Enter Amadine and Ariena, her maid.
Exit Ariena.
And must I go? And must I needs depart?
Ye goodly groves, partakers of my songs
In time tofore when fortune did not frown,
Pour forth your plaints and wail awhile with me.
And thou, bright sun, my comfort in the cold,
Hide, hide thy face, and leave me comfortless.
Ye wholesome herbs and sweet-smelling savours,
Yea, each thing else prolonging life of man,
Change, change your wonted course, that I,
Wanting your aid, in woeful sort may die.
9.Sp31Amadine
Shepherd, although thy banishment already
Be decreed, and all against my will,
Yet Amadine—
9.Sp32Mucedorus
Ah, Amadine, to hear of banishment
Is death, aye, double death to me.
But, since I must depart, one thing I crave.
9.Sp45Amadine
Well, shepherd, sith thou suffʼrest this for my sake,
With thee in exile also let me live.
On this condition, shepherd, thou canst love.
9.Sp48Mucedorus
Thanks, worthy princess.
I burn likewise, yet smother up the blast;
I dare not promise what I may perform.
9.Sp49Amadine
Well, shepherd, hark what I shall say:
I will return unto my fatherʼs court,
There for to provide me of such necessʼries
As for our journey I shall think most fit.
This being done, I will return to thee.
Do thou therefore appoint the place
Where we may meet.
9.Sp50Mucedorus
Exit.
Exit.
Down in the valley where I slew the bear,
And there doth grow a fair, broad-branchèd beech
That overshades a well; so who comes first,
Let them abide the happy meeting of us both.
How like you this?
Scene 10
Enter Segasto solus.10.Sp1Segasto
Enter Mouse, calling his master.
ʼTis well, Segasto, that thou hast thy will.
Should such a shepherd, such a simple swain
As he, eclipse thy credit famous through
The court? No, ply, Segasto, ply;
Let it not in Aragon be said
A shepherd hath Segastoʼs honour won.
10.Sp10Mouse
I tell you, all the messes be on the table already. There wants not so much as a mess
of mustard half an hour ago.
10.Sp20Mouse
I tell you, the shepherdʼs bastard shall be well kept; Iʼll look to it myself. But, I pray you,
come away to dinner.
10.Sp23Segasto
Why, you whoreson slave, have you forgotten that I sent you and another to drive away
the shepherd?
10.Sp24Mouse
What an ass are you! Here’s a stir indeed! Here’s “message,” “arrant,” “banishment,”
and I cannot tell what!
10.Sp32Mouse
Exeunt.
I warrant you, I will not lose an inch of you now, you are going to dinner! (Aside) I promise you, I thought seven year before I could get him away.
Scene 11
Enter Amadine solus.11.Sp1Amadine
She sits down.
Enter Bremo looking about, hastily takes hold of her.
God grant my long delay procures no harm,
Nor this—my tarrying—frustrate my pretense.
My Mucedorus surely stays for me
And thinks me overlong; at length I come,
My present promise to perform.
Ah, what a thing is firm, unfeignèd love!
What is it which true love dares not attempt?
My father, he may make, but I must match;
Segasto loves, but Amadine must like
Where likes her best. Compulsion is a thrall;
No, no, the hearty choice is all in all,
The shepherdʼs virtue Amadine esteems.
But what? Methinks my shepherd is not come.
I muse at that; the hour is sure at hand.
Well, here Iʼll rest till Mucedorus come.
11.Sp2Bremo
A happy prey! Now, Bremo, feed on flesh.
Dainties, Bremo, dainties, thy hungry panch to fill;
to fill;Now glut thy greedy guts with lukewarm blood.
To Amadine Come fight with me; I long to see thee dead.
11.Sp14Bremo
With this my bat will I beat out thy brains.
Down, down, I say; prostrate thyself upon the ground.
11.Sp15Amadine
Then, Mucedorus, farewell; my hopèd joys, farewell;
Yea, farewell life, and welcome present death.
She kneels.To thee, O God, I yield my dying ghost.
11.Sp16Bremo
Exeunt.
Aside Now, Bremo, play thy part.
How now, what sudden chance is this?
My limbs do tremble and my sinews shake;
My unweakened arms hath lost their former force.
Ah, Bremo, Bremo, what a foil hast thou,
That yet at no time ever wast afraid
To dare the greatest gods to fight with thee,
And now wants strength for one down driving blow?
He strikes.Ah, how my courage fails when I should strike!
Some new-come spirit abiding in my breast
Saith, “Spare her, Bremo, spare her, do not kill!”
Shall I spare her which never spared any?
To it, Bremo, to it; say again—
I cannot wield my weapon in my hand.
Methinks I should not strike so fair a one;
I think her beauty hath bewitched my force,
Or else within me altered natureʼs course.
To Amadine Ay, woman! Wilt thou live in woods with me?
