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Enter Leonato, Hero, and Beatrice, with a Meffenger.

I

LEONATO.

Learn in this letter, that Don Pedro of Arragon comes this night to Meffina.

Melf. He is very near by this; he was not three leagues off when I left him.

Leon. How many gentlemen have you loft in this action?

Mell. But few of any Sort, and none of Name.
Leon. A victory is twice itfelf, when the atchiever

• Much Ado about Nothing.] Innogen, (the Mother of Hero) in the oldest Quarto that I have feen of this Play, printed in .1600, is mention'd to enter in two feveral Scenes. The fucceeding Editions have all continued her Name in the Dramatis Perfona. But I have ventur'd to expunge it; there being no mention of ber through the Play,

no one Speech addrefs'd to her, nor one Syllable spoken by her. Neither is there any one Paffage, from which we have any Reason to determine that Hero's Mother was living. It feems, as if the Poet had in his first Plan-defign'd fuch a Character ; which, on a Survey of it, he found would be fuperfluous; and therefore he left it out. THEOBALD.

brings

brings home full numbers; I find here, that Don Pedro hath beftowed much honour on a young Florentine, call'd Claudio.

Mell. Much deferved on his part, and equally remembred by Don Pedro: he hath borne himself beyond the promfe of his age, doing in the figure of a lamb the feats of a lion: he hath, indeed, better better'd expectation, than you must expect of me to tell you how.

Leon. He hath an uncle here in Melfina will be very much glad of it.

Mell. I have already delivered him letters, and there appears much joy in him; even fo much, that' joy could not fhew itself modeft enough, without a badge of bitterness.

Leon. Did he break out into tears?

Meff. In great measure.

Leon. A kind overflow of kindnefs.

There are no

faces truer than thofe that are fo wafh'd. How much better is it to weep at joy, than to joy at weeping !

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Beat. I pray you, is Signior Montanto return'd from the wars or no?

Meff. I know none of that name, Lady'; there was none iuch in the army of any Sort.

Leon. What is he that you ask for, Need!

joy could not fhew it Self modelt enough, without a badge of bitternes.] This is judiciously exprefs'd. Of all the tranfports of joy, that which is attended with tears is leaft offenfive; because, carrying with it this mark of pain, it allays the envy that ufually attends another's happinels. This he finely calls a modeft joy, fuch a one as did not infult the obferver by an indication of happiness unmixed with pain. WARBURTON. • no faces truer] That

is, none honefter, none more fin

cere.

4

is Signior Montanto return'd.] Montante, in Sparish, is a huge two-handed ford, given, with much humour, to one, the fpeaker would reprefent as a Boafter or Bravado. WARBURT. there was none fuch in the army of any fort.] Not meaning there was none fuch of any order or degree whatever, but that there was none fuch of any quality above the common.

5

--

WARBURTON,
Hero.

Hero. My Coufin means Signior Benedick of Padua. Mess. O, he's return'd, and as pleasant as ever he

was.

Beat. He fet up his bills here in Melfina, and challeng'd Cupid' at the flight; and my Uncle's fool, reading the challenge, fubfcrib'd for Cupid, and challeng'd him at the bird-bolt. I pray you, how many hath he kill'd and eaten in thefe wars? but how many hath he kill'd? for, indeed, I promis'd to eat all of his killing.

Leon. Faith, Neice, you tax Signior Benedick too much; but he'll be meet with you, I doubt it not. Mell. He hath done good service, Lady, in these

wars.

Beat. You had musty victuals, and he hath holp to eat it; he's a very valiant trencher-man, he hath an excellent ftomach.

Mell. And a good foldier roo, Lady.

Beat. And a good foldier to a lady? but what is he to a lord?

Meff. A lord to a lord, a man to a man, stufft with all honourable virtues.

Beat. It is fo, indeed: he man: but for the ftuffing,

is no less than a stufft well, we are all mortal.

Leon. You must not, Sir, mistake my Niece; there is a kind of merry war betwixt Signior Benedick and her; they never meet, but there's a fkirmifh of Wit between them.

