envied, your red is defiance, your gold is
avaritious, your straw plenty, your greene hope, your sea greene
inconstant, your violet religious, your willow forsaken.

_Sis_. We may then comitt a solecisme and be strangely interpreted by
such curious expounders in the rash election and wearing of our colours,
I p[er]ceave.

_La_. Tis pitty but there should be some bookes for our instruction in
this art.

_De_. Your Hierogliphick was the _Egiptian_ wisdome, your _Hebrew_ was
the Cabala, your _Roman_ had your Simball or impresse; but they are now
obsolete, your embleme trite and conspicuous, your invention of
Character and Alphabeticall key tedious and not delightfull, your motto
or rebus too open and demonstrative: but the science and curiosity of
your Colours in Ribbands is not only instructive but an ornament and the
nearest Comentator of Love; for as Love is entertain'd first by the eye,
or, to speake more plaine, as the object affected is tooke in first by
these opticks which receive the species of the thing colord &
beautifide, so it is answerable to nature that in the progresse of our
passion we should distinguish by our eye the change or constancy of our
affections in apt and significant colours.

_Sis. _You have tooke paines to study this learn'd heraldry.

_De_. It is the onely gentile knowledge or philosophie in the world. I
will undertake to open any man or womans hart.

_La_. Heaven forbid!

_De_. Tell the most secret imaginations and designes conclude every
passion and scruple, if they be carefull to observe the artificiall
method of their colours.

_Sis_. Why, this may be a way of fortune telling too.

_De_. You say right, Lady: phisiognomy and chiromancy are but trifles;
nay, your geomancie meere coniecturall, the execution of your schemes
circumstantiall and fallible, but your quaint alamode weare of your
fancie more then astrologicall.

_La_. Tis a kind of Divinitie.

_De_. You say very true, Madam, and comes neere to propheticall if the
minds of Ladies and gentlemen were elevated to the just and sublime
consideration.

_Sis_. What paines he takes to be ridiculous!

_Do_. This gentleman has a notable fancie and talkes poetically.

_Sis_. Yes, yes; he can write verses.

_Do_. Well, I have read Authors in my dayes and knew the length of the
poets in my tyme too, which was an hexameter and which a pentameter, but
the wits are not as they have been--right and straite.

_Sis_. Why, _Doroty_