S. Dro. 'Faith, ftay here this night; they will furely do us no harm; you faw, they fpake us fair, gave us gold; methinks, they are fuch a gentle nation, that but for the mountain of mad flesh that claims marriage of me, I could find in my heart to ftay here ftill, and turn witch.

S. Ant. I will not ftay to-night for all the town; Therefore away, to get our ftuff aboard.

[Exeunt.

V. SCENE

I.

A CT V.

Ang. I

A Street, before a priory.

Enter the Merchant, and Angelo.

Am forry, Sir, that I have hinder'd you ;
But, I proteft, he had the chain of me,

Tho' moft difhoneftly he doth deny it.

Mer. How is the man eftcem'd here in the city?
Ang. Of very reverend reputation, Sir,

Of credit infinite, highly belov'd,

Second to none that lives here in the city;
His word might bear my wealth at any time.
Mer. Speak foftly: yonder, as I think, he walks.
Enter Antipholis and Dromio of Syracufe.

Ang. 'Tis fo; and that felf-chain about his neck,
Which he forfwore moft monftroufly to have.
Good Sir, draw near to me, I'll fpeak to him.
Signior Antipholis, I wonder much

That you would put me to this fhame and trouble;
And not without fome fcandal to yourself,
With circumftance and oaths fo to deny
This chain, which now you wear fo openly:
Befides the charge, the fhame, imprisonment,
You have done wrong to this my honeft friend;
Who, but for ftaying on our controverfy,
Had hoifted fail, and put to fea to-day.
This chain you had of me, can you deny it?
S. Ant. I think I had; I never did deny it.
Mer. Yes, that you did, Sir; and forfwore it too.
S. Ant. Who heard me to deny it, or forfwear it?

Mer. Thefe ears of mine, thou knoweft, did hear thee: Fie on thee, wretch! 'tis pity that thou liv'st

To walk where any honeft men refort.

S. Ant. Thou art a villain, to impeach me thus. I'll prove mine honour and my honefty Against thee prefently, if thou dar'ft ftand. Mer. I dare, and do defy thee for a villain.

[They draw.

Enter Adriana, Luciana, Courtezan, and others.

Adr. Hold, hurt him not, for God's fake; he is mad; Some get within him, take his fword away: Bind Dromio too, and bear them to my house.

S. Dro. Run, Mafter, run; for God's fake, take a This is fome priory; in, or we are spoil'd.

[houfe; [Exeunt to the priory.

Enter Lady Abbefs.

Abb. Be quiet, people; wherefore throng you hither? Adr. To fetch my poor distracted husband hence; Let us come in, that we may bind him faft, And bear him home for his recovery.

Ang. I knew he was not in his perfect wits. Mer. I'm forry now that I did draw on him. Abb. How long hath this poffeffion held the man? Adr. This week he hath been heavy, four, fad, And much much different from the man he was: But, till this afternoon, his paffion

Ne'er brake into extremity of rage.

Abb. Hath he not loft much wealth by wreck at fea? Bury'd fome dear friend? hath not elfe his eye Stray'd his affection in unlawful love?

A fin, prevailing much in youthful men,
Who give their eyes the liberty of gazing.
Which of thefe forrows is he fubject to?

Adr. To none of thefe, except it be the laft;
Namely, fome love that drew him oft from home.
Abb. You fhould for that have reprehended him.
Adr. Why, fo I did.

Abb. Ay, but not rough enough.

Adr. As roughly as my modefty would let me.
Abb. Haply, in private.

Adr. And in affemblies too.

Abb. Ay, but not enough.

Adr. It was the copy of our conference.
In bed, he flept not for my urging it;
At board, he fed not for my urging it;
Alone, it was the fubject of my theme;
In company, I often glanc'd at it;

Still did I tell him it was vile and bad.

Abb. And therefore came it that the man was mad. The venom clamours of a jealous woman

Poifon more deadly, than a mad dog's tooth.

It seems his fleeps were hinder'd by thy railing;
And thereof comes it that his head is light.

