Troilus and Cressida

Troilus and Cressida

ACT IV SCENE IV	The same. Pandarus' house.
	Enter PANDARUS and CRESSIDA
PANDARUS	Be moderate, be moderate.
CRESSIDA	Why tell you me of moderation?
	The grief is fine, full, perfect, that I taste,
	And violenteth in a sense as strong	5
	As that which causeth it: how can I moderate it?
	If I could temporize with my affection,
	Or brew it to a weak and colder palate,
	The like allayment could I give my grief.
	My love admits no qualifying dross;	10
	No more my grief, in such a precious loss.
PANDARUS	Here, here, here he comes.
	Enter TROILUS
	Ah, sweet ducks!
CRESSIDA	O Troilus! Troilus!
	Embracing him
PANDARUS	What a pair of spectacles is here!	15
	Let me embrace too. 'O heart,' as the goodly saying is,
	'--O heart, heavy heart,
	Why sigh'st thou without breaking?
	where he answers again,
	'Because thou canst not ease thy smart	20
	By friendship nor by speaking.'
	There was never a truer rhyme. Let us cast away
	nothing, for we may live to have need of such a
	verse: we see it, we see it. How now, lambs?
TROILUS	Cressid, I love thee in so strain'd a purity,	25
	That the bless'd gods, as angry with my fancy,
	More bright in zeal than the devotion which
	Cold lips blow to their deities, take thee from me.
CRESSIDA	Have the gods envy?
PANDARUS	Ay, ay, ay, ay; 'tis too plain a case.	30
CRESSIDA	And is it true that I must go from Troy?
TROILUS	A hateful truth.
CRESSIDA	What, and from Troilus too?
TROILUS	From Troy and Troilus.
CRESSIDA	Is it possible?	35
TROILUS	And suddenly; where injury of chance
	Puts back leave-taking, justles roughly by
	All time of pause, rudely beguiles our lips
	Of all rejoindure, forcibly prevents
	Our lock'd embrasures, strangles our dear vows	40
	Even in the birth of our own labouring breath:
	We two, that with so many thousand sighs
	Did buy each other, must poorly sell ourselves
	With the rude brevity and discharge of one.
	Injurious time now with a robber's haste	45
	Crams his rich thievery up, he knows not how:
	As many farewells as be stars in heaven,
	With distinct breath and consign'd kisses to them,
	He fumbles up into a lose adieu,
	And scants us with a single famish'd kiss,	50
	Distasted with the salt of broken tears.
AENEAS	Within
TROILUS	Hark! you are call'd: some say the Genius so
	Cries 'come' to him that instantly must die.
	Bid them have patience; she shall come anon.
PANDARUS	Where are my tears? rain, to lay this wind, or	55
	my heart will be blown up by the root.
	Exit
CRESSIDA	I must then to the Grecians?
TROILUS	No remedy.
CRESSIDA	A woful Cressid 'mongst the merry Greeks!
	When shall we see again?	60
TROILUS	Hear me, my love: be thou but true of heart,--
CRESSIDA	I true! how now! what wicked deem is this?
TROILUS	Nay, we must use expostulation kindly,
	For it is parting from us:
	I speak not 'be thou true,' as fearing thee,	65
	For I will throw my glove to Death himself,
	That there's no maculation in thy heart:
	But 'be thou true,' say I, to fashion in
	My sequent protestation; be thou true,
	And I will see thee.	70
CRESSIDA	O, you shall be exposed, my lord, to dangers
	As infinite as imminent! but I'll be true.
TROILUS	And I'll grow friend with danger. Wear this sleeve.
CRESSIDA	And you this glove. When shall I see you?
TROILUS	I will corrupt the Grecian sentinels,	75
	To give thee nightly visitation.
	But yet be true.
CRESSIDA	O heavens! 'be true' again!
TROILUS	Hear while I speak it, love:
	The Grecian youths are full of quality;	80
	They're loving, well composed with gifts of nature,
	Flowing and swelling o'er with arts and exercise:
	How novelty may move, and parts with person,
	Alas, a kind of godly jealousy--
	Which, I beseech you, call a virtuous sin--	85
	Makes me afeard.
CRESSIDA	O heavens! you love me not.
TROILUS	Die I a villain, then!
	In this I do not call your faith in question
	So mainly as my merit: I cannot sing,	90
	Nor heel the high lavolt, nor sweeten talk,
	Nor play at subtle games; fair virtues all,
	To which the Grecians are most prompt and pregnant:
	But I can tell that in each grace of these
	There lurks a still and dumb-discoursive devil	95
	That tempts most cunningly: but be not tempted.
CRESSIDA	Do you think I will?
TROILUS	No.
	But something may be done that we will not:
	And sometimes we are devils to ourselves,	100
	When we will tempt the frailty of our powers,
	Presuming on their changeful potency.
AENEAS	Within
TROILUS	Come, kiss; and let us part.
PARIS	Within
TROILUS	Good brother, come you hither;
	And bring AEneas and the Grecian with you.	105
CRESSIDA	My lord, will you be true?
TROILUS	Who, I? alas, it is my vice, my fault:
	Whiles others fish with craft for great opinion,
	I with great truth catch mere simplicity;
	Whilst some with cunning gild their copper crowns,	110
	With truth and plainness I do wear mine bare.
	Fear not my truth: the moral of my wit
	Is 'plain and true;' there's all the reach of it.
	Enter AENEAS, PARIS, ANTENOR, DEIPHOBUS,and DIOMEDES
	Welcome, Sir Diomed! here is the lady
	Which for Antenor we deliver you:	115
	At the port, lord, I'll give her to thy hand,
	And by the way possess thee what she is.
	Entreat her fair; and, by my soul, fair Greek,
	If e'er thou stand at mercy of my sword,
	Name Cressida and thy life shall be as safe	120
	As Priam is in Ilion.
DIOMEDES	Fair Lady Cressid,
	So please you, save the thanks this prince expects:
	The lustre in your eye, heaven in your cheek,
	Pleads your fair usage; and to Diomed	125
	You shall be mistress, and command him wholly.
TROILUS	Grecian, thou dost not use me courteously,
	To shame the zeal of my petition to thee
	In praising her: I tell thee, lord of Greece,
	She is as far high-soaring o'er thy praises	130
	As thou unworthy to be call'd her servant.
	I charge thee use her well, even for my charge;
	For, by the dreadful Pluto, if thou dost not,
	Though the great bulk Achilles be thy guard,
	I'll cut thy throat.	135
DIOMEDES	O, be not moved, Prince Troilus:
	Let me be privileged by my place and message,
	To be a speaker free; when I am hence
	I'll answer to my lust: and know you, lord,
	I'll nothing do on charge: to her own worth	140
	She shall be prized; but that you say 'be't so,'
	I'll speak it in my spirit and honour, 'no.'
TROILUS	Come, to the port. I'll tell thee, Diomed,
	This brave shall oft make thee to hide thy head.
	Lady, give me your hand, and, as we walk,	145
	To our own selves bend we our needful talk.
	Exeunt TROILUS, CRESSIDA, and DIOMEDES
	Trumpet within
PARIS	Hark! Hector's trumpet.
AENEAS	How have we spent this morning!
	The prince must think me tardy and remiss,
	That sore to ride before him to the field.	150
PARIS	'Tis Troilus' fault: come, come, to field with him.
DEIPHOBUS	Let us make ready straight.
AENEAS	Yea, with a bridegroom's fresh alacrity,
	Let us address to tend on Hector's heels:
	The glory of our Troy doth this day lie	155
	On his fair worth and single chivalry.
	Exeunt