Sweet are uses of adverfity,
Which like the toad, ugly and venomous,
Wears yet a precious jewel in his head:
And this our life, exempt from publick haunt,
Finds tongues in trees, books in the running brooks,
Sermons in ftones, and good in every thing.
Ami. I would not change it; happy is your Grace,
That can tranflate the stubbornness of fortune
Into fo quiet and fo sweet a ftile.
Duke Sen. Come, fhall we go and kill us venifon ? And yet it irks me, the poor dappled fools,
Being native burghers of this defart city,
Should, in their own confines, with forked heads
Have their round haunches goar'd.
1 Lord. Indeed, my Lord,
The melancholy Jaques grieves at that;
And in that kind fwears you do more ufurp
Than doth your brother, that hath banish'd you:
To-day my Lord of Amiens, and myself,
Did fteal behind him, as he lay along
Under an oak, whofe antique root peeps out
Upon the brook that brawls along this wood;
To the which place a poor fequeftred ftag,
That from the hunters' aim had ta'en a hurt,
Did come to languifh; and, indeed, my Lord,
The wretched animal heav'd forth fuch groans,
That their discharge did ftretch his leathern coat
Almoft to bursting, and the big round tears
Cours'd one another down his innocent nofe
In piteous chafe; and thus the hairy fool,
Much marked of the melancholy Jaques,
Stood on th' extremeft verge of the fwift brook,
Augmenting it with tears.
Duke Sen. But what faid Jaques?
Did he not moralize this fpectacle?
1 Lord. O yes, into a thousand fimilies.
First, for his weeping in the needlefs ftream;
Poor deer, quoth he, thou mak'ft a teftament
As worldlings do, giving thy fum of more
To that which had too much. Then being alone,
Left and abandon'd of his velvet friends;
"Tis right, quoth he, thus mifery doth part
The flux of company: anon a careless herd,
Full of the pasture, jumps along by him,
And never stays to greet him: ay, quoth Jaques,
Sweep on, you fat and greafy citizens,
'Tis just the fashion; wherefore do you look
Upon that poor and broken bankrupt there?
Thus moft invectively he pierceth through
The body of the country, city, court,
Yea, and of this our life; fwearing, that we
Are mere ufurpers, tyrants, and what's worse,
To fright the animals, and to kill them up
In their affign'd and native dwelling place.
Duke Sen. And did you leave him in this contemplation?. 2 Lord. We did, my Lord, weeping and commenting Upon the fobbing deer.
Duke Sen. Show me the place;
I love to cope him in thefe fullen fits,
For then he's full of matter.
2 Lord. I'll bring you to him ftraight.
SCENE changes to the Palace again.
Enter Duke Frederick with Lords.
AN it be poffible, that no man faw them? It cannot be; fome villains of my court Are of confent and sufferance in this.
I Lord. I cannot hear of any that did see her,
The Ladies, her attendants of her chamber,
Saw her a-bed, and in the morning early
They found the bed untreasur'd of their miftrefs.
2 Lord. My Lord, the roynish clown, at whom fo oft
Your Grace was wont to laugh, is alfo miffing:
Hifperia, the Princefs' gentlewoman,
Confeffes, that fhe fecretly o'er-heard
Your daughter and her coufin much commend
The parts and graces of the wrestler,
That did but lately foil the finewy Charles;
And the believes, where ever they are gone,
That youth is furely in their company.
Duke. Send to his brother, fetch that gallant hither
If he be absent, bring his brother to me,
I'll make him find him; do this fuddenly};
And let not fearch and inquifition quail
To bring again these foolish runaways.
SCENE changes to Oliver's house.
Enter Orlando and Adam.
Orla. WHO's there?
Adam. What! my young master ? oh, my gentle master,
Oh, my fweet mater, O you memory
Of old Sir Rowland! why, what make you here?
Why are you virtuous ? why do people love you ?
And wherefore are you gentle, ftrong, and valiant?
Why would you be fo fond to overcome
The bonny prifer of the humorous Duke? (10)
Your praife is come too swiftly home before you.
