No note at all of our being absent hence; [A tucket sounds. Lor. Your husband is at hand, I hear his trumpet: We are no tell-tales, madam; fear you not. Por. This night, methinks, is but the daylight sick, It looks a little paler; 'tis a day, Such as the day is when the sun is hid. Enter BASSANIO, ANTONIO, GRATIANO, and their Followers. Bass. We should hold day with the Antipodes, If you would walk in absence of the sun. Por. Let me give light, but let me not be light; For a light wife doth make a heavy husband, And never be Bassanio so for me; But God sort all! - You are welcome home, my lord. Bass. I thank you, madam: give welcome to my friend. This is the man, this is Antonio, To whom I am so infinitely bound. Por. You should in all sense be much bound to him, For, as I hear, he was much bound for you. Ant. No more than I am well acquitted of. Por. Sir, you are very welcome to our house: It must appear in other ways than words, Therefore, I scant this breathing courtesy.1 [GRATIANO and NERISSA seem to talk apart. Gra. By yonder moon, I swear, you do me wrong; In faith, I gave it to the judge's clerk: Would he were gelt that had it, for my part, Since you do take it, love, so much at heart. 8 A tucket-] Toccata, Ital. a flourish on a trumpet. 9 Let me give light, &c.] There is scarcely any word with which Shakspeare so much delights to trifle as with light, in its various significations. JOHNSON. 1 this breathing courtesy.] This verbal complimentary form, made up only of breath, i. e. words. Por. A quarrel, ho, already? what's the matter? Ner. What talk you of the posy, or the value? The clerk will ne'er wear hair on his face, that had it. Ner. Ay, if a woman live to be a man. Gra. Now, by this hand, I gave it to a youth, A kind of boy; a little scrubbed boy, I could not for my heart deny it him. Por. You were to blame, I must be plain with you, Bass. Why, I were best to cut my left hand off, [Aside. 2 · like cutler's poetry-] Knives, as Sir J. Hawkins observes, were formerly inscribed, by means of aqua fortis, with short sentences in distich. For posy, Mr. Malone reads poesy, in his last edition, but not in his first. Gra. My lord Bassanio gave his ring away Unto the judge that begg'd it, and, indeed, Deserv'd it too; and then the boy, his clerk, That took some pains in writing, he begg'd mine: And neither man, nor master, would take aught But the two rings. Por. What ring gave you, my lord? Not that, I hope, which you receiv'd of me. Bass. If I could add a lie unto a fault, I would deny it; but you see my finger Hath not the ring upon it, it is gone. Por. Even so void is your false heart of truth. By heaven, I will ne'er come in your bed Until I see the ring. Ner. Till I again see mine. Bass. Nor I in yours, Sweet Portia, If you did know to whom I gave the ring, When naught would be accepted but the ring, Or your own honour to contain the ring, I'll die for't, but some woman had the ring. Bass. No, by mine honour, madam, by my soul, No woman had it, but a civil doctor, Which did refuse three thousand ducats of me, And begg'd the ring; the which I did deny him, And suffer'd him to go displeas'd away; Even he that had held up the very life Of my dear friend. What should I say, sweet lady? So much besmear it: Pardon me, good lady; Had you been there, I think, you would have begg'd Por. Let not that doctor e'er come near my house: Since he hath got the jewel that I lov'd, And that which you did swear to keep for me, I will become as liberal as you; I'll not deny him any thing I have, No, not my body, nor my husband's bed: Lie not a night from home; watch me like Argus ; Now, by mine honour, which is yet mine own, Ner. And I his clerk; therefore be well advis'd, Gra. Well, do you so: let not me take him then; For, if I do, I'll mar the young clerk's pen. Ant. I am the unhappy subject of these quarrels. Por. Sir, grieve not you; You are welcome notwithstanding. Bass. Portia, forgive me this enforced wrong; And in the hearing of these many friends, I swear to thee, even by thine own fair eyes, Wherein I see myself, Por. Mark you but that! In both my eyes he doubly sees himself: In each eye one: -swear by your double self3, Bass. Nay, but hear me : 3swear by your double self,] Double is here used in a bad sense for -full of duplicity. Pardon this fault, and by my soul I swear Had quite miscarried: I dare be bound again, Por. Then you shall be his surety: Give him this; And bid him keep it better than the other. Ant. Here, lord Bassanio; swear to keep this ring. Bass. By heaven, it is the same I gave the doctor! Por. I had it of him: pardon me, Bassanio; For by this ring the doctor lay with me. Ner. And pardon me, my gentle Gratiano; For that same scrubbed boy, the doctor's clerk, In lieu of this, last night did lie with me. Gra. Why, this is like the mending of high-ways In summer, where the ways are fair enough: What! are we cuckolds, ere we have deserv'd it? Por. Speak not so grossly. grossly. You are all amaz'd: Here is a letter, read it at your leisure; It comes from Padua, from Bellario: There you shall find, that Portia was the doctor; Shall witness, I set forth as soon as you, And but even now returned; I have not yet you, Than you expect: unseal this letter soon; 4 – for his wealth ;] For his advantage; to obtain his happiness. Wealth was, at that time, the term opposite to adversity, or cala mity. |