Duke. Why, what an intricate impeach is this! If here you housed him, here he would have been, Dro. E. Sir, he dined with her there, at the Por cupine. Cour. He did; and from my finger snatched that ring. Ant. E. "Tis true, my liege, this ring I had of her. Duke. Saw'st thou him enter at the abbey here? Cour. As sure, my liege, as I do see your grace. Duke. Why, this is strange.-Go, call the abbess hither; I think you are all mated,1 or stark mad. [Exit an Attendant. Ege. Most mighty duke, vouchsafe me speak a word; Haply I see a friend will save my life, And pay the sum that may deliver me. Duke. Speak freely, Syracusan, what thou wilt. Ege. Is not your name, sir, called Antipholus? And is not that your bondman Dromio? Dro. E. Within this hour, I was his bondman, sir, But he, I thank him, gnawed in two my cords; Now am I Dromio, and his man, unbound. Ege. I am sure, you both of you remember me. Dro. E. Ourselves, we do remember, sir, by you; For lately we were bound as you are now. You are not Pinch's patient, are you, sir? Ege. Why look you strange on me? You know me well. Ant. E. I never saw you in my life, till now. Ege. Oh! grief hath changed me, since you saw me last; And careful hours, with Time's deformed 2 hand, 1 Confounded. See note on Macbeth, Act v. Sc. 1. 2 Deformed for deforming. Have written strange defeatures in my face: Dro. E. Ay, sir? but I am sure, I do not; and whatsoever a man denies, you lieve him.1 2 are now bound to be Ege. Not know my voice! O, time's extremity! Ant. E. I never saw my father in my life. Ant. E. The duke and all that know me in the city, Can witness with me that it is not so; I ne'er saw Syracusa in my life. Duke. I tell thee, Syracusan, twenty years Have I been patron to Antipholus, During which time he ne'er saw Syracusa. Enter the Abbess, with ANTIPHOLUS Syracusan, and Abb. Most mighty duke, behold a man much wronged. [All gather to see him. 1 Dromio delights in a quibble, and the word bound has before been the subject of his mirth. 2 Furrowed, lined. Adr. I see two husbands, or mine eyes deceive me. Duke. One of these men is genius to the other And so of these. Which is the natural man, And which the spirit? Who deciphers them? Dro. S. I, sir, am Dromio; command him away. Dro. E. I, sir, am Dromio; pray, let me stay. Ant. S. Egeon, art thou not, or else his ghost? Dro. S. O, my old master! who hath bound him here? Abb. Whoever bound him, I will loose his bonds, And gain a husband by his liberty. Speak, old Ægeon, if thou be'st the man Æge. If I dream not, thou art Æmilia;1 Abb. By men of Epidamnum, he, and I, Duke. Why, here begins his morning story right. Ant. S. No, sir, not I; I came from Syracuse. Duke. Stay, stand apart; I know not which is which. In the old copy, this speech of Ægeon, and the subsequent one of the abbess, follow the speech of the duke. It is evident that they were transposed by mistake. 2 The morning story" is what Ægeon tells the duke in the first scene of this play. Ant. E. I came from Corinth, my most gracious lord. Dro. E. And I with him. Ant. E. Brought to this town by that most famous warrior Duke Menaphon, your most renowned uncle. Adr. Which of you two did dine with me to-day? Ant. S. I, gentle mistress. Adr. And are not you my husband? Ant. E. No, I say nay to that. Ant. S. And so do I, yet did she call me so; Ang. That is the chain, sir, which you had of me. Ant. E. And you, sir, for this chain arrested me. Adr. I sent you money, sir, to be your bail, Ant. S. This purse of ducats I received from you, And Dromio my man did bring them me. I see, we still did meet each other's man, Ant. E. These ducats pawn I for my father here. Abb. Renowned duke, vouchsafe to take the pains To go with us into the abbey here, And hear at large discoursed all our fortunes. My heavy burden here delivered.1 The duke, my husband, and my children both, Go to a gossip's feast, and go with me; Duke. With all my heart, I'll gossip at this feast. [Exeunt Duke, Abbess, ÆGEON, Courtesan, Merchant, ANGELO, and Attendants. Dro. S. Master, shall I fetch your stuff from shipboard? Ant. E. Dromio, what stuff of mine hast thou embarked? Dro. S. Your goods, that lay at host, sir, in the Centaur. Ant. S. He speaks to me; I am your master, Dromio; Come, go with us; we'll look to that anon. Embrace thy brother there, rejoice with him. [Exeunt ANT. S. and ANT. E., ADR. and Luc. Dro. S. There is a fat friend at your master's house, That kitchened me for you to-day at dinner; She now shall be my sister, not my wife. Dro. E. Methinks you are my glass, and not my brother: I see by you, I am a sweet-faced youth. 1 The old copy reads, erroneously, thus:— "Thirty-three years have I but gone in travail Theobald corrected it in the following manner:— Malone, after much argument, gives it thus:— "Of you, my sons; until this present hour Thirty-three years are an evident error for twenty-five; this was corrected by Theobald. The reader will choose between the simple emendation in the text, and those made by Theobald and Malone. 2 i. e. the two Dromioes. Antipholus of Syracuse has already called one of them "the almanac of my true date." See note on Act i. Sc. 2. 3 Heath thought that we should read, " and joy with me." Warburton proposed gaud, but the old reading is probably right. |