"prodigal fon, and married a tinker's wife within a mile "where my land and living lies; and, having flown over "many knavish profeffions, he fettled only in a rogue;"

fome call him Autolicus.

Clo. Out upon him, prig! for my life, prig;he haunts wakes, fairs, and bear-baitings.

Aut. Very true, Sir; he, Sir, he; that's the rogue that put me into this apparel.

Clo. Not a more cowardly rogue in all Bithynia; if you had but look'd big, and spit at him, he'd have run. Aut. I must confefs to you, Sir, I am no fighter; I am falfe of heart that way, and that he knew, I warrant him.

Clo. How do

you now?

Aut. Sweet Sir, much better than I was; 1 can stand and walk; I will even take my leave of you, and pace foftly towards my kinfman's.

Clo. Shall I bring thee on thy way?

Aut. No, good-fae'd Sir; no, fweet Sir.

Clo. Then, farewell, I muit go to buy fpices for our fheep-fhearing.

[Exit. Aut. Profper you, fweet Sir! Your purse is not hot enough to purchase your fpice. I'll be with you at your fheep-fhearing too: if I make not this cheat bring out another, and the fhearers prove fheep, let me be unroll'd, and my name put into the book of virtue * !

SONG.

Fog on, jog on, the foot-path way,.

And merrily hent the ftyle-a.

A merry heart goes all the day,
Your fad tires in a mile-a..

SCENE IV.

The profpect of a Shepherd's cote..

Enter Florizel and Perdita..

[Exit

Flo. Thefe your unusual weeds to each part of you

Do

Begging gipfies, in the time of our author, were in gangs and companies, that had fomething of the fhew of an incorporated body,

Do give a life: no fhepherdefs, but Flora,

Peering in April's front. This your fheep-fhearing
Is as a meeting of the petty gods,

And you the Queen on't.

Per. Sir, my gracious Lord,

To chide at your extremes it not becomes me:
Oh pardon that I name them! your high felf,
The gracious mark o' th' land, you have obscur'd
With a fwain's wearing; and me, poor lowly maid,
Moft goddefs-like prank'd up. But that our feafts

In every mefs have folly, and the feeders
Digeft it with a cuftom, I should blush
To fee you fo attired; fworn, I think,
To fhew myself a glass.

Flo. I blefs the time

When my good falcon made her flight across
Thy father's ground.

Per. Now, Jove afford you caufe!

To me the difference forges dread, your greatnefs.
Hath not been us'd to fear; even now I tremble
To think your father, by fome accident,

Should pass this way, as you did: oh, the fates!
How would he look to fee his work fo noble,
Vilely bound up! what would he fay! or how
Should I in these my borrow'd flaunts behold
The fternnefs of his prefence!

Flo. Apprehend

Nothing but jollity: the gods themselves,
Humbling their deities to love, have taken
The shapes of beafts upon them. Jupiter
Became a bull, and bellow'd; the green Neptune
A ram, and bleated; and the fire-rob'd God,
Golden Apollo, a por humble fwain,
As I feem now. Their transformations.
Were never for a piece of beauty rarer,
Nor in a way fo chafte: fince my defires
Run not before mine honour, nor my lufts
Burn hotter than my
faith.

Per. O but, dear Sir,

Your refolution cannot hold, when 'tis

Oppos'd, as it must be, by th' power o' th' King.
One of these two must be neceffities,

Which

Which then will fpeak, that you muft change this purpose,

Or I my life.

Flo. Thou dearest Perdita,

With these forc'd thoughts, I pr'ythee, darken not
The mirth o' th' feaft. Or I'll be thine, my fair,
Or not my father's. For I cannot be
Mine own, nor any thing to any, if

I be not thine. To this I am most constant,
Though deftiny fay No. Be merry, (gentle,)
Strangle fuch thoughts as thefe with any thing
That you behold the while. Your guests are coming:
Lift up your countenance, as 'twere the day
Of celebration of that nuptial, which
We two have fworn fhall come.

Per. O Lady Fortune,

Stand you aufpicious!

SCENE V.

Enter Shepherd, Clown, Mopfa, Dorcas, Servants; with Polixenes and Camillo difguis'd.

Flo. See, your guefts approach;

Addrefs yourself to entertain them sprightly,
And let's be red with mirth.

