Digital Renaissance Editions

About this text

  • Title: The Honest Whore, Part 1 (Quarto 2, 1604)
  • Editor: Joost Daalder
  • ISBN: 978-1-55058-490-5

    Copyright Digital Renaissance Editions. This text may be freely used for educational, non-profit purposes; for all other uses contact the Editor.
    Authors: Thomas Dekker, Thomas Middleton
    Editor: Joost Daalder
    Peer Reviewed

    The Honest Whore, Part 1 (Quarto 2, 1604)

    THE CONVERTED
    ouer head & ear in the salt-water: & if you fall into this whirl-
    poole where I am, y'are drownd: y'are a drownd rat. -- I am
    fishing here for fiue ships, but I cannot haue a good draught,
    2615for my net breakes still, and breakes, but Ile breake some of
    your necks & I catch you in my clutches. Stay, stay, stay, stay,
    stay - wheres the wind, wheres the wind, wheres the winde:
    wheres the winde: out you guls, you goose-caps, you
    gudgeon eaters! do you looke for the wind in the heauens?
    2620ha ha ha ha, no no, looke there, looke there, looke there, the
    winde, is alwayes at that doore: hearke how it blowes, pooff
    pooff, pooff. Omn. Ha ha ha.
    1. Mad. Do you laught at Gods creatures? do you mock old
    age you roagues? is this gray beard and head counterfet, that
    2625you cry ha ha ha?-- Sirra, art not thou my eldest sonne?
    Pior. Yes indeed father.
    1. Mad. Then th'art a foole, for my eldest sonne had a polt
    foote, crooked legs, a vergis face, and a peare-collourd beard;
    I made him a scholler, and he made himselfe a foole.-- Sirra!
    2630thou there? hould out thy hand. Duk. My hand, wel, here tis.
    1. Mad. Looke, looke, looke, looke: has he not long nailes,
    and short haire? Flu. Yes monstrous short haire, and abho-
    minable long nailes. 1. Mad. Ten-peny nailes are they not?
    Flu. Yes ten-peny nailes.
    26351. Mad. Such nailes had my second boy: kneele downe
    thou varlet, and aske thy father blessing. Such nailes had my
    middlemost sonne and I made him a Promoter: & he scrapt,
    & scrapt, & scrapt, till he got the diuell and all: but he scrapt
    thus and thus, & thus, and it went vnder his legs, till at length
    2640a company of Kites taking him for carion, swept vp all, all, all,
    all, all, all, all.--If you loue your liues, looke to your selues,
    see, see, see, see, the Turkes gallies are fighting with my ships,
    Bownce goes the guns-oooh! cry the men: romble romble
    goe the waters--Alas! there! tis sunke--tis sunck: I am vn-
    2645don, I am vndon, you are the dambd Pirates haue vndone
    me,-- you are bith Lord, you are, you are, stop em, you are.
    Ans. Why how now Syrra, must I fall to tame you?
    1. Mad. Tame me? no: ile be madder than a roasted Cat:
    see, see, I am burnt with gunpowder, these are our close fights.
    2650Ans. Ile whip you if you grow vnruly thus.
    1. Mad.