Slen. I know the young gentlewoman; fhe has good gifts. Shal. Seven hundred pounds, and poffibilities, is good gifts. Slen. Well; let us fee, honeft Mr. Page: is Falstaff there? Eva. Shall I tell you a lie? I do despise a liar, as I do defpife one that is false; or as I defpife one that is not true. The Knight, Sir Jahn, is there; and, I befeech you, be ruled by your well-wishers. I will peat the door [Knocks.] for master Page. What, hoa? Got blefs your house here. SCENE II. Enter Mr. Page. Page. Who's there? Eva. Here is Got's pleffing, and your friend, and Juftice Shallow; and here's young master Slender; that, peradventures, fhall tell you another tale, if matters grow to your likings. Page. I am glad to see your worships well. I thank you for my venifon, mafter Shallow, Shal. Mafter Page, I am glad to fee you; much good do it your good heart: I wish'd your venifon better; it was ill kill'd. How doth good mistress Page? and I thank you always with my heart, la; with my heart. Page. Sir, I thank you. Shal. Sir, I thank you; by yea and no, I do. Page. I am glad to fee you, good mafter Slender. Slen. How does your fallow greyhound, Sir? I heard fay, he was out-run on Cotfale, Page. It could not be judg'd, Sir, Slen. You'll not confefs, you'll not confess. Shal. That he will nottis your fault, 'tis your fault-'tis a good dog. Shal. Sir, he's a good dog, and a fair dog; can there be more faid? he is good and fair. Is Sir John Falstaff here? Page. Sir, he is within; and I would, I could do a good office between you. Eva. It is fpoke as a christian ought to speak. Page. Sir, he doth in some fort confess it. Shal. If it be confefs'd, it is not redress'd; is not that so, master Page? He hath wrong'd me-indeed, he hath at a word, he hath-believe me-Robert Shallow, Efq; faith he is wrong'd. Page, Here comes Sir John. Enter Sir John Falstaff, Bardolph, Nym and Piftol. Fal. Now, mafter Shallow, you'll complain of me to the Council? Shal. Knight, you have beaten my men, kill'd my deer, and broke open my lodge *. 1 Fal. But not kifs'd your keeper's daughter. Shal. Tut, a pin; this shall be anfwer'd. Fal. I will answer it ftrait: I have done all this. That is now answer'd. Shal. The Council fhall know this. Fal. 'Twere better for you, if 'twere not known in Council: you'll be laugh'd at. Eva. Pauca verba, Sir John, good worts. Fal. Good worts? good cabbage. Slender, I broke your head; what matter have you against me? Slen. Marry, Sir, I have matter in my head against you, and against your cony-catching-rafcals Bardolph, Nym and Piftol. 6 This probably alludes to fome real incident, at that time well known. Bar. of Elizabeth, a common name for a cheat or harper, Green, one of the first among us who made a trade of writing pamphlets, Gg 4 A Contycatcher was in the time published 1 Bar. You Banbury cheese! Slen. Ay, it is no matter. Pift. How now, Mephoftophilus ? Nym. Slice, I fay; pauca, pauca: flice, that's my humour. Slen. Where's Simple, my man? can you tell, cousin ? Eva. Peace: I pray you: now let us understand; there is three umpires in this matter, as I understand that is, mafter Page; fidelicet, master Page; and there is myself, fidelicet, myfelf; and the three party is, laftly and finally, mine Hoft of the Garter. Page. We three to hear it, and end it between them, Eva. Ferry goot; I will make a prief of it in my note-book, and we will afterwards ork upon the cause with as great discreetly as we can, Fal. Piftol. Pift. He hears with ears. Eva. The tevil and his tarn! what phrase is this, he hears with ears? why this is affectations. Fal. Piftol, did you pick master Slender's purse? Slen. Ay, by these gloves, did he; (or I would I might never come in mine own great chamber again elfe,) of seven groats in mill-fixpences, and two 7 Edward fhovel-boards, that coft me two fhilling and two pence a-piece of Yead Miller, by these gloves. Fal. Is this true, Piftol? Eva. No; it is false, if it is a pick-purse. and mafter mine, I combat challenge of this latten bilboe ; published a detection of the frauds and tricks of Coneycatchers and Couzeners. 