Jup. Thou shalt have all the treasury of heaven. Phad. Yes, when you are Jupiter, to dispose of it. Jup. [Aside.] I had forgot, and shewed myself a god: This love can make a fool of Jupiter.

Phæd. You have forgot some part of the enemies' spoil, I warrant you. I see a little trifling diamond upon your finger; and I am proud enough to think it would become mine too.

Jup. Here take it.

[Taking a Ring off his Finger, and giving it.

This is a very woman;

Her sex is avarice, and she, in one,

Is all her sex.

Phæd. Ay, ay, 'tis no matter what you say you say of us. What, would you have your money out of the treasury, without paying the officers their fees? Go, get you together, you naughty couple, till you are both weary of worrying one another; and then tomorrow morning I shall have another fee for parting you.

[PHEDRA goes out before ALCMENA with a light. Jup. Why now, I am indeed the lord of all; For what's to be a god, but to enjoy?

Let human kind their sovereign's leisure wait;
Love is, this night, my great affair of state:
Let this one night of providence be void;
All Jove, for once, is on himself employ❜d.
Let unregarded altars smoke in vain;
And let my subjects praise me, or complain:
Yet if, betwixt my intervals of bliss,
Some amorous youth his orisons address,
His prayer is in a happy hour preferred;

And when Jove loves, a lover shall be heard. [Exit.

༤.

ACT II.

SCENE I.—A Night Scene of a Palace.

SOSIA, with a Dark-Lanthorn; MERCURY, in SOSIA'S shape, with a Dark-Lanthorn also.

Sos. Was not the devil in my master, to send me out this dreadful dark night, to bring the news of his victory to my lady? and was not I possessed with ten devils, for going on his errand, without a convoy for the safeguard of my person? Lord, how am I melted into sweat with fear! I am diminished of my natural weight, above two stone: I shall not bring half myself home again, to my poor wife and family; I have been in an ague fit, ever since shut of evening; what with the fright of trees by the highway, which looked maliciously, like thieves, by moonshine; and what with bulrushes by the river-side, that shaked like spears and lances at me. Well, the greatest plague of a serving-man, is to be hired to some great lord! They care not what drudgery they put upon us, while they lie lolling at their ease a-bed, and stretch their lazy limbs, in expectation of the whore which we are fetching for them.

Merc. [Aside.] He is but a poor mortal, that suffers this; but I, who am a god, am degraded to a foot-pimp; a waiter without doors! a very civil employment for a deity!

Sos. The better sort of them will say, "Upon my honour," at every word; yet ask them for our wages, and they plead the privilege of their honour, and will not pay us; nor let us take our privilege of the law upon them. These are a very hopeful sort of patriots, to stand up, as they do, for

liberty and property of the subject: There's conscience for you!

Merc. [Aside.] This fellow has something of the republican spirit in him.

Sos. [Looking about him] Stay; this, methinks, should be our house; and I should thank the gods now for bringing me safe home: but, I think, I had as good let my devotions alone, till I have got the reward for my good news, and then thank them once for all; for, if I praise them before I am safe within doors, some damned mastiff dog may come out and worry me; and then my thanks are thrown away upon them.

Merc. [Aside.] Thou art a wicked rogue, and wilt have thy bargain before-hand; therefore thou get'st not into the house this night; and thank me accordingly as I use thee.

Sos. Now am I to give my lady an account of my lord's victory; 'tis good to exercise my parts beforehand, and file my tongue into eloquent expres sions, to tickle her ladyship's imagination.

Merc. [Aside.] Good! and here's the god of eloquence to judge of thy oration.

Sos. [Setting down his Lanthorn.] This lanthorn, for once, shall be my lady; because she is the lamp of all beauty and perfection.

Merc. [Aside.] No, rogue! 'tis thy lord is the lanthorn by this time, or Jupiter is turned fumbler.

Sos. Then thus I make my addresses to her :[Bows.] Madam, my lord has chosen me out, as the most faithful, though the most unworthy, of his followers, to bring your ladyship this following account of our glorious expedition. Then she,-O my poor Sosia, [In a shrill tone.] how am I overjoyed to see thee! She can say no less.-Madam, you do me too much honour, and the world will envy me this glory:-Well answered on my side.

And how does my lord Amphitryon ?-Madam, he always does like a man of courage, when he is called by honour.-There I think I nicked it.-But when will he return?-As soon as possibly he can; but not so soon as his impatient heart could wish him with your ladyship.

Merc. [Aside.] When Thebes is an university, thou deservest to be their orator.

Sos. But what does he do, and what does he say? Pr'ythee tell me something more of him. He always says less than he does, madam; and his enemies have found it to their cost.-Where the devil did I learn these elegancies and gallantries!

Merc. So, he has all the natural endowments of a fop, and only wants the education.

Sos. [Staring up to the sky.] What, is the devil in the night! She's as long as two nights. The seven stars are just where they were seven hours ago! high day-high night, I mean, by my favour. What, has Phoebus been playing the good fellow, and overslept himself, that he forgets his duty to us mortals!

Merc. How familiarly the rascal treats us gods! but I shall make him alter his, tone immediately. [MERCURY comes nearer, and stands just before him.

Sos. [Seeing him, and starting back, aside.] How now? what, do my eyes dazzle, or is my dark lanthorn false to me! is not that a giant before our door? or a ghost of somebody slain in the late battle? If he be, 'tis unconscionably done, to fright an honest man thus, who never drew weapon wrathfully in all my life. Whatever wight he be, I am devilishly afraid, that's certain; but, 'tis discretion

to keep my own counsel; I'll sing, that I may seem valiant.

[SOSIA sings; and, as MERCURY speaks, by little and little drops his voice.

Merc. What saucy companion is this, that deafens us with his hoarse voice? What midnight ballad-singer have we here? I shall teach the villain to leave off catterwauling.

Sos. I would I had courage, for his sake, that I might teach him to call my singing catterwauling! an illiterate rogue! an enemy to the muses, and to

music.

Merc. There is an ill savour that offends my nostrils, and it wafteth this way.

Sos. He has smelt me out; my fear has betrayed me into this savour. I am a dead man: the bloody villain is at his fee, fa, fum, already.

Merc. Stand, who goes there?

Sos. A friend.

Merc. What friend?

Sos. Why, a friend to all the world, that will give me leave to live peaceably.

Merc. I defy peace and all its works; my arms are out of exercise, they have mauled nobody these three days I long for an honourable occasion to pound a man, and lay him asleep at the first buffet.

Sos. [Aside.] That would almost do me a kindness; for I have been kept waking, without tipping one wink of sleep, these three nights.

Merc. Of what quality are you, fellow?

Sos. Why, I am a man, fellow.-Courage, So

sia!

Merc. What kind of man?

Sos. Why, a two-legged man; what man should I be? [Aside.] I must bear up to him, he may prove as arrant a milksop as myself.