Frankford. New married, and new widowed. Oh! she’s dead, And a cold grave must be her nuptial bed. Sir Charles Mountford. Sir, be of good comfort; and your heavy sorrow Part equally amongst us: storms divided Abate their force, and with less rage are guided. Cranwell. Do, Master Frankford: he that hath least part Will find enough to drown one troubled heart. Sir Francis Acton. Peace with thee, Nan. Brothers, and gentlemen, All we that can plead interest in her grief, Bestow upon her body funeral tears. Brother, had you with threats and usage bad Punished her sin, the grief of her offence Had not with such true sorrow touched her heart. Frankford. I see it had not: therefore on her grave Will I bestow this funeral epitaph, Which on her marble tomb shall be engraved. In golden letters shall these words be filled,[1.51] “Here lies she whom her husband’s kindness killed.” EPILOGUE. An honest crew, disposèd to be merry, Come to a tavern by, and called for wine: The drawer brought it, smiling like a cherry, And told them it was pleasant, neat, and fine. “Taste it,” quoth one. He did so. “Fie!” quoth he; “This wine was good; now’t runs too near the lee.” Another sipped, to give the wine his due, And said unto the rest it drunk too flat; The third said, it was old; the fourth, too new; Nay, quoth the fifth, the sharpness likes me not. Thus, gentlemen, you see how, in one hour, The wine was new, old, flat, sharp, sweet, and sour. Unto this wine we do allude our play; Which some will judge too trivial, some too grave: You as our guests we entertain this day, And bid you welcome to the best we have. Excuse us, then: good wine may be disgraced, When every several mouth hath sundry taste. THE FAIR MAID OF THE WEST. _Part I_. _The Fair Maid of the West, or a Girl worth Gold_, “as it was lately acted before the king and queen with approved liking,” was first published (both parts) in 1631: it had been acted as early as 1617, and from the title-page we may conclude that it held the stage for some time. It probably represents the dramatisation of some already-existent story-book or ballad. “We should be sorry,” remarks Mr. Saintsbury,[2.01] “to lose _The Fair Maid of the West_, with its picture of Devonshire sailors, foreign merchants, kings of Fez, bashaws of various parts, Italian dukes, and what not. The two parts make anything but a good play, but they are decidedly interesting.” Only the first has here been given, as it is complete in itself, and the second part is of less value. I have marked the changes of scene, and in one or two places have made trifling corrections in the text. For instance, in scene iv. of the first act, by reading “your hopes deceased,” and changing the punctuation, we get a very fair sense where Collier (who edited the play for the Shakespeare Society) was inclined to think that a line had dropped out. THE EPISTLE DEDICATORY.