Scene 12
Enter Mucedorus solus.12.Sp1Mucedorus
Exit.
Cry within, It was my will an hour ago and more,
As was my promise, for to make return,
But other business hindered my pretense.
It is a world to see when man appoints
And purposely one certain thing decrees,
How many things may hinder his intent.
What one would wish, the same is farthest off.
But yet th’appointed time cannot be past,
Nor hath her presence yet prevented me.
Well, here Iʼll stay, and expect her coming.
They cry within, Hold him! Stay him! Hold!Someone or other is pursued, no doubt;
Perhaps some search for me.
ʼTis good to doubt the worst; therefore Iʼll be gone.
Hold him, hold him!Enter Mouse with a pot.
12.Sp2Mouse
Enter the Old Woman.
She searcheth him, and he drinketh over her head, and casteth down the pot; she stumbleth at it, then they fall together by the ears. She takes up her pot and goes out.
Enter Segasto.
“Hold him, hold him, hold him!” Hereʼs a stir indeed! Here came hue after the crier,
and I was set close at Mother Nipʼs house, and there I called for three pots of ale,
as ʼtis the manner of us courtiers. Now, sirrah, I had taken the maidenhead of two
of them. Now, as I was lifting up the third to my mouth, there came, “Hold him, hold
him!” Now, I could not tell whom to catch hold on, but I am sure I caught one—perchance
a may be in this pot. Well, Iʼll see. Mass, I cannot see him yet. Well, Iʼll look
a little further. Mass, he is a little slave if a be here! Why, hereʼs nobody! All
this goes well yet, but if the old trot should come for her pot? Aye, marry, thereʼs
the matter. But I care not; Iʼll face her out, and call her old rusty, dusty, musty,
fusty, crusty firebrand, and worse than all that, and so face her out of her pot.
But soft, here she comes.
12.Sp24Mouse
How, rear the whole town? Even go yourself, it is more than I can do. Why do you think I can rear a town, that
can scarce rear a pot of ale to my head? I should rear a town, should I not?
12.Sp25Segasto
Go to the constable and make a privy search, for the shepherd is run away with the
kingʼs daughter.
12.Sp26Mouse
How, is the shepherd run away with the kingʼs daughter, or is the kingʼs daughter
run away with the shepherd?
12.Sp28Mouse
Exit.
What a fool is she to run away with the shepherd! Why, I think I am a little handsomer
man than the shepherd myself. But tell me, master, must I make a privy search, or
search in the privy?
12.Sp32Mouse
Exit.
Oh, now am I in office! Now will I to that old firebrandʼs house, and will not leave one place unsearched—
nay, Iʼll to her ale-stand, and drink as long as I can stand, and when I have done, Iʼll let out all the rest
to see if he be not hid in the barrel, and if I find him not there, Iʼll to the cupboard. Iʼll not leave one corner of her house unsearched. Iʼfaith, ye old crust, I will
be with you now.
Scene 13
Sound music. Enter the King of Valencia, Anselmo, Roderigo, Lord Barachius, with others.13.Sp1Valencia
Let the music cease.
Enough of music, it but adds to torment;
Delights to vexèd spirits are as dates
Set to a sickly man, which rather cloy than comfort.
Let me entreat you to entreat no more.
13.Sp3Valencia
Mirth to a soul disturbed are embers turned,
Which sudden gleam with molestation,
But sooner lose their sight forʼt.
ʼTis gold bestowed upon a rioter,
Which not relieves, but murders him;
ʼTis a drug given to the healthful,
Which infects, not cures.
How can a father that hath lost his son,
A prince both wise, virtuous, and valiant,
Take pleasure in the idle acts of time?
No, no; till Mucedorus I shall see again,
All joy is comfortless, all pleasure pain.
13.Sp8Anselmo
In Aragon, my liege;
And at his ʼparture bound my secrecy
By his affectious love, not to disclose it.
But care of him, and pity of your age,
Makes my tongue blab what my breast vowed concealment.
13.Sp9Valencia
Thou not deceivest me;
I ever thought thee what I find thee now,
An upright, loyal man.
But what desire, or young-fed humour
Nursed within his brain,
Drew him so privately to Aragon?
13.Sp10Anselmo
A forcing adamant:
Love, mixed with fear and doubtful jealousy,
jealousy,Whether report gilded a worthless trunk,
Or Amadine deserved her high extolment.
13.Sp11Valencia
Exeunt omnes.
See our provision be in readiness.
Collect us followers of the comeliest hue
For our chief guardians; we will thither wend.
The crystal eye of heaven shall not thrice wink,
Nor the green flood six times his shoulders turn,
Till we salute the Aragonian king.
Music, speak loudly; now the season’s apt,
For former dolours are in pleasure wrapped.
