 | Cinthia's revenge : Or Maenanders extasie |  |
Scœn. 6.
Amilcar, Mantesio, Gracchvs.
What melancholique caitife yonder walkes?
Man.
Gracchus (my Lord) the gallant Eunuch.
Ami.
So,
What male contented humor doth oppresse
The image of vnspotted honesty,
With him so frequenr? I adore and loue
The ciuill carriage that I do obserue
In his Imployment: if a Courtier hath
(Courtiers of common out-side-silkes) if they
Haue deere acquaintance with dame Honesty
(Famish'd in exile to the frozen pole)
Gracchus I dare avow may paralell
The best of their acquaintance: (Gracchus) hoe?
My gracious Lord?
Ami.
What perill imminent,
Doth so oppose thy noble splendor? which
(without meere base descention to col-logue)
I must informe thee is refulgent.
Gra.
ô,
My good and gracious Lord; but pouerty,
Is able to oppresse maturity
Of diligence, of iudgement, of designes.
Each liberall Art and Science doth submit
Their ends and occupations to obtaine
The true terrestriall Saint, the sacred glosse,
Of all-effecting riches; euery man
Will hazard his damnation to adore
A thing so blessed, so licentious:
The weake-brain'd gallant in extremity,
Will change Religion, will æquivocate
With mentall reseruation, racke the ioynts
Of his benummed conscience, will provoke
A lethargy of sharpe distinction: will out-puffe
The Cardinall foure winds, when they oppose
Each other all at once (and procreate
A whirle-winde) these will hee out-puffe alone,
With some insuffe'rable oath, which farre exceeds
The three dimensions, dares ploclaime himselfe
A periur'd villaine, to approptiate
Six-pence, vpon triuiall mistake.
Arts-maisters will transgresse the rule of Art;
Nay our precisest schoole-men will forsake
The principles which they haue authoris'd,
In cases that concerne selfe-avarice,
And greedy lucre: knowledge is inforc'd
To follow by constraint, abuse of time,
Wit mis-imploy'd gapes at improper ends:
Strong men are impotent without rich friends.
Ami.
What cloudy passion, wrapt in ample phrase
May such a railing vehemence portend?
What meanes thy sharpe invectine? what's involu'd?
Man.
Hee doth (my Lord) inveigh at poverty,
How potent the command of money is,
The dreadfull awe of dame Pecunia.
Gra.
And whilst I do re-volue the misery
Which happens by constraint of beggery,
Then I remember what my plague must bee.
Amil.
Vn-shell thy riddle: most miraculous!
Gra.
Your gaming foole is most ridiculous:
O Fortune, Fortune hath infring'd the web
Which I with painfull diligence did weaue,
Whereto the pillar of my state was pinn'd:
Some little store I had (not looking higher)
A houshold smoake out-warmes my neighbours fire.
Ami.
Haue you lost all?
Gr.
Some fifty hundred crownes.
Ami.
O the vncertaine lot of idle game!
I long haue knowne thee.
Gr.
And haue known me honest.
Ami.
Honest is now a metamorphis'd name:
He that can sweare, blaspheme, be riotous,
Roare till the mid-night eccho, or beginne
Some vn-appeased fray, who dares commence
A drunken skirmish in a bawdy-house,
Fight for his hackney whore, and hazard all,
In honour of his damn'd associates:
Dares combate with a publicke officer,
Be (out of gun-shot) most irregular,
Drunke in good earnest, beate fiue Constables,
Couzen a flocke of geese compendiously:
Yet after all put a smooth visage on,
Seeme sober, be indulgent of his fame,
Though a most practis'd knaue, remembring still,
To make the mid-nights all participate
Of such enormous acts: ô hees the man
Reputed sociable in our age: ò hee
Is reckon'd for the honest gentleman:
Who playes the spend-thrift, the voluptuous foole,
Exceeds the Turke in sensualty,
Is a true mid-night Epicure, can hide
Hee shall be most vn-touch'd with obloquy;
Hee (amongst youthful bloods) shall win the wreath
Purchase the name of Loyall honest friend;
But (as our adage sayes) obserue his end.
But (Gracchus) I am rather confident
Then scrupulous of thy square honesty,
Gracchus, I loue thee, therefore will bestow
An annuall pension of sixe hundred pounds,
And must withall imploy thee.
