Page:Gilbert Original Plays.djvu/21

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Misshapen bodies with misshapen minds.
Sel. Dost thou not know that every soul on earth
Hath in our ranks his outward counterpart?
Dar. His outward counterpart!
Sel. Tis even so;
Yes, on that world—that very wicked world—
Thou—I—and all who dwell in fairy land,
May find a parallel identity:
A perfect counterpart in outward form;
So perfect that, if it were possible
To place us by these earthly counterparts,
No man on earth, no fairy in the clouds,
Could tell which was the fairy—which the man!
Zay. Is there no shade of difference?
Phyl. Yes, one;
For we are absolutely free from sin.
While all our representatives on earth
Are stained with every kind of infamy.
Dar. Are all our counterparts so steeped in sin?
Phyl. All, in a greater or a less degree.
Zay. What, even mine?
Phyl. Alas!
Zay. Oh, no—not mine!
Phyl. All men and women sin.
Dar. I wonder what
My counterpart is doing now?
Sel. Don't ask.
No doubt, some fearful sin!
Dar. And what are sins?
Sel. Evils of which we hardly know the names.