Page:  of 594
 

Take heed, dear brother, of a stranger fortune
Than e'er you felt yet; Fortune my foe is a friend to it.

Arn. 'Tis true, I love, dearly and truly love,

A noble, virtuous, and most beauteous maid; 15
And am beloved again.

Rut. That's too much, o' conscience:

To love all these, would run me out o' my wits.

Arn. Prithee, give ear: I am to marry her.

Rut. Despatch it, then, and I'll go call the piper.

Arn. But, oh, the wicked custom of this country! 20

The barbarous, most inhuman, damned custom!

Rut. 'Tis true, to marry is [as damn'd] a custom

[As any] in the world; for, look you, brother, Would any man stand plucking for the ace of hearts,
With one pack of cards, all days on's life ?

Arn. You do not 25

Or else you purpose not to, understand me. Rut. Proceed; I will give ear.

Arn. They have a custom

In this most beastly country---out upon't!

Rut. Let's hear it first.

Arn. That when a maid is contracted,

And ready for the tie o' the church, the governor, 30
He that commands in chief, must have her maidenhead, Or ransom it for money, at his pleasure.

Rut. How might a man achieve that place?--a rare
custom!

12 a stranger fortune] "cuckoldom" ( Theobald).

13 Fortune my foe] the opening words of a song directed to be sung by
Venturewell in The Knight of the Burning Pestle, V. iii. Dyce found the
song in a collection of Ballads, etc. (Br. Mus. 643 m.), under the title "A sweet
Sonnet, wherein the Lover exclaimeth against Fortune for the loss of his Ladies
Favour . . . The Tune is, Fortune, my Foe." The first of its 22 stanzas
was quoted by Malone from The Maydes Metamorphosis, 1600, sig. C. 3, and
runs thus :--

"Fortune, my foe, why dost thou frown on me ?
And will thy favours never better be ?
Wilt thou, I say, for ever breed my pain ?
And wilt thou not restore my joys again ?"

Mr. Bullen adds here that it was known as the "hanging tune," because the
condemned prisoners sung it on their way to Tyburn.

16 o' conscience] F1 a conscience.

22 is [as damn'd] . . . world] Adopting Dyce's emendation, which satisfies
sense better, and disturbs the text less, than Theobald's--

"is the most inhuman Damn'd custom in the world."

-486-

Questia, a part of Gale, Cengage Learning. www.questia.com

Publication Information: Book Title: The Maid's Tragedy; Philaster; A King and No King; The Scornful Lady; The Custom of the Country. Contributors: Francis Beaumont - author, John Fletcher - author. Publisher: George Bell and Sons & A. H. Bullen. Place of Publication: London. Publication Year: 1904. Page Number: 486.
    
This feature allows you to create and manage separate folders for your different research projects. To view markups for a different project, make that project your current project.
This feature allows you to save a link to the publication you are reading or view all the publications you have put on your bookshelf.
This feature allows you to save a link to the page you are reading, which you can later return to from Projects.
This feature allows you to highlight words or phrases on the publication page you are reading.
This feature allows you to save a note you write on the publication page you are reading.
This feature allows you to create a citation to the page you are reading that you can paste into your paper. Highlight a passage to include that passage as a quotation.
This feature allows you to save a reference to a publication you are reading for your bibliography or generate a bibliography you can paste into your paper.
This feature allows you to print the page you are reading, including your notes or highlights (IE users must have "print background colors and image" setting selected.)
This feature allows you to look up words in encyclopedia.
  About Questia Tools
Close Window  
Questia's powerful research tools allow you to highlight, take notes, bookmark and even create instant citations and bibliographies. To use these features and save hours of work, you must create a Questia account.
Need a Questia account?
Sign up for a FREE trial now. Save time, stress and hassle, and get better grades with trusted, online research.

» Click here for our free trial

Already have a Questia account? Login now!
Error
Working...
Printing Preferences
Format for black and white printer: On Off
Print highlights: On Off
Print notes: On Off
Choose one of the options for printing:
Print this page (No Charge)
Print pages to