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me, if you think I will defist from my demand.

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The lady now arrives at Venice, in her lawyer's drefs and alighting at an inn, the landlord asks one of the fervants who his mafter was? The fervant answered, that he was a young lawyer who had finifhed his ftudies at Bologna. The landlord upon this fhews his gueft great civility: and when he attended at dinner, the lawyer inquiring how juftice was administered in that city: he answered, juftice in this place is too fevere, and related the cafe of Anfaldo. Says the lawyer, this question may be easily answered. If you can anfwer it, fays the landlord, and fave this worthy man from death, you will get the love and efteem of all the best men of this city. The lawyer caufed a proclamation to be made, that whoever had any law matters to determine, they should have recourfe to him: fo it was told to Giannetto, that a famous lawyer was come from Bologna, who could decide all cafes in law. Giannetto propofed to the Jew to apply to this lawyer. With all my heart, fays the Jew; but let who will come, I will stick to my bond. They came to this judge, and faluted him. Giannetto did not remember her: for fhe had disguised her face with the juice of certain herbs. Giannetto, and the Jew, each told the merits of the caufe to the judge; who, when he had taken the bond and read it, faid to the Jew, I muft have you take the hundred thousand ducats, and releafe this honeft man, who will always have a grateful fenfe of the favour done to him. The jew plied, I will do no fuch thing. The judge answered, it will be better for you. The Jew was pofitive to yield nothing. Upon this they go to the tribunal appointed for fach judgments and our judge fays to the Jew, Do you cut a pound of this man's flesh where you chufe. The jew ordered him to be ftripped naked; and takes in his hand a razor, which had been made on purpofe. Giannetto feeing this, turning to the judge, this, fays he, is not the favour I asked of you. Be quiet, fays he, the pound of flesh is not yet cut off. foon as the Jew was going to begin, Take care what you do, fays the judge, if you take more or lefs than a pound, I will order your head to be ftruck off: and befide, if you shed one drop of blood you fhall be put to death. Your paper makes no mention of the shedding of blood; but fays exprefly, that

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you may take a pound of flesh, neither more nor lefs. He immediately fent for the executioner to bring the block and ax; and now, fays he, if I fee one drop of blood, off goes your head. At length the Jew, after much wrangling, told him, Give me the hundred thousand ducats, and I am content. No, fays the judge, cut off your pound of flesh according to your bond: why did you not take the money when it was offered? The Jew came down to ninety, and then to eighty thousand; but the judge was ftill refolute. Gian. netto told the judge to give what he required, that Anfaldo might have his liberty: but he replied, let me manage him. Then the Jew would have taken fifty thousand: he faid, I will not give you a penny. Give me at leaft, fays the Jew, my own ten thousand ducats, and a curfe confound you. The judge replies, I will give you nothing: if you will have the pound of flesh, take it; if not, I will order your bond to be protested and annulled. The Jew feeing he could gain nothing, tore in pieces the bond in a great rage. faldo was released, and conducted home with great joy by Giannetto, who carried the hundred thousand ducats to the inn to the lawyer. The lawyer faid, I do not want money; carry it back to your lady, that the may not fay, that you have fquandered it away idly. Says Giannetto, my lady is fo kind, that I might spend four times as much, without incurring her difpleasure. How are you pleased with the lady? fays the lawyer. I love her better than any earthly thing, anfwers Giannetto: Nature feems to have done her utmoft in forming her. If you will come and fee her, you will be furprised at the honours the will fhew you. I cannot go with you, fays the lawyer; but fince you speak fo much good of her, I must defire you to prefent my respects to her. I will not fail, Giannetto anfwered; and now let me entreat you to accept of fome of the money. While he was fpeaking the lawyer obferved a ring on his finger, and faid, if you will give me this ring, I fhall feek no other reward. Willingly, fays Giannetto; but as it is a ring given me by my lady, to wear for her fake, I have fome reluctance to part with it, and the, not seeing it on my finger, will believe, that I have given it to a woman. Says the lawyer, fhe efteems you fufficiently to credit what you tell her, and you

may fay you made a prefent of it to me; but I rather think you want to give it to fome former miftrefs here in Venice. So great, fays Giannetto, is the love and reverence I bear to her, that I would not change her for any woman in the world. After this he takes the ring from his finger, and prefents it to him. I have ftill a favour to afk, fays the lawyer. It fhall be granted, fays Giannetto. It is, replied he, that you do not stay any time here, but go as foon as poffible to your lady. It appears to me a thousand years till I fee her, anfwered Giannetto: and immediately they take leave of each other. The lawyer embarked, and left Venice. Giannetto took leave of his Venetian friends, and carried Anfaldo with him, and fome of his old acquaintance accompanied them.

