Val. Then speak the truth by her; if not divine, Yet let her be a principality,

Sovereign to all the creatures on the earth.

Pro. Except my mistress.

Val.

Sweet, except not any; 150

Except thou wilt except against my love.

Pro. Have I not reason to prefer mine own?
Val. And I will help thee to prefer her too:
She shall be dignified with this high honour, —
To bear my lady's train, lest the base earth
Should from her vesture chance to steal a kiss,
And, of so great a favour growing proud,
Disdain to root the summer-swelling flower,
And make rough winter everlastingly.

Pro. Why, Valentine, what braggardism is this?
Val. Pardon me, Proteus: all I can is nothing
To her, whose worth makes other worthies nothing;
She is alone.

155

160

Val. Not for the world: why, man, she is mine own;

And I as rich in having such a jewel

As twenty seas, if all their sand were pearl,

The water nectar, and the rocks pure gold.

Forgive me, that I do not dream on thee,
Because thou see'st me dote upon my love.
My foolish rival, that her father likes
Only for his possessions are so huge,

Is gone with her along; and I must after,

165

170

For love, thou know'st, is full of jealousy.

Pro. But she loves you?

Val. Ay, and we are betroth'd: nay, more, our mar

riage-hour,

With all the cunning manner of our flight,
Determined of; how I must climb her window;
The ladder made of cords; and all the means
Plotted and 'greed on for my happiness.
Good Proteus, go with me to my chamber,
In these affairs to aid me with thy counsel.
Pro. Go on before; I shall inquire you forth :
I must unto the road, to disembark
Some necessaries that I needs must use;
And then I'll presently attend you.

Val. Will you make haste?
Pro. I will.

Even as one heat another heat expels,
Or as one nail by strength drives out another,

So the remembrance of my former love

Is by a newer object quite forgotten.

Is it mine, or Valentine's praise,

175

180

185

[Exit Val.

190

Her true perfection, or my false transgression,
That makes me reasonless to reason thus?
She is fair; and so is Julia, that I love, -
That I did love, for now my love is thaw'd;
Which, like a waxen image 'gainst a fire,
Bears no impression of the thing it was.
Methinks my zeal to Valentine is cold,
And that I love him not as I was wont.

195

200

O, but I love his lady too too much!
And that's the reason I love him so little.
How shall I dote on her with more advice,
That thus without advice begin to love her!
'Tis but her picture I have yet beheld,
And that hath dazzled my reason's light;
But when I look on her perfections,
There is no reason but I shall be blind.
If I can check my erring love, I will;
If not, to compass her I'll use my skill.

SCENE V. The same. A street.

Enter SPEED and LAUNCE severally.

205

[Exit. 210

Speed. Launce! by mine honesty, welcome to Padua! Launce. Forswear not thyself, sweet youth; for I am not

welcome. I reckon this always

that a man is never undone till he be hanged; nor never welcome to a place till some certain shot be paid, and the hostess say 'Welcome!' 5

Speed. Come on, you madcap, I'll to the alehouse with you presently; where, for one shot of five pence, thou shalt have five thousand welcomes. But, sirrah, how did thy master part with Madam Julia?

Launce. Marry, after they closed in earnest, they parted very fairly in jest.

Speed. But shall she marry him?

Launce. No.

Speed. How, then? shall he marry her?

Launce. No, neither.

Speed. What, are they broken ?

11

15

Launce. No, they are both as whole as a fish. Speed. Why, then, how stands the matter with them? Launce. Marry, thus; when it stands well with him, it stands well with her.

20

Speed. What an ass art thou ! I understand thee not. Launce. What a block art thou, that thou canst not!

My staff understands me.

Speed. What thou sayest?

Launce. Ay, and what I do too: look thee, I'll but

lean, and my staff understands me.

Speed. It stands under thee, indeed.

26

Launce. Why, stand-under and under-stand is all one. Speed. But tell me true, will't be a match?

Launce. Ask my dog: if he say ay, it will; if he say, no, it will; if he shake his tail and say nothing, it will. Speed. The conclusion is, then, that it will. Launce. Thou shalt never get such a secret from me

but by a parable.

32

Speed. 'Tis well that I get it so. But, Launce, how sayest thou, that my master is become a notable lover? Launce. I never knew him otherwise.

Speed. Than how?

37

Launce. A notable lubber, as thou reportest him to be. Speed. Why, thou whoreson ass, thou mistakest me. 40 Launce. Why fool, I meant not thee; I meant thy master. Speed. I tell thee, my master is become a hot lover. Launce. Why, I tell thee, I care not though he burn himself in love. If thou wilt, go with me to the alehouse; if not, thou art an Hebrew, a Jew, and not worth the name of a Christian.

Speed. Why?

46

Launce. Because thou hast not so much charity in thee as to go to the ale with a Christian. Wilt thou go? Speed. At thy service.

SCENE VI. The same. The DUKE's palace.

Enter PROTEUS.

[Exeunt. 50

Pro. To leave my Julia, shall I be forsworn ;
To love fair Silvia, shall I be forsworn ;
To wrong my friend, I shall be much forsworn ;
And even that power, which gave me first my oath,
Provokes me to this threefold perjury;

5