Claud. Sweet Hero! now thy image doth appear In the rare femblance that I lov'd it firft.

Dogb. Come, bring away the Plaintiffs; by this time, our Sexton hath reform'd Signior Leonato of the matter; and mafters do not forget to fpecify, when time and place shall serve, that I am an ass. Verg. Here, here comes mafter Signior Leonato, and the Sexton too.

SCENE V.

Enter Leonato and Sexton.

Leon.WHICH is the villain? let me fee his eyes;

I may

That when I note another man like him,

avoid him; which of these is he?

Bora. If you would know your wronger, look on

me.

Leon. Art thou, art thou the flave, that with thy breath

Haft kill'd mine innocent child?

Bora. Yea, even I alone.

Leon. No, not fo, villain; thou bely'st thyself; Here stand a pair of honourable men,

A third is fled, that had a hand in it:

I thank you, Princes, for my daughter's death;
Record it with your high and worthy deeds;
'Twas bravely done, if you bethink you of it.

Claud. I know not how to pray your patience,
Yet I must speak: chuse your revenge yourself;
Impose me to what penance your invention
Can lay upon my fin; yet finn'd I not,
But in mistaking.

Pedro. By my foul, nor I;

And yet, to fatisfy this good old man,
I would bend under any heavy weight,
That he'll enjoyn me to.

Leon.

Leon. You cannot bid my daughter live again, That were impoffible; but, I pray you both, Poffefs the People in Melfina here

How innocent the dy'd; and if your love
Can labour aught in fad invention,
Hang her an Epitaph upon
Epitaph upon her tomb,
And fing it to her bones; fing it to-night:
To-morrow morning come you to my house,
And fince you could not be my fon-in-law,
Be yet my nephew; my brother hath a daughter,
Almoft the copy of my child that's dead,

And fhe alone is heir to both of us;

Give her the Right you should have given her Cousin, And fo dies my revenge.

Claud. O noble Sir!

Your over-kindness doth wring tears from me:
I do embrace your offer; and difpofe

For henceforth of poor Claudio.

Leon. To-morrow then I will expect your Coming, To-night I take my leave. This naughty man Shall face to face be brought to Margaret, Who, I believe, was pack'd in all this wrong, Hir'd to it by your brother.

Bora. No, by my foul, fhe was not;

Nor knew not what she did, when she spoke to me.
But always hath been juft and virtuous,
In any thing that I do know by her.

Dogb. Moreover, Sir, which indeed is not under white and black, this plaintiff here, the offender, did call me afs: I beseech you, let it be remember'd in his punishment; and also the watch heard them talk of one Deformed: they say, *he wears a key in his ear,

and

* he wears a key in his ear, and a lock hanging by it; and borrows money in God's name.] There could not be a pleasanter Ridicule on the Fashion, than the Constable's Defcant on his own Blunder. They heard the Confpirators fatyrize the fashion; Whom they took to be a Man, firnamed, Deformed. This the Conftable applies with exquifite Humour to the Courtiers, in a Description of one of the most fantafti

cal

and a lock hanging by it; and borrows money in God's name, the which he hath us'd so long, and never paid, that now men grow hard-hearted, and will lend nothing for God's fake. Pray you, examine him upon that point.

Leon. I thank thee for thy care and honeft pains. Dogb. Your Worship speaks like a moft thankful and reverend youth; and I praise God for you. Leon. There's for thy pains.

Dogb. God fave the foundation!

Leon. Go, I discharge thee of thy prifoner; and I thank thee.

Dogb. I leave an errant knave with your Worship, which, I beseech your Worship, to correct yourself, for the example of others. God keep your Worship; I wish your Worship well: God reftore you to health; I humbly give you leave to depart; and if a merry meeting may be wifh'd, God prohibit it. Come, neighbour. [Exeunt. Leon. Until to-morrow morning, Lords, farewel. Ant. Farewel, my Lords; we look for you to-mor

row.

Pedro. We will not fail.

Claud. To night I'll mourn with Hero.

Leon. Bring you thefe fellows on, we'll talk with Margaret,

How her acquaintance grew with this lewd fellow.

SCENE

[Exeunt feverally.

VI.

Bene.

Changes to Leonato's House.

Enter Benedick, and Margaret.

RAY thee, fweet Miftrefs Margaret, deferve

fpeech of Beatrice.

Cal Fashions of that Time, the Men's wearing Rings in their Ears, and indulging a favourite Lock of Hair which was brought before, and tied with Ribbons, and called a Leve-lock.

Marg.

Marg. Will you then write me a fonnet in praise of my beauty?

Bene. In fo high a ftyle, Margaret, that no man living fhall come over it; for, in moft comely truth, thou deservest it.

Marg. To have no Man come over me? why shall I always keep above stairs?

Bene. Thy wit is as quick as the greyhound's mouth, it catches.

Marg. And yours as blunt as the fencer's foils, which hit, but hurt not.

Bene. A moft manly wit, Margaret, it will not hurt a woman; and fo, I pray thee, call Beatrice; I give

thee the bucklers.

Marg. Give us the fwords; we have bucklers of

our own.

Bene. If you use them, Margaret, you must put in the pikes with a vice, and they are dangerous weapons for maids.

Marg. Well, I will call Beatrice to you, who, I think, hath legs. [Exit Margaret.

Bene. And therefore will come. [Sings.] The God of love, that fits above, and knows me, and knows me, how pitiful I deferve,I mean, in finging; but in loving, Leander the good fwimmer, Troilus the first employer of pandars, and a whole book full of these quondam carpet-mongers, whofe names yet run smoothly in the even road of a blank verfe; why, they were never fo truly turn'd over and over, as my poor felf, in love; marry, I cannot fhew it in rhime; I have try'd; I can find out no rhime to lady but baby, an innocent's rhime; for fcorn, horn, a hard rhime; for school, fool, a babbling rhime; very ominous endings; no, I was not born under a rhiming planet, for I cannot woo in feftival terms.

VOL. II.

I

SCENE

SCENE VII.

Enter Beatrice.

Sweet Beatrice, would'ft thou come when I call thee? Beat. Yea, Signior, and depart when you bid me. Bene. O, ftay but 'till then.

Beat. Then, is fpoken; fare you well now; and yet ere I go, let me go with that I came for, which is, with knowing what hath past between you and Claudio. Bene. Only foul words, and thereupon I will kiss thee.

Beat. Foul words are but foul wind, and foul wind is but foul breath, and foul breath is noisome; therefore I will depart unkift.

Bene. Thou haft frighted the word out of its right fenfe, fo forcible is thy wit; but, I muft tell thee plainly, Claudio undergoes my challenge; and either I must shortly hear from him, or I will fubfcribe him a coward; and I pray thee, now tell me, for which of my bad parts didft thou firft fall in love with me?

Beat. For them all together; which maintain'd fo politic a ftate of evil, that they will not admit any good part to intermingle with them, but for which of my good parts did you firft fuffer love for me?

Bene. Suffer love! a good epithet: I do fuffer love, indeed, for I love thee against my will.

Beat. In fpight of your heart, I think; alas! poor heart, if you spight it for my fake, I will fpight it for yours; for I will never love that, which my friend

hates.

Bene. Thou and I are too wife to woo peaceably. Beat. It appears not in this confeffion; there's not one wile man among twenty that will praise himfelf.

Bene. An old, an old inftance, Beatrice, that liv'd in the time of good neighbours; if a man do not ercct in this age his own tomb ere he dies, he shall