Mary. (Outside, L., sings.)
“Come, arouse thee, arouse thee,
My merry Swiss maid;
Take thy pail, and to labor away.”
Enter, L., with pail.
Ah, Ned, all alone, and still at work? The old adage will never do for you—“When the cat’s away, the mice will play.”
Ned. No, indeed, Mary. I like work too well to slight it when the master’s eye is not upon me. It’s such a jolly companion! With every peg I drive away poverty; with every punch of my awl I see success; with every pull of the threads I gain a long pull and a strong pull up the ladder of life. O, work is a man’s best friend, and when he turns his back upon that, he richly deserves what he is sure to get—a gloomy life and a nameless grave.
Mary. Well done, Ned!
“With bench for horse, and awl for lance,