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Th'infected bulke of ENVIE can afford:
For I am riffe here with a couetous hope,
To blast your pleasures, and destroy your sports,
With wreftings, comments, applications,
[276] Spie-like fuggeftions, priuie whisperings,
And thousand fuch promooting fleights as these.
Marke, how I will begin: The Scene is, ha!
ROME? ROME? and ROME? Cracke ey-strings, and
your balles

Drop into earth; let me be euer blind.

I am preuented; all my hopes are croft,

Checkt, and abated; fie, a freezing sweate

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Flowes forth at all my pores, my entrailes burne:

What should I doe? ROME? ROME? O my vext foule

How might I force this to the present state?

Are there no players here? no poet-apes,

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That come with bafiliskes eyes, whose forked tongues

Are steept in venome, as their hearts in gall?

Eyther of these would helpe me; they could wrest,

Peruert, and poyfon all they heare, or fee,

With fenfeleffe gloffes, and allufions.

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Now if you be good deuils, flye me not.

You know what deare, and ample faculties

I haue indow'd you with: Ile lend you more.

Here, take my fnakes among you, come, and eate,

And while the squeez'd juice flowes in your blacke

jawes,

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Helpe me to damne the Authour. Spit it foorth

Vpon his lines, and fhew your rustie teeth

At euerie word, or accent: or else choose
Out of my longest vipers, to sticke downe

In your deep throats; and let the heads come forth
At your ranke mouthes; that he may see you arm'd
With triple malice, to hiffe, fting, and teare
His worke, and him; to forge, and then declame,

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Traduce, corrupt, apply, enforme, suggest:

O, these are gifts wherein your foules are blest.
What? doe you hide your felues? will none appeare?
None anfwere? what, doth this calme troupe affright
you?

Nay, then I doe despaire: downe, finke againe.

This trauaile is all loft with my dead hopes.

If in fuch bosomes, spight haue left to dwell,

Enuie is not on earth, nor scarse in hell.

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The third founding.

PROLOGVE.

Tay, Monster, ere thou finke, thus on thy head

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Set we our bolder foot; with which we tread
Thy malice into earth: So fpight should die,
[277] Defpis'd and fcorn'd by noble industrie.
If any mufe why I falute the stage,

An armed Prologue; know, 't is a dangerous age:
Wherein, who writes, had need prefent his Scenes
Fortie fold-proofe against the coniuring meanes
Of base detractors, and illiterate apes,
That fill vp roomes in faire and formall shapes.
'Gainst these, haue we put on this forc't defence:
Whereof the allegorie and hid fence
Is, that a well erected confidence

Can fright their pride, and laugh their folly hence.
Here now, put case our Authour should, once more,
Sweare that his play were good; he doth implore,
You would not argue him of arrogance:
How ere that common spawne of ignorance,

54 enforce 1640, 1692, 1716, W
The... founding.] om. Q

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61 Descends' slowly. G, N PROLOGVE.] PROLOGVSQ As

she disappears, enter Prologue hastily, in armour. G Enter PROLOGUE hastily. N

Our frie of writers, may beЛlime his fame,

And giue his action that adulterate name.
Such ful-blowne vanitie he more doth lothe,
Then base deiection: There's a meane 'twixt both.
Which with a conftant firmeneffe he pursues,

As one, that knowes the strength of his owne mufe.
And this he hopes all free foules will allow,
Others, that take it with a rugged brow,
Their moods he rather pitties, then enuies:
His mind it is aboue their iniuries.

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Hen, when this bodie falls in funerall fire,

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My name shall liue, and my best part afpire.
It shall goe fo.

Lvsc. Young master, master OVID, doe you heare? gods a mee! away with your fongs, and fonnets; and on with your gowne and cappe, quickly: here, here, your father will be a man of this roome presently. Come, nay, nay, nay, nay, be briefe. These verses too, a poyson on 'hem, I cannot abide 'hem, they make mee readie to caft, by the bankes of helicon. Nay looke, what a rafcally vntoward thing this poetrie is; I could teare 'hem now.

