Kath. A pest of that jest! and I beshrew all shrows.59

Prin. But, Katharine, what was sent to you from fair Dumain?

Kath. Madam, this glove.
Prin.

Did he not send you twain ?
Kath. Yes, madam; and, moreover,
Some thousand 60 verses of a faithful lover,- _

A huge translation of hypocrisy,
Vilely compil'd, profound simplicity.

The letter is too long by half a mile.

Prin. I think no less. Dost thou not wish in heart

The chain were longer, and the letter short?

Mar. Ay, or I would these hands might never part.

Prin. We are wise girls to mock our lovers so. Ros. They are worse fools to purchase mocking

So.

That same Birón I'll torture ere I go:

Oh, that I knew he were but in by the week !61 How I would make him fawn, and beg, and seek,

And wait the season, and observe the times,
And spend his prodigal wits in bootless rhymes,
And shape his service wholly to my 'hests,
And make him proud to make me proud that
jests!63

So portent-like would I o'ersway his state,
That he should be my fool, and I his fate.

Prin. None are so surely caught, when they are catch'd,

As wit turn'd fool: folly, in wisdom hatch'd,
Hath wisdom's warrant and the help of school,
And wit's own grace to grace a learned fool.
Ros. The blood of youth burns not with such

excess

As gravity's revolt to wantonness.

Mar. Folly in fools bears not so strong a note As foolery in the wise, when wit doth dote;

pox ;' for the sake of keeping up the punning allusion to letters of the alphabet.

59. I beshrew all shrows. I curse all curst women; or, ill betide all ill-conditioned women. See Note 24, Act ii., "Two Gentlemen of Verona."

60. Thousand. Used for an indefinite number, a large amount. See Note 72, Act iii., "Much Ado about Nothing." 61. In by the week! A phrase formerly used when hiring attendants or labourers. Rosaline means to say, 'Oh, that I knew he were really engaged as my servant!' servant being then a term for a suitor or admirer. See Note 11, Act ii., "Two Gentlemen of Verona.

"

62. Bootless. Fruitless, useless, unproductive. See Note 15, Act i., "Tempest."

63. Make him proud to make me proud that jests! Make him proud to minister to my pride who turn him into jest.'

64 Portent-like. Misprinted 'pertaunt-like' in the Folio. Hanmer suggested the correction; and Shakespeare uses the

Armed in arguments; you'll be surpris'd:
Muster your wits; stand in your own defence;
Or hide your heads like cowards, and fly hence.
Prin. Saint Denis to Saint Cupid!68 What

are they

That charge their breath against us? say, scout,

say.

Boyet. Under the cool shade of a sycamore

I thought to close mine eyes some half an hour;
When, lo! to interrupt my purpos'd rest,
Toward that shade I might behold addrest
The king and his companions: warily

I stole into a neighbour thicket by,
And overheard what you shall overhear,—
That, by-and-by, disguis'd they will be here.
Their herald is a pretty knavish page,
That well by heart hath conn'd his embassage :
Action and accent did they teach him there;
"Thus must thou speak, and thus thy body bear :"
And ever and anon they made a doubt
Presence majestical would put him out;
"For," quoth the king, "an angel shalt thou

67. Encounters mounted are. This impersonation of things ("encounters" for 'encounterers') is a poetical license not unfrequent in Shakespeare.

68. Saint Denis to Saint Cupid. "Saint Denis" being the patron saint of France, the French princess gives his name for a battle-cry, as the King of Navarre gives that of “Saint Cupid," when he and his companions enlist themselves under Love's banner.

69. Audaciously. Shakespeare sometimes uses this word without the ill-meaning of impudency involved in the usual sense

Another, with his finger and his thumb,
Cried, "Via!70 we will do't, come what will
come;"

The third he caper'd, and cried, "All goes well;"
The fourth turn'd on the toe, and down he fell.
With that, they all did tumble on the ground,
With such a zealous laughter, so profound,
That in this spleen ridiculous appears,"1
To check their folly, passion's solemn tears.
Prin. But what, but what, come they to visit
us?

Boyet. They do, they do; and are apparel'd thus,

Like Muscovites or Russians, as I guess.
Their purpose is, to parle, to court, and dance;
And every one his love-feat will advance
Unto his several mistress,-which they'll know
By favours several which they did bestow.

Prin. And will they so? the gallants shall be task'd:

For, ladies, we will every one be mask'd;
And not a man of them shall have the grace,
Despite of suit, to see a lady's face.-
Hold, Rosaline, this favour thou shalt wear,
And then the king will court thee for his dear!
Hold, take thou this, my sweet, and give me
thine,

So shall Birón take me for Rosaline.

And change you favours too; so shall your loves Woo contrary, deceiv'd by these removes.

Ros. Come on, then; wear the favours most in sight.