Beat. Alas, he gets nothing by That. In our laft

6 challeng'd Cupid at the fight; the difufe of the bow makes this paffage obfcure. Bedick is repretented as challeng ing Cupid at archery. To challenge at the flight is, I believe, to wager who shall shoot the arTow furtheft without any particular mark, To challenge at the

bird-bolt, feems to mean the fame as to challenge at children's archery, with small arrows fuch as are difcharged at birds. In Twelfth Night, Lady Olivia oppofes a bird-bolt to a cannon bullet, the lightest to the heaviest of miffive weapons.

conflict,

conflict, four of his five wits went halting off, and now is the whole man govern'd with one: So that if he have wit enough to keep himfelf warm, let him bear it for a difference between himself and his horfe; for it is all the wealth that he hath left, to be known a reasonable creature. Who is his companion now? he hath every month a new fworn brother.

Mell. Is it poffible?

ar

Beat. Very eafily poffible; he wears his faith but as the fashion of his hat, it ever changes with the next block.

Melf. I fee, Lady', the gentleman is not in your books.

Beat. No; an he were, I would burn my Study.

7-four of his five wits] In our author's time, wit was the general term for intellectual powers. So Davies on the Soul, Wit, feeking truth, from caufe to caufe afcends,

And never refts till it the first

attain;

Will, Seeking good, finds many middle ends,

But never ftays till it the laft do gain.

And in another part,

But if a phrenzy do poffefs the brain,

It fo difiurbs and blots the form of things,

As fantasy proves altogether vain,

And to the wit no true relation trings.

Then doth the wit, admitting all

for true, Build fond conclufions on thofe idle grounds;

The its feem to have reckon ed five, by analogy to the five fenfes, or the five inlets of ideas.

wit enough to keep himself WARM,] But how would that make a difference between him and his borfe? We should read, Wit enough to keep himself FROM HARM. This fuits the fatirical turn of her fpeech, in the character he would give of Benedick; and this would make the difference spoken of. For 'tis the nature of horfes, when wounded, to run upon the point of the WARBURTON. he wears bis faith] Not religious Profeffion, but Profeffion of friendship; for the fpeaker gives it as the reafon of her afking, who was now his Companion? that he had every month a new fworn brother.

weapon

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WARBURTON. the gentleman is not in your books. This is a phrase used, I believe, by more than underftand it. To be in one's books is to be in one's codicils or will, to be among friends fet down for legacies.

But,

But, I pray you, who is his companion? is there no young fquarer now, that will make a voyage with him to the devil?

Mell. He is moft in the company of the right noble Claudio.

Beat. O lord, he will hang upon him like a disease; he is fooner caught than the peftilence, and the taker, runs presently mad, God help the noble Claudio, if he have caught the Benedick; it will coft him a thou fand pounds ere he be cur'd.

Meff. I will hold friends with you, Lady."
Beat. Do, good friend.

Leon. You'll ne'er run mad, Neice.
Beat. No, not 'till a hot January.

Melf. Don Pedro is approach'd.

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Enter Don Pedro, Claudio, Benedick, Balthazar, and Don John.

Pedro. Good Signior Leonato, you are come to meet your trouble: the fafhion of the world is to avoid coft, and you encounter it.

Leon. Never came trouble to my houfe in the like. nefs of your Grace; for trouble being gone, comfort fhould remain, but when you depart from me, forrow abides, and happiness takes his leave.

Pedro. You embrace your 3 charge too willingly: I think this is your daughter.

Leon. Her mother hath many times told me fo.

young Squarer-] A Squarer I take to be a choleric, quarrelfome fellow, for in this fenfe Shakespeare ufes the word to Square. So in Midsummer Night's Dream it is faid of Oberon and Titanir, that they never meet but

VOL. III.

they fquare. So the fenfe may be, Is there no hot-blooded youth that will keep him company through all his mad pranks ?

3 You embrace your charge-] That is, your burthen, your encumbrance.

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