The lady arrived fome days before; and having resumed her female habit, pretended to have spent the time at the baths; and now gave orders to have the ftreets lined with tapestry and when Giannetto and Anfaldo were landed, all the court went out to meet them. When they arrived at the palace, the lady ran to embrace Anfaldo, but feigned anger against Giannetto, tho fhe loved him excefiively: yet the feaftings, tilts and diverfions went on as ufual, at which all the lords and ladies were present. Giannetto feeing that his wife did not receive him with her accuftomed good countenance, called her and would have faluted her. She told him fhe wanted not his careffes: I am fure, fays fhe, you have been lavish of them to fome of your former mistresses. Giannetto began to make excufes. She asked him where was the ring she had given him? It is no more than what I expected, cries Giannetto, and I had a right to say you would be angry with me; but, I fwear by all that is facred, and by your dear felf, that I gave the ring to the lawyer who gained our cause. And I can fwear, fays the lady, with as much folemnity, that you gave the ring to a woman: therefore fwear no more. Giannetto protested that what he had told her was true, and that he said all this to the lawyer, when he asked for the ring. The lady replied, You would have done much better to stay with your mistreffes, for I fear they all wept when you came away. Giannetto's tears began to fall, and in great forrow he affured her, that what the fuppofed could not be true. The lady feeing his tears, which

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were daggers in her bosom, ran to embrace him, and in a fit of laughter fhewed the ring, and told him, that fhe herfelf was the lawyer, and how the obtained the ring. Giannetto was greatly aftonished, finding it all true, and told the story to the nobles and to his companions; and this heightened greatly the love between him and his lady. He then called the damfel who had given him the good advice in the evening not to drink the liquor, and gave her to Anfaldo for a wife and they spent the rest of their lives in great felicity

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and contentment.

TALE from Boc CACE.

Ruggieri de Figiovanni took a refolution of going, for fome time, to the court of Alfonfo king of Spain. He was graciously received, and living there fome time in great magnificence, and giving remarkable proofs of his courage, was greatly esteemed. Having frequent opportunities of examining minutely the behaviour of the king, he obferved, that he gave, as he thought, with little difcernment, caftles, and baronies, to fuch who were unworthy of his favours; and to himself, who might pretend to be of fome estimation, he gave nothing he therefore thought the fittest thing to be done, was to demand leave of the king to return home.

His requeft was granted, and the king prefented him with one of the moft beautiful and excellent mules, that had ever been mounted. One of the king's trufty fervants was commanded to accompany Ruggieri, and riding along with him, to pick up, and recollect every word he faid of the king, and then mention that it was the order of his fovereign, that he fhould go back to him. The man watching the opportunity, joined Ruggieri when he fet out, faid he was going towards Italy, and would be glad to ride in company with him. Ruggieri jogging on with his mule, and talking of one thing er other, it being near nine o'clock, told his companion, that they would do well to put up their mules a little, and as foon as they entered the ftable, every beaft, except his, began to ftale. Riding on further they came to a river, and watering the beafts, his mule ftaled in the river: You untoward beaft, fays he, you are like your mafter, who gave you to me. The fervant remembered this expreffion, and many others as they rode on all day together; but he heard not a single word drop from him, but what was in praise of

the king. The next morning Ruggieri was told the order of the king, and inftantly turned back. When the king had heard what he had faid of the mule, he commanded him into his prefence, and with a fmile, asked him, for what reafon he had compared the mule to him. Ruggieri anfwered, My reason is plain, you give where you ought not to give, and where you ought to give, you give nothing; in the fame manner the mule would not ftale where she ought, and where the ought not, there the ftaled. The king faid upon this, If I have not rewarded you as I have many, do not entertain a thought that I was infenfible to your great merit; it is Fortune who hindered me; and she is to blame, and not I; and I will fhew you manifeftly that I fpeak truth. My difcontent, Sir, proceeds not, answered Ruggieri, from a defire of being enriched, but from your not having given the small ft teftimony to my deferts in your fervice: nevertheless your excufe is valid, and I am ready to fee the proof you mention, though I can eafily believe you without it. The king conducted him to a hall, where he had already commanded two large cafkets, shut clofe, to be placed; and before a large company told Ruggieri, that in one of them was contained his crown, fcepter, and all his jewels, and that the other was full of earth: choose which of them you like beft, and then you will fee that it is not 1, but your fortune has been ungrateful. Ruggieri chofe one. It was found to be the cafket full of earth. The king said to him with a smile, Now you may fee, Ruggieri, that what I told you of fortune is true; but for your fake, I will oppose her with all my ftrength. You have no intention, I am certain, to live in Spain; therefore I will offer you no preferment here, but that casket which fortune denied you, fhall be yours in despite of her carry it with you into your own country, fhew it to your friends, and neighbours, as my gift. to you; and you have my permiffion to boaft, that it is a reward of your virtues. JOHNS.

Of The Merchant of Venice the stile is even and easy, with few peculiaritice of diction, or anomalies of construction. The comic part raifes laughter, and the ferious fixes expectation. The probability of either one or the other ftory cannot be maintained. The union of two actions in one event

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