|
Enter certain OUTLAWS |
Several OUTLAWS enter. |
|
FIRST OUTLAW
Fellows, stand fast. I see a passenger. |
FIRST OUTLAW
Men, get ready. I see a traveler. |
|
SECOND OUTLAW
If there be ten, shrink not, but down with ’em. |
SECOND OUTLAW
Even if there are ten of them, don’t back down. Take them down. |
|
Enter VALENTINE and SPEED |
VALENTINE and SPEED enter. |
|
THIRD OUTLAW
Stand, sir! And throw us that you have about ye. If not, we’ll make you sit, and rifle you. |
THIRD OUTLAW
Stop, sir! Give us what you have on you. If you don’t, we’ll make you sit and we’ll search you. |
|
SPEED
Sir, we are undone. These are the villains That all the travelers do fear so much. |
SPEED
Sir, we’re ruined. These are the bandits that all the travelers in this area fear so much. |
|
VALENTINE
My friends— |
VALENTINE
My friends— |
|
FIRST OUTLAW
That’s not so, sir. We are your enemies. |
FIRST OUTLAW
That’s not how it is, sir. We are your enemies. |
|
SECOND OUTLAW
Peace! We’ll hear him. |
SECOND OUTLAW
Quiet! Let’s hear him out. |
|
THIRD OUTLAW
Ay, by my beard will we, for he is a proper man. |
THIRD OUTLAW
Yeah, by the hair on my chin we’ll hear him out, because he is a handsome man. |
|
VALENTINE
Then know that I have little wealth to lose. A man I am, crossed with adversity; My riches are these poor habiliments, Of which if you should here disfurnish me You take the sum and substance that I have. |
VALENTINE
You should know that I have little wealth to lose. I am a man who’s been struck by hardship. My only riches are these poor clothes I’m wearing, and if you take them then you take the sum total of everything I own. |
|
SECOND OUTLAW
Whither travel you? |
SECOND OUTLAW
Where are you going? |
|
VALENTINE
To Verona. |
VALENTINE
To Verona. |
|
FIRST OUTLAW
Whence came you? |
FIRST OUTLAW
Where did you come from? |
|
VALENTINE
From Milan. |
VALENTINE
From Milan. |
|
THIRD OUTLAW
Have you long sojourned there? |
THIRD OUTLAW
How long were you there? |
|
VALENTINE
Some sixteen months, and longer might have stayed If crooked fortune had not thwarted me. |
VALENTINE
About sixteen months, and I might have stayed longer if bad luck hadn’t thwarted me. |
|
FIRST OUTLAW
What! were you banished thence? |
FIRST OUTLAW
What! Were you banished? |
|
VALENTINE
I was. |
VALENTINE
I was. |
|
SECOND OUTLAW
For what offence? |
SECOND OUTLAW
For what crime? |
|
VALENTINE
For that which now torments me to rehearse: I killed a man, whose death I much repent, But yet I slew him manfully in fight Without false vantage or base treachery. |
VALENTINE
For something that now hurts me to repeat: I killed a man, whose death I greatly regret, even though I killed him in a fair fight without deceit or wicked treachery. |
|
FIRST OUTLAW
Why, ne’er repent it, if it were done so. But were you banished for so small a fault? |
FIRST OUTLAW
Why, never regret it if that’s the way it happened. Were you really banished for such a small offense? |
|
VALENTINE
I was, and held me glad of such a doom. |
VALENTINE
I was, and was grateful to have just been banished. |
|
SECOND OUTLAW
Have you the tongues? |
SECOND OUTLAW
Do you speak any other languages? |
|
VALENTINE
My youthful travel therein made me happy, Or else I often had been miserable. |
VALENTINE
I traveled when I was young, which made me happy. Otherwise, I would have been miserable. |
|
THIRD OUTLAW
By the bare scalp of Robin Hood’s fat friar, This fellow were a king for our wild faction! |
THIRD OUTLAW
By the bald head of Robin Hood’s fat Friar Tuck! This fellow would make a great king for our group of bandits! |
|
FIRST OUTLAW
We’ll have him. Sirs, a word. |
FIRST OUTLAW
We’ll take him. Sirs, a word with you all. |
|
The Outlaws confer in whispers. |
The Outlaws confer in whispers. |
|
SPEED
Master, be one of them. It’s an honorable kind of thievery. |
SPEED
Master, become one of them. It’s an honorable kind of thievery. |
|
VALENTINE
Peace, villain! |
VALENTINE
Quiet, rascal! |
|
SECOND OUTLAW
(Returning to Valentine) Tell us this: have you anything to take to? |
SECOND OUTLAW
(returning to Valentine) Tell us this: do you have any way to support yourself? |
|
VALENTINE
Nothing but my fortune. |
VALENTINE
Nothing but my luck. |
|
THIRD OUTLAW
Know, then, that some of us are gentlemen, Such as the fury of ungoverned youth Thrust from the company of awful men. Myself was from Verona banishèd For practicing to steal away a lady, An heir, and near allied unto the Duke. |
THIRD OUTLAW
You should know, then, that some of us are gentlemen who were forced out of respectable society by our unrestrained youth. I myself was banished from Verona for planning to elope with a lady, an heir who was close to the Duke. |
|
SECOND OUTLAW
And I from Mantua, for a gentleman Who, in my mood, I stabbed unto the heart. |
SECOND OUTLAW
And I am from Mantua. I stabbed a gentleman in the heart out of anger. |
|
FIRST OUTLAW
And I for suchlike petty crimes as these. But to the purpose—for we cite our faults That they may hold excused our lawless lives; And partly, seeing you are beautified With goodly shape, and by your own report A linguist, and a man of such perfection As we do in our quality much want— |
FIRST OUTLAW
And I was banished for such petty crimes like these. But to get to the point, we state our crimes in part because they explain why we live lives of lawlessness, and also partly because seeing that you’re attractive, and by your own description a linguist, and since we are in need of a man of such qualities in our profession— |
|
SECOND OUTLAW
Indeed, because you are a banished man, Therefore, above the rest, we parley to you. Are you content to be our general? To make a virtue of necessity And live, as we do, in this wilderness? |
SECOND OUTLAW
In fact, because you are a banished man, and for that more than any other reason, we’d like to speak to you. Would you like to be our leader, to consider poverty an asset, and live as we do in this forest? |
|
THIRD OUTLAW
What sayst thou? Wilt thou be of our consort? Say ay, and be the captain of us all. We’ll do thee homage, and be ruled by thee, Love thee as our commander and our king. |
THIRD OUTLAW
What do you say? Will you join our band of highwaymen? Say yes, and become our captain. We’ll respect you, be ruled by you, and love you as our leader and our king. |
|
FIRST OUTLAW
But if thou scorn our courtesy thou diest. |
FIRST OUTLAW
But if you reject our offer you die. |
|
SECOND OUTLAW
Thou shalt not live to brag what we have offered. |
SECOND OUTLAW
You won’t live to brag about what we’ve offered. |
|
VALENTINE
I take your offer and will live with you, Provided that you do no outrages On silly women or poor passengers. |
VALENTINE
I accept your offer and will live with you, provided that you do not harm any helpless women or poor passengers. |
|
THIRD OUTLAW
No, we detest such vile base practices. Come, go with us. We’ll bring thee to our crews And show thee all the treasure we have got, Which, with ourselves, all rest at thy dispose. |
THIRD OUTLAW
No, we detest such vile, wicked practices. Come, go with us. We’ll take you to the rest of our band and show you all the treasure we have, which along with ourselves is at your disposal. |
|
Exeunt |
They exit. |