SCENE I. A street. The Merry Wives of Windsor  Shakespeare homepage  |  Merry Wives of Windsor  | Act 4, Scene 1 

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 Enter MISTRESS PAGE, MISTRESS QUICKLY, and WILLIAM PAGE  MISTRESS PAGE  Is he at Master Ford's already, think'st thou? 

 MISTRESS QUICKLY  Sure he is by this, or will be presently: but, 

 truly, he is very courageous mad about his throwing 

 into the water. Mistress Ford desires you to come suddenly. 

 MISTRESS PAGE  I'll be with her by and by; I'll but bring my young 

 man here to school. Look, where his master comes; 

 'tis a playing-day, I see. 



 Enter SIR HUGH EVANS  How now, Sir Hugh! no school to-day? 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  No; Master Slender is let the boys leave to play. 

 MISTRESS QUICKLY  Blessing of his heart! 

 MISTRESS PAGE  Sir Hugh, my husband says my son profits nothing in 

 the world at his book. I pray you, ask him some 

 questions in his accidence. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  Come hither, William; hold up your head; come. 

 MISTRESS PAGE  Come on, sirrah; hold up your head; answer your 

 master, be not afraid. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  William, how many numbers is in nouns? 

 WILLIAM PAGE  Two. 

 MISTRESS QUICKLY  Truly, I thought there had been one number more, 

 because they say, ''Od's nouns.' 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  Peace your tattlings! What is 'fair,' William? 

 WILLIAM PAGE  Pulcher. 

 MISTRESS QUICKLY  Polecats! there are fairer things than polecats, sure. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  You are a very simplicity 'oman: I pray you peace. 

 What is 'lapis,' William? 

 WILLIAM PAGE  A stone. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  And what is 'a stone,' William? 

 WILLIAM PAGE  A pebble. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  No, it is 'lapis:' I pray you, remember in your prain. 

 WILLIAM PAGE  Lapis. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  That is a good William. What is he, William, that 

 does lend articles? 

 WILLIAM PAGE  Articles are borrowed of the pronoun, and be thus 

 declined, Singulariter, nominativo, hic, haec, hoc. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  Nominativo, hig, hag, hog; pray you, mark: 

 genitivo, hujus. Well, what is your accusative case? 

 WILLIAM PAGE  Accusativo, hinc. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  I pray you, have your remembrance, child, 

 accusative, hung, hang, hog. 

 MISTRESS QUICKLY  'Hang-hog' is Latin for bacon, I warrant you. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  Leave your prabbles, 'oman. What is the focative 

 case, William? 

 WILLIAM PAGE  O,--vocativo, O. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  Remember, William; focative is caret. 

 MISTRESS QUICKLY  And that's a good root. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  'Oman, forbear. 

 MISTRESS PAGE  Peace! 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  What is your genitive case plural, William? 

 WILLIAM PAGE  Genitive case! 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  Ay. 

 WILLIAM PAGE  Genitive,--horum, harum, horum. 

 MISTRESS QUICKLY  Vengeance of Jenny's case! fie on her! never name 

 her, child, if she be a whore. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  For shame, 'oman. 

 MISTRESS QUICKLY  You do ill to teach the child such words: he 

 teaches him to hick and to hack, which they'll do 

 fast enough of themselves, and to call 'horum:' fie upon you! 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  'Oman, art thou lunatics? hast thou no 

 understandings for thy cases and the numbers of the 

 genders? Thou art as foolish Christian creatures as 

 I would desires. 

 MISTRESS PAGE  Prithee, hold thy peace. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  Show me now, William, some declensions of your pronouns. 

 WILLIAM PAGE  Forsooth, I have forgot. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  It is qui, quae, quod: if you forget your 'quies,' 

 your 'quaes,' and your 'quods,' you must be 

 preeches. Go your ways, and play; go. 

 MISTRESS PAGE  He is a better scholar than I thought he was. 

 SIR HUGH EVANS  He is a good sprag memory. Farewell, Mistress Page. 

 MISTRESS PAGE  Adieu, good Sir Hugh. 



 Exit SIR HUGH EVANS  Get you home, boy. Come, we stay too long. 



 Exeunt  Shakespeare homepage  |  Merry Wives of Windsor  | Act 4, Scene 1 

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