if he had not rather die Let him love none or all as I This is the doctrine that I ever taught you And yet you profit not these scurvy passions Hang on you still You that are yong and active That may have all our Nymphs at your devotion To live a whining kind of life as this How ill it does become you Th. True Mirtillus And yet I doe not envie thee the pleasure Thou hast in thy dispers'd affections M. You would if your head were right once but love Your love does make an Asse of all your reason Th. Sure a true lover is more rationall Then you that love at randome every where Mi. I doe not thinke so all the reason love Has left you to imploy in this discourse Will hardly bring me to confesse it to you Th. Why all mens actions have some proper end Whereto their meanes and strict endeavours tend Else there would be nought but perplexitie In humane life and all uncertaintie Mi. Well what will you inferre on this Thy. That you Who know no end at all of wild desire Must in your wandring fancie see this way Leads unto madnesse when too late you finde That nothing satisfies a boundlesse minde Mi. I but I do confine my selfe to two Or three at most in this varietie I please my selfe for what is wanting in One I may finde it in another Th. No Not in another one is the onely Centre The line of love is drawne to must have all Perfections in her all that 's good and faire Or else her Lover must beleeve her so Mi. I there 's your error that 's the ground of all Your teares and sighs your fruitlesse hopes and feares When she perhaps has not so much t' adorne her As the least grace your thoughts bestow upon her Th. Well be it so and yet this faire Idea Which I have fram'd unto my selfe does argue Vertue in me so that if she be lost Or dead ay me the sad remembrance of My Sylvia causes this yet I must love Because the Character is indelible Writ in my heart and heaven is witnesse to it Mi. Well I 'le no more of this I 'le be converted Rather then call this griefe to your remembrance Th. Why dost thou thinke I ever shall forget her Or that where ere I set my carefull foote As in this place will it not tell me that Here Sylvia and I walkt hand in hand And here she pluckt a flower and anon She gave it me and then we kiss't and here We mutually did vow each others love Mi. Nay leave good Thyrsis I did come to tell you This holy-day our Royall Prince Euarchus Being remov'd to his house here neere adjoyning Sent to command us to attend his person With all our sports and wonted merriment Wherein you alwaies bore the chiefest part And I have heard 't is not to make you blush The Princesse has commended your rare Art And hansome graces which you gave your Musicke Come you must goe with us for Hylas is So farre ingag'd in love and neere his hopes He will not stirre unlesse his Mistresse goe Thy. Alas Mirtillus I have broke my Pipe My sighs are all the musicke which I now Can make and how unfit I am t' attend So great an expectation you may see Yet give me leave to thinke on it at night Perhaps I le goe with you Mi. Till then farewell The gentlest youth that ever plaid on Pipe But see who 's here oh 't is my other Lover His Mistresse with him I will not disturbe him SCENA SECUNDA Nerina Hylas Mirtillus SHepheard I would you 'd leave to follow me Hy. How can I sweetest when my heart is with you Ne. With me then tell me where and see how soone I shall restore it you Aside Mi. Oh this is fine Hy. It hangs upon your eies where being scorcht With their disdaine and dazel'd with their lustre It flies for ease unto your rosie lips But beaten thence with many a harsh deniall Faine would it come for better harbour here But here for ever it must be an Exile For pittie then faire Nymph receive it you And if you can teach it the hardnesse of Your owne and make it marble as yours is Mi. I see he is not such a Novice as Aside I tooke him for he can tell how to speake Ne. Well if my heart be such as you will make it I am so much the gladder that it is Of strength to be a fence unto my honour Hy. In vaine a fence is made to guard the sheep Where no wolfe ever came Ne. What if within It keepe a dog of prey would they be safe For my part I le not cherish in my breast The man that would undoe my chastitie Hy. Then cherish me for you best know I never Attempted any thing to cast a spot On that white Innocence to which I am A most religious votary Mi More foole you Aside It may be if you had it needed not Ha' come to this Ne. Yes yes you may remember I blush to tell it you when first my thoughts Were pure and simple as I hope they are Still and will so continue whilst I flie Such companie as you I thought you one Whom never any flame impure had toucht Then we converst without suspect together Hy. And am I not so still why do you now Flie from me thus Ne. The cause I shall tell you Since you will not remember though it be Unfit for me to speake yet you shall know How just my anger is Hy Ay me most wretched What have I don Ne. When tending of my flocks