Selected quad for the lemma: book_n
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ID |
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A16760
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A merrie dialogue betvvixt the taker and mistaker
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Breton, Nicholas, 1545?-1626?
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1603
(1603)
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STC 3667; ESTC S104778
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20,223
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38
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the weather had held faire and that you had met with a good prize you would not haue thought your selfe mistaken in the merie life of the mariner Dor. Indeed sometime the ioy of taking helpes the miserie of mistaking Lor. Yea but when the theefe that hath taken a purse if he be ouertaken in the high way and so take the gallowes for his Inne that ioyfull taking in the beginning brings a sorrowfull mistaking in the end Dor. Well as for that part it is none of my play and therefore I will leaue it to them that loue it Now to tell thee of my second mistaking When I had bene a litle on shore had weathered my selfe dried my clothes filled my belly and emptied my purse I now beganne to thinke how my wits should worke for my welfare and first intending to seeke intertainment of some Noble person that would honourably looke into the vertues valour and good qualities of a good mind I began to put on a resolution to aduenture any fortune and indure any discomfort that might be a hinderance to my happines And with this resolution trauelling till I was wearie almost penilesse and exceedingly hungrie I came to the view of a goodly faire gorgeously built house which stood as it were a mile from a citie neare adioyning Now in hope there to find some such person as I before spake of I began to rowze vp my selfe as one that had an assured hope at least of some good victuall I meane of a good dinner scot-free howsoeuer otherwise fortune would be my friend When ere I would approach too neare the house lest I should be seene in any vnfit manner I combed my beard gartered vp my stockings trussed euery point buttoned euery button and made my selfe readie in the best maner I could to appeare before the presence of such as I should meete withall in this gallant mansion But when I came neare vnto the house and finding the doore shut I did imagine being about the mid time of the day that the seruants were all at dinner and the lord of the house either laid downe to sleepe or gone into his closet to talke vpon some accounts with his ladie but hearing no sound of any noise nor voice within of either man or dogge I feared some ill fortune that there was some great sicknesse or daunger of death that might dampe the spirits and so cause the sorrow of the whole house but staying awhile and neither hearing any voice within nor any poore creature without at the gate that might hope of almes from the hall I feared the charitie within was so litle that my comfort without would be according but after that I had stood awhile loth to lose time I knocked at the doore where I knocked long before I had any answer and in the end was saluted at a windowe farre within by an old fellow who it should seeme to saue a groat had slept out his dinner whose speech with a wide mouth gaped out was this What lacke you My friend quoth I I pray you let me speake with you No quoth he I cannot come downe I am busie my maister is not at home and here is no bodie in the house but I and my wife and she is not well but say your errand and I will heare you My errand thought I was there euer such a kennell for such a curre doth he take me for some sorie fellow or hath he no better kind of greeting for strangers And thus while I stood musing and fretting at my fortune and this bad fellow he shut the window and I with a sigh to see how I was mistaken in this faire house turning me from it I met with a foole in a pyed coate who looking vpon me after he had ouerlaughed himselfe told me Sir you are mistaken this is a banquetting house where the gazers are onely fed with conceipts for there is not a chimney that smokes nor a doore open it is called Mock-begger ha ha ha Now when the foole went thus laughing away and left me more foole to tarie there Before I stirred my foote out of my pocket I tooke my table booke in which I writ downe my second mistaking Lor. Indeed this is too common a mistaking in many countries but it may be you might haue taken it in such a time as might haue giuen you cause to haue spoken better of it but indeed faire houses are for rich men and cottages for the poore and therefore being in that predicament it is no maruell you had no better entertainement But I pray you proceed with your trauell Dor. I will tell you melancholy walking a litle from this Mocke-begger I began to frame my selfe to the humour of a cunning begger when meeting with a graue old man who by his veluet coate his golden chaine and his rich furred gowne should seeme to be at the least some rich Burgor if not some Burga-maister of some city this well apparelled picture with a kind of life that gaue the body leaue to cary the head vpon a square paire of shouldiers I in hope to find more comfortable then the faire house maister Mocke-begger I saluted with a great reuerence requited with a proud nod I yet aduentured to bord with a few words When hoping to haue found him a man of no lesse vnderstanding spirit to iudge of the estate and conditions of men then bounty in the reliefe of the vnfortunatly distressed I fell aboord with him with these words Sir I thinke you haue heard of the hard fortune of the Buon-auenture who put into your harbor this other night hardly sauing her life with losse of all her goods and some of her peoole My selfe with much ado well weather-beaten as you may see with some few that lie sicke in the hauen got to shore and am now trauelling towards your city here before me Loth I am to enter into any base course for my comfort but if I might be beholding to your good fauour in this time of my distresse giuing me your name withall I doubt not if I liue but either by my selfe or my better friends to find a time either to requite or deserue it He as one whose heart was so shut vp in his purse that he vnderstood nothing but ware and money after a harsh humme or two gaue me this answer Was there nothing saued of her goods I pray you what was her fraught Sit quoth I it was most silkes and spices but some pearle and money more then would haue bene willingly lost Good commodities quoth he by my fay a shrewd mischance I am sory for ye I would I could do ye good but I am now in hast going about a litle businesse and therefore I cannot stand to talke with you God be with you the towne is hard before you you will be there anon But if you haue any iewels or pearle that you haue saued I will giue you mony for it if I like it Truly