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Nor is not mov'd with concord of sweet sounds,
Is fit for treasons, stratagems, and spoils;
The motions of his spirit are dull as night,
And his affections dark as Erebus:

- Let no such man be trusted.-Mark the musick.
Enter Porila, and Nerissa at a distance.
Por. That light we see, is burning in my hall.
How far that little candle throws his beams!
So shines a good deed in a naughty world. [candle.
Ner. When the moon shone, we did not see the
Por. So doth the greater glory dim the less:
A substitute shines brightly as a king,
Until a king be by; and then his state
Empties itself, as doth an inland brook

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10

Into the main of waters. Musick! hark! [Musick. 15
Ner. It is your musick, madam, of the house.
Por. Nothing is good, I see, without respect;
Methinks it sounds much sweeter than by day.

Ner. Silence bestows that virtue on it, madam.
Por. The crow doth sing as sweetly as the lark,
When neither is attended; and, I think,
The nightingale, if she should sing by day,
When every goose is cackling, would be thought
No better a musician than the wren.
How many things by season season'd are
To their right praise, and true perfection!-
Peace! how the moon sleeps with Endymion,
And would not be awak'd!

Lor. That is the voice,

[Musick ceases.

To whom I am so infinitely bound. [him,
Por. You should in all sense be much bound to
For, as I hear, he was much bound for you.
Anth. No more than I am well acquitted of.
Por. Sir, you are very welcome to our house:
It must appear in other ways than words,
Therefore I scant this breathing courtesy.

[Gratiano and Nerissa seem to talk apart.
Gra. By yonder moon, I swear you do me wrong;
In faith, I gave it to the judge's clerk:
Would he were gelt that had it, for my part,
Since you do take it, love, so much at heart.
Por. A quarrel, ho,already? what's the matter?
Gra. About a hoop of gold, a paltry ring
That she did give me; whose poesy was
For all the world, like cutler's poetry
Upon a knife, Love me, and leave me not.

Ner. What talk you of the poesy, or the value?
You swore to me, when I did give it you,
20 That you would wear it till your hour of death;
And that it should lie with you in your grave:
Though not for me, yet for your vehement oaths,
You should have been respective', and have kept it.
Gave it a judge's clerk!—but well I know, [it.
25 The clerk will ne'er wear hair on his face that had
Gra. He will, an if he live to be a man.
Ner. Ay, if a woman live to be a man,
Gra. Now, by this hand, I gave it to a youth,—
A kind of boy; a little scrubbed boy,
No higher than thyself, the judge's clerk;
A prating boy, that begg'd it as a fee;

Or I am much deceiv'd, of Portia. [cuckow, 30
Por. He knows me, as the blind man knows the
By the bad voice.

Lor. Dear lady, welcome home.

Por. We have been praying for our husbands']
welfare,

Which speed, we hope, the better for our words.
Are they return'd?

Lor. Madam, they are not yet;

But there is come a messenger before,
To signify their coming.

Por. Go in, Nerissa,

[you,

I could not for my heart deny it him.
Por. You were to blame, I must be plain with
To part so slightly with your wife's first gift;
35 A thing stuck on with oaths upon your finger,
And riveted with faith unto your flesh.

I

gave iny love a ring, and made him swear Never to part with it; and here he stands:

I dare be sworn for him, he would not leave it,
40 Nor pluck it from his finger, for the wealth
That the world masters. Now, in faith, Gratiano
You give your wife too unkind a cause of grief;
An 'twere to me, I should be mad at it.
Bass. Why, I were best to cut my lett hand off,
And swear I lost the ring defending it. [Aside.

Give order to my servants, that they take
No note at all of our being absent hence:-
Nor you,
Lorenzo; Jessica, nor you.
[Atucket' sounds. 45
Lor. Your husband is at hand, I hear his trumpet:
We are no tell-tales, madain; fear you not. [sick.
Por. This night, methinks, is but the day-light
It looks a little paler: 'tis a day,
Such as the day is when the sun is hid.
Enter Bassanio, Anthonio, Gratiano, and their
followers.

Gra. My lord Bassanio gave his ring away Unto the judge that begg'd it, and indeed, Deserv'd it too; and then the boy, his clerk, That took some pains in writing, he begg'd mine: 50 And neither man nor master would take aught But the two rings.

