You would for paradise break faith and troth: [To Long. I would not have him know so much by me. King. Too bitter is thy jest. Are we betray'd thus to thy over-view? Biron. Not you by me, but I betray'd to you: King. Soft; Whither away so fast? Jaq. God bless the king! Cost. Nay, it makes nothing, sir. 15) 20 25 30 135 40 45 Biron. A toy, my liege, a toy; your grace needs not fear it. [fore let's hear it. Long. It did move him to passion, and thereDum. It is Biron's writing, and here is his name. Biron. Ah, you whoreson loggerhead, you were born to do me shame. [To Costard. Guilty, my lord, guilty; I confess, I confess. King. What? Biron. That you three fools lack'd me fool to He, he, and you, and you, my liege, and I, Biron. True, true; we are four :- King. Hence, sirs; away. Cost. Walk aside the true folk, and let the trai tors stay. [Exeunt Costard & Jaqueneita. Biron. Sweet lords, sweet lovers, O let us em brace! As true we are, as flesh and blood can be: The sea will ebb & flow,heaven will shew his face; Young blood doth not obey an old decree: We cannot cross the cause why we were born; Therefore, of all hands must we be forsworn. King. What, did these rent lines shew some love of thine? Biron. Did they, quoth you? Who sees the heavenly Rosaline, That, like a rude and savage man of Inde, At the first opening of the gorgeous east, Bows not his vassal head; and, strucken blind, Kisses the base ground with obedient breast? What peremptory eagle-sighted eye Dares look upon the heaven of her brow, That is not blinded by her majesty? [now? King. What zeal, what fury, hath inspir'd thee 50My love, my mistress, is a gracious moon; 155 She, an attending star, scarce seen a light. Biron. My eyes are then no eyes, nor I Biron: O, but for my love, day would turn to night! Of all complexions the cull'd sovereignty Do meet, as at a fair, in her fair cheek; Where several worthies make one dignity; [seek. Where nothing wants, that want itself doth To leap means in this place to exult. 2 Some critics have conjectured, that Shakspeare here alludes to the Knott, a Lincolnshire bird of the snipe kind, which, from the easiness with which it was ensnared, was deemed foolish even to a proverb. Mr. Steevens, however, thinks that our author alludes to a true lover's knot; meaning, that the king remained so long in the lover's posture, that he seemed actually transformed into a knot. Critic and critical are often used by Shakspeare in the same sense as cynic and cynical. A bird is said to prune himself when he picks and sleeks his feathers. Lend Lend me the flourish of all gentle tongues Fye, painted rhetorick! O, she needs it not: To things of sale a seller's praise belongs; [blot. She passes praise; then praise too short doth A wither'd hermit, fivescore winters worn, Might shake off fifty, looking in her eye: And gives the crutch the cradle's infancy. That I may swear, Beauty doth beauty lack, No face is fair, that is not full so black. King. O paradox! Black is the badge of hell, Dum. Ay, marry, there;-some flattery for this Biron. O, 'tis more than need!- The hue of dungeons, and the scowl of night; And beauty's crest' becomes the heavens well. Biron. Devils soonest tempt, resembling spirits 20 O, if in black my lady's brow be deckt, [of light. It mourns, that painting, and usurping hair, Should ravish doters with a false aspect; And therefore is she born to make black fair. Her favour turns the fashion of the days; For native blood is counted painting now: And therefore red, that would avoid dispraise, Paints itself black, to imitate her brow. Dum. To look like her, are chimney-sweepers black. [bright. 30 Long. And, since her time, are colliers counted King. And Ethiops of their sweet complexion crack. [light. And where that you have vow'd to study, lords, Dum. Dark needs no candles now, for dark is I'll find a fairer face not wash'd to-day. The street should see as she walk'd overhead. King. But what of this? Are we not all in love? Biron. Nothing so sure; and thereby all forsworn. King. Then leave this chat; and, good Biron, now prove Our loving lawful, and our faith not torn. 50 1 In heraldry, a crest is a device placed above a coat of arms. Shakspeare therefore uses it here in a sense equivalent to top or utmost height. Dr. Warburton says, that quillet is the peculiar word applied to law-chicane, and imagines the original to be this: In the French pleadings, every several allegation in the plaintiff's charge, and every distinct plea in the defendant's answer, began with the words qu'il est ;-from whence was formed the word quillet, to signify a false charge or an evasive answer. 