Nay, never lay thy hand upon thy fword, Glaud. Marry, befhrew my hand, If it fhould give your age fuch cause of fear; As, under privilege of age, to brag What I have done being young, or what would do, I fay, thou haft bely'd mine innocent child, O, in a tomb where never fcandal fiept, Leon. Thine, Claudio; thine, I say. I'll prove it on his body, if he dare; Claud, Away, I will not have to do with you. If thou kill'ft me, boy, thou fhalt kill a man. Ant. He fhall kill two of us, and men indeed; Leon. Brother, Ant. Content yourself; God knows, I lov'd my niece; And she is dead, flander'd to death by villains, That dare as well anfwer a man, indeed, As I dare take a ferpent by the tongue. Leon. Brother Anthony Boys, apes, braggarts, jacks, milkfops! Ant. "Hold you content; what, man? I know "them, yea, "And what they weigh, even to the utmoft fcruple: Scambling, out-facing, fashion-mongring boys, "That lye, and cog, and flout, deprave, and flander, "Go anticly, and fhow an outward hideousness, “And speak off half a dozen dangerous words, "How they might hurt their enemies, if they durft ; "And this is all." Leon. But, brother Anthony, Ant. Come, 'tis no matter; Do not you meddle, let me deal in this. Pedro. Gentlemen both, we will not wrack your patience. My heart is forry for your daughter's death; Pedro. I will not hear you. Leon. No! come, brother, away, I will be heard. SCENE III. [Exeunt ambo. Enter Benedick. Pedro. See, fee, here comes the man we went to feek. Claud. Now, Signior, what news? Bene. Good day, my Lord. Pedro. Welcome, Signior; you are almoft come to, part almoft a fray. Claud. We had like to have had our two nofes fnapt off with two old men without teeth. Pedro. Leonato and his brother; what think'ft thou? had we fought, I doubt we should have been too young for them. Bene. In a falfe quarrel there is no true valour: I came to feek you both. Claud. We have been up and down to feek thee; for we are high-proof melancholy, and would fain have it beaten away. Wilt thou use thy wit? Bene. It is in my fcabbard; fhall I draw it? Claud. Never any did fo, though very many have been befide their wit. I will bid thee draw, as we do the minstrels; draw, to pleafure us. Pedro. As I am an honeft man, he looks pale: art thou fick or angry? Claud. What! courage, man: what though care kill'd a cat, thou haft mettle enough in thee to kill care. Bene. Sir, I fhall meet your wit in the career, if you charge it against me.- -I pray you chufe another fubject. Claud. Nay, then give him another ftaff; this last was broke cross. Pedro. By this light, he changes more and more. I think he be angry indeed. Claud. If he be, he knows how to turn his girdle. Bene. Shall I fpeak a word in your ear? Claud. God bless me from a challenge! Bene. You are a villain; I jeft not. I will make it good how you dare, with what you dare, and when you dare. Do me right, or I will proteft your cowardice. You have kill'd a fweet lady, and her death fhall fall heavy on you. Let me hear from you. Claud. Well, I will meet you, fo I may have good cheer. Pedro. What, a feaft? Claud. I'faith, I thank him; he hath bid me to a calves-head and a capon; the which if I do not carve moft curiously, fay, my knife's naught. Shall I not find a wood-cock too? Bene. Sir, your wit ambles well; it goes eafily. Pedro. I'll tell thee how Beatrice prais'd thy wit the other day. I faid, thou hadft a fine wit; right, fays fhe, a fine little one; no, faid I, a great wit; juft, faid fhe, a great grofs one; nay, faid I, a good wit; just, faid fhe, it hurts no body; nay, faid I, the gentleman is wife; certain, faid fhe, a wife gentleman; nay, faid I, he hath the tongues; that I believe, faid fhe, for he fwore a thing to me on Monday night, which he forfwore on Tuesday morning; there's a double tongue, there's two tongues. Thus did fhe an hour together $ tranf-fhape thy particular virtues; yet at laft fhe concluded with a figh, thou waft the propereft man in Italy. Claud. For the which the wept heartily, and faid The car'd not. Pedro. Yea, that she did; but yet for all that, and if fhe did not hate him deadly, fhe would love him dearly; the old man's daughter told us all. Claud. All, all; and moreover, God farw him when he was hid in the garden. Pedro. But when shall we fet the falvage bull's horns on the fenfible Benedick's head? Claud. Yea, and text underneath, Here dwells Benedick the married man. Bene. Fare you well, boy, you know my mind; I will leave you now to your goffip-like humour; you break jefts as braggarts do their blades, which, God be thank'd, hurt not. My Lord, for your many courtefies I thank you; I muft difcontinue your company; your brother, the baftard, is fled from Meflina; you have among you killed a sweet and innocent lady. For my Lord Lack-beard there, he and I fhall meet; and till then, peace be with him! [Exit Benedick. Pedro. He is in earnest. Claud. In most profound earneft, and I'll warrant you, for the love of Beatrice. Pedro. And hath challeng'd thee? Claud. Moft fincerely. Pedro. What a pretty thing man is, when he goes in his doublet and hofe, and leaves off his wit! Enter Dogberry, Verges, Conrade and Borachio guarded. Claud. He is then a giant to an ape; but then is an ape a doctor to fuch a man. Pedro. But, foft you, let me fee, pluck up my heart and be fad; did he not fay, my brother was fled ? Dogb. Come, you, Sir; if Juftice cannot tame you, fhe fhall ne'er weigh more reafons in her balance; nay, an you be a curfing hypocrite once, you must be look'd to. Pedro. How now, two of my brother's men bound? Borachio one? Claud. Hearken after their offence, my Lord. Pedro. Officers, what offence have these men done? Dogb. Marry, Sir, they have committed false report; moreover, they have fpoken untruths; fecondarily, they are flanders; fixth and laftly, they have bely'd a lady; thirdly, they have verify'd unjust things; and, to conclude, they are lying knaves. Pedro. First, I afk thee what they have done; thirdly, I ask thee what's their offence; fixth and laftly, why they are committed; and, to conclude, what you lay to their charge? Claud. Rightly reafon'd, and in his own divifion; and, by my troth, there's one meaning well-fuited.. Pedro. Whom have you offended, Mafters, that you are thus bound to your anfwer? This learned conftable is too cunning to be understood. What's your offence? Bora. Sweet Prince, let me go no further to mine anfwer: do you hear me, and let this Count kill me. I have deceiv'd even your very eyes; what your wisdoms could not discover, these fhallow fools have brought to light, who in the night overheard me confeffing to this man, how Don John your brother incens'd me to flander the Lady Hero; how you were brought into the orchard, and faw me court Margaret in Hero's, garments; how you difgrac'd her, when you should marry her. My villany they have upon record, which I had rather feal with my death, than repeat over to my fhame. The Lady is dead upon mine and my mafter's falfe accufation; and, briefly, I defire nothing but the reward of a villain. Pedro. Runs not this fpeech like iron through your blood? Claud. I have drunk poison while he utter'd it. Pedro. But did my brother fet thee on to this? Bora. Yea, and paid me richly for the practice of it. Pedro. He is compos'd and fram'd of treachery; And fled he is upon this villany. VOL. II. F |