Scene 14
Enter Mucedorus to disguise himself.14.Sp1Mucedorus
Enter Mouse.
Now, Mucedorus, whither wilt thou go?
Home to thy father, to thy native soil,
Or try some long abode within these woods?
Well, I will hence depart and hie me home.
What, “hie me home,” said I? That may not be;
In Amadine rests my felicity.
Then, Mucedorus, do as thou didst decree:
Attire thee hermit-like within these groves;
Walk often to the beech and view the well;
Make settles there and seat thyself thereon;
And when thou feelʼst thyself to be athirst,
Then drink a hearty draught to Amadine.
No doubt she thinks on thee,
And will one day come pledge thee at this well.
Come, habit, thou art fit for me.
He disguiseth himself.No shepherd now; an hermit I must be.
Methinks this fits me very well;
Now must I learn to bear a walking staff
And exercise some gravity withal.
14.Sp2Mouse
Hereʼs through the woods, and through the woods, to look out a shepherd and a stray kingʼs-daughter. But soft, who have we here? What art thou?
14.Sp6Mouse
Oh, I know thee now! Thou art he that eats up all the hips and haws; we could not have one piece of fat bacon for thee all this year.
and haws; we could not have one piece of fat bacon for thee all this year.14.Sp10Mouse
Yes, that I can. ʼTis this: my master and Amadine, walking one day abroad, nearer
to these woods than they were used—about what I cannot tell—but towards them comes
running a great bear. Now, my master, he played the man and ran away, and Amadine
crying after him. Now, sir, comes me a shepherd, and he strikes off the bearʼs head.
Now, whether the bear were dead before or no I cannot tell, for bring twenty bears
before me and bind their hands and feet and Iʼll kill them all. Now, ever since, Amadine
hath been in love with the shepherd, and for good will sheʼs even run away with the
shepherd.
14.Sp12Mouse
ʼScribe him? Aye, I warrant you that I can. A was a little, low, broad, tall, narrow,
big, well-favoured fellow; a jerkin of white cloth, and buttons of the same cloth.
14.Sp13Mucedorus
Thou describest him well, but if I chance to see any such, pray you, where shall I
find you, or whatʼs your name?
14.Sp18Mouse
Nay, I say rusher, and I prove mine office good: for look, sir, when any comes from under the sea or
so, and a dog chance to blow his nose backward, then with a whip I give him the good
time of the day, and strow rushes presently. Therefore, I am a rusher, a high office,
I promise ye.
14.Sp20Mouse
Exit.
Why, where it is best being: either in the kitchen eating, or in the buttery drinking. But, if you come, I will provide for thee a piece of
beef and brewis knuckle-deep in fat. Pray you, take pains; remember Master Mouse.
14.Sp21Mucedorus
Exit.
Aye, sir, I warrant I will not forget you.
Ah, Amadine! What should become of thee?
Whither shouldst thou go so long unknown?
With watch and ward each passage is beset,
So that she cannot long escape unknown.
Doubtless she hath lost herself within these woods,
And wandʼring to and fro she seeks the well,
Which yet she cannot find.
Therefore will I seek her out.
Scene 15
Enter Bremo and Amadine.15.Sp2Amadine
Aside As like the woods of Bremoʼs cruelty!
Though I were dumb and could not answer him,
The beasts themselves would with relenting tears
Bewail thy savage and unhuman deeds.
15.Sp5Bremo
Have I not savèd thee from sudden death,
Giving thee leave to live, that thou mightst love?
And dost thou whet me on to cruelty?
Come kiss me, sweet, for all my favours past.
15.Sp7Bremo
Aside See how she flings away from me!
I will follow and give a rend to her.
To Amadine Deny my love?
Ah, worm of beauty, I will chastise thee.
Come, come, prepare thy head upon the block.
15.Sp8Amadine
Oh, spare me, Bremo! Love should limit life,
Not to be made a murderer of himself.
If thou wilt glut thy loving heart with blood,
Encounter with the lion or the bear,
And, like a wolf, prey not upon a lamb.
15.Sp9Bremo
Why then dost thou repine at me?
If thou wilt love me, thou shalt be my queen.
Iʼll crown thee with a chaplet made of ivory,
And make the rose and lily wait on thee;
Iʼll rend the burly branches from the oak
To shadow thee from burning sun.
The trees shall spread themselves where thou dost go,
And as they spread, Iʼll trace along with thee.
15.Sp11Bremo
Thou shalt be fed with quails and partridges,
With blackbirds, larks, thrushes, and nightingales.
Thy drink shalt be goatʼs milk and crystal water,
Distilled from the fountains and the clearest springs.
And all the dainties that the woods afford,
Iʼll freely give thee to obtain thy love.
15.Sp13Bremo
The day Iʼll spend to recreate my love,
my love,With all the pleasures that I can devise;
And in the night Iʼll be thy bedfellow,
And lovingly embrace thee in mine arms.
