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Bora. Sir, I say to you, we are none. To. Cl. Well, stand aside; 'fore God, they are both in a tale; have you writ down, that they are none? Sexton. Master town-clerk, you go not the way to examine, you must call the watch that are their accusers. (20) To. Cl. Yea, marry, that's the deftest way, let the Watch come forth; masters, I charge you in the Prince's name accuse these men.

Enter Watchmen.

1 Watch. This man faid, Sir, that Don John the Prince's brother was a villain.

To. Cl. Write down, Prince John a villain; why this is flat perjury, to call a Prince's brother villain. Bora. Master town-clerk,

To. Cl. Pray thee, fellow, peace; I do not like thy look, I promise thee.

Sexton. What heard you him say else?

2 Watch. Marry, that he had received a thousand ducats of Don John, for accusing the lady Hero wrong. fully.

10. Cl. Flat burglary, as ever was committed.
Dogb. Yea, by th' mass, that it is.

Sexton. What else, fellow?

I Watch. And that Count Claudio did mean, upon his words, to disgrace hero before the whole assembly, and not marry her.

(20) To. Cl. Yea, marry, that's the easiest way, let the Watch come forth.] This, eafieft, is a sophistication of our modern editors, who were • at a loss to make out the corrupted reading of the old copies. The Quarto, in 1600, and the first and second editions in Folio all concur in reading;

Yea, marry, that's the eftest way, &c.

A letter happened to flip out at press in the first edition; and 'twas too hard a tafk for the subsequent editors to put it in, or guess at the word under this accidental deprivation. There is no doubt, but the author wrote, as I have restor'd the text;

Yea, marry, that's the deftest way, &c.

i, e. the readiest, most commodious way. The word is pure Saxon. Deaflice, debite, congrue, duely, fitly. Fredæftlice, opportune, commode, fitly, conveniently, seasonably, in good time, commodioufly. Vid. Spelman's Saxon Gloss.

To. Cl. To. Cl. O villain! thou wilt be condemn'd into ever

lafting redemption for this. Sexton. What else?

2 Watch. This is all.

Sexton. And this is more, masters, than you can deny. Prince John is this morning secretly stol'n away: Hero was in this manner accus'd, and in this very manner refus'd, and upon the grief of this fuddenly dy'd. Master Constable, let these men be bound and brought to Leonato; I will go before, and shew him their examination. [Exit. Dogb. Come, let them be opinion'd.

(21) Conr. Let them be in the hands of Coxcomb! Dogb. God's my life, where's the Sexton? let him write down the Prince's officer Coxcomb: come, bind them, thou naughty varlet.

Conr. Away! you are an ass, you are an afs.

Dogb. Doft thou not suspect my place? dost thou not suspect my years? O that he were here to write me down an afs! but, masters, remember, that I am an ass; though it be not written down, yet forget not that I am an ass; no, thou villain, thou art full of piety, as shall be prov'd upon thee by good witness, I am a wife fellow, and which is more, an officer; and which is more, an houfholder; and which is more, as pretty a piece of flesh as any in Messina, and one that knows the law; go to, and a rich fellow enough; go to, and a fellow that hath had loffes; and one that hath two gowns, and every thing handsome about him! bring him away; O that I had been writ down an ass ! [Exeunt.

(21) Sexton. Let them be in the hands of Coxcomb.] The generality of the editions place this line to the Sexton. But, why he should be pert upon his brother-officers, there seems no reason from any superior qualifications in him; or any fufpicion he shews of knowing their ignorance. The old Quarto gave me the first umbrage for placing it to Conrade; and common sense vouches that it ought to come from one of the prisoners, in contempt of the defpicable wretches who had them in custody.

ACT

I

[blocks in formation]

SCENE, before Leonato's House.

Enter Leonato and Antonio.

ANTONIO.

F you go on thus, you will kill yourself;
And 'tis not wisdom thus to fecond grief

Against yourself.

Leon. I pray thee, cease thy counsel,
Which falls into mine ears as profitless
As water in a fieve; give not me counsel,
Nor let no Comforter delight mine ear,
But such a one whose wrongs do fuit with mine.
Bring me a father, that so lov'd his child,
Whose joy of her is overwhelm'd like mine,
And bid him speak of patience;

Measure his woe the length and breadth of mine,
And let it

int it amwer every itrain for itrain :
As thus for thus, and such a grief for fuch,
In every lineament, branch, shape and form;
If such a one will smile and stroke his beard, (22)

(22) If fuch a one will smile, and ftroke his beard,

And

And hallow, wag, cry bem, when be should groan.] Mr. Roque is the first authority that I can find for this reading. But what is the intention, or how are we to expound it? " If a man will balloo, and "whoop, and fidget, and wriggle about, to shew a pleasure when he "should groan, ,&c. This does not give much decorum to the fentiment. The old Quarto, and the 1st and 2d Folio editions all read,

And forrow, wagge, cry bem, &c.

