The Andrian: Act the Fourth: Scene IX
CRITO. In this streetThey say that Chrysis liv'd: who rather choseTo heap up riches here by wanton ways,Than to live poor and honestly at home:She dead, her fortune comes by law to me.But I see persons to inquire of. (Goes up.) Save you!
MYSIS. Good now, who's that I see? is it not Crito,Chrysis's kinsman? Aye, the very same.CRITO. O Mysis, save you!
MYSIS. Save you, Crito!
CRITO. ChrysisIs then--ha?
MYSIS. Aye, she has left us, poor souls!
CRITO. And ye; how go ye on here?--pretty well?
MYSIS. We?--as we can, as the old saying goes,When as we would we can not.
CRITO. And Glycerium,Has she found out her parents?
MYSIS. Would she had!
CRITO. Not yet! an ill wind blew me hither then.For truly, had I been appris'd of that,I'd ne'er have set foot here: for this GlyceriumWas always call'd and thought to be her sister.What Chrysis left, she takes possession of:And now for me, a stranger, to commenceA lawsuit here, how good and wise it were,Other examples teach me. She, I warrant,Has got her some gallant too, some defender:For she was growing up a jolly girlWhen first she journeyed hither. They will cryThat I'm a pettifogger, fortune-hunter,A beggar.--And besides it were not wellTo leave her in distress.
MYSIS. Good soul! troth Crito,You have the good old-fashion'd honesty.
CRITO. Well, since I am arriv'd here, bring me to her,That I may see her.MYSIS. Aye, with all my heart.
DAVUS. I will in with them: for I would not chooseThat our old gentleman should see me now. (Exeunt.
Words in this poem
- honestly adv.
- Honorably; becomingly; decently.
- kinsman n.
- A man of the same race or family; one related by blood.
- lawsuit n.
- An action at law; a suit in equity or admiralty; any legal proceeding before a court for the enforcement of a claim.
- troth n.
- Belief; faith; fidelity. [A variant of truth. See Truth.]
- exeunt
- They go out, or retire from the scene; as, exeunt all except Hamlet. See 1st Exit. [L., 3d pers. pl. pres. of exire to go out.]
Definitions and etymologies from Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913.
About this text
The Andrian: Act the Fourth: Scene IX is in the public domain. This text is taken from The Comedies of Terence, Project Gutenberg ebook #22695; the transcription's header, footer and licence were removed and nothing else was changed. You may copy, print and reuse it freely.
Cite as: Terence, The Andrian: Act the Fourth: Scene IX, in The Comedies of Terence (1765), text of Project Gutenberg ebook #22695, Laurel, https://laurelpoetry.com/poem/terence-comedies/the-andrian-act-the-fourth-scene-ix.html, id L25744.
Form and metre
The Andrian: Act the Fourth: Scene IX is 40 lines in 13 stanzas. The metre is iambic pentameter, measured from the stress the words themselves fix (confidence 83%).
See other poems in iambic pentameter.
Measured by Laurel's pipeline, not copied from a handbook: how stress and metre are counted, how rhyme is lettered, how a drifted rhyme is found. Where the dictionary cannot confirm a rhyme the letter is withheld, not guessed.
Rhyme words, stanza by stanza
The word that ends each line, lettered by the rhyme it makes; a dash is a line whose rhyme the dictionary could not confirm.
- 12 AA- herA · herA · heart
Scansion, line by line
Each line with its syllable count and the stresses the words themselves fix: / stressed, ˘ unstressed, · a syllable the word leaves free and the metre decides. Read against iambic pentameter. How this is done.
| Line | Syl. | Stress |
|---|---|---|
| CRITO. In this street | 5 | ····· |
| They say that Chrysis liv'd: who rather chose | 10 | ·······/˘· |
| To heap up riches here by wanton ways, | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| Than to live poor and honestly at home: | 10 | ·····/˘˘·· |
| She dead, her fortune comes by law to me. | 10 | ···/˘····· |
| But I see persons to inquire of. (Goes up.) Save you! | 13 | ···/˘·˘/····· |
| MYSIS. Good now, who's that I see? is it not Crito, | 13 | /˘··········· |
| Chrysis's kinsman? Aye, the very same. | 9 | ··/···/˘· |
| CRITO. O Mysis, save you! | 7 | ···/˘·· |
| MYSIS. Save you, Crito! | 6 | /˘···· |
| CRITO. Chrysis | 4 | ···· |
| Is then--ha? | 3 | ··· |
| MYSIS. Aye, she has left us, poor souls! | 9 | /˘······· |
| CRITO. And ye; how go ye on here?--pretty well? | 12 | ·········/˘· |
| MYSIS. We?--as we can, as the old saying goes, | 12 | /˘·······/˘· |
| When as we would we can not. | 7 | ······· |
| CRITO. And Glycerium, | 6 | ······ |
| Has she found out her parents? | 7 | ·····/˘ |
| MYSIS. Would she had! | 5 | /˘··· |
| CRITO. Not yet! an ill wind blew me hither then. | 12 | ·········/˘· |
| For truly, had I been appris'd of that, | 10 | ·/˘···˘/·· |
| I'd ne'er have set foot here: for this Glycerium | 11 | ··········· |
| Was always call'd and thought to be her sister. | 11 | ·/·······/˘ |
| What Chrysis left, she takes possession of: | 10 | ······˘/˘· |
| And now for me, a stranger, to commence | 10 | ·····/˘·˘/ |
| A lawsuit here, how good and wise it were, | 10 | ·/········ |
| Other examples teach me. She, I warrant, | 11 | /˘˘/˘····/˘ |
| Has got her some gallant too, some defender: | 11 | ····/˘··˘/˘ |
| For she was growing up a jolly girl | 10 | ···/˘··/˘· |
| When first she journeyed hither. They will cry | 10 | ···/˘/˘··· |
| That I'm a pettifogger, fortune-hunter, | 10 | ···/˘˘/˘/˘ |
| A beggar.--And besides it were not well | 10 | ·/˘·˘/···· |
| To leave her in distress. | 6 | ····˘/ |
| MYSIS. Good soul! troth Crito, | 7 | /˘····· |
| You have the good old-fashion'd honesty. | 10 | ·····/˘/˘˘ |
| CRITO. Well, since I am arriv'd here, bring me to her, | 13 | ······˘/····· |
| That I may see her. | 5 | ····· |
| MYSIS. Aye, with all my heart. | 7 | /˘····· |
| DAVUS. I will in with them: for I would not choose | 12 | ············ |
| That our old gentleman should see me now. (Exeunt. | 12 | ·/·/˘····/˘˘ |
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