Sly. Am I a lord? and have I such a lady?
Or do I dream? or have I dream'd till now?
I do not sleep: I see, I hear, I speak;

I smell sweet savours, and I feel soft things:-
Upon my life, I am a lord, indeed;

And not a tinker, nor Christophero Sly.-
Well, bring our lady hither to our sight;
And once again, a pot o' the smallest ale.

2 Serv. Will't please your mightiness to wash
your hands?

[Servants present an ewer, bason, and napkin. O, how we joy to see your wit restor❜d! O, that once more you knew but what you are! These fifteen years you have been in a dream; Or, when you wak'd, so wak'd as if you slept. Shy. These fifteen years! by my fay, a goodly nap. But did I never speak of all that time?

1 Serv. O, yes, my lord; but very idle words:For though you lay here in this goodly chamber, Yet would you say, ye were beaten out of door; And rail upon the hostess of the house; And say, you would present her at the leet," Because she brought stone jugs and no seal'd quarts: Sometimes you would call out for Cicely Hacket. Sly. Ay, the woman's maid of the house.

3 Serv. Why, sir, you know no house, nor no such maid;

Nor no such men, as you have reckon'd up,-
As Stephen Sly, and old John Naps of Greece,
And Peter Turf, and Henry Pimpernell;

And twenty more such names and men as these,
Which never were, nor no man ever saw.

Sly. Now, Lord be thanked for my good amends!
All. Amen.

Sly. I thank thee; thou shalt not lose by it.

leet,] At the Court-leet, or courts of the manor.

Enter the Page, as a lady, with Attendants.

Page. How fares my noble lord?

Sly. Marry, I fare well; for here is cheer enough. Where is my wife?

Page. Here, noble lord; What is thy will with

her?

Sly. Are you my wife, and will not call mehusband?

My men should call me-lord; I am your goodman. Page. My husband and my lord, my lord and husband;

I am your wife in all obedience.

Sly. I know it well:-What must I call her?
Lord. Madam.

Sly. Al'ce madam, or Joan madam?

Lord. Madam, and nothing else; so lords call ladies.

Sly. Madam wife, they say that I have dream'd, and slept

Above some fifteen year and more.

Page. Ay, and the time seems thirty unto me;
Being all this time abandon'd from your bed.
Sly. 'Tis much ;- -Servants, leave me and her
alone.-

Madam, undress you, and come now to bed.
Page. Thrice noble lord, let me entreat of you,
To pardon me yet for a night or two;

Or, if not so, until the sun be set:

For your physicians have expressly charg'd,

In peril to incur your former malady,

That I should yet absent me from your bed:
I hope, this reason stands for my excuse.

Sly. Ay, it stands so, that I may hardly tarry so long. But I would be loth to fall into my dreams again; I will therefore tarry, in despite of the flesh

and the blood.

Enter a Servant.

Serv. Your honour's players, hearing your amendment,

Are come to play a pleasant comedy,

For so your doctors hold it very meet;

Seeing too much sadness hath congeal'd your blood, And melancholy is the nurse of frenzy,

Therefore, they thought it good you hear a play, And frame your mind to mirth and merriment, Which bars a thousand harms, and lengthens life.

Sly. Marry, I will; let them play it: Is not a commonty a Christmas gambol, or a tumblingtrick?7

Page. No, my good lord; it is more pleasing stuff.

Sly. What, houshold stuff? Page. It is a kind of history. Sly. Well, we'll see't: Come, by my side, and let the world slip; younger.

madam wife, sit we shall ne'er be [They sit down.

Is not a commonty a Christmas gambol, or a tumbling trick?] Thus the old copies; the modern ones read-It is not a commodity, &c. Commonty for comedy, &c. STEEVENS.

In the old play the players themselves use the word commodity corruptly for a comedy. BLACKSTONE.

ACT I.

SCENE I. Padua. A public Place.

Enter LUCENTIO and TRANIO.

Luc. Tranio, since-for the great desire I had
To see fair Padua, nursery of arts,-
I am arriv'd for fruitful Lombardy,
The pleasant garden of great Italy;

And, by my father's love and leave, am arm'd
With his good will, and thy good company,
Most trusty servant, well approv'd in all;
Here let us breathe, and happily institute
A course of learning, and ingenious studies.
Pisa, renowned for grave citizens,

Gave me my being, and my father first,
A merchant of great traffick through the world,
Vincentio, come of the Bentivolii.

Vincentio his son, brought up in Florence,
It shall become, to serve all hopes conceiv'd,'
To deck his fortune with his virtuous deeds:
And therefore, Tranio, for the time I study,
Virtue, and that part of philosophy
Will I apply, that treats of happiness
By virtue 'specially to be achiev'd.
Tell me thy mind: for I have Pisa left,
And am to Padua come; as he that leaves
A shallow plash, to plunge him in the deep,
And with satiety seeks to quench his thirst.

8

ingenious-] It was probably written

studies, but of this and a thousand such observations there is little certainty. In Cole's Dictionary, 1677, it is remarked-" ingenuous and ingenious are too often confounded."

9

to serve all hopes conceiv'd,] To fulfil the expectations of his friends.

Tra. Mi perdonate, gentle master mine,
I am in all affected as yourself;

Glad that you thus continue your resolve,
To suck the sweets of sweet philosophy.
Only, good master, while we do admire
This virtue, and this moral discipline,
Let's be no stoicks, nor no stocks, I pray;
Or so devote to Aristotle's checks,'
As Ovid be an outcast quite abjur'd:
Talk logick with acquaintance that you have,
And practise rhetorick in your common talk:
Musick and poesy use to quicken you;'
The mathematicks, and the metaphysicks,

Fall to them, as you find your stomach serves you:
No profit grows, where is no pleasure ta’en ;—
In brief, sir, study what you most affect.

Luc. Gramercies, Tranio, well dost thou advise.
If, Biondella, thou wert come ashore,
We could at once put us in readiness;
And take a lodging, fit to entertain
Such friends, as time in Padua shall beget.
But stay awhile: What company is this?

Tra. Master, some show, to welcome us to town.

Enter BAPTISTA, KATHARINA, BIANCA, GREMIO, and HORTENSIO. LUCENTIO and TRANIO stand aside.

Bap. Gentlemen, impórtune me no further,
For how I firmly am resolv'd you know;
That is,--not to bestow my youngest daughter,
Before I have a husband for the elder:

If either of you both love Katharina,

Aristotle's checks,] Tranio is here descanting on academical learning, and mentions by name six of the seven liberal sciences. I suspect this to be a mis-print, made by some copyist or compositor, for ethicks. The sense confirms it. BLACKSTONE.

2

to quicken you ;] i. e. animate.