Pan. You have no judgment, Niece; Helen herfelf fwore th' other day, that Troilus for a brown favour, (for fo'tis, I must confess) not brown neither Cre. No, but brown. Pan. Faith, to say truth, brown and not brown. Pan. So he has. Ce. Then Troilus fhould have too much; if the prais'd him above, his complexion is higher than his ; he having colour enough, and the other higher, is too flaming a praife for a good complexion. I had as lieve Helen's golden tongue had commended Troilus for a copper nofe. Pan. I fwear to you, I think, Helen loves him better than Paris. Gre. Then fhe's a merry Greek, indeed. Pan. Nay, I am fure fhe docs. She came to him th other day into the compafs-window; and, you know, he has not past three or four hairs on his chin. Cre. Indeed, a tapfter's arithmetick may foon bring his particulars therein to a total. Pan. Why, he is very young; and yet will he within three pound lift as much as his brother Her. Cre. Is he fo young a man, and fo old a lifter? Pan. But to prove to you that Helen loves him, she came and puts me her white hand to his cloven chin. Cre. Juno, have mercy! how came it cloven? Pan. Why, you know, 'tis dimpled. I think, his fmiling becomes him better, than any man in all Phrygia.. Cre. Oh, he fmiles valiantly. Pan. Does he not? Cre. O yes, an 'twere a cloud in autumn. Pan. Why, go to then Helen loves Troilus but to prove to you that Cre. Troilus will stand to the proof, if you'll prove it fo. Pan. Troilus? why, he esteems her no more than I efteem an addle egg. Cre. If you love an addle egg, as well as you love an idle head, you would eat chickens i'th' fhell. Pan. I cannot chufe but laugh to think how she tickled his chin; indeed, fhe has a. marvellous white hand, I muft needs confefs. Cre. Without the rack. Pan. And she takes upon her to spy a white hair in his chin. Cre.. Alas, poor chin! many a wart is richer. Pan. But there was fuch laughing Queen Hecuba laught, that her eyes run o'er. Cre. With millstones. Pan. And Caffandra laught. Cre. But there was more temp'rate fire under the pot of her eyes; did her eyes run o'er too? Pan. And Hector laught. Cre. At what was all this laughing? Pan. Marry, at the white hair that Helen fpied on Troilus's chin. Cre. An't had been a green hair, I fhould have laught too. Pan. They laught not fo much at the hair, as at his pretty answer. Cre. What was his anfwer? Pan. Quoth fhe, here's but one and fifty hairs on your chin, and one of them is white. Cre. This is her question. Pan. That's true, make no question of that: one and fifty hairs, (8) quoth he, and one white; that white hair is my father, and all the reft are his fons. Jupiter! quoth fhe, which of these hairs is Paris, my husband? the forked one, quoth he, pluck it out and give it him: but there was fuch laughing, and Helen fo blufh'd, and Paris fo chaf'd, and all the reft fo laught, that it paft. (8) Two and fifty hairs, quotb be, and one whites that white hair is my father, and all the reft are bis fons.] The copyifts must have err'd here in the number; and I have ventur'd to fubftitute one and fifty, L. think, with fome certainty. How elfe can the number make out Priam, and his fifty fons ? Cre.. Cre. So let it now, for it has been a great while going by. Pan. Well, coufin, I told you a thing yesterday; think on't. Cre. So I do. Pan. I'll be fworn, 'tis true; he will weep you, an 'twere a man born in April. [Sound a retreat. Cre. And I'll fpring up in his tears, an 'twere a nettle against May. Pan. Hark, they are coming from the field; fhall we stand up here, and fee them, as they pass towards Ilium? (9) good niece, do; fweet niece Creffida. Cre. At your pleasure. Pan. Here, here, here's an excellent place, here we may see them bravely; I'll tell you them all by their names as they pass by; but mark Troilus above the reft. Eneas paffes over the stage. Cre. Speak not fo loud. Pan. That's Eneas; is not that a brave man ? he's one of the flowers of Troy, I can tell you; but mark Troilus, you shall see anon. Cre. Who's that? Antenor