For by this ring the Doctor lay with me.

Ner. And pardon me, my gentle Gratiano, For that fame fcrubbed boy, the Doctor's clerk, Duf In lieu of this, last night did lie with me.

Gra. Why, this is like the mending of high-ways In fummer, where the ways are fair enough: What are we cuckolds ere we have deferv'd it? Por. Speak not fo grofsly; you are all amaz'd: Here is a letter, read it at your leisure;

It comes from Padua, from Bellario:

There you fhall find, that Portia was the Doctor;
Neriffa, there, her clerk. Lorenzo, here,
Shall witness I fet forth as foon as you,
And even but now return'd: I have not yet
Enter'd my houfe. Anthonio, you are welcome;
And I have better news in ftore for you,
Than you expect: unfeal this letter foon;
There you fhall find, three of your Argofies
Are richly come to harbour fuddenly.

You fhall not know by what strange accident
I chanced on this letter.

Ant. I am dumb.

Baff. Were you the Doctor, and I knew you not? Gra. Were you the clerk that is to make me cuckold?

Ner. Ay, but the clerk that never means to do it, Unless he live until he be a man.

Baff. Sweet Doctor, you fhall be my bedfellow; When I am abfent, then lie with my wife.

Ant. Sweet Lady, you have giv'n me life and living; For here I read for certain, that

Are fafely come to road.

Por. How now, Lorenzo?

my ships

My clerk hath fome good comforts too for you.
Ner. Ay, and I'll give them him without a fee.

There do I give to you and Jeffica,

From the rich Jew, a fpecial deed of gift,
After his death, of all he dies poffefs'd of.

Lor. Fair ladies, you drop manna in the way

Of starved people.

Por. It is almost morning,

And yet I'm fure you are not fatisfy'd

Of

Of these events at full. Let us go in,
And charge us there upon interr'gatories,
And we will anfwer all things faithfully.

Gra. Let it be fo. The firft interr'gatory,
That my Neriffa fhall be fworn on, is,
Whether till the next night she had rather stay,
Or
go to bed now, being two hours to day?
But were the day come, I fhould wifh it dark,
Till I were couching with the Doctor's clerk.
Well, while I live, I'll fear no other thing
So fore, as keeping safe Neriffa's ring. [Exeunt omnes.

LOVE'S

2

LOVE'S LABOUR's LOST*

A

DRAMATIS PERSONE.

FERDINAND, King of Na- ||

varre.

Biron,

three Lords at

Stending upon Longaville, the King in his the King in his

Dumain,

Boyet,

Macard,

retirement. Lords attending upon the Princefs of France. Don Adriana de Armada, a fantaftical Spaniard.

Nathaniel, a curate.

Dull, a conflable.

Holofernes, a schoolmaster.
Coftard, a clown.

Moth, page to Don Adria-
no de Armado.
A Forefter,
Princess of France.
Rofaline, Ladies attend-
Maria, ing on the Prin
Catharine, cefs.

Jaquenetta, a country wench.
Officers, and others, attend-
ants upon the King and
Princess.

SCENE, the King of Navarre's palace, and the coun

try near it.

A C T I. SCENE I.

The palace.

Enter the King, Biron, Longaville, and Dumain.

King.

L'

ET fame, that all hunt after in their lives,
Live regiftred upon our brazen tombs +;
When, fpight of cormorant devouring
time,

Th' endeavour of this prefent breath may buy
That honour which shall 'bate his fcythe's keen edge,
And make us heirs of all eternity.

Therefore, brave conquerors! for fo you are,

That war against your own affections,

In this play are to be perceived several strokes of Shakespear's pen, but the whole ought by no means to pass for the work of it.

brazen tombs;

And then grace us in the difgrace of death;

When, fpight of, &c.

And

And the huge army of the world's defires;
Our late edict shall strongly stand in force.
Navarre fhall be the wonder of the world;
Our court fhall be a little academy,
Still and contemplative in living arts.
You three, Biron, Dumain, and Longaville,
Have fworn for three years' term to live with me,
My fellow-fcholars; and to keep those statutes,
That are recorded in this schedule here.

Your oaths are pass'd, and now fubfcribe your names :
That his own hand may strike his honour down,
That violates the fmalleft branch herein:.
If you are arm'd to do as fworn to do,

Subscribe to your deep oaths, and keep them too.
Long. I am refolv'd; 'tis but a three years's fast:
The mind fhall banquet tho' the body pine;
Fat paunches have lean pates; and dainty bits
Make rich the ribs, but bankerout the wits.

Dum. My loving Lord, Dumain is mortify'd :
The groffer manner of thefe world's delights
He throws upon the grofs world's bafer flaves:
To love, to wealth, to pomp, I pine and die;
With all these living in philofophy.

Biron. I can but fay their proteftation over.
So much (dear Liege) I have already fworn,
That is, to live and ftudy here three years.
But there are other ftrict obfervances:
As, not to see a woman in that term;
Which I hope well is not inrolled there:
And one day in a week to touch no food,
And but one meal on every day befide;
The which I hope is not inrolled there:
And then to fleep but three hours in the night,
And not be seen to wink of all the day;
(When I was wont to think no harm all night,
And make a dark night too of half the day);
Which I hope well is not inrolled there.
O, these are barren tasks, too hard to keep;
Not to fee ladies, ftudy, faft, not fleep..

King. Your oath is pass'd to pass away from these.
Biron. Let me fay, No, my Liege, an' if you pleafe;

I only

I only fwore to ftudy with your Grace,
And stay here in your court for three years' space.
Long. You fwore to that, Biron, and to the rest.
Biron. By yea and nay, Sir, then I swore in jest.
What is the end of study? let me know.

King. Why, that to know, which elfe we should not know.

Biron. Things hid and barr'd (you mean) from common fenfe.

King. Ay, that is ftudy's god-like recompence.
Biron. Come on then, I will fwear to study fo,
To know the thing I am forbid to know;
As thus; to ftudy where I well may dine,
When I to feat exprefsly am forbid;
Or ftudy where to meet fome mistress fine,
When miftreffes from common fenfe are hid;
Or, having fworn too hard a-keeping oath,
Study to break it, and not break my troth.
If ftudy's gain be this, and this be fo,

Study knows that which yet it doth not know:
Swear me to this, and I will ne'er fay, No.

King. Thefe be the flops that hinder ftudy quite, And train our intellects to vain delight.

Biron. Why, all delights are vain; but that most vain, Which, with pain purchas'd, doth inherit pain; As, painfully to pore upon a book,

To feek the light of truth; while truth the while Doth falfely blind the eye-fight of his look:

Light, feeking light, doth light of light beguile;
So, ere you find where light in darkness lies,
Your light grows dark by lofing of your eyes.
Study me how to please the eye indeed,
By fixing it upon a fairer eye;

Who dazzling fo, that eye fhall be his heed,
And give him light, that it was blinded by.

Study is like the heaven's glorious fun,

That will not be deep-fearch'd with fawcy looks; Small have continual plodders ever won,

Save base authority from others' books. Thefe earthly godfathers of heaven's lights That give a name to every fixed ftar,