192192Enter Portia with her wayting woman Nerrissa. 194193Portia. By my troth
Nerrissa, my little body is awearie of this
196195Ner. You would be
sweet Madam, if your mi
series were in the
197196same aboundance as your good fortunes are: and yet for ought I
198197see, they are as
sicke that
surfeite with too much, as they that
starue
199198with nothing; it is no meane happines therfore to be
seated in the
200199meane,
super
fluitie comes
sooner by white haires, but competen
- 202201Portia. Good
sentences, and well pronounc'd.
203202Ner. They would be better if well followed.
204203Portia. If to do were as ea
sie as to know what were good to do,
205204Chappels had beene Churches, and poore mens cottages Princes
206205Pallaces, it is a good diuine that followes his owne in
stru
ctions, I
207206can ea
sier teach twentie what were good to be done, then to be one
208207of the twentie to follow mine owne teaching: the braine may de
- 209208ui
se lawes for the blood, but a hote temper leapes ore a colde de
- 210209cree,
such a hare is madnes the youth, to
skippe ore the me
shes of
211210good coun
saile the cripple; but this rea
soning is not in the fa
shion
212211to choo
se mee a hu
sband, ô mee the word choo
se, I may neyther
213212choo
se who I would, nor refu
se who I di
slike,
so is the will of a ly
- 214213uing daughter curbd by the will of a deade father: is it not harde
Nerissa,
the Merchant of Venice.
215214Nerrissa, that I cannot choo
se one, nor refu
se none.
216215Ner. Your Father was euer vertuous, and holy men at theyr
218216death haue good in
spirations, therefore the lottrie that he hath deui
sed
219217in the
se three che
sts of gold,
siluer, and leade, whereof who
220218choo
ses his meaning choo
ses you, will no doubt neuer be cho
sen
221219by any rightlie, but one who you
shall rightly loue: But what
222220warmth is there in your a
ffe
ction towardes any of the
se Princelie
223221suters that are already come?
224222Por. I pray thee ouer-name them, and as thou name
st them, I
225223will de
scribe them, and according to my de
scription leuell at my
227225Ner. Fir
st there is the Neopolitane Prince.
229226Por. I thats a colt indeede, for he doth nothing but talke of his
230227hor
se, & he makes it a great appropriation to his owne good parts
231228that he can
shoo him him
selfe: I am much afeard my Ladie his
232229mother plaid fal
se with a Smyth.
233230Ner. Than is there the Countie Palentine.
234231Por. Hee doth nothing but frowne (as who
should
say, & you
235232will not haue me, choo
se, he heares merry tales and
smiles not, I
236233feare hee will prooue the weeping Phylo
sopher when hee growes
237234old, beeing
so full of vnmannerly
sadnes in his youth,) I had rather
239235be married to a deaths head with a bone in his mouth, then to ey
- 240236ther of the
se: God defend me from the
se two.
241237Ner. How
say you by the French Lord, Moun
sier
Le Boune?
242238Por. God made him, and therefore let him pa
sse for a man, in
243239truth I knowe it is a
sinne to be a mocker, but hee, why hee hath a
244240hor
se better then the Neopolitans, a better bad habite of frowning
245241then the Count Palentine, he is euery man in no man, if a Tra
ssell
246242sing, he falls
straght a capring, he will fence with his owne
shadow.
247243If I
should marry him, I
should marry twenty hu
sbands: if hee
248244would de
spi
se me,
I would forgiue him, for if he loue me to madnes,
249245I shall neuer requite him.
250246Ner. What
say you then to Fauconbridge, the young Barron
252248Por. You know
I say nothing to him, for hee vnder
stands not
253249me, nor
I him: he hath neither Latine, French, nor
Italian, & you
254250will come into the Court and
sweare that
I haue a poore pennie
- B worth
The comicall Historie of
255251worth in the Engli
sh: hee is a proper mans pi
cture, but alas
who
256252can conuer
se with a dumbe
show? how odly hee is
suted,
I thinke
257253he bought his doublet in
Italie, his round ho
se in Fraunce, his bon
- 258254net in Germanie, and his behauiour euery where.
259255Nerrissa. What thinke you of the Scotti
sh Lorde his neigh
- 261257Portia. That hee hath a neyghbourlie charitie in him, for hee
262258borrowed a boxe of the eare of the Engli
shman, and
swore hee
263259would pay him againe when he was able:
I think the Frenchman
264260became his
suretie, and
seald vnder for another.
265261Ner. How like you the young Germaine, the Duke of Saxo
- 267263Por. Very vildlie in the morning when hee is
sober, and mo
st 268264vildly in the afternoone when he is drunke: when he is be
st, he is
269265a little wor
se then a man, & when he is wor
st he is little better then
270266a bea
st, and the wor
st fall that euer fell, I hope I
shall make
shift
272268Ner. Yf hee
shoulde o
ffer to choo
se, and choo
se the right Ca
s- 273269ket, you
should refu
se to performe your Fathers will, if you
should
275271Portia. Therefore for feare of the wor
st,
I pray thee
set a deepe
276272gla
sse of Reyni
she
wine on the contrarie Ca
sket, for if the deuill
277273be within, and that temptation without, I knowe hee will choo
se
278274it. I will doe any thing
Nerrissa ere
I will be married to a
spunge.
279275Nerrissa. You neede not feare Ladie the hauing anie of the
se
280276Lords, they haue acquainted me with theyr determinations, which
281277is indeede to returne to theyr home, and to trouble you with no
282278more
sute, vnle
sse you may be wonne by
some other
sort thē your
283279Fathers impo
sition, depending on the Ca
skets.
284280Por. Yf I liue to be as old as Sibilla,
I will die as cha
st as Diana,
285281vnle
sse I be obtained by the maner of my Fathers will: I am glad
286282this parcell of wooers are
so rea
sonable, for there is not one among
287283them but
I doate on his very ab
sence: &
I pray God graunt them
289285Nerrissa. Doe you not remember Lady in your Fathers time, a
290286Venecian a Scholler & a Souldiour that came hether in companie
291287of the Marque
sse of Mountferrat?
Portia.
the Merchant of Venice.
292288Portia. Yes, yes, it was
Bassanio, as I thinke
so was he calld.
293289Ner. True maddam, hee of all the men that euer my fooli
sh 294290eyes look'd vpon, was the be
st de
seruing a faire Ladie.
295291Portia. I remember him well, and
I remember him worthie of
299295Ser. The foure
strangers
seeke for you maddam to take theyr
300296leaue: and there is a fore-runner come from a
fift, the Prince of
301297Moroco, who brings word the Prince his Mai
ster will be heere to
303299Por. Yf
I could bid the
fift welcome with
so good hart as I can
304300bid the other foure farewell,
I should bee glad of his approch: if
305301he haue the condition of a Saint, and the complexion of a deuill, I
306302had rather he
should
shriue mee then wiue mee. Come
Nerrissa,
307303sirra goe before: whiles we
shut the gate vpon one wooer, another
308304knocks at the doore.
Exeunt.