 | Philodamus |  |
SCENE II.
PHILIPPUS, PHILODAMUS.Philippus.
Early this morning
I sought to pay my duty to my father,
But was inform'd, bus'ness had call'd him forth.
Philodamus.
It had, Philippus. But I must observe,
That bus'ness, exercise, nor yet diversion,
Have any longer pow'r to call you forth.
3
I know not how it is.—Our inclinations
Slacken sometimes to flow with renew'd force.
Philodamus.
Whate'er the cause, the change is rather sudden.
'Tis not so long since you foreran the sun.
Clamour and bustle ever waken'd with thee.
When I inquir'd, sometimes it was Philippus
Would try his horses at the Hippodrome,
Sometimes the morn was startled at his hounds,
That claim'd with ceaseless quest the promis'd chace;
At other, ev'ry thing was preparation
For the Gymnasium: now they're all forgot.
Philippus.
I was not reckon'd over negligent—
Philodamus.
Your other studies too, I find, lie fallow.
Here am I paying, at a vast expence,
Philosophers, forsooth! to rail at riches,
To vaunt the praise of simple pulse and roots,
(Who, by the by, despise them at my table)
While you loiter the live-long day in idleness,
With Erato, and my new guest Euphemia,
Whom, on the death of Agatho her father
In banishment at Corinth, for the love
I knew your sister bare her, I took hither.
Philippus.
That love gives reputation to her judgment.
Had but our crabbed rough philosophers
Avail'd them of Euphemia's gentle manners,
They might have learn'd, what has so puzzled them,
How Virtue looks and acts in her own shape.
Philodamus.
Fools only know extremes. Is there no middle
Between the harsh formality of bookmen,
And trifling delicacy that makes woman?
Philippus.
I see no point in which they yield to us.
Their apprehension's quicker, and their reason
4
They seek no shelter from authorities,
Nor do they strive to veil their ignorance
In terms of art, as we do: then their gentleness
Smooths off the rugged points of argument,
Melting contention into pleasantry.
Discourse, such as Euphemia's and my sister's,
Conceiv'd by sense, and harmoniz'd by beauty,
Reaches the heart, while it informs the mind,
Softens and civilizes all our ways.
Philodamus.
Not to examine whither, but too often,
These over-civilizing freedoms tend,
How did you venture, (you their wise admirer,
Who ought to know how delicate their fame,
How the least breath, that blight reproach may point,
Oft with irreparable taint deforms
The best complexion'd innocence that dares
But err from common forms), to introduce
Epicrates to Erato's apartment,
Which, by our manners, is severely barr'd
To all but nearest consanguinity?
Philippus.
The age, since you were young, has shaken off
Many the slavish customs of tradition.
Philodamus.
That country, where all forms are thrown aside,
However venerably perhaps deriv'd
From the collected wisdom of past times,
And meant a mound against some national bent,
Some native inclinations of the soil,
Is on the point of losing decency,
And sinking into rank licentiousness.
Philippus.
Now, good my father, if there be to blame,
Do not involve my sister in my fault;
Nor yet condemn her conduct; her fair fame
Stands not within the verge of reprehension;
Nor ever has she giv'n him ear alone,
Euphemia, or myself, were always present.
5
'Twas inconsiderate and rash, no matter;
I've hit upon a way to remedy it,
Which you'll soon learn. Order your sister hither.
[Exit Philippus.
| Philodamus | |