Under the shade of yonder Mirtle tree Which beares the guilt of your soule misdemeanour My maide Corisca cried out for my helpe Because a bee had stung her in the face You heard me speake in pittie of her smart A charme my mother taught me that being said Close to the place affected takes away The paine which gave her ease but you uncivill Turning my courtesie to your vile ends Fain'd you were stung too and cried out your lips Had from the same sharpe point receiv'd a wound Prayd me to say the same charme over there I charitably lent my helpe to you Mistrusting nothing of your purposes When with ungentle hands you held me fast And for my thanks gave me a lustfull kisse Canst thou remember this and yet not blush O impudence Hy. You will excuse the heate Of my desires still I feele that sting But dare not aske the cure nor did I then Do any hurt but since you thinke it was A fault I do repent it and am sorry I did offend you so Mi. Better and better He 'le cry anon he has already askt Forgivenesse of her Aside Ne. Well shepheard looke You never see me more I cannot love At all or if at all not you let this Settle your thoughts Hy. Oh it distracts them more But since my presence is offensive to you I must obey yet if
rejoice In whining passion walking still alone Now proud with hopes then cast downe with despaire Unequall to my selfe in every thing I cannot love No Hylas know I love Dorinda Cloris Amarillis all Whom ever love did to his Altars call And when this Mistresse frownes I am content To take another when that flame is spent By time or put out by a Rivall straite A third supplies her place perhaps more worthy If lesse because she loves I le thinke her so Hy. Alas Mirtillus I doe pitty thee Pittie the error which thou wandrest in That thinkst thou lov'st and know'st not what it is Mi. Why what is love say you if mine be not Hy. I know Mirtillus that no lover yet Purchas'd a lasting pleasure without griefe For love has gall in it as well as honie And so compounded that who so ere will taste The sweetes of it must take the bitter too Out of both which is made our constancy You that embrace the false delights alone Are a faign'd lover or more truly none Mi. I know not what you meane by constancy I 'me sure I loue the fairest Hy. Still you erre For if you lov'd the fairest none had bin The object of your choise but my Nerina Nerina she the glory of these woods The only subject of all shepheards song Mi. She has her share of beautie with the rest And I confesse she 's fit for love as any But why she onely should take up your breast And shut out all that have a right as good Whose equall or transcendent beautie pleades As just a title to 't as hers can do I cannot reach the reason but admire Your faith and what you praise your constancie Hy. Mirtillus though I know your stubborn heart Could never entertaine a lovers thought Yet did I thinke you would have bin more tender How you prophan'd a name so sacred as Nerina's is whom never any Swaine Nor rurall God nor Satyr though he be Of savage kinde would ever violate Nerina in whose forme love ever dwells Attended by the Graces which do range Themselves in order 'bout her comely face Whose breasts without are hills of whitest snow Within the seate of blamelesse modestie Regard of honor and pure chastity Nor may a loose thought ever harbor there To tempt such lovers as you seeme to be Is it for that you slight her Mi. No I loue her As I do others with whom I compare her But you that loue with such intemperance Make of your love a glasse wherein you see Each thing much greater then indeed it is My loves too cold you say but I am sure Yours is too hot for any to endure A meane perhaps 'twixt these I might approve Hy. You might if there were any meane in love Mi. But whilst we talke thus see the flame has caught you your beauteous flame Nerina is at hand Dorinda with her dare you stay th' encounter Hy. No let 's with draw and watch her where she gos SCENA III Merina Dorinda DOrinda I have mist the chase to day Such is my chance and he that lodg'd the deere Told me it was the fairest in these Woods Do. The Gods doe love you sure that have left Your thoughts so free for sport mine are not so Ne. Thou art in love I warrant art thou not Do. That angry God pursues me in his fury And forces me to love where I am scorn'd Haplesse Dorinda why should he despise thee Many a Swaine and many a rurall God Have sought thy favors and have sought in vaine Now thou art justly punisht with disdaine Ne. Trust me Sweet-heart I cannot choose but wonder To thinke that one of such a comely grace I doe not flatter you could sue to any For love who are much fitter to be lov'd Scorne him asmuch as he does thee for men Love us no more when we love them agen Do. Ah good Nerina you have spoken truth It may warne other Nymphs by my example How they professe their loves to any man I 'me past the cure he that wounded me Has left me quite disarm'd and robb'd me of All those defensive arts which