paffes over the flage. Pan. That's Antenor, he has a fhrewd wit, I can tell you, and he's a man good enough; he's one o'th' foundest judgment in Troy whofoever, and a proper man of perfon; when comes Troilus? I'll fhew you Troilus anon; if he fee me, you shall fee him nod at me. Cre. Will he give you the nod? Pan. You fhall fee. Cre. If he do, the rich fhall have more. (9) Hark, they are coming from the field; fhall we ftand up bere and fee them, as they pass towards Ilium?] This conduct of the Poet, in making Pandarus decypher the warriors as they pass, seems an imitation of Homer's Helen on the walls, where the fhews the Greeks to Priam. This incident was borrow'd by Euripides, in his Phoenifla and again copied by Statius, in the 9th book of his Thebais, where he makes Pborbas fhew to Antigone the chiefs of the Theban army. Hector Hector paffes over. Pan. That's Hector, that, that, look you, that: there's a fellow! go thy way, Hedor; there's a brave man, niece: O brave Heftor! look, how he looks! there's a countenance! is't not a brave man ? Cre. O brave man! Pan. Is he not? It does a man's heart good,-look you, what hacks are on his helmet, look you yonder, do you fee? look you there! there's no jefting; there's laying on, take't off who will, as they fay, there be hacks. Cre. Be thofe with fwords? Paris paffes over. Pan. Swords, any thing, he cares not, an the devil come to him, it's all one; by godflid, it does one's heart good. Yonder comes Paris, yonder comes Paris: look ye yonder, niece, is't not a gallant man too, is't not? why, this is brave now: who faid, he came home hurt to-day he's not hurt; why, this will do Helen's heart good now, ha? 'would, I could fee Troilus now; you fall fee Troilus anon. Cre. Who's that? Helenus paffes over. Pan. That's Helenus. I marvel, where Troilus is: that's Helenus— that's Helenus. -I think, he went not forth to-day; Cre. Can Helenus fight, uncle? Pan. Helenus, no-yes, he'll fight indifferent wellI marvel, where Troilus is? hark, do you not hear the people cry Troilus? Helenus is a priest. Cre. What sneaking fellow comes yonder? Troilus paffes over. Pan. Where! yonder? that's Deiphobus. 'Tis Troilus! there's a man, niece prince of chivalry! hem Cre. Peace, for fhame, peace. brave Troilus! the Pan. Pan. Mark him, note. him: O brave Troilus look swell upon him, niece, look you how his fword is bloodied, and his helm more hack'd than Hector's, and how he looks, and how he goes! O admirable youth! he never faw three and twenty. Go thy way, Troilus, go thy way; had I a fifter were a Grace, or a daughter a Goddefs, he fhould take his choice. O admirable man! Paris? -Paris is dirt to him, and, I warrant, Helen to change would give money too boot. Enter common Soldiers. Cre. Here come more. Pan. Affes, fools, dolts, chaff and bran, chaff and bran; porridge after meat. I could live and dye i'th' eyes of Troilus. Ne'er look, ne'er look; the eagles are gone; crows and daws, crows and daws. I had rather be fuch a man as Troilus, than Agamemnon and all Greece. Cre. There is among the Greeks Achilles, a better man than Troilus. Pan. Achilles? a dray-man, a porter, a very camel. Cre. Well, well. Pan. Well, well- -why, have you any difcretion? have you any eyes? do you know, what a man is? is not birth, beauty, good fhape, difcourfe, manhood, learning, gentlenefs, virtue, youth, liberality, and fo forth, the fpice and falt, that seasons a man? Cre. Ay, a minc'd man; and then to be bak'd with no date in the pye, for then the man's date is out.Pan. You are fuch another woman, one knows not at what ward you lie. Cre. Upon my back, to defend my belly; upon my wit, to defend my wiles.; upon my fecrecy, to defend mine honesty; my mask to defend my beauty, and you to defend all these; and at all thefe wards I lie, at a thousand watches. Pan. Say one of your watches. Cre. Nay, I'll watch you for that, and that's one of the chiefeft of them too: If I cannot ward what I would not have hit, I can watch you for telling how I took the blow; |