OVID. Giue me, how neere's my father?

Lvsc. Hart a'man: get a law-booke in your hand,

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I will not anfwere you elfe. Why fo: now there's 15

ACTVS PRIMVS. SCENA PRIMA. Q

study. N

Act... Lvscvs.]

Scene draws, and discovers OVID in his study. G OVID discovered in his 1 Ovid. 1716+ 3 Enter LUSCUS with a gown and cap. G Enter Luscus. N 'hem] 'em 'em 1692, 1716, W his cap and gown.] G

5 Gods a'me N (regularly)

'em them G

9 'hem

15 elfe] [Ovid puts on

some formalitie in you. By love, and three or foure of the gods more, I am right of mine olde mafters humour for that; this villanous poetrie will vndoe you, by the welkin.

[278] OVID. What, haft thou buskins on, Lvscvs, that thou swear'st so tragically, and high?

Lvsc. No, but I haue bootes on, fir, and fo ha's your father too by this time: for he call'd for 'hem, ere I came from the lodging.

OVID. Why? was he no readier?

Lvsc. O no; and there was the madde skeldring captaine, with the veluet armes, readie to lay hold on him as hee comes downe: he that preffes euerie man he meets, with an oath, to lend him money, and cries; (Thou must doo't, old boy, as thou art a man, a man of worship.)

OVID. Who? PANTILIVS TVCCA?

Lvsc. I, hee: and I met little mafter Lvpvs, the Tribune, going thither too.

OVID. Nay, and he be vnder their arreft, I may (with fafetie inough) reade ouer my elegie, before he

come.

Lvsc. Gods a mee! What'll you doe? why, young master, you are not castalian mad, lunatike, frantike, desperate? ha?

OVID. What aileft thou, Lvscvs?

Lvsc. God be with you, fir, I'le leaue you to your poeticall fancies, and furies. I'le not be guiltie, I. OVID. Be not, good ignorance: I'm glad th'art

gone:

For thus alone, our eare shall better judge

The hastie errours of our morning muse.

30-1 () om., words italicized, Q larly) an G, N, (uniformly) Moning 1692

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35 and] an' 1716, W (regu43 [Exit. G, N 46 morning]

E

Ouid. Lib. 1. Amo. Ele. 15.

Nuie, why twit' ft thou me, my time's fpent ill?

And call' ft my verfe, fruits of an idle quill?
Or that (vnlike the line from whence I fprung)

Wars duftie honours I purfue not young?

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Or that I ftudie not the tedious lawes;

And prostitute my voyce in euerie caufe?

Thy fcope is mortall; mine eternall fame:

Which through the world fhall euer chaunt my name.
HOMER will liue, whil'ft TENEDOS ftands, and IDE;

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Or, to the fea, fleet SIMOIS doth flide:

And fo fhall HESIOD too, while vines doe beare,
Or crooked fickles crop the ripened eare.
CALLIMACHVS, though in inuention lowe,
Shall ftill be fung: fince he in art doth flowe.
No loffe fhall come to SOPHOCLES proude vaine.
With funne, and moone, ARATVS shall remaine.
Whil'ft flaues be falfe, fathers hard, and bawdes be
whorish,

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Whil'ft harlots flatter, shall MENANDER flourish.
ENNIVS, though rude, and AccIVS high-reard ftraine,
A fresh applaufe in eurie age shall gaine.

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Of VARRO's name, what eare shall not be told?
Of IASONS ARGO? and the fleece of gold?
[279] Then shall LVCRETIVS loftie numbers die,
When earth, and feas in fire and flames shall frie,
TYTIRVS, Tillage, ÆNEE fhall be read,

Whil'ft ROME of all the conquer'd world is head.
Till CVPIDS fires be out, and his bowe broken,
Thy verfes (neate TIBVLLVS) shall be fpoken.
Our GALLVS shall be knowne from east to west:
So fhall LYCORIS, whom he now loues beft.
The fuffering plough-share, or the flint may weare:
But heauenly poefie no death can feare.

Kings fhall give place to it, and kingly showes,

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