15.Sp15Bremo
The satyrs and the wood-nymphs shall attend on thee,
And lull thee asleep with musicʼs sound;
And in the morning when thou dost awake,
The lark shall sing good-morrow to my queen,
And whilst he sings, Iʼll kiss mine Amadine.
15.Sp17Bremo
Enter Mucedorus.
When thou art up, the wood lanes shall be strewed
With violets, cowslips, and sweet marigolds
For thee to trample and to trace upon.
And I will teach thee how to kill the deer,
To chase the hart, and how to rouse the roe,
If thou wilt leave to love and honour me.
15.Sp19Bremo
To Mucedorus Welcome, sir!
An hour ago I looked for such a guest.
To Amadine Be merry, wench, weʼll have a frolic feast;
Here’s flesh enough for to suffice us both.
To Mucedorus Say, sirrah, wilt thou fight, or dost thou yield to die?
15.Sp30Mucedorus
In time of yore, when men, like brutish beasts,
Did lead their lives in loathsome cells and woods
And wholly gave themselves to witless will—
A rude, unruly rout. Then man to man
Then man to manBecame a present prey, then might prevailed,
The weakest went to walls;
Right was unknown, for wrong was all in all.
As men thus livèd in their great outrage,
Behold, one Orpheus came, as poets tell,
came, as poets tell,And them from rudeness unto reason brought,
Who, led by reason, soon forsook the woods.
Instead of caves they built them castles strong;
Cities and towns were founded by them then.
Glad were they, they found such ease,
And in the end they grew to perfect amity.
Weighing their former wickedness,
They termed the time wherein they livèd then
A golden age, a goodly golden age.
Now, Bremo, for so I hear thee called,
If men which lived tofore as thou dost now—
Wild in woods, addicted all to spoil—
Returnèd were by worthy Orpheusʼ means,
Let me, like Orpheus, cause thee to return
From murder, bloodshed, and like cruelties.
What, should we fight before we have a cause?
No, letʼs live and love together faithfully.
Iʼll fight for thee.
15.Sp39Bremo
At thy request Iʼll spare him,
But never any after him.
Say, hermit, what canst thou do?
15.Sp40Mucedorus
Exeunt.
Iʼll wait on thee, sometime upon thy queen;
Such service shalt thou shortly have
As Bremo never had.
Scene 16
Enter Segasto, Mouse, and Rumbelo.16.Sp2Mouse
And I have been through the woods, and through the woods, and could see nothing but
an emmet.
16.Sp5Rumbelo
Bigger than I? (To Segasto) What a fool have you to your man. I pray you, master, turn him away.
16.Sp14Segasto
Exit.
I thought so; it was an hermit that walked a solitary life in the woods. Well, get
you to dinner, and after, never leave seeking till you bring some news of them, or
Iʼll hang you both.
16.Sp18Rumbelo
Faith, I care not, for I know I shall never find them. Well, Iʼll once more abroad,
and if I cannot find them, Iʼll never come home again.
16.Sp19Mouse
Exeunt
I tell thee what, Rumbelo, thou shalt go in at one end of the wood, and I at the other,
and we will meet both together in the midst.
Scene 17
Enter Mucedorus solus.17.Sp1Mucedorus
Unknown to any, here within these woods
With bloody Bremo do I lead my life.
The monster, he doth murder all he meets;
He spareth none, and none doth him escape.
Who would continue, who but only I,
In such a cruel cutthroatʼs company?
Yet Amadine is there; how can I choose?
Ah, silly soul, how oftentimes she sits,
And sighs, and calls, “Come, shepherd, come;”
“Sweet Mucedorus, come and set me free,”
When Mucedorus, peasant, stands her by—
But here she comes.
Enter AmadineWhat news, fair lady, as you walk these woods?
17.Sp9Mucedorus
Enter Bremo.
Pardon my boldness, fair lady; sith we both
May safely talk now out of Bremoʼs sight,
Unfold to me, so if you please, the full discourse
How, when, and why you came into these woods
And fell into this bloody butcherʼs hands.
17.Sp14Bremo
What secret tale is this? What whispʼring have we here?
Villain, I charge thee tell thy tale again.
17.Sp15Mucedorus
If needs I must, lo, here it is again:
Whenas we both had lost the sight of thee,
It grieved us both, but ʼspecially thy queen,
Who in thy absence evers fears the worst,
Lest some mischance befall your royal grace.
“Shall my sweet Bremo wander through the woods,
Toil to and fro for to redress my want,
Hazard his life, and all to cherish me?
I like not this,” quoth she,
And thereupon cravèd to know of me,
If I could teach her handle weapons well.
My answer was I had small skill therein,
But gladsome, mighty king, to learn of thee.
And this was all.