men will say Are naturall and proper to our sexe I cannot change a face or weepe one teare Or laugh against my will so violently My Fate hath thrust me to this love that all My faculties confesse their weaknesse and My flame is got so much above my reach I can not put it out nor smother it Me. Alas poore wench tell me who is the man Made up of so much rigid cruelty That I may shun him wheresoere I goe Do. Do not you know him Me. No Do. I heare he boasts To every shepheard and to every Nymph How much I love him Me. Then it must be Daphnis Do. Venus forgive me if I do disclose him But he will do 't himselfe T is he Nerina Me. Daphnis that woes my father to win me He is my daily suitor now I know How much he owes to pitty and to thee Untill he pay that debt I shall despise him Do. Why do not you love him as much as I Me. Love him I know no greater misery Then to love one that 's not of humane race A Tyger rather but a Tyger is More milde then he Do. For loves sake say not so He has a manly feature and does shew As much of grace in his comportment as The best of shepheards can him Titan made Of better clay then he did other men Although his heart be flint and hardest rocke Yet is his heart so hard or are my parts Rather unequall to his high deserts For he can love I see since you he loves And you deserve it had he thought me worthy He would have lov'd me too but as I am Worthlesse Dorinda I am made his scorne And I had rather be so then Nerina Should want a servant such as Daphnis is Me, Prethee no more of him I hate his name As much as I would do the losse of honor Which he injuriously would rob me off No no Dorinda if by love I be inthrald to any Daphnis is not he Do. Why is there any can deserve you more Me. Yes many that I could tell how to love Rather then him for why should I love him Whilst Hylas lives and languishes for me Hylas who lov'd me in my infancy And being then a boy was never well If I was absent nor indeed was I Content with any but his company Our flocks still fed together I on him And he on me did feed his greedie eyes Since though his yeares have stild him man he has Continu'd that first love with such respects So full of innocence and simple truth That howsoere my outward coynesse is My heart within tells me 't is onely his Ay me my father prithee let 's away Do. But Daphnis comes with him for loves sake stay SCENA QVARTA Hylas Mirtillus Charinus Daphnis PAn be as cruell to his flocks and him As he has bin to me Mi. Go leave
cruell fate Angry with men that gave us hearts alike And fortunes so asunder you 're a Cedar I a poore shrub that may looke up unto you With adoration but ne're reach your height Syl. But Thyrsis I do love you love and death Do not much differ they make all things equall The Monuments of Kings may shew for them What they have bin but looke upon their dust The color and the weight of theirs and beggers You 'le finde the same and if 'mongst living men Nature has printed in the face of many The characters of noblenesse and worth Whose fortune envies them a worthy place In birth or honor When the greatest men Whom she has courted beare the marks of slaves Love sure will looke on those and lay aside The Accidents of wealth and noble blood And in our thoughts wil equall them with Kings Thy. 'T is true divinest Lady that the soules Of all men are alike of the same substance By the same maker into all infus'd But yet the severall matters which they worke on How different they are I neede not tell you And as these outward Organs give our soules Or more or lesse roome as they are contriv'd To shew their lustre so againe comes fortune And darkens them to whom the Gods have given A soule divine and body capable Of that divinity and excellence But 't is the order of the Fates whose causes We must not looke into But you deare Madam Nature and fortune have conspir'd to make The happiest alive Syl. Ay me most wretched What pleasure can there be in highest state Which is so crost in love the greatest good The Gods can tell how to bestow on men Thy. Yet some do reckon it the greatest ill A passion of the minde form'd in the fancy And bred to be the worst disease of reason Syl. They that thinke so are such as love excludes Men full of age or foule deformitie No Thyrsis let not us prophane that deity Love is divine the seed of every thing The cause why now we live and all the world Thy. Love is divine for if religion Binds us to love the Gods who never yet Reveald themselves in any thing to us But their bright Images the fairest creatures Who are our daily objects loving them Wee exercise religion let us not Be scrupulous or feare the Gods have care Of us and of our piety Syl. But take heed We cannot be too warie many things Oppose our wills yet if you thinke it fit And this nights silence will so favour us Wee le goe together if we quit this Countrie It is no matter all the world to me Will be Arcadia if I may injoy Thy company my love Thy. No Sylvia Pardon mee deare if still I call