SCENE II.

Rom. This Gentleman, the Prince's near allie,
My very friend, hath got his mortal hurt
In my behalf; my reputation ftain'd
With Tybalt's flander; Tybait, that an hour
Hath been my coufin. O fweet Juliet,
Thy beauty hath made me effeminate,
And in my temper foftned valour's steel.
Enter Benvolio.

Ben. O Romeo, Romeo, brave Mercutio's dead:
That gallant fpirit hath afpir'd the clouds,
Which too untimely here did fcorn the earth.

Rom. (1) This day's black fate on more days does. depend;

This but begins the woe, others must end.

Enter Tybalt.

Bin. Here comes the furious Tybalt back again. Rom. Alive in Triumph? and Mercutio flain?. Away to heav'n, refpective lenity,

And fire-ey'd fury be my conduct now!

Now, Tybalt, take the villain back again,
That late thou gav'ft me; for Mercutio's foul
Is but a little way above our heads,

Staying for thine to keep him company;

Or thou or I, or both, muft go with him.

Tyb. Thou wretched boy, that didft confort him

here,

Shalt with him hence.

Rom. This fhall determine that.

Ben. Romeo, away. Begone:

[They fight, Tybalt falls

The citizens are up, and Tybalt flain

(1) This day's black fate on more days does depend :]. unhappy destiny bangs over the days yet to come. yet be more mifchief,

Stand not amaz'd. The Prince will doom thee death, If thou art taken. Hence. Begone. Away.

Rom. (2) Oh! I am fortune's fool.

Ren. Why doft thou say?.

SCENE III.

[Exit Romeo.

Enter Citizens.

Cit. Which way ran he that kill'd Mercutio? Tybalt, that murderer, which way ran he? Ben. There lies that Tybalt.

Cit. Up, Sir. Go with me.

I charge thee in the Prince's name, obey.

Enter Prince, Montague, Capulet, their Wives, &c.

Prin. Where are the vile beginners of this fray?
Ben. O noble Prince, I can discover all
Th' unlucky manage of this fatal brawl.
There lies the man, flain by young Romeo,
That flew thy kinfman, brave Mercutio.

La Cap. Tybalt, my coufin ! O my brother's child !-Prince, O-coufinhufband

fpill'd

Of my dear kinfman.

the blood is

Prince, (3) as thou art true,

For blood of ours, fhed blood of Montague.

O! coufin, coufin.

Prin, Benvolia, who began this fray?

Ben. Tybalt, here flain, whom Romeo's hand did

flay;

Romeo, that fpoke him fair, bid him bethink

(4) How nice the quarrel was, and urg'd withal Your high difpleafure, all this uttered

With gentle breath, calm look, knees humbly bow'd,

(2) Qb! I am fortune's fool] I am always running in the way of evil fortune, like the fool in a play. Thou art death's fool: in Meafure for Meafure. See Dr. Warburton's Note

(3) As thou art true,] As thou art juft and upright.

(4) How nice the quarrel

petty. So in the last Act.

How flight, how unimportant, how

The letter was not nice, but full of charge

Of dear import.

Could

Could not take truce with the unruly fpleen
Of Tybalt, deaf to peace; but that he tilts
With piercing steel at bold Mercutio's breast;
Who, all as hot, turns deadly point to point,
And with a martial scorn, with one hand beats
Cold death afide, and with the other fends
It back to Tybalt, whose dexterity
Retorts it. Romeo he cries aloud,

Hold, friends! friends, part! and, fwifter than his tongue, lakod

His agile arm beats down their fatal points,
And 'twixt them rushes ; underneath whofe arm
An envious thrust from Tybalt hit the life
Of ftout Mercutio, and then Tybalt fled;
But by and by comes back to Romeo,
Who had but newly entertain'd revenge,
And to't they go like lightning; for ere I
Could draw to part them, was ftout Tybalt slain;
And as he fell, did Romeo turn to fly.
This is the truth, or let Benvolio die.

L. Cap. He is a kinfman to the Montagues,
(5) Affection makes him falfe, he fpeaks not true.
Some twenty of them fought in this black ftrife,
And all those twenty could but kill one life.

I beg for juftice, which thou, Prince, muft give;
Romeo flew Tybalt, Romeo muft not live.

Prin. Romeo flew him, he flew Mercutio 300
Who now the price of his dear blood doth owe?
La Mont. Not Romeo, Prince, he was Mercutio's
darw friend; whi

His fault concludes but what the law fhould end,
The life of Tybalt.

