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The Complete Works of William Shakespeare - Israel Gollancz William Shakespeare [1974]

By Root 20818 0
oath:

You shall not seek to violate mine honour,

Until our marriage rights be all performed.

WILLIAM.

Mariana, here I swear to thee by heaven,

And by the honour that I bear to Arms,

Never to seek or crave at hands of thee

The spoil of honourable chastity,

Until we do attain the English coast,

Where thou shalt be my right espoused Queen.

BLANCH.

In hope your oath proceedeth from your heart,

Let's leave the Court, and betake us to his power

That governs all things to his mighty will,

And will reward the just with endless joy,

And plague the bad with most extreme annoy.

WILLIAM.

Lady, as little tarriance as we may,

Lest some misfortune happen by the way.

[Exit Blanch and William.]

SCENE IV.

Manchester. The Mill.

[Enter the Miller, his man Trotter, and Manville.]

MILLER.

I tell you, sir, it is no little grief to me, you should

so hardly conseit of my daughter, whose honest report,

though I say it, was never blotted with any title of defamation.

MANVILLE.

Father Miller, the repair of those gentlemen to your house

hath given me great occasion to mislike.

MILLER.

As for those gentlemen, I never saw in them any evil intreaty.

But should they have profered it, her chaste mind hath proof

enough to prevent it.

TROTTER.

Those gentlemen are so honest as ever I saw: For yfaith one

of them gave me six pence to fetch a quart of Seck.—See,

maister, here they come.

[Enter Mountney and Valingford.]

MILLER.

Trotter, call Em. Now they are here together, I'll have this

matter throughly debated.

[Exit Trotter.]

MOUNTNEY.

Father, well met. We are come to confer with you.

MANVILLE.

Nay, with his daughter rather.

VALINGFORD.

Thus it is, father, we are come to crave your friendship in a matter.

MILLER.

Gentlemen, as you are strangers to me, yet by the way of

courtesy you shall demand any reasonable thing at my hands.

MANVILLE.

What, is the matter so forward they came to crave his good will?

VALINGFORD.

It is given us to understand that your daughter is sodenly

become both blind and deaf.

MILLER.

Marie, God forbid! I have sent for her. In deed, she

hath kept her chamber this three days. It were no little

grief to me if it should be so.

MANVILLE.

This is God's judgement for her treachery.

[Enter Trotter, leading Em.]

MILLER.

Gentlemen, I fear your words are too true. See where

Trotter comes leading of her.—What ails my Em? Not blind,

I hope?

EM.

[Aside.] Mountney and Valingford both together! And

Manville, to whom I have faithfully vowed my love! Now, Em,

suddenly help thy self.

MOUNTNEY.

This is no desembling, Valingford.

VALINGFORD.

If it be, it is cunningly contrived of all sides.

EM.

[Aside to Trotter.] Trotter, lend me thy hand, and as thou

lovest me, keep my counsell, and justify what so ever I say

and I'll largely requite thee.

TROTTER.

Ah, thats as much as to say you would tell a monstrous,

terrible, horrible, outragious lie, and I shall sooth it—

no, berlady!

EM.

My present extremity will me,—if thou love me, Trotter.

TROTTER.

That same word love makes me to do any thing.

EM.

Trotter, wheres my father?

TROTTER.

Why, what a blind dunce are you, can you not see? He

standeth right before you.

[He thrusts Em upon her father.]

EM.

Is this my father?—Good father, give me leave to sit where

I may not be disturbed, sith God hath visited me both of my

sight and hearing.

MILLER.

Tell me, sweet Em, how came this blindness? Thy eyes are

lovely to look on, and yet have they lost the benefit of

their sight. What a grief is this to thy poor father!

EM.

Good father, let me not stand as an open gazing stock to

every one, but in a place alone, as fits a creature so miserable.

MILLER.

Trotter, lead her in, the utter overthrow of poor Goddards

joy and only solace.

[Exit the Miller, Trotter and Em.]

MANVILLE.

Both blind and deaf! Then is she no wife for me; and glad

am I so good occasion is hapned: Now will I away to Chester,

and leave these gentlemen to their blind fortune.

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