Goodwiffe, lett be all this beare, That thou maiste in this place heare; For all the wene that thou arte maister, And so thou arte, by Sante John!
All Noah"s artful concession of his wife"s mastery in the household does not avail to move her and so he tries objurgation.
Noye-- Wiffe, come in: why standes thou their?
Thou arte ever frowarde, I dare well sweare; Come in, one G.o.des halfe! tyme yt were, For feare leste that we drowne.
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Noye"s Wiffe-- Yes, sir, sette up youer saile, And rowe fourth with evill haile, For withouten (anye) fayle I will not oute of this towne; But I have my gossippes everyechone, One foote further I will not gone: The shall not drowne, by Sainte John!
And I may save ther life.
The loven me full well, by Christe!
But thou lett them into thy cheiste, (ark) Elles rowe nowe wher thee leiste, And gette thee a newe wiffe.
It is evident that he will not succeed so Noah, wise doubtless with the wisdom of experience, forbears to urge but appeals to her sons to bring her.
NOYE-- Seme, sonne, loe! thy mother is wrawe: Forsooth, such another I doe not knowe.
Sem-- Father, I shall fetch her in, I trowe, Withoutten anye fayle.-- Mother, my father after thee sends.
And byddes thee into yeinder shippe wende.
Loke up and see the wynde.
For we bene readye to sayle.
Noye"s Wiffe-- Seme, goe againe to hym, I saie; I will not come theirin to daye.
Noye-- Come in, wiffe, in twentye devilles waye!
Or elles stand there without.
Ham-- Shall we all feche her in?
Noye-- Yea, sonnes, in Christe blessinge and myne!
I woulde you hied you be-tyme.
For of this flude I am in doubte.
Jeffatte-- Mother, we praye you all together.
For we are heare, youer owne childer.
Come into the shippe for feare of the weither, For his love that you boughte!
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Noye"s Wiffe-- That will not I, for all youer call, But I have my gossippes all.
Sem-- In faith, mother, yett you shalle, Wheither thou wylte or (nought).
_(Her sons bring her in; as she steps aboard she is greeted by Noah.)_
Noye-- Welckome, wiffe, into this botte.
Noye"s Wiffe-- Have thou that for thy note!
(_Giving her husband a cuff on the head_).
Noye-- Ha, ha! Marye, this is hotte!
It is good for to be still.
Ha! children, me thinkes my botte remeves, Our tarryinge heare highlye me greves, Over the lande the watter spreades; G.o.d doe as he will.
This quotation will give a good idea of the human interest of these Mystery Plays and serve to show that they did not fail in dramatic power for any lack of humor or acute observation. It would be easy to ill.u.s.trate this much more amply. The opportunities to enjoy these plays were abundant. We have said that the Chester Cycle is the one of which there is earliest mention. The method of its presentation has been described by Mr. Henry Morley in the fourth volume of his English Writers. He says:
"There were scaffolds erected for spectators in those places to which the successive pageants would be drawn; and a citizen who on the first day saw in any place the first pageant (that of the Fall of Lucifer), if he kept his place and returned to it in good time on each successive morning, would see the Scripture story, as thus told, pa.s.s in its right order before him. Each pageant was drawn on four or six wheels, and had a room in which the actors and properties were concealed, under the upper room or stage on which they played."
Mr. Morley then describes the action of the various parts of the cycle, showing how clearly the lessons of the Old Testament history and its symbolic and typical meaning were pointed out so that the spectators could not miss them.
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How completely the story of the Bible was told may be judged from the order of the Pageants of the Play of Corpus Christi, in the time of the mayoralty of William Alne, in the third year of the reign of King Henry V., compiled by Roger Burton, town clerk.
1. Tanners.
G.o.d the Father Almighty creating and forming the heavens, angels and archangels, Lucifer and the angels that fell with him to h.e.l.l.
2. Plasterers.
G.o.d the Father, in his own substance, creating the earth and all which is therein, in the s.p.a.ce of five days.
3. Cardmakers.
G.o.d the Father creating Adam of the clay of the earth and making Eve of Adam"s rib, and inspiring them with the breath of life.
4. Fullers.
G.o.d forbidding Adam and Eve to eat of the tree of life.
5. Coopers.
Adam and Eve and a tree betwixt them; the serpent deceiving them with apples; G.o.d speaking to them and cursing the serpent, and with a sword driving them out of paradise.
6. Armourers.
Adam and Eve, an angel with a spade and distaff a.s.signing them work.
7. Gaunters (Glovers).
Abel and Cain offering victims in sacrifice.
8. Shipwrights.
G.o.d warning Noah to make an Ark of floatable wood,
9. Pessoners (Fishmongers) and Mariners.
Noah in the Ark, with his wife; the three sons of Noah with their wives; with divers animals.