Give your attention then, and take care and please mind your promise. What do you say? Do you know that my son is in love with a certain music-girl? PSEUDOLUS Yea, verily Yea, verily : Ναὶ γάρ. This and the two following remarks of Pseudolus are in Greek. The Romans affected curtness of repartee in Greek, in much the same manner as we do in French. A cant tone has been attempted in the translation to be given to the remarks so made by Pseudolus. . SIMO Whom he is trying to make free? PSEUDOLUS Yea, verily and indeed. SIMO And you are scheming by cajolery and by cunning tricks to get twenty minae in ready money out of me? PSEUDOLUS I, get them out of you? SIMO Just so; to give them to my son, with which to liberate his mistress. Do you confess it? Speak out. PSEUDOLUS Yea, verily; yea, verily. SIMO He confesses it. Didn’t I tell you so just now, Callipho? CALLIPHO So I remember. SIMO Why, directly you knew of these things, were they kept concealed from me? Why wasn’t I made acquainted with them? PSEUDOLUS I’ll tell you: because I was unwilling that a bad custom should originate in me, for a servant to accuse his master before his master. SIMO Wouldn’t you order this fellow to be dragged head first to the treadmills To the treadmill : Pistrinum. The establishment of each wealthy person had its pistrinum, or handmill, where the mill for grinding corn was worked by the hand of slaves. The most worthless and refractory were employed at this labour, and as the task was deemed a degradation, the pistrinum was the usual place of punishment for the slaves of the household. Throughout this translation, the liberty has been in general taken of conveying the meaning of the term by the use of the word treadmill. ? CALLIPHO Has he done anything amiss, Simo? SIMO Yes, very much so. PSEUDOLUS (to CALLIPHO.) Be quiet, I quite well understand my own affairs, Callipho. Is this a fault? Now then, give your attention to the reason why I you kept ignorant of this amour. I knew that the treadmill was close at hand, if I told you. SIMO And didn’t you know, as well, that the treadmill would be close at hand when you kept silent on it? PSEUDOLUS I did know it. SIMO Why wasn’t it told me? PSEUDOLUS The one evil was close at hand, the other at a greater distance; the one was at the moment, the other was a few days off. SIMO What will you be doing now? For assuredly the money cannot be got in this quarter out of me, who have especially detected it. I shall forthwith give notice to all that no one is to trust him the money. PSEUDOLUS I’ faith, I’ll never go begging to any person, so long, at all events, as you shall be alive; troth, you shall find me the money; and as for me, I shall take it from you. SIMO You, take it from me? PSEUDOLUS Undoubtedly. SIMO Troth, now, knock out my eye, if I do find it. PSEUDOLUS You shall provide it. I warn you then to be on your guard against me. SIMO By my troth, I know this for sure; if you do take it away, you will have done a wonderful and a great exploit. PSEUDOLUS I will do it, however.