Kath. But in this changing what is your intent? Prin. The effect of my intent is, to cross theirs: They do it but in mocking merriment; And mock for mock is only my intent. Their several counsels they unbosom shall To loves mistook; and so be mock'd withal Upon the next occasion that we meet, With visages display'd, to talk and greet.

Ros. But shall we dance, if they desire us to't? Prin. No, to the death, we will not move a

foot:

Nor to their penn'd speech render we no grace;
But while 'tis spoke each turn away her face.

Boyet. Why, that contempt will kill the speaker's heart,

And quite divorce his memory from his part.

Prin. Therefore I do it; and I make no doubt The rest will ne'er come in, if he be out. There's no such sport as sport by sport o'erthrown;

Boyet.

To make theirs ours, and ours none but our own:
So shall we stay, mocking intended game,
And they, well' mock'd, depart away with shame.
[Trumpets sound within.
The trumpet sounds: be mask'd, the
maskers come.
[The Ladies mask.
Enter the King, BIRON, LONGAVILLE, and Dumain,
in Russian habits, and masked; MOTH, Mu-
sicians and Attendants.

Moth. All hail, the richest beauties on the earth!—
Boyet. Beauties no richer than rich taffeta,"
Moth. A holy parcel of the fairest dames

[The Ladies turn their backs to him.

That ever turn'd their-backs-to mortal views !-
Biron. "Their eyes," villain, "their eyes."
Moth. That ever turn'd their eyes to mortal views!
Out-

Boyet. True; "out" indeed.

Moth. Out of your favours, heavenly spirits, vouchsafe

various feats of parleying, courting, and dancing, mentioned in the previous line.

73. Beauties no richer than rich taffeta. In allusion to the black silk masks worn by the ladies. This line is assigned to Biron in the Folio: but that it belonged to Boyet is evidenced by his desire to interrupt and perplex Moth's speech, and by the probability that he would venture on a fleering speech relative to the ladies' eclipsed beauty, which Biron would not have done; he, moreover, being occupied in watching and prompting the page in the delivery of his address.

To tread a measure with her on this grass. Boyet. They say, that they have measur'd many a mile,

To tread a measure with you on this grass.

Ros. It is not so. Ask them how many inches Is in one mile: if they have measur'd many, The measure, then, of one is easily told.

Boyet. If to come hither you have measur'd miles,

And many miles, the princess bids you tell
How many inches do fill up one mile.

Biron. Tell her, we measure them by weary steps.
Boyet. She hears herself.
Ros.

How many weary steps,
Of many weary miles you have o'ergone,
Are number'd in the travel of one mile ?

Biron. We number nothing that we spend for

you:

Our duty is so rich, so infinite,

That we may do it still without account.
Vouchsafe to show the sunshine of your face,
That we, like savages, may worship it.

Ros. My face is but a moon, and clouded too. King. Blessed are clouds, to do as such clouds do!"

Vouchsafe, bright moon, and these thy stars, to shine

Those clouds remov'd-upon our wat'ry eyne.

Ros. Oh, vain petitioner! beg a greater matter; Thou now request'st but moonshine in the water. King. Then, in our measure but vouchsafe one

Ros. You took the moon at full, but now she's chang'd.

King. Yet still she is the moon, and I the man.
The music plays; vouchsafe some motion to it.
Ros. Our ears vouchsafe it.
King.
But your legs should do it.
Ros. Since you are strangers, and come here by
chance,

We'll not be nice: take hands;-we will not dance.
King. Why take we hands, then?
Ros.
Only to part friends:—
Court'sy, sweet hearts; and so the measure ends.76

King. More measure of this measure; be not

nice.

Ros. We can afford no more at such a price. King. Prize you yourselves: what buys your company?

Ros. Your absence only. King. That can never be. Ros. Then cannot we be bought: and so, adieu; Twice to your visor, and half once to you. King. If you deny to dance, let's hold more

chat.

Ros. In private, then. King.

I am best pleas'd with that. [They converse apart. Biron. White-handed mistress, one sweet word with thee.

Prin. Honey, and milk, and sugar,-there are three.

Biron. Nay, then, two treys,-an if you grow so nice,

Metheglin, wort, and malmsey,-well run, dice!— There's half-a-dozen sweets.

Prin. Seventh sweet, adieu : Since you can cog," I'll play no more with you. Biron. One word in secret. Prin. Let it not be sweet. Biron. Thou griev'st my gall. Prin. Biron.

Gall! bitter.

Therefore meet. [They converse apart. Dum. Will you vouchsafe with me to change a word?

allusion to the salutation which formerly began and ended a dance. See Note 61, Act i., "Tempest."

77. Since you can cog. To" cog" meant to falsify the dice; and, figuratively, to deceive, delude, tell falsehoods. The words "well run, dice!" show the allusion; as well as the word "treys," a gaming technicality for groups of threes.

78. Veal Katharine plays on the word in its sense of meat, and in its sense as a foreign mispronunciation of 'well.'