| [Enter MISTRESS PAGE, MISTRESS QUICKLY, and WILLIAM PAGE] |
|
| MISTRESS PAGE | Is he at Master Ford's already, think'st thou? |
| MISTRESS QUICKLY | Sure he is by this, or will be presently: but, truly, he is very courageous mad about his throwing into the water. Mistress Ford desires you to come suddenly. |
| MISTRESS PAGE | I'll be with her by and by; I'll but bring my young man here to school. Look, where his master comes; 'tis a playing-day, I see. |
| [Enter SIR HUGH EVANS] | |
| How now, Sir Hugh! no school to-day? | |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | No; Master Slender is let the boys leave to play. |
| MISTRESS QUICKLY | Blessing of his heart! |
| MISTRESS PAGE | Sir Hugh, my husband says my son profits nothing in the world at his book. I pray you, ask him some questions in his accidence. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | Come hither, William; hold up your head; come. |
| MISTRESS PAGE | Come on, sirrah; hold up your head; answer your master, be not afraid. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | William, how many numbers is in nouns? |
| WILLIAM PAGE | Two. |
| MISTRESS QUICKLY | Truly, I thought there had been one number more, because they say, ''Od's nouns.' |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | Peace your tattlings! What is 'fair,' William? |
| WILLIAM PAGE | Pulcher. |
| MISTRESS QUICKLY | Polecats! there are fairer things than polecats, sure. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | You are a very simplicity 'oman: I pray you peace. What is 'lapis,' William? |
| WILLIAM PAGE | A stone. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | And what is 'a stone,' William? |
| WILLIAM PAGE | A pebble. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | No, it is 'lapis:' I pray you, remember in your prain. |
| WILLIAM PAGE | Lapis. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | That is a good William. What is he, William, that does lend articles? |
| WILLIAM PAGE | Articles are borrowed of the pronoun, and be thus declined, Singulariter, nominativo, hic, haec, hoc. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | Nominativo, hig, hag, hog; pray you, mark: genitivo, hujus. Well, what is your accusative case? |
| WILLIAM PAGE | Accusativo, hinc. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | I pray you, have your remembrance, child, accusative, hung, hang, hog. |
| MISTRESS QUICKLY | 'Hang-hog' is Latin for bacon, I warrant you. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | Leave your prabbles, 'oman. What is the focative case, William? |
| WILLIAM PAGE | O,--vocativo, O. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | Remember, William; focative is caret. |
| MISTRESS QUICKLY | And that's a good root. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | 'Oman, forbear. |
| MISTRESS PAGE | Peace! |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | What is your genitive case plural, William? |
| WILLIAM PAGE | Genitive case! |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | Ay. |
| WILLIAM PAGE | Genitive,--horum, harum, horum. |
| MISTRESS QUICKLY | Vengeance of Jenny's case! fie on her! never name her, child, if she be a whore. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | For shame, 'oman. |
| MISTRESS QUICKLY | You do ill to teach the child such words: he teaches him to hick and to hack, which they'll do fast enough of themselves, and to call 'horum:' fie upon you! |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | 'Oman, art thou lunatics? hast thou no understandings for thy cases and the numbers of the genders? Thou art as foolish Christian creatures as I would desires. |
| MISTRESS PAGE | Prithee, hold thy peace. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | Show me now, William, some declensions of your pronouns. |
| WILLIAM PAGE | Forsooth, I have forgot. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | It is qui, quae, quod: if you forget your 'quies,' your 'quaes,' and your 'quods,' you must be preeches. Go your ways, and play; go. |
| MISTRESS PAGE | He is a better scholar than I thought he was. |
| SIR HUGH EVANS | He is a good sprag memory. Farewell, Mistress Page. |
| MISTRESS PAGE | Adieu, good Sir Hugh. |
| [Exit SIR HUGH EVANS] | |
| Get you home, boy. Come, we stay too long. | |
| [Exeunt] |