ISABELLA

These perhaps, See with judicial eyes unto that see joys You gain by enjoying us. But great? we looked for a superlative, And if there be a fit, and known degree, Above compare; to have been marked with that We would not have a thought conceived of But should be mixed with rapture, and what you Term joy, transported into ecstasy, But great? I shall, who would be weighed unto my worth, And yet in all my poise not lose a dram, Put you the proudest Lady in one scale, And me into another. This Beauty, Virtue, Birth, Shall unto mine own Centre sink my self, And lift her, unto nought save smoke and Air. Why even in that, In terming me but fair, fair Isabella? It is a Milkmaids title, every Swain Bestows it on his Mistress, never so mean, Your City damsel scorns the word, because It's common in the Country; and shall we Bred in the Courts rich glory, intertain't? What's great and fair? we would be termed divine. Such as would give us our full character, Must search for Epithets, and study phrase. Great Prince of Portugal, Observe in me thine happiness, thank not Heaven So much that thou Wertenberg born, nor born a Prince, But that thou injoy'st us: For that great blessing Give thy thanks. Behold I here expose me to all eyes, To universal censure. Lives a Lady Greater in Blood? if any that gainsay Spain shall maintain it by her potency; Search Italy and all these Climes beyond, Come by the Alps back, and view France throughout, Produce me the most excellent Germane Froae, Examine England, which some say breeds beauty's Beyond all these, and Prince; your Portugal To equal this; this? do I boast of those That a e no mine? say we ascribe our birth Only to Fortune, and to nature form, Count both these accidental, there's a third Virtue remains: and even in that we dare With any Princess of the World contest. Come, your free censures Lords. Of Atrogance us? As you are, Prince, And over hope to have the sweet fruition Of those pure gifts, that man so much disdains; Grant me one free demand. His banishment from Spain and Portugal, Never hereafter to be capable Of Honour, of Renown, place, or office, Till he can find, produce, and set before us, Our match in Face and bosom, birth we set by, But be she woman, and can balance us, In both, or either, he redeems his exile Without such, to return, forfeits his head, Deny this Prince, you banish us your bed. Why, as Justice. To have done less, should have disgraced more Then all your worth could merit. He's perhaps Traveled to Arabia Felix, and from thenc To bring the Phoenix hither. I remember, There lived a Spanish Princess of our name, And Isabella too, and not long since; Who from her Palace windows, steadfastly, Gazing upon the Sun, her heir took fire, Some Augurs held it as a prodigy, I rather think she was Latona's brood, And that Apollo courted her bright hair, Else envying, that her tresses put down his, He scorched them off in envy, not dare I From her derived, expose me to his beams, Least, as he burns the Phoenix in her nest Made of the sweetest aromatic wood; Either in love or envy, he agree To use the Like combustion upon me. Alas poor Lord: To see what thy bold rashness brings thee to That thou art forced to wander through the world, To find out a black Swan to rival us? Thou seekest a thing that is not: and thy rashness Hath justly forced thine exile. Art sure it's so? To his death: If he come empty handed. Blind, and dull, Hath plenty bred a surfett in you then? Or have you taken possession of that treasure, You know not how to valve to the worth, But though you cannot, we can rate our self: Perhaps, despair hath brought him back to offer His desperate life; Which if with submission, Repentance, and some endue acknowledgement, May in our grace find pardon; Go, admit him. Peace you; What Country? What place there? We have no tongue for thee— What name? Of what dissent or Parentage? That prater, Peace there. We may imagine one most beautiful; But how to rank with us? Perhaps she's fair, what Instance can you give, that she's of such prov worser virtue. It's a most costly Jewel, Worthy a Princess wearing. But where's this rare one? come produce her straight, To make her the courts wonder. Pardon? villain, and base Imposture, lived there such a creature, would not thy pride have brought her to full view? But this Illusion seconding the first, Doubles thy punishment; Hence with him to prison, More worthy of the block: Abuse us first, And