1 Edward Shovelboards.] By this term, I believe, are meant brafs cafters, fuch as are fho Sir John, Word 1 Word of denial in thy Labra's here; Nym. Be advis'd, Sir, and pass good humours: I will fay marry trap* with you, if you run the base humour on me; that is the very note of it. Slen. By this hat, then he in the red face had it; for tho' I cannot remember what I did when you made me drunk, yet I am not altogether an ass. Fal. What say you, Scarlet and John2? 1 temoigne; c'est ce que nous appel- Marry trap.] When a man was caught in his own ftratagem, I fuppofe the exclamation of infult was marry trap! Word, Latin, in Italic Characters, as if it was addrefs'd to Sir Hugh, and meant to call him pedantic Blade, on account of his being a Schoolmafter, and teach-" ing Latin. But I'll be bold to fay, in This they do not take the Poet's Conceit. Piftol barely calls Sir Hugh Mountain-foreigner, because he had interpos'd in the Difpute: but then immediately demands the Combat of Slender, for having charg'd him with picking his Pocket. The old Quar- to's write it Latten, as it should be, in the common Characters: And as a Proof that the Author defign'd This should be addrefs'd to Slender, Sir Hugh does not there interpofe one Word in the Quarrel. But what then fignifies latten Bilbo? Why, Pistol feeing Slender fuch a flim, puny, Wight, would intimate, that he is as thin as a Plate of that compound Metal, which is call'd lat ten and which was, as we are told, the Old Orichalc. Monfieur Dacier, upon this Verse in Horace's Epiftle de Arte Poetica, Tibia non ut nunc Orichalco vincta, &c. fays, C'est une espece de Cuivre de montagne, comme fon nem mefme le Word of denial in thy Labra's here ;] I fuppofe it should rather be read, Word of denial in my Labra's hear. That is, hear the word of denial in my lips, Thou lieft. 1-bafe bumour] Read, pafs the Nutbooks humour. Nuthook was a term of reproach in the vulgar way, and in cant ftrain. In the fecond part of Hen. IV. Doll Tearsheet fays to the beadle, Nutbook, Nutbook, you lie. Probably it was a name given to a bailiff or catchpole, very odious to the common people. HANMER. 2 Scarlet and John?] The names of two of Robin Hood's companions; but the humour confifts in the allufion to Bardolph's red face; concerning which fee the fecond part of Henry the fourth. WARBURTON. Bard. Bard. Why, Sir, for my part, I fay, the gentleman had drunk himself out of his five fentences. Eva. It is his five fenfes: fie, what the Ignorance is! Bard. And being fap, Sir, was, as they fay, cafhier'd; and fo conclufions paft the car-eires *. Slen. Ay, you fpake in Latin then too; but 'tis no matter; I'll never be drunk whilst I live again, but in honeft, civil, godly company, for this trick: if I be drunk, I'll be drunk with thofe that have the fear of God, and not with drunken knaves. Eva. So Got udg me, that is a virtuous mind. Fal. You hear all these matters deny'd, gentlemen; you hear it. Enter Miftrefs Anne Page, with wine. Page. Nay, daughter, carry the wine in; we'll drink within. [Exit Anne Page. Slen. O heav'n! this is mistress Anne Page. Enter Miftrefs Ford and Miftrefs Page. Page. How now, miftrefs Ford? Fal. Miftrefs Ford, by my troth, you are very well met; by your leave, good mistress. [Kiffing ber. Page. Wife, bid thefe gentlemen welcome: come, we have a hot venifon pasty to dinner; come, gentlemen; I hope, we fhall drink down all unkindness. (Exe. Fal. Page, &c. SCENE IV. Manent Shallow, Evans, and Slender. Slen. I had rather than forty fhillings, I had my book of fongs and fonnets here. Enter Simple. How now, Simple, where have you been? must I wait * Careires.] I believe this ftrange word is nothing but the French cariere, and the expref fion means, that the common bounds of good behaviour were overpaffed. on |