The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 3: Books for ChildrenLamb, Charles
General
The Works of Charles and Mary Lamb — Volume 3: Books for Children
Lamb, Charles
Children's poetry; Children's stories
that it was past recall, he was bidding farewel to his faithless
mistress, and the _young dissembler_, her husband, as he called Viola,
warning her never to come in his sight again, when (as it seemed to
them) a miracle appeared! for another Cesario entered, and addressed
Olivia as his wife. This new Cesario was Sebastian, the real husband
of Olivia; and when their wonder had a little ceased at seeing two
persons with the same face, the same voice, and the same habit, the
brother and sister began to question each other; for Viola could
scarce be persuaded that her brother was living, and Sebastian knew
not how to account for the sister he supposed drowned being found in
the habit of a young man. But Viola presently acknowledged that she
was indeed Viola and his sister, under that disguise.
When all the errors were cleared up which the extreme likeness between
this twin brother and sister had occasioned, they laughed at the lady
Olivia for the pleasant mistake she had made in falling in love with
a woman; and Olivia shewed no dislike to her exchange, when she found
she had wedded the brother instead of the sister.
The hopes of Orsino were for ever at an end by this marriage of
Olivia, and with his hopes, all his fruitless love seemed to vanish
away, and all his thoughts were fixed on the event of his favourite,
young Cesario, being changed into a fair lady. He viewed Viola with
great attention, and he remembered how very handsome he had always
thought Cesario was, and he concluded she would look very beautiful in
a woman's attire; and then he remembered how often she had said _she
loved him_, which at the time seemed only the dutiful expression of a
faithful page, but now he guessed that something more was meant, for
many of her pretty sayings, which were like riddles to him, came now
into his mind, and he no sooner remembered all these things than he
resolved to make Viola his wife; and he said to her (he still could
not help calling her _Cesario_ and _boy_), "Boy, you have said to me a
thousand times that you should never love a woman like to me, and for
the faithful service you have done for me so much beneath your soft
and tender breeding, and since you have called me master so long, you
shall now be your master's mistress, and Orsino's true duchess."
Olivia, perceiving Orsino was making over that heart, which she had
so ungraciously rejected, to Viola, invited them to enter her house,
and offered the assistance of the good priest, who had married her
to Sebastian in the morning, to perform the same ceremony in the
remaining part of the day for Orsino and Viola. Thus the twin brother
and sister were both wedded on the same day: the storm and shipwreck,
which had separated them, being the means of bringing to pass their
high and mighty fortunes. Viola was the wife of Orsino, the duke of
Illyria, and Sebastian the husband of the rich and noble countess, the
lady Olivia.
TIMON OF ATHENS
(_By Charles Lamb_)
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account