Cit. Marry, I will have him——

Wife. [below.] Husband, husband!

Ralph. [below.] Peace, mistress.

Wife. [below.] Hold thy peace, Ralph; I know what I do, I warrant ye.—Husband, husband!

Cit. What sayest thou, cony?

Wife. [below.] Let him kill a lion with a pestle, husband! let him kill a lion with a pestle!

Cit. So he shall.—I’ll have him kill a lion with a pestle.

Wife. [below.] Husband! shall I come up, husband?

Cit. Ay, cony.—Ralph, help your mistress this way.—Pray, gentlemen, make her a little room.—I pray you, sir, lend me your hand to help up my wife: I thank you, sir.—So.

[Wife comes on the Stage.

Wife. By your leave, gentlemen all; I’m something troublesome: I’m a stranger here; I was ne’er at one of these plays, as they say, before; but I should have seen “Jane Shore” once; and my husband hath promised me, any time this twelvemonth, to carry me to “The Bold Beauchamps,” but in truth he did not. I pray you, bear with me.

Cit. Boy, let my wife and I have a couple of stools and then begin; and let the grocer do rare things.

[Stools are brought.

S. of Prol. But, sir, we have never a boy to play him: every one hath a part already.

Wife. Husband, husband, for God’s sake, let Ralph play him! beshrew me, if I do not think he will go beyond them all.

Cit. Well remembered, wife.—Come up, Ralph.—I’ll tell you, gentlemen; let them but lend him a suit of reparel and necessaries, and, by gad, if any of them all blow wind in the tail on him, I’ll be hanged.

[Ralph comes on the Stage.

Wife. I pray you, youth, let him have a suit of reparel!—I’ll be sworn, gentlemen, my husband tells you true: he will act you sometimes at our house, that all the neighbours cry out on him; he will fetch you up a couraging part so in the garret, that we are all as feared, I warrant you, that we quake again: we’ll fear our children with him; if they be never so unruly, do but cry, “Ralph comes, Ralph comes!” to them, and they’ll be as quiet as lambs.—Hold up thy head, Ralph; show the gentlemen what thou canst do; speak a huffing part; I warrant you, the gentlemen will accept of it.

Cit. Do, Ralph, do.

Ralph. “By Heaven, methinks, it were an easy leap To pluck bright honour from the pale-faced moon; Or dive into the bottom of the sea, Where never fathom-line touched any ground, And pluck up drowned honour from the lake of hell.”

Cit. How say you, gentlemen, is it not as I told you?

Wife. Nay, gentlemen, he hath played before, my husband says, Mucedorus, before the wardens of our company.