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Why then we rack the value ;[8] then we find
The virtue, that poffeffion would not fhew us
Whilft it was ours :-So will it fare with Claudio:
When he shall hear the dy'd upon his words,
The idea of her life fhall fweetly creep
Into his ftudy of imagination;

And every lovely organ of her life

Shall come apparell'd in more precious habit,
More moving, delicate, and full of life,

Into the eye and prospect of his foul,

Than when the liv'd indeed :-then fhall he mourn
(If ever love had intereft in his liver),
And with he had not fo accused her;

No, though he thought his accufation true.
Let this be fo, and doubt not but fuccefs
Will fashion the event in better shape.
Than I can lay it down in likelihood.
But if all aim but this be levell'd false,
The fuppofition of the lady's death
Will quench the wonder of her infamy:
And, if it fort not well, you may conceal her
(As beft befits her wounded reputation)
In fome reclufive and religious life,

Out of all eyes, tongues, minds, and injuries.
Bene. Signior Leonato, let the friar advise you :
And though, you know, my inwardness and love
Is very much unto the prince and Claudio,
Yet, by mine honour, I will deal in this.
As fecretly and juftly as your foul.
Should with your body.

Leon. Being that I flow in grief,

The fmalleft twine may lead me.[9]

Friar. 'Tis well confented; prefently away;

For to ftrange fores ftrangely they ftrain the cure.—

Come, lady, die to live this wedding-day,

Perhaps, is but prolong'd :. have patience and en-
dure.
[Exeunt.

Manent BENEDICK and BEATRICE.
Bene. Lady Beatrice, have you wept all this while ?

[8] i.e. We exaggerate the value. The allufion is to rack-rents. STEEV. [9] This is one of our author's obfervations upon life. Men overpowered with diftrefs, eagerly liften to the firft offers of relief, clofe with every fcheme, and believe every promife. He that has no longer any confidence in himself, is glad to repofe his truft in any other that will undertake to guide him. JOHNS.

Beat. Yea, and I will weep a while longer.
Bene. I will not defire that.

Beat. You have no reason, I do it freely.

Bene. Surely, I do believe, your fair coufin is wrong'd. Beat. Ah, how much might the man deserve of me that would right her ![1]

Bene. Is there any way to fhew fuch friendship?
Beat. A very even way, but no fuch friend.

Bene. May a man do it?

Beat. It is a man's office, but not yours.

Bene. I do love nothing in the world fo well as you : Is not that ftrange?

Beat. As ftrange as the thing I know not: It were as poffible for me to say, I loved nothing fo well as you ; but believe me not; and yet I lie not; I confefs nothing, nor I deny nothing :-I am forry for my coufin.

Bene. By my fword, Beatrice, thou lov'ft me.
Beat. Do not fwear by it, and eat it.

Bene. I will fwear by it, that you love me; and I will make him eat it, that fays, I love not you.

Beat. Will you not eat your word?

Bene. With no fauce that can be devis'd to it: I proteft, I love thee.

Beat. Why then, God forgive me!

Bene. What offence, fweet Beatrice?

Beat. You have ftaid me in a happy hour; I was about to proteft I lov'd you.

Bene. And do it with all thy heart.

Beat. I love you with so much of my heart, that none

is left to proteft.

Bene. Come, bid me do any thing for thee.

Beat. Kill Claudio.

Bene. Ha! not for the wide world.

Beat. You kill me to deny it: farewel.
Bene. Tarry, fweet Beatrice.

[1] The poet, in my opinion, has shewn a great deal of addrefs in this fcene. Beatrice here engages her lover to revenge the injury done her coufin Hero: and without this very natural incident, confidering the character of Beatrice, and that the ftory of her paffion for Benedick was all a fable, fhe could never have been eafily or naturally brought to confefs she loved him, notwithstanding all the foregoing preparation. And yet, on this confeffion, in this very place, depended the whole fuccefs of the plot upon her and Benedick. For had the not owned her love here, they must have foon found out the trick, and then the defign of bringing them, together had been defeated; and the would never have owned a paffion the had been only tricked into, had not her defire of revenging her coufin's wrong made her drop her capricious humour at once. WARB.

Beat. I am gone, though I am here :[2]-There is no love in you :-nay, I pray you, let me go.

Bene. Beatrice,—

Beat. In faith, I will go.

Bene. We'll be friends firft.

Beat. You dare easier be friends with me, than fight with mine enemy.

Bene. Is Claudio thine enemy?

Beat. Is he not approv'd in the height a villain, that hath flander'd, scorn'd, dishonour'd my kinfwoman?O, that I were a man !-What, bear her in hand until they come to take hands; and then with public accusation, uncover'd flander, unmitigated rancour,-O God, that I were a man! I would eat his heart in the marketplace.

Bene. Hear me, Beatrice.

Beat. Talk with a man out at a window !—a proper faying!

Bene. Nay, but Beatrice,

Beat. Sweet Hero !-she is wrong'd, she is flander'd, fhe is undone !

