Alls Well That Ends Well | Page 9

honour be bought up, and no
sword worn
But one to dance with! By heaven, I'll steal away.
FIRST LORD.
There's honour in the theft.
PAROLLES.
Commit it, count.
SECOND LORD.
I am your accessary; and so farewell.
BERTRAM.
I grow to you, and our parting is a tortured body.
FIRST LORD.
Farewell, captain.
SECOND LORD.
Sweet Monsieur Parolles!
PAROLLES.
Noble heroes, my sword and yours are kin. Good
sparks and
lustrous, a word, good metals.--You shall find in the
regiment of the Spinii one Captain Spurio, with his cicatrice, an
emblem of war, here on his sinister cheek; it was this very sword

entrenched it: say to him I live; and observe his reports for me.
FIRST LORD.
We shall, noble captain.

PAROLLES.
Mars dote on you for his novices!
[Exeunt LORDS.]
What will ye do?
BERTRAM.
Stay; the king--
PAROLLES.
Use a more spacious ceremony to the noble lords; you
have
restrained yourself within the list of too cold an adieu: be more
expressive to them; for they wear themselves in the cap of the time;
there do muster true gait; eat, speak, and move, under the influence of
the most received star; and though the devil lead the measure, such are
to be followed: after them, and take a more dilated farewell.
BERTRAM.
And I will do so.
PAROLLES.
Worthy fellows; and like to prove most sinewy
sword-men.
[Exeunt BERTRAM and PAROLLES.]
[Enter LAFEU.]
LAFEU.
Pardon, my lord [kneeling], for me and for my tidings.
KING.
I'll fee thee to stand up.
LAFEU.
Then here's a man stands that has bought his pardon.
I
would you had kneel'd, my lord, to ask me mercy;
And that at my
bidding you could so stand up.
KING.
I would I had; so I had broke thy pate,
And ask'd thee
mercy for't.
LAFEU.
Good faith, across;
But, my good lord, 'tis thus: will you
be cured
Of your infirmity?

KING.
No.
LAFEU.
O, will you eat
No grapes, my royal fox? yes, but you will

My noble grapes, and if my royal fox
Could reach them: I have
seen a medicine
That's able to breathe life into a stone,
Quicken a
rock, and make you dance canary
With spritely fire and motion;
whose simple touch
Is powerful to araise King Pipin, nay,
To give
great Charlemain a pen in his hand
And write to her a love-line.
KING.
What 'her' is that?
LAFEU.
Why, doctor 'she': my lord, there's one arriv'd,
If you will
see her,--now, by my faith and honour,
If seriously I may convey my
thoughts
In this my light deliverance, I have spoke
With one that in
her sex, her years, profession,
Wisdom, and constancy, hath amaz'd
me more
Than I dare blame my weakness: will you see her,--
For
that is her demand,--and know her business?
That done, laugh well at
me.
KING.
Now, good Lafeu,
Bring in the admiration; that we with the

May spend our wonder too, or take off thine
By wondering how
thou took'st it.
LAFEU.
Nay, I'll fit you,
And not be all day neither.
[Exit LAFEU.]
KING.
Thus he his special nothing ever prologues.
[Re-enter LAFEU with HELENA.]
LAFEU.
Nay, come your ways.
KING.
This haste hath wings indeed.
LAFEU.
Nay, come your ways;
This is his majesty: say your mind

to him.
A traitor you do look like; but such traitors
His majesty
seldom fears: I am Cressid's uncle,
That dare leave two together: fare
you well.
[Exit.]
KING.
Now, fair one, does your business follow us?
HELENA.
Ay, my good lord. Gerard de Narbon was
My father; in
what he did profess, well found.
KING.
I knew him.
HELENA.
The rather will I spare my praises towards him.

Knowing him is enough. On his bed of death
Many receipts he gave
me; chiefly one,
Which, as the dearest issue of his practice,
And of
his old experience the only darling,
He bade me store up as a triple
eye,
Safer than mine own two, more dear: I have so:
And, hearing
your high majesty is touch'd
With that malignant cause wherein the
honour
Of my dear father's gift stands chief in power,
I come to
tender it, and my appliance,
With all bound humbleness.
KING.
We thank you, maiden:
But may not be so credulous of
cure,--
When our most learned doctors leave us, and
The
congregated college have concluded
That labouring art can never
ransom nature
From her inaidable estate,--I say we must not
So
stain our judgment, or corrupt our hope,
To prostitute our past-cure
malady
To empirics; or to dissever so
Our great self and our credit,
to esteem
A senseless help, when help past sense we deem.
HELENA.
My duty, then, shall pay me for my pains:
I will no
more enforce mine office on you;
Humbly entreating from your royal
thoughts
A modest one to bear me back again.
KING.
I cannot give thee less, to be call'd grateful.
Thou thought'st

to help me; and such thanks I give
As one near death to those that
wish him live:
But what at full I know, thou know'st no part;
I
knowing all my peril, thou no art.
HELENA.
What I can do can do no hurt to try,
Since you set up
your rest 'gainst remedy.
He that of greatest works is finisher
Oft
does them by the weakest minister:
So holy writ in babes hath
judgment shown,
When judges