Val. How long hath the been deformed? Speed. Ever fince you loved her. Val. I have loved her ever fince I faw her; and still I fee her beautiful. Speed. If you love her, you cannot fee her. Speed. Becaufe love is blind. O, that you had mine eyes; or your own eyes had the lights they were wont to have, when you chid at fir Proteus for going ungartered! 7 Val. What fhould I fee then? Speed. Your own prefent folly, and her paffing deformity: for he, being in love, could not fee to garter his hofe; and you, being in love, cannot fee to put on your hofe. Val. Belike, boy, then you are in love; for laft morning you could not fee to wipe my fhoes. Speed. True, fir; I was in love with my bed: I thank you, you swinged me for my love, which makes me the bolder to chide you for yours. Val. In conclufion, I ftand affected to her. 8 Speed. I would you were fet; fo, your affection would cease. Val. Laft night fhe enjoin'd me to write fome lines to one fhe loves. Speed. And have you? Val. I have. Speed. Are they not lamely writ? Val. No, boy, but as well as I can do them :-Peace, here she comes. Enter Silvia. Speed. O excellent motion!" O exceeding puppet! now will he interpret to her. Val. Madam and mistress, a thousand good-morrows. Speed. O, 'give you good even! here's a million of man ners. [Afide. Sil 7 This is enumerated by Rofalind in As you like it, A& III. sc. ii. as one of the undoubted marks of love: Then your hose should be ungartered, your bonnet unbanded," &c. MALONE. Set for feated, in oppofition to ftand, in the foregoing line. • Motion, in Shakspeare's time, fignified puppet. Sis J. HAWKINS. Sil. Sir Valentine and fervant,2 to you two thoufand. Which I was much unwilling to proceed in, Sil. I thank you, gentle fervant: 'tis very clerkly done.3 I writ at random, very doubtfully. Sil. Perchance you think too much of fo much pains? [Afidio Sil. A pretty period! Well, I guess the sequel; Val. Madam, they are for you, Sil. Ay, ay; you writ them, fir, at my request ; Sil. Why, if it please you, take it for your labour;: And fo good-morrow, fervant.. Speed. O jeft unfeen, infcrutable, invisible, [Exit SILVIA. As a nofe on a man's face, or a weathercock on a steeple! F 6 Me 2 Here Silvia calls her lover feruant, and again below her gentle fervant This was the language of ladies to their lovers at the time when Shak fpeare wrote. SIR J. HAWKINS. 3 i. e. like a fcholar. STEEVENS. He being her pupil, to become her tutor. O excellent device! was there ever heard a better? That my mafter, being fcribe, to himself fhould write the letter? Val. How now, fir? what are you reafoning with yourfelf? + Speed. Nay, I was rhiming; 'tis you that have the reafon. Val. To do what? Speed. To be a fpokefman from madam Silvia. Val. To whom? Speed. To yourfelf: why, the wooes you by a figure. Speed. By a letter, I fhould fay. Val. Why, the hath not writ to me? felf? Why, do you not perceive the jest? you write to your Speed. No believing you indeed, fir: But did you perceive her earnest ? Val. She gave me none, except an angry word. Speed. Why, the hath given you a letter. Val. That's the letter I writ to her friend. Speed. And that letter hath fhe deliver'd, and there an end.s Val. I would, it were no worfe. Speed. I'll warrant you, 'tis as well : For often you bave writ to her; and she, in modefty, Or fearing elfe fome meffenger, that might her mind difcover, Val. I have din'd. Speed. Ay, but hearken, fir: though the cameleon Love can feed on the air, I am one that am nourished by my victuals, 4 That is, difcourfing, talking. An Italianifm. JOHNSON. victuals, and would fain have meat: O, be not like your miftrefs; be moved, be moved. SCENE II. Verona. A Room in Julia's House. Enter PROTEUS and JULIA. Pro. Have patience, gentle Julia. Jul. I muft, where is no remedy. Pro. When poffibly I can, I will return. [Exeunt. Jul. If you turn not, you will return the fooner : ful. And feal the bargain with a holy kifs. Pan. Sir Proteus, you are staid for. Pro. Go; I come, I come : Alas! this parting ftrikes poor lovers dumb. SCENE III. The fame. Aftreet. Enter LAUNCE, leading a dog. [Exit JULIA. [Exeunt Laun. Nay, 'twill be this hour ere I have done weeping; all the kind of the Launces have this very fault: I have re I ceived ceived my proportion, like the prodigious fon, and am going with fir Proteus to the Imperial's court. I think, Crab my dog be the foureft-natured dog that lives: my mother weeping, my father wailing, my fifter crying, our maid howling, our cat wringing her hands, and all our house in great perplexity, yet did not this cruel-hearted cur fhed one tear: he is a ftone, a very pebble-stone, and has no more pity in him than a dog a Jew would have wept to have feen our parting; why, my grandam having no eyes, look you, wept herfelf blind at my parting. Nay, I'll fhow you the manner of it: This fhoe is my father;-no, this left fhoe is my father;-no, no, this left fhoe is my mother;-nay, that cannot be fo neither;-yes, it is fo, it is fo; it hath the worfer fole: This fhoe, with the hole in it, is my mother, and this my father; A vengeance on't! there 'tis : now, fir, this staff is my fifter; for, look you, The is as white as a lily, and as small as a wand: this hat is Nan, our maid; I am the dog-no, the dog is himself, and I am the dog,7-0, the dog is me, and I am myfelf; ay, fo, fo. Now come I to my father; Father, your bleffing; now fhould not the fhoe fpeak a word for weeping; now fhould I kifs my father; well, he weeps on :-now come Ito my mother, (O, that he could fpeak now!) like a wood woman ;—well, I kifs her ;-why there 'tis; 7 This paffage is much confufed, and of confufion the prefent reading makes no end. Sir T. Hanmer reads, I am the dog, no, the dog is bimfelf and I am me, the dog is the dog, and I am myfelf. This certainly is more reasonable, but I know not how much reafon the author intended to bestow on Launce's folloquy. JOHNSON. 8 The first folios agree in would-woman: for which, because it was a mystery to Mr. Pope, he has unmeaningly substituted ould woman. But it must be writ, or at leaft understood, qvood woman, i. e. crazy, frantic with grief; or distracted, from any other caufe. The word is very frequently used in Chaucer; and fometimes writ wood, fometimes wode. THEOBALD. Wud, de. mad, distracted-Scotch Print thus: "Now come I to my mother, (O, that she could speak now!) like a wood woman.' Perhaps the humour would be heightened by reading-(O, that the froe could speak now!) BLACKSTONE. Launce is defcribing the melancholy parting between him and his family. In order to do this more methodically, he makes one of his hoes ftand for his father, and the other for his mother. And when he has done taking leave of his father, he says, Now come I to my mother, turning |