DUKE.

Come hither, Mariana:

Say, waft thou e'er contracted to his woman?

ANG. I was, my lord.

DUKE. Go take her hence, and marry her inftantly.

Do you the office, friar; which confummate, Return him here again :-Go with him, Provost. [Exeunt ANGELO, MARIANA, PETER, and Provost. ESCAL. My lord, I am more amaz'd at his difhonour,

Than at the ftrangeness of it.

DUKE.

Come hither, Ifabel:

Your friar is now your prince: As I was then
Advértifing, and holy to your business,
Not changing heart with habit, I am still
Attorney'd at your fervice.

ÌSAB.
O, give me pardon,
That I, your vaffal, have employ'd and pain'd
Your unknown fovereignty.

DUKE.

You are pardon'd Ifabel: And now, dear maid, be you as free to us.' Your brother's death, I know, fits at your heart; And you may marvel, why I obfcur'd myself, Labouring to fave his life; and would not rather Make rafh remonftrance of my hidden power,* Than let him fo be loft: O, moit kind maid, It was the swift celerity of his death, Which I did think with flower foot came on,

7

which confummate,] i. e. which being confummated.

MALONE.

$ Advértifing, and holy-] Attentive and faithful. JOHNSON. be you as free to us.] Be as generous to us; pardon us as

9

we have pardoned you. JOHNSON.

༽་

2 Make rafh remonftrance of my hidden power,] That is, a promature difcovery of it.

M. MASON.

2

That brain'd my purpose: But, peace be with him! That life is better life, paft fearing death,

Than that which lives to fear: make it your comfort,

So happy is your brother.

Re-enter ANGELO, MARIANA, PETER, and Provost.

ISAB.

I do, my lord.

DUKE. For this new-married man, approaching here,

Whofe falt imagination yet hath wrong'd
Your well-defended honour, you must pardon
For Mariana's fake: but as he adjudg'd your brother,
(Being criminal, in double violation

3

Of facred chastity, and of promife-breach,
Thereon dependant, for your brother's life,)
The very mercy of the law cries out
Moft audible, even from his proper tongue, 4
An Angelo for Claudio, death for death.

Hafte ftill pays hafte, and leisure answers leisure ;

2 That brain'd my purpose:] We now ufe in conversation a like phrase: This it was that knocked my defign on the head. Dr. Warburton reads:

3 written

baned my purpose. JOHNSON.

and of promife-breach, ] Our author ought to have "in double violation of facred chastity, and of promife," inftead of. promife-breach. Sir T. Hanmer reads and in promifebreach; but change is certainly here improper, Shakspeare having many fimilar inaccuracies. Double indeed may refer to Angelo's conduct to Mariana and Ifabel; yet ftill fome difficulty will remain for then he will be faid to be criminal [inftead of guilty] of promise-breach. MALONE.

even from his proper tongue,] Even from Angelo's own tongue. So, above:

"In the witnefs of his proper ear

To call him villain.

JOHNSON.

Like doth quit like, and Measure ftill for Measure."
Then, Angelo, thy fault's thus manifefted;
Which though thou would'st deny, denies thee van-
tage:

We do condemn thee to the very block

Where Claudio ftoop'd to death, and with like hafte: Away with him.

MARI.
O, my moft gracious lord,
I hope you will not mock me with a husband!
DUKE. It is your husband mock'd you with a
hufband:

Confenting to the fafeguard of
to the fafeguard of your honour,
I thought your marriage fit; else imputation;
For that he knew you, might reproach your life,'
And choke your good to come: for his poffeffions,
Although by confiscation they are ours,

7

Meafure fill for Measure.] So, in the Third Part of K. Henry VI:

Meafure for Measure must be answered." STEEVENS. Shakspeare might have remembered these lines in A Warning for faire Women, a tragedy, 1599 (but apparently written fome years before):

The trial now remains, as fhall conclude

Meafure for Meafure, and loft blood for blood." MALONE.

denies thee vantage:] Takes from thee all opportunity, all expedient of denial. WARBURTON.