We don't, indeed, get much by this reading; tho', I flatter myself, by a flight alteration it has led me to the true one,

And forrow wage; cry, bem! when he flould groan; i. e. If such a one will combat with, strive against forrow, &c. Nor is this word infrequent with our author in these significations.

So, in his Lear;

To wage; against the enmity o'th' air,

Neceffity's ftrong pinch.

SO

And Sorrow wage; cry, hem! when he should groan;
Patch grief with proverbs; make misfortune drunk
With candle-waisters; bring him yet to me,
And I of him will gather patience,

But there is no such man; for, brother, men
Can counsel, and give comfort to that grief
Which they themselves not feel; but tasting it,
Their counsel turns to passion, which before
Would give preceptial medicine to rage;
Fetter ftrong madness in a filken thread,
Charm ach with air, and agony with words.
No, no; 'tis all mens office to speak patience (23)
To those, that wring under the load of forrow;
But no man's virtue, nor fufiiciency,

To be so moral, when he shall endure

So, in Otbello;

Neglecting an attempt of ease and gain,
To wake and wage a danger profitless.

And in the ist i enr. IV,

I fear the pow'r of Percy is too weak
To wage an instant tryal with the king.
(23) No, no; tis all men's office to speak patience
To those, that wring under the load of forrow;
Eut no man's virtue, nor Sufficiency,
To be so moral, when be shall endure

The like himself.] Patience under misfortunes easier advis'd, than maintain'd, is one of the topics of Shakespeare, for which Mr. Gildon told us, he had met with no parallels among the ancients: And this obfervation is particularly directed to the passage now before us. A man of fo much reading must certainly be betray'd by his memory in this point: For I have long ago observ'd no less than five passages, all which feem to be a very reasonable foundation for our author's fentiments on this subject.

Facile omnes, quum valemus, recta Confilia ægrotis damus;

Tu fi bic fis, aliter fentias.

Επαφρὸν ὅτις σημάτων έξω πόδα
Έχει, παραινεῖν, νεθετεῖν τε τοὺς κακῶς

Πράσσοντας.

̓́Αλλῳ πινέντι ράδιον παραινέσαι
Ἔσιν, ποιήται δ ̓ αὐτὸν ἐὐχὶ ῥάδιον.
*Απανθες ἐσμὲν εἰς τὸ νεθετεῖν σοφοί,
̓Αυτοὶ δ ̓ ἁμαρτάνοντες ·· γινώσκομεν.
Ράιν σαραινεῖν ἢ παθόντα καρτερεῖν.

Terent.

Æfcbyl.

Philem.

Eurip.
Idem.

The

The like himself; therefore give me no counsel;
My griefs cry louder than advertisement.

Ant. Therein do men from children nothing differ.
Leon. I pray thee, peace; I will be flesh and blood;

For there was never yet philosopher,
That could endure the tooth-ach patiently;
However they have writ the style of Gods,
And made a pish at chance and sufferance.

Ant. Yet bend not all the harm upon yourself:

Make those, that do offend you, fuffer too.

Leon. There thou speak'st reason; nay, I will do se. My foul doth tell me, Hero is bely'd; And that shall Claudio know, so shall the Prince; And all of them, that thus dishonour her.

Enter Don Pedro, nnd Claudio.

Ant. Here comes the Prince and Claudio hastily.
Pedro. Good den, good den.

Claud. Good-day to both of you.

Leon. Hear you, my lords ?

Pedro. We have fome haste, Leonato.

Leon. Some hafte, my lord! well, fare you well, my lord.

Are you to hasty now? well, all is one.

Pedro. Nay, do not quarrel with us, good old man. Ant. If he could right himself with quarrelling,

Some of us would lye low.

Claud. Who wrongs him?

Leon. Marry, thou dost wrong me, thou dissembler, thou!

Nay, never lay thy hand upon thy fword,
I fear thee not.

Claud. Marry, beshrew my hand,

If it should give your age such cause of fear;
In faith, my hand meant nothing to my fword.

Leon. Tush, tush, man, never fleer and jest at me;

I fpeak not like a dotard nor a fool;
As, under privilege of age, to brag

What I have done being young, or what would do,
Were I not old: know, Claudio, to thy head,
Thou hast so wrong'd my innocent child and me,

That I am forc'd to lay my reverence by;

And,

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