Bass. We should hold day with the Antipodes,
If you would walk in absence of the sun.
Por. Let me give light, but let me not be light; 55
For a light wite doth make a heavy husband,
And never be Bassanio so for me;

But, God sort all!-You are welcome home, my
lord.

[my friend.

Bass. I thank you, madam: give welcome to 60 This is the man, this is Anthonio,

Por. What ring gave you, my lord?
Not that, I hope, which you receiv'd of me?
Bass. If I could add a lye unto a fault,
would deny it; but you see, my finger
Hath not the ring upon it, it is gone.

Por. Even so void is your false heart of truth.
By heaven, I will ne'er come in your bed
Until I see the ring.

Ner. Nor I in yours,
Till I again see mine.

'Meaning a flourish on a trumpet. 'Knives were formerly inscribed by means of aqua fortis with

short sentences. Meaning, respectful,

Meaning, perhaps, a stunted or shrub-like boy..

Bass

Bass. Sweet Portia,

If you did know to whom I gave the ring,
If you did know for whom I gave the ring,
And would conceive for what I gave the ring,
And how unwillingly I left the ring,

When nought would be accepted but the ring,
You would abate the strength of your displea-

sure.

Por. If you had known the virtue of the ring,
Or half her worthiness that gave the ring,
Or your own honour to retain the ring,
You would not then have parted with the ring.
What man is there so much unreasonable,
If you had pleas'd to have defended it
With any terms of zeal, wanted the modesty
To urge the thing held as a ceremony è
Nerissa teaches me what to believe;
I'll die for't, but some woman had the ring.
Bass. No, by mine honour, inadam, by my soul,
No woman had it, but a civil doctor,
Who did refuse three thousand ducats of me,
And begg'd the ring; the which I did deny him,
And suffer'd him to go displeas'd away;
Even he that had held up the very life

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Anth. Here, lord Bassanio; swear to keep this

ring.

Bass. By heaven, it is the same I

gave the

doctor. Por. I had it of him: pardon me, Bassanio; For by this ring the doctor lay with me.

Ner. And pardon me, my gentle Gratiano; For that same scrubbed boy, the doctor's clerk, 20In lieu of this, last night did lie with me.

Gra. Why, this is like the mending of highway In summer, where the ways are fair enough: What! are we cuckolds ere we have deserv'd it? Por. Speak not so grossly.-You are all amaz’d:

Of my dear friend. What should I say, sweet lady? 25 Here is a letter, read it at your leisure,

I was enforc'd to send it after him;

I was beset with shame and courtesy ;

My honour would not let ingratitude

So much besmear it: Pardon me, good lady;
For, by these blessed candles of the night,

Had you been there, I think you would have

begg'd

The ring of me to give the worthy doctor.

Por. Let not that doctor e'er come near my

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It comes from Padua, froni Bellario:

There you shall find, that Portia was the doctor;
Nerissa there, her clerk; Lorenzo here
Shall witness, I set forth as soon as you,
30 And but even now return'd; I have not yet
Enter'd my house.-Anthonio, you are welcome;
And I have better news in store for you,
Than you expect: unseal this letter soon;
There you shall find, three of your argosies
35 Are richly come to harbour suddenly:
You shall not know by what strange accident
I chanced on this letter.

1401

1451

Gra. Well, do you so; let me not take him then;
For, if I do, I'll mar the young clerk's pen.
Anth. I am the unhappy subject of these quar-50
rels.

Por. Sir, grieve not you; You are welcome not-
withstanding.

Bass. Portia, forgive me this enforced wrong;
And, in the hearing of these many friends,
I swear to thee, even by thine own fair eyes,
Wherein I see myself,-

Por. Mark you but that!

In both mine eyes he doubly sees himself:
In each eye, one:-swear by your double self',
And there's an oath of credit.

Anth. I am dumb.

Bass. Were you the doctor, and I knew you not?
Gra. Were you the clerk, that is to make me

cuckold?

Ner. Ay, but the clerk, that never means to do it, Unless he live until he be a man.

Bass. Sweet doctor, you shall be my bed-
fellow;

When I am absent, then lie with my wife.
Anth. Sweet lady, you have given me life, and
living:

For here I read for certain, that my ships
Are safely come to road.