Which though thou wouldst deny, denies thee vantage:] The denial of which will avail thee nothing. So, in The Winter's Tale:

"Which to deny, concerns more than avails." MALONE. 7 Although by confifcation they are ours,] This reading was furnifhed by the editor of the fecond folio. The original copy has confutation, which may be right:-by his being confuted, or proved guilty of the fact which he had denied. This however being rather harfh, I have followed all the modern editors in adopting the emendation that has been made. MALONE.

I cannot think it even poffible that confutation fhould be the true reading. But the value of the fecond folio, it feems, muft on all occafions be difputed. STELVENS.

We do inflate and widow you withal,
To buy you a better husband.

MARI.

I crave no other, nor no better man,

O, my

dear lord,

[Kneeling.

DUKE. Never crave him: we are definitive.
MARI. Gentle, my liege,-

DUKE.
Away with him to death.-Now, fir, [ To LUCIO.]

You do but lofe your labour:

to you.

MARI. O, my good lord!-Sweet Ifabel, take my

part;

I end me your knees, and all my life to come
I'll lend you, all my life to do you service.

DUKE. Aaginft ali fenfe you do impórtune her:*
Should the kneel down, in mercy of this fact,
Her brother's ghoft his paved bed would break,
And take her hence in horror.

MARI.

Ifabel,

Sweet Ifabel, do yet but kneel by me;

Hold up your hands, fay nothing, I'll speak all.
They fay, beft men are moulded out of faults;
And, for the moft, become much more the better
For being a little bad: fo may my husband.
O, Ifabel! will you not lend a knee?

DUKE. He dies for Claudio's death.
ISAB.

Moft bounteous fir, [Kneeling.

Look, if it please you, on this man condemn'd,

8 Against all fenfe you do importune her:] The meaning required is, against all reafon and natural affection; Shakspeare, therefore, judicioully uses a fingle word that implies both; fenfe figuifying both reafon and affection. JOHNSON.

The fame expreffion occurs in The Tempeft, A& II: "You cram these words into my ears, against "The ftomach of my fenfe. STEEVENS.

As if my brother, liv'd: I partly think,
A due fincerity govern'd his deeds,

Till he did look on me; fince it is fo,

Let him not die: My brother had but justice,
In that he did the thing for which he died:
For Angelo,

His act did not o'ertake his bad intent;

2

And must be buried but as an intent
That perifh'd by the way: ' thoughts are no subjects;
Intents but merely thoughts.

9 Till he did look on me;] The Duke has juftly observed, that Ifabel is importuned against all fenfe to folicit for Angelo, yet here against all fenfe the folicits for him. Her argument is extraordinary: A due fincerity govern'd his deeds

Till he did look on me: fince it is fo,

Let him not die.

That Angelo had committed all the crimes charged against him, as far as he could commit them, is evident. The only intent which his act did not overtake, was the defilement of Ifabel. Of this Angelo was only intentionally guilty.

Angelo's crimes were fuch, as muft fufficiently justify punishment. whether its end be to fecure the innocent from wrong, or to deter guilt by example; and I believe every reader feels fome indignation when he finds him fpared. From what extenuation of his crime, can Ifabel, who yet supposes her brother dead, form any plea in his favour? Since he was good till he looked on me, let him not die. I am afraid our varlet poet intended to inculcate, that women think ill of nothing that raises the credit of their beauty, and are ready, however virtuous, to pardon any act which they think incited by their own charms. JOHNSON.

It is evident that Ifabella condefcends to Mariana's importunate folicitation, with great reluctance. Bad as her argument might be, it is the beft that the guilt af Angelo would admit. The facrifice that she makes of her revenge to her friendship, fcarcely merits to be confidered in fo harsh a light. RITSON.

2. His act did not o'ertake his bad intent;] So, in Macbeth: "The flighty purpose never is o'ertook,

That perish'd by the way:] i. c. like the traveller, who dies on his journey, is obfcurely interred, and thought of no more:

Illum expirantem

Obliti ignoto camporum in pulvere linguunt. STEEVENS,