3 That is, ye soldiers of affection. In the old system of physic they gave the same office to the arteries as is now given to the nerves. Alluding to the discoveries in modern astronomy, at that time greatly improving, in which the ladies' eyes are compared, as usual, to stars. That is, a lover in pursuit of his mistress has his sense of hearing quicker than a thief (who suspects every sound he hears) in pursuit of his prey. 4 M 2 Love's [taste; Love's tongue proves dainty Bacchus gross in From women's eves this doctrine I derive : And who can sever love from charity? King. Saint Cupid, then! and, soldiers, to the field! [them, lords; Biron. Advance your standards, and upon 5 Pell-mell, down with them! but be first advis`d, In conflict that you get the sun of them. [by: Long. Now to plain-dealing; lay these glozes Shail we resolve to woo these girls of France? King. And win them too: therefore let us devise 10Some entertainment for them in their tents. Biron. First, from the park let us conduct Then, homeward, every man attach the hand 20 ACT V. SCENE I. The Street. Enter Holofernes, Nathaniel, and Dull. Hol. ATIS quod sufficit. SATIS 135) Nath. A most singular and choice epithet. [Draws out his table-book. Hol. He draweth out the thread of his verbosity finer than the staple of his argument. I abhor such phanatical phantasms, such insociable and pointNat. I praise God for you, sir: your 40 devise companions; such rackers of orthography, reasons' at dinner have been sharp and sententi- as to speak, dout, fine, when he should say, doubt; ous; pleasant without scurrility, witty without affec- det, when he should pronounce, debt; d, e, b, t; tion,audacious' without impudency, learned with- not d, e, t: he clepeth a calf, cauf; half, hauf; out opinion, and strange without heresy. I did neighbour, cocatur, nebour; neigh, abbreviated, converse this quondam day with a companion of 45 ne: This is abhominable. (which he would call the king's, who is intituled, nominated, or called, abominable) it insinuateth me of insanie: Ne in Don Adriano de Armado. telligis, domine? to make frantick, lunatick? Hol. Novi hominem tanquam te: His humour is lofty, his discourse peremptory, histongue filed,| his eye ambitious, his gait majestical, and his gene-50 ral behaviour vain, ridiculous, and thrasonical. He is too picked", too spruce, too affected, too odd, as it were; too peregrinate, as may call it. Nath. Laus deo, bone intelligo. Hol. Bone?- -bone, for bene: Priscian a little scratch'd; 'twill serve. Enter Armado, Moth, and Costard. Hol. Video & gaudeo. 3 Apollo, as the sun, is represented with golden hair; so that a lute strung with his hair means no more than strung with gilded wire. 2 This passage has been very fully canvassed by all the various commentators upon our author: the following explanation, however, strikes us as the most simple and intelligible: "When love speaks, (says Biron) the assembled gods reduce the elements of the sky to a calm, by their harmonious applauses of this favoured orator." This proverbial expression intimates that, beginning with perjury, they can expect to reap nothing but falshood. That is, enough's as good as a feast. Reason here, as in other passages of our author's plays, signifies discourse. That is, without affectation. Audacious is used for spirited, animated; and opinion imports the same with obstinacy or opiniutreté. Meaning, too nicely dressed; alluding probably to a bird picking out or raning its feathers; a metaphor which our author has before used in this play. Arm Arm. Chirra! Hol. Quare Chirra, not sirrah? Arm. Men of peace, well encounter'd. Hol. Most military, sir, salutation. Moth. They have been at a great feast of lan- 5 guages, and stolen the scraps. [To Costard aside. Cost. O, they have liv'd long on the alms-basket of words'! I marvel, thy master hath not eaten thee for a word; for thou art not so long by the head as honorificabilitudinitatibus: thou art easier swa-10 lowed than a flap-dragon'. Moth. Peace, the peal begins. Arm. Monsieur, are you not letter'd? oon: the word is well cull'd, chose: sweet and apt, I do assure you, sir, I do assure. Arm. Sir, the king is a noble gentleman; and my familiar, I do assure you, very good friend:For what is inward between us, let it pass:-I do beseech thee, rememberthy courtesy; I beseech hee, apparel thy head:—and among other importunate and most serious designs,and of great import indeed, too;--but let that pass:--for I must tell thee, it will please his grace (by the world) sometime to lean upon my poor shoulder; and with his royal finger, thus, dally with my excrement, with my mustachio; but, sweet heart, let that pass. By the world, I recount no fable: some certain special honours it pleaseth his greatness to impart to Armado a soldier, a man of travel, that hath seen the world: but let that pass.-The very all of all is,-but, sweet heart, I do implore secresy,-that the king would have me present 20the princess, sweet chuck, with some delightful Jostentation, or show, or pageant, or antick,or fire Moth. Yes, yes; he teaches boys the horn-book: What is a, b, spelt backward, with a horn on his 15 head? Hol. Ba, pueritia, with a horn added. Moth. Ba, most silly sheep, with a horn:-You hear his learning. Hol. Quis, quis, thou consonant? Moth. The third of the five vowels, if you repeat them; or the fifth, if I. Hol. I will repeat them, a, e, i.