Por. How now, Lorenzo?

My clerk hath some good comforts too for you,
Ner. Ay, and I'll give them him without a
fee.-

55 There do I give to you, and Jessica,
From the rich Jew, a special deed of gift,
After his death, of all he dies possess'd of.

60

Lor. Fair ladies, you drop manna in the way Of starved people.

Por. It is almost morning,

And yet, I am sure, you are not satisfy'd

Double is here put for full duplicity.

That is, his advantage.

Of

Of these events at full: Let us go in ;
And charge us there upon inter'gatories,
And we will answer all things faithfully.

Gra. Let it be so: The first inter'gatory, That my Nerissa shall be sworn on, is, Whether till the next night she had rather stay; Or go to bed now, being two hours to day:

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But were the day come, I should wish it dark, That I were couching with the doctor's clerk. Well, while I live, I'll fear no other thing

So sore, as keeping safe Nerissa's ring.

[Exeunt omnes.

AS

DUKE.

PERSONS REPRESENTED.

FREDERICK, Brother to the Duke, and Usurper.
AMIENS, Lords attending upon the Duke, in
JAQUES, S his banishment.

LE BEAU, a Courtier attending upon Frederick.
OLIVER, eldest son to Sir Rowland de Boys.

JAQUES, younger brothers to Oliver.

ORLANDO,

ADAM, an old servant of Sir Rowland de Boys.
TOUCHSTONE, a Clown.

CORIN,
SYLVIUS,

Shepherds.

WILLLAM, in love with Audrey.

Sir OLIVER MAR-TEXT, a vicar.
CHARLES, wrestler to the usurping Duke Fre
derick.

DENNIS, servant to Oliver.

ROSALIND, daughter to the Duke.
CELIA, daughter to Frederick.
PHEBE, a shepherdess.

AUDREY, a country wench..
A person representing Hymen.

Lords belonging to the two Dukes; with pages, foresters, and other attendants.

The SCENE lies, first, near Oliver's house; and, afterwards, partly in the Duke's court, and partly in the forest of Arden.

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Enter Orlando and Adam.

ACT I.

Orlando. AS
SI remember, Adam, it was upon 5
this fashion bequeathed me:-By
will, but a poor thousand crowns; and, as thou
say'st, charg'd my brother on his blessing, to
breed me well: and there begins my sadness. My
brother Jaques he keeps at school, and report 10
speaks goldenly of his profit: for my part, he
keeps me rustically at home, or, to speak more
properly, stays' me here at home, unkept; For
call you that keeping for a gentleman of my birth,
that differs not from the stalling an ox? His 15
horses are bred better; for, besides that they are fair
with their feeding, they are taught their manage,
and to that end riders dearly hired: but I, his
brother, gain nothing under him but growth; for
the which bis animals on his dunghills are as much 20
bound to him as I. Besides this nothing that he so
plentifully gives me, the something that nature
gave me, his countenance seems to take from me:
he lets me feed with his hinds, bars me the place

of a brother, and, as much as in him lies, mines my gentility with my education. This is it, Adam, that grieves me; and the spirit of my father, which I think is within me, begins to mutiny against this servitude: I will no longer endure it, though yet I know no wise remedy how to avoid it.

Enter Oliver.

Adam. Yonder comes my master, your brother. Orla. Go apart, Adam, and thou shalt hear how he will shake me up.

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Oli. Now, sir! what make you here?

Orla. Nothing: I am not taught to make any thing.

Oli. What mar you then, sir?

Orla. Marry, sir, I am helping you to mar that which God made, a poor unworthy brother of yours, with idleness.

Oli. Marry, sir, be better employed, and be. nought awhile?.

Orla. Shall I keep your hogs, and eat husks with them? What prodigal portion have I spent, that I should come to such penury?

Oli. Know you where you are, sir?

1 Dr. Warburton thinks we should read styes, i. e. keeps me like a brute. be content to be a cypher, or of no consequence for the present.

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Orla. O, sir, very well: here in your orchard.
Oli. Know you before whom, sir?

5

Orla. Ay, better than he, I am before, knows me. I know you are my eldest brother; and, in the gentle condition of blood, you should so know me: The courtesy of nations allows you my better, in that you are the first-born; but the same tradition takes not away my blood, were there twenty brothers betwixt us; I have as much of my father in me as you; albeit, I confess your coming|10| before me is nearer to his reverence.

