brain awe a man from the career of his humour? No, the world must be peopled. When I said I would die a bachelor, I did not think I should live till I were married. Here comes Beatrice. By this day! she's a fair lady: I do spy some marks of love in her. Enter BEATRICE BEAT. Against my will I am sent to bid you come in to dinner. BENE. Fair Beatrice, I thank you for your pains. BEAT. I took no more pains for those thanks than you take pains to thank me: if it had been painful, I would not have come. BENE. You take pleasure, then, in the message? BEAT. Yea, just so much as you may take upon a knife's point, and choke a daw withal. You have no stomach, signior: fare you well. [Exit. BENE. Ha! " Against my will I am sent to bid you come in to dinner; " there's a double meaning in that. "I took no more pains for those thanks than you took pains to thank me;" that's as much as to say, Any pains that I take for you is as easy as thanks. If I do not take pity of her, I am a villain; if I do not love her, I am a Jew. I will go get her picture. 223 230 [Exit. 240 239-240 I am a Jen] Cf. 1 Hen. IV, II, iv, 172: “Or I am a Jew else." HERO ACT THIRD-SCENE I LEONATO'S ORCHARD Enter HERO, MARGARET, and URSULA WOOD MARGARET, RUN There shalt thou find my cousin -TAIKING 'Proposing with the prince and Claudio: Whisper her ear, and tell her, I and Ursula Walk in the orchard, and our whole discourse Is all of her; say that thou overheard'st us; And bid her steal into the pleached bower, Where honeysuckles, ripen'd by the sun, 3 proposing] talking. Cf. line 12, infra, where " propose" is the substantive and means "talk." MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING ACT III Made proud by princes, that advance their pride MARG. I'll make her come, I warrant you, presently. To praise him more than ever man did merit: Is sick in love with Beatrice. Of this matter Enter BEATRICE, behind Now begin; For look where Beatrice, like a lapwing, runs 7 pleached twined about, or plaited with boughs. Cf. I, ii, 8, supra, "thick-pleached alley." 12 propose] This is the Quarto reading. The Folios substitute "purpose.' See note on line 3, supra. 24 lapwing] the female green plover, also called "peewit," which has the habit of flying with much fluttering of wings near the ground. Is couched in the woodbine coverture. HERO. Then go we near her, that her ear lose nothing Of the false sweet bait that we lay for it. [Approaching the bower. No, truly, Ursula, she is too disdainful; URS. But are you sure That Benedick loves Beatrice so entirely? HERO. So says the prince and my new-trothed lord. URS. And did they bid you tell her of it, madam? HERO. They did entreat me to acquaint her of it; But I persuaded them, if they loved Benedick, To wish him wrestle with affection, And never to let Beatrice know of it. URS. Why did you so? Doth not the gentleman Deserve as full as fortunate a bed As ever Beatrice shall couch upon? HERO. O god of love! I know he doth deserve. All matter else seems weak: she cannot love, 55 project] idea, notion. 30 40 50 URS. Sure, I think so; And therefore certainly it were not good She knew his love, lest she make sport at it. HERO. Why, you speak truth. I never yet saw man, If speaking, why, a vane blown with all winds; URS. Sure, sure, such carping is not commendable. As Beatrice is, cannot be commendable: But who dare tell her so? If I should speak, 61 spell him backward] speak ill of him, turn him "the wrong side out”; cf. line 68, infra. Ralegh and his friends, who were suspected of irreligion, were charged with teaching young men among other things "to spell God backwards" (Robert Parsons' Advertisement, 1592, p. 18). Witches' incantations were formed of familiar words spelt backwards. 63 antique] grotesque figure. This is the Quarto reading. The Folio reads anticke, and modern editors antic. 65 If low, an agate . . . cut] If short of stature, the man is likened to one of the miniature heads with which agate stones in rings or brooches were frequently cut or engraved. Cf. 2 Hen. IV, I, ii, 16: "I was never manned with an agate till now." 60 70 |