Seb. O, that record is lively in my foul;
He finished, indeed, his mortal act,
That day that made my fifter thirteen years.
Vio. If nothing lets to make us happy both,
But this my mafculine ufurp'd attire;
Do not embrace me, 'till each circumstance
Of place, time, fortune, do cohere and jump,
That I am Viola; which to confirm,

I'll bring you to a captain in this town
Where lie my maids weeds; by whofe gentle help
I was preferv'd to ferve this noble Duke.
All the occurrence of my fortune fince
Hath been between this Lady, and this Lord.
Seb. So comes it, Lady, you have been mistook;

[To Olivia.

But nature to her bias drew in that.
You would have been contracted to a maid,
Nor are you therein, by my life, deceiv'd;
You are betroth'd both to a maid, and man.
Duke. Be not amaz'd: right-noble is his blood.
If this be fo, as yet the glafs feems true,

I fhall have fhare in this moft happy wreck.
-Boy, thou haft faid to me a thousand times, [To Vio.
Thou never fhould't love woman like to me.

Vio. And all thofe fayings will I over-fwear,
And all thofe fwearings keep as true in foul;
As doth that orbed continent the fire,
That fevers day from night.

Duke. Give me thy hand,

And let me fee thee in thy woman's weeds.

Vio. The captain, that did bring me first on shore, Hath my maids garments: he upon fome action Is now in durance, at Malvolio's fuit,

A gentleman and follower of my lady's.

Oli. He fhall enlarge him: fetch Malvolio hither. And yet, alas, now I remember me,

They fay, poor gentleman! he's much distract.

SCENE

SCENE VI.

Enter the Clown with a Letter, and Fabian.

4

A moft extracting frenzy of mine own
From my remembrance clearly banish'd his.
How does he, firrah?

Clo. Truly, Madam, he holds Belzebub at the ftave's end, as well as a man in his cafe may do: h'as here writ a letter to you, I fhould have given't you to-day morning. But as a mad-man's epiftles are no gofpels, fo it skills not much, when they are deliver'd.

Oli. Open't, and read it.

Clo. Look then to be well edify'd, when the fool delivers the mad-man-By the Lord, Madam.-[Reads. Oli. How now, art mad?

Clo. No, Madam, I do but read madness: an your Ladyfhip will have it as it ought to be, you must allow Vox.

Oli. Pr'ythee, read it, i'thy right wits.

Clo. So I do, Madona; but to read his right wits, is to read thus: therefore perpend, my princefs, and give ear.

Oli. Read it you, Sirrah.

[To Fabian. Fab. [Reads.] By the Lord, Madam, you wrong me, and the world fhall know it: though you have put me into darkness, and given your drunken Uncle rule over me, yet have I the benefit of my fenfes as well as your Lady hip. I have your own Letter, that induced me to the femblance I put on; with the which I doubt not, but to do myfelf much right, or you much fhame: think of me, as you pleafe: I leave my duty a little unthought of, and Speak out of my injury. The madly us'd Malvolio.

Oli. Did he write this?

Clo. Ay, Madam.

4A mot extracting frenzy-] i. e. A frenzy that drew me away from every thing but its own obje&. WARBURTON.

Duke

Duke. This favours not much of diftraction.

Oli. See him deliver'd, Fabian; bring him hither. My Lord, fo please you, these things further thought on, To think me as well a fifter, as a wife;

One day fhall crown th' alliance on't, so please you, Here at my houfe, and at my proper coft.

Duke. Madam, I am most apt t'embrace your offer. Your mafter quits you; and for your fervice done him, So much against the metal of your sex,

[To Viola. So far beneath your foft and tender breeding; And fince you call'd me mafter for fo long, Here is my hand, you shali from this time be Your master's miftrefs.

Duke. Is this the mad-man?

Oli. Ay, my Lord, this fame: how now, Malvolio? Mal. Madam, you have done me wrong, notorious

wrong.

Oli. Have I, Malvolio? no.

Mal. Lady, you have; pray you, perufe that Letter. You must not now deny it is your hand.

Write from it if you can, in hand or phrafe;
Or fay, 'tis not your feal, nor your invention;
You can fay none of this. Well, grant it then,
And tell me in the modesty of honour,

Why you have given me fuch clear lights of favour,
Bade me come fmiling, and crofs-garter'd to you,
To put on yellow ftockings, and to frown

*

Upon Sir Toby, and the lighter people:
And acting this in an obedient hope,
Why have you fuffer'd me to be imprifon'd,
Kept in a dark houfe, visited by the priest,

lighter-] People of less dignity or importance.

And

And made the most notorious geck3, and gull,
That e'er invention plaid on? tell me, why?
Oli. Alas, Malvolio, this is not my writing,
Tho', I confefs, much like the character:
But, out of question, 'tis Maria's hand.
And now I do bethink me, it was fhe

First told me, thou waft mad; then cam'ft thou fmiling,

And in fuch forms which here were presuppos'd"
Upon thee in the letter: pr'ythee, be content;
This practice hath moft fhrewdly paft upon thee;
But when we know the grounds, and authors of it,
Thou shalt be both the plantiff and the judge
Of thine own cause.

Fab. Good Madam, hear me speak;
And let no quarrel, nor no brawl to come,
Taint the condition of this present hour,
Which I have wondred at. In hope it shall not,
Moft freely I confefs, myfelf and Sir Toby
Set this device against Malvolio here,
Upon fome stubborn and uncourteous parts
We had conceiv'd against him. Maria writ
The letter, at Sir Toby's great importance;
In recompence whereof, he hath married her.
How with a fportful malice it was follow'd,
May rather pluck on laughter than revenge;
If that the injuries be juftly weigh'd,
That have on both fides paft.

Oli. Alas, poor fool! how have they baffled thee? Clo. Why, fome are born great, fome atchieve greatnefs, and fome have greatness thrust upon them. I was one, Sir, in this interlude; one Sir Topas, Sir; but that's all one-by the Lord, fool, I am not mad — but do you remember, Madam,why laugh you at

geck-] A fool.
bere were prefup-

pos'd] Prefuppos'd, for imposed. WARBURTON.

fuch

fuch a barren rafcal? an you smile not, he's gagg'd: and
thus the whirl-gigg of time brings in his revenges.
Mal. I'll be reveng'd on the whole pack of you.
[Exit.

Oli. He hath been moft notoriously abus'd.
Duke. Pursue him, and intreat him to a peace:
He hath not told us of the captain yet;
When that is known, and golden time convents,
A folemn combination fhall be made

Of our dear fouls. Mean time, fweet fifter,
We will not part from hence.- Cefario, come;
(For fo you fhall be, while you are a man;)
But when in other habits you are seen,
Orfind's mistress, and his fancy's Queen.

Clown fings.

When that I was a little tiny boy,

[Exeunt.

With hey, ho, the wind and the rain:

A foolish thing was but a toy,

For the rain it raineth every day.

But when I came to man's eftate,

With bey, bo, &c.

'Gainft knaves and thieves men fout their gate,

For the rain, &c.

But when I came, alas! to wive,

With hey, ho, &c.

By fwaggering could I never thrive,

For the rain, &c.

But when I came unto my beds,

With hey, ho, &c.

With tofs-pots ftill had drunken heads,
For the rain, &c.

A great