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Oli. Good monsieur Charles!--what's the new news at the new court?

Cha. There's no news at the court, sir, but the old news: that is, the old duke is banish'd by his younger brother, the new duke; and three or four loving lords have put themselves into voluntary exile with him, whose land and revenues enrich the new duke, therefore he gives them good leave to wander.

Oli. Can you tell, if Rosalind, the old duke's daughter, be banished with her father?

Cha. O, no; for the new duke's daughter, her cousin, so loves her,-being ever from their cradles bred together,—that she would have followed 15 her exile, or have died to stay behind her. She is at the court, and no less beloved of her uncle than his own daughter; and never two ladies loved as they do.

Orla. I am no villain: I am the youngest son of sir Rowland de Boys; he was iny father; and he is thrice a villain, that says, such a father begot villains: Wert thou not my brother, I would not take this hand from thy throat, 'till this other had 20 pulled out thy tongue for saying so; thou hast railed on thyself.

Adam. Sweet masters, be patient; for your father's remembrance, be at accord.

Oli. Let me go, I say.

25

Orla. I will not, 'till I please; you shall hear me. My father charg'd you in his will to give me good education: you have train'd me up like a peasant, obscuring and hiding from me all gentleman-like qualities: the spirit of my father grows 30 strong in me, and I will no longer endure it: therefore allow me such exercises as may become a gentleman, or give me the poor allottery my father left me by testament; with that I will go buy my fortunes.

Oli. And what wilt thou do? beg, when that is spent? Well, sir, get you in: I will not long be troubled with you: you shall have some part of your will; I pray you, leave me.

35

Orla. I will no further offend you than becomes 40 me for my good.

Oli. Get you with him, you old dog.

Adam. Is old dog my reward? Most true, I have lost my teeth in your service.--God be with my old master, he would not have spoke such a 45 word. [Exeunt Orlando and Adam.

Oli. Is it even so? begin you to grow upon me? I will physic your rankness, and yet give no thou gand crowns neither. Holla, Dennis!

Enter Dennis.

Den. Calls your worship?

Oli. Was not Charles, the duke's wrestler, here to speak with me?

Oli. Where will the old duke live?

Cha. They say, he is already in the forest of Arden, and a many merry men with him; and there they live like the old Robin Hood of England: they say, many young gentlemen flock to him every day; and fleet the time carelessly, as they did in the golden world.

Ŏli. What, you wrestle to-morrow before the new duke?

Cha. Marry, do I, sir, and I come to acquaint you with a matter. I am given, sir, secretly to understand that your younger brother Orlando hath a disposition to come in disguis'd against me to try a fall: To-morrow, sir, I wrestle for my credit; and he that escapes me without some broken limb, shall acquit him well. Your brother is but young, and tender; and, for your love, I would be loth to foil him, as I must for mine own honour, if he come in: therefore, out of my love to you, I came hither to acquaint you withal; that either you might stay him from his intendment, or brook such disgrace well as he shall run into; in that it is a thing of his own search, and altogether against my will.

Oli. Charles, I thank thee for thy love to me, which thou shalt find, I will most kindly requite. I had my selfnotice of my brother's purpose herein, and have by underhand means laboured to dissuade him from it; but he is resolute. I'll tell thee, Charles-it is the stubbornest young fellow of France; full of ambition, an envious emulator of 50every man's good parts, a secret and villainous contriver against me his natural brother; therefore use thy discretion: I had as lief thou didst break his neck, as his finger; and thou wert best look to't: for if thou dost him any slight disgrace, or if he do not mightily grace himself on thee, he will practise against thee by poison; entrap thee by some treacherous device; and never leave thee, 'till he hath ta'en thy life by some indirect means or other: for, I assure thee, and almost with tears I speak 60 it, there is not one so young and so villainous, this day living. I speak it but brotherly of him; but

Den. So please, he is here at the door, and 55 importunes access to you.

Oli. Call him in.- -[Exit Dennis.] Twill be a good way; and to-morrow the wrestling is. Enter Charles.

Cha. Good-morrow to your worship.

1 Villain here means, a wicked or bloody man. of low extraction.

But in this place Orlando uses it for a fellow

should

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