< Page:Iolanthe lib.djvu
This page has been validated.
6
| Queen. | And now, tell me, with all the world to choose from, why on earth did you decide to live at the bottom of that stream? |
| Iol. | To be near my son, Strephon. |
| Queen. | Bless my heart, I didn't know you had a son! |
| Iol. | He was born soon after I left my husband by your royal command but he does not even know of his father's existence. |
| Fleta. | How old is he? |
| Iol. | Twenty-four. |
| Leila. | Twenty-four! No one, to look at you, would think you had a son of twenty-four! But that's one of the advantages of being immortal. We never grow old! Is he pretty? |
| Iol. | He's extremely pretty, but he's inclined to be stout. |
| All | (disappointed ). Oh! |
| Queen. | I see no objection to stoutness, in moderation. |
| Cel. | And what is he? |
| Iol. | He's an Arcadian shepherd and he loves Phyllis, a Ward in Chancery. |
| Cel. | A mere shepherd! and he half a fairy! |
| Iol. | He's a fairy down to the waist but his legs are mortal. |
| All. | Dear me! |
| Queen. | I have no reason to suppose that I am more curious than other people, but I confess I should like to see a person who is a fairy down to the waist, but whose legs are mortal. |
| Iol. | Nothing easier, for here he comes! |
(Enter Strephon, singing and dancing and playing on a flageolet. He does not see the fairies, who retire up stage as he enters.)
Song—Strephon.
Good morrow—good mother— |
| Chorus. (aside.) | Yes, he's to be married to-day—to-day— |
| Iol. | Then the Lord Chancellor has at last given his consent to your marriage with his beautiful ward, Phyllis? |
| Streph. | Not he, indeed. To all my tearful prayers he answers me, "A shepherd lad is no fit helpmate for a ward of Chancery." I stood in court, and there I sang him songs of Arcadee, with flageolet accompaniment in vain. At first he seemed amused, so did the bar; but quickly wearying of my song and pipe, bade me get out. A servile usher, then, |
This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.