Prin. And for that offence,
Immediately we do exile him hence:

(5) Affe&ion makes bim falfe,] The charge of falfhood on Bentivalio, though produced at hazard, is very juft. The authour, who feems to intend the character of Bentivolio as good, meant perhaps to thew, how the best minds, in a state of faction and difcord, are defortéd to criminal partiality.

(6) IS

(6) I have an intereft in your heart's proceeding,
My blood for your rude brawls doth lie a bleeding;
But I'll amerce you with fo ftrong a fine,
That you shall all repent the lofs of mine.
I will be deaf to pleading and excufes,

Nor tears nor prayers fhall purchase out abuses;
Therefore ufe none; let Romeo hence in haste,
Elfe, when he's found, that hour is his last.
Bear hence his body, and attend our will:
Mercy but murders, pardoning those that kill.

175

SCENE IV.

[Exeunt

Changes to an Apartment in Capulet's Houfe.
Enter Juliet alone.

Jul. Gallop apace, you fiery-footed steeds,
Tow'rds Phabus' manfion; fuch a waggoner,
As Phaeton, would whip you to the west,
And bring in cloudy night immediately.

(7) Spread thy clofe curtain, love-performing night, That Runaways eyes may wink, and Romeo

ba A

Leap

(6) I bave an intereft in your beart's proceeding,] Sir Thomas Hanmer faw that this line gave no fenfe, and therefore put, by a very eafy change,

Ibave an intereft in your heat's proceeding,

Which is undoubtedly better than the old reading which Dr. Warburton. has followed; but the fenfe yet feems to be weak, and perhaps a more licentious correction is neceffary. Fread therefore,

in

I had no intereft in your heat's proceeding.

This, fays the Prince, is no quarrel of mine, I had no intereft your former difcord; I fuffer merely by your private animo(7) Spread thy

fity.

clofe curtain, love-performing Night,

That runaways eyes may wink] What runaways are these, whofe eyes Juliet is wishing to have ftopt? Macbeth, we may remember, makes an invocation to Night much in the fame ftrain, Come, feeling Night,

Scarf up the tender eye of pitiful day, &c.

Leap to these arms, untalkt of and unfeen.
Lovers can fee to do their am'rous rites
By their own beauties, or, if love be blind,
It beft agrees with night. (8) Come, civil night,
Thou fober-fuited matron, all in black,

And learn me how to lofe a winning match,
Play'd for a pair of stainless maidenheads.

Hood my (9) unmann'd blood baiting in my cheeks, With thy black mantle; 'till ftrange love, grown

bold,

Thinks true love acted, fimple modefty.

Come, night come, Romeo! come, thou day in night!

For thou wilt lie upon the wings of night,
Whiter than fnow upon a raven's back:

So Fuliet would have Night's darkness obfcure the great eye of the day, the Sun; whom confidering in a poetical light as Pbobus, drawn in his carr with fiery-footed steeds, and posting thro' the heavens, the very probably calls him, with regard to the fwiftnefs of his course, the Runaway. In the like manner our Poet fpeaks of the Night in the Merchant of Venice:

For the clofe Night doth play the Runaway.

WARBURTON.

I am not fatisfied with this emendation, yet have nothing better to propofe,

Spread thy clofe curtain love-performing night,

That Run-aways eyes may wink ;-] I am no better fatisfied with Dr. Warburton's emendation than the prefent editor, but tho' I have none I have a good opinion of, to propofe in its room, will yet offer an explanation.

Juliet wishes the night may be fo dark, that none of those who are obliged to run asbay in it, on fome account or other, may meet with Romeo, and know his perfon, but that be may

Leap to ber arms untalk'd of and unfeen.

The run-away in this place cannot be the fun, who must have been effectually gone before night could fpread its curtain, and fuch a wish must have taken place before the eyes of thefe runaways could be fuppofed to wink.

The Revifal reads, That Rumour's eyes may quink, and he might have fupported his conjecture from the figure of Fame, . e. Rumour, as defcribed by Virgil.

Tot vigiles oculi fubter, &c.

And yet this is but a conjecture, though a very ingenious one.

Mr. STEEVENS.

(8) Come, civil night,] Civil is grave, decently folemn.

(9)

man,

unmann'd blood.

-] Blood yet unacquainted with

Come,