網頁圖片
PDF
ePub 版

Brings her in triumph, with her portion down,
A toilette, dressing-box, and half-a crown.
Some marry first, and then they fall to scouring,
Which is refining marriage into whoring.
Our women batten well on their good nature,
All they can rap and rend for the dear creature ;
But while abroad so liberal the dolt is,

Poor spouse at home as ragged as a colt is.
Last, some there are who take their first degrees
Of lewdness in our middle galleries:

The doughty bullies enter bloody drunk,
Invade and grubble one another's punk:
They caterwaul, and make a dismal rout,

૩૦

Call sons of whores, and strike, but ne'er lug out:
Thus while for paltry punk they roar and stickle,
They make it bawdier than a Conventicle.

XVI.

55

63

64

PROLOGUE to the King and Queen, upon the union of the two companies in 1686.

SINCE Faction ebbs, and rogues grow out of fashion, Their penny scribes take care t' inform the nation How well men thrive in this or that plantation:

How Pennsylvania's air agrees with Quakers,
And Carolina's with Associators:

Both e'en too good for madmen and for traitors,

5

Truth is, our land with saints is so run o'er,
And ev'ry age produces such a store,

That now there's need of two New England's more.

What's this you'll say, to us and our vocation?
Only thus much that we have left our station,
And made this Theatre our new Plantation.

The factious natives never could agree,
But aiming, as they call'd it, to be free,
Those playhouse Whigs set up

for property.

Some say they no obedience paid of late,
But would new fears and jealousies create,
Till topsy-turvy they had turn'd the state.

10

15

Plain sense, without the talent of foretelling,
Might guess 'twould end in downright knocks and
For seldom comes there better of rebelling.[quelling;

19

When men will, needlessly, their freedom barter For lawless pow'r, sometimes they catch a Tartar ; There's a damn'd word that rhymes to this call'd Charter.

But since the victory with us remains,

You shall be call'd to twelve in all our gains,
If you'll not think us saucy for our pains.

25

Old men shall have good old plays to delight 'em, And you, fair ladies and gallants! that slight 'em, We'll treat with good new plays, if our new wits can write 'em.

We'll take no blund'ring verse, no fustian tumor;
No dribbling love from this or that perfumer;
No dull fat fool shamm'd on the stage for humour.

ვა

For, faith, some of 'em such vile stuff have made,
As none but fools or faries ever play'd;
But 'twas, as shopmen say, to force a trade.

35

We've giv'n you tragedies all sense defying,
And singing-men in woeful metre dying;
Thus 'tis when heavy lubbers will be flying.

All these disasters we will hope to weather;
We bring you none of our old lumber hither;
Whig poets and Whig sheriffs may hang together.

40

XVII.

PROLOGUE TO THE PRINCESS OF CLEVES. By Mr. N. LEE, 1689.

LADIES! (I hope there's none behind to hear)

I long to whisper something in your ear;

$

A secret which does much my mind perplex;
There's treason in the play against our sex;

A man that's false to love, that vows and cheats, 5
And kisses every living thing he meets;

A rogue in mode (I dare not speak too broad)
One that does something to the very bawd.

[ocr errors]

10

Out on him, traitor! for a filthy beast
Nay, and he's like the pack of all the rest :
None of 'em stick at mark; they all deceive;
Some Jew has chang'd the text, I half believe;
Their Adam cozen'd our poor grandame Eve.
To hide their faults, they rap their oaths and tear:
Now, tho' we lie, we're too well bred to swear. 15
So we compound for half the sin we owe,

But men are dipt for soul and body too:

And when found out excuse themselves, pox cant 'em, With Latin stuff, perjuria ridet amantûm.

I'm not book-learn'd, to know that word in vogue,
But I suspect 'tis Latin for a rogue.

I'm sure I never heard that screech-owl hollow'd
In my poor ears but separation follow'd.
How can such perjur'd villains e'er be saved?
Achithophel's not half so false to David.
With vows and soft expressions to allure,
They stand, like foreman of a shop, demure;
No sooner out of sight but they are gadding,
And for the next new face ride out a padding

21

25

Yet, by their favour, when they have been kissing,30 We can perceive the ready money missing.

Well; we may rail; but 'tis as good e'en wink; Something we find, and something they will sink. But since they're at renouncing, 'tis our parts

To trump their di❜monds as they trump our hearts. 35

XVIII.

PROLOGUE to THE WIDOW RANTER. By Mrs. BENN, 1690.

HEAV'N Save ye, Gallants! and this hopeful age,
You're welcome to the downfal of the stage:
The fools have labour'd long in their vocation,
And vice (the manufacture of the nation)

O'erstocks the Town so much, and thrives so well, s
That fops and knaves grow drugs, and will not sell.
In vain our wares on theatres are shown,

When each has a plantation of his own.

His cause ne'er fails, for whatsoe'er he spends, There's still God's plenty for himself and friends,10 Should men be rated by poetic rules,

Lord! what a poll would there be rais'd from fools!
Mean-time poor Wit prohibited must lie,

As if 'twere made some French commodity.
Fools you will have, and rais'd at vast expense,
And yet as soon as seen they give offence.

15

« 上一頁繼續 »