837777Bene. In my chamber window lies a booke, bring it hither
839779Boy. I am here already
sir.
exit. 840780Bene. I know that, but I would haue thee hence and here a
- 841781gaine. I do much wonder, that one man
seeing how much an
842782other man is a foole, when he dedicates his behauiours to loue,
843783wil after he hath laught at
such
shallow follies in others, becom
844784the argument of his owne
scorne, by falling in loue, and
such a
845785man is Claudio, I haue knowne when there was no mu
sique
846786with him but the drumme and the
fife, and now had he rather
847787heare the taber and the pipe: I haue knowne when he would
848788haue walkt ten mile afoot, to
see a good armour, and now wil
850789he lie ten nights awake caruing the fa
shion of a new dublet: he
851790was woont to
speake plaine, and to the purpo
se (like an hone
st 852791man and a
souldier) and now is he turnd ortography, his words
853792are a very fanta
sticall banquet, iu
st so many
strange di
shes:
854793may I be
so conuerted and
see with the
se eies? I cannot tell, I
855794thinke not: I wil not be
sworne but loue may transforme me to
856795an oy
ster, but ile take my oath on it, till he haue made and oy
- 857796ster of me, he
shall neuer make me
such a foole: one woman is
858797faire, yet I am well, an other is wi
se, yet I am well: an other
859798vertuous, yet I am wel: but till all graces be in one woman, one
861799womã shal not com in my grace: rich
she
shal be thats certain,
862800wi
se, or ile none, vertuous, or ile neuer cheapen her: faire, or ile
863801neuer looke on her, mild, or come not neare me, noble, or not I
864802for an angell, of good di
scour
se, an excellent mu
sitian, and her
haire
about Nothing.
865803haire
shall be of what colour it plea
se God. hah! the prince and
867804mon
sieur Loue, I wil hide me in the arbor.
868805 Enter prince, Leonato, Claudio, Musicke. 869806Prince Come
shall we heare this mu
sique?
870807Claud. Yea my good lord: how
stil the euening is,
871808As hu
sht on purpo
se to grace harmonie!
872809Prince See you where Benedicke hath hid him
selfe?
873810Claud. O very wel my lord: the mu
sique ended,
874811Weele
fit the kid-foxe with a penny worth.
812 Enter Balthaser with musicke. 875813Prince Come Baltha
ser, weele heare that
song againe.
876814Balth. O good my lord, taxe not
so bad a voice,
877815To
slaunder mu
sicke any more then once.
878816Prince It is the witne
sse
still of excellencie,
881817To put a
strange face on his owne perfe
ction,
882818I pray thee
sing, and let me wooe no more.
883819Balth. Becau
se you talke of wooing I will
sing,
884820Since many a wooer doth commence his
sute,
885821To her he thinkes not worthy, yet he wooes,
886822Yet will he
sweare he loues.
887823Prince Nay pray thee come,
888824Or if thou wilt hold longer argument,
890826Balth. Note this before my notes,
891827Theres not a note of mine thats worth the noting.
892828Prince Why the
se are very crotchets that he
speakes,
893829Note notes for
sooth, and nothing.
894830Bene. Now diuine aire, now is his
soule raui
sht, is it not
895831strange that
sheepes guts
should hale
soules out of mens bo
- 896832dies? well a horne for my mony when alls done.
Sigh no more ladies, sigh no more,
900835Men were deceiuers euer,
901836One foote in
sea, and one on
shore,
902837To one thing con
stant neuer,
903838Then
sigh not
so, but let them go,
904839And be you blith and bonnie,
D1 Con-
Much adoe
905840Conuerting all your
soundes of woe,
907842Sing no more ditties,
sing no moe,
908843Of dumps
so dull and heauy,
909844The fraud of men was euer
so,
910845Since
summer
fir
st was leauy,
912847Prince By my troth a good
song.
913848Balth. And an ill
singer my lord.
914849Prince Ha, no no faith, thou
sing
st wel enough for a
shift.
916850Ben. And he had bin a dog that
should haue howld thus,
917851they would haue hangd him, and I pray God his bad voice
918852bode no mi
scheefe, I had as liue haue heard the night-rauen,
919853come what plague could haue come after it.
921854Prince Yea mary, doo
st thou heare Baltha
sar? I pray thee
922855get vs
some excellent mu
sique: for to morow night we would
923856haue it at the ladie Heroes chamber window.