you so Enjoy your fortunes thinke how much your honor Must suffer in this act For me I finde It is enough that I have ever lov'd you Now let me at the light of your bright eie Burne like the bird whose fires renew her nest I shall leave you behind me to the world The Phenix of true love and constancy Nor is that bird more glorious in her flames Then I shall be in mine though they consume me Syl. It must not be for know my dearest shepheard I shall not tell one minute after thee I finde my soule so linkt to thine that death Cannot divide us Thy. What then shall we do Shall we resolve to live thus till we gaze Our eies out first and then lose all our senses In their succession shall we strive to leave Our soules breath'd forth upon each others lips Come let us practise this our envious Fates Cannot deny us Cleander enters Cle. What a sight were this To meete her father This would make him mad Indeed and execute his rage himselfe Madam your father 's here Syl. Ha Delia Cleander is it thou then I 'me betraid The second time but must thy fortune make thee The instrument of my undoing still Cla. Shepheard I will not honor thee so much As to enquire thy name thou hast don that Thou wilt pay deare for And I hope thy death Will take away the blot of this disgrace Th' hast laid upon the Princesse Thy. If you do this You le make me happy it was this I lookt for My triviall acts of life this of my death Will recompence with glory I shall die To save my Princesse and what 's more to save The life of her life her unspotted honor Blest Lady though you are as innocent And chaste as purest Virgins that have yet Seene nothing in a dreame to warme their blood Yet the malicious world the censuring people That haste to cast durt on the fairest things Will hardly spare you if it once be knowne That we were here together As for me My life is nothing but variety Of griefe and troubles which with constancy I have borne yet t is time that now I die Before I do accuse the Gods that have Brought me to this and so pull on my death A punishment Will you be mercifull And end me quickly Cle. Shepheard know for this Thy resolution which in noble bloods I scarce have found I willingly would grant What thou desir'st But somthing must be knowne Before that time either from you or you Syl. I know Cleander it is me you aime at I do confesse this shepheard is my love For his sake I did leave the Court and thee Unworthy as thou art to be his Rivall Cle. Madam my duty bids me speake to you Not as a lover now but as you are My Princesse and the daughter of my King I would not for the world have those desires Which I had then for sure my bolder love Would have transgrest the limits of all duty And would have dar'd to tell you that this shepheard Was not a match for great Arcadias heire Nor yet one fit for my Competitor 'T is not his outward feature which how faire It is I do not question that can make him Noble or wise Whereas my birth deriv'd From ancient Kings and yeares not far unsuiting Those of your owne to these my education To you well knowne perhaps might make me worthy Of being your servant Syl. Canst thou looke on this This piece Cleander and not blush to boast Thy follies thus seeking to take away From his full vertue if but this one act Of his appeare unto the world as know It shall for I le not shame to publish him Though I die for it will it not devoure Thy empty glories and thy puft up nothings And like a grave will burie all thy honors Do take his life and glory in that act But be thou sure in him thou shalt kill two Cle. What meane you madam Syl. Not to live a minute After his death Gle. That all the Gods forbid Syl. No they command it rather that have made Our soules but one Cleander thou wert wont To be more courteous and I do see Some pitie in thee if not for
grave Cha. By what strange meanes Nerina Ne. By the glasse You bid me I should take he has confest To mee that it was poison'd Cha. Can it be Can Daphnis doe this he had little reason Da. She was a foole to crie I should ha' pleas'd her Ere this perhaps Cha. Here Hylas take my daughter For she is thine you Daphnis I did further In all I could till you would finde a tricke To put your selfe beside her Ne. I forgive him For though it was ill meant yet did it sort By accident unto my good Mo. But will Our Lawes permit a Ravisher to live Hy. No no Montanus let him live and envie Our present happinesse Da. Cover you Gods The world in publique ruine or else shew me A way to hide my shame Mo. What will he doe Mi. He will go hang himselfe what plots hee had To foole himselfe with Mo. They that practise tricks Finde them as jades that throw 'em first then kick 'em As his has don Cha. Come shepheards le ts away And solemnize these nuptials Mi. Stay Montanus Did the King send for you Mo. He did Mi. And how Mo. The message came from Thyrsis Ni. I 'le goe with you 'T is strange the King should send for you pray heaven Thyrsis have done no mischiefe there he 's hansome Of a good grace