in flounces and underclothes and bridal veils, in violet dyes and yellow dyes, or muffs, or balsam scented foot-gear; and then the lingerie people drop in on you, along with shoemakers and squatting cobblers and slipper and sandal merchants and dealers in mallow dyes; and the belt makers flock around, and the girdle makers along with ’em.

iam hosce absolutes censeas:  cedunt, petunt treceni, cum stant thylacistae in atriis textores limbularii, arcularii. ducuntur, datur aes. iam absolutos censeas, 520 cum incedunt infectores corcotarii, aut aliqua mala crux semper est, quae aliquid petat.

And now you may think you’ve got them all paid off.  Then up come weavers and lace men and cabinet-makers—­hundreds of ’em—­who plant themselves like jailers in your halls and want you to settle up.  You bring ’em in and square accounts.  “All paid off now, anyway,” you may be thinking, when in march the fellows who do the saffron dyeing—­some damned pest or other, anyhow, eternally after something.

Eucl.

  Compellarem ego illum, ni metuam ne desinat
  memorare mores mulierum:  nunc sic sinam.

      (aside) I’d hail him, only I’m afraid he’d stop talking
      about how the women go on.  No, no, I’ll let him be.

Mega.

Ubi nugivendis res soluta est omnibus, ibi ad postremum cedit miles, aes petit. itur, putatur ratio cum argentario, miles inpransus astat, aes censet dari. ubi disputata est ratio cum argentario, etiam ipsus ultro debet argentario. 530 spes prorogatur militi in alium diem.

When you’ve got all these fellows of fluff and ruffles satisfied, along comes a military man, bringing up the rear, and wants to collect the army tax.  You go and have a reckoning with your banker, your military gentleman standing by and missing his lunch in the expectation of getting some cash.  After you and the banker have done figuring, you find you owe him money too, and the military man has his hopes postponed till another day.

haec sunt atque aliae multae in magnis dotibus. incommoditates sumptusque intolerabiles nam quae indotata est, ea in potestate est viri; dotatae mactant et malo et damno viros sed eccum adfinem ante aedes. quid agis, Euclio?

These are some of the nuisances and intolerable expenses that big dowries let you in for, and there are plenty more.  Now a wife that doesn’t bring you a penny—­a husband has some control over her; it’s the dowered ones that pester the life out of their husbands with the way they cut up and squander. (seeing Euclio) But there’s my new relative in front of the house!  How are you, Euclio?

III. 6.

    Scene 6.

Eucl.

  Nimium lubenter edi sermonem tuom.