Shakespeare Portal

Act 4, Scene 1

The street.

  1. [Enter MISTRESS PAGE, MISTRESS QUICKLY, and WILLIAM.]
  2. Mistress Page
  3. 1508 Is he at Master Ford's already, think'st thou?
  4. Mistress Quickly
  5. 1509 Sure he is by this; or will be presently; but truly he is very
  6. 1510 courageous mad about his throwing into the water. Mistress Ford
  7. 1511 desires you to come suddenly.
  8. Mistress Page
  9. 1512 I'll be with her by and by; I'll but bring my young man here to
  10. 1513 school. Look where his master comes; 'tis a playing day, I see.
  11. [Enter SIR HUGH EVANS.]
  12. Mistress Page
  13. 1514 How now, Sir Hugh, no school to-day?
  14. Sir Hugh Evans
  15. 1515 No; Master Slender is let the boys leave to play.
  16. Mistress Quickly
  17. 1516 Blessing of his heart!
  18. Mistress Page
  19. 1517 Sir Hugh, my husband says my son profits nothing in the world at
  20. 1518 his book; I pray you ask him some questions in his accidence.
  21. Sir Hugh Evans
  22. 1519 Come hither, William; hold up your head; come.
  23. Mistress Page
  24. 1520 Come on, sirrah; hold up your head; answer your master; be not afraid.
  25. Sir Hugh Evans
  26. 1521 William, how many numbers is in nouns?
  27. William Page
  28. 1522 Two.
  29. Mistress Quickly
  30. 1523 Truly, I thought there had been one number more, because they say
  31. 1524 'Od's nouns.'
  32. Sir Hugh Evans
  33. 1525 Peace your tattlings! What is 'fair,' William?
  34. William Page
  35. 1526 Pulcher.
  36. Mistress Quickly
  37. 1527 Polecats! There are fairer things than polecats, sure.
  38. Sir Hugh Evans
  39. 1528 You are a very simplicity 'oman; I pray you, peace. What is
  40. 1529 'lapis,' William?
  41. William Page
  42. 1530 A stone.
  43. Sir Hugh Evans
  44. 1531 And what is 'a stone,' William?
  45. William Page
  46. 1532 A pebble.
  47. Sir Hugh Evans
  48. 1533 No, it is 'lapis'; I pray you remember in your prain.
  49. William Page
  50. 1534 Lapis.
  51. Sir Hugh Evans
  52. 1535 That is a good William. What is he, William, that does lend articles?
  53. William Page
  54. 1536 Articles are borrowed of the pronoun, and be thus declined:
  55. 1537 Singulariter, nominativo; hic, haec, hoc.
  56. Sir Hugh Evans
  57. 1538 Nominativo, hig, hag, hog; pray you, mark: genitivo, hujus. Well,
  58. 1539 what is your accusative case?
  59. William Page
  60. 1540 Accusativo, hinc.
  61. Sir Hugh Evans
  62. 1541 I pray you, have your remembrance, child. Accusativo, hung, hang, hog.
  63. Mistress Quickly
  64. 1542 'Hang-hog' is Latin for bacon, I warrant you.
  65. Sir Hugh Evans
  66. 1543 Leave your prabbles, 'oman. What is the focative case, William?
  67. William Page
  68. 1544 O vocativo, O.
  69. Sir Hugh Evans
  70. 1545 Remember, William: focative is caret.
  71. Mistress Quickly
  72. 1546 And that's a good root.
  73. Sir Hugh Evans
  74. 1547 'Oman, forbear.
  75. Mistress Page
  76. 1548 Peace.
  77. Sir Hugh Evans
  78. 1549 What is your genitive case plural, William?
  79. William Page
  80. 1550 Genitive case?
  81. Sir Hugh Evans
  82. 1551 Ay.
  83. William Page
  84. 1552 Genitive: horum, harum, horum.
  85. Mistress Quickly
  86. 1553 Vengeance of Jenny's case; fie on her! Never name her, child, if
  87. 1554 she be a whore.
  88. Sir Hugh Evans
  89. 1555 For shame, 'oman.
  90. Mistress Quickly
  91. 1556 You do ill to teach the child such words. He teaches him to hick
  92. 1557 and to hack, which they'll do fast enough of themselves; and to
  93. 1558 call 'horum;' fie upon you!
  94. Sir Hugh Evans
  95. 1559 'Oman, art thou lunatics? Hast thou no understandings for thy cases,
  96. 1560 and the numbers of the genders? Thou art as foolish Christian
  97. 1561 creatures as I would desires.
  98. Mistress Page
  99. 1562 Prithee, hold thy peace.
  100. Sir Hugh Evans
  101. 1563 Show me now, William, some declensions of your pronouns.
  102. William Page
  103. 1564 Forsooth, I have forgot.
  104. Sir Hugh Evans
  105. 1565 It is qui, quae, quod; if you forget your 'quis', your 'quaes',
  106. 1566 and your 'quods', you must be preeches. Go your ways and play; go.
  107. Mistress Page
  108. 1567 He is a better scholar than I thought he was.
  109. Sir Hugh Evans
  110. 1568 He is a good sprag memory. Farewell, Mistress Page.
  111. Mistress Page
  112. 1569 Adieu, good Sir Hugh.
  113. [Exit SIR HUGH.]
  114. Mistress Page
  115. 1570 Get you home, boy. Come, we stay too long.
  116. [Exeunt.]