924857Balth. The be
st I can my lord.
925859Prince Do
so, farewell. Come hither Leonato, what was
926860it you told mee of to day, that your niece Beatrice was in loue
928862Cla. O I,
stalke on,
stalk on, the foule
sits. I did neuer think
929863that lady would haue loued any man.
930864Leo. No nor I neither, but mo
st wonderful, that
she
should
931865so dote on
signior Benedicke, whome
she hath in all outward
932866behauiors
seemd euer to abhorre.
933867Bene. I
st po
ssible?
sits the wind in that corner?
934868Leo. By my troth my Lord, I cannot tell what to thinke of
935869it, but that
she loues him with an inraged a
ffe
ction, it is pa
st the
937871Prince May be
she doth but counterfeit.
938872Claud. Faith like enough.
939873Leon. O God! counterfeit? there was neuer counterfeit of
940874pa
ssion, came
so neare the life of pa
ssion as
she di
scouers it.
Prince
about Nothing.
942875Prince Why what e
ffe
cts of pa
ssion
shewes
she?
943876Claud. Baite the hooke wel, this
fish will bite.
944877Leon. What e
ffe
cts my Lord?
she wil
sit you, you heard my
947880Prince How, how I pray you! you amaze me, I would haue
948881thought her
spirite had beene inuincible again
st all a
ssaults of
950883Leo. I would haue
sworn it had, my lord, e
specially again
st 952885Bene. I
should think this a gull, but that the white bearded
953886fellow
speakes it: knauery cannot
sure hide him
self in
such re
- 955888Claud. He hath tane th'infe
ction, hold it vp.
956889Prince Hath
shee made her a
ffe
ction knowne to Bene
- 958891Leonato No, and
sweares
shee neuer will, thats her tor
- 960893Claudio Tis true indeed,
so your daughter
saies:
shall I,
saies
961894she, that haue
so oft encountred him with
scorne, write to him
963896Leo. This
saies
she now when
she is beginning to write to
964897him, for
sheel be vp twenty times a night, and there will
she
sit
965898in her
smocke, til
she haue writ a
sheete of paper: my daughter
967900Clau. Now you talk of a
sheet of paper, I remember a prety
968901ie
st your daughter told of vs.
969902Leonato O when
she had writ it, and was reading it ouer,
she
970903found Benedicke and Beatrice betweene the
sheete.
972905Leon. O
she tore the letter into a thou
sand halfpence, raild
973906at her
self, that
she
should be
so immode
st to write, to one that
974907she knew would
flout her, I mea
sure him,
saies
she, by my own
975908spirit, for I
should
flout him, if he writ to me, yea thogh I loue
977910Clau. Then downe vpon her knees
she falls, weepes,
sobs,
978911beates her heart, teares her haire, prayes, cur
ses, O
sweet Bene
- D2 dicke,
Much adoe
979912dicke, God giue me patience.
980913Leonato She doth indeed, my daughter
saies
so, and the ex
- 981914ta
sie hath
so much ouerborne her, that my daughter is
some
- 982915time afeard
shee will doe a de
sperate out-rage to her
selfe, it is
984917Prince It were good that Benedicke knew of it by
some o
- 985918ther, if
she will not di
scouer it.
986919Claudio To what end: he would make but a
sport of it, and
987920torment the poore Lady wor
se.
988921Prince And he
should, it were an almes to hang him,
shees
989922an excellent
sweete lady, and (out of all
su
spition,)
she is vertu
- 991924Claudio And
she is exceeding wi
se.
992925Prince In euery thing but in louing Benedicke.
993926Leonato O my Lord, wi
sedome and blood combating in
994927so tender a body, we haue ten proofes to one, that bloud hath
995928the vi
ctory, I am
sory for her, as I haue iu
st cau
se, beeing her
997930Prince I would
shee had be
stowed this dotage on mee, I
998931would haue daft all other re
spe
cts, and made her halfe my
self:
999932I pray you tell Benedicke of it, and heare what a will
say.
1001933Leonato Were it good thinke you?
1002934Claudio Hero thinkes
surely
she will die, for
she
sayes
shee
1003935will die, if he loue her not, and
shee will die ere
shee make her
1004936loue knowne, and
she will die if he wooe her, rather than
shee
1005937will bate one breath of her accu
stomed cro
sne
sse.