Bene. Beat

Beat. Princes and counties! Surely, a princely tefti mony, a goodly count-comfect; a fweet gallant, furely! O that I were a man for his fake! or that I had any friend would be a man for my fake! But manhood is melted into courtefies, valour into compliment, and men are only turned into tongue, and trim ones too: he is now as valiant as Hercules, that only tells a lie, and fwears it :-I cannot be a man with wishing, therefore I will die a woman with grieving..

Bene. Tarry, good Beatrice: By this hand, I love thee. Beat. Ufe it for my love fome other way than fwearing. by it.

Bene. Think you in your foul, the count Claudio hath wrong'd Hero ?

Beat. Yea, as fure as I have a thought, or a foul.

Bene. Enough, I am engag'd, I will challenge him; I will kifs your hand, and fo leave you: By this hand, Claudio fhall render me a dear account: As you hear of me, fo think of me. Go, comfort your coufin: I muft fay, fhe is dead; and fo farewel. [Exeunt

[2] i. e. I am out of your mind already, though I remain in perfon before you.

STEEV

SCENE II.

A Prifon. Enter DOGBERRY, VERGES, BORACHIO,
CONRADE, the Town-Clerk, and Sexton, in gowns.

To. Cl. Is our whole diffembly appear'd ?
Dogb. O, a ftool and a cushion for the fexton !
Sexton. Which be the malefactors?

Verg. Marry, that am I and my partner.

Dogb. Nay, that's certain; we have the exhibition to examine.

Sexton. But which are the offenders that are to be examin'd? let them come before mafter constable.

To. Cl. Yea, marry, let them come before me.-What is your name, friend?

Bora. Borachio.

To. Cl. Pray, write down, Borachio.-Yours, firrah? Conr. I am a gentleman, fir, and my name is Conrade. To. Cl. Write down, mafter gentleman Conrade.Mafters, do you ferve God?

Both. Yea, fir, we hope.

To. Cl. Write down, that they hope they ferve God :and write God first; for God defend, but God should go before fuch villains !-Masters, it is proved already that you are little better than falfe knaves, and it will go near to be thought fo fhortly. How anfwer you for yourselves? Conr. Marry, fir, we fay we are none.

To. Cl. A marvellous witty fellow, I affure you; but I will go about with him.-Come you hither, firrah; a word in your ear, fir; I fay to you, it is thought you are both falfe knaves.

Bora. Sir, I fay to you, we are none.

To. Cl. Well, ftand aside.-'Fore God, they are both in a tale :-Have you writ down, that they are none ?

Sexton. Mafter conftable, you go not the way to examine; you must call the watch that are their accufers.

To. Cl. Yea, marry, that's the defteft[3] way :-Let the watch come forth :-Mafters, I charge you in the prince's name accuse these men.

Enter Watchmen.

I Watch. This man faid, fir, that Don John, the prince's brother, was a villain.

[3] i. e. The readieft, most commodious way: a Saxon word. THEO.

To. Cl. Write down, prince John a villain :-Why, this is flat perjury, to call a prince's brother, villain. Bora. Mafter conftable,

To. Cl. Pr'ythee, fellow, peace! I do not like thy look, I promise thee.

Sexton. What heard you him fay elfe?

2 Watch. Marry, that he had receiv'd a thousand ducats of Don John, for accufing the lady Hero wrongfully. To. Cl. Flat burglary, as ever was committed. Dogb. Yea, by the mafs, that it is.

Sexton. What elfe, fellow ?

I Watch. And that count Claudio did mean, upon his words, to difgrace Hero before the whole affembly, and not marry her.

To. Cl. O villain! thou wilt be condemned into everlafting redemption for this.

Sexton. What else?

2 Watch. This is all.

Sexton. And this is more, mafters, than you can deny. Prince John is this morning fecretly ftolen away; Hero was in this manner accus'd, and in this very manner refus'd, and upon the grief of this, fuddenly dy’d.-Mafter conftable, let these men be bound, and brought to Leonato's; I will go before, and fhew him their examination.[4] [Exit.

Dogb. Come, let them be opinion'd.
Verg. Let them be in hand.

Conr. Off, coxcomb !

Dogb. God's my life! where's the fexton? let him write down, the prince's officer, coxcomb.-Come, bind them :-Thou naughty varlet !

Conr. Away! you are an ass, you are an ass.

Dogb. Doft thou not fufpect my place? Doft thou not fufpect my years ?-O that he were here to write me down, an afs!-but, mafters, remember, that I am an afs; though it be not written down, yet forget not that I am an afs :-No, thou villain, thou art full of piety, as

[4] This Sexton was an ecclefiaftic of one of the inferior orders called the Sacriftan, and not a brother officer. I fuppofe the book from whence the poet took his fubject was fome old English novel, tranflated from the Italian, where the word 'fagriftano' was rendered 'lexton.' WARB.

Dr. Warburton's affertion, as to dignity of a Sexton or Sacriftan, may be fupported by the following paffage in Stanyhurft's Verfion of the fourth book of the Eneid, where he calls the Maffylian priestess,

"in foil Maffyla begotten,
"Sexten of Hefperides finagog."

STEEV.

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