COKES. Thou art in the right; I do not know myself. LEATH. No, I have entreated master Littlewit to take a little pains to reduce it to a more familiar strain for our people. COKES. How, I pray thee, good master Littlewit? LIT. It pleases him to make a matter of it, sir; but there is no such matter, I assure you: I have only made it a little easy, and modern for the times, sir, that's all. As for the Hellespont, I imagine our Thames here; and then Leander I make a dyer's son about Puddle-wharf: and Hero a wench o' the Bank-side, who going over one morning to Old Fish-street, Leander spies her land at Trig-stairs, and falls in love with her. Now do I introduce Cupid, having metamorphosed himself into a drawer, and he strikes Hero in love with a pint of sherry; and other pretty passages there are of the friendship, that will delight you, sir, and please you of judgment. COKES. I'll be sworn they shall: I am in love with the actors already, and I'll be allied to them presently.--They respect gentlemen, these fellows:--Hero shall be my fairing: but which of my fairings?--let me see--i'faith, my fiddle; and Leander my fiddlestick: then Damon my drum, and Pythias my pipe, and the ghost of Dionysius my hobby-horse. All fitted. _Enter WINWIFE and GRACE._ WINW. Look, yonder's your Cokes gotten in among his play-fellows; I thought we could not miss him at such a spectacle. GRACE. Let him alone, he is so busy he will never spy us. LEATH. Nay, good sir! [_To Cokes, who is handling the puppets._ COKES. I warrant thee I will not hurt her, fellow; what, dost thou think me uncivil? I pray thee be not jealous; I am toward a wife. LIT. Well, good master Lantern, make ready to begin that I may fetch my wife; and look you be perfect, you undo me else, in my reputation. LEATH. I warrant you, sir, do not you breed too great an expectation of it among your friends; that's the hurter of these things. LIT. No, no, no. [_Exit._ COKES. I'll stay here and see: pray thee let me see. WINW. How diligent and troublesome he is! GRACE. The place becomes him, methinks. OVER. My ward, mistress Grace, in the company of a stranger! I doubt I shall be compell'd to discover myself before my time. [_Aside._ _Enter KNOCKEM, EDGWORTH, and MRS. LITTLEWIT, followed by WHIT supporting MRS. OVERDO, masked._ FILCH. Two-pence apiece, gentlemen, an excellent motion. KNOCK. Shall we have fine fire-works, and good vapours? SHARK. Yes, captain, and water-works too. WHIT. I pree dee take care o' dy shmall lady there, Edgworth; I will look to dish tall lady myself. LEATH. Welcome, gentlemen, welcome, gentlemen. WHIT. Predee mashter o' the monshtersh, help a very sick lady here to a chair to shit in. LEATH. Presently, sir. [_A chair is brought in for Mrs. Overdo._ WHIT. Good fait now, Ursula's ale and acqua-vitæ ish to blame for't; shit down, shweet-heart, shit down and sleep a little. EDG. [_to Mrs. Littlewit._] Madam, you are very welcome hither.