THE MARRIED BEAU: A COMEDY. BY JOHN
CROWNE, 1694.

Wife tempted: she pleads religion.

Lover. Our happy love may have a secret Church Under the Church, as Faith's was under Paul's, Where we may carry on our sweet devotion; And the Cathedral marriage keep its state, And all its decency and ceremonies.

THE CHALLENGE FOR BEAUTY: TRAGI COMEDY. BY T. HEYWOOD, 1636.

Appeal for Innocence against a false accusation.

Helena. Both have sworn:

And, Princes, as you hope to crown your heads
With that perpetual wreath which shall last ever,
Cast on a poor dejected innocent virgin
Your eyes of grace and pity. What sin is it,
Or who can be the patron to such evil?—
That a poor innocent maid, spotless in deed,
And pure in thought, both without spleen and gall,
That never injured creature, never had heart
To think of wrong, or ponder injury;
That such a one in her white innocence,
Striving to live peculiar in the compass
Of her own virtues; notwithstanding these,
Should be sought out by strangers, persecuted,
Made infamous ev'n there, where she was made
For imitation; hiss'd at in her country;
Abandon'd of her mother, kindred, friends;

Depraved in foreign climes, scorn'd every where,
And ev'n in princes' courts reputed vile :
O pity, pity this!

THYESTES: A TRAGEDY. BY JOHN CROWNE, 1681.

Atreus, having recovered his Wife, and Kingdom, from his brother Thyestes, who had usurped both, and sent him into banishment, describes his offending Queen.

Atreus (solus).

still she lives :

'Tis true, in heavy sorrow: so she ought,

If she offended as I fear she has.

Her hardships, though, she owes to her own choice.
I have often offer'd her my useless couch;

For what is it to me? I never sleep:

But for her bed she uses the hard floor.

My table is spread for her; I never eat :

And she'll take nothing but what feeds her grief.

Philisthenes, the son of Thyestes, at a stolen interview with Antigone, the daughter of Atreus, is surprised by the King's Spies; upon which misfortune Antigone swooning, is found by

Peneus.

ANTIGONE.

PENEUS, an ancient retainer to the Court of Mycena.

Peneus. Ha! what is she that sleeps in open air?
Indeed the place is far from any path,

But what conducts to melancholy thoughts;
But those are beaten roads about this Court.
Her habit calls her, Noble Grecian Maid;
But her sleep says, she is a stranger here.
All birds of night build in this Court, but Sleep:
And Sleep is here made wild with loud complaints,
And flies away from all. I wonder how

This maid has brought it to her lure so tame.

Antigone (waking from her swoon). Oh my Philis

thenes !

Peneus. She wakes to moan;

Aye, that's the proper language of this place!
Antigone. My dear, my poor Philisthenes!
I know 'tis so! oh horror! death! hell! oh-
Peneus. I know her now; 'tis fair Antigone,
The daughter and the darling of the King.
This is the lot of all this family*.

Beauteous Antigone, thou know'st me well;
I am old Peneus, one who threescore years
Has loved and serv'd thy wretched family.
Impart thy sorrows to me; I perhaps
In my wide circle of experience

May find some counsel that may do thee good.

Antigone. O good old man! how long have you been here?

Peneus. I came but now.

Antigone. O did you see this way

Poor

young Philisthenes? you know him well. Peneus. Thy uncle's son, Thyestes' eldest son

Antigone. The same, the same

Peneus. No; all the Gods forbid

I should meet him so near thy father's Court.
Antigone. O he was here one cursed minute past.
Peneus. What brought him hither?

Antigone. Love to wretched me.

Our warring fathers never ventured more
For bitter hate than we for innocent love.

Here but a minute past the dear youth lay,
Here in this brambly cave lay in my arms;

And now he's seized! O miserable me―(Tears her hair.)

The descendants of Tantalus.

Peneus. Why dost thou rend that beauteous orna

ment?

In what has it offended? hold thy hands.

Antigone. O father, go and plead for the poor youth; No one dares speak to the fierce King but you—

Peneus. And no one near speaks more in vain than I; He spurns me from his presence like a dog.

Antigone. Oh, then

Peneus. She faints, she swoons, I frighten'd her, Oh I spake indiscretely. Daughter, child, Antigone, I'll go, indeed I'll go.

Antigone. There is no help for me in heav'n or earth. Peneus. There is, there is; despair not, sorrowful maid, All will be well. I'm going to the King,

And will with pow'rful reasons bind his hands;

And something in me says I shall prevail.
But to whose care shall I leave thee the while?-
For oh! I dare not trust thee to thy grief.

Antigone. I'll be disposed of, father, as you please,
Till I receive the blest or dreadful doom.

Peneus. Then come, dear daughter, lean upon my arm, Which old and weak is stronger yet than thine; Thy youth hath known more sorrow than my age. I never hear of grief, but when I'm here ; But one day's diet here of sighs and tears Returns me elder home by many years.

Atreus, to entrap his brother Thyestes; who has lived a concealed life, lurking in woods, to elude his vengeance; sends Philisthenes and old Peneus to him with offers of reconciliation, and an invitation to Court, to be present at the nuptials of Antigone with Philisthenes.

THYESTES.

PHILISTHENES. PENEUS.

Thy. Welcome to my arms,

My hope, my comfort! Time has roll'd about

Several months since I have seen thy face,
And in its progress has done wond'rous things.

Phil. Strange things indeed to chase you to this sad Dismal abode; nay, and to age, I think :

I see that winter thrusting itself forth

Long, long before its time, in silver hairs.

Thy. My fault, my son; I would be great and high; Snow lies in summer on some mountain tops.

Ah, Son! I'm sorry for thy noble youth,
Thou hast so bad a father; I'm afraid,
Fortune will quarrel with thee for my sake.
Thou wilt derive unhappiness from me,
Like an hereditary ill disease.

Phil. Sir, I was born, when you were innocent;

And all the ill you have contracted since,

You have wrought out by painful penitence;
For healthy joy returns to us again;
Nay, a more vigorous joy than e'er we had.
Like one recover'd from a sad disease,
Nature for damage pays him double cost,
And gives him fairer flesh than e'er he had.

Thyestes is won from his retirement by the joint representations of Philisthenes and Peneus, of the apparent good faith, and returning kindness of his brother; and visits Mycena :— his confidence; his returning misgivings.

THYESTES. PHILISTHENES. PENEUS.

Thy. O wondrous pleasure to a banish'd man,

I feel my loved long look'd-for native soil!

And oh my weary eyes, that all the day

Had from some mountain travell'd toward this place,
Now rest themselves upon the royal towers

Of that great palace where I had my birth.