PEG.
Faith, I care not greatly if I do.
WILL CRICKET.
Care not greatly if I do? What an answer’s
that? If thou wilt say, I,
Peg, take thee, William, to my spruse husband—
PEG.
Why, so I will. But we must have more company
for witnesses first.
[Enter Dancers and Piper.]
WILL CRICKET.
That needs not. Here’s good store of young
men and maids here.
PEG.
Why, then, here’s my hand.
WILL CRICKET. Faith, that’s honestly spoken.
Say after me: I, Peg Pudding, promise thee, William
Cricket, that I’ll hold thee for my own sweet
lily, while I have a head in mine eye and a face on
my nose, a mouth in my tongue and all that a woman
should have from the crown of my foot to the sole
of my head. I’ll clasp thee and clip thee,
coll thee and kiss thee, till I be better than nought
and worse than nothing. When thou art ready to
sleep, I’ll be ready to snort; when thou art
in health, I’ll be in gladness; when thou art
sick, I’ll be ready to die; when thou art mad,
I’ll run out of my wits, and thereupon I strike
thee good luck. Well said, i’ faith.
O, I could find in my hose to pocket thee in my heart!
Come, my heart of gold, let’s have a dance at
the making up of this match. Strike up, Tom Piper.
[They dance. Come, Peg, I’ll
take the pains to bring thee homeward; and at twilight
look for me again.
[Exeunt.
Enter ROBIN GOODFELLOW and PETER PLOD-ALL.
ROBIN GOODFELLOW.
Come hither, my honest friend. Master Churms
told me you had a suit to
me; what’s the matter?
PETER PLOD-ALL.
Pray ye, sir, is your name Robin Goodfellow?
ROBIN GOODFELLOW.
My name is Robin Goodfellow.
PETER PLOD-ALL. Marry, sir, I hear you’re a very cunning man, sir, and sir reverence of your worship, sir, I am going a-wooing to one Mistress Lelia, a gentlewoman here hard by. Pray ye, sir, tell me how I should behave myself, to get her to my wife, for, sir, there is a scholar about her; now, if you can tell me how I should wipe his nose of her, I would bestow a fee of you.
ROBIN GOODFELLOW. Let me see’t, and thou shalt see what I’ll say to thee. [He gives him money.] Well, follow my counsel, and, I’ll warrant thee, I’ll give thee a love-powder for thy wench, and a kind of nux vomica in a potion shall make her come off, i’ faith.
PETER PLOD-ALL.
Shall I trouble you so far as to take some pains with
me? I am loth to
have the dodge.
ROBIN GOODFELLOW. Tush! fear not the dodge. I’ll rather put on my flashing red nose and my flaming face, and come wrapped in a calf’s skin, and cry Bo bo. I’ll fray the scholar, I warrant thee. But first go to her, try what thou canst do; perhaps she’ll love thee without any further ado. But thou must tell her thou hast a good stock, some hundred or two a year, and