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Show The Recruiting Officer. 41 }0u~-•And now your hand, this lifts m e And now you are m y Captain. Plume. Your Friend. (Kiffes her.) 'Sdeath! There's fomething in this Fellow that charms me. Sil. One Favour I muft beg This Affair will make fome noife, and 1 have fome Friends that wou'd cenfure m y Conduct, if I threw m y felf into the Circumftance of a private Centinel of m y own Head 1 muft therefore take care to be impreft by the Act of Parliament, you fhall leave that to me. Plume. What you pleafe as to that Will you lodge at m y Quarters in the mean time? You fhall have part of m y Bed. 'Si: O fye ! Lie with a common Soldier ! Wou'd not you rather lie with a common W o m a n ? Plume. N o , faith, I'm not that Rake that the World imagines; I have got an Air of Freedom, which People miftake for Lewdnefs in me, as they miftake Formality in others for Religion-The World is all a Cheat; only I take mine, which is undefign'd, to be more excufable than theirs which is hypocritical. I hurt no body but m y felf, and they abufe all Mankind Will you lie with m e ? Sil. No, no, Captain, you forget Rofe; fhe's to be m y Bed-' fellow, you know. Plume. I had forgot j pray be kind to her. (Exeunt fevcrally. Enter Melinda and Lucy. 'Mel. 'Tis the greateft Misfortune in Nature for a Woman to want a Confident: W e are fo weak, that we can do nothing without Affiftance, and then a Secret racks us worfe than the Collick I a m at this minute fo fick of a Secret, that I'm ready to faint away Help me, Lucy. Luc. Blefs me, M a d a m ! What's the matter ? Mel. Vapours only, I begin to recover If Silvia wcte in T o w n I could heartily forgive her Faults for. the Eafe of difcovering m y own. Luc. You're thoughtful, M a d a m ; am not I worthy to know the Caufe ? Mel. You are a Servant, and a Secret m a y make you faucy. Luc. Not unlefs you fhou'd find fault without a Caufe, Madam. Mel. Caufe, or not Caufe, I muft not lofe the Pleafure of ichiding when I pleafe\ W o m e n muft difcharge their Vapours ioine- |