— Moth. The sheep: the other two concludes it; o, u'. Arm. Now, by the salt water of the Mediterra-nean, a sweet touch, a quick venew* of wit: snip, snap, quick and home; it rejoiceth my intellect: true wit. 25 Cost. An I had but one penny in the world, thou shouldst have it to buy ginger-bread: hold, there is 40 the very remuneration I had of thy master, thou half-penny purse of wit, thou pigeon-egg of discretion. O, an the heavens were so pleased, that thou wert but my bastard! what a joyful father wouldst thou make me? Go to; thou hast it ad dunghill, 45 at the fingers' ends, as they say. Hol. Oh, I smell false Latin; dunghill for unguem. Arm. Arts-man, præambula; we will be singled Arm At your sweet pleasure, for the mountain Arm. Sir, it is the king's most sweet pleasure and 55 affection, to congratulate the princess at her pavilion, in the posteriors of this day; which the rude multitude call the afternoon. work. Now understanding that the curate, and your sweet self, are good at such eruptions, and sudden breakings out of mirth, as it were, I have acquainted you withal, to the end to crave your assistance. Hol. Sir, you shall present before her the nine worthies.-Sir Nathaniel, as concerning some entertainment of time, some show in the posterior of this day, to be render'd by our assistance,―atthe king's command; and this most gallant, illustrate, and learned gentleman,-before the princess; I say, none so fit as to present the nine worthies. Nach. Where will you find men worthy enough to present them? Hol. Joshua, yourself; myself, or this gallant gentleman, Judas Maccabæus; this swain, because of his great limb or joint, shall pass Pompey the great; the page, Hercules. Arm. Pardon, sir, error; he is not quantity enough for that worthy's thumb: he is not so big as the end of his club. Hol. Shall I have audience? he shall present Hercules in minority: his enter and exit shall be strangling a snake; and I will have an apology for that purpose. Moth. An excellent device! so if any of the audience hiss, you may cry, Well done, Hercules! now thou crushest the snake! that is the way to make an offence gracious; though few have the grace to do it. Arm. For the rest of the worthies? Arm. We will have, if this fadge' not, an antick. Hol. Via, goodman Dull! thou hast spoken no Hol. The posterior of the day, most generous sir, is liable, congruent, and measurable for the after-60 word all this while. 3 That is, the very offal, or refuse of words. 2 A flap-dragon is a small inflammable substance, which topers swallow in a glass of wine. By o, u, Moth would mean-Oh, you—i. e. You are the sheep still, either way; no matter which of us repeats them. A venew is the technical term at the fencing school for a bout. Mr. Steevens supposes the charge-house to mean the free-school, Meaning, his beard. That is, suit not. An Italian exclamation, signifying Courage! come on! Dull. [part, Prin. Sweet hearts, we shall be rich ere we de- Ros. Madam, came nothing else along with that? Ros. That was the way to make his god-head wax'; Kath. Ay, and a shrewd unhappy gallows too. Kath. He made her melancholy, sad, and heavy;] Mar. This, and these pearls, to me sent LongaThe letter is too long by half a mile. [so. Prin. I think no less; Dost thou not wish in heart, Kath. A light condition in a beauty dark. [out. Ros. We need more light to find your meaning Kath. You'llmar the light, by taking it in snuff2:35 Therefore I'll darkly end the argument. Ros. Look what you do, you do it still i' the dark. Kath. So do not you, for you are a light wench. Ros. Indeed, I weigh not you; and therefore light. Kath. You weigh me not,-O, that's, you care 40 not for me. Ros. Great reason; for, Past cure is still past care. Ros. I would, you knew: The numbers true; and, were the numb'ring too, I am compar'd to twenty thousand fairs. O, he hath drawn my picture in his letter! Ros. The blood of youth burns not with such Prin. Here comes Boyet, and mirth is in his face. Boyet. Prepare, madam, prepare! 50 Muster your wits; stand in your own defence; Ros. Much, in the letters; nothing in the praise. 55 stole into a neighbour thicket by, Prin. Beauteous as ink: a good conclusion. Kath. Fair as a text B in a copy-book. 1 4 2 And overheard what you shall overhear; To wir here signifies to grow. Snuff is here used equivocally for anger, and the snuff of a candle. "Meaning "'Ware painting." Alluding, perhaps, to the pits in her face, occasioned by the smallpox. This expression probably alludes to the practice of hiring servants or artificers by the week; and the meaning of the passage may be, I wish I was as sure of his service for any time limited, as if I had hired him. 'See note 4, p. 87, in Measure for Measure. The meaning is, I would be his fate or destiny, and like a portent, hang over and influence his fortunes. For portents were not only thought to forebode, but to influence. |