17.Sp16Bremo
Wasʼt so? None can dislike of this. Iʼll teach
You both to fight, but first, my queen, begin.
Here, take this weapon; see how thou canst use it.
17.Sp18Bremo
Isʼt so? Weʼll have a knotty crabtree staff
For thee. To Mucedorus But, sirrah, tell me, what sayʼst thou?
17.Sp29Mucedorus
Then have at thine!
He strikes him down dead.So, lie there and die.
A death no doubt according to desert,
Or else a worse, as thou deservʼst a worse.
17.Sp31Mucedorus
Now, lady, it remains in you
To end the tale you lately had begun,
Being interrupted by this wicked wight.
You said you loved a shepherd?
17.Sp37Mucedorus
In tract of time a man may alter much.
He disguiseth himself.Say, lady, do you know your shepherd well?
17.Sp41Mucedorus
Mouse searcheth, and falls over the wild man, and so carries him away. Mouse re-enters
and meets Amadine and Mucedorus.
Aye, that’s a question whereof you may not be resolved.
You know that I am banished from the court?
I know likewise each passage is beset
So that we cannot long escape unknown.
Therefore, my will is this: that we return
Right through the thickets to the wild manʼs cave,
And there awhile live on his provision
Until the search and narrow watch be past.
This is my counsel, and I think it best.
17.Sp44Mouse
Nay, soft, sir; are you here? A bots on you, I was like to be hanged for not finding you! We would borrow a certain stray kingʼs-daughter
of you—a wench, a wench, sir, we would have.
I was like to be hanged for not finding you! We would borrow a certain stray kingʼs-daughter
of you—a wench, a wench, sir, we would have.17.Sp46Mouse
Enter Segasto
O Lord! Nay, and you are so lusty, Iʼll call a cooling card for you. Ho, master! Master, come away quickly!
17.Sp51Segasto
Thou gadding huswife,
What cause hadst thou to gad abroad
When, as thou knowʼst, our wedding day so nigh?
17.Sp68Mucedorus
Well, Amadine, it only rests in thee
Without delay to make thy choice of three:
There stands Segasto; here a shepherd stands;
There stands the third. Now make thy choice.
17.Sp72Mucedorus
And Amadine, why wilt thou none but me?
I cannot keep thee as thy father did;
I have no lands for to maintain thy state.
Moreover, if thou mean to be my wife,
Commonly this must be thy use:
To bed at midnight, up at four,
Drudge all day and trudge from place to place,
Whereby our daily victual for to win.
And last of all, which is the worst of all,
No princess then, but plain a shepherdʼs wife.
17.Sp76Mucedorus
Then know that which never tofore was known:
I am no shepherd, no Aragonian I,
But born of royal blood—my father’s of
Valencia king, my mother queen—who for
Thy sacred sake took this hard task in hand.
17.Sp78Segasto
Well, now I see Segasto shall not speed.
But, Mucedorus, I as much do joy
To see thee here within our court of Aragon
As if a kingdom had befallen me this time.
I, with my heart, surrender her to thee,
He giveth her unto him.And lose what right to Amadine I have.
17.Sp79Mouse
What barnʼs door, and born where my father was constable? A bots on thee! How dost
thee?
17.Sp84Segasto
Exeunt.
Go to, sir; away, post you to the king,
Whose heart is fraught with careful doubts.
Glad him up, and tell him these good news,
And we will follow as fast as we may.
Scene 18
Enter the King of Aragon and Collin.18.Sp1Aragon
Break, heart, and end my pallid woes!
My Amadine, the comfort of my life;
How can I joy except she were in sight?
Her absence breeds great sorrow to my soul,
And with a thunder breaks my heart in twain.
18.Sp2Collin
Forbear those passions, gentle king,
And you shall see ʼtwill turn unto the best
And bring your soul to quiet and to joy.
18.Sp3Aragon
They cry within, “Joy and happiness!”
Such joy as death, I do assure me that,
And nought but death, unless of her I hear;
And that with speed, I cannot sigh thus long.
But what a tumult do I hear within?
18.Sp4Collin
Enter Mouse running.
I hear a noise of over-passing joy
Within the court; my lord, be of good comfort.
And here comes one in haste.
18.Sp11Mouse
Enter Segasto, Mucedorus, and Amadine.
How, a sprite? No, by lady, I will not be a sprite! Masters, get ye away; if I be a sprite, I shall be so lean I shall make you all afraid.
18.Sp17Aragon
What do mine eyes behold, my daughter Amadine? Rise up, dear daughter, and let these
my embracing arms show some token of thy fatherʼs joy, which, ever since thy departure,
hath languished in sorrow.
18.Sp18Amadine
Dear father, never were your sorrows greater than my griefs; never you so desolate
as I comfortless. Yet nevertheless, acknowledging myself to be the cause of both,
on bended knees I humbly crave your pardon.