Shep. "Fie, daughter; when my old wife liv'd, upon "This day fhe was both pantler, butler, cook,

"Both dame and fervant; welcom'd all, ferv'd all;
"Would fing her fong, and dance her turn; now here
"At upper end o' th' table, now i' th' middle;
"On his fhoulder, and his; her face o' fire
"With labour; and the thing he took to quench it,
"She would to each one fip." You are retired,
As if you were a feafted one, and not
The hoftefs of the meeting: pray you, bid
Thefe unknown friends to's welcome; for it is
A way to make us better friends, more known.
Come, quench your blufhes, and prefent yourself,
That which you are, mistress o' th' feaft.
Come on,
And bid us welcome to your fheep-fhearing,
As your good flock fhall profper.
Per. Sirs, welcome.

[To Pol. and Cam.

It is my father's will I should take on me

The hoftefship o' th' day; you're welcome, Sirs.
Give me those flowers there, Dorcas-Reverend Sirs,
"For you there's rosemary and rue, these keep
Seeming and favour all the winter long:
"Grace and remembrance be unto you both,
"And welcome to our shearing!"

Pol. Shepherdefs,

(A fair one are you,) well you fit our ages With flowers of winter.

Per. "Sir, the year growing ancient,

"Not yet on fummer's death, nor on the birth
"Of trembling winter, the fairest flowers o' th' feafon
"Are our carnations, and streak'd gilly-flowers,
"Which fome call Nature's baftards: of that kind
"Our ruftic garden's barren, and I care not
"To get flips of them."

Do

Pol. Wherefore, gentle maiden, you neglect them?

Per. "For I have heard it faid,

“There is an art, which in their piedness shares

"With great creating Nature.”

Pol. Say, there be;

"Yet nature is made better by no mean,

"But nature makes that mean; fo over that art,

"Which you fay adds to nature, is an art

"That nature makes; you fee, fweet maid, we marry

"A gentle feyon to the wildest stock;

"And make conceive a bark of bafer kind

"By bud of nobler race. This is an art,

“Which does mend nature, change it rather; but

"The art itself is nature."

Per. So it is.

Pol. Then make your garden rich in gilly-flowers, And do not call them baftards.

Per. "I'll not put

"The dibble in earth, to fet one flip of them:

"No more than, were I painted, I would wish

"This youth fhould fay, 'Twere well; and only therefore "Defire to breed by me.- -Here's flowers for you; "Hot lavender, mints, favoury, marjoram,

The marygold, that goes to bed with th' fun,

4 And

"And with him rifes, weeping: these are flowers
"Of middle fummer, and, I think, they are given
"To men of middle age." Y'are very welcome.
Cam. I should leave grafing, were I of your flock,

And only live by gazing.

Per. "Out, alas!

"You'd be fo lean, that blafts of January

"Would blow you through and through. Now, my "faireft friend,

yours,

"I would I had fome flowers o' th' fpring, that might
"Become your time of day; and yours, and
"That wear upon your virgin-branches yet
"Your maiden-heads growing: O Proferpina,
"For the flowers now, that, frighted, thou let'ft fall
"From Dis's waggon! daffodils,

"That come before the swallow dares, and take

"The winds of March with beauty; violets dim,
"But fweeter than the lids of Juno's eyes,
"Or Cytherea's breath; pale primroses,
"That die unmarried, ere they can behold
"Bright Phoebus in his ftrength, (a malady
"Moft incident to maids;) gold oxlips, and
"The crown-imperial; lillies of all kinds,
"The flower-de-lis being one. O thefe I lack
"To make you garlands of, and, my fweet friend,
"To ftrow him o'er and o'er."

Flo. What? like a corfe?

Per. No, like a bank, for love to lie and play on:

Not like a corfe; or if,

not to be buried

But quick, and in mine arins.

Come, take

your

flowers;

Methinks I play as I have seen them do

In Whitfund' paftorals: fure, this robe of mine

Does change my difpofition.

Flo. What you do,

Still betters what is done. When you speak, (sweet,)

I'd have you do it

ever; when

you fing,

I'd have you buy and fell fo; fo give alms;

Pray fo; and for the ord'ring your affairs,

To fing them too. When you do dance, I wish you
A wave o' th' fea, that you might ever do
Nothing but that; move ftill, ftill fo,

And own no other function. Each your doing,

So