budding virgin, you are fair, and fresh, and sweet:  whither are you going, and where is your dwelling?  Happy are the parents of so fair a child.”  “Why, how now, Kate,” said Petruchio; “I hope you are not mad.  This is a man, old and wrinkled, faded and withered, and not a maiden, as you say he is.”  On this Katherine said, “Pardon me, old gentleman; the sun has so dazzled my eyes, that every thing I look on seemeth green.  Now I perceive you are a reverend father:  I hope you will pardon me for my sad mistake.”—­“Do, good old grandsire,” said Petruchio, “and tell us which way you are travelling.  We shall be glad of your good company, if you are going our way.”  The old gentleman replied, “Fair sir, and you my merry mistress, your strange encounter has much amazed me.  My name is Vincentio, and I am going to visit a son of mine who lives at Padua.”  Then Petruchio knew the old gentleman to be the father of Lucentio, a young gentleman who was to be married to Baptista’s younger daughter, Bianca, and he made Vincentio very happy by telling him the rich marriage his son was about to make; and they all journeyed on pleasantly together till they came to Baptista’s house, where there was a large company assembled to celebrate the wedding of Bianca and Lucentio, Baptista having willingly consented to the marriage of Bianca when he had got Katherine off his hands.

When they entered, Baptista welcomed them to the wedding feast, and there was present also another newly-married pair.

Lucentio, Bianca’s husband, and Hortensio, the other new-married man, could not forbear sly jests, which seemed to hint at the shrewish disposition of Petruchio’s wife, and these fond bridegrooms seemed highly pleased with the mild tempers of the ladies they had chosen, laughing at Petruchio for his less fortunate choice.  Petruchio took little notice of their jokes till the ladies were retired after dinner, and then he perceived Baptista himself joined in the laugh against him; for when Petruchio affirmed that his wife would prove more obedient than theirs, the father of Katherine said, “Now, in good sadness, son Petruchio, I fear you have got the veriest shrew of all.”  “Well,” said Petruchio, “I say no, and therefore for assurance that I speak the truth, let us each one send for his wife, and he whose wife is most obedient to come at first when she is sent for, shall win a wager which we will propose.”  To this the other two husbands willingly consented, for they were quite confident that their gentle wives would prove more obedient than the headstrong Katherine; and they proposed a wager of twenty crowns, but Petruchio merrily said he would lay as much as that upon his hawk or hound, but twenty times as much upon his wife.  Lucentio and Hortensio raised the wager to an hundred crowns, and Lucentio first sent his servant to desire Bianca would come to him.  But the servant returned, and said, “Sir, my mistress sends you word she is busy and cannot come.”  “How,”