Thou fay'ft, his meat was fauc'd with thy upbraidings:
Unquiet meals make ill digeftions;

Thereof the raging fire of fever bred;

And what's a fever, but a fit of madness ?
Thou fay'ft, his fports were hinder'd by thy brawls.
Sweet recreation barr'd, what doth enfue,
• But moody and dull melancholy,

[Kinfman to grim and comfortlefs defpair t],
And at her heels a huge infectious troop
Of pale diftemperatures, and foes to life?
In food, in fport, and life-preferving reft,
To be disturb'd, would mad or man or beait:
The confequence is then, thy jealous fits
Have fcar'd thy husband from the use of wits.
Luc. She never reprehended him but mildly,
When he demean'd himself rough, rude, and wildly;
Why bear you these rebukes, and answer not?
Adr. She did betray me to my own reproof.

Good people, enter, and lay hold on him.

Abb. No, not a creature enter in my house. Adr. Then, let your fervants bring my husband forth. Abb. Neither; he took this place for fanctuary, And it fhall privilege him from your hands;

By copy here is to be understood abundance, fulness, as copia fignifies in Latin.

+ This line feems to be spurious.

Till I have brought him to his wits again,
Or lofe my labour in afsaying it.

Adr. I will attend my husband, be his nurse,
Diet his fickness, for it is my office;
And will have no attorney but myself;
And therefore let me have him home with me.
Abb. Be patient; for I will not let him stir,
Till I have us'd th' approved means I have,
With wholsome fyrups, drugs, and holy prayers,
To make of him a formal man again;

It is a branch and parcel of mine oath,
A charitable duty of my order;

Therefore depart, and leave him here with me.

Adr. I will not hence, and leave my hufband here; And ill it doth befeem your holinefs

To feparate the hufband and the wife.

Abb. Be quiet, and depart; thou shalt not have him.
Luc. Complain unto the Duke of this indignity.
[Exit Abbefs.

Adr. Come, go; I will fall proftrate at his feet,
And never rife, until my tears and prayers
Have won his Grace to come in person hither;
And take perforce my husband from the Abbefs.
Mer. By this, I think, the dial points at five:
Anon, I'm fure, the Duke himself in person
Comes this way to the melancholy vale;
The place of death and forry execution,
Behind the ditches of the abbey here.

Ang. Upon what cause ?

Mer. To fee a reverend Syracufan merchant,

Who put unluckily into this bay

Against the laws and ftatutes of this town,

Beheaded publicly for his offence.

Ang. See, where they come; we will behold his death.

`Luc. Kneel to the Duke, before he pass the abbey.

Enter the Duke, and Egeon bare-headed; with the headfman, and other officers.

Duke. Yet once again proclaim it publicly,

If friend will any

pay

the fum for him,

He fhall not die, so much we tender him.

Adr. Juftice, most facred Duke, against the Abbefs. Duke. She is a virtuous and a reverend lady;

It cannot be that she hath done thee wrong.

[band,

Adr. May it please your Grace, Antipholis my huf-
(Whom I made lord of me and all I had,
At your important letters), this ill day
A moft outrageous fit of madness took him;
That defp'rately he hurry'd through the ftreet,
With him his bondman all as mad as he,
Doing difpleasure to the citizens,

By rushing in their houses; bearing thence
Rings, jewels, any thing his rage did like.
Once did I get him bound, and fent him home,
Whilft to take order for the wrongs I went,
That here and there his fury had committed:
Anon, I wot not by what strong escape,

He broke from those that had the guard of him:
And, with his mad attendant mad himself,
Each one with ireful paffion, with drawn fwords,
Met us again, and, madly bent on us,
Chas'd us away; till, raifing of more aid,
We came again to bind them; then they fled
Into this abbey, whither we pursu'd them;
And here the Abbefs fhuts the gates on us,
And will not fuffer us to fetch him out,

Nor fend him forth, that we may bear him hence:
Therefore, moft gracious Duke, with thy command,
Let him be brought forth, and borne hence for help.
Duke. Long fince thy husband ferv'd me in my wars,
And I to thee engag'd a prince's word,

When thou didst make him mafter of thy bed,
To do him all the grace and good I could.
Go, fome of you, knock at the abbey-gate;
And bid the Lady Abbefs come to me.
I will determine this before I ftir.

SCENE IV. Enter a Messenger.

Me. O miftrefs, mistress, shift and fave yourself; My mafter and his man are both broke loose,

Beaten the maids a-row, and bound the Doctor,