Gra.
In a taske
That may require my soule then I beseech thee;
May stretch sincerity with tenters: ô
Impose an ample burthen: ô some taske
That will suruey the depth of loue indeed:
Favour beyond mans merit, doth exact
A most vn-quenched seruor; not his vow,
But sinewes actiue, and a sweating brow.
My life lyes prostrate to prædominance,
Of your commanding voyce: I will bestow
My reeking blood in recompence of loue
Ready, without all first or second cause:
I wish some Doctor in extremity
Of vn-knowne sicknesse, which may seize vpon
Your most respectiue honour; would prescribe
The marrow of a man, medicinall;
You should not be indebted to the bones
Of a forsaken caitife, new condemn'd,
Whose pocky pith might be infectiue: No,
My supple fingers should vnloose a ioynt
From off this flexile carkasse, I would bruise
A luculent and lushious mari-bone,
(The best I can stile proper) to appease
The sharpe divulsions of such new disease.
Ami.
Gracchus, who giues not credence to a zeale
Of thy profession, wee account him base:
Be chiefe among my chiefest followers,
They shall receiue directions from thy selfe.
Which my fame licke roofe is tainted with;
And which abusiue ages do afford:
A zeale sincere the Gods cannot reproue
And we ere-long will manifest our loue:
Let vs inculcate now my fathers charge,
Remember what with vehemence was vrgd,
Nay was enioyned you Mantesio.
By our most watchfull father.
Man.
I exspect
Vpon deliuery of his closet keyes.
Amil.
Take them, and prosper, pray be vigilant;
Reuolue I pray on how large consequence,
The bare euent and sequell of our hopes
Ioyntly consist; who iointly haue embark'd
The doubtfull hazard of our deerest liues
Vpon a small miscarriage: onely fiue
Participate of our designes; my selfe,
But first my father, then my step-dame next
You (Steward) and the Captaine of the Guard
Whose happy full consent is scarce obtain'd:
Wee seuerally haue instructions learn't
Of each particular function; haue agreed
How each conspirator shall be employed.
Time cals for speedy action; the square plot
Doth now transcend a shapelesse Embrio
And will expect vpon deliuery:
You haue engag'd a wise dexterity,
And trauaile; to procure the famishment,
To puruey, to collect æstiuall corne
Which Haruest will enrich the Rusticks with:
My taske intends surprisall of the Queene:
Be carefull, take the keyes, expend the wealth
Which long hath bene vp-hoorded: traitors all
Like cunning Statuaries, must auoide
Blemish and eye-sores; you conceiue me sir:
Successiue businesse needs no roweld spur:
Treason like some in sculpture spacious
A diligent perusall, most precise;
With an elaborate artificer
Who may direct; for 'tis infallible
That errors in a beauteous frame (though small
And at another time though veniall)
Yet if committed in a curious peece
Where blemish might (by sufferance) ensue
The totall is condemn'd and caru'd a new:
Be white, or blacke; not (party-coulour'd) gray;
So follow your commission, poast away.
Now my contentious braine re-uolue the taxe
Impos'd (vpon thy blessing) to surprise,
And spoyle the ruddy blossome of our age;
Faire Fauourina that Angel-like dame
AEquall for beauty, for vnmatched fame;
With Saint-like Venus (by Appelles drawne)
This Queenes espousals haue I vndertooke
To dis-vniite, by a most impious act
Of murther; but alas I am enthral'd
With true libidinous feruor; am enforc'd
By lustfull hot inuasions to decline;
Which punctually tempt me to a-uoide
The colourable death of whom I loue,
Our sweete Cycnæan Goddesse; the faire Queene;
Whose body I'le enioy with priuiledge,
(I will enioy with hazard of my death)
Whilst euery man imagine shee is dead.
Gracchus the Eunuch did I entertaine
Commodiously fore-casting an exploit
Where-with to muffle vp the serpent-eyes
Of probable suspicion: Like the Fuller
Who cannot liue by cloth must liue by colour.
But see, obserue the beautifull approach
Of my commanding obiect: blesse mee fate.
| Cinthia's revenge : Or Maenanders extasie | |