18.Sp30Mucedorus
No cause to fear, I causèd no offence but this:
Desiring thy daughterʼs virtues for to see,
Disguised myself from out my fatherʼs court
Unknown to any; in secret I did rest,
And passèd many troubles near to death.
So hath your daughter my partaker been,
As you shall know hereafter more at large;
Desiring you, you will give her to me
Even as mine own and sovereign of my life.
Then shall I think my travels are well spent.
18.Sp31Aragon
With all my heart, but this:
Segasto claims my promise made tofore,
That he should have her as his only wife,
Before my council when we came from war.
Segasto, may I crave thee let it pass,
And give Amadine as wife to Mucedorus?
18.Sp32Segasto
With all my heart, were it a far greater thing;
And what I may to furnish up their rites
With pleasing sports and pastimes, you shall see.
18.Sp36Mouse
Why, hark you, master! Bones, what have you done? What, given away the wench you made
me take such pains for? You are wise indeed! Mass, and I had known of that, I would
have had her myself. Faith, master, now we may go to breakfast with a woodcock pie!
18.Sp38Aragon
Come on, my lords, letʼs now to court
Where we may finish up the joyfullest day
That ever happed to a distressèd king.
Were but thy father, the Valencia lord,
Present in view of this combining knot—
A shout within. Enter a messenger.What shout was that?
18.Sp41Aragon
Sound.
Enter the King of Valencia, Anselmo, Rodrigo, Barachius, with others. The King of
Valencia runs and embraces his son.
Prepare welcomes, give him entertainment!
A happier planet never reigned than that
Which governs at this hour.
18.Sp42Valencia
To Mucedorus Rise, honour of my age, food to my rest!
To Aragon Condemn not, mighty King of Aragon,
My rude behaviour, so compelled by nature,
That manners stood unacknowledged.
18.Sp43Aragon
Sound drums and trumpets.
Exeunt omnes.
What we have to recite would tedious prove
By declaration; therefore, in and feast!
Tomorrow the performance shall explain
What words conceal. Till then, drums speak, bells ring;
Give plausive welcomes to our brother king.
Epilogue
Enter Comedy and Envy.Comedy
How now, Envy? What, blushest thou already?
Peep forth; hide not thy head with shame,
But with a courage praise a womanʼs deeds.
Thy threats were vain; thou couldst do me no hurt.
Although thou seemʼst to cross me with despite,
I overwhelmed and turnèd upside down thy blocks,
And made thyself to stumble at the same.
Envy
Though stumbled, yet not overthrown.
Thou canst not draw my heart to mildness;
Yet must I needs confess, thou hast done well
And played thy part with mirth and pleasant glee.
Say all this, yet canst thou not conquer me;
Although this time thou hast got—
Yet not the conquest neither.
A double revenge another time Iʼll have.
Comedy
Envy, spit thy gall!
Plot, work, contrive; create new fallacies;
Team from thy womb each minute a black traitor
Whose blood and thoughts have twin conception;
Study to act deeds yet unchronicled;
Cast native monsters in the molds of men;
Case vicious devils under sancted rochets;
rochets;Unhasp the wicket where all perjureds roost;
And swarm this ball with treasons. Do thy worst!
with treasons. Do thy worst!Thou canst not, hellhound, cross my steer tonight,
Nor blind that glory where I wish delight.
Envy
I can, I will.
Comedy
Nefarious hag, begin!
And let us tug till one the mastʼry win.
Envy
Comedy, thou art a shallow goose;
Iʼll overthrow thee in thine own intent,
And make thy fall my comic merriment.
Comedy
Thy policy wants gravity; thou art
Too weak. Speak, fiend, as how?
Envy
Why, thus:
From my foul study will I hoist a wretch,
A lean and hungry meagre cannibal
Whose jaws swell to his eyes with chawing malice,
malice,And him Iʼll make a poet.
Comedy
Whatʼs that to thʼ purpose?
Envy
This scrambling raven with his needy beard
Will I whet on to write a comedy,
Wherein shall be composed dark sentences
Pleasing to factious brains;
And every other where place me a jest,
Whose high abuse shall more torment than blows.
Then I myself, quicker than lightning,
Will fly me to a puissant magistrate,
And, waiting with a trencher at his back,
In midst of jollity, rehearse those galls,
With some additions,
So lately vented in your theatre.
He, upon this, cannot but make complaint
To your great danger, or at least restraint.
Comedy
They kneel.
Ha, ha, ha! I laugh to hear thy folly.
This is a trap for boys, not men, nor such
Especially deceitful in their doings,
Whose staid discretion rules their purposes.
I and my faction do eschew those vices.
