Part 2 / Act 5 — ACT V. SCENE I.
Reading edition
A Street.
Enter on one side Hippolito, on the other Lodovico, Astolfo, Carolo, Beraldo, and Fontinell.
Lod. Yonder’s the lord Hippolito; by any means leave him and me together; now will I turn him to a madman.
Ast. Car., &c. } Save you, my lord.
[Exeunt all except Hippolito and Lodovico.
Lod. I ha’ strange news to tell you.
Hip. What are they?
Lod. Your mare’s i’ th’ pound.
Hip. How’s this?
Lod. Your nightingale is in a lime-bush.
Hip. Ha!
Lod. Your puritanical Honest Whore sits in a blue gown.[419]
221Hip. Blue gown?
Lod. She’ll chalk out your way to her now; she beats chalk.
Hip. Where? who dares——
Lod. Do you know the brick-house of castigation, by the river-side that runs by Milan? the school where they pronounce no letter well but O?
Hip. I know it not.
Lod. Any man that has borne office of constable, or any woman[420] that has fallen from a horse-load to a cart-load, or like an old hen that has had none but rotten eggs in her nest, can direct you to her: there you shall see your punk amongst her back-friends,
There you may have her at your will,
For there she beats chalk, or grinds in the mill,[421]
With a whip, deedle, deedle, deedle, deedle.
Ah, little monkey!
Hip. What rogue durst serve that warrant, knowing I lov’d her?
Lod. Some worshipful rascal, I lay my life.
Hip. I’ll beat the lodgings down about their ears
That are her keepers.
Lod. So you may bring an old house over her head.
222Hip. I’ll to her,
I’ll to her, stood arm’d fiends to guard the doors!
[Exit.
Lod. O me, what monsters are men made by whores!
If this false fire do kindle him, there’s one faggot
More to the bonfire. Now to my Bridewell-birds;
What song will they sing? [Exit.