LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST. ACT I. SCENE I. Navarre. A Park with a Palace in it. Enter the KING, BIRON, LONGAVILLE, and King. LET fame, that all hunt after in their lives, Live register'd upon our brazen tombs, And then grace us in the disgrace of death; The endeavour of this present breath may buy That honour, which shall bate his scythe's keen edge, And make us heirs of all eternity. Therefore, brave conquerors!—for so you are, And the huge army of the world's desires, - You three, Biron,' Dumain, and Longaville, In the old copies this name is, uniformly spelt Berowne, thus giving the proper pronunciation of the French Biron. Of course the verse requires that the accent be on the last syllable. H. That are recorded in this schedule here: Your oaths are past, and now subscribe your names; If you are arm'd to do, as sworn to do, Lon. I am resolv'd: 'tis but a three years' fast; Bir. I can but say their protestation over; study — fast - not sleep. ? It evidently refers, not to oaths, but to the preceding clause keep your subscription, or what you have sworn. So that the changing of oaths into oath, or of it into them, is quite unneces sary. H. King. Your oath is pass'd to pass away from these. Bir. Let me say no, my liege, an if you please; I only swore to study with your grace, And stay here in your court for three years' space. Lon. You swore to that, Biron, and to the rest. Bir. By yea and nay, sir, then I swore in jest. What is the end of study? let me know. King. Why, that to know, which else we should not know. Bir. Things hid and barr'd, you mean, from common sense ? King. Ay, that is study's god-like recompense. Study knows that which yet it doth not know: King. These be the stops that hinder study quite, And train our intellects to vain delight. Bir. Why, all delights are vain; but that most vain, Which, with pain purchas'd, doth inherit pain: To seek the light of truth: while truth the while 3 Light, seeking light, doth light of light beguile : Dishonestly, treacherously. So, ere you find where light in darkness lies, Who dazzling so, that eye shall be his heed, That will not be deep-search'd with saucy looks : Have no more profit of their shining nights, King. How well he's read, to reason against Dum. Proceeded well, to stop all good proceed ing!" Lon. He weeds the corn, and still lets grow the weeding. Bir. The spring is near, when green geese are a-breeding. Dum. How follows that? Bir. Fit in his place and time. Dum. In reason nothing. Something then in rhyme King. Biron is like an envious sneaping frost, That bites the first-born infants of the spring. The meaning is, that when his eye is dazzled, or made weak by fixing it upon a fairer eye, the latter shall be his heed or guide his lode-star, and give light to him that was blinded by it. Proceed was an academical term for taking a degree; as, to proceed master of arts. H. That is, nipping. In The Winter's Tale, Act i. sc. 1, we have sneaping winds. To sneap is also to check, to rebuke. Bir. Well, say I am: why should proud sunimer boast, Before the birds have any cause to sing? Than wish a snow in May's new-fangled shows; So you, to study now it is too late, Climb o'er the house to unlock the little gate. 7 King. Well, sit you out: go home, Biron; adieu! Bir. No, my good lord; I have sworn to stay with you: And, though I have for barbarism spoke more, Bir. [Reads.] "Item, That no woman shall come within a mile of my court,". Hath this been pro claimed? Lon. Four days ago. Bir. Let's see the penalty. [Reads.] "-on pai Who devis'd this penalty? of losing her tongue." Lon. Marry, that did I. Bir. Sweet lord, and why? Lon. To fright them thence with that dread penalty. Bir. A dangerous law against gentility. [Reads.] By these shows the Poet means May-games, at which a snow would be very unwelcome and unexpected. 8 That is, politeness, civility; referring to the influence of woman in bringing or keeping man out of barbarism and brutality. H |