But see, oh, see! The weary sun for rest
Hath lain his golden compass to the west,
Where he perpetual bide and ever shine,
As Davidʼs offspring, in his happy clime.
offspring, in his happy clime.Stoop, Envy, stoop; bow to the earth with me.
Letʼs beg our pardon on our bended knee.
Envy
Fall down and quake.
My power has lost her might; Envyʼs date’s expired.
Yon splendant majesty hath felled my sting,
And I amazèd am.
Comedy
Glorious and wise arch-Caesar on this earth,
At whose appearance Envy’s stroken dumb
dumbAnd all bad things cease operation,
Vouchsafe to pardon our unwilling error,
So late presented to your gracious view,
And weʼll endeavour with excess of pain
To please your senses in a choicer strain.
Thus we commit you to the arms of night,
Whose spangled carcass would, for your delight,
Strive to excel the day. Be blessèd, then;
Who other wishes, let him never speak.
Envy
Amen.
To fame and honour we commend your rest;
Live still more happy, every hour more blessed.
FINIS.
Annotations
love, with faith, them guide
The kingʼs council is guided by love and faith.
Why so?
Why do I appear in this way?
Bellona
The Roman goddess of war.
C. F. Tucker Brooke notes that Bellona was likely alluded to in error (Tucker Brooke 424). The author perhaps confused her with one of the muses.
cur
An unfriendly, aggressive dog, particularly a mixed-breed.
spite of thee
In spite of thee.
Danish
J. P. Collier emended this reading from Danish to dankish, setting a precedent which has since been followed by many editors. As noted by Arvin
Jupin, however, the original reading of Danish is
not necessarily nonsensical, but may simply represent a connection between Danes and caves not now readily recognizable(Jupin 77). Following Jupinʼs suggestion, this edition has chosen to retain the original Danish rather than adopt Collierʼs emendation.
sap
Milk.
tender the suit
Agree to the request.
cross
Thwart.
maugre
In spite of.
bosom
To take to the bosom; embrace. Figuratively, to
receive into intimate companionship(OED bosom, v.3.a).
choice
Admirable; of special excellence.
misconster
Misconstrue.
Thou… have
Thou knowʼst that I have often imparted to you.
each where
Everywhere.
miss
Absence.
front
Forehead; in this case, a metonymic phrase referring to the King of Valenciaʼs sovereignty.
mountebank
A person who deceives others; a charlatan.
an humbler
Spoken early modern English often neglected to pronounce the letter h when it appears before a vowel at the beginning of a word.
bottle
Bundle.
pursues
Pursuits.
usury
Money-lending, typically illegal, with high rates of interest.
and
If.
without welt or guard
Both welt and guard can refer to an ornamental trimming placed on the edge of a garment. Mouse is using
this phrase to reinforce the lack of embellishments to his name (OED welt, n.2.b).
I care not
I donʼt mind.
tofore
Heretofore; before the present.
grutch
Complain.
whatso
Whatsoever.
by Lady
An oath referring to the Virgin Mary; its most common forms are the expanded by our Lady and the slightly modified byʼr Lady. Mouse has created his own iteration of the phrase by clipping the word our.
a
He.
brewis
Fat-soaked bread.
jack
A leather jug chiefly used to carry liquor.
vild
Vile.
merciless
Pronounced with two syllables.
Hold… law!
Although this passage is clearly written in verse, it does not easily divide into
pentameter lines. To remedy this, the retention of iambs within the same line has
been prioritized over creating an even number of syllables per line.
flain
An archaic past participle of flay.
use to
Make a habit out of.
sung “looby”
Sung a lullaby.
Mouseʼs phrasing plays on the word looby, which refers to a large, hulking fellow.
passengers
Travellers.
Master King
Mouse seems to believe that
Master Kingis the King of Aragonʼs official title, much like how he believes the churchwardenʼs official title is
Goodman King.
sovereign
Pronounced with three syllables.
forwhy
Because.
shipsticks
Mouse is likely attempting to say sheepʼs ticks, although the spelling of shipsticks appears closer to the way he would have pronounced it. Alternatively, he may be seeking
to diminish the value of Amadineʼs words, which is expressed through the comparison
of mere sticks to the large planks of wood used to build a ship.
Sisters
The three fates of Greek mythology who were believed to play a role in weaving the
future of humanity.
sith
Since.
lousy
Afflicted with or covered in lice.
take law-legs
To run away quickly, often from law enforcement.
Phaethonʼs tale
In Greek mythology, Phaethon was the son of Helios, the sun god. After nearly crashing
his fatherʼs sun chariot into Earth, Phaethon was executed by Zeus. By alluding to
this story, Mucedorus is lamenting that an opportunity has been lost due to what he
perceives to be his own foolish actions.
bale
Physical torment or mental suffering; evil.
Grecian queen
Helen of Troy.
arrant
Notorious.