1007938Prince She doth well, if
shee
shoulde make tender of her
1008939loue, tis very po
ssible heele
scorne it, for the man (as you know
1009940all) hath a contemptible
spirite.
1010941Claudio He is a very proper man.
1011942Prince He hath indeede a good outward happines.
1012943Claudio Before God, and in my mind, very wi
se.
1013944Prince Hee dooth indeede
shew
some
sparkes that are like
1015946Claudio And I take him to be valiant.
1016947Prince As He
ctor, I a
ssure you, and in the mannaging of
1017948quarrels you may
say he is wi
se, for either hee auoydes them
with
about Nothing.
1018949with great di
scretion, or vndertakes them with a mo
st chri
sti
- 1020951Leonato If he do feare God, a mu
st nece
ssarily keep peace,
1021952if hee breake the peace, hee ought to enter into a quarrel with
1023954Prince And
so will hee doe, for the man doth feare God,
1024955how
soeuer it
seemes not in him, by
some large ie
stes hee will
1025956make: well I am
sory for your niece,
shall we go
seeke Bene
- 1026957dicke, and tell him of her loue?
1027958Claudio Neuer tell him, my Lord, let her weare it out with
1029960Leonato Nay thats impo
ssible,
shee may weare her heart
1031962Prince Well, we will heare further of it by your daughter,
1032963let it coole the while, I loue Benedicke wel, and I could wi
sh 1033964he would mode
stly examine him
selfe, to
see how much he is
1035966Leonato My lord, will you walke? dinner is ready.
1036967Claudio If he do not doate on her vppon this, I will neuer
1038969Prince Let there be the
same nette
spread for her, and that
1039970mu
st your daughter and her gentlewomen carry: the
sporte
1040971will be, when they holde one an opinion of an others dotage,
1041972and no
such matter, thats the
scene that I woulde
see, which
1042973wil be meerely a dumbe
shew: let vs
send her to call him in to
1044975Benedicke This can be no tricke, the conference was
sadly
1045976borne, they haue the trueth of this from Hero, they
seeme to
1046977pittie the Lady: it
seemes her a
ffe
ctions haue their full bent:
1047978loue me? why it mu
st be requited: I heare how I am cen
surde,
1048979they
say I will beare my
selfe prowdly, if I perceiue the loue
1049980come from her: they
say too, that
she will rather die than giue
1050981anie
signe of a
ffe
ction: I did neuer thinke to marry, I mu
st 1051982not
seeme prowd, happy are they that heare their detra
ctions,
1052983and can put them to mending: they
say the Lady is faire, tis a
1053984trueth, I can beare them witne
sse: and vertuous, tis
so, I can
- 1054985not reprooue it, and wi
se, but for louing me, by my troth it is
D3 no
Much adoe
1056986no addition to her wit, nor no great argument of her follie, for
1057987I will be horribly in loue with her, I may chaunce haue
some
1058988odde quirkes and remnants of witte broken on me, becau
se I
1059989haue railed
so long again
st marriage: but doth not the appe
- 1060990tite alter? a man loues the meate in his youth, that he cannot in
- 1061991dure in his age. Shall quippes and
sentences, and the
se paper
1062992bullets of the brain awe a man from the carreere of his humor?
1063993No, the world mu
st be peopled. When I
saide I woulde die a
1064994batcheller, I did not think I
should liue til I were married, here
1065995comes Beatrice: by this day,
shees a faire lady, I doe
spie
some
1069998Beatr. Agan
st my will I am
sent to bid you come in to din
- 10711000Bene. Faire Beatrice, I thanke you for your paines.
10721001Beat. I tooke no more paines for tho
se thankes, then you
10731002take paines to thanke me, if it had bin painful I would not haue
10751004Bene. You take plea
sure then in the me
ssage.
10761005Beat. Yea iu
st so much as you may take vppon a kniues
10771006point, and choake a daw withall: you haue no
stomach
signior,
10791008Bene. Ha, again
st my will I am
sent to bid you come in to
10801009dinner: theres a double meaning in that: I took no more paines
10811010for tho
se thanks
thẽ you took pains to thank me, thats as much
10821011as to
say, any pains that I take for you is as ea
sy as thanks: if I do
10831012not take pitty of her I am a villaine, if I do not loue her I am a
exit.