and moving eloquence Perhaps some Lady may have taken him Up for her selfe and he I le lay a wager Will be so squeamish that if Sylvia Come in his minde he ne're will do her reason And then her plot will be how to betray him Would I were in his place Mo. I would thou wert So he were safe Mi. I would comply ne're feare it They live a heavenly life of love in Court To that which we do here a Mistresse there Will satisfie the longings of her lover And never trouble Hymen for the matter Then if they like not they may looke else-where Mo. Thou wilt be punisht one day for thy mischiefe Mi. The mischiefe 's in my tongue I ne're do any Mo. No I have heard that Stella was with childe By thee and thou must father it Mi. Who I Take me at that once fathering of children And make me common father of them all A child 's a prettie thing and I should joy To see one of mine owne I le tell thee truth Montanus by this hand I never lay With any woman in my life Mo. How then You have courted all who is it that Mirtillus Has not profest to love Mi. I do confesse it And that is all I could do for before I could get earnest of any ones love To whom I made addresse even she would say You have another mistresse go to her I wil not be her stale and so by this meanes Nor this nor that would do me any reason Mo. You had ill lucke it seemes 't was not your fault Mi. No for if they would beleeve me I did sweare I had no other Pray Montanus tell me For you have knowne the severall waies of wooing Which is the best and safest Mo. O Mirtillus Gray haires have put the wilder thoughts of love Out of my head cold blood and frozen limbes Fright all those heates away in place of which Discretion and sobriety should come Mi. But I have heard old men doe sometimes love Mo. They dote Mirtillus give it the right name In old mens bloods Cupid does quench his flames But as we goe I le tell thee not to love At all is best but if you needs must love Love one and seeke no further thou wilt finde Enough of her if once she prove unkinde SCENA 3. Daphnis Alcon To Daphnis Dorinda THere is no way to avoide the shame of this Each shepheards boy that sings unto his flocke Will make me the scorn'd subject of his song Al. Had you bin suddaine as I counsail'd you You had not faild but you young men doe never Goe through with any thing Do. For heavens sake Call not that wicked deede to my remembrance I do repent me that I e're beganne it I would not for a world have ended it Nerina's chaste and faire and I a villaine Leave me I pray for something tells me you Did first advise me to this damned act Al. Nay if you prize my friendship at this rate I 'le leave you to your pennance Exit Da. This old man Is full of malice nothing troubles him The ills that he has done flie from his thoughts And he rejoyces that he did them queintly I have begun my youth as if I meant To have my age so punisht as his is Enter Dorinda Who 's this Dorinda I have done her wrong I su'de for love to her first which obtain'd I stucke disgraces on her let me aske Forgivenesse now for 't were too much to hope That she should love one stain'd with such a deed As I have done so foule and impious Do. Great love if yet thou art not satisfied With all the wrongs I have sustain'd for thee My blood I hope thy anger will appease Which thou maist glut thy selfe with Da. Gentle Nymph Do. I 've beene too gentle doe not mocke me with 't O Daphnis is it you this is not well To mocke me thus your looks when arm'd with frownes Gave not my heart so deepe a wound as this Da. I meane no scorne I come to aske your pardon For what I 've done already not to heape More sinnes upon my head Do. 'T is very strange Da. But true Dorinda will you spit upon me Take your revenge for I have well deserv'd it Do. But is this serious Daphnis oh take heed Cracke not my heart with such a loade of griefe And scorne so prest as this is if you doe The Gods will punish it for though they have Neglected me thus long they will revenge Such injuries as these Da. My many ills Discredit my repentance if my words Can finde no faith with you beleeve my teares Indeed they are not feign'd Do. Even so you look't When first you stole my heart but I forgive you What ere become of me I still must love you Da. Forgive me first and then I will beginne By my endeavours and true services To deserve something of you if not love Do. There is not that hard heartednesse in man Which I did thinke for he repents I see O Daphnis if thou mean'st not this as scorne Take me into thine armes and I will be Thy slave Da. O say not so let me Rather be thine it will be pride in me To be ambitious of it Do. Oh my heart What suddaine joy thou strik'st into it now But yet methinkes I feare thou dost not love me Da. Why should you feare by Pan you are to me What ere you can imagine equall above All that I ere thought faire and if you be Content to hide my faults and take me to Your nuptiall bed which yet I dare not hope But if you will when ere that day shall come Th'