Go to
An expression of annoyance or disbelief. In other words, “Get lost.”
adamant
Figuratively,
the quality of not being easily destroyed, overcome, or affected.Originally a strong rock or mineral (OED adamant, n.1.b).
doubtful
Suspicious.
emmet
Ant.
hip
The fruit of a rose.
haw
The fruit of a hawthorn.
recreate
Entertain.
Orpheus
A figure in Greek mythology known for his exceptional talents in music and poetry.
A bots on you
Curse you.
ʼparel
Apparel.
sancted
Sainted.
rochet
A robe worn chiefly by Roman Catholic or Anglican bishops.
ball
The Earth.
chawing
Chewing.
David
According to the Hebrew bible, David was the third king of Israel. Comedy is noting
James I to be the offspring of David.
stroken
Stricken.
Characters
Prologue
Envy
Comedy
Mucedorus, Prince of Valencia
Amadine, Princess of Aragon
Segasto, a wealthy nobleman betrothed to Amadine
Mouse, a clown
Bremo, a wild man
Adrastus, King of Aragon
King of Valencia
Tremelio, an Aragonese captain
Collin, counsellor to the King of Aragon
Rumbelo, a soldier in Segastoʼs service
Ariena, a maid to Amadine
Anselmo, a friend to Mucedorus
Roderigo, a Valencian courtier
Barachius, a Valencian lord
Messenger
Old Woman Nip
Boy
Prosopography
Janelle Jenstad
Janelle Jenstad is a Professor of English at the University of Victoria, Director
of The Map of Early Modern London, and Director of Linked Early Modern Drama Online. With Jennifer Roberts-Smith and Mark Kaethler, she co-edited Shakespeare’s Language in Digital Media: Old Words, New Tools (Routledge). She has edited John Stow’s A Survey of London (1598 text) for MoEML and is currently editing The Merchant of Venice (with Stephen Wittek) and Heywood’s 2 If You Know Not Me You Know Nobody for DRE. Her articles have appeared in Digital Humanities Quarterly, Elizabethan Theatre, Early Modern Literary Studies, Shakespeare Bulletin, Renaissance and Reformation, and The Journal of Medieval and Early Modern Studies. She contributed chapters to Approaches to Teaching Othello (MLA); Teaching Early Modern Literature from the Archives (MLA); Institutional Culture in Early Modern England (Brill); Shakespeare, Language, and the Stage (Arden); Performing Maternity in Early Modern England (Ashgate); New Directions in the Geohumanities (Routledge); Early Modern Studies and the Digital Turn (Iter); Placing Names: Enriching and Integrating Gazetteers (Indiana); Making Things and Drawing Boundaries (Minnesota); Rethinking Shakespeare Source Study: Audiences, Authors, and Digital Technologies (Routledge); and Civic Performance: Pageantry and Entertainments in Early Modern London (Routledge). For more details, see janellejenstad.com.
Sofia Spiteri
Sofia Spiteri is currently completing her Bachelor of Arts in History at the University
of Victoria. During the summer of 2023, she had the opportunity to work with LEMDO
as a recipient of the Valerie Kuehne Undergraduate Research Award (VKURA). Her work
with LEMDO primarily includes semi-diplomatic transcriptions for The Winterʼs Tale and Mucedorus.
Bibliography
Jupin, Arvin H.
A Contextual Study and Modern-Spelling
Edition of Mucedorus
. New
York: Garland,
1987. The Renaissance
Imagination 29.
OED: The Oxford English
Dictionary. 2nd ed.
Oxford: Oxford
University Press,
1989.
Tucker Brooke, C.F.
Mucedorus. The
Shakespeare Apocrypha.
Oxford: Clarendon
Press, 1908. Rpt.
1929. 103–126.
Orgography
LEMDO Team (LEMD1)
The LEMDO Team is based at the University of Victoria and normally comprises the project
director, the lead developer, project manager, junior developers(s), remediators,
encoders, and remediating editors.
University of Victoria (UVIC1)
https://www.uvic.ca/Metadata
| Authority title | Mucedorus |
| Type of text | Primary Source Text |
| Short title | Mucd: M |
| Publisher | University of Victoria on the Linked Early Modern Drama Online Platform |
| Series | |
| Source |
This modern edition was prepared from a transcription of Mucedorus Q3 created by Sofia
Spiteri.
|
| Editorial declaration | |
| Edition | |
| Sponsor(s) |
Digital Renaissance EditionsAnthology Leads and Co-Coordinating Editors: Brett Greatley-Hirsch, Janelle Jenstad,
James Mardock, and Sarah Neville.
|
| Encoding description | Encoded in TEI P5 according to the LEMDO Customization and Encoding Guidelines |
| Document status | TEI_INP |
| Funder(s) | Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada Valerie Kuehne Undergraduate Research Awards, University of Victoria |
| License/availability |