Know you not, mafter, to fome kind of men
Their graces ferve them but as enemies ?
(10) The bonny prifer of the humorous Duke.] Mr. Warburton adviles to read,
an epithet more agreeing with the wreftler, who is characterized for his bulk and ftrength; not his gaiety, humour, or affability. I have not difturb'd the text, as the other reading gives fenfe: tho' there are feveral paffages in the play, which, in good meafure, vouch for my friend's conjecture. The Duke fays, fpeaking of the difference be twixt him and Orlando;
You will take little delight in it, I can tell you, there is fuch odds in
And the Princefs says to Orlando;
Young Gentleman, your fpirits are too bold for your years: you bave seen cruel proof of this man's ftrength.
And again, when they are wrestling ;
I would I were invifible, to catch the strong fellow by the leg. And in another paffage he is characteriz'd by the name of the finery Charles,
No more do yours; your virtues, gentle master,
Are fanctified and holy traitors to you.
Oh, what a world is this, when what is comely
Envenoms him that bears it!
Orla. Why, what's the matter?
Adam. O unhappy youth,
Come not within thefe doors; within this roof
The enemy of all your graces lives:
Your brother-(no; no brother; yet the son,-
Yet not the fon; I will not call him fon
Of him I was about to call his father,)
Hath heard your praises, and this night he means
To burn the lodging where you ufe to lie,
And you within it; if he fail of that,
He will have other means to cut you off;
I overheard him, and his practices:
This is no place, this houfe is but a butchery;
Abhor it, fear it, do not enter it.
Orla. Why, whither, Adam, wouldft thou have me go? Adam. No matter whither, fo you come not here. Orla. What, wouldst thou have me go and beg my food? Or with a base, and boisterous fword enforce
A thievish living on the common road?
This I must do, or know not what to do:
Yet this I will not do, do how I can ;
I rather will fubject me to the malice
Of a diverted blood, and bloody brother.
Adam. But do not fo; I have five hundred crowns,
The thrifty hire I fav'd under your father,
Which I did store, to be my fofter nurse
When fervice should in my old limbs lie lame,
And unregarded age in corners thrown;
Take that; and he that doth the ravens feed,
Yea, providently caters for the fparrow,
Be comfort to my age; here is the gold,
All this I give you, let me be your fervant;
Tho' I look old, yet I am ftrong and luty;
For in my youth I never did apply
Hot and rebellious liquors in my blood;
Nor did I with unbafhful forehead woo
The means of weakness and debility :,
Therefore my age is as a lufty winter,
Froty, but kindly; let me go with you;
* I'll do the fervice of a younger man
In all your bufinefs and neceffities.
Orla. Oh! good old man, how well in thee appears
The conflant fervice of the antique world;
When fervice fweat for duty, not for meca!
Thou art not for the fashion of these times,
Where none will fweat, but for promotion;
And, having that, do choke their fervice up
Even with the having; it is not fo with thee;
But, poor
old man, thou prun'ft a rotten tree,
That cannot fo much as a bloffom yield,
In lieu of all thy pains and hufbandry;
But come thy ways, we'll go along together;
And ere we have thy youthful wages spent,
We'll light upon fome fettled low content.
Adam, Matter, go on; and I will follow thee
To the laft gafp with truth and loyalty.
From feventeen years 'till now almoft fourfcore
Here lived I, but now live here no more.
At feventeen years many their fortunes feek,
But at fourfcore, it is too late a week;
Yet fortune cannot recompence me better
Than to die well, and not my master's debtor.'
SCENE changes to the Forest of Arden.
Enter Rofalind in Boys cloaths for Ganymed, Celia dret like a Shepherdefs for Aliena, and Clown.
Jupiter! how weary are my fpirits? (11)
Cle. I care not for my fpirits, if my legs were
(11) O Jupiter! bow merry are my Spirits ?] And yet, within the fpace of one intervening line, the fays, the could find in her heart to difgrace her man's apparel, and cry like a woman. Sure, this is but a very bad fymptom of the brifkness of fpirits: rather, a direct proof of
|