then deride us after; Royal sir, If suffer me to swallow this disgrace, You underprise me doubly. Away with him. Shall we be still tormented? Into some loathsome dungeon hurry him, Unworthy the days comfort: bear this scorn? Centella and Pineda. I have a project for you, which if you effect, You shall endear me ever. You have herd The Country, and the place of her abided; Thither I'll furnish you: Spare for no cost, Our Treasure es open to you; get that Ring By any slight or craft: be it possible That gold will doo't, corrupt her; Use all means, All friends, devices, plots, and stratagems, To bri g some token of her falseness back: Further instructions you shall have with you; Meantime prepare for travel. Enough, you are ours: partly with this Carkane ? Not for a World: I have project too in that: Be rivaled by a petty English Dame? Knew I the large earth did my equal give, Rather then brook her sighed, Idem cease to live. As the men, Have crowned us with a wreathe, of rar r worth, Then can the united births of Spain and Portugal Maintain to us: they make us still supreme, And we by them find no Competitor, The token that confirms infallibly, That beauty stands corrupted. Forbear Centella, for to vex him more, It shall be in his hearing; one of you Release him from the torment of his Prison, To endure a greater here: And might Prince, Give me but leave, since he so proudly durst Deprave our worth to spite, nor all his grief, And triumph in his wilful misery. We have sent to prove your Mistress. We are put down; I feared if any climb Could yield rarity to equal ours, It would be found in England. Know you that? And great prince, Now boast your self above Brutus, Collatine. Or those most famous for their constant wives, And I my self unequaled and unpeered May on the earth a blazing Comet shine, Seeming amongst others terren sole divine. Our trusty friends and Subject's henceforth live In our highest grace, and trust: how we will right You that for zeal to us have injured been In our apparent justice shall be seen. Fair Petrocella, we commend your choice, For if renown both blazomd him aright. Spain it could scaree have bettered: we have stored Favours for you, and high respect for him, Which leisure shall make known: but to the Prisoner, That's now our present business: Seat you Lords, Pineda, you next us. Those small minutes You have to spend, are at your own desires, No tongue shall interrupt you. Who interupts our Justice? A rare aspect; had she a suiting virtue, Pineda, I should half specked my challenge, And willingly compound. against whom? And of that, Pineda, I am proud, infinite proved, I never was pleased with anies, fin till now; It makes me still unpeered. Pineda guilty; shall we bolster theft, And patronage dishonour. Hence from us, For till thou canst approve thine Innocence, And clear this black aspersion thrown on thee, We here abandon thee, to the averitie Of the Laws rigorous censure. They shall. We know you not, Give us some lively instance, you're the woman. O, till now, I never thought to be vanquished. Now I yield: And till now never; hence base sycophants, I shall abjure you ever, Flat king glasses, That gave me a false face, but in this Crystal, I now behold me truly, you are she By whom I'll henceforth dress me, and not wear No hurt, of which you are not president; Be ever mine: next her, you that have traveled To fetch me over this Mirror, which I'll casket, As my best jewel: I now find my self, That to my self, was till this day unknown, I have transgressed in that I sought to fleece So pure a Diamond. Who fitter to speak truth, then Truth's own tongue? Pray let me see't. Please you sir, a little To leave me to my private solitude: I shall not be long from you. Impudent slave— But we'll contain our spleen; but it's my grief To be excelled in both; to have failed in one, Had been the less vexation. Would, would, would: what thinks he great censorious carper now? We limit thee two days for thy repentance, The third's thy death. Take survey, Make strict inquiry, single men by men: For mine own partly, so much I grieve thy lose, And his base theft abhor, that were't the man Upon whose shoulder we did use to lean, Severity should judge him. We observe in you, A kind of inforct silence mixed with scorns, Your tongue hath been so backward to pronounce So definitive a sentence. Behold them: these are the witnesses Of my disgrace through Spain. Would; what of us? Hah, whom?